Back with the continuation
"speaking"
""thinking""
On with the story
"Wait, Zeref's here!?" Charla asked.
"On this continent…" Makarov stared down at the ground. "I had no idea myself that the man who called himself Emperor Spriggan was in fact, Zeref…"
"we can think of that later" Natsu said as he looks at the old man
"And now you kids are here. Did Mest keep you in the loop?" Makarov asked.
"Yes," Erza nodded.
"We're all so glad you're okay." Wendy already had tears of happiness welling in her eyes.
"It was naïve of me to think that it'd go well." Makarov trembled. "He never had any intention to negotiate in the first place. After all I've done…going as far as to soil the guild's long history by coming here. All of this…for nothing. How frustrating…" Makarov's tears dripped onto the ground below.
"Not all of it was pointless." Gray said with a soft smile. "We've all grown a lot in the past year."
"And we're all back together again." Lucy said with a smile.
"If the drive behind one's actions is the thought for another, then it is never meaningless. That was something you taught me." Erza reflected on Makarov's teachings
Natsu then stood in front of Makarov, as he leaned a hand forward towards him to take "We're going home, Gramps. Back to Fairy Tail."
This time, the tears that fell from Makarov's eyes were those of happiness. "Yeah…"
Charla stepped forward, breaking the good mood with a little bit of reality. "I hate to break up the reunion, but we have to leave now."
""who is this person?"" Makarov thought in his mind as he had no idea that it was Charla
"I've used my teleporting skills too frequently today…at this point I only have enough power to move everyone once more. I'd like to move us to Sorano's ship…that being said, we'll have to return to the previous drop off point." Mest said
"Awwww, leaving so soon, Makarov?" The voice of Ajeel startled the others and they turned to face him. The tanned male gave a wry smirk.
"Got all your souvenirs yet? I heard mudpacks are a fad now, care to try one out?"
"Ajeel!?" Makarov gasped.
"No way…how did he get here?!" Mest questioned.
Ajeel held one hand up, sand flowing from his fingertips to the palm of his other hand. "Sand. sans is nice. It tells you so much about the land…"
"This guy's on the same level as the girl back at Caracol…" Gray was already sweating as he thought that the group had to fight the man
"STOP! DON'T FIGHT HIM!" Makarov yelled at the others. "HE ISN'T SOMEONE YOU COULD BEAT! WE'VE GOTTA MOVE!"
Natsu slammed his fist to the ground as an eruption of flames blocked Ajeel's view of the
"GO!" Natsu shouted as everyone made a run for it
"Oh, I like that…" Ajeel remarked.
"I've got a magical vehicle ready back here!" Charla pointed out ahead as the vehicle was already stationed there
Erza turned, swinging her arm vertically, manifesting several swords to fly at Ajeel to buy them time.
Ajeel blinked, surprised at the amount of swords speeding in his direction.
"Oh." Ajeel said before the swords hits him directly and cause a small explosion.
"Now's the time, get in"! Gray yelled, following the others into the car.
"I'll drive!" Erza hopped in the driver's seat, connecting herself to the se plug. "Se plug, connected! We're going!" Titania revved the engine and the car sped forward through the forest.
There Ajeel stood with the numerous swords Erza released still stuck within his body. But they began to disintegrate into sand. "So that's Makarov's army, huh? Hmmm….I'm impressed."
"Faster, Erza!" Mest shouted out while gripping his left side
"I know!" Erza responded calmly as the se plug started to pump more of Erza's magic into the engine
"…He's coming." Makarov said.
"What?" Gray stared at the Master before he looks behind and sees a large shadow cast down on them from behind. "a sand monster?!"
Ajeel stood on the head of the sand monster as he grins at the fleeing team.
"Bastard…" Erza grit her teeth, putting her driving skills to the extreme as she had to violently swerve in a zig-zag pattern to avoid the golem's fists. "It's no good! I can't shake him!"
"Lucy, let's intercept the attacks!" Gray shouted.
Lucy nodded as she and Gray then climbed out the window
"Stop! He isn't someone you can defeat!" Makarov yelled.
"Well, we won't know if we try, no?" Gray said as he and Lucy were prepared to confront Ajeel. "We've faced foes stronger than us before and we've never backed down."
Black markings started to appear on Gray's body as cold air started to seep out of him
"Star Dress: Sagittarius Form!" Lucy pulled out one of her gold keys as she now wears her Star Dress attire with an addition of a bow
"What's this…? Their magic…it's nothing like it used to be a year ago…" Makarov was in awe as he can feel the incredible magic power from Gray and Lucy
"Oh? You guys gonna fight now?" Ajeel stood with his hands on his hips, giving an antagonistic smirk at the fleeing Fairies.
"Ice Make: Silver." Gray held his hand in front of him. The moment he finished speaking, a wave of ice instantaneously froze everything behind the car for miles on it.
"Wha-!?" Ajeel staggered as his body started to succumb to the cold.
"he froze him?!" Charla exclaimed in surprise
"Well played…!" Ajeel grinned, leaping from his sand golem and into the air. With a swipe of his hand, the sand golem broke free and turned into bats that aimed to swarm the magic car
"now sand bats!?" Mest exclaimed
"I got this…" Lucy formed several arrows of magic within the bowstring and let them fly! "Starshot!"
The arrows soared into the air, colliding against the sand bats and lit up in a series of explosions. Lucy and Gray had their hands full trying to keep the bats from overrunning them with sheer numbers. "There are so many…"
Ajeel watched their struggle with an amused grin. This was extremely entertaining and he wanted to see just how far they could go! "Very good, verrrrrry good!" Ajeel's smirk lasted and then he just vanished
"He's gone!?" Lucy said in suprise.
"Below you! He's hiding in the sand!" Makarov warned out as he looks down the magic vehicle.
"Arijigoku!!"
A massive pitfall of sand formed under the magic car with no warning, and because of this, the vehicle tell right into the middle of the sand pit, causing everyone to tumble about violently.
"Damn it!" Erza exclaimed in frustration. "Everyone, get out of the car!"
"Ahahahahahaha!" Ajeel cackled, standing at the edge of the pit to look down on everyone. "Would you look at that…you guys look great now!"
"The vehicle…damn it!" Erza grunted.
"we're getting sucked in!" Charla exclaimed as they could not get out of the sand pit
"I'm getting stuck…" Gray struggled to move, but it wasn't working.
"I can't move either!" Lucy flailed her arms about.
Ajeel watched their struggle with a grin, his sadism showing while looking down at them. "Let me tell you how many I've killed and towns I've swallowed with this. This Ant Lion Larva's Pit is my version of Hell's door. No one's escaped it before!" The Spriggan yelled
"So listen really closely since it's the last thing you'll ever hear before you die! I eat Wizards like you for breakfast! We're just too different in level, you worms! I am a god! Ishgar is a land abandoned by the gods! It's only a matter of time until Alvarez takes control over it!"
The team started to sink into the sand as their effort to get out was getting harder and harder.
"You frustrated? I'm sure! AHAHAHA! Very gooooood! I love the faces you're making right now!"
Natsu was sinking into the sand before he rips off his eyepatch and revealed his blind eye that turned black
"enough" he muttered out darkly before he erupted into flames as the fire burns the sand and cause a massive explosion
The Spriggan tumbled backwards as the flames caught him by surprise
Natsu flies out of the hole before he summoned Drac and the other gauntlet on as he smash them right at Ajeel's face
"Gaaah!?" Ajeel tumbled back before catching himself. There was now a noticeable bruise on his nose, as he holds his bruised nose
Natsu pulled back Drac as the gauntlet was ignited into black flames
"Raaah!" Natsu punched Ajeel right in the gut as the force of the punch pushed the Spriggan back
"Guuah!" Ajeel grunted out as he spat some blood on the ground
"you bastard!" Ajeel shouted out at Natsu as he summons dozens of sand spears beside him
Natsu glared at the man as the black markings started to spread around Natsu's body and the gauntlets transformed Natsu into his demonic form
A puff of black air blows out of Natsu's metallic monster mouth mask as his form shook Ajeel
"y-y-you?!" Ajeel took a step back as the sand spears all fall to the ground "w-w-why are you here?!"
Natsu huffs out flames from his mouth as he pulled back his right fist and punched the air as a blast of black fire exploded at Ajeel
"GUuh!" Ajeel raised his hands up as he creates a wall of sand that got blasted from the blast of flames
"Let's go" Natsu said as he turns around to the others as the antlion pit spits them out when Natsu explode it with his flames
"to where!?" Gray asked as Natsu points up to the sky where Blue Pegasus' flying vessel the Christina appeared
"the Christina?!" Charla exclaimed in surprise
"why is it here?!" Wendy asked in equal surprise
Makarov looks at the ship before his eyes spotted his Grandson on top of the ship
"Laxus?!" Makarov exclaimed in surprise to see him riding on the ship
"Flashy as always!" Gray said with a grin.
"You've grown old, Gramps." Laxus said with a smile to his old man
"AIGHT! GET ON THE SHIP NOW! WE'RE GOING BACK HOME!" Gajeel's voice was heard from the intercom as this surprised everyone down bellow
"GET ON THE SHIP!" Levy said.
"Uh…this is my ship…" Ichiya said, quietly in the background.
"Gajeel?" Gray said surprised
Juvia snatched the mic from Gajeel. "Gray-sama! Juvia is here too!"
"Let me talk too!" Elfman yelled.
"Elf-nii, stop it…" Lisanna sighed.
"Huh? Have you grown up, Wendy?" Bickslow asked.
"she turned into women, huh?" Freed said.
"Everyone's grown a little in the past year!" Evergreen commented.
"N-No…not really…" Wendy said with a sweat drop as she didn't really get any taller.
"Mest, you're there, aren't you!? Bring everyone on right now!" Cana commanded.
Mest looked up and nodded as he used his magic to teleport everyone up towards Christina
Ajeel looks up and saw that his prey was retreating
"Ha!? Running away!? Like hell you are!" Ajeel extended his hands to his sides, causing a pillar of sand to erupt from the ground, aimed right for the airship.
"We're not running away." Laxus said while lifting his hand, lightning sparking around it. "We're just going home. It's getting late, and we're not missing dinner."
In a flash, a bolt of lightning dropped down, covering a massive radius for miles on end in its explosion. The ship then flew off into the distance. They escaped. As the dust settled, Ajeel was shaking.
"Whoa. that was a scare were they freaking serious?" He then turned; noticing one of the 12 arrived. "…So it was your barrier that protected me, huh August?"
"It is a horrible thing to lose a comrade, Ajeel." August said.
"Did you think I'd die to something like that? You've aged, August." Ajeel chuckled.
Zeref watched on from his location at the palace. There was a small smile on his face. The wheels of fate were turning and there was nothing that could stop them now. "It's starting, Natsu…"
Erza and the others landed on Christina in a rought condition but otherwise alive and alright
"You guys okay there!?" Elfman asked.
"Great job, everyone!" Evergreen cheered.
"Operation: Save The Master, was a success!" Bickslow grinned.
"Gray-sama, you're okay!" Juvia happily clung to Gray.
"the hell happened to you?!" Elfman and Ever exclaimed as they were scared to death by Natsu's demonic look
"Why are you guys here…?" Gray asked while leaning away from Juvia.
"We've done stuff on our own to help the mission." Gajeel said
"Finding Laxus was one of those things." Mira said with a soft smile.
"How dare you sneak behind us!" Gajeel glared at Erza.
"…Long story…" Erza said to him. "And it was a secret mission. We didn't want to get everyone involved when the guild just got back together."
"It was tough…but we did it for you, Master." Erza told Makarov.
"Everyone…" Makarov looked towards his kids. All of them did so much just to bring him back home. When looking at their smiling faces, he couldn't help but cry. "You're the best family anyone can ask for…Fairy Tail…!"
"I'm an outsider, though…" Ichiya quietly remarked.
As the group celebrate their Master's rescue. An unsettling feeling was in Makarov's heart
Makarov stared at Natsu who was talking to Lisanna and Elfman as he couldn't shake off the words, Zeref told him
"Natsu is a Former Spriggan 12"
His mind then remembered how Ajeel reacted towards Natsu
"y-y-y-you are!"
""Natsu….what is your real identity?"" Makarov asked himself as he needs to know whether Natsu was a member of their family or an enemy
That's a wrap!
Bye bye