Author's Note: Hello everyone, and welcome back to another chapter of The Cursed World! I am still in shock at how long the last chapter was – it was the longest chapter in this "book" (I don't know what you want to call this)! I don't know if I'll be able to write another chapter that long, but we'll have to see what happens as the story progresses. I usually let the chapters write themselves, you know what I mean?

I also apologize that this chapter is late. I got a promotion at work, and with earlier hours and getting trained my hours have been all over the place. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

The amazing story of Fairy Tail is owned by the one and only Hiro Mashima.

Chapter Seventeen:

To Abydos

A sigh could be heard as red eyes appeared along the edge of a cliff, looking at the smoke appear before him as half of the balcony on the side of the castle disappeared. The sounds of crumbling and thumping could be heard as the limestone and tile broke apart, and fell through the next floor or two of the castle.

It was music to Set's ears as a small grin slowly made its way on to the God's face as a chuckle vibrated throughout his chest, and the Kek chuckled as his eyes lit up at the destruction before them. Both of them were happy and pleased with the accuracy of the ray, and more pleased that Lucy Heartfilia and Cobra the Poison Dragon Slayer descended down with the rubble. It doesn't matter to them if someone is a wizard, warrior, or even another God or Goddess – no one is match for the power of the ray.

Set looked down at Kek with powerful eyes to give him a nod before he turned to look at the skeleton warriors he sent to take care of the two mages. They stood at the edge of the cliff, not twitching or moving, with their red eyes still locked onto the castle before them. Both Gods knew they were waiting for Cobra and Lucy to make a reappearance to carry out their orders, but Set knew that wouldn't happen anytime soon.

"Do you think that fall killed them, my Lord?" Kek asked as he looked up at Set with hopeful eyes as his fingertips gently bumped against one another.

Set hummed to himself as he thought about moments prior. He watched as Cobra gripped Lucy to him as he ran forward, making sure to get him and the female wizard as far away from the danger as possible. He watched Lucy grip onto Cobra to make sure she stayed with him, and tried her best to keep up with him. Ultimately, the two ended up falling with the rubble as the balcony under them fell apart. Cobra managed to hug Lucy close to him, holding her waist with one arm while the other was around her head, and tucked his head into her shoulder as he braced them for impact. He knew how touching it was to see such mages become so close with each other over the past couple of weeks, but his face grew dark as he realized the timing of their fall.

Cobra and Lucy descended down with the last parts of the rubble, and not with the beginning part of the destruction. He started to grind his teeth together as thunder started to rumble above them as he realized that the two mages were possibly still alive. Both of them are strong, and Set knew that it is going to take a little more than a short fall to take them out.

Set threw his hands up in anger, barely missing Kek's long nose, and let out a scream that echoed across the valley. Kek turned and looked up at the God in fear while the skeleton warriors turned to face the God. If skeleton's had facial expressions, Kek would think they looked a little concerned and frightened; the skeleton's red eyes dimmed and appeared small, and they were as still as statues.

"They're possibly still alive!" Set roared as his fists balled at his sides, and his fangs became exposed as he glared at the castle in front of him – the same castle he got banned from many years prior by none other than Osiris himself.

He can't physically step foot on the castle or else he'll turn to ash, and that frustrated the evil God to no end. Set couldn't go over there and finish the job.

Kek, realizing Set was getting angrier by the second, frantically looked around as he tried to think of something to calm his master. "Maybe they are dead, Lord. Maybe the vultures or other creatures roaming around will finish the job for us. The cobra snake does roam these lands." Kek reasoned as he stepped back from Set.

Set paused before he could summon any magic or creature, and looked over at the little God. Kek almost jumped when he saw the crazed look in Set's red eyes, and how Set's laugh started in his throat and quickly came out as he tilted his head up towards the sky. His arms were spread apart as his bicep muscles flexed with Set's movements. His laugh was crazed, and he held nothing sinister back.

"Yes, that is true Kek. There might already be something in those castle's walls that'll do the job for us," Set hissed as a large grin spread across his lips as his eyes grew wide. "In the meantime, we'll keep an eye on things to see if they truly did survive. Let's head back to our castle, Kek. We have spies to send out."

Set quickly regained his composure before turning his back to the castle, and neatly folded his arms behind his back as he started to walk away from the scene. Kek nodded his head slowly as he watched Set for a couple of moments with cautious eyes, wondering if the more powerful God would've taken his anger out on him, before following him closely behind.

Behind the two Gods the skeleton warriors got in formation, and followed them. Their red eyes were focused, and their movements were precise as they walked. Their footsteps echoed across the landscape as Set grinned manically.

~~~~~~808~~~~~~

Thunder boomed as lightning struck across the sky, lighting up the darkness above the two fallen mages. Pieces of limestone and tile were scattered across another tile floor right next to a stone staircase descending down. The room was spacious yet small, but now crowded with debris scattered across the room. Smoke from the pieces melted and destroyed were still rising in the air, and the room was covered in smoke, creating a slight fog.

Cobra grunted as he heard the thunderstorm up above him, and gritted his teeth as he heard another loud clap echo across the land. Slowly he felt his consciousness come back to him as his senses started to pick up the area around him, and he slowly opened his one eye to take a look around to see where he has ended up.

His whole body ached; his head had a splitting headache, making it hard for him to focus on what was going on around him, and his joints and muscles burned and screamed at him to stay still every time he moved. Cobra recognized that his mind was foggy, and he shook his head slightly to try and help clear it. He growled with frustration when he realized that shaking his head made his headache worse, and he slowly moved off the hard ground he landed on to be in a sitting position as he held his head with one hand.

He blinked a couple of times as his vision started to clear up again, and he was able to take in the room around him as more thunder rumbled up above. Lightning lit up the room before him, and he saw all the rubble laying on the floor as well as dust. He knew and remembered exactly what happened for him to be in the room, and he was relieved that he and the Celestial Spirit mage didn't end up falling into the lava below them. Cobra knew they were lucky, almost too lucky, but he was grateful for that streak of luck.

Cobra was grateful to be alive, and to be able to move all parts of his body after the fall he and Lucy had.

He double checked to make sure his body was working properly, and he let out a breath he didn't know he was holding when everything was alright. Cobra remembers trying to run away from the area of the balcony that was falling apart where the ray hit, and he remembers not being able to get away from it in time as the floor beneath him crumbled apart. He remembers pulling Lucy into him, and holding her as they braced for the impact of the fall. He remembers hitting a solid floor followed by pain, and then everything went black soon afterwards.

Cobra shook his head as he remembers being in Uruk going somewhat smooth before the skeleton warriors arrived, finding the portal key to Abydos, and then the ray firing at them causing them to end up in the room they are in. He blinked his eye before any more thoughts of what happened replayed in his head, not wanting to think more than he should due to his head feeling like it was about to split open.

Slowly, but surely, Cobra started to stand up. He ignored the pain in his muscles and joints, and quickly had to find his balance when he almost fell over. He winced at every step he took since it was followed by a jolt of pain, and he quickly stopped trying to move as he steadied his breathing. Now would be the time to observe the room I'm in. He thought to himself to try and remain focused, and he quickly scanned around the room to take anything else in.

He noticed the staircase descending down to an old wooden door to his left, and as he looked to the right he almost took a step back. To Cobra's right was a large statue of a half-man, half-lion jutting out from the wall covered in gold. It's gold was slightly dirty due to its age, but it still stood out, nonetheless. The face of the statue was human, and where the eyes should be was pitch black as well as the mouth that was hanging right open. Covering the top of the statue's head, as well as the ears, was a crown-like piece that extended to its paws; it had blue symmetrical lines going across the odd-looking crown, and Cobra wondered what the significance of it was. There was also a circular disc right above its head with three cracks going into a solid onyx circle in the middle.

Cobra thought it was an odd-looking thing, but he knew that the statue had to have some significance to it or else it wouldn't be tucked away a couple of floors down in a castle. He turned to look at the door to his left, and wondered where he and Lucy landed. He was willing to go and explore the castle that they're in to try and find out, but he knew that opening that door – which probably hasn't been opened in hundreds of years – would be a bad idea. He tore his eye away from the door, and then continued to stare at the statue.

The longer Cobra stared into its eyes the more he got lost in it, and he turned his head away before he felt himself go into a trance. It annoyed him that there were so many different dangerous things existing in this world, but he also reminded himself that in his world there were more dangerous places, people, and wizards than him wandering around. It was that thought that gave him comfort, yet didn't give him comfort at the same time.

His eye then started to scan the room again as he looked around, and not too far from where he was standing was a flash of blonde. It was barely visible with the amount of dust covering it, but his eye grew wide when it dawned on him who it was.

"Heartfilia!" Cobra gasped under his breath as he shot forward, ignoring the pain in his body as he limped over to the unconscious form of the Celestial Spirit Mage.

Lucy was knocked out cold and covered in dust from the debris, and all around her were good sized pieces of the floor and balcony that were destroyed. She was covered in dust from head to toe, creating an illusion of a light blanket, and her clothes were ripped and torn in some places. Her hair mostly covered her face, and from what Cobra could see there was no damage to her head. He let out a breath of relief when he put two fingers on her throat, and found her pulse. Her chest was also rising and falling with each breath, and to him that was a good sign that she was okay.

Seeing the state Lucy was in made him think about what he looked like, and he knew he had to look like a dust-covered mess. He knew his clothes were torn and ripped in some places, and he knew there was probably a cut or two somewhere on his body, but he didn't care as long as he and Lucy were alive. We'll get cleaned up when we arrive in Abydos. He thought to himself. He knows they'll be able to get cleaned up and treat any wounds they received, but the trick was getting to their destination.

Cobra almost coughed as the smoke around him was starting to clear, and he focused his one eye down at the Celestial Spirit Mage. He would be lying to himself if he wasn't worried. Using his hand he gently brushed the hair out of her face, and tucked it behind her ear. Lucy had a minor cut on her cheek, but there was no sign of blood. He let out a relieved breath, and looked up towards the darkening sky before he gently started to move her head up. Ever so gently (and he knows he has never been gentle with anything besides Cubellios, or now Kinana) he lifted her head up, and placed it on his right thigh, angling it so he knew she would wake up with no discomfort. This is too weird. Cobra thought as he angled himself comfortably on the tile floor, not used to this sort of contact. Yet something told him that this was right – that helping and making sure Lucy was okay was the right thing to do. There was a feeling he wasn't used to in the middle of his chest and stomach, something that was almost completely foreign to him, yet he also understood what it might mean.

Cobra grunted at the thought, wanting to dismiss whatever he was feeling towards the annoying blonde Fairy Tail mage on his lap. Then the more he thought about their time together the past couple of weeks, now almost three weeks, he felt one corner of his mouth turn slightly upward as he recalled everything.

Yes, Cobra knew what he was feeling for the Celestial Spirit Mage. No, he knew it wasn't love, but close to it. I'll see if this feeling continues throughout this quest. He told himself as he felt his mouth turn into a straight line. Then I'll decide what it is. Besides, he's read Lucy's soul and mind on multiple occasions. He knew she was feeling something towards him, too, but like him, she was waiting it out. He would agree that it was the smart thing to do.

The sound of a soul stirring, as well as a mind, tore Cobra from his own thoughts as his head shot down to look at Lucy. It looked and sounded like she was struggling to come back to her own consciousness. Her body was starting to twitch, and her thoughts were running wild as they tried to piece everything together. Cobra straightened his body, and put his hand on her shoulder as a way of letting her know that she was not alone – he was alive and there with her.

Slowly Lucy's eyes started to flutter open until her shining brown eyes were fully revealed. Panic immediately settled in, and her upper body shot up from its position as she frantically looked around and touched her head, shoulders, torse, legs, knees, and feet.

"Heartfilia," Cobra said to her. He was stern, yet a little comforting in hopes that would get her attention. "It's alright. We're both alive, and in the castle we need to be in."

Lucy turned her upper body around to look at him, and he saw the panic change to surprise to calm. "Cobra? We're – ow." She groaned as the pain from the fall hit her like a ton of bricks, and Cobra just stared at her until she managed to move and deal with the pain she was in.

"Just breath and take it easy. We fell down a good distance." He tried to comfort with his gruff voice, and motioned with his head to the hole above them as the thunderstorm raged.

Lucy followed his gaze, and her jaw fell open. She saw how far they fell down, and the feeling of dread coursed through her veins at the thought. All she remembers as the ground under them fell apart was Cobra gripping on to her, and vice versa, and falling as she screamed. The thought of the fall frightened her terribly, but as she looked around the surrounding room she suddenly became grateful to be alive. The two of them landed in the castle's walls and not in lava, and no skeleton warriors or evil beings were near them. Their situation was not the best, but it definitely could be worse.

Lucy turned and looked at Cobra once again, who was staring at her with an unreadable expression, and she slightly smiled through the pain she was feeling in hopes to show him that she was doing okay. "How are you doing?" She asked, but she had a feeling she already knew how he was doing.

Cobra grunted as he shrugged his shoulders, but winced from pain. "About the same as you. Lucky to be alive, yet not feeling all that great."

Lucy nodded as she dryly laughed. "True…"

She turned to look away from the Poison Dragon Slayer to look around the room once more before her eyes settled on the statue not too far away from them. She looked at it closely, like she was inspecting it, and then she started to look around the room once more. She remembers the bag she was carrying right before the fall, and knew that it fell with her and Cobra.

"I'll have to look for the bag in a minute," Cobra spoke up when he read her mind and thoughts, making Lucy look at him with wide eyes. "I just need to rest my body for a moment before I do so."

Lucy nodded her head as she looked at the rubble around her. She was used to Cobra reading her, but a part of her was still surprised that he could read her every thought and movement. At first it creeped her out, but she has been growing used to it as each day passed by.

Her thoughts were stopped when she heard Cobra start to move beside her, and she turned to watch him slowly start to get back on his feet. He was wobbly, she noticed, but he was making it up. He started to look around the room for the bag that fell, but as he did so he held out a single hand towards her. His head turned and looked at her, and she noticed that the corner of his mouth twisted upward in something she never thought she would see: a relaxed smirk. Her cheeks started to grow a little warm as she slowly reached her hands towards his until it relaxed in his palm.

Cobra gently gripped her hand and slowly lifted her up, and helped her stand until he knew that she was balanced and ready to move. Once Lucy felt she was steady and ready to move she looked towards the Poison Dragon slayer, and smiled towards him with her cheeks still flushed.

"Thank you, Cobra." She said as she looked at him with her eyes twinkling, forgetting momentarily that her body ached with every move she made.

Cobra nodded his head towards her as he stuffed his hands in the pockets of his torn jacket, his relaxed smirk gone. "It's better to keep moving before the pain stops you from moving. I'll look for the bag, and you examine the statue over there. There is some sort of magic coming from it."

Lucy nodded her head, agreeing with his plan, as she looked behind Cobra to see what he was talking about. She almost fell backwards when she saw the creepy looking statue overlooking the room. She felt like the blackness where the eyes were supposed to be stared into her soul, and she shuddered as she examined it. She heard Cobra snicker at her reaction as he walked away from her, and she quickly glared at him from the corner of her eye as he continued walking.

She shook her head to snap herself out of it, and started to walk towards the statue as she sensed the magic of the statue. She winced to herself as she started to walk, pain shooting through her body as she took slow steps forward as her right hand clutched her left arm, and she started to take a good look at the statue. There was something familiar about it, yet not familiar at all. Then she thought about it more as she looked at the way the face was shaped as well as the circular disc above its head.

It almost reminded her of…

"The portal amulet!" Lucy exclaimed out loud as it dawned on her what was in front of her. A smile broke out on her face as she quickly pieced everything together, and she turned her upper body to face Cobra as her smile grew. "Cobra, we found the portal statue Dan was telling us about!"

She saw Cobra stop what he was doing to look at her, and then he grinned. "Looks like our misfortune turned into our greatest fortune." He said as he lifted up a large piece of rubble, and with swift movement he pulled out the bag that was once around Lucy's shoulder before the fall.

Lucy wanted to fist pump in the air, but stopped herself due to the pain in her shoulder. "Let's get out of here! I'm sick of the desert." She laughed, but quickly stopped as she started to cough.

Cobra approached her with a limp in his step, and looked at her with a grin. "It's about time. I need a real bed. My back's been killing me."

Cobra held the bag out to Lucy, and she quickly took it from his hand and opened it up. She quickly took out the portal amulet they found right before the ray destroyed the balcony they were on, and held it up to the statue. Sure enough, there was a sharp contrast between the portal amulet, and the statue – the faces and the shape of it were similar, and the disc above the head of each object was almost identical.

Lucy's eyes sparkled as she thought about the stroke of luck they found themselves in. She was sure that when she felt the balcony beneath her start to break apart that she would die soon afterwards, and not wake up in the room they were supposed to be in. She could twirl and dance right now, but she held it together when she thought about who was with her. She motioned for Cobra to follow her as she started to walk towards the statue, and the Poison Dragon Slayer looked at her unsure before he strapped the bag to his shoulder and followed after her.

"I don't know how to use it, but something tells me that it's self-explanatory." Lucy thought out loud to herself as Cobra watched her curiously with his one eye. "Stand near me Cobra."

Cobra grunted as he stood close to her, their arms slightly brushing against each other, as Lucy held up the portal amulet. The two mages watched as the circular disc above the amulet and portal started to glow bright, and they looked at the ground their feet were on as it started to glow a white-yellow. The eyes of the statue started to glow white as it started to acknowledge the gift it was being presented, and the mouth started to grow wide as it moaned deeply as the air around them started to get slightly sucked in through the mouth.

Cobra looked around frantically, not sure how he was feeling as he watched the statue start to suck in everything around it. He looked between Lucy, the portal amulet, and the statue as he started to wonder if the Celestial Spirit Mage hit her head hard when they fell. She can't be so calm right now! He thought to himself as his one eye grew wide as he watched the Celestial Spirit Mage as she lifted the portal amulet up more towards the statue. In that very moment Cobra knew why she was friends with the Flame Dragon Slayer, and that was because the two of them were both crazy.

His thoughts were interrupted when they were both encased inside a ball of light, and he felt his feet start to lift off the ground. Panic started to flow through him as he started to frantically reach around the light, but the light seemed to move with his body parts as he gritted his teeth and hissed. Cobra's one eye grew wide as he felt more panicked than he did about the fall, and he almost started to kick his way out of the light when he felt a hand grab his jacket. He looked towards the Celestial Spirit Mage, and saw that she was giving him a warm look as her thoughts said, everything will be okay.

Cobra continued to look at Lucy even after she looked away from him, and he braced himself when he heard the statue let out a scream that sounded like an S-Class monster, sucking them in as it got ready to transport them to their next destination.

So I'm not sure how I liked the ending of this chapter. I wrote it many times, and this ending seems to be the one that I liked the most for it. It's a little weird, but I'm happy that they are out of Uruk now. We have all been in Uruk for a little too long, so now I'm ready to start writing about the next area: Abydos. I don't think they'll be in Abydos for long, but I'll figure that out as I continue to write the chapters.

I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter, and I'm sorry about any spelling and grammar mistakes. My eyes missed them while I was editing the chapter.

I hope everyone has a great night wherever they are, and stay turned for the next chapter of The Cursed World! Buh-Bye!

Coming Soon to The Cursed World:

Chapter Eighteen: Abydos