Jellal should have known as a member of the Magic Council to never underestimate Fairy Tail. In the end, it was his own arrogance, Natsu's rage and Fairy Tail's specialty for collateral damage that brought him to his knees, finally defeated.
Natsu spared no thought for their beaten opponent, usually he was on the kinder side, preferring to save or spare his enemies believing in second chances and all, but this guy…he made Erza cry. Erza wasn't supposed to cry, she shouldn't have to experience this pain, and he would make sure she never would again.
Natsu wouldn't kill him, but he was done with him. He spared Jellal no thought as he heard a large shard of the tower impact the area behind him. Natsu couldn't afford to care now, not that he wanted to, if they didn't come here with him…then they could handle themselves. He had to get Erza away from this place, they needed to go home.
Easier said than done. He was fighting against the creeping exhaustion from entering Dragon Force (something he would think more on later - yes Gray he did think) and there was this lancing, burning pain that raced through every part of his body.
Every step was a struggle, but Natsu knew if he stopped, even to try and catch his breath, then he wouldn't be able to continue. The burning sensation was foreign and entirely unpleasant- he was compelled to apologise to everyone he'd had the misfortune of crossing paths with.
The pain from the physical wounds he could handle, what concerned him was despite his magic container being almost empty, he was still struggling to contain the raw magic, etherion, that was trying to burst out from him. Every so often the magic under his skin would flare and pulse, in unison with the tower, and it was getting harder to keep it under control. Natsu had a feeling that should he release it…he wasn't sure that there would be much left of either him or Erza to rescue.
It wasn't often he said this, but he should not have eaten that.
Fighting against the sudden wave of nausea that accompanied the shifting of the tower, Natsu kept walking, slower than he would like. He didn't dare stop, but at the pace he was going, he may as well have been crawling. The half of the top floor that Erza stood on had fallen after the initial quake and Natsu wanted desperately to believe that she had managed to make it out already. The image of her, trapped under rubble, waiting for help that would never come, kept him searching however. He wouldn't leave her alone here. Never.
Through some careful manoeuvring, Natsu managed to reach the other half of the top floor which had sunk, but was yet to fall entirely as he initially thought.
She could still be near.
The remaining platform was absolutely ruined and looked as though the next tremor would send it plummeting to the ground. Despite his instincts screaming for him to abandon the platform for sturdier ground, he continued on. He half expected his next step to send him and the platform down, but the crystalline floor held.
His vision had yet to clear, much to his frustration and he couldn't pick up Erza's scent over the overpowering fumes of raw magic that leaked through the cracks of the rapidly decaying tower. Rubbing his eyes in a futile attempt to restore his vision, Natsu failed to notice an unusual lump in front of him until it was far too late.
His foot caught on the mound and he was sent sprawling over it, sending a wave of pain through his beaten body. He scrambled to grab anything to soften his descent, finally settling when one of his hands entered something…squishy.
"...Oh Gods…"
Even the tower couldn't obscure this smell. The scent of death invaded his nostrils and he found himself face to face with Simon, his lifeless eyes staring straight up into the sky, seeing straight through Natsu. He looked content despite the fact Natsu's hand had found purchase in his exposed ribcage.
Natsu couldn't help the scream that left his lips, instinctively he yanked his hand back, glad that he couldn't make out many details in the red splatters that accompanied his hand. He shakily pulled himself to his feet, the remnants of the meal Virgo had conjured churned uncomfortably. He swallowed heavily, losing fast to the nausea. Nasu needed to focus on anything else, other than the fact he could still feel Simon on his hand. It was like the memory was burned on his hand, cold wet -and oh was that thing he grabbed Simons int-
He threw up as far away from the corpse as he could manage. It was the least he could do.
He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, careful of which one he used. He needed to keep it together for just a little longer. Then they could mourn him, and Natsu could unpack this incident.
He turned to leave, pointedly ignoring the mess on the floor, but before he could take a single step he stopped…Could he really leave him here? He couldn't carry him, and Natsu didn't know what state Erza was in. He steeled his resolve, Erza came first.
"Sorry." He muttered as he passed.
Simon did not respond. It did nothing to ease his guilt.
Natsu continued on his search, unnoticing or uncaring of the streaks of blood that he left in his wake. He decided to pointedly ignore the gore that covered one of his hands, it was easier that way. He desperately hoped Erza didn't ask about it.
Erza…Where was she? Surely her red hair should have been easy to spot in the sea of blue? Yet all he could see was blue…blue and, yep…more blue.
He was really beginning to hate the colour blue.
It certainly didn't help that his vision was starting to get so fuzzy that he could barely make out separate crystals. This led to more stumbles and slower progress than he would have liked. He also didn't like that the darkness in the corners of his vision had definitely grown and showed no signs of receding.
Natsu was struggling to keep his eyes open, fighting against the vertigo, when his foot caught on an uneven chunk of etheron, displaced by the last tremor that had hit. He was sent crashing down, slamming into shards of the tower until he came to an ungraceful halt in a large cavern at the base.
On the brightside, he had made great progress down the tower.
Downside, if he thought the pain was bad before, it was nothing compared to the agony that raced through his body now.
His breaths came in short, shallow gasps, each intake causing new waves of pain to radiate from his ribs outwards. He laid his head on the crystal floor, trying to ground himself, the room was spinning rapidly around him. Consciousness came to him in waves, he remembered looking up at the ceiling, the back of his head throbbing. There was a small voice that kept telling him, you need to get up, you can't lie here, but no matter how much he willed it, his limbs were uncooperative.
Every lapse of consciousness was a gift, the danger that was once so pressing, just faded away. Vaguely, he could hear the ocean waves crashing against the base of the tower, or perhaps it was just the roar of blood in his ears, he wasn't too sure anymore.
Faintly, he could feel the stir of magic below him, it reacted in unison with the etherion in his body, but it all felt so far away. Was this even real? Natsu just wanted to rest, he was just so tired. The thoughts of containing the etherion that ran rampant through his body, a distant memory. He heard screaming, someone was screaming so loudly- god it hurt his ears. Natsu would have yelled at them to shut up but he lacked the energy. All he could do was open and close his eyes, taking in distorted visions of blue. The screaming stopped punctuated by the sound of shattering glass, then it was finally quiet.
Natsu had no clue how long he was out for.
For a moment, he just laid still, his mind racing, trying to catch up. It was the sickening shade of blue that surrounded him that reminded him of where he was, the realisation hitting like a train. He sat bolt upright, ignoring the protest his body gave.
Erza!
Natsu found himself in a cavern of some sort, which was almost completely empty aside from the larger than human-sized crystal protruding from the centre and Erza, who appeared to be sinking into the crystal.
Oh Erza, nice he finally found her.
Wait-
"Erza!"
His voice was rough and raw from consumption of pure magical energy and the screaming earlier, barely above his regular speaking volume, but it managed to reach her.
"Natsu!" She was crying, something that Natsu never wanted to see again. "I thought-you weren't moving when I got here and you looked…" She was rambling, something that didn't suit her in Natsu's opinion. Erza harshly scrubbed the single line of tears that flowed down her face, ignoring the way one of her arms was completely sunk into the malleable etherion.
"I heard you screaming. When I was finally able to find you, I couldn't wake you up, You…didn't look like you were breathing either…I really thought…" she took a deep breath, grounding herself before smiling gently. "I'm so glad you're okay. Don't worry Natsu, I'm going to get you home." Erza put more force behind her body, sinking further into the crystal.
It burned and stung in a way that was completely foreign to her. Like sticking your hand in boiling water after being outside in a frigid wind. But an immeasurable amount worse. It was what she imagined sticking her hand in acid felt like, except the pain never ended. Even when she thought that her nerves could tolerate no more pain, or that she had adjusted, the pain would continue. Waves of relentless coldHotcold agony would radiate from where her arm was encased in the lacrima. All her survival instincts cultivated in this very tower begged her to cut it off.
Several times she swore that her arm, which had now sunk past the elbow, should have dissolved by now. No one's flesh could withstand this, yet unless her eyes deceived her, it was still connected.
Everything was reduced down to one thought, one action. Continue to become one with the tower, before she could lose her nerve. She had to continue, for his sake, for their friends who were outside the tower, for all those who had been buried in these walls. She would take this tower into the sea with her. It was her final act of rebellion.
For a moment, Natsu could only stare in horror as she sunk further into the crystal. Why? Why was this happening? He had found her, they could go home now, right? Why would she do something stupid?!
That was his job damnit!
What had possessed her to stick her arm in a glorified vortex of pure magical energy?
She was supposed to be the reasonable one! Sure, she was monstrously strong, strong enough to block a direct shot from the Jupiter cannon, but this was on another level. Did she seriously think her body could withstand this?
Unless…she's not planning to survive it.
What did that crazy bastard say about fusing with the Etherion and a sacrifice?
It took Natsu's exhausted and magic-addled brain a minute to reach the right answer. She was planning on sacrificing herself to fuse with the Etherion and control the explosion?
That was insane -He couldn't let her die! Not here, not like this! She had so much left to do, especially now. She could finally live a life without the weight of this stupid tower on her back. How was she meant to do that if she was dead?
And the guild- everyone was waiting for her to come home! Who was going to look after them with her gone? Who would make sure they didn't cause too much property damage on jobs, who was gonna push them to be their best, keep them in line? Who was going to make sure Makarov took his meds on time and kept his dirty magazines out of the guild? Who was Natsu supposed to look up to if she wasn't here? More importantly, how dare she think of leaving them behind like this?
Didn't she care how they felt at all?
She was the one they ran to (or from) when things went wrong. Erza was an irreplaceable part of the guild, he couldn't let her throw it all away. She was finally living, letting herself take off the armour and relax with them, something they never thought possible when she came to the guild. One of these days, Natsu was sure he could even get her in on their pranks, maybe even crack a joke with him.
She couldn't do that if she was dead!
Natsu managed to get to his feet, ignoring the way the room seemed to tilt. Determination pulsing through his veins, he took a step towards her before something broke.
CRACK
Oh.
He hadn't ever considered that the shattering sound from earlier had come from him.
Running across his hands, and thigh was a series of cracks, not too dissimilar to what one would find if they had dropped a glass. Natsu was reminded of Mirajane's Satan Soul, except there was an eerie blue light emanating from within, filtering out through the cracks in skin.
That was…not good.
Tentatively, Natsu put pressure on his left leg, which seemed to be bearing the brunt of the damage. For a second the cracks grew and he was worried that his leg would shatter beneath him. The pain didn't scare him as much as the uncertainty of what to do after having your leg magically shattered. Would it bleed? Would he just continue to break until he was nothing? He waited, increasingly aware of the laboured breaths of Erza, he dared to glance at her -her shoulder was almost enveloped in the lacrima. He took another step.
It seemed to hold.
Throwing caution to the wind, he continued towards Erza, limping as he did his best to keep as much of his weight off his left leg.
They could fix it later.
"Erz..a, y-you gotta," He broke into a coughing fit, gods above his throat hurt. He swallowed, hating how raw his throat felt, "-arm…out."
He weakly attempted to pull at her arm. It didn't budge. Instead she reached up and cupped his face ever so gently with her free hand, as if that soft touch would break him.
"Natsu…y-your face. What's going on?"
Absentmindedly, he reached up, his fingers finding and tracing groves that hadn't been there before the tower. It was a deep crack, similar to the ones across his body, that seemed to run through his eye in jagged motions, tapering to thinner cobweb-like cracks down his jaw and neck.
He was an idiot. How hadn't he noticed? It would explain why his vision was so shit for starters, Erza was little more than a red blur. He had been relying on his sense of smell and hearing, but with the thick scent of magic and blood in the air, and the rumbling of the unstable tower, it hadn't done him much good.
He really was an idiot, wasn't he?
What a pair the two of them made, King and Queen of reckless and stupid ideas. He probably shouldn't have eaten the etherion, Igneel had even warned him of the dangers consuming other elements, as well as overconsumption, and he didn't listen. His body wasn't able to contain the etherion he'd consumed and it was breaking him apart. Natsu didn't regret it. His fate had already been sealed, but Erza…
There's no reason we should both die here.
He was a huge hypocrite, yes Gray he did know the word, but it's not like he wanted to die. On the contrary, if there was any solution he could think of right now that involved them both leaving the tower and it not exploding and killing potentially millions, he'd take it. But they were both exhausted, at the end of their rope and out of miracles.
If there was the smallest chance that Erza could make it, he would take it. No matter the cost.
Slapping on his most dazzling smile, the one that usually meant trouble was coming, Natsu knew he had one shot to save her. If she caught on to what he was about to do…Natsu shuddered at the thought, Erza was one scary lady. He had to do it right. He cleared his throat, spat out a large glob of blood that had pooled in his mouth, and spoke.
"Do ya remember when we were younger -an' you, me 'n Gray used to hang around the guild while all the older members were out on missions? And we had the bright idea to clean Makarovs office?"
She wasn't sure why he'd brought it up, now of all times but Erza did in fact remember this quite clearly. It had been a rather hot boring summer afternoon in the guild. All the approved chaperones for missions had left on their own jobs, or had gone on vacation to escape the heat, which left the three of them stuck in the guild with nothing to occupy them. They were all still rather new to Fairy Tail, Natsu only having been brought back by Makarov three weeks ago, so none of them were approved for unaccompanied work. They weren't even allowed to wander Magnolia after their last expedition which ended in multiple brawls and an explosion (Natsu).
If she remembered correctly, Natsu and Gray were bored because she wouldn't let them brawl, so to keep them distracted from fighting she had come up with the idea to tidy up Makarov's office. The Master had been complaining for the past week about the state of it since Enno left, so in their childish logic, if they could solve this problem for him, then surely that would prove they were responsible enough for missions, right?
Well that was how Erza saw it at the time, Natsu and Gray just wanted to avoid a beating, plus for all of them, it was something to do. With Enno and most of the senior members gone, it was easy to grab the key and walk in. The sight that greeted them -Erza still shuddered to this day. It made Natsu look clean.
Needless to say it was a disaster. Countless irreplaceable documents and pieces of history were burnt, slashed or frozen and thawed in the Fiorian heat.
"...We agreed never to speak of it." while her tone was as stern as ever, she couldn't help the small smile that made its way to her face despite the pain. Natsu always had a knack for knowing what she needed, talking was a welcome distraction from the pain.
"-Hey to this day I haven't said anything! Not even Happy knows!"
Erza's arm was sunk into the crystal, her guild mark encased in the lacrima. Natsu kept up his smile and pulled slowly- he could do it.
"What about when Gray took that mission, the one to find that Duke's lost family heirloom that had been missing for, what, like 40 years? And he- he found-"
"-He found it in 2 hours but spent the next 3 days looking for his own clothes! Natsu- Stop laughing-", Erza herself could barely hold back her laughter, "I was so worried! I dragged you on the next train and…There he was! Naked on the train station bench, with a newspaper over him, unable to get home because his wallet and the mission reward were in the pants he lost…" she laughed softly, shaking her head, "It took us 6 hours to find his pants."
Natsu had gotten some good material from that mission however 3 months later Gray got his revenge when Natsu managed to split his pants and knock out his own baby tooth after a dodged high kick. He wiped an imaginary tear from his eye, good times.
…he wished he got to say a proper goodbye to Gray.
Maybe wished Lucy good luck with her novel. He wanted to see Happy and hold him tight one last time, there was so much he hadn't taught him yet. Natsu didn't think he'd have so many regrets when he went, he usually did what he wanted when he wanted anyway, but there was still so much to do. He still hadn't found Igneel. Now he never would.
Focus, Natsu.
Erza's elbow was now freed from the lacrima and at the same time Natsu began to feed his arm into the crystal. The lacrima, which was previously reluctant to release Erza, seemed to now be pushing her out faster, in favour of pulling Natsu in. He kept talking, partly to keep Erza distracted, and partly to distract himself from the new sensation. He really disliked the feeling of burning, distantly he acknowledged that Gray might have been stronger than he gave him credit for if he put up with this every time they brawled. He wouldn't have to put up with it for much longer.
"Remember that night…after Lisanna…" it was soft, barely a whisper but she heard.
After they lost Lisanna…everyone was a wreck. Gray threw himself in job after job to keep busy, Erza became almost tyrannical, anxiety gnawing at her when any member took a mission, worried they wouldn't return. Natsu was utterly lost, he spent most days wandering aimlessly. After the shock wore off, he was left hollow. He didn't want to get close to anyone, they always broke their promises and left him alone. Mira was a shell of her former self, the former bastion of strength reduced to a hollow shell that would barely eat and seldom speak. And Elfman…there was so much guilt in him that no words could soothe. None of them could help him, the one person who could was gone.
"Yeah, I remember. We brought dinner to her grave, and just ate. None of us knew what to say. We just sat in silence but, for the first time since she died, it felt…"
"...it felt like we were going to be okay."
She hadn't noticed that her arm was now freed, but she would soon. He was sinking too fast now, too fast to stop it even if he wanted to. Natsu's shoulder was already encased, the rest of his body following much quicker than he expected. It was when his hand brushed her newly freed guild mark that the horrific realisation set in.
He gripped her shoulder, and before she could speak,
"Erza. You need to remember that feeling. It's going to be okay. Maybe not right away, but sometime, someway, it will be."
"Natsu! No- Y-you…Stop! STOP IT!"
She was tugging frantically now, at any part of him that remained outside the lacrima. Pulling wildly at his clothes, his free arm, uncaring if it caused anymore of those cursed cracks, she just wanted her friend back.
Uncaring of her own body, she clawed desperately, trying to free him from the crystal, only succeeding in bloodying her hands.
She couldn't lose anyone else to this tower.
"P-please Natsu, no…not like this. Not you…"
Erza collapsed on her knees, sobbing at the base of the damned crystal. Was she still the same little girl from all those years ago? Just a child hiding in a suit of armour? First Grandpa Rob, then Jellal and Simon and now Natsu?
A gentle hand reached down, cupping her cheek, and tilted her head up. It was the gentlest gesture ever expressed by his hands, completely unbefitting of someone who razed buildings on a daily basis.
"Take care of them for me, okay?"
And then he was gone, taking all of her with him. All the laughter in Erza's pitiful life had been sucked into the crystal with him. Her hopes and dreams, her aspirations.
She wanted to scream, but no sound came out.
Her last memory of Natsu, as she knelt before the crystal and awaited the impending explosion, was the haunting image of the ever-energetic boy frozen, lost forever in a sea of blue. He looked serene, eyes closed in an expression that she had never seen on his face, it was calm in a way that she didn't associate with Natsu. Pink hair floated gently around his face. This was all wrong.
How could he look like that, when he was leaving them all behind?
Erza slammed her fists against the stone, it had hardened now, the outside the same material as the floor below them. Inside the crystal the etherion flowed around Natsu, undisturbed by her punches, his eyes remained closed. He didn't stir.
"You…IDIOT!"
She hurled her fists against the stone, over and over, uncaring of how it left smears of her own blood on the surface. She continued her assault even when the tears in her eyes blurred her vision and the light around them that grew to unbearable levels. Erza didn't stop even when the tower began to explode. She ignored the swirling vortex of raw magic that shot up around them. Punch after punch, they rapidly lost their form till she was just slamming her hands on the crystal, begging it to break. The atmosphere was sickeningly oppressive as the magic continued shooting upwards and she struggled to raise her fist.
Erza slid down the crystal, her forehead touching the surface.
Don't worry Natsu, I won't leave you alone.
Gray trusted Erza's judgement.
Usually.
But there was something about this place that put him on edge. The sooner they could get out of here, the better.
Gray heaved a huge sigh. He couldn't afford to worry about what could happen, he needed to be practical, deal with the realities of the situation. Of the group outside the tower, he was the most senior mage amongst them (Juvia notwithstanding, this wasn't her burden to bear), he had to keep a level head.
It would be fine. Plus flame-brain was with her. Natsu would keep an eye on her, and Erza would watch his back. That was just how they operated.
So why did he feel as though something horrible was going to happen?
Gray, Juvia, Lucy and Jellals ex-gang had seen the Etherion cannon rain down and thought all was lost until the true purpose of the tower was revealed. It had taken all of them to talk down Gray from going in there.
They had witnessed Natsu rampage at the top of the tower earlier, the flames visible from where they floated on the ocean's surface. Whilst the sight was welcome, it begged the question, how strong is this Jellal guy? Gray had never seen this type of power from Natsu before and to be frank, he hoped he never had to again.
It had fallen eerily silent since then.
Gray would have been at their side if not for the waves of etherion emanating from the tower. It pushed against their bubble pulling them further out to sea, making it impossible to get close. Juvia was struggling to maintain their bubble as it was,already drained from her fights and unison rain with Lucy prior to casting the water bubble. So he'd been resigned to waiting once again. He couldn't even pace due to the limited space.
He'd been doing a decent job of distracting himself from the rising fear until the tower exploded.
One minute, he'd been staring at the tower, the next, his vision was obscured by the same light he'd seen when the etherion cannon had fired, but somehow brighter.. Instinctively his eyes snapped shut, the afterimage burning itself on his eyelids. Gray could feel waves of pure magical energy exploding and being sent upwards, further than he could hope to sense. At this distance, it felt like someone had torn open his skin, doused it in ice and hot sauce, removed all his senses yet somehow activated every nerve in his body. He wanted to scream, run, to move, but the feedback from the explosion had him struggling to form a single thought. He could feel everything and nothing at the same time. Then as soon as it happened, it was over.
The others seemed to have had a similar experience, if the expressions were anything to go by.
Makarov often preached the dangers of magic, if used incorrectly. Gray could never understand how it could lead to madness, until now. If it had lasted longer, Gray was certain he would have gone mad. If they had been any closer they would have been vaporised instantly.
Nothing could survive that.
He dismissed the thought as soon as it came, they were the strongest people he knew, they were fine.
You don't believe that.
Gray tried to ignore the voice, they had to be okay. Like they could hear his thoughts, Happy floated over to his shoulder looked up at him, eyes wide;
"...Natsu's gonna be okay, Right? And Erza too?"
The question hung in the air, rotting between them. He wanted to believe it, but he couldn't form the words. Luckily, Lucy interjected:
"Y-yeah! Erza and Natsu are probably waiting for us. Right, Gray?"
She needed reassurance but his facade was cracking fast. He avoided Lucy's eyes. She was too smart for her own good, she would see through him in a heartbeat.
"We'll find them."
With the etherion no longer pushing them back, the trip back to the island that once hosted the tower was uneventful. Though in Gray's opinion, he wasn't sure if they could call it an island any more.
Around where the base of the tower was, now were solitary crystal shards that seemingly protruded from the ocean floor. Debris from the tower and its construction floated in the water, no doubt it would be dragged further out to the ocean or wash up on some shore, not that Gray cared too much.
They were incredibly lucky that the explosion had been directed straight up for whatever reason, otherwise he doubted that even the neighbouring countries would have escaped the blast.
At the centre of where the tower once stood, there was now one platform, formed out of the lacrima. The crystalline floor was unnaturally smooth and level with the now calm ocean. Despite the waves that moved around them, the water never seemed to move further than a few centimetres inwards. In the middle of the platform, a massive crystal that seemed to glow, bathing everything in a blue hue.
It almost seemed to beckon to Gray.
Remnant magic from the blast lingered in the form of incredibly dense mist and thick sea foam that glowed the same ominous blue as the centre crystal. Contamination like this would take years to heal, if it ever would, Gray mused. Dipping his fingers in the water, he could practically feel it vibrating with magic. They could not fix this, it would take years if not centuries for the ethernano in this area to stabilise, if it ever would.
The closer they got to the centre, the greater the weight in his stomach became.
Thoughts of contamination were driven from his mind when he managed to spot a familiar figure curled at the base of the crystal. Her red hair was a mess, splayed out beneath her in tangles that Gray knew she would be complaining about for weeks. This time, he looked forward to hearing about it.
"Erza!"
"ERZA" "Er-nii!"
She didn't stir. Gray shot Juvia a quick look, she returned a quiet nod and increased their speed as much as she could with the difficult terrain. The water here was unlike anything she'd seen, it was completely unpredictable. It took longer than normal, though it was only a minute or two to reach their destination, but Juvia was shaking from the strain.
Rather ungracefully they were dumped on the platform, Gray scrambling to his feet and over at Erza's side before the others had gotten their bearings.
His eyes narrowed on her fallen form, observing with relief her steady, if shallower than normal, breathing.
Gray winced as he noticed her hands, a few of the nails were cracked and bleeding. Her knuckles were beyond swollen, already starting to purple under the crust of blood that covered them. She won't be happy to hear that sword fighting was out for the next couple weeks, but she was alive. The skin on her arm seemed raw and red, radiating heat which was a concern and she was covered in cuts and bruises. There was barely any part of her that was spared from the harsh treatment, somehow scraped, cut or bruised. He noted a particularly nasty cut that ran along the length of her chest.
The tattered bandages over her chest did a poor job of providing her warmth, she was beginning to shiver. He had never seen her look so beaten and small before, Gray could barely contain his fury. If that bastard managed to live through this, Gray would give him a new kind of hell.
Despite her wounds, he was confident she could pull through, they just needed to get her to a healer soon. Who knew if she had any internal injuries, certainly not him, and Gray wasn't going to take the risk. He could finally breathe since they came to this stupid place. This, he could fix. Now they just needed to find the fire-breather and go home.
Happy's small voice broke through the silence that had fallen.
"Natsu?"
…Gray couldn't fix this.
Happy was going to force Natsu to buy him so many fish. At least one whole jobs worth of fish for making him this worried.
First Natsu had been shot in the face, then Happy had been kidnapped by that weird cat lady (which actually wasn't that bad- but he wasn't a pet!). Then Natsu got eaten by an owl and now he was missing after the biggest explosion Happy had ever seen, and he lived with Natsu! The guy who routinely blew things up in his sleep!
It was far too stressful.
So yeah, Natsu owed him big time for this. Happy was thinking probably at least 2 fishing weekends, maybe just the two of them. Lucy was nice and all but complained too much about camping, if Gray came along then all Natsu and him would do is fight and if Erza came…Happy wanted to be able to relax.
But first he needed to find Natsu. He'd perched himself on the top of the crystal Erza rested under, to get a better vantage point to search for him, when he noticed it.
That's weird… Happy thought, How did Natsu's scarf get in there?
Leaving his perch, Happy flew a few metres back, enough to observe the crystal in its entirety. Afterall, if Natsu's scarf was in there, Happy couldn't just leave it. Natsu was gonna need it when they found him. Plus Natsu didn't go anywhere without his scarf, so he had to be close by!
He almost wished he didn't turn around.
"Natsu?"
"You found him? Where is he Happy? Natssuuuu!"
It was Lucy that heard him first, but she was still looking around for their energetic friend, as if he was going to pop out of the ocean any moment to scare her. She hadn't seen it yet.
"Where's the flame-idiot?" Gray hadn't looked up yet, still examining Erza.
Happy meekly raised his paw to the crystal that sat in the middle of the platform. He felt dizzy, why was Natsu in the crystal?
Distantly, he heard Lucy scream Natsu's name. Why was she screaming? It was going to be okay, right?
Couldn't they just…break the lacrima?
Why…why was she crying? Why did Gray look so devastated?
"You're going to save him, aren't you? We…we're going fishing when we get back…he was going to teach me his secret fire dragons fishing technique."
Happy wasn't flying any more, in a heap placed a paw on the bottom of the crystal and turned back to Gray.
"You're not going to leave him here, right?"
Gray looked as lost as Happy felt. It was too much for his little body to take, and he collapsed next to Erza, at the base of Natsu's lacrima.
Natsu…
Gray had found himself face to face with the lacrima that contained Natsu. He wanted to scream, to cry, to yell but he just stood there staring uncomprehendingly.
Was he dead? Why the hell was he in there, what idiotic idea did he have this time?
Could Natsu hear them?
His fist slammed against the crystal, breaking the silence that had fallen. Lucy looked up, startled, tears still rolling down her cheeks.
"Gray?"
He kept hitting the crystal, each punch harder and faster-
-angrier.
"You. Fucking. Idiot!" He punctuated every word with a punch, "You absolute flame-brained, spineless dick!"
"Gray…"
He was slamming his foot down, kicking any inch of the surface he could. He was going to drag Natsu out of there and beat him for pulling this shit. How dare he-
How. Dare. He.
"Fucking- shit. You bastard, get out here and face me!"
Lucy was crying in earnest now, Juvia had tears in her eyes and Gray could make out the tear tracks that stained Happy's fur, even as he lay unconscious.
"Stop. Making. Everyone. Cry!" Gray was now wildly kicking at the crystal, hoping for any reaction.
Anything, please just move. Natsu, please, I can't lose you too.
Natsu just floated there. His eyes remained closed as the remaining etherion contained in the crystal flowed around him, gently ruffling his hair. He looked almost like he was sleeping, as if he wasn't trapped in a swirling vortex of unstable magic. Gray could make out a small smile, as if he was happy.
It pissed him off.
"Ice-make lanc-"
SMACK
Lucy stood before him, rubbing her palm. Tears still ran down her cheeks but she looked up at him furious. She stood between him and Natsu, her eyes alight with fury.
"What were you thinking?!"
Gray rubbed his cheek, the magic he was forming dissipated around them into a thin layer of frost. It had nothing to do with the chill that settled in his bones. God, what was he thinking? He was just so lost, what was he meant to do? He glanced helplessly, towards Erza's fallen form, desperately wishing she was awake.
Erza…Natsu…what happened? How can I help if I don't understand?
"Did…Did I hurt him? Do you know if he's still-" Gray choked on the word, Natsu had to be alive. He wasn't sure if he was strong enough to survive another loss.
"I don't know. I can't tell if he's breathing but he didn't react at all when you…" Lucy let her voice trail off. She gently placed her hand on the surface of the crystal, it was much warmer than she expected. She seemed to gaze endlessly into the crystal searching, watching for the slightest movement, the faintest glimmer of hope that he was okay.
"...Sorry. I thought maybe, if he could hear me, it might piss him off enough to wake up." Gray buried his face in his hands. He was struggling to hold back the tears, this couldn't be happening. His breathing was too fast, too shallow, and he was fighting to contain the panicked noises that were threatening to break from his throat. At some point he had lowered himself into a squat, keeping his head firmly buried under his arms. He was shaking. Gray did his best to block out the blue light that Natsu emitted, as if that would shield him from the reality of the situation. Fingers twisted in his hair and roughly pulled at it, his own, in a futile attempt to distract him. How could he have let this happen? Gray had left them. They needed him and he had
Natsu…you have to be okay. What are we going to do without you…they need you…I need you.
"Gray-sama?"
He took a shuddering breath in, he couldn't fall apart yet. Erza needed a healer, all of them were exhausted and they needed to contact the guild. The guild…maybe Gramps could fix this. Gray allowed the faintest spark of hope to kindle in his heart.
He stood up shakily and turned to face the group, ignoring their concerned expressions. "We need to get Erza to a healer and contact Fairy Tail. Juvia do you think you can get us to shore?"
Blushing quite heavily at the sudden attention, she nodded, eager to assist her dear Gray-sama. She ignored the lingering exhaustion that had settled since reaching the platform, she could do this.
"...are we going to leave him here?" Lucy didn't face him, but he could tell from the slight shake of her shoulders that she was fighting back sobs. He grasped her shoulders softly, "We'll come back for him."
There was a moment of quiet, broken only by waves around them.
Sho's quiet voice spoke up, "What about Simon?"
Millanna and Wally looked on, supporting Sho as he limped slightly over to Erza. Guilt gnawed at his heart as he examined each one of her wounds. As much as he loved Erza, Simon had always been there for him, even when he didn't deserve it. Could he abandon him for her sake? What if he was out there right now, in desperate need of help? Sho couldn't quite erase the mental image of Simon, alone, injured and dying slowly as they did nothing. He was broken out of his dark thoughts by Gray's approach.
"We'll look for him, I promise, but right now Erza needs a healer."
It wasn't what he wanted to hear, part of him wanted to argue that they had found his family, who was Gray to say that they shouldn't search for Simon. But when he looked up and met Gray's eyes, his protest died in his throat.
Right…Sho wasn't the only one leaving here without someone. He glanced at Natsu then to Gray and nodded. They would bring everyone home, but first they needed help.
They readied themselves slowly, stalling as if that would somehow make Natsu stir. He still floated undisturbed in the lacrima, unaware they were leaving him. Gray carefully gathered Erza in his arms, trying his best not to jostle her. She barely stirred as he lifted her, and he tried to hide his disappointment at that.
He sighed, It would be better for to remain unconscious anyway, she was bound to be in a lot of pain once she woke up. Lucy gathered Happy, who curled into her and they both headed to where Juvia was preparing her water bubble.
Despite knowing it was for the best, Gray couldn't help but hesitate, should they really be leaving him behind like this? He stared once more at the lacrima that now contained his best friend then down to Erza, who he held in arms.
Natsu…
He turned sharply towards Juvia and the open ocean. He would be back, Gray was going to bring both of them home, no matter what.
…hold on a little longer.