Chapter 7 Start
Alex awoke but his eyes were not open. He could feel the rocking of the boat and the softness of the bed he was lying on. He slowly opened his eyes and found himself staring at the wood ceiling of the room he was in. He sat up a little, the bed creaking under him, catching the attention of the man he just noticed working at a table.
"Hey, you're awake." the man said turning to him.
Alex looked at him, having no idea who he was or where he was "Where am I?"
"You're on the ship of the Red Hair Pirates."
Alex looked around "Who are you?"
"I'm the doctor of the ship. How long ago, before you passed out, did you sleep?"
"I hadn't slept since my town was destroyed two days ago."
"Two days? I'm surprised you managed to stay awake that long, seeing as how you're only 10."
"It's easy staying awake when your parents were killed and you are now most likely scarred for the rest of your life...and hen you are protecting..." Alex stopped talking as he stood up and ran from the cabin before the doctor could stop him. He felt the cool breeze against his skin as he came out and noticed that the entire crews eyes were on him.
"He's awake." One of the crew called out. Alex ignored them as he walked across the deck. One of the crew members grabbed his shoulder.
"You seem like you are looking for someone."
Alex didn't glance at him "Where is she?"
"Where is who?" Alex drew his sword in a moment of anger and he stepped back from the man "My sister! Where is she?!"
"Wow now, calm down." The man said, as the crew turned to the noise.
"Tell me where she is!" Alex shouted in annoyance now.
"She's in that cabin." He said pointing to the only other one and Alex took a step towards it "But the captain said no one was to enter the room." Alex glared at him.
"She's my sister! I have a right to make sure she's safe!"
Someone else spoke up "Did you forget that you are a guest here?" Alex turned to the man that spoke, he had his back hair tied in a ponytail and had a rifle in his belt and a cigarette lit in his mouth "So you have to obey captains orders too."
Alex gritted his teeth "I'll repeat myself! She's my sister so-" He was cut off as the man dash at him and draw his gun, swinging it and hitting Alex's sword away and knocking him down. As Alex started to get up, he came face to face with the rifle's muzzle an inch from his face and he froze.
"Now I think we understand each other better. Don't you?"
Alex gave a small nod, not knowing what else to do. The door to the cabin his sister was said to be in opened and Shanks stood there
"What's all the commotion? You're going to wake the two kids." Shanks said noticing Alex afterwards "Oh, you are already awake. Do you want to come in and see your sister?" Alex wanted to say yes, but didn't want to move with the muzzle of a gun at his face. The man drew back the rifle and returned it to his belt. Alex stood up and followed Shanks into the cabin. Alex looked over at the bed and saw Liz and instantly moved to the bedside. He saw she was still breathing evenly and no damage had to come to her.
"She's hasn't woken up yet." Shanks told him.
"How long have I been out?
"Not more then a few hours. She should wake up soon, but you need rest to so you don't collapse again."
"It's not easy to fall asleep when you and your sister are alone in the world. I'm surprised she can sleep when our parents were killed in front of her, too young to fully understand maybe..."
Shanks shook his "That's horrible...killing your parents and right in front of her to boot..."
"I should be thankful that it didn't happen when she was older...she's going to be spared the pain that I'm going through..."Alex said as his body started to shake slightly "She was spared...spared from this pain..." He said trying to hold back tears, but the tears started to flow "but now we're the only family the other has...but what can I possibly do? She has no parents, no one to raise her...I'm only 10 myself...what can I do...?"
"You can act like an older brother. You can get stronger and do whatever is necessarily to protect her. You are her only family left like you said. Do not let harm befall her and put her above all else."
Alex looked at Shanks unsure of what to say for a moment "I can't do that...I'm not nearly strong enough...I only took two navy members out because I took them by surprise..."
"You can use a gun and sword, correct? Train and get better with them and let no one harm your sister or yourself. Be her guardian."
Alex felt his tears stop as he thought for a moment before nodding "All right. I'll do that!" he said a small smile starting to form "I'll protect Liz, with my life."
Alex awoke, this time in the present and not the past, and became dimly aware that it was raining and his body was soaked.. His cheek was against the rough wood of the Navy ship that he had taken and as he tried to pushing himself up his left arm burned in pain buckled and brought his cheek right back to the wood, resulting in pain shooting through his face. He moved his left arm, pain going through it with every movement and he felt a warm liquid coating it. He rolled over and used the railing of the ship to pull himself up and he saw there was a dark red stain, despite the rain, where he had been lying. He looked at his arm now and realized the marine uniform's sleeve was covered in blood, also meaning that his shirt sleeve and his arm were the same.
"I'm awake...so I haven't lost too much blood. Yet I'm still bleeding." Alex lifted up the sleeve of the marine coat and his shirt and saw the three holes in the back of his arm that the bullets had tore through. He looked over his skin and cursed.
"Only three holes...Dammit. I can't bandage my arm like this." He took a deep breath before putting his index finger and thumb into one of the wounds and pulled one of the bullets out through the wound, but causing extreme pain which brought Alex to his knees.
"One down...two to go." He repeated the process with the other two, taking a break after each and fell on this back, letting the rain wash over his body.
"I can't just sit here...I need to stop the bleeding." Alex stood up and walked through the ship until he found a first aid kit. He opened it and found bandages that he wrapped around his shoulder and arm with a little difficultly. Alex put the kit where he found it and went outside and looked around.
"Where in the hell am I now..." he thought about climbing to the top of the ship, but was aware that with his arm as it was he would fall and hurt himself even more if he tried. He went to the steering wheel and saw an island in the distance.
"Is that Green Mount?" Alex asked himself. As he got closer he smiled as he saw the Mountain and then the Straw Hat's Ship. He saw there was someone moving on the deck of it but ignored them until he noticed that the lone figure was joined by another two.
"Oh yes...I'm on a Navy ship aren't I?" Alex said rising his undamaged hand up, trying to signal he was a friend. No one attacked him and he came up beside the Straw Hat's ship. He saw the ones on deck were Zoro, Nami and Robin.
"You're back." Nami said.
"Linda and Sanji told us your plan." Zoro told him "It was a stupid plan you know." Alex jumped onto the ground from the ship.
"I found what I needed." Alex said reaching into his navy coat and pulling a document out and before any of them could question it he walked off towards Linda's house.
He tried the door and found it locked and he knocked.
"Who's there?" Linda called from the inside.
"It's me Linda." Alex called out "Open up." He heard the lock unlock then the door opened, but a chair came out to meet Alex, and it hit him, breaking on impact, hitting him off the porch and to the ground. Alex lie there for a minute before pushing the broken pieces of the chair off him.
"You need to control your temper Linda." Alex said getting up, using only his right hand.
"You are an idiot!" Linda shouted at him.
"So you have told me many times before. I warned you I was leaving at first light."
"Think of Liz! If you left and died what would be the last thing you would have said to her?"
"Does it matter? I don't plan to die anytime soon."
"Death can come suddenly and in many forms. Don't forget you have that disease too."
Alex got a little angry "I haven't forgotten." Alex said walking past Linda into the house.
"What happened to your arm?" Linda asked tone softening.
"I got shot. Three times." Alex saw Sanji working at the stove "Are you going to continue cooking for Liz?"
Sanji answered without turning "She seems to like it and so do you and Linda and I like cooking so maybe as long as we stay here."
"I'm not really complaining." Alex said sitting at the table.
Sanji turned and saw Alex "Why are you in a Navy uniform?"
"I used it to sneak in."
"Did you find anything?" Linda asked and Alex pulled the document out.
"That tells me the man that ordered the attack on my island and the reason. Read it if you want. I'm going to see Liz." He said as he walked into the other room and Liz turned as the door opened.
"Alex. You're back." She said in her low volume and with a small smile.
Alex smiled back, but not for the same reason, it was unusual for Liz to say more then one or two words at a time "Yeah, I'm back. Were you worried?" She gave a small nod "Well I'm back safe and sound." Liz tapped her shoulder, and Alex caught her meaning. He looked at his own and saw, with the rain and since the wounds were still bleeding the bandages were soaked though, completely red "At least I'm back." Alex said. Alex sat on the bed beside her and she hugged him like she usually did and snuggled against him and as usual Alex felt a bit guilty, since he kept leaving her and now even more since he knew of his imited lifespan.
"Liz?" She looked up at him "Do you remember our parents?" Liz thought for a moment."
"A bit..."
"Not much, right?" She nodded "You were only three...it's not unexpected."
"Why?"
Alex smiled "Just wondering." and he added mentally 'about that, and my dreams that are making me relive my life' She rested against him for a while before whispering a question.
"Why do you need to keep leaving?" The question left Alex with a mix of good and bad feelings, good since she asked a question, unlike before, and bad because of the question she asked.
"I have things I have to get done and do to so I need to leave the island."
Liz stayed silent for a moment "How long?"
"How long until I finish them?" She nodded "Well...it won't take me much longer. I just need to find a certain person now." She nodded again and she hugged Alex. After a while Alex got his arm from Liz's grip.
"I have to go and check something. I'll be back in a bit, all right?" he told her gently
"Okay..." She said as Alex got up and left the room.
Sanji was still at the stove and Linda was sitting at the table.
"I'm going out." Alex said.
"Where to?" Linda asked.
"I'm not leaving the island, so don't worry." Alex left the house.
He walked through the town until he came upon the doctor's office. He pushed opened the door and was greeted by the head doctor who turned as he came in. She was a young woman, the youngest doctor on the island, but she knew more about medicine and any of the others. She had blond hair down to the nape of her neck and green eyes the same color as pine needles.
"Hey." Alex said as their eyes met.
She walked over to him and suddenly pulled him into a hug "I'm so sorry. It's so unfair that someone as young as you has to be cursed with a disease like that."
Alex let her hug him for a moment before he stepped back "I guess from your reaction you haven't figured out a cure yet?"
She shook her head sadly "Not yet...we're trying though."
Alex nodded "Any progress at all?"
"We're making some. Diseases that damage the body from the inside aren't easy to treat..." She said looking down.
"I understand." Alex replied.
"How is your goal going?" Alex had only told a few people of his goal, she was one of them.
"It's...going good. I know the name of the man, now I just need to find him or someone that knows him and get his location."
"Does that mean you may be be done the goal soon?"
"If I'm lucky and I don't need to travel from island to island, Navy base to Navy base."
"Let's hope you get lucky then. How's Linda and Liz?"
"Linda...well she still has that temper but she's still a strong woman, doing all she can for us. Liz..." Alex still hated how badly his sister was affected, which was another reason he was being driven on "She's still the same...hardly talks, stays silent when I'm not around, talks in whispers."
She shook her head "You two have gone through so much and now this disease...Did you tell Liz?"
Alex shook his head "No. I have not said a word to her about it. I want to keep it that way too."
"I understand. I won't let a word of it slip out."
"Thanks." Alex stood there for a moment longer "Do you know any islands near by with Navy bases?"
"We're in a pirate infested area Alex... There are Navy Bases on all of the nearby islands."
Alex nodded "All right..."
"Planning to head out again?"
"The sooner the better. If I can locate the one I can kill him and use the rest of my time with Liz...anyway I need to get back or Linda will think I left the island." Alex left and cursed "I don't plan to be back as soon as I usually am. Next time I return my goal will be done." Alex headed back to Linda's.
Alex knew the door wouldn't be locked this time so he walked in and saw Sanji and Linda sitting at the table looking through the document. Alex sat down and waited for them to finish, taking note that Liz wasn't around which means she must have finished dinner already.
"My god..." Linda muttered "You were right Alex...The Navy really did plan the attack."
"One man did, him and those under him. Captain Doku."
"It's been seven years" Sanji said "So couldn't his rank of changed?"
Alex thought about that for a minute before bringing his forehead to the table "Oh yeah...it could have. But that won't effect my search to much I just need to find the him, no matter his rank and kill him."
"Alex...does that mean you plan to set off again soon?"
Alex nodded "I do."
Linda sighed "And no matter what I say you will still go...like always."
"Exactly." Alex said lifting his head from the table "If I'm lucky I'll take care of my goal, return here, a cure will be ready and I can spend the rest of my days on this island with Liz and not need to worry about being hunted down by the Navy or pirate hunters." Alex got up from the table "I'm leaving in the morning, I may not be here when you awake." Alex turned and walked away, entering Liz's bedroom. Once he entered he saw Liz was sleeping peacefully, on her side facing the door.
"The way she is sleeping...it reminds me of the night after our town was destroyed. She fell asleep so easily, and I was haunted by what had transpired only hours before...When the Navy destroyed our homes..." Alex muttered, feeling his rage rising until he realized his hand was bleeding from his finger nails since he was clenching his fist too hard. He turned and left the room heading back to the kitchen. Linda was the only one at the table now and when she saw Alex she yawned and asked.
"What are you doing now Alex?"
Alex walked to the front door and paused "I know I said I would leave tomorrow...but I'm heading out tonight. Tell Liz I will return within the next two weeks and that I'm sorry I had to leave so suddenly." Alex flung the door open and started running.
"Hey! Alex wait!" He heard Linda call, but he kept running towards his ship.
"Killed our parents, our friends, torched our village, and tried to kill me and my sister due to a suspicion...I'm going to kill him for his crime of mass murder." Alex reached his ship and didn't hesitate as he started towards the closest island, Windworks Isle.
Chapter 7 End