Phoenix Storm || Fairy Tail [2]

➝ 𝐢𝐱. 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚

𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙜: 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙗𝙮 𝙝𝙞𝙙𝙙𝙚𝙣 𝙘𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙯𝙚𝙣𝙨 𝙛𝙩. 𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙣 𝙢𝙘𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙡𝙚𝙮
❛ ... 𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘦. 𝘢 𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘹 𝘴𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳. ❜

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Rose stood hunched over Natsu, her fingertips giving off a faint golden light. As she worked, she listened to Lucy – the one most distraught over Éclair's abduction.

"I couldn't help her when she needed me..." Lucy cried, "they took her, and all I could do was watch it happen..."

Unconsciously, Rose's clenched her teeth. She should have taken the stone when she had the chance! Then, she could have found someplace out of the way, and taken the time to dispose of the phoenix correctly... but now Éclair was gone.

And she had failed.

Natsu's brows furrowed out of concern for the phoenix slayer, who was frowning deeply. Before he could speak up about his worries she finished up with the process and stepped back as though she couldn't stand to be near anyone.

"... that should be all," the woman claimed. Her shoulders remained tense, and her profile emitted some unreadable emotion. "I'll go check up on the others."

Cylene rubbed herself against Rose's leg worriedly, instantly earning the woman's attention. Rose scooped her up into her arms almost instantly.

"You didn't get hurt, did you?"

"... I'm fine," Cylene peered up at the mage. She seemed to be searching for something. "... you aren't going to do anything reckless, are you?"

Rose opened her mouth as if she were about to answer, before closing it again. She wondered if things would've turned out for the better if Adell were there. He'd grown to be more level-headed than her, despite her apathetic disposition. Back when they'd first met... he'd been so much more immature. She'd been the voice of reason. Perhaps her time with Fairy Tail had brought out her old personality. The version of herself which had been a lot like Natsu; hot-headed.

"How unfortunate."

Makarov had returned, with Gajeel and Pantherlilly in tow. "They gave us a beating we won't soon forget."

"You're damn right," growled Natsu, standing from the pile of rubble he'd been crouched atop.

"What do we do?"

"Please, forgive me, Master," Erza spoke as she stepped to the forefront of the group. "I wasn't able to protect the guild for you."

◊

Pantherlilly was the first to speak, once everyone had gathered. "There's been some unusual magic power reported recently. So we investigated it..."

"And we ended up in this puny little country," Gajeel continued. "It was called Veronica."

"Éclair was talking about that place," Happy said. Rose vaguely recalled the brief mention of the place.

"She told us that she thought that they were the ones who stole the other stone."

Rose wasn't relieved that her suspicions were correct. Veronica intended to put the two stones together; thus reviving the phoenix within. She had a feeling whoever was doing this thought they'd be putting the creature in their debt, subsequently earning the right to its blood and thus gaining immortality... but that was a misguided belief.

The creature within the stone had no intention of elongating the lives of its benefactors. It only sought one thing: destruction. To turn the world to ashes from which it alone would rise.