"Where's Lucy?!"

Natsu repeated his question when his words were met with silence. Gray was clutching his wounded side that Wendy was now trying to heal. His eyes remained glued to the ground as he explained what happened.

"They were never after Natsu. It all happened so quick, there was an explosion and we saw this creepy looking guy grab Lucy. He told us she was who they were after and then he just disappeared. I don't know if it was teleportation magic or what, but we waited a few minutes just to be sure the guy wasn't bluffing, then called out on Cana's card."

"They were after Lucy?"

"Then what the heck was the magic council thinking?"

"Was the message really from them?"

"Yeah, it all seems a little too convenient to not have been a setup!"

Natsu cut in, nearly boiling over with rage. "Who cares about that now?! I can still smell Lucy, so what are we waiting for? We have to go after her, now!"

He was pulled back harshly, thrown to the ground by Erza. She had a murderous look in her eye, one that made Natsu freeze in place.

"We shouldn't rush in. We've already been fooled once, and we know nothing about our enemy. It could all be an elaborate trap, potentially to lure you out. We must be strategic and make a plan before we can save Lucy."

"We don't know if we have that kind of time," Gray said.

Erza paused, thinking intently, assessing the situation and deciding the best course of action. Their enemy had used the element of surprise, and brilliantly at that. But how big could their group really be? Gray only reported seeing one man attack and take Lucy after all.

Regardless, she saw the way the entire guild was on edge, each looking ready to run to their celestial wizard's rescue at her command. If she thought for another minute, Natsu might turn and run, leading the charge instead. Erza had to question whether Natsu be part of the rescue team or not, but with how crazed he looked, she decided it may not be possible to keep him from coming anyway.

"All right, I have a plan. Not everybody will go to save Lucy, so I need everyone to pay attention and understand their part to play. We don't know the number of enemies we face, nor their strength. Therefore we are all to be on alert. Natsu, how far would you say they've gotten?"

Natsu took a deep breath, hoping to catch the direction of Lucy's scent. It didn't have his head turning to the side, but rather it smelled like she was above them. The other dragon slayers were sniffing for her too, all looking up in unison.

The rest of the guild followed their gaze, seeing the massive aerial ship above their heads. As huge as it was, it was also very quiet, having gone undetected. The guild only saw it because of the patch of stars and portion of the moon it had covered.

There could be dozens—no, hundreds of people on that ship. But with how manic Natsu was feeling, he was just as excited to take out his anger on whoever was on it.

"How are we gonna get up there?" Cana asked.

Erza piped in, her plan already formed and finalized when she saw the ship. She coughed loudly, gaining the attention of her fellow guild mates once more as she explained her master plan.

"Here's what we're going to do…"

Lucy shifted, slowly regaining consciousness. Her eyes opened, met with the same darkness she saw when she had them closed. Whatever room she was in was pitch black, unable to see anything around her.

The next feeling she felt was pain. Her wrists were throbbing, blood drained from her hands and arms that were raised above her head. Her feet dangled off the ground, and when she pulled to move her arms and wrists exploded with pain. It made the dull ache in her head significantly worse. The simple movement sent fire through her body, and she bit her lip to keep from crying out.

She heart the faint clinks of chains from the movement, the thick shackles on her wrists having rubbed her skin raw. Lucy pointed her toes downward, hoping to scrape the ground, but her action was met with nothing.

Closing her eyes once more, she tried to remember what happened and how she got here. Slowly, the pieces began to connect in her head. She remembered how the guild was supposed to protect Natsu, how they went to the forest, and being hit by a nearby explosion before blacking out.

How long had it been since then? Lucy only hoped that they didn't get Natsu or any of her other guild mates. She wondered if they were even after him in the first place. Lucy recalled her conversation with Natsu, how they agreed that the council's 'plan' didn't seem like something they would send to the guild. The blond was beginning to think their suspicions were true.

She had to get out. Somehow. But even the slightest movement made her want to scream in pain. Just how was she going to figure out how to get out of the chains? And even if she did, it was still pitch black. Lucy wasn't sure she could see her hand if it was in front of her right now.

Still, she had to do something. She had to at least try to escape. Fairy Tail didn't need to save her, because she was gonna get herself out. First step, try pulling on the chains to see how far from the ceiling she was. She braced herself, taking a deep breath and counting herself down, knowing the immense pain she was about to feel again was inevitable.

3… 2… 1—

The sound of a door opening stopped her, light filling the room. A switch was flipped, and the lights in the room came on, a blinding white. Lucy clamped her eyes shut. The transition from dark to light was stinging her eyes, tears pricking at the corners.

But she didn't want to look weak in front of whoever this was. Forcefully, she opened her eyes, twitching in pain from the light. She glared at the man that stood in the doorway despite the tears forming in her eyes. Putting on her strongest and most intimidating voice, Lucy spoke, demanding an answer.

"Who are you and what do you want?"

The man chuckled darkly. Lucy was thankful her eyes were finally adjusting, able to make out what the man looked like. He was clad in all black, covered nearly head to toe. His hair was red, falling past his shoulders, and his eyes were a bright and piercing blue. The sinister look in them made Lucy cringe.

"My, my, a bit antsy, are we? Whatever happened to formal introductions?"

"I don't give a damn about that. Why am I here? And where's the rest of my friends—"

The man disappeared, and Lucy felt hot breath on her neck. She turned, seeing the man had teleported next to her. His face was more unsettling up close, and his breath reeked. She did her best not to breathe while he was so close.

"My name is Kraff. What do we want? Well, these, of course," the man, Kraff said.

He held up Lucy's holster, filled with her precious keys. She looked down, confirming that they were missing from her belt. Glaring at the man, Lucy wanted to spit in his face. He merely smiled, teeth yellow and crooked. What on earth did they need her keys for? Her face must have given away her thoughts, eyebrows knit in confusion and worry.

The man laughed at her expression, asking in a teasing tone, "You didn't really believe that we were trying to break the seal of a dragon's magic, did you? I thought you of all wizards would know the time traveling capabilities these keys possess."

"Give them back!" Lucy said, lunging towards the man before hissing in pain. Her wrists were screaming their protests as she bit her lip.

"I don't believe you're in a position to make such demands," Kraff said.

He placed a hand on Lucy's cheek, delicately tracing over it before gliding towards her chin. She didn't give him the satisfaction of flinching or looking as disgusted as she felt. He held her face firmly, laughing softly at the determination in her face.

"We didn't have much use for you, simply your keys. But now that I see that look on your face, I'm curious… how long it would take to break that spirit?"

He let go of her, shoving her face and making her sway back and forth on the chains while her arms screamed in agony. The man mockingly shook her keys in front of her, strapping the holster to his own belt. Placing a finger over his cheek, he smiled maliciously.

"I wonder how long I can torture you until your precious friends come for you?"

X

Natsu better hurry up. This is the first story I've written where I've planned out every chapter. I love knowing what I'm gonna write instead of figuring it out as I go.

Let me know what you think! Thanks for reading and have an amazing week ❤︎