WEEEEEELLLLCOOOOMMEE BACK! Hope y'all enjoy the end of the rebellion...
Keeping Secrets Chapter 19- Shadows Flap Their Black Wings
Zeref would later point out he said that he thought the insurrection would end soon.
Because it did not end soon.
With reinforcements via Bloodman and the Imperial Navy, Devereaux's only port city, Boras, was quickly surrounded from both land and sea. With all food and supplies cut off, Zeref predicted the city would fall quickly.
It did. In fact, other than their initial bombardments, Alvarez didn't have to fire a shot- the citizens, already disgruntled with the city's leadership over their decision to support Ashford, all out revolted, burning down the town hall and the governor's mansion. After only two days of Alvarez's blockade, the gates to the city opened, and a group of citizens marched out with a white flag flying on a pike... with the pro- rebellion governor of the city's head on top of said pike.
That said, just like before, Ashford had seemed to have fled before Alvarez's forces arrived. This proved to be a big problem for the empire in their efforts to stomp out the rebellion- Devereaux was a vast, sprawling region of thick, wooded swamps surrounded by steep mountains, making it a natural fortress, with plenty of places to hide. The coastal blockade severed any additional support Ashford had been receiving or could receive, but the rebel leader remained elusive.
Still though, everyday Natsu, Zeref, Irene and their soldiers laid waste to Ashford's movement, dismantling his infrastructure piece by piece, sometimes seizing, sometimes leveling his supporters' businesses and property. This proved effective to the already poor morale of Ashford's soldiers, leading to mass desertion and betrayal, his officers' chokehold on the populace slipping away more and more each day. Countless hidden strongholds were raided and destroyed. On paper, it seemed like an overwhelming victory for Alvarez was imminent... but Devereaux's treacherous terrain, with its murky waters, hidden traps, and harsh weather, took its toll on the empire's morale as well.
However, another thing the Alvarez soldiers had going for them that Ashford's army didn't was that their leaders were on the front lines with them, not hiding in some hidden base surrounded by luxury. Natsu couldn't tell many times he, Zeref, and Irene found themselves side by side with their soldiers, wading through chest deep swampy waters, mud, or worse...
This was something Irene and Zeref were more or less used to, as this was far from being the first war they had fought in. It was definitely a new experience for Natsu, however, and not a good one- he saw the light fade from both his own and enemy soldiers' eyes, but not before listening to them scream from some horrific wound they had received and then beg for death. Or maybe even worse, when a soldier next to Natsu would be blown to nothing but paste by enemy fire, and then said paste would immediately be swallowed by the mud, leaving nothing to even send back home to their families. It didn't help knowing the same was happening to the opposing forces, especially with the revelation many of them didn't want to be fighting in the first place.
When he brought this all up to Zeref, his brother got that sorrowful look on his face he often wore. "I know this is all new to you Natsu... but this is just how war is. And this is one of the less bloody conflicts I've seen in my time."
Natsu shuddered at the thought. "It's not right! These people don't wanna be fighting us in the first place! Ashford and his cronies- they're pure evil! They've taken advantage of the people they were supposed to be taking care of! These people don't deserve what they've gotten... and I want to... to..."
"To save as many of them as you can," Zeref finished recalling their conversation after the first battle. Natsu nodded and Zeref sighed. He reached for Natsu's scarf, and his brother handed it to him. "It's just an unfortunate fact of war... you can't save everyone. That said, compassion isn't a weakness, Natsu. In fact, I'd say it's a strength." Zeref's gaze hardened, blazing with determination as he told Natsu, "The best way to save as many people as you can in this conflict is bringing it to an end. I know it feels like it's going to go on forever, but I promise Natsu... all wars end eventually." A smile formed on Zeref's face as he said, "And to that end... there's something I need your help with for our next battle."
After the first battle of Alvarez's campaign in Devereaux, Natsu and Zeref both put in effort to strike a balance between their more impulsive and more strategic approaches to fighting. There were battles where enemies had hunkered down and prepared for the long haul against the empire, which is where Zeref's talents with strategy and planning shone through. But there were others where Natsu's 'hit first, ask questions later' style brought them victory, such as when they discovered a platoon of soldiers guarding much needed supplies for the rebellion their intelligence hadn't accounted for. And thanks to Natsu's quick thinking, these bands of rebels often found themselves surrounded and severely outgunned before they had time to even react.
And on occasion, the two brothers' different styles served as perfect complements to each other. Such as the case when it came to Ashford's mysterious mercenaries.
The mercenaries had been a point of frustration for Alvarez. No matter how fast they were in ending battles, the mercenaries always seemed to slip away or bite their cyanide pouches before Alvarez could get their hands on them. Four months into the conflict and Zeref's army didn't know any more about them than they had in the first battle.
The mercenaries had made one big mistake, however- after examining several of their corpses, Zeref and Irene noted that the cyanide pouch they had was placed in the same spot in every one of their mouths.
So, when the time came to launch an assault on one of Ashford's few remaining public allies, Zeref and Natsu crafted a plan.
As the Alvarez army began their attack, the mercenaries rallied their troops, ordering them to charge at the enemy. However, two soldiers stayed behind, watching as their comrades ran towards the Alvarezian forces. When questioned, they turned around and smiled, both showing their abnormally sharp teeth from under their open-faced helmets.
One of the mercenaries watched in shock as his comrades exploded around him, as if each of their bodies had become miniature bombs. He was so distracted by this he didn't notice the fist flying towards his face at an incredibly fast pace. Next thing he knew, he was on the ground, pain radiating from his jaw. A shadow loomed over him, and the mercenaries' eyes widened beneath his full-face helmet as he recognized the man who was standing over him's unique hair color, leaving little doubt that his assailant was none other than Natsu Dragneel, Prince of Alvarez.
As protocol dictated, he went to bite down on his cyanide pouch... only to be met with intense pain as he attempted to move his shattered jaw. His panic grew when Dragneel reached down and pried his mouth open. He desperately tried to push through the pain and bite the pouch- but his efforts were in vain- he felt said pain intensify in his mouth as a horrible ripping sound followed, and the enemy prince pulled the cyanide pouch straight from his mouth, blood splattering everywhere around them as he did.
Said enemy prince grinned sinisterly as he incinerated the pouch. "Heya." He said, voice dripping with twisted joy. "We got some questions for ya." He reared his fist back again, and the mercenary saw no more.
Since Natsu and Jackal had been busy attacking the mercenaries, it meant the lord's massive plantation house was left unharmed... and thus the soldiers from Alvarez decided to make good use of it after their victory- specifically its climate control system, hot water showers and baths, and the former lord's well stocked wine cellar.
However, as the rest of the army celebrated, in a locked storage room in the mansion's basement, one of Ashford's mercenaries regained consciousness. His head and jaw were aching and he couldn't place where he was at first, but when his vision completely returned, a feeling of dread came over him, as he found himself in a room with four bare concrete walls, empty of everything except the table in front of him and two chairs- one he sat in, and one on the other side of the table, occupied by none other than Emperor Spriggan himself. Natsu and Irene stood on each side of him.
The emperor smiled upon seeing the mercenary's eyes open. "Oh good, you're awake. We were beginning to worry about you. Seems it was a good idea to cast an enhancement to dull your senses, you received quite a nasty concussion back there."
The emperor's voice was oddly upbeat and chipper, no doubt hoping he could convince the mercenary to speak. The mercenary clenched his aching jaw and stared at the center of the table, clearly indicating he had no intention of speaking with them.
The emperor sighed but the smile didn't slip from his face. "Not much of a talker, huh? I get it. I admire it, actually. You're a professional. That said, as a professional, you know this war is over. This was your forces' last big storage location for your foodstuffs. A starving army won't fight for long... so how about you help us wrap this little spat up, and we'll make it worth your while?"
The mercenary found his anger rising at the emperor's nonchalant and carefree attitude. He knew what was under that smiling mask the so-called emperor wore- a true monster. His anger won over; "As if I would ever help you, Your Majesty." He used the title mockingly before he added, hint of a smirk forming on his face, "Or should I say, Black Wizard Zeref?"
Zeref's smile disappeared for a moment, and he raised his eyebrows and opened his mouth slightly in shock. However, the mercenary felt a chill go down his spine a moment later when the black wizard's smile returned, wider than before, and he began to laugh. "Wow, now I didn't see that coming! You're extremely well informed." Zeref's smile widened even more as he saw the mercenary's smirk melt away and his eyes began to dart back and forth between the prince and the other woman in the room with them, as they glared at him, seemingly unfazed by his revelation. "Oh, you actually thought my subordinates wouldn't know? That's a pretty big miscalculation there, friend. For one, Natsu is my actual brother, and Irene... we've known each other a long time. There's little we don't know about each other."
Zeref's smile disappeared and he brought a hand to his chin, looking deep in thought. "You might have gotten the reaction you were looking for out of some of my soldiers... but also, maybe not. After all, the tales of the 'Black Wizard Zeref' are nothing more than fairy tales here in Alakitasia, scary stories Ishgarian parents tell their children to get them to behave... so, with all that in mind, you must be from Ishgar, correct?" Zeref's smile returned.
The mercenary tensed up, realizing his mistake. "Now," Zeref continued, "I'd be really interested in who hired you, or why you're over here working for Bradley Ashford... but here's the thing. If you can't help me with that, I'm afraid we won't be able to help you, either." Zeref nodded at Irene, who snapped her fingers. The mercenary felt the awful throbbing in his jaw intensify, and he cried out in pain. "So, what do you say? Think you can help us out?"
Tears in his eyes, the mercenary glared daggers into the black wizard. "Torture me all you want," the man spat out, "do your good cop, bad cop routine, I won't tell you anything! You might as well just kill me!"
Zeref just laughed. "Oh, so that's what you think this is? A good cop, bad cop routine? I'm afraid not, friend. You see, I was merely being polite. Offering you a less painful option. Pawns that are useful to me, I make it worth their while. However, your cooperation is not required. If you'd truly rather die than tell me any information, then August, the leader of my elite guard, the Spriggan Twelve, will simply pull it out of you. I'll warn you, it's quite a painful process, and it will leave your mind a shattered mess... a byproduct of his spell searching for the memories he wants, or so I've been told."
The mercenary looked genuinely afraid. "You're bluffing... no, spells like that are outlawed by the International Council of Mages! You wouldn't dare-"
"Outlawed, you say? Ah, yes, by the Magic Council... which has no say in what we do here in Alvarez. So, who's gonna stop me again?"
"You monster... we'll have you brought to justice! You won't get away with this!"
Zeref had stood up from his chair and walked over to the cowering mercenary and smiled. "Oh, you will, will you? I'm absolutely quaking in my boots. No, I think I will get away with this... so in the meantime, let's see who this 'we' is." He laid a hand on the mercenary's shoulder and a second later the two were gone.
About 30 minutes later, Zeref returned to find Irene and Natsu enjoying the former lord's wine cellar with the other soldiers. They all snuck away and stepped into an abandoned bedroom on the second floor.
"Well, find out anything interesting?" Irene asked.
"Most certainly." Zeref said, smirking. "Turns out, the man worked for an organization called 'Blackwater Park'... which, after consulting Jacob's intel, we discovered is a private mercenary company from Seven, over in Ishgar. And get this, with ties to the Bureau of Magical Development."
Natsu furrowed his brow. "That sounds... oddly familiar, but I can't place it."
"If this helps, they're the research division of the Magic Council." Zeref said.
It all clicked for Natsu now. He remembered what Gray told him about Ultear from Crime Sorciere- that she was his teacher Ur's daughter, and Ur had taken her to said Bureau when she was a small girl, hoping they could help her control her immense magic power. Instead, the Bureau subjected her to a series of inhumane experiments and told Ur her daughter had passed away before they could help her. But in truth, Fiore's Bureau director, none other than Brain, who would go onto found the dark guild, the Oracion Seis, had given Ultear to Master Hades of Grimoire Heart, as a 'gift'. Jellal, under Ultear's misguided possession, had also used the Bureau's resources for his own twisted ends... as well as gifting Brain several slaves originally captured to build the Tower of Heaven, who he would mold into the Oracion Seis.
Natsu related all of this to Zeref and Irene, who didn't seem surprised by the information.
"Sad to say, that doesn't seem off course for the Bureau. That mercenary, or rather Asger Ludwig, his real name... he seems similar to this Ultear. Parents took him to the Bureaus headquarters in Seven, looking for help in controlling his magic... Instead, they took custody of the boy after a mysterious accident claimed both his parents' lives. Though... Instead of being manipulated like Ultear was, from what August did glimpse of his memories, it looks like what they did to him was more akin to brainwashing. I'd say all of the mercenaries from Blackwater Park are Bureau experiments."
Natsu grit his teeth. "So, no one's allowed to experiment with magic but the Council... and this is how they experiment? How does that make sense?!" He yelled, his frustration obviously rising.
"A good example of the Council's governing policy... 'Do as we say, not as we do.'" Zeref frowned. "The Bureau's involvement strongly suggests the Magic Council might be behind Ashford's little rebellion. The Bureau does act independently of the Council at times, but they can't not know about an undertaking this massive. If they aren't behind it, they certainly aren't bothered that the Bureau is attacking the empire."
Natsu pounded his fist against his hand. "That's fine. We'll catch Ashford, and next, we'll make the Council pay!"
"One thing at a time, Natsu. What about searching for a cure and reforming Fairy Tail?"
Natsu smirked. "I can multitask."
Zeref chuckled. "It'd be something to take the Council down... but for now, let's just look for some more evidence. Ludwig will be undergoing intense psychotherapy to see if he can reclaim any of who he was before the Bureau dug their claws into him... and if it's successful, he'll be our first witness to testify against the Council. Yes, we'll build a case against them... and I bet our friend Bradley Ashford will have some hard evidence we can use against them as well, whenever we find him."
"Sounds like a plan to me." Natsu said.
Zeref smiled. "Well, this has been a very productive day. Hopefully, with this new information about our mercenary friends, and seizing this final food storehouse for Ashford's army, the rebellion is all but finished. Now to celebrate... Why don't you two continue to enjoy yourselves with the other soldiers? I think I'll borrow this room, find a good book and turn in early for the night."
"Sounds good, Your Majesty." Irene said before she bowed and left the room.
Natsu wasn't far behind her. "Good night, Zeref! Love you brother!"
"Love you too, Natsu." Once he was sure the scarf had absorbed his curse, he handed it back to Natsu, who ran off to join Irene and the others.
As Natsu and Irene left and he settled into bed with a book from his requip space, Zeref felt something nagging at him. August seemed to have wanted to talk about something before Zeref left, but when questioned, he had just said not to worry, that it was 'diplomatic business' and it was being handled. That said, August wasn't one to be bothered by any old matter if it weren't important. Zeref thought about teleporting back to Vistarion and asking the leader of the Twelve about it again, but ultimately decided against it. Things like that always seemed to have a way of working themselves out...
As the sun set, Natsu and Irene went to join the others, who were still enjoying the wine cellar... but Natsu now found the wine tasting sour on his tongue. His mind was consumed with anger over his and Zeref's conversation. Despite Jackal calling for him to drink the night away with them, Natsu crept away from the others, seeking some peace and quiet to gather his thoughts.
The plantation bordered a river, and the property had a short dock that extended over the bank of said river. Natsu walked down the dock, sat down, and hung his feet off the edge. He watched the impressively colorful sunset as his mind churned over the revelations about the Council's involvement, or compliance, at best, in the rebellion. It all gave him a bad feeling.
It was true he had never paid the Council or their rules much mind in the first place... but after seeing the devastation this conflict had caused, he wasn't sure if he could stand to not meet their complaints with outright aggression. Guess if he got in trouble, he could pull the 'I'm a prince, you can't arrest me! You'll start a war!' card.
Oh, except the Magic Council clearly didn't like Alvarez anyway, and even if they weren't bold enough to openly oppose the empire, they certainly didn't mind manipulating others to the task.
That said... What if that made trouble for the guild? While he knew for a fact a lot of the guild, Gramps included, didn't care at all for the Council, he's not sure how they'd all feel about following him down an open anti-Council warpath.
Oh yeah, and the ones who flat out liked the Council, or thought it was a good thing, somehow... Natsu wasn't sure what the weirdest part of Jacob's most recent report on his old guildmates he had read over before he left Vistarion was... that Mest/Doranbolt/Whatever guy was actually working for Fairy Tail all along, but was now helping reform the Council in the wake of Tartaros's destruction, or that Gajeel, Levy, and Pantherlily were rapidly climbing through the ranks of the Council's rune knights.
It made about as much sense to Natsu as him being prince of Alvarez or Zeref's brother would make to them. Great, yet another revelation I don't know how to explain. He hoped that whenever he and Zeref set about their quest to reform the guild, his brother's presence would be at least viewed with less hostility, at the very least, since he'd be helping bring all of them back together.
He had been so lost in his thoughts he didn't notice a set of footsteps slowly making their way towards him. "Mind if I join you?"
Turning, he was a bit surprised to find Irene standing there with a glass of wine in her hand. "Uh... sure."
Irene smiled a bit, and sat down, leaning against a post as she faced Natsu. After a moment of silence went by, she said, "I'm a little surprised you're not inside celebrating with the others."
Natsu sighed. "I got a lot on my mind... this conflict... and now this stuff with the Council being involved, I was wondering how I was gonna explain my newfound resolve to destroy the Council all over again to my guildmates. After we inevitably end up in trouble with them whenever the guild reforms...and there's still no leads on the whole cure for my brother's curse thing. Oh and then how I'm gonna explain everything regarding him and the empire to my guildmates, too. It's just kinda all come crashing down tonight, after what August found out from that mercenary."
Irene offered a small nod. "Well, that certainly is a lot... but at least you have each other to lean on. You and His Majesty, that is. He's really lucky to have you for a brother... after all, you're pretty accepting of him, despite all the... complications."
Natsu smiled a little. "Well, he's my brother... it doesn't matter what he's done, or will do, nothing can change that. I'll always be there to help him, no matter what."
Irene was looking off in the distance now. "That's... very admirable." She paused for a moment, before she sighed and took a large drink, finishing off the rest of her wine. "I wish that type of loyalty could be as simple for me, when it comes to my daughter." Natsu raised his eyebrows at that, and before he could say something expressing his surprise, Irene said, "Erza... what is she like?"
"Wait... you actually wanna know? About Erza? I thought-"
"Yes, yes, 'don't bring her up, blah blah blah'... I know your brother well enough to know as soon as I left your hospital room that morning, saying what I said, he would tell you the actual truth... Why do you think I left your room in such a hurry? I didn't even bother getting upset at him over it. If I did, I knew he would just say something like, 'Oh Irene, you know I can't not tell my beloved little brother the truth when he was so upset over it!'" She said mockingly, at which both of them laughed at. "Plus, when I left after saying those things about her... you looked like you wanted to try and knock me through the wall. But the next time I saw you, there was no ill look, no demeaning comment... nothing. You both are a little too obvious."
Natsu scratched the back of his head and offered a sheepish grin. "Yeah, well, I guess so... heheh." He fell quiet for a moment, and his smile turned into something a little more sentimental. "Erza is... strong. She's one of the strongest people I know. She's tough, brave... and smart! She actually taught me how to write when I first joined the guild, and it only took a week! That said, it was probably the scariest week of my life... she can be really intense if she wants to be! But... she's got a kind heart too. She'll go out of her way to help anyone... even though she'd deny it to your face that's what she was trying to do."
Irene's smile grew ever so slightly as Natsu described Erza to her, and he saw a hint of pride enter her eyes the more he went on. When he was done, Irene said, "I see... thank you Natsu..." She paused another moment before continuing, "I'm happy she ended up being such a wonderful person. Goes to show giving her up, as much as it hurts... it was the right move."
Natsu frowned a bit, and furrowed his brow. "Well, I don't know if I'd agree with that. I bet you would have been a great mom to her."
Irene snorted. "Yeah, well, the first moment of her life, I tried to steal her body from her. Probably at the top of the list of 'Worst Ways to Spend Your Baby's First Moments'. I didn't feel very confident about my parenting skills going forward after that." Natsu looked like he was going to argue something, but Irene continued. "But still... after leaving her at that church... I couldn't help but think about that sweet baby girl that smiled at me... I wanted to know what happened to her. I thought maybe a nice family had taken her in... but to my horror, when I checked Alvarez's intelligence on Rosemary Village years later... there was no more Rosemary Village. It had been completely wiped out."
"That cult... that built the Tower of Heaven." Natsu added.
"Right. According to our intelligence, that particular cult was at the top of the list of suspects for the destruction of the village... and also according to said intelligence, they were known to kidnap children, elderly, and others who couldn't fight back for slave labor." A pained look crossed Irene's face. "The report had the island where they were building the tower's location. I wanted nothing more than to go there, burn the whole place to the ground and rescue my little girl, but... I hate to admit it, I was afraid. What would she think of me when she learned the truth? Why her mother had abandoned her, only to be enslaved by an insane cult?"
Irene sighed. "I eventually made up my mind. Maybe it wouldn't make up for what I had done when she was born, but at least I would give her something better than being a slave. So I made for the island... but turns out I deliberated too long. When I got there... she was gone. The cult was gone too, and everybody there seemed to be working... willingly? At that point, I didn't care, I went home. Several months later, Jacob told me he had been keeping his eyes and ears open for me, and found something... turned out Erza had joined a wizard guild in Ishgar. From what I read about it, Fairy Tail seemed like a great place for her- she'd be cared for and surrounded by loving people. Far better than being with a mother who tried to steal her life the moment after she was born and then didn't show up to free her from slavery because she was too big of a coward."
Natsu stayed quiet for a moment before he shook his head. "Nah. That's not right. You were someone who was hurting and was gonna make a bad decision, but your love for your daughter won over what years of insanity had convinced you was what you wanted. And then, after swallowing a lot of hurt and fear, you did go to save her from the cult. That is something." He smiled before he added, "I think Erza's life would have gotten even better if she knew she had a mother who loved her."
Irene's gaze drifted down to the aged wood of the dock, and she wiped her eyes. She eventually whispered a small, "Thank you."
There was another stretch of silence, and then Natsu decided to tell Irene what he had told Zeref when his brother had originally told him Irene's story. "After I get Zeref's curse cured, and we get the guild back together... you should come visit. I'll do what I can to help you and Erza make things right between each other. That's a promise."
Irene looked very caught off guard by his declaration. Recovering, she laughed and said, "His Majesty once described you as 'aggressively optimistic'- I see what he meant." Her smile slipped, and she sounded uncharacteristically unsure of herself as she said, "I don't know... this isn't just something a simple apology can fix. I think I've thoroughly blown it, as far as my daughter goes..."
"No way! It's never too late as long as you both are still living! Plus, I've known Erza since I was little, remember? Bet you anything, she'll not only forgive you- she'll like you!"
Irene raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? What makes you so sure she'll like me?"
"Well, for one, I bet she'll love Heine and Juliet...oh, and you can bond over your love of strawberry cake!"
Irene looked very surprised at that. "Erza... likes strawberry cake?" Her voice was part intrigue, part amusement, part excitement.
"Oh yeah! In fact, when you went off on God Serena and Larcade for ruining yours' that night at the bar, I had to do a double take and make sure I wasn't back in the guildhall- that used to happen almost every day! Except substitute Erza for you, and for God Serena and Larcade, substitute, well... heheh... me and Gray." He said the last part a bit quieter, a sheepish grin forming on his face.
Irene smirked. "Oh really? That is quite... amusing to imagine. I hate to imagine how much good cheesecake that's been wasted at your guildhall over the years..."
"Hahaha, well, Erza actually likes strawberry shortcake the best, I think."
Irene turned her nose up and playfully said, "Well, I guess she can't be perfect in everything. Cheesecake is far superior to shortcake."
Natsu laughed. "I can see it now, you two arguing over which is better... It'll be hilarious!"
Irene chuckled too, and then, as her gaze softened, said, "Alright, alright. You've sold me, you can reintroduce me to my daughter." She let out a sigh. "I could just be feeling sentimental tonight, or maybe I'm just wanting to look forward to something other than this mud soaked war... and let me guess, if I try to back out later, you won't let me?"
"Yep, something like that!" Natsu beamed at her.
Irene shook her head. "Aggressively optimistic is right. The fact you're the actual brother of our beloved 'doom and gloom' emperor seems impossible."
Natsu laughed and smirked, and then said, "Someone's gotta be there to clean up his messes and dig him out of the holes he keeps trying to bury himself in."
They both shared a good laugh at that.
If the first battle of the rebellion could be likened to a scream, the final one could be likened to a whimper.
Ashford's army had indeed crumbled after their foodstuffs were seized, and despite their leader still being at large, what was left of his tattered forces surrendered.
Still, it was another month before they actually found the bastard, and when they did, it was all because of a silly slip up.
One early morning in an old, sleepy, mining town in the northeast part of the province, the sheriff's office had got a call in regards to trespassers at an abandoned mine on the outskirts of town. Figuring it was just old Mrs. Frelek seeing things again, the sheriff sent one of his newer deputies to investigate. Upon pulling up to the gate of the mine, where supposedly no one had set foot in for the last 15 years, he noticed how... workable everything was. Sure the gates looked rusted and the buildings looked worn... but the gates swung upon with nary a creak, doors opened easily, and the air inside the old buildings was surprisingly fresh.
The deputy reported all this to the sheriff, plus the fact he had found two barely extinguished cigarettes and a couple half drunk pops. The sheriff had initially blown it off, saying it was likely just kids having a smoke where they thought their parents wouldn't find them. However when the deputy remarked he wondered where the kids got the soft drinks from, the sheriff looked at him in confusion, only for the deputy to explain the soft drinks were 'Terror Tears', which generally could only be found in the central part of Deveraeux. The deputy said he would have liked to ask where they got them, as they were very hard to come by in the area.
It really shouldn't have been a big deal, people traveled and brought food and drinks back home all the time. But, the central part of the province was where Ashford hailed from originally... plus the oddly maintained facilities, it all began to bother the sheriff. He decided he'd take advantage of the lacrimas their office had received from the capital about a month prior, and call an old friend, who he knew had a lacrima too, as he was an officer in Lady Irene's forces, and ask what he thought about the occurrence.
His old friend seemed interested, and brought the matter to Lady Irene's attention, who brought it to the emperor.
Upon hearing the sheriff's report, Zeref shrugged. "Who knows? If it's nothing we're no worse off, but on the off chance it is something..." He furrowed his brow before asking Irene, "You said it was in an abandoned mine?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Do you know if it has multiple entrances?"
"No, but I can find out."
As Irene went to leave however, Zeref shook his head. "No, that's alright... just relay back to the local law enforcement, that if it does indeed have multiple entrance points, see if they can block off all of them but the main one. Just in case."
Zeref's 'just in case' idea ended the conflict.
As soon as the Imperial army had rolled into the town, the emergency exit to the mine several miles from the main entrance was flung open, and Ashford's soldiers rushed out- only to find about 50 guns from local law enforcement pointed at them. This wasn't the sheriff's first rodeo, and if the emperor suspected something so much so that he was coming to personally investigate, then the sheriff wasn't leaving anything to chance. He called and asked for backup from several of the nearby towns, and broke out the biggest guns he had in the town's armory.
If he hadn't, the war would have likely continued.
After entering one of the old buildings, Natsu smelt and heard people behind a bookcase in one of the ground level offices, and after thoroughly obliterating it, the Alvarez forces found Ashford had converted the tunnels of the old mine into a hidden fortress where he had been overseeing the war effort... and for the last month, just hiding, and according to some very frightened non combat personnel, been negotiating for extraction from the empire.
When Natsu heard the rebel leader was currently taking a bath that was 'not to be disturbed', he begged Zeref to let him apprehend the guy. Zeref relented, and Natsu stormed up to Ashford's bathroom door, and promptly banged on it.
"Maintenance! Wanted to make sure your water was hot enough!"
After a moment, a very disgruntled voice insisted, "W-w- yes it's hot enough you useless buffoon!"
"Oh, I just thought you'd like it a little warmer!" Natsu yelled as he lit his fists aflame and blew the door to pieces. He stepped into the luxurious, steamy bathroom, and watched the bathing lord's face change from angry confusion to disbelieving fear and said, "After all, I thought you'd wanna get used to the heat. It's pretty hot where you're headed!"
"You-you- won't get away with this! I have powerful friends-"
"In the Bureau of Magical Development and probably the International Council of Mages, yes, yes, your mercenary friends told us all about it." Zeref replied to the seething lord flatly, as he sat at the former rebel leader's desk, flipping through folders containing classified documents.
Natsu had originally dragged Lord Ashford straight out of the bath, and brought the self-appointed king to his brother, who turned away in embarrassment and demanded the man be given some kind of clothing before he was interrogated. Now, they sat in his office, decorated with all the luxuries of his estate from which he had fled. It also contained several bookshelves, which Natsu was currently skimming through to see if he could find anything interesting.
Ashford looked at Zeref in disbelief. "How... those mercenaries were trained to kill themselves before being captured!"
"Well." Zeref said, looking up from the document he was currently reading, "Allow me to give you some advice from someone who has lived a long time and knows a thing or two about strategy. When you have cyanide pouches implanted in your soldiers' mouths', try putting them in a different place each time. Otherwise, it makes stopping them from killing themselves fairly easy." Zeref went back to looking through a drawer, and his eyes widened on reading the first document in the file folder he had pulled out.
"Oh, what's this? 'Dear King Ashford, we are monitoring the situation'... blah blah blah... 'utmost priority', ha, well that didn't age well... 'confident you can salvage things'... hmmm hmmm hmmm... ah! 'Sincerely, Herbert Beck, International Council Of Mages Main Office, Board of Directors?'"
Natsu stopped looking through the bookshelves at that. "Wait, so the Council was behind it after all?"
Irene shook her head. "Not surprising, in all honesty."
"No, it's really not." Zeref said, putting the document back down on the desk. "Let me guess- 'Lord Ashford, the secession of Devereaux will cause the empire to fall like a set of dominos, and you at the helm, we'll forge a bright new future for Alakitasia!' Something like that?" Zeref folded his hands on the desk and looked at the startled lord, expectant look on his face.
"I...I... this land was my birthright! My ancestors founded this land, ruled it for centuries, until you got your grubby paws all over it, and killed the king, my grandfather, because of your inflated ego!"
"Oh, is that what you were told?" Zeref smiled darkly. "Well, let me give you my side of the story- out of all the independent kingdoms I conquered here on Alakitasia, Devereaux stands out in my mind because it was so much easier to take over compared to the others. You wanna know why? Because the people of this land were so cooperative with me when I arrived. Something about being tired of being used by their king as slave labor and their daughters being forced to go to his palace, never to return..."
Zeref's smile disappeared as he continued, "The only place where I went wrong was handing over governing power to your father and not annihilating your entire twisted bloodline... most other former monarchs were grateful I left them in control, and showed that gratitude by ruling justly, fairly, and bringing the interests and issues of their people to my attention. Instead, you lived a life of overindulgence while your people suffered... but that's over now." His smile returned and said, "So, I will leave your ultimate fate up to them- your former subjects."
"You can't be serious! You would allow those ignorant swine to govern for you?"
"Well, why not? It's less headache for me. That said, from what I've learned talking to the people of this land throughout the conflict, and your words just now, I can already tell what your fate will be." He looked at Heine and Juliet. "Take him away."
As Ashford screamed about how they would all rue this day, Zeref casually replied with, "So long Your Majesty, see you at the gallows!"
Natsu rolled his eyes as the man's screams disappeared. "Good riddance. His voice was giving me a headache. Talk about out of touch with reality." He laid the book he had been looking through down and reached for the next one on the shelf. His eyes widened on seeing its title.
He began flipping through the book rapidly. Noticing his excitement, Jackal asked, "You found something boss?"
Natsu stopped and his eyes scanned a page, before he smiled widely, and said, "Yes."
This surprised even Zeref, who walked over to the bookshelf where Natsu was. "What is it?" Natsu held the aged book out for Zeref who looked at the title- "'Legacy of The Lost- Forgotten Gods of Ishgar's Pantheon'?" Zeref's face lit up in a wide smile. "Natsu... do you have any idea what you've found? This was written just a few decades after I became cursed and accidently destroyed Mildian... but the Council outlawed the book, and burned every copy they could find... I thought they were all gone!"
Natsu beamed back at him. "Told ya you shouldn't doubt me! But look, read page 71," he said, opening the book to said page and pointing at a paragraph, "starting here."
Zeref took the book from Natsu and began to quietly read aloud. "' Worship of Ankhseram more or less ceased after the destruction of Mildian, the city where he was the patron deity... but a remnant of his followers established a monastery... 20 miles west of the ruins of the city '... Wait, that means-"
"Yep," Natsu happily interjected, "Looks like you and I are headed back to Ishgar!"
So, who saw that coming? Now, Natsu and Zeref will continue their quest over in Ishgar... right?
After all, we catch back up to the first chapter next week :)
Thank you all for reading and commenting! See you next time!