-CHAPTER 1-

They had won. After Rogue and Sting lost against Mard Geer, the "Underworld King" managed to find his way to where Natsu and Gajeel had just finished their fight against Torafusa and Tempesta. Somehow, after a grueling and bloody battle, Natsu managed to defeat Mard Geer. Right above the unconscious demon stood Natsu, staggering while holding onto the wall for support. Blood was dripping from head to toe, creating a small puddle beneath the dragon slayer's feet. Natsu took one look at his fallen prey before collapsing on the ground. Lucy ran over to catch her partner before he hit the cold hard floor.

"Good work." The blonde celestial mage gently smiled at the beaten yet victorious dragon slayer in her arms. Pausing to catch his breath, Natsu gave her his signature grin in reply.

"Heh. Didn't think you had it in you, Salamander." Gajeel appeared from the side, clutching his injuries, while Levy supported him on her small shoulders.

"Juvia is worried about Gray-sama." Juvia had woken up in the middle of Natsu's fight against Mard Geer and insisted on going to find Gray. However, Lucy was able to stop her, insisting that it was best they stick together.

"Don't wo—" Before Lucy could finish her sentence she was interrupted by shouts from behind. "Lucy! Natsu!" Lucy turned around to see Erza, Happy, Pantherlily, and Gray, accompanied by Frosche, Lector, Minerva, Sting, and Rogue.

"Erza! Happy!" Lucy cried out happily. "You found Gray!" She almost ran up to her reunited friends to give them all a big hug but managed to stop herself before she accidently knocked Natsu off her lap.

"I ran into Gray on the way here." Erza said.

"Aye! Natsu looks so worn out. Did you try to carry him again, Lucy?" Happy asked innocently. "I didn't do anything you damned cat!" Lucy shouted back.

"Good job on defeating Mard Geer, Natsu." Erza looked down and grinned in satisfaction. "Not bad, Flame-brain." Gray chipped in, looking at the demon, once called the "Underworld King", now lying face down on the ground.

"Gray-sama! I'm so glad you're safe!" Juvia rushed up to Gray in tears and attempted to hug him, which Gray skillfully dodged. "Of course I'm safe you idiot." "Juvia is so sorry about Father!" Juvia burst into tears again while Gray frantically tried to calm her down.

"What's Sabertooth doing here?" Gajeel growled, looking over at Minerva, Sting, and Rogue. "Don't worry. They're on our side." Erza glanced over at Minerva and gave her a smile, which Minerva returned.

"Putting that aside…" Erza looked up at the crumbling walls and ceilings. "This place isn't going to last much longer now that the demons have been defeated. We better get out of here quickly." Everyone nodded in unison and began scrambling to reach the exit. Lucy, supporting Natsu; Levy, supporting Gajeel; Erza, supporting Minerva; Juvia clinging onto Gray, still in tears; Happy and Pantherlily flying just ahead; Rogue, Sting, Frosche, and Lector running side by side.

Just behind the group, the ceiling came crashing down. Cracks in the ground began opening and a dark abyss could be seen below. "Didn't think I'd be seeing hell so soon." Gray spoke up. "I guess this is a sign telling us to hurry up and get the hell out of here!" The entire cubed guild was beginning to fall apart. "Let's hurry everyone! I can see the exit just ahead!" Erza shouted and began to make her way towards the front of the group.

Suddenly, Lucy felt cold hands wrap around her ankles. "Kyaah!" Losing her balance, she tripped, dropping Natsu in the process. "Lucy!" Barely conscious, Natsu tried to reach for her but his body refused to move. Lucy looked behind her, only to see a battered Mard Geer with a face that looked as if it had reached the brink of insanity. His body was half consumed by the crevices in the floor, the other half holding onto the celestial mage who now lay on the ground.

"I, one of Zeref's demons, losing to a couple of lowly humans?" Mard Geer laughed wildly before focusing his eyes on Lucy. "It's all your fault. If it weren't for you, my plan would be perfect and complete! Everything is your fault! If I'm falling back down to hell, I'll at least take you with me!" The demon began pulling Lucy with him. "Don't think that you've won, Fairy Tail! The one who'll have the last laugh is me!" With that he dragged Lucy with him until only her fingertips were seen, barely grabbing on to the crack on the ground.

"LUCY!" Natsu screamed; he frantically tried to get on his feet but his body wouldn't listen to him. "MOVE DAMNIT! YOU'RE MY BODY SO MOVE WHEN I TELL YOU TO!" Clawing at the ground, Natsu tried fighting back against his body's pain signals, ignoring every burning sensation he was feeling. Right now, his only focus was to save Lucy. Managing to move a few inches closer, Natsu once again reached out his hand in an attempt to grab Lucy's hands.

"NATSU!" Lucy frantically cried out, stretching her arms. "LUCY!" Both celestial mage and dragon slayer, forcing their bodies beyond its limits, trying to reach for one another. However, only their fingertips touched and Natsu felt the ultimate despair as he felt her fingers, along with all hope, slipping from his hand and her figure disappearing into the darkness below. "NATSUUU—" He could still hear her lingering screams and the echo that bounced off the broken walls as he continued staring at the now empty space in a mix of shock and horror. "N…N…NOOO! LUCY!" His body now began to move and Natsu stumbled over in a blind attempt to jump into the abyss and save his partner.

"Natsu, stop it!" Two armored hands struggled to hold the dragon slayer back before he did anything stupid. "WHY ARE YOU STOPPING ME? LUCY…LUCY NEEDS MY HELP! I HAVE TO SAVE HER!" Struggling, Natsu tried to fight against Erza's grip but she only held him tighter. "WHY ARE YOU STOPPING ME ERZA? DO YOU NOT CARE WHAT HAPPENS TO LU—" Natsu's words were interrupted with a jaw-crushing punch to his face. His body flew and crashed into the walls, causing some rubble to fall on top of him. Everyone kept quiet, heads down, while Erza stalked her way over to Natsu and grabbed his collar.

"WE ALL WANTED TO SAVE HER! YOU AREN'T THE ONLY ONE WHO FAILED TO REACH HER IN TIME. YOU AREN'T THE ONLY ONE WHO LET LUCY SLIP FROM RIGHT UNDER YOUR FINGERS! BUT WILL YOU USE YOUR BRAIN FOR ONCE? WHAT GOOD IS IT TO JUMP INTO HELL RIGHT AFTER HER? AS IF SEEING ONE FRIEND DISAPPEAR ISN'T ENOUGH, YOU WANT ME TO JUST LET YOU GO AND KILL YOURSELF? THINK ABOUT OTHER PEOPLE'S FEELINGS FOR A CHANGE!" Her voice was angry but Erza's face displayed an emotion mixed with sorrow and desolation. Her eyes blinked back the tears that reached the surface.

Right when they had heard Lucy's scream, Erza, Gray, and Happy immediately turned around and began running in the direction of their team member; the rest of the group following after them. However, deep in their hearts they knew they would not be able to reach her in time. They could only place all their hopes on Natsu who was so close to where Lucy was. But their hopes were soon crushed when they saw their favorite celestial mage tumbling into the darkness below.

"No…!" Erza gasped. "Shit!" Gray spat out, cursing himself for not being able to reach her in time. "Lucy…is gone…" Happy cried out, thick tears welling up in his eyes before he began sobbing. "No fucking way…" Gajeel had muttered emptily as he watched the scene unfold before him. "Lu-chan!" Levy cried as tears streamed down her face. "Love rival…" Juvia whimpered. Pantherlily's head hung low. Even Sabertooth seemed to be in complete shock over what had just happened. And then there was the dragon slayer, screaming her name in a pathetic attempt that she would resurface and reassure them that it was all just a joke. However, she never did and Erza was the only one able to regain her composure just in time to stop a certain idiot from experiencing the same fate.

Natsu looked down, tears slowly streaming down his face. "I'm sorry…I'm sorry…I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm SO SORRY! LUCY!" He repeated, each time his apologies growing louder and louder until he was full on bawling like a baby. He hated himself for not being able to grab her hand. Natsu hated himself for not pushing his own body a little further until he could feel Lucy's warm hand secure in his own. Hell, he wouldn't even care if his body broke as long as she was safe by his side. But because of his own incompetence, Natsu had now lost his best friend, his partner, his teammate. Tears ruthlessly poured down his face as memories of the jobs he took with Lucy began rushing into his head. Now, he'll never be able to experience that same happiness again. It'll never be the same again and it was all his fault.

Erza sighed and released her grip on Natsu's collar. "First we have to get out of here or we'll all end up dead." She lowered her voice and spoke as if she was trying to convince herself. "Besides, I know Lucy is still alive. Fairy Tail mages are strong. She won't give up and die this easily. Not the Lucy I know." Erza looked at Natsu and gave him a sad smile. She reached out her hand. "Come on, let's go." Natsu hesitated and then for the first time, looked Erza in the eyes and gave her a slight nod before grabbing her hand.

A/N: Yay! My first fanfic! Anyways, please tell me if any of the characters are OOC, I tried my best to make them in character. I didn't really do any pairings despite whatever romantic undertones you guys may be reading. Actually, I'm a major NaLu fan but I'm not confident enough to keep them in character while adding romance. So far, there's no romance planned for this story though it MIGHT change depending on what you guys think.