Chapter 14

Sting quickly glanced towards Rogue lying on the floor. That didn't seem right. "Wait, what-when did this happen?" Sting shouted in-between the feelings of completely confused and bemused. There was only a brief sigh of frustration from Rogue. "So are Gajeel and Pantherlily alive?" Sting asked listening carefully for which way the octopus-like creature had dragged Yukino off towards. "They're alive, just unconscious." Rogue murmured as Sting sighed. "Well if this thing is capable of beating them both up, I mine-as-well wake them up. The least they can do is be the bait to rescue Yukino." Sting sighed picking up Pantherlily by the scruff and stomping on Gajeel as he rolled him over with his foot. "Hey, wake up." Sting grunted as The Iron Dragon-slayer opened his eyes wearily.

"You know? This is pretty pathetic, why were you even up here anyway?" Sting sighed as Gajeel just looked towards him. "Oh, look a blonde." Gajeel shrugged seeming to be thinking up of what he called Sting. "Put my cat down." Gajeel said suddenly noticing seeming frustrated. "If you remember correctly we are in a cave of death. A very dark cave, my twin brother came up here to rescue you two and yet you two are still passed out without a word of thanks." Sting frowned towards him. "I don't need no rescuing." Gajeel frowned. "You've been missing longer than Ravi and Clem." Sting frowned causing Gajeel to sit up rapidly. "Missing? Ravi and Clem?" Gajeel asked. "They've returned already, after three weeks." Sting frowned as Gajeel nodded glancing away. "Wait, what's that?" Gajeel asked glancing towards the floor where Rogue laid propped up against the wall.

"I told you he came up here to rescue you two. I never really did say that he succeed at it. But there's more reinforcements coming. Now get up, I brought Yukino with me." Sting sighed glaring down the cave as his eyes darkened. "When you're ready, I'm going to need back up." Sting sighed causing a strange confused color to flash a-crossed Gajeel's face as Sting pulled Rogue up over his shoulder. "Is Rogue uncosis?" Gajeel asked. "No, of course not. No he's sleeping. Because, sleeping in a cave full of monsters trying to kill you while one of your guildmates has been kidnapped by some mysterious monster is obviously the perfect thing to do!" Sting shouted already wondering away.

"I'm coming, already." Gajeel grumbled picking up Pantherlily and running down the cave pathway. "Why did you even bring Yukino up here?" Gajeel shouted remembering her magic from the Grand Magic Games. It didn't seem like something she could easily access, quickly, or have handled enough to go on a rescue mission. "Because, Yukino has the capability to decipher if anything is wrong with Lulu. That's why I brought her!" Sting shouted back glancing towards Gajeel who was slowly getting up. Sting glanced towards the end of the cave, three injured people from the group of five. One having already been kidnapped and deprived of her own magic power. There was no way this would go over well. "This cave has a strange smell to it." Sting sighed walking forwards in it. "It's a cursed cave, this mission was supposed to pay for expenses for another month. The cave was cursed to repeatedly drag in the non-magical beings and kill them." Gajeel sighed. "Looks like you've actually bothered with your research this time." Rogue gave a faint laugh from Sting's side. "Looks like sleeping beauty is awake." Gajeel grunted back. "Well, at least I came to save you. That can make up for something right?" Rogue sighed as a soft grunt came from Gajeel, obviously not wanting to admit that he needed 'saving'.

"Whatever." Gajeel sighed. Sting suddenly came to a stop between the two cave passage ways and continued down towards where Yukino's smell lead. "Gajeel…how long can a mage survive with a sudden lack of magic?" Sting asked continuing the extremely long seeming walk. "I'd say about in between ten minutes to an hour has been recorded, for the people without magic at least." Gajeel grumbled getting a look from the two mages who didn't even bother to ask how the people he had been talking to acquired such information.

"And how have you been surviving this whole time?" Sting asked suddenly as Gajeel looked towards him pulling out a few dim crystals that were once a radiant blue the color of Levy McGarden's hair. "Energy crystals. Levy was helping me build them for a situation that would occur such as a power outage. Turned out they didn't work as a resource for lacrimas, but they did work as a natural resource for me." Gajeel smiled. "They didn't work but you still trusted the invention?" Rogue sighed. "What can I say when you have a feeling you just got a feeling, ya know?" Gajeel laughed as Rogue shook his head and Sting let a small smile come to his face with a bit of understanding. "So any sign of Yukino yet?" Rogue asked glancing up from the floor. "Just recuperate your energy for when you need it, you can barely keep your head up. This is why I told you, you have to start cutting your hair." Sting grumbled going faster as it sounded as if there were finally sounds up ahead. "Gajeel, are you good yet?" Sting shouted as the Dragon Slayer stood up. "Of course, I'm always good for a fight!" Gajeel called back as the exceed upon his shoulder slowly awakened. "I have a job for you Pantherlily." Gajeel stated glancing towards the exceed who automatically bounced up with full understanding of the situation.

"Take Rogue down to FairyTail." Gajeel said pointing towards Rogue leaning on Sting's shoulder. "I'm not going anywhere Gajeel!" Rogue replied suddenly hearing him. "Come on Rogue I can see that injury completely, that wasn't from this monster. This monster is more docile if we're going to say so then whatever gave you that wound." Gajeel sighed as Rogue reached for his jacket attempting to shut it only to realize one of the buttons had fallen off of it. "I am not." Rogue muttered turning away from Gajeel as they headed further down the cave when Sting suddenly stopped. "Rogue, I think it's time you go back." Sting sighed as Rogue gave a swift look at Sting. "Of course not! Yukino is our guildmate, I'm coming to rescue her too!" Rogue shouted. "That has nothing to do with it! You've already made us a blood trail when your bandaging ripped open while we were walking, don't even try to fight this! You are going back with Pantherlily." Sting shouted as Rogue gave him what could be described by a venomous glare. "Why didn't you tell me when it first ripped open?" Sting sighed. "Thought you'd have noticed by now. We are Dragon Slayer mages" Rogue shrugged. "Of course not! We're always in fights together! I've gotten so used to your blood's scent that I just stopped noticing!" Sting shouted in reply.

"Well that's great and all but I'm still heading to rescue Yuki-"Rogue begun as Sting suddenly jabbed him with his elbow in the chest. "Sting-"Rogue suddenly growled stumbling back a few steps. "Obviously you can't do this, not a double injury. We're used to not getting injured at all anymore." Sting sighed shaking his head as he signaled PantherLily to grab Rogue and make a dash for it. "Watch the wind!" Sting shouted feeling slightly relieved with a swirl of agitation in what had just happened. Relieved because he wouldn't have to worry about losing another member of the group to whatever monster was up ahead and agitated for two reasons. The first reason being that Gajeel noticed first, the second being that Gajeel said that he should make his partner leave, oh and that the third reason? He agreed with Gajeel.

"Come on, we've got to find Yukino." Sting murmured pacing forwards quicker. "And don't slack on me since you made me send one of my strongest fighters from my guild away." Sting growled. "You're a guild leader, are you? The way I see it I shouldn't have to worry about slacking, I should worry about you trying to keep up though." Gajeel laughed a smile brimming to his face that gave grave detail to each of his dragon-like teeth. A smile slowly emerged upon Sting's face. A challenge. That's what that was. Something, that hadn't been said to him in a long, long time. Since becoming guild master at least. This was a challenge directly from Gajeel.

"Let's find Yukino, we might be running out of time. How long have we been walking?" Sting asked glancing towards Lecter who had remained silent in the cave this whole time near the shaking Frosch. "I should've sent Frosch back to…no I need Frosch for a reason." Sting thought glancing towards Frosch who was struggling to keep walking. "Approximately fifteen minutes has passed." Lecter replied struggling to sound brave as he replied. Sting nodded. "Don't worry, I've got your back." Sting smiled as Lecter nodded. "Yer cats afraid of caves?" Gajeel teased "Maybe, but I know a certain dragon slayer who has an exceed who's afraid of lightning and a guy who can make lightening." Sting quickly sent a retort over his shoulder. It wasn't like the two were afraid of caves. It was just that well they didn't like caves that had scary monsters that would suck your magic out and ultimately kill you after kidnapping a member of your guild. Those caves sounded wonderful now didn't they?

"My cat is totally awesome!"

"Sh, we're here."

Suddenly Sting squatted down near a cave wall observing the surroundings, just one giant monster. "Okay so you said the monster was virtually docile. Why would the pay be so high?" Sting whispered. "Because, it's been killing thousands of people amongst the villages." Gajeel rolled his eyes quickly. "Why hasn't any mage come to take it out yet?" Sting asked.

"Obviously because this thing takes mages out at the door and their partner waiting outside freaks out and drags them back outside the cave claiming it's a curse and the cave has to be cut off." Gajeel grumbled.

"You'd think there was more to it." Sting muttered.

"Nope, just that." Gajeel sighed as they both went back to doing reconnaissance.

"There, there's Yukino. She's in the center of the room." Sting whispered glancing about. "Where is it?" Sting grumbled glaring at everything in the room that could hide the monster from him. He was looking for anything that would block him from exerting his revenge. The revenge against the monster for meditated harm against his teammates, his guild-mates, and simply for making him mad. "Here's the plan, you stand here and I'm going to go in first." Sting instructed getting a glare from Gajeel.

"I'm not just going to stand here. You must remember this is my mission to destroy the monster." Gajeel retorted quickly.

"You must remember I'm coming to rescue a guild mate, you'll have no say in what I do." Sting grumbled and before Gajeel could retort again Sting spun around running towards where Yukino laid in the center of the room rocks beginning to fall, causing Sting to skid towards her. He grabbed her pulling her into his lap as suddenly a rock begun falling on to the floor. "Sting, it feels like my magic is leaving so quickly...it's hard to speak." She whispered suddenly glancing up at him barely keeping her eyes open. "No one shall leave alive!" the creature upon the roof cackled. The rocks were falling too fast there wasn't much he could do from such a position, he didn't have time to move, not without abandoning Yukino at least. And that wasn't happening, not this time. Sting moved doing the only thing he could think of wrapping his arms around her as he leaned his head over her, protecting her from being squished by the rocks.

Sting sucked in a breath, at least the last thing he did would be a

good thing in his life.