Mist swirled around her and began to take form. Mard Geer noticed something was happening and approached. "What the hell? Get away from that." He tried to pull her away from the spirit that was beginning to take shape.

They were interrupted by a roar so loud that loose rocks fell from the mountain.

Acnologia had noticed them. He stopped his assault on Natsu and turned towards them.

"Uh oh," said Happy.

"Temple of Thorns!" shouted Mard Geer.

Thousands of thick thorns suddenly grew from the ground and wove their way around Lucy and Happy. They were inside a protective shell.

The thorns blocked out most of the sunlight except for few beams which gave Lucy the chance to see the Spirit that was still forming

Brotan was a white dragon, similar to the Queen but he did not appear to be albino. Flecks of gold accented his body.

Zeref had been accurate when he stated that Brotan was more like a Ghost than a Celestial Spirit. He did not have a solid form—half of his body was actually outside the thorny barrier and half was inside.

He stared at the human who had just summoned him, curious. His head turned when Acnologia released another roar.

"Aaron," he said in a sad voice.

Brotan turned his head back and had a concerned expression. "You are either very brave or very stupid." He spoke with an eerie calmness. It seemed that the dead didn't have many worries.

It was good that Mard Geer was trying to protect her. This would buy Natsu the time he needed to regroup and defeat Acnologia.

"Aaron will be here any minute. There is nothing I can do to protect you. Maybe once when I was alive…" said the spirit.

"I know. I just wanted to give Natsu a chance"

"Then you are prepared to die?" He stared at her another moment. "Wait, what is that on your belt?"

Lucy's hands instinctively reached for her keys. "My Celestial keys."

"How many do you have?" he asked with growing excitement.

"All twelve."

"Child, this is fate! The Gods have intervened on your behalf for this cannot be a coincidence!"

"What are you talking about?" she asked.

"If you destroy those keys, you can give me solid form."

Lucy stared at him, horrified. "But—but I cannot destroy my keys. This is how I summon my spirits to this world. Without my keys, I won't be able to see my friends."

"And you won't be able to see your friends if you're dead either! Quickly, destroy the keys and say my name after each one is broken."

Was this her destiny? Death might have been less painful but it wasn't just her death that she had to worry about. She had no doubt Acnologia would go after Zeref and Natsu as soon as he was done with her.

A loud boom shattered her concentration. Something enormous had just crashed into the mountain. The fight had started.

"Okay!" she shouted over the noise. She picked up a key at random and stared down at it. It was the key of the water bearer—Aquarius's key. A lump formed in the back of her throat and she snapped the key in half.

"Brotan!" she shouted.

She reached for another key. It was the key of the Bull—Taurus. "Goodbye old friend," she whispered. She broke the key.

"Brotan!"

Tears were streaming down her face but Lucy continued to break her most cherished possessions—the bound between her and her spirits.

Cancer... "Brotan!"

Scorpio…"Brotan!"

Virgo… "Brotan!"

Loke… "Brotan!"

One after another, the bonds with her friends disappeared.

Sagittarius… "Brotan!"

Aires… "Brotan!"

Lucy paused and looked at the First. "Is anything happening? You don't look any different."

"We don't have much time, please continue!"

What if he was lying to her? Lucy didn't know this spirit at all. She could be sacrificing her friends for nothing.

"How can I trust you?" she asked.

Something heavy slammed into the thorn barrier. The walls bent from the force but held.

"We don't have time for this. You just have to trust me!" shouted the First.

Lucy pushed her fears aside. This just had to work.

Gemini… "Brotan!"

Capricorn… "Brotan!"

A black claw the size of a horse pierced the enclosure and ripped away a section of thick thorns. Lucy stared out at Acnologia. The upper half of Mard Geer's body was sticking out of his mouth—his dead eyes were open wide as if he were shocked that the beast had defeated him.

Pisces… "Brotan!"

She picked up her last key and looked Acnologia square in the face. "This is for Natsu you son of a bitch!" She snapped the last key—Libra. "Brotan!" she shouted.

The entire sky turned black and then lightening flashed, showing velvety clouds. Lucy could feel the magic everywhere—it rushed through her body and poured out of her in every direction. It hurt worse than anything she had ever experienced.

It felt like something popped inside her head and then there was red-hot searing pain. Something inside of her had burst. Tunnel vision took over and she began to fall. As if in slow motion, she could see the ground coming towards her but her body couldn't brace itself. Her head hit the ground.

She was dying. Her thoughts were becoming sluggish and confused.

In the darkness, a shadow emerged.

Bortan stretched his jaws and roared. The sound was proud, majestic and strong. With the grace of a mythical hunter, he unwrapped his wings and stood tall. The father of all dragons had just been reborn and he was ready to fight.

Please let me stay alive long enough to see this.

Acnologia stopped attacking the thorns and hissed. Brotan lunged at him and sank his teeth into the monster's neck.

The pain in Lucy's head was getting worse. Some part of her knew that going to sleep wasn't a good idea but she couldn't fight it anymore. She closed her eyes.

She had finished something important for the man she loved. It was a comforting last thought.