SailorStar9: After getting Chapter 9 out, this is Chapter 10 of this fic. (Sighs) Guys and girls, is it too hard for you to leave a review, instead of just putting this fic up on your favorited list and story alerts?
Disclaimers: I own nothing, except for the plot bunny and the main pairing.
Chapter 10: Labyrinth Rhapsody
"So… this is it?" Gray blinked, the quartet arriving at the entrance.
"It's obviously suspicious." Lyon remarked.
"For now, the only thing to do is go inside." Juvia suggested.
"Why do I get this sinking feeling this won't be as easy as it sounds?" Ami muttered.
"This is where your path ends." A cloaked figure declared, standing in the group's path.
"That voice…" Ami recognized. "Diviner of the Black Moon! Beruche!"
The Ayakashi sister chuckled and removed the hood of her cloak. "So, the one who goes against the powers of God is still here?" she glared. "Still alive? I would think you gave up or died. I have waited for you, devil."
Ami pulled out her transformation stick, "I am a devil? I gain my powers by the stars. Yours is warped and dark."
"So think what you think, but I know the truth." Beruche scoffed. "You think to face me and win this time?" a wave of water came at Ami, both Gray and Lyon shifting into attack mode.
"Sorry," Gray readied his attack.
"We don't have time to play." Lyon agreed, both ice mages freezing the water wave.
"I won't be beaten!" Beruche snapped, pouring more energy into her frozen attack, the ice wave gaining momentum.
Ami raised up her pen, water surrounding it, then glowed with the colours of her planetary magic. The symbol of Mercury appeared on her forehead, and the 'Star Power Stick' changed, turning thinner and into the symbol of a doctor, a caduceus staff.
Beruche backed off, "What is this?"
Ami straightened, her clothing now turned into her 'Eternal' Senshi suit. "I am Mercury, the Senshi of Water. I will drown you with water!" the powered-up Senshi declared, as her produced her Mercury Lyre. "Shine Snow Illusion!" a cord plucked, and Beruche was engulfed in snow and ice, the resulting ice shards bombarding into the golem gatekeeper's eye and causing the gate to slid open.
"The remains of a church…" Lyon looked at their surroundings. "That mark…" he spotted the large symbol overhead. "Zentopia?"
"What are those rocks for?" Juvia wondered, seeing the numerous floating stones in the air.
"All of them have engravings on the surface." Lyon added.
"Why don't we split up for now and look for anything that might be a part?" Gray suggested.
"I'll look around the perimeter." Lyon offered.
"I'll check out the inside." Gray added.
"That mark…" Mercury frowned.
"Mercury-sama." Juvia urged.
"These rocks are really suspicious." Lyon concluded. "Think I'll test them out."
"What's this?" Gray asked, coming out.
"When the rocks are hit with magic, they move in the direction of their arrows." Lyon explained, having lined up several stones.
"But for what?" Gray pressed.
"The Zentopia crest over there," Mercury pointed up. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't it look a little off?"
"Now that you mention it…" Gray nodded. "It is a little off. Far as I can recall, it should be more like this." the image of the diamond shaped crest appeared in his head.
"I see." Lyon grinned.
"Perhaps…" Mercury mused, shifting an east-pointing rock into the hole in top right corner of the square.
"What are you gonna do?" Gray asked.
"Move the rocks…" Juvia explained, moving another rock into the bottom right corner of the square.
"You still don't get it." Lyon chided, doing the same with two more stones.
"So that's it." Gray beamed.
"You're slow on the uptake." Lyon scolded. "Now all we need to do is hit these four arrows with magic at the same time."
"Nothing's happening." Juvia blinked, after the four mages sent their magic into the stones.
"Wait." Lyon corrected, the square shifting position. "The light from our magic?" he questioned, the crest started shining.
"Jeez, wait'll you see where we got blown off to." Gray sighed, the girls stirring.
"It seems we've been teleported here." Lyon noted.
"Are we meant to go through that gate with all the arrow rocks?" Juvia wondered.
"Then the clock parts or whatever are at the end of it?" Lyon surmised, activating his magic.
"We can make a path with these rocks, right?" Gray agreed.
"Probably." Juvia concurred, the two water mages following suit.
"But how thought up this roundabout crap?" Gray wondered, Lyon taking the lead.
"Spicy." Sugar Boy declared.
"I know that voice…" Mercury trailed.
"Sugar Boy!" Gray gaped.
"Thanks to Samuel, I figured out the entrance to the church right away." Sugar Boy remarked. "But I didn't know how to get into this dimension. I'm here thanks to you second-rate mages."
"He's the enemy, huh?" Lyon growled.
"Bastard, you followed us?" Gray hissed.
"Once I get in here, I'll have no use for you." Sugar Boy boasted. "See, this is Zentopia territory, so I can guess where to find the part."
"We're no letting you in there!" Juvia barked.
"Spicy!" Sugar Boy declared. "Suck your thumbs and observe." He sang into his microphone as green slime oozed out from his chest.
"What the hell are you?" Lyon demanded, engulfed in the slime as Gray grabbed Mercury and dodged the wave attack.
"You two got caught?" Gray landed on a floating stone, Juvia, too, was caught in the ooze. "This is that asshole's magic."
"That's right." Sugar Boy grinned. "I do 'Dog Whistle' magic. I can make these pretty hounds dogs do whatever I want. All-righty, time to say bye-bye." He cast his magic to form the rest of the track.
"Oh no, you don't!" Mercury retorted, summoning her wings and shot off after Sugar Boy.
"Hold on." Gray readied his magic. "I'll freeze and shatter that junk."
"Forget about us." Lyon barked.
"Go after him." Juvia agreed. "Mercury-sama needs your help."
"Alright." Gray relented. "If left alone, that gooey stuff zaps your magic and strength, so be careful." He cautioned.
"Who are you talking to?" Lyon chided. "We're both Ul's pupils. This is nothing."
"I figured." Gray agreed.
"I wonder if you'll follow me." Sugar Boy mused. "Ice Boy."
"We've had enough of your crap." Gray retorted. "I'm gonna make you regret the hell out of ever making an enemy out of Fairy Tail."
"I don't see any sign of Ice Boy." Sugar Boy stopped. "I guess he was just all talk. Surprise!" he gaped, both ice casters standing before him. "When did you get here?"
"It wasn't easy, but we caught up with you." Gray grinned.
"You realized this gate goes around a loop." Sugar Boy noted. "Impressive."
"All it took was a little observation." Gray shrugged.
"It seems I need to have it out with you once and for all." Sugar Boy remarked, sending a stone forward.
"The result will be no different than in Edolas." Gray declared. "I'm gonna kick your ass." He fired the last stone, finishing the path-link. The rock path lit up and the clock engine manifested in the centre of the circle.
"Wonderful." Sugar Boy mused.
"You ain't getting it." Gray declared, pulling off his coat.
"Why are you stripping?" Sugar Boy exclaimed.
"It's my thing." Gray retorted, Mercury face-palming.
"You caught me off-guard with that!" Sugar Boy flustered. "Unbelievable! Why?"
"Shouldn't we be freaking out right about now?" Mercury looked at her companion.
"Wonder if there's a memory-surpassing spell somewhere." Gray mumbled, shivering, Mercury chuckling nervously.
"Get them, little doggy!" Sugar Boy summoned a slime path towards the clock engine.
"Not so fast!" Gray froze the ooze trail. "Ice Make: Floor!"
"Hot!" Sugar Boy grinned, melting the ice.
"What?" Gray gaped, the Dog Whistle mage making a grab for the clock engine, just as he and Mercury touched the metal.
"What the…" Lyon blinked, the trio vanishing in a flash of light.
"Mercury-sama and the bad guy disappeared?" Juvia wondered.
"No, my bet is they returned to our world." Lyon reasoned. In which case…"
"If we don't' jump into that light, too…" Juvia added.
"It's this magic that's doing it." Lyon concluded. "Alright, time to make a real effort. Relax," he assured, in the 'Iced Shell' pose. "I'm just gonna release some magic. Focus on not getting caught up in its effect. Let's go." He instructed, having freed them both.
"Gimme the part!" Gray demanded, tugging at the metal against Sugar Boy, Mercury standing at the side, sweatdropping.
"You'll have to pry it from my… cold... dead…" Sugar Boy snapped.
"Let go and back off." Gray barked. "Otherwise, I'll…"
"Yes!" Sugar Boy gushed. "I love you, too!"
"What the hell are you talking about?" Gray exclaimed. "I mean, I'm not like that!"
"You're cold in both heart and soul, aren't you, Ice Boy?" Sugar Boy flushed. "In that case, I'll just have to deliver my hot feelings… directly." And blasted both ice casters with his Hot Slime. "Spicy, right? It's the property of fire I absorbed from Natsu. I guess he was pretty cute too."
"This goop ain't nothing I can't handle." Gray shifted into offensive pose.
"Gray, how long are you gonna let this goofball walk all over you?" Lyon snapped, freezing the orange ooze. "Get a hold of yourself! Don't bring shame on Ul."
"Don't kid me!" Gray retorted, breaking free. "This wasn't the fault of Ul's magic. I was just holding back."
"Mercury-sama, together!" Juvia powered up a water sphere.
"Like I said." Gray added, he and Lyon merging their powers together with Mercury's attack. "You're gonna regret the hell out of ever making an enemy out of Fairy Tail."
"Shine Aqua Illusion!" Mercury released her charged-up ice storm at Sugar Boy, sending the Dog Whistle mage to the ground.
"I'm taking this." Gray claimed the clock piece.
"And so, you're taking along my heart?" Sugar Boy muttered.
Mercury chuckled nervously at Gray's cringe.
SailorStar9: Now that's done, read and review.