Important a/n at the end of the chapter! Story related!

*

She had a death wish. At least that's what she thought. And yet, there she was, running through the halls, trying to figure out how to get out of that labyrinth.

Not only that, but she was desperately dragging someone along with her. It was her mother, who now was in a very weakened state. It was (Name)'s duty to save the woman in her arms.

Not only that she was her mother but also, she was the one who gave Ace a second chance; a second life.

By that point, (Name) took way too many turns to understand where exactly she was. Plus, she didn't had time to go all the way back. That would only mean losing more time.

Her hands trembled as she tried to keep her mother as close to her as possible. This sucked! She wasn't exactly happy that she got captured, but by given the said circumstances, she thought that this wasn't the worst thing it could've happened. Plus, she was able to free her mother. If she was not to be captured, her mother would've been dead by now.

The main problem was that she couldn't find the god damn exit!

But as she took a small turn, she realized something. This was way too suspicious. Why wasn't there any staff? Where the hell was Doflaningo anyway? Either this was all planned or something more important than keeping two prisoners locked was happening outside.

(Name) gulped at the thought of someone finding out that Ace was alive. From that point on, Ace had to be hidden away from the people's eyes. He escaped death once but it sure won't happen a second time. He couldn't just pop out of nowhere and decide that he wants his old pirate life back. Not after being declared dead. Not after the entire world found out about the blood he was carrying. It was practically suicide.

But deep inside her, she knew that Ace was a senseless moron who didn't care a living thing about what was the right thing or the wrong to do. He always did what his mind was set to. Sometimes, she thought it was blessing. Some times, such like these, she feared for the worst.

"(N-Name), listen to me." Her mother said as she gripped her shirt. "I'm not going to make it." She said. (Name)  only clenched her teeth and gave her mother a short glare.

"Shut the hell up! I'm going to save you." (Name) said with an angry tone. What her mother did not see was the fact that (Name) now had tears in her eyes.

It was hard for her. She just learned that her mother was alive after years of thinking she was dead and now she was dying again. This time, in her arms.

But (Name)'s strength was also fading away. Her fell on the ground next to her mother, who leaned against the wall. The girl processed to let out a cry out of frustration, not before  starting to hit her legs. This wasn't happening!

"It's alright. I'm okay with this. At least... At least I- I got to see you before I fall asleep." Her mother whispered as she grabbed her daughter's hand and held it with a smile.

"No! You won't die!" The girl yelled as she crawled closer to her mother, with tears streaming down her cheeks.

"My time was running out anyway. There's nothing I could've done about it." The mother smiled at the confused young lady in front of her. "Using that power required giving my lifespan to the person the power is used on." She explained, making (Name) grip her hand tighter. "Why did you do it then?" She asked confused as she tried to wimp away the tears.

"Because I love you." Her mother said, making her eyes to shot wide open. "I love you and I know how much that boy meant to you. I may have disappeared from your life but I was still your mother."

With her eyes wide open and her hand covering her mouth, she let out a small sob before begging to cry.

"You're so stupid!" She yelled before jumping into her mother's arms. The woman immediately welcomed her into her arms. She was in so much pain right now, that everything around her began to feel numb.

"T-there's something I have to tell you." Reiko said, making (Name) look at her. "My powers are bound to Ace. Meaning-"

"If you die, he dies." Her daughter's eyes widened as she said that out loud. She gripped her fist. "Why didn't you tell me that! Do you even understand how important this is?!" She yelled, holding back her tears.

Her mother gripped her shirt a little tighter than before and looked into her daughter's eyes, as she was overwhelmed with pain... The pain of seeing her daughter cry, again.

"(Name)... L-look at me." Reiko said as her daughter was looking at her hands, crying. "I'm going to do one final thing for you... I'm dying anyways so that doesn't bother me. But you have to listen carefully."

(Name) let out a sob as she looked into her mother's eyes. She never realized this... They had the same color as hers.

"I'm giving you my powers." Her mother said. Everything around the two of them seemed to have froze. The only thing (Name) could hear was her breathing. The world completely seemed to have changed into a monotone like state. Everything around them felt blue, cold, distant.

How was that even possible? Why was she sacrificing so much just for her?

Her mother smiled at her daughter who seemed to be absolutely conflicted on whether she should accept that or not. Unfortunately, that was not her choice. She was going to do it anyway.

Because she was her mother.

"N-no, I can't-"

"You will..." Her mother tried to speak as loud as she could. "I will rest easy to know that at least I had something to give you before I pass away." She smiled. "You have to... I will give you the power. This is something only this devil fruit can do. It passes it's energy to the person I desire." Her mother said.

"But..."

"You'll see everything..." Reiko said as she began to feel lightheaded. It was her time. "And I'm sorry... That I couldn't be the mother you deserved..."

Suddenly, (Name) felt the urge to scream. It was like a million little knives were entering her body. This strange energy was eating her alive. Or so it felt.

She wanted to cry, she wanted to tell her mother that she loved her so much but she couldn't do anything. The pain was something she had yet to experience before.

But then she suddenly became aware of what the pain was all about. Small bits of information were entering her mind with each little knife penetrating her.

And then everything stopped. It was quiet. (Name) couldn't bring herself to open her eyes. She felt the need to cry, to scream. She felt all kinds of emotions as she watched, unknowingly the life of her mother.

But then, she found herself watching the war all over again. This time, in her mother's perspective.

*

So finally we are getting to see how exactly Ace was saved.

I want to first address this super cliche devil fruit. I believe that might actually be a very powerful paramecia devil fruit.

Manipulating the energy around people literally means you could kill someone by taking away their energy. Of course, in order to be able to do something like that, you need to have experience with this devil fruit and to understand how it actually works.

This devil fruit has two known awakenings: the power of giving someone else your energy (literally meaning that you can save people from death) and the power to be able to pass these powers to another person.

But as you all recalled, now, there are two Mera Mera no Mi and you'll see why next chapter. Ace said that he had to give up his devil fruit powers but that did not happen. You'll see exactly what happened next chapter.

Now, regarding the chapters to come, I'm not yet sure how I want to write the Dressrosa arc. I do not see Ace taking a big part of this arc. Yes, he is alive, yes, he is Ace for god's sake, but keep in mind that he is still recovering.

Going straight​ into a fight will not do him no good. But at the same time, Ace is Ace so yeah... But I really don't see Ace going around, punching people in the face while he still has a huge hole in his chest that he still has to heal.

I feel like now, it's your time to throw some punches. Maybe get a little revenge on Doffy while you're at it? But, I'm not sure about that either since getting devil fruit powers doesn't mean you instantly become over-powered.

I just want to finish Dressrosa as soon as possible since we all know what's about to come.

Ace is going to meet Kou. I can't wait for that. But also... If you're up to date with the recent episodes of One Piece, you all know what's about to happen in Baltigo. :)

All I have to say regarding that, is that Kou won't be around for much longer. ;)  you decide what you want understand from this.