Arbel felt thirsty. Never in his life has he felt this thirsty.
All those depressing thoughts that plagued his mind in the past week cleared away to make room for survival only.
Not far behind him, there was the well where they used to torture the prisoners in. That well full of water was all his mind could focus on.
His hands and legs were tied, what's left of his broken, torn wings folded under him like rags in the coils of roots and branches he was wrapped in.
But the admiral had left. There was no more haki in the branches. Just a natural environment surrounding him. Piercing him.
His instincts took charge. His dry body was even more combustible than usual. All it took was a spark.
Kaboom!
With burning roots and branches sent flying everywhere, he was finally free.
He crawled to the well and dropped himself in, head first. Many long gulps of water later, he was finally quenched.
He climbed out of the well, breathing heavily, and lowered his eyes to examine his chest wound.
Stupid admiral, my heart is not that much to the left, he thought.
The wound did puncture his lung, however his fast healing already began to take care of that. His wheezing grew quieter, until several minutes later the wound was closed without a trace. His torn wings slowly recovered as well.
Arbel looked about him. Queen was shrunk, thrown on the ground like a rag, but still breathing painfully. Babanuki was the only other one still breathing, despite being pierced by a very thick root.
Arbel got to his feet and grabbed Queen's head. "Loosen your neck, idiot, we have to get out of here before the Marine's ship comes to take us away."
Arbel pulled Queen's long neck to sink his head in the well, and did the same with Babanuki's trunk.
פ
The admiral took them by surprise.
It was early morning, and many of them were still sleeping. There wasn't much for anyone to do anyway since the stone mine was closed down, and though they were prisoners, slavery was forbidden now.
Roots came up from the ground and skewered everyone who was there.
Arbel woke up being hit by a haki imbued root trying to penetrate his left wing. He sprang up immediately and defended himself.
His fire was still erratic. It burned well when he was excited or angry, or even simply self-confident. This past week he felt none of those feelings. Only depression and confusion.
Hands still cuffed behind his back, he did his best to fight back. He managed to give the admiral a few flaming kicks, but that forced him to get closer to him and so he was caught in the tangle of branches.
The cuffs prevented him from using his devil fruit and much of his haki, his sword was lost and now both his wings were torn too. There really wasn't anything much he could do.
פ
A huge thunder of Haki passing right over their heads brought him back to alertness.
"Kuso! We have to get out of here! Now!"
He loaded Queen's neck and Babanuki's trunk onto his shoulders, although they were not yet quenched, and started walking out of the prisoner mine.
"Waaaaaaaaah!" Yelled Queen, "What was that? Where are you taking me?!"
"I recognize that Haki from two years ago. It belongs to Red Haired Shanks." answered Arbel. "Thing are getting complicated around here. Let's get to my ship and get out of this country as fast as we can."
Arbel walked very fast, dragging the two shrunken fat guys behind him. Still, compared to flying, it seemed very slow to him. Too slow.
"I have to contact the little master..." said Babanuki in a cracked voice.
Arbel ignored him. As he walked, thoughts flooded his mind again.
This whole week he was mourning Kaido, he vacillated between wishing to avenge him and wishing to go back to his old dream. Even Kaido himself told him the man he was looking for would be the one who would beat him.
He didn't want to believe it. He found it hard to believe that anyone would ever be able to defeat Kaido.
Yet deep down in his heart, the little innocent kid he once was never let go of that dream. He still couldn't make up his mind, but reality now forced him into action.
When they got to the river between Udon and Hakumai, his observation Haki senses told him the danger was gone.
Ryokugyu has checked the prison again before he left, getting mad at not finding them there, but still left without doing much searching. Threatened by Red Hair, it seemed.
Arbel threw Queen and Babanuki down to drink.
"Bwaaaa! What is this foul tasting water?!" Queen yelled, drinking anyway.
"It's contaminated by all those weapon factories our crew was responsible for." answered Babanuki, scooping water with his trunk and lifting it to his human and animal mouths.
As they were drinking, Arbel examined his wings.
In the past week he was so depressed, he didn't even care to examine the damage left to him by the Pirate Hunter.
Now he looked at them both. The admiral cut his left wing almost symmetrically to the cut Zoro left on his right one.
He spread them as much as he could. No good. He will never be able to fly in his Lunarian form again.
But his pteranodon wings were attached to his hands. He turned into his animal form to examine them. They were a little shorter, but not by much.
He flapped them once to get the feel of them. It might have to take a little bit more effort, but yes, he'll be able to fly in this form.
"Hey, King, useless moron! You almost pushed me into the river!" complained Queen.
"Stand firm, imbecile." answered Arbel, "Look at what's become of you that a flap of my wings sends you flying."
Queen opened his mouth to begin his usual torrent of curses, But Arbel cut him short.
"We need to decide what to do now. We're out of danger for the moment, but without Kaido's protection, we need to rethink our strategy."
"We have to contact the little master," said Babanuki, "we can gain the protection of the new shogun. You know he's a great dragon now, almost like Kaido."
Arbel squinted at him. "The shogun I issued an order to kill? Why would he ever wish to protect me? That's stupid."
"I thought we were going to get to your ship." said Queen, "We can sail out of here and seek the protection of Germa. Vinsmoke Judge and I had a past together."
"The same Judge you quarreled with and threw you out?" ask Arbel sarcastically. "Look where it got us last time I listened to your advice!"
פ
Arbel was pushed by a silent shock wave that made him finally regain consciousness. He was lying on the hard ground, his head and right wing aching tremendously.
He opened his eyes at the dark, cloudy sky. Kaido's flame clouds.
When Kaido wins, he will send someone for me. thought Arbel in a haze.
A picture of the Pirate Hunter's last attack flashed through his mind. He gasped.
How could this have happened? I've promised Kaido I'd never lose a battle until he'd become the pirate king. And he's so close! His new Onigashima project will finally fulfill his dream.
But what about my dream? whispered a small voice in his mind, is this really what I want the world to change into?
Arbel found himself praying silently, like he did when he was a boy: Joy Boy, if there ever was a good time for you to appear, now is the time. I can't live this way any longer. Please, set me free!
"Wing! Wing! Helb be!"
Queen's voice interrupted his train of thought. So the idiot has fallen off the island too, huh? He sounded as if his jaw was dislocated.
Arbel came to his senses. What a stupid prayer. Joy Boy is nothing but a legend, what was I thinking?
"Stay put, moron. When Kaido wins he'll send someone for us." Arbel answered him impatiently.
"Did you realize it was Big Mom who just fell off the island?" asked Queen.
"Good riddance!" answered Arbel. "Who needs the old hag anyway?" I know all she ever wants is to stick me as a specimen in her notorious library.
"Yes, but..." continued Queen, "this new generation, they seem very strong..."
"Shut up! They're not as strong as Kaido. No one is!"
As if in answer, his observation haki perceived something far on the roof of Onigashima. Kaido and Straw Hat prepared for their last clash, when some weaker person intervened in Kaido's favor. Straw Hat was dead, and soon after, the person who intervened was dead as well.
"See?" Kaido's won, as expected.
Arbel did not look forward to what was to come. He'd have to prove himself worthy of his King title again, fighting anyone who wished to challenge him. His wing was missing, and with it, much of his defense. Will he ever be able to fly again?
Then, all of a sudden: Dum dut to to! Dum dut to to!
Arbel sat up. "Do you hear that?" He asked Queen, "What is this drumming?"
"Drumming?" answered Queen, "I hear plenty of war cries from Onigashima. Who will drum in the middle of battle?! Apoo?!"
"No." answered Arbel. "That's the Drum of Li... You can't hear it?!"
Could it be true?! Is Joy Boy really coming?! No, no it's impossible! Whoever is sounding that drum, Kaido will kill him too.
Queen began babbling about Apoo's music, but Arbel ignored him completely. He sat up, focused entirely with his observation haki on the fight on Onigashima's rooftop. His emotions in a swirl, he didn't want either of them to be defeated. Yet he knew one of them must.
He didn't need any haki to see the giant island-sized bright white fist which buried Kaido into the ground.
His mouth gaped as the deafening shock wave rattled the ground and Kaido was buried deep down into the earth.
His haki followed Kaido's fading consciousness into the ground and magma, until it disappeared.
"Kaido won't send anyone to help us any time soon." said Queen, "We need to help ourselves. Come on, help me up. Let's go to the Prisoner Mine to get our wounds treated. I'm still the boss there, you know. Besides, I have a score to settle with that traitor Babanuki!"
Arbel was too shocked to think. He got to his feet, almost losing balance due to his missing half-wing, and supported himself on Queen, who also rose and leaned heavily back on him. Queen's robotic left hand was missing.
All the way to the Prisoner Mine, Queen never stopped babbling and cursing, while Arbel clammed up into himself, his thoughts racing.
Behind them, the sky turned red as a violent eruption of lava shot to the skies from somewhere in the Wano sea.
At dawn they reached the Prisoner Mine. Queen banged hard on the gate. "Open up, Babanuki! Let us in!"
"Kyaaa!" Babanuki freaked out, "Now is not the time for a video transmission, men! We have a more urgent problem on our hands here. You, and you, come with me."
"Open up, Babanuki! Or we'll melt the gate down!" yelled Queen, shaking the gate hard. Of course, Queen's mouth laser was broken, and Arbel's fire was out completely, but Babanuki didn't know that.
"Okay, okay, I'm coming!" he called and approached the gate. He opened it up so fast, that Arbel and Queen, who leaned on the gate, flew in and crashed face down on the floor.
As Babanuki closed the gate, his two subordinates quickly leaped onto the two All-Stars and cuffed them with seastone handcuffs.
Arbel was more concerned about hiding his face and hair, using his healthy left wing to do so, then found his hands cuffed behind his back.
Queen only had one hand, so only one handcuff was put on his right wrist. It was enough to significantly reduce their force.
Nevertheless, all hell broke loose as Queen began attacking Babanuki, accusing him of betrayal.
Arbel remained out of it, not caring anymore about anything, feeling like the ground was dropped from under his feet. He couldn't bring his mind to the present, flashbacks of 33 years with Kaido plaguing his mind.
Cursing himself for praying to Joy Boy, wishing he could jump after Kaido into the magma pit and save him, like the countless times Kaido did so for him.
But it was too late. The eruption made it too dangerous even for him, and Kaido's body was probably already lost.
This was not the change he longed Joy Boy to bring. He never realized he'd lose everything if the world would change. Plus, he was not even free. Although he knew once his fire is stable again, he'd be able to explode these cuffs off of him.
An authoritative voice cut into his train of thought, and stopped Queen's and Babanuki's fight. It came from the video den den mushi. Kozuki Momonosuke, Oden's son who grew to become a man overnight, announced their victory.
"There will be no more slaves in Wano! Kaido, Orochi, and the evil Beasts Pirates, we defeated them! From now on, I, Kozuki Momonosuke, will rule over the Land of Wano!"
So, it was really over.
"But who defeated Kaido?!" Arbel suddenly raised his head. "Who was it? He didn't even say!"
"It's over, King, face it." said Babanuki, riding with his elephant's full weight atop Queen. "I will not let you get your revenge!"
But Babanuki couldn't contain his own curiosity when he called his "Little Master" to report to her that the two All-Stars were imprisoned in Udon.
"Who was it who defeated Kaido eventually? Do you know?" he asked her.
"Umm... Yamato says it was someone named Joy Boy." answered O-Tama, "He already left Wano."
Arbel growled to himself. "I know that already, damn it. But who is Joy Boy? I need to know. I must find out!"
"You will not." answered Babanuki resolutely.
פ
"Then what do you suggest we do, huh? King!" Queen's voice returned Arbel to the present.
"You two do whatever the hell you want." answered Arbel. "We're splitting up. Nothing ties us together anymore. As for me, I'm going to look first for Yamato."
"Still trying to fulfill Kaido's last wish, lapdog?" asked Queen in a mocking voice, "What for?"
"IT'S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!" roared Arbel, turned his back and walked away.
I have to find Yamato. He's the only one who knows who Joy Boy really is. He's the only one except Kaido I ever told I'm waiting for him.
When I find out who he is, only then will I be able to make up my mind where I'm heading next.
Following Kaido's killer feels like betrayal. Yet, if I don't follow him, I'll be betraying the Lunarian tribe, extinguishing all hope of its revival.
Only Joy Boy with his three ancient weapons will be able to claim the Red Line back to us. I must find out what kind of person he is, before I can commit to following him as Uranus.
