August 14th, x777
The Casino in the Stratosphere
7:30 PM
It has been almost a month since the case that gave them Taurus, and the trail went practically cold since them. They were aware of Aries and Libra's location since July 10th, but the tournament wouldn't begin for another 17 days. Following the second week of no new leads, Sting took it upon himself to start training again and use Lucy as a partner. She noticed an improvement in her combat abilities. Her movements felt more natural and fluent. She developed her rhythm and fight style. By no means had Lucy successfully defeated Sting, no, the Celestial mage found herself pinned the ground a multitude of times. Even with her range of spirits, Sting continuously managed to break through their defenses and secure the win. As for Loke and the other unknown lost keys, Crux had located Sagittarius.
Lucy and Sting stood in the fanciest clothes the Celestial World could offer. The Celestial Wizard wore a black ankle-length evening gown with an open back and a pair of three-inch wedges to match. She had a pair of black elbow-length gloves to cover her Fairy Tail mark. Sting was on her left sported a tight black dinner jacket with a white dress shirt a bow tie underneath. He slipped into a pair of polished black dress shoes that Capricorn had prepared for him.
The entrance to the casino was lit with neon lights. The casino was constructed like an observation tower, the bottom half of the structure acted as a place for gamblers to risks their money and potentially earning enough to retire early. The upper half was a hotel for the rich and famous. Stars across Fiore would regularly stay in this luxury hotel and gamble away their earnings. The observation station at the top was the highest point in the entire country, towering over every other building on the continent. Those who were lucky enough to befriend the owner were allowed to marvel at the once in a lifetime view.
"Are you ready for this?" Sting nudged Lucy's arm as they stood in awe.
"Of course!" She grinned while giving him a thumbs up. "I'm not called 'Lucky Lucy' for nothing."
The dragonslayer sweatdropped. "Just try not to destroy anything. Fairy Tail might be able to pay for damages, but we can't with the budget we have."
"I should be saying that to you." Lucy glared at the man out of the corner of her eyes. "I'm not the one who's a wannabe Natsu."
"Ha, Natsu wishes he could be me. Besides, I'm smart enough not to go into every situation fist ablaze like that idiot."
"Sting, you quite literally did that with Virgo, but go off I guess." She sighed before entering the casino.
"Whatever, just keep your guard up. This place doesn't smell right." Sting grunted as he followed closely behind his partner.
"Well the King himself got us a reservation for a room upstairs, so we gotta make a good first impression."
Lucy was immediately greeted with masked servants bowing before her as she was royalty. Trumpets and other instruments played in the background as a world-renown artist sang his heart out. The ground floor had several round tables with dealers organizing the games near the front entrance. In the middle, there was a platinum centerpiece that shined underneath the dim lights. Behind the centerpiece, she saw three aisles of slot machines and an elevator to the upper floors. The left and right walls were lined with liquor as the bartenders dished out drinks to those of age.
"Welcome esteemed guests to The Stratosphere!" The head of the Casino Hosts walked down the aisle of workers. He was an inch or two shorter than Sting, but his physique was extremely similar to Elfman and Laxus. His bronze-colored muscles were contradicted by the arms of his jacket. His blond hair was slicked back heavily with gel. He had a hint of cologne on his person Lucy noticed, nothing too overbearing but subtle enough for someone in close proximity to smell. "It is a pleasure to serve those close our fair king, Madame Rebecca and Sir Weiss."
"The pleasure is ours. We are blessed to have the opportunity to spend the weekend in your luxurious hotel and casino." Lucy replied with her own bow.
From there, Sting mentally checked out once Lucy and the Casino Host continued with their pleasantries. He wasn't big on the whole meaningless word exchange. The white dragonslayer surveyed the room. Once he tuned out the live music, the room was unsettlingly quiet. Everyone seems glued to the game in front of them, whether it was the poker table or the slot machine screen. Were they deadset on winning? Sting couldn't pick up any laughs between friends or subtle seductions. There were only murmurs that registered below a whisper. In a place this expensive, he would expect some business talk between tycoons.
"Wiess," Lucy snapped her finger in front of his face. "Let's get a look around. We should find where the prize counter is. Sagittarius's key should be there."
"I don't trust this place. It's triggering my senses too much." Sting grunts as he continued to eye the gamblers.
"Hmm? What do you mean?" She asked while they maneuvered through the crowd.
"No one is talking to each other. I can't hear anything besides this loud ass music." He stated. "Then, there's an assault of iron on my nose. This place smells like nothing but iron and alcohol. Why does it smell like iron in a high-end casino?"
"I don't know, but that is troubling. If something bad is happening behind the scenes, we gotta bring it to the light and put a stop to it." Lucy graces her hand over her Fairy Tail emblem. "But, how would it affect the future?"
"Ugh, I doubt investigating one casino will do much." Wiess rolled his eye. "Come on, let's kick some ass."
She rubbed her temple to soothe the headache developing. "Those are two very different things, Wiess. Besides, we have a relationship with King Fiore, so someone might be monitoring our movements. Both of us can't just disappear."
"Then, you stay in the casino while I sneak off." He tapped his chin. "If they're up to something, the ground floor won't show everything."
"We can't do that. We're easily recognizable unless..." Lucy froze when the idea popped into her head. An idea that had its own risk, but she had no reason to distrust Sting. Actually...he was the only one she could truly trust. "Here, I want you to take two of my keys as your backup. If something bad happens, I want you to call on them."
Lucy placed The Bull and The Crab's keys into Sting's hand and cupped her hands over his. "Taurus and Cancer might be my spirits, but they're your family now. I'll grant you temporary access to their powers, so I don't want you to worry about the small details."
"Wow..." Sting was stunned. He didn't think Lucy would ever part from her keys. After all, this is the same woman who damn near killed herself to save that Leo spirit, and she has proven, time and time again, that these spirits are important to her. This is coming from Lucy, one who sleeps with her keys underneath her pillow. And...Lucy willingly hands over two keys, one that even past down her family line, to the guy that laughed when Minerva tortured her. "Are you sure about this? I thought-"
"Don't think about it, just act. That's what your strong suit. right?" She showed off her signature optimistic smile. "Then, let's play our strong suits and see what really going on."
Our Celestial Wizard turned from Sting and into the crowd surrounding the poker table. A comforting smirk graced Sting's face as he made his way into the nearest bathroom.
August 14th, x777
The Stratosphere's Ground Floor
8:45 PM
Lucy studied the players quietly as the dealer dealt the cards. She wasn't concerned with who had what cards but rather the players. The game wasn't treated like a simple game. There was a noticeable lack of conversation between the contenders. Their attention was on the dealer except when they needed to check their hands. Their eyes were slightly glossy as they offered their respective bids. Was it charm magic or body restriction magic? She didn't have enough evidence to point to either, yet Lucy understood that magic was definitely involved.
"Would you like an appetizer?" The Casino Host appeared next to Lucy with a silver platter of an arrangement of miniature dishes. His gentle smile eased Lucy for a moment before she composed herself.
"Oh no thank you, Wiess and I ate before we came," She smiled apologetically. "Although, I didn't think a Casino Host, of all people, would be serving hors d'oeuvres."
"It is my job to ensure that every guest enjoys their experience. As friends of the king, Sir Weiss and you, Madame Rebecca, are our top priority," The Casino Host said with a humble undertone as he offered the food to the other nearby guests. "Speaking of Sir Weiss...where is he? I haven't seen him, recently."
"Oh, Weiss?" Lucy feinted innocence. "I haven't seen him in a while, actually. I know he went to the restroom a couple of minutes ago, but I haven't kept up with him since then."
He froze for a moment before tightening the strap on his gloves. "Interesting, but nothing unexpected. Sir Weiss appears to the type to move at his own pace. However, it breaks my heart that Sir Weiss would leave a woman like yourself alone."
"Weiss is his own person, and I can't control him," Lucy answered as she ignored whatever the Casino Host was implying. "But I must ask? How long do people usually stay here?"
"To their heart content,"
He's avoiding the question, but why? Is he suspicious of me? Or could there more to the casino's business than what I've seen? "Fair enough, I suppose that was a rather informal question. I'm sure you can't give that information out so readily."
"I assure you. I do not take any offense. You are not the first to ask such a question." The tall man comforted her. "Would you like a chance to play one of our many games? After all, it is all part of the gambling experience. I would offer a drink as well, but I'm not entirely sure you are of age."
"Oh, I rather watch for the moment. I don't know how to play any of these games just yet."
"Interesting, if you're not a gambler, what brings you to The Stratosphere? This establishment is made to be a gambler's fantasy come to life." The Casino Host asked with curiosity in his eyes.
"I heard through a rumor that there was a Golden Key that could be won here. I've always been interested in magic, so I thought to become a Celestial Mage." Lucy lied and was immediately overwhelmed with the magic energy radiating on the host.
"I don't mean to discourage you, Miss. Rebecca, but The Stratosphere doesn't have a prize exchange system. Guests can exchange their chips for jewels, that is all." He answered while offering the empty silver tray to a passing employee. "As to how you recovered that information, I'm sure my employers would love to know."
"Wait-" The Host gripped Lucy by her black locks, forcing her body to drag against the floor as they walked away from the poker table. No one batted an eye or turned their heads at the commotion. The Fairy Tail girl endured the pain as he flung her into the elevator. Lucy gritted her teeth as he shot her a dark smirk.
The Bulky man placed a card to a scanner which unlocked a secret panel of extra floors. 'This must be how they regulate who has access to what floors. Being a Casino Host, he must be in close contact with whoever's running the show,' Lucy thought. 'I'll play along for right now. I just hope things are working out for Sting.'
August 14th, x777
The Stratosphere's Air Vents
8:30 PM
Busting through the restroom's air vent is surprisingly easy when you know how to make a photoflash bomb Sting realized. Maneuvering through the tight-ass space was the hard part. His shoulders were scraping against the walls of the vents with every motion. Capricorn's spare suit was ruin by the sheer amount of dust Sting was collecting. With no real direct evidence aside from the overwhelming iron smell in the iron vent, the dragonslayer crawled towards the source of the odd scent.
"This better be more than some rusty slot machines," Sting grumbled as he passed another air vent grill. "I still can't believe Lucy honestly gave me two of her keys. What was she thinking?"
The idea of relying on someone outside of Rogue and Lector was still foreign to him. The idea of Lucy entrusting two Golden keys to the likes of him was outside of his realm of logic. What was there to gain from giving away two of your best fighters? She knew he was more than capable of protecting himself. Lucy, on the other, was improving with great strides, and Sting, though will never speak this, was impressed with her skills. But, that doesn't mean she good enough to willingly hinder herself.
"That just means I gotta finish on my ends fast," The dragonslayer peered through around vent grill and grinned at the sight. "There we fucking go."
Kicking in the air vent, Sting jumped out of the tight space. He landed on top of one of many iron cages. The decently-lit storage room had ten or so cages. Each iron cage was as tall as a door and as wide as a living room. The walls and some of the bars were splashed with faded red and reeked off spilled blood. The White Dragon peered through the bars of one of the cages and found two dozen people in rags. Each person wore bruises and welts on their bodies. Their eyes were dull and vacant of life, yet their bodies had a relaxed posture.
"Holy shit..." He jumped down and ripped the iron door off. No one reacted to the chance at escape. "What kind of trance is this?"
Sting glance inside and realized they all shared the same scent which is unheard. Every person should have their own personal smell, so how is this possible? Grunting in frustration, Sting continued to rip the cage doors off the remaining cages. The empty husk of people didn't move, but it was still seen as progress. Once this whole mess was over, they should leave on their own accords. "What the hell is wrong with this place?"
"Ahh, so this is where you ran off too?" A masculine voice called out from the other end of the storage. "You should've stayed in the casino, Sir. Wiess."
"Nah, that's too boring." The White Dragon shrugged with a smirk on his face. "Uncovering people in cages, that's more exciting and up my alley. So what is all this, a side deal with a dark guild? Human trafficking? Human practice dolls?"
"Now, why would I simply give you that information," The middle-aged man's voice mocked Sting from behind before fading away. The room became shrouded with a thick purple mist that floated above the ground. "That would be far too simple and straightforward. No, you already know too much, anymore...well I'll need more drastic measures."
"Ya know this whole scare tactic doesn't really work on me," Sting shrugged indifferently. He had seen the world end. This man's ghost act paled in comparison to that. "Now, if you wanna surrender, then I'm okay with that. From the whole illusion act, I don't think you're much of a challenge."
The bodiless voice let out a dry chuckle as a thick layer of mist covered the light bulbs hanging. "Such naivety. And to think, someone who managed to successfully hide their personal history would say something so idiotic. You do not have a choice in the matter nor chance at escaping. You and Rebecca were doomed the moment you two stepped foot into our casino!"
The White Dragonslayer clapped his hands together and revealed a bright pearl white sphere that was no bigger than a jawbreaker. He paused to take a deep breath of air and launched the sphere across the room. Once the ball came to a complete stop, Sting snapped his fingers and unleashed a blinding light onto the room. The man screamed in pain as his mist evaporated, revealing a man in his mid-to-late forties rolling on the floor who was clutching his tearful eyes.
The Sabertooth tiger did not attempt to hide his devilish as he confidently strolled over to the crippled man. "I was thinking about calling that 'Holy Light'. What do you think? Does it sound too corny?"
"AAAAHHH!" He shrieked out in pain.
Sting let out an annoyed sigh before knocking the businessman out. The dragonslayer tossed him over his shoulder and glanced around the room. "Hmm? They're still in that trance. Does that mean he's not the one controlling them? I guess there's more ass to kick. Maybe I'll find someone willing to give a straight answer."
Keys Obtained: Cancer, Aquarius, Capricorn, Crux, Virgo, and Taurus
Keys Needed: Leo, Aries, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Gemini, Libra, and Pisces
A/N: I'm personally excited about the progress of Lucy and Sting's relationship.
