Elara's house – outskirts of town
The Marines were already inside.
Two stood by the front door, while a third was dragging Elara toward the back, barking orders. She struggled against his grip, eyes wide with fear.
Then—
CRASH.
The front door exploded inward.
Splinters flew.
And through the cloud of dust—
Kira walked in.
Eyes cold. Axe in hand. The air around him crackled with barely contained power.
"Let her go," he said calmly.
The nearest Marine raised his rifle. "Who the hell are—"
CRACK.
Too slow.
The Leviathan Axe whirled through the air like a storm, slamming into the soldier's chest and launching him straight through a table. The others turned just in time to see Kira call the axe back—woooosh—into his open hand.
"I said," he repeated, "let her go."
The leader pulled a flintlock, pointing it at Elara's head. "You don't get to give orders here, pirate."
But Kira was already moving.
BOOM.
He closed the distance in a blur. The moment the flintlock shifted, Kira's boot came up in a brutal arc, smashing the man's arm aside. Elara ducked just as Kira's axe carved through the air—slamming the Marine against the wall with a crack of splintered wood and groaning steel.
From behind—
"KIRA!"
Sora and Aria burst through the back entrance.
Sora didn't hesitate. Electricity burst from his hands as he slammed a charged palm into one soldier's chest, blasting him out the window in a shower of sparks and shattered glass.
Aria ducked low, twin blades flashing—one strike to the legs, the next to disarm the final attacker. He dropped hard.
[Quest Completed - "Rescue Elara"]
Rewards:
• +2,000 EXP
• +1,000 Credit
• Leviathan Axe Proficiency +1%
Silence fell.
Elara stood frozen, breath ragged.
Kira turned to her, reaching out a hand. "You alright?"
She hesitated… then took it.
——
Minutes later – outside the ruined house
The Marines were down. Tied up. Unconscious.
Sora leaned against a post, still crackling faintly. "Okay, now that was cool."
Aria sheathed her blades with a sigh. "Next time, maybe don't go alone."
Kira didn't answer right away. He looked at Elara.
"I don't know what they told you," he said quietly, "but you don't have to run. You don't have to hide either. We're offering something else."
Elara met his eyes.
The fear was still there—but so was something else now.
Resolve.
"…If you'll still have me," she whispered, "I want to come with you."
Kira smiled. "Welcome aboard."
——
Elara stood beside the wreckage of her home, brushing dust from her sleeves. Her voice was quiet, but steady.
"I'll join you. But… can I ask for something first?"
Kira looked at her. "What is it?"
She hesitated, eyes dropping for a moment.
"My father had a golden compass. Said it always pointed him home—no matter where he was. He promised he'd give it to me once his journey was over."
Her hands clenched.
"The Marines probably took it when they found his ship. It's likely in their base."
Kira nodded once.
Then—
[Side Quest Activated – "Golden Compass!"]
Objective: Retrieve Elara's father's compass from the Marine base
Reward: +20,000 EXP +Random Loot Drop
Kira's eyes flicked to the glowing system panel in his mind.
"20k EXP? There's gotta be a catch… but hell, worth it."
He cracked a grin. "That's a simple request. Come on, guys—"
He turned, slinging the Leviathan Axe over his shoulder.
"Let's go pay the Marine base a little visit."
Sora clapped his hands together, sparks dancing at his fingertips.
"Oh man, I love these kinds of field trips."
Aria just smirked, blades already at her sides.
Elara watched them for a moment… then smiled.
Her father's compass. Her father's memory.
And maybe, just maybe, a new place to call home.
——
The Marine base loomed ahead—white stone walls etched with the symbol of justice, iron gates sealed tight, and watchtowers lined with rifles and spotlights.
Kira crouched low in the treeline just outside the main road, Aria and Sora beside him.
"Rear Admiral's in there," Kira muttered, eyes scanning the patrols. "That's why the quest payout's so high."
Then he stood.
And walked straight toward the gate.
No stealth.
No hesitation.
Just purpose.
He walked straight to the front gate—and hurled the Leviathan Axe forward with a shout.
BOOM.
The gate erupted in splinters and steel. Kira sprinted through the smoke, grabbing the axe mid-stride as it boomeranged back into his hand.
Marines scrambled to react.
"INTRUDER—!"
Too late.
Kira was already moving.
He ducked under a rifle shot, closed the gap in two steps, and slammed his axe upward—sending the shooter flying. He spun into the next, sweeping legs out with a wide arc, then flipped backward to dodge a sword slash. Landing low, he swung his leg out to trip another guard, then drove his elbow into the man's gut as he fell.
One after another, the Marines fell like dominoes, unable to keep up with his movement.
Another squad tried to corner him near the supply crates.
Kira hurled his axe again—it carved through the crates, bounced off a steel beam, and came back to his hand as he charged.
He grabbed one Marine by the collar and used him as a shield for an incoming shot, then flung the poor man into two others like a bowling ball.
Two came at him from the right—he slid under their swords, twisted up, and used the axe's flat end to crack their skulls together.
More Marines poured in.
And then—
"Moon Cut"
A silver streak flashed through the smoke as Aria flipped over the wall, both swords drawn.
She landed with grace, blades singing.
She moved like water, each slash perfectly placed. One blade parried, the other punished. A Marine tried to flank her—Aria spun, slicing upward with Hoshigami, her dark blade flashing.
She moved without wasted effort—lethal, silent, efficient.
Kira glanced at her mid-swing. "Took you long enough."
"Had to knock out the lookout tower," she replied, calmly elbowing someone in the face.
More footsteps thundered from the inner court.
Then—
THUD.
The Rear Admiral appeared at the top of the staircase, mace in hand.
Broad. Armored. Brutal.
He looked down at Kira with grim disapproval. "You've got five seconds to surrender."
Kira rolled his shoulders. "I don't think so."
The Admiral leapt—his mace crashed down like a meteor.
Kira sidestepped, just barely. The stone floor cracked.
They traded blows fast—Kira ducked and weaved, using his speed to dodge wide sweeps of the mace. He rolled, lunged, flipped backward, then dashed forward again with a heavy swing of his axe.
Steel met steel. Sparks flew.
The Admiral countered with a shoulder charge, slamming Kira into a pillar. Kira grunted, ducked a wild swing, then dropped and swept the Admiral's legs.
The man stumbled.
Kira jumped and slammed the axe down—
CLANG!
Blocked—barely.
"You're fast," the Admiral growled, shoving Kira off with sheer brute strength.
[Blizzard - Acrivated ]
Kira landed in a skid. "You haven't seen fast."
——
While Kira charged toward the Rear Admiral and Sora slipped through the side halls, Aria stood still in the courtyard of the Marine base.
Surrounded.
At least fifteen Marines closed in, rifles raised, swords drawn, boots crunching on stone.
One of them barked, "Drop your weapons! You're outnumbered!"
Aria didn't blink.
She simply reached for her blades.
Hoshigami gleamed in her right hand, and the shorter blade—Tsukihana—slid free in her left. She lowered her stance, exhaling slow.
"Lunar Eclipse," she whispered.
Then she moved.
A blur of steel and moonlight.
Her form disappeared in a flicker—so fast the Marines barely registered it before slashes ripped through their ranks. Blades curved like arcs of moonlight, cutting clean, silent, merciless.
One Marine fell.
Then three more.
She spun between them like a phantom, blades flashing in tight circles—dodging, countering, striking in fluid rhythm.
A rifle cracked. She ducked under the shot, swept a leg, then drove her elbow into another's gut. The man folded, winded and broken.
Ten seconds. Eight down.
One of them shouted, panicked, "She's not normal!"
Aria pivoted, both swords held in reverse grips now. Her eyes shone faintly, like reflecting moonlight.
"This is your last warning."
They didn't listen.
And so she finished it.
A final dash forward, her blades crossing in an X.
The last seven fell like dominoes.
Silent. Swift.
When the dust settled, Aria stood tall among the unconscious, her blades glinting with the last trace of her technique
——
Meanwhile…
Sora darted through the interior halls, dodging bursts of gunfire as Marines tried to stop him.
"Sorry! I'm just here for a compass!" he shouted, frying one with a spark-loaded jab to the gut.
Another tried to tackle him—Sora ducked, rolled, and launched a Shock Pulse that sent two more flying into a wall.
"Whoa! That's a lotta bullets!" Sora shouted with a huge grin as the marines aimed their rifles.
The shots rang out—bang bang bang!
Sora jumped, spun midair, and shouted,
"Electric filed!"
Zzzap! A dome of wild electricity surged around him. The bullets hit… and bounced back like they'd hit rubber lightning.
"Return to sender!" he giggled as the bullets zipped back, clinking off helmets and making the marines scramble like startled crabs.
He paused at a hallway lined with supply rooms.
"Okay, where would I hide a priceless heirloom?"
He blasted a door open and started rummaging, all while fighting off the occasional soldier. His jacket was torn. One cheek had a cut. But he was grinning like a kid in a candy store.
Sora crashed through a side window, rolling across a desk. "Sorry! Just passing through!"
Two Marines turned a corner—ZAP! A quick shock sent them twitching to the ground.
Sora kept running. "Compass, compass… where would I be if I were really shiny and meaningful…"
He ducked a swinging baton, slid under a metal door as it closed, and fired off a shockwave that knocked over a whole filing cabinet.
Finally—he skidded into a storage room.
And there it was.
A golden compass, hanging in a glass case.
He grabbed it.
"Gotcha!"
——
[Blizzard – Activated]
Ice burst across the battlefield, locking the Admiral's boots for a split second—long enough.
Kira darted left, then right, vanished in a blur—and struck from behind.
CRACK.
A direct hit to the back of the knee. The Admiral roared, spun with a wild backswing—but Kira leapt up, twisted mid-air, and brought the axe down hard on his shoulder.
"Glacier Break"
BOOM.
The ground split.
The Admiral collapsed to one knee, groaning, mace cracking beneath him.
Kira stood over him, chest rising, axe resting on his shoulder.
"Thanks for the workout."
"GUYS! I GOT IT!" Sora burst out of the ruined hallway, a golden compass held triumphantly above his head.
He tripped over a rock.
"…I meant to do that."
Kira reached out and steadied him, laughing. "Nice work."
——
[Side Quest Completed – "Golden Compass!"]
Rewards:
•+20,000 EXP
• Random Loot Box
• Leviathan Axe Proficiency +6%
[Status Update – Level 32 → 36]
"Now that's what I call a level up"
Kira looked at the compass, then toward the rising sun beyond the walls.
"Let's go deliver the good news."
——
They turned toward the broken gates, smoke curling in the cool morning air, the base behind them wrecked and silent.
And there she was.
Elara, standing just outside the perimeter. A small travel pack slung over her shoulder, windswept hair falling over her eyes. She didn't say anything at first.
Kira blinked. "Elara?"
She gave a small nod. "I knew you'd pull it off."
She stepped forward, eyes settling on the golden compass in Sora's hands. Her voice softened.
"That was my father's. Thank you… for bringing it back."
Sora beamed, practically bouncing on his heels. "We also brought back chaos, broken gates, and one very unconscious Rear Admiral!"
He handed her the compass with both hands like it was a treasure.
"Welcome aboard, new crew member!"
Elara smiled gently, fingers curling around the compass. "I… guess I really don't have a reason to stay anymore."
Aria stepped up beside her, expression calm. "Then don't. Come with us."
No flourish. No pressure.
Just truth.
Kira slung the axe over his shoulder and grinned. "Glad to have you, Navigator."
Elara looked between the three of them—the wild energy of Sora, the quiet steel of Aria, and the storm in Kira's eyes.
She took a deep breath.
And nodded.
"I'm in."
——
[Crew management – Crew Slot 1]
Name: Veyra D. Aria
Role: Swordswoman
Loyalty: 100%
Devil fruit: None
[Crew management – Crew Slot 2]
Name: Sora
Role: Cook
Loyalty: 97%
Devil fruit: Vari Vari no Mi
[Crew management – Crew Slot 3]
Name: Elara Winslow
Role: Navigator
Loyalty: 90%
Devil fruit: none
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