Chapter 22 Historic Moment

"Well, Well Jiehahaha" A shrill laughter resounded throughout the ghostly island.

A man with a thick, long neck, sharp teeth and pale body laughed and laughed, unable to control himself as he looked at the newspaper about Crocodile in his hands.

Suddenly, a lion-headed, chimaera man walked into the rather haunted room.

"They have landed on the island; The Straw Hats are here", The man with the lion head said, causing Gecko Moria to stop laughing.

"Then let's get their shadows!" Gecko said as he began snickering.

...

On an inconspicuous Island, a man with black hair, few freckles on his face, and an orange hat stood opposite a dark-skinned man with a red coat.

"Teach its over" Ace said to Blackbeard.

This was the island where Ace was destined to be captured by Blackbeard.

The very capture that would set off the New Age of Pirates.

The death of the Strongest man and the rise of the new age of Emperors.

On this island along with these two enemies there was also Augustus.

He was here to simply witness this historic moment.

As Ace confronts Blackbeard on Banaro Island, the tension is palpable. The atmosphere is charged with the impending clash between two powerful pirates.

Ace stands firm, his eyes blazing with determination. He addresses Blackbeard with a cold, unwavering voice. "Teach, you betrayed Whitebeard and killed our comrade Thatch for the sake of that Devil Fruit. I can't let you get away with this."

Blackbeard, with his characteristic sinister grin, responds with an almost mocking tone. "Ace, you don't understand. This world is all about dreams. Thatch was simply in the way of mine. The Yami Yami no Mi chose me, and with it, I'll become the strongest."

Ace's fists ignite with flames, casting an eerie glow around them. "You talk about dreams, but all you bring is chaos and destruction. I won't let you threaten Whitebeard's name or the peace of the seas."

Blackbeard laughs, the sound echoing ominously. "Ze ha ha ha! Peace? There's no such thing as peace in a pirate's world. The strong survive, and the weak perish. You should join me, Ace. Together, we could rule the seas!"

Ace's fiery aura intensifies as he takes a step forward. "Join you? Never. I'll stop you here and now, Teach. For Thatch, for Whitebeard, and for everyone you've hurt."

Blackbeard's grin widens as he raises his hand, darkness beginning to swirl around him. "Very well, Ace. Let's see if your flames can extinguish my darkness."

With those final words, the battle commences. Ace charges forward, flames roaring around him, while Blackbeard's dark vortexes pulse and grow, ready to consume everything in their path.

This conversation and their actions highlight the stark contrast between Ace's loyalty and sense of justice and Blackbeard's ruthless ambition and belief in his destiny to become the strongest.

As they fiercely clashed, a large explosion occurred, one part flames, another part darkness together, forming a perfect half circle laying destruction to the entire barren island.

The flames burned darkness while the darkness-consuming flame created a truly fascinating scene for anybody who would get to witness this battle.

Augustus had considered whether he should do anything to stop Teach from bringing the New Age, but in the end Augustus let it happen.

He had power and he wasn't scared of what the new age would bring.

As the explosion of the two elements subsided, Augustus stood up from the ground and formed a portal to a ship.

As he stepped through the portal and it closed behind him he looked around and noticed just how creepy the surroundings were.

The air is thick with tension and the chilling mist, reducing his visibility to a mere few meters ahead. The ominous silhouettes of massive ghost ships loom in the distance, barely discernible through the dense fog.

The sunlight is dim and filtered, casting an eerie, ghostly glow over everything. The ship Augustus stood on seemed almost haunted by the whispering wind and the occasional eerie creak of wood.

He could barely see the surrounding waters, which seemed unnaturally still, adding to the unsettling atmosphere.

Looking around he quickly noticed the lion head mast and understood that he had teleported onto the correct ship except it was empty.

"Where are the Straw hats?" Augustus whispered to himself.

Suddenly, the tranquil unease was shattered by the booming sound of cannon fire and the clash of battle.

Immediately Augustus used his Observation Haki to look into the sound of battle.

In front of his Observation Haki, the mist disappeared as if it was never there, and everything around him became clear to him: the massive, ominous form of Thriller Bark, Gecko Moria's colossal ship and island That was on it.

The Straw Hats were currently engaged in fierce combat; from Augustus's vantage point on the Sunny, he could see Luffy, coated in shadowy energy, delivering powerful blows to towering, monstrous zombies with his Gear Second and Gear Third techniques. His determination to defeat Moria is palpable, even from a distance.

Zoro, with his three swords gleaming even in the murky light, is like a whirlwind of deadly precision, slicing through waves of enemies.

His confrontations with Ryuma, the samurai zombie, were intense, showcasing his relentless strength and skill.

Sanji was like a blur of high-speed kicks and graceful agility, taking down zombies and protecting his crewmates with his burning passion and fierce combat style.

Nami and Usopp are strategizing and supporting the battle in their unique ways, with Nami using her Clima-Tact to control the weather and Usopp sniping from a distance.

Frank and Brook were barely holding their ground, with Franky's technological prowess and brute strength complementing Brook's swift, skeletal swordsmanship and musical attacks.

Gecko Moria himself was visible at the heart of the chaos, his gigantic frame and shadow-manipulating powers creating a nightmarish spectacle as he commanded his minions and attempted to harness the Straw Hats' shadows for his nefarious plans.

The battle is intense and chaotic, with flashes of light from various attacks illuminating the foggy gloom. Shadows and flames dance across the land as the Straw Hats push forward, their resolve unwavering despite the overwhelming odds.

But no matter their determination, there were too many Zombies and without the strategic mind of Robin and the medical support and his serious forms of combat methods, the Straw hats were faltering quicker and quicker as the injuries just kept building up.