Yes I'm finally back after... nearly half a year... I'm sorry, school and work got in the way. It wasn't always easy, with my stress and anxiety BUT I managed!

But hey! I got my diploma (soon) so everything's fine. I even got a second nephew born on my birthday! (True story).

I'd like to thank every reader, who thought of this story or were worried about me while away. Seriously, Thank you!

Now the important news ( because I know my life is not what you're interested in):

I finished to write the whole Impel Down and Marine Ford ARC. And I'm posting everything at once!

(Still have the NaCB #4 to write though. >.>)

Anyway...

HERE IS CHAPTER... CHAPTER...

*psssst* 73.

HERE IS CHAPTER 73:

*pssst* Go directly to jail do not collect 200 berry

HERE IS CHAPTER 73: Go directly to jail do not collect 200 berry

Chapter 73: Go directly to jail do not collect 200 berry

Rick was currently in a situation he never thought he would be in or to be more accurate, a situation he thought he would never be outside a bed with either Robin or Kaza present. These two situations are the only ones where he would agree to be cuffed, gagged and blindfolded by a bag on his head. And yet here he was.

“I wonder if Hancock isn’t even more crazy than Kaza.”

Maybe if Rick had taken up the common advice ‘don’t stick your dick in crazy’ he wouldn’t be in the predicament he is now. He would still be cuffed because that was part of the plan, but everything else.. He would gladly do without. Apparently it was a little payback from the pirate's empress. Payback for what? Rick hadn’t the faintest idea until his protests - which sounded something like ‘Huggghh, Huuukk’- alerted his lover.

“I’m sorry Rick, that’s my sisters’ doing.”

“Huk?!”

“Well.. They may or may not have walked on us while we were sleeping and thought you took advantage of me.”

“Huuuuk!”

“I know! But with my hair a mess, the love bites and the bruises on my ass..”

“Huk?Huuuk”

“Don’t bother denying it! I have a handprint on each of my ass cheeks!”

“Huk huk huk.”

“Yes, I loved making them too but that’s not the point! The point is, I thought it was actually a good idea to have you like that. My amazons would look more competent once we.. deliver you to the marines. Besides, it’s payback.”

“Huk?!”

“I’m limping because of you! Thank god it was my sisters who found us; they will be quiet; but now I have to explain why I’m walking funny!”

“Huk huk huk!”

“That’s not something to laugh at! Anyway, we’re less than half an hour at Impel Down, I’m going to Luffy so we can prepare too.”

~~~~~

Luffy had laughed his ass off when he saw his vice-captain restrained. Not long though because next thing he knew he was squashed onto the floor into some kind of puddle of flesh. When Sandersonia entered Hancock’s room, he wrapped himself under her sister’s coat while he pulled Rick on his feet and dragged him towards the deck. The ship entered Impel down with the marines’ one and docked. At the sight of a prisoner, Hannyabal the under warder, in charge of the “welcoming” frowned and demanded an explanation.

“Who’s that?”

“A prisoner, I thought it was obvious with the get up.” reapplied condescendingly the pirate empress.

“I can see that, I’m asking what’s his identity!”

“You dare!”

“Who is he? I won’t ask a third time.”

“Fine! It’s Rick Wald.”

“Right..” replied the man with a face as dubious as his tone.

“Is there a problem?”

“You’re telling me you succeeded in capturing the biggest stain the marines had ever had when he eluded everyone for the last decade?”

“Well, I’m not incompetent so yes, I did.”

And without letting the marine the chance to utter another word Hancock removed the bag from Rick’s head.

“Holy.. How?!”

“As I said I’m not an incompetent marine, now can you stop being one and do you job properly?”

The marine didn’t have to be told twice.

“Warden Magellan is in his office in Level 4, Vice head jailer Domino and myself will lead you to him but first we must do a body search. It’s standard protocol and no one can escape it, that’s why Vice Admiral Momonga you’ll have to go into this room.”

“What about my prisoner?” asked Hancock.

“Prisoners have their own kind of body search.” replied Hannyabal with a sadistic grin.

Vice Admiral Momonga went into the room that he was allocated to and Hancock did the same. Left with Under Warden, Rick was once again dragged, this time roughly, to a room further down the corridor. He knew what was coming. Any prisoner brought here was to go under the sterilisation process. It was simple, on one side a giant cauldron of boiling water on the other the prisoner. The latter was pushed into the former and had to stay there for a while with the people around gleefully smiling or heartilly laughing at the screams of pain the ones being boiled let out.

Hannyabal didn’t have this pleasure as Rick just gritted his teeth from the beginning to the end. The experience was painful, yes, but it was nothing like being fried by hundreds of millions of volts.To this day that was Rick’s most painful experience. Both during and after it. The scars from Ener still mark his body and were a constant reminder that he went through worse than anything he’s having right now.

His ”bath” didn’t last long, after all Hannyabal had to present him to Magellan. It was a privilege reserved only for the very notorious and infamous criminals. If your bounty was under hundred millions you generally end up in one of the first three levels of the prison and are not worth enough to get to level 4 and meet the warden. Naturally, with his reputation, both earned and not, Rick got a first class ticket for the rumoured level 6. A level which officially doesn’t exist and contains the worst of the worst. Most of the inmates there are either in for life or waiting for their execution.

The sterilisation process may have been over but the protocol was not. Each new inmate had to discard his clothes and put on a uniform for identification. That’s where things went off the rails a bit. Rick didn’t mind donning new clothes but he would be damned if he got separated from his overcoat. He had bought it at Water Seven and went through most happenings with it. Sure it was a bit worn out here and there, but it was mostly fine. Rick just wanted to be set apart from the rest of the inmates. He was proud of having been a marine and even though he was a pirate now he will keep to the overcoat style and every important person wore one anyway; Gol D Roger, Whitebeard, Kaidou to name a few.

So when the ex-marine went for it he was blocked by Hannyabal. That was a bad move on the latter that earned him a kick in the balls. Rick may have been cuffed and gagged but it didn’t mean he was harmless. In the end he put his overcoat on his shoulders and left the room and Hannyabal then walked towards the end of the corridor where a giant elevator where Hancock, Domino and Momonga were waiting. He didn’t do more than a few steps before two dozen marines bursted out from another room and went straight to him, weapon in hand ready to subdue him. That didn’t stop him in the least and kept walking nonchalantly towards his destination. The poor idiots who attacked him were dispatched very quickly and efficiently with powerful kicks learned by simply watching Sanji fight over time. When he reached the elevator Momonga was ready to act. With his demeanour, Domino concluded that Rick wasn’t trying to escape, he would have gone the other way around otherwise and would not be taking a stroll but running fast as hell. This is why she didn’t move.

“Where is Under Warden Hannyabal?” she asked and was? answered by a simple shrug of his shoulders.She didn’t pursue the questioning further and simply motioned him to get on the elevator with her chin. As the gate started to go down Hannyabal made his entrance by running funny and barely made it in time. He grabbed Rick by his collar angrily but was immediately defused by Domino claiming they were already late as it was.

Soon enough they were to level 4 and entered Magellan’s office.

“Warden, we have guests and a new member.” announced Hannyabal who promptly made everyone enter when he received permission to do so and made the introductions.

Rick had to say, seeing Magellan and Hannyabal intersecting with each other was fun as hell. Seeing with his own eyes how Hancock walked all over the warden and ordered him around even more so.

“Normally a call would have been made about Luffy being spotted with Buggy by now. Did my little show with Hannyabal distracted the people in the surveillance room? Whatever, the longer Luffy goes without being seen the better.”

On his way towards the door while escorting Hancock, Magellan was stopped by Domino.

“Sir, what do we do with him?”

“Who?” the warden replied.

“Rick Wald, sir.”

Turning around the warden register for the first time the presence of Rick.

“Rick Wald?! I never received news that you’ve been caught! Wait, why do you have an overcoat? Inmates are not supposed to have any clothes other than their uniform.”

“Huk!”

“What?”

“Huk huk!”

Feeling that it will go on for a while at this rate, Domino got closer to Rick and removed his gag.

“Thank you Vice head jailer.” said Rick before answering Magellan.

“I have it because it’s mine.”

“Well that won’t do. Under Warden, take it.”

“If you want another kick in the berries, go ahead and try it.” challenged Rick looking with murder in his eyes towards Hannyabal.

“So that’s what happened.” said Domino, piecing the puzzle together.

“What happened?”

“Yes sir! We were waiting for Under Warden Hannyabal who brought Rick Wald to undergo the sterilisation process and only the latter came back, alone. On his way he dispatched two dozen guards who tried to subdue him.” she answered to her chief, leaving his face frozen in shock before he started laughing loudly, mocking his second in command. He only stopped when he heard Rick’s next words which anger him greatly

“I have to say, I’m really disappointed with the personnel. The personnel is weak and borderline incompetent.”

“What?!”

“I mean, I’m cuffed with seastone, and I one hit knockout a bit more than twenty men including the under warden, who brought me alone to the sterilisation chamber. And he’s not even wearing his uniform! How many rules is he breaking by simply standing there! Seriously, it’s a miracle no one ever escaped this place! It’s a circus. Wait, maybe not, Shiki the golden lion did escape. I hope there are more dutiful people like vice head jailer Domino. Seriously, I haven’t been here long but the only one who acted like a proper jailer was her. If the fleet admiral knew how you’re running this place you'd be demoted so much that even the bottom of the hierarchy would be above...”

Rick didn’t get to finish his sentence as a furious Magellan pounced on him.