Chapter 15: To Destroy the Moon

Chapter Thirteen

"WE DID IT!" Natsu yelled in a celebratory manner as he pumped both fists into the air. "WE COMPLETED AN S-RANK JOB!" He yelled as Happy jumped into the air.

"AYE!" Happy yelled cheerfully.

"Heh," Gray said with a satisfied smirk as he leaned against a destroyed stalagmite.

They all suddenly froze as they felt intimidating glare of Erza hit them like an avalanche.

Crap… I actually forgot. Gray thought as Natsu started to take off before Erza quickly jumped towards him and grabbed his scarf. Those knuckleheads stole that S-Rank, and I went along with it! Gray remembered as he gulped nervously.

"While I'm happy to see that you are excited about breaking one of the most important rules of the Guild." Erza said coolly as she kept a firm grip on Natsu's scarf. "The job still isn't complete." She said and they looked at her in confusion, causing her to sigh. "Wasn't the true goal of your job to change back the villagers?" Erza asked and Natsu and Gray looked at each other.

"But we were able to take out Deliora!" Natsu declared but Erza just shook her head as she crossed her arms, making Natsu choke as she pulled his scarf.

"No, the reason for that phenomenon couldn't have been caused by Deliora." Erza said as she closed her eyes thoughtfully before opening them after several seconds. "The Moon Drip's enormous magical power is the cause, so Deliora's collapse couldn't be expected to change the situation, correct?" She asked and after a few seconds Natsu grinned before nodding his head.

"Right!" Natsu said before looking at Happy. "Let's go heal them real quick!" He said and Happy flew up to give Natsu a high five.

"Aye, sir!" Happy said and Gray gave a small sigh of exasperation.

"How?" Gray asked before his eyes widened slightly. "Oi, Lyon." Gray said as he turned around to look at Lyon as he sat against a boulder.

"No clue." Lyon said simply and they looked at him in surprise and disbelief, making him sigh. "We've known about that village ever since we first came here three years ago." He said as he looked down. "Though we've never interfered with them, neither have they visited us." Lyon said and Erza's eyes widened slightly as Natsu and Gray continued to look at him in surprise.

"For three years, they never showed up?" Erza asked and Lyon nodded his head.

"Also, I have some doubts about Moon Drip's effect on humans." He said and Natsu looked at him in disbelief.

"Don't try to say that it's not your fault." Natsu said and Lyon looked at him coolly.

"My allies and I have been basked in that same light for the past three years." Lyon said and Natsu froze as Gray's and Happy's eyes widened slightly in realization. "Be careful, they're hiding something." He said before looking to the side. "Well, I guess from here on it's the Guild's job, right?" He asked before looking up as Erza stepped in front of him.

"That's right. And as the one responsible for the Moon Drip, you'll be coming with me." Erza said as she glared down at him and Lyon's eyes widened slightly against the weight of her presence.

Link and Lucy

Lucy sat with her arms pulling her legs up to her chest, lost in thought from what she had just heard and worry if everyone was okay, when she suddenly looked over at Link.

Link was currently sitting with his eyes closed and his legs crossed in front of him with his forearms resting on his knees, the middle finger of each hand touching the thumb while the other fingers were extended, and his breathing slow and steady, almost as if he were sleeping.

How can he be so calm? Lucy wondered before she gave a small sigh. The ground stopped shaking and there's no more roars but… what's going on? Lucy couldn't help but wonder as her head drooped to her knees again.

"LUCY!" Happy yelled as he, Natsu, Gray, Erza, and a bound Lyon walked out from the ruins.

"WHAT! ?" Natsu yelled in surprise as Lucy turned around with a wide smile. "Link was here too! ?" Natsu yelled in surprise and Link's ears twitched as his eyes opened.

"Link was badly hurt by Deliora's roar." Happy said before his eyes went wide as Link smoothly stood up before turning around. "WHAAAAT! ?" Happy yelled in surprise before bringing his hands to cover his mouth.

Link, however, didn't even react to the loud yell, getting surprised looks from Natsu and Gray. "Link-san ate some kind of root." Lucy said in explanation. "His hearing is a little bit better but…" Lucy said with an uncertain shrug as Erza looked around.

"Where did that one mage go?" Erza asked and Lucy pointed at Link.

"Erza; let him return to others, please." Link said and Natsu's and Happy's eyes went wide.

"WHAAAT! ?" Natsu demanded angrily as Erza looked at Link in mild surprise before removing the rope from around Lyon's wrists. "NO WAY, HE'S THE ONE RESPONISIBLE FOR THE VILLAGE BEING DESTROYED!" Natsu roared in protest as Lyon rubbed his wrists.

"What did you learn from the mage you let leave?" Erza asked and Link looked off slightly to the side as he recalled Toby's words.

"Sherry… Yuka… all of us are victims of Deliora." Toby said shakily. "It killed our families and destroyed our homes…" He said and Lucy's eyes went wide as Link's eyes widened slightly. "After we witnessed Lyon-sama's strength, we knew that he could do it… that he could destroy Deliora and avenge us." Toby said and Link's eyes closed before he motioned for Toby to leave.

"They were seeking a version of justice." Link said before turning around and walking off. "So long as they don't try to destroy the village again, there is no need to attack them." He said and Natsu grumbled before his eyes widened in remembrance.

"That's right, Link, there's something I have to ask you about your magic!" Natsu said before running up to Link as everyone else moved to follow him.

Gray followed for a while before pausing to look back at Lyon.

"What?" Lyon asked and Gray's face softened slightly.

"You should join a Guild." Gray said with a grin and Lyon's eyes widened. "You'll have comrades and rivals… and I'm sure you'll find a new goal." He said and after a couple of seconds Lyon turned away irritably.

"J-just get out here." Lyon said before he walked off and Gray's grin grew a couple of inches before he turned around to catch up to the others.

When everyone got back to the village, all the villagers gathered in front of them to hear the story of what happened at the ruins of the Moon Temple.

"So the ones at the Moon Temple were trying to resurrect a demon?" One of the demonic-looking villagers asked as the entire village stood around the six from Fairy Tail once they were done with their explanation, all of them looking with varying degrees of awe and shock.

"That's correct, though fortunately nothing came of it." Erza said before the Chief suddenly walked forward.

"That's all well and good, hoga, BUT!" The Chief suddenly yelled, making everyone look at him in surprise. "MAGES, WHEN WILL YOU DESTROY THE MOON FOR US? !" He demanded and Lucy took a small step back from the force of his yell with a look of fear on her face.

Right as Gray gave a small sound of annoyance, Erza suddenly stepped forward. "If it's just destroying the moon, there shouldn't be a problem." She said and everyone but Link looked at her in surprise.

"She's… saying something so off the wall so calmly…" Gray said a little nervously while Lucy's jaw nearly hit the ground.

"Aye!" Happy said as he raised on paw in the air.

"But first, there's something I want to confirm." Erza said as she crossed her arms. "You all gained that appearance after the purple moon appeared, right?" She asked and the Chief stepped forward, his massive sideburns swaying with the movement.

"Hoga, to be exact, we only change like this when the moon comes out." He said and several villagers nodded in agreement with him.

"From your story, that started three years ago, correct?" Erza asked as she started walking back and forth with her arms crossed and looking down with a thoughtful expression.

"Yeah…" One villager said as they looked at each other. "That sounds about right." Another one said with a nod of his head.

"However… the Moon Drip ritual has been held daily for three years now." Erza said as she slowly started walking towards a pile of cut grass. "You should've seen a ray of light at the ruins every night." She said before she stepped onto the pile of grass, making Gray's, Natsu's Happy's, and Lucy's eyes go wide as her foot went through the grass before stopping as it landed on a large, blue, crystal-shaped platform.

The four of them looked over at Link, who was already looking at them with a mildly curious expression. Happy immediately pointed at Lucy, making her look at Happy panic-stricken.

"Meaning, that's the most suspicious place on this island." Erza continued on as she walked across the platform to the other side of the hole.

"Does… she not even realize she almost fell in a hole?" One of the villagers asked before Erza suddenly stopped and turned to look at the villagers.

"Why didn't you investigate it?" Erza asked as she put her hands on her hips and all the villagers hesitated before murmuring amongst themselves.

"T…that's because…" The Chief said nervously before strengthening his voice. "It's a tradition to go nowhere near the ruins." He said and everyone looked at the villagers skeptically.

"But the situation was serious, right?" Lucy asked and the villagers looked amongst each other again. "You even had casualties; and seeing how expensive you made the reward…" She trailed off as the villagers started murmuring amongst themselves.

"If we're going to help you, we need the truth." Erza said and the Chief looked to the side before taking a deep breath.

"To tell you the truth… we don't know what's going on either." The Chief said after he looked back at Erza. "We tried to investigate the ruins many times… we truly did." He said before looking down with a confused expression on his face. "We gathered some unfamiliar weapons, I arranged my sideburns… and we went towards the ruins countless times." He said before looking up at them. "But we couldn't get close to it, every time we would just end up back in front of the gate." He said and Natsu and Lucy looked at him in surprise.

"Hmmm…" Erza hummed as she brought her right hand to her chin thoughtfully. After a few seconds she looked at Link, who had his arms crossed and his eyes closed thoughtfully.

After a couple of seconds he opened his eyes to look at her and she raised one eyebrow curiously at him, to which he nodded his head.

"Very well then." Erza said with a nod of her head and Lucy sweat-dropped.

"Somehow I feel they just had a long conversation with just that…" She said and Gray nodded his head.

"From the way it went, Erza asked Link if he had reached the same conclusion she did." Gray said and Lucy looked at him in surprise, to which he shrugged. "You get used to it." He said and Lucy's jaw dropped.

Far outside of the village, on the branch of a large tree, Zarti sat with a huge bump on his cheek and couldn't help but grin in admiration. "Maharathi and Titania… to think those two already have it figured out." He said as he leaned back against the trunk to enjoy the show.

"Everyone," Erza said and she immediately had everyone's attention. "Link and I will now destroy the moon." She said and everyone's eyes went wide while Gray's and Lucy's jaw dropped as they stared at the two, and to their further shock they could see no hint of doubt on Erza's nor Link's face about her declaration.

"COOOL!" Natsu declared with a wide smile as Erza held out her right hand and Equipped a three-bladed spear, the two other blades resting to the base of the first to form an edged cross guard, with a steel shaft and a metal cap at the end as Link Equipped his Silver Gauntlets.

"This," Erza said as she held out the spear. "Is the De-Malevo Lance, which crushes evil spells and creatures." She said before she and Link turned around and looked up at the purple moon.

Link held out right arm and Equipped a crossbow the size of a ballista with runes running down both sides of the stock.

"LINK-SAN JUST EQUIPPED A BALLISTA!" Lucy screamed in shock as Natsu's smile got wider.

"Aye!" Happy said brightly and Lucy looked down at him in disbelief at how easily he accepted it.

"By combining it with Link's Mach Crossbow, we'll destroy the moon and end this curse." Erza said and all the villagers smiled widely while Erza loaded the De-Malevo Lance into the crossbow.

"We're actually… going to see the moon get destroyed." One villager said in awe as Lucy and Gray looked on nervously.

What... what if they actually do destroy the moon? Lucy thought with wide eyes as the runes on the stock of the crossbow started to glow weakly.

"YOU CAN DO IT!" Natsu roared with a wide smile when the runes were glowing brightly and Link jumped in the air as Erza cupped her hands together to create a step. The instant Link's left foot made contact with her hands she launched him up into the air.

"Everyone, cover your ears." Erza said as she looked back and everyone looked down from Link at her in confusion. "Only the wielder is protected from the Mach Crossbow's effect." She said before covering her ears and everyone quickly covered their ears as Link brought the crossbow up and took aim at the moon. A few seconds later Link pulled the trigger, and a sonic boom filled the area as the spear was sent launching up at moon.

Everyone but Erza struggled against the powerful winds the sonic boom picked up as she and the still airborne Link's eyes were fixed on the supersonic spear. Come on! They both thought as it rocketed through the air.

"What... WHAT THE HELL IS THIS! ?" Lucy screamed as the wind started to die down, allowing everyone to open their eyes.

Right before Link landed a large crack appeared in the moon and everyone eyes went wide.

For Natsu and Happy, it was exhilaration for seeing the moon actually destroyed.

For the villagers, it was joy that finally the curse was about to be lifted from them just as the chief had said.

For Gray and Lucy, they were both thinking about how Master Makarov was going to react to something as drastic as actually destroying the moon and couldn't think of a way to explain it to him in a way that wouldn't prevent him from exploding with anger.

The cracking continued when suddenly the sky itself started cracking, making everyone's reaction shift to surprise, before it shattered like glass to reveal a normal night sky and moon.

"The moon didn't break but... the sky did?" Lucy said in surprise as she tried to figure out what had just happened.

"WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED! ?" Natsu demanded and Erza looked back with a small smile as she took her hands from her ears.

"There was an evil layer over the island." Erza explained as Link Ex-Equipped the Mach Crossbow and his Silver Gauntlets and everyone but Link looked at her for a further explanation. "Think of it like exhaust fumes caused by the Moon Drip ritual that crystallized in the air. That's why the moon looked purple." She said as the village started to glow. "And now, the island will regain its original shine." She said as everyone looked at the villagers in awe as they also started to glow.

Several seconds later the glow dissipated to reveal... the villagers still in the form of demons.

"Huh...?" One of the villagers said in confusion as she looked at still clawed hands while the other villagers were similary confused.

"What the... they didn't turn back to normal?" Gray said as he looked around in disbelief.

"Oh no..." Happy said as he looked up at the villagers.

"This is their normal appearance." Link said and Erza nodded her head as the villagers looked at each other uncertainly.

"The evil layer over the island affected their memory, not their appearance." Erza said and Natsu looked at her in confusion. "'We turn into demons at night,' wrong thoughts like that." She said and Lucy's eyes slowly widened in growing fear.

"N...n... no way..." Lucy said as she stared at Link and Erza.

"That's just how it is." Erza said before motioning to the villagers. "They were demons to begin with." She said and Lucy dropped to her knees in terror as Natsu's eyes shot wide in shock.

Gray looked at one of the villagers with wide eyes, his jaw nearly touching the ground. "F...for real?" He asked and the villager looked back at him uncertainly.

"I... guess?" The villager answered, still not sure what was going on.

"They must have had the ability to turn into humans, and the Moon Drip affected their memory and made them believe that they were actually humans." Erza said and they all looked at her shakily.

"But... why weren't Lyon and the others affected?" Lucy asked as she still shivered in fear.

"Because they're human. Moon Drip probably only affects demons." Link explained and the villagers looked around at each other again. "It's also why they, as demons, could not approach ruins that hold holy light." He said before his ears twitched and he looked to the side.

"Amazing." Someone said and everyone looked to the source of the voice, where Link was already looking, to see another demon in a traveling cloak walking up. "I'm glad I left it in your hands." He said and Natsu and Gray looked at him in surprise as Lucy and Happy hugged each other in terror.

"A GHOST!" They both screamed as they recognized him as the sailor who had gotten them halfway to the island before.

"Thank you, mages." He said with a sincere smile on his scaled face.

"Bo..." The Chief said as he stared dumbstruck at the demon. "Bobo..." He said and one of the villagers looked between Bobo and the grave with a confused expression.

"Hahahaha!" Bobo laughed in amusement from the looks on their faces. "We demons wouldn't actually die from something like being stabbed in the chest, right?" He asked and Gray walked towards him uncertainly.

"But... back on the boat..." Gray started to say before Bobo suddenly vanished, taking him by surprise.

"Sorry I couldn't tell you the truth before." Bobo said and everyone looked up to see him hovering with a pair of leathery wings. "I ran away because I was the only one who regained his memories." He said as he looked down at everyone. "I was afraid because everyone thought they were human." Bobo said and the Chief looked up with watering eyes.

The Chief suddenly looked down and leathery wings began to grow from his back. "BOBOOOOO!" He yelled as he flew up at Bobo.

Bobo smiled widely as he held out his arms. "You're finally back to your senses, Dad!" Bobo said happily right before the Chief slammed into him, hugging him tightly as he shed tears of joy.

All the villagers watched before they all started smiling widely as leathery wings grew from their backs. "BOBO'S BACK!" They all cried out happily as they flew high into the sky to celebrate.

"Fu fu..." Erza laughed softly as she looked up at the sight with a smile, Link also grinning widely. "Demon Island... huh?" She said as everyone else also smiled at the sheer delight on the demons' faces.

"If you look at their faces..." Natsu said as he watched them fly through the air. "The look more like angels than demons." He said and Link nodded his in agreement.

"TONIGHT WE'RE GONNA PARTY LIKE HELL!" A group of them yelled and Lucy sweat dropped.

"Somehow... that sounds wrong." She said with a sigh before she smiled again.

The following day, everyone from Fairy Tail gathered at the gate of the village to say farewell.

"Hoga... here is the seven million-"

"I apologize," Erza said, cutting off the Chief. "But I'm afraid that we can't accept the reward for this job." She said as and the entire village looked at her in shock.

"Y... you can't accept it?" The Chief asked in dumbfoundment and Link nodded his head in agreement with Erza.

"As we explained last night, some idiots just rushed into this; so it wasn't officially accepted by our Guild." Erza said and the Chief stammered in objection.

"You happiness is reward enough." Link said with a kind smile and several of the female demons blushed.

"Hoga... but..." The Chief said before smiling brightly. "That doesn't change the fact that we were indeed saved." He said warmly. "How about as a thank you gift to a friend then?" He asked and Link and Erza paused before Erza gave a small sigh of resignation.

"If you put it that way, it's hard to reject it." Erza said and the villagers cheered and Gray and Natsu looked over from where they had been arguing with wide smiles.

"S... SEVEN MILLION JEWELS!" They both yelled as fire shot from Natsu's nostrils and Link winced slightly as his ears twitched.

"However, to accept the money would go against what Fairy Tail stands for." Erza said before smiling warmly. "We'll gladly accept the Golden Key, though." She added when the villagers looked at her in shock again.

"WE DON'T WANT THAT!" Natsu and Gray yelled in disappointment making Link's ears twitch again, this time from annoyance.

"I DO!" Lucy screamed and Link glared back at all three of them, making them freeze.

"Well then..." Bobo said uncertainly, wanting to find some way to repay them. "At least let us get you back to Harujion." He offered but Erza once again shook her head.

"No need, Link and I already have transportation." Erza said and all the villagers looked at them with dumbfounded expressions.

Everyone followed Link and Erza as they walked down to the beach, the villagers following out of curiosity as to how they had procured transport to the island. When they got to the beach, everyone stopped and looked up in awe at the massive ship that waited.

"A pirate ship! ?" Gray yelled in surprise as Natsu looked up at it, shading his eyes with his right hand.

"You two hijacked it!" Happy said with an awed expression on his face, to which Link shook his head and pointed at Erza, who smirked in response.

"ANE-SAN! ANIGO-SAN!" The pirate crew yelled when they saw Link and Erza. "WE WAITED FOR YOU TWO TO COME BACK, JUST AS PROMISED!" They yelled and Link smiled as he waved up at them while Lucy just looked at the two of them.

"Ane-san, anigo-san?" She asked and Erza made a small sound of amusement before Lucy and Natsu were enveloped in Nayru's Embrace and slowly lifted up to the deck.

"I could get used to this." Natsu said with a wide smile, happy in the knowledge that traveling on the ship wouldn't give him motion sickness.

Once everyone else was on the deck, the pirate crew quickly hoisted up the anchor and prepared the ship for getting underway. "EVERYONE!" Bobo suddenly yelled as the ship started to pull away. "THANKS FOR EVERYTHING!" He yelled as he waved at them.

"TAKE CARE!" Lucy yelled back with a wide smile as she waved enthusiastically as everyone else looked back with smiles of their own.

From another vantage point on the island, another group of people watched the ship depart.

"They're gone." A young man with blue, spiky hair and huge eyebrows said as he watched them leave with a quivering lip, his green and light green jacket blowing in the wind.

"I'M NOT CRYING AT ALL!" Toby yelled as he sobbed into his arm and Sherry looked back at him in confusion as Angelica watched it all impassively as she sat towering above them all.

"Hey... Sherry." Lyon suddenly said and she immediately looked at him attentively. "Are Guilds fun?" He asked and everyone blinked before Sherry smiled warmly at him.

After an hour of sailing, the island was lost from sight and Lucy sighed as she sat down against the mast. "I still can't believe we pulled it off." She said tiredly, the events of the past two nights still affecting her.

"Yes... and now we have to hurry back to decide your punishment." Erza said and Lucy, Gray, Natsu, and Happy all froze.

"Hey... Erza... can't we get a break?" Gray asked and Erza looked over at him questioningly. "I mean Link had a disagreement with the old man about his very first job, can't you just look at this the same way?" He asked and Link froze as Natsu, Happy, and Lucy looked at Gray in surprise.

"Gray, there is one major difference between what Link did then and this occurrence." Erza said firmly. "Link stood up to Master and argued his case, he didn't steal it behind Master's back." She said, sending a glare at the other three as she said the last part that made them cringe.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Gray said with a small sigh as he crossed his arms. "Nearly leaving Fairy Tail because of a job is a bit more mature I suppose." He said somewhat smugly and Link looked away and up at the sky, his ears lowering slightly.

"WHAAT! ?" Natsu yelled in surprise as he all but slammed his face against Nayru's Embrace. "LINK ALMOST LEFT FAIRY TAIL! ?" He demanded and Link looked back with a look of embarrassment while he scratched his cheek with one finger as he recalled the event.

Hope everyone enjoyed the chapter.

Till next time.