Nick stared despondently at the retreating figures, watching as the harpoons that held the rope bridge up extracted themselves from the wall. He heard the crank of the anchor start up as they prepared to cast off.

  Anger coursed through his veins. They lost. How could they lose on the second island? He knew people in his world had a problem with main character syndrome, but he was literally traveling with the main character! So how in the hell could they lose so badly?

  He grit his teeth as he forced himself to stand. His legs shook from the effort, his breathing labored. A sudden and powerful cough nearly sent him tumbling back to the ground, but he managed to hold himself up against the honey wall.

  As this was happening, he could still hear Luffy and Zoro fighting in the background. This only made him angrier. How could Luffy let himself be hypnotized by that second rate pirate?

  He growled to himself, glaring out at the battlefield. "Luffy!" he yelled, getting the enraged man's attention. He stopped fighting with Zoro, who was breathing almost as heavily as Nick at this point, and turned to see who it was that yelled his name.

  "What the hell do you think you're doing! They took our friends! Don't you care!?" Nick continued, his words causing Luffy's fingers to twitch. Zoro and Usopp stared at the scene with varying reactions. Usopp was hopeful his words would make it through to Luffy, while Zoro scoffed at the idea, believing him to be too far gone.

  "I thought you said you wanted to be King of the Pirates!? Tell me, what kind of king lets himself get controlled by someone like that!? Is this where your journey ends!?" Nick yelled. Luffy started walking towards him. Zoro intended to intercept but a look from Nick stopped him.

  He hoped the brown haired idiot knew what he was doing.

  "Tell me Luffy, what does it mean to be King of the Pirates anyway? Does it mean being someone's slave, because that's all you are! Or does it mean you're free! Freer than anybody else," Nick questioned, as Luffy pulled his fist back, ready to smash the loudmouth's face in.

  "You made a promise didn't you! On your straw hat!" he yelled, making Luffy pause. There seemed to be a struggle on his face, and Nick saw, for the first time, that he may be getting through to him.

  "What would Shanks say, huh? If he could see you now! Do you think he'd be proud? Can you really look him in the eye and tell him you became a great pirate after losing to that second rate captain!? After killing your friends? Or will you leave that part out?" Nick's throat was hurting from the screaming, but his words were getting through to him. He just needed to push a little bit more.

  "You're better than this, better than him. I actually believed you could be King of the Pirates someday. At least that's what I thought. But maybe I was wrong. If that's true, if I really was wrong about you, then hit me! One more good punch ought to do it. Show me the kind of man you are, Luffy!"

  "Ahh!" Luffy shouted, throwing a punch without even calling out an attack name. Nick stared at the approaching fist, putting his life completely in Luffy's hands. He was serious when he said one more good punch would be all it took. He was barely standing upright as it was. A punch from a pissed off Luffy would almost certainly kill him.

  But Nick believed in Luffy. And not just the character he saw on a screen but the man standing right in front of him. After spending some time around the hyperactive lunatic, he couldn't help but be drawn to him. Not in the same way he was drawn to Nami of course, but in a way that made you want to follow him, to believe in him. He just had that main protagonist aura to him.

  That's why, as death rapidly approached him, he didn't flinch. He stood as straight as he could, watching the fist get closer and closer, not budging an inch. Usopp was panicking, telling him to run away while Zoro watched on, gripping his swords as tightly as he could.

  Both of them thought this was it, that they were about to see Nick die. But to their shock, and relief, something else happened. Luffy's fist stopped an inch away from Nick's face, his hair blowing back from the force of the punch.

  The world seemed to pause for a moment as Luffy's fist lingered in the air. A second or two ticked by before his fist started retracting back towards its owner. They weren't sure what they were expecting to happen, but Luffy punching himself in the face certainly wasn't on the list.

  The strength behind the punch was enough to launch the rubber man backwards, his hat flying off his head. The three of them could only stare at this in shock as Luffy hit the ground hard before lying still.

  Nobody moved, wondering if Luffy would get up and continue to attack. But it seemed, for now at least, the battle was finally over. Zoro relaxed his stance, keeping his swords at the ready, just in case.

  "I-is it over?" Usopp asked, though it came out as garbled nonsense through the honey gag. He gets an A for effort though.

  Nick started to make his way towards the rubber man, clutching his injured sides. Every step sent agony shooting through his body, right from the tips of his toes all the way to the follicles of his hair. But he refused to stop. That is, until Luffy's hat landed right in front of him.

  Was it a coincidence, or was it fate? It felt as if some outside force was compelling to do something, but ultimately left the choice in his hands. Because he was free, and no man should be compelled to act against his own will.

  Nick stared at the hat for a moment, realizing what he had to do. With a sigh, he went through the torment of picking up a hat. That's not something he ever thought he'd have to go through, at least not until he was an old man threatening kids on his lawn with a sawed off shotgun.

  That's the dream.

  He grunted in pain, falling to one knee, panting for breath. He reached out with his right hand, the one that wasn't clutching his side, grabbing hold of his friend's treasure while Zoro and Usopp watched in silence.

  Not that Usopp had much choice in the matter.

  Nick then forced himself back to his feet, barely holding in the scream of anguish as he did so. He stood there for a moment, trying to find the strength to move. When he did, he took slow, cautious steps towards Luffy, who still had yet to move.

  When he finally made it to him, Nick looked down at the fully conscious man, eyes no longer glassed over, staring at the night sky.

  "Hey," Nick said, not really knowing what else to say. Luffy didn't answer, at least not right away. He just continued to stare at the sky. Eventually, however, he found the will to ask a question. A very simple question, but one that had staggering consequences.

  "What did I do?"

  Nick blew out a breath of air, once more not knowing how to respond. But looking at Luffy's face, seeing the vulnerability he was trying to hide, he couldn't lie. It would be a terrible disservice to the man to do so. He would either rise above his mistakes, or be suffocated by them. The choice was his, and his alone.

  "You got hypnotized and beat the shit out of us," Nick said, making Luffy clench his fists in anger. Who he was angry at, Nick didn't know, but he suspected he was more angry at himself then Jango or anybody else.

  Zoro wanted to protest that he was beaten in any way but refrained from interrupting. Someday, when the stakes weren't so high, he and Luffy would have a rematch, and then they'll see who beat the shit out of whom.

  Luffy's lips trembled and he moved his arm to cover his eyes. Nick did feel a bit guilty about putting his friend through this, but lying would only be a false kindness. To be a truly kind person, you have to be willing to speak with honesty, no matter how hard the truth might be to hear. Bit of an oxymoron when you think about it.

  "Damn it… What's wrong with me? How could I…" Luffy cried. He couldn't believe he attacked his own crew, his friends, and tried to kill them. How could he call himself a Captain if he let someone tell him what to do like that?

  "You screwed up. There's no two ways about it. The real question is, what are you going to do about it now?" Nick asked, staring down at the distraught man, eyes hard and without sympathy. That wouldn't be of any help right now.

  Luffy took his arm away, staring up and Nick with confusion, eyes filled with watery tears. "What do you mean?"

  "Our friends were captured. Are you going to just abandon them to wallow in self pity, or are you going to help save them?" Nick asked, holding out the straw hat for Luffy to see.

  "Tell me, who are you, Monkey D. Luffy? Are you the type of man who leaves his friends high and dry when the going gets rough, or will you sacrifice everything to save them? Will you renounce your dream to become the Pirate King because of a mistake, or will you learn from this and grow stronger? The choice is yours, Luffy."

  "Will you stand up and fight, or will you lay there and die?"

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Luffy continued to stare at the hat, his mind wandering back to Shanks. The man, for all his power, rarely picked a fight. Not unless someone threatened the people he cared about, like when he himself was threatened by the mountain bandits. Shanks was happy to let the insults roll right off his back, but the moment they pointed their weapons at Luffy, all hell broke loose.

  Luffy modeled his entire personality off of the man. He wondered, what would Shanks do in this situation? The thought actually made Luffy smirk, as he wiped the tears from his eyes. It was a pretty stupid question. He knew exactly what Shanks would do.

  And it was the same thing he would do right now.

  Luffy's eyes, now vacant of tears, gazed up at his hat with a steely, determined expression. He stood up slowly, standing in front of Nick, who was holding out his hat for him to take. He knew what taking the hat right now meant, and what it would mean if he refused.

  His hand reached out, grabbing his treasure without the slightest bit of hesitation, before placing it back on his head, where it belonged. "Thanks Nick. I needed that," he said, making the brown haired man smirk at him.

  "Anytime."

  Nick then watched as Luffy started walking towards the edge of the cliff, focusing on the retreating ship. There would be no way for the rubber man to reach it, no matter how stretchy he was, so he wondered what he was doing.

  A thought echoed by Zoro and Usopp.

  But as he continued to walk, Nick could swear he heard music. The same song he remembered from the walk to Arlong Park. He didn't know if it was all in his head or just the Voice of the World, but either way, it made his hairs stand on end.

  [Play One Piece OST: Overtaken]

  Luffy reached the cliff's edge, staring out at the distant ship, his eyes brimming with resolve. He then took in an enormous amount of air, his body expanding like a balloon.

  "Nami! Kaya! Akisu!" he shouted, loud enough to shatter eardrums. Nick and Zoro covered their ears in pain, while Usopp was glad he had his own earplugs.

  The three people in question perked up their ears at hearing his voice, and Kaya's eyes cleared of the hypnotic trance she was in. "Luffy?" they all thought, a feeling of hope brimming within their chests.

  "What the heck was that?" asked Boo Jack, looking around confused. But there was one of them who was not confused, and that was Kuro, who glared back at the shoreline.

  "So it seems he's snapped out of it, has he? Well, no matter. There's little he can do now," Kuro said with confidence, fixing his glasses with a self satisfied smirk.

  "We're coming to save you! I promise! So don't give up, understand!"

  Hearing this, tears gathered in their eyes, a feeling of resoluteness washing over them. They would trust in his words and believe in him, each one making a promise to themselves to hold on, for as long as it took.

  It was strange, at least for Nami, to put her trust in a pirate, but at the same time, there was something different about Luffy. Somehow, she knew he would come to save her. Just like she knew that Nick, no matter how injured he may be, would be right there with him.

  "Aw, isn't that sweet. Just so you know, if he does show up, he's a dead man," Honey Queen stated, giving Nami a smug smirk. But Nami wasn't listening. They didn't know those guys like she did. They would save them, she just had to stay alive until that happened.

  Luffy watched the ship sail further away for a bit before turning around. Nick and the others watched with smirks on their faces. Even if they had permanent damage to their ears, it was an inspirational speech.

  Made Nick and Zoro eager to get some payback.

  "So, what's the plan now Captain," Nick asked as Luffy neared him. The rubber man stopped, holding his hat to his head as a fierce gust of wind threatened to blow it off.

  "Now we go after them, and get our friends back," he said, eyes filled with a determined fury.

  "That's what I'm talking about. Let me just go and grab my shovel," Nick said, hobbling back towards his favorite weapon. While he did this, Luffy walked towards Zoro.

  "Zoro, I-"

  "Look, if you're planning to apologize, save it. Right now, we have bigger things to worry about. But let me just say one thing," he said, sheathing his swords once again. "I didn't join you to lose to second rate scrubs like them. Understand?"

  Luffy stared at him for a moment before nodding his head. "Yeah, I getcha. It won't happen again, I promise."

  "Then there's nothing to worry about. Now, let's go get some revenge." The two of them shared a savage grin, one that scared the hell out of Usopp. It looked like a pair of demons plotting to go on a murder spree.

  And to be fair, he wasn't far off.

  "Hey Zoro, no fair. You're supposed to be having a bromance with me, and yet I find you cheating on me with another bro? How could you?" Nick said, clutching his chest in exaggerated agony.

  "I told you before, we are not in a bromance!"

  Luffy chuckled a bit as his crew returned somewhat to normalcy, but that still didn't quell the burning in his heart. Today, he failed as a Captain, but luckily, he had an amazing crew that had his back.

  The three of them started to leave, with Zoro and Nick bickering lightheartedly. It was made even more amusing by the fact that Nick had his arm over Zoro's shoulder for support.

  Clearly a bromance.

  "Hey, what about me! Don't leave me here!" shouted Usopp, though no one could understand a word of what he said. He struggled as hard as he could against his imprisonment, but he couldn't make it budge an inch.

  *Line Break*

  "I can't believe you left me there! What's wrong with you!" Usopp shouted, still trapped in a block of honey. When the group eventually realized their mistake, they of course traveled back for him. Or at least, Zoro and Luffy did, because Nick was not walking back, no siree.

  Usopp could suck it.

  Once they got there, Zoro proceeded to use his swords to cut him free. Usopp tried to stop him, shaking his nose back and forth in defiance, crying in a panic, but it did little to dissuade the swordsman.

  Once Usopp was cut free, Zoro stabbed two of his swords into the block of honey, using them like handles to drag Usopp behind him. It also made for a convenient perch for Nick and Luffy to sit on.

  Nick due to his injuries, and Luffy because he wanted to eat the block of honey.

  "Mm, so yummy!"

  "Luffy, you better not bite me!"

  "Damn it, should have left his mouth covered," Zoro griped, which offended the trapped liar.

  "What did you say!?"

  "Tsk. So what exactly is the plan here? We can't exactly go after them without a ship," Zoro said.

  "Merry," Usopp stated, after thinking about it for a moment.

  "Usopp, I'm flattered, but I think we should just be friends," Nick said, giving the man a shit eating grin.

  "Not that kind of marry you idiot! I mean the butler! He has his own ship that he uses to run errands. I'm sure he'll let us borrow it," he clarified.

  "What, am I not good enough for you?" Nick continued to tease.

  "Hell no!"

  "That's fine. At least I still have Zoro."

  "Drop dead."

  "Aw, I love you too buddy!"

  "Ow, Luffy, I said no biting!"

  "My bad."

  By the time the four of them made it back to the mansion, Luffy had eaten most of the honey off of Usopp, which was both a blessing and a curse. He may have been free now, but he was all slimy.

  Nick, who wasn't there for the battle, as he was preoccupied with stealing a boat, whistled in appreciation at the carnage. Bodies were strewn all over the place, with most of them covered in bite marks. "Damn, what the hell happened here? I expected there to be bodies, but these guys look like they were mauled by a wild animal."

  "That was all his doing," Zoro said, pointing his thumb towards Usopp, who puffed his chest out proudly.

  "Really? He bit and scratched all of them? I expected him to use his slingshot or something. Guess there's more to you than meets the eye," Nick said, sounding both impressed and disturbed at the same time, making Zoro snort in amusement.

  "I didn't bite them! I used squirrel pheromones to make those furry little monsters attack them!" Usopp shouted. Nick made an "oh" face, before returning his attention back to the bodies and shuddering. "That explains the white all over them…"

  "Never mind that, we need to find Merry. He was pretty injured the last time I saw him, so he's probably still in Kaya's room. After that, we need to tell the villager's all about Kuro. With Merry backing us up, they'll have to believe us," Usopp said, getting a nod from Luffy. Zoro appeared indifferent to the plan, but Nick…

  "Listen, I don't think that's a good idea," he said without an ounce of his usual humor in his voice. They turned to look at him, noting the serious tone of his voice.

  "What, why not. After everything he did, they deserve to know the truth," Usopp said with anger. Just the thought of what that bastard did to his home infuriated him.

  "You may be right, but do you think Kuro didn't account for us blabbing about his true identity? If he was truly worried about such an outcome, he would have killed us back at the cliffs personally," Nick said, making Usopp pause in thought.

  "Yeah, maybe, but you don't know that for sure," he countered.

  "You're right, I don't. But the man has been planning this for years, so I doubt he left much to chance. We might have thrown a wrench in his plans, but that's all we did. If I had to guess, he probably has a plan to frame both you and Merry for his crimes. Some kind of falsified evidence and with that hypnotist pal of his, he could probably get away with it," Nick explained further, getting a dark look from Luffy at the mention of Jango.

  "So we just have to take him out," Usopp tried, but Nick wasn't done.

  "And even if they do believe you over Kuro, he might just go ahead and kill them all. Start over with a fresh group of people, eager for new opportunities."

  Usopp clenched his fists in anger. He knew Nick was right, but he hated having to pretend like that butler was one of them. It was infuriating! Maddening! But the whole town knew of the animosity between them, so even with Merry's backing, there would still be doubts.

  "Listen," Nick said, placing his hand on Usopp's shoulder. "I know it's frustrating, but the best thing we can do is go and beat the shit out of them. I'm sure between Merry and Kaya, they'll believe you. And with Kuro beaten, there's no chance for retribution."

  This calmed Usopp down, at least a little. He was still angry, but he could hold it in for the sake of his home and all the people he cared about, especially Kaya.

  "Hey, didn't we tell those kids about the faker?" Luffy asked, making the others turn to him. Nick had no idea what he was talking about, but Zoro and Usopp did.

  "Ah, crap! I forgot about them! Quick, we have to go and warn them!" Usopp shouted, fracking out. He tried to run away, but Zoro grabbed him by his collar, keeping him in place.

  "Will you calm down?"

  "How am I supposed to calm down!? You heard what he said. I have to stop them from talking before it's too late!" Usopp shouted, unable to calm down in the slightest, hypochondria in full swing. He kept trying to run, but Zoro simply held him in place, making the whole thing rather comical.

  "Listen, by now they've either spilled the beans or they haven't, but rushing off half cocked will only make things worse," Zoro stated, making Usopp stop running in place.

  "Yeah, but… fine, you're probably right," he sighed, and Zoro let him go. He stood there, dejected for a moment, before he turned back to them with a determined look in his eyes.

  "Right then, let's go find Merry and see if we can borrow his ship."

  "You and Luffy go ahead. Zoro and I have something to take care of," Nick said, getting confused looks from all three.

  "And what the heck is that?" Usopp asked.

  "Don't worry about it. You two just go and get us that ship," Nick said. Usopp looked like he wanted to question him some more, but a hand on his shoulder prevented him from doing so. Luffy had a serious look on his face as he stared into Nick's eyes, before giving him a nod.

  "Right. Usopp, let's go," he said, dragging the long nosed man towards the mansion, much to his protests. Once the two of them were inside, Zoro turned his attention back to Nick.

  "Alright, what is this all about?" he asked, arms crossed over his chest, giving the taller man a glare. Nick sighed, looking out at the sea of bodies around them.

  "Look, we don't know where their base is, so we're going to need someone to guide us. I need your help to gather up a few of the survivors," Nick stated, a resolved look on his face.

  "I want to have a little talk with them."