The island was quiet a silence that Caelum had grown used to after being alone for months.. Then something changed. It was not a sound that broke the silence. A vibration.
He was near the ship trying to dig out a wooden beam, when his skin started to tingle. It was not because it was too humid. It was not because of the wind. It was something. There was a pressure at the back of his neck. It was a hum. Something was entering his space. His safety range is four meters. If someone is beyond that Caelums perception becomes unclear.
He turned around quickly.. That is when he saw them. A meters away partially hidden by the plants around the cove three men were watching Caelum. They were not soldiers. They were not Marines. They were scavengers. They were dirty. Had old weapons. They looked like animals that were used to getting what they wanted.
One of them a man with a scar on his nose said, "Look what we found a castaway." Caelums heart started to beat. Small violet sparks jumped from his knuckles. He was not doing it on purpose. He never fully controlled it.
Caelums mind was thinking about survival. It was calculating the chances of him staying alive. Fear made his body react. A faint mist started to come out of his skin. The scarred man stepped back drawing his weapon. Said, "What the hell is that? Are you smoking, freak?"
Caelum said, "I do not want trouble leave.". They did not leave. Fear turned into greed. If Caelum was strange then he was valuable.. Maybe he was hiding something. The largest of them moved first. There was no warning. No talking. Only the intent to hurt Caelum.
Caelum did not know how to fight. No stance. No technique. Only reaction. When the man entered his four-meter radius Caelum felt him as a mass of heat and metal moving toward him. Caelum said, "Back off." His arm moved before he thought. It was not a punch. It was a discharge. His limb turned into a plasma whip.
The air cracked with an electrical snap. The strike did not hit the man. It hit the metal. The machete. The iron reacted like a lightning rod. There was a burst of light. A violent hiss of steam. The weapon dropped to the ground glowing red-hot. The pirate screamed, stumbling back with burned hands.
Caelum was breathing fast. Too fast. Using that energy was draining him. The mist over his body was unstable. The second pirate raised his gun. Caelum saw him. Saw the finger. Saw the movement. And his body understood something simple: it was too late to dodge.
Caelums mind did not choose. His body reacted. It destabilized. His torso turned into a violet vapor cloud. The bullet passed through the space where his chest had been. It struck the wood behind him. Caelum felt an emptiness. Like something had been ripped out of him.. He did not fall. He was not injured.
The pirate stepped back. Said, "He's a user. He's a monster." Caelum did not understand the word. Only the fear in his voice. He did not attack immediately. He thought. Not strategy.. The only thing he could control: the environment.
Caelum released energy. Not as an attack. As expansion. Heat. Vibration. Pressure. The airs humidity thickened. Within seconds the cove was engulfed in a cloud of hot vapor. Zero visibility. Caelum could not see.. He could feel. Metal. Movement. Heat.
The world became a map of sensations. The gunman entered his range. Four meters. Too close. Caelum moved forward. Touched the weapon. That was all. A brief discharge. Not to destroy. To overload. The metal reacted. The remaining gunpowder detonated from accumulated heat. The pistol exploded in the pirates hand.
The scream came instantly. The third man did not hesitate. He ran. The other two followed, stumbling, blinded by vapor and pain. Within minutes the cove fell silent again. Caelum collapsed against the ships hull. Breathing heavily. The steam slowly dissipated. His body trembled. Not from pain. From overload.
On the ground something glinted. A bundle of papers. Dropped during the escape. Caelum picked it up with hands. He did not understand the material.. He understood it mattered. He opened it. Images. Text. Information from a world he did not recognize.
Then he saw it. A bounty. A face. A cruel smile. A name. "Arlong 'The Saw'. 20,000,000 Berries." Caelum went silent. He looked at the paper. Then at his hands. Small sparks still escaped his skin. He said, "I'm not on any island."
His voice was low. Almost disbelieving. He looked at the sea. The pirates boat was disappearing in the distance.. For the first time since arriving in this world he understood something important. This was not an accident. It was something bigger, than him.. He was only just beginning to see its rules.
He said, "And definitely I'm not the one they would call a monster here." The wind hit his face. The sea remained open. Waiting.. This time Caelum understood that staying was no longer an option.