After days at sea, we finally saw land.
"ALABASTA!!!" I shouted, nearly falling off the ship in excitement.
Emma laughed. "Careful, Captain! You'll drown before we even dock!"
"I'll crawl there if I have to!" I yelled back, tears in my eyes. "Land! Sweet, dry land!"
The Baroque Works ship creaked as it scraped against the shore. The hot wind hit us like an oven blast the moment we stepped off.
Emma frowned. "It's… burning."
I wiped sweat off my forehead. "Welcome to Alabasta. Where the sand cooks you alive."
We started walking, the endless desert stretching in all directions. Towns were few and far between, and the only thing moving were vultures circling above us.
By noon, we finally reached a small village. But it was half-burned down. Houses destroyed, smoke still rising from the sand.
Emma's face darkened. "A battle happened here."
I looked around. "Between who?"
She pointed to a torn flag with strange symbols. "The royal army… and the rebels."
"Civil war…" I muttered. "Guess this place is worse off than I thought."
Emma nodded. "We should head for the capital. If anyone knows what's going on, it'll be there."
That night, we camped under the stars. The desert was quiet except for the sound of wind blowing over the dunes. I couldn't sleep.
I stood up and stared at my hands. Ever since Little Garden, my body felt… off. Stronger. Lighter.
I picked up a rock and threw it — but instead of falling normally, it curved midair and shot straight upward like a bullet.
"Vector manipulation," I whispered.
Emma's voice came from behind me. "Practicing again?"
I jumped. "Wha— how long have you been watching!?"
She smirked. "Long enough to know you still have no idea what you're doing."
I sighed. "I'm trying, okay? I just… don't understand how it works yet."
Emma walked up beside me. "Then keep trying. You'll figure it out."
The next day, we continued through the desert. By midday, the heat was unbearable. I was seconds from fainting when we spotted movement ahead.
A group of men — armed, sunburned, and wearing torn clothes.
Emma whispered, "Rebels."
They noticed us right away. One pointed his rifle. "Who are you two?! Spies for the king?!"
"Whoa, whoa!" I waved my arms. "We're just travelers! We don't even like kings!"
They didn't look convinced. One of them cocked his gun.
"Emma," I muttered. "Can I try something?"
She sighed. "Don't blow us up."
I raised my hand. The sand swirled. The bullet fired — and I redirected it midair. It curved, shot past me, and buried itself harmlessly in the ground behind the rebels.
Everyone froze.
"…Huh," I said. "It worked."
Emma grinned. "Nice one, Captain."
The rebels looked at each other, then lowered their weapons. "Maybe you're not spies after all…"
After some tense silence, they shared their food and water with us. We learned the truth — the country was tearing itself apart, and the capital was in chaos.
That night, Emma stared into the campfire. "This war… it's not our fight, Noah."
I nodded. "Yeah. But if we're here, we can't just ignore it either."
She sighed. "You really are bad at minding your own business."
I smiled. "Yeah. But that's what makes me a great pirate."
By sunrise, the rebels were already gone, leaving behind nothing but footprints and sand.
Emma kicked the ground. "They move fast."
"Yeah," I said, stretching. "Guess that's what happens when you're fighting a war in a giant sandbox."
The heat hit us again — hard. Every breath felt like swallowing fire. The sand shimmered, making the world look like it was melting.
"Remind me," I croaked, "why didn't we bring umbrellas? Or, you know… water?"
Emma groaned. "Because you forgot the barrel on the ship."
I gasped. "Lies and slander!"
She gave me a flat look. "You literally said, 'We'll grab it later,' and then sailed off."
"…Okay, maybe that happened."
We trudged forward for hours, the sun beating down on our backs. I swore I saw a talking cactus at one point, but Emma said it was just heatstroke.
At last, we reached an oasis — or what used to be one. The water was almost gone, and the ground was cracked and dry.
Emma knelt down. "Even this place is dying."
I sighed. "So this is what the war's doing to the land."
We filled what little water we could and moved on. My head was pounding, but I tried to focus on my power instead.
I raised my hand and made a tiny whirl of sand twist in the air. It spun around, following my will — faster, faster — until it exploded in my face.
POOF!
"Pfft— gah— sand in my eyes!" I yelled.
Emma laughed so hard she almost fell over. "You look like a sand monster!"
"Don't laugh!" I rubbed my face furiously. "This is training!"
"Sure, Captain," she said, wiping a tear from her eye. "Training to eat sand."
Later that evening, we set up camp behind a large rock to block the wind. The desert sky turned purple and gold as the sun sank.
Emma handed me a piece of dried meat. "Here. Don't say I never feed you."
I took it, chewing slowly. "So… how long till we reach Alubarna?"
"Two, maybe three days if we keep moving."
"Three days," I muttered. "Plenty of time to get attacked by bandits or giant scorpions."
As if on cue, something clicked behind us.
We both froze.
Out of the shadows, a giant sand scorpion crawled up — its claws gleaming under the moonlight.
Emma sighed. "You just had to say it."
"Why does the universe hate me personally!?" I shouted, grabbing my sword.
The scorpion lunged, its tail swinging down. I jumped aside, raised my hand, and felt the pulse — that same strange pull of energy.
The tail stopped midair — frozen. Then it suddenly slammed into the ground away from us, like something had yanked it aside.
Emma blinked. "You did that?"
I grinned. "Guess I did."
With another push, I sent the scorpion flying back, crashing into a dune and disappearing in a cloud of sand.
Emma clapped once. "Not bad, Captain."
I puffed up proudly. "See? I told you training works."
She smirked. "Yeah, right. You just got lucky."
"Hey, don't ruin my moment!"
We settled back by the fire, the stars glittering above.
Emma leaned back. "Alabasta's not what I expected."
"Yeah," I said quietly. "It's worse."
For a moment, neither of us spoke. The war, the heat, the emptiness — it all felt too big.
But then I smiled. "Still… we'll make it to the capital. We always do."
Emma smirked. "You say that like we have a plan."
I shrugged. "We don't need one. We've got me."
She groaned. "That's what worries me."