Cannons thundered, letting out a world-breaking roar and sending a physical shockwave through the humid air. Oak hulls groaned before shattering into hundreds of small fragments, sending jagged shards whistling through the air. Bits of debris rained down, sinking into the seawater just beneath the ships.
Loud footsteps clamored from one end of the ship to another. Some desperately sprinted to gather their battle equipment, while others ran towards the hull with large planks of wood, hoping to fix whatever damage they had just sustained.
Two sets of cannon fire shot across one another, as the two most esteemed rookie pirate crews finally locked horns against one another near the shores of the remote island Flarenorice.
The Clementine Pirates vs the Lime Pirates.
Both were led by esteemed pirates who had made a name for themselves only two years after debuting. Their skills, intuition, and strategies were more than enough to shake the pirating world to its boots, fearing their development.
Not only that, but even the governments which surrounded the Citrus Isles kept a close eye on both these crews. Unlike most pirates, who only sought out gold and coin, the two captains who commandeered both crews had underlying intentions in mind.
Their only wish and desire was to become the strongest in the world. The determination that they carried resonated within the hearts of all those who came across them, quickly increasing the size of their crews from mere dozens to hundreds. Skilled hunters and pirates flocked to join one of the two factions.
Among the Citrus Isles, the options of where to choose were as clear as day. If one wished to be led by a brave, loud, and energetic captain who focused most of their efforts on offensive tactics, then the Lime Pirates were the one to pick. However, if one instead fancied a far more relaxed, calculated, and defense-oriented crew, then the Clementine Pirates were their best choice.
“CAPTAIN! CAPTAIN!” one of the crew members shouted at the top of their lungs as they entered the office where their boss was residing. “Captain! The Lime Pirates are drawing in closer, they’re most likely about to board!”
Clicking his tongue, he spun his chair around. His face practically screamed that he was annoyed. Under the leaking sunlight through the window behind him, his bright orange hair shone like a beacon of light to the despairing crewmate.
Despite his attitude, his light green eyes reminded the crewmate of lush green fields of grass, his heart steadying to a relaxing rhythm.
The lone crewmate scanned the room he was in. Having never been in the captain’s office, the sheer amount of treasure on display, most likely trophies of past victories, were scattered all across the walls on shelves. But what caught his attention the most were the drawings of when he was younger, hugging a green-haired girl about his age.
He stopped, pointing at the drawing. Something seemed overtly familiar to the crewmate. Even though he didn’t doubt his boss’ abilities, he couldn’t help but question whether or not he knew the truth of the opponent he was facing. “Captain, that’s…”
“Tell First Mate, Tan J. Rene, to get into battle formation three,” the captain interrupted while peeling an orange citrus fruit in his hands. Despite their ship being on the verge of sinking, he seemed ever so relaxed, inspiring the young and inexperienced crewmate.
Yes, there was nothing to fear, because before him was the one and only…
「Fin B. Orangg, Captain of the Clemetine Pirates.」
「Bounty: 80,000 Pure Gold」
“Y-Yes, sir!” the crewmate saluted before jolting out of the office at record speed. Fin tossed a piece of mandarin into his mouth, chewing through the soft, juicy flesh as a burst of citrus tang spread across his tongue. His eyes then darted to the small circular window on his right, glaring at his rival’s ship.
“Today, I’ll make sure you never set sail ever again.”
On the other side of the battle, a green-haired girl donning a long coat gulped down the last bit of alcohol from her long green glass bottle. Unlike Fin, she seemed much more the chaotic type, as she stood tall and proud on her ship’s bowsprit.
Every other second, she moved her arms in sharp motions, acting as signals for her crewmates to execute certain actions. Her long green hair, tied in a bun, flowed chaotically thanks to the wind’s unpredictable howls. No matter how hard the ship shook from the impact of incoming cannon fire, she stood steady, never once losing her balance.
Her crimson red eyes were fixated on every bit of her opponent’s movement, and when they started to enter their greatest defensive position, she smiled in delight as she spotted the enemy ship’s weak point, a spot they had been focusing on since they started the fight.
“I was counting on that…”
From the inner pockets of her coat, she took out a small piece of art that she and her childhood friend had made when they were children. It was something she had commissioned with every bit of money she could gather back when they were in an orphanage. With this battle seemingly being a decisive factor in whether or not she would continue her journey, she couldn’t help but take one last look at the reason why she was fighting in the first place.
One of the crewmates, who was working the sails just behind her, caught a glimpse of her artwork. He couldn’t help but pause and wonder if his captain truly knew the opponent she was facing. But having complete faith, he simply assumed they must have a bad history, and decided not to pry any deeper.
Taking in a deep breath, she shoved the piece of paper back into her pocket before pointing her empty glass bottle at the enemy’s ship. At the top of her lungs, she shouted out one final command to finally end their two-year rivalry.
“LOAD UP THE TEARBREAKER! FOCUS FIRE ON SPOT 10!”
“I’M NOT GOING HOME UNTIL THIS SHIP IS BLOWN UP IN SMITHEREENS.”
Crewmates roared, ready for battle. From the ship’s hull, countless cannonballs marked with a distinct blue paint were brought out. It was their greatest weapon available to them, and although they sometimes questioned their captain’s unwillingness to use it, their faith was completely restored with this day’s single order.
They almost felt stupid, for doubting the great…
「Mari Lemonia, Captain of the Lime Pirates.」
「Bounty: 80,001 Pure Gold」
Countless cannonfire shots rang out across the two ships, shaking the very foundation of their sturdy wooden structures with each hit. Despite being so close to death, neither of the captains let up their relentless assault. One was brimming with uncontrollable joy and excitement, while the other was calm to a terrifying chill.
“Men! Prepare to board! If things go south, we may have to resort to more offensive tactics!” the first mate with tanned skin exclaimed while drawing his blade. As much as he didn’t want to, with how cornered the ship was, there was extremely little wiggle room for any chance of escape.
Not that they would have retreated, since his captain would never allow for such an embarrassing declaration of defeat, especially to his greatest enemy. His short black hair caught the attention of Mari as she raised her pistol to shoot down the Clementine Pirates’ second in command.
Based on the intel provided by her crewmates, it was rumored that the man she was pointing her gun at was the captain’s best friend. Killing him would be a clear win-win. Not only would she cripple the opposing crew’s power hierarchy, but if she were to somehow let the Clementine Pirates escape, she would easily be able to take them down without a hitch in their next battle.
However, to her, she saw something more than just an opportunity to cripple the emotional state of her greatest rival. She saw…
「Tan J. Rene , First Mate of the Clementine Pirates.」
「Bounty: 40,000 Pure Gold」
A bundle of gold.
Her mouth practically drooled in delight as she imagined herself purchasing every bit of expensive and luxurious clothing she would be able to afford. 40,000 gold was an amount that not even the Sword Saint of Fridan was getting paid in a year. As such, possessing that much would guarantee her to be one of the richest people in the Citrus Isles, a far poorer region.
Being so distracted in her own fantasies, Tan sprinted away from the aim of her gun as quickly as possible. With enough focus, there was no doubt he would be able to cut the bullet in half while it traveled, but with how unstable his platform was, it was a risk he wasn’t willing to take.
“—HEY! COME BACK HERE!” Mari shouted, pulling the trigger of her gun.
The first shot missed, frustrating Mari. Since pistols often took a while to reload, she instead opted for a far more primitive approach. It wasn’t a technique that she particularly liked, as it would often mark other pirates as “amateurs”, but money came before pride.
Magic, although not forbidden, was considered to be taboo in the pirating world. Since it made most fights trivial and easy, it was often a sign that a pirate had no confidence in their own crew’s skills to win a battle. However, since the battle was nearing its end, Mari saw no fault in sprinkling in a small shove in order to win.
Her body started to flow with magical energy. The mark on her neck started to glow a crimson red, producing the appropriate element matching the color. As a magical circle manifested at the palm of her hand, she fired rapid fireballs at Tan.
“If that’s how you want to play it, I’ll use magic too,” Fin said quietly, still in his office. The mark on his neck started to glow a bright blue. He closed his eyes, visualizing the water just beneath Mari’s ship.
Immediately, Mari felt the movement of her vessel slow. When she peeked down, there were now chunks of ice frozen beneath them, halting their movements ever so slightly. Of course, the sheer size of the ship broke off most chunks easily, but the slowdown was enough for Fin’s crew to make essential defensive maneuvers.
“You’re playing so freaking dirty!” Mari yelled, pointing angrily at Fin’s office.
“All this fighting for absolutely no reason!” Tan begrudgingly mumbled while commandeering the ship’s sails, as the previous person in charge had been blasted away. “If only they took one look at each other, they would immediately stop fighting.”
“These two numbskulls, I hope we both sink so that they finally realize how stupid this rivalry has been.”
His usual calm and collected personality had all but vanished the moment this battle began. Ever since joining the crew, he noticed his best friend Fin often holding out a drawing of a certain green-haired girl.
Most bounty posters lacked color, which made sense, since they had to be mass produced. But when his eyes fell upon the enemy captain for the first time two years ago, he realized one major truth. The childhood friend whom Fin was fighting for was none other than Mari Lemonia.
Being so absorbed in their own goals and desires, neither of the captains had truly engaged in a one-on-one battle in person before. Instead, they let their crews handle the fights, while they focused more on the strategic command of the battle.
Tan tried to inform his best friend of the truth countless times, but every time, he would be shot down by Fin, who claimed that it couldn’t be the same person, as the childhood friend he knew was a friendly girl who wouldn’t hurt others for fun, which directly contrasted Mari’s tendencies as a pirate.
“Wait, wouldn’t they know each other’s names?!” he asked himself. Before he could delve deeper into his theories, the ship shook violently. When he poked his head out, he saw the tip of Mari’s ship rapidly approaching their own.
One look told him that this wasn’t them readying to board. No, they were sailing straight at the ship. Mari’s shocked expression was all that Tan needed to determine that this maneuver from her wasn’t intentional.
The ice spell that Fin had cast earlier had set Mari’s ship off course, and now the two wooden vessels merged with one another, Mari’s ship vertically slamming against the side of Fin’s.
Unable to stop, both ships were quickly getting torn apart. Worried about the wellbeing of his crew, Fin finally hurried out of his office, scanning his eyes for a way to remedy the situation that he had caused.
Crew members who feared for their lives jumped into the water, swimming away as fast as they could before the sharp wooden debris could pierce their skin and bones. Tan held on tight to the ship’s mast. Both ships tilted sideways violently, slowly sinking down to the bottom of the ocean.
Fin tried to visualize another spell, but he was quickly interrupted by two balls of fire just barely missing his head. He snapped his neck as he saw Mari, barely clinging on to her ship, with her palm aimed at him.
“I WON’T GO DOWN SO EASILY!” she furiously exclaimed. Despite her impressive remark, her hand was slipping ever so slightly.
She fired another set of fireballs. However, not having full vision of where she was aiming, the bolts landed on top of dynamite that Fin had gotten his crew to prepare in order to toss at the opposing ship.
His eyes widened. He pointed his palm at the barrels, casting wind magic as quickly as possible. The five barrels flew into the air, with fire slowly spreading inward toward the dynamite contained within. However, he had hesitated for too long, as the barrels all exploded in between the two ships.
Sending out a shockwave of pure explosive force, both Fin and Mari went flying in opposite directions. For the first time in two years, this small moment of peace gave them enough time to gaze upon their archrivals.
Time froze. Both parties hitched their breath as they recognized who the other person they had been fighting so hard to kill was. It wasn’t the similarity of their names nor the color of their hair that helped them realize the truth. It was the eyes.
“IT’S ABOUT TIMEEEEE—!” Tan shouted as his body plunged into the sea.
Something within them reignited, as a desire to kill the other was quickly extinguished. It felt so stupid, fighting over something so trivial as power and control. Their hearts beat quickly, and an unnerving heat spread across their faces.
Memories came flooding in, reminding them of days of joy and unrelenting happiness. They both wanted to reach out to each other, talk to each other, and catch up with what time had done to them.
But alas, all they could do right now as their bodies plunged into the sea, was make eye contact across the ship.