I woke up feeling warm and revelled in it since it was better than the campsites Wendy and I slept in often over the last year. I felt as the warmth heated every part of my body from my feet to my forehead, and then I dared to think that I was waking up beside Natsu.
"Natsu," I went to reprimand him for breaking in but my voice came out in only a hoarse whisper.
My throat was dry and my eyes weren't opening as easily as they should. What was most unsettling however was that as soon as I said Natsu's name out loud the pit of my stomach started searing in pain. It was enough to get my eyes to open as I tried moving my hands to clutch my abdomen. That was when I realised my arms were restrained and the warmth I was feeling was originating from a completely different source than a warm body.
"Finally waking up?" an oddly familiar voice asked, causing goosebumps to appear on my body despite the intense heat.
I realised the reason I thought I had been waking up beside Natsu was because the heat was rather concentrated. But once I could see my surroundings I realised that the landscape around me mostly consisted of stone and fire.
"Where am I?" I croaked, hating how weak my voice sounded.
"I brought you to my home, or realm I guess is most accurate. As I said in my introduction, I'm a Hell Devil, otherwise named Nibathrirm, but you can call me Levi to keep things simple," the devil introduced himself, sounding the same as he did when Wendy and I fought against him.
However, his appearance was a stark contrast from the portly man we met as the mayor. He no longer looked human with his gray scaled skin, spiked tail and golden horns which mimicked the shape of a crown.
"What do you want with me?" I asked, refusing to give in to how vulnerable I knew I actually was.
"It isn't a terribly involved reason. But, I figure it is only hospitable if I tell you the story. Very well then, I have had a qualm with the dragons for centuries now, but the ploys made by the celestial wizards and dragons to forge the dragon slayers made it difficult to act. The most stifling reason was Ankhseram's prodigy and his soulmate. Employing my revenge was near impossible with them roaming Earthland for so long. However, when Fairy Tail defeated them and neutralized their threat, I knew it was my time. It worked out fortuitously that the guild that caught my attention just happened to have four dragon slayers in its midst. And I already knew that mating has always been the weakness of dragons and now that there are no more obstacles in my way, I can enact my revenge," Levi explained with a pleased grin.
"But, why the dragons? What could they have possibly done to a Hell Devil?" I asked, thinking that the dragons might not even be powerful enough to come onto this realm let alone slight it's sole resident.
"One dragon in particular grew powerful enough under the direction of the Fire Dragon King. He grew powerful enough when seeking an ultimate flame that he entered my realm and stole my fire to cover his body," I watched as his grin turned into a slighted grimace.
"Atlas Flame," I whispered, remembering the dragon that sided with the wizards during the Dragon King Festival and whom Natsu called uncle.
"Don't speak that forsaken name in front of me!" Levi spat, breaking his calmer façade to show his vengeful anger.
It only lasted a moment though before he composed himself again.
"How lucky I am Lucy Heartfilia, that your journey to get stronger landed you in my path to take down the dragon's legacy. And not only that, but you are the mate of the Fire Dragon King's son. The sky dragon was also easily enough incapacitated by using my shadows to take out her mate. But don't worry, I have a plan so you won't be alone much longer," Levi commented in an eerily reassuring tone.
"Don't underestimate Fairy Tail for stopping you! Wendy will have gotten help and they'll come and get me!" I retorted fiercely but Levi only smugly grinned in return.
"Fairy Tail has never faced a true enemy such as a devil, only a minion of one and you barely came out in one piece. Fairy Tail has no chance facing against me, especially since I have already nullified several heavy hitters. I saw what happened after Tenrou, your guild faded from existence until it was only a pitiful group of broken individuals. People still depend too heavily on the dragons even though they've been gone from existence for centuries," Levi reasoned. "And deep down, you're too ashamed to be rescued again."
I squirmed under his observant gaze, knowing he was right in his assumption. I had set out on this journey with Wendy to be able to walk back in the guild feeling accomplished and worthy to be a part of Fairy Tail's strongest team. Now, I was shackled on the ground in another realm, having been defeated so easily by this non-human. Wendy herself had only been left alone since Levi already accomplished his goal by attacking Romeo. If Levi was telling the truth, Wendy wouldn't be able to fight and Romeo is at the very least gravely injured or worse.
I swallowed loudly, refusing to believe the worst case scenario for the both of them. I could only guess what happened to the dragon slayers when their mates were killed and I didn't think it included surviving.
"Do you want to know the rest of my plan? I am a gracious host and don't mind filling you in on everything. I have already captured you and there is no way out without my authority. So I might as well tell you. The slayers of Fairy Tail couldn't have given me a better situation to work with. Soon, I will capture the lightning slayer's mate easier than I took you," he smiled proudly.
"You can't capture a Fairy Tail wizard as easily as you caught me," I whispered, feeling my self-doubt increase.
"I can if their soul is already bound to my realm," he sneered.
I thought for a moment and then gasped.
"Mirajane."
"That's right. All those years ago when the demon soul bound to her own, connected her directly with the hell dimension. Therefore, I can summon her here at my convenience. Most times a devil would not concern themselves with human matters and she would have otherwise been left alone. But, how perfect it was to see the lightning dragon slayer imprint on the very Fairy Tail mage I can control. I am only waiting for the most opportune moment to summon her to have the most impact," he grinned maliciously. "As for the last slayer, would you like to see Natsu Dragneel?" Levi asked.
The mention of Natsu's name sent another wave of nausea through my body and I couldn't deny the pulling I felt to see him, despite all of my reservations.
"Yes, the yearning is quite severe isn't it? This is my present to you Lucy Heartfilia, a direct line to your slayer," he said before moving his hands and summoning an orb out of black smoke.
His clawed fingers moved more delicately around the translucent orb that fluttered into a clearer picture after several moments. I could feel my heart thrashing in my chest as the image sharpened and I noticed Natsu laying unconscious on an infirmary bed. Gray and Juvia were sitting on either side of him, looking like they were having an easy conversation. I pulled against my restraints, wanting to inch closer to the image, seeming like I couldn't control my actions when it came to Natsu.
I settled for staring intensely at his weak body before the image suddenly turned. This new image was still in the infirmary but now Gajeel was the person showing.
"Why did it change?" I asked, hating how desperate I sounded to see Natsu.
But the image only watched Gajeel for a few moments before I noticed it gradually turn to look down at a book. I then realised this mustn't be a shadow like the image produced of Romeo. This image was being generated from someone's vision, and I already knew who it was.
"Levy?" I whispered, feeling sick that her body was somehow being used in this ploy.
"Yes, just as I took over that mayor's body, I have forged a connection with Levy McGarden, the perfect person for the last part of my plan. Not only is she the mate of the iron dragon slayer, your guild master has also congregated all the mates and slayers into one room. I couldn't have asked for a better situation," he sniggered wickedly.
"You won't succeed in this!" I shouted back at him, keeping my faith in my guild despite the lengths this devil had gone through.
"Relax Miss. Heartfilia. My plan is only beginning and Miss. Strauss will be joining us shortly. Just watch the screen and enjoy seeing it all unfold," he stated before leaving the orb in front of me, but just out of reach.
Then he took his leave, probably to go and execute his plan for Mira which made me convulse with nausea and fear. I hated to admit it but attacking one-by-one like this was proving affective, and I didn't know how Fairy Tail was going to rally to succeed against these other attacks. The primal thoughts and emotions running through my head seemed to be altering my perception to only Natsu and getting back to him. I eventually let my turmoil wear me down until I fell asleep, hoping next time I would wake up out of this nightmare.