Chapter 156

The White Falcon Returns

I didn't know how long I'd been running, but I managed to gain a bit of distance from the Blue Pegasus building. I also made sure to stay low and on the ground if they decided to search for me from the air. Knowing Natsu and the others, they probably were either going to search for me either by the exceeds and the others or Blue Pegasus' ship Christina. Then again, I wouldn't expect them to start looking for me, given what I just did. After all, I did just quit the guild.

Eventually, I soon came to the town of Shirotsume and decided to take a break after all of that running. I honestly didn't have an idea of where to go; I just needed somewhere to think so I could think about my next move. Until then, I made sure to lay low, just to make sure that no one recognized or saw me. My hoodie was enough to hide my face, but it could only do so much.

"It's times like this when I wish I had my White Falcon outfit. It sure would come in handy right about now, but it's back in Magnolia."

As I walked along, I couldn't help but think about my fight with Mira. Though it wasn't anything physical or had magic involved, it was one of the most challenging struggles I've ever had to endure. I could still remember Mira's last words before I left her. However, despite it all, I felt that it was for the best. Mira and the others won't have to get involved in my problems anymore, and be safe, at least that's what I was hoping,

Then suddenly, there was a loud and familiar gong sound that sent shivers down my spine. The townspeople of Shirotsume heard it too, some of them covering their ears while others looked around wondering where it was coming from. I, on the other hand, knew what that chime was.

"It's the Infinity Clock. No doubt about it. I knew it was loud before, but I didn't think its chime could reach this far."

The gonging went on for about a few more seconds or so, and soon stopped. As the public stood there wondering what the sound was, I continued on my way; I went and got myself a map while figuring out my next move. I not only had to find a new outfit, but I also had to find out where the Oracion Seis and Silver Beard were. Although, I didn't know where to start looking, and knowing them, they weren't going to make things easy for me.

"They could be hiding anywhere in the continent. If I intend to find them, I'm going to have to start looking around find information. But where do I even begin to look?"

I then started thinking, trying to come up with any clues or ideas. Sadly, I couldn't think of anything that would be helpful, except for two places. Two places that were the last ones I wanted to visit again, but they were the only places I could think of to hunt for information.

The Vulcan's Head at Belsart and The Hammerfist over at Akane Beach.

"It's a long shot, but it's better than what I've got going for me right now. First, I'll head for The Vulcan's Head, and then I'll talk to Swanson over at his club. It's going to take a while to get there, given that I'm in Shirotsume. However, if I get going now, I should be able to get there within a few days. But, there's the issue of my alter ego, the White Falcon. Considering that the people there only know me as that name, I either got to find another outfit, or go back to Magnolia and get my outfit back. Normally, I'd be more than willing to get another outfit, but this case, time is of the essence, so I guess I'm heading to Magnolia first. However, I think it would be best if I go by nightfall. At least that way I can sneak into my apartment."

I put away my map and continued through Shirotsume, my mission now set. However, as I walked past the food stalls, my eyes fell upon something that made them go wide in shock. Just a few feet away from me, I saw Freed holding a bag of groceries as he walked by.

"Why the heck is he here?! Of all the places he had to be, why here?! Now that I think about it, I haven't seen him or the Thunder Legion for a while now. Where the heck have they been?!"

Not wanting to be seen by Freed, I quickly tugged on my hood, hiding my face. Unfortunately, it was a bit too late. Freed had already seen me.

"Oh, Willy? Is that you?" asked Freed. "What a surprise to see you here."

"O-Oh! Hey, Freed," I greeted back. "Likewise. What are you doing here?"

"I was just in picking up some ingredients for our meal tonight," said Freed. "Me, along with Evergreen and Bixlow, are staying in town after completing a job."

"I-I see," I said, trying to be cheerful. "That's good."

"And what about you?" asked Freed. "What brings you to Shirotsume?"

"Oh, well," I said, quickly coming up with an excuse. "I was just in the neighborhood. Stopping by after completing a job myself, you know?"

"Are you heading back to Magnolia?" asked Freed. "If so, then why don't you come with me back to the hotel? You must be feeling tired after being on such a long journey, and the four of us could go back to Fairy Tail together."

I swallowed a lump in my throat, but I managed to utter a response. "Sorry, Freed. That's kind of you to offer, but I'm afraid that I've got some things to take care of and it can't wait. So I'm afraid I'm going to have to say no."

"What a shame," frowned Freed. "Perhaps another time. I suppose you'd best be going."

I answered with a nod putting on a brave smile as I turned to leave. But as I walked off, I heard Freed.

"Maybe when we see each other back at Magnolia, we can catch up for a while. I did enjoy our last job together. It would be nice to spend a bit of time with you again."

I then stopped walking, feeling my heart clench inside my chest. At first, I didn't say anything. Then I continued walking without saying another word.

"I'm sorry, Freed. If only you knew about what was going on. On the other hand, this isn't the time to be worrying about you. I'm not a Fairy Tail guild member anymore, so it's not like anything they do is my business. Besides, I can't get dragged down by anyone. I'm on my own now, and I have to be the one who settles things. Time to go see a man about six demons and a bastard of a scientist."

I then pulled up my hood, pulled my gloves, and broke into a run, leaping into the air as I set off on my journey.

In a secluded location from prying eyes, the Oracion Seis, along with Silver Beard, stood before the Infinity Clock, marveling at its majesty. Brain, especially, was feeling pleased with himself.

"I would like to congratulate you all on a job well done," said Brain. "Now that we have the Infinity Clock in our possession, it's only a matter of time before the Amplitude Limiters are released."

"Then what are we waiting for?" cackled Jackpot. "Let's hurry up and finish the rest of the churches!"

"Yes! More destruction!" concurred Racer. "The end of everything!"

"The end will be coming soon, we just need one more piece of the puzzle," said Cobra. "Then, when we can open the gates of hell."

"Oh, yeah! The power of the Infinity Clock will surely make us victorious!" said Richard, aka Hoteye. "Giving us so much power, that the entire world will tremble! Oh, yeah!"

"Yes, I agree, Hoteye, but as it stands now, it is not yet fully complete yet," said Brain. "To obtain its great powers, then we must obtain that missing piece. Once we do, we'll destroy this world and have our revenge against the people who wronged us. Especially Fairy Tail."

"Is that the reason why you and your group decided to leave Fairy Tail alive, Master Brain?" asked Silver Beard. "After all, you did have the prime opportunity to kill them back in the caves. It just seems like a waste of time if you ask me."

Everyone glanced over at Silver Beard.

"You better watch your mouth, Satoshi," warned Cobra. "You may be on our side, but if you start questioning our plan then-"

"Now, now, Cobra. There's no need to get so hostile," Brain spoke calmly. "That is a valid question, and that alone deserves an answer." He then looked back at Silver Beard. "If you recall our plan, it's not yet time for the people of Fairy Tail to meet their end. It's not enough that we simply kill them outright. There are things in life that are far worse than death, and I want Fairy Tail to experience them first hand."

"As do I father," said Midnight. "Most especially, Willy Falconer. I want to take my sweet time tearing him apart, piece by piece."

"My, my. I've heard of the saying like father like son, but you two are something else," said Silver Beard. "It seems as though you've thought this through, so I suppose I shouldn't complain. I apologize if it seemed I was questioning you. I do have to ask, aren't you worried about them getting in the way of completing the clock? After all, they aren't just going to stand idly by, you know."

"Another valid question. Naturally, I've taken those maggots into account, and have a sound strategy," said Brain. "But for now, I'd like you to focus on your project and ready the drug for our followers, while we destroy the other churches."

"As you wish, Brain," said Silver Beard. "I shall do as you command."

Brain then faced the rest of the Seis. "As for the rest of you, go forth to the other churches and burn them to the ground! Then prepare yourselves for our final confrontation with Fairy Tail, as we move the hands of time until they, along with this world is history!"

The members of the Oracion Seis then departed, leaving the room to fulfill their mission. As they did, Silver Beard looked back at the Infinity Clock. Then he dug into his coat and took out a photo. It was of a smiling and a happy couple holding a baby in their arms, while another young man stood next to them. He, on the other hand, appeared to be smiling, but was fake at best. As Silver Beard stared at the picture, while his face remained neutral, a small glimmer of wistfulness crossed his eyes.

"Things that are worse than death, eh?" Silver Beard repeated to himself. "How true that is Master Brain. I alone know all too well how excruciating that kind of suffering can be." He then placed the photo back into his coat, the glimmer of wistfulness changing into a more dark demeanor. "But enough of that. For now, I have a project to complete, and once completed, Fairy Tail won't be the only ones who will experience the suffering you spoke Brain."

And with that, Silver Beard teleported away, leaving the room. As he did, he had yet to realize that someone had been watching him, the person's eyes narrowing in suspicion.

WILLY'S POV

It took about a day of running or so, but I managed to get back to Magnolia. However, it was already nightfall, which meant that everyone in Magnolia was most likely fast asleep. If I was going to get my White Falcon outfit, I was going to have to try and sneak in and get it. After all, it did contain the vial and the card I needed to get into Swanson's club. As I made my way around town, I hopped on the rooftops making sure that to hide like I've done before until I came to the apartments.

It was very dark and quiet as I hopped over to the roof. However, when I tried to open the window, I found that the window wouldn't open, no matter how hard I pulled.

"Damn it. Someone locked it up. It looks like I'll have to find another way inside."

I looked around, looking for any openings to get inside. I couldn't go through the entrance because if the landlady saw me, then Lucy would follow suit, and I didn't want to see either of them right now. Lucy's window, along with the others, were locked too. I didn't want a repeat of what happened the other night when Michelle saw me.

Then, I looked up towards the upper levels of the apartments, and saw my answer. On top of the roof were the two chimneys. Usually, during the day, they were billowing with smoke, but at night, they didn't let out a single puff. I hopped up to inspect them, and luckily for me, they were big and wide enough for a single person to get in. It was perfect for me to break into, but I also had doubts about this.

"There's a possibility the chimneys are rigged with a spell to keep people like me out. Then again, I've never heard of anyone trying to break into an apartment like this one, and there isn't time to think about this, so I'm just going to have to risk it."

I took a glance around, making sure that no one was looking, then I jumped up and went down into the chimney. It was somewhat of a tight fit, but I was also to get inside. The vent went down for a bit until I hit the bottom that went straight ahead of me. I crawled my way until I came to an opening to my right. I went towards that direction until I saw a dip leading to a fireplace.

"It seems as though the chimneys have a network of some kind that leads to the other apartments. If that's the case, I better make sure that this is the right one. My Aqua Sense should do the trick."

I closed my eyes and focused, letting out a magic pulse. Just outside of the fireplace, I could see a formless blue shape representing a person. Knowing this, I backed up and then continued down the network, making sure to check the openings that I came across. So far, each one had at least one person sleeping in there. Then I came across another fireplace on my right and checked out with my Aqua Sense. This time, I didn't sense one, but two people, one of them having a larger magic signature than the other.

"That's got to be Lucy. She's the only other person I know with a magic signature like this. And the other one must be Michelle. Which means..."

I backed up from the fireplace, and then entered the next one using my Aqua Sense. This time, I didn't sense anyone outside. Then, just as I was about to crawl down into it, my hands felt nothing but air, causing me to lose my balance. Before I could stop myself, I fell landed in the fireplace with a thud making soot billow everywhere.

"Geez, that wasn't the most graceful of landings," I coughed. "That oughta teach me to be careful."

I stood up, brushing some of the soot off while looking around the room. At a glance, I knew that this was my room. I quickly went over to my bed and found my White Falcon clothes just as I had left them. I then took off my clothes, hiding them away, and changed. Now wearing my White Falcon attire, I inspected the mask noticing the damage on the lower part.

"Well, I suppose that this will have to do for now. At least it covers up most of my face."

I then put the mask on while making sure it was snug. After that, I checked my pockets, making sure that the contents were still inside them. The card to Swanson's club was still there along with the vial of ooze. I put the card back into my pockets while I still held onto the vial of ooze.

"After everything that's happened, I'm not even sure if this thing will be of any use to me anymore. After all, now that I know that Silver Beard's alive, I don't think I need this. All I need is to find the bastard, and then-"

Suddenly, there was a loud bang, followed by a loud shout.

"Hold it right there!"

I jumped feeling started and quickly turned around, only to see Lucy and Michelle standing there.

"Dammit, all! I must have woken them up when I fell in the fireplace earlier!"

"Look, Big Sister! That's him!" Michelle cried. "That's the burglar I saw the other night! The one with the falcon mask!"

"Who are you?!" demanded Lucy. "And how did you get into Willy's room?!"

Not wanting to stick around to answer, I made a beeline for the window, and while saying a silent apology to the landlady, I jumped through it with a mighty crash. As soon as I landed on the ground below, I took off running as fast as I could.

"Hey! Get back here!" I heard Lucy yell. "You're not getting away!"

But I just kept running without looking back.

"I need to get outside of Magnolia! I can lose Lucy in the forest so that she won't follow me! It's not like she can do much damage."

At that moment, two long lines of chains shot by me, narrowly missing me. Then, someone came out from the ground, leaving a hole in its wake and barred my way, a young girl with short pink hair that wore a maid's outfit.

"Princess, I have stopped the intruder as you requested," the girl said. "Shall I punish him for you now?"

Lucy, then ran up. "Never mind that! Just make sure you catch this guy! Don't let him get away!"

"As you wish, Princess," said the maid girl.

The maid girl then jumped up and then shot her chains at me, making them extend. I jumped up to dodge gaining distance, and tried to run, but then I was surrounded by a ring of boulders.

"SPICA LOCK!"

The boulders then shot towards me, threatening to crush me in the middle. I coiled my legs and took a giant leap, dodging just in time. I was about to spread my wings to fly away, but I remembered something that stopped me.

"I can't risk using my magic; otherwise, Lucy will recognize me. As far as she knows, I was an enemy that broke into my room. There has to be a way to shake her off."

I looked around, trying to find a way out, as Lucy's spirit disappeared into a hole in the ground and suddenly shot out from behind me, throwing a punch. I was able to avoid it by blocking and countered with a fist of my own. Then, at that moment, a throng of a whip suddenly cracked, wrapping around my wrist tightly. The whip came from Lucy, who was trying her best to keep me from running.

"Of all the days, Lucy decided to pick a fight with me; it had to be now! This is starting to get annoying!"

"Now, I gotcha!" Lucy grinned. "Virgo! Now's your chance! Trap him in one of your holes!"

"As you which, Princess!" acknowledged the maid girl.

Virgo then leaped into the air and gathered magic power into her hands, prepared to swing down with them, but as she did, I looked over at Lucy and saw that she was close to the canal, which gave me an idea.

"Sorry about this, Lucy, but I've got no time for games. Hope you won't hold it against me."

As Virgo came down, I shot straight towards Lucy dodging the blow, and before she could react or defend, I gave her a shove causing her to stumble backward. Lucy fumbled and tried to keep herself standing, but in the end, her balance failed her as she fell right into the canal.

"Princess!" cried Virgo as she quickly dove after her, not even bothering to pay attention to me.

As soon as she dove into the water, I took off running as fast as I could until I was out of Magnolia and into the forest.

NO POV

Virgo soon fished Lucy out of the water, and the blonde was not only soggy and wet, but she was also very cross.

"Why that little punk! How dare he push me into the canal?!" Lucy snapped. "And these were my favorite clothes too!"

"I apologize about your clothes, Princess," said Virgo. "And I'm also sorry for letting our enemy escape. Do you want to punish me?"

"How about you go back to the Celestial World for now?" Lucy sighed.

"As you wish, Princess," said Virgo, and she disappeared in a bright flash of light.

Michelle then came running over. "Big Sister! Are you okay?" she asked. "What are you doing in the canal?"

"That masked jerk pushed me in!" Lucy complained in a pout. "And he managed to get away too! If I ever see that jerk again, he's going to pay with interest!" She then let out a tiny sneeze as she shivered.

"Maybe we should get you out of those wet clothes first," suggested Michelle. "Otherwise, you might catch a cold." Then she gasped, remembering something. "Oh! Big Sister! There's something I have to show you! Look at this!"

Michelle then dug into her dress, taking something out something from her pocket, and showed it to Lucy. It was the small vial containing the ooze that Willy had earlier.

"What is that, Michelle?" wondered Lucy.

"I don't know, but I found it on the floor before I chased after you," said Michelle. "I'm guessing that masked falcon guy must have dropped it."

Lucy then took the vial and inspected it. "What is this stuff? Some kind of drink or something?"

Michelle had no clue.

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Until then, Dragomaster, signing off.