Hello, my awaiting fans!

Gajeel: Fans mean someone actually enjoys this.

Grrr… anyway, I managed to get not one, but two chapters out! The first one is for tonight, the second tomorrow. A little something to keep y'all occupied until December.

Mira: Another hiatus? How come-

College.

Mira: Oh, never mind.

First I want to thank grassfire101 and mariosuperfly for favoriting and following Alternate Tail. Second, I want to thank OneWhoCharms, Ray Akaba 210, Warmachine375, and Shiranai Atsune for their reviews.

Well, with that out of the way, it's time for the obligatory public disclaimer. I'll just pull out a name from this little hat… da da da…

Lily: Where did you even get a hat?

And… disclaimer will be done by Freed.

Freed: Fair enough. DigiXBot does not own Fairy Tail.

Fairies Blown to the Wind Part 1

"We're back!" Alexis shouted as he barged into the throne room, followed by a skipping Braille and a demure Mairi.

Against the walls of the chamber, Mercator frowned in disapproval. "Control yourself, Alexis."

Alexis's optimism deflated for a second. "Sorry, father," but his smile returned just as fast. "But you would be in a good mood too if you came back with this." He then pulled out a golden object.

The older man's eyes widened in surprise. "You managed to find it. Congratulations, son."

"Well done, Alexis," the graveling voice of their leader said as she walked towards him.

"Thank you, Chieftain," Alexis said proudly as he bowed before her while holding the metal object before her.

"Unfortunately," she said sadly as she picked it up." that is not the entire Gospel Key."

Alexis flinched. "W-what? What do you mean?"

"It seems that Joseph has chosen to divide the Key into four component in a way that it'll show us Brigid's locations when they are all together. Quite clever, to be honest."

"Hmm," Braille huffed. "So that was the traitor's ploy. No matter! A demon-gifted like myself could easily bring them together!" she cackled while Mairi rolled her eyes before her.

"Braille-" Mercator spoke up sternly.

"That's enough, Braille," he stopped when the chieftain spoke, and so did the eccentric girl. "Our quest to Brigid has just begun." She turned to Mercator. "I take it the Strainraisers are organizing themselves, my son."

Mercator nodded. "The continental mediator known as the Magic Council has been investigating our attacks on the traitor's legacies. It won't be long before they discover the connection just as that guild has."

"Then we must make haste," she turned to the younger trio. "You three gather supplies you need. We must get our hands on the pieces no matter what."

"Yes, Chieftain!" Alexis and Braille shouted while Mairi nodded. They then walked out of the throne room.

Once they've left, Mercator spoke up. "Chieftain-"

"No need for formality at this point, Mercator."

His grizzly-beard shook as he sighed. "Mother. There is something I am curious about. You have ordered the termination of Joseph Mcgarden's legacies so that the secrets of our clans are reclaimed from Strainraiser thieves. But what of his granddaughter?"

"I've already spoken on this with Murray," the Chieftain stated. "Levy Mcgarden is but a child, innocent of her grandfather's sins. She will and must be taken in by us for our clans future."

"And if she refuses?"

A crooked smile crossed the old woman's face. "She will change her mind in due time."

Alexis was walking down the hall when a hand suddenly grabbed his shoulder. "We need to talk, Alexis."

The youth turned around to see Murray standing before him. "What's wrong, mother?"

The woman responded with a stern frown. "Mairi told me what happened on your last mission."

"That sneak," he muttered under his breath before putting on a calm expression. "Look, that dragon slayer caught me off guard. Luckily he thought I was a weaker mage and didn't expect me to use my hands-"

"And afterward," she interrupted. "Even after you have him paralyzed."

"... okay, so I might have gone a bit overboard."

"A bit overboard? Alexis, you were trying to skewer a petrified opponent alive without a fight! No warrior shouldn't win in such a way!"

"What's the big deal?" he argued back. "Mairi was able to stop me."

"And what if she hadn't?!" she took a deep breath before continuing. "Alexis, your Histeria is getting worse. I'm not sure sending you out to the field is a good idea."

She reached out to stroke his cheek, only for him to pull away. "I'll be fine," he bitterly let out. "If it makes you feel better, I'll be joining father on the next quest. Besides," he turned around and walked away. "Once we get Brigid, I'll never have to worry about my Histeria again."

"Alexis!" she cried out, only for him to ignore her. With one hand she clenched it into a fist, while with the other she reached under her dress and pulled out a necklace with a multi-knot shaped pendant.

"I can't afford to lose another child to the Garten Curse," she let out as a tear raced down her face.

Meanwhile, at the Magic Council, the nine seats were in an uproar upon the recent series of tragedies. However, it all came to a halt when Gran Doma slammed his staff into the hardwood floors.

"Enough!" his booming voice resonated along with the bang from his staff. "We waste time here arguing while numerous wizards are being targeted all across Western Ishgar!"

"Work is being done to protect who is left, Chairman," Org spoke calmly. "Rune Knights have been deployed to protect recorded Letter Mages."

"I hope we haven't spread our forces too thin," the gray-haired councilwoman stated.

"It's been much easier since we discovered the current victims had one connection, the late Wizard Saint Joseph Mcgarden."

Another round of muttering began.

"That Mcgarden?"

"What does the Letter Warlock have to do with this?"

"Perhaps he's responsible."

Everyone paused at the gruff tone of a wild-looking counselor with an eye-patch.

"What do you mean, Ursus?" Org questioned with narrow eyes, the creature on his head glaring as well.

"Think about it. Ten years after his death a number of his disciples or colleagues are being targeted and put into a coma. Besides, he's always been mysterious. He appeared decades ago saving a library in Caelum from a devastating fire literally out of nowhere. There are no records of his birth or any time before his first public appearance. "

"You suspect Mcgarden might be involved," Gran Doma questioned sternly. "He was a Wizard Saint-"

"And so were Jose and Stormorse. Chairman, we can't afford to be caught off guard."

"We also can't allow ourselves to fall to paranoia," the old woman argued

"Enough of this chatter. We will continue to locate and protect anyone with connections to Mcgarden," the chairman gripped tightly on his staff. "And we'll be able to find out who dares disrupt the balance."

Behind the front door to the chamber, Lahar and a grizzly-faced man stood behind.

"This sounds so hard to believe," Lahar muttered. "I spent years studying Mcgarden's thesis. Hard to imagine he would be involved in such a conspiracy."

"Maybe an old enemy that wants revenge," the other man replied.

"Maybe. You should get yourself cleaned up, Doranbolt," Lahar stated. "There's a good chance we'll meet Fairy Tail again."

The semi-retired agent's eyes widened, his mind flashing back to the violet-haired swordsgirl he thought died years ago. "What makes you say that?"

Lahar sighed in exasperation. "Knowing that guild, they've already found themselves in the thick of it."

"Levy-chan, Levy-chan!" Lisanna shook the blanked-eyed, blue-haired girl's shoulder.

Levy blinked for a bit before turning. "Oh, what's wrong?

The Takeover frowned "I should be asking you that. You've been out of it since you got back."

"I have just been thinking about Clan Garten," Levy replied. 'And the fact I lost that key piece to them.' "They just give me a bad feeling."

"You're telling me. Those guys are bad news," Lisanna shivered. "Especially those Automatons."

"What do you mean?"

Lisanna sat down next to her. "When I was on that vulture, I could feel a soul inside it."

"Wait, it's alive?!"

"Not really," the white-haired girl gripped her shoulders. "That soul was from an actual vulture. But, but it felt so old and ragged like it was alive for too long.

"You see, every animal has an amount of time they're meant to live, and their souls reflect how much of that time they've used. For example, Lily might be over a century old, but his soul has the same age as Macao or Wakaba."

"I'm not sure he would like either of those statements," Levy quipped.

Lisanna giggled before continuing. "But that soul in the Automaton. It should have moved on to the next life a long time ago."

Levy was about to ask more when Freed walked over. "Are you alright, Levy?"

"I'm fine, Freed," she quickly replied. "Any good news."

"Plenty of news actually," the older man said. "Thanks to Master Makarov and Master Macao I managed to locate some of the legacies and colleagues not yet reached by Clan Garten."

"And if they're any more worries don't worry," Macao spoke up from the bar. "I got word from the grapevine that the Magic Council is doing what it can to protect them."

"That's great!" Levy exclaimed, jumping from her seat. "So we just have to find them and get the Key Pieces from them before Clan Garten does!"

"And finish whatever my teacher has begun," Freed continued

Levy faintly smiled in agreement. "How are the others?"

"Well, we're barely making progress on Gajeel," Erza said as she rubbed a wet rag on the rusty, petrified dragon slayer. "The rust remover is barely making a dent through his prison."

A deep groan emitted from the rusty body. "That's enough Gajeel," the Titania reprimanded. "Being frustrated won't solve anything.

"What about Mira and Lily?" Levy asked, turning to see that her two teammates were still statues.

Kagura, who was sitting by them with Carla, shook her head. "No good, not even a wiggle."

"What about Evergreen? If the magic's like hers-"

"Already tried," the petrify mage spoke up. "Problem is it looks like I can only undo my own petrification spells rather than someone else."

"It sounds like this Thesaurian magic operates the same way as Enchantment," Makarov spoke up. "So either only a stronger enchantment could undo this without the brat's involvement, or we wait for it to wear off based on how powerful he was."

"Hope it doesn't take too long then," a deep voice said, causing everyone to see that that Lily and Mira were moving again.

"You're back to normal!" Kagura cheered.

"Luckily that guy's magic was enchantment like master said," Mira said as she stretched her arms above her while Lily reverted to his smaller form and arched his back. "So it was only a matter of time before it wore off. And right before I went stiff too."

"Wait, wore off?" Elfman asked, before turning shocked eyes to Gajeel, who was shaking violently. "Oh, shit!" he ran to grab Gajeel, take him across the guildhall to the door, then throw him outside and shut the door.

"Elfman," his older sister reprimanded. "what are you even doing?"

"Sorry, nee-san," Elfman replied hastily as he pulled a table to block the door. "But Gajeel's been trying to get out of his metal prison for a while. And once that rust fades off, he'll unleash a manly storm of scales!"

Both Lily and Evergreen choked in remembrance. "Just like on Tenrou..." Evergreen let out. " Enough to snap bark."

"Everyone, get down!" Elfman shouted as the entire guild got on the ground, using the nearest table (or the bar if they were lucky) as a makeshift shield as a monstrous roar followed by numerous wheezing came from outside. Metal clings echoed through the wood from numerous iron fragments crashing into it.

"Oh great," Makarov groaned as he facepalmed. "Now we pay to fix the door

"Don't worry," Macao waved. "We've been having Laki do wood repairs to save money."

"Huh, that's actually a good idea. I didn't expect that from you."

The fourth master grumbled. "Geez, thanks for the support."

"Is he done?" Cana asked as she moved her head from behind a beer barrel.

Lily held up a palm. "Wait for it…"

"THAT MOTHERFUCKER!" Gajeel's booming voice not only made it through the door but also shook the building's foundation. "WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON HIM I WILL-"

Levy decided to blank out from Gajeel's rant, her face already red from his intensity, and cheeked up on everyone, who were all in shock of Gajeel's newly born rage. Most of them were frightened by his vocal rant, while some like Cana and Bickslow listened with interest and others like Lily and Mira with boredom.

She saw Alzack doing his best to cover up Asuka's ears, and she spotted Macao, Mira, and Lisanna doing the same to Rogue, Kagura, and Carla respectively (meanwhile, the frightened Rogue was holding down Frosch's ears. The green Exceed had a rather placid expression with no idea on what was happening). Levy couldn't blame them, the rant had the most collections of swear words she had ever heard.

"AND IT WILL BE BY FAR THE MOST DELICIOUS AND SATISFYING SANDWICH THAT I WILL EVER EAT IN MY ENTIRE LIFE!" everything was silent before the door was slammed open and Gajeel furiously entered the building.

"Are you feeling better now?" Lily asked sardonically as Gajeel pumped his rear on a chair next to him. Gajeel grumbled back in response.

"I am!" Bickslow cackled while writing down on a notepad. "Thanks, Gajeel! You just helped improve my arsenal!"

"You mean your vocabulary?" Evergreen said in a dull tone.

"Eh, po-tay-to, po-ta-to!"

"Meh," Cana waved her hand in a bored tone. "I've heard worse."

"Well, with that out of the way," Freed spoke up. "Our next course of action is to locate the Key Piece. I've identified four possible suspects who are the most likely to possess one of them. Of course, it is no guarantee that at least one of them will have possession, let alone three of them."

"Best case will involve us splitting into four teams to reach them in time," Erza stated. "Who are we looking for?"

"The first one is Jean-Luc Neville, a close colleague and friend of Joseph and the leader of the Archeologist Society. Currently, he's researching ruins dating to the Golden Age, the era of Lost Magic."

"That era's always popping up, huh?" Wakaba commented.

"The second was a professor named Jeanne Rousseau."

"Rousseau, huh?" Makarov muttered. "She was a strong opponent and critic against guild structures, of all types of guilds. I'm not sure if I should be surprised or not that Joseph taught her."

"Was?" Mira asked. "You're saying she's dead?"

"Correct, she died 11 years ago," Freed answered primly. "The third is Zimbardo. Currently, he's the guild master of Chained Ego, a guild that's been in co-operation with the Magic Council."

"What sort of co-operation we're talking about?" Lily questioned.

Freed grabbed a piece of paper from the table to review. "It seems to be prison management. Though I'm not sure why. Anyway, the last individual is Chekov, a playwright that lives in Agremone, a town close to the borders of Bosco."

"Huh," Laki smiled. "Right in my home field."

"You're from the Bosco border?" Levy asked. "Actually, that explains a lot of how you speak Laki..."

"What are you chattering about?"

"Did you say, play writer?" Erza spoke up, taking a deep breath before releasing a determined smile. "I shall go. I refuse to allow that dastardly clan to wipe out the arts!"

"I've always wanted to try Boscovan Beer," Cana grinned with delight. "Sign me up!"

"Oh, it's been an eternity since I was last home," Laki cheered while clapping her hands together. "Count me in too!"

"Maybe I should tag along," Max muttered sheepishly while rubbing the back of his head. "Just to keep everyone on track."

"So who else is going where?" Gajeel asked.

"I volunteer the Nebula Knights to find Zimbardo and see if he had the Key Piece," Freed spoke.

"Awesome! I always wanted to visit a prison without being arrested," Bickslow laughed.

"Why is it that I don't want to know how many times that was," Evergreen grumbled.

Mira spoke up next. "Well, guess I'll be leading my team to-"

"Actually, Mira," Levy interrupted. "I think it's best we split the team for now."

"Excuse me?

"Just to cover more ground," the Letter Mage answered. "I'm sure me, Gajeel and Lily can handle it."

"After last time, I don't think so."

"Don't worry!" the two girls turned to see Jet and Droy raising their hands. "If you need backup-" Jet began.

"You can count on Team Shadowgear!" Droy finished through his mutton leg.

"You two, really?" Gajeel scoffed.

"We could use the extra muscle," Lily said. "I'm sure it won't be like last time."

"Hey, those cannibals got lucky!' Droy shouted. "And we're a lot stronger since then!"

"... fine," Gajeel shrugged. "You wanna tag along, go ahead."

"Well, in that case," Mira said. "I'll be taking Elfman, Lisanna, Kagura, and Carla to go find what Rousseau left behind."

"Alright!" Elfman roared with delight. "Another manly Strauss family quest!"

"Well," Kagura said sheepishly with a sweatdrop. "Carla and I aren't Strauss's."

"You're practically the younger siblings for us now," Lisanna teased.

"So our team will be going after Neville," Lily stated.

"While we do have a good set of teams," Erza said. "There is the matter of keeping contact. After all, at best only three of them will have the key piece. We need to keep track of each other quickly to compare progress."

"What about your cards, Cana?" Levy asked.

"Those only works in pairs," Cana replied. "We would need about 12 cards just to talk directly. Having some set here could end up delaying talk. If we could make it easier…"

A bout of chuckling brought everyone's attention "Did someone say," Warren said as pushed a pair of glasses up his nose. "Communication?"

"I guess," Cana replied dryly. "And where did you get those glasses?"

"From me!" Laki grumbled as she took her glasses off from the telepath's face.

"Sorry," Warren said meekly. "Dramatic effect," he coughed to recompose himself. "Anyway, you don't need to worry about keeping in constant talk because I have these!" he moved himself to the left to show a set of four lacrima crystals held in a metal frame, revealing a single side surrounded by a border.

"Wait, are those communication lacrimas?" Freed asked in surprise of seeing them small and square instead of large and round.

"That's right, it's a little project I've been working on," Warren explained. "They're only prototypes, and only send out simple signals instead of real face-to-face talk like standard Communication Lacrimas. But they're easier to carry with you."

"Not bad Warren," Mira said. "I never took you for the inventor type."

"Hey, I handle guild communications, remember," Warren said. "Alright, Mira thinks I'm cool! I wonder if Lilith's hearing-"

"You're projecting again," Max said.

The telepath's face went red. "Crap!"

"So how exactly does this little thing work?" Cana asked as she picked one up.

"Well, they work by-"

An army of monstrous humanoids stumbling through a city filled with tall pillars covered in ivy as a terrifying storm raged above, looking like a red funnel of devilish clouds.

Levy sitting on a throne as white runes slithered across her body like vicious snakes...

A gigantic humanoid wielding a battle ax marching through the same town approaching the viewpoint of the vision. And on the reflection of broken glass was a metal humanoid with thorn-like crowns.

As quickly as the visions appeared they vanished, leaving Carla in a frightened trance. She looked and saw that no one had noticed her reaction yet. 'Another vision. But what was happening to Levy? I can't just tell them that-'

"Everything alright, Carla?" she turned around and saw Lily standing behind her.

"I'm fine," she quickly responded. "There's nothing to worry about

The older Exceed's frown showed his doubts. "You had another vision, did you?"

She stiffened at his question before scowling. "I suppose your relationship with one precog makes you an expert, does it?"

"Not at all," Lily stated. "I won't force you to tell. But, from personal experience, often sharing what you see will lessen the burden. It's still your choice."

"Everything okay, Carla?" Kagura asked as she came over and knelt before her partner."

Carla switched her sight between Lily and Kagura before sighing. "I… had another vision. One quite dangerous."

Everyone's attention turned to her. "Another one?" Gajeel gruffed. "Well, how bad is it?"

"A city was, or will be, invaded by a horrendous army," Carla explained sternly. "I didn't get much, but it involved strange monsters, an ax-wielding giant, and… I'm sure it was some sort of human automaton. All in a battle within a single city."

"A human automaton?" Lisanna gasped. "So someone's soul…"

"Carla, which city did you see?" Makarov asked.

The white Exceed frowned. "I'm not sure. It had multiple pillars with ivy all over them."

"Ivy huh," Makarov muttered. "That could be… I'll see what I can do"

"Maybe that giant Carla saw was Brigid," Levy suggested. "And that battle is what will happen if we don't stop them!"

Lily frowned. "We don't that for sure…"

"Still," she protested. "It doesn't change the fact that we have to stop them."

"Don't worry, Shrimp" Gajeel boasted. "Those punks are gonna learn they messed with the wrong guild. Nothing's gonna stop us!"

"Mrrrgh…" Gajeel groaned as every bump from the cart's ride.

"Nothing but motion sickness anyway," Jet quipped.

"Shut it… Sarusuke…"

The speedster's face went red with annoyance. "Don't go calling me that, metalhead!"

"'Sarusuke?'" Levy whispered to Lily and Droy.

"Jet's real name," Droy answered while counting seeds in his palm. "He's really touchy about it."

"Jet works much better alongside his magic," Lily said while examining his staff.

"Yeah," the plant mage nodded. "So you guys alright with this?"

"Alright with what?"

"You know, splitting up team… team…" Droy blinked. "Wow, you guys have been gone so long I forgot your team name."

"Well, we never really had one in the first place," Levy calmly stated.

"WHAT?!" the Shadow Gear duo. "You don't have a team name?!"

Levy flinched at their reaction, while Lily rubbed his ears and Gajeel moaned in discomfort."

"Not really," Levy continued. "I know other groups have team names like Osprey, Shadowgear, and the Nebula Knights, but is it that big of a deal?"

"You bet it is!" Jet shouted. "A team name brings to life the connection you all have. You never came up with one?"

"It never came up when it was just the three of us," Lily said. "Nor after the five of us were declared a team by Mira. What do they refer us to anyway?"

"Mostly the 'Strongest Team' thanks to Lisanna," Droy said. "Though a couple call it either 'Team Mira' or 'Team Gajeel.'"

"'Team Gajeel?'"

"He stood out the most from you three."

"Hmm," Lily shrugged. "Well it any case, we never needed a team…" he suddenly paused and drifted out into space.

"Lily?" Levy asked in concern, before nudging his shoulder a bit. "Are you okay?"

The Exceed's eyes cleared over as he shook his head. "Sorry, I lost my train of thought. How much longer..."

"About 20 minutes," Levy answered hesitantly. "What was it?"

"Honestly it made no sense," he stated, a frown on his face. "It's an impossible feeling."

'That feeling, I haven't felt it in years. But why now, there hasn't been one for almost seven years…'

Galloping across a stone road were three silver-colored horses carrying three self-proclaimed knights.

"So we're any closer to that guild?" Bickslow asked, his dolls dangling around him by ropes tied to his waist

"Any closer? And closer?"

"We should get there in about five minutes," Evergreen replied. "Though it matters how we deal with this Zimbardo man."

"There is a good chance he does not have the artifact," Freed replied.

"So why go?" Bickslow asked.

"For my teacher, I must…"

Years Ago:

A woman wearing a long, auburn gown paced frantically in front of the steel gate leading into a large mansion. The stress was causing her short green hair to frizzle.

"Calm down, my dear," said a man next to her. He was wearing a black tailored suit with tails, a collar covering his neck, and a black top hat.

"Calm down?!" the woman shrieked. "He should have been here an hour ago!"

"Lord and Lady Justine," a guard said. "Sir Mcgarden has arrived."

A carriage pulled up next to the two nobles, and out came the Wizard Saint wearing a black cloak over his body.

"Your lordship," Joseph Mcgarden said as he gave a slight bow.

"Ah, Mcgarden-san," Lord Justine said. "I am glad you arrived."

"My pleasure," Joseph replied.

"What took you so long?" Lady Justine questioned in a haughty tone.

"Well, I had to find a good sitter for my granddaughter," Joseph answered. "Now, where is our patient."

"Follow me," Lord Justine said as he led the Saint into his mansion. "As you know we've tried everything to cure Frederick. Healers, Despellers, Herbalist. None of them could cure him."

"So why request me?" Joseph asked with a raised eyebrow. "They are many wizards skilled in healing."

"Yes, but none are expert in the cause." Lord Justine grimaced for a second before speaking. "Not that long ago I bought a rare tablet- from legal sources, I assure you!" he answered to the suspicious glare of the Wizard Saint.

Joseph was silent for what felt like forever for the noble but was really a few seconds. "Go on," He encouraged.

The noble shivered before continuing. "We were warned that some… residues of that curse might be left. I keep it locked up but Frederick, bless the boy, was far too curious and…"

"I'm starting to get a picture," Joseph muttered. "Where is he now?"

Lord Justine had them stopped by a ladder leading to a closed hatch into the attic. "We had to lock him away after… after," he pulled down his collar, revealing long scars on his neck.

"I understand. Just leave it all to me," Joseph climbed up the ladder, and pushed the cover out of the way before climbing in.

Closing the panel behind left him in complete darkness, so he softly wrote in the air. "Solid Script: Light." The word appearing in his palm illuminated the space around him, revealing a small dusty room. He saw a small bed with the mattress ripped apart, and a dumbwaiter on the back wall where old scraps of food remained. The room was a pigsty. The only unaffected portion was a small bookshelf with neatly sorted books in good condition.

"Interesting," he muttered. Suddenly from the corner of his eye, he spotted a flash of movement. He turned his head and saw nothing, only to feel a gush from his left.

"Well, well, it looks like I found you," he said, before writing a spell. "Solid Script: Silk!" he threw the web into the darkness, and a high-pitched snarl revealed it hit its target.

Walking over to the sound, he found "silk" had trapped a small figure against the wall. It had boyish proportions, but it did not look human. Black fur came out from holes in his tattered dress shirt. His hands and feet ended in sharp claws, some popping through his black shoes. Small hard bumps that made Joseph think of horns came from the creature's head.

"Frederick, I presume," Joseph asked.

The creature snarled in response, causing the Saint to shake his head. "Just as I thought. Dark Écriture has taken over your body. Most would think you were far gone," he gently reached for the creature's head, who growled back. "But not me."

He looked around before finding on the floor and picked it up. "Nice book you have there. 'Treasure Island.' A story of boyhood and adventure, a favorite."

The creature was silent in response, only staring at the man with its green eyes.

"'This grove, that was now so peaceful, must have rung with cries, I thought,'" Joseph smiled fondly before kneeling so he would be face to face with the youngling. "'And even with the thought I could hear it…'"

"'R-ringing,'" the boy trapped with a word made of silk wheezed, his voice strained from no use in a long time. "'Ringing still…'"

"It is a favorite then. Now, why would a rampaging beast keep a good book in prime condition and even happily recall the words in them? Unless, unless Frederick is still in there, wanting to be free."

The boy looked at him with not fierceness but begging. "Free?"

Joseph smiled fondly and rubbed the boy's head. "That right's Frederick. I'm here to free you."

"Freed. Freed!" the rune mage was pulled back to the present by Evergeen's shouting. "We're here!"

Freed quickly pulled on the reigns, causing his horse to pull back on its hind legs and let out a loud neigh before falling onto all fours. Freed unmounted and walked next to his teammates to look at the guildhall in front of them. The guildhall was a four-hallway stoned building than when looked from above looked like a square ring. The many windows had bars in front of them, and the double-sided door was manned by two guards wearing black robes and having a symbol of a purple heart wrapped in chains on the chest.

"Yesh, nice hospitality," Bickslow quipped, tilting his head to the side with his dolls doing the same.

"Back then, Chained Ego had a more hospital face," a man with messy brown hair, a curved mustache, and goatee said as he walked over to them. He wore a chestnut three-piece suit, and the many wrinkles on his face, despite being in his mid-thirties, shown he rarely smiled these days. "But after accepting this request from the magic council, we took on a more intimidating face." He held out a hand to them. "Zimbardo, master of Chained Ego."

Freed accepted the hand and shook. "Freed Justine, Fairy Tail wizard. These are my teammates Evergreen and Bickslow."

"Hello there," Evergreen said courtly while Bickslow chuckled as he untied his dolls.

"It's nice to meet a fellow student of the Letter Warlock," Zimbardo said. "Guess you're the second group of guest coming here.

"Second?" Freed asked.

"It looks like the guild is quite secure," a new voice announced. Freed turned his head and saw a team of Rune Knights, led by Lahar, Doranbolt, and a navy-haired woman. "We can start on the transfer and finally bring you to safe-" Lahar paused when he recognized the three Fairy Tail wizards standing next to the guild master. "Why should I not be surprised?"

"... awkward…" the five dolls commented. When everyone turned to Bickslow he grinned in amusement. "Hey, my babies call it as they see it."

There's the first chapter. The next one will be up tomorrow, so stay tune.