Chapter 10: Fall-Out –Mariana's Trench
"God forsaken child," Tomo cursed under her breath as she moved around the candle lit room. She continued her rant about her hatred for the 'younger generation' while she carefully placed books back into hidden shelves and bottles on metal racks.
The old woman kept her self busy both physically and mentally. To Lucy she was a smaller version of Porlyusica, the healer who once resided in the Fairy Tail guild.
"Tomo-san?"
"Don't 'san' me child, I don't need those honorific titles," Tomo barked as she placed a particularly large book back onto the shelf which proved her strength to be great, despite her size.
"Well, I just wanted to say how grateful I am that you allowed me to stay with you. Even though Ami's way is-"
"Completely and utterly intolerable?" Lucy smiled as she replied, "Something like that."
"Yes well, if you can agree upon that then my judgement hasn't failed me," Tomo replied as she kicked another book back into place. "Medicine, why did I have to go into medicine? Porlyusica was always better at it then I was and all you ever do is clean. Naturally none of the spirits know how to 'clean up' after them selves. Like children they are."
While the old mage continued her rant, Lucy, as if on cue, tried to summon Virgo. "I open the gate of the maiden, Virgo."
A golden circle started to surround the summoner's feet as Lucy held up the golden key to her faithful maid, Virgo. Wisps of wind started to form in front of the mage but no spirit appeared. As she forced more magic into her cast, Lucy whispered, "Come on Virgo, I know I have enough magic to support you."
"Hime, I know you have the power, but I'm afraid it's a small amount," a sweet voice appeared.
Lucy now stood in front of her summoned spirit, light headed. "There you are, Virgo."
"Mustn't you punish me now? For appearing in the human world while you're still so weak?"
"No, Virgo. You wouldn't have come if I didn't summon you," Lucy replied.
"Silly girl, listen to your spirit. If you're weak, how much power do you think your spirit will have?" Tomo replied without a glance at the newcomer to the room.
"I will be ok. It's like what Ami said, I need become stronger so I can get out of here as soon as possible. Virgo, can you help Tomo clean up this room?"
"Grannus's master?" the purple -haired maid asked while she focused on the small mage. Lucy nodded her head wearily to confirm the spirits question as she leaned against a wall.
"As you wish Hime, It's an honour to meet another spirit's master," Virgo mentioned as she took the books out from Tomo's hands. "Grannus speaks of only the best, but for the moment, allow me." In matter of minutes, the room was put back together in its rightful state. As expected, Virgo made quick work with minimal magic intake.
"Hime, please be careful for now on. Only summon us when you must, Leo is very concerned. Even though he's blocked from entering this island, he fears that some of the spirits may be too powerful for you to summon now."
"Nonsense, she will summon who she pleases, when she pleases. If she doesn't, then you will no longer have a master, which is the nature of this Island if she doesn't practice her magic. Tell the spirits that their master is being well taken care of, and her power will soon return," Tomo interrupted with authority.
With a grateful bow, Virgo was gone just as quick as she was summoned which left nothing but a cold silence between the two mages. "I like that one, she's quick, cleans up after her self and she is devoted. Give her my thanks for cleaning the practice," Tomo commented as a rhythmic jingle of keys answered in response.
Satisfied with the room, Tomo made her way to a nearby counter while she commented, "Well, might as well get you settled in, you need tea."
"It's alright, Tomo. I'll just go to sleep and-"
"Blondie, the sooner you learn to accept a gift the better you will understand the world, now sit down." The mage ordered as she pulled tea pot and several cups from the counter.
As commanded, Lucy sat beside a near by wooden table and once again Lucy became startled as another spirit from Tomo's arsenal appeared beside the blonde mage. With a small squeak that escaped her lips, Lucy noticed the scent of green tea as it wafted into the room while several glowing robes of multiple colours flowed around the spirit's body. Along with a white scarf, her long white hair floated up above her head through several golden rings and danced as if it were underwater. Once more, Lucy was transfixed on the oddity of the spirit's appearance, white porcelain skin that blended into the hairline seamlessly, brilliant purple eyes, and a faint glow in her cheeks that left the mage speechless. Lucy continued to gaze at the doll-like woman when it kneeled down beside her and glance toward the young mage. The spirit gently touched Lucy's blonde hair and for a moment both mage and spirit shared in a soft laughter.
"Her name is He Xiangu, a Chinese deity. She has the power to heal mental and physical health by simply using a lotus flower," Tomo's voice echoed through the room. "Curious isn't she?"
The spirit stretched out her naked arms in such a delicate way so she could ask for permission to make contact. Confused at first, Lucy soon realized that the deity's attention was drawn towards her leather holster. "What does she want?" Lucy asked Tomo from across the room.
One glance toward the ghostly white spirit and Tomo knew. The healer nodded gently and sat at the table with an iron tea pot in hand, "She wants to make friends with your spirits."
"Really, spirits can do that? When I was transported into the spirit world, I only saw my spirits." Lucy replied with a happy tone as she pulled her case out as she placed each gold and silver key into the spirit's hands.
"Think of the spirit world like our world. Every collection of keys becomes their own 'country' and very rarely do they get to see, let alone interact, with other spirits from a different 'country'. I'm still surprised your Virgo knew my Grannus."
Lucy watched as the spirit picked up each key and for a moment her purple orbs glowed with happiness. It was obvious that the spirit familiarized herself to each key and friendships were made, until she reached the key of the lion. Lucy shuttered. A deep red colour spread across the spirits face as she shoved the key back into the case and pushed it back into Lucy's hands. With a pout, the spirit was finished with her social interactions as she grabbed the iron tea pot and a lotus flower from her master's hand.
"What happened there?" Tomo asked Lucy from across the table, "He Xiangu is speaking in riddles."
Lucy sighed at the moment, she knew all too well how much of a player Loke was. The thought of the introduction caused Lucy to drop her head in shame as she looked down at the lonely key in the leather case, 'you couldn't stop being a playboy for five-minutes?'
"Just be glad I don't have the energy to summon you, or I would have-" Lucy started but was suddenly sidetracked. "Tomo, when Virgo mentioned that Loke – Leo- couldn't come through, she was referring to my magic level, right?"
"Unfortunately no, your spirits have already picked up on how the island works," Tomo mentioned as she watched her spirit work.
When the shield was strong enough the master – Seto- made a rule that no male with magic status, human or spirit, would walk the island grounds without his consent. This resulted in the loss of magic power and death unless they got outside of the shield quick enough.
"I'm sure you already know about how the shield stops all magic from leaving or entering the island," Tomo mentioned as she pushed several cups towards her spirit nonchalantly.
"But if I cannot use my-"
"Ami is, hopefully, working on your male spirits acceptance in the island," Tomo cut Lucy off. "You need not worry." Lucy nodded and sat quietly. The thought was selfish, but Loke wasn't the male she was worried about, it was Grey and Natsu.
Lucy's distress was sensed by He Xiangu who placed a hand onto the mage's shoulder. She delicately placed four cups of tea in front of Lucy and encouraged her to drink. "She can't expect me to drink all four of them," Lucy asked Tomo nervously.
"Hmm, it would appear that she made the extra three cups for your spirits. Place the females in the cup on the left, males on the right and-" Tomo stopped as a smile grew on her face, "It would appear that she made the fourth cup for the lion." Lucy glowed at the spirits generosity then took notice to the texture difference in the fourth cup, "What's in the fourth cup?"
"Ice, to take away swelling," Tomo laughed in amusement. "She has a fine sense of humour."
Lucy also laughed at the gesture and deemed it appropriate to place Loke in an ice bath. With a glance back at the spirit, Lucy took a slip of the tea and smiled at the fragrance and sweet milky taste.
"He Xiangu has made the tea to help restore you, and your spirits, to full mental and physical statuses," Tomo explained, "but it might not take effect until tomorrow."
Once the cup was finished, Lucy felt the difference almost instantly. Even the tea in each of the other cups almost disappeared just as quick, with the exception of Loke's. Lucy set the cup back onto the table and beamed at the spirit in appreciation, after several more cups the spirit disappeared.
"Time to clean up another mess," Tomo sighed. "Because Ami did a piss-poor job at informing you about your 'new home' I have to teach you. So listen carefully."
Every mage on the island suffers from the same issue, the constant drain of magic due to the island's continuous growth. If a mage lets their magic level drop too low, the island will start to feed on their life source and potentially kill them. Consequently, if all mages were killed, the shield too would be destroyed, but to sacrifice hundreds of spirit mages would be completely out of the question. In order to keep the effects at bay and have minimal effect on their daily lives, training is mandatory. Each mage trains in his/her own special way. Meditation or battling was the popular choices amongst most mages.
"Despite what you might think, the mages here live a good life. We may live like prisoners, but we aren't treated like'em," Tomo explained in-between sips.
Another issue Ami neglected was to find Lucy a room to call her own; many mages here live their lives as if they never left Earthland. Instead of paying rent with money, you'd pay with goods such as medical supplies, repair kits or food. This is also why it's ideal to train and work your spirits.
"Ami explained that she was a hunter, but what does she do exactly?" Lucy asked.
Ami is apart of a special elite group of mages on the island. They are some of the strongest, most skilled and longest surviving 'prisoners' on the island. Besides being hunters, they are also Seto's soldiers. Because they have been here for so long, and since their power levels are so high, they are easily taken over and put into a trance like state, when they are sent down to Earthland to find magical items and spirit mages for example.
"Even though Ami is one of the longest living captives on the island, her will is strong. She hasn't giving her self completely over to that bastard who keeps us all here. I guess that's one good thing about that childish fool, she still has her own mind and she does anything for her-"
"Nakama," Lucy finished and reminisced over what the word meant to her.
Tomo watched as the blonde slipped into homesickness. "Something you might find interesting, Lucy is that Ami, even though she is a monk, possesses something that connects the two of you. She holds a set of zodiac keys as well. The Chinese zodiac, but I have never seen her use them."
"That's why everyone asks which I hold," Lucy cleared up. "They are confused over hers."
"No, nobody knows about her keys, or if she even holds them at all." Tomo continued after another sip of her tea, "And technically there are several kinds, all of whom are located on this island. Your zodiac is the most valuable," Tomo explained. "Shame it's not a completed set."
Lucy made a face at the old woman. "But keep that information to your self. Ami doesn't even know that I happened upon her secret." Interested, Lucy perked up, "How did you come across it?"
Tomo was hesitant to speak; the memory seemed to haunt her mind. But slowly she pieced together the words. "One night, she was brought to me so damaged; I thought that she was long dead. It took all my magic and three other healers just to get Ami in a state where she could breathe on her own. Nobody knows what happened to her, just that she went down below for something and was ambushed."
Lucy stayed quiet. After a moment, the mage whispered, "The secrets you give, and the secrets you keep."
"Nerveless, when she was laying there on the table, I wanted to give up and just let her go. She has fought enough for us on this island and after this long, she shouldn't have to," Tomo looked away. "Anyways, I was cleaning up after my spirits and I came across it. A red leather pouch that was hidden in the folds of her robes with a full set of zodiac keys inside made of porcelain. I didn't have to look at the keys to know which zodiac they were."
Silence passed by the two mages, as candles flickered and drapes swayed, "She was always so god damned polite and composed," Tomo looked up once again. "Did you know that Celestial Spirit mages are born through genetics?" Tomo asked and received a nod from the young mage. "Well then, who in your family is a Celestial Spirit mage?"
"My mom was. She died when I was real young, I never knew until just recently." After Tomo passed on her condolences to the blonde mage, silence fell once again to the table. "Say Tomo, can the dead come back to life?"
Tomo stopped mid sip of her tea with an irritated look on her face. "Don't be stupid. Not even the greatest mage can bring back a human soul."
"So you haven't seen anyone up here that looks like me?"
"No, and rest assured, I've healed most of the citizens up here. I can show you the records from my patience on both the island and Earthland if it interests you. What is the name of your Mother?" Tomo asked as she walked to a near by book shelf and pulled out a thin diary.
Lucy thought for a moment, even though she knew her mother was dead, there was another question she wanted to know. "Natsu Dragneel."
"Strange name for a lady," Tomo asked before she started her search.
"He's from my guild, but I think you must have run into him as a child. Before I came up here, he gave me a bottle similar to these." Lucy gestured to the potion rack, "he said it would bring me luck if I drank it. A lot of luck that did me, I'm up here. "
Tomo looked at the blonde with a stale face. "You didn't really drink it, did you?"
Lucy decided to keep quiet, she already knew it was a mistake and the memory brought back the horrible taste of the liquid. Tomo sighed and looked through her diary, which held more pages then that the original appearance led on. "It 'brings luck' huh, I remember telling that white lie to many children so they would take their medicine."
"If it helps jog your memory, he would have been with a dragon, a large red dragon named Igneel."
Tomo stopped in her tracks and looked up at the blonde with shock. "I remember now," She mentioned as she swiftly searched for a particular page with anger that bubbled over her face. "That child was," Tomo stopped at a page and pointed at a name, "I never knew dragons to take children as their own, and I've herd rumours but never crossed paths with one until that day by the beach."
Many years ago when Tomo was much younger, less experience healer, she was a medical practitioner who traveled Earthland who used her magic in cities, towns and villages as a way of income and experience. But one day, the main road to her destination was blocked which forced her to take a detour through the woods towards a beach. Halfway through her detour she came across strange prints and pieces of red scales buried in the sand. Little did Tomo know she was going to trail a dragon.
Eventually when the paths split curiosity got the better of the healer which encouraged her off the detour path and towards a cave carved into the cliff side. At the mouth of the cave, Tomo finally solved the mystery of what object shed scales, she was soon face to face with a red dragon whose power resided in fire.
Angered, the dragon tried to scare off Tomo, but she was not to be fooled. The dragon was not aggressive at random, it protected something. Dragons are known to be dangerous and violent, but to this healer, the dragon's actions and expression was similar to a parent with a sick child who hasn't slept in several days and as a medical practitioner, Tomo seen her fair share of sick children with worried parents. As she walked closer to the enraged reptile, who was clearly too big for such a small cave, Tomo managed to get close enough to see a small child curled up in a corner, wheezing for air and terribly thin. It was that moment when Tomo's healing instincts took over.
"It didn't matter to me that this child was with a dragon," Tomo explained as she laid her diary on the table with Natsu's name written in calligraphy. "What mattered was that a child was in need and I possessed the power to save him."
Tomo managed to talk the dragon down as she explained that she was a Celestial Spirit mage who specialized in healing humans. The dragon replied, in a rough roar that echoed through out the cave that said, "Save him."
"I diagnosed the child, Natsu, with a rare sickness that attacks the lungs. It seemed like the boy was eating fire because his mouth, throat and most of his insides were terribly scorched. I soon learned that he was training to be a fire mage, but he wasn't properly expelling the flames from his body, thus the toxins started to poison him. Natsu would have died within a day or two without any medical help," Tomo recalled as she continued to read the diagnostic in the diary.
It took Tomo a good day and a half to repair the child's body, and after the first hour of medical treatment, colour returned to his cheeks, skin was supple and he could breathe easily. By the end of the day, the child slowly started to consume 'human' food again.
"So tell me, what's your name little one?" Tomo asked the child.
"I'm not that little, lady. My name is Natsu."
"And where are you from?" the mage asked but no reply came, only a glance at a dragon.
"Can you tell me where your parents are?" Tomo tried once more.
"He's right behind you, are you blind or something?" Natsu answered with confusion to the question.
Tomo looked over her shoulder to see the worried dragon as he watched her every move, which threatened to kill if anything went wrong. "You don't mean the dragon?"
"Hey, Igneel is the best Father in the world, who else can say they have a dragon as a parent. He's teaching me to become a dragon too!" Natsu replied with spunk in his voice, a great sign that he was toke well to the medication.
"But your human, you can't possible be a dragon."
"Not true, He told me that I will be one some day. I will eat fire, break boulders and everything."
"Even fly?" Tomo asked with a smile.
"No, humans can't fly, dummy." Natsu pouted at the 'silly' question.
Tomo took the information in and realized that the child ingested fire to be like his 'Father'. "Natsu, you can't eat fire anymore, it's not good for you. That's why you were sick."
"No, I got sick because I ate some bad fish. Igneel told me not to, but I ate them anyway," Natsu replied as he tried to lift himself up off the ground.
Tomo watched in amazement as Natsu's pink hair bounce through the air while he ran to his 'Father'. Little Natsu was welcomed with a grunt from his dragon parent, and it was that moment where Tomo could live with leaving a child alone in the care of a dragon. 'Where does a dragon find a child anyways?'
"Natsu, I have something to give you before you leave," Tomo called out as she reached in her bag.
"If its medicine, you can throw it in the ocean, cause' I won't be taking it!" Natsu commented while he stuck out his tongue.
"But if you drink it, the liquid will bring you luck. Don't you want to become a dragon?" Tomo asked with a sly voice.
"More then anything, and I will be wont I dad?" Natsu shouted happily.
"Then take these," Tomo handed the pink hair boy a case with six uniquely shaped bottles.
"Whoa, pretty colours, but this one is too girly. So you can have it, you need luck too," Natsu replied while he held out a pink bottle up to the mage.
"But it matches your hair," Tomo laughed only to receive a glare in complaint.
Tomo took notice to the dragon as she continued, "Natsu, I want you to drink one bottle every day until there are no more. They will stop any fire from harming you ever again." Igneel understood Tomo's instructions, and nodded.
"This way you can be a true fire dragon. Maybe one day you'll breathe fire instead of eating it." Tomo smiled at the little child who still held onto a dragon for support and with a toothy grin, Natsu agreed. "I can already hold fire, want to see?"
Curious, Tomo agreed to let the boy give her a demonstration. As she knelt down in front of Natsu she nodded in anticipation as a cue to start the show. "Ok here I go," Natsu started and raised his small hands up, as his skin ignited which created a small flame in his palms.
"That's very good!" Tomo cooed as she clapped in praise but Natsu's grin turned devilish, "I'm not finished yet."
To Tomo's confusion, she soon understood what he meant. The small boy cried out, "Karyu no Tekken, Fire Dragon Iron Fist" as the cave filled up with flames in the matter of seconds. Clearly it was a technique that is being developed but once the fire burned down, Tomo whimpered in complaint.
"I'll take that pink bottle now."
Lucy broke out in laughter, so much that her sides started to hurt. "I can't believe it, he was capable of that much fire power at such a young age."
"That jerk was dangerous, he was supposed to be cute like most little boys, but instead he lit me up. It took me weeks to grow back my eyebrows!" Tomo yelled in complaint. The room echoed with laughter for several minutes, Lucy could only picture the face on the proud Natsu and the unimpressed Tomo. "You have to admit, Tomo. It was cute."
"Chea', little did I know that the twerp wouldn't listen and screw up the basic task of drinking the medicine on schedule. It was a liquid to fire proof his body quickly and properly. He probably did more harm to his body then what was needed by skipping that last drink."
Lucy smiled at the story, things about her partner made sense now. "You know, he's a full-fledged Fire Dragon Slayer who, as you said, eats and breaths fire. He can even set his skin aflame." Lucy gushed over her partner, whose memory made her a little more homesick.
"And what of," Tomo stopped to look at her diary, "Igneel?"
"He went missing in the year 777, leaving Natsu to fend for himself until he found the guild. "
"And he's the one who took on Ami?"
Lucy nodded and once again, her expression sank into depression. Witnessed to the emotion, Tomo rose up from the table and gestured Lucy to follow her down a corridor which led the mage's to a room. Tomo opened the door and explained to Lucy that she would spend the night the chamber and as she continued her way to her own part of the practice, Tomo expected to hear the sweet sound of silence only to be mistaken as the sound of a distant memory echoed.
"I promise I'll be a true dragon some day, just you watch!"
"Always knew you would, little one."