Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or High School DxD, nor am I receiving any funds for writing this work of fiction. Fairy Tail is owned by Hiro Mashima and High School DxD is owned by Ichiei Ishibumi.
Author's Note: Welcome to the prequel to Legacy of Thy Forefathers. My vision for this story is to give a much clearer backstory to Natsu and Gabriel. Every chapter will quote The Old Testament: Book of Genesis and that quote will somehow fit in with what is going on in the chapter. It may sometimes be subtle but it will be there. Originally, this story was going to be titled Genesis because a definition of Genesis means the beginning. Eventually, after fleshing out my plan, I came up with the Idea of referencing the Book of Genesis every chapter and somehow fitting that reference into the chapter. So expect to see them every chapter. There will also be some biblical references that are outside the Book of Genesis and the Old Testament.
This story will mainly focus on the ideas of isolation, war is hell, and "Rest". Rest in this case meaning the relieving of hardship and finding solace after a series of tribulations. Rest will also include break from labor like how God rested on the seventh day and declared it holy. On the subject of "war is hell", this means that this story will go into detail about not only the violence of war, but the psychological impact of war. Going along with the subject of war comes with the bond between people in war or "Brothers in Arms". Isolation will be detailed mostly on the psychological aspect of it.
The majority of this story will follow the Book of Genesis verses chronologically and every "day" that has past, I will switch universes to show what is going on in the other. So for example: I am detailing what is going on in the Fairy Tail universe with Natsu. Then I switch over to the High School DxD universe to show what is going on with Gabriel. Every time God labors for a full day in the Book of Genesis, I am going to switch universes with exceptions after I pass the first chapter of the Book of Genesis. So, since this story will be starting in the Fairy Tail universe, we will not be seeing Gabriel until about chapter six. Each "day" will end of with a peculiar phrase which will be repeated at the end of each "day". They will change a little bit but they will be recognizable when you see the pattern.
We will start off with the Alvarez War arc just after Zeref's demise. Changes in canon will become apparent in the first chapter. The DxD side of things will start off with God declaring war on the Devils and Fallen Angels. I will not detail all the battles of the Great War but I will delve into important battles and historic points that were vaguely mentioned in canon like the shattering of Excalibur, the destruction of the Tower of Babel, the sealing of the 666/Trihexa, the temporary truce to stop the Heavenly Dragons, and the death of God and the four original Devil Kings. I will make up some battles to fill in gaps left by canon. Unlike most DxD stories, the devils are actually going to be bad! Oh my! This includes the Fallen Angels.
But Shikkokuakushintei, the devils are not all bad. Well too bad, they are actually going to be devil-like in this story, so they are going to be a little more realistic than canon devils that are just humans with fancy titles and buffed up strength.
With all that said, let us begin.
Even God Rests Chapter 1: The Beginning
"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth" – Old Testament: Book of Genesis: King James Version: Chapter 1: Verse: 1
As Natsu watched both Zeref, the Black Wizard, and Mavis, the Fairy Tactician and the lead founder of Fairy Tail vanish, Natsu expected to die. For his brother, his creator had died and with him, Natsu should follow. But after waiting for a few minutes in a deafening silence, nothing happened.
So Natsu pushed the matter aside seeking to meet with his friends and tell them of his victory… of their victory. Natsu did not know how Zeref died at the hands of Mavis' curse when Zeref killed her last time they embraced. But what mattered was the fact that it is all over. Zeref had died and with him gone, the war will be a lot easier to win.
When Zeref disappeared, Natsu felt a great weight on his shoulders disappear. It was like a breath of fresh air after lingering in a fertilizer factory for too long. It was overpowering and made his steps as light as the clouds themselves. Finally that self-proclaimed bastard of a brother of his was finally gone from this world.
'I can't wait to rub this in the Stripper's ugly face when I find him.' Natsu thought gleefully. 'Maybe I can make him bow down before me and proclaim my awesomeness!'
With a broad smile spread across his face and a painful skip in his step, Natsu galloped out of the half wrecked guild hall onto the once again ruined streets of Magnolia. Magnolia never seems to catch a break huh?
With the Spriggain Twelve defeated and a large chunk of foot soldiers eradicated, the war was at its conclusion. Their leader is dead along with their twelve generals either defeated or dead, the moral of the enemy army was bound to plummet like a cinderblock in a lake. The Alvarez army no longer had any coordination so the platoons of soldiers will be easy to drive off or slaughter with rather simple tactics.
The fighting in Magnolia had stopped and the city had fallen as silent as a ghost town. With the destruction that spread across Magnolia; the broken windows, the collapsed buildings, the crumbling streets and alleyways blockaded with fallen rubble; the city looked the part of a ghost town and if one did not look hard enough; seemed to be abandoned for a fair amount of time. It looked like the pale horse and Death astride rode through the city and the Hell following them drove the cities former occupants out.
August's Ars Magia spell contributed a lot of the damage dealt to the once bustling city. The sheer power of the spell was godlike and inhuman. It vaporized a large part of Magnolia and further added to the destruction outside the zone which had been vaporized. Natsu did not know how August was defeated, but whoever did it must have been strong. Natsu's prime suspect was Gildarts because he is crazy powerful.
Natsu's internal muses were interrupted by a presence that sent chills down his spine. Its vile and sinister ambience was familiar to him, but the Fire Dragon Prince could not place it. The strength of it steadily grew as the seconds went by. Its source revealed itself in the distance in the form of a black stream of fire that flew through the air like a liquid with high viscosity heading in his direction.
It was then Natsu finally remembered where he felt a similar presence: etherious! But this confused Natsu, for all etherious were supposed to die when Zeref dies. Natsu grimly concluded that if he survived, then there must be other etherious that survived as well. Now it seems that one of the surviving ones was after him.
The black fire was close now. It was around six meters away and it looked like it had no intention of slowing down. Natsu tensed in preparation to dodge the mist which seemed to hold some grudge against him. At the last second, the battered dragon slayer leaped to the side to avoid it. But it turned around to follow him and continued to seek him. Natsu could not just keep dodging for his tired and injured body made the simple act of dodging a demanding task.
The black flames got dangerously close to Natsu as he ducked with a strained grunt while the suspected etherious flew overhead. Natsu knew that he would not get anywhere by continuing to dodge the annoying thing so Natsu changed his pattern. Summoning the last of his strength, Natsu lit area in front of the mist with his flames in an attempt to burn it to oblivion.
This was a mistake as the offending thing merely phased through the wall of fire as if it was not there. Natsu was unprepared for the unexpected result and thus, the vile flames finally reached its target!
No effects were shown on the son of Igneel's physical form and he did not feel any different than before other than a slight tingling sensation.
"Natsu!" a high-pitched voice exclaimed in equal amounts of excitement, relief and joy.
Natsu identified the owner of the voice as the resident celestial spirit mage. The inheritor of Igneel's legacy turned to see Lucy Heartphilia, Gray Fullbuster and Happy dashing towards him, or in Happy's case, flying.
Looking over his friends and surrogate son, Natsu felt a strong rush of guilt. For if one were to look at the eyes of the blonde haired, chocolate eyed girl, the absence of one of those bright orbs was painfully obvious. The ex-rich girl's left eye was replaced by a gauze eye patch, and the status of the eye that is supposed to be under that is one of Natsu's greatest regrets.
Flashback
At the time of Lucy and Natsu's capture, Natsu was unconscious while Lucy was being confronted by their captor. It was then that Dimaria showed her twisted and sadistic persona under the condescending mask she wore.
After taunting Lucy and threatening both her and Natsu, Dimaria proceeded to enact her revenge for "corrupting" Brandish. The absurdly powerful take-over mage intended to gouge the "pretty eyes" of the victim of her machinations.
With an insane glee, Dimaria swung the single edged dagger down unto its target. The knife sank messily into Lucy's left eye. Dimaria was careful not to go in too deep for she wanted her prisoner to feel the most pain she could inflict before ending her miserable life.
The wail of pain and agony was the kind that was heared hin the most harrowing of horror movies. It was blood curdling and would send great distress to any who would hear it.
But for the sadistic blonde Spriggain Elite, it was a melody that sent tingles through her body. It was a pleasure that could not compare to the rush of dopamine caused by the pleasures of the flesh. The bliss Dimaria was experiencing was made obvious by the twinkle in her eyes and further reinforced by the toothy grin that stretched ear to ear which lacked any and all sanity.
Peals of laughter rang through the makeshift holding cell, showing the unhealthy joy caused by the inhumane act inflicted upon the rent-obsessed girl. The satisfaction the torturer felt was immense. She was making this vile Ishgarian pay for corrupting and flipping Brandish!
The pain was indescribable to Lucy. It was the most pain the contractor had ever felt. White hot pain coursed through her nerves that were blinding both figuratively and literally. The pain was both dull and sharp at the same time. It was much like someone poking your eye while at the same time applying pressure to a closed eye, only amplified a thousand fold. Mercifully, Lucy fell unconscious from the shock and pain of her torment. The sweet black oblivion enveloped Lucy like the embrace of an angel. It was her savior and her salvation.
The drawn out scream produced by the vocal chords of the celestial spirit mage caused the unconscious dragon slayer to stir. The cry of pain penetrated Natsu's hazy mind and brought about anger. Someone is hurting Lucy! He must get out of his restraints and help her!
Natsu's eyes fluttered as he began to awake. Soon enough, Natsu was greeted with the sight of Dimria straddling an unmoving Lucy
"Awww, you couldn't hold out any longer?" The sadistic Alakitashian moaned in disappointment. "I was hoping to hear more of your screams. They were beautiful."
At first, there was a small simmering anger that manifested in his gut at the acknowledgement of their capture, but the fact that the kidnapper was giggling like a schoolgirl who was gossiping about cute boys was giggling over a deathly still Lucy.
His anger grew ten-fold at the kidnapper for tormenting Lucy. At the creaking of Natsu's chair, Dimaria turned her head around and met Natsu's glare with her wild eyes and sick grin. It was the perfect poster for insanity. The bloody dagger that was held in her hand and the limp Lucy under her caused an anger that he had not felt since Acnologia slayed Igneel with a bestial brutality.
Faint whispers touched Natsu's conscience as his distress grew. The whispers were faint but in his anger, the frothing caster mage did not hear it or acknowledge it. They were soft and quiet but held a malicious undertone that would raise the guard of any sensible person. The sheer vileness and unsettling ring the whispers gave was something someone who was not evil could not produce.
With a strength that Natsu did not ever exert, he broke the magic nullifying cuffs with ease and charged at the time mage like a testosterone filled raging bull that had just seen the red cloth of the matador. The rage was overwhelming and it was so great that Natsu's vision seemed to blur as his entire being became focused on making Dimaria pay.
The bestial dragon slayer then summoned a flame that he should not be able to use: the undying flames of Igneel's will. A great apparition of the mighty King of Fire Dragons materialized over his son with a terrible glare in his molten eyes that were glowing with a fierce anger.
What was different was the ink-like, black flowing flames that accompanied the dragon flames. It moved around much like water in a zero gravity environment; slow and elastic with a viscosity. They held a malignant power that sought to consume all with its unholy fire, to reduce all creation to nothing.
The whispers grew louder as Natsu let out a shout of anger that resembled the war cry of a daemon spoken about around campfires in old wives' tales more than a human's or a dragon's. It was an unholy union of a high-pitched maniacal screech and a low rumble that herald the end of days.
Dimaria barely dodged in time as Natsu vaporized the ground where she once stood. The concussive force behind created a hole in the ground so deep that it extended for what looked to me miles. The penetrating power of the strike was not meant to be explosive, but focused and deadly.
Quickly retreating from the enraged beast, Dimaria clicked her tongue as she stopped time. Her opponent would be easy pickings if it was held back by a law that all mortals had to ad heed. Only the gods could move when time was stopped and so victory was assured for the Valkyrie.
However, instead of freezing live all others within "her time", he merely continued to engage her as if she had not frozen time and controlled a universal law that could not be overcome by those outside the realm of the gods.
With a growl and saliva leaking from his mouth in between clenched teeth, the thing shot forward at a speed that even Dimaria could not follow. Natsu's enflamed fist met with the shocked face of Dimaria with a terrible wrath. The flames clad on his fist stuck onto her face like napalm which refused to go out.
The war princess flew back through the wall and outside the building. The flames on her cheek burned mercilessly as it ate away her cheek and left her with her teeth exposed along with part of her zygomatic process. The bone blackened and cracked from the colossal heat which burned hotter that magnesium fire.
A distorted scream of anger and pain left Dimaria's distorted face as she lost her temper.
"TAke-OvErrr: GOD SOUL!" the now not so beautiful Dimaria shouted with two voices in her spell.
A great explosion of magic left from her form and she was concealed behind the dust raised by the sudden increase of magic. The dust settled to reveal Dimaria/Cronos clad in a black material with glowing yellow stripes and patterns. Her hair lengthened and became wavy which moved like snakes ready to strike. Her wounded countenance was shadowed and all that was left was the ominous glowing yellow eyes that held immense anger.
"Thou clad in taint and fire, of malignance and ruin.Thy endeavors to harm mine magnificent form shalt end in-" Dimaria/Cronos never got to finish as her enemy was upon her in a flash.
A demonic shout erupted from the unholy demon that was powerful enough to throw back Dimaronos from her place. The scream had an explosive hiss in it that also had a metallic undertone. The shout gave fear to the time god despite her wishes. The fact that she was made to feel fear caused her to become even angrier.
"Thou insignificant worm! Thou maketh thy better dirty that lady with thy presence!"the enraged goddess shrieked in anger.
The only response she got was another screech from the enraged Fairy Tail mage as it grabbed her face with flaming hands and slammed her into the ground. The fire in the hands of it further ate away at the time goddess' face, leaving her with a fire covered countenance. A harrowing two toned scream of pain left Dimaronos as the remnants of her face was eaten by the unholy fire.
The flames worked on its prey, consuming the flesh like Gandhi's first meal after a month of fasting. The skin burned and melted away, revealing white bone which was quickly blackened by the heat. The glowing yellow eyes of Dimaronos melted into a pool, cradled by her orbits like milk in a cereal bowl.
The fire spread more, entering the skull through the orifices and began to devour her brain. The agony the faceless Alvarez general was more than any being could handle and she died of pain and shock.
But the salmon-haired thing did not care, too blinded by rage to even take notice. It straddled the deceased member of the Spriggain Twelve and proceeded to penetrate her chest with its hands before ripping them out along with a significant portion of her rig cage. It then commenced to do the same with the rest of her body with flaming hands. Bits of flaming pieces of flesh and bone flew in all directions as the demon ground the meat mass with great viciousness.
As the butcher continued with its work, the whispers were no longer just whispers. They were now at a normal conversable volume. It spoke of tempting and alluring things that the broken conscience of Natsu would not mind doing.
"Your loved one is hurt… she is in pain because of Zeref. Take vengeance for your human friend… it's all Zeref's fault. Kill Zeref." The no-longer-whispers now spoke with glee.
'Yes… that sounds like a great idea.' Natsu thought mindlessly in response to the voice.
The world seemed to be a blur as it continued to relentlessly mutilate Dimaronos' pile of flesh and bones with his now clawed hands. Time held no meaning as the pile of flesh and bone was little more than a charred spot on the earth.
The fleeting thought of Lucy broke through Natsu's hazy mind as he finally disengaged from his target. He could not bring himself to care about the horrific brutality he had just committed.
He scrambled back into the messed up building where Lucy was still in and where she laid limp. Desperation and fear clawed at his mind at the thought of losing her forever.
'Please, please be alright please.' Natsu frantically thought with great distress. He repeated it like a mantra in his shaken mind as if it could make a difference.
He tripped over his own feet but quickly continued to keep his momentum on all fours as he picked himself back up not slowing down a bit. At what seemed like an eternity, the nephew of Atlas Flame reached where Lucy lay in a heap. He grasped her shoulders and shook her gently with nervously shaking hands.
"Lucy wake up!" There was no response as Natsu shook her again with more force.
So panicked he was, that he did not check for a pulse or even breathing.
"Lucy, please wake up please! I… I…" Natsu could not finish the sentence as the sobs completely took over his vocal chords. Grief overran his mind at the thought that Lucy was forever gone. It crushed him more than the time Future Lucy was murdered in front of him by Future Rogue.
'Future Rouge!' Natsu thought as an idea swept across his mind. The slayer of a thousand Vulcans focused on a certain monochrome power that resided in him, dormant. Calling it forth, a black and white orb appeared in his hand, beckoned by his summoning.
'This could save Lucy!' Natsu realized with a growing hope.
He placed the orb on Lucy's left breast where her heart resided and attempted to merge it with the one-eyed blonde.
Flashback to the end of the Eclipse Gate arc
"Natsu, before I am sent back to my time… I want you to have something." Future Rouge addressed his victor in combat. I want you to take my dragon slayer powers and give it to someone who needs it, and to someone who would responsibly use it. When you infuse it with your selected subject, it will heal any wounds they will have and even revive them. He revealed.
Natsu listened closely and nodded seriously as Future Rouge extended his arm to Natsu. A monochrome orb appeared in his hand which steadily grew in size. The bisection of black and normal pale skin slowly faded as the orb grew until his right half no longer looked any different than his left half.
"But be warned…
The orb against Lucy's chest pulsed violently as Natsu was blown back from the force of the pulse. Dread flooded his mind as he knew what this meant but refused to accept it.
… Not everyone will be able to accept it and not everyone will be a potential candidate for receiving this gift…
Natsu tried again but was met with the same results.
'No… nononononononon! Damn it!" The desperate dragonslayer shouted with frustration.
… for some are not meant to become dragon slayers and should you use this to heal someone and it rejects them, then I am afraid there is nothing you can do."
Natsu broke down into tears as he fell on his knees and his face met the ground as his body shook with sobs. The dragon slayer's power dissipated into wisps of black and white light before it returned to Natsu body. Despair dominated is mind at the hopelessness of the situation. He crawled back to Lucy who he cradled in his arms.
An image of Igneel flashed in his mind and all the good times he had with him. Then came the image of his father's brutal demise at the hands of Acnologia. Then Lucy came to the forefront of his mind. Lucy who was so full of life and cheer, who seemed to be an immovable part of his life. She was as needed as much as the earth under his feet and the sky overhead. But now she lay dead in his arms.
The voice in his mind now shouted, empowered by feeding off of the despair Natsu was experiencing. The voice seeped its influence into the brother of Zeref's mind and took hold of his decision making.
"It is Zeref's fault that Alvarez invaded Ishgar, it's Zeref's fault that the false goddess attacked you and it is Zeref's fault that the human woman died. I think that Zeref must answer for his crimes don't you think?! KILL HIM!" The voice shouted at him with fiery vigor.
Natsu wholeheartedly agreed with the voice's idea, unaware that he now was mentally high-jacked by E.N.D. Zeref would pay for his sins… he will kill him no matter the cost. No one will stand in his way.
Flashback End
Natsu was broken out of his stupor by the voice of Gray who had shaken his shoulder.
"Natsu, Natsu! Are you listening?" Gray demanded in both annoyance and concern. "Lucy's been talking to you."
At this, Natsu turned his attention to the one-eyed celestial spirit mage. A forced smile plastered itself on his countenance as he uneasily laughed.
"I'm sorry Luigi. You were saying?" Natsu addressed the only female present.
"Natsu… are you okay? Is something wrong?" She questioned in worry. Her previous disgruntlement over the purposely false addressing of herself faded into genuine concern over Natsu's wellbeing and the overall situation's.
"Nah it's nothing." Natsu said as if he practiced in front of a mirror. It was a quick reply and had an uneasy tone that subtly laced his voice. The speed of it was too quick for it to ba a true statement. "I am just tired Lucy. I just defeated Zeref after all." Natsu smiled again, this time more genuinely due to the reminder of his victory.
"That may be part of the case but if I know you; you wouldn't let mere exhaustion rain on your party. It must be some-" Her dialogue was cut short by the realization that he was guilty about the loss of her eye.
It was not hard to deduce. He was looking everywhere except her face and her intuition told her he felt guilty of something. The subtle hints unintentionally dropped one's behavior is unconsciously picked up by the subject's brain and is processed before the subject confuses it with intuition/instinct.
Lucy knew that Natsu blames himself for her mutilation. He thinks that he was not strong enough to protect her despite his year-long hard labor to get stronger; and that he should have been able to do something to prevent his friend from such grievous bodily harm.
Natsu has always protected her from danger she herself could not overcome and he was always there for her during her darkest hours with the exception of the aftermath of the war with Tartaros. It however was the time Lucy needed Natsu the most emotionally speaking. But he was not there that time, so Luct had to fight her own demons on her own without Natsu's or anyone from the guild's help.
The helplessness Lucy felt suring that period was great. Her home, her family Fairy Tail disbanded and split, leaving her alone. Her best friend abandoned her without a word and she was left alone to deal with the grief of the loss of her oldest friend, Aquarius.
When the Celestial Spirit King's favorite mage confronted her reckless best friend about how she felt while he was on his year-long journey, Natsu felt a large amount of guilt for only thinking of himself and his revenge on Acnologia. So overwhelmed with rage and despair, Natsu left without a word, not considering the situation Fairy Tail would be in due to his absence and the conclusion of the war.
In Natsu's defence, he would have never thought Fairy tail would disband and he also did not know that Lucy sacrificed the key of Aquarius to summon the Celestial Spirit King. If Lucy needed comfort, then the guild would be there at her side assisting her during her hardship. But the guild was no more and Lucy was left alone.
It was because of this, Lucy did not hold a large amount of resentment for Natsu. However, she did feel disappointment for his unprecedented departure. Natsu's wordless exodus on top of his failure to protect Lucy which resulted in the loss of her left eye caused Natsu to be immersed in a wellspring of guilt and disappointment in himself.
The onyx eyed fire mage noticed the celestial spirit mage's pause in speech and the spark of realization in her eye. He knew Lucy had come to the conclusion that he was indeed guilty.
"Natsu…" Lucy began. "It is not your f-"
Lucy was once again cut off but this time it was the dragon slayer's fault and not her own. "No! It is my fault and it's my weakness that caused you pain" Natsu interrupted, knowing what the busty blonde was about to say.
"I don't blame you for the eye, Gray doesn't blame you, Happy doesn't blame you. Only you blame yourself. Whatever sins or transgressions you think you have committed is entirely in your head." Lucy sighed in resignation. "For what it is worth, if you are looking for an absolution then I forgive you. Now you must forgive yourself." Lucy stated both firmly and softly.
"I'm not sure that I can do that anytime soon. I have caused you so much pain recently. I left you in your sadness in my selfishness to get stronger so I could take my revenge on Acnologia." Natsu answered. "Revenge consumed me and became my driving force. I have seen and heard stories of people becoming consumed with anger and vengeance and I always shook my head at their supposed foolishness, not truly knowing that all-consuming rage that burns hotter than any flame. Now look at me... my anger caused me to forget what truly matters most, my friends and my family. Am I not one of those fools who was consumed?" He asked rhetorically.
"Natsu, we all make mistakes and I am no different. In my vengeance, I caused the death of Ur no matter if she wished to seal my darkness. We all make mistakes and it seems that all sentient and intelligent beings do too." Gray projected his feelings. "Zeref claimed you are a demon of his making but your regret shows you are no demon at heart."
Gray's stalwart position on Natsu's human heart evoked a true dazzling smile that warmed the solemn atmosphere. Pearly whites graced his long fanged smile as his eyes closed from its sheer volume.
The heaven and the earth was created by The Lord, and godly men and women on earth ascend to heaven after death. Who is to say that a demon cannot be worthy of reaching heaven? Who is to say that a demon cannot reach heaven by spreading kindness and deliverance for the innocent, and retribution for the wicked? The Lord God preaches kindness and virtue, and none are rejected from His love so long as they are kind. Are demons rejected from that love for merely being demons either they are kind or not?
"That means a lot to me Gray. It means more than you will ever know." Natsu's smile dimmed as his eyes opened, showing a thousand yard stare. "When Zeref told me I was E.N.D., I didn't believe him and I denied it with fury… But when he pierced that book with his magic and I felt a horrible pain that did not show physically, I could no longer deny that Zeref once agein flipped my life upside down." The vessel of E.N.D. sighed with a tiredness that belonged to an elderly man who had seen too much.
"I hate Zeref with a passion and I was willing to kill him even if it resulted in my death. If Happy was not there when I first confronted Zeref, I fear that I would not be here right now. When it was proven to me that I was E.N.D. I loathed myself for being a creation of that Black Wizard Bastard." He admitted.
Shaking his head and wishing to get off the topic at hand, Natsu switched the subject to the death of the Immortal Wizard.
"In any case, Zeref is dead and I won!" Natsu announced the big news with a bright smile that held carefreeness.
At this, Lucy, Gray and Happy's countenances erupted in both relief and happiness. With their emperor dead, the army of Alvarez would very likely retreat at the news of Curse Lord Spriggain's demise. It greatly improved their chances of victory over the overwhelming numbers of the enemy army.
"It was the hardest battle of my life. There was a time where I thought that I was not going to make it out of there alive." Natsu stated gravely. "Zeref impaled me with his hand and I was there laying on the floors of the guild as my blood emptied in the place I call home." He forced out with difficulty. Admitting your weakness is not an easy task after all. I don't know what happened, but suddenly my injuries disappeared like they were never there."
The fact that Natsu was so close to death shook the other three. The fact that Natsu admitted it shook them even more. It impacted Lucy, Gray and Happy hard for Natsu never admits powerlessness. It showed them the gravity of the situation he was in. The creation of the most evil mage in history had one foot past the threshold of death's door.
Lucy spoke up about the subject with her thoughts. "While your book was in my possession, I opened it in hopes of assisting you. But when letters began to disappear from their place, I knew something horrible happened to you. Luckily, I was able to rewrite the characters that disappeared. I am glad I was able to save your life. I do not do it enough."
Natsu scoffed at the blonde-haired female's self-deprecation. "Nah, you're awesome Lucy and you saved my ass plenty of times." The Salamander declared vehemently.
While Lucy was happy that Natsu defended her –against herself no less-, she still was not very confident in herself despite fighting valiantly against enemies stronger than her.
Celestial magic's highlight is not raw power, but its diverse capabilities. With the Twelve Zodiacs and the thirteenth including the silver gates, celestial spirit magic is one of the most diverse magic out there. It however lacked the potential for stopping power. The amount of magic power that is needed to generate enough strength to topple the more armored and hardy opponents is more than others like ice-make magic. Indeed the stardresses are impressive and allows its user to take on the abilities of their corresponding spirit, but the duration of time that passes in the opening of the gates and the equipping of the stardresses is something that can be easily taken advantage of.
A benefit of celestial spirit magic is that you can have more than yourself in combat if you are alone and or against a greater number of opponents. This includes teaming up against a single enemy and overwhelming them with attacks from all sides. An advantage that is quite valuable.
Then Lucy spoke of something that Natsu did not want to talk about. "Speaking of your book, we saw it turn into what looked like flying black liquid fire. It flew away in this direction. Did you happen to see it? The wannabe author inquired.
Natsu knew what happened to it alright. After all, it went in him! He however did not want to tell that to the three other Fairy Tail members. Natsu knew how to feign ignorance like the best actor. He has been doing it a lot throughout his life.
"It did?" Natsu asked in a perfect clueless tone. Lucy nodded in confirmation. "I did not see any black fire flying in the air. I wonder if it tasted good." Natsu said flawlessly as he scratched the back of his head with the textbook definition of dumb on his countenance.
The three others bought the act as the only pure human and demon slayer sighed in frustration. The physical form of Natsu's soul going missing is not a thought that brings ease to the friends of the soon to be cursed dragon slayer.
"In any-" Natsu stopped suddenly. An unpleasant sensation coursed through his very being. His eyes went wide as he grunted in discomfort and started to breathe hard. This caused great alarm to go off in the Fire Dragon Slayer's friends.
"Natsu, are you allright!" Lucy, Gray and Happy yelled in unison.
They gave a distressed cry when Natsu collapsed to the ground holding his midsection. Happy's eyes went wide with fear as his pupils dilated as small as physically possible as he came to a realization.
"Natsu's dying because Zeref is dead!" The Exceed shrieked; the shock and despair obvious to the densest fool.
At the bombshell dropped on them, Lucy and Gray's eyes burned with unshed tears as they began to sheen.
"No! No! It's not supposed to be like this!" Lucy wailed in anguish. She desperately held Natsu in her hands as his feet began to break into blue particles of light.
Gray knelt beside the tearful one-eyed blonde before he clutched Natsu's hand. "Natsu whatever it is, you have to fight it!" He frantically shouted with tears beginning to shed from his dark blue eyes. He turned to Lucy –the smartest one of them all- in hopes that she knew something to prevent Natsu's demise. "Can you do something, anything?!"
Lucy was usually the one to figure out a plan when the four of them were out on jobs along with Erza, Wendy and Carla. The daughter of Layla can be quite the quick thinker and observant during dire situations. She was the brains of their operation. But if she does not know what to do, then all hope is lost.
Unfortunately, even her extensive intelligence could not serve her in this situation and her mind drew blanks.
"I-I-I… I don't know!" Lucy stammered uselessly. "I'm s-s-so sor-" Natsu cut her off once again.
"It's alright Lucy, I am ready for death. I accepted it the moment I learned that I would die with Zeref." Natsu said with serenity. "You guys… are the best friends a guy like me can ask for… thank you."
Natsu then placed the dissolving remnants of a hand on her tear stained cheek and stroked it as he wiped the fallen tears away.
"I want you to know that without you, I do not know what my life would have been like. A life without you is a life where I would have died many times over." Natsu stated softly as he smiled at her with fondness.
He turned his attention to Gray as his arm left arm completely broke apart. "Gray… you've been the greatest rival in my life. Despite our supposed hatred for each other, I love you, and I know you do not truly hate me as well. Perhaps this is what it is like to have a good brother; definitely a thousand times better than that bastard Zeref." At this, Gray gave a tearful laugh. "I hope you and Juvia will finally get together after this war is over." Gray turned a little red despite the situation.
Both his arms and legs dissolved and a fair portion of his torso too. He craned his neck to face Happy.
"My partner, my son, I want you to be with Lisanna when she finds out. Comfort her and sooth her, she will need her son with her. You keep your spirit up and never lose your namesake. Promise me."
"I promise." Happy vowed with a sob ridden declaration. His voice cracked but it had a resolute firmness in it that seemed so out of place on the normally happy-go-lucky fish lover.
Natsu smiled and sighed in content. "Tell Fairy Tail that it was a good run and that I will love them forever. I will wait for you guys in the Golden Plains."
His head and a chunk of his neck and left shoulder now only remained as the right side face of it began to join the rest of his body. His remaining eye was partially closed with a soft glow in it that held a serenity that was quite out-of-character for the hot-headed, fiery and rambunctious Dragon Slayer.
"See you guys later…"
He completely dissipated before he said that, but it lingered in the air like a whisper of the wind. The blue particles were blown away by an unnaturally warm breeze that held a familiar heat that touched the remaining three's bodies hearts and souls. The world fell completely silent as the scarf of the man who disappeared soundlessly danced in the paranormal wind. Like an act of a higher power, Natsu's scarf landed in the lap of Lucy.
The woman with the marked hand looked down at her lap where the scarf now laid. A few tears landed on the scaly scarf as Lucy clutched it like a lifeline and cradled it like a fragile child that would shatter should she let go.
She gave a mournful cry at the loss of her dearest friend. It cut through the air and echoed against the broken buildings around them, giving it a harrowing, bone-chilling symphony that would make the hairs on a person stand on end and riddle their skin with goose bumps.
Gray placed a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her. He pulled her into an embrace as she cried on his shoulder. Gray's lips quivered and his nose ran as his tears also fell on her shoulder. Happy held the free hand of Lucy that was not holding Natsu's scarf with an unsteady paw as he too cried with the other two.
Zeref may be dead, but at a terrible cost. The infamous Salamander, the son of the Fire Dragon King and the last legacy of Igneel disappeared on the day of that victory. It was a victory tainted with bitter defeat, for even if they won, they still lost.
Author's Note: So that is the first chapter of Even God Rests. I would say that it is a pretty good start. As I said in the author's note in chapter three of Legacy of Thy Forefathers, this story is going to be very violent if you could not tell from this chapter. As you can see, the more dire consequences have already appeared in the form of the loss of Lucy's eye. Now, I know that some of you guys may think that Lucy will get another one from Porlyusica, but, I can assure you that the dagger of a Spriggain Twelve is no ordinary dagger. Lucy will not now nor will she ever have two eyes again.
I do not own the cover, I just photo shopped it a bit to add the words. It is made by You Shimizu.