Inside the Infinity Clock - Infinity Castle - X791
In the middle of nothingness, a young Lucy was crying. "Why are you crying?" A woman's voice asked. "I can't help it. I'm sad 'cause everyone's gone. Mommy, Daddy, and even my little sister."
A familiar figure in a pink dress rubbed her hand on Lucy's head. "So you remember me now?" "Yeah. I'm sorry I forgot." Lucy apologized as she looked at a doll that resembled Michelle but was wearing a blue version of the dress and no bonnet. "You don't have to apologize. I'm just happy you remember me, Big Sister."
Looking like her current self, Lucy smiled. "Michelle." Imitatia's form when she was disguised as Michelle Lobster smiled happily.
Outside - Infinity Castle - X791
As Lucy and Imitatia reconciled in the Infinity Clock, the other Fairy Tail wizards were getting exhausted from destroying the chains. Panting, Gray groaned. "Aw, c'mon! How many more of these do we have to destroy before this works?" Erza asked Warren for an update on the situation. "Warren! What's the situation?" "More than half the chains are still intact!" He told them over his Telepathy. "You guys, please hurry!"
"It's no use. It's taking too long." Wendy despaired, hands on her knees. "I'm afraid we've got no other choice but to cut them one-by-one." Carla told her. "Come, child. We have to keep going!"
Infinity Clock Chamber - Infinity Castle - X791
Natsu continued to fight Midnight with enraged fury as Lucy was nearly fully absorbed by the golden liquid that held her. "It won't be long now!" Midnight claimed. "Once I fulfill my father's wish, everything will cease to exist!" "No!" Coco yelled as she banged her fists on the liquid. "Please Lucy! You have to wake up!" "Natsu, we're gonna lose her if we don't hurry!" Happy reported.
"No way!" Natsu declared. "I'm not gonna let you just disappear! You've got to hang in there, Lucy!"
Elfman was checking on Romeo as the battle between Natsu and Midnight waged on. "Can you stand up?" "Yeah, I think so." "Good, because we've got more important things to worry about right now." "Yeah, you're right."
"Can you hear me?" Coco worriedly asked Lucy. Happy observed with worry. "I know they're cutting the chains, but it doesn't seem to be doing anything to help her!" "We're not gonna make it in time!" Romeo realized as he stood up. "We've got to defeat their final member." Elfman concluded.
"Alright, we'll help you take him down, Natsu!" Romeo's decision was backed up by a raring to go Elfman. "Yeah!"
"Klodoa." Midnight commanded. Klodoa, floated to block their way. "Allow me to handle them, Master. I won't let you fools interfere with our plans!" "You guys focus on snappin' that twig in two! Meanwhile, I'm gonna punch the make-up right offa this punk's face!" Natsu told them as he bumped his fists together. "Let's do this, Romeo!" "Yeah! I'm fired up now!" With that, the battles began.
"I'm not scared of your flames." Midnight used his Reflector to prevent the fire magic from hitting him. "You can attack all you want, but they'll never burn me!" Midnight hit Natsu with Dark Capriccio. "Eventually... you'll run out of magic power."
"Yeah, that's what you think!" Natsu retorted. "If you ain't afraid of me, then how come you keep avoidin' my attacks? You're a coward!" "And now all you can do is hurl insults? It's quite telling. Obviously, I hold the power here. I've always dreamed of having magic power equal to that of my father. And after my sacrifice, I finally do."
"What kinda sacrifice?" Natsu inquisitively asked. Instead, Midnight just told him, "Now you'll become a traveler of the void. Salamander." With that, he casted Master Zero's infamous spell. "Genesis Zero! Open Gate of Restless Wailing! Go forth, travelers of the void! I want you to consume his soul, his memory. Consume his very existence! Devour him! For the sake of your master!" He screamed to the wailing figures in the spell that closed in on Natsu. Soon, Natsu was engulfed in the massive stream of magic.
"Natsu!" Romeo and Elfman worryingly called out as they wrestled with Klodoa, as he was swallowed up by the darkness of the spell and the portal closed.
Satisfied, Midnight laughed. "Heh. That should be the last of you. You're forever trapped within the darkness, much like your friend trapped in perpetual time."
Inside the Infinity Clock - Infinity Castle - X791
"Lucy?"
Floating into a descent within the Clock away from Coco and Happy, Lucy suddenly heard the voice of her father, as she started to float by a vision of the day that he and her mother gave her the doll that was Imitatia as a birthday present.
"What do you think, dear? Do you like her?" Her mother asked. The young Lucy confirmed so with great happiness. "Oh yeah! She's the best birthday present ever! And she's gonna be my new, little sister!" "That's wonderful. Take good care of her, okay?" "I need to think of a nice name for her. Like Gonzales! Yeah!" "Um. Why don't you go with something more feminine?"
From behind her, Imitatia, in the form of Michelle, appeared. "Do you remember how much fun we had? The mansion was so big, that it felt like a castle to us. You made me so many beautiful outfits out of nothing but paper and flowers. We went everywhere together and wherever we went, you were all smiles. But then..."
Lucy then remembered the reason why the two of them stopped being together. "My mom died. Every day I would go out to her grave and cry. I lashed out at everyone around me. I can't imagine how worried my father must've been." "I know. I felt so helpless because all I could do was watch you go through it. I wish I had been able to help you somehow." Michelle replied as they watched Lucy mourn her mother at her grave.
"Every time that I looked at you, it reminded me of my mom and how much I missed her." "I know. I assumed that's why you stopped talking to me." "Sorry. Time passed and eventually I forgot all about you. For years and years, you sat patiently, waiting for the day I would come back to you again."
The two girls then saw one of Michelle's memories, one in which Lucy's father brought her up to the attic of the mansion after he looked sadly at the doll as it rained. This was after the doll had been left out on a chair by Lucy during the rain. Putting the tarp over the portrait of their family, Jude then apologized to the doll. "I'm sorry. She hasn't necessarily abandoned you. It's just that the sorrow of losing her mother has overwhelmed her. She's so distracted that she's lost sight of what was once important to her. I wish there was something I could do to ease her heartache."
Staring sadly at the scene with Michelle, Lucy cried when her father expressed his desire. "Someday, when she had grown up... and she's gotten over her mother's death... it is my hope you'll get the chance to be her little sister again."
"For years I waited patiently, hoping you'd come back. Over time, the once-lively mansion grew quiet. Eventually, it was deserted. When someone finally came looking for me, it wasn't my big sister." A silhouette of Midnight holding Klodoa was seen looking at the doll. As the shadowed figure of Imitatia walked away from the mansion, it became "Michelle Lobster". "I was so thankful to be given life as Imitatia that I did exactly as I was told. I took the name Michelle Lobster and set out to obtain the Infinity Clock."
Lucy then asked, "So when you told me that you helped my father with his work..." "It was the absolute truth." Michelle replied as a scene of her as "Michelle Lobster" was shown happily helping Jude. "It broke my heart to use him, but it had to be done. I wanted the good old days back. Lucy... all I wanted was to be your sister again."
"Lucy... all I wanted was to be your sister again." Lucy lowered her head sadly as she heard that. "I know that you and your father had your ups and downs over the years. But that's normal. It's all part of being a family." They were soon watching Jude pen his final letter and birthday present to Lucy. "No matter what happens, the bond you share will bring you together."
Michelle then disappeared with the scene as a new one was shown. Jude was lying in a bed, with Imitatia in her Michelle form standing next to him. The clock hand was behind them, wrapped up in its magical cloth and in its briefcase.
"I haven't heard from her, but I know that Lucy's still alive out there somewhere. Will you go find her and give her the clock hand? Please, Michelle." "Of course I will." Michelle replied.
Turning his head to the ceiling, a smiling Jude then expressed something Michelle wasn't expecting. "You know, I'm always amazed by the power of magic. This time, I'm sure of it. You will be her little sister once again." Michelle then burst into tears as she laid her head on the side of Jude's bed, crying into her arm.
Watching the memory, Lucy couldn't help but cry as well. "I'm so sorry, Michelle. That must've been really hard for you." Lucy's image then became that of her childhood as Michelle told her, "Please stop crying, Big Sister. It's okay. You're loved by so many people. Listen closely and you'll hear them calling out to you."
Lucy stopped crying. "I do! I can hear everyone... and I can see them! My friends!"
"Hang in there, Lucy!" Erza yelled. "We're too slow! Hurry! We've gotta work faster!" Wendy ushered Carla agreed. "Okay! On to the next one!" "What's up?! Have we beat 'em yet?!" Gray asked.
Infinity Clock Chamber - Infinity Castle - X791
"Warren! How's Natsu's team?" When Carla asked for the update, Warren replied, "Aw, crap! I dunno what happened, but I've lost my telepathic link with him!" "Natsu's in serious trouble!" Romeo told them. "He just vanished into thin air!" Elfman added. "There's no saving your friend now that he's been consumed by the darkness, so you might as well give up the fight." Klodoa told them.
Inside the spell, Natsu told Lucy, "Please, just wait a little longer, Lucy! I'm comin' to save you!"
"Natsu... The longer I'm here... the more I lose sight of who I am. I can't! I've got to do something!"
"No matter how much you struggle, you will never escape the darkness. Your time is up. Goodbye, great dragon wizard." Midnight laughed as he was sure that he had won. But Natsu refused to give up. Flames forming around him, Natsu roared, "No! I ain't done yet! You hurt Lucy and Michelle! Now I'm gonna hurt you!"
Inside the Infinity Clock - Infinity Castle - X791
"I can't keep crying forever."
Hearing the voices of those fighting for her, Lucy screamed at Midnight, "No! Apologize to Michelle! And bring Natsu back!" As she did so, a light glowed brightly from the Infinity Castle's "right eye" and spread throughout the entire structure.
Infinity Clock Chamber - Infinity Castle - X791
"What's happening now?!" Covering her eyes, Coco asked as the golden liquid that held Lucy glowed the same blinding brilliance as the Castle. "It's so bright!" Happy exclaimed.
"Did you hear that?" Romeo asked Elfman as Klodoa had his mouth agape in shock. "Yeah, it sounded like Lucy!"
Midnight then looked at his hands as he twitched them as he asked, "What happened to me?!" Looking at his surroundings, he saw that he was in a familiar place where he had spent his childhood. "The Tower of Heaven? No!" He then realized with horror in his younger body what had happened. "This is it! This is the Real Nightmare! How did this happen?! It must've been the girl! My seal is all that's left! It's not strong enough to hold her back!"
Gripping his face with his hand, Midnight realized how careless he was. "I'm such a fool!"
A familiar roar echoed as the place where he casted Genesis Zero on Natsu started to crack with fiery light. Natsu busted out in a powerful blaze as he yelled, "I heard you, Lucy!" "How'd he come back?" As Natsu punched the dark wizard in the face, Happy explained to a questioning Coco, "Lucy did it! She used the Infinity Clock to cast the Real Nightmare spell on that creep!"
Right hand filled with fire magic, Natsu angrily asked, "So, you made a sacrifice? Gimme a break!" Left hand filled with dark magic, Midnight told Natsu, "As they say, magic comes from the heart. And the greater the feelings you're willing to abandon, the greater power you'll gain!"
"I don't like the looks of this. Those two are about to throw down!" Klodoa then fled as Elfman and Romeo watched him run away. "Now, now, there's no reason to resort to violence! The girl's taken control of the Infinity Castle, so as far as I'm concerned, you guys win! See ya!"
"He's runnin'." Romeo observed in a deadpanned tone. "And you call yourself a man?!" Elfman angrily asked. "No, he's a stick."
Midnight fought Natsu in a fisticuff as he claimed, "When you care for someone, your deepest wish is to see them again. There is nothing more excruciating than knowing you will never have the chance because of your own actions!" Natsu used his Fire Dragon Roar, but Midnight used his Reflector to repel the attack.
"Whatever you say." Natsu commented as he wiped his mouth. "So tell me, what did you sacrifice to gain the power you have now?" "My future. At least one in which I'll ever get to see my father again."
"So he took a possibility and then made it an impossibility in order to gain power?" Coco asked. "My head hurts." "A backward view using forward thinkin'." Happy added. "That's pretty impressive, huh?"
"I don't get it, man. You're not makin' any sense." Natsu then asked the more important question. "If you want to see your dad so badly, then why dontcha just go see him?" "You're the reason me and my father were torn apart all those years ago. Don't tell me that you've forgotten." "That's what you're so pissed off about?! Don't you dare try to act like the innocent victim here, buddy. You're the scumbag that made Lucy cry. So you "sacrificed" your future. If you ask me, givin' up somethin' that hasn't happened yet ain't that big a deal. Quit your whining and fight me!" Natsu and Midnight began their battle again, fists of magic colliding.
As the magic power pushed against each other, Midnight's arm began to crack, extending upward every moment. "Impossible! How am I being overpowered?!" "I know what it's like to miss not havin' your dad around, so I can definitely sympathize with you. But you're wrong. The whole thing about having to abandon your feelings to gain power is a huge crock. 'Cause you only gain is by holding 'em close to your heart."
"Liar! That can't be true! I was taught that sacrifice is the only way!" Midnight screamed as his face started to crack. "'Fraid not!" Natsu told him as his tackle was intercepted by a disturbed Midnight's toss.
After he did so, dark smoke began to leak from the cracks in his body. "You don't know what to think anymore, do ya? You've been twistin' everything around so much, your perception's all screwed up now." Continuing his assault, Natsu continued to lecture. "If you keep it up... you can't be true to your past!" Natsu kneed Midnight, which was followed with a headbutt to the torso. "Much less your future! You can't even be true to your own heart!"
Kicking Midnight into the wall, the dark wizard was stunned. "Are you implying... that I am not being true to my... father?!" "Lucy opened up to her dad and Michelle opened up to her. Don't punish them just 'cause you got it wrong!" Natsu pointed at Midnight with his left hand before bringing it into a fist. "You think you're so smart, but you've got a lot to learn!"
Charging at the Reflector wizard, Natsu proclaimed, "Feelings are one thing..." Punching the wizard's cracked face, Natsu sent him flying. "You obviously don't know anything about!"
The others cheered as Midnight slammed into the wall. Imitatia, who had was still unconscious, smiled happily at the fact Natsu won. "Father..." Midnight thought before the wall gave way and he fell into the depths of the Infinity Castle.
"We beat the last of the Six Demons!" Romeo cheered. "How's Lucy?" Elfman asked Coco and Happy. "Oh, no!" Coco whimpered as she covered her mouth. "We're too late. What do we do now?" Happy sadly asked. There was nothing in the golden liquid anymore. "Lucy's completely disappeared."
Natsu freaked out. "How'd that happened?! I mean, we've gotten rid of all six of the seals! Where'd the heck did she go?! We ain't leavin' 'til we get her back!"
Infinity Castle - X791
"Huh? What're they talking about? I didn't go anywhere, I'm right here." Lucy's voice rang out from the castle before it sweatdropped. "Whoa, wait a sec! Don't tell me that I'm... You've gotta be kiddin' me!"
"What was that?" Elfman asked as he and Romeo looked around. "Is Lucy here somewhere?" Romeo inquired as Natsu sniffed the air. "That's weird. I can smell her all around us!"
"Woah." Gray's attention was shifted from destroying the chains. "That wasn't telepathy." "We can't give up hope. Not yet." Erza encouraged them. "Oh no, we were too late." Wendy whimpered, hands covering her mouth, as Carla grimly came to the same conclusion. "Yes, it appears as though she's merged with the Infinity Castle." "Lemme get this straight, you're sayin' that Lucy's turned into this humongous fish?" Happy's summarization was shared by Natsu. "So, in a way, this is her body now, huh?"
"NO!" Lucy wailed in despair. "I can't believe this is happening to me. One minute I'm normal, the next I'm Happy Food?!" "Don't worry, I won't eat ya!"
"It's gonna be okay!" Warren assured them over his Telepathy. "Unfortunately, you sped up the merging process whenever you used the Real Nightmare spell to save Natsu." "Don't blame me for this!"
"Look, I'm just glad I finally got through to you! Listen up, everyone! I've got some news from the team back at the guildhall. Jean-Luc and the others have figured out a way for us to save Lucy!"
"Who is Jean-Luc?" Happy responded to Natsu's question. "He's the guy who always says "actually"."
Fairy Tail Guildhall - Magnolia - X791
"If the seals aren't removed from the Infinity Clock before the merging process is complete, the person who has been merged can only be freed if they focus their mind and actually control the Real Nightmare spell."
Jean-Luc's information was backed up by Levy. "According to what it says here, the Clock is remaining in this world because of the magic power it's absorbing from the Celestial Wizards who are serving as Body Links."
Infinity Castle - X791
Everyone, the Legion Platoons and Fairy Tail, had stopped what they were doing and listened to the new information. "They're stuck in chrysalis form, so we need to lift the curse that's been placed on 'em. Luckily, it should be pretty simple." "Lucy's gotta alter their perception of time to 100 years in the future." Coco concluded. "Yep, you got it. if she does that, then the Clock will break apart and all the pieces will scatter themselves."
"Are you sure?" Wendy nervously asked Warren. "Wait." Gray halted. "But what about Lucy?" "How's this going to affect her?" Erza asked. "I wish I could tell you." Jean-Luc told them. "All we know for sure is this will undo the merging." "Yeah, but it could also send her flyin' along with the clock pieces!" Elfman interjected. Romeo wondered, "What'll we do?" "C'mon, there's gotta be another way!" Natsu argued.
"I'll give it a shot!" Lucy's reply shocked Natsu. "The others Celestial Wizards need me. If I don't pull it off, they'll sleep for a hundred years. So what if I get sent flying off somewhere? I think that it's worth the risk! I'm not scared 'cause I'm a Fairy Tail wizard. Jude and Layla Heartfilia's daughter... Lucy... Michelle's big sister! I can do this!"
As Lucy made her declaration, the Infinity Clock glowed once more, a blue light instead of a golden one. The entire Infinity Castle lit up the same blue color. Inside the Clock, Lucy strained as she channeled the power of the Clock. Her right eye, which had changed to resemble the pattern and color of the clock, being the only eye opened.
"I believe in you, Lucy." Michelle told her sister as she appeared beside her. "This is tough." "Don't be afraid. I'll stay right by your side." "Thank you!"
The light contacted before dispersing into many smaller lights, making the sky look like it was covered in a beautiful blue meteor shower. Everyone in Fiore was awed by the show of lights.
? - Fiore - X791
Somewhere, Natsu struggled to open his eyes. "Natsu!" He was surprised to see Ichiya in front of him, posing. "I'm glad you're okay!" "Are we..." Natsu then noticed that they were riding on the ginormous octopus, Kanaloa. "On top of an octopus?" "There's no need to panic. Kanaloa and I are now bound by the parfum of eternal friendship." "So you guys are buddies now?"
Natsu looked at his friends that had infiltrated the Infinity Castle, but they all looked sad. Even Imitatia, who had woken up and was sitting by Elfman as he sat cross-legged. "Hey Natsu, listen." Happy's talk with his best buddy was interrupted by Natsu's realization of them missing a person. "Where's Lucy? We've gotta get out there and find her!" "We're already working on it." Erza told him. "Yeah, Warren's team is lookin' for her." Gray's assurance wasn't good enough for the pyro. "Well, that ain't good enough!"
Sniffing the air, Natsu gasped. "Guys, I've picked up her scent! It's gotta be her. Take us thataway, octopus!" "Very well then." Ichiya then relayed the command to the beast they were all riding on. "If you would, Kanaloa." With that, the octopus leapt in the direction that they needed to go.
As soon as they got to the approximate destination, Natsu leapt off Kanaloa and ran in a hurry to catch a falling Lucy. "By the time I came to, both the Infinity Castle and the Neo-Oración Seis were long gone." Lucy narrated as Natsu raced to catch her, no matter what. As he tripped and fell, Lucy cried tears of joy. Natsu then got back up and resumed his run. Jumping up, he caught Lucy as she fell, running into a boulder as they landed, earning a cheer of happiness that Lucy was alright from the gang. "And so, the journey that began with the hand of a clock and all of the confusion and chaos caused by "Key of the Starry Heavens", finally came to an end." Lucy smiled with a blush as she sat on top of Natsu, who widely smiled back at her.
Later, Lucy fixed up the torn portrait of her family in the Heartfilia Estate's attic and smiled at the doll in her lap."I'm not sure why, but ever since I've been back in my apartment, it's felt kinda cold and empty to me. But even so, I never feel lonely. Don't worry about me. I'm gonna be okay." Lucy wrote as she finished up a manuscript about the adventures she had that started with her father's memento titled, "Seeking for the Clock".
"Oh, and one more thing." Lucy looked over her shoulder as Imitatia, now in her Michelle form, brought tea for the two of them, smiling at her. "Mom. Dad. Thank you for giving me such a great little sister."
