"Sabo! Sabo! Are you alright?"
Koala rushed over, staying low to the ground as she hurried to Sabo’s side. She grabbed his shoulders, her voice thick with worry.
"I... I’m fine," Sabo shook his head, his gaze fixed on the devastated remains of the camp. "The camp... how is it?" he asked, his voice rasping.
Koala lowered her head, her expression darkening. She didn’t answer directly. Instead, she urged, "Sabo, we have to go. The pirate ships are descending!"
At those words, a flicker of color returned to Sabo’s pale face. He looked up to see over a dozen pirate ships slowly lowering themselves from the sky. The massive hulls blotted out the sun, casting a shadow that felt as if the very world was being smothered.
"The camp is gone..." Sabo let out a low, agonizing groan.
The Revolutionary Army camp had held over a hundred thousand people. The density was simply too high. While many had managed to flee during the initial bombardnt and scattered across the vast Red River Wasteland, far more hadn’t made it out in ti.
Faced with that apocalyptic "Thunderstorm," those who remained in the camp suffered catastrophic losses. A single glance revealed countless charred bodies piled upon one another—tens of thousands dead in an instant.
"It’s not your fault, Sabo. No one could have predicted this!" Koala tried to console him.
"I’ve let so many of our brothers die... I’m a failure as Chief of Staff!" Sabo was consud by grief, the weight of his guilt nearly suffocating him.
Over the years, though his path hadn’t always been smooth, he had relied on his strength and intellect to rise to the position of Chief of Staff, a feat recognized by everyone in the Revolutionary Army. They had suffered losses before, but never on this scale. The loss of so many innocent lives under his command felt like a burden he couldn’t bear.
SLAP!
A sharp sound echoed through the ruins. Koala had swung her hand and struck Sabo across the face. A red handprint swelled on his right cheek almost instantly.
"Are you awake now?" Koala asked tonelessly.
"Koala..." Sabo clutched his face, his eyes finally clearing.
"Sabo, we are fighting for a cause greater than ourselves. Loss is inevitable. Mourning here helps no one!" Koala gripped his shoulders, forcing him to look her in the eye.
"I’m sorry." Sabo’s gaze sharpened; he understood.
"This wasn’t your responsibility. No one expected this kind of situation. Even if Dragon-san had been here personally, he might not have been able to turn the tide," Koala said solemnly. "Move! If you want revenge, you have to stay alive!"
"I understand!" Sabo nodded, his spirit finally reignited. Seeing him recover, a small smile touched Koala’s lips.
"We need to find Hack. He was definitely injured," Sabo said, rembering his friend who had been sent flying by Steel Devil Abel.
"Hack is hurt, but it’s not too serious," Koala said quickly. "I’ve already had soone take him toward the Red River. We’re all eting there."
"Then let’s move!" Sabo and Koala struck out toward the riverbank.
...
At the sa ti, Abel, Backan, and the others were crawling out from the dirt, looking battered and disheveled.
"Motherf—! That bastard Enel, I’m not done with him!" Abel looked at his filthy fur coat, cursed, and ripped it off, throwing it to the ground in a rage.
"Damned lunatic!" Backan hissed, gritting his teeth. Because he wore tal armor, it acted as a conductor. Even though he wasn’t hit directly, the static charge had caused his hair to stand straight up on end, giving him a look that was more "alternative" than he cared for.
"Pah! Damn you, Enel!" Quiniel Vito spat out a mouthful of dirt, looking thoroughly annoyed. He had descended with the Dragonians, and while he possessed so lightning power of his own, it was nothing compared to the Rumble-Rumble Fruit or the raw power of nature. He wasn’t immune; if he’d taken a direct hit, it would have been painful.
THUD! THUD! THUD!
One by one, the massive pirate ships touched down on the reddish-brown earth, their heavy hulls sinking deep into the terrain.
"Ooh!"
"Kill them all!"
"Wipe out the Revolutionaries!"
"Long live Captain Aeridar!"
Thousands of pirates and Animate constructs poured off the ships like a swarm of locusts, brandishing weapons and screaming with fanatical fervor. The Commanders led their divisions, sweeping through any remaining resistance like a hot knife through butter.
"Naval forces? Homies? The Gifters? Heh... who could possibly match now?"
Aeridar stood at the prow of the Chris, looking out over the camp with imnse pride. With an army like this and high-level combatants to lead them, there were few in this world who could stand against him.
"Butcher! Die!"
Suddenly, a man blackened by soot rose from a pile of corpses. Clutching a heavy hamr, he leaped several ters onto the prow of the ship, charging at Aeridar with a face twisted in rage.
"Seriously... who gave a piece of trash like you permission to step onto my ship?" Aeridar sighed, his expression turning cold and predatory.
He extended his palm, and a powerful, invisible concussive force exploded into the air.
VROOOM—!
The atmosphere buckled, forming a visible impact wave that roared forward.
"Aaargh!"
In an instant, the man was engulfed. He was blasted backward, his body pulverized as if struck by a giant sledgehamr. Bones shattered, and blood sprayed from his nose and mouth.
THUD.
A mangled corpse hit the ground below, kicking up a cloud of dust.
"Yah-ha-ha! You’ve got quite the temper today!" Enel grinned.
"Shut up and follow . Let’s find that Revolutionary Chief of Staff," Aeridar said, glancing at Enel before waving him forward.
In the next mont, one vanished in a blur of speed while the other transford into a bolt of lightning, streaking across the sky.
...
By the Red River.
Sabo, Koala, Hack, and Len, the regional head of the Bivins Kingdom, along with a few surviving officers, had gathered at the water’s edge.
"If we follow the river, we can find our way out of the Red River Wasteland without getting lost," Len said, pointing toward the sixty-ter-wide river.
"Then it’s decided. Preserving the sparks of the revolution is our top priority," Sabo agreed.
The group turned to leave, but Sabo suddenly froze and looked back at the sky.
CRACK-BOOM!
Before anyone could ask what was wrong, a bolt of lightning tore through the sky and struck the ground just dozens of ters away, sending shards of rock flying.
"Thunder God Enel!" Sabo hissed, his eyes locked on the figure erging from the electricity.
"Yah-ha-ha! So you’re the Chief of Staff of the Revolutionary Army?" Enel said, sparks dancing across his skin. He twirled his golden staff, stepping forward to size Sabo up. "You’re surprisingly young."
He then glanced behind Sabo and the others. "Right, Captain?"
"Captain?!"
A chill ran down the spines of everyone in the Revolutionary group. There was only one man who could be called "Captain" by the infamous Great Pirate, Thunder God Enel.
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