The only sound following was the painful gurgle as one of the humans tried desperately to breathe. Rene knelt beside his companion, but there was nothing to be done about the large gash from neck to chest. He gently pats her head and glanced up at the prone figure lying in the middle of the room.
Arkade let out a long breath, his heart pounding from the terror he had felt just moments ago. He looked to where the shot came from, and nodded at the girl who still held the gun out, pointing at Zeref. Her partner, the boy with red hair that he really didn't care for, cautiously made his way to the laying vampire. None of them were naive enough to assume he was dead, so they all had to still be on their guard.
"What happened?" He directed his question to his granddaughter. The girl kept her eyes trained on the vampire on the floor.
"The Salamander is here, " she replied. "He interrupted our work. Kyo and I barely made it out with our lives."
"And the girl?"
"She was still strapped to the table, but he must have gotten to her."
"Obviously, " Arkade growled, showing a rare sign of annoyance. He never let anyone see his true emotion, and if someone annoyed him to the point he was about to break, they would be dead in less than a second. However, for his own blood, he was more lenient, but she was still aware enough to look afraid of him. She lowered the gun as she turned wide brown eyes to him.
"We were secure, " she tried to reason. "It was Hyde who failed to protect us."
"We'll discuss it later -"
Another strained gurgle sounded up on the council's stage. Arcade glanced over to see Rene now holding his neck as blood rained down from beneath his fingers. His son…
The girl cried out as the vampire fell, darting to his side as Arkade and Kyo became alert, watching Zeref on the floor. The other council members panicked, and Arkade shouted at them to be quiet. Only the sounds of the girl crying and speaking frantically in French, clutching her father's dying body to her chest, could be heard.
The head vampire joined the boy on the floor, both ready to defend themselves the moment Zeref moved a muscle, but he quickly discovered the threat didn't come from the unconscious body, but by beyond the door leading from the room. A shiver ran down his spine - a feeling he hadn't felt in centuries since becoming a vampire - as quiet footsteps sounded, evenly making their way towards them. He knew exactly who it was, but as he turned to face Kyo, he realized the poor boy had already been decapitated, the body a bloody clump on the floor, his head somewhere else.
The woman stepped into the room, her tears streaming down her cheeks as she stared at her king on the floor at Arkade's feet. He had met her once before as a child, but he would have never imagined, in his wildest dreams, that he would be staring into her eyes now, feeling a murderous weight press down on his body as if she manifested a giant hand to slowly crush him.
Briefly he registered two other bodies flanking her, but he couldn't look away from her.
"He was shot, " the woman to her left said. He recognized her to be Brandish, one of the king'smost trusted servants. "A bullet infused with holy water. If we don't move him now, he could die."
Lucy took a shuddering breath, closing her eyes, and effectively breaking whatever spell she had over Arkade. He took a step away from them as they continued further into the room. He could hear more rustling noises behind him, but he dared not look away, his instincts telling him to prepare for a fight.
"Get him out of here, " Lucy said, her eyes opening to reveal a familiar reddish glow. I'll take care of the rest."
Arcade was pulled back, thrown into his chair - shattering it like it was made of fragile material - by none other than the dead boy. He groaned as he pushed himself up from the debris, hardly registering the fact that he had broken the chair when he landed on it. His granddaughter screamed as they witnessed Kyo standing guard between them and Zeref, his head newly attached with a grotesque mark on his neck where it was cut. The poor boy's skin had turned a sickeningly pale color, nothing like the smooth marble-like complexion while he had been alive, and his stare was trained to them, but Arkade couldn't determine whether he was actually looking at them or just in their general direction.
"What are you doing, Kyo?" the girl was screeching, still holding her now-dead father's ashes against her chest, dirtying her pink dress. "Kill them!"
She doesn't know what happened, Arkade deduced, but how could she not? Anyone could tell Kyo was not who he was a few minutes ago, but perhaps she had been clouded by her grief. She just lost her father, she couldn't fathom just losing her partner mere seconds after. She stood and made her way towards the boy, but Arkade quickly moved to stop her. She struggled against his arms, but he had to hold her back. Kyo was not on their side anymore, assuming he was even remotely alive.
More screams and hisses sounded behind them, and they turned to witness another newcomer quickly dispatch the rest of the council members. The humans didn't stand a chance from this new man as he cut with a sword seemingly made of light. The vampires burst into clouds of dust when he only moved close to them. Arcade swallowed thickly. All in all, an entire group of seven of the most powerful individuals in the country were destroyed in less than ten minutes by this group, and he foolishly wished he could go back in time to stop the fools who resurrected Zeref in the first place.
The child continued to fight him, but he held her tightly, trying to come up with a plan for them to escape, and survive long enough to get somewhere far from here. The probability of both things happening wasn't great, and Arkade felt another cold trickle of fear down his back as the new assassin joined his mistress on the other side of the room.
Licking his lips, he knew he was going to have to fight, which he hadn't had to do in a very long time. He just hoped it was enough to overpower a spirit, a zombie, a human, and two mediocre vampires.
This should be fine…
--
Natsu grabbed Zeref's feet and pulled him out of the room, Brandy waiting for him beyond the doors. He knew he could easily pick Zeref up and carry him, probably leave him a little bit of pride, but his feet were all Natsu was willing to touch. A trail of dark, almost black, blood followed, and he found himself almost mesmerized by the sight of it as he moved. He had seen vampires bleed many times in the past, and it was just as red as any human blood. This was just more proof that Zeref was more than just a normal vampire, to have some dark, thick goo come out of his wound. He glanced up at Lucy's small body still standing by where Zeref had lay, and he briefly wondered if she still possessed normal human blood. Or did she change in that aspect as well?
Gulping, he looked away from her and away from the blood on the floor and concentrated on walking backward, though he knew he really didn't have to.
These new powers of his we're definitely something her have to get used to. Never in his wildest nightmares had he imagined he'd actually become a vampire, the very creature that destroyed his family and he swore, for the rest of his life, to hate and kill until he took his last breath. He didn't think he would take another breath after dying, and he was still trying to come to terms with it.
Brandy had told him to figure it out later, that they need to concentrate on the task at hand. Once he was far away from this place, he could have a customary freak out, but priorities. He wanted to be angry, he rightly deserved to be angry. Being forced to becoming a vampire was only a piece of the many jumbled thoughts constantly rotating in his mind.
You lost a fight to a vampire. Brandy forced this upon you. But if she hadn't, you wouldn't be staring at Lucy right now. But this goes against every belief you were raised on since a child. Sure, things seem great now - Lucy is safe, you can kick ass better than before - but how will you feel after this is over? You. Are. A. Fucking. Vampire.
"Set him down here, " Brandy's voice cut through his thoughts, and he unceremoniously dropped the most powerful vampire on the floor, and backed away a few steps. She knelt beside Zeref and tore his shirt, examining the bullet hole. Natsu bit his lip and had to look away again. Not only was he bleeding weird black shit, but he was bleeding. Natsu hadn't fed yet, only consuming the minimal amount of blood from Brandy at the beginning, but the constant sight and delicious smell of the blood was starting to finally get to him.
It even tried to ruin his reunion with Lucy. He hadn't seen her in over a year, and he was more concerned about the taste of the blood still on her skin than her actual safety. He was able to hide it this time, but what about next time? There was so much blood everywhere that he was having a hard time concentrating. There were humans in that room, and he couldn't take his eyes off the man at the far left, even as a sword was put through his chest as the shaggy blond-haired guy materialized out of thin air and continued to dispatch the rest of the council members.
A snapping brought him out of his distracted thinking, and he looked back at Brandy. She was staring up at him, her face hard with disappointment, but her eyes screaming concern at him. She stood and stepped up to him, placing her hands - slick and warm with blood - and she tried to force him to look at her.
"Natsu, "she nearly whispered, and the sound shuddered through his body. He read how vampires we're naturally affectionate to their creators, but he had always brushed that aside as bullshit until he found himself almost infatuated with her the moment he opened his eyes. He still had the free will of his mind, but his body wanted to be near her - to be touched by her - at all times…
"You need to concentrate, " she snapped, trying to sound as harsh as she could. "We're almost done here. We need to save our king, help Lucy, and get the fuck out of here before we can freak out. Okay?"
He closed his eyes and nodded slightly, but she accepted that. She let go of him - he almost whined, but stopped himself - and she gestured for him to join her at Zeref's side.
"I need you to be clear-headed and help me extract the bullet. It's going to be messy. Can you handle it?" She looked up at him, generally concerned. She didn't make a scathing remark as he expected from her.
He glanced up to see what was going on the room - Lucy was kneeling on the floor with her hand swirling in the puddle of the blood Zeref left, as Arkade and the girl were in a first fight with the blond guy and the boy vampire - and he dropped to his knees beside Brandy. She grabbed his hands and placed them on Zeref's skin, right beside the hole. He gulped again as the poor bastard's blood flowed out, immediately cover his hands.
"I need you to hold this open, " she ordered.
"W-what are you doing?" His voice sounded weak, and he berated himself for it. Extracting a bullet was nothing new to him. He's had bullets taken out of his body, as well as been the one to take the bullet out. He'd never witnessed it done without any tools...Maybe that was what was wrong with him? With tools, it hurt like the devil, so what would doing it bare-handed feel like? Poor bastard.
He glanced back to Lucy briefly - would she feel it? - but Brandy brought his attention back to her. She placed one of her nails inside the hole, and pushed against the skin, effectively cutting a clean line from the center.
"The bullet is leaking holy water into his body the longer it's in there, " she muttered. Zeref's head twitched, but he remained sleeping. "He's been able to avoid dying from getting shot, stabbed...He's had magic thrown at him, and he's still able to come back from all of it." She carefully pulled the skin back to make the hole bigger, her eyes jumping from the wound to Zeref's face while she talked. The talking helped Natsu, but also averting his gaze helped a little as well. "It's been documented that he's truly immortal. There have been so many attempts on his life but he never even bat an eye at them."
Her voice quivered slightly, and, had Natsu still been human, he would have missed it. He brought his gaze to watch her face. She was worried, there was a slight crease in her brow that anyone not two inches away would have missed. Natsu licked his lips as the realization hit him. Here he was, focusing on his own shit - even since before he was 'reborn'- and he didn't notice that she wasn't as cool about everything as she claimed to be. She was worried, maybe even scared if he were to take a guess. He suddenly felt awful, realizing he hadn't taken a moment to think how she was doing with all of this.
She continued talking, but her words flew over his head. It was her voice, her expression he was focused on. He had never thought she had feelings. He knew she cared for Zeref, but he didn't think she would be on her knees, elbows deep in his insides, all bloodied up trying to save his life. Everything she did before gave off the implication that she didn't give two shits about the world.
But that was before...it was apparent that his new vampirism allowed him to see her, all these little quirks that made humans human. She wasn't as alien to him anymore.
"He never so much as flinched when Lucy stabbed him that one time, " she was saying, her voice forming words as he continued to watch her. "He hasn't properly fed in a long while, that must be it. He needs - Ah, Natsu keep your hands still."
He moved his hands away from the dying vampire, and it was his turn to place them on her cheeks to force her to look at him. She glared, annoyed that he would stop her in the middle of surgery, and she opened her mouth to berate him.
He pulled her against him, his lips pressing against hers. He didn't know why he wanted to kiss her. Maybe it was the infatuation with his creator, maybe it was the stress of everything that's been happening in the last few days. Maybe it was the realization that she wasn't a heartless shell of a woman that he and everyone else who has ever known her had believed her to be. Either way, he was kissing her, and she wasn't kissing him back.
Her eyes widened, and she didn't know what to do. When was the last time anyone kissed her? When had anyone wanted to kiss her, to show any affection at all towards her? She worked hard her whole life - vampire and human - to make sure everyone knew she didn't need or want a man. She was above all that. Her power came from her stony demeanor, not taking any crap from anybody. She'd rather cut your throat than kiss you. Sure, she had grown a little soft spot for Natsu - Salamander - but they still had their vampire-human boundaries. Not only was he human just a few moments ago, but he was a Fairy Tail Guild Vampire Hunter, her sworn enemy not too long ago.
She tried to shake her head, but he held her against him. Closing her eyes tightly, she tried to break it.
"Natsu, what are you doing?" she asked, her lips moving around his. It was awkward, and a little gross as she spread her saliva on him, but when he pulled back and looked at her with his eyes...They we're the same dark color they'd always been, but with a new addition of red flecks in the irises. Her breath caught in her throat as he moved his hands to her neck.
"You're starting to freak out, " he said, his voice lower than she'd ever heard it before. He was trying to be quiet, soothing, but her mind made it sensual, which was even more awkward considering she still had her hands in Zeref's side. She couldn't help the shiver that ran through her body from his vibrations, and she suddenly wanted him to kiss her again. "We both need each other right now, " he continued. "But they need us more."
She glanced down at her king's face, his eyebrows furrowed as if he was feeling discomfort.
"I know first hand what happens to vampires who get shot with those bullets, and Zeref ain't like other vampires. He'll be okay as soon as you get it out of him. Then he and Lucy will burn this place to the ground like they did to Magnolia, and we'll be free to freak the fuck out as much as we want after."
She nodded in agreement. "Okay. But there's one more thing to do after we take out the bullet."
"Anything, babe." Natsu reverted to what he used to say to Lucy when she needed him to ground her. He hadn't realized that saying it to someone else, Brandy especially, would make it seem like there different implications. Not to mention they just kissed, so that would change the implication on its own.
She glanced back at him, her cheeks flushing at what he said. He smiled, though it was too wide, he was embarrassed, which made her want to laugh at him. Business first.
Clearing her throat, she grabbed his hands with one of hers and placed them back on Zeref, still needing him to hold the king down, and the hole wide.
"Well, he's lost a lot of blood, and, even when I get the bullet out, there's still poisonous holy water in his veins."
"Yeah, so?"
"So we'll need to feed him." She knew he wouldn't like that idea, and seeing him jump back, she was right. "Hands, now," she snapped, reverting back to Brandish, bossy top of the shelf vampire bitch. He was going to need her to be harsh to save Zeref - and Lucy, who was attached to his survival.
"You gotta be shittin' me," Natsu muttered as he replaced his hands.
"I'll go first, replenish him enough to wake up, but you need to give him more so he can get his strength back." Her fingers finally found the smooth little bullet, and she pulled it out. "Only Lucy can give him enough to restore his power, but we need to get him to her in the first place." She threw the bullet on the floor, not caring where it landed. "Hold his mouth open."
Natsu immediately pried Zeref's jaws apart, but only enough so he didn't have to put his hands in the other man's mouth. Brandy used her fangs to open a wound on her arm, and immediately pressed it to Zeref's lips.
"Stop being such a baby, " she joked, lifting her lips in a small smile, and blushed again as Natsu's attention was brought back to her lips. She looked away, focusing instead on Zeref as she felt his tongue touch her wrist, seeking out more blood.
Natsu watched her as she placed a gentle hand on the king's head, whispering words of encouragement to him, like he was a child, scared and alone. He watched her mouth, in awe that he had seen such a genuine smile from her. He wanted to kiss her again, but maybe not when they were trying to bring someone back to life.
What she was doing must be working, and Natsu was not looking forward to it being his turn. He was not going to enjoy letting Zeref take blood from him.
The king slowly opened his eyes, and brought his hands up to keep Brandy's wrist against his mouth. Natsu glanced down and watched in grotesque amazement as the hole patched itself up.
"I didn't know we could do that, " he muttered. "Heal others with our blood."
"It only works for him, " she clarified, helping Zeref pick up his head and placed it on her knees, running her fingers through his hair. "he can take our blood to heal, and we can take his blood to heal, but it doesn't work without him."
"Guess there's more to being king than kidnapping pretty young women and starting revolutions." He raised in eyebrows, impressed, but Brandy was clearly not amused, scowling at him. He smiled again, but this time it was genuine.
A grunt from between them broke their stare, and Zeref pushed Brandy away, rolling off her and landing on his knees, his head down. It took him a moment, but he lifted his head with a deep breath, bringing his hands up to wipe any leftover blood from his face - though it just smeared all over his chin, since his hands we're already soaking in his own blood, to begin with.
"Wha' happen?" he drawled. He tried to look around, but his vision was blurry and he could only see Brandish and the Salamander...Oh. He smiled at Natsu, instantly feeling a new vampire among them. Natsu leaned away from him, growing very uncomfortable under the king's amusement.
"Not much, Your Highness, " Brandy answered him. "But you still need to get your strength back." She glanced at Natsu and jerked her head towards Zeref. "Natsu will give you the rest of what you need."
"I need my angel, " he growled, moving to push himself up, but he collapsed back onto the ground. Brandy rushed to help him up, and he didn't push her away this time. "I'm going to turn every single one of those traitors inside out, rip them to bloody pieces with my bare hands-"
"And it will be glorious revenge, sir. But first, Natsu?"
He licked his lips, took a second too long to make up his mind, and jumped when she snapped at him again. He groaned, wanting it very known that he was not okay with what was about to happen.
He copied Brandy, using his fangs to cut into his arm, and thrust it toward the pair. Brandy grabbed it and forced it against Zeref's mouth, causing Natsu to fall forward slightly. He narrowed his eyes at her, but immediately closed his eyes as Zeref started drinking.
The feeling was unpleasant, but that was just because he didn't like that it was Zeref drinking from him. It stung, but he figured the faster Zeref healed, the faster they could finally leave this place.
--
Maybe it was purely for the shock factor, but after swirling her hand in the puddle of blood left by Zeref, she brought her palm to her lips, and licked, long and slow, while staring right at Arkade. Despite it being just for show, she couldn't deny the power surge that came as she felt the still warm liquid on her hand. She felt a tingle move down her body, and even Loke was able to feel it. He glanced down at her, the movement hidden by his sunglasses, but she felt that look.
She coated her hand in the blood again and stood, contemplating their circumstance. They outnumbered the enemy three to two, but she knew they were more skilled in fighting than she was. She was, technically, fighting alone, while Loke and Kyo both relied on her magic to stick around. Looking at the zombie-Kyo - apparently she could reanimate the dead? That'll be something she'll have to explore in detail when this was over - she could already tell her magic was giving up on him.
"Just let us go, " Arkade said, still fighting to hold the girl at his side. "You've made your point. We won't trouble you anymore."
As he spoke, Lucy felt a laugh bubble through her. She shook her head.
"Let you go so you can gather your strength back and hit us harder the second time around?"
"There will be no second time, " he tried to promise. "Three of the most powerful vampires we're obliterated in a matter of minutes. It would take another millennium to gather that much power against you."
Lucy couldn't hold back the grin as his words filled her with a pride that she didn't know she held. It must be more of Zeref's influence.
"Just let me take my granddaughter so we can mourn my son properly."
Lucy stared at them for a few moments, contemplating his request. She only needed a few seconds before her mind was made up. She looked at Loke and nodded her head. He understood what she wanted, and dispersed his sword, the room instantly darkening.
"There was a time, not so long ago, that I wouldn't even consider your offer; it would be done, " she began. "I was bound, by law, to protect the council should they need me, to let nothing stand in my way to ensure your survival. We were a good guild, playing only by the rules. However, if this last year has taught me anything, it's that evil can hide in even our most trusted allies. I learned that my family died on your orders. You kidnapped me, tortured me, threatened my life, and the lives of the ones I love. Why shouldn't I kill you here and now?"
"We weren't the ones who started this, " he argued, causing her to smile again. "We were trying to clean up a mess that should never have been made. The world was in chaos the last time Zeref walked the Earth, and we were trying to avoid that at all costs. I'm sorry about your family, but he couldn't live again if the angel bloodline had ended."
"How regrettable that you trusted Makarov, who, in the end, couldn't kill a defenseless little girl. Who raised that little girl to become one of the deadliest vampire hunters the world has ever seen. "
"How regrettable that Makarov was the one who allowed this all to happen." Arkade let the girl go, but kept his hand on her shoulder. "I should have killed him sooner, and that was my mistake."
Lucy's eyes widened, and she forgot to hold onto her magic for a single moment. Master is dead? How? When?
Loke's visage blinked, and Kyo stumbled, giving the girl and Arkade enough of an opening. The second the girl attacked Kyo, Lucy flinched, sending her magic to Kyo and Loke, promising to get answers from Natsu later. Right now, these two still had to die.
Kyo grabbed the girl as she pounced, throwing her back. Arkade moved for Lucy, but Loke cut him off. Lucy stepped back, realizing Arkade was still trying to get to her through Loke. He had his sword out but it wasn't as strong as before when he was killing the rest of the council. She could feel herself becoming depleted too quickly, and made the decision to focus on Loke, leaving Kyo less defensive. The girl was able to grab him and take his head off with her bare hands, drenching her body in his blood. She cried out, mourning her companion.
Loke dodged a lunge from Arkade, twisting around the vampire with his sword, pinning the vampire against his body with the blade. His sword still wasn't at full power, so he struggled to hold Arkade close to him. He could tell Lucy was losing confidence, so he yelled at her.
"Luce, the blood!"
She glanced at her hand, but that wasn't what he meant. The poor girl had no clue the potential she had.
"No!" he yelled again. He jerked his head toward the girl who was now on the ground. "You can control the blood. Use it as a weapon!"
Arcade pushed against him, breaking from the hold. They both watched as realization hit Lucy, and held her hand toward the girl.
"No!" Arcade cried, moving toward the girl, but Loke stopped him again. They all watched as Kyo's blood solidified, and pierced the girl's body. She screamed as the blood turned into needles, stabbing her body wherever it was touching her. She tried to stand, but she was held down, slowly dying from the millions of punctures as the blood tried to enter her body.
Loke sighed as he felt the magic drain from his body as Lucy used it to kill the girl. Glancing behind her, he saw her reinforcements, and was content to leave her.
Arkade growled as he threw a punch into the spirit, effectively exploding him into a cloud of glittering dust. He ran to the child, but she burst into ash at almost the same time the spirit did. He spun and glared at Lucy, his anger taking hold as he used his super-speed to appear in front of her, grabbing her by her neck as she was falling. He pulled her up, holding her above his head. He stands there for a moment, drinking her gasps and her struggling as if he really could ingest them. He pulled her close to him, his fingers digging into her skin, wanting to watch her face he tore off her head.
He screamed as he was suddenly pulled away from her, his arms falling to the ground. He barely registered that they were cut from his body as he was forced onto his stomach, a palm on his back between his shoulder blades. He lifted his head, only to lose all fighting momentum as he watched as Zeref picked Lucy up off the floor.
Lucy gasped and coughed, shaking and still terrified that Arkade had a death grip on her neck. She grabbed Zeref's arm with one hand, and gently pressed her hand to her neck with the other. She allowed him to wrap his arms around her, not in the least worried about how tense his body was, or by the fact that he was growling under his breath.
He pulled her hand away from her neck and, like a magnet, his lips were drawn to her artery just below her chin. His body was hard, warm, but it was missing that connection she usually felt when near him. She tried to send her magic out to him, but she was so depleted, she couldn't feel it.
She placed her hands on the back of his head, tangling her fingers into his hair, holding him against her.
"You're alive, " she whispered.
"I am," he whispered in return. She shivered as his lips moved against her skin, his warm breath tickling her. "You did wonderfully, my angel. Now let me take over."
She nodded, willing to give him anything he asked of her. She gasped as his fangs pierced her skin, immediately taking blood from her. She closed her eyes, imagining their magics swirling together, black and gold, traveling through their veins, using the wound he drank from as the passage between their bodies.
He groaned, his body relaxing as he felt his power restoring itself. His hands traveled from her back to her sides. Up and down they rubbed, slipping under her shirt as the need to touch her skin was almost as strong as the need for her blood.
Natsu couldn't help not looking away, though in the back of his mind he wanted to give them some privacy. He had never witnessed such a sensual display of sharing blood before, and he would have never imagined Lucy being on the giving end of that transfer. Sure, he had heard stories over the time she'd been away, but he didn't actually believe any of it. Until now. She wasn't his Lucy anymore, and that realization hurt almost as much as when she had originally disappeared.
Natsu cleared his throat and forced his stare away. His eyes fell on Brandy, but her gaze was locked on the pair. Arkade struggled under him, so he was able to concentrate on keeping the vampire down. Despite having no arms, he was surprisingly strong, and Natsu found himself working at holding Arkade down.
And then the injured vampire started shouting, drawing Brandy's attention away from Zeref and Lucy.
"YOU'RE ALL FOOLS!" he shouted. "THEY'RE GOING TO DESTROY OUR WORLD! THEY-"
Brandy had grabbed one of his dismembered arms and shoved it in his mouth. At the realization of what he was sinking his teeth into, Arkade grunted and couldn't stop the tears from forming in his eyes.
A gasp sounded as Zeref forced himself away from his angel's neck. She tasted so sweet, and it had been so long since he was allowed to indulge in her that he almost couldn't stop himself. He licked his lips, the wound on her neck, then he brought his bloodied mouth to hers and kissed her fiercely. He felt stronger, more powerful than he had since before Mavis, and the power felt simply orgasmic, for lack of a better word. He could barely form a coherent thought aside from Don't devour Lucy, and That man is grating on my nerves.
He forced himself off her, licking his lips in the process. He gently pushed Lucy so she stood behind him, finally bringing his bright red eyes to focus on the pitiful creature that was Arkade. Lucy clung to his shoulder, her body and mind suddenly very weak, and holding onto him was the only thing keeping her up. Brandy pulled Natsu off their prisoner, but she stopped him from going to Lucy. Seeing his friend's skin so pale, sweat forming on her brow as just standing was becoming a hard task, made him want to grab her, be the one to help her stand. Instead, he let Brandy pull him out of the room, her nails digging into his arm as a warning.
"Brandy-" Natsu began to argue the moment they were out of the room, but she cut him off.
"We need to go around and take care of any more council supporters, " she said, her voice low in warning.
As much as Natsu wanted to stay for his friend - the look Zeref had in his eyes made the man nervous - he nodded and followed her down the hall.
Arkade struggled to roll onto his back, trying to sit up. He felt mortified being on the floor, staring up at Zeref, but he hated how he must look just trying to sit up. He was thankful that his two enemies weren't the type to laugh at his misfortune. He took a deep breath, calming his racing heart, and was able to gracefully pull himself up so he stood before the two, spitting his arm out of his mouth in the process.
They were both watching him, one pensive , and the other angrily. He licked his lips, prepared to try to talk them out of killing him - though with no arms, should he even bother? - but Little Lucy moved to push herself off Zeref, wanting to attack him.
"I'll kill you, you bastard!" she cried out with one last burst of energy before nearly toppling over. Zeref was able to catch her, holding her tightly to him as he pet the top of her head while shushing her. Arcade took a nervous step back.
"You have done enough, my love, " Zeref whispered. "You may rest now." He looked up and continued to glare at the injured vampire. "I shall take over now." His eyes glowed bright red, and Arkade dropped to his knees, crying and pleading his case. Zeref would hear none of it, though, and almost instantly he shoved a burst of power into his body. Arkade only had enough time to shriek for less than a second before his body was reduced to flesh, bone, and blood; it was like Zeref vaporized everything else.
Lucy only managed a glance at their dead enemy before she wrapped her arms around Zeref's neck and buried her face in his shoulder. Now that he was dead, the words Arkade shouted resonated in her mind, and she was starting to fear what he said might be true.
She had a lot of time to decide whether to keep Zeref alive or take him out - she was the only one with the power to, if she assumed correctly - and what Arkade said fell in line with whispers she's heard over the year.
For now, however, she let him wrap his arms around her, and lead her out of the council room without a glance back. She was so tired now that she didn't have to keep her guard up, that she decided to push all difficult decisions to the back of her mind and let him take care of her. She knew he felt her exhaustion, as he paused for just a moment to place an arm under her knees so he could carry her the rest of the way. They remained silent as he walked, and the steady sound of his footsteps lulled her to sleep.
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AN: Hi again! So, good news: I posted this chapter, and another is halfway complete. I just wanted to say thank you to everyone sticking with this story, even with my unreliable updating schedule. Oddly enough, I can only really come up with ideas while I'm working, so I really only write during my breaks or lunch. I literally started this chapter back in December, but things at work changed, I got stressed, then the world went on lockdown, then I got more stressed, and then there was a death in the family...Needless to say my mental state has not been all that great for the longest time and it's only getting worse. Hooray for being an essential worker (she says sarcastically). Anyway, again, thank you for the follows, faves, reviews...the next chapter is the last! Hopefully it doesn't take me as long to finish, but who knows? Thanks for reading!