Hi all, welcome to A Hand-forged Soul, my first fanfic in roughly an eon. Let me know what you think! Should I keep going with it?

And of course, none of the characters are my own; all credit goes to Mashima Hiro.

The master's study smelled vaguely of cigarettes and sage, and something else that always made Levy's head swim a bit. Over the years, she'd learned to ignore the dizzy sensation and focus on Makarov's words. While a kindly man, he didn't have the patience to explain things more than once. And for a man smaller than even the famously petite Levy McGarden, Makarov's temper had a pretty big impact.

"Remember, you're just needed to investigate. If this demon is as powerful as the rumors suggest, do not engage. Just get what information you can and bring it back to us," Makarov was saying, finally winding down on the briefing.

Behind the small girl, Jet and Droy stiffened slightly at Makarov's unintended slight. They were all part of Shadowgear, the guild's foremost intelligence gatherers. Honestly, Levy did most of that, with her formidable intellect and ability to go undetected. Her childhood friends provided the muscle to guard her brains, but every time Makarov told them not to fight was just a reminder that they were among the weaker exorcists gathered under Fairy Tail.

Levy bowed deeply, glaring under her short curtain of hair at her friends until they remembered their social graces and lowered their heads in deference as well. "Understood, Master. We'll find out everything we can and come back to you as soon as possible. You can count on us!" she said, smiling brightly at the old man.

"I trust you will, you three. But be careful, brats. Something's putting me on edge these days," Makarov muttered, short fingers drumming the dark wood of his desk.

Dismissed, the three Shadowgear members stepped out into the hallway, and looked at one another. Droy, a rotund and upbeat young man, had a look of slight concern on his round face. Jet's eyes were hard, still upset that he was once again being denied an opportunity to prove his strength as a fighter.

"Are you guys ready? It's just across town, I don't think we'll need much preparing," Levy said, cheerful as ever.

"Of course, Levy!" the two men chorused. As they took the stairs down to the ground level, they squabbled about who got to walk next to the blue-haired girl. Levy, for her part, only rolled her eyes good-naturedly and hopped down the stairs a few steps ahead of the duo, so that neither of them stood beside her. At the bottom, she turned, and grinned up at her friends.

"Let's do this!"

Eight hours later, it seemed that it was easier said than done. So far all Levy had found in the industrial area of Magnolia was a deep sense of unease, nothing quantifiable to report. It wasn't like Levy to be anxious, and she rubbed her hands over her elbows in an attempt to comfort herself. She'd always been a more than competent exorcist, her talent with words and wealth of knowledge helping her take down every foe she faced. But for the first time, Levy felt afraid. Like Makarov had said, there was something in the air. Something sinister that even a master of words like herself couldn't put a name to.

The shadows shifted, and Levy's breath caught in her throat. Every nerve on her body prickled. She wrinkled her nose, suddenly assaulted by the metallic stench of… blood? The hair on the back of her neck stood up, and she turned her head frantically, looking for her companions.

"Well, well, well, what have we here?" The voice sent shivers down her spine. It was cold, and cruel, and it belonged to a mammoth of a man standing suddenly below the lonely streetlight. His hair fell in a mane down his back, and even from her hiding place in the alley across the street Levy could see the glint of his sharp teeth. Demon.

Levy's hands clasped over her mouth, holding back the scream that almost leapt from her throat. The demon's fist was closed around Droy's collar, holding him up so that the chubby man couldn't hold his own balance. With a harsh laugh, the demon pulled back his other fist and drove it with incredible speed into Droy's gut. Levy winced. Droy couldn't even shout, the air gone from his body. He fell to the ground, retching, and the dark figure kicked out with his boot. Levy thought she could hear her friend's rib snap.

"Droy!" And there was Jet, appearing with the speed he was so known for, throwing a punch at the demon's face. The tall figure didn't even bother to dodge. Instead, his skin merely glinted like some tarnished metal, and Jet cried out in agony as his knuckles met an unmovable force. Savagely, the demon retaliated, his own fists beating again and again into Jet's frame.

Levy gasped, unable to help herself. But the metallic gleam of the demon's skin jogged a memory, and something clicked into place. She stepped out of the alley, knees trembling so that the action took an obscene amount of effort. "Kurogane! Black steel Gajeel, stop what you're doing!"

His red eyes lifted, and met Levy's own, which were wide in unconcealed terror. "Who the fuck are you," he spat, more an insult than a question.

"I-I'm an exorcist of Fairy Tail! You n-need to stop! I can help you," the girl said, her trembling increasing as the demon closed the distance between them in a few strides.

Without warning, Levy was hoisted from the ground, Gajeel's fist on the front of her dress.

"A shrimp like you? Help me? Don't make me laugh!" he shouted, and struck her. Levy cried out at the pain blossoming in her body, and then again as his fist made contact again. She was on the ground now, the sequence of events unclear in her minded, which was growing cloudier by the second.

"Levyyyyy!" The wail came from Droy, who could somehow still muster his voice. "Don't you dare touch her!"

But Gajeel only laughed, and dragged her up by her mop of blue hair. Levy watched, detached, as her headband fell from her locks and fluttered to the ground. The fabric turned from a bright orange to black as it soaked in the puddle of blood. Until that moment, Levy hadn't registered that she was bleeding.

"I can! I can help!" Levy cried, and let the words tumble from her mouth as quickly as they could. While she talked, there was no more pain. At least he was listening. "Y-you're only a half-demon. I've heard of you. A-and that means you have a soul! We can help you. Fairy Tail can bring you back into the li-," but her words were cut off as he punched her viciously in the gut.

"A soul? You idiot. I don't have one of those. And I don't want one!" Gajeel shouted, his words punctuated by a laugh as harsh as a crow's cry. He dropped her to the ground, and Levy moaned as her body hit the pavement. His boots thudded as he crossed the street again, and continued mauling the male members of Shadowgear. A dark grin was on his face, joyless and cruel.

With the last of her strength, Levy put her hastily-assembled plan into motion.

"No- soul?" She muttered, the words coming out with difficulty and more than a little blood. "Then- I'll - give you one!" She traced the word in the mud, focusing in her mind until she felt them turn solid in the air before her. The letters glowed so brightly that they seemed to be just one orb of blinding light, and she pushed as hard as she could, watching with grim satisfaction as it flew into kurogane's chest. "SOUL!" she screamed.

The last thing Levy saw before the darkness took her was Gajeel's eyes wide in shock.