So here we are back with Internal Struggle, let's see what's happening with our story, huh?

Agony, that's what Natsu was aware of.

At first the only thing he could see was pitch black. All was darkness around him, and the dragon slayer was almost able to lose himself in it, to allow the endless night to consume him and somehow ebb away the stabbing throb tormenting his body. But it didn't work, even through the fog surrounding him, the pain pierced through causing a strangled cry to rip its way from his throat.

Heaving what felt like ten tons, Natsu struggled to open his eyes, waiting as the blurred images slowly came into a bleary focus.

"Magnolia?" he questioned.

Trembling arms braced themselves against the warm concrete of the sidewalk he was lying on, and struggled to push himself up to a sitting position, and he turned his head from side to side in slowed pained movements.

The streets were empty, which was more than slightly odd considering it was late afternoon and one of the busiest times in the city for the markets, and the salmon haired youth opened his mouth to yell for his guild but only a dry croak echoed through his vocal chords. Clearing his throat, Natsu swallowed a couple times before once again calling.

"Luce? Erza? Grey?"

Nothing, his voice bounced off the buildings as it drifted down the vacated streets and alleyways. His legs wobbled as he clambered to his feet, and began to stumble forward towards the direction of his Hall. Panic fluttered in his chest as he cast his eyes every which way, but still found no evidence of life, not even a paper fluttering in the breeze. Clothes lines hung empty, the fountains were dry, and doors lay open showing unoccupied houses completely devoid of furniture or memorabilia that represented the families that ought to live there.

"Gajeel?" Natsu called "Wendy? Master? Anyone?!"

But silence remained his constant companion.

Despite the pain, the dragon slayer sprinted towards his Guild, his breath coming in short ragged pants as sandaled feet hit the ground in rhythmic stomps. Skidding to a stop in front of the main gate, he burst through the doors, voicing an anxious shriek that echoed through the rafters.

"Is anybody here?!"

The guild was equally empty, the tables missing, and the bar no longer laden with the copious amount of food and drink normally adorning its shelves. Tears welled up in the youth's eyes, and fists clenched at his sides tight enough to draw blood.

"SOMEBODY ANSWER ME!" he screamed hot tears staining the wooden floorboards beneath him.

Falling to his knees, Natsu gripped his shoulders as uncontrollable tremors shook his muscular frame. Feelings he had long forgotten, ones he had buried deep within his heart so he would never be forced to endure them again, overwhelmed his already wildly beating heart. When he was a child, he had wandered around forgotten and abandoned, the isolation had ripped a jagged wound across his soul making the boy fear that he would be abandoned by everyone in his life. Then he had found Fairy Tail, and they had taken the broken child in, healing him in ways that few others could. They accepted his eccentricities, encouraged him and disciplined him to grow into the caring man that he was, and they were his family in every way except blood.

But now? Now Natsu was alone again, abandoned by guild, abandoned by his city, he was alone in the world completely and utterly isolated without a single soul to comfort him.

"No," he quavered "this isn't happening…they wouldn't leave….they wouldn't leave…!"

"But they have left you little dragon slayer, you're all alone…and you always will be"

Natsu whirled around to face the voice, water still flowing down his cheeks in despairing rivulets "Who's there?!"

Then stepping out of the shadows, a golem made of dark flame whose features were an exact copy of Declan smirked at the young man "Just me…"

"You…" Natsu snarled "What did you do to the city? To my Guild?!"

The golem shrugged "Nothing, this is simply your inner court, or put more simply…your mind. I have to admit this is new to me as well, when I took control of fire before it was simply like lighting a match, but you…you have a soul and a consciousness. Simply taking control of your body is not enough if I wish to ensure complete obedience, no I need to bring your entire psyche under subjection."

Relief rushed through Natsu as he stood, his guild hadn't abandoned him, he was merely shoved into his mind which would make sense considering he was human and no longer a dragon "Then that means I still have a chance to beat you and take my body back?" he stated with a fiery grin.

"A chance," The golem nodded "but to be honest, the odds are not in your favor."

"What's that supposed to mean you sneaky jerk?!"

Before Natsu even finished uttering that fateful question, hundreds of more golems streamed from the shadows, surrounding him in endless waves of malicious intent. The Dragon slayer merely shrugged "You think that making more of your disgusting face will help you? Let's see you try and face my Dragon fire!"

With screaming battle cry, the youth clenched his fists and pumped them in the usual manner he used when igniting his flames, but instead of the comforting warmth he was used to as fire licked around his skin, Natsu was shocked to see that his hands lay barren of magic. Not even the smallest spark was at his disposal "What?" he murmured as his world tilted in shock.

"HA!" The golem barked out a laugh pointing a mocking finger at his prey "Have you forgotten? How can you fight me with fire I CONTROL?! You're powerless dragon slayer, absolutely useless, and now you will learn how it feels to be completely alone without even your magic to save you!"

"No, no, nonononoNO!" Natsu begged as he shook his fists staring at them with eyes rapidly growing in both shock and horrified terror "Please light, please, please, PLEASE light!"

Nothing, and as one the golems advanced on the panicked youth, easily using his dismay to overpower him and drown him in darkness yet again. Like a teleportation spell, they drug him into the shadows, through the floor, and into the lowest part of the Guild into a dungeon that Natsu wasn't even sure existed in real life. Raising their hands they flung icicles at him, effectively pinning him to the wall. One through his right shoulder, several pinned his arms and legs, while one stuck in the center of his abdomen. Blood dripped down the wall to pool on the floor and the teen could only release a sobbed moan as he strained against the cold ice piercing his body.

"You are mine Dragon Slayer," the first golem whispered "even if you were to somehow miraculously be rescued by your friends and changed back to a human, I own you…body and soul."

A shiver slunk down Natsu's spine as the freezing temperature intensified as water began to drip through the cracks in the stone ceiling, plopping onto the pinned mage sliding down his hair and skin. Tears joined the rain, and as the youth gave one last heart wrenching sob of despair, the golem merely smiled and threw one last icicle.

Straight through his heart.

…..

Lucy and the rest of the guild raced out of the Hall, only to stop short as their eyes widened in horror "No…way…" Lucy gasped in a shuddering breath "Natsu…"

"Th-that…can't be him…can it?"

Grey's whispered plea only made the trembling currently afflicting the celestial mage's frame worsen and she found herself driven to her knees as sobs wracked her in violent convulsions "It's him," she wept "who else could it be?"

The guild merely stared in shock into the twilight as a red dragon beat its way across the stars, a lone figure of a man astride its shoulders, coming closer and closer to their home "What do we do?"

Erza, always the pragmatist, even she sounded at a loss for words as her keen warrior's brain quickly calculated the impending battle that would surely ensue with their approaching enemy. Grey shivered, despite being immune to the cold, there was something horribly sickening with the fact that they were being forced to face one of their own in what could possibly be deadly or even fatal combat.

"What can we do?" the ice mage muttered miserably.

Silence reigned and the fairy's felt stark bitter hopelessness begin to gnaw at their insides until the voice of Makarov interrupted the negative miasma building among the ranks "We do what we always do," he growled with a firm nod brimming with determined vengeance "we stick together!"

Turning to face Erza the aged master pointed in her direction "Erza, I want you, Grey, Juvia and Lucy to find a way to remove that man from Natsu's back."

"Right!" the group said in a shouted affirmation of their orders.

"Gajeel," Makarov once again turned "I want you, Levy, and Lisanna to be ground crew plus basic defense. I want you backing up our air team. Once the mage has been knocked out, you will restrain him and ensure he is properly bound."

"RIGHT!"

"Laxus, I will have you, Mira, Evergreen and Wendy to be aircrew. Your job will be to bring down Natsu without hurting him!"

"Of course!" Laxus replied with a nod.

"Then what are you brats waiting for?!" Makarov shouted "Let's get our Salamander back!"

"YOSH!"

"WAIT!"

The group stopped, and slowly turned at the strange voice, finding themselves facing a young woman with white hair and a black cape lined with purple feathers. Lucy felt her eyes grow wide and she rushed forward to land a solid punch to the girl's face, causing the stranger to fly backwards and hit the pavement with a heavy thud.

"YOU!" The celestial mage screamed "You're the one who kidnapped Natsu!"

Minora merely sat up, one hand massaging her aching jaw, "Yes I kidnapped him," she spat "and I probably would do it again, but as you can see the situation has become far bigger than you or me. Declan is insane and he means to use your mage to conquer all of Fiore!"

The news drove the guild into silence and Minora picked herself off the ground before continuing "However, if you will accept my offer of a temporary truce…I may have a plan to turn your salamander back into a human."

Lucy reeled back in shock, turning to look at her guild with questioning brown eyes, but a nod from her family urged her to face her one time enemy and growl;

"We're listening…"

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