Hello, here's chapter 14
I don't have much to say before we begin
Big thanks to OhMy56 for betaing
Hope you enjoy the chapter
Read and relax
¨Hey,¨ Started Haruta, who sat with the others in the mess hall, getting their attention. ¨Did we tell or show Ace his new wanted poster?¨ The twelfth commander asked. The other occupants, being the rest of the commanders and captain, aside from Ace, who was on an assignment, thought for a moment. It had been yesterday the new poster and article were in the newspaper, and they realized they had not showed or told the assassin about it. Thatch lifted his hands and grabbed his head, ¨How could we forget!¨ He sort of yelled in shock, ¨How could we forget to tell or show him!¨ The fourth commander grabbed Marcos shoulders, ¨We need to fix this!¨ Thatch then stood up and ran out of the galley.
Marco shook his head as he sighed. ¨He is way to energetic, yoi.¨ He said, causing the others to laugh. It was early in the morning, and the first commander was right. It was way too early to run around like the chef. They could even hear some of the others in the galley groaning at hearing Thatch yell and run around. Everyone knew it could not be anything good, and hoped it was not an another prank. Izou shook his head, before standing up. ¨I'll go and make sure he doesn't injure himself, or anyone for that matter.¨ Whitebeard laughed, ¨Yes, son. Make sure he also doesn't set anything on fire again.¨ Said the captain, before letting out a laugh again, the others joining in. Thatch had managed to set himself or anything in close proximity on fire a multitude of times. Izou then walked out of the galley, shaking his head.
When the laugh died down, Haruta looked at her father. ¨When is Ace returning, Pops?¨ She asked. Whitebeard looked at a clock in the galley, it was almost 8 in the morning. ¨He is returning in 2 hours, daughter.¨ He said, sending a fatherly smile at her. Haruta nodded, and went back to eating. ¨How does he always know how long he will be gone?¨ Asked Rakuyo, looking at the others at the table. The others frowned as they thought. The seventh commander was right; Ace never was gone longer than he said. The first commander shook his head a bit, ¨He probably have learned from experience, yoi.¨ He said, looking at the others who nodded.
-x-
Ace appeared on deck, and stretched. He managed to wrap everything up a bit early and managed to get back before 9. When he relaxed again, and looked around himself, he saw a bunch of smiling faces. ¨Good morning, son.¨ He heard the captain say. Ace turned and smiled back. ¨Good morning.¨ He said back, smiling. ¨Did everything go fine, son?¨ The captain asked, looking calm at the smiling face the assassin had. Ace nodded, the assignment had gone by flawlessly. ¨It went surprisingly well.¨ He said, and this made everyone around him smile.
Ace then noticed Izou somewhere to his right, ¨Izou,¨ He said, getting the other commanders attention. ¨Think I could talk to you for a moment?¨ Izou nodded, looking at him in curiosity. ¨Why don't we go to my room.¨ Said the sixteenth commander. Ace nodded, and followed the commander.
When they got to Izous room, the crossdresser motioned for him to sit on a chair, as he leaned on his desk. ¨What do you want to talk about?¨ Izou asked. Ace smiled, ¨I had a talk with Whitebeard last night, about the mark you have to signalize you are a part of this crew.¨ Started Ace, ¨And based on my work, a tattoo is not the best decision.¨ Izou nodded. ¨And I thought to maybe use a piece of clothing instead, possibly a cape. And Whitebeard told me you were the best to speak to when it came to that.¨ Ace smiled as he ended. Izou seemed to get really excited about that.
¨What kind of cape?¨ He asked enthusiastically.
Ace smiled, it seems Izou liked to fiddle with clothing and designs. ¨I was thinking about something similar to my assassin one, but not the same material or color.¨ He said, and Izou nodded before moving to a closet and opening it. Ace was mildly surprised to see different cloth rolls in different color and material. Izou thought for a moment, and pulled on a deep red one, dragging it out a bit. ¨How about this?¨ Ace moved to see the fabric a bit closer. ¨Maybe something a bit brighter and resilient.¨ He said, making Izou nod as he looked thoughtful for a moment. Ace wanted something brighter than what he used to wear, just to further separate the assassin and himself. Hoping no one connected the dots.
Izou then dragged an another fabric out, ¨How about this?¨ He asked, and Ace looked at it. The color was a bit lighter than strawberries, somewhere between red and pink, and seemed to be real resilient. Ace nodded, ¨That looks good.¨ Izou nodded and pulled the roll out and placed it on his bed. While Izou was doing this, Ace couldn't help but touch an another roll in the closet. This one was white, and was the same color and material of what Azuruko had used. Ace could not help but smile as he touched it, thinking back to his mentor, before shaking his head as he got a bit emotional. He had not felt this fabric since Azuruko had been alive, it was a rare kind, and it reminded Ace a lot of his late mentor. Ace then turned back to Izou, who now was rummaging through a drawer.
When he turned back to Ace, he held a measuring tape. ¨How long do you want it to be?¨ Asked the man, looking at Ace. The young assassin thought for a second. ¨I was thinking about maybe knees length, as well a hood if that is possible.¨ Izou snorted, ¨Of course I can make a hood.¨ He said, before starting to measure Ace a bit. ¨Do you want the same width as your other one?¨ Ace nodded, ¨That would be perfect.¨ He said smiling. When Izou was finished with the measurement, Ace looked as the man wrote some numbers down. ¨Do you want a buckle, or something else to fasten it?¨ Asked Izou. Ace smiled, ¨Maybe a buttons instead?¨ Izou nodded, and wrote it down. ¨It will take a few days, I'll give it to you when its finished.¨ Ace smiled, ¨Thank you, it will be prefect I believe.¨ Ace then gave his goodbye, and left.
When the door closed, Izou went over to the material closet and took out a certain white roll, before starting to work.
-x-
¨Marco!¨ Yelled Thatch, coming out from the meeting room. ¨What, yoi?¨ Asked the first commander, wondering what the chef wanted now. ¨I heard from Curiel that Ace was back,¨ Started the chef. ¨ I can't find him and I want to show him his new poster.¨ Marco nodded, ¨He is with Izou, yoi. He wanted to talk to him.¨ Thatch nodded, a small frown on his face. ¨Why did he want to talk to Izou?¨ Marco shook his head, ¨I don't know, yoi.¨ He started, raising an eyebrow. ¨You jealous?¨ Thatch blushed, ¨Of course not! I was just wondering.¨ Marco laughed a bit. He always enjoyed to make the chef embarrassed, a payback for all the pranks he had played on him. He could also hear his father laughing behind him, having heard the conversation.
Marco then noticed their new family member coming out from the commander's quarters and nudged at Thatch, motioning for the kid. ¨Ace!¨ Yelled the chef when he noticed the young assassin. When Ace looked at the man, and made his way towards them, Thatch spoke again. ¨We need to show you something!¨ Ace lifted an eyebrow, ¨Show me what?¨ He asked. Thatch, not being able to hold his mouth shut, too excited, just blurted it out. ¨You got a new wanted poster!¨ He yelled. Ace looked a bit shocked at that. ¨I did?¨ He asked, making Thatch nod, face grinning. ¨Yeah! New bounty and even a moniker!¨ Marco noticed an ever so small twitch in the kids eye, ¨I got a moniker?¨ He asked, and Marco had to frown a bit, Ace seemed a bit annoyed. ¨Son,¨ Asked Whitebeard, getting everyone's attention. ¨Is a moniker a bad thing?¨ He asked, looking worriedly at Ace.
Ace shook his head, giving a sigh. ¨No,¨ Ace then massaged his face a bit. ¨Just please don't tell me it has anything to do with Demon, Devil or Reaper.¨ He said, knowing Garp had something to do with his nickname, and the man knew Ace hated to be called any of those words.
Thatch looked a bit uncomfortable at that. ¨Not directly,¨ Started the man, before taking the wanted poster from a pocket, ¨It's 'Death'.¨ Ace took the poster, and stared at it for a second, before giving a small laugh. ¨That's not too bad.¨ He said, handing the poster back to Thatch with a smile, who gave a small relieved breath. ¨Would it be bad if it was Demon?¨ Thatch asked Ace. This made the ones in earshot listen a bit closer, wanting to know why he was so against the other names. Ace shook his head again. ¨The person in the marines that framed me, and essentially make so I got a bounty.¨ Started the assassin. ¨He knows I don't like any of those names, and I know he had something to do with the moniker.¨
The commanders and captain nodded as they understood. The assassin was often believed to be a demon or a non-human. Getting a name like Demon, Devil or even Reaper on his pirate poster would probably make him annoyed. ¨Son,¨ Started the captain, ¨Who is it in the marines that helped you with the bounty? If you don't mind me asking.¨ Ace shook his head, a small smile on his lips.
¨It was Vice Admiral Garp.¨
This caused many of them to look at him in shock. ¨Garp?¨ Asked Thatch, making Ace nod. ¨Garp The Hero? The crazy man that throws cannonballs?¨ Ace lifted an eyebrow as he nodded. ¨How can you trust the man?! He is a crazy senile old man!¨ Ace shook his head, as he looked a bit around himself. There was mostly only commander out, and a few others, but everyone knew who Ace was. He looked back at Thatch, ¨He is all that,¨ Started Ace, ¨But he is also Luffys grandfather. He used to take care of me and my brothers when we were small.¨ If the two commanders looked shocked before, they was stunned now. Whitebeards laughter reached them. ¨Garp The Hero is Luffys grandfather?¨ Ace nodded smiling at the man. Thatch then realized something, ¨That means he is the father to-.¨ He stopped when Marco elbowed him, and sending a glare at him. It was only the commanders and captain that knew about their heritage, and Thatch was not supposed to just blurt it out.
Ace laughed, ¨He is.¨ He started. ¨He is also the reason me and all my brothers are still alive.¨ Ace sent a smile to the others. ¨He might be a marine and a crazy old man. But he have always been there for us.¨ Ace then massaged his head a bit, ¨He wasn't the nicest, but he was there.¨ Marco shook his head, ¨I can imagine, he is quite the loudmouth, yoi.¨ Everyone laughed at that. ¨He is,¨ Started Ace, ¨He even tried, still trying actually, to make Luffy become a marine.¨ This made everyone laugh even more, knowing that was impossible. Luffy was dead set on becoming a pirate, even saying he was going to be the Pirate King. The pirates could only imagine the old man fuming when Luffy told him he was going to be a pirate.
-x-
Everyone sat eating dinner, and were having a good time. It was calm, and everyone were in a good mood. Jozu was telling some tale, and had most of the attention. Ace was having fun, and feeling calm. He really did enjoy it here and liked to have a place to return to. A place he felt safe. It wasn't often or many places Ace would call safe, but he did already feel at home here and enjoyed being around the pirates. ¨Ace, yoi.¨ Said Marco, who sat next to him. When Ace looked over, he was handed a new bottle and realized he actually had no more to drink. He gave a thank you to the man, and opened the flask, pouring some of it in his cup.
Ace really enjoyed being around the first commander, and he wasn't sure why. Ace just felt safe and calm around him.
Ace decided to sit a bit longer after he was finished, listening to the others talk, even talking to some himself. When about half of the crew had moved out of the galley to continue their day, Dust flew in and landed in front of Ace. Ace petted the bird, and took an envelope he had in his beak. Dust then took some bread and started to eat as Ace opened and read the paper. As Ace read, he frowned a bit inside him, something did seem a bit weird, but he could not pinpoint it. Ace then folded the paper, and put it in his pocket. ¨Are you leaving, son?¨ Asked Whitebeard, getting Aces attention.
Ace looked at the man, and nodded. ¨I won't need to leave before later tonight, I think around 10.¨ The captain nodded, ¨How long will you be gone?¨ Ace thought for a moment. He was going a bit far away. ¨I think I will be back around 10 in the morning.¨ Ace could see some of the commander frowning at that. After he had joined them, it was the longest he would be gone. ¨That's pretty long, yoi.¨ Said the first commander. Ace sighed, as he nodded a bit. ¨I most likely will be returning before that.¨ He started, ¨It will take around 10 hours.¨ Ace could see them nodding, as they continued their conversation.
Ace could also see the captain smiling, even though he did look a bit concerned. He had probably seen the way Ace looked at the letter, even though he tried to hide his frown. When Ace left the galley half an hour later, he got the same ¨Be safe.¨ From the captain, and felt glad he had accepted the captains offer.
-x-
Ace sat in his room, doing some small paperwork, when there was a knock at his door. ¨Come in.¨ He said, as he closed the folder he was writing at. The door opened, and Jason walked in. ¨Commander Ace,¨ Started the man, as he stood in the door. ¨Could I talk to you for a second?¨ Ace nodded ¨Of course you can.¨ He said, as he motioned for the second chair he had in the room. The man closed the door, and sat down. ¨What do you want to talk about?¨ Asked Ace, smiling at the man. Jason seemed to fidget a bit, before he started to talk. ¨You know Jensen?¨ He started, and Ace nodded. Jensen was an another man in Aces division. ¨We, or he might have done something bad. Or not bad, but we've been hiding something. And I think we need help.¨ Ace smiled a calming smile, ¨What did you do?¨
Jason looked at Ace with regret and worry, ¨I know that you are…¨ He trailed off, and Ace nodded. Jason knew Ace was an assassin, but not Jensen if he remembered correctly. He motioned for him to continue. ¨Jensen's niece disappeared according to his brother, and I told Jensen we maybe should ask for help.¨ Jason then shook his head. ¨I think Jensen called for some…¨ He motioned towards Ace again, who nodded. ¨I am not sure, but I noticed his savings was almost gone.¨ Ace frowned at that. He had not heard from Daisuke that anyone of the crew had called for anyone. If what Jason said was true, it could be someone that was not a part of The Red Cloud, and that could be bad. Yes, there were a lot of assassins that wasn't a part of the assassins guild, but many of them was not truthful and honorable ones.
They often betrayed or scammed the ones they worked with.
Ace sent a small serious look at the man, who he could see got a bit uncomfortable. ¨I hoped he would tell me before he did anything, so we could go to you.¨ Ace nodded. ¨You don't know if he have called or made a deal?¨ The man shook his head. ¨But,¨ He started, ¨He has not been alone a lot, so I am not sure if he had had the time.¨ Ace nodded, and looked at the clock on the wall. He needed to leave soon. Ace gave a sigh. ¨I need you to go and ask him if he have, and tell him to be truthful.¨ The man nodded. ¨If he has, I need you to come get me at once. If not, tell him I want to see him tomorrow around noon and to not do anything.¨ The man stood up, ¨I'll go find him now and ask him.¨ Ace nodded and the man left.
When the door closed, Ace sighed. He hoped the man had not called for anyone. He decided to wait for a bit, hoping to not see Jensen, knowing that meant he had called. 10 minutes later, there was a knock at his door. ¨Yes.¨ He said and looked at the door. The door opened, and Jason got in again. Ace felt less worried, seeing it was Jason and not Jensen. ¨He didn't call, and he promised not too.¨ Ace nodded, that was good. ¨Did you tell him I want to see him?¨ The man nodded and Ace smiled. ¨It will be fine then.¨ The man nodded and left, looking more reassured.
Ace sighed as he stood up and started to put on his assassin's clothes. He knew that meddling with others business was not good, not when he was who he was. And Jensen did not know who he was and that could scare him. He knew with a sinking feeling that kidnappings and disappearances had to do something with their own family and he didn't feel like it was his right too just meddle with his family. He did however send Dust with a note to Daisuke, just to check if his niece was gone, and if he knew anything. Daisuke would not have any information for a couple of days, it did take time to gather information. That was why he was so sought out as he was, he was the fastest since he could just teleport.
But for now, he had a mission to do. He would handle everything else when he returned.
-x-
Ace ran through a hallway, cutting down different people that tried to either shot or hit him with their own weapon. He needed to get out now. He knew the assignment was going to be a bit hard and time consuming. But it was already turning to night, he could see darkness out beyond barred windows. Ace had used the first half of the night to figure out where to go, and had gotten to the mansion hours later. He was supposed to save a young girl from some noble that was in the mansion. When he got there, and made his way into the room where the girl was supposed to be, which was in the middle of the gigantic mansion, there was no girl.
It was a trap.
The moment he had stepped inside the room, the door had shut close behind him. When he found out there was no girl, he was instantly going to get out of there. But the trap was well thought out, and Ace was instantly captured, and was dragged to a basement and chained to a wall in a small dungeon. The people escorting him, had not taken his mask off, saying something along the lines that their boss wanted that pleasure himself. He was actually impressed with the people that had chained him to the wall. They decided to only chain him by his hands. A big mistake, seeing as Ace could move his legs. He wanted to use his legs to strangle the men, but decided to hopefully be stealthier than that.
When the door to his cell was closed, Ace started to think how to get out. He could see regular seastone chains holding him, and wanted to roll his eyes at their imbecility. He quickly kicked his right boot off, and used his feet to get a hairpin from his shoe. He always had a few of these on him, just in case. With great flexibility, Ace managed to lift his foot high enough, and concentrated on lock picking the chain. After a few minutes, he was out, and headed for the door and took the guard out. All he needed now was to teleport to safety.
But the ones behind the trap, a noble Ace had neutralized years ago, already had a plan for that. Not being as stupid as Ace had first thought.
They had cameras watching him, and when they saw that he was out, they acted. With just one punch of a button, they had activated seastone bars that were in every single room, making Aces devil fruit useless. He felt weak and tired, he had not slept for 2 days. Everyone that the man sent at him was a none devil fruit user, and Ace had trouble taking them on. He sent gratitude towards Azuruko who had trained him in fighting under the effect of seastone. He did still feel the effect, but he could manage for a while. He was glad he was not in direct contact with the seastone, that did help a bit.
But he was closing in on his limit.
The mansion was big. One of the biggest one Ace had been in and he was met with new attackers in every turn, making his escape take way to long. Ace had already fought for close to 6 hours. He only hoped the pirates had not done anything rash, like calling Shanks or his brothers, he was supposed to be back 12 hours ago. He would have used Dust to tell them he was going to be late, just to be sure they would not be worried. But Dust was also affected by the seastone, as he sat in a hallway, not being able to communicate with Ace. The only way for him to escape was to either get out, or stop the seastone from working. And Ace was trying to get out, he had no idea where the marine with the remote was. There was not long left until freedom, only a few rooms, big rooms. He could have taken a quicker way out, but that would mean abandoning Dust and Ace would never do that.
It was just 4 more rooms to go and Ace would be out. In the next room, Ace found 12 new people, and Ace cut each and every one down, getting blood spilled in the entire room, even on himself. He wiped blood from his eyes, as he moved to the next, which was the same as the last. It was taking too long. The last two rooms had taken over an hour if Ace was right. Every move Ace did was done on instinct, he was so close to escaping, and he was not giving up. Ace got through the next room in record time, and when he opened the door to the last room, a hallway, he saw a woman throwing something at the ground. Ace realized too late what was happening, and not even a second later, a bright white light blinded him.
A flashbang, Ace realized as he could not see anything, his ears ringing a bit.
The moment he understood he was momentarily blinded and would not get his regular sight back for a while. He used his most basic instinct; Kill everyone you sense. Right now, everyone around him was an enemy, and Ace needed to get out, no matter what. Ace managed to take everyone in the room out, only getting a small cut on his face and arm. The moment he felt the last person falling, he tried to sense Dust, knowing his sensitive eyes was also not seeing anything. As he moved around, he was on alert, he was not letting his guard down, still in assassin mode as Shanks called it. Ace managed to find Dust, and got out of the mansion a few seconds later.
The moment he was out and far enough from the house. He felt his body getting his powers back. His mind went into overdrive and he disappeared, only having one thought in his head; He needed to get to safety. He was not sure where he landed when he reappeared, he could not see anything around himself. But he could feel and hear sounds of the ocean. Before he could even try to get his mind back on track, exhausted from fighting and lack of sleep, he heard a sound to his right, and felt someone closing in on him. Everyone is an enemy, was still in Aces head as he grabbed the person's arm, pulled it to his back, hearing a yelp of pain. Before he forced him on his stomach. Ace was sitting on the persons back, holding his arm in a dead lock. Ace then got out his dagger and plunged it towards the person's neck, a move that would be fatal, when a panicked voice pierced his brain.
¨ACE, YOI!¨
-x-
Marco woke up like usual, and went to breakfast. He hoped for a calm day, seeing as he had had the night shift. He arrived to the galley, and went inside. There were not too many that were eating, seeing as he was a bit late, wanting to get a bit of sleep before the day started. He was always pleased if he managed to get more than 3 hours of sleep each night, and had managed to sleep for almost 7 hours, and felt real refreshed. He saw his father as well as Izou, Thatch and Haruta still sitting and talking with each other. Marco went over, ¨Son,¨ Started his father when he saw Marco. ¨Good morning. You slept for quite a bit.¨ Marco nodded, as he sat down. ¨I guess I was more tired than I thought, yoi.¨ The captain smiled, and they started small conversation as Marco ate.
It was about half an hour later when Jensen, a man from Aces division, approached them. ¨Pops,¨ Started the man, getting their attention. ¨Have you seen Commander Ace? I was supposed to speak with him.¨ Whitebeard frowned a bit as he looked at the clock. It was almost 12, Ace should have been back 2 hours ago. The captain looked at the man, ¨Ace is probably running a bit late, he had something he needed to do, son.¨ The man nodded, and went his way. As the man walked away, Marco looked at the clock too, and frowned as he saw the time. ¨Is Ace not back, yoi?¨ He asked, looking at his father. Whitebeard shook his head, ¨I have not seen him this morning.¨ Answered the captain, looking a bit worried.
Ace had never been late before.
The captain looked at his sons and daughter, they did look worried. Whitebeard hoped Ace was okay, he was more than capable to watch out for himself. Whitebeard talked a bit with his children, and decided to wait a couple more hours before they would see if there was anything they could do. Ace probably ran into some small trouble, and was a bit late, and would hopefully return soon.
1 hour went. 2 hours went. And when the third hour went by, Whitebeard was worried, really worried. ¨Pops, yoi.¨ Said Marco to his left. ¨Should we do anything? He should've been back by now.¨ Whitebeard thought for a moment, was there anything they could do? They had no idea where he was, or how to reach him right now. Whitebeard closed his eyes, ¨I don't know, son.¨ He said, looking worriedly at Marco. ¨The only thing we can do is wait.¨ Marco nodded. He was worried himself, Ace should have been back 5 hours ago. Marco then went and tried to do anything to keep his mind of his comrade. Whitebeard did the same. Trying to keep his mind off Ace by talking with his children, as he kept telling himself Ace was strong, he would come back.
5 hours later, every commander sat in the meeting room. Everyone except Ace. As they settled down, Rakuyo asked the question the captain didn't want to answer, ¨Where is Ace?¨ Whitebeard shook his head, ¨We don't know, son. He never returned from his assignment.¨ This caused everyone to stare at the man in shock. ¨What?!¨ Screamed Thatch, looking a bit horrified. ¨But he should have returned hours ago!¨ Marco shook his head, ¨We know, yoi.¨ He said, getting everyone's attention. ¨That's why we're having this meeting.¨ Marco looked at everyone's faces, ¨Do any of you have any information, or heard anything about where he might be, yoi?¨ He asked in a serious manner. He got a bit more worried, when everyone shook their heads. Marco closed his eyes. He knew it was a long shot, but needed to try. And it just proved his fear,
They had no idea where he was, or if he was okay.
¨Is… Is there anything we can do?¨ Asked Haruta, looking worriedly at the captain and first commander. Both of them shook their heads. ¨Unfortunately not, daughter.¨ Said Whitebeard, causing many to feel crestfallen. Not only was their youngest family member missing, but they had no way of knowing if he was okay or not. Namur scowled, ¨There must be something we can do! We can't just sit here!¨ Said the merman angrily. Marco sighed, Namur could seem angry when he was worried. Marco sent a look at his father and could clearly see the worry in his eyes. ¨For now,¨ Started the captain. ¨We can only wait and hope for any sign of either Ace or Dust.¨
¨If we hear nothing for the next 5 hours, we will call Shanks.¨
The others nodded, many of them frowning or closing their eyes. Hoping it didn't come to that. They then decided to keep everyone that did not know of Aces work off the deck, just in case he arrived in a not perfect condition. Which no one hoped for. Just as long as he showed up, they would feel better. The commanders then got shifts to see if Ace had returned. They would have one at the hallway leading to his room, to see if he got there, while two stood on the deck. Everyone hoping for their family member to return.
2 hours later, Marco and Thatch were on the deck, hoping for Ace to return. Thatch had one moment thought he heard Dust, but was crestfallen when it was only a seagull. None of them wanted to talk, everyone were worried for the young assassin. Ace had never been late, and they had no idea what to do. When Ace returned, they would ask him what they should do if it happened again. Ace would return, there was no way he would not. He had just joined them, and they were not going to lose him this fast.
15 minutes later, Marco heard Thatch let out a gasp, and turned to the man. He saw Thatch looking happy and taking quick strides towards the railing where Ace usually sat. and When his eyes looked that way, all air left him. Ace was there. Marco felt himself calm down a bit, as he watched Thatch approaching the young assassin, before he frowned. Something was wrong. Ace was covered in blood for one thing, but that was not the first time. It was the fact that Ace was in his assassin's outfit, and did not move. He stood completely still, eyes hard, legs slightly parted and back straight. Marcos eyes widened in shock as he realized what was wrong,
That wasn't Ace, that was Ace of Spades.
And Thatch was going towards him, possibly to hug him out of relief. ¨Thatch, yoi!¨ He said in a bit of a haste, making Thatch turn a bit around, but not stopping. ¨Don-.¨ Was all he got out. He could only stare in shock as Ace reacted on instinct. Marco watched as Ace took a hold of Thatch arm and pinned it to his back, hearing the man letting out a yelp. Marco saw the horror stricken face, and could only watch in horror as Ace got the man in the ground, and sat on his back, holding Thatch arm in a death grip, pulling his muscle. When he saw the knife, he felt his insides grow cold. The moment the dagger moved, straight for Thatch, Marco opened his mouth in sheer panic.
¨ACE, YOI!¨ He screamed out. The dagger didn't stop, and Marco could hear the blade hitting the deck.
Marco took a shaky breath, hearing the dagger hit the deck was a small comfort. It did at least mean the knife didn't go straight into Thatch. Thatch had let out a pained sound, and Marco hoped it only graced him. Marco could see the others in the door leading to the meeting room having heard him yell. Everybody looked shocked, and before anyone could make a move or say anything. Marco held out his hand, giving a silent command to not moveand be quiet. He knew he had no right to order his father and captain around, but right now, he didn't care. He could see Haruta holding her hands over her mouth in shock, and the complete shock on the others faces.
Marco needed to act.
¨Ace, yoi.¨ He said carefully as he took a small step towards the young assassin, still holding his hand to the others, signalizing for them to not move, to let him handle this. He knew the kid didn't know where he was for some reason, based on the way he sat and looked. And everyone speaking or moving could only make matters worse. ¨It's okay, yoi.¨ He said, taking an another small step. ¨You are safe, yoi.¨ Marco decided to use his speech habit, hoping hearing it would get through to Ace and calm him down. ¨You are on the Moby Dick, yoi.¨ Marco was close to Ace now, only a few feet away. He could see Ace slowly moving his head in his direction, but not moving off Thatch, still acting like the assassin.
Marco held his hands out in front of him, showing he meant no harm. ¨It's okay, yoi. You are safe, yoi.¨ He said again, and he could hear Ace mumbling a soft ¨Marco?¨ As the kids eyes frowned. ¨Yes, yoi.¨ He said, moving slowly closer, hands still held out in front of him. ¨You are safe, yoi.¨ Aces eyes seemed to try to focus, but it seemed like Ace could not recognize him completely for some reason. ¨Safe…¨ He could hear Ace say softly. Marco nodded, ¨Yes, yoi. Safe.¨
He was only a couple of feet away, when he could see the kid's eyes closing, as he fell forward.
Marco managed to catch him before he fell to the ground. When Marco held him, he pulled him towards himself and off Thatch. He then sent a look to the others. ¨Izou!¨ He yelled out, ¨Check Thatch!¨ He could see Izou nodding, and hurried towards his boyfriend. Marco then looked down on the kid. He then took the assassins mask off, and moved some of the assassin's hair away so he could get a good look at him. He was covered in blood, and Marco had no idea how much of the blood was his. The kid was breathing and was out cold, hopefully only asleep. Marco then lifted his gaze, and looked at Thatch who had managed to sit up, and was holding a hand to his shoulder, blood seeping through.
And Thatch looked absolutely horrified.
Marco took a deep breath, this was bad. He then looked at the kid in his arms, before looking at his father, who looked shocked and worried. Marco then lifted the kid up in his arms, not caring about the blood that got on him. He looked at Izou and Thatch, the latter staring at them in fear. ¨Izou, get a nurse to look at Thatch, yoi.¨ He said, before he took off, almost running towards the infirmary.
-x-
Whitebeard stared in shock at what unfolded in front of him. He and the others had heard Marco shout their missing family member's name, and it sounded panicked. Marco was never panicked without a reason. The moment they got to the door, they saw a bloody Ace sitting on Thatch, one arm in a death grip, and a dagger in his other; A dagger they only hoped had not struck the chef. Whitebeard was about to try to say something, when a hand gesture from his son stopped him. The captain watched as Marco slowly walked towards the young assassin, saying words of comfort and kept using his speech habit.
Whitebeard understood what his son was doing, and let him take the lead.
The captain felt his worry spike when Ace fell forward and Marco cached him. He saw the panicked and worried eyes as Marco ordered Izou to check on Thatch, before looking Ace over. Whitebeard then saw Thatch sit up with the help of Izou, a hand on his shoulder, blood seeping through his finger, and looking fearfully at Ace. This was bad, Ace was injured and panicked, and he had injured Thatch in his panic causing him to look at Ace in fear. The captain got one last look from his son, before lifting Ace in his arms, and running off towards the infirmary, giving a command to Izou about having a nurse look at Thatch.
The captain stared after his son, before he moved towards Thatch. ¨Son,¨ He said, voice calm, but worried. ¨Are you okay?¨ Thatch looked at him and nodded slowly, still in shock. Whitebeard saw Tifa, a young nurse, rush past him and crouched besides Thatch. There were always a couple of nurses on deck at all times just in case something happened. ¨Pops,¨ He could hear from behind him, and turned to look at Haruta, who pointed towards something to his right. Whitebeard looked over, and could see Dust standing there, moving his body and head a bit oddly. The captain took a step towards the bird, and stood shocked when the bird lifted its wings and snapped at him.
Something was really wrong.
¨Dust?¨ He said slowly, and watched as the bird lowered its wings, and let out a small caw. The captain then crouched down, and brought his hand towards Dust. The moment his hand touched the bird, it flinched. ¨It's okay,¨ Said the captain, not moving his hand. ¨You are back on the boat.¨ The bird shook his head a bit, before leaning on the captains hand. Whitebeard, seeing the bird calmed down, lifted it and petted it a bit. When he turned towards Thatch, he looked a bit more composed as Tifa looked at the wound. ¨Daughter,¨ Said the captain, getting the nurse's attention. ¨Is it bad?¨ Tifa shook her head a bit. ¨It isn't too bad, but it'll need stitches.¨ Whitebeard nodded. They had an emergency kit in the meeting room, and he thought it was best to keep as many out of the infirmary for now. ¨How about we all go into the meeting room, and you can patch Thatch up there?¨ He said, and the others nodded.
Everyone then stood up, Izou and Tifa helping Thatch, and they moved to the meeting room again.
When they got to the room and sat down, Tifa went and fetched the emergency kit, before starting to work on Thatchs shoulder. Whitebeard lifted a pillow from a stool, and put it on the table, placing the bird on top of it. After Dust looked comfortable, he looked over at Thatch. ¨Son,¨ He said, getting the attention. ¨What happened?¨ Thatch shook his head, ¨I-, I'm not sure,¨ He started, ¨I heard something and saw Ace, and was walking towards him, just happy to see him.¨ Thatch flinched as the needle pierced him. ¨I heard Marco say something, and turned to him, and before I knew anything, Ace locked my arm behind my back and forced me to the ground. I then heard Marco yell, and a piercing pain in my shoulder.¨
¨Marco then spoke to Ace, and Ace mumbled something before he went limp.¨
The others nodded. They had not heard Ace mumble, being too far away. And hoped he was okay. Something must be wrong for him to not realize who he was sitting on. He was also looking straight at Marco without reacting. Tifa then put a bandage on his shoulder, ¨There.¨ She said, before lifting his arm a bit. ¨Does your arm hurt at all? He did bend it harshly and hold it in place.¨ Thatch shook his head, ¨It's okay, only a bit sore.¨ Tifa nodded, and packed the emergency kit back together. It was at times like this, that the captain was thankful for Bay putting the kits here and there, as well as keeping her nurses out. Thatch looked at his father, ¨What should we do now, Pops?¨ He asked. Whitebeard sighed, ¨For now, we wait for news from Bay or Marco.¨ He said. Everyone nodded, before starting a somewhat tense conversation.
2 hours later, the door opened and Bay walked inside. Before anyone had managed to say anything, Marco walked in behind her, carrying Ace, who now was cleaned up and was wearing regular clothes.
Everyone looked at them in worry, ¨He's only asleep.¨ Said Bay, making them nod a bit. Marco went and placed the young man on the couch, dragging a blanket over him, before taking a place next to his father, looking tired. ¨How is he, daughter?¨ Asked the captain, looking at the doctor in concern, why wasn't Ace in the infirmary? Instead of answering him, or looking at him, the doctor made her way over to Dust. ¨Dust,¨ Said the doctor, making the bird lift its head. ¨Was Ace close to a flashbang?¨ The bird nodded, and let out a caw. ¨Was he blinded by it?¨ A nod and a caw again, and realization dawned on them.
Ace could not see when he got on the boat.
Ace had probably teleported back to the ship in a small panic and confusion, not being able to see clearly. Thatch had probably gotten to close before the kid had managed to figure out where he was, and therefor attacked on instinct. The way the kid held himself when he sat on top of Thatch, was the same way the assassin held himself when he was working. He had no idea who Thatch was. Bay frowned a bit, and held her hand in front of Dust, no reaction until she had her hand straight in front of him. ¨Dust, where you blinded too?¨ The bird nodded and let out a tiny caw. The captain closed his eyes, not even Dust knew where they were. It was no wonder why Ace and Dust seemed so disoriented as they were. He heard Bay telling the bird it would go over soon, to just relax.
The captain then looked at his daughter, ¨Daughter,¨ He said, getting her attention. ¨Why is Ace here and not in the infirmary?¨ Bay shook her head a bit, letting out a sigh. ¨If what Commander Marco told me was true, Commander Ace was not sure where he was.¨ The others nodded. ¨Commander Ace told me a few days ago he doesn't like the infirmary, it brought back bad memories. And for him to wake up there, is not the best solution at the moment.¨ She then motioned for Marco, ¨What Commander Marco did worked, and waking up to familiar voices and faces is the best we could come up with.¨
She then looked at everyone in the room. ¨You don't all have to be here, but if you stay, speak clearly and don't make any rash movements.¨ The occupants nodded, and looked at their father. When he nodded, signalizing he agreed with the decision, they all agreed to stay, wanting to know how their young brother was doing. Bay then made her way over to Thatch, checking the arm over herself. When she seemed okay with what Tifa had done, sending an approving look at her. Bay then crouched down and looked Thatch dead in the eyes,
¨Are you afraid of him now?¨ She asked.
When Thatch tried to answer, but not managing, only sending a lost look at her and his father, they understood. Thatch was scared of Ace. Bay shook her head. ¨It's okay if you are,¨ She started. ¨It is like falling of a horse. You are afraid to get back on, but when you do, the fear disappears.¨ Bay then looked softly at him. ¨No one blames you if you are, and he did not know it was you.¨ Thatch nodded, and took Izous hand, clutching it tightly, and looking at his father, who looked comfortingly back. They would handle it as it came. Thatch was though, only a bit shaken. Ace could be terrifying when he was acting like the assassin. No one did blame him.
Bay then did a quick check on Dust again, and was smiling when Dust nodded when she asked if he could see better. Birds did have sensitive eyes, and a flashbang could have made damage, but it looked good if it got better, the bird only needed to relax. Bay also decided to wait with them, wanting to check Ace over when he woke up.
An hour later, Dust stood up, and flew over to Aces sleeping form, settling on his chest. This caused the pirates to smile, knowing the bird could see enough to orient himself, and hoped the young commander would wake up, just so they could see that he was okay.
-x-
Ace could hear voices, voices talking. Why was he hearing voices? He didn't remember falling asleep arou-. Ace sat up in a haste, remembering the mansion and not being able to see. The moment he was up, he instantly regretted the movement as his head just hurt. He swore he heard Dust making a noise, but he wasn't sure. His eyes instantly closed as they opened, everything was blurry and his eyes hurt. ¨Ace, yoi?¨ He heard a voice ask to his right. Ace turned his head, and opened his eyes. He could faintly see the outline of what most likely was the first commander. Ace blinked, trying to clear his vision. When he opened them again, he could see a bit more clearly, and saw not only Marco, but all the commanders, captain and Bay looking at him worriedly.
¨Marco?¨ He asked, as he brought a hand to his head, trying to clear it. What had happened and how did he get back? Before he had managed to think more about it, he heard more than one relieved sigh, and felt some movement on his legs. When he opened his eyes again, and looked down, he was glad to see Dust, who looked okay. Ace smiled as he moved his hand and petted the bird. ¨Are you okay?¨ He asked the bird, and felt happy when the bird cawed.
¨Commander Ace.¨ Ace turned his head to Bay, who had stood up and was walking towards him cautiously. Ace was wondering why she was acting cautious. But when she saw Ace looking normal, even blinking to clear his vision again, she moved with more confidence. ¨How is your sight?¨ She asked, as she was in front of him. Ace shook his head a bit. ¨It's a bit blurry, but otherwise okay.¨ Bay nodded, and dragged out a flashlight, checking his eyes real quick. When she was done, Ace closed his eyes again, and when he opened them, Bay held out a pill. ¨For your headache.¨ Ace didn't even try to hide the fact he was in pain, as he took the small pill and a glass of water from Marco, who had walked up to him too.
After Ace had taken the pill, and felt his eyes clearing a bit more by blinking. He looked at everyone in the room, and everyone was looking at him in worry. ¨Why am I in the meeting room?¨ He asked, looking at them. Bay frowned, ¨You don't remember?¨ She asked. Ace frowned a bit, remember what? He remembered getting out of the mansion, and teleporting to what he hoped was safety. Someone approaching him, and attacking the person, thinking his power had done a mishap… And a voice, Marcos panicked voice. Ace looked at the commanders again, and when he saw Thatchs injured shoulder, as well as the smallest flinch. He felt horrible as he connected the dots.
He had attacked the fourth commander, thinking he was an enemy. This was why he kept his distance to others, he was dangerous.
Ace massaged his face a bit, and sent a look of regret and apology at the man. ¨I'm really sorry, Thatch.¨ He started. ¨I didn't mean to hurt you. I didn't know it was you.¨ He could see Thatch nodding a bit, his face looking unsure. ¨Son,¨ he heard the captain say, and Ace looked at the man. Whitebeard had a concerned look at his face as he looked at him. ¨What happened?¨ Ace gave sigh, he owned them an explanation. Ace looked at them, and closed his eyes again, trying to get the last bit of blurriness away.
¨When I got to my destination, a gigantic mansion, I went inside to free a girl.¨ Started Ace. ¨When I was somewhere in the middle of the mansion, where the girl was supposed to be, there was no one. It was all a trap from a noble I sabotaged years ago.¨ Ace could see and feel everyone looking at him worriedly. ¨It all went a bit south from there, and before I managed to get out, someone threw a flashbang and I wasn't fast enough to shield my eyes.¨ Ace sighed. ¨I managed to get out, and I unconsciously teleported here.¨ Ace sent an another apologetic look at the chef. ¨I couldn't see where I landed, and only felt someone approaching me. I had no idea it was Thatch. I thought my powers were confused as a result of seastone and was still in danger.¨
Ace looked at Thatch, who nodded, understanding more what had happened. ¨I'm sorry, I reacted on instinct. I hope your shoulder isn't too injured.¨ He said to the chef. Thatch nodded, a hand unconsciously going to his shoulder. ¨It's just a small cut, its fine.¨ He said, and Ace nodded. Ace then sighed, and looked at Dust, who seemed to have a concerned look himself as he looked at his master. ¨Do you feel up for a small trip?¨ He asked the bird, who cawed and gave a small nod. Ace could feel the confused looks of the occupants of the room, but ignored them for now. ¨I need you to go Amegakure and tell Daisuke I am taking a few days off.¨ Dust cawed, and disappeared.
Ace could technically just not answer his requests and wait for a few days. But he didn't like to know people needed help and he was ignoring them. He knew Daisuke could manage to fill in a bit, sending others in his name. He had done this a couple of times. And if it was something he himself needed to do, Daisuke would either tell him, or send a note saying he would show up in a couple of days. Ace sighed, as he turned his attention back to the other pirates. ¨Son,¨ Started the captain. ¨Can you take a few days off?¨ Ace smiled at them, he understood what he meant.
¨I can, Daisuke will manage to fill in.¨ He said.
The captain nodded, a fatherly smile at his face. ¨Who's Daisuke?¨ Asked Rakuyo, not knowing who the man was. Ace shook his head a bit, ¨An old friend.¨ He started, and when most of them nodded, still a bit confused on how someone could manage his job, he decided to let a bit of information out. ¨He is a leader of an assassins guild. I have worked with him for years.¨ He said, knowing all of them had heard about the Red Cloud, and could see them connecting the dots. The pirates nodded, and smiled back. ¨So,¨ Started Haruta, looking at him. ¨You won't get any work for a few days?¨ Ace nodded, ¨I won't. There is a slight chance if something big comes up, but I have a feeling it won't.¨ Ace smiled at them, ¨I need a break anyway.¨
The pirates looked glad at that, knowing Ace would not get any work for a few days. Ace stretched a bit. ¨I need to get to know everyone better anyway, and this is a good time to do just that.¨ The pirates nodded, smiling back at him. Ace then moved his legs a bit, so he sat on the couch, legs on the floor. And was about to stand up, when Thatch moved. Ace seeing the small unsure look, decided to remain seated. The occupants watched as the chef stood up, and slowly walked over to the young assassin. When he was in front of Ace, he stopped for a second, a bit of fear in his mind. Ace smiled a comforting smile, trying to look as unthreatening he could.
Thatch wasn't the first one to fear him after he had accidentally attacked them.
Ace then held his arm out, ¨Help me up?¨ He asked. Thatch took his hand slowly, and helped him stand. When he was upright, Ace dusted some dust off himself, and was about to thank the man, when he was suddenly hugged by the chef. ¨I'm glad you're okay.¨ Said the chef, and Ace smiled as he hugged back. Glad Thatch didn't fear him so much he was avoiding him, as many others had. ¨I'm glad to be back.¨ When they let go, everyone were smiling at them.
Dust then reappeared with an envelope in his mouth. Ace took it, opened it and looked it over. ¨Daisuke can fill in for 3-4 days.¨ He said with a smile. The captain smiled at him. ¨That's good to hear, son.¨ Everyone nodded at that, Thatch putting his arm around Ace. ¨Let's go and get some night snacks.¨ He said and started walking towards the galley with Ace. ¨Who else is hungry?¨ He asked as he continued to walk. Everyone nodded, some shaking their heads, as they followed. They had stayed up almost all night, and had not eaten for a bit, and food did seem like a good idea.
Whitebeard and Marco was the last ones to leave the room. ¨The next days are going to be good and calm.¨ Started the captain, looking at Marco. ¨Don't you think so too, son?¨ He said, as they slowly followed the others. Having Ace not going on assignments was going to be nice. He had had a lot of work the last week, and they had seen little of him. Marco nodded, ¨I think so too, yoi.¨ He said, as they followed the others.
So that's chapter 14, hope you enjoyed
The next chapter is going to be more bonding with Ace and everyone, also some one on one bonding, especially between Ace and Marco. And maybe a visit from Shanks.
If you have any requests, questions or is wondering about something in the story, feel free to ask.