Fanning Flames | Book 1: Titanium Worlds

Chapter 8: Dying For Ace; His Birth Is Not A Sin, Marines' Outlook Is

6 months later

I stared at the rising sun, sailing my dinghy towards Marineford.

It had been six months since I left the Strawhats ship at Alabasta, and as soon as I set out to sea again, I took it up to gather the information I didn't have.

It took two months to even figure out how to get papers, savor my supplies, and find out where Marineford was located, but I did it.

In the middle of all the midst of those six months, I had gotten a bounty.

Yeah. I had ran into marines and when they tried to 'save me', as they called it, I kinda flipped.

I still had information to collect, and going with them would set me back months. It wasn't worth it.

I used air most often out of all of the elements. It had been the first one I had used, and I was more skilled with it considering it was the one that could hide me.

I had also learned than instead of making the air denser, just to turn myself and my dinghy into air.

But it took more energy so I stuck with the denser air tactic.

Marineford was gigantic. The towers of stone holding flags, the giant castle, all the marine captains, the vice admirals, and the admirals themselves. It was a pirate's nightmare.

I left my small dinghy like I had done at every single other island, tying the rope to my boat and a post, hiding it under anything that acted as a dock.

I ran towards the base, passing all sorts of ranking marines who were ready for the execution of Fire Fist Ace, the son of Gol D. Roger.

I clenched my fists, anger coursing through me. My world had some of the worst criminals in the world, who had kids, but that didn't mean we killed them.

They were their own person, your relatives did not shape who you were, only what name you carried.

And a name meant nothing unless you had someone to go with it.

Ace was not his dad. He didn't want to be. So why act like he was?
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Sure, I'd seen blood when I shot the man holding Yassop, I had seen blood in the past four months, but I hadn't seen war.

War wasn't just blood. It was so much death, so much pain, and so much destruction.

The sight would haunt me forever.

I wondered what my Social Studies teacher would say if I told him I had been in the middle of a war?

He'd probably laugh.

But I wouldn't be laughing with him.

The platform broke as Luffy freed his brother. I stood in the middle of the battlefield, my body being ran through, slashed through, and shot through.

As Ace and Luffy ran and fought, I followed, sticking as close as I could to Ace.

I didn't really pay attention to him though. My eyes couldn't leave the dead bodies, the ones who fell forever, and the weapons and clothes soaked in the dark red liquid of humans.

It was so much worse than Mr. Gray could've explained, than I could've envisioned, than in the show.

So. Much. Worse.

I came back to reality when I heard yelling. Luffy was about to get hit by Akainu's fist.

I didn't hesitate to sprint forward. My mind became unfocused, allowing my airy body to return to its original form.

People yelled in shock as I appeared out of nowhere.

"What's a little girl doing here!!!??" Someone screamed out.

I didn't look to see who.

My tennis shoes were filthy and in shreds, my jeans had holes and were ripped, though my Strawhat T-shirt was in okay condition.

I never did know why no one mentioned the shirt when I met the Strawhats. They might've been too focused on the fact that an intruder had gotten onto their ship.

"She's wearing a shirt with the Strawhats!!!!" Another yelled. I guessed it was a marine by the anger in his voice.

I saw Ace jump in front of Luffy, so I pushed myself harder.

The pain was indescribable.

It hurt. A lot. My insides were fried, but it felt as if the rest were melting along.

I was in too much shock to scream, but I let a single tear run down my face. The blood inside of my chest was gone, the magma ridding of it, but the rest of it poured out of my mouth.

I dropped to my knees finally, the shock wearing off allowing my mind to register how truly painful the wound was.

I screamed, wrapping my arms around my stomach with a hole the size of Akainu's fist.

I'd rather die than to keep feeling this pain.

Akainu stared at me, his fist still magma, his face in shock and disgust. Probably because he just killed a child.

I fell onto my back, letting my hands hover shakily over the hole in my body.

I glanced up to see Ace and Luffy staring at me, looking traumatized. I chuckled at their expressions dryly.

"There was always one question you asked, Ace. 'What if Gold Roger had a son?' My answer to that has already been told. No matter what people may think, what people may say, what people may do, you are not your father. I never knew why people didn't get that."

I gasped as my heartbeat slowed. The Strawhat symbol on my shirt was gone, but Luffy's name was still visible on the black material.

"I come from a place where the world's most dangerous criminals have children. But we don't kill them. Why should we? They aren't their parents, they're their own person. Live a life with no regrets, Ace, with these words in mind."

The pyro gaped at me, his eyes wide with shock. I gently placed my hand on the tattoo on his arm.

"One more thing," I struggled to say these words, "Sabo is alive. And he's waiting, waiting to remember. Help him do that, will you?"

My eyes closed, and I was gone.