Archive of Our Own

"I'M the one in the dinosaur mouth!" Usopp protested (his voice still muffled), his legs kicking furiously, "Rescuing ME should be the priority!"

"What do you want me to do?" Nami demanded.

"I don't know! Something!"

Nami moaned at that, completely at a loss for what to do. If this was going to be their luck going forward, they wouldn't last another two weeks in the Grand Line. With that, she just continued to hold onto the running dinosaur, while crying for help. Admittedly, she wasn't sure what exactly had happened, but help, of a sort, did eventually arrive.

There was the sound of crashing, coupled with a yellow blur, and Nami was sent careening off the dinosaur's back. In turn, Usopp was spat out, and sent flying. Nami ended up landing face first on the ground, while Usopp hit a tree.

"Ugh," Nami groaned, as she rubbed her head, "What was that?" Usopp didn't answer, as he just lay twitching on the ground beside the tree he had crashed into. Nami shakily rose to her feet, as she looked back at where they had come from. The dinosaur was lying broken on the ground, its body looking crushed. But the weirdest part was who was now sitting on the dinosaur; it was a woman dressed in a strange, lemon themed outfit, carrying a parasol.

"I don't know who you are, but thanks!" Nami called, "You really helped us out there!" The woman looked over to them, and smiled. But it was not a smile that gave any positive vibes; much to the contrary, it sent an unpleasant chill down Nami's spine.

"Uh, you are here to help us, right?" She asked nervously, even if she was starting to have a sneaking suspicion that wasn't the cas.e

"Trust me, little girl," the woman said, as she hopped off her kill, and advanced on them, "You have no idea."

(with Zoro)

Zoro took a breath, wiping his brow. He had just brought down another dinosaur; the sweat wasn't because he was tired, or anything like that, it was just really hot. The blast of fire, wherever it came from, hadn't helped things.

"Like to see that pervy cook beat this," Zoro said, with a satisfied nod, as he looked at his prize.

"That there's a pretty good catch, swordsman." Caught off guard by the large voice, Zoro looked over and up, to see a towering giant with an axe-shaped beard crouching beside him.

To be frank, any surprise Zoro may have had at this point had been expended. To recap the last couple days, he'd encountered a giant whale, a crime organization, and he started traveling with a princess who could turn into a dragon. If anything, a giant was pretty unremarkable with all that's been happening already. At any rate, the giant didn't betray any hostility or threat in his voice of demeanor.

"Thanks," Zoro said, "Took a while to catch though. Weird, because the last ones always came right up to me."

"That might've been us," the giant commented with an embarrassed smile, "My comrade and I often cause a bit of a ruckus whenever we fight."

"So that was all you?" Zoro asked, "I was wondering what all that commotion was about."

"Yeah, it's a bit of a long story," the giant answered, before he straightened up, "Well, I've got a bet with a friend, and I need to do some hunting myself. Take care, little swordsman."

"Well, good hunting," Zoro said, with a wave.

"Same to you, friend," the giant answered, his smile widening, before he walked off. Zoro then looked back out into the wild; he had unfortunately lost his way during the walk.

"Hey Luffy!" Zoro called, "Glad I bumped into you, you know which way back to the Merry?"

"Hey Luffy!" Zoro called again, getting a bit irritated, "I'm talking to you!" Again, he received no response, and Zoro was about to walk over to him and knock a little sense into him, but then he noticed a curtain of white coming down on him.

(with Luffy)

"So you've really been fighting each other for a hundred years?" Luffy asked, as he squatted on Dorry's shoulder.  At first he planned on walking with him, but since he had to take a dozen steps for every one step Dorry took, it was decided it'd be easier to do it this way.

"Yeah," Dorry said, "Every time the volcano erupts, we fight each other, until one of us beats the other, someone surrenders, or we draw."

"How many times have you fought?" Luffy asked.

"Oh, I don't know," Dorry said, rubbing the back of his head, "I think I've lost track. Was it a couple thousand? A few thousand? Several thousand? I really don't remember." That whole concept really left Luffy in awe. He only wished he could have the endurance to fight for that long without end.  

"Nami?" Luffy called, "What're you doing out here? I thought you wanted to stay with the ship." Nami didn't turn to look at him, as she kept looking out into nothing.

"Nami?" Luffy asked, confused, "Are you okay? Is there something wrong with your hearing?" Again, he received no answer, and walked over to see what was wrong, even as Dorry continued off, not even noticing Luffy leaving. As Luffy got over to her, he followed her gaze, trying to see just what was so interesting that she wasn't paying attention to him.

"Nami?" Luffy asked, bending down to look at his navigator, "You're acting really weird." The sound of a twig breaking made him turn, just in time to be consumed in a curtain of white.

(with Baroque Works)

"Alright," Miss Goldenweek said from her inexplicable picnic blanket, "That makes all of them."

"Yes, and little thanks to you," Mr. 3 answered, as he looked down at the struggling, muffled captain of the Straw Hats.

"I painted the figures, didn't I?" the girl said, as she ate another rice cracker.

"And how much prodding did it take to get you to do something that simple?" Mr. 3 pointed out, to which Miss Goldenweek just shrugged.

"Anyway, come on," Mr. 3 said, as he held up his hands, and globs of goopy wax appeared in his palm, "I need you to do more painting. Those giants probably won't be gone for too long, and we need to get everything ready while we have the chance."

(back with Vivi)

Vivi said as she leaned back on the rock, and stared up at the sky, not really looking at anything in particular, as she tapped a finger on the rock impatiently. She really wanted to go out and look for Carue, but she didn't know this jungle any better than he did, and would almost assuredly get lost (looking for him as a dragon wouldn't help either, since she wouldn't be able to see through the dense canopy). The best option, as far as she could see, at least, was to wait for either Dorry or Brogy to get back, and ask for their help in finding Carue. Vivi was honestly fairly confident Carue could stay safe; he was smart, and he could run probably faster than any other monster on this island. But it still made her nervous, and impatient to go and find him.

Honestly, this whole situation still sat a little uneasy with her. After all, just earlier, they had been fighting these two giants, who were trying to collect Vivi's head, and now she was waiting for them to come back with food. It was a weird situation in any case, and Vivi didn't particularly like it.

"Such weakness." This time, Vivi didn't bother looking around to find the voice, as she winced slightly, as she leaned down on her hands, with her elbows on her knees.

"Be quiet," she muttered.

"They attack you, try to kill you, and you respond by having a meal with them?" the dragon asked, "It is almost farcical."

"I'm not going to resort to violence if it can be avoided," Vivi said, "My father taught me that if you can solve things without violence, then you've succeeded in the day. Besides, they don't seem like bad men."

"What does it matter what they seem like? If you aren't going to use these power to defeat those who would threaten you, what's the point in even having them?" As she listened, Vivi could tell that this wasn't just about Dorry and Brogy; the dragon was talking about other people, far from here.

"I don't have time for this," she said.

"You don't have time to consider what your country is going through?" the dragon responded, "And how you're refusing to take action?"

"I will do something!" Vivi said angrily, "Don't think I sit idle!"

"You are literally sitting idle right now, waiting for your enemies to come back and feed you," the dragon pointed out. It deeply frustrated Vivi that it had a real point right there, as she groaned, and dragged her hand down her face.

"And while you do that, the rebellion you won't do anything about is primed to turn your proud nation into a war-zone," the dragon continued, "And for what? For the foolish zeal of a single man?"

"Khoza's my friend!" Vivi protested.

"Then why does he do what he does now?"

"It's because of Crocodile and Baroque Works!" Vivi said, "It's because of them that this whole thing is happening, because-"

"Damn Crocodile, and damn his whole organization!" The dragon snapped, "At this point, there is nothing you can do to undo what he's done. The rebellion is the threat that is primed to sunder your homeland, and if you don't act, that is exactly what will happen. In the end, machinations are not what truly matter. What matters is results, results you now have the power to deliver; the power to crush the rebellion once and for all, and yet you sit here on this island feasting and playing."

"But the rebels are still my people," Vivi said, "And I can't slaughter them. What kind of princess would that make me?"

"Tch, I suppose in the end, royalty, nobility, the elite, whatever you may call them, they are all the same. Just little more than faded shadows of far greater people." Hearing that struck a surprising nerve in Vivi's heart. She knew her family's status as one of the original 20 families that helped found the World Government, and it was something she tried not to think about, and for good reason.

She knew that the other World Nobles scorned the Nefertari family as "traitors", because they had chosen not to go up to live with them in their new capital after the establishment of the World Government. But Vivi knew such a thing was a point of pride for their family. They had chosen to remain amongst their people, and to take responsibility for their country, instead of retreating to sheltered, luxurious lives far from the people they were meant to protect. And Vivi knew what the Nobles were like, she'd seen them, and the idea of her family becoming like that terrified her.

It had happened when she was just a child, her father had brought her to Mary Geoise for the first time for the Levely; at the time she'd been too young to fully understand, but now that she was older, it weighed heavily on her. She had been walking down the road with her father, marveling at the massive buildings and structures, when she was suddenly stopped, and pulled to the side. The princess then saw a man, who looked the same age as her father, walking on his hands and knees, with another man sitting on his back, like it was just a pack animal. Even to this day, she could remember how wrong it felt, to see a person being treated in such a way, and she asked her father why the Nobles did such things.

"Because they're allowed to," Cobra had answered. Those words had stuck with Vivi ever since then; the idea that people could do horrible things just because they could was beyond despicable. She had thus taken pride in the fact that her family was different from the rest of them, and that they had not succumbed to the horrid corruption and depravity that their so-called peers had. And that was why she didn't want to use the power to annihilate all her enemies the way the dragon was calling her to; because she couldn't use the power she had just because she had them.

"I can't use my powers to just destroy anyone in my path," she said, "Because if I just start arbitrarily setting fire to everything and everyone around me, then how does that make me different from those who I claim to oppose?" For a while, the dragon was silent, and for a moment, Vivi allowed herself to savor a victory of it, even if it was a brief one.

"I spent longer than you could ever understand as just a trinket to pathetic scum that thought power was just from the legacy of better men and women," the dragon finally said, "And I will say, so far you are certainly not up to par with some of your predecessors." Those words truck Vivi like a bolt of lightning. Did that mean what she thought it meant?

"Wait!" Vivi shouted, as she stood up, "What does that mean? What do you mean by my predecessors? Did you know some of my family?" But she received no answer; if anything, it felt as if the dragon had withdrawn deep into her own being.

"Damn it!" Vivi said, as she sat back down, burying her face in her hands.  She ended up being so lost in thought that she didn't notice Dorry and Brogy coming back until she felt the ground shaking and she looked up. Once again, a strange sense of deja vu washed over the princess, as she noticed the latter carrying a long necked dinosaur over his shoulder.

"No, it's fine," Vivi said with a breath, "I wasn't doing much here." Technically a lie, but she didn't feel like telling them what she was really doing (besides, it would probably sound really weird to them). As she watched them approach, she looked past them and noticed they had returned without someone they'd gone out with.

"Where's Luffy?" she asked. The giants were silent for a time, as they looked at each other.

"I thought he'd made his way back here," Dorry eventually said. Vivi groaned as she leaned back into her hands. So she'd lost track of TWO companions in the span of barely an hour. It seemed the princess just couldn't catch a break at this point.

"Gababababa!" Brogy laughed, "Look at you Dorry, can't even keep track of a little man like that." Dorry just elbowed Brogy in the side, before dropping his prize on the ground.

"Well, guess I should go find him," Dorry said.

"I can help you," Vivi volunteered, as she stood up.

"Nah, don't worry," Dorry said, waving his hand, "He was with me, I'll be the one to go track him down."

"We can cover more ground if we work together," Brogy said, as he dropped his kill as well, turning to join Dorry, "Humans can easily get lost here, so-" He stopped talking as the ground beneath his right foot suddenly seemed to simply disappear beneath him. The giant let out a cry of pain, as his foot got stuck on a stuck on a spike at the bottom of the pit.

"Brogy!" Dorry shouted. The Red Ogre let out a litany of curses as, he tugged at his foot, only to find it had become encased in some sort of white substance.

"What in Elbaf's name?" he grunted. He pulled on it some more, but his free foot slipped on something, causing him to fall back, and land flat on his back.

"Candle Lock!" a voice from the forest called. Before Brogy could even react, more white stuff emerged from the trees, and covered his hands. Upon closer inspection, he found it was made of wax. Despite that, though, it was like his hands were encased in steel, the way he could barely move.

"Who's there?" Dory said, as he drew his sword, holding it at the ready, "Show yourself." Vivi tensed up as well, ready to transform if it came to it.

"Truly, that is the best you could come up with?" a smug voice called from the trees, "I know giants are naturally dim, but I was expecting something a bit more original than just 'show yourself'." In a fit of rage, Dorry swung his sword down into the trees.

"Wow, you weren't even close there," the voice said.

"You bastard!" Dorry said, as he swung his sword again into the forest, again missing completely, "Where are you?!"

"I don't know why people keep asking that? Are they really expecting an answer?" Dorry let out a roar, as he tried to run into the jungle as well, but he didn't get far, as one of his own feet was suddenly locked in wax. However, the energy he had put in his stride still carried him forward, causing him to face-plant into the forest floor.

"Candle Lock!" With that, more wax emerged out of the trees, and encased his hands. In a matter of just a couple minutes, both the Blue and Red Ogres had been completely defeated, and were trapped. And all the while, Vivi had just been standing there, gawking at it all, having done nothing to contribute.

"Well, that was remarkably easy," the voice said, and with that, the source emerged from the trees, revealing a skinny man wearing glasses. But Vivi wasn't looking at any of that; it was rather hard considering the massive "3" that was sitting atop his head. It made things rather easy for Vivi to guess who this guy was.

"Baroque Works!" she said. Almost immediately, she felt the dragon within her growing restless. Mr. 3 adjusted his glasses and he frowned at Vivi.

"Hmm," he mused, "I must say I'm a little surprised, maybe even a little let down. With how urgent Miss All Sunday seemed to make this out to be, I expected something a bit more."

"She probably just wanted her dealt with quickly," Miss Goldenweek said from behind her partner, already snacking on rice crackers again, "The boss isn't a patient sort."

"Why don't I show you just what she was talking about?" Vivi said, as she braced herself to transform, "I'll-"

"Sorry to interrupt what I'm sure would've been a very well-rehearsed and thought out threat, but we really don't have time for this," Mr. 3 said, "So as such-" This time he was the one interrupted as out of the jungle emerged two other Baroque Works operatives.

"What took you so long?" Miss Goldenweek asked.

"If you guys had cleaned up your messes on your own, then we would've been here sooner," Miss Valentine said, twirling her parasol, while dragging something behind her. At first Vivi couldn't see what it was, but then the two agents deposited their quarry, and to her horror, Vivi saw the Straw Hats.

"Vivi!" Nami said, looking up.

"Damn you bastards!" Luffy said, as he struggled in his binds, "Let me out so I can kick your asses fair and square!" Zoro was also struggling in the binds as well, though wasn't having any more luck than Luffy was.

"Go out and adventure they said," Usopp moaned, "You'll regret it for the rest of your life they said. Well I'll tell y'all about regrets now!" Looking a them, the only one Vivi didn't see in captivity was Sanji; she supposed that may have been a small blessing, and she'd taken any of those she could get.

"You cowards!" Dorry shouted, "Can't beat us fairly so you use all these lowly tricks."

"Well obviously," Mr. 3 answered, "I'm not stupid like most others on this island."

"Damn you!" Brogy said, as he tried to pull himself back to his feet, but the wax was too strong.

"Such vulgarity," Mr. 3 said with a scoff, before turning back to Vivi, "I will say that getting a hold on you was harder than I thought it would be. Between this wild, savage land, and that oversized dragon floating around, it proved a rather tedious task." Hearing mention of the "oversized dragon" caused Vivi's head to pulse briefly.

"Destroy them." Vivi forced those emotions down; she couldn't get too aggravated now. But then she noticed someone else in Mr. 5's hold.

"I gotta say though, Princess," the Bomb Man said, "You've got some pretty loyal lackeys." With that, he threw the beaten form of Carue on the ground.

"Carue!" Vivi cried out. Her duck just twitched slightly at the sound of her voice, apparently too weak to even make a real sound. Once again, a pulse of power went through Vivi's head, and she winced at the feel of the headache.

"That dumb animal resisted every attempt we made to make him squawk," Miss Valentine said, her voice oozing cruelty, "Gotta give him credit, he's a devoted little creature." Vivi felt herself double over in pain, her head aching, as she felt scales start to manifest along her body. She could feel her instincts fighting her, trying to force her to transform, but she wouldn't let it; she knew she couldn't let her instincts alone control her, even now. Not that any of the criminals were really paying attention.

"So, we've got her now," Miss Goldenweek said, as she poured herself a cup of tea, "Can we just get it over with now?"

"Normally I'd want to make this a bit more... artistic, but our orders were to get this done quickly," Mr. 3 said, before turning to Mr. 5, "Get this done now, won't you."

"Don't want to get your hands dirty?"

"It's not my fault I'm a gentleman, while you're a brute," Mr. 3 responded with a scoff.

"Get over yourself you pompous ass!" Miss Valentine snapped.

"That's very vulgar," Miss Goldenweek said.

"And don't get me started on you, brat!" Miss Valentine said, "You've barely done jack since you've been here!" All the while the criminals bickered, Vivi wasn't paying attention. She knew how easy it would've been to simply transform into a dragon, and hit them all with just one massive attack, but there was a reason she hadn't done that already. Her companions, including her closest friend, were all around them, and Vivi worried that if she unleashed her power recklessly, they'd be hurt too.

"But if you don't do anything, you know the consequences."

"Shut up," Vivi hissed.

"Take action now, before you lose your chance!"

"But I could hurt my friends too!" As Vivi argued with herself, this finally attracted the attention of the agents.

"Is she talking to herself?" Miss Valentine asked as she arched an eyebrow.

"What does it matter," Mr. 5 said, as he picked a booger out of his nose, "Let's just get this done now."

"No arguments here," Miss Valentine answered, looking around with a pout, "I don't like this place." Still Vivi didn't hear them, as she felt her body start to slowly transform. She wouldn't do it; she wouldn't let anything other than her own conscious mind direct how she used these powers. But that didn't stop her body from starting to transform, as she felt it start to shift. With that, Mr 5 flicked his booger at the princess, who was consumed in a massive explosion.

"No! Vivi!" Nami cried.

"QUACK!" Carue squawked, managing to find his voice at the sight.

"I'll kill you for that!" Luffy shouted, as he bounced on the ground. Obviously, all the agents ignored the protests, as they looked at their handiwork.

"Well, that was easy," Miss Goldenweek mused, as she took another cracker.

"Of course it was," Mr. 5 said, "A weak little princess could never stand against someone like me."

"Of course," Mr. 3 said plainly, before turning to the Straw Hats, "Now, about the bounties on the captain here. 30 million is nothing to scoff at, perhaps we should…" He trailed off as they all felt a massive presence loom over them; it was as if the air itself had turned heavy, and it all seemed to be emanating from the smoke. They slowly turned back, and saw a silhouette in the smoke, which soon parted. It was the princess, but not the way they would have ever expected her.

While Vivi's hair was still tied back, that and her body shape were really the only things about her that were still normal. Much of her body was now covered in blue scales, with a pair of horns coming out of the back of her head, which was itself marked by a pair of blazing eyes and a mouth lined with razor sharp teeth. Her hands had turned into claws, and lashing behind her was a long, reptilian tail. Suffice to say, it left the Baroque Works agents completely flummoxed.

"Since when did she have a Devil Fruit?" Miss Valentine demanded, looking at Mr. 3, "You never mentioned anything like that!"

"It... It...," Mr. 3 stuttered, shaking slightly at the sight himself, "The boss never mentioned it."

"Looks like a Zoan type," Mr. 5 said, "And I don't know where she got it, but I-" He didn't get to finish, as Vivi was suddenly right on top of him.

"Fire Dragon's Impact!" With that, Vivi drove her palm into the officer's gut (she wasn't sure just where that name had come from). It impacted with such force that Mr. 5 didn't even feel any pain; it was just a feeling of general numbness, like the body couldn't even register power of that magnitude. He was sent careening away, back into the forest.

"Mr. 5!" Miss Valentine cried, "Mr. 3, what do we..." She paused when she noticed Mr. 3 standing completely still; though someone else would've been fooled, Miss Valentine knew enough to recognize that as one of his wax figures. The coward and his partner had bolted long ago.

"Those little..." She stopped herself, as she noticed Vivi's gaze turning over towards her, before leaping in her direction. Fortunately for the agent, since she had just seen it happen, she was able to avoid it by making herself lighter, causing her to to float up.

"So what if you've got a Devil Fruit now?" the officer sneered, "You're sti-" This time, it was her who didn't get to finish, as Vivi leapt all the way into the air, grabbed her by the neck, and threw her down to the ground, before inhaling sharply.

"Blast Breath!" Vivi then exhaled a cloud of flames down towards her enemy, who had to spring out of the way to avoid the worst of them; in the process, her jacket and hat both got incarnated.

"Damn it," the blonde grumbled, "And those were hard to find." She looked up to see Vivi standing on what looked like an orange cloud, glaring down at her. Knowing she had no chance in a straight up fight, Miss Valentine found herself running into the jungle after her partner. During all this, the Straw Hats could only watch from their trapped state, as Vivi chased after the agents, jumping from cloud to cloud, leaving them alone.

"Holy crap," Zoro said, saying what was on all people's mind at this point.

"Because I guess being able to turn into a giant, airborne dragon wasn't enough," Usopp muttered, sweating at the sight (and not just from the flames).

"Alright!" Luffy said, as he jumped to her feet, "While Vivi's dealing with them, let's go find that 3-guy and the girl with the crackers."

"Luffy, you've got to be more careful," Nami said, frowning at him, "We saw the traps… he… left…" She trailed off as she realized that Luffy had jumped to his feet. She then looked down, as the remains of her wax prison slid away.

"YEOUCH!" Usopp said, jumping back, "Hot wax!"

"The wax!" Nami said, "Viv's fire must've melted it."

"Alright!" Luffy said, pumping his fists, "Let's kick that 3-guy's ass!"

"I'm behind you," Zoro said, reading his swords, "You don't get to punk me like that and get away with it."

"What about Vivi?" Nami asked.

"What about her?" Luffy responded, cocking his head, "She's got this handled." Nami opened her mouth, but paused, as she looked around at the remains of the fight, if it could even be called that. As crazy it was to think, Luffy may have had a point. With that, Luffy and Zoro ran into the jungle after the other agents, leaving Nami and Usopp alone with the giants.

"I'm all for staying out of their way," Usopp affirmed.

"I second that," Nami said with a nod, "Can't believe I'm saying this, but want to help free the giants?"

"Never thought THAT would ever sound like a decent alternative," Usopp grumbled.

(over with Vivi)

"Run faster!" Miss Valentine shouted, as she floated over her partner.

"Easy for you to say when you can float!" Mr. 5 answered, as he kept running. He glanced over his shoulder, and indeed, their pursuer wasn't any further behind. Wherever Vivi jumped, a cloud appeared under her foot, allowing her to keep pace with her assailants (was she now the assailant?). The princess inhaled deeply, before letting loose another fire blast. The force of the blast sent Mr. 5 careening away, and landing face first at a tree. He managed to get back up, as Vivi dropped to the ground, steam leaking out of her jaws, and her burning eyes locked on him.

"I don't know just what kind of power that is," Mr. 5 said, as he reached behind him, "But I promise you, it won't be enough." With that, he pulled out a revolver pistol, which he quickly blew into. That surprised the princess enough that she cocked her head in confusion.

"Take this!" Mr. 5 said, before pointing the gun at her, "Breeze Breath Bomb!" He fired off a series of what looked like air blasts, which Vivi easily evaded, only for them to explode as they hit a nearby tree. Even the man's BREATH was explosive.

"My fruit is the ultimate offensive weapon," Mr. 5 said, "There's nothing you can-" In what was proving something of a theme for the day, he was interrupted as Vivi was right on top of him.

"Fire Dragon's Tail!" Vivi then swung her tail wide, hitting Mr. 5 write in the gut. The man wasn't even able to cry out, just croak slightly, before the force sent him careening through multiple trees, and sprawled onto the ground. Vivi trembled slightly at her triumph, before letting out a slightly burst of flame.

"You little bitch!" Her gaze turned up, as she saw Miss Valentine floating over her, her look a mix of sheer rage and desperation.

"You think you can take us down just like that?" She shouted, as she brought her legs in "You, a pampered little princess! Not on my watch!" With that, she increased her weigh to the absolute heaviest she could make it, and plummeted down towards the Zoan user, who held up her hand.

"10,000 Kilogram Press!" Mr. 5 managed to shakily pull himself up to his feet, as he looked up to see his partner's handiwork. But that wasn't what he ended up seeing. Instead, Vivi had caught Miss Valentine in her claw by her throat, despite the woman weighing 10,000 kilograms at this point. Miss Valentine struggled in her grasp, as the princess glared at her; looking into her eyes, the agent saw a ferocity and rage that she'd never seen in the eyes of another before.

"No...," she begged weakly, "Please..." Vivi didn't even spare her anytime, and hurled Miss Valentine at Mr. 5. The former quickly willed her weight to change, and only managed to do it just in time to avoid crushing her partner.

"How is she so strong?" Mr. 5 groaned weakly. Miss Valentine didn't answer, as she tried, and failed to get up. They both then looked up, to see Vivi looming over them, still standing on her cloud, glaring down at them. She clenched both her clawed fists, as she let out another cloud of steam from her mouth.

"We surrender!" Miss Valentine said, "We surrender!" At that, the princess actually seemed to pause, as she glared down at them, her tail swishing behind her.

"Can your surrender undo the damage your leader has done to my home?" She then asked, in a voice that didn't sound entirely like her's.

"Uh..."

"Then what good is it?" Vivi responded, before she slammed down both her fists, "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" She crashed into them with such force, it leveled multiple trees. When the dust finally cleared, it showed both the Baroque Works agents completely and utterly defeated, and barely alive. Vivi was standing on the ground, panting, and with that, the adrenaline finally wore off...

Shaking her head clear, Vivi reached up to touch her head. But that was when she saw the blood on her blue-scaled claws. As she looked at them for a brief moment, she didn't recognize her own hands.

"Ah... Ah...," Vivi said shakily, as she stumbled back, eventually backing into a tree, as she tried to make sense of what just happened, still looking at her hands. It had all been a complete blur, almost a dream, where her body moved without any clear direction. Frankly, the feel of all that terrified her, and made her want to throw up.

"Well done," she then heard the voice of the dragon say, "You defeated them." Vivi clenched teeth, as she managed to will her transformed state away, which proved easier than being in full beast form. Once she did, she fell to her knees, breathing heavily.

"That's not me," she muttered.

"It is now," the dragon responded. A new wave of nausea came over Vivi, as she fell to her knees, as her breath started to turn into wheezes. It wasn't that she felt guilty for what was going on; she could never feel guilty for beating Baroque Works. Oh no, this was something else entirely…. Was it horror? Exhilaration? Something of the two combined? She couldn't say, and she didn't like it.

"That's not me," Vivi repeated, though this time it was barely a whimper, as she covered her face.