Fairy Tail Next Generation: Thrown Back

Chapter 8 - Reinforcements

Natsu:

Natsu groaned and sat up in the dry grass. The sun was almost ready to set in the jungle infested island.

"Natsu!" Wendy smiled.

"You're alive!" Happy exclaimed and began to hug his partner.

"Where's Gramps?" Natsu asked, cutting to the chase.

"Right Here." Lily pointed out. Natsu turned around to see Gramps lying unconscious next to him. He was wrapped in several bandages thanks to Wendy.

"I'm afraid he isn't out of the woods yet." Carla said solemnly.

Natsu growled, thinking about what he was going to do to Master Hades. He looked down and noticed his scarf had returned to it's normal color. He held it in his hand and examined it more carefully.

"My scarf's fixed."

"Wendy used her sky magic to get all the bad gunk out." Happy explained. "She also flipped your clothes back while you were cat napping."

Natsu turned to Wendy.

"I owe you one, thanks."

"No problem." She answered. Natsu leaned in closer. He smelled something off about her. "Uh, is something wrong Natsu?"

Natsu sniffed her again, which got him an earful from Carla. She smelled like someone, then again Happy smelled like it too. That familiar smell of vanilla and smoke. Nashi!

"I smell her!" He exclaimed.

"Smell who?" Wendy fumbled.

"Nashi. Was she here? Where is she?" Natsu searched the faces of his friends and exceeds, none of them were happy.

"She was here," Happy said softly. "But she had to leave. She stayed long enough to give you and Gramps some of her magic power."

Natsu sat silently, listening to what Happy had to say. Happy stared at the ground, disappointed in himself.

"I tried to ask her who she was, but she wouldn't answer me. She said that it just wasn't the right time to tell you."

Natsu rested a hand on his partner's head. He scratched behind his ears in an effort to soothe the sad exceed.

"It's okay buddy," Natsu smiled. "I have a feeling we'll figure all this out some day."

___

Nashi:

I walked silently through the deep jungle of Tenrou island. Kali sat on my shoulder making me feel less lonely. The cloudy skies and non stop rain gave the island a creepy vibe. Hours must have passed since I left Natsu in the clearing. It's hard to tell what time it is in the rain.

I look ahead at the bare ground and vast trees. I catch a glimpse of a figure in the rain. I squint my eyes, trying to get a better view of them. I can barely make out a boy in a black vest with dark hair. Storm!

"Storm!" I shout and run toward my friend. He stops and stares at me.

"Nashi?"

Before he can say anything else, I tackle the ice wizard  in a bear hug. He stumbles backwards from my momentum and almost falls over.

"Oh my God! It's so good to see you!" I smile.

"Yeah you too." He says. I pull away from the hug and look him over. He's got bruises all over and a few cuts here and there, but overall he looks fine.

"Have you seen Reiki and Gale?" Kali asks.

"No. I haven't seen anyone from Fairy Tail."

"We saw Wendy, Natsu, Gramps, and the exceeds a few hours ago. That's all though."

Just then, something rocks the ground beneath our feet. Storm catches me as I begin to fall. There's a strong magical presence in the air that puts us all on edge.

"What the hell was that?!" Kali screeches.

"We should check it out." Storm determines. We run down a beaten path for a solid 15 minutes and find ourselves standing at the edge of a large canyon.

In the center of the canyon lie Wendy, Carla, Happy, Gramps, Lucy, and Natsu. Standing on the edge is a man I've never seen before. He's tall with a narrow face and strange side burns. His hair is in a long green ponytail and he wears a white coat with a purple tunic.

"Who is that?" I whisper to Storm. Storm grabs my hand and we duck behind a boulder on the edge of the chasm. He shushes me and peers over the rock as we watch the scene unfold.

Natsu:

"Alright jerk wad," Natsu groaned. "What exactly are you after here?"

"As I said before," the enemy stated. "I want to know the location of Mavis Vermilion's resting place."

"Well you'll be looking for a while because we don't know either." Lucy barked. "Even if we did know, we would never tell someone like you. Her grave is more than just a headstone, it's sacred ground." Lucy was then lifted a foot off the ground and slammed down into the rocks. The magic circle above her kept her pinned down.

"What do you want?! Tell me!" Natsu growled.

"I want the sparkle of fairies." The enemy said darkly. Fairy glitter! One of your guild's three grand spells. Just as powerful, if not more so, than fairy law itself."

"Is glitter all you want?" Natsu grunted. "Then try hitting up a craft store!"

Just then a magic circle appeared above him, driving him into the ground.

"Natsu!" Everyone cried.

"Ah! I'm a human pancake!" He croaked in pain.

"I want that merciless light! Tell me where to find it or I'll squash you till you pop."

"Like we'd ever tell you!" Happy yelled. A magic circle appeared above him too and he was pressed to the ground.

"Stay strong, you can push through this." Carla comforted.

"Which of your friends would you like to see crushed first?" He asked toyingly.

"NOOOOO!" A powerful shout rang throughout the walls of the canyon. Natsu craned his neck up just in time to see Nashi land a solid kick in the guy's face.

Unbelievable! She's here!