Nevermore Base – 11:58 AM
Rubber squealed as tyres met tarmac and a cargo plane touched down at Nevermore Base. The four roaring turboprop engines growled deeply as the C-130 Hercules rapidly slowed to taxi speeds and moved off the runway and onto the taxiway.
Natsu let out a long stream of smoke from the corner of his mouth and tapped the ash on the end of his cigarette into an ashtray sat on the end table next to him. He was sitting in a plush chair in a spare room in the Officers' Apartments overlooking the airstrip, watching the plane land through a moderately thick curtain of rain.
Even with visibility hindered, he could still make out the blue emblem adorning the tail. It made him wonder just what their allied agency was dropping off, was it parts for various aircraft or could it be a new research and development department branch where people from both of their companies would come and work together. Given the rather out-of-the-way location and expansive aerodrome infrastructure, it was probably both.
As the nearby digital clock ticked over to midday, his phone's screen lit up and the room was filled with rock music. A quick glance at the ID on the screen showed that it wasn't one he could let ring out – it was Makarov on his office line – so he quickly accepted the call and brought the phone up to his ear.
"Salamander here."
"At ease, kiddo." Makarov chuckled lightly. "How's the training going? It's been a week."
"Some caught on faster than others, they're all professionals already from what I noticed but there is a difference between a regular grunt and the kind of level that Gajeel's crew runs at." Natsu relaxed his shoulders and took a short draw of his cigarette. "Has he asked you about setting up a rotation?"
"Yes. We're sending over your brother for this week's trainer, he should be arriving within the hour. I know the pilots reported an adjustment to their flight path thanks to the weather, so they're a little delayed."
"Right, right." Natsu nodded slowly. He rose to his feet and made his way over to the open window, leaning his shoulder against the frame with his cigarette held firmly between his lips. "I take it that he'll be working with the lead-head to formulate some kind of training plan based on the agents following after his week?"
"I haven't discussed it beyond informing him of the request, though I wouldn't put it past him." The creak of Makarov's seat came through the call as the old man shifted in it. "When you get back here, I'd like you to collect Lucy from your office and bring her with you to my office. I have something I need to talk to both of you about."
"Yes, Sir." Natsu turned his head slightly, shifting his gaze from the airfield outside and over to the door as he sensed someone waiting outside. He narrowed his eyes slightly and decided to check if their call needed to remain private. "Did you hear from Watson?"
"No, we haven't had the chance to talk." Makarov replied near instantly.
Satisfied with the answer, Natsu pushed off the window frame and walked over to the door. He opened it and came face-to-face with a young green-haired woman. "Please make it quick, I'm on an important call."
"Sorry, Sir." The soldier snapped off a quick salute to her superior and stood at attention with her hands clasped behind her back. "Captain Black Steel wants you to meet him at Hanger C-10, Sir."
"Right, I'll head over once I'm finished with this call." Natsu waved the woman away and closed the door. He returned to his spot by the window and watched as the C-130 was starting to be unloaded. "Lucy's supposed to be working with Mavis, getting used to having a handler looking through her eyes and talking in her ear."
"Yes, but we need to send a two-man team for this particular job. And they need to be comfortable enough with each other to be undercover as vacationing lovers while still able to perform their job. You and Lucy fall into that category." Makarov explained slowly. "You'll be sent to Crocus in a few days to find out more about the mission."
Crocus. Natsu narrowed his eyes and let out a slow, smoke-filled breath. "How high up the chain are we talking?"
"The top."
"Understood. I'll bring Lucy to your office when I return to HQ."
"Well, that's all I needed to talk to you about; the flight delay and your next job." Makarov's seat creaked once more and he let out a weary sigh. "Have a safe flight back."
"Thanks." Natsu took the phone away from his ear and ended the call. He snuffed out his cigarette in the ashtray and glanced around at his gear that was strewn around the room, he would need to pack up his gear before he headed out to meet with Gajeel.
His pistols sat on the coffee table and were completely disassembled, he gazed at them with a shadow of distain in his eyes. They were good pistols, a good set of experimental pistols. But for all their bells and whistles, it seemed that something had been lost along the way as they didn't feel like the Glocks he was used to firing. Maybe he should go back to the standard twin G20 or G20/29 combo he used to run, or maybe it was time to look elsewhere though it wasn't overly common to find handguns in 10mm Auto so his options were pretty slim.
With a sigh, he reassembled the pistols and slipped them into the holsters under his arms and put on his leather jacket over the top. He quickly went around the room, cleaning it up and packing his belongings. Once they were stored with his Requip's pocket dimension, he headed out of the apartment and left the keys in the key box near the front door.
He stuck to the awnings where he could but he still had to walk through the rain to get to the hangers. His hair became heavy with rain and hung low over his eyes, so he ran his hands through his spikes and swept them back to keep them out of the way.
"There you are!" A gruff voice called out through the rain and drew the agent's attention. Gajeel stood just past a set of open hanger doors with a clipboard in one hand and waving the man over with the other. "Took you long enough."
"I was on a call with our boss." Natsu replied with a shrug of his shoulders. "Wha'd'ya need?"
The studded man slipped an unlit cigar between his lips and patted down his pockets. "Well first, I need a light."
"Don't you have a lighter?" The pinkette grunted but he closed the distance between them regardless.
"Must've misplaced it. And since you're a match with legs, I figured you could light it for me." Gajeel gave the man a wicked grin and clicked his fingers. "Come on. Click, click."
"You're just asking for me to breathe some fire and turn that fucking thing to ash in your mouth." Natsu snarled as his mouth began to glow and smoke seeped from the corners of his lips. But instead of bathing the man in a torrent of fire, he lifted a hand and pointed a finger-gun at him. A ball of fire the size of a small coin shot from his fingertip and crossed the remaining ten metres between them. It collided with the cigar and immediately lit it.
"Gihi, go ahead. It's not like your fire is strong enough to do any harm." Gajeel's grin widened and the cigar threated to slip out. He transferred the cigar to his free hand and waved for the man to follow him as he headed deeper into the hanger. "You've had a shitty look coming and going on your face since you arrived here. And as much as you made it clear that you hate training people, there's something more to it."
"Eh, just not liking my new guns all that much."
"Those new Glocks of yours?" The black-haired man looked over his shoulder and reached back with his clipboard, shifting the front of the jacket aside. "I don't know how you can stand using them. I hate Glocks. Yeah, it does its job and it does it well, but I just think there are better options."
"I've never had an issue with them until I started to use the experimental weapons from R&D. The integrally suppressed guns were decently good but these 40s feel like they lost their soul along the way." Natsu drew both of the handguns and looked down at them with a lopsided smile. "The full auto and burst functionality are great and all but kind of pointless in hindsight due to my capabilities; I can already fire as quickly as the guns can cycle. And I don't know about all the silencing stuff done to the weapons. It's great for clandestine stuff like assassinations and rescues and shit, but it kind of feels like an easy way out."
"Well if you want my opinion." Gajeel placed his clipboard down next to a sealed wooden crate and turned his arm into a large prybar which he used to pop the lid open. "Ditch those fancy pants guns and go back to some good old iron, no bells and whistles. And for the love of all things holy, fucking jump off the Glock bandwagon, will ya."
"Oh? And what, pray tell, do you think I should get instead?"
"HK, SIG, Smith & Wesson," Gajeel glanced over his shoulder and removed two hard-case containers from the box and headed over to a nearby table. He placed them down and opened one, patting the weapon inside. "FN. We just got the shipment of their 510 Tactical pistols that we ordered probably a day or two after the take-over. They're going to be our new standard issue pistol, in ten-mill too. Put that trash down and get your hands on 'em."
Natsu placed down his modified G40s and took the FN510 from the case. While he looked over the black handgun and tested how it felt in his hand, Gajeel loomed over his shoulder with a shit-eating grin.
"So, how much better does it feel?"
"I assume it comes with different panels and shit to adjust the feel of the grip?"
"Yeah." Gajeel grunted. "It comes with different backstraps." He rummaged through the box and placed the various components onto the table. "We had this kit done up for us so every box comes with extra goodies. Stuff like six fifteen-round flush-fit mags, a suppressor, and mini red-dot sight for each gun too."
"Right, right." Natsu murmured. He placed the weapon down and picked up one of the magazines, locking eyes with the taller man as he loaded it with ammunition. "Let's put your money where your mouth is."
"Go ahead." Gajeel pointed to the airfield beyond the large hanger doors. "No one is out that way so send some rounds across the runway."
Once all three magazines had been filled, Natsu slipped two in between his belt and the waistband of his pants and slotted the last into the FN510. In one smooth movement, he chambered a bullet and levelled the pistol with the tree line on the far side of the airfield. With every pull of the trigger, the staggering boom of a 10mm muzzle blast echoed around the hanger.
The first four rounds were spaced one second apart but Natsu quickly picked up his firing cadence and cut it down to half a second. He dropped the mag and slotted a fresh one into the pistol on the last bullet and then picked up the pace once more, cutting it down to a quarter of a second.
On the last bullet of the second mag, the pinkette reloaded in the blink of an eye. He slipped into the zone and the world around him slowed to a crawl, the ejected casings majestically floating through the air. In his firm grip, the gun didn't drift off target even when he sped up his firing cadence to sub one-tenth of a second. The full fifteen-round mag plus the chambered round didn't even last one-and-a-half seconds before being expended.
Natsu let out a slow breath and the world rapidly returned to a normal speed. He glanced over his shoulder and saw stunned personnel staring at him but he ignored them and turned to Gajeel with the pistol held at his side. "Not bad."
"Yeah, nah. Fuck your fancy Glocks and their fun button." Gajeel laughed loudly and shook his head with an incredulous grin. "Whose bright idea was it to give someone who can make any gun fire as fast as a fucking machine gun a full-auto pistol anyway? Those fucking bullets all hit the same damn tree too, even when you were going ham on the trigger."
"Eh, a woman in R&D talked me into it. Plus, I'm no stranger to experimental stuff." Natsu shrugged. He took the magazine from the pistol and hit the slide release then placed the weapon and all of its magazines back into the case. "I've got to admit; it feels pretty damn nice."
"Take 'em." Gajeel repacked and closed the case, clicking the clips into place. He pushed them closer to the man then turned and headed to another crate.
"Really?"
"Do I really seem like the kind of guy to dangle something in front of someone's face and then take it away?"
"Yes." Natsu replied with a wide grin.
"Fuck you." Gajeel grunted and flipped off the pinkette with a large metal middle finger. He opened the crate and walked back to the man with a holster in each hand. "I know how you love to dual-wield your pistols, so I grabbed two for you – holsters too. I'll make a note for inventory that I've already assigned two weapons, so take them back to HQ with ya and get some more time on them. I don't have any underarm holsters, just hip ones, but I'm sure you'll be able to work out how to make it work with your gear."
"I've got a fair few modular holsters and harnesses, so I'll see what I can do." Natsu took off his jacket then his harness and inspected it. The corner of his mouth twitched slightly and he sent the harness away, replacing it with his thigh holsters. After a brief inspection of those, he stripped the Glock holsters from them and replaced them with the holsters that Gajeel had given him. A quick test fit later and Natsu was satisfied, so he attached a magazine holder to the back of his belt and opened both cases.
"Well, I got work to do. So I'll leave you to it." Gajeel clapped the man on the back and began to walk away with his clipboard.
"Gajeel." Natsu called out, turning to look at the man and bringing his attention back to him. "Don't get your hopes up – and you didn't hear this from me – but both you and Juvia are under consideration to become agents, the old man said so himself. In my report to Makarov, I'll put in a good word for the two of you. Don't make a liar out of me."
"Heh, isn't lying part of your job?" Gajeel smirked and gave the man a carefree wave as he turned his back on him once more and got back to work without another word.
Natsu's eyes remained on the man's retreating back for a few more moments but he turned back to the pistols that his fellow dragon slayer had given him. He loaded all the magazines full of ammunition and slotted six behind his back, send four into his Requip's pocket dimension, and left the remaining two on the table to be slotted into his new handguns once he finished assembling them. He affixed the MRD sights to their homes in the milled recesses of the slides, then attached his existing laser-light modules to the standardised rail under the barrel. The suppressors went into pouches attached to his harnesses and he tested the feel of both backstraps before settling on one setup. After slotting a round into both chambers, he inserted the magazines and placed the handguns into his thigh holsters.
"Not bad… not bad at all." He murmured softly to himself. After he requipped the cases and his old gear away, he made his way out of the hanger just in time to see an Osprey touch down just up the way and a black-haired man step out the back. "Hey! Zeref!"
The man glanced over at the shout of his name and his face lit up with a bright smile. He jogged through the rain to meet his brother half-way and pulled him into a quick hug. "Hey, Natsu. How were things up here?"
"A bit mixed. I got annoyed with the new guns from R&D, and apparently it was pretty obvious." Natsu replied with a soft grin. "Gajeel decided to give me two of their FN510s to try out and keep if I like them."
"Huh, that was nice of him." Zeref tilted his head slightly but his somewhat surprised expression quickly changed into excitement and he grabbed his brother by the front of his jacket, shaking him lightly. "Oh! I need to tell you something. I'm going to be a dad!"
"Wait, Mavis got pregnant?"
"Yes! We finally did it! We're going to be parents!"
Natsu chuckled at Zeref's enthusiasm and he pulled the man into a firm hug. "Congrats, how'd you find out?"
"She's been off colour for the last few days, so she took a few pregnancy tests and by a few, I mean about a dozen." Zeref laughed. Neither man cared to get out of the rain, but they did start to walk back towards the Osprey. "Each one was a positive. She ducked into the hospital to double check and they confirmed it. I'm going to be a dad!"
"You two better start brainstorming baby names then. Does anyone else know?"
"Not yet. Well, that's not quite true. We needed to tell Makarov just to keep her off any strenuous activities but he promised to not spread it around."
"Well, I have her looking after Lucy as her handler. So Mavis can relax and boss her around as much as she wants." Natsu chuckled and came to a stop beside the rear ramp of the aircraft.
Zeref smiled mischievously and elbowed his younger brother softly. "You know, speaking of her, my kid is going to need a cousin to play with."
"Wait-wait-wait," Natsu held up his hands, his eyes shooting wide open. "I know Luce and I have some great chemistry but I don't think either of us are ready for kids just yet."
"'Yet', he says." The older Dragneel brother chuckled. "So it may yet happen."
"I mean, yeah. I do want to have kids." Natsu conceded with a sigh and he ran a hand through his soaked salmon hair. "But like I said, I'm not ready for it right now. And if I do settle down with Lucy-"
"The woman whom you're currently living with."
Natsu's shoulders slumped and he let out another quiet grumble. "Yes, whom I am currently living with as more than housemates… But Lucy has just gotten onto the active roster and has been cleared for solo work, it wouldn't be fair on her for me to take her off it right away because I told her I wanted to have a baby with her."
Zeref's grin only widened but before he could even start to say something about the man's choice of words, he was promptly cut off.
"Don't misconstrued my words. I'm talking in hypotheticals here. I don't actually want to have a baby with her."
"Yet. I'm sure if you talked to her, she'd feel the same way. And probably even has the same sentiment as you, in wanting to wait a little bit before going for it."
"She probably does." Natsu shook his head lightly with a gentle grin tugging at his lips. "Anyway, congrats again. You should probably get settled in and get to work. I need to head back to HQ and have a chat with Makarov about some upcoming job."
"Yeah, you're right… I might have my work cut out for me here."
"Eh, you'll be fine." Natsu waved away the man's sentiment and climbed the ramp into the Osprey. "I'll see you in a week's time."
"See ya, Natsu." Zeref waved to the pinkette as the ramp lifted up off the ground and he quickly hurried away from the aircraft.
FTA HQ – Magnolia – 3:20 PM
Natsu ran up the stairs, choosing to take them over the elevators to reach the floor with his office since he didn't want to wait around for an elevator to arrive. He was greeted by various coworkers on his way through the halls. Instead of heading to his office first, he made a quick detour to Mavis' office, poking his head inside to see if she was in.
"Hey, Mavis, how're you feeling? I heard from Zeref that you were feeling a little under the weather."
"Welcome back, Natsu." Mavis' eyes immediately lit up at the sight of her brother-in-law and she shot up from her desk and hurried to the door, quickly pulling the man inside so they could have their chat in private. "Yeah, Zeref and I have been over the moon ever since we found out."
"I hope he hasn't already started with the dad jokes." The pinkette pulled the woman into a firm hug and gave her a large, happy grin.
"It's been non-stop at home. I swear, he's lost his filter." Mavis giggled lightly and rested her forehead against Natsu's chest for a moment, a sigh of mock annoyance slipping past her lips. "I know I don't have to tell you, but don't spread the word just yet."
"You want to be certain that it'll take?" Natsu murmured curiously. He led the woman back to her desk and let her take her seat once more while he leaned against the edge of the desk. "I guess I can understand. These aren't your original bodies, after all. But I don't think you should worry too much, they're genetically identical to the originals, the only thing different is that neither of you are cursed and can mature as you age."
"Yeah, I'm not stuck in unageing body of a little girl. I mean, I could've had kids in that body but we couldn't remove the curse without killing ourselves." Mavis let out a genuine sigh and leaned back in her high-backed leather chair. "Thankfully, we had other options. We just had to look hard enough."
"Do you want me to tell Lucy?"
"Ah, um…" The beautiful blonde opened and closed her mouth a few times as she tried to find her words while thinking about how the woman would handle it and if she would talk to anyone. "I don't really see an issue with it, considering you two are so close and I know how much you trust her. Can you be certain that she'll keep the news to herself?"
"She'll most likely be all excited about it and will probably want to talk to you about it… but I'm certain she'd keep it a secret if I tell her that is what you both wish."
"Alright." Mavis smiled broadly and rested a hand on her still flat belly. "You can tell her then."
"I better go find her then." Natsu leaned down and gave the woman a brief hug. He started heading to the door but before taking more than a few steps away from her, he turned back to her. "Oh, and congratulations."
"Thank you~." The blonde cheered brightly and she flashed the man a radiant smile. "We'll let you know if it's a boy or girl when it has developed enough to know." She lifted her eyes off the man momentarily and thoughtfully gazed to the corner of the room. "Um, I believe Lucy will be in your office. She's had this lonely look in her eyes since you've been away, I think she misses you."
"Yeah, I can faintly sense her. She's probably sleeping on the couch." Natsu replied. He waved goodbye to his sister-in-law and closed the door behind him.
Natsu quickly walked through the office hallways once more, heading back the way he came for a few turns before turning away from the elevator bank and heading closer towards the café. He came to a stop in front of the door to his office, he could only sense one person inside so Mira must be off somewhere else in the building or was either at her home or his own. When he carefully opened the door, he was met with the familiar gentle breathing of a sleeping Lucy and he quickly found her where he thought she'd be; on the couch and under a light blanket.
He stood in the doorway, captivated by the blonde's beauty. But he quickly shook free of his stupor and eased the door shut behind him. Natsu quietly made his way to the woman's side and carefully sat down on the edge of the couch, reaching a hand out and tentatively combing his fingers through her loose long locks.
"Mn." Lucy let out a gentle moan and she instinctively leaned into the warmth. She began to stir after a few strokes and her eyes fluttered open, the chocolate brown orbs instantly lighting up as Natsu's face swam into focus. Her lips slowly spread into a warm smile and she slowly pushed herself upright, murmuring, "You're back."
"I got back probably fifteen to twenty minutes ago. I stopped by Mavis to check in on things then came here." Natsu shifted his weight and was about to stand when a pair of arms encircled his neck and he was pulled down onto the couch and into a kiss.
"Why the rush?" Lucy murmured against the man's lips. She pulled Natsu on top of her and used Traverse to move the blanket from between them to above them and she wrapped her legs around the pinkette's waist. "I've missed you."
Natsu chuckled softly and leaned into the kiss for a few seconds, savouring the taste of the woman which had rapidly become his favourite flavour. But they had places to be, and he had to make that known to her. And so, he reached behind his neck with both hands and carefully pried the woman's arms apart, pinning her wrists above her head and pulling back from the kiss. "As much as I'd love to keep kissing you, it won't stop at kissing. And unfortunately, we've got to go to a meeting with Makarov. ASAP."
"Aw, but I want to stay like this a little longer…" Lucy whined softly but she relented and released the man from the leglock. "What does he need to talk to us about?"
"A job, something best suited for a pair of agents who can pose as romantic partners." Natsu rose to his feet and pulled the woman to hers. His gaze lingered on her warm chocolate brown eyes and he slowly lowered his head, giving her a quick kiss on the lips. "And, I missed you too, Luce."
"Hm, now I'm curious." The blonde rested her forehead against the man's chest and closed her eyes, breathing in his comforting woodsmoke scent. "Would it be fine if we go home afterwards? I want to lie down and cuddle."
"I need to stop by R&D and pick up a new Tac-com, then head to the armoury to drop off some gear, but I don't see any issues with heading home after that."
"Oh!" Lucy's eyes shot open and she slipped out of the man's grip and hurried to his desk. "Ashlyn dropped by and left you a message. Err, where was it…"
"Was it about the Cuda or the NSX?"
"Both, from memory. It was about a day after you left." Lucy sat down in Natsu's chair and rummaged through his desk until she found the note. "Ah, here it is."
Natsu took the paper from the blonde. It had dark splotches on it which smelt of oil or grease and the writing was legible but messy. Ashlyn had brought the NSX down into the workshop and had been working on the engines for both of the cars while he was away. There was no expected time for them to finish their work so he'd have to go check on them after stopping at the armoury. "I don't suppose there are any car keys in there somewhere?"
"Nope." Lucy shook her head lightly, causing her long blonde hair to shimmer and flow like waves of gold down her back. "If they're not done, then we can just use my car to get to and from work."
"Thanks." Natsu flicked the note into the nearby bin and headed for the door. But as he was about to open it, Lucy collided with his back and wrapped her arms around her. "Luce, we've got shit to do."
"I know, I know." Lucy giggled softly. She nuzzled the man's broad back and ran her hands up and down his chest underneath his jacket, relishing every moment she could get to touch him. She gazed down at the weapons on his thighs and tilted her head slightly. "Those look new." The beautiful blonde slid her right hand down the man's front and across the front of his pants until she got a grip on his right pistol. She pulled it free and slid the magazine out, checking if was still loaded with his preferred ammunition. "Where'd you get it from?"
"Gajeel gave them to me after I decided that the weapons I had from R&D weren't right for me."
"How does it shoot?" Lucy looked at the man curiously and placed the magazine back into the weapon and placed it back into his holster.
"Really good, actually." Natsu smiled at the woman and gave her another quick kiss, he didn't realise just how much he had missed her until he saw her once again. "Come, we shouldn't leave the old man waiting too long for us."
"Alright~." The woman giggled and she placed her hands against the man's back, gently pushing him closer towards the door. "I want to get some time on your new pistols too, they seem interesting."
"And the Glocks weren't?" Natsu gave the woman an incredulous look as he opened the door and allowed her out first.
"They're Glocks, Natsu. You see them literally everywhere and on the hips of the vast majority of police officers. Yes, I know those aren't the ten-mil versions you prefer, but still."
"Ouch, that's harsh." Natsu laughed. "Are you saying I have no taste?"
"When it comes to some things, yes." Lucy poked the man's arm and then hugged it to her chest, cuddling up to him as they walked through the corridors to Makarov's office. "I think you just get caught up in the hype around certain things, but it's cute to see you all excited about them. It's good that you're starting to try out different things though, new guns, new car-"
"Same hot girlfriend though." Natsu playfully whispered into the woman's ear, cutting her sentence short and causing her to blush.
"I never said you had a complete lack of taste." Lucy tightened her grip on Natsu's arm, burying it between her breasts while tucking her chin in and gazing up at the man cutely. "Oh, before I forget; Mira has returned home. She's talked things over with Lisanna and she was sorry for hitting her but she still thinks she's justified for being emotional."
"Hm, she might be a handful going forwards… I'll deal with that myself I guess, but after we get back from wherever this job will be taking us."
"Mira told me that you always coddled her, in more ways than one." Lucy gently released the man and pulled a hair tie from the pocket of her short denim shorts and began to tie her hair up into an offset ponytail then smoothed the front of her pink low-cut shirt, she was making herself look presentable for their meeting with their boss. "Maybe she thinks you're just a big softy who she has wrapped around her finger."
"I don't know if that's quite correct or not, but yeah, I have tended to treat her more gently than I have any other woman I've been with outside of work."
"Outside?" Lucy asked curious. She clasped her hands behind her back and looked up at the man, raising an eyebrow. "What's different about using sex and seduction tactics in the job?"
"You've got to find the best approach to maintain your mark's mental faculties while loosening their lips enough to get them to talk or coerce them into doing something for you. I can't just rail a bitch into the pillows and have her screaming her lungs out only for her to pass out before I get what I need out of her." Natsu ran a hand through his hair and looked down at the woman, noticing that her eyes had darkened with lust and that she was probably envisioning that it was her in that situation.
"I mean, if you did that to me, I'd do anything you'd want me to."
"Why doesn't that surprise me?"
"Maybe because I love getting fucked by you, and will be very vocal when I don't have to keep my voice down. It almost sounds like you had me in mind~."
Natsu blinked at the woman and shook his head with a gentle grin. "Sounds like someone's more than a little bit backed up."
"If we didn't have to go and meet the Director, I would already be riding you back on that couch." Lucy admitted, her voice a quiet purr.
"We'll have to save that for later." Natsu calmly urged, gesturing for the woman to stow her lust as they approached Charlette, Makarov's secretary who sat at a desk in front of the doors to his office. "Good afternoon, Charlette. Is the Director busy?"
"Good afternoon, Agent Salamander, Agent Celeste." The woman looked up from the screen in front of her and eyed the two agents. "No, he is free right now. He has been waiting for your arrival, so go right in. Oh, Agent Raiden is in there too."
"No surprise there. Thank you." Natsu quickly bowed his head politely and made for the door.
They found Makarov inside and sat at his desk with Laxus on the couch off to the side who was reading a newspaper. The old man looked up from a document he had on his desk and smiled at the two agents approaching him.
"Ah, you've arrived."
"Yeah, I stopped by Mavis then went straight to my office to grab Lucy to bring her here."
"Natsu said you had something for us, Sir?" Lucy asked curious, leaning in slightly with her hands behind her back.
"It's no secret that you two are romantically involved." Makarov began. He turned the document around and slid it to the other side of his desk. "Which is why I've selected you two for this job. That, and your skillsets make you perfect for it."
"Yes, Natsu mentioned that the job called for the agents to pose as romantic partners, and having two people with a genuine romantic relationship take the job would lend them more credibility." Lucy nodded slowly. She eyed the papers that Natsu picked up. The stand-out feature of which was the Fiore stamp at the bottom of the page. "Wait, is this job from the Queen?"
"Yes. She can fill you in when you meet her in Crocus. But the short of it is that she has tasked us with investigating a research lab suspected of manufacturing and distributing biological and chemical weapons in Bosco. The facility is a government-funded lab situated in the far northeast – near Bosco's borders with Stella and Iceberg."
"And she needs plausible deniability." Natsu glanced up at the old man. "Which is why she has come to our agency and requested they send people in place of her own spies or special forces."
"Bosco is a very volatile country. They've been posturing for a couple of months now and Hisui is getting worried. She wants to send the best of the best to investigate, deep within potentially hostile territory. The two of you are unmatched in sensory abilities and manoeuvrability, you'd be able to get in and out with ease while also having the cover story of a loving couple on holidays."
"Will we have false ID's, Sir?" Lucy asked softly, knitting her eyebrows together. "The Heartfilia name is not very widespread, but it is very well-known as we're have a large number of companies under our umbrella… If people realise who I am, they could come after us. To try and use me as collateral against my mother and the company."
"Then we kill those who come after us." Natsu shrugged, brushing the matter aside as if it was nothing.
"That could damage my family's image, Natsu." The blonde replied calmly. "It could also compromise our mission if we had to go loud just to protect ourselves from would-be kidnappers."
"I mean, I could also play the roll of your bodyguard." Natsu turned his head and looked at the blonde, raising an eyebrow at her.
"Then I could be caught having a secret affair with said bodyguard. I'd rather just go with the man I love at that point."
"Enough." Makarov put a stop to the agents' gentle back and forth with a calm word and the raise of a placating hand. "I've already gone to the trouble of setting up IDs for the both of you." The old man reached into a draw in his desk and produced two envelopes. "They're minor changes; Natsu Drake and Lucinda Hart – Lucy for short. Natsu, you'll need to use those red demon eyes of yours to match your passport. Lucy, you'll need to use transformation magic to turn yours to emerald green, or see if R&D can modify your contacts to have a colour change function."
"I think it will be best for me to have the contacts change my eye colour." Lucy replied quickly. "Just in case we come across any sensors or field generators. I don't want them to pick up on an activated magic spell and send people to investigate."
Natsu took the envelopes and handed the one with Lucy's name to her. "We'll bring armoured jackets and our handguns with us for protection. I think Bosco has open carry as the norm so we won't really look out of place with our guns but I think I'd prefer keeping them concealed under the jackets."
"I think they should be given some rifles for if things get heated over there." Laxus spoke up, lowering his newspaper and eyeing his grandfather and his two fellow agents. "They'll likely be fighting room to room and through corridors, so a carbine would be good but a bullpup would be even better."
"I'll have the armoury put together some Kel-Tec RDB rifles rechambered in .300 blackout and fitted with suppressors, that way you get the range and accuracy of a full-length barrel in a profile capable of CQC and full ambidextrous shooting." Makarov nodded slowly. He shifted his attention to his computer and began to quickly type up a message. "Since you've just gotten back, Natsu, I'll give you the night to yourselves but I want both of you here early in the morning to fly out to Crocus and meet the Ambassador. He'll take you to see the Queen and she'll give you all the details you need."
"Yes, Director." Natsu gave the man a quick salute, which was mirrored by Lucy, and he handed back the letter from the Royal Family. "We'll take the rest of the day to prepare our things and head home to review our covers."
"That's all I have for you." The director smiled and hit send on his display. "Those guns should be ready for you before five. If you can stick around until then, then it'll cut down on things you need to do in the morning. I'll let you know when they are done, though, as I'm sure you're both keen on getting home and catching up."
Once they were out of the office, Natsu turned to Lucy and his Glock 40s appeared in his hands. "Since you're heading down to R&D already, could you drop these off and pick up my new Tac-com – it's a watch-like model similar to the ones we wore when we attended the duke's party to secure Virgo's key."
"Sure." Lucy flashed the man a bright smile and placed her hands atop the weapons, sending them to her own requip pocket dimension. "I'll see if they have a second one or if they could build one quickly since it'll be more inconspicuous than the standard one."
"Let them know that the two of us are heading undercover in another country, and that I've said that it's imperative that you have one too. That should streamline that conversation."
"Alright, I'll give that a shot. Is there anything else we'll need while I'm down there?"
"Off the top of my head; I don't believe so." Natsu shook his head slightly. "I've got reconnaissance, bugging, and debugging equipment already stored. So we don't need to pick up any cameras or scanners. And those Spyders will work even better in your hands thanks to Traverse. Hm, maybe ask them if they've got a specialised drone that can be used for remote hacking, something that can fit through vents."
"Alright, can do." Lucy gave the man a quick kiss on the cheek before jogging away. She glanced back and waved at him, calling out, "I'll meet you back in the office."
Natsu's eyes lingered on the woman's back as she jogged away and when she turned the corner, he headed the opposite direction. As captivating as the woman's beauty was, he couldn't spend all day eyeing her since he had things to do. He came to a stop by the nearest set of elevators and called the lift.
"Hiya hot-stuff." A slightly slurring voice called out and a brunette collided with the man's left arm. "Where've you been?"
"Over at Nevermore, that base that Gajeel operates." Natsu glanced at the woman, there was a heavy scent of alcohol on her breath and it caused a tingle to shoot through his nose. "How much have you had to drink, Cana?"
"I didn't count."
"I hope you've got a ride home…"
"Don't I always?" Cana picked herself off the man and leaned on the wall beside the elevator doors. She took a large gulp of rum from the bottle she was carrying around and gave the man a wild grin. "Laki's taking me back today. I'm thinking about hitting up a bar, maybe hop from one to another. You in? You can bring blondie too; she seems like a fun drunk."
"Sorry Cana. Lucy and I have been tasked with a job and need to get ready. We'll be ducking out first thing in the morning to head up to Crocus for the briefing."
"Oooh, going to see dear old daddy, are you?" Cana asked with a playful purr while she leaned in closer, causing her bikini-clad breasts to hang in front of her. "What's the job, or is it 'for your eyes only'?"
"I don't know the full details; I only know it comes from up high. We've been tasked with conducting an Op over in Bosco."
"Fuck." Cana murmured, losing all sense of playfulness and straightening up, her eyes focused on the man. "That's risky business, going over there. Giving authorisation to conduct an espionage operation in a foreign country… How high are we talking?"
"The top."
"Fuck…" The brunette shook her head lightly.
The elevator dinged as it reached their level and once the doors opened, people began to filter out. Once the flow of people had stopped, Natsu and Cana entered the now-empty lift and the pinkette glanced at the woman. "What floor?"
"Wherever you're heading. I wanted to hang out."
"Frankie's lab it is then." Natsu hit the button for the sublevel that housed the vehicle workshop and leaned his back against the mirrored wall as they began to descend through the building. "Fucking Bosco."
"At least they're sending one of the best we have. But are you sure Lucy is ready for a place like Bosco?" Cana lifted her lowered gaze and looked the man in the face. "I get that she's come a long way since she arrived here, and she's got that crazy as fuck ability, but Bosco is like the wild west; anything goes."
"I think she understands the risks. She mentioned about what may happen if they realise that she's a Heartfilia. I might buy some temporary hair dye tonight and give her a different shade of blonde, maybe a strawberry blonde or sandy blonde, anything to further obscure her identity."
"Have the passports been sorted already?"
"Yeah, but some women dye their hair like they're changing clothes." Natsu crossed his arms and shrugged. "Plus, lighting does change the way that things look, so I could leverage that. But I would need to make sure the changes aren't drastic if I wanted to go down that path."
"I'd go for a sandy blonde over the strawberry blonde. Yeah, she'd be hot with strawberry blonde hair, but the sandy one will minimise risks, and she'd still be just as hot." Cana went to take another gulp of rum but quickly found out the bottle was empty. She grimaced then sighed and began to spin the bottle on the tip of her right pointer. "Where'd all the rum go?"
"You drank it."
"Yeah, yeah. I'll have to go find another one later." Cana tilted her head to the side and watched the man absentmindedly. "Do you think she'll be alright?
"Lucy?" Natsu questioned, raising an eyebrow. His clarification came in the form of a quick nod and let out a soft hum. "Maybe. She had been captured by Borla and was about to be shipped up there when I reached her. So I think she's got some idea of what to expect, plus she watches the news, so she knows that Bosco is a bit insane."
"The news doesn't even show a fraction of the reality of life over there. Like I said, it's the fucking wild west over there. Hardly a civilised nation. Hell, that place makes some of the shitholes here seem like paradise."
"Well, they somehow function as a country, even if it's morally corrupt."
"The corruption doesn't end at their morality though." Cana remarked. The elevator dinged and drew their attention to the opening doors. "After you."
"Every country operates differently, and always has some degree of corruption eating away at it from the inside." Natsu shrugged and led the way out of the elevator and towards the workshop. "Fiore has some 'shitholes' as you put it. Corrupt police officers are here and there, same with a few of the politicians in parliament, you've got the entire fiasco with Phantom Lord, and you have even got the organised crime families who rule the underbelly. Yeah, sure we don't have slavery and shit, but there are shit stains in our country too. If there weren't, then we'd probably be out of the job or a different kind of company."
"Well… good luck I guess." Cana sighed. She eyed a faraway dumpster for recyclables and she wound up her arm like a pitcher. Her arm whipped forward and she launched the bottle at high speeds across the length of the workshop. Even though she was drunk off her tits, her aim was perfect and she landed the bottle squarely inside the dumpster. "Swish."
"Just don't try and bust a move while completely soused and fall flat on your face. Wouldn't want you to break your nose."
"Come on~ I'm not that drunk that I'd fa-" Cana complained but as she to smack the man's arm, she tripped over her own feet and tumbled to the ground. But instead of falling flat on her face, she curled and rolled then jumped to her feet. "Did I worry you?"
"Not even in the slightest." Natsu shook his head. He glanced at her chest and then raised his gaze to her eyes while pointing a finger at her breasts. "One of your nipples popped out in that little stunt."
"Wanna suck on it? You might some beer instead of milk." Cana leaned in teasingly but she ran a finger along the edge of her bikini and pulled the cup back over her left breast.
"I feel sorry for you when you've finally settled down and decided to get some kids. You'll have to go dry for a fair while when you're carrying and breastfeeding."
"Eh, I can always use formula when I need a break and a stiff drink. But when the time comes, I'll be a good girl and sober up long enough to have the baby whenever it happens."
"Oi! Hotshot! You're back!" Ashlyn yelled from the other side of the workshop. She waved a gloved hand at the two agents, beckoning them over to her.
"I heard you brought the NSX down here too." Natsu called out as he moved down the line of cars to where the woman stood, working on an engine.
"Yeah, figured I do some work on it while you were away. I asked blondie about it and she told me you were off woop-woop on some job." Ashlyn waved her hand towards the NSX that was currently up on a nearby lift. "I pulled the engine from it since I worked out what I want to do for it. So I decided to make a 4.8L V8 based on two Honda K24 blocks. It'll be a custom-made cast aluminium block with sleeves. I'll be putting K20 heads on each bank, with lightweight internals throughout the engine, so aluminium piston heads with titanium alloy rods and crank."
"That V6 from the NSX is a pretty tight fit already." Natsu crossed his arms and looked over at the vehicle. "I take it you plan on doing some modifications to the body and engine bay to get it to fit, right?"
"Nah, it'll fit. Don't worry about it." The raven-haired woman grinned widely. "I'm looking at making it rev out to eleven-thou, and also twin-charging it; running it with a supercharger and probably two twin-scroll turbos – one per side."
"Ok, that's going to be a really tight fit."
"I'll make it work~." Ashlyn waved away the man's concerns. "I won't be able to make it an AWD without considerable work, more than the effort is worth. Well, I could do what they did with the NC1 NSX where they have a pair of electric motors running the fronts, then a third set up as a motor/generator between the engine and transmission. Depends on when you need the car back."
"I'm going to be in another country for a bit – which is what I came down here to tell you – so feel free to go nuts on the car and turn it into Frankie's Monster 2.0."
"Fuck yeah!" Ashlyn fist-pumped while cheering loudly. "Alright, we're going with a twin-charged high-revving V8 coupled with a hybrid electric system for AWD functionality. If I need to modify the body, then I'll modify the body. And while I'm at it, I'll touch up the interior to make it modernised. Alcantara here we come!"
"Are you going to be racing this one too?" Cana asked curiously, turning her gaze up to the man.
"Most likely. The car is already pretty damn light, so if there is anything we can do to make it even lighter while also increasing the power then it would be brilliant."
"Hmm." Ashlyn scratched her chin with her wrist so she didn't get grease on her face. "I could create magnesium housings for the transmission and differential, and run carbon-fibre drive and prop shafts. Then swap out all the suspension linkages and crossmembers for magnesium, hell I'll even make the block from magnesium too. She'll be a quick little banshee that loves to scream her lungs out."
"Pity you can't remake the shell in magnesium." Natsu remarked offhandedly.
"Wanna make a bet on that?" Ashlyn grinned. "Just yanking your chain. That'd take a long time and would be pretty costly for one car, especially a monocoque like this one. The body is already completely made from aluminium, so it's pretty light. But like I said, I'll make all the parts that attach to the body even lighter though I'll keep the creature comforts so it'll be more of a street-able race car instead of a full-blown track car. While it won't have the raw grunt that the Black Mamba has, she'll still be a perky girl."
"I'll leave the car in your hands then, Ashlyn. I don't know how long this job is going to take but in the event that you're not done by my return, don't worry about needing to rush it since Lucy offered to carpool."
"Oh, nice! I'll try and have it done by when you get back but we'll need to wait for parts and whatnot, and I want to be a hundred-percent certain that everything works perfectly before I hand it back over to you." The raven-haired woman clapped her hands together with a resounding plap, her grin growing larger. "I'll let you know once it's done. If you aren't back before it's done, I'll leave a message with Agent Demon or a note on your desk. Otherwise, I'll send you a text or call you."
"That's fine." Natsu grinned and turned. As he walked away from the women, he waved goodbye over his shoulder. "I've got to find Lucy and grab something from the armoury before we run off home. I'll see you ladies around."
"Good luck on the job." Both women called out in near-unison.
I hope you've enjoyed this chapter. I've been dwelling on the idea of sending them on a job for the Queen for a while and wondering what could warrant a direct order from her. I recently came up with the idea for a high-risk job in a neighbouring nation, to show a bit more of the bigger picture of the world with nations vying for power on the world stage and how some would use horrific means to get ahead. Such as a government sanctioned chemical and biological weapons lab.
Again, I hope you have enjoyed this chapter, and I'll see you in the next one.