The Black Dragon Slayer of the Apocalypse
Chapter 21
"I'm sorry I can't do that, it's in all our contracts that we have to protect you, so if you were to die and it was in our power to save you, then we would be exiled to the human world just like Leo was. It may be against your wishes but we have to." Horologium explained.
Lucy found herself in the spirit world.
The entire place was very… blue and sparkly, like a Sapphire gem. Worlds were floating above and there was a grand staircase right in front of Lucy. There were crystal lacrima all around the place and the land Lucy was on was in a circle shape.
"Miss Lucy, I am sorry for bringing you here against your wishes."
"Why…? Why…?" Lucy crouched on the cold blue floor crying. Her eyes grew wide.
"Cold and blue… GRAY! Where is Gray?"
"I don't know where he is, but Miss Lucy you must stay here for the time being. It took a while to convince the celestial spirit king to allow you here. He only authorised that you can stay in this area, since 1day here is equivalent to 3 months in your world, I will take you back immediately, I will have to take you back to the place that we left from. Please come inside." Horologium opened his glass case to allow Lucy inside.
She was too confused and distressed to think straight, all she knew was that she had to return to Earthland. Lucy obediently sat inside Horologium, like she always did, tears still streaming down her face.
Lucy: He's dead… Natsu is… oh God…
When she returned she was in a massive crater, the surroundings, however, were the same as before Zeref's HQ was destroyed.
"The magical particles in the air has decreased significantly, it's safe for you…"
Lucy had already walked out of Horologium. There wasn't even a trace of them: of Natsu, Haruhi, Macao. There was nothing left to even bury.
"This cannot be happening… NATSUUUUUUUUU!" She picked up some ash from the floor, brought close to her face and cried.
"LUCY?!" A man came running into the crater.
"I knew you weren't dead!" It was Gray, he had survived the blast too. He ran too her and hugged her tight "Where were you? I thought I was alone, please don't disappear again… please" Lucy felt her shoulder become warm and wet.
"My time is up Lucy… Once again I'm sorry" Horologium then disappeared into thin air, only leaving sparkles in the air.
"I'm so sorry… I couldn't save anyone…" Lucy cried.
They stayed in that position for a good few minutes then Gray released Lucy from his grasp. He led her out the crater and sat down.
"I need to know… what happened after I…" Gray hesitantly asked, he was ashamed of himself for leaving and saving himself even though it wasn't his fault.
Lucy explained everything, not leaving a single detail, it, indeed, was painful to recall but she knew it had to be done. They spent the next 30 minutes sitting there.
"Then Natsu and Haruhi blew themselves up, they thought that Zeref was in a close enough radius to kill him."
"Well then let's go to Crocus then." He got up and dusted his clothes off, his eyes was red and puffy.
"What!? Why? We have no way to know if that guy was telling the truth. It might be a trap."
"We have nothing left… what do we have to lose by going there and finding this eclipse."
You must go it was predestined.
Lucy: Damn you l'armoire histoire! You used me, Natsu and Haruhi! Like hell will I listen to you.
"Gray I don't we should go…"
"Lucy if there is even the slightest chance of us getting our friends back, then we should go ahead and do it! No matter who told us. I will tell you this; I'm definitely going, with or without you. But I also know we need to stick together." He then turned away from Lucy. "Whenever I was in trouble whilst I was in Fairy Tail not once did they abandon me. And now when there is a chance to save them you are stopping me, you don't understand how much that hurts."
Reluctantly Lucy followed Gray, she kept a distance from him at first. Even though Fairy Tail meant a lot to her, she knew it meant 2 times more to Gray.
A week later – Crocus
"So this place is where the grand magic games are held" Gray looked around the plaza of town, there were many people walking around but they only seemed like the local towns people. "I was expecting a crowd but since all magic guilds have been destroyed they obviously couldn't carry on."
"Actually Gray you're wrong about that, a few days ago I saw a newspaper saying they were still holding the magic games because apparently only the well-known powerful guilds were destroyed. The smaller guilds were spared." Lucy explained.
"That just seems stupid to me, anyway you have any idea where this eclipse thing is?"
"Not a clue, that black haired man only said it was in Crocus."
"Is that so… (Sigh) I've run out of money, so I'll try to get a job somewhere while you look for Eclipse."
"Sounds like a plan, we'll meet back here in around 5 hours ok?" After that they parted ways to try and accomplish their goals. Lucy tried to ask the townsmen about Eclipse and Gray put forward his magic as that was the only thing he was good at, except for taking off his clothes at alarming rates.
After a few hours they returned to the plaza. "How were things on your end Gray?" Lucy asked.
"Not good, people are too scared to hire anyone with magic, they think they will be obliterated if they do. They don't even believe me when I tell them that Zeref is dead, what about you?" He returned the question.
"No one in this town knows a thing about the eclipse however they do keep saying there will be one on the 7th of July. Fat lot that does us" Lucy replied in an annoyed tone.
"I guess for tonight will be sleeping on the floor. How about tomorrow we swap roles you look for a job as, I don't know, a waitress; and I'll find more about the eclipse."
After that they searched a little while longer for a place to sleep, finding a small, open, sheltered place. Lucy laid on Gray's chest and he covered the two of them with his shirt. They slept there till morning.