𝔸 ℂ𝕠𝕝𝕕 ℝ𝕖𝕒𝕝𝕚𝕤𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟

Chapter 11

"remember your sole purpose in life now is to serve your master, the great and magnanimous saint Charlos, so learn your place beneath his boots you gutter trash" Methias had spat at him as Luffy was dragged back to his cell. They had patched up his back only enough to stop him from bleeding out and he was dropped face down onto the rough floor. When he awoke, his mouth was dry all the way to the back of his throat, and the sun had almost set as it still threw whimsical rays of light over the horizon like streamers.

Luffy chuckled, just as he had as Methias said those words to him, it came out raspy and dry as if his throat was lined with dust. They really didn't get it, no matter how much pain they put him through, no matter how many scars they put on his skin it wouldn't matter in the long run, he would still get back to his crew and he would still become the king of the pirates.
———

Days passed by in a similar fashion to the first, dragged away, beaten with various methods, haphazardly patched up and thrown into the cell with only a cup of muddy water and stale bread to sustain himself. Luffy admitted that it was a bad situation, but he'd been through the same thing many times in his life, even as a child he was thrown into the jungle to survive on his own and Luffy was stronger because of it. He would make this just like the jungle of his childhood, it would not break him, would not change his dream, and just like any other challenging situation, it would only serve to make him more powerful.

Saint Charlos had long since become bored of watching Methias fail to produce even a whimper from Luffy, but even so Methias came everyday with a new heinous method of torture. Some that would leave scars, some that bruised him beyond recognition, and some that would make weaker men crumble from the pressure, falling into the depths of their own mind for some form of protection.

Luffy sat within his cell, tearing the stale bread with his teeth and chewing hard enough that his jaw clicked with the effort. He drank the muddy water, now used to the grainy, clay-like after taste, and wasn't surprised to see Methias for the second time today "Luffy I'd like to introduce you to Doctor Vegapunk." Luffy's eyes widened at the mention of his name.

He looked up and his eyes were met with that of an old man, his hair was long, white, wiry and spread out in every direction. He was the perfect example of a mad scientist, a long white lab coat fell almost to his feet, he wore a striped shirt and long yellowed surgical gloves, but the most disturbing part of him was his right eye. It was surrounded by metal plating which reached up to his hairline, the eye was made of the same metal but where the iris should be, there was a hole of sorts that glowed red from within, and as Luffy stared into it he could see the tiny mechanical pieces working in tandem.

The longer Luffy stared the more he felt that Dr Vegapunk was not just looking at him, but at everything that made up Luffy, of his cells duplicating, the blood that pumped through his veins, his neurons firing as he sized up the old man before him. And just the thought of it made even Luffy's palms a little sweaty.
———

Calm. That was the best word to describe the atmosphere, as Nami sat atop the soft grass of the thousand sunny. Luffy's head was a comfortable weight on her lap, as she slowly filtered his wind-blown, black hair through her fingers, enjoying the unexpected silkiness of it. He had long since fallen asleep, his slow intakes of breath soothed her into a trance-like state, she focused only on the feeling of the sun on her back and Luffy's hair between her fingers. She spent what felt like hours, watching over Luffy's sleeping form thinking of nothing and not once did she attempt to wake him.

The sun did not set, but the elements still worked around them, the boat still rocked softly over the waves and the gulls overhead still flew in indolent circles over the ship. But even though everything was undeniably picturesque, something was wrong, deep in her gut, Nami knew that something wasn't right. For the first time in hours Nami lifted her gaze, to follow the path of a seagull, and before she even peered down she felt a weight drop into her stomach.