Date: XX/XX/0370

Time Left: Approximately Four Hundred Years Before Disaster

Location: Unnamed Forested Area

"Thank you for taking some time to meet with me Zeref. I know how difficult it has to be, dealing with everything on your plate like you have." The booming voice of a red dragon spoke. The massive being took to laying down on the forest clearing in order to converse with the dark-haired young man that seemed like an insect compared to the giant reptile.

Zeref gave a small, if tired smile towards his friend, "It's the least I can do, after all, I haven't spoken to you or Anna in over…well it would have to be six months by now." Zeref laughed to himself, before sitting down on the ground in order to rest his aching body.

Igneel huffed slightly at that, small streams of smoke billowing from his nostrils at the action, "Unfortunately…I haven't called you here just so we could catch up. Zeref, the humans are scared. They had just started rebuilding after the war, then suddenly a demon of unimaginable power starts destroying their towns? You need to get your little brother under control."

Zeref chuckled at that, "You think I've just been sitting on my ass this whole time? I haven't slept in months. I'm trying to get Natsu to listen, but no matter what I do, he just ignores me and…" Zeref felt slightly downtrodden as he continued, "He's too strong, he's ripped me apart hundreds of times for that fact to set in. He doesn't even know how to read or write because he just ignores me whenever I try to teach him. And everytime I do…well let's just say that out of all the Etherious, he's the one that has gotten the closest to killing me."

Igneel huffed again this time in annoyance, "You're too soft on the boy. He's not the Natsu you remember. I told you, didn't I? When you started pulling souls from the afterlife all willy-nilly, I told you that there'd be consequences. But did you listen? No. Now not only do we have an entirely new race of super-powered demon souls trapped inside ethernano bodies, but your little brother is going on a rampage because you decided to play god and rip his soul from the afterlife and put it back inside his corpse."

Zeref hung his head low at the harsh words, tears pooling in the sides of his eyes as the giant winged lizard looked at him with a disapproving glance, "I know, I'm sorry…but you have to understand." Zeref looked toward the dragon with a thin smile gracing his lips, "When I finally found Natsu's soul within the afterlife…Igneel, it looked like it was skinned alive." He paused to let that sink in, "When he woke once again, he was little more than an animal. A cornered, scared animal that had spent far too long in whatever part of hell he had found himself in."

Igneel gave an exasperated sigh, "Zeref…you said it yourself, Natsu has grown too powerful. If we can't get him under control soon, he'll become stronger than even me, and having a demon with a shattered mental psyche get that strong…well it won't end well for anyone." Igneel paused before giving another exasperated sigh, "I mean, for the love of all that is holy, why'd you bring him back as a freaking demon of all things?"

Zeref kept his angry gaze settled on the dragon, "I didn't! Weren't you listening!? His soul was tortured for who knows how long! His very being shredded, and his consciousness reduced to the most basic functions for survival!" Igneel felt a chill run up his spine as a dark aura surrounded the young man, and his eyes grew a bloody red, "I just wanted my brother back! But even though it was only a few years on Earthland since he died, apparently it was more like hundreds for him! Imagine, being tortured relentlessly for centuries in hell, only to be brought back as if none of that ever happened!" Zeref gave a broken laugh to himself, "The other Etherious were able to take it a lot better than I thought they would, I guess the souls of actual demons don't remember their time in hell, but for a mortal soul like Natsu's…well he remembers every second."

Igneel furrowed his scaly brow for a second, an idea brewing inside his brain, "Well…if the other demons are more agreeable because they can't remember their time in hell, why not do the same for Natsu?"

Zeref's dark aura subsided, and his red eyes widened as he realized what Igneel was suggesting, "Erase his memories!? After everything I went through to bring him back! The other Etherious are little more than infants, barely any consciousness inside their minds, and you want me to do that to my own brother!?"

Igneel looked down at the angry young man with sympathetic eyes, "Zeref…do you truly believe the Natsu you once knew would do all the heinous actions he's doing now? No, he's been corrupted by the very memory of hell, tortured by knowledge he should not have. We must save him Zeref, give him the life he should have always had."

Zeref gripped the grass in anger and sadness, "He was so young when he died. If I seal the memories of his time in hell, there'll be nothing left. He'll be nothing more than a baby again."

Igneel nodded his giant head, "Yes, a fresh new start, a start he deserves, don't you agree?"

Tears fell from Zeref's eyes, "If I remove those memories, he'll lose the knowledge of his Curses, he'll be susceptible to my Curse of Contradiction. How can I keep him safe from myself?"

Igneel looked off to the side before returning his gaze, "I could raise him, What better mentor for a fire demon other than the Fire Dragon King himself? I could temper his flames, give him a proper education, and when he is ready, we can reveal everything to him."

Zeref continued to cry onto the forest floor, the sky growing darker and darker as storm clouds began to roll in, "I don't-I don't want to lose him Igneel. I've spent so long getting him back, I was cursed by the fucking God of Life and Death trying to bring him back! Now, I have to let him go?"

Igneel closed his eyes in solidarity with his friend, "It's the only way Zeref, your brother is a monster through and through, rotten to the core. We have to save him from himself."

Igneel watched for a few minutes as Zeref sobbed silently to himself, before the sobs turned to sniffles and the young man looked towards the Fire Dragon King with a weak look of determination, "Okay, for Natsu."

Igneel nodded, "For Natsu…"

Date: XX/XX/0784

Time Left: Approximately Seven Years Before Disaster

Location: Magnolia

"...anyway, I'm just standing there, BBQ sauce all over my abs. When two hundred-no, three hundred ninja's come out of fucking nowhere claiming that, 'I'm the destroyer of worlds' or whatever. Before they started hacking and slashing at me with magic katana's!" Natsu swung his arm around as if yielding a sword to emphasize the story.

Erza couldn't help herself from laughing at the tale, "And how did you beat them all?"

Natsu bellowed out a small stream of flames from his mouth, "How else? I roasted those fucks with a Fire Dragon's Roar! Haven't heard from them since." Erza smiled at Natsu as they made their way through the Magnolia streets. They had been set free this morning, and had spent most of the afternoon walking their way back to the guild, "Hey Erza…" Said mage turned to her compatriot and saw a downtrodden look on his face, "I'm sorry, you know, for screwing up your trial and making everything worse…"

Erza was quiet for a moment before she pulled the pink-haired mage in for a hug, his head painfully clanging against her armor's chestpiece, "You were just trying to help. You had pure intentions in your heart throughout the whole thing, and for that, I can't fault you." Natsu let out a sigh of relief at that. Erza let go of her guild mate from the hug and placed her hands on her hips, "Just…try and think before you do anything rash next time, okay?"

Natsu chuckled before rubbing the back of his neck in an endearing gesture, "Alright, alright, I promise I'll think through all of my rash decisions from here on out!"

Erza smiled, "That's my boy. Now come on, we shouldn't leave the guild waiting too long." She said before marching off down the street.

Natsu followed close behind her, "Hell yeah, I can't wait to surprise them with our miraculous return!"

Lucy swirled the iced tea she ordered with the straw that came with it. She had been pretty worried when Natsu hadn't shown up this morning. Everytime she had gotten up and gone to the guild, he was always there before her. Honestly, at this point she thought the man lived at the guild. Which was why she started to worry whenever he hadn't shown up since last she saw him. Not only that, but her rent for the apartment she'd been staying at would be due soon, and she wasn't sure if she could pay it without taking another high paying job. Which would be tough to do if she didn't have the fire breathing maniac that was the guild's resident Dragon Slayer to burn away any threat that they came across like he always did.

"You doing alright Lucy?" Said mage almost jumped from the voice, only to instantly relax when she saw Fairy Tail's very own bookworm, or as Natsu would say, 'Fairy Tail's resident nerd' Levy McGarden.

Lucy smiled at the friendly face of the petite young woman. The two had hit it off pretty quickly after she entered the guild, seeing as she loved to read, and Levy loved to read…well they became friends because they like to read…and when she put it like that, the reason was a little shallow for them to be friends. Still, Levy was the only other person in the guild besides Natsu that helped her navigate the rules and regulations that guilds have to follow. And she was honestly a lot better at explaining this kind of stuff than Natsu, for all the many talents the young Dragon Slayer had, explaining complicated subject matters wasn't one of them.

"Hey Levy, I'm just worried about Natsu and Erza. I'm sure Erza will be fine, but Natsu looked like he was in a bad headspace before he left…" Lucy half spoke, half thought to herself.

Levy hummed as she took a seat right beside her friend, "I wouldn't worry all that much, Natsu's just a hothead. Give him a little time to cool off and he's right back to the happy go lucky Dragon Slayer we all know and love."

"Aye sir!" Happy shouted as he floated softly down onto the table with an almost completely eaten mackerel in hand, "This isn't the first time Natsu's been pissed off by things outside his control. Give him a day to burn down a forest or two and he's golden." Suddenly Happy's expression grew a harrowing look to it, slightly creeping Lucy out a bit, "Though…Natsu's been awfully angry lately. As if something foul is taking hold of his very soul. Lest we forget the state he left Erigor in after their battle…"

Both Lucy and Levy shivered from the words, only for Cana to step up to table with a large fish and hand it to Happy with an annoyed look on her face, "Stop scaring these two with silly stories Happy. Here, have a fish."

Happy's expression immediately switched to a bright one as he threw the mackerel carcass away and began to nibble on the new fish he was given, "Yay, fish!" Before he floated off to enjoy his new meal.

Cana sat down at the table and flagged over a barmaid to serve her a drink, "So, what were the most naive member's of Fairy Tail discussing behind big sister Cana's back?"

"Big sister Cana? You're only a year older than us." Lucy questioned with a furrowed brow.

"Naive?" Levy murmured to herself, though far too quiet to catch the other two's attention.

Lucy huffed, "Well, if you must know, we were just talking about Natsu and Erza-"

"Knew it!" Cana blurted out before leaning over and yelling across the guild at Macao, "Hey Mac! I was right, you owe me twenty jewels!"

"Godammit Cana…fine." Macao sighed in defeat.

Lucy felt an annoyed tick appear on her forehead, "What, have you guys really got nothing better to bet on than two girls talking?"

"No, we do." Cana replied, a sly grin stretching across her face, "It's just more fun to see your reactions to finding out we bet on you that entertains me."

Levy frowned as Lucy grew even more annoyed with the Fairy Tail mage's antics, "Cana please, we're trying to have a conversation here."

"Alright, alright. If you two are really that worried about Natsu and little ol' Erza…" Cana pulled a deck of cards from her bag and began to shuffle, "Why don't I just track them down?"

Lucy looked on in slight awe at the tarot cards in front of her, "Oh, I've heard about Fortune Telling Cards! Are you going to use them to find the two!?"

Cana chuckled at the enthusiastic response from Lucy, "Unfortunately, it's not that simple. These Fortune Telling Cards can only tell me what kind of location they're in, not exactly where they are." Cana stopped shuffling and pulled out six cards from the deck and separated them into two sets of three, all face down, "Three for each should be enough…" Cana murmured before flipping over the three cards on one side to reveal a justice card, a reversed judgment card, and a reversed tower card.

Cana hummed to herself in thought, much to Lucy and Levy's confusion, "What is it? Is something wrong?" Lucy felt a twinge of worry fill the back of her mind.

Cana laughed at that, "Oh no nothing of the sort. From what I've pulled, it seems Erza has come from a place of justice, represented by the justice card. She is currently facing restrictions of some kind, or is with someone limiting her actions, represented by the reversed judgment card. Finally, she seems to be heading to a drama-free place in the near future, represented by the reversed tower." Cana ended with a smile, though Lucy and Levy looked slightly disappointed with the honestly vague fortune telling. Cana nervously laughed to herself, "I told you guys this wasn't an exact science. Not to mention that sometimes fortune readings can come out slightly…different depending on the magic in the air."

Lucy gave a deadpan expression at that, "Sounds like it's little more than a sham then…"

Cana grew slightly more nervous at that, "Only for the less experienced, and I've been doing this since I was a child!" Lucy didn't look any more convinced, "Here, let's take a look at Natsu's, that'll show you I'm the real deal!" Cana flipped over the other three cards and looked over them with a big smile as a reverse death card, a wheel of fortune card, and a reversed devil card.

Levy looked over the cards with a sour look, "Those don't look very happy…"

"Now, now, Levy. Let me explain them first." Cana looked over the cards as she took a swig from her cup, "Let's see…the reverse death card means that Natsu's come from a place of non-closure, probably from never finding Igneel if I were to guess." Cana mumbled the last part to herself, "The wheel of fortune card means that Natsu has currently found himself in a natural cycle of things, essentially that he's going with the flow of nature."

"Sounds like Natsu for sure!" Happy flew by, the fish he had been given little more than a skeleton at this point.

Cana laughed at the flying cat's antics, "Yeah, yeah…and the final card is the reverse devil. This just means that Natsu's going to be annoying in the future." Cana said matter-of-factly before gathering the cards once more.

"Man!" Elfman yelled as he was suddenly thrown across the guild right into Cana, causing her to drop all her cards across the floor. Elfman looked around slightly dazed, before he realized what he was laying on, "Oops! Sorry Cana, guess me and Gray got a little carried away again. Dangit, this is so unmanly of me…"

Cana stood with a stretch and just laughed off the situation, "It's fine Elfman, no harm no foul." Cana then turned to her cards that scattered the guild floor and moved to pick them up…only for her to stop in her tracks. Because for a split second, barely a millisecond, she could have sworn that all the cards on the floor were devil and death cards, all of them facing upwards…far more than she would ever put in a deck. Though, after that split second passed, the cards turned back into a random scatter of tarot cards, "Huh…weird…" Cana mumbled to herself, before she began gathering her cards again.

"What's up bitches! The most badass member of the guild has returned with our even more badass member completely unscathed!" Natsu blasted through the doors of the guild with a wide smile on his face.

"I hope all of you have been behaving yourselves in my absence." Erza added ominously, the entire guild sweating profusely at her tone.

"Natsu!" The Dragon Slayer jumped slightly as Makarov made himself known from the second floor of the guild, a murderous tint in his eyes as he irradiated an equally murderous aura around his small form.

Natsu turned to the Fairy Tail master and gave an oblivious smile, "Hey gramps, what's cracking?"

Makarov's hand suddenly grew massive as he squished Natsu in his tight grip, the young mage crying out in pain from the action, "I just got word that you almost burned down the Magic Council HQ and disrupted an official hearing. Do you have any idea the amount of hot water you've put the guild in with your little stunt!? What do you have to say for yourself!?"

Natsu stopped squirming in Makarov's grasp just to look him dead in the eyes as he spoke, "No regrets." Safe to say Natsu was regretting it soon after saying that.

Natsu snapped his shoulder back in place before slumping his head down at the bar. He mumbled something unintelligible and held up a finger. Somehow, Mirajane was able to discern that he was asking for a drink, "Here you go Natsu, on the house."

Natsu lifted his bruised head and gave Mira a soft smile in return for her gratitude, "Thanks Mira, you have no idea how much I've needed this…" He then took the mug of beer and sloshed it down with one gulp. The Dragon Slayer took a deep breath, before giving a relaxed sigh as his constant headache slowly drifted away, "Oh yeah, now we're talking…"

Mira's smile grew ever so slightly more genuine at seeing the content expression on Natsu's face, "I hear you went and got yourself into trouble again, this time to the Magic Council itself."

Natsu waved off the barmaid with a mumble, "It's nothing, I just got a little ahead of myself, that's all." Natsu gave a chuckle at that, "Besides, all's well that ends well. Erza and I were let go with barely a slap on the wrist, the Council got to feel all big and important like they wanted, and I got to blow things up. I'd say it was a pretty cool story arc, all things considered."

Mira quirked her head to the side in confusion at that last part, "Story arc?"

Natsu looked at Mira with a neutral look, "Hmm? What was that Mira?"

"It's just, you said…oh nevermind." Mira sighed, before wandering off to take the orders of the other patrons.

Natsu shrugged his shoulders, "Oh well." Before ordering another mug.

"Natsu!" Happy came soaring in like a bat out of hell, slamming face first into the mages chest. His tears soaking the exposed abdomen of his friend and companion, "Don't ever go off on a suicide mission without me again, okay?"

Natsu laughed as he patted the blue cat on the head, "Of course bud, I'm sorry I just wasn't in the right state of mind, that's all."

Happy looked deep into Natsu's eyes with his own teary ones, "You promise?"

Natsu smiled, "Of course bud, what are-" Natsu suddenly let out a loud yawn as an instant drowsiness seemed to encompass the entire guild. Natsu started to doze off soon after Happy did, "-friends for?" Before slumping over the bar asleep. The rest of the guild collapsed into a deep slumber, the only person unaffected by the bout of sleep, being Makarov.

As soon as the last person fell asleep, the guild doors creaked open, and out from an ethereal mist stood a man clad in strange garb and who carried multiple staves across his back. The man's face was completely obscured by a face-covering and his strange outfit did well to throw anyone who saw him off from how disproportionate it was. The mysterious man walked up to Makarov and gave a slight bow of respect, "Master."

"Mystogan." Makarov replied, his eyes roaming the unconscious guild behind the man, "Do you really have to be so dramatic? If you really didn't need to be seen, you could have just come at night."

"Impossible." Mystogan simply stated before moving over the quest board and surveying the missions, "Time is of the essence, trust me when I say that I can't afford to waste even a single second." He quickly snatched a quest from the board and moved to the bar to get a stamp of approval.

"Yeah, yeah, I get it." Makarov replied, before pulling out a small stamp and pressing it down on the page, a curious glint flashing in the old man's eyes, "You sure you want to take this one? We have more than enough S-class missions you could pick that would be a lot more profitable than a simple job like this."

"Payment isn't what concerns me." Mystogan replied before turning to make his way out of the guild hall.

"The hell you think you're doing!?"

Mystogan froze, the mysterious man turning with a somewhat surprised expression to find Natsu stood up at attention with half-lidded eyes, "Natsu? How are you…"

The Dragon Slayer wobbled in the stool for a second before falling backward onto the floor, his now sleeping face mumbling, "You burnt my fucking steak…asshole…"

Makarov huffed at the words, "Looks like Natsu's just sleep-talking."

Mystogan continued to look at the snoring form of Natsu with a curious glint in his eyes, "My spell shouldn't make that possible…" Mystogan mulled before continuing to walk out of the guild, quest note in hand.

Makarov raised an eyebrow at Mystogan, "Hey! You gonna lift the spell or what?"

Mystogan got to the doors, "Three." The guild members began to rouse. He passed the door, "Two." The guild stretched their limbs and started to shake the drowsiness from their form. Mystogan then evaporated into mist as he gave his final word, "One…"

With that, the entire guild was wide awake like they were not just a few minutes before. Gray rubbed his head and scoffed in annoyance, "Ugh…fucking bastard, someone should really teach that guy some manners on putting his own guildmates asleep."

Loke adjusted his glasses and leaned on his elbows, "Come on Gray, it's not that big a deal. You could use some sleep every once and a while"

Gray looked over at the orange-haired mage with a sour look, "I bet you know a lot about sleeping around, don't you?"

Loke's charming expression immediately turned angry, "That's it Popsicle Dick, why don't I give you a permanent nap!"

Gray let frost circle his half-naked form as Loke activated his Ring magic. "Bring it on you womanizing sissy!"

On the other side of the guild, the newest member looked really confused, "Uhm, what just happened? Why did we all fall asleep like that?"

Erza cricked her neck from the quick nap she took before she decided to explain to the blonde, "That was Mystogan. He's one of the S-class mages in the guild. Apparently, the guy really hates showing his face to anyone, so whenever he comes through the guild he just puts everyone to sleep using a spell." Erza paused as if just remembering something, "Well, everyone except the master."

"Not true." The guild went silent as a familiar, yet incredibly cocky voice spoke up from the second floor of the guildhall. The voice belonged to a muscular blonde man wearing a long frilly coat like a cape, a pair of magical headphones on his ears, and a jagged lightning bolt scar over his eye. The man leaned over the second floor's railing and gave an almost annoying smirk, "The old man's not the only one strong enough to fight off the spell and see the man's face. I've also seen it!"

Lucy leaned over towards Erza and whispered, "Hey…who is that guy?"

Happy seemingly popped out of nowhere and began to explain, "That's Laxus Dreyer, one of the strongest mages in the guild. He's one of our S-class mages, and is also the master's grandson."

Makarov looked at his grandchild with a critical eye, "Laxus…I wasn't aware you had returned."

Laxus scoffed at the master, "Well I have, don't worry, as soon as the rest of my team get a good night's rest, I'll be outta this dump for our next mission."

The tension Laxus was making was undercut when out of nowhere, Natsu charged in with his fists ablaze and a battle hungry grin on his face, "Laxus, you're back! Now we can finally have our rematch!"

Laxus glanced at Natsu for a second, before bursting out in laughter, "Have you forgotten our last spar so quickly 'Salamander?' I know I bashed your head in pretty hard, but I didn't think I caused any long-lasting brain damage after I fried the pea you call a mind." Laxus motioned towards the whole guild with a sneer, "And if Fairy Tail's esteemed Dragon Slayer is so pathetically incapable, what makes any of you think you deserve to call yourselves Fairy Tail mages!?" Some guild members hung their heads in shame, others glared at the large man with fury, including Makarov, "This guild used to be a place where the strong could solve the problems the world had. Have our standards really fallen so much that we allow weak, useless magical wannabe's a part of our esteemed guild?" Laxus' gaze fell on Lucy for a split second, before a scowl crossed his face. Something that Lucy picked up on right away.

"Laxus!" Makarov shouted, the short man seemingly standing tall against the man even without the use of magic, "What you see in front of you is not a mob of meek beings, but a powerful family of capable mages! If you can't see that, then maybe you should spend more time reflecting on your own weakness for a change."

What everyone else heard as words of wisdom, Laxus heard little more than the doddling's of an old fool, "Ugh, quit with the goody to shoes 'family' schtick. How many times have you spewed that exact bullshit over this guild? We are not a family. We are an elite guild where the most elite mages can find the most elite jobs to fulfill. Just because you've started losing your mind in your old age, doesn't mean these weak bastards should as well."

"Hey!" Erza spoke, rising to her feet and unsheathing her sword to point at the cocky man, "Apologize to the master or-!"

"Or what?" Laxus asked, his voice impeccably calm even as sparks of electricity dotted around his body, "Unless you've forgotten 'Titania' I'm the strongest member of the guild! Not even you and your crappy knight cosplay can even come close to beating me!" Laxus rolled his neck as the electrical discharge around him turned into a full blown aura of lightning, "But you're more than happy to try and test your worth. At least a battle against you would be more interesting than against that sad excuse for a Dragon Slayer."

For a moment, it truly looked like the two would charge one another, but that was quickly dashed as Makarov stepped in to stop that from happening, "Enough, there will be no fighting amongst guild mates in my guild! Understood!"

Erza huffed before returning her sword in her sheath, "Understood."

Laxus merely scoffed as his lightning aura dissipated into nothing, "Fine…but just you wait gramps, when I gain control of this guild, these weak fucks are going to be the first to go." Before he turned and walked back into the darkness of the second floor.

The guild was silent for a moment, before Lucy spoke up with an exasperated, "What an asshole." Causing the guild to regain some of its lost mojo.

But while everyone else had forgotten about Laxus and instead focused on getting hammered, Natsu continued to stare off into space as he replayed the words Laxus described him with. Weak, not worth his time, a sorry excuse for a Dragon Slayer…that one stung the most. Natsu curled his hands into tight fists as his pupils dilated in anger. He was not weak. He was not a waste of time. He was a Dragon Slayer! Natsu felt his left eye twitch slightly in his socket, but at this point, he didn't care. He didn't care a single bit…

Lucy tied her towel around her golden locks as she exited the steaming bathroom of her apartment, a content sigh leaving the mages mouth as she gathered up her sleep wear and began to put it on her naked form, "Talk about an eventful day. Can't believe so much happened in such little time…"

"You said it Luce." Lucy paused before slowly turning to see Natsu and Happy sitting down at her desk and going through a stack of papers while wearing comically large glasses, "Sorry about Laxus by the way, that guy's a dick."

Lucy screamed out in surprise at the two and did her best to cover herself as best she could, "What the hell are you two doing here!?"

Happy looked up from the papers with a smile, "Oh, your window was open so we just decided to let ourselves in."

"You're both insane!" Lucy yelled as she quickly threw on her pajamas to save herself at least a little dignity, "And you haven't answered my question, why are you here!?"

Natsu set the papers down behind him and gave his signature grin, "I've got a job for us to go on. Could really use an extra set of mitts for this one, it's pretty tough."

Lucy snapped her mouth shut at the mention of a job, if it was a good paying one, she wouldn't have to worry about rent this month. She swiped the page that Natsu pulled out of his pants and gleamed through the writing, "Galuna Island…purple moon…demons…" Lucy's eyes widened at the reward as her mouth reflexively began to water, "With this amount, I'll be able to pay off my rent for months!"

Natsu smiled wider at the reaction, "Alright! That means you're coming along, right?"

Lucy almost said yes right then and there, but she took another look at the job request and immediately her tune changed, "Wait…this says here it's an S-class quest. Is Erza coming along with us to complete it?"

Natsu's smile turned into a nervous one as he rubbed the back of his head unconsciously, "Uhm…not exactly. I figured we could just do it by ourselves."

Lucy looked at the pink-haired mage with perplexed eyes, "But only S-class mages can accept S-class jobs. I don't think we're allowed to accept it."

Happy charged at the young woman with a pleading look in his eyes at the response, "Please Lucy! Natsu's been so desperate to prove himself to the guild, and we just know we can't do it without your brains. Besides, everyone takes S-class missions when they're not supposed to. It's super common."

Lucy looked off to the side in thought, "I don't know…"

Natsu pointed to the mission page nonchalantly and said, "Did you notice the other reward attached to the jewels?"

Lucy looked below the absolutely monstrous amount of money listed as the reward, and her eyes practically sparkled with how wide they got, "One of the Twelve Zodiac Keys!? We're taking this quest!"

Natsu and a now non-crying Happy both pumped their fists in the air with wide smiles on their faces, "Yay!" The three made plans all into the night, about how exactly they would approach the mission.

Date: XX/XX/0784

Time Left: Approximately Seven Years Before Disaster

Location: Galuna Island

"What a pain, to have one of the Nine Demon Gates go to this pointless Isle in the middle of nowhere…how undignified can you get?" Torafuzar asked no one in particular as he walked up the beach and dusted a piece of seaweed off his shoulder with a sigh.

Kyoka had ordered the aquatic Etherious to go and check on one of their oldest comrades, the demons of Galuna Island after they had seemingly lost contact with them a few weeks ago. It was only now, after weeks of inactivity, that Tartaros had decided to send him to this crescent shaped island to help the natives and figure out what was going on. Torafuzar sneered his shark-like teeth as he skulked his way up the beach, his massive arms swaying back and forth as the scaly Etherious entered the jungle brush.

The only reason Torafuzar was chosen to check on the native demons was simply because he was the best one equipped to travel by sea, given his aquatic nature…that's it. Sometimes he wondered if Kyoka really put as little thought as possible into her plans. A branch caught onto the Etherious' brown coat, causing Torafuzar to sneer once more as he made sure not to rip his favorite coat on a lousy branch. Seriously, even demons need to have 'some' sense of honor and dignity. Couldn't we have sent one of the lesser demons instead? Torafuzar wondered to himself, before giving a sigh.

Perhaps…it was best he was sent on this mission instead of the runts of Tartaros. The native demons to Earthland were different from the Etherious, they were strong sure. However, the Etherious were the only beings on the planet able to use Curses, powers that had no connection with magic, powers that come from a hatred deep within their souls. Not only that, but native demons were meek and few in number…meaning they were the perfect followers for the doctrine of E.N.D.

Torafuzar doesn't remember a time before he was created by Zeref over four hundred years ago, but he knew the truth. The thing that separated the Etherious from normal demons, was that they were pulled straight from Hell and then given form using the very Ethernano in the air. It was just such a shame none of them could remember the time before. Though, he did wonder…if what made E.N.D so powerful, what allowed him to access the art of Curses, was the fact he remembered the time before…

Torafuzar shook himself from his rambling thoughts as he was met with a massive wooden wall that was obviously meant to keep intruders out, "Halt! Who goes there!?"

Torafuzar raised his pinprick eyes to see…a human? No, a demon disguising itself as a human, "I am Torafuzar The Deep Dark! Proud member of the Nine Demon Gates that make up the honorable guild Tartaros! I have come to receive ans-!"

"Wait, you're from a guild!?" The guard cut off the large fish-esque demon.

Torafuzar stroked his golden plated chin to calm himself from being interrupted before speaking again, "Yes! We haven't received word from you in quite some time! I'm here on behalf of the guild to make sure everything is okay-!"

"Please wait a moment! I'll get the chief!" The guard called out, before disappearing from sight.

Torafuzar felt the thick fin on top of his head quiver in anger as he was once again interrupted. When he sees that demon again, he's going to kill him. Torafuzar apparently wouldn't have to wait long to do that, because the massive gate in front of him opened up to reveal a large group of demons disguised as humans coming out to greet him and hurriedly push him inside. The oldest of which apparently being the chief of the village, "Welcome my…fishy friend! Please help us!"

If Torafuzar wasn't intrigued before, he certainly was now, "Help? With what exactly? Does it have to do with you not contacting Tartaros?"

The village of demons seemed confused by the last part, but the chief pressed forward with a very simple and impossibly weird answer, "We need your help, to destroy the moon!" The entire village cheered in joy at the declaration, but Torafuzar couldn't help but just blink in utter confusion at the plea. What the hell is going on here?