BROKEN AND BRUISED

CHAPTER 30

Jellal stood there silently. He didn't know what to say, for the person before him was Lucy. However he was sure it was not his Lucy.

"I know you have many questions, and I would like to answer them to the best of my ability…" her voice trailed off as she kept looking at him, more tears trailed down her eyes. "Yet I cannot seem to form a single thought in my head right now. I missed you all so much. Seeing you again, it opened up wounds that I thought were closed."

She wiped off her tears and turned to look at the sunset, yet the sun was long gone. The stars started appearing in the sky as the sunlight slowly receded, causing the blonde to be more of a mess.

"Look at them, so beautifully shining in the sky. How I longed to see them again," she whispered softly as she gazed at the constellations.

Jellal approached her and stood next to her on the railing. "Lucy, what happened?"

She took a deep breath. "A year and a half from now, Frosch will die in an accident, and it will drive Rogue mad."

"Mad?"

She nodded her head.

"Mad how?"

She sniffled as she lowered her head. "He would consume his twin, and start wreaking havoc on Earthland."

Her tears once again fell. "He would kill you all, all of you. The kids, the guild, the whole family… he destroyed my keys and left me all alone, so I could bear witness to his ascent to greatness."

Jellal took a deep breath. He reached his arm towards her and brought her in for a hug. She slowly returned his hug as she cried softly.

"How did you come here?" he asked her in a hushed voice.

Through her sniffles, she answered. "Through the gate. He forced all of my spirits to open the gate and then destroyed them all. He returned back in time to this present, and I jumped after him because I wanted to warn you all about the upcoming doom. I wanted to at least be able to save you in this timeline."

Jellal caressed her head. "Thank you. But could you please explain more?"

Future Lucy stepped away from him. "There is a gate that allows a person to travel back in time. He and I both come from ten years from now, where he destroyed the entirety of our future. He has plans to do the same to the present."

She took a breath before she continued. "That gate doesn't only allow you to travel through time, it can also bring things back from a certain time. And that is what he plans to do."

"What do you mean?" asked Jellal, alarmed at what she had just said.

Future Lucy looked at the stars as she answered his question. "He plans to bring back the dragons of olden times, and let the dragons rule as they once did."

Jellal took a sharp intake of breath. "Is that possible?"

She turned towards him sadly. "I fear, that anything is possible with magic. To open the gate he needs a magic that is adapt at doing that. I believe you know of what I speak."

Jellal nodded. "Celestial spirit magic, but you said that your spirits' keys broke…" he widened his eyes at the implication of their words. "He's after this timeline's Lucy."

Future Lucy smiled softly. "You need to go and rescue her. I doubt she would be able to open the gate on her own. In the future, Luc-, I mean me, I collect all the keys due to circumstances. That's when he decided to strike."

"I need to find her," Jellal said in haste. He turned to leave but then stopped and looked at Future Lucy. "Can you come with me?"

Future Lucy looked appreciative of his offer, but she shook her head in refusal. "Go. There is something I must do."

Jellal nodded his head in reluctance before he went.

Lucy looked at the stars once more before she turned and disappeared in the dark. "I will stop him. I couldn't before, but I won't let him harm my family again." She promised into the quiet of the night as she clutched at her right hand, now devoid of her guild's insignia.

As Jellal raced into the night to warn Lucy, Gajeel gathered all the slayers and anyone that was with them to show them his discovery.

Wendy looked around her in shock. She was surrounded by dragon corpses all around.

"What- what is this?" she asked, her voice but a whisper.

"I don't know. I found it when that idiot pushed me into a cart," Gajeel explained as he pointed his finger at Natsu.

"Which means I did a good thing, because you discovered this." Natsu grinned with a thumbs up while Gajeel rolled his eyes.

He looked around him and wondered about whether his dragon was here, amongst these corpses. He shook his head in refusal of this idea, these bones look way too old to be only 14 years ago.

Wendy perked up and stood with her hands in a prayer. "I know of a spell that was taught to me by Porlyusica-san, it can allow me to contact the dragon spirits. I think it's worth a shot to use it here."

Laxus remained silent as he watched the young dragon perform her spell. He couldn't help but think about the blonde that was in the infirmary resting and hoped that she would be okay soon. He was planning on taking her and the kids on a trip once the games were over. He thought it was a good way to bring them closer and bridge the gaps that were present in their relationship, which he knew were many.

His thoughts were broken by a roar that shook the ground. Everyone immediately took a fighting stance except for Wendy, who looked at the green dragon that was before her.

"Are you the one who awoke me from my eternal slumber, young one?" the green spirit asked.

Wendy shyly nodded her head. "Yes, I'm sorry." She quickly bowed her head a couple of times.

"As you should be." He huffed before laying down on the pile of bones. "And what could you possibly need Zirconis for, to go through all that trouble of summoning me?"

Wendy fumbled and didn't know what to ask him, so she looked at Laxus for help. He stood before her and spoke. "We wanted to know what had occurred here."

Zirconis looked around him and sighed. "A most gruesome battle. That is what had occurred here."

He looked at the slayers and then scoffed. "A battle that brought forth the birth of your magic, dragon slaying magic."

"What do you mean?" asked Cobra.

Zirconis sighed again. "I suppose you wish to know about how it all began. So be it, tis not like I am occupied with something, or alive for that matter."

He cleared his throat and began his tale. "About 400 years ago, the dragons ruled this earth, and the humans were nothing but food for us. These were the golden times, till some dragons started sympathizing with humans, and advocated that we live with humans in unity. Of course, such rash thoughts could only be met with a lot of disagreement, and tis what occurred. A rift formed between the dragons, those that wished to help and live alongside humans, and those that wished to continue their dominion on these lowly beings."

Cobra and Gajeel side eyed each other. It was painstakingly clear which side this dragon was on.

"And thus, war began. It was even for a long time, both sides neither losing nor winning. Until that one night, when one of the dragons decided to share with their human caretaker his power, and thus came to be dragon slaying magic. Both dragons and humans fought side by side, and were on the verge of defeating the dragons that were opposed to the idea. However, as always, nothing ever goes to plan when humans are involved."

"What do you mean?" asked Laxus, intrigued by the history he was learning.

"There is a reason why humans need to be ruled over and never be given rule. At the mere sight of a bit of power, you crumble to your darkest desires and betray any who helped you achieve such power. The caretaker slew the dragon that gave him his power, and the others followed in his lead."

"That's… impossible," Wendy said, on the verge of tears.

The dragon closed his eyes and took a deep breath, his voice rumbled as he spoke. "I warned them, several times, that siding with the stranger will only bring ruination, and look what has become of us. Nothing but a pile of bones and dead spirits of what once were mighty dragons."

Silence filled the cave for a few minutes before Cobra asked. "How did the war end?"

"One of the slayers continued slaying dragons till he became one himself, and then sought out to destroying almost entirely the dragon race before becoming the dragon king. His name is one I shall never forget, for he was a doctor that helped nurturing dragons back to heath when they were sick. He was called Acnologia."

Collectively, everyone is that cave gasped.

"Acnologia?" Natsu whispered, the memory of that day fresh in his mind.

Zirconis looked at them with mild intrigue. "I see you have met him."

Just then, a voice filtered into the cave. "Do not believe such nonsense. Acnologia was not able to transform into a dragon with no help. Zeref was the one who transformed him, and that is why, killing him is a priority."

Arcadios walked out from a hidden tunnel with Yukino right behind him. Zirconis' spirit disappeared back into dust that settled on his bones.

Natsu pointed his finger at him. "You are that guard from the palace, right?"

Charle gasped in fright at the sight of the man. Now that she was able to see him more clearly, she realized that it was the knight from her vision.

Arcadios nodded his head. "Correct."

"Explain what you just said," Gray demanded.

"Gladly." But before he can say anything, a beam of light came directly at him. Arcadios widened his eyes before he braced himself for the hit and was launched into a wall.

Jellal transformed back from his meteor form and stood above Arcadios. He glared down at the guard that was trying to get back up. "Where did you take Lucy?"

At the mention of the blonde, everyone in that room tensed up.

"Luce? Something wrong with her?" Natsu questioned.

Jellal pushed down Arcadios with his foot when the knight was trying to get up. "He kidnapped Lucy."

Laxus, Gajeel, Natsu and Cobra growled at the news.

"You have five seconds to explain right now what the fuck is going on before shit turns bad real quick," Laxus said with a leveled glare directed towards Arcadios.

Yukino stood between them. "Wait please. He had done all of this for a very justifiable reason."

Natsu looked at her and grimaced. "Why are you defending him? He kidnapped Luce!"

"Please!" Yukino pleaded with them. "Just listen to us."

She turned towards Jellal. "Could you please move off of him? He will explain to you best of the situation we are currently facing."

Jellal looked at the white haired mage and then at Arcadios before he took a step back. "You better have a good explanation. If no, I'm giving Cobra the green card to do whatever he wants with the two of you."

Cobra grinned wickedly from behind Jellal and Yukino shuddered. "We do, I promise."

Jellal knew that celestial spirit mages take their promises very seriously, as breaking their word can result in the loss of their magic. But he still did not feel any bit of comfort knowing his sister is somewhere that is unfamiliar.

Arcadios stood up and dusted his clothes. He gestured towards the group and walked. "If you could please follow me towards the castle. It would be easier to show you rather than explain."

As they walked down the corridor following him, the level of unease in the group skyrocketed when they reached a large door under the castle. Arcadios opened it and walked in, waiting for the entire group to be in the room before he began explaining. "Like I said, it was Zeref who helped Acnologia transform into a dragon. So our plan is simple, kill Zeref before he gets the chance to transform Acnologia, and then we are all saved."

"And how do you plan to achieve that?" asked Jellal.

"Using this." He took down the drape that was covering the back wall to reveal a large gate. "This is the Eclipse Project, a gate that lets you travel back in time using the power of celestial spirit magic."

Jellal gasped and tensed. This was the same gate that future Lucy told him about. And the fact that he needed the twelve keys is the reason why he got both Yukino and Lucy by his side. Although Lucy was unwilling.

"What is your plan truly?" inquired Laxus.

Arcadios sighed. "All this time, every grand magic games, we would store all the magical power that condensed from the games into this gate to be able to power it. And on the seventh of July, when the eclipse passes over, we will use the twelve keys to open the gate and travel back 400 years in the past. Then, we will kill Zeref before he had gained immortality and be done with his ever present threat."

"Did you just say, the seventh of July?" Wendy asked, astonished.

She looked at Natsu and Gajeel to see that they were both thinking the same thing. It was the date that their dragon parents disappeared.

"Yes. Which is why I need the assistance of the celestial spirit mages. I admit, my methods were a bit unorthodox, but I truly only want what is best for the world."

The fairy tail mages looked at each other, admitting that it indeed sounded as a good plan, however that still did not justify kidnapping Lucy.

"Hold on." Jellal looked at Arcadios and with a raised eyebrow asked. "How do you know all of this?"

Arcadios grinned. "We have had a visi-"

Just then, the royal guards appeared in the room and surround the fairy tail group on one side, and Arcadios with Yukino on the other side. Darton walked into the room and looked at Arcadios with a disapproving look. "You have shared classified information with outsiders, and with your recent dealings with criminals, this is now no longer tolerable."

"Darton, please. Listen to me-"

"Enough! You are apprehended for treason, and your sergeant as well. As for the rest of you, you are free to go." Darton turned to leave but was stopped by Gajeel.

"Where is Bunn- uh Lucy?"

"She is in my custody and will remain there. If you wish to see her again, then win the grand magic games and request her freedom from the king. Since it seems he likes you a lot, he will grant your request most probably," He answered and left.

Darton wanted to hand this matter to the king since he knew Lucy would be the safest this way. He didn't want Arcadios anywhere near her.

The fairy tail mages were escorted outside of the castle with grim faces.

"So, win the games?" Erza looked at the moon.

"No, we aren't waiting for that. That will be our second plan," Natsu answered.

All heads turned towards him.

"Explain," Cobra demanded.

Natsu looked around him. "Not here. Let's get back to the inn. I'll explain there."

They went back to the inn where they met up with the other members and told them about what had occurred.

"So, they took Lucy?" asked Makarov, shocked about this entire ordeal.

The group that just returned nodded their heads, and the kids started sniffling once they heard their mother was missing. Laxus stood next to them and comforted them to the best of his abilities with the help of Sorano.

"But Natsu has a plan." Erza looked at Natsu when she said that.

He nodded his head and came forward. "Luce would want us to be careful, that's why I think we can't just go in without thinking. And we don't know for sure if they will give Luce back even if we win. So I think, we should split into two teams. One team sneaks into the castle to get Luce, the other participates in the final day. What do you guys think?"

The entire guild was silent, even the kids. Red looked at Justin and whispered, "Did uncle Natsu just say a good plan?"

Natsu pointed at him and shouted. "HEY! I HEARD THAT!"

Erza looked at Natsu and walked towards him. He backed away when he asked her what she was doing and she didn't answer. She punched him in the face hard to the point where he face planted on the floor.

"What…was…that…for…"

She crossed her arms and answered. "Just checking it was the real you."

He gave her a flailing thumbs up.

She turned towards the rest. "So, does anyone have any objections to the plan?"

With no one answering no, they agreed on the teams and parted ways.

Jellal walked down the corridor to his room and opened it. He closed it and then tensed up.

"Relax, we just want answers." Came Laxus' voice from inside the room.

He turned around and was met with team Natsu followed by Gajeel and Panther Lily, his family and the Raijinshuu.

"Answers to what?" he asked as he removed his cape.

"Answers to why you tensed up when you saw the gate, as if you knew what it was." Answered Cobra.

Jellal just shook his head and sat on his bed. "I was going to tell you either way." He then told them about his meeting with future Lucy.

They sat in silence for a while before Natsu sighed. "This is too much."

Gajeel just shook his head. "He may be from Sabertooth, but is that kid able to do that much damage?"

"Ask that to the blonde who was crying in my arms while she recalled what he had done to their future." Answered Jellal.

"Losing someone can force you to do the unthinkable." Remarked Erza, recalling how after Grandpa Rob died to protect her, she unleashed her magic on those soldiers and took them down.

The others nodded their heads, each thinking about someone they lost along the way.

"What are we to do now?" Macbeth asked, as he stroked Layla's hair while she slept.

"We'll stick to the plan, best shot we got. Lucy is a strong mage, she can handle herself till we get there. And then we take her away from the gate. After that, we deal with future Rogue. Most important thing is, we get her out of his sight." Erza said.

They agreed with her and were leaving to their respective rooms when Laxus stopped and looked at Jellal.

Jellal raised his eyebrow in question.

"How did you know that Lucy was missing?" the blonde slayer asked.

The others turned around, wanting to know the answer.

"Frosch, the exceed from Sabertooth, was on his way to visit her when he saw Arcadios taking her away."

They nodded their heads and left.

Erza stood at the balcony staring at the moon and sighed.

"No monologues tonight?"

She jumped in her place and turned to meet the sly grin on the poison slayer's face. She laughed while she put her hand to her heart. "No, not tonight. Tonight, we think about someone else."

He nodded gravely. "I get what you mean, but she'll be fine."

She looked at him quizzically. "You know, out of everyone here, I thought you were the most one who was going to lose his cool and get angry."

He snorted. "Yeah, I did too."

She looked surprised at his answer, but he just shrugged. "When we were down there, I didn't sense any malice coming from the dwarf. However, that chiseled chin knight, was a different story."

Her face was marred with confusion. "What do you mean?"

He gazed at the stars and replied. "That knight is a madman."

He then walked inside, leaving her out on the balcony alone.

XXX

Lucy heard footsteps coming down the huge flight of stairs into the cellars where she currently was. They took away her keys and handcuffed her with magic cancelling cuffs. Another woman was put in the cell next to hers. The guards checked that the locks were sealed tight before leaving.

The blonde sighed as she tried to discern who the woman who was put next to her was. She squinted her eyes but the cellars were dimly lit so it was hard to see anything.

"Great," the blonde muttered.

"Hmm, who is there?" the woman asked.

It was weird, Lucy was sure she heard that voice before but she couldn't put her finger on it.

"I'm Lucy, and you?"

"Lucy-san?" the woman's voice perked up. "It's me, Yukino!"

"Yukino-san? What are you doing here?" the blonde wondered.

"It's a long story."

Yukino then told Lucy everything that went down and she shed light on the reason behind Arcadios' kidnapping.

"Please Lucy-san, it is for the better of the world. Imagine we can live without both Zeref and Acnologia. We can finally have peace and everything that was lost by their hands can be restored. Please Lucy-san, help us achieve this."

Lucy sighed after she heard the full explanation. A world without Zeref and Acnologia was like a dream, but the dream could be a reality if she were to agree. However, the thought of travelling back in time was making her uneasy. A lot of things could go wrong.

"Yukino-san, I and others as well have suffered on the hands of these two monsters. But what if we make things worse? Tampering with the past should not be allowed as it can lead to a lot of repercussions."

"I understand," The white haired mage said. "There is a risk in messing up time. But isn't that a risk worth taking? We will be saving thousands and thousands of people that have died because of these two men. Won't you consider it, please Lucy-san?"

The blonde shook her head. She contemplated for a while about what she was going to say, but she couldn't find any answer. Getting rid of Acnologia would mean that the seven years a majority of the members of her guild lost would be gone. That she wouldn't have had to deal with a lot of things on her own when Gajeel went missing. That she wouldn't have felt the loss she did when he disappeared. All of that would be gone. But what about her kids? What about Eric, Jellal, Macbeth, Sorano, Sawyer, Richard, Ultear and Meredy? What would become of them? Would they even be her family if they changed the past?

That thought made Lucy's stomach churn. She didn't want them to not be her family. She didn't want them to be strangers. They were a part of her, and will always be. No matter what, she wasn't going to let go of them.

"Yukino-san, changing the past will lead to a lot of changes in the present. I don't think it should be tampered with. We can and we will win against Zeref and Acnologia in this timeline."

Yukino sighed. "I hope when that time comes, that you wouldn't regret your answer."

Lucy hummed. "Yukino-san, who was the person from the future that gave you this idea?"

Yukino shook her head. "I don't know, I have not seen him. He only spoke to Arcadios-sama."

"Does the princess know?"

"I don't know. However, I doubt that Arcadios-sama would work without her knowing, since he is her guard."

Lucy wondered why the princess had never even mentioned this to her, and it made her uneasy. Silence hung between them as the sky turned brighter, the stars dimmed and the first rays of light shone brightly.

The stadium was in full roar as Chapatti stood in the arena. "Welcome everyone to the final day of the… GRAND MAGIC GAMES!"

The crowd erupted in cheers as Chapatti announced the teams. "And lastly, we have FAIRY TAIL!"

The members walked out into the arena and caused a lot of confusion.

"Huh? Why is the water mage with them? Where is the fire head? I wanted to see more of him."

"Why is Natsu-san not fighting?"

The crowd started murmuring about the reason behind the change of members in the fairy tail team, when Chapatti shushed them so he could announce the game of the final day.

"Alright everyone. For the last day, we will be holding a GRAND MAGIC WAR GAME! All the teams will be fighting each other in the city. For each member you take down, your team will gain one point. And if you take down the leader, you will gain five points. Teams! Get ready for in ten minutes, you will be sent into the city." After finishing his explanation, Chapatti jumped down and sat in his chair to watch the game unfold.

Laxus looked at the balcony where his gramps sat with the kids. Makarov nodded his way, trying to ease his grandson's nerves and telling him that everything will be okay.

Laxus appreciated the gesture and joined his team to discuss plans.

Makarov gazed at the balloons that were floating around the arena and wished the rescue team good luck.

Natsu, Mirajane, Wendy, Happy and Charle gathered outside the stadium.

"Are you ready everyone?" asked Mirajane.

The team nodded their heads when someone called for Natsu.

The fire dragon slayer turned to face none other than Jellal and his crew.

"Listen, we are counting on you to save our Lu. In the meantime, we will search for future Lucy."

Natsu nodded his head. "Don't worry about it man. Luce is my best friend, I will make sure she gets back safe and sound."

Eric grinned at the slayer. "You've changed flame brain. You're more mature now."

Natsu scratched the back of his head as he laughed. "Yeah. Seeing Luce so grown up and in control of her life, seeing all that she accomplished, it made me realize that I wanted the same as her. And I can't have what she has if I stayed as I was."

Jellal and his guild nodded their heads in encouragement.

"Good for you." Were Jellal's last words before he left with the rest.

Mirajane looked at Natsu with a knowing smirk. "You want what Lucy has, huh?"

Natsu turned towards her with an innocent grin. "Yeah."

"Like kids?"

In a second, Natsu was beet red. "Uh, let's focus on the mission. Luce is waiting for us."

"Uh huh." Mira laughed as she ran after the pink haired slayer who had smoke coming out of his ears.

A/N:

And we reach chapter 30. My, this story has come a long way. I do plan on finishing it, I promise.

I hope you enjoy the chapter, and I hope you have a lovely day.

Thank you so much for your continuous support even though I do not upload consecutively. I truly appreciate it.

I want to say that I will try harder to update more and more. But I am studying veterinary medicine and a lot of times, I don't have time for anything other than studying.

So again, I will try to update more regularly.

SIGNING OUT,

KAWAIINECKO!