I'M BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!

*Proceeds to get gunned down by the viewers, luckily a graveyard was nearby for my spirit to run back to my body.*

Yeah I know… I don't really have any excuses for taking so long to update this story as long as others other than laziness and that I've been focusing on a few specific stories I have more than anything. I'm a crappy author so what else is new there?

However, I'm trying to get back into the groove when it comes to updating all of my other stories that I haven't updated in a long while, and this one will be the first. I only hope that I can accomplish this.

Anyway, enjoy, or not, I don't care you all have your opinions.

Everything belongs to their respective owners.

Chapter Seventeen: Heading Out

'UNKNOWN LOCATION'

Ruin.

That was all that remained in the rubbles that was once a proud, mighty and lively city. A place where people lived in peace and prosperity was now nothing more than a horrific barren reminder of the cruelty of reality. The sun was blocked out from the dark clouds and ashes that covered the sky high above the ruined city and the land around it. Not a single living creature that once lived in the barren and collapsed sight of civilization survived the calamity that befallen their home.

The only sight of life in the ruined structure was a certain winged Fel Demon, chilling on top of a collapsed skyscraper, his arms behind his head while he lay down upon the debris below him. A small excited grin was seen on his face as he was lost to his thoughts.

'Ah… so Natsu and his friends have finally returned from their stay on that island. About time, I was getting quiet bored with how things were going so far at the moment. But at least how him returning will make things more interesting for me.' E.N.D thought to himself as he grinned even wider.

Getting up from his spot, the black winged entity stood fully tall as he took in a deep breath. The Fel Demon was excited, while he had done his best to make things on this pitiful world more interesting for him, sparing those who will no doubt get stronger to face him once more in the future, he knew that Natsu returning will help the future fights against him will make it all the more fun for the demon.

Stretching his wings out, he figured he would blow some time to attack more of the planet elsewhere. He can wait just a bit longer before he decides to confront the pink haired Fire Dragon Slayer and the rest of his allies. After all, it would be much more amusing when everyone was with together for him to slaughter.

"I hope you do manage to get stronger Natsu, as the rest of the world has increased in power since your time before getting to Tenrou thanks to the actions of little old me. You better catch up with them soon… OR ELSE YOU'LL BE FORCE TO WATCH AS EVERYTHING YOU CARE ABOUT BURNS IN MY FLAMES HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" E.N.D stated before laughing out loud in a maniacal manner.

Not ceasing his laughter, he took off high into the air once more which caused a shockwave to be unleashed. The Fel Demon could already taste the fun he would have later on with those he spared and Natsu.

E.N.D would make sure they all suffer unlike ever before. And it was going to be hilarious for him to see.

'ELSEWHERE'

"Is he going to be alright?" Asce couldn't help but ask as he saw the current state of the pink haired Fire Dragon Slayer across from his seat, who was currently suffering from a case of motion sickness as the group rode on the train towards their destination.

"Don't worry; this is normal for him when he's on a train." Erza who was sitting to the left of him assured the armored Knight from Kalavar, who only raised an eyebrow in confusion before taking the red head's word for granted. Though, due to his helmet no one could tell that he did such an action.

Currently, the group was on a train heading away from Hisuila and towards a place that Asce believed would be the perfect location for them to train for the next three months to prepare for the Grand Magic Games. After the initial discussion with everyone else about the event and the teams, it was decided by Makarov and Sayla that one team will consist of Natsu, Erza, Gray, Lucy, and Asce with Wendy as a backup, while the other team would consist of Zin, Romeo, Gajeel, Laxus and Mira with Juvia as a backup. Needless to say once the teams were decided Sayla gave them the order to go out and begin to train at once, knowing that those who returned from Tenrou Island will need as much training as they can if they are to be ready not just for the Games but in order to survive in the world in the current state it was in right now.

And that's where Asce and his team along with a few others were now doing. As those from Tenrou didn't have much on them due to any of their old belongings lost to E.N.D's attack years ago, the Knight assured them that would be able to get new supplies and other items at the place they are heading. Those in the train consisted of Asce, Laki, Natsu, Lucy, Erza, Gray, Wendy, Juvia, Happy and Carla. While Laki wasn't going to participate in the event she still wanted to help the team out with training if she could. And while Juvia was assigned to be the replacement for anyone in the second team, she wanted to be with her precious Gray-Sama so that's why she was with them.

"Say, where are we heading to anyway?" Gray, who was sitting in the booth next to the one where Asce, Erza, Lucy, Happy and Natsu were in, couldn't help but ask the armored male. Next to him was Juvia who was happily snuggling up to him much to his chagrin, and across from him and her were Laki and Wendy, with the blue haired girl looking out of the window lost in thought. Carla was in her lap, listening in on the conversation around her.

"A small getaway that will be perfect for our training. There's lots of space to go as crazy as we want without causing any trouble for any civilians. Not like there would be any where we're going regardless, but still. Once the train arrives, we will have to walk the rest of the way on foot, since it is quiet a bit away from any civilization." Asce informed the others at.

"Really? How far away is this place?" Lucy asked while Natsu continued to suffer from his motion sickness right next to her left.

"It's pretty far, but it would only be a few hours away from the closest town," Laki informed the blonde as the others focused their attention on the Wood Make Mage, "Asce has shown me and a few others this place before after we rebuilt Fairy Tail to help hone our own skills. It's a beautiful area if I must admit."

"That sounds nice," Juvia admitted as she looked over at the violet haired woman with curiosity, "But if it's a good distance from any town or village, won't we have trouble keeping any supplies to last that long while we're there?"

"Have no fear, like Laki stated it's only a few hours from the closest town, the one the train is taking us to. We will stock up on supplies we need from there and if needed take the occasional trip back towards it to stock up again. We won't have to worry about needing to waste our money on food, since there are good amount of wildlife at our location to sustain ourselves for the time we're there." The Knight spoke up once more to inform the blue haired woman.

"We're going to be hunting?" Lucy questioned with slight surprise and slight worry, as she never was really good when it came to doing outdoor stuff like that.

"We will. I believe it would be beneficial for you all to learn how to survive in the wilderness and to use what's available in our surroundings. If such a time ever comes if one of you gets lost or under the possibility of nearby civilizations collapsing, it would be wise to properly learn how to survive out in the wild." Asce informed them all. While a few like Natsu would be alright since he's done that with Igneel back in the day all the time, a few others weren't as knowledgeable when it came to that kind of stuff.

"What possibility of nearby towns and the like collapsing? That surely won't happen right?" Gray questioned, finding that the possibility of that happening hard to believe.

"With the Fel Demon out there it is." Laki told them once more with a small frown on her face.

That got those who were paying attention to grow slightly furious from the mentioning of this monster that was responsible for killing their friends and who knows how many others during his reign across the planet.

"I still don't get it," Erza admitted, getting both Asce and Laki to be puzzled as the red head went on, "How did this demon just show up from the blue out of nowhere to cause so much havoc on the world?"

"That we don't really know for ourselves Erza. Sayla's the one who was there when the Fel Demon was unleashed, but she doesn't have the faintest clue as to how he was able to free himself and why there of all times and places in the world." Laki told them.

"Wait what? She was?" Carla questioned from Wendy's lap, with the Sky Dragon Slayer still looking out of the window next to her and too lost in thought to pay attention to what the others were discussing, "How was she there to see him being unleashed? In fact who exactly is she? We never really got to know much about her yet."

Both Laki and Asce looked at one another with slight hesitation, before they figured it was best to come clean about the new Guild Master of the Fairy Tail guild. Asce looked back at the others as he started to speak once more.

"Sayla is an Etherious that used to believe E.N.D was some master of hers that had the same goals as she and the other demons she was allies with had. But that ended up untrue as the Fel Demon slaughtered the other Etherious around her without remorse according to what she told us." The Knight explained to the others once more, getting them to be shock by what they were just told.

"She's an Etherious?!" Nearly all of the others that shouted in surprise from this revelation, aside from Wendy as she wasn't paying attention and Natsu was still feeling uneasy due to his motion sickness, but his eyes widened a bit still while he tried his best to keep up on the conversation around him.

"Yes, that is what I just said." Asce replied back.

"…Huh, well I guess that explains why she has the golden horns." Gray muttered, though it was still shocking to the Ice Maker Mage that the current Guild Master was a demon from the book of Zeref. Though he was more surprised over that despite being an Etherious she was running the guild and helping out the others when from his knowledge and past experiences with demons from the book of Zeref the Etherious were usually nothing but blood thirty monsters bend on destruction.

"Don't start feeling distrustful of her if you can help it. She may be a demon but she has helped rebuilt Fairy Tail and understands that we need to work together if we are to stand a chance against the Fel Demon when the time comes." Laki responded to the still surprised others.

The others managed to calm down, though the idea that Sayla was not only an Etherious, but one who was allied and friends with humans while being in charge of a Light Guild still made them dumbfounded by this discovery.

As no one else said anything for the next few minutes, Natsu tried to speak up to change the subject about something that to him personally was a bit more important at the moment.

"H… How much farther… until we get off this… stupid deathtrap…?" He managed to barely get out, getting everyone else's attention aside from Wendy who was still lost in her own thoughts.

"It will be another couple of hours before the train arrives to our first stop." Asce told the pink haired male, which got him to let out a small whine of sadness and despair. Hearing him make that noise got the others to sweat drop from hearing that, he was like a puppy that was denied a treat.

Figuring though that he could try to get some help as much as he could, Lucy turned her head over towards the pink haired male who was leaning onto the window next to him, trying to resist the urge to throw his inside up. Tapping his shoulder, she was able to get him to look her way looking sick to the core.

"Natsu, if you want you can rest your head on my lap if it helps you feel better." Lucy offered a small smile on her face when she spoke her words.

And not even a second later afterwards did the Fire Dragon Slayer take up on that offer as he immediately plopped his head onto her thighs before a small yet at peace smile was on his face. Laying down like this on something soft like her skin already helping to keeps his illness at bay for the time being as he closed his eyes.

"Soft…" He muttered before soft snoring could he heard from him, falling asleep from the softness and comfort of Lucy's lap. Said woman managed to hear that as her face went red for a brief moment before calming herself down in time before the others could have seen her react like that.

Laki back in her seat, couldn't help but look over to see Natsu now calmly resting his head on the blonde's lap, and for some reason couldn't help but feel a bit jealous of Lucy at that moment.

"It looks like it will be a bit then before we get off, don't you agree Wendy?" Carla asked the blue haired girl, only to get no answer from her. Looking up and turning her head around, the white Exceed saw the Sky Dragon Slayer still lost in thought and looking out of the window before Carla spoke up a bit louder once more at her, "Wendy!"

That got the girl to snap out of her daze as she jumped from the sudden sound. Luckily she calmed down when she saw Carla looking up at her and talking to her.

"Sorry Carla, did you say something?" Wendy asked the white Exceed once more with a confused yet innocent look on her face.

"Uh… nothing, never mind." Carla responded back, seeing how Wendy didn't seem to be paying attention to at all about what was going on around her. Maybe they will work on that during their training, who knows.

Wendy only had a puzzled expression as an imaginary question mark appeared over her head from hearing her Exceed's words.

'LATER, AT NIGHT'

Eventually, as time went by night fall had descended upon the land below and onto the group of heroes. After arriving in the town and stocking up on any supplies they may need, the group continued onward on foot as they traveled. The town they first arrived now far behind them hours away, as once plain fields and forests were replaced with mountains all around them, showing that they have entered a mountain range. The group nevertheless continued onward as they hoped to reach their destination.

"Are we almost there yet?" Happy complained as the blue Exceed was flying in the air, not even eating a fish he had on him was able to get him to stop asking that question over and over again.

"Almost, it up over this mountain we're going up." Asce informed Happy as he continued to lead the group from the front along with Laki. Hearing him say that however got Natsu to widen his eyes with excitement.

"Really?! Then let's not waste anymore time then!" Natsu exclaimed happily.

Without warning the Fire Dragon Slayer then bolted ahead of the others, leaving them behind in the dusts. Needless to say his action caught the others off guard.

"Natsu wait!" Lucy exclaimed at him as she and the others took off after him.

Back with Natsu, the pink haired Fire Dragon Slayer managed to arrive at the top of the mountain that they have been going up with a large grin on his face. Excited, the Fairy Tail Mage looked over towards where this destination that Asce and Laki talked about would be at.

But when he did caught a glimpse of the sight before him, his eyes widened as surprise took over him.

What he saw, in his opinion, was breathtaking.

With the moonlight shining down upon the land below, he saw a large valley between the mountains that were all around it including the one he currently stood tall upon. A large lake was seen with sandy shores towards the right side of the large valley, and to the left at the base of one of the more rock-like mountains an abandoned yet standing tall castle was spotted, having been left to stand against the age of time since its foundation. A few herds of animals from small to large could be spotted all over the large valley, minding their own business as large patches of flowers were also spotted in certain areas of the land before him, the wind gently blowing them as they remained rooted into the ground.

To Natsu, it was probably one of the most breath taking scenes he has ever seen in his life. And he has been to a lot of places during his time with Fairy Tail.

"Whoa…" He muttered out, still in awe from the beauty of nature that laid before him.

"Natsu!" He heard the voices of Erza calling out to him, but he didn't move as his eyes remained on the large valley as the rest arrived right behind him.

"About time you waited Flamebrain, you couldn't have just waited for the rest of us to sho-?" Gray started to tell his rival with an annoyed expression.

However the Ice Maker Mage cut himself off when he too, along with the others that weren't Laki and Asce, widened his eyes in surprise yet awe from the sight of the large peaceful yet wonderful valley that laid before them all. Just like with Natsu, they were all taken away from the beauty of it all.

"Whoa… look at the view…" Juvia trailed off from the sight of it as she stood near her Gray-Sama's side.

"Is that a castle at the base of that mountain?!" Lucy couldn't help but exclaim in surprise from the sight of it all. It felt like a sight straight out of a fantasy book that she would like to read about.

"Indeed it is Lucy," Asce informed the blonde as he walked pass the others, overlooking the sight of the valley before him while he continued onward with his words, "There's nothing really much inside of it, as any treasures it may once had have been either taken by archeologists, treasure hunters or thieves in the past. But it's still a wonderful sight of old architecture that withstood against the change of time. We will be making that our temporary home for the time being during our training here."

That got the others to snap out of their gazes as they look at the Knight with interest and excitement. They are going to be staying in an abandoned castle that looks like that? To the Mages that was something they had no mind. Lucy wondered what the large place looked like inside, would it be like how she imagined what old abandoned structures from the past? Or would it be even more breathtaking than what she thinks?

"Let's not waste anymore time, we'll settle in and then rest for the remainder of the night. Tomorrow, our training for the Grand Magic Games begin," Asce informed them as he turned around to face those who will be participating in his team, "I hope you have what it takes to succeed, since this won't be a walk in the park."

Hearing that got the others to grin with determination and excitement, whatever Asce may have them plan to do for training, they knew that they would be able to handle it.

"Don't underestimate us Asce, we can handle anything in our way!" Natsu responded with a smirk on his face.

"I hope you have the means to back that up. Now come on, let's go settle in." Asce replied back with a smile on his face, though his helmet made it impossible for the others to see it.

With that, the group started to make their way down the mountain and towards the valley and the abandoned castle below, making a silent vow to themselves that they will become much stronger to not only prove themselves at the Grand Magic Games, but to prepare to face against the Fel Demon should he ever show himself to them.

There we go, chapter done. I hope I can try to keep on regular updates on this story and the others and not go without updating for months again, but only time will tell on that I guess.

But yeah, so what did you all think? Good? Bad? Let me know.

See you all next time, whenever that will be.