Hey guys been a few years since I posted on here. This is an updated version of my previous fic by the same name. Hope you enjoy!
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Chapter I: Inroduction
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Alakitasia; Alvarez Empire; Outskirts of Vistarion
A horde of flames exploded out from within a large stone tower. Every possible crevice and exit was filled to the brim with the crimson-colored hellfire. Just as quickly as came, it stopped. The the air began to fill with ash and smoke. Nothing inside was left standing. A man walked out from the tower, draped in velvet red robes with golden linings and a white toga over it all. A hood materialized over his head, hiding away his outlandish salmon-colored hair.
"Was that really necessary, Azazel? It was just some goons with a weak Dragon Slayer Lacrima." He spoke out loud and alone. Not to the air, but to the voices in his head.
Well it's a rare occasion that you let one of us dictate your actions outside of when we take over. . .I had to enjoy it for the four of us.
"Right, I'm sure. It's definitely not your bloodlust and the reason you were cast out of heaven. . .twice. Anyways, how much do you think they'll pay me if I show them I have a Dragon Slayer Lacrima now and threaten the merchant? Maybe 50,000 Jewels?" He held out the round crystal, sizzling with draconic energy, and watched as a hole in space opened up and swallowed it, leaving only his hand.
He hurried back along the path he'd taken to get here from the city, stepping over the ashy remains of the surrounding landscape.
"W-What do you men 50,000 Jewels?! How about you fuck off!" The merchant's forehead vein couldn't be bulging more than it was right now, he held on to the broom in his hands as if his life depended on it, bringing it back like a batter about to swing.
"Ah-ah-ah, look what I have here. You do recognize this don't you?" The man from earlier held the lacrima victoriously over the merchant, whose grip on the broom loosened instantly at the sight of the magical object.
"You bastard. Is this what you do? Hunt down magical items for people and then use them to extort your employer? Jackass." The merchant dropped the broomstick and walked to the back of the store. He came back out shortly with a bag slung over his shoulder. "It's all there. Do you want me to count it for you too?" He mocked the hooded man as he dropped the bag and Jewels fell out.
"No that's fine. Pleasure doing business with you. As a token of appreciation for your generosity, you can have this Dragon Slayer Lacrima. I've no use for it anyways it's too weak."
"D-Dragon Slayer Lacrima? And you say it's too weak for you? Who the hell do you think you are, one of the Emperor's Guard?" The merchant laughed in his face, plucking the orb out from his outstretched hand. "This'll fetch me much more than those 50,000 Jewels, so I won't even try to use it on you. . .just in case your words actually ring true." His laughing got louder with every word. He looked down to pick up the broomstick and gasped lightly to see that the bag had disappeared.
"When did—" The other man had disappeared. "Tch, maybe he wasn't lying."
The low bustling of the merchant square was cut off by the clanking of metal feet marching en mass across the square.
"Where is the devil that blew up the tower shortly outside of the capital? Harboring him will cost you your lives. Speak up if you know where he is and you'll be rewarded accordingly!" An aged feminine voice spoke out, enhanced by Magic to reach everyone in the square even over the sound of the marching army.
"I-I have information about him! He stiffed me out of 50,000 Jewels and then gave me this Dragon Slayer Lacrima!" The merchant ran out to the guards, weapons being drawn at him at the first sight of him approaching them with a lacrima.
"And do you know where he is? What he looks like?"
"Yes, of course. He's wearing red robes with a white toga and a hood. He's hard to miss. He just left my shop, he couldn't have gotten further than the edge of the square."
"Alright, men, spread out through every venue you can go down from the center of the square, we'll flush him out to the border then face off if we have to away from the civilians—"
"That won't be necessary. I heard your voice and here I am. Now, is the reward paid in Jewels or gold? Either is fine for me." All eyes and dozens of magically-equipped weapons were suddenly pointed at him.
"Speak your name, devil. If you come willingly this won't have to be turned into a bloodbath. And trust me when I say it won't be our blood that's spilled."
"My name is Natsu Dragneel. I'm simply a bounty hunter and man of odd jobs. The merchant asked me to take care of some thieves and I did, but he had failed to inform me that they were equipped with a Dragon Magic infused Lacrima, which is extremely dangerous. 50,000 Jewels seemed like a low price to pay in exchange for my efforts given the circumstances." He spoke calmly and directly at the woman, not deviating his eyes under her stone gaze.
"Are you aware that use of Magic by anyone other than an officer or member of the Palace within Vistarion and its surrounding area are prohibited?"
"No ma'am I am not. I'm originally from Ishgar and have no specific knowledge of this empire and its rules. If you'll forgive me for the intrusion and misunderstanding then I'll leave right now and not bother you or your people any longer."
"I'm afraid that won't do. Laws are laws, and as a foreigner you are held more harshly to them than any of this empire's citizens. You shouldn't be crossing borders without even knowing their basic rules. Give yourself up at once or you'll be taken by force to the Palace and paraded around like a circus animal. Your choice." She smirked at him, clutching the hilt sword at her waist, knowing that a person like him would not comply. She knew it from the moment he spoke with such blatant disregard for her authority.
"I'm going to have to decline. You see, I wanted to go see your emperor and his Guard, I find the whole thing exciting to hear about such strong wizards. If I'll have to draw them this way then so be it. But listen hear when I say this, it won't be my blood that's spilled on this ground today." His hood dematerialized, revealing his outlandish hair once again.
"Pink hair. . .where do I know of that. . ." she muttered between breaths, "all troops, attack him on my command. Citizens of Alvarez, run back and take any valuables you have in your shops. They might be destroyed in the fight." The citizens rushed to gather their belongings. The merchant Natsu had given the lacrima to ran away with it, unsure of his ability to use it to help the troops and keep his patriotic spirit fueled. For now, he'd take self-preservation over his nation.
As the streets cleared, Natsu let out a sigh, his eyes closed as his shoulders dropped, absorbing the Ethernano from the surrounding atmosphere through every pore in his body.
"Ready your weapons!" The captain of the brigade stepped out in front of her men, drawing her sword, letting it buzz with electricity. It was also magic-infused.
"Charge him!"
Natsu was done absorbing the Ethernano in the air around him, enough for one word.
"Burn." A caving wall of flames exploded out in front of him and towards the troops who stood back, watching as their captain cut through the flames, the electricity in her sword darting out to meet every inch of the flame with an equal amount of electricity to nullify its effect.
"You thought it'd be that easy?" She snorted mid-laugh, pointing her sword at Natsu. "I said charge damnit! It's one man!" The men roared with adrenaline, running past her and raising their weapons ready to strike down.
Natsu struck a smile. "You're stronger than I expected. Zeref's done well with this empire then." He smashed his fist through the first man's iron helmet, listening for the slight cracking of bones before stopping all momentum in his arm and focusing on the others.
Two came up on either side of him, spears and lances and swords swinging downwards at him. He broke through the reinforced steel, stopping their motion and kicked one of them into the other 3, throwing the group several feet away from the force and breaking through the first man's ribs.
"Burn." He spoke the same word again, launching another wave of flames at the men. They each deployed minor defense Magics, but were subject to their armor turning red from the heat, burning through their clothes underneath and leaving burns.
"Will you continue to sacrifice them like this? Face me yourself, show me what that sword and your willpower combined can do. It's been a while since I've had a decent sparring session."
"I know who you are now. That pink hair and this amount of skill is unquestionable. You're the one who razed the capital of Fiore after being sentenced to imprisonment for endangerment of the Council. I thought it was just hearsay that someone could do that, but here you are and your power is beyond what I thought from the stories. Men, retreat. Gather reinforcements and do it fast. Call for the Emperor or a Spriggan, tell them the Salamander of Fiore is attacking our capital. I'll hold him off for as long as I can."
"How noble of you. I truly didn't expect such selflessness from someone in your position of power. I'd expected you to hide behind your troops. Must be from the humbling that ascending the ranks as a woman would cause. I applaud you for making it so far up. I might just spare you."
"I acknowledge your threat, Salamander, but don't think that just because I'm a woman I won't be a threat to you. I didn't get here by being weaker than my peers. Prepare yourself!" She charged forward with enough speed to fly through the air at Natsu, kicking up a trail of dust behind her.
Natsu tried to jab her directly, but she ducked her head and brought her sword up close to her body, the blade pointed directly at his stomach, the speed which she was moving being enough to plunge it completely through his abdomen and for the blade to come out his back.
Except it didn't.
He smacked the blade downwards and brought his knee upwards, jabbing it into her body and denting her armor as she was thrown upwards, gasping for air with eyes wide open.
She wasted no time in recovering though, covering her body in Magic as electricity cackled all around her and on her sword again.
"Thunder King's Panther Claw!" She dragged the blade across the ground, swinging it in Natsu's direction as three blades of pure electricity tore through, all converging towards Natsu.
A distortion in space appeared in front of him and he reached through, quickly swiping the item he grabbed against the blades of electricity, instantly nullifying them.
He now gripped onto a long sword with a simple golden hilt and black leather handle. Words were engraved down on the blade in a foreign language.
"No Magic you use against this sword will have any effect. It is the ultimate defiance against the World. I found your thoughts and ideas that I've captured from your head throughout this exchange admirable. I'll honor a person such as yourself with mercy or the ultimate death any warrior could ever face, at the mercy of this blade forged before this continent was inhabited by life. Choose your path. You either run now or are killed painlessly in servitude of another."
"I am not in servitude of another, do not mock me with such words. If you had truly seen my thoughts you'd know I am willing to commit atrocities for this nation that allowed to overcome the obstacles I faced in my early life, and our emperor whose wisdom knows no bounds. I'd gladly die to save the countless innocents and good people of this city from your wrath. Besides, reinforcements will be here soon. And while your power is profound, that of His Majesty's Guard is bottomless."
He appeared between eyeblinks in front of her, the sword patiently waiting at the tip of her throat.
A woman like that would've made a great soldier in my battle against Heaven. Kill her with my sword as I would've done if I met her on the battlefield. Her soul shouldn't be tainted by Hellfire. Free her from the machinations of God on this mortal woman.
"As you say, Lucifer."
"Wait who are you—" The blade blocked the air passage in her throat as it was plunged through her neck and sliced down through the canal for good measure. Her soul would remain pure under the watch of the Morning Star.
Natsu rose as her body fell to the ground, no blood leaving staining him or the area around her. Or even her clothes. Nor was there a huge laceration in the human's neck. There was no sign of the cause of death.
I have her soul now. She will rest easily, Natsu.
"Thank you." He let the sword disappear once again.
"So you're a Re-Quip user? Nice sword ya got there, wouldn't mind if I had a play with it would you?" Natsu turned around to see the newcomer. A black-haired man with sunglasses obnoxiously resting on his hair and a loud purple suit and slacks adorning his body, with a bandana under the sunglasses to match.
He grinned widely as the space in front of him distorted similarly to the way it would with Natsu, reaching into the distortion and space in search of the sword. Natsu didn't react, watching with hidden amusement as the man looked into the distortion.
"You have so much crap in here. . .oh there it is!" He suddenly recoiled back, gripping his hand tightly and wincing in pain. "What the hell Magic is that enchanted with that I can't even touch it?!" He howled at Natsu in agony.
"Without the blood of a Celestial you wouldn't be able to even touch the sword without a mark being left on your soul. You'd be better off fighting me directly." He smirked at the man who still couldn't bear the pain in his hand.
"What have you done to Marin? I might have to kill you just for that and apologize to His Majesty afterwards for it. Here, Marin, stop hollering." A woman walked into the square, her Magical density causing the air to vibrate to with energy as Ethernano filled up the space. The burn mark on Marin's hand suddenly disappeared from sight, and the man was able to recover from his previous state, gasping for air as drops of sweat fell onto the floor.
"Your Magic can't reverse the effect of the sword's enchantment on him. While the burn was temporary, his soul is still marked." He stood fully in her presence, turning to her and taking in her beautiful features. And her lack of clothes. She only wore a simple brown and gold bikini with white spots, along with a large golden robe with fur on the edges. Two silver crosses keep her bobbed green hair in place, matching her earrings.
"Personally, I don't believe in all that spiritual nonsense. So spout what you want, his pain is gone and yours is only about to start. You've violated our laws and killed a member of our army. One that I liked for her ideals especially. Would you like to avoid all that pain, or would you like to be forced into submission? It's only courtesy to give you the option." She waved her hand as she spoke, nonchalant about the threat Natsu posed to her.
"I'd like to continue this sparring session with a stronger opponent like yourself. I'd like to see who Zeref calls his own personal guard. So I'm ready to take whatever you want to dish out. Just know, I won't hold back against you and I advise you to do the same."
She smirked at his words. "I hoped you'd say that. Do not be so cocky though, Salamander of Fiore. There is a world outside of that tiny country, and throughout that world I am known as the Nation Destroyer. Brandish Myu of the Spriggan Twelve, His Majesty's Guard. I might just spare you though, if only to bring you to His Majesty so he can find out how you know his name and why you talk about him so familiarly. I fear he'd do with you much worse than anything I could."
"I'm looking forward to it." Natsu smiled as the other man teleported next to Brandish, ready for the fight.
Only a moment passed before they began.
Hope you guys enjoyed the introduction chapter and the cliffhanger. Look forward to the next one very soon!