Chapter 5

My eyes blink open and I struggle to sit up. My head is throbbing in pain.

"What's going on?" I mumble out.

The seat below me is constantly jostling me about, I think I'm in some kind of vehicle. Either way, the bouncing is wreaking havoc on my headache.

I put my head in my hands and try to soothe the pain.

Wait… Something's not right here.

Memories flash before me and I let out a scream. I should be dead. I was stabbed in the heart, run through by Crowley's saber. Thrown away because I lost an arm. An arm that is currently holding my head.

Have I been reborn again?

No, the same long white hair is hanging in front of my face and I'm not an infant. This should still be the same life.

"Kid. Good, you're awake." My head follows the voice to my left and I see the medic who watched me die in the driver's seat. "I gotta contact my boss quick, so just shut up and stay quiet for now."

While he takes out a communication lacrima I can't help but wonder, did he save me? But why? I look over my body, and I'm still in my training gear, bloodied and ripped where I was stabbed. Not a single scar shows on my shoulder to prove that I'd ever been wounded there. I pull my shirt's collar down and look at my chest, but no trace of my stabbing remains.

"Master Hades, the boy has woken up. It appears that his magic didn't cause him to be stuck in a coma." The medic's report contains a few important words that shock me into further silence.

"Good, and you are certain that he has a lost magic?" A gravelly voice that I vaguely recognize from my past life comes from the lacrima.

"Certain. I watched as the boy was stabbed through the heart and already missing an arm. He fell to the ground and passed out. When I went to pick up his body, The flesh around his arm began to grow out, and the wound on his chest sealed shut. I'm certain that this boy has some sort of Regeneration Magic. I've never heard of it, so it must be a lost magic, right?"

"Hmm, if what you say is true then yes, it would be." The voice pauses for a moment. "Are you certain that you escaped the camp without being followed?"

"Yes, as soon as it happened, I hid the boy in a body bag and carried him to the place where they dumped the corpses. A ways past that, I had a magical vehicle hidden so I took him there and left. They shouldn't realize that I'm gone until tomorrow morning."

"Good. They will find out you were a spy, but for all they know, you left with a corpse. Bring the boy here as fast as possible, it's good that they still think him dead. We don't want them to catch up to you and find out the truth." With that said, the lacrima went dim and the connection ended.

"Though," He looks over at me. "You're one lucky brat. If you didn't awaken that ridiculous magic when you did, nothing could have saved you."

I don't bother to respond. I have too much to think about. For now, though, I'm alive, and that's all that matters.

What the hell is up with this?

I get reborn into Fairy Tail. Yay, awesome.

I'm the youngest member of the Strauss family, prominent Fairy Tail mages. That's also awesome, it should mean a free ticket to a fun life.

So what the hell went wrong?

Why is it that at six years old I've already met two of the three leaders of the Balam alliance?

This is what runs through my head as I stand before Hades, the guild master of Grimoire Heart, and possibly the strongest character in the series before the time skip. Well, minus Acnologia and Zeref, but they're total hacks anyway.

I already know the answer to my internal whining though. It's because I survived. The only reason that I got the chance to meet both of them is because I lived long enough for it to happen. As long as I stay alive, all sorts of opportunities will present themselves.

"Boy," Hades finally speaks up. "I am told that you have Regeneration Magic. Is this true?"

"I believe so. I lost my arm and was stabbed in the heart. When I woke up, I was back to perfect health. That's all I know." I answered him truthfully. Hopefully, he doesn't cut anything off to confirm it.

"Hmmm… To have awakened such a rare type of magic, you must have an incredibly strong desire for survival. Magic is born from emotion, so oftentimes our magic reflects our strongest desire. I see that you are quite the survivor." The old dark guild master mutters softly before regaining authority to his voice. "Now then, show me the arm that was cut off." I lift my left arm and he grabs hold of it. After examining it for an uncomfortably long amount of time, he speaks up again. "I see. What you have isn't Regeneration Magic."

"What is it then?" I ask.

"Something else. Something more than just regeneration." He lets go of my wrist and thoughtfully tugs at his beard. "Regeneration Magic would restore your arm to the exact condition it was in when it was cut off. It doesn't heal old wounds from before you awakened your magic. All the records of it state this to be the case but look at your palm. Your calluses are gone."

I'd noticed that before but thought it just was a part of the regeneration. If it's not then…

"Do you know what it is then?"

"I haven't heard of any magic like this before, but from what I can tell you created an entirely new arm rather than rebuilding the old one. Your magic manipulated your flesh and bones down to your very cells into the shape you most desired. In this case, that desire was simply to be whole again, without any wounds that could kill you." His gaze holds my eyes in place. "Basically, to be alive."

"So then," My mind was spinning, trying to come up with ways to apply this new information. "I could change my body into something else if I wanted?"

"Isn't that exactly what you did?" He asks. "You made a new arm without the calluses, but have you felt it? The skin is thicker and harder than what is possible for the raw human body. The flesh there is entirely different than the rest of your body. It's stronger. We'll call it Cell Manipulation Magic." After I don't respond to his naming sense, he speaks up once again. "Boy, what is your name?"

"S301." I'm not Cyrus Strauss. Not anymore.

"That's no good," Hades pauses to think for a moment before his eyes settle on my unkempt hair. "From now on, you're White, a member of Grimoire Heart. Do you know how old you are?"

"6" I welcome the new name. It's more human than being called by an experiment subject code, but not as human as my birth name. It feels the way I feel about myself. I don't have all my humanity anymore, I had to cast some of it aside to live. I don't regret it, I did it to survive and I would do it again, but my old name no longer matches who I am.

" I see, that's quite young to awake your magic at. I understand that you were at a soldier training camp. Do you have a preferred weapon?"

"I fight with a tanto, but I plan to use a full-sized katana when I'm bigger."

"I see. A swordsman." Once again, he falls silent and strokes his beard. "There is a Swordsman of some talent named Yomazu in the guild. He shall be your new combat instructor. Now, one last thing. Where do you want your guild mark?"

"It's just a magic projection, right? It doesn't enter my skin like a tattoo?" I ask.

"That's right. You can also choose its size and color."

"Then I would like it in red on my left eye, in the iris around the pupil."

I am now 7 years old and I spent the vast majority of the last year on Grimoire Heart's airship. They dedicated the year to training me, rather than assigning me any missions.

Training under Yomazu was a horrible experience. The first time I met that goat-faced bastard I knew I was going to hate him, and I was proven right soon after. Hades told him what my magic was and said that making me repair my body would help me learn to control it. That arrogant prick took that as an order to cut off my limbs every time I left an opening. I can't even keep track of the number of times I've had to make a new arm.

The only positive side is that my skills improved by leaps and bounds. My previously atrocious defense was forced to improve quickly if I didn't want to feel some incredible pain. That, and I learned sword magic from him. I now incorporate Narukami into my quickdraw, increasing its destructive power several times over. I didn't bother learning Tsuranuki, which extends his blade, because I have a much more efficient way of accomplishing the same thing.

I look over at my weapon which is propped up alongside my bed. A pure white sword with a hilt and scabbard that looks like a human spine. Its length is somewhere between a tanto and a katana, but the key point is that I can change it at will.

Hades suggested that I make a blade from my own body, that if my control is good enough, I could make it harder than any metal. Originally using my teeth as a base, I spent the entire year experimenting and making it over again, denser and denser, until it got to the point where I was confident it wouldn't break. Right now it can cut steel, and the best part is that it will only grow stronger alongside me.

Hades is personally instructing me in magic, alongside some members of the future Seven Kin of Purgatory like Zancrow (he's already a lunatic and he's only 13) and Ultear (she's already got her claws sunk into the Tower of Heaven and Jellal). I had originally wanted to use my magic to force my body to grow to the size of an adult, but he told me not to. He said that it might affect the growth of my magic core and harm my potential. I've since found out that I can't increase my overall body mass much anyway.

Instead, he had me work on repairing damage to my body and enhancing my physical properties, along with making the sword. Things like hardening my skin until regular knives can hardly pierce the surface, making my bones denser and denser until they would never break, or doing the same with my muscles to increase my physical strength to the maximum limit for my body's size. As a result, now, even when he manages to cut me, Yomazu hasn't been able to cause much more than flesh wounds. Considering that he can cut steel, that's saying a lot. An unexpected side effect of my modifications is that with density comes weight and I'm already approaching 300 pounds despite my diminutive height.

I haven't been allowed to start modifying my organs yet, but I did manage to dull my sense of pain with Hades' help. I normally keep it regular, but being able to dull it in battle will be a huge help with my magic.

Currently, I'm working on adding inhuman elements to my body. I'm trying to add another joint to my calves to increase my dash speed for my quick draw. It would look kind of like that guy from Parasyte, getting rid of my heel and moving the joint further up. The speed of my morphing has gone up, so I should be able to do this right before battle and turn back right after. One of the most overpowered aspects of my magic is that it costs me almost no mana, so even as a child I have a lot of endurance in a fight. It only costs magic to manipulate my flesh, once it's been molded into shape, the effect is permanent and doesn't cost anything to hold until I decide to change back.

After I get the morphing idea down I want to work on enhancing my senses. I can catch a hawk to study its eyes and try to replicate them, catch a bat for hearing, and so on.

As you can see, I've been keeping busy for the past year and still have plenty to do in the future. So busy, that I didn't even realize that last year was x777, the year when everything gets set into motion. Not that it has anything to do with me right now.

Right now, I'm taking a break from my busy life of training because I overheard something interesting from Hades this morning.

I check the mirror to make sure I'm presentable to meet with my guild master.

My white hair sits in an unkempt high ponytail with messy bangs framing my face. My eyes are dark green, the bloodred guild mark gleaming on the left. Grimoire Heart doesn't require a uniform, so I'm wearing a black haori with purple scale patterns wrapping around it and intertwining. Under that, I have baggy black pants that tighten at the ankle. I'm barefoot to allow me to morph my feet in combat.

When I put my sword at my hip in the haori's sash, I look like a miniature version of the Upper Moon One from Demon Slayer. Don't judge me, he looks badass!

With my preparations complete, I leave my bedroom, and head for the guild master's room.

"Master Hades, I wish to offer myself as the executioner for the matter you were discussing this morning." When I enter his room I get straight to the point, Hades doesn't like beating around the bush.

"You? Hmm, I didn't plan on sending you into combat for another year. However, hmm…" He strokes his beard, deep in thought. "Yes, this will work as an excellent test of your abilities. With your magic, you shouldn't die."

"Thank you, master Hades." I bow deeply.

"I don't know how much you heard, so I'll explain your job from the beginning. Sit down." He motions to a chair on the opposite side of his desk. "Recently, an alliance was made between Tartarus, ourselves, and a new dark guild run by Brain known as the Oracion Seis. This alliance is called the Balam Alliance, and while we will go public in the future, for now, we wish for our connection to remain unknown to the council. A man named Crowley is a higher-up in the dark guild Dancing Coffin which works under Brain. I've received news that he has made a deal with the council, he will give them valuable information in exchange for having his record cleared."

"So you want him killed before he can rat out the alliance?" This is what I was waiting for. I heard an execution order for Crowley this morning and I knew I had to be the one to do it.

"Precisely. I don't know what information he plans on telling the council, or if he even knows about the alliance, but I'm not going to sit around and wait to find out. He thinks it's worth a lot, and that's enough for me. He meets them in three days in Hargeon. Kill him before then. Brain sent me a teleport coin as an apology, I'll give it to you." He hands me the coin that I remember from the test and I pocket it and stand up.

"I won't let you down, master Hades." I bow once more before turning to leave.

"One more thing," Hades' voice stops me at the door. "This is a good opportunity for you to test out our secret little project. Don't you think?"

"... It will be done."

"White," He smiles at me. It's not at all a friendly smile. "Have fun."

I walk into a run-down inn in Hargeon. The deal is supposed to be made tomorrow, and I've tracked down Crowley to a room in this inn.

It's late at night and even the owners are asleep. I head straight to the counter and check the registry to find out what room he's in. I know he's going by the name Marvin Hunt, and I quickly find it and head there.

Standing in front of the door, I put the tip of my finger to the lock and shaped my nail so it fits the keyhole. The door unlocks and I push it open in one swift motion before returning my hand to my sword. The door creaks loudly, but it doesn't matter, Crowley already knew I was here. His silence magic had already been cast in a range around his room, so no noise we made would be heard by anyone else. I guess he doesn't want to cause a commotion the day before his deal.

When I enter the room a blade comes flying for my neck, but my sword meets it halfway. Crowley looks down at me and shock fills his face.

"You?! How the hell are you still alive, kid? I killed you." He backs away and gains some distance.

"You should have checked the corpse." My legs morph for a boost and I shoot forward at an impossible speed, drawing my blade and slashing at the same time.

Crowley barely reacts, not expecting such speed from me, and my blade catches his left arm, cutting it off at the elbow. I swing my sword to the side to throw the blood off and sheathe it once more as he hisses in pain and backs up once more.

"Damn, that hurts!" He sears the wound shut with minor fire magic. "You got a lucky hit, don't push your luck brat! I taught you that style, don't expect to catch me off guard again." He launches into an attack scimitar in hand.

His attacks are too fast, too well strung together, for me to block them all, and cuts start to build up. However, that's all they are, my tough skin prevents the blade from digging deep enough to cause any real damage. I need another opening, but it will be difficult when he's attacking like that. I can hate him all I want, but he's a good fighter.

In the middle of his flurry, I deliberately leave a gap in my defense that I know he won't miss. He lunges forward and runs his scimitar through my heart once again. A sneer covers his face as he pushes it in further.

"I don't know how you returned from the dead brat, but you can go back now." When he goes to pull his sword out, his whole body stumbles back instead. "What the?"

His arm falls to the ground and he falls to his butt. A scream of pain and fear is ripped from his throat when I slowly pull his blade out of my chest and let it fall to the floor.

"What the hell are you?!" His shaky voice, laden with fear, sends a shiver down my find. What a wonderful sound!

"I'm just someone who's here for your good." My voice is imbued with more elation than I ever remember feeling, even before this. "I'm here to show you the reality of what it means for the weak to challenge the strong. I want to teach you all about how cruel this world can be." I slowly, carefully, and happily begin to approach him.

"Wait! Waitwaitwaitwaitwait!" He scoots back until he's pressed against the wall. "We can talk this out! Money! I have money! However much you want! If it's not enough I can get more, just please, don't kill me!"

"Kill you?" I ask. "No. No no no no no. I don't want to kill you. Then what would be the point of the lesson?" I bring my mouth to his ear and start to whisper. "You see, I'm doing a little experiment that I need your help with."

"As…" Fear causes his voice to catch. "As long as you don't kill me I'll do anything."

"That's wonderful!" I lean back and smile brightly at him. "You see, Hades and I wondered what would happen if I tried to manipulate another person's flesh instead of my own. We tried it and it worked perfectly but then I got to thinking 'What else can I do?'." I trace my fingers around his head. "If I cut out your brain, can I control it? Can I keep you just alive enough to cast magic and carry you with me?"

Crowley was shaking his head so fiercely that I worried his neck might snap. Tears and snot streamed down his face. Liquid began to pool between his legs.

"Please, Please forgive me. I, I'll do anything, just please let me live." He pleads.

"Hmm, I thought I told you. You won't die." I press my blade up against the corner of his eye. "Well then, shall we begin?"

I hum to myself as I skip down one of Hargeon's alleys under the moonlight.

I'm just too happy.

I unsheathe my sword and look at the blade. There's a single closed eyelid imprinted along its side, a couple of inches below the hilt. I concentrate on commanding it and the lid blinks open to expose a steel grey eyeball.

I laugh loudly, expressing the joy of my success to the world, but the world can't hear my celebration. Everything around me is locked in a bubble of silence. I command the eye to close and the bubble is gone.

WRITTEN BY UPPER MOON'S EYE