Terrorist Ambition

When Dante thought about the Revolutionary Army, he thought about a guy with an insanely high bounty who was a thorn in the World Governments side, and that was about it.

Either they were terrible at being rebels against a system, or they were simply good at keeping a low profile. Could also be both, but Dante figured they had to have some issue fundamentally or else the World Government would have toppled over by now.

As of now, standing on Cunolan, Dante thought about if he'd be able to meet Luffy's dad and see what all the fuss was about. 'I mean, who even calls their kid Dragon? ...well Garp obviously but thats besides the point, it's an odd name for a baby.' He thought, perplexed at how such a noble man could give a child such an edgy name.

Anyways, the venue that the Revolutionary Army had chosen for their introduction with Dante was about as bland and unassuming as could be. A simple uninhabited island that bore no distinguishing features, the perfect place for a covert meeting. All that there was to note for the island was the light forestry.

The problem was that the island wasn't exactly tiny, it would take quite a few minutes to cover the scope of the land. And the Revolutionary Army hadn't jumped out at Dante yet. So, he decided to create a test.

It was a test to see how willing the Revolutionary Army was to meet with him. Though, in reality, it was an excuse for Dante to sit down and take a nap for a while. He mentally told himself that it was necessary for establishing a prosperous relationship.

With the test established and having now begun, Dante set up shop, using the stump of a tree to lean his back against and enjoy some rest and relaxation. He closed his eyes, and when he next awoke, the Revolutionary Army had found him.

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Dante's absence had caused a much greater distress to Hancock than she initially expected. To her, it was as though the sun had separated from the world, as though life had been torn from the cosmic duality it held with death, as though her soul had been torn asunder. Nothing was the same, nothing would ever be the same. The future seemed bleak and hopeless.

She tossed and turned in her luxurious bed, covered in the finest of silk sheets, a hand on her forehead as she whined in agony, despair on her face. She had kept her dismay from Nyon in a bid to not expose a much weaker side to the already confused Kuja that followed her wholeheartedly, and as such had no solution to a problem that only seemed to get worse as time passed.

Of course, the only issue was that Nyon had seen this coming a mile away. She was merely waiting for the time Hancock would give in and finally seek her help, however now - watching from the doorway - she realised that the fangs had sunken deeper than she expected. The Snake Empress was indeed down bad. A tragedy had befallen her.

With a sigh, Nyon prepared herself for what could be either the most awkward conversation she would have for years to come, or the shortest depending on if the Empress was willing to even consider the idea that she could hold affection for a man.

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Day by day, hour by hour, Sengoku realised slowly that he may have made a mistake. An extremely large error. He had asked that Kuzan be sent to address the alert on Sabaody, as the man was on a mission that was relatively worthless to the Marine cause overall and had free time to spare.

Of course, Vegapunk had other plans. They wanted to test their latest experiment, the recently healed Akainu - for what reason Sengoku had no idea. He had no choice but to obey after Vegapunk threatened to pull support from the Marines.

It clearly had not paid off, though. Several eye witness reports had come forth stating that the Red Devil had been spotted, at exactly the same time that Akainu had been engaging the Straw Hats who attacked a Celestial Dragon.

Sengoku held his head in his hands and briefly considered screaming into his palms, though he realised it was simply a waste of energy. He had one thing he could do in this situation. Picking up his personal Mushi, he directly began to call Vegapunk. A few moments later, the call was answered by a robotic voice.

"How may I be of assistance, Fleet Admiral?"

"Explain to me, right now, why you sent Sakazuki out early before I have you arrested and hung. Your actions can be considered as directly against Marine interests."

"Hmm. I had expected you would call in such a manner, though you seem to be affected much more emotionally than I had initially thought. Strange."

The line went silent, followed by a brief sound of scribbling against paper.

"The reason I sent Admiral Sakazuki out despite the best interests of his health was simple. I wanted to bear direct witness to the Red Devil's abilities in person."

"That doesn't make sense, Vegapunk. Unless you watched from a cubby hole like the rat you are, I doubt you could've seen what happened. There's no relation between the two things you mentioned."

Vegapunk hummed in response.

"I had figured your age was becoming a detriment to your capabilities, though this mental deficiency goes beyond such an explanation. Should I point it out for you, Fleet Admiral? Before he left my laboratory, I had placed a camera into the jaw replacement I had given Sakazuki. It was a hasty job, though the data I retrieved through it was invaluable."

Vegapunk sighed, as if trying to emulate an emotion similar in any way to sympathy.

"The loss of an Admiral is certainly heartbreaking, however his death is compensated through the footage we have acquired of the Red Devil in action."

"You had me deploy one of my most valuable men, a man who was heavily injured not 3 weeks ago, all so you could gather information on Dante? And then you feign sadness over his death? I should have you shot, you bastard!"

"Alas, you won't. Im afraid you are utterly powerless. My position is much more important than yours. After all, a Fleet Admiral can be replaced as easily as ones boots. My mind, though? It is an invaluable resource, the greatest weapon currently in this world, more potent than any Devil Fruit or Sword. Besides, this hiccup had paid off considerably."

Sengoku reeled back in shock at how quickly Vegapunk had dismantled any hope he had of punishing them for the crimes they had committed in sending Akainu to die. It was utterly humiliating. Though, he was confused on what these possible benefits could be that Vegapunk mentioned.

"Have I attained your interest yet, Fleet Admiral? What I have in my hands is the first recorded footage of the Red Devil in active combat. My viewing of the recording has already excited my mind beyond anything I have encountered in years. You cannot imagine the scope of abnormality Dante represents."

Sengoku ground out his next words with vitriol and malice, barely restrained fury that had been reserved recently for only Dante.

"Show me."

"I'm afraid I will do no such thing. I have not finished with my analysis of the footage yet. However, I will respect your wishes and present it to you when my observations are complete. As of now, allow me to explain something to you about what I have seen."

Vegapunk paused to ensure Sengoku had time to process and prepare himself for what they were about to announce.

"The Red Devil Dante is of far greater power than we could possibly have predicted. Even with hours spent watching individual frames pass by, I cannot define what Devil Fruit he currently holds. And that makes him far more dangerous than any pirate currently alive. After all, the unknown is always of greater threat than the known."

Another pause.

"Furthermore, it seems as though the sword used in the footage is of unique craftsmanship, as there is no mention or record of a sword akin to it throughout thousands of years of history. My astonishment however does not lie in this. Instead, it is focused on the tightness of his grip on the sword. It was relaxed. Despite seeming visibly angry, Dante never once tightened his clutch of the sword. Do you understand what this means, Fleet Admiral?"

Sengoku reached a conclusion on his own that alarmed him. He had always wondered where Dante's abnormal confidence had come from and firmly considered him a powerful pirate far above the average, however now his assessment was being changed. After a moment, he finally responded to Vegapunk.

"He was holding back. He never felt in danger. No, it was all just a game to him. He arrived to that battle with no worries of possibly losing it. That bastard..."

"For good reason. After all, no documentation has been made, nor any witness recounting, of the Red Devil being seen injured. Not even a scratch has been placed on him. Furthermore, the total time of the battle lasted at only 47 seconds accounting for the execution of Sakazuki, though without it the encounter lasted a brief 16 seconds. To dispose of a Shichibukai and an Admiral in such short time is no small feat."

Vegapunks voice gained a tone to it that Sengoku couldn't quite distinguish, though it sounded slightly unhinged, despite being robotic in nature.

"I find myself toiling over the nature of Dante's power more than I have pondered any questions in my brief life. His every action is a contradiction, his abilities go against every conceived Fruit we know of in this world, his demeanour is that of someone on a simple vacation as opposed to a man fighting for his life. In this one recording, I have been given hundreds of questions and so few answers. Do you understand now, Fleet Admiral? Sakazuki was a necessary sacrifice, because through his death we have attained something we never conceived the value of. A true image of the Red Devil's strength. And through extensive observation, it seems prevalent that we now have a reason to be afraid."

Sengoku hung up after that. He was shaken by the call, against his best attempts not to be. He had seen the vilest actions of humanity over his long career in the Marines, yet Vegapunk always terrified him.

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When Dante awoke, he expected to bear witness to a parade, a welcome party of epic proportions. Instead, he found himself surrounded by a party of regular looking individuals pointing weapons at him - be it bladed, blunt or just simply a gun.

Raising an eyebrow as he slowly got up from his previous position against the tree stump, Dante stretched his arms briefly, cracking his back as he looked across the group of people pointing weapons at him.

"Is this the usual greeting? Or am I just that special?"

"It's neither. You're an intruder. I suggest you stay still and avoid resisting."

The nondescript bald male leading the group, rifle in hand, spoke down to Dante as he prepared to take Dante back to the base established on the island, be it to imprison or execute was entirely unknown by now.

Dragon had not had time to tell his troops of the arrival of Dante, the meeting had been purely happenstance and he had asked the operative with him to persuade Dante while he watched over his son.

Nobody aside from the woman who spoke to Dante and the Dragon himself were aware. So, his reception was to be expected if a man of Dante's looks suddenly arrived on the island of your terrorist hideout.

As Dante began to slowly reach his arms behind him to unholster his pistols and dispose of the aggressors he faced, a faint voice spoke only a few words, and all obeyed. Well, all except Dante.

"Stand down."

Being the rational man he was, and taking advantage of the lowered weapons of the Revolutionary Army, Dante drew his trusty sidearms and pointed them towards the group. Understandably, each of them began to panic at the sudden shift in power dynamic.

At that moment, the main attraction himself finally revealed his presence, walking through the crowd and lowering the hood covering his head as he gazed upon Dante.

"I apologise for the inconvenient circumstances of our meeting, Dante. I did not expect you to come so soon, nor in such a relaxed manner."

Dante smiled and placed an arm over his shoulder, still tightly clutching the pistols, as he addressed the Dragon in person.

"No shit. You took long enough."

"As I said, my apologies. However, I believe we have some... business to discuss."

"Lead the way, buddy. I ain't the professional terrorist out of the two of us." Dante quickly whispered under his breath.

"Not yet, at least."

Dragon either didn't hear, or paid no mind to it, because his next action was to dismiss the several soldiers watching Dante's every movement, calling the half-devil a 'honoured guest'. If it was supposed to make Dante feel special, it didn't quite succeed given his first impression of these people was that of a rifle barrel. His trust wasn't earned so easily.

After a few minutes of silent walking, Dragon lead Dante towards a patch of forestry that was indistinguishable from the rest of the island, aside from the secret military base that was hidden underneath both it and the rest of the island too, with Cunolan having been turned into an outpost for the Army long ago.

Dragon turned to Dante before he opened the entrance to his bunker, placing all of his chips on the idea that Dante would be willing to aid them in their work and that he wasn't just a psychopath with a lucky streak. He held out a hand, clearly offering a handshake.

"Allow me to formally introduce you to the Revolutionary Army. If all goes well, you will be seeing a lot more of us."

Well, Dante couldn't quite refuse the handshake after such a heartfelt declaration. He smiled, shook Dragon's hand and took the first step on his path to becoming a terrorist.