"M-Mazurka Kingdom massacre…?" Ren stammered, completely dumbfounded. "W-what…?"

Lulupo rushed over to hold her.

"It says the port town of Przystan was burned to the ground…" said Roxanne. "All twenty thousand inhabitants were killed…"

Ren couldn't even cry or maintain her accent. Her expression became a thousand yard stare.

"Kowalski…" was all she was able to say.

"The king is accusing Shaska, and by extension, all of us, of the crime…" Roxanne continued.

"That bastard…" Shaska growled, so furious that she bit her cigar in half.

Schwarz crossed his arms and bowed his head. "It was obviously that Marine officer. Izmena, was it? The boss must have pissed her off so bad that she torched the city as revenge. And the king went along with it because we cut off his supply of slave money."

"One rogue officer is all it takes to level a city," said Shaska. "And the government will cover it up because that's a massive PR hit for them if it got out."

"We're wanted now. All of us," said Roxanne, pulling out a stack of wanted posters.

"E-even us, Roxie…?" Andy asked sheepishly.

"Even us."

She laid out the posters one by one.

Ren "the Silver Bullet" - 18,000,000 berries

"Amazon Bloom" Zinnia - 21,000,000 berries

"Grillmaster" Andy - 500,000 berries

"Bar Slinger" Roxanne - 500,000 berries

"Dashing Dandy" Charles Lulupo - 48,000,000 berries

"Noble Ninja" Johann Schwarz - 52,000,000 berries

"Miracle Surgeon" Puerco - 400,000 berries

"Untouchable" Samudra - 51,000,000 berries

"And lastly…"

Shaska "the Squeeze" - 195,000,000 berries

The crew just stood there in silence, unable to comprehend what had just happened.

—

Meanwhile, at Marine base G-12 in the Gokashi Kingdom, Commodore Abelard received the news.

"YOU IDIOTS!" he shouted at his subordinates, Johnson and Franco. "YOU ABSOLUTE FOOLS!"

The two stood there, cowering in fear and with looks of deep shame on their faces.

"YOU TWO NUMBSKULLS COULD HAVE BROUGHT SHASKA IN! AND YOU DIDN'T! So you know what she did? SHE AND HER CREW MURDERED AN ENTIRE CITY'S WORTH OF PEOPLE!"

"Commodore, sir, we had no idea she wou-" Franco tried to explain.

"YOU'RE LUCKY I DON'T HAVE YOU COURT-MARTIALED RIGHT NOW! UNBELIEVABLE!"

"Sir, we're sorry, but if we tried to catch her we-" Johnson tried to say.

"SORRY? TWENTY THOUSAND PEOPLE ARE DEAD!" Abelard roared, tearing apart the paper in his rage.

He slammed his fists on the desk, causing it to break somewhat.

"I can't believe I let you off the hook after that wrestling debacle! Now HQ wants my head on a platter because, may I remind you, TWENTY THOUSAND PEOPLE ARE DEAD!"

Franco and Johnson stood there in silence.

"You wanna know what you two idiots are gonna do? You two are gonna get a battleship, get some soldiers, and you're gonna stop them in the Panipuri Kingdom!"

"The Panipuri Kingdom, sir?" Franco asked.

"That's right. Considering they have the prince of that kingdom with them, that's gonna be their most likely hideout."

"But wouldn't they see that-" Johnson tried to ask.

"JOHNSON! YOU SNIVELING TWERP! FOLLOW MY ORDERS!" Abelard shouted, hitting the wall behind him, damaging it too.

"And you two better not come back here without Shaska's head!"

The two lower-ranking Marines saluted. "Sir!"

—-

The crew ate breakfast together in silence. Roxanne served everyone but Puerco and Ren a stiff drink to go along with it; everyone really needed it.

The quiet was broken when Samudra spoke up.

"What do we do? I cannot return to my homeland after being accused of such a heinous crime."

"I don't know," said Shaska, puffing on her cigar. "Snake girl, we're still on course for the Panipuri Kingdom, right?"

"Yes, ma'am," said Zinnia.

"We still have two weeks before we get there. We need to think of a plan on how to stop this civil war without also getting arrested," Shaska said. "It's one thing if it's just me who has a bounty. But now I can't even start a business with you guys."

"Oh, that's what matters right now," Roxanne snarked internally.

"Prince, tell us more about your kingdom," said Shaska.

"One moment," he said, excusing himself from the table. He went to the navigation room and found a map of the Panipuri Kingdom. The Humo Robinson had maps of every country where a Kemuri Mart was located, and a location opened up there some years prior. He laid it out on the main table in the galley after everyone had finished eating.

"The Panipuri Kingdom is on Tikka Island. It's a summer island covered in dense forests with a mountain range in the north where the capital, Shahar, is located," Samudra explained. "Most of the population is located in villages and towns along the sacred Nadee River, which rises up to Lake Jheel in the mountains. Shahar is on this lake."

"So we just sail up the river to the capital, right?" Puerco asked.

"It will not be that simple," said Samudra. "The Nadee becomes quite narrow in places. A ship of this size would not be able to pass."

Samudra thought for a second.

"We have two options for how we can get to Shahar: we can attempt to cut through the forests, which are crawling with incredibly dangerous wildlife. Or we can attempt to scale the Pahaad Mountains. Which are also crawling with incredibly dangerous wildlife."

"Why can't we just dock at the southern edge of the island and walk our way up the river?" Andy asked.

"At the southern edge of the island is the port town of Nagar. The trek from there to Shahar is four days on foot. But there are two problems with this. One, I would like to get to Shahar as quickly as possible to return to the palace and explain to my brother the truth of what happened in the Mazurka Kingdom. I tried calling the palace as soon as the news broke, but he was quite beside himself and refused to hear me out. Two, and much more importantly, docking at the port is not a good idea when we are all wanted criminals."

"Valid points," Andy replied.

"My uncle's base of operations is in the city of Baagee, on the west bank of the Nadee about halfway between Nagar and Shahar," Samudra continued.

"So, why don't we just go to this Baagee place and put the smackdown on your uncle before he can do anything?" Shaska asked with a puff of her cigar. "He's the one starting all this, right?"

"Indeed. His insurgents have been attacking villages along the Nadee for some time now, trying to lure my brother into an open civil war. But my brother is a kind soul, reluctant to spill the blood of his citizens, even if they are violent. I want to avoid this war at all costs, except killing my uncle. He was like a second father to me.

"My brother's official coronation will be around the same time we land on the island. I would not be surprised if that is also the time my uncle begins a full scale invasion of Shahar."

Samudra paused, gathering his thoughts for a moment.

"Lady Shaska, do you remember the prophecy I told you about?"

"Like it was yesterday."

"I believe my uncle's forces have a sinister backing behind them. Something changed in him several years ago. He became… different. His mind turned away from his royal duties… he became 'religious'. He talked about being chosen by God as a messenger of 'equality'…"

"Well, darling, that doesn't sound too bad," Lulupo interjected.

Shaska flashed back to her conversation with Gil Fernandez, the lucha promoter pirate.

"I met a man. A man crowned by God himself. He found me, and he changed me. Because it turns out there's a higher morality than just material wealth; there's equality."

"Hmm," she mused.

"Notions of 'equality' and a single god are foreign to the people of the Panipuri Kingdom. Our society is highly stratified, and we believe in many gods," Samudra explained. "My uncle gave much of his wealth to the Unclean, the lowest of the low in Panipuri society.

"At the top of our society are, of course, the nobility, closely followed by the priests. After that are the warriors, then the merchants, then the farmers, followed by artists, and at the very bottom are the Unclean, the people who perform the filthiest work, such as cleaning streets or toilets.

"My uncle raised up an army of the lower classes of Panipuri society, with an aim of revolution."

"I must say, a group of people called 'the Unclean' have every right to be angry," said Lulupo.

"It is what it is," Shaska said, blowing smoke. "It's possible to work your way up from the bottom. That's what I did. Started in the slums and became the richest woman on Fishman Island."

"The Unclean are forever seen as Unclean," Samudra added. "There is virtually no room for class mobility."

"I'm sorry, prince darling, why are we helping you again?" Lulupo interjected, putting his feet up on the table and leaning back in his chair.

"Bald guy! Don't be rude to the prince!" Shaska chided.

"I'm serious, Miss Shaska. It seems the prince's brother is fighting to maintain a system that keeps people basically as slaves. I thought you were opposed to slavery?"

"Well, yes, but…" Shaska stammered.

"I think we ought to rethink our objectives here," said Lulupo. "Because it's sounding more and more like the uncle has a point."

"You know I'm the one paying you, right?" Shaska growled. "And I say we help the prince.

"Sure, a system with no class mobility is awful, but a war ain't the solution. Countless would die in the name of this pipe dream of 'equality'. Sapient beings like us are inherently unequal; it's just the way of the world."

"Are you following any of this?" Andy whispered to his wife, who shook her head.

"I hear your words, Sir Lulupo," said the prince. "I will attempt to bridge the gap between my brother and my uncle for a peaceful resolution to our social strata, but you must understand that it is my uncle who became violent first, and the prophecy says th-"

"Prince. Darling." Lulupo interrupted. "I don't care about a prophecy. I care that there's an entire section of your country forever called 'Unclean'. It's not right, darling."

Samudra bowed his head and thought.

"Changing my brother's mind is one thing. It is also a daunting task to change the hearts and minds of an entire country," he said. "For now, I must please ask for your continued assistance in stopping my uncle from attacking more villages and potentially attacking Shahar itself on the day of my brother's coronation. We can discuss the finer points of Panipuri society then."

"Fine. I'm with Shaska for the long haul anyway," said Lulupo, thinking about the hefty amount he was paid back in the Gokashi Kingdom and how he was a wanted drag queen now.

"So, what do you propose we do, Lady Shaska?" Samudra asked. "Shall we go to Shahar to see my brother, or Baagee to see my uncle?"

"Hmm. I need to give it some more thought…" she replied plaintively.

—

In the city of Baagee on the Nadee river, cows roamed the street. Their droppings were cleaned up by the Unclean. Though singing and dancing were common occurrences in the cities of Panipuri, no one had the energy to do either with the spectre of war across the land. Buildings of Baagee were mainly cut out of stone, but some wooden buildings could be seen, too. Many of the buildings were dome shaped.

A longleg messenger entered a tavern, and descended a flight of stairs to find an old longleg man in beggar's clothing, a long, white beard and a turban sitting at a desk surrounded by all sorts of paperwork and maps.

"Prince Barabar!" said the messenger. "I have news from the front at Gaanv! Our men have successfully-"

"I am no prince," said Barabar. "I am only your leader until the revolution is complete."

"My apologies, sir," said the messenger. "I just wanted to inform you that the warriors in Gaanv have been defeated."

"Good… good…" Barabar replied. "Soon my reactionary nephew will have no choice but to acknowledge us and fight for real. God calls upon us for a holy war, as well you know."

The messenger nodded.

"Now, you may excuse yourself. I have an important transponder snail call to make with my benefactor."

"Sir!"

The messenger left, and Barabar calmly dialed the snail number. A deep, imposing voice on the other end answered.

"Yes, vhat is it?"

"Mr. Balthasar, sir. It's Barabar. Preparations will soon be in order for your visit. I want your reintroduction to the world to be special."

"Very good, Barabar. God shines down upon you."

"I vanna talk to him!" shouted a childlike (but still clearly adult) voice on Balthasar's end.

"Rusila, you vill be calm," said Balthasar.

"Soon the world will know true equality," said Barabar.

"Zis is but the first step toward our utopia, Comrade Barabar," said Balthasar. "Years of planning und secret preparations vill soon be revealed to ze vorld. Ze Five Elders already know my name, und zey vill soon realize ze Vorld Government's days are numbered. Und once your reactionary nephew's blood iss spilled, comrade, so too vill your spot in the Heaven on Earth vill be secured."

"Brother! I! Vanna! Talk to him!" Rusila whined.

"Ach, fine," said Balthasar, relinquishing the snail.

"Hallo! Zis is Balthasar von Rusila! Vat iss your favorite color?" she cheerfully asked. "Mine's red! Zat iss ze color of blood!"

"Um… mine is red, too," said Barabar, playing along.

"Yay! Ve are color buddies!" Rusila exclaimed.

"Rusila! Give me zat!" Balthasar chided, taking the snail back. Rusila could be heard whining.

"I pray zat you vill not fail me like zat fool, Fernandez. Make your mark, comrade," Balthasar said, hanging up.

—-

A week passed. Shaska sat on the deck of the Robinson smoking a cigar and drinking one of Roxanne's cocktails as Schwarz strummed along on his guitar and Lulupo joined him, improvising a melody with his voice.

Samudra joined Shaska on the deck. "Lady Shaska, have you decided what you want to do?"

Shaska thought about it for a bit longer, taking Lulupo's words into account.

"Let's go see your brother," she said. "I wanna have some words about this class system of yours."

TO BE CONTINUED