Back with the continuation
"speaking"
""thinking""
On with the story
In order to reach the continent of Alakatasita, a boat was needed. The trip to the western continent was going to be a long one
Erza, Gray, Lucy, Wendy and Charla went on ahead as Natsu was still back at Ishgar doing something but did not tell them on what it was
Erza also looked out to the sea as her mind was thinking hard on everything Mest showed them
Mest slowly approached Erza. "What's wrong, Erza? Oh…wait. Should I call you Master now?"
"No, Erza's fine." Erza replied as her hair blows in the air "I've been thinking about what you've informed us of. The guild's disbandment, Master going to such lengths to protect us…and to keep Lumen Histoire out of the hands of the enemy as well. But…as long as Lumen remains a mystery to us, I can't help but feel as though what we're doing is meaningless."
"From what we've heard, it could be something equivalent of a weapon…" Mest suggested.
"I remember the old man saying something about using it on Face…" Gray said.
"Yeah…but he also said something about not having the courage to use it." Lucy recalled that well.
"So, if he used it, could it have stopped all those Faces back then?" Charla asked.
"And the First's body is the biggest mystery of all." Erza said as she remembered the giant crystal the first master was sealed in
"We can't even tell if she's alive or not…" Gray stared at the floorboards of the ship.
"So the First that we've been seeing all this time is an astral projection?" Charla proposed the only logical conclusion.
"Too many questions, not enough answered." Gray sighed.
"I'm sure we'll find out when we save the Master." Lucy said.
Erza then turned to Mest. "How long until we reach Alvarez?"
"It takes about 10 days to reach Alakatasita by ship, so I'd say a few more if we were to reach the capital." Mest explained.
With Natsu
The man was walking in the northern end of Fiore as it was a pure white blizzard everywhere
"I can barely see anything!" Meredy shouted as she, Ultear, and Ur were walking in the snow
"that's why I told you to stay behind with Aya and the others" Natsu told her as the blizzard was very harsh and strong
"how much further!?" Ur called out as Natsu pointed ahead where there was a cave
"there" Natsu said as everyone reached the cave and entered it
While the others were on their mission to rescue Makarov, Gajeel led the B team. It consisted of him, Cana, Elfman, Juvia, Mirajane, Lisanna, and Lily. As they walked along the trail, Elfman glanced at Gajeel curiously. "Are you sure Laxus is here?"
"According to my information…yeah. Along with the rest of his lackeys of course." Gajeel said with a wide grin. It seemed he had something planned…
"The Raijinshu too?" Elfman asked.
"You just came for Ever, didn't you?" Cana placed her hands on her hips, teasing the middle Strauss sibling.
"Why is Juvia with this team…?" The water mage asked, annoyed and disheartened that she wasn't with Gray.
"There was nothing we could've done. Gray left before us…" Lisanna said.
"I wonder if there was any point in splitting teams…" Mira wondered aloud.
"They said it was for infiltration." Lily crossed his arms. "So this is a smart move."
"We wouldn't stand a chance if we were to get in a fight with the enemy." Gajeel stated. "Our chances of winning; 0%." That damped the mood considerably based on everyone's faces. Gajeel wasn't smiling about it either. "And there's no guarantee the infiltration will succeed anyway…"
"Our chances of victory and getting in successfully are close to zero. So that's why we need to do all we can to raise the chances, thus the separate teams, right?" The sudden voice surprised everyone and they turned. Levy caught up with the others, but she didn't seem too happy about it. "Come on guys, how could you leave me behind like that!?"
"Huh? Man, that's strange…" Gajeel then opened up his bag, smirking slightly at his ensuing comment. "With your size, I thought you were already in my bag…"
Levy stared at Gajeel before comically slamming her fists against his chest. "Stupid! Stupid!"
"…They're flirting…" Juvia had the sudden realization and looked away.
Cana then snaked an arm around Juvia, playfully groping the water mage. "I could flirt with you too, you know…"
"Juvia's…Juvia's not interested…" The water mage responded.
Shifting back to the topic at hand, Levy turned her gaze to the others. "But the enemy we're up against isn't like anything we've faced before. Don't even think about fighting them…please."
"I heard them talk about it before the left." Gajeel stared ahead. "Apparently we're dealing an enemy that's filled with mages close to Salamander in strength…"
"Even more dangerous than that…" Levy knew information they didn't, and she had to share it despite how disheartening it was. "…God Serena has also joined the enemy forces. We really have to make sure we don't fight them…"
Erza and the group were at Caracol Island and was in the middle of refilling their food and fuel supply as the trip to Alvarez was going to be a long one.
Right now they were in a pinch cause there were two ships moored at the island, both of them with the mark of Alvarez.
"The Alvarez Kingdom's navy ships!?" Mest began to sweat.
"Caracol isn't under Alvarez rule, is it?" Charla said as the operation to save Makarov was not getting more harder.
Mest placed binoculars to his eyes, scouting out ahead. "No…but it seems like they're checking for something at the ports…"
"Does that mean we can't get close?" Gray inquired.
Wendy had her hand cupping her ear as she seems to be listening to something
"they're looking for spies" Wendy said as everyone looks to the young girl. "And it sounds like that they are still searching."
"So what do we do…?" Mest tried to explore their options.
"We need to get to the spies before the navy catches them…" Erza said before an idea light bulb lighted up on her head
Natsu and his family entered as they entered the same oasis where Drac was once sealed
As they step a foot in the green filled land, the grass sparkled and shines
"welcome, old friend" a voice spoke as Natsu and the group walks towards the giant old tree that was living in the oasis "and you come with guests"
The tree's vines stretched out as they offered fruits of all sort towards Ultear and the others
"please take fruits that I bear" the voice spoke as Meredy and the others gratefully takes the fruits
"we didn't come for a picnic" Natsu said as he took a step forward and summoned Drac on "it is time for it to be fully unsealed"
As Natsu spoke those words, the whole oasis turned dark before returning back to normal
"old friend, in my centuries of living in the very land, I would give you anything and provide anything for you, but this one request of yours is something that I must refuse to abide"
The voice spoke as the giant tree cracked and spreads out and revealed a green man who had leaf covering his whole body
"what or who is that?" Meredy said
"Durya, an Elder Dryad who I saved a long time ago" Natsu replied as he steps forward
"this isn't a request, Durya" Natsu said as black markings started to slither and spread around from his right arm up to his neck and cheeks "the time has finally come"
Durya looks at Natsu as the Dryad like being closes his eyes and nodded
"what are they talking about?" Meredy whispered to Ur as the grandmother had no idea as well
Durya clapped his hands as the whole oasis rumbled and shook
"an earthquake!?" Meredy exclaimed as the ground started to crack and spread into a large crevice where stairs started
Natsu started walking down the stairs but was stopped by Durya who had a hand held out to him
"once it is released, the cost of using it will consume your soul and mind, Natsu" Durya said as Natsu just looks down the stairs before continuing to walk down the stair "you've been warned"
Ultear looks in confusion as to hear the words from Durya
"" consume his soul and mind? What does he mean by that?"" Ultear thought as questions started popping in her mind while feeling something creeping up her heart and it was a bad feeling
The Caracol island was being guarded by the Alvarez nay soldiers as they were checking out everyone who was visiting the island
"Get in line!"
"We will have inspections for those coming and going out of the island! Leave your luggage too!" A solider barked.
"What's happening?" An old man asked.
"I heard a spy has entered the kingdom and is hiding somewhere on the island…" Another eldery person said.
"Such troublemakers…"
"Next!" the guard shouted as Lucy and Erza came in with the others as they were all in disguise
"We're here on a holiday!" Lucy cheered.
"I heard the star mangoes here are to die for…" Erza spoke earnestly.
"I'm looking forward to it, Big Sis!" Wendy said with an innocent smile to Charla who was in her human form
Lucy held up her hand. Instead of the Fairy Tail mark, it was instead branded with that of Cait Shelter. The guard leaned in, inspecting the mark on her hand carefully. "That mark…are you part of a guild?"
"Mhm!" Lucy grinned. "We're part of a guild called Cait Shelter!"
"Heh…our disguises are perfect!" Erza had a pretty smug grin going on.
"Ah…that brings back memories." Wendy said with a smile as she looks at the nostalgic guild mark of hers
"…Haven't heard of a guild like that…" A guard shrugged.
"Yeah, well, we only know of a handful of those from Ishgar anyway." The other guard responded.
The comments demoralized Wendy and she was completely speechless. "….." Charla patted Wendy on the back, as if to help her feel better.
The guards were having an important conversation. They seemed to be at an impasse themselves. "What do we do? We were given strict orders with those from guilds…"
"But would a spy come through our front doors bearing guild crests where we can see them?"
"True…"
"Hey…" Lucy called out as she pressed up her asset to the guards while giving a soft, innocent look. "Are we done yet?"
Erza had a similar approach as she did what Lucy did. "There'll be no more Star Mangoes by the time this is over…"
The guards got flustered and ushered the group along. "O…Okay! You pass!"
"You're clear to go…!"
"Human males are so easy to deal with…" Charla spoke smugly
"I'm pretty sure it had nothing to do with us, Charla…" Wendy said with a soft sigh.
"We managed to sneak in…but we still have a problem." Erza surveyed the area. "The number of guards in town alone…we can't move around like we want to."
"let's split up" Mest suggested "I need to go and find our informant"
Erza and the others nodded and was about to split up when the sound of a wailing child caught everyone's attention.
"WAAAAH! Gimme back my Daddy!" A young girl cried to a few guards. "Where did you take him!? DAAAADDDDY!"
"This brat's exactly like his rebellious father…" The guard growled
Gray was about to go and pummel the guards but Mest stopped him
"You mustn't do anything…" Mest warned.
"WAAAAH! DADDY!" The child continued to cry.
The guard had enough. His sword was brandished and he lifted it up high. "I'LL MAKE YOU SHUT UP IF YOU DON'T!"
"He's taking it out on a child!?"
"Is he out of his mind!?" The civilians watched the scene in horror. Before the guards were striked down by Gray and the others while Wendy took care of the child
"What's that!?" The civilians watching certainly weren't expecting this!
"SHIT!" Mest's eyes widened in horror. Not even 20 minutes on the island and they already caused a scene!
"Sssh, it's okay…" Wendy cooed to the child
"We won't let them hurt you." Charla said as she and Wendy took the child to safety
Natsu was walking down the stairs as it seemed endless before he reached the very bottom where it was filled with ice but the ice was dark and seemed demonic
He entered the cold room filled with demonic ice as there were a lot of skeletons and bones frozen in the ice itself
A cold breeze of cold air sweeps through the air as the ceiling was filled with sharp cold ice stalactites
Natsu walks in the room before he stopped in front of a large ice sculpture that looks to be a giant mouth of a demon
"to think that the time has come" Drac spoke as Natsu entered the mouth of the demon where he was face to face with another gauntlet identical to Drac but this one had black tentacles all around it "for my other half to be awakened"
Natsu place Drac on the ice like glass as the entire place glowed purple
The ice cracked before it all shattered down into pieces and a dark aura filled the entire room
"HAhaHAhahahAHa!" a dark laughter was heard as the dark tentacles all shrunk into the gauntlet as it floats in the air before floating towards Natsu "So tHe TiMe hAS CoMe"
The gauntlet slides and equipped itself upon Natsu's left hand as the gauntlet snapped close on Natsu's arm as spikes pierced Natsu's skin and started to spread inside Natsu's veins
Natsu gritted his teeth as the veins started to slither up towards Natsu's neck and slithers around
Natsu's eye glowed black as his eyepatch fell down and revealed his blind eye had turned black and a glowing red eye appeared
"I CrAVe FoR BlOoD! I CrAVE FoR DEstRuCtiON! I cRAvE For DeAtH! FeEd Me!" the dark voice shouted out as black flames envelop the left gauntlet and red flames envelop Drac
Natsu gripped Drac onto the left gauntlet as the flames mixed together
"there won't be any feeding for you!" Natsu shouted as the flames started to envelop the whole room
"HaHAHahahAHA! yOU BeLIEVed tHAt I wOuld aBide to yOur CoMmands AfTer YoU seALed mE iN tHat CoLD pRIson!" the gauntlet shouted as a demonic aura spreads out from the gauntlet and revealed a dark shadow that was in the shape of a demon
"no, you will, brother" Drac spoke as armor plating started to spread around Natsu's arm up to his shoulders and onto his face as the metallic pieces formed a metal mouth piece on Natsu as it looks like a monster's mouth
The power struggle continued before it stopped when all the flames got sucked into Natsu's mouth as the metal mouth mask clamped shut
"vErY wElL" the voice spoke as the gem on the left gauntlet turned black and red at the same time
The dark shadow started to shrink as it got sucked into the gauntlet
"I ShAlL BeSTow YoU YoUR PowER bUT kNoW ThIs" the shadow disappeared before a black mist surrounds Natsu before bursting away "OnCe ThE CoSt iS PaId, YoUR SoUL ShALL FaLL to hElL"
The voice disappeared as the ice in the room melted and disappeared
"yeah, I know" Natsu spoke with the new appearance of his as it matched that of a pure monster
Black markings all over his skin, veins pumping up bellow his skin, his gauntlets were sharped as claws and lastly Natsu had the metal mouth mask moving as he talks like it was connected to his face
"it is a small price to pay to keep my friends and family safe"
Natsu then roared out a demonic roar as the whole cave shakes and so did the oasis above him
Durya had his eyes closed as the Dryad entered back the giant tree
"this shall be our last meeting, Natsu" Durya said as the tree swallowed him back
That's a wrap!
Bye bye