~Gajeel~
"Gajeel, we should head back," Natsu said, putting a hand on my shoulder. The others had returned to Fairy Tail nearly three hours ago while Natsu and I had stayed to look for Darrick and keep searching for Silas. Still, we had found nothing.
"Yeah," I sighed, slowly following him. My legs felt heavy, and I was on edge from exhaustion and worry. I didn't want to go back to Fairy Tail and face Levy. I didn't want to tell her I hadn't been able to find our son.
"We'll find him tomorrow," Natsu told me, reading my mind. "If they took him to use against you, they probably didn't go too far. Once they make their move, we'll get him."
I nodded, hoping he was right. I just hope he's alright until I can get to him. The thought of those bastards hurting him nearly had me turning around and continuing my search. But, I knew the others were right. We needed to rest and come up with a new plan. Who knew how many people I'd have to fight to get him back, so being at full strength was my best chance of saving Silas.
"Gajeel," Levy said as soon as I entered the infirmary, "did you find them?"
I shook my head, sighing heavily. "I'm sorry, Shrimp."
"No, you did your best," she told me, trying to sound reassuring even as tears filled her eyes. "We will keep searching as soon as the sun rises tomorrow. Besides, they won't hurt him. If they're baiting you, they won't hurt him."
I climbed onto the bed beside her, pulling her against me. "We'll find him. I won't stop until he's home."
"Y-Yeah," she whispered, clinging onto my shirt. Considering how I felt, I couldn't imagine how upset Levy must have actually been. I had only been with him for a short time, while Silas had been the center of Shrimp's world for six years.
After an eternity, I was finally able to fall asleep. Even in sleep I was restless. Nightmares of Shadow Dwellers and all sorts of unthinkable things being done to Silas plagued me. When I opened my eyes in the morning, I was just as tired as I had been the night before, and even more worried.
Levy was no longer in the bed with me, and I assumed she had gone to get some breakfast before we went out to continue searching for Silas. I went into the main hall, looking for her as I yawned.
"Gajeel, there you are," Lucy said, handing me a large bowl of iron bolts. "Is Levy with you?"
I frowned. "Isn't she here?"
The blonde shook her head. "Master told us to stay out of the infirmary until you two woke up, so I just assumed she was still asleep. I got here early this morning, and I haven't seen her come out of the infirmary."
"That's weird," I murmured. "Go check the rest of the building. I'll go home and see if she went there."
"Lily just came from your house," she said, "and he didn't mention seeing her there. And, Mirajane didn't mention seeing her anywhere when she did her cleaning this morning. If Levy had been around, someone would have said something, right?"
"Damn," I sighed. "Where the hell could she be, then?"
"I have an idea, but I hope Levy isn't that reckless." As soon as she said it, I knew that's where Levy had gone.
"Damn," I growled, running out the doors. She had gone after Silas. Alone.
"Shrimp!" I called, finally reaching the area where Natsu and Lucy had found her the day before. I looked everywhere but couldn't find any signs she had been there. "Damn it, Shrimp, where did you go?" I sighed to myself.
"Gajeel!" Lily flew through the trees, landing on the ground beside me. "Did you find her?"
"Does it look like it?!" I snapped, my nerves on edge. I sighed, knowing getting angry at Lily wouldn't help. "Sorry. No, I can't find any signs of her. Not even her scent."
"I flew overhead and couldn't see her anywhere," he said. "Where do you think she could have gone?"
I sighed. "I don't know, but we have to keep looking. She's in no condition to go after Silas alone."
"Levy is stronger than you give her credit for," Lily told me.
"I know she's strong," I snapped, "but with all of the weird stuff that has been going on with her, I can't take the chance of her going off on her own and something happening." My hands were shaking now, and I silently cursed them. I was more shaken up than I would ever admit to anyone. I can't lose them both. I've already lost Levy once, and I don't think I could do that again. Especially not now.
"Let's regroup with the others. Happy, Carla, and I can search from the sky while you and the others search from the ground. We'll be able to cover a larger search area like that."
"Fine," I nodded, "but let's regroup fast. I have a bad feeling." Shrimp, take care of yourself.
~Levy~
"Silas!" I gasped, sitting up as sleep left me. I had been having nightmares all night about what could possibly be happening to him.
"Mommy," Silas cried, clutching onto my shirt.
Relief washed over me as I pulled him into my arms and hugged him tightly. "Silas," I whispered, over and over again as I hugged him. "Thank God you're alright."
"He has a few scratches, but other than that he's in perfect health."
I looked up at the sound of Darrick's voice, and spotted him sitting a few feet away from me. He didn't look quite as alright as he claimed Silas was. Scratches covered his arms and face, and there was a large gash across his chest, ripping through his black shirt.
"What happened to you?" I asked.
"I was ambushed while we were out searching for Silas yesterday. I must have gotten close to wherever they were keeping them, so they attacked me. I nearly got away until one of them snuck up on me and knocked me out."
"One of what?"
"Shadow Dwellers," he sighed. "There were at least twenty of the damned things. I managed to take out about half before I was knocked out. When I woke up, I was locked in here with Silas."
I looked around us for the first time, noticing we appeared to be in some sort of prison cell. The stone walls and floor were damp, and smelled of dirt and mold. The only source of light came from a candle on the wall facing the cell, and we seemed to be alone.
"Where are we?"
"I don't know," he shrugged. "All I know is we can't be far from Magnolia. We also appear to be underground."
Judging from the smell, I agreed with him. "How did I get here?"
"They brought you in a few hours ago. You seem to be unharmed, so I can't say how they captured you." Darrick frowned at me. "Don't you remember?"
I shook my head, looking down at Silas. "I went to sleep last night, and when I woke up, I was here with the two of you."
"That's strange," he murmured.
I nodded, stroking Silas's head and back, trying to soothe him as he laid on my lap. After a few minutes, he had fallen asleep. I was so relieved to see him that I felt like crying, but I told myself that it wasn't a time to be blubbering like a fool. I had to stay strong until we could escape, or until Gajeel and the others could find us.
Something had been nagging at me since Darrick had spoken, so I looked up at him. "Why didn't they kill you?" I asked. If Gajeel was who they were after, it seemed strange to me that they would keep him alive.
Darrick ran a hand through his blue hair, sighing heavily. "I think we were onto something before by saying that the Shadow Dwellers and Astaroth's followers were working separately. I don't think the Shadow Dwellers are after Gajeel. I think they're after you."
"Me?" I frowned. "Why would they be after me?"
"The vision you had of Astaroth back at the hospital, it isn't the only one you've had, is it?"
"How do you know that?" I asked. Darrick hadn't come back to Fairy Tail last night after I had had another vision of Astaroth. On top of that, I hadn't told anyone I had even had another one.
"What did you see?" He asked, ignoring my question.
"I was in the forest, searching for Silas," I said. "All of a sudden, Astaroth was just there. I didn't even know I had been having a vision until I woke up in the infirmary back at Fairy Tail. Why?"
"I think the Shadow Dweller Gajeel killed before had been summoned to kidnap you, not kill you like we originally thought. I also don't think it was the Shadow Dweller that had possessed you when you had your vision at the hospital, nor do I think that's what happened this time either."
"Then what do you think is going on?" I asked. "Why are Shadow Dwellers after me, and a group of Astaroth's followers are after Gajeel?"
"The group of followers are being led by the former councilman, Michello. I believe that, in order to seek revenge against Gajeel, he made a deal with a demon, thus gaining that demon's powers. However, we both know that demons never just make deals with humans—former demon hunters especially—unless there is something in it for them. I am guessing that the demon who made a deal with Michello was one of Astaroth's followers who was seeking revenge anyways. Knowing that Michello would have useful resources, the demon agreed to the deal and possessed his body. Astaroth's followers all think Gajeel is the one who killed their master, so it wouldn't be hard to recruit them to help Michello."
"And what about the Shadow Dwellers?"
Darrick stared at his hands for several seconds before answering. "The Shadow Dwellers know the truth, and that's why they are after you. I'd say both groups were after Silas yesterday, but the Shadow Dwellers got to him first. Now that they have the both of you, I'm sure Astaroth's followers will learn the truth about who killed him soon and change their target to you."
"But Michello—"
"Has been possessed by a powerful demon. If that demon chooses to change his target to you instead of Gajeel, Michello won't be able to stop it. As long as they have been fused, if the demon leaves his body now he will die. Michello wouldn't risk that, so he would go along with whatever the demon wanted."
"How do the Shadow Dwellers know the truth?" I asked, dread filling me with every word he spoke.
"What did Astaroth say to you in your last vision?"
I rubbed my wrist, remembering how it had felt when he broke it in the vision. "How does that—"
"Please answer the question," Darrick interrupted, his golden eyes determined as they met mine.
"He told me he was alive, and that I knew deep down he was. After that, Gajeel showed up. But…" I trailed off, remembering the rest of the vision. Gajeel shot me.
"But what?"
"How is this important?" I snapped. "And how do you know so much?" Darrick seemed to be way more informed than anyone else at Fairy Tail, almost as if he had always known. "None of that explains why they didn't kill you. Regardless of my visions, or who these groups are after, you aren't involved, so they wouldn't need you."
He met my eyes, and I was surprised at how sad they looked. "I'm more involved in this than I let on. Actually, I…I haven't been completely honest with you about who I really am."
"What does that mean?" I frowned. "Darrick, who are you?"
"There will be time for that later. What else happened in your visions? How did you come out of them?"
I sighed. "The first time, Astaroth shot me in the same place you did. The second time…the second time it was Gajeel who shot me."
"Interesting," Darrick mumbled.
"Now it's your turn to talk," I said. "Who are you, and how do you know so much?"
He shifted positions, turning towards me. When he did, his shirt also shifted, and I saw more of his chest from the ripped material. I wished then that I hadn't. As quickly as I could, I laid Silas on the ground and stood in front of him, pulling the knife from my boot as I did so. Thank God I remembered to put shoes on before I left...however it was that I did.
"Levy," Darrick began, getting to his feet. "I—"
"Don't you come any closer," I snarled, unable to take my eyes away from his chest. It looked like a scar, but the shape was unmistakable. Branded into his skin was Astaroth's mark. He's one of Astaroth's followers.
"I'm not one of Astaroth's followers," Darrick said, reading my thoughts.
"Then why do you have his brand?" I snapped.
His hand touched the skin on his chest where the brand was. "Will you give me a chance to explain?"
"You have three seconds," I said, gripping the knife firmly.
"I used to be a member to Astaroth's followers. After he was presumed dead, the cult fell into chaos. I took that opportunity to escape. I joined the Special Forces Unit in order to make up for my past. And after I learned of the cult's plan to kill Gajeel, I went to Fairy Tail and told Makarov everything."
"Why didn't you tell everyone else that this cult was trying to kill Gajeel?" I snapped, furious that his silence could have gotten Gajeel killed.
"If I had, I would have had to explain to everyone who I really was. I wanted to keep that a secret as long as possible. I knew that once you found out who I was, you wouldn't trust me anymore."
"You're damn right!" I held the knife up a little higher, "how do you know so much? And what did you mean by Astaroth was presumed dead?"
"I think you know the answer to the second question by now," Darrick said, quietly. "We know that Shadow Dwellers aren't intelligent enough to come up with this plan on their own. And even if they were, why would they want you? We also know it takes a powerful demon to control this many of them."
I shook my head. "Astaroth is dead."
"In a sense," Darrick sighed. "The night you activated the explosion lacrima, Astaroth panicked, knowing he was about to be killed. In order to save himself, he placed part of himself inside of you."
"That's impossible," I snapped.
"It's true. He has remained dormant all this time because he was too weak to make a move."
"And he's strong enough now?" I asked, unable to believe Darrick's words. "Wouldn't I have known if Astaroth was inside of my body? And how could he control a large group of Shadow Dwellers without me noticing?"
"Because he hasn't been inside your body for six years," Darrick said, glancing behind me.
I early dropped my knife when I realized what he meant. "N-No. Astaroth is dead."
"Astaroth has been very much alive all this time," Darrick told me. "Like I said before, he has just been lying dormant until recently. Tell me, when did Silas's dragon slayer abilities begin emerging?"
"A few months ago," I said.
"And when did the Shadow Dweller attacks begin on Fairy Tail, as if they were searching for you?"
"A few months ago," I whispered.
"Astaroth was lying dormant because he didn't have enough power to make a move. But, once your son began realizing his own abilities, and his magic began growing stronger, so did Astaroth."
"No," I shook my head. "Astaroth is not inside of Silas!"
"Levy, open your eyes!" Darrick snapped, knocking the knife from my grasp as he stepped closer. "If Silas wasn't your son, I know you'd be able to see it."
Again, I shook my head. Frustrated, Darrick put his hands on my face, forcing me to look at him. "Levy, think about it. You were weak at the time, too, so your body was easy for him to slip into. That would explain why you were in a coma for so long. Not only was your own body and spirit healing, but so was Astaroth's. And, what better vessel was there for Astaroth to hide in all these than a vulnerable child? If he slipped into his body before he was born, no one would notice. You would think the aura coming from Silas was just his, and you wouldn't suspect that part of it was Astaroth's."
He let go of my face and grabbed my wrist, looking at the red mark there. "This turned red after Gajeel found you, didn't it?"
"I—"
"With Gajeel's power so near, Astaroth became more active. Because that mark represents Silas, when Astaroth's demon aura would become more powerful than the half-demon aura, your mark would change to represent that shift."
"How do you know all of this?" I asked, feeling my world slowly falling apart around me. That bastard Astaroth has been hiding inside of my son all this time! How did I not see it?!
He released me, looking down at the floor. "I—"
A Shadow Dweller appeared outside of the cell, startling us both. It was a disgusting creature, with skin as black as the night sky, and eyes that were a hollow grey. It wore a long cloak that swayed around it in some invisible breeze, exposing only the demon's face and clawed hands.
"You are needed upstairs," it said, its voice a low growl.
Darrick turned towards the demon, stepping in front of Silas and me defensively. "They aren't going anywhere."
The Shadow Dweller laughed, the sound sending chills through my bones. "Not them. I have come for you, Master Darrick. Half-demon heir of Lord Astaroth."
