[165] Ashes and Omens

[3100 words]

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"Einar D. Damien. You are the incarnation of my sins, and my will is yours to inherit… You will avenge me!"

Rocks adored the dark Haki whipping around like venomous tendrils. It was how he saw his legacy take form—a vessel of hatred he created.

"Hmm?"

His wrinkly face, marked with faded scars, narrowed at the young pirate approaching him. He could see the anger in Damien's eyes, but there was also an odd calmness.

Without hesitation, the Sin Incarnate reached for the hazy form of his former Captain.

"I told you. You can't harm me, boy! What is dead may never die!"

Damien paused with his hand a few inches from Rocks' heart, glancing up at his manic eyes. "I can't harm you, but I can give you the same fate that even someone like you fears."

The Abyssal Sin grunted uncertainly, seeing his successor's arm turning gray and cracking with white light.

"We will not meet again."

"!!!" The evil pirate felt a wave of disturbance across his soul form. Looking down, he saw his spectre flickering and fading. His eyes shot open from the pang of weakness—it was suffocating, his own power being robbed!

Damien glared Xebec down, his eyes burning like an inferno. 

"Xahaha!" A creepy grin stretched across the Abyssal Sin's face as he put up no defense against the absurd spectacle.

"It doesn't matter if you erase me! All roads of vengeance lead to one place, boy—to chaos, to destruction. My shadow will always be there, even when you think you're free…"

With his final words out, the ghost of Xebec quickly faded, crumpling under the damning deprivation of Damien's hand.

And as the spectre faded, a black fruit appeared in the younger pirate's right hand. It was an entirely black pomegranate with dozens of skulls popping out from its core—the fruit of the underworld—the Death-Death Fruit.

[Fruit Image (in Discord)]

Damien lightly sighed, his jaw clenched. 

Without Rocks' soul bridging Damien's mind to Death Valley, the entire realm began to collapse. But even while the world was collapsing around him, he was left grasping the ultimate fruit in hand, lost in thought.

Damien slowly raised his left arm to examine. 

*Crackle* Arcs of black lightning coiled around the thick arm. They resembled snakes, hissing with venom.

"..." Damien had no words to his warping Haki; he had no words at all.

*Buru Buru*

Suddenly, the air turned dense and watery while Damien's body began to float. The gills appeared around his throat once more as he breathed in the deep silence. 

…

The pirate didn't even know it before he arrived back on shore, absently jumping back to the ship. 

The water fell from his face and fingers, creating a puddle on the floorboards. Damien's every breath was somber. 

A worried Ares looked at his son's silent figure. The quaking Haki had brought about a storm, one of confusion and chaos.

"Your Haki has grown darker. What the hell happened down there?"

Damien's eyes met Ares', somewhat lost. "I found out who killed her."

The War God froze momentarily, his mouth without words.

"...I see."

"All I wanted when I joined the Rocks Pirates was to use Xebec as a shield to get strong enough to contend against the top-level forces on my own two feet." Damien looked into his father's sole eye with clenched fists. "Yet now, even with all this strength, I'm still as helpless as back then, unable to put her to rest."

*Smack!*

It came out of nowhere, a blurred punch that sent Damien crashing into the thick railings of the warship. 

"Nadia died protecting you, and I know she would choose to do that every single time without hesitation." Ares lowered his fist, glaring at his son past the torn deck. "This was never about putting her to rest; this was about you putting your own heart to rest!"

Damien wanted to speak up, but Ares didn't let him: "You said you'd upset her by killing me, right? So don't upset her by sulking in something you had no control over! You were just a brat when it happened. There's nothing you could have done!"

Ares knew the dangers of a Conqueror losing themself to anger—such moments either break their spirits or see them become something more.

"This damned sea will keep throwing hell your way as a new era grows closer. You gotta get back up and face it head-on! If you can't do it for yourself, do it for her!"

"…"

A brief silence fell as the father and son locked eyes. The sorrowful rain continued pouring, drumming across the stolen warship. Meanwhile, Kraft was doing his best to stay on the other side of the deck.

Damien's eyes lowered from his father's weathered face to his chest. The sudden outburst had reignited the sickness within, forcing him to gasp. But even under his damning illness, he stood tall, glaring at his son. 

"...You're right."

The younger pirate stood up from his fallen position, standing tall as always. Though his Haki had calmed, a faint shadow seemed to linger at its edges, a subtle reminder of the darkness Rocks had stirred within him.

*Fwooo* *Fuuu* The chaotic winds and dark clouds were also lifted, clearing up as the moments passed. 

.

"Good," Ares nodded. "What about the other voice you heard?"

His question earned Damien's attention as he recalled the two voices. 

One came from Xebec, while the other was from further away. Observation Haki could not be used when the user wasn't calm, forcing Damien to take a few deep breaths.

"…"

The other voices of the world muffled it, but for Damien, it was a distant quivering, almost like that of a child crying from a dark corner. It was foreign yet familiar.

He looked at distant Kraft and ordered, "Turn the ship twenty-two degrees to the East. It's not too far."

"G-Got it!"

…

[Two Minutes Later]

The stolen prison ship came to a halt over another portion of the shaken sea. It looked just like another sea sector, but the Sin Incarnate saw things differently.

He glanced down, opening his ears to the voice from below. "I've never heard this voice before…" he muttered. 

Like before, he jumped into the sea, growing gills. 

Damien shot through the sea like a torpedo, zooming through schools of fish without pause. He descended a good eight kilometers below surface level and finally met the origin of the voice. 

It was a giant structure familiar to the pirate. The floating Damien sighed, releasing a few bubbles. 

'So it was you crying out all along… Titanic.'

The wreckage spanned hundreds of meters and was covered in algae and underwater plants. Sharks and other creatures had made the fallen ship their home. Yet the majesty of the once mighty ship was lost; all that remained was shredded metals, ruined debris, and crashed wood. 

However, even in its most miserable state, there was a brief spirit budding with life alone.

'A Klabautermann!' Damien remarked to himself. 'I thought they were only born of ships that were deeply loved and cared for?'

The pirate cupped his chin in thought. 

If there's one thing the Titanic didn't have, it was care from its users. The Rocks Pirates abused the ship, caring little for repairing damages or mending its wounds. They littered the vessel with blood and corpses for weeks on end, allowing it to rot away. 

.

The pirate pushed aside his thoughts and asked, 'Where are you?' 

The sea's deep silence lasted for a while until a reply came to his ears, 'It's so dark… I'm so cold…' 

'How did you come to be?'

The voice returned, filled with uncertainty. 'I don't know… it was so hard to float with all those evil people on my ship… they were so mean… the only way to live past it was to focus on the few people that were with me since my birth…'

Damien blinked. 

The edges of his lips twitched at the reply. 

It turned out the spirit didn't come from love and care; rather, it came from the endless difficulties and abuse that the Titanic had to endure over the past few years, and it anchored itself to the pirates who were there at its creation.

Shakky left, and Whitebeard would keep his distance from the core of the Rocks, making Damien and Kaido the only originals who'd come onboard often.

Damien looked at the wreckage once more and directed a few words through his Voice of All Things, 'Looks like you only exist in voice and not in any physical form; rest for now, I found someone who will raise a mightier ship from your ashes.'

The voice slowly droned away, disappearing into the eternal depths of the ocean. 

*Vvoooo* The water whirled as Damien stored the ruins of the mighty vessel in his Inventory. But it left him thinking, 'Kraft will need a few years to get back into shipbuilding; he should be able to use these materials to build the ship I want.'

With that thought in mind, the pirate shot back to the surface.

With a geyser of water, he landed at the giant prison ship in front of his waiting father.

Ares slightly smirked, "Looks like you got something nice."

His sole eye suddenly widened as the stubborn pain came back with a vengeance, surging through his body in a fit of violent coughs.

"Ugh," Ares groaned, staggering forward while grasping at his chest. "Cheh, what an annoying thing," he cursed, spitting a thick wad of blood. He matched Damien's eyes with a grin, "Never mind me, let's go, I want to see them."

Damien nodded in agreement, setting his Universal Pose to Mortem Island.

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While the undying pirate led his small band of fellow escapees, the opposing party was busy investigating the jailbreak. 

They arrived at Impel Down three days after Damien departed from God Valley.

…

*Drip* *Drop*

Stale water dribbled through cracks in the ceiling, ringing Eternal Hell with a resounding pitter every so often.

Vice Admiral Garp sat criss-crossed before a cell in the deepest depths of hell. Dozens of dead prisoners lay sprawled across the floor, but the Hero's mind was stuck on the ripped-open enclosure before him.

"Someone tore them apart like paper," Bogard remarked, his surprised eyes hidden under his fedora. He noticed the thoughts laced to Garp's face. "...It must have been an outsider freeing him, right?"

"That's what Endou-san reported to the Five Elders." Garp clicked his tongue, confused. "Something tells me he freed himself, though…"

"Seastone should surely leave him as helpless as a normal human…!" Bogard stammered, looking at his sole supervisor in denial. 

Garp raised the torn handcuff, running his fingers over the depression made by noteworthy internal destruction. Cupping his chin, he hypothesized, "This isn't your day-to-day emission, Bogard! Only a handful of people can turn Seastone, which is as tough as diamonds, to this!"

The Marine Hero stood up, turning to his right-hand man. "And Damien makes that list…"

"Vice Admiral, there was also the legend of that man…"

Garp's brows furrowed. He glared at the swordsman with speculation. "How'd you know about that? That guy disappeared from his cells twenty years ago! Endou-san long declared his death, though."

Just the thought of two generations of Einar Ds running about was shiver-inducing!

.

A flurry of hasty steps rang out from behind, earning both marines' attention. "G-Garp-sama!" the informant cried, slumping down from his long run. "The WENP put out a crazy paper!"

Bogard stepped forth, taking the rolled-up news with some apprehension. Scanning the news left the talented young marine with widened eyes. "T-This…!"

Garp's curiosity peaked as he snickered at his young friend's surprise. With impeccable speed, he swiped the papers from Bogard, reading it to himself.

"The Ten Omens of Disorder?" he echoed the headline.

A list of names captured the identities of the newly updated Level One of the Threat Index, each worth more than 2.5 billion!

Gol D. Roger.

Edward Newgate.

Charlotte Linlin.

Einar D. Damien. 

Shiki.

Patrick Redfield.

Vitalius Shaw.

Silvers Rayleigh.

Zenora Mors.

Odinsdottir Herja.

"Bwahahaha!" Garp howled, slapping his thigh under the darkness of hell.

"This is not a laughing matter," Bogard sighed, his eyes closing grimly.

"Hehe. No wonder I got tossed this mission. Damien, Mors and Herja's escape ruined our Advent of Justice!"

"If I'm not mistaken with my assessment," Bogard mumbled, piecing together a few thoughts of his own. "The Reverie is in two years. The Five Elders can either hope to curb these Omens in that time or direct their focus to sparks of piracy in all seas but the New World."

It wasn't just a simple World Summit either—the previous Reverie was forced to be held remotely, over transponder snails; the culprit, the Rocks Pirates, had broken too many taboos to make the usual in-person gathering possible. With Xebec's death, this Summit was endlessly more important than previous ones in restoring the authority of the World Government.

"That's right," Garp nodded, flipping through some pages. "The mission is gonna change to keep these guys trapped in the New World and focusing on the seas before it—if we can cut the flow of pirates to the final sea, then it's enough for the geezers on top."

Garp chuckled once more, turning to the exit with conviction and strolling ahead. The other soldiers were quick to salute, their bodies straight like arrows.

*Thump* *Thump* *Thump* 

The Hero of the Navy grinned past the admiring eyes, the coat draped over his shoulders flapping with "Justice" printed in bold font.

"What do you think of the Star Reporters' thoughts?" Bogard questioned, walking a step behind The Fist.

"Bwahaha! The 'Ten Omens of Disorder?' He's not wrong! They may have gone into hiding for a little while to lick their wounds, but when they resurface, and I know damn well they will…" Garp's eyes locked onto the light beyond Eternal Hell. Holding the fresh news, he walked into the elevator system, carelessly smirking. "...the world will tremble in their wake!!!"

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The shaken seas were everywhere except for a small island in Paradise. Once a hub of turbulence and unpredictable weather, Mortem Island could now be considered a haven.

And a full day after the world-shaking news, the few inhabitants of this tiny landmass were getting together for dinner.

…

A silent Indra sat atop the cliff to the South of Mortem. As usual, he wore a simple vest, revealing his well-built arms marked by the Figures of War. His dark pupils were drawn to a sudden call from below.

He looked down to see Toki standing with effortless grace, her vibrant green hair cascading in long, silky waves over her shoulders. Her emerald eyes held a serene, knowing gaze, contrasting with her youthful smile. Dressed in a soft pink kimono adorned with delicate floral patterns, she radiated a warm and gentle aura, the colours of her attire harmonizing with the soft flush of her skin. A pair of sunglasses rested atop her head, adding a playful touch to her otherwise traditional appearance. At the same time, an intricately woven obi emphasized her slender waist. 

"Indra-san, dinner is ready!"

[Updated Toki Image (in Discord)]

The swordsman had already tried convincing Toki that he could easily catch his own meals. Still, the Wano native was as stubborn as her lover.

Indra lightly sighed, materializing the electricity coursing through his body to rocket toward the area deemed the mess hall.

…

A large gathering took place at the core of Mortem Island, lighting the surrounding area with a warm ambience.

Kuzan sat on a log, licking his lips at the food on the wooden table.

"Heh, just a kid!"

The ice-boy scoffed at the voice to his side.

"Solomon, don't forget that I was the first person Big Bro Damien brought here, while you were the last. If anything, you should serve me the food yourself," he spat back.

The much taller Solomon returned a snort, crossing his arms. "My bounty is what? Nearly 600 million while you aren't even worth a penny!"

"Indra is much cooler than you, more than three times your worth," Kuzan shot back with a cheeky grin.

A vein popped into Solomon's face as he recalled the past news. Clenching his fists, he declared, "Hmph! Just wait. I'll be headlining the news soon enough!"

…

Meanwhile, Indra arrived at the table.

He glanced around, seeing Kuzan and Solomon bickering. To their side was a mundane Pablo, scolding a grey-skinned humanoid child to spit out the pebbles in his mouth.

The swordsman also saw the other woman by his Commander's side, the same one sitting with queenly air.

'Fulcrum,' he thought, still surprised since he came to this island. He recalled Damien saving the ex-princess from Amethyst Kingdom, but to see the same woman under Fulcrum's infernal mask was shocking.

Aurora's matured presence was undeniable, her striking, deep violet hair cascading around her shoulders like shadows laced with moonlight. Her eyes, an intense shade of amethyst, held a fierce, knowing gleam as if they had witnessed every secret the Underworld tried to hide. Though delicate, her features carried a hardened elegance, softened only by a quiet trace of sorrow—a subtle reminder of the trials that tempered her spirit. Draped in dark, elegant attire, she sat with a refined grace, embodying both beauty and power.

[Updated Aurora Image (in Discord)]

The quiet Mihawk was also there, sitting by the woman's side. His hawk-like eyes scanned everything with childlike curiosity, and he breathed in the comfort of Mortem.

.

While Toki brought out the array of meals, Indra's eyes shot to the side, perking his ear to the East of the island.

"What's wrong?" Aurora asked while taking out food for a hungry Mihawk.

The swordsman narrowed his eyes, feeling a distant entity. "A vessel just entered my range, around 21 kilometers away," he concisely answered. "The magnetic field lines are customary to Navy Battleships."

Aurora's gem-like eyes shined brightly as she quipped with hidden excitement. "Is it him?"

Indra scanned again, zooming onto the three individual signatures onboard the mighty vessel.

Indra's lips stretched into a thin smile as he slowly nodded, "He's with two others I don't recognize, but the Commander is indeed there."

Indra's soft voice drew the others' attention, and they stood up in unison, scrambling to the shore. After a little while, they could make out a tiny speck in the distance, bringing a cheerful rush to the onlookers' hearts.

After over four months and an era-defining war that saw him thrown into hell, Damien finally returned to Mortem Island!

To Be Continued…

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Author's Corner. 

Naturally, Damien's not going on some random destroy-everything-in-my-way state, but it did leave him with some troubles. After all, he was essentially working under, doing the bidding of, the man who killed his mother for four years. But at least he harvested the Death Fruit and the Titanic's scraps.

The Ten Omens have also been declared to return in a few years by Morgans, setting up the next era. However, the current priority is Ares' waning condition while he is soon to meet his son's closest companions. How do you think Ares will react to each of the main crew?

Images are available on Discord alongside other niche details: https://discord.gg/aJHHHPvb6q