Here is the fourth chapter! I am very happy to see people enjoying this story. And do not fear, you will be seeing more of Natsu's the Purgatory Curses. Do not fret, you will see the others soon as Natsu starts to "awaken" later on. For now, read, enjoy and review!
"H-how, w-why is Deliora here!?" Gray shouted in what sounded like a combination of shock, fear and rage as he glared at the frozen demon.
"Gray w-what's wrong? Do you know what that is?" Lucy asked the Ice Mage. This was the first time she had ever seen Gray so angry before.
As those two were discussing, Natsu was staring intently at the frozen form of Deliora. An odd feeling was running through the Dragon Slayer towards the demon. A feeling of familiarity almost, very odd. 'So this is another one of Zeref's demons? Just like Lullaby.' Natsu thought.
"And you. Don't forget, you were also created by Zeref as well." The voice reminded Natsu.
Natsu nodded numbly, he hadn't forgotten about that. Despite having learned about that little revelation several days ago, it was still hard for him to take in even now. It didn't help that Natsu could hear what he swore was a voice at the moment. However his thoughts were cut off when Lucy spoke.
"Guys, someone's coming!" The buxom blonde whispered loudly. Sure enough, shadowy figures could be seen through the passageway, getting bigger by the second. Quickly, the mages hid behind some nearby rocks as three new figures entered the large cavern.
One of them was a girl, around their age and she had dark pinkish hair that was tied in two long pigtails, fair skin, large breast, red lipstick and was wearing what looked like a black gothic dress. The other two were males, the tallest wearing nothing but ripped up jeans and had the unusual familiarity to a cat. The shorter one had tan skin, blue spiky hair that went up, a serious expression on his face and had his arms crossed. The Fairy Tail Mages stayed quiet as the three talk amongst themselves.
"Toby, Sherry, It seems that the villagers have hired mages." The shorter male spoke.
"Ooooon" The taller one called Toby said.
"Do you know how many Yuka-san?" The girl named Sherry asked.
"Three of them and I believe they came from that guild called Fairy Tail." The blue haired young man named Yuka replied.
"Then they must be the ones who scared my poor Angelica." Sherry cried dramatically, hands clasped to her chest.
"IT'S JUST A MOUSE!" The Toby yelled.
"She is not just a mouse…" Sherry began as she put her hands on her chest and spoke dramatically. "Angelica is the hunter that gallops and catches the darkness…and love."
"There is something very wrong with that girl…" Lucy muttered, looking at Sherry like she was insane.
"They smell different, so they're definitely not from the island though." Natsu commented as the three continued to listen in one what the two males and female were saying. "And they don't look curse either."
"I don't know about the guy with ears." Happy said.
"It doesn't matter, we cannot allow them to interfere. Especially if they've already discovered Deliora." Yuka muttered.
"We must stop them before the moon rises fully. They shall put into eternal slumber, in the name of love." Sherry said dramatically, agreeing with Yuka in her own unique way.
"DEATH!" Toby shouted in agreement. "KILL THEM ALL!"
And with that the three of them walked off back to where they came from, leaving the three Fairy Tail Mages to their own thoughts. An uncomfortable feeling began to sink into them as they took all that in, Finally Happy asked the awaited question. "So now what?"
"Now, we wait." Natsu replied, as he stared up at Deliora's lifeless eyes.
"Fuck! Why the hell did they bring Deliora here?" Gray cursed, his fists clenching tightly. "And how the hell did they even find where it was sealed in the first place?"
"Sealed?" Lucy asked, confused.
"Ten years ago, my master, Ur, used her magic to seal Deliora at the cost of her life." Gray said as he began to explain the story of Deliora. That the demon had rampage across the land near where Gray was born, and how it eventually destroyed his home and killed his parents. Ur, a powerful Ice Mage, took him in and trained Gray in Ice-Make. Then when news of Deliora reached Gray's ears, he had gone after it for revenge despite Ur's warnings. In the end, Ur had sacrificed her life by using Ice Shell, a powerful spell that sealed Deliora way forever.
Meanwhile, Natsu was focusing more on a scent he had picked up. It was faint, but definitely familiar. It belonged to that Ultear lady who had visited the guild a while ago. Why would she be here? That would have to wait for later, right now he had to focus on the giant demon frozen in ice.
"So, should we follow those three?" Natsu suggested to the others.
"No, better we wait for them to come back. From the sound of it, there is a fourth person on this island. Also I have a feeling that the village's curse, Deliora, all of it is connected to the moon." Gray explained.
"True, they did mention something about the moon rising." Lucy commented. "I guess we have no other choice but to wait." She turned her head towards Natsu and noticed he had fallen asleep. He was resting against a rock, eyes closed and a peaceful expression his face.
(Natsu's Mind)
"So what are you going to do?" The voice asked the Dragon Slayer. He was in his flame form again, a perfect copy of Natsu Dragneel. The flames swirled around his form, wisps flying off as the red eyes stared at Natsu.
"Do what?" Natsu asked, not understanding what his double was asking.
"You know what I mean. What are you going to do about Deliora? Even if the others don't realize it, it's clear that someone is planning on releasing him." The voice explained, arms crossed.
"What do you mean what I'm going to do? Kill it if things get out of hand." Natsu replied.
The voice raised a flame-like eyebrow. "Can you? Can you kill your own kind? Remember you're the same as Deliora, an Etherious. Can you kill a fellow demon so easily now?"
Natsu frowned, taken aback by that. Now that he thought about it, killing Deliora would be the same as killing a human. The two were of the same species since Natsu learned of his true origins. "But I killed Lullaby without blinking an eye. And I don't feel anything about that." Natsu explained.
"That was different. Lucy was threatened at the time and you were not fully aware of what was going on too. Lullaby also wasn't an actual Etherious, more like a demonic object that could take on an Etherious form. This time it's different, can you live with the thought of killing your own kind this time?" The voice repeated.
"I didn't think demons had a conscious of whom they killed." Natsu retorted.
The voice rolled its miniature sun-like eyes. "Contrary to the popular belief, not all demons are mindless monsters who focus only on destruction. Majority of the things said of Zeref's creations in books are bias opinions from humans. Your past life was kind and caring towards the other Etherious, while cruel towards your enemies and anyone or anything that threatened you or your people. Demons and dragons are no different than humans; they all have emotions that guide their actions, both noble and cruel. Humans and demons are more alike then the former will admit. The difference is that demons are capable of accepting the fact better then humans would. The world isn't black and white as the humans think, and the only one who understood that better then the rest of them was Leandra." The voice scolded.
Natsu stayed silent as he took all this in. All of this was making it more confusing and difficult for him. Originally he thought he was nothing more than a monster and was going to accept that with the belief he could still remain as he was. But now, after hearing the voice's explanation, it was becoming more and more difficult to understand what his past life was actually like.
However his thoughts were broken by the voice again. "Looks like company has arrived in the real world. Whatever your decision concerning Deliora is, it is your choice. Just remember: Do not let anything happen to Lucy." And then darkness consumed Natsu once more.
(Real World)
"-atsu! Natsu!" A familiar voice kept repeating.
Natsu slowly opened his eyes, to find himself looking at Lucy and Happy, both staring back at him. "What's happening?" Natsu asked in a slush tone.
"Shh!" Lucy whispered. Behind her, an opening above the cavern can be seen, lightened up by what looked like moonlight. Said light was shining directly above the frozen form of Deliora, giving it a rather illuminating appearance. "Something is happening above us. Gray got impatient waiting for you to wake up and already went ahead." Lucy explained.
"That idiot…" Natsu muttered as he stood up. The three soon began making their way to the outside of the cave, which was also a temple, heading towards the top of it. There, they saw a large group of hooded people performing what appeared to be a ritual. Near them were four people, not cloaked. Three of them were the same ones Natsu and the others saw before, while the fourth was a male wearing a mask over his face. The four of them appeared to be discussing something. And while Natsu would normally be able to hear them thanks to his enhanced hearing, his focus was on Gray. Said person had originally been hiding behind a nearby cluster of rocks, when something seemed to have made the Ice mage jump out of his hiding spot.
"Gray!" Lucy yelled as she, Natsu and Happy ran to catch up. The four figures turn around and saw the Fairy Tail mages approach them. However Gray was directing a glare towards the mask man.
"Retei-sama, these must be the ones who scared my poor Angelica!" Sherry exclaimed dramatically.
"IT'S JUST A MOUSE!" Toby retorted.
Gray ignored them his eyes still set on the man called Reitei. "That voice…I recognize it." He said as his friends caught up to him.
Reitei frowned, taking in Gray's appearance, before eventually removing his mask. Thus revealing a young man with spiky silver hair staring back with an emotionless look in his eyes. "It's been a while Gray." The man said.
"Lyon!" Gray yelled as he glared at his fellow disciple.
"Gray who is this?" Lucy asked, concern in her eyes as she stared between Gray and the revealed Lyon.
"A fellow student of Ur's." Gray said. "Lyon, what the hell do you think you're doing with Deliora?" Gray demanded.
Lyon smirked at his fellow student. "Isn't it obvious? I am going to free Deliora and defeat it. With that I shall finally prove that I've surpassed Ur."
"What?!" Gray exclaimed, shocked at Lyon's selfish reason, "You would free that monster just so you could boost your own ego?" Gray asked.
"I don't need to explain myself to you." Lyon said as he raised his hand, surprising the Fairy Tail mages. "Freeze" And with that, he unleashed a powerful wave of cold magic towards the four.
Gray, Lucy, and Happy were able to move out of the way, but Natsu wasn't fast enough. "Natsu!" Lucy cried as she expected to see the Dragon Slayer frozen in ice. But to her surprise, and everyone else's, Natsu stood there, completely fine. Instead, he just looked around confused.
"H-he resisted Lyon's ice?!" Yuka exclaimed in shock, seeing someone remain unaffected by Lyon's powerful ice magic.
"Tch" Lyon cursed. "I guess I could use a quick warm up before facing Deliora. Yuka, Toby, deal with those two. Gray is mine. Sherry, go and destroy that village." Lyon ordered.
"As you wish" Yuka replied.
"UNDERSTOOD!" Toby shouted.
"Anything for you, my love~" Sherry declared passionately before departing towards the village.
"What? The village has nothing to do with you guys! Why would you want to destroy them?" Lucy exclaimed, shocked by this show of cruelty.
"They were the ones who called you here, and thus the reason you're interfering with my desire. That's reason enough to warrant their destruction.
"So cruel…" Lucy muttered, angered by that. Natsu couldn't help but smirk at that.
"Now, get rid of those two." Lyon ordered Yuka and Toby.
"DEATH TO ENEMIES!" Toby yelled as he dashed towards Lucy, his nails growing longer and turning green. Lucy was taken by surprise of the ear-wearing man coming at her with such speed. She would never have enough time to even summon a spirit.
However before Toby got even close to touch Lucy, a fist as fast as sound, came down and struck the man right in the face. Toby automatically hit the stone floor with a loud bang. The impact was so strong that it made a crater twice the size of Toby's body, and even cause the formation to shake a little.
Everyone looked on in frozen silence. Looking down at Toby's unconscious form, just a few inches from Lucy, was Natsu, his eyes shadowed by his hair. He paid no heed to the blood covering his right knuckles, or the fist mark on the unconscious Toby's cheek. All he knew was that the bastard was going to try and harm Lucy, and that was something that Natsu could not allow.
"S-so fast…" Yuka mumbled. "I didn't even see him move."
"Whoa, Natsu?" Gray muttered, taken aback by the Dragon Slayer's brutality.
Lyon said nothing, only swallowed and kept his cool.
"Lucy…" Natsu said, finally speaking. The blonde girl blinked from her stupor and looked at the Dragon Slayer. His head was facing her but Natsu still spoke. "Take Happy and go after that pink haired girl. We can't let her reach the village."
"W-w-what? Me?" Lucy stammered. But her complaints died when Natsu turned to face her. Instead of the onyx eyes she knew the Dragon Slayer to possess, Lucy found herself staring into a pair of red orbs. They were as rich as blood but at the same time burning with a passion that Lucy felt consuming her. "Right! You guys can count on me! Let's go Happy!" Lucy declared, spinning around to hide the small red on her face.
"Aye sir!" Happy declared as he summoned his wings. He flew up to Lucy, grabbed her from the back and soon the two were flying after Sherry. This only left Natsu, Gray, Lyon, Yuka and a group of cloaked people performing the ritual.
"Natsu" Gray said, catching said person's attention. "You deal with bushy brows over there, Lyon's mine." The Ice mage said as he faced his fellow student.
"Fine" Natsu said as he flexed his right hand. He was going to try the Purgatory Curse again. "But don't take to long. I don't feel like sitting around waiting after I'm done with him." Natsu explained as he looked at Yuka.
"How dare you…" Yuka muttered, insulted that Natsu was basically insinuating that he would lose quickly. "Don't underestimate me, Wave Bullets!" He shouted and fired a barrage of bluish colored bullets at high speed towards Natsu.
"Let's go, Flamberge." Natsu said below his breath. Raising his right hand, a sword of flames appeared. It easily entered into Natsu's hand, before he gripped it tightly. Once held, Natsu began to use the blade to smack aside the oncoming projectiles, while slowly making his way towards Yuka.
"What the?! How did his magic deflect my magic-nullifying attack?" Yuka wondered out loud, unaware that Natsu wasn't using magic.
'So his magic cancels other magic huh? Guess that doesn't apply to Curses it seems. No need to tell him that though.' Natsu thought as he kept smacking/slicing the bullets with his blade easily. By the time he cut down the last bullet, he was halfway near Yuka.
Said person seemed extremely aggravated by these turn events. "Damn it!" Yuka cursed before raising his right arm forward, fingers outstretched and the thumb pointing upwards. He then fired a large mass of wave energy from his arm at Natsu. The blast was man-size and was nearing Natsu quickly.
On pure instincts, Natsu dismissed his flame sword before summoning Dyrnwyn. Without even thinking, Natsu swiped the sword forward, meeting the blast of wave energy head on. To his and Yuka's surprise, the mass of energy was quickly absorbed into the blade. The writing on it glowed briefly before fading back to normal.
"My attack…was absorbed?!" Yuka cried in disbelief.
Natsu also seemed surprised too. He figured that Dyrnwyn could handle the magical blast, but he did not think the blast would absorb it. 'So it can absorb magic? Cool!' Natsu thought.
"Actually, Dyrnwyn was forged to absorb souls, to empower both it and its wielder. In this case, you. However, as magic derives from a person's spirit and thus soul, it can also be absorbed by the blade and converted into Curse Power. A pretty good bonus if you ask me." The voice corrected, with a hint of humor at the end. "Be warned though, there is a limit to how much it can absorb as it will only work on magical energy and souls from living beings, and definitely not on attributes designed to harm demons."
"Lovely" Natsu thought as he quickly put away Dyrnwyn. He was now just a foot away from Yuka, who was still in shock of what happened. Without hesitating Natsu raised his right arm and thrust it forward.
By then Yuka had regained his senses and quickly countered. "Wave Shield!" He said as a barrier of wave energy appeared before him. "Punching me will do nothing you fool!" Yuka declared, gaining some confidence back. "My magic nullifies all other magic. Simple punch will do little-"
"Fire Dragon's Flame Elbow!" Natsu shouted, interrupting Yuka. Fire began to shoot out of Natsu's right elbow as his fist struck the wave shield. The extra boost gave Natsu the strength he needed to break the shield easily. With the shield gone, Natsu's punch struck Yuka directly in the face. The Wave mage was sent flying backwards before landing rather roughly.
"That was kind of boring." Natsu commented as he turned to see how Gray was doing. To his slight surprise, Lyon was overwhelming Gray. The former's ice magic was trumping over the latter's at every turn, summoning different animals made from ice to attack Gray. Lyon had a few bruises on his person, but it was clear that Gray was the one being thrashed. Also from what he saw, Natsu could tell that Gray wasn't focusing completely, the look of rage on his face made it clear that Lyon had said something to anger him.
Natsu was about to go and assist Gray when something caught the Dragon Slayer's attention. Lucy's magic was fluctuating, meaning she was in a serious situation. Natus immediately prioritize his objectives.
"This is the end Gray!" Lyon declared, his face slightly deranged a he spoke. Clenching his fist, ice magic began to gather around it. "Ice Make: Snow Dragon!" And the silver haired man unleashed a large serpentine-like dragon. The ice creature lunged at a down Gray, jaws opened wide to deliver the kill.
"Fire Dragon's Talons!" Lyon's eyes widened as two hands of flames extended. One struck the ice dragon, smashing it aside with ease, while the other grabbed Gray, who had already lost conscious. The arm receded back towards Natsu, who now held his friend's prone form over his shoulder.
"So you're going to fight me now?" Lyon inquired, staring at Natsu, not the least bit bothered by the face he easily defeated Yuka.
There was a look in the Dragon Slayer's eyes as he glared at Lyon, one promising pain in return for what Lyon did to Gray. The silver haired mage couldn't help but flinch at the intensity of the gaze.
But instead of fighting Lyon, Natsu turned around, still holding Gray. "As much as I'd like to smack you down like I did to your friends. I have more important things to do." Natsu explained without facing Lyon. "But we will stop you from doing this stupid thing." He finished as he sped off, moving at a speed that surprised Lyon.
(With Lucy and Happy)
"Huh?" A controlled Aquarius responded to Sherry, who was controlling her with her Doll Attack magic. "I WOULD DO THAT EVEN WITHOUT YOUR PERMISSION!" The Celestial Spirit shouted as she released a large body of water to attack everyone.
"AAHHH!" Lucy, Sherry and Happy all cried as they were struck by the tidal wave of water, sending them flying all over the beach.
"Tch, you're all a bunch of idiots." Aquarius grumbled before vanishing back to the Celestial Spirit World. Back on the beach, Lucy and Sherry slowly got up, both dizzy as their eyes swirling, both moving about like drunks. To the side, lying on the beach, was an unconscious Happy, his eyes also swirling wildly.
"Aquarius, always does stuff like that…" Lucy said, trying to gain her bearings. "She attacks everyone, friends and foes alike."
"I-I miscalculated…" Sherry stuttered as she made her way towards Lucy, stumbling about side to side. Lucy was also doing the same and both looked like they were about to collapse. "But still…she could not defeat my rock doll."
"So? As long as its user is unable to control it, that hunk of stone is useless. If I keep you dizzy, then there is no problem" Lucy explained with a chuckle. She and Sherry began to slap one another, their eyes still swirling. "This is a Fairy Tail mage."
"I can't believe I tied with you…" Sherry said.
"Tie? This is my win!" Lucy countered.
"How is this your win? You're staggering too!" Sherry shouted.
"Oh yeah? Then how about this?!" Lucy yelled, her focus returning slightly, as she performed a clothesline on Sherry.
"I…lost?" Sherry muttered as she fell on the sand. Behind her the rock giant began to crumble. "But, even if the light of my candle is extinguished…my love for Reitei-sama will not wither."
"Stop exaggerating! You're not going to die!" Lucy shouted, looking at Sherry with one eye opened.
"Angelica…avenge me…" Sherry said before finally succumbing to unconsciousness.
A shadow soon engulfed Lucy. Turning around the blonde saw what it was. "N-no way…"
It was the same mouse that Natsu had scared off in the morning. Lucy could do nothing as the mouse let out a roar. She fell to her knees, too exhausted from her battle with Sherry and couldn't summon another spirit in time to help her. All she could do was cover her face with her arms, eyes closed, with a single thought running through her mind. 'Natsu!'
"Oi" A voice said. "What do you think you're doing, rodent?"
Angelica froze at that. Appearing out of nowhere, Natsu stood between the mouse and Lucy, staring intently at the former. Lucy had opened her eyes and saw the Dragon Slayer.
"Natsu!" Lucy cried in relief, though she gasped when she spotted the prone form of Gray dangling on Natsu's shoulder.
Natsu didn't respond to Lucy, he was still glaring at Angelica with crimson eyes. The mouse remembered the nightmarish monster she had seen this morning. She also recalled that the pink haired man before her was the one responsible for it. Fear could be seen in the mouse's eyes as the crimson orbs of Natsu's stared back. It was so overwhelming the mouse fainted, falling to its side.
Snorting, Natsu turned around to look at Lucy, his eyes returning to their onyx color. "You okay Luce?" He asked kindly.
Lucy nodded shyly. "Yes…thank you Natsu."
"No problem!" He said with a fanged grin. Lucy blushed as he helped her up.
"Hey, where's Happy?" Natsu asked as he looked around for his feline companion.
Lucy gasped. "Oh no! I forgot about him!" She exclaimed as the two began to look for the flying blue cat. They eventually found him, still rooted in his spot and eyes swirling.
"What happened to him?" Natsu asked, raising an eyebrow as Lucy picked up the unconscious cat.
"Hehehe, nothing, I'm sure it was nothing." Lucy replied nervously, knowing it was her fault that Happy was like this. "What happened back at the temple? And why is Gray so hurt?"
"Gray got his ass kick by that Lyon guy." Natsu explained as he gestured towards the unconscious ice mage. "I defeated my opponent but rush back here since I could tell you were in trouble."
"We should head back to the village, we're in no condition right now to go back to the ruins." Lucy said as she held Happy in her arms.
Natsu nodded and the two began making their way back, ignoring the unconscious forms of Sherry and Angelica. Nor were they aware of a figure watching from the shadows. Their eyes stayed locked on Natsu's form, and the sword in his hand. Ultear, or her disguise Zalty, grinned sinisterly as she watched the Fairy Tail mages walk away. "Things are getting very interesting here. I can't wait to see what else you're capable of, Natsu-kun." The Time Mage said before disappearing.
A few minutes later Natsu, Lucy and their load arrived back at the village gate. "Well everything looks okay." Natsu said, with Lucy nodding in agreement. "Oi! Open up!" Natsu shouted.
The gate opened quickly, with the guards greeting them. "Ah, it's you guys! You didn't tell us another member from your guild was coming." One of the guards said.
"Eh, another member?" Lucy asked, confused. Natsu frowned as he sniffed the air. His eyes widen slightly as he caught onto a familiar scent.
Sure enough, standing before them was a familiar redheaded mage. Her armored hands were against her hips and a look that could kill was in her eyes. Lucy let out a shriek as she saw the armored mage.
"E-E-E-Erza!" Lucy stuttered, shaking in fear at the sight of the strongest woman of Fairy Tail. Natsu however had a look of indifference as he gazed boringly at the Titania.
"You idiots!" Erza yelled menacingly.
And there's chapter 4! Hope you all liked that brief show of Natsu's power. Next chapter we'll see more along with Natsu facing Deliora. Leave a review!
Wacko12