Title: Powerless.

Main things: Character death, loads of tears, and tragedy. No Pairings.

By: CrimsonViolets

Hope you enjoy it!

When there's a time Luffy's determined for something, he's going to do it, no matter what.

"I'M GOING TO SAVE YOU WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT ACE!!"

Heh, silly Luffy.

In fact, Ace already knew he could die at any moment. But he doesn't have to heart to tell Luffy that. Ace's life was going to be over soon, he just knew it. Luffy was too far away, so he knew there wasn't anyway to save him.

"OI! LUFFY!"

Luffy punched through every obstacle and/or enemy he could find, still trying to reach the platform. He didn't stop until he saw someone behind Ace, with a sword.

"ACE!"

"JUST LISTEN LUFFY!" Ace shouted back. Luffy stopped, and looked at Ace with wide eyes. He knew something was going to happen, hence the big throbbing feeling in his throat, and the bad nervous feeling in his gut.

In the surrounding area, many people have died, and so many people were still fighting for Ace's life and freedom, even when the chances were slim to none.

Ace breathed deeply. This was going to be so difficult to say, but he knew he had to say it.

"Luffy, we've been brothers since the day we met. I couldn't ask for a better one."

Monkey D. Garp stared down at Ace. Has he given up… already?

Luffy stared up in frozen shock as he saw the guy with the sword move forward, but for some reason, he was waiting like he was giving him a chance to say… his final words…

"Ever since that day, we ignited a bond. All of a sudden, we just accepted it when we first met, and we grew a bond like two brothers."

The straw hat boy looked on at Ace, dumbstruck. Why is he saying this? He still has a chance at living! At freedom! At… life… Tears swelled up in his eyes and his throb felt clogged up. He looked down to hide his face with his hat.

"YOU'RE NOT GOING TO DIE AC-"

"JUST LISTEN. LUFF!"

Luffy stopped and looked above at his brother, with tears threatening to fall down his cheeks. Ace stopped speaking and smiled at his little brother.

"Hey, Ace!" Luffy at the age of seven or so yelled. He wore his Anchor shirt and his favourite shorts, with the straw hat that was given to him by Shanks.

"What is it Luff?" Ace asked. He wore a grey tank top and red shorts. He looked at Luffy's clamped up hands and smiled. "I see you've found something."

"Yeah I did!" the little boy replied. He opened it up and the older boy looked at his hands and smiled. It was a little baby turtle.

"I found it at the beach. Isn't it great?" The littler of the two asked. Ace just smiled, kneeled on one knee and said, "Yeah… it is."

The battered and bruised brother smiled and a tear shed, leaving a glistening streak on his cheeks. He looked down and shouted this:

"Just remember Luffy. Never lose hope on any of your dreams, and even if I do die… Just remember this: I'll always be there for you, even when you don't know it."

Ace turned around at his crewmates and smiled a weak, but happy smile.

"You dopes, listen up. I'm not even going to say anything except you guys are one of the best crew of the seas. Don't make my death a burden on your souls."

Luffy had tried not to cry in front of his brother, he wanted to be strong, until a tear slipped down his cheek which released many tears, resulting to a hurt and pained look on his face. He looked up at Ace, and started running towards him. His tears were falling off his face, and he sprinted as fast as he could. He wasn't going to lose his brother. Not yet.

Ace looked down at Luffy and another memory popped into his mind.

"ACCCCCCEEEE!!!!" Luffy at the age of 10 shouted. He ran into Makino's bar and had fresh tears pouring down his face. He grabbed onto the older brother's leg and cried, while sobbing heavily. Ace looked down, a little alarmed, and stared at him. "What's wrong Luffy?"

"These kids in town were picking on me for my body, and saying I'm a rubber freak and I don't deserve to even be here!" He stated, rubbing his tears from his wet eyes.

Ace looked up and groaned. I bet he knew which kids they were. They are going to pay the price for this.

"Alright… They're going to pay. Come on Luff." He said, grabbing Luffy's arm, and walking out of the bar.

"What are you going to do?"

"Give them a little dose of Karma."

As they walked out of the bar, Makino looked up at them and smiled. Such a caring, protective brother, Ace was.

It hurt to think about those memories. Many tears fell on Ace's face and were starting to get noticeable, but they wouldn't stop falling. He wasn't scared though. It just hurt.

"Are you ready to die yet?"

He turned around and saw the face of death himself, the executioner. But something was different. He had the look of… was that sympathy?

"AAAAACE!!!" Luffy cried, his tears getting noticeable too. He was getting closer to the platform, but not close enough. The Second division Commander of Whitebeard's crew looked down at Luffy, and looked back up at the executioner.

"…I don't want to die, but it would be rude to just quit now. Go ahead if you like, I'm not afraid to die."

Monkey D. Garp looked away from Ace and the world below the platform. Silent tears fell down his cheeks. He couldn't watch this.

"Alright…" He raised the sword he had, and Ace closed his eyes, waiting for the blade to strike, and for his life to be over. He waited, and waited…

-STAB-

He felt the crimson liquid drip from the wound on his back and his mouth opened up to gasp. In his last, final breath, he looked above at the glorious, blue sky, and fell down on to the platform, blood spilling all around him. A tense silence unfolded.

"NO! ACE!" Luffy cried, his face tear stained and struck with fear and denial. This wasn't real, it won't be real. He kept running, but there was no use. He's gone, but it hasn't registered in his mind yet. "AAAACEEEE!!!" He yelled, the sparkling tears letting loose still.

The life of Ace, the determination everyone had, and all the hope, had vanished in front of Luffy, and everyone else's eyes.

Whitebeard had a look of pure grief and his face messy and tear stained. Garp was sobbing quietly. Marco and the others had a look of shock too, with tears slowly coming to their faces, but no one took it as hard as Luffy, who had a look of grief, denial, and pure pain shown on his face. The straw hat captain had stopped running. He opened his mouth wide and those tears that fell were being followed by more tears.

"No…"

Once the straw hat pirate whispered that word, the tense silence perished at the toll of a bell, and that blue sky, turned into a darkened grey.

"Luffy, let's live a life, with no regrets!"

Luffy covered his face with his hat, and his once determined filled heart, had pure pain, grief, and a sadness no one could ever feel. His voice choked up, and he could only say these words before breaking down on his knees, and sobbing more than he ever thought he could in his lifetime.

"I didn't make it…"

That's when the picture of Ace giving him a thumb up had entered his mind, and he felt a warm presence near him. The spirit of Ace walked up to him, knelt down and as if Luffy could feel him near, he gave him one final hug before whispering,

"Live a life, with no regrets, Luffy, and remember… I'll always be near."

Then his warm presence disappeared, and the darkened skies lightened up a little.

"Always…"

Luffy's face had a look of eternal hurt inside his heart, and his eyes widened as his mind finally registered completely what had happened, his eyes were as red as the burning fire Ace used to create with a little snap of a finger, a stream of painful, hot tears fell down his crimson red eyes, and he started coughing from how many tears he was shedding, which no one could count, considering how the pain he felt of losing his brother was endless. He was beaten.

Portgas D. Ace, Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, and Former Captain of the Spade Pirates, has fallen.

Fire Fist Ace is dead.

And not even Luffy, the future pirate king, could've stopped it.

He was powerless.

Hi, I'm CrimsonViolets. :)

I dunno why, but this random idea came into my mind, after the latest chapters.

I'm sorry. I just had to. The thought wouldn't leave me alone. If you want me to make a chapter of AFTER his death, when Luffy gathers his crew again and thinks about this, I'll gladly do it. Just tell me.

Read & Review, please and thank you!