Well, One Piece definitely just pulled off one of its cruelest tricks yet in Egghead Island. After revealing that Vegapunk put in one last override to keep Kuma from hurting Bonney, he finally faces a grievous injury from Saint Jay Garcia Saturn. Now things aren’t looking good for him, and with the destruction of many of his Satellites, what are his chances to survive? Every likelihood points to Professor Vegapunk dying on Egghead Island, but there may be alternatives.
This article contains spoilers for One Piece! Catch up on Viz or MangaPlus before reading further!
Will Vegapunk Die?
Signs are pointing to yes. There are only a few of the Vegapunk Satellites left, with some like Shakka and Edison already being murdered earlier in the arc. With York’s betrayal, it takes the number down even further, leaving only three choices outside of Vegapunk’s main body to survive. For now, though, the original body really isn’t looking like it’s going to make it out of this. After being thrown all around Egghead during the flight from Cipher Pol 9, the appearance of Jay Garcia Saturn, and the disturbance by Kizaru, he’s in some rough shape. That’s before he gets the big injury from chapter 1106 too, which seems to spell out his end.
Vegapunk put one final override into Kuma and the Pacifistas, only telling Bonney about it at the last moment. Now that she’s in full control, Vegapunk is briefly taken off guard by the appearance of Nika. Before he knows it though, Saint Jay Garcia Saturn’s massive spiderlike leg pierces straight through him. Now he’s been made into a donut, the same as Ace was upon his death, and it looks like Vegapunk may end up going the same way. The poor doctor may have done some bad in his life, but dying like this really isn’t something anyone should have to do. That said, there’s some likelihood a Satellite could survive.
Atlas
She seems the most likely to survive right now, being the largest and most violent of the Vegapunk Satellites. She’s huge, giving no second thought to bringing out her violent tendencies to fight. Despite being the violence of Vegapunk distilled into one being though, Atlas is actually a somewhat kind soul that mostly fights for the enjoyment of it. Kind of like how Luffy and Zoro only fight to have fun, and to beat the crap out of whoever hurts their friends. If there’s one character that could make it out of Egghead with Bonney and Kuma in tow, it’s likely Atlas as she’s big enough to carry them both.
That said, she’s a little out of sorts right now. She and Franky were trying to get Bonney and Kuma away from the field where Saint Jay Garcia Saturn was attacking from. Unfortunately, they’re not fast enough, and get knocked out of the air by Kizaru before having the Pacifistas turned on them. Still managing to get away thanks to the override, Atlas and the others were eventually hit by Kizaru from the air once more. Although Atlas is injured, it doesn’t seem to be too terribly bad at this point.
Edison
Edison is probably the weakest of the Vegapunk Satellites, instead embodying the scientist’s thinking skills. He might be one of the smartest ones, though. That could give him a big advantage over the others, allowing the full thinking power of Vegapunk along with his Void Century knowledge to survive. He managed to stay alive this whole time anyway, outliving others like Pythagoras and Shakka. Edison is going to think his way out of situations whenever possible, without taking any risks if he can.
When he was last on the scene, Edison was up in the Labosphere trying to help the others prepare to leave. He’s in the main lab along with Chopper, Robin, and Nami, making final preparations and keeping an eye out below. Considering he’s with the more easygoing members of the Straw Hats who aren’t likely to go into a direct fight, he may be safe to leave the island. If any Satellite is the best one to deliver to the library at Elbaph where Jaguar D Saul is, it’s going to be Edison. he’ll best be able to use the Void Century knowledge and connect any dots with what’s missing.
Lilith
Okay, Lilith is probably the odds-on favorite for everyone to survive the situation. Considering that she’s Vegapunk’s evil all contained in one being, she’s really not that bad of a person. Sure she can get a little malicious at times, but whenever Vegapunk or the others keep her conscience in check, she can end up working for everyone. Lilith is in charge of Vegapunk One, or at least was before Kizaru destroyed it while it was trying to move the Sunny. Now Lilith is steering the Thousand Sunny along a frozen bridge of clouds made by Brook, desperately trying to escape with all of the Punk Records information.
Lilith is the big fan favorite because of her looks, being the signature hot one that had to be included to make the Vegapunk reveal a shock. She still has all the smarts of Vegapunk, but lacks a lot of the ethical limits that the genius sets on himself. Even then, she’s a strong fighter capable of holding her own, and if she survives, she could likely help with a lot of the Final Saga. Her mechanical know-how can make some pretty awesome weapons, and she’ll likely be even more motivated to continue learning about the Void Century in honor of her fallen original.
York
By far the worst of the Satellites and the one that caused this entire mess. York is the personification of Vegapunk’s greed, and she takes everything about that into account. It turns out she betrayed everyone on Egghead by revealing that Vegapunk was researching the Void Century. That earns them multiple visits from Cipher Pol 9, though the other Vegapunks end up keeping them captive before eventually Cipher Pol Aegis 0 steps up. When Lucci, Kaku, and Stussy show up to Egghead Island, York finally makes her demand of them. She wants to become a Celestial Dragon, and she’s willing to sell out her own self to do it.
York’’s last location was tied up in the lab with the Straw Hats. She’s been caught and there’s no way in hell the others are going to let her go, no matter what at this point. Even now, she would only be a liability for everyone, selling them out at the last possible second for her own gain. All of this was only done so she could become a Celestial Dragon, and she sold out Vegapunk without even getting a guarantee on that. It’s kind of ridiculous and shows that the greed she held was way too much for even a being made specifically for greed to handle.
Who Could Survive?
That’s a big question that we’re going to still have to wait a few chapters to answer. As of things right now, Atlas is injured, York is tied up, Lilith is on the run, and Edison is in the lab. The one thing we know for sure at this point, outside of any major intervention by some big medical help, Vegapunk himself is done for. The wound through his torso is too much for anyone to bear, and it’s unlikely that he’s going to find any way to recover from it. When it comes to soldiering on in his stead, it’s very unlikely that more than one of them is going to make it out alive as well. The most likely bet is going to be on Lilith.
Mostly for fanservice reasons, because she’s gotten the best reaction out of any of them, the Satellites. For story purposes, Edison would be the best one to carry off to Elbaph. Especially now since the Giant Warrior Pirates have arrived at Egghead. They’re likely going to take the survivors back to Elbaph to meet Jaguar D Saul, who will have plenty of information to share with them. The history of the Void Century certainly won’t be too much more risky if they do make it off of Egghead Island alive.
Until the end though, nobody will know who could make it through. The Egghead Island Incident is winding down, with only maybe about fifteen chapters or so left if it keeps going this way. As of now, Luffy is back in the fight in fully Awakened Gear Fifth mode, so the fight is far from over. Now it’s time for Sun God Nika to face off against one of the hellish Gorosei, and Saint Saturn might not be ready. There are other questions lingering in Egghead as well, but for now, it’s going to be enough just waiting to find out if Vegapunk actually survives the awful wounds he’s received.
