Chapter 2: The Aftermath
As they ran for the ship, the rest of Fairy Tail watched in awe at the display of power from Natsu. While, it was clear that he was still far outmatched, the fact that he can last this long against the monster was astonishing. When they noticed Laxus running up to the ship with Wendy and the Exceeds close behind, a small patch of hope appeared in all their eyes. Maybe, just maybe they would all make it out of here alive.
Lucy and Gray had made it onto the ship only moments before, with the ice-user comforting the celestial mage. But no matter what he tried, it seemed that nothing could quell the flow of her tears. The other occupants of the boat watched the interaction with somber expressions. While everyone was feeling the effect of Natsu's choice, it was clear that some took it much harder than others. Especially the members of his team.
Laxus landed on the hard-oak planks of the ship just as a few of the members finished lifting the anchor out of the water. Wendy soon followed, climbing onto the ship with the two exceeds still grasped within her arms. As she landed on the deck, a few of the other mages lowered the sails and held them steady as the ship slowly started to move. The heat radiating from the battle was almost unbearable. Beads of sweat dripped down their bodies as some gasped for breath. And now that the ship was moving, some of the members slumped against the side of the boat, trying to desperately cool themselves off.
But many of the mages ignored the heat, choosing instead to watch the fight between Natsu and Acnologia. In the distance, a trail of smoke and dust appeared. They watched as the dragon shot across the ground, raising his claw to strike. The dense foliage prevented them from locating their fellow dragon slayer, but with Acnologia being so large, they could see him clearly from the other side of the island.
An explosion of flames quickly followed by a large bolt of lightning striking the dragon's side garnered their attention. It was clear that Natsu had struck back, and a few members even let out small cheers. A small smile appeared on Wendy's face as she gripped the railing of the ship. Happy and Charla both stood to her left on the edge of the ship, watching the battle.
"Take care of yourselves." A voice rang, causing many of the members to turn from the fight to find its source. Gildarts stood by the railing of the ship, with one foot already on the edge as he prepared to jump down. "I'm heading back to help Natsu."
But before he could take the final step off, their attention was drawn back to the island as they heard a loud, piercing roar erupt from the forest. It was louder than the previous, which resulted in many of them covering their ears. All eyes went to the island, where they saw the dragon soar into the sky, leaving a trail of fallen trees and rocks in its wake.
It flew up, quickly circling around the land where the short fight had taken place. It opened its large mouth and roared down at the ground once more. Soon after, a pulsing light began to slowly grow brighter deep within its throat. And it only took moments before a beam of pure energy shot out from its mouth. Cries were heard throughout the entire ship. The power was unlike anything they had seen before.
As the ray of energy quickly approached the ground, a bright light shone from the island below as the temperature around them drastically increased. A smaller, but powerful pillar of flames and lightning launched up into the sky towards the dragon's attack. Within half a second, it crashed into the dragon's attack, with both pushing against each other in a fight for dominance.
The members on the ship heard another gasp, and they looked over to see Wendy with her hands covering her mouth. "That's Natsu-san." Her eyes shone with unshed tears. "It's his Lightning-Flame Dragon's Roar. It's what he used to defeat Master Hades." Many eyes widened as the watched the two attacks fight for dominance. The members on board felt a small patch of hope grow within their bodies. If Natsu was able to hold back such a powerful attack for this long, maybe he still had a chance to get back to them.
But, that small patch of hope was suddenly ripped from their hearts. With one final roar, Acnologia increased the power behind his attack, quickly overtaking Natsu's and colliding with the ground. A large flash of light blinded all the members on board the ship, and many people were blown back from the force of the impact. As the members slowly regained their bearings, they turned their sights back towards the island.
Except, there was no island. Only a large crater remained in place of the island. Cries could be heard all over the ship, with everyone rushing to the side to look for their comrade. When a powerful roar rang out above them, they all glanced up to see the dragon roaring in victory. And as the beast's roar died down, it turned and flew away, not sparing the ship a single glance.
With the dragon leaving, they all turned their attention back towards the ocean. A few members cried out once more, as no one could believe their eyes. The attack had been so strong that it had destroyed Tenrou Island. There was no trace of the landmass. If it weren't for the gigantic crater of water that had formed in the place of the island, it would seem as if the island had never existed in the first place.
But as the realization of Natsu's fate finally kicked in, no one said a word. Silence permeated the air, with the only noise being the waves crashing against the sides of the boat. They all stared at the gigantic crater that was slowly filling up with water. And after a few more moments, one person cried out. Wendy had run back to the railing and was gripping the railing so tightly that cracks could be seen spreading throughout it. "Natsu!" She wailed, tears sliding down her cheeks. And then, without sparing a single glance back at the other members of Fairy Tail, she jumped.
A few people gasped in shock and ran up to the railing to search for the girl. A few moments later they heard another splash and saw Erza swimming in the water as well. Gray joined in seconds later, who was quickly followed by Juvia. Soon, all the members were searching the waves for their lost member. Some chose to swim in the sea, while others had taken various positions around the ship.
For twenty long and tiring minutes, they all searched. Juvia, using her control over the water shot from member to member making sure everyone was alright. Slowly, each member that had jumped into the ocean requested to be brought back to the boat. Swiftly complying, Juvia brought every member back to the boat and soon everyone was gathered once more.
But they were waiting for one more person. Juvia had gone back out one last time to find Wendy, who had been swimming longer than anyone else. With the pain they all felt, everyone was able to sympathize with the girl. Natsu had been the first person she had seen as an older sibling. Natsu, the first other dragon slayer she had met. To lose him was devastating for all of them, but to lose such an important figure at that young age. It brought tears to their eyes.
Laxus was standing alone in the corner of the ship with a deep frown across his face. As he watched the rest of the ship mourn over their fallen comrade, he couldn't stop his mind from wandering. It was clear that Natsu had been the center of the guild. Anyone who came to Fairy Tail knew who the fire dragon slayer was. While every single member of the guild was key factor in making the guild what it was, no one seemed to embody the guild more than Natsu. The lightning mage didn't know what was going to happen when they made it back home but could say definitively that things were not going to go back to normal for a while.
On top of that, as he had been running back to the ship, he had heard Natsu's final words to Wendy. The lightning mage would never admit it, but the words had hit him hard, and he was sure that the younger girl was feeling even worse. They had known that as soon as the words were uttered, Natsu had accepted his fate. "I need you to promise me that you'll get stronger." Natsu had said, "Even though you are one of the strongest I know, I need you to promise that you'll protect Fairy Tail for me."
The words sent shivers down Laxus' spine. The mage had accepted that he was going to die, all so that he could save his family. His eyes turned towards the hunched form of the iron dragon slayer. He wasn't entirely sure, but he wouldn't have been surprised if the man had also heard the words being spoken. And moments later as if sensing Laxus' gaze, Gajeel turned and met Laxus' eyes. The iron dragon slayer was currently comforting a crying Levy against his shoulder, but they started at each other for a few moments with neither saying a word before Gajeel grunted and turned away.
Laxus' thoughts were soon interrupted when an orb of water appeared on the side of the ship. All members looked down to see Juvia standing next to the curled-up form of Wendy. The water mage quietly controlled the orb as the two landed softly on the deck. Wendy said nothing as she remained curled up on the ground with tears sliding slowly down her cheeks.
Erza quickly moved over to the girl before placing one hand on her petite shoulder and bringing her in for a hug. Wendy did nothing except turn her face and cry into Erza's shoulder. None of the people on the ship said a word. With the only noise heard being the cries of the guild on board. Standing at the helm of the ship, Gildarts solemnly set the ship on course for Hargeon Port while the rest mourned.
After being soothed by Erza, Wendy had finally uncurled to reveal an item she had hidden within her grasp. Many people gasped while some of the cries worsened as they looked upon the scarf of the fallen dragon slayer. In between her tears, Wendy explained that she had seen it when she had been swimming through the water. She shakily brought the scarf up and help it against her chest.
Around an hour later, the guild master awoke. The old man had stumbled onto the deck of the ship, startled. It didn't take the man long to realize that something wasn't right as he looked around the ship. Turning towards Gildarts, the crash mage took the smaller man off to the side to explain what had happened. Minutes later the master returned only to stand in front of his guild in silence. He opened his mouth to speak, but when no words came out he only wiped a stray tear off his face and walked back into the cabin in silence.
The ship sailed on in complete silence. Wendy had moved over to an empty corner on the deck of the ship. She stared out at the ocean, an emotionless expression etched across her face. Sitting on the edge of the railing, her knees were tucked into her chest. Sighing, she rested her arms on top of her knees, refusing to let go of the scarf that was wrapped tightly in her hands. Since retrieving the item, she had not let go of it once.
Shifting her gaze down to the scarf, she let a few more tears slide slowly down her cheeks. Sniffing slightly, she brought the scarf close to her chest. No matter what, she would honor Natsu's final words. Her frown deepened as she tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. Those words had been repeating themselves in her head for the past hour. And it was beginning to drive her crazy.
"I need you to make me a promise Wendy." That had been the beginning. When she had turned around to look at the mage once more, the emotion she had seen in his eyes had almost been too much. It didn't take her long to realize that Natsu had known that he didn't have a good chance of making it back to the ship. That he had accepted his fate.
She unconsciously tightened her grip on the scarf as her thoughts continued. But she refused to fail in fulfilling his final wish. If Natsu had been strong enough to stand up to the dragon alone, she would fulfill any promise he wanted her to make. "I need you to promise me that you'll get stronger. Even though you are one of the strongest I know, I need you to promise that you'll protect Fairy Tail for me."
Those words, those were the ones that kept on repeating in her head. He had left the duty of protecting the guild to her. Everything he had done to protect their family, the countless battles and fights. He had placed his trust in her to continue that for him. Sniffing again, she wiped away the stray tears that had remained on her cheeks. She wouldn't let him down. She would not break her last promise to Natsu.
They were five excruciatingly long hours, but the guild members finally arrived back in Magnolia. The townsfolk looked on in confused silence as the normally rowdy and hectic guild walked completely silent through the streets. When they finally made it to the guild and broke the news, word spread like wildfire throughout the town.
Silence permeated throughout the air. All in respect for the fallen dragon slayer. Natsu Dragneel was one of, if not the most well-known member of Fairy Tail. To many of the people, including many in the guild, he had seemed invincible, like nothing could stop him. And so, to learn that he had fallen, it had shocked many people. After reciting the tale of what had occurred on Tenrou, many had returned to their homes, and for the first time in years the Fairy Tail guild was completely silent.
Edited 8/27/18
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