Chapter 24

The Valley of Gates

Somewhere further east…

The midday sun disappeared behind a large cluster of white clouds as Alu and her group made their way across a barren plain. A strange fog began to roll in, making the air feel humid and heavy. Alu couldn't quite explain it, but something about this fog felt different. It felt like it was some kind of physical presence.

"We should be getting closer." Alu said. "I don't know why, but I feel like we're almost there."

"I gotta say, scruff munchkin," Aquarius exhaled, her voice heavy with weariness, "I'm actually amazed you got so much stamina."

"I can't sit still for very long." Alu replied nonchalantly. "I've always been energetic. That, and Dad put me through many kinds of training: from cardio to martial arts."

"That explains so much." Aquarius said sarcastically.

"I just hope we get to this Valley of Gates soon." Sorano moaned. "My feet are starting to kill me."

"Just be grateful we haven't run into any trouble yet." Eagle said bluntly, in a way that reminded Alu of Erza. "Let's just hope it stays that way. I'd like to think that we lost Ivan for good."

"Don't let your guard down, Son." Jellal said. "We can't afford to be taken by surprise, especially with two Celestial Spirits in critical condition."

"Don't worry about us." Aquarius groaned. "Us Spirits are made of sterner stuff."

Alu cast her gaze down at the ground and sighed pensively.

At the mention of Ivan, Alu remembered the events that transpired last night. It also reminded her of a thought that had been agonizing her for a while.

Ivan said that he wanted to become a Celestial Dragon Slayer, and Neo Virgo said that Alu was also a Celestial Dragon Slayer. This made a dozen questions race through Alu's mind.

What did Neo Virgo mean by that? Why was Ivan so bent on becoming this Dragon Slayer? What was a Celestial Dragon Slayer anyway?

As Alu thought of that question, she looked over at Aquarius and Aries. As she stared at them, she soon realized that they started acting weird the moment they found out that Ivan about Ivan's plans.

Aries had become more overprotective than usual, and Aquarius lashed out violently when Ivan revealed his plan; saying that he wasn't "worthy of that power".

Maybe they did know something about this.

After all, if a Celestial Dragon Slayer is connected to Celestial Wizards, then maybe Celestials Spirits know something, too. It certainly wouldn't surprise Alu if they did.

Violet, who was flying beside Alu, noticed the girl's troubled vibe and became concerned.

"Something wrong, Alu?" she asked.

"Not really," Alu answered thoughtfully, "It's just…"

Alu hesitated for a second. Finally, she took a deep breath and settled on her plan.

"Hey, Aquarius, Aries, I've been thinking about something."

Aquarius looked over that the girl who was helping her. Aries lifted her head off of Jellal's back and turned her head tiredly.

"Ivan kept saying that he wanted to become a Celestial Dragon Slayer." Alu explained. "And Neo Virgo said that I was a candidate to become one. I'm pretty sure she said that because I have Celestial and Dragon Slayer Magic. But Ivan mentioned a Spell, too. What I'm asking is this: do either of you know what makes a Celestial Dragon Slayer?"

Aquarius and Aries didn't answer, but they did have small reactions to that question. Aries bit her lip nervously, and Aquarius clenched. As much as they tried to be subtle about their reactions, everyone noticed them this time.

That at least gave Alu the hint that she was onto something. She decided to press the matter further, being as careful as she could.

"Do you have to complete a Spell to become one?" Alu asked. "Do you have to merge Celestial and Dragon Slayer Magic together? Is that why Ivan is stealing souls of Celestial Wizards and Dragon Slayers?"

"Ivan doesn't know what he's doing." Aquarius suddenly replied bluntly.

Alu blinked. It was now that Aquarius had a very stern expression.

"That man doesn't know anything." Aquarius went onto say with resentment. "It's not A Celestial Dragon Slayer, it's THE Celestial Dragon Slayer."

"THE…Celestial Dragon Slayer?" Meldy said, her eyes widening a bit in surprise.

Aquarius lowered her head.

"And she died over four hundred years ago," the Water Spirit said bitterly.

"She?" Eagle blinked. "You mean the Celestial Dragon Slayer was a woman?"

"She was a very strong woman, both in body and spirit." Aquarius said. "Ivan is doing nothing but tarnishing her legacy. He has no idea what she did to protect this world. What she was willing to sacrifice."

Alu frowned sadly when she saw Aquarius grimace in emotional pain. It was a subtle expression, but Alu managed to catch it. She glanced over and saw that Aries had the same look of sorrow, only it was more apparent on her, and she wasn't trying to hide it.

Alu looked at both of them with empathy. Whoever this person was, she could tell that she was someone they loved very much.

Alu took a deep breath before speaking again. This time, she sounded more tentative.

"Um, if it doesn't bother you guys, I would like to hear more about her. Like…how did she become the Celestial Dragon Slayer?"

Aquarius and Aries both fell silent for a moment. Aries looked over at Aquarius with an unsure expression, and Aquarius looked back at her. Alu watched as both them exchanged facial expressions, like they were communicating to each other through some kind of telepathy.

Finally, Aquarius gave a small nod and looked down at the ground.

"The Celestial Dragon Slayer was a human in Earth Land back when Dragons terrorized the world," the Spirit explained. "And when I say back, I mean way back. It was long before Acnologia came to power."

"Before Acnologia?" Jellal said, surprised.

At the sound of that name, Alu blinked in bafflement. She had heard that name many times before, and she knew who Acnologia was. But for some reason, hearing that name this time made her feel as if she heard it before, and not by anyone in the Fairy Tail guild, or any of the other guilds.

Alu shook her head slightly to get the idea out of her head. She really didn't want to think about that now.

"Yeah." Aquarius continued. "Her family was killed by a Dragon, and she was separated from her clan. Around the same time, one Spirit from the Celestial Realm happened to stumble into this world by accident."

"Spirit?" Alu raised her eyebrows. "Hold on, I remember the Celestial Spirit King told me about that. But he said that the person the Spirit befriended became the first Celestial Wizard."

"That is true," Aquarius replied, "but don't you remember how Dragon Slayers got their Magic?"

"Yeah, of course I do. They were trained by Dragons."

"Well, it just so happens that the Spirit who first entered Earth Land all those years ago was the Dragon Spirit."

"Dragon Spirit?" Alu inhaled sharply. "There's a Dragon Spirit?"

"That's what I said." Aquarius answered in a low voice. "He was one of the most powerful Spirits in our world. His power rivaled even that of the Celestial Spirit King. Draco, the Celestial Dragon."

"Draco?" Alu whispered in wonder.

So, there was a Dragon Spirit in the Celestial World.

Draco, the Celestial Dragon.

Just the sound of that name filled Alu with a strange kind of empowerment, making her feel courageous and strong.

"Yes," Aquarius nodded, "as you can probably guess, Draco was the one who trained the Celestial Dragon Slayer. More than that, he took her in and loved her as if she was his own daughter. He told her stories of the Celestial World, and taught her Magic. Magic that would later become known as Dragon Slayer Magic."

"Hold on," Jellal spoke up, "are you saying that this girl was the first Dragon Slayer?"

"But I thought Irene was the first one." Meldy said. "Erza told us that she was the one came up with Dragon Slayer Magic."

"Irene's Dragon Slayer Magic was different." Aquarius said firmly. "If you could even call it Dragon Slayer Magic. It was really just a cheap imitation that could barely do any real damage to a Dragon. It was Enchantment Magic that resulted in chaos and the destruction of thousands of lives. The fact that it took over people's minds and bodies should've told everyone that it was faulty."

"Wait," Sorano narrowed her eyes pensively, "so you're saying that the Dragon Slayers of Fairy Tail and Sabertooth aren't really Dragon Slayers."

"The brand of Magic they use is Enchantment Magic shaped to imitate Dragon's Magic." Aquarius glared. "I hate to say it, but that's not true Dragon Slayer Magic. They're no different than Second Generation Dragon Slayers. The only difference is that they have a seed in them instead of a lacrima. Or both if you're talking about Sabertooth's Slayers. Honestly, I was shocked when I heard they actually defeated Acnologia. Then again, he had the same kind of Magic they did, so I guess I should've expected as much."

"But…what is true Dragon Slayer Magic?" Eagle asked, confused.

"To have Dragon Slayer Magic, one has to have Dragon's blood in them." Aquarius answered. "In other words, Dragon blood transfusion."

There was a small pause.

"Dragon blood transfusion?" Alu breathed slowly.

Aquarius gave a single nod.

"Simply by accident, Draco's blood found its way into the girl he took in as his daughter, and that is how she became the first and only true Dragon Slayer. She also invented Celestial Magic, hence her title."

Everyone was stunned by this news. Aquarius gave a small smirk.

"I guess you could say that Celestial Magic and Dragon Slayer Magic were connected from the beginning," the Water Spirit continued. "The Celestial Dragon Slayer was the most powerful of them all. She carried that responsibility with grace and courage, and we Celestial Spirits stood by her side as one."

Aquarius then lowered her gaze and her face became very somber.

"But like all mortals of this world, she was destined to die. And during the hardest fight of our lives, she…"

Aquarius winced and turned away. Aries sniffled as tears began to well up in her eyes.

"She must've really been someone special." Violet said softly.

Aries nodded.

"After that battle, Draco disappeared." Aries explained sadly. "He hasn't been seen in the Celestial World since."

"I'm so sorry, guys." Alu frowned. "That must've been really hard for you. But I can see why you'd be mad about Ivan wanting to complete a Spell to become the Celestial Dragon Slayer. I bet he invented it just so he could be more powerful."

Alu then looked up with a sudden expression of curiosity. The Celestial Dragon Slayer existed over four hundred years ago. How in all of Earth Land did Ivan find out about someone that was alive that long ago?

"How did he even know about this anyway?" Violet questioned out loud, saying what Alu was wondering. "Was the Celestial Dragon Slayer very well-known?"

"Depends on your definition of "well-known"." Aquarius replied. "She was only infamous to those who knew about her. But she was someone who tried to be as low key as possible. I don't know how Ivan found out about the Celestial Dragon Slayer, but he's got it all wrong."

"What do you mean?"

Aquarius swallowed hard and hesitated for a moment.

Finally, she took a deep breath.

"He keeps going on about a Spell," she said slowly, "but if my theory's correct, then what he found isn't a Spell, it's a Prophecy."

"A Prophecy?" Meldy breathed.

"Although Draco has been gone for a long time, there is a Prophecy in the Celestial World about him coming back."

"Draco coming back?" Alu blinked. "Is that why Ivan is hunting Celestial Wizards and Dragon Slayers? He's trying to bring back Draco by becoming the Celestial Dragon Slayer."

"Your guess is as good as mine, scruff munchkin." Aquarius scowled. "But that fool of a man, he disgraces Draco and the Celestial Dragon Slayer for doing this. They were willing to give up their lives for this world, and he just wants their power for himself. He's not worthy of it."

Alu looked away. Her eyes narrowed as she slipped into deep thought again. For a moment, she became unaware of everything else: her walking feet, Aquarius's weight on her shoulder, and even the air around her.

Is Ivan trying to awaken Draco? It certainly wouldn't surprise Alu if that was the case, seeing as how insane that man was. It seemed like the thing he would try and do. But if his method was wrong like Aquarius said it was, then what WAS the right way? How would a wizard summon a Dragon Spirit?

However, Alu didn't have much time to think about the subject any further. For at that moment, as she and her friends were walking past a mound of rocks, pretty much everyone except for Alu, Aquarius, and Sorano came to a sudden halt. The three looked back in surprise and saw that everyone else was up against an invisible wall.

"Guys!" Alu called out.

"Alu, we can't go on!" Violet said, sounding worried. "It's like there's an invisible wall!"

"Don't panic, Violet." Aquarius said calmly. "That's the sign we've reached the Valley of Gates. Only Celestial Wizards and Spirits can enter here."

Upon hearing that, Jellal turned to the weary Aries he was carrying on his back.

"I guess that means that this is as far as I can take you."

"It's okay," Aries said drowsily, "I can walk on my own from here."

Sorano watched as Jellal carefully set Aries down. The Golden Ram Spirit managed to walk forward for a few feet before her feet got mixed up together. She stumbled and shriek as she started to fall towards the hard ground. But before she could hit it, Sorano made a quick dash and manage to catch the Celestial Spirit. Aries blinked in surprise when she realized what had happened and turned to look at the white-haired woman.

"Well, we can't have you tripping all over yourself, now can we?" Sorano sighed as she hoisted one of Aries's arms over her shoulders. "Guess it's a good thing I used to be a Celestial Wizard now."

"Uh, yeah." Aries nodded, giving a small awkward expression. "Thank you."

"You sure you're okay, Aries?" Alu asked.

"Yes, Alu. I'm sorry to make you worry."

"Hey, don't apologize."

Alu looked back at rest of Crime Sorciére and the purple Exceed.

"You guys wait out here," she ordered. "We'll be right back."

"Don't worry about us." Jellal said. "You just do what you need to do."

Alu gave a single nod. Then with that, she, Aquarius, Sorano, and Aries continued on the path stretched out before them.

Slowly and carefully, the group of four walked further into the Valley. As they made their way through, the landscape began to change. Small bushes that were scattered around got bigger, skinny trees led into thicker and taller ones, and a trail of grass was beginning to appear.

After about five minutes, the group came to a stop at the top of a hill. Alu looked down at the site before her and breathed in awe.

The Valley of Gates was covered in mist that sparkled like stardust. Trees and bushes of the purest green grew around in a circular formation, leaving a single clear path that lead into the center of the Valley below. In the middle of it all was something that looked like a large, round crystal fire pit. Burning inside of it was a large flame of the purest white. Even from where they were standing, Alu and the others could feel the waves of heat resonating from it.

"This is it." Aquiarus breathed heavily. "That's the forge used to create the Celestial Keys."

"Our journey's almost complete." Alu exhaled. "All we have to do now is re-forge your key, and you and Aries can return to the Celestial World. C'mon, let's get moving."

Back in the forest…

Meanwhile; Lucy, Happy, Gray, Erza, Gajeel, Wendy, Carla, and Romeo were all making it back to Magnolia as fast as they could. They had so much on their minds right now that they couldn't think about much except for the situation at hand. All they could focus on right now was getting back to Fairy Tail and warn everyone about Ivan. At the same time, they had to figure out how they were going to save Natsu and Alu. And they had to do it fast.

"Oh, I hope they'll be okay." Wendy said worriedly.

"Don't worry, Wendy." Romeo replied, trying to sound reassuring. "Natsu's tough. He'll get Alu back for sure. And he'll get out of Ivan's grasp no problem."

"Yeah, I know that." Wendy frowned. "But I still can't help but worry."

"Let's just get back to Fairy Tail as soon as possible." Erza commanded. "The sooner we get help the better."

"Right." Lucy nodded.

Erza herself was going through a small dilemma of her own. After Natsu got that ransom note, she couldn't stop thinking about her family in Crime Sorciére. If what Ivan really had taken Alu, then that meant that he would've had to take down the red-headed wizard'as husband and son. Erza had enough faith in Jellal and Eagle to know that they were both strong and powerful wizards, but as a mother and wife, she couldn't help but worry about her family. Especially now that she knew that Ivan was on the move again.

Still, as much as it worried her to think that Jellal and Eagle were in trouble, she kept telling herself to stay calm and to not assume the worst. The best thing she could do to help them now was get back to Fairy Tail as quickly as possible.

Suddenly, Carla stopped flying and gasped in horror. This caused everyone else to stop running and look back at her. They recognized the look on her face at once. She looked like her consciousness was partly removed from reality.

Carla was having a premonition.

When it was over, Carla took in a deep breath of air and shuddered. She then hugged herself and shivered uncontrollably. Wendy ran over to her Exceed partner and gently grabbed hold of her.

"What's wrong, Carla?" Wendy asked tenderly, cradling the Exceed in her arms. "What did you see?"

Carla took in a few deep breaths before swallowing the lump in her throat.

"It is a trap," she whispered fearfully. "I saw Alu, I know where she really is."

"Wait, what does that mean?!" Lucy asked quickly.

"Alu's not captured by Ivan." Carla replied. "She's in a valley a few miles east of here."

"What?!" Romeo exclaimed, his eyes widening in surprise. "So she wasn't captured by Ivan?! Then how did have a piece of her vest?!"

"I'm guessing he must've gotten it during his fight with her last night." Gray deduced. "And looks like Rogue didn't know about that either."

"That definitely sounds like something Ivan would do." Gajeel grumbled. "Underhanded bastard."

"Well, at least we know that Alu is fine for now." Erza pointed out. "And I guess that means that Crime Sorciére is alright, too."

"But wait!" Happy suddenly interjected. "If Alu's not captured, then what about Natsu?!"

At the reminder of the Dragon Slayer, everyone became very worried again. They knew that Alu was safe, but Natsu didn't.

That could only mean…

Carla looked down, her paws trembling.

"He's walking right into a trap," she said in a weak voice. "I also saw…I saw Alu fighting Ivan and his Spirits. Natsu…he was chained up to some kind of alter. He was shouting out in anger and distress."

"No!" Lucy gasped, bringing her hands to her mouth.

"We gotta stop Alu before she reaches Ivan!" Happy shouted in distress. "You said she was a few miles east of here!"

"Yes, but…"

Before Carla could finish her sentence, Happy was off like a shot. He had activated his Aera Wings and took off at Mach Speed before anyone had the time to stop him. In the blink of an eye, he was gone.

"Happy, wait!" Lucy cried out.

But it was in vain. Happy was too far away to hear her now.

A few seconds after that, Lucy noticed that Carla was starting to cry.

"Carla, what's wrong?!" Lucy asked fearfully. "What else did you see?!"

Carla took a deep breath and looked up at Lucy with a glint of dread in her eyes.

"Lucy…" she hesitated, her voice full of fear. "I saw Alu. She was crying. And then…I saw her…she was crying over Natsu's body. He was still, and lifeless."

Everyone froze in shock at Carla's news. If there was one thing they knew about Carla's visions, it was they were usually, if not always true. If she had seen what was going to happen in the future, then there as high chance that it was going to happen.

Lucy turned very pale, and horror filled her eyes. Her heart began to beat fast with sickening worry, and her hands trembled. She looked northeastward, the direction she had last seen Natsu run off in. She struggled to hold back the tears that were forming in her eyes. To think that her husband and daughter were both in potential danger, and she wasn't there to help them. If Carla had the premonition sooner, she could've done something. She could've gone with Natsu to confront Ivan. She could've been able to help him and save Alu.

But there was nothing she could do now. Nothing except get back to Fairy Tail and get reinforcements.

Now was not the time to be weak. She had to do what she could to save her family. She had almost lost Natsu once, and she vowed long ago that she wouldn't lose him again. And she most definitely wasn't going to lose her daughter either.

Lucy let out a deep breath of air and turned back to the others. The look on her face was a mixture of fright and determination.

"We have to get back to the guild and fast!" she demanded. "More than one life is at stake here!"

The others didn't even stop to argue. Everyone set out in a dead sprint through the forest. They had to get to a nearby town and take a train back to Magnolia. It was the only thing they could do right now.

As they ran, only one thought passed through Lucy's mind.

"Natsu, Alu, please just come back safe and sound! Please don't let that premonition come true! Just come back to me!"