PhantasmagoricalAsshole: Thank you thank you (Does a theatre bow). But seriously, I'm glad you enjoyed it and I hope you like this one as well. P.S. I love your name
Meazm: Thank you, and sometimes the hero must lose in order for the story to progress
Angryhenry: Yep Lucy's disappeared, and I feel like her and Mystogan have a similar past so they would connect on a certain level
Kazuka746: Thanks for letting me know about the mistakes and I'm sorry for not catching them. I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter, despite my mistakes, and Etherious will have amnesia for a while, but he will slowly regain his memory. How though, I'm not saying.
WhiteStripedTiger: Hahahaha, alright, I'll work as fast as possible. I'm so glad that you have enjoyed this story so much.
Honesty: I'm sorry about the early chapters, they were written very poorly. I hope the later ones are better.
LordAzrael1: Thank you, I'm super glad you like it!
Lucy was running, tears streaming down her face. She didn't know where she was going, but she knew that she had to leave Magnolia, she had to get as far away from her friends as possible.
'I should have just left as soon as Natsu told me about my father, but instead I stayed and Mystogan almost died because of me.' She thought sadly, wiping the dripping tears from her face. Because of that, she couldn't see where she was going and she tripped. Falling, she cried out in pain as she scraped her knee.
"Could this day get any worse?" She muttered as she cradled her bleeding appendage. As she spoke, a group of stormy clouds suddenly covered Magnolia, quickly drenching the city in a heavy downpour.
"Of course it can." Lucy sighed, but she uncovered her wound, allowing the rain to wash it. As she looked up at the sky, feeling the rain fall on her, she heard someone walking towards her.
"Natsu, I know you said you were going to take me to see Mystogan, but I can't. I can't go see him when I know that he's hurt because of me. I can't stay when I'm putting all of you in danger, so I'm going to leave. I don't know where I'll go or what I'll do, but I know that I have to protect everyone, and the only way to do that is to leave. So please Natsu, don't stop me." She said, continuing to look at the clouds. There was a moment of silence, and then her companion spoke.
"Juvia is not Natsu, so she will not stop you. If you want to leave, then you can come with Juvia to Phantom Lord." Lucy's blood ran cold as she look to see a blue haired women in front of her. She had a matching blue dress and was clutching an umbrella to protect her from the rain. The blonde quickly stood up, backing away from the other girl.
"I'm not going anywhere with Phantom Lord." She said defiantly. She jumped as she heard another voice from behind her.
"Je suis désolé manquer, but you have no choice in the matter." A man said as he slowly rose out of the ground. He was a thin man, with an orange suit, a monocle, and green hair. The strangest part about him was that he never stopped moving, he continuously leaned back and forth into impossible positions.
"My friends will never let you kidnap me." Lucy said.
"Drip drip drop, we know that your guild mates have left to fight. You are alone in this town, and you cannot fight." Juvia said.
"We'll see about that." The blonde muttered, reaching for her keys. But her hand grabbed at nothing. Her head jerked toward Juvia as she heard the sound of metal clinking together. A tendril of water hovered near the blue haired girl, clutching Lucy's keys. The thought of a member of Phantom Lord holding her celestial spirits made her blood boil.
"Give them back." She hissed, glaring at Juvia.
"Drip drop drip. Juvia will take good care of them, just as she will take good care of you." The blue haired woman replied, raising a hand. Before Lucy knew what had happened, she was trapped inside a prison of water. The cold liquid surrounded her, forcing its way down her throat and into her burning lungs. She tried to fight it, to escape from the watery cage, but she couldn't even move.
'Someone, anyone, please help me.' She pleaded as she felt herself beginning to drift into unconsciousness. Suddenly a large fireball tore through the water prison, sending her falling to the ground. But she never hit the stone street, instead a warm blanket enveloped her, protecting her from the frigid cold she had just escaped from. Despite the comforting feeling, she was still weak and every movement, every thought, was a struggle. She still forced her eyes open though, to see who had saved her. She smiled at the figure holding her.
"Natsu." She said softly before fading into unconsciousness.
-With Natsu-
Natsu sighed as he looked at the blonde in his arms.
"You shouldn't run off like that, you never know what could happen." He muttered, shifting her to a more comfortable position.
'You do realize that she's unconscious, right?' Etherious pointed out.
'Of course I realize that, it just seemed like I should have said that.' The dragon slayer retorted.
'Great, I'm stuck with a loony.' His companion said, sighing in resignation. Before Natsu could make a retort, the man with the monocle, Sol, cut in.
"Excusez-moi, but you interrupted our mission. If you will be a gentleman and hand her over, all will be forgiven." He said, leaning back and forth. Natsu turned to him, glaring with the fury of a dragon.
"You're the one who should be seeking forgiveness, trying to kidnap Lucy while I'm protecting her is a stupid move." He growled. Sol flinched at the tone but he quite literally bounced back.
"Non non non, in our defense we thought everyone had left. It seems we were mistaken, but even you, Salamander, cannot take us by yourself." He said, his eyes flashing maliciously.
"Drip drip drop, Juvia will defeat you. Master Jose wants her to bring the target to him and Juvia will do so." Juvia said, forming a wave of water behind her. The dragon slayer scowled at them.
"You're both outmatched. My flames are too hot for Juvia to even have a chance at quenching it, and you can't even reach me without being burned Monsieur Sol." He exclaimed, spitting out the title.
"Then it's a good thing they brought me along." A voice suddenly called from above him. Natsu's head jerked up to see a man with black and white hair, a black band across his face, and a red outfit. He was Totomaru, the fire mage of the Element Four.
"What are you doing here Totomaru?" Natsu demanded, trying to hide his surprise. In the past, he hadn't appeared until Phantom Lord had launched a full out assault on Fairy Tail. The black and white haired man smirked at the dragon slayer, drawing his blade.
"Master Jose heard how you've been making a name for yourself since you came back. He wanted to make sure that no one would get in our way, and that includes you!" He exclaimed, lunging towards the pinkette. Natsu jumped back, just as the sword impaled the ground where he had just been standing. This put all three of the Phantom Lord members in front of him. Taking a deep breath he summoned his magic.
"Fire Dragon's Roar!" He called, blowing a white hot inferno at them. His eyes widened in surprise as the fire suddenly shot into the air, leaving his opponents unscathed.
'You forgot that the sword guy can control fire, didn't you?' Etherious asked. The pinkette mentally scratched the back of his head.
'Maybe?' He said. The voice just sighed resignedly.
'Just take care of them quick, otherwise the blonde may be hurt in the crossfire.' He said.
'It's Lucy, and your right.' Natsu agreed. While he could probably take all three of them on, he couldn't do it while protecting Lucy. He couldn't put her down either because Sol would suck her into the ground. That left running away, though it didn't mean that the dragon slayer liked it. Spinning around he started running down the street. Behind him, he could hear Sol say something stupid in french while they began chasing him.
'Let's see if they can keep up with me.' Natsu thought with a grin. He had been living in Magnolia for so long that he knew the streets like the back of his hand. Ducking into a side alley, he began weaving in and out of the many streets and pathways that littered the town. At first his pursuers were able to stay with him, but after a while their voices slowly grew farther away and Natsu had to strain his ears to hear them. Taking the chance to hide, he ducked behind a pile of crates, making sure that he and Lucy were safely hidden. After a couple minutes of waiting, he heard Totomaru and Juvia approach, coming within mere feet of his hiding place as they ran past. Waiting until their voices were whispers again, he carefully emerged from the crates.
"Alright, let's get you to Porlyusica's." He said, looking down at Lucy. Walking out of the alley, he came to the road that led to the blonde's house, where an aqueduct cut the street in half. Turning towards the outskirts of the city, he only took a few steps before he heard a familiar voice.
"Bonjour again monsieur. You cannot escape from us that easily." Sol said, rising out of the ground from behind Natsu. The dragon slayer turned to face him, scowling irritably.
"In case you haven't noticed, it's just you Sol. You're no match against my magic." He said, igniting his body. To his surprise, the earth mage nodded in agreement, bowing half of his body in the process.
"Non non non, while it is true I do not have an advantage over you in strength, there are many other ways to win." He said, smiling. Natsu eye's widened in realization, but he was frozen stiff as Sol's magic took hold of him.
"Merci la Vie. It is a very beautiful spell that does not require any bloodshed. Instead, it turns my ennemi against himself, destroying him from the inside out. You are no doubt beginning to see what I mean Salamander." He said, and he was right, Natsu could see it. Memories flashed across his vision, nightmares he had hoped to never see again. A dark, ruined landscape that burned with the smell of death.
"Yes, it seems this is where your darkest moment lies. Tell me, what happened that was so terrible that you had to keep it buried deep inside you?" Sol's voice seemed to ooze around him, slowly enveloping him and urging him to submit. The dragon slayer tried to fight back, to break the stone slowly covering him and lash out at Sol. He tried to summon his magic, to burn the nightmares away, but nothing worked. He couldn't move, he couldn't use his flames, he couldn't even shut his eyes to avoid looking at the horrors that were appearing. The first to appear, weren't Fairy Tail mages, but they were friends all the same. Lyon, lying dead on the ground, Sherry beside him after he had made a useless effort to protect her. Kaguya, falling in the sword stance that she was standing in, her sword broken into dozens of metal shards. Their new friends, Sting and Rogue, fighting to the death to defend their guild.
"Oh ho ho, it seems that you let your friends die, did you not? You were powerless against the foe that was slaughtering your camarades. I wonder, who was so deadly, even the great Salamander could not defeat him?" Sol wondered, and there he was. The dark mage seemed to tower over Natsu like an overwhelming force, making the dragon slayer feel like a small child.
"I'm sorry Natsu. I gave you a second chance, but you wasted it. And this is the price for your failure" He said, frowning in disappointment.
"Interesting, who is this man?" Sol asked. Natsu knew his name, he cursed him every single day since he had come back. But no matter how hard he tried, and no matter how much Sol pushed, the dragon slayer couldn't think of the dark mage's name. All he could think of was the towering figure in front of him, surrounded by the bodies of his friends.
"Natsu." A voice suddenly suddenly reached out to Natsu, trying to grab his attention. He barely noticed it though, too lost in his sea of despair to register that someone had even spoken.
"What else did this man do, what did he cause that makes you hate him so much?" Sol's voice still managed to reach him, whispering in his ear like a snake. For the first time Natsu was able to move, though it was against his will. His head slowly twisted to look to the left, where the others lay. Lucy was on her back, her keys clutched to her chest as dried tears rested on her cheeks. Gray had formed an ice wall to protect him and whoever was behind him, but it had proved useless. He was face down, his dull eyes staring at the dragon slayer accusingly. Happy, his wings limp and lifeless. His backpack had fallen off at some point and his bright guild mark was a contrast to the dirty and matted fur.
"Natsu."
And Erza, Natsu would have cried in anguish if he wasn't frozen. She had tried to save everyone, using her adamantine armor to protect them from the wave of death, but it had only helped her die first. There was a gaping hole in her chest, where her heart should have been. Her once beautiful red hair was now darkened by blood and ash. Her face was twisted into an agonizing expression, as if the dark mage had made her suffer before she died. And it was all Natsu's fault.
"Natsu."
"Non non non, what is this? These people cannot be dead, they are at Phantom Lord." Sol said, shocked. But the dragon slayer didn't care what the earth mage saw, all he cared about was what he had done, what he had caused.
"Natsu!" The voice shouted, desperately trying to reach him. "Sol is turning you to stone, you need to fight him!"
Why should he fight? He deserved what was happening to him. He had failed, he wasn't strong enough, and now they were all dead.
"They aren't dead, you still have this chance to save them! But you can't do anything when you're stuck here, lost in your memories!" His companion cried, and it sounded like he was trying to break through something, something that divided the two.
'Memories?' Natsu thought, looking at Erza. It was just like last time, everyone was where he remembered them. It was like looking at a picture, a horrifying photo that he couldn't look away from.
'But it could be him.' He realized. The dark mage remembered the past, he knew how everyone had died, because he had killed them himself. The dragon slayer wouldn't put it past him to recreate the scene to look just like the past.
'It is the past, Zeref isn't here! Natsu, they're taking blondie!' The voice shouted.
'Her name is Lucy.' Natsu absentmindedly shot back. Suddenly he paused, Lucy. He had been with her just moments ago. They were running from someone. No, not someone, Phantom Lord. Three of the Element Four were hunting him while he had been carrying Lucy. But why was he here now, lost in ash and death.
'Sol put you under a spell.' The voice reminded him. But it wasn't just a voice, it was Etherious, the dragon slayer's companion.
'Yeah yeah, it's me. Now hurry up, they're about to take off with the blonde!' Etherious said. Natsu could feel his rage building at the thought. They were trying to take Lucy. He wouldn't let them get away with it! He could feel his magic bubbling to the surface, just waiting to be unleashed. With a mighty roar, his flames burst free, burning through the illusion and breaking the rock tomb encasing him. His eyes wild and ferocious, he glared at Sol.
"You." He breathed, his anger so overwhelming that he could barely speak. The earth mage stared at him in shock.
"Non non non, no one can escape my Merci la Vie. What are you?!" He demanded. Natsu growled in fury.
"Your worst nightmare." He said before lunging at his foe. Sol bent to the side, and the dragon slayer sailed past him. It didn't stop the pinkette though, he spin in mid air and dug his nails into the ground, slowing him to stop. Before he had fully halted though, he was off again, attacking the earth mage with a flurry of swift and powerful blows. Sol used his incredible flexibility to dodge every single attack. Natsu growled in annoyance, nothing else mattered right now except making him pay for what he had done. The dragon slayer dropped to his hands, kicking out with a leg sweep. As the earth mage leaned backwards, Natsu spun his body and kicked up with his other leg, slamming into Sol's chest. The Phantom Lord member cried out in pain as he flew towards a stone wall. Instead of slamming into it though, he was simply absorbed by the stone structure.
"You hit me! How rude!" Sol cried indignantly, his voice echoing all around the dragon slayer.
"You deserve far worse than that you bastard! You made me relive that nightmare, that terror, and you'll burn for that!" Natsu shouted, spinning around, searching for his foe.
"Non non non, do not blame me for your mistakes. It is your own fault for being so weak in the first place!" Sol exclaimed, rising out of the ground behind the dragon slayer. The earth mage pulled his magic forth, preparing to strike the dragon slayer down with a surprise attack. Suddenly, Natsu spun around, grabbing Sol by the throat and lifting him into the air. The earth mage choked and squirmed as the dragon slayer brought him close to his face.
"You think that I'm weak. I'll show you how 'weak' I am." He hissed. His flames exploded in a torrent of fire, engulfing both of them. Sol screamed as the flames licked his flesh and torched it at unbelievable temperatures. Natsu remained unharmed, glaring at his enemy as he continued to choke the life out of him. The earth mage's voice slowly died out as his throat was burned, killing his voice. He continued to squirm for a few more moments, desperately grasping Natsu's hands in attempt to loosen his grip, before he finally went limp. The dragon slayer applied a little more pressure before letting go, watching as the body dropped to the ground like a puppet with it's strings cut.
The moment it hit the ground, Natsu's rage seemed to drain out of him. He stared at the charred corpse in front of him, horrified.
"What did I just do?" He asked out loud.
'You defended your friend and made sure that he will never talk.' Etherious answered, seemingly unconcerned with what the dragon slayer had just done.
'But I could have just beaten him unconscious, I didn't have to kill him!' Natsu exclaimed, his gaze fixated on the damage he had just wrought. Sol's body had been burnt and ravaged by the fire, leaving a charcoaled mess. The dragon slayer flinched as he caught the scent of burning flesh, a horrible, putrid, smell that assaulted his senses and added to the guilt he was feeling.
'Yes he's dead, deal with it. You didn't have a choice in the matter, he had seen the dark mage and he saw your friends dead. As soon as he had returned to Phantom Lord, he would have squealed to his master about everything he had seen. What do you think would have happened then?' Etherious demanded. Natsu finally tore his gaze away from the sight before him, looking to the side in shame.
'I-I don't know.' He said quietly.
'Everything would have fallen apart! Everything you've worked on, all of the plans you've made, all of it would have been wasted!' His companion exclaimed.
'We don't know if that would have happened. Jose could have kept it to himself.' The dragon slayer snapped at him.
'We both know that's a load of bull!' Etherious shouted, his frustration suddenly exploding forth. 'He could have sold the information to Grimoire Heart or another of the dark guilds, or even worse, he could have told the magic council and convince them to disband Fairy Tail.'
Unfortunately Natsu knew he was right. The pinkette knew how conniving Jose was, the master of Phantom Lord wouldn't pass up a chance to sully Fairy Tail's name. And even if his plan hadn't worked, the magic council would have thrown a wrench in Natsu's plans. That's not saying that Sol's death wouldn't disrupt his plans, but it was probably the best case scenario. But still…
'Mystogan didn't want me to kill, to become what I hate.' He protested. His companion sighed, a long exasperated sigh, like he was a teacher teaching a student the same lesson over and over again.
'And he's right, to a point. You were killing indiscriminately, killing anyone you thought was evil, that was what worried him. Instead, you have to stay your hand, allowing them to live. Only kill those that threaten you and your family.' He explained.
'That's almost everyone I fight.' Natsu pointed out but Etherious shook his head.
'No, they might hurt your family, but they pose no threat to them. The Element Four, Gajeel, Jellal, Laxus, and everyone else, they have fought and hurt your guildmates, but your friends never died or were scarred for life. Only those like the death mage, and the master of Phantom Lord, are true threats, and you'll deal with them when the time comes.' He assured the dragon slayer. The pinkette took a deep breath before slowly nodding.
'The Oracion Seis, Edolas, Grimoire Heart, and Sabertooth. My friends were hurt because of them, but they always recovered, always bounced back stronger than before. I don't need to worry about anyone threatening them, and I will protect them if someone tries to hurt them, but I'll do it without killing them.' He decided.
'Great, now that you've gotten over your crisis go help Blondie.' Etherious said.
'Etherious, the great motivator.' Natsu said sarcastically, but he knew his companion was right. He had to bring Lucy to safety as soon as possible. Looking over, he saw the blonde was sprawled out on the ground. Whether she had fallen there or had been placed on the ground, he wasn't sure, but she seemed alright so he didn't question it.
"Let's get you out of here." He said, lifting her into his arms.
'I hope the others are doing okay.' He thought as he turned towards Porcylusica's.
-In Phantom Lord-
"Did you hear? Gajeel beat the crap out of one of Fairy Tail's strongest members!" A Phantom Lord member told one of his friends.
"Really? I bet it was a total beat down!"
"Actually, I don't know. He's been quiet ever since he got back." The first guy said, glancing over at Gajeel. He was sitting at his usual table in the corner, but instead of munching on scrap metal like he usually was, he seemed to be lost in thought.
"Huh. Well why don't we ask him." His friend said, standing up and walking over to the iron dragon slayer.
"Dude, don't do it." The member warned him but his friend ignored him.
"Hey Gajeel, what's up with you? You've been screwy ever since you got back. It's almost like you-" The man didn't get to finish his sentence as an iron pole slammed him into a wall.
"Shut. The. Hell. Up." Gajeel growled, but it fell on deaf ears as he had knocked the man unconscious. The dragon slayer turned to the rest of the guild, glaring at them. "Anyone else want to say something?" The others immediately turned back to what they were doing, avoiding his gaze. He scoffed, turning back to his table. "That's what I thought."
'Great, even those schmucks can see it.' He berated himself. He had been in a foul mood the moment he had woken up from the knockout blow Natsu had given him. 'I can't believe I let him beat me, again! That miserable excuse of a dragon slayer!'
Suddenly an explosion rocked the Phantom Lord's base, blasting the doors wide open. Gajeel turned to see the Fairy Tail guild standing in the doorway, all armed and ready for battle.
"Fairy Tail's come knocking!" Makarov roared and the others cheered, rushing into the Phantom Lord guild. The Phantom Lord members rushed to meet them, and the air was quickly filled with spells flying every which way. Gajeel simply watched, scowling. As soon as Fairy Tail had appeared, he knew Natsu wasn't with them, he couldn't smell the fire dragon slayer.
A sudden flash of red caught his eye, making him turn and look. Titania, 'The Queen of The Fairies', rightly deserved her title. She was currently in her Heaven's Wheel armor, cutting through anyone who stood in her way. As Gajeel watched her decimate his guildmates, his scowl slowly turned into a terrifying grin.
'I think I have just the way to get Salamander off my mind.' He thought, slowly standing up.
-With Erza-
The S-class mage was tearing through her enemies with frightening efficiency, but she barely even noticed it. She was still thinking about her talk with Natsu before she had left to fight Phantom Lord.
'There was no reason to defend Magnolia, not with all of us fighting here and keeping Phantom Lord busy.' She thought, blasting a group back with a simple flick of her wrist. She knew that he also had to take Lucy to Mystogan, but couldn't he do that later, after this fight was over? Really the thing that bothered her was the fact that Natsu and Lucy were alone together. But she didn't know why it annoyed her so much and that just made her even more frustrated.
"Hey, Titania!" A voice called out. She spun just in time to catch a saw-like blade on one of her swords. Her assailant grinned at her, revealing a mouth full of razor sharp teeth. "It's so nice of you to drop in."
"Gajeel Redfox, the iron dragon slayer. We're here to pay Phantom Lord back for what they did to Mystogan." She declared, scowling.
"I thought Salamander would have been first in line to do that. Where is he?!" Gajeel demanded, stabbing forward with his sword. Erza dodged to the side, calling her swords to her.
"Why do you care where Natsu is?" She asked, sending two of her blades rocketing towards him. But the dragon slayer just flicked his own weapon, sending the swords flying.
"I need to pay him back for the beatings he's given me. So where is he?!" He exclaimed.
'Beatings, what is he talking about?' She wondered, but she didn't have a chance to ponder it for long. Gajeel shaped his sword back to a hand and took a deep breath, a magic seal appearing in front of his mouth. Erza's eyes widened as she realized what he was about to do. Quickly changing her armor, she slammed the two shields of her adamantine armor together.
"Iron Dragon's Roar!" The tornado of shrapnel hit her shield dead on, grinding against the magical reinforcement. Her defense held firm, but the force of the attack sent her skidding backwards before she finally slammed into a wall. Pulling herself out of the newly made hole, she glared at Gajeel as he walked towards her.
"I will never tell you where Natsu is." She said, changing into her black wing armor. He grinned at her, a dangerous, predatory grin.
"When I'm done with you Titania, you'll tell me everything I want to know." He said, stretching out his hand. "Iron Dragon's Lance: Demon Logs!"
Erza used her armor to fly into the air, weaving between the metal spears. She hovered in the air for a moment before swooping down, swinging her sword at Gajeel's head. The dragon slayer flipped backwards, bending back to dodge the sword and then kicking up with his feet. Erza swerved to the side, but one of them caught her in the chest, throwing her back. As she flew back, she flipped in the air and planted her feet in the wall. A moment later she kicked off, throwing herself at Gajeel. The dragon slayer was still recovering from his flip, so he looked up just in time for the redhead to grab him by his face, slamming him into the ground and dragging him across the floor. Finally she let him go, throwing him into the opposite wall.
"You'll never make me talk, and you will never hurt Natsu." She declared. But despite her bravado, she was already beginning to pant in exhaustion. She had been too angry to keep a rein on her magic, so she had spent more than she had meant to when she was defeating the other Phantom Lord member. And now she was taking on Gajeel, one of the five S-class mages of Phantom Lord.
'I need to end this as soon as possible, otherwise he'll be able to outlast me.' She thought, breathing unsteadily. Unfortunately she wasn't the only one to notice it.
"That was a nice throw, but it doesn't look like you can do too many of those. Running out of steam Titania?" Gajeel asked, jumping down from the crater he had formed. Erza glared at him, steadying herself.
"I have enough power to beat you." She said, stabbing at him. He ducked to the side, throwing a punch at her stomach. She twirled away, summoning another sword and slashing at his side. The attack connected, sending Gajeel staggering backwards.
"You bitch." He hissed, clutching his side in pain. The blade had cut through his shirt, revealing a large bruise running up his side.
"What happened to you?" She couldn't help asking. The dragon slayer glanced at his injury before scowling.
"I got this from Mystogan while it was fighting him. It's not as bad as the one up here though." He said, pointing to his head. "Salamander gave this one to me last night. I'm putting it on the list of blows I owe him."
"You keep talking like you've met Natsu before." Erza commented. Her opponent shot her a disbelieving look.
"He never told you? He and I have known each other for over a year now." He explained. The redhead stared at him in shock.
"Why would he consort with someone like you, a Phantom Lord mage?" She demanded but Gajeel just shrugged.
"Search me. Salamander just showed up one day and made a bet with me. We would fight, and if he won I would help him make a staff. If I won he would owe me a favor. I thought it was going to be an easy fight, but the bastard suddenly turned the tables and beat the shit out of me. I won't forgive him for making me look like such a fool!" He growled, his eyes flashing in anger. Suddenly he looked back at her, grinning as he suddenly realized something.
"And I have the perfect way of paying him back." He said, chuckling in twisted amusement. "I wonder how he'll react when he finds out we have you as our prisoner."
"I'll never be used to hurt Natsu." Erza declared, raising her sword. Gajeel just grinned at her.
"We'll see about that." He said, lunging at her.
-With Makarov-
He was mounting a flight of steps, heading to the next floor where he knew Jose resided. He had thought about telling Erza his destination, but she was locked in combat with Gajeel Redfox and he didn't want to distract her. Reaching the top of the stairs, he found himself at a large, decorated, door.
'Jose was always one for overcompensation.' He thought, pulling back a fist. A second later the door exploded as he punched a massive fist through it. Stepping through the opening, he glared at the man residing within the room. Jose had a cliched witch hat on, with a matching purple jacket and bat wings. The hat covered his eyes, revealing only his thin mustache that framed his dark lips.
"Hello Makarov, it's been a while." He said calmly. He didn't even flinch as a massive fist tore past him, smashing the wall behind him.
"I'm not here for pleasantries Jose, I'm here for what you did to one of my children." Makarov growled angrily. The other master simply shrugged nonchalantly.
"Mystogan was an unfortunate casualty, I would have prefered to have left someone as powerful as him unharmed. Instead though, he tried to play hero and paid the price."
"He was protecting his family. You and your guild are the ones who are at fault! You disobeyed the rules Jose, guilds are not allowed to attack each other! What would cause you to risk your guild, your family, just to attack us?!" Fairy Tail's master demanded, the building trembling with his rage.
"You honestly don't know? Even after all the time she spent in your guild, you never even suspected her origins?" Jose questioned. Makarov looked at him in confusion.
"What? Who are you talking about?" He asked but Phantom Lord's master simply shook his head.
"You'll find out soon enough." He said, his polite smile slowly shifting into a scowl. "Though now it's more than just about her, it's about what your guild members did to my people!"
"This attack was justified, you assaulted one of my children!" Makarov retorted.
"I'm not talking about this little spout between our guilds, I'm talking about what your Salamander did to one of my Element Four!" Jose shouted, shooting to his feet. He glared at the Fairy Tail master for a few moments before taking a deep breath, smoothing out a few wrinkles in his clothing.
"It doesn't matter, I'll be claiming my revenge soon enough on that miserable excuse of a mage." He said, sitting back down in his throne. "Right now though, it's time that this conversation came to an end. I was hoping that drawing you here would simplify matters, but it seems that I will have to take a more direct approach. Goodbye Makarov, the next time we see each other you will be underneath by boot."
"You're not going anywhere!" Makarov exclaimed reached out with a massive hand. But the limb sailed harmlessly through Phantom Lord's master, smashing the throne he was 'sitting' on. Makarov was so surprised by the illusion that he didn't even sense the power sneaking up on him, until it was too late.
-Back With Erza-
"Come on Titania, is that really the best you've got?" Gajeel asked as he sauntered towards her, leisurely rolling his shoulders. Erza panted in exhaustion, slowly forcing herself to stand up.
The battle had been a vicious display of swordsmanship and brute strength, as the two had traded blows and tried to take down the other. Neither of them had taken any serious damage, only a few cuts and bruises, but she was beginning to run out of energy and Gajeel still had plenty in reserve.
Still she stood up, jabbing her blade towards his head. He easily dodged, swinging his sword hand at her. She blocked it, but the blow was stronger than she expected, stunning her. The dragon slayer used the opportunity to kick her in the chest, sending her flying backwards. She slammed into a wall, arching her in pain. Standing up again, she winced as her side protested at the movement. She ignored it though as she prepared to attack again.
'None of my attacks seem to have an affect on him, he just shrugs everything off!' She thought angrily. If she was honest with herself, she felt weak, and it pissed her off. She was an S-class mage, she should be able to beat someone like Gajeel. Lately it seemed like she was always too weak to fight anyone, Natsu, Mystogan, Deliora, and now Gajeel. Every time she fought she was swatted aside like a fly, like she was powerless. Suddenly the memory of her fight with Natsu flashed in her mind, and what he had said to her. 'If you don't go all out against people than you won't get stronger. If you don't gain more power you can't protect the ones you love.'
'I need to fight with all I have. I need more power.' She realized. But how? Before she could figure it out, the fight was interrupted.
Crash! Everyone turned to look as a figure appear from the second floor, hurtling towards the ground below. With a loud boom, the person slammed into the floor, shaking the foundation of the building. Erza was the first to reach the figure, gasping as she realized that it was Makarov. He was deathly pale, his entire body shaking with pain.
"I can't feel my magic." He managed to get out through clenched teeth.
'Master Makarov... lost.' She realized in shock. The strongest mage she knew, and who she considered to be a surrogate father, was lying before her, broken, and defeated.
'I can't lose myself in my emotions.' She reminded herself, pushing her shock away. Gently scooping the master in her arms, she turned to her stunned guildmates.
"Everyone, fall back! Jet, take the master to Porlyusica's!" She ordered. He was next to her in a flash, gently taking the master before disappearing again. The rest of the guild hesitated for a moment before they began making their way to the exit, fighting anyone who tried to stop them and trying to ignore the jeers of the Phantom Lord members.
"We can't just fall back!" Gray protested, walking up to Erza. She blasted a group of enemies before turning to him.
"Without the master, we don't stand a chance against Phantom Lord. We need to pull back and figure out a new strategy." She explained sternly. She needed him to understand
"But what about avenging Mystogan? What about beating up whoever did this to the old man? What about paying them back for Fairy Tail?" He demanded. She grabbed his shoulders, looking him in the eye.
"We'll do all those things, but the Master is hurt. Our top priority is making sure that everyone makes it out of here in one piece. Please Gray, I need your help." She asked, begged, him. He stared at her in surprise before slowly nodding.
"Alright Erza, whatever you say." He mumbled, turning and heading for the exit. She stayed behind for a moment, checking for any stragglers, before she too started making her way to the doorway. As she left, she heard Gajeel call out to her.
"See ya Titania, it was a blast beating the crap out of you. When you see Salamander, send him my regards and tell him we'll be seeing each other again real soon!"
She ignored him, walking out of the guild hall and towards her guild mates. As they came together and began the trip to Fairy Tail, she decided something.
'I need to know what happened between Gajeel and Natsu, I need to know the truth.'
-At the same time-
"I swear Lucy, you're heavier every time I carry you." Natsu muttered, shifting the blonde in his arms to a more comfortable position.
'Commenting on a woman's weight, way to go.' Etherious said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.
"It's not like she's awake to hear me." The dragon slayer retorted, ducking under a branch. He had been walking through the woods for the past couple of minutes, making his way to Porlyusica's hut. He wasn't using his flames like he had with Mystogan because, to be honest, he didn't trust them to remain stable. He was still upset about what he had done to Sol, and his flames would be as wild as his emotions. That left him with carrying an unconscious Lucy through the forest so Porlyusica could take a look at her.
'I told you, there's no reason to be so upset about what happened to the mud man, he had it coming.' His companion argued.
'Maybe he did, but that doesn't mean that I should have been the one to kill him. Mystogan was right when he said that I shouldn't become what I'm trying so hard to fight.' The dragon slayer protested, remembering his confrontation with the masked mage before their trip to Galuna Island.
'Sometimes you have to become a more terrifying monster than the one you want to kill.' Etherious suddenly said, his voice distant as if he was remembering something long forgotten.
'Who taught you that?' Natsu asked angrily.
'I don't know!' The voice cried in anguish. 'I don't remember! All I can remember is that it's important to me!'
Natsu winced as he felt his companion's grief. In his anger, he had forgotten that Etherious didn't remember anything. All he had was his personality and the memories he had borrowed from his host.
'Etherious, I'm-' The dragon slayer began but his partner cut him off.
'Forget it, it's not important.' He said flatly.
'But it is, this is your life we're talking about! What if you have a family that's looking for you? We don't even know how you ended up inside my mind, what if your memories can tell us what happened?' Natsu asked.
'How are we even supposed to get my memories back?' Etherious demanded. 'We don't know anything about me, I'm just a random voice that showed up inside your mind with no memory of who I am. And even if I somehow find my memories, nothing will change. I'll still be stuck inside your head, unable to talk to my family, unable to use magic, unable to do anything except watch you relive your life!'
Natsu frowned in confusion, wishing he could look at his companion.
'What's wrong with you? So you may be stuck inside my head, but at least you'll know who you are, who your family is, why you showed up. Who knows, you may even know the spell that will pull you out of my head. How will we know if we don't even try?' He demanded. He walked in silence for a few minutes, waiting for Etherious' reply. It didn't make sense for him to be against getting his memories back.
'Just because I want it, it doesn't mean that I'll like what I get.' Etherious suddenly said, and before Natsu had a chance to ask him what he meant, he withdrew into his hiding place.
'What is with him?' The dragon slayer wondered, but he didn't have much time to ponder on it. After another minute or so of walking, he finally arrived at Porlyusica's hut. He didn't even bother knocking on the door this time, he just opened it and walked in. Mystogan was still passed out on the bed, so Porlyusica was the only one who reacted to his sudden entrance.
"Where are your manners brat? You don't just walk into someone's home like that!" She exclaimed.
"Sorry Porlyusica, but I have another one for you." He said, motioning to Lucy. The medicine healer clicked her tongue in displeasure but she walked over to the bed, gently moving her first patient over.
"Alright, put her down next to him. They might be uncomfortable when they wake up, but that's not my problem." She said, waving a hand to the bed. Natsu set the blonde next to Mystogan, making sure they were both comfortable and covered by the blanket.
"What happened to her?" Porlyusica asked as she began taking Lucy's pulse. The dragon slayer sighed, sitting down on a nearby stool.
"Phantom Lord tried to kidnap her, knocking her out with a bubble of water. Thankfully I managed to get there in time and rescue her. There was a short fight, but I don't know if she was hurt during it." He explained, wincing as the memory of Sol's torched body flashed in his mind.
"What does Phantom Lord want with the girl?" She asked, glancing at him just as he schooled his features. Natsu debated on whether or not to tell her the truth, but he knew she could keep a secret.
"Her asshole of a father hired them to kidnap her and return her to him so he could marry her off to help his business." He said, scowling in anger.
"Well, it's a good thing you were there to rescue her, though I'm surprised that none of the others heard the commotion." She commented, turning back to her patient.
"I'm the only one in town besides Mira, everyone else is busy taking the fight to Phantom Lord. They're probably…" He trailed off as another memory floated to the surface, of a broken and defeated Makarov, lying on the floor of the Phantom Lord guild.
"Shit!" Natsu cried, startling Porlyusica.
"Watch it brat, you'll give me a heart attack!" She exclaimed but he didn't notice her, grabbing Mystogan's staff and running outside.
'I completely forgot about the old man!' He chided himself. He had been so caught up in everything that he had forgotten what was happening over at Phantom Lord. Pointing the staff into the sky, he tried to channel his magic into it. Instead of producing wind however, his hand burst into flame. Cursing, he quickly put it out, glaring at the piece of wood in his hand.
'How the hell am I supposed to use this thing?' He thought desperately. Mystogan had never let Natsu use his staffs, mainly because of how destructive the dragon slayer was. But right now the pinkette had to learn how to use it, and fast.
'Calm down and think about the time you were in Edolas, when you used the magical item.' Etherious reminded him, emerging from his hiding place. Natsu took a deep breath, feeling himself relax.
'Thanks Etherious, that helped.' He said before focusing on the staff again. This time, instead of trying to give it magic, he felt for the magic that was already inside it. Finding it, he pulled some of it out and sent it hurtling into the sky, in the direction of the Phantom Lord guild. It flew for a mile or two before Natsu lost control of it, causing it to fall apart.
'Damn it, I can't use this as well as Mystogan can.' He cursed before running back towards the hut. He burst in again, ignoring Porlyusica's exclamation of surprise, and rushed over to the bed. When he got there he went over Lucy, grabbing Mystogan and lifting him out of the cot.
"Hey brat, what are you doing with my patient?!" Porlyusica shouted.
"Saving the old man!" He replied, running outside. As he did he gently slapped the masked mage's cheek.
"Hey Mysty, it's time to wake up." He said, urging his friend awake. After a few tense moments, Mystogan's right eye flickered open while the left one remained shut. Natsu stared at it for a moment before he pushed his concern away, their were more important matters at hand, such as helping his friend stand up.
"What did you do this time Natsu?" He asked, struggling to his feet. The dragon slayer kept him steady, making sure he was standing straight before he let him go.
"What says it's my fault?" He asked, grinning at his friend.
"Because the last time you woke me up, you had set a town on fire." The masked mage reminded him, taking his staff from his companion. Natsu laughed, scratching the back of his head.
"I told you, that wasn't my fault. Besides, it wasn't like anyone was living in that town, it was completely abandoned." He protested.
"And this time isn't your fault either I bet." Mystogan said, smiling. The dragon slayer grew serious as he motioned to the sky.
"The old man had his power sucked out by Aria, on of the Element Four. It's in the wind, and I'm not powerful enough to grab it." He explained hurriedly.
"And you need me to pull the magic back." The S-class mage added. Before Natsu could say anything, Porlyusica spoke up.
"You're not using any magic right now brat, you're going to go back inside and rest like a patient should." She said, walking outside.
"If I don't do this, than Master Makarov may die." He retorted. She put her hands on her hips, glaring at him.
"Makky has survived much worse than having his power stolen, but I can't say the same for you if you don't start listening to me." She threatened, pointing her broom menacingly. Mystogan gave her an apologetic smile, raising his staff into the sky.
"Sorry Grandine, but I have a duty as a Fairy Tail member." He said, unleashing his magic. Wind exploded into the sky, flying in every direction. As it did, he winced in pain, clutching his chest. Natsu and Porlyusica both took a step towards him, looking at him in concern.
"I'm fine." He assured them, placing both hands on his staff. He pushed more magic out, sending the wind even farther outward. "This Aria must be an accomplished wind mage, he spread the master's power all across Fiore."
"Can you grab it all?" Natsu asked but the masked mage shook his head, a bead of sweat running down his face.
"Some of it's already gone, but the rest is recoverable. The problem is bringing it all together." He said, swinging the staff in a circle. The wind whistled through the trees, slowly blowing faster and faster. It slowly began to come together, forming a raging tornado in the sky. Suddenly it exploded, dispersing into nothingness. Mystogan sighed tiredly, leaning against his staff.
"I did what I could, now it's up to the master." He said before he collapsed. Natsu caught him before he fell, gently propping him up.
"That fool, he's going to get himself killed one of these days. And you're not helping matters either." Porlyusica said, turning to the dragon slayer.
"In my defense, it was important that he did that." He said, grinning sheepishly. She glared at him for another moment before sighing in exasperation.
"Just bring him inside." She said, turning around and walking inside.
"You got it Granny!"
"I told you to stop calling me that!"