Fiore Academy
Chapter 29 - A New ARC Begins
Dislcaimer - Fairy Tail does not in any shape or form belong to myself and nor do the characters within it. I am a simple fan, writing fanfiction for no profit. All rights are reserved to Hiro Mashima, the creator of Fairy Tail.
Authors' Note - Thank you all, I am back with another chapter. This Chapter will be a lot of setup for the upcoming chapters, afterwards things will ever so increasingly grow more and more intense... until we finally reach the Elysium Palace Siege that is to come in future chapters. I hope you guys enjoy sitting back, relaxing, and reading through my latest chapter to gear you up for what's coming.
And yes, I did start this chapter with the last section of the last chapter, just so the scene felt a little less disjointed and random.
Lilith smiled, "Give in to your desires... give in to a future of pleasure... you can use me however which way you wish to use me... torture me with pleasure if that's what you wish... make me scream in bliss for hours on end... and achieve the apex of pleasure with me".
She kissed him, and Natsu's resistance was growing weaker by the second.
His mind began to think, Nothing will come off it... no strings attached she basically said... I can use her... use her... use her... use... use... u-
*Knock* *Knock*
Lilith ceased her actions, and her expression changed from loving... to annoyed...
"Well my dear" Lilith whispered to Natsu, "It seems you will have to fuck me to oblivion a little bit later than I first thought".
Lilith immediately hopped off of Natsu, grabbing her nightgown and slipping it around her body.
Natsu shook his head to clear out his foggy mind, I was seriously about to give in to her temptations, wasn't I? Natsu thought to himself in shock as he quickly covered himself with the blanket; he still had not yet been given clothes.
Looking back to check he was decent, Lilith smiled at him as yet again, someone knocked on the door.
Reminded of how she was interrupted, she put on an annoyed face, and turned to the door to violently open it.
On the other side of the door, was a tall and muscular man, with cropped black hair and a silver streak with a goatee to match; additionally he was dressed in an all black suit and tie.
The man didn't grab his attention for long however, for looking past the man, Natsu recognised a familiar face.
"Ultear!?" Natsu called out, which grabbed the womans' attention.
"Natsu!" Ultear exclaimed, pushing past the large man to walk towards Natsu, but Lilith placed an arm to block her way.
"What can I do for you Kronos?" Lilith asked, doing her best to remain calm; she was still annoyed to have been interrupted.
"I was spending time with my daughter... she wanted to check in on the Dragneel boy" Kronos replied gruffly.
"Let me through" Ultear glared; by this time she had noticed the see through nightgown this other Demon Lord, Lilith was wearing. She also noticed Natsu was shirtless in bed... and judging by how strictly he was holding those covers over himself, he was plain outright naked.
Though she was technically wrong, she had come to the conclusion that Natsu and Lilith weren't exactly talking.
"Besides my daughters need to see her... friend..." he looked askance at Natsu after saying that, "I feel we do have certain things to discuss".
Lilith blinked at that; he was right... Kronos and herself had, although silently, agreed to help each other regarding his daughter and her Natsu.
"I see" Lilith grimaced, "You came in at an improper time... being who you are, you'd think you'd have a good sense for timing" Lilith mocked, removing her barring arm.
Kronos smirked, "Always so quick to mock as always Lilith".
With these words traded, Lilith, along with Kronos and Ultear, entered Liliths' bedchamber.
"So I assume you've been enjoying yourself" Ultear remarked sarcastically.
"Hardly" Natsu laughed, "I've only been here for the past ten minutes or so if you don't count me sleeping... before that..." Natsu went quiet; he realised he shouldn't burden Ultear with that knowledge. He doubted, or at least hoped, she had not needed to endure confinement as he did.
Ultear looked confused... and Lilith noticed...
"No need to be shy about it Natsu-dear" Lilith called out, turning to a pitcher of wine and grabbing four glasses, "Why not tell her the truth?"
"Lilith" Natsu growled as she poured four glasses.
"What are you talking about?" Ultear raised an eyebrow.
"You don't need to know" Kronos interceded, empathizing suddenly with Natsu, "And Lilith need not tell you" he glared pointedly at Lilith.
Lilith shrugged her shoulders, "Oh well... I only felt it was important for her to realize not everyone had a daddy to protect them".
"He had you" Kronos almost whispered.
"Fat good that did him" Lilith laughed, "But I suppose it was also because he was a Dragneel".
"Can we change the subject?" Natsu asked, wanting to do just that, "Why are you here?" he asks pointedly at Kronos, "I can sense you're another Demon Lord... and I suppose you're also Ultears' father?"
Kronos nodded, "No doubt that was a mystery to not only herself but to you as well, but yes, I am her father".
Natsu frowned, "So... you're going to help us escape as well?"
Ultear looked up at that, "Escape? Why?"
Everyone in the room, Natsu, Lilith and Kronos looked at her in absolute confusion.
"You don't realise what kind of situation you are in do you girl?" Lilith asked, genuinely concerned like Ultear had hit her head or something.
"I get it, we were kidnapped" Ultear answered, "But to be perfectly honest, I don't see any cause for alarm".
"Did you forget about the 'Ritual' Hades spoke about during our battle with him?" Natsu asked her.
Ultear pressed her lips together, "Honestly? No... it all went by pretty fast..."
"Not surprising... most people can't make sense of a battle as it happens" Kronos answered, "Especially if they're not used to it".
"That's for sure... I don't even remember my initiation" Natsu laughed.
Kronos and Lilith looked at Natsu weirdly at that... and even weirder than that they said in unison, "Yeah, I bet you didn't".
That made Natsu look up, "Wait... you guys know something I don't?"
"It doesn't matter" Lilith replied, handing out cups of wine to everyone.
Kronos accepted his glass with a nod, "There's really no point discussing it... what matters is figuring out how to get the two of you out of the Blight before the Ritual".
"You've received confirmation?" Lilith asked him and he nodded.
"It's as we feared" Kronos said, taking a sip.
"What do you all mean? What could be so bad about it?" Ultear asked them.
"For starters it'll create more portals to the Mortal Plain" Lilith replied, "It'll tear holes in the ethereal barrier, accelerating a phenomenon that occurs every one hundred years called the Eclipse Gates... allowing Demon kind to attack humanity before it's prepared".
"That's not what should concern us" Kronos replied gruffly, "It's much more than that".
"What could be worse than that?" Natsu growled.
"In regards to humanity itself... nothing" Kronos replied swirling the wine within his glass, "But regarding the two of you..."
Ultear and Natsu begin to have realisation dawn on them; what would happen to them?
"The Ritual requires two things; Power and Time Magic" Lilith put in, "Natsu was captured because of his power; eliminate a threat whilst also using him to further our own ambitions".
"And Ultear was captured for her Time Magic; but there's a reason why they don't want to use me... or perhaps Acnologia instead of Natsu" Kronos continued.
"Why is that?" Natsu asked, whilst Ultear looked at her father, her attention transfixed to him.
Kronos sighed and looked at Natsu dead in the eye, "Ultear will lose her ability to use any magic whatsoever, turning her into a vegetable".
"As for you" Lilith says approaching Natsu and draping an arm across his shoulders and leaning her head on his right shoulder, "You will be drained completely... and you will die".
Silence... deafening silence...
"Alone, Lilith or I would be unable to save one of you" Kronos broke the silence, "But if we work together, and time your escape perfectly with the inevitable attack the Knights of the Red Cross will launch at the Elysium Palace... we can do it... we can save both of you".
Everyone was silent... then Natsu sneered a wide grin.
"Well what are we waiting for?" Natsu asked them all, with fiery eyes, "Let's figure out exactly how we're going to get out of this mess".
...
"IT HURTS!" Mirajane screamed in her mind, "I DON'T THINK I'VE EVER FELT PAIN THIS GREAT BEFORE!"
Mirajane, laying on the ground that was currently adorning a deep red rune of some sort, continued to writhe in agony.
Erza and Karen, who were laying down nearby, were passed out from already enduring the same agony, although a thin screen of green surrounded them.
All of this, was the Witch of Despairs' doing, Irene Belserion, who all the while smiled at the scenes before her.
The screen was a rehabilitation habitat; within it's area, it sped up the recovery time of any and all ailments and injuries. She even had one turned on for her Captain Zeref half a camp away.
And the red rune, was for a ritual... a ritual to unlock the 'Second Origins' of wizards; the more natural power they had, the more agony they felt.
Erza volunteered to go first, and the pain was so gruesome she seemed to have lost her voice within a minute or so.
Karen, being eager to save her Natsu-nii as soon as possible, jumped in front of Mirajane; she had an easier time than Erza... but that's only in relative terms.
As for Mirajane, she was in between the two girls in terms of her suffering, though she tended to lean more towards Erza's level.
Irene continued to smile; she smiled naught for the sight of pain... but rather, for the sight of seeing flower buds finally beginning to bloom.
The red rune dissipated, leaving an unconscious Mirajane where it once was.
Irene lifted the staff she carried with her, which made Mirajane herself levitate off of the ground... then she swept it, flying Mirajane into the rehabilitation habitat.
"Who's next?" Irene asked, looking back at the other girls with a glint in her eye.
"She's scary" Hisui, Virgo and Kagura simultaneously called out.
Kagura stepped forward, "I'll go next".
Irene smiled; she hadn't noticed the girl until she lined up... for whatever reason she had hung back in the group, never speaking a word until a few minutes ago... never gathering Irene's attention in the slightest.
Irene scanned the girl; she lacked the kind of magic power the other girls had... however there was a different kind of strength oozing from her like a miasma.
Irene couldn't wait to see what would happen when she bloomed, as her lip licking seemed to indicate.
"What are you waiting for?" Irene asked her almost obsessively, "Step forward".
...
"Zeref will recover within twelve hours or so, and his strength building can develop whilst we trek through the Blight" Arias said, in his voice that came across more as a boom than anything, "We need all the firepower we can muster for this battle".
Currently, Arias was holding a War Council, with all the top Officers present, including Igneel who will play a part only if the Demon King should appear.
One of the officers raised their hand, "Commander, excuse me; I understand the retrieval of Natsu Dragneel and Ultear Milkovic is important but... wouldn't stealth be a more effective strategy?"
Arias nodded, "Fair question... but I rather doubt Natsu and and this girl Ultear are likely to simply stay at the Elysium Palace without figuring out an escape plan; the only thing stopping them is a distraction".
"And the near entirety of the Knights of the Red Cross ought to be a large enough distraction" Igneel added, "Our goal is not to fight the Demon race to the death; this will be a battle of attrition, a Battle that will allow us to fight another battle in the future".
The questioning officer nodded, and remained silent.
"Now then" Arias continued, "Our plan will be simple; a straight-forward outright attack" Arias sneered, "They won't expect something so juvenile, so much so it becomes almost genius".
"The Knights have a long history of complicated stratagems" Igneel again added, "So we'll be playing against their expectations".
"Know Thy Enemy" Arias continued, "But I have something to add to that; Know Thy Self".
"Isn't that just the same as saying 'Know Your Weaknesses?'" Igneel pointed out.
Arias' eyes went blank; paired with his white eyes, it was an odd look.
"Can't you give this one to me Igneel? Just this once?" Arias turned to his friend to ask him in a almost childish sobbing voice, causing the Officers to sweat-drop at how lame their Commander was in private.
Igneel just smiled, "No can do; now hurry up, we don't have all day to plan you know".
...
"I'm surprised I woke up so quickly" Zeref said almost to himself, as he sat up from his hospital bed; his bandages were all removed, and all his stab wounds were reduced to the size of a needle.
"I reduced the size of your wounds" Brandish, who was sitting next to him remarked, "On top of that, Larcade healed you with hormones or something".
Zeref laughed, "It's weird when you put it like that" he looked up and noticed the green screen around him, "And it seems Irene raised a rehabilitation habitat just for me".
"Oh yeah, she did that too" Brandish replied; she always sounded bored with everything.
"Well thank you Brandish" Zeref smiled at her... then he lost it, "Now then... can I assume the worst has happened?"
Brandish looked blankly at her Captain, "True... you have a lot to catch up on".
Zeref smiled a little darkly, "Well then... what have I missed?"
...
Natsu stood on the balcony of Lilith's Suite, which overlooked the valley surrounding the Elysium Palace... the Valley where in just a short period of time, a great battle will ensue... to reclaim Ultear and himself...
Lilith had left a few minutes ago, heading to the kitchens to arrange a feast for him great enough to give him 'The Energy He Needs To Survive Tonight'... Natsu almost shuddered at the implications; he was determined not to submit to his temptations yet again.
Before she left however, they were with Ultear and her father, Kronos.
For over an hour, they all thought of potential escape routes, dependant on how the Knights of the Red Cross will approach the upcoming battle; over time, they will come up with every possible scenario... and how to use each of those scenarios individually to escape.
Now Natsu, leaning on the balcony railing, had his thoughts begin to drift towards the upcoming battle just as a cold breeze blew in; he was grateful that before she left, Lilith provided him with clothes. All black his clothes were, the boots and the jeans and the button up shirt... he liked black but this was maybe a little too much.
Regardless, his mind wandered... thinking about the inevitable clash of humans and demons in just a short few days without a doubt...
"Thinking about your would be rescuers?" a dark and gruff voice laughed behind him.
Natsu turned, and for the first time in what seemed forever ago already... he was face to face with the most troublesome of the Six Demon Lords...
"Acnologia" Natsu almost whispered, "I admit, I am surprised to see you".
Acnologia smirked, "No doubt Lilith told you the truth by now".
Natsu frowned, "About my mother you mean?"
Acnologia nodded as he stepped forward and took a position much like Natsu's was previously; arms cross on the balcony railing, leaning up and staring across the valley.
"Right now" Acnologia began, "You and I are enemies; a time will come if you're lucky, where you and I will fight once more... and even I hope you come at me with your full potential".
"From what I hear it's a lot of potential" Natsu sighed, "I just wish people would stop talking about it".
"You don't get it do you?" Acnologia barked in frustration, surprising Natsu, "You're the son of Demon Royalty, and the Red Dragon, the Crown Jewel of the Dragneel Clan in the last few centuries... perhaps only the First Dragon was greater". Acnologia turned to him, "Look at me; I'm the product of Demon Royalty myself... your potential outstrips even my own".
Natsu frowned, "I figured you wouldn't be the kind of person to admit that".
"Because for what I lack in potential, I make up for in experience when it comes to you Cousin" Acnologia whispered.
"Cousin?" Natsu asked, confused.
"Your mother and my father were siblings you dolt" Acnologia said with a tick forming on his head, "That makes us Cousins last I checked".
"Last I checked we were enemies" Natsu replied quickly.
"We're that too, don't you worry" Acnologia laughed, "I look forward to the day that I can just rip you apart; but you're still needed for the Ritual" Acnologia genuinely sounded disappointed.
Natsu smirked, "Be careful; you might regret that wish".
Acnologia coughed up a giggle on that, "Perhaps... but surviving isn't the point for me; I've lived long enough as it is".
"Then what is the point?" Natsu asked him.
Natsu didn't receive an answer, Acnologia just continued to stare across the valley... until finally...
"I didn't come here for idle chatter" Acnologia took on a mature yet still gruff voice, "My father... your Uncle... he wishes to see you..."
Natsu's eyes widened; the Demon King...
Acnologia stopped leaning on the railing and began to walk away.
"You don't have a choice in the matter Cousin; hurry up" Acnologia called out.
Natsu took one last look at the Valley; soon a battle will ensue... but right now... right now...
"Time to see my favorite Uncle" Natsu said to himself sarcastically, turning away to begin following Acnologia.
Funnily enough, Natsu actually wondered what the Demon King was like...
Authors' Note - Sorry for the shorter chapter, the purpose of this chapter was simply exposition, and from Chapter 30 onwards things will begin to grow more and more intense. Since the next chapter is Chapter 30, I want to make an especially long chapter... perhaps ten thousand words or so (for comparison, last chapter was 6000 words).
Because of that I'll work hard on it, but it'll take longer than this chapter took. I guess you guys can expect Chapter 30 in around 2 weeks from now, so be sure to keep an eye out for it. Auf Wiedesehen.