"Look out!"

But he wasn't fast enough to move away from the strike. The ball of dark fire hit him straight in the chest, making him fly back, landing on the ground with a loud 'thud' and creating a massive crater. He got up seconds later, not as easily as he should, but got up still. The power within him was decreasing and yet, he still went with everything he held on his body against the enemy, because he HAD to protect them. He wasn't the only one that thought like that though. Five more people kept standing up and fighting back, even when they knew, deep down, that they were fighting a losing battle.

And she was the only one that could see it.

The blood around her made her sick to the core. The bodies, limp and lifeless, called out for her aid, but there was nothing she could do. The screams of pain and hurt, the calls for their friends, the invocations of Mavis or some supernatural force that could come and help them win. But nothing came. Because it is impossible to slay a beast that has taken as his job to end life. Because it's impossible to kill something that doesn't die. Because it's impossible to destroy something that regenerates.

Because it's impossible to kill Death itself.

She looked around, trying to find any traces of survivors. It was her job. Since Master refused to let her be in the attack team, she was helping everyone else rescuing the survivors and bringing them to safety, to some place they could no longer get hurt. As she dig up a child from the ruins of a fallen building, she allowed herself to remember how they got there in the first place.

~.~.

It was just a normal morning, with every single bird singing at the top of their lungs. With the sun shining with full force, with the soft breeze playing with the leaves. She stretched her arms and sat on the bed. A quick shower, breakfast and brushing teeth followed it. She opened her closet to see what she was going to wear that day. With a quick scan, she removed the clothes from her closet. Since it was hot outside, she chose to wear a sleeveless orange shirt that showed her stomach, a pair of blue shorts with a long white skirt tail on the back, transparent dark pantyhose and dark combat boots, tying the belt with two small bags around her waist and her orange bandana around her forehead, pulling her hair up. Dressing up, she left her house to the guild, smiling when the wind played with her hair.

She pushed the doors open and was immediately greeted by her friends. Lucy, her best friend, was sitting by the bar, talking to Mirajane. Natsu and Gray were fighting like usual, but Erza was calmly eating her strawberry cake, not giving a damn about the havoc that the two were causing. The girl's eyes immediately scanned the guild, unconsciously looking for someone. And she found him. Sitting on the table, with a mug in front of him and his partner next to him, Gajeel Redfox was quietly enjoying his solitude.

"Hi, Levy!"

"Hi Lucy!" she replied, walking to the blonde.

"Oh my, what is that?" Lucy asked, pointing to her belly. Levy looked down to see what she was referring to: the dark metal piercing with a dragon shaped pendant that pierced her belly button.

"Oh, this little thing? I got it like forever ago! I wanted to give myself a treat for my birthday and this was the result!" the bluenette explained, smiling.

"It's the cutest! And I have a feeling that a certain person is going to love it." The blonde winked at her.

"Oh, shut it, Lulu!" the girl blushed, sitting down next to her.

The rest of the morning went just fine, with Natsu and Gray finally being able to take down the strawberry cake that Erza was eating, and paying after, since the redhead joined the fight as well. Lucy ended up in the middle of it as well, Mavis knows how, and Levy was left to read yet another book that she took from the massive library that she called her room. Mirajane had long stopped teasing her about the piercing, her attention being deposited on Laxus, who had arrived moments ago and asked her for the strongest drink she had.

"Mira-chan, do you happen to know where Master is?" Levy asked, not raising her eyes from the book.

"Back in his office, sweetie." She simply said, her eyes never leaving Laxus's ones.

Levy got up and crossed the hall, being careful enough to not get herself in the fight; otherwise she wouldn't get out of there alive. She climbed up the stairs, one step at the time and finally reached the second floor, knocking on the Master's office door. Hearing her acceptance, she entered and saw the old man with his feet on the desk, blowing foam balls into the air. Giggling and closing the door behind her, Levy commented "So that is what you do when you say you have work to do…"

"What can I say, it's the most relaxing thing ever!" the man said, placing the foam bottle down and sitting up straight "How can I help you, Levy?"

"Grampa, I wanted to know if it's possible for the Scripter to evoke an unstoppable spell." Levy said, sitting in front of him.

"Anything is possible for the Scripters, dear Levy. But why do you ask that?" Master Makarov asked, looking into her eyes.

Levy blushed and looked away. Could she tell him about her dream? Could she tell him about her past? Could she tell him that she remembered her mom casting a spell that killed an entire legion of monsters, even though she was just a small child? Could she tell the man such things, knowing that he was the one that pulled her out of the remains of a once proud city, now devastated by the war? Could she tell him that she knew the answer to the question he never asked her?

"Is this about your mother, Levy?"

She looked up to the man, eyes widened and flustered face. Was he able to read minds? Was he able to know what she never allowed herself to tell anyone? Nodding and gulping, she answered "Yes."

"Figured. I never knew what happened, Levy, when I found you under all those ruins, but I always thought you didn't either. You were what, 5 years old?"

"Four and half…" she admitted. The man smiled and told her "Levy… I understand that you feel confused by the reasons why your mother may have done whatever she did, but I know that you shouldn't dig into shadows of the past. It's too dangerous. And you never know what you might find."

"Even if those shadows already found you?" she asked.

"Well…" he frowned "If they did found you, than that's a different story. You must face them and fight them away. But stop when you defeat them, Levy. Don't go after their meanings. Because you will lose yourself."

"Thank you, Master." She whispered, standing up and leaving.

~.~.

She was laughing along with Lily, the small Exceed telling her hilarious jokes about his past and the moments he had spent with the members of the guild. At the moment, the cat was telling her about the many fun times he had with Gajeel, the comical side of the story being the dragon slayer himself. The two laughed, Lily sometimes not being able to tell a full story without laughing his ass off, but he eventually lightened Levy on the details, causing her to crack out laughing as well.

"What are you two laughing all about?" a voice asked. Both Levy and Lily looked up to see no other than Gajeel staring down at them. Imagining Gajeel in the terms of the story Lily was telling her, Levy started laughing again, Lily soon joining her.

"Oh my god! Now every time I look at you, I'm going to imagine the pink bow!" Levy exclaimed, cleaning the tears from her eyes.

"Pink bow?" he frowned "Lily, what the fuck have you been telling her?!"

"Nothing special…" the cat said "Only those small adventures between you and the Sunset sisters that caused you to…"

"SHUT UP, YOU STUPID CAT!" he yelled, kicking the cat away.

Levy calmed down a little and stood up, allowing Gajeel to take a seat on the spot she was. Smiling to him, she easily waved and said goodbye, turning away. But something stopped her. A hand wrapped around her left wrist and kept her from moving forward. She looked back to see Gajeel intense stare, his once red eyes now dark. She tilted her head, trying to understand what he wanted. When that wasn't enough, she asked:

"Gajeel? Is everything okay?"

But the man never answered. All he did was pull her to him, in a manner that she was standing between his opened legs, staring down at the dragon slayer. The hand that was holding her wrist moved to place her hand on his shoulder and then grabbed her hip, keeping her still. The bluenette blushed, but did no movement whatsoever. His other hand went to her other side, his fingers ghosting over her skin before they met the pendant. He broke their gaze only to stare at the small metal piece. It was something that he had never seen before. That small metal band, piercing her skin, and that little figure, kissing her skin every time she moved.

"I've never seen this before."

"I got it almost a year ago. In my birthday. I figured I could give myself a small treat…"

"Hn…" he let out, his gaze kept on that metallic figure. And, almost as an instinct, he leaned in and licked the skin where it touched.

Levy let out a surprised sigh, looking down to see Gajeel's tongue caressing her sensitive skin. She thought it was somewhat erotic, but when he pressed his lips against her belly and sucked, she had to bite her lip to keep herself from moaning. His teeth scraped her skin, making her weak to the knees. She leaned in to his touch, the hand on her hip tightening its grip. Another shy moan came out of her lips when he bit down hard, almost of the point of breaking the skin, but didn't.

And suddenly, he pushed her away. She blinked a couple of times, to see what had just happened. Her head was confused. Once second he was enjoying himself, with the new toy he just got, and the other, he was pushing her away? She tried to look at him, but he didn't gaze back. His eyes were firmly fixed on the piece of metal in front of him. She sighed and walked away, wanting some time for herself.

~.~.

She carefully placed her foot on the rock, steadying herself, before placing the other, smiling when she stood up on top of the cliff. It was her secret spot whenever she needed to be alone. The abyss near the forest had a platform under it, one that you can only see when you jump off the cliff. And she had found out about it one time, when she, Jet and Droy were training. She had fell, but was quick enough to grab onto the platform, sitting there for what seemed like forever. When her friends started calling out for her, she pushed herself up and walked to them, with a smile.

It was a constant life danger to go there. She never knew when the rock might break and fall; but she didn't care either. She knew she was destined to die in a mistake of her own. She had seen it. If today was that day, so be it. She sat on the platform, the tail of her shorts stretching behind her. She smiled at the horizon. The world she wanted to find was right there. All she needed to do was reach out.

The once blue sky turned dark out of sudden. Levy stood up and looked around. There was something evil near, and it was coming down fast. She looked down to the sea, seeing it bright red. Like Gajeel's eyes. No, bad Levy, stop thinking about him! She got closer to the edge, to see what was going on above her. She saw the sky dark as ebony, the trees dying and the sharp wind cutting the leaves. And then she saw it. The one that she was afraid the most. And, with a gasp, she felt herself falling.

~.~.

Levy opened her eyes to find a pair of small red eyes looking at her. At first, she thought it was Gajeel. But on the second hand, Gajeel didn't have black and white fur.

"Panther Lily!" Levy exclaimed, sitting up.

"What were you doing on that cliff, girl?! Do you happen to have a death wish?!" he shouted at her, shaking her shoulders. She smiled and caressed his furry face, before pulling the cat to her and hugging him.

"Thank you… For worrying."

"Levy…" the Exceed said, closing his eyes and hugging her back "I was so worried."

"What happened?" she asked.

"C'mon." he said, grabbing her hand and pulling out of the bed "Hell went down outside and we need all the help we can find."

Levy raced outside, being careful with her bandaged left shin, noticing that her socks were ripped. She looked around. Screams filled the air, chilling her to the bone. The sky was dark, the clouds red as blood. Buildings destroyed, trees pluck out from the ground. Dust and blood covered the street. The loud noise of magic attacks being performed and the roar of the beast that caused such destruction filled the air, breaking Levy's heart. There was a couple of screams that she could recognize, especially Lucy's and Juvia's.

"Lily, what happened?" Levy screamed.

"A beast appeared out of nowhere, destroying everything! Natsu and the others got him to a clear glade in the forest and are trying to defeat him there!" the Exceed shouted back "Master told me to get you to Cana and Mirajane's side! They are trying to evacuate the city as fast as they can, to send everyone to safety!"

"No! I'm going to fight as well!"

"Levy, not even Mirajane is helping take down the beast! Lucy is there because apparently the beast gets weaker when faced with spirits, and Wendy is there for the healing and support magic! You need to meet Mirajane and help them! I have to go! Gajeel is also fighting the beast and he asked for my help! GO!"

And, with that, the cat transformed into his battle form and flew away, in the forest's direction. Levy ran in the direction of the screams, quickly spotting Mirajane's white hair and helped her drag a woman out of the collapsing building. The screams and blasts were deafening the bluenette, but she just closed her eyes and kept dragging the innocents to safety. After getting together with Cana and Mirajane, she was selected to go to the fire line and bring the wounded from there. She ran.

And ran.

And ran.

Until she found herself in a deserted field, destroyed by the beast. She saw a man trying to get out of the ruins and ran to him, helping him up and telling him which way to run. But the brilliant lights of the fight and the explosions were what called after her. The sounds of pain and misery, the screams and pleas for help. So, ignoring the shouts of Mirajane, she evoked a pair of wings and flew in the direction of the destruction. She crossed the trees and the fallen life. She sent a bright light, to guide the possible survivors to safety. Until she was taken down by a blast of energy that was shot against her.

Falling with a long crash on the ground, she quickly understood that the blast had come from one of Lucy's spirits, that unfortunately failed the target. She raced to the epicenter of the battle, grabbing a hand that was buried in dirt and pulled it up, revealing no other than Loke. He offered her a soft smile before running back to the battle, ready to protect Lucy with all of his power.

She ran after him, wanting to prove herself and a mage and help save the city she loved the most. She saw her guild mates, tired, bruised and about to pass out, but they kept going, they kept fighting. To protect the same people and the same town she wanted to protect. She couldn't see the beast yet, it was too dark. She could spot Lucy, being thrown away like a ragdoll. And then Natsu, grabbing her before she hit the ground and settling her safely on the floor, before turning to the beast and lighting up the glade.

The monster was enormous. His body was fat, muscled and tall, assembling the shapes of a wolf. His legs were thick and muscled, his body covered with pitch black fur. His eyes were nothing but slits, of the most pure red. His face was sharp, his muzzle round and his nose was non-existent, having a cavity instead, in a triangular shape. His mouth was huge, the size of a building when closed; when opened, it could devour half of Fiore in one bite. The claws of his paws were long and sharp, covered in blood, dirt and flesh of others.

Levy gasped, not because of fear.

No.

Because she had seen this beast before.

It was the same beast from her past.

It had come back for the only survivor.

Herself.

"Look out!"

But Gajeel wasn't fast enough to move away from the strike. The ball of dark fire hit him straight in the chest, making him fly back, landing on the ground with a loud 'thud' and creating a massive crater. He got up seconds later, not as easily as he should, but got up still. The power within him was decreasing and yet, he still went with everything he held on his body against the enemy, because he HAD to protect them. He wasn't the only one that thought like that though. Lucy, Natsu, Erza, Gray and Panther Lily kept standing up and fighting back, even when they knew, deep down, that they were fighting a losing battle.

Her voice caused several pairs of eyes to turn to her. One of them being the beast. She gulped and looked at the monster in the eye. She knew it was him. And it knew it was her.

Without a second thought, the beast advanced to her. And Levy ran. She ran away from it, she ran for her safety, even thought that the monster would eventually reach her. She tried to find a safer path. She found none. So she decided to run against the beast. Once she started to do such, voices called out her name, telling her to stop, telling her to run away. But she ignored. The beast lowered her head to bite Levy and the girl jumped, landing on top of the monster's muzzle. When it raised its head, the girl went with the force, jumping her way to her friends.

Landing next to Erza, the girl smiled and supported herself on the redhead's hand. The difference of gravity was a little different from the floor to the creature's muzzle. Her friends immediately ran to her, asking her if she was okay, if she needed anything. Levy brushed them off, covering her ears when Lily shouted at her, asking her what the fuck was she doing there. She merely patted his head and hugged his muscular arm, thanking him for his worry towards her. Lucy hugged the bluenette and told her she was happy that Levy was okay, but that was no place for her to be.

"This is where I'm supposed to be, Lulu."

"How can you possibly say that?" she asked "I'm barely keeping it together, I'm not going to let you die!"

"Lucy, I must be here! Trust me!" she insisted.

"No, you shouldn't." Natsu declared "Happy, take Levy to Mirajane. She can't be here."

"Aye, sir!" the Exceed exclaimed, grabbing Levy by the shoulders.

"No! If you send me back, I'll just end up coming back!" she affirmed "I have to be here!"

"Why?" Erza asked.

"Because it's after me."

The following words were cut out by another blast of dark fire, directed to Levy. Luckily, someone was fast enough to grab her and get her away from that place. The girl found herself crushed against someone's hard chest. Looking up, she saw no other than Gajeel, keeping her secure from the beast. She thanked him and pulled away from the hug, watching Erza and Natsu work a combo against the monster. After injuring him slightly, Gray asked:

"How can you possibly know that it's after you!?"

"Because I'm the one that got away." She told him, feeling Gajeel's warmth behind her "I was supposed to die when this monster attacked my city, when I was an infant. I didn't. I don't know why."

"And what makes you say that you are supposed to be here?" Lily asked.

"Because believe it or not… I'm the only one that can defeat it." She declared, sighing.

"I don't believe you." Gajeel stated. "Why not?!" she asked, looking up to the male.

"Shrimp, you have two dragon slayers and Titania fighting against this fucker and we can't land a scratch on him! How the fuck do you expect me to believe that a pipsqueak like you can?!"

"BECAUSE NEITHER THE DRAGON SLAYERS NOR THE TITANIA CAN EVOKE THE FUCKING APOCALYPSE‼!" she shouted, covering her mouth immediately.

"What?" Lucy let out. Levy sighed and revealed "It's not the first time that I meet this beast. I've told you that. The first time… Was when I was four years old. Master doesn't know that I remember, but I know what happened the night he dragged me out of the ruins of my city."

"Levy…" Natsu let out, he too being familiar with the mystery that surrounded Levy.

"My mother was a Scripter like me. A very powerful one. I don't know why this beast appeared in our village. All I know is that every single mage of our city tried and died at its hands. My father was one of them. During the three days that the battle lasted, my mother was locked inside her room, doing Mavis knows what. When she came out, she received the news of the perished. The few left wanted death, called out for it. And my mom… She granted their wishes. She told me to go to our basement and lock myself inside. Only now I know that it was protected by magic. I did what she had told me. But I came out once more. And I saw my mother kill that monster. With a spell. I now know which was."

"Levy, what are you thinking?" Erza asked.

"I'm going to use the same spell. I need everyone to go away. This spell will kill everyone in the area."

"What about you?" Lucy asked.

"Me? I will defeat the monster. Trust me." She smiled "Now go. I want you to live."

"Good luck." Natsu whispered, kissing her forehead. Levy smiled to him and waved joyfully, watching them run away.

Gajeel was hesitating, but when he saw Levy's hands glowing, he followed the others. They ran back to the town, picking up the few survivors they found on the way. Lucy carried a child in her arms, Natsu and Gray two men and Erza helped a woman, having her leaning onto her. They quickly reached their friends, the Take-Over mage waving at them happily. Helping Erza supporting the woman, she asked:

"Where's Levy?"

"She said she knew of a spell that could defeat the monster." Lily told her, placing the man he was carrying down.

"WHAT?!" a voice exclaimed, belonging to Master Makarov.

"She's in the glade, we…" Natsu started, but the old man only shouted:

"SOMEONE GET HER AND STOP HER!"

"Old man, what's wrong with 'ya?!"

"Do you know what happened the last time someone casted that spell?!"

"Well… It was Levy's mom, and I met her so…" Lucy tried, but the old man stopped her, declaring:

"Lucy, what you met was a lost soul‼ The ones that use that spell are consumed by the flames of hell and become the souls that are trapped in this world! Levy's mother is dead! There's nothing left of her! That spell can kill anything, but for that to happen, it has to use all the life spam of the caster! Levy is committing suicide!"

Following those words came a rush of wind and a cloud of dust. Gajeel had taken off, in the direction of the forest. The others were about to follow him, but Master stopped them, pointing at the sky. A huge ball of light was growing in the place where the beast was left, revealing that the spell had already started. It was no use. They would never get there in time to save Levy. All because the girl knew the spell that could kill the beast. Master fell to his knees and covered his face with his hands, beginning to cry. Lucy watched him, but wasn't ready to give up hope, she knew Gajeel could reach there in time.

And he did indeed.

Gajeel entered the sphere of light just in time to see Levy levitating, few inches of the ground, her spiky mane floating behind her. Her skirt waved as she took slow steps in the direction of the beast. The man wanted to move, but he couldn't. He was petrified in his spot, watching the girl walk to her death. Her skin, glowing with the light. Her hair, caressed by the breeze. Her walk, slow but decided. Her gaze, empty but firm.

And he couldn't help but scream her name.

"LEVYYYY!"

The girl turned around, gazing him. She was confused to see him there, but happy anyway. She didn't mind the extra company, especially when she was about to die. She smiled softly, her features glowing. Her breath was steady, and her mind was decided; she knew what she had to do. She had no regrets, and no look back. She had lived her life knowing it would come down to this. And she was about to leave the world.

"I thought I told you to run."

"Is it true?! Is this spell a suicide?!" he asked.

"Yeah. My mother died in front of me. There was nothing left from her for me to bury. I looked."

"Why didn't you tell us!?"

"Because I knew you wouldn't accept. I thank you for the fact that you came here to try and stop me, Gajeel, but there's no turning back. The call has been made. The spell will soon be finished and I will kill this beast."

"Along with yourself! NO! I refuse to let you die!" he exclaimed, running to her.

"It's not your choice." She told him "I have made my decision, Gajeel. And I'm not turning back."

"I made my decision too. And I am not gonna lose you."

"There's nothing to lose." She told him "I never was here in the first place."

"What do you mean?" he asked her, looking into her eyes.

"I never belonged here. My mother used a Rebirth spell to bring me to life, because I was born dead. I am only going back to the world where I always belonged."

"You can't die." He told her, grabbing her arm, ignoring the pain he received when he touched her "I refuse to lose you."

"It's easier if you just erase your own memory… Of me. You can be set free from all this pain." She told him, caressing his cheek "I have to go now."

"Please Levy…" he whispered "Don't leave me…"

"I have to" she smiled "but don't worry. I'll wait for you."

"LEVY!" he screamed, but there was no use. The girl had set herself free from his grasp and ran to the beast. Once she was face to face with it, she threw her hand up in the sky and called:

"Solid Script: Apocalypse."

The vision before him was terrifying. He expected everything when he heard those words from her mouth. Comets falling out of the sky, destroying everything they touched; a collision of the Sun itself, hell, even zombies! What he never expected to see was a human shape descending the skies and landing right next to Levy. He could see it was a woman. A woman exactly like Levy, but at the same time, it wasn't. Sure, it had the same curves and the same shapes. Her hair was still spiky, and the clothes were the same. Her hair was black, her eyes red. Her clothes were black, her boots red. Her hands glowed too, but they glowed blood. Levy smiled to the woman and gave out her hand for her to grab. So she did and both, at the same time, touched the beast.

It was an immediately explosion. The beast roared and screamed, but nothing could get it out of the girls' hold. It twisted and turned until, with a last roar, it dissolved into small pieces and exploded. The dragon slayer couldn't believe his eyes. The beast that almost caused Gray to die vanished at the hands of that girl. But it wasn't over yet. 'Dark Levy' turned to Levy and stared at her. The bluenette smiled and nodded, before raising her hand and pointing it at Gajeel, whispering a couple of words before 'Dark Levy' placed her hand on her forehead and pressing. An immediate scream came out from the bluenette, one that got Gajeel to run to her, before 'Dark Levy' was engulfed in light once more and rise to the skies. As soon as she disappeared, the sky turned blue again, the clouds white and the sun shone again.

But none of that mattered to Gajeel.

He caught the girl in his arms. Her small frame against his robust one, overpowering her. He watched her like she was the biggest wonder in the world. Her spiky locks, entwined in his fingers. Her creamy skin, under his rough hand. Her soft smile versus his frown of worry. The mark of death in her forehead, branding her like a scar. Her delicate touch contrasting his hard one. He pulled her against his chest and buried his face in her hair, taking in her unique scent. His body trembled, so did hers.

"Why? Why did you do this Levy? Why?"

"Because I had to save you, silly…" she whispered, fighting the waved of pain that overpowered her.

"You are my salvation, Levy. You. I'm lost without you."

"That's not true. You have a family now. You have friends. Go to them. Don't worry about me."

"How can I not?! You promised you wouldn't leave me!" he exclaimed.

"And I won't. I'll always be with you…"

"NO! I want you here, Levy! By my side!"

"I'll always be by your side, Gajeel…" she told him, closing her eyes.

"NO! You don't understand! I need to be able to touch you! To feel you! To hear you!"

"Gajeel…"

"No! Open your eyes, Levy! Open your eyes!"

"Gajeel…"

"God damn it, Shrimp! I love you!" he let out, tears inundating his eyes.

"Gajeel…" she let out, opening her eyes. She smiled and cleaned the tears from his eyes "I love you too…"

He pressed his lips against hers in a desperate move. It was everything he had ever imagined, and everything he ever wanted, but somehow, it was better than his expectations. Her lips were full, soft and juicy, and he was quickly becoming addicted to them. The grace of her body soon started to disappear. Her light was extinguishing, and he clutched to her even more. His hands fisted her hair, but the soft locks soon started to fade as well. The warmth of her body was disappearing, and so was her touch. The last thing he felt disappearing was the feeling of her lips in his.

He opened his eyes and she was gone. He searched for the blue of her hair, the cocoa of her eyes, but nothing. Her body turned to light and extinguished. The feeling of her was no more. No more smiles, no more laughs, no more angry tones, no more Levy. She was gone forever, and he had lost her. The only light in his life was gone.

And the only reminder he had from her was that belly piercing with the dragon pendant, resting on his hand.