Desert winds picked up sand, a great deal more than was already flying around in the air, and sent it spinning around in a frenzied whirlwind all throughout the city. Shouts and cries and screams echoed loudly through the streets, bouncing off the walls and pavement until they reached the ears of those desperate not to hear the pain of the ones they fought. More wind carried more sand that burned lungs, made eyes water, grated against skin and rubbed it raw, hindered breathing, limited sight… Bullets ricocheted off stone, wounding and sometimes killing even the innocent. Blades crashed together with loud shrieks of steel. Exhaustion hindered movement, but didn't stop it. Nothing could stop the fighting. If anything, each fresh injury, every new casualty only served to add fuel to the flame.
This was the rebellion.
Amidst the chaos, three people ran together in tight formation, their cloaks billowing behind them as they went, fighting against the wind all the way. Another gust ripped an orange keffiyeh with a gold chain off a head and carried it away. The small twister of sand forced the runners to shield their faces with their arms, lest they go blind. A voice made raspy by thirst and raised to be heard forced its way through the sand and wind to reach the ears of its companions. "We'll never find it in time if this keeps up!"
"We have to try!" answered a second voice. "Vivi-chan will never forgive herself if all those people are killed!"
"But Sanji, we're running out of time!" protested the first voice. "What do we do?!"
Sanji gritted his teeth as his mind seemed to race. "You already checked the alleys to the left of the courtyard where they're fighting, right Nami?"
Nami nodded, her short orange hair whipping around her face. "I heard Pell is checking all the rooftops," she informed him quickly.
"Good," Sanji replied. "We'll just have to keep checking the ground, then."
"Don't bother with the houses. They're too small."
"Right."
The third member of the group, the only one who had not spoken yet, skidded to a sudden halt, sliding sideways on his shoes in the sandy road. He turned his head to stare down the path, opposite of the way they had been going. He frowned. Something's wrong.
Nami and Sanji heard his hasty halt and also stopped, turning to look at him. Nami's expression was confused, but Sanji's expression remained serious. She pushed a few errant strands of hair out of her face with her hand. "Zoro?"
He barely spared her half a glance before returning his attention forward. That way?
Sanji stepped up to his side. For once, there was no arguing, no name-calling, no drama. There was only seriousness and a sort of mutual understanding of what must be done for the sake of their newest friend. "What's going on?"
"I don't know," Zoro admitted slowly. "I've just got a bad feeling."
Nami thought fast. "Go check it out, then." Sanji nodded his agreement, not that Zoro needed his permission. Still, the swordsman hesitated. "Go, Zoro," Nami insisted. "We'll handle this." After that, Zoro didn't hesitate. With a brief answering nod he took off, running in the direction he had been staring.
Nami sighed, worry making her heart pound. She trusted his instincts, but that wasn't the issue here. What if we can't find the bomb without him?
"Well, in that case…" Nami turned in time to see Sanji pull a cigarette out of his mouth and exhale a breath of smoke. He met her gaze evenly. "Maybe we should split up. We'd cover more ground faster that way."
"Alright," she agreed readily.
"Do you still have the transponder snail Vivi gave you?" he inquired.
"Yes," she nodded.
"Good," he replied. "Don't hesitate to use it if you run into trouble."
"I won't run into trouble," she assured him, "but I'll call if I find the bomber."
He nodded and they split up, each running in different directions. There were no well wishes, no words of encouragement or hope, no farewells said hastily just in case. There was no time for such things. They couldn't afford to waste time. They couldn't afford to fail. We have to succeed… for her sake.
The cannon would have to be huge. Of that they were certain. The only thing they didn't know was where it was located. Nami panted harshly as she pushed herself to go faster. Her lungs burned. There was a stitch developing in her side. Her legs ached. She didn't allow herself to stop, running harder instead. They had only a few minutes left. Where… Where is it? Her eyes rapidly scanned the roads, the sides and edges of the tops of buildings, and even the skies. Desperate, she went against what she had told Sanji not long before and began throwing open the doors to houses.
Two minutes.
She checked another house. Too small! Another house, this one crammed full of an unnecessary amount of furniture. Too small! Another house, and another, and another. Too small! They're all too small! Another house, another failure. Finally, she gave up and resumed her frantic run from before. Empty alleyways, tiny shops, streets crowded by scattered property and goods, buildings with no entrances… The cannon couldn't be in any of those places. So where is it?!
The snail stuffed in her robes suddenly opened its mouth. "Birubirubirubiru-"
A slim hand riffled through her clothes and finally pulled the snail out into the open. Stopping and standing on legs so weak from exhaustion that they felt like shaking rubber, she answered the call. "Hello?" she gasped out.
"Nami!" It was Usopp. His voice sounded urgent, yet excited. "Vivi found the bombers! I think she might've just stopped them!"
"What?!" she exclaimed breathlessly. "Why wasn't I told sooner that she'd found them?"
"I swear it just happened!" Usopp replied quickly. "It was all over so fast…!"
Nami quashed her annoyance and sighed inwardly. At least they were stopped. "Where were they?" she asked, able to speak a bit more normally now that she had caught her breath somewhat.
"In the clock tower."
Nami hated the fact that the bomb had been so close. And we had no idea…
It was silent on the other end for about a minute. Nami figured he was speaking to Sanji, who also had a snail. Then, suddenly, he moaned. "Oh man…"
"What?" she demanded.
"The bomb…" he muttered. "It… has a timer… It will… It's going to go off on its own…"
Her heart started to pound as panic rose up in her. "How long?!"
"J… Just over a minute…"
The snail slipped from her suddenly nerveless fingers. A hand slowly went up to cover her mouth, her eyes shimmering with horror. Her legs suddenly gave out and she fell onto her knees, staring at the ground but not really seeing anything. Even after all this… Even after we all tried so hard… For no real reason, her gaze lifted to stare at the open clock tower she could just see over the tops of the buildings before her. …we failed… They had done so much to get to this point. Igaram had sacrificed his life to allow Vivi to return here. They had escape giant Banangators and faced off with Crocodile and destroyed the strongest members of Baroque Works and yet… it wasn't enough. Then, a change of fate. A very large bird flew out of the tower, a huge, round object clutched tightly in its talons. Her eyes widened and tears threatened to form in them. Pell…! He soared upward on mighty wings and quickly disappeared into the clouds far above.
Usopp's voice sounded once more from the snail just as she finally lost the battle and tears began spilling down her face. "P-Pell is taking the bomb…! Soon it will…!"
Nami's squeezed her eyes shut tightly and shook her head vigorously. No! I don't want to hear you say it!
The scrape of a shoe on the sand street behind her failed to really draw her attention, but the sound of an unexpected voice caused her eyes to snap open and her head to whip around. "Nami."
"Z… Zoro…?" She didn't know what had happened to him or where he had been, but at the moment, concern far outweighed confusion. And, at this point, anything was a welcome distraction from the sky. She quickly stood and took the two steps needed to stand before him and the unconscious, bleeding captain slung over his shoulder. "What happened to him?"
"Crocodile." He shifted his load then added disjointedly, "Poisoned him."
She gritted her teeth and helped him lower their captain to the ground so that he was lying flat on his back in the sand. "And Crocodile?" she inquired crisply, dropping to her knees by Luffy's side to check him over.
"Dead." He didn't offer any explanation, and she didn't ask. Such things could wait until later.
The snail opened it's mouth again. "Nami get ready!" Usopp cried.
The next few moments went by in slow motion. Her eyes snapped up to the sky. A blinding sphere of light erupted in the sky, parting the clouds so that they made a circle above the city. There was a deafening roar. The ground shook violently. The tops of tall buildings were completely disintegrated by the edges of the explosion. A fierce rush of wind hit them, sending people, animals, and objects flying. Nami slid backward on her knees a few inches. A wave of heat hit her hard, making her wince. Then, in one final climactic moment, it was all over. Pell was gone.
She wanted to sob, but that needed to wait as she crawled forward to retrieve her snail, which was resting by Luffy's head. Tears smeared the dirt on her face. "U-Usopp! Send Chopper to that street with the tower with the stained glass windows that we saw earlier! The one by the huge clothing store! Luffy needs help!" She would have loved to call Chopper directly, but Vivi had only had three snails and, after a quick discussion, it had been decided that she, Sanji, and Usopp would carry them.
"Okay!" He sounded like he was crying, too.
She opened her mouth to reply but was cut short by a thud behind her. Twisting around to see behind her, she gasped when she saw not one, but two unconscious men on the ground. "Zoro!" Initially, she had only been concerned about Luffy. After all, the rubber man was bleeding heavily and looked like he was running a fever from the poison. However, seeing Zoro lying motionless on the ground quickly changed her mind. He was on his stomach with his arms up by his head, a frown marring his otherwise calm expression. She crawled over and nudged his shoulder with one hand. "Zoro?" she asked quietly. No response. She placed both hands flat on his back and shook him. "Zoro!" Nothing. Alarmed, she snatched up her snail again. "Usopp, get Chopper here now!"
Posted 04-20-15.