I know the last two chapters were short, but I didn't want to overwhelm anyone with novel-lengthed chapters. The farther we get into the story the longer the chapters become, I promise.
Enjoy!
"Thank Mavis for Freed's runes," Lucy thought dryly as she noticed the lack of damage caused to the immediate area; however her internal musings were cut short by Bixlow's laughter at Natsu and Gray's expense as they were being completely man handled in the middle of the train station. Onlookers passed by quickly in an attempt to avoid eye contact with the pissed off looking Lightning Mage; and mothers covered their children's eyes since somehow Gray managed to take his clothes off between fighting Natsu and being picked up by Laxus.
"Put me down Lightning Rod! I've got an issue with Ice Prick!"
"What did you call Laxus-sama?!"
"Let's go Fire Brain! You can start fights all you want, I'll finish em'!"
"Hahahahahaaaa, look babies, this is going to be fun!"
"He he! He he! Fun! Fun! Fun!"
"Gihi.. Looking good Salamander."
"Wait.. Gajeel?! What are you doing here?" Lucy's attention was immediately pulled to the additional member of their group she didn't seem to notice on arrival.
"We decided to accompany you; Gajeel thought maybe he'd find some clues to Metalicana's whereabouts." Lily popped up from behind Gajeel to respond, and Lucy's wandering gaze noticed Happy sitting down on a bench a few yards away from the altercation; way too preoccupied with a fish to pay any attention to her arrival or Natsu's predicament in the Lightning Mage's unyielding grip. Lcy began looking around the vicinity, heck if Gajeel was there who else popped up unannounced, or uninvited.
"So are Juvia and Evergreen coming too?" Lucy asked Laxus as she continued to search left and right and slightly surprised at how many people were actually at the station, especially since Gajeel wasn't even originally under consideration for their make-shift team.
"Nope, this is it. I told Freed and Bixlow not to come but they insisted; he just happened to be at the train station when we got here." Laxus was giving Gajeel a disapproving look that the Iron Mage seemed to completely ignore.
"Hey Luce! Did you sleep well?" Natsu chirped, seemingly forgetting the death grip Laxus still had on his neck.
"Well I've slept better I guess.. Uhh Gray your clothes.."
"What the fu- when did this happen?"
"Idiot.." "idiot! Idiot! Idiot!" Bixlow laughed again after hearing his dolls chime in.
"I believe this is our train." Freed interrupted as he grabbed his and Laxus's luggage and began boarding said train. Natsu and Happy walked on with Lucy as Bixlow followed after Gray as he rushed to at least put his pants back on, still laughing at the Ice Mage's antics. Gajeel and Lily were the last to board, clearly debating whether or not traveling with the group was a good idea.. But if somebody wasn't there to pull him off the train after a bout of motion sickness, he'd be screwed - so they opted to stick with their guild mates for the duration of the ride.
Once on board Lucy found herself in a rather large compartment which felt tiny after everyone piled inside. Gajeel and Natsu found themselves on either side of Lucy, both lying in her lap as the motion sickness began to take over. Laxus sat directly across next to the window, fiercely staring out the glass in an attempt to look as calm and serene as possible, even though the greenish hue of his complexion completely gave him away. Freed of course sat right next to Laxus with Bixlow and Gray, snickering at Gajeel and Natsu's state.
"This is going to be a long ride.." Lucy intoned as she stared longingly out the compartment window, suddenly beginning to deeply miss a certain red headed knight.
12 hours later of non-stop snoring, fidgeting, bickering, pushing, and a rather nasty accumulation of saliva on Lucy's lap, the team finally arrived. Gray dragging Natsu by his scarf, Lily flying Gajeel, and Laxus still pretending to be perfectly fine as they all made their way to Seven's first train station, in the city of Acolia.
"So where we heading?" Natsu asked trying to jump over Laxus' shoulder to get a glimpse at the map. His overly hyped actions screamed he was ready for a fight.
"See that mountain over there?" Laxus deadpanned as he pointed to a very large mountain approximately an hours walk away, desperately fighting the urge to smack the overly energetic Fire Mage. Natsu's eyes followed the Lightning Mage's hand and he nodded, acknowledging the distance and position of the mountain. Laxus couldn't help but notice the boy already looked like he was looking for the quickest route to the the pass at that very moment.
"That's where we're headed. Tomorrow. I'm not stupid enough to challenge an S-class demon at night, so we find somewhere to sleep and head out at first light." Laxus didn't suggest, he stated. That was the plan; nobody was going to offer suggestions and there would be no argument. Natsu was going to have to wait, and the pink haired boys whine of disappointment had Laxus rolling his eyes.
"Yeah, we should probably see our employer first about the job, maybe find any more details the master might've left out.." Lucy sighed, followed by a grunt of approval from Laxus and another groan from Natsu.
"Right now?! But.. But.. Lucy! I'm starving!" Both Natsu and Happy instantly started with the fake tears.
"We don't all need to meet with him, go ahead, in fact all of you can go grab a bite and I'll meet with the employer." Lucy suggested with a smile, knowing just how much the Fire Mage ate and assuming the rest were just as hungry. The snacks on the train weren't the greatest and the Dragon Slayers weren't able to eat at all thanks to their motion sickness.
"But Luce.." Natsu pouted as he tugged on her sleeve. Lucy sighed once again, "what Natsu? Go ahead and get started without me, I don't mind," Lucy raised an eyebrow, she thought he'd jump on the opportunity to ditch work and eat, but he seemed hesitant. "We're a team! and a team should eat together! Right Happy?!" Natsu beamed at his little blue friend who perched himself on Lucy's shoulder, "Aye sir!"
Lucy wasn't fooled. Her eyebrow dropped to a half scowl. "Natsu.. You just want me to pay for the food, don't you..?" Natsu fell to the floor, shocked at having been called out as he laughed half-heartedly and scratched the back of his head - he couldn't deny it, he'd been broke for months now.
Everyone else sweat dropped. Lucy had to keep herself calm enough to not pull her whip out.
"Well.. I don't really have any cash thanks to Ice Princess over there always breaking everything on our missions!" Lucy closed her eyes in annoyance, Natsu you're the one doing most of the damages.. she inwardly face palmed and moaned. She knew there was no arguing it.. The boy had to eat and she couldn't very well let her best friend starve.. She slowly handed Natsu her wallet as she sighed in defeat. "Have at it.. I'm still gonna go talk to our employer." Tears slowly fell down her face thinking of how broke she was going to be after feeding Natsu and Happy.
"Wow Cosplay Queen! That's so nice of you to buy us all dinner!" Bixlow decided to jump on the opportunity, waggling his tongue. "Nice! Nice! Nice!"
"Thanks Luce, you're the best! I'll be sure to get your meal next time!" Gray slung his arm around Lucy, desperately trying to ignore Natsu's previous jab in hopes of not ruining his free meal. He was just as broke as the Fire Dragon Slayer after all.
"Gihi, hope you brought your life savings Bunny Girl," Gajeel added giving Lucy his, 'you're so fucked' smirk before chasing after Natsu who was holding Lucy's wallet as if it were the GMG trophy while Happy flew in circles fist pumping.
She coyly eyed Laxus and Freed, waiting to see what their next move would be. Freed gave Lucy a small smile in an attempt to cheer her up from her very unfortunate situation. Instead of jumping on the meal he offered to get the hotel rooms as Laxus decided to go with Lucy to meet their employer; since it required an S-class mage he figured he should at least be there. Lucy felt a breath of relief escape her chest, she wasn't sure she could actually afford to feed 3 Dragon Slayers..
Finding the employers house was simple, it was the only mansion in town.
Once introductions were made Lucy took note of the gentleman's home. He had multiple paintings, artifacts, old relics and tapestries that looked as though they should be in a museum. The three finally made it to what Lucy assumed to be his office and instantly noticed the gigantic mural that took up the entire wall behind the desk. The painting consisted of what appeared to be a three way battle. There were hooded figures dressed in all black descending from the sky with scythes in their hand.. Or were they scythes? A few could have easily been mistaken for swords. She followed their path downward and noticed what appeared to be a scattered army of men wearing crosses and holding bows and arrows at the ready. Below she noticed white and black demon-like creatures as the looked upward - but Lucy couldn't discern if they were fighting with the creatures in the black robes or the men wearing white.. In fact all three parties almost appeared to be squaring off with each other evenly. Lucy found herself absolutely fascinated by the artwork, it was simple yet intricate in it's detailing and seemed to tell a story. It was impossible for her to figure out who the "good" or "bad" side was, even though the creatures coming from the ground with the holes in their bodies appeared to be monsters.. She also began to notice how the black-cloaked figures completely resembled reapers.. And the men with the bows almost imitated some type of religious assembly. Questions began to race in her mind.. Why were reapers fighting demons and humans? Don't reapers supposedly collect human souls? Were they fighting over the human souls? And were the archers fending the two parties off? Lucy's train of thought was instantly crashed by Laxus clearing his throat - apparently their employer had asked her a question.
"Oh! Umm, I'm sorry, I was so focused on your mural.. I guess I got sidetracked.. " She faintly blushed, a little embarrassed to make a fool of herself in front of their employer and Laxus, but the old man was actually intrigued to see the girl putting so much interest in the painting.
"It's not a problem my dear, in fact that mural is the oldest relic in my home. I don't know much about it honestly, but what I do know is that the warriors in black are called Shinigami. Or Death Gods if you will.." The old man tried to gauge they girls reaction, she found herself focused once again on the images.
"It looks like they're fighting demons.. What are the creatures with holes in their bodies?" She was pointing at the figures appearing to come from below, these ones had fragments of bone and looked even scarier than the demons themselves.
"Those my dear, I am not sure. I couldn't tell you whether or not they're good or evil, in fact you couldn't really use either word to describe the Shinigami either. But this is all folk lore and stories we tell the children to scare them when they misbehave." He began waving his hand in front of his face, shooing away the notion. Lucy couldn't help but notice his lack of description regarding the archers. But the gentleman didn't seem to have a lot of details on the painting anyway, and instead of pressing on about some silly mural she needed to focus on the mission at hand that required her to deal with a real demon.
Laxus and the old man continued to talk business as Lucy half listened, she found her mins wandering back to the old man's office with the painting and she couldn't stop thinking about it for some strange reason. She'd never heard of any stories about Shinigami or the odd white creatures coming from the ground. Must be a legend only known in this country..
"Lucy my dear." Lucy's was instantly snapped out of her trance as soon as her name left the employer's mouth. "Yes!" She exuberated in an attempt to pretend she were listening to the conversation the entire time. Laxus gave her a disapproving look, but the older gentleman didn't seem to mind. "There is undoubtedly a key within that cave. Though no one has seen it in over 400 years we know it's still there - it has to be. The demon guards it, always has, and the recent incidents in town could only be caused by someone evil, which leads us to believe he and the key are still very much in existence. Just know the key is yours regardless, it holds no purpose for me since I couldn't use it; however, everything in that room belongs to my family - in defeating him I will also have access to all of my ancestor's belongings hence the huge sum of the reward. But be careful, many have entered that cave and never returned.."
"Sir, are you sure this key opens a gate? I mean.. It's not that I doubt you it's just that, well, all constellations and their keys are accounted for and it just seems.. Off." Lucy began to rub her arm - she wasn't even sure this key was one necessarily meant for a Celestial Wizard, heck, what it it just opened some box or door?
"No my dear, this is a key unlike any other in this world. I'm sure the little bit of information I know about it is frightening.. But let me assure you, my family has been around for generations and the stories of that key have been passed down the line. Trust me Lucy Heartfilia, that key was meant for you.. But, you do have more mages with you correct?" The old man asked eyeing Laxus skeptically. The mage seemed a little too cocky, and completely unaware of what awaited them in the cave for the old man's liking. "Don't worry, we've got it handled. We are Fairy Tail after all." Laxus gave a grin exuding confidence that even made Lucy feel at ease after their final warning.
"I do hope so.. I wish you both the best of luck, especially you Lucy, good luck in opening that key." The old man waved the couple off as they headed towards their hotel room back in the center of town. It was getting rather late and Laxus and Lucy had yet to eat, they figured the rest of the team had to be back by then so the pair decided to call it a night and just order room service. They had a big day ahead of them tomorrow, they figured they could explore the town after their mission if they really felt the need to.
The morning came quickly, and Lucy sure she was the first one up. She didn't sleep much; she was too busy racking her brain over this new key she had absolutely no knowledge about. She knew every constellation in the sky, all their names and how to summon them, so an unknown key baffled and excited her. What could it possibly be? What gate could it possibly open? Was it even safe..? Well she weighed her options and ultimately decided she wanted to find out. They didn't come all the way to another country just to change their minds. Plus she had three Dragon Slayers, a Runes Mage, an Ice Mage, and a Seith Mage. What could possibly go wrong? She smiled as she splashed the last bit of cool water on her face and readied for the day. She gave herself on last look over before heading downstairs to meet the rest of the mages - thankfully Freed handled the room accommodations so Lucy had her own, she had to remember to thank him once they met at the breakfast bar.
"So what's the deal with the demon?" Bixlow was walking next to Laxus and Freed as Natsu, Happy, Gray, Gajeel, Lily, and Lucy followed closely behind. Lucy was still feeling unnaturally tense about the issue with the demon - the employer hadn't really given them much information other than there being a key, a demon, and some old relics; and what was the deal with the creepy painting? The old man wasn't any better than Makarov with the details..
"Don't know, old guy didn't say much, guess we'll deal with it when we get there." Laxus didn't even spare Bixlow a glance as he grinned confidently. He usually didn't strategize, never really needed to, especially with so many powerful mages in the group. Natsu and Gray were constantly arguing about something or another while Gajeel smirked every time the Fire Dragon Slayer would get smacked in the head by Lucy - either for being too loud or just out of pure irritation. It seemed like she was the only one uncomfortable with charging into a 400 year old demon's lair, so she just brushed her nagging subconscious under the rug and trusted in her team, and continued to let her frustrations out on the pink haired boy every time he got on her nerves. Which was nearly every five to ten minutes.
"We're here." Laxus stopped as he took in his immediate surroundings.
Before the group knew it they were standing before the mountain, and at this point all that was left was to find the entrance. Gajeel had already taken off, only accompanying the group to see if there were any hints about Metalicana's whereabouts. Freed set his runes all around the mountain, and Natsu and Laxus decided to use their keen sense of smell and vision. Lucy called Virgo to dig around and attempt to find any openings, and if not maybe tunnel one. Happy began flying overhead but not findings much. The group didn't bother checking for the demon, they figured once they found the cave the monster would surely follow, after all with all the noise Natsu was making the demon surely knew they were there..
Freed jolted when his magic landed on the cave's opening and he alerted the others, all members of the group moved their way towards the entrance. The group stood for a moment as a cold, stagnant breeze slowly escaped the entrance. The smell carried death and rot, decay and age. Lucy gripped the Fire Mage's vest in a moment of hesitation. It wasn't too late to turn back.. She looked to the rest of the group and noticed Freed and Bixlow were looking to Laxus for reassurance. She suddenly found herself looking to Natsu for that very same thing, and the pink haired boys look of focus and determination eased her fears a little bit. But when he turned to her and smiled his Natsu-like-smile, she found herself following him step for step into the cave after Laxus and the Raijinshuu. Gray on her other side offering more comfort and Happy flying overhead. She took a deep breath and the next thing she knew they were in complete darkness.
They walked for what felt like hours until they finally spotted something glowing just ahead. Once the group made it to the small source of light they were amazed by all the lost artifacts, relics, and what appeared to be scrolls, scripts, books, and hidden treasure; all clearly as old as the mural hanging in the old mans room. I wonder if any information about the key is in any of these books.. Lucy started to wonder as she lightly traced the spines of a few books, and also very interested in the prospect of a good book. She scanned to rows of novels and tried to pin point a book with writing that hadn't either been faded with time or that was in a language she even understood. She was so immersed in her task she hadn't noticed just how tense the atmosphere had become within the group.
Laxus was on edge, nothing had shown up, absolutely no resistance. They walked right into the treasure vault and not even a trip wire had gone off. This was going way too easy.. He found himself lost in thought until he finally realized what the stench from the entrance of the tunnel came from.
"Lucy." Laxus looked at the girl as she made eye contact with the largest member of their group in question. She tilted her head as she waited for him to continue.
"Don't look down Lucy." Laxus attempted to hold eye contact with the girl but the second the words left his mouth her eyes carried to the forbidden zone.
Lucy gasped and cupped her mouth as she noticed the floor just a level below them was absolutely riddled with corpses. There were knights, warriors, soldiers, town fold, and mages. Some were fairly recent - maybe a year or so; some however were very, very old. As Lucy found herself dwelling on the death surrounding them the rest of the group understood they had just walked into a trap. There was no resistance because the demon wanted them to come all the way into the depths of the cave, they were lured in; they had walked right into the demons snare and with no key in sight.
"Find that key. Right now chick. We need to get the hell out of here." Laxus' voice was stern, but calm with a sense of urgency. Freed and Gray were immediately looking for the items they'd traveled there for as Bixlow's dolls took flight. Natsu stood with Laxus at guard as the rest played their part. Lucy stole a glance to her best friend, and he wore a very similar expression to Laxus. She felt her heart begin to race and palms sweat.
As if sensing their unease, a grumbled laugh vibrated throughout the cave.
"Well well well, what have we here.. six little mages who wondered into the wrong cave, how unfortunate.." The voice was deep and eerie, it resonated throughout the cave and pinpointing it was nearly impossible, even with heightened Dragon Slayer senses.
"Hmmmm? Is that a woman I smell?" the voice suddenly sounded interested and Lucy couldn't conceal the 'eep' that left her mouth.
"Oh what a lovely sound.. I'll save her for last.. Females are my favorite." Natsu growled, shooting his flames in every which direction.
"You won't touch a hair on her head creep! Now show yourself so I can kick your ass for even thinking about hurting my friend!" The rest of the party instantly circled around Lucy in a protective stance, not sure of where the first attack may come from. Bixlow's dolls continued to investigate the immediate area and Freed instantly began writing protective runes.
"Heh heh heh.. A Dragon Slayer ehh? I can smell your flames boy.. and I can almost taste the lightning." Laxus tensed at the comment. This wasn't right, there was something very different about this demon. He couldn't pin point it, he could only write everything off at this point as intuition or a sixth sense, but this was something he realized he had failed to prepare for. Laxus had brought a team here, ignored the warnings from his employer and pushed on even when the smell at the entrance screamed for him to turn back. He let his pride and ego get the better of him yet again.. He should have brought more help. Should have researched the demon or looked into the incidents in the town to give him some indication or clue to what the demon's abilities might've been. And he didn't. He put everyone's life here in danger; they trusted him and followed him into the cave with little hesitation and he was letting his guild down again. He was hoping Gajeel would come crashing through, they needed the help and he found himself worrying for the girl.
As everyone was considering their next form of action, Natsu was suddenly thrown into the wall with a sickening crack that echoed throughout the cave. He then crashed into a pile of old scrolls and books, knocking the whole shelf over resulting in a domino effect with the rest of the shelves.
"Natsu!" Happy and Lucy cried in unison, Happy attempted to fly towards his friend, only to be slammed in the same manner.
"Happy!" Lucy raced after the little blue cat as the demon slowly appeared from the shadows. They'd heard stories of demons and their grotesque, monster-like appearances, but this demon.. this demon they were not expecting - this demon looked almost completely human. If he weren't nearly 8 foot tall with canines and horns, he could have easily passed for a man. A very large, muscular, scary looking man with tattered pants that looked to be as old as the room.
"Tell me, what did you come here for? Treasure?" The demon gave a toothy grin as he instantly disappeared. Was it shadow magic?
"Where did he go?!" Right as the words left Gray's mouth he was coughing up blood as a hard blow hit him from behind. The Ice Mage staggered for a moment then felt a violent wave of vibrations echo through every hollow organ in his body. He felt his stomach churn, his lungs compress, his heart skip a few beats and then bounce back irregularly. He'd never felt a sensation like this; but before he could mutter a word he felt his whole world go black. The demon stood behind the mage as he looked down at his newest victim, "take it if you can" he responded as he smiled even wider and disappeared again.
"Gray!" Lucy screamed as she picked the little blue cat up and quickly made her way to Gray who was a heap on the floor. Se fell to her knees as she cupped his face in her hands, he was completely out and sweating violently. She felt her heart stop as she gave him a once over. She found herself looking to the other side of the room where Natsu had been flung; wondering if he were in the same state. He wasn't getting back up.. She continued to stare yet there was no sign of the fallen Dragon Slayer. This wasn't possible, this was Natsu! He never gave up! He always managed to get back up and somehow out do his opponents, so why wasn't he getting up now?!
"Your screams are getting me excited girl." Another yelp left the girl as she felt the presence now standing behind her. She subconsciously grasped onto Gray's jacket for comfort and realizing her extremely vulnerable position. Her fear and stress began melting into anger as she practically felt the heat off her opponents body. She was angry for accepting the mission.. Angry she couldn't do anything for her friends at the moment.. Angry the demon was standing directly behind her and she was too useless and weak to be able to do anything about it. Angry Natsu was quite possibly in a worse state than Gray and alone strewn across the cave, and she couldn't stop it. This made the grand magic games out to be a joke, she didn't know what to do or what she was even capable of doing. Her keys didn't stand a chance here and she knew it. She was useless again as her eyes met with Laxus'.
Laxus had gone completely stiff in his battle stance as he faced the demon - almost daring it to touch her or Gray. The demon laughed at the Dragon Slayer's bold threat but was surprised when a bright line suddenly shone around the girl, separating him from her. Freed's runes had activated and Lucy was safe for the moment. The demon tapped the wall and it crackled with resistance.
"Good job Freed." Laxus felt the tension ease once he realized the demon couldn't get past those runes so easily. Freed nodded as he began initiating another spell.
"Runes.. I see.." The demon seemingly ignored the group as he circled around the girl on the floor who still cradled the cat and boy he'd just struck down and seemingly protected by the other mage's magic. The demon gave the barrier another tap and it crackled again. He had to admit - these were not shabby runes. His focus was quickly back on the girl that was defiantly staring up at him. He studied her for a moment.
"Now that I'm actually looking at you I think I'll keep you alive." The demon stopped as he gave Lucy another toothy grin. Her flinch didn't escape his notice, or the heave of her generous chest as her heart rate spiked. "It gets lonely in here girl, I think I'll keep you for company." Lucy felt her stomach churn as she gave the demon the dirtiest glare she could muster.
He laughed at her continued display of defiance, "first things first though, let's get rid of your group" he slowly looked to the mages readying for his attack until an explosive attack took the demon by surprise. He looked to the air and noticed five dolls floating just above, ready to attack.
"Oh?" The demon tilted his head as he paid attention to the odd floating devices for the first time.
Baryon Formation.
Bixlow stood as his dolls circled until enough magic was summoned. The demon stood and watched as the mage commenced with his attack. A bright green beam shot out from the center of the circle and the demon was encompassed in the light. Lucy shielded her eyes from the attack, still safe behind the Runes but noticing how the demon didn't even attempt to dodge or block the attack.
"Excellent work" Freed acknowledged his comrade, "I think we should find Natsu as quickly as possible and assess his injuries." Freed was prepared to search for the boy as he began to turn his head from the battle scene.
"Don't move Freed." Laxus still stood in his stance as the smoke settled and the group couldn't hide the look of shock on their faces. Not only was the demon uninjured from the attack, he hardly had a scratch on him..
"That attack was at Zero Distance.. That was one of my strongest attacks." Bixlow tsked as he took his helmet off.
"I thought these dolls were possessed." The demon smirked as he made eye contact with the Seith Mage, "tell me boy, what do you see?" The demon smiled demonically as he made direct eye contact with Bixlow. The mage flinched then scowled.
"What do you see Bixlow?" Laxus questioned without turning away from the demon.
"Nothing." Bixlow slowly replaced his helmet as he replied, "this one has no soul."
The demon couldn't stop the laughter that bellowed out. "Indeed boy.. Now I think I've humored you lot long enough." The demon took a few paces towards the group as darkness began to envelop his body. Laxus flinched, he'd never felt magic like this before..
And then the demon was gone. "Where did he-" Bixlow turned to his right only to have the demon appear on his left, the demon swung on the Seith Mage but luckily Laxus was just as quick, semi blocking the attack and preventing a lethal blow - but doing so cost the Dragon Slayer the bones in his left arm.
"Argh!" Laxus growled as he immediately counter attacked - but as soon as the demon's blow was blocked he'd already disappeared again.
"Laxus!" Lucy yelled as the two mages on his sides were instantly to his aide.
"Laxus you alright?!" Bixlow reached for his friend but felt his right should begin to shake, then the bones literally shatter. "Ah!" Bixlow grasped his arm as he literally felt the vibrations travel down the entire length and every bone begin to give way; almost like a shock wave.
"Bixlow?! What's wrong?!" Freed passed worried glances between the two as Bixlow seemed to get the worst of the damage, which only made sense since he took the brunt of the attack. "My.. My arm.. It feels like it's pulsating and breaking from the inside, agh!" He cradled the now dislocated arm to his chest as Laxus and Freed looked on with worried glances.
"Painful isn't it?" The demon cackled as he was back in his original spot near Lucy. "Girl.. If you come out of that barrier and play nice maybe I'll consider letting your friends leave here.." The demon smiled at her cockily as she fought back her tears of frustration. She made her own tsk at the offer and was prepared to reply until Laxus spoke up first.
"How about you leave the chick alone, she's had a pretty rough couple months and doesn't need anymore shit from total creeps like you." Laxus smirked as he hoped the demon would take his bait and move away from the girl. The demon didn't buy into it, and instead tapped on the barrier a few more times, "how long do you think this will hold for girl?" the demon cocked his head coyly as he turned to the Rune's Mage. "Leave them alone." Lucy hissed and the demon's attention was back on her, "I rescind my offer, I've decided this lot needs to go, especially after that distasteful comment." The demon looked to the blonde that was pretending the bones in his left arm weren't just as broken as the Seith Mage on the ground.
"I'm going to kill you all slowly, and peel the flesh from your bones for thinking you were anywhere near a match for my greatness." The demon cackled as he smacked the barrier one last time, pulling a startled scream from the girl encased in it.
"You're all dead!" The demon screamed, and then turned for the small group that was anticipating his next attack, the demon took a deep breath a prepared to power up, but a loud smacking sound echoed and the demon was suddenly gone. Lucy closed her eyes from the sudden upheaval of dust, and when she reopened them Natsu was standing where the monster was, struggling to breathe but managing his same, confident look as always.
"You alright Luce?" Natsu spared her a glance and she nodded in affirmation. "Okay, good, take care of the ice prick and Happy for me, kay?" Natsu looked down to the girl and smiled. She couldn't help but smile back.. This was the Natsu she'd been waiting to bounce back, the Natsu that always seemed to come on top and know just what to do.
And the Natsu was gone, immediately on the offensive and squaring off with the demon, and Lucy and Laxus were left staring at each other from the absence of the two people who were originally standing in between them.
"Lucy. What is that?" Laxus was staring at the ground directly in front of the girl, Lucy followed his line of sight and her eyes landed on the exact same thing he was so intently focused on. Right there, not 3 feet in front of her, was a key just sitting in the dirt.
"No way!" Lucy exclaimed as she reached for it.
Standing proved to be a lot more difficult than Natsu thought it would be. He heard the screams of pain and shouts from his nakama, and couldn't just lay there and do nothing. Anyone that wanted to cause so much pain was surely an enemy, especially one that actively seeked death and torture. He promised he wouldn't let the demon touch a hair on Lucy's head and planned on keeping that promise, but he made another promise to himself that he'd keep his family safe.
The only problem was the ringing in his ears followed by the nauseating feeling in his stomach. His heart was working in overtime as his lungs were coming in shallow. His breathing had become erratic after standing, but when he heard Lucy's frightened scream he couldn't just do nothing. Lucy needed him. He was turning towards Laxus - wanting to warn him to not let the demon land a solid hit, but he felt the demons presence yet again.
"I have to give you credit kid.. I honestly thought you'd be dead by now." The voice echoed and Natsu's lip curled at the back handed compliment. "I don't know who you are, or why you're doing this, but I'm putting an end to it!" Natsu's fire swirled around him in his anger as he decided defensive tactics would only end up in more received blows and a lot more damage than his body could handle. He needed to land some serious attacks and quickly.
"Yeah I know what your punches feel like. And to be completely honest I'm not all the impressed." The Dragon Slayer mocked as he felt the headache encompass him and the chills wrack his body. Of course he was bluffing, he'd never experienced anything like this before and gave himself 20 minutes tops before his body simply gave out. But he'd be damned if he was going to let the demon know that.
"Well then, guess I need to step it up a notch, eh?" The cave began to rumble as the air became more stagnant, "I'll show you what I'm capable of boy."
Lucy was transfixed on the key in her hand. It was solid black, and it was heavy. "Princess.. Is there anything I can do for you?" Virgo had once again materialized next to Lucy and snapped her out of her daze, "Virgo!" Lucy shouted in excitement. The spirit smiled at her and quickly regarded the key in her hand. Lucy looked to the ever calm composure the spirit always maintained. "Virgo, I need your help.." Lucy voiced as she continued to watch the spirits transfixed gaze on the key. "Virgo, can you tell me the name of this key?" Lucy handed the key to her spirit, who studied it further. She slowly shook her head no and replied slowly, "No Princess, I've never seen this before.. But I sense the power radiating off of it. This is not typical Celestial Magic.. It's beyond our constellations Princess." She slowly traced the key that almost looked like a dagger. On the top it had a skull like emblem, making "death" the first word that came to Virgo's mind as she slowly muttered the word.
"Death?" Lucy whispered back. Death? Death can't be a gate.. There was no constellation that correlated to this key that either her or Virgo were aware of, and Virgo just explained it was not of the spirit realm - she would know the spirit associated with it if that would have been the case. But it's not an empty key.. There's power coming from it. A power even Lucy couldn't quite pin point..
"Princess, this.. Key.. Is not one of ours. It calls a different kind of magic.. One beyond me. It makes me think of Gods Princess." Lucy flinched and looked to the spirit. What was she trying to say? That this key encompassed both Gods and Death? That didn't make any sense..
Wait. The mural.
Lucy instantly recalled the painting, and the black cloaked figures fighting demons. The old man referred to them as Death Gods, maybe that's what this key was. Maybe she could save them if she could just open the gate.. But how?
Lucy was quickly pulled from her thoughts as the sound of the ceiling crumbling in demanded her attention, she quickly looked up to see Gajeel slamming in through the roof.
"Princess, you must save your magic, there is nothing I can do here. If you require my assistance please call." Virgo gave the key one last glance, "please.. Be careful Princess.." And with that Virgo slowly disappeared as she regarded the key one last time. She truly couldn't recall anything about a black key with a skull emblem, and though the energy coming from it felt formidable, Virgo had no doubt that if anyone could handle a key such as that - it would be Lucy. She trusted her gut as she left - and more importantly she trusted her master.
Gajeel's landing echoed through the cave as he hit the ground. "Felt your guys' magic fluctuating, thought you could use a hand." Gajeel stood up right as Lily landed right next to him in battle form. "Lucy, are you alright?" The panther was at her side in an instant and looking at the two injured guild mates in her arms. Lucy could practically feel the tears of relief at their unexpected arrival. "Yes Lily! But please, Natsu needs your help!" Lucy quickly pointed into the direction she'd last seen her friend run off to and felt the flames of his attack.
"What happened here?" Gajeel's line of sight traveled from Lucy to Gray and Happy and then to the group of three mages looks a little roughed up.
"We found the demon." Lucy scowled as she looked to Gajeel.
"He's a little tougher than we gave him credit for." Laxus sneered as he looked on to Natsu's square off with the demon in question.
"What happened to Salamander. Something's wrong." Gajeel sneered as he caught the rapid fluctuations in the Fire Mage's magic, followed by a few sloppy attacks and slowed reaction time. "He's hurt Gajeel, he got hit pretty bad. we don't know what kind of magic or spells this guy uses, but he put Gray in this state. Lucy gripped onto her friend a little tighter.
"We need to counter attack. Freed's working on Runes as we speak, you and I are going to help Natsu out. Lucy, you summon your spirits and get Bixlow and Gray out of here. The four of us can handle this guy. Can you do it?" Laxus looked to the Celestial Mage for confirmation. She nodded as she stood and took a few steps back as she prepared to summon Taurus.
"Stay safe guys we'll see you outside." The remaining three mages nodded as Lucy reached for her keys, but stopped as soon as she felt a presence behind her once again.
"And where do you think you're going." The demon was a mere inch away from the girl, causing her to almost slam into him face first when she turned. She slowly followed his chest upward and made eye contact. He smirked.
"Lucy!" Freed shouted as the demon grabbed the girls neck, "I've been waiting for you to step out of that barrier girl, I figured if I humored your Fire Mage friends for a while you'd eventually come out."
Lucy felt her body shake in his unyielding grip.
"Hey! Let her go!" Natsu was now standing with the others as the four had to completely rethink their battle plan. Freed couldn't very well use his runes on the demon while he had Lucy in his grasp, at least not the runes he had written. He instantly began writing new ones.
Gajeel and Natsu made brief eye contact - it was clear neither of them knew exactly how to get Lucy out of the demon's grasp when he could practically disappear and reappear at will; at least not without hurting the girl. Laxus felt his blood boil, just how many times did he need to underestimate this demon before he learned his fucking lesson. Figured the demon was merely playing games with the boy, if Laxus' arm was in the state it currently was from a side blow, he could only imagine how Natsu was holding up after receiving a direct blow.
"Put. Her. Down." The words were gritted out of Natsu's teeth as he felt his body spike p a few more degrees. Lucy's legs began to flail in mid air as the demon lifted her above ground. She gripped the demons arm for support and attempted a few kicks in frustration with no success. Hell, with the grip around her throat there was no way she'd be able to summon anything let alone get a decent breath of air.
"Natsu." Gajeel spoke quickly and the two attacked from either side of the demon. Gajeel's arm stretched to a lance and Natsu's was engulfed in flame. "Let her go dirt bag" Gajeel jabbed and Natsu swung, only to come into contact with thin air as the demon disappeared.
"What the hell is that?!" Gajeel growled in frustration.
"Hell if I know! But he's fast dammit." Natsu growled as he began to notice the double vision.
"Natsu." Laxus took a step forward, "Gajeel, Freed, and I will handle this. You're only gonna slow us down."
"Like hell I'm sitting back and watching from the side lines!" Natsu growled as he took a step forward.
"Dammit Natsu! You took a straight blow from him! I only took a half hit and I'm throbbing, there's no way you can continue to fight! Just sit this one out!" Laxus roared as his frustration at Natsu's lack of compliance gyrated him.
"Sorry Laxus, but as long as Lucy's in the demon's hands I'm fighting." Natsu gave his scarf another wrap around his neck as his fists began to ignite once more.
"Gotta say I'm with the kid." Bixlow stood as he desperately tried to ignore the pain in his arm.
"Your loyalty is endearing." The demon reappeared only yards away from the tattered group, Lucy still in is grip.
"Hang on Luce.. We're coming.." Natsu staggered as he struggled to get back into a fighting stance and Lucy felt her heart ache at the sight.
"Let's go!" Natsu charged and Bixlow was behind him.
"Fire Dragon's Fist!"
"Victory Formation!"
"Dark Ecriture: Pain!" Freed joined in and both Laxus and Gajeel carried the tail end. But as soon as Natsu reached the demon and attack, the only thing in his line of sight was Lucy. The Dragon Slayer pulled back and instead released his flame into the nearby wall. Bixlow also pulled is attack and cancelled it altogether whereas Freed had to change the course of his right eye attack much the same way Natsu did. The demon took the opportunity and managed to land attacks on each mage, bringing all three to their knees as blood hit the floor. Lucy flinched at the looks of pain on her nakama's faces.
Laxus and Gajeel halted and starred in complete and utter shock. The demon was actually using Lucy as a shield, and then counter attacking. He had no intention of blocking or evading any of their attacks, or fighting fair - instead he was going to let Lucy take the brunt of it. This demon.. Had no honor.. And both Laxus and Gajeel felt their teeth clench.
"I'll begin making runes to separate the two." Freed pulled his sword and began writing is runes in every direction the demon leapt and dodged to. His ability to disappear and reappear made the task all the more difficult, and if he spread his runes too far or made too many, his magic would drain and the demon was able to dismiss the rune altogether.
"Fucking coward!" Gajeel roared as he turned his arm into another lance and charged - remaining mindful of Lucy. The demon smirked. "Hold on Gajeel!" Laxus followed close behind with a lightning attack charged up and ready to go - fully aware he could angle his attacks and avoid hitting the girl.
"Let's do this!" Gajeel attacked, and Laxus followed; but everywhere the Dragon Slayers attacked the girl suddenly appeared. Then the monster dropped the girl and caught his attackers off guard. The next thing anyone heard were Laxus and Gajeel being slammed together. The sound rang through the cave, and Laxus' lighting was being drawn to Gajeel like a conducting rod - causing the Iron Mage to almost go completely unconscious. The proud Dragon Slayer was now lying on the floor, unable to move minus the violent electrical spasms his muscles experienced as a jolt periodically ran through his body; he remembered the first and last time he felt one of Laxus' attacks. He succumbed to it once again, and cursed his situation.
Laxus had a gash strewn across his torso from the Iron Mage's lance that had him clutching the ground in agony with his one good arm. One of his eyes was closed as blood poured out a gaping wound on his scalp and his body doubled over in pain after receiving yet another partial blow from the demon for being the last one to fall to the ground.
Lucy yelled in another bout of anger and anguish as the demon quickly picked her back up. Her friend's were being torn apart because of her. As long as the demon was using her as a shield her friend's couldn't attack. The demon was fully aware of everyone's abilities and knew exactly how to avoid and counter when necessary. And he knew she was the ultimate weakness of the group.. Always the weak one.. Always the one needing to be rescued and saved. Tears filled her eyes as she looked to Freed who continued to attempt his separation Runes. But the demon knew what the mage had planned, and continued to evade them.
"Freed! Can't you just spread your runes throughout the entire cave?!" Laxus turned to the man in frustration. They needed Lucy out of the damn demon's hands if they were every going to counter attack, and in order to do so Freed needed to set that fucking rune.
"I'm trying Laxus-sama! But each time a create another rune the previous ones become weaker and he's able to break them. If I were to expand the entirety of the cave I doubt it would be strong enough to hold him!" Freed spat in frustration, just as desperate as the rest of the group to get Lucy back, and just as unable to do so.
"What good are you then?!" Gajeel raged as he grabbed the Rune Mage's shirt in anger.
"I'm doing as much as I possibly can! I'm having about as much success with my runes as you are with your attacks Dragon Slayer!" Freed rebuttaled and the Iron Mage tightened his grip, until another hand grabbed the Dragon Slayer's arm. The entire group looked on in shock as Gray was once again standing.
"We're.. Here to.. Save Lucy. Fight the demon.. Not each other.. Gajeel.." Gray responded in between breathes and Gajeel finally released the Rune Mage.
"I'm.. All fired up.." Natsu was standing next to Gray as the rest of the group turned and readied for another go.
This time, Lucy let the tears fall. She looked on to her group of friends - every last one of them tattered, broken, and bleeding - yet not giving up, never giving up on hope, or on her.
She hit her wall. She could take no more. Her friend's were doing everything within their power to save her and she hung virtually injury free in a demon's grasp. She felt something swell inside her, something began to take hold and she knew she had to do something. She bit her lip and made eye contact with Natsu, giving him a look of determination that the Dragon Slayer noticed. He looked straight back and nodded. They understood one another without uttering a word and in a moment of strength and frustration, the Celestial Mage managed to Lucy-kick the shit out of the demon. Straight in the ball sac. And it worked.
The demon howled and threw the girl across the room, which allowed for Natsu to let out a Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame attack, knocking the demon off his feet. Laxus followed with a Raging Bolt and Gray with an Ice-Make attack. Gajeel followed with his Iron Lance and Bixlow seemingly finished the demon off with his Crush attack. Freed encased the explosion in his runes; and there was no way the demon was standing after that relentless volley of attacks.
Both the Fire Mage and Ice Mage collapsed in their exhaustion. Gajeel finally succumbed to the lightning attack he'd taken on full force and took comfort in leaning on Lily. Laxus took a deep breathe while both Bixlow and Freed collapsed alongside the other two mages already sprawled out on the floor.
"You alright Lucy?" Natsu's dry voice called out.
"Thank Mavis that's over.." She called out across the room and the group of mages shared a moment of silence. Then slowly, laughter began to erupt within the group. It started as a small giggle, then full on bouts of laughter echoed as the rag-tag group of mages could do nothing other than laugh at their horrible situation, and how they barely managed to make it out alive.
Lucy continued to lay in her spot on the cold, hard ground as she listened to the mages only a few yards away begin to laugh, and she smiled to herself. They had to be the luckiest group of mages she ever did see. But she couldn't quite laugh along. Their injuries were because of her, because they had to take the demon's hits without fighting back in fear of her safety. If she hadn't been there this ending would have come a lot sooner, and with a lot fewer injuries. She smiled and giggled, but mostly she cried. She couldn't bring herself to stand and join the group in their merriment of finally defeating the demon. She needed to be alone for a few more minutes.. She needed to collect herself..
"You celebrate prematurely.." A voice the group had hoped to never hear again rang out once more, and everyone in the group felt their stomachs churn.
"How..?" Gray struggled to support himself on one arm as the demon made his was from the shadows. Battle worn, but still in one piece..
"You.. Should have exploded.." Bixlow struggled to his one good forearm the same way Gray had and looked on in shock.
"There's no way.. All those attacks.." Freed finally stood with Laxus and decided to take the front of the group, he had suffered the least amount of injuries and was the most capable at the moment. "I will transform, get Lucy out of here, all of you." Freed's magic began to swirl and his transformation began to take place.
"Not gonna do you any good." The demon smiled as he stepped forward. "I've fought mages of all strengths, all types.. None of this is new to me. Except the Dragon Slayer Magic, that is quite rare - but ineffective nonetheless."
"Yes, well that may be, but I can at least hold you off with an appearance as grotesque as your own." Freed spat as the rest of the mages struggled to stand.
"Freed, we'll do this together." Laxus took a step forward and Freed held his arm out to hault his movements. "No, not this time. Get everyone out of here Laxus-sama, it's your duty as team leader to ensure the team get out of here safely. Well, at least most of us.." Freed turned and gave Laxus a smile and look that told him he knew exactly what he was doing, and that it was time for them to go.
"I'm not gonna leave you Freed." Laxus scowled and Freed shook his head no.
"You're not, I'm leaving you. This is my choice. Grab Lucy and everyone else and go." Freed slowly turned into Darkness, and his demonic form materialized.
Lucy was standing now, looking on at the sight and deciding she was just as uninjured as Freed, and also just as capable. She needed to do something. She clenched her key ring and thought of summoning Loki and Aquarius.. They could help Freed hold the demon off, couldn't they?
But then she got another idea.
She pulled the black key she'd tucked away in her sleeve and examined it one more time. Virgo's words replayed in her mind, and she began imagining the mural once again. Maybe.. Just.. Maybe she could do this. It was worth a shot, right?
She began calling on her magic, calling on it in a way she never had before as she felt it physically surround her. All eyes turned to her and it was right then and there that the demon realized just what she had in her hand. He began patting his pockets and confirmed for himself that he no longer possessed the key. He became enraged.
"You.." The demon exploded with power as he charged the girl with complete and utter rage, "you've crossed me for the last time girl!" He roared as he attacked. Freed began his counter charge to intercept the demon but he was too quick. "Run Lucy!" Natsu shouted as he struggled to stand.
"No! I'm not running, not this time. Let me protect you guys for once!" She took her stance and the demon hastened his pace - he intended to smash the girl with his brute force after bum rushing her. After all, no one had been able to call on that gate before - this would be no different. But the girl, she needed to be taught a lesson.
"Here we go!" Lucy took a step back, and began the only incantation she could think of.
"Open.. Gate.." She hesitated, "Of the Death God!"
A light crashed down in between Lucy and the charging demon, stopping it in its tracks as a figure slowly formed from the light.
Standing before Lucy was a huge man with a single eye patch and a long scar running down the other side of his face. He had black spiky hair and bells at the end of it - he was wearing a sleeveless haori and donned mostly black and white. His one green eye bored into Lucy, knowing somehow she was the reason he was there.
"Who.. The fuck.. Are you?"
Dun dun dun! Lucy managed to open the gate, but what kind of toll will that take on her? And who (wink wink) is this man standing before her, hero or enemy?! I'll take requests for appearances, they will be random. Sometimes short. And hopefully somewhat amusing. Reviews are appreciated!