Chapter Text
The white void was silent. No pain. No wind. No blood. Just endless white stretching in every direction.
Portgas D. Ace slowly opened his eyes. His chest no longer burned where Akainu's magma had pierced it. It was Gone.
"...Pops?"
A few steps away stood Edward Newgate.
Whitebeard looked exactly as he had in his prime—not younger, but whole. The wounds that had covered his body at Marineford were gone, his naginata resting calmly against his shoulder.
"Gurarara..." Whitebeard chuckled softly. "Looks like I am back here."
Ace looked confused; was Whitebeard here before? And where exactly were they? What kind of white world was that?
A gentle voice interrupted the silence.
"Welcome."
Both pirates turned.
A woman with pale skin, dark hair, and kind black eyes stood before them. She wore simple black clothes, her smile warm enough to ease the fear of anyone who looked at her.
There was nothing frightening about her.
Only peace.
Whitebeard smiled immediately.
"...It's good to see you again."
Death smiled wider.
"And you too, Edward."
Ace blinked.
"You...know each other?"
Whitebeard nodded.
"When you've spent as much time knocking on death's door as I have..." he said with a laugh, "...you get acquainted."
Death chuckled.
"He was always very polite whenever we met."
"I kept telling her she'd have to wait a little longer."
"And you usually won."
Ace was still confused; not understanding anything, Who was that girl? Whitebeard laigted and told Ace that girl was Death. Ace’s jaw dropped in shock? THat nice girl was Death? Death in person?
“Oh, I bet you were expecting something like a skeleton with a black cape and hood, holding a scythe, right?” Death jokes
Ace scratched the back of his neck.
"..Actually yes.” He said, embarrassed.
For a moment, the three shared a quiet laugh.
Then Death noticed something. Ace wasn't smiling anymore. His shoulders had sunk. His eyes were fixed on the endless white floor.
"You have something weighing on your heart."
Ace clenched his fists.
"...I don't regret saving Luffy." His answer came immediately. "I'd do it again."
Whitebeard closed his eyes. He knew that answer before Ace even spoke it.
Ace swallowed.
"But..." His voice cracked. "I broke my promise."
Death listened quietly.
"I promised him..." Ace whispered. "...that we'd keep living."
Images flooded his mind. Luffy screaming while holding his lifeless body.
"I..." Ace's hands trembled. "I left him."
His breathing became uneven.
"I made him watch me die. I made my little brother think he wasn't strong enough."
A tear rolled down his cheek.
"I wanted..." His voice almost disappeared."I wanted to say goodbye. I wanted to tell him none of it was his fault."
Whitebeard remained silent.
His own heart ached.
Ace looked up at Death.
"Is..." He hesitated. "...is there any way to talk to him? Just once? So he doesn't spend the rest of his life blaming himself."
Whitebeard finally spoke.
"...If that's possible. my friend..." He looked into the endless distance."...I'd like to see my sons one last time too."
Marco.
Jozu.
Vista.
Izo.
Every commander.
Every pirate who had called him Father.
"I left before I could tell them how proud I was."
Death's gentle smile never faded.
"It is possible."
"It is?" Ace's eyes widened.
She nodded.
"But..." She raised one finger. "I'll need my little brother's permission."
"...Brother?" Both pirates asked simultaneously.
Death giggled softly.
"Dream." She spoke his name fondly. "He governs dreams."
Ace and Whitebeard exchanged confused looks.
"...Dream?"
Death nods. She tells them that Dream is rather serious.Too serious for her taste, but he's kind in his own way. Ace tilted his head, commenting that Death makes him sound difficult.
Death laughed.
"Oh, he absolutely is."
Whitebeard couldn't help smiling.
"So...we need to convince him?"
"I'm afraid so."
She extended both hands.
"If he agrees, I can guide your souls into the dreams of those you wish to see."
Ace's heart raced.
Dreams...
Luffy was probably asleep right now. Probably crying. Probably blaming himself.If he could reach him… If he could tell him to live, to become king of pirares, find new dreams and adventrues and mostly important; die in old age.
His fists tightened with newfound determination.
"I was a fool while I was alive."
He looked straight ahead.
"I let Akainu's taunts control me.I threw away the future everyone fought so hard to protect. I can't change that."
His voice became firm.
"But If Luffy spends the rest of his life following my example then I'll have failed him twice."
Whitebeard rested a large hand on Ace's shoulder.
"You won't."
Death smiled warmly.
"Come."
The white void dissolved around them like mist.
In its place appeared an endless kingdom of stars, libraries, impossible staircases, and countless doors leading to every dream ever dreamed.
Somewhere within that infinite realm...
...the King of Dreams awaited them.
And for the first time since Marineford...
Ace felt hope.
To be continued it