September 26, 1503, Age of the Sea Circle
Inside the cave, Rebecca was hiding behind a large rock, taking advantage of the darkness that surrounded her. As she listened to the sounds of battle coming from outside, fear welled up inside her, and she recalled the words of the small toy soldier, who had warned her that bad people had come to hurt her.
Trembling slightly as she tucked her head between her arms, Rebecca did her best to make no sound at all, hoping to avoid drawing the attention of the enemies nearby. However, only a few minutes after the toy soldier had left her alone in the cave, she heard a group of people running toward her hiding place.
Rebecca curled up as tightly as she could, trying to remain unnoticed, but it was impossible for the newcomers not to find her, as they were aided by the powers of the Giro Giro no Mi.
"Rebecca!" Viola cried out as she ran toward her niece with tears in her eyes, relieved to see her safe and unharmed.
Although she had already confirmed Rebecca's condition beforehand using her ability, it was different to see her directly in front of her, to be able to hold her in her arms. Now that she had finally ensured her niece's safety, she could at last breathe a sigh of relief.
"Aunt Viola?" Rebecca said, lifting her head when she heard the familiar voice of the princess of Dressrosa.
Viola finally reached her and, holding her tightly, said,
"It's me. Don't worry, Rebecca, everything is going to be fine."
"Aunt Viola… Waaaah."
The little girl burst into tears, releasing all the fear and frustration she had been holding in over the past few days. Even though she did not fully understand everything that was happening, she was a child intelligent enough to realize that something was wrong simply by observing her mother's behavior.
First, a massive fire had broken out, and then Scarlett had taken her away from their home with almost no preparation, hiding in this cave and telling her that bad men were looking for them. Finally, her mother had gone out to look for food and had not returned, even though a long time had already passed.
All of these things had been piling up in the child's mind, and she had done her best to appear strong and brave despite the deep fear she felt. Now that she finally had someone familiar by her side—her Aunt Viola—she stopped repressing her negative emotions, breaking down into a flood of tears.
Just as this emotional reunion of the Dressrosa royal family was taking place, a massive explosion erupted outside the cave, and the entire area shook violently, alerting the small group that had come to retrieve the girl.
"We need to leave immediately. Orion won't be able to hold out much longer against Doflamingo in his current condition," Giolla said, placing a hand on Viola's shoulder to signal that this was not yet the time to relax.
Viola nodded, and lifting Rebecca into her arms, she said,
"Rebecca, we're going to where your mother is."
Rebecca's eyes lit up, and the little girl nodded enthusiastically, wiping her tears away with the back of her hand and showing a joyful expression despite her slightly swollen eyes.
…
Meanwhile, outside the cave, Orion and Doflamingo were in the midst of their confrontation.
The massive explosion caused by the Dyna Stone projectile made the ground tremble as if an earthquake were occurring, while the dome created by the Canvas Realm to contain the blast began to crack under the immense pressure of the energy released by Orion's attack.
This was the first time Orion had used one of the Dyna Stone projectiles he had obtained after completing the mission on Jewel Island, and the reason for that—beyond the fact that he had not previously found the right adversary—was that the power of these projectiles was extraordinarily destructive.
Despite using only a small amount of the mysterious mineral, the resulting explosion was capable of wiping a small settlement off the map entirely. During his previous encounter with Doflamingo in the capital of Dressrosa, Orion had been unable to use them for precisely that reason, as he did not wish to eliminate a large number of innocent civilians just to defeat Doflamingo.
Feeling the mental fatigue weighing on him, Orion spread his Observation Haki while activating his Prism Eyes. In an instant, he sensed that Rebecca had already been secured by Giolla's group, which meant that it was almost time to withdraw from this place.
However, as he observed Doflamingo's movements within the Canvas Realm, he knew it would not be that simple. Despite the power of the Dyna Stone explosion, the Warlord was still standing, and Orion was still at a disadvantage against him.
For that reason, Orion made a decision without hesitation, and extending his hand, he said,
"Foggy, come here."
Focusing his mental energy, he used one of his newest techniques: summoning.
The small emperor penguin of mist, who had been sleeping peacefully in the Pacific Kingdom, received his master's call and immediately opened his eyes, accepting Orion's summons. His body began to glow with a white light, and an instant later, he vanished without leaving a trace.
Even so, no one in the Pacific Kingdom was alarmed by this phenomenon, as they knew it was nothing more than Orion's summoning.
The small penguin appeared cheerfully beside Orion, happy to be reunited with its master and completely ignoring the tense situation it had been summoned into.
"Foggy, I want you to cover this entire area with your mist. Then stay by the entrance of that cave and don't move," Orion said with a gentle smile as he patted the adorable penguin on the head.
Foggy nodded quickly, and opening its beak wide, it spewed out a massive amount of Mysterious Mist, which spread across the entire area exactly as Orion had instructed.
*Ding*
*Your title "Protector" has been activated*
Orion felt the fatigue he had been experiencing recede slightly, and a satisfied expression appeared on his face. This was a special ability he had discovered during his mission on Jewel Island, but one he had not used at the time.
Beyond the defensive power of Foggy's mist, which was capable of protecting his kingdom from its enemies, this small companion beast had another wonderful function: it could generate territory under its control anywhere.
Any land covered by Foggy's Mysterious Mist was considered by the system to be part of his domain temporarily, until the mist dissipated. For that reason, his Protector title could be activated as long as he was fighting within the mist generated by Foggy, which made this adorable penguin far more useful during his travels away from Pacific Kingdom.
After all, this special title increased his physical capabilities by 40%, which was a rather incredible amount. Although his Haki and other special abilities did not change in raw power, his mental capacity did improve, meaning he could use those abilities with much greater ease.
Only an instant after Foggy spread its mist throughout the area, the dome created with the Canvas Realm began to crack at a much faster rate than before, until it was finally completely destroyed, while countless Haki-coated strings burst explosively from within.
Doflamingo reappeared on the battlefield, though his current appearance was vastly different from moments earlier. His clothes had been reduced to rags by the explosion, and his entire body was riddled with wounds of varying severity, while large amounts of blood stained his skin.
The powerful Warlord was even breathing heavily, though it was not only due to the effort required to withstand the Dyna Stone explosion, but also because he was emotionally agitated—or rather, completely enraged.
"Damn brat," Doflamingo said, trembling with fury as he glared at Orion in the distance.
His emotions were so unsettled that he did not even pay attention to the strange mist that had suddenly appeared, and unable to restrain himself, he launched into another attack.
Propelling himself with his strings, he moved at incredible speed, appearing in front of Orion almost instantly. Then he unleashed a simultaneous attack with both hands, using ten strings that burst from his fingers like saw blades, aiming to slice Orion's body apart.
Orion showed a victorious smile when he saw that Doflamingo had lost his composure, since that would make the fight far easier. Then, instead of retreating, Orion took a step forward, completely ignoring the Warlord's attack.
"What!?" Doflamingo displayed an expression of shock when his two powerful strikes hit Orion without causing any damage, being repelled by a layer of wood that covered Orion's body like a shield.
It was one of the amulets created from the magical Sanctuary Vine that Orion had obtained years earlier. Now, that Vine had merged with the Tree of Knowledge of Ohara that he had planted in his kingdom, allowing it to produce a greater quantity of these disposable wooden amulets.
Orion had distributed these amulets, which served to withstand an enemy's attack, among his loved ones and subordinates, but he also kept a small personal reserve that he could use whenever he deemed it necessary.
On this occasion, by completely ignoring Doflamingo's attack and defending himself with the wooden amulet, he was able to focus entirely on launching his own assault.
"Rokuogan!"
Orion planted both fists against the pirate's stomach and unleashed a devastating attack with all his might. Doflamingo felt his internal organs shatter under the overwhelming violence of the blow, and spitting out a mouthful of blood, he staggered backward, having lost the exchange of blows against Orion.
"You're not as strong as I thought. Maybe I can wipe out your entire crew without you being able to do anything after all," Orion said in a mocking tone, trying to provoke the pirate even further.
And just as he had planned, his words were effective. Doflamingo let out a scream filled with hatred and frustration, beginning a new assault.
Although the pirate was highly intelligent and scheming, he was also very impulsive and had a low tolerance for frustration. In other words, he was a capricious man who had grown accustomed to always getting what he wanted.
"Overheat!"
"Thirty-Six Styles, Dimensional Slash!"
The attacks of the two collided violently, generating a massive explosion that caused the surrounding mist to disperse slightly. Even though Orion's power level had increased significantly thanks to the buff from his title, he still could not compete head-on with Doflamingo's strength, and after a few seconds of stalemate, he was forced to take several steps back, until he finally had no choice but to abandon his attack and evade Doflamingo's flaming string.
Seeing that he had prevailed in the clash of power, Doflamingo finally recovered his macabre smile, while in his mind he began to fantasize about capturing Orion and torturing him to death.
Unfortunately for him, things would not go according to his desires, because just as he was preparing to beat Orion to a pulp, Giolla and the others emerged from the cave together with Rebecca, and Orion opened a door to his Pocket Dimension with a simple wave of his hand.
Giolla immediately threw the Riku royal family into Orion's small personal dimension, then scooped Foggy into her arms and entered as well without wasting a single instant.
Doflamingo watched with bloodshot eyes as the people he had been searching for over the last few days vanished without a trace right before his nose, and once again he exploded with rage.
"How dare you interfere with my plans, damn brat!" Doflamingo shouted, as he concentrated all the power of his Devil Fruit, intending to use his most powerful card: his Devil Fruit Awakening.
However, to his surprise, the ground around him did not transform into strings under his command as he had ordered, because a mysterious force was blocking his powers.
"Don't make that face. Right now, you're in my territory!" Orion said, as he generated a hand next to Doflamingo using Un Fleur.
"Age Change."
Doflamingo, who was somewhat confused by the failure of his Awakening, felt his body begin to shrink, and then watched with great frustration as Orion's hand grew in size until it became a gigantic fist, which came crashing down on him at tremendous speed and coated in Armament Haki.
Bang!
Orion's fist slammed into Doflamingo, crushing him against the ground like an insect, although it was impossible for such an attack to seriously injure him, since the Warlord had used his own Haki to protect himself at the last moment.
Even so, Doflamingo felt the humiliation of being overpowered by the physical force of that giant fist, and clenched his teeth in seething rage until his gums began to bleed.
"Enough! I'll tear you to pieces!" Doflamingo roared, finally managing, after struggling for several seconds, to overcome the force that was blocking his Devil Fruit powers, successfully turning all the terrain around him into strings under his control.
The strings coated in Armament Haki struck the gigantic fist and began to move frantically, intent on destroying everything around them. However, the moment they came into contact with Orion's fist, it dissolved into countless petals, leaving no trace behind.
Doflamingo looked toward where Orion had been standing just moments earlier, only to discover that there was no one there.
"AAAArrrrgggg!!!"
The Warlord let out a howl of fury, while his strings destroyed everything around him, dispersing the Mysterious Mist in the process.
…
Meanwhile, Orion was underground, riding on the back of his other companion beast, Nibble. He had used the final attack as a distraction and escaped with Nibble's help before the Mysterious Mist dissipated.
He knew very well that he could not continue fighting Doflamingo for much longer, as the fatigue was causing his eyelids to close involuntarily. In the first place, the plan had never been a fight to the death with the pirate, and once Rebecca had been secured, there was no longer any reason to keep fighting.
Letting out a soft sigh, Orion closed his eyes and thought about everything that had happened, as well as his future plans for the next conflicts with Doflamingo, both within the Time Dungeon and in his own world.
Using Foggy's Mysterious Mist was undoubtedly a useful tool, since it not only allowed him to increase his physical abilities by 40%, but also confused his enemy's perception and limited their movements.
He had even been able to restrict Doflamingo's Devil Fruit powers, preventing him from using his Awakening, if only for a few moments.
However, the main problem with using this tactic was that it placed a heavy strain on Foggy, who, after only a few minutes, had been completely exhausted, making it something he could not use as a trump card for the time being.
Perhaps in the future, when Foggy was fully grown, or if he found a way to increase his powers, he could consider it as a definitive card in his plans, but for now, it was simply something he could use in case of emergency.
Another thing that worried him was the possibility of Foggy being targeted by his enemies if they realized how the Mysterious Mist worked and its connection to the adorable penguin. At present, Foggy did not have great defensive capabilities, although it was true that he possessed a special defensive technique for emergencies.
Orion shook his head lightly and stopped thinking about it, as his mind was far too exhausted to consider so many things at the moment. Right now, there were only 17 hours left until the completion of the Time Dungeon, and all he had to focus on was finishing the implementation of his final plan in the Dressrosa of this timeline.
Opening a door in the air, Giolla emerged from the Pocket Dimension and sat beside him, hugging him tenderly while checking to make sure her man had not suffered any injuries during the battle with the pirate.
Even though Nibble was still growing and had not yet reached his final adult form, he was already large enough to carry several people on his back without any trouble, so Giolla and Orion had more than enough space to travel comfortably atop him.
"Giolla, I'm going to sleep for a bit. Can you take care of the situation?" Orion said, closing his eyes and resting his head against the soft, massive breasts of the beautiful artist, who gently stroked his hair.
"Of course, my love. Rest peacefully, I'll take care of speaking with the Tontatta to convince them to help," Giolla replied firmly, displaying the virtues of a capable wife.
Orion nodded faintly and settled himself against his wife's breasts, sinking into the world of dreams while Nibble continued to travel at full speed underground, heading toward the kingdom of the Tontatta.
According to the plan they had agreed upon beforehand, it was necessary to convince these small beings to help in the conflict against Doflamingo. Only the final stretch of the Time Dungeon remained, and Orion would do everything he could to improve the situation of the people living in the Dressrosa of this world.
…
Meanwhile, in Orion's original timeline, several events were unfolding in the North Blue. The young pirate Doflamingo had reunited with his long-lost brother Rosinante, and had also found a valuable Devil Fruit that could aid him in his future plans.
At the same time, a large Marine fleet had arrived from the New World, bringing with it a great number of Celestial Dragons who were eager to take part in a new native hunting expedition, while a small group of members from the Northern Revolutionary Army had noticed their arrival and were informing their commander.
Finally, in a small and wealthy town called Flevance, a great tragedy was being woven from the shadows, and it would not be long before a historic event occurred, one that would be written in blood in the annals of this Blue.