A/N: HELLOOO GUYS~! I'm back with another update. And I'm sorry about the happenings of the last chapter. I know you all want to murder me, now, but they say true love has to suffer thoroughly before the happy ending. Will this story end in a happy ending? Who knows? I expect we'll find out, but for now, Ruby and Ace are going to be thrown asunder. I promise to you all they'll get back sometime... though when? Who knows? MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA! So of course, not much romance for now. We're taking all the fluff and donating it to the marshmallow factories, but I hope you all will enjoy this chapter nonetheless. Ruby has quite a few action-y moments in this.

Also, we're going to find out a lot about Ruby's past in the next chapter, so stay tuned!

Love and appreciation to: CountessDraculara, aqua-empress, frostmoon13, Neeky-chan, SilentScreaming1944, CallmeEevee, ImiLaAlu, and Kairi-Ichimaru15 ~! :L I'm in a good mood, so you all get Akainu punching bags with complementary Garp boxing gloves for free!

My life already pretty much sucked even before I got kidnapped by the psycho doctor.

I guess you could say it all started when I got born under this particularly demonic star, but it really went downhill from the moment I got teleported to a completely unfamiliar dimension. Or maybe it was when I somehow ended up on a tiny fishing boat with a stupid asshole of a pirate. Or it could even be the moment I started having FEELINGS for said pirate - only to have him dump me because he has a fucking 'hero complex'. No, wait! It had to be the fact that my entire family got killed by a creepy dude with serious hygiene issues... but wait! That's not enough, either. The creepy dude had to be after my blood, too. Aah, Life. Life and I have been hating each other for so long that It feels like an old friend, now. So many bad things had happened within the past few months that I lost track. I mean, really? Am I Uchiha Sasuke or something? What the fuck is up with all this angst. anyway?

How many more ways could a person be humiliated and offended? How many more ways could a person suffer? None, right? WRONG!

So this is what happened earlier today...

Unable to stand a minute longer on that stupid ship, I wore a raincoat from the suitcase that bastard pirate stole and stormed away from the port. It was incredibly stormy outside, and the gloomy morning would light up every now and then with lightning. I was wearing a pretty thick raincoat, but the wind whipped my exposed face, and the rain felt like icy fingers. It was very uncomfortable.

I didn't really have anywhere to go, so I just kept walking down the coast. I vaguely contemplated running to that Zeke guy and that weird Flynn woman from the bar for help, but that would be a thorn in my pride. I'm a strong, independent young woman, and I DON'T NEED ANY FUCKING HELP.

The world stormed around me in a rage as my steps clicked down the stony wet ground. Every now and then, the world would light up for a nanosecond and a thundering boom would follow. It didn't bother me. I was never scared of nature. Well, except for bugs and snakes and scorpions and other mental stuff like that. Okay maybe I was a little scared, but I supposed that I had to get used to it. Life as a hermit; that was going to be my life.

I was going to train myself and become strong. I was going to be fierce, vicious and unbeatable. Nothing could stop me.

I'm going to be the strongest female warrior in this fucking stupid dimension so that I can punish everybody in this stupid fucking world for making me feel so miserable. That's right folks. I was going to become the tormented asshole with the shadowy past.

Or maybe I could become a pirate hunter. Then I could chop off Portgas D. Ace's head and give it to the marines as a present.

Such went the train of my thoughts, determination building inside me with every step. So what if I couldn't go back home? I had a new goal. I lifted my eyes from the slippery ground for a second to look up at the swirling rain clouds above me. I gave an exhilarated laugh. I didn't need anybody! I WAS STRONG, FIERCE AND UNDEFEATED! "HEAR THAT, WORLD!? I'M GOING TO BE THE STRONGES-"

My words were interrupted when my toe hit something on the ground. Surprised, I lurched forward mid-sentence, unable to maintain my balance. The world went tumbling around me as the ground came up to hit my face.

Ouch. And then everything went black.

I should probably stop passing out so much. Note to self: Work on equilibrium.

Two men clad in very unusual attire ran down the coast; both wore identical boiling suits and almost equally weird hats. The man with the red hair wore a fluffy blue hat with a red rim, and his companion wore a black winter hat with a yellow rim and the word PENGUIN stamped on front. Their expressions were frantic as they ran down the stony ground.

"Where did that stupid girl go?" The redhead inquired desperately. "Captain's gonna blow his top if we don't find her!"

The other one spoke a bit more calmly, but it was easy to see the panic in his eyes. Obviously, Trafalgar Law was not a man to be toyed with. "Calm down, Shachi, she couldn't have gotten off the island. We'll find her."

The sky thundered overhead, and both men tore their eyes away from the ground to look up at the swirling clouds. At that moment exactly, the man with the black winter hat tripped over an unseen obstacle and fell forward. His companion caught him before he fell to the ground, and two pairs of eyes went to the unseen obstacle; a girl with long, dark hair.

Penguin sighed and rubbed his toe where he had hit the girl's forehead. She had a surprisingly hard head. "Let's just not wonder what she's doing here, and take her back to Captain."

"I don't know," the other one - Shachi - replied a bit cautiously, leaning down to check on her, "you hit her pretty hard. What if she has a concussion or something? What's she doing here anyway?"

Penguin already resented the girl for taking away his precious time; he could have spent the past two hours flirting on girls who might actually flirt back. Annoying brats that Captain probably wants to dissect don't count as 'material'. Or maybe his toe just really, really hurt. "Stop spouting bullshit, Shachi. Let's just go before she wakes up." This being said, he scooped up the surprisingly light girl in her arms and very ungraciously threw her over his back. Shachi winced at the rough treatment, but otherwise said nothing.

Both men took off at a fast sprint down the stormy coast, not realizing that the dark-haired girl had awoken, and was about to throw a full-scale tantrum.

I woke up to the smell of nylon; the first thing I saw was a yellow Jolly Roger. Said Jolly Roger was suspiciously familiar, but I didn't waste any time dwelling on that, because I realized just then that the world was moving. As the ocean and stone whizzed past, I realized that I was being carried away by somebody. So of course, I did the natural thing.

I screamed.

In surprise, my captors jolted to a sudden stop, lurching my body forward so that I fell off with a - ow - thud to the stony ground. I realized that I had an intensely throbbing pain in my forehead, and wondered offhandedly - and sort of excitedly - whether I got teleported to the world of Harry Potter - but nah, I recognized the surroundings. I was still in that stupid world of One Piece.

I lifted my eyes up to the two men who had tried to kidnap me. They both wore identical nylon boiler suits with the yellow Jolly Roger I saw earlier stamped on their chest. One of them had red hair and a fluffy green hat with a red rim; the other one sported a black winter hat with a yellow rim and the word "PENGUIN" stamped on his hat. Red hair/green hat had sharp green eyes that looked at me with more curiosity than apprehension, but "PENGUIN" had dark brown eyes that looked upon me with so much hate and indifference that I wanted to slap him. What did I do now?

To my horror, "PENGUIN" replied. "Now, listen here," he started in what he obviously thought was a reasonable tone, "you come along quietly, and you won't get hurt."

Come along quietly?" I narrowed my eyes at them suspiciously. The men seemed vaguely familiar, as if they were once somebody I passed by on the street. But if someone usually says "if" and "you won't get hurt" in the same sentence, you're probably going to end up getting hurt.

I considered my chances and bolted away from the men.

Sadly for me, though, the men were expecting me to do this. And they were fast, too. They caught up to me in a nanosecond, appearing in front of me so that I was forced to fall back. The dark-eyed one sighed heavily, as if the world itself was an ordeal.

I tripped over my own feet and nearly fell back but managed to scramble a few ways away from the unfamiliar threat. The two men muttered a few words, and then green-eyes/red hair gave a sharp nod and shot off in the opposite distance. I wondered vaguely what he was about to do, but then PENGUIN sighed and muttered. "You asked for this."

I didn't have any time to comprehend what that meant, because then he disappeared. I looked around me, trying to figure out where he went, but then he appeared directly behind me, his leg raised up as if to kick me down to the ground. I gave a sharp "eep!" and dodged to the side as well as I could, rolling onto the ground. His foot grazed my shoulder slightly, and then he disappeared again. I clutched my shoulder where his kick grazed it; it hurt incredibly. It probably would do good not to get touched by that kick. I got up, anticipating another attack.

He appeared in front of me this time, his hand raised up to punch me. Before I could think about what to do, his fist connected with my jaw - ow - and I flew back before crashing onto the stony floor. I didn't think about the searing pain, however, and got up before he could do anything about it. PENGUIN gave another great sigh and ran head-on towards me, his fist raised in a punch. I yelped and raised my arms up to shield my face, but it was only a feint. He disappeared a foot away from me, and I looked around me again in fear. A shadow appeared over me and I froze in fear as I looked up to find his leg raised in a kick again.

I willed myself to move, but I couldn't. Even if I did, I would still get hit by that kick. He was too close not to miss. The only way I could dodge that kick is if the ground itself pulled me away from him. I shut my eyes and covered my skull with my arms to try and protect my brain, at least.

However, the kick never came, and when I looked up again, the man with the funky hat was gone. The first thing I saw was the ocean, and the horizon in the distance, and then the vast stormy sky. I yelped and nearly fell off as I realized I was sitting at least twenty feet above sea level. I was sitting in a small circle of bedrock that had rose out of the ground in a huge, diagonal pillar. I stared at the ground below in shock and disbelief, unable to comprehend what just happened. Wait, what? What's going on?

The man in the boiler suit didn't stop to gape, though, so I couldn't think about it any further. He ran up the diagonal pillar at an incredibly fast pace, and I froze again in fear. He had a grim expression on his face, and I shut my eyes and skittered back subconsciously when he came too close. Since there was not much space left to skitter back to, I fell over the edge, sure I would crash to my death. Really, I was too smart. Not.

I waited for the ground to meet my face, but it never came. Half hesitantly, I opened my eyes in surprise, wondering what might have happened.

The first thing I saw was the ground - fifty feet below me. I screamed and started flailing, wondering how the fuck I got there. It felt like the wind was carrying me, and I nearly started wheezing and hyperventilating when I looked down again. I was way too high. Somehow I could just make out "PENGUIN" below me, looking up as if the world itself was an ordeal.

How the hell did I get up here? What the hell is going on? Did I do this myself? It was impossible, but I couldn't help but think about that Hector incident where I got expelled. Maybe that was my fault, after all... My blood went cold. But no. That was impossible. I couldn't be able to do this.

But I didn't think about that. I looked down, wondering when and how I was going to be able to get down. But I didn't have to worry long, because as if Mother Nature was reading my mind, the wind carried me down in a light downward arc, and I landed on my feet a few ways away from PENGUIN, slightly exhilarated. The people around me gave me a wide berth, as if they were afraid of me.

What the hell is going on?

PENGUIN broke through the crowd almost immediately, unfazed by the sudden change of events. He raised his hand in a punch, and before I could think about it, his fist connected with my abdomen, and I flew back before crashing into a far wall. The wind flew out of me when I fell to the stony ground below. I got up to my feet shakily, trying to ignore the blazing pain in my stomach.

PENGUIN didn't hesitate, and started running towards me again. I swallowed down something that tasted suspiciously like blood, and readied myself for the next onslaught of attacks. I thought he was going to punch me again, but he swept a kick at my feet, making me off-balance. I fell onto the ground with a sharp thud, and when I looked up, his foot was raised to kick me.

"This again?" I hissed, rolling out of the way to avoid his lethal attack. His foot connected with a ground, leaving a small crater in it's wake. I swallowed lightly, trying not to think about what would happen if I got a full-blown hit of that. I scrambled to my feet and shut my eyes tight, swiping at him blindly with my hands. My hands didn't connect - he dodged - but when I opened my eyes, he was grabbing his right shoulder and stomach as if I managed to hit him.

What? I felt confused. I had no idea what was going on, but thanked the heavens anyway. I swiped at the air blindly, and I watched in disbelief as two arcs of wind flew through the air, towards the man in front of me. He made a face and dodged the oncoming danger, disappearing this time.

I was too much in shock to comprehend the fact that he was ready to attack, however. I raised my hand, looking at it in surprise. What the hell? WHAT THE HELL?

It started raining - a downpour all at once. PENGUIN appeared behind me, and I was so surprised that I forgot to dodge. His fist connected with my back, and I flew into the air. But somehow, the rain slowed me down, and I was back on my feet before I crashed into the far wall. I noticed the people who had gathered around us to watch the fight.

PENGUIN stood in front of me, gasping for air. I hadn't really done much, so I wasn't that tired. The scar on my collarbone, however, throbbed violently. For a second, his dark brown eyes caught mine, and we stayed in silence, waiting for the other to attack. Then, the downpour increased, and the rain fell in torrents around me, fragmenting my vision. Thus, I didn't notice when PENGUIN disappeared until it was too late. He appeared in front of me, grabbing my arm and throwing me into the air.

I thought I would fall back onto the ground, but the air made me oddly buoyant. Trying not to think about it too much, I did a light flip and managed to land on my feet. I stared at my hands in bewilderment again. What's going on? I can't... What am I doing? Why am I able to do this?

Who the actual fuck am I?

I didn't have time to answer that, however. PENGUIN took advantage of my surprise, and appeared behind me before I could think about what was going on. I looked back just in time to see his foot falling onto my shoulder.

Pain seared through my body, and I shrieked in agony as I fell onto the ground. The wet stone cracked underneath my body. My shoulder felt like it was on fire; I was sure the bones were splintered completely. I supported my burning arm, and lifted my head up weakly, trying to figure out where he was. The world seemed to be spinning around me, and my vision focused and unfocused.

Trying to ignore the pain and fear coursing through my body, I got up shakily and the world spun even more. The fire in my arms blazed into an inferno, and I bit my lip, trying not to scream. My vision blackened, but I could see it clearly. I could see what was happening.

The rain drops had solidified into one massive circle of water. It was easily thrice as tall as me, and equally wide. I watched in shock as the circle turned into a fist; pointed towards PENGUIN. He stood in shock, staring at the oncoming threat. He clenched his fists, trying to figure out a way to dodge the danger. My collarbone throbbed violently as the fist lurched towards PENGUIN - he turned tail and started running down the street, followed by the rest of the civilians. The watery fist followed.

"That'll be enough of that." A calm, cool voice said. It was familiar somehow, and the water drops splashed to the ground as curiosity coursed through me. I looked back, wondering who it could be, and all the fight subsided out of me, only to be replaced by shock and more confusion as I looked into his eyes.

His eyes.

My eyes.

I turned towards him in shock, wondering what he was doing here. He was the last person I expected to see, but it made sense now. I remembered Captain Law's Jolly Roger from the submarine I saw a million years ago at Winterhawk Island. Law had an easy smirk on his face, but his eyes were stormy and cold... just like mine. I inhaled in shock, and managed to sputter out. "What... What the hell?"

Law smirked again, and lifted his hand (he had tattoos) up lazily. My eyes followed the movement, unable to comprehend what he was trying to do. "Room." He said carelessly, and a blue circle emanated from his hand and enclosed me within it. My eyes didn't look at the circle, however, they were still stuck on Law. His lazy smirk widened, and the last thing I saw was him touching his freaky-ass-huge sword. And then everything went black.

Lafitte immediately regretted bringing the fiery redhead along with her friends. She was fierce, and stronger than the rest. Nothing he couldn't handle, but she was loud and annoying, and he disliked that. Though he commended spirit, fighting when it was obviously futile was useless. He had her tied to the mast of his ship, and she looked at him balefully, spewing profanities at him.

He ignored her and walked into the cabin, where the dark-haired girl was manacled onto the wall. He had left the prince behind - it might become slightly bothersome if hordes of marines started following him. No, he couldn't afford to kidnap the royal just that moment. That Elliot had put up a valiant fight to let him take that Zomi girl's place, but Lafitte wasn't subdued. With a smirk, he thought that the prince would probably have followed them had he not destroyed all the ships in the atoll.

The pretty dark-haired girl had cuts and bruises all over her body, and she was bleeding badly, but her green eyes shone with defiance when Lafitte entered the room. He walked over to her slowly and placed a hand under her chin, lifting it up to look at her. "Well, honey?" He smiled easily, but he was sure the girl caught the threat in his voice. "Will you tell me what you know about Ruby Layor?"

"Don't touch me." She spat in a hoarse voice. "You can go screw yourself."

"Pity. You're not getting any food today, either, I see." He commented carelessly, turning around to exit the room without looking back.

"I wouldn't eat what you gave me anyway." Lafitte laughed easily before shifting to the next room on the ship; the one room he hadn't checked since they had gotten on board. He nearly choked in surprise and pulled out his gun immediately.

"When did all of you get here?" He asked in shock, unable to comprehend that the tiny room was filled with about twenty humans. When they turned to him, he saw that none of them had faces. A chill ran through Lafitte's body. "What the hell are you?" He spat at them, pointing his gun.

Without warning, they attacked him. He jumped into the air, letting the wings sprout from his back. He floated in midair, looking down at the sea of naked bodies, and shot each of them in the head carefully. With relief, he noticed that the bodies dissipated into the air when he shot any of their vitals. When the last of the unknown creatures disappeared from the room, Lafitte landed on the wooden floor of the deck, his eyes on the blind fourteen-year-old manacled to the wall.

He walked over to the brown-haired boy curiously, and knelt down in front of him, looking at the boy in awe as he shook in fear. "Well, well, well," he whispered, "Captain. It seems I managed to find another precious gem for you."

/

Portgas D. Ace stood on his ship at the light of sunrise, staring at the island in the distance. According to his measurements, he would land in about an hour, when the sun had fully risen. In an hour, he would finally be able to destroy that man. That Blackbeard.

His hat was lying on his back, and his dark waves flew with the wind as the tiny boat surged through the waves. The journey to Banaro Island had been silent, and a part of him still ached to turn around, to return to Ruby. "You're a shit liar, Ace." Her voice had rung through his brain over and over again, reminding him that he might never be able to see her again.

He wondered if Trafalgar Law was keeping his part of the bargain, whether he was keeping her safe, or whether he had let her survive the harsh conditions of the Grand Line by herself. He had no choice but to blindly trust that suspicious rookie, because he was his only choice. The rays of the sun broke through the clouds, illuminating Firefist Ace in a golden light. He closed his eyes, wondering, for a fraction of a second, what he was going to be doing tomorrow.

As he sailed through the briny blue, he clenched his fists in anticipation. He was going to kill two birds with one stone; he was going to avenge Thatch, and protect Ruby at the same time. Her broken expression flashed through his mind again, and he narrowed his eyes at the island. Teach was going to pay for his sins, and dearly. Ace glanced at his log pose and then readjusted his course once more, trying to ignore the bad feeling in his gut. Of course he was feeling bad, he just gave Ruby over to a rookie pirate, how could he not be feeling bad? Nothing was going to go wrong... he was Teach's ex-commander. Nothing was going to go wrong.

Perhaps the young pirate had a feeling, as he coursed through the ocean, that every step he took towards the fateful island was a step closer to his doom.

A/N: Teehee. No cliffie this time~ Stay tuned for next week's update, where we find out some more about Ruby. Nihihihihiiiii! Over and out.