Alright! I finally got my new word processor. So I'm excited to start writing again. Let's do this. Make sure to stick around until the end for a writer's commentary.

DISCLAIMER: Fairy Tail is the property of Hiro Mashima. I do not own it or its characters, nor do I profit off of it.

Please remember to review. Especially because I'm asking a question at the end of the chapter.

The Wizard

I. The Goddess and her Champion

A long long time ago in the kingdom of Fiore, an old man sat on a tree stump in front of a small cottage in a quaint little village. He wore his age proudly on his face rather than masking it. His face was a map of wrinkles and folds. Despite his aged appearance, his blue-gray eyes still held a youthful, lively vibrance. On his right eye was a lightning shaped scar. It had faded over time, but it had never really gone away. It mixed into the sea of lines, almost looking like another wrinkle. Almost. He wore his hair long, trailing down behind his back in strands of gray, silver and white. It complimented that matching beard that hung to his stomach.

Even though he was hunched over, it was easy to tell this man was tall with a broad stature. He was dressed in a ragged, tattered, old black robe that had seen batter days. The edges of the robe and the ends of the sleeve were lined with a gray fur. The fur had collected various things like leaves and twigs, but the old man didn't seem to mind. He had the robe pulled over his body, obscuring his simple clothes beneath it. Leaning on the man's side was a tall wooden staff. About as tall as this old man, it bent and leaned and curved as if he'd just pulled it off the tree, no signs of carving or shaping whatsoever. The top of the staff was frayed, little twigs flying off in every direction with a green jewel nested in the center of them.

A few children from the village had ran up to the old man, sitting on the ground in front of him. Finally, he opened his mouth to speak. "Once upon a time..." His aged voiced wheezed. He paused for a moment before shaking his head. He looked down as he grumbled to himself. "No no no, that isn't the way to start." He chastised himself. "You'd think this was a fairy tale, and it isn't."

He looked up from his musings to see a few more children and even a couple adults had stopped to listen to him. "It has elements of a fairy tale." He explained. "Dragons, elves, gryphons, fairies, and so on." He listed before pausing.

His eyes went misty as he recalled. "And it has magic." He said, as if awestruck by his own words. "Now, in my day, magic was much more commonplace." That nostalgic look left the old man's face as he looked down. "Oh well." He sighed. "All things change. The arrow of time moves in one direction."

He allowed himself to cease his mumbling and get back to his initial dilemma. "So, where shall I begin?"

And old man looked out the window of his castle. On the other side of the walls of his palace, an army had amassed. Catapults hurled flaming projectiles over the wall. Archers unleashed storms of arrow rain. Ladders were placed against the walls, giving the invading army an entrance into his home. And a group of six men were bashing a battering ram against the gates. Against such a swarm of bloodthirsty enemies, it was only a matter of time.

The old man appeared to be frail for his age. His hair was deathly white and tucked into a golden crown on his head. He had a thin strip of a beard going along his jaw. His attire was simple. A blue tunic with chainmail beneath it and a black cloak along with leggings and leather boots.

This old king drew the sword he always wore at his side and descended his castle, heading for the dungeons. He gathered a battalion of his guards with him.

"Well it's obvious I should start at the beginning. Those terrible years of darkness. As I said, all things change. But it is not always a peaceful transition. Especially in those days. After spreading across the world, the new Christian religion had finally reached our Fiore.

King Conbolt was the first Christian King of Fiore..."

The old King Conbolt swept his hand through the air, gesturing to the full dungeon cells. "Kill!" He commanded his guard. "Kill!" He shouted much louder. His guards moved quick to serve his bidding. "Kill all the prisoners!"

Conbolt watched as they were slaughtered. "No mercy to traitors!" He commanded. "Let the whole world die if I die!"

"...and he was a tyrant."

By nightfall, the castle fell. Those of King Conbolt's army who were not killed willingly surrendered. The mad old king was dragged from the dungeons and carried to the courtyard.

"Precht is here!" A soldier announced.

Through the ruined gates, a black horse charged in. It's rider was a tall, imposing man dressed in red and black. An eyepatch was over his eyes, having lost it in some skirmish or other. He had the beginning of a blonde beard sprouting from his face. The rest of his head was obscured by a frightening looking helmet that made his head look like a beast with horns. One hand held the reins of his fearsome stallion. The other held a bloody broadsword.

Precht dismounted his steed and approached his soldiers holding the mad king.

"My lord Precht," one of the men said with a hint of venom in his voice as he glared at the old king Conbolt, "he's slaughtered the prisoners."

"Traitors!" The old man shouted as he was pushed to his knees. "I curse you all!"

That curse was the last thing he ever got to say. Precht's sword met the king's neck, separating head from body. Undeterred by the grisly sight, he then approached the disembodied head and removed the bloody crown. Precht removed his helmet, revealing his slicked back blonde hair which had begun to gray, and placed the crown atop his head. He gave a smug grin, and his army cheered. Fiore had a new king.

"Death came so easily back then. And one tyrant smoothly passed the crown to another, even worse.

"Civil war tore the country apart. King Precht hadn't embraced the new Christian ways. Thus, he was misunderstood as being against them. Christian churches were ransacked and torn apart.

"As were the sacred places of the old Pagan religions.

"The followers of the Old Ways cried out in their agony. There was only one being who could save them, and she would come out of the land of magic."

An old woman climbed the hill to a circle of large stones, exhausted and beaten. Her home village was in flamed behind her. She fell to her knees in the circle of stones.

"Ultear!" She cried out. "Queen Ultear!" She called desperately again before her exhaustion caught up with her and she fell over, dead.

Despite being no storm clouds in the sky, there was a flash of lightning. A lone bolt struck the center of the stone circle. In a flash, a woman stood where the bolt had struck. She was mesmerizing, statuesque, and beautiful. Her skin was as pale as cream. Her black eyes were as hard as stones but were as deep as the universe. She wore her black hair long behind her, save for two locks which hung down her shoulders; it was dark as obsidian but tinted with the faintest traces of violet. Atop her head was a white band.

She was dressed simple yet elegantly. A long black down the flowed past her feet. Behind her, a long black cloak flowed down into a train along the ground. The cloak glittered in the morning sun. It looked like she had taken the night sky and wore it upon her.

To the practitioners of the old ways, she was known as Ultear. Queen of the Land of Magic and the goddess of the fairies.

Ultear slowly circled, taking in the state of the land. She saw the burning village in the distance and then the dead woman on the ground. She stared coldly before turning away. On the other side of the stone circle, the hill dropped down to the edge of a lake. Slowly, Ultear moved towards her. She moved with such grace, it was almost like she was gliding.

She stopped at the edge of the lake, and lowered her head as if in prayer. But this wasn't a prayer, it was magic. With her magic, Ultear reached across the realms, calling out. Though in the physical world, this all took place in silence. Her call sent waves rippling across the glassy surface of the lake.

And the call was answered. Once the lake had calmed, waves once again rippled across the surface from the other side of the lake towards the shore Ultear stood on. And then she appeared.

In a burst of water, a pale woman flew out of the lake. She was dressed in a long cerulean gown that glistened like brilliant sapphires. She had deep, oceanic blue eyes. Her long navy hair floated and waved around her head as if she was still underwater. As she got closer to shore, several bubbles floated around her, each one carrying a fish that pushed it as it swam. As she approached the shore, she slowed. However above the water, it continuously rippled beneath her as if a breeze was blowing directly on her. Her body gave off an aquatic blue-green glow.

Like Ultear, she was a Pagan goddess. She was Juvia, a spirit of the water. And she was Ultear's sister.

"Juvia got your message sister." She spoke, addressing herself in the third person.

"I've come to a great decision." Ultear replied, a strong hint of finality in her voice.

Juvia frowned. "Juvia doesn't like the sound of your voice when you say that."

"I'm going to create a leader for the people." Ultear revealed. "A powerful wizard who will save Fiore and bring the people back to us and the old ways." Ultear lifted her arm out from beneath her cloak, revealing a long sleeved hand that was ornately decorated with bejeweled rings. A shiny, smooth, black, magic stone flew out from the surface of the lake and into Ultear's hand.

"It'll be too much for you, Ultear." Juvia warned. "It will drain you of what power you still have."

Gripping the stone tightly, Ultear's hand slid back down beneath her cloak. "If I don't do it, we'll die!" She hissed. "If the people stop believing in us, we'll cease to exist!" She reminded her sister. "The new religion has already pushed us to the brink. If we don't do anything soon, we'll be forgotten!"

"All things change sister." Juvia responded, floating towards Ultear. "It's sad, but Heaven, Hell, and the world move on. It's fate."

"I won't accept that!" Ultear snapped angrily at her sister. "I'm going to fight!" She lifted her free hand from her cloak, extending it to Juvia. "Will you help me?" She asked. If she wasn't trying to remain strong, it would almost sound like she was pleading.

"No." Juvia smiled sadly, shaking her head. "You forget, Juvia is the lady of the lake and is made of water." She began hovering away from Juvia, floating through the air towards the center of the lake. "Now, everything is flowing away from us, and Juvia accepts it. Juvia is sorry sister Ultear." She spoke before sinking back beneath the surface, her otherworldly light fading as she sunk to the depths.

Ultear stared at the water, which had once again calmed back to glassy, reflective surface. Her voice held a bitterness to it as she spoke aloud, addressing nobody in particular.

"Then I'll do it myself!"

Far below the surface of the world was Ultear's castle. Carved out of the side of cavern walls, the palace was made of dazzling crystals and geodes. There were no towers or spires, they simply climbed to the roof of the cave where they joined the rock once more. A narrow channel of water led right up to the front steps of the palace. The crystals glittered and glowed with magic, providing light to the dark caves.

Ultear flickered into existence at the steps of her palace. Her black gown and cloak were exchanged for a long, pink gown and a flowing purple robe she wore over it. Her headband was changed into a silver tiara which ran across her forehead, and that matched the silver belt now wrapped around her waist.

"Hibiki!" She called as she ascended the steps of her palace.

A tall man ran out to greet her. He wore a simple black coat with long tails and a blue shirt underneath it, as well as black leggings, and boots. Atop his head was a spiky mess of orange hair, which did little to hide his sharp, pointy ears. He had dark eyes with somewhat above average eyelashes.

Hibiki Lates was of the elf race. And he was the right hand to Queen Ultear.

"You heard that?" Ultear asked her lieutenant as she entered her home. She made straight for a crystal chamber deep within the heart of her palace. It was where she did all her spellcrafting. It was a round room full of crystals. Littering the ground, growing out of the walls. The earth held great and wonderful power, which Ultear harvested and manifested through the crystals.

In the center of the room stood a glittering tower of crystals as tall as Ultear. It shined bright white. Sitting atop the structure were larger shards of jewels which glowed bright orange.

"Yes." Hibiki nodded, answered her queen's question. "I'm afraid, madam," he made sure to address her with the proper respect, "that your sister is...shall we say... indecisive when it comes to making decisions. She never really gives you the backing you deserve."

Ultear sighed, holding up the obsidian stone she had collected from Juvia's lake. She place it in the middle of the nest of orange crystals. "We're on our own." She said grimly. "So we better get started."

Hibiki frowned. He understood Ultear's fears. But, to fight back against extinction, she kept pushing and pushing herself. "Don't you think you should rest up a couple of days?" He asked. "Build up your strength."

Ultear gave an angry hiss and turned back to her elf servant. "There's no time!" She snarled, making Hibiki cower back. Seeing Hibiki react, Ultear frowned. Collecting herself, she turned back to the crystals. "Our world is dying!" She stressed.

They both went silent. Ultear placed her hands on the crystal nest and closed her eyes. She began pushing her magic into the crystals, trying to give her champion shape. But she wasn't casting one spell, she was casting two. As she pushed her magic into the stones, Ultear parted the veil of the future wanting to see the form her champion would take.

Finally, Ultear gasped, opening her eyes. She pulled her hands off the crystals and stumbled pack, panting. Though she would never admit it, Juvia was right. Creating life did take a lot of her magic. Hibiki was at her side, but Ultear held up her hand stopping him. Ultear made her way back to the crystals, staring into the nest. One of the larger orange crystals held a shape. It was the silhouette of a tall man. Though it was only a shadow, Ultear gazed through time, seeing his features.

"Oh." She sighed, smiling content. "He's magnificent!" She turned to look at Hibiki, the two exchanging victorious smiles. "Now," she looked back to the crystals, "I have to give him life."

Ultear closed her eyes again, silently casting another spell as she once more grabbed the crystal nest. The crystal that held the silhouetted figure, suddenly shot its radiant orange light skyward. The light phased through walls and stone as it shot out of the castle and into the world. With its light gone, the crystal had turned clear and cracked.

It was done. All the was left was to wait.

Ultear had waited patiently for nine months. In that time, she had rested and regained her powers. In that span, Ultear's spell found a human host. And finally, it was time.

Deep in the forest was the hut of Porlyusica, an old hermit. Her hut was one large round room. A fire pit sat in the middle of the room. A small fire had been built to keep it warm. The smoke puffed up out of the hole in the roof to serve as a smoke stack. Her other furniture, chairs, beds, chests and such pushed up against the round wall that made up her hut.

Porlyusica herself was along in years, somewhere between her fifties and sixties. Her hair was naturally colored pink, but had begun to fade in her age. She wore her hair in a tight bun atop her head save for two bangs that framed her face. She had cold, hard red eyes. She was dressed in simple garb, the garb of a hermit. A rough, woolen top with the long sleeves pushed up past her elbows, and a long green skirt. Over her clothes, she had on a simple apron.

Porlyusica was currently knelt over one of the hut's two beds. Some time ago, the old woman had come across a beautiful young woman possibly in her early twenties. She had been cast out of her home for somehow miraculously conceiving a child. Her family had asked for the father, which she claimed not to know. Seeing her as defiled before she was married, she was cast out into the world. Even at twenty or so years, Porlyusica found that too young for her to face the cruelities of the world. She took her in. She was a beautiful woman with dark eyes and blonde hair.

After several grueling hours, the young woman gave another cry. Her body was drenched in sweat, her hair and clothes matted to her body. But finally, it was done. A newborn infant's cries filled the room.

Porlyusica wiped her brow. In her long life, she had helped deliver many a child. But something about this birth seemed more difficult. Grabbing a towel, she cleaned off the child before wrapping him in a blanket and bringing him to the mother's face.

"It's a beautiful baby boy." Porylusica announced in an old, scratchy voice. She gently rocked the child in her arms, calming him.

The woman cried tears of joy and relief as she ran her hand along her son's head. Her smile dropped from her face as she looked up at the old woman who had saved her. "P-please." She barely gasped out. "Please look after my child." She asked.

"Shh." The old woman cooed. "Don't get yourself worked up." She instructed. "All you need–"

"I'm dying!" The woman cried out, cutting her off. "I can feel it. Swear to it. Please!"

Porlyusica gave her a sad smile. Unfortunately, for as long as she'd helped deliver child, she'd seen this plenty of times in her life as well. "Alright." She rubbed her cheek. "I swear." She promised.

The new mother gave a smile and a sob. Porlyusica rose back up and turned around, gasping in shock. She took a step back as Ultear and Hibiki stood before her. Porlyusica's thin lips dropped into a frown. Now it all made sense. For many years, Porlyusica once followed the old ways. She'd even been a most fortunate human, meeting many of the deities and spirits, including Ultear. However, when Christianity had arrived, Porlyusica saw the change. As she fought to save her people, Porlyusica didn't like the change she saw in the fairy goddess.

Suddenly, it all made sense to the old woman. Why, out of all the possible outcomes, a stranger in need made her way to her hut. Porlyusica listened to her stories about how she didn't know who her child's father was, believing she had been taken advantage of in her sleep. But seeing the queen of the fairies in her room, it all made sense. The young woman didn't know who her baby's father was because he didn't have one. He had been magically conceived with no mortal father.

While Hibiki was in his usual black attire, Ultear had changed her appearance once again. This time, she wore a silvery- gray corseted top with long black sleeves that ran down her arms, looking like spiderwebs. A blue skirt ran down past her feet. Behind her hung a long cloak that started deep purple at her shoulders, but slowly changed to pink towards the bottom, forming a gradient.

The goddess held out her arms. "Let me see the child." She asked.

Porlyusica hesitated for a moment. But she finally figured the spirit didn't intend to harm the boy. He had gone silent now. Porlyusica saw he had fallen asleep. She relented, carefully placing him into Ultear's arms. She then grabbed a towel to clean her hands.

The biggest smile lit up Ultear's face as she turned away from the old woman. She carefully raised the child up towards the sky.

"I name this child Laxus." She christened him.

Porlyusica grumbled. "While you're making gestures," she snapped bitterly, "save the mother. She's dying." She commanded. Ultear may have been a queen and a goddes, but Porlyusica wasn't afraid of her.

Ultear lowered her arms, cradling baby Laxus to her. "No she's not." She responded to Porlyusica. She turned, looking at the mother before looking back at the old woman. "She's dead."

Eyes widening, Porlyusica spun around to see that Ultear was right. Laxus' mother lay on the bed, unmoving. No breath passed her lips. Porlyusica frowned. She reached forward and gently closed her eyes. "Sleep easy child." She whispered, her red eyes softening. "May angels fly thee home." She bowed her head as she covered the corpse with the blanket.

After allowing herself a moment of silence to mourn, Porlyusica rose and turned back, marching straight to the fairy queen. "What's your excuse?" She asked harshly. "Why didn't you save her?"

Ultear raised an eyebrow, as if questioning the old woman's bravery. Her answer was simple however. "She served her purpose." She said bluntly, swaying Laxus ever so gently in her arms.

"Served her purpose!?" Porlyusica gasped. It only made her anger at the situation grow. Not just that an innocent woman was dead, but that she had been unwillingly used as well. "You are so cold!" She spat. "If I were to punch you in heart, I'd break my fist!" She turned away once again, tending to the dying fire for a moment. "To think, I used to serve you and the Old Ways." She grumbled.

Ultear's eyes widened at that. She quickly put the infant into Hibiki's arms before walking up behind her. "Then you changed?" She asked in disbelief. "You became a Christian?"

"Who told you that?" Porlyusica asked. Her frown deepened when she saw Hibiki cower behind Cana. "That snooping, pointy-eared blatherskite!" The old woman spat. She looked back up at the goddess. "No, I didn't!" She clarified. "I follow my own heart." She announced, Ultear walked away from her and began circling the hut. "And that's good enough for me!" Porlyusica added.

"Why do you allow her to talk to you so harshly madam?" Hibiki suddenly cut in.

Porlyusica answered first. "Because she needs me." She said. "Idiot!" She added.

"But why do I need you Porlyusica?" Ultear asked.

Porlyusica went to the elf taking Laxus from his arms. Cradling him gently, she smiled at him. From being passed around, the infant had woken up, opening his blue gray-eyes up at the old woman.

"You need me to raise the child." Porlyusica answered, smiling.

Ultear scoffed at that. "I can raise the child!" She declared. She then snapped her fingers.

Suddenly, the tiny hut was alive with activity. Pixies flittered in like dragonflies and hummingbirds. They flew in and out through the doorway and the cracks in the hut, bringing in twigs and leaves. At first, it looked like they were building a nest on the table. However, it was slowly revealed to be a cradle. Once it was built, the pixies lined it with soft moss. The entire time, little Laxus' eyes watched them. Outside, a small gnome was milking the goat Porlyusica kept for such a purpose. Another pixie flew in with the bucket of milk, setting it down beside the table. As the activity died down, Ultear had a satisfied smirk on her face.

"Tricks." It was Porlyusica's turn to scoff. She walked up to Ultear, staring her down in a face off. "You need more than tricks to bring up a child." She explained to the goddess. "You need patience, understanding, love. Most of all, you need love." She paused, remembering how she'd seen the queen change. "You used to have that once." She shook her head. "But no more."

She turned away, letting a moment of silence pass between them as she cooed to Laxus once more. Finally, Porlyusica looked back at Ultear. "So, what's your decision?" She asked.

"The child stays with you!" She growled begrudgingly. This time, it was Ultear's turn to walk up to the old woman. "But remember," she pointed at Porlyusica as if warning her, "he's only half-human. He was conceived with my magic. He doesn't belong to this world. He belong with me. He's my son!" She paused and reached down, gently rubbing Laxus' cheek. She gave the boy a smile before looking at the old woman once more. "I will send for him when the time is right." With that, Ultear and Hibiki melted away.

Alone once more, Porlyusica carried Laxus to the newly formed cradle. She frowned at the sight of the tired pixie attempting to rest in it. She gave a hard kick to the table. "Get out of there!" She snapped. The pixie suddenly jumped up and flittered out of the hut.

Porlyusica laid Laxus down in the cradle and he began to whine. "Shh. Shh." The old woman cooed. "It's okay Laxus." She smiled. Slowly, the baby calmed and was asleep once more.

WRITER'S COMMENTARY:

* Originally, I was going to have Natsu be the lead of the story. However, as I planned this out, the main character became far too serious. And that just didn't fit with Natsu's character. Yes, I know this is an AU, but still. After some thought, I finally decided Laxus was a much better fit.

* Concerning the depiction of religion. It's a fantasy story. I tried my hardest not to make the new religion Christianity. But ultimately, there was just no escaping it. Please know that I am not Christian-bashing. I myself am a deist, but I harbor no ill will towards other religions.

* Juvia. This is something I just want to point out real quick. When I watch Fairy Tail, I watch the dub. Feel free to mock me for that, but I watch the dub. In the dub, Juvia speaks normally. For the longest time, I wasn't gonna make Juvia speak in the third person because I was gonna write what I was more comfortable with, i.e. what I watched in the dub. However, I decided against the ultimately. I hope I did her speech pattern justice.

* Next chapter will introduce the love interest. Originally, when Natsu was written as the lead, this was gonna be Lucy (NaLu is my OTP). However, with Laxus as the lead, I've come to an impasse. I don't know whether to make the love interest Lucy (as I do ship LaLu as well... actually, I can ship anyone with Lucy and be happy) or Mira (I love Miraxus too)

To help me decide on the above issue, in your comments, tell me which pairing you'd prefer. LaLu or Miraxus. Most of chapter 2 is planned out. I will refrain from posting it for a few days to see which more people vote on.

Aside from that, leave me a review anyway please. They're great motivators to continue writing.