A/N All chapters have been revised as of 9/25/16

Prologue: Dragon's Child

In The Holy Land Mariejoa

In a large room fitted top to bottom with white marble tile, the Five Elder Stars sat in silence. They were waiting patiently, as they often did, for a guest to arrive.

The guard stationed outside the doorway stood stock-still. In the past weeks, the Elder Stars had gathered this way a handful of times. The silence was unnerving, but the Stars themselves seemed perfectly comfortable and not at all bothered by it. He wondered how many hours they'd deposited in this stagnant room.

If the information passed to him was correct- and more often than not, it was- the tardy party was called in to deliver news of great importance. Useful information, he prayed. Dragon had high hopes for him, and the last meetings had proved fruitless for the Revolutionary Army's cause.

The guard's eyes continuously scanned the hallway. It ran a hundred feet each way, with intricately carved doors spaced down both sides. His boots sunk into thick carpet that cost more than he would make in his lifetime. The walls gleamed.

He dropped his gaze as a small entourage entered the hallway. The sound of an angry whip urged a large slave forward. The guard held his breath, gripping his staff tightly, and focused on the slave's fingers; Scabbed, raw things that shook under the burden.

The Elders rose respectfully as the Saint dismounted and entered, but their reverence had it's limits. While most considered themselves far beneath the Celestial Dragons in status, the Elders were perfectly comfortable making eye contact and speaking frankly to their guest. This realization shocked the guard during his first experience with the two parties, and gave more insight into their relationship.

"You said there is urgent news?" the Elder with white dreadlocks asked, moving to address the point of their meeting

"Yes, do sit down," the Saint said, moving to take a seat himself.

The Elder remained standing, which seemed to ruffle the Saint's feathers a bit, but nothing was said of it.

"The information I'm about to share with you must not be passed down to that dog of yours, or anyone outside of this room, for that matter."

"Naturally," the youngest Elder assured, "but what problem could possibly be so important that CP0 can't be entrusted with it?"

"My Future Future Fruit user had another dream, much more serious than his previous visions. It's all written here."

The Saint reached into his suit and pulled out a sealed envelope. He passed it to the oldest Elder who hesitantly opened the envelope; his eyes skimmed the paper before he passed it around to the others. The last Elder to read the message walked over to the fireplace, crumpled the note up and tossed it into the flames.

"Dragon's child…" the youngest Elder said thoughtfully, "the trouble that young man has caused us recently is reason enough to take action, and now this?"

The eavesdropping guard felt his heart skip a beat. He pressed his back to the wall and listened intently, determined to hang on to every uttered word. The conversation picked up speed.

"That boy shouldn't be underestimated. We've learned that many times over," said one Elder.

"This is the boy who gained Whitebeard's respect in the War of The Best. We've known for some time that he could become a larger problem down the line. His recent actions have only made dealing with him more urgent," another insisted.

"We should kill him now, quietly. This prophecy cannot be allowed to come to pass," a third said, his voice grim.

"From the sound of the prophecy, it won't be so simple. His alliance is with the pirates, and that's Roger's hat he wears. If he dies now, it may very well spark the same war the prophecy predicts. We can't gain his allegiance if he's dead," the youngest reasoned.

"What do you propose, then?"

"There is only one option, one way to ensure this prophecy unfolds in our favor. We must recruit him. He'll fight for the World Government and answer directly to us."

The Celestial Dragon burst into a fit of giggles at the proposal. The revolutionary couldn't see it, but the man must have received quite the look from the Elders. The Saint cleared his throat.

"Surely you're joking, Elder! Recruitment is impossible! Straw Hat is known for his hatred of the World Government. He burned our flag! That insolent human went so far as to strike a Saint!"

The Elders ignored the Celestial Dragon and continued talking among themselves. The Saint watched in utter disbelief; this was clearly not the direction he thought this conversation would head.

"We could threaten him. We know the lengths he has gone to protect his crew."

"We don't need his compliance, we need his allegiance. We need him to willingly fight for us, else the condition of the prophecy will not be met."

"That seems impossible, considering his past actions… and, considering his father."

"No, there is a way to make this work in our favor."

There was a thoughtful pause.

"Let's send out the woman. Straw Hat will be easy to capture when she's done with him, and we'll have his mind to mold as we please."

"Her health's already declining much more rapidly than before. It's a large sacrifice for us to make for one child!"

"It can't be helped. If this prophecy is accurate, losing a war of this caliber would be far worse than losing our lives. We will take Straw Hat under our care directly, we will raise him with our ideals, and he will fight for us in the end. We must look at this as a long term solution. An investment."

The guard paled, realizing the weight of the plan he was overhearing. The Elder Stars themselves were planning on making Dragon's son an ally. How could that be possible? The guard had never met the boy, never even knew of his leader's son until the War of the Best, but he knew enough. He knew that Straw Hat Luffy was no friend of the World Government. He knew that Nico Robin had returned to her crew, and would never allow her captain to be used in such a way.

Dragon needed to know immediately. The revolutionary decided to sneak away that night and bring word to Dragon in person. The leader of the Revolutionary Army wouldn't be pleased.

The World Government was treading on dangerous ground.