Hello! Sorry for the wait, but life is hectic. Chapter 11 concludes the Kaido vs. Whitebeard mini-ark.

Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece. I'd hate to think what would happen if- No.

Chapter 11

Marco hit the ground with a thud. He grit his teeth. His back was killing him. That had been one bad hit. He sensed that Kaido was going to smash him into the sand, and rolled to the side. His back screamed in protest. "Argh!"

Thatch was beside him in a second. "That looks nasty." he said. Suddenly, he froze. "Marco..." he said, his voice barely louder than a whisper. "Do you feel that?"

Marco paused. It was hard to feel anything with this searing pain in his back, but he shut his eyes and concentrated. Then he did feel it. A sort of dull, pulsing that seemed to have the energy to tear the world apart. A shiver ran up his spine. "No, no, no..." he whispered, turning around.

Zia was just standing there, head up, eyes wide. It was hard to see through the mist, but her body was surrounded by a haze of red energy. It made his hair whip around in strange angles that had nothing to do with which way the wind was blowing. Her eyes were bright red.

Red-Haired Shanks made a move towards her. "You alright, kid?" he asked.

"Red-Hair!" Marco cried out. "Get away from her! Now!"

Red-Hair looked surprised, but moved away. He moved towards them, slowly, his gaze never leaving Zia's face. "What on earth is happening?" he said under his breath.

All around them, pirates stopped fighting. They probably sensed that energy too. Even Kaido had stopped his assault on them.

"Well?" Red-Hair hissed. "Why are all the Whitebeard Pirates moving away from her?"

"Well, Red-Hair..." Thatch said. "You know how women can get pretty damn scary when they're angry? That's nothing compared to how scary Zia can be when she's like she is right now."

The red light dissipated, and Zia's hair stopped whipping around.

"Is that it?" Red-Hair asked quietly.

"I wish..." Marco groaned. "Right now, Zia is the most dangerous thing on this island. Forget Kaido, forget the mist."

Then Zia dashed forward, stumbling in the sand, and charged Kaido. She jumped up with that same unbelievable speed.

Kaido raised his huge arm just in time. Reinforcing it with haki managed to keep him uninjured, but his eyes dilated with surprise at Zia. He must not have expected a child that small to be capable of that much strength or ferocity.

One of Kaido's lackeys, Marco recognised him as the Zoan Fruit user that was constantly hunting Zia down, jumped in front of him to attack her. He crouched just in front of her. "Shigun." he said. He pierced Zia's shoulder with a clawed finger.

She didn't even flinch. She just raised her hand, and made a slashing motion.

A huge gash appeared on his chest. He gasped and fell. He was dead before he hit the ground.

Kaido roared with rage and slashed at her.

She turned on a forty-five degree angle and charged, only getting a few large cuts across her arm. She slashed at Kaido again, and again, and again. Her injuries should have held her back, but she only seemed to get stronger.

Suddenly, a shadow loomed over them. Zia jumped backward without even looking up. Kaido looked up, and his face paled. He jumped back too, stumbling as he backed up.

Whitebeard landed like an anvil between them, spraying sand everywhere. He straightened himself, and raised his bisento. "Marco, Thatch!" he boomed, making the ground under their feet tremble. "Stop Zia! Now!" He clashed with Kaido, grunting from the strain. Bisento clashed against claws as the two Yonkou struggled to gain the upper hand.

"Pops!" Thatch shouted. "What about you?!"

"If you don't stop Zia, none of us will walk out of here alive!" he growled. Marco could see pain in his eyes.

He truly believed Zia could control herself in these sorts of situations... he thought. Come to think of it, we all did. He looked around. In this mist, Zia could be anywhere. Then, he spotted her. "Red-Hair!" he shouted. "Behind you!"

Red-Hair ducked just in time. If he had stayed in the same place, Zia would have slashed off his head. "What the hell is she doing?" he panted.

Marco felt his chest tighten. "When she's in this state, Zia loses control." He swallowed hard. "She can't distinguish friend from foe. In fact, I don't even think she's conscious right now."

Red-Hair gripped his sword harder than ever. "And no one mentioned this?" There wasn't any kind of anger in his voice that Marco could hear, but the look in his eyes looked... well, almost hurt. "Well, now we have to stop her. Does she know about this?"

Marco shook his head. "And don't you tell her, Red-Hair."

They both jumped back as Zia charged. "First thing's first." Red-Hair said. "How do we stop her?"

"No idea." Marco flinched as he walked to Red-Hair's side. "This has only happened once. As far as we know, the only way to stop it is to wait for it to wear out."

"And how long will that be, pray tell?"

"We don't know." He caught sight of Zia not far away. "Look out!"

As quickly as she charged, Zia changed direction. She moved towards Whitebeard's back.

"NO!" Marco moved before he could think. He morphed into phoenix form, and leapt in front of her.

Zia's outstretched hand lightly touched his abdomen.

The sensation was a bit like being caught in a blunt meat grinder. All Marco could feel was intense pain. He didn't even feel the impact with the ground. It took all his concentration to stay conscious.

He could barely register Thatch at his side, or the fight between Whitebeard and Kaido, or Red-Hair battling Zia just a few feet away.

"Hang in there, Marco!" Thatch said, gently turning him onto his back.

"Don't! ... Stop her...!" he managed to gasp out. How could Thatch bother with him when the safety of everyone on the archipelago was in jeopardy?

"Red-Hair's doing his best." Thatch shouted. "But stopping her without hurting her even more is a pretty tall order! Even haki of the supreme king doesn't work." He sighed audibly. "I think we just have to wait until she tires out."

Marco opened his eyes, and took in the misty sky. "Get everyone... out..." he gasped out. Then, he slipped into unconsciousness.

Marco regained consciousness slowly.

Explosions and shouting sounded muffled to him. He could feel the vibrations of feet against the sand.

A large pair of hands lifted him into a sitting position, making him shiver.

"Marco, can you hear me?"

Marco groaned. "Pops... Is it over?"

Whitebeard's voice was edged with pain. "No. Kaido's men have retreated further into the woods, but the Beast himself just disappeared. I think he's biding his time, waiting for Zia to wipe us out."

Fear gripped at Marco's heart again. "Is she still-"

"Yes."

"How long has it been?"

"Almost an hour."

Marco opened his eyes.

Zia and Red-Hair were still fighting in a flurry of sand. Red-Hair's cape was torn off, laying a few feet off in the sand. His hair was plastered to his neck and forehead, and his expression was strained. His sword was trembling in his hand.

Zia's eyes were still blazing red. She had a fresh sword cut on her shoulder, but other than that, she didn't appear to have any extra injuries.

Thatch was leading the divisions back to their ships. That wasn't an easy task due to the mist.

"Pops..." Marco managed.

Whitebeard grunted to show that he was listening.

"You thought she could control herself, didn't you?"

There was a long silence between them, broken by the clash of Zia's ruthless attacks and Red-Hair's sword.

"Yes, Marco. I did." Whitebeard said. "And now I see that I was a fool."

No, Marco thought, we were all careless. His vision began to blurr. He shook his head. No, you have to stay awake. His vision cleared.

He focussed on the fight. Things wereeren't going well. Zia had managed to disarm Red-Hair, and charged him.

Red-Hair ducked, and used armament haki to catch her hands in his. There was a pulse of energy. Cuts appeared on his face and neck. Finally, Red-Hair lost his balance and fell backwards.

Zia stood over him, her expression blank, her red eyes lighting the mist around her. She raised her hand.

Not again! Marco thought. They had withheld information from Red-Hair, and this was what happened. He hadn't been prepared for-

He held that thought.

The pulsing energy was subsiding. Growing weaker and weaker.

Marco smiled. "Yes." Finally. He shut his eyes and let himself slip back into unconsciousness.

Whitebeard gazed in astonishment at his daughter. The pulsing was fading, as was the red colour in her eyes. Finally, her eyes turned back to sea green, and the energy faded. Her eyes closed and her knees buckled. She collapsed on the sand.

Red-Hair sat up, his eyes wide. "Is that it, then?" he said tentatively, as if saying it louder would cause her to wake up and go berserk. Then, he smiled. "Damn! She nearly took my head off a couple of times!" Then his expression turned serious. "In all seriousness, Whitebeard, what happened to her?"

Whitebeard closed his eyes. "Trauma." he said. "I think Kaido injuring Marco like that pushed her over the edge."

Red-Hair looked at the now unconscious Zia lying in front of him. He bent down and carefully grabbed her arm. He slung one of her arms over his shoulder, and stood up. "And she doesn't know about this." he said. It was a statement, not a question. "He told me." He nodded to Marco, who was now unconscious as well.

Whitebeard bent down and picked Marco up. "Do not mention this." he said. "You do not know Zia as we do, Boy. She would be convinced that all this is her fault, and do something drastic."

Red-Hair looked from Whitebeard to Zia, and nodded. "I won't tell her anything, Whitebeard," he said, "but she should know. And it should be you who tells her."

Whitebeard frowned. Irritation was ticking at the back of his mind. He had been sailing the seas when this pup was still in diapers, and he had the nerve to tell him what to do? He sighed, and didn't answer.

Then, Red-Hair's eyes widened. "Kaido." he said.

Whitebeard turned.

Kaido was standing calmly a few feet away, flanked by two of his lackeys. There was a feral grin on his huge face.

"Kaido..." Whitebeard growled.

Kaido smiled even wider. "Well done, Edward Newgate." he said. He licked his pointed teeth. "You have your victory... For now." He shifted his gaze from Whitebeard to the unconscious girl being supported by Red-Hair. "But know this. Your victory was secured by the very thing that will tear your crew apart one day. That monster," He pointed to Zia. He faced Whitebeard again with a cruel fire in his eyes. "And your soft heart." Then, he motioned to the men beside him, and strode away, with them at his huge heels.

Whitebeard and Red-Hair stood there in silence. Finally, Red-Hair broke the silence. "Asshole." he said.

Whitebeard raised an eyebrow at the younger pirate. "Excuse me?" he said.

"It's the truth." Red-Hair shrugged, unfazed by Whitebeard's glare.

Whitebeard sighed. Under normal circumstances, he would have been extremely angry that a man swore in the presence of a young girl, particularly if it was his daughter. But, Zia was unconscious, and he had to admit, she already cussed like a- well- a sailor.

"Let's go." he said, "We have nothing more to do here."

Red-Hair just nodded. He made sure that Zia was secure against his shoulder, and started toward the ships.

Whitebeard adjusted Marco in his arms and followed.

Not far off, Marshall D. Teech sat in the shade of a clump of trees. He watched Red-Haired Shanks and his captain make their way up the gangplank of the Moby Dick. He sighed and fiddled with a knot in his hair. She had lost control for real that time. Definitely dangerous. He felt a smile creep its way across his face.

The deck of the Moby Dick was crowded with people, all of them staring as Marco and Zia were taken to sickbay. Cynthia and a few of the other nurses were tending to Whitebeard's injuries as he sat on his huge deck chair, watching the men on deck, from his and Red-Haired Shanks' crews alike, swapping battle stories, joking about, and calling out for grog from the galley.

Thatch wasn't doing his usual rounds, though. He had refused to do any such thing until he was certain that Marco was all right.

Red-Haired Shanks sat beside him, gazing at the people around him as well, but he was smiling. Then again, Whitebeard had rarely seen that young man without a smile on his face.

They really did have much to be thankful for. The war was over. But Whitebeard wasn't feeling the ease that is normally the result of a good battle won. They had won only because Kaido had backed down. And what he had said unsettled Whitebeard.

He and Zia would be what tore his family apart.

No. Not possible. Kaido might have been vindictive, but he was no oracle. He would not be the downfall of of his family. His compassion was his strength.

"Boy." he said to Red-Hair when no one else was listening.

Red-Hair looked up and raised an eyebrow at him. He was listening.

"As of now," Whitebeard said, staring at the door to sickbay, "Anything resembling an alliance between us is disbanded. Within twenty-four hours, I want you and your playmates to run along home. Get out of my territory."

Red-Hair didn't look at all offended by Whitebeard's looking down on him and his crew. His smile only grew wider. "Right, right." he said, and stood up. He walked over to his first mate, who was listening to a theatrical account of one of the battles from one of the men from the fifth division, and joined in the conversation.

Whitebeard frowned. "Snot-nosed brat." he muttered into his mustache.

Blood. Sweat. Battle cries.

I sat up , clawing at my heart. My breath was coming in laboured pants.

I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths. Calm down. Get your bearings. Find out where you are. The familiar scent of clean sheets and rubbing alcohol wafted through my nostrils. "So, I'm in sickbay on the Moby Dick." I said.

I frowned. "But what happened with Kaido?" I listened, but there was no one in the room with me. It was the private sickbay area that they'd brought me to that day when I was eleven years old. I knew this room like the back of my hand.

I checked myself over. Not too many injuries, a few slashes across my arm, a cut on my shoulder, but none of them were very deep. A burn on the palm of my left hand, a puncture wound in my right shoulder. Yup. Nothing serious.

I swung my legs over the edge of the bed, and stepped to the floor. I stood up and stretched. "I wonder how long I was out..." I muttered.

That's when it hit me. A cold feeling at the back of my neck. Like something happened that I should know about, but didn't. I rubbed the back of my neck, as if that would dispel the cold feeling. Maybe I should just spend some time alone on deck.

I opened the door, and stepped out to the stern.

I noticed Red-Haired Shanks' ship was just across from the Moby. I frowned.

Red-Hair was standing by the rail, his hand lightly gripping his cape, shielding his armless side from the wind.

"Hey, Red-Hair!" I called.

He turned to me, eyebrows raised. "Oh! So you're awake, are you, Blue?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Blue? I don't get it."

Red-Hair just chuckled. He looked out at the wide expanse of sea. "Well, we're heading out." he said.

"Where's Kaido supposed to be this time?" I asked.

Red-Hair shook his head. "The war is over, Blue. That battle on the Yume Archipelago was the last."

Something in my chest that had been tight as a bowstring slackened. I couldn't believe it. After a year, it was finally over.

Then it hit me. "I was taken out before the battle ended? Again?!"

Red-Hair nodded. "Yeah. I can't tell you much of what happened, though." he said. "I was a bit preoccupied. Kaido has some pretty tough henchmen."

"It's not like you to not have a war story." I laughed. Then I stopped. "You're being awfully serious, Red-Hair." I said. "It's not like you."

"This war." he said, "It's not right. Something doesn't make sense, even after a year." He ran a hand through his hair. "Well, it's high time we were off anyway."

I opened my mouth to say 'You're leaving?', but then it hit me. "Pops scrapped the alliance, didn't he?"

Red-Hair nodded. "Yup. War's over. We're not needed anymore. It's time we sail for home. Besides, balance can only be disrupted for so long. Big Mom's probably gonna be playing her hand for any unguarded territory, and I've got all my best men here with me."

I tried for a smile. "Gotta say, I chose well, though, didn't I?"

"Sorry?"

"I stuck my neck out for a good ally."

He smiled and pushed my forehead with his palm. "I might go so far as to admit that." He paused, as if searching for what to say next. "You just keep your head on your shoulders and your feet on the deck, okay?" Then he grinned. "Unless you want to join my crew."

"Never gonna happen." I said. Immediate response.

"Dahahaha!" Red-Hair actually doubled over, clutching his stomach. "No hesitation at all! Just as I thought." He ruffled my hair. "See ya, Blue."

I closed my eyes and tucked my chin into my chest, then I pushed his hand off my head. "Oi. Cut it out!" I laughed. "And what's with the Blue?"

Red-Hair didn't say anything else. He just jumped onto the rail, gave a mocking little informal salute, then jumped onto his ship. "All right, men! Set sail for home!"

"HA!"

I stood there until Red-Hair's ship cast off. I was just getting ready to turn away and forget them forever, when a thought occurred to me. I ran to the rail and leaned over as far I dared. The wind blew my hair around every which way. I smirked. There was no way I'd seen the last of this guy. I could tell. "See you later, Red-Haired Shanks." I said. "And I'll have that weird nickname figured out by then."

Marco woke up with a pulsing pain in his abdomen. He groaned and tried to shift his position, but he found that he was immobile. He opened his eyes, and the boards of the ceiling slid into focus. "Sickbay..." he muttered.

"Marco!"

Marco flinched at the noise. "Hello, Thatch." he muttered. "Can you tone it down just a bit? I'm a little sensitive to noise."

Thatch let out a huge breath. "I'm so glad you're okay." he said. "I feared the worst for a second. You were out a long time. It's been a week, you know."

There was a click of high heels at his bedside. "Thatch hasn't left sickbay in that time, either." he recognized Cynthia's voice. "He refused to leave until he was sure you were gonna make it."

Marco smiled. "Thanks, Thatch... But who's been doing the cooking for that week?"

Thatch chuckled. "Ah, Teech took up the slack. He's a good guy, you know."

Marco nodded. "Speaking of whom, I didn't notice him at that final battle."

Thatch scratched his forehead. "Come to think of it, I didn't notice him either. He was probably fighting somewhere in the mist. I didn't notice him until we had cast off."

The thought of the battle pulled Marco sharply into the horror of what had been the present. "Zia, is she-"

"She's fine." Cynthia cut him off. "Just exhausted. She's resting in that private sickbay at the stern. What happened on that island that wiped her out so completely, anyway?"

Marco shook his head. "It's best if we don't talk about it here, Cynthia." he said.

He heard Cynthia snort indignantly, but that was the only noise of protest she made.

Suddenly, the door burst open. Footsteps hammered the floor, making Marco's head pound. Someone ran in, skidded on the floor, and leaned over him. "Oh my god, Marco!"

A raspberry coloured lock of hair tickled his nose.

"Zia..." he managed. So much for her sleeping. He nodded. "Yeah, it's not too bad."

"I wondered why the deck was so quiet." she said. "There was no one out there except for Red-Hair."

Marco blinked. Red-Hair? Right. The war was over. Red-Hair would be heading for home. "When did you wake up?" he asked.

"About ten minutes ago." she said. "Just in time to see Red-Hair off."

"Excuse me?" Marco said, glaring at her. He found that Zia looking normal again had rekindled that sense of irritation that her recklessness tended to cause. He felt a small muscle start to twitch under his left eye.

Zia raised an eyebrow. "S'matter, Marco?" she asked.

"Nothing." he muttered. "But what's this about seeing off an enemy?"

"He was our ally at the time." Zia said, a look of understanding crossing her face. She sighed. "Honestly, Marco, the way you talk about him, you'd think he was Kaido." Then she frowned. "Hey, when did you get that?" she pointed to his stomach.

"Oh," Marco said. "Kaido knocked me over and did that." he said. He hoped his ears weren't getting red. Damn, it was even harder to lie to her now. "I was a bit of an idiot."

Zia frowned critically. "Are you sure? That doesn't sound like you."

"Fatigue gets to us all, Zia."

Zia turned to Thatch. "Seriously? That's what happened?"

"Yup." Thatch said. "It was bad enough that Marco only just woke up."

Zia poked Marco in the chest. "You're too reckless." she said.

Marco tried for a smile. "I agree with you there. Just this once, I was being the reckless one."

"Promise me!" Zia suddenly burst out, making him start. She grit her teeth. "Just promise me you won't get yourself killed out there. I don't want to wake up from a battle and find that you won't be waking up too."

Marco nodded. He reached out and took Zia's hand in his. "I promise." he said. "Commander's word."

And that's chapter 11!

Next chapter will be the start of an even more difficult challenge for the Whitebeard pirates... Or, for Zia, at least. (sweatdrops) Here's a preview.

Yukiryu Island. The New World.

The wind cut across the surface of the sea like a million freezing scythes. The spray of waves froze as soon as it made contact with the island's rocks, creating tiny crystalline spears guarding the shores.

At the very western edge of the island stood a lonely cliff, staring out into a crescent shaped bay.

The snow crunched under heavy black boots up until the very edge of the cliff.

The man stared out at his ship, moored in the bay, his dark curls whipping wildly in the wind, stinging his eyes.

Words still swirled around in his mind; deep and serious. Then what you're after is the head of Whitebeard.

He closed his eyes. He tried to remember the mark. Then, he frowned. He had seen it once, somewhere before. It had been over a year since then, though.

Right. Like I care.

He frowned.

"Captain?"

He turned and faced his crew. His first mate was staring at him with concern.

"What's up, guys?" he asked.

"You look a little off, Ace." his first mate said. "Ever since you heard the name 'Whitebeard' you'd been a bit off."

"It's nothing." he said, adjusting his hat. "Just thinking is all." He ran a finger along the brim of his hat. Then, he nodded. He knew what he had to do. "Okay guys. Let's set sail."