You felt yourself being tossed inside a cell before the door closed behind you. Chains were holding your wrists together, and your guns weren't attached at your belt anymore. You grunted under your breath, lifting yourself and staggering a bit by how dizzy you were.
"Woah, woah! What do we got here? Two pretty ladies in a day? We sure are damn lucky"
"A shame she isn't in my cell..."
"Heh, I got a good view of her fine body right there...."
There was a lot of noises all around you, the prisoners howling and whistling loudly. It was too much for your ears, and you opened your eyes to glare darkly in front of you. From the view of this place, you seem to be inside a confined area for prisoners who are certainly over the chart. You scowled as one of them was sending you winks and floating kisses.
Others were using lewd gestures or words to get your attention. A thick mark appearing over your face, you sauntering toward the bars of the cage. Lifting your leg, you slammed your foot hard enough to ignite a sound that silenced the prisoners.
"Shut your mouths before I get out of there and make you to!" you ordered, eye flashing purple.
"Oh? And how will you do it, babe?" dared to say a man from the cell to your right.
Without answering him, you simply lifted your chained arms and punched with both tied hands into the bars. The wall bent over, causing the cell to deform from the shock it received. The prisoner let out a girly scream, crawling backward and away from you. The others were holding their breath, staring at you in shock as you walked back to the spot where you landed.
"So? One of you wants to fight or something?" you demanded, lifting your chin haughtily.
"N-N-NO, MA'AM"
"Good boys"
"Always the same, Miss Silvers"
You raised a brow at the sound of his voice, and slightly turned your head to see Crocodile wearing prisoner clothes and chained by Sea Stones cuffs in the cage situated diagonally from yours. An expression of pure displeasure was plastered on your face while he had a smirk on his own, becoming larger to annoy you further.
"Not you, Crocodildo" you drawled boringly, causing a thick mark to appear on the man's head.
"It's Crocodile, and long time no see"
"It would have been better if it stayed that way...What do you want? A reunion kiss or something?"
"I wouldn't mind"
"Erk..."
"I wouldn't mind a reunion kiss from you, pretty lady" said another cocky voice, and you rolled your eyes.
"You do know you're about to get executed and you still find a way to humor your situation?" you told the prisoner held by two chains each wrist, familiar black hair messier than the last time you saw him back in Alabasta.
"Hey, if I'm going die I want at least to know I got kissed by the most beautiful woman my eyes laid on" replied on the same tone Ace.
"What an honor..." your voice hinted with sarcasm. "So? It isn't too cramped in here?"
"I had better...."
"Silvers (y/n). The Immortal" stated a blue fishman, who was also inside Ace's cell. "From the way they described you, I was waiting for some kind of demon..."
"BECAUSE SHE ISN'T ONE?!" yelled the prisoners who were too afraid of you.
"Hm?...." you hummed dangerously, and they were immediately silenced. "Anyway, who are you exactly? I thought they would send fishmen mostly in Level 4 or Level 3...Not that I wish them to be. Too damn hot in there"
"My name is Jinbe, Knight of the Sea"
"Oooh, we got another former Shichibukai besides Dildo over there"
"You are lucky that you're not in the same cell as mine, Miss Silvers...." Crocodile gritted his teeth in irritation, while you on the other hand was clearly amused to piss him off.
"If you are here...Does it mean...that Luffy is here too?" questioned Ace carefully, shadows hiding his eyes.
"Of course that dumb shit is here too. What? Do you really think I make ballads in possibly the worst place in the world?....No, Thriller Bark is. I said nothing" you shuddered, remembering unfortunately of the terrible events that happened in that place.
"That idiot...." chuckled Ace weakly. "Always reckless, even when we were children. However, since you are here, I guess something happened...right?"
"I....I'm not sure he is alright" you spoke honestly. "The last time I saw him, he was unconscious on the floor by the Warden's poison-"
"WHAT?!" shouted Ace, cutting you.
"Hm. He got caught by Magellan, huh?" said Crocodile, before scoffing with a small smirk. "It won't be long before he dies..."
At that sentence, Ace's state seems to grow weaker and angrier, his expression darkening. You whipped your head at Crocodile, sending him a nasty scowl:
"If I remember correctly, the last time you said that you got your ass handed over to the Marines, so don't be too sure about this!"
"Correct. But that boy was poisoned by Magellan in every way possible, didn't he? With the amount he must have absorbed and how stubborn he is in a fight....He will only have a few hours to live" retorted Crocodile.
"And I say you should shut up. That moron won't abandon so easily. I bet my clothes that he will come here"
"Please, may he never finds this place" prayed a prisoner, and you deadpanned at him.
"To put your dignity on the line, you must have an incredible trust in Straw Hat. Don't be surprised, however, if he doesn't make it at the rise of the sun..."
Ace stayed silent for most of the time, fixing the ground like he was trying to dig holes in it. You were pacing around your cell, bored to no end. You tried to play tic-tac-toe with Crocodile, but he seems to become more annoyed at your attempts to pass the time.
Everyone was just so damn boring here. Finally, a few hours later the Warden descended to Level 6 with guards in toes. Domino was holding Sea Stones cuffs in her hand, showing them to Ace. Magellan announced that he will be taken to Marineford for his execution, and has they brought him out of here, there was no sign of Luffy.
"Not that I'm eager to see you without your clothes..." started the sandman, and you sent a glare to him.
"Liar" you spat.
"It looks like Straw Hat didn't come in the end" finished Crocodile, his smirk growing wider. "He is probably dead now at this point"
"And I said to wait for a few minutes....I didn't say he would be there before Ace get taken!"
"ACEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!"
"See?....WAIT WHAT" your saliva caught in your throat as you saw the young man appear at the end of the hallway and running straight in your direction.
Indeed, it was exactly Luffy, looking fine and well like he wasn't on the verge of death a few hours ago. This guys has too many lives to spare. The ebony male continued to yell his brother's name, his voice becoming closer as he accelerated his pace.
"Is this it?! Ace!" Luffy said again, stopping in front of the cell where Ace was a few minutes before he got here. A huge man with purple hair and another with orange/white hair arrived behind. "He's not here!"
"Are you sure that this is the right cell?!" demanded the curly purple haired guy to a female guard.
"Yes I am! I'm not lying" she replied, starting to cry.
"We're a bit too late..." spoke the orange/white haired male, holding a glass of wine in his hand.
"You are Straw Hat Luffy, aren't you?" questioned Jinbe, to which Luffy gave a nod. "They took him just now! Go! They've taken Ace-san to the elevator! Go! You can still catch them!"
"Who are you old man?" demanded your captain, raising a brow.
"He's a big deal!" answered the huge man.
"But more importantly too....Where's (y/n)?! She must be somewhere!"
"Oi, you dumbass" you finally gained the attention of the three men, giving a small wave. "I'm right here...if you didn't notice yet"
"(y/n)!!!!!!"
A grunt escaped your lips as Luffy stretched his arms through the bars and brought you closer, only to slam your face directly in them. Your limbs twitched, a vein popping besides your head.
"You piece of shit..." you growled.
"So this is your other friend? Ah, yes I remember her now on the Den-Den Mushi. Quite short on temper this one" spoke the purple haired Okama.
"What did you say?" you demanded, eyeing darkly the man who lifted his hands in surrender. "Anyway, just get me out of there before we are too late. My guns should be somewhere-"
"You mean this?" cut the other man with the glasses, showing your weapons and Steven inside a birdcage.
"KYAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! STEVEN!!!!!" you screeched, eyeballing widely the wooden doll who looked a little down. "WHAT DID THEY DO TO YOU?!"
"The poor little guy was also chained in the cage when we saw him. Inazuma was kind enough to cut-"
The purple haired male didn't have the time to finish his sentence that you broke the chains by yourself, causing the three guys to stare at you in disbelief, eyes bulged out of their sockets. Even more when you were able to lift the door of the cage and tossed it in another direction while you lashed yourself at Inazuma.
You grabbed Steven and pulled him outside the cage, already examining from head to toes if he didn't have a scratch on him.
"Realm of God, please tell me you're okay!" you panicked, completely ignoring the others who slowly lifted one trembling hand, staring at you as if you pulled a jaw-hanging act.
"Eh...." they spoke in unison, no knowing what to really say.
"They didn't break anything on you, right?!" you continued, checking each part of his body.
The wooden doll shook his head, doing signs with little arms and explaining that after you lost consciousness the guards led you to Level 6. They put your weapons on a table just outside the room for examination and probably experiments since they never saw that kind of technology used on your guns before. As for him, they put inside a small cage and let him rot in here without any chance to escape.
Until Luffy's group arrived, that is.
"Oh, thank you. I don't know what would have happened if you didn't arrive sooner" you told the glassed man who simply shrugged it off. "But more importantly...WHY ARE WE STILL HERE?! JUST MOVE ALREADY"
"A-A-AYE!"
The four of you ran the long hallway all the way back to the elevator of the level. The purple haired man took this time also to introduce himself as Ivankov. Once you arrived at the elevator, Ivankov quickly ran to the lever:
"They've left the iron door to the elevator open!" said Inazuma.
"Nice!" commented your captain.
"The operation system is locked! It's no good!" grunted Ivankov as he struggled to pull the lever.
"Can't we simply climb?" you suggested.
Though, the moment you said this, the platform holding the chains suddenly fell down and crashed at the bottom of the elevator. Luffy let out a startled yell, falling on his butt. Ivankov ran to the elevator, looking down with sweat gathered on his forehead.
"Of course, they wouldn't allow us to climb it!" said the Newkama. "It's not usable! They've already keeping an eye on it! Let's go back up the stairs!"
Ivankov and Inazuma both went to the other direction, while Luffy slammed a fist against the ground with a sigh of frustration before following them. Unfortunately, when your group got closer to the spiral staircase, a cage fell down from the ceiling.
"They blocked the staircase!" said Luffy.
"They're trying to trap us!" added Ivankov, crossing his arms over his chest. "We gotta break through! There's no other way!"
"Alright!"
Then, a green colored gas came out from the top of the staircase, blowing on your group. You all took a step back, Inazuma quickly bringing a hand over his nose and mouth to not inhale it.
"That's a lot of gas! Is it poisonous?!" he wondered.
"Poison gas again?!"
"Hey, you guys! I don't know who you are but don't make us suffer with you!" barked a prisoner.
"Shut up, you Level 6 people!" replied Ivankov angrily.
"I don't care if it's poisonous or not!" said your captain, running toward the cage.
Inazuma tried to stop him, but the ebony male suddenly faceplanted on the ground. A snore came from him, and you facepalmed while Ivankov stared at the boy with his mouth agape and eyes bulged out of their sockets.
"It's sleeping gas" finished the glassed man.
"HOW RECKLESS YOU ARE, STRAW-BOY!"
"You really need to stop-" started the prisoner once again, but fell asleep immediately before he could finish his sentence.
"We don't want to-*snores* "
"They wanna make us sleep to stop us in our tracks!" said Inazuma.
"We're completely trapped!"
The gas continued to pour inside Level 6, and some prisoners started to fall asleep left and right. Inazuma threw his glass of wine away, his hands transforming into scissors blades. The Okama started to cut the floor, tracing long lines. Pushing the pieces against the cage, they started to block the gas from entering the room.
"Woah..." you breathed when he finished.
"Inazuma ate the Snip-Snip Fruit, and now he's a scissor-man! He can manipulate whatever he cuts as though it's paper!"
"Oh really?..." woke up Luffy, lifting himself with the help of his elbows but fell back asleep right after.
"WAKE UP! I'M FIGHTING THE URGE TO SLEEP BUT I....I...." trailed Ivankov, his eyes slowly dropping, until it looked like a surge of adrenaline passed through him. "I DON'T SLEEP!!!"
"WERE YOU KIDDING JUST NOW?!" you snarled, and your captain shot up at the sound of your voice.
"I wanna keep going! Crab-chan! You've blocked the staircase but now I can't catch up with Ace!" whined the young boy.
"That was the only way to stop the gas" retorted Inazuma. "If you fall unconscious, you can't save him!"
"I'm gonna save him even if I'm unconscious! I don't want him to die!" barked in a bratty tone Luffy.
"Don't be ridiculous! It's simple but their plan defeated us! We're confined to Level 6. There's no way for us to get out!"
"I'm sorry but this is all I can do now!" apologized the Newkama, winking and the Den-Den Mushi at the wall suddenly fell unconscious. "They can't see us anymore! You have to realize, we're too late. They must've gotten to the top floor with Ace-boy by now! On the other hand, we have a lot of obstacles standing in our way. The Marine's convoy is pretty quick! Look at the Vivre Card! It's not pointing straight up, is it?"
"So they are already on the move" you spoke, gazing at the piece of paper that was moving diagonally.
"I think that Ace-boy has already been handed over to the Marine! We need to move on now! I'll do my best to help you break out of this great prison safely! They'll hand over Ace-boy to the Marine HQ at any cost" continued Ivankov. "You need to give up on him! I mean, you need to trust Whitebeard. He's not gonna give up on one of his own! He'll definitely do something!"
"....I'm going!" said Luffy, after a short pause and Ivankov stared at him in surprise. "I'm gonna go to the Marine HQ!"
"DON'T BE STUPID! There's a battle brewing between two of the leading forces of the world! What can you do?! Do you know how strong Whitebeard is?! What about the admirals, vice-admirals, and the Shichibukai on the Marine side!? Don't you remember that you fought just Magellan and almost died?! Do you have that many lives to spare?!"
"If I give up now, I'm gonna regret it!"
Ivankov's eyes widened like saucers, and he took a few steps backward, not saying anything. Inazuma approached your captain:
"But first of all, how can you get off of this floor?"
A laugh resonated in Level 6, and the guys stiffened at the sound. Luffy slowly turned his head in the direction where it came from, while you gritted your teeth in annoyance.
"If you wanna get out of here, set me free! I can create a hole on the ceiling! What do you think?"
"YOU'RE BEING HELD HERE?! CROCODILE!" shouted Luffy.
"It's been a while...Straw Hat!"
"Of course he would take this chance to lend us a hand, dammit..." you growled, pinching the bridge of your nose.
"I thought that there was no reason to get back on the street, but Whitebeard and the Marine are gonna start a war? It's my chance to finally bring down that old man! This war as piqued my interest. And with my power, you and I could get us out of here. It's not bad, huh? We both get what we want"
"Screw you! You're the man who messed up Vivi's country!" snarled your captain.
"That was a long time ago. I lost interest in that country" smirked Crocodile, but it dropped down when Ivankov stepped forward.
"Let's release him, Straw-boy" he said, and Luffy gaped at him. "His power will aid us greatly"
"WHAT?! Ivan-chan! If you knew what he has done-"
"You wanna keep going, right?" cut the Newkama. "If you wanna make it to Marine HQ, you need him!"
"Ivankov..." growled darkly Crocodile, veins appearing on his forehead.
"Long time no see, Croco-boy!"
"Huh, you know him?" you asked, raising a brow.
"Just a passing acquaintance! I met him when he was just a rookie! Don't worry! I can bring him under control in case he tried to betray us. I can't trust him at all!" stated Ivanvok, before laughing lowly. "But I know one of his weaknesses!"
"Oi, if you so much as say it..." warned the former Shichibukai, furrowing his brows at the Newkama.
"Oh? Do you wanna take that tone? If you like, I can just reveal your past here. But if you just shut up and help us, I will keep the secret for Y-O-U! HEEHAW!" shouted the purple haired man in victory.
"YOU BASTARD"
"Oh...?" a smirk grazed your lips, and you brought your face closer to Crocodile's cage. "Ivan-chan, why don't you whisper in my ear Croco-boy-kun's secret? We could be two to know...."
"Don't you ever dare tell that woman in particular!" snapped the man angrily.
"Why don't you release me, too?" suggested a prisoner.
"Me too! I have something against Whitebeard!"
The Level 6's prisoners started to cause an uproar, yelling at your group to set them free. Ivankov grew pissed with all the noise and used his 'Death Wink' on several prisoners.
"Have mercy on me!" shouted the voice of Jinbe, and Luffy turned to face him. "Take me with you! I can help you for sure! I have known Ace-san ever since he joined the Whitebeard pirates! He always told me about his brother! I was arrested because I objected to the war! I wanna save Ace-san, too! So please! Let me die for him!"
Both Jinbe and Luffy stared at each other in silence for a long time, until your captain gave a short nod:
"Alright"
"ARE YOU SERIOUS?" shouted Inazuma. "We don't know about him and how dangerous he is!"
"It's okay, let him out!" replied Luffy.
"Thank you!"
Inazuma went to work and cut the chains holding Jinbe and Crocodile. They both exited their cage, stopping alongside of your group.
"A Shichibukai and a former Shichibukai, both on our team" said the glassed Okama.
"Two of them? Who is the other one?" asked Luffy idiotically, eyeing everyone of you.
"I appreciate this! Now I can be of some help" said Jinbe.
"Maybe you can stop the war between the Whitebeard pirates and the Marine, but it's a waste of time" spoke Crocodile. "Because I'm gonna get that old man anyway"
"I won't let you even touch good old Whitebeard, Crocodile!"
"Then, do you wanna fight me here?"
The tension was rising between the fishman and the former Shichibukai, the two eyeing each other. You grew tired of their quarrel, and grabbed both of them by the ear. Crocodile and Jinbe flinched at the sudden move, letting out groan of pain when you tightened your hold, making them kneel at your sides.
"If you don't want me to beat your ass to the next life, you better stop acting like children!" you ordered darkly, glaring at the Shichibukai. "I have enough of one already, so grew some balls and let's get out of here!"
"Y-Yes, ma'am..." shuddered Jinbe and Crocodile.
"My, my. Your lady friend is certainly intimidating, Straw-boy" sweatdropped Ivankov. "But I guess it's a woman's true power! HEEHAW! Now we don't have much time, so we're just gonna break out by force!"