Chapter 4: The Drums Inside My Chest

Natsu ran to the weapons' room. It was almost dark.

"They should be back by now. Something's wrong. I can feel it." He shouted at his friends.

"I'm going out."

Gray and Erza had no choice but to go with the hothead. He was already reckless as it was, but adding in his sister to the equation, he was going to get killed.

"Wait up Flame Brain, we're coming too." Gray shouted, trying to catch up to Natsu.

"Oi Max! We need our weapons. Quick!" Natsu snarled.

"But it's nig-"

"Weapons. Now." Erza said, her aura coming out. Believe it or not, she really cared about Wendy and Natsu, despite whatever people said.

Max complied, fearing the woman's bad side.

"Please be careful." Max said.

"Oh no. It's not us who's gonna get hurt." Natsu said darkly. "Let's go."

They all piled into Natsu's pickup truck and Natsu slammed his foot on the pedal.

"Oi! Do remember that I'm in the trunk right now!" Gray shouted.

"Then hold on!" Natsu roared back.

"Deep Breath, Natsu. Crashing won't help your sister if she's in trouble."

He complied and his grip on the steering wheel loosened as he calmed. He was thinking more clearly now.

"Which sector did they head to?" Natsu asked Erza.

"Sector 4 I believe. Hargeon."

"That's pretty far," Gray noted.

"No shit Sherlock!" Natsu snorted.

"Shut up! I just meant that it'll take longer."

"Suree."

"Boys!" Bet you can guess who said that.

An hour later, it was finally fully dark and they had reached Hargeon.

Natsu cruised through the streets of the seemingly peaceful town.

"It's way too quiet." Gray noted.

"Once again, the award for this year's Captain Obvious goes to Gray Fullbuster!" Natsu droned sarcastically.

"I think Natsu's right on this one." Erza said. "But, get your weapons ready."

Erza leaned out of the passenger seat and somehow managed to climb into the back.

"Stop the car Natsu!" Erza shouted and the brake was slammed. Erza grabbed her flashlight and pointed it at the shine that had caught her eyes.

"Is that the car they took?"

Natsu stuck his head out the window and cursed. There was the black Jeep Wrangler his sister had taken out. It was empty.

He parked the car and took his knife since his gun was lost.

"I'll check the house." He said.

"No need." Erza called. "It appears they killed the zombie in here." She directed Natsu to the dead corpse.

Natsu pulled yanked out the knife that seemed to be stuck in the Zombie's head.

"Oi! Gray? Do Jet and Droy ever use knives?" He asked.

"I think they only use guns. At least that's what Levy said."

"Erza? Didn't you teach Wendy to throw knives?"

"Yeah. Why?" Erza winced. She had gone behind his back to do that.

Turning on his headlight, Natsu measured the angle in which the knife was thrown. As he mapped out the scene in his head, he walked over to where the knife was probably thrown.

He sorta crouched, which made Gray think he looked constipated.

As he suspected, the passenger's door was open.

"They left Wendy in the car. Probably just showing her the ropes before letting her join in on the fun. I bet they thought I would kill them."

Gray and Erza watched Natsu curiously.

"So that means something happened inside. Whatever it was, this zombie got outside and tried to attack Wendy. She probably got scared, but decided to run because she can't drive. But why run if the zombie was dead? And Wouldn't Droy and Jet be able to help book it out of there?"

Natsu swore as he realized what had happened to Jet and Droy.

"Damnit. Jet and Droy were bit. They probably chased Wendy somewhere. So she threw the one knife she had as a diversion and ran. But… If they were bit that recently, then they probably still had some blood flowing, so…"

Natsu suddenly took off, and Erza and Gray bolted to keep up with him.

"Look at him go. He was born to do this." Gray mumbled. "But does he have to be so damn fast?"

"Stop complaining and run faster." Erza hissed. They couldn't afford to lose track of Natsu.

Suddenly Natsu stopped short. When Erza and Gray caught up, they saw what he was seeing.

A burned down house with a the unquestionable stench of burning zombies. It wouldn't be so concerning unless they had seen this before.

"Solo was here." Natsu snarled. He hated him, whoever it was. They had run into each other on a couple raids, but his identity had yet to be revealed. The only time he had spoke, he had had a deep voice that was unmistakingly male. And he had told Natsu to "Fuck off" which didn't sit too well with Natsu.

The worst possibilities flooded Natsu's mind, but Erza could sense this.

"It could have been Wendy who did this. She's smart and resourceful. Odds are, she probably escaped and found shelter somewhere else so she could wait the fire out. She's probably heading back as we speak."

Erza stopped speaking when she saw the zombie in front of them, unburnt.

"Jet." Gray whispered. Levy would be crushed by the news. He assumed that Droy was now a pile of ashes

"I'm gonna wait here until Wendy shows." Natsu said.

"I guess we have no choice then." Gray replied.

"We'll stay with you." Erza finished.

"Thank you guys." Natsu said quietly.

"That's what friends are for."

An inhumane roar interrupted their bonding moment and the three of the swore.

"I thought this town was cleared!" Gray shouted.

"Does it look clear?" Natsu asked.

"Well no… but…"

"Enough bickering and start killing!" Erza yelled. There were about 20 zombies charging at them.

"6 per person. If ya snooze, then you won't get a seventh and then you owe me some hot sauce on your next raid."

"Fine. One favor if ya don't get a seventh."

"Deal."

The two stood back to back, ready to fight. But they were smiling.

(1023)... sorry, it's a little short.

AN:

Thank again for reading this! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, which gives an insight to Natsu and Fairy Tail base as a whole while I work on what happens next. #WritersBlock

Review Answers:

Ushindeshi: Thank you! But, Lucy is totally a great teacher. I think she would be very useful to the base.

empowerLucy: Me too! I really hate it when people bash on Lucy for being weak but come on! I mean, Lucy is definitely one of the most powerful wizards there, especially in the final season. Who says she can't be badass? As for her back story, it will be briefly discussed in a few chapters but the flashback won't come until chapter 11 and then there will be more as the subplot comes to surface.

SharmintiSharminti: Well obviously. I was too lazy to think of a reason why they have so much gasoline and bullets, but let's go with that. Thanks!

HappyOrangutan: Well, I have the next 16 chapters already planned and I can assure you that I have planned really good cliff-hangers in most. Good luck! *evil and satanic giggling* No I'm not evil. I just like leaving people on the edge of their seats!

Again, thanks so much and please rate and review! Especially if you catch any grammar/spelling errors!