We are about to take a look at what Rogue's been thinking of since the incident from Tiamat. A new face will introduce themself, and soon you'll see why I came up with the chapter name.
Make sure to review afterwards!
Chapter 3
Deceiving Eyes
Crocus again. The Flower Blooming Capital, and the city of sadness, in Vóreia's mind.
One thing caught her attention: the castle was rebuilt.
How could they? Vóreia thought furiously. How could they do that?
The train came to a stop. While everybody else rushed out, Vóreia remained seated. She didn't want to leave. She wanted to stay in the safe atmosphere of the train. Anything to keep from having to go back out there.
It was in this city that Vóreia lost her best friend...this very city where Glacia was murdered. And where her body was lost.
"Vóreia." Risley stood before her, snapping her fingers to get her attention.
"...I don't want to go..." she mumbled.
"We don't want to either," the slim gravity mage said. "But we have to."
"Did they have to?" Vóreia pointed her paw out the window. "Did they have to rebuild the castle? Right over..." She choked on a sob.
Risley held the split-tailed cat close to her. If she closed her eyes, Vóreia could pretend it was Glacia comforting her. But there was a difference: Glacia was cool to the touch, Risley was warm. "I know...but we can't do a thing about it," Risley said.
The Luxembourg, 7:55 PM
"I can't believe we've been reduced to staying in some second class hotel," Orga grumbled.
"It was the best after Crocus Gardens. What choice did we have?" Rufus pointed out. "Besides, you're not the only one with complaints. On the other hand, I think it's quite charming."
"Well, that's you. But some of us have to share rooms!"
"Now I remember." Rufus produced four key cards with the same number. "We were assigned a penthouse suite. The lady has hers. Now I just have to find Sting and Rogue."
Orga sputtered. "You mean we have to share a suite with the ass—"
Rufus slapped a hand on Orga's mouth, an alarmed look on his delicate face as he looked around the corners. His gaze lingered a little longer on shadows.
"I know I'm paranoid," Rufus admitted after removing his hand. "But Rogue scares the hell out of me now."
"The lady doesn't seem to mind. Only as long as he continues to show them who's the top guild," Orga said.
"Since he's not here, I can say this without fear of death. I wonder where he gets his demonic strength from."
"The last guy who asked him that got a dislocated jaw," Orga snickered.
Rufus smiled. "I remember."
Frosch covered his mouth. "Lector likes someone," he laughed.
"You're all grown up," Sting sighed, shaking his head.
"Hey! You promised not to laugh, Sting-kun!" Lector yelled while holding a purple rose in his hands. Why? He considered blue, but blue would remind the Exceed of his dreams of her former partner's eyes. White was even worse. That was the color of Glacia's hair, and her magic.
Within the crowd, Lector spotted two tails waving like prayer flags in the wind. "There she is!"
Two angelic wings sprouted, and Lector flew off. "Wish me luck!"
Sting pretended to sniff. "He grew up so fast."
"Are you done, Sting?"
Scowling, and slightly annoyed, Sting faced his now cold-hearted partner with the usual cocky smirk.
After promising to meet back at Siren's Tears, Vóreia wandered aimlessly around the city, trying her best not to be disgusted by the happy faces around her. They had no idea of what was sacrificed to let them have this life. What it cost an entire guild and some people to preserve this peace.
Clutching her purse close to her, Vóreia flew past the market square, trying her best not to look at the ice cream shop.
"Oi! Vóreia!"
Vóreia turned around. Approaching her quickly, Lector halted in midair with a purple rose in his hands. "Lector..."
"I just got away from Sting and Frosch. They wouldn't stop making fun of me for buying this," the Sabertooth Exceed panted. Not a complete lie. But Vóreia ate it up nontheless.
It was bad enough back at the hotel when he had to listen to his guild's complaints about their lodgings. But going outside was even worse! True, he disliked loud noises. But the one thing that ticked Rogue off was ignorance.
Every person they walked past had a smiling face, with absolutely no clue as to who saved their lives at the price of her own.
She never deserved it, he thought angrily, his knuckles turning white. She never deserved to have to hide a monster in her. She never deserved a life where she was seen as a murderer. She never deserved to die for these people!
All of that pent up anger began to build up dangerously. After Glacia's death, the world was no longer bright as day. Now he saw the world that Glacia was forced to live: darkness, solitude, despair. Nearly everyday, Rogue lashed out at someone, as if punishing them for her punishment.
That rage kept boiling within him. Before last year, he could easily diffuse his own anger, but no longer. He wanted it; he enjoyed it, enjoyed the rush and explosive power it gave him. Rogue wanted something to hit—something to take his anger out on. Now.
Sting knew the look in his partner's eyes all too well. Knew exactly when it started; knew what had caused it; and how to diffuse it in two different ways. If only the second were possible. He shrugged mentally, wishing that Glacia was alive. Rogue would go back to his calm, indifferent, gentle self instead of being like this.
But right now, he had a partner to pacify, and the best way to do that was easy. In three, two, one—
"I look forward to kicking your asses, puppies!" Sting yelled towards four random Quatro Cerberus mages.
"Psh! As if!" One of them flipped him off. "You guys couldn't even hold a candle to Fairy Tail last year!"
Sting smirked widely, preparing his bait. "And that's coming from the puppies who ran with their tails between their legs from the mermaids!"
"Those sluts are gonna rue the day they messed with us!" Another called, placing a foot on a flowerbox. "We'll show them! They'll pay with their lives for what their murdering brat did to our members!"
Now in his mind, Sting congratulated himself on his excellent fishing skills. He could throw an insult out, and reel in a fight within seconds.
"...what was that?"
Sting didn't bother to look beside him. He simply shrugged, smirking at Quatro Cerberus as his partner stepped up, the epitome of the calm before the storm. "I could've sworn you said something...can you repeat yourself?" Rogue asked with a threatening undertone.
"The kid deserved to die, she's had it coming to her for a long time!" The mage taunted stupidly.
Rogue vanished into darkness, reappearing next to the idiotic mage. Taking hold of his throat, the Shadow Dragon Slayer slammed the Quatro Cerberus mage against a wall, knocking him out instantly. By the time Rogue let him go, his opponent had foam around his mouth.
"Sting, don't interfere." Rogue glared at the remainder of the Quatro Cerberus quartet. "They're mine."
Sting cackled at the leader of the quartet, leaning in closer as if to share a secret with that same smirk on his face. "You, sir, are about to have your ass handed to you—royally."
"Come on, we don't need to see that," Lector said, taking Vóreia's paw and leading her away from the fight.
"Is Rogue still—"
"It's even worse now that we're in Crocus," he explained.
They bumped into a person, causing Vóreia's purse to fall, spilling its contents. A wallet, a journal, a pen, and a hand mirror. The mirror remained intact.
"Oh no!" Vóreia landed on the ground, gathering her stuff back into her purse. A bookmark from her journal slipped out, flying with the summer breeze before Lector caught it. As he did, the "bookmark" wasn't a bookmark at all, but a photo.
A very pretty white-haired girl with large blue eyes smiled back at Lector, as if the photographer from long ago had done something to make her laugh. Long hair travelled down her back, reaching the girl's waist like a white river. Dressed in a simple, but elegant white sundress, the only words Lector could find to define this girl: beautiful, serene, a knockout.
"That's Glacia when she had long hair," Vóreia informed when she found her precious photo in Lector's hands.
"R-really?" Lector cried, inspecting the photo again. Yes, now he could see it. Most of her bangs covered the left side of her face, but the hair and eye color should have tipped him off immediately. She looks so pretty, he thought.
"Thank you," she said, taking the photo back.
"Oh—did I say that out loud?" he mumbled.
A street vendor displayed his merchandise proudly, watching a young lady admire the items.
"Vat's zis?" A hand reached out to hold a small plastic backed makeup mirror. Its shape reminded the lady of the Communication Lacrima in her pocket. "It feels like there's magic to zis."
"There is!" The vendor exclaimed. "But as to what—"
The girl brought the mirror close to her right ear when a blast of magic struck the accessory. It bounced off, returning to its dealer, leaving both the vendor and the lady shaken up. The mirror remained intact, though steaming at the impact. She turned her head slightly towards the man. "Sir..."
The young woman slapped a wad of Jewels onto his cashbox, walking away. "My satisfaction," she called.
The last conscious mage of Quatro Cerberus was slammed against the concrete pavement, an armored boot on the poor man's head as Rogue leaned closer. "Care to eat your words?" he hissed.
A large crowd had formed around the fight, money changing hands frequently. When it became clear that the Quatro Cerberus mage would not retract his words, Rogue took his foot off of the man's head, only to deliver a swift kick to his ribs. The underdog groaned, holding his stomach as he curled into a ball, coughing up blood.
"All right, people, you've seen what Sabertooth is capable of. Now scram," Sting called.
Chatting amiably amongst themselves, the crowd began to disperse.
That was when Rogue saw her.
As the audience cleared away, a girl with long white hair and large blue eyes, dressed in a simple white dress, met his gaze. All he could think was, If her hair was shorter, she'd look exactly like—
Glacia.
As soon as he opened his mouth, the Glacia look-alike ran off, her two braids waving wildly in the air.
There were so many questions running through his head, but nowhere to start. "Wait—"
Someone behind him clapped slowly, mockingly. "Vell done, Herr Cheney. You hardly broke a sweat vith ze dogs."
Rogue spun around scowling at the guest.
A pale, slim, eighteen year old woman smirked back at him. Short ink black hair topped her head, with her bangs covering the left side of her face. She had a sharp facial structure, but her eyes were a mystery due to the shiny black sunglasses placed before them. Her outfit consisted of a dark blue tube top, a pair of dark-washed denim minishorts, and dark thigh-high boots. Over the outfit was a short black trench coat that flared out at her waist.
"Then again, anyone vould be able to take out these puppies in seconds. Vat you did vas nothing special," she continued.
Sting immediately got into an offensive stance. "You're talking to the strongest Dragon Slayers of the strongest guild. Care to take your words back?"
The sinister looking girl threw her head back and laughed. "Strongest? Mein foot! You couldn't even hold a candle to that dragon girl last year—Grace Patton, vasn't it?" she taunted.
Okay, now Sting was certain that this lady with the foreign accent had a death wish.
On cue, Rogue stepped forward in rage. "That's Glacia Patin!" he snarled.
"And you vould know, vouldn't you? Vat vere you? Her older brother?" The lady leaned in closer, smirking. "A lover, even?" she sneered.
Rushing forward, Rogue aimed a Shadow Dragon's Slash at the woman. His attack passed through her, and the tip of a curved sickle touched his throat.
How? Rogue thought as he glanced at the sinister girl's smirking face. I didn't even see her move!
"Aha!" The woman behind him removed the weapon from his jugular, tossing it into the air before she caught it again as she calmly walked away. "So the great Herr Cheney is a pedophile!"
She spun around, her sickle in one hand while she raised her right arm, a smoke bomb within her hand. "You only stayed number vun because last year's games vere cancelled. But Sabertooth vill die. Call me Silver, but your tongues vill be cut out once you do."
Silver threw the smoke bomb onto the ground, and silver smoke erupted where she stood. Once it dissipated, she was gone.
The Luxembourg, 11:59 PM
Team Sabertooth was assembled back at the Luxembourg. Sting glanced at Rogue carefully, knowing that he was still thinking about their encounter with the sinister lady Silver.
She'll pay, he thought.
"Ladies and gents! Wizards of all genders and ages! Welcome to the preliminary round of the X792 Grand Magic Games, pumpkin!" Mato's familiar voice sounded throughout the entire city. "If you would all step outside, I can explain the round better, pumpkin!"
Within Crocus, the guilds of Fiore stepped out of their lodgings. Team members looked at each other in confusion.
From Lamia Scale's lodgings, a person whose back was visible sighed. "Must I?"
"Obaba's orders," Yuka said. "That or you have to spin for the rest of the week."
"Here's how the eight teams will be chosen, pumpkin! All around the city, there are flags with your guild's crest on it. Find your guild's, and make a beeline for Domus Flau. You will not be counted unless all five members are present at the arena!" The hologram of Mato announced.
"Just one flag will be easy to find," Minerva judged. "Rogue, you'll hunt for our flag."
A simple nod.
"One more thing!" Mato added, a grin on the hologram's face. "There are hundreds of flags scattered around the city. You must—and I mean MUST—collect five flags with your guild insignia in order to pass!"
"Five?" That one number could be heard throughout the city collectively.
"That's right, pumpkin! So all five members must participate! Happy hunting, and let the games begin!"
Life hasn't been easy on our dear Rogue, has it? What made it worse was that life decided to mock him with a Glacia look-alike.
So which team will make it first? And what guild is the mysterious and sinister Silver part of?