Pride: Natsu may be a quite OOC in this chapter as well, and I won't regret it. As much as I hate writing clichéd stuff, I seem to have no choice in this chapter, for the sake of plot development. I have committed the taboo of writing cliché incidents. There is a special place in writers' hell for me, I just know it but alas, I have no choice. T_T
To my dear readers, in case you are not following me: Please do check out my other stories (and most importantly, remember to REVIEW!). Preferably, "Moments That Never Fade Away", "Web of Deceit" and "Blood Looks Good on You", since they kinda lack reviews compared to the other fics?
Sorry for the long wait, guys, but here's the next chapter of "Truth Behind Lies"
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fairy Tail, or any of its characters.
Narrator's Perspective
'Thoughts'
"Speech"
"Attacks/Raised Voices"
Settings- Place and Time
Memories/ Diary Entries
Truth Behind Lies
A Fairy Tail original fanfiction.
Chapter 3 – Apprenticed Again
X419, Avalon Desert, Ishgal
Four men stood panting, facing two mighty behemoths of massive proportions. The two dragons towered over them, snouts flaring open in obvious distaste and fury.
The first was a beautiful white, scales shimmering beautifully in the faint light of the setting sun.
The second dragon was also white, but with faint blue patterns of swirls running along its body.
The dragons were easily ten times bigger each of the four mages facing them. Their bright yellow chests puffed out in indignance and anger.
'How dare these puny creatures even hope to defeat us! We'll rout them all!'
They had ridges of sharp spines running down their lower neck and backs, down to their strong, muscular tails that were beating down on the ground, striking up a sandstorm.
Their feet were equipped with sharp claws that could each open in their adversaries, a gash as big as a human arm. This trait of theirs could be seen as redundant, considering the amount of strength and brute force contained in their bodies, and their control over the elements, not to mention their stubborn scales which formed a divine armour to protect them from almost any magic.
"Do not underestimate us, you overgrown lizards! What we lack in size and offensive power, we make up for in precision and mastery over our magic!" yelled a man with long flowing blonde hair, who also happened to be a leading scientist, accomplished mage and current General of the UMC. He was the one known as the Inferno of the North, one of the four gifted children who ruled over the elements.
"We'll rip those annoying scales off your bodies, then beat you to a pulp!" followed the Typhoon of the East, with his own cry of defiance. The auburn-haired Assistant-General of then raised his fist and opened his palm to raise a hurricane and buffet the dragons with sharp, stinging gusts of air.
The other two, the Deluge of the South and the Forest of the West, were having their own reservations.
The Deluge, a blue-haired female, as per her nature, disliked war and conflict. However, she found herself helplessly in the midst of a war. While she could definitely hold her own in a fight; she wasn't third-in command of the UMC for no reason, but she hated bloodshed when there were much more amicable methods to solve the conflict between the dragons and humans.
Forest, on the other hand, was having an internal conflict. While he definitely was not to be trifled with in terms of strength, he fell short of his teammates who could have easily been mistaken for gods, if not for the existence of the titanic dragons, beings of immense strength. He only hoped that he would not pull down his teammates in this crucial time of war.
Pulling himself up, he crossed his arms in an open fashion and unleashed a spell of nature.
"Amazonian Overgrowth!"
A shrub popped into existence before the dragons, seemingly innocent and harmless. However, they then extended long tendrils of vines, entangling the unfortunate beasts in them and tightening slowly.
Seizing the opportunity, Deluge brought a gigantic wave crashing on the two dragons, leaving them gasping for air, their lungs having partially collapsed despite their sturdy armors of scales.
Typhoon then stung the dragons' eyes with his wind magic, and Inferno lunged at the first dragon, his body ablaze with fire. He was determined to break the dragon's scales, stab its heart and incinerate it inside out.
However, at the last moment, a hard tail intercepted him, sending him crashing some distance away.
The owner of the tail was black with neon-blue tribal tattoos glowing all over his body.
The four mages paled even further, all their gusto from earlier vanishing in a puff of resignation. It was hard enough trying to take down two dragons, but now they had to face THREE dragons?! And the third dragon was Acnologia, king of dragons no less!
The king gazed upon his opponents with an air of indifference. His eyes betrayed but a little of the anger he was feeling inside at the sight of his underlings being outnumbered and outclassed by these four. He'll teach them to fight four-on-two! He prepared to take a deep breath of his enemies' fear and panic and use it to utterly annihilate them. However, he held himself when he felt a clawed foot on his shoulder.
Acnologia turned around to see a crimson-coloured dragon behind him. Igneel, Lord of the Fire Dragons and his most trusted advisor. The mighty red dragon shook his scaly head at his comrade. Behind him were four others, namely Metalicana, Grandine, Weisslogia and Skiadrum.
"Logia, please stop this. Both sides want to avoid bloodshed. This entire war is pointless. The five of us want peace too. We want an end to this war," said he.
"Igneel, you know as well as I do that we have tried countless times to make peace with these humans. However, time and again, they have defied us and chose to wipe us off the face of Earthland in order to satisfy their endless greed for the land! If an end to the war is what you seek, then that is what you will get! However, this war shall end soon, and only when I have destroyed every last one of this arrogant, greedy species!" was the agitated reply.
"I know. But is this war worth it? Let them have the land. All we need is peace, Acnologia, which we will never get if we choose the path of war. Trust Igneel on this. I cannot think of one instance where you took his counsel and suffered grave consequences. Igneel has always been your trusted advisor and has never failed you. Please heed his words, for our sake if not yours," spoke Grandine in a soothing voice, trying to calm her frustrated leader.
"This is not a matter of trust, Grandine. I know that Igneel's advice is the best way to avoid the war and find peace, however this peace can only be short-lived! What of our next generation? We cannot sacrifice their comfort and happiness just because we wanted peace! What will happen if we let these humans have their way? They will then become discontent with what they have, and come for more! And the next generation of humans will wage war on the next generation of dragons, and the cycle will continue! I am not your king for no reasons, comrades. I have not obtained this position by birthright!" retorted Acnologia.
"Forgive me, Igneel. I know you have never failed me, however, this time, I know. I just know that this war is necessary. It is unavoidable," sighed the great dragon.
"Then you have to forgive me too, friend. The five of us do not wish to participate in this war," spoke Igneel, bowing his head.
This made Acnologia snap his head in their direction, nostrils flaring up in anger.
"TRAITORS! BE GONE! AND YOU WERE MY MOST TRUSTED ADVISOR, IGNEEL! HOW COULD YOU-! GET OUT OF MY SIGHT!" he bellowed, feeling betrayed and almost heartbroken.
However, he knew that he could not let this loss prevent him from continuing the war for the greater good.
His spirits dampened, he cut his two underlings free of their leafy confines and the three of them flew away from the battlefield to convey the grim news to the rest of their kind. Skiadrum watched sadly as three of his kind flew away in disappointment, and his heart fell further when he realized that he was the cause of that disappointment.
Once the threat was gone, the four mages lying on the ground closed their gaping mouths after having witnessed the strange occurrence.
The five outcasts bowed their heads in sadness as the weight of their situation descended upon them. They now belonged nowhere. Before, they had a home in their fellow dragons, and now they were all alone, doomed to stand alone and watch the humans and dragons destroy themselves.
Then, when the war was finally over, they would be the only ones left standing, all alone in a barren wasteland bathed in blood.
They walked away, hearts weighed down with grief.
"Wait!" cried out Inferno, stopping the dragons in their tracks.
"We have a favour to ask of you. Please, just hear us out."
"We need; no, want your help. Please, you don't even have to help us fight the dragons. We just need a little of your magic."
"And why would we do that?" inquired Metalicana, raising a brow.
"Because we need your magic in order to treat the otherwise fatal injuries inflicted by your kind on our people. We, too want to minimize bloodshed and loss of lives, and we need your help for it," pleaded Typhoon, understanding what Inferno was trying to do.
Grandine's softened a little, and she looked towards the other dragons, pleading with her eyes to help save these poor people. As much as they were enemies, humans were living creatures as well, and just as valuable.
Unable to resist his mate, Igneel let out a sigh.
"Very well, but how exactly do you hope to obtain our magic?" asked Weisslogia, slightly skeptical of the idea.
"That, will be done through a project called 'The Dragon Slayer Program'," said Forest, picking up the hint.
"Dragon Slayer? That sounds fishy," said Skiadrum.
"Uuuhhh uhmmmm…that was the old name for our project, as it was initially used to gather soldiers to amass an army. But now we're using it to help save lives," lied Typhoon through his teeth, hoping that the dragons wouldn't see through his lie.
"*sigh* Fine then," Igneel gave in.
"It's a deal then?" Inferno raised a hand to shake with the dragon's paw, sealing the deal.
He was inwardly smirking at his accomplishment. This would be the first step in the humans' attempts to turn the tables on the dragons and begin annihilating them.
'Heh, fools. Dragons' magic is used for one purpose and one purpose alone – to destroy dragons. Like hell it can save lives!'
Fairy Tail Guild Hall, October X784
The guild was bustling with its usual liveliness and cheerfulness. Mages were fooling around, indulging themselves in mugs of beer (sometimes in barrels), others were satisfying themselves in Mirajane's supposedly legendary cooking, and there were some who chose to just laze around and make small talk.
"Hey guys, isn't it about time the team that went to take out Oración Seis came back?" voiced out Max, finally noticing the reason the guild wasn't in one of its brawls yet.
As if on cue, the doors opened with an almighty slam, and in walked the four members of Team Natsu with a petite blue-haired girl none of them had seen before. The girl even had a white cat sitting on her shoulder that resembled Happy, and was dressed in a mini-frilly blouse and skirt!
"Gramps! We're back!" yelled Natsu.
"And we've got a new addition to our guild!"
"U-um-m h-hi. Nice t-to meet you. I h-hope I can join y-your guild, if you d-don't mind…" little Wendy trailed off hesitantly, not knowing how her request would be welcomed.
There was a pregnant pause as the guild processed her stammered request into a more understandable form.
Then they all simultaneously broke into a cheer, calling for a party. They'd probably done this about a hundred times now.
Natsu jumped onto the table and started off with the fireworks, until Erza bonked him on the head, warning him against setting the roof of the guild on fire.
The guild then inquired Wendy regarding her magic, and they were both shocked and proud to hear that she was a dragon slayer.
Amidst all the clamour and celebration, Natsu slunk away to find the Master, who was busy trying to get drunk on the bar top, laughing in delight.
"Master. I need your help," Natsu requested with a grin on his face to mask his worry from the other members.
"Is it about Ryde?" Makarov confirmed, instantly understanding that this was indeed something serious, possibly linked to the topic they had discussed multiple times before. Natsu never walked out halfway through a party or a brawl, and both were happening at the moment.
Natsu nodded, and Makarov decided to ignore the brawl currently going on in favour of putting one of his brat's minds at ease. Besides, Erza would eventually stop the brawl anyways, before any serious damage was done.
"About that, I have something to speak to you as well. Come, we shall speak in my office," he gestured towards the oaken doors of the Master's office.
Master's Office, Fairy Tail Guild Hall, October X784
"So, how many times have you talked to this Ryde so far, Natsu? And I presume you have come to me because something similar happened during your mission?"
"Yes, master. So far, as you know, Ryde took over my body during my fight with Erigor, later with Lullaby and then when I was fighting Jellal. This time, when I was fighting Zero, the master Oracion Seis, it happened again. Except…this time my killing impulse was stronger. And my flames had a darker black tint to them. Something is happening to my flames, Gramps. Also, he showed me a memory of his mother being killed…"
"Explain in detail, please"
X420, Draven residence, Phoenixia, Ishgal
"Yes, he is. But what do you want of him?" Sylvia asked warily.
"Mrs. Draven, you know that your husband is an extremely powerful mage, possibly even strong enough to rival the four elemental lords. And, your son, although he has yet to awaken his magic, has potential to become as strong, of not stronger, than his father."
"Get to the point!" Sylvia snapped in irritation, and the soldiers flinched. She may be a journalist now, but she wasn't the wife of Zeref Draven for nothing, and the soldiers didn't want to be on the receiving end of her wrath.
"V-very well. Your son has had the honour of being chosen as one of the pioneer test subjects of the Dragon Slayer program."
"So…basically you're telling me you want to use my son as a guinea pig, and you expect me to consent? No way!"
The head soldier shifted from foot to foot uneasily. He was treading a thin line here, but he had to do his job nevertheless.
"I'm sorry madam. You do not have a choice. We merely came to deliver the message to you out of courtesy as Lord Inferno ordered us to do so. Young Master Ryde is on the top of the list for the program, and General Inferno is insistent upon him being a part of the program."
"Out of courtesy my foot! You just don't want the Draven family as your enemies, being one of the oldest families! There's no way I'm letting you take Ryde!" Sylvia gritted out, the winds raging around them.
Ryde Dragneel watched in curiosity and slight worry as the conversation between his mother and the mages from the UMC rose in volume and pitch. He then shuddered when he saw his mother prepare to unleash her wrath upon the poor terrifies mages. He was now extremely worried. What could they have said to make his mother so mad?
"I-I'm s-sorry m-madam, but w-we will have t-to t-take him b-b-by force then," said the head mage, preparing his magic with shaky hands as the other mages behind him did so.
Before Sylvia could attack them though, she felt an excruciating pain shoot through her body. Looking down, she saw a long, curved dagger sticking through her chest.
She screamed in agony as the dagger retreated, only to stab her a few more times.
"I wouldn't have had to do this if you agreed silently, my dear. But then again, when have you ever agreed silently to any of my demands? It always irked me that the woman I fancied was living with another man…Well, at least now you won't be living," she heard an irritatingly smooth and freaky voice in her ear.
"Ryde…run…," she croaked out before falling forward, the last signs of life slipping out of her now cold, unseeing hazel eyes.
Ryde quaked in fear and anger, although the former overrode the latter. He slowly backed away from the strange men. He would one day avenge his mother, but first he had to stay alive in order to get stronger and to do so!
"Run, run little boy. Run all you like, we'll still find you in the end," said General Inferno in a sing-song voice.
Master's Office, Fairy Tail Guild Hall, October X784
"It was horrible. They took the poor boy, dragged him away by his hair to some research facility," Natsu said, shaking in anger. He felt helpless. The aura of the man was so imposing and suffocating, even though it was just a memory. To think there were once such monsters in existence…
Makarov looked down in sadness, regretting that one of his brats had to seen something so disturbing at such a young age. Sure, he had seen such things when on bandit extermination missions, but seeing it from close-up and not being able to do anything about it…
'That reminds me…he did say he wanted to talk to Natsu about something," thought the Master.
"Warrod, I do believe you wanted to talk to young Natsu here?"
Warrod Sequen stepped out of his spot beside the bookshelf to stand in the light, regarding Natsu with calculating eyes.
'WHAT?! It's a tree! No, a man! Nevermind, it's a treeman! But I didn't even notice him there…I was too engrossed in telling Gramps what happened…,' thought the shocked pinkette.
"Natsu, meet Warrod Sequen, one of the four people who founded Fairy Tail. He is now one of the Four Kings of Ishgal, the elite of the Ten Wizard Saints."
If Natsu was shocked earlier, it was nothing compared to what he was feeling now. He was positively dumbfounded. If he was one of the four Kings of Ishgal, he was definitely strong. Probably even stronger than Gramps! But Natsu wasn't about to challenge him to a fight; even he wasn't that hard-headed…
As though he read Natsu's mind, Warrod corrected Natsu's unspoken assumption, "I was once strong. Now I'm not as powerful, though I do have comparably more magical energy than ordinary mages. No, I'm just kidding."
"It's a joke! A joke!" he let out a booming laugh good-naturedly.
He then cut to the chase, stating his reasons for being at Fairy Tail
"Now, Natsu Dragneel, I hear from Makarov that you've been having weird visions, or rather, memories of one Ryde Draven."
Natsu opened his mouth, and Warrod raised a hand to stop him, smiling serenely.
"Yes, I do know who Ryde Draven is, but this is not the time for that. All will be revealed to you in due time. My purpose for being here is to make an offer. I want you to be my apprentice. You have much to learn in the field of magic, and I wish to be the one to equip you with the necessary skills to make your mark on the world."
Natsu was left speechless.
"B-but why? Why me?"
"You are the one destined to bring justice to the Four Elemental Lords, child. They have sinned, and for that they need to repent. I too have sinned, and this is my penance. Will you humour this old man by agreeing to be my apprentice?"
Makarov was shocked as well. Nevertheless, he thought that it would do Natsu good to accept the offer. After all, it's not every day that you get one of the Four Kings of Ishgal knocking on your door to teach you magic.
Natsu nodded dumbly, his mouth still gaping wide open.
"Very well, we shall depart then. You will be travelling with me. It is essential to our plans that no one finds out I have taken you in as an apprentice. For that, we will have to be constantly on the move. Makarov, please tell the guild members that Natsu is doing a special three-year long mission while looking for his dragon parent. And wait for an hour after we are gone before you tell them, otherwise knowing Fairy Tail, they are sure to come looking for their missing comrade," said Warrod, leaping out of the window with surprising grace for an old man.
Natsu gaped after his new master before he, too, leapt out of the window. Time to get prepared for a whole load of shit ahead.
"Seeya, gramps!"
Pride: *stretches and hears multiple pops* Finally done… Ugh the last part was rushed. I'm not really satisfied with the ending of this chapter, but my brain has currently decided to hibernate. I'm currently functioning on my spare mini-brain and autopilot mode. And yes, now you see the two sins I've committed (other than Pride, of course). I have made apprenticed Natsu to someone again. Also, one timeskip right up. Would you like fries with that?
Anyways, thank you everyone for your kind reviews, I really appreciate them.
Do drop a review on your way out!
'Til we meet again.
Yours truly,
Pride
