You Cannot Break a Broken Dream
It was half an hour to midnight and the streets of Crocus were still as crowed and noisy as the time Fairy Tail had arrived to the city. No, Macao Conbolt was mistaken; it was much busier and louder than he could ever remember. People flooded the main roads and the plazas, out for a stroll to gander at the many different attractions offered only at night in celebration of the start of the Grand Magic Games, partying at the various open pubs that blared loud, obnoxious music, or simply walking around to wait until midnight was upon them in anticipation of what may be the start of the Preliminary Event. Above, the starry night sky was alight with fireworks that have been going non-stop throughout the day.
Normally the former Fourth Master of Fairy Tail would be drinking a few beers and sharing a cigar with Wakaba at this hour on the night before the Games. However, this year was different; he had two boys to look after who were both supposed to be back at Humming Way an hour and a half ago. Ten o'clock. Macao had specifically told Alzack and Bisca to let Romeo know that his father was expecting him and Bacon to be back by that time. And not. A minute. Late.
When the clock had struck ten, Macao wanted to leave the inn, find the boys, and drag them back, but Wakaba had convinced him to give the kids a little more time.
"It's the first time your son's having fun here. Let them be," Wakaba had said with a grin while handing his friend a fresh bottle of ice-cold beer. After that, Macao drank three more bottles to calm his anxiety.
But booze could only suppress so much when a father was constantly worried for his boys. "That Romeo… I'm going punish that boy. This time I'm not going back on my word!" Macao growled as he shoved his way between a drunken group loitering in the middle of the sidewalk.
He had promised to ground his son for life for taking Bacon and disappearing with Levy's team during their three-month absence; he had ranted and raged and cried and worried for the safety of his two boys, losing some more hair in the process. It had been a stressful three months and when he saw Romeo and Bacon step through the double doors of Fairy Tail along with Natsu's and Levy's group, all of Macao's anger had instantly dissolved and Romeo's harsh punishment was soon forgotten.
This time however, Macao was going to be strict. Crocus was a large city full of people from all over Fiore. There were an endless number of possible dangers lurking around. Including a dark entity that Fairy Tail had been forewarned about.
With Cana's ominous reading about Bacon's future and the extra precautions Master had taken to protect the young swordsman, Macao had every right to be concerned at the moment. Not only was he responsible for looking after his own son, the father had to make sure Bacon was safe as well. Bacon was more than just a foster child in Macao's care, he had become a second son to the man and a brother to Romeo. And having to watch over two sons more than doubled the stress for a single parent.
Macao heard Wakaba chuckle behind him as the smoker kept in pace with his fervent strides.
"I'm telling ya, you're turning your hair gray for nothing. Those kids will be fine," said Wakaba. "They're with Wendy and she's likely with her team at the Honeybone with the curfew in place."
"They better be." It was a logical assumption. A father could only hope it was true. But ever since the clock rang ten and neither of his boys passed through the door of Humming Way, Macao had a very bad feeling gnawing in the pit of his gut telling him that something was wrong. He quickened his pace to the point that he was barreling through every living soul in his path.
It was about five to twelve by the time Macao and Wakaba found the Honeybone Lodge located in a thankfully less busy area. The father took a short moment to catch his breath as he gazed upon the humble, two-storey building decorated with cutesy skeletal heads that housed Natsu's team. Every paned window was lit and Macao could hear the familiar voices of his guild coming from inside through one of the open windows on the second floor.
Macao charged through the front, stained-glass door and was greeted by an empty reception desk with a grinning statue of a skull-faced bee sitting on top. Plush red carpet softened his steps as he made his way to the wooden staircase at the left of the desk. Lacrima lamps mounted to the walls lit the way up the creaky steps. At the top was a short hallway covered in the same red carpet. There were two doors on either side with one wide open where a conversation could be heard.
Macao went straight towards the open room just in time to hear Erza say, "Wendy hasn't come back yet. Maybe she's with–"
"What?!" Macao exclaimed as he barged right in, giving almost everyone a start.
Happy screamed and took to the air in surprise, nearly bashing his head on the ceiling. "Macao?! You scared us!" the Exceed cried out. He flew in a circle before dropping back on the carpeted floor, right beside a large case of bottled cola.
"What's the matter?" Gray asked, quick to notice the panic on the older man's face.
Macao briefly scanned the room, seeing only Natsu, Happy, Erza, Lucy, Gray, Elfman, and Lisanna, and all were giving him questioning or concerned looks. "Wendy's not here?! Where is she?! And the boys?!" he demanded more than asked.
Erza, dressed in her red pajamas, stood abruptly onto her bare feet from her bed. Her expression turned serious when she met the man's gaze. "She's not with you? They didn't show up at your inn?" she questioned.
Macao shook his head. "No! We waited for them but neither of them returned!"
"We thought the boys would be here… with Wendy," Wakaba added as he moved to stand beside his frantic partner. His bearded face was grim as he bit hard on the butt of his cigar.
Lucy furrowed her brow. "We haven't seen them at all. It's almost midnight too! We can't leave to search for them…" she said, glancing worriedly at the clock hanging on the wall above someone's empty bed.
Natsu cocked his head slightly and shortly hummed. "D'you think they got lost? This place is pretty huge," he asked.
"No, Romeo knows his way around," Macao replied.
"And Carla's with them too!" Happy added.
"Could something have happened to them?" Lisanna suggested with a deep frown, looking between each group member.
Hearing that made the bad feeling in Macao's gut worsen by tenfold. It was like he had swallowed a giant block of lead. He felt a strong hand grip his shoulder, stopping him from breaking out in a full-fledged panic attack.
"I'm sure they're fine. Maybe having too much fun that they forgot the time," Wakaba tried to assure, his words directed more towards his old friend.
No. Something definitely happened… Macao wanted to say but was interrupted by the clock when both of its hands pointed at twelve. All heads turned towards the sound.
Dong dong dong… Twelve times the clock rang upon the wall, the noise silencing all within the room.
"It's now midnight…" Lucy murmured after the last ring of the bell. She and her team stared at the clock in anticipation, holding their breaths.
Natsu quietly huffed, "So what's gonna happen now?"
As if on cue, a loud, male, sing-song voice erupted from somewhere outside, the sound amplified as if spoken into a microphone so all the people in Crocus could hear; "To all the guilds wanting to take part in the Grand Magic Games! Good morning!"
Macao horribly cringed, recognizing the annoying voice that belonged to Mato, the pumpkin-headed announcer of the Grand Magic Games. He had grown to loathe the freak's enthusiastic tone over the past seven years. Especially when Mato announced another loss or disappointing defeat for Fairy Tail.
Macao's younger companions however, were more enthused by the sudden brightness coming from outside. They ran out onto the wide balcony to see what was going on and spotted the giant, transparent projection of the pumpkin man atop a high, visible tower, lit up by spotlights. Some gasped in awe while others were amazed by the spectacle.
At this point, the fireworks had stopped brightening the city sky for the main attraction has finally begun.
"In order to reduce the number of participating teams from one-hundred and thirteen down to eight, we will now begin the Preliminary Event!" the announcer continued, pointing a finger into the air.
"So it's another midnight preliminary," Wakaba remarked, remaining in the room with Macao. He kept a firm hand on the other man's shoulder. "What sort of crazy event will it be this year?"
"A hundred and thirteen teams?! There's that many guilds in Fiore?!" Natsu shouted, leaning over the ledge of the balcony as if wanting the pumpkin man to answer him.
This year they revised the rules, Macao thought glumly. Not only that, the number of guilds kept increasing every year and that increased the challenge in participating in the Games. Macao had high hopes for Natsu's team to succeed, however with Wendy missing, he wasn't sure how far they will make it through the Preliminary Event with only four members present.
He waited anxiously to hear the details of the challenge;
"The rules are simple!" the pumpkin man sang, dancing upon the tower, "You will now compete with each other! The goal is the tournament grounds, Domus Flau!"
Suddenly, there was a loud clunk coming from the bottom of the main floor of the Honeybone Lodge and then the building began to move, throwing everyone off-balance. Macao fell against the doorframe alongside Wakaba while everyone else braced against the floor or grabbed onto something stable. The grinding of mechanical gears and metal parts shifting could be heard over the screaming, yelping, and outcries coming from Macao's guild mates. It felt like the entire lodge was being thrown into the air as it was lifted on some sort of mechanism.
"The first eight teams to reach Domus Flau will participate in the Games!" Mato shouted over the noise. "You will all start at your designated lodgings!"
The Honeybone Lodge violently jerked to a stop, knocking almost all of Fairy Tail off their feet. Macao grimaced from the pain in his newly bruised knees and grumbled a curse under his breath. Wakaba was groaning on the floor beside him, rubbing his sore chin.
"Look!" someone shouted, catching the older men's attentions.
Appearing before the balcony were large planks of wood that flew up from somewhere below and lined up to form a straight path leading away. Each board was suspended stiffly in midair by a strong, magical force, inviting Team Fairy Tail to step forward and begin what they have come here to do.
"There are no restrictions to the magic you can use!" the annoying pumpkin resumed his explanation. "As long as your team is one of the top eight, you will qualify to participate in the Grand Magic Games. However, if all five of your team members do not reach the goal, your team will still lose!"
Natsu, Erza, Gray, and Lucy exchanged worried glances. "Damn! What should we do?!" Natsu exclaimed.
"Further more! We take no responsibilities for any lives lost in the Grand Magic Games Preliminary Event! The Sky Labyrinth! "
In a dazzling flash of colourful lights, a gigantic, spherical object appeared high above the capital on the western edge. Floating in the air and tied down by numerous cords attached to the many clock towers built within Crocus and the rocky cliffs of the tall mountains that held Domus Flau, the object was about a fifth the size of the city. Macao gaped when he noticed that the internally lit-up sphere was composed of platforms, walls, towers, gates, moving parts, and many other structures situated in a twisting, complex maze-like pattern to give the miniature planet its name. This year's Preliminary Event blew the previous years' competitions out of the water in terms of difficulty and eye-catching flare.
Jaw hanging open, Natsu pointed at the Sky Labyrinth in bewilderment. "Whoa! The goal's in there?! We better hurry!"
Erza grabbed the end of the Dragon Slayer's scarf to force him back. "Wait! We can't leave yet. We need all five members of our team to reach the goal in order to qualify!"
Natsu frantically looked around the city from the side of the balcony. "Wendy! Where are you?!" he roared at the top of his lungs.
Elfman stepped forward and soundly smirked. "If Wendy's not here, then you got a man!" he said with pride. He grabbed Team Fairy Tail, holding a pair in each of his huge, muscular arms, and dashed straight for the magic bridge that would lead them to the Sky Labyrinth. "We'll switch members!"
"Brother?!" Lisanna cried out, sounding just as shocked as the four squirming individuals in the big man's grip.
"Guess we have no choice," said Gray. "We can't wait for Wendy any longer."
"Thanks, Elfman!" said Natsu with an eager grin.
"You can count on me!" Elfman replied as he started stomping on the wooden planks that did not shudder under the group's combined weight.
Erza managed to twist her head around to peer at Lisanna, Happy, Macao, and Wakaba. "You guys! Look for Wendy and the boys!" she yelled.
Macao nodded and gave his team a confident smile and a thumbs-up. "We'll find them! Leave it to us! Good luck!" he shouted, waving alongside an ecstatic Exceed. With Natsu's team now in the midst of the event, Macao turned his attention to the others around him. "Let's find those kids."
"Carla's not a kid," Happy corrected.
The man sighed as he started to leave the room in haste. "Right, she's an Exceed. Let's just hurry!"
"Calm down, Macao," said Wakaba, jogging right at the other man's heels. "Wendy might be on her way back here now that the preliminary has started."
"What if she's not?" Macao demanded, storming down the stairs two at a time. "What if something happened to her and the boys? It's not like her to miss out on something as important as this!"
During the times the young Dragon Slayer had stayed at his house to watch over Bacon, Macao had gotten to know her better. She was a shy, caring girl who only wanted nothing more but to bring happiness to her guild and friends. She hated to disappoint them. Being chosen to represent her guild in the Grand Magic Games was an honor – she had said so herself.
Happy gasped as he chased after the two men with Lisanna not far right behind. "Do you think someone wants Fairy Tail to lose? They might have done something to Wendy so we wouldn't qualify!" said the cat.
Macao gritted his teeth at the unnerving thought. Something like this had never happened before, where one member would suddenly go missing. Could it be true that one of the opposing guilds would go so far just to sabotage Fairy Tail? What damn reason would they have in doing so? Fairy Tail was the bottom rung of the ladder. There was nothing to gain in keeping Fairy Tail out of the Games. Unless they sought to further embarrass the guild that was already pitied and mocked by everyone. Unfortunate for whoever was responsible, Fairy Tail had an ace up their sleeve – one that Macao wasn't so fond of in the first place, but Master Makarov was persistent.
"Or maybe…" Lisanna's tone made Macao pause from opening the front door. "Could they be after Bacon? Whoever had harmed him may have returned and…"
"No. That's not likely," Macao replied sternly. The boy was hidden and protected by the gifts Master had given him. However, as much as Macao wanted to believe the young boy was safe from harm, it was still one of the awful possibilities that may have happened. His grip on the doorknob tightened. "We have to find them soon."
Everyone soundly agreed. Macao opened the door and instinctively cursed when his foot stepped on nothing but air. He had completely forgotten that they were thirty meters off the ground. Someone yanked him back inside before he could fall.
"How do we get down from here?!" he exclaimed, looking down at the distant road.
"I can fly," reminded Happy, jumping onto Wakaba's back.
"But you can only carry one person."
Lisanna smiled. "I can fly too. Jump off and I'll carry you down," she said.
Macao raised his brow and stared at Lisanna with great uncertainty. "What? Jump off? Are you sure you can car-" He didn't get to finish his sentence because the girl shoved him out the door. He screamed and uselessly flailed his arms and legs, terrified by the sight of the ground rushing to meet him.
Something grabbed the back of his white coat and abruptly stopped his descent. Feathered wings noisily beat in the air as Macao was carried by Lisanna who had transformed into a giant, green bird with a long neck and an orange beak. Dark blue feathers sprouted atop her head, flaring up and back like little wings on either side. "You're a lot heavier than I thought…" Lisanna remarked with a little strain in her voice as she tried to keep her passenger aloft.
"D-Don't scare me like that!" Macao stuttered out in relief. He was so close to having a heart-attack.
"Sorry!" Lisanna apologized with a giggle. "I didn't want to argue with you."
While hanging like helpless prey in Lisanna's talons, Macao let out a nervous sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose to ease an oncoming headache. It was a long and stressful night. He took the time to scan the city from his new height, stunned by the view. Never had he flown through the air before. It was a frightening and thrilling experience at the same time.
Scattered around the Sky Labyrinth were many other lodgings raised high off the ground by metal legs. Below, the lighted streets were filled to the brim by crowds of people. They were yelling and whistling and cheering for their favourite guilds to win. It sounded like the entire city was awake and screaming, excited for the Games to finally begin.
Happy, carrying Wakaba with his tail, flew right beside the other pair. It didn't seem like the smoker was afraid of heights, but he was certainly disgruntled that his cigar had gone out from the wind blowing by at the speed they were flying at.
"How do we find them? It's so busy down there!" Happy pointed out.
"We have to first consider where those kids could've gone," Wakaba replied, giving Macao a sideways glance. "The central plaza, maybe? I think there are still some shows going on."
"If something did happen to them, it wouldn't be out in the open," Macao stated morbidly. His thoughts wandered to dark back alleys, the bare streets at the outskirts of the city, abandoned, vandalized buildings, the sewers… There were so many possible places to commit a crime and not be seen in such a large place. It would take days to thoroughly search each area. "Just where can they be?" he whispered, becoming desperate.
His answer came in the form of a young girl with long, wavy blonde hair and dressed in a flowing light pink robe with a red bow tied in front. Illuminated by the light of the waning moon, she was hovering in the air in the distance and she was pointing off to the side, her emerald eyes meeting the group's. When Macao blinked, she was gone.
"Did you see that?" he asked, pointing ahead where the girl used to be, hoping he wasn't just imagining things due to his high stress level.
"Yeah… I saw her…" said Wakaba, knitting his brow in confusion.
Lisanna surprised them both when she said, "That… That was Mavis Vermilion!"
"Yeah! I think it was her!" agreed Happy.
"What? The First Master?!" the older men cried in unison.
Macao could hardly believe it. He was aware of the ghost's presence on Tenrou Island, having heard the tale of her miraculous feat to protect Fairy Tail from a dragon's devastating roar attack seven years ago.
"Why is she here? Is she helping us?" Happy questioned, voicing the same thoughts as the others.
"She was telling us something…" Macao began, turning his head in the direction the young girl was pointing at. The first thing that caught his eye were the lighted windows in the tallest tower belonging to Castle Mercurius in the heart of the city. "There! Head for the castle! They must be there!"
"Alright!" said Lisanna as she veered to the left. She flapped hard to gain altitude. "Hold on tight, Macao! I'm going to dive for more speed!"
The man looked up at her in horror. "What?! I have nothing to hold onto!"
The bird let out a bashful chuckle. "Oh right! Then be prepared for this!"
"W-Wai–" Macao cut himself off with a terrified scream when his carrier folded her broad wings and they started to plummet straight down. He was flailing and praying for his life yet again as the sensation of falling overwhelmed him.
When it seemed like they were going to crash into the nearest roof, Lisanna opened her wings and brought them out of their doom. Back up they went, soaring like an arrow towards the grand castle in the distance with the wind rushing by so fast it dried out the man's eyes.
Laughing, Happy sped up to match their speed, towing a sniggering Wakaba who was clearly enjoying Macao's reactions. They reached the palace built in the center of a lake in a matter of minutes.
Once Macao managed to steady his shaken nerves, he got the chance to marvel Castle Mercurius from the sky. The castle was grand, but its courtyards were grander. It was too dark to see much, but Macao could imagine the vast yards full of lush green plants, trees, and fragrant, colourful flowers. He had visited the castle with Romeo numerous times in past years and was always taken away by the beauty and size of their gardens (as well as the gorgeous maidens).
Right now, the courtyards looked empty. It was more peaceful here compared to the frenzy in the western districts. While Lisanna and Happy circled the outer wall that protected the castle grounds, all eyes were keen on finding the missing children and Carla.
Lisanna gasped and started to swoop down. "I see something! On the bridge!"
Macao held his breath as they descended on the stone bridge before the arced entrance of the castle walls. Four bodies he saw, all lying motionless on the shadowed ground beside a number of bags. One of the bodies was small enough to be an Exceed.
When they were close enough, Macao felt a sharp pang in his chest the instant he recognized Romeo's yellow scarf. He didn't wait for Lisanna to let him go; he broke free from her clutches a couple feet off the ground. Once he landed, he sprinted towards his fallen son, his mind numb and his throat dry.
"Romeo! Romeo!" Macao dropped by the boy's side, his badly trembling hands reaching out to give his son a little shake. "Are you alright? Are you alright?" Hearing no response, Macao feared the worst. He turned Romeo over and felt for a pulse on the boy's neck. After a tense moment, he was relieved to find one. His son was still alive.
Lisanna was kneeling beside Wendy, Happy with Carla, and Wakaba with Bacon.
Macao quickly looked around the area. It didn't seem like there was much of a struggle. The bags on the ground didn't fall far from where the children lay and only one had its contents spilled out due to gravity. He checked Romeo over and found no external injuries so he wasn't sure what was wrong. Not knowing troubled him deeply.
"How are they?" Macao asked the others.
"Wendy's unconscious," answered Lisanna with a deep frown as she lifted the young girl off the ground.
"Carla too…" Happy replied, carefully picking her up.
"Kid's cold but he's still breathing. And he's not waking up…" was Wakaba's response. He wrapped Bacon in the boy's own cloak before taking him into his arms. He ground the end of his unlit cigar with his teeth and furrowed his brow when his eyes fell on the child. "What happened to them? Who could've done this?"
Macao angrily punched the ground. He ignored the jarring pain running up his arm and didn't care if his knuckles bled. He growled out, "Whoever did this will pay! I swear it!"
"Could it have been the other guilds?" Lisanna quietly asked.
Wakaba grunted and looked around in the darkness. "If only we have a clue."
"I smell something burnt and I think I smell blood too," said Happy, turning his head to a particular spot on the ground behind them. He gently laid Carla back down and trotted over, sniffing his nose. "It's someone else's blood… not theirs. And look." He picked something up but it was hard for Macao to see.
The father held up a hand and formed a bright purple flame in his open palm to bring some light to the shadows. The object in Happy's paws was a small, piece of white cloth that was mostly charred black.
"Somebody attacked them, but got hurt in the process," the cat deduced, examining the evidence closely. "Looks like Romeo got him with his fire!"
"But it wasn't enough," Macao murmured, lowering his gaze on his son. "The bastard still got him and everyone else." He extinguished his flame and deeply sighed. The headache he was trying to avoid was now upon him, pounding painfully against his temples like a hammer to a stake.
Happy gave the man a hopeful look. "Natsu has a better nose than mine. He'll be able to find out who did this."
Macao sneered at the vengeful thought. Natsu would no doubt tear the whole city apart to seek out the one responsible. The father grabbed all of the children's bought goods and sent them to his storage dimension before cradling his son. "We'll head over to Domus Flau and let Master know about this."
And let's hope both of our teams made it past the preliminary…
Porlyusica could sense every pair of eyes staring at her as she carefully examined her last patient. Since the moment she had demanded silence in the room, no one spoke nor moved. They didn't even dare to breathe. The dull ticking of the clock hanging over the door of the infirmary in Domus Flau was the only sound that disturbed the tense atmosphere.
"It's Magic Deficiency," she finally concluded from the symptoms she observed. Her callused hand lingered on Wendy's forehead. "Wendy, Romeo, and Carla lost a huge amount of their magical power at once, resulting in their physical bodies to suffer with extreme fatigue. All they need is time to rest and recover."
"And Bacon?" Master Makarov questioned. He sat at the foot of the young boy's bed that was right beside Wendy's that she shared with Carla. The old man's brow was wrinkled from frowning as he gazed upon the unconscious child. The white curtains that separated each bed in the relatively small room were pulled off to the side so the three occupied beds were visible and easy to attend to.
Fairy Tail's Medicinal Advisor left Wendy's side to stand over Bacon. Her crimson eyes narrowed in concern. Bacon's symptoms differed from the others. He was paler, his skin cold and clammy, and his breathing short and weak. His brow was furrowed, his mind lost in dreams. "It was not magic that was taken from him," she began in a morbid tone, "It was his life energy."
"What?!" the old man exclaimed, his weary eyes now wide with shock.
"Will he be alright?!" Macao shouted, springing onto his feet from the chair by his son's side.
Lisanna and Wakaba both wore worried expressions as they stood at the foot of the beds.
Happy looked tearful from his spot by Carla. "Is Cana's prediction coming true?" the Exceed asked, his voice cracking.
Porlyusica shook her head and snapped; "Don't be a fool. She spoke of his death. The boy is still alive."
"Does that mean he will live through this?" Makarov inquired, giving the woman a look that silently begged for her to say yes.
"Rest assured, I will do all that I can to help him. He will not die under my care, you have my word," the advisor promised them all. She didn't care to see everyone's response as she pointed at the closed door. "Now get out. I can't work with all of you in here."
"But I want to–" Macao started to protest, but Porlyusica didn't want to hear it.
She shot the man an angry glare, stilling his tongue in mid-sentence. "Get out. Now," she commanded sternly. If she had her trusty broom, she could've smacked the father over the head to make her command more efficient. She spotted something that was just like a broom lying in the far corner of the infirmary and moved to grab it.
Once the handle of the dried, old mop was in her hand, no one risked saying another word to argue with her. They took that as a sign to leave as fast as possible. Lisanna, Happy, and Wakaba – dragging Macao with him - rushed out the door in that order. Makarov, on the other hand, didn't budge an inch from his spot. His attention was focused on the youngest boy in bed.
Porlyusica closed the door and tossed the old mop in the corner where it propped against the wall. "Who do you think is responsible?" she inquired, knowing the old man remained to discuss the matter more in depth with her.
Makarov hardened his gaze at their unseen foe. "I don't know… To steal another's life force is a dark power. Why target Bacon and not the others?"
Porlyusica didn't reply right away. She settled on the edge of Bacon's bed and pulled out a black ceramic bottle containing a potion she had recently concocted before leaving for Crocus. It was her own version of Bacon's potent blue potion. It took a lot of patience and a number of experiments for her to figure out the powerful medicine's composition before she could recreate it with her own local ingredients, utilizing a few that were rare. Once she had that down, it wasn't difficult to make potions that had the same healing properties as the red and green one. The main difference between her mixtures and the boy's were the colours. Instead of a vibrant blue, red, or green, her potions were respectively dark purple, pale yellow, and an off-putting dark brown. They may not look the same, but they sure tasted and smelled the same and worked just as good, which was twice as effective as her original healing tonics. She had to thank him for giving her the opportunity to develop something new and better to aid the guild.
Using a small spoon, she gave Bacon some of her purple concoction, being careful not to make him choke. As she poured a second spoonful, she answered, "Look around. They were all targeted, Makarov. The enemy must've thought he had no magic power and chose to drain his life instead. Macao said there was no sign of struggling and yet there was blood spilled at the scene. Luckily the children show no physical injury. Whatever happened, happened quickly." Once she was done with the boy, she moved on to the next bed where Romeo lay.
The master let out a frustrated sigh as he crossed his arms and legs and bowed his head at the thought. Deep wrinkles formed on his forehead while he contemplated on what was said.
Again, the Medicinal Advisor spoon-fed her purple medicine, giving two doses to Romeo.
"Was it all to jeopardize our chances of winning?" the old man pondered, watching Porlyusica work. "All of Fiore knows that we have returned. Would our rivals go so far just to mess with us? It's a good thing I had a Plan B."
Porlyusica scoffed. She wasn't particularly a fan of his idea of having another team enter with a well-known fugitive – who was considered the most wanted, dangerous criminal by the Magic Council – as one of the members. If Jellal's identity was exposed during the Games, there would be severe consequences not only for Jellal, but for Fairy Tail as well.
There was very little she could have said that would've made him reconsider. Once he had his mind set on reaching a goal, the old fool would use any means he had to achieve it. And that meant taking advantage of the new rules that not everyone knew about and using deceit to conceal a criminal.
The advisor made her way to her last two patients. "I can only assume these people wanted your guild to lose. If it was Bacon's life they truly wanted, they would have killed him, not leave him alive," she stated bluntly as she tended Wendy first.
Makarov closed his eyes and slowly nodded, his expression somber. "I suppose you're right…" he conceded, his voice a mere rasp. "They could have killed him, but they chose not to. That means their aim was to stop Fairy Tail as a whole – to discourage us and crush our dreams. This must be a cruel message they're sending. There must be a dark guild hiding among the competitors." He was suddenly riled, evident by the fury in his eyes, the anger on his face, and the vigour in his voice. "If they think we will falter from this, they are sadly mistaken! Fairy Tail is the definition of strength and hope! This world seems to have forgotten that during our absence."
He hopped off Bacon's bed and marched towards the door, his shoes soundly clacking on the white tiled floor. He stopped with his hand on the knob. There was pride in his tone when he said, "Both teams made it through tonight. We will prove to the people here that Fairy Tail is still as strong as it once was. Even if we fall, we will always get back up."
Porlyusica soundly smirked. "I do not doubt a mere incident such as this will break your children's spirits. In fact, it will make them stronger and more determined to reach their goal. They take after you, after all."
The master laughed at that comment. He glanced up at the clock right above him. It was a quarter to three in the morning. "It's been a long night. The Opening Ceremony is at ten tomorrow." He looked over his shoulder, his tired eyes falling on each of the children and the only Exceed in the room.
"Hmph. If it's at ten in the morning, then get out of here and get some rest. I'll watch over them."
"I'm sorry to burden you with–"
"There is no burden here, Makarov," Porlyusica interrupted, her features stern. "This is my duty as the Medicinal Advisor. Focus on bringing Fairy Tail's name back to the top while I'll focus on getting your team back on their feet."
The old man smiled, making the corners of his eyes wrinkle. "Thank you, my dear. Don't forget to rest as well." With that, he left the infirmary and closed the door behind him.
Porlyusica's stern expression dissolved into weariness. She finished giving Carla the bottle's remaining potion before putting everything away. She pulled up a chair between Bacon's and Wendy's beds and checked the boy's condition. Colour was returning to his face and his breathing was starting to steady due to her medicine's quick effects. He was still dreaming under the power of the Dreamstone.
The advisor turned to Wendy next and lightly felt the girl's forehead with the back of her hand. "It's been a long night indeed," she sighed, silently thankful the children were alive. "Those fools better punish the ones responsible for this or else I'll be the one to strike them down."
There was water everywhere; soundly trickling down the dark walls embedded with colourful crystals, filling the pools on either side of the stone path, and gushing out of the large fountain before him. The waters shimmered and sparkled with the colours of the rainbow under the flickering flames of the two torches built on either side of the basin and the glow of the many glowbugs fluttering around. There were so many of the winged orbs, bobbing and weaving in the air as if caught in a joyful dance.
But it wasn't the glowbugs that captured his interest most; it was the strange woman hovering above the fountain he stood in front of. She was near naked, wearing only the thin, leafy vines of plants that grew around her limbs and body and entwined within her long, swaying, bright red hair, showing her fair, smooth skin. Her ears were long and her face was kind. Her red lips formed a welcoming smile as she leaned forward, looking as if she was lying on her front in midair just an arm's reach away from him. Her lavender eyes met his fascinated stare and she quietly chuckled in amusement.
She held out her right hand, her palm open for him to take. With his left, the boy placed his smaller hand in hers where slender fingers curled around it. Then with her right, she covered the back of his hand.
His hand suddenly grew very hot and before he knew it, fire burst from the woman's fingertips. The flames spread from her fingers to his hand, swallowing his limb in a bright orange blaze. With a sharp gasp, he pulled back in horror, fearing that the fire would hurt him – but it didn't.
Blue eyes widened at the harmless flame burning bright on his own skin. His hand and fingers were tingling from the power he soon recognized was magic. It was hot but not uncomfortable; the warmth spread down his arm and throughout his body, making it feel as if he stood directly beneath the sun on a nice day.
"Din's Fire," spoke the woman in a voice as smooth as silk. The fire from her hands had vanished and left her skin unmarred. "This gift from the Goddess will light your way when your path is dark and dangerous. Use this power wisely because everything the flame touches will burn!"
The boy stiffened. He remembered the stench of something burning. Clothes were charred black. Flesh was red, blistered, cracked and bleeding.
"Look at what you did, you damn, filthy brat!" someone snarled behind him.
He twisted around and found a man wearing a scarlet mask, a scarlet hat, and a scarlet vest coat standing behind him in a place that was no longer surrounded by water and full of glowbugs. The world was dark now, overcome by endless shadow. The flames that engulfed the man's right arm was the only source of light while the boy's own magic had disappeared, leaving his hands cold and clammy.
Blood dripped from the arm that burned, forming a glistening pool of red right at the man's feet. Madness shone in the man's eyes as he lunged at the boy screaming; "You will pay for this, do you hear me?!"
The boy flinched and only had the time to clench his eyes shut and use his arms to shield himself. He expected to be run down by the man on fire, but nothing happened after a short while.
Slowly, he lowered his arms and opened his eyes only to be greeted by a forest shrouded in thick, white fog.
He blinked, surprised and confused. The man was gone and his surroundings had changed again. Trees grew tall here, where the tops disappeared beyond the cover of white mist. He couldn't see very far within the woods. Trees and plant-life meters ahead of him appeared only as ghostly silhouettes in the dim light that penetrated the canopy and fog. It was oddly still and quiet within the forest until something quietly snorted and nudged the back of his neck.
He twirled on his heel, his shock instantly turning into elation at the four-legged animal standing behind him. "Epona!" was the first word that came out of his mouth. The young, roan-coloured creature called a 'horsey' was a friend he recognized from somewhere before. Likely from another strange dream he had.
He stroked the horsey's long face, somehow knowing she enjoyed the touch. She was smaller than the big ones that pulled the carriages, and much smaller than the black one armoured in steel that carried an evil man hidden in darkness… The animal whickered, raised her nose, and licked his cheek to bring him out of his thoughts. Hot and wet was her pink tongue, making him laugh and forget his troubles.
Epona bobbed her head and happily neighed before trotting past him. She paused once to glance back, telling him to follow, before continuing on, turning into a ghostly figure when she went deeper into the mist. The clop of her steel hooves echoed throughout the silent woods.
The boy ran after his friend. The ghosts of trees became whole when he drew closer and obstacles seemed to jump out of the white curtain, forcing him to caution his steps. He lost sight of the horsey soon after, but he could still hear her getting farther and farther away.
His foot suddenly got caught on a raised root, making him stumble forward and fall through a bush. He tumbled head-over-heels onto the other side and landed face-first in the dirt. Groaning, he rose onto his hands and knees only to freeze in alarm when he heard leaves rustling in the tall grass in front of him.
Something was moving in his direction, its path visible due to the bending of the tall green blades. The boy jumped to his feet right when a pointy black nose curiously poked through the grass. The nose sniffed twice. "Hmm?" the owner of the black nose softly hummed before fully emerging from its cover.
It was an animal that looked like a large dog with yellow fur, long pointed ears that were tipped black, and a white underbelly. Unlike other dogs, this one had three bushy tails; each tip ending in black to mimic its ears. It had narrow slits for eyes that made it appear as if it was smiling. Calmly, it sat on its haunches before him, its head the same height as the boy.
"Oh? Never have I seen a Child of the Forest so deep in these old woods. Are you lost?" the creature asked with a quiet chuckle, its voice sounding as young as Romeo's. Each of its three bushy tails gently swayed to and fro behind it like tall grass in the breeze.
The boy shook his head. Lost? No, he was looking for something, he realized. But he wasn't sure what he was looking for until he glanced above his shoulder, finding empty air instead of the glowbug that often accompanied him.
I'm looking for my friend… It felt like a long time since he had last seen her…
The talking creature tilted its head, flicked an ear, and studied him for a moment while he did the same. "Oh ho ho! Interesting," it said. It rose on all fours and started to circle around him, its narrowed eyes never leaving the boy. "Could you be…? No. You can't possibly be the one I'm supposed to find… You're much too small. My friend asked me to search for a hero. I don't suppose you've seen one wandering around, have you?"
The boy raised an eyebrow and slowly shook his head. He has heard the legends of some heroes in a few of Levy's stories; people who were strong, heroic, and brave who protected the weak and saved the lives of others. Romeo has called Natsu a hero once, maybe that was who the dog was looking for. However, Natsu wasn't around…
"Oh, how unfortunate." The animal bowed its head and sighed in disappointment. But then it stopped before it completed its circle, its gaze falling upon the boy's left hand. It took one step closer, its pointy black nose nearly touching his fingers, sniffing. "Or perhaps… You really are the one…" it whispered, straightening its ears and standing tall as it met his stare with a noticeable smile upon its lips to match its eyes. "Child of the Forest, you must come with me. My friend will like to meet you!"
The yellow dog dashed into the grass and quickly disappeared from sight. "Don't be slow or you'll truly end up lost! Keaton will show you the way! Come! Come!" it shouted, rustling through the blades and making a trail.
Keaton… The boy knew this name. He had met this creature before and he remembered having the exact same conversation while standing within this misty forest – but how did he know this?
Determined to find out the answer, he chased after the three-tailed animal. The wall of grass was so thick and tall – much taller than the boy – that he could barely see where he was going. Blades of green whipped at his face as he tried to push his way through. Eventually the grass opened up and he was back in the forest of mist where the yellow dog could not be seen.
"Come! Come! This way!" he heard the creature calling from somewhere from the left. The boy headed in that direction, swerving around the trunks of trees and leaping over stumps and fallen logs.
"Over here!" This time it was from the right. The boy moved towards the sound, ducking under low-hanging branches and breaking through brush.
The fog in the distance was turning dark as if night was beginning to fall. He was starting to grow very tired as the light continued to fade all around him. His arms felt heavy, and his legs were like jelly with each step he made. It was like his energy was being sapped away.
"Almost there!" From ahead of him now.
He pushed forward with the last of his strength. The trees parted to reveal a blackened sky and a shadowed ground in which he fell onto his hands and knees, exhausted and out of breath. Barely could he lift his head to find the three moons that were shaped like eyes looking down from high above.
"Atarl adune tarei kun ei, Herial Yaarez." The strange words were spoken so softly as if the speaker was standing very far away.
Then he saw the yellow dog sitting beneath the moons, its smiling eyes fading as the boy's vision began to blur and his body grew weaker.
"Meet my friend, Child of the Forest," said Keaton, its voice only a whisper. "He's been waiting for you…"
A/N: Last chance to state the events you guys want to see written out. So far, Flare vs. Lucy will be one of them. I'll be cruising through the rest that don't involve Bacon in any important way because I really want to get to the super exciting action-packed part. I can't wait to surprise you all with what I have in mind. Bwahahaha!
I have a special gift for you guys as well! It was supposed to be included in Chapter 9 but got delayed so I present to you this short story written by LeviathanTamer as a celebration for reaching 300 reviews! Thank you all for your feedback and many thanks to LeviathanTamer for taking the time and creativity to write this for me!
Please enjoy!
A Gale for the Fairy Boy
By LeviathanTamer
Bacon was bored and depressed. Lately, Wendy has been leaving for longer times. He knew that she would be back, but some days not even Levy could keep his attention. Romeo had to give it his all to lift Bacon's spirits, but sometimes that didn't work either. Today was one of those days. It was on days like this that all Bacon could do was wander around the guild.
The places he liked to visit were either the tables where he could rest his head on or some random rock somewhere outside the building. Today he didn't even have the energy to walk over to one of the rocks. He just wandered out into the clearing in front of the building and sat down in the grass. He just looked at the ground; barely did he have enough enthusiasm to raise his head.
Then he heard a sound. It sounded like his blue instrument, but more… buzzy, wheezy even. But it was very faint.
This got him to look around. But no matter where he looked, he could not find the source of the noise which was now starting to sound like music. He got up to search but then he suddenly felt calm and sat back down. This didn't stop him from looking around more though.
Bacon was about to give up on finding the source when he noticed that the sails on the windmill tower of the guild were moving faster than their normally slow and lazy pace. The music got gradually louder as he stared at the sails. The louder the music got, the faster the sails would spin. At some point (Bacon didn't know when), the music stopped getting louder and now it sounded like the player was right behind him.
Try as he might, Bacon just couldn't break his gaze away from the sails which kept spinning faster and faster even though the music stopped getting louder. Eventually one thing that did break his gaze was the wind. Wind was swirling around him but he felt none of it, he could only tell it was there because there was dirt and leaves blowing in a perfect circle around him. The faster the sails went, the stronger the wind until it had kicked up so much dirt and leaves that he could no longer see outside of the circle.
Despite the music and chaos happening around him, Bacon felt calm. Almost like he'd been at the center of this wind before. This led Bacon to just close his eyes and listen to the music and gusting wind that showed no sign of stopping anytime soon. However after he listened to the looping song for a time he noticed the strange absence of a sound. He could no longer hear the wind!
Wanting to see what the wind had done to the clearing, Bacon opened his eyes only to find a strange sight. He was in a circular room made of stone. Right in front of him was a large, spinning, wooden wheel with a pole sticking right out and a strange assortment of more wooden things attached to the pole. Then he noticed that the song was still playing along with the creaks and thuds of the contraption in front of him.
Now finally able to move his body freely, Bacon whipped around, expecting to see a person playing the instrument. What met his eyes instead was possibly the oddest thing he's seen in his life. There were two… things… floating right in front of him, both with no legs. Both were wearing incredibly weird greenish clothes with only some color changes between the two. One was short and had red changes and the other one was tall and had light blue changes. They both held lanterns in one hand and were waving some small pointy sticks in the other. Then Bacon noticed that they were actually moving the sticks in time with the song.
Bacon assumed the sticks were some form of weapon because the floating pair was waving them just like how Bacon would swing his sword. Neither of them was paying any attention to him and was instead arguing back and forth in a language that he didn't know but… still knew.
"Well, what do you suppose we do then? He's bound to be here any minute! We can't afford to risk telling him!" the taller one nearly shouted at the short one.
The shorter one shook his head and replied, "Well, we've already made the plans to tell him SOMETHING!"
The taller one struck the shorter one with his lantern. "You didn't think of what you were going to tell him BEFORE you summoned him?! This is just like Ikana all over again, you do things without thinking!"
The shorter one suddenly raised his voice. "Oh, you just HAD to bring that back up. I thought you had forgiven me for that." The shorter one crossed his arms and turned away only to see Bacon standing there with curious eyes.
"HE'S HERE!" the short one shrieked so loudly that both the tall one and Bacon had to cover their ears.
The taller one hit him with the lantern again. "Stop shouting." Then the tall one finally just realized what the short one said and started panicking. They both flew around frantically before smacking into each other.
"OW!" they both cried in unison. They took one more look at Bacon and backed away with their backs turned towards him, whispering to one another. Finally the short one turned towards Bacon.
"Welcome, young one," the short one said with elegance, complete with a bow. "My name is Sharp, this one here is my brother, Flat." He nearly hit Flat with his pointy stick in mid-bow.
Flat pushed the stick away and said in the same elegance, "We are honored to meet you again."
This made Bacon think, 'I met these weird people before?' His thoughts were interrupted by Sharp continuing.
"For helping us before, it would be our honor to re-teach you a very special song."
Bacon's eyes widened at this. 'Are they like that girl?' The thought was almost immediately dismissed. They were nothing like her.
"Are you ready, young one?" Bacon was shaken out of his thoughts by the sudden authority in Sharp's voice. Bacon looked back at them and nodded like he'd been taught. "Very well, take out your ocarina and listen closely."
Bacon was confused but reached into his bag and automatically brought out the instrument without thinking. He put it against his lips like he normally did and listened. Everything went quiet and then he heard the same noise that brought him here. Flat and Sharp's pointy sticks were moving at the same time and in the same direction as the song played again.
Three notes, just like the other song taught to him by the girl with green hair. Bacon tried playing but instead played the other song. Bacon worried for a moment.
"We can keep the rhythm until you can play it," Flat said for Bacon.
Focusing, Bacon tried again but made a couple notes too high and too low by mistake.
"As much as we appreciate the tribute to our names we would like this over soon," Sharp said with snark in his tone. Trying one more time Bacon played the song and it came out as well as the unseen instrument played it. Without even thinking he played the rest of the song.
"Well done, boy!" Flat said with genuine happiness. "May my song serve you well."
Sharp smacked him with his lantern. "You idiot, that was too much!" he said.
Flat looked back at him and scoffed. "Well, it is true and it's not like it reveals a lot."
Flat smacked Sharp with his pointy stick and Sharp yelled back; "We weren't supposed to mention anything about ourselves other than our names. That was TOO much! Now we'll be lucky if he remembers this dream at all!" But Bacon could barely hear them as he joyfully played the song again.
What Bacon didn't notice was that as he played the wind started picking up again and before he even realized it, the strong gusts were back. Then everything went black.
Bacon opened his eyes to find hazel ones looking right down on him. He almost bolted up; he would've if he didn't know whose eyes they were.
Wendy backed up. "Hey, Bacon's awake." She turned back to him as some of his friends came into the room.
Bacon looked around curiously, seeing that he was now back inside the guild, lying atop a folded blanket. He saw everyone's faces and wondered why they were all looking so relieved.
Wendy saw this and said, "Macao was keeping an eye on you while you were outside. He saw you watching the windmill then you just collapsed. Do you know what happened?"
Even if Bacon spoke he honestly didn't know what happened as he remembered nothing so he shook his head. Then he felt a slight breeze against his face and absentmindedly brought his ocarina to his chest. Wendy noticed this but didn't say anything as Bacon put the instrument to his mouth and started to play as he closed his eyes. It was a rather haunting melody, but at the same time everyone could feel sadness behind the notes. Wendy felt herself shed a tear for reasons unknown to her.
What no one was expecting was a strong gust to blow through the open windows that nearly knocked everyone down, Bacon included. Everyone stared out the window with wide eyes, but saw nothing that would bring a storm-worthy gust. It was a clear evening sky. They looked at Bacon and Wendy motioned for him to play again. As he played the song once more, everyone braced themselves but nothing happened aside from the same breeze that had been around all day.
LeviathanTamer - Whoever can guess what the instrument(s) used to play the song will get a cookie!
A/N: Thanks for reading. Don't forget to leave your comments to LeviathanTamer as well. (Who doesn't like cookies?) Have a good day! Please review!