Remember what I said about dialogue chapters? I lied. But this one is an info bomb(at least I think it is), so forgive me. Welcome to Chapter 7 and enjoy your read! Be sure to let me know what you think in reviews!
"Who is this?"
"He's covered in blood!"
"Did he come here to save us?""
Gasps of shock echoed across the guildhall, with the dust finally settled down. Fairy Tail wizards looked at their new guest with confused and terrified eyes, which were shifting between the bloodied figure of the Dragon Slayer and defeated Rune Knights sprawled all over the floor behind him. After a brief moment of shock, braver members ran up to the front, creating a line of defense, putting up their fists and readying up their magic.
"What the hell is he doing here?!" asked Gray rhetorically, his hands creating an icy mist. "What's up with this blood?! Gajeel?" he asked, shifting his gaze onto the Iron Dragon Slayer for a short moment.
"It's too dry to know for sure, but the way he smells right now, I say it's mixed." growled Gajeel, his right hand turning into a sword. "Bastard's been fightin' someone not too long ago."
Natsu walked up to the group, making nothing out of their hostile welcome. His eyes weren't even entirely focused on the mages in front of him, as they continuously searched all over the guildhall, quickly passing from one face to another. His nose was constantly sniffing the air, taking in the smells of burned wood, smoke from Knights' weapons and people before him. It was painfully obvious he was looking for something. Or someone.
Lucy, who was standing behind her friends, stared at Natsu with widened eyes, her mind going through a battle. On one hand, she was terrified of this man. The memories of his heavy, disguisting magic haunted her to this day. But on the other hand, something was dulling this sense of fear. And she knew exactly what it was.
Suddenly, she felt a gentle tug on her skirt. Looking down, she noticed Wendy, who was standing behind her, her eyes stuck on the pinkette.
"Lucy, who is this?" she asked in a low, scared voice.
Lucy's eyes narrowed in sadness. She knew that Wendy was more than happy to learn there was yet another Dragon Slayer, other than her, Gajeel and Laxus. But this horrifying display was not what she could've ever expected to see.
The blonde put a hand on the tiny Dragon Slayer's head, gently tousling her hair. "Don't worry, he's not going to hurt us." she said with a smile, hoping that she was right in her thoughts.
Having not found what he was looking for, Natsu stepped in even closer, making the Fairy Tail wizards even more tense. His eyes and nose were working all the time, searching around the guild. He didn't even realise he was mere few meters away from Gray and Gajeel, who were more than ready to throw down with the intruder.
"Natsu!"
A sudden call snapped everyone in the hall out of their trance, as they all looked in the direction of the voice. Natsu's head, previously rotating on his neck and searching through the guild, made a sudden and fast shift at the person the voice belonged to. His eyes slightly softened upon seeing its owner, a long breath making its way out of his nose.
Erza walked out to meet the Dragon Slayer, her armored steps echoing across the now quiet guildhall. She stood right in-between Natsu, Gray and Gajeel and stopped in her tracks, physical telling her friends to stay out of it. But they had none of that.
"Natsu?" repeated Gray, his eyes stuck on the back of the redhead's head. "Since when do you guys know each other by first name? Is this what you were doing in your "free time"? Getting friendly with a criminal?" he snarled, not giving a damn about his tone.
"Stay out of this, Gray." replied shortly Erza, her tone low and commanding.
"Like hell we are." threw in Mirajane, her eyes glued to the enemy Dragon Slayer. "This guy tried to kill us, and you just greet him like nothing happened? Get real!"
"I said, stay out of this!" yelled Erza, turning around to send a quick, commanding glare at her friends that sent chills down everyone's back. This wasn't the usual, scary Erza. This was something much, much more terrifying.
After getting what she wanted, Erza turned back around and looked into Natsu's eyes, questions circling in her mind and sweat running down her face.
"What are you doing here?" she asked him in a quiet, but not hostile voice. This was one of the main questions she wanted to ask out loud.
Natsu didn't answer immediately. He looked puzzled, confused, maybe even scared. Whatever the reason he came here for was, it wasn't easy for him.
"I need your help." he replied after a short while, his voice tired and heavy. Erza could tell right away that something was weighing him down.
Before she could reply, however, a voice from behind her cut her off.
"You've gotta be shitting me!" yelled Gray, making few steps towards the Dragon Slayer. He got so close he was standing right behind Erza, who had to extend her right arm and put it on his chest to stop him from getting any closer. "After everything you've done, you come to us for help? Stop screwing around!"
"You threw the first blow, remember?" shot back Natsu, his voice sharp and impactful. "Besides, I'm not asking for your help, but Erza's."
Gray inhaled dangerously, his pressure on Erza's arm growing with each second. Natsu's response only made him angrier, same with the rest of the guild.
"I told you to stay back!" yelled Erza, putting her hand on Gray's sternum and pushing him back. The Maker mage took few quick steps back, completely unfazed by Erza's angry aura. His eyes were still focused on Natsu.
The redhead turned around, feeling more irritated than previously. She looked at Laxus, who was standing at the back of the guild, his eyes watching Natsu with a slight note of interest. The knight bit her lip in frustration - with Master gone, he should be the one to take control over the situation, not her.
"What business do you have with me?" she asked the Dragon Slayer, turning back around to face him.
"I'd rather not talk about it in here." he replied shortly.
"Whatever it is, I'm sure you can share it with all of us, Natsu-kun." threw in Mira in a mocking, poisonous voice.
Erza gently grit her teeth at her friends remark, stopping herself from bursting on the Demon. Natsu, on the other hand, was completely not taken by the woman's taunt and kept his eyes on the redhead. The intensity he stared at her with for the past few minutes was starting to make her feel uncomfortable.
"You really have big balls, comin' here and all." hissed Gajeel, stepping in as well. "We've got a score to settle, prick."
"Agreed." added Mirajane, punching her open palm.
The situation was getting out of control. No matter how hard she tried, there was no way she'd be able to stop her friends from attacking Natsu. Erza tried her best to push them back with her hands, but even she had a limit of what she could do. Stopping three outraged mages would be hers.
"All of you, stop this at once!"
The sudden yell made everyone jump a little in their spots, many heads turning in the direction of the voice. Erza's eyes widened upon seeing who the scream belonged at, as her brown eyes were now locked on Lucy's figure, her face expressing pure anger and disappointment.
"Have you all lost your minds?!" the blonde asked in raised voice, walking towards her team. "Are you really planning on fighting here, in the guild? Have you forgotten that we were the ones who attacked him, not the other way around?! Are you really this obsessed with personal revenge? Is this how Fairy Tail deals with things?"
Mira, Gray and Gajeel stared at Lucy, their eyes wide.
"You saw what he did to us, Lucy. To Blackhill, to that guild." said Mira quietly, slightly scared of the blonde.
"He also saved those girls from death, or in worse case, being someone's possession." retorted sharply Lucy. "You." she said, shifting her eyes onto the pinkette. He lifted his head up to look at her, his onyx eyes taking in her burning gaze. "You acted under cover and walked down to that basement. You checked up on those girls and told one of them to hang on for a while longer, and that you will save them. Then, you walked back upstairs and destroyed the building. Is that right?"
Mira's eyes widened, her head quickly turning on her neck in the Dragon Slayer's direction. He kept his eyes on the blonde, his face unreadable. After a short while, he gave her a light nod in response, taking his eyes off of her and gluing them to the floor once again.
"If he wanted to genuinely hurt us, he wouldn't have repeatedly asked Erza to let him go in the middle of combat, and he wouldn't have broken us out of this jail. Think with your heads, not fists." she finished in a scolding tone.
This silenced the trio, seemingly stripping them off their will to fight. Taking this as a sign of victory, Erza lowered her raised arm, feeling her friends relax as well, even is only a little. She turned to Lucy and gave her a light nod of acknowledgement, her lips curved in a genuine smile.
"You can tell me here, in front of everyone. Nothing bad will happen, I promise you." she said to the Dragon Slayer, turning back around to face him, her voice calmer.
Natsu's eyes narrowed, as he weighed his options. For some reason, he was hesitant to share his information with the knight. If she hadn't met him few days ago, she'd have thought it was a trap. But for some reason, she was willing to put a small piece of her trust in this man. something that's always been hard for her.
Natsu breathed out loudly and closed his eyes, his previously tense body relaxing. After a short moment, the pinkette opened his eyes, once again locking them on the redhead's figure.
"Seven Commandments. I've found them." he said.
Erza's eyes widened in slight shock. Not few days ago, he confessed to her that he had no trail of those people, that he was walking around in circles. Yet here he was, 2 days later, covered in blood and aware of their whereabouts. The knight looked all over his body, only now fully taking in his appearance - he was in a sorry state. The bandages on his hands were pure red, with pink, swollen skin of his arms peeking out of the remains of his sleeves and bandages, his bones fractured once again. His previously white scarf was now stained in dry blood, its splashes forming bizarre shapes on its previously scaly pattern. His black jacket was tattered and open, revealing his naked torso, with a giant, dark purple bruise so similar to hers covering right side of his upper body. It didn't take a genius to deduct how he managed to acquire this information.
"The Seven what now?" asked Gajeel.
"Seven Commandments." repeated Natsu, shifting his gaze onto the Dragon Slayer. "The most powerful Dark Guild in the Alliance."
"Pretty sure Grimoire Heart holds that spot." threw in Cana from the back of the guild.
"Yeah, I've never seen those guys in the Baram Alliance, and I've looked at this tree quite a few times by now." added Mirajane, her eyes narrowing. "Something smells fishy here."
"That's because they are the tree itself." retorted Natsu tiredly. "They control almost half of the Alliance from the shadows, they are at constant war with the Leaders. They're so strong they could wipe out all three of them if they wanted to."
Mutters of shock and disbelief echoed across the guild. Even Erza was suprised - back in that cave, he never mentioned those people were this dangerous.
"Why should we believe you?" asked Gray. He calmed down, but kept his guard up. "None of us has ever heard of them, and we both know what sort of a reputation you have."
"And why do you know so much about them?" added Gajeel.
"Because I've been chasing them for 7 years now." retorted Natsu, looking into the Iron Dragon Slayer's eyes. "Dragon Claw was one of their outposts and supply points, that's where they took their cargo from. That's why I attacked them."
Gray frowned. "Cargo? Supply point? What the hell are you talking about?"
Blood froze in Erza's veins, gears turning in her head. Dragon Claw was taken down for kidnapping women and keeping them hostage. Natsu knew about her past and sympathized with her. Natsu's character shifted whenever the Commandments were mentioned. Could it be...?
"Slavery." answered the Dragon Slayer in a cold, emotionless voice. "Seven Commandments deal in slavery."
The Maker's eyes widened in shock, just like the rest of the guild. Lucy immediately shifted her worried eyes to Erza's figure, who was currently staring at the floor, panting lightly. Her chest felt heavy, as she brought up her arms to look at them, painful memories resurfacing with full strength. She looked at her wrists, her mind imagining chains locked on her armored hands.
"They've been enslaving people for years now. They don't sell them, or keep them - they use them for labor. They make them work for days, sometimes not letting them sleep. They keep this on until they die, then they replace the corpses with a fresh batch of slaves." continued Natsu.
"How is that possible?" asked Lucy, her mouth covered with her hand. "How can they get away with this?"
"A scary reputation and wide back, ain't that right?" asked Laxus.
Natsu nodded. "No one sane would ever go to war with them. Even if they don't deal with their problems themselves, they have many pawns to use as they please."
"And that's where you step in, right?" asked Mira sarcastically. "You walk around and knock those pawns over?"
"Yeah, especially during recent months. Because this is where their plan comes in." he replied, oblivious to the woman's tone.
"Would you mind letting us in on that plan of theirs as well?" asked a voice, its owner standing in the entrance.
Natsu turned around in his spot, putting his guard up. He noticed a small, elder man standing on the rubble, with several people walking in behind him.
"Master!" exclaimed Lucy, snapping Erza out of her trance. The knight lifted her head and took Makarov's small figure in, hope filling her chest.
"Yo!" grinned Makarov, putting his hand up, as he made his way into the guild, his companions following him. And they were not just any companions.
Jura, Lyon, Sherry and The Trimens walked into the guild along with Makarov, carefully stepping over the destroyed door.
Fairy Tail wizards ran up to Makarov to greet him, all of them expressing their worries over the news about his "treason".
"I'm glad to see you're well." said Erza, walking up to Makarov.
"As if I'd let them lock me in! Pfft!" the man stuck out his tongue, making the knight sweatdrop. It amazed her how his mere presence managed to calm her troubled mind.
Makarov dropped his act and focused his eyes on Natsu, taking in his beaten up form.
"I presume you're the infamous Salamander?" asked the elder.
Natsu did not respond right away, his eyes carefully watching the newcomers. Upon hearing his name, they all looked at him in curiosity and suprise.
"Is this the man our comrades have purposelessly spilled their blood for?" asked Jura in a deep voice.
"He doesn't look that tough to me." remarked Lyon with a cocky smirk.
"You're free to try, I'd be more than glad to see this guy mop the floor with you." retorted Gray, irritating his previous comrade.
"Do not compare me to you, Gray. And stay away, I don't want you to rub off your failure on me."
"What did you say?"
"Enough!" threw in Erza, silencing them both. "Stop acting like children, this is serious!"
With this exchange going on in the background, Natsu and Makarov stared at each other in silence.
"Are you this guild's Master?" asked the Dragon Slayer finally.
"Indeed I am. Fairy Tail's 3rd Master, Makarov Dreyar." replied the elder.
"Salamander." introduced himself Natsu, sticking to his usual name.
Makarov nodded in acknowledgement and walked up to the pinkette, passing by the ruckus. This managed to silence them, as silence fell in the guild once again.
"Now then, I'd like to hear what you have to say. Depending on your words, I may have a piece fitting to your story." said Makarov, adressing Natsu once again.
The Dragon Slayer hesitated, looking at Erza. She gave him a gentle nod, encouraging him that the person he was about to speak to could be trusted. Taking her word for granted, the pinkette decided to spill the beans.
"They kidnap and enslave people, forcing them to work in horrible conditions, usually until they die. They're forcing them to build something out in the ocean, where it wouldn't cause any suspicion or something. Apparently, the construction is massive, possibly the biggest in Fiore, and can be barely seen even from the shore. They used their outposts and supply routes to gather people who would not be looked for, such as orphans, elders, loners, the sick. I've spent last 7 years crushing those routes, effectively slowing them down. The amount of people that died because of them can be counted in thousands, thought, even with my interventions."
Eyes of every person present in the hall were glued to Natsu, all of them watching him carefully.
"How come nobody noticed anything? How could they stay hidden in the shadows for so long?" asked Sherry.
"They've kept so low they were considered a myth." replied Mira. "Is that right?" she asked, directing the question to Natsu.
"Yeah. They started to make appearances only a few years ago, that's how they got their supply routes. Their activity increased by alot in recent months, though. In mere couple months, they've taken over half of Baram Alliance, taking every smaller Dark Guild under their wings, even stealing them from other guilds, such as Oraccion Seiss or Grimoire. This greatly increased their range and amount of victims." replied the Dragon Slayer, his voice getting quieter.
"They kept low for years and suddenly surfaced? It doesn't add up." frowned Lucy.
"You said it." threw in Hibiki, currently searching through his Archive. "There's not a single word about "Seven Commandments" in my archives."
"I think we know the reason behind it." said Makarov, suprising the present mages, with Jura nodding approvingly.
"The Council has been infiltrated. The Chairman's mind was taken over by one of them." he said, shocking the company.
"How is that even possible?" Lyon's eyes widened.
"I don't know." The Saint Wizard shook his head. "But it appears they have found a way to put one of them inside of the Council and cover any irregularities that came afterwards."
"That'd explain why there's such a big reward on this guy's head." said Laxus, joining the discussion, as he pointed at Natsu with his thumb. "It all makes sense now."
"This truly smells like dangerous parfum." added Ichiya, his voice lacking its usual charm.
Erza didn't listen to the discussion, instead thinking over everything she's heard. Her eyes were wide and dry, her mind in constant fight with itself. No matter how hard she tried, it all sounded too convenient, too familiar. She felt metal of her gauntlets bend under her grip, her body trembling.
"You said something about a construction." she said out loud, gaining the attention of everyone present. "What was it?"
The knight wasn't looking in his direction, instead keeping her eyes focused on the floor, as she anticipated the answer in fear. Seeing her like this, Natsu felt his eyes widen as well, as he realised he was not the only one traumatised by this name.
"R-System, other known as Tower of Heaven." he replied quietly, his voice dry.
Erza simply closed her eyes in response, a quiet breath escaping her nose. Gray and Lucy looked at each other in fear, both aware of Erza's connection to the tower. The others, however, frowned on confusion, unfamiliar with the name.
"How did you learn of this?!" asked Jura in raised voice, startling everyone.
"A member of Seven Commandments tried to hunt me down. I've defeated and interrogated him. He's the one who told me about this." replied Natsu.
"And where is this man right now?" asked Makarov with a furrowed brow.
"I killed him." replied the Dragon Slayer shortly after a while. Erza couldn't help but notice the small pinch of disguist in his voice.
Makarov's eyes narrowed sorrowly, as he looked at Grigol's blood that was spilled on the pinkette's clothes. "I see." he responded quietly.
"That's not everything he told me, though." added Salamander. "Apparently, they're planning on using a weapon of some sort. I think it's called Ethur...Eder..."
"Etherion?" finished Makarov, his eyes widening in terror.
"Yeah, that." confirmed Natsu, shaking the elder up to the core. "What's that?"
"A weapon so powerful it can destroy entire nations in one strike." explained Jura, his scared eyes meeting Makarov's. "R-System and Etherion?! We must hurry, Makarov-dono!"
"Agreed." nodded the elder, facing his kids afterwards. "This is a serious matter. We must do everything in our power to stop them. I know this is sudden, but there's no time to waste. If they go through with whatever it is they're planning, there may be no future for us. We'll split into two teams. Me, Elfman, Lisanna, Warren, and Lamia Scale will head towards the Council and stop Etherion's launch. As for the Tower..."
Makarov quickly shot a look at his kids. "Erza, Mira, Gajeel, Gray, Wendy, Lucy, Laxus, Juvia. You will accompany Salamander and defeat those Commandments. If they really want to use Etherion, not only Magnolia, but Fiore itself is in danger. Once again, we form an Alliance to put a stop to evil's plans! Give it all you've got, you brats!"
The mentioned wizards nodded their heads and loudly expressed their approval, some of them more scared than others. Erza, on the other hand, remained silent and kept staring at her hands. She felt someone gently put a hand on her shoulder, only to see Mirajane's white hair with the corner of her eye.
"Relax. You're not going back there as a slave, but as a Fairy Tail wizard, filled with sense of duty. This time, you'll be the one bailing the others out, not the other way around. Instead of feeling down, turn this fear into anger and kick their asses. Let yourself loose on that damn place and cut your binds that tie you to it." she grinned, putting up her fist against Erza's chin.
The redhead couldn't help but smile at her rivals words, her hands finally relaxing. Maybe it was because of who said those words, but she felt a sudden, unusual wave of courage heating her previously terrified mind.
"It's unusual for you to encourage me." she said with a gentle smile.
"Don't get used to it." smirked Mira in response, before walking away. The knight shook her head, still smiling. She wanted to thank the Demon, but knew that if she did that, she'd never hear the end of it.
"Alright everyone, let's head to Hargeon! We can still get a ship!" she exclaimed to her team.
"That won't be necessary, Erza-san." smiled Ichiya, confusing the redhead. "We've already taken care of that." he gestured her to walk out of the guild with him, which she did, along with everyone else.
"T-this is..." she muttered after walking out of the guild, carefully stepping over defeated and still unconscious Rune Knights. Before her stood a familiar giant, magical ship in the shape of a Pegasus.
"Freshly renewed Christina." said the man, pointing at the ship with his arms. "We'll take you to your destination in blink of an eye!"
"What about Etherion?" asked Erza, not convinced whether she should be the one to ride the ship. "Stopping it is much more crucial than our task."
"Do not worry about us, Erza-dono. We will reach the Council in time. Defeating the person controlling the Chairman is of upmost importance, and we have all right to believe he is currently inside of the Tower." replied Jura.
"What he said." added Makarov, opening up the door to his carriage. He stopped in the entrance and took a last look at the Tower Team. "Good luck to all of you. Get back safe."
"You too, Master/Gramps." they said in union, before turning around and getting on board of Christina.
Laxus, who was the last one to get on, stopped in the entrance and turned back, his nose sniffing the air furiously.
"What's wrong?" asked him Wendy, joining him in sniffing.
"Nothing. Just my imagination." he replied, dragging out the syllables, not entirely convinced. Giving up, he entered the ship, patting the girl on his way inside, much to her irritation.
As the ship took off, a cloaked, small figure peeked out of the bushes, placed right next to the guild. They picked out a lacrima our of their sleeve and rubbed it a few times, lighting it up.
"Heavens-sama? I have something important to report." the figure screeched in male voice.
Meanwhile, Tower of Heaven
Blunt, loud noises of metal striking something hard echoed across the floor, as Arthur made his way down the stairs. With each step he took, the bigger was the pain in his ears, the sound of constant hitting drilling into his head. After a torturous journey, he finally reached his destination, as he opened the door leading to the training room. The smell of metal, sweat and blood filled his nostrils, his gaze narrowing in sadness.
It's been hours since Jolene learned of Grigol's death, and hours since she started hitting the training mannequin. She didn't stop even for a moment, as she continuously stroke her swords into the dummy, tears and rivers of sweat running down her face. The floor was covered in broken, blunt swords, their handles red from blood that leaked from her hands, the wounds she made with constant rubbing of her skin.
"I believe that is enough, Jolene." said the man gently, silenced by the metalic sound.
The brunette ignored him, continuing to move her heavy, tired arms while she panted heavily. Suddenly, she felt her wrists being locked in place, the grip on her hands making her let go of her swords, that fell to the ground with loud thuds.
"You dare use your magic on me, Arthur?" she growled in-between her loud breaths.
"I dare to stop you from acting so recklessly" he replied, letting her go. Jolene had to take few steps forward to regain her balance, as she turned around and glare at Arthur.
"Don't get in my way." she warned him, shaking her head. "I don't care who, I'll kill anyone who's in my way!"
"That is exactly what I call being reckless." retorted the man gracefully.
"Grigol is dead." she said through her teeth, tears forming in her eyes once again. "I've know him since we were children. We've been through everything together, ever since day one. He was my little brother, and now he's gone. He was tortured to death by that little shit that I should have slaughtered when I had the chance. Do you know what he's done to him?" she asked with broken, full of hatred voice.
"No. I haven't seen the body yet." Arthur gently shook his head, his voice quiet.
"He punched a hole in stomach, and then broke his bones, one by one, all of them while he was conscious. He died after 87th one." she continued, breaking down at the end. She brought up her damaged hands and covered her mouth, sobbing into it.
The elder grit his fists and bit his lip in frustration. He was nowhere near as close to the giant as Jolene was, but the loss of his comrade still pained him. He'd gladly take it out on the Dragon Slayer if given a chance, however the circumstances did not allow for such luxury.
"I'm not telling you to forget about this." he started. "That's impossible. But don't lose the sight of what's in front of you. We're one step away from acquiring our peace. Soon, the person responsible for this tragedy will be the reason of our happiness. Grigol would not want you to act this way. You know he's always held you in high regard."
Jolene sniffed and cleaned her nose with the back of her hand. "He'd probably call me a fake and demanded I returned the real me." she muttered.
"Exactly." smiled Arthur. "Seeing how easy it was to talk you out of scraping your hands off, I can see you were aware of that yourself."
He gently took her hand by the wrist and and lead her out of the room. "Come. Let us treat those wounds. We can't have you walking around with these injuries, not with a fight this close."
Jolene blinked. "A fight?"
"I have no reason to doubt that Salamander interrogated Grigol. He's probably aware of our whereabouts, and will come to us on his own. That is why I had Dryden gather our subordinates."
Arthur felt himself pulling the woman, as Jolene stopped in her tracks. He turned around to look at her, her eyes shadowed by her bangs.
"He's coming here?" she asked, her eyes glimpsing dangerously through the brown hair.
"That is what I and Master believe." replied the man.
The woman breathed in, before resuming walking up the stairs. "I'm free to do anything to him as long as he doesn't die, right?" she asked.
"Yes, as long as he's breathing, you're free to do whatever you so desire." confirmed Arthur. "We all are."
Jolene's eyes burned with thirst for revenge, her steps feeling lighter and more energetic.
"I can't wait."
Luppi made his way up the stairs, to the highest placed chamber in the tower. Cursing the bloody stairs and his lack of stamina in his thoughts, he walked up the last step and pushed the door, entering the dark room.
"You wished to see me, Master Silva?" he asked, kneeling in front of a giant, wooden chair that resembled a throne.
"Yes, I have." replied a stoic, male voice. "You've done your job marvelously, Luppi. I'm proud of you."
The teenager's eyes glimpsed with joy, as he quickly bowed his head, grinning at his feet. "Thank you Master, I'm glad I was..."
"...is what I'd like to say." finished the Master, halting Luppi in his spot. "Your failure in capturing Salamander has been quite impactful on our group, far too impactful for my taste. Grigol's loss is something I never even anticipated, not in a hundred years. Because of your incompetence, he was forced to act on his own record and paid for it with his life."
Luppi was now sweating. "M-master...I do admit I have failed you when it comes to Salamander, but everything else is going according to our plans. As we speak, my puppet is gathering the elders for a last-minute Council meeting. We're ready to fire Etherion."
"What good is Etherion without our most important piece?" asked Silva shortly, scaring the teenager even more.
"There's still time. The Tower is finally complete. All I need is few more days, that's all I ask for."
"You've already lost half of your pawns." retorted Silva. "The stronger half, may I add. How do you plan on capturing someone with those leftovers? Am I supposed to send more of our comrades after this boy? You, perhaps?"
Drops of sweat fell on top of Luppi's hand, as he gulped loudly. "I'd stand no chance." he answered dryly.
"I'm well aware of this fact." Silva's voice echoed like a whip. Luppi closed his eyes, seemingly on terms with his fate.
"I have no more words to defend myself. Please, punish me accordingly." he muttered.
Silva's crimson eyes glimpsed in darkness. "No. Despite this failure, you are not fit to be punished. No matter how angry I am about our lack of Salamander, I cannot neglect all the good work you've done throughout the recent months, and your years spent as 7th Commandment: The Mind. Keep the elders in check, keep them busy. I will send a scouting party to retrieve our missing piece."
"That won't be necesary." threw in a new voice, belonging to the azure-haired man standing in the doorway.
"What is the meaning of this, Jellal?" asked Silva with a slight frown.
Jellal chuckled gently and made his way through the room, walking up to the throne.
"Kneel, you bastard." hissed Luppi, only to be ignored by the man.
"One of my subordinates has informed me that Salamander, along with Fairy Tail, are headed our way. They are expected to arrive in few hours from now."
Silva's teeth glimpsed in the dark, a smile forming on his face.
"Fate truly is on our side. We must put Grigol's demise aside and move forward. Mourning will come later - when this world is ruled by its righteous King, Zeref."
30 minutes later, Christina.
After some initial trouble, the team has finally took off towards their destination. Hibiki was currently steering the ship, having downloaded Natsu's knowledge of the Tower's whereabouts, which was not an easy task, due to Natsu's lack of trust in his companions. Only after Erza's intervention, did he finally settle down and allow Hibiki to get what he needed, but not without threatening him that if he touched anything else, he'd burn his hair off. Much to the knight's confusion, Mira and Lucy snickered into their hands while watching this scene, both of them leaving a mental note that they found a way to get through to the Dragon Slayer.
After this incident. Natsu walked out of the room. heading towards the bathroom. His plans were stopped, however, with Erza bringing up Wendy and offering some healing to the wounded Dragon Slayer. Although at first hesitant, he allowed Wendy to heal him and they both headed to other room, where it was less crowded.
Erza was currently standing by the window, looking out into the now dark sky.
"How're you doing?" asked Gray, walking up to stand right beside her.
"Better than I expected." she admitted truthfully. "If I were alone, I'd probably curl up into a ball and cry myself to sleep."
Gray gently snorted at this remark, however he quickly regained his composure.
"Listen, Erza..." he began. The knight took her eyes off the window and looked at him curiously. "I know that's probably not what you want to hear, but I know what it's like to deal with your past. You've been there, you saw me. I was a mess, and I would've stayed a mess if it hadn't been for you guys. I know our ways of coping with our past were different: I trained to face Deliora, you took as many dangerous jobs as you could to never have time for yourself and cut yourself off from people. It hurt, I admit it. I've always admired you and working with you was a rare learning experience. And even when you literally tried to kill me for following you, I wanted to accompany you and get stronger, so that I could beat Deliora. But now I know that wasn't the answer, it never will. We don't have to face our problems on our own, not when we have people close to us, who are willing to share that pain with us. That's why I want you to know, that me, Lucy and everyone else is here for you. You don't have to deal with this alone."
Erza listened him finish his monologue with a stoic expression. Seeing no reaction from the redhead, Gray's face turned red, as he looked away from her in embarrassment.
"You know what, forget I said that. I've always sucked at comforting people." he mumbled.
Erza smiled and shook her head. "No, Gray. You're doing a fine job." she said, reaching out for his head and smacking it into her breastplate, embracing him in her famous hug. "Thank you."
The man smiled lightly, despite having his head squeezed by the knight's iron grip. "You're welcome."
Erza let him go and looked around the main room in search of Natsu and Wendy. Just when she was about to go look for them, she spotted Wendy's small figure walking through the door, alone.
"Where's Natsu?" she asked the small Dragon Slayer.
"He said he wanted to stay for a while longer." she replied.
"I see. So, what do you think of him? Were you scared?" asked the knight, genuinely curious of her opinion.
"N-not really." muttered Wendy. "We sat in silence when I was healing him. He stood up when I was done and moved around, thanking me for healing him. I think he was slightly impressed. He then asked me to leave him alone."
"Oh." was all that came out of Erza's mouth. "Well, I'm sure when all of this is over, you'll get a chance to talk properly. You've got alot of things to ask him about, don't you?"
Wendy's face beamed upon hearing these words. "You think so?" she asked hopefully.
"Yes, I'm certain of it." confirmed the knight, tousling Wendy's hair. "Now, if you'll excuse me."
Erza squeezed through the door and walked out of the room, walking out to the corridor. Finding the room he was in was not hard, considering only one of them was lightened up on the inside. She started to make her way to the room, weird noises growing in her ears with each step. Frowning, she finally reached the room and stood in the doorway, taking a look inside.
Her eyes registered Natsu, who was buckled over a barrel, as he continuously threw up inhuman amounts of vomit. He was half-naked, his body cleaned off any blood, his dirty clothes currently submerged in water, dried blood coming off due to the liquid. His injuries were almost gone, with a barely noticeable pink outline where his giant bruise used to be, his cuts and fractures closed and patched up.
Erza quickly ran up to him and put her hand on his back, soothingly massaging his well toned muscles.
"Is it your motion sickness?" she asked him in-between his attacks.
"How do you know I have it?" he asked, before putting his head in the barrel once again.
"Gajeel and Laxus have it as well. It probably applies to all Dragon Slayers." she replied with a small smile on her face. "Then again, this ship does not make them sick. Are you okay?"
Natsu took a deep breath and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand before responding.
"Yeah, don't worry. I just remembered what I did few hours ago, no biggie."
The knight's eyes narrowed in sadness, as she recalled what he looked like not so long ago. "What the hell happened there?" she asked him.
He looked at her with his tired eyes, his trust issues getting in the way once again.
"One of them found me last night, one I had more history with. We fought. I struggled to find out his weakness, but once I did, I nailed him pretty hard. After that, I lost control. I broke his arm and tortured him, asking for information which he gave me in-between his screams. I broke his bones, one by one, at the same time making sure he didn't pass out. At that time, I felt great. I felt superior, righteous, powerful. But once his screams died down and all I was left with was his blood sticking to my hands, my clothes, my scarf, it all disappeared. It's been replaced by disguist, fear and shock. I thought I was right, I thought I was ready for this. But that's all bullshit. Killing him gave me nothing, no feeling of satisfaction. I just feel more empty than ever. I feel disguisted with myself." he confessed, his fists clenched.
Erza just listened in silence. It felt like listening to herself. What he just described was the way she's been feeling for years. It wasn't the strength or scale of this confession that shocked her this much - it was its accuracy. And just when she thought they couldn't get any more similar, her eyes fell onto his wrists, as they widened in pure shock.
"Natsu..." she began, her voice quiet and strained. "What's that on your hands?"
The Dragon Slayer raised his head to meet her brown eyes, which were locked on his hands. He looked down in search of her discovery, but he didn't have to look for long.
"Oh, those?" he asked, raising his hands. Around both of his wrists ran pink, round and wide scars, their skin wrinkled and deformed, both of them almost identical to Erza's. He smiled sorrowly at the sight, rotating his arm in front of his face to get a better look. "I think we both know what these are from."
"It all makes sense now." she whispered in response, more to herself than Natsu. All pieces of the puzzle she had to deal with for the past 8 days now formed themselves into one.
Hearing her words, Natsu decided to ignore them, knowing they weren't aimed at him. He put his arm down and reached out to the bowl where his clothes were, his right hand locking itself on his scarf, as he pulled it out of the water. "Wanna hear about it?" he asked her so casually he shocked her even more.
"Why would you want to speak of this?" she asked him. "Especially to me, a stranger?"
"Because you can relate, and you wouldn't use it against me." he shrugged, making her jaw drop to the floor. One time, he acted like a startled animal, the other like a far too trusty kid. Just what was going on with this man?
"I'm gonna say it even if you don't want to listen." he said, squeezing the water out of his wet scarf.
"But...why? For what reason?" asked Erza, genuinely confused.
Natsu shook his scarf a couple times, getting rid of any remaining water in the fabric. "As a reminder." he replied, his voice losing its carefreeness. "Every time I start doubting myself, I sit down and relive everything that happened to me. It keeps me going, makes me remember why exactly I'm doing what I'm doing."
"That's the complete opposite of me." thought Erza with a sad smirk. "Very well. I will listen to your story."
"You don't have to force yourself, you know." he said, wrapping the scarf around his neck,
"I'm not." she ensured him.
"Okay." he replied, sitting down on the floor.
"It all began on July 7th, x777..."
To be continued in Chapter 8: Unfinished Business
Repeat after me: kemor does not put something in his story without a reason. Some of you may have grimaced a the Tower's mention, and I can't blame you. But the way it's going to play out will be much, much different than the canon one. The mere fact we have an entire new set of baddies should tell you that.
Keeping characters in character was hard in this chapter. It's been a while since I've read/watched FT, so I couldn't remember what would they act like in certain scenarios. I hope I didn't butcher any of them. Especially Lucy putting the guild in its place. There was only one moment where she was scarier than Erza, and it was a gag, so stretching that scene was hard, to say the least.
Natsu's weird "tameness" when it comes to Erza is not because their names are bound together as a ship right under the name of this story. This will be explained in the next chapter, so stay tuned.
With that said, I hope you enjoyed the chapter and prepare yourselves for Natsu's backstory. It's gonna be one hell of a ride,. I'm planning on making the chapters longer, so this one may take longer than usual.
Hit me with those reviews like the whore I am and have a nice day!