Chapter 4: Wolf in Sheep Clothing
Lucy couldn't sleep. She was laying in her sleeping bag listening to the sleepy mumbles and breathing of Wendy, Carla, and Erza. She closed her eyes again, willing herself to the world of dreams. Come on, Lucy, you have to sleep! You're suppose to make it to Tekka tomorrow, she urged herself, count sheep. So she tried to imagine sheep until she reached 475 and they turned into leaping unicorns with silver coats and a single horn on each of their foreheads. Lucy opened her eyes again and sighed defeated.
"Well, I suppose I'll go for a stretch and see if that helps clear out my mind," she muttered to herself, grabbing her pouch of keys before she went.
"Yes,yes," replied the sleepy Erza. "And don't forget the strawberries. The cake won't work without them."
"Right," Lucy assured her with a slight smile.
Outside the sky was just starting to move from a dark black to a dark blue, the sun beginning to make the stars disappear one by one even before it appeared across the horizon. The air, which had felt so calm and still on her walk, now seemed to vibrate with energy waiting to be released. Lucy held out her arms in the air, trying to capture the energy in her hands. It was almost electric. She moved quietly towards the boys tent, but even from a few feet away she could hear their loud snores from within.
How can they sleep through this, Lucy wondered. Natsu normally senses this sort of thing long before anyone else.
Sighing she went back to the place their camp fire had once been, now just a circle of ash. She watched a small, almost untraceable breeze move across the ash, making a few flakes dance in the pile. One spun away from the rest, pirouetting in the air in before floating off entirely- onto it's own adventure.
"You woke it up, didn't you?"
Lucy turned, startled at the voice. Leaning against the forest entrance was the storyteller from before, Abaddon.
"What are you doing here," Lucy asked confused.
"I don't know why I'm asking, its all over your face. Even if I couldn't smell the magic on you."
"You can SMELL me," Lucy asked crossing her arms, a flush spreading across her face.
"Not you, idiot," Abaddon snapped. "The magic. I can smell the unicorn's magic on you, mixed with your magic. That reminds me- Arawn?"
Before Lucy could react she felt a snake like rope wrapping itself around her arms and torso, pinning her arms in their crossed position, far from the keys that sat on her hip. The rope continued to wrap up around her neck and across her mouth, silencing her potential outbursts of indignation.
"We've got her, so let's go," Arawn hissed. "I don't want to run into her friends."
"Then you shouldn't have come to our camp," Gray informed them. He was standing very heroically in front of a stern looking Erza, a pissed off looking Natsu, and Wendy, who was rubbign sleep from her eyes but was still focused looking. All seemed to be taking a fighting stance. Lucy's face flushed even darker and she squeezed her eyes shut. Gray was completely naked.
"Gray," Erza said, "Please put on some clothes."
"Damn it," Gray snapped leaping back to the tent. Erza re-equipped into a cheetah-patterned armor with bare armor protruding from the upper part of it with some fur lining the lower edges, exposing her stomach and cleavage. Her lower half had no armor, but was covered by black shorts, with a belt holding a cloth hanging over her left leg. Her arms were covered by dark armbands reaching up just below her shoulders. Her left arm &leg were protected by cheetah-patterned armor, while the right side remained bare, only a calf-high boot protecting her right left. The outfit is completed by a large collar around her neck and by a tail hanging from the back of her shorts, both made of bushy fur, plus a pair of large cheetah's ears adorning both sides of her head. Her flight armor was completed with two swords appearing in either hand.
"Why don't you let our friend go and we can fight this out fair and square," Natsu growled, his hands igniting in flames.
"Fair and square? Against the likes of you," Abaddon snapped, pulling a dagger from his thigh pocket and holding it to Lucy's neck. All eyes moved to the dagger. Natsu gritted his teeth. "Not possible. I can smell we're outmatched even in a one-on-one fight."
"What would traveling story-tellers want with a Fairy Tail mage," Erza asked. "Especially when they know they could face such a defeat?"
"We don't have to explain anything," Arawn replied. "Anaconda's grip!"
The ropes that had been quietly sneaking towards the mages now sprang forward, wrapping themselves hurriedly around Natsu, Wendy, Happy, and Carla and beginning to squeeze as an anaconda would. Erza, however, dodged the rope, leaping just out of reach and charging towards Arawn, sword pulled back ready to attack.
"I wouldn't," called Abaddon, pushing his dagger just slightly more against Lucy's throat, causing a dot of blood to appear. Erza leaped back, landing across from Arawn and watching him carefully. She'd have to plan her next moved more carefully with Lucy trapped as she was. Erza scanned the scene, trying to think of the best plan of action given the unfolding scene.
"Whats' with this rope," Natsu demanded, gasping for air, "I can't use my magic!"
"You won't be able to use your lungs soon either," snapped Arawn, then he turned to Abaddon. "Let's go already!"
"You're right, let's -OOF!"
Lucy cut him off mid-sentence, slamming her left bare foot down on his left foot, then quickly bringing her right heel up between his legs with as much power as she could muster. The knife moved from her neck to her arm, but not before slashing her shoulder, making her hiss in pain behind her gag. Abaddon let out a string of cusses at her. Lucy could feel the ropes tightening around her neck now, cutting off her air way, making her vision go dark. Across the campsite, she could see Wendy and Natsu also blinking back their loss of air. They'd all pass out soon if Erza or Gray didn't get rid of these ropes.
"We're ready to go," called Arawn, seeming to speak to the sunrise painted sky.
"No you're not! Ice cannon," Gray called, shooting ice towards Arawn. Arawn moved his right hand and a wall of flames appeared, blocking the iceball and melting it instantly. With his other hand he sliced the air producing enough wind to blow Erza out of her charging stance and right into a tree, her spine meeting the trunk with an unpleasant sound of impact. Natsu, Wendy, and Lucy all slumped in their spots unconscious.
"You have fire and air power," Gray snapped glancing to each of his fallen comrades quickly. Above Lucy and Abaddon, the sky looked odd, as if something were ripping open there. As if there was a tear forming in the very sky itself.
"My ropes borrow magic and lend it to me," Arawn smirked. "It's not as strong as the original mage, but it'll do for an escape."
In a flash Arawn moved both hands again, this time sending a tornado of flames Gray's way, making him leap out of its path. Arawn made it to Abaddon's side and both began to rise, sucked into the sky by some unseen force. The tear had opened into a black and blue vortex. As they rose, their speed increased and by the time Gray had risen to charge again, the three of them- Arawn, Abaddon, and Lucy- were gone.
"Fuck," Gray screamed to the now peach colored sky, perfect as if there had never been split at all. Behind him, he heard the snap of a rope. He spun to check on his other teammates to see Erza leaning over Natsu in her Nakagami Armor. She took the large halberd carefully between Natsu's arm and the rope, pulling up and making the rope snap and fall away as any rope would. Natsu coughed, face down on the ground, before rolling to his side and inhaling as much air as he could, releasing a few more coughs. Erza transformed back into her regular armor, peering at them all concerned.
"Are you all alright?"
"Those meanies tried to kill us," whined Happy.
"And they took Lucy," rasped Wendy, rubbing her throat gingerly.
"But why," Carla wondered aloud. "Their whole purpose here was to take her without a fight. But they barely spoke to her at all last night. Why would they take her?"
"It doesn't matter," Natsu said, pushing himself up carefully one arm at a time. "They hurt Lucy and we're gonna find her and get her back."
"They hurt her," repeated Gray. "I didn't see that."
"I can smell her blood," Natsu said darkly, tapping his nose. "Let's find them and show them what Fairy Tail is really made of."
Thanks for reading & don't forget to review! Also, read the most recent chapter of 100 year quest and I'm looovvviinnggg iiitttt! It always leaves me wanting more!