Awaken the Stars Song

Chapter 3

A/N: I don’t own Fairy Tail’s cannon characters because they are Hiro Mashima’s darlings. I own obnoxious twerps my plot bunnies devise for tormenting cannons.

CHAPTER 3.

    Gajeel was having trouble accepting the information flowing through his brain from his dragon father as he charged at maximum speed toward Lucy’s apartment. He had only been there a couple of times with Levi. At least Natsu was running beside him to lead the way if he made a wrong turn. A glance at his fellow slayer’s clenched jaw and burning eyes told Gajeel that the younger man could not completely ignore his heart’s choice where Fairy Tail’s blond haired darling was concerned. Best friend was Natsu’s favorite lie to Gajeel’s thinking. All Dragon Slayers knew who their best potential mates were on an instinctual level. Natsu seemed too intent upon ignoring the powerful tug that all of them saw happening to him for some very odd reason. Gajeel doubted Natsu was as stupid as he pretended to be. 
    Lucy somehow drew Natsu, and the rest of them, like moths were drawn to flames. If he was completely honest with himself, Gajeel knew he hated feeling the constant pull towards the blond Celestial Mage. He had also become very fond of Levi, Lucy’s best friend who was equally compatible to him, if not to the others. Levy at least was easy on his nerves, unlike the constant, low-grade thrumming of an undefined force that emanated from Lucy.
    Catching Laxus watching Lucy on several occasions implied that the second generation Slayers also found Lucy Heartfilia’s pull hard to resist. For some inexplicable reason, it appeared that Celestial Mages, or at least their powers, held some kind of magnetism toward which all Dragon Magic was drawn. Nothing else made sense to Gajeel. He felt the flickers of real interest coming from Metalicana’s mind in response to his jumbled thoughts.
    Mind wrestling with conflicting ideals, Gajeel almost careened into Natsu. The smaller man grabbed his forearm, leaping across Gajeel’s trajectory and jerking him toward one of the buildings. He had come close to running past his adopted sister’s home because of being distracted by his father’s nightmarish information, and his attempt to deflect the onset of shock through contemplating the odd link between Celestial Mages and Dragon Slayers.
    Without stopping, Natsu busted through Lucy’s front door and scurried toward her bed still dragging him along. With a snort, Gajeel jerked free of Natsu’s grip and focused on the labored gasps coming from the open space just beyond the small kitchen nook beneath the closed window. The blocky archway leading into the second small room did not hide the single bed pushed against the wall.
    Alert for the signs he was supposed to look for, Gajeel felt his heart drop into his toes. A visible, wavering glow surrounded Lucy like a corona surrounding the sun. He did not see anything that looked like chains, but from the surge of concern coming from Metalicana’s mind, Gajeel knew that things were going to get much worse. 
    “Shit, we’re in trouble. Metalicana was talking about this right before we came to get Bunny girl. Don’t know what dad can do to save her, but we gotta let him try before moving her anywhere, Flame Brain.”
    Pushing past Natsu, Gajeel gave over full control of his body to Metalicana. His mind was shoved into a tight corner as his body began moving without his command. Power flowed through his mind and body as his hands settled on the sick girl’s stomach. An unfamiliar magic circle began to pulse from his finger tips as Metalicana’s power and voice flashed through Gajeel’s veins. The language was unknown to Gajeel as it flowed off his tongue, but he trusted his adopted father to do right by Lucy. He also sensed Metalicana’s belief that she was a strong mate for any dragon’s adopted son if they matched in power frequencies.
    Gajeel’s thoughts centered on how Lucy Heartfilia was dearly loved by everyone within the guild because of her kind hearted ways. He did not care whether or not Lucy was magically strong enough to get the approval of his dragon parent. All Gajeel cared about was how the girl who was dying in front of him had forgiven him for all his violence when they first met. Lucy’s capacity to forgive, forget, and offer friendship terms was extraordinary. Lucy had a big heart, and was generous with everyone. She was only feisty when she needed to be. The young woman struggling to breathe brought real joy to everyone around her. Lucy could not die, or Fairy Tail would lose one of the brightest lights it ever had gained.
    Gajeel had seen Lucy getting attacked constantly during her time with Fairy Tail. Even he had attacked her on his last Guild Master’s orders when he was with Phantom Lord. Now Gajeel had a better understanding of why dark guilds were so determined to hurt Lucy all the time. Somehow, Lucy was one of the most important mages in all Fiore, but only the dark guilds had embraced that fact. Even among Fairy Tail members, some grumbled that Lucy was too weak to be on their guild’s strongest team of fighters. Some members whispered that Lucy needed to do easier jobs so she would be safe. It was common knowledge that most of Fairy Tail’s male members wanted Lucy to focus on doing pin ups for the Sorcerer Magazine as some of the staff did try to seek her out for such work.
    A few times, Laxus’s teammates had gone so far as to relegate her to her own team’s cheering section. Yet the knowledge Gajeel was learning, as his father sealed Lucy into some kind of power pod, was pointing to the exact opposite being the case. From all Gajeel was learning, Lucy was barely able to tap her true power because of being born trapped by ancient magic that kept something very dangerous sealed away through using her life force as the power source for the seal. Her bloodline was cursed to maintain a very powerful magical barrier which could only be broken by her death. Lucy’s magical power and, more to the point, actual blood was very valuable as a means to unlock dangerous gates into another dimension.
     Everything Gajeel had witnessed since he joined Fairy Tail was falling into perfect order now that he was privy to his dad’s knowledge. Intense horror began rising up from Gajeel’s depths over how many careless risks had been taken with Lucy’s life to date. Any one of Lucy’s near death experiences could have ended with a horrific war that Gajeel could scarce comprehend if Metalicana’s thoughts shared were accurate.
    Blinking as his adopted father released his body back to his control, Gajeel heaved a shaky breath as he turned to look at Natsu. “I picked up part of what Metalicana came here to tell us while we were running over here to save Bunny girl, Natsu. It’s really bad, but I also explains everything that’s been happening to her since we returned to Tenru.”
    “Nothing’s worse than Lucy suffering like she has been for a couple weeks now.” The younger man snarled as a small flame slithered past his lips.
    “Let’s get her back to Metalicana so he can get her healthy again. It seems my father knows why Bunny Girl’s been getting targeted by dark guilds. I saw part of it, and you’re going to have a melt down once you hear what he has to say.” Gajeel spoke as he quickly rolled Lucy onto her side and tucked her comforter around her upper body.
    Brows furrowed, Natsu shoved him aside, completing the act of bundling Lucy up and lifting her bridal style against his chest. Without a word the pink haired Slayer headed for the front door. Gajeel took a moment to fix the metal in her door jambs so the door would close correctly, and followed Natsu. It took only a moment to undo the damage from their hasty entrance, and it bought Gajeel time to collect himself.
    “What does your father know that we don’t?” Natsu growled as they hurried down the sparsely populated streets.
    “Bunny Girl isn’t a normal Celestial mage. From what I caught from Metalicana’s thoughts, she’s part of an ancient bloodline called a Star Singer. The Dark Guilds are sworn to kill her no matter the cost to themselves.”
    “Why would they want to kill Luce so bad?” Natsu shot a venomous glare his way.
    “Why does any Dark guild ever do any of the stupid shit they do? Because if they can kill the last few Star Singers, they believe they’ll gain control over a super powerful magic beast for their own gain, dip shit! From what I was able to dig out of Metalicana’s mind, Lucy’s ancestors cursed their bloodline to power some kind of seal that keeps some kind of evil locked outside of our normal world. Seems it has something to do with her spirits also, but I’m not sure what the connection is because I can’t dig that deep into my dad’s mind.”
    “I won’t let anyone hurt my best friend ever again!” Natsu hissed as he sped up to get to Metalicana faster.
    “Correction . . . WE . . . won’t let the dark guilds hurt her. Bunny Girl’s like my little sister. Just don’t ever tell her I said that or I’ll beat you to a bloody pulp!”
    Natsu nodded, glancing down at his precious burden. “So how long until this spell wears off?”
    “Don’t know, and I don’t intend to waste enough time to find out. Let’s pick up the pace and get back to Metalicana before that can happen. Hopefully he’ll be able to save Bunny once we get back to your place.”
    “Let’s hope so.  I just want Luce back to normal. I miss her kicking me out of her bed to be honest. Wonder why Wendy hasn’t been able to get her well, but your dad might be able to do it?”
    “Wendy can only heal normal injuries and illnesses, Dumb Ass. Bunny isn’t sick like normal, Flametard. She’s got a rare magical drain illness. Because of all the crap dark guilds have done to her, she’s gone far beyond her limits so is losing her power, and her life. I’m pretty sure her current problem started with that screwy Infinity Clock that she got trapped inside of a while back.”
    “We should find the pieces and make sure to pulverize that stupid clock then. If it’s busted up enough, then it can’t make Luce sick any more!”
    Frowning, Gajeel stared straight ahead as he matched Natsu’s pace. The overly simplistic way the Fire Dragon Slayer viewed life could be downright embarrassing. Everything that came out of the pink haired Slayer’s mouth inevitably involved mass destruction as the solution to just about every problem. Although Gajeel did not mind breaking things, he realized that this was not a break random objects to save the girl variety crisis. Too bad Natsu would never understand the difference even if he tried to make the lug head pay attention long enough to absorb the gist of things.
    Then again, Gajeel could not say that he was above falling into that trap on occasion. Destroying things was the fastest way to put an end to many problems. However, mass destruction was not the best way to stop the Dark Guilds from sinking their claws into Lucy yet again. They had to find a happy medium because of what Gajeel had gleaned from his father’s mind. How one small little female’s cursed family could cause so much trouble was almost beyond his ability to process. One thing was clear, Lucy Heartfilia was the victim of  long term family troubles the likes of which none of them had ever dreamed.
    They felt a cracking of massive power flowing and growing in the direction of Natsu’s home. An alarmed look at each other had Gajeel taking a protective guard position near Natsu. “I’ll cover you and Bunny Girl. Nothing’s going to get to her with us around.”
    “Right. Maybe I should take her to the Guild Infirmary.” Natsu responded as he spun to change direction.
    Grabbing his fellow Slayer’s shoulder, Gajeel shook his head once. “We should continue with Dad’s plan. Let’s just be cautious as we get near your place in case something has gone wrong. If needed, you can get Bunny Girl to the Guild while I block whatever is unleashing this much power. We should hurry though. Metalicana might need backup if this is because of the damned Rune Knights deciding no dragons are safe.”
    “They wouldn’t!”
    “The fuck they wouldn’t, Ash breath! Every time the Magic Council gets destroyed, the Royal family picks an even worse group of intolerant asshole mages to take over. I don’t even want to think about what the third council is going to be like once they all get appointed. Don’t forget that our first Grand Magic Games ended with a dragon invasion and a half destroyed Capitol. If not for the King having mages enough to repair the damage, Fiore’s finest mages, starting with us Dragon Slayers, would all be stuck on dragon extermination projects for the rest of our lives! We got lucky that you convinced that one fire dragon to side with humanity during the fight, or we’d all be screwed right now!” Gajeel barked.
    Natsu snorted but said nothing more as he jogged through the public park and headed into the trees leading out of town. They dodged between tree branches, sticking to wider areas, heading toward the small clearing where Metalicana and the others were waiting. A much stronger tingle raced across Gajeel’s skin, and told him even before they got to Natsu’s ramshackle home that the new power surge was coming from his father. A scowl graced Gajeel’s features as he squashed the desire to hotfoot it to his father’s side. His strong emotional response to the power sensed actually startled Gajeel. It was not as if his adopted father was all that loving toward him as he grew up. If anything, Metalicana had been a somewhat cold parent. Gajeel realized he would probably fail at protecting his father if things were sliding downhill with the Rune Knights in any case. He had realized how weak he was compared to real dragons during the Eclipse gate disaster, and had yet to feel he had gotten strong enough to handle a real dragon’s power so far.
    Gajeel grabbed Natsu’s shoulder and skidded them both to a walk right before the trees gave way to Natsu’s property. A quick scrutiny of the area showed him that Metalicana was staring at a ring of energy which was rotating a bit above the ground at the other side of the small clearing. Master Makarov and other guild members were standing beside Natsu’s home as they also watched what was happening. Their collective tension was thick enough to shatter into lethal shrapnel if anything disturbed the area.
    Unsure how to respond, Gajeel tried to reach his father’s mind. He must have succeeded despite being tired because Metalicana swung his massive head toward him and snorted before speaking. “It’s Sertatsie’s magic, so get over here. She’s got her ally warping space so she can get here to take care of your little friend faster.”
    With a nod, he and Natsu entered the clearing and trotted to stand between Metalicana’s forelegs. The circle elongated into several circles that flowed and whirled in different directions to create a sphere of light that took up much of the clearing. The power was insane as it sparked and careened to create a portal. Small static bursts like tiny lightning bolts expanding from the core of the magic ball flared once more with a sudden splintering of rainbow hues before winking out of existence.
    Gajeel blinked to clear the spots from his vision. Before them was a decrepit looking dragon who appeared to be fresh from a vicious fight. The damage to what must have once been a glorious white hide made Gajeel nauseous. Little remained of once broad wings. The destruction was so bad that the poor dragon could not fold the remains of tattered sails against it’s sides. A face that had been savaged, jaw not only broken, but partially ripped off gave testament to a battle so fierce Gajeel could not imagine it if he tried. Deep gouges and scabbed over flesh not quite able to meet and knit properly covered the dragon’s body. Oddly enough, the dragon’s misshapen body was supported on some kind of sled Gajeel noticed when he looked down at the part where strong front clawed forefeet should have been. Part of a single fore foot with two wicked claws were all that remained.
    “How the Fuck can a nearly dead dragon heal Bunny Girl, Oyaji? Look at how badly injured that newcomer is, and explain where you got such a crazy idea! It hasn’t had enough time to even heal itself!” Gajeel glared up at his father while he railed at him.
    “Sertatsie is the original Creation Dragon, fledgling. She is our most revered Ancient Queen, not an It. Speak with respect or keep your mouth shut!” Metalicana hissed in a deadly tone.
    Stepping back as his Father’s snout with bared teeth came perilously close to his head, Gajeel continued to glare at his adopted parent. “I’m not trying to be disrespectful. All I know is that your Ancient Queen is so badly beat up that she can’t possibly have enough power to save Lucy, and herself, right now.”
    A strangled purr coming from the new dragon’s direction caught everyone’s attention. Three people were sitting on the sled and laughing much to Gajeel’s dismay. Where had the trio come from? What was so funny about this situation?
    As if the other dragon had heard his thoughts, a small orb flowed out of the new dragon’s head and floated closer to them all. “Little one, these injuries are not life threatening any longer. The Fairies helped remove the worst of the Abyss Lord’s venom for me. The wounds will never heal completely because of the nature of the Abyss Lord’s venom. I can do much to insure the Abyss Lord fails to escape his prison although my body looks so badly broken.”
    Seeing the reactions of his guild mates as they began to mutter among their ranks, Gajeel could not help sounding sarcastic. “Wait a minute. How can you help Bunny girl, if you can’t heal yourself? Isn’t her problem part of the same deal? Metalicana seems to think her being sick is related to this Abyss Lord looking to kill her off to get rid of the blood seal that’s keeping him trapped.”
    “Indeed your friend’s illness is related to the emergency that awoke us ancient warriors from our time suspended sleep. Her existence insures one of the seals that keeps the Abyss Lord imprisoned will not break unless her blood coats her specific ancestral binding stone. This little Celestial Mage is one of the cursed Star Singer lineages who willingly sacrificed their lives and all their generations for eternity to ensure the ancient destroyer remains bound and locked in a prison of light and life itself. Her life force, and the bulk of her magic power constantly sustains one of the astral chains which keeps the Abyss Lord trapped between dimensions where it can do no harm.”
    Makarov stomped toward the newcomers looking like he was ready to do damage of his own. “What is the meaning of this tale you’re telling? Are you saying that Lucy’s life is in danger because of some ancient magic none of us have ever heard of before now? How can we believe you when none of us have ever heard of any such legend before?”
    “The young woman’s ancestors helped to seal the Abyss Lord in a pocket dimension that we ancients created. It is no common curse that your Star Singer bears, Little Elder.” One of the three people with the wounded dragon walked closer. She was a very tiny and frail looking woman, with the strangest shaped eyes Gajeel had ever seen. “We have spent a long time in a deep stasis sleep, including Queen Sertatsie for the sole purpose of protecting the descendants of the Star Singers and magical tribes who threw away their humanity, and lives to seal that monster away long ago. To keep the immense destructive power sealed, we had no choice but to bind the prison to living beings so that the seals were fed power at all times.”
    “We help now?” The other two, roughly the size of pre teens asked in tandem. The other two rose in the air, a strange buzzing tone carrying to Gajeel’s sensitive ears. The pair held hands and zipped closer, floating on either side of the taller woman.
    “Soon, Zayden and Skuhldra. First we need to explain things well enough to the sacred descendent’s friends. Otherwise, they will fear our intentions. The hard stasis Metalicana learned to wield for this emergency will protect her for a little while. Once we explain things, then we can determine the problem with her specific soul chain and astral lock so it can be repaired.” The first woman answered. The pair dropped to the ground, stilling as they stared at each other. Almost transparent wings twitched upon both of their backs.
    Gajeel’s jaw loosened as he recognized that the two new comers had wings.  “Am I losing my mind, or do those kids have wings?”
    “When we awoke due to the spell breaking due to the emergency, we learned that pure blooded Fairies have been extinct for two thousand years. In all honesty, only thirty odd pairs survived the Abyss Lord’s last attempt to destroy this world, so I can understand your shock at seeing genuine Fairies. To your kind, they are the stuff of pure legend now.” The taller woman answered.
    Makarov suddenly grinned like a fiend, or so Gajeel thought as the old man gave a shout of joy and began dancing around the winged pair.  “I’ll be damned, they don’t have tails after all! Master Mavis will be so sorry she missed this!”
    Again two voices were woven together, “Only the beast clan shifters have tails. We’re from the cliff clans so no tails.”
    Without warning, Natsu unleashed a chest deep snarl. “Do you mind figuring out how to save Luce already? I don’t like it that she isn’t breathing!”
    The torrent of noise that exploded from their guild mates had Gajeel’s ears ringing in a matter of seconds. People were rushing forward, with Wendy in front as people tried to get close enough to check for themselves. One of the biggest surprises yet was that Laxus shoved the others aside and grabbed Lucy away from Natsu before he could react. “Why the fuck did you take so long to say something, you moron? Damn it! We’ve gotta get her breathing again before she dies!”
    Before Laxus got more than a few steps away from Natsu, Metalicana was roaring loud enough to silence everyone. “Stop. The hard stasis spell is the reason she isn’t breathing. Your Star Singer is trapped perfectly between time at this moment so she can’t die. Hard stasis was designed to stop all functions without killing the person inside the sphere by removing all known laws of time. Sertatsie and these ancients were in an identical spheres for thousands of years and nothing harmed them. To them, it has only been a few months since they fought and sealed the Abyss Lord away.”
    Gajeel felt his shoulders release with a crackling shudder. He had not realized how tense he had become until it registered that he had not heard Lucy’s breathing either. He had been too focused on getting her to Metalicana to notice what felt wrong from the moment he was released from his Father’s control.
    “Are you sure that Bunny Girl’s going to be okay, Dad?”
    “So long as the stasis is not disturbed, she will remain in perfect suspension. We will only remove it to determine the extent of her damage so we can heal her.” The taller of the trio spoke again.
    Gajeel noticed that Laxus refused to hand Lucy back to Natsu as he pivoted on his heels to face the Fairies and their human friend. If anything, Laxus was outright glaring intensely at the newcomers. Slight static crackled around Laxus which was all the proof Gajeel needed to recognize their Lightning Slayer was pissed off, and not going to calm down any time soon. Standing closer to Metalicana, Gajeel figured he would let Natsu get fried if he was too obsessed with getting Lucy back to take notice of the rising warning signs.
    “By the way, what is your name, My Dear? I’m Makarov Dreyer, Guild Master of the Magical Guild known as Fairy Tail.” Makarov finally thought to show common courtesy to the trio.
    Gajeel resisted the impulse to smack his own forehead over the look he got from his adopted Father. Obviously the constant breaches of expected etiquette had not been missed by the Iron Dragon. First their Guild Master forgets to exchange names. Then he makes a fool of himself by deciding to find out whether Fairies have tails instead of getting Bunny Girl much needed medical help. Now Makarov was swinging into miscreant mode, or Gajeel’s ears had misheard the devious undertone in the old pervert’s voice.   
    “I am Nadhasti, Fey Portal Master of the Bane Warriors. These are my soul bonds, Zayden, and Skuhldra of the Cliff Clan Fairies. They are remarkable healers even by their own race’s standards.”
    “I see. Might I ask what a Soul Bond is?” Makarov was quick to ask.
    Gajeel was startled when Metalicana responded. “Soul Bonding is an ancient magic that Fairies, or some of their hybrid children called Fey use. It prevents an obscenely powerful mage of any race that they are compatible with energy wise from losing control of their magical power and dying. Soul bonding allows Fairies or Fey to help regulate an out of control mage’s power for their protection. Nadhasti’s power tends to be one of the most dangerous forms to ever have existed since it tries to rip her body apart by creating portals to swallow pieces of her body.”
    Sertatsie’s thoughts filled the clearing. “Very well said, Metalicana. In fact, from what I have learned of your generation’s history, Soul bonds could have prevented the Human Slayer from transforming into an insane dragon. The power would not have spiked so radically to shift his form if the unfortunate human had access to the soul bond’s magical regulation elements. Since it prevents such power spikes from doing harm, it is a very useful magic.”
    Gajeel felt something was off with this conversation, but could not exactly place why he felt uneasy about what the dragons were discussing. Laxus was now glaring at Natsu and unleashing a quiet growl that raised Gajeel’s hackles over his ongoing attempts to take Lucy’s unconscious body back.
    “Just give Luce back to me then, Lightning Rod!” Natsu snarled in a much louder voice as he returned the glare.
    Gajeel did smack his forehead over the Alpha class stupidity happening in front of him. Aware that this was the worst time for Natsu and Laxus to get into an Alpha fight, Gajeel stomped closer and grabbed Natsu‘s arm to jerk him backwards while softly snarling.  “Not now, Ash breath! You could kill Bunny Girl if you and Laxus get into an Alpha contest right now. She’s safe and that’s all that matters right now. Now that Laxus has her, we can protect her easier.”
    After a few seconds, Natsu’s expression cleared and he went from angry to smirking. “Good point. Okay, I’ll let him hang onto Luce so long as he’s careful with her.”
    Several sparks flew from Laxus’s shoulders over Natsu’s ill tempered comment. The blond haired Slayer snarled, “After Lucy’s taken care of, I’m going to enjoy pulverizing you, Idiot!”
    “Once I know Luce is going to be okay, I’ll be happy to fight you, Lightning Rod.”
    Without warning a golden light exploded near Laxus. Gajeel and Natsu both leapt between Laxus and the sphere that coalesced into Loke. The Celestial Spirit looked tired and was obviously very angry. “We almost can’t sense Lucy at all so I came to check on her! Why is she glowing like that?”
    “We’re trying to figure that out ourselves, Loki, so calm down. This dragon put her in some kind of time stopping magic to keep her alive so we can figure out how to help her.” Laxus tipped his head toward Metalicana as he answered the rapid fire questions Loki hurled at them all.
    “Well isn’t this an unexpected pleasure. It’s been how many millennia since we last spoke, Reagaltiel? Or must I call you Leo now that you’re a Star Guardian Spirit?” Loke whirled to stare at the ancients standing near the center of the clearing, and his jaw dropped.
~~oo0oo~~