Welcome back everybody. The votes are in! And…nobody voted on who they preferred to see as my special guest for this chapter. So, I went ahead and made special arrangements myself.
Lucy: Hi Fairy. I'm glad to be here with you.
Lucy! Your supposed to wait until I introduce you!
Lucy: Sorry Fairy, but looking this cute isn't easy and I couldn't risk anything happening to my complexion before your long introduction.
….Well, anyways. Do you know what our generous fans have been talking about?
Lucy: Me right? I mean you had me get kidnaped. I should punch you in the gut for that.
*gulps* Actually, it's more about Star and whether or not he's a demon from the Book of Zeref.
Lucy: He isn't it he?
All I'm going to say is this. Star and Zeref are somehow related, but I won't say how. If you wanna know more, it'll be revealed in this chapter. So Lucy, mind doing the disclaimer for me?
Lucy: Sure thing. #1Fairy doesn't own Fairy Tail or anything that isn't Star and creative plot points. Hope everybody likes this chapter. I know I was super cute in it.
('.')
The remaining members of the guild sat on the main floor of the guildhall. No repairs had been made and the main hall was still a complete wreck, but even so, everyone was holding out in the event that the rest of the guild returned. Mira, especially was beside herself with worry.
The barmaid was pacing the guildhall looking frantic. It was unusual to the others to see her not behind the bar with a peaceful smile on her face.
'It's been several hours and no one's come back yet. Not even Lucy's back from the hospital! If only I wasn't so useless right now I could do something-"
"Mirajane!" Reedus yelled, snapping her out of her thoughts. "You need to relax. Everything will be alright. The master won't let anything happen to anyone."
Just when Mirajane was starting to calm down; the guild's doors suddenly flew open and everyone began to file inside. She panicked again. They all looked exhausted and hurt. Not what she was expecting to see.
"What happened?!" Mira exclaimed.
At the forefront of the group were Cana and Gray, each of whom was supporting Star's body on a separate side. He was still unconscious and looked to be in a great deal of pain. Erza and Fang were right behind them.
"Mira, please help me get Star up to the beds. Gray and Cana, you make sure everyone else is alright." Erza requested.
"Alright." Gray replied.
"Can do." Cana replied also.
Mira came rushing over and took Star from Gray and Cana as Erza came and grabbed his other side. Together the two, carefully carried him upstairs to one of the many beds that guild contained for this reason.
Fang, meanwhile, just watched the two girls carry his childhood friend off. Gray walked up to him to engage in conversation. "Feel free to make yourself at home here. I know you're not be a member, but you've done plenty to earn everyone's trust."
"Thanks Gray, but right now I just want to know that my best friend is gonna pull through…." Fang replied.
"Yeah, you and me both."
"Tell me Gray, has Star been enjoying himself here?"
Gray looked at Fang like he had grown a second head, but before he could say something rude, he saw the seriousness in the blonde's eyes. "Yea, he's been having lots of fun. Him and Natsu have gotten so close the two are almost brothers now. And I can see why, the two have a lot in common, they're both looking for someone."
"Looking for someone?"
"Natsu was raised by a dragon too, Igneel. And just like with Star he disappeared one day. The two promised each other that they would never stop looking; that they would help each other every step of the way."
"Is that so…." Fang said with a faraway look on his face.
"You alright man?" Gray asked. "You look a little flustered."
"Not at all," Fang replied smiling genuinely. "Just got things on my mind." When Gray didn't respond, Fang continued. "I'm gonna take a walk around Magnolia, when Star wakes up, tell him I wanna talk to him."
"Can do man." Gray said as he watched Fang leave the guildhall.
Scene change
Erza and Mira just finished wrapping bandages around Star's body. He was still out, but it was likely because he was sleeping as opposed to being unconscious.
Mira smiled at him, "Well, that's about all we can do. He'll be ok."
Erza nodded, "It'll be a while, but I think your right Mira."
"Erza, what's going on? Why isn't the master with you?" Mira asked, now serious.
"The master was hit with a powerful spell that drained him of his magical powers and nearly took his life. Alzack and Bisca were tasked with taking him to Porlyusica." Erza replied.
Mira gazed at the sleeping form of Star, a smile playing at her lips. She sat at his bedside, reached out and began to lightly stroke his hair. She turned back to Erza. "Was Phantom really that ready for us that even Star was taken out?"
"It's hard to explain what happened….I think it's best if I just show you."
Before the barmaid could inquire as to what her friend had meant, Erza presented the memory lacrima that she had received from Star. Mira watched with bated breath as the lacrima glowed and a projection began to play.
Scene change
Natsu was dragging one of Phantom's guild members behind him. He was in a bad mood and even Happy wasn't saying anything in wake of what just happened. The man being dragged was freaking out, but Natsu was ignoring him plain and simple.
"Come on man, just let me go already!" The man whined, though the pink-haired teen once again ignored him.
"So, what are we gonna do now?" Happy asked in a quiet voice, testing the waters to see if his best friend was in a more talkative mood.
"Isn't it obvious? We're gonna go save Lucy, then we're going back to the guild and making sure Star's okay." Natsu answered. "Alright pal, where is she?" Natsu asked tightening his grip on the man behind him.
"How should I know?" The man asked in a strained voice, the dragon slayer's grip around his neck making it somewhat difficult to speak.
"Look, a close friend of mine may or may not be severely injured right now, and another of my friends was captured behind our backs. So, I'm not exactly in a good mood, which means that if you don't start talking, you're gonna regret it." Natsu stated aggressively.
"I already told ya, I don't kno…." The man began. The Phantom wizard's body was engulfed in flames before he could even finish his sentence. "AAAAH! Come on man, this hurts!"
"Start talking, otherwise you'll turn into a pile of ashes before ya know it." Natsu stated, turning and glaring back at his prisoner.
"Aye." Happy said in agreement as he flew alongside the pink-haired wizard.
"If I knew anything I'd have told you by now!" The man pleaded desperately.
"Funny, I was thinking you should've been burned to a crisp by now." Natsu replied uncaringly.
"Come on man, put out the fire! Look, our headquarters is just up ahead. If I had to guess, that's where this Lucy chick would be!" He exclaimed.
Natsu let the fire go out before letting go of his collar. The man released a sigh of relief, though after that the dragon slayer punched him with enough force to send him flying down the rocky pathway to the bottom of the mountain.
"Then why didn't you say that in the first place? God these guys are dumb." Natsu thought aloud.
"Aye…." Happy muttered in agreement.
The two friends continued to travel up the mountain just a few feet before they collectively began to look at the large castle-like building up ahead.
Scene change
Lucy found herself waking up face down to a cold stone floor. She slowly sat up and groaned a bit. She looked around her surroundings and saw she was locked inside a cell with her hands tied behind her back. She also noticed that her gate keys were gone as well.
"What the…." She muttered. "How did I get here?"
Appearing out of thin air outside the door to her cell, Jose appeared. His hat was down, covering his eyes and he wore a smirk. "So, your finally awake? I was getting worried about you Lucy."
"Who are you?" Lucy asked.
He walked into the cell and bowed. "I am master Jose Porla, of the Phantom Lord guild."
Lucy's eyes snapped open before she glared at her adversary. "You're with Phantom!" She stopped to consider what had happened to her. 'That's right. I was captured by two of the Element Four. I was on my way back to the guildhall after taking Levy to the hospital. They attacked me on my way back.'
"I'd like to apologize for this dingy cell and being tied up must be degrading; but I'm afraid I had no choice my dear. That is how you treat a prisoner after all."
"You're the jerks who attacked my friend Levy! You better let me go, my friends are gonna come looking for me."
"Depending on how well you cooperate, I'm more than willing to treat you as one of Phantom Lord's esteemed guests rather than a lowly prisoner."
"What do you mean by that?" Lucy was interrupted by a purple centipede crawling up her leg. She freaked out and kicked out sending the insect flying across the room. "Yuck! The bug crawled on me!"
This made Jose smirk even more. "See, you don't want to stay in here do you? I have a beautifully decorated suite waiting for you….if you promise to behave."
"Why does your guild keep attacking us?"
"Who is us?" Jose asked rhetorically. "Oh, I'm sorry, are you talking about Fairy Tail? It was a means to an end, and that's all."
"What!"
"You see we were working towards our objective to obtaining a certain someone. They happened to be a member of Fairy Tail, so if we have to destroy the guild to get them, then so be it."
"Who are you talking about?"
"Oh my, my; you're such a naïve young lady. Not at all what I'd expect from a depute." Lucy gasped. "I'm talking about you of course. Lady Lucy, the privileged daughter of the wealthy Heartfilia family."
"But…..how did you find out about that…." Lucy said voice broken.
"You know; I'm surprised you never told your fellow guild members the truth. And I don't understand why the daughter of a wealthy tycoon would stoup to such cheap and dangerous work such as wizarding for a such low-class guild. Do you?"
Lucy was trying to hold it in. The tears of her past were beginning to break through. "I've been kidnaped?"
"No my dear, I promise it's not like that. We're not looking for ransom money, we're just doing our job. We were hired by your father to bring you home to him."
Sweat rolled down the poor girl's face. "No…..I-I don't understand. Why would he want me back?" She put her head down.
"Why do you seem so confused?" Jose asked. "Any father would go looking for a daughter who ran away from home."
"Not him…." Her voice barely above a whisper. "Honestly I'm shocked he even noticed I was gone." She suddenly snapped up and threw a hard glare right at Jose. "I'm never going back to that house! I don't want anything to do with him!"
"Oh dear….I should have known that you would be problematic."
"Well you might as well just let me go."
"I'm sorry but I can't do that." Jose grinned.
"Please," Lucy said. "I need to go to the bathroom…."
Jose chuckled, "Give me a break; you don't think I'd fall for the oldest trick in the book do you?"
Lucy began to squirm uncontrollably. "No….for real….I'm dying here."
"Fine then…." Jose said pulling out a small bucket.
"A bucket!" Lucy said in disbelief.
"Heh, Heh, Heh, Heh, Heh, Heh, I'm ready for any old trick you might throw my way."
Lucy sighed before getting up and standing in front of it. "I guess it'll have to work."
"Your actually gonna use it!" Jose freaked. "Well! I have never met such a vulgar young lady." He then turned around to give her some privacy. "I'll turn away because I'm a gentleman."
Lucy smirked behind his back, then promptly kicked him right where the sun doesn't shine. He fell the ground face first clenching his family jewels and shaking in pain.
"You know there's a reason why old tricks are still around, because they work." Lucy made to leave by the window. She stopped and winked at Jose on her way out. "Bye, take care, kay."
When she got to the window she gasped and looked down. It was ten stories to the ground. Behind her Jose slowly got back to his feet, still struggling through the pain.
"I forgot to mention….this cell is several stories high."
Lucy looked back and forth between her captor and the ground. She thought about everything that her father and said to her, had done to her. Then she thought about all the good times she's had in Fairy Tail. That's when she made her choice. Turning to face Jose, she closed her eyes….and let herself fall from the edge of the window.
Scene change
"So, this is Phantom's main base, huh?" Natsu thought aloud as he continued to walk forwards.
"Natsu look, it's raining people!" Happy shouted cheerfully, gesturing a paw out.
The pink-haired dragon slayer made a confused expression. His confused expression, however, was replaced by one of worry when the scent of the falling person reached his nostrils.
"That's not just some person!" Natsu exclaimed, charging forward in an attempt to beat the body to the landing cite.
"Natsu!" Lucy screamed into the air as she continued to fall. With her body just about to smack into the ground, Natsu jumped forward with everything he had and just barely managed to grab ahold of her body and change her trajectory.
"Whoa! It's raining Lucy's!" Happy exclaimed.
"I made it just in time." Natsu said, his voice muffled by the ample chest of the blonde-haired wizard.
"Yeah….thanks." Lucy said, a genuine smile etched on her face. "I knew you'd save me." Within moments, the dragon slayer lifted his friend off of his body, helped her to stand up, and freed her from her bindings.
"Are you okay?" Natsu asked in a concerned voice.
She nodded, "I think so." She whispered, her voice shaking as she did.
"That's good news." Happy said. "We better get back to the guild."
"What!" Natsu yelled. "That's their headquarters! Let's get em."
"We can't! Erza told us to retreat!" Happy argued back.
"Cause she's a wimp! I'll face those guys by myself if I have too!"
"But you saw what happened to the master and Star."
"Exactly, that's why I want to get revenge!"
Hearing that made Lucy think back to what Jose said. Was her father really the one behind all of this? Was it her fault that Fairy Tail was under attack?
"You're not strong enough to fight them on your own!" Happy said.
"What did you say!" Natsu yelled.
"I said you can't!" Happy yelled back.
"Urg, I heard you the first time!"
"Everybody's hurt!" Happy tried to reason with him.
"I'm not hurt!" Natsu protested back.
"I'm sorry…." Lucy muttered, shutting up both Natsu and Happy. They turned to look at her, but she was looking at the ground, her hands and body trembling. "I'm so sorry….." She started to cry, thinking about all the horrible things that everyone has gone through all because of her. "All of this….everything….it's my fault. But I don't wanna leave, I wanna stay with you guys."
She turned and looked at her friends with tear stains rolling down her cheeks. "Cause I love being in Fairy Tail."
"Hey what's wrong!" Natsu asked, concerned. "Your crying, why are you upset?"
"You can tell us." Happy said.
Her strangled sobs prevented her from answering, so Natsu did for her. "Your one of us, you don't have to leave."
Happy turned to his trusted partner. "Come on, let's go back to the guild."
Natsu rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, ok….I guess we outta." He turned, picked Lucy up and placed her on his back. "Ok, time to get up, let's go Lucy."
The three began to head back to the guild as Lucy's sobs echoed through-out the desert. But Jose was far from done. Up in the tower, we watched the two wizards carry off his objective with ice running through his veins. Massive amounts of purple magic energy erupted from around his body.
"She's made me angry! Her fate is sealed!" He growled out.
Scene change
In the wake of what was revealed on the lacrima projection, Mirajane could do nothing but stare blankly ahead even as the screen itself disappeared. The course of events she had just witnessed made her blood run cold.
"T-That thing….was Star?" Mira asked in a tone of disbelief.
"It may have been his body being used, but I don't believe Star was in control." Erza stated, "We're lucky that Fang showed up when he did."
"He's the wizard who walked in with you right?" Mira wondered. "I've seen him around town before. He likes to hang out at that pub on the end of town."
Erza nodded, "Let's head back down and let everyone know what's going on."
Scene change
As soon as Mira and Erza appeared from the second floor everyone gathered around them looking for answers.
"Mira?" Cana said running over to them.
"How is he?" Gray asked.
"He's….going to be ok." She replied. "But I don't think he's going to be doing much fighting right now."
Every looked disappointed at the news. "Great, first the master and now we've lost Star too." Gray said.
"He was probably our best shot at beating them too." Cana replied looking down. "Now what do we do?"
"We need a real man right about now." Elfman muttered.
Erza looked around at everyone's sullen expressions and noticed that someone was missing. "Hey you guys, where did Fang go?"
"He ran off," Gray replied. "He said that if Star woke up then he wanted to talk to him. Other than that, I have no idea."
Erza clenched her fist and looked away. 'If only Fang were here...he'd be able to fight….' "I'm going to take a shower and try to rest up a bit. I'll be upstairs if anyone needs me."
As Erza walked away, silence fell over the room. Morale was dangerously low right now, with the master and Star both being out. Nobody knew what they would do if push came to shove. Finally, Mira broke the silence.
"Where's Natsu you guys?" Mira questioned.
As if to answer her question, the doors of the guildhall shot wide open. Natsu came inside carrying Lucy on his back with Happy at his heels. Lucy still looked upset even though she wasn't crying anymore. Cana and Mira gasped at the sad and distraught look on her face.
"Natsu, what happened?" Gray asked, running up towards the trio.
"You guys aren't gonna believe this…." Natsu began, earning the interest of everyone present.
Scene change
Star found himself standing in a room of complete darkness. All around him he could see only one thing, the thick purple clouds that surrounded him.
"Where am !?" Star wondered.
"I think the answer to that should be quite obvious." A dark and ominous voice replied.
"Who are you! Show yourself!" Star shouted out reaching for his pendant. His face went from determined to shocked when he realized it wasn't around his neck. "Where's my pendant.…"
The voice chuckled, "Don't think for a second that your cosmic magic is capable of even scratching me."
Slowly fading into existence before Star was the same demonic beast that had taken him over only a short while ago.
"W-Who are you!?"
"Don't you remember?"
"Remember what?" Suddenly Star clenched his head in excruciating pain.
"This…."
Suddenly, before Star's eyes he saw the Phantom Lord's guildhall. He also saw the demonic beast tearing through everything and everybody without mercy. Then he saw the creature's fight with Gajeel and how he never stood a chance. After that, Fang risked everything just to get that one attack off.
Star looked on with fear and disgust before coming to a conclusion. His expression dropped and he spoke slowly. "That's me…..isn't it…."
"Of course it is. We are one and the same."
"NO!" Star shouted in defiance. "I'm nothing like you! I'd never hurt my friends like that!"
The demon threw back its head and let out a terrifyingly sickeningly laugh. "HAHAHAHAHA! How naïve. Do you not even remember what happened that night all those years ago? The night that you obtained your powers? The night that you killed your own family!"
Star gasped, and his anger instantly evaporated. "My family…..Did I really….kill my family?"
"You really don't remember anything do you? That good for nothing dragon couldn't find the guts to tell you what happened. That's why he sealed away your powers and memories. He was afraid that you'd lose control again and kill him too."
Star's eyes flashed again. "You take that back. Lagiocrus was a great father! He raised me and showed me how to fight and survive!"
"Would a good father just get up and leave you?"
The demon smirked at the look on Star's face. The cosmic wizard knew he was stumped there. "But that's…..not….."
"He was afraid of you! That's why he sealed away your powers and memories. He knew that his seal would only work for so long before you broke through it. He didn't wanna be there when you got your memories back. Because he knew that you'd obliterate him."
"But I'd never….." Star trailed off. He clenched his head again. "I can't…..I don't remember…."
"Your powers haven't seemed to fully return yet. I'll go ahead and take the liberty or filling in your lost memories for you."
Star looked up into the eyes of the beast for a couple seconds. Then he nodded. "Tell me. Tell me what happened to make me who I am today." Star balled up a fist. "I wanna know the story behind my powers….I wanna know who I am."
"You are the heir to a powerful wizarding clan known as the Shooting Stars. Your father was the leader of this clan. His power was far beyond anything that you could ever imagine. His power was so great in fact….that it took down the great black wizard Zeref."
Star's eyes widened at hearing that name. "I've heard that name before. Is that why I have the power to completely destroy anything controlled by black magic?"
The demon nodded, "Yes, you inherited much of your father's power, but let's skip to the event that would forever change the fate of the Shooting Stars."
"What happened?"
"Growing up you never had it easy, always living in the shadow of your father. 'Oh, here comes the wizard who killed the great Zeref, I'll bet his son is ten times stronger.' Your hate and anger only got stronger as time went on. All that hatred and rage eventually took shape inside your body. It took shape into me. You killed everyone in the clan, your father, your mother….everyone. Then….you ran. Tired and exhausted you were found by Lagiocrus. I'll never forgive that bastard for tricking you into believing he would take you in. He sealed away your powers….he sealed away me!"
Star looked away in shame, remaining silent.
"I'm not your enemy Star. Accept me as a part of you and we will be the most powerful wizard in the world." After that the demon faded away and Star felt everything begin to turn white. "Now wake up Star. Your friend Lucy needs your help."
Scene change
Everyone in the guildhall was preparing for the next encounter with Phantom. They knew it wouldn't be easy, especially with so many members hurt and their trump card unconscious. But, none-the-less, everyone was doing everything they could to help out. Macao and Wakaba were working on a plan of attack, while Gray and Elfman stood nearby. Cana was trying to get ahold of either Laxus or Mystogan. Lucy was sitting on a barrel in the back of the room by herself, Natsu was right next to her.
"Hey guys, I'm gonna need some spell books for holder type magic from the archives!" Macao yelled out.
"Next time I'm bring out all my explosive lacrima." Wakaba said loading up a bag with the magical crystals.
Gray looked over at Lucy's crestfallen expression. "Don't worry, we'll get em' back for this." He tried to comfort her.
"….I know, I'm not worried about that." She replied looking down. "It's just….it's all my fault…."
Natsu had an unusually angry look on his face. He stood with his arms crossed and wouldn't talk to anyone.
"Being targeted by dangerous people is just one of the downsides of being rich. At least you protected by a real man….like me." Elfman said pointing at himself.
"Would you give it a rest already!" Gray griped.
"I gotta say I was shock when I heard the news." Happy said looking up at her from the floor. "Why'd you hide the truth from us Lucy?"
Natsu turned and looked at her. She explained herself. "I wasn't trying to hide anything. I mean there's no way to bring up that I'm a runaway in casual conversation." She sighed. "I've been gone for a year, and he hasn't cared, now all of a sudden he wants to force me to come home!? He's done all those horrible things just to get me to go back! I hate his guts!"
Natsu, Gray, and Elfman just looked at, not sure what to say. Lucy continued, "But still, if I hadn't run away, none of this would've ever happened."
"Come on don't be ridiculous, your dad's the one to blame." Elfman said.
"Idiot!" Gray snapped at him.
"Ahhh….I mean it's Phantom's fault." Elfman corrected himself.
Looking around the guild Lucy could only shake her head at all the misery and suffering before her. "No….I'm the one who brought trouble to the guild and it's all because of my own selfish choices. I'm so very sorry. I'm just gonna go back home and hope that all of this will be over with."
"I don't know about that." Natsu spoke up for the first time since Lucy explained the situation. "I can't see you playing the part of the pretty princess sitting around in your mansion. Laughing with us in this filthy guildhall, going on adventures even though you freak out all the time. That's who you really are."
Lucy looked at him through shining eyes.
"You said you wanted to stay with us right? Why would you ever go back to the place you ran away from? Come on, who are you trying to kid? Your Lucy of Fairy Tail." Natsu gave her a thumbs-up. "No more running cause you belong here with us."
Lucy started crying again. Gray rubbed the back of his head. "Aw, don't cry. It's just not like you."
"Yea please," Elfman said shaking himself. "Real men are weak to womanly tears."
"….I'm sorry…." She balled out. Loke watched the scene unfold from a little further away. His glasses shined mysteriously before he walked off to who knows where.
"How's Star doing Mira, any luck?" Gray asked, noticing that she was coming back down the stairs after checking up on him again.
"He's still not awake.…" Mira replied in a saddened tone. "Cana, have you had any luck locating Mystogan?" She questioned, turning towards her as she continuously examined her cards.
"Damn it!" Cana shouted out angrily, tossing her cards up in the air in an agitated manner. "I'm not getting a reading on Mystogan, which means he probably won't be back to give us any help."
"Damn….we still have too many injured. Even with Alzack and Bisca back things aren't looking good." Gray thought aloud. "They said the master won't be able to help through this."
"Oh, come on!" Natsu encouraged, "We can take em' on! There not so tough!"
"I think there's one person we still haven't tried calling." Mira stated. She and Cana walked over to a nearby communication lacrima and began to operate it. Soon enough the image of Laxus appeared within the crystal sphere.
"Well now this is a surprise. What do you want?" Laxus scoffed, obviously not taking a friendly view on the barmaid's call.
"Laxus….our guild is under attack and the master is seriously injured. Most of our other members have also suffered injuries and we're unable to locate Mystogan. We could really use your help." Mira stated.
"Guhh.…" Laxus grunted out in a dissatisfied manner.
"Please, Fairy Tail is in serious danger." Mira pleaded, though the words she said made her inwardly scowl.
"Man, Makarov is freaking pathetic, hahahaha! I don't see how this is remotely my problem. Your big girls, so deal with it yourselves." Laxus sneered.
"So, you're not gonna help us?!" Cana asked in an agitated manner.
"Of course not, why would I? That senile old toad started it, so why do I have to be the one to clean up his mess?" Laxus countered.
"Laxus, they're trying to kidnap Lucy and we really could use your help." Mira continued to beg.
"Lucy? Do I even know her? Oh yeah….I think I remember. Hey, tell ya what, if you can talk blondie into being by woman then I'll do anything she wants." Laxus stated.
"You are such a pig!" Cana exclaimed.
"Are you sure you wanna talk that way to a guy your begging for the help of?" Laxus countered with a cocky smirk. "Do me a favor, if that old geezer manages to pull through, tell him he's over the hill and that he should hand the guild over to me."
As Laxus went on a laughing spree Mira's rage finally got the best of her. The lacrima exploded into a thousand tiny pieces. Mira was standing there with tears in her eyes, but before she could so much as let one fall, someone wrapped her up into a tight hug from behind.
"You shouldn't be crying Mira." He let go of her then turned to everyone else. "We don't need that bastards help, not if I have anything to do with it." Star stated in reassurance.
"Star….you're ok?" Mira whispered.
"Hey man you had us worried sick." Gray said. "Are you gonna be able to fight?"
Star turned to him and smiled, "Of course, I've still got plenty of fight left in me." He turned to address everyone present. "I'm sure you all have a lot of questions about what happened, and I'll explain what I know later. But right now, we've got bigger problems to deal with."
The members of the guild looked at him and nodded in understanding.
"Great to have you back buddy." Natsu said with a smile.
"Aye!" Happy commented in his usual way.
"Is Lucy doing alright?" Star asked.
"Your buddy Fang wanted to see you as soon as you were up and about. You should head out and try to find him." Gray told him.
When Star opened his mouth to reply, the ground began to shake at an interval of a few seconds per shake. With worried expressions, everyone began to rush out of the guildhall; even Erza, who wasn't finished with her shower yet, raced outside dressed in only a towel.
Scene change
"W-What the hell?" Natsu uttered in a tone of disbelief.
In the water, out in the distance, a large structure stood in place, being supported by a series of mechanical, metal spider-like legs. The same building that was keeping Lucy captive. Being driven by Jose and the Element Four with the intent to destroy everything in its path.
"It's a guildhall with ginormous legs!" Happy exclaimed.
"I-Is it Phantom?" Loke wondered aloud, sweat dripping down his brow.
"Who else would it be?" Star asked rhetorically.
"I never anticipated this….I never thought they would go to such extremes to attack us." Erza said in a fearful tone. The large mobile guildhall ceased its forward movement a moment later.
"Surrender Lucy Heartfilia at once and I promise your lives will be spared. Refuse, and….well, see if you can grasp the symbolism." Jose stated over a loudspeaker.
The centermost point of the guild's headquarters began to lift upwards as if it were a retractable door. Out of the void, a cannon could be seen, which extended and directed itself towards Fairy Tail's guildhall.
"It's the magical focusing cannon Jupiter.…" Mira uttered fearfully, her pupils shaking as she spoke.
"Kill them!" Jose sneered angrily.
A large collection of pitch-black magical energy began to gather at the tip of the cannon's barrel. It continued to grow, collecting more and more power with each passing millisecond.
"RUN!" Erza yelled out. "Everyone! Get outta here!" Suddenly she bolted forwards.
"Erza!" Mira shrieked.
"Don't be stupid!" Macao yelled out.
"You're only throwing your life away!" Wakaba yelled, "This is ridiculous!"
In the mists of running Erza re-quipped into something entirely different. It was incredibly heavy set armor blue-gray in color. Attached to her wrists were two large shields that looked almost capable of stopping anything. On her head, of course, was a helmet to complete the look.
"She re-quipped." Cana said.
"What are you doing?" Loke shouted.
"Protecting the guildhall." Erza replied defiantly.
"That's her Adamantine Armor." Happy said.
"Is she gonna try and block the cannon's shot?" Bisca asked.
"There's no way her armor will hold against a blast that powerful." Alzack added.
"ERZA!" Natsu yelled.
Gray was busy retraining him from doing something reckless. "We aren't going to be able to stop her!"
"We have to have faith." Star stated. "I'm not sure if I can stop a blast that powerful. Fang could do it, but I doubt we'll get lucky twice."
With a mighty roar, the cannon's attack shot forth. Water rippled in its wake as Erza stood her ground. She brought her two shields together forming a giant barrier in front of her that intercepted the cannon's blast.
"ARGHHH!" She cried out feeling the effects of the attack on her own body.
The blast didn't seem to be weakening at all. Unfortunately, the same couldn't be said for Erza's armor. Little cracks eventually became bigger cracks, which lead to actual bits breaking off entirely. At this rate Erza wouldn't last much longer.
To everyone's relief, however, the blast did finally end, but the force sent Erza flying backwards towards the crowd of her guild mates. She rolled on the ground for a while before stopping and moaning in pain. Her destroyed armor disappearing in the process leaving her with a white blouse and her normal attire.
Natsu was the first one to run up to her and make sure she was ok. "Erza! Are you ok? Say something?"
From inside the guildhall, Jose smirked. "Makarov has fallen. And now Erza can no longer stand. Any chance at victory has slipped through your fingers. Surrender Lucy Heartfilia immediately, you have no choice."
"Like hell we'd ever do that!" Natsu roared angrily, raising his fist in the air defiantly.
"What kind of guild would hand over one of their own to a monster like you?!" Bisca exclaimed.
"So, stop asking! Cause we're not gonna give you any other answer." Natsu shouted back defiantly.
"Yeah!" Alzack shouted in agreement.
"You hear that?! Lucy's staying right here!" Macao roared.
One by one, each and every member of Fairy Tail shouted something along the same lines in the defense of the blonde. Their refusal to hand her over, even in the face of most likely death, was inspiring. Lucy almost collapsed on her knees, but she managed to stop herself and remain standing. However, she was unable to stop the stream of tears that fell from her eyes.
Jose sneered angrily, "You've just made the biggest mistake of your lives! Here comes a second helping of Jupiter!" Just like before, the magic cannon began to swell and gather magical energy.
"You've gotta be kidding me!" Macao said in surprise.
"They're going to fire that thing at us again!" Alzack shouted.
"Now it's my turn!" Star shouted. He grabbed his pendant as quickly as he could and was enveloped by his magic form. He drew his sword and used cosmic speed to fly directly in front of the guildhall.
"What are you doing Star?! You can't take a hit from that cannon, no one could survive that!" Mira shouted worriedly, though the cosmic wizard didn't move.
"There's no way that thing can fire at full power again. Even still, if I don't at least try then we'll all be dead!" Star shouted.
"But you said it yourself." Mira pleaded. "You said that even you couldn't stop a blast that powerful."
"If Erza could do it, then so can I!"
'No Star….don't do it....' Erza thought. 'It was one thing for me to try, but you don't have magical armor to protect you.'
"I am afraid that your friend is correct. You don't stand a chance against our magical cannon." Jose said.
Star began to charge his blade with a colossal amount of cosmic magic. The blue aura engulfed the air around him and whipped around uncontrollably, the force behind which rivaled that of the Jupiter Cannon.
"Star!" Mira pleaded, "Don't do it….please…."
Natsu looked on with his teeth grit. He didn't want think about what would happen if Star failed. It wasn't an option. The redhead beside him felt her exhaustion overtake and her allowed herself to relax into the concrete ground. She knew that she was outta the fight.
The massive gathering of magical energies reached their critical points and shot towards their intended target. Star stood his ground and prepared to mount his counterattack.
"Cosmic Flare!" He roared, swinging his blade forward and sending a massive blast of white-bluish cosmic magic shooting towards the oncoming blast.
The two forces collided with one another, hitting with so much force that a massive wind storm whipped around repeatedly. It was a tug of war, neither side being dominant over the other. The force behind the cannon's attack slowly inched closer to Star and his guildhall.
"Ugh!" He groaned, using both his arms to stabilize his sword and keep his own attack steady. "More…..just a little longer…."
"H-He's doing it!" Cana exclaimed in an astonished tone, gazing as the wave of white continued to clash with the colossal ray of black.
Scene change
"M-Master Jose, that boy is repelling the cannon's attack!" One of the controllers exclaimed worriedly.
"I-Impossible.…" Jose uttered out of disbelief, a small amount of sweat dripping down his brow.
Scene change
Star felt a massive surge of cosmic magic flood through his being, the likes of which he hadn't ever before. "AAHHHHHHH!" He screamed, pouring more and more of his magic into his attack.
With one powerful burst, the energy that had been fired by the magic cannon was consumed, but in the wake of the energy's disappearance, the cosmic magic that backed Star ripped through the air. The attack continued to fly forwards, heading directly towards the barrel of the large weapon. When contact was made, a large explosion of fire and smoke erupted.
Scene change
"Status report! Tell me what's going on!" Jose roared angrily.
"The Jupiter Cannon isn't responding sir….it….it's too damaged to fire again." One of the men replied. "And Totamaru was caught up in the blast. He's been knocked out cold."
"This boy….he may serve quite the problem if we don't something about this now. Switch to plan B, I'm not wasting anymore time here!"
Scene change
"N-No way.…" Gray trialed off with a shocked expression on his face.
'He….he did it. He actually did it.…' Mira thought, standing there watching.
"The Jupiter Cannon….he destroyed it." Erza said in an awestruck tone.
Before their very eyes, the barrel of the magical weapon was completely destroyed. The central hall of Phantom's headquarters was also completely in shambles, fire raging within the control room of the cannon itself.
"How's that for flashy….Fang…." Star muttered panting heavily. From where he was in the air, he could see his childhood friend approaching their position with his aura flaring with the blazing intensity of Zhu Que.
Star landed at the forefront of his guild mates a moment later, stabbing his sword into the ground in an effort to keep himself standing. He still was panting and looked completely worn out. Almost immediately, Mira was at his side with a concerned expression etched on her face, helping him keep his body steady.
"Star, are you alright?" Mira questioned.
"Yeah….I used up a lot of my magic energy in that last attack, but I should still be fine, I just….need a minute." Star replied, prompting the barmaid to smile warmly.
"You know you shouldn't have done that…." Mira lightly chided.
"I had to protect our guild." Star replied. Seeing that the immediate threat was now over, Erza forced herself to stand and limped her way over to the two.
"Erza! You shouldn't be pushing yourself, your hurt!" Mira scolded her.
"Yea, come on, let's get you checked out." Star said offering her his shoulder.
"Don't waste your breath, you haven't beaten me yet." Jose called out. "Awaken The Giant!"
More tremors ran through the land shaking the entirety of the ground around everyone in Magnolia. The Fairy Tail wizards looked up in horror as, to their surprise, the guildhall began to move again. The two towers acting as smaller castles suddenly started moving and turned into giant arms with three thick fingers on each hand. That wasn't the worst of it though; the arms began to draw something in the air, a magic circle!
"That's the magic circle of the Abyss Break, one of the forbidden spells…." Mira trailed of fearfully.
"Is he nuts?! A black wave that big would wipe out the entire city!" Loke exclaimed.
Then. To make matters worse, from the windows of the large mobile headquarters, hundreds of dark purple creepy creatures began to pour forth. They were made of pure shadow and wore hoods that concealed their faces, except their menacing red eyes, which could be seen glowing from underneath.
"You're in quite the quandary aren't you Fairy Tail?" Jose mocked. "There are only two ways this situation can play out. Either my troops will tear you apart, or you'll be blown away by the Abyss Break."
"Are you kidding me!" Macao freaked. "If he fires at us he'll kill his own men."
"Surely, he's bluffing, who'd do something like that?" Wakaba asked.
"No he's gonna do it." Cana stated, surprising the two men. "Those phantom soldiers are created through Jose's shade magic. They're not human, so it won't matter to him if they're destroyed."
"What the heck are phantom soldiers!" Bisca asked.
"Are you saying they're ghosts?" Alzack commented right after.
"We gotta do something to stop that spell from firing." Cana said.
The shades began to swarm around the guildhall, hovering over the Fairy Tail wizards, getting ready to swoop in and attack their prey.
"I bet that the spell is being powered by the higher ups. If we take down Jose and the Element Four, then this is over. We only need to do that before the Abyss Break fires." Star stated.
"Easier said than done…." Wakaba muttered.
"What are you thinking Star. We bring the fight to them now." Natsu said cheerfully, a grin etched on his face.
"Exactly, but first I need you to do something for me Mira." Star said turning to the snow-haired woman as he spoke.
"I'll do whatever I can." Mira assured.
"All I need you to do is make sure that Lucy is somewhere safe. If they're after her, then it's safe to say that the second they capture her they'll just retreat." Star stated, eliciting a nod from the barmaid.
"Wait, I…." Lucy began to protest coming up to them.
Mira waved a hand in front of her face, casting a small sleeping spell and knocking the blonde out cold. The barmaid caught Lucy's body as it fell forward, then dragged her back into the guildhall so she could safely transport her out the other end. This way, Phantom wouldn't see where she was being sent off to.
"Alright, now that that's outta the way, I think it'd be best if we go into two separate groups, and go on opposite ends of The Giant so we cover more ground. I'll go to the west portion, and Happy will take Natsu and Gray to the eastern section." Star stated, turning back to said people as he did so.
"Right." They collectively replied, nodding their heads in understanding.
Erza groaned from her position on Star's shoulder. "I….I wish to fight as well."
Star smiled at her. "Rest up a bit. We can handle this."
"Hang on a minute, you're short one person." Elfman pointed out, walking up from behind the dragon slayer with a determined expression on his face.
"Huh?" Natsu uttered confusedly.
"You've got to take down the Element Four and the Iron Dragon Slayer. Your gonna need all the help you can get for a job this big." Elfman explained.
"And I take it you want to help?" Star guessed.
"I'm doing this because I want payback for what these punks did to our guild. If I have to fight to the last breath for Fairy Tail, I will." Elfman replied in a determined tone.
"Happy." Star called, turning to look at the cat as he did so.
"Yes?" Happy inquired, his tone no longer cheerful but serious in light of the current situation.
"Can you carry three people?" Star questioned.
"Aye sir." Happy replied while simultaneously nodding.
"Elfman, you're going with Natsu and Gray." Star stated.
"Thanks….I promise I won't let you down. Today I prove just how manly I really am." Elfman replied with a smirk.
"I know you'll pull through, but enough talking for now. We don't have much time." Star stated.
Natsu grabbed onto Happy's feet, after which the feline took flight. Elfman then grabbed on to Natsu's ankles, and proceeded to grab Gray himself. The four began to soar towards the large fortress courtesy of Happy's wings. Star followed much the same fashion, taking off towards the western portion of the massive guildhall using his ability to fly.
"Alright guys, our guild mates are working on taking down that spell, which means it's our job to hold off these soldiers. We have to put our trust in them and hold up on our end!" Cana exclaimed.
The soldiers let out a collective demonic cry before they descended on the remaining Fairy Tail members. This battle would be far from easy, but none of the combatants were willing to let that deter them from giving this fight everything they had.
Scene change
"Head's up guys, we're coming in hot!" Natsu shouted so as to warn his comrades of their impending landing.
The person at the very bottom of the chain was slammed into the section of the castle's stone roof that they landed on; his body getting dragged several feet upon letting go of Elfman's legs. The other two members landed on their feet, having no issues with their method of entrance. Gray, on the other hand, was steaming.
"You did that on purpose!" Gray shouted angrily, a bright red trail showing itself from his face down his chest as a result of the friction.
"I didn't do that on purpose! I just thought you'd be smart enough to let go before something like that happened." Natsu replied smugly.
"Bite me flame-brain. I'm looking for the Element Four somewhere else. You two have fun on your own." Gray stated before he began to walk off.
"Actually, I think it's best if we all split up, otherwise it'd take too much time. I'll go look somewhere else for a member of the Element Four, the two of you should do the same." Elfman said before he walked off in another direction.
"Tch, I ain't going for a member of the Element Four. I got my sights set on a certain dragon slayer that I got a bone to pick with." Natsu growled out. The three went their separate ways, Happy having chosen to accompany Natsu.
Scene change
Star landed on the roof of his acquired section before stopping to come up with a plan. He turned around and saw that his guild mates were fighting endlessly against the soldiers that Jose had sent to them. He knew he had to act and act fast.
"I've got to take out Jose." He mused to himself. He found a window and easily smashed it with his foot. He hopped through and was quickly on his way to finding Jose.
Scene change
"Mira….you there?" Cana asked in a whisper.
Currently, the brown-haired woman stood outside a boarded-up hole in the guild's wall. Since the attack had begun, the Fairy Tail wizards were fighting hard to stop the soldiers, and for the moment they were being kept at bay, but even so she needed to make sure that everything on the barmaid's end was going satisfactory.
"Yes, I'm here." Mira replied sounding like Lucy. As a distraction, she had used her magic to take on Lucy's appearance while the blonde was being escorted to their guild's safe house by Reedus.
Since she couldn't change her clothing on top of this, it became necessary to stay hidden to the point that only her hair and face were visible, which gave the enemy the illusion that Lucy was inside the guildhall.
"How much longer until the Abyss Break fires?" Cana questioned.
"From the looks of it….I'd say about twenty minutes." Mira replied.
"That really doesn't give them much time…." Cana thought aloud, sounding somewhat worried.
"Who was sent to stop it?" Mira inquired.
"Two separate teams went out to different sections of their HQ. Star took the western, and Happy took Natsu, Gray, and Elfman to the east." Cana explained.
"What?! Elfman went too?!" Mira shouted worriedly.
"Yeah…." Cana replied, "What's wrong with that?"
"You know as well as I do that he can't fight!" Mira replied urgently.
"He wanted to go….besides, he was one of our top fighters when we hit Phantom." Cana stated.
"Against grunts is one thing, but against one of Phantom's top fighters….I just don't know.…" Mira trailed off thoughts of her younger sister and what her and Elfman were still going through coming to mind.
"We all went through the pain after what happened….and this is just his way of moving on. I think he needs to do this, Mira." Cana stated.
She leaped back into combat, her cards drawn and prepared to be thrust towards the large number of encircling soldiers. Mira, however, didn't move an inch from within the guildhall. The barmaid just kept a solemn expression, her mind thinking back to what she could do to help her comrades. Being this weak and powerless, it was almost impossible for her to fight directly.
'And I suppose….that I'm just the same way. I can't sit back and do nothing while my friends are out their risking their lives. Even if I have to throw away my own in the process, I have to do something.…' Mira thought.
She stepped out of the guildhall and into the open daylight, revealing her morphed form directly to the large looming castle that stood just a few feet away from the shoreline. Everyone looked at her out of concern, some of them pleading with her not to do whatever she seemed to be doing.
"Mira, what are you doing?!" Cana exclaimed.
"Leave them alone, I'm the one that you're after! I swear I'll surrender if you leave them alone and stop attacking our guild!" Mira shouted loudly, still sounding and looking like Lucy.
"Oh….what's this? It would appear that we have an imposter." Jose mused.
Mira's eyes widened out of shock and she reverted back to normal. She could have sworn that none of the soldiers had seen her transform, and even Lucy had been transported out the back secretively.
"Hahahaha! Nice trick, but you can't fool me, young lady. I knew from the start that Lucy Heartfilia wasn't here. Still….you'll have to be punished for your actions." Jose stated as the barmaid's appearance once again returned to its normal state.
A magic circle appeared beneath her. Right from under the noses of the Fairy Tail wizards, she was absorbed into the ground, releasing nothing more than a loud scream as she was. She reappeared within the clutches of one of the mechanized fortress' hands, appearing to be stuck between two of the fingers.
"This will be your fate. I shall crush you to death as you watch your friends perish!" Jose exclaimed with sadistic pleasure.
Scene Change
Looking out the window in response to the recent commotion, Star saw something that he really wished he hadn't.
"Mira…." He muttered in a worried tone. "I have to do something!" He exclaimed, searching his mind for answers.
Scene Change
"What do we do? We have to help her!" Wakaba exclaimed worriedly.
"From our position, I don't think we can do anything." Cana growled out.
Suddenly Loke shivered and looked worried. This caught the attention of Alzack who was standing right next to him. "Hey Loke are you alright?"
"Yeah, but I just had a bad thought. I think Lucy may be in trouble." Before anyone could say anything else, Loke took off running in the direction of the safe house.
"Where's he going Al?" Bisca asked.
"He's going to check on Lucy." Alzack replied. "He said he had a bad feeling….and Loke's hunches are usually right."
"We need to do something about Mira!" Cana yelled at the two, throwing one of her cards and vanquishing one of the soldiers. "Stop talking and keep fighting."
"I don't think that's going to be a problem anymore." Macao said pointing up at the guildhall.
"Is that Star?" Alzack asked.
"Looks like it." Bisca replied smiling.
"If anyone can do it, he can." Cana said smiling also.
The young cosmic wizard was flying in front of the guildhall where Mira was.
"Star…." She groaned, still being squeezed to death by the fingers of The Giant.
"Hold still Mira….I'm getting you outta there." He replied.
From inside the control room, Jose smirked. "Good luck boy! My magic giant is resistant to all forms of magic. Your attacks won't be able to free her no matter how powerful you are!"
Star glared, "There's more than one way to skin a cat Jose. I'll free Mira without even touching your giant."
Jose laughed. "And just how do you think you'll accomplish that? For your rebellious acts towards the esteemed Phantom Lord, I'll give you two minutes before I crush her to death!"
"Agh!" Mira half screamed half groaned out as the fingers tightened around her.
"Just watch me." Star said. He hovered back a few paces and drew in a deep breath. "Cosmic Creation…." His hands lit up with the white color of his signature magic and he focused it in the direction of the giant's metal fingers.
Two small squares of cosmic energy appeared and solidified in-between Mira and each of the fingers around her. She gasped when the squeezing sensation suddenly left her. She was still stuck there, but she was no longer in danger of being killed.
"What!" Jose barked.
Star was gritting his teeth and trying to keep his concentration on the spell. "This is a new spell I've been working on for a while now. It allows me to create solid objects out of raw cosmic energy. I may not be able to damage your giant, but nothing can stop me from jamming the fingers! Your threats are meaningless now!"
Scene Change
Every member of Fairy Tail cheered boisterously at this, their spirits had been lifted.
"That's how you do it Fairy Tail style! Give 'em hell you guys!" Cana shouted, raising her fist high into the air and staring on at the monstrosity before their guild.
Erza stood up from where she was sitting against one of the walls of the guildhall. Having had enough of this waiting around she chose to take action. "I'm going in there to make sure that everyone is ok."
"Are you sure Erza?" Cana asked. "You still look pretty injured."
"I'll be fine Cana."
"You're not going in alone though." The two girls turned and saw Fang running up to them. They smiled at seeing him. "I'm going in with you."
"Fang," Erza said. "You came back."
He smirked despite his usually serious personality. "I wouldn't miss this for the world. I can't let Star have all the fun." He looked out at where the cosmic wizard was still casting his creation spell. He looked more than a little tired. "Besides, with Star having his hands full at the moment, you guys need someone to take down their leader."
Scene Change
Mira still sat stuck. She was watching him focus all of his strength keeping up his spell to keep her from being crushed to death. It brought a warm smile to her face.
"I guess I owe you again Star. Thank you for caring so much about me." Mira said to herself, allowing several tears of joy to fall from her eyes.
Scene Change
Fang and Erza were dashing through the halls of the guildhall, looking for any sign of the Element Four. They paused when they came across the window that Star used to get outside to Mira. They both smiled at the look they saw Mira giving the young brunette.
"Thank you, Star, I commend you on your efforts in keeping Mira safe." Erza called out to him.
"Erza!" Star called out. "What are you doing here! Your still too hurt, you need to be taking it easy right now!"
"Don't worry mate." Fang interjected. "I'll be sure to keep a close eye on her. You stay here and make sure nothing happens to Mira. I'm gonna go have some fun with the creep in charge here. I won't tolerate anyone putting you through hell….that's my job."
Star smiled despite the feeling of weakness that was washing over him. He knew Fang was strong, and with him on their side, this war was as good as won in his mind.
"Make sure Jose knows just who he's dealing with as your beating the snot outta him. Nobody messes with Fairy Tail!"
('.')
Lucy: (sniffle) That's….
Aww, Lucy, don't go crying on me.
Lucy: I can't help it, everyone's just so…..it brings a tear to my eye every time.
Good literature will do that to you.
Lucy: Now I'm getting what all the hype's about. This story is truly something else. I mean, the feeling and emotion I put forth this chapter is really doing you justice.
Shouldn't the credit go to the one who deserves like, oh I don't know….the author.
Lucy: Well every go book needs its star.
Star: You call me for something Luc?
Lucy: (blushes) Oh sorry Star, I meant something else.
Star: It's fine, here Fairy, I've brought the envelope containing Lucy's complaints for you.
Lucy: My what! How'd you get that?
Star: Sorry Lucy, but a good magician never reveals his secrets. (Star vanishes from the room mysteriously)
Lucy: Your so dead when I get my hands on you! (She runs off after him)
I guess that means we're all outta time for today's show. My name is Fairy, #1 Fairy that is, and you've been reading Fairy Tail Remastered.