Fragments (Vio)

[Vio]

With the goliath's gasmask removed, Arelya decided to take a look at the machine itself, sitting there on the tiled floor in a room full of miasma. The hallucinogenic haze lingered in the air like smoke churned out of a steam engine, the natural air flow of the base softly guided the gas out of the doorway, flowing through the corridors of Port West's own beacon of protection.

Well, whoever he is, that fool's got lungs full of this stuff by now. Better keep out of his way if he wakes up, but still. Time to see how this thing works! Softly resting her toolkit beside the hissing device, Arelya kneeled down on the hard tiled floor, regretting the lack of a kneeling mat, before taking out a screwdriver and wrench.

Now, how to crack it open... At this point, any normal person would have just turned the valve on the machine to prevent the steady flow of miasma from escaping, but Arelya was never that simple about things. Instead, she began to pry at the metal panel on the side with her screwdriver, easing out the selection of small screws that held it in place. The Skypiean quickly moved her hand to prevent the panel from hitting the floor and awakening the sleeping guard.

Whew. Almost blew it there, Arelya. Gently resting the panel on her knees, the inventor admired and scrutinised the interior of the machinery. The majority of it was filled with a large canister of what seemed to be the gas produced by the power of Mad Jack's Saiko Saiko no Mi. Connecting to that, a series of pressure valves and pipes through which the mist flowed. Further still, a series of wires criss-crossed within, some connecting to the valves.

So, it can be activated remotely? I wonder who made this thing. They sure did a good job of it. Lost in thought and admiration, a grunting noise from behind her drew the engineer's attention to the guardsman. He was twisting his head around, grumbling incomprehensible words, the wooden chair groaning in untold agony at the enormous mass that was perched and writing atop it. Don't wake up now, idiot!

"Spade squash Naka!" The enormous figure erupted from the chair, the wooden frame breathing a sigh of relief as it fell. Grasping the shaft of the oversized shovel, the hulking human took a ferocious circular swing, the force being enough to disperse some of the fog. Arelya ducked, hands over her head, as Spade's trademark weapon hit the side of the machine. A mighty crash resounded within her ears as the device hit the floor.

"I'm dead," Arelya mumbled to herself, petrified at the sudden occurrence. Had she not taken cover, that swing might just have taken her head clean off. Secure in the belief that her death was imminent, the Skypiean totally disregarded the direction in which the monstrosity had advanced. He had squeezed himself through the door into the open hallways and vanished, shouting a name that was covered by the sounds of his weapon hitting the walls and filing cabinets as he stomped through the corridor.

"Mu-Mura? Muranaka?" Shaken and stammering, the green-haired girl returned to her kneeling position, her body quivering from the sudden influx of terror. Then she realised what the brute had been babbling about, the name he had been churning out from his hallucinations was muddled by the idiot's severe lack of mental ability. "Nakamura."

"Well, I'm sure even Kane isn't as thick as that guy," The Skypiean reassured herself before returning her attentions to the device that now lay upon it's side. A massive dent in the side had broken the escape valve, hallucinogenic miasma pouring out faster into the room than ever before. Arelya took up the screwdriver again, probing the wiring inquisitively. "...Actually..."

[Kurosaki]

The punch to the gut was what he expected, but he still wasn't prepared for how much of his air would come flooding out of his mouth from it. Mad Jack grinned as Kane struggled to keep from taking a breath in, fighting with his body so hard to keep from gasping, one eye almost closed as he winced from the pain. Luckily for him, Mad Jack was in front of him now, grinning insanely like his namesake. He swung out with his leg, despite his power being decreased drastically, with his leg, powered by his Hoshi Hoshi fruit. This time he was going all out. Instead of the typical gold color that his body glowed, he was now glowing brighter. A light gold color.

It meant his body was hotter and would even cause clothing to burn away.

That was, if it connected.

Unfortunately for him, Mad Jack leaped back and began to laugh again, taunting the young man more now that he had him in the perfect position to be on the receiving end this time.

"Oi, oi, my boy, you're looking a bit blue in the face there," Mad Jack teased. "Jajajajaja!"

Kane wanted to tell him to stuff it but he couldn't risk saying anything and letting the remaining bit of oxygen he still had to escape. As it was, any second now he was going to have to take a breath. A breath of those toxic fumes. If he didn't get a hold of the mask soon then anything he breathed in would also effect his mental stability... And he might not even remember who he was fighting.

Mad Jack twirled the gas mask on its back string for Kane to see, since his eyes had been wandering around trying to spot it hurriedly so when he escaped he could snatch it up.

"Looking for this? Otto.. Oops, it slipped out of my hand. Let me get that..." the man laughed as the mask tumbled to the ground. He promptly stepped forward and stepped right on it, crunching it and breaking the front glass like it was nothing.

Kane began to swing back and forth, closing his eyes and letting himself rock in Dai Mondo's grasp. The large armored man looked down at him, confused, before Kane sped up his rocking and pushed off on the man's own front. He came swinging around and crashed into the back of the man's head with his legs, wrapping them around his neck.

"What the-!" cried Dai Mondo as he tried to pull the red head off of his back despite Kane pulling back and trying to yank off his gas mask using his feet. It wasn't working as well as he had thought and he actually gasped.

CRAP!

That was when a shout could be heard from down the hallway.

"MURAA!!! NAKAA!!!"

Inside the village?

What?

Kane was trying to figure out what was going on even as the shovel wielding moron burst into the hallway area, swiping his shovel at anything that he could see. The shovel struck Dai Mondo causing him and Kane to go crashing down. The young man snatched the gas mask off as his hands became free and shoved it on his face before backing up and looking at the mentally challenged Spade.

"Oh, hey there... Spade... Wait, why aren't you wearing a mask?" Kane questioned before the shovel came sweeping around toward the red head. Oh. This wasn't good. The giant monkey with the shovel was heading his way...

Wait, what?

Kane blinked several times, realizing that his vision had gone cross. He had gotten that breath of gas earlier... So that was what was causing it! He breathed in a few gulps of fresh air as he backed up, but didn't realize he had backed right up to a hedge. Wait, hedge? That hadn't been there before. That must've been one of the walls! That was when Spade swung at Dai Mondo, catching him in the back just as he started to get up from the ground. The resounding ring of metal on metal jarred Kane to his core.

"Spade, just what in the hell are you doing you bloody moron!"

"MURAAAA!"

Still powered up by his Devil Fruit powers, but his vision blurred and not sure what else in his peripheral was off, Kane waited until Spade started to advance toward him again, the giant green (why green?) monkey with the shovel, until he tried something. He went to duck as the shovel came at him but for some reason he was off in his calculations. Still, the shovel didn't hit him, but hit the wall a few centimeters above him.

Phew... That had been close. Kane used the timing to close in and deliver a white, firey punch to Spade's jaw.

(Cue Kane's weird 'head shrink' moment ;D)

[Vio]

As she poked and twisted at wiring and screws, Arelya could not help but wonder what kind of person had made the device in the first place. The entire piece had been built with one purpose in mind; spreading the hallucinogenic vapours that were produced by the Saiko Saiko no Mi. Everything about it was tailor made for this purpose, from the multiple valve system to the power supply. Such technologies were beyond what the Skypiean had salvaged from the White Sea, a sure sign that Blue Sea people were far more advanced than her expectations had led her to believe.

Looks like whoever made this thing is, I hate to admit it, better than me." Arelya thought, adjusting the goggles which sat on her head, just above the top of the gasmask. Letting out a deep sigh, the inventor shifted her headset, crafted of two Dials, to cover her ears. Tapping the side of one, her head was filled with the soothing melodies of a Skypiean lyre. She needed peace to calm her nerves, and this one treasured song did just that.

Ah. So it has a built in timer? The curious green-haired girl moved a panel from within the device, examining the multi-coloured wires connected the valves to a small clock deeper inside. Unfortunately, Spade's reckless swing had dislodged a couple of the wires, the clock no longer ticking as its power source had been severed.

I need a little light, I can't see a damn thing! Pressing the other side of her headset, the interior of the gas-billowing machine was illuminated by the light of a Lamp Dial, showing the full splendour of coloured wires - neutral blues, acid greens and deep reds. The glint of copper drew Arelya's emerald eyes to a loose cable buried in the darker confines of the metal shell, reaching in with a freshly prepared set of pliers and coaxing the mystery cord out.

"Come on, you." Arelya muttered quietly, but demandingly, as she tried to pry the unknown wiring from the narrow confines of the machine's interior. Eventually, with much persuasive tugging, the cable came loose, revealing its blue casing to her in the light of the Lamp Dial. Adjusting the wire, the Skypiean reconnected the exposed twirl of copper to the matching metal exposed upon the side of the clock. No response.

"Hmmm, why aren't you working? Unless..." Reaching deeper into the machine with the pliers, the inventor searched for signs of another loose cable. Sure enough, buried deep within the iron confines, the pliers touched another piece of wiring. Squeezing the handles of the pliers, Arelya pulled and twisted to draw the second cable from its prison, but the whole thing came out with a high pitched snap. "Uh-oh."

Withdrawing the fragment, the Skupiean's green eyes analysed the copper wrapped in deep red-brown. The other end had been severed by her efforts to free it, the rubber sheared neatly and the wiring exposed. However, something else caught Arelya's attention. A small wisp of grey smoke was emerging from inside of the machine, a subtle sizzling sound accompanying it as it slithered out from within. The faint grey serpent stood out clearly amongst the unusual hue of the miasma-filled room, and Arelya quickly stuffed her tools back inside her kit.

"I really hope this Devil Fruit mist isn't flammable..."

[Kurosaki]

The shovel had pretty much disintegrated the wall where it had hit. Somehow the rage that Spade had going made him more powerful than the star powered man remembered him being. Even Mad Jack and Dai Mondo had decided to back up out of the hallway in order to give him more space, though Mondo was beginning to look green and disoriented as a result of the gas and had now taken to flinching and moving around as if to avoid something. As if he were being attacked by small invisible enemies.

It seemed ironic that Mad Jack's own power was causing him to not be able to get his hands on the very thing he wanted; Kane's neck.

The punch to the jaw that Spade had received though had done a decent job. Far more damage then Kane had expected. He blinked, looking down at his own fist. It seemed to be glowing with a much brighter heat than he'd ever used before. Maybe it was just the result of breathing in that gas before he had gotten the mask on? But no, even as the rest of the world turned normal, he still saw the white glow coming from his fist. But his fist seemed smaller than it should have been. Maybe it was just him.

But he still felt disoriented. Spade had rebounded from the blow and was now sitting on his rump, stunned for a moment. The flesh all around his chin was burned pretty badly even though the contact had been for such a short period of time. A very perfect branding of a fist marked the skin where Kane had hit, fingers and all.

The gas mask he wore began to slip off and Kane reached up and adjusted it tighter. He had thought he had it on perfectly fine before. What had happened? Now it seemed much too small. He felt his head and that was when he realized something was drastically wrong. His head was much smaller than it should have been! Wh-what was going on!?

In his shock, his Hoshi powers powered off completely and the white glow stopped. Suddenly it felt like the gas mask strap was cutting into his skin and he had to quickly loosen the strap again, tears springing to his eyes from the pain. He felt his head again. It seemed normal... He examined his right hand. It seemed normal again too.

Had his head and hand shrinking been a result of his Hoshi power being brighter like that?

All of this thought process happened very quickly. For it wasn't more than a few seconds after Spade had been punched and had sat on the ground that he came springing back up to his feet, mad as a bull that was being taunted with a red flag. He grunted, steam almost seeming to shoot out of his nose because of the gas that he inhaled and exhaled, and then charged directly at the Hoshi Pirate.

Kane performed a barrel roll to the side and ducked behind Mad Jack just in time to use him as a shield. The Dealer's Captain received a mighty blow to the front of his head with the shovel.

Though he was stunned, the man was more outraged then injured. He quickly lashed out and caught Spade with the front of his palm directly in the face, smashing his nose inward. The poor delusional fool's nose broke instantly and he screamed in agony from the pain as blood poured from the injury. Meanwhile, Kane did not slow down and began to run down the same hallway that Arelya had disappeared down.

[Vio]

Scrambling away from the machine, Arelya watched as the trickle of smoke was accompanied by the odd flash of light. Sparks, but far brighter than they normally would have been. Whatever internal damage had been dealt to the machine had been made no better by the Skypiean's tinkering. Like some sort of tripwire, she had started a countdown to what would be something far more catastrophic than she had even intended.

"What the hell have I done?" The inventor asked herself, utterly bewildered as she shot up onto her feet, ready to bolt. She needed to find Kane, retrieve her jacket and get the heck out of Port West's marine base. Outside of the room seemed more heavily plagued by the miasma than she remembered, though the sheer quantity of hallucinogenic mist that had poured out of the machine had easily doubled after Spade's broad and reckless swing.

Where's an emergency exit when you need it!? Frenzied panic had set in. Arelya was used to things blowing up in her face, for many an attempt at invention had gone out with a bang, but her own workshop had not been filled with a potential fuel source for a fireball. Hurrying out of the room, Arelya attempted to pull the door shut, but the damage dealt to said entrance by the brutish form of Spade had wrecked the frame and hinger, preventing the doorway from closing properly. Abandoning the attempt, she turned on the spot.

"Kane?" Asked the girl with green hair, a figure approaching behind her. Before she could react, the human shape in the haze had grabbed a hold of her gasmask, giant fingers clutching at the gear in a desperate attempt to remove it from her face as if it were some sort of parasite. Arelya's own hands gripped the forearm of her attacker attempting to pry him away.

"Get off me, idiot!" The tinkerer finally broke free of the offender's grasp, though he had succeeded in wrenching the mask from her face, greeting the sky islander with a breath full of hallucinogen. For a moment, Arelya paused, reality setting in. Or, more precisely, an illusory form of it. As had happened before, the world changed into some form of grotesque and nightmarish realm, though it was somewhat different than the time she had been affected outside.

Oh, hell. Not now! The inside of the building had become dark and cold, the hallucinogenic mist that plagued the corridors had now taken on an icy blue hue, while the unconscious and dead forms of Marines had been entombed in the deathly embrace of blackened ice. The whole placed seemed to echo, every step taken in the distance sounded like a droplet of water hitting the cave floor.

As she looked up, Arelya's emerald eyes locked upon her attacker. It was the bulky marine from earlier, still carrying the axe from before, but he now appeared far more terrifying. His body looked as if freezing death was claiming it, the icy mist wrapping around him like a veil. The goliath's strength crushed the mask within his hands before he turned around, seemingly ignorant of the terrified Skypiean, and shuffled off, dragging both feet and axe across the floor with a grating noise.

I. Need to get out. Of this place. Shaken and disorientated by the distorted environment, Arelya was further disturbed by the event that swiftly followed. Totally oblivious to the arrival of her companion, Kane, the young woman watched as streams of bluish light formed in the air, as if being pulled out of a parallel world. These streams were rapidly sucked into the doorway of the ticking time bomb that was the room she had just left.

"Run!" Turning about on her heel, the Skypiean bolted down the hallway with as much speed as she could muster, only hoping that Kane would also escape the terror that was now in pursuit of them. A harbinger of the destruction that would soon engulf Port West's Marine Base, what emerged from the doorway could only be described as Satan's Disco Ball. A spherical mass of deep darkness that was soaking up streams of electric blue essence as it drifted through the corridor, the eerie form of something not quite human locked inside it. Wings? Antennae? Is that...?


(Alrighty, epic foreshadowing and Satan's Disco Ball! Let's get out of here!)

[Kurosaki]

Running away was not his typical method of fighting. In fact, Kane usually stood and fought until it became where any minute he could lose his life on the battle field. But when there was a room in which three giant men, two of which had just lost their marbles, were set out to smash him into a pancake with a giant shovel for a spatula, Kane had finally realized he needed to take a healthy retreat just this once.

Besides, he still wasn't sure what had happened to himself earlier and wasn't that sure he was in a good state to fight. Had he unlocked some sort of strange power? Or had he just been hallucinating still because of the gas? The most likely one was the latter but the red head wasn't so sure he had just been imagining that weird experience.

At any rate, he needed to get out of here where the gas would most likely do him in. It was only a matter of time before one of the brutes ripped off his mask or smashed in the glass in the front. Getting out into the open air was his only chance. But first he needed to find Arelya. Now where had that green haired woman gone?

Footsteps falling heavily and echoing along the hallway, Kane spotted someone up ahead. It was that Marine from earlier with the large ax.

"I don't have time for you!" Kane yelled before he took a running leap and came at him with a Hoshi powered kick that sent the man slamming into the nearby wall. Steam rose up off of his face as he slid to the ground, knocked out effectively by the blow. His ax clattered to the ground just moments before Kane's boots hit the tile and he continued on his way.

He spotted someone standing in the hallway and at first he couldn't be sure if it was anyone he should be happy about seeing. For all he knew it was one of the Dealer's other members. Luckily for him, he was able to grin widely upon realizing it was Arelya. But what made the grin fade a bit was when he noticed that her mask was gone. What had happened?

Before he had the chance to ask, he noticed that there was a strange red glow coming from the room she was near. Raising an eyebrow, since he couldn't feel the increase in heat at all, Kane wondered what was going on but decided not to question it just yet when he was told to run.

"Alright! Don't have to tell me twice," Kane agreed, rushing after the Skypiean as fast as his legs would carry him, but keeping behind her purposefully. If that was some sort of fire he had the higher chance of being okay if it got him from behind. After all, he could withstand temperatures far higher than he himself could reach.

Still, that didn't mean that he wanted to wait around and find out just how hot that room had gotten.

(I'll give you the honors of the first BOOM! Sound effect. )

[Vio]

As varying shades of green whipped around her head, Arelya Gaille was directly focused on one thing and one thing only. Getting the heck out of Port West's Marine base before it went sky high. The violent sparks of the ruined machine had ignited the gaseous hallucinogen that had woven its miasmic tendrils throughout every inch of the fortress. Within that room, a scarlet flame was burning hot and bright, feasting upon the vapours in the air like a rapacious demon. It would be mere moments before this beast unleashed its full ferocity.

Meanwhile, Kane and Arelya were both running for their lives, the inventor wading through the air as if it were water, pursued by an altogether different monster. While Nakamura himself was positioned between the Skypiean and the hunter, the star-powered captain was unable to witness the terror that plagued Arelya's very soul. Indeed, all that he witnessed was a terrified young woman and the glowing red heat of the grasping fires that were soon to consume every inch of the building.

Run. Run. Run! Within her mind, that was all Arelya was capable of saying. There were no words to be spoken, no thoughts to be had. At present, survival was all that mattered. Sheer horror plagued the mind of the green-haired girl as she sprinted through a frozen world of deathly cold and foreboding shadows, searching in desperation for the light that would lead her to her goal. Satan's Disco Ball was in hot pursuit, almost literally, as the spherical mass of darkness and luminescence matched the pace of the two fleeing entities before it, phasing through solid walls where its quarry had been forced to change direction so sharply and suddenly.

Almost there. Almost there. There's the door! Sure enough, the entrance hall of the base lay dead ahead, the finish line to this desperate race for their lives. The only hope was that Arelya and Kane did not end up lying dead before they reached it, a fate that nipped at their heels. To Miss Gaille, time seemed to have slowed, the adrenaline rush from before had returned to her, empowered by fear. A fear of what her illusory pursuer represented, an unfortunate fate that could have been hers all those years ago. Death itself was catching up to her, the silhouette of her own charred corpse, enveloped in the electric light that so heavily reminded her of the tyrant God's Judgment.

Just a few more steps! Now, the Skypiean was mere seconds away from the doorway, a gateway to the safe haven of the external world. Arelya's arms stretched out, but so too did the arms of the luminous sphere's inhabitant. A wave of cold swept over her body, the icy grasp of frigid fingers brushing over her skin as if trying to pull her back. As it happened, however, something changed. The burning bite of bitter cold was rapidly replaced by the searing sting of scorching heat. A wave of unbearable warmth swept through the chilling hellscape of Arelya's hallucination, the ice that enveloped the door melting away in an instant as her hands slammed against it.

Am I... alive? Gorged upon the gases of just one fraction of the buffet that was Port West's Marine Base, the infernal monstrosity burst free from the room. Within mere moments, the demonic pyre had cast out ravaging tendrils of flickering plasma in all directions. Voracious heat swamped the building with force, engulfing each and every molecule of corpse and fume. Insatiable coils of blazing amber ripped doors from hinges, smashed through glass and crippled walls. This beastly conflagration had one last morsel to consume before it retreated back into the depths of nothingness, letting out a monstrous roar reminiscent of thunder as a challenge to all who stood in its way.

Arelya spoke not a word, a high pitched yelp emerging from her trembling lips as the Skypiean curled up, mid leap, into a foetal position. Free from the abyss, the girl with green eyes tumbled across the dirt outside, unsure of her partner's fate as that nightmarish sound reverberated through every cell in her body. Carried on the wind like tumbleweed, her huddled body bounced along the ground, grazing flesh and bruising bone until she finally came to a halt several metres free of the exit. She remained, curled up like an infant, for what may have seemed like ages.

"I'm alive? I'm alive... Thank God!" Arelya spoke to herself in hushed tones, breathing ragged and eyes tearful. The smell of smoke filled the air, while the world around her seemed to be engulfed in red. Was she still hallucinating? No, her mind was cleared of such illusions. Uncurling, the Skypiean forced herself to her feet, her entire body trembling down to the core, like an earthquake rocking the foundations of a building. Heavy footed, the inventor turned to gaze back upon the prison which had very nearly claimed her life. The formerly majestic beacon of justice now stood in ruins, the whites and blues replaced by oranges and greys as the conflagration devourer it, belching thick plumes of smoke into the skies above. Then, she called out.

"Kane? ...Kane!? ...KANE!?"

[Kurosaki]

The heat from that room definitely didn't spell anything good. Kane knew that something bad was going to happen and could feel the change in atmosphere in the hallways. He only hoped that they were fast enough to get out of here in time.

It seemed like the exit to the Marine base was forever away. He wasn't even sure if they were getting any closer since he had no clue how a Marine based worked. Surely all the hallways led to an exit, right? For emergency purposes? The sounds of their footsteps was like thunder in his ears. His heartbeat seemed even louder than that and he couldn't hear anything else. Normally not one to sweat much because of his abilities, he found that he was practically drenched in it as they neared the entrance hall.

Arelya slammed against the door and exited out just before Kane felt the surge of heat on his back. He grabbed a hold of Arelya just as they exited, using his own back as a shield to some of the blast. Unfortunately for him, the fire was orange and red, meaning its temperature was all the way up to 1500 degrees and all his Star Powered body could withstand was up to 1000. Luckily for him, the blast mostly forced the two of them forward and caused them both to separate, not to be engulfed by the flames. Kane rolled forward desperately trying not to crunch wrong on his head as he tumbled along the ground, kicking up dirt and clumps of grass. The best he could do was tuck his head in and hold on to his legs.

He finally came to a stop he laid out flat for a little while. His back hurt tremendously and he wasn't quite sure why. Finally muscling enough energy to sit up, he reached back and felt along his back. His hand met his bare flesh. But he was wearing a shirt... He quickly pulled the shirt over his head and looked at the area where the back should have been. Instead it was completely gone; effectively burnt away.

Then what did his back look like...

Lifting his head as he heard his name being called, his blue eyes searched for the origin but he couldn't see her. Standing up, carefully, and wincing, he realized that the pain wasn't that bad. At most he probably needed some ointment or something for his back?

He hoped at least.

But that was an issue for later.

While he looked for Arelya, his head turned in the direction of the Marine base or what remained of it. Really, all it was now was a smoldering pile of rubble. He couldn't believe it. What had happened to cause that explosion? Did that mean that Mad Jack and his men had also been caught in it? What about those Marines...

He took a step forward and collapsed onto one knee. Okay. Maybe the burns were worse than he thought. In reality he had only suffered some first degree burns.

"Arelya, I'm over here!" Kane called, not really sure it was a good idea for him to move so much just yet until he knew how bad the damage was. He was actually quite shocked. He hadn't felt heat like that since he had eaten his Devil Fruit. It must have been a really strong fire. He just hoped that Arelya was alright.

[Vio]

Desperately searching for signs of life, Arelya Gaille's emerald eyes scanned the area with haste. Eventually, her call was answered, the Skypiean sighing in relief and quickly wiping the tears from her eyes before turning to the direction of the reply. Though she would hide it, she was thankful that Kane, her only companion so far, had also survived the incident.

"So. You survived that, too?" Arelya commented, stifling her insecurities and putting on a brave face. The two had just danced with death itself, the gates of the underworld beckoned to them, but their luck had won out. Though she had not immediately realised it, her redheaded companion had saved the inventor's life, sacrificing his own body to protect her from the searing inferno. Any ordinary human would have easily sustained third degree burns from that conflagration, but the star powered Nakamura Kane was able to withstand the heat.

"Your back looks sunburned." The Skypiean confirmed the presence of the first degree burns upon the now topless Kane's back, his flesh glowing a painful shade of red, and not because of his Devil Fruit power. At least there was one benefit to the blazing heat. The blast had burned away the hallucinogenic miasma that was plaguing Port West, though the air was now filled with the scent of smoke. Either way, it was a welcome change. Mad Jack's Saiko Saiko no Mi was no longer of any threat to the citizens of the island.

Huh, I don't seem to be burned- Oh. Miss Gaille's thoughts were put on hold as she checked her own body with hands and eyes. While her clothing was intact and her skin unharmed, she had a few singed hairs on her head. Indeed, the traces of her Skypiean heritage were showing more than before. Her jacket gone, her wings exposed and, just recently, the heat had frizzed her hair; flicks of green protruding like little horns atop her head.

"By the way, Kane," Arelya began, closing her eyes as she patted down the fluffy flicks upon her head. Her face had changed from a neutral, tough expression to one of annoyance. Her brow slightly furrowed and her lips curling downward into a subtle frown. She had realised something and, in the traditional fashion of Arelya Gaille, she would make her aggravation known. Her fist clenched slightly as she continued her question. "Where the hell is my jacket!"

[Kurosaki]

"Unless we're both dead. Then I don't know how we'll be able to tell," Kane responded to Arelya's rhetorical question with a grin. He didn't seem to notice that the green haired women's cheeks were slightly tear stained but instead that her wings were exposed behind her still. He had to admit, he hadn't expected to run into another person like Estelle. So there definitely were a lot more people from the Sky Islands than he had realized.

"Oh, this, it's nothing," he said dismissively in reference to his sun-burnt back. "Though I definitely wasn't expecting that blaze to come out of no where. Wonder if one of the Marines left the oven on before they went coocoo from the gas that Mad Jack was spraying. The gas probably caused the fire to be more intense too..." With that, he trailed off as he looked at the ruined base. It surely was a frightening sight. Flashes back to his childhood as his home burnt down flashed into his mind but he forced them back into the recesses from which they came.

He turned back to look at his new friend when she spoke again, asking where her jacket was. There was no recollection on the star-powered man's face at first. He tried to delve back into his thoughts on the subject for a moment, hoping something would spring to mind.

"Jacket? What jack-Oh," he started, blue eyes widening slightly as it struck him. He turned his body slowly, eyes looking at the ruins for a moment before they moved back to focus on Arelya. The jacket that she had asked him to hold on for her and to bring back. The one he had promised to bring back.

That jacket that he had totally forgotten about in the heat of the moment.

The scene replayed back to him like a slow motion picture. That part where he had taken the jacket was clear and fresh now in his mind. Equally clear and fresh was the moment he had let go of it when he had been grabbed by Dia Mondo and the jacket had inevitably fallen on the floor.

That jacket.

"Now, Arelya, before you get angry... What's that over there!?" Kane shouted, pointing behind her and then booking it as fast as he could in the opposite direction. He had this horrible feeling that the look of scorn and hatred that she had now toward him was going to result in a fatal wrench to the head for him. Even a star-powered individual like him was nothing compared to the might of a wrench thrown by the Skypiean and he knew better to stick around and test it out.

-----

Meanwhile, Ace sat up from her vantage point on the Deck of Cards, startled by the explosion she had just witnessed. Her tool that she was using to sunbathe herself fell uselessly to the deck and she scrambled over to the side to get a better look. The entire Marine base had just gone up in fire and smoke. Rubble was in its place now.

"Oh, well, maybe there was a design flaw..." she whispered to herself with a sinking feeling and a very guilty look. Now she wasn't so sure that she had put those wires in the right place last time. Red and then blue, right? Right. She had done that. Then why had it exploded?

Tampering?

That seemed the most likely answer.

Well, now she needed to figure something else out. Her ride was gone and with it the potential beri she was going to make off this little venture. At least Mad Jack had been kind enough to insist that she take a load off and relax while they took over the base.

As she turned around, getting ready to figure out a way to get the vessel moving on her own, she failed to notice a hand that burst out of the rubble a distance away.

(Mad Jack's not finished yet )