The Central Plaza.
The canyon was a meat grinder.
The Roger Pirates crashed into the plaza from the east. The Rocks Pirates (Shiki, John, Silver Axe) surged in from the west.
They met in the middle, and violence erupted.
"SHAKKY IS MINE!!"
"GET OUT OF THE WAY!!"
Blades clashed. Haki flared.
Roger locked blades with Golden Lion Shiki. Sparks flew as Ace met Oto and Kogarashi.
"Rayleigh! GO!" Roger roared, grinning through the exertion. "I've got the Flying Lion! Shakky is up to you!!"
Scopper Gaban crossed axes with Silver Axe.
"Go, Rayleigh! Don't keep a lady waiting!"
Rayleigh didn't waste a second. He moved like a bolt of lightning, weaving through the chaos. He reached the reinforced door under the podium.
BANG!
He kicked the door open.
"Shakky!!"
Silence.
The room was empty. Broken Seastone cuffs lay on the floor.
Rayleigh fell to his knees, his heart sinking into the abyss.
"She's... gone..."
He touched the cold shackles.
"Was she rescued? Or..."
He couldn't finish the thought.
Roger and Gaban sensed Rayleigh's distress. They disengaged and rushed to the cell.
The fighting stopped. Both crews stared at the empty room.
"Shakky is gone."
"The Devil Fruits... are gone too."
Silence stretched across the plaza.
Captain John squinted at the empty chests. He glanced at Shiki. They exchanged a look of sudden realization.
'York.'
'It has to be York. That bastard moved first.'
'He has the woman. He has the fruits.'
A silent conversation passed between the Rocks executives.
'If we tell Roger, he'll chase York. We'll have to fight him for the prize.'
'But if we lie... we can hunt York down ourselves and take everything.'
Greed unified them instantly.
"It's over!" Captain John threw his hands up, feigning despair. "Shakky is gone! This island is worthless!"
"WUWUWUWU!!"
Golden Lion Shiki fell to the ground, pounding the dirt with comical grief.
"MY SHAKKY-CHAN! She's been taken by the Celestial Dragons! Oh, the humanity!!"
"Let's go," Silver Axe said, looking dejected. "There's nothing left here."
The Rocks Pirates turned and walked away, shoulders slumped, heading back toward the canyon entrance.
Roger frowned. He looked at Rayleigh.
"They're giving up too easily."
"They're lying," Rayleigh said, his eyes sharpening. "They know who took her. Follow them!"
The Roger Pirates charged.
But Shiki was waiting for this.
He reached out and touched the canyon wall.
"Lion's Majesty: Earth Bind!"
RUMBLE!
The mountain groaned. Millions of tons of rock collapsed, sealing the canyon shut behind the Rocks Pirates.
"HAHAHA! IDIOTS!" Shiki's voice echoed through the rubble. "GO FIND YOUR OWN WOMAN!"
"HURRY!" Shiki shouted to his crew, dropping the act. "FIND YORK! THAT BASTARD TOOK EVERYTHING!!"
Roger stared at the blocked path.
"Damn it! We've been played!"
He drew Ace. "Stand back! I'm cutting it open!"
WHOOSH!
Before he could swing, a shadow fell over him.
"ROGER!!! I FOUND YOU!!"
"Oh no..." Roger looked up, his face twisting in annoyance.
Monkey D. Garp fell from the sky like a meteor, fist cocked.
"YOU'RE NOT GETTING AWAY THIS TIME!!"
"BEAST! GARP!" Roger screamed. "READ THE ROOM!!"
BOOM!
The plaza exploded.
The Avatar of Mu.
Meanwhile, the Rocks Pirates (Shiki, John, Silver Axe) rushed out of the canyon, heading for the town.
BOOM!
They ran straight into a shockwave.
They tumbled backward, coughing in the dust.
Ahead of them, Rocks D. Xebec was in the air, his blade clashing with a floating Woman in Military Uniform.
The sky split. The earth shattered.
"What the hell..." Captain John gasped, wiping blood from his lip. "A woman who can match the Captain?!"
The Possessed Woman disengaged. She floated higher, looking down at the new arrivals.
"The Rocks Pirates," she said. Her voice was distorted, echoing with ancient, hollow malice.
She raised her hand. Dark energy swirled, and a Black Magic Book materialized in her grasp.
The cover was bound in unknown leather, pulsating with a dark aura.
She opened the book. The pages flipped on their own.
"Listen well. From this moment on... you belong to Mu."
"Betray Rocks. Capture his child. Kill his allies."
"In exchange... I grant you Immortality and Power."
She began to chant.
"Devil's Contract: Black Reversal Domination."
She flicked her wrist. A Pentagram Magic Circle glowing with ominous purple light appeared beneath the pirates' feet.
"NANI?!"
The ground turned into a black swamp.
"I'M SINKING!!"
Captain John and Silver Axe screamed. The shadow grabbed them like tar, dragging them down.
Golden Lion Shiki reacted on instinct.
TAP.
He touched his legs. Gravity released him. He shot into the sky, hovering just out of range of the circle.
"Whoa..." Shiki wiped cold sweat from his forehead. "That was close."
Below him, the nightmare began.
The circle rotated.
CRACK. SNAP.
John and Silver Axe screamed as their bodies were twisted.
They weren't just sinking. They were changing.
Horns sprouted from their skulls. Their skin turned gray and rocky. Their eyes rolled back, replaced by glowing white voids. Their minds were erased, replaced by the will of the book.
"ROAR~~~!!"
Bestial roars tore from their throats. They climbed out of the shadow swamp, but they were no longer men.
They were hulking, mindless demons.
Shiki stared down in horror.
"What kind of... bizarre magic is this..."
"John? Silver Axe?"
The monsters looked up at Shiki. They snarled, their humanity gone.
Shiki turned pale.
"Okay. I'm leaving."
He flew away at top speed, leaving his former comrades to their cursed fate.
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