Despite the massive living space that she had taken for herself, Rocks was surprised at how well insulated Kureha had managed to keep the castle that he found himself in. Dozens of thick cylindrical beams that held up the sky high ceiling were peppered throughout the foyer, and Xebec had a hard time imagining what the old witch could be using all of the space for.
"So I assume you're not here for a booty call?" Kureha asked sarcastically, and Rocks felt a chill run down his spine at her sudden question.
"You a psychic," he said with a roll of his eyes. "I know how skilled you are with patients that have always been alive, but how confident do you feel about giving a zombie a checkup?" He asked as they began to climb the humongous and garish marble staircase that led to the 2nd floor.
"If it's medically possible to help you, I'll do it if I feel like it," she said jokingly before cackling in a strangely similar fashion to a bird. "Would you care to explain what happened? The paper said that Garp killed you at God Valley, but I assume that's not exactly what happened?"
Rocks sighed and gave a nod as they proceeded to the medical lab that was around the corner from the staircase. The advanced medical science that buzzed and bubbled around him would have been incredibly overwhelming if he cared even slightly about trying to understand any of it. If he had learned anything from his time with Stussy, it was that science is best left to the real scientists. As he sat in a small stool with a brown leather cushion, he proceeded to tell the story of his last couple of months while he underwent a variety of examinations.
"So what is that…thing that took you over? The last time we talked you mentioned the Davy clan and their war against Imu, but you didn't give me any details past that. If you want me to fully understand what happened to your body, I need some basis of understanding for this "Domi Reversi" power you mentioned," Kureha said as she lowered her stethoscope from her ears to her neck.
"Kureha-" Rocks began to say with trepidation before being immediately cut off.
"Out with it. I've heard enough bullshit from a bunch of pirates over the years, and the ones that you've run with have always been the most obnoxious to deal with, even if they pay the best," she said begrudgingly as she crossed her arms.
"Ugh, fine," Rocks said as he knew the capabilities that Kureha had when it came to verbal beatdowns. "Every detail would take hours, so I'll just hit the important parts for you."
"That works for me," she said as she stared intently.
"…the Davy clan are descendants of Davy Jones, the 2nd pirate to sail the seas," Rocks said as he reached into his memory for tales from his childhood. "He and the first pirate, Joyboy, broke away from a place known as The Ancient Kingdom, craving the freedom that their utopian society lacked. However, the rulers of that society didn't care for the chaos that the pirates caused and declared war against them. What the Ancient Kingdom didn't expect though, was that an army stood against them," Xebec said as Kureha leaned in slightly.
"JoyBoy and Davy Jones stood alone in terms of both raw power and natural charisma, and through their years of exploring the seas and making allies outside of the Ancient Kingdom, their forces equaled that of the society they had left behind. Fearing that the pirates would take everything from them, Imu tapped into The Abyss, a power that was said to have been derived from an Earth God that roamed the world thousands of years ago, which is also the power that he used on me. This power let him overpower both Joyboy and Davy Jones forces. Eventually, the longtime rivals put aside their differences and fought together to defeat Imu. While they greatly wounded him, both Joyboy and Davy Jones withered away as the last of their Haki was spent. Imu won the war, and has taken hold of the planet through the World Government ever since," Rocks said, exhaling deeply after his mouth full of a story.
Kureha sat with her mouth slightly agape, and the pair sat in silence as Rocks allowed her to process the information that he had just given her. While he knew the doctor was not gullible enough to believe a nonsensical story like the one that he just told from a stranger, she knew to some degree the gravity of what he had seen in the New World, especially upon getting close to World Government secrets.
"So…it's probably similar to a chest cold then," Kureha said casually as she shrugged her shoulders and stood to her feet. "Just take it easy and you'll be back to full strength in no time."
"That's it?" Rocks as he looked down at his arms as if he was going to be magically cured somehow.
"I've actually dealt a little with treating wounds from this Abyss power you're talking about," she said as she began digging through a nearby drawer. "Roger came by a month ago with a bunch of weirdos on his tail trying to take that baby of his. They handled it just fine, Gaban just got a little too rowdy and needed a little patch job afterwards, and the marks on your chest from where you said that blob stabbed you look exactly the same. He ended up being weakened for a few weeks as well, but he's already back to full strength. Considering the severity of your case though, I would say you'll be at full strength in-" Kureha attempted to say before a massive boom echoed throughout the kingdom.
The pair snapped their heads in the massive sound's direction, and Rocks groaned as he realized that it came from where the ship was docked at. "Are you expecting guests, Kureha?" Rocks asked sarcastically as he stood up from his seat.
"I should have been the moment that I saw you, Xebec. You have a habit of drawing chaos to yourself," she said with another bird-like laugh as the pair walked out of the lab and began heading toward the sled that was parked outside.