The celebration was winding down. Luffy was currently snoring face-down in a pile of empty dessert plates, while Zoro and Sanji were arguing in hushed tones about something petty.
Ben caught King Cobra's eye. A subtle nod was exchanged.
Leaving the Straw Hats to their post-food coma, Ben, King Cobra, and Princess Vivi quietly slipped out, making their way to a secluded room high in the water plant with a view of the newly flowing canals shimmering in the moonlight.
The mood in the room was serious. The joy of the water was tempered by the terrifying reality of what Ben had actually built.
"Ten industrial desalination plants powered by miniature suns," Cobra murmured, closing the heavy curtains. "Ben-dono, I am eternally thankful, but... if the World Government sees those machines, they will not see salvation. They will see weapons. They will see 'Ancient Technology' akin to Pluton."
"Exactly," Ben said, leaning against a desk. "Cipher Pol is likely already sniffing around. If they find out you have access to infinite energy and advanced fabrication, Alabasta becomes a target bigger than Ohara."
"So, we hide them?" Vivi asked. "But they are the size of castles, Ben! And the water... people will ask where it comes from."
"People believe in what they can see," Ben replied calmly. "And I am a master of making them see what I want."
He walked to the window.
"First, the visual cover. I will layer a permanent, self-sustaining illusion over the plant site. To the naked eye, and even through binoculars, it will look like the water is erupting from natural fissures in the Red Rock Mountains—a result of the seismic activity caused by my 'earth moving' magic. A geological miracle, not a technological one."
Cobra stroked his beard. "A natural spring... that is plausible. But the canals? You carved rivers through solid bedrock in a single night. No amount of 'digging' explains that speed. The World Government knows human limits."
"They do," Ben smiled, a glint of mischief in his eyes. "But they also know the limits of Devil Fruits. Or rather, the lack thereof."
Ben reached into his pocket, and he pulled out a strange, swirling grey fruit. It looked like a melon made of dry, cracked earth.
Cobra froze. His eyes widened in recognition.
"That..." Vivi gasped, stepping back. "That is..."
"The Suna Suna no Mi," Ben confirmed. "The Sand-Sand Fruit. Logia type."
"Crocodile's power," Cobra whispered, his voice trembling with a mix of anger and fear. "How? He... he is defeated, but... did you kill him? How do you have this?"
"The methods of a Magician are trade secrets," Ben said smoothly, placing the fruit on the table. It sat there, heavy with the history of the suffering it had caused. "Let's just say I extracted the essence."
Ben pushed the fruit toward the King.
"Eat it, Cobra."
The King recoiled as if Ben had offered him a live viper. "You want me to consume the power of the man who tried to destroy my country? The power that dried up our lands?"
"Poetic justice, don't you think?" Ben reasoned. "Listen to the narrative, King. The World Government needs an explanation for the canals. If you eat this, you become the explanation. You claim that during the crisis, you found the fruit. You claim that you used its power to move the sand and carve the path for the water."
"A Logia user carving the desert..." Vivi realized. "It fits. It explains the speed. It explains the precision."
"And it protects the secret of my magic and the technology," Ben added. "Plus, Alabasta is a desert kingdom. Having a King who can control the sand? It ensures that no pirate or invader will ever underestimate the Nefertari family again."
Cobra looked at the fruit. He looked at his shaking hands. He thought of the helplessness he felt when Crocodile dangled him from the palace walls. He thought of the feeling of failing to protect his people.
He reached out.
"It tastes terrible, by the way," Ben warned. "Like eating a dusty sponge."
Cobra didn't hesitate. He took a massive bite.
He gagged, his face turning blue, but he forced it down. He took another bite, and another, until the fruit was gone.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then, Cobra's arm dissolved into a swirl of fine, golden dust. It reformed instantly.
The King looked at his hand in wonder. He waved it, and a small whirlwind of sand danced across the table, harmless and obedient.
"The weapon of the enemy," Cobra murmured, clenching his fist, turning it into a hardened blade of compacted sand. "Now serves the people."
"Congratulations," Ben grinned. "You are now a Sand Human. Just stay away from water... well, stay away from deep water. You can still drink it."
---
"The physical cover is set," Ben said. "But magic leaves traces. And people talk. We need absolute security for the Water Plants. Something that erases the knowledge from anyone who isn't authorized."
"Is such a thing possible?" Vivi asked.
"With the Fidelius Charm, yes," Ben said. "It is a complex spell. It hides a secret inside a single living soul. Unless the Secret Keeper voluntarily reveals the information, no one can find the location. They could walk right past the Water Plants and see nothing but empty desert. They could stare at a map with the coordinates marked and their brain would refuse to process it."
"Incredible," Cobra breathed. "Who will be the Keeper? You? Me?"
"Neither," Ben shook his head. "I am a traveler; if I leave, the secret leaves with me. You are a King; you can be captured and tortured. We need someone who is always here, yet impossible to break."
Ben tapped his wrist. "Merry. Are you there?"
"Reporting for duty, Ben!" Merry chirped, her voice clear and melodic. She curtsied to the King. "Hello, King Cobra! Hello, Vivi!"
"This is Merry," Ben introduced. "She is the avatar of my ship. I've given her a remote body to act as a guardian. She doesn't sleep, she doesn't feel pain, and her mind is a fortress of magical encryption that no Haki or torture can breach."
Cobra stared at the android girl. "She... she is alive?"
"I am the Going Merry!" she beamed. "And I am very good at keeping secrets! Ben told me I can't tell anyone about his stash of candy under the floorboards, and I never have!"
"Except just now," Ben sighed. "But for the big stuff, she's perfect."
Ben stood up. "Grab on. We need to go back to the site to cast the ritual."
---
Ben teleported the group—Cobra, Vivi, and the android Merry—back to the cliffside overlooking the ten massive Desalination Plants.
The moon was high, illuminating the white metal giants. The hum of the reactors was a low thrum in the night air.
"Alright," Ben instructed. "Merry, stand in the center. Cobra, Vivi, touch her shoulders."
Ben stepped back. He drew his wand. It hummed with power, reacting to the ambient magic of the world.
"I am about to weave the secret of this location into Merry's very essence," Ben explained. "Once I finish, she will be the only one who can perceive this place. To the rest of the world, it ceases to exist."
He began to chant. The language was Latin, harsh and rhythmic.
"Fidelius Occultatum... Anima Custos..."
A web of golden threads erupted from the tip of Ben's wand. They shot into the sky, expanding like a net over the entire coastline where the plants stood. The threads pulsed with light, then descended, wrapping around the buildings, the pipes, the cliffs.
Then, the threads snapped inward, rushing toward Merry.
FLASH.
A blinding white light engulfed them.
When it faded, Cobra blinked.
He looked forward.
He saw... nothing.
Just jagged cliffs and the empty ocean.
"Where are we?" Vivi cried out. "Why are we here?"
Ben pointed. "Merry, tell them."
Merry stepped forward. She took Vivi's hand and Cobra's hand.
She whispered, "The Royal Desalination Plants are located at the Northern Cliffs of Alabasta."
POP.
Instantly, the reality shifted.
Like a curtain being pulled back, the ten massive white buildings abruptly appeared in front of them, humming away as if they had never left.
"By the gods," Cobra staggered. "It was as if my mind just... skipped over it."
"That is the Fidelius," Ben nodded, holstering his wand. "Now, I will layer the visual illusion for the public."
He waved his wand again, casting a wide-area Hallucinatory Terrain.
Over the metal buildings, a shimmering image of rocky crags and waterfalls appeared. It looked perfectly natural.
"Cobra," Ben said. "Use your fruit."
Cobra nodded. He transformed his lower body into a whirlwind of sand. He rose into the air, instinctively grasping the power. He swirled the sand around the illusory mountains, blending the real sand with the magical image, making it tangible.
"Perfect," Ben observed. "Now, to the world, the King broke the earth, and the water flowed. The machines are hidden in the soul of an unbreakble girl. Alabasta is safe."
Cobra landed, reverting to human form. He looked at Ben with deep emotion.
"You have given us water, wealth, and now security. How does a King repay a debt that cannot be measured?"
"Just be a good King," Ben said. "And maybe keep an eye on Luffy. He tends to attract trouble."
"That," Vivi laughed, "is an understatement."
---
Once the security was finalized, Ben teleported them back to the palace. He said his goodnights, leaving the King and Princess to process the incredible events of the night.
"Come on, Merry, Time to go home."
"Aye aye, Captain!"
He grabbed her shoulder and apparated.
CRACK.
They appeared on the deck of the Going Merry, which was docked at the courtyard.
Ben walked down the stairs, past the sleeping quarters where the crew snored in harmony, and opened a door to his workshop.
Blueprints floated in mid-air, held up by weak telekinesis. Tools from three different universes—tech from Wakanda, magical instruments from Harry Potter, and scraps of futuristic metal from the Solo Leveling dungeons—cluttered the workbenches.
They were going to the Sky Islands next.
"Alabasta is saved," Ben whispered to the quiet room. "Now... let's go punch a God in the face."
He extinguished the lights, leaving the workshop to hum with the quiet potential of the future.