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[Ace and Luffy are sitting together, and Ace has a serious expression on his face. This is kind of important in his opinion, they've got to figure out who their potential allies and enemies are here. Not that being a pirate is a promise of alliances, or Marines a promise of a threat, but it's still good to have a base to go off of. And to Ace and Luffy, piracy is freedom. And the Marines stand for things far worse.]

So this is a roll call. If you're a pirate, let us know. If you're a Marine? Let us know faster.

[Luffy laughs, waving at the camera. He sticks his little finger into his nose, and thinks for a second.]

I haven't seen marines here, or other pirates. Do people here know what a pirate is? [He laughs again.] We're pirates! And brothers!

[Ace's expression softens considerably, and he smiles. He's weak against Luffy's antics, even more so now that they've been separated and reunited.] Yeah, that's right. And we wanna know who else lived a life of piracy back in their home world. Especially if you're from our home world.

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I know of pirates, though I cannot say I've ever heard of these Marines. Am I safe in assuming that the two are juxtaposed in some sense?

[It's only an assumption, but context always helps.]

I guess for our world, this works a little different. In most places pirates are the bad guys? And the Marines aren't. [He can't even make himself literally say that Marines as a whole are good guys even in example at this point.] They're different in our home. Pirates have some bad people, but a lot of us are more in it for the adventure and the freedom. Marines are supposed to keep people safe, but they kill people and defend slavery and all sorts of awful shit. They're basically attack dogs for the government. And the government is full of bad people where we lived.

Hm...well there's a certain image that the word "pirate" evokes with most people and it tends to be quite a negative image. Now, where I come from piracy has a bit of nuance, most pirates are loosely connected under the Raiders of the Waking Sea, more commonly known as the Felicisima Armada. Very loosely connected. Depending on the Armada leader there are different rules of engagement. Armadas have been known to fight one another or pull together and fight if attacked by outsiders. I've known pirates who are your typical pillaging, thieving, murdering scoundrels and I've known pirates that have scruples when it comes to such things, preferring to work with merchants instead. Merchants will pay an Armada so that their ships and merchandise are kept safe. That's hard work and noble enough I think and they get to exchange their ill-gotten gains on the market. Fair enough by me.

[Granted Dorian operates within the gray area often so he's not entirely put off by most behaviors.]

The pirates and Marines in your world sound strikingly similar to the relationship Mages and Templars have in my world.

I dunno what a nuance is, but there are a lot of ways to be a pirate back home. Some of them were really bad, like anyone attached to Blackbeard's crew. They're just as bad as the Marines. But there's a lot of room for differences. Pops kept whole areas safe with his influence. We fought his enemies, and were careful about what kind of treasure we took or what kind of stuff we did. We raised some hell, but I never pillage or plundered. It was like a big treasure hunt with a family that I couldn't get enough of. [Ace huffs.] We had a lot of enemies, though. Even with how strong Pops was, people weren't smart enough to keep back.

[There's a lot of gray areas in piracy. Ace has always had a surprisingly high moral ground, and aside from those who died by his flames in the name of protecting his loved ones or defending what was theirs, the worst he does on a regular basis is fighting and dine and dashes. The idea of being a pirate like Blackbeard disgusts him.]

Someone asked me if I was a mage, but I still don't get a lot of what she was talkin' about. Can you fill me in on Templars and Mages?

Nuance is basically subtle differences, they might be small differences, but the differences are often significant enough to be important. [And that is Dorian's vocabulary lesson of the day.] It seems you understand the meaning...though I wonder if instead of using the word pirate to describe yourself you might try something else to differentiate yourself from other pirates? A salvager or sailor? Or would that not even make a difference to these Marines?

[Changing the word changes the meaning and it changes the image, it's a technicality.]

Ah, if they asked that question then you must have some special talent that one would associate with mages. There's a proverb that attempts to explain what a mage is: a fire made flesh and a demon asleep. It doesn't capture it really. [Dorian rubs his chin thoughtfully trying to figure out how best to proceed without overwhelming with information.] So where I am from magic is a natural phenomenon, like magnetism or the force that holds us to the ground, but certain people are born with the ability to interact, control, and shape it to different effects. For example, I can manipulate the elements, I excel at spirit magic, I can control time to a degree, and because I am a necromancer I can bind spirits that are attracted to death. Some people are excellent healers, some are arcane warriors, some can transform their shape, and some are excellent at hexes and curses.

[Dorian lets this sink in for a moment before continuing.]

Now much like your pirates there are good mages, really good mages, who use their abilities to serve others, but there are mages who have and often do terrible things like blood magic and demon summoning. In answer to these problematic mages the Templar order was created and it is controlled by a religious organization called the Chantry. The Chantry feeds the Templars a substance called Lyrium, this makes Templars more resistant to magic, but it's addicting enough to keep them on the Chantry's leash like attack dogs. Because mages are seen as a threat down to reasons of rhetoric and a few bad apples, many mages are locked up in circles called Circles of Magi where they are overseen by Templars who are taught to mistrust them by the Chantry. I suspect you can see how this is problematic, but when you throw in punishments Templars can use on mages like the Rite of Tranquility and the Rite of Annulment then it is much worse.

Okay. I get that. [Thanks for the lesson, Dorian!] If they show up, it won't make any difference. It's not just pirates they go after anyway. I pretty much had a bounty when my mom was still carryin' me. The blood of a criminal makes more criminals, or something like that. They oppose anyone who doesn't fit their ideas of absolute justice, and more than that anyone who gets in the way of the world government. Even if it's just by being inconvenient.

[And more than that, to Ace? Even just the word pirate conjures up images of freedom. He lived a free man, and died a free man. So he won't unlatch from that idea anytime soon. Luffy? He's even less likely to.]

Yeah, I'm made of fire. That's why I think she was thinkin' I was a mage. It's not really like that for me, though. I'm just a fire man. [Ace might be seen as less than brilliant by some, but when he's given a good explanation he picks things up quickly. These worlds work on a different system than his, but this isn't that far different than the devil fruits in the end. Ace still had to shape and train and manipulate his powers. It seems like mages have a lot more room to experiment and mess around though.] Okay. That makes sense. Especially with what she told me when I got here.

[And then he's back to listening, and god, their world has just as many problems as his home world does, from what it sounds like. And the whole mess sounds uncomfortably familiar, even if it's a very different take.] Damn. The Templars sound like the Marines kinda. I don't think that's a bad way to look at it. Can you tell me about these rites?

And here I was lamenting arranged marriages! A bounty on your head before you were even born, huh? Quite the achievement...though I suppose I understand a bit what it is not to be seen as a person, but as a repository for a legacy. Sins of the father and all of that. We don't have children in my homeland, we breed traits, it's marvelous in a grotesque sort of way.

[He's being sarcastic, of course, not at all concerned about throwing shade on a country that he loves and countrymen he hardly resembles.]

Made of fire, well now that's very literal, mages are born mages, but being literally made up of something is entirely different. Perhaps you could elaborate on that for me so I can understand the differences better? [Dorian is trying to form an image of someone who is made of fire, seems like it would be difficult to go anywhere without burning anything up.]

Ah, so I'll start with the Rite of Tranquility because this will be the most complex to explain. Mages have a connection to another plane of reality called the Fade, it is a plane that exists alongside our own, but it is separated by a barrier we call the Veil. It is where everyone goes in their dreams, mages and non-mages alike, and our belief it is where we go when we die. It is the place where demons and spirits originate, but that's another issue entirely. It is also the place where mages draw their magic abilities from. [Another moment to let this information sink in.] The Rite of Tranquility involves the use of Lyrium branding to sever a mage from the fade and as a consequence of doing so, this cuts the mage off of their dreams and their emotions. It's been described as being smothered in a crystal-clear silence that has no meaning and that is problematic on its own, but let's take it further. The Tranquil operate purely on logic, but this makes them more susceptible to suggestion and limits their ability to think in a flexible way. So, because of their lack of emotion, they are less likely to oppose an authority figure because they lack the desire to object and are more inclined to serve. Now imagine if you were a mage and a Templar wanted you to do something you found objectionable, that Templar could bring about a false claim against the mage and then that mage is subject to the Rite and would, in the future, not be able to say "no" to that Templar. I'm sure I don't have to ask you to imagine how something like this could be conveniently abused.

[Even in his own homeland where there was a more relaxed attitude about mages and magic the Rite was still used.]

The Rite of Annulment is simpler, but no less bankrupt morally. If a mage in the Circle becomes possessed by a demon then the Knight Commander, or the Templar in charge, can get permission from the Chantry to kill every mage inside of the Circle for the transgressions of the few. Right down to the last man, woman, and child. Funny thing is that when mages become dangerous inside of the Circle, it's usually as a result of trying to free themselves of it.

Those are bad too. I'd never wanna marry someone just 'cause I was told to. [He huffs.] The man that helped my mom make me, he was kinda famous in a bad way. So that's why they were trying to find me. [The understatement of the year.] It'd be better if people were less caught up about blood and rules and traits, and more focused on stuff that really makes a difference.

[Ace nods, and then lifts a hand up. And it ignites into flames, from the finger all the way down to the wrist, and further still to the elbow. And then he grabs his hat with the flames that were once his hand, and presses the fires up against his brother who's leaning out of frame mostly to talk to someone else enthusiastically.

And nothing burns.

He finally pulls the flames back, and his arm and hand reform.] So back home, we get our powers from cursed fruits, devil fruits is what they're called. My fruit is the Mera Mera, and it made me a fire human. I can choose what burns, I can form it how I want, I'm pretty much immune to heat or cold as far as I've tested. Unless it's a real special situation. [He shakes his head, though.] But I can't do what you do. It's just fire when it comes down to it. Maybe not normal fire, but it's still fire.

[But the talk of the rites makes him feel ill.] That's... [Ace goes from a quiet expression to visible rage.] Shit. It's so wrong. We have slavery back home, and Seastone can cut off someone from their devil fruit and drain them. The Marines use it to keep devil fruit users controlled when they're imprisoned. Is there anywhere that's free of this kinda thing? Or is it just how people are?

I don't know what jucaposte means! But te marines are bad, and like to hurt people and hunt pirates.

[He tilts his head to the side, thinking.]

Though some pirates are bad too.

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