Chapter 8
"What did you say?"
Gajeel barely had the words out before the man vanished from in front of him and felt himself get hit from behind. A grunt of surprise managed to escape as the ground rushed up to meet him, getting a face full in the process. Scarlet irises blazing, the iron dragon slayer looked back at Marin and snarled, "All right tough guy, no more freebies." Picking himself up, Gajeel let his magic energy surge within him, covering himself in iron scales as the afternoon sun ducked behind a passing cloud. Just as he was about to launch a counterattack, Marin grinned and vanished again.
Gray, who had been watching dumbfounded until this point, snapped into action, finally taking his fighting stance and scanning the area furiously for any hint as to where Marin would reappear. When Gray did notice him it was too late however; Marin successfully caught Gray with his back turned toward him, first punching him in the kidney and then delivering a round house that left Gray on the ground, dazed by the attack. Slowly rising to his feet, the two Fairy Tail wizards exchanged glances. Clearly, Marin had the upper hand, and he was flaunting it to the fullest extent.
"Now you two know the true power of the Great Marin, a Spacial Magic Specialist!" Marin declared, dodging Gajeel's punches easily. "You are in MY domain!"
Just then, the sun peeked out from behind the cloud again, causing Marin's shadow to become visible.
Toothy grin and all, Gajeel grabbed hold of Marin's shadow and pulled it to his mouth. Instantly, the magic energy surged even higher as Gajeel rose to his feet. His second origin, Iron Shadow Dragon Slayer Mode, was taking effect. Marin watched, eyes wide, as Gajeel's already menacing appearance became even more sinister. Before Marin could flash away again, Gajeel grabbed him by the shirt collar and held him up off the ground, high enough to look the man in the face as he spoke.
"Now you're gonna know a taste of the true power of Fairy Tail! Iron Shadow Dragon's Club!" Gajeel growled, before giving Marin a hit that sent him flying. Before Gray could join in with his Ice Maker magic, they felt another magical presence that made both wizards shudder. Turning to face the mountain once more, Gray and Gajeel looked in awe as an opening seemed to appear out of nowhere and a young woman with mint green hair walked toward them. When she spoke, it was only directed at Marin, a look of irritation on her face.
"How long are you going to play around with these fools, Marin?" she asked. "His Majesty is not a man to be kept waiting."
"Ah, Lady Brandish," Marin called, rubbing his jaw. He looked her way and flashed a smile, his original charming self again. "You look stunning, as always."
"This is no time for flattery," she retorted, waving the compliment away with her hand. "Come, my pet, we are off to Magnolia at once."
"Hey! What about Erza?" Gray called after them.
Brandish paused to look at Marin. "Release their friend," she replied.
"EHH!? But...she was going to be part of my collection!" Marin whined. "And you said I could do whatever I wanted, Lady Brandish..."
An immense surge of magical energy reverberated from the ground where Brandish stood. Suddenly, a look of sheer panic was written all over Marin's face.
"What's going on?" Gajeel asked as the ground beneath them rumbled. When he noticed what was happening, he discovered a level of cruelty that could make even the Great Black Steel Gajeel's blood run cold. Whatever Marin was about to say next was cut off by the sound of him struggling to breathe; this Brandish woman, whoever she was, had managed to close off his windpipe just by looking at him.
"Don't make me repeat myself again," she said quietly, releasing Marin finally. Unable to speak but giving his superior a nod, he snapped his fingers and Erza fell to the ground.
"Erza! Are you okay?" Gray yelled, running to her.
"What was that creepy room..." she thought to herself out loud.
"You made a big mistake picking a fight with Fairy Tail, Little Girl," Gajeel taunted, quickly silenced by the ice wizard nearby.
Turning to the iron dragon slayer, Brandish offered a smirk. "It's very troublesome to get into unnecessary fights, so I always make sure I win." Placing her hand on Marin's shoulder, she added one last thing before they disappeared. "There are 12 more wizards of this power in His Majesty's Army. If you defy us, you will lose."
Just then, Lily appeared with Levy by the waist and Wendy and Carla not far behind. "What was that incredible magic energy?" the female Exceed asked no one in particular.
Erza looked up to see Lucy, Natsu and Happy still on the ledge above, a wildfire burning in Lucy's eyes. Glad to see her friend on her feet, the Requip user turned to the group. "We don't have a moment to lose. We have to warn the Master and the rest of the guild to prepare for battle!"
"What did you say?"
The words came out barely above a whisper, but Wendy heard them clearly. She herself was so stunned by Lucy's reaction that she paused from healing her injuries to look up at Natsu. His face was a mixture of several emotions: shock, anger, pain, sadness; none of these were ones that Wendy was accustomed to seeing from him with regard to Lucy. The celestial wizard and fire dragon slayer had been so close until recently that it seemed impossible that Natsu's loyalty would ever be questioned. Now, however, it seemed even that fact was in jeopardy.
"I said, you shouldn't have come here," she repeated. "You have to get back to Fairy Tail."
"Not without you," Happy said firmly.
"Clearly someone got hit in the head to be saying something so crazy," Carla muttered to herself.
Levy nodded her head in agreement. "Of course we would come to rescue you, Lu. We're family, and family takes care of each other."
At the sound of the word 'family', Natsu clenched his teeth and glared at Lucy. "Do you even know what that word means anymore?"
"Of course I do, you idiot!" she retorted, glaring back at him. "That's why you have to go back, with or without me!"
That response was enough to get Natsu's fists ablaze.
"What do you want from me, Lucy?" he asked quietly. "I already told you I don't want to say goodbye to you! Never! I came all this way to bring you home, and you're pushing me away again. Don't you know you would have died alone in that room if we didn't come? "
"Natsu..."
"I'm not that person Brandish said I am! Well, maybe I was, but I don't have any memories of back then. None of us do! The first memory I have from this side of the Gate, I guess you could say, was waking up and realizing that Igneel was gone. I looked everywhere for him, Lucy...and then I found you."
"Natsu."
He had to struggle to keep his voice from wavering and the tears from falling, but somehow he did it. "I can only imagine the anger you feel towards me, towards all five of us...but in your heart you must know we aren't those little kids who walked through the Eclipse Gate all those years ago. Those kids are long gone! Gajeel...Wendy...We're Fairy Tail wizards!"
"NATSU!" Lucy looked up at him with tears in her eyes. "This isn't about us! Why do you think Brandish would say all those things about a complete stranger?"
He looked back at her, confused.
"She was trying to separate us so she could lure you away from the guild. And her plan worked perfectly, thanks to me." She closed her eyes and slowly sat up. "She's a master manipulator, and I let her get in my head. I doubted my trust in you, even though in my heart I knew the things she said weren't who you really are." Clenching her fists at her sides, she continued uninterrupted. "There is something about Fairy Tail that Zeref wants, and he is using me to get to you. So if you don't leave me here and go back right now, everything I've done for my family will have been for nothing!" Lucy turned away from the group, trying to hide the tears that rolled like rapids from her eyes. "My mother gave her life for me, and I never got to tell my father I loved him before he died. I don't want to lose you guys too!"
Wendy and the rest of the group watched Lucy in silence. Suddenly, the sky dragon slayer stood and looked down at the injured celestial wizard. Wendy had frustrated tears in her eyes when she spoke.
"If you have the strength to die for your family, then find the courage to live and fight with us!"
The group turned to the young dragon slayer in shock.
"Wendy..." Carla whispered.
"Lucy, after Nirvana I lost everything. But then, you guys brought Carla and I to Fairy Tail and welcomed us with open arms. You gave us a family again. We all know how you feel. Fairy Tail is all we have left. And now, you are a part of that too. But I'm not ready to say goodbye to any of you yet, so stop pushing us away and come with us!"
Lucy slowly looked from one smiling, teary-eyed face to the next. Finally, Lucy's eyes met Natsu's as he held out his hand to her. "Come on, Lucy. We all need you."
"She's right, Lu. If this is going to be our last stand, I can't think of anyone else I would rather fight beside than you." Giving her friend a smile, Levy held out the belt that she had been holding.
"You guys..."
And then, the chill that went down Lucy's spine told her that a familiar magical presence had returned. Looking down below them, the celestial wizard turned to see Brandish walking toward Gray, Gajeel, and the man Lucy knew to have helped kidnap her. Glancing over at Natsu confirmed to her that he recognized it too. A gasp escaped Levy's lips as Lily grabbed her and took off again toward his dragon slayer friend. Looking to Carla, Wendy gave a nod and made a motion to the ledge as the female Exceed grabbed her arms and flew toward the battle below as well. Only Happy, Natsu, and Lucy remained above.
Reaching up for his still extended hand, she grabbed hold and pulled herself to her feet. Baring clenched teeth and an angry glare, she looked back at the green-haired woman below.
The next time we meet, she thought to herself as she watched Brandish vanish with her accomplice, I will get my revenge.
For myself, and for Fairy Tail!
The earth seemed to tremble beneath their feet as Invel and Zeref led the army of 100,000 foot soldiers across the country of Fiore, steadily making their way to the unsuspecting town of Magnolia. The General Spriggan, cold and calculating as ever, looked to his left and then his right, eyeing up his Spriggan 12 comrades and noticing their expressions as they marched on: the look of a fierce beast hungry for its prey. His eyes then wandered up to the sky as a passing cloud made its way in front of the sun. And, if only for a moment, he smiled, anticipating the darkness that would befall the guild known as...Fairy Tail.