Lucy and Natsu were eager to help the townspeople of Columbine so they packed their bags and headed out the next day. They invited Happy to join them but he had been invited on another mission with Carla which he didn't want to pass up. Natsu wished him good luck and agreed to bring him back a fish.
They took a four hour train ride to Begonia which was where a large part of the aid effort was being organized. From there, it was another 6 hour boat ride to Columbine. By the time they arrived, they were exhausted and Natsu was on the verge of dehydration due to his extreme motion sickness.
Looking around at the magnitude of the destruction was shocking. Not a single building was standing and refugees were camping in ruble that had once been city streets. Everyone looked tired, scared and overwhelmed.
Unfortunately, the refugee's problems couldn't easily be solved by magic. Lucy summoned Aires to create soft wool beds and Cancer gave free haircuts but most of the help they could offer came in the form of handing out food or providing comfort.
They worked into the night and only slept a few hours. The next morning, Lucy was up early and took a moment to watch the sunrise before the other villagers started to stir. Pink clouds gave way to soft purples and hints of blue, giving the impression that perhaps things would be better that day.
The peaceful scene was interrupted by dark masses moving quickly across the sky. Alarmed, Lucy reached over and shook Natsu.
"Natsu, wake up!" she cried.
He snorted loudly and sat up, still half asleep. "Huh?"
"Look up there!"
Natsu sat up and stared. He watched in awe for a few minutes and then tears began to stream down his face.
"Where do you think they're going?" he whispered.
Above them, at least a dozen dragons were gliding across the sky.
"Given the direction their heading, I'd bet anything this is connected to Zeref summoning the First." She swallowed hard. "Do you see Igneel?"
"No." Natsu sat and watched the last dragon disappear behind some clouds. He turned towards Lucy and wiped the tears away from his eyes. "I didn't see Igneel but you can bet anything that we're going to go find those dragons."
She nodded solemnly. "I know."