It's been a while since I uploaded a new story, and after working hard for several months, I have finally wrote a new one! This is Destiny's Demise my latest story, and I hope you enjoy it!
Destiny's Demise
Chapter 1; The Storm
'There is a road we all must walk. From the past, in the present and to the future. Whether it leads to sorrow or joy, it is still the path that we must all walk. That is our destiny.'
Ice spears of rain poured from the grey storm clouds clotting in the darkening sky. Flashes of gold rippled through the thundering roars that shook the earth. Building quaked in fear, bravely resisting the malicious storm.
"NATSU! DUCK!" Lucy cried over her shoulder. Quickly the fire mage dropped to his stomach, his pink wet hair licking the shallow puddles of mud. A shining silver blade whistled past his cheek. "NATSU!" Lucy's strained voice called again. Red liquid trickled down face from a thin red line that scored his skin.
"I'm alright!" Natsu called back, leaping up to his feet. "You're gonna pay for that!" The dragon slayer growled. Flickering red flames coiled around his fist, undefeated by the crashing downfall. "Iron fist of the fire dragon!" Natsu roared his heavy knuckles plummeting into the face of one of the fifty dark figures masked in black. The man was sent hurtling backwards, collecting others as collateral until he finally smashed into the side of small cottage. Unfortunately, the building couldn't stand sturdy or take the hit. All four walls collapsed in on itself with a destructive rumble, burying the fallen men. Several more appeared from within the unyielding crowd to replace the fallen.
"Where do they keep coming from?" Lucy snapped, leaping back to avoid a thin knife driving through the heavy air. It cut into the ground with ease like it was as soft as butter. Brown eyes scowled at its sharp edge streaked electric-gold under the flash of lightening.
Blonde hair snapped up, sticking to the edges of the celestial wizards, water drenched skin. A golden key was snatched from her belt and driven into the air. With a flick of her wrist, the key turned clockwise in the air. "Gate of the golden bull, I call thee!" Lucy called. A magic circle of flittering gold bloomed and coiled around the key's tip. "TAURUS!"
The circle exploded with a blinding light, bringing forth a black and white bull from specs of golden dust, settling and dissolving into the mud slush beneath. The cow let out a loud roar of power at the group of unflinching men.
"TARUS! Take them out!" Lucy commanded.
"Of course, my beautiful Lucy!"Taurus gladly accepted, his voice laced with strong determination. A heavy black hoof leaned back over his shoulder, slowly drawing out a long, metal weapon. Under the coating of rain, the axe gleamed with malice, bearing its sharp, clean edges. The men, from what body posture could be interpreted, stood suspiciously unnerving to a point that seemed as if they were expecting it.
Leather slipped from her belt, cracking against the skin of a ruptured puddle with frightening curiosity. "Ready?" Lucy growled, holding her whip in both hands.
"Let's get moo-ving!" Taurus bellowed, slicing through the air with his cutting black axe as Lucy leapt forwards, snapping her whip with sound-breaking speed.
Men dodged and hoped towards them, always somehow able to dodge a direct hit. Knives whizzed past them, slicing through the ends of Lucy's long golden hair. "Urg, this is getting annoying now." Lucy snapped, coming back to back with the dragon slayer. "How many are there?"
"I dunno. Geez, this rain is more annoying though." Natsu growled, throwing flaming attack to fend off the assault.
Lucy could feel Natsu's heat radiating through his skin. Their drenched clothes felt as thin as paper as Lucy felt the definition of every muscle in his back.
"This is your fault! Lucy moaned, her whip lurching forwards. "If you hadn't got into this fight-"
"I didn't start it! These guys just attacked me out of nowhere!" Natsu protested.
"Yeah, yeah. Sure, Natsu. I believe you." Lucy sighed with sarcasm.
"I'm telling the truth!" Natsu whined again feeling offended.
"I know, Natsu. You're not one to start fights, ri- agh!" Lucy hissed, dropping to her knees in the mud that instantly swallowed her pale skin.
"Luce, you alright?" Natsu exclaimed. He managed to knock back the on-coming wave of people, buying him enough time to check on the blonde.
A silver steel needle pierced her arm, leaking a jade green liquid. The blonde mage plucked it free, revealing a blood red dot blistering over its vacancy. "I'm...fine." Lucy replied hesitantly, seeing little blood and climbing to her feet.
Taurus galloped over swinging his axe like a lunatic, randomly sending people flying. "Lucy~" Taurus bellowed across the fighting field, his bell ringing around his neck. Lucy quickly rushed herself to mentally prepare for when he stopped.
Taurus form suddenly shattered, crumbling to gold dust that disintegrated into the rain.
"Taurus!" Lucy yelled in surprise. Even Natsu froze, staring blankly in the same direction.
"What happened?" Natsu exclaimed, finally returning to himself.
"I- I don't know." Lucy panicked thumbling the bulls' key from her belt chain. "Gate of the golden bull, I summon thee!" Lucy belted, turning the key in the air. "Taurus!" Nothing appeared. She stood there for a moment waiting for something that never came. "Huh?" Lucy muttered, feeling her heart begin to thud against her chest, playing her ribs like a xylophone. In quick succession, Lucy ripped the keys from her belt, desperately trying to call forth her spirits.
"Natsu, I can't use my magic!" Lucy shouted in fright.
"What?" Natsu barked, black eyes turning on her in disbelief. "What do you mean you can't use it?" Hands clasped on her shoulders, shaking her roughly.
"I don't know!" Lucy screamed back, her own mind trying to move forward like broken cog wheels. But it all drowned out in a second as a soft whistle whispered into her ear, slowly growing louder. The jet black sheen flashed gold under the lightening in the corner of her eye. "NATSU! LOO-"
"LUCY!" Natsu roared back, stuck in confusion.
"NO! NATSU!" Lucy screamed in frustration, but he still didn't listen to her.
In the back of her mind, Lucy could hear the distinct soft ticking of a clock slowing down. Sound drowned out into utter silence. Brown eyes widened in horror, staring at the dragon slayer. Pink hair bowed under the rush of the rain, running over the contours of his face. Big dark eyes stared at her, overcome with panic, anger and concern. The weight of his strong, sturdy hands fell heavy on her shoulders. There was also the burning heat that pulsed through them, radiating over her numb body.
Memories fluttered through her mind. She was reminiscing how they had met, what they had been through together. Most of all, she remembered the smiles. Not just Natsu's, but everyone's she had ever met. She could see the happy faces of all the servants and her family at home, the smiles of all the friends she had met along her journeys, and last of all, the friends of all her guild mates. They were engraved like crystals over her vision. Natsu's goofy face was what she cherished, and everyone else's and she had to protect it.
Time caught up to her with the last click of the ticking clock in her mind. She didn't even think, she just moved. Her heels compressed against the wet mud, springing her legs forwards. Wet, cold hands reached out, swinging all her weight with her. As her body collided with Natsu's, his feet slipped on the unstable ground, sending his body timbering backwards.
A brief moment seized her as Lucy felt the press of the bullet breaking through her ribs at the resounding bang of the gun shot. It echoed in her mind the same way a ringing bell might, where it dominated any sound with an enormous presence. It may have seemed intimidating to others, but at that moment it just became a sound that was just as it was, a sound.
Natsu's back collapsed against the thick mud with Lucy's body falling on top of his.
"You idiot!" A hoarse voice called out in fury among the men. A man in black rushed forwards tearing a gun free of another with anger. "You're lucky you didn't hit him!" He screamed, but the man wasn't listening. Instead, her stared ahead at the pair on the ground. That was because he knew for certain he had missed.
Natsu didn't listen any further. The sound of the gunshot hooked onto his stomach like a leech, sucking the blood cold from his veins until his face went pale. "Lu...Luce?" Natsu uttered, hearing his own voice shaking so quietly as if it was far off in the distance. Everything about his surroundings suddenly expanded, feeling so alone. It was as if he was curled up in a ball, watching what was happening from afar. With only the weight of Lucy's silence, heavy body crushing his chest until his heart ached.
Something warm trickled over his skin leaving a burning trail in its wake, slipping through the cracks in his fingers. His body switched onto auto-pilot, flipping him and Lucy over. Natsu's body hovered above her, watching her still face in shock.
Dread dug its nails in to his heart as his dark eyes slowly squeezed shut. 'It won't be there. When I look, it won't be there.' His mind cried. But it was. As small onyx eyes pried open, he saw his hand covered in thick, red blood.
His heart stopped. His thoughts fell silent. His body went numb. "L- Luce?" He cried. Hot burning tears welled in his eyes, smearing his vision. Dark eyes just stared down with dumbfound shock. Behind them, his brain was stuck, as if something had been wedged into the cogs of his mind. Every time he tried to make it move forward, it just couldn't.
Even as the sharp needled pierced his skin all up his arm, the dragon slayer couldn't find the will to move. Magic slowly disappeared out of his body, seeping into the rain that showered over him. Red clouds of blood inked into the spreading mud puddles, expanding the pool of Lucy's life, slowly being sapped out of her.
Faint sounds of cautiously approaching men echoed behind him.
Closed eyes wrinkled and flinched, breaking Natsu's attention. Slowly, her lashes fluttered open, revealing big brown orbs looking up at him faintly. Adrenalin burst through Natsu's veins with relief sweeping through him. Those eyes were like his life line, pulling him back from a dark void of despair.
"N- Natsu?" she whispered, searching for his face.
"Hey Luce, I'm here. See?" Natsu gave a weak smile, pressing a hand against the cold cheek of her pale face. "You're going to be alright Lucy. I promise." Reassurance wasn't his strong point, but he was all too eager to give it, as the blood pouring through his finger began to build up.
Lucy paused, watching his face with a soft sad expression. It also told her she knew all too well about what was happening to her. For a moment, he wasn't sure what she was going to say, until she parted her lips softly and finally whispered. "Okay...Natsu." With the little strength she had, she pulled her lips until she made a small smile.
A splash of a puddle scattering droplets of water alerted him of the enemy that was far too close. His sharp face snapped on them immediately, defensive rage blowing up inside of him. "GET AWAY!" Natsu roared, his face twisting with overpowering intensity. Panic burst though his veins. He had to take Lucy to Wendy, to Poryluscia, to a hospital, anything! If not she would... Never mind that, first he had to make sure they would never get anywhere near her. He had to protect her.
Although he knew his magic was gone, his knew his strength wasn't; He could still fight.
As Natsu spun to attack, he was aware of the hand gripping his wrist softly. "Luce?" Natsu muttered, all his attention circling back onto her.
Big brown eyes gazed up at his with fading light. "Don't...go..." she breathed weakly. Her breaths b became shorter, her grip was weakening, and her life was slowly sipping away. Natsu needed to do something. Even so, for some reason something was holding him back, not letting her leave her, not right then and he listened.
"I'm not going anywhere Luce, I promise." Natsu vowed, squeezing her hand tightly.
Just as Lucy opened her mouth to speak, a paw of a hand came thundering down on Natsu's shoulder, tugging him backwards. It pulled hard and the dragon slayer resisted but failed and collapsed backwards against the wet mud.
"GET OFF!" Natsu screamed, leaping up to his feet. Already, several men had wrapped around him, forming a line between him and Lucy. Many hands lurched forwards catching and restraining against him. "LET ME GO!" Natsu demanded, breaking free of the holds, but they just caught him again.
The affects of the magic-numbing dart managed to drain more than half his strength away. No matter how well the dragon slayer fought, he was falling under their speed and man power.
It showed effortlessly as one man finally tackled the dragon slayer down. Quick hands wrapped steel bolted chains around his body, restraining his movement. "LET GO OF ME!" Natsu struggled in vain as they hauled his drenched and blood-stained body through the mud.
In the dragon slayer's dark eyes all he saw was Lucy. Big brown eyes stared after him in the distance. A pale white hand desperately reached out to him with all her effort. Blonde hair plastered to her white face, under the cloak of rain. Soft tears slowly poured down her water-stained face.
"LUCY!" Natsu screamed at the top of his lungs. The dragon slayer's body convulsed in panic with bursts of adrenalin expanding his strength. He couldn't leave her. Not alone. Not without him. She would die!
"Sir, what about that girl?" A soldier muttered to the man, catching Natsu's good hearing.
"Leave her." Another man answered coldly. "She isn't going to make it."
Pure, heart-wrenching agony tore into Natsu's chest like a wild beast, shredding him to pieces. Power boiled through Natsu's chained body in a last desperate attempt. Creaks and wanes of the steel chains cried out in protest as the metal began to stretch. A little more and the chains would break. He could break free! He could break them! He was going to save Lucy!
An echoing whistle of a dart skated through the air. It stopped, and the dragon slayer froze. Onyx eyes moved down to his chest, staring at the red-tailed dart sticking into his chest. "WHAT THE HELL...did you...do..."Natsu's body relaxed against his will, dragging his weight down like a rock sinking to the bottom of a pond.
"Hurry and load him into the cart; we're late." The man addressed as 'sir' commanded, clicking the barrel of his dart gun shut.
People responded right away, dragging Natsu as dead weight towards a jet-black carriage. "Let me...go!" Natsu growled as loud as he could manage which was only as much as a hoarse whisper.
Onyx eyes rolled away from them. Big brown eyes stared at him weakly with a small despaired expression. Natsu's heart froze, his eyes locked onto her face.
Time seemed to slow as Natsu watched the outstretched pale hand fall to the ground. Her face slowly relaxed with the last few tears rolling down her cheeks. He watched her eyes fall shut.
Hot tears stung his disbelieving eyes, rolling in indistinguishable droplets down his soaked face. Agony wrapped its claws into his heart and around his neck. "No...No...It can't be...no." Natsu muttered, his eyes widening in shock, watching her lifeless body, as clear cut as diamonds, through the grey veil of the storm. Lightening dispersed and thunder silenced, the rain falling quietly as if the sky was crying.
"NO! LUCY!" Natsu screamed, his weak limp body trying to fight for freedom. But it was too late, he couldn't move. His body was thrown into the carriage and carried away.
Luce was...gone?
Rain poured over his white cloak, covered in tears and the edges sprayed with mud. Puddles splashed around his bare feet treading slowly forwards. When they stopped, small eyes fell onto the ground at his feet.
Blonde hair dyed brown by the mud stuck to the edges of a stained oval face. Long, pale limbs with a dirt cast laid in line with her body, except the elegant white arm cast out to the side. Red blood trickled into the dark clouding puddles of mud as the sound of carriage faded into the distance.
"Destiny is the path. Will is what makes you walk. Sorrow slows you down. Love keeps you going. And Death is the end." An old, crisp voice muttered mournfully as sturdy, aged hand reached down to graze her silent pale cheek. "But when one path ends, it doesn't mean another one won't begin." Arms picked up the limp cold body with a single gentle sweep. Rain washed across the girl's face, removing the stains of blood, mud and tears. "Now, young one, you have fought hard. And now it is time for you to walk the next path."
"LET...me...go!" Natsu growled weakly. Crooked, stretched chains rattled quietly at his weak, futile attempts to break free.
"This guy's still awake?" One of the black clad men groaned sourly. "Can't he just give up already; it's annoying."
"Shut up." Another interrupted. "The lord wants him alive so don't kill him."
"I wasn't going to!" The first exclaimed.
Natsu heard the faint sounds of the wheels clattering through the mud puddles like a record on the outside of a glass room. Sight, sound, touch all faded in and out of clarity with the darkness that haunted the edges of his eyes like a predator stalking its prey. All his body radiated with the same kind of growing numbness that ignored the wounds and ache of his weak muscles and brittle bones, still trying to break him out.
An image flashed across his semi-conscious mind.
Big brown eyes bled cold tears. A white, weak hand extended out to him. Her pale lips in a soft frown. Then, the hand dropped into the puddle, and the eyes fell closed.
"DAMMIT!" Natsu roared, shaking his chains. The man leapt back in surprise, his hand snapping to a knife at his side.
"HOW DOES THIS GUY STILL HAVE SO MUCH ENERGY?" The man exclaimed, calming down from his scare.
Another man, sat across from him, holding something black by his side, turned to him almost tiredly. "A dragon slayer soul is a hard thing to break." He said softly, with almost a hint of admiration. "They use all their will to try and save what's dear to them, even after it's long gone."
Natsu collapsed back against the floor of the carriage. There was no longer any point in trying to break the chains; he didn't have the strength to do so. Instead, he picked up whatever energy left in his exhausted body and flung him against the walls of the carriage. It rocked, causing the men to react furiously.
The first man reacted almost instantly, casting an arm quickly over his shoulders. His dark eyes piercing through his mask were cold and merciless, full of overflowing quick anger. A large club raised in his hands with the ring of clattering chains that looped back around the man's neck.
Natsu ignored him, staggering to his feet. All he kept thinking was 'just get back to Lucy, everyone else doesn't matter. Get back to her!' repeating over and over again in his mind, pushing his will to the limits. The further they got, the sicker he felt. He couldn't leave her alone like that. He had to go to her. He had to save her.
Natsu flung himself one last time at the carriage, causing it to tremor and rock. As he did, the man's black metal axe thundered through the air down to his head.
A mind numbing ring echoed through his brain, and the axe hadn't hit him. When he looked up he saw a silver sword piercing the wall, cutting into the man's weapon chain. As soon as the man noticed, the sword lurched back, ripping a whole in the wall. Iron chains followed after it wrapping around the guys neck and dragging him along too.
Instantly, the second door opened, dragging out the other two men casting them into the rolling mud.
Natsu hadn't noticed before, but the carriage was slowing down. A second later, it came to a complete stop.
"NATSU!" A voice called to him. The dragon slayer whirled to see bright scarlet hair through the faint blur of his vision.
"Erza?" Natsu grumbled.
A silver gauntlet grabbed him by the scarf, dragging him out into the pouring rain. The beads of water hitting his skin awoke the image of Lucy again flashing across his mind.
"LUCY!" Natsu burst. Erza's grip let go in surprise and the dragon slayer staggered backwards. Another figure reappeared behind him, setting two hands on his shoulders to steady him. Natsu was still reeling from whatever drug they shot him with, making it a struggle to simply stand or makE sense of whatever was going on around him. One thing he did know was that Lucy was still left behind.
"LUCY!" He cried. "WE NEED TO GO SAVE LUCY!"
"What do you mean?" Gray called back under a harsh crash of rain. "Why isn't Lucy with you?" Onyx eyes flashed towards the blur of the ice mage with a horrible sick dread crashing into his chest.
"Lucy...she..." Natsu's voice drowned into the storm as he frantically stumbled forwards as fast as he could.
"Natsu! Wait!" Gray called, chasing after him.
"LUCY! We left Lucy! She's back there all alone! She needs our help!" Natsu yelled pushing his body harder to go faster.
"No one's back there, Natsu! We came that way!" Gray yelled back, stared with a frantic confusion at the dragon slayer.
"No...There's no way she could have left on her own!" Natsu called back. The image flashed again; Lucy in the mud, her outstretched hand falling and her eyes closing shut. "She's got to be there!"
The harsh sound of something coming up at Gray and Natsu's heels startled them. As they turned, Natsu's legs gave out and he dropped to his knees in the mud. Quickly, he was dragged to his feet again with Gray slinging his arm over his shoulder.
At the same time, Erza pulled up with the half-destroyed carriage. "Get in!"She yelled, reins in hand.
Gray nodded, helping lift Natsu into the carriage with the cry of the restless horses. As soon as they were in, Erza pushed the carriage into a lurch forward with the sense of dire time.
The first building appeared in the distance and Natsu immediately flung himself out of the still moving carriage. Reins tore the horses to a sliding stop, skidding over the mud as the carriage spun through the air. Water splashed up the dragon slayer's bmost, crashing through the air and into the soft ground. Heavy mud clung to his body like concrete, pulling him down with twice his body weight. Water destroyed the friction of the ground and his body rolled and rolled for what seemed forever until he came to a stop.
The dragon slayer quickly staggered desperately to his feet, gathering his bearings. He knew where he was in an instant.
The water on his hands felt warm, and what he thought was brown was a deep red. It felt like heavy stone in liquid form, burning his skin. Its scent, strawberry and vanilla, clutched his throat.
Lucy in the mud, blood spilling into the puddles, her outstretched hand, eyes closing, appeared again. This time it was like it was happening right in front of him. But it was all a dream, because when it flickered away, there was nothing there.
Lucy was gone.
Natsu dropped to his knees, black eyes staring at his red-soaked hands.
"NATSU!" Gray yelled running up to him. Slowly, the dragon slayer turned his head over his shoulder. Gray came to a halt as his eyes reached him. He first saw his face, shock and horrified, and then he saw his hands covered in red blood. It dawned on him in a second, realising whose blood it was. "Lucy..." Gray muttered in disbelief.
Splashing footsteps behind him silenced, where Erza looked forward with frozen eyes.
"Lucy's...gone?" Natsu choked, his pale hands were shaking, and his body was beginning to sway. The world seemed to spin in circles around him and he couldn't make out what was what any more. It was like his world was being torn from underneath his feet, with a sickness latching onto his stomach like a leech. Ice chilled over his skin as his thoughts came to a freeze.
Blackness urged onto him like a tidal wave, snatching him from the light. Gray watched the life sweep out of the dragon slayer just as his knees gave way. And finally, Natsu's struggle to stay awake ended with his body collapsing against the earth.
"NATSU!" Gray yelled, darting over.
Rain poured over his skin, ice cutting through the darkness, thieving his last grips on his consciousness.
Lucy; The mud, rain and blood. Lucy; Reaching out to him. Lucy; Her eyes closing shut.
Lucy was gone...and Natsu fell into the darkness he couldn't escape.
Next Monday: Chapter 2: The Hopeful
It's three years after the incident and Team Natsu finds themselves visiting the city of Hope and learning for the first time of the famous group, the 'Fire troupe'...
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-A-ccentric