Chapter 85

Aftermath

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

"Magic"

Flashback you

Location / Date / Time Skip

Honeybone Inn

"You wanna say that again, metal mouth!?" Natsu shouted at Gajeel as the guild partied at their victory.

"Gladly! If I was down there instead of your girlfriend, you wouldn't have gotten hurt so bad!" The pierced man declared.

"Is he trying to get beaten up by the strongest couple in the guild?" Rose asked from the side.

"Gajeel can handle himself." Pantherlily declared.

"Stop it, you two!" Lucy shouted. "We destroyed the place once, we don't need to pay for it a second time."

"Aw, let them have their fun." Makarov drunkenly mumbled. "It's a reward for winnign in the aerna today."

"Let's do this!" Gajeel and Natsu shouted, channeling their magic into their hands.

Laki pulled Happy out of the way before catching the flying fish. "No need to get Erza involved." She chuckled, tapping on the box she made for the red head and her prized cheesecake. "Besides, think of this as practice, Lucy."

"Practice? They might burry us alive!?" The blonde replied as the door opened up, catching everyone's attention. "Yukino?"

The former Sabertooth mage now wore a dark soldier uniform, and her once blue rose ornament was now black and on her left side of her head. She ignored her question, staring at the blonde. "Lucy Hearfillia, the kingdom of Fiore requires your services. Please come with me."

"Hold on, what are you talking about?" Laki asked.

"This is for the good of the whole world." The snowette replied, shocking the group.

Crocus Garden

Sting and Rogue stood before Jiemma covered in bandages, knowing full well the anger of their master. "You two... do you have anything to say for yourselves?" The bearded man asked, already knowing the answer. "Are you not the two who would constantly remind us of how strong you truly were?"

"...There is no excuse." Rogue declared. "Natsu and Laki defeated us without using their dual elements. Their strength is far beyond what we anticipated."

Instantly, their master was in their face, a small crater underneath him. "Are those the words of the strongest guild in Fiore?" He asked. "Who allowed you to show such shameful actions today? Who told you to lose? You have disgraced the name of the strongest guild!" He blasted the two back with a shockwave of magic, sending their Exceeds running after them.

"You're hot worthy of calling yourself Sabertooth! Erase the symbol of this guild! We don't need weaklings in this guild!"

"M-master..." Lector nervously spoke up. "Sting and Rogue did their best... And you know, they say you learn more from failure than success... I-I'm sure the next time they fight Natsu, they'll kick his but."

"...Who are you?" The master asked, even as the cat showed his guild emblem." "Why is this animal sporting the noble crest of Sabertooth?" He raised his hand and magic began gathering at it. "Vanish from my sight."

He fired a blast of his magic and hit the red cat, shocking the entire guild. "Frosch, stay behind me!" Rogue declared as he held the cat tight.

Tears fell from Stings eyes as Jiemma kicked the pile of dust. "What an eyesore. A cat using the crest of our guild." Sting cried out in anger and sorrow, catching the masters attention. "Shut up or you'll soon join him."

"How could you!?" The blonde shouted back.

"It was just a cat." The master replied.

Sting glared at the Blast Mage before instantly charging forward, punching a whole of light through his chest. The entire guild stood in shock of the action even as Jiemma fell over. Tears still fell from the blondes eyes as Minerva stared at it, a sick smile on her face. "So be it."

Cave Under The Coliseum

"Yukino, aren't you going to explain what's happening?" Lucy asked as the newly dubbed Sergeant lead them on.

"All will be revealed in time." She replied. "However, I only asked for Lucy to come."

"Where one member of our team goes, we go." Natsu declared.

"Very well, just be prepared for what you are about to see." She declared as they rounded a corner.

The Fairy Tail wizards stared in shock as massive bones littered the open cave. The Dragon Slayers recognized the species instantly and were even more horrified than the others. "Dragon bones..." Natsu mumbled. "The Dragons' Graveyard..."

"All these are dragon bones?" Happy asked.

"So many..." Carla mumbled.

"What is this place?" Gray asked Yukino.

"That is classified." The sergeant replied as she lead them forward.

"Maybe Igneel and Drusta are-" Happy started before Rose smacked him in the back of the head. "Sorry."

"No... they aren't here." Natsu replied.

"Our dragons disappeared fourteen years ago..." Gajeel said. "The ones lying here are a lot older."

"Milky Way..." Wendy mumbled, confusing everyone. "One of the Dragon Slayer Secret Arts Porlyusica gave me. Listen to the voices of the dragons, connected to the river in the sky. I thought it was an attack spell, but maybe it's this. Milky Way might be a spell used to listen to the spirits of dragons who passed on."

"What?" Gajeel asked in shock.

"If we can hear the voice of the dragons lying here, we might be able to know what happened." Wendy explained as she grabbed a stick and started drawing a magic circle on the ground. "And maybe we might find out something about our dragons too..."

"I was reading the wrong letter because I thought it was an attack magic." She explained as she finished the seal. "Please step back." She asked Gray and Gajeel, and they listened to her. "Wandering souls of the dragons... I am ready to receive your voices... Milky Way."

A massive beam of light erupted around the girl, stunning the others as the lights reach the dragon bones, making them glow. "Is this normal, Wendy?" Laki asked.

"I'm looking for the souls of the dragons." The younger girl explained. "The residual auras wandering in this place are extremely old and weak..." Her eyes snapped opened as the light erupted. "Found one." She declared as the light swirled into a spiral.

"Is this a soul?" Pantherlily asked.

"Quite. She's concentrating." Carla declared.

The light turned into a massive amount of smoke and the others gasped in shock as a massive, translucent green dragon appeared. The creature roared and scared Lucy and Gray, earning a laugh from the spirit. "It's always funny to see the shocked faces on people." The two non Dragon Slayers blinked in surprise.

"My name is Zirconis, also known as the Jade Dragon. The technique used to summon my soul must be Grandeeney's. Where are you?" The creature looked around before finding Wendy in the circle. "This little girl summoned me?"

"Leave her alone!" Natsu demanded.

"No, I'm going to eat her." Zirconis said, angering Natsu. "It was just a joke. What a stupid race. What can a ghost do, huh?" He waved his finger through Natsu to prove his point.

"Are all dragons this crazy?" Lucy asked.

"No, I'm sure it's just this one." Gajeel replied.

"What happened down here?" Carla asked. "This place is filled with dragon skeletons."

"I have nothing to say to humans." The spirit declared, turning away.

"How about Exceeds?" Rose asked.

"It happened over 400 years ago." The dragon began, offending the humans. "Dragons used to be the kings of this world. We would fly freely through the air, walk the earth, cross the seas. There was prosperity, everything belonged to the dragons. Humans were nothing more than our food.

"However, a foolish dragon began questioning the sovereignty of our species. He talked nonsense about a world where humans and dragons could coexist. A war started between the dragons who approved of his ideas and those against them. I never liked humans, I saw them only as food. The war was long and hard, and destroyed many places.

"Until the dragons that supported coexistence came up with a foolish strategy. They taught the humans magic to slay dragons and asked them to join the battle."

The entire cave stared in shock of the statement as Wendy focused on the spell. "That's how Dragon Slayers were born?" Happy asked.

"The power of the Dragon Slayers was immense." The spirit continued. "It was clear that the dragons that wanted coexistence were going to win. However, there was a miscalculation. The Dragon Slayers had become drunk on power, and started to kill the dragons on their side too. And among those humans there was one who bathed in a river of dragon blood.

"That 'man' murdered countless dragons and kept bathing in their blood. Eventually, his skin became scales, his teeth became fangs and he started to look more and more like a dragon."

"A man... became a dragon...?" Lucy asked in a panic as the Dragon Slayers stared in shock.

"That is how Dragon Slayer Magic evolves." Zirconis continued. "All of the dragons sleeping here were murdered by that man. Despite being human, he became the king of dragons. The war that brought the birth of the king of dragons was dubbed the Dragon King Festival. His black wings are a bane on the very name of dragon. His name is Acnologia."

"WHAT!?" The four Exceeds asked in shock.

"That thing used to be human!?" Gray asked as the humans started shaking in fear.

"The dragons laying here were murdered by him four hundred years ago." Zirconis said as he started fading. "Because of you I was able to..." The ghost faded from existence as the others turned to Wendy.

"I'm sorry. His aura is gone." The girl declared as the spell stopped glowing.

"So... does this mean if we keep using our magic were gonna become dragons too?" Laki asked in a panic.

"That won't happen!" Natsu declared. "I'll find a way to keep us safe."

"What nonsense." The group turned around to see Yukino and an armored man walking forward. "We listened to the whole story. The historical records match what we researched. Tell me, do you know of the demons of Zeref?"

'Deliora...' Gray thought in anger.

"Acnologia is similar to them." The knight declared. "One theory suggests that it was Zeref who transformed him into a dragon. In other words, if we destroy Zeref, we will destroy Acnologia."

'The white knight from my vision!' Carla thought in a panic.

"I am Colonel Arcadios, the head of the Cherry Blossom Knights of the Crocus garrison of the Fiore Army." The man declared as the two walked towards them. "And I believe you know our acting Sergeant, Yukino."

"The heck is going on here?" Gray asked in confusion.

"I thought you were a member of Sabertooth..." Lucy said to the other key user.

"I knew they forced you to leave, but why are you here?" Laki asked.

"I'll explain everything." The Colonel declared. "We needed the power of a Celestial wizard for a certain strategy, so we asked Yukino to help us."

"I don't understand what you're talking about!" Natsu shouted. "Just tell us what you want!"

"Natsu Dragneel and Laki Olietta..." The armored man declared. "Your fight was delightful to watch. I thank you both."

Instantly, Natsu was in his face. "We couldn't care less. Why the hell do you need a Celestial Wizard?"

The two stared at each other before the knight smirked and turned around. "Follow me."

"Lucy, I will ask you as well." Yukino requested. "If this plan is successful, we will be able to defeat Zeref and Acnologia." The group stared at her before Lucy stepped forward. One by one, the others followed rhe two army officers.

Mercusius Depths

"This is where his majesty lives." Arcadios declared as he lead them down a staircase. "So be on your best behavior."

"Should we really be here?" Rose asked.

"First of all, I would like to apologize for trying to kidnap Lucy a few says ago. It was a mistake." He declared, shocking and angering the group. "I didn't mean to cause any harm. But at the time I believed we needed a Celestial Wizard immediately, so I ended up making a hasty decision. I am sorry.

"The Grand Magic Games was a camouflage to obtain a great amount of magic power every year. Say whatever you want, it was all for the sake of the Eclipse Project. It required a large amount of power to build it." He came to a stop before a massive door, seemingly radiating magic power.

"When the sun and the moon meet, we will open the door with the twelve keys. If you open the door, you will be able to travel back 400 years, and defeat Zeref before he was made immortal. That is the Eclipse Project."

"T-travel back in time?" Lucy repeated as the others stared in shock.

"Lucy, I heard that time flows differently in the Spirit World." Yukino said to the blonde. "We want the help of a Celestial Wizard to use the dimensional boundary line of the Celestial Spirit world to open the door."

"Originally we were meant to substitute the Celestial Wizard with an abundance of magic power." Arcadios explained. "But with a real Celestial Wizard and the 12 keys of the Zodiac, the Project can proceed in earnest. When the sun and moon intersect, in three days on July seventh, I would like you to help us, Lucy."

"July seventh..." Natsu mumbled.

"That's the day our dragons disappeared." Wendy said.

"That can't be a coincidence." Gajeel declared.

"Seize them!" A swarm of armed men suddenly surrounded the entire group, confusing them all.

"Be quite." Darton declared as he walked forward, glaring at Arcadios. "Revealing national secrets to outsiders? Have you lost your mind!?"

"They are not outsiders!" The armored man shouted back. "They have an important role as in this plan."

"That isn't something for you to decide." The Defense Minister declared.

"You've always been against this project!" Arcadios roared back. "Stop this nonsense right now."

"Of course I'm against it! You want to change history!" The scarred man shouted. "Do you not realize how dangerous that might be!? I'm arresting you for treason against the country! Yukino Agria and Lucy Heartfilia as well! Expel the others at once!"

"What!?" Lucy asked as the guards grabbed her.

"Back off!" Natsu shouted, igniting his fist. "Leave my friend alone!"

"No, you can't use magic here!" Arcadios warned, only for the gate to glow and syphon all of Natsu's power away, making him collapse to the ground.

"Natsu!" Laki shouted as she raced over. "What just happened?"

"The Grand Magic Games was a system to steal small parts of a wizard's magic for the eclipse." Darton explained. "But using it this close it will completely absorbed into the gate. Don't cause a ruckus. Wizards who cannot use their magic are considered harmless."

"Let me go!" Lucy shouted as the men dragged her and Yukino away.

"Eclipse will never be activated." Darton declared as he glared at Arcadios. The others were thrown out of the castle as Darton turned around. "I want you to understand that this is not my will. It is for the sake of the country. However, I have advice for you. His majesty is quite fond of Fairy Tail. If you win the Games, I will grant an audience with him. I'm sure he will show consideration to your friend."

Honyebone Inn

"Lucy was captured by the Royal Army?" Erza asked as in shock, having just heard everything from the returning group. "And she's being accused of being involved with some mysterious project?"

"In other words, we can only get Lucy back is if we win the Grand Magic Games." Laxus surmised. "But that's even if we can trust them."

"We need to save her." Natsu declared.

"You'll get no argument there." Laki replied, holding her boyfriend back. "But our enemy this time is the king."

"Laki is right, my boy." Makarov added. "We cannot act rashly against the king. But they cannot treat their citizens like this. It's more than likely that they're using her has a hostage until the Eclipse Project is blocked."

"That still doesn't explain why they would let us discover top secret information and then let us go." Gajeel mumbled.

"Maybe they want us as witnesses against Arcadios." Pantherlily surmised.

"And just trust us that we won't spread this around?" Rose asked. "That seems like too big of a risk."

"Maybe they realize they won't be able to hid this for much longer." Erza guessed.

"But if they captured us all, no one would know about this." Gray replied.

"Most of you guys are competing in the games tomorrow." Mirajane guessed. "It would be really suspicious if you all didn't show up."

"They don't want a wizard guild as the enemy." Erza surmised. "To us it's irrational that they would arrest Lucy, to them it's probably consider it."

"Stop blabbering and let's go save her!" Natsu shouted, only for Makarov to crush him with a massive fist.

"Cool down." Thr master ordered. "They have a member of our family. This is not a celebration, we all know that." Everyone else in the room nodded as he opened his eyes in anger. "We cannot just attack them this time. But Fairy Tail are anything but cowards. We must plan this out carefully."

The Next Day

The crowd cheered in the arena as fireworks ripped through the sky. "At long last, the final day of the Grand Magic Games is finally here!" Chapati declared. "No matter if you'll be be happy or sad, the winning guild will be declared! Joining me and Yajima today is none other than Mato himself.

"And now the teams are ready for the final day!" One by one the teams entered the arena, the crowd roaring louder with every team. "And now, the current first place guild! The guild that seven years ago was the strongest in the country! Fairy Tail comes in!" Erza, Gray and Laxus walked in first, but the next two shocked the entire arena.

"It seems like the fight from two days ago was too much for Natsu and Laki, as they are both out with injuries. They've been replaced with Gajeel Redfox and Juvia Lockser!"

"Natsu and Laki aren't here?" Rogue asked in surprise.

"We should count ourselves lucky." Sting chuckled.

The crowd mumbled in disappointment as Darton stared over the field. "He still hasn't recovered his magic." He mumbled. "And his love doesn't want to leave his side."

The entire guild cheered for the replacements as Mavis glanced at the older man. "You thought a lot about this, sixth."

"If we win the Grand Magic Games, we might be able fo get Lucy back." Makarov said. "But we cannot trust their words, so we cannot fight with one strategy. Now that everyone is here, this is our best chance. Behind the scenes an extra team will go to save Lucy. A two-prong approach for this battle. I believe in you, brats."

Crocus Streets

Natsu glanced up at the arena with a smile on his face. "You guys better win." He chuckled before he, Wendy, and Laki raced forward as the Exceeds flew next to them.

And the race is on. Obviously, with Gajeel not being in the games, I came up with another way to get them in that cave for the exposition bomb. I think it works pretty well. Also of you're wondering why I didn't show Lucy and Yukino in the jail cell, it's because it adds nothing to the over all story. All they do is sit around and talk. If they tried to escape, that would be something, byt they just sat there.

Anyway, see ya next time.

Beta read by General Feng Xiang