Tower of Heaven: Year x776
A pre-teen with the build of a runner and short purple hair was laid out motionless on the floor of a dingy cell. He had been dressed in a white tank top with green shorts and lacked shoes.
"Hey, are you okay?" A little girl's voice rang out as she shook the body with her little hands. "You're not dead, are you?"
While the pre-teen could feel the movement of his body, the girl's voice was drowned out by words which rang through his mind.
"Someone as ungrateful as you doesn't deserve a family, let alone the honor of being a Wizard!"
The silhouette of a teen with the build of a runner flashed through his mind, awakening the young man suddenly. He bolted to a sitting position while taking in a deep breath of air. His crimson eyes were immediately greeted by the face of a little red-haired girl.
Her left eye was brown while her right eye had an eyepatch over it. She looked like she had been abused for some time considering the wounds on her body. The pre-teen immediately felt pity for this girl, but he couldn't enact on anything given he didn't know where they were.
"Where am I?" The pre-teen questioned.
"A place called the Tower of Heaven; however, it's the furthest thing from it." The girl answered with an expression of sorrow.
"Tower of Heaven?" The pre-teen cast his gaze around the cell to see there were others here, in similar attire to him or this girl, in only slightly better condition than this girl was. "Are places like this common off the island?"
While he hadn't left the island he was born on until now, he'd certainly learned everything he could about the wider world from the knowledge available there. None of it mentioned places like this being common, or all that accepted from what he gathered.
The pre-teen looked at the girl. "How did I get here?"
"The guards found you washed up on the beach and decided to make you a slave, like the rest of us." The girl informed. "They want us to build this tower. Far as I know, the rest of us were captured from our own villages and forced to work here. We've tried to escape but failed."
The way she held her hand above her eye patch, and the following tears that dripped from her only good eye, told the pre-teen exactly what price must have been paid for such an act of defiance.
"Judging by your appearance, I'm guessing you took the blame." The pre-teen reasoned. "If that were the case, why would you look guilty?"
Perhaps she did feel guilty about the failure, for any number of reasons, but that just wasn't adding up in the pre-teen's mind.
"A friend of mine tried to save me, now he's being tortured for it." The girl answered tearfully.
"Regardless of how the outside world may view this place, I'm not staying here, and neither are these people." The pre-teen took a deep breath as he closed his eyes. "There!"
Suddenly, a golden light enshrouded the pre-teen's right arm before forming into a golden band. It had a holster with cards slotted within and the eye of Wdjat was plain to see.
"Wait, are you a Wizard?" The girl asked with hope in her voice.
"Someone as ungrateful as you doesn't deserve a family, let alone the honor of being a Wizard!"
A brief look of doubt crossed the pre-teen's face as that sentence ran through his mind.
He took a deep breath and steeled his expression. "Despite what someone claims, I am." Suddenly, three card sized slots above and three card sized slots below folded out from the band on his arm. "Thanks to my DiaDhank and cards, no one will remain here
The girl had no idea what a DiaDhank was or how cards would result in their freedom, but the way he spoke about them made her believe. "Hey, what's your name?"
"Law Pharos." The pre-teen responded. "Who might you be?"
The girl smiled. "I'm Erza, Erza Scarlet."
"A fitting name." Law stated, making Erza beam at the compliment. "Now, it's time to get out of here." He turned towards the door as a card slotted out of his deck, and he grabbed it. "I Summon Jack's Knight!"
He put the card on one of the monster slots. It glowed with a golden aura as a warrior in blue armor and with long blond hair appeared. This got his fellow cellmates standing and looking at him in awe before shifting to amazement as the monster cut the cell open with his blade.
"Whoa, what kind of magic is that?" Erza asked, stunned.
"Duel Monster Magic." Law answered before two more cards slotted out of his deck. "I Summon Queen's Knight & King's Knight!"
He filled out his monster slots with a red armored woman and an orange armored man. The moment they appeared, the pair scattered to engage the guards with their blades and shield. This left Jack's Knight who accompanied Law to protect him and cut open more cells.
"That young man is strong." An old man said.
"Grandpa Rob?" Erza questioned.
"It's been a long time since I've seen one with his magic, and he uses it well for someone his age." Rob noted.
"No matter how strong he is, I'm not going to sit around and do nothing." Erza stated firmly.
The words of the friend who came to save her rang through her mind.
"We're going to have to fight."
"We all should fight!" Suddenly, tools began to levitate around her. "Fight for our freedom!"
With Law
Queen's and King's Knight did a good job diverting guards away from Law as he utilized Jack's Knight to cleave open cells. Once he could no longer find any more cells, the prior two cards shattered into golden particles.
"Looks like the guards were able to bring those two down." Law noted briefly.
This meant he could no longer summon either of them for some time. Regardless, the pair had done their job. Suddenly, he could hear metal footsteps making their way towards him and Jack's Knight jumped to guard his back, taking blasts of magic.
"Stop right there!"
He turned to see roughly five guards as Jack's Knight shattered into golden particles. "I refuse."
With those words, they all leveled their spears at him and fired blasts of magic from the tips.
At that moment, one card slotted out of Law's deck. "You activated my trap card, Mirror Force." The beams of magic dissipated as they hit an invisible force field before a large blast of magic knocked the men out. "It negates your magic and deals an equal force right back at you."
Law rushed forward, snatching a spear on his way as he figured someone out there might buy it. Considering he was already lacking funds before being captured, he felt this was a wise move.
With Erza
Erza and the freed prisoners managed to deal with their share of guards, beating them back, when phantom-like creatures entered the picture. They were firing off beams of magic from red circles over their mouths. This saw quite a few prisoners dying and resulted in others scattering.
"No, you can't give up! We must fight to be free!" One of the fleeing prisoners ended up bumping into Erza, making her fall. "Please, come back. We need your help. We must save Jellal."
The magic soldiers charged more blasts leveled squarely at Erza.
Tower of Heaven
Law arrived on the scene only to see, to his horror, the soldiers firing upon Erza. While this had spurred him to rush in, Law knee he wouldn't make it in time. Fortunately, the old man had and took the blasts.
"Grandpa Rob!" Erza exclaimed.
"Whoa…" Law skid to a halt.
"My magic might not be as strong as it once was, but it's still enough to protect my friends." Rob declared firmly. "I will not allow you to take the life of an innocent."
He generated a wave of fire and utilized it to vaporize all the magic soldiers. Law now sprinted to join Erza at the man's side. He seemed to be falling apart before their very eyes.
"Are you alright?" Erza asked.
"Yes." Rob answered. "I may be a decrepit old man, but deep down I still got some fight left in me. As a Wizard, my magic has always been intertwined with the very essence of my life. Though, I never realized how much until I lost it and found myself in this sorry state."
He looked at Law. "Young man, I can tell you're a good one, but even I would not ask a thing of you, since we haven't spoken until now, were the situation not what it was. Erza has so much potential. Please, take care of her and ensure she doesn't end up like me."
"Grandpa Rob…" Erza muttered, tears running down her eye.
"Old man…" Law bowed his head.
He grunted as those same words from before played through his mind.
"Someone as ungrateful as you doesn't deserve a family, let alone the honor of being a Wizard!"
Law shook his head, both to dispel such a thought and to ensure he could give his word to this man's dying wish. "I'll look after her."
"Thank you…" Rob managed with a smile.
His body then went limp, and his eyes lost their color as he passed away.
"NO!" Erza cried. "GRANPA ROB!"
"I'm sorry." Law rested a hand on her shoulder. "I know it hurts, but this isn't over. I'm getting you and your friends out of here."
"Jellal." Erza muttered.
She suddenly stood and sprinted towards the tower. Just as Law stood to follow, he noticed a rather large horde of guards and magic soldiers approaching. Given it took an old man's sacrifice to beat the prior horde, Law didn't like the chances of those left without intervention.
"Er, I need to make this fast!" Law slotted out two new cards, resulting in his DiaDhank instantly folding one of the monster slots down as he was not powerful enough to command three monsters of such power. "I summon Dark Magician & Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"
A purple robbed spellcaster and a black dragon with red eyes appeared before rushing together as one to engage the enemy. Trusting in those two to mop up here, Law rushed off after that girl.
"Alright, where did Erza go?" He was looking every which way as he ran through the tower. "Come on, I can't make a promise like this just to end up losing her." He stopped suddenly upon hearing an explosion. "That didn't come from where I was."
Even though he knew it couldn't have, Law still looked at his DiaDhank to ensure the monsters were still present. Red-Eyes and Dark Magician's cards were still there, so he started running in the direction of the explosion since this was a sign of where Erza could be.
He made it through a corridor and managed to see a small boat out on the water. Almost immediately, this called upon Red-Eyes to rush to his summoner. Law knew this as he lept down to the ground and sprinted towards the water. Red-Eyes plowed through the construction.
Law then lept on his dragon's back just as the small boat was hit by a wave. "ERZA!"
The dragon took flight over the water, getting under where Erza would fall into the water and allowing Law to catch her. Red-Eyes then flew away from the tower as Dark Magician's card shattered into golden particles.
Shore: Early Evening…
Erza awoke to see a campfire. As she slowly picked herself up, one of the prisoner's male tank tops fell off her.
"It wasn't much, but at least I could cover you with something while you slept." Law informed.
Erza looked at the pre-teen as he took the tank top back and slipped it on. Before him there sat a spread of various fruits, and he had one of those spears the guards used with him.
"What happened?" Erza asked with a bewildered look.
"I'm going to assume you know what happened after we parted ways." Law reasoned. "Essentially, I saw you unconscious and aboard a small ship heading away from the tower. I was already running towards the water when your ship was hit by a wave.
Fortunately, one of my best duel monsters was already out. After leaping onto his back, he flew me out to catch you. He then took us to shore where I sent another duel monster to forage for some grub and wood. I then set up this campfire to await you waking up."
"Ah…" Erza muttered.
"All this time we've been here, and I haven't seen anyone coming from the direction of the tower." Law informed.
"Grandpa Rob, he…." Erza stopped as tears dripped from her one good eye.
"…was a great man." Law sighed. "Someone I wish I could have gotten to know. Anyone who would sacrifice their life like that, he's someone a lot of people could aspire to be." He looked at her. "He's also someone who wants you to live a good life and fulfill your potential."
"Fairy Tail…" Erza uttered.
"A guild?" Law questioned.
He knew there were plenty of avenues a Wizard could go down, guild life among them, but he hadn't really decided which route to take himself.
"It's the guild he was part of." Erza looked at him with determination. "I want to find and join it. In fact, we should both join."
"Looks like my decision's been made." Law thought.
Again, he didn't really have any idea what he wanted to do as a Wizard. All Law knew was that he must do something with his magic. His promise to look out for Erza was as good a way to decide as any.
"If someone like Rob was part of Fairy Tail, joining such a guild is the move to me." Law nodded. "Sounds like a plan; however, right now you need food." He passed over a good bit of fruit to her. "Then, we'll set off and see about finding civilization."
Forest: Later…
They had covered a fair distance, but the sound of a body hitting the ground drew Law's attention. "Er, perhaps I should have had us rest at the shore." He moved to kneel beside the girl and noted her panting. "That seemed risky given that tower lays out along the ocean."
Given he was more worried about Erza than clocking where they had gone in relation to the tower, Law wasn't certain where that place lay any longer. Weighing his options, he just felt better putting distance between them and the shore.
As such, Law picked up the girl and ensured she was secured to his back, without running the risk of being hurt by the spear he still carried. With everything set, he pressed on along the path hopeful they'd run into civilization soon.
Village: Later…
After the harrowing time they'd been through, Law was glad to see a little luck come their way as it wasn't much longer until they reached a town. That said, they weren't completely in the clear. Honestly, if the spear he had couldn't be sold for enough, they'd be in trouble.
"Excuse me." Law hadn't noticed an elderly lady approaching him, lost in his own thoughts, but he now paid attention. "You two seem to have been through quite an ordeal. Do you need help?"
"Yeah, actually." Law nodded. "Do you happen to know if anywhere around here would be willing to buy a magic spear?"
She pointed at a place. "I'd say that store over there would be your best bet."
"Thanks." Law stated.
He then walked into the shop and approached the counter.
"Welcome." A young man bowed. "How may I help you?"
"I was hoping you'd be interested in this spear." Law stated, placing said item on the counter.
"Hm, seems high end." The man noted as he inspected it. "I would say it should be worth around 5000; however, this one is showing some wear." He took a good look at the pre-teen and his companion's condition before high balling his offer a bit. "Ah, how's 3500 jewels sound?"
"Better than I was hoping." Law shook the man's hand. "Deal."
After making the exchange, he tucked the money away and left the shop. The next course of action was getting them a place to stay. Fortunately, this town had an inn.
He approached an elderly man at the counter who smiled. "Hello there young man, what can I do for you?"
"I'm hoping you have a room for two, but we'll take anything we can get." Law voiced.
"I can tell you two need it." The older man smiled genuinely. "Not to worry, we have quite a few rooms available. How long are you planning on staying?"
"Not sure." Law admitted.
"Well, a room for two is going to run two hundred jewels a night." The man stated. "If you buy three nights, I'll cut you a deal for five hundred."
"Just from what I know of Erza's time at that tower, perhaps three nights and two days of rest would be warranted." Law nodded. "I'll take the deal."
They made the exchange before Law made his way to the room. The place they got was rather spacious with a bedroom, living room, and bathroom. He approached the beds and put Erza to rest in the one farthest from the door before laying in his own bed.
Morning…
Law felt someone tugging at his tank top, and one of his eyes opened to see it was Erza who was responsible. The pre-teen yawned before slowly rising to a sitting position and rubbing his eyes.
Before he could greet her, the girl spoke up nervously. "I think someone stole that spear you were carrying."
"Nah, I sold it last night." Law informed. "The money from that gave us this room for the next two nights. If all goes well, it should be what sees us to Fairy Tail as well. On that note, after I wake up, we'll head out to buy new clothes for the two of us."
"Eh?" Erza was surprised. "You don't have to spend any money on me."
"I gave my word I'd look out for you, that means ensuring your health." Law stated seriously. "Besides, I'm not about to buy myself a new set of clothes and leave you with nothing."
So, the pair left the inn with Law taking a cursory glance around the now lively town as he attempted to spot a clothes shop. Eventually, he spotted the place and turned to Erza who had moved to the window of a nearby bakery.
She seemed transfixed on a strawberry cake to the point Law wondered if that happened to be her favorite. Given her mouth was watering, that seemed to be the case. He made a note of this before walking over and resting a hand on her head.
"Come on, I think I saw a clothing store." Law stated.
"Right." Erza voiced.
"Welcome!" They had entered said store and were greeted by a young woman. "How may I help you?"
"As you can see, the two of us are in need of outfits." Law informed. "Would you happen to have anything for us?"
"Of course, right this way." The woman stated.
Law ended up receiving a pair of purple pants with red lines down the side, a no sleeved purple shirt, a purple blazer with red accents, and purple boots with red accents. Erza picked a white blouse, a blue skirt with black leggings, and black shoes.
"Ah, this feels better." Law smiled at the woman. "How much for the outfits?"
"800 jewels." The woman replied. "500 for you and 300 hundred for her."
Law took out the requested total and put it on the counter. "By the way, would you be able to tell me where a guild called Fairy Tail is?"
"Fairy Tail is in Magnolia." The woman informed. "If you travel out the east gate, and stick to the path, you'll come across a port. There, you'll want to take a boat to Hargeon. Then, it's at most a day's walk to Magnolia.
"Any idea how much it'd cost to take the boat?" Law asked.
"250 jewels per ticket, so 500 if you'll be going together." The woman informed.
"Good to know." Law nodded. "Thanks for the new clothes and help."
"No problem." The woman smiled and waved the pair off. "Come again."
Law then returned them to their room. "Alright, we're both relatively clean due to the ocean spray, but I think proper showers are in order." He looked at the girl. "Erza, you go first while I step out for a moment."
"Alright." Erza stated.
Once she entered the bathroom, and he could hear the water going, Law made sure the room was secure before stepping out. He visited a stand selling some fruit and bought that along with a cream they were selling before entering the bakery.
He bought a loaf of bread, and had it cut while also snagging the strawberry cake. Fruit sandwiches weren't exactly a balanced meal, but they were among the limited number of things he knew how to make well. All told, he only spent 100 jewels on everything.
"Note to self, learn how to cook if you're going to be looking after another person." Law noted.
Later…
Erza stepped out of the bathroom, feeling clean and refreshed, when she noticed the fruit sandwiches and strawberry cake set on the table.
She looked over at Law. "You went out and bought that cake I was looking at?"
"That along with what's essentially our lunch at this point." Law responded.
"W-why?" Erza asked.
"We got to eat something, and my current culinary range isn't that extensive." Law shrugged. "As for the cake, you've clearly been through a lot more than me. I basically woke up before immediately breaking out, so I think it's plain to see you need a treat."
Suddenly, Erza tackle hugged Law with a beaming smile. "Thank you…brother."
Law froze as those words played through his mind once again.
"Someone as ungrateful as you doesn't deserve a family, let alone the honor of being a Wizard!"
"Why are you calling me your brother?" Law asked.
"Well, you're treating me a lot like Grandpa Rob had." Erza backed away uncertainly, worried she'd hurt him, somehow, by saying that. "You're also a lot younger than him or how I'd think of a father. I-I don't know. I guess in just this short time I've…"
"Sorry if you took my reaction the wrong way." Law knelt and hugged her, dismissing his earlier thoughts. "If you wish to think of us as siblings, I don't mind."
"Thank you, brother." Erza stated happily as she hugged him back.
Eventually, Law pulled them apart and stood with a smile. "Now, let's eat."
The meal was good; however, Law was stunned at how such a little girl managed to eat the whole cake. It at least confirmed she really did like it, and that he'd have to keep a careful eye on her moving forward since that much cake couldn't be good for her.
Magnolia, Days Later, Morning…
After their time in the town, Law and Erza were refreshed enough to make their way to the port. Law then spent the jewels on boarding the boat for Hargeon, and the pair enjoyed the air of the sea as the wind blew through their hair.
When they arrived at Hargeon, Law decided to spend 200 jewels on train tickets to get them to Magnolia quicker. From the time he sold that spear to now, he was left with 500 jewels, but it was worth it since they finally arrived at their destination.
"Erza wake up." Law gently shook the red head, as she'd leaned on him to rest. "We're here."
Erza woke up while rubbing her eyes. "W-We are?"
"Yeah, let's go." Law stood with Erza following suit. "It's time to see about joining Fairy Tail."
After getting directions from some helpful people, the newly minted siblings made their way to a building near the ocean which read 'Fairy Tail'.
Fairy Tail
Upon entering, they spotted a dark-haired boy, around Erza's age, who was only wearing his boxers.
"Hey, has anyone seen my clothes?" The boy asked, seeming desperate.
"Did someone around here steal his clothing?" Law pondered before hearing someone call out that he lost them because he kept stripping. "Well, that's…interesting." He approached the boy. "If it's not too much trouble, could I have a word?"
"What?" The boy asked.
"Where can I find the guild master?" Law asked.
"Master!" The boy looked back into the guild. "There's someone here to see you!"
"Thanks for telling me, Gray." A dwarf of an old man walked up to them. "I'm the third master of Fairy Tail, Makarov Dreyar." He noted the golden band on his arm before speaking next. "What can I do for you, young man?"
If this man held a tittle like master, the fact he was short could be waved in Law's opinion. "Greetings, my sister and I are hoping to join your guild."
"Is that so?" Makarov gave the pair a kind, fatherly smile. "Well, how about you tell me about yourselves?"
"I'm Law Pharos, and this is Erza Scarlet." Law introduced.
"I thought you were siblings?" Makarov questioned.
"She decided to make me her big brother recently, and I decided to roll with it." Law rested a hand on her head. "Far as I'm concerned, this is my little sister."
"Very well." Makarov smiled at such an answer. "Why do you want to join Fairy Tai?"
"I want to join the guild old man Rob was a part of." Erza replied.
"As for me, I hadn't come to a conclusion on where I wanted to apply my skills as a Wizard." Law admitted. "Then, I ended up promising Rob I would look out for her, and that tipped my decision to joining Fairy Tail."
"Rob, huh?" Makarov laughed. "How is he?"
"I'm afraid he passed away just days ago." Law informed.
"Unfortunate." Makarov stated sadly. "How did he die?"
"He saved my life." Erza replied.
"Then, he died a noble man." Makarov was saddened over the loss of his friend, and he would grieve appropriately; however, there was no need to mourn someone who went out as they wanted. "Now then, where do you want your guild marks, and in what color?"
"I want mine on my upper left arm, and I want it to be blue." Erza informed.
Makarov stamped Erza's arm. "Law, what about you?"
"I will take mine on the back of my right hand, and I want it to be purple with a red outline." Law informed and was stamped.
"It's official, welcome to Fairy Tail." Makarov then turned to the guild hall. "Alright everyone, we've got two new members, so let's party!" Everyone cheered before the master turned back to the pre-teen. "Law my boy, forgive me if you'd wish to enjoy the festivities, but I'm hoping you'd indulge me with a conversation. If you don't want to, that's fine. I just…"
"No, it's fine." Law assured before patting Erza on the head. "Go join in on the festivities and see what guild life is like while I speak with our new master."
"Alright, brother." Erza stated, leaving his side.
Once she was gone, Law ended up following Makarov to his office.
For those of you aware, I had this story posted months ago. Unfortunately, through circumstances outside my control, this story was deleted from and my laptop. Fortunately, I recently managed to find a way to get a sort of janky version, in that it needs work, back. Now, I can start posting it again. Though there is again a lot of work to be done, and some changes given a different story I started uses Utopia. That facilitates a different deck for Law.