Hola! Welcome back!
Wooooah, I came pretty close to missing my monthly update. This chapter was a pain in my ass, I edited and re-edited it so many times, just couldn't get it to a place where I was happy with it. Having so many characters and fights to detail can really affect a chapter's flow I find. I still don't think I'm entirely pleased with it, but I will let you all be the judge!
Also, quick review answers: Laxus is not weaker than his canon self, Jura and the other wizard saints are stronger. Don't know 'bout the rest of your, but the power scale regarding the saints always seemed off to me. Makarov always seems to be taken out by a technicality, Jura didn't shine much in the Games or Seis arcs, and the Gods of Isghar were knocked out in one attack… Anyway, that's why Laxus and a more powerful Natsu struggled against him in the last chapter. What do you guys think about the FT power scale?
Anyway, less rambling more reading!
~Onward
48
-Enter Tartaros-
Out of a squad of fifty only three had survived the slaughter, Lucy and the girls had swooped down to take a quick scan of the knights. The trio hovered in the air above the carnage now, having paused for a quick parting discussion. Fire exploded far into the sky to the North, followed by a domino series of smaller explosions that obliterated an entire street far in the distance. Lucy maintained her focus, even as her soul pulled her toward that fire, "I think Haru is somewhere East from here…" she said, parting from her comrades in that direction.
"When you find Haru… tell him I'm going to ride him so hard when this is all over, so he'd better come back unharmed!"
Lucy blushed furiously and gaped at the other woman's bold statement, her jaw working for a response, "Yeah… I'm not saying that. I will tell him you said to be careful…"
Giggling mischievously, Mira gave her a wink, "I suppose that'll do."
Erza, seemingly oblivious to Lucy's embarrassment, asked, "You want me to tell Natsu you'll fire him up later—" she asked with an innocence that directly contradicted the innuendo she'd presented.
"ALRIGHT, that's enough, let's go back up our dragon slayers!" Lucy interrupted her friends' teasing remarks.
"Wait," Erza called, suddenly serious again, "whatever happened to the Knights… or whoever, is still out there. Be careful, both of you."
"You too, Erza." Lucy replied before departing eastward as fast as her wings could carry her. She watched the cityscape ahead with a sharp focus for any wayward spells that might guide her to Haru. Diving down, Lucy hugged the streets closly to make herself a less conspicuous target for any potential foes. When the air chilled around her she glanced up and grinned at the tsunami wave dwarfing the surrounding buildings a block or two ahead. There you are,' she thought in relief as a rush of water flowed into the streets beneath her.
Lucy banked right at a T intersection and continued to weave through narrow streets to stay hidden, looping around one last corner brought Haru into her vision. But the triumph was short lived. She found him on one knee, struggling to get to his feet. His pants were torn in multiple places, and he'd abandoned his shirt at some point which revealed strange veins of purple snaking over his body. Lucy shot across the wide street, pocked with holes from various attacks, and snagged Haru under the arms. She whipped him into the air just fast enough to avoid a destructive wave of purple. Haru's head tipped up to look at her, choking out her name in surprise as she shot around a corner, escaping down a maze of streets in search of some semblance of safety.
Ducking into a narrow alley, Lucy carefully eased Haru down, propping him against a shop wall and dispelled her wings to crouch in front of him. His head was lulled forward, dark hair hiding a flushed face. She brushed the bangs from his face and chewed her lip at the heat of his skin, "Geez Haru, you're so hot!"
The water mage laughed through fever-induced delirium, returning her gaze with unfocused eyes, "So I've heard, is how I got Mira, no?" he slurred.
Lucy's eyebrows knit together as Haru's head dropped heavily back against the wall, eyes closing again. "What? No, idiot!" She snapped her fingers in front of his face a couple times, "focus Haru, what the hell did she do to you?!"
He groaned, eyes cracking open again, "Lucy… how are you here?" he asked, seeming a sliver more oriented. When she didn't answer, he refocused on her previous question, "she must be Vira," he said more sharply.
"Who is Vira?"
"The Virus, she's one of the Demon Gates of Tartaros…"
Lucy sucked a breath in, "So…you're infected?! With what? What do we do?" There was no point in providing him with water magic when it seemed to be the fever state that prevented him from functioning and not a lack of magic… Before he could answer her, ambiguously shaped figures morphed out of the ground, their forms slashed with lines of red and blue.
"Uh, hold that thought…" Lucy transformed into Leo's star dress, hoping to use the light attributed magic boost to fight the shadowy figures. She put herself in between them and Haru, and snapped her fingers in his face again, "Haru—focus—I need you to contact Mira, she should be with Wendy, get her here, now."
Orange light bathed Lucy's fist as she cocked her elbow back and punched the air in front of her, "Regulas impact!" she yelled. The dark alley filled with a warm glow of light as the lion-headed beam whipped toward the dark forms, erasing the two at the center. The few surrounding ones appeared unaffected by the burst of light as it peeled by them and Lucy couldn't keep the disappointment from her face.
"Luc-y," Haru rasped behind her, "that's an Etherious spell, the Children of Zeref—not shadows, please be careful."
Leaping at her tangible foes, Lucy landing in the center of a group and spun, whipping a Regulas enhanced heel through a series of four, cutting them right in half. "Like from the books?" she clarified as she punched at another.
"Exactly," he confirmed, she was pleased to see he had two fingers at his temple, attempting to establish a connection with their comrades. "Lucy! Look out!" he yelled, not soon enough, she yelped when she turned to see a wave of purple power barrelling down on her.
"Water Dragon's tidal wave!"
His water magic crashed right passed her, blocking the incoming attack and sparing her with nothing more than a spray of water. Lucy fell back, gawking up at the Demon Gate from earlier, the lavender-haired demoness stood atop a building above them. "Haru! Did you get—" Lucy froze, realizing Haru was lying on his stomach just meters behind her, unconscious from the strain of his own magic against whatever viral strain Vira had inflicted on him. "HARU!"
. . .
. . .
Natsu ingested the line of fire wafting off another series of massive explosions that had wrecked the entire block. "Dammit! Would you stop doing that Pinky?!" his opponent raged.
Wiping the back of his hand across his mouth to reveal a toothy grin, Natsu asked, "And ignore your very kind offers of a meal? –I'd never be so wasteful!"
Jackal dissolved into another string of curses as he stomped his foot in a tantrum on the ground, his tail twitching with his displeasure. Natsu had been fighting with the bomb demon for a while. Laxus had taken off after Ivan—they'd been treated to that stunning revelation when the lightning mage had shattered Alexei's armour—leaving him alone with Jackal. After providing a spectacular beat down on the demon, Natsu had received another shocking reveal, or explosive rather, when he was subject to his own body detonating for every hit he'd dealt the other.
They locked eyes again, Jackal looking infuriated and Natsu looking the picture of that infuriation, a cocky grin firmly in place. Without another word or taunt, they each used explosive power to propel themselves forward to smash fists into one another, fire flaring off every strike. "Is this the dreaded power of Tartaros, Jackal?" Natsu mocked as he delivered an uppercut to the demon's chin, "cuz I gotta say, I'm not very impressed." Head snapping back with a momentum that sent him arcing through the air, Jackal landed on his back and immediately rolled back, jamming his feet into Natsu's gut.
"That's cocky coming from the ass Tempesta kicked just a few weeks ago, one on two mind you—how are you even alive anyway Ghost?!" he retorted before Natsu landed another fiery fist to his cheekbone.
"Well Jacky, I'm a little less naïve to curses now… and you'd be surprised how far two weeks of focused training can bring a Fairy Tail mage."
Another series of bomb seals detonated at various points over Natsu's body, he cringed, inhaled the resulting fire and then grinned wider. Tendrils of smoke drifted off him as he combed his fingers through his hair to smooth the frizzed ends. "The fuck are you?!" Jackal barked, "—and don't call me Jacky!"
Ignoring the question, the fire mage launched at Jackal with the power of his Secret Arts crackling around him, fire spun in a vortex over his body as he closed the gap at a break-neck speed. Jackal jumped back a few times, distancing himself and then spun and sprinted down a side street. "Where the fuck d'ya think you're going!" Natsu yelled, giving pursuit a second later. Natsu wouldn't have taken Jackal as the type to flee a fight because the demon seemed about as cocky and stubborn as himself, so his sudden retreat seemed odd and suspicious.
Natsu was rapidly gaining on his foe when the blonde agilely whipped around a corner. Natsu followed without hesitation and dissolved into his Flash Steps as he did. His stream of fire broke, sending a splattering of embers out along the cobbles as he materialized in front of the demon, blocking his path. Jackal ground to a stop, but looked completely unfazed, standing only a meter away from him. Natsu kept his hands ready in front of him, his stance wide and prepared to meet any attack.
"Behind you…" the bomb wielder said.
Before Natsu could react, a burst of energy erupted against his back and sent him soaring with enough force to punch straight through a shop window half a block away. Pain coursed through his body as he crashed into a number of display cabinets inside and came to a stop on ground strewn with glass and fractured wood. "How in the Hell—" Natsu groaned loudly as he picked himself off the ground. No one had managed to get the jump on his dragon senses in a very long time, but he hadn't sensed anything, smell, sound or otherwise, prior to that hit.
He strode toward the shattered window, glass crunching under his boots, and stepped a foot up on the windowsill to cautiously peer out into the street. Jackal was laughing hysterically, pointing in his direction when he noticed him, "Man, that was great! She sent you FLYING!" he cheered ecstatically.
Ignoring him, Natsu glanced passed to lay eyes on Minerva.
"Just great…" he grumbled to himself as he vaulted out of the ruined shopfront. "Gone and got yourself a makeover tiger-chick? Gotta say, I think you looked better before."
Minerva clicked her tongue but gave no other emotive reaction. Familiar angular patterns marked her skin, patching over one eye completely and sleek black horns marked her clearly as demon. Natsu didn't engage her with words any further, instead, flying at her in another stream of fire only to be forced to a stop when she summoned a large orb of purple magic directly in front of her. Fire licked up the length of the arm he still had ready for an Iron Fist as he eyed the orb with apprehension. The ripples of smoky purple thinned, Minerva cackled on the other side, and Natsu gasped, "Sienna!"
His fellow dragon slayer appeared to be trapped within Minerva's sphere and unaware of his presence right in front of her. This use of Minerva's Territory seemed similar to the magic she used on Mira, but Natsu could sense nothing but demonic power now. "Let her go, NOW!" he demanded, observing Sienna's face which was twisted in pain. Minerva snapped her fingers and his friend was gone.
"Where did you send her?!" Natsu yelled, he lit himself aflame once more, black God Flames lacing through his usual red as his anger climbed.
"N-Natsu—what's happening?!" Sienna called uncertainly, he whirled in the direction and found Jackal standing with the earth mage now ensnared in a variation of his bomb curse. Then another purple ball blinked into existence to Jackal's left and dissolved to release Millianna into a second trap. Sienna's concern grew at the cat mage's appearance, "I-I don't understand, one second Milli and I were fighting these monsters, and the next—"
"Those are bombs, Sienna, don't move…either of you!" Natsu yelled, his hands reflexively shooting up in show of surrender. He remained frozen as his eyes darted around, analyzing the situation at lightning speeds. "Don't worry…I'll get you out of this, I promise!"
Jackal burst into laughter, "Surrender Dragneel," he ordered, he didn't have to verbalize his unspoken threat. He and Minerva had him pinned between them, and his friends, taken hostage, had been turned into literal bombs. Clenching his teeth but not letting the fire that swirled around his fists extinguish, Natsu glared back defiantly as his trapped friends caught onto the severity of their new situation and began pleading for him to fight without worry over their sakes. Seeing no other option but to take a huge risk, Natsu released his magic pressure in accordance to the spike in anger ripping through him.
"Hey! Hey! Don't be stupid—" Jackal warned nervously.
His friends were in danger, and Natsu hated potentially putting them in more danger, but he couldn't simply surrender either. There was no reality in which a Demon Gate would let any of them walk away unharmed, even if he did. He knew full well, Tartaros viewed humanity as scum beneath their boots… so if he was going to have any chance of getting the girls out of harm's way and ensure Jackal couldn't continue to wreak havoc, he would have to take a chance.
Marvelling at the surge of power from his Force State, Natsu released a puff of flame and then shot across the street in a storm of fire. His kick landed square in the center of Jackal's chest and at the same time Natsu harnessed golden flames in each hand as his foe's body dug a line into the ground beneath his boot. "Fire Dragon's purifying flames!" he called, unleashing two orbs of fire at the curses trapping the Mermaids.
Natsu and Jackal skidded to a stop with Natsu's knee planted against the other's chest. The bomb incantations throbbed in protest to Natsu's light-based Sacred Flames. Then they each gave off a blinding white that Natsu recognized as the prelude to their detonation, just as the curses immobilizing both girls broke. "Damnit! RUN NOW!" Natsu yelled frantically, Sinna and Millianna each stumbled into clumsy movements, muddled by disorientation. Panic washed through Natsu when realization dawned they wouldn't get far enough to escape the range of the blasts.
Twin blurs blew by him with speed enough to stir the air to gusty winds on either side of the street, darting straight for the blast zones. If it weren't for the enhanced senses he'd gained with Force, Natsu wouldn't have caught their identities. 'Come on…Please…' he begged internally. With bated breath he gazed at the thick plumes of thick smoke that had spilled into the air from the massive explosions.
"Your—friends, are li'l bits, now!" Jackal choked out, "shoulda surr—"
"I'LL KILL YOU!" Natsu yelled with a ferocity that had Jackal's face paling in terror as the fire mage slammed his fist into the demon's nose causing a sickening crunch. Natsu cocked his fist back again for another when a voice called him off.
"Natsu, we're okay!"
The fire mage snagged his attention back from the demon to check the settling smoke and relief washed over him. Erza, Kagura, Millianna and Sienna all stood unscathed a fair distance down the street, the former two having managed to rescue the latter two just in time. Natsu's eyes drifted closed a moment as he released a long breath of tension before fixing Jackal with the full depths of his rage again, "Stupid move, Jacky…" he growled dangerously. He made no move to finish the bomb demon yet, scanning the street when he realized Minerva had vanished once more. Without knowing where the sadistic and newly demonized Tigress had disappeared to, Natsu saw only one move, finish Jackal off fast and find the others. To top things off, an entire horde of the Children were closing in at the edges of the street, swelling in number around them.
Natsu gritted his teeth, hand tightening around Jackal's throat as he lit his fist on fire and cocked an elbow back with his eyes locked on the male beneath him. An earth roar blew passed him, eliminating a small number of their unliving foes as the girls scattered to meet the new threat. But Natsu only considered the demon gate who was grinning wildly up at him, completely unperturbed by his current situation.
"The fuck's got you all smiley—" Natsu began. He was interrupted when telepathic communication echoed in his head, effectively diverting his attention from whatever taunts Jackal was uttering in retaliation.
"Natsu?"
"Haru?! You okay man?"
"Vira's here—"
"Shit—So is Jackal, and the Children of Zeref have been summoned—"
"I know," Haru's laboured breathing was noticeable, but hadn't concerned Natsu until his partner dissolved into a nasty coughing fit. The fire mage was all too aware of the rumors of Vira's curse abilities. "We've got Children here too…" Haru continued when his breathing evened out.
"—Haru, did Vira—"
"Lucy needs back up Natsu, she's fighting Vira alone, I can't—" another coughing fit overtook the water mage.
"FUCK." Natsu yelled, punching the ground next to Jackal's head, "Jus hold on a little longer Haru…"
"Erza! Haru and Lucy are in trouble, can you fly to them?"
The redhead immediately looked worried, "I can take you with me—"
Natsu was ready to agree when demonic energy spiked rapidly beneath him and Jackal's musculature bulked as his entire form began to change. Loathe to admit that he didn't have Jackal out of commission yet, Natsu refocused his attention on the transforming Bomb Demon, and begrudgingly turned her down. "I'm the best match up for this jackass… please Erza you have to go for me, just help them… please." Natsu internally tortured himself with the decision, it was near impossible forcing himself to stay, but he trusted Erza to help level their playing field.
Erza still looked ready to argue but she didn't give voice to her reservations, she transformed to her Black Wing armour and launched into the air in a blur. She had been gone mere seconds when her form was redirected and slammed back into the ground she'd just departed. "ERZA!" Natsu yelled.
Following the cackling above brought Minerva into view, hovering overhead by way of her Territory, wearing her superiority like a second skin as usual. "You think I'll let any of you Fairy-scum go when you had the audacity to challenge MY guild?!"
Prying her body out of the dent she'd caused in the street, Erza stretching her wings as she turned her renewed fury on the woman in the sky overhead. "Erz—" Pain ripped through Natsu's body when an enlarged paw swiped at his side flinging him through the air like a ragdoll. He crashed straight into Erza pulling cries of pain from both and the pair tumbled over one another in a tangle of limbs. Natsu wrapped his arms around Erza reflexively shielding her with his own body until they skid to a stop with a shared groan. "That… fucking hurt, Erza, you okay?" he asked, glimpsing the head of red hair on his chest.
Erza shifted, pressed herself up to look down at him, "Y-yeah, I'm good, thanks Natsu…"
"I crashed into you…" Natsu pointed with a lopsided smile, accepting her hand to pull him back to his feet.
Minerva was continuing her deranged version of dominos, gathering up Millianna in a territory sphere this time, and Erza requipped a sword jabbing the point in her direction. "You will release Milli at once!" she ordered in her best authoritative tone. Relying on actions over demands, Kagura soared passed her brandishing her own blade and slashed straight through Minerva's Territory. Millianna collapsed to the ground bonelessly, and shuddered visibly as awareness returned. Kagura never slowed, continuing straight for a narrow gap between two buildings. The swordswoman skipped between the two buildings, leaping higher and higher until she lunged into the air at Minerva. Kagura's blade reflected a lance of blinding light as it cut through the air at untraceable speeds and when Minerva agilely dodged the slash, she was consequently in a heavy gravitational field. Completely unsuspecting, the tigress crashed into the street blooming a crater of broken cobblestone around her.
"Woah! What is with this chick!" Jackal yelled in a gravelly voice.
Kagura landed with the utmost grace between the light mages and Minerva again. Jackal's maw split to reveal rows of razor-sharp teeth, apparently amused with the course of events and threw himself back into the fight with speed that was vastly greater than before. He pounced at Natsu off all fours, moving more animalistically than before and caught Natsu's face in an large paw, driving his body into the ground. Their combined momentum forged a scar into the street and the stone rubbed Natsu's skin raw under the fraying fabric of his shirt. He latched fire-coated hands into the fur of the demon's arm, and buried his foot into Jackal's gut, struggling with the other for the advantage.
Kagura's intension never faltered when Jackal had attacked, she still stood in tense standoff with Minerva, her sword trained on her foe. "Go now Erza, go help your friends, I can take her."
"But—" Erza tried, worried eyes skipping between Kagura as she jumped into her battle, and Natsu as the demon's grip on him exploded around them both.
"GO ERZA! Lucy and Haru need your help!" Natsu roared after swallowing the last drags of the resulting fire. It had already been far too long since he'd spoken to Haru, who knew what shape he and Lucy were in now, he wasn't in the mood for indecisive action.
He knew he'd failed to keep the anger from his face, based on the way Erza recoiled. She wasn't the right target for that anger… but she just smiled softly and tipped her head, forgiving his outburst and offering understanding in a way that only Erza could. Then she wrenched her attention away and sprinted down the street, springing into the air with a snap of her wings.
. . .
. . .
Mirajane was not happy.
Actually, if she was being honest with herself, she was terrified.
She dodged backward, dipping low under the far-reaching swing of an iron log and sprang back up on the other side. With her magic gathered at her fingertips she unleashed another pulse of dark purple power to wipe out an encroaching group of Zeref's Children. Gajeel leapt into the air, swinging his arm-turned serrated blade in an arc down at her and Mira flipped back again. She watched as his sword edge dug deep into the ground where she'd been standing a moment earlier, and a snap of anger at her situation devastated her fraying calm. "Damnit Gajeel! You do NOT want to be on the wrong side of my FIST!" she threatened.
Mira grunted as she caught another swing of the iron blade between her palms, digging lines into the ground under her feet as she tried to halt Gajeel's force. Mira pivoted and swung him by his blade across the street, quickly following up with an Evil Pulse to block the dragon slayer's breath attack that he unleashed in retaliation. "Where are you damnit?!" Mira demanded, "show yourself, why don't you face me instead of using this cowardly tactic?!"
Shortly after locating Gajeel and the pair of young sky slayers, Mira had been forced to split up their group. She had sent Chelia to aid the few surviving Knights and Wendy had planned to go with her, that was, until Mira had gotten Haru's plea. She'd been forced to let Wendy go alone, because Gajeel had turned on them without warning, suddenly controlled by whatever had possessed the Rune Knights earlier, if she were to hazard a guess. So, she was now forced to fight her friend who had no control of his actions, while defending against the numerous beings that Haru had informed her were born of black magic.
In addition to her rather one-sided fight, Mira was worried sick.
She'd felt Haru's pain, his fear through their telepathic connection, disconcerting at best, paralyzing at worse. He'd likely tried to spare her from the pain accosting him. That only made her more scared.
She couldn't lose Haru.
'Please Wendy, I'm counting on you…'
A numbing ache spread through her head as an outside force suddenly bloomed in her mind, fighting her for control, sending her reeling for a few seconds. Was this the same presence that currently controlled her comrade? The mental invasion nagged at her consciousness, and she fought back against it immediately.
This was not a new sensation.
In fact, it was one she was quite familiar with, she experienced this mental battle every time she engaged a new demon to assimilate with her magic. Well, this confirmed it, whatever had taken control of Gajeel was definitely demon kind. She smirked, "I don't know who you are," she said under her breath, "but you don't play a player—"
Mira released her magic pressure, rattling loose stones around her feet and turned the battle for mental control into a tug of war with the offending demon. Whoever her unseen foe was, they were incredibly powerful, Mira's head pounded as she as she fought to take-over the mystery demon. That was easier said than done when she was forced to stay partially focused on dodging and countering Gajeel and the Children who hadn't relented on their own attacks either.
Another powerful push fluttered through her mind, and the distraction had her taking a sharp iron enhanced kick across her mid-back. Mira screamed in pain when an array of purply beams rained down on her right after and the anguish broke her focus long enough for the unseen demon to push into the recesses of her conscious. She cried out internally this time, struggling to regain control as her awareness and autonomy dwindled.
"Lightning Dragon's raging bolts!"
A multitude of giant lightning bolts pierced the sky and each found a target precisely, vanquishing a massive portion of the Children's forces. Mira staggered on her feet and massaged her temples with the heels of her hands, "Laxus… I thought you were with Natsu and Erza?"
"Natsu and I split up, Erza did find me, though we were forced to split up as well…" he relayed, materializing out of a lightning strike right beside her. "What's going on here?" he asked, eyeing the iron mage across from them.
"Can you keep Gajeel occupied? I need to focus on my Takeover—whoever is controlling him is making a play for my head…" Laxus looked at her with a quirked eyebrow, but just rolled his eyes at the lack of information before providing her the cover she needed. Trusting the lightning mage, Mira let her eyes drift closed, knowing he'd ensure nothing could get to her and redoubled her efforts.
The unwavering pressure she had been resisting was finally weakening, allowing Mira to gain some ground and push into her enemy's own mind. She cringed at the unexpected emotions that washed through her from the other. For once, there was no overwhelming blood lust, just a layer of disgust for her and her comrades that blanketed a mix of unsettlingly human emotions. Whoever the demon was, they felt comradery, love… "Who are you?" Mira asked, reaching out internally to the unusual demon.
"GET OUT!" a feminine voice screamed back furiously, the demand reverberating through Mira's head.
Undeterred, Mira probed further, and the other's control faltered, a scream sounded again and this time Mira realized it hadn't been in her head. The connection forged between them severed instantly and agony tore through Mira's head once more, it felt like part of her had been torn apart violently. She dropped to her hands and knees and panted heavily for a long moment before dragging herself shakily to her feet again. Mira followed the source of the scream as soon as she'd reined her breath back under control. She turned down an alley to find a demoness with long black-purple hair and thick gold horns protruding from the sides of her head. Her hands were clamped firmly on her head as she staggering with a lack of orientation while attempting to sooth her head. The long sleeves of her kimono flared around her as she spun wildly.
"Who are you?!" Mira yelled and the demoness turned to face her just as Laxus and Gajeel sidled up to either side of her. Apparently, their foe had lost control of the dragon slayer as well, she blinked at the three of them, seemingly pondering whether she could do anything more with the tables turned. All their attention was torn toward a cataclysmic explosion that obliterated a large portion of Crocus to the north, pulling mumbles of curiosity from the Fairies.
"Jackal…" the demoness breathed, Mira glanced back and barely had time to gasp when they were met with a daunting wave of curse power that ejected all three of them out of the alley.
Laxus swore loudly as he launched back to his feet, lightning crackling up and down his arms, Mira got back to her feet too, eyes narrowing in irritation when she realized the demoness was gone.
. . .
. . .
The bluish magic felt cool and soothing against his heated skin, Haru sighed in relief and watched as the little sky slayer worked to neutralize the infection ravaging his body. Her face was tight in concentration, concern evident as her hands moved from his temples down to place one over his sternum in assessment. Whatever she was doing, his awareness was becoming less sluggish, but breathing felt like just as much of a fight as ever. He still felt dizzy and his body heavy. "Wendy… what is…"
Her brown eyes flicked up to his, "Haru, I don't know what to do," she said brokenly. He looked at her not understanding as her hands spread over his chest surrounding his torso in a blue-green aura, "you need to see Porlyusica…this virus it's done too much damage…" her eyes glistened with tears as she spoke.
Haru lifted a heavy hand to her shoulder, "what—are you—talking about," he bit out.
"Respiratory failure, Haru, your lungs aren't getting enough oxygen to your body."
He sucked in a shaky breath, finally grasping the dire news she was giving him, "i-it's okay Wendy, we—have to help—Lucy." The stellar mage was long gone, she'd engaged the Virus Demon and quickly led her away from him without a moment of hesitation. Predictable. Lucy was always quick to throw herself into danger if it meant sparing her friends… he wasn't about to let her end up in the same position as him without a fight though.
He forced himself to his feet, managed a lumbering step forward before Wendy wrenched him back to the ground, rounding on him with tiny fists on her hips and a furious look. "What the hell do you think you can do to help in this state?!" she yelled through her tears.
"But—Luc-y," he rebutted as Wendy fixed her palms back against his fevered skin.
"You already contacted Natsu… Just trust him, Lucy will be fine. Besides, she knows what she's up against thanks to your information and she isn't one to be taken down easily, especially when she's fighting for a friend." Haru screwed his eyes shut, feeling useless, Wendy's words didn't give him the hope she'd meant to offer, they just weighed heavily on him. She was one of his best friends, and she had put herself in danger to protect him. His fists clenching into the gravel under his fingers and he prayed she would be okay until Natsu could get to her.
. . .
. . .
Vira's curse set her muscles shivering involuntarily, her skin tingling as the attack grazed by, missing her by scant inches as she threw herself to the side with a notable lack of grace. Lucy was exhausted, Leo and Capricorn darted passed her, spinning around Vira with kicks and punches too fast to track. Fortunately, it seemed Celestial spirits were unaffected by the virus, allowing them to keep the pressure on while Lucy supported them with long range attacks. Though providing her spirits with a steady stream of magic while utilizing her Star Reform was draining her quickly and if her reserves dwindled too low, she would be in major trouble. Leo's and Capricorn's reliability in a fight came at the expense of far larger magic requirements then any of her other spirits, save Aquarius.
Lucy drew her hand through the air in arc in front of her and took hold of the golden light that gave tangible form to her bow. "Star Reform: arrows!" she released arrow after arrow in quick succession, each golden streak cutting through an attack aimed at her friends. Lucy eyed the Children closing in on them in a large ring once more and unleashed a burst of star magic into the sky, "Shatter!"
The black forms split apart under her assault, providing her spirits a wider birth of space to maneuver in. Leo pivoted and swung a spin kick into Vira's side guiding her straight into Capricorn's knee to her jaw, but she merely flipped, planting a palm on the ground and slid back into a wide defensive stance. Vira postured, eyeing them derisively, then she dissolved into a purply smoke and enveloped Capricorn. The goat spirit seemed unfazed, if a bit confused, for a moment and then he dropped to his knees with a soundless scream, his hands clawed at his throat. "Capricorn!" Lucy and Leo called in unison, the combative spirit flailed, apologizing profusely before vanishing in a sparkly gold burst. Leo skipped back twice, dodging two rapidly fired attacks and countered with a Regulus fist.
"Lucy, your magic is dangerously low!" he called warningly, as though she wouldn't be hyper aware of that little fact.
She let the snap of irritation go, "It's okay Leo, go, I can hold Vira off!"
"Not alone—"
"We don't have a choice! I'll be out of magic faster if you stay, and then I really will be screwed," she yelled back. He did not look impressed, but the begrudged look on his face proved he understood her situation. If her magic dropped low enough that he was forced back to the spirit realm, it would also mean she wouldn't have enough magic to defend with her Reform for very long after.
"Be careful Lucy," he told her, his eyes finding hers for the briefest moment, "if you die here, who knows what kind of despicable mage our keys could land in the hands of…" Lucy grinned back, she'd gotten to know Leo enough to know he didn't say that because he didn't care what happened to her… he said it because he now knew her well enough to know nothing motivated her like the safety and happiness of her friends. He nodded once, and faded, kind eyes wet with tears meant solely for her.
"Thank you Leo…" Lucy whispered to herself, gathering her magic for one more last ditch effort, the symbols of Mavis' grand spell pulsed on her forearm. She extended the arm forward and stabilized it at her elbow, chanting the incantation as she watched Vira's eyes widen.
"Raven Tail's intel was correct, you are the holder…" she murmured, "I can't allow you to live."
Lucy braced herself against the growing power at her fingertips, and Vira's body became airborne poison fumes once more, flying at her. 'I won't be fast enough—' Lucy thought hopelessly. Fairy Glitter vibrated around her, climbing to reach its threshold, but it wouldn't be soon enough to thwart the demoness' attack.
"Fire Dragon King's ROAR!"
A fiery torrent spanning the entire width of the street incinerated everything in its path and Vira screamed as she the flames engulfed her eating away at her gaseous form. Lucy whirled, letting the magic she had been charging flicker out, fingers twitching anxiously as she looked around, "Natsu? –Natsu, where are you?!" she called. She should have known her dragon slayer would swoop in last minute to save her… he always found away. Flames licked over the cobblestones, and the buildings to either side crumbled under a new lack of structural integrity. Lucy cautiously entered the street's center, walking in the direction she'd seen Vira go flying when she'd been forced to rematerialize. Curtains of smoke obscured her visibility completely and she held the fabric of her arm sleeves over her nose and mouth as she moved.
"LUCY!"
Her name sounding in frantic warning had her whirling too fast. Off tilter, she fell back on her butt with a squeak of surprise as a blur of red and black shot passed her. A boot buried itself in Vira's gut, blocking the attack the Virus Demon had apparently been aiming at her. Erza nailed Vira to the ground under her heel and fixed the point of her sword just in front of the demoness' eye. "Surrender," the Knight growled.
Vira grinned, "Looks like our time is up for now," she responded cryptically. Her eyes flitted away from Erza to land on Lucy as she strode up behind her red-haired friend's shoulder. "Be seeing you again real soon, star girl." A split second later, Erza's foot was planted on nothing more than the ground again, purple hued fumes filtering into the air and vanishing without a trace.
The girls stared at the space Vira had been before Erza turned to place a hand on her shoulder, "Are you okay Lucy?"
Nodding in confirmation, Lucy gave her thanks, and looked back at the still-smoldering street, "Natsu was here too, where could he have gone?" she asked.
Erza looked immediately confused, "Natsu? He's fighting Jackal, he sent me to help you… I can't imagine he defeated Jackal and beat me here…"
Considering the redhead's words, Lucy shook her head, "I don't know how he did it, but he must have. I'd recognize his fire anywhere."
Steps clicked across the street, and Lucy spun with Natsu's name on her lips and paused with her jaw agape. A new man approached them, a hand raised in a wave and a grin on his face. Lucy exchanged a look with Erza who looked equally suspicious of the new arrival. The mysterious man stopped just shy of them and hinged forward, bringing himself eye level and only a nose away from Lucy with a considering look. She flinched back at the unexpected invasion of her personal space. "He-Hey…" she said uncomfortably.
He tilted his head, sniffing at the air in front of her, "You really are a knockout, aren't you?!"
"Eh?!" Lucy gasped, taking a step back, her words failing her in a single uttered sound.
Grinning all the more widely, the man straightened, dropping his hands to his hips, "I mean I knew you were stunning from the photos but—"
"EHHH?! Photos? What the hell, you old pervert!" Lucy shrieked, snapping out of her inaction to throw her weight behind a reflexive slap.
Sailing to the side to land unceremoniously on his butt, the man blinked up at her a moment, absently massaging his cheek. Eyes widening only a fraction when Erza jumped to place herself between them with her sword held at the ready. He looked between them both, met Lucy's brown eyes over Erza's shoulder again and then burst into a hearty laughter which only furthered Lucy's exacerbation. "Yep! That kinda fire would attract my idiot son."
Lucy's awestruck mind raced to connect the dots, the impossible dots. "Your… idiot son?" she repeated slowly, eyes widening comically as her hand whipped forward to pry Erza's blade away. "Oh, my Gods! Igneel?!… oh shit! Erza—I just slapped Natsu's father!" she yelped, Erza's jaw dropped to gape openly as well.
"Oh Gods! Sir, I am so sorry!" Lucy cried frantically, quickly squatting down to assess his reddened cheek. Natsu had mentioned the Dragons had access to human forms… but how could Igneel be here now? It was impossible, she had to be hallucinating. But when her hand touched the heated skin of his cheek, and golden eyes stared back at her matched with an all-to-familiar toothy grin, she knew this definitely wasn't a mind trick..
"Lucy, there is no need to apologize, I owe you so much for being by my Natsu's side." Lucy blushed fiercely, it just now dawning on her that Igneel must be fully aware of her relationship with his son. The dragon's eyes flicked passed her, "and you must be Erza."
. . .
. . .
Haru shot off a far weaker jet of water magic than his usual, attempting to support the sky slayer as she strived to protect him from the seemingly endless army of black creatures. His arm dropped back to his side limply, lungs desperately working for air as the demands of one of his simplest spells sent him reeling in his current state. Wendy's cheeks expanded as she unleashed spirals of shimmery air followed by a wing attack that expelled tornados in opposite directions, blowing back the vast majority of Zeref's Children.
Every scream made him feel like he was experiencing the pain of a brutal hit with her. The helpless feeling of watching a comrade fight against overwhelming numbers alone and not being able to do a thing to help was worse. "W-water Dragon's—" he tried, failing to inhale deeply enough to fuel the breath attack he needed to stave off the onslaught. Through his coughs he pleaded with Wendy to escape, despite knowing she would never do so.
"Iron Dragon's—"
"Lightning Dragon's—"
"ROAR!"
Haru raised an arm to shield his face as a vortex of magnetized iron shards laced with lightning spilled through the whole street, immersing the entire force of the black-magic army. Lowering his hand, Haru glanced down the street seeing nothing, but static electricity left in the wake of the combined roar. Gajeel stood with Wendy cradled protectively in his arms, Laxus angled beside him, a fist still held in front of him coated in in lightning.
"HARU!" he barely had time to register what was going on before Mira slammed into his side, landing on his chest when he fell to the side under the addition of her weight. She clung to him so tightly his laboured breathing became even more challenged, he rasped out her name, vaguely catching Wendy's admonishment.
"Mira! You musn't do that!" she cried, leaping away from the iron slayer and attempting to pry Mira's death grip off him.
"It's o-okay, Wendy," Haru assured when Mira pulled away just enough to relieve him of her weight squeezing the breath from him. Wendy crouched beside them as he wrapped an arm around his girlfriend's quivering shoulders. The fear she projected on him felt like a vice that was tighter then the viral infection accosting his lungs.
Wendy glanced up at their fellow dragon slayers, "Haru needs Porlyusica," she told them. Laxus nodded, placing a hand on Mira's shoulder to get her attention and gently guided her away so he could bend and drag the water mage onto his back. Haru groaned and let his head lull to the side on Laxus' shoulder, offering his thanks as Mira fell into step beside him and watched with a warring mix of relief and concern.
The group had been heading east through the ruins of Crocus, when Gajeel suddenly gave ineloquent voice to an observation that Haru was surprised he himself hadn't noticed. "Where the fuck'r the black things?" His companions all scanned the streets around them in silence for a moment, seemingly joining their iron headed comrade in his surprise. Not a single trace of the Children remained. It seemed unlikely the deep well of Black Magic could have run dry from feeding the ethereal army. No one answered his question, keeping their guards up as they navigated the streets in retreat toward Domus Flau. The spectators should still be taking cover there, and the mages and Rune Knights had been tasked with evacuating the remaining population between the stadium and the palace, as soon as it had become apparent that Tartaros had infiltrated the Games. Of course, the people likely would never learn that it was Tartaros and not simply a Dark Guild aiming to disrupt a widely broadcasted event.
"What about the others?" Wendy asked in a timid tone, a stark contrast to her earlier vigilance.
Gajeel froze mid step from his position leading the group, eyes flashing as he spun with a large grin, fangs glinting. "A chance to show up Salamander? –Leave it to me, I'll find 'em!"
"I'll go with you!" Wendy announced.
"The Children may have inexplicably vanished, but that doesn't mean it's over," Laxus warned, "be careful."
"Better keep up Windy!" Gajeel called, gaining a subtle twitch of irritation from her at the new nickname.
"Find Porlyusica!" Wendy ordered the others, her protective tendencies flaring again. Haru gave her an affectionately subtle smile as she spun on her toe and took off on iron slayer's heels.
. . .
. . .
"YOU'RE DONE!" Natsu yelled, his whole body wrapped in fire as he dived from far overhead and released his Secret Arts, "Crimson lotus, exploding lightning blade!"
Natsu sliced through the air, his body drilling down from above toward the lycanthrope form of the demon that currently laid unmoving at the center of an expansive fire-blackened crater. Jackal's pupilless gaze stared up at him as the distance between them dwindled until his fist collided with the demon's chest buckling him further and sending out a massive shockwave. The ground quaked and exploded around them both, loosing chunks of the street and the already dilapidated buildings to fly in a shower of destruction. Jackal yelled in anguish, coughing up a spray of blood before his body came to a rest under the fire mage's weight once more.
Jackal coughed, broken words spilling from his lips in blood-choked raspy sounds, "You—think you've won—Dragneel?" he finally got out after multiple attempts.
Natsu's brow rose, he wasn't even actively pinning the male beneath him anymore, he'd broken Jackal's body far beyond any possible retaliation. He shifted his weight back onto his haunches lazily, leaving his arms to rest on his knees in a squat as he eyed the demon gate with palpable skepticism. Jackal sucked in a breath, turned his head and spat out an additional glob of blood, before showing him a grin of blood-stained teeth. "Just a test…" he breathed, continuing with an array of taunts that hinted to Tartaros' upcoming plans, already set in motion.
Gnawing his inner cheek between pointed incisors, Natsu couldn't decide whether to heed the bomb demon's threats. "Explain, now!" he growled, igniting his entire fist in God flames as he leaned over his defeated foe menacingly.
Suddenly, with a last show of strength, Jackal latched on to his arm and wrapped his free arm around Natsu's neck, "No need—you die here with me!" Panic washed through the fire mage, and he began fervently struggling to free himself when the demon's body began to give off unstable pulses of energy.
Apparently, Jackal's final move was to turn himself into a living bomb, and when the demon detonated himself, he'd take Natsu and half of Crocus with him. Natsu thrashed in the strangle hold and released his magic in an attempt kill the demon before he could detonate, but despite the smell of scorched fur assaulting his nose, the pressure of the bomb did not seem to be diminishing. Desperation flooded Natsu's thoughts along with flickering images of times long passed with his Fairy Tail family, and the runes on his arm pulsed in response to the wildly contrasting emotions. Random lines of searing heat crawled over his skin, nearly intense enough to make him wince. He glanced at his own hand grasping Jackal's forearm across his throat and noted new jet-black marks that marred his skin.
Natsu roared and vibrant blue flames erupted from his body, causing Jackal beneath him to release a tortured scream of his own. "It won't work, fool! Nothing—can stop—" the demon yelled, losing his grip on him. Natsu launched to his feet while the bomb curse continued to swell in power and Natsu's newly released flames remained unextinguished, engulfing his whole body. With another yell, tinged with the desperation to protect everyone, a red energy burst forth with familiar black ribbons rippling across its surface. He'd conjured the same shield he'd inadvertently used during the fight with Hades, just as Jackal's body finally exploded under the ballooning Etherious. Pain like he hadn't felt in a long, long time, seared his very core, and Natsu noticed the blue flames ebbing under the force as though the Etherious-based explosion literally fed his flames.
His vision blurred under the strain.
Natsu inhaled.
He took in as much of the resulting power off the explosion as he could handle, and then it was over. He keeled forward, landing on his knees where Jackal had been, where only ash remained. Natsu collapsed forward in a heap and succumbed to unconsciousness.
Mercurius
White walls surrounded him and his eyes trailed over vaulted ceilings that brought the familiarity of Mercurius' medical quarters. Natsu rolled his head to the side with a groan. "Natsu, you're awake, oh that's such a relief!" a happy voice chirped. "Natshuuu!" came another right after. Mira rounded his bed and Happy leapt from her shoulder to smother his face in blue fur.
"Hey li'l buddy!" Natsu scratched the cat's ear and gave Mira his toothy grin, "good to see you too Mira"
Natsu switched his attention to the weight draped over him, Lucy's face was completely peaceful as she slept soundly on his chest. He brought a hand up, carding fingers through strands of blonde hair, as Mira took up a chair in front of his bed, "How are you feeling Natsu? We were worried," she said softly.
"Sorry I worried you all…" he replied, subconsciously running his other hand down Lucy's side. He knew the stellar mage had likely been terrified…whatever it was that had happened. "I don't really remember much," he admitted. Then the reality of their battle with Tartaros dawned on him. "Is everyone else okay? Haru?" he asked in a flurry of words, just now recalling the state he'd last known his partner to be in. Mira shifted to the side slightly, and gestured with a thumb over her shoulder, turning to follow his gaze to the water slayer in the next bed over.
"Is he—"
"He's okay…" she said slowly, reaching up to brush the dark bangs from Haru's face, a small smile tugging at her lips. "Porlyusica was able to repair the viral damage, though he hasn't woken yet." Mira paused, looking back at him again with a quirked brow and an amused expression, "you were just as messed up you know, for a time, we thought we might lose both of you."
Natsu's face dropped, guilt peeling through him. "I'd apologize again, but I honestly don't remember what I did, last thing I remember was defeating Jackal… not much after that," he reiterated, shrugging sheepishly.
Mira did her best to fill the gaps in his memory, even though she hadn't been there. All she knew was how Gajeel and Wendy had found him alone at the center of destruction on a catastrophic scale. They'd gotten him back, and the remaining Games participants had all filtered in around the same time. None of them could shed light on why the other demons had disappeared when they did, they certainly hadn't been in any insurmountable position. Tataros had stood just as good a chance at coming out victorious as the light guild mages had.
Scratch that, they couldn't really call it a victory. A temporary stalemate perhaps.
Natsu had been out for four days, apparently, and in that time, all the guilds that had come to Crocus to attend or participate in the Games had been lending their magic and their hands in beginning to rebuild Crocus. The city was never expected to take such an immense level of damage from the final event alone, but the appearance of the demons had forced the mages to fight for their lives. Needless to say, Crocus looked like a warzone, leaving plenty of people homeless until repairs could be made.
The doors across the room opened, and Fairy Tail's resident pink-haired healer entered, with a few others tailing her. "Yo, flame brain, finally woke your lazy ass up?" The ice mage crossed the room and slapped a hand over his shoulder, "been getting your beauty sleep while we all bust our asses…" he continued teasingly. Natsu knew he was trying to get a rise out of him but indulged him anyway; bickering with Gray seemed like the perfect way to release the tension of the whole group. Erza sat on the end of his bed and laughed as the two exchanged various insults back and forth, and when Porlyusica's short fuse finally ended, her resulting yells pulled Lucy from her slumber. The stellar mage sat up slightly, looking around the room at all their friends before pouncing further up the bed to sob her own relief into Natsu's neck.
"I only agreed to letting all you brats visit because you PROMISED to keep it down!" the healer barked irritably, though she made no threat to actually kick them out. She growled under her breath as she mixed random concoctions together before injecting one into an IV drip affixed to Haru's arm.
Lucy paid the elderly woman no attention, as she righted herself to look down at him, "You're really okay?" she asked him in a bare whisper.
"'Course I am Luce, you know I'd never leave you!" he told her.
Processing his statement as everyone remained silent for a moment, Lucy nodded as if accepting the truth of his statement and then she smacked him. "If you're going to tell me you won't ever leave me, then STOP putting yourself in such dangerous situations!"
"Oi! I can't even remember what situation I was in!" he yelped back, but his face softened when he saw the hurt on hers. He sighed, pressing himself up to place a kiss on her forehead and wrapped his arms around her, "you know I can't promise that Luce, I will always do whatever I can to protect you and Fairy Tail… But your love always guides me back home."
Gray fell out of his chair in a fit of laughter, immediately berating him for the cheesy line that had Natsu flushing bright red upon remembering they were not alone. Gray was never going to let him live that down—
"MY son the mushy romantic, never woulda guessed that!"
"Wha—" Natsu yelped again, two more people filed into the room, the two Natsu had been worried he'd never see again after leaving them to fight Acnologia. "DAD, you're here?! –How?!"
The fire dragon left his question unanswered, instead glancing between his bed and Haru's, before looking at Glaciea beside him. "The better question is, why am I not at all surprised I'd find my idiot pupils in intensive care beds? Did I not train you well enough?!"
"Ah Daaaad, come on, cut us some slack!"
"Hey Natsu…" Igneel started, hinging over his bed to lean in and whisper in Natsu's ear, "where are my grandkids huh?"
Natsu flushed a bright red for the second time that hour and took in the curious look on Lucy's face who was watching their exchange closely.
"With the way they go at it… you won't be waiting too long."
Natsu's eyes bulged, and all eyes snapped over to Haru who was rolling to his side to face the group, a tired but smug look planted on his face. Mira's excited remarks were drowned by Natsu's own exacerbation. "You pick NOW to wake up?! REALLY Haru?! –and who's side are you ON anyway?!"
To his displeasure, he realized his partner was ignoring him in favour of letting Mira steal his attention with a series of kisses, uncaring of their audience. It also seemed the rest of his companions had used Haru's tease to deduce his father's whispered words as well, because they were all snickering and joking at his expense now. Lucy was busy attempting to hide her heated cheeks behind her hands, while fending off Erza's demands to be named God Mother.
Glaciea hung her weight off Igneel with her forearm resting on his shoulder, and pointing passed Natsu's nose with the other, "Oceanus might get grandkids before you…" she teased, fuelling the fire.
"Wha—No, NO WAY! Natsu, Lucy! You can't let that water-logged lizard beat me!"
Haru broke from a kiss, whipping his attention over to the dragons and quickly denied any chance of kids being in his and Mira's near future while the girl in his arms just giggled. At the same time Lucy snapped back, "When we have kids is not a competition you get to wage with Oceanus, damn fire gecko!" Igneel blinked owlishly, mumbling, 'gecko?' and Natsu chuckled at his girlfriend's occasionally fiery temper. "Seriously… what is with you dragons and competition?" she grumbled.
Natsu tipped her chin up so he could catch her eyes, canines glinting in a lopsided smile, "That wasn't a no…" he pointed, "you want kids with me Luce?"
With a renewed blush she chewed her bottom lip shyly, "Well yeah… I mean… someday…"
Their friends whistled and teased and Igneel nudged Natsu's shoulder with his elbow a few times, "I like her, Natsu."
"Yeah, I'm kinda partial to her myself," Natsu replied flippantly, earning himself another smack, though this one much more playful then the earlier.
"Wellllll then," Erza cut in as Porlyusica moved around the Twin Dragons, checking various vitals between exaggerated eye rolls at the group's interactions. "Now that you boys are both up, Princess Hisui will be wanting to make an official announcement for the celebration party."
"Party?" Lucy asked.
"The Princess wants to throw a party to reward everyone's hard work in protecting and helping with the city's repairs," Erza explained.
"But she wanted to let you two sleeping beauties—" Gray started, flicking Natsu in the forehead.
"Oi!"
"—wake up, before she settled on a date to ensure your lazy butts could attend."
A/N. Ohhh boy. Okay a few unanswered questions in there, don't worry, holes are purposeful and will be filled as usual.
Couple interlude fun and set-up chapters before we truly move onto the war that I've slowly been building for the last two arcs….
Any predictions or things you're all hoping to see in the next arc?
*Reminder, DeviantArt will be home to the visuals now. I've added a NaLu work depicting both Natsu's END form and Lucy's Reform Wings for reference.
This weeks undying appreciation goes to SuperSaiyajin4Vegeta, AliceCullen3, Valerioux, FireShifter, Joker D. Zero, EternalFlame, rjv and guests. As always, big thanks!
'Till next time,
R&R
~LokaMuse