With Great Power Comes Great Responsibilty

Chapter 50

At the moment Professor Gildarts Clive was filling out papers for his daughter Cana. She was due for a surgical procedure in a few days and it was mandatory that before that happened, some bits of information needed to be sorted out. As soon as he was done with the papers the window to the room where he was sitting were opened by a frantic Red Dragon.

"Professor Clive! Thank God you're alright!" He said relieved.

"Red Dragon? What are you doing here? Is something wrong?" Gildarts asked confused.

"Yeah there is. Listen to me have you been approached by Laxus Dreyar lately?"

"Laxus Dreyar? No I haven't. In fact I haven't seen him since I reported him to the campus for using it's equipment to doctor those photos. Why do you ask?"

"Professor Clive, Laxus has become infected with something called a symbiote. It's warped his mind and turned him into some kind of sociopathic mad man! I have reason to believe that he might target you or your daughter for retribution!"

"For reporting him?"

"Something like that."

"Are you certain? I mean Laxus has always been very aggressive but I don't think he'd ever be a serious threat."

"Maybe not before he made contact with the symbiote but now that he has, he might just be the most dangerous man in all of Magnolia. I think it would be best if you called the police and had them protect you and your daughter."

"Very well but is there anything I can do to help? I am a scientist. Maybe I could cure him or remove this thing...This symbiote."

"Don't worry I already know how to remove it. You just focus on keep yourself and your daughter safe."

"Dad!" Cana entered the room, having just finished with her check up. 

"Cana! What's wrong?" Her father asked with concern.'"Are you alright? Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine but you need to turn on the TV. There's a story on the news about one of your students."

Gildarts grabbed the room's remote, turned on the TV, and switched over to the news channel. It was a live broadcast that was taking place downtown. 

"Just thirty minutes ago." The reporter on screen said. "The police came across a startling sight. A young woman held hostage and suspended eighty stories above the ground by some strange sticky, black substance."

The camera then moved from viewing the reporter to viewing the top of an enormously tall building where a woman was restricted and hanging from lines of black ooze which Natsu recognized to be parts of the symbiote and when he recognized who the woman was he thought that he would have heart attack. It was Lucy.

"Oh my God that's Lucy Heartfilia." Gildarts said in horror. 

"Every attempt by the police to rescue the hostage has been thwarted by a black suited figure with an appearance and abilities similar to Red Dragon." The reporter continued before the camera switched over to Black Dragon turning over police cars and tossing police officers around like trash. "The hostage has been identified as Lucy Heartfilia, daughter of Captain Jude Heartfilia. Chief of police."

The camera switched back to Lucy and has Natsu saw her petrified face he suddenly found it hard to breathe. That's who Laxus meant by the person Natsu loved most. He meant Lucy. Oh how could he be so stupid? Of course he would go after her. Lucy was the only woman he ever really loved and now she was in the clutches of a monster, about to fall to her death. No. No he couldn't let that happen. He wouldn't let that happen. Not now or ever. 

Without a word, Natsu jumped from the window of the hospital and hurried downtown as quick as he could. Meanwhile back at Erza's apartment, she had been working on something that might prove useful in defeating  Laxus.

"It's taken me a whole week but I think I've finally perfected it." Erza said pouring what she had concocted into a bomb case. 

"What is it?" Gray asked her.

"It's a cement like compound. Throw this near Laxus's legs and it should keep him stuck in one place long enough for you two to remove the symbiote from his body." She handed him the bomb and then container with a tube and nozzle attached to it. "Once Laxus has been freed suck the symbiote into that thing. It should be able to keep it contained until I find out how to eliminate it."

"You sure this stuff will work?"

"Positive."

She then pulled a syringe from her desk and filled it with a powerful tranquilizer.

"What's that for?" Gray asked.

"When the symbiote is removed I suspect that Laxus may have a psychic break. That is if he's as disturbed as you and Natsu say he is. It would be best I was there to knock him out if that happens."

"Oh no you're not getting involved in our fight with him."

"I won't be in the fight. This will be just in case the removal leaves him mentally unwell to a point that he requires to be sedated. This symbiote has a very strong effect on it's host's mind. The host can either break away with mental side effects or none whatsoever. It all depends."

"I didn't know you knew that much about the psyche."

"I don't but my best friend from college Mirajane is a psychiatrist for criminals so she's briefed me on cases similar to what Laxus might be going through."

Ring-ring!

"Hello?" Gray said answering his phone. "Oh hey Juvia. Listen now is not a good time to talk but I'll-...No I haven't watched the news yet, why?...What?! Are you serious?!...Okay don't freak. I'm sure she'll be alright. Just remain calm and...And say your prayers! Thanks for telling me this! I'll call you back later!"

He hung up.

"What happened?" Erza asked.

"Laxus is holding Lucy hostage downtown and the police can't get to her. We better get down there fast."

"What about Natsu?"

"If it's all over the news then he probably already knows about it. Come on, we don't have much time."

He grabbed on to Erza and they made their destination toward the biggest source of everyone's attention. The police, the press, and bystanders all surrounded the bottom of the building where Lucy was being kept. Even Gajeel was among the spectators desperate to see how this crisis would end. This would have made an incredible story for his paper but unfortunately none of his employees were present at the moment. Talk about bad luck. Here the story of a lifetime was happening right in front of him and he had no way of getting any visual evidence.

"Fullbuster!" He called looking for Gray. "Fullbuster! Where is that kid? I need a photographer!"

He then spotted a girl with pink hair tied into pigtails watching the spectacle through her digital camera.

"Hey kid you want a job?" He asked her.

"Why would I want a job?" She asked looking at him like he was nuts. "I'm just a kid."

"Alright how much for the camera?"

"One hundred bucks."

"A hundred bucks?!" He took a moment to groan and then pulled out his wallet. "Alright you little crook. Here."

He handed her a hundred dollar bill and she gave him her camera. But when he tried to take a picture nothing happened.

"What the?" He opened the camera and discovered that it was empty.

"Film's extra." The girl said with a smirk. 

Gajeel glared at the smug child.

"This is so coming out of Fullbuster's paycheck."