Hello everyone, here is chapter 27

And we have more action and see more off what Ace's powers can do.

And I know the chapter is late, sometimes things are hectic. But here it is

Hope you enjoy

Read and relax

Whitebeard was on deck, most of the commanders were also out with him. They had gotten a call from Jozu, who was on the island, that there was a sketchy man, familiar to the one Jimbei had spoken about, was heading towards the docks. Also finding out his name was Fry Jacob. A name none of them had heard about. But according to Jozu, everyone knew who he were, many not speaking about him, saying he knew everything.

All of them were somewhat looking at the docks, but also trying not to make it to obvious they were looking for one person. Whitebeard was in his chair as usual, the other commanders here and there, looking to be busy in conversation and duties. As they were all waiting to either see the man or hear from Jozu again, the captain saw Marco lifting his gaze, looking at something at the docks. When the first commander noticed him looking at him, Marco made a motion to the docks, to a tunnel. And a second later, he saw a man walking out, and Whitebeard understood why Jimbei thought he was doing something.

The way he walked, he walked like he was a leader. Each step taken in complete confidence and almost arrogance, but not quite. Walking like he knew everything.

He had dark clothing, black top hat and a large glove gauntlet, but only at one arm, as Jimbei had said, having a cane in the other. He looked as he was doing something, or planning to do something. The way he walked and his stance was amazingly accurate for just walking normally, like every move was planned. But for some reason, it looked familiar. The captain didn't know why, but something about the way he walked, was something he was sure he had seen before.

As the man walked, he suddenly turned his head towards the left, towards them, and gave a small grin and a wink, before continuing on his path.

The captain frowned, looking as the man walked into a bar on the dock, two people behind him that seemed to be with him. Whitebeard saw Marco, who stood beside him, looking at him. ¨Should we head after him, yoi?¨ The captain thought for a second. The bar was close to the dock, making so he could himself and not be too far away from the boat. He wanted to check this man out himself, he apparently knew something about them. Why else would he give a grin and a wink? Whitebeard gave a nod, looking at the commanders that were out. ¨We should check him out, I have a feeling Jimbei was right. If there are no one in the bar, we confront him. If not, we see what he does.¨

The captain could see the others nodding. There were still many commanders on the ship, the ones missing where Ace, Jozu and Blenheim. Jozu and Blenheim being with other divisions on the island, and Ace still doing his shopping, already been gone for almost 2 hours. He has said it would take time, and Dust was still here and looking fine. It was decided that the ones who would go was Whitebeard, Marco, Thatch, Namur, Fossa and Haruta. The other commander wanted to stay on the boat, at least for now. Izou might come and join them later, saying he had something he needed to do. Before they left, Whitebeard told them to not be afraid to get them if they were needed, and to tell Ace where they were, even though they had a feeling he already knew, seeing as Dust was on the boat.

They made their way to the bar and walked in, pretending they weren't moving after the man. As they came inside, they saw there were others in the bar, making so they decided to sit at their own table, Marco and Thatch sat in the bar, sitting closer to the table Jacob was sitting at. He was shuffling some cards, looking somewhat smug, making the first commander sure he was planning or waiting for something, he did at least really look like he were. The commander decided to keep him in his peripheral vision and sent a look to his father, who had already ordered booze. Marco wanted to roll his eyes at that. Thatch made a motion to the barmaid, ¨Two beers, lovely.¨ He said with a small wink, making the barmaid roll her eyes as she filled two cups and placed them on the counter.

But before either Marco or Thatch could grab their drink, a hand came and grabbed and took them with him.

Marco could see Thatch on his way to turn and tell who ever thought they could steal his drink to give them back, but instantly got a weird look on his face. Marco turned his head to see who it was, and had felt some shack himself. It was Ace, and he was walking towards the table where Jacob was sitting, looking at Ace smugly as he now was laying out cards for a game. Marco sent a look at his captain, not liking this, especially seeing Ace having a professional face, flat but piercing. Whoever this was, didn't just have the attention to Ace, but the assassin too.

Ace sat down in an almost angry manner, shoving one drink to Jacob as Ace grabbed his cards, sitting straight and in an intimidation posture, looking directly at Jacob, him looking back with a smirk. Then they started to lay out cards, also drawing new ones. As soon as one laid a card down, the other quickly did too, moving fast. It almost seemed that they tried to move as fast as possible. After some minutes, Ace also started to get a smirk, moving in an even more intimidating posture as he leaned forward, Jacob doing the same.

Whitebeard frowned, before he understood why the walk he did looked familiar; it was the same walk Ace did when he was walking as the assassin. That man was also an assassin.

Whitebeard now understood why Jimbei had thought he seemed he might be doing anything, he probably were. But seeing as Ace didn't do anything to make them think he was a danger, at least not yet, made him think he weren't someone they should keep an eye on. As the card game moved on, they saw Ace suddenly taking the bunch of discarded cards in with a shake of his head, before it was on again. There were no cards they could draw, only the bunch they laid out. When it was a sizable bunch again, it was now Jacob who let out a small curse, taking the cards. Then they were back to laying out a card at a time at a rapid pace.

The captain now understood why they were doing it as fast. Ace was amazing at counting cards and remembering what was played. Jacob was probably also good at that, they were trying to get the cards out at a pace so the other wouldn't manage to keep up. They had 3 cards laying face down each, making 6 cards out of the play. It was probably the first to sit with an empty hand. It was Ace who first touched the faced down cards, but he threw it at the bunch of discarded cards and pulled everything in, making Jacob grin more. Ace did seem to enjoy himself, having a grin himself.

The pirates had to agree, it looked like more than a normal card game, both trying to overpower each other in both speed and intimidation, just the piercing and confident looks they had showed this was more than just a normal card game, making them wonder what would happen when one of them won. As they were continuing, sometimes having one card left, but always had to take the discarded ones, starting anew. It was almost 15 minutes later, that Ace sat with 3 cards and Jacob with 5, it did seem like Jacob looked smug as he put two equal down. Ace gave a grin as he put all three down, winning the game.

Jacob looked stunned for a second, looking the cards over before he looked at Ace. ¨Damn, I thought you didn't have a two.¨ Ace nodded, giving a laugh, ¨I know. I confused you earlier, you have a weak point.¨ Ace then held his hand out to Jacob, as if waiting for something. Jacob shook his head, moving to grab something from his side. ¨You know everyone's weakness, the reason everyone is trying to win. It would be the greatest achievement.¨ When his hand came back up, he held a gun, making the pirates tense, some of them inching towards their own weapon. But the gun was handed to Ace, who game a smile as he looked it over. ¨Just let them try, I do get a lot of things out of it so I don't mind.¨ Jacob gave a snort, ¨Of course you don't.¨

The pirates relaxed, seeing they were friendly towards each other, still sitting straight and looking piercingly at each other, all though in a more friendly way than the assassin usually were. At least as they had seen themselves.

Ace put the gun away after looking it over, looking pleased with it, before looking at Jacob. ¨What are you doing here anyway? Even staying over the usual time.¨ Jacob gave a sigh, reaching to grab something from something at his belt, getting out a parchment he gave to Ace. ¨I have not managed to find the perpetrator.¨ The pirates were surprised to hear they were talking about their work this openly. Yes, they didn't say what it was, so no one who knew might know what they were talking about. Ace shook his head as he gave the parchment back. ¨End of road 12, large factory, he wears a red left shoulder cape and bowler hat. Have fun.¨ Jacob gave a laugh as he shook his head, taking the parchment back. ¨Of course you know, you know everything.¨ Ace shook his head. ¨It's about being updated.¨ Jacob nodded, ¨I know, I know.¨

Ace grabbed the cards, gathering them and placing them back on the table. ¨You should also hurry.¨ That made everyone frown, Jacob included. Before the man could say anything, someone came running in, looking at Jacob. ¨Boss, there's trouble at Emanuel's.¨ Jacob sent a look at Ace, who lifted an eyebrow, before giving a quick thanks before he hastily left with the man who came running in. Before the door closed again, Izou came in, looking questionably at them, wondering why they let the man run out. Before anyone could say anything, Ace spoke up, getting Izou's attention. ¨Izou, here. I don't need it.¨ Ace then threw the gun he had won to Izou, before he moved to sit next to Marco at the bar.

Izou gave a look at the gun, before he looked stunned at Ace. ¨You're giving me this?! Do you know what kind this is?¨ Ace gave a laugh, ¨It's a Cerberus. A break loading, three barrel semi automatic revolver.¨ When Izou looked even more stunned, Ace waved his hand in an 'it's fine' manner. ¨I have one already, I don't need two. It's not my favorite kind of weapon.¨ Izou looked speechless at Ace, opening and closing his mouth for a few seconds, before he managed to get out a thank you, still looking stunned as he looked the gun over again. Izou knew a lot about guns, and this Cerberus was probably a special one. It did look bigger than usual and they could now see it was a three barrel one.

Izou walked up and sat next to Ace, still looking the gun over. ¨What about bullets?¨ Ace motioned for the gun, which he got. When he had it, he break-opened it and showed the cylinders to Izou. ¨This is a universal one, to some extent. The ones you usually use will fit, but some bigger ones, like .38 special, would be perfect. Make them hollow point and you got a one hitter.¨ Izou nodded and Ace closed the gun again. ¨Also, remember the recoil is three times as strong. You should practice with it first, it usually takes people by surprise.¨ Izou nodded.

Izou had probably thought about it, but three times as much was a lot. Especially seeing that Izou had used his guns for years, not using anything heavier. Izou looked at Ace, ¨Would you join me for a training session with them? If you had one yourself.¨ Ace nodded. ¨I can do that. It's been awhile since I used mine, it would be nice to use it again.¨ Izou smiled, looking happy Ace agreed to that. Izou then went back to looking at the gun, checking it over more.

Marco smiled, glad Izou looked as happy as he was, seeming to love the gun. As Izou opened the gun, Marco looked at Ace, who had ordered three new cups of booze, seeing as Ace had taken the ones Thatch had ordered. ¨Ace, yoi.¨ Started Marco, getting his attention. ¨Was Jacob a part of your work.¨ Ace gave a nod, ¨He had someone he have some business with, but some issues with finding him. He should be on his way when he's done with it.¨ Marco nodded. ¨He had worried some people here, yoi.¨ Ace made a small laugh, ¨He have that kind of impression.¨ Marco nodded, he did give that impression, managing to even make Jimbei worried even.

Marco suddenly remembered something and looked at Ace, ¨Is he a human-fishman hybrid, yoi? Jimbei thought he might be.¨ Ace looked at him for a second, before giving a nod. ¨He is.¨ Marco nodded, it was probably something he wouldn't usually tell others. Hybrids like that was rare, but they would never use them for anything or be mean just because they were different. Hybrids had it hard because they were part human and part fishman, making both parts hate them. It always amazed the first commander on how so many could hate someone because who they were born too or what they looked like. It made the commander glad to know Ace trusted him with that information.

As Marco was on his way to ask more about Jacob, Izou suddenly got up from his seat and almost ran over to where Whitebeard sat and showed the gun, telling how impressive it was. This made Ace laugh as he shook his head. Marco could see Thatch sending a look at Ace. ¨You're not trying to steal Izou I hope.¨ That made Ace laugh more as he waved his hand to Thatch. ¨I'm not. I don't need two of that gun, it makes way to much noise so I rarely use it. And Izou's not my type.¨ Thatch gave a nod, satisfied with that. Ace gave a small laugh as he shook his head, before looking at Thatch. ¨Why don't we also join the others.¨ Said Ace as he moved towards the booth where the others sat, Thatch and Marco joining him.

When they sat down, Izou was showing the gun off, opening and saying how it took different kinds of bullets and shot three at a time, being a rare kind. When Izou was done, smiling and looking excited as he still looked the gun over, seeming like a kid who just got candy, the captain turned to Ace and got his attention, asking a bit about Jacob. He asked about the same things Marco had, and Ace answered the same way he had before. Not giving away much, but giving an answer and saying he wasn't a danger, only a man that usually stood out. Something Ace also said was a bad trait he had, seeing as they shouldn't be that in his work.

They stayed in the bar for an hour, before heading back to the boat, being told Jimbei was coming by again and the captain wanted to introduce him to Ace.

-x-

When Jimbei came by the boat, the captain was in his usual seat on the deck. When the fishman boarded, he gave his greetings and gave a quick comment that the meeting had gone well and it wasn't anything important, knowing the captain would most likely ask about it. When they were done with the usual, Jimbei noticed Ace, who sat calmly reading at his usual spot. When the fishman sent a look at Ace, the captain had let out a laugh, and introduced them. Ace had put his book away when he did and stood up and talked with the fishman. Jimbei seemed impressed with how much he seemed to know and how he didn't seem to mind him.

Ace and Jimbei talked for some time, the fishman seeming to like Ace. He did usually get along with those who got along back to him. Jimbei was a strong man, a fighter, but he liked peace too. Ace shared some of his belief on the world with the man, having a discussion about what they thought on the different views of the world government. On how they said all pirates were evil, but still worked with some. It was interesting to listen too, at least that was what Whitebeard thought. Both Jimbei and Ace had good insight in the matter. Both saying how it was a good and bad thing. When the fishman left, he seemed glad to have gotten to meet Ace. Ace usually left an impression on people, he knew a lot of the world and had a lot to share.

After that, it wasn't long until they set sail, heading out in the New World. Many was excited really excited to finally be here again. When they were out of sight of Fishman island, the captain said they were going to have the usual meeting they had when entering the New World. They had had a meeting yesterday, but that was mainly a normal one. After visiting Fishman island, they had new information on who was active now and where they should try to avoid. As soon as the captain mentioned they would get into more battles now, especially seeing that there were many rookies and that they had been having a long period of peace, Ace gave a sigh and got everyone's attention.

¨We are going to run into many people, both people who you might let go and ones you will not.¨ The captain nodded, wondering what Ace was referring too with that. It was normal for everyone to run into people in the New World, it was really active and had many decent fighters. Ace looked at the captain as he continued. ¨There are people who are on certain lists. If we are to run into them, I will not hesitate in taking them out. This is not to take it away from you, but some people I will personally handle. You will know who it is if it happens. And if it does, do not interrupt.¨ The captain nodded, as well as the others. They knew from the tone Ace used this was a serious thing.

The captain looked at Ace, ¨What are we to do if it happens while in battle?¨ Ace gave a nod, ¨I will concentrate on taking the target out, not caring about the others that are irrelevant. Just continue the battle if it is one, or step back.¨ The captain nodded. There were probably people who were hunted down by the assassins for different reasons. If it happened that they met one of them, he would let Ace handle that the way he would do. He was sure anyone to be on that list deserved nothing else than to be hunted down. No one seemed to have any questions to that as they nodded, understanding the same as he did. They wouldn't interfere with Ace's work, even if it happened in the middle of a battle.

After that, they went over the ones they were to have a look out on, managing to get the new wanted posters earlier, also a paper from the New World. There had been a lot of activity so there were a lot to speak about and go through. When they were finished, almost taking 2 hours, many left to check on everyone and ready them for the New World. Many was still left in the meeting room, wanting to speak about the usual things they did before heading into zones where it could be dangerous. Ace staying, mostly listening to the others as they talked and discussed, sometimes coming with small inputs. As the night came closer, some leaving to either sleep or go to watch, it was only 7 people left in the meeting room. Ace had taken up a book he was reading, seated next Jozu and Namur, who were talking with Marco about something.

When Dust came in and gave an envelope to Ace, a completely red envelope, Ace opened it as usual. But as Ace read it, the captain could see Ace's eyes widening in shock as he sat up more straight as he read.

That had never happened before and it made the captain frown. As Ace had moved from his relaxing position, the others also noticed and stopped talking, looking almost worriedly at Ace, never seeing a reaction this big from him. Before anyone could ask or say anything,

Ace hastily stood up from the chair, almost making it fall backwards as Ace took two running steps, then he was gone in black smoke.

The captain could only stare at where Ace had been a second ago, noticing Dust also disappearing, feeling worried what that might have been. Ace never reacted much to the notes he got, maybe a small frown when he thought out how long he would be gone, but never running away like that, without a word no less. The captain had no idea how to react to that and actually sat speechless for a second. ¨What was that?¨ Asked Thatch out loud, making the captain think for a response. Something obliviously was so important that Ace needed to leave like that, and what it might be concerned the captain, as well as the others.

Whitebeard shook his head, looking at the others at the table. ¨I do not know, but Ace knows what he's doing. He will tell when he can. It was probably something urgent.¨ The others nodded. The envelope had been red, the only time he had seen that, had been when Ace had gotten help from the Red Cloud, making him believe the note was from them. He only hoped it wasn't anything too severe. It was most likely something urgent, maybe even an emergency, but they would need to wait to hear from Ace.

It was tense after that, no one wanting to leave the meeting room until they heard anything, worried what it might be that had Ace reacting like that. He got notes about everything, about people being in peril and slaughtered, which was terrible, but he never reacted. He always handled it with ease, which was amazing in the captain's eyes.

It took almost an hour until anything happened. When Dust suddenly flew in from a window and dropped an envelope in front of the captain, before quickly disappearing again. The captain tried to stay calm as he opened it and read it over, hoping it might give some answers. All the note said was: Will be gone for a day and a half. Nothing more. It was a small relief to get a time frame in which Ace would be gone, but he still wanted to know what was happening. When Thatch almost yelled out what it said, the captain looked at the worried faces he saw. ¨Ace will be gone for a day and a half. Something important came up.¨ He knew it was something important, why else would Ace leave like that?

The others nodded slowly, but didn't ask anything else, knowing he would have told them if it was anything more he could tell. They seemed a bit less worried knowing they had heard something from Ace.

All they needed to do now was to wait for Ace to return safely in a day and a half.

-x-

Ace almost ran through the forest on Amegakure, quickly heading into the assassin's base. He took his cape off and folded it under his arm, hiding the pirates mark, just in case he ran into someone who didn't know who he were. Ace quickly got to Daisuke's office and closed the door behind him. The man seemed to be expecting him to come right away, not being surprised at seeing him here so soon. Ace walked up to his desk, where a lot of files where. ¨Are you sure it's them?¨ Asked Ace when he was closer. Daisuke nodded, handing him a folder Ace quickly opened and read. ¨It's them, no doubt. How it is, I am not sure yet.¨ Ace read it over and could not believe what he was reading.

It was them. It was the old 'leaders' of the Blue blooded patricians. Someone Ace was sure he had taken care off years ago.

Ace looked back at Daisuke, ¨This is why they have been this active. They are trying to impress him.¨ Daisuke nodded, ¨It seems so. They want to make an impression by being harsh and uncaring, showing they can be as horrible as possible, hoping he will see.¨ Ace nodded, taking some other folder and looking it over. ¨Do we know which mansion he is located in?¨ Daisuke gave a sigh, ¨Unfortunately no, the reason I asked you here. I have a few possibilities and we need to figure it now and take action before he knows we're onto him.¨ Ace nodded, picking up another folder.

Ace grabbed a chair and sat down, looking the information Daisuke had over, hoping they could figure it out. If they had a certain location it would be easy to launch an all out attack. They weren't going to go easy on this man, he had been wanted for years before Ace got his hands on him the first time. How it was the same man, was a mystery. Ace was sure he was dead, Ace had personally set him on fire and watched the place burn to the ground. Ace shook his head, he would figure it out when they got to him, they were going to get rid off him, no matter what.

It took time, but after going through many files and a lot of information, they finally had the location. He was in one of the old mansion he had used before, one of the few that wasn't burned to the ground. Ace looked at Daisuke, who was marking it on the map. ¨Get everyone who is respectable and close by here now. We will leave for an all out attack at midnight and we need everyone we can find.¨ Daisuke nodded and started to make some calls, also getting Moira's attention and telling her to help. As they were busy with that, Ace wrote a quick note to the pirates and gave it to Dust. It wouldn't take too long, not seeing they would be a group of most of the best ones, no one stood a chance against them.

Ace headed to his old room in the base, having a lot of his spare things there, including his raiding outfit, which was all form fitting black and red outfit, mostly based off leather. It had a more hiding mask and hood, making it hard to see who he were. It made stealth and fast movement easy. Ace only used it at times like this, when he might think his regular outfit would be somewhat unfitting. Ace needed to have clothes which were form fitting to be able to use all of his powers, to use one of the more harder attacks. Ace usually only used them for stealth, never to attack like this. Having a cape made it harder to perform. Ace grabbed his spare weapons, going with a pair of guns, sword and some daggers, before heading back to Daisuke.

When he got back, he helped Daisuke gather the ones they needed and were close, Ace also went to get Raiden, he would be useful. After an hour, Raiden, Trevor, Mika and Corvo was gathered. Ace had hoped to get two more, but both of them were busy with other important things. As everyone was updated on what was happening, Ace started to tell what the plan where. It was an easy plan. Moira, who were a medic was going to stay behind and be ready for injured people while the others charged, Ace and Daisuke being the leaders and Ace going in first and leading the assault while Daisuke stayed back and had an overview of everything with Dust.

Everyone agreed and Ace helped everyone get there. They were in front of the mansion, before the main gate where they could see some guards. Ace made a quick look and saw there weren't many, but they were close to an alarm and using guns or arrows would make it obvious they were coming. They needed to be more stealthy. This was the reason Ace used this outfit, he had a feeling he was going to shadow walk as Azuruko had called it, one of the reason people who survived it called him a demon. Ace looked at Daisuke, ¨I will take them out quickly and you, Trevor and Mika work on clearing the outside while Raiden, Corvo and I go inside.¨ Daisuke nodded, ¨Don't use too much of your energy, you might need to use it inside too.¨ Ace nodded, he knew that. Ace looked at the three guards he was going to take out and took a deep breath, getting ready.

Black smoke started to rise from his shoulder, growing denser as Ace concentrated. As one of the guards looked to his side, Ace moved.

Ace's entire body changed into a dense shadow, looking like a creature from hell. No facial expression or legs, long arms and hard to spot. Shadows dusting off like fire from his form.

Ace couldn't walk, only moving close to a surface, any surface, even water. It was an amazing ability he had used years to get down. If he stood still, he would be invisible. He could be spotted as he moved, but Ace used a lot of power to make himself see through. Ace used his hands to crawl at a rapid pace forward, long and thin shadow arms which quickly grew more dense as he was closer to the guards. He would be spotted now, but they would be dead before reacting.

Ace used his hands to literary tear one in half, before moving to the next, breaking his neck. All happening in a span of a second. Shadows where fast. The last managed to turn his head before he was also torn in half.

As the guard were down, Ace moved up one of the walls and moved into a room using a small opening in a window. Another ability he got in this form, could air get through, he could too. The window was quickly opened and Raiden and Corvo quickly climbed up and entered, the others staying out and keeping watch and being a distraction if needed, making so Ace and the other two could sneak in and hopefully catch them off guard.

Ace made a motion with his hands, telling them to split up. Raiden going left, Corvo going right and Ace going straight forward. They didn't know where in the mansion the man were and it would be more sufficient if they split up. They could manage themselves, they usually did go by themselves anyway, this wasn't much different.

Ace walked silently through doors, being careful to not be caught or make the alarm go off. As he ran into people, Ace quickly took them out. They were not going to let anyone leave alive. He didn't use much time on the ones he ran into, sticking to sneaking up and slicing their throats or using his powers to take groups out. They never saw what was coming, the last ones to die might realize something, but they never managed to make a sound. It was good to be able to move at such speed and be able to kill using his shadow form, it was amazingly strong.

Ace could technically use his teleportation too, but in some situations it was easier and more efficient to use his shadow walk. He could move over longer distances and through small openings like vents, cracks and holes. It would tire him out in the long run, but he could go at it for a while. But if he was fully relaxed, he could make the form bigger and even take others with him, but that took a lot off him.

As Ace moved room to room, hoping to find the person they were looking for, Ace heard a whistle. It was low and from the west off the mansion. There had been no signs of slaves or prisoners yet, which was both good and weird. Ace cleared the room he was in, before heading towards where the whistling came from, the small sign that someone had found anything. It was done in a special kind of tune, a tone who many feared, knowing what it meant. That it meant someone was going to die, no matter what. As Ace walked to the sound, still being careful and taking everyone he met out, he soon arrived in a room where Corvo was waiting.

When Ace came into the room, he saw a man who looked exactly like the one he had taken out years ago. It was impossible for it to be the same man, there was no scars on his body. Ace had watched him burn alive. There was no way he would be alive, let alone have no mark from it. The man was unconscious, being tied up in a chair, blood coming from a wound in his head. Ace looked at Corvo, hoping he had some idea what was happening. Corvo motioned to a desk filled with papers, ¨It seems like Hirohito had a twin. Meet Nero, who promised to continue his brothers work.¨ Ace sighed inside himself. He had no idea there were any family left, having heard Hirohito had killed everyone.

¨How long have he been continuing his brother's work?¨ Asked Ace, walking over and quickly looking the files over. Corvo shook his head, ¨Not long, maybe a month. Saying he is Hirohito, that he needed to hide, his death being false.¨ Ace nodded. It seems he weren't as good as his brother to hide. They had used almost a year to find where Hirohito was located all those years ago. Him knowing how to hide. This man, Nero, was probably not as bad as his brother, at least not yet. But he was causing the ones that followed Hirohito to be more active, ultimately causing a lot of death and suffering. He would be killed and taken care off, as well as everyone in this mansion. After they had done that,

They would hang the body on display, being sure it would be found and recognized fast.

That would make the Blue blooded patricians to take a step back, also giving them fear, knowing the 'leader' was dead and that they were being hunted by the assassins. That they weren't safe.

As Ace used his powers to be sure Nero wouldn't wake up, Corvo got his attention. ¨There is a meeting here tomorrow, hanging him on display here would be the best idea.¨ Ace nodded, that was a good idea. That gave them the rest of the day to clear the mansion. There would be more people here and there, which they would kill. There would also be prisoners, they just haven't found them yet. They should first concentrate on taking everyone out as fast as they could. Ace looked around in the room, it was clearly the leaders room based on the desk and guards who were dead. Ace went over to the other side of the desk and tried to find what he was looking for. It took a second, but he soon found the alarm button. Blue blooded patricians were surprisingly paranoid and had alarms everywhere.

Ace looked at Corvo, who nodded, and Ace pushed the button.

Alarms quickly started to wail through the mansion, alerting everyone to a danger. Ace had made Dust get the other who were out ready. It would be more easy to have the rest of the people in the mansion running around in panic. Either running out to run away, or run to the room Ace was in, to protect the leader. This would actually save them a lot of time.

It wasn't long until there were sounds of people running towards the room they were in. Ace got his guns out, pointing them towards the door, ready to fire when people came inside to protect the man they already had caught. They didn't need to be quiet any more, having caught the main man, they would go all out and take everyone out as fast as they could. As soon as the door opened and 3 guards came into view, Ace fired and shot all of them, before moving quickly out in the hallway, grabbing a fourth man's gun and using it to hot himself and then taking an another man sword, slicing another man and throwing it at another.

Ace would be lying if he said he didn't enjoy this.

To be able to run around and kill everyone that moved, killing bad people without hesitating, was thrilling and pleasing. It felt amazing to not care or hesitate in killing, to just use every skill he had to take everyone out. Ace saw Raiden halfway through the mansion, who looked to be enjoying himself as much as he were, basically dancing around the guards, being way faster than them. As they ran past each other, they split up again, Raiden going left, while Ace went right, going to clear everything out. As Ace moved through the halls and killing everyone that came into view, he noticed it was lessening in how many he met with, which was a good thing since he could see a stairwell going downwards, most likely heading to a basement. If there were any slaves or prisoners, they would be there.

Ace quickly cleared the hallway he was in, before starting to head down the stairs. Ace didn't run into anyone, something that didn't bode well with Ace. There were always someone keeping guard on the slaves. As Ace continued to walk down he was met with a door, after opening it, he understood why there weren't any guards.

There weren't any living people to guard.

Ace could see many bodies, lying in piles everywhere. People in all ages, shapes and forms. This was why they needed to take this man out fast. Even if he were only half as bad as his brother, he would be way worse than any regular Blue blooded patrician. They got prisoners and slaves, usually the best from other Blue blooded patricians and quickly killed them, not caring about who they were. Often dragging their death out and having their sick and twisted fun. The chance of anyone being alive was small, basically non-existing, but one might have been able to hide under other bodies. It wouldn't be the first time.

Ace slowly started to move the bodies, checking everyone for a pulse or any movement.

This was one of the things he detested with his work. Moving dead bodies, children and adult alike. Them being treated like trash and thrown into piles, piles of decay and death. Everybody Ace moved, was placed in a lying position and eyes closed, making them look more at peace. The eyes that stared at him always made him hate that he didn't figure it out earlier, it was like they were telling him 'why are you late?' The completely dead and unseeing eyes of almost hundreds of bodies. When he found limbs lying around, he tried to place it where it belonged. When Ace was halfway through, he was joined by Daisuke, who gave a sigh as he started to help Ace check through the bodies, both hoping to find someone alive, as well as hoping they wouldn't. Not sure which was worse at this moment.

It took time, but after almost 3 hours, they were finished. No one was alive, and the body count was closing in on two hundreds. Nero was just as bad as his brother, he had the same sick traits of dismembering bodies, removing organs while they were alive and making it a living hell. Sometimes, Ace actually believed hell was better than this.

Ace and Daisuke made their way back up to the room where Nero was, going to finish everything. Ace remembers Nero's brother saying he was a saint and God, so why not let Nero get a moment in the sun.

When the people that were coming in some hours arrived, they would come through the main door and into the courtyard, a perfect place to put Nero on display. Ace rarely did this, putting people on display, usually sticking to killing them and letting them be, or dumping them in a populated place to be found. Only the real bad ones got a display like this, which everyone knew was also a warning. A warning that clearly was 'you do the same, you will be next.'

They placed Nero out in the courtyard, directly in front of the doors, and placed him in a kneeling position, pinning his hands on spears from the mansion to keep him upright. Ace used his knife to cut his back and drag the skin half off, pinning them on others spears and making sure they were raised high, appearing to look like wings. As he was finished with the 'wings', Ace quickly marked him with his mark, showing he had been there.

As he had done that, Daisuke had put his guild mark on and Corvo, who also had his own name and mark like Ace, put his on too. Showing the world one thing, this wasn't just a normal assassination. This was a warning, the greatest there was. Not only a warning from Ace, but from the Red Cloud and Corvo too. Saying that not only would they be hunted down by one assassin, but everyone there was, that they were ready to fight, ready to go to war.

Ace would be sure to read what the newspaper said tomorrow, or better, if it became an emergency broadcast, telling everyone that they weren't fooling around.

Ace made sure he was in perfect display of the door, being sure he was the first thing to be seen, before they left, heading back to the Amegakure. Seeing as it was done much quicker than Ace had thought, he stayed with the others on Amegakure for a few hours, before heading back to the boat. When he got to the Moby, he placed himself at the sill like ledge on the whale's teeth, not even changing his clothing, drinking from his bottle of whiskey.

-x-

Marco walked over the deck, heading towards his room to sleep, or at least relax. Ace was supposed to return in a few hours, and Marco hoped he was okay. The way he had left didn't sit well with him, or anyone who had seen it actually. As he was walking through the main deck, which was almost empty since it was nighttime, Marco was sure he saw something moving in his peripheral vision and looked to his side, wondering what it might be. It might have been nothing, it was dark after all. As Marco saw nothing and was on his way to turn his head, he saw movement on the mast and focused there, wondering if it might be what he hoped it was. The first commander smiled when he saw it was Dust, who was grooming his feathers.

Marco smiled as he continued toward the commander quarters, glad to know Dust was back, most likely meaning Ace was too. When he got to Ace's door, he knocked a few times, hoping he were there and was okay. Marco wanted to see he was back and hopefully fine.

It took some seconds, longer than it usually did, but he soon heard a come in from Ace. Marco opened the door and walked in, softly closing the door behind him. When he saw Ace, he saw he was wearing something he guessed to be an assassin's outfit, only a different one from what he usually used. This had no mark or cape, and he could see a mask that was dragged down from his face. It looked like a battle outfit, based on being able to move agile and not having any loose clothing.

Marco gave a smile to Ace, which the assassin returned. ¨How did it go, yoi? You left in a haste.¨ Ace nodded, ¨Yeah, it was an urgent matter.¨ Marco nodded, he guessed it was. ¨Is that a spare outfit, yoi? I haven't seen it before.¨ Ace shook his head. ¨It's an outfit for raids.¨ Marco nodded, that outfit did fit for raids, maybe more so than a normal outfit. And it fit Ace's body perfectly.

Marco was glad to see Ace was fine, at least looking like he was. But there was something, he couldn't quite place his finger on it, but there was something that wasn't completely right. Marco walked closer to Ace, touching his cheek in a caring manner. ¨Are you okay, yoi?¨ Ace gave nod, moving closer to Marco and held onto his shirt and leaning closer to him. Marco was a bit shocked, Ace weren't usually the one for touch and closeness.

Marco quickly smiled and brought his hands to Ace's back, placing them carefully to hold Ace. When a hand let go of his shirt and went to caress his chest, Marco moved his hands to Ace's hips getting a small moan. Marco moved a hand to Ace's cheek and connected their lips for a short second, before deepening the kiss. When it did, he faintly tasted a familiar taste which made Marco frown, hoping it wasn't what he thought. Marco leaned back and looked at Ace, now more closely. Ace's eyes was slightly glazed over and his pupils was quivering slightly. Marco gave a sigh inside himself,

Ace was intoxicated. Marco didn't know how much he had drunk, but he had drunk a lot to make his eyes glazed over, even having a quiver.

When Ace hand moved on his chest again, Marco grabbed it and held it softly as he took it away, shaking his head. ¨Not when you're intoxicated, yoi.¨ Ace looked at him and gave a nod, leaning his head on his shoulder. Marco gave a sigh as he slowly stoked his back in a caring manner. Now knowing what seemed wrong before. Ace didn't slur or was unsteady, but his eyes showed he had been drinking. For all Marco knew, Ace could be drunk. Marco was not going to do anything to someone who was obviously intoxicated. Not everyone was a drunk who slurred and stumbled around, like Thatch had a tendency to do. Whitebeard could appear sober when he was drunk, but he had been drinking a lot for years. Marco closed his eyes for a second, Ace could have been drinking for years, his work was hard. This showed he might have been, no one that young should be able to hold his liquor this good.

When Marco felt Ace leaning more on him, Marco though Ace should go to bed. He was probably tired, having been awake for long time as usual and also being somewhat drunk. Marco moved a bit away from Ace, making him look at him. Marco gave a small smile, ¨You should go to bed, to sleep it off, yoi.¨ When Ace looked down and moved a hand to hold his shirt again, Marco moved a hand to his cheek, making him look back up. ¨I'll stay, yoi.¨ Ace gave him a tentative look, ¨You don't need to.¨ Marco shook his head, ¨I want to, yoi.¨ Ace gave a nod. When he made no movement, Marco slowly brought his hand to Ace's arm and carefully lead him towards the bed.

When Ace sat down on the bed, he instantly laid down on his side, giving a relieved breath. Ace was probably really tired and being tipsy or drunk didn't help. Marco, believing Ace wouldn't take his shoes or clothes off, carefully took his shoes off, before taking his mask off and opening his shirt a bit. Making it more comfortable for the tired assassin. Ace probably didn't like to show he was intoxicated, but didn't avoid it now after he figured it out. Ace did seem more okay with closeness.

Marco moved to put the mask on Ace's desk, when he had put it down, he noticed a bottle on the desk, filled with clear liquid. Marco lifted it and took a quick taste, to see if it was what he believed. The first commander frowned when he was right and was almost shocked to taste how strong it was. It was stronger than they had on the boat and they had strong whiskey. If this was what Ace had been drinking, which it most likely where, he was drunk. Not even Pops would have lasted long on something this strong. When he turned back to the bed, he felt a small smile grace his lips as he saw Ace had made himself comfortable, laying on his stomach as usual, head facing him.

Marco made his way over and softly caressed his head, glad he was relaxing at least. When Ace made no movement and Marco noticed him breathing with his mouth, he understood Ace was already asleep. Marco wondered if Ace would sleep longer than usual and have any reaction to drinking this much. A normal person would have a killer hangover, but Ace had a tendency to impress with how much he could hide.

Marco looked over at Ace's desk, wondering if he should go get some water for Ace to have. You always were thirsty after drinking, and water was the best thing. Marco moved to the door and opened it, on his way to head out to fetch some water. As he was about to close the door, he saw Izou coming out of his room, probably to head to watch. When he noticed Marco coming out of Ace's room, he gave a sly smile and was about to open his mouth, when he cut him off. ¨Can you get a glass of water, yoi?¨ He asked while looking softly at the sixteenth commander. Izou frowned, ¨Why can't you? And is Ace back?¨

Marco gave a sigh, Izou wouldn't leave before he told why. Izou cared a lot. ¨Ace is back, but he's drunk, yoi. I don't want to leave him.¨ He could see Izou looking worried at that as he nodded. As Izou left to fetch it, Marco went back into the room, sitting down on Ace's bed, softly stroking his back. He wished Ace would trust them enough to lean on them instead of drinking. It was obvious he had drunk because of something that happened on his assignment, Ace wasn't fond of alcohol and it wasn't unusual for some people to drink instead of talking, drowning the emotions for a bit. It wasn't long before a knock was at the door and Izou came in, holding a mug of water.

Izou looked at him, ¨I met Pops. He wondered why I was getting the water. I told him Ace was back, as well as drunk.¨ Izou gave a concerned look at Ace. ¨He said it wasn't the first time he have been drinking after an assignment.¨ Marco gave a small sigh, he hoped this wasn't normal for Ace. But it probably was, which caused him to wonder how often it happened. Marco hoped Ace would stop doing it and instead trust them with his troubles and emotions. Marco gave a thank you to Izou, who placed the items on the desk before leaving, giving a goodnight. Marco gave a nod and wished him a good shift as the door closed.

Marco turned to Ace and slowly laid down on the bed too, bringing his hand to lay on Ace's back, softly stroking it. Ace would most likely be fine tomorrow, acting like this never happened. Something the first commander actually wished he wouldn't do. Ace was trusting them more, but it was still a long way to go. But they would do their best to get there.

Marco closed his eyes, hand staying on Ace's back as he relaxed himself. If Ace moved or something was wrong, he would wake up from the movement.

-x-OUTTAKE-x-

Law as nervous, more than he had been in his life. He wasn't scared, but really nervous. He was on his way to meet the brat, Luffy, again. If what Corazon had said was right, they were not just brats, but kids who had close contact with the assassin. How that was even possible, was beyond Law. But they were. Law needed to ask about it. Not if they knew the assassin, but at least ask about the feather, Corazon might be wrong. Law desperately hoped he was wrong, that it was just a coincidence.

As Law got to the ship, he soon found only Luffy and Sabo close to the ship, having something that looked like a picnic, sitting on a blanket and eating on the ground. The young brat noticed him first and yelled out a ¨Trafaguy!¨ Making his eye twitch. The blond boy was looking at him with a cautious look. But there were only the two of them. ¨Isn't Rayleigh-ya here?¨ Luffy shook his head, ¨He's shopping! Come eat, the foods good.¨ Law carefully went over and sat down, sitting some small distance away. Luffy instantly went and started to ramble about some stupid thing he didn't care to fully listen to, rather looking at the feather in the blonds hat. When Luffy paused his rambling, Law decided to dare to ask. ¨That's a big feather, where did you get it?¨ The blond, Sabo, gave a careful look. Before he could answer, Luffy did.

¨We got it from our brother!¨ Law made a small frown, looking at the kid. ¨Your brother?¨ Luffy nodded, looking excited. ¨Yeah! Ace! He's a pirate on Giant banana mustache's ship!¨ Law frowned, ¨What?¨ Who the hell where Giant banana mustache? Luffy tilted his head, ¨The man with the giant white mustache.¨ No, there was no way. Law looked at Luffy, ¨Newgate-ya's crew?¨ Luffy nodded. There was only one Ace on that ship. ¨Portgas D Ace?¨ Luffy smiled like a fool as he nodded, ¨Yeah!¨ Law stared dumbfound. They knew Rayleigh and was traveling with him. But their other brother was the Portgas D Ace? The kid who managed to take on vice admirals and starting off with a 350 million bounty? Just that was intimidating.

¨Where did Ace-ya get the feather?¨ Luffy was on his way to answer, but Sabo cut in. ¨He found it while traveling around when we were younger. Why are you so curious off the feather? It's just a regular, big feather.¨ When Law looked at Luffy, he nodded. Law had a feeling Luffy wouldn't be able to keep his mouth shut if it was Ace of Spades feather, the kid had no filter on his mouth. He blurted everything out. ¨Just curious. Never seen a feather that big.¨ Sabo nodded, sending a cautious look again. Law felt himself calm more down after that.

Seems like Corazon was wrong.

That's the chapter, hope you enjoyed.

I know it might have been a somewhat anticlimactic end with the Blue blooded patricians, but I wouldn't make it a too big thing, but make it a bit big.

And a quick question. Do you like how the story is progressing? I try to put in a bit of everything in each chapter. Having parts of Ace's work, Marco/Ace and Ace being around and bonding with the crew. Is it a good way to do it? Or would you like to see more off one thing or less of something?

I do realize this and the last might not have been the most interesting, but the next ones will be a bit better, at least I think so. I would love some feedback on it, especially since it's way longer than I ever believed it would be.

And if you like this story, please check out Ace of Spades One Shots, which contains one shots and different events from this story.

If you have any requests, questions or if you're wondering about something in the story, feel free to ask. And if you liked the chapter, feel free to leave a review/comment