ONE PIECE
Two Worlds, One Family
A young woman struggling to find her place in the world wakes up to find a bunch of cats in her room...cats that turn out to be the characters from her favourite TV show, One Piece! Bound to each other, whether they like it or not, and trying to figure out a way to find a certain somebody's lost Nakama and get everyone back to their home, what follows is bound to be chaos, friendship, tears, romance - and, adventure! (Kind of a re-write of Straw Cat Pirates).
~Parental Warning~
The following chapter contains:
. Low-level adult themes
ACT IV - RESTORATION
OP: Kimi no Shinwa ~ Aquarion Dai Ni Shou (Your Legend ~ Aquarion Second Chapter), by AKINO
END: Trust You, by Yuna Ito
CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE
Undine
Nothing is lost until your Mother can't find it.
- Unknown
The water brought with it a sense of comfort and familiarity. For, it was here in the water that her life had begun, and where she felt the most at peace.
Peace was … not something that she had experienced in such a long time. Not since that moment, nearly twenty-two years ago, when that unimaginable pain and anguish had torn her heart in two, and she had been unable to contain her powers.
And, so, they had sealed her inside of the castle, to keep her from causing any damage to The Well Of Chaos. No entrance. No escape.
Just her and her anguish.
And, up until this point, that was all that she had known - emotional pain, beyond anything imaginable, that had only grown worse as the years went by. She had given up on all else, knowing only that savage anguish that clawed at her from the inside out, over and over again until there was nothing left for it to claw at - and, even then, it still persisted.
Nothing changed except for the steady worsening of her own torment … until very recently, that is . . .
She had sensed somebody … her sister's child, the one known as Little Death … she hadn't been able to speak to her clearly, although somehow she must have conveyed a message to the other Goddess, causing Little Death to seek out what had been used to seal the castle all of those years ago - Grace's Heart.
Only … no sooner had Little Death set foot inside of the castle, when it had been all but sealed again, and somebody else had whisked Little Death away and corrupted the already insecure young Goddess.
She hadn't been able to help Little Death, and perhaps it was the fact that she had failed as an Aunty as well as failing as a Mother that had caused some of her powers to influence the Well Of Chaos … and, perhaps that had been Chaos's intention.
Four Chaos Creatures had sprung forth from the well … but, unlike the smaller ones that had promptly set out to begin Erasing worlds, these four had lingered, and it was all that the other Gods could do to contain them, until they could figure out how to defeat them.
Then, Karma had suggested: "Why not test them?" She hadn't been referring to the creatures themselves when she'd said this, but somehow the others seemed to have known to whom she was referring, and it had caused an argument between her and Faith until Grace had stepped in and agreed to the idea.
This had seemed to surprise the other Gods, because apparently one of the ones being tested was Grace's own granddaughter … apparently . . .
It was very hard to hear things from within that castle . . .
Her frustrations may have caused the well to create more Chaos Creatures. She didn't know.
What she did know, however, was that the well would probably have become even more unstable, had it not been for an incident that had occurred not long after that … when she had sensed a presence that she had not sensed in so long … but, no, it couldn't be … her daughter was dead … she had been killed by Ino … the Mortal vessel of her once friend, Chaos, and yet . . .
Grace's granddaughter and her friends had managed to take out the four Chaos Creatures, and was saying something to a Realm Guardian about her childhood best friend and rival … but, how could that be Grace's granddaughter?!
Even from her nightmarish prison within the castle, it had been painfully obvious that this Emma was Edward Emma … Edward Liborn Aqua Emma, to be precise, so then … what exactly had been going on with those visions of the past?
She didn't know.
She didn't know why, not long after that, Ino had allowed her husband and First Knight to kill their own daughter, Sumi - she just knew that the ordeal had nearly broken Emma who had, luckily, managed to pull through.
She didn't know exactly what had happened after Ino had further tricked Little Death and granted the Celestial powers of Darkness to … wait, was that Teech? What on Earth had possessed Ino to do what she had done? Or, rather, was Chaos really that deadset on Infinite Chaos?
Those things had all been pushed to the side when two things had happened, all in the space of just over a week … one that had upset Emma and caused her to try and forsake her friends, and the other … the other had caused her to nearly forsake everything . . .
She hadn't, though … because of one of her friends and because of Jimbe … not to mention numerous others, and many more who had helped Emma during the final stretch . . .
There was a slight realisation that existence had just undergone an overall reset . . .
The one who had been freed from her chains the moment that she had heard her daughter yell out to her now stood upon the water.
An endless sea was beneath the waters, the surface of which was so clear that it reflected the vivid blue sky and fluffy white clouds.
She sensed, rather than saw, where she needed to go, now. She couldn't wait any longer.
And, so, she immediately began running, her bare feet making no sound as she ran across the surface of the Deep Ocean, and her golden-orange hair that fell like waves to her feet billowing out behind her.
Of all of the places that she had been to so far in the Celestial Realm, this place seemed the most like what people always imagined Heaven to be, at least in Emma's opinion.
Well, maybe not the endless mirror-like water that she now found herself standing on, although that part was certainly cool. So was the fact that it was so reflective, although upon glancing down at her reflection she discovered something awful.
Both Grace's Heart and the Traveller's Compass were missing! So was Ace's bracelet! The rest of her jewellery was there - the rings, her earrings, and her bracelet from her sister - to go along with a dress that looked like a cross between the black one and the white one, and could probably be either grey or silver depending on how you looked at it, but . . .
Emma was just about to sink to her knees in complete and utter despair, when she sensed something . . .
Somebody was coming towards her, making no sound on the waters but Emma somehow still sensed them, and she turned around slowly … she suddenly couldn't move any faster, even though her heart was beating wildly all of a sudden . . .
Because … she didn't have to look to know who it was.
Even without her glasses, her eyes could not mistake who was standing there before her.
The divine being was a woman, whose physical age was difficult to pinpoint, although her warm brown eyes told a different story; like Christine had once said that Emma's eyes 'looked wise', that was exactlyhow Emma would have described the eyes of the Goddess who now stood about three metres away from her … if only she had the ability to speak right then.
But, to be in the presence of this woman … who wore a long blue dress that reminded Emma of waves … and, her hair! It was exactly as long as Jimbe had said that it would be, and it was a warm golden-orangey colour.
There could be no mistaking it, as this woman looked the same as she had in the visions … and, as she had in the image that was contained within the Celestial Tone Dial that probably didn't even existanymore . . .
This was the Ocean Goddess, Edward Undine … this was also the Goddess Of Infinity … this was . . .
"Mamma?" Emma whispered, hearing her voice crack as the tears fell from her eyes.
And, Undine, who looked like she had been waiting for an eternity to hear that word again, also had tears falling down her face, as she held out her arms. "Daughter . . . "
Nothing, not even the fact that she hated running and that she had just run over a kilometre to get to here, could have stopped Emma from running to her, then.
Emma wasn't sure why she was so surprised to find that her Mother was exactly the same height as her - she supposed that it was one thing to be standing next to her in a vision and another thing entirely to be seeing her in real life.
They were sitting side-by-side on a ledge of what looked like ruins that protruded from beneath what Undine had called the Deep Ocean. Emma swung her legs out, suddenly unsure of what to say. Now that the initial reunion was over and done with, she was starting to feel her old shyness creeping back up on her.
That is, until Undine suddenly said: "I'm sure that you have questions . . . "
Emma looked up quickly. "Y-yeah, I do!" She replied, nodding her head vigorously. "I have … a lot of questions for you … " She paused, and then added, somewhat tentatively: "And I'm s-sure that … you have questions for me, as well . . . "
Undine nodded calmly. Her warm brown eyes were trained on her daughter, but for whatever reason her unfaltering gaze didn't make Emma feel uncomfortable. "That I do." Undine confirmed, smiling slightly. "I have so much that I want to ask you, that I want to find out . . . " Her expression then sobered. "However … it is probably more prudent for me to first tell you what I have to say, so that you may know why all of this has happened and then decide for yourself what to make of it all."
Emma was looking at her now, and she didn't miss the slightly apprehensive look in Undine's tone. "You mean that I can decide how I feel about you afterwards?" She guessed, and Undine nodded again. Emma sighed. "Mamma, it's not — " She began, but she was cut off when Undine suddenly hugged her. "Wha — ?!"
"Oh, I have been waiting so long to hear you say that again!" Undine whispered. "To hear you call me that … you have no idea, Emma . . . "
"You're right, I don't." Emma agreed with her. As Undine moved back, Emma drew in a deep breath. She didn't need Chopper around to pinpoint Undine's scent; her mother smelled of the salty breeze that brought to mind the ocean. Her stomach felt slightly strange, and she knew that she needed to focus on something before she started thinking about her worries again.
Undine seemed to sense this, although she wasn't yet sure of the reasons as to why her daughter was so worried. She could tell, though. She said: "There are so many ways that we seem to be alike, and yet . . . " She bit her lip, and then seemed to decide to force herself to keep on talking. "This is … somewhat difficult for me to talk about, but … I'm going to have to. I owe you the truth. Emma, just do me one favour, okay?" Emma glanced at her. "Please try not to interrupt me, okay?"
Emma's eyes widened. "I – I didn't, did I?!" She said quickly. "I'm sure that I haven't done that . . . "
Undine put a hand on her shoulder. "Iie, you haven't," she said soothingly. "I only mean that once I start telling you my story, then, it will be easier for me to continue if I don't have to stop. I know this about myself. And," she went on. "If you have any questions then, just listen - they may answer themselves eventually." She clasped her hands out in front of her. "So … close your eyes, and let what I am about to tell you play out in your mind . . . " She intoned. "The story starts at the beginning . . . "
"The beginning . . . ?" Emma asked hesitantly.
Undine nodded. "In the beginning . . . "
And, as Undine spoke, Emma found herself able to suddenly see the very things that her mother was describing to her, almost as if she was standing there and seeing them for herself . . .
In the beginning, Chaos and Infinity had been one - a colossal beast that was indeed even more terrifying than Chaos's true form. It existed as Infinite Chaos, in a place as such - there was no order, there was simply chaos and it was everything.
Then, one day, in this chaotic existence, Infinite Chaos was confronted by the single entity that Emma instantly recognised - the God Of Nothingness. The scythe held by the God was swung once - both the scythe and Infinite Chaos split into two.
At the same time, Father Time came into being, along with Almighty, aka Boss.
And, Nothingness calmly became just that, as Father Time represented time itself - past, present, and future - whilst Boss represented order and control.
The beast became both Chaos and Infinity.
Within the realm where Nothingness had begun everything, intense fires raged from what had just occurred - the Intense Fires. On the flip-side of this was the Deep Ocean - as endlessly deep as the fires were intense, as blue as its counterpart was red.
Emma thought about what had been said about the Ocean's Flower coming from the Deep Ocean. She also recalled what she now knew about the Intense Fires, and realised at once why the Well Of Chaos was so terrifying.
Boss sealed up the entrance to the Intense Fires, using the scythes as the locks over what became known as The Well Of Chaos, and only he and Father Time knew this.
Chaos herself was confined to the Forbidden Zone of Level Zero, to help keep her powers in check. Her powers were fearsome, and unpredictable. Only Boss, Father Time, and Infinity knew of her existence.
Infinity was her only friend, even though it scared Boss and Father Time when the two of them were together, as they knew what had been when there was Infinite Chaos.
Chaos had one simple rule that she must follow - she must not touch The Well Of Chaos. And, she could not, for that was the law that came to be: that, as she was - a Celestial Goddess - she could not touch The Well Of Chaos.
As long as she had Infinity nearby, though, she was happy.
Chaos loved Infinity, very much. The two of them were as close as anything, as they had once been the very same being.
Chaos did not like it when Infinity got a younger sister, named Death.
Death appeared one day after Life, and was Infinity's younger sister because, life was not forever but after death was forever.
Chaos understood this, but, that didn't mean that she had to like it. Her envy grew slowly over time, but she kept it to a minimum.
Around nine hundred years ago, Life and Death created from a Flower in the Cave Of Phosphorescent Flowers their daughter, Little Death. Infinity enjoyed being an Aunty to the little pink-haired Goddess.
Little Death's creation, however, had the unprecedented side-effect of opening up a window to a certain world, where events were taking place that also caused the creation of the Sea Kings Yin and Yang, through which Death and Life could respectively watch the events of that world unfold.
Emma could see it now, and knew at once which world it was that was being watched by the Gods.
Infinity, watching through a different window, fell in love with that world, despite all of its imperfections. More and more, she longed to be a part of that world, and shared her dreams of becoming Mortal with her closest friend - Chaos.
Unbeknownst to her, Chaos had been waiting for an opportunity like this to arise, for her secret dream was for her and Infinity to become one again, and result in Infinite Chaos once more. The illogical nature of this dream only further exemplifies Chaos's erratic nature.
Furthermore, the two, knowing that it was possible that one of them would still retain their Divine powers upon reformation in the Mortal Realm, and knowing that their laws would dictate that, in order to maintain balance, a Mortal must be granted the right to serve beside them, decided that whomever retained their Divine powers would make the other their First Knight, as it was called.
In order to do this, though, they must first ask Twister, Father Time's son and the God Of Change, to use the power from one scythe from The Well Of Chaos and grant them this change. He did not even have to touch the scythe to draw from its power. He also could not say no, as Infinity - as one of the Greater Gods - had authority over him.
Emma thought about Twister, and had a strong feeling that the God didn't much like being told what to do. A bit like her.
Chaos, however, had a plan. Knowing that if Infinity kept her powers then the dream of Infinite Chaos would not be achievable, she schemed to allow Infinity to enter the Mortal Realm first, banking on the chance that her staying in such close proximity to The Well Of Chaos would mean that the possession of Divine powers would favour her over Infinity - as Chance's entirely unpredictable nature was indeed a form of chaos in and of itself, Chaos felt for certain that the odds were in her favour.
Emma continued to swing her legs out as she listened and watched. At last, she was starting to understand more and more.
Twister, however, aware of Chaos thanks to his Father and sensing her true intentions, gave to Infinity a Celestial artefact that would essentially create a new kind of God - a Mortal God, born in the Mortal Realm but with Divine powers. He told her none of this at that point, though, and instead made the change.
Before that happened, however, Infinity was so touched by Twister's gift that she gave him a blessing, which he had not expected.
It was that blessing that would ultimately protect him.
When the time came for Chaos to confront Twister at The Well Of Chaos, he took up one of the scythes against her. She was able to slash his right eye with the scythe during the struggle, ultimately breaking one of the most sacred laws - that they should not harm each other. Twister, although he had taken up arms against Chaos first, was protected by Infinity's blessing.
Emma nearly opened up her eyes at this point. She remembered how Twister's eye had looked, and now understood the story behind it.
However, Chaos had become an Ungod, which had been her backup plan - she was now free to touch The Well Of Chaos and unleash all that was within.
Luckily, Twister was able to send Chaos through to the Mortal Realm before she could do anything, although by that stage The Well Of Chaos had become unstable.
Left standing there, with one of the scythes in hand, Twister resigned himself to guarding The Well Of Chaos, using the scythe as an extra form of protection.
Boss and Father Time allowed this, although it was unclear to them which Goddess had been responsible for what had happened, as achieving Mortality had been Infinity's idea, and Boss warned that Infinity could be just as unpredictable as Chaos. He even stated that there was no way to know which Goddess it had been as the two could often imitate the other.
Emma was surprised by this, although she didn't say anything.
There was even no way to tell what world the two Goddesses had ended up in.
Furthermore, none of the other Gods were aware of Chaos's existence in the beginning, and as things started to slowly become unhinged, some started to suspect if Infinity had caused any of this by leaving.
Emma opened her mouth to speak just then, but sensed it when her mother held up her hand. She closed her mouth. She was reminded a bit of the Spring Keeper, stopping her from asking anymore questions about his mother. She twisted the emerald ring that he had given her, although she also forced herself to focus on what Undine was telling her.
Only Twister knew for certain what had transpired. Being him, however, he told the others none of this.
Not even Life and Death knew where Infinity (and Chaos) had ended up, because Chaos had caused an event which separated Yin and Yang from each other in that world - the rock slide that trapped Yang in Lake Waikikamukow, as it was - and, with their connection broken, they were unable to assist.
Emma recalled Yin's words - that a landslide had separated her from Yang for close to seven decades … that fit in perfectly with the timeline that was being painted out for her.
The landslide part made sense as well, considering what Emma now knew about Ino and her powers.
Twister, almost always staying in the Forbidden Zone, knew the truth, but knew that if he was to tell, then, Boss and Father Time would be able to find Infinity and thus her overall happiness that she had so desperately longed for would be taken away from her.
And, so, he said nothing, but just secretly kept an eye on what was going on in that world.
How could the other Gods have not known what had really gone on? Emma had to wonder. Was Chaos's existence really that much of an enigma? What about Death? Had she really believed that her own sister was responsible for the spelt emerging chaos? Perhaps she had thought that … but, she had probably always believed that Infinity hadn't done it on purpose.
However, through her own doings and also Twister's interventions, Chaos was reborn much later than Infinity.
That explained the age difference between Undine and Ino - hadn't Captain John's zombie said something about Ino being a teenager when she had confronted Undine at God Valley? Emma listened in more closely now, hoping to get some more information about that particular event.
How Infinity came to be is a complete and utter mystery, as at the time that she was, Twister was busy battling against Chaos.
What Emma saw, however, was a beautiful white-sanded beach somewhere, covered in beautiful shells like on the West End Beach of Rottonest. A very beautiful blonde-haired woman in a nun habit had just come to a stop, however, and the cigarette had fallen from her mouth.
Emma had never seen a smoking nun before, but she could well understand why this woman - whom Undine referred to as Mother Carmel - was so shocked.
A mermaid was dragging herself up onto the beach. Her wavy auburn hair hung wetly over her shoulders, her lilac top was torn, and there was blood on the aqua-green scales of her fish tail.
In her arms she clutched a newborn baby - not a mermaid, but a human. She tried to communicate with Mother Carmel but couldn't seem to. It didn't seem to matter - Mother Carmel knew what the mermaid wanted her to do, and so she took the baby girl in her arms, actually wrapping her up in her own headscarf and taking note of the 'rather gaudy looking' necklace that the baby was clutching. Mother Carmel deemed it to be costume jewellery. She tried to prise it from the newborn's hands, but found that the newborn had a lot more strength than what she should have.
Nevertheless, when the mermaid asked Carmel to look after the child, whose name she said must be 'Umi', Carmel agreed, although she later decided that the name was too 'obvious' for a child that literally came from the sea, so she decided to call her Undine.
At this point, Emma found herself suddenly speaking again, for the first time in about an hour.
"Umi . . . " She repeated, suddenly realising why the spring back in the Forest Realm might be named as it was, and she sensed it when her mother jumped. "Gomen . . . " She whispered.
Undine sighed. "Daijoubu … Aqua."
It was Emma's turn to jump. "A-ano… s-so, Mother Carmel raised you?"
"Mmhmm." Undine said quietly. "She was … the only mother that I had ever known . . . "
"Sōka . . . "
Emma wasn't sure why, if maybe it was because she had just interrupted and used her mother's True Name, but during the next part of the story she got the sense that parts of it were being censored.
Along with a number of other orphaned children, Undine grew up under Carmel's care for the first ten years of her life, during which time Carmel noted that Undine was a 'most unusual child'. As a baby she hardly ever cried but, when she did the waves would respond to those cries. Undine spoke from about the age of six months and held full conversations from the age of eight months … at which point she could be incredibly mouthy and was quite pretentious around the same time that she learned to walk - she learned to swim first, though. She could also be difficult at times, and was incredibly stubborn, but her most unusual trait - even more unusual than her rapidly growing hair (which was down to her knees by about the age of seven) - came in the form of seemingly being able to control the seas.
And, although Undine was only a small girl, she declared that she would still some day fight with the strength of the giants of Elbaf - which was where she and the other orphans lived with Carmel - and be just as big as them. Though some called her dream impossible, the giants respected the child's determination and resilience. She was always asking questions, and seemed to love to learn.
Emma was deep in thought, by this stage. My mother … was just like I was as a child … I mean, aside from the insane hair-length and super-strength and thalassokinesis . . .
It was around the age of nine that Undine met the then five-year-old Linlin.
Linlin — ?! Emma immediately recalled the name, and quickly focused in on what her mother was saying.
She saw a very large little girl - both size-wise and height-wise - with curly pink pigtails and reddish-brown eyes. Next to her, the already short Undine looked like a child's doll.
Linlin absolutely idolised Undine, and tried to follow her around and do everything that she did. Undine, on the other hand, seemed frustrated by Linlin and yelled at her a lot.
Carmel told Undine to be nice to Linlin, because Linlin looked up to her - Undine replied that Linlin was already twelve feet taller than her (Carmel told Undine that's not what she meant, but praised her for working that out so fast, since maths was not her strongpoint).
Just like me . . . Emma realised, trying not to smile.
Carmel also told Linlin to be kind, like Undine - Linlin wasn't so sure, because Undine seemed to yell a lot, but Carmel told her that it was just because Undine was so small that she had to raise her voice to be heard, and added to Linlin to make sure to always listen to Undine.
She also told Linlin and the other children not to make Undine cry because you shouldn't make people cry - in truth, it's because Undine tended to make unexplainable things happen when she cried, such as unexpected rain, and Carmel didn't want anybody to find out about that.
Again, Emma sensed that something was being censored at this point, and wondered briefly just why Carmel hadn't wanted anybody to know about Undine's powers.
One day, Linlin saw Undine dive underneath of the water in a peaceful-looking bay, and not come up. Linlin panicked, thinking that Undine had drowned, and dived in after her despite Carmel's shouted warning.
In truth Undine had a special relationship with the creatures of the sea, and she often went down below the waves to think. For, she had realised at an early age that she could breathe underwater.
Sugoi . . . Emma thought. I sure could … use that power . . .
Undine was quietly swimming with a number of sea creatures, although the smaller fish soon scattered at the sight of a shiver of sharks coming towards them. They were all of a fairly decent size - around ten feet long - with slender, streamlined bodies that were deep, metallic bronze-grey above and white below.
Looking at their relatively small first dorsal fins and sickle-shaped pectoral fins, Emma vaguely identified them as Silky Sharks, a member of the notorious Requiem family. They were usually found in open-ocean, and Emma speculated that they had been drawn into the bay by Undine, who seemed unperturbed by the presence of these potentially aggressive sharks.
No, what panicked Undine was the sight of Linlin, and Emma could see at once why.
The behaviour of the sharks changed in an instant; whereas they had been swimming calmly around Undine before, many of them now began to zigzag through the water, and some began to haunch their backs, and still others raised their snouts - all classic indicators of aggression in sharks.
Were they going to attack Linlin? Undine didn't wait to find out.
Swimming forwards with surprising speed, Undine grabbed Linlin by the arm and leapt out of the water with her, much to the shock of everybody. A few sharks breached just a few seconds later, much to the horror of everybody, except for Undine. The little girl turned and faced the waters, commanding the leaping sharks to 'stop', which they did.
She then asked a crying Linlin what she was doing, and Linlin replied that she had been worried about her. Undine then yelled that Linlin shouldn't worry about her, and that she worried about Linlin. She called Linlin her 'little sister', and used her strange powers to heal the small cut on Linlin's arm. Linlin stopped crying, and said that Undine was the best big sister ever.
It was then that Emma realised that something was being censored in Undine's story, because she caught a brief glimpse of a young Undine sobbing over what looked like a fallen giant and Linlin looking around in confusion, as a light rain fell that didn't put out the mini sun that Carmel seemed to be able to control.
There was no sound, like somebody had muted an exciting part of a movie. However, Emma briefly caught three names, before her mother continued speaking: The Evil Spirit Called Linlin, Carmel's Miracle, and Undine's Kindness.
"It was on our way to our new home when, with my emotions heightened to a point where I could not contain them, the ship became caught in a storm," Undine was saying. "I was swept overboard and, from what I can understand, presumed lost at sea, although we did all manage to survive that little incident."
"Can I ask you something?" Emma said suddenly, unable to contain herself any longer.
"You already have, but, go ahead." Undine replied.
"Why did you leave some parts out?" Emma wanted to know, still keeping her eyes closed as she watched the image of child Undine float on her back in the vast ocean, seemingly just letting the current take her to wherever. "What happened that made you so upset? What was with those three names?"
Undine sighed. "I don't mean to keep these things from you." She told her daughter.
"Then don't." Emma suggested.
"Unfortunately, I have to." Undine replied.
"Why?" Emma demanded to know.
"Oh … how do I put this?" Undine wondered. She was silent for a moment, and then she said: "I can't tell you because those details will become plot-relevant at a later time, and to tell you now would be detrimental to you . . . "
"So, then . . . " Emma said slowly. "You can't tell me now, even though you'd like to, but … either you or somebody else will tell me when I need to know?"
"Hai." Undine responded.
"Can you at least tell me one thing about her?" Emma pressed.
"We'll see." Undine said carefully.
"What is Linlin's family name?" Emma wanted to know.
Undine sighed, again. "Instead of telling you that, how about I tell you what you should call her when you see her?"
"I'll get to meet her?" Emma said quickly. She sounds very certain about this . . .
"Mmhmm." Undine murmured. "And, when you do, make sure that you call her 'Mamma Linlin' … you'll see why, as we go on . . . " She added, and Emma was too stunned to argue, and so Undine continued.
Lost at sea but not for very long, Undine had ended up on an island called Sphinx. It was a relatively small island with some ruins of an old town at the shore, but the inhabitants of the island lived in the valley of the mountains, accessible only via the waterfall that was on the island.
The namesake of the island were Sphinxes, and two things quickly became apparent to Emma - one was that she realised what Robin had meant when she'd said that the Portal Guardian Sphinx was different to the Sphinxes of their world, and two was that Emma had actually seen this kind of Sphinx before … not in real life (that she was aware of), but, in the anime … there had been one in Impel Down.
These ones were about the same - very large (although, not quite as large as the one in Impel Down) with dark humanoid faces and bodies that were winged and leonine. Unlike the one from Impel Down, the ones on the island of Sphinx were tamed - in fact, they were downright friendly, and one even let Undine ride it into the village the second that she got there.
Undine was accompanied by none other than a boy that Emma recognised instantly as being a young Edward Newgate - he had found Undine on that beach, and from that moment on they were to rarely be apart.
They eventually ended up joining the Rocks Pirates when Undine's abilities attracted the attention of the captain … whose name Emma sensed was being kept from her, as Undine simply referred to him as 'Captain' … he seemed to recognise her abilities as much more than what others did.
And, it was at this time that Undine was reunited with Linlin … who had gone from being a chubby big little girl to being a very beautiful big young woman. The two of them met on the deck of a very opulent-looking ship.
'Undine . . . ? Undine, it's me!'
'Linlin!'
Emma could hear the joy in both women's voices, although she also noted the look on Newgate's face when this happened … Newgate also didn't look happy when Undine was introduced to Kaido - who turned out to be very big (like a lot of other people in the Rocks Pirates) but still young, and he had horns. Newgate seemed to be somewhat possessive of Undine, although Undine - who had calmed down a bit from being such a boisterous child - apparently grew frustrated with this, and Newgate relaxed his jealous tendencies.
Undine's first experience with jealousy came when a very pretty blonde-haired woman on the crew seemed to be trying to steal Newgate away … their rivalry was only (somewhat) appeased after Undine saved this woman during a storm at sea, although . . .
There was something interesting about the Rocks Pirates, though . . .
There was little to no comradeship within the crew, although the fact that they all liked Undine meant that she was able to prevent it from becoming a complete and total bloodbath.
Just like Captain John's zombie had said.
As Undine met more and more people, her relation with the sea became more and more evident, to the point where she became revered as the Ocean Goddess of legend - Fishmen and Merfolk could not refuse a command by her. She was horrified when she realised this, and resolved to strengthen the bonds between land and sea however she could.
Emma got the sense that her mother didn't much like the power of control over Fishmen and Merfolk anymore than what Emma did. She was glad for that fact.
The giants also never forgot about Undine, or her dream. They referred to her as 'Undine, The Little Big'.
Emma suddenly recalled Usopp being about to say something when Brook had mentioned Undine's name. Perhaps Dorry and / Brogy had mentioned Undine when the Straw Hats had been on Little Garden? Of course, that hadn't occurred in the anime, where Undine didn't exist as a character, but in real life . . .
And then, in the place known as God Valley, Undine encountered both Chaos in her Mortal form and her own self.
Ino . . . Emma thought, with somewhat quiet contempt for the woman who had caused all of this to happen.
Chaos had been reborn as Inoshishi, most often known by the name Ino because she hated 'Inoshishi', the younger sister of Laskey. She was trained from an early age to be a Rokushiki Master and Asssassin. She was better at it than her older brother.
Emma saw the young girl, already with her very long blonde hair, training despite her glasses having been somehow broken. She noted the cold focus in Ino's eyes.
Unlike Undine, who'd been referred to as a 'wild child' by everybody - including herself - Ino was serious, dedicated, and restrained in what she did.
When she did lose her temper, however, it was always a cause for concern, although she tended to be fairly restrained even then and killed only whom had wronged her.
All throughout her childhood, however, she was plagued by dreams of her past life, but it wasn't until God Valley that she realised who and what she really was… as did Undine.
Whatever was mainly happening at God Valley was clearly not for Emma to know just then - the main focus for her was supposed to be the confrontation between Undine and Ino.
The second that they both realised that the other was in God Valley on that fateful day, it was like they were drawn to each other. And, the second that their eyes met, their memories returned.
Undine's captain was the only one not at all fazed by what ended up transpiring, although the events left a lasting impact on those who witnessed them.
However, there was the sense of betrayal, especially when Ino saw the necklace - the Ocean's Flower - that she quickly identified as a Celestial artefact. She accused Undine as having 'cheated' instead of leaving the decision of their power re-roll up to Chance, but Undine was becoming aware that Ino (as Chaos) had done something far worse.
Ino wasn't finished yet, however, because she stated that she had not been the one to break their agreement, because she was not a Mortal God - Undine was; furthermore, Ino felt no sense as Undine's First Knight, which meant that Undine had ultimately decided that it must not be Ino. She all but cursed whomever the 'chosen one' must be, and started to call Undine 'Infinity'.
Emma recalled how she had heard that Undine had been angered when Ino had started to call her 'In'-something . . .
Undine, who could see what Chaos was becoming in her Mortal form, did not wish to be associated with her former life - she was Undine, and she loved the Mortal Realm that she had been reborn into.
Undine interrupted Ino, calling her 'Chaos' and saying that she didn't have to live up to her name and open up a whole well of it.
It was at this point that, because of her having touched the scythe when she was Chaos, Ino's powers as a Mortal God started to awaken - as the Land Goddess.
The battle was short but dramatic, although Emma still sensed that it was the 'B-plot' - the 'A-plot' was whatever had been going on with the Rocks Pirates and . . .
"Grandpa Garp and Ace-Chan's dad worked together?!" Emma suddenly exclaimed. That explains the photo that Grandpa Garp has . . .
"What?!" Undine gasped.
"What?" Emma, still with her eyes closed, shook her head. "I mean … never mind … go on … you didn't want to prolong your battle, did you?"
Undine really hadn't wanted to prolong it. She had awakened her powers as the Ocean Goddess, growing to a huge size and easily defeating Ino, although that was the only clear victory for the Rocks Pirates that day as their Captain had been killed.
The crew was disbanded, with the members all going off and forming their own crews. Both Linlin and Kaido expressed their desire for Undine's comradeship, but she ultimately decided to stay with Newgate, whom she soon married and formed the Whitebeard Pirates with.
Emma saw the image of Undine in a beautiful white wedding dress, married at sea which was more fitting than anywhere else.
Undine continued to visit both Linlin and Kaido, however - Linlin seemed to have her own empire in a country of sweets, and Kaido eventually ended up in a place that Emma was suddenly certain was the elusive Wano.
Undine was still trying to resist becoming Infinity again, and Ino was trying to resist becoming Chaos.
But, these things have a way of catching up with you, in more ways than one . . .
"Ohmygoddess!" Emma found herself whispering, for she was now seeing Undine's first ever meeting with the Fishman who would eventually become her First Knight - Jimbe.
He was definitely recognisable as the young Fishman from her vision, although he looked even younger here. He had only been thirteen, if Emma remembered correctly. So young, and yet … Jimbe had sensed that what he must be was Undine's First Knight.
Undine, however, was concerned about Ino's words at God Valley, and refused Jimbe as her First Knight for exactly one year.
"He thought that it was because he was so young." Emma murmured.
"That was a part of it." Undine replied evenly. "It's hard to tell how somebody will turn out at that age. Demo . . . " She trailed off, and Emma focused again on the vision that she was seeing.
Jimbe was persistent if not stubborn, but Undine was firm. Jimbe was ridiculed a lot for how determined he was, but it seemed like neither he nor Undine would budge.
And then, on the final day, something finally changed.
A group of human slave traders - it was painfully obvious that that's what they were, even though they sailed under the flag of the Striker Pirates - had captured a mermaid, and it had been Jimbe who had seen this and gone after them.
The next thing that Emma saw was the Moby Dick, and it was underwater, wrapped up in a huge bubble that made Emma think of the bubble that had been wrapped around her younger self in the vision. Undine had stood on the deck, and Whitebeard watched as she suddenly jumped - as in, she nearly leapt out of her skin.
'Diko?'
Undine had then turned, and something about the look in her eyes had negated the need for words.
Whitebeard's own eyes had widened. 'Go!' He had urged her.
Undine had needed no further encouragement, and had simply leapt through the protective bubble that was around the Moby Dick, gliding effortlessly but swiftly through the water with intent and purpose.
Undine had arrived at the surface to find Jimbe all-but defeated by the Striker Pirates, but the young mermaid who had been captured by them was unharmed, thanks to Jimbe's efforts.
Emma took note of the mermaid's cute face, blonde hair, and orange goldfish tail, before she felt a thrill of fear at seeing the young Jimbe looking so close to death.
It was the same way that she felt recalling what had happened to him when he'd been taken to Impel Down … he apparently hadn't made a sound when he was thrown into the boiling water, but it would have hurt him. A lot. To see this vision of him bleeding profusely, and breathing heavily as he struggled to stay standing between the slave traders and Otohime … it made Emma's heart hurt.
Undine's younger self had, evidently, felt that, too, and she acted within the second that it had taken her to take stock of the situation.
Undine conjured up a huge tidal wave that destroyed the Striker Pirates' ship in an instant. But, even as she did this, she was reaching for Jimbe, and she screamed for the world to hear.
'LIVE!'
The fury and emotion of the waves was evident as this was happening, and it was at that moment when Undine once again resembled the Ocean Goddess that she was.
Otohime, and Undine holding Jimbe re-emerged from beneath the waves a short distance away, with Undine clearly trying not to panic as she kept Jimbe conscious.
She said that she could save him using her blood, but Otohime suddenly spoke up and declared that she would do it, as Jimbe had saved her life (not that Undine hadn't).
Undine asked her if she was still going to campaign for harmony between the denizens of the ocean and the denizens of the land, despite her ordeal, and Otohime replied that she would.
Otohime then asked Undine if she had made up her mind about Jimbe. Aware that Jimbe was still conscious and listening, Undine's response was that even though she had, Jimbe should enjoy being a teenager while it lasted.
Undine was silent for a few minutes after this, for which Emma was grateful - it gave her some time to reflect upon how her mother had come to accept Jimbe as her First Knight.
It made her think of her own First Knight … which in turn made her think of her husband … which then made her think of her Allies. She hated being without them . . .
"You seem troubled . . . " Undine said softly.
Emma coughed. "I was just thinking about … about how … I mean, you know Oden?"
"Of course." Undine said fondly. "Your father called him 'little brother'."
"Oden said that he sailed with both you guys and the Roger Pirates . . . " Emma said, remembering the conversation that she had had with the swordsman in the Forest Realm.
"Indeed." Undine confirmed. "As did I."
"You — wait, what?!" Emma stammered.
Undine had indeed temporarily left the Whitebeard Pirates - on good terms - in order to travel with the Roger Pirates and keep an eye on Oden, who had been asked to sail with the Roger Pirates due to his ability to read the Poneglyphs.
"And … Daddy just … let that happen?"
"Your father and Roger were not as much enemies as many would believe." Undine said mysteriously.
"Well, they did have that conversation under the cherry blossom trees right before . . . " Emma trailed off, watching as Undine's transition between the Whitebeard Pirates and the Roger Pirates appeared to go … not so smoothly. Oden seemed to think that Undine didn't trust him to still call the Whitebeard Pirates family when he was sailing with the Roger Pirates.
Undine threw a shark at Oden.
She then spoke to Roger and asked to sail with them, to prove to Oden that they were both still family with each other and with the Whitebeard Pirates, despite sailing with a different crew.
Roger, of course, accepted.
And Oden, once he'd gotten out of the shark's belly, was overjoyed.
Undine was also very close with Toki, who had come along with them, along with her and Oden's two young children, a boy and a girl. Undine was like an Aunty to them.
The Roger Pirates quickly learned just how strong Undine was, although they also noted how caring she was, as well. She took the younger members, Shanks and Buggy, under her wing, much like she had done with Marco and Teech back in the Whitebeard Pirates.
Emma noticed that Marco was almost always reading a big book in many of the visions. She tried not to think about Teech. She knew that Undine did not know everything that had happened when she'd been confined to the castle. She didn't know what Teech had done.
Undine recognised Shanks as 'that child' … at which point Emma again got the feeling that her mother was censoring part of the story. Again, quite possibly for 'plot relevance' later on.
She quickly moved past this, however, when the vision that she was seeing showed her none other than Twister, who was watching the Roger Pirates observing a gigantic elephant out in the middle of the sea, realised what Undine had not - that her strength was increasing because she was pregnant. Goddesses in the Mortal Realm would become more powerful in order to protect their child.
In fact, Undine, at times, seemed near-on invincible. Her bounty had increased to the same as her husband's, by that stage.
Twister also knew that it was only a matter of time before Boss and Father Time found Undine, aka Infinity, due to the creation of another God (albeit a Demi-God, but one with Celestial blood, all the same).
Eight months into the journey, however, Undine realised that her child was not going to wait. She was meditating at a beautiful spring, called a Goddess Spring - the closest thing to water from the spring in the Forest Realm - when she sensed the shift.
Three little kids, who had secretly followed Undine to the spring, realised that something was wrong.
They were Minks. One was a jaguar, one was a lion, and one was . . .
Zepo . . .
A young female dog Mink appeared behind the three and scolded them all, before realising what was happening. The young jaguar Mink began to order them into action, and they were able to get Oden to Undine and have him take her to Roger.
Undine explained that she had to go back, but urged the others onwards because they were oh so close. Roger didn't seem particularly happy about it, but in the end he accepted this turn of events, and Undine made her way back across the seas by herself.
She made it almost as far as Fishman Island, and was helped to there by Jimbe and a young Fisher Tiger. Whitebeard was waiting for her there, and was present as their daughter was born.
She was introduced to the world as Emma, after the first ship that Undine and Whitebeard had ever sailed on.
Her True Name, however, was given to her in order to maintain balance over her powers. Undine only ever told Whitebeard and Jimbe. She named her Aqua, after the tidal wave that annually crashes into Water Seven.
"Why?" Emma asked her presently, once she'd found her voice again.
"Why not?" Was Undine's reply.
Not long after that, Undine received the news that the Roger Pirates had made it to Raftel. She was overjoyed that they had made it, and not even upset that she hadn't been able to go with them because she was now a mother, but saddened to learn of what would ultimately become of Roger when she learned that he was dying.
"Don't bother censoring it," Emma said all of a sudden. "I don't wanna know yet why he was dying, I'm not supposed to know why, yet . . . "
"You are a fast-learner." Undine said.
It was the same day as this meeting with Roger, that Twister - accompanied by Little Death, who wanted to see the new Goddess - approached Undine.
He explained to her that she had less than a year herself, as Boss and Father Time would be coming to get her, as she was ultimately needed back in the Celestial Realm lest The Well Of Chaos consume them all.
Undine did not want to accept this, but as her conscience as Infinity was ever-present, she knew it to be true. She spent as much time as what she could with her family and visiting her various friends around the world. She took Emma everywhere that she went - to see both Linlin and Kaido, and even to Baterilla to meet Portgas D. Rouge.
Emma was so distracted by her meeting with Ace's mother, that she barely even noticed a young girl with silver hair who had horns like Kaido and who lived in the land of samurai.
Twister and Little Death often visited, with Little Death becoming good friends with the young Demi-God whom she did not know was her cousin. They often rode on Whale Sharks, that were summoned by Jimbe.
It was Twister who told Undine why she should be so concerned about what might happen after she was gone, not just because of Ino but also because of Im.
"Don't censor that part." Emma said quickly.
"I have to." Undine sounded apologetic.
"Why?" Emma wanted to know.
"One day … you will know." Undine replied. "And, it will all make sense to you, then."
"Promise?"
"Cross my heart."
Undine was, however, less worried about the unknown Im and more worried about what Ino might do.
These fears turned out to be justified when, just over three months after Undine returned to the Celestial Realm to become Infinity once again, Ino was tasked with killing Whitebeard's daughter - a task that she was only too happy to take up, because she felt justified in her own mind that she was allowed to take revenge against Undine / Infinity in this way.
And, as she assured her husband and First Knight, Sakazuki, as she was, she could do it with ease and without any ramifications, or so she thought.
"I knew it, as soon as it had happened." Undine said softly, speaking as if the very memory of the event was causing her physical pain. "My tears flooded the Ocean Realm, and the Well Of Chaos became even more unstable. At this point, steps had to be taken."
"Such as . . . ?" Emma asked tentatively.
"I was was sealed within my castle, using the power that would one day belong to the Goddess Of Grace and the artefact Grace's Heart, to keep Infinity at bay." Undine responded. "That artefact was created when your grandmother from the other world agreed to give up her life to save you, her granddaughter."
"Hmm . . . " Emma said softly. It must be weird for her … to say something like that . . .
And, Twister decided to take matters into his own hands, and came up with the whole 'legend', knowing full-well that it had to be Undine's daughter - whose soul had been merged with an identical child from another Realm whom had also died, and thus one being lived on from two souls - that must be the one to stop Chaos and heal Infinity.
He broke about a hundred laws to travel back in time to make it so that the 'legend' had always been there. Being Father Time's son, he could do this.
Why he could not just tell them what he knew was simple - the promise that he had made to Infinity all of those years ago was too strong, and their laws prevented him from speaking of it, even when the truth started to come out.
Only Infinity, or her daughter, could allow him to.
Since the laws of time travel - technically - only involved one God (him), he had no qualms about breaking those rules.
Furthermore, the strength of the connections between change and infinity were still greater than that between change and chaos, because change is one eternal certainty.
And, Emma finally opened her eyes and looked at Undine, who was watching her carefully.
"So, then . . . " Emma said slowly. "That book that Marco-San was always reading . . . ?"
"Twister wrote that just after my imprisonment, and then went back in time to ensure that Marco had already read it." Undine explained.
"But … Twister went back further than that," Emma realised, and Undine nodded. "Because … Little Death said that her parents always told her the legends . . . "She took a deep breath. "Everything that happened … he knew that it was always going to have to be me . . . " She glanced sideways at her mother. "Everything that happened . . . " She sighed. "I knew about that world, too … there's fictional stories about it in my world … my other world … manga and cartoons … I love it. I never in a million years imagined that it would be real, or that I could be so much a part of it … there's been joy and sorrow and fear and love … and, it all started when I met the Goddess Of Faith and acquired Grace's Heart . . . " Wherever it is, now . . . "When I first met those three … they were transformed into cats … okay, seriously, why do I have the power to use Grace's Heart to transform my Allies and even other people into cats?!"
"Convenience?" Undine suggested.
"Yeah … maybe . . . " Emma shrugged. "It didn't feel so convenient when it was happening to me, though . . . " She added, as an afterthought.
"Oh, but you were so cute!" Undine exclaimed softly.
Emma realised that Undine now had her eyes closed, and must have been able to see what Emma was describing.
And, she told Undine everything that had happened, and Undine listened.
She was a good listener.
She nodded approvingly when she found out how Emma crashed Marineford to save Luffy and Ace.
She laughed out loud to hear about how Emma had transformed all of the Whitebeard Pirates into cats.
She gasped softly when she heard about how Ace proposed to Emma and, without even looking, quickly grabbed her daughter's left hand.
"Rouge's ring . . . " She breathed. "I remember . . . " She then sighed. "Proceed. Tell me about this Trafalgar Law … are you okay?" She asked quickly, for Emma had just groaned.
"Hai, hai . . . " Emma replied. "I mean … probably . . . "
Undine became stonily silent as Emma mentioned the fights that she'd had with her other parents.
In contrast to this, she sucked in a sharp intake of breath when the story reached the part about Doflamingo. Emma didn't even need to say anything - she supposed that the vision was doing a good job of painting the horrific scene for her mother.
But, it was about to get worse.
The horror from the night on the beach of Dawn Island was undeniable, and Undine seemed to be frozen as she witnessed the vision for herself. Sumi's death … the revelation that Emma was not only Whitebeard's daughter but also that she was the Princess Of Light, and that Law was Emma's First Knight … Ace's unfaltering desire to kill Akainu, to avenge Sumi . . .
What she said, however, was: "I see … that would explain so much … about Sumi and Ace, and also about you and Law . . . " She became silent again, and seemed thoughtful to see what had happened on the rooftop in Perth City, when Lee had spoken to Little Death.
At one point, when Emma mentioned the Love-Lock Bridge, Undine jolted like she'd been shocked, but she said nothing and Emma just continued, telling her mother about what the Chaos had done to the city, and how Father Time had frozen time there to give Emma and her Allies a chance to do what had to be done.
Emma was doing fine as she continued, even at the part where she and Ace had gotten married on the beach of the only island that was left in the Ocean Realm. Even when she spoke about how Queen Otohime had told her about Whitebeard's death - Undine became rigid at this point, but still she said nothing. Emma spoke about how her Allies had not given up on reaching her, and about how one of Homing's sons had convinced Emma to trust in her Allies and in her First Knight. Emma told Undine about how she had saved Teech after Little Death had taken her powers back, and about how she and Luffy had raced to save Ace by the River Styx, and . . .
And then, she stopped. She couldn't go on. Now that all was said and done in regards to stopping the Chaos and freeing her mother, Emma was reminded again of everything that had happened, and … of what she had lost.
And, she realised, she wasn't quite done, yet.
There were still loose ends to tie up. Like the fates of Vincent, and Nishin, and even Saint Jalmack. And, hadn't Nothingness mentioned how Chaos needed to be sorted out, as well. And . . .
"Ace is not lost." Undine said softly, opening her eyes and looking at her daughter, now. Her gaze was sympathetic, as she saw the tears in her daughter's eyes. "Though his life was taken, his spirit survived."
"Even though Death said . . . ?" Emma said slowly, her voice trembling slightly.
"My sister was right," Undine nodded. "For a Mortal who is still living to die in the Celestial Realm, at a time when there is so much Chaos around, should have spelled disaster. But, you saw for yourself that Ace's spirit survived."
Emma thought about Ace having survived in that spirit orb form. "Is it because of Sumi-Chan?" She guessed.
"In part." Undine nodded. "But, I think that an even bigger part of why his spirit refused to give in was because of how strong it is. That is why … I believe that we can put him back together, so to speak."
Emma stared at her for a second, and then she had to ask: "But … despite that, he … he can't ever go back to the Mortal Realm, can he?" She already knew the answer.
Undine smiled; it was a sad smile. "I know what it is that you are thinking, my daughter." She told her. "You're wondering what the point was of saving him, back there at Marineford, aren't you?" Emma nodded. Undine put her hands on her shoulders. "The point of it … was exactly what will save his soul, now." She informed her daughter. "You will see. I have to go — "
"Go where?!" Emma suddenly felt panicked. Where was Undine going?! Why?! What did she have to do?!
"I am going to take a quick trip into the Mortal Realm that we both love," Undine explained, as she stood up and pulled Emma to her feet. "To World 192853746. To find out what is going on with Ace's restoration here in the Celestial Realm."
"Can … can you do that?" Emma asked her, in disbelief.
Undine nodded. "Hai. And, don't worry, I'll be careful."
"Watch out for Ino." Emma told her.
Undine paused. "I will … if she is there . . . " She said quietly, looking out into the distance at something that only she could see. "She may not be there . . . "
"Th-then … where else would she be?" Emma wanted to know, trying hard it to panic at the thought of how many worlds there were out there.
Undine looked back at her. Her expression was suddenly unreadable, as she said: "World 790412."
Emma gasped. "No!"