"Everything is hard before it is easy"
Tenrou Island was—as I had suspected—far hotter than the small town of Magnolia. Many mages on the ship had stripped down, being as close to absolutely bare as they could be without actually being naked. I myself was sweltering what with my leggings and cloak to deal with, but I had no desire of showing off my former guildmark to any others on the ship. Besides, I had no intention of stripping down only to have to re-dress myself once I arrived on the island. I sure as hell wouldn't be running around fighting in only my underwear.
On the ship itself, I mainly ignored everyone else—my attention was focused on the approaching island that I saw in the distance. (Or was it that I was trying to ignore Gray's stark naked body draped like an ungodly, peeled banana across a lounge chair? Either way.) I allowed the simple swaying of the ship to rock me back in forth, lulling me into a false sense of security. I was too wise to think that this peace would last for very long, though. Everyone could feel something in the air—an almost foreboding aura that surrounded the island. It excited me almost as much as it terrified me.
Makarov's voice suddenly interrupted me from my thoughts. "It's said that long ago, there were fairies on this island. Indeed, Fairy Tail's very first master Mavis Vermilion lies here in her tomb." I turned to stare at Makarov as he stood precariously on the balcony of the ship. I was sent reeling, however, when I noticed the ridiculously patterned attire he wore.
"What's with those clothes?" Gray voiced my very own thoughts.
Lucy let out a bark of laugher. "You're naked. Gray! You can't talk!" I had to cast the woman an appreciative glance in honor of her biting comment.
"It's hot." Makarov stated with a shrug. A short pause followed before he began to speak again, this time more serious than before. "Now, I will announce your first trial." My eyes instinctively flashed to Gajeel. "You see the smoke rising over the shore? First head over there." I turned my head in the direction the master had motioned to, noticing, just as he had said, the smoke rising from the Island in furling gray clouds. "You'll find 8 passages, but only one team can enter each passage. At the end of each passage this you will encounter one of three different outcomes. A battle, a calm turn, or a pitched battle. In the battle route, two teams will go head to head, and only the team that wins can go on. 'Pitched Battle' is the most difficult route, as you must defeat a current S class wizard to proceed. Only the teams that get through these will pass the first trial. The calm turn is rather self-explanatory—it is a route that can be used to get to the end without fighting. In this first trial you're being tested on your ability to fight."
The passengers around me burst into chatter as soon as the master announced this, looks of anxiety and worry crossing their faces. And I didn't blame them—in all honesty I would have certainly done the same, had I not known better. But I did know better, and I knew that now was not the time for chatter. If this was anything like the trials Hades had made me complete as a young girl—you had to be the first one off the boat. It was a race for survival—mindless chatter would only hinder you from beating the others.
I reached forward, digging my fingers into Gajeel's arm. He turned his head and gave me his signature look of annoyance, but I shook my head.
"Come on." I hissed, and his eyes cleared slightly, as if in understanding. After all, he was not a born and raised Fairy, not like most of the other competitors here. He should know just as well as I did of the underhanded means by which people would employ to win a competition such as this. Many times it was cheat or be cheated. But in this case, my only option now was to try to beat everyone else to the punch.
No one seemed to notice as we slipped away to the side of the boat, pushing ourselves up against the railing, and the teams continued their chatter. Then Makarov cleared his throat.
"Good luck mages! Now get going, the test starts now!"
As soon as the words hit my ears I acted without thinking. On reflex I leapt forward, launching myself as far as I could from the boat and into the sparkling turquoise water below. I dove, the cool waters welcoming me with loving arms, and quickly resurfaced. A rather enraged Gajeel was bobbing in the water beside me.
"What the hell was that?" He shouted, and I laughed, giving him a grin.
"The only chance we have at winning is by being the first to arrive at each of the trials. Besides, Levy warned me about Freed writing his runes everywhere. It's best to get off the boat before you're stuck on it for the rest of the competition."
Gajeel released a low grumble. "Well now we're soaked."
"I can fix that once we're on the island," I snapped, propelling myself forward with a few determined strokes.
"You're wasting your energy."
"First come first served, as I always like to say. We get to the paths first, we get the first pick. We get there last, and we get stuck with the leftovers."
Gajeel shut right up, and we made our way to the island. After landing ashore, using a quick drying charm, and taking a deep breath, we surveyed the options that lay before us.
"Which path?" Gajeel inquired, and I frowned as I scanned over the seven passages that still remained. Someone—the question was still who though—had claimed one of the routes already. I prayed that it contained Gildarts at the end, but with my luck, that would be the path we'd end up taking.
"How about F?" I prompted, and he shrugged in indifference.
"Whatever."
I huffed and marched off in the direction of the path with Gajeel hot on my tail.
Luckily for us, we didn't pick the path that had Gildarts waiting at the end.
It was boring, uneventful, and utterly irritating with Gajeel as my companion; the calm path was nothing like I had expected it to be. In a sense, I supposed I should haven been thankful, I should have been praising the heavens that somehow my lucky stars had aligned enough for me to choose the peaceful path. But part of me had almost wanted to fight—to prove my worth—maybe not against Gildarts or Erza, but surely against another team. There was no doubt that Gajeel and I would win. I wanted to become S class by proving my strength, not by stumbling along some shortcut that 'luck' had in store for me. And Gajeel was no help in the matter. The only thing he did was gripe about not being able knock some heads.
We'd been the first to arrive at the check point, and we'd waited practically thirty minutes until the rest of the surviving competitors finished trickling in. The master didn't seem in any hurry to continue the trials either, taking his sweet time to announce the next round.
I finally looked up from where I sat draped lazily on a rock when he spoke. The master stood a few feet away, his small stature somehow commanding the utmost authority from all of us that were gathered.
"I will now announce the results to-date." Makarov began, his deep voice rumbling along with every syllable. "Cana and Lucy defeated Freed and Bickslow in battle and passed through; Natsu and Happy managed to get past Gildarts somehow and passed through; Alexandria and Gajeel passed through the peaceful route with good luck!"
"You're sayin' I got good luck?" The iron man interjected, the outrage clear in his tone. My eye twitched, and I found I couldn't control my hand. Or rather, I didn't really want too. A loud WHACK sounded as I slapped him across the face, my anger reverberating like a gong across the clearing. No one spoke as Gajeel turned to stare at me, rage bubbling across all of his features. Nonchalance claimed mine, and yet, the master went on, as if nothing had happened.
"Gray and Loke defeated Wendy and Mest in battle and passed through!"
"Did Juvia fail?" Gray inquired, and the spiky haired dragon slayer beside continued to steam.
"Juvia and Lisanna hit upon… you know who," Makarov paused dramatically, waving his hands for emphasis, "The female knight who knows not the meaning of holding back!" I rolled my eyes—he could've just said Erza.
"What about Elfman and Evergreen?"
"Well considering what's left then that means they must have gotten…" Cana trailed off, turning to her partner.
"Mirajane," Lucy finished.
"We could have taken her." Gajeel announced, slamming a fist into the palm of his hand. I heard a scoff from Gray at my companion's claim, but before the ice mage could say anything, his was interrupted by the sound of panting as two competitors raced towards us.
"Hold it! We beat Mira! We've passed through the first test!" Elfman exclaimed, and I grinned.
"Incredible! How did you beat Mirajane?"
"Let's just say we found an opening to slip through…"
Makarov seemed to have no intention to listen to their tale, and interrupted Elfman, "Now then, I will announce the details for the second trial of the S class wizard advancement exam! The second test is searching for the grave of Mavis, our original guildmaster. You have only six hours! Hear that? I said six hours! I'll be waiting at Mavis' grave."
And with that he marched off in the direction that could only have led to the grave he just spoke of. Natsu ran off to the west, into the thicket of the island, and Lucy and Cana trotted away in the direction we had come from. Elfman ran away with a battle cry to the east, and Evergreen had no choice but to chase after him. I trotted off in the direction Makarov himself had taken, with Gajeel having no choice but to follow after me.
We walked in silence far roughly fifteen minutes before he started whining.
I thought I was going to explode.
"What's wrong with this exam? Chose a path? Find a grave? I came here 'cause I wanted to beat up Salamander or Erza! But this is all so boring!"
All my partner did was run his mouth. One of the island's native creatures would approach us, creatures we were savagely supposed to attack, and before you blinked he was on it, attacking the thing like a maniac. And then he would go and whine about not having enough time to spar. He was worse than a child and more violent than a demon. I thought I was going to lose my mind.
"Will you shut up for once? I'm trying to concentrate." I snapped, marching away from Gajeel, and for some reason he thought it'd be a good idea to jog after me.
"Stop being such a bitch, Xandria." He grunted, only adding more fuel to the fire.
I turned on him. "I'd slap you again, Gajeel, but I'm afraid that'd count as animal abuse." He scowled at me, and I went on. "I'm not angry that you called me a bitch. I'm just sad that you're so stupid and lack the creativity to call my anything else, you knuckle-dragging, inbred walnut. The only thing saving you from my wrath is the fact that you're my partner, and that I need to figure out where the hell Mavis' grave is. So if I were you, I'd shut your mouth and go pick on someone else."
"Let me repeat myself," Gajeel said, clearing his throat. "Bitch."
"Why you fu-"
However he never had the chance to hear what I was about to say to him. Our conversation was cut short by sudden movement at our far right. But before I could even turn my head, I was thrown to the ground by an enormous force. The breath was knocked from me, and I couldn't even scramble to my feet before someone else was on top of me, pulling my hands behind my back.
I released an earsplitting war cry and blasted a beam of dark purple light at my captor, knocking him backward by several yards. He crumpled in a whimpering heap to the ground. My spell had hit him full force in the face—and I rarely ever allowed that to happen to anyone considering the risk.
I staggered to my feet, and took in my surroundings.
That was when it hit me; the shape of the attacker—the mark on its neck. I inhaled sharply and stumbled backwards, away from the fallen creature on the ground.
Turning around I noticed Gajeel standing with an iron fist nestled deeply into the belly of the other attacker, the familiar face of the goat-like servant I had known as a child. But instead of the enemy attacking like he should have, the creature only gaped at me.
"Lex?"
My face contorted as I stared at the creature and tried to smother a scream. My heart raced, and my mind spun. They shouldn't have been here. This—this shouldn't be happening. It couldn't be real.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Yomazu blurted, and I steadied myself.
Not knowing what to say, I simply offered the truth. "My guild is having its S class tournament on this island."
"What are you going on about?! You're a member of Grimoire Heart not of-"
"I am not a member of fucking Grimiore Heart—in case you hadn't noticed, asshat, I left."
Our opponent raised his bushy brows, and apparently reached the resolve he needed, for seconds later, he released a powerful spell from the tip of his katana, no qualms with fighting me. No remorse—no feeling—no emotion—there was no such thing as compassion or loyalty in a dark guild.
The incantation tore at our ears, blasting them with horrifying waves of sound. It was torture, and it gave the second attacker the perfect opportunity to strike while we were preoccupied with trying to block out the sound. I watched in horror as the chicken man lashed out at my partner, striking him with several slashes and throwing him to the ground.
I attacked with a fury, using a whip of my dark magic to fling Gajeel away from our two attackers and into the surrounding tree line. Yomazu turned to me, a grin plastered across his face. Brandishing his sword, he chanted a spell, and I cried out in pain.
"Stop this madness!" I shouted, my voice somehow inaudible over the earsplitting noise. And he struck, leaping forward with his blade and some powerful incantation or another. I hissed as I felt a sharp pain shoot through my side, and blood began to seep through my top. Hunching over slightly, I cradled my abdomen, taking in a labored breath.
"What? Have you lost your touch?"
Yomazu's voice was the only thing able to get through to me, and it bounced around the walls of my head, mocking me for the fool I was. I scowled and stood up straight, shaking my head and trying to momentarily ignore the pervasive sound.
"Columna Astrora!" I screamed, and as soon as the words fell from my tongue, I blasted a powerful beam of blackened light in the direction of both attackers.
With a loud shout, the creatures fell to the ground, and the noise that was causing our ears to bleed ceased. I grunted, and righted myself, causing a sharp pain to tear through my side. Casting a wayward glance in the direction that I had thrown Gajeel, I noticed that the metal man was now standing and making his way towards me. A shocked look was plastered across his face as he took in our two attackers that lay splayed on the ground—a loving gesture from yours truly.
I gritted my teeth, trying to keep my resolve as I fought through the intense pain in my side.
"Gajeel. I need you to go back to the base camp and notify everyone of this immediately. I need you to tell them that Grimiore Heart is on the island." I commanded my hand pressed against the cut on my side. "This is of the utmost importance. I-I need you to find whoever you can, tell them what's going on and to spread the word. The S class exams have to be halted immediately. You must evacuate the island."
He looked as if he might protest, but upon seeing the desperation across my features, he consented. "Fine." Gajeel paused, giving me a surprising nod of acknowledgement before he left. "And Xandria?"
"Yeah?"
"Stay out of shit."
"You too," I muttered and turned around quickly to face what remained of Yomazu—who was currently groaning in pain on the island ground. I scowled at him, marching quickly forward and grabbing him by the shoulders, digging my thumbs into his pressure points and ignoring the pain in my side. "Why are you here?! Is that bastard Hades still looking for Zeref? Answer me!"
He stared back up at me in horror, something I never would have expected—not even from a weakling like him.
"Since when did you refer to the master like that?"
"I've grown up." I growled, giving the man another glare before jamming my thumbs further under his shoulder blades. The man hissed in pain. "Tell me why you're here," I roared. "Did you locate the sleeping place of the black wizard, or did you just show up to torment a light guild? You obviously didn't know that I was here, so you weren't coming after me."
"Yeah, we found him, and he's somewhere here on this island," Yomazu blurted. "And when we awaken him, darkness will finally-"
"Shut up," I barked, "I sat through every single one of Hades' personal lectures. I know perfectly well what's going to happen. And I'm going to stop it."
"Well you won't have a chance. It's already too late; Master Hades' personal guard is already on its way! One of the Seven Kin of Purgatory is even already on the island!" Yomazu cackled, and I felt the color drain from my face.
"Already on the island…" I echoed. No…
"Azuma! Lord of the trees!" He gurgled, and suddenly, with a slight lurch, he slumped in my hands, losing his grip on reality and passing out from exertion like the weakling he was. I hissed in irritation, throwing his body down as I stalked away from the goat and toward the opposite edge of the clearing, raking an anxious hand through my tresses of hair.
Azuma, of all people Azuma. I had no options. I had to find him—if anyone came across the mage before I did... I paused, shuddering at the thought.
Fate however, did not seem to be on my side today. I had searched for a good hour, probably longer, and the only thing I was able to come across was a plethora of incoherent Grimiore Heart grunts, which I had to waste my time fighting off, all the while being bombarded with questions such as "Don't we know you from somewhere?"
I was quite pleased when I noticed the bright red flare that signified the emergency ending of the S class trial—Gajeel had done his job.
Eventually however, after struggling along for quite a bit of time, I stumbled across none other than the very rushed—and particularly nervous Erza. She informed me that she and Juvia had already commenced fighting one of the seven kin that were now terrorizing the island, and that she had abandoned her partner to come and search for Wendy, whom she feared had been wounded greatly at the expense of the dark guild that had been attacking us. I agreed to help her search, realizing that the two of us together would be able to cover more ground than one alone (and subsequently have a greater chance of finding Azuma). I had not, however, informed her of my involvement with Grimiore heart, assuming that it would be best to save that for a later time.