Chapter 61

A New Plan

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

"Magic"

Flashback you

Location / Date / Time Skip

Outside of Crocus

"Is that really true?" Meredy asked the stunned Zancrow.

"I can't possibly believe it." Ultear added.

"I know what I saw." The blonde replied. "And I know what I heard... I've done a lot of bad shit in my life, but I'd never lie about something like this."

"If what this girl said was true..." Meredy mumbled.

"Then this whole county will be destroyed tomorrow." Ultear finished.

"Shouldn't we at least evacuative the civilians?" Meredy asked.

"That'll only cause a panic." Zancrow pointed out.

"What do we do, boss?" Sora asked Natsu, who was sitting on a rock overlooking the city.

"...We completely misunderstood what was happening here." The leader replied. "But that doesn't change what we have to do. The Eclipse, a door that can change the world. And the Dragon King Festival..." He stood up and turned to the others. "Call in the reserves. We're going to need their help."

The Next Day

Streets of Crocus

As the entire city was roaring in excitement as the the final of the Grand Magic Games was about to start. In the empty streets, Wendy and Mirajane raced through the city as the Exceeds flew next to them. Their mission was simple: save Lucy while everyone was distracted from the games.

They rounded a corner and a hooded figure stood in their way. Wendy smiled as Happy flew into the person, knocking their hood off. "You..." Mirajane growled before grabbing Natsu and slamming him into the nearest building.

"Mira, stop!" Happy shouted before pulling on her arms. "He's trying to make things right!"

"How dare you show your face!" The model shouted in anger. "Do you have any idea what you've done!?"

"I know..." He replied with no attempt to defend himself. "I've killed people and ruin lives. But I'm going to make things right. Even if it takes me my whole-"

"I'm not talking about that!" She shouted back, glaring at Natsu. "It's Lisanna... She's pregnant with your child."

Natsu went wide eyed and hung his head. "I'm sorry... I never want that to happen."

"I don't give a damn what you wanted." Mirajane said back. "You're gonna make things right, and show up when she has your kid! And if you don't, I'll hunt you down and end you myself. Understand!?"

"You have my word." He replied. "Now, are we gonna keep talking or we gonna go save Lucy?"

Mira set the man down as Wendy stepped forward. "How did you know about that?"

"Let's just say we have a good source." He chuckled. "Now come on, we got an Eclipse to stop."

"But how are we gonna enter the castle?" Wendy asked. "It'll be guarded on all sides."

"I have an idea." Happy said before throwing three costumes on them.

Natsu chuckled as he stared at the bear costume he now donned. "I really missed you, Happy."

"This is too suspicious." Carla scoulded.

"The idea is sound, we just need to change it a bit." Mirajane chuckled.

"We need to do our best to save Lucy." Wendy said, staring up at the colosseum. "Everyone else is doing their best in the games." The others nodded before Mirajane explained her plan.

Mercusius

"Halt, who goes there?" Two guards pointed their spears forward as two more stepped forward, one holding Wendy and the other had the Exceeds by their tails.

"We found these four trying to get into the castle. Must be trying to save the blonde." The one holding Wendy said. "What do you want us to do with them?"

"Uh... his majesty and the Minister are away..." One spearman said. "Let's just throw them into a cell."

"Got it." The one with the cats lead the way, the door opening before them. Once it closed behind them, a puff of smoke appeared around their faces. "Phase one, complete." Natsu chuckled.

"Who would have thought you'd be good at sneaking into places?" Mirajane chuckled as she untied Wendy. "Now let's go find Lucy."

"If this place is anything like the council's prison, all the cells are gonna be in the bottom." Natsu said, leading the group down the stairs. "There..." He pointed over to the cell Lucy and some other girl were sitting in. "Psst, Lucy. Hey, Lucy."

The blonde woke up and stared at the three in joy. "Natsu! What are you-" He covered her mouth and shushed her. "Sorry."

"How did you all get in?" The girl asked.

"Just get back." He said as he grabbed the bars. The metal began glowing before he bent them aside.

"I brought a change of clothes for you." Mirajane said, holding up the clothes.

"Thanks." Lucy went behind a stone pillar and began changing.

"Now we just need to escape." Carla said. "It would be nice to get out without being seen."

"Wait, they still have my keys!" Lucy hopped out as she did her top up. "I have to find them."

The ground started shaking before the entire floor split open, swallowing the group before it closed back up. Natsu flipped and landed on his feet before catching the girls and setting them down. "Thanks, Natsu." Wendy said.

"So where are we?" Mirajane asked.

"Welcome to the Hell Palace." A voice called out and a projection of a slim, petite young woman appeared. She had wavy light green hair that reaches down to the middle of her back with two strands that frame her face as well as a set of tufts that obscures the majority of her forehead, with the prominent tuft in the middle reaching down to the top of her nose. Hisui has large dark green eyes with long eyelashes.

She wears a short dress that exposes her back and parts at the sides of the skirt. It also has a flower like pattern along the breast-line. She also wears long gloves that cover up to her elbows with frills at the end of them. She wears a fair amount of jewelry, mainly a tiara with seven gemstones with the largest placed in the middle and the rest following on outwards, a large silver necklace with a large pendant and a pair of earrings with two large gems in both of them.

"You all fell into the trap perfectly. This is the city of death, the last bit of freedom allowed to criminals like you. But no one has ever gotten here, and I doubt you will be the ones who do so. So you all can rot down here, thieves."

"I never thought that the princess of this country was a sadist, Hisui E. Fiore." Natsu said, shocking the others.

"Of all the people here, you should not be complaining about this punishment, Natsu Dragneel of Grimoire Heart." Hisui declared before the transmission ended.

Yukino hid behind Mirajane as Natsu glanced at her. "That was another lifetime." He explained. "I'm not that guy anymore."

"He's really not." Wendy added. "He's helped us a bunch. He even saved me from one of Raven Tail's scheme."

Mirajane merely gripped the other girls hand and glared at Natsu. "Forgive me for being skeptical." The model declared. "Now let's get out if here."

"I don't think you guys get it." Natsu said, kneeling down to pick up a skull. "This is the place where the county sends the worst of the worst to die. If we want to get out of here, we're gonna have to fight our way out."

"Is that even possible?" Lucy asked. "You heard the princess, there's no way out of here."

"Natsu, can't you melt our way out?" Happy asked.

"I could, but that takes a lot time and lot of magic power." He replied. "And without food or water, we'd be dead before ever see the sun again." A small breeze crossed his nose and he turned his head. "Someone else is here..." He sprinted forward and the others followed him towards a small crack.

"Wait here." Natsu entered the crack first and started melting the stone, making more room for the others as they followed him. "Let's go."

"There he is!" Wendy called out before she and the others raced over. Natsu followed behind as Wendy knelt down, starting to heal the man Yukino called Arcadios.

"Was this the guy behind the Eclipse Project?" Natsu asked. "Why's he down here?"

"R...run..." The man groaned out. "Run away..."

A massive footstep caught their attention before they jumped back, a stream of liquid melting through the stone. "Stay back, that's acid!" Pantherlily shouted. Strange noises caught their attention before streams of water shot up, kncking them to the ground.

"Who are these guys?" Natsu asked. A strange plant rose up from the ground as a swarm of paper flew next to it.

"It's an independent unit that supports the kingdom from the shadows..." Arcadios groaned out as a woman blossomed out of the flowed and the paper turned into a girl. "The strongest executors of the kingdom... The Garou Knights..."

A masked man walked forward between the other four, a pair of scythes strapped on his back. "Garou Knights, begin mission number 1500." The man declared.

"I heard about these guys, but I thought they were just rumors meant to scare Dark Mages." Natsu declared.

"It's because they are here that it's impossible to escape the Hell Palace..." Arcadios explained.

"With the special rights conferred to us, the Garou Knights, independent unit of the Fiore military, we are going to execute these criminals." The masked man declared.

"Gotta be honest, I wasn't expecting you guys to look like this." Natsu confessed. "I was expecting black armor or something."

"Don't let their appearance fool you." Arcadios groaned out. "The magic they use is created to kill people."

"Sounds to me like we just need to beat these guys and they'll show us the way out." Natsu declared.

"Lucy and Yukino, stay back." Wendy said as she and Mirajane stepped forward. "You have no keys, so let us handle this."

"You too, Happy and Carla." Pantherlily said as he transformed into his battle form.

"Are you planning to fight them...?" Arcadios asked in surpise.

"You don't fear the Garou Knights... you are ignorant sinners." The masked man declared "Return to the earth from whence you came."

"Let's go, Cosmos." The paper user declared.

"Our beautiful dance will begin, Kamika." The plant user said as the first girl blew the paper forward.

"Paper Blizzard: Red Dance!" The paper suddenly exploded into a swarm of burning paper shards.

"Bad idea!" Natsu declared as he ignited his hands and slammed them into the paper. He pushed against the swarm only for the paper to push through and cut his arms. "What the hell?"

"My paper is infused with spirits." Kamika explained with a smirk.

"Hang on, Natsu!" Wendy shouted as she raced forward, pulling her head back. "Sky Dragon Roar!" A tornado shot out of her mouth and blasted the paper back.

"How beautiful..." Cosmos mumbled as a massive plant opened up under Wendy and snapped shut. "A doll that dances beautifully inside the corpse flower, that blossoms in blood."

Mirajane, in her Sitri form, launched forward and punched the plant right off the younger girl. Vines rose up and Pantherlily raced forward, slicing through the plants before he jumped back from another acid punch.

"Paper Blizzard: Purple Dance!" Kamika flicked another piece of paper forward, and a swarm of purple scraps shot forward, littering the group and sticking to them.

"Why... can't I move?" Mirajane asked.

"This must some kind of binding magic..." Natsu groaned out as a giant plant opened up on the ceiling.

A strong vacuum started pulling the others into it, liquid dripping out of the hole. "Gift the strength to survive the burdens, Raise!" Wendy chanted before the group glowed a soft blue, the paper peeling off them.

"Nice work, Wendy!" Natsu cheered before he turned back to the plant. "Let's get rid of this thing!" He pulled his fists back and launched a torrent of flames from both as Mirajane unleashed an Evil Explosion as well. The resulting explosion rocked the cave and blasted them all back.

Natsu groaned as he pushed himself out of the rubble. "Damn, I forgot how strong Mirajane was." He chuckled as he looked around. "Yo, you guys okay?" He asked, hoping someone would respond.

"It seems that the shockwave sent everyone into different places." Natsu turned around and found the squad leader staring at him. "But my subordinates are skilled. No one will come back alive."

"And after we just found Lucy as well." The pinkette said as he dropped into a fighting stance.

"Your life is fleeting. Repent of your sins." The man declared.

"I know all my sins." Natsu declared. "And I'm going to make things right. So I can't die right now. Get ready to lose."

"Very well..." The masked executioner pulled his scythes off his back and swung his blades, forcing Natsu to dodge. He swung again and Natsu jumped over the blade, the metal carving through the stone behind him.

Natsu landed and ducked from the blade as it dug into the wall behind him. "Why do you keep going for my head?"

"It is my proof of your death." The man declared as he swung again, forcing Natsu to slide back. "You truly are light-footed, Natsu Dragneel."

"You studied me..." Natsu said, slightly surprised.

"Since the day you escaped jail, I've dreamed of this day." The masked man declared. "You are the greatest sinner, the greatest challenge I could face. You can claim all you want that you're making amends, but you can never hid from your sins!" He slammed his blades together and a pair of hands on the back started glowing. "They are a part of you, etched into your soul."

Purple handprints started appearing on his body, shocking Natsu. "These are-?"

"Your sins." The man declared. "Every lie you've ever told, every life you've ever stole, you can never wash clean of them. Does your heart not ache from such destruction? You are beyond forgiveness. I shall grant you mercy and behead you where you stand! Executioner Technique: Guillotine Justice!"

He threw the scythe blades into the air and they merged into one giant spinning blade. The weapon flew at Natsu who jumped to the side, only for the blade to fly back and come up from behind. "This thing is following me?"

"I told you before: you can run from sin, but you can never escape it." The masked man declared. "My device will pursue the marks on your body until you are dead and justice is served. Reflect on your sins and despair." Natsu slid under the death disk before punching it, making it fly into the ceiling.

The man jumped up and pulled out the blades before throwing them back at Natsu. He stood to the side and the blades zoomed past him before they turned and went back at him. Natsu turned and threw a punch, only for the blade to miss him. The device flew right by him and returned to the man.

"All that talk and you couldn't hit me once." Natsu teased as the man sheathed his blade. "I think that's earn me the right to know your name."

"My companions call me Kusai." The man declared. "I'll admit, your mental fortitude is impressive. You truly do wish to atone for your sins, don't you?"

"Me and my guildmates all want the same thing." Natsu declared. "And to do that, I can't die here. So why don't you let me pass and we can both go on with our lives?"

"Sadly, my orders are absolute." Kusai confessed. "And by now, your comrades are all in the afterlife."

"Please, like anyone in Fairy Tail would die that easily." Natsu chuckled.

"Your friends have defied the will of the kingdom. I cannot let that such an offense pass." The scythe user declared.

"Fine, the hard way it is!" Natsu declared before charging and throwing a flaming punch. The masked man pulled his scythes out and slashed at him, forcing Natsu back. "Fire Dragon Roar!" An inferno shot out of his mouth and flew at Kusai, who swung left his scythe and the flames vanished. "Nullification?"

"My right scythe reaps criminal's heads, while my left one reaps their magic." Kusai declared. "Breath all the fire you wish, it'll be nothing more than hot air."

"Do you really think I just rely on my magic?" Natsu asked back, entering a boxing stance. "I'll just have to beat you the old fashioned way!" He charged forward and swung a right cross.

"You're only postponing the inevitable." Kusai declared before swinging his right blade, forcing Natsu back. "Your magic is useless and your attacks don't come even close to me."

"The same could be said for you and your attacks." Natsu retorted. "But this isn't the first time I've had to fight without magic. I'm not scared of you at all."

"You might be strong, but you will still fall before me like all the others!" Kusai declared as he swung his blade. "Like all the others before you, you will become nothing more than a nameless corpse on the ground!"

"Not likely, pal." Natsu declared.

Natsu kicked the man back, sending him sliding. "I don't understand! How are you still this strong when I've sealed your magic? Are you some kind of monster!?"

"I'll be whatever I have to be to make amends!" Natsu declared before charging. He jumped over Kusai and caught one of the scythe blades before cracking the blade. "I can't wait to wipe that smug look off your face!" He pulled the blade away and punched Kusai in the head, sending him flying back.

"Do you not realize that you've made yourself an enemy of the kingdom itself?" Kusai asked as he pushed himself up.

"It'll be nothing new in my life." Natsu declared as he walked forward. "Besides, we've both made the same mistake of messing with Fairy Tail. And everyone in it is a monster. Which is why-" He ignited his fist and charged. "I prefer to stay in their good side!" He slammed his fist into Kusai's face, sending him flying into the wall and crashing through the stone wall.

Natsu followed through the hole and found the other executioners laying on the ground. "Knew you'd guys would win. Now..." He cracked his knuckles and scared Kusai. "Tell us how to get out of here, now."

"Is this really the right way?" Lucy asked.

"It's what Kusai told us." Natsu replied. "Yeah, that name weirded me out too."

"By the way, how did you get here, Loke?" Mirajane asked.

"I just jumped down." He replied as he carried Arcadios on his shoulders.

"Is Arcadios fine?" Yukino asked.

"In a way, he is." The spirit nodded.

"I still can't believe he managed to survive that lava." Carla said.

"It's probably thanks to the jade he's wearing." Natsu said. "It works as a powerful talisman. Must have kept him alive from that intense heat."

"Arcadios told us to meet the princess after we get out of here." Lucy said.

"He also said that we should decide for ourselves whether Eclipse is right or not, didn't he?" Carla added.

"So were just going to trust the words of the woman who threw us down here?" Natsu asked, stunning them all into silence. "That's what I thought." A door suddenly appeared before them, catching them all of guard. "Stay back, this could be a trap." He said as he stepped forward.

The door slowly opened and Natsu glared at the lone figure clad in a black robe. "You're the one who talked to Zancrow, right? Just who are you?"

A sniffle caught their attention, confusing them all. "Sorry..." A feminine voice replied as she wiped the tears from under her hood. "It's just... nice to finally meet you..."

"A girl?" Yukino asked.

"Please... I need your help..." The girl reached up and pulled her hood off, revealing a teenage girl with short pink hair with white tips, blue eyes, and a face just like Lisanna's. Her looks shocked everyone as she started wobbling forward. "Dad..."

"Dad?" Mirajane asked.

"Natsu has a daughter?" Wendy asked.

"How that be? She's so old." Yukino asked.

"My name is Fae Dragneel." The girl explained. "My mother was Lisanna Strauss, my father Natsu Dragneel. I'm sure you've heard of the Eclipse Project, the gate that lets you travel through time?"

Carla went wide eyed in shock of what Fae was saying. "You used the Eclipse to-"

"I'm from seventeen years in the future." She nodded, shocking everyone.

Natsu alone stood firm, smelling the air. 'There's no denying it. She's a mix of me and Lisanna's smell... She's my daughter.' "You said it was nice to finally meet you..." Natsu said, relaxing his stance. "What do you mean by that?"

"In my time... you died to save me and my mother when I was just a baby." Fae explained, stunning the group. "I grew up hearing stories of you from her. The ill-deeds, along with the good."

"Then why come back here, to our time?" Mirajane asked.

"I came here... because I need... your help..." The girl whispered out as she sucdenly wobbled. "This country... is doomed..." That was the last thing she could say before she suddenly fell into Natsu's arms.

"It's okay, she's just passed out." He said, brushing her hair out of the way of her face.

"Don't tell me you don't find this a little strange?" Lucy asked.

"No, it's incredibly strange." Natsu replied, picking the girl up bridal style. "But we can worry about that later. Right now, we need to get out of here."

"That's right, we need to fire the signal so the others know we succeeded." Mirajane nodded.

"I'm sure Makarov will know what to do about this." Natsu said. "And give Lisanna a chance to meet her daughter."

Again, sorry about the long wait for this chapter. But with most of the episodes on the Games, it took time to build up to this length. Put most of the focus on Natsu and the leader, who I gave a much better name in this universe in my opinion. And changed up who comes out of the gate in a big way. See you all next time.

Beta read by General Feng Xiang