Well, well. Look at us now. Reaching the fifteenth chapter of this mega crossover. It's just… crazy, ya know? I mean we're still on the third arc, but it's still hard to think how far I've come as a writer. Sorry for the long wait.
TheEmeraldMage: I try to balance original characters as much as I can since I know people get butthurt for this crap. As for Natsu groping Maki… he is a lucky bastard. zOr rather, an unlucky bastard from the aftermath. Hope you'll like the chapter today.
DB-20: OMG! You got the DBZ Abridged reference! You're awesome!
MBS41: Thank you.
Mastergamer14: Problem with your suggestions: I have never seen Kamen Rider. So please don't ask for them in any of my stories.
Avenger: Still not gonna add Ben 10. Sorry.
Andrew: I did consider Danny before. Who knows what'll happen in the future.
Guest: Thanks for being one of the few people who actually gets that writers have lives.
BanRedfox: Things will be slightly different in this arc, which I hope you'll like. And of course I'm keeping the trap hole scene cause that was freaking hilarious.
Anonymous: I do agree that characters like Goku and Naruto wouldn't work here.
Zakthebeast3: Never really liked Beyblade, so I can't add her.
Guest number 2: Not a bad list and I will say… MAYBE one of them is gonna be here.
To recap: After surviving the rogue wave, Team Natsu had finally arrived on Galuna Island, where the request was made. Reaching the village, the group learned of the demonic transformation the villagers had undergone whenever the moon rose. Believing there was more to it, the group began to investigate the island, encountering a large rat in the process before reaching some old ruins. Due to Natsu's idiocy, the group soon fell into a hole, which led to a large cave that had the frozen body of a demon known as Deliora. The gang also found several individuals, who were prepared to use a spell known as Moon Drip by order of a man named the Cold Emperor. Gray gave Deliora a serious glare and vowed to make the Cold Emperor pay for using Moon Drip.
How will the group react to Gray's hatred towards Deliora? And who is the Cold Emperor? Let's find out…
'Fairy Tail guild hall, a few hours earlier'
If anyone could describe what was going on in the Fairy Tail guild… it would be chaos.
"THEY WWWWWWWWHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTT?!"
*SLAM*
Oliver moved slightly to the side to dodge a chair from hitting his head, resulting in it shattering once it hit the wall.
The culprit? Why, it was none other than the Titania herself, Erza Scarlet.
Who was VERY, VERY… pissed off.
'I would've expected her to control herself more. Guess I was wrong.' Oliver thought with a sweatdrop as he saw Erza looking at Mirajane with a red aura.
"It's true. Natsu and Happy took an S-Class quest and brought Lucy and Maki with them. Gray tried to stop them with Yusei and Oliver, but he hasn't come back. We think they either took him… or he went with them willingly." Mirajane finished explaining with a frown. She was still very worried about those five and wanted nothing more than for Erza to go and get them.
But… considering how the redhead was acting, maybe they should've waited for someone like Mystogan.
"Erza, it's important for you to go after them." Makarov calmly ordered Erza, despite her clear anger. "I'm worried they may have gone over their heads."
"Of course… I'll bring them back." Erza muttered quietly, though her red aura seemed to grow even more, frightening everyone else.
"Ummm, E-E-Erza?" Levy of all people shakingly walked over to Erza. "M-M-Maybe you s-s-should calm down a b-b-bit. A-After all… they c-could still be f-f-fine…"
Her words caught Erza's attention as she turned towards the bookworm… and looked at her with glowing red eyes.
"When I find those five, they will WISH they were eaten…" Erza finished her words with a VERY deep voice, causing Levy to freeze up in fear. Jet and Droy wanted to go help… but they were too afraid to do anything.
"Erza, relax." Yusei said as he put a hand on her shoulder, not bothered by her anger. "Look, me and Oliver are kinda to blame for not going after them. So we're willing to go with you and look for them. But you don't need to take it out on everyone here."
"He's right." Oliver spoke up as he stood from his seat. "We've wasted enough time here. Let's go."
"Yes… let's…" Was all Erza said before she walked out of the Guild Hall, with several guild members backing away as she passed them.
"I signed up for this…" Oliver sighed to himself before he and Yusei followed suit.
"I'm getting too old for this crap." Makarov admitted before he drank his beer. 'Please, find them.'
'Galuna Island, present time'
"If they tarnish my master's legacy…" Gray looked at Deliora with pure rage in his eyes. "They're gonna regret the day they were born!"
The others were staring at Gray with genuine surprise. Never did they imagine he would show this level of anger towards something, but considering the fact he mentioned his master, it was personal.
"You sure this is the demon your master sealed away?" Natsu questioned while looking at Deliora.
"There's no doubt about it…" Gray harshly responded while gritting his teeth.
"I wonder why it was transported from the northern continent to this island." Happy asked, wanting to know more about Deliora.
"Oracle, is there a way for a wizard to teleport something this big?" Maki asked the owl on her shoulder.
"Very rarely will someone possess a magic as powerful as Spatial Magic. But even then, the amount of Ethernano required for such a movement would be too much for them." Oracle explained wisely. "Perhaps it was brought here due to climate change."
"Maybe Deliora is connected to the island's curse." Lucy theorized out loud.
"No. That's impossible." Oracle quickly denied. "Because it is in a frozen shell of magic, it wouldn't be able to use any of its power. Otherwise, it would have freed itself years ago."
"Who knows? Maybe Deliora's waiting for something." Gray coldly said. "It may be enclosed in ice, but that thing is still alive."
"Sweet! Let me take it down!" Natsu cheered as he began rolling his arm. "I wasn't able to take down Lullaby without Yusei, so this is my chance. I ain't afraid of a frozen demon! Just need a little fi-"
*SMACK*
Before Natsu could even use his magic, Gray punched him hard on the cheek, sending him to the ground.
"Gray just punched Natsu!" Happy yelled in horror.
"This wouldn't be the first time he did that." Lucy chimed in, though even she was caught off guard by this.
"Don't you DARE use your fire on the ice." Gray hissed at Natsu with pure anger.
"Seriously, that hurts!" Natsu yelled as he held his cheek.
"Okay, enough!" Maki got between the two, giving Gray a disapproving look. "Gray, I know this is personal, but that doesn't give you the right to punch your friend."
"Then again, if Natsu's flames were to melt the ice, then Deliora would be free. And given how much trouble Lullaby gave all of you, it would be wise not to free this monster." Oracle explained wisely.
"You really think a little fire would melt this chunk of ice? Come on, Gray." Natsu told his rival, who widened his eyes a bit before adopting a guilty expression.
"No…" Was all Gray muttered.
"You okay?" Lucy worriedly asked, though this was directed at Gray.
"I'm the one who got hit for no good reason!" Natsu shouted in annoyance before Maki put a hand on his shoulder.
"Relax. We need to calm down. All of us." Maki calmly told him, making the Dragon Slayer sigh before he relaxed a bit.
"Many years ago, my master Ur cast a spell called Iced Shell on Deliora, enclosing it in a form of ice that can't melt. It's so strong, even the strongest flame magic wouldn't be able to melt it." Gray explained to the group as he looked at the frozen demon. "But if they knew the ice couldn't be melted, why bring Deliora here?"
"Maybe they didn't know and they brought it here to try and free it." Lucy thought out loud.
"Why the hell would they do that?!" Gray snapped at Lucy, making her jump.
"I don't know…" Lucy whimpered in slight fear at Gray's tone.
"But how and why did they bring Deliora here? None of this makes sense." Maki said with a deep frown.
"Well, we need answers." Natsu spoke up before he pointed to the exit. "Let's go follow those guys." The others seemed to agree with that plan… save for one.
"No." Gray argued as he continued to glare at Deliora. "We're gonna stay here and wait."
"Wait for what?" Happy asked Gray.
"For the moon to come out." Gray simply answered.
"No way! It's still the middle of the afternoon!" Natsu complained, not liking the idea of staying in the cave for a few hours.
"The moon curse and Deliora might be connected somehow. Not to mention those guys from before mentioned something about collecting moonlight." Gray explained in a serious tone.
"That is a wise plan. However, not all of us should stay in this place." Oracle said before she started to fly off Maki's shoulder. "I will scout the island for those people. With any luck, I may be able to learn more about them."
"Sure. Go ahead." Gray told her, though he didn't look at her. With a simple nod, the owl flew out of the cave, leaving behind the humans and cat.
"THERE'S NO WAY I'M STAYING IN THIS CAVE!" Natsu shouted as loud as he could. "WE HAVE A JOB TO-"
*Thud*
Before he could finish, Natsu fell on his back, fast asleep. "That was fast." Maki muttered with a sweatdrop, not expecting the over energetic Natsu to get knocked out so fast.
"Well, we might as well get comfortable." Lucy sat on the ground, with Maki and Happy following suit.
However, Gray merely chose to stay standing, his eyes never leaving Deliora.
'Several hours later'
The Fairy Tail group continued to wait for the moon to rise again, though things quickly became boring for a majority of the group, save for Natsu and Gray.
"Do you have… any nines?" Maki asked as she looked at Lucy, hoping she had the card she needed.
"Mmmm… go fish." Lucy told her, making the fire user sigh as she drew another card from the deck. "Happy, do you have any threes?"
"Aye." Happy responded before he gave her two of his threes. The cat then glanced over to Natsu, who was still sleeping. "Looks like Natsu's still asleep."
"I'm surprised he could even sleep on the ground. I wouldn't." Lucy admitted, mildly impressed by her friend.
"Back in my world, when I was a cadet in the military, we would be trained to sleep anywhere. Sleeping on rocks is like sleeping on a mattress for me." Maki confessed with a small smile.
"So that's why you're so good at fighting. You're crazy strong, Maki." Happy said with a smile.
"My dad didn't think so. He and my older brother thought I shouldn't be out on the field. But… I like helping people." Maki confessed as she lowered her hand, looking up at the ceiling. "Sitting at a desk all day doesn't sound like the job I would want."
"True. As crazy as Fairy Tail is, I'd rather go on adventures than to be at home, sitting at my desk." Lucy joined in as the two girls laughed. "I'm pretty close to finishing the next chapter of my book, if you wanna read it after Levy."
"Thanks, Luce." Maki thanked the girl.
However, as they were having their conversation, Gray was lost in thought.
'Ur…' He thought to himself somberly. He owed Ur so much, yet in the end… he wasn't even able to do anything right by her.
"Okay, this is getting too boring." Lucy sighed as she folded, not wanting to play Go Fish anymore.
"If only I could bring my phone. Then we would've been able to listen to some good music." Maki muttered in disappointment.
"Music… I KNOW!" Suddenly perking up, Lucy took out a silver key with a harp insignia on it. "Open, Gate of the Harp Constellation! Lyra!" A blue magic circle appeared in front of her before something emerged. The newcomer appeared to be a young girl. She has waist length hair that curls at the end, and wears a pink bonnet on top of her head. Her cheeks have round blush marks, and she wears a long dress with heart prints by her waist. She wears leather shoes as well. She has small white wings and a large harp on her back.
"Oh wow! It's been forever since you called me, Lucy!" The young spirit said in a chipper tone while waving her hand.
"It's good to see you too, Lyra." Lucy greeted with a smile.
"But how come you never call on me anymore?" The spirit known as Lyra asked. "I would love to help you, but you're such a meanie for not calling me out more."
"It's not my fault you told me you were available three times a month." Lucy retorted with a blunt tone, though Lyra seemed confused by this.
"Wow, she's so cute. Like a doll." Maki muttered while covering her mouth. She began to imagine Iris in it, making her enter la la land.
"I think you broke Maki." Happy pointed out, though he was ignored.
"So what would you like me to play for you, miss Lucy?" Lyra questioned as she pulled out her harp, ready to entertain her master and friends.
"Play whatever you want." Lucy instructed as she sat back down.
"I've got a song you'll love!" Lyra cheered as she prepared to play.
"Get ready. Lyra has the most beautiful voice." Lucy told her friends as they prepared to listen. Soon, she started to sing a very smooth melody from her harp. This caused Happy and Maki to widen their eyes before they closed their eyes, smiles on their faces. It was so warm and beautiful that it eased any tension they had. Even the slumbering Natsu seemed to be smiling at Lyra's singing voice, which only supported Lucy's comment on her spirit's talent.
But little did the others know, the song seemed to be affecting Gray as he cupped his hands together.
Memories of Ur training a younger Gray in ice magic, them enjoying a nice warm meal, Ur scolding Gray for messing up before she ruffled his hair with a grin… it all flashed in Gray's eyes, making him quietly sob.
"I don't think I was emotionally ready for that." Maki was the first to speak up, wiping away the tears that were running down her eyes. It was just such a beautiful song that it made the fire soldier weep in awe. However, she and the others noticed Gray was also crying. "Gray?"
"It's… it's nothing. I'm fine." Gray responded as he wiped away his tears.
"You still seem upset." Happy commented with a frown.
"Well, one of Lyra's talents is to relate to what her audience is feeling." Lucy explained, feeling a bit guilty for making Gray cry with Lyra's singing. "Maybe you should play something more upbeat."
"You should've said so in the first place." Lyra lightly scolded Lucy.
"Let's just skip the next song. We need to be quiet." Gray told them as he looked up at the ceiling.
'A few hours later'
Night soon befell Galuna Island as the rest of the Fairy Tail group, save for Gray, were sleeping, hoping to recharge in the event they were needed. Gray, on the other hand, continued to monitor Deliora for any signs of life. However, he felt somewhat tired.
'Gotta stay awake… need to… for Ur…' Gray thought repeatedly as he wiped his eyes.
*Rumble*
He was brought out of his thoughts when the ground suddenly began to shake, crunks of rock from the ceiling falling down.
"What's that weird noise?" Lucy groaned as she woke up, rubbing her eyes.
"Is it night already?!" Natsu suddenly came back to life as he looked around.
"An earthquake?" Maki asked in alert as she prepared to evacuate everyone.
"It's worse than that I'm afraid." The gang turned their attention towards the cave entrance, where Oracle was flying through to get to them. "They started the ritual."
"Ritual?" Gray questioned before a large purple magic circle appeared on the ceiling. Soon, a purple light began to shoot out from the circle, hitting the entire cave.
"What kind of light is that?!" Lucy asked in shock.
"Why is it purple? It must be moonlight." Gray theorized out loud before Happy pointed at Deliora.
"Look at Deliora!" Happy shouted, getting everyone's attention. Their eyes widened in horror as the purple moonlight began to slowly melt the ice surrounding Deliora.
"This is bad. Oracle, what is this?" Maki urgently questioned the owl.
"While I was investigating the island, I overheard some robed mages speak about performing a ritual. Naturally, I followed them and found that they were gathering to create a spell called Moon Drip." Oracle reported in a serious tone. "They're gathered above the cave, so expect resistance."
"Dammit! We gotta go!" Gray told the group as they began to run out of the cave. They noticed the magic circle inside the ruins, which indicated that they had something to do with the ritual. Running up to the upper level, the Fairy Tail group soon found the source of the magic circle.
"Zeram, Sen, Dioluna…" In the middle of a broken set of pillars were a group of robed mages, each chanting ancient language while a pillar of purple light came from the ground.
"Oracle, is this the ritual?" Lucy asked the owl, who landed on her shoulder while nodding.
"Yes. And the language they are using is from ancient texts. There is a reason they were buried away for eons." Oracle said with a disgusted tone. Humans were selfish creatures, but even they should know never to use such evil magic.
"The moon…" Gray muttered as he looked up, noticing several more magic circles in the air that were directly under the purple moon.
"It's a Belianese spell called Moon Drip." Lyra surprisingly said next to Lucy, making her jump.
"Why are you still here?" Lucy asked her spirit, who ignored her.
"I see. So that's what they're trying to do." Lyra muttered in a surprisingly serious tone.
"What is it?" Maki asked.
"They're using Moon Drip to melt the ice surrounding that demon underground so they can resurrect it." Lyra explained, much to their shock.
"No way!" Natsu 'yelled' quietly with wide eyes.
"They can't! If they do, Deliora will go on another damn rampage!" Gray argued with an angry tone. Just seeing Deliora boiled his blood, but seeing people actually try and bring his master's killer back was outright infuriating. "Besides, the ice used in Iced Shell can't be melted!"
"Technically, that isn't true." Oracle spoke up.
"She's right." Lyra agreed, not bothered by Oracle's appearance. "While the Iced Shell is strong, it can be melted with a spell like Moon Drip. Focused moon energy can break any magical spell."
"Oh no…" Maki muttered, horrified to hear about Moon Drip's power. Having witnessed one demon of Zeref in action, the fire soldier would rather not face another one.
"What the islanders think of as a curse may actually be a side effect of the Moon Drip. Especially since moon energy has the effect of contaminating one's body." Lyra added with a frown. "I'm afraid those poor islanders have been exposed to way too much of it."
"I'll make them pay for using that crap." Natsu growled, having heard enough of Moon Drip and its effects.
"Hold it. Someone's coming." Lucy quickly stopped Natsu as the sound of footsteps could be heard.
Walking up to the robed mages were the four that were in the cave from before, only they were following who they assumed was their leader. The leader seemed to be dressed in a somewhat demonic outfit complete with a silver horned helmet and a long coat.
"What a waste. I lost so much precious sleep for nothing." Yuka complained with a frown. "We searched all day for the intruders, but never found a trace of them."
"Maybe there aren't any intruders at all!" Tobi said with an excited tone.
"I'm afraid I have some sad news, Cold Emperor." Sherry told the cloaked man with a frown. "We thought we had intruders during the day, but it seems they got away." The Cold Emperor listened to what she said before he glanced at Roha.
"Is that true, Roha?" The Cold Emperor questioned, making Gray perk up.
'Hang on. I know that voice…' Gray thought with a serious expression.
"So that's the leader, huh?" Natsu asked rhetorically as he glared at the Cold Emperor.
"Oh, I wouldn't say that." Roha said with a shrug. "Cockroaches always scurry around when they aren't wanted, as I always say."
"Hmmm. Continue searching. I don't want this ritual to be interrupted." The Cold Emperor ordered his allies before he looked at the magic circles in the sky. "Has Deliora been awakened yet?"
"It should be later tonight or tomorrow, if things go according to plan." Roha told him, glancing over his shoulder for a moment.
"Did he see us?" Maki questioned as she and the others ducked down. They looked up and luckily, Roha was looking back at the ritual.
"The time has almost come. If you see any of those intruders again, kill them." The Cold Emperor declared in a serious tone.
"It has to be the villagers. They're the only people on the island." Sherry suggested.
"Then burn the village down. Leave no survivors." The Cold Emperor ordered, much to the Fairy Tail team's horror.
"But the villagers have nothing to do with this." Lucy whispered in shock, not believing the Cold Emperor would resort to such cruel tactics.
"We have to stop them." Natsu told everyone.
'It can't be… I know who that is…' Gray thought with widened eyes. It took him a minute, but he soon remembered where he heard the Cold Emperor's voice.
"I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS CRAP!" Natsu, being the idiot he was, jumped out of his hiding spot and yelled to the top of his lungs. He then unleashed a powerful burst of flames from his mouth into the air. "WE'RE THE INTRUDERS! NOT THE VILLAGERS!"
"... Just when I thought he couldn't be more of an idiot." Oracle said with a blunt tone.
"Ahh, I was wondering how long you'd stay in hiding." Roha admitted, finally ready to fight.
"Guess there's no turning back." Lucy said as she and the others stood up as well.
"His mark… he's from the Fairy Tail guild." Sherry realized out loud upon seeing Natsu's mark.
"The villagers must've gone to the magical guilds for help." Yuka theorized.
"Forget them. Eradicate the village." The Cold Emperor ordered without hesitation.
"But why?!" Maki demanded, not expecting such a response.
"Anyone who gets in my way will be destroyed." He responded coldly. Natsu growled in anger and was about to charge in…
"WHY YOU!" Surprisingly, Gray began to rush towards the Cold Emperor with an angry expression. Putting his hands together, Gray used his magic and summoned a row of ice stalagmites towards the Cold Emperor. "STOP THIS STUPID RITUAL RIGHT NOW!" The Cold Emperor and his allies quickly reacted by jumping back, though he opted to jump into the air. Opening his hand, the Cold Emperor created his own blue magic circle before slamming it on the ground, using the same spell as Gray before both attacks collided, resulting in a stalemate.
"He's an ice wizard too?!" Happy exclaimed in shock.
"Lyon…" Gray growled, much to his friends' shock. "How could you?"
"It seems Fullbuster knows this Cold Emperor." Oracle said to herself while flying away to watch everything from a good distance.
"Do you have any idea what you're doing?" Gray questioned the now identified Lyon.
"Oh, Gray. It's been quite a while, hasn't it?" Lyon asked rhetorically.
"Why the hell would you revive Deliora?!" Gray demanded in anger.
"To think you were one of the wizards who were called to help those villagers." Lyon continued, seemingly ignoring Gray. "Did you come knowing you would find me? Or is this just mere coincidence? Then again, it makes no difference to me."
"An acquaintance of yours, Cold Emperor?" Yuka asked with a raised brow.
"That would be Gray Fullbuster. A fellow ice make student that studied with the same teacher as Lyon." Roha explained while putting a hand on Yuka's shoulder. "You can say they're… close."
"Enough of that. Do as you were ordered." Lyon said to his allies without looking back. "I'll deal with them alone."
"Right." And with that, Lyon's allies went off into the forest.
"Hey! Get back here!" Natsu shouted at the four before he started to chase after them.
"Natsu, no!" But Gray's warning came too late as Lyon extended his hand, creating an icy mist.
"Hang on!" Maki shouted as she quickly summoned Tekkyo, with Sputter and Flare next to her. "Get in position, you-" But before she could have them do anything else, Lyon used his other hand and started using his ice on her and her weapon. It was strong enough to actually freeze her flames, much to her shock. "Sputter! Flare!" Slowly, both fire users began to get engulfed in ice, with Tekkyo being completely frozen.
"Happy, get Lucy out of here!" Gray ordered the blue cat.
"Aye!" Happy sprouted his wings and quickly picked up Lucy, flying her as far away as he could. Lyon prepared to use his ice on Happy when Gray launched another ice attack, prompting him to block it with an ice shield. However, this small distraction was all Maki needed to roll out of the way, though her right arm and left hand were frozen.
"D-D-Damn! I c-couldn't get out!" Maki breatted herself as she looked at her now frozen limbs. With the ice covering them, she wouldn't be able to produce flames for a while.
"I can't move!" Natsu, on the other hand, had his whole body, save for his appendages and head, frozen in an ice ball.
"We can't leave Natsu and Maki." Lucy told Happy as she looked back at her friends.
"They got hit with a type of ice magic that freezes the air. If we'd stuck around a little longer, we would've been frozen too." Happy explained in a surprisingly logical tone.
"Who cares? We gotta sa-" Before Lucy could finish her sentence, a dagger made of magic was suddenly thrown at her and Happy, narrowly missing them. "What the heck was that?!"
"It's an ambush!" Happy shouted as more magic daggers were sent flying towards them, forcing the cat to take evasive action. Unfortunately, one of the daggers slashes his left wing, causing it to disappear. "I'M HIT! I'M HIT!"
"HAPPY!" Lucy screamed in horror as they began to fall down the sky. However, Happy was too stubborn to fall that easily and decided to try something else.
"MACH SPEED!" Using as much magic as he could, Happy and Lucy began to fly at high speed as they continued to descend. However, the farther they went, the closer they got to the trees before they eventually crashed.
"Damn. I missed it." Roha said to himself while making his magic daggers disappear. He had to admit that the cat was more skilled at flying than he thought, though not by much. Shaking his head, the strange member of Lyon's group then proceeded towards the village, ready to have some fun.
"You distracted me enough to allow the cat and girl to escape, Chivalrous, but ultimately pointless." Lyon told Gray in a disappointed tone. "There's no way those two can fight my minions."
"Don't underestimate the power of Fairy Tail!" Natsu shouted in anger.
'Lucy, please be safe.' Maki thought to herself as she looked at her frozen arm. 'I can't even get a spark going. This is bad.'
"And you." Lyon suddenly turned his attention towards Maki, catching her attention. "Those weapons you have are very different. It's clear you're not from around here."
"Hey! Don't ignore me!" Natsu yelled even louder, annoyed that Lyon wasn't acknowledging him.
*Smack*
But his anger turned to shock when of all people… Gray kicked him from behind, causing the Dragon Slayer to start rolling down the hill. "WHAT THE HELL, GRAY?!" Was all Natsu shouted as he rolled away.
"NATSU!" Maki yelled in shock before she began to run around her friend, though it was somewhat difficult due to the ice on her limbs. This left both students of Ur alone, with each of them glaring at one another.
"I see you're as reckless as ever. But still, even I'm shocked you would do that to a friend." Lyon teasingly said with a smirk, much to Gray's annoyance.
"You and I both know that with one spell, you can blow up the ice and those two." Gray answered with narrowed eyes.
"I see. You chose to send the loud one away and that caused the girl to run after him, thus putting them out of my range. I'll admit that was smart of you." Lyon confessed with a chuckle.
"I don't understand why you're trying to pull this superior crap on me, Lyon!" Gray shouted in anger. "We're not Ur's students anymore!"
"Oh, I'm well aware of that fact." Lyon said before he removed his helmet, revealing his spiky silver hair and cold blue eyes. "Our beloved teacher is no more."
"Then why the hell are you disrespecting our master's legacy?! Tell me, Lyon!" Gray demanded.
"Don't delude yourself, Gray." Lyon countered as he narrowed his own eyes at Gray. "Have you forgotten… that it was YOU who killed our master?" This made Gray widen his eyes in slight shock. "And yet, you don't have an ounce of regret for that. How cruel."
'With Natsu'
"CRAP! CRAP! CRAPPPPPPPP!" Natsu continued to roll down the hill in a very comedic way, his eyes turning to swirls the longer he kept going.
*THUD*
Miraculously, his torture ended when he fell into a small hole. Using a small fire breath, Natsu was able to launch himself out, landing on his feet.
"Gray, you son of a bitch! You're gonna pay for that!" Natsu roared at the hill he was on, though obviously, Gray would not be able to hear him.
"Well, this is an interesting sight." Natsu looked up and found Oracle looking down at him from a branch, a look of amusement on her face.
"Oracle! Where were you?!" Natsu demanded with a tick mark.
"Keeping my distance. What I learned from watching all of you is that destruction follows, so I flew away." Oracle explained before she looked at the ice. "Interesting. I never knew you enjoyed the cold so much, Dragneel."
"I don't! It was that Cold Emperor jerk!" Natsu told her before he started using his flames on the ice. But much to his shock, they weren't doing anything. "My flames aren't making a dent!"
"Try rolling some more. Perhaps that would help." Oracle jokingly suggested.
"Oh shut up." Natsu responded with a glare before he glanced in the opposite direction. "We gotta get to the village. Lucy and Happy might need our help."
"Natsu!" Maki slid down the hill, hopping over the hole Natsu had previously crashed into before landing next to him. "Are you okay?"
"You mean besides the fact I'm in an ice ball?!" Natsu rhetorically asked, making Oracle chuckle a bit. "Shut up!"
"Did you try melting them with your fire?" Maki asked.
"I did. But it won't do anything! You?" Natsu questioned as he looked at her arm and hand.
"Nothing. If my hands aren't free, I won't be able to use Sputter or Flare." Maki admitted with a frown as she looked at her frozen left hand. However, as she looked at it, she started to get an idea. "Natsu, did you try hitting the ice with something?"
"Hitting it? No, not really. I mean I rolled down the hill and nothing happened." Natsu told her with a raised brow. "Why?" His answer came when Maki raised her frozen hand…
*SMACK*
And slammed it onto Natsu's ice ball, making him gasp in shock. "Wosh, woah, woah! What did I do?!"
"Look." Maki said as she showed him her frozen hand. Natsu widened his eyes as he saw a small crack on the ice.
"If we kept hitting the ice, we're bound to break it. And if I keep doing this with my hands, we can weaken the ice around you." Maki explained thoroughly.
"Yes. But we may need to do that AS we head towards the village." Oracle reminded them.
"She's right. Hit and run!" Natsu cheered as he began to run towards the village… in a very comedic way. "Dammit! This is too tough!" He heard Oracle laughing a bit more as she and Maki followed him. "Stop laughing!"
'Open sea'
Not too far from Galuna Island, a single pirate ship, with a flag that had a skull and utensils on it, sailed through the sea, making its way towards the island.
However… what happened onboard was something no one expected.
All the pirates, save for the captain, were completely knocked out, scattered along the deck. It looked like a full blown brawl erupted.
But… instead, it was all caused by one person.
"So… why do you wanna go to Galuna Island, anyways?" The captain asked as he looked at the culprit with a sweatdrop. "It's a scary island."
"Just shut up and steer." The passenger demanded with a stern tone, making the captain flinch as he returned to steer the ship. Slowly, the other pirates began to get up from their beating, though they kept a sharp eye on their attacker.
"If you drop us off somewhere, you can have the boat all to yourselves. Please, I'm begging you, lady!" The captain begged, not wanting to go to Galuna Island. "That island is completely cursed and anyone who steps on its soil will turn into a demon."
"That's the kind of job they took, huh?" One of the attacker's associates questioned.
"Sounds like it. I just hope they're alright." The second associate admitted.
"We will take that chance." The attacker declared confidently.
"But why?" The captain questioned.
Erza Scarlet lifted her head with a serious expression. "When rules are broken, the guilty must be punished. And that is all I can tell you." Yusei Fudo and Oliver Queen stood behind Erza, watching as the pirates started to move in. They prepared for the worst, when…
"SHE'S SO COOL!"
"AND HOT TOO!"
"BUT THOSE OTHER TWO LOOK AWESOME!"
"ONE OF THEM HAS AWESOME HAIR!"
"AND CHECK OUT THE SMOLDER OF THE BLONDE ONE!
The pirates, rather than attacking, all began to fawn over the trio like rabid fanboys, making the captain sweatdrop in embarrassment.
"Okay… didn't expect that." Oliver admitted as she and Yusei lowered their guard. One minute, they were witnessing Erza beat the ever living crap out of the pirates and took their ship. The next, they were all begging to join in on the search. Even the captain changed his attitude and agreed to help find the rule breakers.
"No kidding. I guess looks can be deceiving." Yusei commented with a small shake of his head. The pirates then offered the three a place to sit, which they all agreed to as the captain started barking orders. Yusei glanced over to Erza and noticed her stern expression was still on her face. "You okay now, Erza?"
"No, I'm not." She responded without turning away from the sea. "Those four need to be punished for breaking the rules of the Guild. What they did disrespects the Master." Surprisingly, Oliver actually let out a brief chuckle, something that Erza heard as she turned to glare at him. "Is what I said amusing, Oliver?"
"In a way." Oliver answered with a somewhat amused tone. "The way you're acting reminds me of how I was back in Star City, when I started training my new recruits."
"You had recruits?" Yusei asked, curious to hear what Oliver meant.
"You know that I was a vigilante back in my…" Oliver glanced over his shoulder and saw some of the pirates listening in on their conversation. "Hometown. I worked alone for so long, so I never really needed to rely on anyone. But more time went by and I realized that it wasn't bad to trust more people." A small smile grew on Oliver's face as he began to recall his allies. "John and Felicity were the first ones I trusted, and soon that number grew. Roy, Laurel, Sara, my sister Thea, Barry, Ray and eventually, Dinah, Curtis and Rene. We had issues and they wouldn't always listen to what I had to say. But in the end, I knew they meant well. So, I can understand where you're coming from."
"But you believe they shouldn't be punished?" Erza questioned with a glare.
"Not at all." Oliver quickly told her. "But I'm saying maybe they were trying to prove themselves and if their help is needed, then we might need to help."
"He's right. We need to give them the benefit of doubt." Yusei agreed. Erza glanced at her two allies in silence before returning her gaze towards the sea. The Signer turned right and noticed Stardust Dragon looking forward. "Something wrong, Stardust?"
"I don't know… the wind feels off." Stardust confessed telepathically with narrowed eyes. "They may be in more trouble than we expected."
This didn't sit well with Yusei.
'Back with Gray and Lyon'
"Enough with the games, Gray. You're the one who murdered Ur, so just accept it." Lyon coldly told Gray, who growled in anger. "I'm surprised you have the gall to even speak her name!" With that, Lyon extended his hand and launched an ice blast at Gray, knocking him off his feet. Gray began to regain his composure, though he seemed to be struggling a bit. "Don't tell me the guilt is finally getting to you. I'm warning you. If you interfere with the resurrection of Deliora anymore, I WILL end you."
"I won't let you." Gray snarled as he gave Lyon an even deeper glare. Huffing from his nose, Lyon threw his helmet to the side and got in a fighting stance.
"Just like old times. Though this time, I've gotten stronger." Lyon told Gray with a smirk. "Ice Make: Eagle!" Creating a blue magic circle, Lyon launched multiple eagle-shaped ice shards towards Gray.
"Ice Make: Shield!" Gray quickly reacted and formed an ice shield. However, much to his shock, the ice shards actually FLEW around his shield and struck him in full force.
"Surprised, are you? Unlike your ice constructs, my ice can create living ice creatures, also known as Active Ice Make Magic." Lyon explained.
Gray leaped in the air and put his hands together. "Ice Make: Hammer!" He then launched a large ice hammer towards Lyon, who merely raised a hand.
"Ice Make: Ape!" Before Gray's attack could land, a large gorilla made of ice emerged from behind Lyon and shattered the hammer. "How pathetic. Even after all these years, you still rely on both hands for your magic."
"Cause that's what Ur taught us." Gray replied like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Single-handed spell casting is incomplete and unbalanced."
"I'm the exception to that rule as I can use Ice Make magic with BOTH hands." Lyon told him arrogantly. "I've surpassed Ur's teachings a long time ago."
"Shut the hell up." Gray growled in anger.
"Ever since we were children, you've never once been able to hit me. What hope do you have now?" Lyon questioned with a slight brow raise. Gray felt irritated by that and started channeling more magic into his hands.
"I've gotten stronger than I used to be! Ice Make: Geyser!" With that, Gray slammed both hands on the ground, causing it to launch multiple ice stalagmites that surrounded Lyon. The strength of the spell caused the other mages to run away in fear.
*Crack*
But Gray's powerful attack was cut short when the ice shattered completely, with Lyon standing firm. "I was always the superior student." Lyon coldly reminded Gray as he brushed his shoulder tauntingly. "After all, I mastered Single-hand Ice Make magic while you still rely on two handed. It's just like the old days. Despite going down different paths, we're still frozen in time." Lyon then made another magic circle in his hand.
Before Gray had time to retaliate, a large ice dragon emerged from the ground and knocked high in the air. "This is why I'm resurrecting Deliora. To prove that I have surpassed being Ur's star pupil." Lyon revealed as Gray crashed on the ground. "As a child, I always dreamed of surpassing Ur. But then you came and ruined everything. After she died, I thought my dream was shattered. But thanks to my allies, I found a loophole." A smirk grew on Lyon's face as Gray began to push himself up. "By reviving the very demon Ur couldn't defeat and killing it, I will have finally surpassed her!"
"Listen to me." Gray spoke up as he got back on his feet. "That monster took everything we ever cared about and you wanna bring it back to life?! Just to prove that you're stronger than Ur?! You're insane!" This made Lyon widen his eyes a bit. "Please, don't do th-!"
*BOOM*
Lyon summoned multiple ice dragons from the ground, cutting Gray off. "I can't do this? Really?!" Lyon launched ice eagles onto Gray, sending him crashing onto the ground. "Funny you say that. Those were the exact words WE said to you on that day." Lyon gritted his teeth and prepared to attack yet again. "It's because you challenged Deliora… THAT UR DIED!" With one final push, Lyon summoned the ice ape to uppercut Gray so hard, he was launched into the air yet again. "You speaking her name makes me sick! BEGONE!" Lyon finally summoned one last ice dragon and struck Gray, sending him crashing on the ground. The Cold Emperor looked down at Gray with a deep frown. He hated Gray with a passion, not only for what he did to Ur, but also for not admitting that her death was on his shoulder.
Maybe… maybe this was a sign. This was a sign to end the last reminder of Ur.
*Slash*
"OOOOOOOOOFFFFF!" Just as Lyon was about to put down his enemy, something moved as high speed, slashing him from behind with enough force to send the former student of Ur crashing into one of the broken walls. The attacker then made their way towards Gray, kneeling down next to him.
"Damn. He got the shit beat out of him." The attacker said to no one in particular as they looked at Gray's injuries.
"His injuries don't seem too severe, but if left unchecked, they may get worse." Another voice spoke up in a serious tone.
"Better take him to the village before that Cold douchebag wakes up." With that, the attacker picked up Gray and began to run towards the village. As the person was carrying Gray, the ice wizard began to open his eyes.
"Lyyy… onnnnn…" Was all Gray muttered before he slipped into unconsciousness.
"RRRRRRRAAAAAAHHHHH!" Lyon unleashed a burst of ice magic to clear the debris off his body, a look of anger on his face. "Who was it?!" He looked around, but he couldn't find the person who attacked him. What was worse: Gray was gone as well. 'Did they bring another wizard with them? Or was it one of the villagers? Hmmm… it doesn't matter.' Lyon composed himself as he looked at the magic circles in the sky, a cold smile on his face. 'Soon, I will show Ur that I have surpassed her.'
'With Natsu and Maki'
"Did I forget to mention how much I hate being frozen?!" Natsu said as he attempted to run as fast as he could towards the village, with Maki and Oracle following suit.
"Don't you think we should go back and help Gray? He might need help." Maki argued as she sprinted next to Natsu, giving him a concerned face.
"Personally, I believe it's more important to stop Lyon's forces from destroying the village rather than rushing after him." Oracle commented before she glanced over to Natsu… and chuckled a bit.
"Okay, it's funny! You can stop laughing!" Natsu shouted, having enough of the white owl's laughter.
"You think Lucy and Happy made it to the village?" Maki asked.
"Probably. Happy's pretty fast, so he should've gotten there with Lucy already." Natsu reasoned, having full confidence in his little buddy. It wasn't long before the three saw the village in the distance. "There it is!"
"Miss Lucy, there's two people heading this way!" One of the village's guards called out, having noticed Natsu and Maki. Soon, the gates began to open, allowing both fire users entry into the village.
"Great! We made-" Before Natsu could finish those words… his foot suddenly hit a large root on the ground. "CRAP!"
"Natsu!" Maki quickly reacted and grabbed Natsu's arm. However, due to the weight of the ice around him, Natsu suddenly began to roll forward like a boulder, dragging Maki with him.
"NATSU! MAKI! STOP!" They could hear Lucy's voice from the village, but they were too busy rolling to actually stop.
Soon, the duo entered the village…
*THUD*
And hit a rather obvious patch of grass, which turned out to cover a rather sizable hole on the ground, prompting them to fall in with a loud thud.
"I can't believe they actually fell for that…" One of the demonic-looking villagers commented with a sweatdrop.
"Sorry we ever doubted you, miss Lucy." Another villager apologized, not believing it would actually work.
"It's ruined…" Lucy whined, Virgo's efforts being used in vain.
"Owww…" Maki groaned as she felt her body being sore from falling.
"Mmmmm…" The black haired fire soldier suddenly widened her eyes as she felt hot breath on her chest, making her look down… and see Natsu buried between her breasts.
"AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" Maki pushed Natsu away from her, crossing her arms with her face was beet red. 'Now I know how Tamaki feels!'
"What the hell is this, a prank?! There's no time for that!" Natsu complained as he rubbed his head.
"Don't talk to me about it. It was Lucy's dumb plan." Happy informed Natsu with a shrug.
"It wasn't a dumb idea!" Lucy argued with anime tears running down her cheeks.
"But I'm glad you two are okay." Happy admitted while poking his head out so they could see him.
"We're fine. What about you guys?" Natsu questioned before he noticed something. He wasn't feeling as constrained as he did before. Looking down, his eyes widened as he saw the ice was completely gone. "Hey, I'm free!"
"Do you think it cracked from the fall?" Maki theorized as she calmed down from her embarrassment.
"See? I knew my trap would work." Lucy lied with a confident tone, satisfied to see her trap work.
"Technically speaking, it was due to Natsu and Maki being out of the range of Lyon." Oracle informed her while landing on Lucy's shoulder, making her deflate. Soon, the villagers helped both Natsu and Maki out of the hole.
"Where's Gray?" Lucy asked, having noticed their resident stripper was absent.
"I wanted to go back, but Natsu and Oracle said we needed to come here first and help." Maki answered before she noticed something off. Both Lucy and Happy were covered in bandages, though it didn't look too severe. "What happened to you?"
"One of those guys shot at us and I got hit." Happy explained as he turned around, showing Natsu and Maki the bandage on his back. "Because he cut my left wing, I won't be able to fly for a while."
"That bastard…" Natsu growled in anger while clenching his fist. "When I find him, he's gonna get roasted!"
"Come to think of it, how come they haven't gotten here yet?" Maki questioned with a hand under her chin. Considering the time those four left and the time she and Natsu left, it would've made more sense if they got to the village first.
"I think we have bigger issues to worry about." Oracle spoke up while looking up at the sky. The others also looked up to see what she was referring to and… it was strange to say the least.
Flying in the sky with a spinning tail that acted like a propeller was the large green rat, Angelica. She seemed to be carrying a very large bucket and there were three people on her back.
"It's a giant, flying rat carrying a bucket!" One of the villagers called out.
"Now my trap is useless!" Lucy cried out in horror, making her allies sweatdrop.
"I never realized double poisoned jelly would take so long to make." Sherry said out loud, the wind blowing through her hair.
"We timed it perfectly." Yuka explained calmly. "The wizards weren't able to make it back to the village in time."
"We can't stop until Deliora is revived and killed by the emperor." Sherry continued rather coldly. "Anyone who gets in the way must die…" Suddenly, Angelica's bucket tipped over, allowing a single drop of green jelly to fall out of it. It soon began to fall towards the village… namely, towards Lucy.
"Jelly?" Lucy reached out to grab the jelly, curious to see what it felt-
"GET DOWN!" Natsu suddenly tackled her out of the way, sensing something off about the jelly.
*Drip*
And his instincts were correct as the jelly hit the ground, causing the ground to melt a bit.
"That smell. I knew something was off about it." Natsu said in a serious tone as Lucy looked at the spot in horror. Had Natsu not intervened, she would've…
"That rat has poison!"
"We're doomed!"
"Everyone, run!" The villagers began to panic upon seeing the jelly melt the ground. With a bucket that big, it was clear that Lyon's forces were trying to destroy the village.
"Angelica, would you do the honors and destroy the village?" Sherry asked her pet, who squealed in joy before she tossed the bucket, allowing the contents to spread.
"What do we do?!" Maki asked in a panic.
'Dammit! If Happy can't fly me up, I won't be able to burn that stuff!' Natsu thought with gritted teeth.
*SLASH*
However, before the jelly could get close to the village… it was suddenly cut in half.
"WHAT?!" Yuka, Sherry and Toby all shouted in shock.
"Someone cut the jelly!" Happy shouted with wide eyes.
"Natsu, now's our chance!" Maki called out as she used her flame magic to create a Sputter fireball in her right hand. "You burn the left, I'll burn the right!"
"Right!" A big grin grew on Natsu's face as he summoned flames in both his hands. "Fire on my right, and fire on my left. Put them together and you get…"
"Grow… grow… GROW!" Maki's Sputter fireball began to grow bigger and bigger, growing about three times her size as she looked at the jelly.
"FIRE DRAGON'S BRILLIANT FLAME/ SPUTTER METEOR!" Both fire users then launched their fireballs towards the jelly. Once the fireballs collided, a large explosion erupted from within the jelly. However, the jelly soon began to fire in smaller quantities, hitting the ground in random spots, but none towards the villagers.
… Expect for one.
"I won't leave my son again!" The chief cried out as he hugged the tombstone of his deceased son. He was so preoccupied that he failed to realize one of the droplets moving towards him, hitting the tombstone and covering the chief in steam.
"CHIEF!" The villagers called out in horror.
"Relax." A new female voice suddenly called out from the smoke, surprising the Fairy tail crew. As the smoke disappeared, they were soon greeted to the sight of the chief's savior… and they weren't expecting it.
Standing over Bobo's gravestone while carrying both the chief and an unconscious Gray was a young female who looked to be 17, with mid-length dark-blue tinted hair with a single left-swept red highlight on her bangs that was feathery and had vibrant red undertones and horn-like clips. Her eyes were blue and peculiar gear-like pupils with eight grooves around the edges. Her attire… was very, VERY revealing. It was a rather sharp blue and red sailor uniform, which had sharp shoulder pads that had a strange, yellow eyes on the left, straps that covered the girl's exposed breasts, long bacl sleeves with a red line going along it, black gloves with a strange wrist accessory on her left wrist, a short miniskirt with sharp edges, black leggings and red heels. But what caught everyone's attention were the weapons she was carrying. She seemed to have two large red scissor-like swords on her hips.
The girl noticed everyone looking at her before she said one simple thing.
"Yo."
And BAM! A new introduction to the next champion. Who is this champion you migh-
Okay, you know what? I already spoiled it with the cover art(Thank you ExcadrillComics). Yes, it is one of the best tomboys in anime, RYUKO MATOI!
Not gonna lie… she has been on my mind for a while. I mean she's a kickass girl with a cool outfit and unique weapons. Who WOULDN'T like her? I know what you're thinking: "Why is she in?" Well… it's my story and I think she'd fit in!
Again, the things in this chapter were pretty much what happened in canon, but I added a few new elements like Oliver and Yusei calming Erza down. But don't worry. I will have more action for y'all.
I saw Spiderman No Way Home and I will say… as a guy who thinks Spidey is overrated… I freaking LOVED IT. Stay for BOTH after credit scenes cause you will love them.
I also want to announce that earlier this month, I made a poll for two potential stories I wanna do as side projects. Please vote when you have the chance since the poll will end in February.
Follow, Fav, Review and PM.
Next time: Defense and Offense