As the three of us gazed upon the monstrous form of Deliora frozen within a glacier, Gray, the most terrified one, slowly stepped back. "H-How is he here? HOW!?" Yelled Gray in both anger and fear, causing Lucy to look at him in confusion. "Eh, what's the matter, Gray? Why are you so worked up?" Asked Lucy softly while glancing at Gray, who suddenly snapped his gaze toward me. "Is this why you wanted me to join you on this quest, big bro? Because of Deliora?" Just as I nodded to Gray, I heard faint voices in the distance approaching our location.
"Oi, people are approaching; hide for now." Tossing Lucy behind a large rock, Gray and I followed while the three of us peeked from behind the rock, gazing upon the three people approaching Deliora. "Reitei, someone found this place." Said some dog/human hybrid that sniffed the ground before raising his head and pointing at where we'd fallen from. Reitei, in question, wore blue clothes, with a white cloak and a large helmet that concealed most of his face. "No matter, we're nearing the end; the Moon Drip ritual is nearly complete." Said Reitei as he and the two others gazed upon Deliora; they spent another few minutes conversing before eventually turning around and walking away. "What's the Moon Drip ritual?" Asked Lucy in confusion while I shook my head; I knew of many rituals, but didn't know all of them.
"I don't know, but I feel it's related to the village; anyway, let's leave for now. We can return here after we complete our quest." Wrapping my arms around Lucy and Gray, I leaped out of the cavern we'd fallen into and returned to the Temple, which we then exited. While wandering, Lucy questioned Gray about Deliora, prompting him to explain his past and causing her to offer him a comforting hug, which he clearly enjoyed, given his perverted expression. "Pervert." Speaking between my coughs, Gray gave me a blank expression while Lucy lightly chuckled. "Ah, well, I am a beauty." Said Lucy narcissistically as she flaunted her chest while flipping her hair behind her shoulder.
Shaking my head at Lucy's narcissistic yet truthful words, the three of us continued to search the surroundings for the possible curse affecting the village; however, when night arrived, we began to see purple light from the moon striking the temple om the far distance, and we while we weren't genius, it wasn't hard to figure out Deliora, the moon drip ritual, and the curse was somehow all connected. "C'mon, let's return to the temple; something fishy is happening." Picking Lucy up, Gray and I ran back to the temple, taking several minutes; when we arrived, we followed the trail of the purple moonlight down the cavern underneath the temple where Deliora was sealed.
Stealthily heading down to the cavern, we watched from a distance as the purple moonlight hit ice-encased Deliora while Reitei and his group surrounded it. "What are they doing?" Asked Lucy with furrowed brows as we gazed upon Deliora, only for Gray to inhale a sharp breath. "The ice, it's melting… They're trying to revive Deliora!" Muttered Gray softly with a furious expression as he clenched his fists and charged toward Reitei while Lucy failed to stop him. "G-Gray, wait!" Watching Lucy follow Gray, who went to confront Reitei, I trailed behind them, though, unlike Gray, I had no intention of stopping Reitei… After all, I can't kill Deliora if he remains sealed.
Regrouping with Gray and Lucy, with the former confronting Reitei while his gang eyed, I didn't interfere with Gray and let him do as he pleased. "The fuck are you doing!? Don't you know what the monster is!?" Yelled Gray furiously as he stepped forward and glared at Reitei, who seemed unmoved by his words. "I know, and that is precisely why I'm unsealing Deliora… Gray." Tilting my head in confusion at how he knew Gray's name, Reitei suddenly reached for his head and removed his helmet, revealing his cold face and short white hair, shocking Gray. "Y-You… I knew that voice sounded familiar; I-I just didn't believe you'd do such a thing, Lyon."
"Hmph, it's been some time, Gray; I see you're still the same selfish brat I remember you to be… However, I have no time for your childish antics; I will unseal and defeat Deliora, so leave before I make you." Stated Reitei sternly as he eyed Gray before turning around, only to leap out of the way, narrowly dodging an ice lance that would've otherwise stabbed him in the shoulder. "So that's how it is, Gray? I see you've also learned cowardice in these years… Sherry, Yuka, and Toby acquire more ingredients for the Moon Drip ritual; I shall handle these three." Said Lyon as he glanced at his three followers before facing Gray, Lucy, and I. "Got it, sir! We'll head to the nearby village."
Glancing at the woman named Sherry, I suddenly looked above us, only to see the large blue rat Gray had defeated earlier leap from the hole we had initially fallen through; once the rat, which Sherry called Angelica for some reason, landed on the ground, Toby, Yuka, and Sherry hopped onto her back, and to my surprise, the rat started to fly with its tail. "To be honest, I'm rather impressed." While watching the rat in fascination, Lucy summoned Taurus. "Taurus, stop them!" "Haha, of course, but I want to view your boos afterward!" Snorting at Taurus's perverted nature, he swung his axe at the rat, aiming right for its tail, though before it could connect, Lyon created an ice wall using the same ice-make magic, blocking the axe and allowing the four to escape safely.
"Tsk, dammit; Taurus, return for now." "Eh, no, your boobs!" Watching Taurus return to the Celestial realm, I hoped Lucy would summon Aquarius, though, of course, such a thing didn't happen. "Alright, let's take down this ice-punk and then stop those three; I don't know what they want with that village, but it couldn't possibly be something good!" Stated Lucy aggressively as she stood beside Gray while snapping her whip. 'Huh, I wonder if Lucy is an S.' Tapping my chin with a curious expression, Gray suddenly extended his arm, blocking Lucy. "I'll handle Lyon… It's personal. You and big bro take." "Are you sure you can beat him, Gray? Ouch!"
Rolling my eyes, I gently hit Lucy's head before hoisting her onto my shoulder while glancing at Gray. "Don't doubt your family, Lucy; if Gray says he can handle Lyon, then he can. Now, c'mon, let's go and protect the village." "Haa, you didn't have to hit me though."
___
___
Gray POV
As big bro and Lucy walked past us, Lyon created an ice wall, blocking their path. "You three are staying–" Said Lyon, though before he could finish speaking, big bro easily broke through the wall and leaped out of the carven with Lucy; however, while doing so, Lyon caught a glimpse of big bro's back, causing his body to stiffen in fear. "A back of fairies… That was 'The Beast' of Fairy Tail, wasn't it?" Asked Lyon as he gazed at me with a frightened gaze, causing me to scoff as I placed my two hands together.
"Don't worry about it; you're facing me, not him." Immediately after, I launched a volley of mini ice lances Lyon's way, snapping him out of his terror from realizing who big bro was as he erected an ice wall, protecting him while I ran around, attacking him from another side. As he began to counterattack with numerous ice attacks, I was quickly overwhelmed and struggled to resist his rapid attacks despite my best efforts. "Pathetic, Gray… In all these years, you haven't improved in the slightest; using two hands? You'll never beat my one-handed Ice-make magic."
Gritting my teeth, I ignored his mocking and continued to resist his onslaught of attacks while counterattacking where I could; I may have been struggling at first, but once I got accustomed, I fared slightly better, still not enough to defeat him, but I wasn't going to stop. "It's because of you, Gray, that our Master, Ur, died… You stupidly ran to your death, and our Master sacrificed her life to stop Deliora, yet during all this time, you've not gotten any stronger to avenge her, have you? Do you not care for your Master? For MY MASTER!?" Biting my lip at Lyon's words, the strength of his attacks increased, forcing me back while my heart began wavering.
"You wanted to know why I'm unsealing Deliora, right, Gray? I've always had a dream to one day surpass Ur, but because of you, she's dead, and the only way to do so now is to defeat Deliora, the being she couldn't win against." Said Lyon calmly, yet I found it impossible to raise my head and look him in the eyes. However, before I could retaliate, Lyon launched an ice-dragon my way, prompting me to erect an ice wall, yet it was but a paper wall before the dragon that slammed into me, flinging me into the wall while my consciousness faded. 'U-Ur.'