Chapter 1
Waking up
It has been more than 150 years since the time of Natsu and his friends. In that time, Fairy Tail has once again grown to become one of the most powerful and respected guilds in Fiore. It is a time of peace between the kingdoms, and people go about their day to day lives without fear. But a shadow will soon shatter this tranquil time, and it will once again be the mighty heroes of Fairy Tail that stand up to the darkness and force it back. This is where our story begins.
Acton sat down with a tired sigh. Serving food here in the Fairy Tail guild hall was a good job. It paid well, there was always good company, and he liked all his coworkers, but damn did they all eat a lot! It seemed he never stopped running from one table to another from the moment he started to the moment he got off shift. It wasn't that he was ungrateful, far from it, in fact. It had been a Fairy Tail wizard that had found him three years ago and brought him here to have his injuries healed. And when it had been found that he had no magical power, and no memory other than his name, they had taken him in without hesitation, giving him a place to live in the boys dorm.
Acton was just shy of 6' 2", and at 150 lbs, his body was lean, but he was actually a lot stronger than he looked. He had long golden blonde hair that he kept in a short ponytail, and his eyes were a piercing emerald green. He was handsome, with angular, features that gave him a fierce, almost hawk-like visage. A long, thin scar ran down the left side of his face, the remnant of a terrible wound that was no doubt the cause of his amnesia.
A Fairy Tail wizard by the name of Cordyle Amoxi had found Acton on his way back from a quest. He had been collapsed on the side of a forest road, bleeding from numerous injuries, including the head wound that had left the scar on his face. Cordyle had instantly contacted the guild, and they had sent out a team to help bring Acton back. Zalia Gianni, the guild's most powerful wizard, and the resident healer, had labored over his injuries long into the night. According to her, his heart had even stopped on two separate occasions, and she had been forced to use her power to restart it and keep him alive. He had awoken several days later, and after a thorough interview with Guild Master Antory, the extent of his memory loss had been pretty well established. He knew nothing of who he was, other than his name, or where he came from. The clothing he had been wearing at the time provided no clues, being the kind of standard utilitarian adventuring gear that could be found in almost every store in Fiore. Having no other real options, he had immediately accepted the offered job and place to stay. He had been here ever since. He liked being part of the guild. And while from time to time he wondered about his past, he had never really tried to do anything about it. Because reallt, what could he do? He had no clues to go on, and had no idea where to begin. He had already been up to the spot where Cordyle had found him, and that hadn't yielded any information, so he was pretty much at a dead end there.
"Hey, Acton!"
The voice pulled him out of his revery, and he looked up to see Zalia waving at him from near the door. He grinned and got up, making his way across the crowded hall to her. Ever since she had saved his life, he'd always felt he was in her debt, and while she disagreed, he still felt he was obligated to help her in any way she might need him to. The two of them were actually pretty close, and he was grateful to be able to consider her a friend. Zalia was fairly short, at a little over 5' 4", and while she was petite, she was considered one of the most beautiful girls in the guild. Her eyes were a deep maroon red, and her hair, which she kept short, stopping just below her ears, was an electric blue with stripes of neon pink, an odd side effect of her Flesh Smith magic. She sometimes complained about it, but Acton actually thought it was rather striking, and very pretty. She was bouncy and outgoing, full of life and energy, and everyone in the guild liked her.
"Hey, Zal," he said, using the nickname that he had always used. He was the only one who could get away with it, too. She wouldn't let anyone else call her that. He noticed the pile of bags on the ground next to her and smiled. "Lemme guess, you need an extra set of hands to get this up to your room, dontcha?"
She grinned and nodded sheepishly. "Yeah, I thought I could get them all myself, but it turns out they were heavier than I thought, and now I'm all tired out just from getting them back here. You don't mind?"
"Not at all, you know that," he said, then blushed a little when she beamed at him. He gathered the bags and hefted them up on his strong shoulders. He then nodded to say he was ready and followed after her. Her house was just a block down from the guild hall, so it wasn't any great feat for him to carry the bags for her. They walked up to her apartment and he set the bags down lightly on the table. After making sure she didn't need anything else, he excused himself and headed back to the guild. As he came through the door, he noticed there was an extra bag on the floor.
*Oh, I must have missed one*, he thought, picking it up. *I'll just quick take it to her.* As he reached the door to her apartment, he heard a loud crash and her scream from inside. Without hesitating, he slammed his shoulder into the door, bashing it open. He skidded to a stop, and took in the scene with one swift glance. About seven tough looking men had broken into her apartment through the window, probably by climbing up the fire escape. They were clearly after all the stuff she had just bought. Two of them were on either side of her, restraining her, and the other three were arranged around the small room. He lunged forward and slammed the one closest to him backwards into the wall before he could react, driving the air from his lungs and leaving him to sink to the floor, gasping. He pivoted on his heel and caught the second intruder across the chin with a powerful roundhouse kick. He fell and lay still; Acton was worried he'd broken his neck, but didn't have time to think about it as another of the men lunged at him with a knife. He skipped sideways, dodging the thrust, and brought his hand down on the mans wrist in a sharp chop, causing him to drop the knife.
"LOOK OUT!" Zalia screamed, but before he could look around to see what she meant, pain exploded from the back of his head, and he collapsed. Zalia started to cry, and one of the men holding her slapped her hard.
"Shut up, woman," he said harshly, giving her a little shake for emphasis. "Idiot had it comin'."
The first man Acton had hit, having recovered his breath, tucked the heavy metal club back into his jacket. "Now then," he said, rubbing his stomach where Acton's elbow had hit him. "Let's git back ta where we were before we were so rudely interrupted. Where do yah keep the rest of yer money, girl?"
Zalia just hung limply in the grip of the other two men, tears streaming down her face as she looked at Acton's prone form, blood pooling from the gash on the back of his head. She cried out as the other man slapped her again, and finally gestured with a flick of her head to one of the dressers against the wall. "Top drawer," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
They all froze as a deep rumbling growl filled the small space, causing the very air to vibrate with its strength. The leader turned slowly, his eyes widening at the sight of Acton back on his feet, surrounded by a glowing nimbus of golden energy.
"You hurt my friend! I'm gonna pay you back a hundred times for what you did to her!" he snarled, his face a mask of terrible rage. "Star Dragon Solar Blitz!" Bolts of energy erupted from his hands, slamming into the men, blasting them backwards. He moved so fast he practically vanished, flashing from one to the next, smashing them backwards into the walls, one of them into the ceiling, another one down into the floor. Seconds later, they were all down, scattered around the room. Zalia stared at Acton, eyes wide, mouth open; he stood in the center of the room, chest heaving, sweating trickling down his face.
"A...A-Acton?" Zalia whispered, hardly daring to breath. He looked up at her, his entire body shaking.
"W-well...that was certainly different," he said, then his eyes rolled back and he collapsed.
Several hours later, Acton and Zalia sat in the guild hall, surrounded by others from the guild. After Acton had passed out, Zalia had collected herself and ran to the guild to get help. After reviving him, treating his injuries, and after the thugs had been dragged off to jail, they had sat down to puzzle out what exactly had happened.
"I'm not really sure myself," said Acton, scratching is head as he thought. "I know I lost consciousness after that idiot whacked me over the head, but when I came to, it was as if all this knowledge had just been dumped into my brain." He paused and then shook his head. "No, that's not right. It feels like this information on how to do this, use this magic, has always been in my head, it's just that it's like a wall that was blocking me from using it is gone."
"I wonder if that blow to the head perhaps undid some of the amnesia that's been plaguing you for so long," said Guild Master Antory, looking thoughtful. "Head wounds can do strange things to the brain."
Zalia nodded. "That actually makes sense," she said. "My magic detected changes in his brain activity, as though areas that used to be dormant were now being used now. It's entirely possible that getting hit on the head like that reconnected some synapses in your brain and allowed you to access your magic again."
"Which brings use around to that particular point," said Antory, turning back to Acton. "You said it was Dragon Slaying magic that you used?"
"Well, seeing as the spell I used was Star Dragon Solar Blitz, yeah, I'm pretty sure," he said with a chuckle. "I've never heard of Star Dragon Slaying magic, though, have you?"
Lyla, the Fairy Tail record keeper, stepped forwards. "I have, although only vague mentions in other books and scrolls that I've read. It's considered rare, even among Dragon Slayers, which tells you something. There were also comments that led me to believe there's something special about that particular form, although I'm not sure what they might be. There seems to be something that sets Star Dragon Slaying magic apart from the other types."
"So, more questions to be answered," Acton said, stretching. "Well, we're not gonna figure anything out here. It's far too late in the day, and I for one am absolutely BEAT." He got up, and after saying goodnight to everyone, made his way to the dorms. Once he was safely back in his own room, he sat down on his bed with a tired sigh. He turned his head and looked at himself in the mirror that he had hanging on his closet door. He certainly didn't look any different, despite how he felt.
He flopped backwards and stared at the ceiling, lost in thought. So, he could use Star Dragon Slaying magic. That was certainly nothing like what he had ever dreamed of in his wildest fantasies. Those who wielded Dragon Slaying magic were considered some of the strongest in Fiore. Just look at Fairy Tail's own past! Natsu Dragneel, Gajeel Redfox, Wendy Marvell, Laxus Dreyar, all legendary wizards. Then add in the ones they fought alongside; Erza "Titania" Scarlet, Gray Fullbuster, Mirajane Strauss, Lucy Heartfilia, Gildarts Clive, all equally as note worthy as the Dragon Slayers themselves! And now he, Acton Neha, was somehow a part of that legacy? This was too much. On the one hand, he was ecstatic. He finally had magic! On the other hand, he was scared out of his mind for the very same reason. Where had he learned this magic? Who had taught it to him? Why had he decided to learn it in the first place? What other skills did he have that he was still completely unaware of? So many questions left unanswered.
He decided that stressing over it now wasn't going to help him any. He would worry about it more in the morning. And with that thought, he rolled over and was soon fast asleep.