The Puppet Master [One Piece]

Escaping Impel Down Pt 1

~Echo's POV~

I woke wrapped in a warm blanketed embrace. The faint steady beep and whirr of medical machines buzzed around me. People were milling about on the floor above me, preparing for action. My body ached all over, I was sure some of my ribs were broken. Breathing was difficult and painful.

"You're awake?" Marco's voice was soft.

"Ace?! Where's Ace? How long have I been asleep?! Where are we? Is Shanks her-." My panicking was cut short as Marco covered my mouth with his hand.

"You've been out for about 16 hours. They should be moving Ace from his cell at any moment, nothing has changed. Red Hair isn't here. Stay still so your wounds can heal." He said with a sigh.

"I have to go back."

"Oy, don't make me get Oyaji to knock you out again." Marco threatened his blazing blue eyes daring me to defy him.

"Conquerors haki users really abuse their power." I grimaced.

"Red Hair used it on you?" Marco surmised with a chuckle.

"It was unpleasant then and it's still unpleasant now." I grumbled as a chill swept over me.

"That mark on your bac-."

"Not talking about it." I attempted to fold my arms across my chest but the slew of tubes and IV's kept me from doing so.

Marco pat me on the head and offered me a gentle smile, "Alright, suit yourself. Did you see anything?" He inquired.

I shook my head with great difficulty, "No, nothing ye-." A gasp escaped me as a vision of Whitebeard getting stabbed through the chest by a balding man with a spider tattoo on his forehead flashed before me. "Someone is going to stab Whitebeard. A pirate." My hands trembled and I struggled to sit up as I felt as if I were going to be sick.

"What?! Who was it? When?" Marco panicked and caught me as I spilled from the bed. "Oy, what's wrong, are you okay? You're cold as ice."

Shivers convulsed through my body as I struggled to pull away from him, "I don't know who it is, he was balding, had sharp teeth, had a black bandana half covering a spider tattoo on his forehead-."

"Squard?" Marco looked thoughtful, "But why would he-?"

"Remember they were planning to turn the allied pirates against you." I panted as I finally managed to shove out of his hold.

"Oy, what are you doing?!" Marco panicked as I began tearing the tubes and IV's out of me. "You need those-."

"No!" I cut him off with a glare, "I need to get to Ace and I need to get to my weapon. I have to go back."

"You're mental if you think I'm going to let you." Marco threw me a glare.

I turned my thoughts to Impel Down and focused my vision to Crocodile and our cell, I had to go back. Before they moved Ace, I had to.

"ECHO!" Marco screamed my name, but his voice sounded far away.

My body jerked as if I were falling and when I opened my eyes I found myself falling to a stone floor and let out a scream before colliding into the floor. I was back in Impel Down, but not in a cell, though I was on the right floor. Everything began to spin out of focus as I attempted to get to my feet and instead I decided to lay on the cold stone floor until everything righted itself.