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Suspended high in the air, the four of them were now at least ten thousand meters above the sea. When Jason glanced downward, the color instantly drained from his face.
Moments later, gravity took over, the four began plummeting, the violent wind whipping through their hair, blasting into their open mouths, puffing out their cheeks as they inhaled gulps of icy air.
"We're done for!" Trens squeezed his eyes shut, resigning himself to their miserable fate.
There was nothing they could do. Life itself was a gamble, and this time, they had simply lost the bet. Unfortunately, the stake was their lives.
Among the four, Crocodile was actually the calmest. His face was pale, and the sweat that had drenched him earlier quickly dried in the howling wind.
As for Rojen, he looked down briefly, and when he saw that even the wooden ship they'd come from had become a mere black dot far below, a flicker of terror flashed through his eyes.
Too high, way too high!
From such a height, even if they hit the sea, the impact and rebound force alone would pulverize their bodies into dust.
Without hesitation, Rojen acted. He slapped the Jasper Gourd hanging at his waist.
As his magic power surged, the gourd rapidly expanded to several meters in size, glowing with a soft emerald light, its surface crystal clear like jade. In one swift motion, Rojen seated himself cross-legged atop it.
"Get on, now!"
He shouted toward the three who were still frozen in shock.
That bark snapped them out of it instantly. Trens's body trembled; he used Geppo (Moon Step) to dash across the air in a few quick bounds, landing on the gourd and exhaling in relief. Jason followed right after him, and finally Crocodile joined them.
In the blink of an eye, the crisis was averted, the four of them now sat safely atop the Jasper Gourd.
"Scared the hell out of me!" Jason exhaled deeply, then immediately turned to Crocodile, spitting words like bullets.
"Crocodile, you're useless!"
A dark vein twitched on Crocodile's forehead; he couldn't be bothered to reply.
"Captain," Trens asked nervously, still shaken, "how long can this gourd stay airborne?"
After the earlier sand-beast disaster, he was jumpy as a frightened bird.
He didn't dare take another risk.
"Relax," Rojen replied with a calm smile. "It'll easily carry us the rest of the way up."
In truth, Rojen had planned from the start to fly up the Red Line using either the Jasper Gourd or Sword Flight Technique. With his level of magical power, carrying four people wasn't much of a problem.
The gourd trembled slightly, then shot upward, soaring toward the sky.
"Captain, this thing's way safer than Crocodile's sand monster!" Jason said, his curiosity returning as he ran his hands along the smooth jade surface.
Around them, a faint invisible barrier blocked out the howling wind and pressure of high-altitude flight. Sitting on it felt perfectly comfortable, no cold, no turbulence, no fear.
Soon, from above the clouds, they could clearly see Marineford, the Marines' Headquarters, sprawling across the top of the Red Line.
Three breaths later, a streak of green light flashed by as the Jasper Gourd descended at the edge of the massive fortress complex.
Rojen guided it down slowly and found a secluded spot to land.
"We're here."
He stood, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"Now… let's go find where the Celestial Dragons are."
After speaking, he stowed away the Jasper Gourd, and the four turned to move.
Just then, a Marine patrol unit passed by ahead of them. The group's silhouettes flickered and vanished from sight.
The Marine Headquarters was heavily fortified, the atmosphere itself oppressive and suffocating. Personnel bustled everywhere, constant movement and rotation. And today, of all days, the stationed forces had been multiplied several times, packed with powerhouses, making the place even more perilous.
Navigating through this fortress unnoticed was almost impossible, every step forward was a test of nerve and timing.
After about half a quarter-hour, a squad of four Marines appeared in the compound, marching in neat formation at a brisk pace.
This Marine squad looked rather unusual. The first two men were of average height, but the two walking behind them were much taller, the height difference was obvious at a glance.
Their entire group gave off a strange vibe. Each of them wore their Marine caps pulled low, covering most of their faces, and they carried rifles while marching briskly forward.
They didn't greet or even glance at the other Marines around them.
Although their behavior seemed odd, the Marines stationed at Headquarters came from many different branches, men of every kind, from every sea, so no one thought much of it. Even if someone noticed, they simply assumed it was another unit transferred in from somewhere else.
Time passed, half a day slipped by quietly.
Above Marine Headquarters, the sky was a perfect blue, not a single cloud in sight.
It was, without a doubt, another bright and peaceful day.
The lazy sunlight poured down, warming the Marines' uniforms and lifting their spirits.
Meanwhile, over the second half of the Grand Line, the Marines were maintaining strict surveillance, eyes and reports constantly tracking one particular name.
Then, all of a sudden, a loud uproar erupted from a stretch of sea ahead!
The Marine soldiers assigned to monitor the Golden Lion's movements raised their heads in surprise, and in the very next second, their expressions changed dramatically.
At almost the same moment, not far from the Golden Lion's fleet, a group of reporters who had been waiting for days also grew visibly excited.
They whipped around, shouting into the recording Den Den Mushi with trembling voices:
"Everyone, are you seeing this? The Golden Lion Pirates, they're moving!"
"After waiting so long, the Lion King himself has finally made his move!"
The image feed shifted, focusing on the Golden Lion's position and zooming in.
Across the world, people watching the live broadcast gasped, their faces lighting up with shock and disbelief.
The Golden Lion had begun to act, and at the same moment, the entire Flying Pirates fleet moved with him.
The ships that had been scattered across the sea suddenly began to converge, all heading toward the thirteen floating islands in the sky. Across the surface of the sea, white trails spread out like drawn lines as hundreds of pirate ships sailed at full speed, streaming toward the central point.
It looked like rivers merging into an ocean, a breathtaking sight.
Within minutes, every ship had gathered directly beneath the floating islands, their masts packed so tightly together that they formed a dark, dense curtain of pirate vessels across the waves.
"Everyone, look at this! The Flying Pirates are gathering! What are they planning?"
The reporter's panicked voice shouted into the broadcast.
Around the globe, the world trembled with excitement and fear. All anyone knew was that the Lion King was about to act, but no one could guess how.
The Marine Headquarters was located atop the Red Line, and to reach it, one would have to pass through the Gates of Justice and engage the Marines head-on in open battle.
From this vantage point, it was clear that the Golden Lion was positioned on the opposite side of the Red Line. If he wanted to reach Marineford, he would have to take that single, heavily guarded passage the Marines themselves controlled.
But judging by his current movements… it didn't seem like that was his intention at all.
"What is he trying to do?"
At that same moment, inside Marine Headquarters, the officers monitoring the Golden Lion's activity were asking the same question, their hearts tense with uncertainty.
On the floating island above, Golden Lion Shiki stood with his cape billowing in the wind, staring down at the sea below. His gaze was fierce and domineering, filled with contempt for the world beneath him.
"Crush those insects who dare to spy on me."
With that single command, the Flying Pirates' officers sprang into action.
"Whoosh!"
"Boom!"
In an instant, artillery fire and waves of destructive energy erupted across the sea, aimed straight at the distant onlookers.
"Oh my god! The Golden Lion, he's attacking us!"
One of the reporters turned his back to the camera, staring in horror as the sky filled with explosions. He couldn't even believe what his eyes were seeing.
"It's over, he's gone mad! He's wiping us out first!"
Their screams of despair echoed through the air, and in the next instant, the entire group of journalists monitoring the Golden Lion Pirates was obliterated in the storm of cannonfire.
(End Of This Chapter)