I just wanted to thank you guys for the reviews you left on the last chapter. It's always a little anxiety-inducing to stand your ground and speak your mind, especially when you know some people probably disagree or will find it aggressive. but you guys were supportive of me despite some narrative errors or faux-pas in the past. this one is for you guys!
It'll be a good chapter I think ;)
Enjoy!
The battle for Tartarus lasted maybe thirty minutes in total. In that time, 450 of the 545 prisoners were evacuated by Fairy Tail. The rest were either too scared to leave, unwilling, or died in the chaos of the battle. As for the term 'battle', it wasn't very accurate. A more accurate description of it would be a ones-sided beat-down by Fairy Tail. Some of it's strongest members stormed the prison and took down anyone in their way, including several of the Children of Nyx. No one save a few questioned the legitimacy of the outbreak, many just assuming Fairy Tail was too strong.
But that wasn't important to Fairy Tail. After all, they'd broken people out and saved their own member from inside. Things were fine.
Others were not.
And yet, as the members of Fairy Tail fled the collapsing prison before it fell on their heads, they were forgetting something. Or rather, someone. And yet, that one someone wasn't coming back.
"From the sounds of things, the Fairies are going to bring the prison down," Hades said as he looked off into the darkness around them. "Seems we wrapped things up all right. So, where we we, Poseidon?"
It was then Poseidon felt the feeling of his trident being forced into his chest, the prongs driving through his bones and into his internal organs. He groaned in pain and tried to move, but the trident had been driven through him and into the ground, keeping him in place.
"Sorry for holding you here so long, old friend," Hades said with a smirk on his face. "After all, I wanted to see if you'd come up with any sort of plan to defeat me. Turns out you didn't though. You really came in here just to get killed by me huh?" Poseidon grunted angrily and pulled his hands up weakly to try and pull the trident up, but it was in vain. It was too deeply embedded inside of him.
"You'll...Pay for this..." Poseidon hissed as he spat blood out of his mouth.
"Will I?" Hades asked as he stared down at him. "Interesting hypothesis, but let me tell you what's actually going to happen."
Hades bent down, grabbed Poseidon by the shoulder, and used all his strength to lift him up. The trident still embedded in the floor beneath him caused some tension, but before long his body gave way.
Poseidon's body was ripped upwards along the trident, the rest of the prongs driving through his body, and then the staff as well. Now he was stuck in an awkward bent position, on his feet and yet totally supported by the trident and Hades' grip.
"Here's what is actually going to happen across the next few weeks," Hades said, staring deep into Poseidon's soul. "The Fairies have taken back their precious other half, so now they have two. But what to do about that? Will they want to put her back together or keep them apart? They'll want to put her back together. Which means what, Poseidon?"
"..."
"It means they'll go after Zoka and Ruli. And there's more than one thing wrong with that. See, my dear Poseidon, there's a few problems with that. One, Zoka and Ruli will be revealed. Their hand in the resurrection of Nashi Dragneel will be shown, and the rest of the Demon Lords will focus their sights on them! Yes, the other ten will see them as the enemy who broke their laws, no matter how incorrect that may be. Zoka and Ruli will be given no choice but to take refuge with their takeover wizards, and then they can be found and put to use to save Nashi Dragneel. Oh, you may ask, what is the other problem?"
"Go to hell," Poseidon replied weakly, listening to his own blood dripping onto the floor.
"Well the other problem is this; What will happen once Fairy Tail puts Nashi back together again? What happens when both halves become whole again? Certainly that will be the end of it. My plan foiled, Nashi saved, things go back to normal? Wrong!"
Hades grabbed Poseidon by the side of his head and forced him to look at him as he felt his vision fading.
"The Demon Lords have looked after the human afterlife for a millennia," Hades said, "They have served Ankhseram since time immemorial as guardians to the afterlife. So they won't take kindly to a soul leaving! Yes, they'll come for her. They won't let Nashi Dragneel live on this earth after she's passed away once already! What is dead may never return, Poseidon!"
"...What are you saying, you madman?" Poseidon asked weakly as his felt himself fading away. "Are you betting on the Demon Lords to destroy Fairy Tail? Is that your endgame?"
"My endgame?" Hades asked. "My endgame? My endgame is something your slow mind could never comprehend. But allow me to tell you a story, Poseidon. A story long forgotten by all men and women. A story as old as our existence as humans. The creation story of our kind is known to all, of course. That Ankhseram created our world and us, along with other Gods in order to inherit aspects to us. Chronos as the God of Time, for instance. However, he and his kind are not the same as those like the 18 Yakuma Battle Gods, Poseidon. They are different from you. You who take on the names of the old Gods and act almighty. You, who would disrespect the creators of all time and space by acting as them!"
It took a second or two for Hades to relax after this, explosions resounding in the silence around them.
"Yes, true Gods are beings of endless power. Who knows how many times Ankhersam split his world-creating power to create the other Gods? How many Gods are there, Poseidon? Nobody can truly know. However, I know of one. I know of one lost to the ages, one who disagreed with Ankhseram and as such was forgotten to the people he was supposed to look after. Have you ever heard the name Zomrus?"
"...No..."
"Ah, see? Not even you, an impersonator of God, know his name. Allow me to enlighten you to his story, Poseidon. Zomrus is to Ankhseram was death is to life; the other half. Zomrus is his equal, his brother. Where Ankhseram gave birth to the universe and all things in it, Zomrus was tasked with the other half; of the eventual death of the things Ankhseram brought to the world. Too look after them as they passed into the next existence. Ankhseram is not the God of Life and Death. He is only the God of Life. Zomrus is the God of Death."
"..."
"Yes, an excellent question Poseidon!" Hades laughed, "why is it such an important figure has been forgotten?! Why is it Zomrus' name is only spoken in hushed whispers by those defilers at Zentopia?! I'll tell you why, Poseidon; he was bested. You see, many years ago, so long in fact that almost no written records exist, Zomrus and Ankhseram came into conflict about how to look after humanity. It isn't known what the two truly fought about or what battlefield they fought on, but what is known is that Zomrus was bested by his brother and his power stripped from him. Stripped of him twelve times over, in fact! It is here the Demon Lords first see existence in the passages of our religious beliefs. What happened is obvious, is it not Poseidon? Ankhseram was forced to strip his brother of all his power, and instead hand it over to twelve new creations; the Demon Lords. Yes, it would not be ridiculous to call the Demon Lords Gods! And yet we do not. Why? Because Ankhseram was afraid, Poseidon! He was afraid of another battle with another God! So in order to prevent it, he did not make the Demon Lords Gods! He instead made them vessels of a true God's power, vessels that could not reproach him, for they lacked the strength! And the same can be said for all other Gods! No other God ever same close to him or Zomrus in strength so that Ankhseram could not be tested!"
Poseidon did not have to strength of mind or body to ask any important questions. And yet, still one bubbled to the surface.
"Hades..." He whispered weakly, "...who are you?" Hades just watched Poseidon quietly as the prison began to tumble around them.
"I am a reckoning," he whispered, his voice so low and bone chilling it managed to scare Poseidon as he died slowly in his hands. "I am that which will bring change to this world. I will destroy the order Ankhseram has put in place. Am I betting on the Demon Lords to destroy Fairy Tail, Poseidon? No. Quite the opposite, actually. I'm betting on Fairy Tail."
Poseidon felt his eyes widening.
"The aspects of death will be destroyed," Hades said, "Ankhseram's order will be tested. And when the time comes, when what has been asked of me comes to pass, a new world will rise from the ashes. A world of order. Yes, the one guild who has defied even the darkest wizard of all time and the dragon that consumed all will bring about the end of Ankhseram's world! An end to human freedom! AN END TO THIS HELL!"
He brushed his thumb across Poseidon's numb cheek at this, smiling at him.
"It is a pity, brother, you will not live to see it. You will die here, in this hell, alone. Goodbye, Poseidon. May the waves guide you to brighter shores."
Hades turned and left. He left Poseidon there, impaled by his own trident, unable to fall to the ground and unable to save himself. Poseidon did not have the strength to struggle, the strength to fight. Hades wasn't human. Whatever power he held, it was inhuman.
"Hades..." He struggled weakly. "Hades...! Is Zomrus...?!"
He gritted his teeth at this angrily, clenching his bloody fists.
"Is Zomrus the King of prophecy, Hades?! Is he the one Pythia speaks of?! HADES?!"
There was no response. The room around him was dark. There was no one else there. Hades had left.
He was all alone in the dark.
Never ending.
Blinding.
Poseidon felt engulfed by the darkness. Hades' plan had worked. Fairy Tail had taken away the key. The Demon Lords would move, and in turn Hades came closer and closer to his endgame.
"my endgame is something your slow mind could never comprehend."
...Perhaps not, Hades...But the least I can do, is attempt to pass on what I learned to those who can...
Ever so weakly, so slowly that be barely felt like he was moving, Poseidon lifted two fingers to his temple and initiated a telepathic connection.
"Poseidon?" Pythia's voice came, her voice shaky. "What's the matter?" Poseidon took a shaky breath at this, clearing his throat.
"Pythia," he breathed, "I...I'm dying. I don't have long...Please hear my words. There is no time for crying." He could barely hear her sobs on the other end, but he did hear an affirmative sound, so he continued. "Hades...He attempts to disrupt the natural order. I cannot speak for certain, but he talks of a forgotten God named Zomrus...The opposite of Ankhersam, a God of Death. This Zomrus may be the King you see in your visions...Hades talks of ending Ankhseram's time..."
"Poseidon, p-please just hold on a little, we can send someone to aid you and-"
"There is no aiding me..." Poseidon hissed as he spat blood. "I have minutes at best, Hades bested me...Hear my words, Pythia. You must find out more about Zomrus. You have to stop Hades from...From...From putting an end to the way of the world..."
"Poseidon please-!"
"...Pythia, we have been so foolish..." Poseidon hissed, "all this time, acting like we had all...all the answers...We deserve all the pain he have felt...It's only fair..."
"Hiroka!" Had she used his real name? Ah, what did it matter. It wasn't important.
"Pythia, you must...Hear this next part clearly as well...Take whatever you learn or find about Zomrus...To Fairy Tail...You must allow them to...to help you...They are being used for this plan...Pythia, you must..."
"Hiroka! Hiroka, please! Just hold on...Just...hold...Hirok...ka..."
Poseidon had long since grown unable to hear her. His fingers had fallen from his temple to hang limp out at his sides, his eyes staring at the dark roof of the pitch black void around him.
Poseidon was dead.
And with him, Hades was once against the only person alive with the knowledge he had shared with him.
Natsu was waiting by the portal. He could hear the prison collapsing around him, but Gray had not returned with Nashi and Luna. Laxus was waiting next to him silently, both just staring out into the rubble as it collapsed.
"Just about out of time," Laxus said warily.
"I know," Natsu said, "but he's coming. I know he is."
Smell him yet?"
"Just his residual scent from earlier. Both men grew silent again, and Natsu stared hard at the rubble around them. The only reason the floor beneath them even existed was that Ultear had created it before she jumped back through the portal. The ice was too strong to be broken by the rubble, but even so, the prison wasn't looking good.
Natsu was snapped out of his thoughts when he smelled Gray. A second later, he saw the man limping across a boulder in his path down below their platform, an icy prison in tow and ice around his leg. Without waiting, Natsu jumped down to his friend and caught him before he fell.
"You look like hell," he told Gray as he hoisted the man upright. Gray laughed.
"Your daughter shattered my knee," he said flatly, "I was taking it easy on her." Natsu let out a weak chuckle as he looked towards the two frozen girls.
"Had to freeze them both, huh?" He wondered aloud. Gray nodded.
"Couldn't get a clear shot, Luna was holding her down," he answered. "Now shut up and let's get out of here." Nodding and looking back up towards the ice, Natsu kicked off the ground and landed softly on the platform a few seconds later, all three in tow. Handing off the icy statues of his daughters to Laxus to push through the portal, Natsu helped Gray limp through. As they reappeared in the basement of the guild with their friends, the portal closed behind them.
Tartarus was once again only accessible through the portal.
"You're back!" Drake exclaimed as a smile grew on his face. "And you got Nashi back!"
"Nothing but the best results around here," Gray said with a wince.
"Are you okay, Dad?" Ultear asked, rushing to her father's side.
"Of course I am," Gray replied, "just got a little banged up in the fight is all."
"Dad, you're knee-!"
"I said a little banged up," Gray said, "no big deal."
"Shut up, Gray," Laxus said pointedly, "Wendy is waiting upstairs for anyone injured. Ultear, get him there." Ultear nodded and took her father from Natsu, helping him up the stairs and away from everyone else.
"Looks like we cleared this mission pretty easily," Elise said with her arms crossed, "no one else even looks hurt."
"They were expecting us," Drake replied, "Hell, they probably let us get away too."
"Those 'Children of Nyx' didn't put up much of a fight, either," Erza said with a hand on her chin.
"Speaks more about you than them, Mom," Simon replied.
"Speaking of Children of Nyx," Natsu said as he looked around, "where did our new friends go?"
"They're gone," Mest replied from across the basement, arms crossed as he leaned against the wall. "As soon as you guys started coming back through the portal, both of them got enveloped by some dark magic. Disappeared right in front of me."
"It's true," Simon said, "I saw it happen." Natsu didn't like that. All it did was reinforce the idea that Hades had planned all of this.
"Where's Poseidon?" Drake asked suddenly.
Silence came across the group at this as they all looked around, all coming to the realisation their impromptu ally was missing.
"You don't think he used us as a way to get to Hades to join him, do you?" Elise asked, Drake shaking his head slowly.
"No, I heard him," he said. "His anger and blood lust were real. He really did want to kill Hades."
"So that mean's he's dead, then," Erza surmised, "Because if he wasn't, he would have come back after hearing Drake's message."
"Who cares?" Gajeel demanded as he chewed on a screw. "That bastard didn't side with us out of good will, he sided with us to get to Hades. I'm willing to bet if he could, he'd go right back to being our enemy."
Natsu wasn't sure if what Gajeel had said was true but, to some degree, he felt bad for Poseidon. Even after all that had happened, from what Drake and the others had said, The Olympians had thought they were the good guys. Poseidon going out the way he probably did, alone and suffering, must have been horrible.
He deserved it, sure, but that didn't make it any easier.
"What do we do with these two?" Elise asked, gesturing to the statues of Natsu's daughters.
"Gray's the only one who can undue the ice," Laxus said, "so the best we can do is get them to a safe location for him to do so. Which basically means they're staying down here for the time being. As for the rest of you, go home and get some rest. You did great work today, even if Hades scripted it. After we unfreeze them, we work on putting them back together." Everyone took Laxus' words to heart, going up the stairs to leave. Natsu, however, stopped by his daughter and looked Nashi in the eye, frowning at her frozen eye filled with rage. Reaching out, he stroked her cheek with his thumb.
"Just hold on, sweetheart," he said. "We'll make you whole again soon."
I dropped A LOT of important information here, didn't I? Initially I wasn't going to, until I realised not knowing the villains plan even a little was bad writing. I didn't exactly say it directly, but I implied a lot! What IS Hades after? Who is he really, hm? I hope you all enjoyed, leave a review! Let's try and get five!
Chapter 367: Both Halves