Memory Trap
Chapter Five: Edict of Blood

A/N: So here's the new chapter. Hope it's okay. And thank you once again for all your reviews and thoughts! It really helps keep me inspired. :]

Mayday, mayday; the ship is slowly sinking
They think I'm crazy but they don't know the feeling

When Law appeared once again before them, he looked far more dirty and beaten up than they'd last seen him. Multiple scrapes lined his legs and arms, and dried blood could still be seen on the side of his face. He lifted a to hand wipe away the blood dripping from his nose. "Wow, it looks like he got tossed out a window multiple times," Franky mumbled.

"You think it's all Corazon's doing?" Chopper asked.

"Wouldn't be surprised if it was," Nami answered.

Before Law was the entire Donquixote family sitting around a table eating. The crew let their eyes fall and take in the appearance of each one; memorizing their faces for the upcoming battle against them. Sanji raised an eyebrow as his eyes landed on something small reaching for a glass of water on the table. "Is that…a baby?"

"Eh?" All eyes fell to the spot Sanji was looking. "They took in babies?"

"He looks quite cute," Robin commented with a small smile. And Sanji definitely did not get jealous of a baby.

"What a place to grow up," Brook mused, his eye sockets looking over all the people in the room once more. Their ages varied; from a mere baby to others who looked to be in their thirties or older.

Luffy, on the other hand, had his eyes set on the man wearing the bunny ears. "Woah! He has bunny ears! Are they real?"

"I highly doubt they are," Franky answered.

"Do you think Law can make me into a centaur again once he wakes up? Oh, maybe he can give me wings, too! It'll be sooo awesome! Then all I would need would be a suit of armor and–"

"I don't think the centaur thing is going to happen," Nami interrupted before Luffy could get his hopes up about it.

"Aw, why not?"

"Because in order for that to happen, Law has to cut somebody's legs off. And I highly doubt Kin'emon is willing to give up his legs again."

"It's fine," Luffy grinned. "I'll just take Zoro's."

"Oi!" The green-haired swordsman gave his captain a look that said don't even think about it. Luffy merely pouted before focusing back on the family before him.

"Behehe! Hey, Law. It's been a week, feeling homesick yet?" The question almost had Law flinching where he stood, and the crew had no doubt that Law was in fact missing home and all his family and friends. "Corazon's really done a number on you." Trebol lifted his hand and poked Corazon on the head, but the silent male didn't react at all as he continued to eat.

"Kids and grownups alike split the first chance they get. We're the select powerful few that've remained. I wonder how long a powerless little shit like you will last?" Diamante swirled a glass of wine in his hand.

"No matter what happens, you must remember the 'Edict of Blood,'" a man wearing bunny ears said while reaching for a giant slice of pizza. The size of said pizza had Luffy drooling on the spot, and his stomach gave a loud growl in hunger. The fact that they could all smell how delicious it was didn't help the other Straw Hats' stomachs. "An affront to an executive of the family is tantamount to an affront to the family itself."

"Once, I laughed at lord Pica and I almost died during the torture they put me through afterward," Buffalo said with a smile, taking a bite of his slice of food. Next to him, Baby5 simply laughed. Usopp sweat-dropped along with Chopper; how someone could laugh at such a statement was beyond them.

"I'm not afraid of Corazon," Law said. "I've seen hell itself." It was unfortunate that the statement was actually true.

The look on Doflamingo darkened, and behind his sunglasses his eyes narrowed. "Fufufu, you're free to bluff and blow hot air to your heart's content. But remember this: Corazon is my precious little brother! I will personally bring death to anyone that so much as touches a hair on his head!"

Luffy couldn't help but feel a little nostalgia at hearing those words. Ace had said something similar once to a group of enemies they fought back on their home island. Doflamingo may be an ass – or so he's heard from others – and an evil mastermind, but to see that he truly cared about his family made him seem more human than what people made him out to be. Still, that didn't change the fact that Luffy was going to kick his ass if it came to that.

All talk was suddenly cut off when a panicked yell came from one of the family members. "This kid…his skin's white-iin!"

The woman next to him also became quite alarmed. "That's the Amber Lead sickness! I have no desire to catch that!"

Buffalo nearly choked on his food and instantly stood up upon hearing the woman's words, running to the other side of the room to put as much distance as he could between him and the diseased child. "What?! It's contagious!? Gross! You, get out of here right now dasuyan!"

Law gave a low growl, clenching his teeth in anger. His hands curled into fists so tight they shook and his knuckles turned white. Pain flashed through his eyes for a moment, and the memory of seeing his parents die before his eyes came to mind. Nami had to look away from the memory, unable to watch such a thing again.

Luckily, all commotion was stopped the moment Doflamingo slammed his hand down on the table, scaring the wits out of the woman who had spoken earlier. "Jora! Don't repeat rumor as fact. That pisses me off." And apparently it really did, because the young blond no longer held his usual smile, but an unhappy frown. "Look, Buffalo's gone and believed you. Amber Lead sickness is a type of poisoning. It cannot be transmitted to others."

"How did Doflamingo know?" Brook asked in curiosity. "It seemed like everyone else believed it was contagious."

"He probably had connections," Zoro answered. "Not only that, but he's right; poisoning has never been contagious. It's common sense."

"But just in case, you better not get close to me dasuyan!" Buffalo yelled, still afraid. "I ain't about to catch something like that dasuyan!"

"Are there any other survivors left in Frevance?"

"I don't know. I barely managed to escape myself."

"How'd you even manage to get out?"

"Hidden in the mountain of corpses, I crossed the border." And as the image of the memory flashed before the Straw Hats, many of them had to turn away at the sight; finding their stomachs suddenly turning at the horrendous sight of so many dead bodies piled up on top of one another in a cart.

"Oh my God," Nami whispered as she held a hand to her mouth. Usopp had to take in several deep breaths to prevent himself from throwing up, focusing his widened eyes on the ground. Brook, too, looked away; focusing his eye sockets on his shoe like it had suddenly become the most fascinating thing in the world. Beneath the corpses, the few members who were strong enough to stomach witnessing the scene could see Law tucked away; dirt and blood smudging his skin and clothes.

The smell from the bodies wafted through the air, and Chopper quickly raised his hooves to his nose to block out the foul odor. It had hit him so suddenly, it left him partially dizzy, making him lean against Robin's legs. "This is...!" Sanji, too, found he couldn't really stomach the smell. He breathed into the arm of his jacket instead, but it did little in blocking out the strong smell.

What disturbed them to the most was the absolute blank look in the child's eyes. Like it hadn't bothered him in the slightest that he was currently underneath dead friends and neighbors. If anything, the most he looked was slightly worried that he'd be caught by soldiers. It seemed as if the smell hadn't bothered him in the slightest either. "How awful," Robin spoke.

"That's messed up," Franky grit out.

"Uchk!" The sound pulled Law from his memory, and all the Straw Hats looked up to see where the sound originated from. At the table, one of the family members had their hand over their mouth; their cheeks slightly puffed and their face looking pale. "Hey, we're eating here…!"

Doflamingo's dark smile returned once more. "What is it that you resent so?" It was Zoro who slightly narrowed his eyes as Doflamingo spoke. It seemed that the young blond was more interested in the child, but there seemed to be something else in the male's voice. Something Zoro just couldn't place.

"I don't believe in anything." The statement was full of promise, and the child's voice didn't waver in the slightest. "I'm not even scared of dying. Corazon, you better not get carried away with yourself." At the far end of the table, Corazon's sunglass covered eyes moved to land on the child as he took another bite of his food. "I promise you…I will have my revenge."

Chopper opened his mouth to say something when a higher voice cut him off. "Are you stupid or something?" It was Baby5. She'd gotten out of her seat and walked over to Law with a mild glare in her eyes. "Stuff like that is what gets you tortured, idiot! You're gonna get the 'Skewer Torture'! You shouldn't mess around with pirates!" She raised her hand and brought it down hard on the back of Law's head.

"Yeah, that was a smart thing to do," Franky sarcastically commented.

"You're probably thinking that just because you're a kid you can cry and apologize and pretend like nothing ever happened, right?!" Law's answer had been a rather dark and fierce glare that left the small girl crying and trembling against Buffalo. The sound of a chair being moved had Law focusing on Corazon who had stood up to leave. The man pocketed his hands and began to walk for the door, only trip over nothing halfway there. Luffy laughed at the man's clumsiness, and the crew couldn't help but smile at hearing their captain's laughter.

However, Law hadn't found the man's clumsiness funny at all. If anything, it seemed to only anger him. He glared at the blond who began to get back on his feet. He saw the blond's arm begin to move, and Law suddenly took several quick steps back to get out of reach of the male. It hadn't done any good. Corazon's long arm shot out quickly and grabbed the collar of Law's shirt. He then proceeded to toss Law out the nearest window where, luckily, the child landed somewhat on his feet rather than on his face. "That bastard," he growled out, seething with anger. Then the scene began to twist and merge with other blurred colors.

"What's going on?"

"It's probably transitioning to another scene," Robin answered. The scene then began to clear out, and the crew was standing in the middle a large area of scrapped metal. To their left and above stood Law with darkened eyes and deep frown. In his one had was a sharp knife. Down below sat Corazon who had his full attention on the newspaper in his hands.

Chopper gulped. "I don't think I like where this is going…"

"If he kills Corazon, or if he even harms him, Doflamingo's going to kill him," Sanji said, furrowing his brows. "Does he honestly not care that getting so called 'revenge' will bring about his death?"

"He's more focused on his current mindset." The green-haired swordsman gave a quiet sigh. "He currently believes in nothing and wants only to kill as many people as he can. He's going to die anyway, so the thought of dying no longer scares him. If anything, it would bring about a sense of peace for him."

"It would end all his suffering and he'd be reunited with his family and friends," Brook summed up.

'There he is…Corazon…' The child's thoughts echoed through the air. 'My parents, my sister, everyone at the academy… They all died…' His grip on the knife tightened, and a look of pure anger came across his features. He raised the knife and darted forward as silently as he could, his sights set on nothing but Corazon. 'Why does this idiot have the right to live?! I just have to keep my mouth shut, no one's going to find out… Who cares if the world loses one more shithead?'

Nami's eyes filled with sadness at hearing the small child's thoughts. "Oh, Law…"

Zoro expected Corazon to dodge the oncoming attack, that since he was the brother to Doflamingo that his senses would be well trained. But that did not happen. Law's attack landed. The knife went right through the adult's body, the tip of it protruding out his chest like a grotesque growth. Yet the adult let not a sound escape him, though he did glare fiercely at Law through the corner of his eyes.

"He's been stabbed!" Chopper had the urge to run over and begin treating the male, but he managed to stop himself. It was only a memory, after all.

"Heart guy!" Luffy called. "Hey, that didn't kill him, did it? I really liked that guy!"

"It's awfully close to his heart," Chopper observed. "If his feathered coat hadn't been there, I doubt Law would have missed his heart. This would is pretty bad, but if he gets it taken care of right away it should be fine."

Up on the hill, Buffalo's eyes widened in shock. Law noticed his presence and gave a silent curse. He had hoped no one would witness him attacking the adult. Sweat began to appear on Buffalo's face, realizing what the situation meant. "He… He broke the Edict of Blood! It's the Skewer Torture for him dasuyan! I'm going to report this… to the young master!"

'Shit, shit, shit!' Law suddenly ditched the knife still stuck in Corazon and ran for Buffalo who had turned and began to head back to the base. As soon as he was close enough, Law gave a quiet growl. "Buffalo, I'll buy you an ice cream if you don't tell Doflamingo!"

Sanji was about snort and say that you don't bribe people with ice cream but was cut off by Buffalo's voice. "Make it an extra large 500B ice cream dasuyan." Law gave a nod and dragged the other child to the nearest ice cream shop, digging into his pocket to bring out just enough money to cover the ice cream.

'Still, I can't trust him,' Law thought, his eyes looking towards the ocean. 'I better leave, just in case Doflamingo somehow hears about this.' So he ran from the town and headed straight for the harbor. He wasn't afraid to die, he just didn't want to die before he could take his revenge on the world.

And it was that reason and that reason alone that made him run on to avoid being murdered by the young master.

A/N: Have I mentioned how horrible Writer's Block is? Because it's downright torturous. It sucks. I hate it. I wish it would leave me alone and never come back. Wanted to end the chapter better, but just couldn't think of a way how. If anything seemed out of place/character, let me know and I'll change it. Also, let me know if I should have added anything to this chapter, and I'll try to add it. ^^ Again, thanks for all your reviews; they do mean a lot! (For a side note: Let's just say that Kin'emon and his son are on the ship guarding Caesar because the Straw Hats gave them that job if anything weird happened.)

Your shy ice elemental,
~»roo the psycho«