Chapter 01- Become One of My Sons!!!

Ace clung to a piece of broken ship as the storm roared around him. The ocean thrashed about him; the waves tossed him about violently as he struggled to keep his head above water. Foam filled his senses; it filled his ears, filled his eyes, and with each desperate breath filled his mouth. A large wave came over him and pulled him under. He flailed his arms and legs as he spiraled downward into black water. Exhaustion overtook him and his body went limp. He let go of the board and sank.

A force suddenly pulled his body upward. Even after hitting open air his lungs refused to work. Everything was hazy. The force that pulled him from the depths now pulled him towards a large shadow. Lightning flashed and he saw the outline of a ship. He tried to breathe, tried to cough, but the world began to grow dark. His heart pounded faster as his vision grew dark. Lightning flashed again, but he couldn't see it.

Something or someone was hitting his chest. His vision was dark around the edges, but he saw the shape of a blonde woman shouting above him. At first his body couldn't figure out what to do. Then his chest spasmed and he choked. Then he gagged. Then he bolted up and vomited salt water. His body trembled at the sudden release as he continued to cough.

He was becoming more aware. Someone had propped him against a wall. The rain ended as quickly as it started. He was surrounded by onlookers talking in hushed tones. The blonde woman pressed something cold against his chest. "Deep breath." He did so automatically. "Again." Again. She flashed a light in his eyes. He swiped at the light. The girl grabbed his hand and pressed it down firmly. She flashed the light again. "What's your name?"

He coughed. "A-Ace."

"What's today's date?"

He thought for a moment. "April… ninth."

"Does your head hurt?"

"Sort of." He reached up and felt something wet. Of course, his whole body was wet, but when he brought his hand down it was red. He stared at it. He couldn't remember hitting his head. His body trembled, whether from cold or adrenaline or weakness he didn't know. The girl continued the examination. She held out a flashlight.

"Grab this." He reached out and did so. She placed a finger on his chin and held another finger up. "Follow my finger with your eyes." He did, and she seemed satisfied. "What happened?"

"We found out our captain was cheating us… We took the ship and left him at port…We were going to Trenibo…"

"After that?"

"I forget."

Some of the spectators murmured. The girl turned away. "He's had a concussion. Some anterograde amnesia. No lung or brain damage. He's fine."

Ace looked to see who she was talking to. The man was a giant; it was from him that the spectators radiated in a half-circle. Ace recognized the crescent-shaped mustache from stories he heard. Upon seeing him, Ace felt fear, then awe.

"Whitebeard." The man's reputation was fearsome. Even marines were terrified of him. Ace's mind flashed an image- a memory?- of that man attacking. Had he been fighting that man?

Whitebeard stared at Ace. Ace stood up. He resisted the urge to use the wall for support. Somehow he kept his legs from shaking. The crew waited tensely for their captain's judgment. Ace's eyes never left Whitebeard's. What was the man looking for? Weakness, maybe. But that was stupid. That was stupid, though; anyone could see he was in no condition to fight, let alone take on Whitebeard.

Finally Whitebeard spoke. "So," His voice rumbled. "A snot-nose thought he could sail the Grandline on his own. Your crewmates are dead."

"I'd be dead, too, if I hadn't been pulled out of the ocean." His mind went to the dead crew. He had only spent a few weeks with them; he hadn't spent more than eight weeks with any one ship since he left home four months before. This was the first time he witnessed an entire crew be wiped out. The weight of the thought was too much. His mind put the memory aside, and so he felt nothing about the crew. All he felt was this emptiness inside of unfeeling. He knew he shouldn't have been like that.

"You think you're lucky, snot-nose."

"Yeah, damned lucky." Despite himself, he grinned.

"You say you don't remember. You don't remember, but we fought. You downed five of my men before anyone could stop you. One of them is still unconscious. You're strong, but you're stupid." He drank rum straight from the barrel. "You don't have a captain to follow. As strong as you are, you're too stupid to live here long."

A power came over him, and Ace fell to his knees. Blood dripped from the wound on his hand. Whitebeard was standing. Shanks once told him about the will of men, how it could be used as a weapon. Whitebeard's will came upon Ace, and he felt dizzy. Whitebeard stretched out his hand.

"This is no place for you to die, boy… Take my name upon your back and rage across the seas to your hearts content!!! Become one of my sons!!!"

At first the words had no meaning to Ace. What did Whitebeard mean by son? As if Ace would take a father…! But… the offer was tempting. And he was right. Ace was over his head this deep in the Grandline. He thought he could handle it on his own, but he couldn't. Whitebeard wasn't only being jealous, he was being merciful. Ace knew the rumors. He was lucky Whitebeard hadn't killed him outright. This wouldn't be the case where Ace could just leave. What would it be like to just follow one man? But in the back of his mind, he wanted to follow this man, because then man had called him to be his son. It was a disgusting idea, but attractive nonetheless. What would it like to have a father? One who gave a damn about his children?

"Yeah… I'll join your crew. But I ain't your son." Whitebeard laughed.

"Don't make that call so quickly. Heather, clean him up and break him in." The blonde girl helped Ace up and guided him away. She looked stern, and didn't look pleased to be the one in charge of the new guy.