"I don't wanna say anything," Law began, "But is anyone else getting a bad feeling about this?"

"You mean like it's too damn easy and we should've been caught already?" Luffy replied.

"Yeah," Law admitted with a nod. "Anyone else think that?"

"Nope," Luffy barked. "Nuh uh. Everything's fine. We're just super strong and our purpose is true…"

"Well," Brook interjected quietly. "For what it's worth, I have a bad feeling too. A very bad feeling."

"It's just cause it's hot," Luffy suggested, wiping his brow.

"It is hot." Law agreed.

"It feels like Hell," Brook snapped. "Hot is an understatement."

"Now I miss Usopp," Luffy realized. "No way in hell I could get him to walk down this hallway without a weapon…" Luffy snickered, "He's such a coward. But he's myyyyy coward."

"I knew you could do it," Law said suddenly.

"Do what?"

Law fought the smile that threatened to split his lips, "Make friends."

Luffy was quiet for a moment, an unfamiliar heat spreading across his warm cheeks and settling in the tips of his ears. He cleared his throat before speaking again, "I was lucky. I only met a handful of real-world people who tried to kill me."

"Considering you were murdered at five," Law reasoned, "I'd say you have a disproportionate chance of encountering assholes."

Luffy shrugged, "I think that was Dragon's fault." Luffy scrunched up his face, deep in thought, "I don't really remember, but it just feels right to blame him."

"Oh, come now," Brook countered, "He can't be all that bad… He's your father. He saved you from Deadhouse didn't he?" Law and Luffy's faces twitched. Brook backtracked, "Or maybe I'm missing the bigger picture here. Yes. Terrorism is bad, of course. And blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb."

"You're really old, aren't you?" Law questioned, sweat dripping from his black hair.

Brook's jaw dropped, tissue tethering, "Young man, I'm experienced."

"Shhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Law suddenly snapped, holding his finger up to his lips. "Hear that?"

"Hear what?" Luffy asked, wiping sweat from his brow.

"Shhhhhhhh…" Law repeated, running his uninjured hand through his soaking hair.

A few moments of silence later Luffy pressed, "What is it?"

"I thought I heard…"

"Hey," Luffy began to panic, "Why's the floor so…"

There was a loud snap. The entire floor beneath them quaked; smoke issuing out from the fractures like steam. The heat was unbearable and the paint began to melt off the walls. The floor broke open and just as it felt like it would swallow them up, flames licked up from the hole, singeing their skin and eating their air.

"Fucking hell," Law cursed, shoving Luffy hard to the other side of the hole.

"Hey!" Luffy protested, sliding across the scalding floor.

"You next, Skeleton," Law instructed, ignoring Luffy's cry.

"I can jump," Brook insisted, taking a few steps back before leaping over the flames.

"Okay, now you," Luffy said, back on his feet.

Law nodded and shrugged, "I really fucking hate fire."

"Yeah," Luffy murmured in agreement, or perhaps, sympathy.

"Ah, I can't do it," Law snarled, wiping sweat from his face. "It's too hot."

"Come on," Luffy encouraged. "It's underneath us. You can't go back. It's only a matter of time before the rest of the floor falls…"

"Mr. Law," Brook called out. "You can make it."

"It's too hot," Law repeated, pacing anxiously back and forth.

Something stirred in Law's recollection; something from before Deadhouse; something dark and painful. Law felt like he would be sick. He doubled over and coughed, choking on the smoke-filled air. He shook his head, "I can't. I fucking hate fire."

"There's gonna be people we hate on the other side," Luffy said softly. "And I can't kick their asses alone."

Law stood up and nodded, chewing unconsciously at his bottom lip, "Alright."

"Count of three," Luffy offered.

"Count of three," Law agreed.

"One," Luffy counted.

"Jau," Law counted.

"Two."

"Doa."

"Three!" Luffy shouted.

"Drej!" Law screamed, taking a running leap over the fiery hole. He landed on the other side easily, with nothing more than a few singes on his clothes. He nodded and exhaled, finally offering Luffy a smile. "I did it."

"Well of course," Luffy snickered, "You're superhuman."

"I don't know about superhuman," Law argued. "It's more like subhuman."

"I don't know what that means," Luffy admitted with a shrug.

"And that's what I like about you," Law sighed, urging Luffy forward and away from the flames. "Come on. Let's go get your Keeper."

Luffy laughed happily, "Yessssss." He slapped Law on the back affectionately, "Do you think he missed me?"

Law rolled his eyes, "I'd rather not speculate."

"I don't know what that means either."

"Mr. Luffy," Brook interjected, "Honestly, even if you don't have a formal education, context clues are-"

There was another snap and the floor let out a tremendous groan. The foundation beneath their feet collapsed and for a few terrifying seconds they were standing in air. The fire screamed as it escaped into the hall and suddenly they were falling.

Luffy let out a deep groan as he hit the floor. He felt his legs break upon impact but then in an instant there was no pain. Luffy tried to move his legs; he couldn't. He tried to sit up; he couldn't. He tried to move his fingers, his toes, his head; he couldn't. He tried to look around, his eyes darting wildly from side to side. "Law!"

Luffy realized there was no sensation at all. He couldn't even feel his voice rumbling through his chest. Luffy closed his eyes, the ash irritating them. He called out again, "Law! Law are you there?!"

"M-M…Mister Luffy…" Brook gasped. There was the sound of movement to the right as the skeletal man climbed to his feet atop a pile of rubble.

"Brook!" Luffy cried out in relief. "Did you see Law?"

"I… I do!"

"Good," Luffy sighed.

"He's unconscious." Brook called out. "He… may… He might be… dead…"

"Okay, fine," Luffy said. "Pull the rod out of his arm."

"Now?"

"Yes, now," Luffy murmured, a strange metallic taste filling his mouth. "If he's gonna reset anyway, he might as well be able to use that arm."

"I… I can't get it out…"

"Okay," Luffy gasped, quickly losing the ability to breathe. "I'll need you… to… cut… it off…"

"His arm? The whole thing?" Brook panicked.

"Quick," Luffy moaned. "Do it."

"Okay, I will…" Brook promised. "But Luffy, what ab-"

When Luffy woke up he realized he'd had more than one reset. He sat up and rubbed his face. His bare skin was prickled from the intense cold. His skin had stuck to the frozen floor and when he sat up he'd pulled it, skinning his back and arms. He whistled lowly, inspecting his pants for damage. He peeled back his waistband and checked on his family jewels, letting out a sigh of relief that everything was in order.

"Still checkin' on your dick first," a man laughed. "Priceless."

Luffy's head snapped to the side. The voice was familiar, but wasn't at the same time. He climbed to his feet, an involuntary groan of pain escaping his lips. "Who's there?" But as soon as Luffy's line of vision landed on him; he knew.

The man was barely past being a kid. He had shaggy hair and an exceedingly charming amount of dark freckles on his brown skin. He was strong and muscular. His eyes weren't lightly colored or big and his forehead seemed a bit large but he was undeniably handsome. And when he smiled at Luffy he grinned from ear to ear, a telling light sparkling in his eyes.

"A-A-A-A…"

"Take your time," Ace murmured, his arms crossed over his broad chest.

"You're real! You're real? Right? You're really here?" Luffy blurted, closing the space between them.

"Yeah, kid, I'm real," Ace replied, his fingers slipping through Luffy's messy, ice covered hair. His fingers got caught and he smiled guiltily as he snagged Luffy's hair. "You've grown a lot."

"Yeah," was all Luffy could manage to say.

"It's good to see you," Ace realized, his voice constricting. He wrapped his arms around Luffy and embraced him tightly. "I was so worried about you."

"Why?" Luffy cried, his fist knocking violently against Ace's chest. Tears streamed down his cheeks, soaking into Ace's armor.

"Why?" Ace laughed, "Well, for one, the entire world is after you."

"No," Luffy shook his head, snot dripping from his nose. "Why? Why did you leave me?"

Ace's face fell. He licked his lips, thankful that Luffy buried his face into his chest once more. Ace looked around at the other people nearby and sighed, "I'm sorry."

"You left me…" Luffy sobbed, punching Ace in the chest again. "You know I needed you…"

"I know," Ace agreed, placing a soft kiss into Luffy's hair. "I'm sorry."

"Where have you been?! I don't understand!"

Ace looked at Marco before closing his eyes, "They took me away and did different tests in a different facility. I didn't know who I was. I didn't remember where I came from. They took everything from me." Ace pulled back, releasing Luffy from the embrace. "It took me a long time to be me again. And when I finally came back, Deadhouse was…" Ace sighed, "Deadhouse was gone."

"You were in the hospital," Luffy realized. "You were working with the D Foundation."

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"It's impossible to protect anyone if we're dead," Marco explained, his heavy eyes settling on Luffy.

"And you were protecting people?" Luffy pressed, turning toward Marco. "This whole time?"

Marco rubbed the back of his neck, "Ace has sacrificed everything to protect eve-"

"Luffy," Ace said firmly, directing the attention back to himself. "I've been moving things into place."

"Into place for what?" Luffy wondered, shivering in the sudden absence of Ace's body heat.

"Freedom," Ace replied with a smirk.

"Freedom?"

Ace nodded, "Yeah, Luf, freedom. Real freedom." Ace gestured to Law's motionless body on the floor. "For all of us."

"Law…" Luffy breathed out, remembering himself. "Is he okay? What's going on? Where's Brook?" Luffy took a deep breath before demanding, "I wanna see Zoro!"

"Luffy…" Marco sighed. "Look around. We aren't going anywhere."

Luffy finally took in his surroundings. They were standing in an enormous, walk-in freezer. Luffy sighed, "So that's why I'm freezing my balls off."

"Worry about your toes," Marco pointed out. "It only takes a few minutes at this temperature."

Luffy ignored how his toes stuck to the floor as he walked. He examined Law's motionless body, his cold fingers twitching against Law's frozen cheek. Ice crystals formed on Law's thick, black lashes. The blood that stained his clothes and body had formed miniscule icicles that hung off his body. Luffy made a small noise, rubbing his own quivering hand against Law's bare arm. "Wake up," Luffy breathed out, dropping to a squat beside Law. "Wake up."

"We have to get out of here," Ace insisted. "Marco and I are dressed fine, but the two of you barely have clothes left…"

"How did we get in here? Where's Brook? How did you get in here?" Luffy began to question.

"Who's Brook?"

Luffy clicked his tongue in disappointment, "That answers that then." Luffy continued rubbing Law's exposed skin, "What about the rest? Have you seen Zoro? Do you know who Zoro is?!"

"The last we saw Zoro and the others he was…" Ace hesitated, "There's a chance they died in the lab."

Luffy shook his head, "Nope."

"We don't know what happened, we'd already been put in here before you arrived," Marco explained.

"And we woke up in here," Ace sighed.

"Why a freezer?"

Ace chewed on his lip as if he had an itch, "They planned on killing us both once they get the situation under control." Ace shrugged, "And of course, they're just keeping you and Law here for safe keeping…"

"Once they kill him they'll be back. They'll kill us and then move you to the Gulf compound."

"Kill who? Who is 'him'?" Luffy asked, shaking his head in confusion.

"Aaaaaaagggghhhhhhhh!"

Luffy was terribly startled by the sudden outcry. He jumped away, his hands raising defensively in front of him.

"Aaaaaaahhhhhh! Fuuuuuuuuuck!" Law screamed again, sitting up with great difficulty. His handsome face was pulled tight with agony. "Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fucking shit."

"What's wrong, Law?" Luffy pressed, approaching again.

"It hurts… fuck… it hurts…" Law hissed, rolling onto his side. His body moved stiffly, his fingers and arms and legs barely mobile. He gasped for air, slamming his palm against the frost covered floor.

"Back up, give 'im space," Ace instructed gently.

Luffy hadn't had time to move before Law was spewing blood all over the floor. The refuse washed over Luffy's bare feet, seeping between his frozen toes. Luffy didn't budge. He reached out carefully, patting Law's back softly.

Law lied on the ground and heaved for several minutes before unexpectedly becoming quiet. He blinked slowly, his yellow eyes focusing on Luffy. His breathing became deeper and he finally regained some color in his cheeks. Law nodded his head wordlessly, taking Luffy's extended hand. Luffy pulled Law to his feet and took a step back, his skin tearing off as his feet left the floor.

"What's going on?" Law asked, wiping his face with shaky hands.

"We've been captured," Luffy answered with a shrug.

"With these fools?" Law questioned, sparing an unfavorable glance toward the other two.

"At least there's meat," Luffy chimed, gesturing to the pounds and pounds of meat stored on shelves and hanging from the ceiling.

"Yeah, but I can't eat raw meat," Marco refused, shaking his head. "Ace either…"

"Can you believe it?!" Luffy nearly shouted in excitement. "Ace's alive!"

"Hoo-ray…" Law drawled dryly.

"Oh, come on! It's Ace! He's not dead!" Luffy chattered happily. Luffy suddenly threw his arm around Ace and squeezed him tight. "I'm glad you're not dead, even if you're a jerk who forgot about us…"

"You're not shivering," Law said suddenly, touching Luffy's cheek.

"Oh, well, I guess I got used to the cold," Luffy reasoned with a shrug.

"No," Law refused, shaking his head. "When you stop shivering is when you need to start worrying." Law looked around the freezer, deep in thought. "The sooner we get out of here the better."

"It's completely sealed. It's a giant ass freezer," Ace pointed out.

Law slapped a piece of meat, making it swing back and forth on its hook, "Everything has a weakness." Law stabbed his fingers through the flesh in front of him. He took a large bite, tearing into the meat like a starving beast.

"Hungry?" Ace asked with a chuckle.

"Famished," Law replied, wiping at the small amount of red juice that dribbled down his chin.

"But… but that's frozen," Luffy whispered, his face twisted with horror. "It's frozen…" Luffy pointed at the meat. "Doesn't that hurt your teeth?"

"I need to keep myself fed," Law murmured, his cheeks stained pink. He took another bite, with more restraint this time. "If I reset on an empty stomach…" Law looked at Marco and Ace. "I won't be able to stop myself."

"I know," Ace said, smiling easily. "I can handle you. I've got years of practice."

"Don't underestimate my hunger," Law warned.

"I'm not a kid anymore," Ace explained, "I got this."

"Yeah," Law smiled sadly, "But I'm not a kid anymore either…"

"Hey, guys," Luffy called from the very top of one of the shelves. "Look at this."

Law, Ace, and Marco stood on the floor beneath Luffy. They stared hard up at the narrow vent and grimaced. They each shared a look before Law spoke, "Luffy, there's no way we can fit through that. It's no bigger than a soda box…"

"Look," Luffy breathed out, ripping the metal cover off the vent. The screws dropped to the ground, bouncing with a tinkle across the floor. Luffy pulled himself up, swinging from the vent. "We can do it."

"Luf," Ace realized, smiling crookedly, "We can't make it. But you can."

"Climb through it and then you can let us out from the outside," Marco instructed.

Luffy made a face, "What if there're bugs in there?"

"Eat them!" Marco replied.

Law shuddered, "No, no. He's right… What if there are spider webs and dust bunnies and…"

"Or DEATH?!" Marco spat. "What's worse? Death or a buggie boo?"

"For us?" Law asked, his brow arched. "Bugs."

"It's a real phobia," Ace explained, smiling at Marco apologetically. "You know what it was like in Deadhouse. We never saw stuff like that there and then once a spider crawled-"

"Stop." Marco sighed. He looked up at Luffy with heavily hooded eyes and flashed a lazy smile. "What if Zoro's in the vent?"

Luffy let out a loud, long groan. "Why would Zoro be in the vent?"

Marco rolled his eyes at Ace before looking back up at Luffy, "Because he's going to be needing our help. They're all in danger and they need you. A bug could keep you away from saving Zoro in his time of need?"

"No."

"That's right."

"I'd save Zoro from anything."

"That's right."

"I'll do it."

"You do it."

"I'm going."

"Don't forget to let us out," Marco reminded him, pumping his fist into the air encouragingly.

"You're an evil genius," Ace whispered, nudging Marco.

"Nah, you Ds are just predictable."

"I'm going. I'll be right back," Luffy called down, pulling himself up and into the vent in the ceiling. It was tight, almost too tight for Luffy to move. He could only inch his way up, his shoulders pressed against the sides tightly.

He wriggled around the corner, the sharp metal of the vent scraping the exposed skin at his middle. He ignored his bleeding stomach and crawled forward, the vent widening enough for him to get to his knees. He could see light up ahead, another vent just a few hundred feet away. He crawled quickly, his foot accidently smacking against the metal. The metal shook loudly, like thunder.

"Oops," Luffy sighed, flinching from the noise.

And then something unexpectedly struck Luffy. Something hard and fast pierced his stomach. Luffy groaned, reaching down with his hand. Hot liquid seeped into his palm and down onto the bottom of the vent. A little hole of light had appeared beneath him.

"Ow," Luffy murmured, feeling all the warmth evaporating from his head. The vent collapsed into the room below, taking Luffy with it. Luffy struggled to free himself from what had become a metal cage.

Someone grabbed him and pulled him from the wreckage, the muzzle of a gun pressed against the side of his head, "Hands up, motherfucker." Luffy raised his hands, blood spilling onto the floor and over his bare feet. And then the gun dropped, clattering to the floor, "Oh shit! LUF?!"