Apologies for taking so long to update, a lot of things were happening that made it difficult for me to find the time to write. Hopefully, I can write more frequently from now on.

"Hargeon, it's been a while"

Erza dismounted from the carriage, walked to the edge of the dock, and took in the fresh sea air as the bright sun shone upon Hargeon. The port town was only an hour or so away from Magnolia via train but it had a completely different feeling than its sister town. For starters, being a port town, it was busier than Magnolia which had a far more relaxed atmosphere with many fishing boats and merchant ships docking and leaving as they pleased while many would-be fortune seekers sought to ply their trade here.

Following behind were Sasuke and Gildarts with the former heading towards Erza while the latter continued haggling with the carriage driver for a discount.

"Quite a view huh? Takes me back to those days" Erza mentioned, glancing towards Sasuke who now stood next to her and gazed at the endless sea in front of him.

He knew exactly what she was talking about. It had been years since that particular incident and yet, he could still remember it as if it were yesterday. " Hargeon. You dragged me from this place all the way to Magnolia" he added.

"Of course, I couldn't just leave you here" Erza answered.

Sasuke let out a smirk and continued looking over the sea, "You never gave up on me, did you?"

Erza shook her head, "Never"

He always knew there was something about her that drew him in, a special quality that reminded him of Naruto. While there were obvious differences, who they were at their core remained the same; the unyielding stubbornness in the face of adversity and the innate desire to save every friend. He liked that about her and the rest of Fairy Tail as well.

"Hey Sasuke" Erza interrupted his thoughts, her mood having shifted from happy to somber "How do you think... they...are doing right now?"

By 'they', Sasuke could deduce that she was talking about Simon, Millianna, Wally, and…Shô. That last name was still etched inside of him with a feeling of regret. As he lowered himself and took a seat on the pier, he answered with a solemn "I don't know…" as he continued looking at the horizon.

Erza had expected that answer but part of her hoped for something optimistic. But given how dour he tended to be, perhaps that was asking for too much. "Hey, do you think maybe someday we could, you know, save them?" it was a question that had been burning inside of her mind.

It was a sentiment shared by Sasuke. Yet regardless of that fact, he lacked the strength to do so, and even if he did, the threat of Jellal hurting them the moment he even set foot on that island loomed too much over him to entertain such a notion. Still, his former strength was returning to him, day by day. Perhaps he would no longer possess a Mangekyo Sharingan or even a Rinnegan, but his current abilities were enough to take him further. "Maybe" he bluntly answered, as he looked at his hand which was curled up into a fist, "One day, when we're strong enough, we'll save them. And that's why we have to continue training."

"Don't I know it" Erza sighed in agreement.

Their conversation was interrupted by the loud thumping of Gildarts, marching over to them with a lively smile as always. "So, what are you kids talking about?" he asked.

Sasuke nonchalantly waved off his question. "Nothing you need to worry about. Are you done haggling?" he pointed out.

Gildarts responded with a large grin while scratching the back of his head, "Well…. let's just say I ain't getting a drink tonight ehehe."

Erza and Sasuke collectively groaned and shook their heads. This man was the strongest in the guild which meant he was supposed to set an example. Instead, he was just as reckless and indulgent as the rest of the adults in the guild. "Gildarts! Were you thinking of drinking on the job?" an exasperated Erza called him out, hands on her hips.

"I need a few beers to keep myself in the zone little lady" Gildarts snorted and shrugged, resulting in a few more groans.

The three made their way through port town until they came across the specified address: a large mansion on the eastern end of the town, surrounded by a lush garden on both sides with a massive silver gate in the middle protected by several guards. "Looks like this is the place," Gildarts said as Sasuke and Erza nodded and followed along. After a quick chat with the guards, the large silver gate was opened and they were quickly escorted into the mansion.

As they were being escorted through the interior, Sasuke kept a watchful eye on the guards, the staff, and the surroundings. So far, there was no indication that any of this was an elaborate ploy to lure them in, only a few paintings and fancy stone decorations, typical of the rich in these lands.

The moment they were finally allowed into the office, the three of them were greeted by the sight of a stout, middle-aged man with a bald head and a curling mustache sitting in front of them. Among his clothing, Sasuke noticed a few of what seemed to be medals slapped to the breast of his elaborate coat which was supplemented with a fur coat. A grandiose display of self-importance, he presumed.

"Do my eyes deceive me? It seemed like ages since I sent out that request" The man pushed himself off of his table and rose up from his chair as he spread his arms out in a welcoming gesture, "Manuel Erdrine, grand Duke of Hargeon. I have been awaiting your arrival." Next to him was a young girl with dark blue hair with symmetrical fringes. Her attire was equally elaborate as her master, with a white dress, black gloves, and a pair of spectacles. Notably, the girl seemed timid as she immediately averted her eyes from the group as they looked at her and covered her face with a notebook.

Just as Erza was about to step forward and speak up, Sasuke grabbed her shoulder and halted her movements, motioning for her to take a step back. As she looked at him, she realized why he had done so. "Before we do that, you need to answer our question. Why the three of us?" Sasuke stated, his eye fixed on the duke.

"Like the kid said. How exactly did you know of the three of us" Gildarts added, his arms crossed as he looked at the duke with pursed lips as well with an intense gaze. The goofy, bumbling alcoholic had been replaced by a more serious individual, almost as if he was a completely different person when in "work mode".

The duke seemed taken aback by their questions, as he nervously fidgeted his hands on the table while his eyes darted everywhere except towards the three of them. Eventually, he gulped, let out a short cough, and answered, "That was quite easy. As the Duke of Hargeon, I make occasional visits to the headquarters of the Magic Council in Fiore for …important functions. And in those times, I have heard of these particular names come up within a few circles."

The trio seemed unconvinced though the duke continued on with his explanation, pacing back and forth until he pointed his finger towards Erza and Sasuke, "Take you two for example. Erza Scarlet and Sasuke Uchiha. Two young prodigies of magic and considered the rising stars of the wizarding world." Duke Manuel then faced Gildarts, "And then there's you, umm…Gildarts Clive. Known far and wide for your magic powers, I believed you were even considered for a seat in the council and a Wizard Saint."

His answer seemed reasonable but they still weren't fully convinced yet. "Gildarts, I can understand. But there are plenty of other young wizards that are out there making a name for themselves. We're just one of many" Erza indicated, "What's so special about us?"

"Well, there was also the fact that your guild master, Makarov, would speak highly of the both of you on the occasion he was there, and they were quite a lot in fact…and I happen to overhear him quite often in those times. Bragging is quite easy when there's plenty of alcohol involved." The duke answered.

Erza had a look of realization, while Sasuke sighed and covered his hand over his eye while shaking his head. Gildarts meanwhile could only respond with a chuckle as he approached the duke, " That's our master for ya. Can't live a day without booze in his hands. Alright, we got it. So what do you need from us?"

"Excellent!" the duke clasped his hands with a burst of trembling laughter as he called for his servant, "Tatiana, bring in the presentation lacrima please!"

"Y-yes, sir" the assistant nervously snapped to attention and immediately dashed to the exit, closing her eyes as she ran past the trio.

Erza looked on, unsure of what to make of that scene. "She seems a little on edge" Erza noted, though perhaps it was more because she reminded her of Mirajane back when they first met; shy, quiet, and refused to talk to others or at least seemed nervous around people who weren't her siblings.

"My previous secretary had an unfortunate accident" Duke Manuel groaned, wiping the sweat off of his brows with his handkerchief. "She's a last-minute replacement; a niece of a close associate of mine. Not the most confident intern but her work is impeccable. She even manages my schedule right down to the air I breath."

"The socially inept but talented type," Sasuke thought to himself, having seen these types of people in his previous life.

"Seems like she's stressing you out too," Gildarts said, giving a not-so-subtle wry smile as a nod to his anxious face which was beginning to sully his over-the-top attire, "You should drink some water."

Rather than be offended by Gildarts words, it seemed as though his sarcasm flew over his head. "Yes…. I think I should do that" he nodded and dropped down on the chair, chugging down an entire glass of water in one go barely able to contain his trembling hand, "I only wish she were more confident."

A few minutes later, the young secretary returned with a small device which she placed on a nearby smaller table parallel to the duke's office desk and shifted the front of that device so that it faced towards the whiteboard. After that, she quickly lowered the curtains until the room was dark and immediately began working on activating the lacrima.

Sasuke, Erza, and Gildarts looked on as the girl's mood shifted from mousy to focused, all traces of timidity vanished as her eyes were focused solely on the lacrima. Eventually, the lacrima turned on and projected the images on the whiteboard.

"Well done, Tatiana" the duke commended as he adjusted his seating to explain the situation, "Now, where do I begin…Oh yes, my research facility. Tatiana, please bring it up on the screen."

"O-of course, your Grace" Tatiana meekly nodded and dabbled with the projector until it displayed an image of an island. The screen then shifted to a large complex facility within that island, housing all sorts of weapons and other machinery.

"As you already know, the production of weapons and other magical items for the military of Fiore is my bread and butter. This facility is located in one of the several isles that I inherited as part of my ancestral wealth and is one of the few pieces of land that legally belongs exclusively to me. I have used this island as one of my main areas to develop and ship weapons for Fiore. Naturally, given its importance and the fact that it is officially out of the country's jurisdiction, I have had to employ soldiers completely detached from the royal military to guard my domain, out of my own pocket of course. It was a good deal too, since the facility had always been safeguarded from pirates and other undesirables since its inception, that is until…"

"Lemme guess, until something happened there" Gildarts interrupted.

The duke groaned and motioned for his assistant to change the slides as he poured another glass of water and chugged it. The next set of images showed scenes of what looked like armed men attacking the facility and taking the surviving guards and staff hostage.

"A few weeks ago, armed mercenaries stormed my facility, killed some of my guards, and took the rest of them hostage" The last parts of the sentence seemed to cause him some embarrassment as his tone became whinier. "I tried negotiating with them to no avail as they've made no demands and refused to open further communications after that."

"That's strange, goons like that usually don't take hostages unless you got something they want," Gildarts said

"Unless they've already got what they want or they're looking for something in that facility" Erza chimed in.

Sasuke then faced the duke, "If that's the case, then why not just ask the magic council or the King to send in the royal army and take back the facility?"

Duke Manuel began sweating again as he frantically wiped the moisture from his head, his trembling hand ever so visible "Well, that could be a bit inconvenient, to put it mildly. This facility of mine does not simply make weapons, it is also the birthplace of my research and development. We have several very powerful, very dangerous weapons and magical items on hand that are currently being developed. Weapons, that I could not show neither to the council nor to King Toma unless they are completed or at least approved of after much quality control."

Gildarts was unconvinced, rubbing his hand behind his neck but he decided to continue indulging the duke, "So now, you're sending us."

"I know this seems all a bit…convoluted, but I assure you that I do not have any ulterior motives for hiring the three of you aside from your very, very well-deserved reputation as one of the best" the duke tried to explain, "I need Wizards who can effectively deal with these mercenaries, save my staff and, if the worst comes, destroy my complex to make sure my prototypes do not fall into the wrong hands."

"That still leaves us with one question. Who are these mercenaries?" Erza inquired.

"I do not fully know, and their motives are a mystery" he admitted, "But I do have my suspicions that they might be from Alakatasia"

"Alakatasia?" Sasuke asked.

"It's the continent west of Ishgar. They have their own form of government and culture. We haven't exactly been on good terms with them and their privateers tend to target our ship a lot" Duke Manuel explained. "So, I ask again, will you help me. I assure you, that the three of you will be richly rewarded.

Sasuke, Erza, and Gildarts all looked at each other. Neither said a word to the other as they collectively nodded. Gildarts was the first to face the duke as he gave him the answer, "Alright, we're game your grace. Just get that cash ready and we'll be taking back your island in no time."

Duke Manuel seemed to heave a sigh of relief. "Excellent! I shall prepare a boat to take the three of you tomorrow. In the meantime, why don't you spend the night here in my mansion; the three of you must be famished after the journey from Magnolia."

"Now that's what I'm talking about. I can't say no to good food and a warm bed, now, can I?" Gildarts' face lit up.

….

The duke had set up a veritable feast for his guests, with a veritable assortment of dishes that smelled heavenly even from afar. Even discounting that, there were also a large number of alcoholic beverages on offer and it was that which made Gildarts overjoyed.

"Oh yeah, time to dig in baby" the veteran wizard shouted as he began wolfing down enormous amounts of food while chugging down beer after beer. His table manners left much to be desired as Sasuke groaned at the sight of his senior eating like an eight-year-old child. The more he thought about it, the more he realized Natsu's wild tendencies were probably enabled by him as well.

"Are you okay Sasuke?" Erza asked concerned by the fact that Sasuke had barely touched his food except for a single bite.

Sasuke looked at her before staring down at his food. Something about it didn't feel right. There was nothing wrong with the smell and when he took a small bite, he didn't feel anything strange either. He couldn't gamble on taking too much poison either, after all, this was no longer the same body that was experimented on by Orochimaru. "Erza…I don't think you should eat any of the food here. I have a bad feeling about this."

Erza went into full alert as she checked her plate as well. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary but she heeded Sasuke's warnings anyways. "Do you think it's poisoned? If that's the case then" Erza's eyes widened to the sight of Gildarts chomping down on meat after meat, " Oh no…Gildarts!"

"I don't think its poisoned…." Sasuke reassured her, "But take a look at the Duke, he's not eating either."

Before he could continue, a very drunk Gildarts made his way over to them, draping Sasuke across his shoulder. "H *hic* hey….w-wuts wrrrooonnggg. You kids….not *hic* huunggrryy?" his speech was starting to become slurry after the copious amount of beer and wine he had consumed. "C'mon, you gotta *hic* eat…"

"Is this feast not to your liking?" the duke inquired.

"It's nothing like that….um…. Sasuke and I, just aren't hungry" Erza quickly interjected, scrambling for an answer on the fly to justify their lack of appetite.

"Hmm, that's a shame. Perhaps, the dessert will be more to your liking then? We do have quite the option" the duke insisted.

At the thought of dessert, Erza's mouth almost began to drool as her eyes began to sparkle until she saw Sasuke's stern gaze glancing at her sideways, upon which she shook her head and remained steadfast in her instance of avoidance. "Sorry, but I'll have to pass" Erza apologized, agony in her voice at the thought of missing out on the possibility of eating strawberry-flavored pastries. She could feel her stomach growling in protest, but for the sake of the mission and the safety of everyone else, Erza committed herself to remain steadfast.

"Is that so? But you seem quite hungry" the duke insisted, upon which Erza's stomach growled even harder as she desperately tried to hold it in, clenching her fists while her posture tensed.

"But, perhaps a little wo-"

"We're not hungry" Sasuke stepped in and frowned at the duke, "And that's the end of it."

The icy stare of the one-eyed boy was enough to send shivers down Duke Manuel's spine. "V-very well, if you insist" he swallowed and conceded, looking pale as though a fever had come down over him.

…

Thankfully for Erza, after the rowdy banquet was over, they were escorted to the guest rooms, where Gildarts immediately crashed into bed while Sasuke gave her his homemade onigiri, which she devoured without hesitation. "That feels much better. Thank you, Sasuke."

"Sorry I made you hold it in," Sasuke said, expressing a bit of regret over advising Erza to avoid the food, especially since he knew how much she loved desserts, "But I had a bad feeling about what was being given to us. "

"Honestly, I don't disagree. I've had my suspicions on this guy ever since the contract and I still don't trust him now." Erza agreed, "When we asked him those questions, he seemed nervous, and the way he seemed to panic every time one of us called him out. Do you think he poisoned the food?"

"Poisoned? I don't think so. But I have a hunch that it's definitely drugged with a sleeping agent." Sasuke answered.

"Glad we didn't eat it" Erza expressed relief as she looked over at the snoring body of Gildarts and sighed, "Except one, I guess. But I wonder if it's the food or the alcohol doing all the work here. Still, what do you think he wants with us?"

Sasuke shared this sentiment as he also stared at the sleeping Gildarts, who was laughing and mumbling about something in his sleep. "I don't have to answer to that one just yet, we'll have to find it for ourselves soon. What I do know is that we can't let our guards down, even for the night. We'll take turns and sleep when we're off shift. Is that okay with you?"

"No problem. So, whose shift will it be first?"

"Me" Sasuke immediately volunteered.

…

In the middle of the night, a large group of armed men tip-toed their way through the mansion until they reached the door to the room where Sasuke, Erza, and Gildarts resided in. As they stood outside the door, one of the mercenaries looked through the peephole to assess the situation.

"Well, what is it?" one of them asked.

"They're all asleep?" the observer answered, puzzled by what he saw given that it contradicted with what was briefed.

"That cannot be right, only Gildarts consumed the drugged food during dinner, the other two abstained; probably suspected me of tampering with it" Duke Manuel emerged from squad, pushing aside some of the soldiers as he made his way to the front to watch the events unfold.

"I mean, it's midnight. They're probably just dozing off" one of them tried to theorize.

"Are you stupid?" the duke chided, "Those children are smarter than I thought. I know they're onto me! They should be alert! Keeping watch! My servants even heard them talking about taking shifts!"

"So…what do we do now boss, they look like they're out of it," one of the two mercenaries at the front asked.

In response, the duke seemed like he was about to burst a blood vessel. "Gas them you idiots" he whispered loudly, hoping not to wake them up, "It doesn't matter if they're asleep or not, we're to capture them alive and unharmed, especially the girl. Is. That. Clear?

"Okay, okay…. got it boss." The merc frantically answered, hoping to get his employer to give him some space.

The duke huffed and moved away as he watched the mercenaries do their work. Taking what looked like small marbles from their pockets, the freelancers ever so slowly creaked the door open until there was enough space for the marbles to slide in. Once that was done, they quickly shut the door as a distinct hissing sound emanated from within. After a few seconds, a commotion began erupting from the chamber.

"It's gas, Erza get up!"

"*Cough*I can't breath *cough*" the girl could be heard shouting, "Gildarts…wake….up"

The ruckus continued on for a few more minutes until an audible thud could be heard. Once silence fell over, the mercenaries slowly and carefully opened the door. Once the coast was clear, they signaled the duke with a nod.

As Manuel entered the room, he was greeted by the sight of bodies lying motionless. As the men checked up on them, the mercs confirmed that they still had a pulse and there were no visible injuries. "Good, round them up and take them to the boat. We need to ship them to the island as soon as possible"

At this point, he was just relieved that he managed to capture them before he could compromise himself any further and that Gildarts himself was foolish enough to take all the wine. The whole story of him knowing their reputation was partly true, since he had some modicum of knowledge about them, especially Gildarts, but he never really gave much thought to them. He couldn't fathom what could be so valuable about them that his benefactors wanted them, especially the girl alive. Of course, he wasn't thinking about finding it out for himself and double-crossing them…for now.

A distinct ringing in his ears bothered Sasuke as he slowly came to his senses, unwittingly assisted by the constant back-and-forth rocking as he felt his limbs stretched out. By the time his eyes were fully opened, he was welcomed by the sight of his raised and cuffed while hanging from a chain tied to the top.

"Déjà vu, right Sasuke?"

Erza's voice called out to him, to which the Uchiha glanced over to the corner of the room, whereupon he was witness to Erza being in the same predicament as he was. "Yeah, you could say that" he acknowledged their current predicament, clearly recounting that fateful day when he, Erza, and a dozen other villagers were captured and shipped off to work on that godforsaken tower. However, as he scanned the room, he realized that there was a missing one. "Where's Gildarts," he asked.

"I don't know" Erza bluntly answered, "But I think I heard them talking about keeping him in a separate room. Apparently, he's still out of it."

Sasuke shook his head and sighed, "I'm not surprised."

"So, our hunch was right after all, they really did want something from us" Erza continued speaking, adjusting herself to alleviate her discomfort, "Still, I'm surprised they fell for it so easily. Anyway, what now."

"He must be desperate. He made a lot of mistakes when he presented himself and nearly gave himself away many times. As for what he wants with us, we'll get our answers soon enough. Right now, we need to get out of these chains first" Sasuke responded, shaking his writs in the hopes of finding a way to escape these shackles.

"Don't bother, I think these cuffs stop us from using magic" Erza said, having conceded to her temporary fate.

But that news actually alleviated Sasuke's concern since while his wrists were bounded together, his fingers were free, and that gave him a unique opportunity. "That shouldn't be a problem" he reassured her. Not having magic was a blessing and a curse during many instances of his journey here, but in this instance, it was a blessing as he began weaving a one-handed sigh for the Chidori. Sasuke earned himself a look of disbelief from Erza as lightning coursed through his hands with which he sliced off the chains that hung him, causing him to fall to the ground.

"How did you…..but that's…" Erza was rendered speechless. Sasuke had always been full of surprises but the mere fact that a magic suppression item had no effect on him was pushing the boundaries of disbelief.

"It's a long story, let's focus on getting out of these chains first," Sasuke said, diverting the topic to their immediate concern. Feeling his way through his shorts, Sasuke was relieved to find out that they didn't thoroughly check him for his belongings as he took out his homemade lock pick from underneath the hidden compartment laying in the shorts even as they removed his shirt and shoes and probably left behind the rest of his gear as well. "Sloppy" he noted as he began working on the cuffs until he finally managed to free himself.

Once that was done, he immediately began working on freeing Erza, first by cutting off the chains with the Chidori, then catching her as she fell down and releasing her from the cuffs. As she rubbed her wrists in relief, Erza couldn't help but keep her eyes on Sasuke. "I don't think I've seen any kind of magic that works like yours," she said, pointing out his constant need for hand signs and the way they ignored the anti-magic nullification spell on the cuffs.

"You could say that" Sasuke answered, "Let's just say I might be the only person in this world who uses this type of 'magic"

"Is that why you said you couldn't teach me?" Erza reminded him of their early days together, back when he was still teaching her the basics of fighting.

"Yeah," he answered. "As I said, I'll answer them later. I promise"

Having spent enough time with him, Erza knew that trying to coax more answers out of him at this moment would be pointless, and in the current scheme of things, it was irrelevant. Right now, she had more important things to ask him. "So, what do we do now?"

"Now," Sasuke said as he looked around, hearing the sound of the ocean from beyond the wooden walls before he continued, "We find Gildarts."