My day was bordering on mind-numbingly dull when the whole world decided it was high time the straight road that was my life took a sharp turn. A very sharp turn, mind you. Over ninety degrees of a turn. After following through on that turn, I managed to end up running for my life. It wasn't an entirely new experience, considering I had been doing similar feats for the past month, but this particular escape had that little something to it that made it different from the rest.
I reached out to hook my fingers on the corner of the building and swung around into the alley at full speed. Behind me, I knew, cloaked figures were in pursuit, all chanting the same thing. It creeped me out to no end. First they seize my private school, then they attack me at my father's mansion, and now they've managed to find me in Bosco. I did everything - new wig, new clothes, heavy makeup, tons upon tons of perfume - and they still found me. Relentless bastards.
Another corner, and another, and another. I lost track of how many edges I held onto so I could swing around the buildings. They began to blur, each no different from the rest. My breathing was reduced to sharp gasps. I couldn't call on my spirits. My magic was still dangerously low from the mini war I had fought at the hotel. Two more corners and I was ready to dive into a trash bin and wait the cultists out. But I knew that, in the end, they'd still find me.
"Capture the Goddess!" A high-pitched voice with a distinct crackle echoed through the narrow lane and reached my ears over the pounding of my feet. Oh, gods. It was the woman again. No wonder they found me so fast - that bitch seemed to have a mental tracker on me. She would stalk me to the ends of the world, and she would be damn good at it.
"The Goddess! The Goddess!" More voices, a chaotic blend of male and female, answered the woman's call and I pushed my legs to move faster. Of all the people on this planet, I was the one they dubbed their 'Goddess'. Just my luck, no?
The cult of the Dying Sun worshipped the infamous black wizard Zeref with body, mind, and soul. In other words, their world revolved solely around him. That would've been fine with me - people can believe what they want to believe in - but the other part of their entire little setup included defying all laws of magic and life in general to resurrect the dark wizard. Their instruction manual apparently said something along the lines of, "Find a poor, innocent Lucy and kill her! That'll bring Zeref back to life!" Otherwise, why would they be chasing me? I'm sure that somewhere within their ranks there's another fair-skinned blonde girl who would be honored to offer her life for Zeref. It's a cruel thought, but I wasn't exactly caring at that point.
I skidded around another corner, this time ending up on my ass and staring up at another group of cloaked people. One sharp twist confirmed the fact that I was surrounded. The woman led her followers closer with a dramatic walk that was supposed to be intimidatingly slow and failed miserably. It looked hesitant instead.
"Lucy Heartfilia." The woman rasped out, her bony fingers adjusting her hood. "Our Goddess, you have been chosen."
"Is this supposed to be an honor?" I spat. Knowing that I was virtually helpless did nothing to lessen my attitude.
"Your father was willingly given us his blessing." She kept going, ignoring my little outbursts.
"You held a sword to his throat. I wouldn't call that willing."
"Our Master had spoken." "That's just wonderful. Tell him I'm very proud of him."
"You are the chosen sacrifice, the Goddess whose death will revive the legendary Lord Zeref with fallen light."
"I'm terribly excited. Dying at eighteen was the first thing on my bucket list."
"Your willing consent would be appreciated, but is not necessary."
"Then what's the point?" I was being plain sarcastic. "You're going to be a bitch regardless of what I do."
"The Goddess has agreed to fulfill her duties." The woman rasped. I jerked around to fully face her, my eyes wide in disbelief.
"When did I agree to anything?!" I was nearing a shout, climbing to my feet and dusting off my shorts. "You razed my school, threatened my father, and chased me around the country. When did I ever say that I agreed?!"
"As I have said before, your consent is desired but unnecessary." The woman kept acting like nothing had happened. It was beyond annoying.
"Aha. So, you admit that I didn't agree." A smirk slid onto my face. I pulled on the handle of my whip and it came away easily, uncoiling into a long black tendril. Three expert swings and the way was partially cleared. I tapped into the last of my magic to summon Taurus.
"Miss Luucy, I will defend your nice body!" said Taurus the perverted bull. My smirk molded into a wobbly smile and hearts erupted in his eyes.
"Just go get them, Taurus." I indicated the figures, my finger directed at the woman. A small puff of a breath left the bull-man's nose and he charged at the figures, the little black shapes scattering under his attack.
"Go, Miss Luucy!" He mooed while sweeping his axe in a winging arc. I nodded and took off, my magic barely enough to keep Taurus' gate open. I hated leaving my spirits to fight my battles for me, but it would've been suicide to stay. A running Lucy is better than a dead Lucy, according to Loke.
I darted into the train station and nearly crashed into the ticket counter. The clerk, a skinny man who could've been in his forties, eyed me warily and wasted no time in handing over a ticket. I weaved through the crowds and barely made it onto the train, slipping into a blissfully empty compartment and slamming the door behind me before promptly collapsing onto a bench. A warm glow coming from Taurus' key told me that he had returned to the Celestial Spirit Realm, hopefully uninjured.
I ran my hands through my fake hair and scanned the ticket. The piece of paper told me I was going to Hargeon. When the ticket inspector passed by, I ignored his curious stare and handed over the ticket. Two holes were punched and the ticket was back in my hands. I stuffed in into my back pocket and closed my eyes, vying for at least four hours of sleep. Right before I drifted off, too exhausted to be uncomfortable, the speakers crisply announced that we would arrive in Hargeon at ten in the evening. Six hours of solitude and sleep. Perfect.