AN: Heeeeeeeeeeellllllllllllllllloooooooooooo People! CrimsonKyuubiSage here!
So college life! It's been quite an adjustment, but I'm getting used to it. In light of this new chapter I've begun in life, I've decided to begin a new story as well... a Naruto/Fairy Tail crossover.
This has actually been a story I've been meaning to write for a while now, a story that I'm certain has not been done before or has not been done too often.
One of the things I've found odd about the Fairy Tail universe was that though there were plenty of mystical creatures, there seemed to be a lack of delving into the mystical aspect of it all.
And so, I present to you... Autumn's Spiral. Enjoy!
Chapter Start
We live in a wondrous world, truly we do. Earthland houses many magics: some older than time itself, some powerful enough to move mountains, some even beyond human comprehension...
Earthland isn't home to only humans, however. Magical creatures come in all shapes and sizes. There are races that are humanoid in appearance, monsters only on the outside, even some that have not been discovered by humanity!
Most despise humanity, actually, tending to avoid human civilization as if it were a plague (To them it might as well be). And in turn, humans ignore their societies, an undisputed, unannounced peace treaty that says 'you don't mess with us, we don't mess with you'. In the event that humans encounter these mystical creatures, depending on which race they encounter will determine their fate.
Sometimes it's only the corpses that are found. Or maybe the person reappears a few days later with no recollection of what happened. Maybe they remember exactly what happened, but people never believe them...
Because their stories could not be true... could it?
A full moon glowed high above the sky, illuminating the forest below. The creatures of the night roamed around as they pleased, even a few Forest Vulcans were still active.
The one creature which stood out amongst them all was a human, a mere child.
It was a boy that stood at 4'10" with spiky golden blond hair and three whisker marks on his cheeks. His cerulean blue eyes were dull, as if he was focused on an unseen object in front of him. He wore an orange sleeveless hoodie, a dark blue t-shirt, gray-green shorts and dark blue open-toed sandals.
He shuffled forward, blood dripping down from a small gash in his forehead.
That paled in comparison to the other bruises on his body, especially the one on his right forearm, where his guild's crest mark - the marking of a Fairy Tail mage - had taken on a dark hue from the bruising, the red colored mark unchanged from his beating.
This boy was Naruto Uzumaki, a former orphan taken in by Fairy Tail, but rejected like a bad organ transplant.
The events which led up to his current state kept playing in a loop over and over and over in his mind...
"WEAK!"
Flashback Start
Naruto scurried backwards instinctually, his eyes filled with fear as he stared down one Laxus Dreyar, grandson of the current guild master of Fairy Tail, Makarov Dreyar.
Said guild master was currently out of town for a meeting between other guild masters, giving Laxus the perfect opportunity to 'purge' the weak from Fairy Tail without much interference, starting with the weakest link of all.
The grandson of Makarov Dreyar, in addition to being older than the scared blond by seven years also stood taller than most did, standing at 6'0" and still growing (Not by much, but still he wasn't shrinking) with blue-gray eyes that held no mercy, slicked back yet still spiky blond hair, and a lightning bolt-shaped scar on his right eye. He wore a simple burnt orange shirt over a long-sleeved black shirt, coupled with black pants and black shoes...
And the only thing stopping him from unleashing more pent-up frustration on the poor twelve-year-old was Erza Scarlet. The fifteen-year-old S-class mage stood at 5'7" and had scarlet red hair and brown eyes. She was a developing young woman, her assets hidden by the metal armor she wore over a plain outfit which consisted of a white long-sleeved blouse, a tan skirt, and armored boots.
In her hands she held two swords - one of which was pointed directly at Laxus.
"Get out of my way!" Laxus demanded, yellow lightning cackling between his fingers.
"I will not allow you to hurt one of our comrades any further!" Erza yelled defiantly.
"..." Naruto was at a loss for words, though that may have been because the pain he was experiencing nearly caused him to black out.
"He's weak! A fucking disgrace to the Fairy Tail name!" Laxus exclaimed, clenching his fist as he stared at his fellow blond.
"Laxus!"
"Don't try to deny it! We all know it's true!" he continued his rant, turning to the other Fairy Tail mages who bore witness to this course of events. "What the hell kind of magic is Glass Make anyways?"
Glass Make, that was the name of his magic. While it was possible for a mage to learn, through hard work and determination, any magic they so wished, each mage had their own magic which they had an affinity for, a sort of prodigal talent that others might or might not have. And in Naruto's case, his was Glass Make.
"W-Well, I-" Naruto stammered, his voice dying on his tongue at the harsh glare Laxus gave him.
"What are you going to do, huh?! Make some glass figurines to throw at an enemy? Oh, I'm sure you'll be able to slay fucking wyverns using a window panel! Or a ceramic swan! Or a goddamn glass cup!" Laxus quipped, his voice dripping with sarcasm at the end. "Just face it, kid! You're not worthy of bearing the crest of Fairy Tail, and you fucking know it-"
"THAT'S ENOUGH LAXUS!" Erza exclaimed, glaring at the grandson of the guild master in disgust.
"... Tch. Weak." Laxus spat at Erza and Naruto, deciding to leave begrudgingly before he got into more trouble than he was already in.
...
"I... I'm sorry!" Tears fell freely from Naruto eyes, Laxus's words hitting him like an oncoming train.
He wasn't crying because of the pain... he was crying because of the truth.
Laxus was right. He was the weakest member of Fairy Tail. All he knew was Glass Make, and even then he couldn't perform feats of magic like any of the other guild members.
He couldn't breath fire, use ice weapons, summon swords and knives and shields.
He was weak.
Flashback End
"Weak..." Naruto mumbled to himself. Despite protests from other guild members - including Erza - he wished to travel to Porlyusica's hut alone.
Though from the occasional sound of twigs snapping, grass and shrubs rustling, he knew that he was being followed by one of the other Fairy Tail members, which one he wasn't sure of.
He slammed into a nearby tree when he lost his footing, breathing heavily and slumping to the ground in a mixture of pain and exhaustion.
"I'm weak." he continued to mutter under his breath, the shadow following him looking on in pity.
...
Suddenly, there a bright sparkle that caught his attention. He cast his gaze upwards, looking up at the starry night sky.
The stars... they were so beautiful. Jewels in the sky that only appeared when the sun set, so close yet so far away...
"Star light, star bright, the first star I see tonight..." Naruto sang weakly, looking at the stars longingly. "I wish I may, I wish I might, have the wish I wish tonight..."
A wish was a powerful thing. Some believe it to be just superstition, some beg for one to come and change their lives... But what could he wish for? What should he wish for which he desires the most...?
The answer was obvious. But to have his wish come true... seemed impossible.
"Perhaps I can fix that." A strange voice called out to him - silky, seductive... it was like all his ailments were alleviated by the sound of that voice.
It drew him off the path, into the brush and out of his follower's sights.
"Yes, come closer, my dear..."
"Naruto-kun?"
"Closer..."
"Naruto-kuuuuun?"
"Closer... good!"
Before Naruto could react, darkness suddenly enveloped him, much like a mother would her child.
"Naruto-kun!" were the last words that registered in his mind before he embraced the darkness.
His life would never be the same again.
-Autumn's Spiral-
"Where... Where am I?"
"Where you are is not important. Rather, the more pressing question is... what do you wish?"
"What do I wish?"
"You already know the answer. You want power."
"Power..."
"Am I wrong?"
"No. Quite the opposite. But there's no way I can just... get power."
"Nothing is impossible, my dear."
"Who... Who are you?"
"Who am I? Call me... Old Master."
"Old Master? Why do you want me to call you 'Old Master'?"
"That is inconsequential..."
...
"Oh my."
"What is it?"
"It would seem that our time together must be cut short. But..."
"AAAAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!" Naruto cried out in pain, hidden inside a sphere of darkness with a golden light dancing around inside.
"Naruto-kun!" his follower exclaimed, dashing up to the glowing sphere and trying to break the shell and get to Naruto.
The sphere began to shrink until all that was left was darkness covering him like a second skin, the golden light dancing around until it was closed in around his head.
Then the darkness melded with his skin, marking him as one of the night forevermore.
"I leave you with a gift. Do with it as you please."
-Autumn's Spiral-
Standing at 5'0" with pale lavender hair in a hime cut, brown eyes filled with concern, was Laki Olietta.
Laki Olietta was many things. She was a eleven-year-old Fairy Tail mage, a proficient user of Wood Make magic... and a babysitter.
Out of every guild member present, she was the closest to Naruto. She was the first person to make friends with him, the first person to take a job with him, it helped both of them to open up more.
Which was why she volunteered to watch over him, make sure he reached Porlyusica's hut safely.
It's not that he wasn't capable of defending himself, well... that was debatable. His Glass Make magic, while beautiful in creating glass sculptures which would fetch quite the Jewels if (when) sold, wasn't exactly the type of magic useful for combat... in any way whatsoever.
Sure, she was prepared in case any Vulcans attacked him... she did not, however, expect him to be enveloped in a cocoon of darkness, cry out in pain, and then fall unconscious.
When the darkness finally melded with his skin, he dropped unceremoniously to the ground, his skin paler than before but his wounds... gone?
His wounds were completely gone! It was a miracle! She quickly rushed to his side, kneeling down to take a closer look for any more changes to the blond boy.
Besides his paler than usual skin, and his wounds being healed, nothing else seemed out of place with Naruto.
"Naruto-kun..." she muttered, gently grasping his face with her right hand, brushing aside a stray strand of hair.
He looked... peaceful. That is, until his eyes opened up.
Instead of the twin cerulean orbs she was used to seeing, she was greeted to the sight of only one cerulean blue eye - his left eye. His right eye, however...
It was a glowing amber color.
...
When Naruto came back into consciousness, Laki was standing over him.
'Figures they'd send Laki-chan.' he thought, blinking until his vision came into focus.
What was this... feeling? This strange tingling sensation that washed over him?
It felt like a perfect Fall evening, the leaves crisp and yellow, orange and brown in color, a breeze dancing by... It wasn't cold, like a winter's night, nor was it hot, like a summer's day... It felt just right.
'Euphoric!' he mentally exclaimed, a grin creeping across his face. It was divine! No other feeling came close to it!
It was addicting! He had to have more...
"Naruto-kun... are you alright?" Laki asked, unnerved by the grin on the blond's face and even more so by his answer...
"Oh I feel fine, Laki-chan... Just fine."
-Autumn's Spiral-
Three weeks had gone by since that day, and everyone, including Laki, could tell something was off with Naruto.
The blond had grown distant, more distant than usual. His skin tone was still pale, and he barely came around the guild hall anymore. The few times any guild members spotted him, he was at the library or in the forest.
No one knew what he was up to, and no one dared to ask what he was up to either. They figured he was still recovering from Laxus's thrashing, and that was partially true.
The number of times he visited the guild hall had dropped from staying there all day, to only visiting three times a day for meals, to eventually only once a day.
Now... he didn't show up today, not at his usual time, which was the final straw in Laki's books.
"Naruto-kun? Naruto-kuuuuuuun?" Laki called out, searching through the forest for her blond friend.
...
She began to sweat. Where was he? Where was Naruto?
"Naruto-kun?! Naruto-kun?!" she continued to look for him, but to no avail as she ran around.
"High above heaven's rim, tiny buds upon its limb. Tough bark grown in rugged layer, stretching forth in constant prayer."
"Gah!" Laki cried out in pain, ironically tripping over a tree root and stumbling to the ground, her ankle sprained.
"A Mighty Ash with branches strong, standing stoic for so very long. In whose branches, slightly curled, is held in place, our tiny world."
A glimmer of hope appeared in Laki's eyes when she came across a hidden clearing deep in the forest...
There, before her very eyes, was Naruto.
"Great White Ash, pillar for all, always green, your leaves never fall. Strong roots you have to anchor your place, you stand so proud, and with such grace."
"NARUTO-KUN!" she exclaimed, causing the blond to turn slightly to face her, a lone, glowing amber eye meeting her gaze.
"Watered daily from a cloudy well, one root sunk deep in Niflhel. Nidhogg gnaws at your firm footed base, that horrible creature is such a disgrace."
She could barely hear it, but it sounded as if someone was... chanting.
Naruto finally turned to meet her, a look of apathy on his face.
"As the holder, and protector, of all that is life, what a shame you endure so very much strife. I honor your strength, your sacrifice too, I give you offerings as part of your due."
"Naruto-kun..." Laki whispered, tears welling up in her eyes. "What's going on?"
"..." Naruto remained silent, his amber eye flaring up as a surge of power washed over the area.
"Yggdrasil, Great Ash of our universe, show us the paths we may traverse. Ashes to ashes, earth to earth."
A strange portal surged to life, a gateway with an unknown destination...
It was clear what he was planning to do, she just didn't want to admit it to herself.
"You... Naruto-kun..." Laki trailed off, her tears spilling over. "What are you doing? Why are you doing this?!"
"I don't expect you to understand, Laki-chan." Naruto responded. "I don't expect anyone to understand."
"Then tell me!" she exclaimed. "Tell me so I can understand!"
...
"Laki-chan, I..." Naruto began, pausing when Old Master whispered in his ears.
"We only have a few moments before the portal closes." Old Master stated.
"I..." he couldn't say it. He couldn't say what he needed to...
"N-Naruto-kun?" Laki called out, watching as Naruto turned his back to her.
"Hurry!"
"Naruto-kun! Please!" she exclaimed, tackling him in a hug from behind. "L-Let's talk about this, please!"
"... I'm sorry." Naruto whispered, prying Laki off of him and running towards the portal.
"Naruto-kun!" Laki cried out, her magic surging wildly as wooden tendrils shot out from the ground, attempting to grab the blond before he could jump through the portal.
But she was too late. The portal dissipated the moment he was fully through, and just moments before Laki could reach him.
She fell to her knees, weeping for the loss of her friend.
He was gone. To where, no one knows...
-Autumn's Spiral-
"Yggdrasil. The Tree of Life." Old Master's voice echoed throughout the endless void. "There is nary a land in which it isn't connected to."
"What does that mean for me?" Naruto questioned. "How will this help me?"
"All in good time, my dear." Old Master said. "The power I've given you is yours to do with, but it is a mere fraction. Prove yourself to me, and I shall grant you more of it."
More power... That sounded very enticing...
Then a thought crossed his mind.
"And what will this cost me?" he asked. "What is the price for this power?"
"You will serve me when needed, a pawn in the greater scheme of things." Old Master stated. "Knowing this, I give you two choices: You may leave, refuse my offer and live your life with only a mere fraction of that power. Or you may accept my offer... and I promise you more power than you could ever dream of. So...
What is your choice?"
...
'More power than I could ever dream of...' Naruto thought, a dark grin on his face. The power to do whatever he pleased, to prove Laxus wrong, to prove everyone wrong!
"You okay there?"
That voice... there was no one else around him, he was alone in this void. Yet still...
Flashback Start
"I... I'm not sure." a younger Naruto said, looking around the forest in confusion.
"You seem kinda lost, need a hand?" a young girl asked.
"I... Yes, please." Naruto replied shyly, casting his gaze towards the ground.
"Follow me!" the girl exclaimed. "My name's Laki! Laki Olietta! What's yours?"
"A-Ahh... Naruto Uzumaki." Naruto stated.
"Ne, Naruto-kun, will you be my friend?" Laki asked, getting up and close in Naruto's face.
"U-Umm... S-Sure." Naruto responded, nodding his head quickly.
"You've gotta pinky promise me! Pinky promise!" Laki chirped, sticking out her pinky to the blond boy.
"P-Pinky promise..." Naruto stuttered, locking pinkies with the lavender-haired girl.
"Yaaaay! Now come on, I'll show you where the guild is!"
Flashback End
"Laki-chan..." Naruto muttered, reconsidering the offer presented to him.
The Old Master sensed his uncertainty, his doubt... that needed to be fixed.
An unseen force made its way towards the blond mage, consuming him and planting the seeds of doubt.
"*BOOM*!" Chaos. All he saw around him was death and despair.
Where was he? What was he seeing?
"Wood-Make: Wood Wall!" There! Naruto could recognize Laki's pale lavender hair in the distance.
Laki, Erza, Laxus, he could see all the guild members of Fairy Tail... fighting?
He didn't recognize who exactly they were fighting, but he could tell it was a losing fight.
"Gah!" Laki cried out in pain when she was impaled by a spear.
"LAKI-CHAN!" Naruto cried out, though his voice went unheard by anyone.
Another spear shot through her, then a third, a fourth.
The tide of the battle quickly changed from a losing battle to already lost as one by one, more and more Fairy Tail members fell dead in combat.
It was a horrible sight. He couldn't take it anymore! He had to do something! Anything!
"We weren't... strong... enough..." Erza muttered before slumping over dead, one of the last of the guild to die.
"NO!" Naruto yelled, his amber eye flaring to life with an unbridled rage.
"*Gasp*!" Naruto breathed heavily, snapping back to reality and found himself in the same void he was before.
"Well, my dear? What is your choice?" Old Master called out.
"I..." Naruto paused. The first thing that came to mind was Laki...
How devastated would she be if he just up and left... for good!
'She's going to die if I'm not powerful enough...' he thought, a dark look of determination appearing on his face.
"I accept. I want more power." Naruto replied.
"Good..." He couldn't see it, but Old Master was grinning.
He would make an excellent pawn.
Chapter End
POST AN: AAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNDDDDDDDDD DONE! It took some time to make this, seeing as I have college life to attend to. I've got a few papers due already, and there's a quiz in every Honors Colloquim class I have - which is twice a week. I'm also trying to be more social, not to say I wasn't social before, I just... want to be more social than I was before.
Anyways, I'll see you guys next time! Read and Review! Ja mata!
-CrimsonKyuubiSage out!