Shadows
Chapter 14: Jeadou

The pale light was mistakenly dark. Darkness swallowed the room, coating everything a barely visible black. There were no windows, doors or any other opening anywhere. Their weak human eyes only allowed them to see as far as their cocoon of light.

The flames danced, leapt and flickered on the tip of Gray's ice torch. It was still surprising that thing hadn't melted yet. On the other hand, the cloth on the end was already dropping into charred ash.

"Be careful where you step, even if we've managed to pass the traps in the hall, there may still be some in here." Silver's voice echoed somewhere beyond the light into the darkness. He disappeared into it easily with the utmost confidence. For an old guy, his eye sight was far better than theirs.

"I don't like that guy being somewhere I can't see him." Natsu grumbled, his thin pink eyebrow subtly twitching. It always seemed to do that when ever he was irritated or annoyed. It was a little cute, actually.

They moved as a group, slowly slipping deeper and deeper into the darkness. Lucy's eyes managed to adjust a little fast than the rest. Her confidence to weave around mask things grew as well. As far as she could tell, they were just in a big empty hall. There was nothing the-

She saw it.

It was like a big golden eye staring down at her with a crushing presence. It hung on the wall with huge intimidating size. Old black letters coiled around the circular rings of gold hanging around its center piece circle, engraved with sharp black wings. At the very center of the wings was a protruding, sharp, golden needle.

All of it came rushing back like a tsunami slamming into her chest. Air leapt out of her lungs as she staggered backwards in the dark. Strength swept out of her body, dragging her legs to her knees.

The screams, the pain, the darkness. She remembered it all. Those dark black shackles and endless terrifying nights. She'd suffered through so much. Burning tears rolled down over her cold cheeks. Lucy wanted so badly to wipe them away, but she struggled to even lift a finger, or even make a sound.

As soon as Natsu's eyes adjusted somewhat, he ventured away from the light, that way he could see better. That, and he was able to follow after Lucy who disappeared the moment they stepped through the door. The second he stepped out the circle, he wished he really couldn't see.

Blond hair spilled over her shoulders that shook like crazy. A pale hand pressed so tightly against her mouth, her knuckles turning white. Brown eyes widened in silent fear as pools of water rushed over her face.

Natsu felt the world slip from under his feet. Seeing Lucy like that had completely immobilized him. It wasn't like before, it wasn't even on the same level. Lucy was so frightened, more than he had ever seen her. "LUCE!" Natsu wailed in panic, his body bursting to life. His legs darting off in a sprint, desperately trying to reach her.

Everyone turned on him like lightning, their bodies turning to sprint after him.

The next thing any of them knew, their bodies were colliding with the hard cold floor. Startled yelps and grunts cut off sharply around him. All his strength tore out of his body, dropping him into a weak pile. He tried to move, to gather whatever was left of him and go to Lucy. It was useless, his body wasn't listening to him. His arms and legs wouldn't move. He couldn't get to her. There wasn't even enough energy left in him to say her name.

"Dammit!" Silver's voice growled with rage. "JAEDOU, GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE!" Silver roared.

"Since ya' asked so nicely." A soft voice called out from the shadows.

Shrill numbing ringing echoed off the walls. As it settled into a dull buzz, the darkness began to fade.

Dark eyes jumped around the room. A thick translucent tube hung over the plate steel walls. An ashen light tinted with gold began to burn through the tube. Light reacted every corner, burning away the darkness.

Natsu couldn't even find enough strength to lift his head. All his eyes could see was the tips of two black and shiny boots, treading past him lightly.

"Your speakin's just as bad as always." A voice -not Silver's- joked half-heartedly, finishing with a short crisp tone. Even though he hadn't heard it ever before, Natsu felt certain he knew the voice instantly; Jaedou's.

"Your's isn't any better." Silver grumbled back with a hiss, showing how not amused he was.

"Now, now comrade. You ain't suppose to speak that way. After all, we 'aven't seen each other in such a long, long time." The boots paced up and down in short, slow steps. "How long has it been, hmm? Since, y'know, ya' betrayed me and all that." The pacing stopped a few feet out of arms reach from the weakened dragon slayer. It didn't really matter how far away he was, Natsu couldn't even lift a finger against him.

"Straight to the point, huh? You never change." Silver spat back. The pacing started again, this time with a little more weight and speed behind each step.

"Unfortunately, ya did." Jaedou snapped back. A sharp set of coughs followed, with a staggering steps.

"What's wrong, Jaedou? Is your age finally catching up to you?" Silver joked sourly.

"Shut up." Jeadou snapped back, funneling all his irritation into his voice.

Silver hadn't seemed the witty-type at first to Natsu. He looked like a very serious, all-business type. However, seeing the other side of him made him appreciate that side of him a little. Positions were in reverse with the unison of the two old colleagues.

"You'll mind that silver tongue of yours before I start picking off your precious fairy pets one by one." Jaedou threatened. That was the first time Jaedou hinted that he even noticed their presence, Natsu realized. It also made him think how Jeadou must know how defenseless they all were.

There was a surprisingly long silence before Silver spoke, his voice very deep and threatening. "You don't want to do that."

Jeadou let out a harsh laugh and stopped cold a second later. "If ya' really think ya' can come at me and win, why'd ya' hide?"

"Somethings aren't worth getting involved in anymore." Silver replied offhandedly.

A split second later the shining black boots disappeared, replaced by a pair of scuffed army boots landing swiftly in their place. A delayed burst of air threw itself against Natsu, almost flipping his limp body over completely. The floor shook in time with the roar of a crash, sounding like something being thrown into the wall with incredible force. Falling debris and bricks, and metal plates clattered against the hard stone floor.

In that fraction of a moment, Natsu felt the heavy weight of exhaustion loosen a little bit, letting some of his strength return to him. More sounds of falling stones and metal echoed in the empty room, which he assumed was Jaedou picking himself up. Mustering whatever strength he could scrape together, Natsu pushed it into his arms, lifting himself a little bit off the ground.

A second later, he was pushed flat against the floor again. A light pressured pushed down on the center of his back, keeping him pinned down. It felt like a shoe. It occurred to Natsu that the black worn army boots were also missing. "Stay down, kid." Silver's voice whispered just soft enough for a dragon slayer to hear. It was also bold enough to shut up and make Natsu listen, because Silver sounded serious.

Silver was planning something, and for some odd and uncomfortable reason, Natsu trusted him. It was only a little bit, but enough for him to obey temporarily.

"You've gotten stronger, comrade." Jaedou hissed.

"Stop calling me comrade, old man." Silver toyed. His voice took on a more aggressive, taunting tone than his better one before. "Ten years, huh? You're beginning to look your age."

"Don't kid me, Silver. I've had to diet a bit, s'all." Jaedou replied.

"You don't call killing people a diet." Silver hissed.

"You did, once upon a time. What was it you used to say?" Jaedou mused. "Fish are friends, not food. So instead, we got peo-"

The weight pinning Natsu down vanished. Natsu managed to lift his head just enough to see what was going on.

Silver's fist pressed against the palm of a weary old hand. Then his body disappeared into thin air. It happened so fast Natsu could barely tell what was going on. Silver's huge muscular body slammed into the ground like a ten-tonne sledge hammer. Rubble spat up the ground as Silver's body dug ten foot into the solid stone floor.

Next to the hole, stood a tall man with broad wide shoulders. A tight black blazer stretched across his wide back. Dust and small debris powdered black suit and stained his long black hair white. A white open shirt, torn in several places, revealed a pure muscled chest. After everything, his black boots still had their glossy shine. On his head, he wore a black, slim-rimmed hat. It reminded Natsu of one a cowboy might wear. It hid the roots of the long black hair, and shadowed his eyes. There was no doubt about it. That was the man who'd attacked him and Lucy the other night, the man who'd sent Lucy the weird gifts, and the man who'd made Lucy suffer so much pain. Jaedou.

All his rage bubbled to the surface, casting a red filter over his eyes. His hands itched so bad it was like they were burning to hit him. Every part of his body screamed to hurt the man the way he did to Lucy. He wanted vengeance.

Silver's words interrupted his thoughts. 'Stay down, kid.' His voice echoed with the strange seriousness that held him to the ground.

The same obedience swept over him again. It didn't fight or calm his need to avenge Lucy's suffering, but it did suppress it enough for slight rational thought to take over.

Even though he wished he couldn't admit it, Silver's words took top priority. Natsu would definitely get his chance for revenge.

Natsu bit down on his tongue, willing himself to remain hidden and watch.

Silver leapt out the hole with ease, looking mostly unchanged. You wouldn't be able to tell he created a ten foot man hole with just his body if it wasn't for the red mark grazing his shoulder.

There was no time wasted in waiting on Silver's part. He leapt back in, colliding fists with the man he used to call 'partner'. "How the hell did you escape?" Silver roared, locking caught fists.

"They're not as strong as you think!" Jaedou snapped back with surprising resentment on a level he hadn't shown before. Whoever 'they' were, Jaedou had a deep-running hatred for them.

"You lie." Silver snapped back, a twisted smile of fear and admiration on his lips. "They could have killed you in an instant."

"They were stupid enough to underestimate me. I was locked in a prison! They should have killed me." Jaedou let out a rippling laughter, kicking back away from Issac, who just came straight back at him. "Luckily enough, everyone was too distracted with their precious leader."

"Ta-" Silver went to snap, but somehow managed to hold back.

"Aha. Did I catch your attention too?" Jaedou remarked, examining Silver with a curious gaze.

"As if, you bas-" Silver swung, his face contracting with frustration.

"You're wide open." Jeadou's smile plunged, his face completely serious. "Gravity:..." Jaedou dodged with impossible swiftness moving directly towards Silver. His bare hand launched forward, pushing against Silver's ribbed abs. "crush."

Silver's body froze, his dirt ice eyes bulging in shock and horror. Time seemed to slow as the huge Silver wall of a man dropped to his knees. Blood tickled down the edge of his mouth, his eyes fading shut. "Damn." Issac weakly cursed, letting time catch up as his body collapsed against the stone ground.

It was all over. Silver, the impossibly fast man with monstrous strength...was completely defeated. Natsu hated to admit it, but Silver was like a beast, a super powerful beast. He'd walked out of a black-marked prison with ease. Yet, it only took one touch to take him down. It felt like a sucker punch to the gut as Natsu stared at the limp Issac. He looked as if he could get up any second, saying something bad-ass like 'as if that hurt me' or 'don't underestimate me'. He didn't get up.

Jaedou looked down at the silver-haired man laying defeat at his feet with pity. "It's a shame, Silver. I warned you that love is just a hindrance." A small sigh escaped from his lips, giving one last glance at him. Big, brown eyes like concaving holes did a quick check of the room with mild assessment.

The shadow over his face receded and Natsu finally got a clear look at his face. It was older than he had expected. Wrinkles indicated the years, and sagging cheeks were thieved of their youthful rose color. He looked around 50 or so.

The fact he was older made Silver's defeat even more surreal. Natsu had learnt not to underestimate an older man, but still...

Dark eyes suddenly flickered in his direction, startling his heart. Blood pumped furiously through the dragon slayer's veins with a hot, burning sensation that left coldness as it moved. He knew the feeling all too well.

"My, my a bunch of Fairy brats. What was that man thinking?" Jaedou sighed again. Brown-black eyes scanned lightly over Happy and Gray, hesitated over Erza and moved to him. A burst of intensity and deeply hidden rage flustered in his big dark eyes. They narrowed sharply on the dragon slayer, as the edge of his lip dropped in disbelief with a slight, mistakable hint of fear. "That hair...You can't be..." Jaedou drowned out his own voice, his boots quickly pacing over to where Natsu laid.

"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH HIM!" A voice shouted sharply to his side.

Jaedou spun softly on his ankles, his gaze hungry and soft. Both his hands stuffed into his pockets as he regarded the situation with care-free relaxed eyes. "It's been a while, Lucy." Jaedou whispered with a hungry purr.

Lucy struggled to stand, her legs spread apart keeping her steady. Sweat glazed her skin. Heavy breathing rasped her breath. Eyes hung heavily, pupils dilated. Fabric of her shirt twisted in her fist gripping her chest. "Jaedou."

Next Monday; Chapter 15: Stand Against The Enemy
With Silver taken out, Lucy takes her stand to fight. But how long with Silver's words keep Natsu down?

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-A-ccentric