Author's Note: Thanks for the kind words in the first chapter, am happy to see that people are enjoying so far. Hopefully I continue to keep you all entertained as I work on each chapter! Please do leave a review (it goes a long way!) and I hope you all enjoy~!
"I think this is the place."
If the information was correct then they only had one more location to check, and sure enough it was the third bridge where they discovered the metal door, just as the goon from the casino had said. An emblem that had once been painted on the metal had long since scratched off, and as if hoping it would avert suspicion the door was rusted and old. Exactly a reason to both find it very likely, yet very unlikely, for it to be the way into the dark guild's hideout.
"You sure about that?" Natsu asked dubiously, his arms on his hips and his eyes screaming suspicion. Not that he could blame them, they did just happen to come across him with other members of Ocean Mammoth after all. Whether they did truly doubt him they never showed, a part of him relieved that they were at least giving him the benefit of the doubt.
"Positive, was told that the entrance was underneath a bridge. Metal door, and this was the only one we found on this side of the town. So it's either this or bust." he replied, cautiously approaching the door. His fingers slipped into the metal bar that was bolted to the door and pulled, the sounds of jangling from chains on the other side was enough proof for him. "They're in there alright."
"So what exactly is your connection to Ocean Mammoth anyway? Seems a bit weird for someone to also be fighting them at the same time as us." Happy asked, flying in the air close by.
Gripping the door handle hard and pulling it open with a sudden strong jolt, he glanced back. "My friends."
"...Could you be a bit more specific there?" Natsu asked, an eyebrow quirked.
"My friends had been getting hassled by Ocean Mammoth for a while now, protection money and all that. They and I have been living close to the town for a few years, having chosen this place as they wanted to foster some kids, do some good for kids with no parents and also get ready to have kids of their own. I was away for a bit, doing some work to get some jewel to feed them all, and they came to the door demanding coin."
Natsu tensed up as Hayden talked, the thought of someone doing that to friends an act worthy of revenge. In his eyes Hayden was only doing what was right.
"When I came back, I saw that they'd threatened the kids and had hurt my friend Jayce, so I did what was natural. I came to town, and started wrecking shit up."
"I don't blame you. If someone did that to my friends from Fairy Tail, I'd show them a world of hurt."
"Not that you don't anyway..." Lucy mumbled, the memories flooding in of all the people that Natsu had beaten up for various levels of reasons. "Still, while I'm not too big on destroying things I do understand why you'd come to your friends help like that."
"Normally the two would be perfectly fine fighting them, Ocean Mammoth isn't exactly a strong guild, but when they have a bunch of kids hostage there's only so much a wizard can do. Anyway, we should keep going. Longer we just muck about around here, longer they have to prepare." Hayden said, flinging the door open. Inside all that was visible was a set of stairs leading down into the darkness, something that Lucy became much more visually concerned about. "Not that it matters when we have some Fairy Tail wizards helping a little bastard like me."
Sharing a little chuckle with Natsu, the four set off down the stairs at a slow, cautious pace. They weren't going to let them catch them off guard. Natsu even helped by coating a hand in flames, holding it in the air to light their way.
What Hayden found strange was that the light only travelled a small way, not going nearly far enough down the passageway to illuminate the bottom. A brief glance back up showed no entrance. Strange, he remembered they kept the door open. Things were strange, and as if attempting to at least ease the growing worry he dragged the metallic claws along the wall to leave behind a length of marks.
"So... tell us Hayden, are you part of a guild? Someone of your strength, considering the damage you've left behind, must be part of one. Which one? Skull Millione perhaps?"Lucy asked, trying to break the silence.
"None. Not in any, never bothered and never tried. Friends were though, used to be in Blue Pegasus until a few years back."
"But... you're a wizard right?"
"Correct."
"Bit strange but... I guess if guilds aren't to your liking we can't really say otherwise. Though, if you find yourself interested I'd say Fairy Tail would be interested in taking you in. Your strength, the way you went to protect your friends without a moment's thought... you'd fit right in."
Him in Fairy Tail? It was a pleasant thought for sure. He smiled over his shoulder at the woman and said nothing more, continuing to lead the way down the stairs.
Suddenly the flames lighting the passage revealed something old on the wall. Claw marks, the same claw marks he had made. Something was definitely going on. "Tell me, do you know anything about the members of Ocean Mammoth, or are you going into this as blind as I am?"
"Same as you I'm afraid, the mayor here didn't really disclose anything. According to their magic or members. Just that the guild master is a bit of a show off." Lucy replied, raising an eyebrow as Hayden suddenly stopped, "What is it?"
Lifting his foot and then bringing it down hard on a step, Hayden snatched up the chunk of rock and stuck it in his pocket. "Just an experiment. Come on, let's keep going."
Natsu and Lucy shared a curious look but followed all the same, Happy landing on the dragonslayer's shoulder to save energy and time. "He seems to know what he's doing huh?"
"Mhm, he seems very calculated in a lot of his approach." Lucy mumbled as the three hung back a little to speak a little quietly.
"Still, he's showing himself to be quite capable all the same. No sense thinking he's part of them if he's helping us." Natsu said, glancing over his shoulder.
"I know that! Just saying... we shouldn't put it out of the question is all. I don't want to think he is either, but... he seems to know a little too well what he's doing here."
"Oh Natsu, he's looking at us." Happy said, waving at the man who had turned to look at them.
"What's up Hayden?"
"Watch your step there."
"Watch my wh- whop..." Natsu tripped and fell, Hayden reaching out to grab him but was too slow, Natsu hurtling down the steps quickly with a loud cry echoing through the passage.
"...He's gone." Happy said after a moment with a strange tone of finality.
"...I did warn him, but still he'll be okay. Kind of." Hayden replied, turning back up the passage, "Ah, there he is."
Lucy and Happy both watched in confusion as Hayden outstretched his arm, and sure enough Natsu came rolling down the stairs from behind them and crashed right into the offered arm. "...Thanks." he groaned after a moment, his eyes rolling and his body clearly aching.
"How did you know he'd do that Hayden?" Lucy asked, unable to feel she could trust her own eyes. Had Natsu really fallen down those stairs or was it a trick? Both Hayden and Happy had seen it too.
After setting Natsu back down on his feet, Hayden gestured to the wall and then the stairs. The same claw marks as well as the portion of step he'd knocked away both existed even after several moments before they had walked by them. "Someone seems to have set a strong looping seal on these stairs, probably triggered it as soon as we got down here. So... only way to really deal with it is..."
He rapped his knuckles off one wall and then walked to the opposite wall and repeated it. He then turned, and ran in the short space they had available straight through the wall. The gasps of at least a dozen onlookers, not including Lucy who had jumped out of her skin, as the man broke the wall down and then disappeared as he fell down at least ten feet to the room below. He landed on the hard wooden table, sending glass mugs and booze hurtling in two different directions.
"...Ow, didn't expect the drop." he muttered as he slowly stood to his feet, shaking his head free of the rush he got from the fall.
"You alright Hayden?" Lucy called down, but he quietened her worry with a nod and a wave. Natsu, eager to get down there, jumped through the hole and landed beside the other man.
"The hell are you two doing in our guild hall! Wait... no, I thought we had more time. You two rotten thugs! You're the ones running rampant in my town!" a rather well groomed man shouted at the opposite end of the room, the other people in the room surrounding him like a protective barrier. Guild Master Orveld Skimsail, a self proclaimed pirate with none of the credentials. "You two alone have caused me enough trouble."
"You brought it on yourself asshole when you messed with my friends. Now, I guess we see how easily your pathetic guild is to break." Hayden smirked, plucking the small slab of stone from his pocket as he turned to Natsu, "So, who goes first? You or me?"
Natsu just smirked right back, his mouth releasing small licks of flame. "Me, make sure you're watching because I'm not gonna let many standing for you."
The members of Ocean Mammoth got restless, and in a rash move began advancing on the two.
Bending backwards, Natsu took in a hefty breath. One that caused his body and his neck to expand widely. "Fire Dragon's Roar!" he bellowed as he released a torrent of powerful fire from the air in front of his mouth. In an instant four Ocean Mammoth cronies were incinerated, collapsing to the floor charred and blackened.
"Not bad, my tu-"
"No, my turn! I've had to deal with walking around a lot and having you two talk up a storm like you're the only wizards here." Lucy huffed, being dropped down by Happy, "Gate of the Golden Bull, Taurus!"
The loud sound of a doorbell rung through the air and in a flash of golden light, a large bullman appeared wielding a massive battleaxe.
"What the shit is that?!" Hayden said loudly, having never seen Lucy use her spirit magic during the games.
"I'm a Celestial spirit wizard, Hayden, and I can summon Celestial spirits with my keys. Not only that... Star Dress, Taurus Form!" she cried, pressing the end of the golden key to her chest. Her body produced the same golden light, and in an instant her clothes changed to that of a sexy cowgirl. She snapped the whip she held in her hands.
"Luuuuuuuuuuucy, your body looks amazing~!" Taurus, in his typical pervy voice, moo'ed as he wriggled at the sight of her.
"Shut your butt and get smashing! Earth Wave!" she snapped her whip to the floor, causing an earthquake towards the enemy guild. "Rampage!" Taurus shouted in unison with her, bringing his axe down to cause a similar quake, both combining to force seven of the remaining members out of the fight.
"She beat you Natsu!" Happy chirped in, and Natsu hissed at the idea his score was beaten already.
"My turn then, now... if you don't mind." Hayden grinned, guiding Lucy out of the way and tossing the slab of stair into the air. Catching the stone in his mouth, he shocked both of his companions as he started chewing the stone to pieces, crumbling it up and swallowing. "Might not be as big a roar as yours Natsu, but it should get the job done..."
"No way!" both Lucy and Happy cried out, knowing exactly what he intended. They'd seen it enough times with Natsu and Gajeel, and now this random guy they met a short time ago.
Hayden took in a deep breath, his lungs and neck expanding just as Natsu's had. "Earth Dragon's Roar!" he bellowed, a spiralling torrent of earth and stone erupting from the air in front of his wide open mouth. The powerful roar struck the remaining lackeys of Ocean Mammoth, sweeping a good five in one go and leaving only the guild master and what seemed to be his elite.
"You're a damn dragonslayer?! How long were you planning to keep that a secret?" Lucy asked, her arms flailing in all directions.
"I guess... now? You never asked what type of magic I use earlier." he said with a shrug, pounding his fist into his open hand, "Still, now's not the time for explaining. We got this lot left, though mind you... not expecting much of a challenge."
"First to the guild leader wins?" Natsu asked with a smirk, one that Hayden returned with a deep chuckle.
"Sounds good. Three... two... one... go!"
The so called elite fell like matchsticks in the wind, their magic paling in comparison to the combined forced of a pair of dragonslayers. Not able to overpower with his magic, they learned that Hayden's physical power far surpassed any attempt at their own. Natsu with his hands in flame and Hayden with is sealed within stone claws both blew away their competition, both rushing as fast they could to get to the master.
Earth and flame both filled the room, lashing out in every direction as the two rampaged. Both with massive, cheeky smiles on their faces.
"I won't go down so easy! You little bastards haven't yet seen the power of Ocean Mammoth! Buccaneer Barrage!" the master shouted, throwing his arms out ahead of him. Though the wild panic filled his eyes as the two dragonslayers got closer and closer, he still had the bravery to stand up against them. Dozens of magical circles appeared in the air around and in front of him, summoning a massive amount of cannons. "FIRE!"
Booms as loud as thunder rung through the air, magical cannonballs shot at Hayden and Natsu. For a brief moment, he believed his spell would be enough. What he didn't count on was for both Hayden and Natsu to smash right through. "Wait wait! We can talk this through!"
"Talking is over! I won't forgive you for what you did to my friends!" Hayden bellowed.
"Dragonslayer Secret Art!" both dragonslayers roared in unison, their bodies brimming with magical power.
"Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame Blade!"
"Obsidian Gate: Sundering Earth!"
An incredibly large orb of fire engulfed Natsu's body as he struck Orveld, incinerating him in an instant with the flame's fury. Right after the flames dissipated, Hayden's stone covered fist connected hard with Orveld's jaw, the force of which strong enough to rupture the ground around them and create a deep, dome-like fracture in the wall behind Orveld. Knocked out cold, the guild master of Ocean Mammoth fell to the ground with a quiet thump.
Taking a long, deep breath, Hayden looked over at the pink haired man and smirked "Let's call it a draw for now."
"Fine, fine. Next time you against me, we'll see who's best!" Natsu shook his fist with a confident grin.
Hayden nodded, reaching down to grab the overly flamboyant hat belonging to Orveld and place it on his own head. With trophy in tow, the group of four set off back up the stairs and quickly rushed out of the town. Escaping in time to see the Magic Council's banners on the bridge above them, the four took to the closest exit of the town they could and ran until both their laughter and their breath stopped.
Collapsing at the top of a hill overlooking Revolo, they all took a much needed break, apart from Happy who pulled out a fish from the little sack he wore across his back and began eating.
"I will admit, that was pretty damn fun. Didn't expect that from Fairy Tail folk, but then again I'm still going off info before the Grand Magic Games. Back when a lot of new guilds were getting the whole 'Better than Fairy Tail' bull. Seeing you in action was amazing."
"You were pretty good yourself. Surprised us a bit with that dragonslayer magic too!" Lucy replied, pressing her hand to her chest as her breathing slowed to normal, "That secret art of yours was strong too!"
He laughed awkwardly, scratching his cheek lightly with his claws. "...I had to kind of dial it back a bit. Last time I used it on someone it caused a fault line."
"You call what you did dialling back?!"
"Better than risk causing some damage to the town, so... yeah. I do."
Natsu just laughed, fists pressed to his hips. "You really would make a great fit for Fairy Tail!"
"Aye sir!" Happy agreed, his fish half eaten.
"Yeah! Why not come back with us to Magnolia, I'm sure the master would be happy to bring you in." Lucy asked with a wide smile, to which both Natsu and Happy smiled with her, all of them beaming with a powerful aura of friendship.
It was a warm feeling, being wanted by such a powerful and incredible guild. They were great to be around, they felt like people he could trust just as they showed the trust in each other - even if Natsu and Lucy argued now and then. However, he had his friends and they needed him a lot more than Fairy Tail did. Hell, he still had to get back and let them know what happened! He knew damn well they'd love to hear that story.
"I appreciate the offer but... I'll have to decline. Joining Fairy Tail would be a great honor, but I have obligations to my friends first. I hope you understand." he said after a time, fixing the large hat on his head.
Lucy' briefly looked surprised though she quickly recomposed herself. "I can understand that. Still, if ever you change your mind the offer is always there. Fairy Tail would be happy to have you in our dysfunctional family."
"And don't forget, you still owe me a fight, so don't think I'll be letting you off easy!" Natsu laughed, raising his fist.
With a smile, Hayden turned and began down the dirt pathway. Lifting his hand and waving them a farewell, he made one last glance back. Natsu, Lucy and Happy all waved at him, the same sense of warmth as before still radiating from them.
He felt like he would see them again. He wasn't sure how, but he would, and Natsu would get that fight he desperately wanted. An event Hayden was looking forward to, however it came about.