Adult-FanFiction.org : Anime

Lion's Pride	By : Rhov Category: +. to F > Fairy Tail Views: 10067 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima. I make no money writing this. I do it for my own pleasure. Any lyrics are my own or I received permission from the artist.

Chapter List
- 46
- 47
- 48
"When heaven joins the battle against you, who could stand?" - Stephen R. Lawhead

Chapter 47

Two Stars

Everyone stared silently at the transformed Loke. Gray managed to lift his head up a little, although he was still weak from the poison. Natsu gawked and yelled "Cool!" Erza felt herself blush just a little. Levy whispered, "Lu-chan is so lucky," and Gajeel glared down at her in jealousy.
"Regulus," Kefira whispered with a wildly delighted smile at seeing the long-haired man in antique armor. "At last, my Lion! Mine!"
Loke stared at her disdainfully. "Che! Yours?" he scoffed. "You never understood, Kefira. I am far beyond you. Even when you held my key, I was never yours."
She ignored his words in her ecstatic glee. "Haftorang," she ordered sharply, pointing a slender finger at them. "Seize him! I hereby reclaim the Key of the Heart of the Lion into the protection of Clan Yamataikoku. By right of heritage as Queen of Kohinur and the last survivor of the Yamataikoku bloodline, it belongs to me."
However, Haftorang was still prostrated humbly on his knees. "My king! The true King of the Heavens!"
Kefira gawked at him. "What...what are you doing, idiot? Get up! You are my Spirit and you will follow my orders." Still Haftorang did not move. "Damn fish. The whole purpose of keeping you around all these years was so you could reclaim him for me. Now get up! Fight him! As your owner, I demand it."
"I cannot. He is the king for whom I have waited." The fishman's head rose, and his unblinking eyes shining with adoration. "My old friend, my king! Thank the Stars you've returned."
Kefira could hardly believe it. "Fool! You dare oppose me? I will not have it! No little slut shall steal my Lion from me again. I refuse to lose to another weak woman. I shall destroy her utterly." She glared hatefully to Lucy. "You've been nothing but a nuisance, little whore. Darkness Magic: Utter Oblivion!"
A purple ball of magical plasma formed in her hands, and she thrust it at the Celestial Spirit mage. Lucy gasped, realizing there was no way she could jump out of the way of such a massive attack. She turned partway, hoping to absorb it with her back, but she saw a blinding gold flash. When she looked, the glowing Lion stood in front of her. Loke had taken the shot, but it did not affect him at all.
Loke glanced down at his breastplate and touched it with his finger. "You put a tiny nick in my armor. That must be one helluva spell."
Kefira paled at seeing him standing there. "Impossible! I learned that spell specifically to overwhelm you. You weren't that strong when I had you."
His eyes flashed at Kefira and glowed in predatory anger. "Are you starting to understand yet? Three things affect the strength of a Celestial Spirit: the strength of the mage, the closeness of the bond we have with our owner, and the will of the Spirit itself. In all three ways, Lucy is far superior to you, so it's no surprise I'm also stronger now with her as my owner."
Kefira sneered in jealousy.
"Hurting my master is one thing I cannot forgive." He looked over to Haftorang who still bowed with his face to the dirt. "You really were waiting for me all these centuries. For your loyalty, I'm glad...old friend."
Haftorang looked up with shining, adoring eyes and a hopeful smile.
"However," Loke said in a dark tone, "your sins piled too high. You stole Lucy from me. You dared to attack me. When you could have saved me, you still sided with the ancient enemy."
Haftorang cringed down and shivered in terror at the fury that burned in the Lion's eyes. "It...it was...for you, my king," he insisted feebly.
"For me? How is hurting my friends for me?" Loke bellowed, and Lucy heard the roar of a lion in his voice. "Bringing Regulus back like this was not for me, nor for the sake of Leo the Lion. It was for your own greed, Piscis Austrinus. That was why you wanted Regulus...wanted...me!"
As he spoke in Regulus' words, Loke's eyes changed from green to goldenrod, and Lucy sensed an even greater power inside of him. She bit her lip and cringed back at the terrifyingly powerful magic she sensed within his body.
"You wanted your power back, and you knew you alone were too weak to retake the Spirit World. That was why you forced me to return to this world that I had hoped to leave behind. Tell me: was this greed your own, Piscis Austrinus, or was it Fomalhaut's?"
"It...it was..." His head dropped in shame. "It was my own, my dear king. Fomalhaut was not against returning, but it was not his plan originally."
"I see," the long-haired Lion muttered, nodding sagely. "Then you alone shall face punishment, and the price must be severe for breaking such a solemn oath as what you swore when we Royal Stars left. You showed me your power with a mere flick, so I shall return the favor. Lucy, stand behind me and shield your eyes," he warned.
She hurried and hid her face in his red cloak. She felt the energy of Leo the Lion in there, but it had been almost completely supplanted by something else, something powerful to the point of being terrifying. She sensed energy on a scale completely incomparable to even the Spirit King. She wanted to trust him, but honestly, this different form of Loke terrified her.
"You both shall be punished," Loke said, now turning his golden eyes to the former queen. "You see, I figured out your weakness, Kefira. That blood oath I made you take was also a test. Your hand," he said, nodding down to her fingers. "It's still not healed, is it?"
She looked at the bandage wrapped around her palm. Then she clasped her fingers tightly as if to hide that bit of weakness.
"That's the main reason I joined you. I needed to get close to you, have you trust me, so that you'd finally show me a weakness. I wasn't returning to you," he said with a smirking chuckle. "I was spying on you. When Gray stabbed you, that was confirmation for me. See, you're still bleeding heavily from the wound in your side."
"So what?" she snapped, yet sweat dripped down Kefira's face from the pain and blood loss.
"Your weakness is your fleshly body. You merged a tiny bit of Haftorang's spirit into your own soul to stop yourself from aging, but it doesn't instantly heal flesh and blood. You have the divine power of being able to turn Humans into Celestial Spirits, yet you yourself can never become a spirit, nor can you be reborn. Your soul will die when you die. It's the price for this form of magic, the blessing and the curse of Clan Yamataikoku. That's why you fear death so much, because for you there truly is nothing after this life."
Kefira trembled at hearing her greatest weakness and darkest fear being spoken so casually. For centuries, she never let anyone get close enough to scratch her, lest they figure out her one terrible flaw. Yet Loke had her take that blood oath purely to see how fast the wound healed. Then Gray sneaked up on her and pieced her, something no one had managed to do in hundreds of years.
"L-Leo," she whispered. "Please, don't. Don't kill me, I beg of you. This is the only lifetime I have."
"And you've far outlived it," he declared. "That fate was the same for your ancestors since before civilization began. In all those millenniums, not one went as evil as you out of the fear of death."
"Please, Leo! I'll obey your every command. I'll serve you. I...I'll even turn your woman into a Celestial Spirit. I will!" she declared with a tense grin.
"I don't trust you anywhere near Lucy, not after you lied to me already. You'd use any excuse to kill her."
"Please! I...I love you," she said, forcing a meek smile.
"You love power, nothing more. Goodbye, Kefira." Suddenly, Loke began to glow even brighter, and Lucy had to cover her eyes.
Kefira sneered, giving up all pretense. "Damn Lion! If I have to tame thee all over again, I shall. Aurora's Shield!" she shrieked in desperation, putting up her strongest defense. "Leo, I command thee..."
"You don't own me," he yelled in disgust. "My heart belongs to only one woman. Lion's Heart Magic! Regulus...Flick!"
He held his hand up, middle finger and thumb connected, and then gave nothing more than a flick of his finger. There was a massive blast, a blinding flash, and a roar like a hundred lions. Natsu was blown off his feet, but Erza grabbed him. Only her heavy armor let her stay standing. Levy's small body was lifted completely up, but Gajeel hugged her close to him and shielded her from the force that merely the edge of that attack created. Happy and Charle were tossed into the air; Pantherlily leaped up and flew to them, catching them before they hit any buildings. Gray formed a pole of ice and grabbed onto it to keep from being blown back. He grabbed Wendy to keep her safe, and she grabbed Luke.
"My daddy's super strong!" the boy squealed in excitement.
Slowly, the light faded and the growling howl lessened. Lucy lowered her arm and looked ahead of her. The street was blown apart, all the stones disintegrated all the way down to two meters deep into the dirt underneath. The avenue had a massive scar spanning both sides of the street and even took out some further buildings. There was nothing in front of Loke but a pile of smoldering bones where Kefira had stood and Haftorang slowly fading away. Lucy covered her mouth in horror. This was only twice in her life that she had witnessed Loke actually killing someone. This level of destructiveness was beyond belief.
And this was only a flick, a tiny fragment of his full power!
He turned around to Lucy, but she cringed back in terror, truly fearing him now. However, Loke's eyes were green and gentle once more. He smiled tenderly, tipped Lucy's chin up, and gave her a soft kiss.
"I apologize for doing that. I know it's frightening."
"She...is she dead?" Lucy shuddered. "Are you sure?"
"Yes. Believe it or not, it wasn't overkill. The attack needed to be that strong to defeat her defenses. Nothing can break Aurora's Shield except for the power of a Royal Star. Her defensive magic was always superb, and Kefira honed it to be even stronger when she realized the fragility of her body." He glanced at the pile of bones. "Someone with the capability of living forever can't simply be locked up in a prison. It's still a shame I had to do it to the last descendant of the man who made me the Lion. It's over now. Don't be afraid." Then he turned back and faced the dwindling enemy. Loke gave a sad sigh as he saw the particles of spirit energy floating away from Haftorang's body. "Piscis Austrinus, the fact that you survived that blast shows your true strength."
"A mere flick?" Haftorang laughed weakly as his body faded in and out of existence. "Yes, that...that is the power I remember. I've lived this long...to see it once more."
"Fishy," Loke whispered, addressing him informally and with a fond tone to his voice. He walked forward, and each step left behind a golden glowing footprint. From those steps, rich grass and flowers bloomed. Loke knelt beside the fading half-fish and took his translucent fin.
Haftorang gripped his fingers tightly. Tears dripped from his bulbous eyes. "My king!"
"Not a king anymore, Fishy. Just a friend," he said tenderly.
"I blamed you once for letting the Royal Stars leave. I even hated you for being selfish," he confessed. "Still, I wanted you back. I'm glad to see my old friend after an age upon an age. My...king," he sighed happily.
"Please don't call me that," Loke sighed sadly. "My sins over the eons are equally as great as yours. I don't deserve that title...just as I don't deserve Regulus."
Light condensed around his heart, and a beam shot out from it. Loke's body instantly changed back to the man in a business suit. In front of him was a creature of gleaming golden light, oddly smooth features, and a massive golden mane...Regulus himself. Loke smiled, but suddenly cried out and grabbed his chest. He fell forward onto his hands and knees before this great spirit.
"Loke!" Lucy shouted, and she ran to his side.
"I'm fine, I'm fine," he assured, still holding his chest. "Just always hurts a bit when that happens. Don't worry, it's nothing."
Haftorang chuckled weakly. "Always that implacable pride. However, in my heart, you will always be my king...and my friend."
The glowing creature spoke with a voice that resonated like a dozen angels speaking at once. "Fomalhaut, thou wert called the Solitary One in ages agone, yet ironically thy desire hath always dwelt upon remaining hither amongst others. Commendable, my brethren, yet our age hath gone and past. 'Tis thy time to go. Come with me to where the other Guardians of the Sky now dwell. This world is no longer in need of us."
"Yes, Regulus, my king and friend. I think...perhaps I'm now ready to go."
Then Haftorang's body turned into colored sparkles that gathered around his lip ring. Out from his mouth came another white, glowing creature. It flowed out of the Southern Fish and stood beside Regulus for a while, his glowing body vaguely fish-like. The two Royal Stars shared a touch of friendship, then the pure white form of Fomalhaut faded away. Left on the ground was a small, blue, awkward fish with fat lips and bulbous eyes.
Piscis Austrinus looked up at the rest of them. "I look pathetic, yes?" he lamented with a tiny, squeaky voice.
Loke smiled amiably at him. "No more pathetic than that pervy Bull. Go home, old friend, back to the Spirit World. You'll be punished, but you need to face your crimes." He placed a friendly hand on the Fish, and the small Celestial Spirit faded away. Left behind was a Silver Key with the symbol of the Southern Fish. Loke picked it up and handed it to Lucy. "He's yours by right of combat. He's a little guy, but his specialty is navigation, swallowing things, and spitting water. Just plain water, not acidic, but you'd be surprised how handy that can be. You can put out Natsu's fires, at least," he chuckled.
Lucy accepted the Silver Key and looked at it. "He'll really make a contract with me?"
"He swore to me that he would serve you since you're my chosen mate."
Her eyes teared up at hearing him say that. "Loke..."
The Royal Star Spirit boomed out in the multi-toned voice. "Master of Spirits, Lucy Heartfilia."
She leaped up with a jolt of shock. "Yes, Regulus?" she said loudly, standing stiffly at attention.
"Thine ambitions are commendable, and thy soul is strong. To summon me all the way from my place of slumber is a feat few of thy corporeal form could achieve."
"Oh! Uh, sorry for waking you up," she said in awkward shame.
The glowing being chuckled. "'Tis forgiven, child. I thank thee for doing so, if only so I could call back my brethren. Thy quest must have been great, thine enemies dire. For thy struggles and sacrifices, I shall grant thee a wish."
"Any wish?" she gawked.
"Other than changing thy Human body, 'tis within my power to grant anything thou couldst ask," he nodded.
"Ask for fish!" Happy shouted.
"A billion Jewels," Levy suggested.
"Lots of meat!" Natsu said with a hungry grin.
Lucy had to laugh at such petty wishes. Instead, she proudly took Loke's hand. "I want us to be a family."
The massive star spirit looked confused. "Ye already are. Unbreakable bonds of love connect ye."
Loke stepped forward boldly. "Regulus, I wish you to lend me your strength so I can save my family and never be parted from them again."
The Star sighed and shook its head. "My scion and noble host, this offer was not to thee, but to thy master. After willfully disobeying our order not to let Humans regain the Lapis Lazuli Keys, thou art in no position to request anything."
Loke cringed a little as he realized Regulus was right. He had sent Lucy after the Lapis Lazuli Key, breaking the oath he made with the Royal Stars.
"Besides," Regulus said gently, "killing the Spirit King shall not solve thy problems."
"Then make her into a Celestial Spirit, too," Loke demanded.
"I said I cannot change her Human body. Nor, I'm afraid, can I change your son, not until he is of age to decide his fate for himself."
Lucy huffed in anger. "You can't make me into a Celestial Spirit or make Luke into a Human? What good are you?" she yelled.
"Lucy!" Loke gasped.
Regulus calmly told her, "The solution, Master of Spirits, is the one thing thou hatest the most."
Her hopes plummeted. "No way," she whispered in despair. "You can't mean..."
The air around them shuddered and felt heavy. Loke and Lucy were forced down to their knees by the sheer presence. The sky darkened, time seemed to stop, and the Spirit King came forth, looming over Magnolia with glaring red eyes.
"Leo," he boomed. "You have betrayed me for the last time!"
"Oh," Regulus said disdainfully, turning to confront the Spirit King. "'Tis thee."
The massive Spirit took a step back in fear. "Regulus!"
"Did I not warn thee before I left the first time? Do not harass my scion! Leo knoweth well the feeling of power thou shalt only dream about, young child."
Lucy leaned over to Loke. "He's calling the Spirit King a young child?"
The Spirit King's voice boomed out deeply. "Leo is a troublemaker!"
"One thou hast created with thine irresponsible demands. Dost thou think that I not know the pain my scion hath suffered at thine own hands?" he roared in anger.
The ground shivered at the voice. Lucy heard a thousand deafening lions within that overpowering shout. It frightening her, but Loke held her close while stroking her hair. Instead of worried, Loke looked proud to have Regulus stand up to the Spirit King, like a child watching his father fight for him.
"Thy will shall be tempered this one last time, young child," Regulus declared. "Leo is not to be punished, nor his Human mate. Thou shalt also forgive Piscis Austrinus and let him serve the Master of Spirits, Lucy Heartfilia. The halfbreed child shall be raised to maturity in the Spirit World, but then he shall have freedom to choose his path. His decision shall not reflect upon his parents, nor shall they face punishment for his deeds heretofore. Thus is my decree as the King Star."
"Hey!" Lucy yelled angrily. "What about my one free wish? I said I want us to be a family, and yet you're saying I should just hand over my baby? I don't think so!"
"Lucy," Loke hissed, trying to hush her.
"Thy wish shall be fulfilled, mistress of mine, but in due time. Or is thy wish truly to have me slay this young child who calleth himself a king?" He raised a glowing hand aimed at the Spirit King, who drew back looking worried with large, red eyes. "Even if I made Leo the new Spirit King, that halfbreed child cannot survive for long in the Human World."
Lucy looked to Loke, then to Wendy holding the child, and to Gray who was still recovering from the poison. "I...I don't...I can't make a choice like that. I don't want anyone to die, but...I mean, is even an ancient Spirit who can destroy the planet now against me?" She laughed bitterly at just how miserably ridiculous it was to even try resisting under such circumstances. Tears dribbled down her cheeks. "I can't win."
"Dost thou take this as defeat?" Regulus asked in confusion.
"Yes!" she screamed irately. "You Spirits don't understand Human emotion."
"Lucy," Loke warned. "Remember what you were taught. Celestial Spirits have feelings the same as Humans. Still, if Regulus says so, then this is the best choice."
"Bullshit!" Natsu bellowed from the sidelines.
Lucy looked back to them and covered her mouth. Her friends looked ready to fight. "Natsu...no," she whispered faintly.
The dragon slayer's nostrils flared in a hot breath of anger at the glowing Royal Star. "You think you can tell Lucy what to do? Do you think you know what's best?"
"Yes," Regulus answered bluntly.
Natsu pounded his fists together, and flames sparked out. Gray slowly rose to his feet, still weak but healed enough. He threw off his remaining clothes down to his boxers and came up next to Natsu. The air around them crackled with the blend of fire and ice.
"You don't know Lucy," Gray sneered. "You don't know how she has suffered, the pain she went through just to give this baby life, the loneliness she endured when Loke was taken away. Don't think you're just going to take her kid away from her without a fight."
"Stop it, you two," Lucy sobbed.
"It's suicide," Loke warned frantically. "Regulus could blow up this whole planet if he wanted to. You saw what he did with just a flick."
"Sure did," said Natsu. "Which means we just have to beat him up before he can make a move."
"Are you with us or against us, Loke?" Gray demanded.
The Lion looked startled by the question. "I..." He breathed hard, looking to Lucy, then to the Spirit King and Regulus, then back to Lucy. "I can't..." He began to hyperventilate at being put in this situation.
"Looks like he's against us," Gray decided. "You, me, Erza, Wendy, Gajeel, Levy, and Lucy. You think we can take them?"
"Three of them versus seven of us?" Natsu grinned as the flames around him increased. "Piece of cake. I'm all fired up!"
Erza stepped forward. "To protect our friends, Fairy Tail will fight anything."
Wendy rose to her feet. "That's right!"
Levy also readied herself. "We'll protect you and your family, Lu-chan."
Gajeel gave a gravelly chuckle. "Gihihi! I wouldn't mind beating up the King of Heaven."
"Don't you dare!" Loke yelled at them.
Regulus glared at the mages. "Insolent fools..."
"Stooooop!" screamed Lucy. Everyone froze and looked at her. She panted hard with the barrage of emotions. "Just...stop. If you attack, you'll be killed."
Gray still looked determined. "That doesn't matter."
"Yes, it does," she yelled. "I can't lose everyone I love, even if it means..." She hiccuped a sob. "...even if it means...something so horrible as giving up my child. I just...I can't live with that much guilt. And I can't give up my son." She fell to her knees as she realized how futile it was. "I just can't win."
"Thine ambitions are simply too high, young one," Regulus counseled.
Gray began to form ice in his hands again. "Don't you dare tell Lucy about high ambitions, you damn Star King."
Loke stood in front of Regulus. "How dare you!"
"Stop!" Lucy screamed. With her face covered in tears, she waved Wendy over. The girl looked at the toddler in her arms and reluctantly came forward.
"Mama?" Luke asked.
Lucy wiped her eyes and smiled. "I love you, Luke. Please don't ever forget that. I fought so hard to keep you, but you need to go with your daddy now."
"Mama coming too?" he asked.
"No, sweetie. Mama can't come where you're going, but I'll write letters to you every day. When you grow up a little, maybe you can write me back." She smiled sadly, kissed his forehead, then waved Wendy aside. "Give Luke to his father," she whispered with thick sorrow choking her throat.
Wendy sniffled but obeyed. Slowly, she walked over to the three Celestial Spirits. Loke looked down at the child in shock.
"Lucy," Gray protested.
"Take him." Her voice was weak, her face to the ground, unable to look at the exchange. "If you want him that badly, then go. At least...at least then Luke won't die. I could never forgive myself if he had another bad spell and didn't recover." She sniffled and wiped her nose. "What are you waiting for, Loke? Take him. Take your son, raise him well...and never come back unless I call for you," she ended bitterly.
"Lucy!" Loke gasped.
"More than likely, that's never going to happen again," she muttered to herself. "Just...go." Her voiced faded out on her.
Loke shook his head. Her soft sniffles tore at his heart. "All I wanted was to love you. I never wanted to hurt you." Tears dripped down his cheeks. "I...I'm so sorry, Lucy." He took Luke and settled him on his hip. Then he walked over to Lucy and reached one hand down to stroke her soft, blonde hair. "I didn't want to do this..."
Lucy slapped his hand away. "Go!" she screamed.
Regulus nodded firmly. "'Tis a hard choice, but it is the best course of action."
"Hard choice?" Lucy sneered bitterly, glaring up with bloodshot eyes filled with tears. "You've never given up a child. You Royal Stars ran away from Loke and the others you call your scion. You know nothing of hard choices." She deflated a little, and her head sank down. "I just wish," she muttered, "that Luke can grow up fast. I'd like to see him at least once more before I die."
"Granted," intoned Regulus. "Now hand me my key."
Lucy pulled it out and blindly threw it at him. The other Celestial Spirits were stunned at such disrespect. Regulus merely held his hand out, and the Lapis Lazuli Key floated to him. Then from the bones of Kefira, her blue Fomalhaut Key floated to him as well.
"Leo." He pulled the ring off from the key. "Keep this, and be glad thou art still powerful enough to be leader of the Zodiacs. 'Tis more than enough ambition for thee." Then the Royal Star Keys crumbled into blue dust. "I shall likewise destroy Aldebaran's Key. We Royal Stars shall never return. When danger cometh, ye all are strong enough to survive. We hand the future over to our children. Guide it well into the next generation, and when it is thy turn, come join us in the Beyond." Then the glowing angelic spirit faded away.
Gray came up and shielded Lucy from her pains. Loke stood nearby, hugging Luke and looking down at her as she sobbed uncontrollably.
"Mama?" Luke called out, stretching his arms out to her. "No wanna go!"
That made Lucy cry harder.
Natsu stepped forward and shoved his way between Loke and Lucy. "You've caused her enough trouble," he said grimly. "Leave."
Loke still looked down at her. He bit his lips to see her this sad, yet looking at Luke, he knew he had to protect the boy's life. This was the only way, as horrible as it was for all three of them.
"Lucy...I'm very sorry. I swear, I will bring Luke back as soon as it's safe," Loke said fervently. "Until then, whatever it takes, just be happy in life." He looked to Gray, then to Natsu, both of them giving him harsh glares. "Until I can return with him, take care of her, both of you."
Then he and the Spirit King vanished, taking Luke with them. Just before disappearing, the little boy stretched his hand out and called again.
"Mama!"
Then he was gone. All that was left were the members of Fairy Tail slowly gathering around the wailing Celestial Spirit mage.
End of Chapter 47

Rhov's Corner:

Oh no! Now what? Please don't hate me yet.
I stated this was only twice that Lucy has seen Loke kill someone. The first time is in the prequel, "Ephemeral Sakura, Eternal Love." That attack looks wimpy compared to THIS!
In other news, today is my birthday. I'm heading to the coast with my husband for a romantic day out: cheeseburgers and ice cream at the Tillamook Cheese Factory, shopping around the coastal communities, hiking, photographing the sunset at Cannon Beach (the 1985 movie "The Goonies" was filmed here), and stargazing tonight. It's the Perseid meteor shower. I get a heavenly gift every year! ^_^
- 46
- 47
- 48
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Lion's Pride