I Hold The World.

Ace says: Carpe Diem. Seize the day.
Ace says: Let's go boys; let's make this day...extraordinary.
Scarlet thinks: .. Where's my goddamn android when I need him.
*Han Krol held one hand out - a gun suddenly appearing in his hand. Like a revolver and a semi-auto, it was a simple gun.

But it was Han's.

"It's time I break through the goddamned ceiling over our heads."*

Han Krol says: I want to finally soar the stars. Free.

*Cain began stepping forward, momentarily taking in a few deep breaths in order to calm himself somewhat. For the first time in a few days, his mind was clear enough for him to calmly assume a stance once he positions himself a proper distance from Amatsu. He had never been much for words, which is why he does not even speak.

But the sentiments of his crew were clearly, engraved within his mind.

His footing spreads as his arms rise. His muscles twitch from time to time due to the influence of what that Blue guy had done to him, but he holds himself still long enough to notice what his crew members were doing. His eyes focus on Amatsu's own for a moment, and his narrow in mental preparation.*
*Romaine stretches his waist about and around. The man reaches for his katana and unsheathes it, pointing the blade right at Amatsu. Her power far surpassed his, and to tell the truth, Romaine was still scared to face such raw power, but...

He wasn't alone. The man makes the first move and charges forward, his blade angled downward towards the ground. It was now or they all might end up dead. Might. There was always that 'might' there.

Then again, the way things went for the No Hat Pirates as of late could only be described in one saying: Lady Luck is smiling.*

Pink says: ...
Alin Takyoma whispers...

*Scarlet lets out a sigh, letting what power she had left in her boil to the surface. This wasn't going to be enough - she knew that, she was more than aware of what was going to happen. This was suicide, plan and simple. Yet she was still going through with it.

She was a survivalist, and when a situation seemed so utterly hopeless as this one her one instinct was 'run'.

But she fought it.

"If everyone stands and fights we -might- have a chance at letting Amatsu break free."

Ace himself was the one who'd told her to focus less on sentimental nonsenes, so where was this all coming from?

Her body lights with an electric aura, and sheextends her arms in an attempt to charge and -waylay the fuck- out of this woman.*

*Han Krol slowly wheeled The Emperor - the weapon that spoke of Han's skill with firearms, that made his skill with firearms, at Amatsu. He didn't feel a tinge of doubt here - doubt was his enemy. Hesitation his foe. This was war to him. War to be free - with all he considered friends. Four stood beside him, two saiyans - one elf-thing.

And Ace.

He smirked. They had come a long way.

"I ain't a hero, I keep sayin'. I ain't a good guy, I keep thinkin'. But I just want the best for my friends. I want me and my friends to do whateve rthe fuck they want. I guess that makes me an okay sort, right?"

Whatever had happened to Han had changed him - but it wans't for the good. He was a harder man. A stronger man. Unyielding. What he believed in was absolute - the one truth of his universe. That he should be free. That his friends shouldn't care about any of this, able to do whateve rthey want - take what they felt like. Kill who needed it.

The fight began with the rest of them charging - and he readied to fight as well. Green energy, vivid, pulsing, energizing, flwoed around his entire form.

"You don't get to choose how these people live, Highblood! Amatsu! I'm giving you everything I have!"

He leveled the gun. He aimed. The green light spun into the barrel, spiraling, drilling. He pulled the trigger. The explosion of energy was beyond anything Han had decided to put out before - only now had he chosen to push beyond his limits. He was a tsufurujin fighting something like Amatsu, and this time it was for keeps.

With a birth of power that flowed in his chest, that drummed in his soul - he let loose what he was: a free man.

"Highblood."

He spoke with a tone that was as unyielding as gravity - as any law of the universe. Flat, but strong.

"You done fucked with the wrong group."

Bang.*

Han Krol heightens their senses and alertness to focus.
Han Krol drops their Armadillo Stance!
Han Krol switches to Armadillo Stance!
Han Krol forms a blade of energy around their hand!

*Ace tilts back his head, cockiness radiating from every fiber of his being.

"I want a fat bag of riches and a room fulla' harlots. Maybe I should dream bigger."

Star Platinum flexed.

Ace, for his part, unfolds his arms, letting them move from where they'd been, crossed, to instead inside of his coat. He digs around, not seeming to pay any mind to his opponent for the time being, the world-ending, crushingly powerful, devastatingly overwhelming opponent who'd just toppled Absolyt. In his head, there was no thought but that of his nigh-endless drive, his will to do what he hadn't thought of before...

The impossible.

His nigh-endless fighting spirit, the repressed passsion, heat, and drive of the mellow Captain, manifested in the form of the Stand that protected him even now.

And then he slid on something.

He dons the hat that Pink had made him, one that matched her own. It looks goofy, silly, utterly unlike anything the murderous, pilferous man would usually be caught -dead- garbed in.

He wears the pirate hat with pride.

The winds pick up and they blow his cape, his hair, his soul soaring with the spirits of his crew. With them at his side, he could truly believe in his capacity to do what was thought impossible. His arm sweeps out, to the side, fluttering his cape, and Star Platinum cocks back it's fist..

And then Stand and User fight as one, precise, accurate slashes of a ki-generated blade so graceful they could be a dance, a riveting show for the ages paired with the unmatched, primal, animalistic fury he repressed. Star Platinum was little more than the truth of Ace brought to life where it'd before been repressed, what really went on in his head when he pretended to be completely relaxed...

And so it threw punches faster than the eye could count, a battle cry issued from it that would echo across the planet and signal the beginning of the fight. Every blow contained the fullest extent of the might of his -soul-.

"ORAORAORAORAORAORA!"*

Ace drops their Bat Stance!
Ace switches to Bat Stance!

*Amatsu Sorrel stopped holding back.*

Ace thinks: ...This is madness. This is the abandonment of every single principal upon which I formed this crew. It is -nothing- like what I made. All but one ideal has crumbled.
Ace thinks: No man left behind.
Cain thinks: I knew Ace wouldn't be a puthy this time.

*Pink fortuitously exitted the ship and stumbled upon this - a superbly powerful Amatsu, faced down by the entirety of her crew.  She's not really going to waste any time, seeing them spur into action.  Not even hesitating, now, to tap into this power that she fucking -hated- as a result of the sheer idiocy and shame it brought her, she flipped the three switches on the inside of her sleeve...

And then it happened.

She winced upon the feeling of three needles poking into her skin, quickly extracting her blood into the outfit, and then it fell apart, quickly reforming back into the skimpy outfit she loathed...but would tolerate, for the sake of her friends.  Jumping into line, she drew her purple scissor blade, offering a nod to her crewmates.

"C'mon!"*

Amatsu Sorrel is counting down! (30 seconds)
Pink forms a blade of energy around their hand!
Pink switches to Crane Stance!
Cain thinks: . . This fight'll be the best in our lives. .Probably. .
Pink heightens their senses and alertness to focus.
Amatsu Sorrel counting down! (15 seconds)
Pink's outfit becomes incredibly sexy!
Ace says: ...Pave the way to victory with your fists, seize the day. Each of you are the captains..
Ace says: Of your fate.
Ace says: The last roll of the dice counts for all.
Amatsu Sorrel ended counting down! (0 seconds)
Han Krol says: ...Choose your own path.

Ace drops their Bat Stance!
Ace switches to Crane Stance!
Cain becomes angry!
Cain is knocked out by low health!!
Cain begins to relax as their focus returns to normal..
Cain regains consciousness.
Han Krol becomes angry!
Han Krol is knocked out by low health!!
Han Krol begins to relax as their focus returns to normal..
Han Krol lets the blade fade!
Romaine sweeps their blade wildly around them!
Ace uses a Offense Potion+!
Ace sweeps their foot around them!
Pink becomes angry!
Ace becomes angry!
You stop powering up.
Romaine sweeps their blade wildly around them!
Romaine is knocked out by Amatsu Sorrel!
Sweeping Kick CD finished.
Ace sweeps their foot around them!
Scarlet held their arms out and began dashing forward, lightning enveloping their body!

Ace says: ...This..?
Ace says: My curtain call...

Ace is knocked out by Amatsu Sorrel!
Pink is knocked out by low health!!
Sweeping Kick CD finished.
Pink regains consciousness.
Pink is knocked out by low health!!
Scarlet is knocked out by Amatsu Sorrel!
Amatsu Sorrel grabbed Scarlet!
Pink regains consciousness.
Scarlet regains consciousness.

*Ace is too slow, by scant nanoseconds; Star Platinum raises it's arm to defend against the bolt of electricity, but it's seemingly impenetrable defense is shattered nearly effortlessly.

It's user crumbles, blood escaping from his chest and mouth in torrents.*

Romaine(Shadow Nigga) has enabled Pure RP Mode! Regen/Recovery disabled!
Ace represses the power of their fighting spirit.
Ace regains consciousness.
Amatsu Sorrel(Sunshine Jesse) has enabled Pure RP Mode! Regen/Recovery disabled!
You have toggled RP mode on. Regeneration and Recovery disabled.
Ace(Soldier_Dude) has enabled Pure RP Mode! Regen/Recovery disabled!
Scarlet(Carnak) has enabled Pure RP Mode! Regen/Recovery disabled!
Amatsu Sorrel says: I wonder which one of you will go first.
Amatsu Sorrel says: On one hand, if you cut off the head the body will die.
Amatsu Sorrel says: On the other...
*Amatsu Sorrel grabbed both Ace and Scarlet up by their necks...!*
Romaine says: ...Stop...!
Pink says: ...Don't...!

*Scarlet grunts, managing to lay into the woman with all her gathered force.. but she barely seemed phased. Her lightning disappates, and she just.. stares, weakly attempting to get to her feet.

".. God.. damn-.."

Her grunt is cut short by the feeling of a hand around her throat.*

*Cain never even stood a chance, now that he had actually managed to calm down against the will of whatever was put into him ; He had sacrificed the enormous power that came along with his impulses in order to gain some mental clarity.

It hadn't worked.

He tilts his head up as soon as he wakes up, only to see. . .Ace and Scarlet by hoisted up by their necks. ". .A-ace. .S-scarlet. ." He coughs out, as he slowly but surely, begins standing.

And then he stumbles again, onto the ground. His legs give out. The durability that he was famed for, had failed him when he needed it the most.*

*Pink slinks her hand down her body, and tries to reactivate Junketsu, but...

...fuck she hurts too much.  Her hand falls short of its target, and she's lost too much blood, anyway.

She could only watch helplessly.*

*Han Krol had been beaten down, but the idea of him being broken never passed his mind. Even when he saw Ace and Scarlet held up - he had faith. Faith that Amatsu would be beaten - that they could do this. They could win.

Of course, the fact moving wasn't much of an option right now lowered his choices. He had a chance. Maybe.

"Don't... bend... the knee..."*

*Ace has a hand wrapped around his throat. The captain, however, struggles, even as he begins to lose conciousness, fighting until what was truly his -last-.

Star Platinum makes a desperate attempt, as does it's user, at grasping at Amatsu. It's hands wrap around Amatsu's on Scarlet's neck, trying to free her, but with how weak he is, it's unlikely the fingers budge even a -bit-.

This situation was a nightmare.

He struggled on through his lapsing consciousness, kicking as he was lifted off his feet...

He remembered a saying.*

Ace thinks: ...'You're Gonna Carry That Weight'.
Ace thinks: Where did I hear that?
Scarlet thinks: .. Why did I.. not bail out when I had the chance.. ?

*Romaine struggled to stand to his feet, using his own katana as a crutch of sorts. Oh dear god could that girl hit hard. He'd probably hear the ringing in his head a good twenty years down the line before it finally stops. Still, that wasn't important right now. What was important were the lives of both Scarlet and Ace.

"Don't. Do. It."*

Han Krol thinks: ..There has to be a spot... a spot to hit. I'm the best marksman..

*Alin Takyoma simply stood there as this group fought this unknown enemy.A group that seemed to talk about freedom of the people.Something the young saiyan also stood for.The fight was brutal as the unknown female seemed to dispatch them with ease.

As she grabbed two of them by the neck something inside him clicked.He had to make a decision,he had to step in and so his mind was made up and he thought he had found the perfect opportunity to do so.

He allowed his eyes to close for a moment,clearing his thoughts before sending a quick burst of energy to his feet,positioning himself right behind her.His muscles buldged,increasing in size quite exponentially in proportion to his body as the saiyans hands started to be engulfed into a crimson red-like energy hoping that this splitsecond would be enogh to catch her offguard.*
*Amatsu Sorrel decided to try to tank it and let Scarlet go, picking her first target: Ace.

If Alin decided to fight, Amatsu would merely fight back with Ace dangling from her hand.*
Cain says: Let. .A-ace. .Go. .
Alin Takyoma's hand is burning red!
Alin Takyoma grabbed Amatsu Sorrel!
*Amatsu Sorrel didn't even have rustled jimmies.

She went on to kill Ace, until...?!?!*

*Ace had one...

last...

Ace.

Star Platinum wrestles her grip on his neck, and his lights begin to go out. He thinks about the every word of his crew, his words of motivation to them, everything he'd said leading up to this moment...and how over his -centuries- of living, something'd only changed in the last year.

The year he'd known his whole crew.

Pink and her ever-silly white girl exploits, her airheadedness that'd baffled him to no end.
Romaine and his shoe-stealing antics, his surprisingly loyal heart...
Cain. The boy'd never been too good a pirate, but he had soul.
Scarlet...The woman he'd loved.

And Han.

His oldest, dearest friend, and the reason for which now, he'd risen, and would fight against insurmountable odds. He'd lived a life a slave. He'd believed in nothing but survival, no matter the cost to dignity or pride, and it'd imprisoned him, the shackles not on his hands, but on his soul. Ace hadn't won the fights that mattered, he'd never slept with as many women as he'dve liked and he sure didn't have enough riches..

But what Ace had found was the greatest crew he could've asked for.

For him, they'd gone to the ends of the universe, it's farthest reaches, given their everything, and each moment spent with them had brought that fighting spirit within Ace to stir, trying to break free of the chains he himself had set it in. It was what'd freed Star Platinum, the ethereal, ghostly warrior which was everything Ace himself was not..

To the world, atleast.

Inside, Ace -was- Star Platinum. He just had never known it.

Star Platinum was everything the pirate captain had repressed, fiery passion and a burning desire, a back that never broke, and an iron will. It punched where he kicked, it -tanked- where he dodged, Star Platinum was everything Ace had run from...hovering right over his shoulder.

Because his love for his crew had forced him to embrace it.



"If you came...to see me break..."



Ace's stand gained it's second wind, for it was naught but his sheer spirit given manifestation by willpower. He was limited in what he could do only by the conviction of his belief, the resolution with which he walked his path, and for each and every one of his crew, that will...

Was limitless.

He rips Amatsu's hands off of him as if it's nothing. He commands all attention to himself, as he always has, taunting Amatsu simply with the way his -eyes- look upon hers. He's a showman, always has been, always will be, and it's for that reason he can make every man, and especially every woman, gaze upon him as if he were the only thing there was.

"You're going to be sorely disappointed."

His energy spikes to levels thought unprecedented, above and beyond Amatsu's and even -Absolyt's-. This power stems from nothing but the conviction of his beliefs, it comes from nowhere, it is power that is only real because he has demanded it be so. This power, the power to turn the tide, came to him for absolutely no reason other than Ace looking fate dead in it's face, flipping over the table, throwing away his deck, kicking away the dice, and saying...

"Fuck the odds."

The chains break.

Ace sees infinity, knows the secrets of life itself, gazes upon Truth and in that moment, is finally free. The shackles break from him, and he is free from his cage, not truly here, but soaring through the stars without a care; just as he'd always dreamt of.

Just as -they'd- always dreamt of.

He looks Amatsu dead in the face, and his body begins to collapse before her very eyes, his flesh melting off, eyes letting out an unnatural light as the half-demon's body proves to be an unsuitable vessel for the power he now wields. He's literally bursting at the seams with this light, his voice augmented a thousand times over in volume, so all can hear his defiant cry, every bit as loud as Star Platinum's.

In his last moments, Ace is finally free...

And determined to even the odds.*

Ace releases the wrath of their inner Jumpy!
Ace tapped into the Path of Life.
Ace says: ...When this body crumbles. When I die, my ashes spread to the winds. They will still tell tales of Captain Ace. I will live on in the hearts of my crew, as I died for their freedom...
Ace says: The path I choose.
Ace says: Is the Path of Life.
Amatsu Sorrel says: ...i've been waiting for this my whole life.
Amatsu Sorrel yells: BEEN WAITING SO FUCKING LONG!
*Alin Takyoma wasn't exactly surprised that the female wasn't even remotely bothered by this a hint of fear surging through his body as he had just lost the element of surprise.His primal fight or flight instincts told him to run,but he just couldn't help it.He had to try and stop her..He was the only one still standing that "could" or at least buy them some time to get back to their senses."Enough saiyan has been spilled today.Let them go."

With those last words,he allowed his footing to widen,shoulder length apart,placing his right foot back slightly and allowing his knees to bend for a better center of gravity.Next,he allowed his right hand to rise to the chest level,while keeping his left at this waist,in order to better protect his vital organs.

His crystal blue eyes now closed for a split-second, allowing his fists to be imbued with pure energy.The color of such quickly turned from his natural sky blue color to a darker,muddy brown.The energy now seemed to start and solidify around his fists,much like you would materialize a piece of clothing,forming a thick layer rock-like sediments.

Without another second passing Alin would lounge forward,first targeting the female's hand from which Ace was hanging,hoping that the resulting force would at least be enough to give the man a chance to break free while her attention was dedicated torwards him.*

Ace says: COME THEN!
Amatsu Sorrel says: maybe now i can finally cut loose.
Amatsu Sorrel yells: AND SHOW YOU THE GLORY OF THE GRAND HIGHBLOOD!
Han Krol says: ...
Han Krol says: A-Ace.
Alin Takyoma slinks back down to size as their power lessens.
Han Krol says: Win.
Ace yells: I WILL SEIZE FATE! I WILL WRITE THE EPILOGUE! IN MY DYING MOMENTS..I WILL SHOW THE WORLD WHAT IT MEANS...
Ace yells: TO BE FREE!
Alin Takyoma switches to a more relaxed stance ideal for training.
Alin Takyoma drops their Training Stance.
Alin Takyoma switches to Armadillo Stance!
Alin Takyoma's fists gain a layer of thick rocks!
Scarlet says: .. Captain..
Ace summons a ghostly spirit behind them!
Romaine says: Do it.

*Amatsu Sorrel surrounded her body in the same, sickening green glow, as her muscles bulked up to a truly absurd size.

Of course, her power took a massive leap, but... the light it gave was engulfed by the light Ace was putting out.

The light of heroes.

"NOW COME! FIGHT US WITH YOUR FADING BODY! fight me with your fading soul! SO I CAN FINALLY SHOW THE WORLD..."

"ThE GlOrY oF tHe GrAnD hIgHbLoOd!!!!!!!!!!!"

The time for speaking was over.*

Han Krol says: Every step of the way. -Win.-
Pink says: ...
Amatsu Sorrel deactivates the electricity.
Amatsu Sorrel surrounded their body in an armor of electricity!
Cain says: . .Ace. .B-beat 'em up. .
Ace says: Do you think I fear anything as I am? With my crew at my side, impossible has never meant anything. And now, for them, this body may crumble, but this soul...my soul...
Ace says: Shall become theirs'.
Ace is counting down! (30 seconds)
Ace counting down! (15 seconds)
Ace ended counting down! (0 seconds)
Your armor broke!
Alin Takyoma becomes angry!
Alin Takyoma is knocked out by low health!!
Ace sweeps their foot around them!
Alin Takyoma regains consciousness.
Sweeping Kick CD finished.
Ace sweeps their foot around them!
Pink says: ...
Han Krol says: ...
Scarlet says: .. He's still losing..
Amatsu Sorrel says: ..Even still, you're outmatched.
Han Krol says: No. He's just getting started.
Amatsu Sorrel says: Is that it...?
Ace says: ...You think this was my last gambit?
Ace says: I always stack the deck.
Amatsu Sorrel says: You put your life, your very -soul- on the line.
Sweeping Kick CD finished.
Han Krol says: Have some faith, Scarlet.
Amatsu Sorrel says: For this?
Cain says: . .Ace. .Won't lose. .He can't lose. .Not like that.
Amatsu Sorrel says: ...Come on now Ace. I know you can do better than that.
Amatsu Sorrel says: For my sake.

*Scarlet is just sitting on the edge of her seat, still broken.

".. I want to believe he'll win but.. what else could he even do?"*

Ace says: I hold not just the eye of the crowd. I do not merely walk a Path.
Ace says: I hold...
Han Krol says: You'll see.


*Ace doesn't hold anything more back.

Everything is on the line here. There is nothing more for him to do but give everything he's got, all into one final attack, an attack which'd split the heavens and pave the way forward. Even were it to fail, he knew none could escape him without taking -tremendous- damage.

His cape billows in the winds, as it always has, but he doesn't let the hat Pink gave him come off.

He points to his crew.

"They won't quit as long as they can still draw breath. None of my teammates will. Me? I've got a different problem..."

Star Platinum seemed to preparing itself for...-something-. It was visibly battered, it's graves cracked, it's body seeming on the brink of collapse, as it's master's was. Ace was on his last, blood leaking from his nostrils, his ears, and yet his smile...

His smile was still absolutely -contagious.

"Feel like I live in A World...made of cardboard. Always gotta hold back, or I'll break something...someone. Never allowin' myself to lose control, even for a moment...But you..."

All seemed to -stop-.

It was but a hint of things to come, all present feeling everything around them stop and their attention inexplicably drawn to the crumbling, dying Ace. His very soul came apart at the seams, bursting with a corrupted crimson light from his demonic heritage, tinged white with that of his good-willed human half. Through it all, one of his eyes swollen shut from the -vicious- beating he has taken, he still. Fucking. Grins. That same goddamned grin, back straight and proud.

"You can take it, can'tcha? What we have here is a rare opportunity..for me to cut loose and show you -just how powerful I really am."

Where before, time had only stopped for an instant, it now danced to his tune.

It stopped -completely-, -entirely-, none able to move in his World, not even Amatsu.

And Ace's voice, echoing throughout distorted time, the only sound -possible-.

"STAR...PLATINUM!"

His body threatened to give out at any moment from the exertion.

"THE WORLD!"*

The sun begins to rise, bringing on a new day.
Earth's moon has blocked out the Sun!
Han Krol says: (OP)
Pink says: [op]
Amatsu Sorrel says: (holy shit)
Amatsu Sorrel says: (the timing))
Amatsu Sorrel says: (holy shiiiiiiiit)
Amatsu Sorrel says: (you really did tap into your inner jumpy)
*Amatsu Sorrel managed to talk through time being frozen, but that was pretty much it.

"But... how...?"*
Ace says: ..You've lost, and my crew is free, their chains...and mine...broken at last.
Ace says: You lost, parasite. Do you know why you lost?
Ace says: Because you pissed us off.

*Ace rushes forward, nightmarishly fast, and delivers a kick that is -impossibly- powerful. Even were time not frozen, she would be unable able to move away in time. He moves forth with the will to shatter -stars-.

She doesn't have a chance.

It'd rip Amatsu's body to shreds almost instantly, killing their friend...

Was this -her- end, as well?*

Ace says: Za...
Ace yells: ...WARUDO!
Ace says: Time is now frozen.
Ace says: Seki...
Ace is surrounded by an aura of a roaring dragon!!!
Ace says: ......
Ace says: RYU!
Ace says: NIGHT GUY!!!!!!
Amatsu Sorrel is knocked out by low health!!
Amatsu Sorrel was just killed by Ace!
Ace says: Let the flow of time return to normal.
*Ace imbues this final kick with the might to sunder the heavens themselves, utilizes every bit of his might in order to do so, and in the process, he uses up all that's left in the tank...

But for the dream to live on...

For his crew's sake.

For them to blaze their own paths with Amatsu at their side..

He strikes, one final time, throwing something none of them would have seen him throw. Something he'd dubbed lacking in eloquence, in grace, being nothing like what he'd usually utilize.

A punch.

This was no ordinary punch. This fist struck clean, it struck true, as he channeled the might of Life itself, took all that he held in the path he walked. Star Platinum was nowhere to be found, having crumbled with the last of his energy reserves, the time having finally come for what it was he'd asked merely hours ago of..

His curtain call.

"...I leave you all free, and so long as you keep the freedom I fought for, I will live on in your hearts. Forever."

Amatsu would be seized from the clutches of death itself, because he'd deemed that it was not time for him to pass, even as he held himself together by only a thread. He -drags- her soul back into her body, making sure she lived through this by nothing more than the resolve inherent in the last remaining vestiges of his waning soul.

He tosses them his most charming smile as he disappears forever, with one -final- saying.

"May you never again have to steal, lie, or cheat, but if you must lie, then lie in the arms of the one you love."

He winks to Scarlet.

"...If you must steal...steal away from bad company."

He's nothing more, now, than a glowing light held in a damn-near wholly collapsed container, but he holds Amatsu upright, the woman in optimal condition once more, to fight anew. He'd given everything he had to wear her out, to even the odds, and now, his crew, hopefully -without- killing themselves, had favorable odds...

But even if they didn't, he knew they'd overcome them.

"If you must cheat, cheat death."

He looks into the only recently risen sun as his last words are spoken not by his lips, for he no longer has them, but carried on the winds of change. Change made possible through his sacrifice.

This was -their- show now.

"And if you must drink...make sure it's a -damn- good glass of whiskey."

That likely wasn't how the last part of the saying went.*
Ace represses the power of their fighting spirit.
Ace says: I leave the rest to you...
Ace says: Each of you are my legacy. My crew.
Ace says: I couldn't be any prouder to have called myself...
Ace says: Your captain.
Ace says: Stay gold.
Ace says: Bang.
Ace's soul vanishes!