Chapter 11: The Second Task, Part 1!

It's tough being alone in the world. With no one to count on and trust, many times it leaves you feeling vulnerable, unwanted. Useless.

Wendy sat slumped against a rock as Erza stood behind her wrapping some new bandages around her head. She hadn't specifically asked for the scarlet-haired mage to do it, but after struggling a bit on her own and at the woman's never-ending persistence, she didn't deny the woman's offer of help.

Earlier on, Wendy had changed out of her previous set of clothes in favor for a warmer outfit. She wore thick, grey pants along with black snow-boots. On top of the plain white long-sleeved shirt she wore, was a slightly puffy blue winter coat. Her hat lay off to side as Erza worked to place the new bandages on. But on top of it all, Natsu's scarf remained. Wrapped tight around her neck.

The rest of the guild was bustling around her. Mages moved to and fro, chatting away with the candidates, preparing some food, and even placing bets on who they thought would win the competition. As the throbs of pain only continued to increase in her head, she couldn't help the irritated frown from forming on her face.

Wendy winced when a voice rang out from behind her. "…You should be more careful next time." Erza began, as she grabbed another bandage off the ground. Placing it gently atop Wendy's head, she gave the girl's shoulder a small pat.

"I understand the desire of wanting to prove yourself to the guild, but it shouldn't come at the expense of-" Erza was cut off when Wendy stood up abruptly, knocking the loose bandage off of her head. As she opened her mouth to speak, Erza's mouth clamped shut when she switched her gaze to Wendy's face.

Still not facing the older mage, Wendy glared out into the crowd of people. Watching everyone laugh and run around; it was annoying her to no end. Clenching her hand into a fist, she turned her head slightly to look at Erza through the corner of her eye. "I don't need your opinion."

Erza's will to reply vanished the instant she met Wendy's eyes. She could see the emotion swirling inside, and it did nothing to settle her nerves. It was entirely different from the small, adorable Wendy she remembered from just a few years back.

But she never got the chance to finish her thoughts before Wendy spoke again. "But most of all. I don't need your pity."

With that, Wendy strode away blatantly ignoring Erza's slight stuttering as she attempted to call her back. But as she lost sight of the girl, Erza let her hands fall limp by her sides. She didn't know what had caused the drastic change in attitude over the course of the past few years. But seeing the effect that it had on her, she wasn't entirely sure if she wanted to know.

Bending over to pick up the bandage that had fallen, she noticed a pair of eyes watching her. Turning her head, she met the even gaze of Laxus. The man was sitting away by his grandfather, a mug of ale in hand.

Neither tried to move closer to the other, let alone begin a conversation. And after holding his gaze for a few moments longer, she switched her attention back down to the small box of supplies that she had brought.

It did not take her long to repack all the supplies and move back over to where her team was resting. Although she was distinctly aware of Laxus' gaze on her the entire time.

Ignoring the comments sent her way by her guild-mates, Wendy made her way to a quieter corner of the cave. Wincing as she settled down, she unstrapped the small canteen of water that had been bouncing from her waist.

Taking a swig of the drink, she delicately leaned back against the rocky wall. Her head continued to throb despite the bandaging and rest she had been given. And it was beginning to become more annoying than painful.

Sweeping her eyes over the crowd of guild members, she final came to a stop when she saw Lucy's form sitting on the ground.

The blond was still clutching her stomach, which had been attended to by Erza before she had gone to help Wendy.

Gray sat beside her holding a small cup of water, which he would let her take every so often. The two had been talking for a while, and it hadn't been too hard to decipher what they were discussing. It wasn't as if the glances they kept shooting in her direction were exactly discreet.

Wendy only kept her eyes on them for a moment before moving on. Lucy could deal with the pain as time passed, and it wasn't as if there was anything that she could help with presently. She had been previously directed by the master to hold herself back from healing anyone to save her energy for the later trials. And she wasn't going to make a move to do differently anytime soon.

Grunting softly, she rested her head against the wall behind her as she closed her eyes. Trying to block out all the chaos around her would have been next to impossible, and there was no point in wishing for it to calm down. The crazy and rowdy nature of the guild was what made Fairy Tail what is was.

Trying to ignore the endless throbbing of pain in her head, she gripped the flask of water with a trembling hand. She couldn't afford to let the memories of the guild or her emotions get in the way of her achieving her goal. Not when she was so close.

That had been part of the reason for being so harsh with Lucy, she reasoned. She needed to achieve this goal to fulfill her promise to Natsu. To show everyone else that she is powerful enough to stand alongside everyone else. That she no longer needed to be protected.

Perhaps that had also been a cause for the sense of satisfaction she had felt after the fight against Lucy. Walking back into the camp with only a small bump on the head while Lucy had been helped in by her spirits. Noticing the looks of shock on some of the members faces, as they had no doubt expected Lucy to be the victor of their bout.

Wendy knew that she probably shouldn't feel as good as she did about it. To be feeling such satisfaction at defeating another one of her close friends in a fight. But she was growing sick and tired of the others babying her. She didn't need them watching over her all the time anymore. And this felt like the best method of showing them that.

She was knocked out of her thoughts as a large fist slammed down onto the ground on the opposite side of the clearing, causing a sharp pain to erupt in her head. Wincing, she opened her eyes to find the master standing on top of a large rock waiting for the rest of the guild to quiet down.

Surprisingly it only took a few moments for all the talking to cease, the anticipation of the next trial beating the will to continue talking.

"I know that many of you have been awaiting this announcement." The master spoke, staring out into the crowd before him. He shifted his gaze between the four remaining S-Class candidates, keeping his eyes on Wendy for a bit longer than the other three.

Moving his gaze away, he turned to look at the four S-Class mages standing behind him. "Before we get into the details, let's first congratulate the four mages to have made it this far. To those who were defeated, fret not. There is always next year."

A round of applause rang throughout the clearing. A few members whistled and cheered, sending out good lucks to the member they were rooting for. And when the master raised a single hand, they quieted down once again.

"The next trial will involve each of the current S-Class mages standing behind me." Many of the guild members eyes shifted to the mentioned group as the master withdrew a set of four square wooden amulets from within his thick wizard saint coat. Each had the Fairy Tail guild mark engraved within the wooden slab.

Handing each of the mages a single necklace, he turned back to the crowd. "Each mage with keep an amulet around their neck. They will be given an hour to find a spot on the mountain where they will wait for a challenger."

"Each candidate is required to find one of the S-Class mages." Once again, the master shifted his gaze between the remaining candidates. "Your task is to retrieve the amulet from around their neck and successfully bring it back to me."

"Keep in mind, that once you find one of the S-Class mages, they are the one you must face. When the mage acknowledges you, a barrier will be put up to prevent any outsiders from interfering. Remember, the task is to bring me the amulet, but there are no rules on how to attain it in the first place."

Turning around to the older mages gathered behind him once more, he nodded his head and with a flash they disappeared, only leaving a light wisp of smoke behind. "The one hour starts now. As soon as the gong sounds, the trial has begun. I wish each candidate the best of luck."

The cheers that rang out after he stepped off the rock seemed to shake the entire cave. Wendy covered her ears with her hands to block out the overwhelming noise, but only had minimal success. But this time, the excitement didn't die down.

Quickly growing irritated with the lack of quiet, Wendy stood up and made her way over to the entrance of the cave, which was much easier said than done. Trying to push her way through the hoard of people proved to be much harder than anticipated, especially when many tried to wish her luck or give her a pat on the back.

She breathed a sigh of relief as she finally came to a stop near the snow-covered entrance. Rubbing her hands together to create some heat, she quickly grabbed one of the lit torches by the entryway and held it close, basking in its heat.

The dark air was frisk as wisps of snow blew throughout the mountain. She could still feel herself shivering despite the warmth the torch provided. She couldn't see very far in the dusk of the mountain, but she couldn't help but wonder just where the S-Class mages had gone. They were out there somewhere.

Stretching a hand up, she delicately fixed her small winter cap that had begun to cover her eyes due to the wind. Despite having guessed that the second part of the trials had something to do with fighting, she didn't think that they would be fighting the S-Class mages. At least not yet.

She now fully understood why the master had told her to save her magic as much as possible. To pass this part of the trial, she was going to need as much as possible. Undoubtedly, the other candidates were coming to the same realization as well. And were no doubt trying to formulate plans on how they were to go about passing this phase.

Despite having moved outside, she could still hear the bustling noise from everyone inside. But she wallowed in the peace that the snowy mountain brought her. There was no sense in stressing over the upcoming trial. Not when she didn't yet know who she was going to face.

The sound of shuffling behind her interrupted her thoughts. Not turning around, she could hear the figure swear softly under his breath. It didn't take much longer for her to figure out who it was. And within moments, the hulking form of Gajeel stood next to her, his thick arms crossed over his broad chest.

The older man stood heads higher than her, with the top of her head barely reaching the middle of his torso. Over the past few years he had let his spiky, black hair grow out even more, allowing it to flow down to his waist. He was in his typical black boots and brown pants but had a long-sleeved tunic instead of his usual sleeveless one.

He was grumbling to himself as he rubbed the top of his head with his right hand. If Wendy had to guess he had probably banged his head into the ceiling of the entryway on his way out.

His left hand was buried deep into one of the tunic's pockets, where she could barely make out the edge of his iron studded gloves.

The pair stood in silence for a bit longer, with Wendy looking away from the man, while he continued nursing his head. Having relieved himself of the pain, Gajeel lowered his hand and glanced over at the small girl next to him, but Wendy did nothing in response.

Seeming to contemplate his words for a few moments, he opened and closed his mouth a few times before sighing and clenching his hand into a fist. "You've grown up."

Wendy still made no move to look at him, but she felt the edge of her lips begin to curve down into a grimace. She didn't know where he was going with this, but the odds were that she wasn't going to like it.

It didn't take much to sense the unease that the man felt, as it was practically radiating from every inch of his body. He relaxed his clenched fist as he rubbed the back of his head with his hand. "Look," he continued, taking a moment to think of his next words. "I'm not good with this kind of stuff, but you know that already."

Breathing out a sigh, he placed his un-pocketed hand on her shoulder, noticing how the girl tensed underneath. "The rest of us are here for you," he spoke with a gruff voice. Wendy was about to shrug his hand off her shoulder, but he removed it before she could.

"We know that you have changed, hell, everyone has after what happened. But you don't need to do everything alone. Trust me. I learned that from experience."

Her eyes widened ever so slightly, and she could feel the edges of her grimace ease up. She had expected some sort of sappy speech, just as the others always tried to give her, but even so, she didn't exactly expect those words to come out of Gajeel's mouth.

Wendy's thoughts were interrupted as he spoke again, but this time she felt herself freeze at his words. "Natsu may have been hard-headed and stubborn, but if there is anything that I had learned from him, it was that a guild is a family. We always have each other's backs."

Staring down into the snowy ground, Wendy could sense her hands begin to tremble as they grasped onto the torch. She felt the faintest trace of tears begin to well up in her eyes and she quickly blinked to get them to disperse.

"But don't get me wrong," he spoke, his voice sounding a bit lighter, "If it comes down to it and I have to face you… I'm going to beat you into the ground. Ain't no one becoming S-Class but me."

Her eyes widened drastically before settling down as a small smirk appeared across her face. As she was still facing away from the man he couldn't see it, but he accepted her silence as a response. Turning to make his way back into the cave, he froze when he heard her speak up.

"Likewise."

Letting out a heavy guffaw, he stood there for only a moment longer before continuing into the cave, laughing the entire time.

The rest of the hour flew by. Wendy having been embroiled in her thoughts barely noticed when the large gong sounded throughout the cave. It was only a matter of seconds before the other candidates stood beside her outside.

She only spotted Gray and Cana for a moment before they were off, disappearing into the darkness of the mountain before them. Gajeel stood there for a moment, just long enough to give her a quick nod before he was off as well. Wendy cursed at her lack of attentiveness and rushed forward as well, pushing through the thick snow.

Weaving in between the trees wasn't the difficult part. It was the lack of sight and the foot and a half of snow that she had to push through that proved to be a challenge. Every so often there would be a torch ablaze, but besides that there was nothing that provided any extra light.

Pushing forward, she didn't know exactly where she was going, but figured that if she kept moving she would stumble upon some sign of someone eventually.

Eventually, she could see the number of trees begin to fade. The space slowly beginning to open into a small clearing. She could barely make out the edge of a cliff ahead of her, and as she slowly pushed herself closer to the edge, could make out the vast expanse of the mountain range below. It was then that she realized that she must have made her way up higher on the mountain.

Wiping away some of the snow that had begun to build up on her face, she continued. It only took a few more minutes of labored steps before she could make out a set of four torches glowing brightly in a square by the steepest part of the cliff. And in the middle, she could make out the bright blond hair of the figure looking out over the edge of the cliff.

Laxus stood alone at the edge, his hands buried deep in his coat pockets. For once, the coat wasn't draped around his shoulders, but was instead being worn. Thick black boots covered his feet at the bottom of the dark pants he was wearing. But the most prominent feature was the wooden Fairy Tail emblem hanging from his neck.

As she approached he had turned to look straight at her, a neutral look etched across his face. And as she stared into his grey eyes, she had unknowingly reached up to grasp the edge of the scale-like scarf around her neck. A shiver went through her body as she took a small step forward.

"Wendy." he spoke, a small smile appearing on his face. "I suppose I should've seen this coming."

The bluenette said nothing in response but noticed that he had taken a small step forward when he removed one hand from his coat. She could easily see the Fairy Tail amulet in his hand as he held it away from his body, taunting her with it. The snow fluttering around them had begun to pick up speed, slowly making it more difficult to see the figure standing before her.

"This is what you need, is it not?" Her eyes narrowed slightly at his words, catching a glimpse of his serious face once again. "You may not realize it but I've been keeping an eye on you for a while now. What you did to Lucy back there was a bit harsh don't you think?"

Receiving no answer, the man dropped the amulet and let it fall to a rest upon his chest. "But no. It wasn't to you. To every other candidate it probably wouldn't be seen that way either. After all, there is no holding back when becoming S-Class."

He took a few steps forward and raised his hand out in front of him. As he closed his hand into a fist, lightning began to crackle around it. Wendy could feel beads of sweat begin to form on her forehead. The magical pressure the man was emitting almost felt as if it was trying to force her to the ground, but she refused to submit.

"But I'm no S-Class candidate," he continued, never moving his eyes from hers. "And I won't hold back."

The snow swirled around them, continuing to pick up speed as the wind began to swirl around Wendy. Her hair was flying with the wind, and she could feel the air providing her with more strength. Ignoring the throbbing pain that continued to grow in her head, she began to push her way forward.

But after taking a few labored steps through the thick snow, she paused. Through the snow, she noticed the man slowly drop his fist, and before she could blink, he was gone.

Tensing up, she could feel her senses flaring, searching desperately to find him. The snow continued to whip around her, trying to force her eyes closed, but she fought against it. Taking a few small steps forward, she came to a stop next to a small boulder and leaned against it. Raising her hands, she attempted to use the wind to slow some of the snow blowing around, but it was to no avail.

A flash of light to her right garnered her attention and as she began to turn a fist struck her abdomen. Spittle flew from her mouth as she hunched over, instinctively grabbing her stomach with both hands. She barely had a moment to register the pain before she was hit again under the chin. Her head flew back as her teeth clamped shut. Pain shot through her jaw, and she was sure that she had heard a few cracks.

Stumbling back a few steps, she shook her head to clear the ever-growing pain. The wind that had been swirling around her had all but dissipated, with the swift attacks causing her to lose her control over the element. Taking a few quivering steps back, she clenched her jaw with her hand as her eyes scoured the landscape before her, looking for any sign of her opponent.

She wasn't looking long before Laxus appeared before her, hands buried in his coat pockets once again. He just watched as she shifted her jaw slightly. She could tell that it wasn't broken, but it would sure leave a nasty bruise.

Narrowing her dark-brown eyes, she took a small step forward and dropped the hand that was holding her jaw. Laxus' face remained impassive, while his body was as still as a statue. He was watching her, analyzing her, and she knew that. But it was time to show him some of the new tricks that she had learned over the past few years.

Leaping forward, she wasn't surprised when her fist was only met with air. Turning her body side to side, she once again searched throughout the mountaintop for any sign of the mage. Keeping one hand close to her body, she stretched out the other as she used her control over the wind to slow the snow swirling throughout the air.

She took a soft breath to slow her heart that was wracking her body. No matter what she tried, she couldn't spot him. Glaring out into the storm, she grimaced when she still couldn't find him. She could sense his presence due to the high pressure his magic was radiating, but visually all she could see was the storm raging around her.

Deciding to switch up tactics, she closed her eyes tight. She could still hear the storm swirling throughout the air, and bristle of the tree branches waving in the wind. But there was something else, and when she focused she was finally able to realize what it was. Footsteps.

Raising her right arm away from her body, she winced as she felt his fist collide with her forearm. Switching her gaze from her arm to his gray eyes, she noticed the small look of surprise on his face. But that was all she noticed before a searing pain erupted from her abdomen.

Gasping out, she had no chance of avoiding the lightning that was launched at her. She yelled out in pain as she was sent flying back, her limp body crashing to the ground. Slowly pushing herself onto her back, she barely noticed the flash of light before he was upon her again with one foot raised above her face.

Ignoring the pain that flared up in her right arm, she caught the foot as he brought it down over her face. Drops of sweat slid to the ground below as she heaved for a breath. Her arms were trembling from the effort of trying to hold his foot from colliding with her face.

Letting out a small grunt of pain, she threw the foot to the side, followed by a swift strike to the back of his knee. The man quickly caught himself before colliding with the ground, but it gave her enough time to push herself back onto her feet.

As expected, he didn't stay down for long. Pushing himself back onto his feet, he looked back at her with a tiny smirk etched across his face. "Smart move." He spoke, reaching down to rub the back of his knee lightly. "You moved faster than I thought you would. So don't expect to catch me like that again."

Not offering the man a reply, she spread out her feet and bent her knees, bracing herself for the eventual attack. Despite only waiting for only a few seconds, it felt like hours for her. Her labored breathing along with the swift gusts of the winds being the only things she could hear as she watched him prepare his next attack.

The man blinked, and the next time she gazed up into his eyes, the grey orbs were pulsing with power. He was taking his time, trying to put her on edge and she knew it. But that thought did nothing to settle the nerves wracking through her body. The lightning began to build up around his body, sparks wrapping around his limbs almost like snakes.

His eyes began to grow brighter, and she watched with growing fear as he smiled. The lightning crackled around his mouth, lighting up his upper body and making his already prominent canines stand out even more.

"It's time to take this up a notch, Wendy." The magic power surrounding the mage was overwhelming. Seemingly twice what it had been only a few minutes ago. All her instincts were telling her to run, to get as far away from the source of this power as possible. But she pushed through it, bracing herself even more as she awaited the attack.

He spread his arms out to the side, the muscles on his arms bulging with strength and power. Taking a small step forward, he took a deep breath before shouting, "Lightning Dragon's Roar!"

A bright flash of light erupted from his mouth, causing the small girl to cry out in pain as her hands shot up to clutch her searing eyes. She had only barely managed to open one eye when she noticed the torrent of lightning head straight towards her.

Not wasting a moment, she dived to the side, crying out louder once again as the lightning grazed her side. She collapsed to the ground, her muscles tightening up as spasms shook her entire body. She let out a pain-filled scream, unable to do anything as the lightning coursed through her veins.

Through tear-filled eyes, she could see the hulking form of the mage standing before her getting closer. She could distinctly smell the scent of burn flesh. Wrinkling her noise at the disgusting smell, she placed a delicate hand on her side and winced at the pain. Glancing down, she could see the burns that covered her entire side, having ripped straight through the thick clothes that she was wearing.

She let out a small whimper when a large hand reached down to grab the back of her coat, lifting her up into the air as if she weighed nothing. She weakly glanced up into the man's eyes, not willing to do much else.

"You wanted power did you not?"

His voice was muffled, and she was barely able to make out the words over the ringing in her head. Her muscles still burned, and when she attempted to raise a hand, her body refused to cooperate.

Wincing as he tightened his grip, he raised her up higher into the air. The feeling was just beginning to return to her body, allowing her to wiggle her fingers and toes. With her adrenaline dying down she could feel herself shivering, the frisk air doing nothing to help her.

"If this is all that you have to offer. Then there is no point in attempting to pass these trials."

Narrowing her eyes, her lips turned downwards into a grimace. While his words annoyed her to no end, she couldn't help but agree with him. He was absolutely dominating this fight, but he couldn't keep going forever. She needed to find an opening.

Twirling her wrist slightly, she could sense the feeling return to more of her body. Gathering a bit of saliva in her mouth, she spat right into his face. Despite letting out an annoyed sound, he did nothing more than raise his other arm to wipe the spittle off his face. But in doing so, had loosened his grip on her collar.

Not wasting a single moment, she tightened her right hand into a fist and launched forward, colliding with his throat. He let out a surprised grunt of pain as he dropped her into the freezing snow below. Grabbing his throat with his hand, he took a few shaky steps backwards.

Wendy rolled around in the snow, trying to desperately make her way onto her feet. Despite the success of the plan, her limbs still felt like jelly. She had barely made it onto her hands and knees before she felt his magical power growing once again.

Tilting her head up, she watched through hazy eyes as the lightning began to build around his body. Laxus' eyes were no longer grey, but instead were bright yellow, pulsating with power. She could just barely make out the Fairy Tail amulet hanging from his neck.

Shakily pushing herself onto her feet, she took a few labored steps forward through the thick blanket of snow. She couldn't back down now, not when she was so close. No matter how strong the opponent, she needed to find the strength. To never give up.

Taking step after step, she made her way closer to him. He had been watching her, noting every single step she made towards him. His bright eyes still pulsing with power as the lightning continued to spark around him. Reaching one hand up to the shoulder of his coat, he pulled the coat from his broad shoulders before letting it drop to the snowy ground, leaving him in his black undershirt.

The air was swiped from her lungs as she felts the pressure around him seemingly double once again. Collapsing to her knees, she couldn't stop the tears from forming in her eyes. Laxus' body seemed to expand. His biceps thickened, shoulder's becoming broader.

Swinging his arms out to his sides, he let out a roar as the lightning burst out tenfold. It shot up into the sky, the lighting brightening up the area around them. Staring down at Wendy's small form, his eyes and mouth were both filled with lightning.

Wendy lay on the ground, gasping for breath with tears sliding down her face. The only time she had felt magical pressure like this before was when she had faced Hades with the rest of her old team. It was overwhelming, continuously sucking the air right out of her lungs when she tried to take a breath and forcing the rest of her body down to the ground.

The crunch of the snow with each step was the only way that she noticed Laxus standing by her once again. Forcing her hazy gaze up, she stared into the lightning filled eyes with fear. She couldn't contest with him. He was on a level of magical power that many could only dream of attaining.

Taking a shuddering breath, she raised a trembling hand up and grabbed onto his calf. The simple motion burning through the remaining energy that she had been able to muster up. Slowly, she raised her head to meet his fierce, bright eyes with her own dark and weary ones.

When he reached down and grabbed her around the neck, there was nothing available within her to try to even attempt to prevent him from lifting her up. Once again, her entire body was limp, hanging from his grasp due to gravity only.

By this point, she could feel her consciousness fading. His grip around her throat was like a vice. He was squeezing his hand more and more, causing the girl to gasp and wheeze for breath, growing desperate for any air.

Raising her higher into the air, he slammed her into the ground by her throat. She let out a pain-filled scream as her body impacted the ground, sending the snow flying up into the air only to flutter back down to the ground as she lay limp.

Heaving for breath, her dark-brown eyes watched the darkened sky above with an empty gaze. There was nothing more that she could do. Despite her pride urging her against it, she knew that she could no longer continue to fight.

Taking in another shuddering breath, she delicately raised her right hand up to her neck. She winced as she made contact with the bruised skin. Her chest flared with pain with every breath, and she had begun to lose feeling of her legs long ago.

I must look like a mess. She thought to herself, grimacing at the metallic taste of blood filling her mouth. She didn't know why she was singling out specific limbs anymore. Her entire body ached, killed even.

But despite all of that, there was only one thing that hurt her more as she lay in the snow slowly drifting into the realm of unconsciousness. The thought that she had lost.

Edited 8/27/18

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