November 9, 1503, Age of the Sea Circle
Three days after the grand celebratory banquet in Koldara, Kuma finally arrived in Pacific Kingdom to look for Orion and take him to the outskirts of Mary Geoise, where Dragon was waiting for them.
"Kuma! It's good to see that you're doing well!" Orion said as he jumped up and wrapped his arms around the gentle revolutionary's neck in a friendly manner.
To Orion, Kuma was one of the most precious people in this new world, and his best friend, so whenever he had the chance to see him, it filled him with genuine happiness.
"How have you been? I heard you just conquered your family's homeland—were there any problems?" Kuma asked with a kind smile.
"No problems at all! We had already carried out a thorough investigation before launching the attack, so everything was executed without any issues. Most importantly, we managed to keep enemy casualties to the absolute minimum, which is quite positive," Orion replied.
"That's good. Whenever it's possible to limit people's suffering, it's our duty to do so," Kuma said with his usual gentle expression, though now it carried a solemnity that had not been there years ago.
After years in the Revolutionary Army as one of its top leaders, he had matured greatly, and he was no longer the naïve monk who had once lived peacefully in Sorbet alongside Ginny. Now he was far more realistic and possessed a slightly more complex view of the world, though his essence had not changed, and he remained just as gentle as ever.
"Kumachi! Orion told me you'd be coming. It's been so long since your last visit. I know you're very busy, but don't forget that you have family here too," Ginny suddenly said, appearing on the scene with her small baby, Sam, in her arms.
Sam was almost a year old now, so he was far more active than the last time Kuma had seen him—which had been some six or seven months earlier. Upon seeing the gigantic Kuma, the little red-haired baby showed a cheerful expression, infected by his parents' good mood.
"Ah! Ginny, don't scold me the moment you see me. I really have been very busy these past months; we've been trying to stabilize several islands where the mafias were completely out of control," Kuma said with a submissive expression, lightly scratching the back of his head.
Ever since they were young, Ginny had been the dominant one in the dynamic of their relationship, as Kuma's gentle nature made him rather poor at confrontational situations, even though Ginny had no intention whatsoever of suppressing him.
It was simply that Ginny had a strong and extroverted personality, while Kuma was gentle and introverted, which caused their interactions to follow a fairly marked dynamic, with Ginny naturally taking on the dominant role.
Even so, that did not mean Kuma was weak-willed, as he was perfectly capable of becoming very serious—and aggressive—when it truly mattered.
"Look, Sam, it's Uncle Kuma. Give him a hug."
Ginny lifted her baby over her head and handed him to Kuma, who took him with a certain clumsiness, doing everything he could to avoid hurting the little one with his huge, awkward hands.
Of course, both Orion and Ginny knew that Kuma was not truly clumsy and that he would never hurt their baby, but the gentle revolutionary tended to be very hard on himself due to traumas from his childhood, which caused him to behave rather awkwardly when holding Sam in his arms.
Orion noticed Kuma's expression as he held the smiling Sam, and he could not help but let out a faint sigh. He knew that Kuma had still not freed himself from the chains he carried deep within his being, since the mission related to that matter on the system screen remained incomplete.
Deciding not to dwell on it for the moment, Orion made a mental note of the issue, thinking that after dealing with his more urgent matters over the coming months, he would need to focus on trying to complete the mission related to Kuma.
What he did not know was that this visit to Mary Geoise would cause the gears of fate to begin turning once more, pushing him into a situation with no return, in which the opportunity to finally complete the mission related to Kuma would present itself.
…
"Very well, then I'll be leaving now. I'll try to return as soon as possible, but if I'm unable to do so, I'll contact Shyarly to inform her of my situation," Orion said, looking at Lolo and the other subordinates who had come to see him off.
Many of them wanted to accompany him on his secret mission, but Orion had refused to take them, and had not even told them where he was going, as he did not want to cause unnecessary worry for his family.
"Understood. Then we'll postpone the execution of Ulrich Klein, just as you ordered," Lolo said, adjusting his glasses with a finger in a classic "intellectual character" gesture.
After the conquest of Koldara and having achieved his revenge against enemies who had once seemed invincible, Lolo had undergone significant changes in his mindset, becoming far more mature and stable, and now carrying an air of authority much heavier than before.
Like Kuma, Lolo had also carried certain chains due to traumas from his childhood, but after the conquest of Koldara he had finally been able to free himself from them. He had even begun to consider looking for a wife in order to continue the noble line of the Lysander family, something he had previously rejected with firm resolve.
Orion nodded at his uncle's words, saying nothing further on the matter. The reason Orion had postponed Klein's execution until the very last moment was because, now that he was going to Mary Geoise, he intended to search for his lost grandmother, Bianca.
If she was still alive there, he would do everything in his power to bring her back home, and in that case, the execution of the person who had pushed her into hell decades earlier would at least serve as a kind of consolation for her, allowing her to feel that at least a small measure of justice had finally been done.
Orion kissed little Sam, who was in Ginny's arms, and after bidding farewell to everyone present, he was forcefully swatted by Kuma, thus beginning his journey through the skies toward the sacred land of the Celestial Dragons.
…
November 15, 1503, Age of the Sea Circle
On a small island near the Red Line, Orion and Kuma descended gently from the sky after traveling nonstop for nearly six days. It was early morning, and the two newcomers were able to make out Dragon's silhouette in the distance, as he had been patiently waiting for them at this location.
"Dragon, it's good to see you're doing well," Orion said as he approached the revolutionary leader with a friendly smile.
"Mm," Dragon merely replied with a monosyllable, as was his habit, and after nodding toward Kuma in greeting, he went straight to the point.
"Thank you for coming this time to help me," the revolutionary leader said, bowing his head slightly once more in a solemn manner, before adding,
"What we need to do is rescue a child who has been taken prisoner in Mary Geoise. If you agree, I would like to depart immediately; I'll explain the details along the way."
Although Dragon had summoned them to help with the abduction of his son Luffy, he had not given them much information about it. They only knew the basic outline of the matter and lacked the details, so Kuma did not know that the child they were meant to rescue on this occasion was the son of the solemn revolutionary leader himself.
Orion had been able to infer it even without Dragon stating it outright, since he had encountered the revolutionary leader during the time he himself had been imprisoned in Mary Geoise years earlier, at which point he had also learned of the existence of Celestia Figarland and the young Luffy.
It could be said that Dragon was reluctant to share too much information about his private life, even with his closest allies such as Kuma and Orion, though in Orion's case it was not necessary for Dragon to say anything at all, since he already had all the information he needed to draw his own conclusions.
Kuma entered Orion's Pocket Dimension, while Orion and Dragon advanced toward the top of the Red Line where Mary Geoise was located, using the powers of Dragon's Devil Fruit, which allowed him to control gusts of wind.
On the way to Mary Geoise, Dragon explained the situation in detail, indicating that the plan had to be carried out now, while the defenses of the Domain of the Gods were low, since a large portion of the Celestial Dragons and the God's Knights had departed to carry out a Native Hunt on an island in the North Blue.
Orion listened carefully to all the information provided by Dragon, forming a fairly complete picture of the situation. However, just as he was planning the best course of action to increase the chances of success for the rescue mission, new notifications appeared on the system screen.
*Ding*
*New mission available*
*Mission 24 – Slaves of Mary Geoise
Description:
Fisher Tiger has returned to Mary Geoise to free the slaves suffering there. However, he overestimated his own capabilities, which resulted in his capture at the hands of the Celestial Dragons.
Objective: Rescue Fisher Tiger, who has been enslaved once more, and then help him fulfill his objective of freeing the other slaves of Mary Geoise.
Reward: SP, one (1) random special ability, increased Favorability with all Fish-men
(Rewards may vary depending on the final mission rating)*
Orion read the information displayed on the system screen and frowned slightly, as this new mission made things far more complicated. Originally, the mission to rescue Luffy was a stealth operation, but now the objective was to create chaos and rescue a large number of slaves.
Even so, Orion thought that this was a good opportunity to carry out such a mission, since Mary Geoise's defenses were weakened by the absence of a large number of Celestial Dragons and God's Knights.
After a brief moment of silence, contemplating the new situation, Orion looked at Dragon, who was still focused on providing information about the rescue mission for Luffy, and decided to explain his plan to him.
No matter what happened, he needed to speak with Dragon first, because if he acted in a way that could compromise the rescue of his son Luffy without informing him, their relationship would be completely ruined.
"Dragon… I have something to tell you."
…
In one of the Celestial Dragons' mansions within the Domain of the Gods, Fisher Tiger was locked inside a cell, deep within a dark dungeon.
After having been freed from his confinement at the hands of the Celestial Dragons with Orion's help years earlier, Fisher Tiger had spent countless days unable to forget what he had endured during his time as a prisoner of those detestable humans.
Day after day, that resentment and indignation had piled up, until he could no longer bear it and decided to do something about it. Thus, without informing anyone or asking for any kind of help, Fisher Tiger climbed the Red Line with incredible determination, intent on returning to Mary Geoise by surprise and rescuing the other slaves who were suffering as he once had.
His primary objective was to rescue the Fish-men who were treated like mere fish by the Celestial Dragons, though he had no intention of discriminating between species when it came to freeing captives, planning instead to liberate as many slaves as he possibly could while he was in Mary Geoise.
However, the outcome of his story was far from as glorious as he had hoped, because the moment he entered the Domain of the Gods after scaling the Red Line, he was captured almost immediately by the guards who protected the perimeter of the sacred land.
Now, once again, he found himself a prisoner of his enemies, without having managed to free even a single slave, a reality that was utterly heartbreaking for the indignant Fisher Tiger.
In truth, he had been quite lucky to come to Mary Geoise precisely when its defenses were at their weakest, but unfortunately his fate in this timeline had changed compared to the original story of One Piece, and that was due to Orion's intervention and the ensuing butterfly effect.
In the original story, Fisher Tiger would have escaped from Mary Geoise for the first time later than he did in this timeline, which would in turn cause him to return to free the other slaves at a later point as well, just in time to encounter Shanks, who would help him with his mission without anyone knowing.
This time, however, he did not encounter Shanks upon reaching the Domain of the Gods, but another guard instead, who immediately apprehended him, mistaking him for a slave attempting to escape.
Curiously enough, if Fisher Tiger had climbed the Red Line just two days later, he would have run into Shanks anyways, causing his plan to unfold exactly as it had in the original story, since Shanks had arrived in Mary Geoise at his family's request to keep watch over the situation in the absence of his father and brother.
Now, he was a prisoner once more, and everything seemed to indicate that he would not be able to fulfill his objective, and that he would once again have to endure the humiliation of being a slave and an experimental subject for the humans of this place.
From within his dark cell, Fisher Tiger gazed at the early morning sky through a small crack in one of the nearby walls, just in time to see a massive pillar of fire violently rising into the air, while the ground trembled slightly, shaking his cell.
…
In the Figarland mansion, the young Shanks was fighting against Dragon and Kuma, who had come to rescue Luffy.
Bang!
Shanks's kick slammed violently against Dragon's fist, forcing the latter to stagger back several steps as his face paled. The power of the most famous Rookie of this generation was not something that could be underestimated, and even the leader of the Revolutionary Army could not measure up to him.
Kuma concentrated a compressed energy bomb between his hands using the powers of his Devil Fruit and hurled it toward the red-haired Celestial Dragon, who vanished from the spot with a smile, then, with a swift motion, cut the small sphere of energy with his sword, making it disappear without leaving a trace.
"…How is that possible?" Kuma could not hide his surprise at seeing one of his most powerful attacks erased by Shanks without any trouble, and he began to think that their mission to rescue Luffy might fail.
They had not expected to encounter such a powerful enemy, since according to the information provided by Celestia, all the main members of the Figarland family had left Mary Geoise to take part in the Native Hunt.
Just as Dragon and Kuma were beginning to panic, a powerful voice resounded throughout the area.
"Kamusari!"
Orion appeared like a specter from the Pocket Dimension, unleashing one of his most powerful attacks, yet Shanks's expression did not change in the slightest, and with a swing of his sword he completely destroyed Orion's technique.
"Ha! I see you're still using that cheap imitation of Roger's technique. Want me to show you how it's really done?" Shanks said with a broad grin, before taking a step forward, focusing his Conqueror's Haki into his sword and releasing a tremendous wave.
"KAMUSARI!"
Dragon and Kuma immediately took up defensive stances to try to withstand the attack, while Orion stepped forward instead, drawing his cutlass Ace once more and using another of his techniques.
"Thirty-Six Styles, Dimensional Slash!"
The two attacks collided violently in midair, producing a massive explosion, and for a brief instant a stalemate formed between the two techniques. However, only a fleeting moment passed before Shanks's attack completely shattered the Dimensional Slash, surging toward Orion at tremendous speed.
"Fuck!" Orion said with clear irritation as he activated his Tekkai and took a defensive stance, coating his body in Armament Haki.
Fortunately for him, before the attack could strike his body, Shanks moved once again, launching a new sword strike that canceled out his previous attack and preserved the physical integrity of all three men.
"Well then, that's enough playing around for now, haha. What are you doing here, Orion?" Shanks said with a smile, without the slightest hint of hostility.
Orion let out a relieved sigh when Shanks finally stopped attacking them, though he could not help feeling a bit irritated, since he knew Shanks had simply been playing with them for his own amusement.
The difference in power between himself and someone who stood on the very highest rungs of this world's hierarchy made Orion feel a certain sense of helplessness, but at the same time it also fueled his desire to become stronger as soon as possible. Perhaps that was precisely the effect Shanks wanted to provoke in him, and that was why he always acted in a similar manner whenever they met.
Orion sheathed his cutlass and said with a serious expression,
"Don't pretend you don't know what's going on, Shanks. We've come to take Luffy out of Mary Geoise."
Shanks's expression turned serious for a brief instant, causing the three men to tense their muscles involuntarily, but almost immediately he returned to his usual carefree look and, nodding, said,
"Alright. My aunt was waiting for you. It's good that you arrived before it was too late. She won't be able to hold on much longer."
Truth be told, Shanks knew the entirety of Dragon's history with Celestia, since his relationship with his aunt was quite good. In the Figarland mansion, which was filled with detestable individuals, Celestia only maintained a good relationship with this red-haired nephew who had spent much of his life outside the harsh environment of Mary Geoise, and that was why he was different from the other Celestial Dragons.
"If you know time is so short, why waste it attacking us pointlessly?" Orion said as he began walking deeper into the mansion to go see Celestia.
"I wouldn't say it's pointless. After all, I can't just let you take Luffy right under my nose without putting up some resistance, can I? That would look suspicious. Maybe you don't care, but I have a reputation to maintain here, at least for the time being."
Shanks restrained his smile somewhat as he explained himself to Orion, gesturing around at their surroundings, which had been partially destroyed by the earlier fight.
With this level of destruction, Shanks would be able to come up with some excuse for his father and brother when they returned, although it would still be suspicious that someone as powerful as him had allowed his enemies to escape.
In any case, from Shanks's point of view, a bad alibi was still better than having no alibi at all. He could not truly prevent them from taking Luffy, since that would go against Celestia's wishes, so this was the best he could do to keep up appearances.
Shanks had a grand plan in motion, one he had been developing for years, and he needed to maintain his status as a Celestial Dragon for a while longer to achieve his goal. Even so, he was endangering that entire plan simply to allow Celestia's wish for her son to grow up in a normal environment to come true.
That was the kind of man the pirate Shanks was.
Shanks nodded with a smile toward Dragon and Kuma, who were still surprised by the interaction between him and Orion. Then, regaining his composure, they followed Orion deeper into the mansion, where Celestia lay bedridden on a large bed, unable to move a single muscle.
Her illness had progressed greatly since the last time Orion had seen her, with large amounts of crystals covering her body and leaving very little healthy skin visible. It was clear that she was on the brink of death, and that she had endured until now through sheer force of will alone, waiting for Dragon to come and take Luffy away.
When she saw Orion and the others enter the room, Celestia showed a relieved smile and tried to speak, though she did not have enough strength to produce even a sound.
Dragon rushed to her side like a gust of wind and took her hand with a sorrowful expression, whispering words of comfort, telling her that he would not allow Luffy to become a Celestial Dragon and that she should not worry about their little son.
Orion, Shanks, and Kuma did not interrupt the couple's reunion, giving them enough space to speak privately from a distance.
"Orion, next year I'm going to visit your kingdom," Shanks suddenly said, no longer smiling.
"What are you planning?" Orion asked cautiously, because although he had a good relationship with Shanks, he did not know whether receiving him in his kingdom would be a good thing. After all, the pirate and Celestial Dragon was mysterious, and he could cause all sorts of trouble.
"When I visit you, I'll tell you… maybe. Don't worry, it's nothing bad, I just need you to help me with something… probably."
Shanks did not sound very confident in his own words, but Orion decided not to pry further for the moment, since Dragon had finished speaking with Celestia and had given her a farewell kiss filled with sadness and tenderness.
Stepping forward, Orion placed a hand on Dragon's shoulder and said,
"Dragon, let me examine Celestia. I can't promise I'll be able to cure her, but I'll do everything I can."
Ever since he had obtained his special ability Room—derived from the Ope Ope no Mi—Orion had been thinking about trying to treat Celestia's condition, though until now he had not had the opportunity to do so.
Even so, according to his initial calculations—based on the last time he had examined her during his stay in Mary Geoise—he had believed there would be more time before she reached this stage of her illness, which made Orion suspect that something had happened during the past year to accelerate the progression of Celestia's mysterious disease.
Dragon nodded at Orion's words, and Orion stepped closer to Celestia as he activated his new ability.
"Room."
A sphere appeared, enveloping the two of them, and Orion began to analyze Celestia's condition in depth, while simultaneously attempting to heal her.