Ch. 12- Zero
Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima
Story and OCs © Me
"...ru... Haru...! Hey, sis, wake up! Say somethin'!"
Haru groaned as her eyes fluttered open, and though it was a bit dark, she could see her brother's face coming into view, as well as Blue Fang. The moment she opened her eyes, Natsu sighed with relief as he gently propped her up in a sitting position, and it was then that she saw that Lucy, Gray, and Happy were unscathed, as well.
"Guys, you're okay!" Haru exclaimed.
"Somehow," Lucy replied. "I could have sworn we just got caught in a big explosion!"
"Aye!" Happy agreed.
"But... where are we?" Haru asked as she looked around and saw nothing but stone walls. "Don't tell me we got buried alive!"
"No, hold it!" Gray replied as he looked up and noticed a certain pattern in the rocks. "I recognize this... this is Old Man Jura's handiwork!"
"Wait... where is Mister Jura?!" asked Haru, causing Natsu to reel back his fist and punch his way through the ceiling, and as he climbed out... he gasped in horror, causing the others to follow him, only to have the same reaction.
There was Jura, his arms outstretched... his body heavily battered and bloodied, and it didn't everyone very long to realize what he had done.
"MISTER JURA!" cried Haru.
"OLD MAN!" Gray shouted.
"He... he protected us...!" Lucy whispered, covering her mouth in horror.
"Hey, old man!" Natsu cried. "Are you okay?!"
Jura panted, coughing up blood as his body trembled... and yet, he grinned as he glanced back at Team Natsu.
"...I... I envy you young ones... and your boundless energy," he said, fondly. "I'm... glad... that I was able to protect... you..." With that, he soon collapsed on the floor, prompting the group to rush over to him.
"Hey! Hang on, Old Man Jura!" Gray cried.
"Mister Jura, don't die!" Haru urged as she held his hand. "Please, you can't die!"
"Hey! Say something!" Lucy shouted as she tried to shake him.
"Come on, Mister!" Happy yelled as he nudged Jura's bald head. "Come on, wake up!"
Even Blue Fang attempted to wake the Iron Rock Wizard up as he nudged him from the side and even tried to lick his face, but alas, Jura would not be roused... and by this time, Natsu growled in fury as he clenched his fists.
"Dammit...!" he cursed.
"What are we gonna do?!" Lucy asked as she looked at Jura. "He's badly injured!"
"Hey! Old man!" Gray called. "Don't die on us, you hear me?!"
"I can't believe it!" Happy said. "We were led into a trap!"
"That Rick guy tricked us!" Natsu shouted.
"No!" Haru cried. "I could see that Richard really had turned good, even if he was being influenced by Nirvana's power! We were tricked, but not by him!"
"Then... who?" asked Lucy.
"I don't believe this..."
"Huh?" Lucy muttered as she looked at Gray. "Gray, did you say something?"
"Not me," Gray replied before he looked at Haru. "Did you say something, Haru?"
"Don't look at me," Haru answered before she looked at Natsu. "Natsu, did you say something?"
"Not me, sis," Natsu shrugged before he looked up at Brain's floating cane. "Did you say somethin', weird floatin' staff with a skull?"
3... 2... 1...
"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!" the group screamed, eyes bugging out comically.
"Hahahaha!" the cane laughed. "What a bunch of scaredy cats!"
"The... the cane... is talking!" Happy exclaimed.
"This, coming from the talking cat," Lucy emphasized.
"I can't believe that fool, Brain!" the cane said. "Honestly, he uses the last of his power to send you lot into a trap, and he only managed to take out one of you annoying pests?! How pathetic can a person get?! He's an insult to the Six Demons!"
"Isn't that... Brain's staff?!" Gray asked.
"It talks?!" Lucy questioned in disbelief.
"Wait a minute! Who are you, anyway?!" asked Haru.
"The name's Klodoa," said the cane. "I am the 7th member of Oración Seis!"
"...The... 7th member?" asked Haru.
"Yes!" Klodoa declared. "The 7th demon of-"
"But... it's called Oración Seis," Haru clarified. "If there are 7 members, wouldn't it be Oración Siete?"
"You know, she does have a point," Lucy pointed out with even Gray nodding in agreement.
"Oh," Klodoa muttered, nervously. "Uh... well... see, about that. The thing is- OH, WHY DOES IT MATTER TO YOU, ANYWAY?!"
"Well, she kinda has a point," said Natsu. "I mean, you can't call yourself Oración Seis and then have 7 members because-"
"SHUT IT!" Klodoa shouted before bopping the Fire Dragon Slayer on his head.
"OUCH!" Natsu cried as he grabbed at his crown.
"Wait, are we seriously arguing with a talking stick?" asked Gray, only for Klodoa to bop him as well. "OW! Hey, what'd I do?!"
"Heed me, you bunch of brats!" Klodoa proclaimed. "As long as at least Midnight is still standing, then we will never be defeated! While he's busy, I'll just take care of you chumps myself and-"
Suddenly, Blue Fang leapt up into the air, caught Klodoa by its handle, and pulled it down from the air before he started chewing on the staff!
"AGH! HEY, LET GO! BAD DOGGY!" Klodoa cried as the silver wolf gnawed on the skull, giving it a hearty coating of drool, to the staff's disgust. "Ugh... so... much... slobber!"
"I feel ya, man," Happy replied, thumping a paw against his chest.
"Heh!" Natsu smirked as he squat down in front of the cane-turned-chew-toy. "Serves ya right! Now... unless you wanna be riddled with chew marks, you're gonna stop this walkin' city, right now!"
"Ha!" Klodoa scoffed. "What, you think I have the power to stop this thing?!"
"You're gonna stop it, or else!" Natsu shouted, this time sounding a bit more demanding. However, Klodoa began to rise into the air, pulling itself free from Blue Fang's jaws.
"You brats are way too violent and rude," Klodoa said... saliva dripping from its skull as it looked out to the horizon. "Besides... our target will soon be within sight! If the plan is to succeed, we need to take out the trash, first! Get the picture?"
"Wait... you're still targeting Cait Shelter?!" asked Lucy in shock.
"Of course, we are!" Klodoa replied. "That stupid guild will be the first to go!"
"But why?!" Haru questioned. "Why are you targeting Wendy's guild?! What did they ever do to you?!"
"Oh, this isn't about revenge or anything like that," Klodoa said. "We're just making sure that they don't ever try to seal away Nirvana, ever again!"
"What?!" Gray asked in disbelief. "You mean they have a connection to this place?!"
"It's more than that," said Klodoa. "You see, the members of the Cait Shelter... are all comprised of descendants of the Nirvit Clan!"
Everyone gasped in disbelief at this revelation... except for Natsu, who only stared blankly.
"Uh... the whozzits?" he asked.
"I'll tell you about them, later," Haru deadpanned.
"As long as the Nirvit Clan still exists," Klodoa began, "then they still hold the power to seal Nirvana away again! That's why they have to be wiped out! If you ask me, it's ironic, isn't it? The very thing that the neutral Nirvits created to end war is going to be used for war... and on them, no less!" He then cackled madly, causing everyone to glare at him. Even Blue Fang, who snarled viciously in fury with fangs bared.
"Get him!" Natsu shouted. "Or... err... it?"
"Whatever it is, just get the damn thing!" shouted Gray, causing everyone to charge at Klodoa, who flew around them, avoiding their grabbing hands (or snapping jaws, in Blue Fang's case). The staff cackled as it smacked Natsu in the face, then whacked an unsuspecting Gray in the head. At one point, it even glanced up Lucy's and Haru's skirts, causing them to shriek as they quickly pulled them down to cover themselves.
"By the way, nice undies, girls!" Klodoa commented with a perverted blush. "Especially you, blondie! I like a girl who likes risque!"
"Excuse me!" Lucy shouted, her face reddening in embarrassment. "Mind your own business, you creep!"
"There he is!" Natsu shouted as he ran toward Klodoa. "I got it!"
"No, I got it!" Gray yelled as he ran toward the cane, only for it to fly out of their way, causing the boys to crash into each other.
"Ow!" Natsu shouted as he got in Gray's face. "Watch where you're goin', Ice Prick!"
"You watch where YOU'RE goin', Flame-brain!" Gray spat.
"Boys! Focus!" Lucy yelled.
"I GOT IT!" Haru cried, pinning down something. "Quick! Everybody pile on! Keep it from escaping!"
"YAAAAAAAAAAH!" everyone cried out as they all leapt up and soon found themselves in a dogpile... a literal one in Blue Fang's case since the wolf was actually right on top of everyone, causing the team to let out collective groans of pain.
"Ugh... Haru... what do you feed Blue Fang, anyway?!" Lucy asked in a strained voice.
"So... freakin'... heavy...!" Gray groaned, his face slowly turning blue from the wolf's weight.
"At least we caught the stick...!" Natsu grunted. "That's what counts, right?"
"Uh... correction!" Haru exclaimed as she revealed what they had pinned down: a flattened out blue cat.
"What did I do...?" Happy asked, his eyes swirling in a daze.
"Ah, crap!" Natsu cursed. "Sorry about that, li'l buddy!"
"Where'd that stick go?!" asked Gray as he looked around, only to hear Klodoa's mocking laughter, causing him and everyone else to look up and see the staff floating above them.
"You all look so ridiculous!" the staff exclaimed.
"Oh, yeah?!" Natsu asked. "Just lemme outta this pile-up and I'll make YOU look ridiculous!"
"If you ask me, this whole thing is ridiculous..." Lucy muttered while Klodoa continued his laughter... but then, all of a sudden, he froze, causing everyone to look up at him in confusion... and slowly, a look of dread appeared on the skull's features.
"Oh, no... no, no, no!" he cried. "This isn't happening! This is NOT happening!"
"Uh... what's not happening?" asked Haru, growing more confused and perhaps a bit nervous, as well.
"Midnight... he's been defeated!" Klodoa cried. "All of the Six Demons have fallen!"
XXX
Somewhere in Nirvana... Erza, wearing her Robe of Yūen, stood over the defeated Midnight, who was lying on the ground, unconscious. Behind her stood Jellal, whose eyes were wide with awe as he stared at her.
"...Erza..." he whispered. "That was... extraordinary...!"
Erza turned and smiled at him, the wind flowing through her scarlet hair.
XXX
"With Midnight defeated," Klodoa began, "that means... he'll be appearing, soon!"
"Wait... he?" Lucy repeated, growing just as nervous as he was.
"Wait a second, so there's an 8th member of Oración Seis?" Gray asked. "So, shouldn't it be Oración Ocho, now?!"
"Please, don't," Natsu said as he held his head. "I already got a headache."
"What are you talking about?" asked Haru. "Who's 'he'?!"
"Brain has a split personality," Klodoa answered with mounting dread. "In the public eye, he's known by his codename, 'Brain', who loves knowledge... but deep inside him lies his secret alter ego, who loves nothing more than destruction! He's so violent and controlled such a huge amount of magic power that Brain himself actually had to use Organic Link magic with the other 8 members of Oración Seis to seal him away! And now that Six Demons have been defeated... that means that he'll awaken!"
"He who?!" Gray questioned.
"They call him... Zero...!" Klodoa whispered, and not long after, there was an ominous chill in the air, causing the staff to gasp in horror as he saw a shadowy figure approaching from behind the heroes, who slowly turned around to see a tall, pale-skinned man with wavy, silvery-gray hair and wearing an outfit more reminiscent of that a military officer.
The moment Haru saw him... her heart dropped right into her stomach and her eyes went wide in horror. She then glanced over at the others and saw that they weren't faring much better. Natsu and Gray were shaking like leaves, the latter forcing a cocky grin, while Lucy was holding a trembling Happy in her arms, her legs wobbling as if they were about to give out from underneath her. Blue Fang was lying on the ground, his head bowed and his ears flattened as a sign of submission... even as a fresh puddle of urine formed underneath him.
For the first time in their lives... the Fairy Tail Wizards were feeling true fear.
"So..." said Zero as his blood-red eyes leered at the group with a malicious grin. "Which one of you brats is responsible for thrashing my guild?"
Dun-dun-DUUUUUUN...!
Review, please!