Loss And Found

For some reason looking at the smile on Seagull's face caused a chill to run down Michaels back as it reminded him of his old coach and his sadistic training. Remembering those times only seemed to bring a grin and a look of unwavering determination to his face that surprised Seagull. Looking at the big man Michael told him that he was ready and asked Seagull to teach him all he was willing to.

"OK brat the first order of business is to make sure you can read and write the common language as you cant very well survive in this world without knowing how. As you don't seem to know much of anything about the world you are living in we will also get you up to speed on that, so at least you won't seem like a lost lamb when you start your adventures.

During this time you will be doing light exercises between lessons till you get your body in shape and you no longer look like you could blow over in a strong wind. When not exercising or studying, I want you to be working on developing your devil fruit abilities.

Since you will face no major bottlenecks the faster you can fully awaken them the bigger advantage you will have. Now since I'm sure we are both hungry why don't you go down and see if you can use your devil fruit ability to catch some fish for our breakfast, it will make for good practice"

Looking at the water Michael thinks, 'Ahh what the hell, why not... It's not as if I can drown now and I am pretty hungry..." Thinking of the all you can eat buffet below him causes his mouth to water. Taking a breath Michael Jumps into the cold depths below and allows himself to sink deep below the surface. Immediately he feels a connection with the water around him.

It felt like a comforting hug from a loved one. Michael enjoyed this sensation a lot as it brought back memories of his mother. Staying still in the water Michael closes his eyes and revels in the feeling for a while. As he continues to focus on it he soon comes to realize that the feeling is growing stronger.

With shock at this realization, he suddenly comes to and the feeling fades away. Opening his eyes and looking around in confusion he wonders what it was that just happened. Putting such thoughts aside, for the time being, he returns to the task that brought him down here.

Remembering how quickly he managed to swim before, Michael wonders if he can do so again. He will need to if he wants any chance at catching a fish in its home turf. Another thing he will have to practice is controlling his speed so he doesn't go crashing into anything.

With a look of concentration on his face and about to try swimming he suddenly comes to a stark realization. He can't see anything down here... That's a problem and Michael is not sure what he can do about it. Racking his brains until his mind comes back to the feeling he had when he got in the water.

With no other ideas to go off of, he decides to give it a shot and see what happens. Closing his eyes and stilling his thoughts Michael tries to recall that sensation once again. Concentrating on the feeling of the water around him he starts to sense the connection and feels it start the grow and strengthen and instead of pulling back as he did before this time he fully embraces it.

Growing stronger and stronger, Michael can feel this connection grow as he becomes ever more aware of the water around him. Sensing the immensity of the sea he was submerged in, pressure starts to build within his mind. It felt like all the water in the world was pressing in on him and it kept getting stronger to the point that it became painful.

Letting out a painful scream as the pressure came to a crescendo, he felt like his head was going to explode with the pain becoming unbearable. On the verge of passing out and desperately trying to hold on Michael felt something pop within his mind. All at once the pressure was gone and in its place was something incredible.

All around him where there was once nothing but blackness, Michael can now see in incredible clarity. Perhaps 'see' is the wrong word as his eyes were still closed and when he opened them nothing but dark abyss met his sight. Regardless of what his physical eyes could detect his mind was seeing everything around him like some sort of sixth sense.

It was beautiful and almost overwhelming as all around him, swirling and moving currents of blue filled his mind stretching out almost one hundred feet. As Michael looks closer within this mass of swirling blue he can see small bits of black.

Wondering what it was he tries to look closer and suddenly felt his view magnify and those tiny black specs turned into large shapes of what seemed to resemble shrimp. No shrimp he knew of were that small so after a bit of thinking and remembering what he learned in biology class he comes to a conclusion.

Michael becomes pretty sure that what he sees within the blue water around him is plankton, or at least this world's equivalent. He is still not sure if all the people and animals of this world are similar to his old one since the seagull looked the same but his new teacher is taller than any human ever born on earth.

Amazed by his ability to magnify such tiny creatures till they were easily seen he starts to wonder why they look like a void of black within the vibrant blue. While Michael tries to think of a reason for the black color and wonders if that's just what they look like in this world, a much larger black shape darts by.

Turning his attention to this new discovery he senses a fish shaped mass that's color was the same black as the plankton. With this, he realizes that it isn't their color but instead was a void that showed the space in the water that their bodies took up.

After figuring out the mystery he becomes curious if he looks the same within his mind's eye so he turns his attention to his body. Instead of the black that he was expecting, his body is a shining white with of a light shade of a blueish green teal looking color pulsing in a soft glow throughout his extremities from his chest.

Captivated by the sight for a moment, Michael then turns to the direction that the fish went in. Moving to swim, he once again shot off into the distance. Shooting in a straight line, he was moving so fast that it was hard to tell if he was passing anything.

Sensing the blue swirling that was the water in his mind's eye seemingly coming to an end he realized that what he sensed is the wall of the cavern. Remembering what happened the last time he was in the water Michael desperately tries to come to a stop. With the wall of cold hard stone getting closer he realizes that he will not be able to slow down in time.

Bracing to meet the wall more intimately than he would ever want to Michael puts up his arms in an attempt to shield his face. With a crash that rocked his whole body, he impacts the stone and immediately feels searing pain in one of his arms. Looking, Michael blanches at the sight of his arm angled in a way that it was not meant to.

Trying not to freak out at the sight of his obviously broken arm Michael wants to try going back to the surface to see if Seagull has any way to heal his or at least set the bone, but hesitates. Thinking that he doesn't want to move and crash into anything else and make it worse Michael becomes frozen in indecision for a moment.

While wishing that this hadn't happened he suddenly feels his broken arm start to tingle and the pain starts to fade away. Looking at the white shape of his arm Michael sees that the teal glow has amassed around the broken part of his arm. Seeing that his arm is slowly moving and realigning itself Michael is stunned.

Wondering if his fruit's abilities came with some sort of regeneration he becomes excited with thoughts of an undying body running rampant through his mind. Focusing his senses on his arm to magnify his sight, he wants to study how his healing ability works.

With a much closer look at what's happening, Michael can see that the teal color in his body is slowly disappearing into his arm likely to act as fuel for his regeneration. Wondering if this means that his regeneration is finite and can only heal so much before it runs out, he tries to see where this teal energy is coming from.

Following the energy back along its path from his arm Michael traces it all the way back to his heart where he can sense a whirling mass of it. Seeing the mass of teal energy, he wonders if this is where it is produced but discovers that this is not the end of the trail. As the whirling ball is sending out its teal energy to heal his arm, he can also sense many darker traces flowing into it.

Heightening his focus and sharpening senses he can tell that these darker shades of blue look very similar to the water around him and following one of the many small bits of this darker energy confirms his thoughts as he can see it being absorbed through the pores of his skin from the water all around him.

Seeing that his regeneration comes from an outside source cools his dreams of invincibility, as he is now pretty sure that it will only work when submerged in water but he will have to test it further to make sure. Waiting for a few minutes sees his arm now completely healed from an injury that would take a few months to mend in his old world.

If all that has happened before truly wasn't enough evidence then seeing his mangled arm heal in moments, before his very eyes, drives home the fact that this new world is strange and fantastic in ways that he has yet to fully understand.

Now free of injury, Michael puts aside any intention of trying to chase down a fish before he can get a handle on his movement in the water. For the next two hours, Michael becomes a blur zooming to and fro through the water as he tries to learn the finer details of controlling his momentum and turning abilities.

At one point he realizes that actually moving his arms and legs in a swimming motion is not needed for him to move through the water. All he has to do is will himself to move and it is as if the water itself propels him forward. After learning the unnecessary movement he was making was actually slowing him down things become more intense.

With his speed increased Michael tries even harder to control his direction and momentum. Taking what he learned from his ability to will himself forward, he applies it to making himself stop moving. All at once, from one hundred to zero, he suddenly stops moving and unprepared for the abrupt halt it causes his stomach to drop and him to almost vomit.

His practice continues with Michael slowly but surely getting a handle on his underwater movement. Getting the hang of going forward and stopping the then tries to turn and maneuver with precision. After trying for a while it becomes clear to Michael that learning this and applying it with great speed and agility will not be accomplished in a day and will take much practice to master.

Once he is confident that he will no longer be running into any walls and that he can at least turn when slowed down, the hunt begins. It does not go well for Michael... When he finally finds a suitably sized fish and tries to chase it down the damn fish once it feels him getting close darts off in another direction and by the time he slows down enough to turn the fish is out of the range of his senses.

This continues with his growling stomach driving him on for hours and hours of continuous chasing of fish and the slow refinement of his directional control. After all this time Michael finally gets his hand on a small, foot and a half long, fish and grabs it with a firm grip.

Feeling his grip, the fish panics and starts thrashing in an attempt to free itself but Michael refuses to lose this meal after all his effort. After securing his grip Michael takes off for the surface. Adjusting his speed, he shoots out of the water and with a show of great balance and grace manages to stick the landing.

'HAHA If I was an Olympic judge id give myself perfect tens!!' Thinks Michael with a big smile. Turning he spots Seagull, still sitting on the same spot. Walking up to him Michael says, "Hey Seagull check it out.. I did it!! I finally managed to ca... ... ..."

His words get stuck in his throat... As he gets up next to Seagull, there on his other side sits four huge fish easily double to triple the size of the one he managed to catch. With a twitching eyebrow and a grimace forming on his face he turns a questioning glare towards the man casually sitting there as if nothing in the world is out of place.

Seeing the dark look on Michael's face Seagull lets out a laugh that is quickly followed by a cough and a grimace of his own. "*cough*cough*cough* UGGH Boy you keep making me laugh and you're likely to send me to an early grave BAHAHA".

"WHAT'S SO FUNNY HUH?!?! I was down there for hours trying to catch this damn fish and then I come back up and here you are sitting fat and happy with those four monsters! Why was even down there if you could have just caught this many fish by yourself?!" Michael replies giving a humph at all the injustice in the world.

"Brat, tell me this... Did you discover anything about your abilities down there?", asked Seagull.

Hearing the question Michael replied with an unwilling yes. "See.. as long as you learned something then it was time well spent.", Responded Seagull with a bright smile that was unpleasant to Michael's eyes.

Letting out a grin at the grumbling boy Seagull tells him, "Well now that we have something to eat, let's cook these up and then get some sleep... I'm sure you're tired after all that exercise so rest well as tomorrow we will be starting your lessons and training." With this said the two work together to prepare the fish for cooking, with Seagull doing the majority while showing Michael what to do and how to do it.

In this way, the second day in the cavern came to an end with Michael falling asleep to thoughts of all he will be learning in the coming weeks.

Waking up Michael goes to look for Seagull to start his lessons and finds him in the main room of the building he was sleep in. Walking up, he sits down on the ground with Seagull sitting in front of him. "Well lad, let's start with the basic structure of this world"... Like this Michael starts to learn all he can about the world around him.

For weeks these lessons go on with Seagull doing his best to teach Michael all he could to prepare him for when he goes to the outside world. He knows deep in his bones that the lad he has taken as his student will eventually get out of here.

Even though the underwater tunnel leading to the outside is filled with treacherous currents, getting through won't be too difficult once he has enough mastery over the powers of the Leviathan. Seagull just isn't sure if he will manage to see it himself. Even though he yearns to breathe the fresh sea air once again, he can feel his sickness creeping up to strangle the last bits of life from his tired body.

Knowing he is coming to the end of his time Seagull musters every bit of his will to fight through the pain and hold out for as long as he can. He wants to make sure he is able to finish teaching as much as he can to the boy he has started to see as the son he never had.

As Seagull made an effort to keep the pain and struggle from his face as to not worry his student, Michael was unaware of his teacher's failing health. Absorbed in all he was learning he was fascinated, hearing about how the world is mostly made up of vast oceans with various islands dotted throughout and no significant landmass besides the Red Line.

He was shocked to find out that where he had woken up was the top of the Red Line and hearing about just how big it truly was made him thank his lucky stars that he was able to stumble across the valley with the tree when he did.

Knowing that if he picked a different direction in the beginning, he could have very well wandered until he collapsed and died of dehydration and exposure without ever seeing another person brings a shiver down his spine.

He heard how the oceans are mainly split into four main seas that were called the North Blue, the East Blue, the South Blue, and the West Blue. He then learned that there were also two other seas as well being named paradise and the new world respectively.

He heard how they are separated by the Red Line and something called the calm belt where supposedly there is no wind at all and the water is filled with sea monsters that Seagull called Sea Kings.

Seagull taught him about how located on different island various kingdoms rule the people living there. He learned how there is much inequality between different classes of people in some kingdoms while others treat their people more fairly.

Next to be explained was the World Government and how they controlled all the different kingdoms effectively ruling the whole world. When he heard that Michael asked how it was possible to maintain their control in such a big world with natural barriers separating different parts of it from the others.

That brought up the Marines which Michael learned was the main military force of the World Government, their role as the guardians of peace and justice. He learned that they had control over the only easy access to all six seas and how this allowed them to regulate travel to different regions strengthening the government's hold over the world.

At first, Michael was amazed at how such a large governmental body could exist without collapsing from infighting but upon asking this he learned of those that rule this World Government. The World Nobles, who like to be called the 'Celestial Dragons' which Michael could only imagine was to stroke their ego.

Hearing about this group that ran such a huge government, Michael was at first admiring them for accomplishing such a great feat until he heard how they acted. Hearing how when the World Government was first formed the original World Nobles gave themselves unlimited rights and power so that they and their descendants could do anything they want with no repercussions, dumbfounded Michael.

He wondered what those original World Nobles were thinking that led them to make such a stupid and selfish decision. They had successfully united the whole world under one flag and had the chance to create a system that ensured lasting peace and prosperity through the generations only for them to say 'fuck that we do what we want'.

Michael couldn't think of a better way to ensure that the future generations of World Nobles became nothing more than corrupt scum that committed every sin imaginable. Thinking over that decision to make themselves above the law, Michael realizes that these World Nobles were corrupt from the very beginning.

Michael asks Seagull about this and he confirms Michaels's worries, telling him about the slavery and oppression that the World Nobles revel in. He asks why the Marines allow them to do this since it is there duty to protect the people even if it's from their superiors.

Seagull told him that many don't see it that way and view the World Nobles as gods and follow their orders to the letter. Others were just as disgusted with the Noble's actions as him but they believed that it was better than allowing the pirates to run rampant.

Not understanding that logic as replacing the World Nobles doesn't mean you have to let criminals run free and do what they want Michael brings this up to Seagull. When his teacher hears his student liken pirates to nothing but criminals Michael receives a smack from the man, with Seagull telling him that he was a pirate and that not all of them were bad people.

Michael is told that many pirates just want to be free and adventure the seas. When asked why they don't just call themselves adventurers instead of pirates Seagull explains that it is not them that choose the title, but that it is what the World Government labels those that do not abide their oppression and are not afraid to fight for their right to live the way they choose.

Seagull tells him that unless he hinds himself away, that once his abilities become known if Michael is unwilling to submit to the World Government and join the Marines to become a weapon for them to use he will be labeled a pirate as well.

Hearing this makes Michael grimace from the thought of someone with the balls to try and force him to their will. Thinking over this Michael thinks to himself, 'Forced to become a pirate ay?... Well so be it then.. Becoming a pirate could be pretty fun, sailing on the high seas battling with marines and other pirates alike then after kicking their ass I can rob them blind HAHAHA... Hell, even one of my favorite movies is about pirates... OHHHHH... YES! I know EXACTLY what my name will be in this new life HAHAHAHAHAHA Yes!! It's perfect!!' Thinking up to here brings a huge smile to Michaels's face which weirded out Seagull when he saw it.

His lessons continued with Michael also exercising his body and practicing his devil fruit powers as well. Spending all his free time chasing fish allows him to progress quickly in mastering his maneuverability underwater, with him getting a little better each day.

Through trying to shield himself from the water pressure he felt when moving at high speeds he has also discovered that he has the ability to manipulate water. He was able to create something similar to an oblong bubble of still water around himself to defect the water pressure he felt.

This allowed him to greatly increase his speed once again as well as heighten his agility and maneuverability in the water. After discovering this he tried to control water while he was on land and after some trial and error, found that with a high level of concentration he was able to pull it off.

He was not very good yet and it took a long time and total focus to get the water to move the way he wanted. Even with his current limitations he still thought it was awesome and was reminded of those waterbenders he saw in that movie The Last Airbender. Though that movie was admittedly horrible, it did give him inspiration on what he could develop this new ability into.

All the fish that he has caught has helped him eat enough to start filling out his body and as time goes on he is no longer so scrawny. Looking now like a stout young man Seagull encourages him to increase the time and intensity of his workout. This further helped his body develop defined muscles and had Seagull notice how he was starting to grow rapidly gaining almost an inch every few weeks.

Quickly outgrowing his tattered shorts that had once been a pair of paints, Seagull takes one of his own old pairs of pants and takes it apart at the stitching. After taking the pants apart he uses some thread that he had in his pack when he arrived here to put together a makeshift pair of pants sized to fit Michael's growing frame.

When asked if it was normal to grow so much Michael was assured that it was fine as people Seagull's height was not unheard of and in the new world, they were not very rare. Michael was even told how his teacher has seen a man reach as tall as twenty feet though he found that hard to believe.

After six months Michael has mastered how to read and write in the common language and was just about done with the ancient language as well. At eight months after coming to this cavern and meeting his teacher he has learned all that Seagull was willing to tell him about.

Michael tried getting his teacher to tell him more about the story about the ancient war and the genius that created the devil fruits but all he said was that if he wanted to know then he had to venture out and discover it for himself.

Seagull did tell him about the various poneglyphs though, and how they are found throughout the world. He told Michael that they recorded information about various things pertaining to the history that the World Government tried to cover up and shared the location to a few that he called Instructional Poneglyphs telling Michael that it was a hint to get him started.

It was also explained to Michael that there were four special "Road Poneglyphs" that existed. they showed the location four islands that when mapped out created a giant X. The cross-section of this X is the location of the last island called Raftel which is where Seagull said that all his questions could be answered.

Continuing his workouts, and while Seagull wasn't around, practicing his martial arts and trying new ways to combine them with his powers, a year finally passed since the time he arrived in this cavern. Deciding a few weeks prior that this would be taken as his birthday since Michael couldn't "remember" his real one they decided to cook up a feast to celebrate.

Leaving his room and seeing that Seagull isn't out yet Michael goes to wake him up. Getting to his room what he sees through the empty doorway causes him to go pail. There on the ground, lying face down not moving, is his teacher that he has spent the last year of his life with. Fearing the worst, Michael rushes to his side and turns him over to see if he is breathing and to check for a pulse.

Seeing that Seagull is still alive brings out a sigh of relief but he finds that his breathing is very shallow and his pulse is weak. Worried for the life of his mentor Michael somehow manages to pick up the large man from under his arms and drag him over to his bed. With much effort and determination, he gets him up on the bed and feeling that he has a bit of a fever runs to go get water and a cloth.

Wiping his brow in an attempt to keep his temperature down Michael can see him start to stir. Slowly opening his eyes Michael is shocked by how haggard he looks all the sudden wondering what is happening he can only wait for Seagull to fully awaken. Taking a moment to realize where he is and seeing the worried looking boy in front of him, Seagull realizes what must have happened.

With a weak voice, he says to Michael, "Don't look so down boy... this was bound... to happen... eventually.. I am just glad.. that I was able... to finish my last task... hmmm... its been so long.. tell me, have you ...thought of a name.. yet?.."

Blanching at these words of his teacher and how much effort it seemed to take him, Michael can feel tears fall from his eyes. He tells his teacher, "Jack.. I have decided to go by Jack Sparrow"

Hearing this brings a smile to the withered man's face, "Jack Sparrow... hmm... It's a good name.. Sounds like... the name of a pirate...."

(A/N: From here on I will be calling the MC Jack for his new name)

"I'm glad you like it teacher.." Choking down a sob at the sight of this man that has done so much for him when he didn't have to.

Seagull waves for him to come closer and reaches up to take off a necklace that had been hidden beneath his shirt. It had a pendant in the shape of a four-pointed star with the bottom point stretching longer than the others making it appear similar to a cross. With the necklace in his hand, Seagull reaches out to Jack's and places the necklace within it.

"This was.. given to me by ..my little brother.. when I first went out to sea... He said it was a lucky star... and that it will keep me... safe on my travels... I have kept it with.. me all through these.. years of adventure.. Now it's yours.. it kept me safe.. all this time... may it do the same.. for you"

With Tears freely falling Jack manages to choke out, "Yes teacher"

"Hmm.. ...Will you do.. one.. last thing.. for.. me... go to my.. home.. country...and find.. my.. family... they have.. the same.. sickness.. as I do.. will you.. see if.. they are.. ok.. and.. help them.. if you can.. its.. in the north... blue... called Flevance.. it's been.. ..so long.. since.... I've been.. home that.. im worried they ...are suffering. .. before you.. leave this.. place.. find a.. way.. to get.. inside the.. keep.. there you.. will find.. what.. you.. need... please..."

"Of course teacher! After all you have done for me, this is the least I can do," replied Jack with a steely look of determination through his tear filled eyes.

Letting out a breath of relief, as if a giant weight has been lifted off his chest, Seagull has a soft smile on his face as he breaths out his last words...

"Thank you"

And with that, a great man who lived an amazing life, that even sailed with the king of the pirates himself, passed from the world.