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"Never make me a promise, Senny."
Sengoku had forgotten Garp's words throughout the years; they'd been new cadets, roommates, drunk off their first successful mission and not only that. Sengoku had said something, slurred it more like and had moved to make a promise. To always have Garp's back in missions perhaps, or something similar. He didn't get to finish his words; Garp had stopped him mid-way and with more seriousness than he had ever before and after showed, demanded in no uncertain terms that Sengoku should never promise him anything.
"D promises are different. You don't wanna go make one randomly. And never to me, got it?"
Sengoku had made sure to never promise Garp anything, but forgotten about the conversation altogether. Hadn't even thought about it again until now, looking at the war that had come to a sudden halt, the carnage and screams frozen in stillness as everyone looked to the centre of the plaza.
Blood dropped on the ground. Cooling magma sizzled on the ground. And Garp's fist was punched clean through Akainu's chest, black with Armament, Fire Fist looking in shock, back still angled to take the hit that had been meant for Strawhat Luffy.
Garp had been on the scaffold until a moment ago. Had been next to Sengoku. Had kept himself from acting even if the Fleet Admiral could see what it cost his friend.
And now he was there. Eyes red, glinting unnaturally, fist drawing back with a sickening squelch of blood before aiming another punch at Akainu's still twitching body, sending the admiral crashing in a half collapsed column.
"I made a promise, Senny."
Garp had said when Sengoku had demanded to know why he had saved the Pirate King's son. Why he'd hidden him away. Why he called him family.
Now, as the roar of battle changed to screams of shock, Sengoku realised that he should have pestered Garp more about the reason why D promises were different.
"Gramps?"
Ace couldn't help but stare in shock at the man behind him, at the blood pooled on the ground and the burns that were the only remnant of the admiral. The fire logia didn't need to look in the direction where Akainu had crashed to know he was dead. He didn't need to acknowledge the jeers of joy and the shouts of shock. All that mattered was Garp standing behind him, eyes burning red - since when did he have red eyes - and blood still drip, dripping off his arm. There were burns on his hand, vicious ones that showed now that he had dropped his Armament, but it was as if he couldn't even feel them.
His haki felt off, a mix of rage and hatred and grief, but magnified, making Ace almost cough with its intensity.
"Ace?" Luffy's voice came out small and scared and fuck, they had to get out of there like yesterday, this had been too close but Gramps was still not moving, frozen in place after he'd - killed, fuck Gramps had killed a marine for him and his eyes were still glowing red and Ace didn't -
"Go," Garp's voice came out rough, almost garbled, inhuman in the way it was pitched and now that Ace was looking closer there was blood on his lip where fangs - fangs? - had pierced through skin. "Ace, go."
The command slammed into him, made Ace jolt back to his feet and grab Luffy in his arms, and start running towards the Sea again, back turned the chaos that was being unleashed behind him.
He heard screams, the crunch of bones breaking. Felt the ground shake and shake and shake. Closed his eyes for a single moment and remembered a story from when he was a kid. Gramps sitting both him and Luffy down. Telling them to never let anyone else make them promises. Telling them not to make promises to each other.
He'd broken that rule. What would have happened if he'd broken the promise too?
"D promises are different. Especially D to D. I only ever made one."
Ace hadn't asked back then. He'd thought them just Gramps' stupid rules. Now - now he was not so sure anymore.
"Boss. You might wanna see this."
Shanks did not like the sound of that. He did not like the sound of anything that had been happening since Ace's execution had been announced - damn Newgate and his pride and his refusal to listen - but he liked even less Beck's voice all dark and worried as he called Shanks back to the visual comms that he had left behind lest he lose all control over his haki and sink the Red Force before they reached Marineford. The only bright thing was that they were getting close to the damn shore and -
"Is that Garp?"
Shanks could not help but hiss in shock watching the vice-admiral punch clean through Akainu - and he didn't think how close it had been, too close, Ace wouldn't have parried that hit, not if it meant it would hit Luffy. Garp's eyes flashed red, unnatural red and Shanks couldn't even sigh in relief that the kids were okay - that his kid was okay - running away from the thick of the battle, flanked by Jimbei and surprisingly enough Crocodile, Marco still keeping Kizaru at bay, because what was happening behind them was nothing short of carnage. Garp's fists were coated black, his eyes flaring red, luminous, unnatural red and any marine that made the mistake of trying to follow after the boys met the same fate as Akainu. The old man didn't even seem to be tiring.
"Fuck!"
"What's happening?"
Shanks wasn't sure who asked. Maybe Yas' or maybe Hongo or Gab? He wasn't sure because he didn't even stop to answer, simply Shaved away from the Red Force, remembering the day when Roger had sat him and Buggy down, told them about promises. About when to make one and when not to.
"Remember boys, don't make a promise to a D. Not if you can't keep it. The Sea will hold you accountable to it even past death."
"But Captain, what if a D makes a promise to another D?"
"No one would be fool enough to do that."
Shanks had to get the kids away from the island before Garp made it sink, because only the Sea herself would be able to stop his rampage. And she was merciless to those that almost broke their promises.
Roger hadn't asked him to promise. As the blood of too many marines dripped on the ground of Marineford, Garp could not help but think back to that moment. Roger fool that he was, telling him about Ace, asking him to look after his kid, but not making him promise. They both knew better; both knew what a D promising to another D meant. What kind of force it could unleash if the Sea believed the promise was about to be broken.
Rouge, on the other hand. Rouge hadn't cared.
She'd held her baby and with her last breath demanded that Garp protected him. That he did anything in his power to make sure her baby would live. And fool that he'd been, he'd promised.
His awareness came back in pieces, like a trickle that dripped and dripped and dripped, bringing him back to a reality he'd have to leave soon. The cold was the first thing he felt aside from the cloying blood on his hands. The waters around his ankles, rising slowly, their bite sharp and cold. The burns of his hand and arm ached in a far away manner and Garp turned his attention to them. The skin was wrecked, vicious and red where the magma had touched, and he figured they should have hurt more than they did.
The island was groaning around him. Marineford breaking apart in chunks, the stone giving way to the Sea's slow claiming. The screams and the clamour of war had stopped at one point. He wasn't sure when, but it was only him left behind among thousands of corpses that had not been reclaimed.
The only thing he knew with certainty was that the boys got away. He remembered the flash of red that had nothing to do with the red that had settled over his vision. The older brat's haki presence strong and protective. His crew must have been there too and his ship. Garp didn't remember them arriving, but he'd felt them leave. Ace and Luffy had been two flickers of life and consciousness that he'd felt until they slipped too far away and then he stopped knowing anything else.
The Sea rose to his knees, but he didn't fight it. He merely sat down, let the current sweep him off while another section of the plaza cracked and tilted and slid beneath the surface. He was tired; he thought he might have been tired for so long. Scared for even longer.
Ever since Rouge had looked at him. Risked everything and made him promise. Damned them both. Garp wasn't sure if she'd known; if she made him promise knowing it would come to this. If she simply didn't care because her child was more important.
Ace was alive, Luffy was alive. That was what mattered. They were alive and far away from here, even if he would not get to know what the future held for them.
The Sea whispered around him. You almost broke your promise, She reminded him. Pay the price, her Waves demanded. Garp sighed and allowed the water to rise over him. Let it wash away the red from his hands.