POV: NEFERTARI VIVI]The Awakening
I opened my eyes.
White light. Blinding. I groaned and looked away.
Where... where am I?
My head hurt. My last memory was blurry – the ship's deck... that strange man who had spoken to us... then nothing more.
I tried to get up. My wrists were handcuffed. My weapons had disappeared.
"No... no no no..."
I looked around. A cell. Four meters by four. Concrete walls. Tiled floor. A hard bed. Toilets. A sink.
And bars.
"WHAT IS THIS PLACE?!"
I rushed to the bars and gripped the cold bars.
"HEY! WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?! LET ME OUT!"
Silence.
Just the hum of lights in the empty corridor.
"IS ANYONE THERE?!"
Nothing.
My heart raced. Panic rose. I looked around desperately.
Across from my cell...
"Mr. 9?!"
He was sitting on his bed, head down. Bruises covered his face. His arm hung oddly.
"Mr. 9! Where are we?!"
He slowly lifted his eyes to me. His gaze was empty. Broken.
"I don't know, Miss Wednesday."
"What do you mean you don't know?! Ask the guards!"
"I tried."
"And?!"
He spat blood on his cell floor. "I grabbed a guard through the bars. I told him we were from Baroque Works. That our organization would look for us. That Mr. 0 wouldn't let them get away with it."
"And?!"
"They tasered me. Then they beat me with batons while I was on the ground."
My blood ran cold.
"Those... those cowards..."
Footsteps echoed in the corridor.
"HEY!" I banged on the bars. "YOU! FREE US!"
A patrol of guards passed. Six men. Identical. Black helmets. Bulletproof vests. Strange weapons I'd never seen.
They completely ignored me.
"PLEASE! WE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING!"
They kept walking. Their footsteps echoed like machines.
Mr. 9 looked at me from his cell. "It's no use. They don't talk."
I collapsed on the hard bed, knees pulled to my chest.
"No... no... Alabasta needs me... I have to go back..."
Mr. 9 didn't respond.
The Desperate Plan
I had to get out of here. Find someone in charge. Explain the situation.
I am Nefertari Vivi. Princess of Alabasta. Member of the World Government.
They would be forced to free me. It was impossible otherwise.
I just had to wait for my chance.
The Announcement
A robotic voice echoed in the walls.
CLASS-D. PLEASE KEEP HANDS CLOSE TO BODY TO GO TO CAFETERIA.
I lifted my head sharply.
"This is my chance..."
Guards – again those identical guards – appeared in the corridor. Our cell doors opened automatically with a metallic CLANG.
I immediately came out and planted myself in front of a guard.
"Listen to me! I want to see someone in charge! An officer! A superior! ANYONE!"
The guard silently raised his weapon and pointed it at me.
I swallowed. Cold sweat ran down my back.
"I... I'm the missing princess of Alabasta! A World Government member country! You MUST let me see someone high-ranking!"
A laugh.
Violent. Mocking.
It came from a cell further down the corridor. A voice I didn't know.
"HA! THE PRINCESS?! HERE, IT DOESN'T MATTER IF YOU'RE PRINCESS OR BEGGAR! YOU'RE JUST A TEST SUBJECT!"
"THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!" I shouted. "THE GOVERNMENT..."
"THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE GOVERNMENT!"
A guard placed his hand on my shoulder and forced me forward.
"NO! WAIT!"
They also brought out Mr. 9, who was still limping from his injuries.
Then they stopped in front of a cell.
A man came out.
Tall. Muscular. With a sawshark nose.
"A... a fishman?!" I murmured, horrified.
Arlong stared at me with contempt. "A pathetic human."
Three other cells opened. Kuroobi. Chew. And a third I didn't know.
We were all escorted together toward... somewhere.
I remained silent during the journey. My mind was spinning.
A fishman. Silent guards. A high-tech prison. This isn't normal. Nothing about this is normal.
Mr. 9 dared to speak. "Where are we? If this isn't a government prison, what is it?"
The fishmen snickered.
"A lab," Arlong answered with hatred. "We're test subjects."
"A LAB?!" Mr. 9 and I answered in unison. "THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE! THERE'S NO LAB NEAR REVERSE MOUNTAIN!"
The three fishmen froze.
"Reverse Mountain...?" Kuroobi repeated, shocked.
"We thought we were in East Blue..." Chew murmured.
"You're serious?!" Arlong looked at us, incredulous. "This lab is in GRAND LINE?!"
We nodded, too stunned to lie.
Silence fell. Even the fishmen seemed lost.
We arrived in front of a large door. The building's immensity struck me. How long had we walked? Ten minutes? Fifteen? And we were still inside.
This place is gigantic...
The robotic voice echoed again.
CLASS-D. PUT YOURSELVES AGAINST THE WALL, HANDS BEHIND YOUR BACK TO GO TO CAFETERIA.
The fishmen obeyed immediately. Used to it.
Me? I was too bewildered to react.
Mr. 9 too.
ZAP!
He collapsed, convulsing.
"MR. 9!"
A guard grabbed me brutally and slammed me against the wall. I didn't dare resist.
They removed our handcuffs.
Then they literally threw us through the door.
The Cafeteria
I fell on the cold floor, my hands cushioning the fall.
Around me stretched a huge interior courtyard. Tables. Benches. Automated trays.
And above... walkways. Guards. Cameras.
Total surveillance.
"Welcome to hell, princess," Arlong sneered, sitting at a table.
I slowly stood up, legs trembling.
Mr. 9 joined me, holding his injured arm.
"Miss Wednesday... what do we do?"
I looked around. The concrete walls. The armed guards. The cameras following us.
No exit. No escape.
"I... I don't know..."
For the first time in my life, Nefertari Vivi, princess of Alabasta, Baroque Works infiltrator, determined fighter...
Had no idea what to do.
And it was terrifying.
[END OF CHAPTER 20]
[POV: VIVI]
[STATUS: CAPTIVE]
[LOCATION: FOUNDATION - CAFETERIA]
[PRESENT CLASS-D: 6]
[MORALE: COLLAPSED]
[REALIZATION: NO EXIT]