The moon shone high in the sky that night, it's silvery light spread out upon the forest and river as Mikoto walked through the woods, trying to follow the scent of her friends. She could imagine that everybody else was probably in a panic right now.
Natsu would probably be attempting to crash into the woods and burn all the trees down until he found Mikoto. And Elli was probably shedding a few tears wondering if Mikoto was okay. Well one thing was for sure...after getting washed out in that river, and taking a few of Jackal's explosions, her scent wasn't going to be as easy to track for Gajeel and Natsu.
This meant she would have to track the group herself, while trusting them to stay on course despite their worries. If they deviated off track for even a day just to search for her, Mikoto didn't want to think about how many more enemy ambushes that might open them up for.1
Everyone else including Elli knew Mikoto had survived worse then this. But Mikoto still felt a little guilty about the large worry she was causing Elli. Mikoto had actually originally been against Elli coming along for the battles ahead, feeling scared that the horrors of war might scar her little friend. But Elli had insisted that even if she didn't take her, she would find some way to sneak along.
"Oh jeez, would you just admit you're lost already!?" growled Jackal who being pulled along on a makeshift sled made of tree branches and vines. "At least get us something to eat from the river over there! Plenty of fish!"
Mikoto rolled her eyes. She decided to bring Jackal along because number 1, he probably had valuble information on Hydra Head. And number 2, with both his arms and legs broken and the inability to call for help other then Mikoto, he was less likely to try anything, not unless he wanted to just lie in the forest and die.
Mikoto zapped Jackal with a good bolt of lightning. "Shut up! I'm not babysitting you! You're a prisoner!"
Jackal shook his head as smoke blew off of him. "Yeesh...what a harsh girl...I'll bet you're a Tsundere where your love life is concerned."1
"ZZZZAMM!!" Jackal was hit with some more electricity.
"You're the most annoying Hydra Head member since Night Reveler.." grumbled Mikoto. "And come to think of it, he was also ranked 20...guess that's the spot where they send all their most annoying members."
Jackal opened his mouth to utter a harsh retort, but then he seemed to remember Mikoto's lightning attacks and temper, and decided to clam up.1
From what Mikoto heard, Jackal had used to be in a guild called Tartarus. A guild completely comprised of demons from the book of Zeref. After a war with Fairy Tail, Tartarus had been dismantled, leaving the presence of strong dark guilds in the Baram Alliance very small indeed, especially considering that Hydra Head had kept itself extremely seperate and secret from everyone but Hades of Grimoire Heart.
The surviving members had scattered themselves all over the world. Some of the survivors were actually believed to be dead...but still, members like Jackal had managed to keep a low profile. Then Jackal had come up about a month after the formation of the Rainbow Gateway as the new leader of Skill Out.
Rumored to be the most powerful leader the gang ever had, Jackal ruled primarily through fear, seeking out high level espers and having Skill Out members capture them alive so he could fight them until he got bored.
However, given that most of Skill Out was comprised of level 0s and they gained advantages over espers thanks to their numbers...they could never bring in any high level fighters who now hung around Academy City, like magic guild members or a level 5 like Mikoto.
Mikoto actually heard that they tried to take Gajeel once. Gajeel hadn't even used his magic, beating up all fourteen of the small group in the alley way with his fists and a few headbutts. It had actually been hilarious because Fairy Tail already had a big reputation in Academy City and it was considered that if any schmuck crook wanted an early funeral, the best way was to go pick on a member of Fairy Tail.
Anyways, the last Mikoto heard, Jackal was still kicking back in Academy City, giving many of the authorities a hard time..as well as some official guilds that had been hired to take them down. The board of directors were currently seeing hiring Fairy Tail as a last resort due to Fairy Tail's largely destructive way of handling these situations.
"So where's your little gang?" Mikoto asked. "Aren't they going to miss their leader?"
"Heh.." snorted Jackal. "As if they would miss me...they're scared of me, that's all. However, they'll still do whatever I tell em even when I'm away! That's what I call influence!"
"And it's that kind of influence that usually get's tyrants killed." Muttered Mikoto.
Suddenly Mikoto froze. Like all the other episodes she had...it came out of nowhere. She suddenly remembered the white room...the horrid images...the pain that had reached it's violating grasp through her head.
Mikoto hugged herself and fell to her knees, quivering
"Wha?" said Jackal. "What the heck's the matter with you!?"
Mikoto tried to remember what Lucy would tell her everytime she froze like this. "Take a deep breath..just keep breathing...breathe...focus on my voice and breathe."
After a little slow breathing, Mikoto calmed down as a tear trickled down her cheek. The episodes were getting more frequent. She suspected all the constant fighting had something to do with it.
Mikoto hated her current situation. Even though she could smell that she was getting closer and closer to her friends, she felt cold and alone. Nobody here to talk to but an obnoxious bomb happy demon. Sometimes, Mikoto thought about Ghost Slumberer and how he would probably be following in the shadows of the moonlight...waiting..watching.
Mikoto took a deep breath again and stood up, grabbing the sled by some vines and pulling it along again.
"Why ain't you a fragile little thing." said Jackal with a devilish grin.
"Sh-shut up..." said Mikoto sounding more shaky and vulnerable then she intended. Mikoto continued to walk along in silence for a bit before she started to hear a strange familiar sound...her pocket was ribbiting..
Mikot reached in frantically and pulled out her Gekota cellphone. Cellphone service was quite a luxury in Fiore. Academy City's construction of cellphone towers hadn't spread completely to the northern areas yet, so usually cellphone users tended to stay around the Crocus and Magnolia town areas.
Mikoto opened the cellphone and put it to her ear. "Hello!?"
"Biribiri!? Man! Thank goodness! I thought cellphone service was supposed to be abysmal!" said a familiar voice.
Mikoto could hardly believe her ears. "KAMIJOU!? Wha-what do you mean service is abysmal!? Where are you!?"
"I erm...please just hear me out...don't fly off the handle..."
"Touma..." Mikoto growled. "Just tell me.....what did you do?"
"I might have pretended to be a soldier and joined one of the squads near yours....well we're supposed to meet with you farther north anyways....hehehe...heh..."
Mikoto sighed. "Why am I not surprised? Okay, nosey boyfriend of mine, why did you do it? You know I can take care of myself."
"Okay, I don't know how to tell you this...but Index is in your squad."
"Huh?" said Mikoto. "Index? That's impossible! What's she doing here!? She's not a fighter!!"
"She snuck in and disguised herself as a soldier." said Touma. "I don't even know why! YAAARRGH! My stupid darn luck!"
"Listen Touma..I don't know how long it'll be before I lose this signal." said Mikoto. "I'm kinda out of reach with my squad right now..but I'll try and use a communications tent to contact you soon! Which squad are you a part of?"
Suddenly another familiar voice came through the phone.
"That would be mine." said Laxus's voice. "I kinda caught him this morning..."
Mikoto slapped a hand to her face. "Well...at least it was you who caught him...Well tell Touma that.."
Suddenly there was nothing but static. Mikoto cursed a bit before she snapped her phone shut. Jackal watched for a bit, but wisely didn't say anything, preffering to keep lightning free for a while longer.
Mikoto tried to clear her mind as she attempted to think about where Index might have...oh dear..
Mikoto remembered one soldier who always stood out from the others because she was shorter then the others...she always kept her hair hidden under her helmet....and she wore her mask even when their was nothing hazardous around.
Mikoto gritted her teeth..."Oh...my...God...Erza is going to have a fit."
In a way, Mikoto guessed that Touma's call had helped snap her out of the episode she just had, because now she was too busy feeling ticked at Index to concentrate on it. Now she just wanted to get back to her squad and find the little nun before she got herself eaten by an Etherial Wyrm or worse.
"Stupid...darn...nun...mutter..mutter.." Mikoto grumbled as she kicked aside some twigs and rocks.
Suddenly Mikoto stopped in her tracks. Her enhanced dragon hearing was currently taking in something ominous. A long slithering sound...as if something large and serpent-like was sneaking up on her.
On a whim, Mikoto slowly turned her head around and nearly screamed when she saw Slither's head raised above her, his fangs bared ready to strike.
Mikoto attempted to dodge, but Slither's attack speed was so incredible, couldn't have dodged even if she was as fast as a bullet train.
Mikoto screamed out as Slither's fangs bit into her side. She fell to ground, blood staining the grass, as she could hear Jackal cackling.
"Do not feel embarrased little Railgun." said Slither. "None have ever noticed my presence until it was too late...of course considering my speed...anytime is too late."
Mikoto coughed as a little blood spurted out of her mouth. She could feel her wings attempting to activate, but her electricity seemed to be getting feebler and feebler with each attempt to let it flow.
"It's the end for you." said Slither. "My venom leaves none alive...normally you would be a puddle of flesh by now..but thanks to your dragon blood, it'll merely take a little more time...longer suffering."
"Now that's an end I can watch!" Jackal said cacklling. "See ya later Tsun Tsun!!"
Suddenly Mikoto began to feel lighter..as if the venom was leaving her.. she felt her side and found that the wound had closed up...looking at her hand she could see some slight silverish scales.
"You saved me again Elanis.." Mikoto muttered as she stood up, wiping blood off her mouth.
"Impossible!!" said Slither staring at Mikoto. "Nobody has ever withstood my venom!!"
"Ya wanna dance snakey!?" said Mikoto as her wings sparked to life. "Let's dance!"
Slither's yellow eyes flashed dangerously. "You'll regret those words little girl!"
There was a blur and Slither was suddenly behind Mikoto, using his tail to smash her into a tree, Mikoto got up to counterattack, but Slither was already gone.
0.1 seconds later, Mikoto was suddenly hit from behind by the speeding blur, then the legs, the front..it was as if the giant snake with arms turned into a living supersonic bullet.
Mikoto couldn't fight back at all, she was pounded into the air, and she before she even touched the ground, she had already been thrashed about 300 times over.
Darn...he's too fast! Mikoto thought. My only hope is to attack the entire area at once!
"SECRET ART: SHOCK BOMB OF THE THUNDER DRAGON!!!"
Mikoto's body glowed as a massive sphere of lightning blasted out from her body, leveling over two miles of trees around her, and knocking Slither into the ground, as well as sending the already injured Jackal flying.
Mikoto fell to the ground, grateful for finally being able to have some relief from the quick relentless blows of the snake man.
Slither got up wearilly and shook his scaley head, trying to get the fatigue off his scales. "Eh...crap..didn't see that coming..."
MIkoto jumped up and opened her mouth, "ROAR OF THE THUNDER DRAGON!!!"
Slither dodged, the tip of his tale barely bypassing the electric blast. Though Slther may have been fast...lightning was primarily known for being the original fast. Now that Mikoto had a chance to counterattack, Slither was forced into the defensive, as he shot around the area dodging lightning bolt after lightning bolt.
Mikoto was also on the defensive though, she was forced to constantly attack in order to not give Slither even a slight second of an opening to shoot in and continue his relentless barrage.
"You know I wonder." said Slither as he continued to dodge Mikoto's attacks. "What was it like back in Edolas, when they put you in that device? Painful? Or just plain heartbreakiing?"
That did it. The shock that Slither actually knew about that was enough to put Mikoto into another episode. Her attacks stopped going and she fell to her knees, shivering.
"My my.." said Slither, gliding slowly and deliberately towards Mikoto now. "You really are a shattered girl aren't you? Even mention what happened there and you fall to pieces.
Breathe...Mikoto thought. Just breathe...
But Mikoto couldn't seem to get it together this time.
Slither glided right over next to Mikoto and lowered his head right next to her ear. "How does feel...knowing that those scars will never heal? Well...don't you worry, I'll put you out of your misery..."
Slither raised a clawed hand, preparing to take Mikoto's head off. Suddenly his pupils contracted as though he noticed something coming closer. "Darn it...your attack earlier attracted some unwanted attention.....another time Railgun...I promise your death will be even slower then I am swift."
Slither shot away into grass as Jackal cursed. "HEY! What about me!? Come back here!!"
The next thing Mikoto knew, somebody warm was hugging the life out of her...it took her several seconds to realize it was Lucy. Standing next to her was Levy who looked extremely relieved.
"Well that's one way to get our attention." said Levy. "What happened here Mikoto? Are you alright?"
Mikoto tried to say something...but instead what came out were some stuttered syllables.
"She's having a freeze up again.." said Lucy. "Come on...we should get her something hot to drink.."
"What a loser." muttered Jackal. "She acts all tough but suddenly freezes up like that.."
Lucy glared at the demon. "Some talk coming from a guy who had his butt handed to him on a silver platter."
Jackal merely grumbled in response.1
More on Slither.
When Slither originally came into existance after he was created through the mergeance of an alien lifeform and an anaconda, he initially displayed no intelligence, acting instinctually and feeding off large mammals like a normal anaconda. He became known as the Serpentaur...the snake man who know hunter could kill.
Eventually though, Slither became aware of himself, and explored the world, learning words and phrases very quickly, actually learning faster then most humans. He also became very skilled in speed magic, as he was already quite fast in comparison to many life on the planet.
Slither's scales are harder then even Gajeel's iron, making it very hard to hurt him with physical blows. His venom is known to be rivaled only by Hydra Head's Arachnis Widower, and thanks to her death, Slither is now known as the most venomous member of Hydra Head.
While his venom is deadly, Slither's speed is what he is most known for. Being able to break the sound barrier even while swimming underwater, Slither can use his speed in conjunction with his venom and hard scales to become a very deadly opponent.