Reluctant Fairytales (Gale Fanfic)

Chapter 5

     Gajeel raced down the street in the direction he'd seen Levy fly, shouting, "Shrimp! Levy, where'd you go? Levy!" Then he froze, realizing he heard excited shouting from nearby, and a knot twisted in his stomach.

     He ran around the corner to see a small crowd gathered in the street, all of their backs turned towards him. But he heard someone shout above the commotion of the others.

     "I caught it! It's mine!"

     Then another voice shouted back, "But that's my net you caught it with, so it's MINE!!"

     "Succubi are worth over 200k jewel, I need that money!"

     "Give it here!"

     "I'm not giving it to anyone! I caught it, so that makes it belong to me, fair and square!"

     Gajeel saw a jar held by a rough hand in the middle of the crowd, waving wildly in the air. And clearly, sitting inside of it with a terrified expression, was Levy.

     Anger surged through him, and Gajeel shoved through the crowd, "Get your hands off of her! Let her go!"

     Someone grabbed Gajeel's arm as he tried to push through, holding him back, "Let it go, are you crazy? It's worth a fortune!! This succubi is going to the king."

     "I don't give a damn about the king, just let her go!" punched him in the face, pulling free, but the crowd started grabbing at him to pull him back. He couldn't pull free, and continued to shout over the din of the crowd.

     Levy, who was banging her fists against the edge of the jar, saw Gajeel struggling against the crowd, trying to get to her. Her eyes widened as she saw how fiercely and desperately he struggled.

     The jar shook again, throwing her back.

     Gajeel heard her cry out as he stomped on a man's face, but two people grabbed each of his arms, holding him fast. He saw Levy banging against the lid, and apparently the man holding the jar did too, because he shook it furiously.

     Gajeel winced at her shrieks of pain and tried to struggle free, but the men were holding him back too tightly.

     "Gajeel!" Levy cried, and the man holding her shook her again, "Quiet, succubi! Now I've gotta take you to the king and receive my reward!" he gave her another shake to unbalance her, and Gajeel saw blood smear the glass as she slammed her forehead against it.

     And he realized she was crying.

     Something came over Gajeel, some sort of powerful, vengeful sensation spread through him. His crimson eyes blazed as his mouth moved with words he didn't know why he was speaking, "The power of Metalicana, the great Iron Dragon, blazes brightly. Iron Dragon..." he threw his head forward, shouting with all his might, "Roar!!!"

     Levy eyes got huge as the greenish gray flame roaring from his mouth, shot towards them. People shrieked, some ran, others turned to face Gajeel, who was now free.

    "He's a sorcerer!" someone shouted, and Gajeel, blood still boiling with anger, shouted, "Iron Dragon Lance!" and the nearest buildings were demolished instantly, crumbling around them. "Iron Dragon... Quake!" he slammed his hands onto the ground, and a shockwave shot through the dirt, hurling everyone backwards.

     A man with a sword ran forward from behind Gajeel, raising it as he charged.

     "Gajeel!" Levy shrieked, squeezing her eyes shut as the sword came down on his neck. But there was a loud clang followed by a dead silence. She opened her eyes to see the man staring in shock at Gajeel, the sword still against his neck. But covering his neck and part of his face were silver scales. Iron scales.