Jade Force
Chapter seven: Mermaid's Tears
IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHERE THE DRAGONS HAVE BEEN ALL THIS TIME, YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
This is the chapter you've all been waiting for!
Also, sorry Guest-san, you're still logged out ^_^"
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Being twelve and travelling on your own made things difficult. Having a guild mark helped, of course, and so did the piercings, but it still took Gajeel longer than he'd like to to reach the town of Salix. Sami had lent him a copy of Weekly Sorcerer with that article on Aubrey inside, so he'd read and analysed the poor thing to death ON HIS JOURNEY.
He now knew that Aubrey came from Bosco originally, that she's chosen her last name because it was a type of Jade, and that she'd joined Mermaid Heel because two of their members had rescued her from slavers at the border. He knew that she was fifteen, loved her guild very much, and had made S-class only a month after joining. She hated thunder-storms and trains, but she loved sun-showers and bitter food. Her glasses weren't entirely for show, as she had some difficulty reading small print and seeing small things, and the arm bands she were on her biceps were a gift from a water Dragon called Vestra (Metalicana's mate? ). In regards to himself, she had said, "I'm looking for my precious little brother, Gajeel. I promised Fjorda I'd look after him, see. I was following him into Fiore from Bosco, but we were separated."
Her entire reason for making a name for herself was so that he'd hear about her, and know where to look.
_ * . * . * _
Salix was a very pretty town, Gajeel had to admit. Wisteria trees lined the streets, with pussy willow shrubs at most street corners. Having arrived in the spring time, everything was blooming. On the hill behind the town was the guild, Mermaid Heel, with a dainty-looking wood behind it. A thirty minute walk was all it took to get from the train station to the guild.
The guild itself was rather like a ballet studio on the inside – a majority of the walls had floor-to-ceiling mirrors – and the paintings on the roof changed the further inside you ventured. The outside was mostly in dark blues and greens, a reflected sea scenery with mermaids in clams or doing each other's hair (Gajeel struggled not to gag), the middle ground seemed to be cats, fairiers, and other cutesy woodland creatures in greens and yellows, whilst the centre seemed to be angels and cherubs in soft pinks and white and gold.
Yup. Gag-worthy.
All the mages here were women, he'd heard, but they seemed especially unlively to him – all sitting around the centre-most bar, heads bowed.
"Oi!" Gajeel barked, grabbing their attention. "Name's Gajeel Redfox – I'm looking for the Dragonet?"
There was a choking noise, and some random biddy up the back burst into tears. Gajeel was confused – what was that about?
A chubby girl with thick black curls stood in front of him now, and her eyes were watery. "You're Metalicana's son?"
Gajeel recoiled, clenched his fists, then nodded. He was completely shocked when the rest of the women all burst into tears, and the chubby girl wrapped him in a hug.
"You finally come, and it's too late!" She wailed. Gajeel stiffened in her embrace. "Au-chan's gone!"
"What do ya mean, she's gone?!" Gajeel demanded angrily.
A taller blonde girl came over to him as well. "We were following a lead in Iceberg, to the north," She managed to say without sniffling too much. "We got as far as the base of the Boscan ranges on the return trip, and we'd managed to find one of her and Quartzerine's old Nests, and she left us, me and Ris-chan, behind with the fire whilst she gathered food, and then she screamed, and the world outside lit up, and she was gone!" The end was a wail, as the chubby and the blonde broke down into tears.
"How the hell d'ya lose someone like her?!" Gajeel snapped at them. "Didn't ya look for her?!"
"She was sucked into the sky!" The chubby snapped. "And the next mountain over, too, into this big vortex! There was nothing we could have done!"
"I tried to grab her with my web magic," the blonde sniffled. "But it was torn to pieces and sucked into the vortex, too!"
The next sentence was the one that sent Gajeel reeling.
"And she'd finally gotten a lead on the dragons!"
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Saboady Archipelago, Grand Line, Daikaizokujidai 12
Aubrey got up with a groan, looking around her in confusion. "Wha –?" She mumbled, hands searching for her glasses. There was something shining in her face. Having found her glasses and put them back on her nose, she responded with a soft, "Oh." It was a sword.
Looking up at the raggedy man in front of her, Aubrey asked cheerfully, "Can I help you?" Beneath her puffed sleeved coat, jade scales grew on her arms and back.
"Gimme yer money, brat!"
"Money?" Aubrey asked, cocking her head to the side. "I don't have any on me – I left it all with my teammates. I don't suppose you've seen them? One's tall and blonde, and the other is short with dark curls." The tip of the sword was placed under her chin. "Hmm?" Aubrey said curiously.
"Just gimme yer money!"
"As I said, I don't have any."
"What's in the bag?"
"Eh, this?" Aubrey hadn't noticed that she still had the shoulderbag Yeoleum had packed earlier. "It's just got books in it."
"Then gimme that neckalace! That'll sell for something!"
The poor man never knew where the jade pillar that crashed into his jaw came from. Before losing consciousness, he glimpsed a red–eyed demon holding his sword beneath his chin. "Never attempt to take this pendant away from me!"
Calming herself down with some difficulty, Aubrey took stock of her surroundings and promptly did a double take. Were those bubbles rising from the ground?! Just where the hell was she?!
"That was well handled, young lady." An elderly man's voice came from one of the shadows between the rickety buildings. "Have you eaten a Devil Fruit, to be able to do such a thing?"
Instantly on the defensive, Aubrey narrowed her eyes at the man. "Thank you. I'm afraid I've never heard of a Devil Fruit before, though."
The man raised pale brows over round glasses. "Never heard of a Devil Fruit? You're a long way into the Grand Line for that!"
Aubrey's own brows narrowed. "Old man, do you have a map handy?" She asked instead.
"A map?" He cocked his head to the side, puzzled, scratching his neck through long white hair. "Not on me. But my comrade will, at her bar. It's some way from here, though. Would you be comfortable walking with a helpless old man for such a distance?"
Aubrey's frown turned into a scowl. "So long as the old man doesn't lie, we'll be fine. You are far from helpless, I imagine."
He blinked at her a couple of times before throwing his head back and laughing. "My, aren't you a perceptive one! Alright, no more lies. By the way, my name is Ray-san. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Aubrey shook his outstretched hand. "Aubrey, of Mermaid Heel. Please lead the way."
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Grove 13, Saboady Archipelago
"Shakki's Rip-off Bar?" Aubrey read incredulously. "Hey, Ray-san, what –!"
The door opened and a number of beaten and bloody-looking thugs were dragged out by a dark-haired woman and promptly kicked down the stairs that had led to the establishment.
"Shakki!" Ray-san exclaimed once she was finished. "How's the business going?"
"Oh, Ray-san! What, it's been five months? You're looking lively. My, who's your friend? She's cute."
Aubrey turned pink at that, stepping slightly away from the pair. "My name is Aubrey. Ray-san said that you had a map handy, Shakki-san?"
"Of course," The woman said after a moment. "Would you come in?"
Aubrey followed the two inside carefully, activating her sixth sense as she did so. It wouldn't hurt to be prepared.
"Here," Shakki said, offering a piece of paper. "This is a map of this archipelago."
"Thank you," Aubrey nodded quickly. "But I was actually hoping for a map of the world."
Shakki paused with her cigarette halfway to her mouth. "Of the world…? An accurate one doesn't exist."
"I beg your pardon?" Aubrey asked, shocked.
"There are too many islands for such a thing. I can draw you a rough map, if you like, or find accurate maps of the four Blues, but one for the Grand Line doesn't exist."
"A generalised one should be fine, thank you."
"Well, I'll just draw it for you, then." Shakki said calmly, flipping the map of Saboady over and picking up a pencil. "There are four seas known as the four Blues: North, South, East and West. These seas are divided by what we call the Red Line, a large red mountain range that stretches the world. There is also the Grand Line, which has the Calm Belt, a current-less, breathless stretch of ocean, on either side of it. The Grand Line itself is split in half by the Red Line, with the two halves having their own name: Paradise, and the New World."
Aubrey picked up the rough map, eyes flashing dangerously behind her glasses.
Come to sea with me, Aubrey!
Eh? We're in a separate reality? What about Earthland!
Welcome to Edolas!
"You have never heard of Earthland, have you?" Aubrey asked them quietly. "Or countries called Fiore, Bosco, Iceburg, Seven…. You don't have mage guilds here, either, do you?" One hand dropped down to touch her guild mark, her pride.
Shakki and Ray-san both exchanged looks at that.
"No." They answered.
"I thought as much," Aubrey whispered, as the tears gathered at the corners of her eyes. "Do you mind if I borrow this? I … I need some air, to think."
Stepping out of the strange bar, Aubrey moved towards the back, looking at the mangrove tree closely. It would do. Gathering her magic, she ran straight for the tree and up, up, up, growing spikes of jade in the soles of her feet once she felt herself beginning to slip. Reaching the top of the tree, Aubrey could see as far as the horizon – blue waters as far, and further, than her eyes could see.
Opening her sense further, she concentrated on Gajeel's immediate future… He was in Mermaid Heel, with her friends. And he was crying.
Her little brother had finally found her, and she couldn't even touch him! She might never see him again! Or her friends, or her father…!
Sniffling and feeling like the time was right, Aubrey rifled through her bag and took out the book Yeoleum had given her, opening it to what felt like just the right page.
"There are six Dragon Kings left. Of fire, Igneel; of iron, Metalicana; of the shadows, Skiadrum; the Master Healer of the Skies, Grandeeney; the Priest of Light, Weislogia; and the Jade Seer, Quartzerine. Between them, it was agreed that the only way to take down Zeref was through END. But Quartzarine, who saw the Truth of the future, knows they have a very long time to wait – four hundred years from now, X791, to be exact. But to take down Zeref's Demons, they'll need help from mages, and the most reliable magic for this is Metsuryū Mahou.
"At that meeting it was decided that those six Kings would find a child to raise as their own prior to X777 – a magical year that could be the turning point against the Demons – and agreed to meet up again on that fateful day for one last battle. But, as Achnologia had taken half their souls, it must have been a horrible existence for my brethren. As the only Dragon who did not fight in that war, I am the only one left whole, for lack of a better word. And, to make sure that their future children would not share the same fate as the Dragon of the Apocalypse, who had once also been a Dragon Slayer, the Kings must have only one option left to them.
"When they feel the time is right – using that magical year, X777 – they will hide what is left of their souls within the bodies of their children, creating antibodies that will prevent the Dragonification process…"
Aubrey couldn't read anymore for her tears. She was far from home, without her friends and little brother, and now she had the answer that all of the young Dragon Slayers had been looking for.
And she couldn't tell a single one of them.
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Daikaizokujidai 12 – the twelfth year in the Great Age of Pirates (because I couldn't find an actual date -_-") Romance Dawn is set in the 20th year, and the New World is set in the 22nd.