Chapter 3

Time passed slowly, I gently open my eyes to see what is going on but my sight is still blurry. I will wait for few moments to regain my eyesight and I close my eyes for a minute and thinking the past events that had transpired before me.

"I died from Corona-chan, died being a virgin, died without able to realize my dream to travel from different place around the world, died without saying goodbye to my Mom and Dad, died without getting my diploma from college, died without saying "I love you you" to them last time. I don't even remember when was the last time I said those words face to face to them." without even realising, I shed tears in my eyes uncontrollably. All the stored tears in my heart started gushing out. When I think about it now, not saying those three simple words to them for a long time my heart aches and my lips trembles. I love them and I know that. Even if mom continued to lectured from time to time, it was the way of showing concern. She grounded me and punished for the wrong things I've done but what I did in returned was to agrue with her and complain a lot, I even said words that was not appropriate and made her cry. 'Ahh, I~~hik~ feel~~hik~ dis~~hik~gusted ~~hik~ right now' I continue to cry silently. I didn't even try to say sorry and thinking that she loved me a lot, so she will forgive me. But thinking right now pained the very deep in my soul. I even argue with dad sometimes stating that I can stand up with my own two feets and didn't need his advices. I know that I am being stupid for not saying those things to them but for some reason I felt embarrased to say it infront of them that's why I just said it in my heart silently and not voicing it out to them. Now things have come this way I didn't even see their faces. 'I am very sorry mom, dad' I mumbled repeatedly in my mind for a few times while my tears still flowing in my eyes.

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I don't even know how much time had passed right now. 'It seems that I fell asleep' tilting my head to the right I see a window and the sunlight began to fade away. I straighten my posture once again and I seems lost to introspection, as if delivering a soliloquy. My eyes gazes at the wooden ceiling above, my breathing seems to calm down. At this moment it seems I lost my sense time. I once entered in the so-called meditation. My sense of being began to calm down and my mind enters into a serene state. After a long time had passed, I slowly try to sit up on the bed I laid. My arms, legs and some parts of my body are very stiff. I raise my legs slowly one after another and step it into the ground. I walk slowly one step at a time to the window. After some moments I reached it. Putting my hands on the frame, I set my eyes to the sun in the horizon of the wide blue sea that is slowly setting down. The rays that is reflecting on the surface of the ocean is sight to behold. It is very beautiful. This time I slowly open my mouth.

"Mom, Dad I love you very much, I'm sorry for not saying it to you clearly. Live happily there and don't worry this time I will make my dream come true" a voice echoed in the surroundings. The wind blows and the leaves are being carried to the open air. The ocean waves begin to move in a certain direction. The birds are chirping in harmony, the cows mooed from the barns. It seems that after saying those words, the laws of the world silently carried it. As for me I don't even notice what was happening. But the moment I said those words I steel myself in embracing this new life I've been given.

After voicing out my desire, I began to walk in the bed slowly. Every steps I take makes the wooden floor begin to creak. I sit in the bed and inspecting the room I reside. It not big, it is just a normal room with a few medicine scattered on the table not far from my position. There is also a lantern with a candle inside it burning slowly and illuminating the room. I begin to check other notable things. There is a wooden rack 4 to 5 meters tall standing near the door, what I did not expect is that there is a strawhat hanging there with a red band in circling the circumference of the hat. I walk towards it slowly and trying reach it. But my height seems not enough. Now then I realize something is wrong. I glance at my feet and hand this time I felt wierd, I began searching for a mirror inside the room. After a few moments I open one of the wooden cabinet, in there I found a full body-sized mirror. I began to angle it to myself. And what I see in the mirror is my very own reflection. A small kid with a scar under the left eye. Wearing a white shirt with a picture in it showing an anchor with a word itself written in the middle. A blue shorts down below right above the knee. A black shaggy hair with dark eyes.

This time I try to move around a bit, raise my hands high, kicking the air sideward, making weird faces, jumping around but no matter how ridiculous my moves are this little kid infront of me always immitated my moves. But before I can continue what I was doing.

[Ding]

[Memories absorption completed]

[Inspecting body commences]

[Ding]

[Soul has been found]

[Automatic scanning started]

[Scanning completed]

[Soul has been succesfully fused with the user]

[Whether to inspect it]

[Yes / No]

I mentally choose yes.

[Ding]

[System Inteface Iniated]

[Monkey D. Luffy]

[The past soul intrusted his flames to you]

{[Effect one: You become the the new son of fate. The laws of this world heavily surrounds you.]

[Effect two: You inherited the complete essence of the user's Devil fruit]

[Effect three: You got an innate talent as a bearer of Will of D]

]

After reading the whole text in the hologram window. I slowly accepted the truths that were presented on me. The body I saw in the mirror, the scar under the left eye and the strawhat in the corner. I became Monkey D. Luffy the moment I died on Earth. His soul and memories were fused to mine. But I feel that he didn't reject it. He feel happy to pass down his torch.

Th memories continues to flow inside my mind. I close my eyes while standing. Starting from the moment I began training with grandpa in the forest. The time when he left me alone in the jungle. The time when he tied me on the balloon. The time when he threw me in a deep hole. The beatings I recieved from the monkeys. The Fist of Love I always recieved in my head. 'Damn that really hurts', I said to myself. There is also one point in time that he let me ate a whole meat of sea kings. I also remember the time I spent in Windmill Village. The people who are friendly to me. The grumpy mayor who always scold me. The beautiful Makino who always supported me. I view my memories like a scene from a movie but this time the feelings I get from them was real. I felt all of them. The happiness and joy I share with everything. The memories continued for a while until the scene changed and arrived at the moment where there were pirates who arrived at the dock.

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In another space-time continuum, a speck in the huge multiverse.

'Today is April 24,2030. Years had passed when my son died. I really can't believe that he will leave first in this world' a beautiful woman in her 40's sitting in her office while looking daze.

'I lost my 19 year old son, Alex Mercer in April 2020. He was in perfect health a month before, and having normal day with his friends and with us. The world suffered from a virus pandemic that started on November 2019. Our state New York City, didn't declared city lockdown immediately. The officials made their move sloppilly. The virus started infecting our city at a fast rate, it already infected 210,000 people and the death rate measured to 17,000 people. It was 1 week before my son was declared a positive when the government started to iniate the lockdown' I mutter in myself silently.

'If I remember currently there was one time when he went outside to buy some snacks in the nearest market store, days before the lockdown was approved. Well I reminded him to wear PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) before going out. Then he left to walk to the market, 30 minutes away. After less than 30 minutes of him living he got home and went to his room saying he will do an anime marathon. Well I leave him be, eventhough we had agruments in the past and sometimes we had misunderstandings, I still love him, why won't I? I'm his mother' I continue to reminisce my past memories.

'Several days after, we had a peaceful dinner. My husband was with us and my son came down from his room after I called him. I don't even want to know why he was shouting derogatory comments while watching his video. Like 'F*ck Kaido why won't you bleed' or 'Luffy you got 1-hit KOed, sh*t even with all the power ups you recieved from Katakuri, You still get your ass kicked down'. 'Sighhh' I sighed and I don't even understand the names and the topics my son was saying. 'Well I knew about him having a hobby like this, going out with his friends and went to concerts or cosplay events. But I still supported him with all of my heart. When we were eating dinner, we talked to each other to ease the atmosphere. My husband was always concerned especially in the education of our son, so he always monitored the output and process and gave advices to Alex while he went in the university. But I noticed that Alex seemed to cough a lot today so I reminded him to drink medicine to colds' I said in my mind.

'Well a few days had passed after that peaceful night when our family got in a serious situation. My son Alex cold got worse, there was a moment he said he can't breath. So I panicked and immediately called an ambulance. We went together with him with my husband to the hospital but unfortunately we can't seem to enter the premises. We went back home having a sad atmoshpere and praying thay my son's condition will stabilize but unfortunately we recieved a call from the hospital after a few days and informed us that Alex was positive with COVID-19. The atmoshpere turned gloomy I was devastated this time. I went to my room and cried, my tears are flowing non-stop from eyes. I know that this virus was incurable at the moment. My son had 50-50 chance of surviving and I really wished and prayed for that but to my dismay after 5 days had passed the hospital informed us that Alex Mercer passed away while sleeping in his bed. And at that moment I cried loudly, I really cannot believe it. My mind went blanked in that moment and I passed out' a drop tears this time flows in my eye.

'After 2 days had passed the cremation company delivered my son's ashes to us. We didn't get his funeral since the country was currently on lockdown. I didn't even see my son's face one last time. I carried Alex remains carefully and placed it on the altar located in our living room with his picture beside it. I cried that time looking at his face in the picture. My husband joined me and hugged me from behind' I whisper in my heart silently.

'We both deal with the overwhelming grief in different ways, and know that this feeling of incredibly devastating pain won't go away. We stayed at home that time but found social situations inrcedibly painful, so we decided that on the moment the world pandemic found a cure or vaccine the virus and healed the whole world, we will give up our jobs and founded a charity to in his memory. Time passed by, the vaccine of the virus was developed but the whole world population dropped down. The vaccine was given to all the people in the world. The world slowly healed from then devastation the virus had caused. The following years I took medications for PTSD and suffer from numerous auto-immune disease which I knew were all stress related. Both my husband and I were starting annual struggle to continue normally, and not have a mental breakdown. 5 years in, and it gets harder and harder' I slowly wipe my tears in my eyes.

'We founded a charity named 'Dreams Achieved'. The charity my husband an I founded growed expenonentially as the years pass by. We taught, guide and gave support over 300 disadvantaged young people on a regular weekly basis who were creatively talented, as was Alex. We were happy, smiling, we were incredibly busy and best of all, we were so proud of what our young people achieved. All because Alex allowed us to continue giving the care, love, trust, confidence, belief, faith and support for a future dream to hundreds of young people, as we had done for him. The legacy he left for us will paved for the future where we will never forget him, but we can also celebrate his life in a way the gives hope and confidence not only to other but also for us, his parents' I finished my inner monologue and slowly stand up and walked slowly in the balcony beside my office.

"It is been 10 years Alex, you're already 29 this year. Maybe you already achieved you dream in travelling the whole world right now. Maybe you got married with a woman who will stay for the rest of your life. Maybe I can see my grandchildren in a few years" I began look in to the vast blue sky.

"Your legacy will always stay behind my beloved son" I added.

The clouds clears up and a gentle wind flew into my direction. I feel comfortable and refreshing. I closed my eyes for a few seconds to feel the moment. When I slowly open my eye and regain my sight to the sky. I don't know if it's true or not but I see the silhouette of the appearance of my son. I can't believe it and I close my eyes hurriedly and rub it inorder to clarify, but the moment I open them once again I didn't see Alex anymore.

"Maybe it is just my illusion, since I did recall and remember the past today" I murmur slowly to myself. I began to walk away from the balcony to my office. But at that moment a wind blew to my ear and I hear the voice and words that I didn't expect for 10 whole years.

"Mom, Dad I love you very much, I'm sorry for not saying it to you clearly. Live happily there and don't worry this time I will make my dream come true" a faint voice so small but I can hear every words clearly. I turned my face immediately and gaze the sky above. A drop of tear flow in my left eye and I give a beautiful and motherly smile.

"We already know Alex, my son" I said my heartfelt words this time.