Chapter 77: A Talk With Ultear
"Sorano, do you know anything useful about Grimoire Heart" asked Dante as he and the others were trying to figure out what to do next. He knew that Sorano's time in the Oracion Seis was a sore subject, but he needed to know any information that could help his friends out. Sorano looked at her master with a sad look as she responded.
"I don't know much about them but what I do know isn't good. The Seven Sins of Purgatory are legendary among the dark guilds, each of them possess a form of lost magic" Sorano explained to Dante and Panther Lilly.
"Lost magic huh? That can't be good, any idea why they are attacking right now" asked Dante as Sorano shook her head.
"No, I don't have any clue but Dante there's something else you should know" responded Sorano in a nervous tone. Dante felt himself become nervous with how scared Sorano was as he responded.
"What is it" asked Dante thinking how this situation could be any worse than it already was.
"The master of Grimoire, there are troubling rumors surrounding his origin" responded Sorano as she shook with fear.
"What kind of rumors? You're starting to scare me Sorano, what is it" asked Dante wondering what could have Sorano so scared.
"There are rumors that Hades the master of Grimoire Heart was a former guild master of a legal guild" responded Sorano in a scared tone. It was at this point that Dante started to get nervous at her words. He could only think of one guild being the former master of that would make Sorano this scared but that wasn't possible Dante thought.
"What guild Sorano" asked Dante hoping her answer wouldn't be what he was dreading it would be.
"It's Fairy Tail" responded Sorano to the shock of Dante and Panther Lilly. Hearing these words Dante was filled with dread at the prospect of facing a former master of his beloved guild.
"I don't believe it, that's not possible. How could a former master of Fairy Tail fall so low" asked Panther Lilly in disbelief. Dante in response stood up and started to speak.
"I don't want to believe it either Panther Lilly, but it would explain why Grimoire Heart was able to even find Tenrou Island. This island is supposed to be hidden and only members of Fairy Tail can find it" stated Dante before he continued to speak.
"Sorano, I need to make sure Mira and the others are safe, stay with Panther Lilly. Panther Lilly, please keep Sorano safe" stated Dante as Panther Lilly nodded his head.
Dante then transformed into his Angel Soul Gabriel form and took to the sky.
Just before he took to the sky, he heard Sorano call out after him, but he still flew away. Sorano was safe for now and Dante trusted Panther Lilly to keep Sorano safe. Knowing where the base camp was, Dante spread his wings wide and flew at a high speed straight towards it. He needed to make sure Mira and the others were safe and he needed to relay this troubling information to Master Markov. Hopefully Markov would know something about the former guild master if he was indeed their enemy.
"MIRA NO" yelled Lisanna in distress as she held onto Mira's unconscious form.
Mira had just taken a powerful blast that was meant for Lisanna and now Mira was in bad shape. Lisanna's tears were falling from her face as she was begging her big sister to wake up. She was so lost in her grief that she did not notice Dante land next to her. Dante landing next to Lisanna saw the sight of Mira in such an injured state and his entire body was filled with primal rage.
"Lisanna, who did this" stated Dante, his voice finally altered Lisanna to his presence. Turning her head, Lisanna felt some relief seeing that her big brother was okay.
"Dante you're okay, that man told Mira and I he had defeated you" responded Lisanna with a sad smile as she held onto Mira.
"He did but thanks to Sorano I'm back in the fight. Was it Azuma who did this then" responded Dante with a killer look on his face. Lisanna was somewhat shocked to see such a look on her big brother, she could almost feel the rage pouring from his body.
"Y-yes it was Azuma" responded Lisanna in a sad tone. Dante nodded his head as he turned around and spoke to Lisanna.
"Mark my words, I'm going to make him pay for this Lisanna. Keep Mira close and safe, I'm going to hunt that bastard down" stated Dante in a serious tone as Lisanna nodded her head before Dante continued to speak.
"If you come across anyone else from the guild relay this piece of information. The enemy is far stronger than we thought. The guild master of Grimoire Heart according to Sorano is rumored to be a former master of Fairy Tail" stated Dante to the shock of Lisanna.
"W-what are you sure" asked Lisanna not believing that such a thing could be possible.
"Honestly, I'm not but it would make sense. Just make sure if you come across master to ask him about the former master, we might need to know everything we can about him" responded Dante before he spread his wings wide in order to take flight. Lisanna giving Dante a smile, she started to speak.
"Go and teach him a lesson big brother" responded Lisanna wanting Azuma to face justice for what he did to her sister. Dante nodded his head in response before he took off into the sky. Soaring through the sky, Dante started his search for Azuma.
Dante tried to think where Azuma would be as he flew through the sky. Thinking to himself that if he found another Kin of Purgatory, he could force them to tell him where Azuma was. Remembering the sight of Mira in her injured state filled Dante with rage. The rage was slowly overriding the pain from his injuries, rage is one hell of an anesthetic Dante thought. Just after Dante thought this he was struck by a strange pink beam of energy.
"W-what the hell is this" stated Dante as he looked at his wrist that now had a strange heart shaped marking. At first, he thought this was some sort of attack, but he felt no pain at all. In fact, an entirely different sensation started to rush through his body.
"Huh? Why is my face blushing and my heart beating quickly?! What the hell is going on" asked Dante out loud before a sharp stinging pain shot up from his arm. Dante screamed at the sudden pain, it felt like his arm was being ripped open but looking at his arm the flesh was unharmed.
"Damn what the hell?! Why am I in such pain, Sorano should have healed me" asked Dante briefly thinking maybe his injuries from his fight against Azuma were more server than he originally thought. No that couldn't be it, Sorano was able to heal the majority of his injuries, this was something new. Just as Dante was thinking this, even more pain exploded from his gut.
"AHHH! What the hell is going on" yelled Dante as he felt like he was punched in the gut with an enormous amount of magical energy.
With the sudden exploding pain radiating from his body with no explanation as to why, Dante felt himself lose his focus and revert back to his normal form. Without his wings, Dante was sent crashing into the earth. He tried to transform back into his Angel Soul Gabriel form, but the pain was making him lose his focus whenever he tried. Bracing himself for the rough landing, Dante crashed into the ground hard.
"I don't understand what's going on" stated Dante out loud as he shakily rose to his feet. Why in the hell was his body in so much pain? He needed to get to the bottom of this since Dante noticed he was not alone. Looking up he saw a stunned black haired woman in a skintight suit carrying an unconscious man. The woman quickly got over her shock as she set down the man and started to walk towards Dante.
"Well well it's not every day a Fairy drops from the sky like that" stated the mystery woman in a mocking tone as she radiated magical power. Dante swore to himself, this person seemed to be another of the Seven Kin. While he was searching for the Seven Kin so he could track down Azuma, now wasn't the best time since his body was acting weird. Trying to act tough despite the unexplained pain coursing through his body, Dante responded.
"Look lady I don't know who you are, but you caught me in a bad mood" stated Dante in an angry tone as he watched the woman approach him. Despite his anger and confusion at his current situation, Dante had to admit that the woman before him was hot as fuck and her skintight suit was certainly showing off her best features.
"I hardly think you are in any position to be acting so tough. I am Ultear one of the Seven Kin of Purgatory, and it seems that you have already fallen victim to Meredy's body link magic" responded Ultear as she noticed the marking on Dante's wrist.
"Body Link, what the hell is that" asked Dante in a confused tone. He never fought against anyone named Meredy so what in the hell was Ultear talking about.
"It's the specialty of Meredy, another Seven Kin of Purgatory. With body link magic, two people with strong emotions towards one another are linked. The pain you are feeling is from one of your friends being torn about by Meredy" responded Ultear in a mocking tone. Hearing these words, it started to make sense to Dante. Focusing on the link Dante felt an obsession with himself, and he knew immediately it was Juvia whom he was linked to.
"If anything happens to Juvia, you will all pay" stated Dante in an angry tone as his magical power radiated from his body. Ultear was taken aback by the surge in magical power for a moment as Dante started to walk forward.
"H-how can he have so much magical power still? His body should be in agony right now" asked Ultear out loud in shock as Dante walked towards her. Suddenly Dante forward path was brought to an abrupt stop when he collapsed under his own weight while screaming in pain.
"AGH!!!! My leg" yelled Dante as he collapsed to the ground while clutching his leg. His leg was largely uninjured, but it felt like it was broken in two, he could barely move it without pain rocketing across his body. Ultear laughed at this sight as she started to speak.
"Haha, it looks like Meredy is tearing your friend apart" stated Ultear in a mocking tone. Hearing these words Dante was filled with renewed anger but looking at Ultear he was filled with something else entirely.
Dante could not explain it but when he looked at Ultear he felt a strong connection, like it was love. As Dante was trying to figure out why he was feeling this way, memories that were not his own flooded his mind. He saw a little pink haired girl crying in the remains of a destroyed village and Ultear taking her in as her own. Different found memories coursed through his mind of the pink haired girl and Ultear, the pink haired girl must be Meredy. One memory, however, stood out to Dante, he remembered Ultear telling Meredy about her mother, Ur.
As Dante was realizing Ultear's connection with Ur thanks to remembering about her thanks to Gray, the mark on Dante's wrist vanished. The moment the mark vanished all the unexplained pain Dante was experiencing vanished. Suddenly able to move again, Dante jumped out of the way just as Ultear tried to attack him with her magic. Ultear seemed stunned and somewhat disturbed that the magic affecting Dante ceased to function. Was she perhaps worried about Meredy since her spell ended? According to the memories Dante saw, the Ultear and Meredy had a very close relationship.
"DAMN! You'll pay for that" yelled Ultear thinking the worst happened to Meredy. She used her magic to send dozens of copies of her crystal ball towards Dante. Dante was able to narrowly dodge them as he thought about the memories he witnessed. From those memories it was apparent that some good was in Ultear and since she was Ur's daughter Dante didn't want to fight her. Hoping he could resolve this without violence, Dante started to speak.
"Wait! Let me talk for a second" stated Dante just before Ultear sent another volley his way. Having to dodge again, Dante then jumped some distance away from Ultear as he continued to speak.
"I DON'T WANT TO TALK" yelled Ultear distraught over the thought of losing Meredy, the last person she cared about.
"I think know of a way to revive your mother, Ur" stated Dante. Hearing these words caused Ultear to stop in her tracks and look at Dante with a stunned expression.
"W-what?! How did you even know about" asked Ultear shocked that Dante even knew this much about her.
"I saw Meredy's memories; she must have linked herself to Juvia. I think that means Meredy is still alive, if she died then I would have also right" asked Dante figuring that link magic would work that way. Ultear breathed a sigh of relief at these words, Dante was right. If Meredy did link with Juvia and through the other link, Dante then that meant she was still alive since Dante was alive. Cursing herself for feeling a small bit of hope, Ultear needed to know what Dante meant by his earlier statement.
"What do you mean you know of a way to revive my mother" asked Ultear as she relaxed her combat stance. Dante was relieved that Ultear was now willing to talk instead of fighting as he responded.
"Well revive isn't the best word since Ur isn't technically dead. Her body was just turned to ice and then melted away into the ocean" responded Dante as Ultear felt frustration bubble inside her, she already knew that.
"I know that already, what difference does that make" asked Ultear starting to think Dante was wasting her time.
"It makes a huge difference if a certain lost magic is used on the precise spot Ur's lingering spirit is" responded Dante.
"A certain lost magic? What do you mean" asked Ultear.
"Before I joined Fairy Tail I used to live in a far off place with my siblings. It's vague but I remember from that time hearing whispers of a tome containing instructions for lost magic, specially the art of restoration" responded Dante.
"Restoration? What sort of magic is that" asked Ultear in a curious tone.
"According to the rumors, Restoration is a form of lost magic that can restore the body of spirits that have not passed on. Since Ur is a special case, her spirit has remained instead of passing into the void" responded Dante. Ultear felt even more hope fill her body but was still doubtful.
"How do you know about all of this? You just learned of my connection with my mother" asked Ultear.
"Yah, I did but I've known about Ur for a while. Remember that Gray is my friend and guildmate. When I learned the story of your mother through Gray, I thought at the time of the restoration magic I heard about all those years ago. Since then, I've been secretly trying to figure out if what I'm talking about is even possible and now, I'm sure it is" responded Dante.
"What changed, how do you think it's possible now" asked Ultear cursing herself for hoping after all these years.
"Meredy is what changed. I believe her body link magic could be the missing piece of the puzzle I have been searching for. I still need to find the ancient tome describing Restoration which is a form of holy magic that only holy beings can use. Luckily, I have that part covered with my angel take over magic" responded Dante. Hearing the sincerity of his words, Ultear knew he believed what he was saying.
"All you need to do is find this book" asked Ultear in disbelief. Dante nodded his head as he started to speak.
"Yes, with Meredy filling in the missing link to make my plan work all I need now is the actual tome so I can teach myself Restoration magic" responded Dante.
"What is this plan" asked Ultear wanting to believe that Dante's plan would work.
"It's long and I don't have time to explain it all now, I need to get back to helping my friends. Please trust me when I promise you when this is all over, I will help you restore the body of your mother, but you and Meredy need to leave this island now" responded Dante. Ultear somehow felt in heart that she should trust this man.
"I never wanted to go down this dark path you know" responded Ultear in a sad tone as she remembered all the awful things, she has done in order to revive her mother. She felt terrible that she did all those awful things when there was another way all along.
"I know, the memories of Meredy told me you are a good person. Ultear please trust me, I promise I will help you once this is all over" responded Dante. Ultear blushed as she looked at Dante in a new light. This man was her enemy, but he was offering to help her despite what she did to his friends. Making her decision, Ultear nodded her head as she responded.
"Okay I trust you, I will get Meredy and get far away from here" responded Ultear as Dante breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thank you Ultear, I promise as soon as this whole mess is over with, I will search for the tome and help you" responded Dante.
Ultear smiled as she walked over to Dante and kissed him on the lips in response. Dante was surprised at the sudden lip lock but enjoyed it all the same. He was also surprised when Dante felt a surge of magical energy as Ultear kissed him deeply. Drawing away from Dante's lips, Ultear blushed as she started to speak.
"That was all the magical energy I could spare; I hope it helps you" stated Ultear with a crimson blush. She was quickly falling in love with Dante and that kiss didn't help her resist these new feelings.
"Thank you Ultear, I feel almost at one hundred percent again" responded Dante with a smile. While he was still injured from his fight with Azuma, his magical energy was almost at capacity once again.
"I'm sorry for the pain I've caused you and your guild" responded Ultear in a shameful tone.
"Don't worry about it, you changed sides when it counted" responded Dante. Soon after this Ultear told Dante where he could find Azuma before she parted ways with him. Just before the two parted ways, Ultear placed another loving kiss on Dante's lips. As Dante returned the kiss, he thought of the fun he could have with Ultear when this was all over. Soon Dante was soaring high in the sky, flying straight towards the Tenrou Tree.
End of Chapter 77