It's Monday! Here's some AU Fairy Tail fantasy to get you through the week. :) I appreciate everyone's enthusiasm for this new 'verse. I'm glad it's working out. :P
darling spider: I absolutely love them too. They're way too much fun. Thanks!
Waffels: Hook, line and sinker? That's clever! (I mean, pun intended, yes?) Thanks for stopping by! Hope you enjoy this next bit.
guest: I appreciate it! Cheers! :)
- K. Chandler
A crash sounded. The ship lurched, its stern rocking skywards.
"What was that?" asked Cana, bracing herself against the side of the ship. She could feel the deck shift dizzyingly under her feet.
Natsu rushed up from the gundeck. "Don't look now, but there's a fire on the lower deck," reported Natsu.
"What did you do, Natsu?" growled Gray.
"It wasn't me!"
Gray scowled, shutting his eyes.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" asked Cana. "Aren't you going to freeze it?"
Gray shook his head, frowning. Cana could see the emotion in his eyes when he looked back at her.
"Can't you feel it? We've taken on too much water already. I'm barely holding the mast up as it is. Like it or not, the Fairy Tail's done for."
Natsu swore. "So now what?"
"We evacuate. Get the men to the jolly boats."
Evacuate? Cana couldn't believe what she was hearing. The Fairy Tail wasn't Gray's first command, but she was his most cherished possession. She could only imagine how much it hurt him to give that order.
"Retreat?" asked Natsu. "We can't retreat!"
"We don't have a choice," Gray said impatiently. His lips pressed into a thin, displeased line. "Even if I patch the hole in the hull with my ice, this ship is going down."
"With respect, sir. You know the prince isn't going to like this," said Cana.
"Screw Lyon," said Gray. "What's he gonna do? Court-martial me?" He shook his head. "The men come first."
"You heard the captain, Natsu," said Cana. "I'll find Warren and have him let everyone know we're clearing out. You and Romeo can ready the boats."
"Right," said Natsu with a nod.
Cana found Warren below deck without too much trouble.
"Cana," said Warren. "What's going on?"
"We're sinking," said Cana simply. They were all seasoned sailors, so there was no need to sugarcoat. "Captain wants everyone to get to the jolly boats. Now."
"I'll let them know," said Warren, bringing two fingers up to his forehead. But he wasn't saluting. He was preparing to send the rest of the Fairy Tail sailors a message.
Attention, Fairy Tail. An announcement from your captain. This is an evacuation. Leave your posts and proceed to the jolly boats immediately. Again, proceed to the jolly boats immediately.
With her job done, Cana made her way toward the jolly boats. She ran into Gray on her way back up. He was heading in the wrong direction.
"And where do you think you're going, Captain?" Cana demanded.
"Covering our retreat," said Gray. "Don't wait for me."
"Are you crazy?!"
"We're sitting ducks in those jolly boats and you know it," he countered sternly. "Those guys'll blow us out of the water before we can even blink."
"Gray, if you think I'm going to let you—"
"Let me?" asked Gray sharply. "We might have grown up together, but I'm still your senior officer," he reminded her.
"But—"
"Would you just trust me?" said Gray. "Now isn't the time to argue!" he shouted, before disappearing below deck.
"Don't do anything stupid," muttered Cana, frowning.
Shaking her head, Cana made her way to where Natsu and Romeo were waiting in the last of the jolly boats. When they got out of this, she was definitely hitting the tavern.
"Is that everybody?" she asked.
"Just about," he said, helping her into the jolly boat. "Have you seen Gray?"
"Captain said to shove off," she reported hollowly.
"What?!" said Natsu. "No way."
"I don't like it either, but those are our orders," said Cana.
Reluctantly, Natsu started lowering the little boat into the water.
Gray emerged from below deck. He had a grim look on his face and a bag in his hand. It looked like it was filled with gunpowder.
"Hurry up, man! We're ready to go!" Natsu shouted.
"You hurry up and get that boat in the water," responded Gray. Cool as ever, he covered the upper deck in ice again, but this time it was black. It looked like it was mixed with dirt, or…
…Gunpowder.
He really was crazy.
"Told ya I had a plan," he shouted, sprinting toward the boat.
"You are insane! …Captain," added Cana, fighting a smile.
"Natsu!" shouted Gray. "Do it now!"
"With pleasure!" Natsu inhaled deeply. He stacked his fists before bringing them to his mouth. He blew, sending a spout of flame surging across deck.
The flames instantly vaporized the ice, igniting the gunpowder frozen within. Gray bolted for the opposite end of the deck, his legs moving faster and faster to try to leap to safety. The world behind him vanished behind a wall of steam and billowing smoke. Behind it, an inferno blazed, finishing what was not already destroyed. With the last of his strength, Gray leapt off the side of the ship just as the vessel vanished behind the black wall. It swallowed the Fairy Tail, consuming the ship and Gray along with it.
Cana fell forward as the force of the blast hurled the tiny jolly boat across the water, sending them spiraling out into the open ocean. She coughed, the smoke from the blast burning her throat and making her eyes water.
Cana looked up, her ears still ringing from the deafening boom. It sounded like the world had just exploded. And all she could see through the impenetrable, black smoke was the distant glow of the ship's smoldering wreckage.
A strangled cry escaped Cana's throat.
She couldn't believe it. He couldn't be gone. It wasn't possible.
"Gray!" Natsu lunged for the edge of the little boat, nearly capsizing them.
Cana yanked him back in the boat. "Sit down, Natsu," she ordered, her voice barely a whisper.
Romeo locked his arms around Natsu's squirming form. "Come on, Natsu. Don't do this."
Natsu shook his head furiously. "We have to go back," he insisted. "Let go of me, Romeo!"
"And do what?!" Cana snapped, her voice wavering.
"We can't just leave him!" Natsu snarled.
Romeo tightened his hold. "Do you think he'd want that?" the younger gunner asked.
"We can't… He's not…" Natsu fell limp in Romeo's grasp, the fight draining out of him.
Swallowing hard, Cana shook her head. "We're going back to port," she choked. "Captain's orders."
And... I couldn't help writing Lyon into this 'verse too. (Readers of my [Mazeverse] series know that I've got a soft spot for Lyon.) But don't worry, I don't let him take over this fic. Nope. I've already got Cana doing that. XD
Next time, in Silence, Juvia comes to the rescue: The human was unconscious when she found him, dark hair floating around his face like a halo.
Stop back next Monday for the next installment, or just follow me, Karine of R011ingThunder.
