Born Without A Heart

Chapter 18

            Levy's brain worked in overdrive as she ran through possible scenarios and outcomes in her head.

Had Saber Tooth actually developed tech that could black her signals? Had Gajeel been caught, his true purpose uncovered? Was he in danger?

Levy typed vigorously at her keyboard, trying to restore the signal. The screen remained dark.

"What do you wanna do Levy," Natsu asked from over her shoulder.

"I don't know," she said, hearing the panic in her own voice.

Natsu put a hand on Levy's shoulder and turned her toward him.

"Levy, this is your op. We may be off book here but you made the right call. You're the expert here, you know what to do." Natsu paused giving her a serious look. "What's the plan?"

Levy swallowed hard, glancing back at the blank screen of her computer. She nodded.

"We need eyes in there," she said with a confidence that surprised her.

"Done," Natsu said, immediately moving towards his gear.

"No," Levy said firmly. Natsu looked back at her in surprise. "We don't know for sure if his cover was blown, but it will be if you go in there." She moved to Gajeel's bag and started rummaging through it. "We need someone who isn't going to break cover. Someone they see as safe who can go in there without raising more suspicion. Most importantly, we need someone that can break through their tech."

Realization crossed Natsu's sharp features. "Okay, back up, I know you're field trained but this is another level-"

"I have a plan," Levy cut him off sternly. "I need you to set up some backup. Get Gray to gather as big a team as he can, as quickly as he can. We may have to raid them now if things go south. We can't lose everything we've worked for. Once I'm in I'll reestablish coms and send you a signal if I need you to move in."

Natsu gave her a hard look, but Levy knew this was the right plan. It was the only plan.

"Like you said Natsu, it's my op."

Natsu grimaced. "Damn Levy, now you sound like a proper agent," he grinned.

Levy pulled Gajeel's phone from his bag. "Go meet Gray," she said as she moved to the door, "I'm going to call in some help of my own."

"Should I even ask?"

Levy smiled in spite of the stress. "Probably not." She slid the door open and added, "You've got a half hour, got it?"

"Yes ma'm," Natsu laughed as he jumped into the front seat.

With that Levy stepped out into the dirt lot and headed south, away from the warehouse.

Levy opened Gajeel's phone, pulling a device from her pocket as she did so and plugging it into the base. She broke through the password without issue and started scrolling through until she found the number she was looking for. She pressed dial.

The phone rang twice and went straight to voicemail. Levy cursed under her breath and dialed the number again. She met the same response.

"Damn it," she said to herself as she hit send again. "Answer the phone," she whispered to herself.

The phone picked up.

"Gajeel if you call me one more time I'm going to reach through this phone and punch you. You-"