The rainclouds roared with thunder as lightning shot across the sky, bringing light to the dark island below. It let Ultear see Gray a lot better, especially since the sun was nowhere in sight.
"Be careful. You can't defeat Hades on your own." It was quick how fast she managed to care for him, but after the great lengths Gray went through to save her, Ultear already didn't want to see the guy get killed.
Gray let out a deep breath, tying his shirt around his waist. "Yeah, I figured as much, but I won't be alone this time."
Even though Gray was facing away from her, Ultear still crossed her arms and raised a brow teasingly, grinning a bit, "Teaming up with the boy who insists I'm a man?"
"Among others. Just him won't be enough. We're gonna need Erza, and everyone else."
Erza. Ultear remembered seeing her at court for property destruction charges, not to mention Siegrain spoke of her a lot. She'd be a great asset against Hades. "Right." Ultear said after a few moments. From her disjointed little island she was resting on, she hopped over the foot of ocean between her and Gray and placed her hand on his shoulder. "The way to Hades' ship should be northwest from here, through the forest. Get Erza and whoever else you need. Be careful, Gray."
"You've said that already." Gray said, looking at her out of the corner of his eye.
Ultear nodded, frowning slightly. "It bears repeating."
"If you're so concerned," Gray started, turning to face Ultear, "shouldn't you just come with me and help?"
Ultear shook her head, "I have something else I must do, but I believe it will be of great help to you, if it even works in the first place."
Raising an eyebrow out of curiosity, Gray shrugged and turned around, certain he wouldn't receive a straight answer anyway. "Suit yourself."
"Oh, and Gray?" Ultear said, causing Gray to look back at her. She mustered a small grin, "Thank you."
"Don't mention it."
The trek through the forest was harder than he had expected it to be. About a quarter of the way to the ship, the aches and soreness from his fight with Ultear started to kick in, making it far harder for him to walk. He still pressed on, albeit slower than he was when he started. A few couple minutes later, the ice that covered the cut he inflicted on himself for the Seven Slide Dance: Blood Version had melted without him noticing, and he started to lose blood again. His vision started to get hazy, and he couldn't remember where he was anymore. All he could make out were trees, and everything just looked the same. There were trees everywhere, and he couldn't make out left from right. Eventually he had just become drained and off-balance, so he tried to steady himself on a tree trunk with no avail. He was trapped, in the middle of nowhere, bleeding out and barely able to move. Things were looking bleak, and soon he wasn't even able to stand.
He remembered looking up to see the leaves of the trees and the rainy sky, and then suddenly it all came crashing down. Gray was sure he was going to hit the ground and it'd be the end for him, but the thing he fell against was lighter than he expected, and he could still see the ground below him.
Erza had slid right over to him, catching him before he hit the ground. It took a while for it to register with him, but when Gray did notice, he looked to his right to see Erza grinning at him.
"You done showing off?" He said, voice weak but still able to perfectly convey his mild annoyance.
Erza only let out a soft laugh, "I missed you too." She said sarcastically.
"You know, getting rescued all the time gets old real quick.." Gray winced, stumbling a bit. Erza quickly held him closer and tighter to keep him upright.
"I know the feeling, but consider this returning the favor for all the times you've saved me."
Gray's brow furrowed, staring Erza over a second as he tried to remember. "Not many come to mind…"
Erza looked off to the area in front of them, smile only getting wider. "Trust me, it's more than you even know."