"Let's go!"
Bach and Lawson dashed along the hallway away from the throne room. Around them, the whole palace shook, and Bach could hear the sound of gunfire outside. Suits of armor fell over, priceless paintings fell to the ground and the shattering of vases added to the cacophony of chaos.
The fate of Doyle was in the balance. And Bach could only pray that all would go to plan.
"How's the hand?" he asked. Lawson lifted his salted hand from the vase he carried in which he had dunked it. It looked somewhat improved, being merely skinny rather than the skin and bone it had been before, though a far cry from usable.
"Just a little more…"
Around them, the palace was shaking and groaning. Bach could hear the sounds of crashing debris, the falling of columns, the shattering of windows. The floor wobbled under him, and the two men stumbled, leaning against the wall. Nearby, a roof was caving in.
"Izuku is doing it," he breathed, smiling. "The next phase of the plan. I must say, he has a fine mind."
"I suppose so…" mused Lawson. "Let us hope Yamato can get to him quickly. If Izuku runs out of water…"
He trailed off, glancing at Bach. Bach nodded, understanding all too well now was not the time for premature celebrations.
"She will not fail. I know it."
He froze, as a vision flickered through his mind's eye. Without thinking he leapt, tackling Lawson to the ground.
A silver slice materialized where their heads had been. The wall caved in, collapsing in a cloud of dust. Bach looked up.
"You!" Finalem Bandsome yelled, leaping through the hole, his hands morphing into massive silver axes. "All you had to do was surrender and turn your kingdom over to us. Could've avoided all of this. Now I'm going to have to dethrone you the old fashioned way."
Bach's eyes widened, his blood turning to ice as the blades flashed towards him.
And then the blades stopped, caught by a studded club as tall as a man. A club he had seen before.
"Go! Yamato yelled, her foot digging into the tiled floor as she pushed back. Bach leapt to his feet, pulling Lawson up with him, and sprinted down the corridor, his heart hammering.
(X)
"Coward!" growled Yamato. "Attacking those who can't defend themselves! Have you no shame!?"
She bared her fangs at Bandsome, as she forced back his blade-arms. The pirate was overwhelmed, blood dripping from his crown.
"No, what use is shame in our world!? We're pirates, what difference does honor mean? Besides, he was the one who trapped us here! Once you're gone, I'll flay him alive and mount what's left of him outside for this entire country to see ! Then they'll know never to stand against us again."
Yamato's mind briefly flashed back to the image of a man smiling within a boiling pot before a crowd, before a bullet pierced his skull and he sank beneath the waves.
Bandsome kicked, a row of silver lances jutting from his leg.
"Silver Joust!"
Yamato back-flipped away, and Bandsome leapt after her, his lower body turning to liquid silver to try to get past her and get after Bach and Lawson.
"I won't…" she yelled, swinging her club and bringing down his swords. "Let you!"
She kicked Bandsome in the face with her Haki coated foot, sending him flying down the corridor. He leapt up, blood dripping from his mouth, as Yamato charged after him.
"Just die already!" he roared, countless tendrils forming from his back, his chest and arms. "Resident Silver Chamber!"
The tendrils erupted, bouncing off the walls and slicing through anything in their path. Paintings, vases, curtains, suits of armor; everything was slashed and sliced like a hot knife through butter. Yamato could see them blackening with Haki as they veered towards her.
She focussed, Observation Haki flaring. Her Armament rose, coating Takeru and her arms. Her voice rose, roaring the cursed name of a technique her father once used on her; a name she would never let herself forget.
"Gundari!" She stepped forward, twirling Takeru as Haki blazed through it. "Ryu!" She swung, faster and faster, over and over again. "Seigun!"
The spears came at her, hissing through the air. With every swing she caught one, smashing it into silver liquid and splattering it against the walls. Before her, Bandsome's face was a mask of fury, and of disbelief. Spear after spear leapt from his body, faster and faster, lashing through the air like serpent strikes. But not one could pass her defense.
Yamato's heart was rising, leaping. She could feel the adrenaline coursing, the blood boiling in her veins, her heart pounding like a drum. She couldn't stop herself from smiling, for all that she loathed Finalem Bandsome. She couldn't deny the joy, even as she hated what he had done, and what he meant to do.
This was a fight. And it was glorious!
"What the hell are you!?" yelled Bandsome, falling back before her fury. He thrust out his hands, the mercury forming a spiked silver wall, flying down the corridor towards her.
"Silver Palisade!"
Yamato yelped and swung her club, catching the wall and stopping it fast. The floor crunched under her feet, and slowly she was driven back, her feet scoring deeper and deeper into the polished marble.
"I…" she yelled, swinging her club into the mercury wall and blowing it apart. "Am Kozu-!"
She cut herself off, as a mass of debris and blackened mercury erupted from behind the dissolving wall, flying straight at her. She tried to block, but the blob struck, throwing her back down the hall. She landed, back-flipped, and landed on her feet.
As she prepared to finish her speech, she stopped again, thinking back to what she'd spoken with Izuku about before.
"No! I…am me!" She let out a long breath, glad that she had not said Oden. "And I will defeat you, Finalem Bandsome!"
The walls around her collapsed inward, mercury bursting through. Yamato yelped, caught off-guard, as the tendrils wrapped around her wrists and clenched hard.
"I don't care who you are! Before this day is done, I'll be using your blood to paint my next masterpiece!" yelled Bandsome. A blob of mercury emerged from his stomach, blackening with Haki as it grew and grew. Yamato stared, appalled and amazed, as it formed into an ever more complex shape. It was like that contraption from outside, the big machine that belched steam and ran on rails, and had carried the Finalem Pirates from Adlerview to Londinium.
"Silver Rail!" Bandsome roared. The silver locomotive erupted from his stomach, mercury rails forming before. "Liner Driver!"
Yamato struggled against her bonds as the train raced down the mercury tracks, spikes and lances erupting from its prow, ready to skewer her. She gritted her teeth, trying to think of a way to escape. She couldn't hear Bach or Lawson, but if they were still in the corridor that thing could get them!
Then she remembered, from the meeting that night. She remembered their faces in the low light. Bach, General Hutchinson, Tibs, that old Gregson guy, and the others.
"If we can get Bandsome in a cold environment, his mercury will be ineffective. Frozen stiff. Yamato, can you lead him towards the kitchens?"
She gritted her teeth. She was supposed to lead him down there, but in the thrill of the fight she had forgotten! Damn it! And now she was about to die, unless she could make it cold! But how!?
She reached into her skirt pockets, throwing the bags of zinc and sulfur at the locomotive as it barreled towards as she backed off at fast speed.
It did nothing save for making it fizzle out. She has to take him down! To protect Bach and Lawson!
To protect Izuku! If she falls here, Bandsome will join his brother and he-
The thought did not come. She would not let it come. She must protect him.
Her eyes glowed blue, as she roared. "I won't… LET YOUUUU!" She bellowed, the train was bearing down on her, gleaming black and silver, coming ever closer, faster and faster.
And she yelled in desperation, and the world felt cold. Her breath came out as a heavy blast of icy wind, practically swallowing the mercury train, and stopping it in its tracks. The train turned from black to silver, the slippery tendrils freezing hard. Around it, frost formed on the walls and the floor; frost, and then gleaming ice.
Her eyes widened. She knew her breath was cold sometimes, but never like this! Had her Devil Fruit given her this power? A power she never knew about?
She tugged her arms. The tendrils broke, shattering like glass. She swung her club with a yell, and the mercury train broke into a thousand glittering pieces. Bandsome stood, mouth agape in silent agony, his frozen arms crumbling as he stepped back.
"I-Impossible…" he gawked, shaking. "You're…a Devil Fruit user too!?" He shivered, teeth chattering, eyes bulging as he fell to his knees.
Yamato took a deep breath, and reopened her eyes. Had she a mirror in which to look, she would have seen her eyes; not their usual amber, but a bright, cold blue.
"Raime," she uttered, and disappeared in a flash. "Hakke!"
She struck the stunned man right in the face. With a roar, teeth sprouting into fangs, she turned and spun, swinging her club like a home run batter, catching him full in the chest. A loud, thunderous crack sounded as Bandsome flew down the corridor, tumbling in the air.
Yamato gritted her teeth, glaring as gale force winds filled the vacuum, her hair billowing around her. Bandsome reached the end of the corridor, and crashed through the wall, then another wall, and another, then out into the air, and into one of the outer wall turrets.
Through her Haki she could see him. Bandsome lay in the wreckage of the turret, head rolled back, blood dripping from his mouth and crown, unmoving.
Yamato let out a breath, and felt her fury fade. A gleam caught her eye, and she saw a shard of glass on the floor. As she looked, she saw her amber eyes reflected back.
"Okay…he's down," she said, looking behind her. There was no sign of Bach or Lawson. She could only hope that they had gotten safely away.
"Now!" she declared. "Izuku!"
She broke into a run. In the distance, through the walls, she could hear the sounds of battle. Her friend had not fallen yet.
She had to get to him!
(X)
Doll and Ignatius danced.
Their dance was a dance of blades, scythe against saber, their weapons singing as they clashed. Around them, coal wagons lay slashed and broken, their cargo spilled out onto the ground. Steel rails were sliced through, gashes torn in the ground. Coal dust swirled in a tornado around them, a whistling chorus to their song of steel.
Doll roared, thrusting with her saber. The weasel mink leapt back, narrowly avoiding the point.
"See-Saw Kiri!" he yelled, swinging his scythe. Green blades of compressed air flew out, cursing as they spun. Doll yelled, parrying each one as it came, even as they forced her back.
She had never felt like this before. She had never seen her hands or blade like this before; black, like the night sky out on the ocean.
She had never fought like this. Not a battle like this, with an enemy like this, or for stakes like this.
"Soru!" She vanished, Ignatius' scythe slashing through the air where her head had been. She came around in a pirouette, but the mink did likewise, and their blades clashed once again. Their eyes met, and glared.
They broke apart, the force of it throwing them back many tens of meters. They landed on their feet, hefting their weapons.
"Soru!" She charged once more, and she lashed out at him. "Hagan!" An azure wind leapt from her saber, flying at Ignatius and forcing him to block. But Doll charged on, yelling as she thrust her shoulder at him, catching him in the chest. They crashed through a coal wagon, the fence beyond it, and out into a side street. They landed hard, breaking apart and rolling to a halt.
Doll rose, her hair a mess, her uniform a ruin. Ignatius looked even worse.
"You… annoying brat!" he snarled. "Kiriitachi!"
He swung his scythe, firing off more air blades, flying at her like boomerangs.
"Geppou!" She leapt up, landing on a nearby building avoiding the storm of air blades. But Ignatius was already moving, leaping up above her, bringing down his scythe in an overhead slice. She brought up her saber, but the blade nicked her shoulder, blood spurting. Ignatius yelled as he landed on her, knocking her off the building and down into the street. The street cratered as she landed, cobblestones flying.
"Now! Die already!" Ignatius jumped off the roof, scythe raised high. Doll rolled out of the crater, her shoulder a mass of pain. With a quick Soru, she moved, just in time as Ignatius struck; sending up a cloud of dust.
"Time to end this!" she hissed, forcing herself to rise, and sheathing her saber. Time for her one last trick, the one she had developed herself during her training with Anapoli. She touched her hand to her saber hilt, and tensed her legs, as Ignatius rose to face her.
"Kama!" he yelled, charging at her. "Shinitachi!" He swung his scythe, and two red air blades leapt from it.
"Marine One Sword Style! Iai!" Doll activated her Soru, and launched herself at Ignatius. The air blades flashed past, narrowly missing her, cratering the ground where she had stood. She blazed onward, legs screaming from the force of her Soru.
"Kyoufuu Sonson!"
Her blade struck his scythe, slicing it in two, slashing him from hip to shoulder. The mink was hurled into the air, screaming in agony, blood spraying like crimson rain.
And then silence, as he thudded to the ground behind her.
Breathing hard, Doll looked back. Ignatius lay where he had fallen, eyes rolled back, unconscious, and defeated.
She heard a crash, and looked down the street; just in time to see that orange-haired lass' heel collide with Bertha's fist; shockwaves erupting around them. Doll broke into a run. She had to get there, to help that girl!
Then her legs failed, and she fell to the ground.
"Damnit… that Soru was too strong…"
Her arms ached. Her whole body ached. She had given it her all, everything she had. Even her patented finishing move, the one she had never used before.
She was tired. So very tired. She had nothing left.
She didn't know that girl's name. But she was glad she was there.
(X)
Koala gritted her teeth, as her Kachige Haisoku collided with Bertha's fist.
They broke apart, and Koala landed. Her lungs burned, and her body ached.
"What's wrong girlie!" Bertha boasted. "Getting worn out!?"
She kicked with a short, muscular leg. Koala dodged, and thrust with one palm at her side. Bertha grunted, and jabbed with her elbow, forcing Koala back.
Koala dodged around the massive Fishwoman. This was going nowhere fast. She could lay blows, even do some damage, but nowhere near enough. And while Bertha had only scored a few hits, each one had hurt her, badly.
Even amidst the battle, she could hear Sabo fighting Helmet, their duel echoing down the lane. She could not give up! She could not lose! If she did…!
Bertha's next punch derailed her train of thought. Koala dodged, barely, then leapt back as Bertha snapped her head down, biting at her with needle-sharp teeth.
"I'm going to eat you, limb by limb!" she bellowed. "Senmaigawara Seiken!"
Koala immediately jumped as high as she could, the shockwave cratering the street, but the wind blowing from said blast made her stagger and fall across the ground as she rolled back to her feet. She stepped back, forcing herself to think of some kind of counterattack.
Koala knew she couldn't beat Bertha in a contest of Fishman Karate. Besides a gap in experience, she lacked a Fishman's raw strength that fully capitalized on the technique's abilities. Yet, she had to finish this here and now. But how?
She fell back, and Bertha charged after her.
"Once I gut ya, I'm gonna enjoy making the people into this country my cattle!" she sneered. "I might even take to brandin' them too! Just to show they're mine!"
Branding…them…
Koala felt the phantom pain on her back. Her heart froze, as cruel laughter filled her mind followed by a deep, burning sensation.
And anger filled her core. She stomped down hard on a puddle, the water spraying into the air, gathering at her palm. Bertha lunged at her, jaws spread wide, ready to bite and crush her.
"Samehada!" She barked, and caught the woman in the jaw. "Joushotei!"
Bertha gargled a cry, as the blow flung her into the air. She came down with a crash, blood and spittle falling all around her. She leapt up, screaming in pain, lashing out a rage.
"You faaker!" Her voice came out as a gurgle, blood flying from her mouth along with more of her teeth. Her tongue had been bitten clean off. "Wha haf u daaan?!"
Koala shuddered in spite of herself. Shark Fishmen could regenerate their teeth instantly. But not their tongues. Then again, it was a fitting punishment.
"I gave you a taste of the cruelty you've forced on so many!" she hissed. "I'm ending this, even if it costs me!"
She steadied her stance, taking a deep breath, as she remembered Hack's words.
"This technique is the pinnacle of all Fishman Karate. You have the basic motions down, however… if you use this as you are now, with your body not prepared to use it… you will be unable to fight. If you are forced to use this, Koala, use it as a finisher. Use it when you know FOR CERTAIN, that you can end the fight. Do you understand? Only then will I teach this technique to you."
"Yes sensei, I understand."
Koala closed her eyes, and gripped her fist, and stomped her feet. Water rose into the air around her, vapor gathering around her fist as she opened her eyes.
"Fishman Karate! Ougi!"
She charged, her fist glowing sky blue, a ball of rippling water gathered around it. This would hurt, she knew. But this Fishman had the gall to inflict the same misery so many of her people had suffered through. It spat in the face of everything Fisher Tiger had fought and died for.
And she would never let that stand.
"BURAIKEN!"
She struck the massive beast of a woman in the gut. Bertha gagged, blood flying from her mouth, her eyes rolling back, the shockwave tearing through her body. Koala fought down the pain, and let loose her power. She roared, her feet digging into the street, cracking the stone underfoot, and thrust out her fist. Bertha flew into the railway yard, through a coal wagon, and into a waiting locomotive. The boiler ruptured, and the locomotive exploded into a fireball.
Koala shrank back, covering her eyes, as the hot steam washed over her, debris clattering to the ground all around her.
And a mighty thump, as something big and heavy landed in front of her. Koala looked up, and saw that it was Bertha; unconscious, teeth missing, what was left of her tongue and lips burnt to a crisp, her flesh charred from the fire and the steam. She lay in a crater, a low moan rising from her ravaged mouth.
Koala looked down at her right arm, and winced. It was mangled and bloodied, and at least two of her fingers looked broken in several places.
"Sensei was right… I did pay for it… ack!"
She breathed in and out, trying to calm herself, and force the pain away. She could hear a rumbling like thunder, and she looked down the street. There was Sabo, still fighting with Helmet.
Koala limped away, down an alleyway. Her body was full of pain, pain fading into a dull ache; and her arm was broken.
Yet even with the pain, a small part of her felt proud, and she had a feeling if Hack was watching along with Tiger, they'd feel the same.
(X)
Sabo grunted as he clashed his pipe against Helmet's hammer.
He yelled, leaping up and swinging his pipe down. But the behemoth caught it between his saw and hammer. Helmet grunted, and thrust his head at Sabo. Sabo leant back, narrowly escaping the headbutt. He lashed out with a kick, catching the muscular brute in the head, sending him staggering backwards.
He landed, and followed up with a swing at Helmet's boot, catching him on the ankle. He rolled to the side, avoiding a hammer strike that cratered the road and then jumped up. His Observation Haki flared, and he swung his pipe; deflecting a flurry of scalpels.
Helmet roared, and charged at him, swinging his saw. Sabo caught it with his pipe in an underhand grip. Helmet swung his hammer, knocking his hat from his head as he ducked. Sabo hardened his skull with Haki, and jumped straight at Helmet, headbutting him in the chest. Helmet staggered backwards, and Sabo landed, shaking his head and his still ringing ears.
"Okay, not the smartest move I've done."
He gripped his pipe and charged. He saw Helmet's eyes through his helmet slits, widening as he came on. Helmet swung his saw, and Sabo parried.
The saw cut straight through. Sabo twisted his body to evade, wincing as the saw cut his cheek. He roared, and lashed out with a roundhouse kick, striking Helmet's armored head and sending him flying into the gasworks wall.
Sabo landed, and looked down at his severed pipe. He promptly tossed it aside. It had served its purpose.
Helmet was standing up, but he didn't attack. He glanced around, and Sabo did likewise.
He saw Bertha, lying in a crater near the gate to the railway yard, smoke rising from her scorched flesh. Sabo strained his ears, but he could no longer hear the clash of steel.
He smirked.
"Well, guess it's just you and me, eh ugly?" he quipped. He could see Helmet's eyes again. They were bulging with fury, a growl echoing from under his helmet.
The growl became a roar, and Helmet charged; the earth exploding under his feet. Sabo stood his ground, hands blackening with Haki, and focussed. Thumb wide, index and middle fingers, ring and pinkie fingers, both group together.
"Ryusoken!"
He dodged the twin strike, the winds buffeting him as he grabbed Helmet's head, his claw like fingers digging deep into his metal helmet. He gripped and turned, heaving the massive brute.
"Hikouryu! Ipponzeoi!"
He threw Helmet, sending him crashing to the ground. Helmet grunted in pain, face down in the road, as Sabo gripped his head.
"Now!" He tightened his grip, Helmet's bucket helmet caving in. He felt skin, and the man screamed, struggling to free himself. "You're done!"
He pulled back Helmet's head, and smashed it down onto the blasted and cratered road, again and again, and Helmet moved no more; his meaty arms falling to the ground.
Once his enemy stopped moving, Sabo released his grip, causing the ruined helm to fall to pieces, revealing the giant's ruined and bleeding face. Sabo exhaled and rose to his feet, looking down at his gloved and blood covered hand. He shook it off, and turned away, looking around for Koala.
It did not take him long to find her. She was down an alleyway, cradling her bloodied arm. She looked roughed up, but at least she was alive. She saw him as he approached, and smiled a weary smile.
Sabo paused, as he saw something fluttering down from the sky. It was his hat.
"Ah, there you are." He trotted up, picked up the hat, and put it back on his head.
"Hey you!"
Sabo turned. It was that Marine girl, limping out of a side street.
"You…fought them off, didn't you," she croaked, glancing at Bertha's charred body. "Is Headsplitter…?"
"Enjoying a nice long nap? Yeah he is, though probably gonna have a splitting headache when he wakes up," Sabo replied, gesturing at the crater behind him. Koala groaned at the pun, which only made him smirk.
Doll perked up suddenly, blinking. Sabo looked around, and saw what she meant. The buildings around them were damaged, with windows broken and walls scarred and scorched. But they were essentially intact. The only major damage was in the railway yard.
He could see eyes peering out through shutters, small children gazing at them with awe.
Heh. Looking cool for the kids.
"I couldn't have done this without you," Doll said, sheathing her saber. "If I had to fight them all at once." She paused, biting her lip. "Who are you? How can I ever thank you enough?"
Sabo saw Koala in the corner of his eye, gesticulating angrily at him.
"Who am I? Well… just a man trying to do some good in the world." Sabo tipped his tophat, smiling at her.
"You're very strong," Doll replied, crossing her arms. "I'm grateful mate, I really am."
Sabo could hear whistles and horns. Her backup was on the way.
"Doyle could use someone like you," she said, with a soft smile. "Maybe the Marines too. I can put in a good word. You won't even have to go to Anapoli for basic training."
Darn, turning down a nice looking girl like her. Not gonna feel good.
"Well, I appreciate the compliment." Sabo turned, glancing sideways at her. "Buuuuuut I'm spoken for at the moment. Plus, if you knew who I was…" He shrugged, and the girl blinked.
"What do you mean by that, mate?" she asked, leaning against a wall and panting. She was gassed and exhausted. Good, she won't be able to catch up.
"You'll see, Ensign Doll. Just keep that heart of yours the way it is, and I think the world will be better off before long. You're one of the good ones."
Sabo strode off towards the alleyway, hands in pockets as Koala nodded as they vanished into the belly of the city.
(X)
Izuku dodged, the Salt Fist flashing past his head, destroying the wall behind him.
"Quit dodging!" cursed Finalem Handsome. The glaring pirate threw out both of his arms, salt gathering around them. "Sultan Sea!"
The salt erupted, expanding into a mighty wave, and billowing like a tsunami towards Izuku.
Izuku's Black Whip flared, leaping from his back to what remained of the ceiling, pulling him up and out of the way. Beneath him, Handsome glided atop his self-conjured sea of salt, glaring up at him.
"You won't escape!" He threw up his hands, and countless clawed hands emerged from the salt sea. "Salt Rake City!"
Izuku took a deep breath. He had wanted to save Fa Jin for a direct hit; but now he had no choice!
"Air Force!" he cried, as the claws leapt up at him. Black Whip coiled around him, covering his ears, eyes, nose, and mouth, and bracing his arm. "Faux-100%! Houston Smash!"
His fist flared red, and he punched straight down; the force of it flying like a blazing rocket. The salt claws were blown away, sending salt flying in every direction. The entire palace shook, the walls crumbling in clouds of dust. Windows blew out, and dust billowed through them, the shockwave spreading out over the city. The blast erupting upward into the cloud-filled sky, forming a shrieking tornado.
Izuku felt his arm stiffen as he looked at the damage below. The center of the palace had collapsed, leaving only a crater riddled with debris. He landed on the ground, and took a deep breath. There was no sign of Handsome.
Until a swirl of white caught his eye. He readied himself, charging up Fa Jin, as Handsome rematerialized before him. The monster looked around, wide-eyed.
"Gwahahahahaha!" Handsome shrieked with laughter. "All that, and you still couldn't hurt me! You blew away this whole palace, all your vases, all that water you were planning on using on me!"
Izuku remained silent, charging his fist.
"I won't deny that you're strong!" Handsome went on. "Against anybody else you'd have won! But I'm a Logia User with Haki! I have powers you don't have! And without any Haki of your own, you're just living on borrowed time that's about to run out!"
He grinned, salt swirling in a tornado around his arm. Izuku's Danger Sense flared, as the ground around him began to darken.
"Sal Tornade!" He punched, the tornado leaping from his arm. Izuku jumped out of the way, as the tornado shredded the ground. He launched his Black Whip tendrils, grabbing at pieces of debris to push himself along. The cyclone followed him, tall as a skyscraper, shattered stones disintegrating at its touch.
"I'm getting tired of you, runt!" snarled Handsome. Izuku glanced back at him, and saw him raise his right arm. The sky overhead was overcast, dark.
"Take this!" The tornado receded, and Izuku saw a swirling ball of salt in Handsome's hand. "Saaaal!"
Izuku landed, right hand raised to aim his way, left arm raised back. Black Whip braced his arms, ready for Faux-100%, and covered his mouth and nose. "Air Force! Houston!"
"Bomba!"
"Smash!"
The red fist erupted from his hand once again. Handsome swung his arm like a baseball pitcher, the glowing white ball shooting from his hand and blasting towards Izuku. The two met, and their power exploded. Izuku was thrown back, landing hard in what remained of the palace gardens. His Black Whip coiled around him, cushioning the impact, and he rolled across the grass; his tendrils shooting out to hook into the ground, pulling him to a halt.
He looked up. Before him was an even larger crater, salt fountaining out of it. Around him, the outer wings of the palace were wrecked.
They would be okay. He had to have fountain had become a wave, with Handsome standing atop it; riding it like a surfer.
"Now you can't hide, boy!" he bellowed. Behind him, salt spouts jumped up from the wave, forming into replicas of his face. His arms were swirling with salt, and around him the wave was spreading, the debris of the palace sinking into it, shivering into dust. It was like something out of a disaster movie.
"I will be done with you, and then this city will be mine!" It was like a comic book page come to life, with a villain who could command the forces of nature standing before him. If such an attack were to be unleashed in a city...
"Sultan Stoooooorm!" Handsome roared, all of the faces on the twisters speaking with him in conjunction as they all glared down at Izuku. "Your chances of victory, little green man, are now… ZERO!"
But Izuku was smiling.
"You sure about that?" he asked, as the tsunami of salt approached. For a moment, Handsome faltered, suddenly suspicious.
Then he yelped when he felt a familiar burning sensation on his body. A cold sense of dread formed as he saw the sky above them. The clouds were dark, heavy, the thunder rolling.
And the rain fell.
"No! No nononono!" Handsome yelled, his boisterous confidence turned to dread. The salt twisters fell to the ground, as terror broke his control. " How did it arrrrggghhhh!"
He yelped and yelled as the raindrops fell; his salt turning to mush, sloughing down like a melting sandcastle. It ran harmlessly between Izuku's steel greaves, killing the grass.
Unbothered, the young hero stepped through the salt puddles, the mush squelching under his boots, as Handsome turned and fled back towards the ruins, his salt wave shrinking as he attempted to reach dry ground.
Izuku broke into a run, his Black Whip reaching out and lifting him into the air; as if he were some enormous octopus or spider. Handsome howled in agony as he scrambled over the ruins, his salt wave gone.
"Graaagh!" he screamed. "Don't tell me! You-aaaaaaaaagg! planned this all along! You… your punches can change the fucking weather?! Impossible!"
He was turning into mush, slithering down into the crater and under a chunk of debris. Shielded from the rain, he turned to face Izuku.
"His pride won't let him run. He won't flee without the chance to kill you" The Second said in his head.
"Yep. Classic prideful type" Daigoro added.
"And as they say…pride goeth before a fall," Hikage noted.
Izuku loomed over him, held aloft by his Black Tendrils. The rain was now a deluge, washing over the salted earth, filling up the craters, running down the ruined walls of the palace. He sent out more tendrils, latching onto the ruins, tensing himself in the middle. The pebble in the slingshot, ready to fly.
"You call this a victory, fool! You know in a one-on-one fight I'd have won!" Handsome spat. His body was reforming, regaining its human shape. But the skin was inflamed, the face covered in welts. In his hands were two swirling masses of salt. "Even with all your little tricks and powers. Even with all that, you… still lack… what I have!"
Izuku saw movement out of the corner of his eye.
"Maybe I do. But you lack what I have too" he retorted. "And Saltquaker, whatever made you think…?" He leant back, stretching the tendrils taught. "That this was a one-on-one battle?"
He launched. He flew, the wind whipping at his soaked body. Handsome snarled, and thrust out his hands, releasing his two Sai Bombas.
And there was Yamato, her club swinging down from his blind spot.
"Ragna!"
"Detroit!"
And the two struck as one, Yamato on the shoulder, and Izuku right to his ribs.
"RAKU!"
"SMASH!"
The plateau shook, sending a wave of dust billowing down the sides and out over the city. Water gushed down the plateau, washing over the ancient friezes, and splashing out into streets. Up on the plateau, the ruins crumbled; walls and columns toppling over, the very earth folding in on itself.
(X)
They were out.
Bach and Lawson staggered out of the escape tunnel, into a side street near the plateau. The ground below them was shaking, the buildings around them groaning and trembling.
Doyle didn't get earthquakes. Was this how an earthquake felt?
"Do you think they've done it?" Lawson asked, breathing hard. They walked down the street together, and out onto the Royal Plaza. The buildings around them were damaged; their walls and gates pock-marked with bullet holes, their windows smashed. The plaza itself was carpeted with corpses; most of them pirates, but many of them soldiers and police. Blood lay in puddles, its deep red fading as the rainwater fell into it, washing it away.
A few pirates were still alive, but the fight was out of them. Soldiers and police were rounding them up, and attending to the wounded.
They, at least, had won. Even if the Finalem brothers triumphed, they would have no crew. Doyle had hurt them, at least.
"Your Majesty!" Jenner called out, running towards him. He was hurt, his suit slashed and ruined, his bronze skin cut and bleeding, but his eyes were bright. "You're all right! And you too Lawson!"
Lawson chuckled. "Naturally, I would imagine I have been in tougher battles," he mused, looking coyly at Jenner, who smirked back and had a chuckle.
"And I'm one to thank?" Jenner replied. Lawson laughed, and Bach turned towards his men. The prisoners had been rounded up, and now the dead were being collected, laid in neat rows by their comrades.
Nearby, watching them, was General Hutchinson; his bushy mustache and sideburns soaked and drooping, his thick eyebrows sodden with the falling rain.
"Your Majesty," the old general greeted him, leaning on his cane. "We did our duty… but what of the Captains?" He looked up at the palace. "When we heard those blasts, we feared the worst. I've never seen anything like it."
Bach took a deep breath.
"How are the men?" he asked.
"We've come out the other end better for it," Hutchinson said gravely. "We lost a lot of good lads today, but…" He paused, and put a hand on his shoulder. "They knew what they were doing. That's what it means, this red coat."
Bach turned, looking down to the end of the plaza. Smashed barricades lay all around, and a great many bodies; more of them, proportionately, than the rest of the plaza.
"The Captains broke through there," Hutchinson explained. "Headsplitter, Big Biter and Sawtooth Scyther. We tried to stop them, but they broke through."
Bach's eyes widened, and his blood ran cold.
"Where did they go?" he asked, dreading the answer. After all they had done, all they had sacrificed; those three had gotten away!
"Your Majesty! Sirs!" It was Commissioner Tibs, a Transponder Snail in his hand.
"Commissioner Tibs? What is it?" Lawson called out.
"Bah Tibs!" grumbled Hutchinson. "The grownups are talking here!"
"It's quite alright." Bach assured, looking towards the scruffy haired police commissioner. "Well Commissioner?"
"Word from Ensign Doll!" reported Tibs, breathless. "The three lieutenants have been thwarted. She and two others intercepted them at the Morantown gasworks, and managed to stop them. The gasworks suffered some damage, but there is no danger, and no one else was hurt."
"The Gasworks?!" spluttered Lawson. "They were-"
"Trying to blow it up," Bach finished his sentence. He looked up at the dark, overcast sky.
And then he saw the plateau, at the top of the stairs. The main entrance should have been there, but all he could see was rubble and open sky. And down the stairs, he saw the statues of his ancestors. His grandfather Basil, his Great-Grandfather Benedict, Brookson, and Reichen Brand the founder of Doyle.
All of them ruined.
He started up the stairs, hearing Lawson still talking to Jenner and Hutchinson. Debris lay on the steps around him. There was even furniture from his study, and his Royal Apartment. The things he had known all his life, and had thought would always be there; now reduced to so much trash.
The rain beat down on him as he continued his ascent, drenching his uniform, slicking down his hair. The ruined statues gazed down at him, their gazes stoic, unfeeling. Step by step he climbed, the rain washing away the blood and grime at his feet.
He looked back towards the city. The rain was stopping, and the plaza was filling up. People were emerging from their houses and workplaces, filling the streets, crowding into the plaza; heedless of the bodies and the blood at the palace gate. He could see their upturned faces, their eyes fixed upon him, wondering if the nightmare was over.
And beyond them, past the city, and over the land, he could see the ocean beyond through the small gap in the mountains at Adlerview. He could see its waves rolling and roiling, as they had always done and would always do; before Doyle was founded, and after it had crumbled into dust.
He felt so very tired, so very alone. There were pirate crews like the Finalems, a ship or two and their captains, made deadly by Devil Fruits, or by wondrous new technologies. The Finalems were defeated, but others would soon come; made cruel by a cruel world, and desperate by the power of the World Government, and pirates far stronger than themselves. They would try Doyle's weary power, because they had no choice but to try. They would try and try, and fail and fail, until Doyle could bear no more, and the last one succeeded.
And should an Emperor come to claim their land, there would be only surrender, or utter destruction.
He had to change that. He had to make Doyle strong. Strong enough to stand alone, to be a mighty friend to others, and to fight for those who could not fight for themselves. The strong dominated the weak, but the weak could make each other strong. Doyle would need an army and a navy, weapons and ships of its own.
But the World Government would object. They would send a polite note. And then a stern warning. And then the horizon would fill with sails, an Admiral's banner flying overhead.
How was he supposed to win? Was Doyle doomed to burn either way? Should he keep kowtowing to the Marines and be helpless? Or secede and be an open target?
What was he to do?
He heard a crackle of debris behind him. He turned, and there were Izuku and Yamato, dragging the fallen Finalem brothers behind them in what was left of the Great Hall. They looked up, despite their clothes in tatters looking unhurt and fit, and their faces broke into bright smiles as they saw him. Izuku grinned, and made a gesture with his fist, the thumb straight up. Yamato laughed aloud and waved, as joyful as a child.
In that dark, lonely place, nothing could have meant more. Nothing could have comforted him more as he let out a laugh of relief. Not all the achievements of his life, all the cases he had solved, all the weak and powerless he had helped, could have compared to that.
He looked back over the city. The rain had stopped, and the clouds were clearing. He could see the faces of his people; some pained and fearful, others hopeful, yearning.
Some were even smiling.
And in his mind's eye, he heard a voice; a voice he had never heard, but somehow knew?
"Hope cannot live for itself or by itself. Hope cannot stand on its own, or for itself alone. Like love it must be nurtured. Like friendship it must be sustained. No one can love unless they have been loved. No one can love themselves, unless they have been loved by others."
He snapped his head round, staring up at the uppermost statue on the right. Reichen Brand, his face barely recognisable.
And then he felt something; a presence, like someone standing at his shoulder. Comforting. Nostalgic.
Motherly.
"Don't lose your heart, my little Bach."
He looked, but there was no one there. Just Yamato and Izuku, cheerfully hauling their prisoners through the rubble as they went towards the side.
Yes, they have their duty. Leave the pirates to the guards, and they would be off to Alderport...
He looked down at the plaza again. And he understood.
"PEOPLE!" he roared, his voice echoing across the plaza. "THE FINALEM PIRATES HAVE FALLEN!"
He could see their faces; the fear and pain turning to hope and joy, the eyes filling with tears. He could see Jenner and Hutchinson, their eyes full of pride; and Tibs, looking like he had just seen God. And there was Lawson, beaming up at him with pride. The pride of the only father he had ever known, or wanted.
"THE KINGDOM OF DOYLE…IS FREE!"
Attack Name translations:
See-Saw Slicer - See Saw Kiri
Soru - Shave
Geppou - Moon Walk
Hagan - Blade Gun
Kiriitachi - Weasel Cutter, a Pun.
Marine One Sword Style - Gale Squall Song
Kaigun Ittoryu - Kyofuu Sonson
Sickle Death Weasel - Kama shinitachi (pun on sadness God cutter, or rather Sickle Reaper Weasel)
Kachiage Haisoku - Backfoot Jawbreaker
Samehada Joushotei - Sharkskin Rising Palm Thrust
Ougi: Buraiken - Secret Technique: Vagabond Drill
Hikouryu Ipponzeoi - Flying Dragon Shoulder Throw
Handsome's attacks should be easy in regards to the puns, salt, and/or and his desire to be king. Sal=Tsar. Sultan=Salten.
Sal Bomba - a pun on Tsar Bomba, with L in Japanese sounding a lot like R.
Salt Rake city - Rakes are claws for the grass, and a pun for Salt Lake City.
Houston Smash is evident. With Fa Jin? Speed of a rocket? Come on people.
AN:
And there you have it, the Finalem Pirates have been defeated! Thanks in part to our two duos, and Doll. And Bach has his declaration, but this arc isn't over just yet. We got 2 chapters left. So stay tuned for that one. Gonna write up the outline for Juubi during the week.
Hope you all enjoyed the fights! I think I got this written up over 2 days over so at work. Good stuff. Note if I get any Japanese naming stuff wrong, feel free to call me out and contact me. I could use a Japanese fluent speaker for help on something like this.