Shaad's Strength

The area was momentarily frozen in time from the shock of something, or more accurately someone, crashing into the area and smack dab through the center of all the commotion. Kaleb was the first to recognize his brother, blood running down his face and bruises forming on his midsection. He ran to Kayden, who was still quite stunned from being tossed around the way he was, somewhat worried at seeing his brother like he'd never seen him before: beaten and dazed.

"Come on big bro; get up! You have to; you're the strongest. You can't be beaten." Kaleb wailed as tears streamed down both of his cheeks.

Shaad stood off to the side, eyebrow raised at the sight of such a large man bloodied and this far from where he was originally stationed.

Qundra had reformed and stood looking on at the newcomer with dark amusement.

It didn't take too long before Kaleb's voice finally broke through the haziness Kayden felt and he slowly opened his eyes to take in his new surroundings. Upon seeing his brother, he first thought he was seeing things from all the shots to the head, but eventually realized it was real. Hearing Kaleb's muffled voice against his chest, the same words became clear: 'you can't be beaten'. Kaleb kept repeating those words, though his voice was muffled from his position and choked up from the tears flowing down his face. Kayden raised a hand and laid it on his brother's head to console him, saying, "Of course I'm not beaten. I'm the strongest, remember?" Kaleb raised his head, a smile on his face even as tears still ran from his eyes, and nodded vigorously. "Good. I'm fixing to go show him just that, so don't cry."

"I'm not crying. Some dust just got in my eyes when you flew over." Kaleb protested while vigorously wiping his eyes, making his brother smile.

Qundra had apparently had enough of staying out of it as his mocking voice broke the mood of the scene. "Aah, isn't that sweet? Big Jumbo allowed a family reunion... But, deaths are always more emotional!" The two brothers didn't have time to react as Qundra was quickly right on top of them. Kayden put his arms protectively around his younger brother and awaited the painful blow, but the impact never came. He didn't understand how Qundra had transformed the way he did, but when he opened his eyes it didn't matter. Shaad stood in front of them with Qundra knocked back, a cut on his arm dripping blood onto the ground. Shaad looked back at the two, smirking. "I got this." He then noticed, the change in expression of Kayden's eyes and added, "Don't worry; I said I'd protect the kids. Besides, I think your opponent is headed this way."

Everyone looking on had been wondering who could have done such a thing to the man they all believed to be the physically strongest on the island, and it seemed they were about to get their answer as they watched building after building, in the same direction Kayden had come from, topple and fall. Whatever was causing such destruction was obviously headed their way... and relatively fast. Kayden quickly got up, and after grabbing a sledgehammer from the back of Rhino- which surprisingly allowed the Rhino to lift further off the ground despite the vehicle weighing in the multiple tons-, went to intercept the destructive force headed their way.

With the sledgehammer kept on his back using a leather strap, Kayden charged forth like a raging bull to meet his opposition head on. The air about Kayden had changed dramatically. Instead of the reserved man who simply used his immense size and strength to dispatch of opponents without needless damage, he now moved with a fierce determination... like a dam had just been broken, loosing a violent wave.

Once Kayden and Jumbo came within view of one another, their faces each twisted into a scowl and they each pulled back their right fist, ready to put everything they had behind a single punch. The turbulent scene became increasingly climactic with each thunderous footstep, and the two collided with unprecedented force, creating a shockwave of near cataclysmic proportions that blew away nearby rubble, finished knocking over the closest damaged buildings, and even sent reverberations through the nearby battlefields. To overcome the reach advantage of Jumbo, Kayden jumped towards the larger man as they came into range of each other, propelling himself forward with more force as well as towards the fist coming at him with more momentum. Kayden's fist landed cleanly on Jumbo's jaw with a bone crunching hit just a split second before his own face was twisted and contorted by the power of Jumbo's punch. Time seemed to slow as their epic clash came to a head, the deafening impact, along with other things, ringing in their ears as they were simultaneously sent flying in opposite directions before each crashing into piles of earth, stone chunks, and destroyed buildings.

"You think because you cut me, you can win?" Qundra sneered, the amusement of his voice noticeably lessened. "You're too busy trying to protect everyone." he mocked, voice shifting to a more sadistic tone as he turned his attention to Rose, who was still kneeling in the center of the battlefield, softly shedding tears for the many fallen, knowing those numbers were roughly the same if not worse on the other two battlefields. He rushed the unguarded doctor, arm outstretched, with a maniacal grin on his face. Rose noticed him coming, but everything was happening so fast there was little she could do as more of his body became his element and he gained speed.

Rose looked on helplessly at her attacker, but Shaad had already jumped into action, quite literally. He was above Qundra with his arm reaching over his shoulder, sword in hand. Shaad then swung his sword with such power that it left a mark in the ground just in front of Rose, and forced Qundra to give up the attack and move aside to regroup. The attack would have cut Qundra's back if not for a shockwave slightly shifting both his and Shaad's position.

Shaad landed in a kneeling position in front of a visibly shaken Rose. "Sorry about that; l should never have let him get that close. Can you forgive me?" he said in a soft, sincere tone. Rose nodded her head yes, making Shaad smile. "Thank you. Now, will you do one more favor for me?"

"Uh huh." she quietly replied, prompting Shaad's smile to grow broader.

"I need you to close your eyes. Close 'em tight and don't open them no matter what until I tell you to. Okay?" The request made Rose nervous and curious, but she nonetheless complied without question.

Shaad lightly placed a hand on her shoulder as he stood up. He then softly whispered, "Try not to scream, okay?" Before Rose could even register his words, she was thrown straight into the air to the surprise of everyone. Even Qundra's maniacal grin was momentarily replaced with a look of disbelief.

Kaleb's surprise was quickly overshadowed by anger, and he stomped forward, ready to give Shaad a piece of his mind. However, all the words he was going to say became stuck in his throat when Shaad looked at him with cold eyes. "Calm down or you'll join her." Shaad then turned his attention to Qundra, casting such a powerful gaze that even the psychotic villain took a step back. "Everyone, stay back." he ordered while drawing his second sword.

The second sword was almost the complete opposite of the one he'd been using. While the first sword had red wrapping around the hilt and a jet black blade, this one had a golden hilt and a pristine silver blade with a light bluish tint along the cutting edge. Also, while the silver bladed sword had a sunburst pattern starting from the center point of the blade, symbolizing life and growth, emblazoned onto it, the black blade possessed a flame design along the back edge representing death and destruction. Shaad gave off an imposing aura as he stood there, both swords in his grasp and his jacket billowing on his shoulders, serious for the first time.

"Enough of this!" Qundra shouted in frustration, both at the turn around in the situation as well as the slight fear he'd shown just seconds ago, as solid blades of his element began forming in midair around him. "I'll kill all of you with this! Arsenic Eruption: Shower of Blades!"

But, before anything more could happen, Shaad had slipped off his jacket and was in front of Qundra with his newly drawn sword stuck straight through Qundra's chest, just nicking the bottom of the man's heart. The materialized blades instantly fell as Shaad looked deeply into Qundra's eyes, not with anger or hatred, but with an eerie, foreboding calm. Qundra had initially attempted to shift and get away, but was shortly afterwards informed of the futility of such action. "It's pointless; the blade has a seastone edge. There's no escape. "Shaad spoke his next words softly as Qundra attempted to close his eyes and accept his defeat, and his death, at the hands of a superior power. "Oh no, you're not allowed to die yet. I won't let you go that easily." Almost as if Shaad's will were forcing them to, Qundra's eyes stayed open, filled with a mixture of fear, dread, and regret, while awaiting his final punishment.

Shaad pulled his hand from the hilt of the sword he'd plunged in Qundra's chest and gripped his other sword with both hands. "I have slain many men whose only crime was facing me in battle. Now, I will take you from this plane of existence as well. Hell's Deliverance!" Starting with an upward diagonal swing, Shaad struck him five times, shaping a pentagram with the combined attack, before piercing the center of Qundra's heart, which corresponded with the center of the pentagram. "Shinigami Sacrifice:" he muttered as he took hold of the first sword he'd stabbed into his enemy. "Last Rites." He then violently ripped both swords from Qundra's body, sending a fountain of blood spurting from the dead man's body before it finally was allowed to fall. Shaad turned his back on the carnage, allowing any blood to land on the back of his shirt, before picking up his suit jacket and placing it back on his shoulders. Shaad then casually strolled over to the spot where he'd tossed Rose haphazardly into the air, but he soon lost his cool completely. 'Wait; where is she? She should have come back down just as I got back to this spot. Oh no! You don't think wind blew her off course, do you? Maybe I didn't properly take into account her weight, or the wind; I didn't even think about what the wind might be like that high up.' he worried to himself before the sound of a girl's screams assaulted his ears. He looked above him, and upon focusing a bit, saw Rose falling right back down to him, frazzled and panicky. 'Whew, there she is.'

'Yea, you just overthrew her by a bit, idiot.'

'Who you calling an idiot?'

'The fool who was panicking just a second ago.'

Shaad growled in irritation under his breath, and he almost let his argument with himself make him forget to catch Rose. But, he remembered in time enough to jump up and catch Rose, managing to gently catch her bridal style by timing his jump well enough to go with gravity instead of against it and letting the shock travel through the entirety of his legs as he landed. Through all this, he resumed his argument with himself. 'You almost stopped me from catching her. Imagine what would've happened had I forgot!'

'That would have been your fault and your problem.'

'You're me; so, it would've been our problem!' He finally stopped arguing with himself and placed set Rose on her feet back on the ground. "You okay?" he asked with a smile, only to receive a hard slap to the face.

"You bastard! Don't even think about doing that again." In her anger, she'd completely forgotten they were in the middle of a battlefield, and that was a bright spot to Shaad, but he still scolded her.

"Bastard? What kind of language is that for a young lady?" he questioned while standing up, holding his sore cheek. Rose didn't answer, and just glared at him with pure malice. Once Shaad was standing back to full height, he dropped his hand from his cheek and stated loudly enough for everyone in the area to hear him. "We're heading back."

"No, the enemy is defeated. Now is the time to secure this road and move forward to the Central Tower." one of the two strongest White Knights declared, earning cheers from the rest of the group.

"Yea, we've worked too hard to turn back now." A random rebel yelled, earning another round of supportive yells.

"You lot can do whatever you want, but per Bo's plans, Ray should be arriving back at the coast with the ship in a short while. What you all need to understand is that I'm the only one here who could have defeated... Hmm; what was his name? Ah, doesn't matter. Bottom line, if the rest of their little group is around his level, even without Logia Devil Fruits, this is no longer a battle for the city, to take over the Central Tower, or anything of the sort. This... is a battle for survival."

There was a pause as Shaad's words sunk in. The group knew they stood no chance against an opponent like Qundra. With his strange powers, most of them doubted they would've been able to touch him. If monsters like him were on the other battlefields as well, they now feared for their friend's safety as well. In the atmosphere of fear and dread, a thought popped into the head, and promptly out the mouth, of one of the younger rebels. "Then why don't you go take out those enemies, too!"

Shaad turned his whole body around, so he could look into the eyes of the person who shouted out that idea without obstruction, and smiled.

"That's a wonderful idea." he began, getting the person who came up with it to grin in satisfaction. "I don't know why I didn't think of that."

"So you'll do it?" the young man excitedly asked.

"Of course I... won't." Almost everyone's faces went from hopeful to dejected with just the final word of Shaad's answer. "That's not my job. I said I would protect these two," he said, motioning to Rose and Kaleb as he continued, "on this battlefield; that's it. Bo was obviously well aware of the dangers they face; that's why Ray is bringing the ship to the front of the island as opposed to around to the gate for the Noble's personal canal, which you all hoped to use to escape. Every one of this rebellion's top fighters had an idea what they were getting into by entering this city. They're prepared to put their life on the line, and if I interfered, it would be an insult to their pride."

"You're just making up excuses." the young man who came up with the idea protested, the scar running across the bridge of his nose twitching like a worm as he plead his case, his face showcasing every ounce of passion he felt. "You're just a... a cow-"

Before he could speak another syllable, Shaad was in front of him, a hand on the young man's cheek with his thumb applying such pressure to his throat that that alone threatened to crush it. Shaad lowered his voice so that the young man had to focus to hear what was being said even though it was right in his ear. "Stop right there. I'd hate to have to throw precious little Rose back into the air, because I definitely wouldn't want her to see what I might do to you if you finish that statement." Shaad's voice was so cold that it sent shivers throughout the young man's body, and when Shaad stepped back he was literally shaking in his boots. "So, do you see my point?" Shaad asked with a smile. The shaken rebel couldn't muster up the voice to say anything and just shook his head up and down in answer. Shaad then turned around and waved goodbye to the rebel group. "Well, I don't know what ya'll will do, but I'm taking the kids and heading back to the coast.

Kaleb argued against heading back and wanted to go help his brother instead, but was momentarily stopped when Shaad crouched in front of him, a false smile paired with serious eyes. He spoke a few unintelligible words that froze Kaleb. But, Kaleb resumed his resistance once Shaad had stood up and hefted the boy over his shoulder before walking off with Rose in tow. The rest of the rebel group watched as Shaad walked away with Kaleb slung over his shoulder, kicking and screaming, and Rose followed after, although filled with uncertainty.

A/N: So, next chapter, we go back in time a bit and see how Bo and Andreas' group is faring.

P.S. What did you think of Shaad's character? Was it interesting or annoying, and would you like to see more of that side of him?