A/N: Okay! I'm back in my own home, and feeling significantly better about my life now that I am. Sorry if I was a bit of a Scrooge last time, I was dealing with more than enough stress :P
In any case, welcome back to Saiyan Tail! I'm so glad that the last chapter was so well-received, and that you all enjoyed the metamoran fusion I concocted with Natsu and Gorun. If you'll see though, I've taken down the image of Narun in favor of the one my wife so lovingly created for this story. HOWEVER! You're all in luck, because I have only just recently joined the world of instagram (why, oh why have I done this to myself?) so that you can all go and see that picture whenever you want, along with other pieces of artwork that my wife and I have worked on over the years.
You can find me as the_red_swordsman on instagram. I don't have a lot up yet, but there is much more coming. If you follow me on this social media platform in particular, you may just become privy to some new character(s) and/or upcoming fusions that I have up my sleeve...
And with that little teaser, I bid you a good read! Hope you're in the mood for some character development and a big deviation from the original fairy tail canon, cos that's what I got this time! Ass-kickery will mostly have to wait until Christmas (sorry). Please leave a review, I'm personally hoping that we can hit eighty for this story before we hit 2019!
P.S. Me and the crew over at Not Your Average Productions may be working on an O.V.A. cartoon for this story... ;)
Magic Battle Nexus Arc: Chapter 9
Time Patroller
A smile had found its way onto Kinana's face as she watched Yukino talking with Lucy and Wendy, glad to see her new friend and comrade getting along well with others in the guild, especially the other girls. It boded well for her joining Gorun's team and becoming an official Fairy Tail mage, her finding someone that she could converse with, other than Natsu and Gorun.
The purple-haired girl would be lying if she said that she hadn't felt concerned when her boyfriend raced off to avenge another girl, especially one as attractive and talented as Yukino. However, as he always was, Gorun had been a perfect gentleman in his approach to the celestial mage, according to Yukino when Kinana had quizzed her about his actions. Nothing he had done either in Kinana's presence or absence had led her to believe that he was anything but loyal and committed to their relationship. Especially if his reactions to Happy's insensitive teasing was anything to go by.
Yes, Kinana had plenty to smile about, she thought. Fairy Tail was nearly back on top, the Tenrou Team was back in action and better than ever, and she had the most wonderful boyfriend in the world- or any world, seeing as he was apparently from another planet and realm entirely.
She wondered if it was strange that it didn't bother her, him being an alien. Then, with another grin, she decided that it probably was strange, but she just didn't care. If you were in Fairy Tail, you had to have some quirk or another, and she could think of way worse ones to have.
These happy thoughts were interrupted when Gorun suddenly teleported into the bar. At first Kinana was happy to see him, and she started towards him. Then she saw the look on his face, and it was enough to make her halt in place.
His normally-tanned skin was pale as a sheet, and sweat lined his brow. His mouth was set in a compressed line, but his eyes were wide, and his entire body was as tense as string on a bow. In all their time together, Kinana had never seen him look like this, but she knew what the body language and the look on his face meant.
Gorun was terrified.
His eyes cast about the room wildly, ignoring the stares in the now-silent room before he jabbed his pointer finger as he spoke, saying, "Natsu, Lucy, Yukino. Gajeel and Wendy, you guys, too. Come with me."
"What are you-?"
"This isn't a suggestion or a request," the youth interrupted Gajeel tightly, his voice strained. "Come. Now."
Kinana strode over to him, ahead of the people he had called on, a worried frown on her face. "Gorun, what's going on?" she asked him in a lowered tone. "Did you and Mystogan find the guy?" She used Jellal's cover name since there were non-guild members present.
"Did we ever," the Saiyan youth nodded stiffly. "I'm sorry, but explanations will have to wait. All I can say right now is that things are worse than I ever thought possible."
Kinana literally recoiled in shock. She had never heard her boyfriend speak in such negative terms before. Even when he was upset, he was at least somewhat positive, always confident that he could take on whatever an enemy could throw at him. There was none of that confidence present now- only stark terror and uncertainty that sent Kinana's spine to shivering.
What could they have found that has him spooked so bad? She wondered as the others that he had called on gathered around him, each of them asking questions.
"Save your questions for the one who can answer them," Gorun said to cut them all off. "We don't have a lot of time." Holding out his hand, he added, "Grab on, shut up, and whatever you do, no major hysterics." The others began to grab onto his arm, albeit hesitantly.
"Hey, why's he looking at me when he-"
Lucy was cut off midsentence as Gorun engaged instant transmission, teleporting them all to some unknown location. As usual, whenever something about Gorun confused the others in the guild, they turned to Kinana for an explanation.
"What was that all about?" It was Gray who voiced the question, wearing a frown and little else as he approached the purple-haired girl.
"I don't know," she said in a very small voice. "But… Gorun was more scared than I've ever seen him. And if he's worried… something awful must be going on."
"Don't worry about it," Romeo piped up after a tense silence. When the others turned to look at him, they were all surprised to see him grinning confidently as he added, "Gorun's gotta be one of the strongest wizards ever, and Natsu's just as awesome! If they team up like they did against Sabertooth, there's nothing that can stand against them!"
Many of the others chorused their agreement with the young fire mage. However, Gray noticed that Kinana was not among them.
They don't understand the levels of threats he's used to receiving, she thought bleakly, recalling the tales he had told her of villains like Broly, capable of destroying entire worlds with a flick of their wrist. I can only hope that whatever is coming, he'll be able to handle it.
The group materialized at a terrace overlooking the sea, the nearly-full moon high overhead. Gorun let them get their bearings before rubbing his wrists nervously and saying, "All right… Bring her out, Jellal." They all turned in surprise to see the blue-haired convict stepping out of the shadows, his expression graver and more severe than ever.
"Thank you all for coming on short notice," he said as he stepped fully into the moonlight. "But this pertains especially to you dragon slayers and celestial wizards."
"What does?!" Lucy demanded.
"Yeah, cut the crap and spit it out already!" Natsu growled, frustrated. "Why are we even out here instead of partying with our friends?!"
"They wouldn't call you out here on a whim, Natsu," a familiar voice said from the shadows that Jellal had just exited. However, the voice was strained and haggard, making recognition difficult without a face.
"Who's there?" Gajeel demanded roughly.
"Hang on a sec," Natsu said, waving the other dragon slayer back. "I know that smell… But… Wait, what?!" The exclamation was drawn out of him as the speaker in the shadows stepped out so that she could be identified in the moonlight. Lucy stood before them, dressed in a black cloak, looking weak and worn.
"What the…?" Lucy said from beside Natsu, taking a step back in surprise. "What is this?" Around her, the Fairy Tail wizards were all recoiling in surprise or making other gestures of shock.
"There are two of 'em?!" Gajeel shouted in surprise.
"Wait, are you from Edolas?" Wendy inquired, though she was just as unsettled as the others.
"No, the doors between our realms are sealed," Jellal said with a shake of his head. "This Lucy is the one you have all known since she joined Fairy Tail."
"Not exactly," the Lucy that was standing behind Jellal said tiredly. "While it's true to say that I'm Lucy Heartfelia, I'm not the girl you've all come to know. I'm from a future not far off…"
"You're a… time-traveler?" Yukino asked, a strange note in her voice.
"She is," Gorun nodded certainly. "She has a… distinctive aura that one can only acquire by forcing themselves back through the tapestries of time."
"And how do you know about that?" Gajeel asked Gorun shrewdly, causing the Saiyan boy to wince.
"Time enough for that in a minute," he said after an awkward silence. "Lucy isn't here for a social call, and we need to get you five caught up to speed right now and five minutes ago if possible." He gestured for the future Lucy to come up and join them, turning the small gathering into a rough circle.
She did so, trembling and eyes downcast. "First off, you should all know that I've come back in time only a few weeks, so the disaster I've come back to warn you about isn't far off- less than two days, in fact."
"Disaster?" Natsu interrupted, eyes wide. "What happened that was so bad you had to figure out how to time travel?" Turning to his partner, he added, "And since when could you time travel?!"
"I don't know!" the present-day Lucy muttered. "But maybe if you shut up for two minutes, I- er, she'll tell us."
"Don't interrupt her, Natsu," Gorun said warningly. "This is serious."
Future Lucy cracked tiny smile at Natsu grumbling and pouting, but quickly became serious again. "In my time, we discovered two things that for reasons we'll get to in a bit, you guys haven't found out about. One was a dragon graveyard, deep in the ground underneath the arena." She waited for the obligatory exclamations of surprise to pan out before she continued, saying, "When we made it down there, Wendy was able to use her Milky Way spell to communicate with a long-dead dragon named Zirconis, who told us the history of Acnologia- how he was once a human that fell to an unfortunate side effect of overusing dragon slayer magic; becoming a dragon himself, and losing his humanity."
"What?!" all three dragon slayers exclaimed.
"That can happen?!" Gajeel sputtered.
"We're all gonna turn into giant lizards?!" Natsu screeched.
"I don't wanna be a dragon!" Wendy cried.
"Get a grip!" Gorun bellowed, surprising them all with his vehemence. "There's more to it than that!"
Once everyone had calmed down- though Wendy still looked like she might faint- Future Lucy took up her tale again. "We also discovered that the military built a machine that had been absorbing magic power during the Grand Magic Games for the last seven years, called the 'Eclipse'. This was actually thanks to Yukino, since she had joined the military in order to assist with the project, and them needing my help to complete it. Well, more accurately, they needed our zodiac keys."
"Hold on a minute," Yukino frowned, confused. "I never joined the military. I was invited to join Fairy Tail, and I did. I've never been approached about any 'Eclipse' project, either."
"We know," Jellal said calmly. "There's an explanation for that, one we will cover in detail once everything else has been said."
"In any case, the Eclipse is activated by celestial magic, but it's a device directly from the pages of the book of Zeref," future Lucy told them gravely. "I'm sure you've already guessed its function by now."
"It lets you travel through time," the present Lucy said with a small gasp. "It has something to do with how time flows differently between our world and the celestial realm, right?"
"Yeah," her future counterpart nodded. "And I came back because you need to know that on July 7, right after the games end, a swarm of ten thousand dragons is coming- and there will be nothing left in this city except for a damaged Eclipse Gate that I managed to use to get back here. The city goes up in flames…" She began to shake violently, tears streaming down her face. "The country is d-destroyed… and… you're all…" She fell to her knees, overcome with emotion. She clutched at her face with her left hand as she began to rock back and forth.
"Ten thousand dragons?!" Gajeel said in disbelief. "And… even us dragon slayers… we don't…?"
"No one!" Future Lucy shouted in grief. "Everyone is gone! It's just me and Levy! That's all that's left of Fairy Tail, and Levy was too weak to make the trip out here and-!" She sobbed, unable to go on.
"No way…" Natsu breathed, speechless for once. Wendy couldn't even protest, rendered completely mute by horror and shock.
"This can't be real…" Present Lucy breathed.
"I don't understand," Yukino said in a horrified voice. "Even Gorun…? Even though he and Natsu defeated those that have slain dragons?"
"That's the part where it gets really bad, at least where I'm concerned," Gorun grimaced, realizing that they weren't going to get anything out of Lucy's future self for some time. "I've told Kinana most of what you're about to hear, and some of you already know a part of it, but it's time I tell you the full truth about where I come from, and what it means for your future."
"Is this about you being… uh…?" Lucy paused, unsure of how much she should say.
"An alien?" Gorun asked with a raised brow. "Yeah, that would be one facet of this."
"Wait, you're an-"
"Extra-terrestrial, dimension-hopper, inter-planetary traveler, take your pick," Gorun said heavily, shocking everyone but Natsu, Jellal, and the two Lucy's. "Yes, I am not of this world. Not even this dimension, actually. And where I come from, I was being trained to become a defender of the proper flow of time- a Time Patroller, if you will. Long story short, I decided that it wasn't the life for me, and I used seven items called dragon balls to summon a mythical dragon that sent me here, where I could be free of my past."
He was greeted with a stunned silence for several moments before the present Lucy said, "Okay, total information overload here. Why does that have anything to do with me coming back in time?!"
The Saiyan hybrid could see that they were all close to exploding in various ways- whether because of the shock of knowing that they were supposed to die in a few days, or that he was apparently an alien, he wasn't sure; it was hard to tell with them sometimes. "According to Lucy here," he made a gesture at the Lucy that was on her knees, still trying to control her sobs, "I wasn't present in her timeline. Because of me, certain events that were supposed to take place, didn't. Which, in my experience, means that we are even more screwed than we were before."
"How can we possibly be more screwed than the end of the world?!" Present Lucy shouted at him.
Gorun blinked a few times before nodding and saying, "Fair point, but don't underestimate the flow of time. It has always shown itself to be incredibly temperamental if tampered with."
"You said that certain events haven't happened that were supposed to," Yukino said, cutting back in. "What did you mean by that?"
"For starters, you never joined the military to assist with the Eclipse project," Jellal said, taking point. "And where this Lucy comes from, Kinana never learned to use magic, and she certainly didn't compete in the games. Elfman was the one who was supposed to substitute for Wendy, but in this era he never got the chance. In addition, I was supposed to face Jura on the first day, Cana would have then switched in for me and won the MPF contest, and it was Gajeel who was supposed to join Natsu in the battle against Sting and Rogue."
"At the end of the fight, when Sting blasted open the caverns underneath the arena, Natsu and Gajeel would have gotten into an argument," Gorun said. "Natsu would have pushed Gajeel into a mine cart which led down into the dragon catacombs, and gone on to defeat Sting and Rogue on his own. Lastly, Yukino and Lucy were imprisoned when one part of the military decided that the Eclipse was too dangerous to use- that way they couldn't use the zodiac keys necessary to open the gate that leads into time itself."
"Ha!" Natsu laughed. "Knew I coulda taken on those two by myself!"
"Yeah, yeah, we're all very proud of you," present Lucy said sarcastically. "But as usual, you're missing the point! How are we supposed to take on ten thousand dragons?!"
"Duh, we know they're coming now, so we fight 'em," Gajeel grinned, cracking his knuckles. "They might'a had the advantage of surprise last time, but not-"
"You won't last against ten of them, Gajeel," said Future Lucy hoarsely. "Natsu barely lasted a minute against a group of fire dragons…" Her distressed words stopped the conversation cold.
"B-But we're dragon slayers!" Wendy protested. "How could we-?!"
"You have the capability to slay dragons, that doesn't mean it's an easy task," Gorun said heavily. "If it were, you'd have killed Acnologia seven years ago."
Gajeel and Natsu both bristled at the mention of that defeat, but neither one of them openly protested. They all realized that he was right- if they couldn't stand against one dragon, however powerful, how could they hope to stand up to a swarm of ten thousand?
"So… what do we do?" Present Lucy asked, directing the question to her future self. "Do you have a plan to stop the dragons? Or should we just try to run and hope they don't find us?"
"Honestly, I have no idea," Future Lucy said with another shudder. "I had just been focusing on getting to the Eclipse… hoping past hope that I would be able to warn you guys. I honestly don't even really know how I got the Eclipse to work… I just…"
"Hey," Natsu said, with more gentleness and warmth than Gorun had ever heard him speak with. He knelt in front of the future Lucy and put a hand on her head, smiling at her as she gazed at him with tear-filled eyes. "We're gonna figure it out. All of us, together." He pulled her head closer, until his forehead rested against hers. "Thank you," he said in a low voice. "For coming back to help us."
"I…" Future Lucy found herself unable to make any kind of articulate reply, so she just leaned into the hug, crying softly.
While this was going on, Gajeel was staring hard at Gorun, as if seeing him for the first time. However, when he spoke next, it had nothing to do with the boy. "What I gotta wonder is why the military needs a time-travelling gate?" he muttered aloud.
"Apparently they wanted to use it to go back four hundred years to kill Zeref before he became immortal," Jellal answered him.
"In regards to that, I'm glad they failed," Gorun said heavily. "Interfering with time is left solely to the discretion of the gods where I come from. The god I served, the Supreme Kai of Time, would recruit strong warriors to go back in time to set things back on course whenever a group we called the 'Time Breakers' tried to steer things off-course, so such a thing would be considered sacrosanct."
"Why?" Wendy asked him, glancing at the Saiyan warrior. "Wouldn't it be good if he was never able to create all the horrible things that he did? Erza's village never would have been raided if that cult had tried to build that Tower of Heaven thing. Gray's family would still be alive, too, and a lot of other people."
"My parents would still be alive," Yukino said under her breath, almost to herself, but Gorun's keen ears caught it. "My sister would be…" She jerked her head up, apparently aware that she was speaking aloud. "I would do it," she said firmly. "I can see now why I would want to join this project."
"Don't," Gorun said swiftly. "It may seem like a good idea up front, but think about it in depth. Sure, you may prevent the threat of Zeref, but there is no world that exists out there without dark forces that would seek to tear it down. You may be rid of one problem, but I can guarantee you that there would be something or someone else to take his place. Killing Zeref in the past is not the answer."
"So should Lucy not have come back to warn us?" Gajeel demanded roughly, surprising everyone. It was the first time they'd heard him refer to the blond girl by her name, but he ignored their stares in favor of glaring at Gorun. "And if you're so against messing with timelines, why the hell did you think it would be okay to come here, huh?"
"Gajeel, hold on," Wendy began, but Gorun held up a hand for her to be silent.
"Unfortunately, he's absolutely right," the boy said heavily. "The Time Patrol was founded by the Supreme Kai of Time after one of my ancestors changed something in the past and created an entirely new timeline as a result. That's why the organization exists- to prevent things like this. Whether because Lucy has come back, or because I came here, or a combination thereof, we are now living in a parallel timeline. The havoc that could cause to the space-time continuum is immeasurable."
"Wait, what are you saying?" Jellal queried as Gorun began to back away from them.
"I'm saying that I've made an awful mistake," the boy said quietly, his eyes falling away from theirs'. "I… don't belong here. I never did. I have to-"
"If you say that you're gonna leave, I'll punch your teeth out." The unexpected declaration was uttered from Natsu's throat, etched with a growl. They all looked to see him standing from where he had been comforting Future Lucy, rage written clearly on his face.
"Natsu, my presence here is-"
"A damn good thing," the pinkette said, stopping not one pace away from his friend. Moving faster than Gorun had expected him to, the dragon slayer reached out, seized his right hand, and yanked up his arm so that his green Fairy Tail mark was easy to see. "You wear this mark, you're one of us. Before timelines and whatever some faraway god thinks, you're one of us. You're here with us for a reason!"
"But I-"
"Yeah!" Present Lucy exclaimed. "You said it yourself, damage already done! It's not like you can damage this timeline if it wasn't supposed to exist in the first place, right?"
"That's not exactly-"
"You can help us make a new timeline!" Wendy added, overriding the protesting Saiyan as he tried to disengage Natsu's grip. "One where we all live, and be happy!"
"Please," begged Future Lucy. "We need all the help we can get… I know you weren't in my time, but… these guys are right. If you wear that mark, you're Fairy Tail before anything else."
"I…" Gorun hesitated, at a loss for words. Mostly because he was touched that they all still wanted him to stay, but also, because he realized that maybe they were right. If his actions had already created a parallel timeline like Trunks had in the past, then why should he stop where he was? This universe hadn't imploded so far, so what would him staying make any more difference?
Still… "I don't know," he said uncertainly. "I just… This goes against what I was raised to do, deliberately changing time."
"For crying out loud, you've already changed things around here!" Gajeel shouted. "Now you're gonna run off and leave the job half-done?! I thought you were kind of a snob, but I never took you for a coward."
Gorun's first reaction was to be angry. He went to point out that it was Gajeel who had brought up the point that he didn't originally belong in this timeline, but then he paused and realized that what the Iron Dragon Slayer was saying might actually be closer to home than he would like to admit. When he had felt that he would buckle under the pressure of the legacy being handed to him, he had run. Now that it seemed he was only making another mistake, his first instinct was to run. Am I a coward? He wondered, looking dully at the green mark on his arm. My gut reaction is to run instead of owning up to my actions… That's not the mark of a warrior- of a Saiyan. It's the sign of a craven.
He clenched his free fist and took a deep breath. He looked over to Yukino, the only one who had yet to speak since he had tried to retreat. She met his eyes and smiled a little sadly. "I would be sad to see you go," she admitted. "You've made me feel like I could have a real home, and a guild to believe in. I don't know how I managed to cope with being thrown out of Sabertooth without your help, but it sounds like the me from the future would have been a lot more sad than I am now. If you left, I…" She shook her head and dashed the thought away. "Please stay, Gorun," she begged.
"No one here thinks that you showin' up was a bad thing," Natsu said firmly, locking eyes with Gorun as he spoke. "In fact, because of you and Lucy, maybe we'll stand a chance at beating these dragons. Besides, none of us wanna break it to Kinana that you left."
His last words brought any arguments that Gorun might have been able to concoct to a crashing halt. As he pictured his girlfriend in his mind's eye, the way she would look when one of them told her that he had left her, right before they were all to be slaughtered, no less, he felt his resolve crumble. He could imagine the heartbreak, the anger that she would feel towards him, and that was something he just couldn't take.
He slumped his shoulders, defeated. "You all make good points," he mumbled. "I'm… sorry. For being a coward." Natsu snorted and let go of his arm.
"Heh," Gajeel chuckled, surprising him yet again. "There's no shame in bein' a little scared, kid. You'd only be a coward if you actually left." Gorun looked up to see the metallic slayer grinning.
"Heck, we're all scared," Present Lucy said as she helped her future self to her feet. "But we're Fairy Tail. We've got a couple of days to plan, which is a lot more than we had in the future. Let's use this time!"
"Heh." Future Lucy gave vent to a weak chuckle. "And here I was worried that you all wouldn't believe me. Guess I worried over nothing."
"Just how long have you been waiting to contact us?" Jellal asked her, an eyebrow raised. "You could have come to them much sooner."
"I only arrived on midnight last night," she answered. "And I… I know now that I should have had more faith in them. It's just…"
"Don't worry about it," Wendy said with a smile to the older girl. "You're handling this a lot better than I would have, I know." While the others laughed at the younger girl, Jellal and Gorun exchanged a quick glance of alarm.
"She says she only arrived last night, the eve of the third day, the morning of the fourth," Jellal said through telepathy. "If that's true, why did we sense her presence on the third day, during the competition?!"
"Unless it wasn't her we were sensing," Gorun said grimly. "I was trying to track her based on the Time Breaker energy signature. Anyone who has travelled through time via methods not developed by my previous master would carry that signature on them."
"Anyone?" Jellal repeated. "So then…"
"It seems as though the investigation isn't as closed as we thought it was," Gorun nodded. "There's another time traveler around. One with an agenda completely unknown to us. Could be Zeref for all we know… Great."
"Do you think Lucy knows about this other traveler?" Jellal wondered.
"No," Gorun said immediately. "Look at her- she's barely keeping it together. If she'd come back with someone to help her, she wouldn't be acting like this, nor would she be wandering about, alone. I very much doubt that she knows about the other."
"Hmm… for now we had best focus on the problems we have a clear knowledge of," Jellal decided. "How to counter this dragon menace."
"Yeah… Let's get right on that, any ideas?" Gorun asked sarcastically.
"I suggest we rejoin the conversation at hand for that," Jellal answered. "Get them started, I'll inform Urtear and Meredy of what's happening."
"In the meantime, I'll just hope that there's not someone from a third timeline running around," Gorun muttered sourly.
"So… Yeah," Gorun concluded awkwardly. He looked at the small crowd of people that he and the others had just finished recounting the situation to. He saw shock, horror, even some denial in the faces of his guild mates. The group of dragon slayers and celestial wizards had decided that the others, at the very least, deserved to know about what was coming, so they had gathered everyone they could find at the bar they had rented out for the night.
He had spared nothing in his explanation of how his presence could be affecting the timeline, and a result, their own destinies. He had told them the truth about where he came from, and why he had decided to leave. It was all out in the open now, his history, and Future Lucy's tale of the times to come. All they could do now was wait for the rest of Fairy Tail to decide on what to do with the information they had been given.
Future Lucy and Gorun looked expectantly to Makarov, whose expression was grim indeed. Many of the others in the guild followed suit, wondering what he would have to say about the outlandish claims of the two wizards. However, much to Gorun's immense relief, Kinana came to stand by him and place her smaller hand in his own.
I'm still with you, the gesture said.
He squeezed her hand to say, Thank you.
"This is troubling news, indeed," the old man said at length. "Gorun, my boy, I'll have some questions for you once this whole dragon invasion is over, but for now, we had best focus on the immediate threat."
"So… you believe us?" Future Lucy asked hesitantly.
"Of course we do!" Levy said as she approached the malnourished version of her friend. "You've obviously gone through a lot to get this news to us so we have a fighting chance. Why wouldn't we believe it?"
"And who cares if Gorun's an alien?" Gray added as he grinned at his friend. "He's Fairy Tail, too. That's good enough for me to trust him." Gorun couldn't help but smile back a bit as his companion, appreciative of the show of support.
"Well, as nice as that is, we still have the problem of the dragons heading our way," Mirajane pointed out. "Not to mention this Eclipse thing sounds pretty dangerous."
"Trust me, it has the potential to damage this timeline more than I ever could," Gorun said sourly. "But I think it'll have to be addressed after we find a way to send the dragons packing. Besides, I think if we mentioned it to the military before we get their help, they're more likely to throw us in jail on charges of having classified information, never mind how we obtained it."
"Wait, why do we need the military's help?" Cana questioned, making a face as she did.
"We'll need every bit of help we can get against these things," Gorun replied. "According to Lucy, the dragons that are coming don't seem as strong as that Acnologia character you all tangled with seven years ago. However, their numbers more than make up for this fact, to the point that Natsu didn't even last a minute against a group of fire dragons- the very ones he was specifically trained to slay. That doesn't bode well for our chances."
"Oh," the brunette said, paling rapidly.
"So then, what is the plan?" Macao asked. "How do we get the military's support?"
"We ask the king for help," Lucy of the present answered. "The team that wins the Grand Magic Games gets an audience with him. If we can convince him of this threat, then we can at least have an organized force ready for the dragons' arrival."
"That seems like a long shot…" Makarov muttered. "But winning is also the best chance we have getting an audience with the king." He looked over to Mavis, who had been unusually quiet, even for her. "First Master, your thoughts?"
"Hmm…" she mused for a moment. "My first thought would be to evacuate the citizens before the threat arrives, but that feat becomes impractical when we consider that we have no real proof other than Lucy being here from the future. We believe her, of course, and rightly so, but others will likely not be so accepting, especially given the news she bears. I believe that the best course of action we have before us is the one that your children have already laid out- we must seek the aid of the king by winning the Grand Magic Games."
"Uh, question?" Romeo interjected. "Didn't Future Lucy say that the dragons arrived right after the games? Doesn't give us a lot of time to prepare, or the army, even if we even can convince the king."
"We know, but it's all we've been able to come up with so far," Gorun said heavily. "Jellal did mention that he'd be arranging to have back-up brought to us, but it wouldn't be anything we could rely on as a total game-changer."
"Better than nothin'," Gajeel muttered. He and the other dragon slayers were being uncharacteristically quiet, apparently feeling overwhelmed as they realized that no matter what battle plan the others could come up with, the brunt of the fighting was going to fall to them.
"If nothing else, there's something I've been meaning to speak to the dragon slayers about," Gorun said after a long, uncomfortable silence. "It's about your-"
The sound of someone banging on the door interrupted him. "Fairy Tail! Open up!" someone called from the outside of the bar. "This is the army! Comply, or we will be forced to take action!"
The wizards inside all tensed up, with Natsu, Gray, and Gorun moving to interpose themselves between the door and their friends. "What do they want?" Gray muttered once they had all taken ready stances.
"My guess is that time is trying to correct itself," Gorun answered in a low tone. "If it's really the army out there, you can bet that they're here for Lucy and Yukino about the Eclipse."
"Then they've got another thing comin' if they think they can just take our friends," Natsu growled.
"You have until the count of five!" the voice from outside called again. "One!"
"Door's unlocked, but the first person who comes in with a weapon drawn bites the dust!" Gorun called back. "Until we hear cause for an arrest or reason to treat us as hostiles, I suggest you keep your distance!"
This seemed to give the person on the other side pause. After a few seconds, they called back, "Defense Minister Darton wishes to speak to the celestial wizards Lucy Heartfelia and Yukino Agria. He is coming in… unarmed."
Gorun and the others looked back at Makarov, who nodded. "Let's at least hear him out," he said. "Can't hurt to hear what he has to say, and if worse comes to worse, Gorun, you make sure to get the girls out." Turning to the Lucy from the future, he said, "Hide yourself, dear. We don't want to reveal you yet, especially since these people might be here to get the Eclipse working."
"Yes sir," the Saiyan hybrid nodded grimly as he moved to follow orders while Lucy pulled her hood up and went to hide behind Elfman- easy enough since he was about three times her size. Gorun made sure she was well-concealed before he moved to the door and quickly opened it. "All right, send your guy in," he called. "No funny business, got it?"
"Believe me, I find this business to be anything but funny," said low, gravelly voice. "And I hardly think your concerns are necessary. I'm here to help you."
"Yeah, weird how your version of offering help comes disguised by the fifty-odd soldiers you've got surrounding the place," Gorun replied as he stepped back inside to admit a small, older man dressed in fancy robes of blue and gold.
"They are only here in the event that your guild causes any trouble," the old man- Darton, they all realized- replied gruffly. "Or worse, if that fool Arcadios tries to make a scene…"
"Seems like there's already a scene to be had," Makarov said, his best disapproving frown fixed on his brow. "I'd like to know why the army is after two of my children, and in the middle of the night, no less."
"Forgive the show of force," Darton said, relenting a little bit. "It's just that I've never had any dealings with Fairy Tail in person before, and well… Let's just say that the rumors paint you all in a rather lively color."
"You're avoiding my question, Minister," Makarov scowled. "Why are you here?"
"As I said, I'm here to help you," the other man replied as he looked around the room. "I need to speak to Miss Heartfelia and Miss Agria as soon as possible."
Lucy and Yukino exchanged a glance before stepping up to the front of the gathered group of wizards. "We're right here," Lucy said stiffly. "What do you want, sir?" Her tone held only the bare minimum of respect appropriate for a minister of the kingdom.
"I need to take you two into protective custody," he said bluntly. "A man named Arcadios is using his influence in the military to try and get to you two. I can't say why, but you're both very important to a project that he has been working on for some time. While he was once a staunch supporter of the kingdom, I fear that his obsession with this project has driven him mad- to the point where he tried to hire thugs to kidnap Miss Heartfelia, though he made them believe that it was Raven Tail hiring them."
"I knew it," Carla muttered from where she sat with Wendy. "I knew it wasn't Raven Tail behind that sloppy kidnapping attempt."
"My point is that he has shown that he is willing to go outside the law in order to get his hands on you," Darton continued. "If you would allow it, I can provide you protection until the games are over, and when your guild leaves, you will be able to rejoin them on their way back to Magnolia, by which time I will have Arcadios arrested and incapable of getting to you again."
"And where would we be staying?" Lucy demanded hotly. "No offense, but for all we know, you could be working for this Arcadios guy, or working your own agenda to get to us."
"You would be staying in the palace, in a secure wing for VIP's," Darton replied, unfazed by her accusations. "You'd have an army in between you and any intruders."
"Again, how do we know that the army isn't trying to get to us?" Lucy asked stubbornly. "Isn't this Arcadios guy a colonel or something?"
Darton stiffened, seemingly taken aback by her knowledge of the situation. "Not for long, I can assure you," he finally answered. "Please, this is-"
"Yeah, I don't think so," Lucy cut him off. "This whole thing already seems suspicious to me- no way I'm supposed to believe you're on the side of the angels, short stack. All you want is to use me and Yukino in your stupid 'Eclipse' project, and-!"
"What?!" Darton cried, enraged. "How do you know about-?! Arcadios!" His indignation quickly gave vent to a fierce anger as he growled, "That fool has already tried to convince you to join, hasn't he?! I'll be damned before I see that gate open! Guards!"
Dammit, Lucy, we weren't supposed to know about that! Gorun winced as Darton called for his reinforcements. However there would be time later to scold the blond wizard for her slip. Right now, he needed to get them away and figure out how to get the army to stand down without blowing them all away.
He hesitated, then turned to Yukino, grabbing her right hand in both of his and placing something in her palm. "Hide these, use them only in an emergency," he told her quickly. The silver-haired girl's eyes widened, but she nodded her understanding and hid the items on her person as the boys in the guild moved to crowd the minister.
"Bad move, callin' your dogs," Gajeel growled as he cracked his knuckles.
"You'll have to get through all of us before you can take Lucy and Yukino," Gray added, preparing his ice-make magic.
"Strike at me or my men, and you'll have the entire army after you!" Darton exclaimed, but he was sweating nervously, despite his declaration, as he realized that he was in a bar full of very angry wizards, and he knew no magic himself. Still, he was a stubborn man. "I could have you all arrested just for knowing about Eclipse!"
"It doesn't matter," Romeo growled, purple fire springing to life in his hands. "If it's to protect our family…"
"It could be the kingdom or the entire world against us," Natsu snarled, orange flames licking at his fingertips as he spoke.
"We would make an enemy of anyone," Gorun added, several red magic circles appearing over his head. "That's what it means to be Fairy Tail." The aura of the Kaioken enveloped him, just as a dozen soldiers crashed into the room, weapons raised. Several of the soldiers must have recognized him and Natsu at the head of the party, because they looked uncertain about their chances at victory.
Seeing this, Gorun grinned fiercely and asked, "So which one of you feels like you can beat the conquerors of the Twin Dragons?" The soldiers that had come in looking uncertain now looked downright frightened; one of them even looked like he was about to call for a surrender when an unexpected voice stopped things from going any further.
"Everyone, please stop!" All eyes swung to Yukino, who was striding forward with Lucy to place themselves between the two opposing parties. "Please," the soft-spoken celestial mage begged. "Don't fight about this. We'll go with the minister- perhaps there's a way we can resolve this without violence."
"Hmph," Darton muttered, eying the two girls suspiciously. Their surrender seemed a little too easy, especially given how hard the blond one had protested to going with him in the first place. Still, it was entirely possible that Yukino was more even-tempered than her companion. "It seems as though at least one among you understands the need for reason," he said at last. Turning to the ranking officer, he added, "Sargent, take them into custody."
"What are you doing?!" Natsu demanded as Lucy and Yukino allowed themselves to be led out by the soldiers. "You can't just let them-!"
"I know what I'm doing, Natsu," Lucy told him sternly, stopping him mid-rant. "I trust you- don't you trust me?" She kept her eyes locked on his until his widened and he nodded once. To the side, Gorun noticed that Warren had two fingers to his temple, and was concentrating fiercely.
"I trust you," Natsu finally said.
"Good," Lucy smiled at him before stepping out the door.
"We'll be back soon," Yukino said with a small smile of her own before she too, was gone.
As the soldiers began to file out, Gorun decided to have the last word. "One thing, before you go, Minister," he said, dropping his enhancement spell as he spoke.
"What is it, boy?" the small man asked roughly. He was eager to be on his way before any of the wizards changed their minds.
"If I ever find out that those two are harmed in your custody…" the young man said, a cold smile fixated on his face as he spoke. "I'll make sure the entire kingdom knows about Eclipse, and where it comes from. That, I promise."
Darton visibly paled. They could literally see the color draining from his face as he realized that somehow, Gorun, and probably every wizard in the room, knew how the Eclipse project had come about. Which meant that if he ever made good on that threat, the king, his family, and probably his entire administration, would be finished. Them knowing about the project existing was bad enough, but to know about its origins was beyond the minster's worst nightmares. One of the kingdom's most deeply buried secrets was now in the hands of some of its most volatile wizards.
I have to keep them quiet, he realized, sweating. "What do you want in return for your silence?" he asked.
"Let my children go," Makarov demanded quietly, yet forcefully.
"Not until Arcadios is behind bars, and I can be certain that they will not be able to complete the Eclipse as he wishes," Darton replied immediately. "I can, however, assure you that they will not be mistreated. I'm sorry, but it's all I can do right now, given the circumstances."
"Fine," Makarov scowled. "But heed the warnings of my children well, Minister. Those that make an enemy of Fairy Tail never escape unscathed."
"Why'd they give up so easy?!" Natsu demanded hotly. "Lemme go after 'em! Lemme outta here!" He was presently tied to one of the support pillars of the bar that they had rented out. At Makarov's request, everyone but Mavis, Natsu, Gray, Laxus, Erza, Gorun, Gajeel, Juvia, Mirajane, Wendy, and Future Lucy had cleared out so that he discuss the situation with them in private. It was well past midnight by, making the current day the rest period before the final battle of the Grand Magic Games.
"They gave up so that they could be in a better position for us to get them out when we mount a rescue," Gorun told them. "Yukino signaled Warren to help her talk to Lucy with his telepathy after I gave her something that will help them get the ball rolling if we make enough noise for them to notice."
"That's why I have our most combat-ready wizards assembled here," Makarov explained. "He filled me in on the situation as soon as the guards left. We now need two teams- one to compete in the games so that we can win an audience with the king, and the other to mount a rescue force."
"Who went to rescue you and Yukino in the future?" Gorun asked Lucy, who had yet to speak.
"Mira, Wendy, and Natsu," she answered. "Happy, Carla, and Pantherlily came, too. It wasn't enough, though. By the time we made it out, everything was in flames and most of us were killed in the confusion and the castle coming down while we were in it."
"So we send extras this time, and maybe change up the roster a bit," Gray suggested. "Obviously five of us have to stay in for the games, and it makes sense to use our current team. We're a solid group, plenty capable of winning the final battle."
"No way," Natsu said vehemently. "I'm goin' after Lucy, and there's nothing any of you are gonna do to stop me!" So saying, he burned through his ropes and made for the door- only to be crushed under Makarov's giant fist.
"Simmer down," the old man growled, while Future Lucy looked like she was fighting a mix of tears and a smile. "You can go with the rescue team, but you're not going alone. Understand, boy?"
"Aye sir…" Natsu wheezed with what little breath remained in his lungs.
"Good," Makarov muttered as he let the dragon slayer up. "First things first, then. Who's going to replace him on the battle team?"
"Anywhere my darling Gray goes, so shall I!" Juvia squealed as she threw herself at the boy, only for him to move out of the way with an annoyed expression on his face.
"Like hell you will," he said sternly. "This is ridiculous, Juvia! Our guild mates' freedom is on the line, not to mention the fate of the world! This isn't the time for you to be indulging in those creepy fantasies of yours!" Juvia looked shocked and hurt at his cold words.
Ripping off the bandage, Gorun thought grimly as an uncomfortable silence fell on the group. There were probably better times for this to happen… Let's see if we can't get things steered back in the original direction.
"I nominate Gajeel for the battle team," the saiyan said aloud. "His magic power and skill are just about Natsu's equal in every way, so he'd make a good substitute. Er, no offense, man." He added the last part hastily as he noticed the man getting a little annoyed at being compared to Natsu.
"He's also performed well in stealth ops," Laxus pointed out. "I mean, he managed to infiltrate my old man's guild without raising any red flags, which probably wasn't easy."
"Stealth isn't our top priority, and the others don't have his skill in that area- I mean, look at Natsu," Erza pointed out.
"Hey!" the pinkette objected loudly.
"Fair point," Makarov nodded. Turning to Mavis, he asked, "What do you think, First Master?"
"I think Gajeel's talents will be better suited for the strategy I have in mind for the games, Sixth Master," the young-looking ghost answered. "Within the palace, there are too many variables that I have no way of knowing about. Our best bet in there is to send in our most unpredictable wizards and hope for the best. I'd say that Natsu, Mirajane, and Wendy all have tendencies to be the ones to surprise us, so the fact that I chose them to go in the future doesn't surprise me. However, Juvia also has a tendency to surprise us, given the right circumstances. She would make an excellent addition to the team to rescue Yukino and Lucy."
The rain woman mumbled something that might have been an acknowledgement, but it was hard to tell with her lying on the ground and her face pressed into the floorboards.
"Will just Juvia be able to make enough of a difference?" Gajeel asked. "No offense to her, she's got good combat skills, but with the stakes this high, is it gonna be enough to be safe?"
"Nothing is safe anymore," Makarov replied gravely. "And if we send too many people, the army will be suspicious of their absence. I'm already nervous about Natsu not being present to compete, but I can tell I won't be able to change his mind."
"Damn right you're not!" Natsu grinned.
"What about one more?" Gorun asked. "Never hurts to have an ace card up your sleeve, if you catch my drift."
Makarov's eyebrow rose fractionally as he asked, "Cana?"
"She's made it to the S-class trials four times now, and according to the others, if not for Grimoire Heart invading, she might have made it this year," the boy shrugged. "She's not competing, and I know that she's been chafing about that. So let's give her something to do."
"First Master?" Makarov asked, though Gorun could see that the old man would require very little convincing in this matter.
"It's a good idea, but we can't send anyone else after her," Mavis nodded. "If worse comes to worst, we'll need every strong wizard available to combat the dragons when they show up."
"I'm going with the rescue team," Lucy announced, surprising them. "I still remember some of the passages through the castle. It's not like I have a complete map or anything, but something is better than nothing. Besides, if one of the army guys sees me with you guys, they're going to get suspicious of us, since your me is supposed to be in custody."
"Whaddya mean 'your me'?" Natsu asked, cocking his head to one side. "You're our Lucy, too, you know." He saw her about to protest, but he shook his head and cut her off, adding, "You ran from the army with me years ago, and you got the Fairy Tail mark on your hand. We fought on Galuna Island, against Jellal in the Tower of Heaven, we beat the Oracion Seis, went to Edolas, and survived Acnologia together. If that's true, then you're our Lucy, too."
The others looked at Natsu, surprised that he had managed to recount all of their adventures so accurately. Lucy couldn't stop the tears from flowing again as she fell to the ground, sobbing as she covered her face with her left hand.
"I can't believe it…" she hiccupped. "After everything I've been through… I get to go on one more adventure with you all. I get to see you…"
"Hey," Natsu said warmly as he moved to comfort the girl again. "This isn't our last run, ya hear? We'll go on lots more adventures together. We'll save the future, and then we'll go on jobs together, just like the old days."
"I… I can't," Lucy sniffled. "My keys… I lost them all in the future, don't you see? I c-can't be a wizard anymore!" That particular piece of news, while it had been suspected by most of the others in the room, still made them all wince. They all knew how much she loved her spirits, so for her to lose them, on top everything else that had happened to her, couldn't have been anything less than the hardest thing she had suffered through to date.
Surprisingly, it was Gajeel who spoke up now. "Aw, don't gimme that crap," he said roughly. "As I recall, you didn't need any keys to stand up to me when I was in Phantom Lord. You held your ground and kept your pride in this guild no matter what I did. Sounds like a grade-A Fairy Tail wizard to me."
The others looked at him, surprised by his insight. Lucy even managed to smile through her tears as she looked up at the Iron Dragon Slayer. "Thanks… Gajeel," she finally said.
"Don't mention it," he shrugged, ignoring the grins that everyone was directing at him. "Ever."
"We have our teams," Makarov announced. "I will inform Cana of the situation, and as soon as the games begin tomorrow, we will begin our rescue operation. Get some rest, all of you. I have a feeling that after tomorrow, we're going to need it."
"And meet back here for lunch," Mavis announced. "I have something to discuss with both teams."
On the morning of July 7, the final day of the Grand Magic Games, the team representing the Fairy Tail guild stood, still as statues on a plaza in the northwest part of Crocus. The last event was to be a Battle Royale, with the entire city set as the stage. Each of them knew their part in this play, and was ready to carry it out.
Elsewhere in the city, Natsu led the charge toward the capital, the rest of his team in tow. Cana was armed with an arsenal of her tarot cards, a grim look of determination on her features. Mirajane had decked herself out in a combat suit that would blend into darker places, though her brilliant white hair kind of ruined the effect. Juvia ran alongside Wendy, both bluenettes looking serious. Above them flew Happy, Carla, and Pantherlily as back-up.
All right, Gorun thought as his eyes snapped open at the sound of the fireworks over the arena. Time for this Time Patroller to come out of an early retirement.
Mataras: For those of you that don't remember, Future Lucy didn't meet up with the others until only a couple of hours before the dragon swarm invaded in the original canon. I decided to change that here to make things a little more interesting.
Saiki: I was surprised by your decision to have Gorun speak so well of Cana. Up until now, their relationship has been mostly strained.
Mataras: It's his way of trying to make things up to her. He knows he overreacted now, so he's doing what he can to make amends.
Gorun: Finally!
Mataras: Oh hey, when did you get here?
Gorun: Whaddya mean, 'when did I get here?!' I was here before you brought in the cotton-candy-head, then you up and forgot me!
Mataras: My bad. But in my defense, his show is pretty funny, and I wanted to share in the joy of it.
Gorun: By neglecting your own character?! What is wrong with you?!
Saiki: It is noticeable that there is a severe lack of 'goodwill toward men' right now...
Gorun: You stay out of this!
Saiki: Gladly.
Mataras: No, stay where you are! If you leave, the humor goes with you!
Saiki: ...I might be willing to 'humor' you if you have any more of those coffee jellies...
Gorun: Hey! Puns are my schtick! If you're taking my jokes, I'm taking your food!
Saiki: You have exactly three seconds to reconsider that move.
Mataras: Now this is more like it! Coming this Christmas Eve on Saiyan Tail- Grand Magic War
Next Time on Saiyan Tail...
Gorun had ceased his irregular flying habits and landed on the ground in a rural area, seemingly at random. However, the decision to go to ground was anything but random. This should be the place, and I'm on time, he thought as he glanced around at the cross-street that Mavis had told him to go to once the fighting had stalled out.
His sensitive hearing picked up on a noise coming from the rooftops to his right, and the power level approaching could have hardly belonged to a stray cat. Turning to face that direction, he engaged his barrier technique just before a small, pink-haired figure leaped off the nearest roof.
"Sky god Boreas!" the girl cried, sending a cyclone of black wind to smash into the energy barrier.
Gorun grunted with the surprising amount of effort it was taking to keep up the shield, but he held his ground. As soon as the attack cleared, he lowered the shield, though he kept on his guard as he raised his eyebrows at the young girl, Sherria. "Solid power, and not an awful attempt at a sneak attack," he told her. "Against most people, that would have worked."
"Yeah, but you're not most people, are you?" Sherria grinned fiercely at him from atop a lamppost. "You went toe-to-toe with Jura, after all. Lyon's still pretty shook up about it."
"Technically, I beat Jura, if we're counting the MPF contest," Gorun grinned back. "So what makes you think that you'll win against someone strong enough to take on a Wizard Saint?"
"I've never gone up against Jura, so I don't know how I compare," Sherria shrugged. "What I do know is that I'm in it to win it for love and Lamia Scale- so that means I'll take down anyone who stands in the way of that, even if it's you! Sky god Roar!"
"Masenko!" Gorun knew there wasn't enough time to charge up a proper Kamehameha, so he settled for the quicker, piercing attack. The two energies collided, but instead of cancelling each other out, Sherria's attack overwhelmed his and continued on to smash him into the street-painfully.
"Augh!" he cried out as he felt his leg wrench as he went tumbling down the road. What the hell?! He thought, beginning to feel a trace of panic. This girl's power level is nowhere near Jura's! How is she beating me down so easily?!
There was little time to contemplate the issue as Sherria began to press her advantage, sending cyclone after black cyclone at him, grinning gleefully the whole time.