The blade of Anne Bonny's cutlass shimmered with a spectral glow before transforming into a serpent of pure white, its crimson eyes mirroring her own bloodlust. The serpent hissed, coiling around the blade, a living extension of Anne's rage.
This was Jörmungandr, the World-Ender — a serpent said to encircle the world. Legends spoke that when Jörmungandr released its coils, it would signal the beginning of Ragnarök.
Anne swung her sword with deadly intent, the serpent slithering through the air like a predator on a hunt. It lunged toward Booze Beard Jack's throat, fangs bared, ready to sink into his flesh.
But Jack moved with surprising speed for a man of his size, dodging the serpent's strike by mere inches. He retaliated with a powerful swing of his giant axe, aiming to cleave the serpent in two. The spectral beast weaved through the air, dodging the strike with a hiss, and both combatants took a cautious step back, eyeing each other with murderous intent.
Around them, chaos reigned.
Pirates and rebels clashed violently, the sounds of steel on steel mingling with gunfire and screams. Pistols fired indiscriminately, cutting men down where they stood. Others resorted to brute strength, beating each other to death with fists, clubs, or whatever weapons they could find.
Some deaths were quick. Others were disturbingly slow.
The once-vibrant village was now a hellscape of burning homes and bloodstained streets. Flames devoured rooftops, and thick smoke billowed into the sky, blotting out the sun like a harbinger of doom.
In the midst of this carnage, women — hostages who had endured Booze Beard Jack's reign of terror — fled into the forest, their terrified screams echoing through the trees. None of the pirates chased them.
No one had time to.
Every soul was too consumed by the battle, too focused on ending this war that had ravaged Freshstar Island for three long months.
Today, it would end — one way or another.
Here's a polished version of your scene to build suspense and tension:
Satō stood amidst the chaos, eyes locked on the brutal fight between Anne and Booze Beard Jack. His heart pounded in his chest, a frantic rhythm that matched the screams and gunfire echoing around him. He kept his distance — close enough to watch for an opening, but far enough to avoid getting caught in their deadly clash.
All around him, men fought and died.
Screams of agony mixed with shouts of rage. Bullets whizzed past, cutting through the smoke-filled air. The scent of gunpowder and blood clung to the battlefield like a suffocating shroud. The rebels fought with desperate determination, while Jack's pirates clung to their brutal ways, refusing to give up their reign of terror without a fight.
Satō clutched a cutlass in his trembling hand, the weight of the unfamiliar weapon heavy in his grip. He had no idea how to use it.
His knuckles were white, his palms slick with sweat as he shifted constantly to avoid stray attacks. His body trembled, every muscle tense, yet his mind remained locked on a single goal:
Poison Jack.
That was the plan. That was the only way he could survive this trial.
Despite the raging battle, Satō moved carefully, weaving through the carnage with bags of poisonous flowers strapped to his body. He couldn't afford to be careless — not when a single misstep could mean death.
"Just wait for the right moment..." he whispered to himself, forcing his nerves to settle.
The battlefield was madness, but one thing worked in his favor:
No one dared get too close to the fight between Anne and Jack.
The sheer power emanating from their clash kept both pirates and rebels at bay, as if an invisible barrier surrounded the two combatants. Even the most hardened fighters knew better than to step near them.
Satō was in luck.
He watched as Anne's serpent-like blade darted toward Jack once more, hissing with feral intent. Jack roared, swinging his massive axe in a wild arc, the wind from his swing flattening nearby trees and sending debris flying through the air.
The battle was only going to intensify from here.
Satō took a shaky breath, his gaze never leaving Jack.
Just one opening. That's all I need. One moment where his guard is down.
But the doubt lingered in his mind like a shadow, gnawing at his confidence.
Can I really do this? Can I poison someone like that? Can I make his heart stop beating?
Another roar shook the battlefield as Jack swung his axe again, barely missing Anne. The force of the strike shattered a boulder nearby, sending shards of rock flying through the air.
Satō flinched, raising his arms to shield himself.
When he lowered them, he saw Anne smirking at Jack, her crimson eyes gleaming with defiance.
"Keep fighting, Anne," Satō muttered, his grip on the cutlass tightening. "Distract him… just a little longer."
His plan was risky, but he had no other choice.
Jack sneered, his voice dripping with disdain.
"Even though you're weak, you sure are fast. I guess the weak have to learn how to run to avoid getting crushed in an instant!"
He swung his massive axe with brutal force, each strike aimed to cleave Anne in half. The blade tore through the air, leaving behind arcs of destruction, but Anne dodged each swing with uncanny speed, moving like a blur.
Her serpent-like blade darted alongside her, weaving and twisting to avoid Jack's attacks. The white serpent hissed, its crimson eyes locked on Jack with relentless focus.
Jack's face, twisted into a wicked grin, resembled that of a one-eyed Cyclops — a monstrous manifestation of his Mythikos Attribute: The Malevolent One-Eyed Cyclops. His single eye glowed with a sinister light, filled with malice and bloodlust.
With a furious roar, Jack raised his axe high and brought it crashing down.
BOOM!
The impact shook the earth, sending shockwaves through the battlefield.
The ground trembled violently. Trees cracked and splintered from the force, and both rebels and pirates alike stumbled, many falling to the ground. Satō, too, lost his footing, tumbling backward as the earth quaked beneath him.
His heart pounded as he struggled to steady himself.
What the hell?!
Satō's mind raced as he watched the towering figure of Jack.
This guy is making the earth tremble just by swinging his axe… What kind of monster is he?! And I'm supposed to get near that thing?!
Jack's laughter echoed across the battlefield, a deep, menacing sound that sent chills down Satō's spine.
Anne, however, remained unfazed.
Her crimson eyes gleamed with pure bloodlust as she steadied herself, her serpent blade coiled around her, ready to strike again.
"Is that all you've got, Jack?" she taunted, a wicked grin spreading across her face.
Jack's expression darkened, his grip tightening on his axe. His eyes burned with rage, but Anne didn't back down.
Jack's singular, monstrous eye began to glow with a blazing, molten light, the intensity of it casting shadows across the burning village. His twisted grin stretched wider, filled with sadistic delight, as he let out a thunderous, mocking laugh.
"You asked if this is all that I got?" His voice dripped with cruelty, echoing across the battlefield. "Then see it for yourself!"
In an instant, a beam of searing light shot from his eye, burning with the heat of a thousand suns.
Anne's instincts kicked in.
"Damn it!"
She leapt to the right just in time, barely avoiding the fiery blast. But the edge of her coat caught fire. As she hit the ground, she rolled quickly, extinguishing the flames before they spread.
BOOM!
The beam struck a house in the heart of the village.
For a brief moment, there was silence—then the house exploded in a blinding inferno. The flames consumed everything in their path. Rebels and pirates fighting near the house were caught in the blast, their screams cut short as they disintegrated into ash.
Those inside the house had no chance.
Their bodies turned to cinders in an instant, reduced to nothing but swirling black dust in the wind.
The village was shrouded in smoke and the smell of burning flesh. The once vibrant battlefield was now littered with piles of ash where men once stood, their lives snuffed out in the blink of an eye.
Anne's crimson eyes widened as she took in the devastation. Her expression twisted into one of fury and disgust.
Jack approached slowly, his heavy boots crunching over the charred remains. He hefted his massive axe over his shoulder with ease, his wicked laugh resonating through the ruined village.
"You asked for an all-out war, didn't you, Anne?" His voice was venomous, each word laced with malice. He gestured to the destruction with a sweeping motion of his hand. "Well, I ask for your funeral!"
He raised his axe high, its jagged blade glinting in the firelight.
"A funeral with no burial, but a burial full of dark black ash!"
She grabbed her sword and held it close to her face, its crimson glow shining brightly. In an instant, she turned into a blur, catching him by surprise. He realized too late that she was behind him. With a roar, she kicked the back of his knee, forcing him to stumble. Even on one knee, he towered over her, but she leaped high, landing on his back. She screamed as her serpent coiled tightly around his neck, wrapping around him over and over—one full circle, then two, then more—trying to strangle him.
In a voice filled with rage, he bellowed, "You stupid village whore! Do you think this is enough?"
His single eye blazed, releasing beams of light in all directions. The beams tore through houses, rebels, and even his own pirates. Chaos erupted as people screamed in terror:
"Run! It's coming toward us!"
"We're all going to die!"
"Let go of me, bastard! If that light hits us, we're both dead!"
"Captain, stop!"
Anne's face twisted into a wicked smile, her bloodlust evident as she gripped the handle of her cutlass. She watched as her serpent tightened around Jack's neck, slowly strangling him to death.
"Looks like we don't need the plan after all, you bastard. I've gotten way stronger since the last time we fought three months ago… You'll die by my hand!"
Jack's face was turning a deep shade of purple, his breaths becoming labored. His fiery gaze intensified as the air around him began to turn to ash. It didn't matter if it was his own crew or his enemies—everything was being consumed by the light of death. His bloodlust and rage were so overwhelming that Satō couldn't even approach to poison him. The light spread across the battlefield, turning everything in its path to dust.
Satō ran alongside the rebels and pirates, desperately trying to avoid being reduced to ash. But with each passing second, he found himself getting further away from his goal.
"Damn it, damn it! Can he stop with that stupid beam? I can't even get close to him, even though he's being strangled right now!"
He turned back to see the others running in every direction, desperate to avoid death. Fear and resolve crossed his face as he gritted his teeth.
"If she kills him… I'm screwed. God damn it!"
The serpent tightened around Jack's neck, squeezing harder and harder, as Anne screamed in rage, "Just die, you sick bastard! Just die!"
As Jack's fingers began to tremble, ready to let go, he twisted his mouth into a cruel smile. "After you die…"
With one swift motion, he lifted his knee, breaking Anne's connection to the ground. He then grabbed the white serpent with all his strength and threw it with a force that sent it flying. Anne, still gripping her cutlass, was thrown into the air as the serpent released its hold. She crashed violently into the ground, the impact sending tremors through the earth. Jack gasped for breath, struggling to regain his composure.
As he steadied himself, he caught sight of a man with bandages wrapped around his head and long grey hair peeking out from the cloth. The man froze in terror, but Jack paid him no attention. His sole focus was on one thing—killing Anne Bonny.
Anne was slowly rising from the wreckage, her blond hair messy, her face streaked with blood. Her crimson eyes glowed more menacingly than ever. She wiped a finger across her face, licking the blood off with a sadistic smile, and then, in a cold, chilling voice, she spoke:
"...Not enough. Nearly not enough…"
As Jack took a step forward, he said in a low, almost chilling voice, "Why? The weak should just give up against those who have the strong will. They should stop all effort of living to be something more… that is how the world works. So why… why do you still stand against me?"
Anne, breathing heavily, looked at the giant man, her serpent covered in purple blood, her eyes locked onto him intensely. Her breathing slowed, and in a calm, collected tone, she responded, "Are you saying that to me or to yourself? I'll say it as many times as I have to… You are a coward, Booze Beard Jack! And you're making others pay because you weren't strong enough to fight for your dream, or for the people who believed in it! That's why I can't allow you to walk this earth and call yourself a pirate after everything you've done!"
Jack grabbed the X-shaped scar on his face, rage building within him. "You're speaking nonsense!"
With that, they both charged toward each other.
Satō, watching from a distance, muttered to himself, "I don't see it… there's no opportunity. Well, it's time for her to do her part. This is our last chance…"
Suddenly, a loud noise reached his ears, and he turned to see a flood. But it didn't come from the direction of the forest, where the escapees, pirates, and rebels had been, it came from the opposite side… The flood moved in a strange way, as if it had a will of its own. Instead of flowing straight toward the village, it veered off, taking a roundabout path, missing everyone to flood the opposite side of the village entirely.
Both combatants froze in shock as the unexpected water arrived. In the middle of it stood a beautiful woman with a pale face, dressed in a nearly transparent white gown. She was the naiad from Freshstar Island… Sophia.
"You are a clever man, Specter. I'll give you that..."
Jack's face twisted into a wicked smile, his tone turning teasing. "You might be the only woman who ever thought I wasn't anything but an idiot!"
The reason she didn't just flood the village in a straight path, killing not only the pirates and rebels but everything in the forest, was because Satō had told one of the rebels about his plan—if he couldn't get close enough to Jack on his own, he would pass the message to Sophia and convince her. It looked like that had been enough.
As the flood surged faster and faster through the village, the naiad's voice rang out with arrogance.
"Jörmungandr is a sea monster, is it not? With all this water, you should finally be able to use your offensive attribute, Anne Bonny! So hurry up and get rid of that man!"
Anne's face twisted into a sickening smile, venom dripping from her voice as she responded, "Man... I don't know why you didn't kill everyone already, but I bet it's because of Specter. Don't worry, I'll kill that bastard once and for all!"
Satō, seeing the opportunity, decided it was time to poison Jack. He ran as the water rose to his knees, thinking as he moved, This time, it's my last chance!