Towering Memories and Treasured Dreams

Floor 20: Whispering Shadows

But just then, Cindry's body jerked forward. As if half of her was trying to resist, but the rest of the body was forced to give into the order.

"I...will kill... both of them," she said mechanically.

"There we go, that's the Cindry I know and love," Hogback said, "Good to have you back. Try to buy me some time, ok? I'm getting the hell outta here."

"It's a shame," memory Robin said sighed piteously as she looked at Cindry, "For a moment, I actually thought a miracle had happened."

She then caused a dozen arms or so to sprout from all over Cindry's body and bound her tightly so that she couldn't move. Unlike with Zoro's zombie, she had no chance of breaking herself free. Seeing his last bodyguard being restraint, Hogback freaked out and tried to make a last, desperate attempt to run for it. But memory Chopper wasn't going to let him get away that easily.

"You get back here!" he screamed as he gave chase.

"Are you kidding?" Hogback barked back, "Do you think I'm crazy?"

"Seriously, why does anyone think that ever works?" Sanji couldn't help but ask. "That natural thing to do is run when someone tells you to 'get back here', isn't it?"

"Maybe people should start yelling 'keep running!' or something?" Brook offered.

"We can try, but I think that it would only seem like we're encouraging them," Nami sighed at the thought.

"Man, all that Moria and his crew knew how to do was run," Luffy frowned as he remembered how much running he had to do that night.

"You know what? You're right, captain," present-day Chopper nodded sadly. That whole crew seemed to be made up of people who either ran away, or hid as they fought.

That was neither here nor there though, for all around them the entire mansion was starting to shake, cracks appearing and tiny pieces of debris was starting to crumble from the ceiling.

Usopp gulped nervously as he said with a shake in his voice, "There's only one person I can think of who could do this?"

"Ah oh, it sounds like Oars has finally returned!" Hogback gasped as stared around wildly.

"Yeah, not so proud of your creations now are you?" present-day Chopper yelled angrily as his past self grabbed hold of the mad doctor from behind. Hogback shrieked and flailed about as he tried to pull himself free.

"You stupid pirate deer!" Hogback yelled as he struggled, "Why are you siding with a corpse instead of a genius? Let me go! You're not even human to begin with, so what do you even care you monster?"

"If he's a monster, then what do you call yourself?" Nami demanded angrily.

"The captain of our crew is just fine with monsters like me! And Moss Heads and perverts, and cyborgs too! And all of us get along just fine! And unlike you our captain doesn't need to turn them into zombie slaves to get them to listen to him!"

"Moss Head? Not you too, Chopper!" Zoro barked at their Chopper, who shrugged. He was caught up in the moment... besides, he was a monster too... in his own way anyway.

"I don't care!" Hogback yelled. "Let me go!"

Present-day Chopper sighed. Even after all of this, he still didn't get it, did he?

Memory Chopper suddenly called out, "Robin! Help me out!"

"You've got it," memory Robin said with a smile as she held her hands up again. "Pierna FLEUR!"

Right beneath memory Chopper's own feet, another pair of legs grew, lifting him off the ground. When Hogback realized this and looked down, he began to shriek at what was happening.