A promise is a promise, is it not? Here's the second part of the original chapter! Hope you like it. I'm a little tired, so there may still be errors. I'll try to fix them when I'm not in zombie-mode. Enjoy! The next chapter may be a little while--so I eased off the cliffy this time ;)
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To my reviewers: you complete me.
FreeHugs & YellowFever: your names made me smile! Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy the second half!
Disclaimer: don't own FT, do own OC's (sort of, I guess)--I'm thinking of starting a little poll to see what OC you like best. Look back later for it! I'm just curious....
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"Come on, Luce...wake up!"
She could hear Natsu's voice, but it sounded so...far away. Her head hurt. A lot. The throbbing ache wasn't alleviated by the shrill, dying call of a train whistle before it faded away forever.
"Make it....make it....quiet," she mumbled incoherently. "'Nuff noise.."
"Luce!" he cried, elated that she was now responsive. When he had first found her, he had feared the worst. She had been breathing, but she didn't respond to anything—not even his fingers as they carefully searched her face.
Natsu smiled, pulling her closer to his body. He ignored the thick red blood that was running into his eye. The saltiness of his perspiration intermingling amplified the sting. He crouched against the mangled train car, supporting his weight as well as Lucy's while he tried to rouse her. Gray and Erza were around the other side, but Natsu couldn't contain his excitement as Lucy's eyes fluttered open, quickly closing from the searing light of a warm afternoon's sun.
"So bright!" she murmured, slowly raising a hand to shield her face.
"You gotta wake up! You gotta move!" Natsu encouraged soothingly, his grip lessening. "Can you do that? Can you walk, Lucy?"
"Of course I can do that!" Lucy snapped, feeling more and more coherent. The heavy wooziness that was weighing her down was slowly lifting like a gauzy veil. Her mind began to wander to her companions.
"Veleda! Morpheus!" her eyes snapped open.
"You sent them back before we crashed," Natsu informed her, studying her face carefully.
He didn't see any serious wounds other than the few scratches on her cheeks and elbows. One sleeve had been torn off, revealing a few minor gashes on her upper arm. They were slowly oozing, but nothing to worry about.
"Crashed?" Lucy drawled, her eyes suddenly growing wide.
She could see the remains of the train car that Natsu was leaning against. Its condition told her that it had been a nasty wreck, and she had no doubt that the rest of the train had fared worse. She could see a few cars scattered around the tracks—all smashed, all inhabitable. Were they the only ones on the train? Was everyone alright? Gray! Erza! Happy! Adie!
"Where are they?" Lucy asked, her voice growing shrill as she shuddered.
"Gray helped Erza over here," Natsu indicated with his head, refusing to release Lucy until she had proven she was feeling well enough to walk. "She's in the worst condition. Happy's there as well. And Adie refused any help."
She peered over his shoulder, looking at the train's remains. "What happened?"
"Not sure, Erza thought she saw something, but it's gone." Natsu's voice was low and Lucy suspected that he was on edge. His hands slightly tremored as they held her against his warm body.
"A-Are you alright?" Lucy asked, grabbing his face between her palms, her eyes darting over his features. "You're cut!"
"Aw, I'm fine!" Natsu dismissed her concerns as he stood upright, carrying her with him.
"Put me down!" Lucy exclaimed, her voice shrill. Natsu did as she asked, albeit with hesitation. Lucy didn't remove her hands from his face as she examined his brow.
"Come closer," she whispered, ripping the remaining flap of her sleeve and licking the edge. Natsu obeyed, saying nothing as Lucy dabbed at his cut. He winced as she put pressure on his wound.
"Quit being a baby," Lucy cooed, as she dabbed the drying blood that had been running into his eye, her own gaze steady and full of loving intent.
Natsu said nothing as he watched her tend to his cuts. He felt his heart race as a small smile curved her lips upward. Why was he suddenly like this around Lucy? You know why, you fool! Natsu reached into his vest, remembering the small parcel. He swallowed, his throat suddenly very dry.
"Luce?"
Lucy blinked, her gaze flickering over his face as she decided that her work was sufficient. "Yeah?"
"I want to gi--" Natsu began, a new sheen of sweat coating his brow as Lucy smiled at him, her hand still on his cheek.
"Lucy!" Happy interrupted, his voice filled with relief as he peered around the corner of the train car.
The cat had a small cut on his chin and knee, though he seemed oblivious as he stared at her through misty eyes. Lucy smiled at Happy as her hand dropped from Natsu's cheek. The dragon slayer immediately missed the warm contact, wishing--for once--that Happy was not around. He felt guilty for such thoughts, but his wallowing was short-lived as Lucy grabbed his hand. Despite her condition, she used a great deal of force to pull him behind her as she rounded the corner.
Gray was kneeling next to Erza, his face pale and his eye swollen. His hand was was bandaged with his shirt, leaving him half-naked—not that it wasn't expected of the ice mage. Lucy's eyes drifted to Erza, who was leaning against the train, her eyes closed and jaw clenched. Her shoulder was scraped and dislocated. Lucy watched in horror as Erza quickly popped the joint back into place. Lucy studied Erza's expression as she sat upright, supporting herself with her arms as her legs were spread out away from her body. Her face was ashen and her hair was matted against the side of her face as she stared at her foot. Lucy followed Erza's gaze, gasping as her eyes trailed down Erza's shin to her ankle.
"Oh no," Lucy groaned, quickly recognizing the implications of the swelling around Erza's ankle. She quickly knelt next to Erza, her fingers outstretched to touch the joint.
"Don't!" Erza hissed. "It's broken."
"Maybe it's just swollen!" Lucy cried, her eyes filled with worry.
"Look at the inner part of my ankle," Erza grimaced as she attempted to roll her leg outward.
Lucy gaped at the bone protruding against the stretched skin. She knew that it wasn't a good sign. Especially not when the giant, angry purple bruise was slowly creeping around the ankle and into Erza's foot. The sound of crackling glass pulled Lucy's attention away from Erza, momentarily. She spotted the pale-haired blacksmith as she stood on the window's edge, slowly lowering herself to the ground. Her lip was cut and blood was slowly dripping form the corner of her mouth. A bright red pool of blood was seeping around the object embedded in her thigh. Adie limped lightly as she slumped against the car--with Gray's help. She slid down the wall, sitting on the ground not far from Erza. Her eyes wandered over Erza's ankle as her fingers closed around the jagged shard in her thigh.
Lucy's eyes were wide as she looked at Adie, "You're not going to—"
Adie grimaced as she slowly pulled the sharp piece of window from her thigh, blood quickly oozing out of the wound as it made a soft sucking noise. Gray ripped off a portion of his shirt handing it to her. Adie tied the make-shift tourniquet around her thigh, higher than the wound. She wriggled her ankle, ensuring there was no lasting damage. She glanced at Lucy, smiling weakly, despite her ashen, clammy features.
"Flesh wound," she muttered, throwing the glass aside. Lucy could see the cuts on her hand from the shard's sharp edge. Her cheek was also cut, but the blood had long since dried.
"Can you walk?" Lucy asked, as Natsu knelt to the ground between Adie and Erza.
"I can," Adie grunted, nodding at Erza's ankle. "We can decompress that, maybe it'll help. I did it on a dog, once, when I was a child."
Natsu glanced at Lucy, raising an eyebrow in disgust and disbelief. Lucy shook her head in warning, as Erza closed her eyes, leaning her head against the metal siding of the train car.
"It's no good," Erza mumbled as she returned her ankle to a neutral position. "It's not a clean break. I'll have to be carried."
"Maybe we can find someone to help us! A nearby town--" Lucy hopefully pointed out.
"No town," Gray murmured, his arms crossed over his chest. "I think that--" he pointed toward the large billowing cloud of smoke that teemed from somewhere on the other side of the tracks up ahead. "That was the town."
"Was the town?" Lucy echoed, glancing at Natsu. "What's that mean?"
"Didn't you see it?" Erza asked, her voice strained from the pain.
Lucy furiously began to think back to the events from before the crash, but she was finding it difficult to remember. "I dunno....."
"Whatever it was," Natsu growled, "it's still around. I can smell it. It stinks."
"It?" Happy asked, looking between Natsu and Erza.
"You don't think that train just crashed, do you?" Adie obviously agreed with Gray, Natsu, and Erza. "That was a town. We should have been stopping shortly at the depot, but something was blocking it."
"Oh no," Lucy groaned. They were in no condition to be running from an enemy. Or fighting.
"It was large," Gray confirmed. "Larger than a human, that's for sure."
Lucy looked around, studying the weary faces of her injured comrades. Erza was the most seriously injured, and undoubtedly their strongest asset. Without her, they were at a disadvantage. Sure, Gray and Natsu were strong, but they were also impetuous—someting that was not advantageous to the team right now. Besides, someone was going to have to stay behind to help Erza. Protect her, even.
"Maybe it's gone," Lucy wishfully spoke aloud. "Maybe it was just cross--"
Before she could finish, the earth shook with a great force--as if an earthquake were tearing through the land. Natsu and Gray protectively rushed to the women's sides, forming a half circle around them as Happy stood between them, his hand shadowing his eyes from the sun.
"Uh oh," the cat whispered as the thundering shake once again erupted. He slowly turned, facing the direction they had been traveling. A dark shadow thundered around the mutilated train station.
"Shit, it is huge," Natsu growled. Lucy looked up at him as he squinted toward the train's remains. She followed his gaze.
Whatever it was, it was only meters away, though they were hidden from its sight by the train car. Lucy gasped, bringing her hand to her mouth to stifle a scream. It was large. No—it was massive! It was the size of a moderate building. She could see it walking on bowed legs as it thundered toward the train from the forest. It grabbed one of the smaller cabins with one hand, lifting it into the air and shaking it. When he—from what Lucy could see—realized the train was empty, he dropped it, smashing it with an iron fist. The wind picked up, blowing her hair from her face and bringing an undeniable stench. Everyone covered their noses, though Natsu—getting the brunt of the odor—gagged at the putrid smell.
Lucy watched, horrified, as the creature scavenged the train graveyard for something—anything. It was a rotund stocky creature, wearing nothing but a loin cloth and thick metal bracelets and anklets. Its head was covered by a giant helmet that shadowed its eyes from view. What she could see of wide mouth were sharp, rounded teeth as the giant snarled at each train cabin. Its fingernails were long and dirty—matching its toenails. Around its neck was a necklace of roundish objects, too many to count.
"What's that smell?" Lucy gagged through watering eyes.
She squinted at the creature, risking a second glance. The dark spatters of what looked to be brown paint on his chest caught her attention. It was an odd pattern, as if his necklace were rubbing his skin raw. Lucy's eyes were drawn to the necklace with its unique trinkets. On second inspection, she recognized what those trinket were: the cause of the stench!
"Human heads!" Lucy cried, her voice ragged as she leaned over and gagged.
"Trophies," Natsu growled. Lucy looked up at Natsu, who said nothing, his jaw clenched and his fists balled.
"Don't even think about it!" Lucy pleaded with him, her eyes watering from the realization of what the monster was collecting. She noticed the familiar glint of battle lust in his eyes, knowing that her argument was moot. She glanced at Gray, hoping that perhaps he could persuade Natsu otherwise.
Gray, too, was watching Natsu, studying his friend. "I don't think it's a good idea, man. Let's just hope it passes by, and we can escape. We gotta worry about getting Erza to a doctor."
Natsu stared ahead, not flinching as Lucy reached up to grab his wrist. "Please, don't! Not now. We don't know what we are dealing with," she argued softly.
Natsu looked down at her, his eyes tortured though his tone was placid. "You think that village just burned itself, Luce?"
"I--" Lucy opened her mouth, though her words failing her. She released her grip, pushing herself to her feet. She was slightly wobbly as the dark dots faded from the periphery of her vision.
"There were innocent people living there," Gray murmured, understanding Natsu's reasoning.
"Don't goad him!" Lucy snapped, shooting an angry glance toward Natsu.
Erza and Adie were mum. The latter staring at the ground; the circles under her eyes were darker than ever as she slowly rocked back and forth. Erza was too busy concentrating on her throbbing ankle to partake in the argument.
Lucy glanced back at Natsu. "But we don't know what it is. Its strengths or weaknesses!"
"Do I ever?" Natsu posed, raising an eyebrow. Lucy could see the hint of a smile on his lips.
She sighed, "No. Never."
It was true, Natsu never studied his enemy, always rushing in like a fool.
"Then, can I?" he asked, his tone winsome.
"I agree with Lucy," Happy chimed in. "I-I don't think this is a good idea. Erza is hurt."
Natsu swore under his breath, obviously torn between the fight that could be or staying by his friends' side. His shoulders slumped in defeat. Erza spoke, though her hair masked her features.
"Don't hold back on account of me."
"What?" Lucy roared, turning her gaze on Erza. She could see the grim smile on the ex-quipping mage's face, though her eyes were shadowed by the hair matted to her cheeks and forehead.
"It's just going to go onto the next town, doing the same thing," Erza spoke through gritted teeth. "If it's not stopped now, more innocents will be killed."
"I like your way of thinking, Erza!" Natsu grinned toothily. He looked at Happy, nodding. "Let's go, Buddy!"
"Aye!" Happy replied, the wings instantly sprouting.
"Wait, you can't be serious!" Lucy shrilly protested in disbelief. "That thing is collecting heads. Human heads!"
"When is he ever not serious about fighting?" Gray shook his head, a lopsided smile on his face as well.
"You comin', Frosty?" Natsu challenged his friend.
"Not as elegantly as you are," Gray retorted, glancing at Happy.
Lucy locked her jaw, remembering that she had some strength left. If she could just get a good punch in, maybe she could knock Natsu out—alleviating the real problem. They could think this through. Be more thorough and better prepared for their approach.
"Natsu?" Lucy replied innocently.
"Eh?" Natsu blinked, immediately on guard. That wasn't a normal Lucy tone of voice.
Lucy walked toward him, a pout on her lips. When she was close enough, she quickly swung, hoping to land a devastating blow to his stomach. Natsu immediately caught her fist, forcing Lucy to realize that the extent of her powers must have disappeared with Veleda.
"Crap," she muttered uselessly under her breath. She attempted to hit him with her other fist, surprised that she at least remembered how to punch. Natsu caught that hand as well, allowing her to beat against his chest.
"You think I'm gonna let you just run out there and get killed? Huh?" she hissed between her teeth as she fought against his grip. Her earlier liberation in beating Natsu had deserted her; she once again felt helpless. Tears sprung to her eyes as she began to feel like useless baggage.
"Calm down, let's talk about this!" Natsu tried to remain cool and collected as his grip remained on her arms. He gently rested them against his chest, studying Lucy's face with concern.
"No, you calm down, you idiot! Are you planning to get killed? I told you, we don't know what we are dealing with!" she roared, grabbing him by his vest and pulling him toward her.
A ground-shaking tremor nearly knocked them off of their feet as the loud, booming voice chilled her blood. "HUMANS."
It was a statement. One word, yet so fearfully delivered. Lucy felt the sweat run down her back as she moved her head to glance past Natsu. The giant was sniffing the air, his large nostrils flaring as his head snapped around—the straps of his helmet whipping with the movement.
"Oh shit," Lucy whispered, uncharacteristically cursing.
"It can smell us?" Natsu asked, staring at Lucy in wide-eyed horror.
"Uh huh," she replied, not moving her mouth as she spoke.
"Now can I fight?" Natsu asked calmly, somewhat relieved that it was the only option left.
"Y-Yep," Lucy replied, her teeth chattering.
"Can you let me go?' Natsu tried to pry her fingers from his vest, his eyes on Lucy's face.
He could see the fear in her eyes as she stared at the looming monster behind him. Natsu suddenly grabbed Lucy by her shoulders, pulling her into him as her arms flailed helplessly. It was sudden. It was not thought through. It was unforgivable, yet appropriate.
"Whaaa?" Lucy yelled as the air was knocked out of her lungs as she was pulled into Natsu's chest. He crushed her against him, his hand behind her head as his chin rested on her shoulder. His other hand reached around, resting on the small of her back.
"Don't worry about me, Luce," Natsu's warm breath caressed her ear, his tone both soft and serious. "I'll always come back. It's a promise!"
Lucy said nothing, tears springing to her eyes. Her hands curled around his sides, holding him against her body. Why did moments like these have to be so cruel? She could stand like that forever.
"Happy! Gray! Adie! Fight time!" Natsu gleefully called, instantly shattering the moment he and Lucy had shared.
His voice was loud in her ear, and she stumbled backward, her hand covering the offended eardrum. She glared unhappily at Natsu as his lopsided grin returned her stare. Within seconds, Happy burst through the shadows and into the clearing, grabbing Natsu by his shoulders.
"Wait." Lucy reached out and grabbed his hand, preventing Happy from taking him away just yet. Her eyes flashing their seriousness. "I trust you."
Natsu's smile left his face as his eyes studied Lucy's expression. He nodded, the toothy grin immediately returning. He glanced up at Happy. "Let's go, I wanna kick this thing's ass!"
"Aye!" Happy returned his vigor as they barreled skyward.
The creature slowly began to lumber toward them, his nose in the air, as Natsu flew out to meet it. Gray walked past Lucy, his hand momentarily on her shoulder. "Watch out for Erza, Lucy."
With that, he jogged away. Lucy slowly walked backward, her eyes on the creature. She watched Natsu and Happy swooping around it as it slowly tried to swat them away. Apparently, it was not quick its movements. Lucy snaked around the back of the train car, realizing Adie was standing there, staring at the creature.
Adie'll know what it is! Lucy thought, her hope clearing the dark thoughts that had previously occupied her mind.
"What is it? What is that thing?" Lucy asked, her eyes watching Natsu. Gray leaped up onto a cab, running its length to reach the giant.
When she didn't receive an answer, she glanced at her companion. Adie was standing with her mouth hanging open and her eyes fearfully staring at the creature. A sudden wave of fear washed over Lucy.
"A-Adie?" she yelped. "What is that thing?"
Again, no answer.
The blacksmith's eyes grew rounder as she watched the giant pick up two train cabins, attempting to hit Natsu and Happy with them. The sluggish movements allowed the duo to dodge, as an ice lance landed in the creature's shoulder. The giant momentarily paused, pulling the weapon from its thick skin. Lucy could see the blood slowly trickling down its chest as it pushed a thick, dirty finger into the wound. When it wiped it away, Lucy gasped: the injury was gone!
"It can h-heal itself?" Lucy asked, her eyes filled with horror. How would they beat that?
Suddenly, no—unexpectedly—the creature moved with amazing speed as it quickly swatted at Natsu, its fist knocking the duo through the air and toward the ground. Gray attempted to make an ice wall in order to stop the monster from moving closer. With one pound of its fist, Gray's ice magic was obliterated as the monster gnashed its teeth and thundered toward Natsu and Happy.
"Stand up, stand up!" Lucy moaned as Gray produced icy stalactites under the monster.
She knew that Gray was already utilizing a large amount of energy on such heavy duty magic so early on in the fight. The giant stumbled backward, its feet and legs lacerated from the attack. It grabbed nearby tree, uprooting it and swinging it at the ice shards, knocking them away so that it could proceed toward its target. More razor-sharp shards of ice kept splintering out of the smashed pieces as Gray kept repleting what was destroyed.
"You have to help them! You know how to fight it, don't you?" Lucy wailed, unable to tear her eyes away from the creature.
"No."
"What? What does that mean?" Lucy looked at her, horrified that Adie may not know what they were dealing with.
"I don't know what it is. I don't know how to fight it," Adie replied bluntly. "The answer's 'no'."
"But...but--" Lucy began to protest.
"I DON'T KNOW!" Adie roared, sweat running down her face. She continued to stare, slowly rocking as she stood there.
"Can't you do anything?" Lucy whimpered, as Natsu stood on wobbly legs, pointing to Happy and instructing him to move out of the way. Happy once again lifted Natsu into flight, dodging a sobering blow from the creature.
Adie ignored her question, her mind elsewhere as she sank to her knees, her bloodstained fingers clawing into the earth. "Lilith...what did you do this time?"
Lucy stared incredulously at Adie, whose eyes were now slightly unfocused. Lucy wasn't sure as to the sudden reason for Adie's uncharacteristic timidness. If she truly didn't know what this creature was, did it mean that it wasn't released by Lilith? Who could create such a monster?
Lucy's fingers wandered toward her key as she decided that if Adie weren't to do anything, she would. "Open the gate to the Centaur!"
"Hello, Hello--"
"No time!" Lucy hollered. "I need you to distract that--" she pointed toward the creature. "Aim to kill, or whatever. We need to buy Natsu time to find its weakness!"
Sagittarius didn't say anything, quickly striding out into the field and aiming his arrows toward the creature, sending a cloud of projectiles into the air.
"Natsu! Stay away from the arrows!" Lucy shrieked her warning as the arrows flew in a uniform arc. "Keep going, Sagittarius! Don't let up!"
Lucy looked toward Adie, who was still staring blankly ahead. Her body was shaking as she stared, almost oblivious to the fight at-hand.
"I believe in you," Lucy replied softly, "even if you don't."
Adie blinked, slowly turning her head toward Lucy. She looked as if she had aged years in the past few days, her face a slate of weariness. "Huh?"
"I said," Lucy replied more gruffly, her fist clenching as she spun so that her back was toward Adie, "that I believe in you!"
Lucy quickly reached for another key. She had to get Erza out of the way, in case the giant came for them.
"Horologium!" Lucy called, a droplet of sweat running down the nape of her neck. Instantly, the tall clock appeared before her.
"Erza," Lucy commanded, pointing toward Horologium. "You're getting in!"
"Huh?" Erza looked between the spirit and Lucy.
"No arguing," Lucy's gaze became dark. "You have to get out of here, into the forest, at least."
The clock bowed slightly, "Whatever Lucy says, my dear."
Adie turned to watch the exchange, her eyes more focused. More determined. It was as if the wallowing, weak woman had disappeared, only to be replaced by her former confident self. She quickly helped Lucy lift Erza into the glass encasement, gently lifting Erza's ankle and securing her inside. Erza looked on, helplessly.
"She says she's sorry for being a burden," Horologium informed them.
"You're not a burden," Lucy reprimanded the mage. She looked at her spirit, "Take her into the forest, somewhere safe. Whatever you do, do not abandon her. Understand?"
Lucy's eyes flashed their seriousness as she stared at her spirit. The clock bowed again, "As you wish. I will do my best!" It saluted, before waddling into the forest, away from the battle.
"She says to be careful! Come back in one piece!" Horologium called behind him as he disappeared into the forest. Lucy turned toward Adie, opening her mouth to speak. She was interrupted by Sagittarius.
"Hello, Hello, Lucy?" came the Centaur's voice. "My arrows.....they aren't affecting him."
"Eh?" Lucy turned to see what Sagittarius was talking about, her body feeling mildly strained from having two spirits released at once. She watched as the arrows hit their target. But, as suddenly as they embedded in the creature's skin, they dropped to the ground as if they had never hit the monster in the first place.
"He's healing this quickly?" Lucy repeated her earlier theory. "If he's healing, then how do we stand a chance?"
"I don't know," Sagittarius replied. "Sorry."
"Oh! Nevermind!" Lucy cried, feeling hopeless. "Close the gate!"
The spirit disappeared in a puff of smoke as Lucy began to frantically scramble for ideas. His arrows that were in mid-air slowly spiraled toward the creature, this time embedding in its shoulders. The creature howled with rage as it clawed at the arrows, its head whipping around toward where Lucy and Adie were watching. Despite not being able to see its eyes, she could feel its gaze.
"Oh no," Lucy gasped, her eyes fluttering wider.
With a small leap, the giant had managed to bound over Gray as it stomped toward Lucy and Adie.
"Lucy!' Natsu yelled as he released himself from Happy's grip, landing on the giant's shoulders.
An explosion of flames told her that he was becoming increasingly angry. With a fire-fueled punch to the giant's jaw, the creature stumbled sideways as it attempted to swat at its shoulder. Another punch and it toppled toward the ground, taking Natsu with it.
"Natsu!" Lucy screamed.
The minor cloud of dust cleared, revealing the still moving giant. It was slowly pushing itself off of the ground, gaining its foothold as it did so.
"Lucy, get out of here!" Gray warned. "Get away, now!"
"No! I won't leave you guys!" she replied firmly, her fingers finding Taurus' key.
"It's too dangerous," Gray screamed, looking to Adie for something....anything.
"I'll call Taurus!" Lucy muttered to herself, her eyes triumphant. Taurus could smash anything!
The booming roar that echoed through the air forced Lucy to drop to the ground. She covered her ears, rolling over to spy Adie perched on top of the nearest, smashed train car. She was lowered onto one knee, with her other leg outstretched in front of her as she tried to aim through the scope of her gun with one eye. The massive machinery was carefully on the odd tripod as she carefully and adeptly fed the gun oddly shaped bullets. The weapon shook with each shot, kicking back from the force of each release as the spent cartridges spilled onto the ground, rolling off the top of the car. Lucy watched in silent awe as the slender ammunition spiraled toward the monster, a long chain releasing from rear portion of the bullet and whipping through the air as it flew toward its target. It twitched with each blow, pieces of flesh being torn from its body as the bullets buried in its skin. The monster howled, falling backward with its arms flailing and a half dozen chains whipping around. The shaking rumble of earth was the evidence that the giant had fallen.
"Yes! It's working!" Lucy cried as she pushed herself to her feet, scrambling toward Adie.
When the gun had eaten all of the bullets, Adie quickly disassembled it, kicking the tripod out from underneath. Her gloved hand was covered with blood that appeared to be oozing from her right upper arm.
"You're arm!" Lucy yelped, pointing toward the spreading pool of hot blood on Adie's shirt.
"It's not dead," Adie murmured, as the gun disappeared. "And I'm not wasting good bullets if it's not gonna die! But, we bought a few minutes, and allowed ourselves to at least a way to reign it in. It's so damned slow it'll probably wrap itself up."
"What are we going to do?" Lucy whimpered as her eyes searched for Natsu. She couldn't see any signs of either him, Gray, or Happy as the dust danced around the giant's body.
The ground rumbled, and a shrieking howl reverberated through the air, telling Lucy that the giant was becoming more irate. The dust began to clear, and Lucy could see the upright form of the monster as it glared at them. The chains were dangling from its chest as blood littered its neck and chin from the bullets--though the entry wounds were no longer apparent. Lucy realized Adie's intent, hoping that it could help give them the advantage. The monster continued to glare at them, uprooting a tree with a swift twist of its wrist.
"SKULLS. FRESH SKULLS," it growled, thrusting a splintered fingernail toward the two women.
"Is there no way to kill it? What is this thing?" Lucy wailed. Her eyes remained on the giant. "What are you going to do?"
Adie studied the monster, her jaw clenched. "I'm gonna try to distract it, hoping that we think of somethin'. Maybe we can nail it down somehow...."
Before Lucy could respond, the giant roared, throwing the uprooted tree at the two women. Neither Lucy or Adie had the chance to respond as two large blades of water whipped past them, tearing through the earth and slicing at the monster. The air picked up around Lucy and Adie—one blade close enough that it sliced through Adie's hair, removing some of its length. She ignored it as the pair turned to watch the giant attempting to to protect itself from the attack. Blood misted the earth as the water blades proved to be more powerful than the monster's defenses. Two more watery blades followed the first set, quickly followed by three more sets. Each attack pushed the giant back a few dozen yards--until it wobbled over the remains of the dismembered train, hitting the ground hard enough to knock Lucy and Adie off their feet.
And echoing whoop and a giant ball of flames told her that Natsu was very much alive. "Gray! Quit bein' a pansy and fight!"
Lucy breathed a sigh of relief, pushing herself up and turning to find the source of the attack. She could see Adie stiffening from beside her, obviously recognizing the uninvited help. Lucy found herself staring at a very large cover of an ancient book, with writing she couldn't decipher. She blinked unsure of what she was looking at, exactly. When the book lowered, Lucy gasped.
The woman behind the book smiled as she pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "Hi Lu-chan! Long time, no see! Got yourself into a bit of trouble here! Good thing I brought back up!"
"B-back up?" Lucy's teeth chattered as she stared at Levy's excited smile. Why is she smiling at a time like this?
"Juvia thinks that her attacks won't hold the monster off for long," frowned the water mage as she stepped up next to Levy.
She glanced over her shoulder, her eyes following the third newcomer--a familiar pale-haired mage. The man stopped in front of Lucy, leaning down and offering an outstretched palm. He wriggled his fingers, emphasizing to Lucy that he was awaiting her hand. Lucy's eyes trailed up the massive arm, meeting Elfman's expectant gaze.
"Lucy, so good to see you!" he smiled warmly. "We received your message. Master Makarov sent us to help you."