Chapter 95

Sun Village

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

"Magic"

Flashback

Location / Date / Time Skip

The massive vine finally came to a stop, just outside the affected village. "So this is the place?" Gray asked, looking around.

"It looks like nothing." Erza confessed.

"That was amazing!" Wendy cheered.

"I didn't know plants could do this!" Laki added, holding a sick Natsu up.

"Check it out, guys. This rock is frozen solid." Happy said, catching everyone's attention.

"I guess we're near the village." Carla surmised as the group walked forward. Following the strangely purplish ice, they reached the village and found it completely frozen.

"He was right, everything was frozen. Even the buildings." Rose mumbled in fear.

"According to Warrod, the people here are frozen. But I don't see any." Erza added, looking around.

Natsu turned to the side and slowly looked up at a giant humanoid, frozen solid in ice. "G-g-g-giant!" He shouted in a panic, scaring everyone as more and more giants came into view. "Is this this a giant's village!?"

"How'd Warrod forget to mention that!?" Laki asked.

"I don't think he forgot." Carla mumbled. "I bet he's laughing at us right now."

Gray stared up at a giant, frozen in a scream. He blinked and for a second, he saw Deliora again. "You okay, Gray?" Lucy asked.

"I'm fine." He said, shaking the image out of his head. "It's just seeing giant frozen things… bring back some bad memories."

"I'm surprised to see just huge people frozen." Erza confessed.

"Check out their dogs!" Wendy shouted, pointing at the giant frozen beast.

"Is that even a dog?" Rose asked.

"We gotta save them." Natsu declared, walking over to the nearest giant. "Let's get to melting!" He burst into flames, ready to melt the ice. "Come on! Melt!" More flames erupted around him, but the ice never changed. "Damn it!" The flames died around him and he kicked the shoe in anger.

"He did say this ice wasn't normal." Laki replied, walking over.

Gray put his hand on the ice and something clicked. "This feeling… It's magic I've never sensed before."

"You can't melt it with your magic, either?" Erza asked, earning a head shake from him.

"I guess it won't be that simple." Lucy said.

"Someone beat us here?" The group turned around to see three men standing over them.

"Eh, it's just some women and kids." The one with a sword declared.

"Who are you?" Erza demanded.

"We're from the treasure hunting guild, Sylph Labyrinth." The one with a gun declared. "Sorry to tell ya, but whatever treasure is here is ours. Don't get in our way."

"…We're not here for any treasure." Laki shouted back.

"Then why the heck are you here?" The swordsman asked.

"We came here to melt the ice and save the village." Happy added.

The three turned to each other and then snapped their heads at the group. "THAT'S GETTING ON OUR WAY!" The scream confused the wizards before the gunman explained.

"The Eternal Flame is a legendary flame that's been burning for centuries. To a treasure hunter it's an S-Class super treasure! We were never able to get close to it because of the giants protecting it. But now for some reason, they're all frozen. It's the perfect chance to get the Flame."

"But the Flame is protecting this village." Lucy shouted back. "If you take it, you'll be like thieves."

The three shared another glance before racing into the village. "Who cares what people think! That treasure is ours!" The gunman shouted.

"Hate to tell you this, but the Flame is frozen too." Gray spadded.

"Don't underestimate treasure hunters." The swordsman chuckled, holding up a vial. "With this super treasure 'Liquid Moon Drip', we'll melt that ice."

"Moon Drip?" Happy asked.

"It's that thing from Galuna Island, remember?" Laki reminded the cat.

"They turned it into a liquid?" Erza asked.

"Hey! If we catch those guys, we could bring the village back!?" Natsu shouted, shocking the group. "After them!" The group raced after them the treasure hunter, unaware of the creature flying over them.

"Wizards and thieves…" A large man mumbled. "We need to kill them. It's our job."

"The wizards are the problem. Who cares about some petty burglars." A woman replied.

"You are correct…" The man replied. "The job must begin, newbie."

"How dare you." The woman said back. "You will call me M'lady."

With Team Natsu

"Get back here!" Natsu shouted as they raced after the hunters. "We need the Drip to save the giants!"

"Why the hell would we do that!?" The swordsman asked. "That'll just make our job harder! We're taking that Flame, screw the giants!"

"Hey, where's Erza?" Lucy asked.

"She stayed behind in the village to look for clues." Wendy replied.

"Get back here, thieves!" Laki shouted in anger.

"We're not thieves! We're treasure hunters!" The gunman shouted back.

"A spade's a spade! Give us the Moon Drip!" Laki replied.

"Screw this! Let's just take them out!" The swordsman declared as the two turned around. "Drake, fine a perch!"

"Got it!" The now named sniper said as he raced away.

"We can't let some stupid wizards get in our way!" The swordsman said as he gripped his handle and the silent member pulled out a large fish hammer.

"We're stupid?" Natsu asked as they entered a fighting stance. "You wanna fight with the best guild in a world!? I'm getting fired up!" The giant fist hammer smashed in front of his face, forcing him to jump back.

"The heck is with that warhammer?" Laki asked.

"This is the power of the Labyrinth!" The hammer-man declared, speaking for the first time.

"He can talk!?" Lucy asked in surprise.

Natsu charged in and pulled his fist back, the hand igniting in flames. "Fire Dragon Iron Fist!" He slammed his burning fist forward, creating an explosion. The smoke cleared and the fist hammer had opened up and caught the attack. The hand suddenly closed and grabbed his arm. Waving his weapon, he pushed a button and the hand let him go, sending Natsu flying.

"Natsu!" Wendy shouted in worry as Laki raced over and caught him.

"Enough of this!" Gray declared as he slammed his hands together. "Ice-Make Freeze Lancer!" A dozen ice lances shot at the swordsman, who pulled out his blade.

"Not gonna work!" He shouted back before jumping and slashing the ice to pieces. "Eat my chain blade, wizard!" He pulled a lever and the blade suddenly extended. Gray move to the side in a panic and the sword went straight into a frozen tree.

Wendy suddenly tackle Lucy as a gunshot went off, destroying the ice. "A gun?"

"Where'd it come from?" Happy asked, looking around.

"It has to be that guy who ran away." Rose surmised.

"Nice dodge, but next time I'm taking your head." The gunman said, his voice echoing around the five.

"Where is he? I can't figure out his position." Carla said.

Wendy sniffed the air and turned to the side. "Gunpowder… Lucy, over there!"

"On it!" The blonde pulled out a key and summoned Sagittarius, his bow in hand. "Take him out!"

"Absolutely!" The spirit aimed and fired an arrow just another round went off. The two meet in mid air and exploded in a mess of metal and wood. "That man is quite skilled." He reluctantly confessed.

Laki picked Natsu up as the two stared at the hammer user. "These guys are actually pretty good." Natsu confessed.

With Erza

Erza stared up at one of the frozen giants, her hand on her chin in deep thought. "I wonder why…" She mumbled to herself. "Everyone is holding a weapon and looking the same way. What happened to this village before it was frozen?" An idea suddenly hit her and she turned to another giant.

"Giants, ice, weapons… Were they fighting something or protecting something? The only thing worth protecting in this village is… The Eternal Flame…" Warrods words echoed in her head as she looked around. "If they consider the flame a guardian deity, they would protect it from external enemies. In other words…"

She turned and sprinted into the village. "The Flame must be in the opposite direction of the giants." Racing past the giants, she stared up at a massive frozen mountain. "It must be on top of the mountain!"

Erza panted in exhaustion as she finally reached the top of the mountain. "There's… nothing here…" She gasped for breath. "Why? I thought if I could find the flame… We could bring the village back… But even if I found the flame, it would be frozen too. I suppose it wasn't going to that easy to find the treasure."

She saw her reflection in the corner of her eye and gasped in horror. "What is this?" As she walked over to the chunk of ice, her armor started falling off before she reached out and touched it. "Why am I a child!?" She started grabbing her face and pulling on it, and she felt only her skin. "What is happening!?"

In her panic, she slipped on the ice and her boots flew off, sending her tumbling down the mountain until she came to a stop. "I can't move as well as I want. My body hasn't been this size for a long time… I need to get back to normal…" Jellal suddenly flashed her mind and a blush covered her face. "I ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO GET BACK TO NORMAL!"

With the Others

Happy hugged Lucy's leg as they looked around for the sniper. "You guys are pretty good considering you can't use magic." Natsu declared.

"Don't put Sylph Labyrinth on the same level as any other treasure hunter guild." The swordsman declared. "We're the best of the best!"

"Some random wizards can't hope to compete against us." Drake said.

"We're not 'some random wizards'." Gray declared before raising his hand, jingling the bottle of Moon Drip.

"How'd you do that!?" Hiroshi shouted as he felt his pocket.

"It's called Ice-Make: Thief's Hand." Gray chuckled as the ice game him a thumbs up.

"Drake, shoot him!"

"Sagittarius!"

The two sharp shooters fired off their respective rounds, making them hit again. "Give it back, thief!" Hiroshi thrust his sword forward, trying to skewer Gray.

"We need it to save the giants." Gray snapped back as he dodged the blade. "Sorry, but we'll keep it for a while." He jumped back from a slash, forcing him to think on his feet. "Natsu!"

He threw the bottle and the Dragon Slayer caught it. "Yeah!" He chuckled before the hammer user forced him to roll. "Crap, forgot about him." He glanced around and smiled before pulling his arm back. "Laki!"

Like Gray, he threw the bottle and his fiancé caught it, scrapping along the ground. A round shot off and hit next to her, forcing her to run. "Happy!" She threw the bottle at the blue cat, but another round chipped the ground in front of her. She tripped on the chunk of uprooted ice and lost her aim.

Happy raised his arms and the bottle flew over his head, crashing on the ground behind him.

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"YOU IDIOT!" Hiroshi shouted. "How are we supposed to melt the ice now!?

"I'm sorry." Happy said as tears started falling from his eyes.

"Get real!" Lucy snapped back. "Look at it. Do you really think that amount was enough to melt the ice?"

"So then we couldn't have saved everyone, anyway." Gray mumbled.

Natsu stared at the melted spot and started walking over to it. Crouching to his knees, he placed his ear to the unthawed earth. "Someone's voice?"

"Voice?" Laki asked, walking over.

"I can hear a voice coming from here." He replied. "It's calling out…" He turned to his side and started sprinting back towards the village. "This way!"

Laki raced after him as the others looked at each other in confusion. "What did he hear?" Wendy asked.

"We need to follow him." Lucy declared before they raced after the pinkette.

"Hold it, blondie!" The swordsman cut the two girls off. "We're not going anywhere without some kind of treasure!"

"So hand over that gold key! And any other ones you got!" Drake added, shooting the ground between her.

With Natsu

Racing through the frozen village, Natsu followed the voice as best he could. "Natsu, slow down!" Laki shouted.

"I've heard that voice before… but who is it?" He mumbled in confusion. He looked up and came to a stop as a massive man stepped into view. Laki reached Natsu and the two enter relaxed fighting stances. "You a friend of those thieves?"

"I am no thief." The being declared, raising his arms. "Go back, go back to the memories of your past." He started glowing in a dark purple aura before the two Dragon Slayers started shrinking.

"Wha-what!?" Laki suddenly tripped over her shoe as Natsu's shirt swallowed his arm.

"What did you do?" He asked, holding up his pants.

"It will be easier to kill you both as children." The man declared.

With Erza

Erza glowed in a magical glow as a sword slowly appeared in front of her. She grabbed it and the blade materialized completely in her hand. "I can still use my magic… but my Requip speed has been cut in half. And I don't have any armor for this size."

"It seems Titania has lost her crown." The redhead turned around to see a familiar face, one she hadn't seen in a while.

"Minerva?" She asked in surprised. "I haven't seen you since the end of the Grand Magic Games. Why are you here?"

"I changed guilds. This is my first mission with them." She replied, cocking her hips out. "I didn't expect to meet you here."

Erza's eyes went wide at the symbol on her hip. "Succubus Eye!? That's a dark guild!"

"Dark, light, all that matters to me is being the strongest." Minerva chuckled back. "This guild is nothing but a footnote. I'll go higher than even when I was in Sabertooth."

"So you threw your pride as a wizard!?" Erza asked back.

"Stop talking and let's resume our fight." Minerva declared. "Although, I doubt you can beat anything with that body."

"Did you do this to me?" The child asked, pointing her blade at her.

"No, that would be my partner's power." Minerva answered. "There are many interesting types of magic in this world."

"So now you're not fighting directly?" Erza asked.

"There are many ways of fighting." She said back. "Prepare yourself, for this isn't the Games anymore. It's a fight to the death."

With Natsu & Laki

"What the hell? Why are we kids!?" Natsu asked.

"Time for you both to die." The hulking man declared as he charged. He swung his arm and the two tripped out of the way.

"This is bad! We can't move like this." Laki realized.

Natsu pulled his head back, his cheeks puffing up. "Fire Dragon's Roar." A small fireball shot of his mouth, shocking both of them. "What the hell!?" He jumped back from another punch, tackling Laki to the side. "Even as a kid, I had way more magic than that!"

"Your appearance is just an extra effect." The large man declared. "The Law of Retrogression is a magic that lowers the targets magic power."

"That's not fair!" Natsu tried to unleash a flaming punch, only for a small ember to come off. An uppercut hit him and sent him flying into Laki, having the two slide back into the icy city. "How the heck can you be that strong!?"

"That's what happens with your lowered defense." The larger man declared.

Natsu pushed himself and gasped in horror. "What the hell is that!?"

The large man turned around and found only a frozen giant. "What?" He turned around and found the couple running away. "Those two brats are underestimating me…" He pulled the bandana off his mouth, showing off large canines and hair around his lips. "I'll show them how powerful non-humans are."

With Lucy & Wendy

"Give us the keys and you can live!" Hitoshi said as he swung his sword at the blonde.

"Why would I do that!?" Lucy shouted back. "These keys are my Spirits! I'm not just gonna hand them off to some wacko!"

Wendy jumped back from a swing of the hammer, tearing the ground up. "Don't you care about the giants frozen alive!?" She asked.

"Treasure hunters only care about thing, if it's treasure!" The swordsman shouted before thrusting his blade into the ground before Lucy. "And with three men against two women, you can't stop us!"

She tripped over the ground and a shot hit a branch above her. It broke and trapped her on the ground before Wendy turned in a panic. Another shot went off and flew at the petite girl, ready to take her head off.

Red hair suddenly shot up and formed a knot, catching the bullet. "It's three on three." Flare declared as her hair picked the branch off of Lucy.

"What are you doing out here?" The blonde asked, still on the ground.

"…I've been following you, blondie." She replied, scaring Lucy. "More like stalking, actually." The blonde stumbled back in shock before the red head chuckled. "Just kidding. I didn't have a place to return to so I went back…"

"Went back?" Wendy repeated.

"To my home." Flare replied, showing off the crest on her chest. "This is the mark of Sun Village."

"You're from this village?" Wendy asked in shock as Lucy gasped.

"I was raised by the giants from a young age." The redhead replied, clenching her fists. "And when I returned… I found all the village people… my people… I won't forgive you!"

"We didn't freeze the people!" Hitoshi shouted. "We just want the Eternal Flame!"

"That doesn't make it right!" Flare shouted back. "The Eternal Flame is sacred to our village! I won't let anyone take it!" Her hair shot forward and lashed at the two.

"I got this!" Hitoshi launched forward and slashed at the hair, only for it to quickly grow again. "The hell is wrong with this hair!?"

The hammer user charged in for a smash, only for Wendy to rush in and punt the mallet back. "We'll help you out!" She declared, making the red head smile.

"Sagittarius! Stay alert for that sniper!" Lucy declared as her spirit notched his boy. "Virgo!" She summoned her maid spirit and she appeared instantly. "Tunnel through the ground and take down the sniper from behind!"

"As you wish, princess." The maid jumped and tried to swan dive into the ground, only to crash face first into the ice. "Princess, I can't get through. This ice has special magical properties that prevents any sort of penetration."

Sagittarius cried in pain as a series of sniper rounds punctured him. Lucy turned just in time to see her spirit returned to his home. Flare transformed her hair into her Wolf Fang spell and launched it at the swordsman, who slashed it in turn. "This hair is my pride and a blessing from the Eternal Flame!" She shouted back, the strands suddenly igniting. "Hair Shower: Fire Flame!"

The strands suddenly exploded around him, sending Hitoshi sliding back. Wendy kicked the hammer user in the face, only for the mallet to wrap around her. Lucy looked around and was forced to hop around from sniper shots. Flare turned to help, only for her hair to be wrapped around a tree.

"You stupid bitches!" Hitoshi chuckled, finishing the knot. "It's ten years too early for you to pick a fight with us! That's why you need to just stay in the kitchen, if you ask me. Now why don't you just shake it!?"

Lucy merely chuckled as the girls smirked. "Then it's a hundred years too early for you to pick a fight with mages like us."

"Arms!" Wendy chanted, her body glowing in a green aura. She pushed against the metal and snapped it open, shocking the hammer man.

"You know my hair can grow at any time, right?" Flare chuckled, her hair growing and wrapping around the sword user.

"Found ya." Loke chuckled from behind the sniper. "Lucy!" He kicked the gunner into the air and the blonde and her maid kicked him in the stomach. Flare slammed Hitoshi into Drake and sent them crashing into the hammer user.

"Sky Dragon Wing Attack!" Wendy chanted, blasting all three into the sky, far away into the horizon.

"We did it!" Lucy cheered, making Flare smile.

This is the start of one my favorite character arcs in ALL of FT, and I don't care who knows it. Also, GIANTS! Who the hell saw that one coming? Not to mention both reverse-aging and Flare's return. This arc might be a short one, but it's definitely one of my favorite in the show. Not much left to say so I'll see you all next time.

Beta Read by General Feng Xiang