Deceased in the Making
Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail nor do I own its characters. They are, by right, Hiro Mashima's.
I don't have much experience with writing stories, so I would appreciate it if anyone could give me some feedback and criticism on my writing. Of course I will be disappointed in myself, but it's all for the better of the story and how it will play out. Please stick with me until the end and help me gain a better skill in writing and increase my love for Fairy Tail and NaLu :)
POV: Natsu Dragneel; 12:05 PM; Hargeon
Today I will finally find Igneel! I've caught a rumor that the "Salamander" is in Hargeon, and no one else except Igneel and I could be the "Salamander" of course! Besides, we're both the only real Dragneels in this town as far as I can tell. Us Dragneels are known for our obsession with fire and our family are called "Salamanders" for that reason.
People like that bastard Gray also refer to us as pyromaniacs. Ugh, I hate his guts so much. I'd wanna see how he would feel if he suffered from something like pyromania. But that's impossible, because he hates fire and loves to chew ice cubes, which is freaking weird in my book.
The subway train halted to a complete stop, and the few passengers that had boarded with me quickly left to their own business. I didn't follow for a moment as I pet my fellow cat companion, Happy.
"W-We'll definitely find Igneel here, I just know it!" I spoke to him, still feeling my motion sickness in action, then felt the sickening feeling subside now that the train stopped moving. More people who began to board for the next stop looked at me like I was crazy for talking to a cat who couldn't talk back, but that didn't matter. I was already considered a pyromaniac anyways.
"We are now departing for Crocus. Anyone who has to leave for Hargeon please walk out the exit doors," the female's voice came from the speaker. "I repeat, we are now departing for Crocus. Anyone who must leave for Hargeon, walk out the exit doors."
I didn't want to be left on the train again like the last time I wasn't able to get off due to my motion sickness, so I hastily made way for the exit doors while stuffing Happy back into my backpack.
After entering Hargeon, there was already a commotion without me being the cause (not that I would admit that I was the cause of most disasters...mainly setting classrooms on fire. It's pyromania, okay?).
I could see a crowd of girls around someone near the town square, but I couldn't see who, so I decided to bust through them to see for myself if this was Igneel or not 'cause they were fangirling around the supposed "Salamander of Magnolia."
"Igneel!?" I looked at the person in the middle of the ruckus, but my hopes were crushed. "WAIT...you're not Igneel!" He's only a womanizer!
I sighed and pulled Happy out of my backpack. "Guess we gotta look for my dad somewhere else, Happy…" Happy seemed to whine at this.
"Salamander" looked somewhat pissed off and flipped his purple styled hair, "Of course I'm not this...Igneel you speak of. I-hey, look at me when I'm talking to you!"
In the middle of his little speech, I had already walked off, dejected, but his fangirls ran after me and several of them jumped and threw a punch at me. Damn women are terrifying! Soon after, all began to beat me on the ground. I may have been a tiny bit rude but the guy started off that conversation boring as hell! You can't blame me for that, can you?
"Don't you dare walk off from the Salamander like that!" one girl said while glaring at me after the fangirls were done with the deed.
They all walked off back to the "Salamander" but one blonde girl (looked about sixteen or seventeen) had stayed behind to walk over to me. I noticed, she was one of the girls who didn't participate in beating me up nor fangirled over the "Salamander" jerk.
She had big chocolate brown eyes that stared at me with a glint of worry, "Hey, sorry you had to get beaten up...um, I could treat you to-"
Before she could finish what she was about to say, we both heard screaming coming from back where the girls that beat me up were.
I raised my eyebrows, "What's going on? Sounds like they're in pain." I winced as I could hear the moans. They sounded like dying mice, to be honest. Very loud. Very annoying. What the hell was going on?
"Beats me," the blonde girl replied and turned her head back to me, "but anyway, I was about to ask if-" She was interrupted with an echo of moans and screaming yet again.
Blondie huffed with a frustrated look on her face, "Seriously, what is up with those people!?"
I snorted, "They're crazy, of course." Happy nestled back into my backpack.
Strange, the moans and screams are getting higher and higher. Or more like closer and closer. They all sounded high pitched like a girl's voice, but a voice of a dying girl. It's hard to explain. You'd know if you're here, but you're not here, are you?
One of the fangirls suddenly ran up to the blondie and I. There were evident gash marks on her neck which seemed to be made from something...biting her.
I cringed, and the familiar nauseating feeling came running back to my stomach.
Blondie gasped with a hand covering her mouth in horror, "W-What happened!? H-How did you get this-?"
"They're coming," the fangirl reached out to me and clung to my black vest. "Please! You've *wheeze* got to help us! They've got Salamander! *cough*"
Who's "they"?
More fangirls were heading in our direction, but they seemed…different. Lifeless, in fact. Just like those zombies in The Walking Dead. Reminds me of them anyway.
"Oi, Blondie…!?" I hissed and grabbed her wrist. "I know what these are!" Happy peered over my shoulder and mewled in fear.
How is this even possible!?
"W-Wha?" she was compliant and let me slowly guide her away from the fangirls. I couldn't tell if she was surprised by the undead fangirls or my blue cat.
The fangirl that was holding my vest instantly lunged for the blonde. Seeing this, I delivered a roundhouse kick to said fangirl's head in haste. Good thing I'm a black belt in karate. I'm also good at sports. Better than the Ice Brain, too.
Blondie shrieked, "Why would you do that!? She's probably really injured now!" The fangirls that we've finally gotten away from turned their heads toward her voice.
"Blondie, look around you," I gestured to the fangirls near the square. "This place...I think we'd better go now. And that girl was trying to eat you. Look."
She nervously glanced at the fangirl I kicked and started to tear up, "I...I can't believe it. There's no way that these people are cannibals or whatever you call it! There's no such thing!" The undead fangirl was reaching for Blondie's leg, but I kicked her away.
"There is now," I pulled Blondie away from the fangirls while trying to ignore their moans of death. "If you don't believe, then you don't survive. I know that they were only real girls just a moment ago, but a lot of things can change in just one moment." Even I found how weird it was that I could adapt to this situation so easily. Maybe those video games stuck with me.
As we were running away, Blondie spoke up, "Um, it would be nice if you stopped calling me Blondie."
I raised my eyebrow, "What's your name then, Blondie?" We slowed to a complete stop near the docks.
She loosened her collar a bit and looked at me, "Lucy. Lucy...Heartfilia."
I couldn't really hear that, "Luigi?"
Luigi glared at me, "It's Lucy! Now that you know my name, er, what's yours…?"
"Natsu Dragneel," I grinned.
I could see more of the supposed zombies everywhere we'd went around town.
We'd probably have to get a boat or something to get away from them. Or…bingo!
Spotting a sewage entrance, I tugged the lid off and turned to Lucy, "Well, from here on out you can decide. Apparently those humans-turned-cannibals are obviously out for us. Exactly like an apocalypse from a video game… Do you want to go down the sewer with me or look for help somewhere else?"
She smoothed her short blue skirt down before looking disgusted by my suggestion, "I wouldn't go down there if these were normal circumstances, but I guess it's...necessary. I wouldn't find another person out there that's not those things so I'll go with you."
"Alright! Let's go, Lucy! We'll definitely get through this if we have each other's backs," I gestured to the sewage entrance. "You can go first. Watch out for zombies, just in case."
She nodded, then started to climb down the ladder.
POV: Lucy Heartfilia; 12:58 PM; Hargeon Sewers
When I first laid eyes on Natsu, my first impression was that he was pitiful. Having a bunch of random girls beat you up isn't such a great way to spend the day. That's why I even bothered to offer lunch to the guy. He wasn't that bad looking either, not that I would admit it to anyone (he can probably pull off pink hair better than anyone...and the muscles are a plus). Besides, his whole being tells you that he's the ultimate form of weird. Pink hair and blue cat (does he like to dye everything he owns that has hair?); I wonder what else he has in store. Although he is weird, he's got a nice smile… Nice personality, too. I wouldn't mind being with him, to be honest. In fact, I kinda enjoy it.
But why am I thinking this when I just met him like thirty minutes ago and while I'm climbing down the ladder to the sewers!?
"I shouldn't have worn this today…" my sleeveless, collared jacket with a big blue cross as the design and my short blue skirt were not meant for sewers. "But thank God I'm wearing my knee-high boots."
I then yelped as I abruptly lost my footing, "Kyaa!" I was close to the ground, so luckily only my butt was hurt.
I could see Natsu's pink hair through the hole on the surface, "Oi, is there an undead down there!?" He quickly climbed down the ladder to make sure I wasn't getting eaten.
He grabbed my shoulders and looked me up and down, "No bite marks there, no bite mark here… Wait, if there's no bite mark, why did you scream?"
He was still gripping my shoulders as I answered, "I-I just fell of the ladder from the last step…" Ouch, my butt is still sore.
His grip loosened and his eyes softened, but he still held on, "Are you sure you're okay? I don't want to lose the only company I have besides Happy." Happy? Ooh, his blue haired cat.
Those words for some reason made me blush, "I'm fine, so let's get going." Luckily, it was dark in the sewers so he probably couldn't see the red color forming on my cheeks. There's no way that I would be the only one that would go red from having someone like Natsu worry about me! He's a good-looking guy; all the girls would flock to him. But wait, maybe he already has a girlfriend he's worrying about…
As we were walking through the sewers I slapped my cheeks, Lucy, Lucy, Lucy, stop thinking about a possible love interest and focus on the life or death situation at hand! I really am crazy…
Natsu really did stare at me like I was crazy, "You're really not okay, are you."
"What do you mean by that, Sir Crazy?" I muttered. "Anyway, there probably aren't any zombies down here, right?"
"Yeah, the outbreak started just now so they wouldn't get into the sewers so fast," he pulled his backpack off of his shoulders and rifled through it. "Can you hold Happy? I'ma look for my flashlight." He gently carried Happy out and placed him in my arms.
Natsu continued to search the knapsack while I absently scratched behind the ears of a purring Happy.
Curious about Natsu's personal life, I questioned, "So...can I ask why you dyed your hair pink?"
He looked offended as he paused searching for a moment, "My hair has always been this color, and it's salmon, not pink."
"Then how about Happy? Why did you dye his fur blue? There's no way that's his natural color…"
"I wasn't the one that dyed it. I don't know who did it, but he was already blue after I found him as a stray," he revealed a black flashlight and murmured to himself, "Oh, that's where I put it…" Zipping the backpack back up, he put the straps over his shoulders and turned the flashlight on. "If you want, you could carry him while we walk to who knows where."
"Sure," I said as we continued.
POV: Natsu Dragneel; 4:27 PM; Magnolia
"Oi, Lucy, I finally found another hole to the surface!" it's already been three hours of walking for us and I felt elated that we could finally see the light of day. "Quick, here, hold the flashlight." I handed the flashlight to her and began to ascend the ladder. The lid was loose, so I cautiously opened it in hopes that there wasn't a zombie directly above my head.
Poking my head out, I noticed that we weren't in Hargeon anymore, "I know this place. This is Magnolia..."
"Magnolia?" Lucy recalled. "I was going to head there today to enroll in Fairy Tail High School."
"Really?" I pulled myself out of the hole and urged her to climb up as well. "Oh, and make sure not to drop Happy."
She scoffed, "Like I would be willing to drop something as cute as this!" She cuddled him before ascending the ladder steps.
After the both of us were out of the damp and dirty atmosphere, I took a deep breath of fresh air, "It's nice to be home..."
Lucy unzipped my backpack while it was still on me and put Happy inside, "You live here?"
"Yeah, and I also go to the Fairy Tail High School you speak of. I wonder where my friends are right now..." I sighed and stretched for a bit. "I wonder if the undead are the same as the ones in the video games I've played."
"It's possible, but if this apocalypse was just an accident, then it's highly unlikely," her eyes roamed the town for a bit, digesting the image. "Humans were the ones that made up zombies, so what kind of science experiment could just make them out of the blue?"
I shrugged, "Not sure. Maybe it was intentional. But whoever did it, I will find them."
Lucy had a look of determination in her eyes, "Both of us. I want to bring the guy who did this to justice... Did you see that girl's wound back there? It was...horrible..." A realization crossed her mind, "W-What if my family... Dad... Everyone..."
I attempted to comfort her by resting a hand on her shoulder, "Lucy, they'll be fine, I'm sure. If you really think that something happened to them, you might jinx it."
Not that I think any differently.
That little joke seemed to cheer her up a little, "R-Right. Thanks, Natsu." She smiled, "You're a really nice guy, you know that?"
I rubbed the back of my head, "I try."
My eyes widened when my ears caught a strange noise, "Lucy...do you hear that?"
She whimpered and nodded in response.
I slowly made my way towards the sound of the tearing of flesh (as I imagined it to be), setting my backpack down and grabbing my flamethrower out from it (yes, I own a flamethrower for...defensive purposes). I ignored Lucy's shocked gasps from the sight of the flamethrower as I made my way through an alleyway.
What I saw was completely unimaginable.
It was a zombie, eating the life out of one of the teachers from Fairy Tail High.