Okay another chapter is here for you all! I had a bit of trouble with this chapter only because there was so much I wanted to put in it and at the same time not wanting to drown out the story with unnecessary words. So after a couple restarts and fixes I bring you the next installment of my incredibly long story (lol). As always please leave a review and tell me what you think and I will have the next chapter uploaded as soon as I get it written.
NOTE: at the end of this chapter there will be a couple musical pieces and if you want to know what it sounded like in my head while I wrote it then search 'Fairy Tail theme' by Taylor Davis and 'River Flows in You' by Lindsey Stirling.
ENJOY!
Lucy was trembling with terror as she stared into the eyes of someone who looked like one of the people she trusted most; an arrogant smirk on her face as she pointed a spear at the celestial mage.
"I told you I'm not your Erza." Her voice was cold when she spoke and Lucy winced internally and the familiarity of it.
Lucy grunted as she was thrown against the wall of the corridor, a wave of pain radiating down her spine as she looked up to the woman standing before her.
"You may not be her but I have the feeling that you share her heart deep down. Erza I'm sure you're a good person to those you care about…"
"You know nothing about me!" The red mage shouted angrily as she lifted Lucy off the ground to hover over the edge, a long way down staring the blonde in the face.
"Why can't you understand that I just want to save my friends!?" Lucy shouted with tears in her eyes, her hands trembling above her as she locked eyes with Nightwalker.
"Silence. You're going to die here." Was the only thing that met her ears.
"How can you say that!? The Erza I know is kind! She would never put her friends through this kind of pain!"
Nightwalker smirked before responding, "I told you already I'm not the Erza you know…" She trailed off to take a better stance holding Lucy to her death, "As my name the Fairy Hunter suggests, no one has killed more Fairy Tail wizards than I have. I love watching people suffer and your fate is no different."
"No…you can't say that…not with Erza's face…not with Erza's voice…" Lucy was crying now as she silently pleaded with the woman before her but the only thing she got in return was another smirk.
"Then I'll simply say goodbye." And with that Lucy was soon plummeting to the ground, a scream escaping her the entire way down.
"LUCY!" The shout came from far off but still the celestial mage heard it, her head whipping all around her to find the source before her eyes locked onto to objects coming at her at breakneck speed.
"Happy! Carla!"
When the white cat caught her Lucy gave her biggest smile before she was being brought skyward again, only to come face to face with Erza again.
"Thanks Carla…your wings are working again!"
"Our wings were never the problem…it was our hearts before." The White feline said softly.
"What is going on here? I received strict orders from your queen to execute the girl." Nightwalker spoke matter of fact as she looked to Carla with confusion in her eyes.
"The order has been rescinded." Carla responded curtly.
"I understand that but even if it's an order from an exceed, you don't have the authority to overrule the queen's orders. I must ask you to hand the girl over."
"Have you heard nothing human?" Carla spat the words as she handed Lucy to Happy before crossing her arms. "You're in the presence of royalty here so show some respect. You're talking to the first born daughter of Queen Shaggot herself. I am divine Princess Carla of Extalia."
Gasps rang out all around and Lucy couldn't hold back the shocked noise that escaped her. Nightwalker stiffened immediately and lowered herself to a knee before bowing her head.
"Please forgive me your grace!"
"Now where are the two dragon slayers?"
"They're in the West Tower, underground."
"I order you to release them at once."
"I'm sorry your grace but I don't have the authority to do that."
"I don't want to hear your excuses!" Carla shouted angrily smirking inwardly when Erza winced.
"I know please forgive me-" Nightwalker was cut off by shouts in the distance.
"Erza!" rushing at them were many guards and a black cat with more muscle than Laxus and Lucy paled.
"An exceed?!" She asked confused.
"He's the biggest cat I've ever seen!" Happy was losing his mind.
"Pantherlily…?" Erza looked on confused before her shouted again.
"Those two are fallen exceeds! They've been banished from the kingdom of Extalia!"
There was a brief moment of silence before Carla was off and flying, Happy carrying Lucy not far behind; both their faces alight with confusion.
"We need to go now."
"Wait I thought you were a princess?!"
"I lied." Carla said matter of fact as they flew towards the tower that held their friends.
As they flew Lucy could feel Nightwalkers rage even from where she hung and briefly wondered what had happened to Riley before she became distracted by the sheer number of cats now flying at them.
They all paled and turned to go the other way but behind them stood Erza and her men and further down still, a courtyard filled with soldiers.
"They're everywhere!" Lucy said panicked as shouts rang out all around her.
"Get them men! Meow!" The main cat yelled before the King's voice resounded everywhere.
"Initiate code ETD!"
All around them chaos ran rampant and in minutes the swarm of felines had been turned into a giant lacrima which was send crashing to the ground. There was no time to relax before the shots were fired at them and Happy and Carla were swerving for their lives and taking off towards the tower, evading the deadly hits by the skin of their teeth before they were surrounded by stone walls.
"What the hell just happened?!" Lucy exclaimed shocked as she was placed on the ground.
"It looked to me like a betrayal by the king of Edolas."
"Yeah but why would he turn on the exceeds?! I thought you guys were gods in this world!?"
After a moment of running Happy spoke up, "It looks like the situation is getting more and more dire…"
"I never thought the humans would ever wage war against the exceeds…" Lucy said somberly before Carla responded, her voice calm.
"This has nothing to do with us. Both sides are equally terrible…let them fight it out amongst themselves."
They ran on for another minute before an explosion rocked the corridor and they were sent flying. When the dust settled Lucy groaned and looked up only to pale at the sight before her.
"I will not let you pass." Nightwalker stood with anger shining in her eyes and her spear clutched tightly in her fist. She stalked towards them with arrogance in her stride and Lucy began to tremble before she spoke.
"Hey why are you coming after us? Aren't we of no interest to you now?! Don't you have a civil war to fight in?!"
Erza simply smirked and threw her spear once again, the weapon landing inches from Lucy before giving off an explosion of power and sending the celestial mage flying once again. Lucy screamed as she hit the far wall.
There was a deafening silence while the three coughed and attempted to get to their feet before Nightwalker spoke again, this time surprise registering in her tone.
"Oh…you're still alive. Even after taking a direct hit from my magic."
Had Lucy the strength to respond in that moment she would have but her entire body was raked with pain from the attack and it took everything she had to remain conscious. Seconds later blood curdling screams pierced the silence and Lucy froze.
"That's Wendy…" Carla said weakly as tears welled in her eyes.
Lucy felt her anger surge and she glared at Erza with all the anger she had in her, "What the hell are you doing to Wendy and Natsu?"
"We're extracting the amount of magic power necessary for code ETD from them." Erza smirked as she walked closer; the screams coming faster as they rose in pitch.
"St…stop" Carla begged as another scream from her human hit her ears. "STOP IT!"
"Don't worry about it exceed, you're going to die now anyway." Nightwalker pointed her sword to the white cat with a smug look on her face.
"Give me back Wendy right now! You're going to kill her!" Carla screamed as more tears spilled from her eyes. Seconds later Happy was before her, his arms outstretched to shield her from the woman towering above them.
"I…won't let you hurt Carla!" His rage was enough to shock both Carla and Lucy while Erza simply smirked again.
"What did you do with Riley?" Lucy asked in hopes to distract the woman just long enough to think of a plan. A chuckle met her ears and Lucy couldn't repress the shiver that raced down her spine.
"Riley is of no concern to you now. Rest assured though that she is suffering even as we speak."
"Bullshit! Riley is one of my closest friends! Tell me where she is right now!" Lucy was seething as she willed her body to move.
Erza laughed again and crouched before the blonde, her fist tangling in Lucy's hair to hold her head up.
"Are you sure you're going to like what you hear?" Her words alone had Lucy trembling with anger and fear. "Riley was very powerful…too much for me to handle that was for sure…but Riley from Edolas has something that evened the playing field. Your Riley was easy to dispatch once we destroyed the magic particles in her body."
"You bitch! Destroying the magic in her will kill her! How can you do something to cruel!?"
"I told you that you wouldn't like what I had to say…" Erza smirked again before standing and preparing to attack.
Lucy closed her eyes as tears spilled for her friend and she was about to lose all hope of returning to Earthland before an explosion rocked the corridor.
"Hey…you fuckers!" The voice was angry as men were sent flying and all Lucy could do was stare in awe as Gray stepped over the rubble, "Are you hurting them, knowing full well they're a part of our guild?"
Another voice joined his soon after, her figure coming to stand next to his and Lucy could feel the power coming from her. "We will never forgive anyone who raises their hand to our friends…"
Carla was in awe at the two before her and she stuttered, "Wh…what are you guys…?"
"You made a big mistake messing with Fairy Tail."
"Now you're all our enemies!"
"Gray! Erza!" Lucy shouted happily as her body relaxed automatically.
Nightwalker stared at the woman before her who looked exactly like her in every way and her figure stilled. Scarlet simply glared at her with no sympathy in her eyes at all.
"There's another Erza?!"
"Is that Gray Surge?!"
"No they're Earthland wizards!" The shouts rang out all around them before Gray spoke.
"Where are our friends your king turned into a giant lacrima!?" He was blasting them with ice magic before he even finished his sentence. The men yelled in pain but Nightwalker simply jumped upwards to avoid it before rushing him with her spear. Before the attack hit though she was blocked by Erza who matched her strength and shocked the Edolas woman stiff.
They were at a deadlock before an explosion erupted from the clash of their weapons and everyone was sent flying. The two red heads went at it hard while Gray ran to Lucy, freeing her hands in seconds before helping her up.
"Hey are you alright?"
"It's Erza...vs…Erza…? Lucy stared shocked at the power they both fought with before what Gray had said sunk into her head. "Yeah Gray I'm alright but we need to find Wendy and Natsu." More screams pierced the corridor even as the two red women battled it out and Carla was crying again
"That's Wendy's voice!" The white cat was hysterical at this point as she was racked with guilt for her friend.
"Are they nearby?!" Gray asked anxiously.
"Probably just beyond that corridor!" Lucy was next to speak as they all took off in the directions of the screams; leaving Erza to fight herself alone.
"You guys go get our friends back I'll handle things here!" Erza shouted calmly as she blocked another attack.
When the rest of them had gone Erza was finally able to focus solely on taking her doppelganger down. With another deadlock attack each came out with a cut on their face; Nightwalker with one across her nose, and Scarlet with one on her right cheek before either one spoke again.
"Never thought I would be facing off against myself…"Nightwalker was first to break the silence.
"It's a strange feeling."
"I am the captain of the second magic warfare unit. Erza Nightwalker.
"I am an S-Class mage from Fairy Tail. My name is Erza Scarlet."
"It will be interesting to see how the Earthland version of me fights. Let's see how we match up. Heaven knows Earthland Riley didn't fare so well against herself here…" Nightwalker smirked at the anger that crept onto Scarlet's face.
"What did you do to Riley!?" Erza shouted as her hands balled into fists. Nightwalker simply laughed before responding.
"If you survive this fight then maybe I'll tell you…"
Erza had no time to react before Nightwalker changed her spear and attacked. It was fast but Erza was faster still, avoiding it just barely before deflecting the rest of the attack after she requipped her armor. Once her flight armor was in place she was almost impossible to see and Nightwalker gaped in awe before she was doing her best to defend against the onslaught of attacks. As soon as she changed her armor, her speed increased! Her mind was racing as she changed her weapon once more, this time sending the other Erza flying into the wall opposite them.
Scarlet hit with a grunt before looking up to see another attack coming at her. "A requip? No it seems that only her weapon has changed…"
"Explosion!" Nightwalker shouted as she unleashed a wave of fire onto her mirror image only to stand shocked when the other Erza stood unscathed and clad in armor that looked like fire itself.
"Flame Empress Armor…" Was all Scarlet said.
Her armor changed again! "So your magic ability is to simultaneously change your weapon and armor…"
"And you can only change your weapon…it must be unsettling to find out you are no match for me." Scarlet smirked.
"Depending on the form my spear takes I can increase my fighting abilities. Don't count me out yet. Your sister made that mistake and she is paying dearly for it."
"Then it is similar to my Knight requip." Titania said before her eyes darkened, "If you hurt a single hair on her head I'll destroy everything you hold dear."
"We'll see how cocky you are after you witness my ten commandments!" Nightwalker chuckled as her spear changed once again.
"Come on!" Scarlet replied confidently before they launched at each other once again.
When consciousness found Riley again her entire body was alight with agony and she groaned, wishing that she could go back into the blackness. It felt as if her blood was on fire and every move she made only served to spread the fire until she was growling with pain through clenched teeth.
"Welcome back to the world of the living Riley." The voice was so close the black mage could feel it on her face. She winced but managed to open her eyes and found herself face to face with herself. Literally the Edolas Riley had changed gender and stood before her with an all knowing smirk on her face.
"You think you will get more attention that way? You're pathetic…" Riley spat with a smirk before a fist drove into her stomach. She winced and grunted but remained silent otherwise.
"You shut your fucking mouth right now." Henderson was seething and let another fist fly, this time connecting high on Riley's torso.
"Making yourself look like me isn't going to help you. You're just jealous that I don't even have to try and Nightwalker wants me more. It must be maddening to be outclassed by a better version of yourself."
"Shut up! When I'm done with you no one will recognize you! Rest assured I'm the only Riley she needs in her life!"
Riley didn't know she had been chained until she was dropped to the floor and found a foot driving deep into her side. From above she could hear the enraged screams from a woman who shared her face and voice. It hurt, god did it hurt but Riley knew this kind of abuse. Only someone who had been damaged put another person through this kind of pain.
"You're pathetic…no one but you can help you. Don't take your anger out on me Riley…the only one who can save you is you." Riley said weakly as another kicked closed in on her only to stop inches away. Henderson was frozen in her place as she stared the black mage down. When no response met her ears Riley continued, "I know a lot of people like you Riley…I was one of those people actually…" She trailed off to cough up blood and grab her stomach.
"What the fuck are you talking about?" The words were like venom in her face as the Edolas Riley grabbed the black mage by her jacket to haul her up. "What makes you think you know anything about me?" She asked angrily as she slammed Belserion into the wall.
"You think that being able to beat people up and cause others pain will erase the pain you've been put through…but it won't help."
"Shut up…"
"Whatever it was that made you like this doesn't define you Riley. You are your own person. Don't let people like Nightwalker dictate who you can and can't be…"
"Shut up…"
"I saw your eyes when you attacked me in the corridor…you didn't want to…you just wanted the attention Erza would give you if you did. Everything you do, you do for her and there is nothing wrong with that…but there is a difference between love for someone and blind adoration for someone."
"I said shut the fuck up!" Henderson screamed before launching Riley across the room. She hit the floor with a grunt but managed to roll onto her feet and slide to a stop before charging herself. She landed a hit high to Henderson's thigh before being sent through the door.
Henderson stalked towards the black mage with so many emotions shining in her eyes that it took Riley a moment to decipher all of them. Seconds later the female that stalked towards her was a male and his knuckles cracked with each step.
"This is who you are Riley…you are the prince of this world. You can change it for the better…"
"I'm no prince I'm just the fucking replacement!" He had her off the ground and through the doorway again before slamming her into the wall. "All I have ever been was a stand in for someone who was better than me. My older brother was supposed to be heir but when he left I got the honor and only because my father didn't have anyone else. Erza took a liking to me only because when I was still in training I stumbled into the magic weapon department and was messing around with experimental tools and my gender got switched. She only liked me because of that. All this time I've been a stand in for you. You are the real Riley…I'm just a fucking fake!"
Riley could feel his pain from where she lay, see his sorrow from the tears in his eyes and her heart broke for him. He just wants to be accepted… she thought somberly as she pulled herself to her feet, stumbling slightly before bracing herself against the wall.
"You are not a replacement Riley. You are your own person. If you can't believe in yourself how do you expect anyone else to. You need to hold your head high and walk with pride. Second born or not it's your duty now to lead Edolas in the right direction."
He was silent for a while before his body began to shake, "No…" He trailed off before turning and grabbing another pair of handcuffs from the floor, "All I have to do is kill you and take your place. When I'm done with you Riley…the only place you'll have existed…is in the past…" His words were so cold that Riley actually felt fear course through her body.
"If you intend to make good on that threat then I will have to take your life before you take mine…" she said seriously as she briefly wondered just how the hell she was going to do just that before he was moving. She did her best to fight him she truly did, but the damage from the magic particle destruction within her was just too much for her to come back from and the last thing she remembered was a bone crunching sound and pain so strong she went out screaming.
"I apologize for being late, finding a large enough anima to return everything to normal proved more difficult than I had anticipated." Mystogan spoke calmly as he smiled down to his friends, "If you all hadn't been fighting so hard then I don't think I would have made it in time. So thank you all."
"Mystogan!" Erza yelled shocked as she looked up to him. Natsu who wasn't far from the red made looked up with hope filled eyes.
"By 'return everything to normal'…"
"Yes. The lacrima will pass through the anima again and turn back to normal once it reaches Earthland. Everything is over."
There were shouts of joy ringing out all around them and the Fairy Tail wizards couldn't help the tears that welled in their eyes. While the happy shouts rang out Mystogan looked to Lily who simply smiled in return.
"Lily, it was my life that you saved so long ago…I am glad I was able to finally return the favor."
"Yes...thank you…" The large black cat said respectfully as his eyes teared up, "My Prince."
"The prince has returned home!" Coco said through tears as her entire body relaxed instinctively.
Shock raced through everyone as they looked to the blue mage with utter confusion before a shot pierced the night sky. In seconds Lily was screaming and plummeting to the ground; a massive hole in his stomach.
"LILY!" Mystogan shouted worried as he tried to go after his friend but was stopped by a shout from before him.
"Not yet…It's still not over yet!" Nightwalker was furious as she held her spear pointed at the blue man, her entire body trembling with anger.
"It's Nightwalker!" Natsu's voice was a mixture of shock and anger as he stared the woman down.
"No not my cat!" Gajeel was worried at this point as he watched the black feline fall before another exceed raced after him.
"Leave it to me I've got him!"
"Scarlet!"
"Nightwalker." Erza responded casually as she stared herself down, the short hair making telling them apart much simpler. She was about to move but Mystogan stopped her with an arm outstretched before her.
"It's okay Erza I've got this…" He trailed off as his eyes drifted from woman to woman before he continued, "You dare raise your weapon against the prince of Edolas? I've had enough of your insubordination Captain Nightwalker."
There was loud laughter before a deep voice rang out, "Too bad I never thought of you as my son!"
"That's the King's voice!" Coco was next to speak while Lucy looked around confused.
"Hiding away for seven years…how dare you show yourself to me again? I am well aware that you were the one closing all the animas in Earthland. You betrayed your country!"
"Where is the voice coming from?!" Wendy was confused as she looked all around for the source.
"Show yourself you coward!" Natsu yelled angrily.
Mystogan sighed, "Your anima project has failed, and there is no reason to fight anymore."
"Reason to fight? This is not a fight. This is a one-way slaughter…retaliation to those who stood against the king!"
All around them the ground trembled and shook, leaving most clutching anything close at hand in order to stay balanced as the power around them skyrocketed.
"If you choose to stand before me, I will write you out; even if it is you Jellal…nothing will be left behind!"
"Father stop this at once!"
"I am not your father! I am the king of Edolas! If I kill you now then there will be no one to stop the anima in Earthland. I can create another giant lacrima and fuse it with the exceed kingdom as many times as I wish to!"
From the ground they could all see a massive white dragon-type monster come up from only god knew where and they all paled at the sight.
"Nothing is impossible for the King! My power is absolute!"
"What the fuck is that thing?!" Lucy shouted shocked as the exceeds shook with fear.
The king simply laughed aloud before ordering his army to capture all remaining exceeds and destroy the wizards. After he was done speaking he charged an attack and let it loose straight towards the Legion which held Erza and the rest.
The light was blinding and Erza wished Riley were there to absorb the magic but instead Mystogan stood before them all, his staffs held and ready to deflect the attack.
"Mystogan…"
"Mystogan? Is that the name you gave yourself? Your name is Jellal!"
The blue mage only shook his head and looked back to the red mage, "Erza now's your chance! Go!"
Titania nodded curtly before smiling in thanks and continuing on.
"Three layer magic circle: Mirrored water!" The attack was absorbed and shot back at the dragon. "Dorman Anim or dragon knight in our world… armor reinforced dragon." Jellal was shocked stiff as he watched the monster below him.
When the attack hit there was a massive explosion before it dispersed and Faust laughed. "The Dorma Anim is immune to magic!" His words were clipped and mixed with amusement as he sent another attack aimed at Jellal. It hit the blue mage head on and he was falling seconds later.
"Mystogan!" Erza shouted worried as she watched her friend crash to the ground. Her eyes were shining with fear for her friend before the king's voice echoed around her.
"It fits you better to crawl along the ground like a worm! Why don't you just die while you're at it?!"
"You bastard how can you say that to your own son?!" Gray yelled furiously even as his body trembled from the sheer power coming from the dragon.
"You pathetic insects are next!" Another shot erupted from its mouth and was soon racing towards the wizards but it never hit, instead missing completely while the dragon took a hit to the back of the neck. When the smoke cleared the ice mage could easily see Natsu, his face contorted in rage.
"So it's a dragon huh? This should be fun."
"A dragon shouldn't be too hard to take down." Gajeel smirked beside the pink mage and Wendy was nodding in agreement.
"Who better to slay a dragon then us Dragon Slayers?"
"The rest of you worry about the army; Gajeel, Wendy, and I will take care of this metal freak."
"We leave him to you then Natsu!" Titania said matter of fact before they were all dodging magic shots.
"Don't think this is over between us Scarlet!" Nightwalker shouted from her Legion as she ordered her men to attack.
"Oh this is far from over but once Riley shows up-"Erza never got the chance to finish her sentence before another voice rang out, this time coming from her right.
"You mean this Riley?" The voice was male and filled with so much arrogance it had the red mage cringing. When she followed the voice her entire body froze. The man looked so much like Riley it was scary. He had the same hair color, the same eye color and he even dressed similar to her sister that Erza could only come to one conclusion about him. He's the Edolas Riley!
He had a hand on his hip and in his left arm dangled Erza's sister; her form slumped over and unmoving. Even from here Titania could see the blood and her heart stopped.
"Riley!"
"Oh my God Riley!"
"What the hell did you do to her?!" Angered shouts came from all around her and Erza silently thanked them all for standing by her. The man simply chuckled and changed positions so that he held Riley by her hands to face them and they all stiffened. She was unconscious and bleeding and bruised and Erza wasn't even sure she was breathing.
"Your Riley was indeed powerful…but she was no match for me." He spoke matter of fact as Nightwalker jumped to his side and placed a hand over his chest, casting Erza a wink before she lifted Riley's head up with a finger under the black mage's chin.
"Once we destroyed the magic particles in her body she went down easily. I do have to say this, she can take a lot of pain. She endured more than anyone I have ever met. Most people would have buckled from the beginning but she held out to the bitter end. She was so much fun to play with though…"
"You bitch!" Gray spat the words as his fists shook at his sides.
"Magic deficiency syndrome…that will kill her…" Lucy covered her mouth as tears welled in her eyes.
Erza couldn't speak. Her mind was racing so fast that she wasn't even sure what was real anymore. Her body refused to move and all she could do was stare at her sister.
"We've had our fun with her so you can have her back now…" Edolas Riley laughed as he spoke, tossing Riley off the Legion with ease before he continued, "You might want to make sure she's breathing though…we were a little rough with her." He cast the red mage a wink before smirking to the Fairy Tail wizards.
"Riley!" Gray and Lucy screamed in unison as they watched the black mage plummet to the ground but all Erza could do was stand frozen.
"I'm coming Riley!" Carla was moving in seconds, catching the devastation mage in mid-air before bringing her back to the Legion.
"Set her down gently." The ice mage spoke first as he cradled her head.
Lucy checked to see if she was breathing but when nothing proved that she was the celestial wizard stiffened.
"Gray she's not breathing!"
"Shit start CPR!"
"Riley you can't die!"
Erza could hear everything but her body refused to move anymore. It was like her being was stuck frozen in time while she listened to her friends try to save her sister.
"Erza!"
"Erza we need your help!"
"Carla go get Wendy we need her healing magic right now…"
"On it!"
"Erza are you listening?!"
Amber eyes stared into nothing as images flashed through her mind. Riley as a child when they would play together. Then on the night she was taken and thought Riley had died. Another flash and Erza could see the black mage all bandaged up from when they were reunited and tears began to well in her eyes.
"Snap out of it dammit!" Lucy's words echoed through her mind as a sharp pain rippled across her face and the red mage snapped out of her trance; shock plastered on her face. "If you don't help us Riley is going to die! I know you're scared we all are but dammit she needs you now Erza!"
Titania nodded absently and looked to Riley. Up close she could see the extent of the damage that had been done and her heart stopped. Riley's clothes were torn and her body battered and bruised in so many places Riley herself looked like on big bruise. There was blood seeping from almost every cut on her body and a nasty cut traveled down the left side of her face. There were black circles under her eyes and her form was lying limp on the ground and Erza couldn't see any chest rise to signal breathing.
"No…no no no no no…." She was on her knees in seconds, her hand gripping Riley's so tightly her knuckles turned white. "She's not breathing!" The red mage was doing CPR instantly, breathing for her sister since she could no longer breathe for herself.
Riley's body was cool to the touch and Lucy was crying desperately as Gray did his best to stem the bleeding from her more serious injuries. Happy had his paws on the black mage's leg and his body was trembling while he cried. A moment later Carla was back and Wendy was at Erza's side already placing her hands over Riley's forehead and chest. The sky dragon closed her eyes and focused before gasping.
"I don't sense any magic energy from her at all!"
"That's because those fucking bastards destroyed all the magic particles in her body!" Gray seethed from her left as he cast daggers towards the Edolas Riley and Erza.
"Please save her Wendy…" The bluenette looked to the source of the voice and found Erza on her hands and knees before her crying. "I can't lose her now…not after I just got her back. We need her…so please…"
Wendy couldn't respond for fear of crying herself so she simply nodded curtly before beginning to pour all her magic into the woman beneath her.
"Give her one of these too. Maybe it will help get some magic back into her system." Gray handed one of the small red balls to Wendy and she nodded.
"Yeah that could work but I also need help from you guys. We need to transfer as much magic energy as we can to Riley right now to replace all the magic that was taken from her. It won't fix the problem but it should help her enough until we get back home."
Erza placed her hands over Wendy's and spoke, "Whatever it takes. I'm not going to let her die here."
"Take whatever you need from us." Lucy offered her hands as well, Gray not far behind as they all poured magic into Riley. After a moment Erza shoved the red pill down the black mage's throat and forced her to swallow.
"Keep it up guys I can feel magic in her body again its working!" Wendy encouraged them all and closed her eyes again, this time focusing all her magic on the wounds that marred Riley's skin.
When there was nothing more she could do she collapsed into Lucy breathing hard and looked to the black mage, "I've done all I can for her…until we get her back to Earthland I'm afraid there is nothing more we can do."
"You can try all you want little girl, Riley won't be recovering from this." Nightwalker chuckled from off in the distance.
"You shut your mouth right now before I shut it for you!" Erza's tone had never been so venomous before and the sudden change had Lucy and Gray stiffening. The celestial mage watched as her friend balled her hands into fists before jumping from the Legion, rage shining in her eyes as tears fell.
Lucy watched Erza tackle Nightwalker and when they both rolled off the Legion she briefly wondered if she would be okay but once an explosion sounded from below them the celestial mage felt Titania's magic spike and new she would be fine. To her left she could see Riley only barely breathing and she turned to the Edolas Riley angrily.
"How can you do that to someone? Someone who is literally you from another world at that? What kind of sick satisfaction do you get from this?!"
Riley simply smirked at her as he crossed his arms, "Hearing her scream was so enjoyable I just couldn't help myself. Her power shocked us all in the beginning but I specialize in magic nullification so once I took that from her she was nothing more than a warmup for me. She fought till the end rest assured of that. Your Riley surprised us in every way but in the end there is only enough room for one of us."
He paused to hold up a fist so his bracelet would glow, "In a world where survival is key, only the strongest survive and your Riley just wasn't strong enough."
"I'm not believing a word you say you bastard. The only way you took our Riley down was by cheating. Only a coward needs to destroy someone from the inside out in order to win. So congratulations on being named the most pathetic person on this fucking planet." Gray was shouting by the time he had finished talking, his magic spreading out of him in waves before he took a step forward only to be stopped in his place by a hand on his wrist.
He stilled and looked down to see Riley weakly holding him in place while she struggled to open her eyes. His magic dispersed as fast as it had come out and he was on his knees before her in seconds; worry etched into his features.
"Hey don't move, you're in no condition to even be awake…"
Wendy had a hand over her forehead as she lifted the black mage's other hand and closed her eyes. After a minute of silence she sighed and looked to Lucy and Gray.
"Her body has responded well but she's not out of the woods yet. I would like to get her away from here so I can give her another dose of healing magic-"
"No…" Riley cut her off as she coughed up little droplets of blood and winced. "You…need to go…help Natsu take that thing…down." With every word Riley spoke she struggled to get up, pain washing over her in agonizing waves before she was finally sitting; her breathing coming in fast, strained pants as her vision blurred.
"Oh no you don't! We almost lost you so you're insane if I'm going to let you get up and fight. You have no magic in you! How do you plan on beating them? With whit and sarcasm?" Lucy snapped angrily as she gripped the black mage by her jacket.
"Lucy's right you look like death warmed over there aint no way in hell I'm gonna let you so much as twitch in his direction. Let Erza deal with them." Gray spoke matter of fact as shoved his hands into his pockets.
The male Riley was standing in shock over what he had just seen, his form beginning to shake with a mixture of fear and rage as he screamed at them.
"How the fuck are you still alive?! I killed you myself!"
Riley simply chuckled and used Gray and Lucy as leaning posts while she shakily stood up before responding; her voice calmer than anyone had ever heard it before.
"Next time you even get that close to killing me…make sure I'm actually dead you fucking moron." There was a pause before magic power surged from her body and even as the pill gave her magic back, the magic deadening particles in her body worked almost as fast to destroy the new cells and each breath she took was pure agony.
"Now…it's my turn…and believe me buddy…" She trailed off as her body began to glow a bright violet; the air around crackling with power. "I won't stop until I rip your heart from your fucking body!" She was gone before she even finished screaming, her form rocketing towards her Edolas self and before he had time to react her fist connected to his jaw, a painful crunch sounding in the air even as shouts rang out behind her.
"Riley what the fuck are you doing?!"
"You're in no condition to fight! You barely have any magic power at all!"
Riley huffed and ignored their warnings; instead opting to drive her knee deep into Edolas Riley's gut. He grunted but she wasn't finished yet, bringing her hand up to grip his throat menacingly.
"When I'm done with you and this world it will be nothing but ash and rubble!"
"Even if you get past me you have to take down Nightwalker-"
"Erza will destroy Nightwalker rest assured of that you sick fuck."
"We have an army…what do you people have?"
"We have heart! And spirit!" The black mage countered each remark he had to say until she flipped him to slam him into the Legion before flinging him off the animal entirely. She only hesitated for a second before she jumped after him.
"Carla!" The white cat heard her name clearly and she was flying to the black mage to catch her before they were both soaring skyward. "Hey what are you doing?!"
"I'm not going to let you kill yourself over a stupid grudge match between you and your self."
"Carla if I don't end this then someone else is going to die, possibly a lot of people!"
"I will not allow you to throw away your life!" Carla countered with tears in her eyes. "You weren't breathing Riley…you had no pulse and your body was cold… In all sense of the word you were dead! Do you know how heartbreaking it was to see the pain in Erza's eyes as she held your hand?!"
Riley stiffened in the cat's arms as her mind wandered to her sister and the black mage felt a pang of guilt wash over her.
"I can't imagine how worried you all must have been…I'm sorry I scared you all but I'm alive right now-"
"Only because Wendy was there to save you! Riley if we didn't have her sky magic you would not be alive right now! Even still she couldn't heal you completely and if you push yourself too far we aren't going to be able to save you a second time!"
"It's going to take a lot more than a wanna be doppelganger of myself to bring me down."
"Riley I swear to god that if you keep playing it off like nothing happened I'm going to drop you…" Carla was done arguing at this point and to show how serious she was she let go with one paw and Riley paled.
Once back with Gray and Lucy Carla set the black mage down and Riley was bowing in thanks to all of them before turning to Wendy.
"I owe you big time kid…" Riley placed a hand over the bluenette's head and smiled down at her before the girl sniffed and wrapped her arms around the black mage.
"I'm just glad you're okay…"
"I'll be fine thanks to you. I don't know how you did it Wendy but I have magic again. Albeit not as much as I had before but this will do…"
"I couldn't restore the magic you lost so I had to improvise. I used my magic to block the magic canceling particles in your blood but I'm not sure I got all of them…then we had to give you some of our magic in order to get you responsive again. The little bit you do have won't be enough to take these guys down…"
Riley sighed and knelt down in front of the girl to place a hand on her shoulder, her eyes gentle as she smiled. "I know Wendy…" She stood and looked to all who were around her and nodded in thanks, "Thank you all. I owe you my life for all you've done for me…" She trailed off to look down to where her sister and Nightwalker were surely fighting and balled her hands into fists. It wasn't far off where Riley would have landed and if he survived a fall like that then she needed to make sure she finished the job.
"The power I have now isn't a lot…but I can feel each and every one of you within my heart…" She trailed off and took a deep breath in, ignoring the pain she turned back to smile at them one more time. "And that's all I need in order to win this fight." She was gone seconds later; leaving everyone to stare shocked as she plummeted towards the ground.
"Riley!"
"No you'll only get yourself killed!"
"Come back!"
The black mage ignored them all and focused on the streaks of red that bolted across the ground below her. From where she was she could see Henderson sneaking up behind her sister with his bracelets glowing and the anger she had been holding back boiled over and she flipped, slamming into him with enough force to shake the island they were all on as an explosion erupted from her landing. Both Erza's stiffened and looked towards the mushroom cloud of dust that had sprung from the earth with confused looks on their faces. It was when the dust settled that Titania gasped and dropped her sword.
"R-Riley…?" Her voice was shaky as she stared at the black mage before her. She was still injured badly but Erza could also feel the magic power emanating from her and her heart skipped a beat. The devastation mage turned and smiled before looking down to the man screaming in pain beneath her and she crouched, grabbing him by the collar of his jacket as she spoke.
"Two on one isn't fair and you know it."
Henderson chuckled as he grabbed hold of her wrists, "You would know wouldn't you?"
"Oh fuck you!" Riley spat back before she felt something coming at her fast. She turned and watched as Nightwalker raced at her, her spear pointed at her in a deadly arc before Erza was stepping in to block.
"We already played that game Riley…" Nightwalker smirked as she was pushed back by her mirror image.
"You lost that game remember? Or do you not recall? You were pretty out of it after I destroyed your magic…it's a shame you can't remember how much fun we had."
Both sisters stiffened at the words and Riley could swear she felt her sister's magic spike. In seconds there was a bright flash and Titania was tackling Nightwalker to the ground and beating her senseless which left Riley to deal with herself.
"Some things are better off being forgotten. Trash like you has no business in any of my memories." The black mage spat angrily as she flipped off herself and stood back to back with her sister who had been pushed backwards by Nightwalker.
"You ready to send these two to hell?"
"Hell is too good for them." Was all Riley responded with as they moved as one, each blocking an attack from themselves before kicking out with a foot. At the same time they turned and high fived before switching so that they fought each other, making the playing field more even. Erza was more adept to handle Riley with her weapons while the black mage took on Nightwalker who was struggling against the magic power before her.
"I only have a fraction of my magic power and you're still no match for me. It's payback time Nightwalker…and I'm paying in full." Riley took a step forward and smirked at the fear that raced across her opponent's face. The black mage charged, sliding on her knees to avoid an attack before coming up and grabbing Nightwalker by the throat to launch her into the wall of trees. The red head hit with a grunt and before she could recover a stance Riley was on her, her legs wrapping around Erza's waste and a fist held above her head.
The hit connected so fast that Nightwalker didn't even have time to steel herself for it. There was a cracking sound and a pained scream rode the air before the black mage cut her off with a tight grip on her windpipe. Behind her she heard her sister land a few hits to her male counterpart and she smirked.
"Looks like this is the end of the line for you sorry lot." Her voice was like steel as she spoke and within seconds she turned and snapped the bone in Nightwalker's left leg. Another scream rode the air and Riley rose and turned around.
"Bitch!" She heard from behind her but paid it no mind, instead catching Henderson in a head lock to allow Erza to drive her sword into his stomach. The man yelled in pain and Riley twisted to throw him towards the downed red head. He landed with a grunt and crawled to his lover.
"It's only fitting that you die together…" The sister's spoke in unison as Riley held Erza's hand and raised her other towards the sky. A moment later a large ball of condensed magic began to form and the black mage spoke again, "Erza you got any armor that can fly us back up to the top so we can join the others?"
"Yeah my black wing armor should do the trick…what are you planning to do with them?"
"My planetary devastation…it's only about a fifth of the power it could be but I'm out of options and I've been wanting to try it out and I don't see a better target then these two fuckers." Riley spit the words as she said them; Erza lifting them off the ground as the magic in the air grew larger until it was the size of a basketball. When they were high enough she told her sister to stop and spoke directly to herself.
"This could have all been avoided if you had just listened to me Riley…I know you better than anyone because I am you…I know how damaged you are because I'm damaged too…I'm sorry it had to come to this…"
There was fear plastered all over their faces as they stared up at the two Fairy Tail mages before Riley launched her attack.
"Planetary Devastation!" The ball of magic shot forward and plummeted to the ground where it hit, making a crater before erupting into a tower of violet energy big enough to destroy the entire island and then some. The shockwave from it sent Erza and Riley flying backwards and crashing into another smaller island before sliding to a stop. The energy from the explosion widened in diameter and kicked up a notch before dispersing altogether, leaving nothing but scorched earth and residual magic energy.
Erza looked on in disbelief as she unconsciously tightened her grip on Riley's hand, a tremor of fear shooting through her. This was only a fraction of her magic power? Jesus Christ if she had all of her magic it would have engulfed the entire continent…Her mind was racing as her eyes settled on the black mage who was shaking with exhaustion and beginning to sweat and wince with every breath.
"Hey take it easy. I should kick your ass for the shit you pulled back there." The red mage laughed lightly as she moved to support her sister and help her to the ground. "You annihilated the entire floating island…"
"It was a weak attack…" Riley trailed off to wince and grab her stomach as a wave of white hot agony shot through her. "But I wanted to make sure they paid for the pain they caused you. I'm sorry you had to fight thinking I was dead Erza…"
The red mage scoffed and slapped Riley upside the back of her head, "Why are you apologizing to me after all the shit you had to go through?"
"Because that's just who I am…I will always put you first Erza." Riley gripped her sister's hand tighter as she smiled weakly, her body losing strength by the second as they both heard explosions ringing out all around them.
"You really have shitty luck with people Riley…" Erza laughed lightly as she mentioned Freya, Nightwalker and Henderson; laughing louder when her sister turned a dark shade of red and crossed her arms.
"It's not my fault! All I wanna do is help people but all I ever get is attacked by fucking psychos who just wanna bang me. It's ridiculous! Is it too much to ask for a normal fight once in a while?" By the time she had finished talking Riley was all but screaming with a mixture of anger and embarrassment and growled low in her throat when Erza only laughed more.
"I get your frustration I really do…but your bitching is hilarious…" Titania trailed off as her eyes darkened, "I am so sorry Riley…you had to actually kill yourself…"
"Don't remind me…I'm going to need therapy after this whole ordeal…" Riley looked away and placed her arm around Erza's shoulder to lean on her as a wave of agony washed over her. "This entire world is fucked up beyond belief…to think that you and I are lovers here…"
Erza stiffened and turned red as she involuntarily scooted away from Riley. Said mage looked to Erza with shock on her face as she winced.
"I love you Riley…but don't ever bring this up again or so help me I will kill you myself…"
"Done."
The moments passed and the pain ramped up a notch and the black mage was groaning while she lost the ability to support herself and she was toppling over, her hands wrapped around her body as her breathing sped up.
"You alright?"
"Do I look alright to you?" Riley spat her response and groaned again while she curled in on herself.
"Can I do anything to help you?"
"No…all I can do is endure it and wait till we get back home…maybe there Porlyusica can get me back to normal."
"You over did it…again…"
"Don't tell me how to live my life…"
"Don't make me kill you right now."
They both stopped bickering to turn towards an explosion off in the distance and felt the power of it shoot through them.
"What the hell was that?" Erza asked almost nervous as she stood quickly.
"My guess is Natsu and the other Dragon Slayers…I hope they can beat that thing…Wendy used a lot of magic to bring me back…"
"Now isn't the time to worry about that…come on let's go see if we can help the others…"
"I would love to but I can't move right now. My entire body refuses to obey me and everything hurts." Riley winced again and stiffened when Erza grabbed her to carry her on her back as she walked. "You don't have to-"
"Shut up before I drop you. I'm helping you and so help me if you say anything other than 'thank you' I will knock you out." The red mage was stern as she spoke and Riley stiffened before relaxing against her sister.
"Thank you…"
Erza had been carrying Riley for a while before panicked screams came rushing at them and before either could find words to describe the mob that now stared them down, everyone had come to a halt.
"Oh no! It's Nightwalker!"
"And Riley!"
The two sisters only stood in shock as fear raced through the faces of those before them.
"Uh…Erza…?"
"Yeah I see them too…and judging by their fear they think we're the Edolas versions of us."
"I guess this isn't our Fairy Tail then."
A Lucy bearing short hair and black attire stepped forward and raised her fists in defense as she snapped at the two injured women before her.
"What the hell are you two doing here?"
Riley sighed before having Erza set her down, wincing lightly as pain shot through her body.
"Look I know it's frightening to see us but we're not your enemy." The black mage began before Erza finished her sentence for her.
"We're not Nightwalker or Henderson. I am Erza Scarlet and this is Riley…" Said red mage trailed off and turned to her sister with a confused look in her eyes, "Come to think of it I have no idea if you even have a last name…"
"My name is Riley Belserion. We are Earthland wizards."
"Sorry but I don't believe a word you're saying right now." Lucy responded curtly as the rest of the guild took stances beside her.
"Woah okay everyone needs to calm down…" Erza raised her hands to show she meant no harm while Riley simply grabbed her wrist and turned the med mage until her emblem was facing them. When their eyes widened with shock she moved her jacket out of the way to show her own emblem.
"We are Fairy Tail wizards so you don't need to be afraid of us. As for Nightwalker and Henderson…I destroyed them both a while ago. You don't have to worry about them anymore."
The entire area grew silent before whispers began to filter to her ears.
"Woah she took down Nightwalker and Henderson?"
"Does that mean they're on our side?"
"It's hard to imagine either of them being affiliated with Fairy Tail…"
"If they're from Earthland, then are they lovers there too?"
Riley stiffened before she held up a hand, her body shaking slightly from anger, pain, and embarrassment. "Okay let's understand this. We are Earthland wizards. We are sisters so don't go getting any weird ideas in your heads okay. Erza is my younger sister and we are here to help in any way that we can in order to stop the king's army."
"Take a look around you! We lost! All the magic is being sucked out of the entire world." Lucy screamed angrily with tears in her eyes as Riley took a look around for the first time. The blonde was right; the magic from Edolas was being absorbed into the air at an alarming rate. How did I not notice that earlier?! Riley scolded herself before the mages before her stiffened and a sound met her ears. Turning around she was Edolas Riley stalking towards them, his entire body a mixture of burns and wounds that left Riley wondering how he was still alive let alone walking around.
"You bitch!" He screamed enraged as he morphed into a sprint, a blade shining in his right hand as he zeroed in on the red mage. "I'll kill her as payback for you killing my Erza!"
Riley's body moved on its own accord, acting out of survival instinct alone as she pushed Erza out of the way and blocked the knife with her right hand. It went right through it and she winced again but gripped his hand tightly in order to hold him in place as she gathered the last of her strength to shove her left hand deep into his chest. In seconds neither was moving and the black mage could feel his heartbeat in her hand as she gripped the organ that kept him alive while they stared each other down.
Edolas Riley stared in shock before his eyes drifted to where her fist entered his chest and his eyes filled with tears. Seconds later she felt his heart skip a beat and a pang of guilt washed through her body before she ended his suffering. In one swift movement she stepped back and ripped his heart from his body; watching him with an emotionless expression as he fell lifeless to the ground.
"I told you I would rip your heart out…" Was all Riley said as she gripped the organ in her hand before letting it drop to the ground and ripping the blade from her other hand. The atmosphere had gone from confused to panic and now shock as she breathed heavily and her body shook.
"Riley…"
"Don't…Erza…" The black mage responded weakly before collapsing to the ground and Titania was at her side in seconds as panic etched across her face.
"Shit Riley hold on!"
"Mira you're trained in emergency medicine do what you can for her. Gray take off one of your jackets Riley is going to need it. Natsu I need you to go get whatever water is around here and fast. Let's move people that girl just saved this entire world by taking down Nightwalker and Henderson so let's show a little respect!"
After Lucy had finished shouting orders everyone was moving and Erza couldn't believe how well they all listened to the blonde mage.
"Let me take a look at her." Mira said calmly as she knelt beside Erza and smiled. After giving the black mage a once over she got to work wrapping the worst wounds she saw and pouring something down Riley's throat.
"What is that stuff?"
"This is a minor pain killer mixed with a mid-grade anti-biotic. I can't undo the damage that was done to her from the magic destruction particles in her body but this should help her in its own way."
"Wait how did you know what happened?" Erza was shocked and confused as the white mage worked; thanking Gray when he handed her one of his jackets and a scarf. As Mira tightened the scarf around a leg wound and covered Riley with the jacket she spoke.
"Because we all know the kind of magic our Riley uses. Believe it or not…he used to be a member of our guild…"
"No way…" Erza looked to the man lying on the ground and shook her head, "I can't believe that Mira."
"I know but it's true. When he was younger he joined us but when his father found out Riley had to quit or be thrown in prison for treason. Once he left the king staged many devastating attacks on civilians and blamed us in order to convince Riley that we were the enemy. Because he was so trusting he believed what he saw and ever since it has been one big war between the kingdom and us." Mira looked to the man as tears welled in her eyes.
"I'm sorry for whatever pain he caused you but he was a gentle soul at some point. The king is the one who turned him against us and Nightwalker was only too happy to get him wrapped around her manipulative finger. Because of the influence of those two he turned into the man lying on the ground."
"I'm sorry to hear that…I know how it feels to lose someone you care about to the dark side…I lost an old friend because of the same thing…" Titania lowered her voice and placed a hand on Mira's shoulder.
"It's heartbreaking when you can't save them…" The white mage placed a hand on Erza's before taking a deep breath, "…but I'm not going to let your Riley die here. I'll do what I can because I saw a pure heart and a kind soul when I looked into her eyes."
"Thank you Mira…you're just as kind here as you are in our world." Erza smiled and grabbed Riley's hand as Gray placed another of his jackets under her head before walking away. "Riley is the most powerful woman I have ever had the pleasure of knowing…she would risk her life for any one of her friends in Fairy Tail and I know deep in my heart that if she had gotten to know you all more she would have risked her life for you as well."
"I have no doubt of that but right now we need to focus on her bleeding. But to go back to your confusion from before…it's because we were guild mates that I know what happened to her. Our Riley was very skilled with magic nullification and destruction. He was an asset to us when we would go up against another guild."
"I see, that makes sense now. He used that power on Riley and destroyed all the magic particles in her body. Having something like that happen to a wizard from Earthland causes what's called magic deficiency syndrome and will eventually kill the victim if left unchecked. We need to get her back to our world as soon as possible if she's going to have any chance of survival." Erza's voice shook as she spoke and her eyes fell in despair for her sister as she placed a hand over her forehead.
Mira was quiet for a moment before the two Earthland mages began to glow brightly and before they knew it, Erza and Riley were ascending into the skies. Titania gripped her sister tightly as they were lifted, making sure to not let her go for anything while they began to leave Edolas. With one last wave Erza said goodbye and focused on supporting her unconscious sister and look to the sky where a reverse anima pulled them in. Hang on Riley we're almost home…just be strong for a little while longer…she thought nervously while she hugged the black wizard like her life depended on it. There was a blinding flash of light before they were soon plummeting to the ground.
With a panicked yell she held onto her sister tighter and flipped so that she would hit the ground first and closed her eyes. Apparently everyone who got pulled into the reverse anima was dropped in the same spot so when Erza landed it was on top of Gajeel who was on top of Lucy, Gray, Wendy, and Natsu. Floating above them were Happy and Carla and everyone groaned in pain as their bodies jarred from the impact.
Without wasting any time Erza had Riley on her back once more and was sprinting off towards the guild hall. She could hear the others calling out after her but paid them no mind, instead focusing on saving the only person that mattered to her.
Once back at the guild she was a little shocked to see that everything was back to normal and more surprised still, to know that no one realized what had even happened. They had no idea that they had all been turned into a giant lacrima and were going on about their lives as if no time had passed so when Titania burst through the door with Riley in her arms stillness fell over the hall. Cana was the first to say anything, the card user rushing to Erza's side in seconds; worry etched into her face.
"What the hell happened?"
"Wait you don't know what happened?" Erza cast her a confused look before shaking her head. "Never mind I'll explain later, right now I need to get Riley to the infirmary and talk to Master at once."
A little while later Porlyusica was injecting a liquid into Riley's arm. Once that was done she proceeded to bandage the wounds that the black mage had acquired and only after that did she sit back and sigh.
"I swear every time I see this damn girl she's injured. For someone with legendary strength and power she's always getting herself into situations that almost cost her her life." The pink haired woman spoke with aggravation in her tone as she put away her tools, "She will be fine. I was able to make a counter to the poison that was in her system thanks to the blood that was all over her hand. If you hadn't come back with that I'm afraid she would have died."
"What on Earth happened Erza?" Makarov was serious as he spoke, crossing his arms as he did so and taking a seat next to the red mage. Erza proceeded to tell the story of Edolas and everything that had transpired there, being careful to leave out specific details that she didn't want them knowing. She also knew that Riley would kill her if she woke up to find out that they all knew. When she was done the room had become eerily silent.
"I see…and this Edolas Riley…he was the one who did this to her?" Makarov asked knowing full well the answer to his question but needing the clarification anyway.
"Yes. He was very skilled when it came to nullification magic and he caught Riley off guard with it."
"That bastard is lucky I wasn't there or else I would have killed him." Cana seethed from Riley's other side; her eyes flashing with anger as they drifted to the black mage.
"Rest assured he's dead. Riley ripped his heart out herself, hence the hand covered in blood."
"Damn that takes balls to kill yourself…" The card user countered shocked and almost apologetically as she held back a shiver.
"So how long until she will be awake?" Makarov turned to his old friend who simply shook her head.
"I can't tell you because it all depends on her at this point. I say we let her rest and come back and check on her in a little while."
"Yes good idea. Thank you Porlyusica."
"If she keeps needing me to save her ass like this I'm going to start charging her…" The pink woman spoke to no one in particular as the two older mages walked out, closing the door behind them to leave Erza and Cana alone with their friend.
"You can tell me you know." Cana said suddenly as she made the red mage nearly jump out of her skin in the process.
"What are you talking about Cana?"
"When you were telling us everything that happened in Edolas I knew right away that you left something out; now that it's just us in here I want you to tell me."
"Cana that's not a good idea…"
"I don't care…I mean I do care but I need to know…I love her too much to not want to know."
Taking a deep breath Erza sighed and explained all she had left out earlier and had to physically stop the card user from ripping the door off its hinges in a fit of rage. When the brunette was finally calm enough to talk rationally Erza sighed again.
"I told you that you wouldn't want to know."
"Thanks for telling me anyway." Cana relaxed back into her chair and looked to her fallen friend. "Man you really have shitty luck Riley…"
"Yeah…tell me about it…" The black wizard responded weakly as she opened her eyes and Cana and Erza both stiffened before smiling down at her.
"Welcome back sister."
"Glad to see you're awake again. How are you feeling?"
"Like I got hit by a fucking truck and almost died." Riley said flatly as she forced herself to sit up. She winced but otherwise had no trouble. "I take it I have Porlyusica to thank for my bandages and magic power? I can feel it again…thank God."
"Yeah her and Master Makarov left a while ago to check up on the rest of the guild while we stayed here to wait for you to wake up." Titania responded as Cana moved to hug the devastation mage.
Riley stiffened slightly before her body was alight with guilt from the last time they had spoken and she wrapped her arms around Cana in seconds and held on like her life depended on it.
"Cana…." She started before the brunette leaned back and smiled, tears filling her eyes.
"Don't…I know what you're gonna say…"
Riley swallowed hard and willed the tears that threatened to fill her eyes away before she grabbed Cana by her cheeks and kissed her with everything she had. The card user was shocked stiff as the black wizard kissed her but in seconds her body relaxed and she was kissing Riley back with fervor before the black wizard broke apart.
"I'm so sorry for what I said to you Cana…please forgive me…I didn't mean it."
"I know…"
"I love you Cana."
"I love you too Riley.
"As much as I love this little show of affection…" Erza trailed off while she looked away, turning a light shade of red in the process, "We should be getting back out to the rest of the guild. I heard something earlier that I want to confirm."
The couple laughed lightly before nodding and apologizing, each of them red in the face as well. Once Riley had changed they were back in the main part of the guild hall and both Cana and Erza froze while Riley simply looked on confused.
"Li-Lisana?" Erza asked surprised?
"How are you here you died two years ago…" Cana trailed off before the white haired mage told her story; Riley simply sitting down at the bar while she listened, her eyes traveling to Mira who was still crying happily next to her brother.
"I'm very happy for you Mira." Riley smiled genuinely and furrowed her brows when the white mage looked away without responding. "Everything alright? You should be happy Mira you've got your sister back." Said takeover mage was silent for another moment before she finally spoke.
"It's not that…Riley I wanted to apolo-"
"Don't worry about it Mira. It's in the past and I understand why you did it. I'm the one who owes you an apology for slapping you. I was out of line and went too far."
"No if anyone went too far it was me."
"Agree to disagree and move past this?" Riley offered with a smile and an out stretched hand. Mira simply smile back and wrapped the devastation mage in a hug before the two heard whispers around the guild; each stiffening at them before Riley did something about it. The black mage spun on her heel so fast, her power spiking enough to have her entire body glowing violet and even in her weakened state she had most people jumping back with fear in their eyes.
"Let's all understand one thing right now. Yes, I was raped a while back. Yes Mira was helping me get over my fear and I over reacted. No it does not mean you all get to talk about it in hushed voices behind my back and if I hear anything else on this matter I will personally see to it that you stop breathing. I just had to kill myself and ripped a still beating heart from my own chest so don't for a second think that I won't hurt you." By the time she had finished speaking she was all but hissing in anger and most of the guild had become petrified by her while the others simply looked on with sorrow in their eyes.
Once her magic tapered off the silence was thick enough to cut with a knife and Riley could only stand there in a mixture of shock and embarrassment before Makarov open his mouth.
"Now that that's settled let's put it behind us and never bring it up again. Does everyone understand me?"
There were a mixture of nods and replies throughout the guild before Riley nodded in satisfaction and took a deep breath.
"Now…in order to apologize for scaring most of you half to death I have decided to show you something that only a handful of people are aware of…" The black mage trailed off before she walked into one of the storage spaces the guild hall had. Levy was the first to catch on and her eyes lit up.
"No way!" She was at the front of the guild hall in seconds, taking a seat next to Erza and Cana who had figured it out as well; each having an expectant smile across their faces.
"Uh…anyone know what's going on here?" Lucy was confused as she looked around but simply followed suit and sat next to Levy. Freed who had been silent all this time finally spoke as he walked up to sit behind the blonde mage.
"If it's what I think it is then we are all in for a very special treat." His voice was filled with anticipation and Lucy could swear she saw something akin to love flash across his eyes before Riley was back and walking towards them all, a black case held tightly in her hand.
"Thank you for taking such good care of it Freed…I owe you." She cast the green mage a wink before pulling up a chair in front of everyone as she spoke again, "Find a seat you guys, it's time I show you why I didn't enter the Miss Fairy Tail contest." She was smirking as her voice filled with that Mira could only describe as arrogance and she was perplexed as to why so she simply took a seat next to Cana and waited patiently.
Lucy was thoroughly confused at this point while she looked around at everyone around her. Most everyone had congregated to where she was and had taken a seat and while most looked just as confused as she was, a few looked like they were all about to jump the black wizard's bones and the celestial mage inwardly shuddered before the lights went out and a single light lit up Riley who was holding a violin in her hands. Lucy's eyes widened with shock at what she saw before her but couldn't look away while the black mage simply took a deep breath and raised the instrument to her right shoulder; bringing the stick up to the strings before she began to play, closing her eyes in the process.
The sound that echoed within the guild hall had everyone freezing in their seats and a deafening silence washing over the room. Lucy was at a complete loss for words as she listened to the sound that was emanating from the black mage before her. With each stroke Riley's fingers moved with a grace Lucy never knew she could possess and the change in sound had the celestial mage's heat pounding in her chest so hard she was afraid it would explode.
Mira sat shocked stiff as she listened to Riley play and her eyes couldn't seem to focus on anything else in the room aside from the black mage. She could see the grace in Riley's form as it moved in time with her arm and fingers in an almost dance-like way while at the same time never once opening her eyes. The takeover mage's jaw dropped and the pounding of her heart seemed to beat in sync with the music that shook her entire body. Drawing her eyes away from the woman before her she was able to look around and what she saw made her stiffen once again. Everyone who had been confused only moments before seemed to be in a trance while they listened to the music, their jaws hanging open while their eyes glued to Riley.
I never knew she could do this…she has everyone mesmerized…her mind was racing at this point while the tempo picked up on the wordless song that was ringing in her ears and before she knew what she was doing she was standing and walking closer to Riley, suddenly needing to be closer to the beautiful sound that plagued her senses.
While Riley played Erza felt her heart lighten and her soul sing for the first time in a while and she smirked as she watched Mira go closer, Levy not far behind. Within a minute half the guild was huddled closer to her sister, each one as if fighting for her music to be all to themselves. Around her she could hear soft gasps ring out and she looked from person to person before her eyes landed on Lucy who looked as if she was about to pass out. Her eyes were heavy and her breathing was coming in fast but still the blonde wizard leaned closer resting her head on Mira's shoulder in the process.
While she played Riley could feel the atmosphere change and she instinctively smiled before the tempo changed again to slow and she was feeling the vibration of the strings within her very soul. She loved playing and being able to play for those she loved only made the experience more enjoyable. When the last note sounded and tapered off she finally opened her eyes and was a little shocked to see that everyone had come within a foot of her while she was playing; their eyes glued to her as if she were the reason for their very existence and she smiled.
"This is my way of showing my love for all of you. You are my family…and I wanted you all to hear what I hear when I pick up a violin…" Riley spoke softly as she looked down at her instrument before bringing her head up again to smile. The room was silent again before shouts rang out all around her and it was hard to tell who said what.
"Marry me right now!"
"She's not gonna marry you because she's gonna marry me you idiot!"
"That was the most beautiful thing I have ever heard in my life!"
"Riley just made me switch sides."
"I could listen to her play all day…"
"Please play another song for us Riley!"
It was after that comment that everyone stopped bickering amongst themselves and agreed on something. Shouts of agreement rang out all around her and she simply smiled and nodded before taking another deep breath and playing again.
This time while she played she could feel a head fall into her lap and a back press up against her legs as she sat. The warmth from all around her only fueled her playing and she smiled wider, her fingers moving faster as she upped them tempo of the song and played with everything she had. It was when she stroked the final note that she was tackled and arms wrapped around her neck.
"All of you guys can suck it Riley is mine." Cana said happily as she hugged the black mage who was taken aback by her sudden invasion of space. When arguments began to unfold all around her Riley laughed aloud and stood, bringing the card user with her to wrap her arm around the brunette's waist.
"I will play for anyone, anytime, and any place. Rest assured I love playing for you all as much as you love listening to me play…" She trailed off to hold Cana closer before kissing her for everyone to see.
Levy and Erza squealed with excitement while Lucy and Mira made very loud sounds of approval.
"You two are so cute together!" The white mage said happily as she clapped her hands. When it was clear that no one in the guild had a problem with Riley and Cana being together the black mage smiled again before setting her case down and walking over to the bar. Everyone of course followed suit to ask her many questions but all she wanted was some spicy curry and that's exactly what she got.
Well that's it for this chapter I hope you all enjoyed it as much as did while writing it! until next time!
Regards,
dark
