Chapter 2: Zombie

Previously:

Luffy is defeated and mortally wounded by Crocodile, leaving Robin to desperately attempt to revive him. Crocodile then renews the sandstorm surrounding the civil war in Alubarna, while confronting the injured Straw Hat Pirates; proceeding to destroy Luffy's straw hat right in front of them…

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

The sandstorm raged like something out of a horror movie. This wasn't a natural storm, but the work of a devil. Within minutes, the city of Alubarna was surrounded by a sandy apocalypse.

"It would have been so much easier if that bomb had went off…" Crocodile growled to himself. Veins were throbbing on his head, and the effort of maintaining such a large sandstorm was getting to him. He had spent months constructing a bomb large enough to demolish the entire city, but in the end it was useless.

He would just have to destroy the city himself.

The sandstorm was focused around the plaza, where the battle still raged strong. The sandstorm forced all of the soldiers into the centre, where the causalities were quickly mounting. The storm cut off any retreat, and the two sides were left to kill each other. They were like rats trapped in a cage; nothing left to do but fight. Any survivors would be slaughtered by the sand. The death toll would be in the seven digits.

Alabasta was suffering its worst disaster in history.

Crocodile's injuries were hurting, and the strain of overexerting his powers was building, but he pushed on. That straw hat had made him work for it, but his victory was nearly in sight. After the disaster of Alubarna, it would be a tragedy that would reverberate through the country. The country would be left financially and economically destitute, without a military and a complete lack of government.

After that, it would be child's play to pick up the pieces. Crocodile would move the entire capital to Rainbase, and he would bring in mercenaries to replace the army. Baroque Works would step in to keep order in the country, and the citizens would welcome Crocodile with open arms. He would be a wealthy benefactor, supplying aid when the country needed it the most.

And, eventually, he would become king. Once Crocodile was in complete control, then he could unearth the ancient weapon, declare independence from the World Government, and after that it was just the beginning.

But, first, there were just a couple of million people that he needed to kill.

"That bastard… !" Zoro grunted through the pain. The sand was swirling so fast that he could barely even see. Not even the combined effort of the Straw Hat crew could get close to Crocodile. They were all badly injured, and this was turning into a fight that they couldn't win.

"He's lying, right?" Usopp insisted, the tears rolling down his eyes. He was looking between each of them desperately. "Luffy's not dead, right. Luffy can't die."

The effect of seeing that straw hat destroyed was the emotional equivalent of sledgehammer. Nami had collapsed into a heap. Chopper and Usopp were clinging onto each other, both looking for some sort of reassurance. Even Zoro couldn't even stop his hands from shaking.

As much as he tried, Zoro couldn't focus on the battle. He just kept on replaying that moment in front of his eyes…

That hat was his treasure… Luffy would never allow it…

Enough! Zoro screamed to himself. He had to focus. This just might be the final fight of his life.

"We need to attack together!" Sanji called beside him, shouting to be heard over the roar of the storm. He was one of the few still capable of fighting. There were no insults or bickering between Zoro and Sanji. Not now.

"You go left! I'll go right!" Zoro roared back, and together they launched themselves at Crocodile.

"He's lying, isn't he?!" Usopp screamed. He'd been repeating that for the last five minutes. "Luffy is not… he can't be…"

Pull it together! Zoro screamed internally, but he just couldn't say it out loud. His voice was blocked.

Quick as flash, Zoro darted forward through the sand. He barely glimpsed Sanji attacking from the other direction. The figure of Crocodile zoomed in to view, and Zoro's swords blurred.

"Aren't you dead already?" A bored voice came from behind him. Faster than Zoro could react, the Warlord had already materialised behind him.

A blade of sand hit Zoro straight on. He could feel the sand grinding up his skin. Suddenly, every wound Zoro had burst open. It felt like his body was being shredded.

There was nothing he could. The impact took him off his feet and flung him away.

"ZORO!" Sanji called next to him. Zoro, he noticed vaguely, not Marimo…

Sanji lasted a few seconds longer before Crocodile swept him off his feet. The chef was sent crashing into a nearby building.

"I'll give you credit; you are all persistent," Crocodile noted, almost absentmindedly. "Almost as persistent as your captain was."

"DON'T YOU DARE!" Usopp screamed suddenly, drawing his slingshot. Usopp had been more badly wounded than any of them, but he was still charging towards Crocodile fearlessly. "STOP LYING! LUFFY IS NOT DEAD!"

Explosive stars rained from Usopp's slingshot. They didn't have any effect on Crocodile, who shrugged them off before crushing the sniper beneath an avalanche of sand.

Nami desperately tried to wield her Clima-Tact, but Crocodile's sandstorm made it impossible. There was no moisture in the air to use. Within a second, Nami was sinking into quicksand beneath her.

Chopper fared no better. The sand took him down with a wave of Crocodile's hand.

Vivi stood there, completely still. Her eyes had a hollow look to them. Her body was shivering. She had been literally frozen through grief and fear.

Get up! Zoro screamed at himself. His arms weren't responding like they normally did. He could hear his own heartbeat, and it sounded weak. Every breath he took felt like agony.

Still, through pure force of will, Zoro's staggered to his feet. His body was so weak he could barely lift up his swords.

Through blurry eyes, Zoro could see Sanji standing up as well. Sanji was rocking like a pendulum as he stumbled forward.

Crocodile was looking at them all with vague amusement. Admittedly, Crocodile was far from his peak as well, but compared with the rest of them he was still the strongest one left.

"It must be a medical condition," Crocodile decided finally. "A complete lack of self-preservation and common sense. Apparently, this condition is terminal."

Usopp was picking himself up, barely. He was coughing more blood than he had ever done. Chopper had to pull Nami out of the sand, but they were both struggling for breath. Crocodile could have killed them all with ease, but he had never been one for a quick finish.

Crocodile looked between them all curiously. "I have a proposition for you." He declared loudly. "It seems like I'm in need of better subordinates. And since your crew is lacking a captain, perhaps an arrangement could be made."

Crocodile was standing right in front of Zoro now. The swordsman longed to cut him in half, but it was taking everything he had just to stay conscious.

"I can be lenient," Crocodile said after a moment. "I will allow you and your friends to live. I will even forgive your past transgressions, as you were clearly suffering from poor leadership. In return for my generosity, you will work for me. You are all capable; you would be well rewarded for your loyalty."

Zoro tried to speak, but apparently his voice wasn't working either. The best he could do was gargle incomprehensibly.

Crocodile looked at him impatiently, before grabbing the swordsman by the throat and lifting him up with one hand. "Well? Speak up!"

Barely, Zoro managed to spit out the words. "… Go…" he gasped. "… Fuck… Your—"

Crocodile only smiled. "Yes," he nodded. "It's definitely a terminal medical condition."

With a fluid motion, Crocodile's bladed prosthetic hook suddenly lunged itself into Zoro's stomach. He couldn't feel the pain; it just felt like dull blow to the chest. Crocodile released his grip, and Zoro dropped on to the ground like a ragdoll.

Zoro couldn't even move as the sand surrounded him, dragging his limp body underground. Around, everyone else was suffering similar fates. The ground had turned into a vortex of quicksand, pulling the pirates down.

Within seconds, the sand was covering Zoro's head. It was filling up his mouth, choking him as he tried to breath. Images of his crew flashed before his flickering vision, and the last image that he remembered was one of Kuina, smirking as she defeated him once again.

I'm so sorry…

Vivi tried to run. She tried to scream. Even as she watched her friends be defeated, one by one, she tried desperately to do something.

But it was no good. Her body simply wasn't responding to her anymore. It wasn't working properly. Nothing was working properly.

The image of Luffy flashed before her eyes. "All I need to do is send Crocodile flying, right?" Luffy had asked, completely carefree at the time. Suddenly, now that the pirate was gone, it felt like a piece of Vivi had vanished. This is obviously a dream, Vivi thought almost absentmindedly; or a nightmare. It was utterly inconceivable that Luffy would ever leave her…

In front of her, Crocodile was strolling over to the princess. Vivi didn't even have the energy left to hate him. Grief had left her completely hollow.

"Miss Wednesday," Crocodile greeted the princess sarcastically. He inspected her critically. She didn't even flinch. "I was planning on killing you, but perhaps there are better options. After this is over, a former princess may be useful. I can always sell you, if nothing else."

With that, Crocodile simply started to stroll away.

"Please don't go far. I will find you once this is over," he promised.

Instantly, Crocodile dematerialised into sand. Vivi was left staring helplessly at the destruction of her hometown, and the death of her friends.

Without warning, Vivi collapsed into a pile on the ground. She had failed everything. She didn't even struggle as the sandstorm overwhelmed her.

Buildings were collapsing under the force of the sand. Piece by piece, the entire city was eroding away.

Somewhere, in the chaos, Igaram arrived with an injured boy, desperate to reveal the truth about the rebellion and reach the princess. Still, the sandstorm blocked his path and drowned out his cries for help. Nobody was capable of stopping the war now.

The rebel leader, Kohza, flickered on the edge of consciousness. However, in the frenzied fighting the makeshift medical room had been devastated, and the sandstorm overturned and buried his stretcher. Kohza was left to slowly bleed to death on the ground.

The head guard, Chaka also tried to move. His wounds were less serious, but they still caused him to stagger across the ground. Even as he shrieked for order from on top of the palace defences, nobody was capable of hearing him.

Tashigi and the Marines did what they could. Her forces had been devastated by Nico Robin and Crocodile, but they tried to maintain some order. It was a wasted effort; neither the rebels nor the loyalists knew which side the Marines were on, and so they ended up getting slaughtered by both parties.

The causalities were skyrocketing. Although the rebels had outnumbered the loyalists two to one, loyalist cannons and artillery had taken its toll. The entire battle had lost any semblance of order, and had degraded into a huge brawl in the middle of the city. Between the sand and the savagery, it was impossible to know who was fighting who. Visibly was zero. It was nothing but bloodshed.

Crocodile stood at the edge of the palace walls, smirking as he watched the bodies drop. Sooner or later, they would all perish, fighting a meaningless war. The weaklings would die like the insects they were, and on top of their corpses Crocodile would achieve his ambitions.

The Warlord rolled a cigar with satisfaction, savouring the taste. It had been a long, hard journey, but in the end it was all worth it.

Meanwhile, back at the ruins of the Royal Tombs, a large piece of rubble shifted dangerously. The rock groaned as it was heaved upwards.

One by one, the debris was forced out of the way with brute strength. It was slow, uneasy, yet by pure determination the rocks were forced upwards.

And, like a zombie rising from the dead, a figure crawled out of the ground.

Each step was a goliath task. His heartbeat felt unsteady, threatening to collapse with every beat. His teeth ground together as he forced himself onwards.

The sound of heavy breathing was the first warning Crocodile received. Crocodile's eyebrow rose as he heard the sound; it was a hoarse breathing, so strained that it sounded more like an animalistic snarl.

Crocodile turned to see the person staggering towards him slowly. The pain in every step was obvious.

There were few things that had ever surprised Crocodile. He praised himself in being cool, calculating and infallible.

Still, this sight astonished him. It was the first time that Crocodile literally couldn't believe his eyes. He had to blink twice just to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. Crocodile could distinctly remember cutting out this man's heart, but nevertheless he was still walking towards him.

"You're dead!" Crocodile protested, hovering somewhere between astonishment and disbelief.

Monkey D. Luffy growled. His eyes glowed with an ice-cold fury that he had never felt before.

"No, " he snarled. "That's my line."