Erza let out a sigh, a small smile appearing on her face. Natsu was having trouble with his motion sickness again and everyone laughed it off while helping him in any way they could. It was their routine at this point, making the travels as comfortable to Natsu as they could.
After full two hours of suffering in a train, Natsu finally managed to fall asleep and get a little rest from his illness. Lucy soon followed him, still a little tired from the use of many of her spirits in quick succession she had to do for their mission. Grey was sitting closest to the window and looking out, deep in his own thoughts.
Erza stretched out and lifted her hands behind her head. She was a little tired from all the fighting they did too. She yawned and closed her eyes. A quick nap seemed like good idea and she already could feel the pull of sleep tugging at her.
Suddenly, without any warning, one of the train windows shattered and three people in dark clocks invaded their cart with weapons in their hands.
“This is for our leader!” screeched one of them, swinging his sword straight at Lucy, who woke up in the commotion but whos eyes were still muddled with sleep and confusion.
Erza moved quickly, already moving while summoning her sword. She could see Gray already making something with his magic, focusing on a different enemy and moving In a way that would protect her back. She repelled the sword that almost took Lucy’s head off and positioned herself in between her and the attacker. She charged at him, ready to take him down, when the doors of the cart behind them got thrown off its hinges and more enemies walked in. People around them started screaming and panicking, trying to get as far away from the fight as they could.
Erza cursed under her breath. Normally, she would have no problem with defeating mooks this weak but she could not risk hurting the innocent people around them by going all out. Even worse, they were in a closed, small space so she couldn’t use her larger armors or swords. She could hear Lucy summoning Loki behind her and taking out her whip, getting ready to battle. Even worse, they were in a closed, small space so she couldn’t use her larger armors or swords. She could hear Lucy summoning Loki behind her and taking out her whip, getting ready to battle, already smacking somebody in the face with it.Erza could see that the tight space they were fighting in also impacted their enemies capabilities. It wasn’t long before ten of their members fallen to her friend’s attacks. Fairy Tail members were winning and everyone could see it.
“Dammit!” cursed who Erza assumed was a leader of the attacking group “Retreat! We got what we came for!!” he shouted and suddenly all the attacks stopped and the enemies took out some weird, purple lacrymas and were gone the next second, in a blink of an eye.
“What was all that about?” asked Gray, looking weirded out and confused at the unexpected retreat.
“Natsu is gone!” suddenly screamed Lucy, waving her hands around frantically at the armchair Natsu was previously sleeping on “They took him!!”
Erza could feel the chill making its way down her back, the helpless feeling of dread mixed with panic making her heart stop for a second. They took Natsu? Was it something they planned from the beginning and the rest was just distraction? She shook her head, her hands clenching into fists. It didn’t matter. She had to focus. Natsu was in danger. She couldn’t allow herself to panic.
“Lucy, Gray, focus!” she barked out, snapping them out of their momentary panic “Did you notice any symbols on their clothes? Or maybe a guild mark?”
Both of them shook their heads, Lucy looking at the verge of tears.
“I saw something.” Said Loki suddenly, making them all flinch with how cold the tone of his voice was. He emerged out from behind Lucy, his teeth bared and his pupils almost gone with how narrowed they were “I think one of them had the Narrow Void guild mark on his neck.”
“f*ck.” Cursed Gray. They were all familiar with Narrow Void guild. Not even two months ago they were the ones who captured their leader during one of their missions. He was a horrible man, kidnapping and experimenting on helpless children. When they uncovered the depths of that man’s depravity, Natsu almost beat him to death. Luckily, after a month of observation in the hospital, most of the children were let out with clean bill of health. But some, the ones that were in captivity the longest, still had a long recovery road ahead of them.
And now the guild of that awful man got their hands on Natsu. The thought alone dame Erza’s blood boil. If they even charm one hair on Natsu’s head…
She looked up at the faces of others and could see the wrath in their eyes.
There would be hell to pay.
It took them two long, horrible hours to locate the place they thought Narrow Void was keeping Natsu at. It took them another hour to get there. By that time all of them were on the edge of snapping from the worry and ready to annihilate a dark guild until nothing was left of it.
Erza didn’t think she ever saw Lucy looking this murderous, her face distorted in rage and worry. Loki haven’t left her side, his more inhuman features more visible than ever before. Grey had a blank look on his face and the only thing betraying his fury was the shroud of ice surrounding him. She didn’t think she was any better, her own eyes glinting with intent to harm and maim.
They didn’t waste any words when they got there. They immediately started attacking. Erza didn’t care about the terrified shouts of dark guild members as she send her swords to swat them away from her way. She didn’t care how they screamed for backup and attacked in groups. She reequipped into her strongest armor and charged ahead, uncaring of the damage she left in her wake. But soon, the dark guild members were surrounding them and Erza didn’t have time for that.
Natsu was already in their disgusting hands for too long. She wanted to get to him as soon as possible. It seemed that Gray and Lucy felt the same way, because soon, they started to make the way for her to break through the enemy line.
“Go ahead Erza!” shouted Gray while bashing a guy on the head with an ice hammer “We got this! Go find Natsu!”
Erza took a second to look at him and the way his ice attacks were more pointed and aimed to impale and main than usual. Then she looked at Lucy nodding at her and swinging her whip around with a feral look on her face. She glanced at Loki’s not quite human expression full of rage, his hands more of a clawed light blur than ever before.
She nodded, making her decision and rushing ahead to where they thought Natsu was being kept.
She swatted away few more enemies who blocked her way, but soon enough she was on her way to the center of their base, where she could already feel Natsu’s magical energy. She ran as fast as he could, until she got to her destination. She kicked the door to the room with enough force to throw it at the wall behind it and entered the room with a shout.
“Natsu! Are you here?”
Her eyes roamed across the chamber, trying to locate her friend. Not even after a second, she could feel her blood freezing in her veins. Sitting in the corner of the room, with both his hands and legs restrained in magic suppression chains, was Natsu. He was covered in bruises and cuts, each one slowly oozing blood. His head was slumped down, his chin resting on his chest, his usually pink hair covered with deep crimson.
He wasn’t moving.
“Natsu!” Erza shouted once again, this time alarmed. She ran across the room as fast as she could, holding her breath and fearing the worst.
But it seemed that her voice reached Natsu, who flinched a little and then raised his head with great difficulty.
“Hi Erza.” said Natsu weakly, a small smile appearing on his face “You are late.”
“Oh Natsu.” Erza whispered, her heart breaking and her eyes filling with unshead tears “I’m so sorry I wasn’t here sooner.”
“Not your fault.” Natsu huffed and gave her a side eye “No blaming yourself.” he muttered, which seemed to take the last of his strength away as he slumped back down against the wall.
It was a push Erza needed to get it together. She quickly checked if he was still breathing and let out relieved sight what she saw his chest moving and that he just lost his consciousness again. She summoned one of her swords and shattered the cuffs around Natsu’s hands and ankles as gently as she could.
(She didn’t think, she didn’t want to think, about what the chains reminded her of. This was not the time for that. She could ponder her traumas later, when Natsu’s life was not in danger.)
Natsu let out a tiny, relieved moan after that, finally able to feel his magic again after many hours without it. Erza then gathered him in her arms, trying to jostle him as little as she could. She carefully settled him on her back, deeming it the safest position for him in that situation.
“Hang in there Natsu, we will get you some help soon.” she choked out, one stray tear making its way down her face as she started walking out of the room.
She didn’t get far before a group of the members from the black guild blocked her path forward.
“You are not going anywhere, Titania!” one of them shouted, brandishing his sword at her.
Erza narrowed her eyes, her mouth twisting into an even deeper frown. She didn’t have time for this. She didn’t have time to fight, even if everything in her screamed to mutilate the people who hurt her friend. She wanted to murder them in the most painful ways possible. But. She had to get Natsu to help as quickly as she could. She took a deep breath and steeled her resolve. Natsu’s health was so much more important than venting her rage on those vermin.
“Move.” Erza ordered, her voice filled with seething, ruthless rage “If you do, I will spare your lives.”
“If you don’t…” Her whole body seemed to tense up, getting ready for carnage, teeth bared in a clear treat, eyes glinting with protective fury “I will make sure you will die in agony.”
The people standing before her flinched away, instinctively putting more room between themselves and her, getting out of her way.
With that, she started walking away as quickly as she could while taking care as to not move Natsu around too much. He already lost too much blood.
Nobody dared to stand on her path.
