Kia and the captain were both facing the royal army, their backs to Koza, looking for threats to his life. She could see several men that looked less than happy about holding a white flag, but that didn't mean anything. She kept searching the crowd, looking for weapons, but found none.
She could hear the relief in Koza's voice, and she turned, unsure of why the attack wasn't coming, to see the captain beside her, raising his gun to Koza's back. The white flag he held, was blocking him from view of the others, and she screamed "No!"
He managed to shoot three times by the time she reached him, the sword in her hand unknowingly going straight through his torso, as she tackled him to the ground. Koza fell as well, and before she could think straight, the shouting and fighting had commenced again.
"Nice…try…" Kia heard as she lifted her head, the traitorous captain's voice wheezing under her. She glared at his face, as he became more and more pale. She lifted herself off him, noticing the fatal wound that she had caused, and the small blood stain on her shirt. She felt so many things at once, that she had to push it all down to deal with another time. The most prominent was that she was going to be sick, but she tamped that feeling down as well. "mission…. accomplished," he added quietly, and died right in front of her.
The whole time, he was one of Baroque Works?! How many years had he been working his way up the army in Alabasta, to do this for Crocodile, who didn't even care! What a waste. Kia felt sorry for the man, but remembering Koza, left his side to go find the rebel leader. With all the fighting going on, and the dust it created, she couldn't see, and couldn't hear anything but shouting. She crawled around, having to climb over wounded and dead men, searching for Koza.
"KOZA!" she shouted, but she could hardly hear her own voice, so she didn't bother calling out after that. After what seemed an eternity, she finally found the bell that Koza had been standing on. How she had gotten so far away from it, she had no clue,thinking she must have wandered away from Koza instead of towards, and she berated herself for time wasted, hoping he was okay.
Each body Kia came to after that, she turned over, searching faces to find Koza's. Some men she found were still alive, and she helped drag them over to the bell, the huge structure providing some cover for them, so they would not be in danger of being trampled. She tore multiple pieces from her clothes-her desert cover up going first- helping to stop the bleeding from wounds they received. Finally, finally, she turned a body over, and found Koza's face. He was too heavy for her to move, as tired as she was.
His eyes fluttered open, as Kia assessed the damage to his body. Two of the captain's shots hit him, one in the arm, and one in the torso. "Hold still, and breath deeply!" she yelled close to his ear so he could hear her. She hiked his shirt up, and put her ear to his chest, covering her other one with her hand, trying to hear if his lung had been punctured.
Not hearing anything that sounded bad, and his heartbeat seemed fine, if a little fast, she raised herself back up, and lowered his shirt. He was giving her an incredulous look, and his face was pretty red.
"Are you okay?" she yelled, her head tilting in question. He nodded, so she shrugged. "Can you walk?" she mimed walking as she asked, since he couldn't hear her. He nodded again, moving his hand back and forth in a gesture of so-so. Kia nodded again, and leaned closer to shout in his ear. "I've been putting wounded men by the rubble, this way. It's not far, we can make it!"
She leaned away, looking at him in question, and he nodded again. She tugged and pulled, helping him to his feet, and letting him lean on her, they made their way over to the makeshift infirmary. She helped him back down, so he was leaning against the bell. He tried to say something, but she just covered his mouth, and yelled, "No! Just rest!"
Kia didn't give Koza a chance to protest. Her friends were out there somewhere, looking for the cannon and the bomb, and she needed to help them! She had left her sword where it was… stuck, and couldn't bring herself to get it back, so armed with a pistol, she moved out towards the edge of the fighting.
Her mind was whirling, because she had changed something. She had fought, and doing her best, Koza was still wounded, but much less than before. True, not much had changed in the whole scheme of things, but for Koza, things were better. She decided then and there, if she could find Pell, or any of the Straw Hats, she would tell them where the cannon was.
She couldn't make everything better, she knew that, and she'd have to really think things through, later. But for now, she was going to do what she could to help.
Each time Kia ventured out to find her friends, she came across wounded men. And each time, she almost kept going, but her mind would replay her own words back, I'll do what I can to help. She had meant her friends when she thought that, but she couldn't walk past these men, knowing she could help them.
On the tenth trip back to the bell, Kia sank down with the injured man, panting, as she took in his wound. He had a large slice from a blade across his shoulder, that had come very close to his neck. She reached down to tear her shirt again, and noticed that if she tore any more, She would be showing off her underwear. She hadn't gotten as many bandages out of it as she wanted, since she already had blood on it from the captain, and couldn't use those pieces. She had a fleeting thought that if she had kept the dancer outfit on, she would have been out of bandages long before.
Kia wasn't one to show off skin, but really, this guy needed something over his wound more than she needed a shirt. She slipped the remains of her shirt over her head, and tore it into pieces. Tying the pieces together, and putting a small amount directly on the wound, she wrapped the tied pieces around his shoulder as tightly as she could. He grimaced a little, but she could tell he would be all right. Once she was finished, she took a minute to rest, her head hanging down and her hands on her knees as she knelt beside him.
Kia looked up as she heard someone yell something, and she slowly stood back up. She couldn't be sure, but it sounded different then the yells of battle. The men around her that were conscious started to protest, several of them looking away from her. She blushed, knowing that she was a little indecent, and Koza moved around, trying to take off his shirt for her.
"I'll find another one, just stay still and recuperate!" She yelled at him and she resolutely headed back out. She needed to find out what that yell was, and she needed to find her friends- fast.
"CROCODILE!"
Kia stopped in her tracks. She had clearly heard it that time, and she ran as fast as she could toward Luffy's voice.
She made her way towards where the sound had come, noting that she was nearing the staircase that headed back up to the palace courtyard. As she made her way through the dust, a large falcon landed right in front of her, with Luffy setting down Vivi, and hopping off it's back. Kia tried to speak, but her voice was hoarse from all the yelling she had been doing, so she just stood there, taking in the sight of her friends as they all came together. All of them looked like they had been through hell, and they were still raring to go, to help Vivi finish this.
"You're all okay!" Vivi said emotionally.
"But, where's Kia?" Chopper asked, looking around.
She was so happy to see them all, and of course, that was when she could feel her exhaustion take over. She stumbled forward, determined to make it to them. She was closest to Luffy, so she focused on making it to him, careening forward, and grabbing on to him.
"Kia?!" Luffy cried out as her turned, catching her, and keeping her upright. Kia nodded, unable to clear her throat to speak. She was so happy to see them, that she just hugged Luffy tightly. She could hear everyone else saying something, but she could only hear Luffy's words as he hugged her back and said, "I'm so glad you're all right, now we're all here!" Somehow, that realization gave her the energy to stand, and she let go of Luffy, to wipe her tear filled eyes. "But, when did you start dressing like Nami?"
Kia realized again, that she was only in her bra, and ducked behind Luffy, to try to cover herself. Most everyone looked at her in confusion, and Sanji had his tongue hanging out, like he was panting.
Kia just shook her head, not wanting to take the time to explain. Several of the others nodded along, as if that made total sense. Sanji took off his jacket and was coming forward to give it to her, when something was placed around her shoulders. Kia looked up into Luffy's face as he smiled.
"There you go." He turned back around to face everyone else and apologized. "I'm sorry I lost, but I'll beat that Croc guy this time!"
"Go get him Luffy," Zoro said, utmost confidence in his captain.
"If you can't beat him, who can?" Usopp shouted.
Kia quickly put her arms through the sleeves of Luffy's vest, and buttoned it up, so that she was covered. Sanji looked disappointed as he put his jacket back on, though how he could wear it in this heat, she had no idea. Perhaps he just didn't want to lose it.
Luffy stretched his arms up, looking up at the figure above them. He rocketed himself up, hollering "Crocodile!" Kia watched, but soon he was out of sight. Giving a sigh, she turned to look at the others, and seeing Vivi, remembered what she was going to tell her.
"Everyone, we only have ten minutes -" Vivi started before she was interrupted by a shout.
"Found you Princess Vivi!" the shout rang out, and the crew looked around wildly. They were surrounded by Baroque Works men, all armed and ready to cut them down.
"Oh no, the billions!" Vivi cried.
"We bring back your head, and we'll all get a big promotion," one of the men leered at Vivi, sword at the ready.
"Ten minutes minus… how long will these guys take?" Sanji asked Zoro.
"You're wasting time talking," Zoro grumbled back.
The two faced off with the billions, and said in unison, "Two seconds!" They raced forward cutting and kicking men left and right, plowing through the billions in record time. Kia watched in awe, as their strength was really unbelievable.
"Everyone scatter!"someone yelled, and she turned back around, just in time to see the backs of all her friends as they ran away, all in different directions.
"WAIT!" she screamed, but no one stopped and she stood there for a moment in shock. "Crap," she said, realizing that she hadn't told anyone of where the cannon was. Now what should I do? Go chasing after someone? Go to the clock tower and try to find them nearby?
Kia decided to go towards the clock tower, and hope to find someone on the way. It was much harder than it should have been, with the fighting everywhere, and the dust and sand still in the air. At times she couldn't even see the clock tower, so she knew it took her much longer to get there than it should have.
The next time she looked up to make sure she was going the correct way, she saw the streak of red in the sky, which must have been Usopp's signal. That meant that everyone was on their way to the clock tower, and she had to hurry!
She turned another corner, and found herself at a dead end. She turned back to go another way, but her path was blocked, by three men. Kia took off running, hoping to outrun them, but they easily caught her. She started screaming, but one of them grabbed her throat, cutting off her wind pipe.
Kia tried to stay calm, thinking of how the marines were in the square, and soon Crocodile would be defeated, and the rain would come. There were plenty of people who would help her then. She didn't want to distract any of the crew from what they needed to do… they were ALL needed to get Vivi up to the cannon!
Just then, something swooped down from the sky, landing behind the men. It was Pell! He pulled out his sword, and made quick work of them. He helped her stand, and she tried to speak, but could only manage to cough.
"Vi…vi!" cough,cough, "She needs," cough, "you!" He looked concerned, and she tried again to clear her throat. "Clock tower! Cannon ball… explodes! Thanks, but please go!"
She gave him a slight push, hoping that was enough to get the message across. He transformed and took flight again, and Kia could only hope he wasn't too late. She watched until she couldn't see him any longer, and then made her way towards the clock tower again. She felt like she was getting close, but was so tired that she stopped to sit down and rest. She leaned against a wall, getting her breath back, when a huge explosion ripped through the sky above. It was close enough that air tore through the streets, pushed from the blast, but thankfully, far enough away that the kingdom was saved.
She smiled to herself, thinking,just one more minute, then I need to get up. She didn't know how many times she said it, but she continued to sit there, mentally and physically exhausted. She thought about what the others had been through, and she made a note to get Zoro to help her figure out a training schedule so that she could have more endurance in the future.
Then, slowly, the rain began to fall. Kia tilted her head back, enjoying the falling rain on her face. Back home, she was used to the rain falling almost every day, and had missed it. As the rain fell, the dust settled, and the voices of the battle dimmed.
Pretty soon, she could hear Usopp shouting, "Hey, I'm not a sack of potatoes! Let go!" and she grinned. Somehow, they had found her without even trying.
"Kia!" Chopper yelled, and came barreling towards her. He landed right in her lap, and they gave each other a big hug. "You're okay! I was so worried!"
"Yeah, I'm okay," she replied, ruffling his fur. "I'm sorry, I didn't make it to the clock tower," she said to all of them. "I got detained by some Baroque Works guys, and that falcon guy- Pell, he saved me. I couldn't get there fast enough, so I sent him ahead."
They all gave her strange looks, and she asked, "What?"
Nami answered, sitting down beside Kia. "I guess we owe him twice then," she said softly. "He saved you, then he saved all of us."
They were all quiet for a moment, and Sanji looked up and said, "Oh, there he is," which had them all looking in the direction he was facing. Coming towards them, was King Cobra, carrying Luffy on his back. Luffy looked like he was passed out.
Cobra came to a stop in front of them, looking them all over, recognition dawning when his eyes met Kia's, and asked, "Who are you people?"
Sanji stepped forward, looking grateful and slightly embarrassed. "That guy on your back, is our friend. Thank you for taking care of him, and we'll take him off your hands."
"Ah, so you must be the pirates who helped Vivi return to Alabasta."
"Huh? Mister, who are you?"
Before Cobra could answer, Vivi came racing around the corner, overjoyed to see everyone. "You guys! You're okay! And Papa!"
"Papa? Aah!" Sanji had a minor heart attack, "You're Vivi's father?"
"I guess that makes you the king," Zoro said, stating the obvious.
Everyone spoke for a little bit longer, before Sanji and Nami convinced Vivi that they would meet up with them later at the palace. Now, they needed to go speak to their people. As they turned to go, Kia spoke up. "Hey Vivi?" She turned back to look at her. "If you could have people on the lookout for Luffy's hat too, that would be great. He'll freak out if he doesn't have it when he wakes up."
Vivi gave a smile and a thumbs up, and she and her father headed back to the square. Once they were out of sight, the rest of the crew followed Kia's example and crashed to the ground. She was finally feeling up to moving, but instead she let them all rest.
She stayed where she was, even as the marines came by, and several of the men were ready to capture the crew. Kia snuck a peek at Tashigi as she ordered her men to stand down, trying not to smile. The marines continued by, the men at the end carrying out the unconscious form of Crocodile.
Vivi looked around at her people, hardly believing that they had finally made it to this point that she had dreamed of for so long. Not only that, but Igaram, was here, alive! It was truly a day of miracles!
She thought she was cried out, but as the people, as one voice cried out, "Long live Alabasta!" she felt the tears pricking her eyes yet again.
Vivi followed her father's example and walked among the people, giving cheer where she could, and condolences where she must. She ran over to what looked like an area where the wounded had gathered, hoping to be able to help in some way, and ran directly into-
"Koza!" Vivi shouted, overjoyed to see her friend. He was injured, but he was standing, so that was a good sign. "How badly are you hurt?"
Koza smiled at her. "Nothing that won't heal, with time. Thanks to your friend." Vivi looked at him in confusion, and he explained. "Your friend, that you sent with me… Kia?"
"Oh!" Vivi felt like face palming. That all seemed forever ago, so much had happened. "She helped you then?"
"She saved me," Koza corrected, and most of the men you see here." He gestured around at the men being treated for wounds. "She not only stopped the man that shot me, she bandaged my wounds, and brought me to a place safe from the fighting. Then she went to find you, and her friends, but she kept coming back, leading and dragging wounded men from the battle field, tearing her own clothes to make bandages… It was inspiring Vivi. Please thank her for us."
Vivi found herself holding back tears yet again. "You can thank her yourself, when you come to the palace to get looked at."
Koza shook his head. "I'm fine, and I need to get to Yuba. I don't know what had happened there, but I know that stubborn old man will be trying to fix it, and I need to help. But, don't worry, I'll let you know how we're doing."
"You'd better," Vivi answered, giving him a hug.