Any legend of Zelda fans here? If so you should check out a story on Ao3 called Skin Deep by Nuggy. She's a friend of mine, so be nice, yeah? (Also don't tell her I sent you she'll probably stab me in the knee) midway through writing this chapter she posted it on her fanfiction account too, which goes by ChickenNuggs. Give her support here too!
Phoenix, may Jellal rest in peace. Shu too, all things considered. I knew it! That was way too close to what I had planned to be coincidence! Uh, anyway, I'm honoured that you actually put time into thinking about what I might do for a plot line. Mr. Heartphilia may or may not give up. (Cause I mean he let Lucy go in the anime cause she's his daughter and he loves her, but Natsu is just some random kid he found in a bush so…) perhaps. I mean, who knows who was in that card. It just might end up being something big… **wheels to camera** ** even more dramatic whisper** she knows. Hey, family is important. My dad fell off his motorbike once. He skidded off the roads and into a blackberry bush where a homeless guy offered him blackberries, and then two big dogs ran by and a guy in a truck chased them down. The dogs, that is, not my dad and the homeless guy. …weird things happen to my family. Thanks for the advice! Personally, for me, writers block is less of a 'what should I do, I don't now what to do' and more of a stiffness in my mind that carries down to my fingers that makes it hard to think and type out what I'm thinking. (I've found that watching the episodes is typically a bad idea because then my brain is like 'oh no you're going too far off canon!' And then I have to fight myself) OH THAT REMINDS ME I listened to On My Own and got some intense inspiration for this chapter. Thanks! (You flatter me so)
Guest, row row row your boat, gently down the stream, now this plot has been set on course, this certainly isn't a dream. Thanks for the advice! I'll not give up!
Otaku789, I guess there's nothing really holding me up, now that you mention it. Huh. Guess I'm just lazy. Whoops. Oh gee, you really think so? Thank you! Yeah, people were commenting on how I was being too canon with this so I decided to change that with this arc, you know, mix them up a bit. And since I had so much fun with this, who knows what'll come later? Will do! And if you still feel inclined to throw that punch my way, you'll taste the Icy Dragons Frozen Fist!
Guest(2), whoops. My. Bad. Bad. My. Whoops. Huh, that didn't work out quite like I envisioned. Oops. I'm updating, don't worry! I got your back! Hello desperate, I'm Shade. Oh yeah, Dragon Force tiiime!¡!¡
Jellals eyes widened as the pure unadulterated force of Natsu's magic swept over him, almost taking a half step back. Somehow, even as the feral rage that had filled the DragonSlayer earlier was gone, the blank look in those eyes framed by scales was far more terrifying.
It was the look of a man with nothing left to fight for.
It was the look of the most dangerous type of person there is to fight.
Naught but a moment later, the temperature in the room plummeted, as Natsu took a step forward.
Another step, and four pillars rocketed forth from the floor.
One had raging flames in its centre, looking almost as if it was half melted, as if the slightest modicum of heat more would unleash the raging inferno.
A second had earth tumbling about in it wildly, pebbles slamming into rocks and rocks crashing into boulders, setting the chunks of stone to beat against the imprisoning ice wildly, cracking it but never quite breaking it.
The third had electricity crackling along its surface, the thin yellow ropes of energy whipping around with uncontrolled abandon.
The last of the pillars held an ocean in its depths, a calm sea that seemed welcoming and tame.
It was that pillar that Natsu stepped closest to, and as if a switch had been flipped the water began to rage, twisting itself around and building up fearsome waves.
One hand pressed to the ice, Natsu raised his uninjured arm and pointed his open palm towards the two mages. In response, ice filled with the ocean rocketed towards the two mages, both of them shooting in different directions.
"Icy Dragons Frozen Ocean."
The ice cracked, letting the ocean held within gushing onto the floor and freezing over again. However, it was only a thin pane of ice keeping the ocean from open air.
Jellal hovered above the frozen torrents in the harsh glow of his Comet spell. Half turning, he caught sight of Shu, who pulled a small rowboat out of one of his cards.
The two dark mages made eye contact for a moment, holding it before nodding sharply.
Shu began his offence, firing off a couple cards, both aimed perfectly at the DragonSlayer.
Natsu leapt out of the way of both of them, the instant his hand left the pillar the frozen ocean began to drain away.
With a growl, Natsu forced his injured arm up, the ice coating cracking and falling away in bloodied clumps. The cut reopened, blood beginning to make its sluggish way down is shoulder, but he ignored the ruby liquid in favour of launching his next attack.
Because his hand made contact with the electric pillar.
Lucy crossed her arms, clutching one of her keys tightly. Erza placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure he knew what he was doing."
"Y-yeah." Her agreement was shaky, but the celestial spirit mage managed to collect herself, straighten ending and unfolding her arms.
"Lucy, was it?" Simon came up from behind the pair, as Lucy hooked Horologiums key back onto her belt.
Swiping at her eyes for a moment, she nodded. "Care to take a look at his with me?"
"If you don't mind, I'll come along too." Erza asserted, her hand not leaving its place. Lucy smiled at her gratefully.
"Of course. It's nothing too important, just something a little odd I noticed."
Turning, he lead the two girls back into the dark room he had moved them to, pausing to grab a still lit torch from a surviving bracket on the wall.
The dim orange reflected back at them form the multifaceted surface of the Lacrima, giving the room a soft, if slightly eerie, ambience. "When I pulled us away from Shu's attack, I reached out to every magic source in the room, barring Jellal and Shu of course."
Lucy nodded.
"Well, somehow I missed your spirit Horologuim, but I managed to grab… Well, look for yourself."
Moving the torch farther from his body, at first Lucy didn't see anything wrong, before her eyes caught in a small puddle. "You see it too, right? This room is far from any piping, the only way it could have gotten here is if I moved it."
Erza stiffened, a sharp inhale marking her realization. "Lucy, Simon, did you see if Natsu had his arm band?"
Simon frowned the best he could with his metal jaw. "No, last I was aware, Jellal… You don't mean?"
"I'm afraid I do. Lucy, you have Aquarius' key on you right?"
Lucy, who was feeling slightly out of the loop, pounced on the opportunity for something familiar. "Yes, I brought her with me just in case."
"Could you summon her from that puddle?"
"Uh, I don't really see why. I mean, we're not battling anyone, and she'd probably kill me for summoning her from some random pudd…" Erza's gaze darkened. "One water spirit, coming right up!"
Simon chuckled as Lucy knelt next to the small pool. "You never lost your commanding presence, did you?"
Erza smiled softly. "No, I guess not."
"Open, gate of the Water Bearer! Aquarius!" The usual magic circle spun out, before shuddering. It shook for perhaps half a minute or so, before the magic lines broken apart, rearranging themselves into a new shape.
One with a dragons visage in the middle.
Lucy gasped as the spell drained much more magic than she had intended it to, almost cutting it off before the sudden drain stopped.
Because the spell had completed its course, and standing in the puddle of water was a miniature dragon.
The dragon shook her head for a moment, as if she had been startled out of a deep sleep, her slitted eyes focusing on the trio the moment after.
She was quite unlike any dragon Erza had, well, not seen before, but imagined before. The books she sometimes read described them as fearsome beasts, power and rage flowing off of them in waves. But this little dragon barely had any of that, instead her features seemed almost delicate.
Her snout was narrow, her head perhaps barely only larger. Two frills took the place of ears, both of them almost seeming as if they were liquid, flowing back continually and merging smoothly with her scales. The scales themselves seemed to have the appearance of water, like a lake viewed from beneath on a warm summers day. Her eyes, for all they should have been intimidating, were instead soft.
The Dragoness, for what else could she be, shifted almost uncomfortably. "U-um. Why was I called here?"
Erza, being the first to snap out of her shock, knelt by the small pool. "That's what we'd like to know."
The Dragoness scuttled backwards, careful to keep all of her claws and her thin tail on or above the water source. "I was only supposed to be called by Aquarius' key if something really bad happened to Natsu…"
Shifting again, this time uncomfortable with Erza being so close, she peered down at her claws. And then let out a small gasp of surprise. "Oh! Is this, this must be…"
Scuttling over to he middle of the pool, she closed her eyes in concentration. The water began to ripple, beginning to take shape, before "Aren't you a dragon?"
Snapped out of her concentration, the Dragoness was reminded of her audience. "Oh- oh, yes um, I'm actually a thought projection right now. I'm usually, well, uh, a bit bigger. Um. You-you can't tell Natsu you saw me, alright? Uh, Kyu would be mad if I gave it, um, away."
"Tell Natsu what, exactly?" Erza moved in a little closer.
"Uh, uh, um, nothing. Nothing at all. Uh, nothing important, exactly. Well, uh, not important to, well, you. Not currently I don't think. Uh, do you even know who Natsu is?" Instead of scuttling away, she puffed up her chest, seaglass eyes meeting Erza's brown ones easily.
"We're guildmates of his. Me and Lucy that is. Simon isn't a member."
"O-oh! He's joined a guild? How lovely. Empra is always going on about how Guilds are wonderful places… Uh, light guilds that is. Not dark guilds. You aren't in a dark guild, are you? Oh, please say you aren't."
Lucy, who had still been in a slight state of disbelief, managed to snap out of it at the mention of their guild. "No, of course not! We're from Fairy Tail!"
"Oh, Fairy Tail? I think Igneel mentioned that guild once or twice. Um, your guildmaster is… Mavric? No, I think it was a she…" Her head craned down, examining her claws again as if they held the answers she was looking for. "Oh, it's just on the tip of my tongue. Marvin? M… Mavix? Oh dear."
Erza frowned. "Do you mean the first? Master Mavis?"
"Yes, Mavis, that was it. How is she? I remember her being a darling little thing. Took a right liking to Empra she did. I'm surprised we ever saw them out of Empra's little book cave." A brief pause, and then "oh dear. Uhm, please forget you heard any of that."
"That was a very long time ago. Our current guildmaster is Makarov." Erza smiled softly.
"O-oh. I so hoped to talk to her. Uh, I guess I wouldn't really be able to talk to her, actually. Not, uh, not as a thought projection. I can't exactly leave this puddle. Uhm, speaking of, would you mind letting me concentrate? I need to fix this armband, and then I'll go. If that's alright."
Lucy cautiously moved a hand close to the little dragoness, moving it away again the moment she noticed. "Uh, sorry. I just have a couple questions."
"Oh, uh, of course. Uhm, nothing too personal, right?"
"Not really. I was just wondering what your name is, and why you came out of Aquarius' key?"
"Oh, uh, m-my name is Whirl. I, uh, can't really give you all the details, but me and Aquarius are old friends. She let me place an enchantment on her key that whenever Natsu was in serious danger and her key was used, a thought projection of me would appear instead of her." Blinking her eyes at them almost curiously, she hesitated for one more moment before closing them, perhaps for the thought projections last time.
Quick apology for this chapter, I was really having trouble balancing the power to make it a fair fight. Due to that, I had to veer away from that for a bit as to not leave you guys hanging for like a month. So, before my next update, I'm going to toy with the power balance and hopefully figure something out! Also, if I don't end the next chapter with the beginning of the Phantom Lord arc, someone smack me. ~ShadeShadow