The Seven Swords of Lucy
Chapter 4: Things Getting Weird (hopeless)
Dedicated to heyitsmebianca and Viridian Carn for making chapter 4 even possible! Arigatou! Sorry for the long delay…
(AUTHOR's BLOCK, damn you to H*LL!)
-arcturus_lein
Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail and every anime that will appear here soon after. If I did, then I will mash them together to form one single ass-kicking manga/anime!
*.*.*
Master Makarov went silent as he had read Erza's letter. When everyone heard this, they became frantic to finish their quest…
…to start looking for Lucy.
Makarov reminded them that they should finish their quests before making the search for Lucy, so all the others did the quests twice as fast than normal. The ones who didn't take a quest became worried about Lucy. There was also an air of confusion in the air. "Where was Lu-chan going?," Levy asked, her eyes wet with tears. Gajeel was comforting her along with Pantherlily, Jet and Droy.
"I don't know, Levy-san," Makarov replied sadly, feeling suddenly weak because he can't protect his children. His title as a Wizard Saint is almost worthless.
Some of the girls were also crying, especially Mirajane, Wendy, Charle, Cana and Bisca, who had also been friends with Lucy. They couldn't believe that Lucy would disband the guild and leave them forever.
This is not good, Makarov thought. Lucy leaving because of nothing? Maybe Erza is missing a little detail. Knowing Lucy-san, she would never do that.
But what could be the problem?
When Team Natsu left for this quest, everything was normal. Gray and Natsu were on the verge of fighting, Erza was also on the verge of punching both of them. Lucy was, as always, laughing at them. Juvia has joined the quest because of Gray's personal request. And everyone had agreed to this, since she could be a big help.
Nothing was wrong.
"Master, what's the problem?" Mirajane asked him, seeing the confusion etched across his face, although her voice broke because she was crying. "Are you okay?"
"Nah, I was just thinking of our dilemma right now," Makarov said softly. "I hope Natsu and the rest could find her."
"Yeah, I-I hope too," Mirajane muttered, wiping off a tear from her face.
"MASTER!"
Someone shouted from the outside, followed by screams, wails and sounds of crashing buildings. A guy got inside and pulled the doors closed, before running towards the Master.
"Master," the guild member was already on the floor beneath the bar stall. He looked badly beaten, his clothes were torn and he looked electrocuted. "Th-ther-they're a-a-attacking…"
"Who? Tell me?" Makarov demanded, but the member fell unconscious, leaving Makarov no choice but to see it all for himself.
He was walking to the door when it exploded, sending some of the members flying.
"Who are you?" was all Makarov could say. He was ready to fight whoever hurt his children. He tensed, and waited for the attackers to respond. At his back Elfman, Mira, Wendy, Charle and all the others gathered, ready to defend the guild no matter what the cost.
Then a voice spoke, "it doesn't matter whoever we are, for as long as we can get back what was requested."
All of the guild members went still and silent. One thing is clear though: whatever they want, they have to take it by force.
"What is it that you want," Gajeel spoke coldly.
The owner of the voice appeared through the front door. He had spiky black hair and was wearing violet eyeglasses, white collared shirt with coattails and black pants. He had a serious and strangely fearsome look on him, making Fairy Tail wary. He stepped closer inside and said
"We want…
Three more people appeared behind him, their faces covered by the smoke coming from the outside.
…Lucy Heartfilia."
.*.*.
Team Natsu was already getting hopeless.
They tried to follow the ship but it was too late. The ship has gone too far for Happy to fly.
Gray was almost going crazy. First, Lucy left a note. Now, they left her completely, without even the slightest hint of an explanation. That note didn't suffice.
Natsu was just as troubled. He had known Lucy for a long time. Even before Erza and Gray. He can know whatever Lucy feels, whether she's angry, happy, or miserable. But this dilemma now is something Natsu can't make out.
Happy was already sobbing as his teammates' eyes followed the ship that had just left. Erza asked earlier a man who was just there on the port all morning, if he ever saw a blond girl just as tall and as old as she is, wielding a set of keys, possibly looking weird too. He just said that he saw a blonde girl, but she was not holding a set of keys. But something he said that made Erza think that there is something else behind Lucy's disappearance, not simply about broken hearts.
The man said that the blonde girl was also accompanied by a man. He said he wore weird clothes. And Erza wasn't sure if the man meant something out of this world. Erza wanted to ask what did the man look like but he refused to say it because she asked too much questions already; one question, 100 jewels. Erza just punched him in fury and he went flying down the sea.
Wrong time for you to bargain…
Erza told Natsu, Gray, Juvia and Happy to stay behind at the port to wait until she comes back. She was going to buy tickets, to wherever that ship went. Natsu disagreed with this (he wanted to swim instead) but all of them gave him a look, and then just shut his mouth.
Erza was busy contemplating of what they're going to do when she didn't notice that she was leading herself to a manhole and fell.
She wasn't hurt, but falling inside that hole made Erza remember something from the past. The same thing happened to her when Gray, Natsu, Lucy and Happy went on an S-Class mission to Galuna Island. And it was Lucy's fault.
But instead of it making her happy or angry, it just made her sad. Many memories had happened when Lucy came to the guild. If she didn't arrive, maybe Erza was still going on missions by herself, Natsu and Gray was still not on good terms with each other (still until now, but getting better, or at least that's what she thinks). But it all changed when they met her.
Team Natsu wouldn't be complete without Lucy Heartfilia.
She was still reminiscing about her memories with her when someone interrupted her.
"Need a hand, miss?" A voice said. She looked up, and she saw a silver-haired man, his hair framing his face like a curtain, with very thin stubble across his jaw and piercing purple eyes, so purple it looked blue, and light skin tone. He was handsome, the most handsome man Erza ever saw.
But no one can replace Jellal, she thought to herself, but it makes no matter.
The man just looked at her and said annoyingly, "do you want my help or not?"
"No, I can get out of here by myself," she answered defiantly, and without further ado, pulled herself up from the hole. "Thank you though."
"No problem," he grinned. "Helping damsels in distress is not very high on my-things-to-do list, but I can't help it."
"I am not a damsel in distress," she muttered, looking at him, and somewhat blinded by his smile. "As you can see, I am well equipped."
"It didn't look that you were though," he said jokingly, trying to annoy her. "As far as I could remember, you were crying your heart out when you were down there."
Erza blushed. For the very first time in her life, she was feeling embarrassed in the presence of a man, a stranger even. How did he even know?
"I was not!"She denied, looking away.
"Oh c'mon, there's no point in denying what you were doing down there," he was already getting on her nerves. "What's your name anyway?"
She reluctantly answers, "Erza. Erza Scarlet."
"Nice name," he commented. "You can call me Dante. Now can you tell me where am I? I think I'm lost."
*.*.*
"I wonder what's taking Erza too long," Natsu commented, starting to feel hungry. I hope that she brings something to eat…
"Aye," Happy mumbled, still crying.
But Natsu can't think of that right now. The most important is that Erza comes back with their tickets to follow Lucy. Although I have a bad feeling about this…
"Oi, Gray what now?" He asked. Too bad he didn't even notice that the poor man was already asleep with Juvia next to him, also slumbering. Irritated, he screamed to Gray's ear.
"GRAY! WHAT NOW?"
Startled, Gray woke up from the scream although Juvia didn't. Finally knowing who it was, he screamed back.
"WHAT'S YOUR PROBLEM, YOU HOT HEADED FREAK?"
"IT'S BECAUSE YOU'RE NOT LISTENING TO ME, DIMWIT!"
"WHAT DID YOU SAY, ASS-"
"IT'S YOUR PROBLEM, YOU PERV-"
"DON'T YOU DARE-"
"YES, I JUST-"
Then they started all over again, rambling on the port. Almost everyone just passing by stopped and just watched as the two mages cracked the asphalt street, hitting each other with flaming punches and icy blades. Pieces of debris started to hit the crowd, sending them running to wherever they think is safe. Screams echoed through the air. And one lucky piece flew over to a light-blue haired guy somewhere.
The blue-haired guy screamed, but no one seems to hear him.
"Nothing could stop those two," Happy just looked at the ball of fury that was rolling behind him, which was Gray and Natsu. Even in the middle of a crisis all at they could do is fight.
*.*.*
Zeref was also looking hopeless. Touch one plant, it dies. Touch one flower, it withers. Touch one tree, it succumbs down to its roots, growing grayer and grayer until every drop of life it ever beheld was gone. He didn't even know how to survive; he can't eat the fruits growing in the forest because the trees dry up even when he's just looking at it.
In short, life sucks, especially when life isn't in good terms with you.
He never knew where he was. In fact, he just found himself on that island where a huge tree grows on the center. He just decided it was the perfect place, since the only humans who came there were only from one guild training for their S-Class exams, annually. So technically, he was alone.
But, he never minded it. Any living thing that would approach him would surely die.
He was still grumbling to himself how he would eat an apple (it shrivels down to dust); he didn't notice 3 mysterious people approaching him.
*.*.*
Lucy was also getting hopeless.
After that short conversation with the Syaoran guy, he just left. What a heartless bastard…you wouldn't even call that a conversation!
He constantly evaded the subject about his lost lover. After he said that Lucy was the only one who could find her, he said nothing all over again. Lucy had to forcibly pry some information from him. He answered some, then after he was annoyed, he just left.
But she already knew some things about him:
First, he was already 18, which explains that they were allowed to get married with his bride.
Second, he can use magic but only limited. Syaoran vaguely explained that he and Sakura (his bride), were Card Captors, whatever that meant. At first they were rivals, but in the end, they fell in love.
It would have sounded romantic, if not for the guy's way of saying it. He spoke of it as if it was nothing of importance, but is Lucy knew the truth. It was in his eyes, it showed true and everlasting love. I wish that a guy would be like that to me…
She scolded herself again for having such thoughts. Why would a guy be like that to me anyway? I'm just an ordinary woman, not as hot as Erza and Mirajane and not as strong as Juvia and Cana. Even in the cuteness contest Wendy would have won. I'm nothing, nothing but crap…
She was almost dissolved to tears. She felt weak, helpless and immeasurably empty. Now she also felt like a coward.
She was still on the ship deck, pitying herself when she heard a familiar voice.
"Aren't you one of Gramp's babies," the man asked behind her. When she looked back to answer, she was aghast of who she saw.
It was Laxus. Laxus Dreyar, the very same guy who turned her into stone!
My dearest apologies for the delay… I know, I know but sorry still.
As for the next chapter:
What will happen now? Why was Laxus onboard with Lucy on the ship? Why was Syaoran still cold on Lucy? Who were the ones attacking Fairy Tail? Is Erza falling in love? Will Zeref survive? And most importantly, who was the light-blue haired guy?
Want to find out? Keep watch, for the next chapter is about to come!