Septem Vires Noctis

The Septem Vires Noctis were a group of individuals who strongly supported Chalice Meridian and her efforts three years ago. They were present at Marineford when she attacked and fought valiantly to protect their "Princess." They were a group prior to allying with the Exalted Pirates, but their goal was more closely related to comraderie and prosperity for themselves than achieving a particular great accomplishment.

History
The Septem Vires Noctis was formed by Enigma and at its conception, had only 3 members- Enigma, Silva, and Cynthea. They were all relatively broken human beings, who had lived much of their life feeling crushed by the forces of society. The experiences in their life had revealed how fragile they each were and how insubstanstial life was. As such, tenets of their group were heavily structured around living life to the fullest, embracing your fragilities and insecurities and finding things that made your life worthwhile. Those things were money, each other, and base pleasures. They were essentially raiders until they met Chalice Meridian and their lives changed forever.

She was a revolutionary concept to them, a human being with an superfluous amount of life and not the slightest hint of fragility. She was as close to perfect as they could imagine a human being. They had found a new pupose. They would protect this symbol of human perfection, extending her life by as long as they could. They knew they could never achieve her greatness and regardless of how she felt about them, they would cherish her and bask in her flawlessness till the end of their time.

Members
Enigma

Enigma is the nominated leader of the Septem Vires Noctis. He had the initial idea for the group and was the unspoken leader at its conception. He is almost a complete mystery, even to Silva and Cynthea. His past is assumed to be a tragic one due to the intense hatred and pain that resides in his eyes. The crazyness that pervades his character, speech, and mannerisms at certain moments also hint at a traumatic past. He is fond of bad humour and irony, the prime devices he uses to convey and cloak his emotions. Physically, he is incredibly strong. Apparently he told Silva and Cynthea that it was a product of him fighting to stay alive from an early age. He is also incredibly quick and possesses the ability of the Pazuru Pazuru no Mi, a Paramecia  type Devil Fruit that allows him to separate his body into varias iron puzzle pieces. It complements his fighting style as the puzzle pieces serve as powerful tools to restrain or harm his opponents and he can control them each individually over large distances. The iron nature of the fruit is also extremely helpful in protecting him and his body. Each piece of his body is different, but they retain that difference. Additionally he can choose how many times he separates the piece, though there is a limit to how much they can be broken down.

Silva
Silva was born on Shizen Island in the New World. It was a very basic and natural island. The inhabitants were all very connected to the island. They hunted for all their food and had certain animals that they hunted with. The island was not very technologically advanced, so the amount of food you ate was proportional to the amount of animals you caught, which was directly proportional to your strength. As such, the tribes were all very competitive and constantly aimed to increase their strength. Silva was content with this lifestyle and grew up to be a particularly powerful hunter. He did his father (Gareth), the leader of his tribe (The Arboreans), proud. For his Otoko no Saiban, trial to become a man, he succeeded in catching the powerful, yet elusive, Black Leopard. A dangerous inhabitant of their island. It was in that hunt, the hunt to find his manhood, that he found something much harder to find. He found Love. The trial took longer the tougher the animal you were trying to hunt. However, it is easier for you depending on your skill, regardless time was only a factor if the prizes were similar in difficulty. Several days into his trial, he found a strange creature. A very light-skinned woman, bruised and battered on the rocks near a waterfall on the Soulawatchee River. He was already very far from his village and so taking her back was not an option, especially considering how much this trial meant for him. Still, he couldn't leave her here or she would surely die or even worse, get killed. As such, he picked her up and took her with him, tending to her wounds as he fought through the island, getting deeper into the Shi no Mori (Forest of Death). He talked with her as he traveled and he found her more and more curious the more he learned about her. Apparently she had been on the run and had crashed her small ship into the Soulawatchee River and attempted to follow it upstream towards civilization, but was attacked by creatures far stronger than she had thought possible, and the worst part was that they weren't even carnivorous. She warmed up to him significantly as they spent time together, no longer screaming as she did when they first met, and even allowing him to call her by her name -Amelie. Eventually, he reached the supposed domain of the Black Leopard and he knew he had to be extremely cautious. As he wandered into its den in a crouched form, he surveyed his enviroment, bones of animals were scattered all over, varying in size, and scattered among them were  human bones-but only some of them. As he focused, propelling his Kenbunshoku Haki to its highest form, he felt an uneasy chill. Not long after heard a bloodcurling scream and turned to look up to Amelie covering her mouth in the fetal position. He was just amount to scold her when he realized that she was pointing. He turned another 90 degrees and had to jump and activate his Busoshoku Haki in the same instant so he could avoid being mauled by the Black Leopard. It was the toughest fight of his life. The leopard was so fast that sometimes it made him feel like his Kenbunshoku Haki wasn't even working and so strong that he thought his Busoshoku Haki was pathetic. He fought it for 3 days straight. And when he killed it, he thought he too was going to die. Luckily, Amelie had been preparing for when he would win and had gathered water, herbs, and nuts, as well as some small animals from nearby. When he had finished resting and was fit to move again, he lifted the leopard on his back, much to Amelie's dissapproval- her point of contention was that it was heavy and would take forever for him to get back, but he said he had to. They didn't reach far before they heard growls and turned to see several large yellow eyes further behind them. As they continued to move, they could feel them getting closer and when they final came into view, both Amelie and Silva were shocked to see several Black Leopards. They were all as large as the one he slayed, with their head alone being 10 feet tall and their full height being well over 40 feet, even higher if they were to stand on their hind legs. As Amelie and Silva tried to move as fast as they could to keep a good distance or get away, it soon became apparent that they couldn't get away while carrying the leopard and since the leopard was the reason for this trek, Amelie had to think fast. She quickly unbuckled her satchel and starting to leak gasoline out of it, while simultaneously lighting matches to quickly start a trail of fire behind them. Silva was dismayed and angry, but she quickly shut him up with reason and an ultimatum. He gritted his teeth and closed his eyes as he felt the inferno swirl in their wake, creating a barrier of fire between them and the leopards. Soon after, they found the trail that made it the easiest to preserve their prize on the way back. A frozen tundra that would deposit him close enough to his village. They made warm clothes from the trees and wildlife around them and Amelie fashioned a cart that would make it so that Silva wouldn't have to carry the leopard the whole way back. The whole expedition took many weeks, but when Silva finally returned his tribe was overjoyed and impressed at his catch. Though not all of them were impressed with his second catch. Amelie was not immediatelly liked and was viewed as a strange outsider, despite all of Silva's good words. His father put all that talk to rest for the moment though he didn't approve either, so he could celebrate his son winning the trial. Silva was already very popular with the women of his village, due to his place as tribe leader's son, incredible physique, humour, good-looks, hunting ability, etc... And he would have had his pick of any woman in the village, many who wanted him badly. However, after spending all that time with Amelie, she became his first choice and no one could change his mind. His mother for one was incredibly upset with him and didn't talk to him for a while. Silva was upset but couldn't help it, he was in love. They lived together for several years in happiness and were even planning their first child. The dark days came however, when Silva returned from a few days hunt early because he heard loud noises and saw smoke coming from the direction of his village. He ran back as fast as he could, forsaking his prizes to find his whole village crushed and on fire. He quickly made his way to his house and lifted the rubble to find his father Gareth on the ground, but he was several feet off the ground. As he was about to check on his father, Gareth opened his eyes and smiled, raising himself a little underneath him was Amelie slightly bloodied and battered. She too smiled and opened her eyes, stretching her hand up to touch his face. She cried softly while retaining her smile and gently rolled to one side, revealing his mother laying below her, shielded, and relatively unharmed. She too was crying, though the tears were more from anger at herself. Finally someone spoke,it was Amelie, "Silva, my love, you must go. I can't imagine the pain you will live with from this day, but you can't die here. You have to find happiness once more..I'm sorry, I knew this day would come, but didn't want it to..I was so happy..I couldn't leave..But I knew..*coughing up blood* agk..that they would find me. They wouldn't let me live, not as long as they knew I could read the Poneglyphs..I was so selfish dear..You deserve someone much better..*more tears*.." Silva tightened his grip on her hands and pulled her closer to him. Amelie began to speak again, whispering now.."I'm going to be selfish one last time...I have a request..I'm not ready to die...I'm not ready to leave this Earth..So please Silva, don't let me leave..let me live a little bit more..inside of you..and find happiness again, so I can share it with you once more." Silva's tears poured down harder now and he squeezed her close to him, "You won't die Amelie! You can't! We can live through this, both of us! Please Amelie, I can't lose you..not you.." She smiled and kissed him. "I know Silva...you'll never lose me. I'll always be right here", she said, placing her hand on his heart. It was then that many things happened all at once, there was a loud clash and when Silva opened his eyes once more much of the ground in front of him was broken and crumbling into the sea. His house in particular was in a very different state, his father had already lost his feet when he first found him, but now his legs also seemed to be missing. Amelie's faced looked strangely glossy, but she had a wide smile on her face and her tears had ceased. He shook her gently, but heard a cracking sound and had to close his eyes. There was a loud crying sound and he opened his eyes to see his mother with her hand on her face. He held her closely determined to die here with the ones he loved most. But as he hugged them close, he could feel his mother's soft hug and then her pushing him away. Wiping away the tears she said, "No Silva, you must'nt...Amelie was right..she usually is..you have to go..we died prematurely, but you must allow us to live on in memory...There's a small ship on the east side of the island, make it there and you can escape. Make it there and we will all live to see another day. It can fit two...it was meant for you and Amelie..but.." She stopped, the tears overwhelming her. A deeper voice spoke, stirring Silva from his deliria, "Go...my son..", his father said with a smile and a gentle rub of Silva's head. Amelie croaked once more, "For us..", she said, with her hand on her stomach. This drove Silva over the edge and in a fit of pure rage he tumbled towards the cannon fire, leaping and smashing the cannonballs with his bare fists, all while his world fell apart around him.. He hadn't made it very far before he broke down in tears overcome with emotions, kneeling and pounding the ground with his fists, bruising and slowly breaking them. He felt a firm embrace from behind him and could almost feel two hands lifting him up slowly, "For us..." The embrace whispered and he turned instantly, but saw nothing. His tears froze and he took a deep breath, making a dash for the getaway ship, turning away from the rubble that used to be his house. As he ran, he could feel the spirts of the forest protecting him, guiding him safely to his location in what would probably be their last act. He found the ship and sailed off in sadness and anger. He honed his skill in the years after that, never forgeting, but using it as his drive for existence- to live as long and happy as he could. He became extremely proficient in Kenbunshoku and Busoshoku Haki and even ate the Tsuri Tsuri no Mi Devil Fruit, making him a tree man. His features change drastically when he is upset or in a fight. He becomes far more muscular and his face takes on a more serious visage.

Cynthea
Cynthea was a Princess of a Kingdom in the New World and it was an extremely prosperous Kingdom. The King and Queen were loved and hailed as saints and the populace lived in a golden age of peace and prosperity. Cynthea was quite young when she lived there and was a loved child. She was also very adventurous and liked to run away often, just to explore her Kingdom. The citenzry were very aware of her and loved her dearly, always looking out for her whenever they could. She was very good at evading guards and regarded it as a joyful pastime. It was because of this that she was allowed to go into a forsaken part of the Kingdom, the dark underbelly of the land. She didn't realize how much danger she was in and by the time she did the fear set in immediately. It happened when she was harassed by some older men, but used her quick wits and skills she had honed evading the guards to get away- except this time, she didn't enjoy it. She had almost made it out of the dark city in the crags when she was shot and upon waking up found herself in a lab of sorts. She heard two men arguing from right outside the door and recognized the harsher sounding man as the one who shot her. "Do you know who this is?", asked the soft-spoken man. "This is the Princess of Amrita. How dare you take such a risk by kidnapping her." "Well how the fuck was I supposed to know that, think I'm a scholar why I kidnap these kids?", retorted the kidnapper, "So whadya want me to do? Return 'er?" "No no, that's far too risky, you could blow the whole operation. We'll just have to make it work." The soft-spoken man then stepped inside and with a smile said, "Hello Cynthea, I'm Doctor Elegnem. Hopefully, we get along splendidly, as you will be spending quite some time with us." His sinister smile widened and Cynthea experienced an incredibly chilling sensation. She spent many years being experimented on and hated life and herself more and more as her stay continued. After the first few years, she lost her will to live and actually tried to kill herself many times. Usually, it was by messing with their experiments, upping the dosage, stuggling (especially during injections), falling when she could, but there were even times when she would try and physically cut or slam herself into things, hoping it would do it. They took notice; however, and handled her with extra care. Her day of freedom came when Number 23 went ballistic, killing his Doctors and Surgeons, then killing everyone else in the lab, save the experiments. He then set them all free and burned down the lab. They all escaped on his ship and after he had gotten away, asked what each experiment wanted and where they wanted to go. A few wanted to stay with him, others wanted to go back home, but when it came time for Cynthea to declare her wish, she stayed quiet. "Number 8, what do you want, where do you want to go?", he asked briskly. "Hell...would be nice", she whispered softly. "Sorry", he said, "I think I burned it down. Pick another place." "How about home?", he asked. "I don't have one", she whispered. He sighed. "Home is where the heart is", he returned, "We all have something that anchors us to this world. If we don't, we have a lot of looking to do and crying is only gonna add more to ocean we have to search." She wiped her eyes and realized she was indeed crying, "I had a home..the Kingdom of Amrita.." "Great, know how to get there?", he asked. She nodded "No." "That's fine", he said, "we'll find it." When it became time for her to get off the ship, her insides were a maelstrom of conflicting emotion. "Crede et Confide", Number 23 whispered. And she walked off the ship and to the palace. She slipped past the guards, even easier now on account of her...modifications, and made her way to her parents bedroom. Her heart dropped as she peered into the window. They were both smiling, happy, laughing with a young girl about her age when she vanished. She smiled sadly and placed her hand on the window gently, but knew she had to leave. With great haste she left Amrita and wandered the sea, barely clinging to life. It was on her weakest day, at the end of her life, that she met her greatest strength. A well-built toned man who offered her more food and water than she had seen since her days in Amrita and something even more valuable. She scarfed it down, thankful, but shy as her cloak was tattered and she was sure he could see the beast she had become. His smile was sad, but caring and she fell into his eyes instantly. Apparently, he was the champion of the town's fight club and had made quite a bit of money, she lived with him there, getting a job as a bartender, then as a herder/farmer. The life was tranquil, but she was still looked down upon for her features. It soon became time for them to leave as it became apparent they could not live in peace there. They wandered together, doing odd-jobs and stealing for sustenance, and somewhere down the line they realized what they were. Broken pieces of glass each with a story painted on them, that were rough around the edges, but if you put them together, you had a beautiful piece that molded together perfectly. In battle, against more serious foes, they fought together with her Devil Fruit- the Majo Majo no Mi, making him nearly invincible in battle and due to her modifications, she was incredibly lithe and quite fast. The two of them met Enigma down the line and realized they thought similarly and had similar ways of life, so they decided to team up. (She was experimented on and turned into a dryad, then fed the Majo Majo no Mi.)

Arez and Zera
Arez and Zera were born on Matoshi Island in the New World. Zera was older than Arez by 2 years, but they were extremely close doing almost everything together.They lived in the mountains and were part of a relatively small village complex, but were surrounding by other villages on different mountains. Their family wasn't poor or rich and they were very loving. Their father Kataru and mother Hotahira were hard working people. Their father a miner and blackswith, their mother a baker. They got most of what they wanted growing up and were relatively spoiled kids. During their days, they would wander the mountainside searching for food in the form of animals or simply a good fight. They used this to hone their skills and eventually wandered into other villages territories.

That was where the fun began because once they wandered into an opposing villages territory, there was hostility. This boded well for Arez and Zera as they were natural born fighters. The thrill of the fight became addicting for them and they soon began to seek it out, picking fights with other kids and even adults as often as they could. They did it just for the sake of fighting and had soon develop a reputation as the Yama no Akuma or Demons of the Mountains. Their fame was widespread and it made a bad name for their village. Soon it began to harm them economically and the village wanted the children gone. They talked it over with their mother and father and promised not to fight again. This became a hard promise to keep because once the other villages heard that they came to pick fights with them. Still, the brothers kept their promises, releasing their anger on the nearby animals and nature. The boiling point came when a group of men, women, and children from multiple villages came and lit their house on fire, burning their mother severely in the process. It filled them with rage, but before they could react, their father took his most prized katana and cut them all down in an instant. The good-natured man had his switch flipped on and for a few seconds became the legendary manslayer he had attempted to kill so many years ago. He turned to them, soaked in blood and adjusted his glasses, which the boys realized were clearly for show as he had just put them on and some of his moves required precise vision. He smiled, "I'm sorry boys..I tried to kill the beast inside of me..I thought I had..but it seems I just pushed him into you two.." He then started crying and sheathed his sword, "I hate to ask this of you two, but I know somewhere down the line you will thank me. We are too old to fight for our lives and you two have two much talent and bloodlust to repress it for all your life. We have to split up..your mother is expecting a girl soon and I can't put them in danger, surely you two agree. I'm sorry..but I'm going to pin this slaughter on you two and tomorow we will depart from Matoshi Island. But you two will leave tonight. It pains me to do this..but I feel like this is the only way..Please, understand." They ran to their father, hugging him tightly as the tears fell down their face and then all of them went to their mother. Their parents packed them enough food to last a while and saw them off. They were shook up and sad, but excited for what the world had to offer. They eventually became thieves and bounty hunters, as that was the easiest way to run into strong enemies. Over the years they really solidified their fighting personas. They became skilled at Kenbunshoku and Busoshoku Haki and found preferred weapons, with Arez choosing double-axes as his primary weapon and Zera choosing a greatsword. It was just after they had finishing ransacking a town that they ran into the Silva, Cynthea, and Enigma. A fight ensued and it lasted for quite some time. As they all needed to leave before the Marines came, they put the fight on hold and the excitement whirled in each of their hearts. It was in running away together that they realized they were all standing for the same convictions.

Aleria
Aleria was the daughter of a Mobster Kingpin and as such, experienced a dark, but illustrious childhood. Death was something she was used to and was never surprised to see people dead around or inside her house, after the first few times of intense terror. Screams from tortured souls also became commonplace. Though she was an only child and had no children to play with, she played a lot with her butler, Gerard. She played with others at first, but considered them stupid or weak and would get violent after a while. She lived most of her life as a mobster princess and even started getting involved in her father's empire, eager to rule it when he died. Her father, Lucius Malvenko, was a fearsome man. 6'5 with muscles that only looked normal on a gorilla. He was cutthroat and bloodthirsty, eager to extend his empire infinitely. It wasn't long before he had the entire island of Dorumstrank under his control. Aleria couldn't have been more pleased, she had joined his Circle and was apart of the advisory commitee, being extremely quick-witted and resourceful. She felt great solace that it was her plan that helped her father conquer the last remaining piece of territory. She was so excited that she had to brag to Gerard about it.

He hadn't come to the mansion yet, so she decided to go and visit him at his house. As she neared his door, she could sense something was wrong. She walked into his house and the stench of blood permeated the air. She was 16 at this time and had been taught many moves by Gerard, she proceeded with utmost caution and as she turned to open his door saw him laying down on the floor, with blood all over his carpet. She rushed to his side, rolling as she entered, pulling out a pistol and a knife. She scanned the room, realizing no one was in there but him, she sheated her weapon. "Aleria...run...", Gerard spat, blood spewing out of his mouth. "Gerard, shut up, lets take you to the mansion, the doctors will fix you up. It'll be fine.", she spewed out in her brisk accented tongue. Gerard chuckled, "Ah Aleria..Thanks I needed that..Sadly, there's no hope." As he turned slightly, a golden knife could be seen in his heart and the blade was coated with a strange liquid that wasn't blood. "Aleria..this is probably the dumbest thing I could ever do...but hey, it'll be my last..and I was a dumb man...", as he said this, he reached up to her face and kissed her, and slurred "I-I alwaysss loved you Aleriaaa.." and with his last breath, fell over onto the carpet. Aleria was sobbing now and as she turned him over she gasped. Carved into the side of his face that was on  the carpet, was a scorpion insignia. And she knew right then who did it.The Golden Scorpions, the previous Mafia family who ruled Dorumstrank Island. He had purposely hidden it so no one would see it, as it was a great shame for him. She rushed back to her mansion, she had to warn her family, but as she neared close she knew it was too late. The grounds were in a terrible state, if the gardener was alive he'd be crying. Her mansion had almost been burned to the ground and the ground was exploding in intervals, probably from bombs planted throughout the premises. As she kneeled to the ground and stared at her home, tears fell from her glassy eyes. A sickening laugh stirred her from her numbness. Standing atop one of the gargoyles at their gate was Clarissa, a member of the Circle. She had never liked her and she had a feeling she was going to like her a lot less. In a split-second, she transformed into a half-human half-snake hybrid, leaping off the gargoyle and curling around Aleria. "Aww...look at the brave little Princess, come back from her dead boyfriend's house to see her empire in ruins", she hissed menacingly. "Come to warn Papi and Mami about us?", she laughed venom dripping from her teeth. She moved her massive black and silver head close to Aleria's face and whispered, "I'm sorry...they can't take your message right now..I don't think they ever will be able to...But don't worry, I just spoke with them and I think I had far more information to offer." She glared seriously into Aleria's eyes then laughed, "Hell, after what I told them, I think I deserve a promotion. Whadya say "Boss", don't I deserve a promotion??!!??" Aleria gritted her teeth and screamed, "YOU BITCH!!",  she slid her knife and pistol into her hands and stabbed Clarissa several times in the tail, constantly shooting her. Clarissa squealed in pain and after the first two shots and stabs, dodged the rest and bit into her Aleria's shoulder, watching her writhe in pain for a brief second, then throwing her into the air where she then slammed her into the pillar she was previously standing on, watching the gargoyle fall onto Aleria. She then slithered over angrily and spat venom into her face as she talked, "Live through this Princess. Since you're the God-ordained rulers, it should be no problem." And with a sinister smile she slivered off into the darkness. Aleria lay there, broken inside and out, in terrible pain as she drooled and cried all over herself. Watching as four men came to pick her up and she wanted to speak, but was losing control of her bodily functions. She saw glimpses of what happened next, them taking her to Jeffrie's (the Hospital), operating on her, and the last thing she saw was "coma" under her name. When she had woken up, several months had passed and moving was an interesting experience. She tried to stand, but a doctor came in and said she had atrophy, that she wouldn't be able to walk for a while. She cursed and resided to stay in bed, awaiting the supposed therapy they had planned out for her. Two of the men who saved her came back and she remembered seeing them before that night, but couldn't remember when. She didn't have to though as they introduced themselves as Gerard's younger brothers. They lived on a neighbouring island and had come to visit him once. It was by a stroke of luck that they had come to visit him that night and found him dead, but then thought of the mansion and found her there. Apparently they had plans to sneak her away once she could move because the island wasn't safe with the Golden Scorpions taking over. The time came sooner than expected when the Hospital was lit on fire one night, forcing them to evacuate her to Salindrias Island, their home, which was two islands away from Heiwan Island- the home of the Golden Scorpions. They found out later that the attack on the hospital was part of a plan to create a central healthcare facility, in the Scorpion's Den and only the ones who never helped the Malvenko Family could use it. Aleria trained by herself for months, but couldn't stand being so close to her families murderers, so left Salindrias Island to train elsewhere. She became a high-end thief for money and found it incredibly easy once she had gotten her Devil Fruit, the Kumo Kumo no Mi. Soon she had developed a reputation and a bounty and had had even stronger enemies coming after her. She needed to find someone else to train her and had heard of an old master who lived on Siryoku Island. She found the island and had to walk up many steps to reach the pagoda where the old master was rumoured to live, upon entering she was assaulted by green blades and had to crawl backwards up the ceiling and swing to avoid them, while waiting for a chance to knock them down with her whip. This led to an intense fight with a strange blind man, which he eventually won after two days. She decided he wasn't strong enough to train under and felt robbed that this was the master that she had heard about and come looking for. He was insulted and declared that he was the old master's apprentice and was not even half as skilled, but was a deligent learner. She sighed and decided to give him a shot and ask for his help anyways, offering him the reward she would've offered him if he had trained her, but he declined, saying there was only one thing he wanted in life and that was vengeance upon the man who killed his master. They agreed to team up and train together, visiting various dojos and masters he knew, aiming to become strong enough to enact their respective revenge. Years past and they had both become proficient in their respective arts, as well as, become extremely proficient in both Kenbunshoku and Busoshoku Haki. Aleria felt she was ready to take down the Golden Scorpions and that thought was about to be tested when she received a call from Gerard's brothers, saying that the Golden Scorpions had taken over Dorumstrank completely and were now taking over Salindrias Island.

They disembarked on Heiwan Island and were instantly greeted to some Golden Scorpions. They quickly disposed of them and made their way through the streets towards the fortress in the center of the island. They were the perfect image of serenity and danger as they walked towards their goal. Enemies came at them from all angles with various weapons yet they didn't stop moving, nor stray from their path. They conquered them all without transforming or breaking a sweat. They were finally faced with a fortress that was built to resemble a golden scorpion. It had a large gold iron door, at its forefront, that was many feet thick. Aleria, or The Black Widow as she had come to be known, shot two silk threads on either side of the two guard towers beside the gate and flew up in the center, surprising the guards and further surprising them as she shot two more strings from either hand, piercing their necks- she then delivered a firm axe kick with Busoshoku Haki to the iron door from the top, while Risui or The Jade Monk, delivered a firm thrust kick to the door with Busoshoku Haki from the center, sending it flying off its hinges and flipping it multiple times,squashing several more men. They followed the path of carnage into a large courtyard with many more men and kept walking on their path, shooting venom soaked iron-like threads or razor-sharp grass into the surrounding men. They then broke the main door to the pagoda and began to climb the spiral silver, black, and gold staircase that led to the top where the leader was supposed to be. As they ascended, the enemies got tougher, but none could stand up to their Haki infused attacks or their Devil Fruit power. It wasn't long before they arrived at the den of the fortress, but strangely enough, no one was there, as they walked toward the center the floor gave way beneath them and they fell into a tube that led them into a sand-pit. They activated their Devil Fruit powers and as such had full control of themselves throughout the tube, with Aleria walking or swinging throughout the tube and Risui floating or flying. As they landed softly in the sand-pit, they realized it was filled with scorpions and snakes and they quickly transformed into grass and a full spider, floating and slicing them in Risui's case or creating a web and stabbing them swiftly with legs, while shooting venom soaked threads at them in Aleria's case. As they cleared the room of the animals, they were aurally greeted with the sound of a slow clap and turned to see a scarred-face man with shoulder length golden hair and an exquisite and elaborate golden robe. "Brava Ragazzi! Madame Malvenko. How nice of you to visit Uncle Jude after all this years. I wassa really starting to miss you you know", he said in a slimy, soft, accented voice, "And now here you are and you've become such a monster, just like your Papi. Uncle Luci would be so proud, I think" "Jude?", she exclaimed in horror, "You're the head of the Golden Scorpions?" An irritated look crossed his face and then he sighed and it vanished. "It's Uncle Jude, Princess", he corrected, "Or maybe, since we're all grown up, we can call each other by our real names. Eh Aleria? I'm Judas, pleased to formally meet you." She screamed in disgust, "You were apart of the Circle, he trusted you! We all trusted you! Why would you do this? Power? Fame? Greed?" He laughed, small short laughs. "You still don't understand eh girly..", he mocked softly, then continued "I...I just wanted back what was mine. Why should I, me, have to sit back and watch that greedy bastard trample all over my turf." "That doesn't make any sense", Aleria interjected, "Dad killed the previous Golden Scorpion's leader...their whole family...unless." "That's right girly, let it hit you, unless one of those family members wasn't really that family member, unless little Antoni Vorbachev ran away and got the Head Servant's son to die instead of him, unless little fuckin Tony ran away to come back and take back what should've been his all those years!!" He was riled up know, spitting his words in anger. She was now angry. She chuckled.. "I see. You're wrong about one thing though..this empire, never belonged to you. Sarkize was holding it until my dad came and now I'll have to thank you for holding it for me. But I'm ready to take it back." She smiled. This made him chuckle and smile a sinister smile. "Very well then...come get it, if you think you can."

Right then, she was assaulted from her blind spot by a powerful and deadly tail, coming in incredibly fast. Clarissa was curled around a stalactite on the ceiling was posied to attack her. Luckily, thanks to her training, Kenbunshoku Haki, and Busoshoku Haki, she was not only able to avoid it and hit it away, but shoot a iron thread at her neck, which she barely dodged. "You lucky bitch! I should've tore your head off that night when I had the chance!", she hissed. Aleria smirked, "God-ordained remember?" "Raarrsssh", Clarissa spat as she pounced toward Aleria. From the back, Judas dived at Aleria, both arms ready to seemingly puncture her skin. Risui interupted him, kicking both his hands away then kicking his face upwards, before vanishing and reappearing with a blinding thrust kick to his torso sending him into the room behind where he was standing. "I'll warm this guy up for you, while you take out the trash Aleria. Don't take too long or I'll have to kill him." Aleria nodded. "Two minutes, tops", she said flatly. This angered Clarissa and she screamed as she attempting to bite Aleria. Aleria was in her hybrid form and had to admit that Clarissa was fast, a product of her Black Mamba Devil Fruit no doubt. Still, Aleria was plenty fast herself, but knew she wouldn't win if she just kept dodging, especially not in two minutes. As Clarissa came in for another bite at her neck, she avoided it and quickly attempted to pierce her neck with sharp spider hands. Clarissa dodged most of it and got out with only a deep scrape, but Aleria had thought it through and punctured her mouth and tongue from the underneath by shooting an iron web right before her hand connected. "Yth bthch!!", she hissed. "Don't worry, you don't need your tongue for the rest of your life. All one minute and 30 seconds of it." Clarissa dove in again, but Aleria could see she felt defeated and had lost her much of her biting strength. As she came in, Aleria transformed into her full spider form, spinning a web quickly as she shot silk from as many places as she could, capturing Clarissa's head and some of her upper body in her web, which she then twisted around her and instantly used to slam her into the ceiling, into a stalactite. It punctured her torso from the back and Aleria leaped to the ceiling, piercing below her neck with one of her legs and creating a small web to hold her upper body into the ceiling, she also coated the web with her venom and bit Clarissa's neck, whispering "Let's see who is truly fit to rule, eh?", as she pulled away. Aleria dropped and transformed into her human form as she did, looking at Clarissa's expression she felt she only had 30 minutes of life left tops, but she knew for sure she was paralyzed and would simply have to live out her last moments in incredibly excruciating pain, a fitting end.

She strolled in to the other room and took a note of the battle, Risui was perfectly calm, no sweat or increased heart rate. Judas on the other hand was not. He was sweating profusely and breathing heavily, and as he saw Aleria he knew she had defeated Clarissa. "Youuu whoree!!", he screamed as he leaped across the room towards Aleria, attempting to go through Risui who side-stepped it and walked away, knowing he had done his part. Aleria readied herself for what was coming, but was surprised when Judas morphed into a golden scorpion-human hybrid mid leap and had to quickly maneuver herself away and behind one of the many pillars that surrounded this room filled with sand. Without warning though, his tail shot into the pillar crushing it and the one behind it. Aleria transformed into her hybrid form and started firing venom coated iron threads that he simply broke with his tail. He then transformed into his full scorpion form and burrowed his way underground. Risui, who was watching while floating, with his lower body swirling grass, nodded- showing he he was impressed. Aleria cursed and transformed into her full spider form, jumping to the ceiling and starting to spin a web over the sand pit. She had just finished spinning a complex and tight laced web when he jumped up, shattering the web with his leap and his claws, but being considerably slowed down. As he was in the air, Aleria shot him with multiple venom soaked iron threads, which he battered away with his thick iron claws. He jumped towards Aleria now and she turned into her hybrid form and fashioning a whip she whipped him straight in the face, but he merely grabbed the whip with one claw, the n her with his other claw and dashed forward, smashing her into and through the pillar and into the wall. She coughed blood as he squeezed down on her with his iron grip and readied his tail to splatter her face. "And this is what happens when family fights. The stronger one always wins", he said with a grin. Just as he was about to jab her head with his tail, she turned into her full spider form, receiving a painful venom soaked graze but avoiding death, and then transformed back into her human form, so she could nimbly scurry over his claw and shoot a silk thread into his underbelly, hoping it could pierce him there and it did. She smiled with glee as blood oozed from the wound and he screamed. She had also shot another thread, which she followed up with more, creating a web around his tail in the wall. Just as she was about to assault his underbelly, she was hit extremely hard with his claw and sent spiraling through the air, crashing through several pillars. She was groggy and had just realized Risui had left. She had to finish this before Judas' posion took effect and she couldn't anymore. Thankfully, she had built up a resistance thanks to Clarissa trying to kill her before, but she wasn't immune. She was bloody and battered and sure that her right arm was broken. She watched as Judas freed himself from her web and clap his claws in anxiety. "Ohhh...I'm coming for you Princess!", he hissed as he skeetered towards her. She had one last idea.

Before he could come closer, she dove into the sand and dived deeper- instantly regretting it. She couldn't see or breathe, but it didn't matter. All that matters was that she had to hold on until he found her. That happened all too quickly and she felt him coming with her Kenbunshoku Haki. "How stupid of you to come into my domain. Consider yourself dead!", she heard him scream in glee. It was stupid, but sometimes you need to be stupid to win the fight. As he neared her, she located where his underside was and knew where she had to aim. She knew he wouldn't be expecting an attack and was banking on that. She closed her eyes and as soon as he came close, she put her plan into action. First she kicked his face, upwards with Busoshoku Haki, throwing his tail attack that was incoming into the top of his head, piercing it a little. She then kicked his underbelly hard with her leg and Kenbunshoku Haki, piercing it. Next, she transformed into her full spider form and began her vicious onslaught on his underbelly, furiously jabbing it as hard and as fast as she could, hearing from his screams "go faster, go harder." But he reacted relatively quickly, grabbing her and squeezing her tightly holding her in place for his tail attack, she screamed, but he wasn't as strong as he was previously and she managed to break free. He wouldn't let her go though and followed up with a punch from his other claw that sent her flying and then a leap to grab her again as soon as she surfaced from the sand, but she shot two extra thick iron webs into him propelling her into the sky and pinning him on the ground. piercing his underbelly. She shot many more after that, all straight into his underbelly and then slid down the threads halfway then dropped the rest, repeatedly piercing what she could, screaming as she tore him apart and when he stabbed her with his tail when she was in a frenzy, she screamed harder and bit him to shreds. After he was in pieces, she rolled over and transformed into her human form, looking at her stomach in agony, at the poisoned gaping hole he had left her. And she knew then that she would die. And was satisfied. She laughed, one last laugh, and thought "what a life." As she closed her eyes, for what she thought would be her last time, she thought back at her life and smiled. Unfortunately for her she was rudely awakened, first by Risui shoving a vial of disgusting liquid down her throat and then a blinding pain from the scorpion venom kicking in. "Come, we gotta go, Princess. Apparently the men received orders that if they didn't hear anything else from Judas or Clarissa for more than an hour, they were to burn down the fortress and they're starting. He lifted Aleria in his hands and flew off towards the exit. "What did you make me drink?", she stuttered. "Antivenin. Deathstalker Antivenin." "Hm, you're pretty resourceful...for a blind guy", she said before smiling and closing her eyes. He smiled and gave her another bottle, "Drink that, you've taken too much venom in one day not be dehydrated. I'll get us out of here."

As he burst through the exist with Aleria in arms, he was forced to send some of his leaves towards his enemies, but regrouped them as he used them to soar over the wall and several houses and land firmly in their small boat. He rowed gently as he felt the heat from the island diminish. Soon there was nothing, but the gentle ebb and flow of the waves,"Should I drop you off on your homeland, Princes- no, Empress?" She smiled looking at the red island they just left on the horizon. "No, drop me off on your homeland. I have a promise to keep. Remember?" "Very well, Princess", he said with a smile and kept rowing.

Risui
As Risui rowed towards his homeland, Tencho Island, memories of his childhood came back to him.

He was small child, even at birth. He was born to an extremely overprotective family and so growing up he had no friends. Ironically, his parents provided less and less help to him as he grew up. He began to be constantly bullied and abused in his early childhood years and straight through his adolescence. One day he was being picked on and he tried to fight back, punching wildly at several of the kids. He accidentally broke the leader's nose and instantly become a threat more so than a target. A knife was pulled from the leader, but he had no idea how to use it and just started slashing wildly. One of the slashes caught Risui straight across the eyes and nose, instantly blinding him. The kids realized how much trouble they would be in so decided to make it look like it was part of an accident. They did this by throwing him off a cliff and coming up with the story that they were playing and he fell. As Risui fell, he couldn't help but be glad for his eventual death, no matter how much his parents moved around, there were always kids who would bully him and honestly he was sick of it. As he waited for the rocks to crush him, not being able to see them, but trying to feel them, he thought back to the intense pain he felt when the blade crossed his eyeballs and shuddered. He was surprised when he felt impact as it was soft and firm and he thought he had landed in Heaven. "Kami?", he asked frighteningly. He felt himself being lowered onto the ground. "Well aren't you a piece of work. And its "God Hand" to you. Lazarus "God Hand" Shiromori. Come have some of my bento, you're blind now, so it'll take some getting used to." "Um, couldn't you just kill me, Mr. God Hand?", he asked timidly. The man responded angrily, "Life is a gift son. You don't just throw gifts away. If you don't like yours, you just have to work with it and make it worth it." The boy sighed, he didn't understand, no one did. "Here, have this bento. You'll need to be healthy, as I just decided that you will be my apprentice."

The years following were truly great. His master taught him much about the world and martial arts. He made him see so much of life than he ever saw when he wasn't blind. He honed his Kenbunshoku as much as he could so that he would never miss the beautiful world again, so he could appreciate what his former self could only dream of. Of course, the years were tough and the training grueling. Many times he felt he was going to die and he passed out and puked many times. Still, he persevered and he was glad he did. One day, when he was eating with his master, a very serious discussion arose. "Risui..my young pupil..I have something I wish to tell you. Many years ago, I was apart of a powerful Martial Arts Alliance. A council of 7 masters known as the Dragons of Sin. It wasn't always called that...To Be Continued