Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.
WARNING: THERE WILL BE SPOILERS! Read at your own risk. There's still original stuff in here, but if you haven't gotten to this point in the anime/manga, then some things may be ruined for you. I advise catching up to the anime/manga if you haven't already (for more reasons than just reading my story)! Thank you and enjoy!
Fairy Tail—The Master and the Dragon
Chapter 78
Carla and Panther Lily flew down until Wendy's feet were touching the ground. They landed beside her and they all stood and watched as Coco ran in circles along the vertical, steep cliffs that surrounded them.
"What do we do?" Wendy asked nervously.
"She's so fast there's nothing we really can do," Carla replied.
Panther Lily stared at Coco before closing his eyes. A green light enveloped him and he began to rapidly change into his Edolas form. "We have to defeat her," he said softly but seriously. "Even if she is the spitting image of Coco, she's still not the same girl that we knew back in Edolas." He clenched his fists. "I should have known better. Stand back, ladies. I'll take care of this."
"But she's so fast," Wendy said. "Even Nikolias couldn't keep up with her."
"I know, but I'll find a way," Panther Lily said as he stood at the ready.
Coco redirected her running towards the three. "Would you just tell me what I want to know already? I'm running out of patience!"
Panther Lily waited back as he tried to time Coco's running. Once she was within range, he shot forward and tried to land a punch. However, Coco easily leapt off of the cliff before the blow could land, forcing his fist to collide with nothing but rock.
"Tell me where I can find her!" Coco demanded as she flipped in the air, landed on the ground, and sprinted off to the other side of the canyon. She began running up the cliff side once again.
Wendy turned around. "I'll handle this." She took a deep breath. "SKY DRAGON ROAR!" she cried as a column of strong winds flooded the canyon. She ceased her Roar quickly and looked for Coco somewhere on the ground, but the swift mage had simply run up the cliff to avoid the blast. "Oh no! I missed!"
"She can even outrun your Sky Magic?" Carla said in disbelief.
Wendy took a slight step back. 'What do I do? I could try using the move Nikolias taught me; the Sky Dragon Gale Force. No, what am I thinking? If I mess up, I could hurt Carla and Lily and even Coco. If only I was stronger…'
"We have to find a way to stop her," Panther Lily said as he watched Coco carefully. "For Lucy's sake, we can't fail."
"Tell me, boy," Byro growled as he sat down upon his octopus's head, "why do you insist on defying us? You'll get out of our way if you know what's good for you. We don't have time to waste on insects like you."
"Don't get me wrong; it's been real fun, but we gotta close the curtain on this show," Sugar Boy said. "It's time we go our separate ways."
"Yeah right," Natsu said. "If we go our separate ways, you freaks will go after Lucy and I won't let that happen!"
"Suit yourself," Sugar Boy said as he shook his hips and lifted his wooden microphone to his mouth. "Let's get spicy!" His voice echoed on the air as his green slime shot towards Natsu.
"I'll show you spicy!" Natsu retorted as he took a deep breath. "FIRE DRAGON ROAR!" A pillar of flames shot towards Sugar Boy.
Byro simply lifted his hand as a magic circle appeared in front of his palm. As soon as the magic circle appeared, Natsu's Roar vanished.
"What the…?" Natsu asked, stunned.
"Where'd your flames go?" Happy asked.
Sugar Boy wagged his finger. "Uh uh. Nice try son, but you oughta know that your great balls of fire ain't got nothing on Lord Byro."
"Son of a bitch," Natsu cursed. "That would've been nice to know!" The green slime continued towards Natsu as flames danced around his arms. He leapt towards the slime with his arms drawn back. "FIRE DRAGON WING ATTACK!" He whipped his arms forward as streams of fire lashed out at the slime. However, the green slime simply wrapped around the flames and absorbed them.
"No! They were absorbed!" Happy cried.
Sugar Boy thrust his hips back and forth. "Now doggies, come on! SLIME ARM!" The slime shifted around until it took the form of a massive arm and hand. It then swung around swiftly and batted Natsu into a rock ledge. He fell back to the ground and groaned.
Happy looked towards Natsu before looking back to the slime. "No way. Sugar Boy's magic actually feeds off of his opponent's power."
"Enough playing around," Byro said roughly. "Eliminate them. Quickly."
Sugar Boy turned and bowed. "Got you covered, boss man."
The octopus turned around and began to scuttle off. Natsu saw this and forced himself to his feet, using the rocky ledge he had crashed into for support. "Hey octopus freak! Just where do you think you're going?"
Sugar Boy turned back to Natsu. "Lord Byro ain't got the time to deal with you. Besides, you've got your hands tied with me. Don't worry about where he's goin'."
Natsu gritted his teeth. "Lucy, hang in there," he whispered.
"What are we gonna do, Natsu?" Happy asked. "The more you attack it, the more magic power it absorbs and the bigger it gets."
Natsu glared at the slime arm. "There's only one thing to do! I ain't losing to that blob! I'll burn it to a crisp!" He dashed forward with his fists ablaze.
"Don't do it, Natsu!" Happy begged.
"FIRE DRAGON IRON FIST!" Natsu roared as he thrust his fist at the slime. However, his fist simply stuck in the slime and his fire was sucked away.
Sugar Boy wagged his finger. "Uh uh. You should have listened to your little blue friend."
The slime suddenly burst into flames and pushed Natsu away. He looked at it in complete shock. "No way. It turned into fire!"
"Uh huh," Sugar Boy sang. "My doggies don't just absorb magic attacks; they take 'em in and make 'em their own like a real good cover tune!" The slime made a fist and barreled towards the ground. It connected with Natsu, pushing him into the ground before lifting up and slamming back down again. With each punch, Natsu roared in pain as he was pushed deeper and deeper into the rocky earth. Blood started trickling from his wounds and from the corners of his lips as his body was beaten and bruised.
"I can't believe this is happening!" Happy cried. "He's losing to fire!"
"Surprised?" Sugar Boy asked as he ran his fingers along the wood of his microphone. "You really shouldn't be because the more mojo that goo absorbs, the stronger and stronger that it becomes." He pointed to Happy. "So tell me; do you get it now, you pretty blue kitty cat?"
"Don't give me a weird nickname, freakazoid!" Happy shot back before looking to Natsu with concern. "Natsu, you've gotta run!"
He coughed. "I wish I could little buddy," he groaned before another punch crashed into his torso, "but I don't think this slimy fire," another punch slammed into him, "is gonna let me do that."
Sugar Boy did a small dance. "Yeah! How do you like that, hot boy? Natsu's not able to handle my hound dogs' flames! WOOHOO!" The more he sang, the harder the fiery slime pushed Natsu into the earth.
The slime fist continued to beat on Natsu as his body felt more and more weak. 'What the hell am I doing? I can't just lie here and let this thing beat me up. I've got to get to Lucy. I've got to find her before something happens to her.' The fiery fist lifted up to deliver yet another blow, but Natsu managed to force his body to move. With a pained cry, he pushed off with his legs and rolled backwards, avoiding the attack completely. He stopped on his knees and panted heavily.
Sugar Boy chuckled. "Not bad. I'll be taking any requests you got to finish you off, hot boy. Go on and say the word."
Natsu groaned as he tried to straighten up while his aching body begged him not to move. He glared at Sugar Boy with one eye since the other one was closed from a trail of blood running from his forehead. "Happy," he rasped, "fly me out of here. Quick."
"What are you planning to do?" Happy asked.
"What's it matter?" he asked over his shoulder. "Just do it, okay?"
Happy summoned his wings. "Aye, sir!" he cried as he grabbed Natsu and flew up.
Sugar Boy watched him fly. "There ain't no getting away from me! My hound dogs are gonna getcha!" Upon command, the fiery slime shot up into the sky like a rocket towards Happy and Natsu.
"Listen, Happy," Natsu said softly. "I want you to fly me over that slime and drop me into the middle of it."
"Are you out of your mind?" Happy barked. "I can't do that to you! That thing will drain you of all your magic power!"
"Just trust me on this!" he roared.
Happy shook his head as he redirected himself. "Aye!" he cried as he threw Natsu straight at the slime.
Natsu lit his hands ablaze as he quickly approached the slime. "I've had enough of you!" He thrust his fist forward, but the slime quickly wrapped around him and enveloped him completely.
"Talk about a dumb move, hot boy," Sugar Boy said. "You know wise men say only fools rush in. Mmm, that's spicy!"
Happy watched the slime with nervous anticipation. "I wish I knew what you were trying to do, Natsu."
Natsu gritted his teeth within the slime as he began charging up his magic power. Fire wrapped around his body like a cocoon and he roared as he intensified his flames each second. 'No slime is gonna make a meal of me!'
"Now that's my little hound dogs!" Sugar Boy shouted. "Eat up! You know you wanna gobble down all of his tasty mojo! Yeah! Yummy!"
Natsu began collecting orbs of fire into his palms as the flames around him continued to intensify. "FIRE DRAGON RAPID PULSE!" he cried as he fired Fire Dragon Pulses in rapid succession in every direction. They would quickly become absorbed and dissipate, but with every attack absorbed, the slime began to swell up.
Sugar Boy took a step back. "Oh. We got double trouble."
The slime began to bubble like water over a flame as Natsu continued to fire his attacks and intensify his flames around him. Suddenly, the slime shook before exploding into hundreds of small orange orbs.
"No!" Sugar Boy cried. "My doggies ate so much of his magic they went kablooey!"
Small orange blobs clung to Natsu's skin and clothes and one even was stuck around his right fist, but he still fell towards Sugar Boy with a fierce battle cry and his right fist cocked back.
"Get back, Jack!" Sugar Boy shouted as he threw a punch to block Natsu's incoming blow. The two punches collided with each other and both of their fists became stuck in the orange blob that was on Natsu's hand. "Huh. Well that's new."
Natsu blinked in confusion for a split second before a smirk crept onto his face. "Uh oh. Looks like you're stuck!" Fire enveloped his right fist within the ball of slime.
"Let go of my hand, man," Sugar Boy spat. "I'm telling ya if it absorbs any more of your crazy mojo, it's gonna blow both of us sky high!"
"You probably shoulda thought of that before you attacked me!" Natsu shouted as he pushed against Sugar Boy. "If we blow up it's your fault!"
"Thinking you're gonna give me and my hound dogs the blues is like dreaming the impossible dream, man," Sugar Boy threw back as he pushed back against Natsu. Meanwhile, the orb continued to grow dangerously large as it continued to absorb Natsu's flames.
"I'm still gonna broil your arm!"
"I've got my mojo workin', too!"
Natsu lit his left hand on fire and swung it at Sugar Boy. However, he simply moved his head to the side and dodged it. Natsu tried again, but the results were the same. "Damn it! Stay still!" he cried as he continued swinging his arm. Sugar Boy taunted him by smirking and doing a small dance. "Just let me hit you!"
"That's enough," Sugar Boy said.
"What?"
"This has been fun, but you've gotta get your hand outta mine. I don't mean to be cruel or anything, but this is kinda weird. You see I just don't wanna be some other guy's teddy bear."
"I'm not holding your hand because I want to!" Natsu snapped at him.
"If you're gonna be a hard-headed woman about this, then I'll just have to beat you until you let go," Sugar Boy said while lifting his wooden microphone and swinging it at Natsu. Each blow connected with his face and since Natsu was being held in place by the slime that joined them he could continue a relentless assault. After a few more blows, Natsu started to fall backwards. "That should do the trick. Now let's finish this."
"ICE MAKE CANNON!"
Sugar Boy blinked in surprise as a blast of ice shot from the forest and covered the slime that connected his and Natsu's hands. The slime froze completely and shattered, freeing the two men from their slimy bonds.
Natsu fell backwards and shook his head. He then turned to the forest and shouted, "Geez Gray! What the hell were you doing? You nearly broke my arm!"
Gray stepped out from the forest with ice particles dancing in his palm. "I saved your ass so quit complaining. You should be thanking me, flame brain. He would have made you look in even worse shape if I hadn't stepped in." Gray looked towards who Natsu was fighting and his eyes widened. "No it can't be…"
"I'll call you ice boy," Sugar Boy said while pointing at Gray. "Hoo, that's spicy!"
"I'm not answering to any weird nicknames!" Gray spat. "Now what the hell are you doing here anyway?"
"It's not what you think, Gray!" Happy cried. "This isn't the same Sugar Boy we met. This is Earth Land Sugar Boy!"
"Say what?" Gray asked as he analyzed Sugar Boy. "Earth Land Sugar Boy? Well what's he doing here?"
"He's after Lucy," Natsu said as he pushed himself to his feet. "He and his bastard friends."
"After Lucy, huh?" Gray said while cracking his knuckles. "Why didn't you say so in the first place? Now I know not to hold back."
Sugar Boy chuckled. "Uh huh. Give it your best shot, ice boy."
The large octopus leapt through the forest, snapping massive trees with each landing. Byro sat atop its head with the same emotionless expression. His arms were crossed and his staff was resting between his arms. The octopus let out a loud groan and Byro uncrossed his arms. "What is it, Kanaloa?" he asked while moving his staff to rest on his shoulder. He looked off into the distance as the octopus's course changed. "You've found something, haven't you?" As they continued on, Byro nodded slightly. "Yes, I sense it, too."
Kanaloa landed on the ground and stopped while Byro stood from his seat. "You're the one I sensed," he called out. "I must admit you hold an impressive amount of magic power."
Gildarts stood with his arms crossed as a smirk appeared on his face. "You don't say?"
"Make no mistake; I know who you are, good sir," Byro said. "Your reputation precedes you. You are the most powerful wizard of the Fairy Tail guild's elite S-Class; Gildarts Clive."
"Guess I have gotten around," Gildarts said before his smirk vanished only to be replaced with a glare. "Now I may not know who you are, but you must have a death wish if you're messing with Fairy Tail."
"My business is not necessarily with your guild."
"Is that so?"
Suddenly from the bushes, Jason leapt out. A camera hung around his neck and he was as excited as ever. "COOOOOOOL!"
Gildarts sighed, but didn't turn around. "I thought I told you to quit following me. Can't you go bother Nikolias?"
"I lost him hours ago! Besides, this is my big chance!" Jason exclaimed as he began snapping photos of Gildarts. "This is the juiciest scoop in the history of Sorcerer's Weekly! Twenty four hours with Gildarts! I can't believe I'm only starting to write this now! And now I get to witness one of the coolest face-offs ever! Not to say that the last showdown wasn't awesome, but this one's against a freaking octopus!"
"I don't know which one of you I should beat down first," Gildarts said to Byro, completely ignoring Jason. "What do you think? The octopus or you?"
"If you continue to threaten me Gildarts I will be forced to eliminate you," Byro growled.
Gildarts narrowed his eyes before leaping off of the ground towards Byro. He cocked back his fist before thrusting out his palm as a grid of white magic power shot out. The attack sped towards Byro, but the man simply lifted his hand and remained unaffected by the attack. Instead, the trees behind him shattered into tiny cubes of wood. Gildarts landed on top of the octopus. "You say you're gonna eliminate me, but to me it looks like all you did was get out of the way."
"No. I did nothing of the sort," Byro said. "I merely neutralized your magic." He narrowed his eyes. "More precisely, I dispersed your attack and redirected it around me. It was not a defensive maneuver."
"Once it got around him, it came together again and hit the trees right behind him!" Jason narrated as he wrote madly on a notepad. "It broke them down into hundreds of little blocks. BOOM! That's gotta be one of the coolest things I've ever seen!"
"That's some trick," Gildarts said.
"It is indeed," Byro agreed. "I'd show you more, but I don't have the time to waste fighting you right now. My comrades and I have an important task to complete."
"And what might that be?" Gildarts asked.
Byro ignored the question. Instead, he lifted his left palm in an inviting manner. "Please attack me. It will give me a reason to destroy you."
"Suit yourself," Gildarts said as he leapt forward and threw a magic-infused punch at Byro. However, the white haired man blocked the attack with the head of his staff as once again Gildarts's magic was dispersed. Dust rose up from the force of his magic striking the ground. He leapt back to gain distance. "You're a lot stronger than I thought you were."
Byro stood at the ready. "Same goes for you."
Gildarts chuckled as he once again sent out a white grid of magic. However, Byro simply waved his hand in front of him and the magic was dispersed.
"He neutralized your attack again!" Jason exclaimed excitedly from the sidelines. "Man this dude is freaking awesome! SO COOOOOL!"
"Nikolias is gonna have to teach me some disappearing acts," Gildarts muttered under his breath.
"Stand down," Byro demanded. "I won't ask again."
"I invite you to go ahead and make me. That is, if you think you can," Gildarts taunted.
Byro stared darkly at Gildarts. "Very well then. I'm afraid you leave me with no other choice."
Gildarts began throwing multiple white grids of his Crash Magic at Byro. However, each time an attack got remotely close to the strange man, he would simply wave his hand or staff in front of him and neutralize the attack. Trees, boulders, and even the very ground broke apart into little cubes as Gildarts's attacks dispersed around Byro. He tsked. "You're really starting to get on my last nerve, buddy."
"I feel the same way about you," Byro growled.
"Tell me; what exactly is your goal here?" Gildarts asked. "Because I'm just dying to know why you're destroying our guild."
"Destroying your guild?" Byro repeated. "Utter nonsense."
"I would have to disagree," Gildarts cried as he sent out yet another wave of Crash Magic. Byro waved off the attack as a massive tree in the forest behind him toppled over. "There's no end to this."
"Mr. Gildarts!" Jason exclaimed. "Your friendly neighborhood reporter just remembered some totally sweet info!"
Gildarts looked over his shoulder at the bouncing blonde reporter. "What are you babbling about down there?"
"His name is Byro Cracy!" Jason called up to him. "He's with the Legion Platoon!"
"The Legion Platoon? Never heard of it," Gildarts said. "What the hell is it?"
"Zentopia has followers not just here in Fiore, but all over the world," Jason began. "Not much is known about the Legion Platoon except for the fact that it's a combat unit tied to the church's dark past. I've heard that it's comprised of fierce warriors who've undergone training most priests can't even endure."
Gildarts turned to Byro and stared at the stern looking man. "So what does this mysterious combat unit want with the Fairy Tail guild?"
"That's none of your business," Byro growled.
"Really?" Gildarts shouted as his magic power erupted around him, causing him to glow white. He leapt forward and began throwing powerful punches at Byro, who easily dodged the blows. "See I don't think so. When somebody attacks my guild, it's definitely my business!" He attempted to strike Byro with his Crash Magic from up close, but the man still managed to dodge and leap away. He paused and stared down Byro once again after a failed attack. "Honestly I'm not too worried because Fairy Tail won't be defeated easily." Byro leapt at Gildarts and attempted to land a punch of his own, but Gildarts easily dodged the attack. He then blocked an attempted attack from Byro's staff with his arm and pushed against him. "However, I'm not taking any chances because one of the guild's members is my daughter!"
"Don't worry," Byro said as he pushed back against Gildarts's metal arm. "We don't mean any harm to your daughter. We only want Lucy Heartfilia. We couldn't care less about anyone else in your guild."
Gildarts glared menacingly at Byro. "What do you want with Lucy?"
Byro chuckled as he leapt away. "My, suddenly there's a serious look in your eyes. Protecting your guild mate is important to you. But this is very serious to us as well. We have been ordered to complete a task; a task given to us by the Archbishop of Zentopia. This is Holy War."
"Holy War?"
"Yes. This war will change everything," Byro replied before smirking. "There is no stopping us." He lifted his staff above his head and it began glowing and emitting a pink light.
Gildarts lifted his arm to shield his eyes. "Run, kid!" he shouted.
"What?" Jason shouted in surprise.
Gildarts looked behind him and shouted at the reporter, "I suggest you do what I say right now unless you want to die in the field! SO RUN!"
Jason turned around and sprinted away with a scream of fear.
Gildarts turned back to Byro. "Well?" he asked goadingly.
The staff stopped glowing and Byro slowly lowered it back down. He then charged forward with his staff drawn back. Gildarts charged forward as well with his right arm cocked back. Once the two were nearly upon each other, they unleashed their attacks. The attacks crashed into each other with a thunderous sound and a bright light. The very ground shook from the force. They leapt away from each other and Gildarts attempted to land his Crash Magic once again. Byro continuously dispersed it around him and the trees behind him started to collapse as their trunks were shattered by Gildarts's magic. Gildarts then attempted to land his magic through physical contact and thrust his palm forward. A white grid appeared in front of his open palm once again, but Byro saw it coming and quickly lifted his staff. A pink shield appeared in front of the crescent-shaped top of the staff and completely blocked and neutralized Gildarts's attack.
Gildarts fell back in preparation to try again. "Tell me why you and your pals are after Lucy," he demanded.
Byro lowered his staff. "Strictly speaking, our business is not with the girl herself. She has something that we want." He charged forward with his staff and attempted to land a blow to Gildarts's head. However, Gildarts easily dodged and attempted to land a counter attack as his fist glowed white with Crash Magic. Byro reacted quickly, though, and negated the magic and blocked the attack by dropping his elbow down onto Gildarts's wrist. He then spun around and attempted to hit Gildarts with his staff again.
Gildarts managed to block the blow with his foot and pushed off to gain altitude. He spun around and descended back towards Byro with his Crash Magic glowing in his hand. Byro negated the attack with his staff before swinging the staff for a low sweep. Gildarts leapt back to dodge the blow and paused to regroup. He gritted his teeth. 'This is taking too long. I've got to take this guy out already.'
Suddenly, a large yellow and blue spear shot down from the sky and embedded itself into the head of Kanaloa. The large octopus cried out in pain and shook its head violently, sending Gildarts flying off of its head.
Gildarts landed on his feet and stared at the octopus. "What the hell?" Two figures suddenly dropped down next to him from above. One landed gracefully while the other landed with immense force. He turned his head and his eyes widened. "Erza! Gracie!"
"It's rare to see you struggle in battle like this, Gildarts," Erza said as she stared down her opponents. She was wearing her golden Giant's Armor.
Gildarts stood up and chuckled. "That's true, but it's not every day that I'm faced with a giant octopus."
"Eh, how hard can it be?" Gracie said with a grin while resting her halberd on her shoulder. "Just bring out the deep fryer. Mission accomplished."
"So this man and his pet were part of the attack on our guild?" Erza asked.
"Yup. Him and his buddies," Gildarts replied.
"Unacceptable," Gracie said sternly as she held her halberd at the ready.
"I agree. Justice will be served," Erza said.
"Don't I know it," Gildarts said with a smile as the three stood at the ready.
"Let's kick Mr. Frown's ass!" Gracie cheered. "Then we can have deep fried calamari to celebrate!"
"OPEN! GATE OF THE GOLDEN BULL! TAURUS!" Lucy cried while whipping out a golden key. The key glowed and in a puff of smoke, Taurus appeared before Lucy.
Taurus turned and looked dreamily at Lucy while swaying his hips. "Have I told you lately that you have an amazing body, miss Luuuuuucy?"
A tick mark appeared on Lucy's forehead. "I'd give you an earful, but we don't have time for that right now!" Lucy shouted at him. She then pointed to Hughes. "Just beat her up already, okay?"
Taurus turned around and smirked at Hughes. "You can utterly count on me."
"Is it just me or is that talking cow a pervert?" Sky whispered into Nikolias's ear.
Nikolias sweatdropped. "Oh, big time."
"You're nuts if you think a cow can beat me," Hughes laughed while lifting her wand.
Taurus chuckled as he charged forward and swung his axe at Hughes. Hughes gasped as she managed to duck under the blow.
"She's not controlling him, is she?" Michelle cried.
"I knew it!" Lucy exclaimed. "Her magic power can only control humans! It has no effect on Celestial Spirits."
Taurus continued his assault, swinging his axe at Hughes. However, the girl was very nimble and kept easily evading all of the attacks. Taurus then suddenly stopped moving altogether and simply stared at Hughes, who was crouched and ready to evade another attack.
"Why'd you stop, Taurus?" Lucy asked. "What's wrong?"
"Is he being controlled after all?" Sky asked.
Taurus clasped his hands together and swung his hips as hearts appeared in his eyes. "I know that you want me to fight her, but she's got a nice body, tooooooo!"
"Who cares?!" Lucy shrieked. "What's that got to do with anything?"
"I can't attack her because I just wanna smooooooch her!" Taurus explained.
Lucy took his key back out. "Go away!" Taurus then vanished in a small flash of light.
"Oh for the love of…," Nikolias cursed under his breath as he leaned forward. His wings were spread and ready for flight. "I'll take care of her now."
"Wait!" Sky begged as she wrapped her arms around his chest and pressed herself against his back. "If she controls you then we're really in trouble. None of us can defeat you."
"Sky, I can't just sit back!" Nikolias said. "I need to do something!"
"Let Lucy handle this," Sky said. "Her Spirits can't be controlled."
"Sky's right, Nikolias," Lucy assured as she whipped out another key. "I'll take care of this. OPEN! GATE OF THE SCORPION! SCORPIO!" In a puff of smoke, Scorpio appeared before Lucy.
"Wicked!" Scorpio cried. "You just leave this to me, Lucy! Oh yeah!" A tornado of sand shot from the tip of his mechanical tail and barreled towards Hughes.
Hughes smirked as she charged forward while dodging the attacks.
"Come on, Scorpio!" Lucy cheered. "Shoot her again!"
"You got it!" Scorpio cried. "I'll get her this time! SAND BUSTER!" Another tornado of sand shot out towards Hughes.
Hughes easily dodged the attack with a quick sidestep and held out her wand with a smirk.
"Don't even try!" Lucy said with a confident smile. However, she was surprised to find herself flying into the air and into the path of Scorpio's sand. She clutched her father's memento tightly in her arms as she screamed in panic.
"Lucy!" Nikolias cried.
"I got her!" Sky said as she flew into the air, her legs disappearing into the wind while her upper body remained solid.
Scorpio panicked upon seeing his partner flying towards his sand, so he quickly spun around to avoid her. However, his sand was still shooting out and it ended up crashing into Michelle behind him. With a pained scream, Michelle flew into the air before landing hard onto the ground, unconscious.
Lucy landed in Sky's arms when she noticed Michelle get hit. "Michelle, no!"
Scorpio looked towards Michelle. "Aw man, that is totally my bad!" He then vanished, afraid to do any more harm.
Nikolias ran to Michelle's side. "Michelle, are you alright?" He shook her gently, but he got no response. He gritted his teeth. "Damn it all."
Sky put Lucy down gently on the ground. "Are you alright, Lucy?" she asked.
"Yeah, I'm alright. Thanks, Sky," Lucy said.
Sky nodded with a smile.
Hughes lifted her wand. "Now let's continue the fun, shall we?"
Suddenly, Sky found herself flying into the air. "Wh…What's happening?" Sky asked in a frightened tone. She then began speeding through the air and towards one of the jagged cliffs. "Help!"
"Sky!" Lucy cried.
"Sky!" Nikolias roared as he took to the skies and flew as fast as he could after Sky. With his speed, he was able to catch up to her and flew ahead of her until he was directly in front of her. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her close to his body just as he felt his back collide with the side of the cliff. He felt something hard and unyielding strike his back and he felt and heard something in his back snap. He shouted in pain as blood flew from his mouth. He slid down the cliff edge with Sky still in his arms. He gritted his teeth. 'Damn it. I can't move. I think I damaged my spine.' He looked down to see Sky with her eyes closed. "Sky, are you alright?" he rasped. However, she wasn't answering. "Sky! Sky, answer me!" He could pick up the faint sound of breathing and he sighed in relief. "At least she's alive."
"Nikolias, are you both alright?" Lucy called out.
"I think Sky is unconscious from the force of the crash," he answered back as loud as he could, but he found breathing difficult so his voice didn't carry. He coughed up blood and clenched his jaw. 'Damn it all! Lucy's still in danger and here I am paralyzed. How pathetic.'
"I guess hot stuff isn't too bright," Hughes joked. "Did he actually think he could stop my magic?"
Lucy looked back to Hughes. 'I have to just hope that Nikolias, Sky, and Michelle are alright. I can't turn my back on her or she'll control me. Now what do I know? Her magic isn't like Kain's Witching Hour Curse Magic because it doesn't require a strand of her target's hair. She can only control one person at a time and I'm pretty sure they have to be within a certain distance from her. I should be safe as long as I stay away, but that's easier said than done in a situation like this.' Suddenly, her father's memento glowed faintly in her arms through its cloth barrier.
Hughes noticed the glowing and her eyes widened. She chuckled darkly as she pointed her wand at Lucy. "Found you!" she cried as the fingertip of her wand glowed.
Lucy cried in panic as she felt Hughes's magic taking control of her body.
"Geez, that took longer than I thought it would," Hughes said. "I guess if we'd known what you actually looked like it would have been a lot easier."
Lucy looked over her shoulder to the unconscious form of Michelle. "Wake up! Michelle! I need help!" However, Michelle wasn't responding.
"Lucy!" Nikolias roared, but broke into a coughing fit. His back still hadn't healed and he was completely immobile. "DAMN IT! MOVE, BODY!"
"I've got you now," Hughes said triumphantly as she waved her wand towards her own body. "What are you waiting for? Get over here."
Lucy struggled with all of her strength, but she couldn't resist. She began walking towards Hughes.
"There ya go," Hughes said as she continued to wave Lucy forward. "Keep on moving."
"Help," Lucy whimpered. "Someone help. Michelle. Sky. Nikolias." She squeezed her eyes shut. "Natsu."
Hughes chuckled as she waved her wand across her body.
Lucy stopped walking and her arms began to extend forward. "Don't tell me this is what you're after?" Lucy gasped as she watched her arms begin to hold out her father's memento.
"Yup," Hughes replied. "That's all we want. Hand it over and I won't hurt you."
Lucy continued to struggle with all of her might, but she couldn't fight it.
"Wow, you are so naïve," Hughes laughed. "Did you seriously think that we were after you? How conceded can you be?"
"Please stop!" Lucy begged.
"It's too late now!"
"This was my father's memento and he left it to me!" Lucy cried. "There's no way I'll ever let you have it!"
"That just makes it more fun for me!" Hughes teased. "I love stealing stuff that's important to others." She hugged her body. "I absolutely love it!"
"No, don't! Please stop!" Lucy pleaded. "Michelle! You've gotta wake up!" She wasn't responding. "Nikolias! Please help me!"
Nikolias tried as hard as he could to move, but he couldn't even lift a finger. "Lucy! Hang on just a little longer! Come on, body. Move, move, move, move, MOVE!"
Lucy whimpered as she continued to struggle, but it was too late. Because of Hughes's magic, she placed her father's memento directly into Hughes's hands. 'No!'
"Sweet!" Hughes said as she looked at the artifact in her hands. "This is awesome! The Archbishop is so gonna freak out!"
Lucy fell to her knees, exhausted. 'I…I handed it over to them. I gave it to her. How could I?'
Nikolias's head hung. 'Lucy, I'm so sorry I couldn't help you.'
Hughes put the memento under her arm while rummaging around in her pocket. She then pulled out a small green crystal. She chuckled as she threw it high into the air where it exploded in a bright green light. She then looked down at Lucy. "Thanks again. Later." She looked over to where Nikolias and Sky were sitting. "See ya, hot stuff." With that, she sprinted off with the memento in her arms.
Tears rolled down Lucy's face as she dug her fingers into the dirt. 'Dad. I'm so sorry.'
A bright green light in the sky caught Coco's attention and she looked up as she ran vertically along the cliff side. "That's the sign!" she exclaimed as she changed direction and headed straight up the cliff.
"What's going on?" Wendy asked. "Where is she going?"
"Wherever it is she's going, it can't be good," Carla said.
Byro, Gildarts, Erza, and Gracie all looked up at the green light that illuminated the sky.
"That's a signal flare," Erza said.
"A signal flare? A signal flare for what?" Gracie asked.
Byro smiled. "It seems that we've obtained the clock hand."
"What's that mean?" Gildarts asked.
Kanaloa turned around and began scurrying off with Byro standing atop its head.
"Get back here!" Gracie cried as she began chasing the giant octopus.
"Hold on, Gracie," Erza said while grabbing ahold of her arm. "There's no use chasing him."
"But Erza," Gracie began.
"We don't know where they're going. It could be dangerous," Erza said. "Besides, we need to make sure that Lucy and everyone else are alright."
Gracie sighed as her halberd disappeared. "Right. Let's go."
Sugar Boy chuckled at the green light in the sky. He then looked back down at Natsu and Gray. "Well hot dog. That about wraps things up here. Later, hot boy. Night, ice boy." He then ran off into the forest.
"He's getting away!" Happy cried.
"Whatever. But what's that all about?" Gray asked as he studied the light.
Natsu felt dread flood through his body. "Lucy…"
