The full moon hung low over the Dreadnought Thalassa, its silver light washing across the retractable deck like spilled mercury. The Fermentation Current glittered in the distance, a ribbon of gold threading through the dark water. Somewhere below, the submarine's systems hummed—the Singularity Core pulsing, the Karakuri automata clanking through their maintenance rounds, the Aegis Mirage projectors cycling through their diagnostic sequences.
But on the deck, there was only the moon and the map and the weight of choices not yet made.
Marya Zaleska stood at the center of the deck, her raven hair like ink the moonlight, her golden eyes fixed on the holographic image projected from the Celestial Tideglass. The relic sat on a small bucket—a hexagonal prism of Moonsteel, its facets shimmering with constellations etched by Three-Eye Tribe scribes centuries ago. At its core, the black opal—the Tear of the Abyss—pulsed softly, responding to the full moon's light.
The hologram above it sprawled across the deck like a living map. Devil Fruits appeared as pulsing sigils, each one labeled in the lost script of the Ancient Kingdom. They drifted across the projection—some stationary, some moving, some flickering in and out of existence as their users traveled the Grand Line.
Galit Varuna stood beside Marya, his long neck coiled in a loose S-curve, his emerald eyes scanning the map. His tactical slate rested in his hands, the stylus tapping against the volcanic glass.
Jannali Bandler leaned against the railing, her afro proud, her headscarf pressed tight against her forehead. Her golden hoop earrings swung as she tilted her head, studying the hologram with the quiet intensity.
Aurélie Nakano Takeko sat on a wooden crate near the edge of the deck, her silver hair loose, her leather notebook open on her lap. Her pencil scratched across the page—fast, furious, driven by a muse that had struck without warning. Her eyes jetting across the page with intent focus glowed faintly in the moonlight.
"Fractured light on fractured water," she muttered, writing. "The moon remembers what the sun forgot."
Sanza Kaplan Figarland, Eliane Anđel, and Jelly "Giggles" Squish lay in a tangled heap on a stack of coiled ropes. Sanza's red hair stuck up in unruly tufts. Eliane's silver hair spread across Jelly's gelatinous body like a blanket. Jelly's starry eyes blinked slowly, his permanent toothy grin slack with exhaustion.
"You three look terrible," Jannali said, not looking away from the hologram.
Eliane's words came out slurred, her blue eyes bloodshot and barely open. "I'm not tired."
"I'm not tired either," Sanza muttered, his posh accent thick with fatigue. "I am merely... resting my eyes. Strategically."
"Bloop," Jelly whispered. "Me neither. I'm just... conserving energy. For... tomorrow. When I'll be... very energetic."
Jannali shook her head. "Just go to bed already."
"Can't," Eliane mumbled. "The moon is... pretty."
"The moon is always pretty," Sanza said. "That's its whole thing."
"Bloop."
The sound of heavy footsteps echoed across the deck. Atlas Acuta walked up the plank, his rust-red fur ruffled by the sea breeze, his blue sapphire eyes bright with satisfaction. In his hands, he held three meat skewers—one in each fist, and a third clamped between his teeth.
He chomped down on the one in his mouth, swallowed, and grinned.
"What'd I miss?"
The holographic image pulsed. The symbols representing the Devil Fruits vibrated and floated, each one a different color, each one tagged with a riddle in the Ancient Kingdom's lost script.
Marya's eyes narrowed. Her gaze tracked across the map, from territory to territory, from sigil to sigil.
Galit tapped his stylus against his slate. "What is it?"
Marya's lips pressed together. Her golden eyes fixed on a sigil near the center of the map—a pulsing red symbol that writhed like a living thing.
"The Ope Ope no Mi." She paused. "It's moving toward Zou."
Atlas swallowed another skewer. Licked his fingers. "Zou? Why does that matter?"
Marya shook her head. Her raven hair swayed. "It's just the opposite direction from where he was going. That's all. And, the Nika fruit is in Elbaph."
Jannali pushed off from the railing. She walked around the hologram, studying the sigils, listening to something only she could hear.
"Mate," she said, her twang stretching the vowel, "are you saying you want to—"
Marya shook her head. "No."
Her eyes shifted to the eastern quadrant of the map. A blue sigil hovered over an island labeled in ancient script—Ushirika. The Wani Wani no Mi, Model: Ginga. The Crocodile-Crocodile Fruit, Model: Ginga.
Galit followed her gaze. "It doesn't look like it has moved."
Marya shook her head. "No. It doesn't."
Her eyes slid to the southern quadrant. To an island labeled Amiso.
Galit noticed her focus shift. His emerald eyes narrowed.
"Are we going to Ushirika?"
Aurélie paused. Her pencil stopped scratching. She looked up from her notebook, her gaze fixing on Marya.
Jannali crossed her arms. "Mate, why wouldn't we go to Ushirika?"
Galit answered before Marya could. "The event where her brother is supposed to be..."
Jannali whistled—a low, understanding sound. "Bloody hell."
Everyone's head snapped around when Aurélie chimed in. Her voice—flat, calm, unemotional—cut through the night air.
"We should go to the event."
Marya's lips pressed together. Her golden eyes flickered.
Aurélie continued. "You will only question yourself if you do not go. The Wani Wani no Mi, Model: Ginga has been stagnant this entire time. We can go after. Get your questions answered. Find your brother."
Marya's eyes slid back to the hologram. To Amiso. To the event where her brother Micah was supposed to appear.
"I don't know that it will be that simple." Her voice was quiet. "If my father was..."
Aurélie cut her off. Her expression, stern.
"His efforts are not what matters right now. You must go and see for yourself, regardless of the outcome. Once you know, then we can press with the quest."
Atlas swallowed his last skewer. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
"Yeah, boss," he said, his deep voice carrying across the deck. "Let's go find your brother. Then he can join the crew."
Marya raised an eyebrow. "I don't think it will be that simple."
Atlas shrugged. "Maybe not. But we can try."
Marya's lips curved—just a little. "But I appreciate the enthusiasm."
Galit nodded. He tapped his slate, his fingers moving across the surface.
"Okay. I will set a course for Amiso Island."
Jannali's eyes narrowed. She walked around the hologram, studying the southern quadrant. Her gaze fixed on an island labeled Elegia.
"Didn't your uncle say he was going to rescue your cousin from Elegia?"
Marya nodded. "That is what he said."
Jannali pointed at the hologram. "She is still there, mate."
Marya walked around to stand beside Jannali. They both stared at the Sing Sing Fruit pulsing over Elegia. Its sigil was a soft, golden color, almost beautiful.
Marya cocked her head. "That's odd. He should have..."
Jannali interrupted. "Mate, maybe something happened."
Marya scowled. Her golden eyes darkened.
"Or maybe something didn't happen." She rubbed her face with both hands. "Or maybe he didn't understand what the hell I was telling him about the cloning facility."
Jannali's brow furrowed. "What do you..."
Marya sighed. The sound carried years of exhaustion.
"One family member at a time." She straightened her leather jacket. "My brother won't be staying in one place for very long. Especially if he is working with Sanza's father."
Jannali muttered, "Right. He's a bloody wanker."
Marya nodded. "Yeah." Her eyes shifted back to Amiso. "So let's see what this event is all about."
Galit looked up from his slate. His emerald eyes were troubled.
"It could be a trap."
Atlas cut in before anyone else could respond. "What the hell, Noodle Neck? Way to kill the mood."
Galit snapped. His neck coiled tighter. "I am just saying! Fur Ball, we need to be prepared! This isn't our first encounter with the God's Knights, and we just took an island from the World Government for the Red Hair Emperor!"
His tone softened. He looked down at his slate, then back at Marya.
"And this information is coming from a Celestial Dragon. Your father has been able to keep your name out of the papers, but that doesn't mean people don't know you exist and wouldn't want to use you to..."
Marya nodded. Her golden eyes were calm.
"You're right." She paused. "But so is Aurélie."
She looked around the deck—at Galit, at Jannali, at Atlas, at Aurélie.
"If it is a trap, then we just have to make sure not to get caught." Her voice was flat, matter-of-fact. "I am only going to find my brother. That is all."
Everyone's head turned when Vesta burst onto the deck from the plank.
Her rainbow hair was a mess—strands sticking up in every direction, frizzy from humidity and sweat. Her violet eyes sparkled with exhaustion and joy. Mikasi, her living guitar, hung from her shoulder, its wooden body warm from the concert lights.
"HEY EVERYBODY!"
She threw her arms wide. The coyotes of light—the ones that had danced through the air during her performance—were gone, but their memory lingered in her grin.
"Wasn't that awesome?! Did you see the crowd?! Did you hear them SING?! I couldn't hear myself think! It was, like, the best night of my entire life! And the coyotes—Mikasi, tell them about the coyotes!"
The guitar's wood grain rippled. The coyote's face in the wood grinned.
"They danced," the instrument seemed to say. "They danced so well."
Vesta nodded vigorously. "They danced so well! Like, professionally! I didn't even teach them that! They just... knew! Isn't that wild?!"
She paused. Looked around at the crew's faces.
"Wait. Why does everyone look so serious? Did something happen? Did I miss something? I always miss something. One time I missed a whole pirate attack because I was practicing scales. Scales! Can you believe it?"
Marya's expression did not change. But her hand—the one resting on Nisshoku's hilt—relaxed.
Vesta kept talking. "Anyway, I'm beat. Like, really beat. I could sleep for a week. Maybe two. Is two weeks too long? I feel like two weeks is reasonable after that performance."
She yawned—a huge, dramatic yawn that showed all her teeth.
"Okay. Bed. Bed is happening. Goodnight, everybody! Don't do anything cool without me!"
She stumbled toward the hatch, Mikasi bobbing against her hip.
"Bloop," Jelly whispered from his pile of ropes. "She's loud."
"She's always loud," Sanza muttered.
"She's happy," Eliane said, her silver hair falling across her face.
Jannali watched Vesta disappear below deck. She shook her head, but she was smiling.
"Bloody hell," she said. "That girl's got more energy than all of us combined."
Marya's lips curved—just a little.
"Goodnight, Vesta," she said quietly.
But Vesta was already gone.
The moon hung overhead. The hologram pulsed. The choices waited.
Galit tapped his slate. "Course set for Amiso Island. We depart at dawn."
Marya nodded. Her golden eyes fixed on the horizon.
"At dawn."
If you enjoyed this chapter, please consider giving Dracule Marya Zaleska a Power Stone! It helps the novel climb the rankings and get more eyes on our story!
Thank you for sailing with us! 🏴☠️ Your support means so much!
Want to see the Dreadnought Thalassa blueprints? Or unlock the true power of Goddess Achlys?
Join the Dracule Marya Zaleska crew on Patreon to get exclusive concept art, deep-dive lore notes, and access to our private Discord community! You make the New World adventure possible.
Become a Crewmate and Unlock the Lore:
https://patreon.com/An1m3N3rd?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=copyLink
Thanks so much for your support and loving this story as much as I do!