"You will be coming with me."
Lucy's brown orbs became saucers once Akuzo quickly began closing the space between himself and the group. Immediately, though, Natsu jumped in front of the blonde. "Lucy isn't going anywhere but home with me!" he growled, and lit his clenched fists on fire. He wound back his elbow, ready to make contact with the man's face. Akuzo was only feet away from Natsu when he smirked. "Fire Drag-"
Before Natsu could even attempt to land his blow, the malign man disappeared. "What the?!" Gray exclaimed, narrowing his eyes, scanning the area. Natsu whipped his head around frantically, trying and not succeeding in finding the man in red.
The pinkette turned to look back at his girlfriend, and a floating exceed by her side. "Happy! Get Lucy out of here! Now!" he commanded, while still looking around his surroundings. Even though the man hasn't used his magic yet, Natsu could sense how powerfully overwhelming it was; he didn't want to risk him capturing Lucy.
If it meant keeping her safe, the pink-haired man would fight anyone or anything to do so.
It was dark now, and the only real light source was from the crescent moon in the sky, and Natsu's flames. "A-aye!" Happy picked up Lucy from the back of her tank top, and began flying towards the city. "W-wait..! Happy?!" the blonde protested, drawing a crease between her brows.
Before the blue cat could even get five feet away from the others, the man they were searching for reappeared out of thin air. He jumped up, grabbed Happy by his tail, and flung the duo to the ground. "Lucy! Happy!" Natsu yelled while running towards the duo, extinguishing his flames for the time being.
Happy felt a tightening sensation wash throughout his body, and he went stiff. "Nat..su.. I.. c-can't.. move.." he whined, painful tears pricking his eyes. Lucy was laying on her back after landing on her elbow, and was craddling it due to the pain that sent jolts of electricity throughout her arm. "A-ah..!" she whimpered, clenching her teeth.
"Don't let Akuzo touch you!" Erza yelled while running after Natsu, Gray following shortly behind her. "He-he," Akuzo cackled, "One down, four more to go!"
The man appeared next to Lucy's ear and whispered, "I'm going to have fun.. playing with you." Her irises were shaking, and she let out a hesitant breath. Lucy felt chills run down her spine, and Akuzo put his hand on her hurt elbow. This made the female yelp, and she felt her muscles twitch for a split second then go stiff. "I'll only paralyze you one limb at a time. How does that sound?" he asked and smiled down at her once he stood up.
"Get away from her!" Natsu yelled as he approached Akuzo speedily. "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" he chanted, and his fist connected with the dark-haired man's cheek, the impact sending him skidding across the grass. Natsu dropped down to his knees to examine the blonde. "Lucy, are you alright?! What did he do to you?!" She struggled to get up, and Natsu helped her sit upright. "I-It hurts..!" she said, furrowing her brows. Her arm hung limply at her side, but it hurt to move it, and she began to panic. "Natsu! I-I can't move my arm!" He frowned deeply, and looked past Lucy to see Happy laying on the grass. The cat's eyes were closed, his face contorted in discomfort. "That bastard.."
Akuzo recovered from his blow, stood up, and started laughing, clutching his side. Erza was standing by Lucy's side, and Gray was crouching down next to Happy. The pink-haired man's head shot to face Akuzo and he spat, "What's so funny, huh?!" The laughter disappeared, but then reappeared next to Gray. "Hey-!" He sent a kick to Gray's face, which caused him to fly a few feet. "I'm laughing because that punch kind of hurt! Ha, ha! It's been a while since I've actually felt this good!"
Erza narrowed her eyes and turned to face the man. After helping Lucy stand, Natsu charged forward, relighting his fists. "Fire Dragon's Flame Elbow!" The attack almost made contact with Akuzo's stomach, but he jumped up into the air and cast his own spell. "Manipulate Thee, Adjust! Pierce!" Bringing down his hands, Akuzo landed them on Natsu's shoulders. The pinkette cried out as he felt sharp pain in both of his deltoids. The mage's impact sent him face-first into the grass, and his flames distinguished. "Natsu, you idiot!" Erza said while sprinting forwards. "Requip! Flight Armor!" Akuzo saw the redhead coming, and began jumping back to gain space.
Now, the red-haired woman was sprinting ten times faster than before, which startled her target. But, he smiled nonetheless. "Requip mage! Dragon slayer! Yes, yes! Oh this will be fun for sure." Akuzo readied himself in a fighting stance, and his wicked grin didn't fade. Titania was now a few feet in front of him, and she narrowed her eyes, concentrating, while she attacked. "Sonic Claw!" Erza was slicing Akuzo from every direction, but he didn't seemed in the least bit fazed. He just closed his eyes, smiling larger, and accepted what she dished out.
Erza jumped two steps back and her features became bewildered. That attack.. It should have taken him down in no time! There were rips in his clothes, and blood seeped through the gashes in his skin, but.. his reaction was the complete opposite of what she expected.
Akuzo opened his eyes and started looking at himself, though, his silver eyes narrowed also. His smile faded into a deep frown as he began trembling with rage. "My clothes.." he whispered. "My fucking clothes!" he then yelled, and his eyes flashed a deep red, then turn turned back to silver. "W-what?!" Erza's mouth hung open slightly. He threw off his bloody cape, and his eyes looked back to Natsu. Akuzo's muscle shirt was completely ripped, and the bright moonlight accented his partially exposed, toned, stomach.
But, during all of this, Lucy couldn't stop trembling herself. Why... why? It was like her feet didn't want to cooperate. She needed to help, to contribute in this battle.. but.. This man, Akuzo, had her petrified in fear. Why, why?!
Natsu was just picking himself up at this point. His shoulders felt as if razor blades have been placed between his muscles, and he cringed. "Ha, pink-haired boy! It hurts, doesn't it?" Natsu snarled and stood up. He looked back at Lucy, then to Gray, who was standing beside her. "C'mon, Gray!" Gray nodded his head, and began sprining towards Akuzo.
"Ice-Make: Lance!" The raven-haired man slammed his fist into his palm, and ice shards began shooting towards his target. Akuzo clapped his hands with glee, but disappeared before the ice impaled him. "Where'd he go?!" Gray questioned, looking around. "Gray! Behind you!" Erza warned, running towards him with a frantic look on her face. "Behind you, yes! Crafty moves, also!" The naturally shirtless male whipped his head around, just to meet a devious gaze. "Pay attention!" Akuzo pressed his index and pinky fingers together and thumped them into Gray's spine while saying, "Manipulate Thee, Adjust! Spasticity!"
Directly upon contact, Gray felt the intense tightening of his muscles all over his body―a few also began twitching uncontrollably. "A-ah! Wh-what the..!" Gray said through clenched teeth. His knees buckled, and he fell forwards onto the grass, landing roughly. "Gray!" the scarlet-haired woman shouted. "What are you doing!" Erza commanded, while kicking the distracted brown-haired male in the stomach, sending him flying backwards numerous feet.
"I'm just trying to collect what you involuntarily brought to me!" Akuzo answered, once he recovered from the blow. He turned his head to look at Lucy. She flinched under his silver-eyed gaze, and he winked.
Natsu was now standing besides Gray, frowning at his friend's obvious pain. "M..my muscles.. c-can't move.." he said breathlessly. Natsu tch-ed. "You aren't taking her!" the pinkette shouted. Akuzo stood up, and he sighed, disappearing, again. "No!" Natsu yelled, charging towards Lucy.
The man reappeared behind the blonde, who seemed to be deep in a completely different world. "Watch out!" someone yelled, and she snapped back into reality and her eyes widened. Akuzo was wrapping his arms around her, not yet touching her skin. "Fire Dragon's Roar!" Lucy ducked out of his reach and Natsu's flames, just in time for the former master to receive the full impact.
A few pieces of Lucy's hair got singed, and her tank top had a few burn holes in it. "Natsu..! What the hell, are you crazy! You could have killed me!" she yelled while running towards the pinkette with closed fists. When she was standing in front of him, she slapped him on the arm, causing him to wince. "I could've, but I didn't," he pointed out. "And look! I got 'em!"
Erza, and Lucy turned to look at Akuzo. He was cringing as he stood back on his feet. His black shirt was now completely burned and gone, and his pre-ripped jeans had more tears in them. Parts of his face were darkened. "Fire.. I hate fire.." he said through clenched teeth. His anger was boiling over the top, and Lucy swore that it was getting harder to breathe.
"I'm done fooling around, Fairy Tail! I'll give you one last chance! Hand over the girl!" the man yelled while holding out his right hand as her invitation. Natsu growled and pulled the blonde behind his back. He scowled, as the pain in his shoulders was no where near gone. "Over my dead body! She's mine, and only mine!"
Fuck.. Why was she acting so helpless right now?! She didn't need all of this protection.. but..! but..! Why wouldn't her body fucking move?! This fear..! She's never felt anything like it before! It chilled her to the bone, freezing them, and if she moved, she felt as if they'd crack and break and cause her to crumble.
Akuzo sighed and rubbed his temples. "You tarnished my clothes, damaged my skin, and refuse to hand over the girl... This ends now!" His eyes transformed to bright red, and it seemed that was the only thing you could see in the darkness surrounding them. "What is he planning.." Erza quietly asked, suddenly standing beside the pink-haired man. "Protect Lucy," Natsu said, while getting in a stance.
"You will be defeated, that is inevitable!" Then, Akuzo's tone went hushed. "Two more to go."
He went straight for Erza. Moving faster than Natsu had ever seen from an opponent, time seemingly began to slow done. Akuzo sped right past Natsu, and aimed his palm at Erza's chest. She didn't even have time to flinch before he was touching her. "Manipulate Thee, Adjust! Full Body Strain!" The red-haired woman's dark eyes widened as she let out an ear-piercing scream. Due to his spell, tendons were ripping all over her body. Natsu turned speechlessly and watched Erza's pained expression while she fell to the ground. "N...Natsu..."
Akuzo whipped his body around and went for Natsu next; his malevolent eyes piercing seemingly piercing into his soul.
Everything was up to him and Lucy now.
Akuzo touched all of his opposing fingertips together, and was aiming for Natsu's chest also. Before he could reach him though, the pinkette jumped out of the way. "I'm not going down that easy!" he yelled. "Fire Dragon's Roar!" Blistering hot flames shot out of Natsu's mouth, and he thought he hit him, but he narrowed his eyes regardless. His weariness was beginning to cause his sight to become blurry, and he blinked multiple times, trying to see clearly. His shoulders felt as if they were 100 pounds, so momentarily, he sagged them.
After his flames dissipated, his tenseness returned once he realized Akuzo was nowhere to be seen. "Natsu!" Lucy reached for Natsu but was knocked back by an unknown force. "You think that will work on me twice, boy?" Akuzo whispered in his ear, standing off to the side of him. He appeared once again in front of the pinkette and pushed his palms onto Natsu's chest. "Manipulate Thee, Adjust! Ultimate Slits!"
After finishing his spell, Akuzo moved back to admire his work. Natsu's blood ran cold as he felt a majority of his muscles being sliced apart. His eyes widened, staring up into the sky, and his lips parted. The pain started with his triceps, then the pain moved down to his quadriceps. "L-Lucy.." he whispered before falling to his knees first, letting out a silent roar of pain, and then falling limply to the earth below him.
The blonde's eyes widened in horror as the strongest members of Fairy Tail were defeated without any effort. She was terrified, her body immobilized itself. The fear.. it caused her blood to turn into ice.
"Is this your boyfriend, or something?" Akuzo asked while kicking Natsu in the stomach, to which he winced and groaned painfully. Move Lucy, move! "He seems pretty protective of you. But, fire-breather, would you like to her what I'm gonna do to your sexy girlfriend?" Natsu spat blood at his feet. "D..on't y..you... touch her..!"
Call Taurus, Loki, Virgo! Anyone!
Akuzo vanished and appeared next to Lucy, and grabbed her hair. She started yelling as he roughly dragged her by her locks over to Natsu. Akuzo whispered in Lucy's ear, but loud enough for Natsu to hear, "I'm going to fuck the shit out of her, and make her beg for more."
Her breath caught in her throat as his words lingered around in her head. Natsu tried to get up, but excruciating pain racked through his body. "Let.. her go..!" he groaned through his teeth. Akuzo let Lucy's hair go, but kicked her in the back so she went flying forward and skidding in the dirt. She attempted to reach fo her keys, but he appeared next to her again, and held his hands on her back. "Manipulate Thee, Adjust! Paralyze!" Lucy's body went numb as she released a quiet squeak of shock. She was speechless... dumbfounded.. How did this.. happen? Her breaths were shallow and shaky.
"Lucy..! No..!" Gray ground out through the pain in his body. Fuck! He needed to move..!
"Yeah, you know what? I'm tired of wasting my time here. Now that I finally have what I want, I will be on my way. All of you mages.. all taken down so easily. You put up a pitiful battle." Akuzo scuffed, and slung a limp Lucy over his shoulder.
"L..Luce..!"
"Lu...cy!"
"No..!"
"I bid you all, farewell. But, before I go, I might as well take back my magic. I do need quite a lot of energy to return home. Dragon Slayer and Fairy Queen, you will take a while to heal." Akuzo closed his eyes, and when he reopened them, they were silver again. He held his free hand up over his head and chanted, "Manipulate Thee, Absorb! Release!"
Gray, Natsu, Erza, and Happy felt their bodies loosen, but the pain was still hardly diminished. Natsu frantically turned his head to where his girlfriend once stood, in hopes of meeting her brown eyes.
To his dismay, they were nowhere in sight.