The world was awash with blue, the sky a wondrous color that made him gaze in awe, despite having been here a plethora of times before.

Water sloshed against him, waves rising and falling in the distance like great mountains. A stream of azure fell from the sky, falling right behind him into the boundless ocean.

His violet eyes stared at the scene, not paying anything particular attention, focusing instead on the swirling circle floating at his feet.

Barbossa adjusted his glasses, thin rims encasing an equally thin lens. He leaned down, hand submerged, stopping the flow of the looping water.

The water was cold and shallow, just like the future. It was, in fact, the future, a visual representation of his Edict.

The water devoured his hand, climbing higher, latching onto his arm. It swelled further, shifting onto his body, swallowing him whole.

The scenery around him changed. He was no longer in his imaginative world, but instead, stood on a crossroad of sorts. The ground was bleak, a dull brown that lacked the luster the Realm of Madness so proudly displayed.

A gray sky blanketed above, and dozens of paths ran off from where Barbossa stood. Three in front, three behind, and six on the sides, a total of 12.

Those further divided, branching off into alternate futures, each different from the last. The longer he walked, the more options would present themselves, but one constant remained.

I can only ever choose one.

He could only tread on a singular path. Barbossa thought for a moment, gaze staring as far as he could. Out of all 12 paths available, he chose one on his right side.

It’s said that the gods preferred right over left in all matters.

Was it a coincidence that the right side had the most futures branching off from it? He didn’t and wouldn’t know.

Barbossa walked forward, steps confident, not a single stumble. What he was doing right now was ’witnessing a future.’

He would see what this particular future held, then he would decide whether or not to cement it to reality. Even if he chose not to, information about a possible future would be plenty helpful.

The world twisted once more, and a different scenery unfurled around him. In a single word...it was hell.

The ground was shattered into fine dust, massive craters spread across like splattered paint. Toppled trees marked a boundary, scorched and scarred.

The image changed again. Barbossa was still in the same place, just in a different time period. A monolithic statue stood in the clearing, facing off against two foes.

Savior...so he already found you.

Her appearance wasn’t what she normally wore. She was taller, even more so than her maximum height. A translucent sheen covered her body like a second skin, black smoke making her more towering, more fearsome.

Willow’s gaseous state. So you decided to use that plan, Leonidas.

Her sword was gone, instead converted to gas alongside Willow’s own. But that wasn’t where the changes ended.

Her breastplate, leg guards, and gauntlets were crimson instead of onyx, ruby glittering under the rays of the merciless sun.

The color and material were similar to those of the roses Leonidas wielded. They served as extra protection, making the already bulky warrior even more so.

A pitiful attempt to stop the inevitable, but an attempt nonetheless. Barbossa stepped forward, and the scene rippled like clear water disturbed by a falling stone.

What he saw next made him clutch his stomach. Blood...the world was awash with blood, from the mundane crimson blood of humans, to the mutated blood of Infernal Knights, all the way to the pus-like green ichor that flowed in the profane pilgrim.

The sight was nauseating, the smell even more so. A horrid, putrid, repulsive scent that burrowed into his nose and clung to his clothes.

His nails dug into the dirty shirt he wore, stabbing into his chest. He bent over, vomit escaping his mouth with a dizzying burn.

He hurled straight onto the ground, chest heaving at the gruesome sight.

Oh gods no! What the hell happened here!?

He was going to find out. It took him some time, but Barbossa composed himself, the sight still dizzying, still etched into the very depths of his mind, but he had managed to move past it.

His feet sloshed in the bloody river, greens and reds staining his boots, making his feet wet. It was disgusting, utterly repulsive.

If he had a choice, Barbossa would have dispersed the damned future without hesitation, but no, he had to see if it ended with failure or not.

He walked and walked, eventually arriving at his destination.

Good heavens...

Heavens indeed. Before him lay the dead carcass of the plant monster that had been terrorizing his dear friend for so long.

It was cut in half, the two parts falling in different directions. A plethora of trees fell over them, crawling like bees to a flower.

Barbossa walked around them, his violet eyes scanning everything with great precision. His eyes landed on another corpse, this one faintly humanoid.

He could tell it was a female who had borrowed the shape of a beast. Claws extended from her hands, titanic in proportions, edges still glistening with blood. Her feet were like those of a wolf, and to top off the look, a wolf-shaped helmet covered her head.

So Willow unlocked this state in her desperation to survive...?

It seemed probable enough, even though it happened much earlier than it was supposed to, but that was what war did to you. It forced you to adapt, to be better, stronger, smarter, all in the hopes of overcoming its challenge.

He sighed, his eyes traveling over Savior’s shattered body onto the last man of the team...Leonidas.

What have they done to you, my friend?

He knew what had happened, yet he asked the question all the same.

His eyes were missing, a hole torn through his chest, blades pinning him to the ground. Yet he was still alive, his tenacious vitality trying its best not to let him accept the cool embrace of death.

Barbossa knelt beside him and placed his hands on Leonidas’s forehead, murmuring a small prayer.

A failed attempt.

He sighed and stood up.

"Looks like I gotta try again."

The world vanished, fading to black.