Sweat dripped down Lucy's back but it wasn't because of the hot summer sun. A thin bandit wearing a black mask was circling her, looking for a chance to attack.

Lucy decided to act first, drawing one of her keys. "Open Celestial Gate of the Golden Bull!" she shouted.

There was a loud "Moo!" that made her cringe. Suddenly, the Celestial Spirit Taurus was standing next to her, flaring his nostrils and flexing his arms.

"Don't lay a hand on the beau-ooo-ti-ful Lucy!" he yelled as he slammed the broad side of his ax into the bandit. The blow sent the masked man flying back ten feet. He struck a tree and slumped to the ground.

Lucy put her key back on its keyring and reached for the handcuffs on her hip. This latest round-up of criminals was just one of many in the last two weeks. Gangs like these had been running wild since the city of Margaret had been completely leveled by the dragon-king Acnologia. The event had sent a wave of fear throughout the kingdom, sparking riots and looting. The police had their hands full so Fairy Tail had been called in to help keep the peace.

She took a couple steps towards the bandit and then stopped— he was beginning to move.

"You're tougher than you look," she said.

The masked man stood and dusted the dirt off his pants. "I could same the same thing about you, Ms. Heartfilla."

Lucy froze. How did the man know her name? She recognized his voice, but from where?

"Who are you?" she asked.

The bandit began laughing and her adrenaline spiked. She recognized that laugh—it was Jose Porla, Guild Master of Phantom Lord and former member of the Ten Wizard Saints.

"I see you remember me, Ms. Heartfilla," Jose said with a tone that was a bit too polite to be genuine.

"How could I forget the man who declared war on Fairy Tail and pinned my best friend to a tree?" she asked.

Jose took off his mask, revealing a long nose and thin goatee. "Come now, I don't deserve all the credit for that one. I simply ordered the attack— your friend Gajeel was the one who carried it out." He looked around the forest's clearing. "Unfortunately for you, the fire dragon slayer has his hands full and I don't see Erza Scarlet here to protect you this time."

Lucy looked across a small stream in the direction of his gaze. He was right, Natsu, was fighting another bandit and had his hands full—she would have to try to handle Jose herself.

She glanced at Taurus. He was palming his ax, ready for a fight.

"Jelly Fish form!" Jose shouted.

Dozens of ghostly purple jelly fish appeared and began hitting Taurus with long tentacles. The bull's thick skin offered his some protection but Lucy could tell that the blows were causing him pain. She grabbed another key.

"Open, Celestial gate of the Scorpion!" she shouted.

Scorpio, the master of sand magic appeared with a soft puff of smoke. He aimed his mechanical tail at Jose, and let loose a torrent of sand, completely covering the mage. Lucy watched the pile of sand, waiting to see if the attack had worked.

There was a loud bang as the pile of sand suddenly dissipated. Jose stood there, grinning at Lucy. "My, my… you've gotten a lot stronger, haven't you?"

He motioned with his hands, summoning more of his shade magic. "Shade Entangle!"

The air was suddenly cold and a feeling of dread overcame her. She looked around and saw an army of purple ghosts. They grabbed her and her spirits in an immobilizing grip. The more she struggled, the firmer their hold became.

Lucy stretched her hand and her fingers touched another key.

"Open, Celestial gate of the Archer!" she shouted.

Mist cleared, revealing Sagittarius, the expert archer. With blinding speed, he released a series of arrows, striking each of the shade spirits in the chest and causing them to disappear.

Lucy broke free from the last shade spirit holding her and charged Jose. The older man's eyes widened in surprise the instant before Lucy landed a perfect roundhouse kick to the side of his face. He spun and fell to the ground.

"Damn you," he muttered. He struggled to get up, clearly unsteady.

Before he could find his footing, a large tree came crashing down on top of him, knocking him unconscious.

Lucy looked towards the direction the tree had fallen from. Taurus was standing there with a wide grin.

"I don't think he will be moooo-ving any time soon."

Lucy looked back at Natsu.

His opponent was putting up an impressive fight. He was wearing a black mask similar to the one Jose had worn but Lucy recognized his broad chest and top hat.

It was Aria.

Aria was another strong mage who had managed to defeat their own Guild Master, Makarov, in a battle several years ago.

She raised an arm.

Survey the Heaven, Open the Heaven

All the Stars, Far and Wide

Show me Thy Appearance

With Such Shine

O Tetrabiblos

I am the Ruler of the Stars

Aspect Became Complete

Open They Malevolent Gate

O 88 Stars of Heaven

Shine!

A massive beam of light surrounded Natsu and Aria, making the earth rumble. The power from the spell blew Lucy's hair back, forcing her to shield her eyes against the blaze. When the light cleared, it revealed tendrils of smoke and two fallen bodies.

Lucy winced. Perhaps the spell had been a little excessive.

She crossed the stream, trying her best to stick to the dry stones so she wouldn't have to walk back to the Guild with wet shoes. Natsu was groaning but alive.

She offered him and hand up and winced when she noticed that his hair was slightly burnt around the edges.

"Sorry about that." Lucy tried her best to fix his hair. Thankfully, there were no major bald spots.

Natsu scowled at her. "I had things under control. You didn't have to go nuclear on the situation."

"I said I'm sorry. I'm still trying to get a handle on my attack radius." She turned to look for her travel bag. Suddenly, something slammed into her side and knocked her to the ground.

She looked up and saw Natsu hovering over her.

"You're way stronger now. We should fight!" he said with a grin.

"Absolutely not." She pushed against his chest.

Natsu stuck out his lower lip.

"No," she repeated.

He sighed let go of her. "I don't get it. How come you've improved so quickly?" he asked, suddenly seriousness. "Are you training in secret?"

Lucy sat up and tried her best to brush the ash off her shirt. She briefly considered retaliation but rejected the idea. "Why, are you jealous of my new skills?"

"No, I just want to know what's going on with you," he said ignoring her attempt at humor.

She found her travel bag and pulled out a length of rope. "Well, this is going to sound a little weird, but I think I'm practicing magic in my sleep."

He raised his eyebrows. "That sound like something a lazy person would say. You must be joking."

"I'm not joking and if either of us is lazy, it's you."

"How can you possibly practice magic in your sleep?"

Lucy shrugged. "I've been having dreams where I train with a powerful mage. After I wake up, I test out the techniques he's taught me and they actually seem to improve my magic. I figure it has to be the power of positive thinking or something."

"The power of positive thinking?"

"Yeah. You know… when you believe in yourself, you can do anything."

"I don't think it works that way."

"Well, whatever it is, it is working," she said.

Natsu stared at her. "Don't you think it's weird that you're learning magic in your dreams?"

"Well, maybe it's a little weird, but what else could it be?" She tightened the rope around Jose's hands and he grunted.

"Did you ever consider that a real person is manipulating your dreams?"

Lucy paused. "Why would someone do something like that?"

He frowned. "I have no idea but it seems like a more probably explanation than positive thinking. Does this mage have a name?"

"Yeah, Mr. Black."

Natsu rolled his eyes. "That's original. Do you think he'll enter your dreams tonight?"

"Maybe. I've been dreaming about him almost every night for the last two weeks."

"Two weeks? Damn Luce, you should have mentioned something sooner. How about I come over tonight and watch you while you're dreaming. I'll see if I sense anything out of the ordinary."

"O—kay, if you really think it's necessary." She looked at him suspiciously. "Is this just an excuse to eat all my food and sleep in my bed?"

Natsu laughed. "Nah, I don't need an excuse to do that."