Chapter VIII

Hello everyone! Greetings in the newest chapter of Miasma Saga: Fairy Tail's Demon King! I hope everyone enjoyed the previous chapter. It seems that at least some of you did, which is good. I equally hope everyone enjoys this chapter as well. Be sure to let me know if you did or if anything confused you. I thank my coauthors Bakuto Masaki and TheLastNanaya for their help with this chapter as with all others, and hope for their continued aid. Just so you are all aware, the next few chapters will likely have little action, but hopefully what replaces it is to your liking. That aside, it is time to move on to the reviewer responses.

uub: I already addressed most of your concerns elsewhere, but I will address some of them here again for any others with the same concerns. As for Sergio's personality, specifically that towards women, it's because they're his women, he's not going to allow anyone else to perv out over them, for lack of a better term. They're his and no one else's. He dislikes those little figurines because they essentially allow other men to "enjoy" his women in a way, something he doesn't like at all.

As to the bit about Sergio being the "fatherly" type of ancient character, he's tried that before and it's bit him in the ass.

Now on to his apparent double standards, it's because Sergio in general doesn't like men. He's an extremely selfish and competitive individual, as evidenced by the thing with how he reacts to men perving out on his mates.

superpierce: The fact that he's a Dragon Slayer. Like with Acnologia, Dragon Slayers turn into dragons when they become powerful enough.

Yes. When the matters come up in the story what has been altered will be explained. And he didn't learn it from anyone.

correnhimself316: Well that's one way to put it. Yeah, that's rather accurate to an extent.

Yes, he did in fact screw her silly. Sometimes it's just that good.

ParkerThomas: Yeah, it's nice in fiction but is rather disturbing in reality. Okay, so that's one vote to see the dream included.

Wow, that was a lot. So, on to the chapter itself, shall we?

Sergio stood in Makarov's office, opposite Lucy, who sat on a chair uncomfortably. Sergio folded his arms with a sigh and asked, "So, what have you got against motherhood?"

Lucy frowned deeply. "Well… both my mother and grandmother died when their children were young… I guess you could say that it… scares me…"

Sergio raised an eyebrow. "Scares you? Of not being able to see your daughter grow, huh?"

Lucy nodded silently as she hung her head.

Sergio narrowed his eyes in thought. "… Tell me something, your mother, how'd she die?"

Lucy looked up at him in mild confusion but then sighed. "Well… it's like she… just got sicker and sicker…"

Sergio tapped a finger on his arm in thought. "Like her body was losing life? Time?"

Lucy raised an eyebrow but then nodded. "Yeah, I guess…"

Sergio sighed heavily. "Did she have an ornate pocketwatch she always carried with her?"

Lucy immediately looked at him in surprise. "H – how did you…?"

"Did she give you one?"

Lucy nodded and reached into her pocket and pulled out a small, ornate, silver pocketwatch and handed it to Sergio.

Sergio looked over the pocketwatch and then sighed. "Tell me something, Lucy. Have you ever heard of the Chromatus?"

Lucy put a hand on her chin in rumination. "I think I heard it in an old storybook once but that's it."

"I see. Well then, cousin, it seems I have much to teach you."

Lucy blinked in confusion before gaping. "C – cousin!?"

Sergio nodded and pulled out a pocketwatch similar to Lucy's own, but much older, weathered, and dented.

Lucy's eyes widened. "Th – that looks… just like…"

"Yours? Of course. All those of Kresnik descent are born with this watch."

"Kresnik!" Lucy suddenly exclaimed. "That's what it was! It was an old book about someone called the Genesis Sage Kresnik."

Sergio nodded. "Yes. And this is the gift, the curse, she and her descendants were given. A power that defies fate. The Chromatus."

Lucy looked at the watch in rumination. "Chromatus…" Lucy then covered her eyes as Sergio was surrounded in light. When the light died down she saw that his body was covered in red armor. "Wh – what the hell is that?!"

Sergio sighed as he looked at his armor clad. "Our birthright. And our curse. And the reason your mother died young."

Lucy frowned deeply before lowering her head. "I see… so then… does that mean that… I will…"

The armor around Sergio's body vanished in a flash of light. "Perhaps. If you never met me."

Lucy huffed lightly. "How will that change anything?"

"I can prevent it from sapping away your life."

Lucy looked up at him surprised and somewhat incredulous. "How?"

"I merge a fragment of Origin's power with your Chromatus."

Lucy sat in silence for a moment. "… Huh? Origin?"

Sergio nodded. "Yes. The Great Elder Spirit that created this world and every other."

Lucy frowned incredulously. "How do you plan on doing that…?"

"Simple. I have a pretty large fragment in my own."

"Wh – what is it…?"

Sergio then put a hand over his own pocketwatch before a black, amorphous mass seemed to rise out of his watch. After a moment he pulled a piece off which solidified and crystallized.

"Eek!"

Sergio raised an eyebrow. "What? It's just the essence of a being infinitely older than everyone. It's not going to bite."

"You don't see any problems with this!?"

"It kept me from dying because of my Chromatus, so no."

Lucy twitched an eyebrow and then sighed in frustration. "Okay, so what do I have to do?"

Sergio handed her watch back to her. "Pour mana into your watch."

Lucy nodded and began flowing energy into her watch before she was enveloped in light. When it died down, her arms, from the shoulders down, were covered in thick armor that was purple on the outside edge, black on the inward edge, with gold lines flowing down it toward her hands. "Wh – what the…!?"

"That's the First Stage Chromatus," Sergio explained.

Lucy frowned slightly as she looked at it. "It looks… kinda creepy."

"It's our family's power." Sergio then held up the black crystal and said, "Now hold still so I can jam this up your pussy."

"WHAT!?" shouted in shocked disbelief before Sergio shoved it down her agape mouth and into her throat. She gagged and coughed before swallowing it and then, sticking her tongue out in disgust, asked, "Wht you dw thwt?"

"You needed to swallow it and I knew you wouldn't do that willingly. So I took an alternative method."

"Athwhle," Lucy grumbled.

Sergio then poked her bottom before caressing it lightly. "No, that'd be this. Hmm… it's nice and big."

Lucy blushed before attempting to slap him, only for him to grab her hand.

Sergio snickered in amusement and remarked, "Come now, no need to be violent, Cousin." He then rubbed her hand gently. "I'm just admiring the body I saved." He then glanced down at her chest in thought. "And apparently upgraded."

Lucy blinked and looked down before realizing that her blouse had unbuttoned slightly due to her bust increasing in size significantly, causing her face to turn bright red. "Wh – what the hell?!"

"This is most definitely a happy accident," Sergio remarked in thought as Lucy stepped back and covered her chest with her arms.

"All it means is I've got more weight on my chest!" she argued.

"And more carrying capacity for milk for your future daughter. And your hips are wider as well."

She looked down at her hips and pouted in annoyance. "Ooohhh… now I just look fatter."

"No," Sergio argued as he wrapped an arm around her waist, "sexier," he said in a husky voice.

Her face then turned bright red before she flinched. "Hey! Get your hand out of my skirt!"

Sergio gently rubbed his hand on her bottom. "Oh? But the feel of your skin is so smooth."

Lucy groaned heavily and glanced away, still blushing. "Fine… but just this once."

As Sergio continued stroking her behind, he added, "You know you love it, cousin."

Her blush intensifying, Lucy objected, "D – don't call me that…"

"Oh? Why is that?" Sergio asked as he traced a finger up her back.

The blonde shivered from the touch and answered shakily, "B – because it makes this all seem wrong…"

Leaning in close, he said quietly, "But doesn't it feel so right, cousin?"

She then pushed him away suddenly. "D – don't!" Her face turning a deeper red, she added, "I… I'm not ready to go that far yet…"

Sergio merely nodded with a smile. "I understand. When you're ready my door is always open. Now," he then looked to the door to Makarov's office, which had small amounts of frost seeping in, "be a badass and blow down that Ice Wall Ur made."

Lucy turned to him in disbelief. "Huh? With what?"

"That Chromatus of course. Give your new power and upgraded body a little test run. Punch the wall as hard as you can." After sniffing the air, he added, "I think Natsu is on the other side though."

Lucy blinked in thought and then grinned darkly.

Outside Makarov's office, Gray sighed in annoyance. "Natsu, get away from there."

"Come on," the pink-haired teen argued. "I wanna know what they're –"

Natsu's remark was interrupted as the door suddenly exploded, sending him flying.

"So cool!" Lucy exclaimed.

Mirajane looked at the blonde in disbelief. "Is that… Lucy…?"

Lucy smiled and flexed one of her armor-clad arms. "Pretty cool, huh?"

Sergio raised an eyebrow in confusion. "But just a moment ago you said it was –"

Sergio was interrupted as Lucy suddenly punched him in the abdomen hard enough to buckle him. "I. Said. It. Was. Cool."

Sergio groaned quietly. "R – right…"

Elfman then suddenly shouted, "Now she's a real man!"

Lucy twitched an eyebrow and then swung her fist at Elfman, sending him crashing into the opposite wall. "I'm a woman!"

Sergio snickered lightly. "That swing really does good to show off your new butt."

Lucy then squealed in embarrassment and pulled down on her skirt before spinning and uppercutting him with a punch, sending him flying into the sky. "Sh – shut it, perv!"

Sergio blinked as he was sent skyward. "Nice upgrade!"

Lucy blinked and then looked down, seeing her was now covered in more of the purple and black armor, covering her chest, abdomen, and back tightly. "Eh…?"

Juvia blinked in thought at the very skintight armor. "And Juvia thought Erza's armor was slutty."

Erza winced and paled. "S – slutty?!"

"Eek!" Lucy shrieked.

Gray looked at Lucy with a small amount of blood dripping from his nose. "Wh – whoa…"

"Don't look!" she shouted before thrusting a hand forward, causing a massive, segmented, bladed whip to emerge from the wrist of her armor and surge forward, striking Gray on the forehead.

With blood now dripping from his forehead, Gray stood up and began to shout, "What was that f –?!" but was interrupted as Sergio fell back down from the sky and landed on the ice-user.

Lucy looked down at the black and purple, bladed whip in thought. "What… is this thing…?"

Sergio stood up and dusted his coat off before explaining, "That, my dear Lu, is your Chromatus Weapon."

"Chromatus Weapon? It looks… kinda creepy."

"This coming from the hotty that loves her co –"

"Zip it!" she retorted obstinately as she sent her whip forward, hitting his head strongly.

Sergio groaned and stretched his neck in discomfort. "Well that'll hurt for a bit. Okay, now you need to deactivate it."

"How?"

"Just try to pull the mana away from your watch. It should go away after that."

Lucy sighed and did as ordered. However, she paled when she realized that the disappearance of her armor did not coincide with the reappearance of her blouse. "Kya!" she shrieked once more as she covered herself in embarrassment.

"Definitely Grade-A," Sergio remarked.

Cana raised an eyebrow in amusement. "Oh we are having fun tonight."

After Sergio fixed the unintended holes in the ceiling and Lucy left for some personal maintenance, he sat at the guild's bar, sighing in boredom. He then saw Sniper Wolf sitting next to him and smirked in thought. "Say, Wolf, where do you hail from? Ishgar or Arc Strada?"

Sniper Wolf raised an eyebrow but turned to him and answered simply, "Arc Strada."

Sergio raised an intrigued eyebrow and pressed on. "Really? Interesting. Got a Starbrand?"

Sniper Wolf proceeded to lower the zipper on her jumpsuit, getting the attention of the guild's male members, before pointing to a star-shaped mark on the left side of her abdomen. "It never hatched though."

The others of the guild looked at the mark in great curiosity.

"What is that?" Levy asked.

Sergio explained, "A Starbrand. Something that those on Arc Strada have a chance of getting. As well as a wyrm later on."

"A – a worm!?"

Sergio shook his head. "No. A wyrm. They are a lesser species of dragon. There are three basic species of wyrm." He threw down a lacrima that began projecting images into the air. The first was of a long reptilian creature with a long neck, a long tail with a wide section at the end of its tail and four flippers instead of arms or legs. "Hydra. The aquatic Wyrm, they utilize mainly water magic." The second was a bipedal reptile with a long, spiked tail, dual-jointed knees, and wings instead of arms. "Strada. They're a sister-species to Wyverns, but significantly weaker and primarily utilize wind magic." The last was a large, bulky, quadrupedal reptile with short horns on the back of its head and a wild mane. "Earthia. They are the fastest breed of Wyrm on land and utilize primarily earth magic. Most of the Wyrms are about the same size as average horses, some a little bigger. And if a Wyrm gains enough power, there's a chance they can turn into a Maestro." At that moment, an image of a massive, bipedal reptile with thick, armored scales, two thick arms, two strong legs, a long armored tail, two large horns on the back of its head, a rather short and slumped neck, and two immense wings on its back appeared, the beast towering over four meters.

The others gasped at the creature's size.

"Yeah. Brutal, powerful, and rare. They're essentially miniature dragons."

"So that's why Sylvia was so proud," Sniper Wolf mumbled quietly.

Sergio raised an eyebrow at Sniper Wolf's remark but continued speaking. "They can also be a bit difficult to control. Though the stronger the wyrm the stronger his or her rider will become."

Sniper Wolf raised an eyebrow in confusion and interjected, "I heard all wyrms are genderless."

Sergio huffed in annoyance. "Who told you that load of shit?"

"I just heard it."

"Just because there hasn't been a natural born wyrm since the defeat of the black dragon Grima doesn't mean they're genderless."

"Grima?" Cana asked.

Sergio swiped a hand, causing an image of a massive, black, serpentine reptile with large horns on the sides of its head and feathered wings appeared.

"Euch, creepy," Bisca muttered.

"He'd also use you and all the other girls as incubators."

Levy turned slightly blue. "I don't think that was necessary…"

"Just informing you in case you ever run into him. Though, I haven't been to Arc Strada in a while. One time I healed a sickly young girl there. Another was when I got my Starbrand."

Sniper Wolf narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

"You have one of those creepy tattoos too?" Elie asked.

Sergio smiled in amusement. "Not so much a tattoo. More like," he paused as he rolled up his right sleeve, "an entire arm." A series of large symbols on his arm then lit up brightly.

Sniper Wolf's eyes then widened in surprise. 'But… that would mean he's…!'

"It certainly hurt when it exploded though."

Elie tilted her head in confusion. "Did you fire too early?"

Bisca laughed weakly. "I don't think that's what he's talking about…"

Sergio then continued, "I originally had a different Starbrand but gave it to this little girl. For some reason that made my arm blow up. She panicked at the sight."

"To be honest, any normal person would," Ur interjected.

Sergio shrugged. "I guess. Then I tried –"

However, Ur put a hand over his mouth before he could continue speaking. "That's enough details."

Sergio pouted lightly.

Sniper Wolf narrowed her eyes in thought before walking out of the guild just as Lucy walked in.

Lucy blinked curiously. "What's with her? She looked like she'd seen a ghost."

Sergio shrugged before pulling Ur's hand away. "Dunno. So you finally found a top that'll fit?"

Lucy huffed in annoyance. "Y – yeah…"

Sergio snickered in amusement.

Erza walked up to Sergio holding a job request in her hand. "I have found a job for us."

Sergio turned to her in thought. "Oh? Is it one where you have to eat a lot? Because you do need to for the baby."

"You need not be concerned with that."

"And why shouldn't I be?" he asked as he took the job request.

"It is my concern, you have enough to worry about."

Sergio frowned slightly. "It's our child."

Erza folded her arms in mild exasperation and sighed. "Let us just focus on the job at hand."

"Fine. Just do your best to be careful and eat a lot. I want our child to be healthy."

"What's the job about?" Lucy asked as she walked up to Sergio and Erza.

"It looks like someone thinks there's a haunting that needs dealt with."

Lucy flinched and trembled. "H – h – haunting… a – as in… ghosts…?"

Sergio nodded. "Yup. Why? Afraid of ghosts?"

Lucy stiffened and then laughed weakly. "Heheheh… of course not…"

"Well you don't need to be too worried. Considering how most Ghosts are I'd be the only one that needs to worry."

Lucy turned to him in confusion. "Huh?"

"Ghosts tend to possess men so they can absorb their mana. They possess women sometimes but it's extremely rare."

"Oh great… how much is the reward?"

Sergio handed her the job flier.

Lucy looked at it curiously and then gaped. "S – seventy-five thousand Jewel!?"

"Sounds cool!" Natsu exclaimed, suddenly standing next to the group, startling the blonde.

"No," Sergio rebutted bluntly.

"Aw, c'mon!"

"No."

"I wanna go!"

Sergio sighed in annoyance. "Fine, just don't get in the way."

Makarov then walked up to the others. "Why don't you take our newest member with you?"

"Sounds go – new member?" Sergio began before changing subjects.

Sergio then turned and saw Akula standing in the guildhall, her face lowered in embarrassment, and the symbol for Fairy Tail on her left side. "H – hey…" she greeted weakly.

Sergio nodded with a smile. "Yo. Glad to see you decided to join us. I'd say you should join us for this, no?"

Akula nodded in agreement.

As the group made their way to the job's origin, Lucy asked, "So where are we supposed to meet the client?"

"Apparently the haunting is in some dinky little town not too far from here," Sergio explained. "And by the sounds of it, the actual meeting place is some bar."

Lucy groaned in annoyance. "Oh great… and I'm the only one not old enough to drink."

"Erza can't either."

Akula raised an eyebrow in thought. "I thought the drinking age in this country was eighteen."

"So?" Sergio rebutted. "What does that have to do with Erza not being able to drink? She's expecting after all."

"Oh," Akula answered plainly as she put a hand over her abdomen. "Congratulations."

Sergio frowned as he looked at the black-haired woman. "When we get back, I'll take care of that."

Akula turned to him in surprise.

Sergio smiled and added, "So don't worry."

"We are getting close," Erza interjected.

As they walked into the small village, Lucy and the others looked around in delight. "Wow, this place has a lot of good shops."

"Yeah, it does," Sergio agreed mindlessly as he looked around before noticing Erza staring at a clothing shop nearby. After a moment he sighed with a smile. "Go on in, Erza."

The redhead immediately vanished into the shop.

"That was fast," Lucy remarked before turning and seeing a secondhand shop nearby.

Sergio waved a hand. "Go on, we have some time to kill already anyway."

With that, the blonde rushed into the shop.

Natsu and Happy also then rushed into a restaurant.

Sergio sighed and then turned to Akula. "Guess it's just you and me. So let's go get some waffles."

Akula blinked curiously. "Uh… okay."

Sergio and Akula made their way to a diner not far from where they separated from the others.

Akula looked over the diner's menu in surprise. "This is quite the menu."

Sergio nodded in agreement. "Sure is. Order whatever you like, it's on me. I have very deep pockets."

Akula frowned remorsefully. "That… that isn't necessary. You've done more than enough for me already."

"You don't want to enjoy yourself?"

Akula shook her head. "That isn't something you should have to worry about."

"And yet I do."

Akula frowned in confusion. "Why?"

"If I don't, who will?"

Akula stiffened in disbelief.

"Now go ahead and order." Sergio then smirked playfully. "Maybe the Shark Spleen Soup?"

Akula's posture slackened as she twitched an eyebrow in annoyance.

Sergio laughed lightly and waved a hand. "Sorry, sorry. Couldn't resist." After a moment of silent thought, he then asked, "So, if you don't mind, where are you from?"

"Across the sea," Akula answered plainly.

"This place have a name?" Sergio asked curiously.

"It is known as the Zephyrus Empire. Its capital is known simply as the Capital."

"That's a rather… odd name."

Akula narrowed her eyes in disgust. "It's a country that's rotten to the core."

"I see…" Sergio answered as he furrowed his brow in thought. "I'll have to go there and wipe it out one day."

Akula sighed in resentment. "I would suggest against it. It's so twisted I don't think even someone like you could withstand it. But if you do ever go there, there's someone you should find." She then showed him a pendant with a yellow feather on it.

Sergio put up a hand. "Nah, keep it. You should present it to your friend yourself."

At that moment, Erza, Lucy, Natsu, and Happy walked into the restaurant where the duo sat.

"Satisfied?" Sergio asked in amusement.

Erza nodded with a smile. "Quite."

"Good. Then let's go meet up with the client. The bar he wanted to meet in shouldn't be far from here."

Lucy twitched an eyebrow as they approached the bar. "Euch, it's so creepy."

"Bars normally are," Sergio added, "so try not to worry. Let's go."

Inside, Lucy groaned slightly in annoyance, inching towards Sergio as the patrons of the bar, all of whom were overly muscular for her tastes, and hairy, shot her perverted looks.

One glance from Sergio sent the looks away. He then saw the client, or rather, clients, for the mission, causing him to sigh in frustration.

Lucy blinked in curiosity. "Who…?"

They walked up to two figures sitting at the bar.

"Never expected to see you here, Julius," Sergio muttered to the first figure, a tall, light-skinned man with high cheekbones, grey eyes, and long, wavy brown hair tied in a ponytail, with several bangs framing the left side of his face, with a thin beard wearing a sakkat, a pink t-shirt, blue jeans, and simple brown shoes.

Next to the man sat a slim and youthful woman with long black hair that was pinned up, flat bangs framing the right side of her face, and blue eyes wearing round, frameless glasses, and a matching outfit to the man, thought visibly mortified by the fact.

The man turned to Sergio and smirked. "Aahh, Jude, how good to see y –"

The man's words were cut as Sergio suddenly kicked him in the face.

"C – Captain!" the woman shouted in disbelief.

"What are you doing here, Julius?" Sergio asked as the man sat up, rubbing his face in discomfort.

"What do you think you're doing!?" the woman exclaimed.

The man stood up and put a hand on her shoulder. "Now, now, Nanao, it's rude to shout at our friendly contractors."

Nanao blinked in thought. "Wait…" she then turned to Sergio's group. "These are the people you were waiting for…?"

The man smiled. "Yes." He turned and bowed. "The name's Shunsui Kyoraku." He looked at Erza and smiled. "Nice to meet you, Miss…"

Sergio put up a hand. "Taken."

"Aaww," Shunsui pouted. "Well, since we've met up, why don't we find a private room to speak in?"

"I assume you have one?"

Shunsui shrugged. "What, do you think Old Man Yamamoto actually gives me currency for this Realm?"

Sergio twitched an eyebrow. "You are going to pay us, right?"

Shunsui stiffened. "O – of course…"

Later, in a private room away from the main bar area, the group sat around a large round table.

"Will anyone be putting on a show?" Shunsui asked.

"Not with your eyes still in your head," Sergio rebutted bluntly.

Lucy turned to Erza worriedly. "Is it really okay for him to be so mean to the client?"

Erza shrugged. "They seem to know each other. So I believe it will be fine."

"If you say so…"

"Now, why did you go to all this trouble, Julius?" Sergio asked.

Shunsui sighed heavily. "We have a bit of a… problem."

Sergio narrowed his eyes. "A Hollow?"

Shunsui nodded. "Yes."

Lucy blinked. "What's a Hollow?"

Sergio glanced at her. "When a person dies, the mana that was in their body remains on this earth, imprinted with their thoughts and memories. Normally, the mana will eventually dissipate harmlessly. However, if that person had strong regrets or unfinished business, they will remain attached to this world. Eventually, the natural energy, chi, in the world around them mutates their soul into a monster. A beast that lives off of mana. These beasts find the mana from souls to be the most appetizing. And they don't care whether that soul is currently inside of a body or not."

Natsu and Lucy gulped in fear.

"That's what a Hollow is. Our clients here are Soul Reapers. They're from a… far away place. It's their duty to help leftover souls pass on and to slay Hollows. However, I'm guessing you're having trouble with this one."

Shunsui laughed weakly. "A little…"

"The Hollow itself isn't that powerful. Under normal circumstances, killing it would be quite simple," Nanao explained.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sergio asked.

"It's a slippery little bastard," Shunsui added. "It's made almost entirely out of sand. Pretty much any attacks just glide through it harmlessly. I managed to injure it in just the right moment, but then it just regenerated before it sort of collapsed into the ground and vanished. It appears at random out of nowhere, evades damage, eats, and then dissipates again and vanishes again. So as you can see, killing the Hollow isn't necessarily the issue, it's tracking it."

Sergio folded his arms in thought. "I see. So it's body is made of sand, and it's able to dissolve this sand into the surrounding rock to hide. If its body reacts at all like Shukaku, then I should be able to take it down. Of course, it's not going to be a simple task. The first thing we'll need to do is lure it to a place without any soil."

"We tried that already," Nanao explained. "It just dissipates its body into dust."

Sergio put a hand to his chin in thought. "Hhmm… okay, I'm going to need steel, and a lot of it, some water, and Nanao's panties."

Nanao's face instantly turned bright red. "Wh – what!?"

Shunsui sighed and waved a hand in amusement. "He's just joking."

Nanao immediately slumped her shoulders in dismay.

Sergio snickered. "Alright, let's go then."

Nanao then put up a hand to the others. "One moment. How are you going to fight a Hollow without a Zanpakuto?"

"Who said I don't have one?" At that moment, a plain looking katana with a black scabbard, a beige handle wrapped in light blue cloth with a white cap, and a white handguard in the shape of a toothed circle appeared in a flash of light.

Nanao looked at him in surprise. "How do you…?"

Sergio merely smirked as the sword vanished. "I was bored. There's a lot of things you can accomplish if you meditate for fifty years."

Shunsui sighed before snickering. "So, is our band of merry men, and women, ready to go?"

Erza glanced at Sergio.

"I'm ready to go if you are," Sergio stated.

"Then we are," Erza added.

Nanao, now clad in a white shitagi, a black kosode, a black hakama, a white belt, white socks, beige sandals, a katana sheathed at her left side, and a small arm band on her left arm with a symbol on it, raised an eyebrow as she looked at the pile of steel chunks nearby as the group stood in a field. "Is there a reason for all of this?"

Sergio turned to her with a smirk. "Hollows like mana, right? Well with four mages, two Soul Reapers, and a demon gathered in one spot, it'll be irresistible."

"What about the steel?"

Sergio grinned playfully. "Just wait and see my bespectacled beauty."

"H – huh?"

Shunsui, now clad in a similar uniform to Nanao with a white haori and a pink, flower-patterned kimono, looked around. "You really think this thing's going to fall for such an obvious trap?"

"We don't necessarily need that Hollow to appear," Sergio explained.

Shunsui raised an eyebrow and then shrugged. "I'm just going to assume you have a plan in mind."

"Naturally."

The air then grew still as a loud howl shook the air.

Lucy stiffened immediately. "Wh – what was that…?"

Natsu blinked curiously. "What was what?"

"You didn't hear that!?"

Sergio smirked as the katana appeared in his grip once more. "That was a Hollow."

At that moment, a large, dark brown, wolf-like creature with red markings on its back and multiple, thin tails with a long, canine skull, with a second upper jaw in place of a lower jaw, appeared in the area.

"Eek!" Lucy shrieked.

"We got a big one," Shunsui remarked as he grabbed at two swords at his waist.

Sergio raised a hand. "We don't want to kill it."

"Huh?"

The creature howled before charging forward.

"It's coming!" Akula shouted.

"Just stay calm and don't move too much," Sergio ordered.

The others looked at him curiously but did so, if apprehensively, as the beast approached.

"It's still coming…" Lucy muttered.

"Just a few seconds longer," Sergio added as he raised his hands before immediately turning around, clapping his hands together, and placing them on the pile of steel. Blue energy sparked from his hands as the steel shifted and warped before lashing out in long tendrils.

The beast dodged the first two tendrils.

Sergio snickered in amusement. "Not bad, but try this many!" Many more tendrils lashed out, before ensnaring the beast's legs, tails, and mouth, knocking it to the ground.

"Okay, we captured it, now what?" Shunsui asked.

Sergio leapt up onto the beast's head before his eyes turned red. "Alright big guy, I've got a few questions for you."

The beast merely growled angrily.

"I could just kill you now, or you can live a little longer and help me."

The beast stayed silent for a moment before speaking. "What do you want, demon?"

"It spoke!?" Lucy exclaimed.

"Of course I did, mortal."

Sergio punched it on the top of the head. "Pay attention!"

"Tch."

"There's a big one o' you guys running around made of sand."

The beast narrowed its eyes in thought.

Sergio grinned. "So you know who it is."

"Not a clue," the monster answered instantly.

Sergio stabbed his katana into the back of its neck, causing it to howl in pain.

"Damn demon! Alright, fine. It's Runuganga. His name is Runuganga."

"Good boy," Sergio answered patronizingly.

Nanao twitched an eyebrow. "This man acting so casual to such a large Hollow irritates me."

Shunsui shrugged. "That's Jude for you. Well, at least now anyway."

Sergio then sat on the Hollow's head. "Now, since I know that you know that Hollow. You're going to help me draw him out."

"And what on earth do you need my help for?" the beast asked in confused annoyance.

"Simple, I'm going to use you as bait."

"Bait? For another Hollow? Are you stupid? That'll never work you fool!" the Hollow retorted with a cackle.

"Not in your present form, no," Sergio answered as he pulled a small black gem from his pocket.

Lucy raised an eyebrow. "What's that thing?"

"A Soul Gem, most likely," Shunsui answered.

"I thought those were outlawed," Akula added.

"Heh, you think he's going to follow the law?"

"… Good point."

Sergio then jammed the gem into the back of the Hollow's neck, causing it to howl in pain before lighting up and getting sucked into the gem. Sergio then jumped down and caught the gem.

"Okay, what now?" Erza asked.

Sergio looked around. "We'll have to act fast. I'm going to break off a piece of this gem. When that happens, the mana sealed inside will start pouring out."

"Why not use Hollow Bait?" Shunsui asked.

"A Soul Gem is ten times more potent."

Nanao widened her eyes. "You can't be serious! Do you realize how many Hollows you'll attract!?"

"Not many," Sergio replied.

"Huh?"

"This area of the world doesn't have many Hollows. Spirits usually consume the leftover mana before it can turn into a Hollow. And when Hollows do form, or arrive, they don't last long because of all the various creatures that feed on mana on this continent. Unless we've got strong Hollows like our canine friend, a rarity to be honest, they usually get killed pretty quickly. So everyone run and hide, and try to suppress your mana."

Sergio sat in a tree, still, as the black gem sat in the middle of the field, small glimmers of light releasing from it at a steady pace.

Nearby, Nanao sat crouched with Shunsui. "I highly doubt this will work."

"You'd be surprised, many of his craziest plans end up working pretty well. After all, if not for them, I'd be gone," Shunsui replied.

Nanao raised an eyebrow.

Shunsui waved a hand. "A story for another time."

"Something's coming," Nanao remarked.

In the field, a wind picked up before a mound of white sand began to form and twist before taking the shape of a large, vaguely humanoid creature with long arms, the forearms being significantly larger than the upper arms, a lower body concealed by a cloth made of sand as well, a head resembling a castle, with a white bone-like beard, and a large hole in its chest. The creature looked around curiously. "Hhmm… where is it…?" He then looked down and saw the Soul Gem. "Huh? What's this supposed to be?" Bending down to pick it up, he looked at the object curiously.

However, suddenly, the ground around the beast began to spark with blue energy before a massive box made of steel formed from the ground and surrounded him.

Shunsui stepped from the trees and snickered. "Not bad. But how do we get to him?"

Sergio pointed to his eyes and explained, "You just leave that to me."

"Be careful," Nanao warned. "Any damage you do to that Hollow will almost instantly be healed."

Sergio snickered lightly. "No need to worry about me, bespectacled beauty."

Nanao frowned slightly as he walked towards the box and then walked through it.

"H – how'd he do that…?" Lucy asked in surprise.

"There are lots of things about him that would be quite… unexpected to the more normal of your kind," Shunsui commented.

Inside the box, the white creature looked down at Sergio with mild annoyance. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Simple," Sergio rebutted, "you've been causing trouble. And I'm going to stop you."

"Tch, you think you can stop me, demon? You know no what you offend."

"Then apprise me."

"I am Runuganga, the Guardian of the White Sands. You cannot defeat me."

"If you're a guardian, then why have you left your post?"

"None of your concern," the Hollow retorted before some of the sand on its body lashed out at Sergio.

Sergio waved a hand, causing blue flames to lash out at the sand, turning it to glass in a moment.

"Impressive. Let's see how you handle this," Runuganga muttered before swinging at Sergio.

Sergio jumped up and landed on Runuganga's arm. However, he flinched when his legs started sinking into the beast's arm.

Runuganga chuckled in amusement. "My body is made of sand, fool. Now you will be consumed by it."

Sergio smirked as he grabbed the hilt of his blade. "Just what I wanted."

"What…?"

Sergio immediately pulled the blade with a swift motion, severing Runuganga's arm.

Runuganga merely chortled as the sand of his arm extended out and reformed his arm. "You cannot win."

Sergio merely smirked. "That's all I needed to know."

"Huh?"

"Now I know the speed of your regeneration. Shatter the world, Toketsuhara!"

Outside the box, Erza and the others sat, watching quietly.

"What's going on in there?" Lucy asked apprehensively.

"It's been almost ten minutes," Nanao interjected before the box sparked with blue energy and began to recede.

Shunsui whistled and the others gaped as they saw Sergio standing calmly with Runuganga encased in ice.

"You froze the overgrown bastard, eh?" Shunsui asked as he and the others walked out towards Sergio.

"No, I burned him," Sergio answered bluntly.

"Was that… supposed to be a joke?" Lucy asked.

"The mission was to eliminate the Hollow, not capture it," Nanao chided.

"I had to stop it from dispersing its body first. Even if I blew it up, unless I froze it, it would just escape. But now…" Sergio trailed off as he raised a hand before a sphere of red energy appeared which immediately fired at the frozen Hollow and exploded violently, destroying it completely.

Shunsui sighed heavily. "Great… I was useless, again. You know, why does this keep happening?"

"Maybe because you just suck. But that's this Hollow dealt with. How about that pay?"

Shunsui nodded before Nanao walked up to Sergio and handed him an envelope.

"I don't know if this is necessarily the currency of this nation, but if not I'm sure you can exchange it," Nanao explained.

Sergio looked at the amount in thought and then nodded. "Sounds good. This'll do."

"Then I suppose I'll bid you farewell," Shunsui added with a wave.

"One sec," Sergio interjected, causing Shunsui to turn to him in thought. "How's Ludger doing?"

Shunsui sighed heavily. "He's recovered somewhat but he's still mostly bedridden. Well, if you don't mind…" Shunsui waved as he and Nanao vanished.

"Yeesh, who were those weirdos?" Lucy asked in mild annoyance.

"An old friend and his sexy assistant," Sergio explained.

"Pervert."

"And proud of it. C'mon, let's head back to the guild. This job was boring."

As the group made their way back to the guild, Sergio noticed Loke walking towards them.

"Yo!" Loke greeted happily.

"What do you want Alvin?" Sergio asked.

"Huh? Who's Alv –?" Loke began before seeing Lucy, paling, and screaming before running away frantically.

Sergio snickered in amusement. "Yeah… that's always amusing… but it's starting to get a little annoying."

"Geez Lucy, what'd you do to Loke?" Natsu asked.

"Me!?" Lucy exclaimed in disbelief. "I've never said two words to the guy!"

Sergio waved a hand. "Dont worry about it. Alvin's always been a bit squirrely."

"Who's Alvin?" Natsu asked.

Sergio smacked the pink-haired teen on the back of the head. "Just shut up and walk."

Lucy then raised a hand and interjected, "Actually, we finished this job pretty fast, don't you think? There's a spa town near here called Balsam Village with a resort called Hosenka I've always wanted to visit."

Sergio shrugged. "If you want to go we can. Erza needs to be careful though."

"Yippee!"

Soon enough, the group arrived in Balsam Village, a small town with many spas and lounges, along with a river flowing through the middle.

"Wow," Erza remarked as they walked through the village's front gate.

"It certainly is a flashy place," Lucy noted.

Akula folded her arms uncomfortably.

Sergio put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, that kind of thing is illegal here, so there's nothing like that happening."

Akula blinked and then smiled with a nod. "Thank you, it just brings back uncomfortable memories."

"Well we can wash them away in the spa!" Lucy cheered as she grabbed the scantily clad woman's wrist and ran towards a nearby inn.

"Well they certainly seem excited," Erza added.

"Of course. Now, you should enjoy yourself too, just take it easy. We don't want you to do any damage to the child," Sergio warned.

Erza nodded in agreement.

Inside the inn, Natsu looked at the side-by-side doors in awe. "Alright! They've got real baths here!"

"Of course they do you fool," Sergio chided as he smacked Natsu on the back of the head again.

Lucy then pointed at Sergio and warned, "If you peep, I'll kill you until it sticks."

"As if you don't want it," Sergio rebutted with a smirk.

"I don't!"

Sergio sighed as he sat in the waters of the bath. 'That Hollow… it wasn't the real one was it…? And how did something like that even get into this world without me knowing? Is it… no, it couldn't be.' However, the brunette was brought from his thoughts when he heard perverted snickering. Turning to the side, he saw Jiraiya with his face pressed against the dividing wall. "Ji-ra-i-ya…"

The white-haired man flinched and paled. "Oh crap…"

Sergio waved a hand, causing the dividing wall to break and for Jiraiya to fall through, into the women's side, resulting in the patrons screaming before proceeding to beat on the hapless fool. "Serves you right."

Later, Sergio, Erza, Lucy, Akula, and Natsu sat in a large, eastern style room, all clad in blue kimonos.

Lucy sighed heavily. "That could have been better…"

"It also could've been worse," Sergio added.

Natsu grinned playfully before grabbing a pillow. "Hey! Let's have a pillow fight!" He then turned and threw the pillow directly at Erza. However, the pillow was engulfed in black flames and vaporized before Sergio slammed him into the floor headfirst.

"Don't even think about anything like that while she's pregnant you halfwit!" Sergio growled.

"Scary…" Lucy mumbled.

"Well he's certainly protective," Akula added.

Shortly later, Lucy sighed before standing up. "Hey, if you guys don't mind, I'm going to go out to get something to eat."

"Go ahead," Sergio retorted.

Lucy sighed heavily as she walked down one of the streets in the small town. "Geez… this is all so crazy…" She then pulled out her pocketwatch and narrowed her eyes as she looked at it. "And this thing…"

"Hey there baby, why you walkin' around alone?" a voice asked from behind the blonde.

Lucy immediately turned and saw two men behind her.

The first was a muscular man with short blonde hair held with a red bandana, a black shirt, green pants, and black shoes.

The second was a man with chin-length purple hair, brown eyes, an untucked, white, button-down shirt, maroon pants, and brown shoes whose head shook about wildly.

Lucy frowned in annoyance. "Oh great."

The second man asked, "Yeah, why don't you come have a drink with us?"

Lucy waved a hand. "Sorry, not interested."

The two men immediately stepped up and grabbed Lucy's arms.

"H – hey!"

"Come on," the first man insisted, "it'll be fun."

"L – let go of me!" she demanded before widening her eyes. 'W – wait… I can't move…! Wh – what's going on?!'

"Hey," Loke suddenly called out as he walked up to the group, "let the young lady go."

"Huh?" the second man mumbled, his head still shaking wildly, "Who are you?"

"Just a concerned citizen, now back off. Or else," Loke threatened.

The second man snarled. "You just mind your own –!" however his threat was interrupted as a boot hit him from the back of the head, knocking him down.

"What the he –?!" the first shouted in shock as he heard a clap before a hand grabbed him by the face. "Th – the he –?!" he shouted before the back of his head exploded violently.

"One down," Sergio said calmly as he threw the man's corpse aside. He then grabbed the second man by the collar and moved his shirt aside, seeing an emblem on his chest resembling a wolf's head with a sword behind it. "Figures." He then raised his foot and slammed it down on the man's head, crushing it bloodily. He then turned to Lucy and tapped her forehead. "Release!"

She stumbled forward, but he caught her from falling.

"You alright?"

"Y – yeah…" she answered shakily. "Who were those guys?"

"Slave gatherers," Sergio answered with disdain.

Lucy's eyes widened as she grabbed his coat tightly and shrieked. "S – slave gatherers!?"

Sergio nodded. "Yes. They seek out and kidnap women to be broken into obedient sex slaves. It's ok. These two won't bother anyone anymore."

Lucy nodded but then realized how close she was to Sergio and turned bright red before stepping back. "W – well, thanks for saving me… again. And you too, Loke."

Loke saluted comically with a smirk. "Don't mention it. It's what dashing heroes do."

"Hey, I was just about to get something to eat, you guys want to join me?" She then took a step towards Loke.

Loke flinched and stepped back timidly. "N – no… that's okay…"

Sergio waved a hand dismissively. "Leave him be, Lu. Al isn't much of a man anymore."

Loke scowled, though slightly red from the insult, and retorted, "Sh – shut up! That's not the reason and you know it, Jude!"

Lucy furrowed her brow in consternation. "You know, you're always acting weird around me, do you dislike me or something, Loke?"

Loke stiffened. "U – uh… well, not you specifically…"

"He's terrified of someone else," Sergio explained.

"Huh?"

Sergio folded his arms and sighed. "Al, how 'bout you stop bullshitting and just come out with it? If you don't I will. And make it as embarrassing as possible."

Loke clenched a fist and then sighed. "Alright, alright. You're a real pain in the ass, you know that?"

Lucy blinked in thought. "Out with what?" She then gasped dramatically. "Are you gay?"

"HELL NO!" Loke argued vehemently.

Sergio, however, bent over as he was laughing hysterically. "Oh my god! She thinks your GAY! HAHAHAHAH!"

Loke snarled and condensed a ball of light in his hand before shooting it at Sergio, whom gulped it down easily.

"What the…!?" Lucy exclaimed in disbelief.

Loke groaned in frustration. "Let's talk somewhere more private."

The trio stood in a small park on the edge of Balsam Village.

"Okay, so what's all this about?" Lucy asked as Loke leaned against a tree while Sergio sat on a nearby bench.

Not giving Loke a chance to answer, Sergio answered, "Al here is a former Zodiac."

Lucy remained silent in disbelief for a moment. "… HHHUUUHHH!?"

"Yeah. Show everyone you're a screamer."

"Shut up! You're saying he's a Zodiac!? How!? Why!? What!?"

"He was turned into one of the Zodiac Celestial Spirits some four hundred years ago. Before that he was an idiot named Alvin and now he's an idiot named Leo."

"HE'S LEO!?" Lucy shrieked in disbelief.

Sergio nodded. "Yep. But about three years ago he did something extremely stupid and his time's almost up."

Lucy blinked in thought. "What?"

"His time is almost up," Sergio reiterated.

Lucy's eyes widened. "W – wait, you can't mean he…"

Sergio merely nodded.

"What?! Why!?"

"Like I said, he did something extremely stupid."

"Like what!?"

"You'll see," Sergio added before turning to Loke, as did Lucy.

Loke sighed heavily before turning to Lucy. "Have you ever heard of Karen Lilica?"

"Who?" Lucy asked in confusion.

"A Celestial Spirit Mage from Blue Pegasus.

"And a bit of a slut who had a bad habit of abusing her Spirits," Sergio added.

"She was the Keyholder of several Spirits, myself included. She was cruel to all of her Spirits, using us more as tools than anything."

"It got bad enough that I felt I had to send an Agent after her," Sergio explained with a sigh.

"Agent?" Lucy asked with trepidation.

"A member of Dammerung."

Loke clenched his fists. "Because of me, Karen… she died."

Lucy's eyes widened in shock.

"Right. And he was removed from his post because he didn't do anything to stop Karen from abusing his fellow Spirits," Sergio explained.

"What?" Lucy asked with confusion. "Shouldn't you have returned to the Spirit Realm after she died?"

Loke sighed heavily. "Under normal circumstances, yes. But because of my failure, I was banished from the Spirit Realm. And the mana I've had for that period of time is just about empty."

"Y – you can't be serious!"

"We are," Sergio replied simply.

"That's too far!" Lucy argued.

"Oh?"

"You're going to kill him because of that!?"

"He felt it was his place to simply stand by and let his fellow Spirits be beaten and mistreated by their Master. As Leo, it's his job to protect them, and he failed miserably."

"That's stupid!"

Loke sighed and put up a hand with a weak smile. "Come on, Lucy, it was my fault."

"But it's not right!"

"It's the decision that was made by Maxwell," Sergio chided. "Why, do you think you can do anything about it?"

Lucy widened her eyes before tensing a fist over her chest. "I… I… I'll become Loke's new Keyholder!"

Sergio shook his head. "That's a decision you can make on your own. If you want to do that, then you'll need to talk to Maxwell herself."

"Then take me to her!" Lucy argued adamantly.

Sergio sat silently, staring directly into her eyes. After a moment he smirked and stood up. "So be it." After a moment, a long blue katana appeared in his grip which he swung through the air, cutting a hole in the air which widened into a large circular portal.

Lucy looked at the portal apprehensively. "Wh – what's that…?"

"It's a portal to the Spirit Realm, Hel. You still want to go?"

Lucy stood silently for a moment before tightening her fist and nodding. "Yes. I do."

Sergio waved her ahead.

The three walked out of the other side of the portal and found themselves on a small round planet, an endless sea of stars surrounding them with countless other planets of varying size and shape dotting the sky.

Sergio sighed in relief before looking around with a smile. "Ah, the Spirit Realm. I have not been here for a very long time."

Lucy curled on herself slightly in trepidation. "Why does it feel so creepy?"

"It's not a place meant for humans. Humans have this innate sense to know when they're in a place that they don't belong in."

"I see…" Lucy answered incredulously. "Now what? This place is huge."

"Simple. Knowing my wife she's probably watching the young Spirits play."

"Ah… wait, wife?"

Sergio nodded before turning to her. "Yeah. What, you thought Milla and I weren't married?"

"It's not normal for someone to be married to the Lord of Spirits!" Lucy contended.

"We've been married for over 400 years."

Lucy gaped in shock.

Loke sighed. "If you gawk at every surprising thing about him, we'll be here all day. I don't exactly have that kind of time."

"Come on. Milla should be nearby," Sergio explained.

And that cuts this chapter to a close. Hopefully you all enjoyed it. If you did, do not forget to let me know with a review. If you were unsure or confused about anything, post a review with your concerns and I will do what I can to address them. If you did not enjoy it, you can post a review if you must but I would suggest going and doing something you actually enjoy instead. With all that out of the way, until the next chapter, buh-bye!