2 weeks earlier

The guild hall was on fire, courtesy of Natsu, and not so slowly burning to the ground. Whoever thought it would be a good idea to build a guild hall filled with such dangerous mages out of wood deserved to see their creation burned down, Lucy decided. It was unfathomably stupid. Maybe it was a temporary build, or maybe they thought they were untouchable. Obviously they didn't account for a destructive dragon slayer to come and burn it down, while beating everyone up at the same time.

The ground around the hall was littered with groaning or unconscious bodies of dark mages, all suffering from burns, frostbite, or cuts and bruises made by swords and whips. A few even had broken bones. It was a difficult fight, and as much as the group hated being more forceful than necessary, this time it was needed to win. This had been the fifth dark guild that the group had been paid to eradicate this month alone. No one could really say why. The number of known dark guilds had grown exponentially within the past half a year, gaining numbers, strength and in some cases even banding together to form "mega-guilds". They were getting braver, more open with the jobs that they would normally take in the dark. Some became mere bandits, wreaking havoc, stealing and pillaging wherever they went. They were getting stronger and they cared less about the consequences, and it was scaring the hell out of the Council.

Among the unconscious bodies, Lucy was bent over, hand on knees, panting hard. She had just finished off one of her last opponents, and she was exhausted.

'Weird', she thought, 'I've fought for longer without feeling this tired. I guess I really should train my stamina some more'. She took another deep breath, and looked up at her opponent. He was lying on his side, groaning and pressing a hand against a slash mark on his cheek. With what little strength he had left, he raised his head and looked her dead in the eye.

"Fuck you, girl," he growled in a deep, throaty voice, clearly trying to intimidate her still. She rolled her eyes. Why did they always think they sounded so tough? He was near unconscious in front of her, having just been beat in a fight, completely at her mercy, and he thought a few ugly words would have her quaking? They always assumed her to be so fragile. Secretly, she loved watching how quickly they realised their mistake. It was strangely entertaining.

"Lucy!" She spun around to find the source of the noise, only to come face to face with a dirt smeared face with a mop of pink hair. She smiled. He truly was hopeless. How did he get so filthy this time? "Are you OK? That was a tough fight, eh? You look a little pale." His brow was furrowed slightly, looking her over in concern.

"Just a little tired, don't worry. Summoning both Loke and Virgo wore me out." She waved her hand in dismissal. Even that little movement wore her out more. What was going on? Odd.

His brows furrowed even more, "It's never been an issue before. Are you sure you're ok?"

"Of course! It was just a long fight, is all. We've been fighting all day! I haven't even eaten yet!" His face broke into a slightly, but not completely, easy grin.

"Ah that's it! Maybe you should eat less and train more. If you lose some weight, you might be able to fight longer," he teased.

She pushed him lightly, and started to scowl. "Hey! What're you trying to say, you-". She went to lightly smack him on the head, but he backed away, laughing, all worry gone from his face.

"Kidding! If you have enough energy to hit me, then you're fine." She stopped, giggled and lowered her hand, trying not to let on just how much the small movements were draining her energy. "Anyway, I just came to check on you. Me, Gray and Erza are still looking in the guild hall for the master. He's in there somewhere and we'll make sure to find out everything he knows." His face set with determination. "You wanna come help, or do you want to rest for a minute? We've got it covered right now, you don't have to come in with us if you're low on magic. It still could end in a fight."

"My magic is too low for a fight right now. I'll stay out here and find out if any of the guild members know anything. Well, the one's you left conscious anyway." She grinned and poked his chest. He grinned back and started to run toward the smouldering guild hall. In the distance, she could see a flash of red hair and the glint of ice. She smiled warmly. 'Always looking out for me', she thought.

"How sickenin'." The man behind her snarled. She slowly turned to look at him. It was a pitiful sight. He was maybe in his late thirties, and had a good physique, she judged, from the way he fought. Though you would never tell from looking at him. What you could see of his face was creased and grey, the rest was hidden under a dark, shaggy beard, which was caked in dirt and blood and spit.

"I wouldn't think people like you understood true camaraderie." She said dismissively as she slowly walked towards him. She pulled her whip taut, a subtle warning that she was ready if he tried anything. His eyes fell to it, and he smirked.

"Don't need it love. All I need is strong men and women to help blow shit up. After that, I couldn't give two fucks what happens to 'em."

"How lovely," she murmured. "What a lonely life you must lead. Why bother sticking around at all, if you don't care so much?" She took a step closer.

"Money, babe. Money and power and glory. Everythin' every human on Earthland wants, but most are too stuck up to admit. I take what I want when I want it, and everybody 'ere cheers me on. Can you say you have the same luxury" He sneered.

"I already have everything I want." She said proudly, and he scoffed, clearly not believing her. "So that's why the dark guilds have been grouping together? Is someone offering them what they want?" He laughed. It was a throaty laugh, and dangerous. For some reason, it set her on edge.

"It's not nearly that simple, love. You ain't gonna trick me into tellin' you that easily." He pondered her stern face for a moment longer. "But I'll give you a freebie, out of the generosity of my heart." She looked at him warily, stepping back slightly and shakily, as his face darkened. It made him look sinister, and terrifying, like a man possessed. The world around them seemed to silence as he looked her square in the eye. She felt like she couldn't breathe. All because of a facial expression.

"You ain't ready for what's comin', girlie. None of you are. You think us raiding villages is bad? Wait until they're burned to the ground, and every one of those villagers cryin' over their shitty possessions is dead. What's comin' is unstoppable, blondie. You can either stand in its way and be cut down, or bask in it with us." He pondered her shaking form. "I wonder what I'll do with you when the time comes. I'm lookin' forward to slicing that pretty little throat of yours."

She stared at him, dumbfounded. She tried to find words to retort. Something. Anything. 'Come on, Lucy!' But there was nothing. She could only stare and shake like a child. Why did those words sound meaningful to her, like she'd heard them before? Why was her heart aching and her pulse racing. These were just empty threats, from a man who knows he's lost, right? There's no ounce of truth to them. They're dark guilds, they don't coordinate with each other. They barely coordinate themselves.

"Y-you're –". There was a loud bang from behind her, and she spun around to see a fight breaking out at the guild hall. Fire was flying and swords were flashing. It was all so overwhelming that she didn't see the man bolt up and pounce on her, knocking her to the ground. She didn't even have time to shriek, just grunt as her body hit the ground hard. She felt a finger snap, and she gave a short cry. The man flipped her over, and clawed at her face, her body and the ground around her, as if trying to find a weapon. She desperately fought to keep his hands at bay, and as she looked at his face in horror, she saw his cool, indifferent demeanour was gone. He was raving, ranting, frothing at the mouth. It was as if he had lost his mind.

"You can't stop the darkness, girl! The darkness is comin'! The eternal darkness! And we are his chosen! He is our saviour! He will give us a world of despair! He will give us the world that so many have failed to create before him! You'll see, girl! You can't run from it! He will find you! He will destroy you! He is coming! He is coming!" He screamed and laughed in her face. He laughed manically as he tore at her clothes and her face. He pulled at her hair and smashed her skull into the ground. She couldn't scream, couldn't yell. All she could do was gasp as her heart tightened with every word he said.

Why did she feel as she understood what he was saying? It was nothing but mad gibberish. But the words sat in her brain as if they had a space saved there. As if they belonged there.

She pushed against his face, slammed her fist into his throat. He choked, but he didn't stop. She couldn't put up much of a fight. The air in her lungs was getting scarcer. Her heart felt like it was going to explode. The pain was strong and sharp, but also ached so far deep down she felt she was made of it.

Then the man slowed, and his eyed widened. In the reflection of them she saw herself. At least, what she thought was herself. But her eyes were pure gold, from the whites to the pupil, and so bright she almost blinded herself. But she didn't get to look at them for long. At that moment, her heart felt like it exploded, and she shut her eyes to scream. The pain was so intense, and she felt it from the top of her head to her toes. She could do nothing but let out the most blood-curdling scream she had ever heard herself give. And with it was released a burst of power as gold as her eyes. 'Where did that come from?! I was all out a moment ago!' The burst blew the man away from her body. She didn't know, nor did she care how far. All she knew was the searing pain flowing through her veins. She must be on fire. She didn't know any magic could burn this badly.

And then it stopped, as quickly as it began, and the energy from the burst flew right back in. Her eyes changed back, and there was no sound left but the sound of her ragged breathing and the shouts of her friends coming closer.

It was the last sound she heard before she passed out.

Hey guys! I hope you like this next chapter. I've never been very good at writing speech, and I'm not sure if I got it to flow very well. If you have any opinions or suggestions grammar and writing-wise, I'm open to them. :)