Natsu Dragneel ran.
It has been a while ever since he had left the castle. His nice leather shoes do not do well in the wilderness and had already fallen off from his feet. He knew he should have thought ahead and 'borrowed' some equipment from the military. He was never the kind of person to think ahead. At times like these, he wishes he could be as intelligent and cool like his brother. But, Natsu could never envy Zeref for long, even if he tried.
His feet were bleeding after the multiple time he tripped over rocks and branches. A part of him makes him want to cry and go back, but he can't seem to bring himself to. His pride forces him to suck it up and deal with the pain. Everytime he falls, he thinks to himself what kind of disappointment he'll be if he goes back in his words. He has already left a letter in his room stating that he isn't coming back. He knows that the castle will be in a frenzy, but he rather have the entire world hate him than being looked down upon as a coward.
Natsu heard footsteps not far from where he is. At a single moment of panic, Natsu ran as a fast as he can. Of course, it wasn't what Natsu had feared at that moment. It wasn't the same people that Natsu had imagined to take him away, but the fear still lingers after all these years. Three years isn't enough to wash away the blood that was spilt that day. Natsu doesn't think it ever will. That is part of the reason why he is running. To erase it all.
Yes, that is what he plans to do. In order to gain the freedom he wished for, he'll become the enemy of the society that blessed him. Natsu wonders why he decided to make such a betrayal so easily. It's only natural for him to value himself over everything else, in fact, that is expected for him. Even so, it wouldn't be so easy for a typical prince to run away from home, no matter how bratty he is. Natsu suppose there is a lot of factors that led to this decision.
Perhaps it was influence of Fairy Tail, a secret society hidden in the depths of the internet. Or maybe it was the tragedy that caused the loss of the former queen three years ago. It could even be the current Emperor's curse that was received so long ago or the failed assassination on him. Maybe there is something much more deeper that Natsu himself is not aware of. Analyzing things was never Natsu's forte. There are many others that are suitable for that job.
What Natsu is good at, however, is thinking openly. Not deeply, but open enough to spot things that others may not see. To see possibilities and maintaining hope was something Natsu found himself to excel at, even though he may not realize it himself. Determination was one word that fits Natsu perfectly. That is why he moves even though one of his ankles is sprained.
Sweat drips down from his face as Natsu thinks to himself what he will do in the lower parts of Fiore. In fact, where is he even going? He ran rather thoughtlessly when he escaped Crocus. As much as living in the wilderness is appealing, Natsu doubts he can survive for long. He may be one for picking fights and making big risks, but had this bad feeling about the woods. There is something dangerous there. If he was a little younger when Natsu made this decision, he wouldn't mind staying in the woods for life. But knows about a danger that has been on the streets for quite some time. The danger of the killer Acnologia is what the people were fearing. Natsu would rather forget his first meeting with him.
If Natsu had to guess, he was heading east from Crocus, which is the direction to Magnolia. He can't go there. He knows that some members of Fairy Tail reside there and he has no intention to be caught. He had already leaked information to Wendy that he is the runaway prince and no one else has any business in knowing that. Yeah, a 13 year old girl is the only one that knows that Natsu is the prince. If he didn't know that Wendy is capable of holding a secret, he would be very worried.
Well, he might stop by for some supplies, but that's it. From there, he should head to Hargeon by train. Walking there would be a hassle and he knows a little bit about the town since he has been there before. A popular port city is what it was on the surface. In reality, there is some shady business going on there. There is a group that Natsu is in contact with that is currently residing there. If he gets there on time, he should be able to see them before they go to their next hiding spot.
There is another thing that he has to consider. How would he be able to hide his identity from the world? His face is known to the public and he can't avoid being spotted with a mere cloak. He needs a different identity entirely. It would be fitting considering that he is essentially abandoning his former life. Not only that, but he is also bringing an end to the peace that Fiore has been in. Acnologia was causing some chaos, but it hasn't spread to the upper classes just yet. Yes, Natsu will be the one who will. The one who will destroy the chains Zeref has put on the people. He'll do that no matter how many lives are spent. Heck, taking away lives is what Natsu is going to do to cause the disorder that he desires. Destruction is another thing that he is good at.
Well, he'll think about how he is going to hide his face later. He might as well rest for now since he has found a nice cavern to sleep in for the night. There is even a nice stream nearby as well. Running barefoot has taken its toll on Natsu and he could see the morning sun peeking out from the horizon. It would be much more uncomfortable than royal beds, but he is going to get used to the rough environment sooner or later.
After washing the blood from a nearby stream, he laid on the cold, hard ground. Natsu slept peacefully with no dreams. There is no need for hopeless dreams. Reality is all Natsu needs.
It has been 7 years since the prince, Natsu Dragneel, has gone missing.
The nobles has been panicking for some time and some still are. However, after 7 long years, others say that the prince was long dead after running away from his cozy abode. There were no sightings of the prince, whether it be by human eyes or the security cameras situated all over the country. The Emperor is awfully calm about it, but it didn't mean much to the public since he always appeared calm, even in the brink of war.
All in all, it's a huge hassle for the Head of Security, Gajeel Redfox.
The reason why Gajeel even strived for this job in the first place was to arrest a lot of people. Which he did, but due to the chaos that the prince has caused, his main priority was shifted to finding the prince under the Emperor's orders. If Gajeel wasn't on a break this week, he would have flipped his entire office on it's head by now. Not that he hasn't already.
For now, he may as well go on the computer to check on the Fairy Tail website. Gajeel remembers how he got into the society. A long time ago, he caused some trouble by arresting some of the members, which caused the entire community to use their efforts to humiliate him. It was rather tough on Gajeel, even though the arrest itself was 'slightly' unfair. Okay, it was complete bullshit.
That aside, the prisoners were freed after some bullshit hijinks that involved some shady ass dealings on the side. The head of the house of Dreyar, Makarov, decided to give the password and URL to the Fairy Tail website since Gajeel ended up catching wind of the thing during the mentioned 'bullshit hijinks'. As a new member, he wasn't that well received at first since it was pretty obvious that he was the same person that arrested a bunch of them, but they tolerated his presence over time.
Of course, since this is a secret website and all, everything that happens here is outside of the Emperor's and the Security's eyes. For Gajeel, this wouldn't be a problem since he already had the right to maintain privacy, but for those who don't have that perk, they had to download a program and obtain a device that lets them access a private network that is connected to the outside world. It was one of the requirements if you wanted to go to the Fairy Tail website, so Gajeel has installed it as well.
The first thing that one can see once they enter the URL was a simple page that has the logo of Fairy Tail and a bar that asks for the password. Gajeel entered the password that he had memorized: 'xheart777SiN' . It was a weird password, but nothing to complain about really.
The next thing that appeared is the screen that asks for the username and password. Naturally, Gajeel entered it, allowing him to see the homepage. There were a lot of members in Fairy Tail and as far as he knows, all of them are nobles or at least very rich. After all, there is no way a commoner could afford a computer, not to mention meet a Fairy Tail member in real life. That is just how it is since nobles and commoners live in different worlds.
Gajeel glanced at the newest posts. Reedus's newest art projects, Warren's little self advertisement about the smartphone that he came up with, etc. Nothing new really except for one thing. There is an alert on the upper right corner that has invited him to a private conversation. It seems to be a group chat so he joined in. It was sent out by Erza it seems, so he knows it isn't a prank. Gajeel clicked on it and read out the members of the chat by their real names (since saying their usernames isn't the norm in Fairy Tail):
Erza Scarlet (admin)
Gray Fullbuster
Lucy Heartfilia
Wendy Marvell
Juvia Lockser
Levy McGarden
Happy
Charle
Pantherlily
It was a rather curious group of people. He knows that these people tend to hang out a lot so he isn't that surprised. Gajeel realized that someone was missing from that group and remembered why. It was that one guy who went by 'Igneel'. Honestly, it was pretty obvious that wasn't his real name. Igneel was the name of a warrior that fought for Fiore a long time ago and the user insisted in calling him that because he didn't want to share his real name. There were some like that in Fairy Tail, but most aren't that close to the community as a whole. 'Igneel' was different in that sense since he was rather active, well, until he disappeared 7 years ago.
At first, Gajeel thought that there was a possibility that 'Igneel' was actually Natsu Dragneel, the missing prince, but he dismissed that thought since Wendy said otherwise. About one month before the prince was reported to have left the castle, Wendy had posted that Igneel had been registered in the hospital that she works at and has been in a coma after getting himself into an accident. She knew him personally beforehand since he was the one who invited her to Fairy Tail, but he didn't want his name to be shared, so she hid his name. The prince was never in an accident, not to mention to ever reported getting close to Wendy's location. Gajeel knows that Wendy isn't lying since there really was a person like that registered in the Skaian Heart Hospital. Gajeel didn't bother to look farther into the identity of this patient out of respect for Wendy. He saw her sort of like a junior or even a little sister in a way.
So yeah, Natsu couldn't be Igneel. Natsu was never near Wendy and there was no one else who gave Wendy access to this website. Not to mention that it is impossible for a comatose person to be running away from the castle of all places, sneaking around the cameras and all. On top of that, from the images that Gajeel had seen about the patient, his body type was different than the prince. He was a lot more buff, even though there wasn't many details he could make out of it. Even so, Gajeel had this weird feeling that there is more than what meets the eyes, but he tried to shrug it off for Wendy's sake. It is not like she is the type to lie anyways.
Gajeel looks over the log so far and considering the number of posts he missed, it doesn't look like he missed much. However, that didn't stop him from being pissed.
- The chat 'Fairy Tail Discussion' has been opened. -
Scarlet Titania: The chat has been opened. You may now post now.
- Actual Stripper has entered. -
Actual Stripper: good. have you figured out a way to fix my username? it has been years already.
Scarlet Titania: Unfortunately, the staff including myself has yet to find out the solution to this.
Scarlet Titania: Normally, a simple username change wouldn't be a problem, but it seem that Igneel has taken some special measures.
Actual Stripper: *internally groans*
Actual Stripper: as much as i miss him, it doesn't change the fact that he was a douche
- Lucy Heartfilia has entered. -
Lucy Heartfilia: It's alright. It'll be bound to be fixed sooner or later. ^_^
Actual Stripper: i wish. it has been 7 years and you still say the same thing.
Actual Stripper: if i wasn't so cool, i would cri
Scarlet Titania: The staff is doing our best to fix the problem. I have even asked Warren's help a long time ago and even he hasn't gotten a solution yet.
Lucy Heartfilia: It makes it seem like Igneel is some technology wiz or something. :O
Actual Stripper: i refuse to believe that
Lucy Heartfilia: Yeah, I doubt it. _
- Sky Maiden has entered. -
Sky Maiden: hello
Lucy Heartfilia: Hello Wendy! ^_^ *virtual hug*
Sky Maiden: *hugs back* :D
Actual Stripper: sup wendy, how's igneel?
Sky Maiden: he has been the same as usual
Sky Maiden: a lot of the researchers are working on a way to bring him back and I am hoping it would won't take much longer until he comes back
Sky Maiden: we're making good progress, so I don't think they'll pull the plug before igneel comes back ^_^
Lucy Heartfilia: That's good to hear! :D
Actual Stripper: well it's not bad news
Scarlet Titania: I'm pleased. It would be nice to have Igneel back. It's not quite the same without him.
Actual Stripper: yeah, and i'll beat the crap out of him until he give me my username back
Actual Stripper: virtually
Lucy Heartfilia: Good luck with that I guess _
Sky Maiden: well if you ever get hurt, you are always welcome here. ^_^
Actual Stripper: not sure how i'm going to get injured if it's virtual
Actual Stripper: but thanks for the offer wendy
Actual Stripper: the worst thing that can happen is severe amounts of salt
Scarlet Titania: If you two start spamming on every single thread again, both of you will be banned.
Scarlet Titania: That kind of activity is not needed in Fairy Tail
Actual Stripper: yeah
Actual Stripper: of course
Scarlet Titania: And don't worry, Igneel will get what he deserves after that incident with your username once he wakes up.
Lucy Heartfilia: 0.0
Lucy Heartfilia: And after that, we'll have a welcome party! ^_^
Sky Maiden: well idk if igneel would like that
Sky Maiden: but he might change his mind after all of these years
Actual Stripper: that idiot should at least let give us a party after being gone so long
Actual Stripper: making us worried and all of that
The conversation continued as more and more people started joining in. Happy, Juvia, and Charle were now present. All they talked about is about is Igneel's hypothetical party and as fun as it is, Gajeel knows that this isn't the purpose of the chat.
- Black Steel has entered. -
Nekomander: which is why lucy's house is the best place :3
Black Steel: okay
Black Steel: I have a fist full of iron
Black Steel: a chat full of bullshit
Black Steel: and a will that is not afraid to smash everyone heads into the slammer
Actual Stripper: oh god it's him
Black Steel: instead of talking about a hypothetical party
Black Steel: talk about something that relates to the reason why this chat is created
Black Steel: we already had a chat that we could have used so I'm assuming that there is a reason why there is a new one
Lucy Heartfilia: That is true.
Sky Maiden: now that I think about it, the only real difference from the other one is that igneel and the strausses are not included
Scarlet Titania: Gajeel is correct.
Scarlet Titania: The reason this chat is here is to discuss something of the utmost importance.
Scarlet Titania: Igneel isn't included simply because of his current state
Scarlet Titania: Mira, Lisanna, and Elfman aren't included since I was notified that for some reason, they will not be on here for awhile
Scarlet Titania: So I didn't bother
Elegant Feline: Do you know why that is the case?
Scarlet Titania: I was not disclosed of that information
Sky Maiden: well i'm sure they're fine
Gray Is Bae: that still doesn't explain why we need a separate chat though
Scarlet Titania: In all honesty, I didn't want this topic to be in the other one
Scarlet Titania: It's a bit dark for a regular tavern chat
Black Steel: y not make a thread then?
Black Steel: if this is serious then the entire community should know right?
Scarlet Titania: This is a little different than the incident you were involved in.
Scarlet Titania: Have you heard of the the serial killer END?
This is where Gajeel stopped for a moment and thought for a second. E.N.D. That name has been going around for the last 7 years. Countless of people died by his hand, leaving the initials E.N.D. written in blood somewhere in the crime scene. The victims contain both nobles and commoners, not to mention have no relation to each other. Aside from finding the prince, Gajeel has been tasked to find this criminal, but every attempt ended in failure. No one has seemed to see E.N.D. on the cameras or in person. It was as if death itself had decided to settle in Fiore.
Not only that, but a criminal group known as Tartarus has been more active lately. They are responsible for multiple crimes ranging from robbery to kidnapping to murder. All of the members are unknown and there are no concrete suspects to point at. There have been before, but all of them were proven innocent. Unlike back then, Gajeel was a bit more softer when it came to arresting people. Fairy Tail was just like that he suppose.
Connections between them and E.N.D. has yet to be proven, but Gajeel suspects that the two are related to each other in some way. Not only has Tartarus's activity picked up at the exact same time E.N.D. appeared, but Tartarus has also been making some movements that match the same path as E.N.D. is making. Not all of the time of course, since that would make it too easy, but it is enough for Gajeel to raise an eyebrow. Plus, they conveniently know how to dodge the security cameras, much like E.N.D. does. Which leads to Gajeel's next suspicion, Natsu Dragneel.
It all happened at once. First was the prince's disappearance. According to the letter he left, he did it so that he can obtain something outside of the castle. He didn't specify, but Gajeel wouldn't be surprised if it was something to freedom. Natsu was known to be a troublemaker of sorts. However, someone like him would know about the security cameras and their range of vision. If E.N.D. and Tartarus got a hold of that information, then it would be no wonder that they were able to be outside of the camera's eyes. Which is why Gajeel has been putting more stock in human bodyguards and updating the security system. It didn't help.
There is a number of possibilities that could happen between the prince, E.N.D., and Tartarus. All of them could be in cahoots to cause as much chaos as possible. The prince could have been forced to help them after running away so recklessly or maybe one of them is a grand manipulator between all of them. There is also the rumor that the prince was murdered by E.N.D., which really, is plausible. Heck, the prince could be E.N.D. for all he knew, though there is no doubt that he would rather not let that be the truth. Gajeel is pretty sure that all three are connected, but he isn't sure how.
God, Acnologia was already bad enough.
Now that he thinks about it, Gajeel is pretty sure that he had heard of the name E.N.D. before. Not during the last 7 years, but around when he was a child. However, the more he thought about it, the more his brain started to hurt. He took a deep breath and looked back at the computer screen, noticing that he had missed a lot of messages.
Actual Stripper: i'm telling you there is something strange going on right now
Nekomander: of course, a serial killer that goes around killing people every monday is strange
Nekomander: and mondays already sucks ;_;
Actual Stripper: no no that's not it
Actual Stripper: something smells weird
Actual Stripper: wait
Actual Stripper: oh fuck
Lucy Heartfilia: What is it? :O
Actual Stripper: oh god
Actual Stripper: no
Actual Stripper: nononononono
Gray Is Bae: what's wrong!? i'll get there right away!
Scarlet Titania: Gray, calm down. What is going on?
Actual Stripper: god don't come juvia
Actual Stripper: oh shiatah3ojeahj
Actual Stripper: ahj;lkhnakern;rnhenha;eonr
Actual Stripper: 4ha;hn;lknh;nt;aenoeanaenkntaontin
- Actual Stripper has disconnected from the chat. -
What. Just happened.