Dark Ice

Dark Ice: Chapter Nine, Break.

Blood. His hands were covered in blood. The blood of his comrades, the blood of his foes. It was hell. The battle against the dragons had begun to settle. Upon Acnologia's arrival, many of the dragons fell and with them many of his comrades. He watched it happen from below as the skies were painted in blood. The first victim was the youngest of their group. She was innocent, still growing, but Acnologia didn't care, he murdered her cold blood. Her lifeless body had a hole in it right where her stomach should've been. Blood splattered out as she lifelessly descended into the ground. She landed on a partially destroyed building, her Exceed Charla followed soon after. His heart hurt seeing Wendy be murdered, but what could he do? He was weak. "Dammit!!" He cursed. He hated the feeling so much, he just couldn't stand it. He sought to go after him, but after Acnologia was done with the dragons within his parameters, he was long gone, too fast for Gray to even think about running after.

He got separated from the others. Lucy had gone after Natsu, at least that was his belief. Erza and Juvia, however, remained with him to fight the invading dragons that were now long dead. During the attack, they were split up, and Gray had completely lost sight of both Erza and Juvia. He didn't know their position, or what could have happened to them. They could've been caught in Acnologia's path of destruction for all the devil slayer knew. It was hard enough seeing Wendy die right before him. Seeing her fall from the sky, her once expressive eyes, blank and staring into the dark abyss that was nothingness.

As he ventured the battlefield full of dead people and dragons, he saw her. He found Juvia sprawled across a patch of old snow beneath a tower, with a hole between her breasts. The ice crystals had settled over her face, and in the moonlight, it looked as though she wore a glittering silver mask.

When he knelt in the snow beside her, her eyes opened. "Gray-sama," she said, very softly. It sounded as though whatever hit she'd taken had found a lung. "Gray-sama... Don't cry...Juvia will... Juvia.." "Don't talk..." Gray took her hand. "Smile," she whispered. "Juvia wanted to see Gray-sama's smile, before... before Juvia..." "You'll see it a million times over," he promised her. "The battle's done. I can get you to a doctor and they will see to you." He touched her hair. "You're going to be alright, you ain't gonna die, not while I'm still breathing. I'll get you to a doctor and they'll patch you up... I promise, so please hang in there." She just smiled at that. "Do you remember when we lived together in that cabin?... Juvia was happy... Gray-sama had finally accepted Juvia... Juvia wanted to stay there forever..." "We'll go back to the cabin," he said. "You're not going to die, Juvia. You're not."

"Oh." Juvia cupped his cheek with her hand. "Juvia loves you, Gray-sama," she sighed, dying. With those last words, Gray felt his heart drop. Everything suddenly hurt, the pain he felt was indescribable.

Gray's eyes dripped with tears. His walls, the walls that held him up, made him strong just... collapsed. Moment by moment, they fell. Salty drops fell from his chin, drenching his bare chest. Perhaps these tears will help wash the blood out. He pressed his head against Juvia's head... baby blue, so innocent... he was anything but innocent. He was trembling. He couldn't stop. Even as he held her tightly, his hands shook, it trembled. It was raw, everything, raw tears, raw emotions. He couldn't stop... He couldn't stop. Why could he not stop crying?

He threw his head into the air and screamed out a roar of agony that engulfed the ruins of Malba City. His grip over Juvia tightening to a point of his hands digging deep into the skin of her arm.

"AAAAAAA!!!"

Levy.

Far in the east of Fiore, Levy watched as Acnologia's wrath brought about destruction and terror. Fire engulfed the lands, blood painted the grounds. While the many people of the east screamed in the time of their ends, she could only worry about one man. The one person she couldn't bear to lose. He fought bravely alongside Pantherlily, his exceed. Gajeel was fierce, but even his might was no match for the dragon that tossed him around like a ragdoll. She'd help if only he'd let her. Weak as she was, she couldn't just cower as he risked his life for her.