What's so Urgent?

Earth land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Train Ride to Onibus.

June, x784.

"It's been a while since I've been to Onibus." Gray said as he looked out the train window.

"Ugh…" Natsu groaned from the seat next to Gray.

"Geez, you really are pathetic." Gray said, glancing at Natsu disdainfully.

"Shut up…" Natsu replied weakly.

Right now, Cana, Gray, Erza, Natsu, Happy, and Lucy were on their way to the town of Onibus by train to investigate the urgent situation Erza brought back to the guild. Unsurprisingly, however, Natsu was having a tough time and Gray was mocking him for it.

"Wow, I thought it was just because of Elicia's magic vehicle." Lucy said with a surprised tone. "But you're really bad with all vehicles, huh?"

"It's because he's a Dragon Slayer." Happy said in a cheerful tone.

"Yeah, you mentioned that on Mt. Hakobe." Lucy said. "I couldn't imagine being like that every time I traveled, though."

"As long as he doesn't puke and get us kicked off the train, it's fine." Cana said before taking a swig from a bottle of wine.

"Natsu, why don't you come and sit next to me?" Erza said in a soothing tone. "I'll help you feel better."

"Aye…" Natsu said before staggering to his feet.

Meanwhile, Lucy, who was sitting to Erza's left, looked at Cana, who sat on the other side of Erza, and quickly determined that she had no intention of moving. So, she stood up and traded places with Natsu.

As soon as Natsu sat down next to Erza, she gently reached out and placed her hand on the back of Natsu's head. Then, she began rubbing it in a circular motion. Not much later, Natsu visibly relaxed. However, just as that happened, Erza made her real move.

*Clang!*

As fast as lightning, Erza gripped the back of Natsu's head and slammed him face first into her chest plate, resulting in Natsu falling on her lap, unconscious.

"There, now he no longer has to worry about the train." Erza said, looking quite proud of herself.

'Is she serious?' Lucy asked herself while watching Erza's self-satisfied expression.

"You know, Erza." Cana said, drawing Erza's attention. "He probably would have continued to feel better if you had just kept patting his head."

Immediately, Erza's satisfied expression turned into one of shock. Then, she looked down at Natsu with confusion and concern in her eyes.

'And she didn't realize that at all.' Lucy thought as she watched. 'Until today, she seemed like the most levelheaded member of Fairy Tail after Alfonzo. I would have added Elicia to that list, but after seeing her pull out that disgusting dwarf's hairs one by one, I'm not so sure anymore.'

"Anyway, isn't it about time you told us what we're doing, Erza?" Gray asked, hiding a smirk at Natsu's misfortune.

"Yes, I believe you are right, Gray." Erza said, nodding her head in agreement. "On my way back from my last quest, I was resting at a tavern in Onibus. There, I overheard a rather unsettling conversation."

Erza then went on to explain that a group of people, presumed to be dark wizards, were discussing something while trying to keep it secret. But she heard a term that made her quite wary. One of them said something about unsealing Lullaby.

"Lullaby?" Gray said in a contemplative tone. "That group of dark wizards that tried to eat Happy said the same thing before they were taken away by that shadow."

"Yeah, and they looked really scared, too." Happy added.

"Hmm.. Erza hummed while rubbing her chin as she thought. "If I had to guess, they probably knew about the plan. But they were too scared to go through with it. So, they tried to escape the guild."

"Speaking of which, do you know who we're hunting down?" Cana asked, placing the empty bottle on the floor next to her seat.

"I do." Erza replied with a nod and a solemn expression. "When I first heard those dark wizards mention the name, I didn't recognize it. But when I was on my way back to Magnolia, I remembered."

"*Gulp* Who is it?" Lucy asked in a nervous tone.

"Erigor… The Reaper…" Erza said in a solemn tone.

"You mean the ace of Eisenwald?" Cana asked in a surprisingly serious tone.

"That's right." Erza replied.

"Erigor? Eisenwald?" Lucy asked, not recognizing the names. "I don't know who they are, but they sound scary."

Gray was also in the dark about the significance of the two names Cana and Erza just mentioned. But he decided to remain silent and let them continue.

"Eisenwald is a Dark Guild that focus mostly on assassination quests." Erza said, explaining what she knew. "They weren't always a Dark Guild, though. But when the Magic Council outlawed assassination quests, they could not… No, they chose not to adapt."

"They kill people for money?" Lucy asked, sounding a little horrified.

"That's right." Cana replied. "And Erigor is Eisenwald's ace. He only takes assassination quests."

*Bang!*

"That's right!" Erza said as she raised her fist and slammed it down toward her knee. However, she forgot that Natsu was laying across her lap, unconscious. So, she slammed her gauntleted hand onto Natsu's head. "I can't believe I didn't recognize the name sooner. If I had, I could have captured the members of Eisenwald I saw in the tavern and saved us a lot of time."

'Did she really forget he was laying there?' Lucy asked herself. 'Or does she have a grudge against Natsu? And why doesn't it seem to bother anyone that Erza just bonked Natsu on the head?'

"It's a good thing you didn't try to take them on alone, Erza." Cana said, looking at Erza with a disapproving gaze. "You're strong, but you're no where near strong enough to fight an entire guild alone."

"*Sigh* I know." Erza replied. "That's why I didn't immediately turn around when I remember who Erigor was. I knew I would need help with this. That's why I gathered all of you."

Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Clover.

While Cana, Gray, Erza, Happy, and Lucy continued to discuss Eisenwald, Erigor, and Lullaby, though they did not know much about it, Makarov was chatting with the other guild masters in the building that hosted the Guild Master's Annual Meeting. Meanwhile, Alfonzo and Ultear who came to Clover with Makarov were strolling around the town hand-in-hand.

"When we get back to Magnolia, Gramps is gonna get it." Alfonzo grumbled to himself while he toured the town with Ultear. "First, he doesn't tell us that we can't go into the meeting hall ahead of time because we're not guild masters. But he also told the other guild masters that I was his personal driver. Who the fuck does he think he is?"

Listening to Alfonzo's grumbling and seeing the pout on his face, Ultear could not help but giggle.

"You're pouting face is really cute, Alfonzo." Ultear said as she reached up and pinched Alfonzo's cheek with her free hand. "Besides, look at the bright side. While Master Makarov is in the meeting, we get to have a date in Clover."

"*Sigh* I guess you're right." Alfonzo said, doing his best to smile. "We should make the most of it, right?"

"Right." Ultear said happily. "Now, let's go and see what Clover has to offer. I've never been here before."

Shaking his head while his smile became more natural, Alfonzo let go of Ultear's hand. Naturally, this surprised, and disappointed, Ultear. However, before she could react, Alfonzo wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer.

"Well, if that's what you say is best." Alfonzo said with a smile. Then, he leaned in and stole Ultear's lips before he continued. "I'll make the most of this trip to Clover."

Alfonzo's sudden kiss caused Ultear's cheeks to turn a bright shade of red. At the same time, however, her lips formed a smile that was just as bright, if not brighter. Unfortunately, she forgot that they were in public because of the sudden burst of happiness. But the natives of Clover reminded her rather quickly.

"Oh my, it's nice to be young." An old lady selling hand crafted jewelry said after seeing the pair.

"Young people today are so bold." A second old lady said in an astonished tone.

"I know." A third old lady replied. "Back in my day, we would have never shown a sight like that to the whole town."

Those three weren't the only ones who commented on the public display of affection. In fact, everyone who saw them had something to say. Whether they commented on Alfonzo and Ultear's good looks, were jealous, envious, or reprimanding. Either way, none of them were quiet, allowing Ultear to hear it all.

Naturally, this breached the barriers of Ultear's shame, causing her to hide her face with her free hand while she dragged Alfonzo out of the crowd. Alfonzo, on the other hand, after seeing Ultear's reaction, laughed uproariously. As for feeling shame, Alfonzo would not be bothered by the comments of a bunch of people he didn't know. It's not like he was hurting anyone.. Except for the single guys, that is.

Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Onibus.

"I can't believe it, we left Natsu on the train!" Erza exclaimed as she, Cana, Gray, Happy, and Lucy watched the train they just disembarked pull out of Onibus Station. "I can't believe I made such a blunder. Someone, please strike me as recompense."

"Is she serious?" Lucy asked, looking at Erza in disbelief.

"Hey, Erza, you should leave your kinks for when we're back home." Cana said, drinking from another bottle of alcohol that she got from who knows where.

"Now is not the time, Cana." Erza said in a reprimanding tone. Though her cheeks had reddened slightly. "For now, we have to stop that train."

With that, Erza walked directly toward the station interior. Then, after a few minutes, she found the emergency call lever that would send a signal to the train that just left the station and order it to stop temporarily.

"Hey, you can't pull that!" A station employee shouted when he saw Erza reaching out to the lever.

"Erza, are you stupid?" Cana asked, grabbing Erza's hand before she could pull the lever.

"I'm leaning towards yes." Lucy said quietly as she watched Cana and Erza struggle in front of the lever.

"You better not let Erza hear you say that." Gray replied to Lucy's quiet utterance.

"I'm doing this for our comrade." Erza replied resolutely.

"Leaning strongly towards yes." Lucy said in an even quieter tone.

"Happy!" Cana shouted. "I'll hold her for as long as I can. You catch up to the train and get Natsu out of there. Try and get back here before I can no longer hold her back!"

"Aye!" Happy said while saluting.

A moment later, Happy, using his [Aero Magic] spread his wings. Then, at high speed, he shot off in the same direction the train left in.

"A hundred Jewels says Happy doesn't make it back in time." Gray said as he watched Cana and Erza wrestle in front of the emergency lever.

"yeah, no thanks." Lucy replied. "I'm not taking a bet that's an obvious loss."

Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Train Ride from Onibus to Kunugi Station.

About five minutes after the train left Onibus station, Natsu woke up. Unsurprisingly, when he did, he felt terrible. So, he simply leaned against the back rest of his seat and waited for the train to reach the next station while trying to take deep, calming breaths.

At the same time, a young man with black hair in a short, spiky ponytail and black eyes wearing a high-collared white shirt with an embroidered design on its back, a red undershirt, a pair of aquamarine pants, black shoes, and a black earring in each ear spotted Natsu as he walked through the train car.

Immediately after Natsu caught his eye, the black-haired young man noticed the red Fairy Tail guild symbol on Natsu's left shoulder. Then, after seeing Natsu's miserable state, the young man grinned maliciously and approached the unsuspecting Natsu.

"Well, what do we have here?" the young man said once he arrived in front of Natsu. "It looks like we have a little Fairy Tail Fly on this train."

"What… Did you say?" Natsu asked with the most menacing glare he could muster at the moment.

"Don't look at me like that!" The young man growled before kicking Natsu off the seat. "You probably think you're better than me because you're part of a legal guild."

Naturally, Natsu was thoroughly confused. Based on what the young man said, Natsu could guess that he was from a Dark Guild. But that was not the reason he glared. In fact, until the young man spoke, he would have never even guessed that he was anything other than a normal young man who was traveling. The only reason he glared at all was because he insulted Fairy Tail.

Before Natsu could protest, however, the young man pressed the sole of his shoe on Natsu's face.

"Not that it will matter for much longer, Little Fly." The young man said with malicious grin on his face. "Since you're gonna die soon."