Lucy figured it was just her luck. Running into Elfman and Evergreen. She had gotten separated from Cana when the flare went off. She prayed that the Card Mage was safe. Then she noticed the man wearing ancient clothes. They didn't look worn, but they certainly weren't modern. The moment she saw him clutch his head in agony Lucy's eyes widened. She shrieked, "Get down!" She was often considered weak compared to her team, but truly her magic capabilities surpassed them all.
Lucy easily dragged them out of the way of the dark mist that sprung from the wizard. As it attempted to reach Lucy, she glowed a powerful golden color, and the black mist couldn't breach the aura. She looked at Elfman and Evergreen, her voice taking an authoritative tone, "Get to the base. The flare went off. If you run into any others, tell them the S-Class Exams are postponed until this problem is dealt with. If they won't listen, Evergreen turn them to stone and Elfman can drag them back to the campsite. No arguments. You hear me?" For the first time Elfman and Evergreen understood what Natsu and Gray were talking about when they mentioned Scary Lucy. The two nodded and ran off.
Lucy turned to the pale, toga wearing man. "I don't know who you are, but we need to get you someplace safe." He urged her,
"Get away from me. I'm not safe." Lucy scoffed,
"I know, I'm considered weak compared to my teammates," her eyes narrowed, "but that doesn't mean you can underestimate me." She grabbed the man's hand and began running, "Since I'm not entirely sure what the threat even is, there's no way I'm leaving you to fend for yourself." The man protested,
"If you're close to me, I could kill you!" Lucy turned slightly glaring at him,
"My spirits won't allow it. After everything we've already went through, they treasure me. They won't let you kill me, accident or no. Didn't you see that earlier?" The man, Zeref, paused, but almost tripped because Lucy was still dragging him along. He supposed she was correct, when his Death Magic lashed out, she had been protected by a golden aura. Lucy glanced around as the ran, but she couldn't find any appropriate cover. She cursed and reached for her keys, managing to call out Pyxis mentally. The compass bird appeared at her desperate request.
"Pyxis, I need you to point to cover, a safe place for this man to stay while we go out and deal with whoever was dumb enough to attack my nakama." The bird chirped and Zeref couldn't make a head or tails out of it, but Lucy nodded in understanding. Then the strange creature disappeared in a flash of golden light.
With no hesitation Lucy turned sharply to the left, before she came up upon the clearing she and Cana had rested at hours earlier. She then dragged Zeref into the water, and shoved him into the cove hiding behind the waterfall. She glared at the dark wizard and growled out, "Listen, I don't know your name, or why you're here, as this is Fairy Tail's sacred ground, but you are going to stay here and not attract any attention. Understand?" For the first time, Zeref feared a woman. He nodded submissively. She nodded satisfied, "Now I'm going to deal with whoever the hell thought it would be good idea to interrupt our S-Class Exams." With that Lucy left. And Zeref was questioning what even happened.
When Lucy came upon Kain, she couldn't help but think the big man was an idiot. Giving her his doll and hair. He was quite literally putting his life in her hands. But Lucy wasn't taking any chances. He didn't deserve her mercy. Unaware of the consequences, Lucy quietly removed her guild mark. She could just put it back on later. She then promptly tore the doll's head off, and then Kain was headless. Lucy's eyes were cold and heartless. She wouldn't give the man mercy of living, not if they planned on killing her nakama. It didn't matter that she was still new to the guild, she'd protect them even if it meant killing.
Lucy held no regrets as she removed Kain's hair from the doll, nor when she attached the doll to her waist. If it still worked despite the man being dead, it would be just yet another useful tool in her arsenal.
That was when she heard shouting. She ran to the area, finding Gray, Loke, and Cana, fighting this half man half goat. Lucy narrowed her eyes, while she may have never summoned him, she knew who he was, or at the very least, who he was supposed to be. Lucy uncoiled her whip, "Cana, Gray, get to the safe area. Loke and I can handle this guy." Loke looked to his master, and pleaded,
"No, you must go with them Princess!" Lucy's eyes darkened further,
"This man hurt my family and tried to hurt them further. I won't allow him to continue." Loke's eyes widened as he, for the first time, felt his master's dark aura spreading. Normally it was well contained, but… This was overwhelming. He also realized that his master knew exactly who the man in front of them was.
She looked at Cana and Gray with cold eyes and spoke a single word, "Go." They heeded her word and ran off. Lucy approached Zoldeo or Caprico with a predatory walk.
"So you thought you could hurt my blood family, along with the family I found after running away?" The whip, Fleuve d'eToiles, trailed after her dangerously, "Allow me to show you how wrong you are!" With a movement that Loke could hardly follow, her whip was around Caprico's neck. Her voice lowered, "Leo. Get this disgusting man out of my Spirit." Loke bowed,
"As you wish Princess." He then used Regulus Impact on his former friend and comrade, giving Capricorn the strength he needed to throw Zoldeo out of his body. In the next instant Zoldeo faded away for breaking one of the Celestial laws. Loke turned to Lucy, still bowing,
"Princess. Do you have any orders for me?" He recognized that his master had returned to her previous self. Lucy Heartfilia, Guardian of the Stars. A woman who was relentless and merciless when it came to protecting her spirits. Lucy turned to Loke with cold eyes. She held up a key and intoned lowly,
"Open. Gate of the Maiden. Virgo." The maid spirit appeared in an instant,
"Yes, Hime?" Virgo knew better than to ask punishment from her mistress in this state.
"Round up all of the Fairy Tail member's, ensure their safety, all of them. Then return to me for further orders." The two bowed, before answering,
"Yes mistress." They then ran off. Lucy fingered her key ring before Pyxis re-appeared before her.
"Tell me, my loyal spirit, where is the threat to my family." The bird pointed unhesitatingly at the shoreline. Lucy nodded, "Thank you Pyxis. Now I will go take care of the threat to my family."
What Lucy didn't know was that a certain Ark of Time Mage was watching her.
Ultear approached the girl, "Tell me, where is Zeref." Lucy turned towards the purple haired woman, face cold and hard.
"Leave. Do not come back." Lucy placed a hand on her keys, and in another moment Gemini appeared...as Ul. Ultear froze. She whispered,
"Mother?" Ul looked at her daughter coolly,
"You have been unfair, my beloved daughter. You misjudged me. I will forgive you. But I want you to understand," Ul's face became devastated, "I thought you were dead. I brought you to those people in hopes they could help you. You had too much magic and I feared you would hurt yourself. Please forgive me, my daughter!" Ultear sneered,
"And how do I know you're telling me the truth? You abandoned me and replaced me with those boys." Lucy looked at her steadily before snapping her fingers and intoning,
"Sleep." Gemini disappeared, their job done. Even though they were still 'new' to their master, they could feel Lucy's love for them, along with her endless determination to protect them. Scorpio, Aries, and Caelum could all feel it too. They, along with her other spirits, would listen and love Lucy unconditionally.
Lucy moved on from the purple haired woman, calmly gliding towards Grimoire Heart's ship. No one was allowed to hurt her family and get away with it.
She frowned as she looked at her clothes before touching Virgo's key. The spirit appeared in a golden shower, bowing,
"Yes, Hime?"
"Two things, Virgo. How are my nakama?" Virgo responded,
"Rounding them up has been no problem, Hime. However, some have been injured." Lucy's eyes narrowed,
"Who?"
"Levy-san and Gajeel-san. Natsu-san has also taken damage, and Makarov-san is not in good shape."
"Tend to them. However, first, bring me clothes worthy of my title." Virgo's eyes widened underneath her hair. Her mistress desired to be dressed worthy of her rank? Virgo quickly shook herself out of her shock,
"It shall be done at once Hime." The spirit disappeared for only a moment, before reappearing holding several clothes.
"Help me into them." Virgo silently and quickly dressed her master, before Lucy dismissed her. "I shall call upon you when I need you next." Virgo bowed,
"Of course Hime."
With that out of the way, Lucy strode towards Grimoire Heart's ship. Upon meeting Bluenote, she merely waved her hand and the man went flying. The man, troublesome man Lucy thought, then attempted to use his Gravity Magic on her. A single lash of her whip was all it took to bring Bluenote to his knees, it being wrapped tightly around his neck. Lucy pulled him up until he was eye level with her,
"You do not mess with my Nakama. It will be the worst mistake of your puny life." Then she casually threw him into the bay. Such a man meant nothing to Lucy.
That was how Hades found the woman in front of him. Her eyes were cold and heartless.
"Your supposed world of renewed and magic alone shall not come to pass. For one reason, and one reason alone. I won't allow it." Hades smirked,
"And just who are you to stop it?" He did quietly wonder about her attire, before she formally introduced herself,
"I am Lucy Heartfilia, Guardian of the Stars, Protector of the Weak," her eyes narrowed, "and Mother of Fairy Tail." Her next movement was summoning Taurus, "Destroy the floor, find the Heart, and annihilate it." Hades flinched, how did she know about that? Her next summon was Sagittarius, "Intercept his Bullet Magic with your arrows." Her last summon was Virgo, "Chain him." Lucy stood in the middle of it all, while her spirits fought seamlessly together. Hades taunted her, as a last ditch effort,
"And what about your Nakama?" Lucy replied effortlessly,
"Loke is taking care of them." She showed no exhaustion despite four of her Zodiac keys being out.
AN: Don't own Fairy Tail and this is a light cliff-hanger.