Forever a Family chapter 2
The Mission
Here's chapter 2! My thanks to everyone who reviewed. I'm glad that so many of you enjoyed the first chapter. And I hope you all enjoy this one as well.
"What's going on?" Elfman asks as Natsu starts calling out to his sister, "Is she still there? What happened?"
"I don't know." Mira gulps, "But I'm nervous. Come on, Lisanna. Just answer him."
The next moment, Natsu landed in the clearing, holding their sister in his arms and dashing off to the forest.
"Lisanna!" All three of them yell, chasing after the pink haired slyer, who hadn't heard them. Unwilling to leave her sister's side, Mira let loose completely, entering Satan soul once again just to keep the Slayer in her sight. Happy and Elfman were left completely in the dust as the two inhuman mages tear a path through the forest, leaving an obvious path for them to follow.
It wasn't long before Natsu wrenched the door to Porlyusica's tree house and started begging for her help. Mira doesn't stop to catch her breath as she rushing in after him just as Porlyusica delivered the news.
"She's going to die."
With those words, Mirajane feels the color drain from her face. Life was cruel. Giving her back her sister only to take her away less than a day later. With that thought, she fell forward, unconscious.
"Mira!" Natsu says, catching her, and helping her to one of the chairs in the house, "What do you mean she's going to die?!"
"Exactly as I said." She sighs, "There isn't anything I can do to help her now."
"Lisanna! Mira!" Elfman yells, breaking in through the closest wall and rushing to his little sister's side.
It was a mark of how serious the situation was that Porlyusica never made any comment about his method of entrance, instead turning to the flying cat, weakly following him, "Return to the guild, and get Makarov. He's the only one that may be able to help."
Happy doesn't answer, simply rushing out toward the city. They all stood in silence aside from Elfman, who once again had manly tears streaming down his cheeks. Despite the distance, Happy returned with Master Makarov ten minutes after he left.
"I feared this might happen." He sighs, "The same as Mystogan?"
"I'm afraid so." She nods.
"What is happening to my sister?" Elfman cries.
"While she was in Edolas, her magical energy was drained" She explains, "She was likely very sick during the first few weeks, until she was completely drained of her strength. Over time, her body grew accustomed to the lack of magic, and because one doesn't need magic to survive, she recovered fully. Those in Edolas likely thought it was merely a flu."
"But if that's the case, why is she like this!?" Natsu yells.
"Because magic is powerful." Porlyusica growls, "Her condition in Edolas was similar to Makarov's after he was hit by Drain. Since she is significantly weaker than Makarov, simply draining magic is no serious threat. Once she returned to Earthland, however, her body started generating magic again, placing it under an incredible amount of strain. As she is now, she'll die long before her body adjusts."
"Is there anything we can do?" Mira asks weakly, having regained consciousness at the beginning of the conversation.
"That was what I needed Makarov for." She says, looking to him, "He is one of only two people to have saved someone in this state."
"This is different than you were." He says gravely, "It took me over a weak to stabilize your condition. Given how quickly she progressed, she would never last that long."
"That leaves only Gildarts." She sighs, "Last I heard, he was at the Guild."
"He left last night. We both knew that this was going to happen, but we never dreamed it would come so soon."
"We need him back here if we're going to have any chance of saving her."
"How long?" Makarov asks as he places a hand on Lisanna's forehead.
"Two days, maybe three." She says gravely, "I wouldn't expect any longer."
Nodding, he turns to Natsu, "Natsu, I have a mission for you. Take Erza, Mira, Happy, and Warren with you, and find Gildarts. He can't have gotten far in one night."
"I'm going too." Elfman says, rising to his feet.
"No. They need to move quickly. A small group has a better chance of finding him than the whole guild. You need to stay here and pray for her. I'll send Wendy up; see if she can help at all. Any time we can get we'll take." Makarov says, grabbing his shoulder.
"That's my sister!"
"And you would only get in the way if you go!" he growls, "Please. Just stay here. Lisanna will need your support now more than ever."
Elfman nods, and sits back down.
"Let's go." Natsu says seriously, "We're not wasting any time. Let's get back to the guild and go."
"Send Wendy. I'll stay and do what I can." Makarov nods, holding his hands over her as a pale golden glow surrounds her.
Natsu rushes into the still laughing guild, looking for the members he needed.
"About time, Flame for brains." Grey smirks, "What's wrong? Can't pick fruit anymore?"
"Shut up." Natsu roars, sending grey flying, "Erza, Warren, We've got a job. Let's go."
"Now?" Warren asks, "Can't I at least finish my beer?"
"NO." he answers, dodges Grey's ice make hammer and sending him flying again, "I'll explain on the way. Wendy, the master needs you at Porlyusica's."
"I'm sorry… but I don't know where that is…" Wendy mutters.
"This is serious, isn't it?" Grey asks, pulling himself out of the ruble of a table, and after seeing Natsu's nod, he grabs Wendy, 'I'll take you. You guys get moving."
"Right. Let's go." Erza says as she grabs warren and drags him out of the guild hall. Natsu starts smelling, and by some miracle, found Gildarts trail.
After they left the city, Warren asks, "So what is this important job?"
"Lisanna's dying and her only chance is if we can get Gildarts." He answers, "Wendy, Gramps, and the old hag are doing what they can, but unless Gildarts has some secret. It won't make any difference, so right now; we've got to find him as quickly as possible."
"Then let's stop talking about it and go." Erza nods, walking to a nearby house and stealing their magical vehicle, "We'll return this later." She insists, "Hop on."
His concern for Lisanna won out over his aversion to transportation and they shot off into the path. Despite his stomach's protests, Natsu kept his mind trained on Gildarts scent, giving Erza directions every time that it changed direction. With Erza's magic powering it, and her behind the wheel, they broke likely every law in the country, but by the end of the night, they'd managed to get as far as Ozuma, over a hundred miles from Magnolia.
"He's here." Natsu grumbles, "He's in this town." The car grinds to a halt.
"I'll try and call out to him." Warren says as he places a hand on his head, 'Gildarts, Gildarts, are you out there?'
All of them heard him in their mind, along with the surprised response from every person in the town.
Finally, just as they were about to give up hope, one last voice answered them, 'That you Warren? What's up?'
'Gildarts! Thank god! We need to talk to you.' Warren answers.
'I'm in the center of town.' He replies, 'I'll wait for you.'
"Let's go." Erza says as she starts the car again, rocketing them through the streets and ignoring the startled cries of the people. As he said, Gildarts was waiting for them in the middle of the town square.
"What's up?" he asks them after they get off the car.
"Lisanna needs your help." Natsu says, relieved that they were done with the car.
"Already?" He gasps, "But she should have had a few more days!"
"Well, she doesn't." Mira cries, "Please… she needs you."
"Right now, there is nothing I can do." He sighs, "That's why I came here. There's a ten year quest from a merchant in this town. The reward is the only thing that can save her, but if what you said is true, we're running out of time. It would take me a couple of days to break through the protections and finish it at the very least."
"Lisanna has three days at the most." Natsu growls, "What about together? Could we get done faster?"
"Maybe. Warren, I need you to do me a huge favor." He says to the black haired mage, "Go to Selshen and talked to Blue Pegasus guild master Bob. Tell him that we need to borrow Ren Akatsuki. Tell him we'll pay whatever price they want for the job."
"Ren? From the Trimens?" Warren asks, "What exactly does he need to do?"
"Ren uses Wind Magic, and has some proficiency with Drain. It won't save her, but I could at least buy us some time by relieving some of the pent up magic."
"Alright, I'll drive straight there." He answers, "And then I'll be sure to return this to the couple you stole it from, Erza."
Once he'd gone, the remaining five followed Gildarts to his hotel room, where he explained what the job was.
"Twenty five years ago, a local merchant with a massive fortune spent an over a hundred million jewels on defense spell and enchantments to guard his vault, which still contained more money than the Royal Family of Foire. However, only after the spells were cast did he realize that the location of his vault had been built in front of the prison for one of Zeref's demons, which was accidentally released after the spells were cast. Since then, he hasn't been able to access the bulk of his fortune. He placed a job to every guild in the country, in the hopes that one would be able to defeat the demon and give him back his money. Since then, over four hundred mages have been killed on this quest."
"And this is the only way to save her?" Natsu asks, slightly worried.
"The only feasible one." He nods, "The main problem isn't so much the demon. Any of the wizard saints could likely defeat it. The problem is the defensive spells, which severely weaken anyone that tries to pass them. In that state, mages are easy prey for it."
How are we going to do this then?" Mira glares.
"Earlier today, I tested my powers against the barriers. They are self-repairing spells that would take something on par with etherion to destroy completely, but my disassembly magic at full strength leaves it open for half a second before it repairs itself. With my reactions slowed by my injuries from that black dragon, I can't take advantage of that opening, so I was determined to break through it the hard way. However, you three can go in there tomorrow and kill it. I wish I could help, but I would be less than useless unless the barriers are down."
"So, the three of us against Zeref's demon?" Natsu nods, "Good. Let's go now."
"No." Erza says sharply, "I'm exhausted from driving all day; you still haven't recovered from your motion sickness, so that only leaves Mira at full strength. We'll rest tonight and do it in the morning when we're all fresh."
"Good plan." Gildarts says as he hits the lights. Mira and Natsu set aside their worry and fall into a troubled sleep.
All talking inside the guild hall was centered on one topic: Lisanna. They all found it so hard to believe that the girl who they all thought was dead not twenty four hours before was lying at death's door already. It wasn't helped along by Master Makarov's absence, leaving most of the guild anxious for news. Grey had been elected as the official go between with Porlyusica; not that it helped any. He got two words before being thrown out.
"I feel so helpless…" Wendy cries, "But there's nothing I can do."
"There isn't anything that any of us can do." Lucy sighs, "Why didn't the master send more people? Wouldn't it go quicker with more people searching for him?"
"Not if Gildarts doesn't want to be found." Nob counters, "A huge group of wizards searching would draw more attention that a small group searching carefully."
"I hope that they found him…" Elfman growls, clenching his fists so tightly they were white, 'I can't stand doing nothing!"
"It's five in the morning." Cana sighs, "I'm sure that they found him by now. Let's just hope that he makes it in time."
After a few more moments of relative silence, the doors swung open. Warren and a familiar dark skinned man walked in, "Is the master here? I've got news." He says, looking around the bar.
"He's still with Lisanna and Porlyusica." Grey answers, getting up, "I'll take you, and you can fill me in on the way."
"Good idea." Warren nods, and the three leave the guild hall as fast as possible. On the way into the forest, they passed the ruins of an old magic mobile that looked like it had been hit by Gildarts, but wasn't there before, "Remind me to tell the master he needs to repair that." Warren mutters as they pass, "Anyway, Natsu and the others found Gildarts, but he apparently needed to complete a job in order to help Lisanna, so they stayed behind to help. Gildarts said that Ren here might be able to buy them some time."
"I'll do what I can." The dark skinned mage nods as the rush through the trees, arriving at the hermit's house.
"What is it this time?" She glares, "Her condition hasn't changed since an hour ago."
"I've got word from Gildarts." Warren pants, "Can I see the master?"
Wordlessly, she motions them in, shutting the door behind them. Makarov was leaning over the bed, with his hands on her shoulder before glancing up, "What's the news?"
"We found him." Warren says as he sits next to her, "He said he was doing a job so that he could get something to help. Natsu and the others stayed behind to help, and he sent me to Blue Pegasus to enlist Ren here to help. Gildarts says that Drain can help."
"That's risky." Porlyusica says, looking at him, "We would only be able to use it a few times before she would die from the spell. Maybe three times at the most. And if they don't get back in time, any chance they have of saving her disappears."
"With her in the state she's in, it wouldn't change much." Makarov says gravely, looking up at Ren, "Please…"
Nodding, he holds out his hands, "Drain!" a green ball of energy appears in the palm of his hands, landing square on her chest. Her breathing quickens considerably as a light green mist leaves her body, swirling around the room. Makarov waves his hand, and the magic in the air disappears.
"That should extend it by a few more hours." Porlyusica says as she looks over her, "With your help, we might be able to extend it by a day."
'They'll be back by then." Makarov sighs as he places a comforting hand on her shoulder, "Just hang on until then, Lisanna."
"Let's hurry." Gildarts says at seven o'clock the next morning, "We've got time for a quick breakfast before we get to it. Lisanna's waiting."
"Right." Natsu nods as he races down to the steps to eat, followed very closely by Mira and Erza. Happy, they decided, would sleep in. He wouldn't be much help against one of Zeref's demons, and Natsu was in no mood to put another friend in harm's way.
With a morning meal behind them, Gildarts lead the group to the forest to the north. As the distanced themselves from the city, the air grew thicker, and it became almost impossible to breath. Finally, they reached the point where Gildarts stopped suddenly, holding out his arms to stop them, "This is it. Any further and you'll lose most of your magic."
"Alright. What now?" Erza asks.
"I'll break down the barrier. The instant I do, you run in. You'll only have a fraction of a second before they reform, and if you aren't past by then, you'll likely not have time to stop before you pass through them, and today will have been wasted" Gildarts explains, "First, just watch. The barriers are invisible until activated or destroyed. I'll take them down a few times until you can get the timing down. After that, it's up to you guys."
"Right." Erza nods, looking straight ahead.
"Disassembly." Gildarts roars and a crisscross pattern flies out of his palm. A moment later, it stops in midair and for the briefest second a pale blue barrier appeared before falling apart. It returned almost at once and vanished again.
"This is going to be close." Erza sighs, "Mira, Transform now. I'll only be able to carry Natsu along with me and still make it past. Sorry, but you'll have to fend for yourself."
"It might be a good idea to make two trips." Natsu mutters, "The opening was small, and it's unlikely that all of us would be able to get through at once."
"That was actually pretty smart." Erza smiles, grabbing him by the scarf, "Requip!" With her armor changed to Black wing armor, she holds Natsu tightly under her arm and nods to Gildarts, who release another blast of disassembly magic. The instant it came in contact with the Barrier, Erza took off, flying with all possible speed towards it. The passed the barrier the instant that it went down.
"Good work." Gildarts nods, "Mirajane, You're next."
"Take Over: Satan Soul." She growls and the she devil appears. After a few more demonstrations, she made her attempt, and just barely made it.
"Alright. Now, just keep going straight, and you'll reach the vault. Once there, just wait. The demon will appear before long. DO NOT split up. This thing is strong enough to take any of you on your own. I'll keep experimenting on this barrier, but don't expect my help. Take it down and get back here. We should get out of here by tonight. No sense taking any chances with Lisanna's life on the line."
"Got it." Natsu nods firmly, "We'll crush that bastard."
"Like I said, be careful. I wasn't willing to risk going any further without my magic, and no one that's seen the demon has lived long enough to give any detail. You're going in blind, so watch you back."
"Understood." Erza says as she requips to her Heaven's wheel armor, "Let's move."
It was a slow walk, not because of distance, but because they were all on guard. The forest seemed eerie on this side, even more so than earlier. And, though it went unnoticed Natsu, the temperature increased each step forward.
Finally, they made it to the Vault. It was a plain looking stone face, with a lock on it. The entire area was surrounded by fire, and there were skeletons all over the place, some more charred than others, and several looked fresh, with skin still attached.
"It looks like we found it…" Mirajane says as she looks around, "Where is this demon? Wasn't it inside the vault?"
"It likely escaped during one of the many attempts against it." Erza mutters as she walks around the area, "Whatever it is, it looks like it'll be a fire demon."
"Something's off about these flames though." Natsu says as he walks over, placing a hand over them, "It's hot. It doesn't look any different than normal fire, but I can tell. Even I would get burned by these."
The three did as Gildarts recommended and stayed together, slowly covering the area. Despite that, there was no progress in after an hour.
"Where the hell is it?" Mira growls, punching a hole in a nearby tree. The tree topples from the force and crashes to the ground, elating a roar of disapproval from something underneath it. The trunk exploded into dark purple flames what seared them even at a distance. Behind it, a massive shape rose over them. It almost looked like Elfman's beast soul, only many times larger and covered in the purple fire. On its back was a pair of wings that almost blocked the sun out when fully extended.
"Had to jinx it." Erza sighs, "Let's go."
Next time is the fight against the demon, and Lisanna's fate is decided. R&R!