Natsu, Lucy, Wendy, Romeo, Happy, and Carla dove into the gorge outside the city, avoiding dangerous and sharp rock formations as they flew. As the four dismounted from the two Exceeds, they looked back at Lucy, dizzied, nauseous, and an absolute mess from all the intense flying.
"Are you okay?" Natsu asked.
"I'm fine," Lucy groaned. "Just let me straighten myself up before I ruin the upholstery."
"Is the flying too much for you, Lucy? I hope you enjoyed the ride!" Romeo chuckled amusingly.
"Oopsie!" Happy gasped, noticing Lucy's condition. "I didn't mean to make her sick on purpose. I must've flown real fast."
"Yeah, ya think?" Lucy moaned, her face slightly turning green.
"Look, your face is going green!" Happy stated jokingly.
"Shut it, fleabag…" Lucy retched. "I'm gonna…"
Concerned for Lucy's health, Wendy lifted her hands, which glowed with blue light. She asked, "Should I use a spell to make you feel better?"
"Sure," Lucy nodded. "Anything that'll get me outta this jam will do."
"Troia!" Wendy inched her glowing hands towards Lucy's chest, and the light enveloped the blonde-haired girl. Within seconds, the nausea and dizziness was gone.
"I feel as good as new. Thanks, little girl," Lucy smiled. "You're a lifesaver."
"I'm little, but I'm capable of anything," Wendy replied. "I'm Wendy."
"Nice to meet you, Wendy," Lucy said. She turned to Romeo, "And you must be Romeo."
"Gee, thanks for remembering my name, Miss Obvious," Romeo rolled his eyes.
Lucy sighed, "You're welcome."
Wendy turned to Happy and asked, "Hey, Happy? Is this the gorge outside the city? You said you knew every location of Earth-land from above."
"Aye," Happy nodded. "But this is no ordinary gorge— this is the Zodiac Terrace."
The group paused to take a good look yonder of the rocky landscape. At the center was a small arena-like round circle, as evidenced by multiple stretched lines of edges shaped to look like seats. Sprawling on the circle was an assortment of broken weapons, withered bones, and small boulders.
"The Zodiac Terrace… I've heard many legends about this place," Carla spoke. "It's the burial site of countless demigod heroes that died in historic battles. Their remains were buried there." She noticed a few sprawled bones, "Well, most of them."
"And Gildarts was one of those dead demigods," Natsu said.
"Was he buried there, too?" Romeo asked.
Happy stated, "The day Gildarts died, Fairy Tail refused to bury his body in the Terrace. Instead, they buried him in the Crocus Southgate Park. Remember the story?"
"Oh, right," Natsu confirmed. "Forgot about that."
Wendy wondered, "Could Ophiuchus possibly be the one behind the deaths of all those demigods?"
Romeo added, "Yaj told us that a lot of demigods were killed because of her. Gildarts was one of them."
Carla replied, "We can only assume that Ophiuchus is the one responsible. But for now, we must focus on the situation at hand."
Natsu said, "Lucy said two little boys were trapped in a boulder. Where are they, anyway?"
"Help!" the voice of a child screamed from behind a large boulder, catching Natsu's attention. "I can't breathe!"
"Hurry!" another child's voice cried.
"Get us out!" the first child's voice coughed. Natsu sped towards the boulder, wasting no time.
"We're suffocating! Somebody call the Magic Council!" the second child's voice yelled.
Approaching the boulder, Natsu ducked to see two helpless boys trapped underneath. He said, "Easy, guys. You're gonna be alright."
The first boy cried, "We can't last much longer!"
The second boy added, "Get us out before we get crushed!"
"Okay, here goes!" Focusing his magic, Natsu clenched his fist which ignited in a blaze of fire. "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" In one swift movement, he struck the boulder with his burning fist. Within seconds, the boulder crumbled and shattered into pieces, allowing the boys to escape with ease.
"How you guys doin'?" Natsu asked.
"We're okay now!" the second kid answered.
"Jeepers, mister, you're really strong!" the first kid remarked.
Natsu dusted his heads and smirked, "Well, just try to be a little more careful next time, okay, kids?"
"We sure will!" the boys agreed in unison. "Bye, mister!" The two ran off as Natsu placed his hands on his hips, satisfied with his work.
The citizens of Crocus and the Fairy Tail wizards arrived and sat down on the edgy lines. Having witnessed the sheer power of Natsu's magic, they clapped. Most people such as Erza, Mirajane, Levy, and the Connells were impressed of the rescue, while some others like Gray, Juvia, and Wakaba Mine were displeased.
Erza smiled, "Another impressive display of his Fire Dragon Slayer Magic."
Gray scoffed, "Yeah, he's tough and all, but I'm still not convinced."
Wakaba added, "So a couple of kids were trapped in a crevasse, so what? We want something bigger than a rescue."
Juvia agreed, "That so-called hero will never replace my love for Gray."
Gray said nervously, "Um…"
Unbeknownst to everyone, the two boys ran up the gorge's slope, where they found Mard Geer sitting on a stone chair with a bowl of raw shrimps. The Lord of the Dead took a shrimp and ate it, as he said, "Stirring performance, boys. I was really moved."
Mard was talking to Kain Hikaru and Rustyrose, disguised as boys thanks to the Arc of Embodiment. "'Jeepers, mister,'" Rustyrose mocked, returning to his true form.
"I was goin' for innocence," Kain added, returning to his true form as well.
"And I'm giving two flaming thumbs up for the leading lady!" Mark smirked, and by 'flaming thumbs up,' his thumbs ignited with dark fire. "Well done, my lovely assistant! What a girl!"
Lucy's only reply was a sigh. Under Mard Geer's orders, she lured Natsu and his friends down into the gorge, but only without a choice. Turning to Natsu, she muttered quietly, "Get out of there, Natsu, while you still can." She knew there was something else in that crevasse Natsu didn't know about.
Back down the mountain, Yajima approached Natsu, panting in exhaustion from running all the way to the gorge. He wheezed, "Wait… wait for me… I'm too old to run that fast…" He caught his breath, "Did I… Did I miss anything?"
"Yaj, did you hear that?" Natsu asked happily. "They applauded for me. I did great!"
Suddenly, a loud hissing sound was heard from the crevasse the boulder once stood. Everyone paused. All attention was directed towards the hole in the crevasse, where a pair of serpentine eyes emerged from the darkness. Yajima gulped, "Um, I'd hate to burst your bubble, Natsu, but that wasn't applause."
Natsu, Wendy, Romeo, Happy, Carla, and Yajima gasped fearfully as the monstrosity emerged from the cave and pulled itself up. It was a humongous part-organic, part-mechanical snake covered in a series of massive dark scales and prominent holes on the sides, and a dark symbol adorning its forehead. Yajima and the Fairy Tail wizards were the most terrified; it was something they recognized, something that they feared the most.
Natsu asked Yajima nervously, "Y-Y-Y-Yaj? What do you call that thing?"
"TWO WORDS:" Yajima answered in a terrified scream.
The snake screeched ferociously, its image illuminated by lightning erupting from the sky.
"OPHIUCHUS!" Yajima finished.
"Ophiuchus?!" Natsu, Wendy, Romeo, Happy, and Carla gasped.
"Ophiuchus!" the Fairy Tail wizards exclaimed. Some recoiled in fear at the sheer size of the snake, while others stared with burning anger and hatred.
Watching from the mountain, Mard and his minions awaited the commencement of their well-laid plan. Mard announced, "Let's get ready to RUMBLE!"
Natsu, Wendy, and Romeo backed away from Ophiuchus as she slithered towards them, intent on feasting on their flesh with her fangs. Wendy shivered, "That's Ophiuchus the Snake Charmer?"
Romeo trembled, "The same monster that killed all those demigods?"
"A living nightmare," Yajima stated fearfully. "Ophiuchus devoured thousands of demigods throughout history, increasing her strength a thousand fold. Her strength increases every time she eats one!"
Happy exclaimed, "So the monster in front of us is some sort of super demigod killer?!"
Yajima replied, "Of all the demons of the Underworld in existence, Ophiuchus is the most feared and dangerous of all, and no one who fought her ever survived! Her power is nearly godlike!"
Natsu scoffed at the idea. He confronted Ophiuchus with an expression mixed with disgust and fury, "You know, it makes me sick to know that monsters like her killed a lot of people for power. Those demigods weren't the only ones; it was Gildarts. He was Yaj's last student— Fairy Tail's master! Ophiuchus may have fought lots of demigods…" He paused to let this sink in, "…but she's never faced a living god like me!"
"Don't do it, Natsu!" Yajima protested. "There's no way you could beat her!"
Natsu ignored him and cracked his fire-ignited knuckles, "I hate it when they kill people just to satisfy their lust for power. I hate it when they take away something people cared about! And I HATE it when they're talking like they're gods! So I'm just gonna kick it up a notch!" He added with fierce determination, "I WILL destroy Ophiuchus! And I WILL avenge Gildarts's death! For Yaj! For Fairy Tail! This is my promise, and I'm not gonna break it!"
Yajima and the Fairy Tail wizards were touched by Natsu's declaration, and they took his promise for granted. Some like Erza, Levy, and Mirajane smiled with tears.
Natsu growled at Ophiuchus, "Hey, Snake Eyes! You'll have to face me!"
"Natsssssssssu Dragneel…" Ophiuchus spoke in a venomous hissing voice. "You're the sssssssson of Igneel, King of Olympussssssssss."
"How did you know who I am?" Natsu demanded.
Ophiuchus replied, "My massssssster told me everything. The sssssssson of a god who became a mortal, yet you retain your powerssssssssssss. The godssssssss were poor in taking great care of their sssssssssssspawn."
"Wait a sec… By 'master,' does she mean Mard Geer Tartaros?" Happy questioned.
"He's the Lord of the Dead and ruler of the Underworld!" Carla stated, before she paused to think. "But…"
Ophiuchus continued, "My massssssssster recognized you as my newesssssssst target… and my newessssssst meal. I will take great delight in feasssssssting on the flesh of a god. Feed me with your blood!" She added maliciously, "Feed me now!"
"Bring it!" Natsu's body pulsed with a burning aura. He charged towards Ophiuchus and smashed her with various Dragon Slayer spells. "Fire Dragon's Wing Attack! Fire Dragon's Claw! Fire Dragon's Roar!"
Romeo rooted, "Yeah, that's it! Smash her up!"
Recovering from Natsu's attacks, Ophiuchus screeched and swiped her venomous fangs, but Natsu managed to dodge them.
Happy cheered, "Dance around! Watch the fangs!"
After eluding the fangs multiple times, Natsu countered with another shuffle of Dragon Slayer spells. "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist! Fire Dragon's Sword Horn! Fire Dragon's Flame Elbow!"
Wendy cried, "Go, Natsu, go! Don't let her get you!"
Carla advised, "Don't give up! Watch her movements!"
"Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!" Putting his hands together, Natsu shot a massive fireball against an injured and dazed Ophiuchus.
However, the snake anticipated the attack and absorbed the Brilliant Flame right into her mouth. She laughed wickedly, "You little fool… Your attacksssssss are ssssscorching to my ssssskin, yet tasssssssty to my tongue."
"You want some more?!" Natsu bellowed, and he charged to attack Ophiuchus again. He smashed her rapidly with multiple punches, kicks, and Dragon Slayer spells, while dodging her fangs with great speed and agility. The audience was awed by the intensity of this spectacular duel, anticipation coursing in their veins.
"He really is amazing," Levy marveled. "Natsu's magic is so powerful. It's almost like he's breaking through a dragon's scales and shatters its spirit."
"Fire Dragon Slayer Magic," Erza gasped. "Lost Magic, the Magic of the Gods."
"Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame Blade!" Natsu swung his arms in a circular fashion, creating a powerful and highly destructive torrent of fire and sent it towards Ophiuchus. The moment it struck, Ophiuchus's skin was burned and ripped into pieces, the creature screeching in absolute pain. The audience watched in bewilderment as Ophiuchus came crashing down in a crumpled heap.
However, the Snake Charmer still had some fight left in her, despite her serious wounds. She hissed, "No… I'm not finished yet!" In one swift move, Ophiuchus swept her long tail, which grabbed Natsu by the ankle and sent him flying into the air. Natsu screamed as he fell straight into Ophiuchus's open mouth. "Become my meal!"
With a snap, the Snake Charmer swallowed Natsu in one gulp. Everyone dreaded what became of the young Fire Dragon Slayer. Ophiuchus let out a gigantic burp, satisfied with her meal. "Delicioussssssssss…" she breathed. The burp was so loud and disgusting that it almost made Lucy hurl.
"And now, for the sssssssssssscond main courssssse… mortalsssssss by the hundredsssssss!" Ophiuchus hissed delightfully, preparing to lunge towards the crowd. However, she stopped short when she felt a strange sensation from her throat. Fear was replaced by confusion. Why did the snake stop?
"Ugh… Not good… I don't feel sssssssso… good…!" Ophiuchus moaned. "I'm feeling… a little… indigessssssstion… I… I…"
BOOM! A huge explosion erupted from Ophiuchus's throat, ripping her body apart and splitting it in two. From the snake's remains, Natsu emerged. He was still alive and breathing, albeit dazed and covered in purple slime.
"Natsu!" Wendy, Romeo, Yajima, Happy, and Carla cried.
The crowd applauded again, this time even louder than before. Just as rescuing the boys was a bit impressive, the battle with Ophiuchus was the most remarkable.
Wendy cried happily, "You did it, Natsu! You stopped Ophiuchus!"
Romeo shouted joyfully, "Alright, alright! You're the man! You rock, bro!"
Happy cheered, "Aye! You showed that snake who's boss!"
Carla remarked, "Most impressive, Natsu! You truly live up to your name as the son of Igneel."
Yajima marveled, "I can't believe it… You defeated the Snake Charmer!" He was amazed that Natsu defeated the monster that killed Gildarts, his last student. He then added with an awkward chuckle, "I guess there's more to Natsu than meets the eye. He really is a living god."
"You see, guys?" Natsu chuckled weakly. "That wasn't so bad." Sighing in exhaustion, he collapsed into a pool of slime from Ophiuchus's remains.
"Natsu!" Yajima ran over to check Natsu's condition. Towering over the salmon-haired boy, he pointed up to his spiked hat, "Kid, kid, listen to me. How many spikes in my hat do you see?"
"Nine?" Natsu's vision was blurry that he saw Yajima's hat split in three.
"Eh, close enough," Yajima shrugged, as he, Wendy, and Romeo helped him up.
"Come on, let's get you cleaned up," Romeo said.
"I'll heal you with my Sky Magic," Wendy offered.
In the mountain above…
Kain and Rustyrose were getting extremely nervous. Their boss would probably get upset for Ophiuchus's defeat. But to their surprise, Mard sported a confident grin as he sat back on his seat. "Boys, boys, relax. It's only half-time. The other half will begin shortly."
Back below…
Thanks to Wendy's Sky Magic, Natsu was fully healed. He said, "Well, that was easy. For someone who's called a super demigod killer, she's not so tough." He looked up to the sky above, which was full of clouds crying with rain. "Gildarts, I hope you're watching this. You'd be very proud of what I did for your guild."
"Wait, I think it's was too easy," Wendy said in concern, her mind clouded with thoughts. "Mr. Yajima said that Ophiuchus is nearby godlike. Does that mean…"
Luckily, she didn't have to continue. Natsu, Wendy, Romeo, and Yajima turned to hear a rumbling coming from Ophiuchus's decapitated body.
"That doesn't sound good," Yajima said worriedly.
To everyone's shock and horror, Ophiuchus's headless body stood up on its own… and the throat popped out three extendable heads! Their faces froze with fear at the sudden transformation.
"DEFINITELY NOT GOOD!" Yajima screamed, running away with Wendy and Romeo. The revived Snake Charmer was out for blood again!
"Feed me! Feed me! Feed me! Feed me!" Ophiuchus's three heads screeched simultaneously as they prepare to devour Natsu with their multiple fangs. Wanting to retaliate, the Fire Dragon Slayer gave a loud whistle, and Happy responded to his call. The blue Exceed swooped in with his wings and grabbed Natsu's back, flying him up.
"Come on, Happy!" Natsu shouted. "We've got a snake to fry!"
"Aye, sir!" Happy complied.
"Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame Blade!" Natsu transformed his arms into living indestructible blades of explosive flames. With Happy's aid, he dodged Ophiuchus's fangs, and sliced off each head with the Explosive Flame Blades. Unfortunately, no matter how many heads were chopped off, three new heads grew in its place. This went on for a few minutes or so as more heads sprouted from Ophiuchus's body as fast as lightning.
Finally, Natsu and Happy were horrified. They found themselves confronted by an endless stream of Ophiuchus's hissing heads.
"WILL YOU FORGET THE HEAD-SLICING THING?!" Yajima yelled at Natsu frantically. That strategy was only going to get him killed!
"Hold on, Natsu!" Happy yelled, and he rose Natsu up into the air, avoiding two snake heads that ended up smashing each other. The two kept on dodging, until one head hit Happy, knocking Natsu off his paws and causing him to land in a forest of Ophiuchus's heads. Natsu screamed, riding down the necks like a slide.
"Yaj, I don't think we covered this one in basic training!" Natsu yelled, about to slide into the mouth of one of Ophiuchus's heads. Luckily, another snake head chomped in an attempt to catch the Fire Dragon Slayer on its own, but missed. This knocked Natsu off the necks and into the side of a cliff. Before he could grab on, Ophiuchus wrapped her coils around his body, trapping him.
"It's time for my favorite part of the game…" Mard smirked with anticipation. The Snake Charmer was about to finish off the only nuisance in his plans. "…Sudden Death!"
"Oh, how the mighty have fallen!" the multi-headed Ophiuchus gloated. "To think you ussssssed to be a real pain in my sssssinussssss. Now look at you, wrapped in my coilsssssss like the lowly worm that you are. Helplessssssss, with no one around to ssssssave you. Now you will become my meal!"
"STOOOOOOOOOP!"
With a loud scream, Wendy appeared in front of Ophiuchus, standing on top of the snake's coils and spreading her arms behind Natsu.
"Wendy, what are you doing, child?!" Carla exclaimed. "Get back here! It's too dangerous!"
"Hm?" Ophiuchus noticed. "Is that another mortal I sssssssssee?"
"If you kill Natsu, you'll have to kill me, too!" Wendy cried defiantly, tears streaming down her face. "Natsu is my friend! He's like a brother to me! I won't let you hurt him!"
"Oh, I sssssssssse. Is he your friend?" Ophiuchus asked, before she chuckled smugly. "No matter. You cannot ssssssave him from my fangsssssss. He will be conssssssumed! And sssssso will you!"
"I'LL DO ANYTHING!" Wendy screamed with determination, the tears never ceasing. "ANYTHING TO PROTECT THE ONES I CARE ABOUT!"
"You have nothing left…" Ophiuchus finished. "…but your death!"
"WENDY!" Carla screamed tearfully. "NOOOOOOOO!"
Romeo yelled, "WENDY! GET OUTTA HERE!"
Yajima cried frantically, "PLEASE! OH, GODS! SOMEBODY! ANYBODY! PLEASE HELP US!"
The rest of the audience watched in stunned horror. Was this the end? Has Mard Geer finally won?
But then, Natsu's eyes flashed with an idea. He noticed that the multi-headed Ophiuchus's vulnerable weak spot was a hole between the multiple heads spawned from her body. Gathering all of his energy, all of his might, all of his will— Natsu erupted into fire with a mighty scream, breaking free from Ophiuchus's coils. The explosion was powerful enough to blow Wendy away with great force, until Carla caught her in time.
"Crimson Lotus: Meteor Flare!" Transforming himself into a living fireball, Natsu blazed towards the center of Ophiuchus's body and zoomed inside the hole. At first, the multi-headed snake was confused, but it finally struck her when her body suddenly inflated like a balloon. And then, she exploded with a mighty POP! Ophiuchus erupted into an endless sea of flames which caused a huge fissure. A pile of rocks broke apart and rained from the gorge, burying the rising flames until they disappeared.
The only thing remaining was Ophiuchus's tail, which had appeared to have gone limp. The audience was stunned of the battle's shocking conclusion.
"No…"
With a new terror condensing in their minds, Wendy, Romeo, Happy, Carla, and Yajima headed for the rubble.
"No, no, no! Natsu!" Romeo cried, surveying the rubble for any sign of Natsu. "Natsu, where are you?"
"Where are you, Natsu?" Wendy sniffled. "Please!"
"Natsu…" Happy whimpered. "Natsu…"
The panic kept increasing. The cries kept calling. And still, no response.
Finding no trace, Wendy, Romeo, and Happy quickly assumed the realization that Natsu died in the rubble. Consumed by grief, they sank to their knees and cried out with continuous screams of Natsu's name and heavy sobs. Wendy hugged Carla tightly, the white Exceed trying her best to comfort her, Romeo banged his fists in frustration, and Happy just stood still.
"No…" Yajima whispered sadly. "There goes another one, just like Gildarts." He had hoped that Natsu could go the distance. He never thought he'd see the day that his one last hope flashed before his eyes.
Mard watched from the mountain with satisfaction. Though he never expected Ophiuchus to fall by Natsu's flames, the result of the battle was all he needed. He believed he had finally won. "Game, set, match." He lit a cigar with a flaming thumb and smoked in victory. It looked like it was all over…
…but the silence ceased when a rustle was heard from Ophiuchus's tail. For a moment, everyone feared that the Snake Charmer had survived…
…but the tail was shoved from the rubble by a familiar salmon-haired youth with ripped clothes. It was Natsu! He had survived! He had won!
"NATSU!" Wendy, Romeo, Yajima, Happy, and Carla screamed in a mixture of joy and relief.
The audience cheered wildly in response. The Fire Dragon Slayer had survived, and saved the people from the Snake Charmer against all odds. The Fairy Tail wizards were overwhelmed with emotions. Natsu promised to the guild that he would avenge Gildarts by defeating Ophiuchus, and he succeeded. Now their late guild master could finally rest in peace. And as for Gray, the most skeptic of Natsu, he gave his own response in the form of a look of sheer amusement.
"Hmph," Gray smirked. "Not bad."
From the crowd, the same elderly man with short blue hair stared at Romeo with tears in his eyes. "Romeo… You've grown up."
Exhausted from the long battle, Natsu smiled weakly and waved to his new fans, who picked him up and carried him away on their shoulders, along with Wendy, Romeo, and Happy. The three hugged their best friend with tearful hugs and loving laughter. Carla, on the other hand, was flying above the crowd, wiping tears from her eyes.
"Magnificent, Natsu!" Carla marveled. "You have vanquished the beast!"
"Well, you gotta admit…" Natsu chuckled with a grin. "That was pretty heroic."
Yajima stood on a rock and threw his spiked hat into the air in excitement. "YOU DID IT, KID! YOU DID IT! YOU WON BY A LANDSLIDE!"
But not everyone was happy for Natsu. Mard Geer was extremely furious, glowing darker red and burning up his entire cigar. He held both Kain and Rustyrose's heads, burning them with his grasp.
"Ouch, ouch… Boss is mad… Boss is mad…" Kain winced.
Surprisingly, Lucy was impressed by Natsu's success. Clapping her hands, she remarked, "Well, what do you know?"
A new hero was born at last.
