A/N: Episode 187.
Enjoy!
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE: CHANGE
Palace dining hall...
"And until that time came, we were in a prison." Future Lucy was saying.
"'That time'?" Happy quoted.
"Um, why did you come from the future, Lucy-san?" Wendy asked.
"In order to change a terrible future..."
"A terrible future?" Natsu repeated.
"What happened in your future?" Yukino questioned.
"Despair awaits in the very near future. A swarm of more than 10,000 dragons will attack this country. The city is burned down. The palace is destroyed. Many lives are lost." Future Lucy replied, leaving everyone in shock.
"What... the hell... is that?!" Natsu screamed out.
"Use your indoor voice!" Lily scolded.
"Over 10,000 dragons..." Mira muttered.
"Why would that happen?" Yukino asked.
"Oh my gosh!" Happy shrieked.
"Maybe it has something to do with the dragon graveyard?" Wendy guessed.
"I don't know." Carla said.
"It's unfathomable." Raden added.
"Oh my gosh!" Happy continued to freak out.
"That's annoying!" Lily told him in irritation.
"I wonder where they'll come from." Lucy said.
"Is it even possible for them to be lying in wait without being discovered?" Loke questioned.
"There are a lot of mountain ranges in Fiore where they could hide, so maybe..." Sebastian responded.
Natsu was holding a bunch of spears. "Anyway, we gotta stop wastin' time here and prepare for war!"
"We're going to fight?!" Lucy exclaimed.
"That'd be impossible!" Happy added.
"Everyone... You believe me?" Future Lucy asked in shock.
"Is it a lie?!" Natsu accused.
"No! But..." Future Lucy paused. "I didn't think anyone would believe something like this."
"Why would we doubt your words, Lucy?" Natsu asked.
Future Lucy glanced down and smiled slightly. "You're my future self, but that's pathetic! Have more trust in your friends!" Lucy scolded.
"I'm scolding myself?!" Future Lucy exclaimed. "But you're right..."
Carla thinks back to her vision. "Now it makes sense. The destroyed Mercurius, singing in the palace... No, that was Lucy crying and shouting! Crying? Why?" She recalled before walking up to Future Lucy. "Hey, what happened to us in the palace when the dragons came?"
Future Lucy glanced down and didn't reply. "Carla, I'll take a guess. Maybe we..." Wendy started to say.
"...d-died?"
"No..."
"We... died?" Happy teared up.
"Because I was with you? Bringing bad luck..." Yukino thinks to herself.
Future Lucy glanced down, recalling the dragons sprouting fire everywhere as she was buried under the debris.
"Natsu! Natsu!"
Someone's arm was shown as Lucy sobbed.
"I don't remember how many days passed. When I came to, I remembered Eclipse. I didn't know how to activate it, but I opened the Gate by instinct. I had faith in the possibility of going back in time. And then I really did go back to the past. July 4th, 791." Future Lucy explained.
"That's... so recent." Loke commented.
"With Eclipse, can you only go back to the recent past?" Mira asked.
"But the plan was to go back 400 years in the past and defeat Zeref..." Wendy reminded.
"I don't know. Part of it was broken, so maybe that's why." Future Lucy stated.
Arcadios was leaning on the wall, now conscious. "I see. She's the mysterious person from the future who advised the princess. But something's bothering me..." He thought.
"There are Lacrimas placed all throughout the city to film the Grand Magic Games. I want you to go underground to meet up with Jellal and his comrades." Future Lucy instructed.
"Jellal?" Natsu repeated.
"I told him everything. I'm sure he's developing a strategy right now."
"Developing a strategy?" Lucy quoted.
Future Lucy glanced down in shame. "I'm sorry. I didn't come from the future with an answer. I don't know how to keep all of this from happening." She confessed.
"As I thought..." Arcadios noted, thinking back to his conversation with Hisui. "Why? You're the one who sold the princess on Eclipse 2. And you arriving on the 4th is a lie, too. Why are you lying to your comrades?"
"I'm really sorry. It's like, why did I come here? Until today, I didn't know what to do, so I just wandered around the city." Future Lucy said.
"Nah. We'll do somethin'." Natsu promised, making Future Lucy glance up.
Natsu kneeled down, placing his hand on Future Lucy's head. "Thank you. You're doin' this for our future." He said, making Future Lucy tear up.
"I swear we'll change the future." Natsu told her.
"It's not all necessarily true?" Ultear quoted.
"You mean the Future Lucy is lying?" Meredy asked.
"Why go through all that trouble?" Ultear questioned.
"More than 10,000 dragons... Eclipse... Magic power... It just doesn't add up." Jellal explained.
"Then..." Meredy started to say.
"...she's purposely giving misinformation about the future?" Ultear finished.
"Are Lucy's words lies? Or is her entire existence a fiction?" Jellal asked.
Future Lucy currently had her hood up as the group was following her. "This way!" She instructed.
"I'm surprised you know the way!" Natsu confessed.
"I wanted to at least avoid a future where everyone is captured by the imperial army." Future Lucy explained.
"Makes sense." Lily commented.
"You must have studied the underground passages, huh?" Happy asked.
"I want to send up a flare soon." Mira informed.
"Especially since everyone must be worried about us." Wendy added.
The group finally made their way into the palace halls, the sound of royal guards were soon coming their way.
"There they are! The fugitives!"
"Capture them!"
"The imperial army? They were stationed here?!" Future Lucy exclaimed.
"How...?!" Lucy questioned.
Natsu cracked his knuckles. "Don't worry! If I can use magic, we won't get caught."
"That's right." Loke agreed.
"E-Excuse me!" Wendy shouted. "Arcadios-san isn't here!"
"Neither is Yukino!" Mira added.
"What?!"
"Why would they go off on their own?!" Lucy asked as her future self had a dark shadow casted on her face.
"I don't care about the knight, but I can't leave Yukino behind. I'll go back!" Mira claimed, turning around and heading towards the opposite direction.
"Mira!"
"Don't! We'll get separated!" Lucy shouted.
"Everyone, be careful!" Mira warned.
"Leave it to us. We're gonna..." Natsu started to say.
"Yeah." Loke and Sebastian agreed.
"...run through these guys!" Natsu, Sebastian, and Loke finished in unison as they got into a fighting stance.
"Get them!"
Natsu and Sebastian leaped into the air with their fists covered in flames, attacking some of the guards while Loke attacked some more.
"Mira-san..." Wendy thought worriedly.
"Yukino..." Lucy thinks to herself.
"I'll protect you, Carla." Happy claimed, holding up a stick.
"This uneasy feeling..." Carla had her paws to her head. "What should we do?!"
Jellal raised his head as him, Ultear, and Meredy all sensed it. "This magic..." Ultear muttered.
"I'm sure of it!" Meredy added.
"In the city..."
"Calm down. The Future Lucy has become caught up in battle. If Natsu and the others are with her, there's no need to panic." Jellal informed.
"Get back, Lucy!" Lily warned as he was in his Battle Form.
"I'm fine!" Lucy reassured.
Wendy threw some wind up in the air, attacking the guards.
"Even though they're just kids, they're damn strong!"
"Call the anti-magic unit!"
"You're not getting past us!" Loke claimed, kicking one of the guards as both Natsu and Sebastian threw back more royal guards.
Natsu and Sebastian suddenly got blasted by magic. "Direct hit! Ready waves two and three!"
"Was that magic?" Carla asked.
"Who are those guys?" Happy questioned. "Natsu!"
"Sebastian!" Raden called out in worry.
"The kingdom has a magic unit, too..." Carla muttered.
Natsu pats his back, smoke emitting from it. "That's a surprise."
Sebastian chuckled as he turned around. "You guys actually make a living with magic like that?"
"It didn't work!"
"Are those kids monsters?!"
"What should we do?!"
"Hi! Sorry I took so long!"
"Don't!"
"We weren't waiting for you!"
"Don't just come out on your own!"
"Who the hell are you?!" Natsu questioned.
"Sorry, sorry!" The dolphin apologized.
"Me? I'm the kingdom of Fiore's strongest magic soldier."
"That's going too far!" The dolphin exclaimed.
"What is this guy?" Lily asked. "A wizard? Not a Celestial Spirit?"
"They don't have people like him." Lucy responded.
"Time for punishment, isn't it, Princess?" Virgo questioned.
"I'm gonna go all out for the lovely Princess Hisui."
"Ball! Get it!" The dolphin said, moving through the guards.
"He's bowling over his allies?" Wendy asked.
"That guy's scary!" Happy exclaimed.
"In more ways than one..." Carla commented.
The dolphin guy crashed into Sebastian as Natsu moved out of the way. "You got some power there!" Sebastian claimed.
"I've got confidence in my physical strength!" The dolphin said.
"Is that so? Because you man there's exhausted!" Sebastian pointed out.
"Sorry! I can't..."
"You can't?!"
"All right!" Sebastian lits his fist on fire. "If you claim to be the strongest, then I'm gonna do my worst!"
"Okay! I'm waiting for it with open arms..." The guy was sweating.
"All that sweat!" The dolphin complained.
"Hellfire Dragon's Iron Fist!" Sebastian called out, punching the man-dolphin away and out of the palace.
"We tried!"
A/N: Another chapter is finished!
Thanks for reading!
~ Kaleb.