Secrets
Prologue
It was almost over. The war had raged on for two days and two nights, but now, it was finally coming to an end. The battlefield was dotted with the bodies of dead Fiorian wizards who had fought bravely against the invading force. Their blood stained the ground crimson. It was like a scene out of a horror movie, only this was real.
Amongst fire and smoke, making their way through the corpses were two girls, running for their lives. They weren't older than ten; their parents were nowhere in sight. Behind them, the great Heartfilia castle, that had stood for generations, crumbled and collapsed. In the midnight sky, the moon was blood red; dark and forbidding.
In the ruins of the Heartfilia castle, a man dressed in black smiled serenely at Queen Layla Heartfilia as she stood, covered in grime and blood, glaring at him fiercely. Her hands clutched a key ring of golden and silver keys to her chest.
"It's over, Layla," Zeref Dragneel said calmly. "Surrender and hand over your daughter to me. There is nowhere for you to run. King Jude has already fallen. You are next."
"I will never give my daughter to you!" Layla spat. "So you can just forget it, Zeref."
Zeref's eyes narrowed. "None of this would've happened if you had simply kept your promise to me, Layla. I thought Celestial Wizards always keep their promises?"
"My daughter's life was at stake!"
"I do not care about your daughter. All that matters is the promise you made to me." Zeref raised his hand. An orb of black energy swirled within his palm. "Enough of chit chat. This ends now, Layla."
"Not quite," Layla said coolly. As Zeref flung his attack at her, she dodged it by a hair's breadth. A golden sheen of magic swirled around her body and she disappeared on the spot.
Zeref lowered his hand slowly, gazing at the spot where Layla had previously stood. "She escaped? No matter. She will not get far." A dark smirk crossed his face. "Layla Heartfilia and her daughter shall fall today. I will make sure of it."
XOXOXOXOXOXOXO
The princess of Fiore, Lucy Heartfilia was running across the battlefield, hand in hand with her best friend, Juvia Lockser. As she looked over her shoulder at the falling castle, a tear slipped down her cheek at the sight of the only home she'd ever had being reduced to dust and rubble.
Juvia glanced at her worriedly. "Princess, we have to hurry."
Lucy's lip trembled slightly. "I want Mama…."
"The Queen will catch up to us shortly, Princess. In the meantime, we have to run!"
"But-"
"Lucy!"
Both girls swung around as Queen Layla materialized a few feet from them.
"Mama!"
"Queen Layla!"
Layla hurried to them. "Good, you two are alright. We have to hurry out of here."
"What about Papa?" Lucy asked anxiously. "We have to find him!"
A shadow crossed Layla's face. "Lucy, your father is-"
She was interrupted by a huge explosion no far away from them. Lucy and Juvia covered in fear as Layla stepped forward warily.
The blood drained from her face.
They were surrounded by demons of Tartaros.
"There's the Princess!" One of them shouted. "Aim for her!"
Several bolts of black magic spiraled through the air and headed straight for a defenseless Lucy.
Layla threw herself in front of Lucy. Her four golden zodiac gate keys zoomed into the air in front of her in a wide arc and formed a shield which immediately made the spells bounce back. All the demons except one fell. The last remaining fired a powerful explosive spell at Layla. The minute the spell struck the shield, there was a huge explosion. The demon flew back and was knocked out instantly. Layla took the brunt of the damage and collapsed, her keys clattering to the ground.
"Mama!" Lucy screamed and ran to her mother's fallen form, Juvia not far behind. Falling to her knees in the pool of blood around Layla, Lucy clutched the queen's hand. "Mama, say something."
Layla coughed up blood and struggled to sit up. "Lu-cy-" She rasped. "Run-away-"
Lucy shook her head adamantly and sobbed. "I won't! How can you even ask me that, Mama?!"
"Lucy-"
"I won't!"
"Listen to me, Lucy," Layla whispered. She gathered her keys with a shaking hand and held them out. "Take these."
"These are your-"
"Treat them well," Layla insisted. "Never abuse them. Oh, Lucy," Tears ran down her cheeks. "I'm so sorry-this is all my fault-"
"Mama-"
Layla looked at Juvia. "Protect her," She pleaded.
Juvia's face was as pale as death, but she nodded shakily. "I-I will."
Layla drew Lucy close and kissed her forehead. "I love you, Lucy. Now, run!"
Juvia caught Lucy's hand and began to pull away. The princess began to struggle. "No! No! Let go of me, Juvia! Mama!"
Layla drew in a shuddering breath. "Do what you were always destined to do, Lucy-"
Her voice died away to a mere whisper.
"Defeat….END…."
Her eyes closed forever.
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO
'Almost there,' Juvia thought, panting. 'I have to get the Princess away from this place-"
Lucy was still struggling against Juvia's hold, but her resistance was futile. Juvia was older and stronger and was definitely determined not to let go of her hand, no matter what.
Juvia's foot caught on a stone and she crashed to the ground, pulling Lucy down with her. "Ugh," She hissed, clutching her forehead and then realized with a gasp that she had let go of Lucy. Springing to her feet, Juvia looked around desperately. "Princess! Princess, where are you?!"
A dark shadow loomed over her.
Juvia felt a lump form in her throat as she slowly turned.
A hand touched her forehead and she forgot.