16 Chapter 16 Trafalgar Law Interlude

A Lot of things can change a person's perspective of the world, how people act, the way they talk, the circumstances under which they were born, family, and so many different factors that play into what shapes a person for the rest of their life.

I was born on Frevlance Island, a mining village, birthed from a kind pair of doctors that did everything they could to make me happy. Sounds like the beginning of a fairy tale story right?

Well, everything isn't as it would seem from the eyes of a child, from the time I was five years old I began to notice something was wrong with my parents and everyone in the village. Young people would die young, people began wearing masks while people with weird symbols on their jackets began patrolling around our town like it was some kind of prison.

I wasn't going to say I was the smartest kid ever but even I could tell something wasn't right. I lasted almost a year until my curiosity got the best of me and I confronted my parents.

That was the day when my world broke apart for the first time.

I had a time limit on my life. My parents told me that they, as well as generations before them, contracted a disease that was passed down from parent to child. The worst part was it was an evolving disease, no child ever lived longer than the parents. That was the way of the 'Amber Lead Disease'.

My parents studied the disease their entire life hoping to find a cure, that was how I found out I wouldn't live past my twelfth birthday. I was distraught, sure I never put an actual time frame or even put a number on how long I'd like to live, but finding out there was a defiant limit was groundbreaking.

However I didn't despair, I had my mother and father as well as my little sister with me, and we supported each other with unconditional love. With that in mind, I lost myself in research, page after page, book after book, medical report after medical report, all in the hope of saving not myself but my little sister.

It wasn't long after my eighth birthday three years later that I had surpassed my parents in knowledge and skill,they who had twenty more years of experience lost to a child.

They were joyous and flushed me with unending praise while proclaiming me a prodigy in the field of medicine. At that time I really felt that I had a chance in four years to find a cure or at the very least a preventive measure to give me more time. But I did tell you this wasn't a fairytale story, didn't I?

After my ninth birthday a year later something odd occurred, the government ended the quarantine on my village. Everyone jumped for joy as the Marines moved out, obviously assuming some genius found the cure. I wasn't so sure because after countless hours of research and experimenting on my own body I came to a startling conclusion.

Every organ, every bone, even my very skin was all infected, an absolute miracle cure was downright impossible, at least with conventional medicine.

But still, I held out hope that somebody other than me managed to crack the code. I've read about many amazing doctors and scientists around the world that were undoubtedly more capable than me. Like the great scientist Vega Punk and the best doctor in the Grand line, Doctor Kureha. With so many intelligent people in this world I along with everyone else took the quarantine ending as a good sign. We were all fools.

On a day not unlike any other the World Government sent 'them', the 'Extermination Squad'. I watched as my people were gunned down in broad daylight, not a soul willing to help us. They treated my people as if we were a plague on this world knowing that the disease was non-infectious. It wasn't long before they made it to us, my parents, being the intelligent people they are, hid me along with my sister under the dead bodies of our former neighbors. I watch through the eyes of a child as my parents were killed like rats in the street. Nothing, no tears, no anger, just absolute stunned silence was all that came from me.

My sister, however, couldn't control her emotions as well as I. She wailed and cried from under one of our neighbors. I watched the group of exterminators turned around as one, surrounding the body my sister hid under. Seconds later they unloaded every bullet in their weapons into the corpse, ending my sisters' life.

This was the day when my world broke for the second time.

I managed to act perfectly like a dead body in the boat they were using to transport corpses in. In my anger as well as my unending desire for revenge, I swore I would kill without remorse until the day I died, any marine, their family, a celestial dragon, or anyone I could get my hands on. Because this world is without kindness, it is a worthless mockery of anything resembling a good place as the Government would want you to believe.

Luckily for me as well as my new goal in life, I somehow made my way to Spider Miles by my tenth birthday. This place was famous for housing the baddest guy in the North Blue, Donquixote Doflamingo, the undoubtedly strongest and most evil man in the North Blue.

So how does a ten-year-old child convince a cut-throat insane pirate to let me join him, well that was the easiest part of this journey? I just had to prove I was just as crazy as them, I strapped a suicide vest to my chest and charged into their base, obviously, I didn't make it far. But I made it far enough that I could've flattened most of this place.

It was only minutes later that the man himself showed up with an ear-to-ear smirk.

He only asked me two questions, why and what was my goal.

I just matched his smirk and said 'to prove myself and to kill Marines and government agents.'

He laughed for about twenty minutes after that, easily taking a liking to me, the same couldn't be said for his mute brother. The dude was an asshole, who messed with me so much that I got tired of it and stabbed him. Breaking one of the only rules of the crew, the blood law.

But surprisingly the bastard didn't say a word and it only took the promise of ice cream to get Buffalo who was the only witness to not say a word. After that, he left me alone for a while.

It was only a few weeks later that I was having a conversation with Baby 5 and Buffalo who I considered my only friends. I decided to tell them a secret about myself, I couldn't say why but I told them anyway. My true name was Trafalgar D. Water Law, they both thought it was cool I had a secret name, well we were all kids and all. But then that bastard Corazon grabbed me up and threw me in an alley, what happened next shocked me.

"Was that your true name, you're of the clan of D?" The person I always thought was mute began to speak?

"WHAT THE HELL! YOU CAN TALK!" I yelled, it was only seconds later that all sound from the bustling crowds and stray voices disappeared.

"D..devil fruit powers.." I said in disbelief watching all sound in the area disappear without a trace.

"Yeah kid I ate the calm calm fruit, that's beside the point, answer my question" Corazon said with rising impatience as he grabbed a smoke.

"You've been lying to everyone! Are you even a clutz?" I asked with anger at this 'Fake'.

"Obviously not, it's all part of the act" He said while lighting his smoke, along with the entire right side of his jacket. 'Yeah right, fucking weirdo'

"Yes that's my name, is there a problem," I said with a sigh.

"Yes, there is, leave now. Doffy will torture you once he finds out" Corazon said to my shock and disbelief.

"We'll see who he tortures once he learns you're a liar, hahaha" I said with a laugh as I ran away towards the dock, where I knew Doflamingo was.

I didn't say a word however, It was all just to get revenge. I owed him for not telling on me for stabbing him. So I just wanted him to stress a little. A day later I wished I did though.

The bastard kidnapped me from the main ship and started taking me on a trip to every damn hospital in the North Blue, having us thrown out of every single one because they viewed me as less than dirt. The World Government spread a rumor that 'Amber lead disease' was contagious, causing the hospitals to call in the exterminators to chase after us.

At first, I thought it was a torture he was putting me through, you know, look at this kid, not one human in this world gives a damn about you. But one night a few months later I woke up to him crying over my sleeping body.

He cried and said he wanted me to survive, he admitted he thought I was a little asshole but hearing me talk about my unavoidable death broke his heart. He swore on everything he was that he would find me a way to live.

I was shaken, it was the first time since my family was killed that I actually found somebody that gave a shit about me. From that moment on I knew I couldn't hate the bastard, so I decided the next day I would show him a weird letter I received from one of my 'Family members'.

"Breakfast is ready Cora," I said, hitting him in the head with the ladle to wake him up.

"W..wh..what did you call me," He said with tears in his eyes at the nickname.

"S.s..shut the hell up and eat. I have something to show you." I said embarrassed as I threw the plate at him. It was only five minutes later that we both finished breakfast.

"Ok, so what is it?" He asked curiously. I sighed before handing him a crumpled-up letter I had hidden in my shirt.

"I got that about a week before you kidnapped me, It was addressed to Trafalgar Water Law, I never told anyone my full name at that point so I was a little scared of somebody I've never met knowing it. For the longest time, I assumed it was one of your pranks that you were doing to get me to leave the crew but now…. I'm not too sure." I said as Corazon began reading it out loud.

'Dear Trafalgar Water Law

I know of your condition and seemingly inescapable death but worry not because your cousins got your back. I have a guaranteed way to heal you, just a warning it won't come free. I know this letter seems odd and you may be a little shaken, but I'm sure a kid with your intelligence can understand the need for subtlety, considering your current allegiance and all. But enough of that, If you do decide to take the chance and listen to me. Go to the Tavern in Embassa city located in Duel Kingdom, the bartender Kai will immediately recognize you and give me a call. Oh and if I see any 'flamingos' you can consider the deal off and I'll be gone like the wind.

Your family

Daniel Darius Demetry'

"Huh….. well that is odd…. What's up with his name?" Corazon said with a confused look.

"I didn't understand it at first either until you went crazy when you found out my name, he left a space between Trafalgar and Water, and all of his names…." I said trailing off and waiting for Corazon to connect the dots.

"He's a member of 'D' and he knows you are as well, all of the other names were just a code," Corazon said with widened eyes.

"Yeah… so what do you think?" I asked him.

"Well it sounds too good to be true, but I honestly think we're out of options. Luckily Embassa city is only a few days away from us, so we might as well see."

"So, you want to head there now? You really trust this suspicious letter." I said.

"Ehh, this guy obviously knows the significance of the name D, for him to expose himself to you like this is an olive branch for trust. If you knew more you'd understand." Corazon said while packing up our bags, well at least until he slipped and fell backward onto the still simmering ashes of our fire.

"Yeah but from what he said I'll have to go alone, you can't come…." I said with a frown as I helped him pat down the embers from his jacket.

"And why is that?" He asked before he basically disappeared, I looked around frantically for him but I couldn't even find a trace of him.

"See? Can't even tell I'm here" Corazon said from above, sitting on a tree branch. 'Oh yeah! If he makes no sound he's more or less invisible.

He was right about the time frame though, it only took us about three and a half days before we were in front of 'Embassa city inn and tavern'.