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Savage Glory

~Lucy's point of view~

Wendy and I arrive in Freesia and of course it is freezing! We had to walk from Oshibana since the lady failed to mention the town didn't have a train station. We walked for two days through the climate changes, thank Mavis for Virgo providing us some warmer clothing. I let out a sigh as I look around the quaint little town which looked more like a little village. The town consisted of maybe three hundred people tops, the stores and houses were all built out of wood instead of brick or stone. With the snow lightly falling from the sky and covering the ground. We walk through the town and I notice there were only one main grocery store, a bakery, small health clinic, an inn, and general supplies store. This place was just small and quiet; people stared and murmured as we walked by.

"Wendy, how are you holding up? Are you okay?" I ask the small shivering girl beside me.

"Yeah just a little bit cold that's all, this place gives off a weird aura don't you think so Lucy-san?" Wendy replied as I nodded my head in agreement.

"I thought the same thing when we started to approach the town. I thought, at first, it could be the celestial key since the request said it gave off bizarre magic energy but now I'm not so sure. The atmosphere of this place doesn't feel right or welcoming. We should keep our guard up. I don't sense any other mages in this town but you never know so stay alert okay Wendy?" I tell her continuing down the dirt road to the mayor's house.

"Do you think we should call master and speak with him about this?" Wendy nervously looked around town.

"Let's speak with the mayor first and then check into our room at the inn to discuss what we should do next." We arrived in front of the mayor's house I take a deep breath trying to calm my nerves. "Are you ready Wendy?" I ask and she shakes her head yes, just as I was about to knock on the door it suddenly opens up.

"I presume you are the mages that have taken the job yes? We've been expecting you please come in." A man wearing a black suit said holding the door open for us.

I saw Wendy begin to squirm nervously out of the corner of my eye. I walk into the house with Wendy behind me. I take in the surroundings as we follow the man down the hall way of the house into a small office.

"Mayor Welch will be with you momentarily please make yourselves comfortable. Would you like anything to drink while you wait?" The man asked, I studied him for a moment as his hands twitched slightly at his sides. I saw Wendy about to reply when I cut her off.

"Thank you sir for your kind offer but we will be fine." I answer with a fake smile on my face, for some reason this man is acting very suspicious along with the townspeople. I can feel that something isn't right. As the man walks out of the office he closes the door behind him. I glance over to Wendy to see her looking at me with questioning eyes. "I'll explain later." I tell her and she nods her head letting it go for the moment. We sit in silence for a few moments before the mayor walks in.

"Good evening mages of Fairy Tail thank you for accepting the mission. Though the problem has now escalated drastically within the last few days. Please tell me your names and then I'll explain the job request." The mayor sighed as he took his seat across from us behind the desk.

"My name is Lucy Heartfilia I'm the celestial mage and my companion is Wendy Marvell she is the sky dragon slayer. Now please tell us from the beginning how all this happened." I state to the older man.

"My name is Fredric Welch I'm as you know the mayor of this town. About a month ago strange magic started to be released on the outside of our town near the mountains. At first it was very faint so we didn't consider it a threat. After the first week the presence of the magic grew stronger every passing day. In the middle of the month a man dressed in a black kimono and white scarf appeared in the town. We began to destroy a few carriages and started shouted for a celestial mage. The events have continued every night since then; we've tried to speak with him but we wished only to speak so a celestial mage. Now he has gone as far as attacking any of the townspeople who try to approach him. I fear this spirit will obliterate our town at the rate this is going." He falls back in his chair rubbing the bridge of his nose, I watch his actions and notice his hands shaking and breathing a bit unsteady and his body tense.

"Forgive my rudeness Mr. Welch but I can't help but think you are not telling us all of the truth. I wish to help you and this town but I need to know everything about what is happening. Please leave no detail out for the smallest bit of information could lead to the answer." I state watching the older man as he started to sweat.

"Well you see it has come to our attention that a dark guild has stationed itself in the mountains not fair from our town. Some of them came through our town yesterday and robbed a few of the shops and injured a couple of the townspeople. I don't know what the dark guild is after but they show members who attacked us showed up shortly before the spirit began to attack people. I feel that the dark mages are somehow connected to the spirit. Forgive me for not telling you this sooner! I feared you would leave our town if you knew about the dark guild and we really need your help!" Fredric started to weep begging us to stay and help the town.

"Don't worry Mr. Welch we will do our best to stop the spirit, and Wendy uses healing magic she can heal your injured people. As for the dark guild we will have to be cautious of them. We are only two mages sir and we have no idea of there magic or how many there are. Do you happen to know which dark guild it is? Knowing the guild can answer some of those questions and we will be able to plan accordingly." I say calmly to the mayor. I look over at Wendy to see her shaking lightly probably scared because this job is no longer a safe easy mission as we thought. Mr. Welch became silent putting his head in his hands.

"Yes the dark guild is well known for killing relentlessly," He paused for a moment drawing in a deep breath, "It's Savage Glory." The mayor whispered my eyes widen as I tried to remain calm. I heard Wendy whimper and seen a few tears escape her eyes. I knew why was terrified since this simple mission just turned into an S-Class request. I kept myself compose despite all the raw emotions running wild inside me. One of the few good things about being raised a Heartfilia is always being able to hold yourself together.

"Thank you for being honest with us Mr. Welch without this knowledge Wendy and I could have easily been playing with fire. We will take care of the key as for Savage Glory I will have one of my spirits investigate them so we can find out what they are after. Mr. Welch I believe me and my companion should take our leave now, seeing as we many things to discuss." I stand up with Wendy following behind me. I turn to the mayor one last time. "Please understand we are not S-Class mages and Savage Glory is a fearsome dark guild we alone are not enough to fight the guild. However we will do our best to keep this town and its people safe." I smile at the man as he begins to cry again and thanks me many times before allowing us to leave.

"L-Lucy?" Wendy stuttered trying to calm herself down while we walked back down the dirt road towards the little inn we would be staying in.

"Wendy I know you are scared trust me so am I but we need to remain calm. Do not let your fear over take you the moment you do you are accepting defeat. Knowing your fears isn't a bad thing though once you can come to terms with your nightmares you can move forward and become stronger." Wendy stops in place and looks up at me with her big brown eyes. "Let's wait until we are in our room to discuss this since we have no idea who is listening." She nods her head beginning to walk beside me again.

We stroll through the little town again and this time I make sure to keep my senses alert for anything. Every since Lisanna returned I started to train with my spirits knowing I would be going on solo jobs. In the last three months my senses have amplified, I can actually hold my own in a fight, my magic has increased, I learned new spells, and I've gained some new keys. Capricorn has also started to teach me a rare form of celestial magic. Even with all the training, magic, and spirits I know Wendy and I wouldn't stand against Savage Glory every long.

I walk into the inn and up to the front desk to get our room key. I motion for Wendy to follow as we walk up the stairs to the second floor where our room is located. The room was dull and plain a simple table and two chairs with a tiny kitchen area, it had a couch for extra sitting room and one bed. The bathroom was disappointing it only consisted of a shower, toilet, and sink. 'So much for a nice hot bath to help me think all of this through' I sigh to myself and collapse onto the bed trying to sort out my thoughts and devise a plan of action. I glance at Wendy to see her sitting quietly on the couch with her legs curled into her chest trying hard not to break down and cry. I stride over to the small girl and wrap my arms around her trying to console her. She returned the hug and launched into full on sob mode. I patted her head and let her cry for awhile to get it out of her system. Once her cries let up and turned into sniffles I let her go and smiled at her.

"How about we order some room service and then we'll come up with a plan for the next few days?" Wendy smiles and agrees; we walk over the kitchen to the menu and choose a few things. Since this place doesn't have many mages they didn't have lacrima's, we had to walk back down to the front desk to place our order. We return to our room and I take a seat on the bed and motion to Wendy to join me, once seated I explain my plan to her.

"First off let's put up a soundproof barrier so we won't be overheard if any of the mages happen to be lurking near us." I concentrate my magic into a shield that surrounds our little room. "Okay from what the mayor says the spirit only comes out at night, every since Savage Glory showed up the spirit has been getting violent and more hysterical about finding a celestial mage to help him. I believe the spirit is connected to Savage Glory in some way. Of course this is a theory we won't be able to prove anything until we talk to the spirit. I also think we should send one of my spirits to check on Savage Glory and see what they are up to. I have contracted with a few new keys and one of them uses concealment magic which can work to our advantage. We need to contact master as well about the changes in the mission since this is now classified as S-Class. There is also the possibility that Savage Glory already knows we are here, I remember one of there members had sensory type magic." I pause for a moment to see if Wendy is following.

"What is sensory type magic?" She asked looking outside the window for a moment then back at me.

"Sensory type magic allows the user to sense any other mages in the area as well as there magic type. They can read the mages magic containers and usually are very intelligent, they also can hide there own magic from others so they appear as a normal non magic user." Wendy shuddered after our little learning lesson on magic.

"Lucy-san, how do you know so much on other magic types?" Wendy asked glancing at the window a second time.

This time I look out the window to see what she is staring at and I notice a black crow sitting on the ledge of the window seal. I narrow my eyes studying the black crow, the crow looks our way and I can sense a strange aura radiating from the bird. Before I could exam the crow more it flew off. 'Strange I wonder if they know we're here yet. I've heard they have a mage that can control animals as well.' I glance back at Wendy to see her staring at me.

"Wendy, understand that there are many types of lost, rare, and common magic out there. I've been reading about all the different forms of magic since I was a child. The crow you just seen could have been being controlled since there is a magic for controlling animals. This dark guild is no joke we need to stay alert, if you notice something unusual please don't hesitate to tell me. I would rather be overly cautious then careless. Now moving on with the plan, we will contact master after eating and inform him of the changes in the mission. If the key is connected to Savage Glory then odds are it's a powerful or rare key so we'll need to find the key before they do. We'll go out tonight and look for the spirit and see what answers he can give us. In the mean time I'll send Corvus the crow to gather any information he can on Savage Glory. Then we'll come back reassess the problem and go from there. If under any circumstances we get separated please return to the inn if I'm not back within the hour call master. If Savage Glory decides to attack the townspeople I want you to help evacuate the townspeople, my spirits and I will be able to hold them off long enough for everyone to get away. Hopefully we won't need to resort to this but just incase, here." I hand Wendy a cord necklace with a little blue lacrima tied in the center. "I have one that matches, these lacrima's are linked to each other along with the one Gajeel had and the guild for emergency calls. They also run off of stored magic so if you run out of magic you can make a call but its limited to five minutes so use your time wisely." As I finish talking there is a knock on the door.

"Room service!" The voice behind the door calls out and I walk over and pull the cart of food in.

"Come on Wendy lets eat! Mavis knows we'll need the energy for what's ahead." I smile as Wendy jumps off the bed heading for the table. We talk about the guild, missions, Mira and her 'matchmaking' and anything else to help call down our nerves.

Once finished eating I walk over to my bag and pull out the lacrima master gave me shortly after Lisanna's return. I picture the guild and pour magic into the lacrima but nothing comes up. I try again and again for the next ten minutes only to get the same result. I sigh and put the lacrima down and rub my temples trying to rid myself of the on coming headache.

"Lucy-san, what's wrong?" Wendy questioned sitting next to me on the bed.

"The lacrima isn't working something is intervening with the connection. I can't contact master or anyone else from the guild. They know we are here."

XXX

Well another chapter is done! So who has a guess of what is going to happen? Curious about the celestial key we will meet the spirit soon next chapter we are checking back with the guild! Please leave a review!

~KimmyyCubb~