Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to my new Fairytail fic! enjoy!
I do not own any part of Fairytail and all the characters belong to its respective owners.
What It Means To Be A Dragon Slayer
Chapter 1- A Rain Of Fire
Natsu laughed as he sparred with Gray, grappling and throwing punches throughout Fairytail's beer hall. Lucy, Lisanna and Wendy giggled on one of the tables next to Team Shadow Gear. Erza and Master Makarov stood by the bar idly chatting with Mira Jane as she hoisted up another barrel for the boisterous Cana. Gajeel leant on the raised desk next to her, calmly munching on a handful of steel nuts. Carla flew overhead with Lily, glaring at Happy who was happily munching on a fish in Lucy's lap. In general, life was good. But such times were short-lived as an explosion rocked the guild.
The noisy-mages froze and then, as one, rushed from the guild to see what was attacking them. A shock awaited them.
Magnolia was burning.
Flame rained down from a twisted sky and every street was filled with screaming citizens within moments.
The Master quickly took charge and shouted for every mage to,
"get the people to safety. Get them under cover! We need to find out what's causing this. Elfman, Erza, Gray and Juvia, you are in charge of protecting the citizens from the flames. Your powers are most adept to the task. Natsu, you are coming with me. Lisanna, Mira-Jane, ckear a path for the people to get out. Use your Animorph strength to destroy the houses if you must! Levi, Lucy you two…" the Master's voice rolled on and everyone ran to do as they were commanded. The a brief lull in the rain of fire and every member of Fairytail's strongest team gasped and stopped what they were doing.
"An Anima?" gasped Erza.
The brief lapse had cleared the sky enough to reveal a great vortex in the clouds, one which was horribly familiar to a select few people below.
"But I thought they were all closed after Mystogan, I mean Gerrard, took the throne and we destroy the lacrima!" yelled Gray. "How can one be here?"
The friends exchanged fearful glances and then, spying Natsu, anime-sweatdropped as one. He was running around in circles with his mouth wide open, trying to eat the fiery rain. He resembled nothing so much as a small child trying to catch the first snowflake on their tongue.
"Natsu!"
"Ooh I'm all fired up now!" he yelled, taking a swipe at Gray who easily sidestepped it.
"Natsu, we're supposed to be helping the people of Magnolia to escape. Not running around trying to eat fire-balls!"
The red-head laughed and ignored him until Erza and Lucy silmaltaneously wlked up to him a slapped him around the back of his head.
"Natsu, concentrate!" they yelled.
"But Erzaaa, pleeeeeease! It's so much fun! And everyone else is helping the citizens! Can't I just eat the fire? Please, Erza!"
"No! You heard the Master! We have…to…" she trailed off as a great roar suddenly bellowed from the sky and vast beast swooped from the sky. The three Dragon Slayers' heads whipped up and their masters' names cried from their lips.
"Igneel?"
"Metallicana?"
"Grandine?"
Their questions were soon answered as the dragon let out a scorching bellow of fire which illuminated its red scales.
"Igneel! Father!" Natsu ran forward through the city back to the open square by Fairytail's gilded gate. "Father! Father!" he cried, ignoring the astonished looks his fellow mages gave him. The circling dragon above roared once more and let out another breath of fire which set a part of the town on fire. Natsu did not seem to care and yelled louder, jumping up and down and waving his arms, desperately trying to gain the mythical beast's attention. It seemed that he had succeeded when the crimson-scaled beast dove down to the ground, claws outstretched. Erza yelled and ran to grab Natsu but he did not even flinch as the razor-edged wings screamed through the air to reach him. It seemed all was lost and the feral monster would kill the red-head where he stood but instead, at the absolute last second, the dragon pulled out of its dive, choosing instead to alight in the square itself. The dragon settled back on its haunches and turned its amber eyes to stare at Natsu. Then the young Dragon Slayer did something that no one who knew him would ever expect. He bowed.
Getting down on one knee before the dragon, Natsu fixed his gaze on the ground and spoke in a deep, serious tone. This voice was so diffent from his usual joy-filled lilt that his friend's eyes bugged out their heads in shock.
"I, Natsu Dragneel, son of the great fire dragon Lord Igneel, pledge my life and alliegence to you, my lord and master."
The dragon nodded his serpentine head.
"I accept your fealty my son, though it has been many years since I last called upon it. How long has it been here?"
"Nineteen years, Father. Eighteen years next month since you left."
"Good. Time has passed well since." Igneel, for it was truly him, leaned forward and let out a stream of golden-white flames that enveloped Natsu's form. Lucy let out a scream of terror for her dearest friend but Gajeel clamped his hand around her arm to prevent her summoning Aquarius to save him. She twisted, fighting his grip, but she was met by a steely glare.
"Do not interrupt what you do not understand and never…ever cross a dragon!."
Lucy gulped and nodded, turning back to stare fearfully at her oldest friend.
The flames still consumed Natsu but they had now diminished. They were fading as if…they were being absorbed. Natsu's skin was drinking in the fire like water in the desert. Soon not a spark was left but his hair and clothes swayed in an unseen, hot wind and bright embers burned in his slanted eyes. He bowed once more to which Igneel replied,
"Your power has grown, and I sense power in those you have allied with. You may summon them. I wish to meet the humans that may earn the respect of my son."
"Thank you, my lord." Natsu turned to face his fellow Fairytail mages. "Wendy, Gajeel, Makarov. You may approach." The guild gasped as one at Natsu's audacity in addressing the Master by him first name. The three chosen approached cautiously and Gajeel stooped down to murmur to the others.
"Wendy you may know this but listen well both of you. When we reach them, bow low and address only Natsu and when referring to Igneel, refer to him only as Lord Dragon and whatever you do, do not insult him. Honour is without equal among dragons. Feuds can span millennia and any human would be killed instantly for doubting a dragon's honour. Oh and don't lie. You can't fool a dragon so don't try to. He will destroy you if you do. Other than that, speak only when spoken to and guard your words." By now the three of them had reached Natsu. He gestured for them to halt and they did, bowing from the waist before the great beast. Igneel accepted their bow with a slight nod, indicating for Natsu to make the introductions.
First he gestured towards the Master.
"This is Master Makarov, of the Mage Guild Fairytail and one of the Ten Wizard Saints." The Master bowed again but his face soon began to turn purple with outrage as Natsu continued. "Not particularly strong, his magic is nothing but brute strength, lacking in finesse. He is little more than a wyrm even for a human." Makarov clenched his fists and muttered under his breath about ungrateful children, too cautious of the dragon's wrath to do more. However he did calm as Natsu continued once again. "He does, however, process great honour and loyalty to his guild, and I was indebted to him for his kindness and protection when I was younger. I have repaid my debt to him with service and his kindness has continued despite. He has gained much honour in my eyes."
Igneel inclined his snout in the small man's direction.
"I see why you have earned such respect, for a human, and you have my eternal thanks for taking care of my son when I could not."
"You may retire," dismissed Natsu imperiously and, although Master Makarov's brow twitched irately at his choice of words, he obeyed.
Now the draconic parent and child turned to the other two humans that stood before them.
"You may introduce yourselves." Commanded Natsu. Gajeel and Wendy tried hard not to gape at the honour of directly addressing a dragon, other than their own masters, and hurriedly obeyed.
"Wendiline, previously of Caitshelter, now a mage of Fairytail. I use Sky magic. I am the Sky Dragon Slayer and apprentice to Grandine." She curtsied again and stepped back, whereupon Gajeel spoke.
"Gajeel of Fairytail, previously of Phantom, and the Iron Dragon Slayer, first apprentice of Metallicana." He too bowed before retreating a pace or two.
Igneel stared curiously at Gajeel.
"So you are Metallicana's boy. I might have known. He spoke often of you, the only boy wever to survive the trials required to become his apprentice, and through pure stubbornness no less. A fitting apprentice to one as stubborn as iron, as Metallicana is." Gajeel gasped unconsciously at the mention of his master and Wendy looked patheticly hopeful for news of Grandine till Igneel confirmed what he had hinted at. "Yes I have spoken with my fellow dragons, your masters. We were drawn through the animas and it is through that means that we have tried to return by the same. I do not know if they too have got through their anima, but if I have returned, then it is likely then they have done the same. Still I pity the land where Metallicana comes through."
"Master?"
"The anima tried to use our own magics against us, Natsu. Hence the rain of fire."
"Yes Master."
"Speaking of which, prove to me that you have not forgotten what I taught you. Transfer the flames from the town to yourself."
"Yes Master."
Stepping forward, Natsu raised his palms to the sky. Every fire in Magnolia froze in that instance before beginning to rise into the sky. The young mage slammed his palms together and the fire shot towards him, enveloping him once again in flames. They took longer to fade this time but now Natsu literally shone with power and the ground cracked and shimmered from the heat surrounding him. Gajeel was forced to retreat several paces from the heat as his iron was beginning to soften and the others followed his example as they could not bear to be so close to the human flame for long, so great was the heat radiating from Natsu. Igneel's eyes, however, narrowed.
"Your power has grown greatly, my son, but your control has not. Come, we must leave. There is much work to be done."
Lucy and the other mages gasped as Natsu nodded his agreement and clambered on the dragon's back. Natsu? Impossible! He couldn't be!...leaving? Many of his friends ran forward to do…something. Anything! But they were too late. With a mighty sweep of crimson wings, the dragon took off, swooping low over Magnolia. The mages on the ground cried out, beggin the boy to return, but they were silenced by the twin glares of Natsu and his father. Eyes harder than diamonds; colder than ice, though they still shone like embers fresh from the fire. Then the great, red beast dove beyond the horizon and Natsu was…gone.
dun dun der! reveiw please!