Chapter 12

Lucy sat in a dark corner, slow jazz music playing overhead. With a hand curled around a glass, Lucy lounged, one leg over another, looking like she had no care in the world. The dim lights made the red velvet of the booth and the floors seem almost black, the shadows blending in with the black fabric of her dress. Glancing around, Lucy took in her surroundings. The jazz club was upscale, a place frequented by the rich and glamorous. But like any place, it had its secrets hidden in the shadows.

The owner of the club was a person she had met during the academy. While he was an excellent fighter and spy, his real skill lied in acquiring information. Though, that information came at a price. Lucy looked down to her side, where her purse lay, filled with the money needed to pay his fee.

Taking a sip, Lucy purses her lips, and sets the empty glass on the table in front of her.

"Another drink, ma'am?"

At the sound of the voice, Lucy looked up at the man who slid into the seat across from her, sliding a new drink across the table to where her hand rested.

"It's been awhile, Jellal" Lucy said.

Jellal smiled, and leaned back, crossing his arms. He flicked his blue hair out of his eyes.

"Any luck with what I asked you?"

"It took some digging, but I may have found something of use to you." Jellal said one side of his mouth quirking upward.

"I found out why nothing could be traced back to Jose and Phantom Lord, and that is because he doesn't run his business from a building, but from a boat. When he isn't on the boat, he utilizes his associates property, like that building you and Natsu found Juvia in."

"That explains why it was so easy for him to disappear each time we thought we were getting close on his tail" Lucy mused.

"There have also been whispers. Phantom Lord is spending big money, and who knows for what. Is this what you are looking into?"

Lucy nodded. "We aren't sure what Phantom is up too, but thank you for the information, maybe this can help us finally get a hand on Jose."

Gajeel leaned impatiently on the hood of his black Suburban, his arms crossed across his chest.

"Calm down, they will be here"

Looking down at the small blue haired woman at his side, he sighed.

"I just hate being kept waiting" He grunted.

"This is our chance to catch some of Phantom Lord's goons and figure what is going on"

He and Levy were waiting under an abandoned bridge on the outskirts of Magnolia, the black darkness chased away by the headlights of the car they stood in front of. Suddenly, two more pairs of headlights appeared around the corner, skidding to a stop in front of them.

From the cars, six men poured out.

"You got the money?" One called, who was carrying a briefcase.

"It's in the car" Levy said, motioning for Gajeel to grab it. "But first, I want to see the product".

"Of course, you will find that Phantom Lord only sells the best, and you can see for yourself". The man set the briefcase on the hood of the car, flanked by the other 5 men, who were carrying nasty looking guns. Clicking it open, the man opened the lid, revealing a bag of fine white powder.

Levy turned and nodded to Gajeel. They both turned and leaped at the men surrounding them.

Ducking under a beam, Juvia sprinted through the dark alleyway, her hair slipping from her bun to fall around her face, whipping around as she glanced behind her.

"She went that way! Get her!

Hearing the shout from behind her, Juvia sped up, willing her legs to move faster, gritting her teeth at the burning. She was still out of shape from her time in the hospital. She knew she wouldn't be able to keep up that pace for much longer, she just hoped she made it to the rendezvous in time. She didn't want to upset Gray, who was waiting outside.

This was supposed to be an easy "in and out" mission. Juvia had been to this warehouse before when she was undercover with Phantom Lord, and knew they kept records of their dealings in this place. Thankfully, Juvia was able to download all the files from the computer before being discovered, but here she was, running for her life.

"Juvia, where are you?" Gray's voice crackled in her comm unit.

Swearing, Juvia pressed her hand to her ear.

"I'm almost there but I have company" she gasped, turning the corner and seeing an emergency exit at the far end of the dim hallway.

At that same moment, a man stepped out in front of her, swinging his fist at her face. With only a moment's hesitation, Juvia slid towards the floor, her head just barely missing his fist as she fell to the ground. Twisting her legs, Juvia swept the man's feet from under his, and flung herself back onto her feet and took off towards the door.

Throwing her arms forward, Juvia threw herself into the door and out into the inky darkness. Juvia found herself standing in the middle of an abandoned dock, surrounded by empty storage buildings. She spun her head around, looking for Gray, when she saw a motorcycle come veering around the corner, towards her.

As the motorcycle flew by her, Juvia grabbed the outstretched hand and jumped on behind the man. Wrapping her arms around Gray, she turned back to see the Phantom Lord men tumble out of the building, shouting after her, growing quiet the farther her and Gray drove away.

"So, what did you bring me?"

Looking up from where they were seated on old wooden boxes, Gajeel and Levy smirked at the red haired woman who had just entered the abandoned warehouse they were currently hiding out in.

"Six Phantom Lord agents, all tied up and ready for you, Erza" Levy smiled, looking back towards Gajeel and continuing to wrap a bandage around his hand.

"I'll see what I can find out" Erza said, reaching up to gather her hair up into a ponytail. Reaching into her bag, she grabbed a small black case, and then strode into a door behind Levy and Gajeel.

"How did you come out of that without a single scratch, shrimp?" Gajeel grunted, as Levy tugged on the bandage one last time, securing it with a piece of tape around his wrist.

"Cause I'm better, obviously"

Gajeel snorted.

"Hey now!" Levy exclaimed, as she smacked Gajeel in the arm, "I don't spend all my time behind a computer screen contrary to popular belief".

"Ow! What was that for!" Gajeel yelped, pulling back from Levy.

"You know what that was for!" Levy said back, crossing her arms and smirking up at Gajeel's face. He sighed, and pushed his hair back from his face.

"Come one, shrimp, lets get outta here. You hungry?"

"You know what, I'm starving!" Levy answered, jumping of the box to stand in front Gajeel with her hands on her hips. A short laugh burst out of Gajeel's mouth, as he got up, grabbing the bags at his feet.

"Let's go, shrimp"

"Lucy! Hey, find out anything good from our friend?" Natsu asked, holding his phone up to his ear with a smile.

"Found out a little bit, but it's a start. Turns out the reason we can't find Phantom's base of operations is because it isn't a building. It's a boat!" Lucy shared, walking out from Jellal's to her car, the moon shining bright, illuminating the parking lot with a soft light.

"That would explain why we can't get a solid location, every time we got close, it would change. Now we know to stop looking on land, but in the water". Natsu exclaimed.

"Right. Let's all meet back at my place to figure out what everyone else has found out and make a plan. I'm almost to my car now, I'll see you when I get home" Lucy said, hanging up her phone, and putting it back into her purse and digging out her keys instead. As she held the keys up to unlock her car, a quick movement in the window caught her attention. But before she could react, something hard hit her head, and all Lucy saw was black, as she went down and hit the pavement.

Wow, I had some serious writers block but I'm back at it!

Sonchia