Chapter 4: The Struggle Within

The night had settled over the mountain like a heavy blanket, the stars dim and distant. Thorfinn sat alone on the edge of the cliff, his back to the howling wind, his eyes fixed on the darkness below. The flickering light from the campfire cast long shadows, but it did little to ease the storm inside him. His Lunarian blood burned, a constant, searing reminder of who he was—and who he would always be.

Thorfinn clenched his fists, feeling the familiar pulse of energy building deep within his core. The power of the Earth Devil Fruit swirled in his veins, volatile and wild, but it was his Lunarian heritage that unsettled him most. His flames. The very flames that had once been his greatest weapon were now a source of terror. He had never quite mastered them—never truly learned to control them. Every time he let his emotions flare, they would erupt, uncontrollable and dangerous.

And it wasn't just the flames. It was the wings.

He could feel them now, hidden beneath his clothes, pressing against his back like a caged beast waiting to be set free. They were a part of him, yet so foreign, so terrifying. They had saved him more times than he could count, lifting him from the depths of danger. But they also set him apart. He wasn't like the others. He never would be. He couldn't just be the big brother, the protector. There was a weight to his existence, a burden he could never escape.

"Thorfinn?"

Thorfinn turned at the sound of his name, his heart stuttering for a moment. Luffy stood at the base of the cliff, eyes wide with concern. His usual energy was tempered with something else now—something soft and genuine.

"You okay?" Luffy asked, his voice full of innocence, as if he couldn't fathom the darkness that loomed over Thorfinn. But it wasn't that simple. Luffy's optimism, while a light in the darkness, made Thorfinn's own pain feel sharper, more isolated.

"I'm fine," Thorfinn replied, his voice cold, but not unkind. He turned back to the night, focusing on the stars, the distant points of light that always seemed so far beyond his reach. "Just thinking."

Luffy tilted his head, clearly unconvinced. "Thinking about what?"

Thorfinn hesitated, unsure how to put it into words. How could he explain to Luffy that the very blood coursing through his veins threatened to destroy everything he cared about? That the fire inside him was just as likely to burn his brothers as it was to save them? How could he tell Luffy that the wings on his back weren't just symbols of power, but chains that bound him to a past he never wanted?

"Nothing important," Thorfinn said at last, forcing a smile. "You should get some rest."

But Luffy wasn't fooled. He took a step forward, determination in his eyes. "You're not fine. I can tell."

Thorfinn felt his heart tighten, the weight of his responsibility pressing down on him. Luffy, with all his boundless energy, had a way of seeing through the walls Thorfinn had built around himself. It was both a gift and a curse. Luffy didn't know what it was like to carry the weight of the past, to be haunted by the powers of a forgotten race. But somehow, Luffy understood the pain of being alone, of feeling different.

"I'm not like you, Luffy," Thorfinn said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I don't know how to control this. I don't know if I ever will."

Luffy's gaze softened. He took another step forward, his presence steady and warm. "We all have our problems, Thorfinn. But we're family. And we'll figure it out. Together."

Thorfinn blinked, surprised by the simplicity of Luffy's words. "Together?" he echoed, as though the concept was foreign to him. He had always believed that he had to bear the burden alone, that it was his responsibility to protect his brothers, even if it meant carrying the weight of his powers on his own.

Luffy nodded eagerly. "Yeah! We're brothers, right? We take care of each other. You don't have to do everything by yourself."

For a moment, Thorfinn was silent, the heaviness in his chest subsiding just slightly at Luffy's words. There was something about the way Luffy said it—so certain, so unwavering—that made it hard to ignore. Maybe, just maybe, he didn't have to shoulder everything alone.

The night dragged on, but Thorfinn felt a slight shift inside him. He wasn't sure if it was Luffy's words or the pull of his own heart, but something softened in his chest. Maybe it was time to let go of some of the weight. Maybe it was time to trust his brothers more, to rely on them as they relied on him.

The following days were filled with an undercurrent of change, a shift that none of them could name but all of them could feel. The intensity of their training under Garp had only grown, pushing all of them to their limits. But the tension in Thorfinn's chest didn't ease. If anything, it only grew. Every time he called on his powers, he felt the unpredictable surge of energy inside him, threatening to spill over.

One evening, as they trained in the clearing near the base, Thorfinn found himself at the center of an impromptu sparring match between Ace and Sabo. The sounds of their strikes, their grunts, and the crackling of their haki powers filled the air. The boy was locked in a battle of his own—fighting the urge to unleash the power coursing through him. But when Luffy suddenly dashed into the fray, shouting in his usual exuberant manner, everything changed.

"Big bro! I can do it too!" Luffy called out, throwing his fists wildly at the air as he attempted to mimic the moves of Ace and Sabo.

Thorfinn's heart skipped a beat as he watched Luffy's recklessness, his own instincts screaming at him to step in, to shield his younger brother from harm. But then, something stopped him.

Luffy was fearless. Luffy was relentless. And though Thorfinn couldn't deny the fear that gnawed at him every time his brother put himself in danger, there was also something else—a quiet pride. Luffy's dream, his vision of the future, was something Thorfinn could never take from him. No matter how much he wanted to protect him from the dangers of the world, Luffy was destined to follow his own path.

The boy closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. The fire within him swirled, threatening to break free, but this time, Thorfinn focused on the earth beneath him, grounding himself, letting the tension ease, just for a moment. His flames didn't burst forth. His wings didn't erupt. He held it in, just as he had always done.

But for the first time in a long while, Thorfinn felt something shift within him—a small but undeniable spark of hope. Maybe, just maybe, with his brothers by his side, he could learn to control it. Maybe, together, they could face whatever the world had in store.

"Alright, Luffy," Thorfinn said, stepping forward, a hint of a smile tugging at his lips. "You want to be the Pirate King? Then show me you've got what it takes."