Intangible [ One Piece]

// Chapter Forty One \\

Talia's POV

Heartwarming laughter rang across a beautiful lush green valley. A much younger version of myself was rolling in a field of wildflowers as my parents walked hand in hand behind me laughing at my antics.

Little Talia suddenly cried out and I felt my heart begin to race, I knew this was a dream, but it felt so real. Was this a memory? When had I fallen asleep? I had to wake up!

My parents ran to me in a panic.

"Oh no." My mother gasped as she found the cause of my cry. There was a young fox struggling to cling to life, it appeared to have been shot by hunters and left to die alone.

"Mommy, help it!" Little Talia was beside herself.

My father swept me into his arms as my mother reached for the book she kept secured at her waist. She quickly flipped to the right page in the book and I stared in awe as the symbols leapt off the page. Her voice was unwavering as she spoke the incantation and a healing blue light shot toward the injured fox.

I held my breath hoping the fox would be alright.

After a few moments, the blue light disappeared. The fox got to its feet and scampered off. My mother looked weary after she cast her spell and went to sit down a little ways away while my father distracted the much younger me.

Strong yet gentle hands lovingly stroked my cheek and I felt myself being lifted away from the infirmary bed. I jolted awake with a scream and thrashed and flailed against my captor.

"Talia, calm down!" Marco's voice breathed in my ear.

"No! I can't leave him!" I wailed. "ONII-SAN!"

Marco set me back down on the infirmary bed with a sigh and ran trembling fingers through his blond tresses. "Talia, you need to take care of yourself."

"No." I entwined my fingers with Thatch's cold fingers and laid my head on his stomach as tears burned in my eyes. "I need to take care of onii-san."

"You need to eat something at least." Izo pleaded.

"No, you'll drug me." I shot and instantly felt regret as both Marco and Izo looked hurt by my words.

"Talia, please. Can't you see what you're doing to yourself?" Marco pleaded.

"I don't care." I cried. "How can you all give up on onii-san? He's family. We can't give up."

There was a soft knock at the door. Haruta stepped in the room looking grief stricken and like he was battling for composure. "Oyaji is calling a commander's meeting."

"Fill me in later, I can't leave Talia." Marco sighed.

"It's about-..." Haruta trailed off as he looked at Thatch's motionless form.

My heart plummeted, they wanted to pull the plug? "NO!" I screamed causing the three commanders to cringe.

The three commanders reluctantly left me alone with Thatch. The moment they were gone, I scrambled to the door pulling it shut and locking it before grabbing anything I could to barricade it with. I couldn't risk them coming back. I returned to Thatch's side and retrieved a scalpel that had fallen to the floor from the medical supply table in my haste to barricade the door.

"Onii-san, please come back. I need you." I stabbed the blade into my thigh and cried out softly at the pain before gathering the blood in my hand. My body trembled as I dipped my fingers in the blood pooling in my cupped hand and began tracing the symbols I'd seen in my dream all over the fresh white bed linens. The words spilled from my lips and the air around me suddenly turned cold as a bright blue light engulfed Thatch's body.

I held back a gasp as it suddenly felt as if there were tiny icy hands reaching inside of my chest, encircling my heart and squeezing it. After a while the strange feeling passed and I turned to look at the machines around the bed. Nothing changed. Thatch didn't look any different.

Maybe I missed one of the symbols. Gripping the scalpel in my hand I stabbed it into my other thigh as I spilled from the hospital bed. Fresh warm crimson blood spilled from the wound and began to pool around me on the floor. My fingers moved on autopilot tracing the symbols in my blood on the floor. Once more I uttered the words in prayer willing them to take effect.

A pale blue light shot forth and enveloped Thatch in its healing glow. I held my breath, praying it would work. There was no change, but my breathing was becoming labored.

"Onii-san! Please!" I cried for fear I'd fall into darkness and find him gone upon my return. "You have to live. Please!"

Why wasn't it working? The scalpel shook unsteadily in my trembling hands and I dragged myself to a fresh patch of floor before plunging the blade into my abdomen and repeating the process etching the symbols all over the floor and walls and uttering the words in prayer willing them to work willing them to mend his torn flesh and restore his life force.

Once more the healing blue light shot toward Thatch's motionless form. I choked on a cry as it felt as if someone were plunging their hand through my chest, tearing through flesh and bone and gripping my heart in an icy grip.

There was no change. The machines continued as they were. My gaze locked onto a small lump under the bed. It was his satchel! I struggled to crawl to the satchel, my vision becoming blurred as I crossed the floor. My blood-stained hands made quick work spilling the contents onto the floor.

A sudden hush fell on the room. I couldn't hear the whirr and beep of the machines or the sounds of the sea outside. My heart began to race as I stared down at the ancient looking tome with the strangely familiar symbols etched onto the cover. It looked similar to the book my mother had carried with her, but these symbols were different. They were nature, the light side and the dark side of nature. I hurriedly flipped through the book absorbing the spells in a matter of seconds, but there weren't any other healing spells.

I threw the book across the room with a scream and resumed my task weaving symbols onto the floor and walls with my blood and repeating the enchantment desperately. It had to work! I had to heal him.

Video- "Bleeding out" (cover) by SVRCINA