Chapter 10: The Cursed Island Of Galuna

Previously...

"I wanna join your team too!" The captain said, "I'll brave that scary island for you! Set course for the cursed island of Galuna!"

"It's like they weren't even beat up by her..." Ramza said quietly.

He sighed, tossing the peeled orange skin overboard. This aught to be interesting.

Currently...

The ship had now docked on Galuna island's shore. Erza and Ramza then checked their supplies and got off the ship, but the crew and their captain shivered in their boots.

"What's wrong?" Ramza asked.

"W-we'll stay on the ship." The captain said.

"I thought you said you wanted to help me?" Erza raised an eyebrow.

"Um, we will!" The captain's voice cracked. "Moral support!"

"Aye!" The captain's men cheered with feigned enthusiasm.

"I see..." Erza said. "Come, Ramza. Let's go."

He nodded and followed her as she walked across the sand. While Erza walked in a straight line, Ramza smiled to himself as he stepped across the small waves rolling on the shore.

"Ramza!" Erza scolded, "We aren't here to play!"

"Oh, sorry." He stepped out of the water. "I was just having a little fun."

"If you want to prove yourself, you have to focus on the task at hand!" Erza said sternly.

"Well yeah," Ramza shifted his weight, "But I'm just unsure about this whole 'bringing them back' thing. Do we really have to do this?"

"Of course. They broke guild rules and they must compensate for it." Erza looked at him. "And your task is to help me bring them home."

"I'm just saying that I'm getting a bad feeling about this place." Ramza said. "Something just feels off here..."

He then looked ahead and saw a pink haired lady attacking a blonde figure. Knowing who it probably is, the two of them dashed to aid Lucy. It seemed unnecessary, however, since Lucy had defeated her opponent with a punch. Falling to the ground, Lucy's foe seemed to say one last thing before going unconscious.

"Angelica..." The pink haired lady said weakly, "Avenge your master's death..."

Suddenly, an abnormally large rat wearing what seemed like a maid's uniform jumped at Lucy.

"I thought that rat was one of her puppets!" Lucy yelled. She then tried to run, but her legs refused to budge. She braced for impact, but the rat was knocked aside by a strike from Erza. It fell down, defeated, right beside her master.

"Lucy!" Ramza called out to her. "You alright?"

"Ramza! Erza!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Lucy." The redhead just glared daggers at her. "I assume you know why we're here. You do, don't you?"

"T-to take us back?" Lucy replied, sweat dropping. "Promise you won't hurt me?"

Her request echoed across the beach in cricket silence. A tense moment ensued, but a blue cat came flying towards them.

"Hey, I've been looking all over for you! I'm glad you're okay! I was wor-" Happy faltered when he saw the glint of Erza's signature armour. He tried to fly away, but Erza caught him by the tail and dragged him back to Lucy.

"Now, where is Natsu?" Erza asked Lucy while holding the cat by the tail.

"Listen, I'm sorry we went here without permission. But some really awful things have been happening on this island! There's this guy and his minions who are trying to revive a frozen demon! And the villagers are suffering from the spell they're using! They've turned into monsters!"

Lucy looked to the side. "We just thought if we worked together we would be able to help them..."

Erza looked unmoved. Her eyes were unreadable. "None of that is my concern."

"Please Erza, let us finish this job!" Lucy pleaded, "We can't leave things this way!"

Erza then drew her blade, pointing it at Lucy's neck. She glowered down at her intensely, as if she were putting all her anger on Lucy. "I don't think you understand. The three of you have betrayed Master Makarov! You'll be lucky if you walk away with your lives."

"Hey." Ramza spoke up. "Isn't that a little too much, Erza?"

She scowled at him. "A little too much? More like too little!"

"Hear me out, would you?" Ramza shuffled nervously as Erza's eyes locked on him. "I know that these guys broke the rules and stuff, but they had reason to do so. It wouldn't be smart, or more so immoral, to take their lives without first hearing them out."

"She's serious about killing us?" Lucy said, her voice nearly inaudible.

"She's got a sharp sword pointed at you." Ramza deadpanned. "Duh."

Lucy gulped. "That's true..."

"Hmph." Erza's sword disappeared in a magic circle. "I suppose that your statement is plausible. However, we can't just let them and do what they please."

She then reached into Ramza's bag and brought out a length of rope, which she used to tie up Lucy and Happy. She made it tight so that they couldn't escape easily, and grabbed the end of it.

"You mentioned villagers?" Erza asked, a certain thinness in her voice.

"Y-yeah. That way." Lucy pointed in the west direction.

"Come. We shall stay the night there." She pulled the rope and Lucy and Happy hobbled along like prisoners.

"Man, is this even legal?" Ramza said aloud, then followed Erza into the village.

When they entered, the villagers gave them weird looks as to why a blonde girl and a blue cat were tied up and were dragged by a very angry looking lady. Ramza waved at them and tried to send them an 'its-fine' look, but they looked even more bewildered than before.

The villagers were thankful that there were Fairy Tail reinforcements, and gave them a tent as soon as possible. When they asked about the roped up Lucy and Happy, Erza just shrugged.

"They did something wrong and they need to be monitored." She said.

"Uh yeah, sure. That." Ramza coughed.

Erza then tied the prisoners Lucy and Happy on a post and got from her pack a bedroll which she would use to sleep in. She laid it flat on the floor, and Ramza got his own bedroll as well.

"Um... Where will we sleep?" Lucy asked nervously.

"There." Erza said simply.

"You mean, standing up?" Lucy said in disbelief. "We can't sleep like this!"

"Aye..." Anime tears flowed down Happy's face.

"Despite what you did, you still demand that? You should be grateful that you even get to sleep!" Erza growled at them. "We'll discuss about your unacceptable actions in the morning. Ramza, make sure that they don't escape."

"Alright then." He then placed his bedroll on the floor and put down his pack as a makeshift pillow. He requipped his wakizashi into his hand and sat on his bedroll, facing the two captives.

Erza then lay on her cot, turning to the side. Ramza glanced behind him to make sure that she wasn't looking, then looked at Happy and Lucy who were shifting their weight, trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in.

"Sorry you guys are like this." Ramza whispered to them.

"Yeah, it's kinda our fault. But it doesn't mean we're supposed to be treated like this!" Lucy exclaimed quietly, so that Erza couldn't hear.

Ramza then got his bedroll and dragged it to where they were tied to the post. He then untied their knots, letting them free.

"Stop that! Erza'll get mad at you!" Lucy shot.

"Eh." Ramza then got some spare clothing from his pack and placed it on the bedroll. "You guys look like you've been in some fights, especially with that pink haired lady."

"Sherry!" Lucy said, "Is she alright?"

"Yeah. Checked her right before we left, and she seems fine. Same goes for that freak rat of nature. Both of them were knocked out."

"Oh, that's good." Lucy then noticed him edging the bedroll towards them. "What are you doing, exactly?"

"Giving you a place to sleep." Ramza said. "As I mentioned, you guys have been fighting. It's best to keep your strength up, so lay down and snore a few z's."

"Really?"

"Really. Unless you want a bubble bath or a five star buffet, I can't really provide that." Ramza snorted.

Lucy giggled. "No, I guess you can't."

"She likes you..." Happy suddenly said in a sing song voice.

"W-what?" Lucy's face turned pink. "N-no! It's not like that!"

"I mean, yeah." Ramza frowned at the cat. "She's my friend. Of course she likes me."

Happy looked at him. "I mean-"

Lucy put a hand over his mouth. "Shut it, cat!"

"Yeah... We should get some rest." Ramza said, requipping his sword into the pocket dimension. "And keep quiet, would you? You wouldn't want Erza to wake up."

"Right."

............................

The next day came. Erza woke to find Ramza sitting on a crate, holding a glass of brown liquid. She looked to where Lucy and Happy was, and they were still tied up on the pole. The latter had just woken up; Happy rubbed his eyes awake.

"I see that you haven't let them off." Erza said. "And what's that you're drinking?"

"Take a guess." Ramza took a sip from the glass.

"You aren't old enough to drink booze. Hand it over." She opened her palm.

"Chill, Erza. It's just coffee!" Ramza said.

"Hmph." She then walked towards the tent flap, opening it. "I'll get some breakfast. You wait here, okay?"

"Yep." Ramza said while slurping from the glass.

Erza then left the tent, which made Ramza, Lucy and Happy breath out a sigh of relief. It appeared that she had no clue as to what they did last night.

"She doesn't know..." Lucy whispered, "She doesn't know!"

"Shhhh!" Happy put a finger to his lips. "Do you want her to know?"

"Yeah, keep it down." Ramza said.

"Thanks again for last night." Lucy said.

"The way you say it makes it sound weird." Happy put in.

"Happy!" Lucy glared at the cat.

"Good thing she didn't find out." Ramza sighed, "You guys did get a good sleep, right?"

"Yeah!" Lucy stretched her arms. "It felt great!"

"By the way, how'd Erza not find out?" Happy asked.

"Oh. In the early morning, I woke Lucy up and got my bedroll and stuff back. Then I retied you guys to the pole, which was easier than expected. You were asleep, so you didn't know." Ramza explained.

"Well, it's really good that she doesn't know." Happy said. "Or you'll be dead and we'll be next!"

Lucy backed off from him. "Don't say creepy stuff like that!"

"Say creepy stuff like what?" The tent flap opened, revealing Erza holding bowls of soup in her hands. "I got us some food."

She handed one to Ramza, but hesitated when she neared Lucy and Happy. Nonetheless, she set the bowls down and the group began to eat.

"You have something you want to tell me?" Erza said.

Lucy gulped down the soup. "Well, it's about what happened."

"Tell me."

"You've seen the people on this island. They say that they transform into demons when the purple moon rises in the sky."

"A purple moon?" Ramza asked.

"That is truly peculiar..." Erza murmured. "What if..."

"The townsmen were telling us of how they became monsters and everything, but some of the henchmen of the guy wanting to revive the demon came, and they annihilated the entire village with an acid attack!"

"Was anyone injured?" Ramza asked worriedly.

"Everyone was safe, but the main village was melted. They moved here, which was a storage area."

Ramza opened his palm. "You said something about a guy reviving a demon or something?"

"Yeah." Lucy nodded. "When we searched through the island, we found a temple and decided to investigate. One thing led to another, and we fell down a hole that revealed a big demon incased in this huge block of ice. Gray said that it was his teacher that gave her life to seal this demon away..."

"Last night, I saw some purple lights near the peak of this island." Ramza said. "Got anything on that?"

"Unfortunately, yes. We saw it too before. It's a spell called moon drip, and they're using it to melt the ice! Me and the others went to investigate, but Natsu attacked and was thrown off by a spell covering him in ice. That's where we kinda got separated."

"Separated?"

"Gray fought the main guy, Natsu got pushed off the cliff and fought another guy, and I fought that pink haired girl called Sherry yesterday. Ever since then, I didn't see them."

"I see." Erza stood. "Come, let's find them."

They then went to investigate where Natsu and Gray would probably be. Ramza freely scoured the jungle and the remains of the main village. Erza held tightly as she forced Lucy to look around for clues. Happy was tasked with aerial reconnaissance, bound by Erza's ropes, of course. All of them were empty handed in their efforts to find their friends. They soon returned to the village.

It seemed that Natsu and Gray where nowhere to be seen, but then a female villager approached them.

"Are you the Fairy Tail wizards?" She asked.

"We are." Erza replied.

"We found one of your friends who were injured. We patched him up, but it seemed that he needed some rest." The female villager said.

"Thank you." Erza said lightly. "Please tell him to meet in our tent when he wakes up."

"Of course." The villager then ran off to tell the news.

'Why do I have the feeling that Erza's not going to take this well?' Ramza thought.

..............................

Gray awoke to see himself inside a tent. Sitting up, he looked around at his surroundings. Probably one of the villager's houses. He then stood up, walking out through the tent flap.

"Oh, thank goodness you're awake." Said a female voice.

He looked to the side to see a villager approaching him. "What is this place?" He asked.

"It's a storage area not too far from the village." She explained, "Everything was destroyed in the attack last night, so we decided to come here for shelter."

"The whole village? That's terrible!" Suddenly flashes of what happened last night danced in Gray's vision. Lyon... It really did happen, they actually did it...

"You know, it was a real miracle that Natsu and Lucy were here. Thanks to their bravery, everyone was able to make out of it alive." The villager said.

"Are they still around here somewhere?" Gray asked.

She nodded. "Yes. They actually wanted to speak with you when you've woken up."

"Where?"

"That tent over there." She pointed at the large tent just across them.

He then walked over to it and opened the tent flap, only to find Erza waiting for him. She sat on a cargo crate like a dictator would. Ramza stood at her side, inspecting his wakizashi. Lucy and Happy were tied up in ropes beside him, muttering their woes of being bound.

"You made me wait." Erza said menacingly with a dark look on her face.

"Erza!" Gray then glanced at her side. "Ramza! Wait, why're Lucy and Happy tied up?"

"It's complicated..." Ramza said sheepishly as he requipped his sword into the pocket dimension.

"Lucy got me up to speed with everything that's happened. I thought you were sent to stop Natsu and these two fools. Needless to say, I'm disappointed." Erza scowled.

"Where is he, anyway?" Gray asked.

"That's something we'd all like to know." Erza growled.

"The last time I saw him, he was fighting one of the cold emperor's lackeys." Lucy said. "But when we got back to where the village was, there wasn't any sign of him. Wherever her is I hope he's okay..."

"Yeah." Ramza said, "When we couldn't find Natsu, we decided to go to you, but we didn't know where you were. We looked around, but didn't find you. It wasn't until the girl from the village told us that you were here that we found you."

Erza began to walk out of the tent. "Right. We're going to look for Natsu, then we're going back to the guild."

"But we can't leave the island just yet!" Gray cut in. "If Lucy told you what happened, then you know exactly what these villagers are going through right now!"

Erza raised an eyebrow at him. "Your point?"

Gray hesitated.

"I came here solely to apprehend these fools for breaking the rules of the guild. I'm not interested in anything other than that." Erza said.

"Rules!? Have you even seen what happened to the people on this island?"

Erza scoffed at him. "I have."

"And you're still gonna turn your back on them?"

"The request is posted on the boards of every guild hall. The villagers would be better served by wizards who are cleared for S-class." Erza simply said. "You're not qualified."

"How can you be so heartless?" Gray snarled.

Erza turned to face him, face darkened in anger. "What did you say?"

"Have you chosen to defy the guild's rules as well?" She summoned her sword and pointed it at Gray threateningly. "You'll face the same punishment!"

The Ice Make wizard gripped the sword pointed at him with his hand tightly, cutting and bleeding his hand. He looked at Erza with the same threatening gaze.

"Do what you must." Gray said darkly. "For me, there's no other choice to be made. I can't walk away from what I know is right."

He then released his hold on the sword, and began to walk to the flap of the tent. Erza let down her blade, but her glare at Gray was still pointed at him.

"I'm seeing this through to the end," Gray said, "And you can't stop me."

He then left them, leaving Erza to grit her teeth in anger. She looked furiously at the bound Lucy and Happy, and struck.

Ramza went to intervene, but it wasn't needed. All Erza did was cut the ropes on them, letting them free.

"These events are intolerable." Erza breathed heavily, "We'll deal with the immediate problems for now."

Happy and Lucy's faces brightened. "Thank you!"

"This doesn't change anything! You're still going to face punishment." Erza growled.

The two cried comical tears. "Yes ma'am..."

'That went better than expected.' Ramza thought.

"Okay then." Ramza stood. "Let's catch up to Gray."

The four of them went after Gray. They met him as he was running towards the temple in the distance. They joined him as they made their way towards the temple.

"So, what's the deal with this guy reviving a demon?" Ramza asked.

"My friend, Lyon, is melting the ice surrounding the demon, called Deliora." Gray said.

"He wants to unleash it on the world?" Ramza guessed.

"No." Gray shook his head. "He wants to fight it."

"Fight it!?" Lucy exclaimed, shocked.

Gray stopped to put his hand on a tree, taking a deep breath. "Ever since we were kids, Lyon always dreamed of surpassing my master Ur's magical ability. Since she's gone, he can't challenge her directly. And so, he decided that it's up to him to kill Deliora, because it's the one thing she couldn't do."

"Well, I guess that's the only way to challenge someone who's dead..." Lucy said.

"Listen. There was something-" Gray hesitated, "Something that I didn't tell him. It was a secret. Ur made me promise not to tell him."

"But I have to." He faced his friends. "Ur may not be with us, but she's still alive."

Ramza's eyes widened at this. "What? How?"

"What do you mean?" Erza asked.

"It's been ten years since Deliora attacked my hometown..." Gray said, "I've never seen such destruction, and the whole place was wiped out in less than a day."

"No way..." Ramza murmured.

"Ur and Lyon found me. They pulled me from the rubble." Gray gazed into the distance, and clenched his fist. "Then and there, I swore that I would make Deliora pay for what it did. That vow is how it all began."

"Ur taught me and Lyon how to use Ice Make magic through her training. She said that it's the one that has the most freedom in creativity. Each wizard's way of magic is unique and with enough training, you'll make your own style." He sent a small smile towards Ramza.

Gray then looked down, like he remembered something awful. "But then one day, I overheard some news about Deliora being in the town of Brago. Being my young, stupid self, I went there against Ur's wishes. I thought that I was powerful enough to take it down. I was wrong."

"What happened?" Lucy asked.

"Ur and Lyon came to help me defeat Deliora, but it was just too strong." Gray glared at the ground. "Before she sealed it away, she made me promise to tell Lyon that she'd died fighting it. If he ever found out that she'd turned into ice, Lyon would spend his life trying to undo the spell."

Gray faced his friends again. "Ur sacrificed herself by using the spell Iced Shell, which turned her into the ice that sealed Deliora. At that moment, I felt all my sadness and anger inside me disappear. Then, I swore that I would always be stronger for her. I'd become the best wizard I could to make her proud of me."

"That..." Ramza said, "That's a lot."

"I know." Gray replied.

"Uh, guys?" Lucy piped up. "Is that temple a little too crooked right now?"

The group looked towards where Lucy was looking and true enough, there was a stone structure that resembled a temple. It was strangely off center, tilting to the right.

"What happened to it?" Happy asked.

"I'm guessing Natsu." Gray said.

"Me too." Erza said as well.

"How'd he do that?" Ramza gawked.

"I dunno, but he's the only one who'd do something that crazy." Gray said. "It's a pretty good idea if he did it on purpose. Since the temple's tilted like that, the moonlight won't hit Deliora."

"You mean his habit of destroying stuff came in useful for once?" Lucy asked, "I never would have thought that'll happen."

Erza's head suddenly darted to her left, spotting something flying through the air.

"Get down!" She pushed Lucy and Happy aside as sharp blades flew past them. Gray, Erza and Ramza jumped, evading the thrown weapons.

"Who's there?" Erza shouted.

A band of masked people appeared behind them, donning dark cloaks. A strange symbol that looked like an inverted 'C' with a dot in the middle was emblazoned on their masks.

"We've tracked you down, Fairy Tail!" Said a female member.

"We can't allow you to interfere!" Said another member.

"Not these guys..." Gray muttered angrily.

"Lyon's minions?" Erza asked.

Ramza looked around them. "Seems like it!"

More masked people came out of the jungle. "And they've surrounded us!" Lucy said.

"I can handle this myself." Erza summoned a magic circle, making her sword appear from thin air.

"You sure?" Gray asked.

"I'll take care of them." Erza said, then glanced back at Gray. "You go and settle things with Lyon."

Gray paused for a second, then nodded his head in understanding.

"We'll fight with her." Ramza said as he summoned his bow.

"You just do what you gotta do." Lucy brandished her whip, making it snap.

"Aye!" Happy said cheerfully.

"Thanks, you guys." Gray said, "I gotta go tell Lyon that Ur's still alive. The only person who can stop him is me."

He then ran off towards the temple. The masked men noticed.

"He's getting away!" Shouted one of them. They advanced, but they were knocked down to their feet from a swipe from Erza's sword.

"Don't let any of them get to Gray!" Erza commanded. "He needs to get to Lyon!"

"Right!" Ramza shot an arrow, pinning one of the masked men to a tree. Lucy cracked her whip, sending a few of the men to the side.

"Attack!" The masked men shouted a battle cry and drew out large curved blades as they charged at them.

A small group of them rushed towards Erza, swinging their blades at her. She blocked the attack and countered with her sword. She then requipped into twin blades and jumped at the masked men. They scrambled back in a panic as she bore down on their ranks like a boulder rolling down a mountain.

Ramza picked off the ones that were lucky enough to not encounter Erza in combat. One of the men slashed at him with a large blade, but Ramza sidestepped and whacked the man with his bow, knocking him out cold. Another enemy came at him and threw knives, making Ramza take cover behind a tree. He peeked out from behind the tree, but the man was suddenly at his back.

Ramza swiveled his head to see his attacker get hit in the face with the end of Lucy's whip, leaving a bright red imprint that looked painful. Lucy grinned at him.

"I've got your back!" Lucy said.

Ramza nocked an arrow in his bow and aimed it at her. Lucy yelped and closed her eyes as Ramza let his arrow fly, but it didn't hit her. It instead hit a masked man who was coming up behind Lucy, who leveled his blade to block the projectile. The man was knocked back from the arrow's force, sending his butt to the ground. Ramza quickly dashed toward the man, taking him out with a well placed kick.

"And I've got yours!" Ramza replied.

"Yeah!" Lucy said.

Then, a band of enemies encircled them. They held large curved blades, with some wielding smaller ones. Probably for throwing, Ramza thought. Before the men could advance, an assortment of items fell on the attackers' heads. Rotten fish, an octopus, a starfish, a flower and even a watermelon! Ramza glanced up to see Happy soaring in the sky, dumping similar items on the men.

"Eat this!" Happy yelled as he tossed a bombardment of trash.

"Where the heck does he get that stuff?" Lucy wondered aloud.

Ramza shook his head. "I've no idea. Look out!"

He requipped to his wakizashi and blocked the blow of one of the men at her. He then sent his fist at the man, rendering him unconscious. More men came around them, but Lucy cracked her whip, making them hesitate. Ramza took the opening and sliced at them, making the men barrel across the jungle dirt.

The team was so focused on fighting the men that they didn't realize that the sun had set and the moon had begun to rise. Erza kept attacking their ranks, requipping from twin blades, to a great sword, to a spear. Ramza and Lucy backed her up with arrows and whip cracks. Happy flapped his wings as he threw bags of trash one after another. But no matter how much men they took down, the enemies just seemed endless.

"It's like they won't stay down..." Ramza muttered as he hit one of the men with the hilt of his sword.

"Enough stalling!" One of the men shouted. "We must strike down all those who oppose the cold emperor!"

The men roared in agreement. As if on cue, a tremor shook the earth, making the island rumble. Ramza had to put a hand on a tree for support.

"An earthquake?" Ramza said.

"Look!" Lucy pointed her finger at the temple, but it wasn't tilted anymore. It was upright and did not lean to the side like it did before.

"It's like it tilted itself!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Magic?" Ramza asked.

"Probably. But none of which I know." Erza answered. She then requipped her spear into a large axe, clutching it with both hands.

The men had surrounded the group once again, but this time it seemed that there were more of them than before. They all had their curved blades, but they did not advance. They held their position, not moving closer. Ramza fidgeted with his wakizashi nervously.

"Notice anything strange?" Erza asked.

"Huh?" Ramza was brought out of his stupor.

"Even though there's a lot of them, their magic seems weak for some reason." Lucy answered.

"Exactly." Erza replied. "As far as I know, there's only five wizards among them."

"Only five?" Ramza said.

"Well, that means I've gotta go easy on them then." Happy said.

"Don't kid yourself." Lucy retorted.

"Do you think you two can handle them?" Erza asked.

Ramza coughed. "Uh, actually-"

"You betcha!" Lucy cut in. She took out a familiar looking golden key. "Open, Gate of The Giant Crab! Cancer!"

A bright light appeared and a man with crablike legs jutting from his back emerged from the light. He was armed with crab-style scissors, one in each hand.

"Cancer?" Ramza said. "Isn't he the guy you summoned before?"

"He does look familiar." Erza said. "Have we met?"

"Indeed we have." Cancer then dropped to one knee, stage light shining on him like he was a protagonist for a play. He bowed his head ceremoniously, with a bouquet of roses in his outstretched hand. "And as always, I'm at your service, miss."

"I thought you always said baby! And what's with the miss!? " Lucy shrieked. "And aren't you supposed to be at my service?!"

Ramza sweatdropped. "What happened to this guy?"

"Ooh... Someone's jealous..." Happy said in a sing-song voice.

Lucy then pointed at the masked men aggressively. "Take 'em down! But don't kill them, just knock them out, okay?"

"Alright, baby." Cancer said. He then dashed towards the men, scissors flashing. The the masked men all fell down, blades broken, masks torn, and utterly defeated.

"Looks like she didn't need any help.." Ramza rubbed the back of his head, laughing weakly at the knocked out foes.

"Excellent work, Lucy." Erza said. "Let's head to the temple."

"Right." Lucy replied.

"W-wait..." Said a voice behind them. The team looked around to see an unmasked member of the ones who attacked them, who seemed to be an aged lady. An unmasked young man was holding her to keep her standing.

"We won't let you interfere with the cold emperor..." The lady threatened feebly.

Erza's eyes darted to the bands on their heads. "Those head pieces... You're from the city of Brago."

"Isn't that where..." Ramza gasped.

"Yes. And they're here for revenge." Erza said.

The lady's mouth knit into a snarl. "That monster took everything from us... We must kill it, at all costs!"

Suddenly, a loud noise rang across the island. It was a distinctive ring, but the sound of a roar entrapped in it was audible.

"Argh!" Ramza put his hands on his ears, attempting to block out the horrible sound.

Lucy and Happy did it as well, but it seemed to have no effect.

"I wasn't ready for this!" Happy yelled.

"That doesn't sound too promising..." Erza said apprehensively.

They then rushed toward the temple, but the Brago citizens made no attempt to stop them this time. Another roar emanated through the island, making trees sway and tents from the villager's refuge topple.

"Is that noise from Deliora?" Ramza asked, still covering his ears.

"You mean..." Lucy's eyes widened in shock. "They actually revived that thing?"

"See that purple light ahead?" Happy pointed at a lavender-colored magic circle in the middle of the temple. "That's the moon drip!"

Deliora screamed again, making the horrible sound wave once more.

"It must be..." Erza murmured. "That may be the demon growling, but the moon drip ceremony is still being performed by someone up there."

"Which means that they haven't fully revived it yet, and we still have a chance to do something!" Erza said. "Come on!"

"Uh, Deliora's below us." Lucy pointed out.

"She means that we gotta stop the guys casting the moon drip spell." Ramza said as he followed Erza.

"Putting a stop to that ceremony is our only hope!" Erza said frantically. "We gotta hurry!"

"R-right!" Lucy quickly ran after her.

The three of them scrambled up the temple, moving as fast as they could through the stairs. When they got to the top, the moon drip ceremony was being conducted by a lone individual. He looked like a low-cost lion, his hair disheveled like a lion's mane. With one swipe of her sword, Erza stopped the man from completing the ceremony.

"Awesome!" Lucy said. "The moon drip should stop any minute now!"

The purple magic circle got smaller and smaller until it disappeared. Lucy pumped her fist in celebration.

"Hang on," Happy said, "This guy was doing it all by himself?"

"Too late! It's over!" The man yelled, "The ceremony's already been completed!"

Suddenly, a geyser of bright green light came from where the purple light disappeared. Spirals of white encircled it, letting out a fierce glare of brightness. The scream of Deliora echoed once again, seemingly amplified by the tower of light.

"O-oh..." Lucy faltered.

"This isn't good..." Ramza said worriedly.

"Why..." Erza snarled at the lion man, "Why would you do this? Why would you help Lyon revive that monster?"

"You wanna know why we all joined Lyon?" The man looked down on the ground, "'Cause all our families were killed by Deliora. And we wanted to get revenge. He convinced us that if we released the demon, he would kill it, and it would be gone forever."

"I'm sorry for your loss." Ramza apologized.

"Thank you." The man said.

Deliora's horrible screech rolled across the island once more, making the temple shake.

"Deliora's revived..." Erza seemed to be lost in the clouds, but she composed herself. "Gray and Natsu's still down there! We have to help them fight Deliora!"

"You mean, we gotta fight that thing?" Lucy looked like she'd seen a ghost.

"Yeah, we gotta run!" Ramza agreed. "There's no way we can fight Deliora!"

"No, we'll fight it! We have no choice, and we have to protect the ones on this island!" Erza said with conviction, "Come on, we might be too late!"

The group then descended the temple, leaving the low-cost lion man behind. Lucy pointed to where she and the others had fallen before and found the demon. They ran through the rocky passage, thinking to see Deliora making mincemeat of their friends, but their expectations were wrong. They arrived in time to see the clash of Natsu's signature Fire Dragon Iron Fist and Deliora's punch, sending fireworks of green and orange from where their fists collided.

Suddenly, a crack appeared on Deliora's hand from where it had punched Natsu's Iron Fist. Another crack appeared on its leg, then another on its chest. It let out a ear pitching roar, until its leg shattered like a broken vase. Deliora's body soon followed suit, and its crumbling remains fell into the sea.

Ramza noticed a white haired man laying face down on the floor. He ran to help, but was stopped when the man pounded the ground with his fist. This must be Lyon, Ramza thought.

"For ten years, Ur gradually depleted its life force. And what we saw, was nothing more than its last dying breath." Lyon pounded the ground again, pain clear in his eyes. "My dream is dead! There's no hope now... I will never never surpass Ur!"

Lyon sobbed on the floor, letting his tears fall on the ground. Gray glanced down at his old friend, wanting to comfort him, but he stopped himself. He looked to the sea and smiled wistfully, like he was remembering a happy memory.

"Hey!" Natsu grinned at Gray, "Your teacher was pretty awesome!"

At these words, tears flowed down Gray's cheeks. He put his hand to his face, trying to stop the tears, but they fell down anyway. He hiccuped as he wept uncontrollably, his emotions overruling him for that moment.

"You saved my life again," Gray said through his tears, "Thank you, Ur..."

"You guys!" Lucy waved at them. "You all right?"

"Yeah!" Natsu said.

"Dude, you like took Deliora out with a single punch!" Ramza imitated Natsu's punch from earlier.

Natsu grinned at him. "I know, that was pretty cool!"

"Natsu!" The blue cat crash landed into his arms, wings still open.

"Hey there, Happy!" Natsu hugged the cat affectionately.

"I hope you didn't forget me." Erza said.

Natsu looked behind him to see a glaring redhead. "Erza!"

He recoiled and tried to run away, but was pulled back by his scarf. Natsu squirmed and tried to escape, but Erza's tight grip on the scarf wouldn't let him go. Lucy and Ramza giggled at his antics. They saw Gray propping up Lyon, both students of Ur, at some sort of truce. They didn't fight, yet in their faces was a look of sadness.

They relocated to some rocks near the shore where Deliora shattered. Gray was exhausted from his fight and took a seat on one of the rocks. Lyon placed himself near the shore, looking off into the distance. It looked like he was lost, and the sea would provide him an answer. Natsu however, did not share the same tiredness.

"That's right, we won!" Natsu shouted.

"Aye!" Happy celebrated.

"Y'know, I was kinda worried for a while there." Lucy said with a small smile. "But it all worked out, thanks to your amazing teacher, Gray."

"We totally completed an S-class quest by ourselves!" Natsu whooped with a huge grin on his face.

"Do you think Master Makarov would let us on the second floor now?" Lucy asked, stars seemingly sparkling around her.

"Uh, guys?" Ramza pointed at an angry armoured lady beside him.

"Hmph." Erza sent daggers at the two of them, making Lucy and Natsu stop cheering their victory.

"Oh no!" Lucy whimpered, "You're still gonna punish us, huh?"

"I think there's something you're all forgetting about," Erza said menacingly, "You came to the island to help the villagers. The request was that you return them to their original form. You still haven't completed your S-class quest yet."

"But I don't understand. The curse should be lifted now that Deliora's dead, right?" Lucy said.

"Wrong. This curse that you're talking about never had anything to do with the demon. The villagers have been affected by the intense magic energy released from the moon drip spell." Erza said. "In other words, Deliora's death isn't going to change their situation whatsoever."

"Wha- Oh no..." Lucy covered her mouth with her hands.

"Well, then we gotta go and change them back!" Natsu said cheerfully.

"Aye!" Happy agreed.

"Yeah, but we don't know how." Gray glanced behind him. "Lyon, do you know?"

His old classmate looked at him dead in the eye. "To be quite honest, I don't have a clue."

"You don't know?" Natsu sent him a sceptical look.

"What?" Happy's mouth dropped.

"But they said that the curse started around the same time you guys got here." Lucy said.

"We got here three years ago, we were aware that there was a village somewhere on this island. But there was no reason to communicate with them, so we left them alone. And they never came to the temple to see what we were up to." Lyon explained.

Erza narrowed her eyes. "In three years, you've never once met?"

"That's a lot of time." Ramza commented.

"I-I don't understand. The light from the moon drip is so bright that you could see it from practically anywhere on the island. It's kinda weird that they saw it every night and never went to investigate." Lucy said, now unsure.

"The villagers weren't transformed by the moon drip. It doesn't affect the human body." Lyon said.

"Makes sense." Ramza put in. "If it did, then you and your comrades would be monsters by now as well."

Lyon nodded. "Indeed."

"Now wait just a minute-" Natsu interjected.

"I wouldn't trust those villagers if I were you." Lyon said in a undertone. "They're hiding something."

"But," Lyon scoffed, "I'm sure you guild wizards can handle it."

"We're not done with you. You destroyed the village-" Natsu's mouth was squished gently by Erza, letting out a small sound.

"That's quite enough, Natsu." Erza said calmly. "They were only doing what they thought was right."

"Yeah man, cut them some slack." Ramza added.

"But..."

"Let's go." Erza gestured for them to leave.

"What'll we do to lift the curse?" Natsu asked.

"I have no idea." Erza said bluntly.

Ramza blinked. "Wait, what?"

"Oh, fantastic..." Lucy said sarcastically.

The two of them trudged after Erza. Ramza noticed that Gray had fallen behind, and waved to him.

"Yo Gray!" Ramza said, "What's with the hold up?"

"Just had something to say to Lyon." Gray said.

"Parting words, eh?"

"For now."

They walked back to the village, but there was no one to be found. Silence blanketed the place, and it seemed that the villagers had vanished without a trace.

"That's weird, where is everybody?" Happy pointed out.

"You sure they came here?" Natsu asked.

"Yeah, this is their camp." Lucy frowned. "I wonder where they could have gone..."

"Hey!" Ramza shouted, "Where are you guys?"

"While we're here, I'm gonna grab some bandages and some medicine." Gray said before entering a tent.

"You finally made it back!" A voice said.

The group looked behind them to see a lizard like man approach them. Probably one of the transformed villagers, Ramza thought.

"There's something you need to see." The man said, "Please, follow me to the main village."

Sure enough, the messenger led them to the main village. Every building was intact and in the right place, as if the village was never attacked. Ramza rapped his hand on a wall, testing to see if it's truly real.

"It's not destroyed, like you said Lucy." Ramza said.

"But I remember this place being entirely trashed before..." Lucy said.

"It's like it went back in time!" Natsu complained, also rapping a fist on a house to see if it really was standing.

"Now that it's fixed, you probably shouldn't touch anything, okay Natsu?" Lucy said with a sweet tone that implied she meant something else.

"Are you saying I destroy everything I touch?" Natsu protested with his mouth on fire.

"Uh, kinda." Lucy admitted.

"Hang on, back in time?" Natsu seemed occupied by his thoughts as he put a hand to his chin. "Was it him? Nah, couldn't be. Unless he had a change of heart?" He then crossed his hands as he snorted. "Ah, who cares?"

Happy flew beside him. "Not me!"

"What are you talking about?" Lucy asked, but the cat and the dragon slayer walked away.

"Oh, I forgot about our stuff!" Lucy said.

"I'll come with you." Ramza followed her.

He caught up to her as she stopped, looking at an elderly looking man-turned-demon. The demon was looking at what looked like a stone memorial.

"Pabo's grave is back..." Lucy said.

"Is that..." Ramza started.

"The chieftain son's grave." Lucy finished.

"Well, at least it's back."

"Yeah." Lucy sighed. "I hope the chief's glad."

She inched closer to the chieftain. He noticed.

"You and your wizard friends used magic to restore our village, didn't you?" The chieftain said, without turning his head to Lucy.

Lucy shifted her weight. "Uh sir, that's not-"

The old chief stood up from the memorial to meet her. "I can't tell you enough how I appreciate it. However, I must know. When are you wizards are going to destroy the moon for us?" He sent a piercing glare at her. "Well?"

Erza stepped in. "Destroying the moon is a simple task, sir."

"She said that so casually..." Ramza sweatdropped.

"And with a straight face..." Gray added.

"Maybe she's gone crazy?" Happy suggested.

Erza ignored him. "But before I can do that, I would like to ask a few questions. Would you be so kind as to call everyone for a meeting?"

The chief nodded, and soon every villager on the island was huddled together in the center of the village. Erza asked questions, and some of the villagers answered. The others stood nearby, listening to the explanations of the villagers on what happened to them and the purple moon.

"Let me sure I have my facts straight. The first time everybody in the village took on these demonic forms is when the moon began to turn purple." Erza said. "Is that correct?"

"Yes." The chief answered. "During the day we're fine, but when the moon comes out, we transform into what you see now."

"And the moon first turned purple about three years ago, is that right?" Erza questioned.

"Has it really been that long?" One villager wondered aloud.

"Yeah." Another villager said.

Erza began to pace around. "We learned that the moon drip ceremony has been performed on this island every night for the past three years. Each night, it produced a beam of light so brilliant that you couldn't possibly have missed it."

Suddenly, Erza stepped on a patch of discolored dirt and it collapsed. She fell down a seemingly shallow hole, which was covered by straw and leaves, topped over with earth. Erza let out a high pitched and girly squeal that sounded unlike her.

"Even Lucy's pitfall trap is back!" Happy said, mouth open.

"You made a pitfall?" Ramza raised an eyebrow at Lucy. "Why?"

She sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "Long story..."

"Erza screamed like a girl!" Natsu whispered, face agape.

"Y-yeah. And it was... cute." Gray said, forcing the last part out.

"I'm so gonna be dead when she gets out!" Lucy whimpered.

Unhurt, Erza emerged from the pitfall trap. She crossed her arms and looked at the townsfolk, who had sweatdropped from her slip-up.

"Seriously, didn't you wonder where that light was coming from?" Erza said, unfazed.

"She got up like nothing happened!" A villager murmured.

"She must be pretty tough..." Muttered another villager.

"I don't understand. Why didn't anyone investigate?" Erza questioned.

The villagers muttered among themselves restlessly. Their chief stepped forward to represent them.

"Well we would have looked into it, but according to village law, no one should go near that temple." Said the village chief.

"But who cares about village law if your own people are dying?" Lucy's eyebrows furrowed. "You obviously knew there was a problem 'cause you contacted the magic guilds..."

The village chief looked down. "Oh, well..."

Erza narrowed her eyebrows at the villagers. "Why don't you tell us what's really going on here?"

"To be honest, we really don't know it ourselves." The chieftain admitted. "Allow me to explain: we've tried to investigate the light multiple times. We've taken up weapons we never had to use, and we ventured into the jungle towards the temple. But we could never get near it. We'd get close enough to see it through the trees, but we would find ourselves back at our village."

"But..." Ramza put a hand to his chin. "How?"

"It doesn't make sense!" Lucy said.

"We got into the temple with no problem at all." Natsu said. "How weird."

"We didn't say anything to you earlier, because we thought that you wouldn't believe us." Said a villager.

"We're telling you the truth." Insisted another, "We tried going back to the temple multiple times before, but not a single villager managed to get inside."

Erza steeled her look at them. "I get it. Yes."

She then stepped forward, a magic circle covering her body. She was planning to requip her armour.

"Natsu, Ramza. Come with me." Erza instructed.

Her transformation was now finished. Her regular iron armour was now replaced by a yellow one, designed with black markings to compliment it. Small golden plates patterned her skirt and sides, and her armlets had fur jutting out of them. The shoulder pads and headgear were pointed at an elegant angle, making her look like a fierce battle princess.

"I'll need your help to destroy the moon." Erza declared.

"Yeah!" Natsu whooped.

"W-what?" Ramza had to double-take on what she had said. "Destroy the moon? Are you serious?"

"Yes. We're going to have to destroy it to return the villagers back to their normal forms." Erza said.

Then, the villagers erupted in cheer. They laughed and celebrated, shouting out that they'll now be freed from the curse.

"So, where we going to do this thing?" Natsu asked excitedly. "The temple? It's a lot higher up there!"

"We'll do it here. The villagers can't go anywhere near the temple, and they need to witness this." Erza cemented.

"I dunno what she's thinking. I know she can do some amazing things, but still." Gray said, unsure if what was happening was a good idea.

"What do you think she's going to do with it?" Lucy asked with a quivering voice.

"This is exciting!" Happy said.

"More like terrifying..." Lucy cried comical tears.

"So how exactly are we going to destroy the moon?" Ramza put 'Destroy the moon' in air quotes.

"This is giant armour: it increases my strength and allows me to throw farther." Erza then put out her hand in front of her, summoning a spear that nearly had the design of her armour. "And this is the spear of Haja: it repels darkness."

"I see now!" Natsu's eyes were bulging out of their sockets. "You're going to use that spear to knock the moon outta the sky!"

"That's right. But I'm going to need more strength than this armour can give me." She looked to Natsu and Ramza. "That's where you two come in. As I throw my spear, Natsu'll hit the end of it to boost it into the sky. Ramza, I'll need you to propel and direct the spear as close as you can to the moon with your wind magic."

"Let's do it!" Natsu pumped his fist into the sky.

"Breathe. You can do this." Ramza took a deep breath, and let it out. "You can totally do this. Probably."

"Let's go." Erza gestured for them to climb upon one of the watchtowers of the village. They made their way to the top, and Erza readied her spear for launch.

She held it back and aimed at the bright purple moon. Her armlets let out a glow of light as a crimson magic circle appeared on them, to boost Erza's physical strength. She began to throw it as hard as she could, and before it could exit her hand, Natsu hit the bottom of the spear. A cloud of dust blasted from the punch and rolled out around the villages in waves. Natsu's flames plus the force of his punch as well as Erza's throw sent the spear sailing high into the sky.

"Ramza, now!" Erza ordered.

"Okay!" Ramza thrust his hand in the air, magic circle appearing. A strong gust of wind erupted from the magic circle and flew into the air, chasing after the spear. It soon reached it, and gave the power and guidance needed to the spear to make it soar even higher.

A loud whizz came from the spear as it cut through the wind and soon, it reached the height of its journey. It impacted the moon directly, letting out a cloud of dust. It quickly dispersed to reveal a small hole in the sky. A moment later, the small hole grew to a large crack, then into an even larger one, until the sky looked like as if it were broken. The sound of cracking glass was heard as the sky shattered, replacing the purple moon with the more familiar pale white moon.

The villagers faltered, as twinkling crystals fell from the broken sky. They expected a shattered moon, not a shattered sky. They stood in disbelief at what just happened.

"What the heck is going on?" Natsu gawked up at the sky.

"As a result of the spell, a membrane covered the island." Erza said.

"What?" Natsu asked, still not understanding.

"The moon drip released evil energy in the form of a gas." Erza explained. "That gas crystalized and formed an invisible shell around the island. That's why the moon looked purple."

"Why didn't I see it as we came here?" Ramza wondered.

"You took a nap belowdecks." Erza said. "You should pay more attention to your surroundings, Ramza."

He chuckled weakly. "Yeah..."

"And now," Erza looked down from the watchtower, "Everything should be back to what it was three years ago."

Soon, a bright yellow light covered the citizens of the island. They looked at themselves in wonder, as they thought that they would return back to their human forms. They were disappointed to say the least when the light died down and no one transformed into a human.

"What's wrong?" Gray said, "They're not transforming!"

"That's because these are their true forms." Erza said. She had changed back into her regular armour. "The moon drip had no effect on their appearance. But it seems to have altered their memories."

"What do you mean?" Lucy asked.

"They think they're humans who've transformed into demons, but it's the other way around." Erza smiled.

"Wait, so you're saying..." Lucy stepped back. "That they're really..."

Erza nodded. "Yep. You've got it. The villagers have always been demons."

Natsu stared down at the villagers with his mouth open in disbelief. "Wha-"

Lucy appeared to have a mental breakdown as she put her hands on her head and slunk to the floor, still not believing what Erza said.

Ramza looked up to the sky and mouthed, "Is this real life?"

Gray confronted one of them by looking comically at them and opened his mouth like a robot. "Hey, is that true?"

"Uh, maybe? My memory's hazy, and we looked pretty human when you met us, didn't we?" Replied the demon in the same robotic style.

"Yes, because you have the ability to take on human forms." Erza said. "Your false memories led you to believe that your temporary states were actually your true forms. In reality, you were demons who had fallen victims to the moon drip's side effects."

"Hang on," Lucy put in, "How come Lyon and the others weren't affected?"

"I assume it's because they're human." Erza guessed. "As far as I know, demons are the only ones susceptible to the memory loss."

"I knew what was going on as soon as the villagers told me that they couldn't reach the temple. The moonlight collected there was sacred, therefore creatures of darkness couldn't go near it." Erza explained.

"You're quite the detective. I knew I could trust you and your friends." They looked to the side to see a newcomer. Based on his looks, he was also a villager in this place. Gray faltered and Lucy gasped upon his arrival.

"Thanks wizards! I owe ya one!" Said the newcomer.

"But you're the guy from the boat!" Gray pointed at him.

"Pabo..." The village chief whispered the name.

"But I thought you-" Said a villager.

"Gettin' stabbed in the chest hurt pretty bad, but you gotta do more than that to kill a demon!" Pabo laughed.

"But in the boat!" Gray insisted, "You disappeared into thin air!"

In a flash, a blur of red flashed where Pabo was before. Then he spread his wings and flapped them, floating in the night sky.

"I hope you kids will forgive me for not telling you the truth sooner!" Pabo yelled from above, "I'm the only one who didn't suffer from the memory loss! I had to leave, 'cause everyone went nuts! I knew I was a demon, but everyone else? Suddenly, they thought that they were cursed humans!"

He let out another hearty laugh, his happiness spreading through the villagers like a wildfire. Soon after he laughed, the chief of the village unfurled his wings and took flight, eyes only on one individual. His son.

"Pabo!" The chief tackled Pabo in midair with open arms and began to sob into his son's shoulder.

"I'm so glad you're finally out of it, pops!" Pabo grinned widely at his father.

Then, one after another, the demons opened their wings and flew into the night sky, dancing and celebrating their release from the spell. They laughed and smiled happily, their joyous sounds echoing around the village.

"Yup, they're definitely demons." Erza confirmed.

"I dunno." Natsu put in. "When you look at their faces, they look like angels to me."

Erza smiled. "I guess they do."

The team let out wide grins and smiles on their own faces as they watched the show of happy demons soaring through the skies. They kept at it for a little bit longer, until one of them shouted an idea.

"We celebrate tonight!" He whooped, "Demon party!"

"I don't know if I can handle demon parties..." Lucy said.

"Same here..." Ramza agreed.

Soon, the demons landed back on the ground and prepared the most extravagant feast they could. Colorful totems and decorations adorned the village walls and buildings. Brightly-lit torches dotted the landscape, covering everything in an orange glow that reminded Ramza of a cozy home. Food of all kinds were displayed on the long tables in the middle of the village, open to anyone who wanted a taste.

The gang sat on one of the benches beside the table that had the highest quality food that the village had to offer. Natsu was inhaling the flames of torches one after another, and it seemed that he had eaten the sun based on the amount of fire he had already consumed. Erza politely accepted the food she was offered and began to dig in. Lucy followed her example, putting the food in her plate and chowing down. Ramza took the delicacies that looked the most mouthwatering, and bit into them. Needless to say, the food was delicious.

Gray chose to sit on the ground, close to where the tents were placed. He held a bowl of stew in his hands, and he slurped from it. He gazed at his friends and the many demons at the long tables, eating and having fun. He heard the nearing footsteps of someone as he set down his bowl of stew.

"How're you feeling? You're sure looking a lot better!" A female voice chirped.

Gray glanced to his side, and saw a female blue skinned demon in a bikini top. "Sorry, do I know you?"

"Maybe this'll help." She glowed momentarily as her form turned into one of a human.

A familiar memory tugged at the edge of Gray's head. "Oh, you're the girl from earlier."

"I'm a little different now, huh?" She glowed again, and she reverted back into her demon form. Several female demons formed behind her, interested in who she was conversing with.

"Well, yeah." Gray admitted.

Suddenly, one of the female demons behind the girl sat beside Gray. "Just so you know, every girl in our village has totally fallen for you 'cause we think you're like, the coolest guy ever!"

Another female demon grabbed his arm and pulled it to her chest. "Yeah, she's right! We think that you're super awesome!"

"You probably think we're cuter in our human forms, don't you?" A demon girl said, pouting.

"Uh, no." Gray sweatdropped. "That's not necessarily true, I think you ladies look fine the way you are."

The girls exploded in romantic squeals of delight, as if the one had just confessed their love to them.

"You've gotta be the sweetest guy I've ever met!" One of them said, hearts in her eyes.

"You know what just to say to a girl!" Another purred.

"Come with us, we'll show you how we demons dance!"

And with that, the ice-make wizard was dragged off into the dance floor with a harem of demon girls. Gray caught Ramza's eye as he frantically sent a message that probably went like 'help-me'.

Ramza just waved at him and said, "Enjoy the dance, Gray!"

Lucy giggled. "It seems that someone's getting a lot of attention from the ladies!"

"He'll scare 'em off sooner or later." Happy said.

"Well I have to admit, I was wrong about humans." The village chief brought up. "All of these years, we've chosen to hide from the outside world. We were so afraid that others would judge us by our appearance."

"Y'know the curse? That was just a rumor we spread so no one would come to the island and bother us!" Pabo said.

"It worked, 'cause the sailors at the dock were terrified." Lucy said, "Nobody wanted to come here."

The village chief looked down. "I know, and it's a sin. But after meeting you, we've changed our minds."

He beamed at the Fairy Tail wizards. "You've restored our faith in humans, and now we're not afraid. We're ready to go out and befriend people from other lands."

Erza returned his smile. "That's good. Friendship is a beautiful thing. It's an emotional bond that transcends physical appearance."

Ramza smiled faintly into his cup. "Yeah."

The villagers grinned at them, but it did not last. The village gates opened to reveal two new individuals that crashed the party. A blue haired man and a pink haired girl, which Ramza remembered as Sherry. She had attacked Lucy when he and Erza just arrived on the island. Tensions ran high as the villagers shuffled nervously in their seats. They murmured amongst themselves, looking at the newcomers.

"The cold emperor's minions!" A villager whispered.

Erza stood up from the table and approached the incoming duo.

"How can I help you?" She said in a neutral tone.

"You Fairy Tail wizards are tough." Started the blue haired man. "The cold emperor couldn't even make it down here."

"That's right." Sherry said, her voice slick. "We've come to pay a visit in his place."

"Wait just a minute!" Lucy stood up from the bench. "I thought we were cool! Didn't Lyon tell you guys what happened?"

"Yes. But it doesn't matter to us." The blue haired man smirked.

"We wanted to settle things here ourselves." Declared Sherry.

"Alright, why don't you show me what you got!" Natsu then lit his hand, setting it aflame.

"Wait, Natsu!" Pabo cut in. "Thanks for the help, but we can't keep relying on you. Let us fight 'em."

"He's right." Agreed a villager, "We got these clowns."

"If want to keep our village safe, we gotta protect it." Growled another villager.

Erza stepped in. "Normally I would agree with you gentlemen, but I think it's best if I handle this one."

"We meet again, Titania of Fairy Tail. You gave Angelica quite the beating earlier." Sherry said, her eyes poised in challenge.

The blue haired man looked Erza up and down. "She seems like a formidable opponent."

"Watch out for that creepy chick!" Lucy yelled, "She can control inanimate objects!"

"And don't try to even use magic against omega brows." Natsu snorted.

"The blue haired guy?" Ramza frowned as he glanced at the so-called omega brows. "I guess his eyebrows are really large, anyway."

"Is that so? In that case-" Erza quickly dashed forward to the two of them, fist hurled back. "I'll do it the old fashioned way!"

She punched Sherry at her side, sending her rolling across the dirt. She didn't even have time to react. Omega Brows flinched and Erza took the opening. She struck him with her elbow, making him fall on his butt.

The villagers whooped when they saw her take down Lyon's minions with minimal effort. Erza flexed her wrists, as if that was just a warm up. Gray and Natsu's mouths dropped at how easy it was to defeat them. Lucy and Ramza blinked, still trying to process what happened.

"H-holy..." Natsu said, mouth still open.

"She just- with her fists-" Ramza stuttered.

"She didn't even have to use magic!" Lucy marveled.

Happy shrugged his shoulders. "That's the great Erza for you."

"You're truly an amazing warrior..." Sherry complimented, pushing herself on her feet.

"Yeah, no kidding." Omega brow agreed as he got up as well. "We're no match for you."

They sheepishly rubbed the back of their heads as the onlookers gazed at them. Ramza then caught the look in their eyes and immediately understood what they had meant.

"You guys aren't here to fight." Ramza deduced.

The blue haired man looked sadly at him. "I doubt that this'll make up for all the trouble we've caused you, but we wanted to apologize in person."

"So you guys wanted to settle things in a good way!" Happy said.

"The cold emperor told us everything." Sherry rubbed the side of her arm, seeking comfort. "Thanks to you, we can now let go of the pain that Deliora has caused us."

"You mean, you were victims of Deliora too?" Gray asked, surprise in his voice.

"When we were children, the monster ravaged our village." The blue haired man looked at the ground, going through his old memories. "We watched it murder all of our friends and family."

"The cold emperor had a plan to kill the demon once and for all." Sherry said softly, "That's why we joined him."

"You see, we wanted revenge." The blue haired man's hands tightened. "And we were so focused on getting it that we never realized we were hurting innocent people."

Sherry looked away. "We were so blinded by our hatred that we acted no better than the demon itself. From now on, we'll treat other people with respect and love."

"Well, why didn't you guys say so earlier!" Ramza sent a wide grin at them. "C'mon, join us in the feast!"

The blue haired man hesitated. "I mean, we were enemies just a second ago..."

Sherry fidgeted. "I don't think it's a good idea since I'm watching my figure and-"

"Natsu." Ramza shot a glance at the dragon slayer. "Show 'em what it means to party."

Natsu grinned at him. "All righty!"

He then grabbed the two of them by their collars and dragged them to a table full of juicy food. Natsu practically slammed them into their seats as the villagers looked at them awkwardly.

"Now, I'm ready to party!" Natsu whooped.

Ramza smiled at his antics and sat beside them. "You guys'll get used to it."

And for the rest of the night and the early dawn, they feasted like the world was going to end. Natsu kept on eating flames until his stomach hurt and he passed out in the corner of the village. Gray did his best to entertain his harem of demon girls. Erza talked a bit more with the village chief and his son Pabo. Lucy and Ramza hung out with Sherry and Yuka, which was the name of omega brows.

It was a good night. The village was now freed from their curse. Deliora's defeated. Enemies became friends. And yet, Ramza felt uneasy, as if something were over him and his friends.

"Majestic Mocha Choco Master Sprinkle." Ramza smiled at his drink, and took a sip. He could worry about that another time.