1 Liquid Chrome
The Grand Line didn't care about your dreams.
That was the first lesson I learned as salt water filled my lungs and my small boat shattered against rocks that shouldn't have existed on any map. The seas past Reverse Mountain were insane—currents flowing in four directions at once, waves tall as buildings, and whirlpools that could swallow ships whole.
I'd known it would be dangerous. I'd read about it, after all.
But reading about drowning and actually drowning were two very different things.
My fingers scraped against barnacle-covered stone as another wave smashed me into the cliff face. Pain exploded through my ribs. The ocean tried to drag me back for another round, but I kicked desperately, lungs screaming for air.
Just a little further. Just—
My hand found purchase on a ledge. I hauled myself up with strength I didn't know I had, collapsing onto a narrow beach of black sand. For several minutes I just lay there, coughing up seawater and tasting blood.
"Fuck," I gasped, rolling onto my back. "Fuck, fuck, fuck."
The sky above was too blue, too clear. Seagulls cried overhead—normal ones, not the News Coo variety. The sun beat down with tropical intensity.
I was alive.
I was in the One Piece world.
And I was completely, utterly screwed.
Three Days Earlier — East Blue
The transition had been instantaneous. One moment I'd been at home, the next I was standing on a dock in what was unmistakably East Blue, wearing clothes I'd never owned and with a small pouch of Berry in my pocket.
No fanfare. No explanation. No divine entity explaining the rules.
Just… reality replaced with fiction.
The first hour had been panic. The second had been panic mixed with disbelief. By the third, I'd accepted it with the kind of numb shock that comes from having your worldview shattered.
But I adapted quickly. I had to.
Because I knew exactly where I was. And if I wanted to survive more than a week, I needed to get to the Grand Line before the real chaos started.
The Grand Line, where the strong thrived and the weak became statistics.
I bought a small boat with my limited funds, gathered basic supplies, and sailed for Reverse Mountain like a madman. No crew. No training. No Devil Fruit powers.
Just desperation and the knowledge that staying in East Blue would be a waste of my only advantage: I knew what was coming.
I knew where Luffy would be. Where the Straw Hats would go. Where Ancient Weapons were hidden. Where Devil Fruits could be found.
I knew everything.
And that knowledge was worthless if I died in the first week.
Present — Unknown Island, Grand Line
I forced myself to stand, checking what I had left. My boat was gone—destroyed on the climb up Reverse Mountain and the chaotic descent. Supplies: gone. Weapons: a single knife on my belt, more tool than weapon.
My prospects: grim.
But I was alive. And that meant I still had a chance.
The island stretched before me—dense jungle inland, volcanic rock near the shore, and smoke rising from somewhere deeper. Civilization? Or a volcano?
Either way, I needed water. Food. Shelter.
I started walking.
The jungle was oppressive—hot, humid, and full of sounds that didn't exist back home. Something massive crashed through underbrush to my left. I froze.
A boar the size of a car burst from the foliage, tusks like ivory spears. Its eyes locked onto me.
Island wildlife. Of course. Everything was bigger here.
The boar charged.
I dove behind a tree as its tusks gouged deep into the trunk. Before it could yank free, I ran—branches tearing at my skin, roots trying to trip me, lungs burning.
The boar thundered behind me.
This is how I die. Eaten by a pig on day one.
The ground gave way. I tumbled down a steep slope and smashed into something solid.
A stone wall.
Ancient stone covered in moss and carvings. I'd fallen into a ravine. The wall stretched in both directions.
The boar snorted above but didn't follow. Eventually it wandered away.
I slumped against the wall, catching my breath. "Okay. Not dead. That's… good."
My shoulder throbbed. Cuts burned across my arms. But the wall… this was interesting.
The carvings weren't random. Forges. Smiths. Warriors in armor. Metal works. Symbols I didn't recognize—alchemical, maybe.
I followed the wall until it emerged fully—a half-collapsed stone structure. Temple or ancient forge, maybe. The entrance gaped like a mouth.
Every instinct screamed at me to leave.
But I was starving, dehydrated, and defenseless.
If there was even a chance something useful was inside…
I stepped in.
The interior was cooler, lit by beams of sunlight through cracks in the ceiling. Stone pillars, carvings, rusted tools. I explored room after room.
Empty. Empty. Storage room with rotted crates. Empty.
Until the innermost chamber.
A circular room. A stone altar in the center. Around it stood metal sculptures—warriors and beasts frozen in motion. As if metal had once been liquid and simply… stopped.
On the altar sat a small chest—tarnished silver, untouched by time.
My heart slammed against my ribs.
I approached. No traps. No locks. Just rusted shut. I pried it open.
Inside, cushioned on faded velvet, was a Devil Fruit.
Silver-chrome skin with spiral patterns that shifted like liquid mercury.
A Logia? A Paramecia? I didn't know.
But I was starving, weaponless, alone, and a Devil Fruit was the edge I needed.
"Fuck it," I muttered. "If I'm going to die anyway, might as well die swinging."
I bit into it.
The taste was indescribably horrible—battery acid mixed with rust and motor oil. My stomach heaved. I forced three bites down. Maybe four. Then I threw the rest aside and dry-heaved.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then my body liquified.
My hand melted into chrome. Skin turned to shifting mercury.
"What the—AHHH!"
My entire body became liquid metal. I could feel every molecule. Every movement.
And then a voice echoed inside my mind.
[SYSTEM INITIALIZED]
[DEVIL FRUIT CONSUMED: KINZOKU KINZOKU NO MI]
[LOGIA TYPE DETECTED]
Golden text flashed across my vision.
SYSTEM INTERFACE — VERSION 1.0
NAME: Fenris Vane
AGE: 19
SPECIES: Human (Devil Fruit User)
DEVIL FRUIT: Kinzoku Kinzoku no Mi — Metal-Metal Fruit
TYPE: Logia
MASTERY: 1%
LEVEL: 1
EXP: 0/100
STATS
Strength: 12
Agility: 10
Endurance: 14
Intelligence: 15
Willpower: 13
Charisma: 8
HAKI: Locked until Level 10
ABILITIES
Metal Transformation
Metal Manipulation
Metallic Hardening
Mercury Flow (Passive)
SKILLS
Basic Combat (Rank E)
Survival Instinct (Rank D)
QUESTS
Main Quest: The First Hunt — Defeat the pirate crew pursuing you
Tutorial Quest: Master Your Element
I stared at my hand—still liquid chrome, shifting like mercury. With a thought, I solidified it. Then melted it again.
A Logia.
A fucking Logia.
Before I could scream or celebrate, I heard footsteps outside.
Pirates.
Eight of them.
And they were hunting me.
The quest pulsed.
[THE FIRST HUNT — ACTIVE]
I didn't run.
I transformed.
The pirates walked into the ravine. I stepped out of the temple.
"Looking for me?"
They grinned—until my body became liquid metal.
Three bullets passed straight through me. Intangibility. Logia invincibility.
Their fear was instant.
I struck.
Metal blades from my arms. Mercury whips. Hammer-fists of chrome. Swords passed through me like mist. I cut through their ranks, absorbing every metal weapon I touched.
Bodies dropped.
But more were coming.
Reinforcements.
And a captain with a Seastone pendant.
He knew what a Logia was. He knew how to fight one.
He cornered me, forcing me into a brutal fight—toggling intangibility, managing cooldowns, absorbing metal to recover stamina. One mistake meant death.
He nearly killed me.
But I held one trick.
I kept only my hands liquid. When he slammed the Seastone against my chest and nullified my powers, I waited—then absorbed the chain from his neck.
Without it, he was just a man.
Mercury poured over him like drowning metal.
He broke. He surrendered.
The system exploded with notifications.
QUEST COMPLETE — THE FIRST HUNT
+500 EXP
LEVEL UP → 3
+3 All Stats
New Skill: Combat Mastery
+1000 SP
+Title: First Blood
+Achievement: Logia Awakened
+5% Devil Fruit Mastery
+10 Max Stamina
I stood in the ravine, surrounded by fallen pirates.
Exhausted. Hungry. But alive.
"Time to claim my prize," I muttered, heading toward the coast. "They mentioned a ship."
The Grand Line tried to kill me day one.
It failed.
Now I had a Logia Fruit, knowledge of future events, and the will to survive.
"Let's see what else this world has to offer."
Chrome rippled across my hand, then faded.
The hunt had just begun.
[END OF CHAPTER 1]