[Re-written 05-08-22]

Hola, everyone ready for a trip to Heaven?

It's another long one, just under 8000 words, as usual, I hope you all enjoy!

~Onward

15

-The Tower-

Natsu and Laxus ran down the flooded hallway just as the tension of confrontation was draining out of Haru's body. He watched the water splash up around his fellow dragon slayers as they approached. Both their heads were swivelling back and forth, apparently taking in the destruction of the south wing. "Looks like you had way too much fun without us!" Natsu called to him.

Haru shrugged a shoulder and laughed softly despite the slowly deteriorating situation, but his worry remained palpable as his eyes shifted between his comrades. "Listen guys, I was on my way to Mest, when Juvia here, attacked me," he gestured to the bluenette behind him. "Mest was attacked by Sol of the Earth, but we all know his magic isn't well suited to combat, and I can't reach him anymore."

The newly arrived Slayers both turned their agitation over the news on the only target presently available. With a squeak of concern, Juvia threw her hands up in surrender, eyes darting between the calculating glares of Haru's comrades. "Lay off guys, Juvia's not our enemy," he stated. His explanation was greatly lacking, but without any questioning Natsu moved toward her with an unreadable expression. His hand glowed as he pulled something from his requip space and Juvia flinched away from him, seemingly worried that he was going to disregard Haru's call for a truce. But instead, he just silently reached for her wrist and began splinting it.

Juvia murmured her gratitude and relief in a few breathless words as Haru continued the train of the worries plaguing him. "To further complicate matters, Siegrain might be more powerful than we realized, and he vanished without word of where or why."

Without further discussion, the reunited dragon slayers and Juvia took off toward the east wing in search of Mest. As the group skirted through the halls, Yajima explained to them that Grand Doma had also been imprisoned, though he wasn't sure where. Juvia had pointed out that the Element Four had been taking their orders directly from Grand Doma, that the Council leader had in fact, been the one to command them to lock up the unruly members. But that apparently wasn't the case. Yajima was sure someone was using transformation magic to maintain control over the Council network and Siegrain was clearly pulling the strings.

"Have you heard anything about a tower?" Natsu asked randomly, turning his attention to the small man on Laxus' back.

"No, sorry, I have not. However, it might be interesting to note that the Lord Heartfilia has been coming around to conduct private meetings with Lord Siegrain, for some unknown reason."

Natsu felt cold, a very foreign feeling for a fire mage, but he had to focus on the problem at hand, for now. "We need to find Mest and get back to Fairy Tail, pronto," he growled through clenched teeth. He knew Lucy was with Erza and Gray to ensure her safety because Makarov had requested she always be with someone from Dragon Soul, until this matter was resolved. Even knowing that, he couldn't stop the shaky breath that escaped him; he just didn't like not being there himself.

. . .

The group had long since escaped the flooded south wing and the clicks of their heels rang out through pristine hallways again. Back in the outer halls, large open-air arches offered unobstructed views of the gardens surrounding the Council headquarters, and the setting sun bled vibrant colour into the vast skies beyond. They'd been gone far too long. Makarov and their guildmates would surely be worrying at this point.

"I knew you'd come back to me, Natsu," a voice chimed as the team rounded the corner.

They came to an abrupt stop a few meters away from Ultear, the unconscious form of their comrade was slumped back in her grip. Mest didn't appear to be injured currently but the dagger that Ultear held to his throat, posed enough of a threat to freeze them all in their steps.

"How the hell did you get out of my cuffs?!"

"Oh, I have my ways, little dragon," she condescended. His anger wafted off of him in literal waves of heat, but that did little to decrease the time mage's amusement. "Now, why don't you behave yourself and return the book you've been keeping safe for me, hm?"

"You stole it from us in the first place!" Laxus snapped, taking a step forward as lightning crackled menacingly around him.

"Uh-uh, I wouldn't do that…" Ultear reprimanded, pressing the blade into Mest's throat just enough to draw a line of blood. The group immediately froze again.

Natsu dropped his head in defeat, bangs hiding his eyes in shadow as he cursed under his breath. He requipped the tome and held it up at arm's length. "Release Mest first, or you will never get this book back," he bit out in ultimatum.

"I don't think that I will," she retorted with a smile. Natsu took a threatening step forward, but it did nothing to falter her efforts in fanning the fires of his gradually building anger. "Tell you what, little dragon... You, only you, may come over here and trade my book for your friend."

Natsu eyed her skeptically, taking a few steps forward before she laughed and held out a palm to stop his advance again. "Oops, forgot one thing," she said mirthfully. She reached behind her back and pulled his anti-magic cuffs from the sash of her kimono, "first, I think these would look much better on you, than they did on me. Don't you agree?" The sly smugness in her teasing question had him glaring back uselessly. She tossed him the cuffs and he snatched them out of the air, reining in the flare of magic that burst off him in response to his now raging emotions.

Natsu's eyes darted around, desperately searching for a solution that would see them all walking out of here with both Lullaby's book and Mest, returning to their family unharmed and mission successful. There was none. He knew there was none. She had him trapped, and she knew it as well. It burned to concede this round to her... But she had won. He was a dragon caged. Judging by the low grumbles of his fellow dragon slayers flanking him, they had no viable plan either.

"Fuck," Natsu growled through gritted teeth. He turned to Haru and handed him the cuffs, holding his wrists out to be restrained.

Haru balked, "No way Natsu! What are you thinking?! We can't trust her!"

Ultear laughed maniacally and spun the blade in her hand a few times before fixing it back to Mest's throat in a silent threat. Natsu had been watching her from the corner of his eye, but they shifted to meet deep blue eyes now and he slapped a hand over Haru's shoulder. "I don't like this either Haru, but you know we can't put Mest's safety in jeopardy. Besides, you and Laxus have my back, so I'll be fine!"

His partner didn't look any more appeased by his confidence in them, but he begrudgingly secured the cuffs regardless. The muscles of his jaw clenched subconsciously as he was forced to observe powerlessly as Natsu flinched at the feeling of being cut off from his magic. There were few worse sensations in the world, for a mage.

Natsu gave the Water Slayer a toothy grin, trying to convey confidence, trying to hide the worry that had settled in his gut. Ultear was cunning, and he couldn't make heads or tails of just what she was up to. He knew he was walking into a trap, but more than that, he felt like a tiny rabbit willingly entering the wolf's den. He was a fucking dragon, he didn't do prey. There was no way he'd give her the satisfaction of seeing his unease. Behind him, the group watched with bated breath as Natsu walked straight up to the time mage without hesitation and stopped a breath away, to glare down at her.

"Ah, yes, just how I like my dragons," she purred, "in chains."

Natsu's eyes flashed as he bared his teeth at her and immediately demanded that she release their comrade now. Much to the fire mage's incredible displeasure, she ignored his demand and responded by bringing a hand up to caress the thin fabric covering his chest. Her eyes scanned over his comrades remaining a short distance away. "These coordinated uniforms are really something else, my props to whoever came up with them," Ultear praised. She ran her tongue over her lips as she allowed herself a moment to appreciate the physiques of the three dragon slayers. Then she let her fingertips skim down the fire mage's abs to land on the book he was still holding and in a single fluid motion, she snatched the book from his grip and shoved Mest harshly toward their audience.

Haru leapt forward to catch him and turned his attention back just in time to see Ultear throw him a victorious smirk. Her grip returned to Natsu's upper arm and then they both vanished without a trace, just as Siegrain had earlier.

. . .

"NATSUUUU!" Haru screamed in equal parts panic and fury.

"FUCK!" Laxus roared, followed by a stream of additional curses. Pivoting, he slammed a thunder enhanced fist into the wall, obliterating the stone between the arches and leaving a massive hole in its wake.

Juvia had to pull the guys out of their shared fury as squadrons of Rune knights started pouring down the corridor on either side, aiming to trap them. "No time boys, we have to get out of here in one piece first, if we are going to help Natsu!"

The group dove for the hole in the crumbling mess of a wall and made a run for it, but they didn't make it far before large groups of knights were converging on them in a matter of minutes.

"We can't hurt them too bad, they're not mages and they aren't at fault," Laxus reminded, visibly reining in his own instincts to take his anger out on them by way of association. The trio fought their way through the army with half-power spells aiming to just knock the knights back to clear their way. They were making some steady progress when the remaining mages of the Element Four appeared to challenge their retreat. Getting away was already proving incredibly difficult, between carrying Mest and Yajima, not to mention Haru's own injuries from back to back battles.

Juvia headed off her teammates before they could attack though, defending Fairy Tail's mages and explained what had happened with Siegrain. It took some convincing, and Laxus and Haru remained tense and ready to defend if she failed to reason with them, but soon their new comrade was rejoining them with Aria in tow. Juvia succeeded in getting the Element Four to stand down, and the air mage was willing to teleport them back to Magnolia.

The Dragon Slayers released a shared sigh of relief. Time was critical here, and with Mest down for the count, the Element Four's confrontation couldn't have worked out better for them. The strange robed man stepped forward as everyone took grip of one another and in a nauseating whirling of space, Aria had them standing back in the town square of Magnolia.

Fairy Tail

Lucy sat quietly with her chin resting on the top of Happy's head, the cat was uncharacteristically subdued as he sat wrapped in her arms. The rest of her company weren't anymore talkative than the cat was, as they waited in collective anxiety.

The stealth team had left early that morning on what should have been a straight-forward mission. Number one priority: get in, find Yajima, get out.

If everything had gone smoothly, then they should have been back hours ago. Across the table, Gray was down to just his boxers, not that anyone had the energy to scold him. He was facing away the team, sitting across from Lucy with his back leaning against the tabletop. Erza and Wendy sat to his left; the pair had found a sort of sisterly bond since the younger slayer's departure from Cait Shelter. Wendy frequently relied on the redhead for comfort when she was upset.

Lucy shifted and buried her face in Happy's fur as she tried to contain her growing nerves, until the pressure of a hand on her shoulder drew her attention. She looked up to find Mira above her, offering a half-smile as she squeezed her shoulder again. "They'll be back before we know it," she told them all as a group.

Dragon Soul wasn't used to waiting on the sidelines for some of their own. But for Mira, the crushing weight of anxiety as she waited powerlessly for word of her family's safe returns, was a more common experience than she'd like to admit. It was moments like this that she felt the desperate urge to unleash the power she herself had buried, but her fears surrounding it, still trumped those desires.

Lucy covered Mira's hand on her shoulder with her own, and hugged Happy tighter as he mumbled Natsu's name dejectedly.

"Mira's right, they're Fairy Tail's Twin Dragons for fuck's sake, and besides, Mest is with them to teleport out if things get hairy," Gray put in as he swivelled on the bench to offer his own reassurances. Lucy had never heard him praise their strength so openly before. She assumed he had said it for their benefits, but the more she observed him, she realized it had been for his own reassurance as well. He shook himself from whatever thoughts were in his head and quickly added, "they'll be back any minu—"

The guild doors blew open, cutting his sentiment short. Everyone's attention whipped in that direction, hearts pounding. Five figures stopped in the doorway, shadows obscured them and the night was black beyond. Five. So they must have rescued Yajima, the mission was a success then... Lucy gave a sigh of relief, and noted her companions doing the same in unison, but it was short lived. No boisterous cheers rang out, no celebrations of a return home. Natsu's typical call of, 'We made it back alive!' remained a noticable absence, bringing with it a deafening silence in Lucy's head.

It was like all the occupants of the guildhall had been frozen in that moment. The five in the doorway hesitated, and their guildmates remained still as they tried to figure out what was so strange about the air that was settling around them. Then Laxus stomped in, dragging Yajima with him, "Come on, we need to go talk to Gramps." He offered no glances and no words of explanation to his guildmates. He just brushed past the odd person on his way to the staircase.

Gray was on his feet the next second, leaving his stunned teammates at the table as the remaining stealth team moved into the guildhall. The ice mage's eyes raked over the vacant look on Haru's face and the severe bruising on his chest, then over Mest's unconscious form slung between the Dragon Slayer and a mystery girl. Finally, a glaring absence.

Where was Natsu…?

Gray's eyes shifted back to Haru, "What happened?"

Haru's mouth opened slightly, before he snapped it shut with a resounding click and dropped his head in shame.

"Juvia can tell you everything that happened," the unknown bluenette put in. She gave Haru a supportive nod, sparing him a moment longer to gather his emotions. "We should get Mest to a bed to rest, first," she suggested.

Gray eyed her suspiciously before stepping forward to shift the burden of Mest's weight off Haru. He paused, warily appraising his friend who remained stone still, blue eyes glazed over, their focus a million miles away from them. Gray sighed and led the way across the guildhall toward the infirmary and Erza watched them go, apparently torn between following to hear the information Juvia could provide, or staying with Haru. After only a moment's hesitation, Wendy left, darting after Gray to offer her healing magic. Carla trailed after them, peeling worried eyes away from Dragon Soul.

It was then, that Lucy finally broke out of her trance. She stood on shake legs, and stumbled forward with Happy still in her arms, the cat's own eyes brimming with tears. "Where is Natsu?" she choked out, voice raising with a level of hysteria, "why isn't he with you?!"

With his face still hidden behind a curtain of dark bangs, Haru finally answered, "Natsu was taken."

It seemed with the admission finally hanging heavy between them, Haru snapped. He dropped to his knees heavily and slammed a fist into the wood floor. The boards cracked under the blow, leaving a sizeable dent under his force. "Ultear took him, and there was nothing I could do to stop it!"

Lucy released a shaky breath and Happy began sobbing openly now as the pair collapsed into a crumpled mess on the floor. Erza crouched and wrapped an arm around the two, without taking her eyes off Haru.

Watching the entire scene with a warring mix of emotions, Mira moved to kneel in front of Haru and took his face between her hands, forcing him to meet her eyes. "This is not your fault, Haru" she told him with conviction.

He swatted her hand away, "You don't understand, I put the damn anti-magic cuffs on him!" Haru met her gaze then, the barmaid's blue orbs shone with unshed tears, as he assumed his own were. "Natsu could have taken her down, if it weren't for those cuffs. But she took him, probably to that stupid tower that Natsu mentioned, and we don't even know where to start looking for it!" Pausing, he dropped his eyes once again, the anger he'd been wearing like amour, drained out of him. "I was powerless to stop it," he repeated in a whisper only loud enough for her to hear.

Mira leaned forward further, folding him into her embrace, "Trust me, I know exactly how you feel." The tension drained way with his anger and stray tears finally slipped down his cheeks as he returned the hug.

"We will get Natsu back!" Erza's voice sounded behind them and everyone slowly pulled themselves from their grief and fear to give her their attention. A visible shudder went through her body, and she had to steel herself for what would come next, but this was for one of her dearest friends...

"I know the tower they speak of."

. . .

"We should talk somewhere more private," Erza suggested, still warring with the instincts that told her to run, to hide her weakness, to continue the strong façade she worked so hard to present.

Mira turned toward her friend and dragged Haru to his feet. "Infirmary, Gray should hear this as well, and this idiot—" she cocked her head back in Haru's direction, gaining an irritated click of his tongue, "should see Wendy as well." No one objected and Haru allowed Mira to drag him toward the infirmary as their small group followed her and Erza.

Gray and Juvia were still in the room, the former had his elbows propped on one of the vacant beds, his face buried in his hands with messy bangs trapped between clenched fingers. He glanced up as the rest of the team filed into the infirmary. Wendy slept soundly on a chair beside Mest's bed, her cheeks puffy and red from crying. Carla watched them enter apprehensively, "Do not wake her up... the poor girl is exhausted, and devastated, she needs to sleep."

"But Haru's—" Mira started to retort.

"It's fine, my injuries can wait, let her rest..." Haru muttered. That didn't stop the white-haired girl from dragging him to a third bed despite his protests. "Mira, I'm fine, really, I just need to focus on rescuing Natsu!" he complained.

She ignored him, as did the rest of his team as they all settled into the room. "How is Mest?" Erza asked, addressing the ice mage.

"Wendy said he had no concerning injuries, and she couldn't find anything else wrong, so he probably just needs a few hours rest and should be good as new," he reported.

Erza nodded, turning her attention to the new girl that had accompanied her comrades home. "Juvia was it?" she asked, extending a hand in greeting. The blunette nodded, accepting the hand. "Thank you for helping bring my friends home... You are welcome to stay, but please don't feel obligated, you've already done so much for us, this isn't your fight."

Shaking her head briefly, Juvia replied quietly, "Fairy Tail showed Juvia kindness, she would like to help bring Natsu home too."

Smiling softly, Erza agreed without hesitation. She dropping onto the top of the bed that Gray was slumped over and took a deep inhale. "Before I tell you all about my suspicions of the Tower, there are some things you should understand about my childhood..." Erza started to tell them her story when a sharp hiss of air from Haru, distracted her. Glancing over her shoulder at the pair seated on the next bed over, she raised a brow in questioning.

"Sorry Erza, pretty sure Haru fractured his sternum... among other things," Mira supplied and tapped the bone again for good measure. Haru grimaced and cursed under his breath at the action. "But yeah, you're totally fine," she told him sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

"Geez Mira, message received, okay?! You win! Gentle please!"

"Sorry about the interruption Erza," Mira repeated, ignoring the water mage as she methodically spread an ice-infused medicinal cream over his chest to reduce the inflammation. He hissed in pain again and Erza chuckled in spite of everything, dismissing the detour with a wave.

Again, she began to tell the few mages present about the hardships of her past, how her family, neighbours and friends had been slaughtered when she was just a child. As most of the younger Fairy Tail generation were orphans, they could empathize with her pain all too well, having experienced similar traumatic events. But for Erza, that trauma had continued for years after.

She told them how all the children of Rosemary Village had been rounded up and shipped off to be enslaved in the construction of the Tower or Heaven.

Erza subconsciously massaged her wrists as the phantom pressure of the cuffs she had worn for years crawled through her body. The subtle action didn't escape her friends' keen attentions, and Gray reached over to cover her hand with his own. Turned a grateful look on him, she continued her story.

Children had been the preferred workers because they were seen as easy to control, and so the majority of the people Erza was surrounded with, were other children, as terrified and powerless as she had been. A small smile graced the redhead's face despite her tragic story as she recounted the close-knit community of friends that developed within in her cell block. They protected each other where they could, even picking up extra slack if someone wasn't well, so they wouldn't draw the attention of the merciless enforcers that oversaw their work.

"For three years we were beaten, starved, toyed with, and pushed to our limits to construct the tower as fast as possible. And in all those years, I had to watch idly as people I came to see as family, died." She paused to catch up with her thoughts and wrestle her emotions back under control. Her mute brown eyes swept over all her friends sitting around her and listening patiently.

Haru's chest now sported layers of bandages, courtesy of Mira's first aid, and she and Lucy had both taken up residence on the bed to either side of him. Happy remained close to the blonde, cuddling into her side. Gray was still offering silent support in the form of a firm grip on Erza's shaking hand, and Juvia had pulled a chair up beside the bed the two of them occupied.

Releasing a long breath, Erza realized she was more scared to see her comrades' reactions to the next development of her story, then allowing them to see her perceived weakness. "Finally, one day, my dearest friend Jellal, was taken, he had been the strongest of us and I, like most of our block, drew on his optimism and strength. I never saw Jellal again, but years later Siegrain appeared as a council member seemingly out of nowhere, with my friend's face."

A visible shudder crawled through Haru's body. His short battle with Siegrain was still fresh in his memory, as was the expression on his face, just before he'd vanished. A look that could've only be described as unadulterated evil.

Haru had been caught up in Erza's story, but now his fears for Natsu were heightened all over again. Siegrain had seemed far too interested in the power of dragon slayers... Haru dropped his head forward into his hands, it wouldn't be the first time some deranged psycho had wanted to get their hands on a dragon slayer for malicious intensions.

Lucy's hand came up to stroke his back, offering what comfort she could. The stellar mage never seized to amaze him. She was so in tune with the emotional states of those around her, and regardless of her own emotional state, she'd selflessly offer support. Mira's hand squeezed his leg, just above his knee, and he absent-mindedly covered it with his own. Turning her hand over, she threaded her fingers between his and he took a small comfort in the warmth of her gesture.

'Natsu. Please be okay, I don't know if we can make it without you,' Haru thought. It had always seemed to him that a lot of Fairy Tail drew on Natsu's strength and courage, the same way Erza's block had drawn on Jellal's. Haru certainly did. The fiery, pink-haired mage's determination had been absolutely infectious from the first moment he'd met him. It was a large part of what had him finally accepting the draw of Fairy Tail. He could still remember the smug but warm grin on Natsu's face as Mira held up the Guild's stamp, shining a bright blue with its magic potential. The welcoming cheers of some of the members as the blue emblem imbued itself onto his skin, and into the core of his being, binding him eternally as one of them. A Fairy Tail mage.

Erza's story started up again, pulling him from his reminiscing.

"Shortly after Jellal was taken, Grampa Rob— we all called him that… Told us he would fight for our freedom." Erza's voice dropped a little as she explained that as the guards began ushering them back to their cells for the night, Rob had unleashed a magic power that he'd kept concealed. His power was strong enough to single-handedly knock back and hold off their captors as the children all made a run for it. They were fortunate that their cell block happened to be on one of the lowest levels of the tower, but the majority of them still didn't make it out. Rob had held the enforcers off as long as he'd been able before taking a fatal blow, and Erza would always hear Millianna's answering screams echoing through the recesses of her mind.

She also remembered the desperation that had flooded her after. The desperate need to run to his side, and fight with him, despite having no tools or magic with which to do so. It was the other children freezing all around her, that had settled the painful decision on her shoulders. A decision no child should ever have to face: to help him, which would've most likely just ended in her death as well, or to help them. The reality that she was the only one who could get them to safety had hit her just as hard.

With freely flowing tears, she pulled the youngest of them, Millianna and Sho, along with her, and in the end only the three of them had been able to escape amidst the chaos. The trio had hid in the crevasses outside along the Tower's base until the searches had dwindled and it had been assumed, they'd drowned trying to swim for it.

When it'd seemed safe, Erza had crawled into one of the small boats the guards used to shuttle new workers to the island, pulling the others along with her. She'd rowed away from the tower, with the sounds of her companions' whimpering around her, struggling under the weight of the family they'd been forced to leave behind.

Erza didn't tell her guildmates that she'd never shaken the overwhelming feelings of cowardice and shame that burdened her for abandoning so many of her friends and the other slaves on the upper floors. Those feelings had pushed her to locate the guild Grampa Rob had hailed from. She had spent the majority of her first years with Fairy Tail training and honing the first sparks of her magic power, vowing she'd never let another loved one down again. It wasn't until Gray, Natsu, and shortly after Mira and her siblings had joined, that she'd slowly begun to open up and allow herself to live and laugh with them.

Makarov had quietly entered the infirmary just toward the end of Erza's story. He was the only one who'd been fully aware of her past and the momentary surprise that settled on his face didn't slip by her. It didn't take him long to figure out that sharing her story was her way of committing to one hundred percent trust in them. Erza saw it as part of what she needed to do to prepare her team to storm the tower and rescue their captured comrade.

As the team's murmurs of support faded off, Makarov grumbled, "What is with you Dragon Soul brats and getting caught up in dangerous rescue situations?"

Erza was grateful for his seemingly tactless remark, she knew his sarcasm was aiming to divert the focus from her and back to Natsu, which was exactly what she needed in that moment. Sending him an appreciative nod, she allowed herself to giggle as Lucy, Gray and Haru all blushed in response, garnering light chuckles from the rest of the group as well.

"Alright my children, let's get our fire-breathing idiot back," he exclaimed, prompting their launch into planning their counterstrike.

The Next Afternoon

He must be seeing things, or the motion sickness had finally killed him, he considered ruefully. He couldn't decide which, but there was no way the vision he was currently watching get clearer by the minute as they got closer, could possibly be real. Haru groaned as he swallowed another wave of nausea and dropped his forehead onto hands propped on the nose of the boat, without ever prying his eyes away from the crystalline tower reaching high into the sky.

Wendy was right beside him, but he had told her to save her magic for any number of people, Natsu included, who might need her healing. Normally Master wouldn't have approved such a young, non-S Class mage for a mission of this calibre, but she had insisted with a conviction that had been impossible to dismiss. Makarov had caved under her determination, accepting that the team may need her unique skills.

The tower loomed up in front of them on the horizon, surrounded by the sparkling ocean waters and the afternoon sun cast the crystal in tones of blues, purples and greens. It would be beautiful, if it wasn't for the disgusting nature of its existence.

Haru slumped to the side as another wave shifted their boat again and let his head lull on to an arm now folded over the side of the boat. If Natsu was lucky, Haru thought pessimistically, Ultear transported him right here… or knocked him out so he didn't have to experience this long trip on the ocean in a Gods' damned rowboat of all things. Haru considered swimming for it; he was faster than the boat anyway… Why did he tell Wendy to save her magic? She was right. there.

"You hanging in there, Haru?" Lucy asked from the back of the small vessel, pulling him from his unhelpful internal disparaging. Even when she was dealing with her own overwhelming fears, she was still constantly checking in on the rest of them.

Sighing loudly, Haru replied sarcastically, "Yeah, just peachy." He gave her a half-hearted thumbs up and a weak smile. She chuckled at the effort as Erza and Gray stopped paddling a mile out and let the boat drift while Erza reiterated their plan of attack.

Natsu

Natsu awakened to find himself leaning against a crystal wall, his wrists and ankles both restrained as a likely precaution to remove his hand to hand prowess from the equation. He snapped his fingers in a gesture that usually ignited the tip of his thumb, and pouted when not even the slightest hint of smoke was manifested. Not that he was surprised. He couldn't feel his magic, so it was clear the cuffs were anti-magic. He scanned the large open space that took up the entire top floor of the tower. The adjacent wall opened onto a wide ledge that presented nothing but an expanse of bright blue sky beyond, no barrier framed it to prevent a lethal fall. The other occupants in the room hovered over a long stone table, discussing plans as they flipped through one of a few thick tomes. Natsu assumed they were the three demon books he'd heard the time mage mention at the council headquarters.

"You know, it's rude to ignore a guest," Natsu shouted blandly in the direction of Siegrain and Ultear, who was opening another of the books in their possession.

"Could at least get me something to eat… No? A shot of fire whiskey then? What about a pillow or two? No luck? –worth a try." He continued spewing out random requests and comments while they both continued to ignore him.

"How about loosening these cuffs then—"

"Would you shut UP!" Ultear snapped back at him, anger flaring as her usual bottomless patience failed.

"It was your choice to take him and not the Water Dragon Slayer," Siegrain reminded her, voice void of emotion as he flipped a few pages of the tome before him. His eyes left the page to fix her with a cold stare, "so I suggest you live with your choices and stop letting him get under your skin."

She sounded a grunt of annoyance before turning back to the books between them, until Natsu, taking that as a challenge, distracted her again. "Don't feel too bad Ultear, not many people can resist my fire, I'm just too hot."

"Gods damnit!" she cursed, rounding on the cocky annoyance and stomping towards him. Natsu wore an unbelievably smug smirk, despite being rendered completely helpless and it appeared the time mage wanted nothing more than to wipe it off his face.

"ULTEAR!" Siegrain barked, and she stopped in her steps to glare back over her shoulder. "It appears we have guests arriving, why don't you make yourself useful and go prepare to greet them properly?"

It was a command, not a question, and she begrudgingly obeyed. Pivoting, she strode toward the stairs, heels sounding her annoyance clearly on the crystal. "Yes, Lord Jellal."

Natsu watched her disappear down the corridor. "So it's Jellal now then?" he asked flippantly.

The blue-haired man turned, placed a hand on his hip and fixed Natsu with an indifferent stare that told him the other man was just waiting for him to ask whatever asinine question was on his mind. "What do you want with me an' Haru?"

To Natsu's absolute infuriation, Jellal just smirked, eyes narrowing but not divulging any information. Then he turned away, requipped the books, and disappeared in Ultear's direction, leaving him alone. The fire mage's eye twitched at the implied insult, that clearly, bound by two sets of anti-magic cuffs and unable to make much use of his combat skills, he wasn't even enough of a threat to be left with a grunt to guard him.

His eyes drifted around the room again, desperate to make Jellal eat that choice in the form of a fiery fist to the mouth. Unfortunately, he already knew there was no secret play to be made. He'd just have to wait patiently, and trust that Levy could determine the location of the Tower and back-up would have him dishing out payback in no time.

Trusting in his guildmates, Natsu dropped his head back against the wall behind him, resigning himself to the idea of a nap. That was, until he heard heavy foot falls moving toward him. Cracking an eye open, Natsu glanced around, he wasn't overly surprised that he hadn't noticed the new arrival earlier. The combination of ethernano saturating the air and demonic magic pouring over the tower, had rendered his sense of smell and ability to track magic signatures, practically useless. A large man came to a stop in front of him. 'Well, I guess they left a guard detail after all,' Natsu thought as a bitter laugh bubbled up from his throat.

"You're Salamander."

That caught his attention. Natsu postured, narrowing his eyes in suspicion, "What of it?"

"Is Poseidon somewhere around here too?"

"How the hell do you know us?!"

"Tales of the Twin Dragons, among other Fairies, spread even here."

"Okay… and? That still doesn't answer how you'd know me, or Haru. As far as I am aware, there are no photos of us just floating around. Certainly not all the way out here."

"Jellal announced the capture of a fire dragon."

Natsu shifted to bring his arms to rest on bent knees, rolled his aching wrists as he did so, he was getting impatient with the seemingly pointless conversation. "Okay, great, you got me pal. What do you want?"

"Fret not Salamander, I am not your enemy."

"You'll have to excuse me for not taking you at your word, the last person to say that, locked me in these cuffs," he retorted grudgingly.

The man removed a short sword from his belt and Natsu deadpanned at him, cocking his head at the sword. "Whatcha doing pulling a sword on me, friend," he spat sarcastically. Without answering, the man swung the sword down in a straight-line slashing through both sets of cuffs in one go, and Natsu yelped at the unexpected action as his restraints broke apart. His gaze shifted from the shattered remnants of his cuffs, and back to the eyes watching him intently. "What's your name?" he asked.

"Simon, I am a very old friend of Erza's. Now let's get moving, we don't have time for pleasantries," he responded cryptically. Pulling the fire mage to his feet, he dragged Natsu with him to the stairs.

Natsu's mind reeled, Erza?! Where the hell did that come from? Why the hell would a friend of Erza be here, working with Jellal of all people? He didn't have much time to ponder it or question his unexpected ally as Simon came to an abrupt stop and Natsu bumped into his back, before peeking around the man's larger frame. They were in a room filled with people in black cloaks and masks hiding their faces.

"I will create a diversion, you need to escape and bring reinforcements," Simon instructed, and before Natsu could ask what he planned to do, the room went black.

Natsu blinked owlishly, working clarity back into his vision. He'd flinched when the black had surrounded him unexpectedly, but quickly realized this darkness wasn't a void like Midnight's magic. Far as he could tell, Simon's spell simply stole the light, and as Natsu's keen eyes adjusted, he could see his enemies clear as day. He eyed Erza's supposed friend one last time and offered a hushed thanks before bounding forward and agilely skipping through a tangle of cloaked enemies. He caught the rounded edge of a wall and spun himself down the stairwell at the opposite side of the room.

Leaping down multiple stairs at a time, he skidded to a stop and pressed his body into a wall at the bottom of the stairs. Natsu peeked around the corner, cautiously assessing the next floor. An eerie glow bathed the open space with a muted yellow as it failed to fully banish Simon's spell that had extended down to this room as well. Natsu's eyes shifted around to analyze the room between clusters of people in restraints and the cloaked men barking orders at them. Most disturbingly, was a group of five children secured to the far wall, a pulsing glow consuming their bodies in time with the ethernano crystal that was casting the odd light.

'What the fuck. Are they draining the untapped magic potential of CHILDREN?!' Natsu raged in disgust. Now that he took a second look, the vast majority of the people in chains seemed to be children. He ground his teeth until his jaw ached from the effort and his eyes darted around the room counting the apparent guards, —6, 7, 8 of them. 8 targets demanding a solid scorching. The fire mage cracked his neck a couple times, took a deep breath in and proceeded to spit eight condensed bullets of fire in rapid succession, each hitting its vital point with deadly precision. Then, flashing across the room, Natsu spun a Fire Dragon's Talon across the far wall and severed all five sets of chains in one sweep, all before the guards had even hit the floor.

He caught the small girl on the end as the children dropped limply to the ground. They were all unconscious, with a sickly green colour to their skin that was symptomatic of magic depletion illness. But he knew they'd be okay with some rest, their magic containers weren't developed enough to cause longterm or potentially fatal damage.

Natsu glanced around at the rest of slaves in the room, they were all nervously keeping their distance, unsure of what to make of him. He addressed one of the eldest in the room. The boy couldn't be more than 13 or 14 years old and it wasn't fair for him to put this burden on the teen's shoulders, but he didn't have any other options to entertain. Natsu considered the boy, recalling the dangerous missions he was already taking at his age and shook his head. "Take these kids and find a safe place to hide, until I can come back for you."

The boy stared at him unmoving, and nodded a couple times numbly. Natsu grit his teeth in response, "I need to hear you say that you understand," he said sternly.

"I, I understand," the boy confirmed.

Accepting that, Natsu walked over and pressed the small girl into his arms. "Fairy Tail will liberate all of you, that's a promise. If you see this mark," Natsu tapped the crimson emblem on his shoulder, "than know you can trust whoever bears it."

Calling a final reassurance over his shoulder, Natsu spun and took off for the next stair well. He encountered similar scenes on the next few floors and repeated the same tactics. Just as he was getting into a tactical flow of action, he slid to a stop on another darkened floor, but this one was deserted, as far as his stifled senses could tell anyway. Natsu crept into the room cautiously, eyes surveying the space thoroughly as he moved toward the next set of stairs. "HOO HOO!" a sound screeched through the silence, and in the muted tones of darkness Natsu could only make out a hulking shape before it smashed into his side propelling him into the opposite wall with brutal force.

"Damnnn. That hurt," he groaned, peeling himself out of the crater his body had formed in the crystal. His attacker was already looping back around and whirling to aim a powerful kick for his chest and Natsu just managed to skirt out of the way. Another large chunk of crystal broke off the wall and crashed to the floor as the owl— 'OWL? What the fuck am I looking at?!' Natsu shook off the stupor as his new foe, landed and postured to his full height.

"Fukuro at your service, I vow to eliminate you for all your sins, Salamander," the owl-reject informed him. Natsu blinked dumbly back at the strange mage. "Ha HOO," he hooted again, leaning forward as the jets on his back powered up and launched him at Natsu again with blinding speed.

Dodging to the side, the fire mage puffed his cheeks out and released a massive wave of fire to engulf his opponent. Sprinting forward into the flames for cover, he snapped his jaw shut to cut the attack only once he was right in front of Fukuro. Natsu deliver a brutal upper cut under his beak, sending the owl hurtling into the same wall, creating a crater of his own. Tearing himself from the crystal, Fukuro cracked his neck at inhuman angles that had Natsu cringing.

The rhythmic tap of new footsteps stopped him just before he moved to re-engage the owl mage to take advantage of his foe's state of recovery. An elegantly dressed woman appeared from the shadows at the chamber's edge, stunning Natsu into silence. The pinkette dragged the tip of a katana along the crystal floor, stepping gracefully in platform sandals. She was singing an odd haiku in a monotone voice, further unnerving Natsu. He deadpanned, wondering at his luck. Was it possible all the Death Head Order assassins were this unsettlingly weird? Or was he just lucky enough to attract the crazies.

Onyx eyes flicked between her and the owl reject, but it was his new enemy who would command his attention. She gracefully lifted her blade and slashed it through the space before her, the action barely even ruffling her hair or the fabric of her kimono. Confused by the distance with which she'd attacked from with a close-ranged weapon, Natsu scoffed, but then a pain sliced through his shoulder and half his shirt fell in scraps around him. Shocked, he immediately assessed the skin for injury but found no mark at all on his shoulder, nor blood to prove a successful strike. Still, his arm dropped limply to his side, all sensation suddenly unavailable to it.

Natsu cursed loudly and skipped back multiple times to put more distance between him and her apparently dangerous abilities. Had she severed his nerves without breaking his skin? Was something like that even possible? Either way, he was in serious trouble here.

Movement on his peripheral had his gaze snapping back to Fukuro just managing to stumble back to his feet, while keeping the statuesque woman within his attention as well. Natsu pondered his options as he kept a close eye on them for signs of an impending attack. Quickly but carefully, he eased the arm the pinkette had rendered useless, across his body and secured it inside the intact half of his top. The tight fit of the combat shirt helped immobilize his arm against his own body, creating a decent temporary sling.

Jumping high to get over Fukuro as the assassin jetted by, making an attempt to grab at him, Natsu flipped to gain momentum and drove powerful kicks down into the owl's head and then lower back sequentially. Fukuro crashed head-first into the ground, his hard beak cutting a line through the crystal. Natsu landed with a foot lodged squarely between his shoulder blades, and used the owl to spring-board back into the air with flames whipping around his body. The trails of fire grew exponentially before he wove them all together and threw a massive brilliant flame at the second assassin. Though she remained ever still and unfazed by his show of power. With barely a hint of motion, she sliced the fire ball cleanly in half. Natsu's eyes blew wide, watching with mild fascination and a healthy amount of dread as the two halves of his spell careened into the walls on either side of her, causing heavy damage.

Natsu kept moving, ensuring a significant distance to make it as hard as possible for the rogue mage to pull her nerve severing trick again. If she severed anything more central spine, the battle and quite possible his life would be forfeit. Sprinting around the far edges of the room, he released his magic power and noted that his opponents who had been undaunted until this point, both flinched back subtly. Entering Fire Drive in a burst of flames, Natsu flipped over a burst of power as Fukurou shot over again, flying low to the ground, aiming for his feet from across the chamber.

Natsu dove to the side, planted the palm of his good arm on the ground and sprung himself sideways into the wall. Driving his feet into the crystalline structure, he exploded forward, disappearing into his flames and leaving a sizeable crater in the wall under his fire enhanced propulsion. "Fire Dragon's iron fist!" he shouted just as he materialized in front of his target, with his fist connecting right between the owl's eyes.

"Why don't you STAY DOWN!" Natsu yelled furiously as fire continued to build up further after the impact. With his punch still driving the assassin back, the pair collided with the already highly damaged wall. A devastating explosion followed, consequently blowing a gaping hole in the wall that the two punched straight through. Natsu pulled his fist back as they both began to plummet out of the tower, and quickly channeled fire to his feet. Kicking off the unconscious bird, the pink-haired man propelled himself back to the safety of the ledge.

Rescue Team

A few feet off the narrow stretch of shoreline that surrounded the tower, Haru vaulted over the boat's edge into thigh-deep water to guide it up onto the sand. His comrades jumped off the nose of the boat to join him on shore and all six stood staring up at the towering structure. The base was smooth, uninterrupted plains of crystal, but higher up, points or raw crystal jutted off in random directions toward the sky. As far as Haru could tell, there was no obvious point of entry. He moved to run his palm along the cool surface, feeling the residence of raw magic power emanating from it. Somehow, it felt stifling and empowering at the same time.

The group split in half, each moving in opposite directions to circle the Tower's perimeter in search of an access point. The base was massive to offer stability to the daunting height it supported, and as such, it took a fair amount of time before Haru caught sight of Gray's group approaching.

"How on Earthland do we get inside?" Gray barked upon closing the gap between the groups. An obvious edge of frustration tainted his voice and posture as his eyes crawled over the purple-blue exterior.

Erza held her chin pondering, "I could fly around, see if there is a higher—" A massive explosion shattered the silence and the redhead's thought. All six mages looked around wildly, before Haru sprinted in the direction of the sound. Everyone followed quickly, their eyes all scanning the structure for evidence as to what had happened. They stopped in unison as a second explosion rocked the previously peaceful environment, and the source they sought was revealed. A blast of fire erupted out the side of the building near the top of the tower, plumes of smoke filling the calm blue sky.

They gawked collectively, as they caught sight of a large bulky figure falling from the upper levels of the tower. Only a brief minute after, a second fiery figure split off, launching back up and into the tower. Watching in a slight stupor as the former crashed into the surrounding ocean, the rescue team remained awed in silence as they processed the sudden turn of events.

Then, Gray and Haru were shouting over one another. "Only one dumbass I know, could be that that destructive!" "That's gotta be Natsu!" A wide grin split Gray's face, while relief flooded through Haru and the rest of the team.

Taking a few steps back to the edge of the shore, Erza squinted through the rays of sun reflecting off the tower and tried to scope out the new entry point over a hundred feet above them. Her requip flashed and she flexed the wings of her Heaven's Wheel armour, preparing to fly. "Okay team, looks like if we can't find an entrance, we can make our own!" she announced, meeting the matching smiles on her comrades with one of her own. "I will take Wendy with me, we'll fly up there and back up Natsu. The three of us will make our way down, while you four make your way up," she quickly strategized.

Erza could tell by the mirrored expressions on both Haru's and Lucy's faces that they'd rather be joining her, to meet up with their pink-haired partner. She gave them both an apologetic smile, knowing they would both understand why Wendy was the better choice to fly up there and neither one of them objected. They still didn't know what condition they'd find Natsu in, just because he was fighting didn't mean he wasn't in need of medical care.

Taking Wendy under the arms, Erza flapped her wings to raise the two of them into the air, testing her centre of balance a bit. When she was confident in her stability, she smiled down at her team, "Okay, be careful... And remember, there's a high chance we'll find slaves in there. We are here to free them, get Natsu back, and put a stop to Siegrain's plans. See you in the middle!"

The remaining four chorused back in a range of cheers and with another flap of her wings, Erza shot up the tower with Wendy. Below, the two water mages were already busy combining their spells, working toward blowing an entrance of their own into the tower's base.

'The time has come to take this Tower down with my own hands, finally...' Erza told herself as she neared the smoking hole above her.

A/N. I love a flirty smug Ultear… just can't help myself. Side note: I am aware Ultear doesn't have teleportation magic in canon, my creative license says she does now :P

This is a longer arc than the previous ones so buckle in. Lots of fluff, fun and relationship development to look forward to post tower!

Have a lovely week my fantastic readers!

R&R.

~LokaMuse