Chapter 7 (Firstly, I'M SO SORRY! MY COMPUTER WAS GONE LONGER THAN I THOUGHT IT'D BE! *Shot* Well, anyway. Here's your chapter. Hope it's long enough! I finally broke the 3000 word line! YAY! Hooray for all my glorious reviewers! You people all deserve something better than cookies, so now I'm sending out CAKE! You get your choice of chocolate or vanilla, so tell me what you want magically teleported to you in a review! Reviews are the only way I can hear what you guys think, and it really helps me as a writer to hear what I'm doing right/wrong. Some people made recommendations on how to make the lines, so I'm going to try their ideas. I'm also going to put in the written (line, line, line, etc.) because the lines are necessary and I want to make sure you people know where they are. Thanks!)

Marco had a goddamned headache. This was…beyond annoyance. Beyond anything contained in the definition of annoyance, frustration, or any other of those crude, weak feelings. Marco was feeling something much, much deeper. He had gotten absolutely no sleep last night, and now here he was. Having to mediate useless arguments while simultaneously filling out paperwork that was due three hours ago. Marco clenched his jaw in annoyance, feeling the headache stepping up a notch. Between lack of sleep, lack of breakfast (he had been busy and unable to eat this morning), too much stress, and this thrice damned headache he was in the very foulest of moods. He glared at the two currently arguing crewmembers with a vengeance. He had absolutely no patience left and these two…these two imbeciles were in here shouting in Marco's ears because it was apparently his problem that they were both acting like three-year-olds and couldn't make a simple decision on their own.

"I don't give a shit which of you stays to watch the boats when we land, but if this little debate of yours isn't concluded in the next three seconds, I am personally going to dump both your asses in a marine base to rot for the next eternity, got it?" The two regarded Marco with some fright, nodded vigorously, and quickly left him to his own devices. Marco gave an annoyed sigh- almost a growl- gripping his pen almost to the point of breaking it and began filling out papers faster than one would think humanly possible. Today was just not going well.

Ace walked slowly down the hallway. His mind was running in circles, and he still hadn't found a good solution. Should he tell them? If it was a matter of the safety of the crew he knew he really should tell Marco or Whitebeard, but that would mean telling all of it. Ace wasn't sure if he could. He sighed, heart constricting painfully in his chest with memories. "Who should it be? Marco, or Thatch?" Hare's voice echoed with mocking menace inside his was it. They had to know.

Ace walked with purpose now, his shoulders squared. His mind, though, was now just a blank slate and an ugly tangle of emotions. What should he say? This wasn't exactly the kind of thing you just walk up and tell someone. Taking a steadying breath, he pushed into Marco's room. Marco was at his desk as usual, pen fairly flying over the paper. Ace approached him slowly, unsure.

"Marco…I need to talk to you about something." Ace didn't look at him, and his voice was a mess of raw grief, guilt, sorrow, and pain. Marco failed to hear the emotion, and merely twitched in annoyance, his grip on the pen tightening imperceptibly. When he spoke, his voice was cold and more than a little angry.

"I'm kind of busy right now, Ace. Can it wait?" Ace glanced up at Marco.

"But it's really important-" Marco turned to look at him, patience at an end.

"I said I'm busy. Now if you'll please excuse me." Ace stared at Marco for a moment before quickly blinking the shock and betrayal from his face. He looked down, nodding weakly. He felt any hope take up new residence at the bottom of his stomach where it lay in shattered pieces. Of course there were more important things. Marco was busy with the running of the ship, and Ace had been a fool to think he had the time to just sit down with Ace and talk. He shoved the sadness down and faked a smile. He knew it was weak at best, but Marco had already turned back around, away from Ace.

"Alright. I'll…catch you later, then." He turned and strode out of the room, closing the door behind him quietly. He leaned back against it, forcing back the haze of memories and the pain of Marco's unwitting betrayal. He closed his eyes for a moment, forcing himself to try to look on the bright side, and in the end was able to put on a smile before walking out on deck. At the very least, the island they would be landing at would be interesting. Thatch had mentioned ruins, so maybe there would be something to take his mind off what a big mess his life had become over the last few weeks.

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Ace stared at the fast-approaching island. It looked like it was mostly jungle with a small mountain rising on one side. It was a summer island and as the ship grew nearer you could feel the humidity increasing by the moment. The island seemed to shimmer with heat, the green leaves bright and lush. The crew anchored the Moby Dick a ways off shore in favor of taking the smaller and easier to maneuver lifeboats to the island itself.

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Landing the boats had been easy. The shore was made of soft, dark sand so it was just a matter of pulling the boats up a ways on the beach to ensure they wouldn't be swept out to sea with the changing tides. Ace scanned the outskirts of the jungle with interest, peering as far as he could through the dense undergrowth. His darker emotions had faded in favor of genuine interest and excitement. It seemed as though this island really would hold something worth seeing. Ace waited impatiently on the beach. Thatch hadn't landed yet, and he and Ace had agreed on exploring together.

As Thatch's boat landed, Ace turned and helped pull it up onto the beach. Thatch came around from the other side and stood next to Ace, who had resumed his observation of the jungle. Thatch almost laughed at Ace. He was like a kid at Christmas. If you so much as mentioned anything old, long dead, or unknown to Ace, he was all over it. No doubt he'd been on the edge of his seat the entire way over.

"Well someone certainly looks excited." Thatch said it with a smirk, and Ace turned to look at him with a huge grin on his face.

"See those stones, covered in vine, next to that fallen palm tree?" Ace was pointing at them, giddy with excitement. "They're too uniform to be natural, which means there really were people here. If I had to guess, it was probably some kind of lookout station. Or maybe a lighthouse! No, there aren't enough of them to make a high enough tower." He thought deeply for a moment. "They look really ornate. Maybe they used to be some kind of altar to a sea deity…?" Ace practically jumped with excitement and pointed to an area where the trees were a little shorter. Honestly, no one else would have even noticed the difference.

"And look there, where the trees are stunted? I bet that used to be a road. The stones must still be under the soil, and that's what's stunting the tree's growth in that area." Thatch looked at Ace with amusement.

"If it's a road then let's follow it." Ace turned to look at Thatch with wide eyes.

"I wonder if they had some kind of city! There must have been a village at least, and this island has enough natural resources to support a larger community. I wonder what kind of technological advancements they had. Based on that altar they knew how to carve stone well but-" Ace continued speaking at a mile a minute and Thatch semi-tuned him out. Honestly, Ace would be like this the entire time they were at the island or until he figured out everything there was to know about whatever people had lived here. Thatch led the way down the old road and Ace would stop every few minutes to examine something or take down notes. Thatch would smile and roll his eyes, stopping long enough to let Ace finish what he was working on.

After working their way through the stiflingly hot jungle for a little over an hour, they found something big. A large tablet stuck out of the ground, rectangular in shape, and covered with some kind of old writing. Upon seeing it, Ace stopped dead in his tracks, and Thatch, now behind him, bumped into him before noticing he had stopped.

"What is i-Oh. That's interesting." Ace was staring at it in wonder and approached it with something akin to reverence. He stared at it for a moment, half-raising his hand towards the tablet, inspecting it closely. Then he sat. Just sat. Right where he was. In the dirt. Like his legs could no longer support him. He continued to stare up at the stone, face filled with shock, eyes widened quite a bit.

"Thatch…this is a huge discovery. I mean- this is- I can't believe-…" He trailed off. Thatch looked between Ace and the rock.

"Can you read the characters?"

"Yeah, but…Thatch…these are the same characters as the ones on the poneglyphs." Even Thatch's eyes showed shock at that. I mean, holy shit. This tablet wasn't a poneglyph, but if the society that lived here created this, it was possible that they were also the ones who created the poneglyphs.

Ace's notebook and pen were out in seconds, and he stood, approaching the stone and beginning to read it. His face was serious now. The gravity of the discovery had put Ace into work-mode and he was translating with a vengeance, scribbling down words as fast as he could. His eyes remained fixed on the tablet the entire time, and the translation began to fill multiple pages of Ace's book. Thatch didn't dare disturb him when he was like this. There was a kind of…aura that surrounded Ace when he really focused like this. After about four minutes of silence, Ace cocked his head, confusion on his face.

"Wha…" His right hand reached up and traced one of the characters, about halfway down the tablet. This particular character had been engraved over what looked like an artistic handprint.

"What is it, Ace?" Thatch asked. Ace didn't turn to look at him, but spoke to him in a distracted, confused voice.

"It's this character…I've never seen one like it. It's been almost…elevated. Like it were really important. But I'm not sure exactly what it means." Ace's brows furrowed. "It almost looks like several characters combined." He traced some of the lines with a fingertip. "This is the character for time." He traced some other lines which overlapped them. "This is the character for gift, or offering." His hand ghosted over the remaining lines of the character. "And this is the character for 10." He looked stumped for a moment, then hesitantly reached up his hand and placed it over the handprint, palm touching the character. He made a little sound of surprise and pulled his hand back, turning to look at it. The pad of his forefinger had been pricked, and a small bead of blood was forming on it. Oh shit. Ace spoke in calm tones.

"Thatch, I think I triggered something. I want you to walk away slowly and tell me when you're a safe distance away." Thatch looked at Ace with concern, but did as he asked.

"Alright, I'm clear!"

"Good. Now, I'm going to turn around and walk towards you. Keep your eyes on the stone. If anything changes, let me know immediately." Ace turned around slowly and began walking away from the old stone. Thatch kept his eyes focused on it, watching for even the slightest alteration. He could see the drop of Ace's blood on the stone, and it began to slide down the handprint, but other than that, everything was still. Ace was maybe eight steps away when his blood touched the character. He doubled over instantly and there was a flash of white light.

Thatch sat up, rubbing his head. His ears were ringing and he had to blink several times before he could see anything. He looked at his surroundings, at first confused as to why he was in a jungle, but his memory returned to him a moment later. God damn it! He stood up as fast as he could.

"Ace! Ace, where are you?" He was shouting, and he turned his head, looking around desperately. Don't be dead don't be dead don't be dead you can't be dead. He looked all around the clearing, filling with panic, but there was no Ace. He was just…gone. Thatch continued to search, hope waning. He explored the nearby forest, thinking maybe Ace had been blown back by whatever had knocked Thatch over, but there was no sign of his friend. He returned to the clearing, desperately trying to convince himself that Ace was alive and unharmed. Oh, God. I'm so sorry for doubting you. You can't be dead, I haven't apologized. Please don't let something like this ruin everything. If anyone out there can hear me, let this be enough, don't let him die… Thatch's eyes surveyed the clearing, feeling despair and loss rising in him like a black tide.

His eyes froze when they reached the tablet. Lying at its base was a child, maybe ten years old. He had raven black hair and was wearing a long-sleeved shirt and pants. He seemed to be regaining consciousness and sat up, rubbing his head. Thatch looked at him in confusion. Where did this kid come from? It's not like there's anyone living on the island…Could he somehow be related to the stone? If that's true he might know what happened to Ace! Thatch approached him slowly.

"Who are you? Are you lost?" Thatch spoke gently, not wanting to frighten the child, whoever he was. The boy turned to look at Thatch and Thatch froze. Dark hazel-grey eyes stared out of a freckled face and looked at him with trepidation.

"Who the hell are you? Where am I?" Thatch stared at this child. There was no way. There was no fucking way this was possible.

"…Ace?" Ace stared up at this stranger's face.

"How do you know my name? Where the hell am I?" Thatch stared down at him in open shock. How the hell was he going to explain this one? Yeah, we were just walking around and found something from the Void Century that technically shouldn't exist. Ace touched it and now he's magically 10 years old again and apparently his memory's been reset to that time too. Yeah. That'll go over real well with Marco and Oyaji.

His eyes refocused on Ace. The boy seemed to be contemplating an escape attempt. Thatch had to get him back to the ship. Younger he may be, but he was still family and maybe someone else would know how to undo this. Thatch lifted his hand towards Ace, meaning to lead him back towards the ship. Ace flinched back and looked suspiciously between Thatch's face and outstretched hand. Thatch was a little surprised at the reaction, but didn't ask. He spoke gently, trying not to spook this younger Ace.

"Come on, Ace. It's not safe in the jungle. I'm going to take you somewhere safer." Ace stood, but didn't take the proffered hand. His feet were in a fairly wide stance, perfect for running or hand-to-hand combat. His eyes were locked on Thatch's, regarding him with suspicion.

"Where are you trying to take me?" Thatch raised both hands in a placating gesture.

"I'm just going to take you back to the ship. There are people there who will take care of you." At this Ace's eyes narrowed. Inside, Thatch winced. This was apparently not the best thing to say.

"Marine or pirate?" Thatch blinked. This was unexpected. Thatch mentally panicked. Should he lie? This Ace was extremely cautious. A government agent might be seen as more trustworthy, but if Ace thought he was lying he might take off anyway.

"I'm a pirate." Ace seemed to relax slightly. Thatch heaved a mental sigh of relief. It had been a gamble, but it seemed Thatch had got lucky.

"You're not part of Shanks' crew. Who are you?" Thatch was a little surprised to hear that Ace knew Red Haired Shanks, but then he remembered Ace mentioning him as a friend growing up. Again, Thatch decided to go with honesty.

"My name is Thatch. I'm the twelfth division commander of the Whitebeard pirates." Ace's eyes widened slightly. He looked conflicted.

"Shanks mentioned Whitebeard a few times…" He seemed to be more speaking to himself than Thatch. Ace regarded Thatch for a moment, taking a deep breath.

"All right. I'm coming."

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Ace was studying his surroundings carefully. A million questions ran through his head, and he had answers to none of them. Where am I? How did I get here? Where're Shanks and the guys? Is this guy really a Whitebeard pirate? He has the tattoo, but anyone can fake that. Should I have followed him? They came into a sudden clearing, and the light momentarily dazzled Ace. When his vision cleared, he saw a beautiful scene before him so picturesque it felt more like an artist's fantasy brought to life in oil paint than reality.

The sun was warm on his face and body, the leaves shone a million different shades of yellow and green. Flowers of all colors danced like women in bright dresses in the mild breeze that wound through the skylight. Beyond, the forest shone deeper emerald, the shadows were as quiet nymphs, making their way between the trees as the sun's light dappled the forest floor with ambers and rich mahoganies. Bees hummed by the flowers, and the quiet rustling of the wind through the leafy boughs finished the scene with a symphony of light swishes and sighs. Ace closed his eyes, savoring the warmth and the wind and the sounds. He drew in a deep breath through his nose, and could smell each of the flower's unique sweetness, as well as the simple dark earth and rich depth of growing things. A soft smile graced Ace's mouth. I'm alive again. Truly. This is what it means to live.

Opening his eyes, he looked around the clearing and seemed to notice Thatch for the first time. Thatch was regarding Ace curiously, like he didn't know quite what to make of Ace's behavior. Ace allowed the smile to fade and shook himself gently.

"Sorry for the delay. Let's continue." Thatch had cocked his head, but didn't protest. The two continued their shoreward progress in silence for a few minutes before Ace spoke.

"You didn't answer my question from earlier." Thatch looked at him in confusion. Ace looked up at him without emotion. "Where are we?" Thatch looked at Ace in surprise before rubbing the back of his head.

"I'm not sure you'd believe me if I told you." Ace regarded him with something bordering on concern.

"Try me."

"Well…we're on a small island on the Grand Line." Ace openly blanched before shaking his head, confusion written on his face.

"That's…That's not possible. I was in East Blue this morning." Ace winced as he stumbled over a root, biting his tongue to keep from crying out. Damn but that hurt. He glanced up at Thatch., trying hard not to limp. He didn't let his pain show on his face, keeping his expression placid. I don't know if he can be trusted yet. Any weakness has the possibility of exploitation, and until I know who I can trust, if anyone, I can't expose any weakness. Ace glanced down at his leg. I hope I didn't just re-break that. Or fracture it or whatever. He stopped looking at the leg to glance up at the sky and clouds. He took a deep breath, savoring the fresh air. I suppose I can always reset it if I have to, but that's not exactly fun. It's alright though. I'm alive. I can still walk, run if I have to. All that matters is I'm out. Out of hell. He glanced at Thatch.

And I'm never going back.

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(A/N THE PLOT THICKENS.

Yes, I used the cliché bright flash of magic white light to make shit happen! SO SUE ME!

Oh, in other announcements, I BROKE 3500 WORDS BITCHES! ! *strange dance*

But seriously, I get to pat myself on the back. This is my first chapter to exceed 3000 words. Anyway, whadja think? Was it any good? It's one in the morning here. You people should be grateful to have an author that's so inspired I can't even sleep XD Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up, my poor little Glitchykins was kidnapped for longer than I anticipated. And they WIPED HIS HARD DRIVE. FML. It took me SO LONG TO RESTORE IT! Seriously. It took 2 days. Stupid internet cutting out randomly. Oh well. My precious has been returned and now we continue with updates as soon as I think of what to write! If you review I will teleport you either vanilla or chocolate cake, but you have to write a two sentence review! And no, what flavor of cake you want does not count as a sentence! Seriously guys, if you really can't think of anything and liked the chapter, just be like,

"I liked it a lot. Please update soon. Now give me some chocolate cake, bitch." XD

Seriously. That took a grand total of 3 SECONDS. Send reviews and I'll send you cake and a new chapter! Also, calling any and all artists who like my story. I'd like to see your favorite scene(s)! Draw it! I'm looking for a cover image for this story, but I can't find anything fitting. Can my lovely audience be of assistance? I suck at art, or else I'd do it myself. Seriously, I fail at art Luffy-style. It's really kind of sad. Don't feel pressured to draw for me, only do it if you're inspired. If you do, you will seriously be my favorite person forever. C: See y'all later! ~Mountain97)