The New World.
Raging currents tore through deep-blue waters so dark they were nearly black, twisting into colossal whirlpools. Lightning split the sky again and again as thunder rolled over the sea, swallowing the world in a storm's furious roar. Sea tornadoes—towering pillars of water reaching from ocean to cloud—ripped across the surface like the fists of a god. The horizon looked less like a sea and more like hell itself.
A black shadow suddenly pierced the cloud cover, cutting through the tangled web of thunder and lightning and rising into the air with steady control.
"This should be the vicinity," Darren murmured, squinting as he scanned the chaos below.
"Now that we're here, shouldn't you let go?" Stussy snapped from his arms, glaring up at him.
Darren chuckled and loosened his grip around her slender waist. "You're the one who insisted I carry you."
Black bat wings unfurled from Stussy's smooth back. With a gentle flutter, they stirred a faint breeze that vanished instantly into the storm.
Stussy sighed, exasperated. "Honestly…"
"Vampire Form does let me fly, but only for mid-range distances. Crossing between islands—let alone over open sea—drains stamina fast."
As she spoke, she cast Darren an unmistakably envious look.
"Not everyone has power that's obnoxiously effortless like yours."
Darren: "..."
"Your Devil Fruit is ridiculously weak," he shot back. "It feels completely useless."
Stussy rolled her eyes. "You think everyone has an Indestructible Body like you?"
Her Devil Fruit was also Mythical Zoan. As a creature of myth, her vampire form granted her the ability to mesmerize and dominate minds.
A bite delivered neurotoxins through her fangs, seizing control of a target's will.
Back when she operated with CP0, that power had been nearly unstoppable. Even formidable Great Pirates could be dragged under if they let their guard slip for a single moment.
And yet, no matter how strange or terrifying her abilities were, they simply couldn't breach Darren's "Indestructible" defense.
Even when she coated her fangs in Armament Haki, she couldn't pierce that bastard's skin.
The memory of her first attempt—when she'd gone in confidently, only to crack her own teeth—still made Stussy grind her teeth with fury.
To be honest, she had never imagined her relationship with Darren would end up like this.
In the end, she had bitten him—over and over.
Just not in the way she'd originally planned.
Stussy glanced at Darren's skin, thick as a fortress wall, and sighed inwardly. Then she looked back to the sea. Her brows drew together as she studied the storm-wracked emptiness.
"Are you sure this is the right area? I don't see anything special."
Everywhere she looked, the storm howled. Lightning cracked and boomed through the clouds, sending an instinctive chill through her bones.
In a place this hostile, even survival was difficult—let alone the kind of quiet, controlled environment scientists needed to work.
"This has to be it," Darren said. "The magnetic field here is completely distorted."
A faint blue spark flickered deep in his eyes, as if he were listening to something invisible.
"If the Government wants Vegapunk's research absolutely secret, there's no better place than a sea like this."
"Chaotic magnetic fields, screaming winds, endless rain… the environment itself becomes the ultimate barrier."
"…There."
Darren's gaze sharpened. His figure snapped into motion—turning into a streak of black light that shot forward like a thunderbolt.
Before Stussy could even blink, purple arcs erupted from his body, wrapping him in blazing armor that crackled with power.
Physical Activation… Thunder Armor!
He slammed straight into the sea tornadoes ahead, striking with the force of a falling meteor.
A deafening explosion tore across the sky. The storm shuddered—and a hole several meters wide ripped open in the heart of the raging waterspout.
"Move! Follow me!" Darren's voice rang from within the breach.
Stussy didn't hesitate. Her wings surged, and she dove through after him without a second thought.
The world changed in an instant.
Beyond the twisted storm, she caught a glimpse of something pale—an indistinct white glow hidden inside the chaos.
And then the island emerged.
A massive landmass shaped like a colossal egg of metal and concrete rose straight from the sea, piercing the clouds as if it had been planted into heaven itself.
Suspended structures wrapped around the "giant egg," and a gaping opening—hundreds of meters wide—split its center like a mouth, unmistakably an entrance.
But the most shocking sight was the hazy white energy barrier that enveloped the entire island.
That translucent shield sealed out the storm's violence and biting cold, preserving an eternal spring within.
Outside and inside were two completely different worlds.
"Looks like we found the right place," Darren said, drifting casually beside her, eyes bright with interest as he stared down at the metallic colossus.
"This is the sort of thing you only see in science fiction—the symbol of humanity's future."
"Egghead," Stussy breathed, awe filling her voice. "Egghead Island."
"Let's go," Darren said. "No time to waste."
He chuckled, tugged Stussy close, and looped an arm around her waist. Before she could react, they plunged downward in a blur, cutting through the shimmering white barrier like a blade through mist.
The moment they entered, both of them slowed—and then simply stared.
Warm air wrapped around them, comfortable and steady, as if the island maintained its own climate. Twenty-six degrees Celsius. Perfect.
Every structure screamed cyberpunk. Metallic skyscrapers speared the sky. Colorful robots moved through the streets, maintaining the island's daily operations with tireless precision. Jet-powered vehicles—like flying shuttles—roared overhead. Darren even saw robots carrying laser swords, slicing through metal as if it were paper.
Nothing here belonged to the present era.
This technology was light-years ahead of everything outside.
"Holy hell…" Darren muttered.
Flying vehicles. Laser swords. Robots. Automated production facilities…
Even today, on the seas—even at Marine Headquarters, with all its "cutting-edge" technology—the dominant weapons were still swords, guns, cannons.
It was hard to even imagine the catastrophe that would follow if this knowledge leaked into the outside world.
To be continued...