Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.
Fairy Tail—The Master and the Dragon
Chapter 72
"Well I must say I didn't see this coming," Jarvan said. "I must congratulate you and your friends, Gracie. Even my Half-Dragon was no match for the real thing. You are all far stronger than I gave you credit for."
"Damn right we're strong," Gracie said while summoning her halberd. She held the weapon in front of her, the tip glistening in the light of the small flames that danced in the area. "And you can bet that we're gonna use that strength to take you down!"
"I can promise you that I'm not some easy mark," Jarvan said with a small smile. He then glared over at Sky, who was cradling her still unconscious sister. "I won't go down as easily as that traitorous trash."
Sky looked sadly at the ground as she held her sister closer to her body. "We don't want to kill," she said softly. "That's not what we wanted."
He clicked his tongue at his former puppet. "And after all I've done for you this is how you repay me? You realize I'll be killing you later as punishment for your betrayal."
"I may not know exactly what they did to be traitors," Nikolias growled, "but I won't let you lay a finger on them! If they left your side then it means they are kind people. I will protect them!"
Sky blushed as her heart skipped a beat. 'Someone is…going to protect us?'
"Oh please. They aren't worth protecting," Jarvan said while dismissively waving his hand.
Nikolias dropped to all fours and charged Jarvan with shadows dancing around his body. "Anyone who wants to live a free life away from a monstrosity like you is worth fighting for!"
Jarvan laughed. "You really are something, Half-Dragon." He reached into his pocket and took out a small remote with a small red button. "But like I said before; I'm not an easy mark." He clicked the button on the remote.
The ground around Jarvan shook violently, causing Nikolias to stop to regain his balance. However, a moment later, the ground directly beneath him erupted upwards. Large pieces of rock hit him in the head and body as he was sent flying backwards.
"Nikolias!" Mira cried while trying to stay on her feet.
Nikolias rolled along the ground before regaining his footing. He slid to a stop in front of the Fairy Tail group as blood dripped into the dirt.
"Are you alright?" Christina asked worriedly as the ground continued to shake beneath them.
"I'll be alright, but what the hell did he do?" Nikolias asked as his wounds began to slowly close.
"Beats me, but we're about to find out," Gracie said.
A massive iron dome began rising up from beneath the ground and standing on top of it was a smirking Jarvan. "I wasn't planning on using this, but you truly have backed me into a corner, haven't you? I can't have you pesky wizards interfering any longer, so I must eradicate you all in the name of acquiring the Dragon Rider Armor!"
"Dragon Rider Armor? Is that what Jarvan wants from you, Gracie?" Nikolias asked while keeping his eyes on the iron dome. He was getting a bad feeling from it.
"Yeah. It's an armor that I got from my mother," Gracie said.
"No kidding? Well you'll have to tell me all about it later."
"You bet."
"What's in the dome?" Natsu shouted.
"A little experiment of mine," Jarvan replied. "You see, I'm not as spry as I used to be. I can't fight all too well, especially against such young folk. So years ago, as I felt my prime slipping away, I designed a weapon I could use to fight should the need ever arise. Even though I hate getting my own hands dirty, it's better to be prepared in case your tools fail you, don't you think?"
"That dome is huge. What could possibly be inside?" Lucy wondered.
"I don't know, but I bet it ain't good," Gajeel said.
"Come on, Niky. Before he has a chance to use whatever this weapon is," Gracie said as she ran forward.
"Right!" Nikolias cried as he ran alongside her.
Jarvan laughed while thrusting his arms to the side. "Oh, you are far too late my friends!" The iron dome beneath Jarvan's feet began to give off steam. The dome opened up and Jarvan fell into its dark depths.
Nikolias and Gracie skidded to a stop. "Whoa! Did he just save us the trouble of killing him?"
"I highly doubt he'd do that," Nikolias said. "Be on your guard."
Once again, the ground began to shake, but only twice.
"What the hell was that?" Gray asked.
"I have a bad feeling about this," Carla said.
"Gracie! Nikolias! You should fall back!" Erza shouted.
The two turned to look at her just as a massive figure leapt up from the inside of the dome. It began its fall to earth right where Nikolias and Gracie stood.
"Look out!" Christina shouted.
Nikolias reacted the quickest of the two. He flapped his wings to get airborne, grabbed Gracie by her arms, and flew off. Just as he got a few feet away, the large figure crashed into the ground, sending earth and dust out in all directions like a shockwave. He turned in the air so that they could both look at the figure and both of their eyes widened. "What in the hell is that thing?"
Standing before the Fairy Tail wizards was a large iron titan. It had a dull shine as the flames illuminated its smooth gray metal. It wasn't much to look at, but it was certainly a towering object.
A mechanical laugh echoed out from inside of the metal. "So? What do you think?" Jarvan's voice called out from inside the metal man. "This is my Guardian Sentinel Armor MK II. It's an adaptation of an armor I came across when exploring foreign temples many years ago. It was the ultimate weapon for defense that I have turned into the ultimate weapon for offense!"
"You think this little toy can help you win?" Nikolias spat.
The armor lifted its right hand and pointed its fingers at Nikolias and Gracie. "A toy, huh? Well then, play with this for a while and tell me what you think!" The tips of the fingers opened up and small missiles flew out from each finger. All five raced towards where Nikolias was hovering with Gracie.
"Shit!" Nikolias cursed as he flew up to avoid them. However, they all followed after him. "What the hell?" He began flying away, but the missiles kept chasing after him.
"Niky, do something!" Gracie said as she watched the missiles chase after them. "We're gonna get blown to bits!"
"Don't worry; I've got just the thing," he said. He angled towards the ground, dropped Gracie, and flew back up as the missiles chased after him.
Gracie fell to the ground and rolled. She stopped on her stomach and looked up into the air. "Niky!"
"Don't freak out," Nikolias said as shadows collected into an orb in his right hand. "I don't plan on letting them hit me." He performed a quick spin in the air. "SHADOW DRAGON PULSE!" he shouted as he fired the orb of shadows at the incoming missiles before redirecting his body frontward to fly away as fast as he could. The Shadow Dragon Pulse collided with the first missile, causing it to explode. The Pulse then discharged, causing the remaining four to explode in brilliant flames and thick black smoke.
"Oh. That works," Gracie said.
Nikolias landed next to her and huffed. "I'm not a freaking martyr, you know. If I can avoid getting injured I will."
"See, knowing you for as long as I have, I have a hard time believing that."
"Oh shut up."
"Nicely done, Half-Dragon," Jarvan said. "Observing your power, I can see that my Half-Dragons have a long way to go."
"You won't be making any more Half-Dragons," Nikolias growled.
"We'll take that toy of yours down!" Natsu shouted. "FIRE DRAGON ROAR!" A stream of flames shot from his mouth and crashed into the torso of the armor. However, there was no effect and no evidence that Jarvan was even aware of the attack. "What? That did nothing!"
"This armor is far too thick for any weapon you all may possess," Jarvan explained. "Not even Jewel or Blaine would have been able to tear their way through."
Gracie gritted her teeth and charged the armor. "How dare you speak of my parents like that!" She swung her halberd's axe head at the leg of the armor. However, she simply ricocheted off as she felt strong vibrations shoot through her bones. She hissed in pain. "Shit. This thing is thicker than that Half-Dragon."
Jarvan laughed. "You have some trust issues, my dear girl. I told you no weapon could break through."
"If no weapon can break through then what can we do?" Wendy asked.
"Would a combination attack work?" Levy wondered.
"It's worth a try," Erza said. "Gracie, Nikolias, get back!"
Gracie nodded and leapt back and Nikolias glided back to the group as well. "Unleash hell!" Gracie cheered.
"Right!" everyone shouted.
Natsu, Gajeel, and Wendy took to the skies with the aid of Happy, Carla, and Panther Lily. "FIRE DRAGON…," Natsu began as he took a deep breath.
"IRON DRAGON…," Gajeel began as he inhaled deeply.
"SKY DRAGON…," Wendy said as she breathed deeply.
"ROAR!" they all simultaneously cried as they fired their attacks at the armor.
Erza requipped into her Morning Star Armor. "PHOTON SLICER!" she cried as she fired a beam of magic directly at the armor with her twin swords.
Lucy whipped out her gate keys. "OPEN GATE OF THE SCORPION! SCORPIO!" Scorpio appeared before her in a flash of light. "Let's go, Scorpio!" she shouted.
"Alright! SAND BUSTER!" Scorpio cried as he released a tornado of sand from his tail that headed straight for the armor.
Mira retook her Satan Soul form and collected a sphere of Darkness Magic. "EVIL EXPLOSION!" she cried and fired the attack at the armor.
Gray created a cannon made of ice. "ICE MAKE ICE CANNON!" he cried and fired a blast of ice at the armor.
Levy lifted her hands to her chest. "SOLID SCRIPT: FIRE!" she cried as she wrote the word 'fire' in the air. FIRE appeared in large 3-D letters before it went flying at the armor as red hot flames.
Christina lifted her bow and fired an arrow where the other attacks were headed.
Nikolias held his fist out in front of him. He then began to slowly cock it backwards and as he did so, shadows began to swarm around his arm and the air pressure began to rise. As he continued to draw back, the shadows and air pressure both intensified. Once his arm was completely cocked back, he remained still for a moment. "SHADOW DRAGON SEISMIC FIST!" he roared as he punched the air. By delivering the punch, a fist-shaped concussive blast of shadows barreled towards the armor. All of the attacks crashed into the armor, creating a large explosion.
Sky was watching in awe. "They're so strong." Suddenly, a small groan caught her attention. She looked down to see Ash stirring. "Sister," she said with a smile.
"Wha…What happened?" Ash asked.
"You passed out."
Ash sat up and rubbed her head. "Obviously." She turned her head to see a large smokescreen. "What's going on?"
"The people we were fighting are protecting us."
Ash looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Huh? Why would they do that?"
"I don't know," Sky said with a smile, "but it makes me happy."
Ash returned her attention to the Fairy Tail group and blushed slightly. "I guess…it makes me a little happy, too."
Everyone was waiting with bated breath to see the result of their efforts. However, once the smoke cleared they were shocked by what they saw.
The armor was unharmed.
"No way. We threw everything we had at it and there's not even a scratch?" Gray said in disbelief.
"I don't believe it," Mira said as she left her Satan Soul.
"How strong is that thing?" Gracie grumbled.
"I told you that there was nothing you could do to pierce this armor!" Jarvan laughed. "Now you see just how outmatched you are! The Dragon Rider Armor will be mine and you will all perish!"
Gracie let her halberd rest on the ground before letting it disappear. "Hey Niky," she said softly.
Nikolias turned to look at her. "Yeah?"
"I wanna try something. Do you mind going full dragon?" she asked.
Nikolias stared at her, but nodded. He wasn't sure what she was thinking, but he trusted her. "Sure thing. Give me some space."
Gracie backed up until she was standing next to everyone. "Take it away!"
Shadows began to dance around Nikolias' body. "Here we go!" He slammed his fists together and disappeared in a column of thick shadows that pierced the sky. After a few moments, the column expanded and exploded, sending out a concussive blast of wind and shadows. All that was left was a large shadowy mist that was quickly blown away by two massive black wings, revealing Nikolias in his full dragon form. He roared at the sky before returning his golden eyes to Jarvan.
"How breathtaking!" Jarvan marveled. "A real live dragon!"
"I can't believe what I'm seeing," Christina breathed.
"We told you he could turn into a dragon," Natsu said with a grin.
"Yup. You sure did," Christina said with wonder. "And you sure weren't lying."
"Nice idea, Gracie!" Lucy exclaimed. "Nikolias is just as big as that armor!"
"Size had nothing to do with my plan, Lucy" Gracie said. "I mean, I have no idea if my actual plan will work, but I'm trusting that it will."
"What are you going to do?" Mira asked.
Gracie looked over her shoulder and winked. "Oh you'll see." She then began walking towards Nikolias.
"Please be careful!" Christina begged.
Gracie gave her a thumbs up without turning around. "You got it!" She stopped directly beside Nikolias. "You ready?"
Nikolias huffed. "I will be as soon as you tell me what we're doing."
"Oh you don't need to know. Don't worry," Gracie said dismissively.
"How the hell is that supposed to work? You want to fight together without telling me the battle plan?"
She put a hand on his scaly leg. "Please just trust me."
Nikolias sighed and nodded. "You know I do."
"Thanks Niky." She leapt up onto his back and stared at the armor in which Jarvan was hiding. She narrowed her eyes and took a deep breath. 'Mom. Dad. Thank you for everything. You protected me with your lives. You gave me the chance to find wonderful friends. Now I ask for your help. Help give me strength to protect these people that I hold so dearly.' She closed her eyes as her body became filled with a familiar hot sensation. A soft, golden light began to emanate from her body and grow in intensity. "To protect everyone I care about, I ask for your strength. Come forth, Dragon Rider Armor!" The light became so bright that no one could see Gracie for a moment. However, the light soon began to fade to reveal that Gracie was wearing the Dragon Rider Armor. The large sword was clutched tightly in her hand.
Nikolias suddenly felt his body become very hot as well. 'What the hell?' he thought to himself. 'It's like there's a raging fire inside of me.' Suddenly, a bright, golden light washed over Nikolias. Beginning at Gracie's feet, it spread across his body in all directions like a wave of light and every place it passed left behind golden armor. Thick golden plates covered his back and made its way down the top of his tail to the tip. The metal wrapped around his torso where a large golden plate covered his underbelly. Golden metal guards covered the outer part of all four of his legs and around his four feet, stopping just beside the talons and connecting to the plates on his back. The metal continued up his neck, wrapping completely around it until it reached the head. A dragon-shaped helmet rested on Nikolias' head, covering the top half of his skull as well as the bony protrusions in golden metal armor. The only parts that remained uncovered were the underside of Nikolias' tail and jaw. Black reins connected to the helmet near the jaw rested by Gracie's feet. "What's going on? I'm covered in armor? And why don't I feel any heavier?"
"Hey, it worked!" Gracie cheered. "I was hoping it would."
Nikolias looked himself over. "I'm…extremely confused right now."
"I'll explain it all later. Don't worry about it for now."
"Yes!" Jarvan exclaimed. "There it is! The Dragon Rider Armor! The all-powerful armor that grants the one wearing it complete control over dragons! Finally after all these years it's right before my eyes!"
Nikolias craned his head around to look at Gracie and his eyes widened upon seeing the black armor. "This is the armor you got from your mother?"
"Mhm!" Gracie said with a smile as she bent over and picked up the reins. "This is the one!"
Nikolias returned his gaze forward. "And it's the same armor that started all of this trouble?"
"Well…yeah. I mean, it's Jarvan's fault, not anyone else's" Gracie defended. "He's the one who would stop at nothing to have it."
"I know. We'll just have to put him down to avoid this in the future."
Gracie giggled. "Right. That's the plan!"
"Well you're right about one thing, Gracie. I will stop at nothing to have that armor," Jarvan said. "And since you were kind enough to call it out, I can kill you without hesitation!" He lifted his right fist and in a hiss of steam, the armor's hand tilted upwards. As soon as the hand was facing vertically up, intense flames shot out of the hollow arm towards Nikolias and Gracie.
Black flames gathered in Nikolias' jaws. "SHADOW DRAGON INFERNO!" he cried as a jet of black flames shot from his open mouth. They collided with Jarvan's flames and exploded, creating a large smokescreen. "Damn, I can't see a thing," Nikolias growled as he peered through the smoke.
"Can you hear or smell anything?" Gracie asked.
"I can't smell anything but smoke." His head twitched. "I do hear something though…there!" He leapt back and out of the smoke just as a fast punch burst through the haze. He skidded to a stop. "He's fast."
The smoke was blown away by Jarvan swinging his arms around. "A dragon's senses truly are incredible. How could you tell that I was going to attack? It seems impossible, yet you dodged it."
Gracie's blade became engulfed in flames as she pointed it at Jarvan. "All you need to know is that Niky rocks. C'mon, Niky. Let's tear that scrap heap apart!"
"Right!" Nikolias roared as he charged forward with incredible speed before lunging at Jarvan.
Jarvan raised an arm to prevent Nikolias' body from crashing into his own. However, the weight of Nikolias' body still had him staggering backwards.
Nikolias dug his talons into the armor's arm to keep a hold on Jarvan while balancing on his hind legs. Shadows began to collect in his jaws as he took a deep breath. "SHADOW DRAGON ROAR!" he cried as he released his attack down towards the armor at point blank. The shadows drove into the chest of the armor, but the armor still wouldn't yield.
Jarvan chuckled. "Such an attack may be able to defeat most opponents, but it's not strong enough to stop me. I already told you," he paused to drive his free fist into Nikolias' armored underbelly with enough force to push him away, "nothing can pierce this armor!"
Nikolias slid to a stop and growled at Jarvan. "That armor is strong, Gracie."
"Yeah it is. How are you holding up? You took a square hit," Gracie asked.
"Barely felt it. Whatever this armor is, it's strong, too."
"Good." Gracie narrowed her eyes at Jarvan. "I find it hard to believe that nothing can pierce that armor." Her attention was grabbed by odd markings on Jarvan's right am. "Hey, that's it!"
"What's it?"
Gracie whispered her plan to Nikolias so that Jarvan would remain in the dark. She knew that she didn't have to speak loudly for Nikolias to hear her.
Jarvan laughed as he charged forward. "Plan all you want! It won't help you! Now I'll show the true strength of the Guardian Sentinel Armor MK II by killing a dragon!" He pressed a button inside the armor and he suddenly disappeared. In an instant, he reappeared just above Nikolias.
"What the…?" Nikolias began but was interrupted as the armor's foot collided with the top of his head, forcing it to crash into the ground. As a result, the rest of Nikolias' body unexpectedly lifted slightly, forcing Gracie to lose her balance and grip on the reins. With a small cry, she fell to the ground as her sword landed beside her. The flames around the sword went out as soon as it left her grip.
"Gracie!" Gray shouted. "You okay?"
Gracie groaned and pushed herself up. "Yeah I'm alright," she replied. She could hear metal hitting metal and turned to see Jarvan standing on Nikolias' head and landing blow after blow into his neck and back. The armor was protecting him, but it was starting to crack. "Niky!"
Jarvan laughed maniacally. "Die, dragon!"
Nikolias grunted with each hit. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get out from underneath Jarvan's armor. "Damn it. Why is everyone so damn heavy?"
"Nikolias!" Mira cried. "You can do it! Beat him!"
Nikolias huffed. "Damn hunk of junk. You think this is enough to beat a dragon? Let me show you just how outclassed you are!" Shadows began to dance around his body. "SHADOW DRAGON DANCE!" A thick cloud of shadows surrounded Nikolias and as soon as it appeared, Jarvan's foot went right through and landed on the ground.
"What? Where'd he go?" Jarvan asked as he looked around. Suddenly, Nikolias' hand appeared from the cloud and swung up, landing a clean hit on the armor's right shoulder. The speed and power of the swing knocked the armor's right arm clean off, sending it soaring into the air. "WHAT?"
Gracie picked up her sword and got to her feet with a smirk. "Look at that. I was right. The arms really are weaker than the torso. I could tell since Niky's talons dug holes in your arm when we first attacked. I mean, it makes sense since the inside of the arms are hollow and your punches were so fast. You had to be somewhat lighter somewhere, right?"
"Damn it. Fine! I'll pulverize you first and take the armor!" Jarvan shouted as he stepped towards Gracie.
However, as soon as he did, Nikolias appeared out of the shadows and bit down onto Jarvan's left shoulder. "Big mistake there."
"Get off!" Jarvan cried, but he had no way to push Nikolias off.
Gracie ran towards Nikolias and leapt onto his back. She grabbed the reins and raised her sword. "Okay Niky, do your thing!"
Nikolias huffed his understanding as he pulled with all of his strength. Metal creaked but eventually gave way as the armor's left arm was torn away from the rest of the body. Nikolias swung his head and sent the arm flying off into the distance. He leapt away and growled at the armless armor.
Red lights flashed within the armor as Jarvan fussed with levers and buttons frantically. "No, no, no, no, no! This can't be happening! This armor is too strong to be destroyed!"
"Sorry Jarvan, but no metal is stronger than a dragon's claws and fangs," Gracie said. "You were the one who was outmatched this whole time."
"I will not be denied my dream!"
"You will never get your hands on my mother's armor!" Gracie cried. "Niky, finish this!"
Nikolias roared as he once again lunged at Jarvan. Without arms to defend himself, Jarvan was knocked onto his back. While planting one clawed hand on Jarvan's chest, he raised his right hand as shadows enveloped the talons. "SHADOW DRAGON CLAW!" He swung his hand down and slashed at the armor. It didn't break, but the strike did leave behind shallow claw marks. However, he didn't stop there. He lifted his hand again with shadows still enveloping his talons as he swung his hand down again. Over and over again, Nikolias landed Shadow Dragon Claw after Shadow Dragon Claw on the armor's chest, slowly but surely leaving behind deeper and deeper indentations.
"No! Get away!" Jarvan cried as he could feel Nikolias getting closer and closer to breaking through.
"Make this the final blow, Niky!" Gracie shouted while lifting her sword above her head.
Nikolias roared as the shadows around his talons intensified and enveloped his entire hand. "SHADOW DRAGON JAVELIN STRIKE!" he cried as he drove his hand into the armor's chest. The entire ground shook from the blow as shadows whipped around. Nikolias removed his clawed hand from the armor to reveal a narrow gap in the thick chest and through that gap Nikolias could see Jarvan, his face pale with fear.
Nikolias snarled at Jarvan. "I found you," he sang. With a roar, he lifted both of his clawed hands, drove them into the gap and pulled until the chest was completely torn open.
"No! Don't kill me! Please!" Jarvan begged.
Nikolias huffed. "What happened to all of that confidence and bravado from before? Don't tell me that meeting your imminent end has scared you shitless because that just makes you even more pathetic."
Jarvan was speechless. His body was frozen. Staring up into the golden eyes of a dragon had completely unnerved him. "Please don't eat me," he rasped.
Nikolias laughed. "Eat you? Please. Why would I want such a vile taste in my mouth? No, I'm not gonna eat you. We have better plans for you." He raised his head slightly. "All yours, Gracie!"
Gracie didn't miss a beat. She ran up Nikolias' neck until Jarvan was just below her. She leapt off of Nikolias' neck and descended towards Jarvan with a mighty cry. Her blade became engulfed in bright flames once more as she pointed the tip downwards.
"No!" Jarvan cried in panic.
Gracie landed above Jarvan and drove her blade into his chest, running him completely through and burning his insides. Blood spurted from his mouth as he cried out in pain. Gracie glared at him. "You've taken enough from me. You've taken enough from Sky and Ash. You've taken enough from everyone. Rot in hell for your crimes."
Jarvan's vision was becoming dark as blood was rapidly leaking out of his chest and back. He slowly raised his hand towards Gracie. "The Dragon Rider Armor…I was so close," he rasped before his eyes closed and his hand fell back to his side.
Gracie sighed as she pulled her blade from Jarvan's corpse with an audible squelch. The flames went out as she rested the blade on the ground and looked up to the sky. "It's over. It's finally all over."
"You did it, Gracie," Nikolias said.
She turned to face him and smiled as tears filled her eyes. "Yeah. And I couldn't have done it without you." She turned to face her Fairy Tail friends who were all smiling at her. "I couldn't have done it without everyone."
"You fought well, Gracie," Erza said. "Your parents would be very proud."
Gracie nodded. "Right." She leapt from the armored titan and landed on the ground as a golden glow enveloped her. When it disappeared her armor and sword had vanished and she was back in her black tank top and white shorts. As soon as her armor disappeared, Nikolias became engulfed in a golden light as well. Once the light faded, the golden armor was gone.
"You were so amazing, Gracie," Christina said. "You both were."
Gracie giggled. "Why thank you!"
"I'm just glad you're both safe," Mira said.
Shadows began dancing around Nikolias as he disappeared for a few moments. The shadows soon dissipated, revealing Nikolias in his human form. He was caked in dried blood, most of it being his, but some of it was the Half-Dragon's. He smiled at Mira. "I'm glad that you all are safe. I had heard that you all were on your way and I was also aware of some of the killers they were sending after you."
"We could handle it just fine," Gracie said with her hands on her hips.
"Clearly," Nikolias said with a laugh. He then looked to Christina. "By the way, we've never been formerly introduced." He walked over to her and held out his hand. "I'm Nikolias. Thanks for looking after Gracie. She's a bit of a nuisance at times, so I hope she didn't cause you too much trouble."
"Hey!" Gracie snapped.
Christina blushed intensely as she looked into Nikolias' golden brown eyes. 'Wow, he's gorgeous. Mira's so lucky.' She took his hand. "I'm Christina. And don't worry, Gracie was wonderful. She even saved my life. Oh, which reminds me…" She looked away as she found it hard to make eye contact, "thank you for saving me from that Half-Dragon before. It was really brave of you."
"My pleasure," Nikolias replied with a large smile. He released her hand and turned to Mira. "I believe I owe you an apology if memory serves."
Mira ran to him and leapt into his arms, her lips immediately crashing against his as she wrapped her arms around his head. She broke the kiss and looked into his eyes. "Don't scare me like that again."
He smiled and gave her a quick peck on the lips. "I'll do my absolute best. You know I want to always be by your side."
"Hey Niky?" Gracie asked quietly.
He turned to her to see that she looked a little sad. "What is it, Gracie?"
"I'm sure you're tired, but I was wondering if you could do something for me."
"This is the place," Gracie said with a sigh. "Man does this bring back memories."
The Fairy Tail group was standing outside a rundown old house. Boards were rotting away. Vines and weeds were wrapped tightly around the base and crawled up the walls. Windows were cracked and covered in filth.
"Gracie, is this…?" Lucy began.
"Yep," Gracie interrupted. "Welcome to the old Amier house."
"So this is where you lived," Gray said.
"Kind of a dump," Gajeel commented, earning a slap from Levy.
"I told you it was shut down after they found my mom and dad and me inside. I guess no one wanted a house where people were murdered," Gracie shrugged. "Still, I'm glad it's still here."
"Gracie," Nikolias said as he stepped forward. In his arms he was carrying Cliff's body. "Where would you like to bury him?"
"Follow me to the back," she replied. They all went around to the back of the house. Brushes and grass had overgrown the entire land and had remained uncared for, creating a deep, fragile sea of brown. "Natsu, can you clear this up?"
"Sure thing!" Natsu said as he took a small breath. "FIRE DRAGON ROAR!" Natsu released a stream of fire from his mouth, burning the grass and brushes away and turning them into ashes that blew away in the wind. Soon there was nothing left but the bare earth.
"Perfect. Now I just have to dig a hole," Gracie said.
"We'll help," Gray offered.
"No," Gracie said with a smile. "I want to do this myself. He was family after all."
For the next thirty minutes, Gracie went to work digging a hole using an old shovel she found near the back door of the house. Once she was satisfied with the length and depth, she nodded at Nikolias. Nikolias nodded in return and walked over with Cliff. He then knelt down and carefully lowered him into the earth. He remained kneeling as he bowed his head.
"Would you like to say something, Gracie?" Christina asked softly.
Gracie shook her head. "No, there's nothing that needs to be said. I think he already knows that I love him and that I'm going to miss him." She picked up the shovel and began to gently place dirt on top of Cliff's body. Everyone remained completely silent until she had finished. Once the last bit of dirt was in place, she softly patted the mound of dirt and placed the shovel on the ground. A small tear rolled down her cheek. "Bye, Uncle Cliff," she whispered. She wiped her eyes and turned to face her friends with a smile. "All set!"
Nikolias stood up and put a hand on Gracie's shoulder. "You gonna be okay?"
"Yeah. I've got you guys," she said.
He returned the smile. "Yeah you do."
She clapped her hands together. "Let's get out of here and go home. I don't know about you guys, but I'm beat."
The group began to head back to the street when something in front of them caught Nikolias' eye. He stopped and held out his arm to motion everyone else to stop as well.
"What is it, Nikolias?" Erza asked.
Natsu sniffed the air. "I smell someone over there. They smell familiar."
"You don't have to hide," Nikolias called out. "We won't hurt you."
All was still for a moment until two familiar faces stepped out from behind the corner of the house.
"We're sorry," Sky said.
"It's not like we wanted to follow you or anything," Ash said with her arms crossed. "We just happened to be going in the same direction."
"How does that happen?" Gray asked.
Gracie stepped forward and smiled. "Sky and Ash, right? We never introduced ourselves. My name is Gracie!" She motioned to everyone individually. "This is Nikolias, Mira, Natsu, Lucy, Gray, Erza, Wendy, Christina, Levy, and Gajeel. The kitties are Happy, Carla, and Panther Lily. Nice to meet you!"
"Hello," Sky said shyly.
"Hi," Ash said quickly.
"So why were you following us?" Natsu asked.
"I said we weren't following ya!" Ash snapped.
"We didn't know where else to go," Sky admitted.
"Sky!" Ash wailed. "Why would you say that?"
Sky looked at her sister. "What's the problem? It's the truth."
"It's embarrassing!"
"It is?"
"Yes!"
"Oh." Sky looked back at the Fairy Tail group. "We weren't following you because we didn't know where else to go. We were following you because…" She stopped and looked back at Ash. "What should I say?"
"Just forget it," Ash huffed.
"Oh." Sky looked back at the Fairy Tail group. "We didn't know where else to go."
Ash groaned and palmed her forehead.
Gracie giggled. "You two are funny."
Sky fidgeted in place. "Anyway, we were hoping that you could tell us where we should go."
"What do you mean?" Mira asked.
"We haven't done our own thing in a while and we don't wanna go back to the streets," Ash said.
"You should do what you want," Wendy said with warm smile.
"Yeah, you're free now," Levy said.
"You two should decide what you want to do together," Erza said.
The twins looked at each other for a moment. They nodded simultaneously, turned to the group, and said, "Can we go with you?"
"You want to come with us?" Lucy asked in astonishment.
"Yeah. I mean, you all seem really close and you all care for each other," Ash said. "It might be nice to be around people like that for a change."
"Plus it was nice to be protected," Sky added. "It made me feel really safe and happy."
"Of course you can come!" Gracie exclaimed. "That'll be fun!"
"Really?" Sky breathed as her eyes widened in excitement.
"I don't see why not," Erza said with a smile.
"You two should totally join up with us!" Natsu said.
"You'll fit right in," Gajeel smirked.
The twins smiled at each other and then bowed. "Thank you!" they cried.
Gracie stretched. "Man what a day! We got Niky back, I avenged my parents and Uncle Cliff, and we have new friends."
"Let's get back to Magnolia before anything else happens," Gray said.
Gracie snapped her fingers. "Oh, we can't yet! I almost forgot; we need to go to Wayhaven! Then we have to drop by Blue Pegasus and give them back the rest of the Tears of the Phoenix."
"Wait, what's in Wayhaven?" Nikolias asked.
"My cart!" Christina exclaimed. "I had completely forgotten! Papa would have killed me if I had left it behind."
Nikolias sighed. "Okay, we'll go to Wayhaven. On the way there, why don't you fill me in on everything that happened to you all on your journey?"
"Sure!" Gracie said. "You got our travel covered?"
"Yeah, I got it covered," Nikolias said as he walked towards the street with shadows dancing around him. Once he was in the middle of the street, he punched his fists together as he disappeared in a column of shadows. After a few moments, the column exploded, leaving behind a shadowy mist. The mist was quickly blown away to reveal Nikolias in his full dragon form.
"I don't think I'll ever get used to that," Christina said.
Nikolias got down onto his belly. "Alright climb on everyone."
Everyone nodded and climbed aboard.
"This is way cool," Ash said as she ran her hand against the scales of his back.
"I never thought I'd see a dragon, let alone ride one," Christina said.
"Cool," Sky breathed.
"Just hold on tight, alright?" Nikolias said as he spread his wings. "Last thing I want is for someone to fall off." He leapt into the air and flapped his powerful wings as he gained altitude. As soon as he was high enough he took off to the west. "Wayhaven here we come."
As the group flew, Gracie regaled Nikolias with the events that led up to their reunion. She was very animated with her story telling, so Nikolias had to tell her to calm down before she rolled off his back. The others filled in some of the details if Gracie forgot something. It was a long story, but Nikolias was soon told all about the help they got from Blue Pegasus, how they met Christina in a forest when Gracie saved her from a Cursed Spider, how with Christina's help they were able to get to Wayhaven quickly, how they were attacked by a sniper outside of Wayhaven, how the sniper knew Gracie's mother, how Christina ended up coming along with them, how on their way to Rolen they stopped at a hot springs, how they fought a crazed woman in Rolen, how they got into Bosco and took a train to Juniper, how when they got there they found Xeeval the Executioner in an abandoned Juniper and found out that Nikolias was in Calione with Jarvan, how they fought and managed to kill Xeeval thanks to the Dragon Rider Armor, how Gracie was reunited with her Uncle Cliff, the story they all heard about Gracie's parents and the Dragon Rider Armor, how with Uncle Cliff's band of mercenaries they moved out to Calione to take down Jarvan and his organization and to save Nikolias, how they were approached by Jarvan and were attacked by a Half-Dragon, and about how they fought the Half-Dragon to no avail. The whole story took a long time to tell and when it was over, Nikolias let out a loud breath.
"Shit. That was far too much trouble for you all to go through," he said.
Mira stroked his scales. "It was all worth it to bring you home. Sure there were some sad times, but we couldn't just leave you in that horrible place."
"Alright Niky it's your turn," Gracie said.
"My turn for what?" Nikolias asked.
"Tell us what happened to you."
Nikolias hummed, sending vibrations throughout his body. "What happened to me, huh? It's funny; even though it's basically the same time frame, my story is shorter."
"Well that's good. We're almost there anyway," Gracie said. "Now spill!"
"Alright then. You asked for it." He took a deep breath. "When I got to Juniper looking for Xeeval the Executioner, I was jumped by Jarvan and a large group of his men. It was then that I found out that you were their actual target, Gracie. I could've taken them all, but he was prepared—very prepared. He knew I was a Half-Dragon because he had done work with Gorn in the past. Because he knew about what I am, he had brought little toys to screw with my hearing, my vision, and my sense of smell. With those senses incapacitated, they were able to sneak up on me and electrocute me into unconsciousness. When I came to, I was chained up to a generator in a laboratory so that if I applied any pressure to my restraints I would be electrocuted."
"How awful," Lucy said.
"I was the play thing for a mad scientist named Vyril," he continued. "He was given orders to cut me open and dig around inside of me to find out how Half-Dragons operate. He dissected me to collect blood to his heart's content. I was even tongue raped by that woman you met in Rolen."
"Oh?" Mira said with a smile, but everyone could feel the evil aura she was giving off. "She actually had the nerve to do something like that?"
"Easy, Mira," Erza said.
Sky and Ash shivered. 'Scary,' they both thought.
"Wait, so you were the lover boy she kept mentioning?" Gracie asked with a laugh.
Nikolias' whole body involuntarily shuddered. "My God she was a vile one. I'm glad you beat her."
"You can keep going now," Gracie said.
"Not much else to tell. I kept trying to figure out what they wanted from you, Gracie, but I couldn't get anywhere. My body was constantly numb from having to heal over and over. But then that Vyril guy said something to me. He said you were all on your way here. I didn't know what to do. I knew you were walking into some kind of trap. So once Vyril had left, I tried to break free. I wanted to be there for you all."
"But what about your restraints?" Natsu asked. "I thought they shocked you."
"Oh, they shocked me. They shocked me over and over as I tried to break free. The shocks got worse and worse the more I pulled."
"So then how did you break them? I can't imagine you would have had the strength through all of that pain," Levy said.
"I was determined to get to you all. I wanted to protect you. I didn't want anyone to get hurt. So I activated the Red Eye."
"You used the Red Eye voluntarily?" Erza asked.
"Yeah. It didn't make the pain any better, but it gave me just enough endurance to snap the chains."
"Then what?" Christina asked.
"I waited for Vyril and killed him. After that I searched for an exit. I could hear something going on outside and the closer I got to the surface, the more the air reeked of death. I finally found a place to get out just in time to see a large creature attacking everyone. I was scared for all of your safety, so I burst out of that house like a bat out of hell. And the rest you know."
"Wow. Quite a story," Christina said. "I can't believe you endured all that pain for everyone's sake."
"I would do anything for friends and family. And now that includes you, Christina. Even you two, Sky and Ash."
"What are you on about?" Ash shouted with an intense blush.
"Thank you very much," Sky said with a blush.
Nikolias looked down. "We're just about at Wayhaven. Where should I drop?"
"Eastern gate," Gracie said. "That's where the inn is located, remember?"
"Clearly I don't remember. Otherwise I wouldn't have asked."
"Shut up," Gracie pouted.
Nikolias began his descent just outside the eastern entrance to Wayhaven. Once he was close to the ground he flapped his wings a couple times before coming to a landing. He lowered his body to the ground and once everyone had hopped off, shadows danced around him and completely covered him for a few seconds. Once they disappeared, Nikolias reappeared in his human form.
"That's really cool," Christina marveled.
"Thanks," Nikolias replied while sheepishly scratching his head.
The group entered Wayhaven and made their way to the Daybreak Inn. They went inside where Mr. Vandis was sitting at the front desk. Gracie greeted him with a hug and a smile while Nikolias shook his hand, thanking him for being kind to his friends. Mr. Vandis was a bit taken aback at this for he still remembered Nikolias as being rather unfriendly and distant. He was also surprised at how it appeared that Nikolias hadn't aged at all.
Mr. Vandis showed them to Christina's cart. The horses were hitched to a fence nearby where they could graze on grass and low hanging trees. Christina pet them and untied them and brought them back to the cart where she could hook them up. Mr. Vandis said his goodbyes and told the Fairy Tail group they could stay again anytime before walking back inside.
Christina sighed and turned to Gracie. "Well I guess this is where we part ways."
Gracie nodded and pulled Christina into a hug. "Yeah. Thanks for everything, Christina. You're the best."
Christina returned the embrace and shook her head. "No, you're the best, Gracie. You saved me and gave my life some adventure and excitement. I'll never forget any of you."
"We'll never forget you either," Lucy said.
"If you're ever in Magnolia, look up Fairy Tail!" Natsu said.
"Don't be a stranger," Mira said with a smile.
Christina pulled out of the hug and smiled at everyone. "Right. I'll keep that in mind. I hope I'll get to see you all again very soon." She got onto her cart and waved. "Bye, everyone! Take care!"
Everyone returned the wave.
"You take care, too," Gracie said. "If ever you need help with anything or just wanna hang out, get in touch."
"Of course," Christina nodded as she snapped the reins. The horses began to march off and Christina waved behind her. "Goodbye!"
Everyone smiled and waved as they watched Christina ride off.
Gracie sighed. "You know we only met her a few days ago, but I feel like I've known her forever. I'm really gonna miss her."
"Adventures like this one can really bring people close," Erza said. "I'm sure we'll see her again."
"I hope so." Gracie turned on her heels. "I think it's about time we got back home. What do you think, Niky?"
Nikolias took Mira's hand and nodded. "Yeah I could use a bed. Being suspended from chains for days isn't all that comfortable."
"I bet," Gray said while patting his shoulder.
Gracie turned back around and pointed ahead. "Let's get out of here so that Niky can change and we can go home! Hooray!"
They all walked out of Wayhaven with smiles on their faces. Nikolias transformed into a dragon, they all hopped on, and he took off into the air, flying west as fast as he could so that everyone could return home.
Home to Fairy Tail.
And there you have it, folks. This officially marks the end of Gracie's arc, the Dragon Rider Arc. It's hard to believe it has reached it's end. Kinda sad, really.
At this point, I haven't quite decided where the story will go yet. I may do a filler or two if I have ideas for them. If not, I think we're gonna jump back into the actual story line with the Starry Sky Arc. Who knows? I guess we'll find out next time!
Thanks for reading!
