Chapter 47

As the Baratie's regular customers flee, Don Krieg claims the restaurant ship, pretending his own is messed up. He then asks for the chefs to feed his crew who are currently starving. As he did previously for Gin and Krieg, Sanji agrees to his request for food, but the other chefs see that as a betrayal. Patty knocks Sanji down, and tries to attack Krieg by launching a canon bullet. When the smoke clears, Krieg is revealed to have been wearing armor underneath his clothes. Undaunted, the chefs try to rush Krieg only be forced back by the gun barrels on Krieg's armor. Krieg threatens the chefs to obey him when Zeff arrives with a pack of food sufficient for 100 men. Then he reveals the reason for the pirates pitiful state - they are survivors from the Grand Line. Krieg on the other hand is shocked, that Red Leg Zeff is still alive.

Cyborg

Pirate Fleet Admiral Don Krieg

The chefs of the Baratie begin to flee, believing there to be no hope for survival. Gin begs for Krieg to stop what he is doing, because Krieg had promised him earlier that he would not hurt anybody at the restaurant. Krieg elaborates on his statement, saying he needs the new ship because his old one is worn out. He begins to tell them about his crew and how they are all starving or critically wounded. He demands that the chefs make his crew food at once, but the chefs refuse. Krieg gets mad, but suddenly, Sanji stands up and begins to head to the kitchen.

The chefs of the Baratie pull out their guns and point them at Sanji, telling him they will not let him make food for any more pirates. Sanji explains that he must do it because it is his duty as a chef. Patty takes matters into his own hands and knocks Sanji down and tells him he cannot allow him to become involved in the matter. Patty then pulls out his meatball cannon and fires it at Krieg. The chefs believe him to be defeated, but Krieg gets back up and shoots all the chefs with his pricks.

Krieg states that he is the strongest and that those who defy him must die. He begins to brag about his suit of armor, weapons, and battle experience. He demands they follow his orders due to his extensive and violent past. Suddenly, Zeff appears with a bag of food and hands it to Krieg. The chefs begin to complain, but Zeff then explains that the Krieg Pirates are nothing more than defeated warriors of the grand line. The chefs are shocked to hear this, and Krieg realizes who Zeff really is; Red-Leg Zeff.

Mission 32

While playing in the park, Anya calls out to Yor as the tennis ball bounces towards her from where Anya and Bond stand. Yor, lost in thought, takes a second to react before grabbing the ball. Anya questions if she was daydreaming, which Yor denies. As she stares at the tennis ball, Yor ponders the tennis competition Loid is a part of and wonders if Fiona is also with him. Yor thinks about their relationship and what it might mean for her, and her grip tightens onto the ball as she contemplates doing whatever it takes to not return to her old life.

Yor shakes off the dark thoughts and tells herself that something horrible could happen if she keeps thinking about it. Anya, who was reading Yor's mind, tells her she does not have anything to worry about. Yor questions what Anya means by that and wonders to herself if Anya knew what she was thinking. Anya, realizing her mistake, covers it up by telling her not to worry because Loid will win and bring home the trophy. Yor smiles and agrees that Loid can accomplish anything and will give any opponent a beatdown.

At the tennis tournament, the announcer tells them the next match will be between Team Foney, made up of Loid and Fiona in disguise, and the Bolic Brothers, now bulked up after injecting themselves with Oso-R in the locker room. Loid points out the drastic difference in their appearance since the first round. Fiona informs Loid that anything goes in the tournament, from modified rackets to drugs. She tells Loid that she believes steroids are involved, and he agrees. A member of the crowd yells at the Bolic Brothers, telling them he bet his life savings on them so they better not lose or he will kill them.

In response to the man's threat, Catan Bolic grabs the wire fence between them and rips open a hole. Anan Bolic tells the man to shut up and watch as the announcer relays in disbelief at the brothers' strength. Seeing this, many audience members scramble to place bets on the brothers, believing no one could beat them, while the announcer announces that the time for placing bets is almost up. Loid looks at the brothers, wondering how they can beat them, while Anan crushes a tennis ball with his bare hands. The announcer yells about Anan's actions and asks him to show some respect for the gear.

Anan approaches Loid and asks him if the smell he smells is pee from his pants and that maybe he needs Fiona to change his diaper. Loid simply stares at them as they ask why he is not responding and call him an idiot with no verbal skills. Fiona snaps at their insults, leading her to completely dominate their match and not allow them to score any points. The Bolic Brothers lie on the ground with tennis ball marks all over their body as the announcer announces their victory. Loid questions if hitting them with every smash hit was necessary, and Fiona simply tells him her hand slipped. The manager of the brothers cries about his secret weapons being ruined, and Cavi Campbell tells him he might need to send the drug back to R&D. The others comment that even Cavi must be sweating after seeing how good Loid and Fiona were, which he denies.

Afterwards, they continue to make their way through the tournament and to the finals, with Fiona making lots of flashy plays to try and impress Loid. They get escorted to a waiting room, where a butler informs them that the finals will begin in 20 minutes and to wait there. The agents discuss their next opponents, Cavi's son and daughter. The two high schoolers have been training since early childhood, but on top of their skills, they will need to watch out for any sabotage attempts from them since their father runs the tournament. Fiona, confident after making it this far, believes it will be easy to beat them. Loid grabs Fiona's wrist, making her heart flutter as she wonders if he is making his move on her. However, he tells her she needs to reel it in, since her hand is covered in bruises. Loid tells her that even if she thinks it will be easy, she needs to keep herself under control.

She jerks her arm free and says it will be easy and they do not have time to waste. Loid retorts that he has heard the same thing from a lot of dead comrades because losing your cool can mean losing your life. Fiona gives in and thinks to herself how great it is to have Loid fret over her. She then looks at the arm she jerked free and thinks about his lingering warmth and the tingling in her fingers. She then questions the tingling and then looks at the vent.

Loid also notices this and tells Fiona to hold her breath and close her eyes since a colorless and odorless gas is filling the room. Loid thinks to himself that this must be why the Campbells' past opponents appeared to be off their game. He tries to open the door, but it is locked from the outside. He considers picking the lock but thinks there may be a guard outside, and it would look suspicious for normal people to be able to do that. Continuing their discussion in Morse code, they decide to pretend they got caught in the trap and try to prevent themselves from inhaling as much gas as possible.

The announcer announces the final match between the Foney couple and the Campbell siblings and questions whether the Foneys can stop the Campbells from getting their third win in a row. The crowd cheers in favor of the Foneys, which Cavi is pleased about since he will get more money if they lose. The other managers except Cavi place their bets on the Foneys, and Cavi confirms he is betting ten million on his children. He laughs to himself about Loid and Fiona having to suck up gas for ten minutes, believing that his children will beat them. Loid asks Fiona how she is feeling, and she tells him that her heart rate and breathing are a little off.

On the other side, Carrol Campbell tells Kim Campbell that he got word from their father that they do not need to make the game look close this time which Kim is pleased about. She is eager to get the match over and get the new yacht that Cavi promised them. Carrol pulls out his jet-powered tennis racket, and Kim pulls out her whip racket. Loid serves the ball to them, and Carrol hits it back with lots of force from the rockets. Fiona attempts to return it but ends up hitting it out of bounds. Carrol tells them not to think of it as cheating as he had to practice a lot to learn how to use it.

In the next point, Loid hits the ball toward them, and it appears to the announcer that neither of the siblings could hit it. However, Kim releases a latch on her racket, allowing it to extend far enough to hit the ball and drives it down onto the other side of the court, scoring them a point. Using these special rackets, the siblings continue to win the first two games and thus the first set of the match. The frustrated crowd yell at Loid and Fiona to get their act together. One of the men sitting next to Cavi curses the loss as Cavi laughs and apologizes. Loid clenches his fist as his strength returns to him and looks at Fiona with determination.

The second set begins with a powerful serve from Carrol, followed up by a return from Loid. Kim tries to hit it back with some spin, but Fiona is ready and returns it, scoring a point. Carrol chalks up the win to luck, believing they will continue to beat the couple. As they continue playing, Loid and Fiona win three more games. Carrol gives a nasty look as a man in a suit on the sidelines gives him a nod before fiddling with some controls on a panel in front of him.

In the next game, the siblings serve, and Fiona attempts to return it. However, before she can hit it, the floor tile under her foot sinks into the ground, causing her to hit it out of bounds. Carrol looks at them with a smug grin and laughs. Loid comments how he noticed the court separates into 36 panels, and now they know why. Fiona responds that they will have to watch out for more tricks like this. He tells her it will not be a problem since he will not lose to some dumb gimmicks. Fiona stares in admiration as she thinks how this is the Twilight who she fell in love with. Fiona tells him the two of them will crush the siblings together.

Vamana

Though small of stature, Vamana, the Fifth Avatar of Vishnu, should never be underestimated. His harsh lessons in humility have shamed even the proudest of kings.

The demon king, Bali, was fair and righteous, yet for all his virtues, Bali was extremely proud and driven by fierce ambition. After conquering the Underworld and all the Earth, Bali managed to wrest the Heavens from the God Indra. Unable to reclaim his seat, Indra implored Vishnu for aid, and so Vishnu took the form of a small mortal man, a priest named Vamana.

In his splendid palace, Bali was giving gifts to the pious. Vishnu, disguised as the monk Vamana and carrying a wooden umbrella, requested only as much land as he could cover in three steps. Bali offered Vamana an island but Vamana stuck to his request, which Bali granted against the wishes of his advisor. Immediately, Vamana grew to cosmic proportions, crashing through the ceiling of the palace and filling the sky. With one colossal step, he engulfed all the Earth and the Underworld. With a second step, he consumed the heavens. Now, with everything under his two units, Vamana had nowhere to place his third step. He challenged Bali to go back on his word or offer somewhere else for him to step. Bali's demon army surged forth, but the demon king held them back. Bowing in humility, Bali offered his head as the third step. Vamana sends Bali to the underworld but, in recognizing Bali's benevolence, shows mercy by granting him sovereignty over it in appreciation of Bali's sacrifice.

Vishnu returned control of the Heavens to Indra and left his Avatar behind, but he also left behind a valuable lesson. Even the mightiest and most arrogant of kings can be humbled by the smallest of men.

Lord of Terror

Everyone knows the name of fear and it is Diablo, Lord and Aspect of Terror.

Diablo, like his brothers Mephisto and Baal, was born from one of the seven heads of the great dragon Tathamet at the beginning of time. He is the youngest of the three Prime Evils that rule over the Burning Hells but he is also the most cunning and farsighted of the Primes. Diablo relishes in the terror he inflicts upon his victims and knows that the key to victory is preying upon the fears of those who stand in his way. Unlike his kin, however, Diablo doesn't conquest for the sake of power; he draws his satisfaction from the terror that runs rampant before the onslaught. Even his own realm within the Burning Hells is a testament to horror, as few would dare go into the Realm of Terror, where even demons are afraid to venture.

The story we know of Diablo starts a few hundred years ago when he was banished to the Mortal Realm of Sanctuary during the coup d'etat in Hell that would later be known as the Dark Exile. Diablo and his brothers immediately set about spreading terror, hatred and destruction across the lands of men until a group of mages known as the Horadrim managed to defeat them and lock their souls within sacred relics known as the Soulstones.

Diablo's Soulstone was locked away and forgotten for almost three hundred years under the town of Tristram, but during this time he sought ways to free himself from his prison. Eventually a new ruler named Leoric would make Tristram his capital and put his throne over the very ground where Diablo was buried. Leoric's advisor, Archbishop Lazarus, was actually an emissary sent by Diablo's brother Mephisto who had escaped his own Soulstone some time before. Lazarus freed Diablo and helped him try to possess King Leoric, but Diablo was too weak from his imprisonment to fully possess Leoric and instead drove the poor king insane. Lazarus' next victim was Leoric's youngest son Albrecht, who proved to be the perfect vessel for the return of the Lord of Terror.

Leoric's last remaining son, Aidan, would soon hear of his father's madness and his brother's disappearance and set off to defeat the evil growing in Tristram. Aidan was eventually able to defeat Diablo, but his victory would be short lived as he was tricked into jamming Diablo's Soulstone into his forehead and allowing the demon lord to possess him. Aidan was able to contain Diablo's essence at first, but was slowly losing a battle he could never win.

A witch and servant of Diablo named Adria was residing in Tristram during these dark times and sensed her master within the body of Aidan as he returned from defeating the demon lord. At Diablo’s behest, she seduced Aidan so that she may bear a child that contained the essence of her master.

Aidan soon faltered against Diablo's influence and would head east so that he may unite with his brothers in an attempt to conquer the Mortal Realm with the power of the Soulstones now under their control. Diablo's plans would soon be foiled by a band of heroes from all across Sanctuary... or so it would seem.

Twenty years after his defeat by the mortal heroes, Adria would return and use her child, Leah, to revive Diablo yet again, and he would now be infused with the power of all of the seven great demon lords of the Burning Hells. Diablo, now reborn as the Prime Evil, almost succeeded in his goal of conquering all of Creation if not for the intervention of another mortal hero, the Nephalem.

But is Diablo truly dead? How does one kill Terror when all living things keep Fear within their hearts?

Jellyfish Jam

A jellyfish insists on following SpongeBob home after a day out at Jellyfish Fields, so SpongeBob decides on keeping it as a pet at his home. Squidward warns SpongeBob that jellyfish are wild animals and that he should not attempt to domesticate it, but SpongeBob completely ignores him. At home, SpongeBob dances with the jellyfish to loud techno rave music, which annoys Squidward to no end. After 12 hours of this form of nonstop partying, SpongeBob finally decides that it is time to go to bed, but this jellyfish does not want to stop. SpongeBob eventually forces it to go to bed by tying a leash around it and ties it to his bed. Gary tries to tell SpongeBob he should not be keeping a wild animal, but SpongeBob does not listen. During the night, while SpongeBob sleeps, the jellyfish escapes and brings several other jellyfish into the house.

The next morning, SpongeBob wakes up to find his living room filled with dozens of dancing jellyfish. He attempts to make them leave, but to no avail. Squidward, annoyed that the music has been going on for 18 hours and prevented him from sleeping, angrily calls SpongeBob on his conch phone to tell him that he has had enough of the loud music. A jellyfish picks it up and sprays him with jelly over the phone. Irritated, Squidward decides that "two can play at this," and starts loudly playing his clarinet, angering the jellyfish with his terrible playing, and causing them to start destroying SpongeBob's house. SpongeBob asks Squidward to play his clarinet a little "better," as an insulted Squidward sarcastically responds to this request. However, Squidward intentionally starts playing even worse and much louder with speakers and a microphone. This prompts the jellyfish to angrily go to his house, as he cowardly tries to promise to stop playing, but they sting him before returning to SpongeBob's house. A sting-covered Squidward says to SpongeBob, "Everybody's a critic. You won't be hearing from me anymore," and gives him his clarinet before leaving. The jellyfish hastily take it from SpongeBob, break it in half, set it on fire, and dance around it.

This brings SpongeBob to the limits of his patience, and he attempts to remove the stereo system to make the jellyfish leave. However, the jellyfish attempt to bring it back to continue their party. In the ensuing struggle, both SpongeBob and the jellyfish end up accidentally releasing the stereo and it fell to the floor, destroyed. The enraged jellyfish begin stinging and chasing him. SpongeBob and Gary go up to the roof of the house, but the swarm follows them outside and surrounds them. SpongeBob tells Gary that he was right about attempting to keep a wild animal in his house, then Gary soothes the jellyfish away by clicking his eyes together. SpongeBob tells Gary to keep doing this and puts him on his head, walking downstairs and out the front door, followed by the swarm. As he leads them back to Jellyfish Fields, more sounds accompany Gary's clicking, eventually becoming a full-fledged symphony. After resettling the jellyfish, SpongeBob quickly returns home with Gary.

In the last scene, SpongeBob shakes hands with Gary's eyeball as the French narrator declares, "Today, SpongeBob has learned one of the sea’s harshest lessons; wild animals can throw very wild parties." Then the severely stung Squidward is shown settling into his bathtub to recover from his stings.

Buggy's Crew Adventure Chronicles

Vol. 9: "You're a Freak Too"

バギー一味冒険記vol.9「あんたも珍獣」

Oda Eiichiro

I might be 'Swedistic' but I'm taking a break from Swedish music and listening to some Irish tunes now. They're so carefree.

スウェーディッシュな僕は今、スウェーデン音楽を離れ、アイルランド音楽を聴いてる。伸びやか。

Chapter 48