Desperation

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Kai fell back onto the frozen ground, a ragged, sharp breathe tearing its way from his throat as he clutched the raw stump his arm had become. His entire body was in razor-sharp pains, molten fire coursing with every pulse of his heart, threatening to burst his chest apart. He groaned through gritted teeth, mumbling to himself, "I need to do something about this." almost inaudibly against the chaos of the battlefield around him.

Before his fuzzy vision, the shining interface fluttered to life, displaying his status: 

[Blood Loss: Critical.]

A red alert blipped steadily in the corner, flashing a dire message, 

[Recommended item: Stanching Boluses.]

Kai cursed, fumbling to open the in-system store. His vision danced as it appeared on the screen, and his heart sank at the number that displayed 4000. Shit. i have only 3,321." His voice shook with frustration. He didn't have enough for the purchase, not now-not when he needed it most.

With no other choice, Kai hastily ripped a strip off his already-shredded clothes, grinning through the agony. Blood oozed down his side onto the cold ice beneath him, but he didn't have much time to wallow in the pain. Wrapping the cloth tightly around his shoulder, he tied it off one-handedly, wincing in excruciating pain. The pressure from the improvised tourniquet was barely enough to slow the bleeding meter building up, but it would have to suffice for the time being. 

Panting, he forced himself to his feet, wobbling slightly as the world tilted around him.

His left hand reached down, gripping the Cleanrot Knight's sword with white knuckles, the weight of it oddly reassuring. As he looked forward, Akainu's attack had already begun to melt much of the ice, producing steam rising from the battlefield, as the only passage that would remain towards the plaza would be through the water. "So, basically we have to swim." Kai spat, his stomach churning at the thought of entering freezing/boiling water after having sustained so much blood loss. But there was no time for second-guessing. He needed to keep going-moving, which, however, he could not do before a nagging thought hit him-one which he had almost forgotten in the chaos.

"Shit," he snarled, turning his head back to the battlefield behind him. His eyes flashed towards Whitebeard, who still stood proudly on his ship, as immovable as a mountain against the storm. And then it clicked.

"Squardo." Kai's voice was raised in a cursing tone and his stomach just dropped. "That son of a bitch. he's gonna stab him."

The only hope to turn the tide in this insane war, Whitebeard would be betrayed by one of his very own men. Kai's mind was racing, putting fragments of a story together that he knew. If Squardo struck Whitebeard now, everything would come crashing down. The war would end in disaster, and nothing would be left to save Ace-or change the future.

"I have to warn him. I need that old man to remain intact if I want even a chance to alter what's going to happen here." He glanced down at his missing arm, the bloodied rag clinging to his shoulder. He was in no shape to run back, but he didn't have a choice.

Kai spun back toward the ship, every fibre in his body shrieking in protest, but he forced his legs to move, pushing through the pain. "No matter what" he thought, "I have to get to Whitebeard before it's too late"

Kai went forward, in a stumbly gait, his body still in agony, the blood-soaked bandage on his hand barely stemming the bleeding. Silent oaths continued to spill from his lips as frustration ate at him for being unable to do anything but run back to the ship. The battlefield spread out far too wide, with too much chaos between.

"Think, now, Kai. what am I supposed to do to draw his attention to me?" he growled, pacing and practically racing his mind. There was no time, no energy to spare, but somehow, he had to get Whitebeard's attention. 

An idea, after a beat, came together, reckless but better than nothing. "I just hope I don't get killed for doing this," he grumbled. His hand had already switched to his Meteorite Staff.

The instant he did, Kai gestured the staff to the faraway ship of Whitebeard without hesitation. He began to chant each and every spell in his arsenal one by one: Glintstone arc, Night Shard, Glintblade-any of them all. Every spell tore through the air, trails of gleaming magic lighting up the chaotic battlefield as they zeroed in on Whitebeard himself.

Still standing tall and unshakeable, Whitebeard narrowed his eyes to a squint as he watched the barrage of magical attacks streak towards him. He didn't bat an eyelid-to him, there was no need to. Years upon years of experience had honed his instincts to perfection.

A blur of blue flame across the battlefield, before the attacks could reach him, finally cut through the volleys. Marco, in his hybrid phoenix form, swooped down. His wings were wide, casting a large shadow as he intercepted the incoming spells. Kai watched his magic slam right into Marco's flaming wings, dissipating harmlessly against the regenerative properties of the phoenix.

"Pops!" Marco called back, his voice oozing with sarcasm as he looked back over his shoulder toward Whitebeard. "I told you we can't trust these prisoners. This is the third one now trying to attack you."

Whitebeard said nothing. He eyed the scene before him with calculated composure, his bisento leaning against his enormous bulk. His eyes chanced upon Kai and for one moment, the brow of the big man furrowed slightly. Then in a low rumble he spoke: "That boy. he's in a sorry state."

Marco's eyes widened in surprise, but he didn't hesitate. "Alright, Pops, I'm on it," he said, not waiting for the full order. He shifted into his full phoenix form, brilliant blue flames crackling around his body, and shot into the sky. His wings cut through the air as he flew toward Kai in a fiery streak, leaving a trail of embers behind him.

Kai's eyes shone with a pained smile as he watched Marco charge straight for him. It worked.

The moment the Whitebeard Pirates saw what Marco was doing, a number of them moved to intercept the perceived threat - Kai. Still too weak to do much else, Kai sent them down without much effort, creating Night Shard spells that pierced cleanly through them with quick, unseen strikes. A few managed to reach him before falling, clutching at wounds they hadn't even seen.

But his little victory was only short-lived. From above, a shadow fell right on him, and before Kai could do anything, Marco landed hard enough, skidding the breath from his lungs. His talons were deep in Kai's shoulders, holding him firm. Kai felt searing pain across his body as he was hoisted into the air, his feet dangling uselessly below.

Kai groaned in agony as he was hauled upward, his vision swimming, the battlefield shrinking below him. Pleading, he shouted above the rush of wind. "Marco, listen! You gotta protect Whitebeard!"

Marco still clutched him tightly as he stared down, his voice degrading in tone. "Goes without saying, from you and other idiots who really think they can take Pops down. Just give it up and die. or help us take out the Marines. Not that you'd do much, but-"

"No, fuck that!" Kai yelled, hoarse, as the wind whipped around him. "That's not what I'm after! Squardo! Your allied captain is gonna stab him! Whitebeard won't expect it!"

The world hung still for a moment. Marco's eyes widened in an unbelief that let his talons loosen ever so slightly. Kai could see the surprise ripple through him as the words hit their mark: Squardo, Whitebeard's very own ally.

And then, without warning, Marco dropped Kai, and he tumbled through the air before his body hit the deck of a Marine warship with a deafening crash. The whipping air cut around him as Kai dropped, his chest exploding in pain as the breath got knocked from his lungs, but he refused to black out.

Marco landed beside him with a soft thud, the phoenix flames still crackling around him as he folded his wings. He knelt down staring at Kai with accusing-hard eyes. "Why would Squardo of all people do that?" Marco's voice was sharp and riddled with skepticism. 

Kai struggled to push himself up from the wreckage, wincing at the pain coursing through him. "Akainu.", he rasped out with his strained voice, " you are wasting your time with me. Squardo... He's been manipulated. something about a grudge against Roger, some kind of betrayal. I don't have time to explain everything, I know it just Trust me!, my interest lies in you guys winning this war, and we can't do that with a half dying whitebeard"

The catch in Kai's voice, the desperation, was enough to stay Marco's hand.

Whitebeard's life hung in the balance, and Marco couldn't afford to take the risk of ignoring the warning. 

"I'm going to hold you to that," Marco finally said, eyes narrowed. "In fact you're coming with me." He didn't finish the sentence.

With that said, Marco spread his wings once more, this time carefully picked Kai up, and shot back into the sky toward Whitebeard's ship.

As Marco lifted Kai into the air, his phoenix wings beating powerfully and sending gusts of wind swirling beneath them, Kai clenched his teeth against the ache still pounding from where his arm used to be. The pain of blood loss was gnawing at him, weakening him with every passing second. But now, flying over this battlefield again,

Gritting his teeth, Kai opened the interface and quickly scrolled down to the list of his available items. The Stanching Boluses, he had barely managed to scrape together enough from defeating those pirates earlier. For a split second, his finger hovered over the purchase button before confirming it.

Instantly, the Boluses materialized in his hand. In the same moment he crunched down on the healing item mid-flight, feeling the strange texture dissolve in his mouth. A cooling sensation spread through his body and the interface's Blood Loss status bar began to disappear, draining away like water. The relief was immediate.

He let out a deep sigh; now, his breathing was proper as the gnawing pain subsided. "Finally." he muttered, as for the first time his body was not on the verge of collapse.

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If you wish to read up to 5 Chapters Ahead! or simply support me just because? then check out my patréon at

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