Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or its characters. I only have ownership over the characters I have created.

Trying to escape from the Marines after one of the largest battles in history wasn't easy. Doing so in the midst of a storm from hell? Damn near impossible. The First Division Commander of what remained of Whitebeard's crew recognized the severity of the situation as cannons fired around him. A flash of lightning lit up the sky long enough for him to see the three Marine ships approaching the one he led. Thunder rumbled moments later, intensifying the cannon-fire. Blue flames licked the air around the commander as he hovered above the battlefield momentarily. Spotting his prey, he dove for the nearest ship and the man at his bow. The target was a Devil Fruit user and the one who'd created this hellish storm that hindered the pirates' escape.

The giant blue phoenix known as First Commander Marco was quickly approaching the Marine ship; flames burning brightly even in the torrential downpour. Cannons served no purpose against him, as the Marines knew well. Their only hope for the moment was to distract the phoenix. It was for that reason they focused their manpower on the pirate ship, where the remaining members of Whitebeard's crew were. Marco constantly glanced back at his ship, but never felt the need to turn back. His brothers were strong and could handle a few cannons.

"Captain, look out!" one of the Marines yelled out when he realized Marco's destination. 

The captain merely smirked and, with a quick motion of his hand, a strike of lightning passed straight through the phoenix. Marco froze in the air, his screams sounding like a strangled cry as his body arched back. He plummeted from the sky at an alarming rate as the flames disappeared from his body.

"Marco's been hit!" a member of Whitebeard's former crew yelled over the raging sounds of battle.

The Third Division Commander, Jozu, glanced at the last place he'd seen Marco. Sure enough, the phoenix was nowhere to be seen. With their leader gone and the Marines quickly closing in, he didn't know how they were going to escape this time.
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All was peaceful on the island of Lacrime. The sun was shining brightly, the sea was calm, and the breeze was gentle. It was a day the inhabitants of the island saw often. A pair of bare feet walked across the sand of a quiet beach, sandals held in the owner's hand. She was thankful for being out of work on such a beautiful day, and she smiled as the breeze picked up. That smile quickly fell when she saw the body of a man lying on the shore.

"Dio mio," she whispered in shock as she ran to the man's side.

He was unconscious on top of a large piece of driftwood, but still breathing. The woman stared at him for a moment, wondering what had happened to him and how long he had been left on the beach like this. The man looked to be older than her by at least ten years. He was very muscular, sunburned and had blond hair matted to his head. Wha the woman found oddest about his appearance was the red tattoo on his chest and abdomen that was revealed from beneath his open, torn white shirt. The tattoo looked like a cross with an arch going through it. It was something she had never seen before.

"What do you do now, Crista?" she asked herself, mumbling softly.

She studied the man for another moment before putting her sandals on and sliding her arms under his shoulders to pull him up. After much struggling, Crista managed to stand up with the much taller man weighing heavily against her. She stopped to catch her breath and began the trek back to her village with the stranger on her back.

Author's Note

I would like to give fair warning that the use of Italian will be used throughout this story. I will be trying to keep it as grammatically correct as possible. There will be only a few places where I will not translate for you, and that is because they are crucial to the story. All other translations will be in these author's notes.

Reviews

[Solitary Dreamer]

Awesome story! I really liked it!