Drake

At first there was only sound.

Not a mother's scream—deeper: a tick, like a drop falling into an empty hold. Once a minute. Precisely. Mercilessly.

Then—light, sharp as a knife across the retina. The smell of mint and blood. Someone else's hands, warm and trembling. And a voice—low, calm:

— Breathe. Just a little bit more.

Drake inhaled, and peace entered.

He didn't cry like newborns should. He was counting.

One point. Skill: unspecified.

Somewhere beyond the hut wall, the wind blew against the shutters. Somewhere far away, beyond a horizon he hadn't yet seen but remembered from another life, the sea awaited its moment.

He didn't know the name of this island. He didn't know what year it was.

But he knew one thing: Ohara would soon burn. And the mother, leaning over him, had no idea that she was holding in her arms not only a child, but a moment separated from eternity.

Camilla smiled—tiredly, beautifully, the way only survivors smile.

“Hello,” she said. “You’re stubborn.”

Drake closed his eyes.

The counter did not stop.

"Drake. Counting Down the Minutes" is a One Piece fanfic. The hero is reincarnated 20 years before Luffy set sail (~1502): the era after Roger's execution, the destruction of Ohara, and the beginnings of the revolution. Drake remembers our world and fragments of canon. System: 1 skill point per minute; accelerates training, does not replace Haki or fruit. Mother Camilla is a herbalist from Saltcrest Island (fictional): beautiful, strong, without a "chosen one."

Protocol Key: For Drake, Marines = order. Not a naive belief in perfect justice, but a choice: the flag of the World Government is law, predictability, a shield for the weak from pirate chaos. He knows the future: without boundaries, the sea devours villages. Conflict: Garp and Aokiji are the image of service; Akainu, Spandin, CP are the price of the system; Dragon and pirates are a different path, not his. Drake does not replace Luffy—he lives in the shadow of canon.

Rules: Don't break dates (Roger, O'Hara); Drake is 20 years old at the start of the story; points are always accumulating—risk of exposure; power growth is silent. Themes: mother vs. knowledge of disaster; power without noise; is it possible to serve order without becoming a monster. Genre: adventure, drama, progression.