"All the guards an en route, sir." Thanatos said. Hades smirked.
"Good, good." He said as he watched via a lacrima. "Seems the fun is about to start."
"Should I go as well?" He asked, Hades shaking his head.
"No, not yet." He said. "We haven't let them have hope yet."
Takara felt like she was about to pass out from the heat, but she couldn't. Not yet, anyway. She needed to fend off the guards. They were oh so close to getting out, and now they just needed to open the gate.
"Just how hot is she going to make it?" She asked weakly.
"Hot enough that the metal in the gate melts no matter what the Magic Canceller does," Jason replied as he wiped swipe from his brow. "Focus on the guards, they're almost here." Takara did her best to do so, focusing her attention on the hallways ahead of her as it flooded with guards. Preparing herself as they readied weapons, she knew from the size of the fight that this wasn't going to be a short fight. This was going to need all of the power she had. Could she even still fight well with her magic? Now was the time to tell. She'd starved herself for three days, after all.
"Emerald Spike!" As she slammed her fists into the ground, bright green gems erupted out of the ground and sped towards the guards, slowing for no one. It slammed into the front line and knocked at least a half dozen into the air, they're shocked cries echoing across the hall.
"What type of magic is that?" Jason asked, looking over at her. Takara smiled as she felt her hands, the magic flowing for the first time in ten years.
"Gemstone Magic," she replied. "I materialise gems with my magic." Jason chuckled at this.
"Let's hope they're still diamond hard after ten years in prison," he said. Takara nodded, slamming her hands down again and repeating the attack. This time the emeralds veered to the right and cut the hallway off, making it so the guards had to pour over an incline to get to them. It would slow them down and make it easier to hold them off.
"Here they come!" Takara called, sharp diamond ridges forming across her arms. She rushed into the wave of guards and startled to slam into them with her arms, the sharp diamonds cutting through their weapons and clothes with no struggle whatsoever. The first few fell without any issue whatsoever, but the next few realised she wasn't going to go down quickly and backed away. She wouldn't allow them the satisfaction. Crashing her hands together caused the spikes to shoot out and hit a few that were still too close. Hearing a battle cry from behind her, Takara hardened her back and heard a weapon bounce off uselessly. She turned to see a man had rebounded off of her. He had no time to recoup before Jason socked him in the mouth, knocking him to the ground in an instant.
"Good one," she said.
"No time for compliments, there's more of them!" He replied, rushing ahead of her. Takara turned just in time to heighten the ridge, causing a few to fall back down. The few that had made it over rushed them angrily, and Takara retracted the diamonds around her arms to defend. The few guards that attacked her bounced off the gems, but she wasn't ready for the guards to move past the shield. The guards stopped her from moving her arms to defend, and slashed at her stomach with blades. She hardened with emeralds before the cuts actually hurt her, but it still ripped up her shirt. Growling, sapphire's erupted out of the ground in spikes and pushed them away, more than a few of them crying out in pain. She didn't particularly want to kill them, but if she did she wouldn't lose any sleep over it. The sapphire spikes morphed together into a barrier around her, and at her will they pushed outwards in spikes that assaulted the guards nearby. She watched as a few climbed over the walls using the spikes and jumped down on top of her, pushing her to the ground.
"Get the cuffs on her!" One of them shouted, and Takara saw cuffs out of the corner of her eye.
"Ruby Shield!" She shouted, a sheet of pure red gems erupted over her body and forcing the guards away. "Shield Transfer!" Jumping up, the rubies came with her and coated themselves against her skin, changing from a rough sheet into a glossy armour. She blocked an incoming spear with her wrist and ducked underneath it, slamming her gemstone covered arm into the mans stomach. She felt another slash her down her back, but obvious it had no effect. She fought off another wave of the guards, but as she expected another wave of them came crashing over the ridge. She couldn't see Jason anywhere, but what she could see was she was surrounded. The guards assaulted her with their weapons and her own magic, but the rubies kept her from receiving the brunt of the damage. She fought them off as best she could, but it was clear her magic was beginning to give out. Her lack of practice was not helping her at all. She let another wave of rubies explode from around her, but it only forced back this round of guards. Now some of them were beginning to stand up, but the heat generated by 545 was stopping them from getting to close to the Doors of Death.
"Start backing up!" She heard 545 shout. "I've almost got it!" Takara did as she was told and began to back up as she fought the guards off, but the rubies on her body were starting to crack. A blast of lightning hit her in the chest, and the rubies cracked and fell. Another blast of lightning sent her flying backwards, skidding to a stop near the doors. The heat nearly overwhelmed her, but she forced herself to stand. She hadn't had a proper fight in years, so this wasn't good. Jason came to a stop near her as well, panting.
"Jeez are you done yet?!" He demanded.
"Just about, gimme a few more seconds!" It that was all she needed, Takara could provide it.
"Jewel Rush!" She shouted. A wave of gems emerged from the ground, and Takara jumped on top of it and it roared towards the guards. It slammed directly into them, and Takara coated her body in diamonds as she fell to the ground and began to fight them off. The heat from the door coupled with her attack made it so she could easy fight them off, and soon they began to fall back.
Until a wave of darkness passed through the hall, somehow managing to chill Takara to the bone. Looking ahead, her eyes widened.
Thanatos, the head jailer, was wading through the guards. His head was held high, as was the scythe in his hands.
"Seems I'll need to step in and stop this myself," he said, the guards moving for him. "My my Jason, you finally managed to get this far?"
"Shut up," Jason hissed. Thanatos just laughed.
"What'll happen if I don't?" He asked. "You know, I shouldn't be surprised you tried to betray us. It was in your very being, after all. What'll you do to these girls once you get out of here? Will you betray them as you did us? What is your real goal, exactly? To escape your past? To escape the name given to you? You'll never outrun it, Dolos."
"I told you to shut up!" Jason shouted, his eyes full of rage. Takara watched, eyes wide, as a dozen versions of Jason emerged from him, running towards Thanatos. The jailer raised his scythe and sliced through half of them, the remaining half reaching him. The first three made no impact in their attacks, the fourth did though. His fist slammed into Thanatos' face, forcing him back. The remaining three, one being the real Jason, multiplied again into twelve. They assaulted Thanatos again, the fakes getting shredded time and time again. And somehow, the real Jason always evaded the attacks.
"How many times do you plan on punching me in the face, exactly?" Thanatos asked as he cut down a fake Jason. "Are you just buying time for your friend to melt open the gate?"
"So what if I am?" The remaining four Jason's from the last assault asked. "I've spent long enough in here, it's time to get out."
"And what do you expect to do once you get out?" Thanatos asked. "Stop us? Not going to happen."
"It's inhuman!" Jason shouted angrily. "How are you okay with what Zeus wants to do?! He wants to toss someone's life away!"
"It's what he have to do," Thanatos replied. "One life for countless is fine."
"I guess that means you're okay with the people down here suffering too, huh?!" Jason asked. Takara had never seen him get so angry. He looked positively livid. "What did these people do to deserve a lifetime of torture?!"
"They made themselves an obstacle, you know that." Thanatos said. "After all, you've helped through a fair amount of people in here."
Takara's stomach dropped as Jason gritted his teeth. What the hell was Thanatos saying? Was Jason one of them? Had be been before? He'd been imprisoned for almost as long as she had though...
Her thoughts were interrupted at a guttural groan, one that sounded metallic. Takara turned and watched as the Doors of Death melted and fell apart, both doors falling uselessly to the side.
"Let's go!" 545 shouted. "I've got it open!" Takara shoved aside the confusing thoughts about Jason and ran for the doors, meeting 545 there. She turned to look, but she couldn't see Jason at all. He'd disappeared in a sea of guards.
"Where's Jason?!" 545 asked.
"Somewhere in there!" Takara replied. "C'mon, let's go!"
"Are we leaving him?!" 545 asked incredulously. Takara made a face, but she steeled her emotions and nodded.
"We have no choice," she replied as the sounds of battle roared. "We have an opening, we need to take it." 545 made a face at her and looked back at the guards, not saying anything for a while. After a few more seconds, she sighed.
"Get the portal open," she said as she cracked her knuckles. "I'll save Jason."
"What?!" She asked. "545 don't be stupid! There's way too many of them! Not to mention Thanatos is over there!"
"I won't leave without him," 545 replied, turning to look at Takara again. There is was. That look again. That steely, determined look that was new and somehow fitting.
"...Get him over here quick, or I'm leaving without both of you." She warned, making 545 smile. The girl turned to leave, but Takara grabbed her arm. "I'm serious, 545. Don't try and be a hero. Get him and get back here." 545 didn't reply for a second, but soon she turned over her shoulder and smiled at her.
"You asked me my name when we met," 545 replied. "It's Nashi."
"...W-What?"
"My name is Nashi." Takara was given no room to say anything more before flames erupted from the girls feet, sending her blasting forward into the sea of guards. Takara watched in awe as a massive explosion sent countless guards flying into the air and crashing through nearby walls. From where she was watching she could see Nashi moving with an elegance that only a seasoned fighter could have. She was not new to fighting. Through the flames and cries of pain, Takara saw Jason sprint towards her, his head bleeding profusely.
"Let's go, get the portal going!" He shouted, sprinting past her into the exit. Realising now she was wasting valuable time, Takara ran after him towards the console off to the side, Jason already booting it up.
"How do we work this thing, exactly?" She asked weakly as Jason worked the keys.
"You have to enter coordinates to get it to work," Jason replied, seemingly familiar with the keys already. This made Takara very uncomfortable. "It's purposefully a complicated system to use to prevent escapes."
"Yet you know how to work it, huh?" She asked suspiciously over the explosions. Jason turned to look at her, his face guilty. An explosion lit up his face, and Takara saw him in a whole new light now. Who was this guy, really? What had Thanatos called him again? Dolos?
"I swear I'll explain everything once we're out of here."
"Yeah? Before or after you betray us? Isn't that what Thanatos accused you of?" Jason didn't get a chance to reply before a massive explosion rocked the room, sending them both to the floor.
"Check on her!" Jason shouted as he lifted himself back up to the console. "She's not being careful, I guarantee she's more tired than she feels!" Deciding now was not the time for an interrogation, Takara got to her feet and ran out into the hall, watching the seen ahead of her. Pretty much all of the guards were down on the ground, either out cold, dead or trying to get up. Nashi was currently going blow for blow with Thanatos, who seemed to be dodging her hits pretty well.
"You're weaker than you think you are, kid." He said to her as he slammed the brunt end of his scythe into her side, sending her flying into the wall and making a crater. "Did you forget you've been in prison for the last year?" Nashi said nothing, an explosion marking her exit from the wall as she slammed a fist into Thanatos' stomach, sending him flying down the hall. She flipped around in the air, each kick or swing sending an arc of flames flying down the hallway towards him. He sliced through each one, but Nashi was already moving on to her next attack.
"Fire Dragon's Roar!" Takara watched as a gout of fire erupted from Nashi's mouth, engulfing the entire hallway. She heard guards screaming in pain, but she couldn't discern if any were Thanatos. She soon found they weren't, as the flames were broken apart, the man standing amidst them.
"Tsk tsk, much weaker than we thought." Thanatos said. "Hades did more to you than I thought."
"Shut up already!" Nashi shouted, jumping at him. Flames clashed against lashes of dark magic, the hallway being consumed in a battle of colours.
"Takara!" Jason's voice came, making her turn. Her eyes widened as she saw a portal opening up on the platform. "I've got a portal open! It's only going to last thirty seconds, hurry up!"
"Nashi!" Takara shouted. "We've got to go! Nashi!"
It was obvious the girl couldn't hear her over the fighting. Takara bit her lip. "Nashi! Nashi, we've got to go! Nashi!"
"Takara c'mon!" Jason shouted, grabbing her arm and pulling her towards the portal. "We need to leave!"
"We can't leave without Nashi!" She shouted back, fighting him as hard as she could. It was no good, he was stronger than her. "Let me go, you asshole! We need to save her!"
"Can't you tell, moron?!" Jason shouted angrily. "She's holding Thanatos off for us!" Takara's eyes widened, and she looked back towards the battle.
It was so obvious. Nashi's movements were all propelled by fire. She was exhausted already, it was clear to see. Bits of her clothes had been slashed by the scythe, blood seeping onto the floor whenever it didn't get burnt up. She launched herself at Thanatos, but was picked out of the air by a black whip and slammed into the floor. More whips appeared above her and slammed into her repeatedly, kicking up debris as Thanatos assaulted her.
"B-But-" Takara hissed weakly, trying to come up with some sort of reason. Jason hauled her towards the portal, but Takara fought back still. "Nashi! NASHI! The portals open! We can leave! We can get out of here! NASHI!"
"Go!" Nashi's voice came as chains of darkness slammed her into the wall. "I'm right behind you!"
"No you aren't!" Takara replied, feeling tears threatening to fall.
"Let's GO!" Jason said, using a surprising amount of strength. Stumbling backwards, Takara felt her body tingle as she passed through the portal. Then she felt cold. So so cold. Scrambling around, Takara realised she was ankle deep in snow. They were in a forest somewhere, but that wasn't important. She untangled herself from Jason and reached out for the portal, trying her hardest to get back through it even as Jason pulled at her waist.
"Takara don't!" He shouted. Takara didn't care. Nashi was flying for the portal, dark whips flying after her with a sea of guards right on their heels. She was close. So close. She passed the Doors of Death, towards the platform.
Thanatos caught her.
Takara's eyes widened as black tentacles grabbed at the girls body, pinning her to the ground. Guards jumped on top of her and kept her in place, even as Nashi tried too use her fire to get out.
The portal was nearly shut.
"Nashi!" She shouted as she fought Jason's grip. "NASHI!" Nashi looked up at her through the chaos, her look desperate.
"Find Fairy Tail!" She shouted over everyone. "They can find your brother!"
The portal closed.
Tartarus was far, far away.
And so was Nashi.
Takara dropped to her knees, ignoring the stinging cold that attacked her knees. The wind whipped around the trees and attacked her nerves, her body already freezing cold. The warmth from Nashi's fire was already long gone.
Nashi.
Takara gritted her teeth and whipped her head towards Jason, who was watching her with a forlorn expression.
"We could have saved her," she hissed.
"And foil our whole plan?" Jason asked. "She knew the risks."
"She went to save you!" Takara yelled, kicking up snow as she got to her feet quickly. "You're only here because she went back for you!"
"I know."
"She said she wasn't going to leave without you! How could you leave her behind?!" Jason didn't reply right away, looking down at the snow. Takara was going to break her teeth if she gritted them any harder. "Say something, you asshole! Explain yourself!"
"We should get moving," he said as he got to his feet too. "We'll freeze to death if we don't get a move on."
"Open the portal again! I'm going back for her!"
"Even if I could, I wouldn't." Jason replied.
"Why not?!" She cried, the tears nearly freezing to her face.
"Do you want to waste the chance she gave you?!" Jason shouted. His shouts were absorbed into the wind, but the sound still echoed in Takara's head. "She went back there and fought Thanatos off so we could get out! The portal is one way for thirty seconds! Did you think they wouldn't follow us out here?! She did what she had too!"
"B-But-"
"If we don't get moving, we will freeze to death and waste the chance she gave us!" Jason yelled. "Is that what you want?! To waste the chance she gave us?!" Takara didn't reply, the cold freezing her voice. Jason only glared at her as the wind tore at what little clothing they had. "That's what I thought. Let's get going." He turned and trudged off into the darkness, Takara feeling her body going after him. She tried to ignore the lack of feeling in her feet, but the cold was so bad that it hurt.
She could only imagine how much pain Nashi was in right now.
"Bwahahahaha!" Hades shouted as he slammed his fist against his desk. "S-Stop, I'm gonna piss myself! Ahahaha! This is too good! You sacrificed yourself again?! Seriously?! Ahahahahaha!"
Nashi sat still in her seat as Hades laughed himself silly. He was the only other person in the room, Thanatos and the other guards having filed out a while ago.
"You seem to think this is funny," she said.
"It's hilarious!" Hades admitted. "I mean, twice in a year?! That's incredible! I mean, I broke you out of your slump to make this escape more interesting, but you stayed back here anyway?! Man, you got a seriously bad self-sacrificial complex!"
Nashi just rolled her eyes as Hades laughed, waiting for him to calm down. He soon did, wiping tears fro, his eyes.
"Ohoho man, you rile me up kid." He said. "Well, if I've still got you I may as well take as much as I want!"
"What?" Nashi asked, her stomach turning. Hades smirked.
"I mean, I let you guys get that far, but an escape attempt is an escape attempt. I'll need to punish you for this. Promise not to break this time?"
Chapter 352: In The Cold