[Opening scene]
Under the scorching sun's heat, we are greeted once again by Aiko, fast asleep on his trusty, dainty dinghy, the waves calmly crashing against each other, the winds harmonizing faintly out on the sea. As Aiko is deep in seeming forever slumber, an imposing shadow towers over Aiko's little billowing dinghy. As this shadow stops moving all you can see is a large pirate ship right above Aiko's tiny boat. Upon the ship, you can hear several faint voices that seem to be getting closer, almost as if they're stopping the ship. When the ship finally stops, there are several figures exiting the ship, and heading to examine Aiko's dinghy, while the people of this ship are making their way down, Aiko who seems like he's dead is still fast asleep and not feeling any sort of interference going, well that's probably because he's practically in a sleep coma, but any interference with his plan to get to his next destination would be very much of a setback for him.
[On Aiko's dinghy]
After a few minutes of some of the pirate ship members making their down to Aiko's boat, a few finally arrive at the bottom and land on his dinghy, but of course, Aiko being in deep slumber doesn't feel any sort of disturbance on his boat. One of the members of the pirate ship's crew looks up at those aboard the ship and exclaims:
"Hey! What should we do about this one?!" said one of the subordinates loudly, making sure his voice could be heard up top.
"Hey, you fool! Don't be so loud, we don't wanna wake up the twerp." said another subordinate softly, trying not to wake Aiko up.
The other subordinate laughs slightly, he's amused by how he cares about not wanting to wake Aiko up, "Oh man you're funny, but there's no need to worry about him, he seems practically dead at this point, even if he's sleeping, so we shouldn't worry about him, he shouldn't be awake for quite a while." He says this confidently, knowing for sure Aiko won't be waking up for a while. The other subordinate gives him a somewhat worried, but he just decides to leave it in hopes that this guy knows what he's talking about. After the two bicker about what to do with Aiko, they both just decide it's best to take him and put him aboard the ship and they'll see what to do with him later on. As the two make their way back to the ship, they hear a slightly angry voice aboard the ship "HEY! HURRY UP YOU FOOLS!" calling out to them, and decide to pick up the pace.
[Aboard the ship]
Up on the ship, it's quite busy, with subordinates running around, doing whatever on the ship, but the most striking thing about this ship is who commands it, a notorious pirate known all over the East Blue, and hopefully, soon across the world, she sits in the middle of the ship on a regal sort of chair, showing her role on the ship as the leader and the person who runs things around, she sits on it with authority and nobility, feeling like she's the most important person on earth, she is known as: ["The Queen of the East Blue" Miss El, Captain of the El Side Pirates, Bounty: 25 000 000 Beli]. Miss El, an elegant, slim-figured, blonde, considered to be a piece of art, leads the El Side Pirates, a notorious and what is considered as an evil group of pirates. While subordinates are running around, Miss El with an irritated look on her face says "Oi! Where are those two bimbos, I've been waiting for quite a while now, surely it doesn't take that long to kidnap some shrimp on a useless, small boat!?" said Captain El with a slight annoyance in her voice.
"Ehh, don't worry Madam, I-I'm sure they'll be back on board any moment now," says Miss El's trusty right-hand man in a worried tone. [Hebero Shiman, First mate of the El Side pirates/ bounty: 8 000 000 Beli].
Miss El, taking a sip of her booze, "Hmm, you better be right Hebero-san, you know I don't like being sidetracked from my main goals...it really ticks me off!" exclaimed El as she took yet another sip of her booze.
"Of course Madam, I know how much you don't like to be set away from your main objective, hehe," said Hebero nervously.
After Miss El has her little outburst, the two men have finally arrived, and with Aiko in a large brown bag, it took them long enough.
"Captain! We got the twerp right here!" says one of the men while light patting the bag that is hoisted upon his shoulder.
"It was about damn time!" says Captain El in a much rather pleased yet annoyed tone.
"Where should we put him Captain?" asked the other man.
"Just put him down in the shed, we'll see what we were gonna do with him later." says Hebero.
The two nod their heads and make their down to the shed where they'll put Aiko in the meantime.
[Down in the ship's shed]
The two goonies finally make it down to the ship's shed, it's very dark, dusty, and old, you can see the withered, cracking wooden floor planks, the decaying walls glimmer in the sunlight that shines through the gapped wooden roof which is the ship's deck floor. The two finally set the bag Aiko is being carried in down and open and release Aiko who is still in fact asleep and tied up and set him down on the floor in his slumber.
"Ah, that should be it, let's go back up and tell Captain everything's okay now." says the man who seems to be out of breath.
"Yeah, but are we sure he won't wake up at some point? I have an odd feeling about this." says the other man, seeming a bit more worried.
The other man looking a bit agitated by these comments rolls his eyes, "Oh come on man, why won't you just loosen up a bit, always worrying about these small things, I can assure you, he won't wake up, and even if he did, would that be such a problem? Take a good look at him, tell me you don't think that shrimp could actually do any sort of damage." the man says arrogantly, undermining Aiko based on his looks.
The other guy still skeptical about what they're doing, "Mmm, I'm still not sure about this, but I can see your annoyance all over, so I'll just agree and hope for the best." says the guy, a bit doubtful in the other man's statement.
"I knew you'd come around, now let's go back and report to the captain."
The man nods, and the two make their way back up to the ship's deck to report to Captain El. While the two are going back to the top, a boy, quite frail and skinny can be seen making his way down to the shed, seems like he's a cleaner boy, and he's putting the cleaning supplies back in the shed after doing some cleaning around the ship. On his way down to the shed, he hums a blissful, soothing, good old sea shanty, known as "Binks Booze" a pirate classic.
[In the shed]
The chore boy has finally made it down to the shed to pack away the stuff, as he is about to put the mops and brooms in the corner of the shed, without noticing, he stumbles on Aiko's body and falls face flat to the floor.
"Ouch! What is this-" said the boy as he stops his sentence to check exactly what he fell on. The boy slowly creeps up to a sleeping Aiko, but as he does so...
"DANGOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!" came a loud screech from Aiko who had just awoken from his slumber, and is craving his favourite...Dango!
The boy quickly gets a fright, stumbles back, and falls flat onto the floor.
"What the hell!?!? I thought you were dead!" said the boy, who is certainly quite frightened by Aiko's sudden ascending.
Aiko turns his head to see who is speaking behind him, and he sees none other than the boy.
"Huh? Me? Dead? Oh you're funny, I was just taking a quick nap, but I don't really recognize where I am..." said Aiko in a puzzled tone, not knowing how he ended up where he currently is at the moment.
"Well yeah...That's because the captain's goonies kidnapped you and put you down here, in the ship's shed." said the boy who was still a bit shaken and dazed.
"Huh? Sheep's head? I don't see any sheep's head around here... Are you okay by any chance, because you don't seem like it, hehe." questioned Aiko in a genuinely concerned tone.
"I-I-I'm fine, just a bit...uhm...tired, yeah, tired is what I am." said the boy in a very confused and nervous tone.
"Woah, calm down, no need to be so nervous, I don't bite," said Aiko with a big grin on his face.
"I-I know, I'm just a bit in shock still, I still thought you were dead, but you're alive..." said the boy who is still puzzled about the whole situation.
"Oh well. Now, how do I get out of this place, I kinda have somewhere to be," said Aiko, wondering how he could get off of the ship and get back on track to getting to Sunrise Republic.
"Huh? What do you mean you have places to be...?" asked the boy, intrigued by what Aiko meant by he has places to be.
"Yes, I was just on my way to a place known as Sunrise Republic, or at least I think I was, I'm not the best at navigation," said Aiko, feeling comfortable telling this random chore boy all of his endeavors, almost like the feeling that he's met him before.
"Sunrise Republic huh? We were also just on our way there too." said the boy, feeling a bit more relaxed and at ease.
"Really!? That's cool! I guess I'll just catch a lift then, instead of having to get there myself." said Aiko, with a sense of relief, knowing that he didn't have to do much now since Captain El and her crew were just on their way to Sunrise Republic.
"Yeah. By the way, if you don't mind me asking, what are you planning on doing at Sunrise Republic anyways...?" questioned the boy, wondering what Aiko has to do at Sunrise Republic.
"Oh, well I was gonna go there in hopes of finding the first member to be a part of my crew, and my first mate, but it seems I'm looking for my second, since I got my first recruit, right here, right now," Aiko says as he grins proud and wide.
The boy is a bit startled by Aiko's words, he is able to quickly catch on to what Aiko is trying to imply.
"Wait, wait, wait, wait, just wait- Are you trying to say I'm a part of your crew, and your FIRST MATE!?!?!" the boy says in shock and befuddlement, wondering where Aiko is getting at.
Aiko chuckles at the boy's reaction, it's quite amusing to him and funny to see.
"I possibly can't be part of your crew, and not the first mate of it! You're crazy for thinking that, y-y-you FOOL!" says the boy, trying to hide the fact that he appreciated being recognized as Aiko's first mate.
"Why can't you join my crew? It's not like it's rocket science, just leave this ship, and come with me and be my first mate on my crew as we voyage the seas, see? Simple as that." said Aiko in a very confident tone.
"Uhh, no, I just can't leave the El Side pirates, it's just not an option, no! No! No! NO!" said the boy in a somewhat scared tone.
"Woah, woah, calm down, no need to lose your cool like that, I was just saying," said Aiko in a cool, calm, and collected tone.
"I-I'm sorry, I was just overreacting, I just got a bit scared, it's just, no one ever leaves the El Side pirates, you'd just be walking into your own death, no one ever dares thinking to do such." said the boy in a more calmer tone than before.
"Huh? El cider pirates? That's an unusual name for a crew," said Aiko a bit puzzled.
" *sigh* Not cider you idiot, El Side, it's a notorious crew, known all over the East Blue, the captain, Miss El, also known as the "Queen of the East Blue" runs the crew, and she's a very feared figure in the East Blue, and soon, the Grandline." said the boy.
"This Miss El sure does sound like quite the well-seasoned pirate. Also, what's the Grandmine thingy ma jig?" asked Aiko in a genuinely confused tone.
The boy sighs as he places his head in his palm, he can't believe Aiko doesn't know these things.
"I really wonder what cave you've been living in. So, let me tell you, the G-R-A-N-D-L-I-N-E, Grandline! A place that is known as the start of every pirate's journey, where they either reign conquerors or die within the first few months, if not weeks, it's known as the "Sea of fate", that sea is a sea where a pirate finds out if they're ready to become a pirate and deal with the hardships of being one, that is where true monsters are born..." said the boy in a very serious tone, emphasizing on the danger of the Grandline.
Aiko who was very moved and intrigued by this story, is gleaming with excitement, he just wants to skip all the boring stuff and go straight to the Grandline.
"COOOLLLL!! I can't wait to make it to the Grandline!" Aiko says with excitement in his voice.
"Are you crazy! You would never make it in the Grandline, it's a breeding ground for deaths of well, people like you! It's way too dangerous, notorious and monstrous pirates run everything there, you don't wanna mess with them." said the boy with worry in his voice, trying to warn Aiko about the Grandline.
"Yeah, yeah, but who cares about all of that stuff, as long as I have a group of friends that I can trust and rely on, I'll be fine," Aiko says dismissively.
"*sighs* I guess you're right, but even so, where are you gonna find these friends?" asked the boy with a slight concern.
"Well, to be honest, I don't really know, but...*Aiko says as he remembers Omo-san's words to him * A wise old man once said, "Fate will decide that for me, so wherever I end up, and I meet someone, and I feel like they're meant to be on my crew, I recruit them, and that is...the power of fate," Aiko says with a lighthearted tone.
"Hm, I guess that's one way to put it." said the boy who agreed with Aiko.
"Anyways, do you mind untying me, it's getting quite uncomfortable now..." said Aiko who is trying to shift the ropes into a more comfortable position.
"Oh, ah, I'm sorry about that, let me help you." The boy says as he crawls his way to Aiko to help untie him.
As the boy is releasing Aiko from the hold of the ropes, Aiko creates some conversation, to not make things so awkward.
"So, how did you end up on the El Cider pirate crew?" Aiko asks while the boy is still untying him.
"Well it wasn't by choice, one day I was just out and about in my village, and I saw their ship, thought it would be a fun experience to explore it, but when the crew came back from wherever, they decided to keep me on the ship as a chore boy, and here I am today." the boy says in a much rather disappointed tone.
"Oh man, you're really dumb for that," Aiko says while chuckling.
"You're the last one to be speaking about being "dumb" you fool!" exclaimed the boy, a bit offended by Aiko's comment, even though it's not far from the truth, he was really dumb for that action of his.
Aiko chuckles at the boy's sudden outburst
"Ok, ok, I'm sorry, I am the last one to be speaking," Aiko says while chuckling sheepishly.
"Anyways, why are you out on the sea anyways? Alone at that." inquired the boy, wondering what Aiko is doing on the sea alone.
"I'm a pirate, even though I don't have a crew yet, but that will change quite soon," Aiko says with a confident tone.
"You're quite the confident one, but I'm telling you, being a pirate nowadays is tough, especially in the Grandline, the navy doesn't mess around, they take their job seriously." the boy says with a serious and worried tone.
"It's just the navy, plus, with my large crew, anything will be possible," said Aiko with a lot of tenacity.
" *sigh* I guess, but how large would your crew even be? I would suggest at least over 50 people." the boy says with a much rather concerned tone.
"50? Isn't that a bit much? To be honest, I was thinking at least about 16 people, including me, so... uh... about...uh..." says Aiko trying to figure out the math of how many people he needs excluding himself from the equation.
The boy is baffled at how Aiko is struggling to figure out simple math, it's quite amusing to him in some way, it reminds him of a certain someone almost.
"You need 15 people." the boy says while laughing a bit.
"Oh, yeah, 15 people, sorry, I wasn't the best at math," Aiko says, quite embarrassed by his lack of math skills.
"It's ok, that actually made my day, well just speaking to you actually." the boy says, brightening up a bit.
"Well, I'm glad that I could make your day," Aiko says with a big grin on his face.
After a few minutes, the boy finally finished untying Aiko, and Aiko is now free and able to move as he wants again.
"Ah, finally I can move again, thanks by the way," Aiko says with a genuine tone.
"No problem, happy I could help, but now, how are you gonna get off the ship?" the boy asks, genuinely concerned for Aiko.
"Well since you guys are on your way to Sunrise Republic, I don't really need to get off, do I?" Aiko says.
"Well I guess, but the captain probably won't let that happen, she's most likely planning on keeping you here as a subordinate." said the boy.
"Hmmm... I got it! I'll just fight her, and we steal a small boat, and make our way to Sunrise Republic!" Aiko says, very confident in his sudden plan of action.
The boy is caught off guard by what Aiko just said, he can't believe what Aiko is suggesting right now.
"W-w-what... ARE TRYING TO SAY RIGHT NOW!?" exclaimed the boy in pure fear.
"Uh, we fight the captain and steal a boat and set sail for Sunrise Republic...?" said Aiko, a bit confused about why the boy is overreacting.
"Are you crazy!? She'll kill us both, I'm not doing that, you're on your own there." said the boy adamantly.
"Not if we fight her together, plus how strong can she be?" said Aiko with a big grin covering his face.
" *sigh* You clearly don't know Captain El, she's one of the strongest around the East Blue, right after another notorious pirate, so our chances of defeating her are well...pretty low." said the boy in a defeated tone, showing that he really feels that they can't beat Miss El.
"So? It wouldn't hurt to at least try, that's what my mom used to tell me." said Aiko with confidence in his voice, really believing they could take down Miss El.
"Well...I guess, but...But still, what's the plan if we do decide to fight her?" said the boy, feeling much rather inspired.
"Hmm...Well, never thought that far, I was just gonna go with the flow, you know?" said Aiko in a chill tone.
"Ah- Seriously? No plan? No nothing?" questioned the boy, sounding rather confused.
Aiko chuckles and nods.
"Ok, here's the plan..."
The boy then explains the plan he has to take down and defeat Miss El, and that way Aiko and himself can escape and make their way to Sunrise Republic.
[A few minutes later]
Aiko and the boy are now on the ship's deck, confronting Captain El, and it seems to be heating up, everyone on the ship is on stand-by, reading for the worst-case scenario.
Miss El, who seems quite agitated at the moment, takes a sip of her wine before saying:
"Hmph, so this fool finally woke up, and it seems he made aquatints with the little, puny, weak, and useless chore boy," said Miss El in a slightly angry tone.
"Hey! He is not useless, maybe weak and puny, and at times annoying, but he is not useless! You just haven't taken the time to get to know him." said Aiko in a very commanding tone.
The boy, who is currently standing behind Aiko, gets a bit flustered, even though Aiko calls him weak and puny, and at times annoying, he says he's not useless, which is well, the best thing anyone has ever said to him since joining the El Side pirates.
*The boy to himself*
"Why does he think so much of me?"
Everyone else aboard the ship is flabbergasted, they can't believe Aiko had the nerve to say what he said to their captain, especially in that tone, and all you can hear in the background is "Oh my gosh", "He did not", "Where did that stupid chore boy find this guy", "The actual nerve", all the reactions to Aiko's uncanny behavior. Miss El's right-hand man on the other hand, is beyond worried, he can't believe what he witnessed, he knows Miss El doesn't take disrespect lightly, and she certainly will retaliate at some point, but when is the question, all he can do now is try his hardest to stop Aiko and the chore boy now.
"Hey! You watch who you speak to with that tone young man!" exclaimed Hebero, trying to ease the current situation.
"The big lady, obviously." Aiko said in a calm tone.
The whole ship is taken aback by Aiko's comment: subordinates, the chore boy, the right-hand man, and even Miss El herself, are utterly shocked by Aiko's attitude.
"B-b-b-BIG!?!? WHO YOU CALLING BIG YOU TWERP!" Miss El says as she slowly walks up to Aiko, with pure anger and frustration written all over her face.
"You," Aiko says with an unbothered tone.
Everyone on the ship cannot believe Aiko's nerve, they are all in just utter shock.
"Oh my gosh, he did it again," said someone in the background.
"I've lost all hope." said someone else on the other side of the ship.
"He is really dumb, he is dumb." said someone else on the far side of the ship.
On the other hand, the chore boy can't believe what he is witnessing right now, he's never met or seen anyone as brave as Aiko, and instead of being scared, he's actually quite inspired right now.
"Wow, I can't believe someone like him actually exists, I hope... I...h-ho- I-i-i HOPE TO BE LIKE HIM SOMEDAY!" said the boy loudly after speaking in a soft tone.
The rest of the crew is quite befuddled, now the chore boy is supporting this mad behaviour? Absolutely shocking.
"This cannot be for real." said someone uptop of the ship
"Is he dumb?" questioned someone
"I think he's dumb." said someone else.
"Yeah, I think he's dumb." said another person.
On the other hand, Hebero is braindead and seems like he can't do or say anything that will calm the situation, Miss El is already at her boiling point, and nothing's stopping her now from wreaking havoc onto everyone.
"I'll show you what happens when you disrespect a beautiful, gorgeous lady like me!' Miss El says this as she is fully towering over Aiko, seeming ready to strike.
"That's the problem, you're not beautiful nor gorgeous, you're just ugly, and that's ok too," Aiko says with a grin on his face and with a genuine tone.
Once again, Aiko takes the ship by surprise with his harsh, no-filter comments, they cannot believe this out-of-pocket behaviour.
"He cannot be for real." said someone in the far back.
"He is so for real." said another person somewhere on the ship.
"No way, he's for fake." said someone else, in a much rather confuzzled tone.
"No, he for real." said another person in the background.
As everyone is trying to figure out the whole situation, the chore boy who still stands behind Aiko is just as confused as everyone else, he is in utter shock, bafflement, and everything else, but he still stands by Aiko, he has an odd feeling that Aiko has the upper hand in this, he doesn't know why, but he has that feeling.
"Why you little-" said Miss El, in a tone infused with anger, and shock, she herself, could not believe Aiko's nerve, but at the same time, she admired it, no one had ever been able to stand up to her, and she commends Aiko for that, but that doesn't mean she won't retaliate.
Herbero who is far behind Miss El is flabbergasted and does not know what to do at this very moment.
"What do I do?! I can't just sit back here, or else... or else, Madam El will lose her cool sooner or later." Herbero says nervously to himself, thinking of what he could do.
[Down in the lower ship: Kitchen]
As tensions are rising higher and higher on the upper ship on the deck, in the lower ship, specifically in the kitchen, tensions seem to be rising there too. It's almost time for Miss El's lunch, and everyone is hurry, thinking she's probably waiting for her meal, not aware of the heated situation going on up top.
"HURRY UP! CAPTAIN IS PROBABLY WAITING EAGERLY BY NOW, AND YOU KNOW HER WHEN SHE'S MAD!." Said the head chef [Mandarin-Head chef] loudly.
All the chefs, sous-chefs, etc, are running around getting their captain's lunch ready, Miss El is quite the eater, so it takes a while to get her lunch ready.
[Up on the upper ship: The deck]
Everyone is dead silent and is giving each other blank stares, not even a peep out of anyone's mouth, not even a cough. While the silence passes by like a gust of wind, Herbero is still trying to figure out what to do before things get really messy, and as he does so, he remembers it's almost time for Miss El's lunch, hoping he could somehow ease the situation.
"Ah! Oh my captain my dear captain," said Herbero in an alluring voice.
"Huh!?" said Miss El in a loud grumble.
"Do you by any chance know what time it is..." said Herbero, still with an alluring tone.
"Just Spit it out fool!" proclaimed Miss El, with a tinge of anger in her voice.
"I-i-it's Lunch time!" screamed Herbero in a scared tone.
Miss El is a bit confused, but she quickly takes a look at her watch, and she sees that it is indeed lunchtime.
"Ohhh, well I'll be damned, I guess there's no more time to be wasted here, so it's time I finish this twerp off!" Said Miss El in a much happier tone.
The silence on the ship dies out finally, and now everyone is cheering, Miss El is about to land a blow, and finally finish Aiko off.
"Yeah! Get that loser!" said someone up top.
"It's about damn time!" said someone else.
"He stands no chance!" said another someone.
"Get that chore-boy while you're at it...!" said someone else in the far back.
The silence comes by like a gust of wind after that comment, with everyone looking at each other blankly, wondering who said that.
On the other hand, the chore boy is extremely disturbed by that comment, and even the look on Miss El's face, he can tell she's ready to strike, and nothing is stopping her now, especially now since lunch was mentioned.
"A-a-a-ahhhhhh!! We're gonna die! It's the end! It's the end of our stories!" cried the chore boy, having no sense of hope at all, practically calling it quits.
"Hey, hey, calm down, nothing's gonna happen," Aiko said in a calming tone,
"HOW CAN YOU SAY THAT WHEN YOU CAN SEE THE SITUATION WE'RE IN YOU FOOL!" screeched the chore boy.
"Hey! Why are you shouting at me!? You're the one who's worrying about some giant fat lady!" proclaimed Aiko, losing his cool.
The whole ship is caught by surprise by the two fighting, but most especially by Aiko's nasty comment on Miss El, once again.
"Oh-" said someone in the background
"Oop-" said someone else in the background
"I am so done." said another someone.
Miss El hearing this comment, gets offended, and that seems like it's the last straw, she finally makes her way up to Aiko and once she gets up to him, she looks down at him with a rather furious look on her face, like she's ready to burst.
"What did you say...!? You Twerp!" said Miss El as she tighten her grip on her iron mace.
Aiko takes a moment to see what's going on behind him, and as he turns, he sees an angry Miss El, seeming like she's ready to launch an attack and finish things once and for all.
"Huh? Oh it's the fat lady," said Aiko, in a cooler tone than before.
"Ah- YOU FOOL!-" said the chore boy in a much rather scared tone.
Now that was the last straw, Miss El's fury rose, and she picked up her Mace over her head and said:
"Any last words... YOU BRAT!"
[Down in the kitchen]
"How far are we with the captain's lunch!?" Asked Mandarin, in a somewhat worried tone.
"Few for more minutes chef!" said another chef.
"WELL THEN HURRY UP DAMMIT!" exclaimed Mandarin.
"Y-yes chef!" said the chef stuttering.
The kitchen seems to be heating up as Miss El's lunchtime gets closer, and everyone is running all over the place, losing their minds.
"C'mon we have to hurry!" said one of the chefs
"Yes chef!" said a sous-chef
As all the chefs are running around, preparing Miss El's food, all of a sudden, they hear "BOOM!", "CRASH!", "BASH!" from the top deck of the ship, and everyone is wondering what's going on up top.
"Huh? What's going on up there." questioned the head chef, trying to figure out the situation up top.
"It's probably just the goonies running around getting things done." said one of the chefs
"B-but it's never this loud..." said one of the sous-chef's, a bit skeptical about what's going on.
"Yeah..." said another sous-chef.
Everyone in the kitchen is questioning the situation up above, but they remember it's almost time for their captain's lunch and they all get back to work.
[Back on the deck]
Miss El is running around, trying to finish off Aiko, and she seems to be struggling trying to even get a hit on him.
"STOP MOVING YOU TWERP!" groaned Miss El, trying to get a hit on him.
"Whew...she's quite fast for her size," said Aiko, running out of breath from all the running.
"You can keep on running, but i won't stop chasing you!" said Miss El, with absolute rage.
"Hm, i wonder how long it will take you 'till you start running out of energy." said Aiko with a cocky tone.
This Angers Miss El and she doesn't waste time launching several more attacks. She swings her long iron mace rapidly, launching move after move after move, giving Aiko no chance to breathe or retaliate, and he's pretty much cornered right now.
[Down in the Kitchen]
Down in the kitchen, things seem to be going smoothly, everyone seems to be on schedule, and nothing wrong is happening, well at least for now.
"How far are we with the lunch!?" exclaimed Mandarin.
"Just a few more minutes chef!" said one of the chefs.
"Well hurry up! We can't be late" said Mandarin loudly.
"Yes chef!!" said all the chefs as a collective.
As everyone is getting the finishing touches on the lunch, something unexpected happens. One of the sous-chefs who was in the back of the kitchen, runs quickly into the main kitchen, panting, and looking out of breath.
"C-c-chef...We h-have...A... problem..." said the sous-chef gasping for air.
"Huh? What are you saying Jimmy!?" asked Mandarin a bit skeptical.
"T-the... oven is... acting up a bit," said Jimmy still gasping for air.
"What is that meant to mean you fool!?" exclaimed Mandarin in a concerned tone.
As Jimmy is still trying to catch his breath, and Mandarin is trying to understand what he's saying, another sous-chef, Hillary, comes dashing into the main kitchen.
"CHEF! WE HAVE A PROBLEM!!" screamed Hillary at the top of her lungs.
"Huh!? What are you idiots trying to say to me!!" shouted Mandarin, seeming a bit more scared now.
"The Oven was overheating, and it seems like it's gonna blow any moment!" said Hillary screaming.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!" screamed everyone in the kitchen.
Mandarin is shocked, mouth wide open, almost to the floor, he can't believe what he's hearing, he's trying to correlate all this information, but he can't seem to catch onto it.
"How is that even possible!?!?" questioned Mandarin
"I don't know!" screeched Hillary.
"We can't let anything happen to the kitchen...!" proclaimed one of the chefs
"Or else, the captain's gonna kill us!" said another chef.
"OH NOOOO!!!!!!" screamed a sous-chef.
"Today's my first and last day on the ship! I can't believe it!" said a new recruit chef.
Everyone is worried and does not know what to do, and on the other hand, Mandarin is trying to figure out what to do.
"What are we gonna do chef!?" asked one of the chefs, with a frightened tone.
Mandarin is trying to think, but the only he can think of right now is too...
"RUN!!!" screamed Mandarin as he started sprinting his way to the top deck.
Everyone follows his orders and runs, leaving everything unattended, including the overheating stove, which will most probably end up blowing up.
[Back on the deck]
Miss El and Aiko are both equally tired, Miss El has been swinging her mace rapidly for a few minutes now, and it's all tiring, especially on a hungry stomach. On the other hand, Aiko is panting and gasping for air, but he seems to be holding on, he's also quite hungry himself, and he doesn't know how long he can hold on for.
"Man you're annoying, you're like a cockroach, just refusing to die!" said Miss El with anger.
"Well, what can I say, it's just not my time I guess," said AIko with a big grin on his face.
Miss El grits her teeth in anger, she's had enough, and she's finally gonna release the finishing blow. She takes her mace with both hands, gripping it tightly, and as she does so, she lifts the mace up above her head, getting ready to release her finisher, the "Mega smash!", she has her mace above her head, leaving her whole body opened, Aiko sees this as an opportunity to finally attack. He gets up straight and gets into a fighting stance, getting ready to land a finishing blow on Miss El.
"Now, say your last words, you bloody cockroach!" said Miss El, with confidence, getting ready to land her attack.
"I have a few... Dango-Dango..." said Aiko as he prepared to launch his move.
Everyone is watching with concentration and anticipation, wondering who's gonna land their attack first.
"What's he planning..." asked the chore boy to himself.
"Mega..." said Miss El swinging her mace down slowly.
"Hand..." said Aiko, stretching his arm forward.
"SMASH!" screeched Miss El slowly swinging her mace down, almost about to collide with Aiko.
"GUN!" exclaimed Aiko releasing his stretched-out fist right into Miss El's gut.
As Aiko's hand collides deep into Miss El's gut, her mace drops to the flow, rolling down, and all you can see is her hands flying back as Aiko's fist digs deeper into her thick, hard skin. She finally flies far away into the sea, being knocked back by Aiko's attack, the whole ship is beyond shocked, and cannot believe their beloved captain, the so-called strongest of the East Blue, has just been defeated by some unknown "wannabe".
"What..."
"Just..."
"happened!?"
screamed 3 people on the ship.
Herbero on the other hand is trying to process all of this and is currently lying on the floor, having a mini panic attack.
"AH- AH- AH- This can't be, this has to be some sick dream, tell me it's a dream," said Herbero, rolling on the floor in disbelief.
"H-h-h-he... ACTUALLY DID IT!!! YAY! I KNEW HE COULD DO IT!" said the chore boy, screeching out of happiness, he seemed to be ecstatic about Aiko's victory, jumping and skipping around.
Aiko, who looks exhausted, falls onto his back, gasping for air, trying to find his place.
"Whew... she was quite heavy to punch away..." said Aiko exhaustedly.
While everyone is trying to grasp on what just happened, they hear sudden footsteps, footsteps of people running.
"You guys hear that?" asked someone.
"Yeah..." said someone, a bit confused.
"Sounds like people running." said someone else.
As they're all trying to hear whats going on, the running footsteps get closer, and you can start to see all the chefs running behind Mandarin, and they all look exhausted, and are all gasping for air.
"Hey! It's Mandarin and the others."
"Oh, that's who it was."
"What are they doing here?"
"Well it was almost time for captain El's lunch, but..."
"That's not happening."
"Where's the food though...?"
Everyone is questioning their sudden appearance, trying to put a finger on it, but just can't seem to get it.
"Hey! Everyone! We have to get off the ship!"
Said Mandarin trying to scream to everyone on the ship.
"HEY! Everyone! We have to get off the ship!"
exclaimed Mandarin, finally getting everyone's attention.
"Huh?!"
"Get off the ship...?"
Everyone is trying to figure out what he means by "Get off the ship", because it's not making sense to them.
"Hey! What do you mean by that!?" asked someone closer to the front.
"THE SHIP'S GONNA BLOW!"
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
screamed everyone aboard the ship, getting shocked by the words "Gonna blow", they didn't know what it meant, but since they were from the kitchen, where most fire hazards happen, it seemed believable.
This gives everyone a fright, and everyone starts jumping out the ship, getting escape boats, leaving everyone behind, it's pretty much every man for themselves. While this is happening, the chore boy is freaking out, and doesn't know what to do, he wants to leave, but he also can't just leave Aiko there, especially since Aiko is the reason he can be free now. So he decides instead of being selfish, he goes to Aiko, picks him up, and runs off with him to one of the escape boats.
"Oh, it's you, thanks, hehe." said Aiko, sounding a bit fatigued,
"Of course, I couldn't just leave a friend behind, could I?" said the chore boy smiling widely.
As everyone is running for their lives, Herbero is still rolling on the floor like a madman, not paying attention to the current situation or his surroundings, at this moment, no one cares for anyone but themselves, and it seems like this could be the end of Herbero's story, but as the situation intensifies, Aiko looks back and sees Herbero who is completely helpless, seeing this makes him sort of bad, Herbero was not in the wrong, and he can't just let an innocent man die there. Aiko decides to stretch his arm out, and quickly grab Herbero so they can escape with him. While Herbero is on the other side, he sees an arm reaching swiftly toward him, the arm is coming at a rapid speed, too fast for Herbero to react, or even see it coming. Once Aiko's hand reaches him, Aiko coils his arm around him, and yanks him quickly, Herbero is light, so it's not a lot of work for Aiko at least.
"Hey skimpy, how far till we get to the escape boats?" questioned Aiko gently
"I know a shortcut to the lower deck where we can get one of the specialized escape boats, if we go there we'll be fine." said the chore boy while running.
"Well let's get there quick, I have a feeling this ship is not gonna last long," said Aiko.
The chore boy nods and picks up the pace as they make their way to the lower deck through a shortcut that he knows, where they will find the specialized escape boats. Meanwhile, the rest of the people and chefs are jumping off the ship, while some are taking the rafts from the storage room for a safer option of escape.
[Down in the lower deck: Secret emergency exit]
Whilst everyone is throwing a fit on the upper deck, Aiko, the chore boy, and Herbero have finally made it down in the secret emergency exit, and now all they need is a boat.
"We're finally here...panting," said the chore boy trying to catch his breath.
"Woo! Now, let's get out of here," said Aiko enthusiastically.
As the chore boy gets the boat ready, Herbero who seems calm enough to finally speak, is not keen on leaving with the two, especially since after what Aiko did.
"I-I refuse to g-go with you fools!" said Herbero stuttering in a nervous tone.
"Huh?" Aiko and the chore boy both question as they turn their heads towards Herbero, wondering what he is saying.
"Y-You think I'm just going to trust you two after what just happened?!" exclaimed Herbero, while sweating a bit.
"Yes." said Aiko
"Aiko saved you after all, plus, where are you gonna go if we just leave you here, if you even make it out?" asked the chore boy, sounding a bit concerned for Herbero.
"I..."
Herbero pauses for a moment, thinking about the chore boy's question, he really doesn't know how he will escape if he even survives whatever will happen to the ship.
"Yap, yap, yap, Lets just go!" Aiko says with an eager tone.
"Well the boat is ready," said the chore boy calmly.
Herbero is still stuck on whether he should leave or go with these two, on the one hand, he wants to live, and he can do that by escaping with Aiko and the chore boy, but he doesn't know if he can trust them, but on the other hand, the ship could possibly explode, and he doesn't want to die, but he would also be leaving Miss El behind, wherever she is if she's even still alive, but still, it would feel like betrayal from Herbero.
"We don't have enough time," Aiko said with a slight irritation.
Aiko decides to yank Herbero once again, and he places him in the boat with him, waiting for the chore boy to get in.
"We're ready!" Aiko exclaims excitedly.
"Great!" proclaimed the chore boy happily.
As Aiko and Herbero are in the boat waiting for the chore boy, he is opening the lower deck's shuttle to the sea so they can make their way out, but as the shuttle is opening, in the far distance they can hear BOOM! In the far distance, sounds like the kitchen finally exploded.
"What was that...?" Asked Aiko a bit confused about what just happened.
"I-I-I think the kitchen just exploded...!?" said the chore boy a bit baffled.
"AHHHHHHHHHHH!! WE HAVE TO GO!" screamed Herbero, as he panicked trying to jump-start the boat.
As Herbero is trying to jumpstart the boat, the chore boy hops into the boat, and assists him with jumpstarting it, while Aiko is observing the shuttle that is almost fully opened now.
"C'mon, guys! You can do it!" said Aiko, encouraging the two.
[On the top deck]
On the top deck, quite a lot of people are still evacuating the ship, with some people breaking into fights, trying to survive. As everyone is looking out for themselves, not caring about each other, they suddenly hear the explosion.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" came a collective scream from everyone currently on the ship trying to evacuate.
"Oh no! It's to late! WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!!" said one of the chefs still trying to get off the ship.
Everyone runs into a panic worse than before, people now pushing and shoving others just to make it off safely and hopefully surviving. While everyone is panicking, the explosion seems to be expanding rapidly, coming fast, and before you know it... The whole ship exploded, leaving several dead, and injured and the rest is unknown...
[Out on the sea]
"Man, that explosion was quite big," said Aiko looking out to the ship that was engulfed in flames.
The chore boy is looking out with a telescope, observing the remains of the ship.
"Well, luckily we made it out in time." said the chore boy with a voice of relief.
"Oh man, we just barely made it out," said Herbero, feeling a bit more relaxed.
"Well, now, on to our next destination...Sunrise Republic!"
Exclaimed Aiko, as his voice echoes throughout the sea, on his way to the actual start of his journey.
TO BE CONTINUED!