Fairy Tail Origins Episode 1: The Eternal Journey

Atticus' guilty look returned. "It's true... And it was my fault." He mumbled quietly. He averted the gaze of anyone in the room, not wanting to see any possible scorn or curiosity. He couldn't quite place his thoughts into words, and had no reason to for that matter.

"I'm sorry." He offered, and was once again stolen. Aldous fixed him with a hard stare. "Come now, it wasn't your fault. We'll discuss this later, Atticus, but I can't stress enough that it wasn't your fault. I'm sure things happened suddenly. If you have any regrets, transfer that over to conviction. We WILL get Leone back, and I can assure you not a single one of us is against this. Whoever took her, we'll find them. And when we do, we'll deliver them bonecrushing pain. I think we all know a certain dragon upstairs will beat us in that regard. So, can everyone cheer up?" He managed a small smile.

Hecate came downstairs in the outfit. It was all black, complete with detached sleeves, a backless shirt with a tiny white cape with red on the inside, and black pants with boots that looked capable of smashing a face in. There was something gray around her neck that kept the small cape in place, and fasteners along with a placard with a dragon and lion.

Aldous marveled at the change in attire. "I take it that was Leone's present? Good taste. Even now, she was thinking of you and everyone else in this guild. I wonder, what would have happened if we had not taken that mission to Rosebud... Would she be here now?" Aldous wondered aloud, knitting his eyebrows together.

"Maybe." Hecate answered quietly, taking a seat next to Rosa. She looked more confident than usual... Fierce even. "Let's get started on gathering information," She stated plainly before looking at Rosa.

"I'm looking forward to seeing what you can do."

"You didn't even need to ask. I couldn't just walk out of here knowing you were still upset. I came here to figure out why you were in the first place so that maybe I could help you through it," Eden replied as she sat down in a chair.

Hecate looked at Sounders with knitted purple eyebrows. "...So, Leone is a boy? I'm a little confused as if this part of the made-up story, or actually true. I don't understand, really."

Hecate narrowed her eyes. She had the sneaking suspicion that they weren't being told everything. "...So, you're essentially telling me Leone is a girl... But she will be disguised as a guy when we meet her? I think you're hiding something else. With no disrespect, Guildmaster Harland, I hope you aren't. I'm giving you my trust, and I'd hate to see it broken... Again."

Orion rolled over on his back, and draped his arm over his eyes. It was just a simple action, one that made him seem surprisingly boyish, but it held a much deeper meaning. And once you understood that meaning, that action made him seem much older, more weary, than younger. "It was a long time ago," he began quietly, still covering his face. He couldn't meet her gaze. Not now.

"I had just recovered from a deep betrayal, one that had very nearly killed me. Two years in a secluded mountain village... That's how long it took me to recover physically... I still haven't recovered emotionally. Not completely. I was bitter and angry, angry at myself and angry at the world, and I was in a lot of pain. Those early days on my own... Were difficult, to say the least. I tried to end my life on several different occasions, and each time I failed, I only got angrier and more desperate. I'm not trying to make excuses for myself... But you need to know how my mindset was back then, how desperate I was, to really understand what I went through..."

He took a deep, shaky breath. "I stumbled upon a small village called Riverhelm. Beautiful little town at the foot of the mountains... River ran right through the center of town. Crystal clear water, beautiful sunny day.... I still remember that town, that day, like it was yesterday. I see it every time I close my eyes... You've heard of the 'Riverhelm Incident', I assume? One of the most infamous incidents in Aselian history. The High Council and the Royal Family had to deal with the fallout for months... Even declared the day it happened a national holiday. I'm sure you probably remember the news, the... The stories. An entire village wiped off the map, leaving nothing but a smoking crater, no survivors... That... That was me, Eden. That was my fault."

Orion shut his eyes tightly, as if trying to shut out the images, and he rolled onto his side, away from Eden, his back to her, as he continued talking. "I... I didn't kill them myself, but I may as well have... I'm still responsible. That village... Was directly beneath the lair of a certain Abnormality. Of course, back then, no one knew the difference between Abnormalities and normal monsters... No one even knew Abnormalities existed. I stayed in Riverhelm for a time, and found some semblance of peace... The town didn't have their own Doctor- the villagers had to trek for miles just for everyday medicine- and I still remembered some of the things Sugu- the Doctor who saved my life- taught me. I also had the training and experience of a Combat Medic, so I decided to play Doctor for a while, and help them. This went on for a few weeks... There was a young girl who was deathly ill. No older than eight, and expected to die within the month. I tried everything I could to save her... Magic, medicine, you name it. She was the spitting image of someone I had failed to save in the past... And it sent me over the edge. I didn't sleep, I rarely ate... I worked tirelessly on a cure that didn't even exist. She was already gone, and I didn't realize it- No, in hindsight, I knew. I knew, I just couldn't accept it. I couldn't deal with that pain again, not on top of everything else... So I journeyed up the mountain. I had heard the stories, of course... Everyone in the village knew the stories of the King of the Mountain. The "Serpent King", they called him... It was said there was a vast trove of treasure the monster guarded, but none of the villagers would venture anywhere near there out of fear. Normally, I wouldn't have listened to such wild tales, but I was desperate... The villagers warned me not to go. I should have listened. I didn't."

Orion paused, and gave a shaky sigh. "You can probably guess what happened next. I encountered the Wyvern King, and we fought. I hadn't used much combat magic in two years, and to say I was rusty would be the understatement of the century. I was no match for it. It shot me out of the sky like a giant swatting away a fly. I barely escaped with my life. But... It didn't end there. I had woken the beast from its slumber. Enraged, it attacked the closest thing it could find... The village of Riverhelm."

He closed his eyes again. "I can still hear the screams. I had a perfect view from my spot on a small ledge where I had fallen. I watched as the entire village went up in flames. And I don't just mean any flames, not like normal Wyvern fire... That... That thing unleashed a blast of fire magic unlike anything I have ever seen. It was beyond any Wizard's flames, and I was once friends with a Fire God Slayer... It was like a meteor descended on the village. One moment it was there, and the next it was gone in a fiery explosion, leaving nothing behind save a giant crater in the earth. After that, I... I almost went insane. I couldn't deal with the guilt. But eventually, I found a purpose, and it saved my life. I decided I would learn all I could about the Wyvern King, and I decided to devote my life to saving others, in order to atone for all I've done in my life. So I became a travelling doctor, and I studied the Wyvern King religiously. It was difficult at first, but soon I found out about all the odd monsters plaguing Aselia. I called them 'Abnormalities'."

Finally, Orion opened his eyes and rolled back onto his other side to face Eden. His eyes were haunted. "You want to know what's bothering me, Eden? I've had three homes in my life, and I've lost each one. It's why I'm always on the road. Why I don't settle down. Because I'm terrified of losing another one. And now? I have a home again. A family. A woman I care for. And here we are, heading to face the one monster I hoped I would never have to face again. No matter how far I run, I can't escape my past. But Eden... I'm so terrified that past is going to hurt you. I'm not even a good leader... I'm a horrible leader. Why did Zalia put me in charge of something so important? If you get hurt, or worse, because of me... I don't know if I'll survive it, Eden. I really don't."

Grigori, after readying his own room, peered out into the hallway to see no one there.

Hopefully she's alright...

He slowly crept out of his room and walked over to Eden's, only to notice that her door was open and no one was there. Grigori took a few steps into her room and looked around a bit before finding a wall to lean against before he collapsed into a pile.

"Eden, please..." Tears began to well up from Grigori's eyes as he began to cry, the saltwater soaking his bandages. "I need you..."

After a few moments of silence, Orion nodded. He even managed a small smile. "You're right. I need to stop feeling sorry for myself and start walking forward again."

He suddenly rolled over on his back and sighed. "But... You know that's not going to be easy, Eden. Trusting you, Cenric, and Velia is easy for me now... But Grigori? That's a completely different story. I have no idea if I can depend on him, and he's far too judgemental to trust me anytime soon. And frankly, I don't like him being around you. He's a bit too... Obsessed, for just friends, and that sets off multiple alarm bells in my mind. Don't misunderstand me, Eden... This isn't about jealousy. I'm not that insecure, or that petty. But I need to know he won't do something stupid, like try to assassinate me in my tent, or break formation to 'protect' you during a fight, because he mistakenly believes that's best for you. On a mission like this... Something like that can get us all killed. So until I know... I just can't trust him."

------

"Damn you," Senna breathed angrily, tears in her eyes, as she sat by Ryner's bedside. "You stupid, stubborn fool... We thought you were dead... We were told you had died in the explosion. I thought you were dead. I don't mind General Auron lying to me, that's to be expected... But why didn't you tell me? Call me, anything! Do you have any idea what it's been like?! Do you have any idea what I've been through?! I loved you, dammit! And you let me think you were dead, for all these years, and for what?! Some misguided sense to protect me?! I didn't need you to protect me, you stupid man, I needed you!"

She took a deep breath to collect herself and rose to her feet, walking over to the window. "... But that's all in the past now, isn't it? Our ship left a long time ago... And there's no way to turn back the clock... Is there? I... I won't hold it against you. But... I can't forgive you either. The pain goes too deep. But, I... I won't hold your actions against your brother, and I still owe you my life for saving me that day... So I'll keep your brother safe for you. There's also some info about the Wyvern King they don't know... So I'll do this last thing for you, Ren. Even if it costs me my career. But after this, I..."

She gulped. "Goodbye, Ryner."

C-thirty four... C-thirty five. So this is C--

"I didn't need you to protect me, you stupid man, I needed you!"

...Thirty six.

Gareth stopped just short of entering the open room and hung around the corner. He quickly peeked inside to see the Commander moving toward the window with her back turned. He noted that the patient in the room was the man who stumbled into the guild. Gareth stood there, wondering about when would be a good time to interrupt when she began to talk of the Wyvern King.

"Goodbye, Ryner."

Gareth revealed himself and blocked the doorway.

"Special package from Zalia Grave!" he declared.

Senna just stared at the young man in the doorway. She seemed completely undisturbed by the fact there were visible tears in her eyes, or by the possibility he might have overheard what she said.

"Let me have it," she said simply, even coldly, taking the package from him. "Gareth, was it? Thank you for delivering this to me."

She made no move to open the package, and when he made no move to leave, she arched a single eyebrow. "Well? Is there something else you need?"