Chapter 13 - Mission Complete!
"Damn it! This is not how I imagined my first mission!" Mirajane growled, straining her newfound magic to its absolute limits just to prevent her early demise.
"I'm not dying here! I still have to find Igneel!" Benjin felt the heat as Natsu continuously strained his power to the maximum, all to keep the Enderpods at bay.
"Ice Devil's Rage!" Ice Devil? Benjin noticed a considerable amount of the black and purple insectoids became frozen in pink ice. Tch! I can ask later; we have to get out first!
"I refuse to let this cave become my grave!" Erza pushed out nearly thirty swords of all shapes and sizes, before sending them out in a circle formation, taking down a dozen of their opponents, only for another dozen to take their place.
"I don't want to be eaten by giant insects!" Cana frantically threw cards of varying effects, only to have the same level of success as the others.
That was it. There was nothing more they could do. Dead. He failed all of them. Stupid! If I had more magic! He didn't have enough in him to cast any of his god slayer spells now. If even he had a little bit more, he could have used the flash spell again… I really failed.
Benjin suddenly found his resolve in the seemingly despairing battle. Even if I fucking die, I'll make my final stand!
"Light Make…" A massive aura expelled from the blonde, temporarily halting the Enderpods from the sheer brightness exerted from his form. "Ethereal Guardian!" The familiar translucent knight formed, with Benjin floating to its head. Fuck! I can already feel the magic drain! Perhaps he had ten seconds, perhaps less, but he would make damn make use of all of that time!
With no hesitation, he scooped up his entire team, to their shock, and began sprinting towards the entrance. The blonde could feel dozens of bodies being ran over by his spell. Hundreds of Enderpods constantly slashing at him, hoping to break through.
*Crack!* A large fissure appeared on the chest plate that adorned his spell, all while he kept his charge. Almost there! Benjin didn't know how much further there was now. All he could think of was run. And run he did. Holes and cracks covered the entirety of his spell. Despite that, he didn't stop.
The familiar sensation of liquid was felt all over his body. The others… PLEASE be alright!
*Boom!* The sound of breaking rock filled the air as the blonde bathed in the light of the sun. We're out…
We're finally out…
He didn't know when he stopped running. As soon as the sunlight filled his vision, he immediately closed his eyes, forcing all the strength he ever had to keep moving. Even if, the Enderpods chased him out, they would be forced back from the burns.
What… happened?
His vision blurred in and out. Black and gold. The sounds of his surroundings morphing into low rumbles as he didn't register a single sensation after he fell, dropping his team onto the ground. If he could frown, he would. The blonde grimaced, his eyes straining to open. Everyone… Touch, the first of his senses coming back as the feeling of solid ground, accompanied by dull pains returned to his feet. Please… be alright.
Minutes passed, and more and more of the world around him came back. The sounds of heavy breathing filled the area around him, all while the feeling of cold sweat covered his body.
"Ugh…" Somehow, Benjin's consciousness returned fully, allowing him to feel the full brunt of his injuries. Why do I feel so… tired? His eyes widened slightly; his neck craned upwards to see the numerous cuts on his limbs.
Sighing, the weakened blonde began sliding his way up, feeling the pain sharpening as he managed to get into a sitting position. His gaze wondered around the clearing, seeing his team mostly unconscious, and thankfully, all alive. Despite the pain from his cuts and shredded muscles, he managed to get on a chair he pulled from his storage.
"Heh, mission accomplished." With that, he slumped back, finally succumbing to the fatigue.
Am I, still alive?
Benjin snapped his eyes open, the memory of the battle still fresh in his mind. All his muscles spasmed from the sudden return of his consciousness. He narrowed his eyes, flexing his fingers a few times. What even happened after? He vaguely remembered that they made it out and that everyone was alive. I don't think I had any fatal injuries… So, he shouldn't be dead.
Looking up, the blonde noticed that the skies were already dark; the only sounds around him were the light rustling of trees and fabric, one caused by the rise of falls of chests. Trembling, he slowly forced his legs to straighten, leaving his wooden chair behind.
Okay, everyone's okay… I'm still alive. Sighing in relief, Benjin began walking. Every step was a challenge, but he quickly relearned it. Even with his exhaustion, he couldn't help but smile as he saw his friends all bundled up beside each other, sleeping without a worry. Quickly, Benjin's smile morphed into a frown, his hand tracing through his hair as his gaze dropped to the ground.
That was too close.
That was the truth. Even though he got lucky, it could have easily gone the other way. He could have died, his friends could have died, or worse - none of them could have returned. Gritting his teeth, Benjin paced around the clearing, the numbness in his muscles quickly disappearing from being bathed in moonlight.
He couldn't let this happen again! What he thought to be 'enough' of a preparation, was nowhere near. The Enderpods took him by surprise, he wasted most of his magic arbitrating, and he didn't have a plan for so much of what happened. Damn… I hate to admit it, but if Jellal was here, he would have saw a lot more than me… And boy, was that the truth.
Sitting down once again, Benjin looked up at the skies with not a cloud in sight. All the unobstructed stars twinkling in harmony as the soft starlight shone on his skin. Softly, his gaze landed on the sleeping kids, bringing a soft smile to his face.
I guess… despite everything, it all turned out fine.
*Rustle* *Clank* *Bang!*
What?!
The blonde shifted his body, feeling the blanket covering him move to the side. I don't remember this being here! Unlike before, Benjin sat up without much trouble. A warm smile creeped up his face; it seemed that everyone else was already awake, packing up. Not only that, he could see that everything felt… lighter. Of course, that was probably because none of them died. Everyone got off with superficial injuries and they'll probably be fine in a week, two tops.
Boy, did we get lucky…
"Benjin you're awake!" The blonde blinked, turning towards the familiar white-haired girl, all without the hooded cloak he was so used to seeing her wear. Keeping his smile, Benjin fully stood up, feeling the strength quickly return to his legs.
"So," the teen took a closer look to his team, seeing the many bandages that covered their forms, "how long was I out?"
"You were sleeping for more than a full day!" Benjin widened his eyes while biting his lip. Damn, more than a day? He must have been a lot worse than he thought originally. Most if not all his injuries were superficial, so he should have woken within regular hours. It was pretty difficult for him to feel the effects of magical exhaustion unless he was in complete darkness… That meant, it was really that bad, or he was kept out of the sun by his team.
Well, I'm up now I suppose.
Benjin's gaze traveled to the redhead, who seemed to be trying to direct everyone, to a certain girl's irk. "A whole day? What did you guys do when I was sleeping?"
Thankfully, nobody froze, looked nervous, or did anything suspicious… a relief is what that is. This meant, nobody did anything stupid when he was out, like re-enter the cave or something without him being there. Benjin grimaced; that would have been a major disaster!
Erza walked closer to the team leader, putting the rest of her belongings into her own storage dimension. "We didn't do anything that you wouldn't have…" Thank god for that… although somewhat unsettling. "We spent some time dressing all of our wounds," the redhead glanced at the bandages that were now present on Benjin, "including yours." Benjin raised a brow. Huh, didn't notice that at all.
Benjin glanced back at Erza, gesturing for her to continue.
"…Then we just waited around for you to wake up." Once again, Benjin sighed. Although this time, it was in relief, and not surrender. We're all okay, no one got maimed… The blonde checked his storage, smiling as he found all the ore still present and intact. And we got what we came for!
His gaze travelled towards the skies, seeing the sun shine brilliantly through the cloud cover. A deep breath, and the blonde felt his body brimming with energy. Ahhhh. Honestly, he was in such a wonderful mood right now; all the stupid crap his team did didn't even bother him that much, for now at least. Jewels would fill his non-existent pockets and even Natsu would become debt-free after this mission. Benjin looked at the working pink-haired kid, a mocking laugh escaping his lips. Until he somehow doubles it in a day! Hah, dumbass!
Anyways, it was time to go home! With one more look to all the kids, Benjin clapped his hands together, garnering their attention.
"Alright everyone, form up!" The blonde raised an eyebrow at what he saw; surprisingly, everyone actually formed up! Wow! Pleasant things all around today! But then, he remembered all that happened.
And now I'm pissed again…
Suddenly, the team leader narrowed his eyes, using a bit of magical pressure to enhance the serious mood. Beads of sweat began dripping from the younger kids, while the older girls began buckling under his stare.
"Now that I'm awake and fine…" A final glare. "NATSU!" Said boy flinched, hard. "I don't even know where to BEGIN! Burning me, causing avalanches, attracting thousands of deadly insects, fighting every FIVE FUCKING MINUTES, and to top it ALL off, you didn't even bother to bring anything!" Natsu looked down in shame, biting his lips as he avoided the blonde's gaze.
And I'm STILL nice enough to give him such as big reward…
Sighing, Benjin turned towards Gray, whose eyes darted around nervously. "Gray, thankfully you are smarter, SLIGHTLY, than idiot one beside you." Somehow, the black-haired boy managed to look smug. "However…" All that smugness was instantly replaced with anxiety, all while veins bulged from the elder blonde. "…you have got to control that GOD DAMNED STRIPPING! Do you have ANY idea how annoying that is?!" Gray looked down at the ground, his eyes instantly widening from the lack of clothing.
For fuck's sake. This is what, third sigh of the day now? Now that I'm thinking about it, all that happy energy is now slipping away... How many times did he think about offing himself this mission? Must have been AT LEAST five.
Slowly, his gaze shifted to the girls, causing them to freeze in anticipation. Well, the hard part is over… I guess.
"Cana…" The previous rage seemed to fade from the blonde's face, calming the card mage, just a little. "Why… are you SUCH A STUPID LITTLE GIRL?!" The girl took a step back instinctively, gulping loudly in the face of such anger. Benjin could do nothing but pinch the bridge of his nose. "Three hours in, you got tired, and didn't want to walk anymore. You froze so many times and tested my patience just as much as those two!" The girl looked at the downtrodden boys behind her, unknowingly pouting in disappointment.
And now… them.
Unlike before, the blonde managed a satisfied smile. "Thankfully, not all of you are idiots!" Benjin turned towards the redhead, who essentially acted as the vice-leader in this mission. "Erza, you were able to take a significant amount of burden off of my shoulders by keeping idiot one and idiot two in line!" Benjin shot a glare at the younger boys, to their dismay. "You were smart enough to bring everything you needed, even if I didn't specifically say what!" Erza smiled back, giving a salute, causing the elder to raise a brow. Sure, I'll take that? "Not only that, but you were able to keep a level head, mostly, even at times where I was ready to murder everyone!" Everybody deadpanned.
So close! ALMOST completely non-problematic.
"However…" Erza's face scrunched up, as if knowing what he was going to say. "Fighting." He looked back and forth the elder girls, causing Mirajane to turn away with a huff. "I honestly thought you were the last person to do that sort of shit on a mission!" And now, the girl that 180'd in the span of months!
"Mirajane." She was still turned away! Benjin growled slightly at the complete lack of respect but decided to withhold it until after he was done screaming. "Firstly, look at me in the eyes when I'm screaming at you!" God, she is so annoying! However begrudgingly, the white-haired girl turned, letting only one eye meet his gaze in a glare. Benjin, still not satisfied, walked right in front of her, or at least he tried, before stumbling.
"Aughh! Bitch!" He thought his leg was fine! There wasn't any pain or anything… maybe it was just asleep? He looked up, noticing everyone looked at him in concern, before he waved them off.
"Anyways!" Benjin began, noticing that he now had the girl's full attention. "Whatever problem you have with Erza, talk it out, or deal with it when we're not on a mission!" He glanced at the redhead, who had her arms crossed tightly. "Lastly…" The blonde paused. "Your attitude sucks."
Whatever reaction he expected, was certainly not the one he got.
"Now that we've finis-" Instinctively, Benjin tilted his head as he felt a fist whizz by his face. Did she just…
"WHAT?!" The blonde turned, seeing the previously cold girl seething in anger. "MY attitude sucks?! This coming from Mr. Angry-Shouting?! Do you not know what tact means?!" Mr. Angry-Shouting? Okay fine, he'll give her that, but tact? He was plenty tactful!
"Damn right your attitude sucks!" The team leader turned back, catching a fist meant for his face. "Was it so much to ask that you do what I tell you when I tell you?!" Mirajane returned with the meanest glare she could muster, before driving a foot straight in between Benjin's crotch.
"YES!" The two boys flinched, subconsciously covering their own 'weak points' with their hands after seeing the elder girl do something so unmanly.
"…"
The girl looked up to the angrier blonde in confusion, expecting him to fall. She gazed back down, only to see her foot caught by Benjin's other hand.
"Shit!"
And that's that.
"MMF!" Benjin ignored the continuous muffling from the troublesome girl that he manhandled and tied up, instead opting to address the other four.
"You know what?" *MMMMF* The blonde gave a slight smile, still ignoring the muffling. "After venting out all my frustrations on you, I got some good things to say too!" Ready for the shit sandwich!
"First, I'll start with you three! *MMMFFFF*" Benjin gestured to the youngest kids in the group, namely Cana, Gray, and Natsu. "While it's true that you all pissed me the HELL off…" The blonde let a proud smile on his face. "You all stayed."
The younger kids stared back in confusion, waiting for him to continue.
"To be very honest with you, I thought you all would have chosen to give up and return without finishing the mission." Benjin walked closer, putting one hand on both Natsu and Gray's shoulders. "But you didn't."
"MMM~MMMF!" Benjin growled at the girls' incessant muffling, before turning to face her, still tied up with rope.
"Can you shut up for five minutes? I'm trying to give an inspirational speech here!"
"MMMMMMMMMMMF!" Benjin sighed in surrender. Whatever, her do her.
"Anyways, I can't help but say that I was just a little proud of that." Thankfully, what he said seemed to alleviate the tension, the aura of shame quickly fading.
Benjin smirked, tightening his fists in preparation. Then, he pumped them straight into the air. "And now we're all RICH!" Suddenly, Natsu completely forgotten about his scolding and began screaming at the top of his lungs.
"Oh yeah! We were getting paid to do this!"
Cana widened her eyes, a smile of wicked proportions stretching cheek to cheek. "I can buy… SO MANY TAROT DECKS! YEEEEEEEEES!" Benjin blinked in surprise. Really didn't think Cana had it in her to scream like that. Although now he thought about it, how should he split the reward?
Ehh, I'll decide after, but I'll get bonuses of course.
Benjin smiled at his celebrating team before glancing at Erza, who stood there stoically amidst the screaming. The happy screaming. And everything turned out all right!
"Alright everyone!" The leader shouted, gaining everyone's attention. "Let's all go home!" Everyone, even Erza, cheered at his declaration. Heh, it seems everyone was ready to leave.
*Thud* "MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM-" Benjin turned towards the sound, just to see the white-haired girl bouncing up and down from the ground.
Oh, right there's still that.
Benjin nonchalantly pointed a thumb at the violent bundle. "Hey Erza, mind untying her?" To his delight, the redhead instantly approached the bound girl. "Thanks!"
Get this, instead of behaving like he expected her to, Mirajane shot straight for him the moment she was released. Pushed right past Erza, knocked over two of the kids, and began attacking him. Oh, and did he mention she howled like a Hyena?
Bloody Fucking Hell.
Jewels are great and all, but this is probably the last time he puts certain people together on a mission. Ahem, Natsu & Gray or Erza & Mirajane.
Honestly, he completely lost count how many times he had to wrestle the stubborn white-haired girl to the ground. The only bit of respite he would get is when she would butt heads with Erza. I suppose it does have SOME benefits. Namely Natsu and Gray being scared into submission. Really though, that's just replacing one problem with another- …god damnit here she comes!
"Chains!" For what felt like the millionth time today, Benjin wrapped the hyper-aggressive girl in his chains, again. Somehow, Benjin managed to get his words out amidst all the growling. "Can you PLEASE calm down?!" His thumb and index fingers once more found themselves squeezing the bridge of his noise. I am so tempted to just ditch them and let them walk by themselves. Wait, that's mean. And I am DEFINITELY not a mean person.
"Not until I DECORATE YOUR FACE!" You're already decorating my head with aches, what more do you freaking want?
Okay, maybe he could pacify her somehow. He was not going let her punch him of course, but he was ready to bang his head into the wall, hard. Wait, I got it! Benjin widened his eyes as he was hit by an epiphany. That'll definitely work! Fortunately for him, he managed to remember what his dad used to do when his mom got this aggressive!
Heh, here comes piece and quiet!
To the others' confusion, Benjin dropped Mirajane on her butt, "Oof!" and ran off into the forest.
Cana, who has been doing much better than before, bent down in front of Mirajane. "So, uh… are you going to chase him?" The white-haired girl jumped up, a shadowed aura covering her fist.
"Damn RIGHT, I-"
"Alright I'm back!" To everyone's confusion, the blonde carried out a massive puffball mushroom from where he entered. He wasted no time running towards the angry girl before pushing it straight into her face!
"…"
Easy as pie!
"No need to thank me, let's just all walk home, peacefully."
"…"
There were no protests… Nice!
Satisfied, Benjin turned back towards the path, walking happily until he disappeared from view. Everyone else simply stared back at one another, unsure what had just transpired. At least, that's what happened for five seconds.
*POOF*
Sounds of a mushroom violently exploding could be heard as the younger boys stared incredulously at the elder girl. Mirajane had just thrown the boulder-sized mushroom, straight into Erza's face.
Mirajane vs Erza, round 19…
Finally, we're home!
The whole trip only took four days too! Not only that, everything was peaceful. Well not really, he just chose to ignore the sounds of mayhem occurring behind him.
He glanced back to his team and noticed that the elder girls were still up in each other's faces… and thankfully not mine anymore! Gray and Natsu were covered in dirt, probably from tumbling around, although they don't seem to hate each other like THOSE two… seriously, it's like they beat each other up for fun. Finally, he gazed at the ONLY person that behaved. Cana was no longer bothered by walking, and she was smart and helpful the whole way back! You know what? She's the only person I would take on another mission at this point. Maybe, huge maybe, the others but only without their respective nemesis.
"…"
God saying that word is enough to make me hurt physically. Really, anything remotely reminding him of that just instantly killed his mood.
Well, now's as good of a time as ever to grab the reward!
"Alright everyone!" Whoa. Benjin raised a brow as everyone actually stopped what they were doing - including the fighting - to give their attention. Well isn't this a wonderful surprise! People were finally giving the respect he deserved! That or they knew what he was going to say.
"It's time to grab our reward!" Perhaps it wasn't the former, well I can dream, but you know what? He just got hundreds of thousands of jewels richer! Not only that, but his treehouse was in a dire need of an expansion.
I'm thinking 1,000,000J, maybe more.
Benjin continued in anticipation, unable to hide the smile on his face.
"2,001,000J?!"
The team leader noticed the pleasantly shocked looks on his team. 400Kg of ore! Plus a tip which I'm taking of course!
"Yep! Bet it's all of your biggest payouts, right~?" Unlike the other four, Natsu got right into his face and impatiently grabbed at the boxes. "What?!" Benjin managed to bring it out of the boy's reach and pushed his face away. "Down Natsu!'
And NOW I have to scared of Natsu burning all our money!
"Okay, okay, before I pass your shares, do any of you have feedback for me?" Looks of confusion were plastered on the five's faces, although Cana… seemed to have something to say. Something nice, hopefully… oh who am I freaking kidding I screamed more than that annoying butcher.
"Well…" The brunette began, all eyes now on her, causing her to blush and turn away. "M-maybe… scream just a- little bit less?" Benjin sighed in defeat before aggressively pointing a finger on the black-haired boy.
"Alright, Gray?" Said boy looked back and forth nervously, before opening his mouth.
"…Ditto with Cana." Thought so. Benjin prepared to move his finger towards a still-dumbfounded Natsu, but decided that he probably wasn't going to say anything constructive anyway. …I don't think he knows what feedback means.
Moving on! Now for the redhead.
"Erza, you're up!" Being the formal girl she was, Erza walked forward and put her hands to the side of her legs.
"While it's true that you could have gave all your orders quieter," the girl smashed a fist on her chest, "I too, am one that likes to give them with greater volume! However, I felt as if most of your decisions were well-made, and you did your best in deciding the next step for the team." The blonde couldn't help but smile at the compliments, even making him feel a little warm inside. I AM pretty damned good, aren't I?
Finally, Benjin's gaze landed on Mirajane, who seemed she had a million things to say with the evil-looking smirk on her face. You know what I think I'm going to skip. The team leader smiled at the rest, quickly handed everyone a box of jewels with their names labelled and began walking back to the guild.
"Alright guys, this was fun," slightly, but not really, "but there's your shares and I'm going ho-"
"Don't you walk away from me!" Benjin turned back, seeing the girl's face contorting in anger. Really, as a professional team leader of mages, he really should be staying to hear her feedback considering it would probably be helpful.
"…"
Yeah, FUCK that! Without hesitation, Benjin took off into an impossible sprint and disappeared into the distance.
"GET BACK HERE!" Yet somehow, the furious white-haired girl dropped her box and followed his example in pursuit.
Confused silence, then the sounds of a box opening.
"THREE HUNDRED THOUSAND JEWELS?!" As soon as Gray screamed that out, everyone else began opening their own boxes, finding the same amount.
"This is like five times more than what I was expecting!"
"Indeed, it is a plentiful reward!"
"WHAT?! There's only 200,000J in here!" All except Natsu. "Wait, there's a note!" The dragon slayer grabbed the piece of paper with a smiley face drawn on the front.
You still owe me 25,000J for setting the guildhall on fire. Thanks for that again, dumbass.
Also reparations for hurting my dragon and idiot tax, motherfucker.
- Benjin :)
"AUGH! FUCKING BITCH!" Instantly, a gauntleted hand smacked Natsu straight into the ground, courtesy of Erza.
"No swearing!"
.
.
.
.
Chapter 13 Done! Next Chapter: Rematch!
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