With Great Power Comes Great Responsibilty

Chapter 15

During the walk to Professor Clive's lab, Natsu was a nervous wreck. Here he was, walking right next to the girl of his dreams—and he couldn't find the words to say anything.

"So, what were you and Gray doing out here after dark?" Lucy asked, breaking the silence.

"Oh, uh... I was helping the professor with an experiment," Natsu replied quickly. "Gray just came by to make sure I had a ride home."

"You two are such good friends," she smiled. "I still can't believe Gray and his aunt are letting you live with them. That's really kind of them."

"Yeah, but I'm not going to live with them forever. I plan to get my own place someday."

"Loke already has his own apartment, and he wants me to move in with him."

"You're not going to do that, are you?"

"No way! We've only been dating for a month. Makes me wonder what kind of girl he thinks I am."

"If you ask me, you're way too smart to be with that idiot."

"That's sweet, Natsu."

Suddenly, the sharp sound of glass shattering cut through the quiet night.

"What was that?" Lucy asked, her voice trembling.

"I don't know," Natsu replied, eyes narrowing as he scanned the darkness.

The sound had come from the lab. Instinct kicking in, Natsu quickly moved toward the building.

"Stay here," he told Lucy firmly.

Inside the lab, he found Professor Gildarts sprawled on the floor, clutching the spot where his arm had once been.

"Professor Clive!" Natsu gasped. "Are you alright?! What happened?!"

"Stay away!" Gildarts snarled, his voice rough and urgent.

"Professor, what's wrong with you?"

"Natsu, you need to get out of here. Now!"

"Why?"

Before Gildarts could answer, a horrifying transformation began. From his side, a new arm erupted—covered in dark, shimmering scales, ending in razor-sharp talons. Natsu stumbled backward in shock as Gildarts's eyes flashed a sinister red, reptilian and unrecognizable.

"Run, Natsu! Before it's too late!"

Natsu reached out instinctively, but the professor swiped at him with his clawed hand and then, with terrifying agility, launched himself through the window. He vanished into the night, slipping down a nearby manhole that led into the sewers.

Natsu stood frozen, heart pounding. Had that really just happened? What had transformed the professor? What danger was now lurking in the shadows?

Before the authorities arrived, Natsu managed to grab some of Gildarts's research. He and Gray, who had stayed behind, decided to take it to Erza—hoping she could shed some light on the situation.

"Well, doc, what do you think?" Natsu asked, watching Erza carefully as she examined Gildarts's notes and the small piece of DNA left on Natsu's arm when he was scratched.

Erza's brow furrowed. "The formula has a highly unstable effect on humans. It mutates them, rewriting their DNA in a far more aggressive and complete way than what you two have experienced."

Gray's voice was tense. "But why would the professor risk something like this? He's not usually so reckless. Why didn't he run more tests before injecting himself?"

Erza's gaze hardened. "We can discuss that with him later. Right now, I need to work on a cure—and you two need to find him."

Natsu swallowed hard. "Do you think he'll be alright?"

Erza shook her head. "No. With every passing minute, he'll become more lizard than man."

"How long until you have the cure?" Gray asked, urgency in his voice.

"The professor's formula was a hybrid of human and lizard DNA, so cracking the genetic code shouldn't take me long. At most two hours, I should have a formula to reverse the mutation."

She grabbed a bottle filled with clear liquid and filled a syringe with it. "This is a powerful tranquilizer. Once you find the professor, give him this. It should knock him out for several hours. But be careful—there's no telling what state of mind he'll be in."

Gray looked skeptical. "You're sure the cure will work?"

Erza nodded firmly. "Positive. Just find him and bring him back."

She handed the syringe to Natsu. The two quickly changed into their hero costumes and headed back to the manhole near campus.

"So he went down there?" Gray asked, glancing toward the dark opening.

"Yep."

Gray groaned. "Aw man, why is it always in the sewers?"

"Forget that! We need to find the professor, get him out of there, and back to Erza before it's too late."

They crawled down the manhole, their claws and talons gripping the damp walls as they climbed up onto the sewer ceiling. Gray's eyes glowed faintly in the darkness, his night vision scanning every shadowy corner for any sign of Gildarts.

"Do you see anything?" Natsu whispered.

"No. Nothing yet."

"Well, keep looking. I don't know how you can see a thing down here. Everything's pitch black to me."

Gray smirked. "All cats have night vision. Since I've got some cat DNA in my system, it's only natural I can see in the dark. Plus, my hearing is pretty sharp—I can hear the rats and cockroaches scratching around."

Natsu frowned. "How's that helpful?"

Gray shrugged. "I never said it was."

He looked down toward the murky water below. "Hey, what if he's hiding in the water? I mean, he is turning into a lizard, and some lizards prefer water to land."

"Possible," Natsu admitted, "but how would we find him in there?"

"Well..." Gray glanced at Natsu with a sly grin. "One of us could go down and search the water. And compared to tigers, Komodo dragons are better swimmers."

Natsu recoiled. "No way! I'm not swimming in that sewage!"

Gray's grin widened. "We're not having much luck up here. So if we want to find him, one of us has to check the water. And by 'we,' I mean you."

"Why me?"

"Because, unlike me, you can hold your breath for twenty minutes. Plus, I have night vision—something you don't—so you won't see much up here anyway."

Natsu swallowed hard and glanced down at the foul water. He shivered but didn't hesitate any longer. With a resigned sigh, he dropped from the ceiling.

"You search the water, I'll search up here," Gray called as he crawled away.

Natsu took a deep breath and dove into the water, his powerful strokes carrying him upward through the murky sewage. Every inch of the foul water seemed to cling to him, but he pushed through, his eyes darting around in search of Gildarts.

"Man, this has got to be the nastiest thing I've ever done in my entire life," he thought bitterly. Why can't I be one of those galaxy heroes who get to fight in space? Why do I always end up in the sewers? I've never seen any hero on TV or in comics doing sewer rescues."

But beneath the disgust was something deeper—fear. Natsu wasn't just worried about the filth. He was scared for Gildarts. Aside from Igneel, no one else had ever truly been a father figure to him. The professor had been a loyal friend and supporter for years. If something happened to him... Natsu wasn't sure how he'd manage.

With that thought, Natsu's resolve hardened. I'm getting him out of here. No matter what.