Title: Greek Fire

Words: 3800

Pairing: Marco/Ace

Summary: AU slice of the War of the Best, giving Ace a chance at survival. See end for 'ideas'.

Greek Fire

Emporio Ivankoff twisted, trying to avoid Akainu's attack and prevent him from hitting the Mugiwara brat, but Luffy's elastic body stretched from the gravitational whirl of the move, and the hot splash of magma was able to partially reach at least one of its targets, splattering across the teen's chest.

Ivankoff gasped in pain as a few stray drops of molten lava burned his arm and side, causing him to drop the boy, but that was nothing compared to the utter smoking ruin that was Luffy's chest. The boy was choking, gasping, still unconscious and yet able to feel the horrific pain that was forcing him to wake. Ivankoff saw his mouth move and then suddenly his eyes were open wide in shock and terror and pain.

He screamed.

His normally relaxed rubber body went rigid, limbs contorting, eyes rolling back into his head as he immediately fell back unconscious, but the scream had already escaped and had caught the attention of not only a smirking and triumphant-looking Akainu, but also the attention of every other marine and ally in the surrounding area, which happened to include Knight of the Sea Jinbei who was making his way across the iced-over ocean with Fire Fist Ace in his hands.

Marco heard the scream amidst his attack on Kizaru and it roused his anger enough that his speed increased to catch the Admiral with his haki-covered beak, scoring deep across the lazy man's rib cage, making him curse and fall back to the earth in shock and surprise.

Buggy heard it and shuddered as he flew overhead, trying to make his way to the ship where his new-found followers would be able to shield him as they escaped. His feet, momentarily frozen by the sound, jumped once in place and then continued to scuttle after his fleeing body.

Whitebeard heard it and his anger reached new-found levels, setting the ground beneath everyone's feet rattling and shaking just from his emotions alone. His bisento struck the ground, his fruit power resonating through it into the newly cracked earth, causing granite shards and mountains to crash up into the air as he roared.

Garp heard it as he slowly regained his feet from where he'd landed after Luffy's punch had sent him to the ground, and while his mind belonged to the marines, his heart always belonged to his grandsons, bad choices be damned, and his heart ached to hear little Luffy in so much agony. In a moment, Sengoku was behind him, gripping his arm and keeping him in place; otherwise he would have gone to him, loyalties not meaning a damn thing when the blood of his heart was in pain.

But those were tiny reactions in the grand scheme of things, for that scream had one other consequence that Akainu hadn't forseen. A grave consequence, and one he would come to rue – if he got the chance.

Luffy's scream woke up Ace.

Ace, who was dangling limply from Jinbei's arm as the fishman thundered towards the wall separating them from the open ocean. Ace, who was bleeding out in a heavy torrent from the hole in his side thanks to the magma fists of Admiral Akainu. Ace, who heard his little brother scream in a voice so filled with pain that for a moment, the Second Division Commander almost didn't recognize it.

Until he did.

His eyes snapped open, he turned to fire, and slithered free of the fishman's grip before Jinbei even realized what he'd done.

He could see Luffy in the distance, sprawled on the ground and clutching his chest, eyes wide and unseeing, and there was Akainu stepping past the fallen Iva who was weakly reaching for the Admiral's cloak with his remaining good arm in a last ditch effort to halt his approach to the fallen teenager.

Ace could still feel the blood streaming out of him, knew now firsthand that magma could smother his flame. He needed more. He needed to be hotter. Hot enough to melt and dissolve even magma itself. He needed to protect his baby brother – his brother, who was risking his life and his dream to save the worthless spawn of the devil. He needed...

A millenia later, historians studying the War of the Best would compare his attack to Greek Fire – the legendary fire so hot that not even cold sea water could put it out. They weren't that far off the mark.

Jinbei had turned around and tried to follow Ace, but suddenly stepped back in shock – and in pain. Burns sprouted up all over the surface of his exposed skin and he held his arm up, unable to stare into the roaring white-hot inferno that Ace had suddenly combusted into.

The ground beneath his feet boiled away, ice dissolving into nothingness as the immense heat evaporated the water before it could even form, rocks crumbling into charcoal and burning away. White flames burned with a bone-rattling intensity that seemed to sizzle and almost vibrate in place. Where Ace's normal red and orange flames seemed to wrap around its targets, enveloping them and all but dance on the warm currents he generated, this flame was a white blade meant to disintegrate.

All around Ace, allies and marines alike were scrambling to back away from the deadly heat that was radiating out, causing first and second degree burns on anyone up to twenty meters away and the equivalent of severe sunburns up to fifty. A marine caught within a few feet of Ace as he changed, only had time to scream before he all but liquified.

o0o

Marco watched, in horrified fascination as the Marine dissolved away to nothing, every last physical trace of him - bone, flesh, blood and all - burning up and disappearing as though he'd been blasted with the internal acid of a dragon or some other mythical creature.

Akainu didn't seem to realize the danger he was potentially in. He was moving in on Luffy, less than twenty meters away from the boy when Ace moved.

The Admiral sensed his approach and whirled around, thrusting a magma-fied fist in Ace's direction, a confident smirk on his face as he awaited what he no doubt thought would be Ace's instant death. Lava drops flew back as he timed what he knew would be the perfect punch, one that would put an end to Roger's bloodline once and for all.

His fist impacted against solid white flames, and he let loose a cold, cruel smile of victory.

Until he realized the white flames weren't crumpling, turning back into a dying human body.

They didn't even waver.

Instead of the sensation of Firefist's body impaling on his magma fist, Akainu felt a strange bright sharpness and shock pushed itself through his system at a speed too fast for him to fully comprehend. He blinked, once, twice - and then stared dumbly at the white flames eating away at the stump of what used to be his hand.

His hand was gone.

It wasn't reforming.

It was simply gone, the white flames cauterizing the stump and not only that, those same white flames were continuing to eat their way up his arm, dissolving the magma inch by inch.

Where he had smothered Ace's flames, Ace was now burning his magma away into nothingness.

Akainu suddenly felt something he hadn't felt in years.

Fear.

Then unbelievable pain overtook him and he let out a scream of his own, automatically clutching at the flames in an attempt to keep them from eating any more of him. The white flames didn't even flicker, punching through his other hand and continuing to dissolve everything they came into contact with.

Within thirty seconds of Ace's only attack, the Admiral was left without his hands, and the damnable fires from Hell were still working their way up, reaching his elbow on his left, and his wrist on his right.

Akainu screamed again – and then Ace, still in a white, flame-formed column, flew at him with blinding speed, barreling into Akainu's chest, and compressing himself into a small ball that tried to bury itself deeper and deeper. Akainu watched in shock as his chest began to dissolve and opened his mouth.

He never got the chance to scream again as Ace exploded.

White light erupted in a blast so bright and hot it made everyone see dark spots flashing in their eyes, all exposed skin turning bright red. Akainu's body flew apart in chunks of magma and white fire followed every single piece, eating up every last trace of the Admiral.

Smoke and the nauseating scent of searing flesh filled the air, making those with weaker stomachs wretch in revulsion. Blood sizzled and popped out of existence, skin, muscle, hair, all burning away so fast it looked like they simply disappeared. Not a trace was left – no soot, charcoal, burn marks, nothing. Everything that was the Admiral seemed to just be gone.

The man couldn't even begin to reform as the flames destroyed every magma-fied piece of him, vanishing him off the face of the earth. Within seconds, nothing was left of the Admiral.

And still, Ace continued burning, white fires boiling and permanently scarring the landscape.

Across the field, Marco had watched in a combination of awe and horror. Ace had defeated Akainu (to put it mildly) but as he continued to watch, he realized that Ace wasn't changing back. He was still formless, a living white flame that was growing, and now endangering the lives of everyone there. Most importantly, he was endanger of accidentally killing his brother, who was lying a short distance away, skin blistering.

Marco didn't hesitate.

Transitioning instantly to his full phoenix form, Marco spread his wings wide and flashed across the battle field, heading fearlessly for his partner. He wasn't afraid of Ace's fire, no matter what form it took. He was a phoenix – he was born in fire. Not only that, he was a magical phoenix with powers he himself didn't fully understand at times. Ace's flames couldn't – wouldn't – hurt him.

His phoenix was crying out for him to rejoin his mate, to join his fire, to become one as they always had before, and Marco always followed his instincts. Marco unleashed the part of his mind that restrained his abilities and fully opened his observation haki, focusing it as hard as he could, narrowing the band until all his senses were tuned on Ace and Ace alone.

Pain, rage, terror.

Marco jolted, his head snapping back. Ace couldn't control this new power.

Still in shock and in pain, Ace was fast losing himself to his own element, and soon it would grow and overtake everything in its path like a wild fire through a parched field. With Ace out of control, the flames wouldn't recognize friend from foe and none would be spared.

Marco would not allow that to happen. He was the First Division Commander. He was the First Mate of the Whitebeard Pirates. He had a responsibility to protect each and every family member under his wing, most especially Ace himself, and he would do so right now. He let out a piercing shriek, his phoenix singing in harmony with him, at ease with what he was about to do.

Marco didn't pause as he approached his partner, but let loose the phoenix powers within him. He could feel his wings shifting, feathers melting to pure flames, his form flickering and becoming gold and blue fire to match Ace's white. Form disappeared, leaving only flame – a bullet, an arrow of undying power aimed true to his partner.

Then he crashed into Ace's fire at the very heart of it.

And disappeared.

o0o

That was what it looked like to everyone watching. As far as the Whitebeard Pirates were concerned, Marco had just made a suicide run and been instantly disintegrated.

Jozu froze in place, eyes wide in disbelief. Nearby, Izou's makeup couldn't hide the whiteness of his face as he watched his brother's actions; his precious guns fell from his shaking hands and he didn't move. Division members dropped weapons from suddenly nerveless fingers.

Jozu found himself muttering an old prayer he'd learned as a child and hadn't thought of in years.

Even the Marines were halted in their tracks, unbelieving of what they were seeing.

Shock swept across the battlefield, overtaking everyone who was watching that eerie fire that was once the Second Division Commander, but before anyone could begin to scream or cry, familiar color suddenly bloomed in the heart of the white flames.

It grew – blue and yellow fires swirling and twisting, wrapping themselves around the blazing column of white heat and forcing it to take shape. A human shape.

The piercing shriek of the phoenix in battle filled the air as the elegant swan-like head suddenly appeared, nuzzling the slowly-shifting head of the human shaped fire; blue and yellow flames becoming wings that were wrapped around the white flames and forcing them back into a familiar form. White edges of fire began to show a yellow tinge; a faint hint of color that grew, turned to orange and then finally, a very familiar red.

The phoenix crooned, low and soothing, still nuzzling and rubbing its head against the flames that slowly, achingly slowly, turned back into flesh and blood. Fingers appearing out of fire, the faint outline of a chest and torso that still possessed a grievous wound. Flames spun around two legs encased in familiar, if filthy, black shorts.

Finally, Ace's face reformed, flickering in and out of solidity until finally Ace was whole, staring wide-eyed at nothing. He stood there, fully flesh once again, body rigid in its shock, and Marco's flames began to retract until he was standing behind the fire user, arms wrapped tightly around Ace's trembling shoulders, anchoring him in place.

The hush that had fallen over the battlefield with Marco's dive-bomb into a raging inferno hadn't broken. No one moved, as if to do so would break whatever spell was keeping Ace in human form.

"M-Marco..." Ace breathed, unable to move.

"You're safe, Ace," Marco said quietly, forehead braced against the back of Ace's neck. Beyond their frozen tableau, he could still hear screaming and the distant sounds of fighting, but for a brief moment he had Ace in his arms and he felt a measure of peace go through him. "Enough now. You won."

"Luf...fy..." Ace's eyes were fluttering shut. His familiar red flames were flickering, growing smaller and smaller, about to go out.

"Shhh..." Marco hushed him, lifting his head and nuzzling Ace just behind the shell of his ear. "He's safe too. We're going home. Go to sleep, love."

"Marco..." Ace's eyes fell shut, strained muscles relaxing as his mind went under and Marco had him in his arms before his body could even consider falling. A medic timidly made his way over, holding a wad of bandaging to pack into the cavity Akainu had made in Ace's torso. Extra bandages were wrapped around his waist to hold the packing in place.

Ace was still badly hurt, but Marco was confident he would heal. He had come too far to fall now, and Marco wanted to get to know this new power of Ace's – it had felt amazing to the phoenix, intense and invigorating as opposed to the red flames that his phoenix always curled up in, soothing and pleasuring. There would be plenty of time to experiment later. He would make sure of it.

Meanwhile, Ivankoff had regained his footing finally and had used his own hormones on himself to block his pain receptors long enough to get him and his precious cargo out of there while they could. Marco waved him and Luffy on, glad to see the boy still breathing. Ace would never forgive himself if Luffy died while trying to rescue his big brother.

Every person on that field had felt a strong urge to protect the teenager who had done so much and risked so much for Ace, and Ivankoff's retreat to the water was covered by arriving allies and Ace's own second division.

He could feel Jinbei behind him, waiting. Marco wanted nothing more than to hold on to Ace, to be the one to get him to safety, but his duty was clear. His allies were still fighting, various divisions running for the ships, some helping others or outright carrying fallen brothers. Marco needed to be there. Jinbei understood that, and when Marco turned, the fishman was there, ready to re-accept his chosen burden.

"Please, Jinbei..." Marco's voice shook ever so slightly.

Jinbei nodded solemnly. "I will get him out of here, Marco," he vowed in a guttural tone. "Go and guide your men. They need you."

Marco watched as the fishman began running, Ace situated on his back, tanned arms dangling loosely over Jinbei's massive chest. He easily caught up to Ivankoff, lending a hand to the wounded okama. They moved swiftly, allied pirate crews, including Whitey Bay herself, lending a hand by playing defense.

They would escape.

o0o

Marco's inner phoenix screeched at the separation from his mate but he was able to restrain himself and he resolutely turned his back to his fleeing friends, and his gaze upon the remains of the waning battle.

His father, wounded and bleeding, was still standing, directing his men, his sons, to leave the area as he swept his bisento in a side-to-side motion, cracking the air in front of him. The ground split beneath it, and a wide trench, hundreds of feet deep, seemed to encircle the remains of Marineford, leaving hundreds of Marines stranded on one side – and his family on the other.

Whitebeard's power was beginning to falter, Marco could tell. He knew his father's order before he spoke, and he could feel his heart break.

"Leave me, my sons! This is the order of your captain – you will go now!"

Marco switched to phoenix form and flashed forward towards his father, only to pull up short as his captain aimed the tip of his bisento in his direction. He let out a grieving croon, and Whitebeard gave him a warm smile.

"It's alright Marco," the great captain spoke, surprisingly gently considering the battles taking place around them. "My time is over – I knew this. You did as well, though I knew you would never admit it."

Tears streaked down the phoenix's face, dampening the fiery plumage.

"Ace said I was a good father," Whitebeard mused, almost thoughtfully. "If a child such as he, raised with such hatred and despair in his heart, was able to say such a thing, it must be true, neh Marco?" He settled the end of his bisento into the earth, massive blade aimed towards the sky. "I can only hope I was."

Marco couldn't take it anymore and transformed back into his human form. "You are, oyaji," he gasped, letting his tears freely fall. "Ace said it, and he was right. The name of this era is Whitebeard!"

His captain smiled, and for a moment, Marco felt nothing but love and pride for his captain, for his family and what they had accomplished together. Then reality settled back in – the Marines were regrouping on the other side of the trench, and Aokiji had already begun constructing bridges of thick ice sheets to let them cross over in an attempt to chase down the pirates trying to make their way back to the safety of the ships.

"Take care of Ace, Marco," Whitebeard said quietly. "He'll need you, and you will need him in the coming days." He smiled. "And keep an eye on that reckless brat of a brother of his."

Marco couldn't speak anymore; his throat was tight and his heart was far too full. All he could do was nod and hope that was enough. Then Whitebeard was waving his bisento at Kizaru who had circled around and was targeting him again.

"Go! Marco!"

And Marco fled, transitioning to his his phoenix form and grasping two of his fallen brothers by their arms in his talons, determined not to leave anyone else behind, no matter what. He could see Jozu stacking up members of his fallen division like bleeding, moaning cord wood, carrying four over each massive shoulder. Izou was propping up a member of fifth division, both of them firing with their free hands to cover Haruta and Speed Jiru who were directing members of their own divisions to help anyone having trouble walking.

If the situation weren't so serious, Marco would have laughed at the sight of Blenheim stuffing wounded pirates into the pouch spaces in his cheeks, one after the other. Then Fossa and Atmos were at the rear, striking the ground with their massive weapons, using the shock waves to trip up the advancing Marines just enough to create some space between them and the pirates.

Marco took one last look at his father – standing strong, even as he was slowly dying from the massive wounds dealt to him by Kizaru – and then tossed the two pirates he clutched in his talons at the waiting Kingdew who caught them neatly and ferried them off to the infirmary. Marco swung around to repeat his task and stopped short at the sight of Blackbeard appearing to the west, a contingent of pirates at his side.

Whatever happened next wasn't going to be pleasant, he knew. But Ace and Luffy were safe, his divisions were slowly but steadily being retrieved and treated, and the battle had to be coming to an end, and so Marco let out a piercing screech – and flew back into the thick of it.

-end-

Note: Greek fire was an oil-and-fire mix used as an incendiary device by the Romans and worked well in Naval battles because it kept burning atop the sea. It was the same color as normal fire, from what I've read, so yes, I know white fire isn't Greek fire. I used it to parallel: Greek fire burned even over water. Ace's new flames burned even over magma. Now whether fire can get hot enough to dissolve something or combust it into nothingness, I have no clue and claim artistic licence. Hell, if a Nazi can be liquified by ghosts in an old chest (thank you Indiana Jones), then so can a random Marine and Asshole—I mean, Akainu, who is one of the greatest personifications of evil ever to be found in an anime.

So, IDEAS - This scene just came to me after reading far too few 'Ace survives Marineford' stories (there needs to be more, dammit) and I figured I'd leave it as is for now. It's a good starting point for any AU fics I may want to do after, but don't feel like doing right now since my focus should be on TYD first and foremost.

SO - If anyone else wants to do a continuation of this or use it as a prompt, please feel free to do so – I find a lot of people would like to see more Ace survives fics but find starting from scratch from the war an intimidating starting point – most just want to get on with the healing and the post-war stories. I totally get it. This snippet alone took almost three months to do. .;;

If Ace and Luffy are rescued by Law directly after this fic, or if they made it to WB's ship and Law followed them there, or even if Law is left out – take it however you want. I hope someone will play with it – I may not get a chance to for a long time yet. :) Feel free to post it as a first chapter before you post the continuation, or leave a note telling people to read this first to avoid confusion - I dun care. :) I just want to see more post-war, Ace-survives fanfics and I will help in whatever way I can. :)

Feedback always encouraged and greatly appreciated.