Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.
Fairy Tail—The Master and the Dragon
Chapter 57
The early morning sun poured in through the small guild window, shining its light on Gracie's face. However, unlike any other morning where Gracie would complain about being woken up by the sun, she seemed unaffected. She just laid there, arm draped over her forehead, eyes spacing out on the ceiling.
She hadn't slept at all last night. She felt so guilty about what happened with Nikolias yesterday that her body refused to let her rest. She turned in her bed to stare out the window. The last words that she said to Nikolias in their fight kept playing through her mind, causing her heart to ache.
"We don't have to do everything together, you know!"
She sighed. "Why did I say that?" she asked herself softly. She loved Nikolias and always loved spending time with him, and yet she wouldn't blame Nikolias at all if he never wanted to do anything with her again.
Still, as much as she regretted her fight with Nikolias and her choice of words, she couldn't deny that she really wanted to go clothes shopping with the girls yesterday. Even though she didn't admit it to the others, she did have one memory of clothes shopping with someone other than Nikolias. And that memory was one of being with her mother, laughing as they tried on crazy outfit after crazy outfit before eventually finding one that they both liked. It was so much fun for Gracie and it was an experience that she desperately wanted to have again. She should have just rescheduled, though. She couldn't fully enjoy her time because she couldn't get Nikolias out of her mind.
She slowly sat up, allowing the sheets to fall off of her naked form. She closed her eyes, allowing the sun's rays to warm her skin. It made her feel a little better, allowing her mind to focus on the warmth, but it couldn't alleviate her troubles completely. With a groan, she forced herself to stand up and get dressed. She put on her black underwear before slipping on a pair of white shorts. She then picked up the black tank top with the golden V that she had purchased yesterday and looked it over. She remembered buying it because it reminded her of Nikolias. She couldn't help but wonder if she only bought it out of guilt or if she actually liked the shirt. She shrugged as she pulled it over her head and then made her way to the door. She grabbed the doorknob, took a deep breath, and swung the door open. She had made her decision.
She was going to apologize to Nikolias. Even though he shouldn't have been so bossy and he had no right to say that she didn't have her priorities straight, she said some things that she shouldn't have said as well. She knew that Nikolias would eventually apologize, but she didn't want to wait for him to finally realize how he was wrong, so she would just have to initiate. At least then she may be able to sleep again. 'Damn guilty conscience,' she thought as she yawned.
She made her way to the small main room of the guild, hoping that Nikolias and Mira had already arrived so that she could give her apology. However, upon reaching the main room, she saw Mira, but she wasn't with Nikolias. Instead, she was sitting in a chair with her face buried in her hands while Lisanna, Wendy, Lucy, Erza, and Natsu stood around her. Curious, she made her way over. "What's going on, peeps?"
Mira lifted her head, her eyes red from crying. She sniffed as she looked at Gracie. "Gracie, good morning."
"Mira, what's wrong?" Gracie asked worriedly.
"Nikolias never came home last night and I haven't seen him at all today," Mira sobbed.
Gracie's eyes widened. "Seriously?"
"Yes, apparently no one has seen him since yesterday at around noon," Erza said.
"That was when he left for the Hunter job," Gracie breathed.
Mira sniffed. "I'm so worried. Where could he be and why hasn't he returned?"
Gracie shook her head in disbelief. 'This can't be happening. Sure Xeeval is tough and dangerous, but there's no way he could beat Niky…is there?'
"What do we do, Gracie?" Wendy asked as she patted Mira's hand.
Gracie clenched her fists. "This is all my fault. I should have gone with him, but I was being selfish," she hissed. "I have to go and find him."
"But where?" Mira asked. "I don't even know where he went."
"He went to Juniper. It's a town in Bosco," Gracie replied. "That's where this Xeeval creep was last sighted."
Mira stood up. "Then I'll start there!"
Gracie pumped her fist. "I'm right behind ya!"
"Slow down, you two," Erza said. "Do you even know how far away Juniper is? We can't fly there in a matter of hours. It would take multiple days of traveling."
"What does it matter?" Gracie asked. "We need to make sure that Niky is alright."
"I'm not saying that we shouldn't go, but we need a plan," Erza said.
"Erza's absolutely right," Makarov said as he walked over.
"Master," Gracie said softly.
Makarov closed his eyes. "There are numerous different paths you could take into Bosco, but none of them are quick. Juniper is also on the far eastern side of Bosco, close to the border of Iceberg."
"That far?" Gracie said, astonished.
"It's a long journey and transportation will be difficult with all of the mountain ranges," Makarov said with a nod.
"But we need to find Nikolias!" Mira exclaimed.
Natsu grinned. "Yeah, we gotta go get him! He's one of us, after all."
Makarov sighed. "I agree with you, but be aware of the obstacles that face you."
"Understood," Erza said. She then turned to the group. "We can't send the whole guild, so only a few of us will go. Perhaps just a small party of nine since we don't know what kind of power we're up against."
"I have to go," Mira said immediately. "I refuse to stay behind."
"Of course," Erza said.
"Like hell I'm staying behind," Gracie said, furiously punching her palm over and over. "That Xeeval bastard will meet my steel again and again, I promise you that."
"We're coming as well," Natsu said with a smile, pulling Lucy close to him.
Lucy nodded with a smile. "We're all family and so is Nikolias. We'll bring him home."
"I want to help, too!" Wendy said excitedly.
"Count me in," Gray said, walking over to join the group.
Natsu bashed his head into Gray's. "Ain't no one asked you, frost bite!"
Gray pushed back. "You gotta problem with me wanting to help out Gracie and Mira?"
"Gray will make a good edition," Erza said.
"Aw man, what?" Natsu complained while Gray stood triumphantly with his arms crossed.
"Who else should go?" Lucy asked.
"I'll come!" Levy chirped as she walked over to the group with Gajeel, Jet, and Droy. "I've always wanted to travel out of Fiore!"
"Your navigational skills could be very useful to us," Erza said.
"If Levy's going, then so am I!" Droy spoke up.
"No way, I'm going!" Jet refused.
Gajeel huffed as he stood proudly with his eyes closed. "Plant guy is too outta shape and skinny's voice will drive you all up a wall." He grinned as he opened an eye and pointed to himself. "Look no further than this guy here to help ya out."
"Gajeel and Levy will make excellent final members," Erza said.
"Final members?" Wendy asked. "Don't you want nine?"
Erza nodded and smiled. "I'll be coming, of course. I want to bring Nikolias back just as badly as everyone else."
"Well then that part is settled," Makarov said. "Now, what route will you take?"
"Levy, can you get a map?" Erza asked.
Levy nodded enthusiastically and ran to fetch the needed documents.
Gracie walked over to Mira and grasped her hands tightly. "Mira, I truly am sorry. I should have been by Niky's side for this job. But I promise you that I will make this right. I'll do everything I can to find Niky and bring him home."
Mira nodded. "Yeah, we'll find him. Everything will be alright."
"Gracie, what else can you tell us about Xeeval?" Erza asked.
Gracie whipped out her Business Book; the small black book that held information and pictures of all the criminals that Nikolias and Gracie looked to hunt down. She leafed through the pages before finding the page she was looking for. On the small page was a headshot of a man with an angry scowl on his face. His right eye was closed from a long scar that crossed diagonally from the bridge of his nose up to his forehead. His one open eye was an intense black that tried to burn a hole through the film. His hair was messy, long, and jet black. Gracie looked at the crime list. "Xeeval Boran, otherwise known as Xeeval the Executioner. Age 38 and unmarried. The only thing he's ever done is murder people, but he's done it a lot. He first put himself on the map when he was just 20 years old and killed twenty seven people in a small town in Stella without mercy and without saying a word. Cut them all down with a machete, ruthlessly and in cold blood. No one knows why, but the common theory is that he snapped from the pressure of home life. Others say it was just an impulse. That part doesn't matter, though. The thing that matters most is that ever since that day 18 years ago, he's gone from place to place completely at random, killing large masses of people he would come across. It was also noted that he killed ten or more people each time he struck."
"Sickening," Gray said. "That's a lot of pointless killing. And why that number of people?"
"Don't know," Gracie shrugged.
"Anything else worth noting?" Lucy asked.
"Just what Niky told us yesterday; Xeeval the Executioner appeared in a town called Juniper, which is located in the country of Bosco."
Erza hummed as she took in everything. "That's not a lot to go on, but at least we have an idea of what to expect if we approach Xeeval. However, we should look to avoid conflict since our objective is to find Nikolias."
Gracie punched her fist. "Oh you can forget about it. While I agree that Niky is our priority, if I see Xeeval, I will run him through with my broad sword."
Erza sighed. "You really should avoid such altercations…"
Gracie stuck her finger in her ear, pretending to dig something out. "Sorry, couldn't hear ya. I think I had something in my ear."
Erza sighed. "Honestly…"
"I'm back!" Levy exclaimed, a roll of parchment grasped in her hands. She placed it on the table and unrolled it, revealing a map of Earth Land. "Here's the map you asked for."
Gracie planted her hands on either side of the parchment, holding it open and leaning in to examine it. "Alright, how should we proceed?"
Erza tapped her finger on the map. "The easy part is how to get to the border of Fiore. We'll head east from here by taking the train to Clover Town."
"That would take us close to the border of Seven," Levy said.
"But Juniper is in Bosco," Gracie said. "Why would we head for Seven?"
"Heading straight into Bosco would prove treacherous," Erza explained as she slid her finger across the parchment, stopping near a mountain range in Bosco. "To enter Bosco directly from Fiore would mean passing the Corrupt Tower."
"The Corrupt Tower?" Gracie repeated.
"A mysterious structure with untold dangers," Levy said. "Since it's highly unlikely that Nikolias is there, it would be wise to avoid it completely. And to pass it while entering Bosco directly is impossible because of the mountain range to the south."
Gracie sighed. "So we have to take the long way. I guess it can't be helped. Okay, so we enter Seven. Then what?"
"Perhaps that would be better left for you to decide," Erza said. "You know Seven and Bosco better than any of us from your travels."
Gracie nodded while thoroughly studying the map in silence. Her eyes dashed from point to point, trying to use her strategic mind to assess the best route. After a few minutes, she hummed before pointing to the Fiore-Seven border. "I think the best way would be to walk as close to the Bosco border as possible. That would mean that the first town we hit would be Wayhaven." She tapped the map where Wayhaven was located. "From Wayhaven, we should head to Rolen, which is another fairly busy place. It's one of the high trade towns of Seven," she said while sliding her finger farther east. She then proceeded to drag her finger southeast and into Bosco. "From Rolen, we should have easy access into Bosco, avoiding the mountains and this Corrupt Tower thingamajig. Then, we just head east until we hit Juniper, stopping when necessary to pick up supplies and what not."
"Are we gonna walk there?" Natsu asked.
Gracie nodded. "There will be a lot of walking, yeah."
"Yes!" Natsu cheered.
"That's an awfully long walk," Mira said, wanting to get to Nikolias sooner rather than later.
Gracie scratched her head. "Yeah, I ain't denying that. It's a hell of a walk. The only problem is that Seven and Bosco don't have any trains running between them, so that kind of transportation in Seven tends to be farther north than we want to go. Also, like Master mentioned, because of mountain ranges littering the western area, transportation is scarce. Once we get into Bosco, though, we can probably find something faster than our feet."
"No!" Natsu complained, already fearing the transportation.
Gracie nodded her head at her own plan. "So what does everyone think? As of now, the plan on the table is to take the train to Clover Town, walk into Seven, head for Wayhaven, walk to Rolen, make our way down into Bosco to the nearest train that would take us east, and then make it to Juniper. Thoughts or concerns?"
"It's a solid plan," Erza said.
"I think it's our best course of action all things considered," Gray agreed.
"So everyone agrees then?" Gracie asked.
"Yes," all of the eight other party members shouted.
"Okay then, I guess we know what we're doing," Gracie said. "All that we need to do now is prepare to leave. How soon can everyone be set to go?"
"My belongings are always ready to go at a moment's notice," Erza said.
Lucy sweatdropped. "You should probably pack a little lighter than you normally do, Erza."
Erza hummed. "Very well. Then I must sort things out and decide what is essential. I would say that everyone should take the next hour to prepare, taking any items needed for a long trip."
"I have everything I need," Gracie said, tugging on her clothes. "I'm ready to go when you guys are."
"If you feel prepared, Gracie, then why don't you get food together?" Erza offered. "We'll need plenty of rations for this mission."
Gracie nodded. "I can definitely do that."
"Excellent," Makarov said. "You have your members and your route planned out. I wish you all the best of luck."
The group of nine nodded before dispersing, hurrying to collect their things so that they could move out as soon as possible, for who knew what dangers Nikolias was facing?
Gracie put her hands on her hips, panting as she scanned all of the items that she had placed on the kitchen counter. She had hurriedly grabbed anything that she could think of that the party might need, dashing from place to place to get everything put together as quickly as she could. Of course, she was so focused on speed that she forgot to consider necessity, so she ended up having to put things back, grumbling at her own carelessness as she did so.
She released a deep breath. "I think that's everything that we'll need. Guess I just have to pack it all now."
"Gracie?"
Gracie turned around to see Mira, looking like she was on the verge of tears again, standing in the kitchen entrance. "Hey Mira. All packed?"
Mira nodded slowly. "Yeah. Gracie, everything's okay, right? Nikolias isn't dead or hurt, right?"
Gracie wanted desperately to give her a big smile and tell her that Nikolias was perfectly fine. Unfortunately, while she doubted that he was dead, she was fairly sure that Nikolias was in serious trouble. She knew that she couldn't lie to Mira; Mira would see right through it. She took a deep breath and looked Mira straight in the eyes. "I don't know," she said softly, her voice shaking as she spoke. "I want to believe that everything is okay, but I just can't know for sure. I will say this, though; I'm pretty sure that Niky's not dead. We just have to have faith that he's alright and hurry to his side. We both need to believe with all of our hearts that Niky is okay and he'll be with us again soon."
Mira gave a sad smile. "You're right. I'll believe that he's okay."
Gracie smiled back. "There ya go. If you're done, mind helping me get this stuff packed? The sooner we leave the better."
"Of course."
The two got to work, packing up the provisions they would need in complete silence.
Gracie, Mira, Natsu, Lucy, Erza, Gray, Wendy, Levy, and Gajeel all stood at the guild entrance before Makarov. The old former guild master looked up at the group with a serious look on his face.
"All of you, be careful," he warned. "Once you leave Fiore, you'll be traveling in unfamiliar territory. Be on your guards."
"Yes, Master," all nine said.
"Now, off with you all. And best of luck finding Nikolias."
All nine cheered and headed for the train station in Magnolia.
The journey to find Nikolias had begun.
Nikolias groaned as his eyes slowly opened. His vision was hazy, his eyes almost refusing to focus. "What the hell?" he mumbled, the words slurred slightly for his lips were still a little numb. His head felt heavy as it hung down, but he managed to move it from side to side, doing his best to look around with his blurred vision. He could tell that he was at least upright, but his feet weren't on the floor. The room was poorly lit and the walls seemed to be made of bricks. The room reeked of mold and rotted flesh. "Where am I?"
Slowly, piece by piece, he started to recall what had happened. 'Those men…who are they exactly? And what could Gracie possibly have that would make them come after her?' He blinked, trying to clear his vision. 'Whoever they are, they're not your typical shitheads. They know a lot, even how to fuck with my senses.'
The sound of a door creaking open could be heard ahead. Nikolias managed to lift his head just enough to see a figure slowly walking towards him. He thought that it looked like an older man, but his eyesight still couldn't be trusted. The figure got closer and closer before finally speaking. "Ah, you're awake," came the gravely and soft voice. Yep, definitely an old man. "I was wondering how much longer you'd be out for."
"Who are you?" Nikolias demanded. "And where the hell am I?"
"You certainly do ask a lot of questions," the old man said. "As a scientist, I deeply appreciate that quality."
"Just answer," Nikolias growled.
"Yes, yes, be patient," the old man said. "My name is Dr. Vyril Lyno. I'm a research specialist and a gifted scientist working for Master Jarvan's organization."
The name Jarvan clicked in Nikolias' mind. 'So the bastard that seemed in charge before is actually running the whole show,' he thought. "Now where am I?"
"You're in our headquarters, of course," Vyril said as if it were the most obvious answer in the world. "To be more specific, you're in the underground laboratory."
"Why am I here?"
Vyril sighed. "Ideally, you'd be dead right now and not here, so believe me when I say that this was not the original plan."
Nikolias gritted his teeth, remembering what Jarvan had said about his aspirations. "What do you assholes want with Gracie?"
"She has something that belongs to Master Jarvan; something that even I know nothing about," Vyril replied. "Anyway, you're here because we couldn't get our hands on Miss Amier yesterday, so you are to act as nice and tempting bait."
Nikolias chuckled. "Like it'll work. How will she even be able to find me?"
"Oh, Master Jarvan has planned everything out, don't you worry. Miss Amier will know exactly where to go to find you and rescue you, and it will be at that time that we take her."
"You so much as lay a finger on Gracie and I'll rip out your throat!" Nikolias roared.
"I'd like to see you try," Vyril said. "You're all chained up after all."
Nikolias raised an eyebrow before forcing his head to turn around. Once he managed to turn around just a little bit, his eyes widened. Sure enough, his arms and legs were bound by thick iron chains that were attached to the wall, suspending him in midair. 'How the hell did I not feel these attached to me?'
Vyril gave a soft chuckle. "You won't be going anywhere."
Nikolias sneered at him. "You think a few chains can keep me back? Hah! And I thought you guys had done your homework. I can break these weak things in my sleep." He yanked on the chains attached to his wrists, but instead of hearing the satisfying sound of shattering metal, he felt an intense wave of electricity wash over his body. He roared in pain as once again, he felt the power of electrocution that Jarvan's organization seemed to favor. His body went limp and the electric shock disappeared.
Vyril laughed loudly. "You see? We know exactly who we're dealing with, so your restraints won't simply be an incredibly strong metal. We've hooked the chains up to a high-powered generator. If you so much as put any excess amount of pressure on your chains, the machine will shock you. The harder you pull, the more painful the shock. With the way you are now, the amount of weight you're putting on the chains is causing the machine to send out just the right amount of electricity to keep your body feeling slightly numb. Ingenious, right? I designed it myself, but it was Master Jarvan's idea as a whole."
Nikolias grunted as he lifted his head to glare at Vyril. "You sons of bitches. I swear I will kill you all."
Vyril simply waved his hand and walked off towards a wooden table near where Nikolias was imprisoned. Once he reached the table, he picked up an envelope, opened it and read the contents. Once he did, his face lit up. "Oh, Master Jarvan is so kind!" He waved the papers at Nikolias. "Good news, Half-Dragon! I've been given permission to have a little fun with you."
"Fun with me?" Nikolias repeated.
Vyril smiled evilly. "Yes. You see, you may not have been the intended target, but as a man of science and research, everything about you calls to me. You're a fascinating specimen and quite the beneficial consolation prize." He walked over to a table of tools and picked up a large syringe. "Master Jarvan has given me permission to collect all of the data that I want on you. Now, let's see what makes you tick, Half-Dragon."
