Chapter 45
Demonic Flame: Thicker than Water
...
...
Ths two assassins faced off against a man that looked to be about six feet tall, his body was covered with black clothing except for his eyes that were revealed to them. The blue haired woman nodded to her beloved next to her and he did the same as well.
They both charged at the man and so did he, there was a fair amount of space but the gap between them closed quickly, Juvia skipping ahead of him and going high into the air. The man's head shot up quickly since he was distracted by Gray who attempted to pierce through him with ice crystals that shot up from the hard ground.
"Water Slicer!"
The man dodged just barely, the water slicing against the material of the clothing he wore while the hit got on his skin, blood seeped through. The man jumped backwards a few feet away from them, holding his chest as his eyes narrowed slightly at the Water Woman but that didn't stop the couple from dashing towards him yet again.
"Crystal Spiral!"
A spiral of red and clear crystals shot out from underneath the cloak he was wearing, Gray and Juvia moved from side to side, trying to avoid the sharp crystals that were thrown at them. Some of the crystals gave them small slits on their bodies that were passing by, the cold weather burning their wounds but pushed onwards.
Gray's hands frosted over, his ice-make magic creating ice gloved on his hands. The man glared st them both, rolling his sleeve up on his left hand, crystals forming all over his arms and soon, his whole arm was crystalized with red and clear. Gray let out a battlecry, raising his fist up in the air while the man moved his back.
Their fists collided with reach other, making the ground beneath the shake with the sheer force of their strength. The ice on Gray's hands shattered while the man's hand only had a few of the crystals fall off. Gray, astonished and more the less amused that someone was actually able to break his ice. The man took his vulnerability into his advantage and delivered an uppercut underneath his chin, sending the Ice Assassin flying back info the dirt.
"Gray-sama!" The Water Woman needed to study her opponent's moves. He seemed to only attack whenever they attacked. To be fair, she couldn't blame him for defending himself since they were the ones who started it first.
But an enemy of Fairy Tail was an enemy of hers.
The bluenette's teeth were gnashed, dashing towards him.
"Water Nebula!"
As if he had seen her coming, the man dodged the attack with ease. The man narrowed his eyes, punching her in her stomach with his other hand that was normal. She coughed out blood from her mouth from the intense hit, collapsing to the ground on her back. The man mounted her and raised his crystalized first into the air, Juvia waited for what was to happen but instead he lunched the ground next to her head, making it crack beneath her.
He missed?
No... He was in point blank range, he couldn't have missed. He did it on purpose...
The man leaned into her face a bit. She got a good look at his ocean green eyes staring intensely back at her.
"Please, just let me go. I don't wish to fight you nor your guild, I was dragged into this..." The man whispered, almost sounded like he was pleading with her.
"Too late, you dick."
Gray came up behind him and slammed him with a ice-make hammer, sending the unknown enemy flying in the other direction. Gray dashed after him, icicles forming all over his hands and arms. The man did the same thing with crystals, ice and crystal clashing together, shards of it flying everywhere. Juvia rose up to her feet, thinking back to the words he had said to her.
He was dragged into it?
It made her wonder, what if the other guild members were dragged into something they didn't want to do? How many fought their guild with no intention of hurting them? This War was sure to kill at least some of them, not all of them.
Both sides would suffer either permanently or greatly.
She didn't want her precious Gray to die either... If someone where to die on this battlefield, it would be her!
Juvia decided to join in as well, water orbs forming on her hands.
"Water Shards!"
Water-like shards came shooting out of the palm of Juvia, the man didn't have enough time to react and some of it pierced through him. Both assassins were both attacking him simultaneously, not giving him no time to attack, only block. The man had a red tinge in his eyes, glaring at the two.
"Stop it, can't you see that I don't want to fight either of you?" He whispered harshly, loud enough for them to hear.
"Bullshit! Your guild did so much shit to ours! Your Master put our strongest member in a comatose!" Gray sent a punch to the man's face, flying backwards but he quickly maintained control, his fingers digging into the ground to prevent him from going any further. The tips of his fingers were red, blood oozing from the small bruises.
Some of the man's clothes were ripped, including the parts that hid his hair. It appeared that he had slightly spiky black hair.
"It appears that you're blaming me for something my Master did. The feud between Taskimada and Crystala had nothing to do with me."
"Crystal-chan was pregnant when Taskimada showed up! He killed Crystal-chan's baby!"
The man gasped, "Crystala was pregnant...?"
"Damn right she was! Everyone was looking forward for the birth of her and Natsu's child but your guild had to go and screw everything up! Do you know how fucking devastated we were?!"
"No, no..." The man shook his head, "Taskimada didn't say that she was pregnant... Oh God, no no... You're lying... He'd never..."
"Take a goddamned look around and open your eyes! Taskimada killed children, women! What, are you new to this? Are you new to his guild? Is that why you're surprised?!" Gray shouted, "You and your fucked up guild should go and die!"
A pale blue aura formed around him, the air becoming colder, snow started to fall from the dark gray clouds above.
"This isn't how it was supposed to go... I just... Wanted revenge for her..."
"Who cares?!" A black mass started to form on one side of Gray's body, the eye on that side turned a deep shade of red, "It doesn't matter why the hell you joined!"
Gray started to run up to him, "Because I'll kill you before you even get the chance! If it means that I could at least save one of my friends, if it means getting back at your guild for what you did to us and all other people then that's good enough for me!"
"N-No, stay back! I don't wanna fight you anymore!"
"You should've said that before you had the chance, asshole!"
Gray jumped into the air, raising his fist up as black and blue swirled around it. The man had his hands to his head, cowering down slightly to the ground. His breathing was rapid, what appeared to be tears were falling out of his eyes.
"Ice-Devil's..."
"GRAY-SAMA!"
Blue and red crystals shot up from underneath the ground, standing tall and covering the man that weeped. Gray was caught off guard, one of the crystals almost piercing him but someone jumped in front of him and took the blast. Blood and water splashed upon his bare chest, some of it getting on Fairy Tail mark. The man that was protected behind the shield if crystals was just as surprised as Gray.
Her blue hair flashed in front of his eyes before her lifeless body fell limp to the ground.
"JUVIAAAA!"
The dark haired man screeched, his eyes wide as he stood over her trembling and bloodied body. Gray fell to his knees, his stomach churning, like a flower of nausea bloomed in the deepest pits of his stomach as he choked to keep it down. The blue haired woman was coughing up blood, her hand resting on the wound in her stomach.
"Juvia! No-no, no! Why did you jump in front of me?!" Gray lifted her head up, caressing the back of her head.
"Juvia... Didn't want Gray-sama... To die..
"I could've taken the hit! I could've survived! You-!" Gray was cut off by his own sobs, "Oh, Oh fuck... We need to get you to Wendy-"
"No... Don't... Juvia will just be in more pain..." A weak smile came to the bluenette's lips, "Juvia has been here longer than she expected..."
"What? What are you saying?! Juvia-!"
"Remember... Gray-sama? When he saved Juvia from falling when they fought... Phantom Lord..." Juvia closed her eyes, "Gray-sama saved me..."
"And I will save you now!"
"No... He won't.. Because Juvia won't allow it..." Juvia's hand went to her brown belt around her waist and disconnected a clear tube that was filled with sapphire blue liquid. She weakly handed into Gray's hand.
"Gray-sama needs to get that to Crystal-chan so she can defeat Taskimada... She's the only one who can win us this War."
"Screw that! I need to save you first! Juvia!"
"Gray-sama..."
"I won't let you die!"
"Gray, listen to me!" Juvia half-yelled, half-screamed, coughing up blood in the process, "Think about everyone else who is putting their lives on the line! Who's fighting with everything they've got, think about it! You have to make a sacrifice! It's either everyone else or me! Crystal can't defeat Taskimada with just her weapons!"
"Juvia..." His tears dripped unto her pale face.
"Gray-sama... Juvia loves you... Gray, Juvia loves you..." Juvia smiled, "Gray... I love you."
The dark haired man gasped, his eyes widening when her body went limp. Her breathing stopped, blood leaked from the corners of her cracked lips. Gray constantly shook her body, refusing to face the harsh reality.
"No... No, Juvia! Wake up! For me?! Juvia!" Gray placed his forehead on hers, "I didn't even get to you that... I... Loved you... Dammit, why didn't you live?! Why are you so stubborn!? I can't be alone again..."
Ur...
Ultear...
Now Juvia?! The person who stood by his side since the beginning?! The woman who never left him and always took care of him. All the memories of when Juvia use to annoy and bug him, he'd always push her away... He never spent all that much time with her.
A memory flashed in his mind with her smiling, yelling that name he always hated...
"Gray-samaaaa!"
He lost her...
He lost everything...
Gray held her cold body to his chest, throwing his head back screaming up the Heavens, crying his lungs out. His tears screamed rapidly down his face and tricked down his neck. Gray apologized over and over, yelling her name as if he were to get an answer.
The snow from the sky turned harsh, almost like a blizzard.
The crystals that protected the man shattered around him as he watched the scene unfold before him. It reminded him of someone he knew...
Someone he tried to protect as well...
Flashback
Magnolia Hospital
...
Akise took a deep breath before entering the hospital room, a bouquet of roses in his hands. He was going to see Yukiko since he heard from her sister that she was really sick. The black haired man opened the door to the white room slowly, peeking his head inside. He saw the blonde haired girl lying in the hospital bed with Kiyoko holding her hand up to her forehead, a middle-aged man and woman that had brown hair stood on the other side of the bed with their heads hung low.
'Kiyoko, Yukiko..'' Akise took a step inside the room, making his way towards the bed.
Yukiko's blonde hair was now place, the red tips at the end look faded. She had dark circles around her eyes, her body terribly skinny, almost looked like she could've been a skeleton. Her cheeks were hollow as well.
'Akise-kun... You came..?' Yukiko smiled, 'I'm glad...'
Kiyoko rolled her eyes and mumbled, "And Crystal is no where to be found...'
'Sister, as I said before, Chrissy-boo is probably sick too... She was in there longer than me.'
'I wish it was her to be in this state instead of you...'
'Don't wish that upon her, sister. Crystala is my friend, and I'd rather have this than for her to suffer.'
Akise sniffed the roses one last time before giving it to Yukiko. The blonde smiled, taking the bouquet of roses in her hands and smelled it, sighing happily.
'Thank you, 'Akise-kun.'
"It's the least I can do. I need to go visit Crystal as well.' Akise sighed, 'I hope she's doing okay.'
'She'll be fine, Akise-kun. She has Natsu and her other friends watching over her, she'll be in good hands,' Yukiko smiled at Kiyoko and Akise, 'She's innocent, it's not her fault that this happened, I chose to try and save her. Please, don't hold this against her, that's all I wish of you both...'
'But Yukiko-'
The heart monitor that kept track of Yukiko's heartbeat suddenly stopped, a line across the screen. Everyone in the room gasped, a silence in the air. The middle-aged woman had fainted, the man catching her in his arms, Kiyoko was screaming her lungs out, crying and shouting for her to come back. Akise just stood there, his mouth gapping and eyes widened.
The roses she held in her hands fell towards the handles of the hospital bed, one of the petals withering away and falling to the floor.
'I swear on my life, Kiyoko... I will avenge you!' Kiyoko growled, getting up and going towards the wall, slamming her fist against it. It created a crack in the ceramic wall, pieces of concrete falling off.
'Crystala Dragnela will pay for what she's done! I'll kill her myself if it comes to that! Are you with me, Akise?!'
Akise nodded.
'I'm with you.'
Watching the dark haired man cry over his lover was like an arrow pierced through his heart. He remembered the feelings he had for Crystal, the deep and real feelings... She was an angel, an innocent angel that was caught up in the twisted mind of Taskimada, falling into the hands of darkness. Madness consumed him the time he was here, his only objective was to find and kill Crystal, hence the reason why he chose crystals to be the magic he used.
Not like he wanted to... Kiyoko was with him, making sure that he followed through with the plan they came up with.
Akise looked away, feeling guilty for his actions.
All of a sudden, Gray was in front of him and his fist flying into his face, knocking him back into the dirt. He jumped on top of him, putting his hands to his throat as his hands frosted over, the frost getting on Akise's neck and slowly spreading to his face.
"I'll fucking kill you! You saw what you did?! You killed her! You FUCKING KILLED HER, YOU BASTARD!"
"S... So... Rry..."
The words that escaped his made Gray stop, his eyes wide.
Akise coughed up blood, holding his frosted over throat.
"I'm... Sorry... I.. Didn't want to do this... We were just saddened... Because Yukiko died.." Akise panted, "We were driven by our own desires that we forgot our Humanity..."
Gray looked at him in disbelief before glaring at him again, punching him right in the jaw, his head banging into the floor that made white needles shoot up in his head.
"No... No! You don't get to be sorry! That can't bring back Juvia! That can't bring back all the people your guild killed!"
"I know that I can't... Pay my debt to society... But I will tell you this..." A tear slid from the side of his face, "I am sorry for all that I am. I'm sorry for all the people I hurt... And I love Crystala Dragnela with all my heart... I hope someday... She would be able to find the happiness she deserved... I hope that her and Natsu live happily ever after..."
Akise closed his eyes, spreading his arms out, "Kill me, Fullbuster... If it makes you feel better, if that alone would make you feel better... Than please, do it... Take me from this World..."
Gray held him by his flimsy black clothing, growling at the man. He headbutted him and dropped him on the floor. The dark haired man got off of Akise, looming over him with a cold and hard glare.
"I don't kill. And I will never stoop as low as your guild to kill... That's not me, that's not Fairy Tail," Gray spat his saliva on the man, "You make me sick. Die from the blizzard, you bastard."
Gray walked away from him, taking one last glance at Juvia's body. He held the tube of sapphire blue liquid tightly, walking away from them both in the cold and harsh blizzard.
Akise waited until Gray was out of sight from the blizzard, he then crawled towards Juvia's body and laid next to her. He placed his hand on her stomach, a protective barrier of clear crystals formed over her body, protecting her from the cold and harsh blizzard.
"You don't deserve to be buried here by the snow..." Akise coughed lightly.
"My blue angel..."
...
Done! And whoever dies in this story, they stay dead. I'm not like Mashima that brings characters back to life. Oh no, no. But this chapter was long overdue and I'm sorry for that, I just haven't been getting the support I need from my viewers (excluding WolfTellsLife, I love chuâ¤). I did have planned for Wendy, Gajeel and others but now, I won't be writing it considering I don't have to motivation to.
Thank you for reading. :)