Author's Note (Very Important!)

Hey guys, I know it's been a while, but I have finally posted the first chapter to the new story, and oh boy is it good. It is the chapter right after this note and I have decided that instead of focusing on the main Fairy Tail story line, I would give myself more freedom and instead focus on the 400 years between when Igneel was killed and the main story. This will probably make up the majority of the new story, and some of you may like this decision because my story will now focus a lot more on Natsu rather than the main Fairy Tail guild, which is what a ton of people were commenting on.

This new story will involve how Natsu participated in the dragon war, how me got all of his elements, how he got so strong, how he started his rivalry with Acnologia, a much extended version of his relationship with Mizuki, his involvement with the 5 dragon gods, and other events.

Suggestions for events to take place, elements for Natsu to have, new magic for Natsu to get, or basically anything you guys want to see in the story is greatly appreciated, but know that I may not include it as I have been planning out this story rather than writing it on the fly.

I will probably start following a much looser release schedule, probably releasing a new chapter every one to two months (sorry), but I hope you guys still stay interested in my story even so. I also would love to hear your feedback about my new story and all of that stuff.

If you guys have suggestions about how to improve my writing, that would be very appreciated. I believe my writing quality has improved, but it is better to have other people judge that rather than yourself.

Sorry if there are any typos, mainly places when there is more than one space in a location. I'm not sure if it is my computer or my keyboard, but it sometimes puts in two spaces instead of one. I tried to fix them all, but there still could be errors.

Now onto the story!

Chapter 1 Rewrite

Year x370…

A large red dragon was laying in a cave with one eye open and his head down on the ground. He additionally had beige colored scales on his chest and underside, same as for the webbing of his wings that he extended as the morning sunlight rushed in through the cave entrance, drying the slight amount of moisture that had built up on his scaly exterior. He had large red claws on his hands and feet, that left light scuff marks on the cave floors as he pushed his body upwards, while extending his long neck ten feet into the air. His large pointed snout turned as it looked around outside, breathing in the scents in the air.

He sniffed the atmosphere around him as he heard some light rustling in the bushes outside of his cave. Turning his large head, his imposing gaze soon fell on a young man, or so he seemed with a head of black hair. He looked about average, except for the strange emotionless smile that was plastered on his face. A mask for who the person truly was. His high collared black robes brushed across the grass as his white flowing toga draped across his torso lightly blew in the wind.

He held a boy that looked no older than five, maybe six years of age in his arms. The boy had a strange expression on his face, as if he wasn't even alive, or at least not yet. The only thing he was wearing was a pair of beige shorts held up by a brown string with no shoes or shirt.

"It's been a while hasn't it? You were much younger last time we met, Zeref." Said the large red dragon in a relaxed gruff voice. It was strange, but it was as if the dragon's wizdom of his 1,000 years alive resonated through his voice.

Zeref smiled sadly, "You know Igneel, I'm surprised you didn't flee like all others who came before you, afterall, you should be able to smell my curse."

"Why would I run from someone like you." Igneel lowered his large head so he was eye-to-eye with Zeref, "Your concern for life has long since faded, so much so that you wouldn't injure a single person around you." Igneel then changed into a strange mocking tone given the current situation, "Also, remember that slayer magic protects from Ankhseram's curse."

Zeref sighed as he looked down at the pink-haired boy in his arms, "I have a request for you Igneel…"

Igneel's eyes narrowed as he looked at Zeref suspiciously, "Go on…" Although he knew Zeref was not inherently evil, there was no knowing what he was truly after.

Zeref smirked, "I want you to raise my brother, Natsu."

Igneel's composure completely changed as he gasped, "What?! I could never raise a child! The mighty Igneel is too dignified to belittle himself with such a task!" Igneel's pride as a dragon would be wounded by doing this, afterall, raising a human child was nonsense for a dragon as powerful as himself. He also didn't want to remember how he abandoned his first child. Like most male dragons, Igneel too abandoned his son and left it to his mate, and he had felt guilty ever since.

Zeref kept his smirk as he thought of using Igneel's huge ego against him, "Metalicana, Grandeeney, Weisslogia, and Skiadrum are raising children of their own. If they can do it but you can't, wouldn't that make them stronger dragons than you?" Zeref noticed only a slight change in Igneel's composure, after all, he was rather stubborn. Zeref thought for a second before saying quietly, "That would be quite peculiar given that you are a dragon king and all..." Igneel grit his teeth as Zeref's grin grew.

Igneel caved into his demands, "Fine! What do you want me to do with him anyways?"

Zeref replied, "I want you to teach him the new magic that was recently developed in the Kingdom of Dragnof. I believe it is called dragon slayer magic."

Igneel's eyes narrowed as he half growled out, "You are aware that magic is the exact reason Acnologia was born?" Igneel had long since abandoned the humans, ever since Acnologia destroyed half of his soul.

"I am very much aware of that Igneel." Zeref looked down at Natsu fondly as he made a sad smile, "I designed him to be my most powerful creation. He can easily withstand the stress that dragon slayer magic will put on him."

He had tried teaching the humans, but every single one he gave magic too just succumbed to its power and went insane. Igneel growled to Zeref, "I will never again teach another human my magic." Igneel changed to a more somber tone, "No matter how powerful a dragon slayer is, he will always succumb to the inevitable dragonification."

Zeref replied, "I have already thought of a method to solve that issue. The dragon soul technique." Igneel's eyes widened as he realized what Zeref was implying. If Igneel sealed his soul inside of Natsu, Igneel may be able to gain enough strength to regenerate the other half of his soul by syphoning off a portion of Natsu's magic every time he used it. Zeref smiled, "It will be a mutually beneficial agreement for both you and me."

Igneel asked, "And what would you get out of this? I would be able to regain my lost power, but by using the dragon soul technique, your brother would be severely weakened as his ability to use dragon force would be inhibited while I create the antibodies."

Zeref replied, "The demon seed will override the antibodies eventually, which will sadly kill him, but will also allow Natsu to kill me." Zeref looked at Igneel with new found determination, "This is the perfect opportunity for us."

"There's something else you want, isn't there?" Igneel narrowed his eyes. He wasn't the smartest dragon around, afterall, he was known for his hardheadedness, but he could still tell when someone was hiding something from him.

Zeref sighed, "You could always see right through me, couldn't you Igneel?" Zeref's expression turned from his normal relaxed smile that held no emotion to a rather serious expression, "The true purpose of this is to have Natsu kill Acnologia."

"WHAT?! Do you understand how outrageous that is! I can't even kill that fake dragon... AND I'M ALMOST 1,000 YEARS OLD!" shouted Igneel in shock and a bit in anger, "You want me to take your younger brother, who for the record, looks no older than six, and train him to kill the most powerful creature in existence." Igneel scoffed, "Yeah right…"

Zeref continued talking calmly with his soft smile, "It is not that strange. He is strong enough that by the time he is twenty he should be able to kill me, an immortal. He will be more than capable of killing Acnologia."

Igneel looked at Zeref with a sneer. Zeref had presented Igneel with an impossibly good offer, that was completely mutually beneficial. With only half his soul left, his body would soon deteriorate into nothingness. Igneel grit his teeth and finally caved to Zeref's demands, "Fine! What else do you want from this old fool besides me teaching that brat magic?"

Zeref smiled sadly as he looked down at the sleeping Natsu in his arms, "Good bye for now, Natsu." Zeref looked up at Igneel, "I have a few more things I want you to know. I do not want you to tell him that he is a demon and that he is my brother. If someone were to figure out his connection to me, he would surely be targeted once he returns to the humans."

Igneel asked, "Is that all?" Zeref responded by handing Natsu to Igneel, who picked him up in his large clawed hand. Igneel was about to ask Zeref something, but before he could do that Zeref had disappeared in a wisp of black smoke. Igneel looked down at Natsu who was still sleeping and said, "You don't look that scary for a demon."

Natsu slowly stirred as his eyes fluttered open and looked up at Igneel with wide eyes and made a wow sound. He then asked with great excitement, "Are you a dragon?! I always wanted to see a dragon!"

Igneel was pleasantly surprised that the boy wasn't scared but chuckled and said with a large amount of pride in his voice, "I'm not just any dragon, I am the great Fire Dragon King, Igneel!" And so, the two started their small journey together.

x376…

A loud crash could be heard in the forest as a boy no taller than 4 feet 7 inches was slammed into a tree, causing it to fall on top of him. The boy managed to roll out from under it by the skin of his teeth. A massive rock landed in the place that he had just been, smashing the fallen trees into nothing but splinters, kicking dust into the air.

The boy yelled out, "Fire Dragon's Roar" as a massive colomb of flames erupted forth from his mouth. It scorched the earth below it, vaporizing any plant life in its way as it raced forwards through the cloud of dust. There was a loud explosion as the attack struck its target, blowing away the dust cloud and destroying any grass or life that happened to be left in the scorched wasteland.

There was an agonizing roar of pain from whatever beast was just engulfed in fire. Suddenly, a spire of stone burst forth from the ground, almost striking the boy as he blasted off the ground using his fire. This boy was Natsu Dragneel, the fire dragon slayer, and Igneel had tasked him with killing one of the dragons from the anti-human faction, Genrok, the Stone Dragon.

Genrok stood tall, looking down on Natsu as the stone dragon exposed his rows of razor sharp teeth. His pointed stone eyebrows twisted as he glared down at Natsu. Genrok lunged forward, raising one claw into the air before striking the ground with great force. Natsu tried to bend back but Genrok's claws still slashed through his chest, leaving three deep bloody and jagged gashes running the length of his torso. Genrok's attack created a crater in the ground, sending a shockwave through the terrain as multiple spires of stone ripped the earth.

Natsu tried to dodge them with flames at his feet, but he wasn't very experienced with this skill, causing him to slam into multiple stone pillars, knocking him out of the air. Natsu landed on his back, knocking the wind out of his chest as the blood dripped from his wounds onto the ground, staining it red.

He pushed himself up to a sitting position while gritting his teeth in pain as he managed to grown to himself, "I really need to get better at controlling my movements." Natsu was suddenly struck in the face with another pillar of stone as he heard an unsatisfying crack as his nose broke. Natsu was sent flying back into a rock causing it to crack apart as he slumped to the ground and coughed up blood.

Natsu heard a "swish sound" as he barely managed to jump out of the way as Genrok's massive rocky tail slammed down next to him. "You are weak, human!" Roared the stone dragon. Natsu looked up only to notice a rocky hand appear from the dust. Natsu raised his left arm to block it, but it was ineffective. As the claw slammed into him it shattered his forearm, causing Natsu to scream in pain. Natsu fell to his knees as his left arm dangled motionless next to him.

Genrok tried to slam down his hand on top of Natsu as Natsu thought with determination, "It's now or never!" but Natsu extended his right hand above his head and grabbed onto Genrok's arm before yelling, "Fire Dragon's Grip Strike!" Fire surrounded Natsu's hand as it rushed forwards in a massive explosion, blowing off the bottom half of Genrok's arm, splattering blood across Natsu's face. Natsu thought to himself, 'If I keep this up I'm gonna die!' But he knew that he had to kill Genrok, afterall, he'd die if he didn't.

Genrok roared in pain. He yelled, "You miserable human! You would dare hurt the mighty Genrok!" Genrok lost his small sense of composure and charged at Natsu.

Natsu cocked back his fist and coated it in flames and yelled, "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" Natsu threw his fist forwards, striking Genrok in his head, breaking his hardened stone scales and scorching the skin underneath. Genrok was sent flying backwards, but he dug his claws into the ground as he swiped at Natsu with his other arm

Natsu looked at it and smirked, "Fire Dragon's Blazing Slash!" Natsu flattened his hand out and coated it in fire. He brought it in a half-moon arc, sending out a wave of fire towards Genrok, who only angrily rushed at Natsu. The wave of fire cleanly severed straight through one of Genrok's back legs, ripping off his feet.

Genrok fell to the ground but still raised his head as he yelled "You will never defeat the stone dragon, Genrok! Die, human!" Genrok sent out a breath attack as chunks of stone were sent flying towards Natsu as he was pummeled into the ground, but that didn't stop him.

Natsu persisted in his advancement towards Genroku as he extended his hand outwards and cocked it back. Natsu jumped into the air above Genrok's head before using his fire to blast straight downwards towards the stone dragon's armored head. He flattened his hand out with all of his fingers extended forwards in a blade-like shape. It was coated in a sheath of fire as Natsu yelled, "Fire Dragon's Piercing Strike!" Natsu thrust his hand forward as he landed on Genrok's head, piercing Genrok's stone exterior and going straight through the dragon's skull, killing him instantly.

Genrok let out one last mighty roar as Natsu slayed him… his first ever dragon. Blood coated Natsu's body as he stepped backwards off of the dragon's head, wobbling on his feet as the adrenalin started to wear off. Natsu panted heavily as his vision started to get blurry. He saw a large red dragon arrive in front of him that no matter what, could only be Igneel. Natsu muttered quietly as he tried to talk to Igneel, "I did it Igneel… I did-" Before he could finish his sentence tho, his eyes closed as he passed out from exhaustion.

Igneel smiled as he looked down at Natsu's relaxed face and said fondly, "Yes you did Natsu…" Igneel reached out one claw and cought Natsu before he could hit the ground. Igneel extended his wings, but before he took off he reached back with his other claw and gripped Genrok's corpse by the neck before dragging it into the air as he soared into the sky.

Later…

Natsu groggily woke up as he felt the morning sun rays shine onto his face. He looked out the entrance of the cave as he squinted at the morning light, silently cursing the sun about how he couldn't eat it. He tried to push himself up but felt a splitting pain in his chest. The dragon slayer looked down across his body at the cauterized wounds, afterall, Igneel was unable to heal him. Those would add a few more scars to the collection. He looked behind him at Igneel, laying on the cave floor behind him with a content smile, as well as the large corpse of Genrok that had been lazily thrown into the corner.

Natsu saw one of Igneel's large yellow eyes open before Natsu heard the fire dragon's gruff voice echoed through the cave, "It took you long enough, brat! You've been asleep for two days! I got stuff for you to do!"

Natsu said as he groaned, "Do you have to be so loud in the morning?" His dragon slayer hearing has just started to come in, and it sometimes made him a bit sensitive to sounds that he had previously been accustomed to, such as Igneel yelling at him.

Igneel smiled as he flicked Natsu in the back of his head with his massive claw, "It's late afternoon, you brat." Natsu tumbled into the wall, creating a comically human shaped hole.

Natsu groaned again as he sat up, clutching his head in the place that it slammed into the wall, "Could you not do that?!" Yelled Natsu angrily and he glared at Igneel, who merely laughed at Natsu's response.

Igneel said, "Now's not the time to be fooling around! I need you to peel off every single scale from that dragon's body." Igneel gestured to Genrok. Igneel picked up a dead moose that was lying on the ground next to him, "Here, eat this and then get to work."

Natsu opened his mouth to breath fire onto the moose before Igneel yelled at him, "No fire! We're doing something special today and it required that you do not use your magic today!"

Natsu groaned in annoyance before reaching his arms and yanking the moose carcass towards him and ripping into its raw flesh with his teeth. As he messily gnawed through the venison as he asked through his chewing, "So what's so important that I can't use magic? This stuff would taste so much better cooked!"

"You're getting a new dragon slayer element today." Igneel said before lazily tossing an entire second moose carcass into his mouth before swallowing it in one gulp.

Natsu's jaw dropped, "I thought you said that dragon slayers could only ever use one dragon slayer element!"

"No, Anna said that. She said that to protect you, but in reality, a dragon slayer can hold in theory, an infinite number of elements. It only depends on the size of the dragon slayer's magic container and whether or not their body can support the use of more elements." Replied Igneel.

As Natsu finished his food he asked, "So how exactly am I supposed to gain a new element. The only way that I know is to learn from a dragon."

Igneel replied with a massive grin, "There are many ways to get a new element as a dragon slayer. As for today, you are going to become a dragon eater"