11: shots fired.


Natsu felt his cheeks grow hot in embarrassment as he avoided looking at Lucy. Just last night, he was bragging about how close he was to Sting. He had even told her that Sting basically worshiped him. Now that they're meeting him in person, looks like Sting doesn't practically worship him. But what happened that caused Sting to change his attitude towards him?

"But Sting," Natsu protested.

Sting crossed his arms. "I'm dead serious, Natsu."

"You're embarrassing me! Just stay and hear what I gotta say!" Natsu whisper-yelled.

"No. I won't even hear what you have to say," Sting answered.

"But why!?" Natsu cried.

"Because then I would be a part of whatever trouble you're cooking up and I don't want that. Again, you cause destruction wherever you go," Sting answered.

Natsu pouted as he thought of ways to get Sting to change his mind. Then he thought of the hallway that lead up to Sting's office. "Ah. I see. The power and influence has gotten to your head. That explains a lot."

"What?" Sting asked, unimpressed.

Natsu sat down in one of the chairs that were in front of Sting's desk. "I'm still older than you and I became a dragon god first. You became a dragon god 7 years later when we all decided we needed a balance of darkness and light. I'm still your elder which means you should respect me just like how you did back then."

Sting glared at Natsu. "I don't respect demons."

Everyone grew silent.

Lucy awkwardly cleared her throat. "Actually, we came here so we can speak to Yukino."

"Me?" Yukino asked, pointing at herself.

"I heard that you're a Celestial wizard. Am I right?" Lucy asked.

Yukino suspiciously looked at Lucy. "Why are you asking?"

"I don't mean any harm. I'm a Celestial wizard too. I just needed help with one thing and I was also hoping I could add in a favor," Lucy answered.

"No. She won't help you and she won't do you a favor," Sting said.

"But Sting," Yukino started.

"This girl is obviously working with Natsu. You working with the girl means you're working with Natsu and that means trouble. We have nothing to do with him," Sting told her.

"I get that, but I don't thing she means any harm," Yukino said before facing Lucy. "What's your name?"

"Lucy Heartfilia," Lucy answered.

"Wait. Lucy Heartfilia, as in Lucky Lucy Heartfilia!?" Sting cried.

Lucy cringed when she heard the nickname that everyone called her. "The one and only."

Sting faced Natsu. "Wow. Congratulations for getting the daughter of one of the richest families to work with you. Now you got some strong power to help you with your diabolical plan."

"It's not Natsu's plan. It's mine," Lucy said.

Sting and Yukino blinked. "It is?"

"I want to collect all 12 Zodiac keys so I can open the gate to the spirit realm and talk to my mom. Natsu's helping me with getting the keys. The keys I currently have are Aquarius, Virgo, Cancer, Taurus, Sagittarius, and Leo. I don't know how to summon spirits so I was hoping Yukino could teach me how. I was also hoping she'd give me the Pisces and Libra keys," Lucy explained.

"How do you know I have Pisces and Libra's keys?" Yukino asked.

"Oh..." Lucy started to think of an excuse. She wasn't sure if it was a good idea to tell them that Brandish, one of the Spriggan 12 had told her. She hasn't even told Natsu about that either. "Wild guess?"

Yukino crossed her arms. "And you have Leo's key which means you've might have bumped into Sorano. She told me that Leo willing gave up Aries but put up a fight when she tried to get him. So you're the one who caught Leo..."

Lucy blinked. "Sorano?" Then she thought back to the night she last spoke with Loke. He said that he had given Aries to Angel of the Oracion Seis in exchange for Karen's death. "Is this Sorano...Angel of the Oracion Seis?"

"Yes, she is," Yukino answered, frowning.

"Wow! That's so easy! That means it won't be a problem for me to get her keys. I can get them from you," Lucy cried.

"But who said we're going to give you our keys?" Yukino asked.

"You're not?" Lucy asked.

"Combined, my sister Sorano and I have the Libra, Pisces, Aries, Gemini, and Scorpio. We would have had the Leo key if things had gone smoothly last night. If we're going through all of this trouble to get the keys, then why would we give them to you? All that would would have been for nothing," Yukino explained.

"That's fair. Can you at least teach me how to summon a spirit?" Lucy asked.

"Now that I know that we're working against each other, I won't teach you," Yukino said before bowing. "I'm sorry."

Lucy hid her disappointment. "I understand. Can I know why you and the Oracion Seis are trying to collect the keys? I told you my reason so it's fair if you tell me your reason."

"We're collecting the keys so we can go to the spirit world and cut the spiritual link they have to the leader of the Oracion Seis," Sting answered when he saw Yukino hesitate.

"Spiritual link?" Lucy asked.

"It's an age-old practice people would to do to become gods and gain immortality. Little did they know, it was actually draining their lifeforce," Sting answered before muttering, "Stupid idiots."

"When I was small, Sorano and I had just came back inside from playing in the snow when I found that I lost one of the new earrings I got for my birthday. Sorano went back outside to find it but she never came back. Then we learned that she and some other children in our small town were kidnapped. I didn't hear from her until years later. By that time, she was Angel of the Oracion Seis. She came to me one night and asked for me to help her open the gate of the spirit realms so she can cut the links that she and the other Oracion Seis created," Yukino explained.

"Today, the spell was called Organic Link Magic and to cast the spell, you need to link your soul to another person or object, but the type that was rumored to turn you into a god was called Nirvana. To cast the spell, one person must link their soul to the body of a dead person, opening them to the spirit realm. Then, the rest link their souls to the person who linked their soul to the dead person. They can hear the wishes, or prayers, of others and like a god, they can answer their prayers. The theory is that if you answer enough prayers, you're reach Nirvana and become a god but in reality, all of those who linked their souls will have their lifeforce drained by the dead man and die. The dead man will come back to life. In the end, nobody becomes a god," Sting explained.

"The leader, Brain, linked his soul to that serial killer from 2 decades ago named Zero. Because he linked his soul to a man who did evil deeds, he can hear dark wishes that usually ask for death. Sorano and the other 4 were kidnapped and raised by Brain to have their souls linked and work for him. Later on, Sorano found out what will really happen but Brain doesn't care. He feels like a god and wants to continue to feel like one. So, Sorano and I are working with the other 4 members to break the link," Yukino explained.

"Their plan is to summon Zero's spirit and have the link broken. But, it's not easy to break a link to the soul and the only one who can is a divine being so I'm going to be the one who breaks the link for them," Sting added.

"In conclusion, I can't give up my keys," Yukino concluded.

Lucy awkwardly stood there. Wow...that's actually a better reason to go through all of this stress and get the keys than my reason...

"But, I can teach you how to summon a Celestial spirit if you give me all of your keys," Yukino said.

Lucy felt guilty. She felt that she should give Yukino her keys. But she didn't want to. She especially didn't want to give up the keys that once belonged to her mother. They were, after all, the last gift she received from her.

"But what's the point of teaching her? She won't have any keys left," Natsu asked, finally joining the conversation.

Yukino thought about it. "After, I'll give her keys back and I can teach her. I'll also give her me and Sorano's keys. Then, she can summon her mother's spirit."

"But did you know that casting the spell can cost a Celestial spirit their life?" Lucy didn't even bother to let Yukino answer her question. "You did know. Don't lie to me."

"Celestial spirits are meant to serve their masters, not bring back spirits to the human realm for a short period of time. The energy to sustain the spirits is a lot and their magical energy is drained. After the spell, if the spirit is still alive, they're key will disappear from the human realm and return about a century or two later. Depends on how long the gate is opened," Yukino explained.

Lucy didn't know that part. That only added to the guilt she was feeling. Maybe Loke deserves it, but not the other spirits.

She sighed. "Can I think about it?"

Yukino dug inside the pockets of her suit and pulled out a business card. "My number's in there. Call me when you've made your decision." She handed Lucy the card. "I don't want to rush you, but please be fast. The longer it takes for you to respond, the more of my sister's lifeforce will be drained. The last thing we need is to bring a serial killer back to life."

Lucy reluctantly took the business card. "Thanks," she said, bowing.


"That was a huge waste of time," Natsu grumbled as he and Lucy stood in the elevator that was taking them to the main floor.

"Bruh, if Sting wasn't being annoying with the whole 'I don't respect demons' thing, then we wouldn't even be in this situation! He'd gladly make Yukino give her her keys! And it's their fault for linking their souls in the first place! Honestly, they should have read about it before even doing it! Am I supposed to feel bad for them? No! Do I feel bad for them? Hell no! What's up with Sting anyway!? He usually doesn't do shit for other people! He'd be all like 'what's in it for me, the dragon god of light?' and 'hahahaha I'm not in the mood!' Why's he so serious suddenly? He's never serious! What happened to that little brat who wouldn't stop following me around!?"

It suddenly clicked in his brain.

"Could it be that he has feelings for that Yukino girl? Wait, of course! It's so obvious! He's even willing to take place in this soul link plan! Okay, now I get it! But why's he so serious though? Maybe he thinks that being serious is cool. Nah. Not really. Just, being serious doesn't suit him. Ugg, why's he so aggie!? I should have beaten him like I used to do back then! Yeah! That'll show him who's boss! Demon or not, I'm still Natsu Dragneel! I won't let the student become the teacher! In fact, let's go back right now! I'll beat him into helping us and making Yukino give us her keys!" Natsu continued his rant.

"I should give Yukino my keys," Lucy blurted out.

Natsu looked at Lucy in shock. "What!? All 6 of your keys!?" Lucy nodded.

"Okay. Look. I ripped one guy's arm off and burned him and some other rich guy so we could get the Virgo key. Then, we went all the way to Galuna Island, an island frozen in time, and I traumatized one of the Spriggan 12 so we could get the Sagittarius key. After that, I beat up your ex boyfriend when he tried to kill you so we could get the Leo key. I bet you went through so much just to get the other 3 keys," Natsu explained.

"Actually, my mom had the maids give me the Aquarius and Cancer keys when she died. I accidentally found the Taurus key hidden in a grassy meadow when my car broke down. Went through so much just to get someone to fix my car," Lucy answered.

"Still. We went through so much just to get all 6 keys. Now you're saying you want to give them up?" Natsu asked.

"It's not that I want to give them up. I just...I feel like I should," Lucy answered.

"Luce, nobody's forcing you into doing anything you don't want to do. You do whatever you want to do. Nobody controls you but you," Natsu said.

"I'm not saying I'm being forced to give up my keys. It just feels like the right thing," Lucy answered.

They made it to the bottom floor and the elevator door slid open, revealing people impatiently waiting in front of them. However, Natsu wasn't done so before anyone could enter the elevator, he pressed the door closed and pressed the top button.

"Why did you do that?" Lucy asked.

Natsu ignored her question and asked her his question. "What do you want more than anything in this world?"

Lucy wasn't happy that her question was ignored. "Nats-"

Natsu cut her off by facing her and gently rubbing her arm. "Answer me."

Lucy hesitated before answering. "My mom died right before my eyes but I never got to say goodbye. So, even for one second, I just want to say goodbye...and sorry." She felt her eyes start to water. "I did something that I should have never done. Sh-She was right in front of me, and yet-"

She was pulled into a hug by Natsu. At the same exact time, the elevator made it to the top floor and the doors slid open. Natsu pressed the button to close the elevator door and pressed the button for the main floor before he went back to embracing Lucy.

"I've never been good at comforting people, but I want you to know that I'm willing to do anything for you," Natsu said as he lightly rubbed her back. "I was the one who brought you back to life, after all. That's enough for you to know how far I'm willing to go."

Lucy felt embarrassed when she felt tears running down her cheeks so she buried her face into Natsu chest and hugged him back. She had a sense of deja vu, like she's done this before. Then she remembered that she has done this before.

"You want to apologize to your mom and say goodbye, right? So be it. I've heard your prayer," Natsu said softly.

They stayed the way they were as the elevator slowly went down in silence.

Lucy was surprised to find how warm Natsu was. Suddenly realizing how could she felt, she closed her eyes and nuzzled closer to Natsu. The silence of the elevator made Lucy feel like she had put a pause button on life. Meanwhile, Natsu was conjuring up all sorts of plans to get Lucy to speak to her mother again. The plans ranged from stealing Yukino and Sorano's keys while everyone was asleep to going down to the Underworld and demanding Zeref to bring Layla back to life for a little while so Lucy could say what she wanted to say.

The minute the elevator arrived at the main door and slid open, instead of people impatiently waiting in front of them, they were introduced to the sound of people screaming and gunshots flying all over the place.

The whole place was in panick. Everyone around them was running all over the place like their live depended on it. People were tripping over people, crawling on the floor, pushing people out of the way and climbing over things. There were people with blood gushing out from their bodies. Some were laying lifelessly on the marble floor. Gunshots were flying from all sorts of directions so it was hard to figure out where they were coming from.

Lucy and Natsu quickly separated and ran out of the elevator. Then, Lucy eyed a child balling his eyes out and holding a stuffed Plue. The child was looking all over the place as he loudly cried for his mother. "Where are you going!?" Natsu cried as Lucy ran towards the crying child.

She was about to scoop the child into her arms and take him to safety when a bullet flew into her abdomen. She screamed in pain and fell onto the floor. She tried to stop the bleeding by pressing her hands down on the area but the bleeding was flowing quickly. She struggled to breathe and her nerves were out of control. A large puddle of blood was forming.

"Lucy!" She heard Natsu yell.

She weakly turned her head so she could see Natsu but found her vision coming out blurred. She felt lightheaded and the pain in her abdomen only grew worse. "Nat...su..."

Everything went black.


Random Fact: Ya gurl got sick not even a week into 2021. So far this looks like a bad year...

Wassup!? It's ya gurl sugarsugarrush!

I changed some things around with the Oracion Seis so it can fit the story but kept the magic link thing. And in this story, the magic that all of the magic users use aren't like the magic from the Anime/Manga. Basically, no kamehameha moves or anything like that. Think of how they use magic in Vampire Diaries

Reviews:

Amanny- Thank you so much!

Ulteagray Review Chap 1- Yeah, the plot is inspired by the story of Hades and Persephone. It's also inspired by Chinese Mythology; the kdramas Tale of the Nine Tailed, Hotel Del Luna, Goblin, Legend of the Blue Sea, It's Okay Not To Be Okay, and Hwayugi; the anime Noragami and Inuyasha; and this one Nollywood movie I watched as a kid with my mom and one of my aunties but I can't remember the name of it. Oh, I can see how the joke about Erza's artificial eye is offensive. I didn't realize it at the time. Ohhh, I didn't think to rate this M. To me, Natsu's skin tone is tan compared to Lucy's and some of the other characters so I put it as tan. And thanks for the tips! I don't really get how the beta reader thing works but I think I'll try it out

Ulteagray Review Chap 2- Thank you so much!

Ulteagray Review Chap 3- Thank you so much!

Ulteagray Review Chap 6- You're fine! Thanks for letting me know your thoughts!

So, I gotta go live my life so ima end this! Don't forget to PM me or leave me a review! Later, yo!