The Keeper of Worlds

Keeper of Worlds

I stare at Anna in confusion. A keeper of worlds? Control over all of the gates in the universe? "I don't get it," I admit, tilting my head to the side. Anna heaves a sigh before narrowing her eyes at me, clearing her throat. I nod, beckoning her to come into my home. I shut the door as Anna steps inside, making her way to the couch.

"That's expected." She sits down. "I didn't understand it the first time either; however, there are more pressing matters that we need to discuss." I nod, feeling her intense yet serious stare. Even if she didn't intend for that comment to be mean, I felt slightly attacked. Does she think it isn't important to explain this odd situation to me? Other than being a celestial mage, why am I a keeper of worlds?

"U-Um..." I say awkwardly as my cheeks flush in embarrassment. I am definitely missing something here, I think to myself. "Do you want any refreshments or something to eat?" I ask, trying to hide my newfound embarrassment. Anna heaves a sigh as she furrows her eyebrows in concentration.

"No, thank you," she replies. "Now, sit. There's a lot that I need to inform you." I sit next to Anna as she turns to face me. Her chocolate brown eyes seem to stare into my soul as she tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. "Lucy, there's a darkness spreading to all of the worlds. All of the worlds are in danger, and I need your help. I cannot do this by myself. I'm too weak," Anna explains dejectedly, staring at the ground in defeat.

"Anna, don't say that," I state. "You are the strongest celestial wizard in history. My mother always told me stories about your abilities and how strong you are. She would always tell me that you could summon all twelve zodiac spirits at once. My mother also told me that you can do star dress. I'm not even sure what star dress is. I couldn't even dream of being that powerful."

Anna smiles bitterly as she anxiously bites her lip. "Lucy, I'm not weak," she explains. "Neither are you. This darkness is like nothing I have ever seen before. It is crazy powerful, and the person controlling it is very experienced and creative with their abilities. I believe, with your help, that the darkness can be stopped once and for all."

I frown. "Anna, you overestimate me."

Anna chuckles. "No, I don't," she states. "In the battle against Tartaros, you were able to summon the celestial spirit king, defeat a member of the nine demon gates, and unlock your first star dress." My eyes widen in shock. When Aquarius left some of her power behind, that was her star dress?! "You saved all of your friends from fairy tail," she adds as tears form in my eyes.

"I-I don't believe it..." I say in astonishment. "I've always been one of the weakest members on my team. Erza, Natsu, Gray, even Wendy. They're all ahead of me. Erza has magic like mine but is leagues above me. Natsu is freaking dragon slayer! I could never compete with that. Gray learned ice make magic at a young age and just unlocked devil slayer magic. Wendy is a dragon slayer as well. She is young, but she is strong and just got her dragon force."

"You need to start believing in yourself more," Anna notes. "With your powers, you can do countless things. You have barely tapped into your potential. Lucy, there's no doubt that you could become the strongest celestial wizard ever and maybe one of the most powerful mages to ever live."

"T-Thank you for saying that..." I say quietly, wishing that I could believe her. Even though other people may believe in me and think I'm strong, I'm very insecure. I hate that I can't control fire so easily like Natsu, summon swords and transform into armor, be one with the wind around me, and create ice into whatever I have in mind. My magic is different than theirs, and I hate that. I hate that my magic power is just summoning things without any necessary combat skills.

"Besides, I will get the opportunity to train you," Anna says with a grin. "You will surpass me in no time. After all, you are a fast learner. It took me five years to learn how to do star dress. You unlocked it within a year. That's extremely impressive, Lucy!" My cheeks flush in embarrassment as a giant smile appears on Anna's face.

"Maybe, you're right."

"Of course I'm right!"

"So, what now?" I ask as Anna furrows her eyebrows in concentration. "Do we just open a portal and go to another world?" The blonde haired woman closes her eyes as she thinks for a moment. A silence falls over my home as I carefully study her, wondering what was going to happen next.

"We need to find all thirteen zodiac keys to go through the portal," Anna states. "Do you have any idea where the other keys are?" I nod, knowing that Yukino has Libra's, Pisces', and Ophiuchus' keys. If anything, we should head straight to Sabertooth to find and ask Yukino for help.

"We need to go to Sabertooth."