Chapter 29
Austin- No Warhammer factions here sadly. I entertained the idea of replacing Deliora with a Lord of Change or Bloodthirster or something else along those lines, but then I realized, that will actually be a really bad idea. Not only would they curb stomp everyone present, even Erza, all at once, but that would also actually force me to accelerate the story quite significantly. Because, even if Ur's Ice Shell drained the daemon of its powers, it won't die and instead go back to the realm of Chaos, where it'll inform the Chaos Gods of the Twilight Sisters, leading them to get curious and find out about Diederick/Archaon and things start to go to down real quick.
Also yeah, we will most definitely get a scene where the Sisters reveal where they come from and some of the Fairy Tail characters not understanding why certain factions are so powerful and feared initially until they see them in action. I mean, I'm pretty sure most people would laugh at the sight of a Skaven Doomwheel until it kills their friends or them with either its cannons or it running over them.
The Opportunist- Lokhir himself is eventually going to the Fairy Tail world when he discovers the Dreadwaters are there. Even if he doesn't know about them, Malekith would probably send someone there anyway because, you know, new slaves and potential ways to get an edge above the High Elves once it's discovered there's a way to travel into another world.
For the other arcs, the arc you're referring to is the Key to the Starry Sky Arc. Second, that's probably where Tzeentch's influence is going to come into play with Vilitch trying to start Chaos cults all over Fiore for Tzeentch. That is, of course, I still intend to use him for this role and he survives the Tenrou Island arc.
Naestra
Gwindalor
Night
"Hurry, Gwindalor! We must get to Galuna Island quickly before our compatriots are harmed by whatever dangers reside there." Requested Naestra as both she and Arahan was riding upon the back of Gwindalor. The great eagle screeched in response before picking up his speed. While this was happening, Arahan was thinking up of a way to hurt Natsu for this recent offense he did.
After arming themselves, the two went to the Fairy Tail Guild for more information on Galuna Island. As the master wanted them to go immediately after Natsu, they had to make work with scraps of knowledge that may or may not be outdated.
Apparently, the island and its inhabitants were suffering from some sort of curse for some time and they requested for a mage to remove it. It sounded small-time and not worth the efforts of an S-class mage, but since it was an S-class job, Naestra figured it was more dangerous than what she garnered about it so far. As a result of this lack of knowledge, both she and Arahan decided to bring their special arrows into the mix.
Along with regular arrows, Naestra and Arahan's bows, the Talons of Dawn and Duck, respectively, were able to fire special arrows made by the legendary Elven smith, Daith, master of Torgovann.
The Talon of Dawn fired special bolts of light that can melt through both armor and hide to sear the flesh beneath. Nothing short of magically infused Chaos armor or similar magical defenses were able to defend one from these bolts. It's said that those slain by this bow were able to heal those that the wielder deems allies.
The Talon of Dusk, on the other hand, fired arrows that were crafted from the spirit husks of Athel Loren's bitterest Dryads. Once loose, these arrows splinter into volleys of poisonous thorns that seek the enemies of Athel Loren, which were usually those that the wielder deemed a threat, aka Arahan.
Normally the Sisters were able to use these arrows/bolts without worry, but without Daith, these types of ammo were finite and had to be used sparingly. Naestra believed her bow had the ability to summon her special arrows on its own, she never actually tried before, something she cursed herself for, so she was careful with using up her special arrows.
For Arahan's bow, however, it was a surety that they can't reproduce the Talon of Dusk's special arrows as they didn't have access to the Dryads of Athel Loren anymore. So, Arahan, much to her annoyance, was forced to be extra careful with her arrows, lest she may find a day where she had no access to her special arrows and was forced to use just regular arrows, which they used since they began working with Fairy Tail.
They have tried to find arrows in Earthland that had similar effects to their special arrows to no avail. It seemed that magical arrows were in very short demand as no mage would ever use a bow it seemed. Thus, they had to make do with regular arrows. Not that they weren't deadly without their arrows, it's just that it made them less efficient than they normally were. On this day, however, they may need to use them once more. So, with both the knowledge of what Galuna Island is and what they need to bring, they went back home to grab Gwindalor and made their way for the island for the Great Eagle was faster than anything in Fiore. Beyond magical means of course.
"I'm thinking that we tie the idiot up and his cat in the middle of nowhere with plates of their favorite meals right in front, just out of reach." Suggested Arahan, referring to potential punishments for Natsu and Happy for stealing the S-class job in the first place.
"Arahan, that's far too inhumane." Said Naestra, knowing that the two needed to be punished for stealing the job and then going on it without permission, but it was too late to judge what is an appropriate punishment for it all. "Besides, Natsu's punishment is up to the Guild Master, not us." Arahan rolled her eyes at that, annoyed with her sister's compassion. Before they could argue with each other, Gwindalor screeched out, notifying them that he spotted Galuna Island or at least something that he thought was Galuna Island. Ordering Gwindalor to land on the beach of the island, Naestra and Arahan readied themselves for a fight as their mount made his way to the beach.
Upon landing on the beach, all three stopped for a moment as they felt something wrong the moment they landed.
"There's something afoot with this Island." Said Naestra as she looked around. "I can sense it."
"Yes." Said Arahan in agreement as she also looked over the island. A similar feeling waved over Arahan the moment that they landed on the island. "This place. It feels…wrong somehow." At first, both the Sisters thought, in worry, that it was the taint of Chaos, but then they realized this wasn't anything like that at all.
Lands tainted with Chaos were usually much more corrupted as the chaotic energies of the Chaos realm seep through to the physical realm and mutate anything it comes in contact with. If this island truly was tainted with Chaos, then they would see mutations on everything here.
Depending on the Chaos God that is most dominant on this island, the trees would be gone or decaying into nothingness. The skies become dark or bright blue and the water would become murky with blood or pus. In other words, unless a magic spell had been placed on this island to conceal the taint of Chaos, there was no possible way for Chaos to be here. Besides, the Sisters, having been used to fighting against the Forces of Chaos during their time in Athel Loren's service, can tell when the land was tainted with Chaos. Even if it's only a small amount. So they would know if the land was tainted by the Chaos Gods. No, what was affecting the island was something different. Before either of them could wonder what it was, their answer came in the form of the moon turning purple.
"What?" Said Arahan as she looked at the purple moon, surprised a bit. "What is that?"
"Some sort of magic." Said Naestra, remembering that the moon was normal while they were on their way here. "That means something magical is behind what's happening here. We have to find Natsu and the others well as those that put out the job in the first place." Arahan had to agree with that assessment. Facing an unknown enemy, it was best to unite with your known allies before facing them. With that, the two looked at Gwindalor and ordered him to stay hidden and only come out when they summon him or if he felt they needed his assistance. Heeding their instructions, the Great Eagle stayed on the beach while the sisters got off him and went deeper into the island.
Walking through the island's forested area, the twins had their bows out, ready to attack whatever on this island that would dare to attack them. As they traversed the forest, they found that nothing seemed to be out of place compared to an ordinary forest, but they still kept on guard, knowing just how easy it was to kill someone when their guard was down if they saw that nothing was out of the ordinary. Eventually, the two found a wooden palisade. They spotted a few sentries on top of the palisade but were wielding spears instead of bows. In addition, to their shock, the sentries looked like monsters. Humanoid, but monster looking all the same.
Not knowing if they were allies or not, the Sisters stayed behind a few trees before they began to eavesdrop on the sentries.
"You heard about the mages from Fairy Tail?" Asked one sentry to another.
"Yeah, thank god help has finally arrived." Said the other sentry, turning towards the other sentry. "I can't wait to be finally rid of this curse. I don't want to remain a monster any longer. I want to have my normal human body and face again. Same with my wife and children." As the sentries spoke with each other, the Twilight Sisters realized that these two were not hostile and were, in fact, the clients that had requested the Galuna Island job in the first place.
With that settled, Naestra and Arahan removed themselves from the forest and made themselves known.
"Pardon me!" Yelled Naestra, getting the attention of the sentries. "But these Fairy Tail mages. Wouldn't one of them happen to be a pink-haired mage with fire magic with a blue cat that speaks?" Upon hearing that, the sentries, whether foolishly trusting them or not, nodded in confirmation. "Then may you please open your gate? We're also members of the same guild?"
"More Fairy Tail members? Man, talk about luck." Said one of the sentries before going over to the mechanism that lifted the gates. Soon, the gate to allow entry through the palisade opened, allowing the sisters to enter through and see the village that was beyond it.
Walking through the village, the two saw the various village inhabitants looking very much like the sentries on top of the palisade, all of whom were looking at them within their eyes and wonder. They all also looked rather monster-like as well. Though they still were human-shaped and didn't have any appendages, some of them were still quite grotesque to look at. It took Arahan's discipline and Naestra being close at hand to prevent the white-haired elf from attacking and killing the first monster-like person that got within spear range of her. Eventually, Naestra asked one of the villagers politely where the Fairy Tail members were. When they pointed to a nearby hut, Naestra thanked them and left quickly with Arahan in tow. After entering the hut, they spotted Natsu, Happy, Lucy, and, to their surprise, Gray all about to go to sleep. Upon spotting the sisters, Lucy squealed out in surprise.
"Oh no!" Yelled Lucy as she saw both Arahan and Naestra entering their hut. Normally she would be ecstatic upon seeing them, especially Naestra, but this time she was horrified because she and Natsu were had taken an S-class job illegally and there would no doubt be consequences when they get back to the guild.
Gray had been sent after the first and they were lucky that he decided to just tag along with them instead of turning them in, though that could be because Natsu knocked him out and dragged him along with them, forcing him to participate in order to leave because they lost their driver through mysterious circumstances. But with Naestra and Arahan, they had no chance.
Not only were they some of the most skilled fighters in Fairy Tail, but they struck fear in both Natsu and Gray and she can see it when they both were shaking in fear upon them, especially when they saw the death glare from Arahan. According to Mirajane, before Erza came, she was the bane of every single troublemaker in Fairy Tail. And to top it all off, even if both Gray and Natsu miraculously got rid of their fear of both sisters, they still would lose to them. She saw both Arahan and Naestra fight and she can honestly say that they can beat Natsu and Gray without breaking a sweat. Heck, she was sure they can win in a blink of an eye with how fast they can get out their bows, notch an arrow, and let it loose to kill something.
Gulping, Lucy spoke up to them, asking how they found them.
"We were told of what Happy did." Explained Naestra, disappointment clear in her voice. 'Although I expected Natsu to drag someone else into this, I didn't expect you Lucy. I'm disappointed." Lucy slumped down upon hearing that, making Natsu jump to her rescue.
"Hey, we just wanted to prove ourselves." Said Natsu as he got in front of both sisters, the fear gone monetarily so he can defend his friend. "That we got what it takes to be some of the greatest wizards in Fairy Tail."
"By breaking the rules of the guild?" Asked Naestra while shaking her head. "Natsu, I understand you wish to prove yourself, but this isn't the way to do it. Even if you accomplish this mission perfectly, you'll still be punished by the guild because of you taking this job illegally."
"But…" Arahan then interrupted Natsu.
"But nothing, fool." Said Arahan as she glared at Natsu. "You could have died with ease by undertaking a mission that you weren't clearly prepared for and, to make matters worse, you brought others along on this foolish endeavor that would have ended with their deaths too. I knew you were foolish, but this is beyond foolish." Natsu glared at Arahan at that and looked like he was about to fight her, consequences be damned, when Gray spoke up.
"Okay, that's enough." Said Gray as he got up in his underwear. Catching everyone's attention, he spoke up again. "We can all agree that Natsu did something incredibly stupid and he'll likely suffer a big punishment for it because he's an idiot." Natsu glared at Gray and was about to say something when Arahan grabbed his shoulder tightly, causing him to flinch and look at her giving him a scary death glare that caused him to nearly soil his pants. "But, the fact the matter is, we're here now and we agreed to help the villagers. So, we got to help them."
"I see." Said Naestra with a frown. "And why, pray tell, did you decide to assist Natsu and not bring him back to the guildhall as Makarov instructed you to. If I recall, he ordered you to bring Natsu back along with whoever else he brought along this job." Gray sighed at that, embarrassed.
"Natsu pulled a fast one on me and knocked me out." Explained Gray, frustrated that he pulled a sucker punch on him so quickly. "Then we lost the guy that gave us a ride here and we're sort of stuck here. However, upon hearing the plight of the village here, I had to stay and help them."
"I see." Said Naestra with a frown. Realizing that Gwindalor won't be able to carry them all at once, Naestra began making a plan on how to get out of here. In the meantime, she asked Gray what the villagers wanted from them in the first place. Since she and Arahan were skilled enough to do S-class jobs, perhaps they can do the job instead of Natsu. Depending on what the villagers want, of course.
"Well, I'm sure you noticed the purple moon on your way here as well as the demon-like villagers." Said Gray. Upon seeing Naestra nod, he continued. "Well, it looks like that's the reason the villagers look like demons in the first place. Somehow the moon made them like that, and they want us to destroy it." Upon hearing that, Naestra widen her eyes a bit in shock.
"Destroy the moon?" Asked Naestra, causing Gray to nod. "Are you certain that the moon is the cause of the…mutations on the villagers?"
"According to them, it is." Said Gray. "The moon used to be normal but some years ago it changed into what it is now and it's affecting the villagers, turning them into what you both saw when you got here. It may seem harmless so far, but some of the villagers lost their minds upon being turned into what they are and they had to be put down."
"Really?" Asked Naestra, her tone full of sympathy and pity. "And there was nothing that can be done to help them?" Gray just shook his head at that.
"No, the village elder had to kill his own son when he lost his mind." Said Gray, causing Naestra to feel a pang of shock and sympathy for the elder. "That's probably when they sent out the job request. They don't want any more of their people to lose their minds to this curse and be forced to kill their loved ones as a result. So, that's why I decided to help Natsu out. To end their suffering and before anyone else has to die." He then looked Arahan in the eye, causing her to glare at him. Feeling a wave of fear surge through him, Gray powered through it due to the self-righteousness in his veins right now.
"And you both should too." Said Gray, causing Arahan's glare to intensify. "Not is it the right thing to do, but also because we shouldn't let these people suffer any more than they already have. That's not the way Fairy Tail works and I don't think either of you wants these people to suffer. We'll accept the consequences for going on this quest and I'll also accept the consequences for failing to get Natsu back, but please. Help us lift this curse on these people. I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if even one more villager died because we couldn't help them. So please let us help them." Though Arahan looked like she wanted to hurt Gray, Naestra looked at Gray and saw the pleading from his eyes. She then looked outside the hut to see some of the villagers crying out because of their appearance. She also saw some children crying out as well with their parents comforting them. Looking back at Gray and then at the villagers, Naestra spoke up.
"Very well." Said Naestra, surprising everyone with her announcement. "Arahan, release Natsu."
"Sister!" Yelled Arahan, causing Naestra to look at her. Whatever she saw in her sister's eyes caused Arahan to scoff before letting go of Natsu, causing him to wince and rub his shoulder in pain. After that, Naestra looked at all the teens and cat before her and spoke up again.
"We'll help you all in lifting this island's curse." Said Naestra, causing Lucy to smile. "We'll even let you all assist in lifting the curse." That caused Natsu and Gray to smile as well, feeling their spirits be lifted at that announcement. "However, that doesn't mean you're all off the hook. Punishment will be given to you all, with the exception of Gray, for stealing that S-class job as well as going on it. Understood?" Natsu frowned at that, but Lucy spoke up.
"Okay." Said Lucy, a bit afraid of what the punishment would be. Gray said that it could lead them to be kicked out of the guild and she didn't want that. She loved the guild and wouldn't want to be kicked out of it. "We understand."
"Natsu?" Asked Naestra, looking at the pink-haired dragonslayer, who grumbled a bit, not happy with all this before nodding. "Good. Now, obviously, none of us are powerful enough to destroy the moon, not to mention the consequences of destroying it would be devastating. So, we need to scout out the island. Perhaps there is something amidst its jungles that can assist in removing the curse from the villagers."
"Makes sense." Said Lucy. "We were going to do that tomorrow. This island used to worship the moon. Perhaps there's something on the island that the villager doesn't know of that can help us in lifting the curse." Naestra nodded at that before ordering Lucy to tell her everything she knew about Galuna Island while also telling everyone else to get some sleep. While everyone was doing this, Arahan glared at her sister, which Naestra ignored as she spoke to Lucy. Shaking her head, Arahan left to go scouting, figuring that it was better than doing nothing but shaking her head at what her sister dragged them into.
"Typical Naestra." Thought Arahan as she left the village. "Always so naïve. So good-willed and kind-hearted that it's near sickening. Still, it's good to be on another S-class assignment. The last one left me craving for more. And it would feel good to use my old arrows again. It's been far too long since I've been able to use them. *Giggles internally with sadistic glee*"