Chapter Text
The battleship of Commodore Gneiss was in absolute and utter chaos. Nell could hardly see their hand in front of their face from the smoke on the deck and the sounds that surrounded them gave no hint to what might have been happening. Nell could only hope that the direction that they were running would lead them to someone, whether they were an enemy they had to fight or a subordinate they could assist. There was only one person they truly hoped not to run into.
Somewhere off to their left, they heard the telltale sounds of haunting laughter and violin. Nell shivered.
Scratch that, there were two people they absolutely didn’t want to meet.
The noise of battle grew closer as they ran. Nell held their rifle in front of them, knowing full well that a snipers weapon was little help when the sniper using it was near blinded with very little haki to speak of. And even then, another part of their brain reminded them, that was with normal opponents. The Straw Hats were a completely different breed, nearly half of which bullets had no effect on. Nell once again cursed their Commodore for picking a fight that they knew he couldn’t win. They’d thought that he’d see reason when they reminded him that fights with any Emperor were major world events, but that just made him more bloodthirsty. No matter how much he preached about justice, Nell was sure that the main reason he antagonized the Straw Hats was a desire for fame.
The smoke darkening around them was the only warning they got. A roll of thunder rattled Nell’s teeth as they narrowly dodged a bolt of lightning, diving to the side. Their shoulder slammed against the deck, making them lose their weapon and nearly dislocating the joint. They quickly began fumbling in the smog for their rifle, desperate for the semblance of safety it gave them in the chaos. A moment later, their hand hit cold metal and they breathed a small sigh of relief. The Straw Hats weren’t known for wanton killing, but it was always better when you thought you could put up a good fight.
The deck thudded with footsteps right next to Nell. They stood with a shock, pulling their rifle to point directly forward. They held their breath, sheer will the only thing keeping their finger off the trigger. The smoke coalesced in front of them, forming a tall, pale shape. Nell braced themself to come face to face with a skeleton, taking a pointless step back that only made them stumble.
They glanced away for a scant second, heart in their throat.
Looking back up, they realized who the person before them was. Not the musical skeleton that they had expected, nor any other pirate. It was the Commodore himself.
Shit.
He looked over at them the instant they began lowering their rifle, face splitting into a wicked smile. He grabbed Nell by the forearm, pulling them towards him and pointing up.
“Captain Nell, perfect timing. Here, I have a target for you,” he said. Nell followed his finger up through the smoke. Sure enough, they spotted him through the haze. A small figure balancing on the top sail of the main mast, nearly 200 feet in the air. Checking through the scope allowed them to identify him—God Usopp, sniper of the Straw Hat pirates and apparently the cause of the miasma of smoke that had yet to lift from the deck. Nell saw him fire a smoke bomb, expertly missing the spider web of rigging on the way down and narrowly avoiding stumbling off the mast from the recoil. Catching himself in an instant, they watched him wave at passing figure of Blackleg Sanji, who was flying above the smoke for a moment before descending back into the cloud. Blackleg, face stoic and glowering, nodded at God’s wave. Nell brought their gun down, decision made.
“Sir, I can’t fire on him,” they said. His face twisted.
“Of course you can, Captain. I never would have kept you if I thought you couldn’t make shots like this. Your lack of haki doesn’t mean you're completely useless,” he tried to encourage them. It grated on their nerves.
“No, Sir. I won’t fire on him,” they said. Thunder rolled overhead again, the clouds opening up to start pouring rain. Nell was soaked through within moments.
Commodore Gneiss’s expression darkened, his sharp, handsome features contorting into something grim and foreboding.
“You realize a refusal to follow orders is mutiny, Captain. Care to explain yourself?” His voice was low, difficult to hear over the sounds of the battle still raging. Nell steeled themself, thinking only of their subordinates that were put in unnecessary danger for an assholes desire for notoriety.
“Because, Commodore, any shot to him would kill him, whether I hit in a vital area or not. The mast is too high.”
“And why is that a problem? If you recall, he’s a pirate with a bounty. Dead or alive, Captain.” Gneiss was tall and he loomed, staring Nell down as if his gaze alone could force them to obey.
“I'm aware of his bounty, Commodore. I am only being pragmatic. If we kill God Usopp, the entire ship will be sunk in the rest of the crew’s rage. As we are now, we stand getting out of this fight with minimal casualties.” They knew he wasn’t going to like that. His grip on their arm became painfully tight.
“Captain, the only good pirate is a dead pirate. Now you will shoot down that criminal and I will watch his broken body hit the deck that he destroyed or I will have you hanged for insubordination.” He pulled Nell in close, nearly picking them up with the force of it. “How dare you imply that I would lose to Strawhat Luffy,” he said, his voice dangerously soft. His breath was hot and stinking in Nell’s face, rainwater dripping off his nose into their eyes. The sounds of fighting around them were drowned out by the ringing in their ears.
“I refuse,” Nell whispered, resolve cracking under the pressure. He growled in their face, grip squeezing their arm until they could feel it snap. Nell swallowed a scream as they were dropped.
“Fine,” he bit out. “I’ll do it myself.” Pulling Nell’s rifle out of their lax grip, he held it one handed to stare through the scope, easily finding his target with the rain dissipating most of the smoke. “This’ll be more fun anyway.”
Commodore Gneiss pointed his empty hand at God Usopp, fingers curled in an imitation of the gun in his other hand, and Nell was at once reminded of his devil fruit. Their breath froze in their lungs. They cursed their oversight.
“Sir, please, you do that and you kill us all!” Nell tried to beg, clutching their broken arm.
“I do this, Captain, and I'm one step closer to Admiralty,” he said with a grin. “You’d do well to remember that.” A concentrated blast of bright orange energy left his fingertip and Nell prayed that it didn’t hit its mark.
Time began to slow as Nell cast their gaze around to try to find some way out of the shitshow that was going to unfold. As they did, they realized that they could see the entire deck of the ship for the first time since the whole mess began. There were groaning and unconscious (or worse) marines scattered everywhere, with some of the Straw Hats scattered throughout. They could clearly see Blackleg Sanji, Demon Hunter Zoro, and Strawhat Luffy as whirlwinds on deck; the captain grinning wide and laughing loud, clearly having the time of his life as he took down marine after marine. Most of the rest of the pirate crew were zipping in and out of fights; gouts of flame, lightning strikes, and disembodied limbs making the scene hard to comprehend. Head aching with a coming migraine, they abandoned the hope of help to instead watch whether or not the entire ship was going to be doomed to the sea floor.
Nell’s stare followed the blast of power as it narrowly avoided fizzling out on ropes and beams. Every obstacle it scraped by made Nell’s heart skip beats in their chest. They begged whatever deity may have been listening. But Gods back was turned.
The blast hit God Usopp square between the shoulder blades. Nell couldn’t have aimed better if they had tried (they tried not to be bitter about that, it wasn’t the time).
Nells heart sunk into their stomach as they watched God Usopp stop, stumble, and fall. They let out a shout, hoping that someone on his crew might’ve heard and looked over. He seemed to fall for an eternity, twisting in the air as he bounced off rigging that did little to slow him. He hit the deck like an earthquake, the slam of his back on the wood finally alerting one of his crew.
“Oi, Usopp, you shithead! What did you go and do, trip?” Blackleg yelled over, glancing at the body on the deck before he realized what’d happened. God was still alive, that much was apparent, mostly because while he was splayed on the deck, he was anything but still. He was seizing and convulsing, limbs and skull hammering into the wood hard enough that Nell could hear it where they were. Blackleg was off like a shot, bounding over entire battles in order to skid to a stop by his fallen crewmate.
“Usopp!” Blackleg shouted, kneeling over him to cradle his head. “Chopper, we need you! Usopp’s hurt!”
Nell could hear the Commodore cackling above them. They couldn’t help but feel a grim satisfaction knowing that he’d be destroyed along with the rest of them. Everybody knew not to mess with Emperor Strawhat’s crew. There was nothing that they could do but wait for judgement as they watched their death sentence unfold.
Of all things, a large, antlered reindeer came bounding over at Blacklegs cry, shifting to a smaller form as he reached God and Blackleg. With the practiced eye of a medical officer, the deer assessed God, checking his eyes, his head, his pulse. His seizure continued throughout. The more God shook, the more frantic the reindeer seemed. Finally, seemingly abandoning trying to find a cause, he and Blackleg rolled God onto his side, pillowing his head in Blacklegs lap.
And the Commodore had still not stopped laughing. Nell finally glanced up to see him, nearly freezing in despair when they realized why. He had dropped their rifle, but not his hand. He was pointing at the back of the little reindeer. Nell saw red.
Wasn’t it enough to doom them once?
Nell began to vibrate with anger, the pain in their broken arm nearly disappearing in the heat of their rage. With a shout, they leapt at the Commodore, shoving his arm up and away, making the next shot of power fizzle out as it was fired directly into the mizzenmast. The shock on his face was almost worth the feeling of his hand closing around their throat. But whatever he was going to say as he lifted them off their feet was drowned out.
“LUFFY!” the reindeer cried out, voice young and cracking, echoing across the quieting battleship.
The fighting stopped.
The rain stopped.
Time stopped.
A blast of Conquerer’s haki so powerful it made the Commodore stumble and drop them rolled across the deck. Nell could see every other still conscious marine drop like stones as it hit them. They were sure that the only thing that’d spared them was the burn in their lungs and their pain in their arms. They almost wished they could’ve been knocked out, spared from witnessing the end.
Strawhat Luffy was on the Commodore in an instant, stepping over Nell like they were a bug to grasp him by the collar, lifting him off his feet. (Nell once again tried not to feel satisfied about that, however the continued coughing made it difficult to resist).
Nell stared at the scene above them. Strawhat was no longer the jovial brawler that treated battle like a game, content with being in the presence of his crew, laughing and clapping his way through droves of opponents like they were training dummys.
He wasn’t smiling.
Wasn’t frowning.
His face was carved from stone, cold and impassive, staring at the Commodore hanging from his outstretched and stretching arm. The continued waves of haki that emanated from him, making it hard for Nell to breathe, were obviously affecting the Commodore too. He shuddered in Strawhat’s grip, kicking the air as his mouth gaped like a hooked fish.
Movement on the edge of their vision made Nell glance to the side, where they realized that they were totally surrounded. Any Straw Hat pirates that weren’t dealing with the still seizing God were circling Strawhat and the Commodore. None of them gave Nell a second glance.
Strawhats head tilted, giving Nell the impression of a curious puppy. “What did you do to Usopp?” he said. His question was quiet and insistent. They got the feeling that it would not be asked again.
“I'm not telling you anything, pirate scum,” he spit. Nell had to hand it to the Commodore, they were sure if they were in his shoes, they wouldn’t be talking back. But then again, they wouldn’t have gotten themself in his shoes in the first place.
“Brook,” Strawhat said, not once reacting to the Commodores struggles.
“He shot him with something, Captain. Not a bullet, some kind of devil fruit power,” Soul King Brook said, from where he was standing over Nell. They prayed he continued to ignore them. “I saw the bolt leave his hand, though I have no eyes to see.” They couldn’t help but glance into his face at that. The sight of his grinning skull and vacant sockets made Nell shiver. His face was as expressive as his Captains.
“Maybe if we kill him, it’ll reverse the effects. Like the people in Dressrosa,” said Devil Child Robin. She sounded curious, as if she was suggesting an option for repairing a broken toy.
A sword appeared at the Commodores neck, a trickle of blood running down his throat. “Worth a shot,” said Demon Hunter Zoro. All of the Commodores movement ceased. He held as still as possible while continuing to dangle. They could see his neck straining as he tried to lean away from the blade.
Nell finally found their voice again. “Wait, please,” they choked out through labored breaths. All eyes except Strawhat’s were on them. They once again found themself wishing that they’d been knocked out by the haki immediately. The weight of the pirates gazes were heavy on their back, making them glad they were still kneeling. (Their marine sensibilities protested at kneeling for pirates; their survival instinct shut that up quickly).
“Why,” Strawhat said. It wasn’t a question.
“If you—kill—the Commodore—your crewmate—might never—recover,” they ground out.
“Then we knock him out,” Cat Burglar Nami said, tapping her staff onto the top of the Commodores head. He flinched.
“No,” they squawked. Someone came to crouch in front of them and their vision was flooded with the massive form of Knight of the Sea Jimbei.
“Marine,” he started, “I can understand your loyalty to your commander but we are attempting to help our crewmate. If we do not get answers on how to do that soon, there will be consequences.” He didn’t threaten or cajole or even raise his voice. He simply stated a fact. Nell could feel the gravity of his words, pressing down on them as readily as the haki still emanating. They met his gaze steadily.
“It’s not, hah, loyalty. I've seen his power,” they paused to breathe deep, “and knocking him out will make the change permanent. It’s happened before.”
“What change?” Knight asked. Nell swallowed.
“Memory. The Commodore can erase people’s memory.” They glanced over to the still shuddering God. “The seizures are a side effect that should subside.”
“If knocking him out makes the change permanent, how exactly do we reverse it?” Devil Child asked. The look on her face made Nell immediately glad they had a good answer.
“The memories come back with time, as long as the Commodore isn’t knocked unconscious.”
“How much time are we talking here?” Cyborg Franky chimed in as Devil Child nodded.
“It depends on how much time was taken. Usually a couple days, maybe a couple weeks if it was a lot of years.”
“So what does that mean for us,” Demon Hunter asked, sheathing his sword, but not without making another less than shallow slice in his neck.
“It means were leaving.” Strawhat said, dropping the Commodore who fell like a sack of potatoes from his grip. “Nami, can you get us back here?”
“If I need to, yes.”
“Franky, make sure they can’t run away.” He wasn’t even looking at the Commodore anymore, refocused on God, Blackleg, and the little reindeer doctor.
Cyborg nodded wordlessly. Aiming his massive, robotic hands to the sails, he let loose a pillar of flame that quickly ate through the fabric. Not wasting a second, he then dove over the side of the ship. A moment later the deck shuddered with impact.
Nell watched in shock as the rest of the Straw Hats dispersed from around them, quickly returning to God, whose seizures were finally slowing. They couldn’t swallow the faint hope that was crawling its way up their throat at their departure. They tried to keep a blank face as Knight stood and walked away without a second glance at them. They didn’t think any of the crew would try to retaliate against them, but it was always better to be careful when dealing with pirates. Nell chanced a look at the Commodore, telling themself that it was to check on their superior after a confrontation with an Emperor (it wasn’t). The sight of him was staggering.
Commodore Gneiss lay where he fell, eyes vacant and shining, mouth hanging open. His limbs were twisted under him, his neck at an odd angle. His uniform and hair, normally so fastidiously well-kept, were soaked and unkempt, the collar of his jacket dyed red with the blood still oozing from his neck wounds. If it wasn’t for the wheezing breath that they could hear, Nell would’ve thought that he’d died of pure fright. Though there was no love lost for the glory chasing fool, they couldn’t help but pity him and the bed he made for himself.
A figure at the edge of their vision made them whip their head around, the movement jarring their broken arm. They cringed at the pain, their vision going black around the edges for a moment. Once their eyes cleared, they realized what had startled them. Most of the Straw Hats left Nell where they were kneeling, not caring about them one way or another once their questions were answered, in order to check on their crewmate. That was, all except one.
Devil Child Nico Robin stood to the side, her arms crossed over her chest, gaze intent on Nell. Behind her, Nell could see the rest of the crew preparing to leave, Knight having picked up God to cradle him like a child in his giant arms as he twitched. But still Devil Child stayed. They tried to avoid meeting her eyes, scared of what they’d see in them. They prayed that she was just being diligent, making sure the last marine standing (or kneeling) didn’t try anything. They were wrong.
“Luffy,” she called, not taking her eyes off Nell. “I have an idea about something that may help us.” Their hope for survival disintegrated like the sails on the ship.
“Yeah, Robin?” Strawhat sounded distracted, calling over from his perch on the back of Knight.
“I think it might be useful if we take our little marine friend with us,” she said, walking towards them. Nell was certain they weren’t keeping the fear off their face anymore.
“Ugh, are you sure? The last time we took a hostage, it was a total shit show.” Cat Burglar chimed in.
“Not a hostage this time. Merely a person with experience with this particular power. You heard them, they’ve seen his abilities before. I'm sure they know stuff that they aren’t telling us,” Devil Child said. “And perhaps a little leverage can’t hurt,” she tacked on as she kneeled delicately in front of them. It was only the tattered remains of their pride that kept them from scooting away from her intense blue gaze.
“You’re sure this’ll help Usopp?” asked Strawhat. Nell held their breath.
“Certain.”
“Okay,” Strawhat turned away, Nell’s fate sealed. “Meet us on the Sunny.”
“Aye, Captain,” she said with a small smile.
Nell couldn’t help the tears that gathered in the corners of their eyes. They knew they were no match for any Straw Hat pirate, barring maybe God himself, on their best day. As they were, kneeling under the weight of the slowly dissipating haki, rifle gone and arm snapped, they were at her mercy. Nell knew it and so did Devil Child. She cocked her head, eerily similar to her captain, as a tear began rolling down their face. There was no reason to keep up appearances anymore.
“Don’t cry, little Marine. Nothing is going to happen to you on our ship,” she said, crossing her arms in front of her chest in an X. In the next moment, they felt a hand on their arm and their heart leapt in their chest. But instead of grabbing and pulling them to their feet and forward, the hand wrapped delicately around their wrist to support it. As they looked to see what pirate had approached without them noticing they realized nobody had.
They were still alone with Devil Child.
The devil child with the devil fruit powers.
The supporting arm was attached to Nell, sprouting out of the side of their ribs. They stared at it, bile rising in their throat, as another arm was formed on their side, swirling out of nothing in a flutter of flower petals, reaching to cradle their elbow. They could almost imagine the thin fingers curling around their neck, over the already forming bruises from the Commodore. The blatant show of power was near overwhelming.
“Now come along, we don’t want to keep the rest of the crew waiting,” she said, standing in front of them. At least she didn’t hold out her hand for them to grab. They don’t think their pride could’ve taken it.
They stood with a little difficulty, the two extra arms attached to their side had very little weight but it was just enough to throw off their balance. Though they’d never admit it, the support did help with the pain of the break. Finally on their feet again, Nell used their free hand to swipe away any tears that had fallen in their despair. They stumbled a little on their first steps with the lopsided feeling of extra limbs but quickly found the rhythm needed to walk.
Following behind Devil Child, they saw where she was leading them, a hastily constructed gangplank connecting the battleship down to the brightly colored Thousand Sunny. Oddly enough, they were almost certain that it wasn’t there when the pirates first boarded them.
Nell paused at the beginning of the gangplank, staring at Devil Childs back as she walked down it. In their hesitation, they could see the movement on the deck below. The reindeer doctor, Knight Jimbei and God Usopp were already out of sight, the rest of the crew scattered around the inexplicably green main deck, all working towards setting sail away from the ship they stranded. Taking Nell away from everything they knew. Tears threatened to start forming again.
“You may want to get moving, we’re shipping off very soon.” They jumped, hearing Devil Childs voice from far too close to them. Glancing down, they realized that her voice was coming out of a new mouth that formed on one of the extra arms. They couldn’t suppress a shiver as the mouth gave a close lipped smile and disappeared off the arm in a burst of petals.
Nell didn’t think they would ever get used to devil fruit powers.
Understanding the suggestion as the threat they knew it was, Nell took a deep breath, steeled themself, and took their first step down the gangplank. It was a short walk that ended on, of all things, a grassy lawn. Devil Child was standing at the end, waiting for them to come down.
“Good. I was worried that you’d wait too long and fall off to drown in the sea below,” she said, another one of those incomprehensible smiles on her face. They truly hoped that that wasn’t their plan for getting rid of them when the time came. Drowning seemed painful. “Now follow me, it’s time for you to meet Chopper. You have some information that is very important to us.”