140 Three Dragons I
Marie Geoise, Pangea Castle
In the beautiful but empty space of this castle with the butterflies as a witness, the dark silhouette, ruler of this world, stood rooted on its spot watching the acquaintance that had technically 'teleported' into the secluded room that many didn't have access to. Next to this person stood another individual, this one standing upright as if his missing bleeding arm was nothing more than an illusion.
Having arrived not too long ago was Dumas de Montecristo who had clearly gone through a rough fight and loss.
"Took you long enough, Garling... Mu was starting to get impatient".
"If you may excuse me my lord. The events that took place in Wano this time were without precedents".
Garling was carrying two bodies that he dropped in the Mervellus garden that was soon stained with blood... his eyes fixed briefly on the other knight in the room and he resisted the urge to release a mocking smirk. He knew he had been defeated, but didn't think it would be this bad.
Their lord walked with slow steps towards the two bodies lying on the ground. The Knight Donquixote Cervantes and the Yonko's scorched piece of flesh, Kaido.
As if sensing his snark, Dumas frowned, "You should know that woman's 4th Haki sets her apart from the rest of the knights".
"You don't need to create excuses... I know exactly how dangerous Mihawk is. Lord Imu, the second knight has resigned… as it turns out, she was by Dracule Veyron's side all this time".
"Did you doubt it Garling? Mu has known this for the longest while. As long as she retains that position even if she's not a knight, she still holds strategic value for us. Let it be… you have done well bringing Mu these two~ especially Kaido, who would have thought the day would come in which this creature would die... Dracule Veyron-"
"My lord, Dracule Veyron's threat can't be overlooked anymore. We should attack as a whole in the briefest opportunity" Dumas interrupted, bringing up a matter he wished to bring for the longest while.
"You're unusually talkative" Garling remarked, earning a snark from the dark knight. "It is not as simple, Lord Imu… by his side, there are Whitebeard, Shanks and even Silvers Rayleigh. I have personally witnessed the power of his group. His pieces are plenty and strong. Even the Devil Child, Nico Robin has been transformed into a devastating foe thanks to him".
"Mu knows exactly how threatening Nico Robin can be. Dracule Veyron is a very special individual... he has a deep understanding of things and can teach those around him the fundamentals of this world... knowledge at the end of the day is still power. How curious, it is as if he could see far beyond what we can. What do you think, Garling?".
"I'm afraid my judgement of him is not as deep. But he's extremely strong and can destroy an island easily... if that power were to be unleashed in Marie Geoise-"
"Do you think Mu can't resist his powers?~".
There was so much confidence and challenge in that statement, that Garling and Dumas both knelt with their heads low.
"That is impossible, Lord Imu. Even if he presents as an astonishing foe, you'd still surely have the upper hand" They both said in unison without the slightest doubt in their hearts, even Garling after all he had seen Veyron do, still believed this.
"It is good that you both understand. Hum… this is certainly a complex situation. This is exactly why Mu told you a long time ago... that he was a threat that needed to be erased.
What Mu didn't expect... was for him to become so strong so quickly. It has been but a few 'seconds' and yet he has already become someone Mu has to personally address. What a delight".
"I apologise for my incompetence..." Garling reflected, "If I had known where he was located all these years... we're still unable to pinpoint the location of Shandora and Amazon Lily".
"You didn't know huh?~" Imu smirked, a hazy yet threatening aura enveloping Garling who maintained his ground.
"... I didn't"
"Very well, it is safe to assume attacking would expose two different fronts for our adversaries. Monkey D. Dragon and his revolutionaries have been lurking. Not many know but his research on the island's magnetic fields is starting to become a bother as for Veyron, aside from his main allies we're unable to ascertain his warfare capabilities or the size of his army so long as we don't have spies in Shandora and Amazon Lily, this has to be resolved".
"What do you wish for us to do? If you order I shall assemble all knights and storm Rusukaina immediately" Garling suggested.
"Rusukaina is not Dracule Veyron's main headquarters. Even if we used the mother flame to destroy it all we could achieve at most is earn his retaliation and destroy his main income of resources, although this is profitable for us, it is a card better used later, at the perfect moment~".
"If you allow me, Lord Imu. I believe Dracule Veyron has a massive weakness which could be exploited wisely by us knights" Dumas asserted with confidence.
"Oh?" Imu attention was earned and even Garling furrowed his brows, expecting his answer.
"I couldn't help but notice that many of his allies are powerful but they're also... women".
"Women?~"
"That is correct, Dracule Veyron seems to be extremely fond of women. In fact, he knows they're his weakness, that's why he doesn't shy on giving them power and increasing their capability to defend themselves" The knight summarised.
"It is a very interesting take. What do you think, Garling?".
The commander was starting to feel a bit spooky, it wasn't like Imu to keep asking his opinion over and over again, most of the time he was very selfish and authoritative.
"... I believe Dumas is correct. This time what motivated him to act was his wives being in danger: Boa Hancock, Boa Sandersonia and Boa Marigold. He is known for not stepping out of his workshop regardless of anything that could be happening in the world and yet he did it for her sake, just like he did it for Nico Robin's sake three years ago. How to exploit this weakness, however, I don't know... that aside we do have another important piece of intel on him which we could use for our offensive".
"Should we remove Stussy from the CP0 or take her hostage?" Dumas continued, earning a sigh from their lord.
"You two may be extremely strong but are severely lacking in the arts of strategy. Why would Mu get rid of the pieces we know he holds? He wholeheartedly believes Stussy is his spy in the world government, let it be such... once the opportunity presents itself we shall feed her the information we wish so that she can relay it to him, causing the result we want... do you think that boy is a fool after all this? He may be aware that we know Stussy is his spy. Don't underestimate him..."
"As expected of Lord Imu, you can see far beyond".
"We should have two priorities right now. One is to get a spy among his lines... as for the other... He has been getting rather boisterous, showcasing his power without consequences and believing that there is only fear in the world government's heart when it comes to him. This war in Wano should have boosted his confidence considerably~ Mu shall let him know. In this world… he isn't absolute-"
The person's slow steps resonated across the room, landing in front of the charred corpse of the Yonko and placing their palm on it with the crimson eyes glaring at it with what resembled resentment.
"Don't you think so too, Kaido?"
RUMBLE!!!!!
A gust of darkness manifested from their palm and engulfed him, making both Garling and Dumas stand up abruptly.
"Alive?" (Garling)
"Kaido?!" (Dumas)
They weren't powerful for nothing, there was no life left in this being as far as they could sense, but their senses couldn't possibly compare to their lord's.
"No, he is definitely dead, however… you should know better than anyone, Dumas. A person only truly dies once their WILL is gone~ even if their spirit withers and scatters".
"..." Garling glared at Dumas who remained silent and refused to look at the commander's face.
"As for this little fellow... his will to live is second to none, even keeping his spirit inside this body when the flesh is long dead. He may have thought in the past that the reason he couldn't die was that he was just too strong to die... it was the will to live from the start which made him this strong. Who would have thought that his only weakness would also be his blessing?"
<Awaken! >
WHOOOOOSHHH!!!
"It is too soon for you to perish, as a player of this chessboard you're still necessary. This devil fruit needs merely a slight push… I could make you into my toy, but more than half of your devastating power comes from your will. You have more use to me as a player than as a soulless toy".
RUMBLE!!
POOOOMMMM!!!
A great explosion was heard, little did the two knights know that this sound and shook was nothing more than a heartbeat. The first heartbeat of a beast that birthed like a phoenix from the ashes.
From one moment to the other the temperature in the whole garden began to increase exponentially to the point Dumas and Garling brandished their swords, ready for anything... the aura being exuded by this being was not a joking matter. In order to counter-react Garling released a wave of Conqueror Haki that was on par with the creature's.
Like black lava melting back into shape, Kaido's body began to reassemble.
"WORORO… WORORORO…"
But it wouldn't reassemble the same way. Bigger than ever, heavier than ever, more threatening than ever and with a cloud of black flames materialising around his arms and the back of his neck. Six horns, black scales and shiny lightning-purple eyes.
The Yonko Kaido was back, more thirsty to fight than ever... and with a will to live way stronger than ever before.
RUMBLE!!!!!
Aside from the two in the room, six more auras began irradiating from all over the castle causing him to furrow his brows and laugh even more.
"WORORORORORORO!!! THERE ARE A BUNCH OF STRONG BASTARDS IN THIS CASTLE... DRACULE VEYRON AND NOW ALL OF YOU. WHERE WERE YOU ALL WHEN I WAS DYING OF BOREDOM!? WHY DIDN'T YOU COME AND FIGHT ME!?".
RUMBLE!!!
His Conqueror Haki was just devastating, like the will of an ancient being who just awakened.
His gaze instinctively looked down at the shadowy silhouette standing regally in front of him while one by one the knights began materialising in front of him, all brandishing their swords, ready for slaughter.
Never had such an unprecedented threat stepped right inside Pangea Castle. They saw each other, they saw the corpse of Donquixote Cervantes lying on the soil, dead... there were a lot of questions, but there was also a responsibility.
Their lord raised their hand to stop any foolish attack as black flames began to materialise around Kaido's body.
"All knights retreat. The awakening of a mythical zoan is always a sight to behold. It seems you're not going to be a friendly puppy. That said, Kaido… Mu won't allow you to run rampant in our domain... THERE IS A WAY BETTER SPOT FOR US TO GO~".
"MU?".
RUMBLE!!
Imu's body began to transform into a gigantic creature just as Kaido's body began to transform as well into a massive humanoid dragon with pitch-black scales and six horns.
An eastern dragon with black scales and purple lightning around him, his size so massive that the castle couldn't take it.
The world changed all of a sudden and the nobles of Marie Geoise saw something, an unprecedented meteorological event, black rain. Similarly, another figure appeared, a western dragon... or to be more accurate, a pitch-black shadow as black as the void itself, with the shape of a dragon and two massive red eyes.
"Lord Imu!" The five elders broke into the palace only to see what was going on, too late. The two dragons flew through the roof of the castle towards the outside.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMM!!!
"WHOEVER YOU ARE, DON'T EXPECT ME TO SHOW GRATITUDE!" Kaido billowed towards the Western Dragon which didn't look like it was flying, instead... it was as if it was completely detached from reality itself.
"GRATITUDE IS UNNECESSARY, KAIDO. IF YOU WISH TO REPAY ME... ENTERTAIN ME!".
"..."
"SINCE YOU WISH TO LIVE AND HAVE FUN… HOW ABOUT WE GO AND FIND HIM… THE THIRD LIGHTNING DRAGON!?~"
"DRACULE VEYRON..."
"THAT'S RIGHT, LET'S KILL EACH OTHER AND START A MASSIVE WAR LIKE THIS WORLD HAS NEVER SEEN!".
