AN: Hello everyone! :D I am going to have to apologize for this chapter as it is mainly just fighting and I am terrible at writing battles hahaha! But important stuff nonetheless so bear with me! :D

Chapter 15

A couple of hours passed by quickly and finally it was five minutes until midnight. The group of mages stood in a makeshift square, discussing battle strategies while the concerned couple stood farther away so as to not get dragged into the soon to come fights.

Erza would be lying if she said she wasn't worried. After all, she was soon to be taking on two strong enemies at once. Being the kind of person that she is, the requip mage always blamed herself for things that went wrong on missions. And if she were to lose this battle, whatever happened next would be on her shoulders. The two boys and the exceed next to her noticed Erza's sudden change of confidence and nudged her lightly.

"Don't go worrying about this when you're the strongest one here," Gray said with a playful smirk.

"Yeah, leave the worrying for Lucy when we bring her back," Natsu added with a grin of his own.

"Aye!" Happy agreed.

Erza gave a small smile in return and nodded. "They are right. I can't be worrying like this. I must have faith in myself and my teammates so that we can bring Lucy home."

"Hello there, Fairy Tail meat," a feminine and familiar voice rang out from beyond the bushes.

Finally, the four mages appeared, just as menacing looking as they were the prior day. Natsu was quick to notice that Lucy was not among them, sending rage throughout him for the umpteenth time that day. Happy gave one last look at his best friend before he quickly flew back towards the older couple, as his job was to stand by and protect them at all times considering he couldn't actually fight.

"We're here for a rematch," Natsu announced, flames immediately engulfing his hands. "And we aren't going to lose."

"Is that so?" Takeshi questioned intriguingly. "We'll see about-"

Takeshi was shocked to find Natsu lunging towards him at an incredible speed. His reflexes were not fast enough and he was unable to create a portal in time. Natsu's flaming fist made contact with his cheek, burning his mask away in the process.

"We're taking Lucy back," the dragon slayer said furiously in a low tone.

Takeshi lifted himself off of the ground, his red eyes boring into Natsu's. "Prepare to die, boy."

"Now!" Erza shouted as she lunged towards the fast mage she had fought the day before. She swung her sword with all of her might, just to feel it being slowed down once again. Turning her head to the left, she found the other mage she battled before slowing down her movements. That is, until Gray used his Ice Make: Hammer on him, giving Erza her speed once again. Finally, she was able to land a shallow hit on the speedy mage, restoring all confidence that was previously lost.

"Go, Erza! I'm taking this guy!" Gray announced as he lunged towards the man once again.

Erza watched Gray's movements become slowed while the enemy delivered an attack, but she focused her attention back onto her own enemies.

"Gray will be fine. He is a strong Fairy Tail mage. I must focus on my own battle for now," she thought, requipping into her Flight Armor. While the leopard print top was most definitely uncomfortable it was no doubt her best armor for battles of speed.

Then, the girl lunged towards the fast mage, her speed increased ten times as much. Her sword collided with her enemy's own sword, as he had no choice but to block seeing as how she was too fast he couldn't dodge.

"I am Erza Scarlet of Fairy Tail. What is your name?" she asked as the two were still clashing swords.

"Elijah," the mage answered in a plain matter. "This should be fun. I've never had to block someone else's attack before."

"That is because you had your comrade slow down your enemies' movements. You aren't actually that fast without his help."

Elijah's eyebrows furrowed as the corners of his lips were tugged downwards. He then increased his speed and delivered harsh kicks all around Erza, who was unable to do anything about it. Kicking the red-head towards Michiko, Elijah laughed seeing his teammate deliver a painful gash to Erza's side.

Erza stood up, panting and trying her best to regain her composure. She had forgotten all about Michiko and cursed under her breath for her rookie mistake.

"Who should I go for first? It is clear that Michiko is the weakest of them all. I shall go for Elijah."

Erza requipped two more swords and skillfully grabbed one with her free hand and the other with her foot. Elijah stared at her in wonder. How was she supposed to attack like that? He then lunged towards her but Erza stayed calm and waited him out. When he was right in front of her, the red-head jumped in the air and spun around, the blades dancing along his body.

Elijah's clothing was all tattered up and ripped as blood seeped through and even dropped to the ground. His breathing was uneven and he was in a much worse state than Erza. The red-head then took this chance to surprise attack Michiko, who was standing still, stunned at the sight of her fastest comrade being defeated with ease.

The orange-haired woman tried to extend her nails towards Erza to stop the incoming attack but it was to no avail. Erza slashed the nails away no matter how fast they were regenerating. Bringing her sword down with all of her strength, the requip mage left a huge gash through Michiko's abdomen. There was no way she was going to be standing back up any time soon. She then turned back towards Elijah, who looked back at her with undeniable rage.

Removing his hand from his deepest wound, the blonde increased his speed once again and delivered a low kick, causing Erza to hit the floor. He grabbed his sword and thrust it towards her face while she was down, but luckily she rolled away in time. The two clashed swords once again, continuously increasing their speed. Elijah actually managed to get in some good cuts on Erza. Blood was dripping down her forearm and her leg, along with the wound she received from Michiko. But nothing seemed to stop her.

"Why can't I cut her down!?" Elijah wondered as he felt another deep gash on his thigh. "I can't beat her!"

Elijah's eyes widened as he felt his sword knocked out of his hand. He met Erza's eyes and felt his body go limp. He couldn't beat the red-headed demon. Erza quickly brought the hilt of her sword towards her face and swung it at Elijah, hitting him square in the jaw and knocking him out in the process. She never was one for killing her enemies unless absolutely necessary, thus she took some rope that she always carried with her and tied her two knocked out opponents up.

Erza let out many pants as she felt her body going numb. While the two weren't as strong as some past enemies, the two of them together were enough to require the mage to take a break. She looked at Natsu first as he fought their leader. None of his attacks were hitting, but it appeared Takeshi hadn't attacked yet. Therefore, he was fine at the moment. Then she looked at Gray and her eyes widened. Gray was bloodied and bruised and was unable to land an attack on his own enemy. Erza willed her body to get up but it was futile. She needed to rest.

"Please be okay, Gray."

Gray panted as his attacker took a break to look at his fallen comrades. There was no sadness in his eyes. Instead, his black orbs were emotionless as if he didn't care what happened to the two. Turning his attention back towards Gray, the man spoke.

"Why don't we exchange names as well?" he said in a deep voice.

"I don't care what your name is!" Gray retorted, struggling to hold himself up.

The man shrugged and replied, "Either way, my name is Elliot. That unconscious man over there is my younger brother. It appears your friend defeated him."

"Yeah, your brother went up against one of the strongest mages in all of Fiore. Of course he was beaten."

"I suppose that is true." Elliot then looked at Erza, who was laying on the grass, restoring her magical energy. He then dismissed Gray and walked towards her. "I must kill her for beating my brother."

Gray then jumped in between the two, still struggling for air. "Touch her and I'll kill you."

Elliot smirked and quickly ran past the ice mage. He brought his foot up high in the air above Erza's face, relishing in the fear in her eyes. Bringing it down as fast as he could, he was surprised to find his leg frozen just inches above her forehead.

"Ice Make: Cannon!" Gray shouted as he shot ice towards his enemy. Luckily, it hit him right in his gut and sent him flying through trees. Now Elliot was bleeding and panting as well, putting them on even ground. "My name is Gray Fullbuster. Remember it, because I'm going to be the man to kill you for trying to hurt my friend."

Elliot lunged towards the dark-haired boy with a sadistic smile on his face. The two boys fought hand-to-hand for what seemed like forever, both of them delivering nasty blows. Both were bruised and it seemed like they were going to have a stalemate until Gray grabbed Elliot's wrist and grinned at him.

"Gotcha," he said as he enveloped himself in spikey ice and trapped Elliot's hand in the ice so he couldn't escape.

Elliot tried to jump away but it was futile. His hand was stuck in the ice. After using his magic to slow down the ice, the blonde screamed in fear of the pointy shards slowly making their way towards his body. Each spike pierced his body in different locations, causing him to screech in pain. Gray finally stopped the attack and destroyed the ice, delivering one last punch straight into Elliot's nose, effectively knocking him out. The ice mage laughed heartily as he had just won, though he winced in pain shortly after and collapse to the ground. Bruises upon bruises were covering his body and blood dripped from his mouth.

Just then, a nasty yelp of pain was heard, causing both Gray and Erza to look towards Natsu. The dragon slayer was on the ground, shouting from the pain he was going through. He then sat back up, and that was when Gray noticed his injury. He had almost puked at the sight. The skin on Natsu's right hand was practically gone, showing raw, meaty flesh underneath.

"Natsu!" Gray shouted, crawling towards him and trying to get back to his feet. "What the hell happened!?"

Natsu was no doubt in worse shape than the other two. His panting was far worse and the amount of blood he was losing made Gray wonder if he should send Happy to go find Wendy.

"Looks like my hand got a little too close to that portal and this is the consequence," Natsu answered between breaths.

"Natsu, I'm coming to help!" Happy cried out, tears soaring down his cheeks. He was about to fly towards his partner when he was stopped by Natsu.

"Stay there, buddy. I'll beat this guy, don't worry. You just gotta take care of the clients."

"A-Aye…"

Natsu then lunged towards the enemy once again, trying to hit him with his fire. It was no use. Takeshi just continued to surround himself with portals, sending the fire away.

"Stop being a coward and just fight me!" the pink-haired boy shouted.

"I wonder how many people you have killed so far," Takeshi said, putting a finger to his chin and ignoring Natsu's shouts.

"I haven't killed anyone, unlike you!"

"Are you sure about that? You see, I don't control where the things that enter my portals go to. For all we know, you could've sent innocent people on fire and killed them."

Natsu's eyes shot open as he stopped all of his attacks. He knew that he had to get Lucy back, but there was no way he was going to kill innocent people to do so. But what was he supposed to do? How was he supposed to beat this guy when none of his attacks were hitting him and instead going in these portals? Hell, even if he disregarded the lives of the innocent people, his dominant hand was now rendered useless anyways. All hope was quickly being drained out of the dragon slayer until he heard Erza's yelling.

"Natsu!" she shouted at the top of her lungs. "Do not listen to him! I am unable to help you in my condition, so is Gray. But I figured it out watching you two fight. I figured out his weakness! He is lying!"

"What do you mean?"

"Those aren't portals, they're black holes! If it was a portal, your skin would not have dissolved off of you, you yourself would have been teleported as a whole somewhere else!"

"Then how did he take Lucy into them?"

"I am not sure, but I think that was just a distraction. I am sure Elijah transported them all with his speed. After all, we were on the brink of consciousness then. Anyways, I am familiar with the weakness of black hole magic. Luckily, you are the best person for the job. Black holes can only handle so much mass. Fill it with your fire and it will disappear as it will become full!"

Natsu grinned and delivered a word of thanks and continued to attack with all of his might. His hand hurt to no end, but his mind was wrapped around Lucy's safety. His injuries were irrelevant as long as she was safe. Thus, he breathed loads of fire into the hole. Some went past and melted the trees like lava. Just as Erza said, the hole continued to shrink until it disappeared. Natsu then lunged towards Takeshi, who was now unable to defend himself.

"Fire Dragon Wing Attack!" the dragon slayer roared. The attack was delivered, though not the extent that they had expected.

Takeshi was still standing and though he was injured, he could still fight back.

"I wasn't expecting your friend to figure out my secret," he said, masking his anger with a smile. "But it doesn't matter. While it is true that my black holes disappear with a certain amount of mass, there is only a three second wait until I can make another."

"Then I guess I'm going to have to keep attacking for those three seconds."

"Are you sure you have enough magical power for that?"

"I guess we'll just have to find out!"

Natsu roared a breath of fire towards Takeshi, who had no choice but to create a black hole. Once again, the hole eventually disappeared and the pink-haired boy delivered another fatal blow. This process repeated for a while, making Natsu too familiar with the pattern to realize that Takeshi had sent his own attack.

Natsu fell to the ground in the most pain he had ever been in. No previous battles had hurt him this badly. Takeshi's "portal" had hit him on his entire right leg. There was no more skin on it and only flesh. He couldn't stop the tears from flowing out of his eyes. The pain was just too unbearable. Natsu's onyx eyes began to close as he heard his friends shouting at him to get up and to stay awake. As his eyes drooped closed, pictures of Lucy ran through his mind.

"I'm sorry, Lucy…"

"Loke, come here now!" Lucy shouted in her cell.

In the blink of an eye, her strongest spirit appeared, looking refreshed. "Is it time?"

"Yes! Please, destroy the bars and take me to my friends!"

Loke hesitantly did so and followed the blonde as she ran out, tugging Lucas along with her. They quickly made it out of the cave that they were being held captive in and found themselves deep in the woods. The lion spirit pointed in the direction of her friends before firmly grasping his master's wrist. He stopped her and spun her around so that he could deliver the cold truth.

"Loke, what are you doing we have to go-"

"Lucy!" the lion spirit shouted, effectively getting her to be quiet. "Listen to me real quick. I materialized near the others to see how they were holding up before I came here."

Lucy's eyes widened and her jaw hung open as she suspected the worse. "A-Are they okay?"

Loke shook his head and answered, "They are all alive, but they are unconscious. Including Happy and the boy's parents. It seems they were able to defeat everyone but Takeshi... Natsu is terribly injured and is close to bleeding to death."

Tears pooled in Lucy's chocolate brown eyes as her legs trembled. She collapsed to the ground and began to silently sob.

"I can't lose anyone else, especially not Natsu!" she thought, bringing her hands to her hair and pulling at her blonde locks. "I have to use it."

"I know what you're thinking, Lucy," Loke announced as he helped his master back up. "But you can't use that spell! It's too dangerous! You don't have it completely controlled yet and more importantly-"

"I don't care! I am going to save my friends!"

With that, Lucy carried Lucas on her back, pushed past Loke, and ran with all of her might in the right direction towards her friends, not seeing Loke go back through his gate. She didn't know how far they were and she didn't know how long Natsu had left, but she was determined to save them. And once she did, she was going to tell Natsu the truth. She was going to confess her feelings.

Mira hummed to herself as she strode through the guild hall, skillfully balancing plates of food on a tray and delivering them to her guild mates. It was then that the door burst open, bringing the attention of everyone else. Her blue eyes widened as she saw Loke standing with a grim look on his face.

"Loke? What's the matter? Is Lucy alright?" she asked, running up to him and placing a hand on his shoulder.

The orange-haired spirit broke down in a fit of tears as he managed to breathe out, "Take me to the master now."

Mira grabbed his wrist and ran through the guild hall and up the steps, ignoring the questions from her other guild mates. Barging into Makarov's office, she settled Loke gently into one of the seats and brought their short master to him.

"Loke, what is it?" Makarov asked in a quieter tone than usual. He had never seen the spirit so distraught.

"It's Lucy," Loke replied, wiping away his tears.

"Oh my god is she dead?" Mira asked in a terrified, worried whisper, tears forming in her eyes.

"No," the orange-haired boy answered, relieving the take-over mage. That is, until he continued, "Not yet."

"What do you mean, boy?" Makarov asked, worried features spread across his face.

"She is going to use the spell."

Shock flashed upon the master's face as he questioned, "Why on Earthland would she use that spell!?"

Mira wanted to ask what spell they were talking about but decided it would be best to just listen.

Loke grimly answered, "Natsu and the others are hurt. Natsu is bleeding out actually, close to death. I would tell you to bring Wendy but it wouldn't matter in the end if Lucy was to use that spell. I shouldn't have taught it to her!"

"Do not blame yourself, child. Just take me there. We have to save all of them and stop Lucy. Mira! Call for Wendy! She must come and heal Natsu and the others!"

"Master, what is going on?" the silver-haired mage asked in utter confusion.

"Lucy is going to use the ultimate celestial spell. This will not only kill her, but also everyone around."

AN: Oooh good stuff? Yes? No? :D Next chapter is my personal fav so far so stick around :)

Alexa: Thank you so much not only for the review but for some of the ideas in the next chapter! I think it added a really great amount of suspense to my story! So THANK YOU SO MUCH!

MirrorFlame: Yeah, I don't know why but if I had to ship someone with Lyon (I don't typically think about his character haha) it would be Kagura! I thought they meshed well during their fight together and I think their icy personalities would be entertaining haha! And good guess! You'll have to find out next chapter! ;)

12Rayne: As you now see from this chapter, yes I am putting this spell into the story! :D Though, not as you may think! ;)