The sweltering sun pelted down on the Alabasta City Nanohana, as rain fall would from swollen clouds on a raining Autumn day. Sticking out his tongue panting as the heat made the minkman's fur feel icky and moist, Jackal trenched through the sun after gaining the information from Tally about the feast to occur in the Capital City, Alubarna. However, travelling into the inner city was impossible for Helios, simply because he'd die before he ever gathered any supplies. See, Jackal's nose was extremely sensitive, and over the years, he's trained it to pick up on the most subtle of scents for his own advantage, however, in this case, even from a block away, he could smell the strong pungent perfumes that the people of Nanohana prided themselves on. Knowing most cities marketing district, he'd be harassed to try on several scents that would leave him either passed out due to the strong lingering scents or floating down the River Styx's. Before finishing his meal at Sandy's Bar, he'd been giving a tip-it about a travelling service by the name of Amaila's Travelling Service, apparently Sandy and Amaila grew up together and the women were childhood rivals. Taking directions with care, Jackal had been navigating the long back streets of Alubarna, trying to locate 'The Giant Green Striped Tent with Purple Tarpaulin Sides', though as vague as that sounded, it was extremely specific to Jackal, who was a mere foreigner in a different land. This was nothing like the cold frigid climates of Drum or the humid expansive forests of Zou, pretty much a completely new environment.


In the distance, he'd see a large tent from about a hundred meters or so away, with what seemed to be a green over, and the stripes were also green but in an off-white mix to them. As he got closer, the giant sign made Jackal give out a slight sigh at the directions he'd been given, the large board saying, 'Amaila's Transport - From City to City Via The Largest Crabs!' was a dead give away, and was mentioned in no part of the directions. The sign, seemingly hand made and painted, was really well done, about fifty inches wide, and propped up as the pinnacle of the rooftop's front. The tent obviously had no doors but the tarpaulin created a makeshift encasement for everything inside, making it a blurry and almost not visible of it's contents from the outside. Walking through the blinds of the tent, Jackal exclaimed, with his brown hood strapped over his head to conceal his Mink like traits, "Hey! Anyone home!?" Jackal shouted.

As soon as he stepped through the blinds, the feeling of his feet leaving the ground, startled the man to points where he couldn't even respond. Before Jackal noticed it, he was lifted off the ground and plastered into the sandy streets, bounded to the floor by a heavy weight that burdened his mid-section. Both his arms surging in electricity for a counter attack, the Mink and his attacker met eye to eye, Jackal staring into the woman's eyes from a horizontal angle. What was more apparent was the barrel of the woman's singular piped shotgun that now rested against Jackal's temple. Resting in the woman's mouth was a piece of sugarcane, which she gnawed on gingerly. She'd stand at about 5'8, not much taller than Jackal, but the flooring of the man gave her the domineering footing, and the only footing for that matter of the situation. "When my old buddy gave me a buzz and said, a Pirate was coming to visit me... I thought it was her way of saying, 'She'd finally paid someone off to collect the money I owed her'" the woman, Amaila, began to voice her concerns about a situation Jackal knew nothing about. "Your bounty might not be the biggest in Paradise but it's the newest issued, Mr.Jackal Bandit." Amaila stated. "How may I help the fluffy man animal that's known to steal from humans?" Amaila inquired.

His hood removed during the surprise attack, the man's face was now exposed while threatened by the weapon which was adamantly pointing at the Mink's head. "That might be the case but I only steal from Pirates and The Rich." Jackal said, grabbing onto the barrel of the woman's gun. "Oh... Is that so, what are you, Robin Hood?" Amalia inquired. "Electro Nest." Jackal exclaimed. Instantly, the electricity produced from the Mink's body surged through the metal, trailing down to the trigger, stunning the woman's hand. The astonishment, loosened her foot hold on Jackal, allowing the man to push to the left, moving his head out of range of the shotgun's barrel, and off the ground to float a few inches in the attempted direction, before hitting the ground. Amalia, firing off a round into the ground, scared from the shock, after the paralysis ended, she'd instinctively fired the shot, however, Jackal was long out of range. Successful in his attempt, the woman scrambled for her gun, while Jackal, creating a slight distance lunged to his feet. Her hand still trembling from the recoil of the shot, managed to garner the gun eventually but by that time Jackal had motioned in her direction, successfully plotting himself, a few inches behind the woman's standing stance.

Resting his razor sharp finger nails by the woman's neck, "Calm down. Drop the gun." Jackal stated, coldly. At this point, Jackal was fighting his urge of wanting to burry a punch into the woman's mid-section, rendering her unconscious. Not only was he close to a human but she'd made a genuine attempt at ending his life, just moments ago. Jackal needed her and she had already assumed Jackal was this unlawful thief, blame the News Coo articles editorial team for that. As soon as the woman dropped the gun, he'd kick it away about thirty inches from their position. Retracting his nails, he'd also back step a few gaps between himself in the woman, who'd now drop to the ground panting for air, from a miniature panic attack. "I don't know what's going on between you and that old wench but I just bought lunch from her. She recommended you after I asked about making it to the King's Feast. I have no intentions of robbing or harming you." Jackal said. "Liar!" Amaila exclaimed. What was it with women calling him a liar, these days, maybe it was them with the trust issues.

Sniffling, as tears came from her eyes, the woman began to cry, "You did something weird to my hand! Meanie! Lech! Idiot!" Amalia exclaimed. Sighing, "Do I really have to deal with this?" Jackal murmured under his breath. "Look. It's called Electro. It isn't weird! It's my people's way of self defence- Why am I even explaining myself to you!? Your the woman that came gun-ho with your shotgun to blow my brains out!" Jackal retorted. Returning to her knees, the woman's tears would fade almost instantly, "Sorry okay." she'd say, winking in a cute fashion, as if that'd erase the sequence of events that had just taken place. "I'll find someone else!" Jackal exclaimed, tired of this whole set-up. "Wait!" Amalia shouted in a more normal tone. Chuckling, "I was just testing you kid, relax." Amalia stated. "If you wanted to steal from me... Knowing your reputation, you wouldn't even approach through the front door. I was just messing with you. Though, I am curious. Why not just go to the inner city and sign up with the more popular charters? A pirate like you should certainly have a large crew of Mink? I just found it odd that you came solo... so I thought this would drag out any of your accomplices." Amaila said, gnawing on her sugar cane between pauses.

"I don't have a crew..." Jackal murmured under his breath. "What was that?" Amaila said teasingly, she'd definitely heard the man's statement. "Ugh! Your so annoying! I said I don't have a crew." Jackal exclaimed. Using his index finger, he'd point to his nose, "My nose is extremely sensitive. If I travel into Nanohana with the perfumes ya'll make here... I'll be a goner. The chemicals are like poison to my nose." Jackal said. Dusting herself off as the man spoke, "Ah. I get it." Amaila concluded. "Fine. I'll be your charter. It'll take me a few days to get the supplies ready though. The Feast is like a whole week thing anyway. The first days will be offerings to the Royalty as a 'tribute'. The real fun stuff starts around mid-week. I'll need two days max. I just need some more food rations and water, since my supplies are low." Amaila explained, fashioning her hair into a bun and spitting the sugarcane roots remains onto the ground. Now that things were seemingly settled, Jackal got a good look at Amaila. She was gorgeous, her slight tanned skin concealed under the flowing contents of her silk robe wear, the slight mole above lips and her long flowing midnight hair which danced in the wind, whenever it'd so often blow. Even her scent wasn't as strong as the perfumes but it'd been noted by Jackal that she was wearing a fragrance of some kind. "If you want, you can hang out on the outskirts of the town. They're tons of tourist cafe's there. At this time of the year... They are usually empty too so you won't need to walk around with all those robes... You look sketchy is." Amaila said, chuckling as she pointed out the man's brown robe and overall attire. "Come inside. I'll give you some clothes to fit in." Amalia said winking.

Jackal didn't get this Lesser Mink at all, not one bit. One minute she's pointing a shotgun in his face and other she'd inviting him in for new clothing. Odd. Following the woman behind the blinds, he'd survey the area inside the tent. It was empty of human life, and though it wasn't a complete dump, it was certainly messy. She'd have a work desk, a sleeping area in a corner, a mountain of papers, a bulletin board with bounty posters and another one with a map of Alabasta plastered over it's face. On the floor, aside from trash were several bedazzled chests, scattered at different ends of the room. Walking over to the chest closest to the door, she'd open it, dropping the shotgun back into it's contents. Walking over to her work area, which was to the West of the tent, she'd motion towards another chest, reaching for the keys from her waist. "It's fine. I'm okay with the clothes I currently have." Jackal exclaimed. Opening the chest, "Your saying this now... until we hit the desert. Those thick material clothes that outsiders wear will get you killed quickly in the desert. It all comes with the chartering package... Relax and Strip." Amalia said grinning, as she dug through the chests contents. "Strip?" Jackal retorted, gulping the saliva in his throat which felt like a rock at the woman's request. "Ah! I think I'll go check out those stores now." Jackal said, smirking nervously. It'd all happen in an instant. Jackal was reduced to nothing but his bare Mink body, only to be dressed garment by garment by Amalia with much pleasure.

"See, that wasn't so bad was it?" Amalia exclaimed grinning, proud of her styling co-ordination. Wrapping around the man's neck was a silk blue scarf, knitted to insulated heat due to the lightness of it's material, his arms were covered in diamond patterned snakeskin gloves, and his regular three quarter pants replaced with satin trimmed black and blue plaid pants. With no shoes for his animal shaped appendages for legs, she'd left his claws exposed, fashioning make-shift sandals, geared for desert travel. Now that Jackal's tail was exposed and free, he'd feel much more comfortable, and besides, with the new clothes, the scorching heat didn't feel as bad. He was now bareback, as he didn't like shirts all that much. As such, Amalia wiped him down in a scent free sun tan lotion, made from natural oils found around Alabasta. This exposed the tattoo on his left breast. Wincing at the woman's touch on his body, as she rubbed in the oil, his resistance faded when she asked about his slaver's mark. He'd push the woman away, not violently but a gracious nudge which caused her to tumble back a bit. "It's the mark that the slave traders place on my body when I was first captured." Jackal exclaimed, with a cynical grin on his face. Covering her mouth as the tears came from the woman's eyes about Jackal's response, "I'm sorry... I didn't mean-" she trail on, only to be interrupted by Jackal.

"Don't be. You aren't responsible for the trafficking going on. It's not that I hate humans either. I just have trauma from those days that weren't until about a month or so ago. I understand there's good among the Lesser Minks... It'll just take time." Jackal concluded. After this, the two would sit in silence for a few moments, acknowledging each others ignorance as the stepping stone for understanding, and even possibly a friendship. "The world's such a big place huh? Here, slavery isn't anything like out there. Slaves are just family members who have sworn to serve the Crown for the good of the people and in some cases, the monarchy. I've heard horrible things about other Paradise Islands and they're kind of cruelty, especially among the nobles." Amalia said. "After all... My first husband was a slave just like you. He escaped and found exile in Alabasta. It took him years to adjust and even then, it was never truly gone." Amalia concluded. " 'It takes every one of us to make a change', he'd always say." Amalia added in. Grinning, "Your husband seems like a good man." Jackal chimed in. "Oh he was, god bless the dead." Amalia said, smiling. Walking over to the Bounty Board, trying out the footing with his new sandals, he'd notice his Bounty Poster among some others, the one who stood out to him was the '25,000,000' Million dollar reward on a man named Barron, 'The Bottomless Pit'. "Eh... Mine and his are the lowest. Paradise really is a scary place." Jackal thought, noticing that all the other bounty's are well over 50,000,000 Million.

"Alright. Enough talking about old wounds. I'm heading into the town. Your free to stick around or head out to the cafe's like I told you. If anyone asks about your tail and ears, say it's part of your outfit!" Amalia exclaimed, scuttling around the room to gather her money pouch, travel package and shopping bag for the inner city. "Sorry I can't help you." Jackal said, looking over his shoulder, only to find the woman already gone. Exiting the tent, Jackal would fashion the large scarf into a head wrap and begin his journey towards the outskirts of the city. From his position, it'd take about a half hour to reach this point. Further down out of the city, a mixture of screams from tourists and locals on the outskirts, rung loudly. Not close enough to notice it yet, Jackal would be in for a major development in ways he could kill his time shortly.

Trails of dust shot through the desert as five mounted Giant Gecko's made movements towards Nanohana. On their backs were five men, each with different heights and physical descriptions but what bonded the group as a unit was their choice of attire. Each man wore white robes, with a beige head wrap, under which, even those without hair would conceal their dome. At their waist, each carried a range of weapons from scimitars to swords, and even a mace wielder was among them. On their backs, was what seemed to be a projectile launcher strapped via a leather strap with a brass clip. Finding some cactus about ten meters away from the town's Southern Entrance, the men demounted and began to walk towards the down, with ominous grins and chuckles emoted. Approaching from the North was Jackal, who'd been inspecting the new duds he'd been gifted by Amalia, he'd smile warmly to himself. "I guess all of them aren't bad but I already knew that." Jackal said, looking at the leather strapped gloves with much amusement. In the distance, about a meter or so, the cafe's that Amalia described were indeed empty-ish but a couple travellers could've been seen populating the seating arrangements. Each of the cafe's had an open air setup to them, with tents draping over the arrangement to prevent sun burn. Apparently, each tent was crafted with a special material that insulates heat giving the air a less denser humidity, almost the way a humidifier would work. The band of five would finally make it into town, removing the launchers from their holsters, and aiming towards the open air cafe's platforms. Firing off several cans, the can's landed in the middle or some cases on the outside of these exposed dining areas. Upon hitting an object, a white smoke oozed outward at an quicken rate covering about five by five meters in space maximum, smoking out all of those who were eating at the table, rendering many unconscious. Those who'd managed to escape from the smoke would be met by the edges of the men's weapon of choice digging into their skin. One by one, they'd chase after the citizen's, looting them of their personal belongings, staying away from the areas where the smoke had existed.

Noticing the smoke in the distance, Jackal bended his knees, and launched upwards, above the smoke to get a better view from the sky. Climbing about fifteen meters in height, he'd climb until reaching a distance that allowed him to overview the situation, once achieved, he'd noticed the five men pillaging anyone that was on route to either escape or resistance. At this point, each of them where three meters apart, in each direction, running through the buildings, using their scarves as face masks to the smoke, while one man stood in the middle of the road, on the outskirts of the fog, protecting the pile of Beli and belongings that they each collected, using the drop off point as a central meet up, for storing the loot. As Jackal reached the pinnacle of his leap, he'd descend back towards the ground and as he fell due to gravity, the mens distance from each other widened to about ten meters from the collection point. The road was riddled with coughing citizens, others murdered and some heavily wounded for resisting the men's orders. Running into the smoke and taking them each out individually would be a losers game, and as much as he was annoyed by such cowardice in methods, Jackal found merit in their approach as a Bandit himself. This way, no local authorities would be alerted and they'd be able to systematically penetrate into the town before them noticing, it'd be too late. However, what annoyed Jackal was that by using this method, there was no need to take life. Bending his feet once again, Jackal would push off the ground, this time, leaping four meters off the sand, ten meters in distance, through the eye of the smokescreen and appearing on the other side by the pile of ever growing belongings. The look-out hadn't noticed Jackal's arrival, as he was too busy shovelling the treasure into empty brown sacks, already at bag number three by the looks of it all.

Smirking, this time in frustration, Jackal would walk over to the man's back which was turned towards the Beli. Tapping the man on his shoulder, he'd look over to see Jackal, face mask and all, behind smirking menacingly. Dropping his shovel, the man reach at his waist for his scimitar, in attempt to spin around and slash towards the attackers mid-section. Jackal watched as the man reached for his waist, and before he could even reach for his weapon, Helios already extending his hand towards the man's neck in the form of a Karate Chop. The moment the man's hand reach his blade, Jackal's hand had made contact, sending a surge of electricity pulsing through his body. Skipping two steps back, the man's body hit the ground like a sack of potatoes, as urine trickled down his right pants leg, staining his white robes from the electrical shock. Jackal would gather the remaining Beli and goodies into the third bag, making three complete four foot bags of loot. Hopping onto of the most central bag, each lined up side by side, Jackal folded his legs and awaited for the smoke to clear. The man positioned by the loot's other responsibility was to ensure the attacked areas were continuously filled with smoke but as the smoke faded thinner and thinner, the other four men knew something had gone wrong. They'd done this same pattern on tons of smaller towns all across Alabasta, and only one thing causes the smoke to be thinned, and that was being found out by the Royal Guards. Retreating back to the meet up point, the four men's mouth's dropped as the Mink who was sitting on the most central bag, had placed the bag on top of the passed out man's back, wedging his right animal appendage into the bandit's face. "Howdy." Jackal said grinning.

"I don't know who the fuck you are mate... but you don't want to mess with us lot, yeah!" one of the bandits exclaimed irritated. As the smoke cleared, the four men created a half moon formation, blocking off Jackal's exit points. "We're the Pit Bandits! Our leader is the 25,000,000 Million Dollar Man, Barron Pit!" another bandit exclaimed, licking his the blood off his mace. Adjusting his siting to a more comfortable part of the bag, Jack rested his other foot against the sand. "Oh! That's the dude from the wanted poster back at Amalia's place." Jackal declared, slamming his right hand into the palm of the other. Looking at each other confused, the bandits only understood one thing, that this monster before them was the reason their plan was thwarted. Waging his tail from side to side, Jackal watched as the expressions on each man's face changed to that of a colder, more threatening appearance. Hopping off the bag, Jackal would leap directly towards the man in front him about four meters forward, fifteen inches off the ground, slamming his head into the man's mid-section, surging his body full of electricity. The man stood about ten feet in height but the force of the launch pushed him backwards about eight feet backwards. To his flank, the bandit with the mace, slammed his weapon into Jackal's back, drawing first blood from the Mink, causing him to wince in pain. As the mace's metallic spikes dug into the man's skin, Jackal wrapped his tail around the mace's handle, pushing it away from his body, freeing the spikes from being wedged in his back. "Electro Nest." Jackal thought, creating a field of electricity, Jackal's tail being the docking point to bridge the electrical surges into the bandit's arms. The initial shock made him drop the weapon immediately. Lunging into the air, only a few inches off the ground this time, Jackal slashed his claws against the man's chest cage, leaving his claws wedged into his flesh, and disbursing an electrical shock into the Bandit's entire body.

With this, only two men remained. Some of the Mink's movements appeared to be a blur to them but it was the ease in Jackal's movements that terrified the men. Such graceful motion to be used to defeat their allies, made them re-think attacking the man wildly. As the men created distance, Jackal would flashback to times in his earlier years.

---

Panting and covered in sweat, Jackal and his Father, stood focus on each other's body positions. Jackal's Father bore a longsword about twenty-five inches in length, and Jackal fought bare-handed. At this age, Jackal was about four feet in height and his father was around twelve feet in comparison. Extending his blade towards the boy's nose, Jackal would use his claws to nudge away the blade and the two would begin a fierce exchange. Which of coursed ended with Jackal's Father besting him. Resting the blade by his neck, "Your too slow Helios." his father said. "You're not build strong like my side of the family and you have your mother's height!" Jackal's Father would exclaim laughing. "Hey! That's not funny dad! Shut up! I'm only twelve! I'll grow, I've been drinking more milk lately!" Helios shouted. Ending his laugh at the sight of his pouting child, he'd exclaim a quick sigh. "Do you know what your greatest weakness is right now Jackal?" Jackal's Father inquired. "If I knew that I wouldn't be training so damn hard!" Jackal scowled back. "You're too reliant on strength. Among all the Watcher Recruits, your the fastest and most agile. Yet, because you've watched me fight your whole life... You rely too much on situations where you domineer your opponent. What happens when you meet stronger Ox Mink's or even Lesser Mink's that have achieved Super Human Status... You'll be overwhelmed. Use your speed to not only domineer situations but to set the pace." Jackal's Father concluded.

---

Hopping on his two feet, shifting weight from left to right, Jackal would extend his hand outward and taunt the men to attack by making the 'Come Over' gesture. Furious, the men would attack as a unit, jumping into the air to slam their sword and hammer, simultaneously at the Jackal's shorter body. With the added force and adjacent direction of the attacks, it'd be more than enough to finish the runt off. As their bodies descended inward, Jackal would leap to the right about six feet, circling around to the men's back, in a two step motion. Six feet to obtain distance, and six feet curved back in at an fort-five degree angle for contact. Once he'd lung back in, Jackal would wrap his arms around both men's waists, reaching electrical charges which trickled upward into their solar plexus and downward into their groin, in width and height, using the body as it's plateau to expand, his current would too spread into every muscle and pore on the men's body. Surrounding Jackal were five paralysed men, each twitching from the electrical currents still fresh in their bodies, however, with not much strength in Jackal's strikes, they'd be conscious, just unable to move. The smell of charred flesh trailed off the Lesser Mink's brought Jackal a bit of pleasure because it cancelled out the chemical filled perfumes densely covering Nanohana, causing the Mink to smile. To the men, he'd look like a monster who'd taken pride in his assault, when in actuality, he'd just been glad that he could finally smell something other than the stench of scented elixirs.

Skills Used in The Last Posts :

 

Rounding up the electrocuted bandits together in a circle, Jackal used table cloths from the abandoned cafe's tops to fashion a make shift rope, using strong knots to package the bandits together. Once he'd drawn the knots tight enough to remove any form of struggle from the upper body, he'd begin individually, tying down each man's legs, with the same cloth restraints. Slapping one of the men in his face, Jackal would clasp his hand, squeezing the men's cheeks together, and stooping down to make eye contact, only a few inches separated them at this point, except the bandit party was bounded to the ground. Much of them struggled to be free but the more they struggled, the tighter the knots became. "Now. Which one of you is going to tell why in the world you guys came to attack this place? I get that your bandits but five of you wouldn't be enough tackle a city of this size. Where's Barron?" Jackal inquired. The man's whose cheeks Jackal was currently squashing broke free, spitting in the man's face. "We ain't no fucking snitches." one of the men shouted. Having his fill of electricity, Jackal left that man's circuits fried once again, and he'd motion sideways, to the man next to him. "I guess it's your turn now." Jackal said grinning. The bandit could tell that Jackal meant business and that his friend who was literally cooking next to him was more than enough proof. "What do you want to know, Monster?" the man exclaimed freely. "Kek... It's been awhile since someone's called me a Monster. It still pisses me off. My name's Jackal." Jackal exclaimed, tightening his grip as he electrocuted the bandit who'd insulted him. Sliding onto the next bandit in the circle, he'd squash yet another man's face. "Jackal was it!?" the man shouted in a higher pitch than his usual speaking tone. Grinning, "Yes?" Jackal inquired.

The bandit would go on to explain that they were just an envoy sent to garner them a foothold in a major town. They'd made their name by attacking smaller towns within Alabasta on the other side of Sandora River, near to Rainbase. "I get it. This place was your chance to get a foothold in a bigger city. How many men are under your bosses command?" Jackal inquired. "Fifty." the man would quickly respond and Jackal would electrocute him as well. Sliding over to the next victim, he'd continue the questioning, repeating the question once again. "It's really fifty goddamnit! We're the newest members that's why we got the short end of the stick! We only joined like two raids ago!" the bandit exclaimed. Releasing his grip off the man's face, he'd nod in acquisition of the information. Cracking his knuckles, one after the other, he'd clock each of the men against their jaw, leaving them unconscious and convulsing. He'd travel some ways off to their camp which could've been seen in the distance, once he'd managed to secure three Giant Gecko, he'd fashion them into a line, allowing three of them to pull the bags of loot, which were strapped to each of their backs. He'd then return with the other two Gecko's, strapping the men and their weapons to the backs of the other two. Leading all five Gecko's by string into the town, he'd return to Amalia's place momentarily.

Time flew, Jackal fell asleep on the floor of Amalia's place, making sure to tie up the Gecko's by the trough filled with water by to the back of the tent, which backed an closed alleyway. He'd tie the men to a chest, and place their weapons inside of it, emptying it's contents, that of Amalia's memorabilia to another side of the tent. When the woman returned in the night time, she'd been stalked piled on supplies from head to toe. She'd drop the bag at the tents entrance and quickly run into light a lamp. Fastening the tent's blinds close, she'd turn around and give out a loud scream at the sight before her. "W-W-W- What's going on!? Who are they Jackal!?" Amalia inquired astonished. The woman's scream woke the man from his slumber, poised with the answer to her question, "Ah. Them. Bandits who tried to rob the cafe I was heading to." Jackal stated before yawning. "Damn... I feel a bit light headed." Jackal commented, as he sat in a pool of blood that drenched his silk clothes. Amalia hurried to examine the pool of blood, noticing the wound on the man's back. "You idiot! You've lost so much blood already!" Amalia exclaimed, hopping up to scatter around the room in search of a first aide kit. After calming down a bit, "Alright. So they tried to rob the cafe's, you beat them up. Why bring them back here?" Amalia asked. "I was tired and I needed more information from them. Plus, I had to decide what I was going to do with all their stolen Beli." Jackal stated, pointing to the bags filled with treasure in the corner. As she bandaged the Mink's shoulder and upper back with tight wrapping, she'd finish and walk over to the bag's to inspect their contents. "This is... about two million Beli, if not more!" Amalia exclaimed. "Yeah. And according to them, they've been robbing smaller villages all around Alabasta. Which means-" Jackal said. "We need to report them." "We need to find their base and steal the rest." Amalia and Jackal said at the same time. A brief silence came over the room until, "You can't be serious Jackal!?" the woman exclaimed. "I'm a Bandit who steals from other Bandits. It's like my job. How else do you expect me to pay you for the charter?" Jackal responded.

"Well the Beli in the corner is yours. That should be more than enough to compensate you for supplies." Jackal continued. "The next thing I'm going to need you to do is report this to the local authorities, and tell them to send backup from wherever immediately." Jackal said. "If they aren't lying and he does have fifty men, even I won't be enough to take them all on at my current level. That's just being open and honest with you." Jackal stated. "Once the five stooges come to, I'll find out where they're base is located and do some recon. If they are attacking Nanohana, you informing the authorities will bring enough security to protect the town from the raid. Meanwhile, once their Head Quarters is empty, I'll steal all their treasure. Then we'll leave for Alubarna immediately." Jackal alluded. Smiling, "And were are we going to store all this treasure, Mr.Jackal?" Amalia inquired, with a fake smile on her face. "Here of course." Jackal said grinning. At this point, Amalia went ballistic, throwing pots, books, canisters, or whatever she could get her hands on at Jackal. "I'm a tax paying citizen. That'll make me an accomplice to your crimes. No way, I refuse." Amalia shouted passionately. "I'll give you half." Jackal responded. Walking over to Jackal, and placing her hand on his shoulder with figurative money signs in her eyes, "Go get em' Tiger. I believe in you." Amalia's said grinning. With this Jackal let out a sigh and the two parties finally came to a mutual agreement.  

Eventually the five men came to, and the looming expressions of both Amalia and Jackal's mean mugs made all of them men sit with a stomach filled with butterflies about what was going to happen next. "Morning' You guys had a nice sleep?" Jackal inquired. "I'm going to need one of you, not all at once now, tell me exactly where your bosses base is located, okay?" Jackal inquired. All five of the men shook their head in disapproval, "Look! I'm not getting killed by Barron for none of you's! Do you know what he does to traitors? Drags them by leg through the desert while being tied to the rudder of his ship!" one of the bandits exclaimed. "It's too late to be thinking about that now. I could just go stumbling around the desert until I eventually find him... but then, I'll have to tell him you snitched and use that information to join the pack on the grounds that I lead him back to you anyway." Jackal exclaimed shrugging. "And seeing I'm going to make his treasure disappear, I wonder who'll be the number one suspects." Jackal said grinning menacingly. A sullen expression befell the faces of all the tied up bandits in the room. "This is a waste of time Jackal." Amalia said, roleplaying as one of Jackal's crew-mates. "Your the Jackal Bandit, the Mink who steals and murders humans. Don't give them a chance boss, let me handle this." Amalia said, almost breaking out into laughter at the cheesy lines Jackal had written for her. Walking over to the chest, Amalia revealed her shotgun and walked over to the tied up bandits who squirmed, tied to the chest in fear, kicking in attempts to break free. "Besides... They killed innocents... if their bodies come up missing in the desert... The Royal Guard will just chalk it up as a in house dispute." Amalia said, pressing her shotgun agains one of the men's temple. "I got exactly five rounds knocking around here too... Quick Head Shots and It'll be over." Amalia said grinning.

One of the five bandits passed out from the shock of the situation, another opted to give them the information while, the other three remained silent. "Fine. Fine. Just get that crazy bitch of yours away from me Jackal!" the bandit exclaimed screaming. "Everyone around here is familiar with Sandora Graveyard right?" the bandit asked in a rhetorical manner. "It's the hottest peak in the Sandora Desert. Well, to the North of that area is an oasis called Sun's Haven. Our base is located there, it doubles as a desert resort for travellers." the bandit stated. "Sandora Graveyard... That's a ways North Of Katorea right?" Amalia chimed in. "It's said anyone who gets lost in that pit of Sand Dunes is destined to die of dehydration. If it's where he says it is, it's the perfect defence using the deserts natural element against us." Amalia informed. "However it's easy enough to find... Just travel North-East from where you found them and you'll be there in no time." Amalia concluded. Grabbing one of the backpack's Amalia had purchased for the journey to Alubarna, Jackal stocked the bag filled with supplies. "Alright. I'm off." Jackal declared. "What!? Your leaving now Jackal!? It's the dead of the night! You'll just end up getting lost. Besides the deserts immensely cold at night. The change in temperature is not something visitors can handle that easily. You might end up getting sick or worse!" Amalia exclaimed. "The best time to strike is when your enemies least expect it. Don't forget... take these guys to local authorities. Even if I get caught, this Barron guy will definitely retreat if he's at an disadvantage. Well, if he's smart. Either way, by the time he gets back, his treasure will be gone." Jackal said grinning. "Fine. If your going to leave then take these Fire Fly Lanterns with you. If you get lost, follow the stars that look as if they're coupled together like an orb. You can't miss it. It usually sits above or ways off the Sandora Graveyard." Amalia explained.

Leaping towards the North of the city, shooting off in increments of fifteen meters through the desert, the Jackal Bandit travelled North-East towards the Sandora Graveyard. The night air in the desert had it's own life to it, a chilly temperature that was neither too hot or too cold at it's base but dropping to much colder temperatures at it's worst. It was unforgiving, and those who'd been dealing with the sweltering heat during the day would be putting their body under extreme conditions if they'd travel in this cold, furthermore sleep in anything other than a tightly fastened tent. Yet, all for the good of the hunt, the Jackal travelled by foot through the desert, using his aerial leaps to look out for the locations of sink holes, which were easy to point out under the shimmering moonlight light that engrossed the Desert. "If I travelled by Camel or Gecko, it'd take too long. That shitty academy's teachings are finally coming into fruition. Mink's should be able to leap in all conditions. Stable ground, slippery ones and even on moving objects if need be." Jackal said talking to himself. This would continue for about almost half a mile before Jackal decided to a take a break, digging into his backpack for wooden logs and stones to start a makeshift fire under the night sky. Resting by campfire, he'd huddle around the flame to keep himself warm, he was definitely accustomed to much colder temperatures than this but he'd needed his body to stay warm, or cramping up during this voyage would be a fatal error on his part. Reaching to the canister at the side pocket of the bag, he'd sip on the water slowly, allowing each gulp to trickle down his throat into his gut, replenishing every electrolyte he'd need further down the line. Looking to his east, he'd smile, seeing the stars that Amalia had told him about, huddle together to almost form what seemed to be an orb.

After replenishing his energy for a few more minutes, he'd strap his backpack on his once again, and begin lunging to the North-East, now using the constellation as his compass for travel. Bouncing from Dune to Dune, at least the ones he could reach the top of, some of which came at around 300 Meters in height and were well out of Jackal's lunging capabilities. Encountering these mountainous dunes, he'd scale around their sides until eventually, being back on route, avoiding any scorpions and cactuses that lied on his path. Eventually, it came into vision, it was a large encampment, which featured a stone wall, about fifty feet in height, and only one door permitted entry from looks of things. Around the compound was a sand moat, filled with what seemed to be oil, or some kind of flammable substances, as the guards were using lit arrows and firing them at desert animals who'd manage to fall into the moat. It'd have to extremely volatile in nature, as the small flame would set ablaze the whole moat within seconds. As the successful attempts and failed ones, be met with cheers and boos respectively, the guards would drink ale in merriment, each dressed in similar robes and headwear as the bandits Jackal had managed to defeat back in Nanohana. At this point, Jackal was still about fifty or so meters away but as he travelled closer, the layout and men's actions became more apparent, he'd stop travelling inward at about twenty-five meters, and then, he'd set his next trap.

Moments after Jackal exited the village, Amalia rushed to the authorities in Nanohana to report the incident that transpired at the edge of town. With countless of distressed citizen recounting the same story, the one story building that acted as the Alabasta Royal Guard's and the Marine's Headquarters was filled with hands trying to take reports and administer medical aide to the wounded. "So your telling me..." the Marine Officer began to ask as he took the woman's report. "This man named Jackal was it? He was responsible for subduing these Bandits who you claim are tied up at your house?" the Marine continued to scribble as he took the report. Shaking, playing the part of the terrified hostage, "Yes. He broke into my house and held both myself and the men hostage." Amalia said, almost brought to tears, crocodile tears that is. "And your telling me that more bandits are going to come to Nanohana... in attempts to take the city as a foothold?" the marine said, continuing his interrogation. "I-I- think so. I'm not sure what their goal is but that's what the men said to the pirate." Amalia said, stuttering in between in tears as she spoke. "Alright ma'am. Calm down! Joe! Get about ten men to escort this lady home! Bring back the men subdued at her house immediately. Send word to the capital that we'll need back up. It's those damned Barron Bandits again!" the Marine Captain shouted, barking orders to his men. Grinning underneath her coupled arms that were lodged as pillows against the table, she'd wipe away the smile of her success momentarily, to be led by the guards back to her home. Sighing, "We could be in big trouble... With this feast going on... The Royal Guard won't be able to send anyone higher up to guard the town and I'm currently the highest ranking Marine on base. If anyone near to Barron's Level attacks this place... without the top echelon's man power, we'll be finished!" the Captain thought to himself, slamming his hands against the table.

With about fifteen minutes of travel, the marine guard had made it back to Amalia's tent. Clearing the blinds, five men went inside to inspect, while the other three remained on guard for the woman's safety. The screams of the marines cries from being slain by blade could've been heard, as the tent Amalia had her life's belongings in was now set aflame. The sound of a smooth slash gliding against the wind, leaving bodies dropping like flies at the wake of it's dance caused the marines on the outside of the tent to shake in their boots. "My house is on fire!" Amalia shouted, breaking from in between the guards. Trying to restrain the woman, the marines dropped their weapons but as much as she struggled, Amalia couldn't get away from their grip. Exiting the tent was a tall man, standing at about eight feet with a slender build, who carried a bloodied scimitar in his right hand, dragging it against the sandy floor. The Twenty-Four Inch Blade dirtied the sand with red iron residue, as the man stopped about five meters away from Amalia and her marine guards. As the flames in the tent strengthened, the man began to speak. "If your wondering what happened inside... I had to kill a few 'rats' and a couple of your colleagues, monsieur." the scimitar wielder declared with a wide grin on his face. Resting the dull metallic spine of the blade on his shoulders, the marines shook even more violently when they recognised who exactly was standing before them. "Your... Your... Monsieur Craig. Barron's Right Hand!" the marine shouted. "Correct. Though my bounty isn't as high as my bosses own. It's still up there." Craig said grinning. "Now now boys... I'm going to need you to hand over the girl. Boss wants to talk to her on our ship. By the way, I've been sent to warn you. The People of Nanohana have until sunrise to exit the town. If that demand isn't met, we'll slaughter the lot of you, monsieur." Craig concluded. "Now run." Craig peered at the marines who tried to grab the girl and flee. However, Craig tossed his scimitar cutting off one of the marines' hand who grabbed onto the woman's shoulder. "Leave the girl. Like I said, she's coming with me." Craig said once more, in a calm controlled manner. "Ha!" Amalia exclaimed nervously. "You don't expect the World Government to follow the demands of a mere Bandit-" Amalia's exclaim was silenced as the men tossed the woman onto the ground, abandoning her in retreat. Shattered, Amalia stayed frozen, crouched on her knees, trembling in fear. "But your suppose to protect us... Why else do we pay these impossible taxes every month!" Amalia shouted in frustration.

"Foolish girl. You forgot the rules of the jungle. It's not about following the law or being a good citizen. When it comes down to it in this era, it's about one thing and one thing only. The Strong Will Live and Prosper. The Weak Shall Die Or Be Dominated. Simple. This is slogan that I, the 13,000,000 Million Dollar Man, Monsieur Craig, lives by." Craig said grinning, showing his stained yellow teeth. "Thirteen Million... His bounty is higher than Jackal's own." Amalia thought devastated. However, the woman's eyes opened even wider at the reality that just came into focus. "Wait! If your here that means-" Amalia shouted, her speech stopped short by the man's incredible motion towards her, covering her mouth with jet black leather glove. "Like I said... The boss wants to talk to you. It's about your Captain... My men tell me he goes by the name of... Monseuir Jackal, was it?" Craig said, continuing to grin. Taking in a deep breath and licking his lips, "It's a blood red moon tonight. Perfect for shedding blood and drinking wine!" Craig exclaimed, chuckling right afterwards.

Using all of the remaining logs in his bag, grazing the rocks against each other in hopes of sparking the wick that lied beneath, Helios started a fire in the desert. The smoke from the flames funnelled into the sky, making it very noticeable that someone had setup camp near to their base. With the majority of the forces away, the few bandits who were left behind at the base were extremely paranoid at any slip ups under their watch. Opening the door for the retractable bridge, a small platoon of three men went to investigate the fire. Riding on Giant Geckos to provide them the speed needed to investigate and return to the base as quick as possible if need be. Digging himself into a nearby dune, Jackal would conceal is presence, holding his breath to take in enough air to last at least ten minutes tops. Sharpening his senses with his eyes closed, he'd wait until the men had dropped their guard and pounce. Five minutes past, and finally, the squad had arrived at the encampment, twenty-five meters off the bases compound. Hopping off the Gecko's, the three bandits ransacked the backpack's supplies, tossing the food and water onto the ground in hopes of finding any hints at who'd set up the camp. "I ain't seeing no one but the fire's fresh. Sand Bandits maybe? or a lost traveller?" one of the bandits theorised. "If they try raiding the base it's useless, without the bridge lowered no one can get in. Let's head back and finish off the rest of the Sake." another bandit chimed in.

Fighting his way from outside of the dune to the right of the bandits about three meters away, Jackal suddenly appeared out of nowhere. In one motion, Jackal would dash into the pack of men with one leap, kicking sand into the fire to quell it's illumination and take away the visual advantage from the lot. Appearing directly behind one of the bandit's who was positioned to the far left, he'd Karate Chopped the man in his neck, since they were around the same height, reach and execution was nearly flawless. The other two startled men attempted to motion back onto their Gecko's to retreat. Lunging into mid-air, Jackal bounced from his position towards the fleeing Bandit's back in one swift motion, upon contact, clenching his paws into the Bandit's Upper Back. The electrical shock caused the man to fall face first but Jackal's claws gripping onto the man was only a momentary action, as he'd used the fallen Bandit's body as a spring board to lunge at onto the next Bandit's shoulder. Panicking, the scared bandit reached for his scimitar, swinging violently in the dark, chipping Jackal's right arm. Using the man's strike to gain his definite position, Jackal counter attacked with a full force punch to the man's solar plexus, electrocuting with one powerful blow. The whole scene played out under the overcast clouds which hid the moonlight momentarily. As the clouds revealed the bloody red moon once again, all that was left was the bodies of the three bandits. Stripping the men naked, Jackal would wear the men's garments to appear to one of the Bandits in the crew. Hopping onto the Jackal, he'd begin motioning back towards the Bandit's Base, hitting his feet against the Gecko's sides, much like a jockey would to a horse to signal movement.  

"Let me in!" Jackal exclaimed in disguise, masking his voice to imitate one of the men's tones. From the wall's peak, "Where are the others!? Identify yourself!" the bandit exclaimed, bow and arrow firmly perched in hand. "Relax you idiot! Let me in the other two have gone off with the women from the encampment. Little scamps!" Jackal shouted. Lowering his bow and arrow momentarily, "Women!? Out here at this time of the night!?" the bandit shouted in curiosity. "Yeah! A whole lot of them too their travelling from the brothel in Katorea to Nanohana for supplies. Apparently their going to 'entertain' the Princes over in Alubarna! When I told them bosses name, they insisted they'd come to our base and show us a good time. The other two are getting a sample as we speak!" Jackal shouted. Gulping heavily, "Sample..." the Bandit thought as drool came from his mouth and a perverse look befell the look-out face. "I'm dropping the bridge, I'm going to wake the others up! Wait til they get a load of this!" the Bandit exclaimed, removing the rope that held the bridge crank stagnant. As the bridge extended from beneath the sand, the access to the other side was now available but the door into the base itself was still closed. Though, this wasn't a factor because among the men's possessions were a bundle of keys, one of which had to be the entrance to the smaller door located to the left of the large fleet exiting door. It was technically a staff entrance for quick ins and outs. Kicking the Gecko once again, Jackal sped across the bridge, making it to the staff entrance. Demounting, one by one, he'd tried opening the door using each of the keys in the bundle, five of which only one would've worked. After trying all but one of the keys, the final key was the missing ingredient for the recipe of disaster that was about to occur. Pushing open the door, Jackal made it into the Bandit's compound, and though the wall's were large, within it's contents were a series of large tents, eight in number, with largest of the tent, a 45 x 65 Meter tent, stood in the middle as the core of operations. Grinning, Jackal would finally be in his element, espionage. Sliding behind the dark crevices of the smaller tent to his right, he'd stoop down, lurking in the shadows at incoming targets.

The sound of the fool who cried wolf woke up all his superiors, but when the bandits came to the entrance and found no women, or no one for the matter of fact, the bandits pummelled on the young bandit, leaving him bloodied and beaten for playing a prank on them at this time of the night. Too sleepy to even investigate further, the men simply retracted the bridge, closed the smaller gate's entrance and retreated back to their tents to sleep. Sneaking around the outskirts of the tents, with minimal visibility, within moments, Jackal had made it to the other-side of the estate, shrouded at the rear of the large tent. Sticking his razor sharp finger nail into the tarpaulin that was hoisted together by metal bars and rope, he'd create an entrance into the tent. Cutting a whole big enough for his body to slip into, Jackal would infiltrate the large tent. Grinning, he'd stumble around in the dark for a bit, until finding some nearby lanterns with dials that ignited them just by cranking them clockwise. Taking a minute to figure this out, the torch set a flame, creating a small bulb of light in the large darkened room. The tent was filled with cages, chests, and even weapon mounts as far as the eyes could see. However, as Jackal traversed the room, he'd light up every mounted chart to illuminate the whole room, and the reality that was revealed to him was one that froze him momentarily. The tent was empty, every treasure chest, every cage that once housed animals, every weapon on the mounts, gone. The only thing that sat inside of this room was a small chest, which sat atop a stone podium, about five feet in height. The chest was fastened by a metallic lock, with a single key whole. Sticking his nail into the lock, he'd begin to send enough electricity into the key hole to weaken the lock's grip mechanism. 'Clank!', the sound of the lock opening brought a smile to Jackal's face. Lifting open the ten by eight inch chest, in it's centre, a single thing was revealed, it was a fruit. One, canon ball sized, black-brownish fruit with odd swirls. "You've got to be kidding me." Jackal exclaimed.  

Skills Used in The Last Posts :

Arched about one mile away from the Nanohana, via camel, Craig on his lonesome, rode back to the Giant Sand Ship, that the Barron Bandits know as 'Iron Heart'. At the base of the ship, above the hull, the face painted Bandit by the name of Craig, who wore a black top hat, lifted the tied and gagged woman off camel back, strapping her over his right shoulder. The remainder of the grunt bandits took hold of the camel he was riding on, ushered it inward to the dock, meanwhile,using his free left hand, he'd tip his top hat toward every bandit he'd pass on his way towards the deck, via a large winding staircase. Finally, making it to the deck of the ship, Craig would cut the woman's restrains free, tossing her at the feet of the throned Bandit, who sat around eight feet tall, but his standing height was nearly fifteen feet. Looking down at the woman by his feet, the man who had most of his jaw replaced with metallic braces and gears, due to a conflict between himself and a Royal Guard member, would now lean to a side, using his right palm as a prop. "Now Now Craig... That's no way to treat a lady." Barron commented, chuckling near the end of his statement. "Now little lady... I have a question for you. Lie and you die. What's your connection the Pirate known as only as 'Jackal'? Go!" Barron said very clear cut and precise with no fluff or buffer in his sentence. He'd extend his index finger outward towards the woman's direction, the man's hand was as big as medium sized canon. This specific hand, his left hand had been converted into mechanical hand, filled with various powered guns. From his Pinky to Index was rifle powered guns, and the remaining two fingers fired miniature canon balls. "There's nothing I'd lie about anyway. I was hired by Jackal to take him to the capital city, Alubarna. I did indeed lie about being his crew mate but that's about it. Jackal hates humans. I could never be his nakama. I'm just a pawn in his attempt to rob your base." Amalia explained. Closing his extended hand, he'd lean back to side, using it as a prop. "Oh? His plan is to raid my base. Well, it's treasure he's looking for I just spent all of mine. Bwahahahaha!" Barron exclaimed, laughing maniacally.


"In my times on Alabasta... and these seas I've stolen from all kinds of people." Barron exclaimed. "Those who wanted money just like I did, those who wanted to protect their loved ones and those who where just helpless sheep caught in the chaos of my madness. It's rare that you fall into two of these three categories. First time to be honest." Barron stated. Re-extending his left index finger, he'd shoot a hole clean through the woman's shoulder causing her to screech out in a loud pained tone. "I don't care. You could've been the whore he toyed with for just one night... I would've kept you hostage. See, I have a theory about people. Would you like to tell her what that theory is Craig?" Barron inquired to his Right Hand Man. Tilting his top hat grinning, "If you've taken more than a minute to know a person, you've become emotionally attached to them, monsieur." Craig said. Sitting up right in his chair, leaning back to get a good look at the woman, "That's right... one minute... If you take more than one minute talking to a person, we as human beings are wired to be attached to them in some way. That's why I usually kill those who I don't like in less than a minute. I can't be having too many friends as a bandit, you feel me?" Barron continued. "That's why I know for a fact... Jackal will come to save you." Barron said, as the woman was still wincing in pain. "And guess what... If he doesn't... My men will take their turns giving you all the attention you need! That's the bandit way! We aren't miserable pirates led by lust for the sea. We're not fucking revolutionaries looking to be heroes! We're the scum of society! Everything society rejects! Murderers! Raiders! Arsonists! The baddest of the bad, you feel me!? Lock her in the holding cells until this 'Jackal' shows up. At sunrise, we raid Nanohana! This town will be our new Head Quarters!" Barron shouted, as the men hoisted up the shot woman over their shoulders, and carried her down into the holding cells, in the West side of the ship.

Plopping onto the ground of the well lit room, Jackal began to scratch his head at the situation at hand. "A fruit!? Is this some sick joke!?" Jackal exclaimed, beginning to theorised. Of the ten men remaining on the base, the lighting of the main tent woke the Bandits from their slumber. Grabbing their weapons from the mounts within their tents, the ten bandits, minus the one they literally beat to death, so the nine bandits, proceeded towards the bosses encampment. Jackal was positioned near the back of the tent, at around thirty meters from the entrance. As the ran into the room one of after the other, the final man drew the strings of the tent, preventing anyone from exiting from through the traditional means, though, all Jackal had to do was return through his makeshift exit about fifteen meters back. Clenching his fist, Jackal thought about the main force heading towards Nanohana, 'Did Amalia manage to get to the marines in time?', was one of the main questions running around in his head. Hoisted above in the air in the large circus sized tent was a series of smaller boats, seemingly the hoists for a much larger vessel was empty. Jackal needed answers, and he'd make sure before he rushed into any situation, that everything made sense to him. Lunging from the ground, he'd shut the chest on the podium, nest the chest under his right armpit. His next job would be simple, systematically pick off each of the bandits that remain on base, well, to some extent. His real job would be finding one who knew exactly what was going on, and more importantly, who could operate the oddly shaped rudder vessels in mid-air. Hopping from behind cage to cage, from chest to chest, Jackal peeped out at the approaching, bandits to his position, it was about three of them. Jackal's keen sense of hearing could also pick up distinctively of rustling to his flank, which sounded to him that they'd divided up their smaller group, into pairs in hopes to search the whole place.

Sliding the chest beneath the cage he'd use as his camouflage, Jackal would dart from behind it, leaping five meters onto the back's of a bandit. The other two men who accompanied him would panic, turning around to see what caused their partner to screamed with such a terrified tone but when they turned their backs, he'd simply vanished. What had really happened was after lunging on the man, Jackal placed his hands around the man's neck for a choke, using Electro electrocute the man's throat. Knocking the wind out of him immediately, leaving him unable to breath, and subsequently pass out. Helios then quickly drag the bandit into a nearby pile of boxes, and then leap into the air, on top of a cage directly to their right. Concerned with just the screams behind them, they'd be unable to notice the Minksman that was twenty-feet off the ground staring down at them from a peak. However, his body was beginning to reach it's limits, breathing slightly heavier, dripping in sweat, he'd begin to feel light headed. "Shit. I've been using Electro too much and my body's too tired from travelling all the way here by foot. I need food." Jackal said. Jackal had also suffered an injury to his shoulder from his first initial contact with the bandits. Sliding down the cage, stoop down, grabbing onto the bandits leg and dragging him to other side of the steel structure. Examining his throat, he'd realised what had transpired, "Shit. I can't interrogate him. He won't be able to talk for weeks at most." Jackal thought, annoyed at himself. He was starting to make careless mistakes, and all for what, treasure. Then, the feeling he'd been waiting for came over him.

His body began to feel really warm, his wounds tingling as opposed to the pulsating pain of prior, heart beat rattling away like a clock's cog when being calibrated and his pores dripping sweat into his tail's fur. This is why he stole, not for the retail value but for this feeling, the thrill of being stuck with a problem he couldn't understand or fix. It's what made him steal Gin's Treasure all those months ago, and set sail on this new adventure. He couldn't explain what it was, for someone who'd been oppressed his whole life, if he'd had to sum it all into one word, it felt like 'Freedom'. Walking back into the makeshift passageway, sectioned out by boxes, cages and chests on each side, he'd peer both ends, left and right, laying on his stomach, sliding his hand under the cage on the other side, retrieving the chest. After which, Jackal would walk to the front of the tent, taking in a deep breath, and after walking gingerly for about an half hour, he'd arrive. "If your looking for me, I'm right here!" Jackal shouted, and almost instantly, the blood thirsty pirates, who were all pretty sure they'd been attacked by a ghost or demon at this point, turned tail and dashed towards the tent's entrance. The rush of being at the centre of an angry mob's distain brought a smirk to jackal's face like none before. The harvest moon's red beams lit the whole estate, and as the red hue from the moon faded, it's blue glow returned. It was around three in the morning, in about two hours, Barron and his men would begin their assault on Nanohana, unbeknownst to the citizens or Jackal.

As each of the bandits assembled on call, the nine men who started this inspection, now stood at eight. Before them was the smiling mink with an all too familiar chest under his arm. "You! I don't know why your smirking like that but I assure you, the last thing you want to do is fuck with us any longer." the bandit who'd seem to have the most seniority among them spoke first. Separating himself from the pack, the white robe man stood at around the same height as Jackal, and had hook shaped blades, two in number hanging from his waists. "That chest your holding contains an item worth 50,000,000 Million Beli. Your mind can't even fathom what's ins-" the bandit's statement was thwarted by Jackal's quick response. "It's a fruit isn't it?" Jackal stated calmly. All of the bandits let out a nervous shout, "Eh!? Who'd he know!?" with the silliest of expression on their face from being generally shocked. "Hold up look!" one of the bandits chimed in. "The chest's lock is removed." another bandit added. "Impossible... That lock costed us an additional 20,000,000 Million. It's a North Blue Mechanical Clip Lock... Only the key designed for it would be able to open it." the lead bandit stated. "That. I kind of broke it." Jackal said grinning. "Eh!? Who is this kid!?" the men shouted on cue once again. "What's the big deal about this fruit anyway?" Jackal said, opening the chest's to reveal the black-brownish fruit with swirls. "W-W-Wait a minute kid! Slow down!" the bandit chimed in. "That fruits cursed." the bandit stated. Looking an him with squinted eyes, "Cursed? Is that the best you could've come up with? There's no way a fruit costs 50,000,000 Beli." Jackal said, scoffing at the idea. "It's actually worth 100,000,000 Million if you sell it on Baltigo!" another bandit shouted with pride. The other men's eyes opened widely at the stupidity of the man's comment, as three other bandits held back the man, covering his mouth. A wider grin filled Jackal's face. "1-1-100,000,000 Million. That'd be the largest amount I've stolen so far. That's ten times my bounty." Jackal exclaimed, a rose red filled his cheeks in pure glee at the idea of having that much Beli, and then, thinking about the next heist he'd need to trump that.

"Anyway... I know for a fact your boss isn't here." Jackal stated. The man's sentence made the men gulp nervously. "And if this fruit's really worth that much, I can see why he wouldn't want to be running around with it on his person. Though, I don't get why it's cost so much." Jackal stated. "It's because it's a Devil Fruit, you idiot!" the proud bandit shouted again, only to be pummelled this time unconscious by his peers. "Thanks for the information." Jackal said, doing a miniature bow. "Now. We could all fight this out tooth and nail. However, if any of your move, I'll crush this fruit." Jackal threatened. "Devil Fruit... aren't those the things that gave the Revolutionary Army that push a few months ago. I heard that brat Drum Prince talking about getting one of these 'Devil Fruits' for himself." Jackal thought. "Which means... what I have here in my hand is a big deal." Jackal train of thought concluded. "What are your demands?" the lead bandit inquired. "Simple. What's the fastest form of transportation in the desert?" Jackal inquired. "Ha. I'd have to be our sand ships!" the bandit said pointing to the hoisted boats within the tent. "Alright. We're all going to pay your boss a little visit." Jackal exclaimed chuckling. "Grab the boat men! We're heading out!" Jackal shouted. "AYE!" the men screamed in excitement instinctively but quickly retorted, "Fuck You Monster! I hope the boss eats you alive!" they screamed as a collective.

Sighing, "That's enough you guys. We don't have much of a choice but to follow his orders. If Barron found out we let that fruit get destroyed, forget torture, he'd slay us all on the spot. Get the ships ready, we don't have anything to protect here anymore! We'll take this idiot who wants to die to the boss! He'll learn the true terror that is Barron 'The Bottomless Pit'." the bandit stated. "That's a pretty terrifying name. You seem the most level headed of the pack, what's your name?" Jackal inquired. "My name is Sinbad. I'm just a bandit who got recruited into that maniacs stable." Sinbad said, picking his nose as the two men stood side by side. "A few month ago... I was raiding a smaller village called Erumalu... The raid was going good. Until Barron pulled up on his Sand Ships and wasted the whole place with cannonball fire. I don't know what negotiations your looking to do with Barron, but he's not a reasonable man. He'd kill you and pry that box from your lifeless body first." Sinbad commented. "Sinbad. You look pretty strong. I bet if we fought, with the condition my body's in, you'd win." Jackal said. "Maybe. Then all you'd need to do is crush the fruit, and we're all dead." Sinbad responded chuckling. "I don't like taking gambles Mr. Jackal. I'll warn you once again. Leave Nanohana alone. Drop the chest and retreat. Or run away with it. It's not only me, there's one man in Barron's Crew who has a bounty higher than yours. His name is Monsieur Craig. Former Captain of the Craig Pirates from the North Blue. Barron's building himself an empire kid." Sinbad said, walking away to check on the ships. "A bandit who robs alone, dies alone. Remember that." Sinbad concluded.