DISCLAIMER: I don't own Fairy Tail as it's by Hiro Mashima. Also, Hatsune Angelbeat (OC) is owned by Shiranai Atsune.
Chapter 5:
Conundrums
She had been expecting something or someone to pop up since it was nearly breakfast—so she'd like to think in any case—and her hopes were not dashed.
Hatsune had been switching between rhythmically tapping her fingers at the edge of her cuffs and pulling at her links absentmindedly as she waited. She'd already finished sharpening the bits of stone scattered around her, and she'd put her analyzing on hold for the moment. It was around the time when the redhead would drop by with her food—as bland as it was compared to Laxus' cooking. It certainly lacked that tingle on her taste buds that came whenever he was the one who prepared the meal, especially when it was special desserts day—
Ah, she was homesick.
Shaking the thoughts away, the sound mage continued to wait.
And wait…
And wait…
And wait…
She grimaced. Where is he?
It took another minute or so, until the sound mage perked up. Something brushed against her hazy senses but… something was off.
Whenever she had 'sensed' somebody through her magic, she often compared it to melodies, and the way Ethernano thrummed through their cores and seeped into the atmosphere immediately clued her in to what their personalities and signs of their power would basically be.
Her redheaded captor's was nonchalant, as it crescendos into whimsical, bouncy notes before mellowing into a staccato that echoed distance. Although her muddled senses made her assessments slower, this one appeared to be a lot more… contained and elegantly moving in waves, confidently stringing a song that screamed highly dangerous.
She remained unmoving in the center of her cell.
The air felt charged, and the hairs on her skin rose.
There was some shuffling of rocks as animal-skin boots bumped against it, and finally stopped in front of her prison. A tall cloaked figure whose hood obscured their face stood there, and apart from the sword poking out from their side, she couldn't find other identifying markers on them.
"… Angelbeat," a baritone voice called out.
Young was the first thing that came to her mind, maybe around his early 20s.
"So I suppose you're their leader?"
The man stepped closer and laid a gloved hand on one of the bars. "Seeing you like this is quite a striking image."
He didn't answer her question, but the familiarity in his tone spoke volumes. An acquaintance of sorts… was he an old guild member? Someone she met along the road? Or maybe an old friend..?
"I doubt you'd remember me easily, not after all these years that had passed," he said as if reading her thoughts. Who, who? "But in any case, it is quite a pleasant surprise that I stumbled upon you."
She shot him a suspicious look which made him chuckle. "Now, now, Angelbeat, I mean no harm."
"So you say…"
"Oh, where are my manners?" A slight bow of his head, and then he said: "My name's Ignis."
From beyond the veil, piercing silver eyes bore into her, and her very core trembled. It took everything for her not to back down. "I assume you're here to ask something of me."
"You assume correctly," he said. "I'll cut straight to the point. I need your help."
Hatsune's eyes narrowed, chips of ice met inquisitive orbs. "What makes you think I'll help you after this?" She gestured to her bruised body, the chains of her cuffs knocking against the floor like a death knell.
"That's incentive." Coercion, her mind confirmed. "I know what you're thinking, and believe me, I'd rather we not resort to anything more drastic."
"And if I don't want to?" Her tone was defiant, but it came across defeated.
He tilted his head to the side, pausing as if weighing her words. "Well, I'm afraid you don't have much of a choice, do you?"
They both knew.
"No," she acquiesced. Well, right now, no. "At least show me a face."
The hooded man chuckled once more at her final act of stubbornness. "Where's the fun in that?"
The sound mage suppressed the urge to snarl, and she put a lid on her rising frustration. "… Help with what?"
"Until you agree, I'm afraid I'll keep that information to myself." Even with his hood, she could tell he was smiling in triumph. "Well, I'll leave you there for now to think. I hope you have an answer soon." He started to walk away, but his last words left a sense of foreboding in the air.
"Time is ticking, Angelbeat."
For a long time, she sat there, numbly watching the lantern's flames flicker and its wick grow smaller by each passing minute. The redhead had already dropped by and handed her food, but she'd been too preoccupied to bother.
Time is ticking.
They were planning something big to happen soon.
Time is ticking.
She needed to get out.
Time was ticking.
Whatever role she had in their plans, it undoubtedly involved her magic. A part of her thought, they wouldn't dare, but she'd long since witnessed what mankind was capable of.
Hatsune couldn't idle anymore, knowing what they likely wanted from her.
And so, she closed her eyes.
Meditation always gave her a sense of nothingness, akin to floating in an endless expanse of ocean with no fear of drowning. The state of just being, and the gentle caress of her core that would normally relax her… A part of her was missing, and it ached, but she let her mind be.
To be was to exist. To exist was to live.
She would live.
The next thing that greeted her was the familiar nose-crinkling smell of food, and a holler. "Good morning, sunshine!"
She opened her eyes—the rush of reality settling in once more—just as he threw open the cell door and plopped down in front of her. "Glad to see you're looking less stuck in your head," he chirped, grabbing the bowl and scooping a generous amount of porridge. "I have plenty of stories to tell, you know~!"
She set her blank gaze at the man she had dubbed Dog-bastard in her head, because he was like a pesky dog that kept coming back and wagging its tail playfully—tauntingly. "I stand by my word that I can eat on my own," she dryly reminded him.
He pouted, and his eyes were watery with fake tears. "You don't accept my love?"
"Maybe when I get out and punch your face in."
He grinned impishly. "Good, you're learning! Here I thought your humor was stiff as a board."
She nearly rolled her eyes at the jab. "My sense of humor is fine without you butting in."
"Eh, you love me for it."
She simply crossed her arms, hiding the tremors, slight they may be. Nerves were bound to happen, for the probability of success depended on his reactions. The timing had to be right, and she couldn't afford to make a mistake.
"Ah, sunshine, I wonder when you do you ever smile?"
She had already spent too much time playing prisoner in isolation. Doubts had to be cast aside for the moment.
She threw the redhead a look.
The mercenary had eyes everywhere, to the point that he could easily comment on when he was being called by their boss, when some random goon was drunk-singing somewhere in their hideout (and he'd chide them for breaking mugs of all things), or when someone was a bathroom break. It was honestly quite a commendable feat of magic, to be able to process all that sensory information.
It was crucial that she took him down.
Those sharpened stones she discreetly hid in a small hole were part of a contingency plan she prayed she wouldn't use.
Hatsune shook her head, clearing her throat to catch the attention of the grumbling man. "Let's just get this over with."
He beamed, golden eyes shining with absolute delight at her compliance, and scooted closer to her, lifting the spoon. She leaned in, mouth open—
"Sleep deeply."
The air rippled—
His eyes widened, but that was all he could do as they fluttered shut, mouth parting with one last rushed intake of air, and his body fell to the side like newly-cut timber. The tableware clattered, the bowl's contents going splat, and in a domino effect, the cup on the tray went flying in a spray of wasted water.
Her satisfaction at the scene was short-lived, and she screwed her eyes shut.
While she was blocked from her core, Ethernano was still in the air, and speaking in a lower frequency allowed the particles to trigger. Voice Command was one of her most powerful spells for it can overwrite a person's will unless they were strong enough to ward its influence or blocked their sense of hearing completely.
Of course, magic of this kind had its drawbacks.
A strangled noise escaped her.
Two words made her gut churn, acid clawing its way up her throat, and her headache doubled in intensity. Locked away it may be her core was disturbed by a dissonance which rattled her bones.
'Breathe in and out, in and out…'
Her heart was pummeling into her ribcage, and gods, she wanted to lie down and curl into a ball.
Not now. Breathe, and focus.
In any case, she was thankful that she'd caught the mercenary off-guard. She was counting on him to expect her attacking him with the improvised weaponry, and he—and Ignis—clearly didn't expect her to be able to use magic. It was that same visit that had confirmed the strength of the Ethernano in the area. It was a lesson to be learned.
She winced thanks to her still unhealed leg (she'd have to hope Porlyusica wouldn't get too mad), but she forced herself to shuffle closer to the unconscious redhead. She rolled him over, not stirring in the slightest as she patted him for any signs of keys.
A sweets stash, dozens of knives, an old faded note filled with indecipherable scribbles…
No keys.
Seeing as he was able teleport, she had low hopes that he would have it—a temporary setback.
Rusty chains jangled, one light tug turned harsher the next, and soon, the wall that tied her to this spot eroded. It fell with a clang, and Hatsune wrapped it around her body, over her upper torso and arms to distribute the weight. It was better than carrying it in a bundle.
Her gaze trained on the bars, no clear weaknesses that she could exploit.
It wasn't a problem.
Fingers traced the cool solid steel, and an ear pressed against it. Nothing, and then—
There!
Faint tinkling, distortions that weaved itself beyond normal human comprehension. Her brows knit together in concentration, head tipped to place her mouth against it. Anticipation thrummed in her veins.
"Resonate
Break and emanate
My will, to desecrate"
The last note reverberated, spreading across each row in waves. Soon, she numbly watched the metal flaked away into fine powder and slowly drifted down her feet.
Resonance had been one of her more flexible yet least used moves, for each object and organism had a frequency, and manipulating it was… tricky. She'd only tried it now since her options were limited.
Stepping out, she gazed down the empty, dark hallway.
Hatsune gave the redhead one last glimpse before entering the darkness.
The brief feeling of anxiety that washed over her almost made her think twice and go back for the lantern. It took a few seconds but she let her ears guide the way. Having a light source would alert any patrols, and she couldn't risk it.
Hatsune hurried her pace, but she kept an eye out for traps—as much as she can in the dim setting—and pressed on. Judging by the echoes, this was a complex underground cave system, which honestly explained a lot, and each step she took was the one of the only sounds she heard, apart from distant drops of water. It was enough to drive any person—mage or not—insane if left here long enough, especially in the dark.
The source of the water was her best chance, but it could potentially lead to a dead end. She had no idea how deep underground she was, and trying to dig herself out was going to take too long.
She walked on.
And walked…
And she walked endlessly.
Time seemed to be eternal in this place.
In what she believed to be nearly half an hour, she had dodged two traps, and nearly activated a pitfall trap before she found a glimmer of hope: the faded sounds of conversations. She knew it could be her mind playing tricks on her, but instincts were telling her otherwise.
Groping the wall, she ambled on, until she saw an orange glow. Turning the corner, she found herself staring at a lit torch… and a set of carved stone steps. She could've whooped for joy then and there, but it was too early for celebrations. Hatsune clambered up the steps that spiraled upwards, her grips on the chains tightening, and she applauded the person who constructed this place because it completely threw off her sense of direction.
Once she reached the top, she was face to face with a wooden door, and louder sounds of merry-making. The orange-haired woman carefully pried the door open, and she had to blink a couple of times to adjust to the lighting. She had emerged to a wide hallway of more stone and quite surprisingly, rows of curtained barred windows with sunlight seeping in from the cracks.
Her eyes surveyed the banners decorating the walls, showing three claw marks over a spiral—a guild mark.
Hatsune then frowned. It seemed that the guild hall of this place was two corners over, too close for comfort. She looked over to the left, where the noise was less.
She should go gather a bit of information… but she had to make it quick. Dog-bastard might wake up any minute now.
The sound mage made her steps as silent as possible, an action made easier by the purple carpet splayed on the floor, avoiding the random drunk or patrolling man. The many twists and turns she was being forced to make was making it difficult. The place appeared to be a sort of once-abandoned mansion, full of unused rooms and boxes, and thankfully, a somehow legible map of the building, which she committed to memory. There was even a room with many covered portraits, and checking them out confirmed that fact: a nobleman by the name of Arthur Zirconius II had once lived here.
Hatsune closed another door, an occupied room where a few men where snoozing off. She left them be, for she had no wish to resort to violence, and it would also compromise her position.
She was somewhere in the west wing, and if she continued this path, she'd enter the gardens. 'Just a little bit more,' she thought.
"Hey, you know just the—"
Crap.
She bolted into a room, and her pain flared. She hastily balanced herself, arms reflexively going up to shield her in case she fell, and much to her relief (and abused leg), she remained upright.
And then she laid her eyes of what was inside the room and felt her limbs go jelly.
"W-what the..?" she balked.
An odd, towering device stood at the end of what once seemed to be a library, with three speaker-like objects at the tip that disappeared past the hole in the roof. Pipes and bolts stuck out of the clunky, faded gold machinery, and columns of capsules with strange luminous liquid of various colors lead the eye to the centerpiece of it: a huge bluish bubble in the middle… where an outline indicating a human could be stuck inside was visible.
The sound mage spotted a table in the corner full of scrolls, and she pounced for it, unrolling every single one. Schematics, a list of names, results—
She felt her blood go cold.
This will cause mass hysteria, so much death and—
The blood drained from her face. She… she couldn't just leave now, not with this thing in front of her. No, she had to destroy this—!
The soft rustle of cloth made her freeze. "You know, it's funny how plans can get derailed with every unexpected factor."
She looked at the newcomer—shit, shit, Ignis, why is he here?! She forced herself to swallow despite the lump in her throat. She needed to buy time now. "Why the hell are you doing this?"
His silver eyes were sharp, the intensity nearly sweeping her off her feet. "You already know, Angelbeat."
"This isn't right!" she yelled. Her fists clenched, crumpling the scroll in her hands. "A revolution? No, this is insanity!"
"It's what right," he replied, cold and so resolute. The leader of the dark guild looked over the machine, and his voice dropped an octave. "The Magic Council is full of lies, deceit and corruption, and for all their words of protecting and bringing justice, they fail to do it when it matters the most."
"You—"
"They're cowards!" His arms spread, and she was being sucked into those eyes. "And this will show the world their true nature!"
Hatsune backed into a shelf, and the chains on her body were heavy, ready to drag her down and choke her. This… oh, gods, this was madness! The sound mage stared at the machine with growing horror, and she instantly knew, she had to get out. She needed to warn them!
Ignis let out a soft chuckle, and she tensed. "But I'm getting ahead of myself. The stage hasn't been set yet... the pieces still have to be assembled."
The air thickened, and—
Hatsune dived, just as something impacted the shelf she once stood in front of her. Splinters rained down around them, and she hurriedly jumped back again just as a blade swung overhead. She rolled over a table, landing in a crouch with a hiss.
'Shit, shit, shit, my leg!'
The table split, and she narrowly avoided another swing, the sword singing next to her. She gritted her teeth, and kicked a half of the table towards her enemy. It was cleanly cut, but that didn't matter, as she ran for the door—
A harsh pull at her hair made her yelp, and she fell back.
NO!
A hand forced itself onto the floor, and in a one fast motion, Hatsu spun into a handstand, a heel slamming into the head of her assailant. A grunt was her reward, but she wasn't done yet, and she brought her other leg around, ignoring the spike of pain as it struck true.
She recovered with an awkward flip, but that was all she could do at the bright flash of silver—
Her eyelids suddenly felt heavier, and she knew no more.