The wind howled over the Thousand Sunny as it sailed through the chilly waters north of the New World. Steam curled across the waves ahead, mixing with thick clouds of white and gray. A strange island loomed in the distance—half scorched, half frozen, as if locked in eternal conflict.
"Is that... smoke?" Nami narrowed her eyes. "No, wait—steam? That island's climate looks split in two."
"Creepy," Usopp said, shivering despite himself. "Why are we going to this island again?"
"This wasn't on the log pose," Robin murmured, flipping through her notes. "And there's no record of any civilization or history."
"It's not on the maps either," Franky added. "Which means it's either top secret... or cursed."
"Sounds fun," Luffy said, grinning as he stood on the figurehead. "Let's check it out."
"We don't even know what's on it!" Sanji protested. "This island could be crawling with weapons or monsters."
"Or both," Brook chimed in cheerfully. "Yohohoho! Weapons that are monsters!"
The ship docked at the edge of a cracked metal pier. Strange chemical smoke drifted up from vents in the ground, and frost shimmered on the cliffs in the distance.
"Split island... heat and cold," Chopper observed. "This place isn't natural."
"Be on guard," Zoro said. "We don't know what we're walking into."
Inside the Island Interior
The crew moved cautiously, marveling at the bizarre landscape—half an island scorched by fire and lava, the other buried in a deep freeze. The terrain alone was hostile.
"This is insane," Usopp said, trembling. "How does anything live here?"
"Maybe it doesn't," Robin replied. "Which raises the question: who built all this?"
Deep inside the island, a hidden facility still functioned—barely. Metal doors hissed, glass flickered, and surveillance systems tracked every motion.
Unbeknownst to the Straw Hats, they were not alone.
Elsewhere – Secure Lab Wing
Caesar Clown watched the monitors with amused anticipation. He hadn't expected visitors, let alone pirates.
But this could work in his favor.
"So the rats sniffed their way in," he chuckled. "Perfect. Let them stir things up while I prepare the next phase."
In a sealed containment pod behind him, Kael floated unconscious in nutrient-rich fluid. His body twitched involuntarily. Tubes connected his arms and chest to a glowing device pulsing with green and violet energy.
"Still dormant," Caesar muttered. "But not for long. Riven sent you here for a reason. You're more than a weapon, aren't you?"
He pressed a hand to the pod's surface. "Project Hellix will awaken. And the Straw Hats... they'll bring the chaos I need."
The screen beside Kael's pod flashed.
SYNAPTIC PATTERN DETECTED. MEMORY STIMULATION ACTIVE.
Kael's body remained still beneath closed lids. No signs of consciousness. No voices echoed. The Hellix Core remained dormant for now.
And everything was set in motion.