(Location: Secon)
(General POV)
"Why are we always planning to do this kind of stuff at night? I killed two of their higher-ups in broad daylight, and no one's figured out a thing yet." Luke questioned Jack, who had just finished telling them the plan he had cooked up thus far. "Because no one in this dumbass world expects an attack at night. On top of that fact, my powers are stronger in the dark, ergo, we attack in the dark." Jack explained before rolling his eyes.
"I'm just saying, they're not all that strong. Diamante was far weaker than I expected based on what you told me, and if the others are on his level, we could walk in and kill them all without much effort, even if we did announce ourselves beforehand." Luke said, making a valid point.
"We could do that, but then it would possibly give them the chance to find hostages, and then we risk civilian casualties. Besides, not all of us like to play with our food." Jack said, and Luke knew exactly what he meant. He had a habit of dragging out the deaths of his would-be victims, though he saved this for those he considered truly deserving of it.
"I've got a question. Why are only we going? Shouldn't the others come as well?" Lucian asked, earning a look from Jack. "To be honest, when I recruited everyone to the guild, I did it with the express purpose of you all fulfilling a certain role. Sure, I trained you all so you could defend yourselves and fight when you needed to, however given that this operation has mostly to do with killing, they don't need to be a part of it. You, Tedi, Nemo, Smoker, Luke, and myself are the fighters, and the others are support." Jack explained as best he could.
"What about Tashigi?" Tedi asked, thinking she was more lined up with a fighter than a support role. "She's dead weight. And technically she's a Sentinel, which means she's not part of the guild, so she can't come." Luke answered plainly, not even leaving it up for debate whether the woman could come or not. Jack merely rolled his eyes at Luke's words before he said, "She declined to come, actually. Though helping people is right up her alley, she still has a bit of a problem with our… methods." Luke very visibly rolled his eyes at this, but at least he didn't comment.
"Anyway, to get back on topic, read over the names of the officers. Memorize their appearances and abilities, and once we get to Dressrosa, we'll get Viola's help to locate each and every one of them, then we'll decide on who's going to be dealing with whom. I'll be back in twenty minutes, then we'll set off." Jack explained to them, then he moved to go and finalize everything with the others.
*****
"We'll be fine. We've got Rayleigh, Garp, Sengoku, and Whitebeard and nearly his entire fleet here to watch over us. Only an idiot would dare to attack us." Nojiko told Jack after he asked if they were going to be alright without him for a day or two. He had already told the old codgers that he was going to be gone for a day or two, and they had all agreed to watch over those of his party who were staying on Secon, however Jack had his doubts about them.
Looking over to Whitebeard's ship, he saw Whitebeard, Garp, and Rayleigh having a drinking contest with the alcohol he had provided them, and Sengoku was still hiding somewhere in the resort. Ever since Jack had gotten there, Garp had been banned from entering the establishment, and the old buddha was taking full advantage of that.
"Stop worrying. Even if those monsters were incapable of fighting, it's not like we're exactly weak. We've trained enough that I'm sure we can survive a few days without you." Nojiko stated, once more trying to put his mind at ease after seeing how unconvinced he looked while glancing over at the old geezers. "Okay, but even if you tell me not to, I still can't help but worry that something's going to happen." Jack said, feeling ill at ease with the whole thing.
"Then come back soon so you can stop worrying. And if you want a little more incentive, I'll do that thing you like with my tongue when you get back." She whispered in his ear, and Jack had to suppress the memories of what she was talking about. "Deal." He told her, knowing he was going to be spoiled when he got back. "Can we go now?" Luke asked dryly from a few feet away, completely ruining the mood.
After stealing one final kiss from Nojiko, Jack and the others loaded up onto the tiny ship they had set out in all those months ago. For Nemo, Lucian and Tedi this would be their first time travelling on it, but Jack knew they could handle it. "Hold on tight boys." Jack warned them all as the ship slowly rose into the air, courtesy of Nojiko. Once they were in the clear, Jack charged up his power before he launched them into the sky like a bullet fired from a gun. They were there one second and gone the next, and after looking through the sky, no one could see them.
*****
(Location: Dressrosa
They arrived in Dressrosa just after the sun had gone down, which was perfect timing by Jack's calculations. Luke escorted them all to where he knew Viola would be, then they got right down to the crux of the matter. Jack laid out pictures of every member of the Donquixote Family, minus the foot soldiers, and Viola of course, then after going over their powers once more even though everyone present should know all about them by this point, they decided on who was going to fight who. Originally Luke was going to fight Trebol, but after Viola explained that he was never far from Sugar, Jack decided to take him out himself, and thus the targets were decided.
Jack's Targets:
Doflamingo
Sugar
Trebol
Luke's Targets:
Pica
Gladius
Buffalo
Smoker's Targets:
Monet
Giolla
Nemo's Targets:
Delinger
Lucian's Targets:
Baby-5
Tedi's Targets:
Machvise
Senior Pink
Even though Nemo and Lucian had only been designated one target, it depended on who among them dispatched their first target on who would get to kill Senior Pink. The officers were so spread out, it was anyone's guess as to who was going to deal with who. Luke got three targets because they were all close together, and based on what Jack knew of everyone's strengths and weaknesses, Luke was far stronger than everyone else, and his speed was in another league. Even Jack himself could only beat Luke in short distance racing, as Luke's power allowed him to blitz through the skies like an actual bolt of lightning, and that was kind of hard to contend with.
"I've got to ask, how in the world do you have this much information on the Donquixote Family? I don't even know some of this stuff." Viola said as she picked up the files Jack had written out which contained information on every member of the Donquixote Family. There was even a section on her, which was kind of frightening because by simply skimming over it, she realized Jack knew all about her past from the time she was a child.
"Chalk it up to a Devil Fruit power from someone long gone. If you try to dig more into it, you're only going to get a headache. And before you think of using your powers on Jack, just know that they won't work, and you might actually piss him off." Luke answered simply, then as if he were going to whisper something important to her, he leaned in close before saying, "Trust me, you don't want to piss him off. I can tell you from first-hand experience that it's beyond painful."
Deciding to heed Luke's advice and not anger the man who was going to fulfill her greatest wish, Viola dropped the matter of what could only be called "stalking" and instead focused her attention on Luke. "Are you sure you're going to be alright? Gladius and Buffalo might not be all that strong, but Pica is another matter. His power makes it almost impossible to get a read on him." Viola told Luke, who looked slightly affronted at her words.
"I'm a little insulted that you think I need to worry about these guys. I killed Diamante and that old G guy in a few seconds flat, so if they're even half as weak as them, this shouldn't be much of an issue. Besides, I've fought two Admirals at once, so this is going to be a cakewalk." Luke reassured her.
"Remind me again, how did your fight with Aokiji and Kizaru end?" Smoker asked, inserting himself into the conversation. "What was that, DOG?" Luke asked with a glare. "Stop it." Jack cut in before anyone could say or do anything that would make things go from bad to worse. "He started it. If I didn't know any better, I'd think he was taking stupid lessons from Tashigi." Luke said in annoyance.
"He was just trying to be funny. And it was. You had to run away from Kizaru the first time you encountered him, and before you say it was because he snuck up on you, that doesn't make you look any better either. Smoker's part of this guild, and I'll not have you and him trying to kill each other. I tolerate it with Tashigi because she genuinely does try to start shit with you, and also because soon I plan to dump her onto Haedrig for Sentinel training, but Smoker is different. You don't have to like him, but you won't start anything with him." Jack stated firmly, daring Luke to question him. "Fine. I'm sorry." Luke said, then under his breath he grumbled, "It still wasn't that funny."
With the little bitchfit out of the way, Jack got back to checking over everything, then after once more confirming the target's locations with Viola, they all set off. Because of the fact that eliminating Sugar would return the toys back into people, and thus restoring the memory of said people back to their loved ones and anyone who knew them beforehand, Jack knew he couldn't eliminate Sugar until he dealt with Doflamingo, so he made his way to him first.
Getting into the castle was child's play, and Jack felt that even without Viola's intel that he would have got inside just as easily, though finding Doflamingo wouldn't have been. Rather than having to search the whole castle, Jack went straight towards the room where he knew Doflamingo to be, and rather than draw it out or have some big confrontation, Jack immediately activated his Void Domain, which nullified all Devil Fruits in a specific area, save for his own, then he attacked.
The sleeping Doflamingo didn't even have the chance to register that he was under attack before black flames were snaking their way over his body as if they were alive, and when he finally did notice the flames it was too late. He had tried to jump out of his bed, however he was being held in place by what seemed like an immovable object. Even as he struggled in vain to break himself free, he could feel his arms and legs disintegrate into ash, however instead of consuming more of him, the flames simply cauterized the stumps of where his limbs once were.
Knowing how much of a pain in the ass Doflamingo's power could be, Jack didn't take any chances, and once Doflamingo's limbs were gone he made a Sea Stone collar appear in his hand before he latched it around Doflamingo's neck. "I'll be back." Was the only thing he said to Doflamingo after stuffing a gag in the torso's mouth before he disappeared from the room.
Jack honestly would have just killed Doflamingo then and there, but he had promised Sengoku to make the whole thing rather public, plus he didn't think the people of this country would be satisfied to hear that the scumbag was dead and not get a chance to vent their outrage upon him.
With the biggest obstacle out of the way, Jack quickly made his way towards where he knew Sugar and Trebol to be, while at the same time dispatching any and every one of Doflamingo's foot-soldiers along the way. By the time he got to Sugar's room, Jack could hear explosions and fighting off in the distance, which meant there was no point in being stealthy, so without any preamble he kicked the door in and stepped into the room.
Even before entering, Jack could feel the presence of the two people inside, so upon entering his eyes instantly moved to where he sensed them. Trebol was hanging from the ceiling with his body caked in goo, and sitting on a reclining chair in the far corner, a young girl was eating a bowl full of grapes.
Not one to mince words with those he was going to kill, Jack sent a wave of fire at Trebol, which in turn caused a small explosion when the flammable goo covering him was ignited. Bits and pieces of the man fell about the room, but Jack paid it no mind as he focused his full attention on the child.
Having seen her in the anime, and then having seen real pictures of her that he had purchased from the [STORE] was quite a bit different than seeing her in person, and Jack couldn't help but feel a little guilt about what he was going to do. Knowing that he couldn't drag this out, Jack made a gun appear in his hand and fired, hitting her right between the eyes and blowing her brains out the back of her head.
After taking out the crates of fruit from his [Inventory], Jack took the time waiting for the Devil Fruits to appear to take a few deep breaths and calm himself, all the while he repeated to himself, 'She wasn't a child. She wasn't a child.' By the time both Sugar's and Trebol's Devil Fruits appeared, Jack was back to his usual self, but that was only really true after he burned Sugar's corpse.
'I don't think I can ever let someone else get their hands on the Hobby-Hobby Fruit. It's too much, even for this world.' Jack thought to himself, then made sure to put the Devil Fruit in question apart from the other ones he had stored away inside of his [Inventory].
With his targets dealt with, Jack made his way back to Doflamingo's room, and after nonchalantly grabbing the torso and head by his collared throat, Jack moved about the castle as if he were simply carrying a bag of garbage. It was only a short walk later to the ground floor of the castle where he found Smoker, Nemo, Lucian, and Tedi all standing outside a room where Jack could definitely sense people inside. He was about to ask what was going on when he heard the muffled cries of agony, and without having to check with his Haki, he knew Luke had lost himself.
"Take him and wait for me outside, would you? I'll go and clean this up." Jack told Smoker and the others as he nonchalantly held out what was left of Doflamingo's body to the former Marine. "It couldn't have happened to worse people, but even then, this is a little fucked up." Smoker said as he grabbed Doflamingo and walked out of the castle, trailed quickly by Nemo, Tedi, and Lucian, the latter of whom looked a little sick.
Once they were outside of the castle, Jack stepped inside the room where he knew Luke to be, and it was then that he saw all three of Luke's targets strapped to a long table, and each of them looked like they were experiencing their own personal hell.
Pica had what looked to be a chair leg shoved down his throat with a tube beside it, most likely to allow him to breathe to prolong his suffering. He was missing his eyes, legs, arms, and most of his internal organs were hanging outside of his body. Honestly, how he was still alive was a mystery even to Jack.
Gladius was beyond disfigured, as his limbs were all twisted so they were facing the opposite direction. Like Pica, his eyes and ears were removed, and he too also had a piece of furniture lodged inside of him, only his was a lamp that was embedded inside of his chest, and what was even more confusing was that the lamp was on and shining brighter than ever.
The last of Luke's targets was Buffalo, who was quite disfigured as Jack had come to expect, only he was going through something Jack couldn't quite describe. Luke was killing him, and then using his lightning powers to jumpstart his heart and bring him back to life just so he could kill him again. Not willing to humor Luke's brutality at the moment, Jack made the crates of fruit appear beside him before he waved his hand over the table and caused black flames to latch onto each of the bound victims, and quickly they were all consumed until nothing but ash remained.
Without saying anything, Jack moved over to sit in a chair near Luke, though he made sure not to sit on the one that was missing one of its legs. He wasn't in any sort of rush, so Jack simply remained quiet as Luke slowly but surely came back to himself. "You good?" Jack asked once Luke turned to face him, getting a slow nod in return. "You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd think you really like this girl." Jack said, his words surprising Luke. Of all the things he was expecting Jack to say, this wasn't one of them.
"What are you talking about?" Luke questioned. "We've dealt with worse people than these guys, and you've always kept a steady head. Granted, there was that scientist guy who worked for Shiki, but he was torturing animals so that was a given, and sure, there was also that other time with CP-9, but I honestly think that guy had it coming. He was trying to steal Robin from us. Anyways, you meet Viola, and suddenly you're out to reap revenge for the last seven or eight years that her family has been suffering." Jack said with a half-smile on his face.
It was true, he wasn't a fan of Luke going all bloodthirsty psychopath on these people, but at least when he did, it was for the sake of someone else. Granted, he might have been looking too far into it, but he couldn't help but look for the patterns that made Luke do what he did, and this was the best reason he had come up for it. The only alternative was that he was genuinely a bloodthirsty psychopath, and he didn't really want to imagine that.
"You're looking too far into this." Luke said, not willing to humor Jack's ridiculous idea. "Whatever you say. Anyway, I think I hear the citizens chanting for blood outside. Let's go and give them some." Jack said with a wolfish grin.
*****
It took a few hours for the people to calm down enough to figure out what was going on, and by now the sun had risen into the sky as Jack overlooked Dressrosa from up on his perch on the castle walls. The truth had already been revealed to the whole island about Doflamingo turning people into toys, and what happened all those years ago with King Riku. The guards who had been turned into toys were quick to rally behind the former King Riku who was already trying to bring peace back to the country, and all of the giant beasts that had also been turned into toys were now under control.
The government officials and Marine soldiers who had been turned into toys by Doflamingo were killed by Luke, who didn't really care about the fact that they had been suffering all of this time too. According to him, it was their fault for giving Doflamingo his Warlord status that had allowed him to do this whole thing in the first place, and thus he felt no guilt at all about disposing of them.
Jack had already revealed himself to the people, and assured them that they would get restitution for the crimes they had suffered, but that would come later as for now he decided that the best thing that could happen was for people to reunite with their family members that had long been forgotten.
"It's moments like these that let me know I made the right choice when I first joined you." Smoker said from beside Jack as he gazed out over the city, watching as a father reunited with his wife and son after who knew how long. "The only way for evil to thrive is for good men to do nothing. For too long the good men have been kept blind as to what's been going on in this world, and as we open their eyes, they will take up the sword and stand with us. Just look at the world's reaction to our actions thus far." Jack said, making the point that Smoker was always a good man, only he had been blinded by the Marines into letting bad things happen, and it wasn't just him either. Each and every day more and more people were joining up with The Order and flying their flag, and slowly but surely the Government's hold was weakening.
Right at that moment, Luke walked out from inside the castle and moved over to sit with them. "I thought you'd be with Viola right now." Jack said with a raised eyebrow. "She's with her niece, Rebecca and her brother-in-law, Kyros. Kyros was apparently turned into a toy all those years ago and had been forgotten by everyone, and Viola is taking it pretty hard." Luke explained, getting a nod of understanding from Jack in return.
"So when are you going to execute, Doflamingo?" Smoker asked, changing the topic. "King Riku wants to do it tomorrow at noon. The people will have the time before then to grieve, and hopefully after we're done, their fears will be put to rest. In the meantime, I'm going to walk around the city and check on the people." Jack said, and without another word, he vanished.
*****
The following day at noon, nearly every single person in the country was gathered in the plaza beneath the castle walls to witness the execution of Donquixote Doflamingo, the Warlord who had kept thousands of the island's citizens hostage without anyone's knowledge. Already Jack had set up the Transponder Snail equipment, and once everything was in place, he activated it.
"Greetings to the people of this world. I once more interrupt your lives to expose more cruelties of this world that have been overlooked by the World Government. I am currently on the island kingdom of Dressrosa, a once proud nation under the rule of a fair and just king. A few years ago it was taken over by a pirate, however rather than stop this atrocity from happening, the World Government condoned this miscarriage of justice because the pirate in question was in their service." Jack spoke clearly, then paused momentarily as he brought what was left of Doflamingo into view so everyone watching could see.
He had to wait a few minutes for the cries of outrage from the people down below to die down before he could continue, but it worked out for him because the people were calling out for Doflamingo's head.
"The World Government and the Marines will never hear it, the voices of all the victims who were sacrificed because of them. The ears of those in power are attuned to their convenience, which is why I say, TO HELL WITH THEM!" Jack shouted angrily, then took a moment to calm himself before continuing, "There is something terribly wrong with this world. People should not be afraid of their governments, governments should be afraid of their people. If after everything I've shown you and everything you've no doubt experienced in your lives, you still don't see what's wrong with this world, then keep closing your eyes to reality. However, if you see what I see, if you feel what I feel, and if you would seek justice as I do, then stand up! You are not alone!" Jack exclaimed, then before the entire world, he made a pillar of fire envelope Doflamingo, putting an end to him once and for all.
The broadcast ended after that, though the cheering from the people down below hadn't. They were too busy celebrating the end of the tyrant who had been ruling them for these last few years. "That was certainly… something." King Riku said to Jack, sounding confused. "It was the truth. Dressrosa isn't the first kingdom to suffer under the World Government, nor will it be the last. You can turn a blind eye and keep following the Government, or you can stand up for yourselves." Jack said, making everything sound simple, even though it was far from it.
"You have our support." Viola said, inserting herself into the conversation and speaking for Dressrosa as a whole. "Viola?" Her father questioned. "The World Government is through, father. At the very least, I refuse to work with them or the Marines again. I pleaded with them so many times for help over the years, but every time I was told that there was nothing they could do about it because Doflamingo was a Warlord. They demand so much from us, yet give nothing in return. I'm done laying down, and so are our people." Viola explained to King Riku, then she turned back to look at Jack. "Whatever support we can give, you need only ask." She said, and Jack could see she was a hundred percent serious. "Thank you." He said sincerely.
*****
For the rest of the day, Jack and the others stayed in Dressrosa and helped bring a bit more order back to the kingdom, and just because he could, Jack gave out a few Devil Fruits to guards that he deemed to be honorable enough to not abuse their power. Kyros was given Doflamingo's Devil Fruit, as Jack explained how he could use it to create a nigh on impenetrable wall of string around the island to make so none could enter, not to mention he could create an artificial leg out of string, though Jack knew it would never beat a real leg. He knew Soran might be able to fix that, but given how she was still on Secon, that wouldn't be happening anytime soon.
Come the following morning, Jack was ready to head back to Secon, however Luke didn't seem to be in that much of a rush. "You can call me day or night, and I'll be there." Luke told Viola, who had her arms wrapped around his neck. "Even if I don't call, you can still come and visit me. Often would be preferable." Viola said quietly to him, however Jack and most everyone around them still heard. Feeling as if this would drag out if he let it, and figuring he could get some payback against Luke for always rushing him and Nojiko, Jack shouted, "Can we go now?!"
Luke wasn't all that impressed with Jack's choice of words, and had even flipped him the middle finger behind Viola's back. He continued to whisper promises of coming back to visit into Viola's ears, but soon enough he did board the little boat. "Are we heading back to Secon or are we going to deal with Tesoro?" Luke asked Jack, who had actually forgotten about Tesoro. Jack had found Tesoro's Vivre Card last night in the castle, so really there was nothing stopping them from heading out and getting that whole thing sorted out.
"Are you all up for dealing with Tesoro?" Jack asked the others, getting nods of affirmation all around. "The sooner the better." Smoker said, to which Luke actually agreed. Seeing as how there were no arguments against it, Jac shrugged his shoulders before saying, "Then lets go and kill the fucker."