Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail, it belongs to Hiro Mashima and I, unfortunately, am not him. I do however own any OC characters that will appear later in the story. Relax and enjoy the story.
People speaking "Hello Hello Hello"
People thinking 'Geronimo'
Magic Spells "Fire Dragon ROAR"
Creature/Dragon speaking "I am ALIVE!"
Creature/Dragon thinking 'Come along'
Chapter 18 – Phantom Lord
"W-What the hell is this..." Natsu growled as he and the others stood in front of the destroyed guild hall, they had arrived into town a little while ago and almost immediately they had noticed that something was amiss. They had passed several citizens that were watching them and whispering to each other, and as they got closer to the building they could see multiple large pillar-like objects piercing into the building. The scene the group of wizards came to was an almost completely destroyed Fairy Tail building, barely holding itself up. "Who attacked our guild hall?!"
"Did someone… actually do this?" Lucy muttered as she looked up at the guild with tearful eyes, next to her was a shocked Gray and a quiet Ur.
Erza narrowed her eyes as she gritted her teeth, "Who is responsible for this?"
"It was Phantom…" The group of six turned their heads to see Mirajane standing behind them with a sad expression on her face. "They really got us good on this one."
"So Phantom was behind this?" Gray questioned with narrow eyes as he tried to keep himself calm, but if you looked closely at his side you could see his fists were clenched so hard they were pale and shaking.
Natsu slowly turned his head away from the guild to look at the barmaid with a hard look on his face. "Where are Gramps and the others?"
Mirajane was silent as she beckoned the group to follow her, and led them to the staircase that went down to the underground basement where they usually kept their storage. Everyone was silent as they made their way downstairs, soon reaching the bottom to see many of the other Fairy Tail wizards were already sitting and drinking. Though instead of the usual cheerfulness that Lucy had come to love, everyone was either quiet with solemn looks on their faces or pissed off and arguing about their next move.
"Look, Natsu and Erza are back!" One of the members called out making many heads turn towards the stairs, "And brought Gray and Lucy back too."
"Who's the other one?" Someone questioned as a few people took notice of Ur.
"Did you guys see what those assholes did upstairs?" Nab asked before turning his head away with a tsk. "…Shit!"
"We've always been at odds with their guild before, but why would they do this now?" Levy looked up from her drink to her two partners Jet and Droy, who were both grumbling in their seats. They had tried to propose earlier about the guild going to Phantom Lords location and taking them down, but that idea had been shot down.
A drunk Makarov was sitting on the makeshift bar with a mug of beer in his hand, waving over the group. "Yo, welcome back you guys."
"Thank you," Erza said while glancing around the room, looking at their situation while trying to find a certain little girl.
"Gramps this isn't happy hour!" Natsu narrowed his eyes as he focused on the Guildmaster, "How can you be so carefree right now?"
"Right you are," Makarov agreed with a stern look. "Gray, Lucy! How dare you two go on an S-class job without permission? I'll give you your punishment now."
Suddenly, his arm lengthened and he smacked them. He hit Gray on the top of the head while he spanked Lucy, earning a glare from Mirajane, who had just walked through the door.
"Behave yourself Master," Mirajane said with a frown.
Makarov turned to look at Ur, who had an amused look as she watched Gray rub the lump on his head. "… I'm surprised to see you are once again walking among us so easily Miss Ur, not many can walk away from using forbidden magic like that unscathed. Natsu and Erza had informed me about your revival, I'll take you to see an old friend of mine to take a good look at you."
"Thank you, it is an honor to meet you Master Makarov." Ur replied while bowing her head a little, "I also want to express my gratitude for watching over Gray for so many years while I had been sealed away, he's turned into a fine man in my absence thanks to your guidance and Fairy Tail."
"It has been no trouble at all… though he has a tendency to go overboard in battle sometimes and I've received a lot of complaints of him stripping in public…" Makarov let out a drunken laugh before taking a sip from his mug.
Ur let out a sigh while planting her face into her palm, "Unfortunately he had started doing that when he was younger. I had hoped that he would've grown out of that."
'Who do you think was responsible for that in the first place!?' One of Gray's eyebrows twitch as he recalled all the times that Ur had him strip in the snowy mountains. And she was no better since he had also recalled times that he had seen her unconsciously started to strip in the house they had lived in.
"Gramps this isn't the time to get sidetracked!" Natsu interrupted.
"This is a serious situation Master, Phantom Lord attacked our guild." Erza spoke up to show her agreement with Natsu as she stood next to him.
"Don't you two worry so much about those idiots, they're too pathetic to worry about." Makarov replied with a wave of his hand before gulping down his drink. "If the worse thing they can do is attack an empty building then they've got nothing to be proud of."
"Empty?" Erza repeated with a raised eyebrow.
"The attack happened in the middle of the night when everybody was already gone." Mirajane explained while bowing her head a little, "I guess that would actually be the most positive thing about this situation."
Natsu was quiet for a few seconds before closing his eyes, "I guess you're right… things could've been much worse if someone had been here…"
"Exactly, we don't need to trouble ourselves with cowards that resort to sneak attacks-" The loud sound of Natsu punching a hole in one of the crates, this made everyone turn their heads to look at him. "Natsu, control yourself. I know how you must be feeling but remember that you're an S-class wizard."
"I know that Gramps… I know buildings can be replace, and that the guild hall itself isn't Fairy Tail… But still, this is our home!" Natsu gritted his teeth before turning his head away, taking a deep breath as he looked towards the ground."… And one of the precious things she left behind."
'She?' Lucy blinked in confusion, and noticed that several people in the room had gotten even sadder after Natsu had said that.
"You have the right to be angry, my boy. But you need to let it go… there is something more important that you and Erza need to focus on right now." Makarov said making the married couple instantly freESe as they feared what Makarov was going to say next. "… Nova was one of the first ones to discover the guild hall's condition."
Erza was the first one to speak as she took a step forward, an expression of worry was on her face. "Is she alright?! Where is she now?"
"She's…" Makarov's body shivered a bit before he hopped off the table and rushed passed the group, rushing to the lower restrooms. "Got to go, nature's callin'."
"You don't have to worry, she went out with Cana for some ice cream. I was actually seeing them off a few minutes before you arrived." Mirajane explained with a sad smile, shaking her head at the old man's antics. "Nova had took it pretty hard, she's so young and she had to see something like this."
"… I'm going to find Nova and Cana." That was all Natsu said as he calmly spun around and started walking back towards the stairs, everyone watched as the pinkette made his way up and he disappeared from sight.
"I don't understand, how come Master and Natsu are acting like this?" Lucy muttered to herself, not knowing she caught a few other's attentions.
Mirajane looked down to the ground with a frown. "Lucy... this is very hard for Master, no matter how much he tried to act like it doesn't bother him. But attacks between guilds are prohibited by the council, so if we openly attack them, we will be in great trouble."
"And flamehead has a harder time since he's always been the emotional type," Gray continued where Mirajane left off. "He is doing his best to restrain himself, because he's someone who represents Fairy Tail."
Meanwhile upstairs, Natsu had made it to the top of the stairs and was greeted with the sight of the iron pillars. His body trembled as he clenched and unclenched his hands, narrowing his eyes as he glared at the large objects piercing into the building.
Back downstairs the conversation was still going on and Erza let out a sigh. "If the Master made his choice on not to retaliate... there is nothing we can do but respect it." Suddenly a loud bang could be heard coming from above them and the room shook a little. "That must've been Natsu, I'll go after him and help him find Nova."
Watching the scarlet-haired woman walk away, Lucy took notice to someone else not being in the room. "Hey where's Vanitas? Shouldn't he be here as well?"
"Vanitas said he was going to stay at home today, he had managed to find a place not too far from here… I think part of him feels responsible for what happened with Phantom." Mirajane crossed her arms around her stomach.
"He shouldn't have to, the guy may have been a member of Phantom Lord before but he's part of Fairy Tail now." Gray spoke up, making a few others nod their heads in agreement, "This is because of what those assholes did, it's not like he had any idea this was going to happen."
'You really have grown from that boy I used to know.' Ur thought to herself with a smile.
Mirajane nodded her head, "Vanitas' house is near where Elfman and I live so we can go over to his place on the way to explain the situation. But there is something more important that the Master and I have been talking about, it has to do with the ones that attacked the guild hall." Everyone started to listen closely as the white-haired beauty explained the plan that she and Makarov had discussed for the Fairy Tail members.
(A Little While Later)
"Are you sure Cana and Nova came this way Natsu?" Erza asked as she and Natsu walked through the forest, Natsu had been following the scents of the two for a while now. They had passed by an ice cream parlor where the owner had said that Cana and their daughter had stopped by to pick up a large amount of ice cream before heading off to one of the church orphanages. Several minutes after that they had found the orphanage and th e priest had told them that there had been a small ice cream party because of Cana and Nova bringing them plenty for everyone.
"Yeah, they're just up ahead." The sun had already started to set as they made their way to a familiar clearing, one that Natsu was surprised to see. In front of them was a large round hut made out of straw, and a makeshift tombstone was in front of it. "Me and Lisanna's secret base… It's been a long time since I was here."
Erza glanced at him for a second before walking closer to the hut, hearing the sound of laughter coming from inside. Bending down a little she looked inside to see Cana and Nova sitting opposite of each other with several cards on the ground between them. Nova was looking at the cards in awe as Cana used some of her magic to bring them to life, making the cards float in the air and circle around them. Feeling Natsu's presence behind her, Erza continued to watch with a smile as Nova stood up and spun with the cards.
"Careful there Nova, you don't want to get dizzy now." Cana warned with a smile.
"Kay!" Nova didn't seemed to be really listening as she followed the cards around the hut, before her gaze landed on the door and she saw her parents looking inside. "Mommy, Daddy!" The little girl immediately stopped spinning and ran up to them, wrapping her arms around one of their legs. "Welcome back!"
"We're glad to be back," Erza replied before reaching down to pick her daughter up. "Did you have fun with Aunt Cana?"
"Uh-huh, we had an ice cream party and I got to play with a lot of other kids." Nova said excitedly as she continued to tell Erza about all the things that had happened today while the female knight listened with a warm smile.
As Nova was talking to Erza, Natsu stood next to Cana against one of the walls of the hut, "Thanks for cheering her up Cana. I wish I could have been here to help her, neither of us wanted her to go through something like this."
"This can be pretty hard for a kid, especially when they are so young. I've had plenty of experience with going through painful times, we all have…" Cana reached behind her and took out a small bottle of alcohol from her bag. After taking a sip of her drink she winked at Natsu, "Besides, you helped me when I had gone through a tough time."
"… You just be sure to keep your promise." Natsu replied in amusement as he thought back to two months after he had become an S-class wizard, just as the winter seasons started.
Flashback
Natsu trudged the snow covered streets of Magnolia on his way to his newly purchased home, Erza was out of town with Makarov to handle some matters with the Magic Council, she had insisted on going since this would be her last mission for a while before going on maternity leave. As he was passing an alleyway he caught the scent of someone familiar and followed the scent until he found Cana lying unconscious on the snow covered alleyway, surrounded by a few empty beer bottles. He quickly ran towards the unconscious woman to check if she was alright and much to his relief she is based on how warm her body is.
"Cana, hey Cana, wake up…" Natsu lightly shook the woman who slowly came to.
Cana groaned and slowly opened her eyes to see a very concerned Natsu. "Natsu… What are you doing in my room? Erza will kill you if she finds you here…"
"I'm not even going to reply to that." Natsu let out a sigh when he noticed that she had dozed off again, smacking his palm into his forehead. "I need to get her out of the snow or she'll freeze to death… she is not making this easy for me." Natsu turned her body around and lifted her up bridal style, channeling some of his magic to raise his body temperature to heat up Cana's already cold body. It didn't take Natsu long to reach his house and bring Cana close to their fireplace, starting it up with a fireball before calling out to Happy, who was already in the house, to get one of the warm blankets for Cana.
After thirty minutes or so Cana had woken up and was laughing like nothing had happened, most of her clothes were laying by the fire while she had a warm, thick blanket wrapped around her body. "Thanks for the save Natsu. If you hadn't helped me I might've died."
"Mind explaining what got you so drunk in the first place, I've known you for years and it takes a lot to make you even feel tipsy." Natsu crossed his arms while he and Happy stared at the brunette across from them, whose attitude did a one-eighty and went completely sour. "We're friend Cana, if something is bothering you then you should tell me, not bottle it in."
"… Tell me you two, do you know how long I've been a member of Fairy Tail?" Cana asked making the two turn to each other.
"Hmm, didn't Lisanna say Cana was already a member for six years before she joined?" Happy said to Natsu, who nodded his head.
"Yeah and they joined in the year 778, so that means you joined in 772…" Natsu snapped his head to look at the brunette, "That means you joined when you were six!"
Cana nodded her head while increasing the grip on the blanket, "That right, and I was a candidate for the S-class Promotional Trials four times in a row."
"So? Isn't that a good thing to have been chosen four years straight?" Natsu tilted his head in confusion, "While you may not have passed, the fact you were chosen several times means you have a lot of potential."
"Laxus, Erza, Mira and Mystogan… They managed to become S-class even though three of them haven't been a part of the guild as long as I have. And then you were recommended by the Council to compete in the S-class Tournament and you became an S-class too." Cana closed her eyes as she recounted each of the times she had lost the chance to pass, and she though back to Natsu's battle with Vanitas. "… That's why I decided… I will give it one last time, and if I don't pass… then I will leave Fairy Tail."
"What?! That's a little extreme, don't you think?" Natsu exclaimed as he shot to his feet. "Gray and the others had failed in their attempts to become an S-class, but they just use that to encourage them!"
"Aye, failing a few times isn't so bad. Look at how Natsu was in the past!" Happy shouted in agreement, making Natsu send him a small glare. "Putting it all on one more chanc-"
"I NEED TO BECOME AN S-CLASS!" Cana shouted back, surprising the two since she had a few tears in her eyes. "If I don't… then I have no right to see that man…"
Natsu was quiet for a bit before turning to look at Happy, "Hey buddy, how about you get us something to drink." The blue cat slowly nodded his head before flying out of the room, leaving Natsu and Cana alone. Natsu quietly walked over to Cana and sat next to her, neither saying anything for a few minutes before Natsu finally spoke up. "You're talking about Gildarts, aren't you?"
"Huh, how did you-" Cana stopped speaking when she saw Natsu tap his nose.
"I didn't really think about it then, but you and Gildarts have similar scents. Most people don't realize that even if family members live in different places or change physically, it is easy to find compatible scents between the two, especially if it involves parent and child." Natsu's words caught Cana by surprise as she silently looked down at the ground, "Looking back on how the two of you acted around each other I'm guessing he doesn't know."
"… No, he doesn't. He and my mother separated when she was in the early stages of pregnancy, not even she knew at the time." Cana explained before leaning her head against the couch, "I didn't even know who he was until after my mother died, and when I arrived at Fairy Tail he didn't know me. After finding out who he was I had a hard time finding the right moment to say something to him, but every time I tried the words wouldn't come out. So I promised myself to tell him that I'm his daughter when I become as S-class mage just like him, so he can proud of me when he meets me."
"That's pretty… stupid!" Natsu remarked and shrugged the annoyed glare Cana was sending him. "I know that's it's important for a kid to get their parents praise and attention, but what kind of parent would want their child to suffer just so they could keep their reputation… I don't know what kind of father I'll be in the future but I would be proud of my kid even if they aren't an S-class wizard, because they have Erza and me's awesomeness going through their veins. If Gildarts becomes an ass about it then I will just kick his ass until he accepts it!"
Cana gave Natsu a strange look before she started to laugh, and for some strange reason she could feel some of the weight on her shoulders disappear. After a few minutes she managed to calm down and smiled up at the annoyed Natsu. "I doubt that you can do that to him, especially after the many times you failed in the past."
"That was when I was a kid! A lot has changed since then and I have plenty of time to get even stronger, who knows when that old man will come back!" Natsu crossed his arms in a huff, before looking down at Cana with a grin. "If you need any help I'll be happy to lend a hand, everyone at the guild will too!"
"Thanks for the offer Natsu," Cana grinned back up at Natsu, "But this is something I took on to myself and something I have to do, not just for him but for myself."
"So… you promise that you won't leave if you fail again?" Natsu asked and was happy to see the uncertainty in her eyes was replaced with determination.
"I won't." Cana stated with absolute resolve. "Whether I pass or fail, I'll tell him that I'm his daughter whether he believes me or not."
"Then how about we exchange a promise." Natsu raised an arm up between them, "I'll be a strong wizard and an awesome dad!"
"And I'll tell my father the truth, no matter what happens!" Cana raised her own arm and the two wizards clap their hands together. They would both make sure they wouldn't go back on their words, because that was their promises as Fairy Tail wizards.
Flashback End
"Don't worry, I won't." Cana laughed before looking at the outside through the doorway, "It's getting pretty late, and I should meet up with my group before it gets dark."
"What do you mean group?" Erza asked as she turned to face the brunette.
Cana rubbed the back of her head, "You guys probably left before Mira could tell you, but for the next few nights everyone it going to be in groups at nights. Because if Phantom is still in the city then they might know our addresses."
"That makes sense, power in numbers and everything." Natsu nodded in understanding, "Then I guess Lucy and Gray will be staying with us, we've got the bigger house after all."
"Probably," Cana nodded before standing up with a stretch, before making her way out of the hut. "Well I'd say be on your guard but I have no doubt you guys will be fine. See you all tomorrow."
"Bye Aunt Cana!" Nova waved happily before turning to her parents, "We'll going too, right?"
Natsu and Erza turned to look at each other before nodding with smiles on their faces, Natsu wrapped an arm around Erza as she continued to hold Nova. "Yeah, let's go home."
NDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDESNDES
"Are you sure you don't want to be with the other girls at Fairy Hills, Levy?" Jet asked his blue-haired teammate and crush. Night time had quickly arrived and mostly everyone was sleeping or relaxing in the comfort of their homes. These three however were on their way to Jet and Droy's house after leaving the destroyed guild.
Droy nodded his head in agreement, "Yeah, we would understand if you wanted to stay with them."
"Don't be silly! I would never want to break up our team like that! I'm sure you two are capable enough to protect me!" Levy told them with a cheerful smile.
"Levy!" Both her teammates cried tears of joy at the words their crush told them.
Meanwhile, a dark figure opened his eyes at the sound of the three voices. He looked down to see Jet, Droy and Levy walking down the road below him. He then smirked and jumped down. He snickered silently and then charged at the three. All three of them turned their bodies around at the feeling of presence behind them and gasped at the dark figure coming toward them. But just as the figure was about to strike Levy with a raised fist, a second arm appeared and grabbed the dark figure's arm.
Levy slowly followed the second arm until she caught sight of a familiar face, "Vanitas?!"
Vanitas ignored the petite girl as his gaze focused on the figure, "I figured you'd go the extra mile to get Fairy Tail's attention, Gajeel."
"Yo, it's been a while… traitor." The Iron Dragon Slayer flashed him an evil grin before kicking upward, to which Vanitas leaned back to dodge but that didn't stop Gajeel as he raised his other fist and turned it into a club before shooting it forward at Vanitas' stomach. The Devil Slayer took the blow and was sent a few feet back, "Just because we're old guild mates doesn't mean I'll go easy on you."
"I figured that, you'd even attack your own allies without remorse." Vanitas rubbed the fresh bruise form by Gajeel's attack before turning to the side where Levy and the others were. "Get out of here you three, I'll handle this guy."
"B-But we can hel-"
"NO YOU CAN'T!" Droy was cut off by Vanitas, who sent them a glare while raising his power. "I SAID GET OUT OF HERE, I CAN'T FIGHT AND PROTECT THE THREE OF YOU AT THE SAME TIME!"
"Heh, that right and I'd hate to see you Fairy trash get hurt by our battle." Gajeel replied with a mocking tone in his voice.
Levy looked towards Vanitas with a fearful expression, to which he silently nodded at her. She quickly pulled them by their arms, "Come on you guys. We need to get help." Her words got Jet and Droy's attention, making them nod their heads before the three wizards ran off to a safe distance.
Gajeel watched in amusement as the three disappeared around the corner, "It doesn't matter how far they go. I'll just beat you and find them again before they can get to anyone, we know all about your restrictions on using your Devil Slayer magic."
"I'm not going to let that happen." Vanitas quickly replied while cracked his knuckles, his magic was circling around him. "I may not have access to my full power, but I can still fight you off until someone arrives."
"Interesting," Gajeel let out a laugh before he gained an excited look and charged forward. "Let's just see how far you can go before I beat you unconscious!"
(Meanwhile)
"This place is really amazing…" Lucy commented in awe as she walked along the hallway of the upstairs of Natsu and Erza's house. She had just come from taking a baths in her guest bathroom and changing into her pajamas before heading down to the family room downstairs where everyone else was. After Makarov had returned from the bathroom he had taken Ur to see an old friend of his named Porlyusica to see if there was anything wrong with her or her magic. Lucy and Gray departed from the guild to get their stuff ready for staying the night at Natsu and Erza's. She was amazed how big the house was had to admit it was perfect for a family to live in, though she couldn't believe the price, it was several times the price she paid for her own house. Shaking her head a bit, Lucy walked down the stairs and turned a little to see everyone was relaxing. Natsu was sitting on the floor playing a small board game with Nova, Happy and Plue, Lucy turned her head a little to see a shirtless Gray was sitting on a chair with a stack of papers in his hands and Erza was relaxing in her own pajamas on the couch watching Natsu and Nova play. "Hey, I'm done with my bath."
"Oh Lucy, did you find it relaxing enough?" Erza asked with a smile as she turned away from the board game.
"Yeah, it was pretty nice… But I there was something that I've been wondering about. It's about Phantom attacking us all of a sudden, do you have any idea why they did it?" Lucy questioned, to which Erza and Natsu gained serious looks on their faces as they turned to look at her.
Erza shook her head, "We may have had a few scuffles several times in the past but it has never gotten bad enough that they'd attack us directly… well until now that it."
"And it's not like the master is afraid of them or anything, him being one of the Ten Wizard Saints isn't just for show." Gray commented while keeping his eyes on the papers in his hand, before it was taken away by Lucy, "Hey, I want to see how that scene ends!"
"I thought I recognized it, this is my story! Did you go through my stuff?!" Lucy exclaimed while holding the stack of papers close to her chest.
"Actually it was Nova, she wanted to see if you were done with it yet?" Happy commented while Nova blinked innocently as Lucy turned to look at her, unfortunately it was hard to give the three year old a stern look with a face like that.
"… Look it's not finished yet, and I already promised that you and Levy would be the first ones to read it." Lucy smiled at the girl, who happily went back to her game. Thinking back to what Gray had said, Lucy had a curious look on her face. "So what were these Ten Wizard Saints you were talking about?"
"It's a title given to the ten best wizards on the continent, the Magic Council are the ones that award the wizard with this honor." Natsu explained while turning back to board game, "But just like Gramps the Guildmaster of Phantom Lord, Jose, is one of them as well."
'And so is he…' Erza thought to herself with a frown. "The fact of the matter is that not only does the Magic Council forbid any attacks and battles between guilds, there is a strong chance of there being no survivors if we did end up fighting."
"Are they really that strong?" Lucy asked with a fearful look.
"While I want to say that we are the better guild no problem, there are six people in Phantom that makes up for that. First they have Master Jose who is a Wizard Saint, a group called the Element 4 that are equivalent to our S-classes. But the biggest threat though is the one who attacked our guild hall," Natsu closed his eyes while gritting his teeth, "His name is Gajeel "Black Steel" Redfox, and he's the Iron Dragon Slayer."
"Another Dragon Slayer, you mean there are others besides you?" Lucy's eyes went wide from surprise, "Does that mean he eats iron and stuff?"
(Magnolia Southgate Park)
"GAAHH!" Vanitas let out a painful shout as he crashed back again the large tree at the center of the park, he slowly slid to the ground with a grunt. Smoke was coming off his body and he had several cut covering him from head to toe. A few more thuds could be heard and he look to see the beaten and unconscious bodies of Team Shadow Gear. He glared up to see two figures standing at the top of one of the staircases leading to the park. One of them was Gajeel who had several tears in his clothes and a roughed-up look, staring down at him with his arms crossed and a frown on his face while the other was a large man wearing a green coat and a matching top hat. "Y-You bastards."
"While I'm not happy that our fight was interrupted, I made do on my promise." Gajeel began to grin as he walked down the stairs, "You were a pretty strong guy when you were in our guild and one of the only ones I actually respected, but look at you now… A COMPLETE WEAKLING!" The piercing-faced man kick Vanitas in the stomach, making the later cough up some blood. "You lost your power and all that made you strong, and for what? Bonds? Friendship? Don't make me laugh, power to crush your enemies and stay on top, that's what matters."
Vanitas let out a chuckle, making Gajeel raise an eyebrow. 'We both know that isn't true Gajeel… you forget that I know you… And I also know that this isn't over."
"That's what we are hoping for." The Dragon Slayer replied before walking over to Levy's body, "This will definitely get Fairy Tail's attention and our battle will begin."
"It's so sad, Fairy Tail will be erased and we will finish our mission!" The large man started to cry as his body started to disappear like vapors in the wind.
"… Who are you after?" Gajeel had picked up all three and was moving back to the tree when he heard that. He and the large man looked at Vanitas was standing up against the tree, breathing hard as he held his side. "For Phantom to go through all this trouble, and for the two of you to be here… I know you guys must be on a mission of some sort judging by your methods… and having Fairy Tail come to you means that you are after someone in this town who came here recently… And besides me, there is only one other person in Fairy Tail that you could be after."
"I had forgotten how intelligent you were Vanitas, it certainly went well with that power of yours." Vanitas turned his head to see the large man was standing over him with a seal in front of his hand, "But I'm sad to say that you won't be able to tell anyone, Kūiki: Zetsu." Vanitas didn't have any time to move as he was struck by numerous blasts of air and was sent flying into the playground castle, crashing into it and made the entire thing collapse onto him. "A point blank shot will most definitely leave him on the brink if it didn't kill him."
"… That's one down, now to leave a message with these three." Gajeel looked up at the tree with a smirk, jumping onto the bark with a powerful leap with Levy in hand. "If they can ignore a destroyed building, then let's see them ignore this!"
(The Next Morning)
Natsu and the others were making their way through the large crowd that had formed around the park, Mirajane had contacted them about something terrible happening at the Southgate Park but seemed too distressed to say any more. All they could pick up from her was that she would meet them there, and to leave Nova at home. The five soon met up with Mirajane just outside the park where many townspeople could be seen around the main tree, and something was on that tree.
"Everyone please move aside, we're guild members." Erza led the group through the crowd to the center where the tree was, and what was nailed to the tree horrified them. Levy, Jet and Droy were all beaten and unconscious and were hanged against the tree by their arms. Dry blood was falling down their faces, their clothes were ripped and torn, and painted on Levy's stomach was the Phantom Lord symbol.
"L-Levy!" Lucy cried with tears building up in her eyes, and Happy was in a similar condition as he stood at her feet.
"Jet! Droy!" Gray took a hesitant step forward as he couldn't take his eyes off his injured friends.
Erza and Natsu's bodies trembled in anger, though Natsu seemed to stop as he picked up another scent coming from a few feet away, He looked passed the tree and saw the destroyed playground, and his eyes widened when he saw a hand sticking out at the bottom. "There's someone over there!" Natsu ran passed everyone and made his way to the rubble, throwing away anything in his way before finding the body the hand belonged to. "Vanitas!"
Hearing Natsu call out the Devil Slayer's name, Mirajane and a few others civilians rushed over and helped him get Vanitas out of the rubble. Just like Levy and the others Vanitas' condition was not looking good, in fact it looked worse. Mirajane took him from Natsu and immediately started using a little of the Chiyu Mahō to help Vanitas recover, there were tears building up in the white-haired girl's eyes as continued to heal him.
The sudden movements seemed to bother Vanitas as his eyelids scrunched up before they slowly started to open, his eyes moving from Mirajane to Natsu. "Mira… Natsu… I'm sorry I couldn't protect… Listen… you can't… let them…"
"Don't worry, just save your strength!" Natsu interrupted as he clenched his fists tightly, slowly standing up as flames formed around his body. "Phantom Lord is going to pay for what they've done… I don't give a shit anymore about maintaining order or peace…"
As Natsu was saying this, Makarov was walking through the crowd a white tunic with Fairy Tail symbol on the left collar and a black pants in which covered by a formal white coat with white fur around the edge and the Ten Wizard Saints symbol at the back. After getting a dozen feet away from the tree, he slowly came to a stop.
"Master…" Erza refused to take her eyes off of the tree.
Makarov's body trembled as he looked up at the three hanging from the tree and saw their injuries, he then turned towards the destroyed playground where Vanitas was once again unconscious and slowly being healed by tearful Mirajane. The grip he had on his staff tightened as he gritted his teeth in anger. "I can easily brush off someone destroying our headquarters and reducing it to rubble..." He began and everyone could hear the anger in his voice, his staff was crushed under his hand and fell to the floor. "...but I will never forgive anybody who brings harm to my children!"
Natsu and Makarov both released a lot of magical power as they said their next sentence at the same time, "I HOPE YOUR READY PHANTOM! THIS MEANS WAR!"
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Lucy, Mirajane and Nova sat side by side as they watched over their four fallen friends, making sure they were well watched over by Magnolia Hospital while everyone else went to Oak Town to bring the fight to Phantom Lord. While Mirajane stood up to check their bandages, Lucy was silently thinking to herself about the condition they were all in. And Vanitas had seemed to take the most injures from the attack, from what the magical doctors deduced from the magical remnant on his body that he had been fighting two powerful opponents.
"Levy, Jet, Droy, Vanitas…" Lucy looked out the window behind her where a clear view of the destroyed guild was seen. Memories of when she met Levy and her promise to let the blunette be one of the first to read her book. "This is just too cruel… Phantom. I will never forgive them for what they've done."
Mirajane was silent as she heard what Lucy had said, knowing full well how the girl was feeling. She was pulled out of her thoughts as something tugged her dress a little, "Aunt Mira… is Aunt Levy going to be okay? And the others too?"
"O-Of course they will Nova," Mirajane replied while flashing Nova a smile, she had to be strong for the girl. "But we have to take care of them and make sure they have all they need to get better, do you think you can help me with that?"
"I do my best." Nova nodded her head while holding her stuff dragon close.
Lucy watched in silence before looking back at Levy's sleeping face, 'Everyone… make them pay.'
(Oak Town/ Phantom Lord Branch Building)
"I heard Gajeel took care of four of their wizards! And one of them was that traitor Vanitas"
"Hahaha! Those fairies are probably crying in their beds like babies!"
"Cheers to those pathetic fairies!"
"Ah shoot! I lost track of time!"
"Meeting a girl?"
"Yeah, not too shabby looking either, though she is a client. When I threatened her, she doubled the reward for me."
Suddenly a huge explosion occurred as the Phantom Guild member speaking was just about to leave. The force of the explosion charred the mage and sent him flying into one of the tables and then into some of his fellow guild members before stopping just in front of the bar.
"W-What the hell?" One of the Phantom wizards said as they all turned to the entrance which was covered in smoke.
The smoke quickly cleared however to reveal an enraged Natsu glaring at the members of Phantom Lord, behind Natsu was Makarov and the other members of Fairy Tail all following his example and glaring at them. Makarov was the first one to speak.
"WE ARE FAIRY TAIL!"
Everyone shouted in agreement before charging forward with Natsu in the lead. Wizards from Phantom Lordwere sent flying from one side of the guild to the other. Fairy Tail had the edge in strength against Phantom Lord as their large numbers didn't seem to make any difference, this battle was the definition of quality over quantity. Gray used his ice make magic to freeze or attack his enemies, Erza would cut down her group of enemies with her swords, and Natsu would use his destructive flames to either send his enemies flying or torch them. The other guild members used their own powers to deal with their opponents, such as Elfman with his Teiku Ōbā arm, Cana with herMajikku Kādo and Bisca and Alzack with their Ganzu Majikku. Even Happy was joining in on the fight as he flew around the guild and smacked several Phantom members across the face with a small wooden club.
"Let's get Master Makarov!" A group of Phantom members yelled and charged at the small master of Fairy Tail. Makarov was unfazed by their attack as his eyes shot out a bright light and he grew about ten times his size. The attackers all stopped and looked up at him in fear as he smacked his hand down and crushing them. Cracking sounds were heard as both the floor and the bones of the poor mages who were struck were blocked out by the surrounding fights.
"Y-You monster..." One of the mages underneath his hand spoke as he heard his bones cracking and snapping.
"You bastards brought the fight to the children of that monster! Don't even for a second think you'll be protected by human laws!" Makarov roared in furious anger as some of the still conscious mages crushed by his hand screamed in fear.
"S-Such strength!" A member of Phantom shouted as he watched in fear as a group of his allies were sent flying.
"Their soldiers ain't small fry, either!" Another member cried out before being slammed in the face with a colorful boar created by Reedus.
"They're insane!"
"Jose!" Makarov roared again as he shrunk back down to his regular size. "Show yourself!"
"You guys aren't enough…" Slamming his fist into the ground, Natsu released several pillars of fire from the ground and sent the group surrounding him flying. "Now tell me… WHERE THE HELL IS GAJEEL?!"
"This is really strange, I don't see any members of the Element Four either." Erza said as she dodged an attack from behind and cut them down before using Kansō to summon her Entei no Yoroi. She spun her blade and created a small tornado of fire before charging forward towards another group of Phantom wizards.
"So...that's Erza the Titania, last time I saw her was at the tournament… And it looks like Salamander has gotten stronger as well since then…" Gajeel muttered as he looked down at the small battlefield from the rafters, his injuries from the night before almost completely gone. "But I don't see Gildarts, Laxus or Mystogan anywhere...hmph...they're underestimating us..." He crossed his arms as he watched Fairy Tail continue to push his guild, but that didn't seem to bother him by the smirk on his face. "It's surprised me to see Master Jose's plan is going so smoothly. Continue to rampage like usual, you worthless scum."
(Magnolia Hosptial)
Red eyes snapped open as Vanitas quickly shot up from his bed, his body flinching from the pain he was feeling. Looking down at himself, he could see his body was wrapped up in bandages and only dressed in pants. His gaze went to the beds across from him where Levy, Jet, and Droy were all recovering. Shaking his head the Devil Slayer slowly turned his body so his feet were off the bed and was about to get up when a voice called up from behind him.
"Vanitas, you're awake!" He turned his head to see Mirajane and Nova were entering the room, the barmaid quickly ran to his side. "You shouldn't get up right now, you've received a lot of damage."
"I can't, I need to tell Master Makarov and the others something important-!" Vanitas had managed to get to his feet but felt a sharp pain from the wound on his stomach and fell to his knees. "Gaahh, damn it…!"
"Don't push yourself, Master and everyone have already left town. They're going to war with Phantom Lord." Mirajane explained which only made Vanitas' eyes widen in shock. "Only Lucy, Nova and I remained so we could look after you and the others."
"… Where is Lucy? I need to know… where she is!" Vanitas gritted his teeth as he forced himself to stand.
Mirajane quickly moved to help him keep balance, "She went to get us some groceries so we could eat here. Why do you need to know?"
"Because the battle with Phantom Lord is just a diversion… a trap to keep Natsu and the others busy!" Mirajane gasped at Vanitas' words, "It was to get almost everyone out of the town so they could complete their mission."
(Meanwhile)
"Okay, so I got everything Mira asked for. Now I just need to head back to the hospital for lunch." Lucy said as she walked along a path with a bag of groceries in her arms. "It's kinda quiet with everyone gone." Her thoughts were interrupted when she felt rain drops start to fall and hit against her head.
"Rain?" She asked as she looked up to the sky. "No way... it's raining even though the sun is out?" She exclaimed in shock as she saw nothing but a clear blue sky above her. "W-What's going on?"
"Drip, drop" Lucy lowered her head to see a figure walking in the rain in front of her. "Yes...Juvia is a rain woman… Drip, drop."
"Huh?" Lucy questioned as she dropped the bag of food she brought to the ground and covered her head with her arms to prevent her hair from getting wet.
"What kind of woman are you?"
"Erm...who are you?" Lucy asked confused. She watched as the woman opened up her umbrella and then walked away.
"I had a fun time. Farewell."
"Eh? What was that all about?" Lucy shouted in complete shock.
"Non, non, non, non!" An annoying voice called out as the calmly laid-out road on the ground next to the blue-haired woman began to shift. A phallus started to emerge from the ground, and soon it shifted again to reveal a very skinny man wearing a brown suit and a monocle. "You shouldn't walk away from you job, Lady Juvia." said the man as he slid back to stand beside the blue haired woman. "I believe this young woman here is our cible."
(Magnolia Hospital)
"Their mission is to find and capture… Their target is Lucy!" Vanitas said while gritting his teeth, "We need to find her before they grab her while she's alone." Mirajane almost immediately nodded her head and the two ran out of the room, leaving a confused Nova sitting next to Levy's bed.
(Back With Lucy)
Lucy's eyes widened when she realized what the man said. "Cible...target?!"
The man tilted his body to the side with a hand on his monocle. "Sorry for the belated introductions, but I am Sol of Element 4, you can call me, Monsieur Sol."
Lucy gritted her teeth as she took a step back. "Element 4...Phantom!"
"We come from the Great Phantom Lord to welcome you."
"Juvia is a member of the Element 4, who brings rain." Lucy's eyes widened in shock as she dropped her bag of groceries.
'P-Phantom...these people are the ones who...' She felt anger build in her as she remembered what the doctors had said about two powerful wizards being responsible for the attack on Levy and Vanitas. She gritted her teeth and quickly went to her waist to grab her keys. "You are the ones who hurt Levy and Vanitas!"
Lucy's eyes widened as she was suddenly trapped in a large sphere of water, she shifted her gaze to the woman dressed in blue. "Juvia would never hurt Vanitas, because even while he is a member of Fairy Tail, he is Juvia's best friend."
"Non, non, non. I'd like to clear up that misunderstanding with three nons. Wrecking the guild and attacking your comrades were all done by Sir Gajeel, not us!" Sol rubbed his moustache as he watched Lucy try to move around in the water. "Although, it is true that this was a unanimous decision made by our guild."
"What is this...?" Lucy barely managed to say as she felt the air in her lungs give out on her. "Let me out!"
Juvia continued to hold her hand out as she easily controlled the water surrounding Lucy, "Juvia's Wōtā Rokku is unbreakable. But don't worry, Juvia will not kill you since that is not the job involving you, Lady Lucy Heartfilia." Lucy's eyes slowly closed and everything went black for the female wizard, her keys slowly falling from her hand and drifted down until they fell out of the water sphere.
"Mmmmm! Victoire!"
"Capture complete… Drip, drop."
(Phantom Lord Branch Building)
"Erza, Natsu!" Makarov shouted to his two S-class wizards as he made his way up the stairs, knocking away many of the Phantom members that tried to stop him. "I'm putting you two in charge here! Jose is probably at the top floor. I'm gonna tear him a new one!"
"As you wish, Master!" She replied with a nod and watched him as he walked up the stairs. She quickly turned back to the battle and had only one last thing to say before charging forward while changing her armor. "… Please be careful."
Natsu didn't say anything as he looked around the room, quickly devouring a large amount of fire created from a few explosions. "Thanks for the recharge, here let me thank you with something better than words." Bring his hands to form tunnel in front of his mouth, Natsu released his attack, 'Karyū no Hōkō!" A large stream of fire escaped from the makeshift tunnel and blew several wizards away.
"Aisu Meiku: Ransu!" Gray slammed his fist into his palm and channeled his ice to erupt from the floor, freezing a large amount of them. The ice user backed up a bit and was pressing backs with Natsu, "Not bad slanty-eyes, so any signs of Gajeel or the Elemental 4?"
"… I found Gajeel, and now I'm going to tear him a new one."
Gajeel was watching in amusement as Makarov blew the door and the wall surrounding it down, before making his way further into the building. "I guess now that the main threat is gone, I can have my fun with these guys." The next thing the iron-eating man knew, Natsu was in front of him with a look of rage on his face. He didn't have time to move as Natsu slammed his fist into Gajeel's face and sent him crashing through the beam and spiraling into the bar. Natsu dismissed the flames coming from his feet and fell back to the ground floor, landing in a crouch. Everyone stopped to see Gajeel emerge from the wreckage while cracking his neck, "Not a bad way to start… that actually stung a little."
Flames erupted from Natsu's body and his magical energy rose. "You're the one who hurt my friends and destroyed the guild hall."
"So what if I am?" Gajeel turned his arm into an iron club and shot it forward at Natsu, "I'll do to you what I did to them!"
Natsu's glare grew heavy as he caught the club with one hand, "For what you did to them… I'll send you to hell!" With a spin of his arm, Natsu threw the club and Gajeel into the air, catching the man by surprise.
"He was able to throw me?" The surprise didn't disappear as Natsu instantly appeared a foot away from him and kicked him in the face, Gajeel flipped backward and landed on his feet… upside down. He had created spikes at the bottom of his shoe to keep in on the beam. "I have to say you're not too bad Salamander. But you're going to need a lot more to hurt me."
"That was me just saying hello, the ones to follow will be a lot stronger." Natsu cracked his knuckles as he released even more of his power, "From one Dragon Slayer to another, I hope you bring your best. Because I have plenty of anger to take out on you for all that you've done to us."
"Okay then, shall we get started?" Gajeel jumped forward with a fist pulled back while Natsu pulled his own fist back. A second later their fists connected and the power of two Dragon Slayers clashed in a large, bright burst of magic.
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A/N: Chapter Eighteen is finished and the war between Fairy Tail and Phantom Lord begins. I hope it was enjoyable for all you readers out there. Be sure to review and no flames. I will ignore them and they will be given to Natsu.
A/N 2: Before any of you complain about Vanitas losing, let me remind you guys that he has restrictions on his magic that only the Magic Council, Rune Knights, Makarov and/or Natsu can remove. So since he was by himself at the time, he can only use a certain amount of power. So while fighting against one S-class would be fine for him as long as things are fair, fighting two people like Gajeel and Aria is a completely different matter.
Omake
A chibi Nova stood in front of the mission board with her stuffed toy in her arms.
Nova (Hugging her stuffed dragon close): It's so quiet now... I hope Aunt Levy will be alright.
Nova (Angrily waving her arms in the air): Stupid Phantom meanies! Mommy! Daddy! Grandpa and everybody! Kick their butts!
Nova (Looking back and forth with an question mark overhead): I wonder where Aunt Mira and Mr. Vanitas are? They really left in a hurry to find Ms. Lucy.
Nova (A sad look appears on her face): She seemed so sad before...
Nova (Perks her head up with a smile): I know, I'll draw her a picture! They always help people feel better!"
Nova: Next time on the Fairy Flame Dragon... Chapter 19 - The Heartfilia Heiress
Nova (Running off screen while laughing): I'm going to need a lot of colors for my picture! I know she'll love it!