Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or Fate Stay Night, any resemblance to any other Fairy Tail or Fate Stay Night fan fiction is coincidental and plagiarism is not intended. No flames please, constructive criticism only.
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"Back off," Gray said to Natsu, "it's time Lyon and I ended this once and for all."
"No way, man!" Natsu protested. "You already lost to him once!"
"And it won't happen again," Gray replied confidently, "I'm ready this time."
"You seem awfully cocky," Lyon said.
"You were right, Lyon," Gray said, after a moment of silence "I am responsible for Ur's death."
Lyon's eyes narrowed on his former rival.
"But you're no better," Gray continued, "You threatened my friends, brought harm to the villagers and now you're trying to destroy what Ur gave her life to create. It's time we faced our punishment together."
Gray widened his stance, stretching out his arms, and then crossing them at the wrists. Lyon looked shocked as he recognised the stance Gray was taking.
"That stance… not the Iced Shell!"
Natsu was shocked; he remembered that Ur had used the Iced Shell to seal Deliora away. But it was also what caused her death.
"Are you insane?" Lyon demanded, "You wouldn't dare!"
"If you want to live," Gray said, "change the villagers back to their human forms, and then leave this island and never return!" a magic circle appeared under Gray's feet and began glowing strongly. "If you'll agree to that, I'll stop; otherwise, this is the end."
"Is that so? Well, I don't believe a word of it; you're bluffing!" Lyon said with a confident smirk.
In response, a storm of ice began to spread from the magic circle.
"No, I'm not," Gray replied his tone completely serious.
"You'll die!" Lyon tried to use his own magic to block the attack, but it was blown away by the sheer power of Gray's spell.
"Don't do it!" Natsu shouted; he would have been knocked back by Gray's magic as well.
"All these years, I've lied to myself," Gray said, "I didn't want to admit that Ur died because of me, but she did, and it's time I took responsibility. So I will, here and now; I'm not afraid to die, if that what it takes!"
"Stop this now!" Lyon yelled.
"What's it going to be, Lyon?" Gray demanded, "Are we going to die, or are we going to live? It's up to you!"
"You wouldn't," Lyon said, a hint of a sneer on his face, "you're not brave enough to give your life! You're nothing but a coward!"
"Just watch me," Gray whispered.
Natsu, Erza, all my friends in Fairy Tail, the rest is up to you, he thought, I don't want to leave, but my time is up.
"Iced Sh…"
"SHADDAP!" Gray's spell was interrupted when Natsu's fist came down on his head.
"Natsu!" Gray scowled at the offending wizard.
"You can't just bust in here and steal the scene with a bunch of fancy talk." Natsu said angrily "Get to the back of the line pal."
"Back of what line?"
"I was here first so it's my fight."
"What?!" Gray stood up and glared at Natsu. "When I got here, the first words out of my mouth were leave him to me."
"And I said no way!" Natsu growled.
"I've got a score to settle with this guy!" Gray argued.
"How is killing yourself 'settling a score'?" Natsu asked, "If anything, dying and leaving us to clean up the mess just makes you a coward."
Gray flinched, and then slumped however before he could say anything, the room began to shake.
"Oh, what now?" asked an exasperated Natsu.
The room, as well as the rest of the temple, had been resting at an angle; however, it was now returning back to its original position. In a few moments, it was as if the damage that Natsu had done to tilt the temple had never occurred.
The dragon slayer let go of Gray and began stomping the ground in frustration.
"This is bad," Gray said, getting back up, "now the moon's gonna shine on Deliora!"
"Pardon the interruption," Zalty said, entering the room; he had slipped out during the fight between Lyon and Natsu.
"I should have known," Lyon said calmly, "You did all this?"
"The moon will be out soon," Zalty replied, "so I thought I'd straighten the temple for you."
"That weirdo fixed the temple all by himself?" Gray asked with confusion.
"And after all the trouble we went through to mess it up, too," Natsu complained, then shook his fist at Zalty, "Hey, so what'd you do to fix it, huh?"
Zalty looked at Natsu in surprise, as if noticing him for the first time, then laughed maniacally.
"TELL ME HOW YOU FIXED IT, YOU JERK!" Natsu screamed.
"Well, if everything else is in order, I'll go prepare the Moon Drip ceremony," Zalty said, then ran off.
"Would you quit ignoring me, you masked freak!" Natsu shouted, and then began to chase after him.
Before Natsu left the room, he spun around and pointed at Gray. "I'll handle that masked jerk; I'll leave Lyon to you."
Gray was surprised that Natsu was suddenly trusting him to beat Lyon.
Natsu turned around, his back to Gray. "It'll look bad if you lose again."
"Yeah," Gray said determination in his tone.
"Not just for you," Natsu continued.
"I know what you mean," Gray said,
"But for all of Fairy Tail!" he and Natsu said together, Natsu then off after Zalty.
"My, my," Lyon said after they left, "Such a boisterous group."
"Let me ask you something," Gray said, "a second ago, when I was gonna freeze us both, were you counting on Natsu to stop me before I could finish?"
"No," Lyon answered, "the opposite, in fact; I never thought that anyone would be foolish enough to get near a spell like that."
"So you were just going to stand there and take the hit?" Gray asked, surprised.
"Exactly," a smug Lyon said, "Because someone would come to rescue me; you, on the other hand, would be finished for good."
"I should have known," Gray murmured to himself.
"Certainly, it would have been inconvenient," Lyon continued, "however, my allies are as devoted to my cause as I am, and as long as we're on this island, they can use Moon Drip to melt the ice whenever they saw fit."
Gray looked down. "I didn't think of that; I guess the Iced Shell is completely useless here."
And my sacrifice would have been for nothing, he thought.
"Even so," Lyon said, "you still want to fight? After what happened last time?"
Gray didn't reply.
"Don't fool yourself," Lyon laughed, "you could never…"
"That's enough," Gray interrupted.
"What?"
"Just forget about Deliora," Gray said softly.
"What kind of nonsense is this?" Lyon asked, genuinely confused. "Your threats don't work, so you turn to begging? Does your Guild have dentist that removes your fangs, or are you just a coward?"
"Lyon, there's something I have to tell you," Gray said.
"What is it?" Lyon asked, now annoyed.
"Ur… is still alive."
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Lucy had been observing events from afar ever since she brought Gray to the temple. She found herself looking down from atop the temple down at the hole into the chamber where Deliora was kept frozen.
"Deliora, the demon of destruction who devastated the north and east." Lucy tilted her head as she kept watch over the trapped demon before smiling and looking out towards dying sunlight over the horizon. "First Lullaby now Deliora, I can't help but wonder why it is that we keep encountering your leftover trash. Are we being lead somewhere? If so for what purpose? do we mean to clash? What do you think…Zeref?"
After waiting a couple of seconds she let herself drop down into the chamber where Deliora was kept and sat upon a rocky ledge, she sensed two wizards approaching and decided to watch and see what would happen.
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Far away on an island inhabited by only a single person, a young man with black hair wearing tan robes with gold trim, along with a large, flowing white toga draped around his torso awoke with a start and looked out across the ocean.
"Strange, for a moment it felt as though someone was speaking to me." He mumbled to himself before lying back down and closing his eyes "But that's impossible, I am alone here."
Safe in the reminder of this knowledge the young man drifted back into the slumber he had been in for so long.
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"There you are!" Natsu yelled with his fists aflame. "I'll burn that grin off your face."
" It must have taken you a while to come up with that one. By the way, how did you find me?" Zalty asked curiously, jumping to avoid Natsu's attack.
"I followed my nose that's all" Natsu said "For some reason you totally reek of ladies perfume."
"I would love to stay and chat but I have more important things to do right now" Zalty laughed. "Like reviving Deliora."
"Just forget about that its not gonna happen ok" Natsu told him dismissively.
"Oh?" Zalty sounded curious. "And why is that prey-tell?"
" Because Gray's beating the crap out of that ice guy" Natsu smirked. "And I'm gonna send you the same way, with a million times the pain."
" We'll just have to see about" Zalty said looking up.
Natsu followed his gaze and his eyes widened in shock.
"What the hell?" He exclaimed, staring at the familiar purple light of the Moon Drip hitting the ice. "Is someone doing the ceremony up there right now?"
" Yes the effect of the Moon Drip is weakened when only one person is performing the ceremony." Zalty explained. "However we have already gathered more than enough moonlight. All that's need is a chance to apply it" His mad grin widened when the ice started to melt. "Observe"
"Oh crap! Deliora's ice is melting!" Natsu shot towards the exit. "I gotta do something about the guy on the roof."
Zalty waved his hand and the rocks under Natsu crumbled, sending him sliding back down. "Oh ho, now you run away? But I cannot allow that"
Natsu shot up in anger.
"It was a mistake to come after me, Salamander." Zalty continued.
Natsu glanced back at the dissolving ice and took another flame filled punch at Zalty.
"Are you sure you want to do that?" Zalty asked "Using your fire magic at a time like this, might make the ice sealing Deliora melt faster"
Natsu attacked with a flaming kick which Zalty barely dodged.
"If it could be melted by fire magic, then you wouldn't have had to go through all this trouble!" Natsu replied "Bluff all you want but all I gotta do is stop the moon drip and then its game over."
"I must say I am surprised at your mental speed and flexibility on the field of battle." Zalty chuckled
"I don't think I'll let him succeed this easily." Lucy gave a grin as the temple began to tremble. "I do so love ruining people's day so let's go ruin the day of whoever's performing the Moon Drip shall we?"
She opened a golden portal high up near the top of the temple through the gap where the Moon Light was shining on Deliora. The ever faithful chain Enkidu dropped from it; she grabbed on and began retracting it sending up her up quickly towards the rooftop where the ritual was being performed.
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At the top of the ruins Toby grinned, while performing the ceremony.
'Almost there' he thought to himself 'just a bit more and-URK' the dogman suddenly felt a large metallic something force itself on the back of his head along with a powerful killing intent.
"Wha-" Before he could finish what he was saying or even think about who it was his face was planted several inches into the surface of the temple causing the Moon Drip to stop completely.
"Dogs bark they do not speak." Lucy chuckled dusting off her hands as the Moon Drip was stopped for good.
She looked down into the temple spying Natsu and Zalty still fighting it out, the Temple gave another quake but settled down as the Ice trapping Deliora stabilised. It was thinned out a bit but it was still far too thick for it to break free on its own. Having nothing better to do she listened in on Natsu and his opponent.
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Gray frowned as he glanced at the shaking temple walls "I got a bad feeling that ain't Natsu."
" The Moon Drip ceremony is nearing completion" Lyon panted. "The ice sealing Deliora has begun to melt away."
" Ur..." Gray whispered in shock.
"There's nothing you can do. It's too late to stop me" Lyon smirked victoriously. "Do you have any idea how long I've waited for this moment Gray? Since I saw you last I've been gathering knowledge and allies who will aid me. I was fortunate enough to discover this place, an island where you can gather the light of the moon, Galuna" He sent a volley of ice birds at Gray. "It wasn't easy bringing Deliora from Brago and the Moon Drip has taken three years."
"So you've been wasting your time on this plan for three years" Gray yelled, shielding himself with ice to repel the bird missiles.
"Stupid?" Lyon screamed. "How dare you say that? You've wasted ten years in some guild peddling your life away"
"Because I put my faith in what Ur told me." Gray grunted dodging another ice bird.
Lyon's eyes to widen at the memory.
"In the western countries, there are lots of Wizards more powerful than me."
" I made my way west and I wound up at Fairy Tail" Gray told Lyon. " And she was right. There are so many that surpassed her that I couldn't believe it. "
"I don't think I can help you" Makarov sighed. " The Iced Shell is based on the will of its caster, and because that will is absolute a third party cannot melt the ice no matter what magic they use." " No way, your telling me that even with all the strong wizards you've got here you can't break the spell" Gray asked protest. "Actually now that I think about it there may be a way" Makarov frowned in thought causing the young Gray to smile with hope "On second thought that's not a good idea. If you were to melt the ice then it would be no different than killing your master"
"I didn't know it at the time, but I bet the old man was thinking about the Moon Drip when he said that." Gray scowled. After all that Ur did for us you killed her without giving it a second thought. You make me sick"
"Say what you will I don't care." Lyon grinned. "My entre life has lead up to this moment." An icy beast formed around his hand. "Our teacher is long dead, if we want to prove that we have surpassed her then what can we do? Think Gray, there only one answer. Deliora. I will surpass Ur by defeating Deliora, what she could not!"
"That's a pretty ambitious plan, but I but I can't help but think that you've missed the point along the way" Gray yelled dodging Lyon's attacks. "Someone as blind you could never be better than Ur not in a 100 years wake up Lyon."
Suddenly Gray slashed Lyon across the middle with an instantly formed ice sword. His victory was short-lived, however, when the body turned to ice and the real Lyon emerged behind him.
"Fooled you didn't I? Ice Make: Snow Tiger!" Lyon roared, sending a huge beast charging at Gray.
Gray made a hand-stand and ice erupted from his hands in the shape of a large cage. "Ice Make: Prison!"
"Is that it?" Gray scowled at his former senior, standing on top of the cage. "You see Lyon, this is what you are. A beast in cage lashing out at a world he barely knows"
"Utter nonsense" Lyon yelled. "I'll just smash your molding magic-"
He cut himself off when the tiger threw itself at the cage bars repeatedly but failed to free itself
"Single-handed spell casting is too unbalanced." Gray announced, landing in front of the cage. "Your creations will let you down when you down need them the most."
Lyon's jaw dropped when Gray formed an ice rocket launcher on his shoulder. "Ice Cannon!"
" That's what Ur taught us." Gray added as Lyon, thoroughly beaten collapsed to the ground.
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Zalty's jaw dropped as he watched the Moon Drip's light vanish stopping the magic ritual in its tracks.
"No! Damn it!" he yelled in frustration.
"Hahaha sorry pal looks like that demon won't be getting out today" Natsu cackled smugly.
"This is not over!" Zalty yelled with a fury that surprised Natsu. "You know I didn't want to have to expose myself so early, but I have no choice now."
Zalty held out his hand and in it appeared a lightning bolt shaped dagger with a kaleidoscope of colours on the blade that seemed to flow across it.
"It'll take more than a puny dagger to beat me." Natsu said smugly."
"It's not for you, you idiot. This dagger is called Rule Breaker and it can break any magic spell no matter how powerful." Zalty explained gleefully as he leapt towards the ice holding Deliora.
"Wait if you had something like that all along then why not just use to start with instead of going through all this Moon Drip crap?" Natsu demanded.
"Simple because certain might realise my identity if I used this dagger, but now I have no choice." Zalty then stuck the dagger into the Iced Shell.
A jolt of pain went through Gray and he clutched his wound and used ice make magic to seal it up.
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"Man I should've sealed this up earlier" he groaned
His eyes shot wide in shock as a deafening roar erupted from somewhere beneath him. "What the..."
" That sound" Gray said clenching his fist as flashbacks of Urs last moments and Deliora's final rampage sped past his minds eye "I could never forget that sound."
"Deliora" Lyon said now conscious but still lying on the ground, having been awoken by Deliora's roar.
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"It's so loud!" Natsu yelled, his voice lost in the almighty roar as Deliora told the world of its return.
"Yes its free" Zalty proclaimed as the upper half of Deliora's body was freed from the Iced Shell followed by the lower half of his body.
"They did it, they actually revived it" Gray thought to himself "There's only one thing I can do now. Iced Shell."
Deliora roared as it was freed of the Iced Shell, the first thing it did was smash its way out of the cave to escape confinement. It then made its way outside and roared again as it found fresh air, as it did so Zalty quickly held out his hand in the demons direction and chanted something quickly under his breath. Deliora was enveloped in a purple glow for a few seconds before it continued stomping its way to freedom.
"Oh crap it's free and what did you just do to that demon exactly?" Natsu yelled, turning towards Zalty.
"I just gave it a little boost is all, you see my knowledge of magic is quite extensive and Deliora needed a little push which I gave it."
"I've wasted enough time. Here I come!" Natsu leapt at Zalty only to be knocked back when a round hard object smashed into his face.
"Ready when you are, go ahead and do your worst little Salamander" Zalty grinned as his crystal orb flew around him.
"Fine with me!" Natsu shouted, smashing the orb to pieces with his fist. Zalty made a simple gesture and the ball reformed in mid-air, much to Natsu's surprise.
Natsu gasped for breath at the orb hit his stomach, lifting him with the force of the blow. "But I broke it right?"
"I have the ability to control an object's 'time'." Zalty explained. "Meaning, I can take the crystal back in 'time' to before it was broken."
"Time?" Natsu asked. "What kind of magic gives you that power?"
"I practice one of the Lost Magic's, the Arc of Time, It's extremely rare and quite powerful" Zalty replied. "Would you like to see what happens when I throw this crystal ball into the future, hmm?"
Natsu blinked as the orb sped past him at incredible speeds, before he could think he was being bombarded by the crystal simultaneously from multiple directions. He roared in anger and smashed the ball with a fiery punch.
"Your fire won't help you" Zalty taunted, reforming it instantly and smashed Natsu in the back of the head with the ball.
Natsu swung his fist at the oncoming attack, only for the ball to stop and hang in front of him. "It stopped in mid air"
"Yes I also have the ability to freeze an object in time." Zalty clarified.
"That's a nice trick" Natsu said "But I'd be more impressed if you could use it on people."
" An astute observation" Zalty praised him. "Technically it does not work on any living being. That is why I could not use it on the Iced Shell, which is actually Ur."
"I'm gonna be blunt, I don't get you guys" Natsu said "You've revived Deliora so that Lyon can kill it. That may be good for him and all, but what do you all get out of it?"
"I can't speak for all." Zalty said with a shrug "I've just joined the group recently."
" Ok then speak for yourself" Natsu scowled. "What is it you're really after?"
" It seems that you have managed to see through me completely." Zalty laughed. "The Cold Emperor Lyon is an arrogant twit. He doesn't stand a chance against Deliora. That's where I come in."
" If he can't beat we're in major trouble unless you're going to defeat it yourself."
Deliora let loose another roar which shook the island.
"Don't be ridiculous" Zalty waved his hand, indicating the direction of the monster which had roared. "I want to control the demon. You see there are spells that give the caster power over immortal monsters like Deliora. With a single spell I'd become the most powerful man in the world because I'd have a demon at my beck and call"
"Talk about a lame answer. I'm sorry I even asked" Natsu scoffed. "That's what you're after? You think just having some monster's going to make you tough? No way"
"You just don't understand." Zalty commented. "But there are times when you need power."
"Well I've already got plenty of power on my side" Natsu shot back. "Because all of my friends at Fairy Tail have got my back"
"Such vanity will be your ruin." Zalty raised a hand towards the ceiling. "Accelerate your time and crumble!".
"I've had enough!" Natsu growled. "Each and every one of you has put this island through hell for stupid, selfish reasons!" He fired several fireballs towards Zalty.
"Let's see if those violent flames can be captured by my Arc of Time, shall we?"
"I don't care what your magic is called!" Natsu charged forward and creating a smokescreen with a flaming arm.
"What the-?" Zalty exclaimed, looking forward. "I can't sense him there!"
" I can manipulate time as well!" Natsu screamed, appearing above and slightly behind Zalty. "The future, to be exact! In a moment, I'll send you flying! Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"
Zalty was hit by the attack in the face and would have been sent flying but he managed to correct himself and land on his feet. He spat out some blood and began backing away. Suddenly he leapt up into the air began flying away; his clothes' mask and appearance dissolved revealing a female figure wearing a hooded bluish-purple robe that concealed her face.
"I knew you were woman." Natsu smirked victoriously.
"Very clever dimwit, but if you'll excuse me I have a demon to control. Tata." With that the woman calling herself Zalty flew off in pursuit of Deliora.
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Lucy who watching the battle through the hole in the ceiling sat cross legged, she pulled out the prototype of the dagger that had been used to free Deliora and pondered staring at it as she searched her memory.
"Rule Breaker…..hmmmm…..now where have I seen that before?" Lucy mumbled as she stared at the dagger.
She looked down out of the corner of her eye as a blue robed figure landed on Deliora's head and began using magic to control the demon which was basically a corpse anyway. The feeling that she was forgetting something grew stronger.
Lucy saw Erza leap up meaning to stop the figure only be block by a purple shield and repulsed. A memory of a cloaked figure blocked a hail of swords came to her minds eye and Lucy opened her eyes only to narrow them at the figure as she returned the dagger to the Gate of Babylon.
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Meanwhile Ultear looked down at Erza Scarlet form atop Deliora's head, her face still concealed by her robes. She had to be careful not to kill Erza; she was still needed for Jellal to 'sacrifice' after all, still that didn't mean she couldn't give her thrashing especially after that pink haired dimwit hurt her face.
"Now Deliora crush her." She commanded the demon which reared its fist to do as ordered.
Erza raised her sword ready to try and block the attack as she hadn't the strength to dodge. However everyone, the demon included paused a loud bellow of rage echoed throughout the island.
"CASTER! YOU FILTHY LITTLE WITCH YOU DARE TO SHOW YOUR FACE AROUND ME!" With that bellow Deliora let out a cry of pain and struggled to keep balance as the sound of flesh being pierced kept echoing.
"W-what is happening and who dares to call me a witch?" Ultear looked back behind her and saw multiple golden portals peppering Deliora's back with hundreds of weapons. She looked up and barely jumped off Deliora's head in time as a golden battle axe split head open like a watermelon. The one responsible wore had piercing crimson eye's and wore golden armour that she instantly recognised.
"Y-you your that servant from back then." Ultear stammered recognising the girl a female variation of the Servant who had slain her when she had tried to control Saber in the Grail War a lifetime ago.
"I WILL KILL YOU!" Lucy yelled as she leapt of the falling Deliora and at Ultear with the intent of chopping her to pieces.
"T-this isn't over, don't think you've won." Ultear quickly clapped her hands and teleported away, much to Lucy's frustration.
She let out a roar of anger as she landed and sent the axe back to her treasury.
"I'll get that witch next time." Lucy growled ignoring the dead demon behind her.
"Lucy you did it." Natsu cheered as she and Gray arrived with a limping Lyon.
"Y-you killed it." Gray said in disbelief at Deliora's body.
"She slew Deliora like it was nothing." Lyon fell to his knees.
"Hmmm what are you babbling about back there, I didn't kill this thing." Lucy denied shaking her head.
"But you put the axe into its head, and stopped it, what do you mean you didn't kill it?" Erza asked.
"It seems I must explain everything." Lucy sighed letting an annoyed breath. "Pay attention, by the time Deliora was freed from the Iced Shell it was already dead. You see for ten years Ur has been gradually depleted thee demons life force, that witch merely reanimated a corpse."
"So that roar we heard….was nothing more than its last dying breaths." Lyon said tearfully pounding the ground with his fist. "My dream is dead, there's no hope now, I will never surpass Ur."
"Man your teacher was pretty awesome." Natsu said to Gray who was caught up in a memory.
"I've freed you from the darkness Gray, I've sealed it away forever" Ur's said to him in his mind.
"You've saved my life again" Gray said through tears. "Thank you Ur."
"Look, there." Lucy pointed to the ruins out of which flowed a large stream of water. "The ice which was once Ur is now flowing out to the open sea."
"Oh yeah!" Natsu cheered as they exited the temple, "We totally finished an S-Class quest all by ourselves!"
Natsu's celebrations were shattered by Erza's glare.
"Isn't there something you're forgetting about?" Erza demanded, "You came to this island to help the villagers; the request was for you to return them to their original forms. You still haven't completed your S-class quest still isn't completed."
"Well, we better go and change them back." Natsu exclaimed happily.
"Aye sir!" Happy agreed as both exchanged high-fives.
"Yeah, but we don't know how." Gray said. Then, his face lit up as he got an idea. He turned to Lyon, who was leaning against a boulder behind him. He had taken off his body armour, leaving him in a blue jacket, black pants, and steel boots. "Lyon, do you know?"
"To be quite honest, I don't have a clue." Lyon answered impassively.
Natsu and Happy looked at him incredulously.
"You don't know?" asked Natsu.
"What?" Happy added in disbelief.
"When we first arrived here three years ago," Lyon explained, "we were aware that there was a village somewhere on this island. But we had absolutely no reason to communicate with the villagers, so we left them alone. They never came to the temple to see what we were up to."
"In three years, you've never once met?" Erza said disbelievingly.
" The light from the Moon Drip is so bright you can see it practically from any point on the island. It is strange that they saw it every night and never went to investigate." Lucy noted.
"The spell didn't transform the villagers." Lyon continued. "The Moon Drip has no effect on the human body."
"What?" Gray inquired dumbfounded.
"Yeah right," Natsu accused, "you're just saying that so you and your lackeys will be off the hook."
"Just think about it." The former 'Cold Emperor' said. "I've been exposed to it longer than they have and my appearance hasn't changed one bit."
"I wouldn't trust them." Lyon warned, crossing his arms over his chest. "Those villagers are hiding something, but I'm sure you Guild wizards can handle it."
"We're not done with you." Natsu stated. "You tried to destroy the entire village and…"
The Dragon Slayer's ranting was stopped when Erza squished his cheeks together.
"That's quite enough, Natsu." Erza ordered.
Erza then began retelling the explanation she had gotten out of one of the followers for why they agreed to help Lyon. As it turned out Lyon's followers were people that had lost families, friends, and everything they had to Deliora. Lyon found them and persuaded them that if they helped him free it, he would kill it, and get revenge for all of them.
"They were only doing what they believed to be right. So there's no need to criticize them for it." Erza explained, she then let go of Natsu's face. "Now, let's go."
"But what are we going to do to lift the curse?" The pink haired wizard inquired.
"I have no idea." Erza replied.
"Idiots…" Lucy muttered "It seems I must do everything myself."
Erza, Natsu, Lucy, and Happy walked away toward the storage area, leaving only Gray and Lyon behind who simply glared at him. "What do you want?"
"I know you don't want to hear it, but you really should join a Guild. You'll make new friends, meet new rivals, and maybe even find a new dream to live for."
"Whatever," Lyon grumbled, "just get out of here!" His expression softened a bit, but he then turned away with an angry scowl on his face.
Gray smiled slightly as he turned and walked away.
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When they returned to the village Lucy had ordered everyone to gather at the village centre.
"Alright Lucy we're all here so now what?" Gray asked.
"Simple, I'm going to put an end to this ridiculous quest." Lucy sighed massaging her temple's "Being around all this stupidity is giving me a headache."
"So how are you gonna turn them back to normal?" Natsu questioned.
"Just shut up and watch." Another golden ripple appeared and spear emerged from it aimed at the sky.
The spear kept travelling upwards until it appeared to hit the moon which began to crack. The cracks began to spread until not just the moon, but the whole sky seemed to shatter leaving behind a normal coloured moon.
"What the heck is going on here?"
"Erza explain now." Lucy commanded "I've had enough of this nonsense."
"As a result of the Moon Drip spell," Erza explained with a sigh. "A membrane was covering the island."
"What?"
"The Moon Drip released evil energy in the form of a gas." The swordswoman continued "That gas crystalized and formed an invisible shell in the sky that covered the island. That's why the moon looked purple here."
Suddenly a brilliant light illuminated under the feet of the villagers.
"Now that the shell is broken," Erza explained, "everything will go back to the way it was three years ago."
Then, the light vanished; however, nothing changed. The villagers were still in their demonic forms.
"What happened? They're not transforming." Gray asked confused.
"Oh no," Happy muttered worriedly.
"That's because these are their true forms." Erza replied as she walked toward them. "The Moon Drip never had any effect on their appearance. However, it seems to have altered their memories."
"Wait what do you mean?" Gray inquired.
"They think they're humans who have been transformed into demons, but it's the other way around you dolt." Lucy explained still nursing her headache.
Happy screamed in shock while Gray and Natsu's jaws dropped.
"The villagers have always been demons." Titania continued.
"Hey is that true?!" Gray demanded, getting in the face of a villager.
"Well…maybe," the villager stuttered, "my memory's still a little hazy. We all looked pretty human when y'all met us, didn't we?"
"Yes," Erza enlightened, "because you all possess the ability to take on human forms. Your false memories led you all to believe that your temporary states were actually your true forms. In reality, you were actually victims to the Moon Drip's side-effects."
"Lyon and the others weren't affected because they're human." Lucy explained "Demons were the only ones susceptible to the memory loss. The moon's light was sacred, thus creatures of darkness couldn't go anywhere near it or the temple which was sacred ground."
The group turned to the source and was stunned by who they saw. Happy shrieked girlishly. Gray, Natsu, felt their jaws drop again from the sight of the purple-skinned demon that had appeared out of nowhere.
"It's the guy from the boat!" Gray exclaimed.
"Bobo." Moka felt his eyes tear up and his lips quiver from the sight of his son that he had presumed dead.
"Huh," a confused villager said, "but we thought you were dead!"
"Getting stabbed in the chest hurt pretty bad, but you got to do more than that to kill a demon." Bobo chuckled.
"But…on the boat…you just vanished into thin air." Gray mentioned, still flabbergasted from this new development.
All of a sudden, a pair of black, bat-like wings folded out from behind Bobo's shirt as he leaped into the air, hovering above them with his arms crossed.
"I sure hope you kids can forgive me for not telling you sooner." Bobo said.
"Whoa," Gray muttered, "he can fly?"
"I was the only one who didn't have any memory loss." Bobo explained. "I had to leave because everyone went nuts! I knew I was a demon, but everyone else thought that they were cursed humans."
Finally, Moka couldn't take it anymore. "B-Bobo," he said. Then, a pair of wings folded out from behind his shirt as he soared into the air and wrapped his son up in a tight hug, tears rolling down his face.
"I'm so glad you snapped out of it, Pops!" Bobo hugged his father back.
The villagers all looked at each other and smiled widely, their memories finally returning. Similar bat-like wings appeared from their backs as they flew into the sky around Bobo and Moka, cheering in celebration of the returned Bobo.
The Fairy Tail wizards looked up, happy smiles plastered across their faces.
"Yep, they're definitely demons." Erza commented.
"I don't know. When you look at their faces," Natsu said as he looked up at Moka crying in happiness at his son's return, "well…they kinda look like angels to me."
[-]-[-]-[-]-[-]-[-]
Later, the village was throwing a big feast to rejoice in everyone regaining their former identities as demons. The Fairy Tail wizards were guests of honour for helping them. Lucy, Erza, and Happy were at the large table along with the other villagers, eating what was surprisingly awesome food. Natsu was to the side devouring the fire on torches.
Gray was sitting close to a hut, a clique of villager girls swooning around him with hearts in their eyes. The ice wizard, meanwhile, sat there with flushed cheeks and a sheepish grin on his face. They eventually pulled Gray to his feet and were tugging him to what appeared to be a dance area.
"Well…I have to admit I was wrong about humans." Moka said. "All of these years we have chosen to hide from the outside world, afraid that they would judge us by our appearance."
"You know the curse," Bobo added, "that was actually a rumour we started so nobody would come to the island and bother us."
"But thanks to you, we have changed our minds. You have restored our faith in humans and we are not afraid. We are ready to go out and make friends with people from other lands."
"That's good." Erza smiled. "Friendship is a beautiful thing. It's an emotional bond that transcends one's physical appearance."
Bobo chuckled in agreement while the others simply smiled. Lucy snorted derisively and turned her head away pretending not to care about Erza's words, unseen to anyone however a slight smile was on her lips.
[-]-[-]-[-]-[-]-[-]
Standing above a cliff that overlooked the village were Sherry, Yuka, and Toby. The trio of wizards were peering down at the celebrating village. They could hear the music, cheering, and festive activities going on.
"Are you really gonna go down there?" Toby asked turning to Yuka.
"I have no choice." Yuka replied. "It wouldn't be right to leave things the way they are now. Toby, stay here with Cold Emperor Lyon."
"We have to do this. It's all in the name of love." Sherry said determinedly.
[-]-[-]-[-]-[-]-[-]
The villagers continued their celebration; however, their party came to a halt when two people strolled into the village. The cheering and talking instantly stopped, some even gasped, when they saw who the two figures were Sherry and Yuka.
The girls huddled around a shirtless Gray were obviously scared. "What should we do?" one whispered.
"I'll take care of this." Gray said standing up.
"How can I help you?" Erza asked standing up to confront them.
"You Fairy Tailers are tough." Yuka commented, a grin on his face. "The Cold Emperor was so banged up he couldn't make it down here."
"That's why we've come to pay you a visit in his place." Sherry added coldly, before pointing at Lucy "Thanks to you and that potion I'll be having nightmares forever."
"That was the general idea, next time if you cross me I'll take your life." Lucy replied shooting her a glare which caused her to flinch.
"Anyway" Yuka interrupted, "that doesn't matter to us."
"We wanted to settle things with you ourselves." Sherry said shaking herself out of her fright.
Natsu stepped forward, an eager grin plastered across his face. "Alright," he let up his right fist with fire. "Show me what you got!"
"Natsu wait!" Bobo called. "As much as we appreciate it, we can't keep letting you fight our battles. We'll take care of this."
"Yeah," a villager behind Chief Moka and Bob cried. "Let us handle these clowns."
"Normally I'd agree with you, gentlemen." Erza said. "But I believe it's best if I handle this one."
The scarlet haired wizard sauntered toward Sherry and Yuka stopping a fair distance in front of them.
"She seems like a formidable opponent." Yuka sneered.
Erza said nothing; she only stared hard at the at Lyons minions.
"That pink haired mongrel" Lucy said. "She can control inanimate objects."
"And don't even bother using your magic on, Mega-Brows." Natsu added.
"I see," Erza replied calmly. "In that case," the redhead broke into a sprint straight toward the duo. "I'll just have to do this the old-fashioned way!"
Erza ran up and delivered a powerful kick to a surprised Sherry, sending her flying back. She quickly spun and slammed her left elbow with Yuka's face, forcing him to the ground with a thud. With painful grunts, the duo slowly got back to their feet.
"You're truly an amazing warrior." Sherry complimented as she steadily stood up.
As Yuka stood up, he wiped a trickle of blood off his mouth.
"No kidding. We're no match for you." He added.
Everyone eyed the duo suspiciously, shocked that they weren't fighting back. Surprisingly, the two wizards looked to the ground with albeit shameful expressions.
"I doubt this is going to make up for all the bad things we did…but we wanted to apologize in person." Yuka confessed sincerely.
"Ooooh…so you came here to settle things in a good way." Happy said.
"The Cold Emperor told us everything." Sherry said. "Thanks to you we can finally let go of the pain that Deliora caused us so many years ago."
"You mean…" Gray paused, "you were victims of Deliora too?"
"When we were children a Deliora ravaged our village. We watched it murder all our friends and family." Yuka explained.
"The Cold Emperor had a plan to kill the demon once for all." Sherry continued. "That's why we followed him."
"You see," Yuka said, "we wanted revenge. And we were so focused on getting it, we didn't realize we were hurting innocent people."
"We were so blinded by our hatred that we didn't act any better than the demon itself. So from now on, we'll treat other people with respect…and love." Sherry said.
"Alright then!" Natsu exclaimed happily. The pink haired wizard appeared behind the duo, laying a hand on Sherry and Yuka's shoulders and bringing them in closer. "You guys should stick around and join in on the feast, eh?"
"But…we were enemies a second ago." Yuka mentioned, startled by this sudden change of attitude.
"I don't know if that's such a good idea because I'm trying to watch my figure and…"
Sherry's rant was cut short as Natsu squeezed them together closer. "Enough of the excuses, live a little will yah?!"
Seconds later, Natsu dragged them until they were seated at a table. They held their drinks in fear, the demons around them all staring at the duo.
"Alright! Now we're ready to party!" Natsu shouted.
[-]-[-]-[-]-[-]-[-]
Outside the village not too far away, perched in a tree was Ultear floating beside her was a bluish-purple orb.
Ultear grinned; she had witnessed everything that had taken place in the village. Without looking at the orb, the man asked, "Were you able to see all that, sir?"
"Yes. It's quite an interesting development." a smooth male voice came from the orb. "Good thing they didn't see your face, though the girl in gold looked like she held a grudge."
"We crossed paths once, I'll watch out for her in the future."
"Hmm…you better leave before they find you. Those Fairy Tail wizard especially that girl in golds, could pose quite a threat if they get in our way."
"That is true." She replied. "More true than you think."
[-]-[-]-[-]-[-]-[-]
Back at the guild hall Levy was hard at work trying to decipher the book Lucy had given to her. It was one of the most challenging translations she had ever attempted, this language was found nowhere in the world. There were a few languages that were similar but she couldn't tell if they were close enough for a partial translation or not so she had to be careful, each of the entries had an image of the Hero in question in at the begging of it, so she wouldn't have to worry about confusing one hero with another at least.
"Man this is hard; I've never seen a language like this before." She sighed wiping some sweat from her brow in exertion.
"Hello Levy are you feeling ok?" Mirajane asked the bookworm walking over to her.
"Yeah thanks Mira this translation is really hard. I have to do it all from scratch." Levy said giving the waitress a smile.
"Well if need anything don't-Oh My!" Mira exclaimed covering her eyes.
Levy looked down and the saw that the tome was giving off a brilliant light forcing her to cover eye's as well. After a few moments the glow died down materialised as a few blank pages.
On the first blank page appeared a woman of average height with a slim, curvaceous figure. She had short dark purple hair that was kept at chin length. Her clothing consisted of a tan jacket with a black collar, jeans and a red tank top. Above the image appeared the name 'Ur' and below the image a words began writing themselves onto the blank pages, Levy could only watch as a whole life story wrote itself out in front of her, to her shock it was in plain English perfectly legible to her. After several minutes the glowing died away and the story was complete.
"Incredible." Mira breathed.
"Amazing, this entry just wrote itself and I can understand it what does that mean? And why is it in a language I understand?" Levy questioned staring in awe at the tome.