The Guardian and the Traitor (edited)

Alaric breathed deeply, his muscles tense and his mind focused on the dull rumbling coming from the lower level of Impel Down. The damp, dark walls vibrated with the heavy footsteps of Magellan, the prison director, climbing up the stairs. The tension in the air was palpable; the stench of poison that always surrounded Magellan seeped through the cracks in the floor, giving Alaric a slight sense of dizziness.

"It's now or never," he murmured to himself, adjusting his grip on Phobos, his imposing dark-bladed spear. The killing energy emanating from him was intense but controlled. He was excited to finally have his first serious fight in a long time.

The echo of footsteps grew louder, and finally, the imposing silhouette of Magellan appeared at the foot of the stairs, his figure wrapped in a poisonous halo. The director's eyes glowed with the fury of someone who had seen and endured too many betrayals in his life.

"Alaric… I didn't know you were helping dangerous pirates escape from this prison. It seems you have no justice left in your heart," Magellan said, his voice booming like thunder. Purple venom dripped from his arms and shoulders, forming small corrosive puddles on the floor.

Alaric allowed himself a twisted smile, madness shining in his eyes. Still weakened from his years of confinement, the former vice admiral maintained a formidable presence. His posture was that of a born warrior.

"Finally, I have the chance to escape. Did you expect me to just sit in this damn prison for the rest of my life?" Alaric replied, tilting his head slightly to one side. With a quick movement of his free hand, he flexed his fingers, releasing the power of his Armament Haki, slowly enveloping his spear in a crimson glow that reflected the dim light of the prison.

Magellan didn't respond immediately, but his furrowed brow spoke for him. Without wasting any more time, the director extended his arms, releasing a cloud of purple venom toward Alaric. The former vice admiral reacted instantly, using Soru to vanish in the blink of an eye from the path of the poison. He reappeared behind Magellan, launching a horizontal slash with his spear, seeking an opening in the director's toxic armor.

Clang!

Magellan turned just in time, blocking the attack with his venom-covered arm. The impact resonated throughout the area, and small droplets of poison flew in every direction. Alaric felt a slight sting as the venom grazed his skin, but his mind was already too accustomed to pain. He had spent years in that prison, developing an impressive physical and mental resilience.

Without stopping, Alaric activated Geppo, rising into the air and moving erratically, striking at Magellan from different angles, trying to find an opening. Each thrust of his spear was filled with lethal precision, but the Impel Down director responded with equal skill, unleashing torrents of liquid venom and poisonous gas in his direction.

Despite his agility, the poison began to take effect on Alaric. His movements remained quick and nimble, but he sensed a slight numbness in his muscles. Magellan's eyes gleamed at the sight.

"Your resilience is impressive, Alaric, but you're not immune to my poison. No one is," Magellan growled, releasing a wave of liquid venom that threatened to flood the entire corridor.

Alaric barely managed to avoid the deluge, using Kami-e to bend and dodge with unnatural grace. He landed a few meters away, breathing heavily. He felt the poison in his system, but he wouldn't let it weaken him mentally.

"You know, Magellan… I always liked you. But…" Alaric tilted his head, his expression taking on a hint of madness, "…I always preferred to do things my way."

With a guttural scream, he launched himself back into the fray. This time, his spear seemed to move with even greater speed and ferocity. Magellan tried to block the strikes, but Phobos began to cut through his poisonous armor, creating small wounds that dripped blood and venom at the same time.

"Blood Domination," Alaric murmured, suddenly feeling the blood spilled from Magellan being rapidly absorbed by him, creating a crimson armor around his arms. It stopped growing slowly; the blood spilled by Magellan wasn't enough to form a full-body armor. Alaric felt power coursing through his body, his resilience returning to its peak, and although he was poisoned, the pain began to blend with a sense of ecstasy. His mind, already distorted from absorbing the blood of his enemies over many years, began to warp reality, putting him in a trance-like state amidst the battle.

With a swift Shigan, Alaric shot his left hand like a bullet toward Magellan's chest, piercing his defense and embedding it into his toxic armor. Magellan growled in pain, stepping back as the venom continued to flow from his body.

But it wasn't enough.

Furious, Magellan unleashed his most powerful attack: "Hydra Venom," three massive heads of poison lunging toward Alaric. The serpents moved with incredible speed, and Alaric, still weakened by the poison, knew he couldn't dodge them all.

"Come on!" he yelled, crazed, raising his spear high.

At the last moment, he used Geppo to soar above the venomous heads, and with a roar, he descended with all the strength he had left. The tip of Phobos pierced through one of the venomous heads, disintegrating it on contact.

But it wasn't enough. The other two heads struck him directly, enveloping him in purple poison. Alaric groaned in pain, feeling the venom burn through his flesh. However, a wild grin spread across his face as his crimson armor continued to grow, absorbing the spilled blood.

"I won't give you the satisfaction of seeing me fall so easily, Magellan…" Alaric gasped, his eyes gleaming with madness.

Alaric panted, his muscles tense and laden with poison, but he refused to let the pain control him. Instead, he used it, molding it into an extension of his own madness, something he had learned to master during his time in Impel Down. Each second spent battling Magellan pushed him further beyond the limits of his sanity, plunging him into a dark, bloody abyss where pain became his constant companion, almost like an old friend. The power of Phobos continued to absorb the blood spilled by the prison director, a flow of energy coursing into him with every slash, with every wound.

Magellan took a step back, his gaze fixed on Alaric, a mix of fury and astonishment on his face. The blood dripping from his wounds was immediately absorbed by Alaric's spear, and with every drop, the former vice admiral seemed to grow stronger, faster, more unstoppable. The director furrowed his brow, his heart racing with a sense of urgency. This was not normal. This was not something that should have been unleashed.

"This man is a monster," Magellan thought as he felt his strength wane with every new exchange. "A demon who should never have been freed from this prison. Perhaps… perhaps he never should have been brought here in the first place."

But Magellan was not someone to back down from a fight, especially not against someone who defied justice. With a growl, he raised his arm and unleashed another wave of purple poison, this time in the form of sharp stakes flying directly toward Alaric. The former vice admiral reacted instantly, moving erratically with Geppo, his feet striking the air as he jumped and twisted, dodging most of the stakes. Some, however, found their mark, piercing the bare skin of his torso and shoulders, releasing a new wave of searing pain.

Yet Alaric barely reacted. The pain was nothing compared to what he had suffered before. He felt the poison burning in his flesh, but what troubled him most was the euphoria that came from absorbing Magellan's blood. With every wound he inflicted on the director, he felt a surge of power coursing through his body, a dark strength that seemed to feed not only his physical form but also his mind. Memories of his years locked away, humiliated and betrayed, mingled with the ecstasy of battle, distorting his perception.

"What kind of beast have you become, Alaric?!" Magellan roared, his deep voice echoing against the prison walls. Drops of poison continued to fall from his body, hissing as they evaporated on the floor. His eyes narrowed as he studied the erratic movements of his opponent. Alaric was not just a man; he was something more, something dark, something twisted by madness and power.

Alaric, still floating in the air, let out a laugh that resonated with a disturbing echo. It was the sound of someone who was no longer afraid, who had crossed the threshold of reason.

"A beast?" Alaric replied, a twisted smile distorting his weary yet primal energy-filled face. "I've always been a beast, Magellan. For that very reason, even if I hadn't betrayed the World Government that day, I would have ended up in prison or executed sooner or later."

The gleam in his eyes was that of a man who had nearly lost himself, but instead of giving up, had found a way to grow stronger through his own darkness. The spear, Phobos, enveloped in Armament Haki and soaked in blood, crackled with a sinister energy that seemed to absorb the light of the prison. Alaric landed softly on the ground, breathing heavily, but his smile remained intact. The blood of Magellan, gathered on his arms and torso, had hardened, forming a sort of crimson armor that made him appear even more terrifying—a war figure, a true descendant of the god of battle, Ares.

Magellan refused to be intimidated. He clenched his fists, and the three poisonous heads he had released earlier rose again, moving like giant serpents in the air. The director extended both arms, and the heads lunged toward Alaric with incredible speed.

Alaric retreated, moving side to side, his movements quick and precise. But the venomous heads seemed to have a will of their own, tracking his every move with lethal accuracy. He knew he couldn't keep dodging forever, and with a roar, he decided to face the threat head-on. He charged forward, his spear shining with deadly intensity.

"Come on, Magellan!" he shouted, as his spear met one of the venomous heads, disintegrating it in a whirlwind of purple poison.

However, the other two heads reached him. One wrapped around his right leg, while the other lunged directly at his torso. Alaric screamed in pain as the poison enveloped him, feeling it penetrate his skin and begin to corrode his muscles. His body trembled, and for a moment, his movements became erratic. But then, in an act of sheer will, he plunged the spear into the ground and used the power of the absorbed blood to harden his crimson armor, creating a barrier that protected him from the poison.

"I won't fall here!" he gasped, his voice hoarse but filled with determination. With superhuman effort, he freed his leg from the venomous grip and launched himself back into the attack.

Magellan watched the scene unfold with a mix of horror and admiration. Even though his poison had weakened Alaric, the former vice admiral kept advancing, his thirst for battle relentless. Magellan gritted his teeth, knowing he couldn't let Alaric continue. If he managed to escape from Impel Down, no one in the world would be safe.

"You can't win, Alaric," Magellan growled, unleashing another burst of venom. "The poison is absolute. No matter how much power you have, you can't resist it forever."

But Alaric wasn't listening. He was too lost in his own frenzy, his eyes bloodshot, his breathing heavy. He charged at Magellan once more, his spear glowing with a dark radiance, the Haki enveloping it like a storm. Each strike of his weapon seemed to resonate against the walls of Impel Down, and with every slash, Magellan's blood continued to flow, being absorbed by Phobos.

The prison director, who had been maintaining his defensive stance until now, began to feel his strength fading. Each time he blocked an attack, his blood was stolen by Alaric, who, despite the poison in his body, seemed to grow stronger with every passing second.

"I can't… let you escape!" Magellan roared, his fury finally erupting. He raised both arms and unleashed a gigantic wave of purple venom that spread throughout the corridor. The viscous substance surged toward Alaric like a deadly tide.

Alaric did not retreat. Instead, he used Geppo to soar into the air once more, dodging most of the poison. From his position above, he looked down, his spear at the ready. He knew Magellan was running out of steam, and although the poison continued to corrode his body, the blood he had absorbed gave him the strength to keep going.

"Magellan... you and I are not so different," Alaric said, his voice echoing above the roar of the poison. His gaze turned toward the director with a mix of twisted compassion and defiance. "We are both trapped in this prison. The only difference is that I… I have already accepted my monstrosity."

With those words, Alaric descended rapidly, his spear aimed directly at Magellan's heart. The director raised his arms, unleashing one last burst of venom, but it was already too late. The clash between them was deafening, metal ringing against flesh and poison sizzling in the air.

The moment hung suspended in time, the prison trembling under the pressure of two unstoppable forces. Blood, venom, and Haki collided in a single instant of pure destruction and chaos.

And then, the world seemed to stop.

Darkness enveloped the battlefield as the echo of the impact resonated through the halls of Impel Down.