Chapter 29: Pain I Thought Couldn't Exist

A crushing defeat; only witnessed by those who managed to escape the doom that lied dormant within the base. Not only were they traumatized by those that they lost in their escape, but they also had lost all hope for themselves. Yet, they are unaware of what has really happened with those they loved. For all this time they thought they were dead, the two held onto each other desperately for survival. Kyousuke, having finally realized that the explosion had passed, let go of Gajeel and fell to the ground helplessly. He was completely drained of all his magic power, and had it not been for the shield both Kyousuke and Gajeel had created, they would be dead as Roxanne and the others had presumed. Gajeel, also realizing the explosion having passed by, gained his own personal smile on his face. Just as worn out as Kyousuke, he let himself go as he fell to the ground as well, too worn out to move in his current condition. Both wizards were extremely exhausted, and they lied on the ground breathing heavily. Yet, as they did, they were filled with extreme relief and elation. They were too worn out themselves to think about what the others are thinking right now. Kyousuke turned a head towards Gajeel, seeing him breathing just as much as he himself was.

"Looks like we're not dead…you know." Kyousuke says. He continued to regain his breath as Gajeel did the same.

"You got that right." Gajeel says optimistically. He then turns his head to Kyousuke with a similar smile on his face. It was always nice seeing a pleasant smile on Gajeel's face. Kyousuke was happy himself about it too. He turned his head and looked up though; his tone become more calm.

"Or maybe just you." Kyousuke whispers. Gajeel, having heard what he said, looks at Kyousuke confused.

"Huh? What the hell are you talking about?"

"That explosion…forcibly removed the madness I had from me. You didn't have any madness to begin with…so obviously you're okay. But for me…looks like I'm going with it." Kyousuke says exhausted. His breathing started to slow down as Gajeel looked at him with increasing shock. His eyes started to widen a bit as he looked at Kyousuke desperately.

"What are you saying? You ain't dying!" Gajeel says annoyed, looking at Kyousuke as he just looks back. He started breathing normally again, just as he sees Gajeel looking at him both confused and upset. Kyousuke just smiled in response.

"Out of all people, you're the one who gives me that face."

"Don't be ridiculous! I ain't letting you die here!" Gajeel says angrily. He felt like Kyousuke wasn't supposed to die, yet he was. Kyousuke looked at him, requipping his chokuto to his side with all his last strength, as if he had to in some way. He said one more thing.

"You know…I could never lose someone as important as you." Kyousuke says smiling. A tear poured from his eye afterwards, just as his smile faded away and he lost all emotion in his face. Gajeel's eyes widened considerably, just as he grabs Kyousuke and starts shaking him.

"Quit the crap, I know you're not dead!" He says angrily, grabbing Kyousuke and shaking him. Kyousuke just wobbled back and forth like a lifeless doll. It wasn't there anymore. He…was gone. Gajeel, completely horrified at such a sight, slowly let go of Kyousuke as he looked at his lifeless body. The realization was such a shock to him. He started to fill up with rage, clenching his fists in increasing anger.

"Damn those bastards!" He says to himself angrily. He decided to get up, but before doing so he saw Kyousuke's chokuto lying next to him. He looked at it with wonder, subsiding his anger for the moment so he could examine the peculiar weapon Kyousuke always had on him. It was quite the weapon, and Kyousuke knew how to use it with great precision. "He's always walking around with that thing. I gotta know why though." Gajeel thinks to himself curiously. However, his curiosity is cut short when Kyousuke's body starts becoming covered in blue, sparkling magic energy. Looking at him in shock, Gajeel soon realized that his body was being taken away since it no longer held life. In a state of panic, he turned to Kyousuke's chokuto and shot for it, grabbing it with one hand as he pulled it closer to him. Much to his surprise though, it started to burn. Gajeel sat there painfully trying to hold onto the chokuto as he tried to figure out how to use it.

"What the heck's up with this thing?!" Gajeel says shocked. He forced his grip onto the chokuto as the pain slowly started to fade. It stopped burning with time as Gajeel managed to get a grip of the sword with ease. "I wonder what the heck that was all about." Gajeel says to himself. Suddenly, the swords starts to glow a bright iron color just as Kyousuke stops glowing, suddenly glowing in the center of his body. The confusion within Gajeel shot up as things got weirder for him. Looking at the glowing section on Kyousuke's body, Gajeel turns his attention to the chokuto, and then back at Kyousuke's body again. He thought of something that sounds just as stupid as it is smart.

"Well, here goes nothing." Gajeel says, grabbing Kyousuke lightly. He held Kyousuke out in-front of him with his left hand as he prepared to pierce Kyousuke with the chokuto in his right hand. He did it, piercing Kyousuke through the glowing spot as Gajeel slowly pulls it out afterwards. Just as he does, Kyousuke starts glowing brightly as white energy can be seen flying directly into Kyousuke. Just as such happens, Gajeel's arm starts glowing silver in color. Looking at his arm in shock, Gajeel watches as his whole body becomes covered in this silver aura. He could feel incredibly high amounts of magic energy being filled into the chokuto, just as he looks back at Kyousuke shocked. Kyousuke slowly stops glowing, just as Gajeel looks at him shocked. He then looks back at the sword, seeing it resonate with the green energy that resembles Gajeel's own magic energy. He felt a need to test it.

"I wanna see what this thing's got." Gajeel says, getting up and looking straight at the wall in-front of him. Having set the wall as his target, he prepares to use the chokuto, holding it back behind him like a sword and then swinging it towards the wall with immense force. The amount of magic power he used could be felt as a powerful wind, and just as he swung, a large silver wave of Iron flew out from the blade, spinning at incredibly high speed towards the wall in-front of him. Gajeel watched in awe as this massive, spinning iron blade flew directly into the wall in-front of him, shredding it to bits as it flew through the rest of the base and eventually into the helicopter room from earlier. Gajeel gained a grin on his face as he got down and grabbed Kyousuke. He threw him onto his shoulder, and with that he headed through the hole he just made, wielding a new power for the time being. "I'm sick of sitting around here. Better get moving and head back. Salamander and all them have got another thing coming." Gajeel says with a grin on his face. There was nothing stopping him at this point.


At the same time everyone else was mourning over their losses. Fun was out the window and all that remained was everyone sitting at Roxanne's place in depressed moods. What would you expect though; they were horrified at Gajeel and Kyousuke's deaths. Roxanne was preparing food and cleaning the house and sorts while everyone else was sitting on the couches, completely drained of positive thoughts.

Natsu was angry at his own failure to save them, blaming himself as he remembered the times Gajeel saved him. Had it not been for Gajeel, Natsu would be dead.

Gray and Axel were upset and said nothing of it.

Levy had stopped crying but that didn't mean she was happy again. She took it pretty hard but shockingly Erza and Roxanne took it even harder.

While Pantherlily was distraught at losing a partner, Erza was in complete, utter regret over the decision she had made. She didn't put the blame on Kyousuke, but she felt she should've intervened. As a leader she felt she made a fatal mistake. Maybe Natsu was right, but there was nothing she could do now. It was too late. It made her regretful in many ways but it wasn't something you would expect. Just as the regret filled her, memories came back.

"I still remember it all; back when Fairy Tail went to war with Phantom Lord." Erza thinks to herself. She remembered everything he did; destroying the guild-hall, the damage to Team Shadow Gear, his ruthless attitude and persona. He was ruthless and could care less about other people at the time. When he joined Fairy Tail, there was no way in hell that she would've trusted him, even during the S-Class trials. Yet, things have changed and her chance to trust him was taken with it all.

"I would've never trusted him to begin with, but now…..I wish there was a second chance." Erza thinks to herself. She's not the only one who felt bad over it all though; everyone else felt the same way, some taking it harder than others. Everyone that was there when the madness took over Gajeel felt that it was their fault; they should've done something so things didn't end up like this.

Roxanne, though, took it the hardest. She felt utterly useless. She came out into the living room where everyone sat, being blank as a canvas. Her emotions were absent and gone, wiped clean off her face as she walked in and prepared to head out. She could care less about the food right now. As she went for the door knob, Dayton called out to her as she stopped in her tracks.

"Roxanne?" He says, just as she stops and listens, "Are you leaving?" Roxanne stood there silent for a few minutes before responding, closing her eyes in disappointment.

"Yeah, I'm heading out." She simply says. Silence fills the room again before Dayton responds, his tone being upset and toned down.

"That's fine. I'm not gonna try to stop you." Dayton says. For some reason Roxanne only felt more pain inside of her. Before she started bursting into tears she opened the door and went out, Erza looking up at the door with a regretful expression on her face. The remorse that she was faced with was more painful than she wanted.

Roxanne walked down the street, walking through the city as the only things running through her head were Kyousuke and Gajeel. Kyousuke may have treated her badly but she still cared for him anyways. It was as if she looked to Kyousuke because of Axel's disappearance. Yet, Kyousuke was a wave of mystery; reluctant to let any secrets be revealed. She also remembered Gajeel too though, and when he came, Kyousuke seemed different. They were so similar, yet so different. Gajeel was stronger, was focused and not disoriented by seething emotions and went through Kyousuke like a sword. He was the only one that got to him and was able to change him for the better. It made her feel useless in a way and the fact that the two people she cared for so much are now just gone, it emptied her of happiness. People walking by on the streets would give her strange looks, wondering what was wrong with her as she isn't usually like this. At the same time however, many people didn't even give a shit, continuing on with their daily lives as if they had enough to worry about. She walked in the city, noticing a coffee shop up ahead of her. She didn't have any money on her, but she decided to head in anyways.

"ROXANNE!" She hears. It sounded like Kyousuke, just as her heart races and she spins around in shock, eyes widened. It was just other people walking through the city though, no one super important, and definitely not Kyousuke. Disappointed by what she sees, she sighs as she starts heading into the coffee shop again. "ROXANNE!" She hears again. Now she knows who it is.

She turns around to see a knight in shining armor grab her wrist as the lady pulls Roxanne away from the coffee shop. Roxanne could do nothing but let herself be dragged along with Titania as she zoomed down the city. Erza thought fast as she raced around the city, eventually landing at her destination as she lets go of Roxanne. Roxanne looks up, only to be surprised at the sight of a large canyon. It wasn't just any large canyon though, this was Kyousuke's canyon. The sight of it made her remember the times when Roxanne would see Kyousuke sit on the edge of this canyon. The energy of the canyon pulled her to the edge as she looks around and admires each and every feature; the ground, the trees near the edge and even the large river that shined like crystals. Her eyes sparkled as the reflection bounced into her eyes from the sun. Nostalgia shot through her as she remembered how important this canyon was to Kyousuke. It sank in her like a rock in the ocean. Even Dayton knew how precious it was to him. How Erza found out was unknown, but she knew, and Roxanne felt surprise at such.

"Kyousuke was here all the time." Roxanne says with a calm voice. A weak smile broke through on her face, just as Erza listened with a calm attitude. "I would come here to watch him as he would just sit there, staring into the river with the millions of thoughts running through his head. Sometimes it would rain and I would just stand there soaked. He didn't care either though, and he would sometimes bolt back home and I wouldn't even realize it." She says calmly. The thought of it shattered her a bit, and she eventually fell to her knees as she was upset once again. Erza slowly walked up to her and kneeled down next to her as she sat there in desolation. Erza felt empathetic with her feelings.

"Listen, I know how much Kyousuke means to you Roxanne." Erza explains, just as Roxanne sits there, not moving a muscle. "We all…"

"It wasn't just Kyousuke though!" Roxanne says upsettingly. Erza looks at her surprised, just as Roxanne continues. "It was Gajeel too!" She shouts, shocking Erza. "He gave me faith in Kyousuke! He told me he wouldn't do reckless things like try to kill Natsu or anything like that! You could see how much he cared about Kyousuke in his eyes!" Roxanne goes on.

"His eyes?!" Erza says surprised. She remembered the piercing red eyes that Gajeel had and the power they presented. She also remembered how Gajeel hung out and trained Kyousuke too, but she was never there to witness any of it. To think Gajeel would act this way. Roxanne started to tear up, just as Erza looks up and notices. She quickly grabs Roxanne and pulls her into her arms, just as Roxanne starts crying and lets it all out. "IT'S NOT FAIR!" Roxanne screams, crying as Erza sits there with her in complete regret. Erza also tears up, just as she feels the same way as Roxanne.

"I know what it's like to lose someone you care for." Erza says; holding Roxanne close to her as the pain eases a bit. It was hard for Erza; having to watch someone else she cared for go through the same pain that she did, but she was also glad that she could be there for her. "You can consider yourself a member of Fairy Tail Roxanne."


The next day wasn't any better. Dayton, Natsu, Roxanne, Erza, Levy & Pantherlily were all in a group back at the school. They were waiting very early in the morning before class started because they were all too upset to even get some real shut-eye. None of their moods were lightened up but at least they were able to talk to each other for once. Levy decided to start off with something light.

"So this is where you go every day." She says calmly. Usually she's the one doing all the talking, but today wasn't one of those days. Dayton responded in a calm demeanor.

"Yeah. It's one of the ways I make money, other than work." Dayton responds calmly. They lived on their own so they managed to set the school up in a way that allowed them to earn a daily pay-check for each day they head to school. That wasn't important now though. Silence took over for a few more minutes until Natsu started clenching his fists angrily, being upset at what he did.

"We shouldn't have left! We should've stayed so we could've done something! That's what Fairy Tail does!" Natsu says angrily. That wasn't going to give them a second chance though. Why were Gray, Axel and Lucy not there? Who knows? Sick and tired of dealing with this, the group prepared to head inside of the school, hoping for it to help get it off their minds a bit. Tt almost nearing half-an-hour before school starts, so Dayton started heading there first.

"We might as well get to class." He says walking to the school as everyone else started to as well. Roxanne stood there, looking out into the sun for a little bit as she turned around and saw Erza. She was waiting there for her, just as Roxanne turns and heads her direction.

"Guess waiting here isn't going to bring them back, is it?" Roxanne says, slowly walking to Erza as they both start walking to the school, behind everyone else.

"What are you saying; bringing them back?" A darker voice says. It sounded more real than ever, just as the sensation of extreme shock and appalment shot through their very nerves. Roxanne and Erza's eyes widened as they slowly turned around to see the tall figure standing before them, holding a body on his right shoulder as he stood there in-front of them. Dayton heard something and prepared to turn around.

"What's up Roxanne…" Dayton says before receiving the same feeling. Natsu, Pantherlily, and Levy also got hit with the intense feeling of shock. It was too good to be true. Levy gasped in shock just as everyone else watched in bewilderment, Roxanne shaking a bit at the shocking truth. She tried to say something but she jittered as she said it, being overwhelmed with awe and bafflement. Dayton and Natsu were shocked themselves.

"No way." Dayton simply says, not being able to say anymore. Natsu was speechless, and Roxanne had finally spit it out.

"Gajeel!" Roxanne states in shock. She was trembling before him as he stared at her with his serious red eyes, appearing as if it was nothing major. She fell to her knees, thunderstruck as everyone else rushed up to Gajeel. Levy grabbed him and hugged him tightly as everyone else surrounded him. It was as if he was the great treasure that they had all been searching for.

"I thought you were gone forever! Don't do that to me!" Levy shouts in tears. Gajeel grinned a bit, but there was something else on his mind.

"Yeah yeah. You can quit the crying now shrimp." Gajeel says, Levy being annoyed. Pantherlily jumped to the questions.

"What the heck happened down there?!" Pantherlily asks in shock. Gajeel just straight up summarized it.

"Long story short; the base exploded and we created a shield out of our Dragon Slayer Magic." Gajeel explains. Natsu and Dayton were surprised.

"A Dragon Slayer Magic shield?!"

"Yeah, but we don't have time to talk about that right now!" Gajeel says with a serious tone. It sort of sucks to break the good mood, but it was important. Erza was happy herself but she didn't intervene. Gajeel walked up to Roxanne, who looked up at him from her knees. She was too shocked to say anything right away. Noticing her stationary position, Gajeel became annoyed.

"Come on, stand up!" Gajeel orders. Roxanne looked at Gajeel a bit surprised before getting up, looking at him with a still completely mind-blown expression. The happiness was starting to fill up in her.

"Wha..what is it?" She asks calmly, just as Gajeel gets straight to the point. There was no time to waste.

"Kyousuke here isn't looking good." Gajeel says, shooting down the happiness in Roxanne. She felt like a sunken ship as she suddenly felt extreme desperation for a need to know what was wrong. Gajeel clenched his fist a bit, surprising everyone.

"He might be dying."

"WHAT?!" Everyone shouts. Everyone was appalled.

"NO!" Roxanne says in disbelief. She didn't want to believe it, but she had no choice. That was why Gajeel seemed so impatient.

"I know you can heal him." Gajeel says; pointing at Roxanne who looked at him surprised. He didn't think he would look to her for help. If that's what he wants though, that's what she's going to give him. She looked at him with an anxious look in her eyes.

"So what do you want me to do?!"

"Take me to your place. We can get him all back to normal once we get there." Gajeel says. With that, each and every one zooms straight for Roxanne's place. They had no time to waste and Gajeel was determined to make sure Kyousuke survives. Will Kyousuke make it?