The Regal Key

===Chapter 6===

Sand Gets Everywhere

"Levy-chan, is Gajeel alright? He looks a little pale."

"He's alright," Levy replied sombrely as she looked up from the breakfast table. Gajeel had just excused himself to use the bathroom, leaving them free to talk. "He's just been having some nightmares recently."

"That's not like him," Lily said with a measure of concern.

"He doesn't seem the type," Lucy agreed.

"What a pansy," Natsu said offhandedly.

"Natsu!" Lucy barked. He looked over at Levy, who appeared to be despairing and an angry Lucy glaring with an expression that said 'be more considerate'.

"She's such a weakling," Natsu mumbled quietly. Levy's head snapped up, not sure if she'd just heard him say what she thought he'd said. Neither the Exceeds nor Lucy had appeared to hear anything though. Was she hearing things?

"I'm sure that he'll be fine," Lucy assured her. "Just show him that smile of yours and he'll perk right up!"

"I dunno, we're going to have to get on another train," Levy replied with a rueful grin. "That'll make him depressed again."

"Where are we heading for the next three spirits?" Lucy asked.

"We should be heading out into a small desert patch just beyond the grassland. I think it was a lake in the distant past, but all of the water has left, just leaving the sea floor. I'm not quite sure who the three spirits will be. Libra and Scorpio should be there, but I'm not sure if Ophiuchus will push out Sagittarius from his position or not."

"Maybe. That is where the constellation is pushing into the ecliptic zodiac."

"You're talking about such boring stuff," Natsu grumbled. "Let's just get there and fight them. All of your spirits have been so powerful with the shards. Loke was about at my level. I wanna see how strong snake boy is now!"

"Natsu's only thinking about one thing as always!" Happy said.

"Well, maybe two things these days…"

"Not in front of company!" Lucy snapped.

===][===

"So, you've started twisting things a little bit," Alexander asked Ivan.

"Yes, Alex-chan. Just a snippet of conversation here and there. It is a quite subtle use of my illusions and it tires me to do it at this distance, but I believe that it will be quite effective." He chuckled darkly. "They shouldn't trust anything they see or hear."

===][===

"It's too hot!" Gajeel complained.

"Oh. My. God. Gajeel, you complained that the mountain was too cold!" Natsu shouted.

"This is a desert!" Gajeel gestured to the vast expanse of sand and rocks in all directions. "The mountain was covered in snow! Both complaints make sense!"

"But we get to see the girls in less clothes," Natsu whispered. Gajeel did accept that was a nice benefit. Walking behind Levy in a short skirt was not exactly unpleasant. Not unpleasant at all. Wait, what was he thinking about again?

"It's got to be around here somewhere," Levy said, wiping her brow. The desert was not conducive to easy map reading. Rocks and sand. Not really great for landmarks.

"I think I can feel something this way," Lucy said, striding towards some point that only she can see.

"Blonde bitch thinks she's smarter than me," Levy groused.

"What!?" Lucy snapped, spinning on her heel.

"Huh?" Levy replied, startled. "I didn't say anything!"

She did look surprised. Lucy rubbed her head, feeling sweat trickle down. It was hot, and didn't deserts twist the senses with mirages and things? She must have tricked herself. Levy didn't have a mean bone in her entire body.

They headed off towards what Lucy was sensing. They were in quite an expanse now, about a mile away from any feature. Lucy swept her arms up and the three shards erupted from a great cyclone of sand. Amidst all the dust, Scorpio and Libra appearing before Ophiuchus' mighty serpentine body sprang out behind them.

"So it was you!" Levy sang.

"Greetings, little one. I am glad to see that you are well after our previous encounter." Ophiuchus' voice rumbled forward like a psychic projection, his snake-like mouth incapable of communicating human speech.

"Little!? I am the fourth tallest person in this group!"

"Shrimp, the last two are cats. And if Lily trans-"

"Shut up."

"Wea!" Scorpio shouted. "Are you ready for this competition? This is gonna be a sandcastle building competition!" A silence passed over the Fairy Tail mages. "That's right! A sandcastle building competition! The limit is ten minutes! The team with the tallest castle at the end is the winner! Horologium can keep track of time."

"Fine, fine," Lucy said, summoning the clock spirit.

"The time will begin at the third chime," Horologium stated.

"So we just gotta build up a pile of sand?" Gajeel asked.

"Seems that way," Lily replied.

Chime.

"We can do it, right Luce?" Natsu said with passion, clenching a fist.

"Yes," Lucy returned with a fierce nod.

Chime.

"We have to work hard," Levy stated.

"No one can beat us!" Happy declared.

Chime!

"GO! Wea! Sand Buster!"

"Gravity Change! Clump together!"

In an instant, a huge column of sand erupted from the spirits, a thin spire pressed together and compacted by Libra's gravity magic. I must have gone up for over ten metres.

"That's not a sandcastle!" Happy cried.

"How do we beat that!?" Lucy shouted.

"By teamwork!" Natsu roared. Gajeel began to shovel, his hands turning into spades. Natsu began patting it down, making a mound. It very clearly wasn't going to work when Ophiuchus erupted from the sands, destroying their pitiful pile.

"Hey!" Levy cried.

"No, this is good. We don't have to build high, we have to outbuild them! Iron Dragon's Roar!" Gajeel's attack impacted the bottom of the spirit's tower. It didn't topple though, held in place by gravity.

"Rule violation!" Horologium called. "The tower must touch the ground!"

Libra sighed and lowered the column of sand back down to earth.

"If we keep that up…we can win!" Natsu shouted. There was a distant cry of 'sand buster' and Natsu was flung back.

"They are going to attack us too," Lily said, now in his battle form, helping to pile up more sand.

"Not 'us'," Gajeel noted, promptly picking up Lucy to use as a shield.

"Hey!"

"They ain't gonna attack you, are they? Geez, you weigh a lot more than Shorty!"

"Gajeel, I will kill you!" Lucy snapped. "Once you've won this contest for me!"

"Gihi! We still gotta figure out a tactic!"

Atop their adjacent tower, Libra and Scorpio were still piling on more sand, levitating up with their combined abilities. Ophiuchus erupted from the sand, long enough to bring his head to their level.

"I can't attack with Lucy in the way," the black snake grumbled. "A cheap tactic."

"What are they whispering about down there?" Libra asked, the Fairy Tail mages now in a group huddle.

"Wea! It can't possibly be good enough to beat us! This tower has to be at least twenty metres tall by now!"

The Fairy Tail mages split apart suddenly, Happy and Lily bearing Natsu and Levy into the sky. Lucy stepped forward to prevent the spirits from attacking their location. Reaching down, Levy wrote 'wall' in a circle. With spade-hands, Gajeel dumped sand into the cylinder. Natsu fired into it, turning it and several metres of desert into shining glass.

"Wait a minute!" Scorpio objected.

Levy raised the wall and Gajeel threw more sand inside. Natsu welded it to the glass column. Levy raised the wall. Gajeel threw the sand. Natsu fused it together. Again and again. Higher and higher. A glistening column of pristine glass.

"Hey, they're gonna beat us! Take it down, snake boy!"

"I have a name," Ophiuchus snarled before ploughing under the sands. He'd spring up and smash it from below. Too late he saw something he'd never expected. How did one make a unison raid of two such widely different magics?

There were words under the sand. The word bomb over and over again. Each word was studded with metal shards. When had they done this? On the surface, sand swelled and burst as Gajeel and Levy's landmines went off.

"One minute left!" Horolgium announced.

"Now!" Natsu shouted. The two dragon slayers jumped forward, ready to expend all of their magic in one blast.

"Thunder-Flame dragon's…"

"Iron-Shadow dragon's…"

"…ROAR!"

In an instant the rival tower was obliterated. Libra and Scorpio thumped into the sand as Ophiuchus slid out of it.

"Time over!" Horologium called. "The winner, Lucy's team!"

"Damn it," Scorpio said with a smile as he began to vanish. "Aquarius will be angry."

"Congratulations, Lucy. I am glad that you have won," Libra said formally and politely.

"You now have my full might. Use it well," Ophiuchus said severely. "I will ever stay at your side."

"Thank you everyone!" Lucy cried as the shards landed in her hands. She quickly began trying to piece the nine pieces she had back together. Segments began to join together, forming larger pieces. It wasn't whole, but she had an idea of what it would look like now.

"Um, guys," Levy said nervously, "Is that a mirage or actually there?"

The group looked around at where Levy was pointing. In the distance, covered by heat haze was Erutan, the dragon slayer of earth.

"Bastard," Gajeel scowled. "What's he up to?"

"He's an earth slayer and this is a desert!" Lily shouted. They all began to realise the point as sand was being sucked towards the slayer at a great rate, disappearing down his gullet. That much raw material…Natsu threw himself over Lucy, grabbing Happy with his off hand. Levy found Gajeel doing the same to her.

"Earth Dragon's Roar!"