A Change in History

One small event was all it took to change history. The Magic Council was never formed, leaving the mages to live their lives as they saw fit. There have been many wars throughout the course of history, claiming countless lives. With the outlying villages being run by guilds wanting nothing more than power, and the alliance in favor of a united Fiore wavering, how will this one small event in the past continue to alter the course of history?

Chapter One

300 years ago, after the age of the dragons had passed, there had once been a small group of people within the land of Fiore that set out to form a council that would oversee and manage the mages of their land. Following the terror of Zeref, their goal was to prevent the possibility of a single mage ever becoming so powerful again, that they could control the world. They wanted to ensure peace for humanity.

It failed. Before the group had begun settling down and begin constructing their new home, they were attacked. Their supplies were burned, the land was pillaged, and they were all slain. No one ever found out who led the attack, but because of the devastation left behind, it scared away any others that had been willing to give it a try.

Humanity stuck to their villages and towns, choosing rather to remain to themselves and their neighbors instead of risking destruction. There were groups that were friendlier, choosing to leave their borders open and accept new people into their communities. But others shut their gates, closing themselves off from the outside world.

Things proceeded as such for years. Each kept to their own, and there was relative peace between the communities.

But it did not last forever. And eventually, the communities grew greedy. They wanted more land, more resources, but most importantly, they wanted more magic power. The stronger villages began to send out mages, ravaging the lands and pillaging the villages they thought to be beneath them.

As the raiding became increasingly worse over time, the villages devised a system to fight back against those who tried to do evil. Within the communities, they began gathering their mages together and forming groups. They would utilize their magic abilities and discover new ways to stop their enemies together. And eventually, these groups became known as the guilds.

The wars between the guilds were fierce, with some lasting only weeks, others lasted years. The greatest of them lasted decades. But no matter the length, they always ensured devastation for one of the parties involved.

Eventually, 110 years ago, a powerful family operating under the name of Fiore attempted to stand up and unite the land. Their goal was to end the fighting and bring peace once more to the land. They received support from many of the smaller towns, and even some from a few of the larger cities. But the larger, more formidable towns and cities that were known for their evil, opposed their goal fiercely. They didn't want anyone getting in the way of their power and fortune.

The war was devastating. Countless guilds were involved, and the magic that had been utilized left the north-eastern region of Fiore completely uninhabitable to this day. Over half of Fiore's guilds ended up wiped out of existence, with most of their mages killed. In the end, both sides agreed to a ceasefire. If the communities that did not wish to be a part of the unification were left alone, there would be no more bloodshed.

The cities and guilds that had supported the Fiore family had agreed to a make-shift alliance. If the day ever came where they had to defend themselves again, they wanted to ensure that they had each other's support.

And thus, time has passed. The communities that were a part of the alliance kept their doors open, allowing many escapes from the outlier villages to join if they agreed to keep the peace. But the outlying villages continued to pillage, striking where the alliance was weakest, and ensuring that from their point of view, they were the strongest city in the land.

Several strong guilds have emerged within the alliance. Fairy Tail, Phantom Lord, Sabretooth, Lamia Scale, Mermaid Heel, and Blue Pegasus are the forerunners of the alliance. But the outlying villages have their own negative reputation as well, with the most prominent guilds going by the names of Oracion Seis, Grimoire Heart, and Tartaros. Those three unified under the name of the Balam Alliance, which was the essentially the anti-Fiore alliance. There were quite a few other outlying guilds ruling over towns and villages, but the Balam Alliance stood above them all.

Since the great war, there had been relative peace within the land. The guilds have taken a prominent role in the development of their respective town or city. They now controlled the day-to-day life within the city, along with any policies and laws that may need to be enforced within their walls. Thus, leading to each community being known for the guild that represented them, rather than the cities official name.

There were a few daring families within the land of Fiore that managed to maintain their life outside the walls of a city. Although this would require an immense amount of wealth, along with the support from one of the guilds. Otherwise, you were guaranteed to perish.

The Heartfilia family was one of them. With Jude Heartfilia building up their estate from practically nothing years ago. He maintained his estate with his family and wealth, along with the support from an unknown guild. But with the passing of his wife years ago, it left him alone in the estate with his only daughter. A daughter who recently ran away from the estate, in search of one specific guild…

The gate was massive, easily larger than any other she had seen before and it dwarfed her in size. With a large, arching bridge going over the top and a giant lock keeping the two doors locked in place. The two towers on either side were no doubt filled with men, always on watch. Standing on top, three men dressed in uniform were watching her with suspicious eyes, with each grasping their spear tightly.

Switching back to the city gate, she noticed the bright white and red banners hanging from each of the corner posts. Taking in the symbol stretched across each of the banners, she let out a breath she had been involuntarily holding. After weeks of non-stop running, barely being able to eat, and countless hours of missed sleep… She was here.

She was a young girl, around the age of eighteen. Her clothes were ragged, with the seams torn and the edges jagged. Her shirt was a light blue, and she had on a pair of dark cargo pants, which only contained a few items. The blond hair that covered her face used to be shiny and clean but was now dark and matted with dirt.

Taking a step closer and calling up to the guards standing on top of the gate, she paused when the one in the middle raised a hand.

"Halt!" he yelled, angling his spear down at her. Although now that he had done so, she was able to make out the barrel of the gun that was welded onto the other side.

"Hands where I can see 'em!" he continued, to which she quickly complied, raising her hands above her head. "What business do you have here? I ain't ever seen you round here before!"

She glanced at the banner above the gate. She couldn't say that this kind of treatment wasn't expected. It was, but she had hoped that at least it would be a bit different here.

"I'm here seeking refuge. I ran away from home and need a safe place to stay."

The guards glanced at each other quickly and muttered a few words to each other before turning back to her with a wary glance. "I'm sorry," the one on the left started, "We can't let anyone in without good reason. Perhaps if there was someone you knew in town that can speak on your behalf?"

A spark of panic erupted in the back of her head, but she quickly quelled it. She couldn't afford to panic now, not when she was so close. When she had come so far. But there was no one in town she knew, let alone someone that would speak up for her.

Clenching her fist, she could feel the tears threatening to fall from her eyes. This was her last option. There was nowhere else to go. If she was forced to go back out into the wilderness, she'd be lucky to survive for more than a month. But she refused to go back.

Looking back at the men, she was preparing to ask again when a voice stopped her.

"What's your name?"

The guards all straightened as they stood at attention. They raised their hands to salute while yelling, "Sir!"

Turning around, she spotted the mystery speaker. They stood just in the tree line behind her, with the hood covering his face, she couldn't see much besides the few strands of pink hair sticking out from the edges. He wore a plain black best and left it undone, showing off his toned body. There was a white scarf wrapped around his neck, which almost looked like it was made of scales. And to finish off the look, he wore a pair of white, baggy pants and a pair of simple sandals to cover his feet.

As the girl could only stare at him in stunned silence, the figure grew closer. He came to a stop a few feet away from her and stared up at the guards. As he watched, he buried his hands in his pockets.

"Well?" he questioned, causing the girl's cheeks to heat up.

"L-Lucy." she stuttered.

She could have sworn that a small flame shot out from under the hood when he let out a light laugh, "Lucy… who?"

That made her pause. Her last name was something that she had been hoping to hide for as long as possible. As soon as someone learned who she was, there was no doubt they would turn her away. Her father did a very good job at making sure that much of the continent hated them.

"A-Ashley," she managed. Not a total lie… Ashley was her middle name.

"Lucy Ashley." The figure chuckled, and once more Lucy could've sworn a flame shot out from the hood. "That's a weird name."

Feeling her cheeks grow warm again, she was going to defend her pride until the figure spoke up. "So, why are you here, Lucy Ashley?"

Her gaze fell to the ground. She grabbed onto a mud-coated strand of her hair that was hanging in front of her eyes. "I ran away from home."

Silence permeated the air, and for a second Lucy was afraid that the man was going to leave. But after a moment, the boy let out a sigh, and Lucy couldn't tell if he was tired or saddened by something.

"I see," he started, "So you came here looking for Fairy Tail, correct?"

Nodding her head, Lucy watched as the man reached up with his right hand and grabbed the edge of his hood. "Well, then you're in luck." he spoke before pulling down the hood to reveal a head of wild pink hair. "I'm Natsu Dragneel. I'm a member of Fairy Tail!"

As he finished, he turned his body and pointed at his right shoulder with his opposite hand. The skin on his shoulder began to shimmer, and before long a dark red mark appeared. It didn't take her long to recognize what it meant, and she couldn't help but smile in relief.

Before she could respond, Natsu grabbed onto her hand and began to pull her with him. As they got closer to the gates, the guards didn't hesitate in opening them up for the Fairy Tail mage, although they did give Lucy once last wary look before the pair turned out of their site. They stepped onto a long, cobble road that stretched from the entrance of town by the forest, to the other side of town by the beach. Staring far down the road, she was able to make out the large, multi-story Fairy Tail Guild at the end.

She hadn't been able to see it from the outside, but without the giant walls blocking the view of the city, it looked like a flourishing town. Children ran throughout the streets, laughing as they played with their friends. While the adults hustled to and fro, going about their daily lives.

There were plenty of buildings, ranging from small, one-story homes, to sprawling ten-story apartment complexes. Off in the east side of town, she was able to make out the large town hall, although it was dwarfed by the guildhall.

She hadn't seen anything like this before. Her father had always kept her locked up inside their estate, having been too afraid to go out in public. With the constant war raging on between the guilds, he had never wanted to take the chance of leaving their wealth unattended.

Natsu began to tug on her hand harder, causing her to stumble forward. "Come on!" he exclaimed, a cheeky grin forming on his face. "We still have a bit to walk before we get there!"

Feeling a small smile begin to settle on her face, Lucy quickly made to follow him. Natsu pulled her through the street, pushing through the crowds the lined the streets on their way to their destination. Eventually, after what seemed like a mile of walking, they came to a stop at the front doors. Although not as large at the gates to the city, they still towered over Lucy.

Looking up at the pink-haired teen beside her, the small smile on her face widened.

"Welcome to Fairy Tail, Lucy!"

Welcome to the first chapter of my new story! Feel free to leave a review and let me know what you thought of the first chapter! I hope to turn this into something great!

The original concept and idea for this story belongs to Undying Soul98, who has it listed under his profile as The War Never Ends.

Despite the cheerier tone at the end, this will be a darker tale. Things are not easy in this world, wars are a common occurrence between the 'dark' or outlying guilds and the 'alliance' or legal guilds. SLIGHT SPOILER - There will be deaths.

Thanks to everyone for showing massive amounts of support on my other works as well. It means the world to me.

Until next time.