Natsu and the others made a slow and steady landing on solid ground after flying through the obscuring fog, none of them prepared for the sudden change in their surroundings. Natsu asked, "You sure this is the right place?"
Happy answered, "Ever since staying up on Olympus, I've known the location of every place in Earth-land. I can see everything from the clouds, even through the fog."
Wendy wondered, "Are we in Sirius Island?"
Natsu added, "Because if it is, it sure reminds me of my Christmas vacation in Akane Resort, only not so foggy. Granny and Gramps used to take me there."
"But the fog makes it hard for us to see," Romeo pointed out. "I'm not sure if we're in Sirius Island or somewhere else."
Happy confirmed, "I'm positive this is the place. Have I ever been wrong?"
"How about I light the way with my fire?" Natsu offered. "Just to be sure?"
"Or maybe I can eat the fog," Wendy suggested.
"Eat the fog?" Romeo asked.
Carla stated, "Wendy is a Sky Dragon Slayer. She can eat and absorb any type of air, especially the fog. Perhaps this will be her first lesson to learn how to control her magic."
"Alright, then," Natsu grinned. "Wendy, do your stuff."
"I'll try," Wendy nodded, before she corrected herself. "No, I'll do it." Standing still and focusing her energy, she inhaled, and the fog vacuumed towards her. Natsu, Happy, Romeo, and Carla watched speechlessly as the rest of the fog reached its intended target: her mouth. At first, only small bits of smoke disappeared, but due to Wendy's inhalation, the rest of the fog vanished. As soon as she had her fill, Wendy wiped her mouth. "Mmm, delicious. I feel great."
Natsu admired, "Feels like you got a fire in your belly."
"Fire in her belly?" Happy asked. "More like air."
"Either way, that's a good start," Natsu winked at Wendy. "Nice work, Wendy."
Wendy giggled with a blush, "Wow. I never knew what I was capable of."
Carla smiled, "I always believed in you, Wendy."
"Now do we get to see the rest of the island?" Natsu asked.
"Definitely," Happy nodded.
Emerging from the remnants of the fog, the mystical Island of Sirius revealed itself to the eyes of the five companions.
The island was bordered on the west of Fiore by the vast Aquarius Sea, with no other isles visible in the surrounding area. It was a mildly small and steep island covered by lush vegetation, both bright yellow and green in color. One side of the island was particularly rocky, possessing large formations jutting outwards from the ground, one near the shore, protruding above the sea, and the other near the center of the island overlooking it; the latter had a pair of waterfalls falling down from it in a small lake below.
At the center of the island stood its most distinctive element: the Great Sirius Tree, a gigantic tree with a gnarled, mildly curved trunk, ending in a number of large branches. It possessed a multitude of similarly large, curved and twisted roots, which right below the trunk sustained massive lumps of earth; something which created some sort of covered area right below the tree itself.
"Neat green and yellow grass, sturdy rocks, and a humungous tree…" Natsu remarked, rubbing his chin. "Now that's what I call enchanting! Dad couldn't be more wrong. Is this a cool place or what?"
Happy explained, "Sirius Island used to be a training ground for legendary heroes. A long time ago, the island was filled with a lot of people, and they trained under the same teacher."
Natsu guessed, "The Eighth Islander, right?"
"Aye," Happy nodded. "The Eighth Islander is a wise teacher. He trained warriors, even demigods, to be heroes, and they all had their names engraved in legend. But one day, there was a terrible accident involving the Islander's last student. Consumed by grief, he isolated himself in his own island, and no one visited there since."
Wendy assumed, "Maybe he's sad because something happened to his last student."
Happy shrugged, "I think so."
"Don't be so presumptuous, children," Carla stated. "The sooner we find the Eighth Islander, the sooner we can begin your training."
Natsu glanced around to spot the remains of a warrior statue covered in grass. He commented, "Whoa, you thought that anyone who's a trainer of heroes would've kept the place cleaned up."
"You said it," Romeo agreed.
The five companions marched further down the small grass path in search of the Eighth Islander. The sun was just skimming the horizon when they came to a small wide river paved with small trees at the end of the path. From behind a cluster of bushes, they saw three female creatures laughing in the trees and splashing each other with water. Their names were Flare Corona, Kinana, and Mattan Ginger, and they were known as Changelings, creatures with the ability to shape-shift.
Happy examined, "Check out the pretty ladies taking a bath."
"I know them. They're called Changelings," Wendy pointed out. "They can transform into anything, from rocks to trees to bushes."
"There's no telling what they'll do if they spot us. We must keep our guard up," Carla noted.
"You mean, stay hidden and out of sight?" Natsu asked, to which Carla nodded. "Got it. Hidden Dragon's my middle name."
"Don't get too reckless!" Carla said sharply.
Just then, Natsu spotted from a nearby bush what appeared to be the backside of a person wearing dark purple pants and simple shoes. Assuming that the figure was stuck in the bush, he asked, "What's the matter, little guy? You stuck?"
"WHOA!" the person yelped when he was pulled out. He was revealed to be a short old man with thick light-brown eyebrows and a small toothbrush-sized moustache, and he wore a brown long-sleeved shirt with black vertical stripes and a black three-headed spiked hat.
"Hey!" Natsu exclaimed. "You're not a kid! You're an old geezer!"
"Huh?" The old man noticed the one holding him up. He snapped, "What do you think you're doing, little brat? Butt out!" He waved his arms against Natsu, the latter dropping him.
The old man's voice was loud enough to alert the Changelings that they were compelled to flee. Taking notice of their retreat, the old man cried desperately, "Girls! Stop! Stop! Come back, come back!" The moment he got a hold of Mattan's arm, she magically exploded into flowers, much to his dismay. "Oh, dear. Wait! Wait, wait, wait!"
Flare transformed into a tree, hoping to hide herself from the old man. However, he easily spotted her tree form and gave a dashing smirk. He chuckled slyly, "Changelings. They can't keep their hands off me."
"Pervert!" Flare snapped, and she smacked him with one of her branches, flinging him away.
"Ugh, that hurts," the old man groaned, picking himself up. He sighed, "I should've worked harder on my irresistible, heart-stealing techniques. I was afraid I'd never be able to flirt with the nice ladies again." He then spotted Natsu and his friends, and his expression turned to a scowl, "What's the matter, young whippersnappers? You've never seen an old geezer living in an enchanted island before?"
"Well, as enchanting as this place is, he is certainly too old for his own good," Carla crossed her paws.
"I heard that!" the old man shouted at the white Exceed.
"Oh, forgive me," Carla apologized. "I was caught off guard, but rest assured, no offense was meant. My name is Carla."
"It's nice to meet you, Carla," the old man said sarcastically, before he turned and walked away. "Now go home."
"What?" Carla said, offended. "That's just rude!"
"Let me handle this," Natsu suggested to Carla. He went over to the old man, who stood by a small rock. "Excuse me, mister? Are you one of the locals, or…"
Picking up a nearby apple, the old man answered, "Kid, I'm the only resident in this island. In fact, this whole island is my home."
"Oh, okay," Natsu confirmed. "So I was wondering if we could ask you for help. We're looking for a trainer of heroes. He's called the Eighth Islander."
"The Eighth Islander was my nickname," the old man answered, taking a bite of the apple and chewing it. "My name's Yajima. Call me Yaj."
"YAJIMA!" Natsu, Wendy, Romeo, and Happy screamed excitedly. Now that they've found the Eighth Islander, their hopes of becoming true heroes were as high as ever! The four swarmed around the old man, and Natsu started off by giving him a painful, bone-crushing hug.
"Boy, are we glad to meet you, Yaj! I'm Natsu Dragneel!" Natsu greeted cheerfully.
When the salmon-haired kid released the hug, Yajima cringed, his body strained and nearly crushed. He wheezed, "That hurts…"
Wendy grabbed Yajima's hand and shook it, "My name is Wendy Marvell. It's nice to meet you, Mr. Yajima." She gestured to Carla, "You knew Carla. She's my friend."
"Carla?" Yajima raised an eyebrow. "The cat is your friend?"
"Of course I am," Carla said. "I'm also her guardian. She's far too young to be travelling unaccompanied."
Yajima smirked, "Oh, I see. That makes you the housemaid. An entourage. A cat-servant."
Carla frowned, "I'm no simple servant, you wrinkling ruffian."
Yajima countered, "And I'm no wrinkling ruffian, you white fuzzy rat."
"Fuzzy rat?" Carla snapped at this offense. "I'm a fuzzy rat?!"
"Oh, I'm so scared," Yajima whimpered sarcastically. "What are you going to do? Attack me with your feather duster, or that thing you call a whisker?" He chuckled amusingly.
Carla turned her head away in disgust, "Hmph. Why won't this unrefined elder show any manners?"
"If you're done talking, let me say my name," Romeo interjected. "The name's Romeo Conbolt. I'm a friend of Natsu's."
"Oh, great," Yajima rolled his eyes. "More weirdoes."
"And I'm Happy, the coolest cat on Earth!" Happy cheered, striking a pose with his paw. "I'm smart, cute, and tough as fur!" The moment he flew up with his wings, his fur accidentally inched closer to Yajima's nose, causing him to give a loud sneeze that sent boogers flying towards a tree.
"Eww!" Natsu, Wendy, and Romeo cringed. "Gross!"
"Cats," Yajima wiped his nose. "They give me the runny nose."
"Oops," Happy chuckled nervously. "Sorry. I'm just too excited."
"It's very nice to meet you kids," Yajima greeted sarcastically. "Now go away. I've got some things to do." He walked off.
"Hey, wait!" Natsu shouted.
"Pathetic," Carla said bitterly.
Natsu and his friends followed Yajima to his house, which turned out to be a giant statue head fitted with a door, and the eyes served as windows. Wendy began, "Mr. Yajima, we came all this way to Sirius Island to come and see you."
Yajima scoffed, "What of it?"
Romeo answered, "We're here to ask for your help."
"I want to become a hero. A true hero," Natsu explained. "My dad told me you were a famous trainer of heroes. It would be great if you would train me. I want you to train me so that I can control my Fire Dragon Slayer Magic. And then, I'll use my powers for something good, maybe even better."
Happy asked, "Better than wrecking stuff, I suppose?"
Natsu replied with a shrug, "Pretty much, yeah."
"You want me to train you?" Yajima looked back at Natsu, raising an eyebrow. "And what do you mean, Fire Dragon Slayer Magic? Isn't that one of the Lost Magics?"
"That's right!" Natsu nodded proudly. "I'm a Fire Dragon Slayer. My magic gives me the power to eat and breathe fire. A few years ago, I tried to control it, but it ended up hurting a lot of people. It's awkward." He scratched his head, but his smile never wavered. "That's why I came here! I want you to teach me how to control my powers. And then, I'm gonna be a true hero!"
"Don't forget me," Wendy interjected. "I'm a Sky Dragon Slayer. I know I'm much smaller and younger than Natsu or Romeo, but I can control the wind and using healing magic. So please…" She went down on her knees and begged, "Train me, Mr. Yajima! Train me! I'd be so embarrassed if you sent me home!"
Carla reminded Wendy, "You'll never gain Yajima's respect if you can't show confidence, child." She then muttered to herself, "I doubt it'll work."
"Train me as well," Romeo requested. "I want to learn how to use magic, so I can fight with Natsu and Wendy."
Yajima wondered, "You mean, you're the only one without magic?"
"Yep," Romeo nodded. "I wanna use my own kind of magic. I wanna grow stronger. Be a big help to my friends."
"Mr. Yajima, those three children are full of potential, and they show tremendous promise," Carla stated, gesturing to Natsu, Wendy, and Romeo. "You've got a new breed of students standing right in front of you."
"Aye! Natsu and Wendy are real Dragon Slayers destined to be heroes," Happy grinned. "And Romeo's a hero, too!"
Yajima frowned, "Sorry, kids. Not interested. As legendary as you claim your magic is, I can't train you." With that, he grasped the doorknob and opened it. "Good day." He closed the door, shutting himself in.
"WHAT?!" Natsu, Wendy, Romeo, Happy, and Carla exclaimed shockingly.
"Wait!" Natsu cried. When he grabbed the doorknob, he ended up pulling the door right off the statue head, lifting up a surprised Yajima holding the doorknob on the back of the door. "Sorry. Why not?"
Yajima jumped down and took the door back from Natsu. "Two words:" he answered. "I am retired." He shoved it to the statue head, putting it back in place. A puzzled Natsu counted Yajima's words with his fingers.
"Um, don't you mean three words?" Wendy questioned.
"It's too bad he's old to understand math," Romeo sighed.
"C'mon, Yaj, here me out," Natsu tried to reason with Yajima who, after he fixed the door, was about to go back inside. "I gotta do this. It's my dream. Haven't you ever had one? Something you wanted so bad you'd do anything?"
And all at once, Natsu's words came flooding into Yajima's brain: the joy, the sadness, the pain, the anger, memories of honor and triumph, ruin and defeat, and days gone by…
Finally, the old man answered with a heavy sigh, "Kids, come inside. I want to show you something." Complying, Natsu and his friends entered the house with Yajima.
Upon entering, Natsu, Wendy, Romeo, Happy, and Carla were amazed; they noticed that Yajima's house was packed with weapons, artifacts, vases, statues, and props set up and shelved like museum attractions. Along the way, Romeo bumped his head against what appeared to be the remains of a wooden mast. "Ouch!" he groaned.
"You okay?" Natsu asked.
"Should I use my healing magic?" Wendy flexed her small hands.
"No thank you," Romeo shook his head and smiled. "It's just a small bump."
"Watch your heads, kids," Yajima instructed. "That was part of the mast of the Red Lizard Guild's ship, the Tenrou Jade."
"The Tenrou Jade?" Natsu gasped. "That's the name of Red Lizard's super-amazing ship that took out a whole battle fleet with its awesome firepower! I heard stories about it!"
"Oh, so you recognized it? I'm impressed, really," Yajima replied. "But who do you think taught Master Zeeself to sail? Hiro Mashima?" He guided Natsu and his friends to the center of the house, "30 years ago, I was hailed as the most revolutionary hero trainer in my time. I trained all these would-be heroes. I lost count, but I remembered the most important names." He gestured to a collection of objects that represented heroes he trained in the past, "Warrod Sequen, Precht Gaebolg, Robert "Grandpa Rob" Heavens. And one by one, they let me down flatter than a disc." He spun a plate with a picture of Precht fighting a dragon, which as it spun, showed the dragon beating him up. "None of them could go the distance."
"That's terrible…" Wendy sympathized.
Carla stated, "No matter how much your students trained, they failed to live up to your standards."
"I guess that's why all these heroes died and became a part of the history books," Natsu understood.
"They were a disgrace," Yajima mused. "To think they called themselves heroes…" But then, a thin smile broke over the old man's face, "But then came my big hope." He motioned to a large statue, "My greatest student. My star pupil. My legacy." It depicted a tall, muscular man with shoulder-length orange hair and a stubby beard. He wore a black tattered cloak with shoulder plates, armor-like prosthetic limbs, a simple belt, long-fitting dark pants, armored waist-guard bearing plates, and armored boots. "Gildarts Clive."
"Gildarts Clive?" Natsu wondered.
"He was the guild master of Fairy Tail, the most powerful guild in all of Fiore," Yajima explained. "Born a demigod, he was the son of Capricorn, the God of Virtue, and a human mother. He possessed powerful abilities beyond any demigod ever born. He was looked up to as a role model, a shining symbol of hope, and the morale of Fairy Tail itself." His smile grew wider, "Now there was a guy who had it all— the build, the power, the speed, the agility, the charisma, and the smarts. He could jab! He could take a hit! He could keep on coming!"
Yajima paused, and his happy expression was suddenly replaced with frustration. "But that BLASTED LEFT ARM AND LEG of his! He barely gets nicked there once, and he was out the door faster than Haru Glory folding on laundry day! KABOOM!" With a flick of his finger, the statue cracked and collapsed into a pile of rubble, signaling Gildarts' end. "He's history."
"What happened then?" Natsu asked. "Did Fairy Tail find out?"
"Yes," Yajima nodded sadly. "The day Gildarts died was the day my world was torn from me. The guild did not take the news of their beloved master's death lightly. Without their master, their morale was gone. They lost most of the guild's members, their faith, their reputation, their hearts… and their pride. And you know what they did? They vented their anger and frustration on me. They blamed me for leading Gildarts to his death. And so, Fairy Tail severed ties with me, and they vowed never to speak to me again."
"Oh, no…" Wendy whispered in disbelief.
"Eventually, my training school ran out of his business for the lack of students," Yajima's expression turned grim. "I was alone, bankrupt, disgraced, fallen from glory. I lived a life of solitude as a reminder of the failures I've had." He then glanced to Natsu and the others, "But when you came here and asked me to train you, I never expected the day the old world I used to belong to... would find me here."
"That's why we're here," Natsu said. "We're asking you to train us. It's our dream to be heroes."
"I used to have a dream, too," Yajima stated. "A dream that I would train the greatest hero there ever was." He hung a picture up on the mast, depicting a hero drawn in the form of a constellation. "So great that the gods would hang a picture of him in the stars, all across the sky, and people would say…" He whispered with a smile, "'That's Yaj's boy.' That's right." He then frowned, pulling the picture down. "But dreams are for rookies." He went over to a table and sat down, dejected, "A guy can only take so much disappointment."
"But I'm different than those other guys, Yaj! I CAN go the distance," Natsu insisted. "C'mon, I'll show ya." He grabbed Yajima's hand and dragged him to the exit, the old man's head hitting the Tenrou Jade's mast on the way out, with Wendy, Romeo, Happy, and Carla following them. One way or another, Natsu was going to prove to the skeptic retired hero trainer that he could be so much more.
