AN: This was a lot longer than I planned to not update. A lot things came up and before I knew it almost it was almost two months later! Sorry about that, anyway here's the next chapter. I can't promise I will update anytime soon but I will try not to be a month and a half late next time. Thanks to anyone who's still with me in this. You guys rock!
Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail. Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima. The only thing I claim ownership of are my original characters, Rizzy and Lolita.
Fairy Tail sailed through rough waters and multiple sea storms, each one damaging the ship more so than the last. Elfman was busy helping Gajeel and Pantherlily on repairs to the ship when the bow spliced through the waters. Wendy raised the flags and climbed to the pulpit to scout.
When her silent hand gesture meaning all was clear came, Erza allowed herself some time to breathe. She steered the wheel in the direction they needed to go. Slowly, Fairy Tail crept up to the deserted island. Erza had her doubts about being here but the two mermaids who had been directing her assured them this was the place. The place where the Mistress of the Seas was apparently rebuilding the mermaid kingdom.
"There's no one here now," Lolira began. "but no doubt they'll be here soon. I hope you have a plan?" She turned to the scarlet haired pirate who remained silent.
"Fairy Tail will demand Lucy be brought back to us!" She answered confidently after a while.
Lolita looked flabbergasted, she rose above Erza's head as she yelled; "That's it! You're just going to waltz in and demand Lucy back? Do you have any idea how powerful the Mistress of the Seas is? She'll destroy you!"
Erza turned to Lolita, a scandalous glint in her eye. "Do not underestimate the power of Fairy Tail! If I force them it will work!"
Lolita nearly pulled out her own hair trying to talk some sense into the red head. "You're crazy if you think that's gonna be enough! You're up against the most powerful celestial being on the seven seas!"
Rizzy sighed and looked away from the bickering two. She wrung her hands together and hung her head. They may have managed to lead Fairy Tail here but Aquarius had not instructed them on what to do after. Rizzy didn't even think they would have gotten this far. Now that they had she was worrying her grey hair away.
"I assume you're working alone," Gray came up to her saying. "So how much resistance should we expect?"
Rizzy didn't meet his gaze as she said. "The Mistress has loyalty over many of our kind. I doubt there is any mermaid or mermen besides us that isn't working with her."
Gray scoffed and turned his gaze to the sun, soon about to fall on the waterline. "Perfect. It'd be boring any other way."
Rizzy looked at the pirate curiously, the small smile that crossed his lips and the determined look in his eye. She couldn't make heads or tail of these fairies. How did they find the strength to be so determined, so confident in their own power? Especially after they had just lost their Master, or so they had informed Lolita and Rizzy. How did they find the courage to stand up to a celestial being as powerful as the Mistress. She would have thought them fools had she not been introduced to Lucy's superior mind. Then again, maybe they were just fools with a purpose.
By all means a ship as large as Fairy Tail should have been seen from miles around and the lumbering shadow it cast under water should have been noticed by every mermaid within an hour. Still Fairy Tail sat in the deck, waiting, planning how to incapacitate the Mistress without hurting Lucy. Many ideas were spoken, and many more cast out as impossible. Finally Erza broke the thoughtful silence by saying, "I don't like how long we've waited. The mermaids must know we are here by now. Whether we succeed to catch the Mistress of not we cannot delay any longer." Erza turned to the side of the ship and demanded the plank be lowered onto the island sands.
Fairy Tail hurried around each other grabbing weapons as fast as they could and those who did joined Erza walking down the plank to the water's edge. The Mistress came the same time the first pirates foot hit the sand.
Fairy Tail had thought they were waiting for her but it was the other way around. The Mistress of the Seas swirled out of the water on a typhoon of blue. She didn't look at all surprised to see Erza's sword levelled at her. Seeing Lucy so unlike herself struck hard in the hearts of the pirates. Her hair had been pinned back, kept high with a intricate coral crown of the deepest pinks. Tendrils of her kelp cloak billowed with the torrent of water around her. She wore a deep purple corseted top with a seaweed skirt and high heeled sandals that bore too many straps up her shins.
"Fairy Tail was it?" Her deep voice rang out, seeming to bounce off the palm trees and echo with the wind. "I did not think you would have been so foolish. Perhaps it is you do not understand the extend of my celestial powers."
"You have no right to parade around in Lucy's body!" Erza shouted.
The Mistress's eyes narrowed but aside from minor facial movements she did not acknowledge Erza at all. Instead her attention turned to the deck. There, Erza realized, Rizzy and Lolita still stood, both mermaids locked in a state of panic, teeth gritted and eyes wide.
"I see…" The Mistress spoke. "It is of my own people who have brought you here...I couldn't be more disappointed." Fake-Lucy raised her hand. The ocean responded, blasting Fairy Tail with a large wave. It rocked the ship and knocked the unprepared overboard, including the two mermaids. Erza had had enough of watching this horrid act, she charged into the water unknowing of what she was trying to accomplish. Her sword swung clear through the raging waters under the Mistress and yet she kept slashing.
The Mistress looked annoyed as she prepared to swat the fly below her. Before another move could be made, her attention had to be drawn to dodge an arrow aimed for her head. "You'll regret making an enemy of Fairy Tail." A dark haired pirate said to her already notching another arrow and raising it to her head. The Mistress looked distressed. She visibly gritted her teeth but if she was planning on counterattacking Erza drew her attention once more.
Although her sword had been swinging at water it seemed to be doing something. Suddenly the pillar of water that the Mistress summoned to stand upon was deteriorating. It seemed Erza's slashes were scattering the water faster than it could reform. Nonetheless the Mistress raised her hand and Erza was enveloped in a ball of water.
She was raised into the air, no one moved as she was leveled with the Mistress. The ball of water slowly eroded until Erza was standing on a spiral of water just like the Mistress. A stunned look crossed her face as she met with Fake-Lucy's blue eyes.
"If you want to challenge me so badly, then fine. I will give you the chance to fight as my equal. My magic will keep you in the air like me. Maybe then this'll actually be a challenge?" An evil smiled licked its way up her lips.
Erza steadied herself, then once she regained her balance, raised her swords, ready to fight. Her steely eyes were only focussed on the Mistress.
"Erza!" Gray called to her from the ship. "Be careful when you're fighting this chick! You don't wanna hurt Lucy!"
Erza shifted, her twin swords pointed forward, "I know that! But we don't have a choice right now. This wretched creature is inside Lucy's body, I must find a way to eject her!"
Fake-Lucy snarled. "You dare insult me!"
The two forces met with a large clash in the sky. Each one's respective torrent of power flying around at their will. Erza was strong but the Mistress had some fierce powers on her side as well. Steel swords met with a watery katana, and the two were almost evenly matched.
"Erza's amazing!" Lecy cooed from beside Gray. "To be able to match the Mistress of the Seas while maintaining balance on a water vortex!"
Gray grimaced. "That's Erza for you."
"Aye!" Happy cawed flying around the railing.
Erza was taking some serious blows from the Mistress's watery blade, blows which she matched back at the Mistress with certainty. Within minutes both sides were panting, bleeding and facing each other each aware of how evenly matched they were.
Erza steadied herself, raised her swords and willed her torrent of water to surge forward at the Mistress. The Mistress was already worn down from the fight, another blow from Erza could mean her defeat. Only the Mistress doesn't play fair and before Erza could reach her she was blasted off balance with a small tidal wave. The water pillar that was holding her up vanished and she plunged into watery depths.
"Bastard!" Gray shouted wasting no time in reacting. In his anger he jumped over the railing and launched himself at the Mistress sending both of them flying onto the island where they landed on a rocky plateau. Gray pinned the Mistress to the rock wall, a dagger in his trembling hand while his arm pinned her neck, restricting her movement.
"Erza!" Jellal raced to the edge, leaping toward where Erza fell and plunged under the sea in search for her when she didn't come back to the surface.
"That was a dirty trick!" Gray continued his rage.
The Mistress of the Seas laughed. Her crown was askew and her locks had fallen almost completely out of it's bun. Gray wanted nothing more than to make her scream but he couldn't bring the knife up to Lucy's throat. Not only was his arm still broken but the thought of hurting Lucy was beyond his imagination.
"I warned you of my power!" She snarled. "Here's a tip for you." She moved under Gray's grip he couldn't react in time as she clenched the broken arm and twisted. "don't leave your weaknesses open!" Gray screamed in pain, his knees doubled bringing him at the feet of the Lucy imposter.
"Gray-sama!" A sort of war cry was uttered from the beach. Juvia came charging up the rocky plateau a long spear in her hands. Her actions seemed to sprout a rebellion in Fairy Tail and the remaining members charged behind her.
Juvia caught up to the Mistress quickly, she barely had time to dodge the flying spear. Gray saw a spray of blood come from fake-Lucy's cheek. "No! Juvia don't!" He moved between the raging female and her target.
Gray was hugging the broken arm to his chest, his good arm grabbing ahold of Juvia's spear before she could do any damage to Lucy. In the frenzy of the oncoming pirates the Mistress began to panic. Her water sprayed around in a 360 degree attack. The pounding of feet overwhelmed Gray and Juvia as he fell into her arms, a sharp pain in his back confirming he'd been hit.
Had the Mistress not been so quick on her feet Fairy Tail might have overpowered her enough to bind her. But that was not the case, she hopped off the edge of the plateau and used the waters to carry her out of humanly reach. Mirajane matched her quick speed and high flying with tremendous leaps. Still Mira was knocked out of the air and beaten back to the island's hot sands.
Gajeel ended up crashing into the islands palm trees. Pantherlily joined him moments later. Elfman and Lisanna had to save themselves from drowning. Wendy found herself crashing back onto the ship nearly landing on Carle in the process. Laxus and his team tried a combination attack coming at all sides, the Mistress blasted them away leaving them scattered around the area unconscious.
Erza coughed up some water while Jellal held her afloat in the sea. Together they swam to shore. She was holding her shoulder and hunched over but that didn't keep her anger from arising at the sight of her comrades falling. Jellal watched her eyes grow wide, her hands clenched and her expression turned dark.
Somehow she procured a discarded lance and ran back into the waters under the Mistress. Jellal had to hold her back. "Erza! Calm down!" He tried to get her attention.
"No! How dare you steal Lucy away from us! She deserves to live her own life you have no right to take that away from her!"
All he needed was one look at the shambles Fairy Tail had gotten themselves in and Jellal called back the pirates. "Erza we have to leave! She'll kill us all!"
"I can fight! You get the others out of here!" She tried again to remove herself from his grip but he didn't let up.
"That means you too!" He shouted, moving in front of her and forcing her attention. "We can't lose any more of our family!" His voice cracked slightly as he sunk his head lower than her chest. The words alone seemed to tremble. Erza found his anguish wrought eyes, he rarely ever looked so desperate. No matter how much her anger had built over losing Natsu and Lucy she couldn't betray Jellal. She knew he was only trying to look out for her.
Erza lowered her head so her hair hid her face. What few members of Fairy Tail hadn't been defeated were now doing all they could to stand up to the Mistress. "Re-retreat!" The command rang out.
"Back to the ship!" She picked up an unconscious Mira and ran to the ship still shouting the order to retreat. Fairy Tail eventually found their way on board, almost all of them bleeding, bearing wounds that would turn into scars.
"Fleeing again puny fairies!" The Mistress hadn't forgotten about them and her deep voice rang out chilling their blood. "Do not think I will let you go so easily!" Her blue eyes intensified, once again came the blue aura that had surrounded her before. it built up brightness until she concentrated it to her hands.
Before Fairy Tail could sail away there came a powerful whirlpool pulling them closer. There was nothing any of the members could do to control the ship and they were left at the mercy of the gods, or goddess in this sense.
The seas in the center of the whirlpool opened up, Fairy Tail fell downwards, out of control. The Mistress of the Seas was busy preparing a powerful blast of her magic that would certainly destroy the ship.
Erza would have sworn they were done for had a wall of water not protected them at the last minute as the blast was fired. The waters calmed down, a large hole was left in the wall of water that protected them. Erza craned herself over the railing to get a better look.
Between them and the Mistress a single mermaid floated in the air, an ewer held between her hands like a weapon.
"Aquarius…" She snarled at the blue mermaid. "I should have known Rizzy and Lolita weren't working alone." Aquarius said nothing, but stared daggers at the entity in Lucy's body.
As the Mistress prepared another magic blast attack Aquarius reacted. She swung her ewer in the air, all in an instant water sprayed out of the small jug and formed into a wave which carried Fairy Tail far away from the island, and far away from Lucy.