Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail.
Chapter Ten: Wrath's Warpath
Rosemary & Thyme
The Fairy Tail wizards all scrambled out of the brothel at top speed, Natsu carrying a weakened Lucy. The Dragon Slayer turned around and looked back at the abandoned whorehouse. "Wait, where's Gray and Juvia?" he asked, not seeing the Ice Maker or the Rain Woman anywhere.
Wendy gasped when she remembered that they'd forgotten about their two comrades in the midst of fighting lust. "Oh no! They're still in there! We have to get them or-"
The Air Dragon Slayer was interrupted when the Rosemary & Thyme suddenly was smashed to pieces as a huge creature crashed through it, turning the place into smashed splinters. The group jumped out of the way in all directions as the creature thundered past them.
Cana looked up in confused horror as she tried to see what had just tried to kill them. "Is that a…giant pig?!"
The girl called it a pig but it had to be the biggest swine they'd seen in their lives. The creature, as big as their guildhall, was armored in black armor plating. Fire erupted from its huge feet, sending waves of flame in all directions as it stamped in place, making everyone jump back. As the creature turned to face Erza and Mirajane, they saw two huge tusks pointed right at them. The huge pig looked down at them with huge, eyes while black smoke billowing out of its snout.
"Oh dear," came a voice from atop the giant pig. "You've killed Lust as well. Guess the Sins are now a gentlemen's club," Greed lamented, looking down at the team of Wizards. "I tip my hat to you, Fairy Tail. To think you've killed not just one but two of us."
Natsu raised a burning fist up at Greed. "Why don't you come down here and we'll make it three for three!"
Greed threw his head back and laughed. "Ahahah! Why don't you come up and try?" he goaded. "Or are you afraid of a little splash, matchstick?"
"Grrr!"
Wendy and Cana stopped him from charging the pig. "Natsu don't! Remember what happened last time!" Wendy pleaded.
"What's the matter, matchstick? Are you chicken? Or should I bring out my feathered friend again since you're so eager for a new playmate."
"What do you want?" Erza demanded. "And don't try to avoid the question like last time!" She pointed her sword up at Greed. "You've been here well before we arrived! So why have you been skulking in the shadows?"
The dark-skinned man grinned. "Why indeed?" he taunted. "The short of it is that I wanted to welcome our new friend after our sexy temptress dealt with all of you. She wanted to gather you Fairy Tail girls together to form her own demonic harem. That's why she called out all of you. Lust was always fickle like that, playing with others like a child playing with dolls."
"But then why'd she let us bring Natsu and Gray?" Wendy asked.
"Oh, you never know when you need a spare," Greed replied, giving a glance to the ruined brothel where Rosanna's body now lie, undoubtedly smashed to pieces in the giant pig's rampage. "Pride and Lust agreed to keep a few strong individuals at arm's reach after you introduced little Envy to the pointy end of your sword." He tapped his staff against the armor on the pig's back. "Zhū, let us be off."
"Where do you think you're going?" Natsu screamed in frustration. "Get back here and fight, damn it!"
"Oh, we'll meet again. I just wanted to keep you on your toes. Besides, you've bigger things to worry about…"
The others watched as the giant pig turned and thundered away, leaving burning footprints in its wake. "That thing came very close to crushing us," Cana breathed, wiping the sweat from her brow.
Lucy turned towards the ruined brothel, her heart dropping in her stomach as she saw no sign of her friends. Tears ran down her face as the realization that Juvia and Gray had been crushed in the pig's rampage hit her. "Gray…Juvia…"
"'We're safe and sound,' Gray says."
Everyone turned and breathed a sigh of relief when they saw another of Lucy's spirits, Horologium, the clock spirit. "Horologium! You got Juvia and Gray?" Lucy asked. "And…why are you turned around?" she asked.
"Oh! Well, Mistress…when I saved your friends…they were um…well…" Horologium sputtered, its cheeks turning red with embarrassment. "'Oh Gray! This is a dream come true!' Ms. Juvia says."
Erza walked around and took a look inside Horologium's hollow body. Her face turned as red as her hair when she saw that her friends were okay but… "Lucy, call Virgo," she ordered.
"Why?"
"Clothes. We need clothes. Now."
Later…
Fairy Tail Guildhall
"So let me get this straight…" Erza started, her arms crossed while she gave the two a stern glare. "You two were busy getting it on while we were fighting for our lives?" she demanded.
Gray had hoped that Juvia could explain that she'd not been in control of her actions but the girl had been in a stupor since they'd emerged from Horologium buck naked. She literally had a silly smile on her face while she had pink hearts in her eyes.
"Well…Juvia was possessed by that demon and after pushing me to the ground she…well…" Gray could feel the eyes of everyone in the guild on them and felt a little shame knowing that his friends had risked their lives to save Lucy while he got lucky with a brainwashed Juvia.
Makarov interrupted the lecturing Erza. "Be that as it may, once again we were lucky. Your sense of timing is impeccable, Erza. If you hadn't sensed that pig coming I've no doubt it'd flattened all of you."
Sitting next to Happy and Sting, Natsu pondered about the huge monster that'd attacked them. "Yeah, what was with that weird pig? And do you think it'd taste good?"
Sting shrugged before chuckling. "Seriously? Natsu, that pig tried to kill you and you're wondering if it tastes good?"
"Why not? Pork's good no matter how big it is." He held up a burning hand. "Next time he shows up with that pig, I'm gonna barbecue that sucker!"
Lucy, having recovered from Lust's possession, thought about it. "That pig…looked familiar…"
"That's because Zhū is a Celestial Spirit, Lucy."
The guild all turned to see Loki appear. "Loki! Are you okay?" Cana asked.
"I'm fine. As soon as I returned to the Celestial Spirit World the brainwashing that the demon had over me was undone." Taking off his glasses, Loki bowed low in front of Cana. "Cana, I'm so sorry. Me and Taurus are ashamed of ourselves for what we've done."
"It's alright. You weren't yourself," Cana said before giving Loki a hug.
Makarov spoke to the spirit, "Loki, what do you mean? Are you telling us that Greed is a Celestial Spirit Wizard too?"
"It'd make sense," Elfman noted. "His is Greed after all. He must have all sorts of tricks up his sleeve."
Loki put his glasses back on and turned to address his guild master. "I'm afraid that it's worse than you think. Greed isn't just any Celestial Spirit Wizard. He has in his possession the Amber Keys of the Eastern Zodiac."
Lucy gasped. "What? But those were just legends! The Amber Keys haven't been seen-"
"In over fifty years. Precisely the amount of time Greed's been sealed away, hence the legends," Makarov explained. "I've heard of them long ago and only in passing reference. What are these spirits?"
Sighing, Loki sat down before he began. "We don't like to talk about them. They are something that many of us wish to forget about." He looked up at his owner. "You see, they were born from constellations in the Far East. But the Celestial Spirit King was frightened by their terrible powers. He feared that their power was something that no one wizard should have. Even a single key could be enough to topple a kingdom in the right hands. So he gathered the keys and gave them to a guardian on an island in the middle of nowhere to hide them from the world. You've already met two of them, correct?"
"Yeah, one was an ugly chicken and now we were almost trampled by a giant pig in armor," Lucy said.
"I know. Horologium informed me about Zhū. The others are just as monstrous. They take the form of horrific animals. They aren't like us, Lucy. They are created solely to destroy."
"I take it Greed is the guardian?" Kaguya asked.
"No. This was almost six hundred years ago. The keys were created along with a special key ring. The ring is meant to draw the other keys to it. Over time several of the keys had been stolen from the island but they always came back, one way or the other. Greed must be no doubt a descendent of the original guardian."
"Still, we've no idea what their next move is," Cana said.
"And what did Greed when he said we have bigger problems?"
Makarov took a long puff of his pipe before answering. "I think I know. I've been in touch with Master Bob at Blue Pegasus after Ichiya and his team never arrived."
Erza went rigid. "You mean they're…"
"We can only assume the worst," Makarov said. "For now, all we can do is wait…"
Gray turned his head and blushed. "Uh…what should we do about Juvia?" he asked, pointing to his friend who was still in a happy stupor.
"Leave her. I don't think we should interrupt her glee."
Meanwhile…
Road to Magnolia
"Pathetic," Wrath spat as he held up Ichiya by the throat. Despite the man's best efforts, his Perfume Magic was no match against the hulking brute. Nearby lay his defeated men, having been dispatched with ease.
Ren struggled to his feet, blood spilling from his side. "Let Master Ichiya go!" He held up his hand and unleashed a blast of Air Magic. "Air Shot!" He watched as the blast shot towards Wrath, who didn't even budge an inch at the strike. The attack hit him in the back but it didn't even make the demon say so much as "ouch". Without even turning to look at him, Wrath swung his arm. Ren choked blood as Wrath's mighty longsword slashed his chest.
"Damn you!" Ichiya spat. He reached into his pocket and took out his secret weapon. Popping the cork, he inhaled the sweet aroma and started to swell to a herculean physique. Knocking Wrath's arm aside, Ichiya threw a hefty punch at the man's face. "Don't touch my men!"
Wrath caught the fist with ease, his armored hand catching Ichiya's attack. "Your men…"
Crunch!
"Gahhhhhh!" shrieked Ichiya as Wrath crushed his fist.
"Are as weak as you." Gripping his blood-soaked sword, Wrath brought it over his head. "I'll make your death as ugly as your face."
"You will not."
The demon turned his head and saw that he had a new opponent. Before him stood the Wizard Saint, Jura of Lamia Scale.
Letting Ichiya crumple to the ground, Wrath turned and stomped towards the man. The two men stared at each other as they squared off. Finally, Wrath smiled. "Finally, a challenge…"
To be continued
