Maelstrom

Chapter 6

Shanks' POV

You honestly weren't sure exactly how to respond to the kid- Ruse- you corrected yourself as you stare back into those exotic golden eyes.

Damn.

Of all things to happen, it just had to be a ghost's tale coming back to the land of the living. Ah damn. This really complicated matters now didn't it?

How were you supposed to explain to Ruse that he wasn't even supposed to be alive right now? That was, if the kid really were who he had claimed to be- no he had to be.

The golden eyed brat didn't have an single drop of deceit to him when he had given you his name. The same name of a certain pirate that you had long since admired and respected. The same man that was somewhere in the vast seas, likely drowning his sorrows in booze.

How were you supposed to tell this kid in front of you that his very existence was a damnable miracle in itself? That he had been thought of as dead since the day he had come into the world?

You sigh, cursing your luck.

Might as well just jump straight into it, after all- you weren't exactly known for being the subtle type.

"Look kid...what I'm about to say to you right now is going to sound completely crazy but I just need you to hear me out- okay?" You give the kid a brief moment's pause, allowing him to nod at you in agreement before you continue.

"You're not supposed to be alive right now. In fact you were announced to be dead -terminated- when a very famous pirate known by the name of Gol D. Rogers was put on trial for execution." You let out a deep sigh as you brace yourself for the kid's reactions that he was likely to show after being dropped that bombshell on him.

You honestly couldn't blame the kid. His whole life he had been living as a different person. A life lived through a stolen identity, his own having been robbed of him before he could even fully comprehend just who exactly he was. What his existence had meant. What is could still mean. What it would bring forth.

Just in case the kid decides to interrupt your briefing, you quickly hold up a hand towards his face, not wanting to risk any outbursts before you were finished. It had surprisingly seemed to work, shushing his indignant cries rather efficiently.

"Listen here Ruse. It's going to sound unbelievable, and you may think I'm lying to you- but I swear on all of the four seas that I am most certainly not." Golden eyes burn brightly in anger as you continue.

"You're the kid of Rayleigh Silvers, and the world thinks you're dead." Another moment of silence hangs in the air as you mentally prepare yourself for the words that were to follow next.

"Let me explain from the beginning."

"A long time ago there lived a great man named Gol D. Roger. Now Rogers was a pirate- a damn good one at that too, some even say the best- but he had finally reached the end of his adventure on the seas. After becoming widely known and touching the hearts of many, he had finally decided it was time. Marines were after him and he had known that it was his time. Rogers handed himself in- ready and unafraid to face death. But you see here, somehow word had gotten out about him having a lover. It was surprising news, a lover of the infamous Gol D. Roger. The marines panicked, they were frantic to find the woman- to rid themselves of any fear of Rogers bloodline continuing anywhere in the future."

"The Pirate King may have sought after treasures, exotic jewels, grand adventures- but he had found one of the rarest treasures life could give. He didn't have any need for any treasure he could find at sea or hidden away in sands, no he had found something far greater than pretty coins or rich booze. He had found a woman that had eyes that swallowed the sea and a laugh that opened the skies. A woman by the name of Rouge that he had loved fiercely- and from that woman he had been gifted a son."