It had been maybe an hour. Maybe more. Time wasn't exactly cooperating anymore. It stretched and blurred the same way his vision did, slipping through his fingers no matter how hard he tried to keep track of it. By the time Aelius, Levy, and Gajeel made it back to camp, "walked" wasn't the right word for any of them. They had limped in each step, taking more effort than it should have.
For Aelius, it was worse. That spell had taken more out of him than he was willing to admit out loud. His condition hadn't just gotten worse; it had dropped straight to the lowest point he'd ever felt it. His eyes barely stayed open, and when they did, everything was smeared together into useless shapes and colors. Faces were outlined. Movement was stillness.
It was raining now as well. Steady and heavy, soaking through everything without pause. Someone had said something about it matching the situation. Levy, probably. Aelius would have made a comment, something dry and sarcastic, but even thinking about it made his head throb harder, so he let it pass.
That wasn't even the worst problem Makarov had lost. That alone said enough. The old man wasn't just strong; he was someone you didn't see go down unless something had gone very wrong. And now he was out, not dead thankfully, but in no condition to stand back up and try again. Which meant the person who beat him was still out there. Which also meant, whether he liked it or not, Aelius was the only one left who might be able to stand in its way for more than a few seconds.
Around the camp, the damage showed. Mira, Lisanna, Makarov, Evergreen, and Elfman. All down. Some are unconscious by choice, bodies giving out before anything worse could happen. Others were forced into it. The fact that they were still alive despite losing to the enemy was impressive, and more luck than anything.
Aelius Himself sat instead of lying down, ignoring Levy's earlier attempts to get him to rest. He knew his limits. Or at least, he knew enough of them to understand that if he let himself drop, there was a real chance he wouldn't get back up when it mattered. Sitting was the compromise.
His body felt wrong in ways he didn't have a clean word for, like something fundamental was under too much pressure. Not just pain, he knew pain. This was something else on top of it, something deeper that made even breathing feel like an effort.
Most of the guild had made it back, scattered around the camp in various states of exhaustion. Aelius's warning had done what it needed to. Not perfectly, but enough people had moved fast enough to avoid getting caught out alone. So he considered it a win.
Natsu was still up. Beat to hell, but standing. Aelius had caught enough of the story to piece together that he'd fought a fire god slayer and won, which was… impressive. Stupid, but impressive. He didn't look like he'd be dropping anytime soon, either, which was good, because they were going to need all the firepower they could get.
Wendy was moving constantly, going from person to person, doing what she could. Her magic was the only reason some of them were still in fighting condition at all. Mest was with her sometimes, gone other times, slipping in and out of sight in a way that made Aelius vaguely aware of why the man had been useful as a spy. There was also the cat, Panther Lily, something Aelius still hadn't fully processed, but he wasn't wasting time questioning it now.
Gajeel was pacing back and forth, back and forth, like if he stopped moving for too long, something would catch up to him. He'd been patched up as much as Wendy could manage, which meant he was in better shape than most, but that didn't mean he was satisfied with standing still. He kept muttering under his breath, complaining about waiting, about doing nothing, about how it felt wrong. Aelius had stopped arguing with him about it; there was no point.
Levy stayed closer to camp, keeping herself busy where she could, even if it was with small things. Anything to keep moving. Anything to not think too hard about what was coming next.
Happy looked unhappy, which was almost enough to be funny. Carla stayed near Wendy, quieter, focused.
Aelius shifted slightly where he sat, the movement slow, his hand bracing against the table for a second longer than it should have. The ringing in his ears hadn't stopped, but it had settled into something constant now, a steady buzz that refused to fade no matter how still he stayed.
Lucy was here too, off to the side with her arms crossed tight, soaked through and visibly irritated in a way that hadn't faded since she got back. Aelius had picked up enough of what happened without needing the full story laid out. She and Cana ignored the call to return, continued looking for Mavis's grave, and once they found what they were after, Cana knocked her out and kept going. Natsu had been the only reason she made it back in one piece. It left a bad taste in the air around her, frustration mixed with something sharper, but Aelius didn't comment. He didn't have the energy, and it wasn't the problem in front of them.
He stayed where he was, sitting upright despite how much easier it would've been to just let himself fall back and stop moving entirely. The rain kept coming down, soaking into everything without pause, and the noise of the camp blurred into something distant and unfocused. He didn't notice Wendy at first, not until she spoke. "Uhm… Aelius?" His gaze shifted slowly, taking a second to actually settle on her. She stood just in front of him, hands close to her chest, unsure but trying anyway. "Do you need anything?" she asked softly. "I can use my magic, it might make it better…"
Aelius watched her for a moment, longer than he meant to, like he was weighing the offer instead of brushing it off immediately. Then he let out a quiet breath, shoulders easing just slightly. "…no," he said, voice rough but not sharp. "It's not that kind of problem."
Wendy hesitated. "It could still help a little," she said, a bit more insistent, though still careful.
Aelius shook his head once, slow, deliberate. "I know what your magic does," he replied, tone steady. "And I know what this is. You'd just be wasting energy you're going to need for everyone else." His eyes shifted briefly past her, toward the rest of the camp, where people were still recovering, still moving, still trying to get back on their feet. Then he looked back at her. "They need you more right now."
Wendy didn't look convinced, but she understood. That showed in the way she hesitated instead of pushing further, her hands lowering slightly as she glanced back toward the others. "…okay," she said quietly after a second. "But if you change your mind—"
"I won't," Aelius cut in, not unkindly. "But thanks." That was enough to stop her from arguing again. She gave a small nod, still looking a little worried, before turning and moving off to help someone else, her magic already starting to gather again as she went.
He was left alone for a few minutes. He just sat there waiting to be something. Rain tapped steadily against the canvas of the tent, dull and constant, turning the world outside into a blurred hiss of water and mud. Aelius had his eyes closed again when his name cut through the noise.
"Uh… Aelius?" Happy's voice came, uncertain in a way that didn't fit him. "One of your… things is here?"
Aelius's eyes opened slowly, already annoyed and expecting something stupid. "What?" Happy didn't answer right away. That was enough to make Aelius push himself up a little, ignoring the pull in his chest and the dull ache threading through his ribs. He turned his head toward the entrance of the tent.
And there it was, one of his nurglings had wandered in, dripping slightly from the rain, its small, misshapen body hunched as it waddled forward on stubby legs. In its arms, clutched tight like something precious, was a messy bundle of plants.
Aelius stared at it. "…what the hell?" he muttered, more to himself than anyone else. The rain swallowed most of the noise, but the nurgling reacted anyway, letting out a series of wet, chirping noises as it hurried the last few steps forward. It stopped just in front of him and lifted the bundle up higher, arms trembling slightly from the effort, like it was presenting something important.
Wendy leaned in from the side, peeking over with wide eyes. "Is that… is that one of yours?" she asked, voice soft but edged with confusion.
"Yeah," Aelius said slowly, eyes narrowing as he looked it over. "It is."
Natsu crouched nearby, arms resting on his knees, squinting at the little creature. "It looks kinda proud," he said, like he couldn't decide if he should laugh or punch it.
"Happy," Carla said sharply from behind, ears flicking back, as she watched the blue cat hover closer to the thing, "do not touch that."
"I wasn't gonna!" Happy shot back, hovering just a bit higher in the air, wings flapping more than usual as he eyed the thing.
Aelius's attention stayed on the bundle in its hands. He didn't even need to take it yet to know what it was. Poison ivy sat right on top, obvious and irritating. Underneath, he could already pick out other leaves, crushed stems, things that didn't belong anywhere near a person unless the goal was to make them suffer.
"You…" Aelius started, his voice clearer now, cutting through the rain and drawing more attention from the others outside the tent. "You weren't ordered to do this."
The nurgling chirped again, louder this time, bouncing slightly on its feet. It pushed the bundle forward more insistently, arms stretching as far as they could go.
Aelius didn't move to take it yet. His eyes stayed locked on it, something sharper creeping into his expression now. "How," he said, quieter, more focused. "And why?"
Another string of gurgles and chirps came from the creature, completely unintelligible, but not empty; there was intent in it. It leaned forward again, almost stumbling as it tried to get the plants into his hands.
Wendy frowned slightly. "It… it looks like it wants you to take it," she said carefully.
"No," Aelius said immediately, eyes still on the thing. "That's not the problem." He shifted, slower this time, the movement stiff as he finally reached out. His arm extended, fingers curling around the crushed bundle. The plants were damp, pressed together into a tight mass that made them easier to hold, like something a child would mash together without really understanding what they were doing. He took it from the nurgling, turning it slightly in his hand, inspecting it closer. Definitely poisonous. It…wanted to help him. "You shouldn't be able to do this," Aelius said, more to himself now. The nurgling rocked back on its heels, watching him expectantly.
Natsu tilted his head. "What do you mean? It just brought you stuff."
Aelius's jaw tightened slightly. "They don't 'just' do things. They follow orders. That's it." His eyes flicked back to the creature. "They don't decide to go wandering. They don't decide to bring me anything. Especially not like this."
Carla's ears flattened. "So you didn't tell it to gather those?"
"No." The word came out sharper than intended. Silence settled for a moment, broken only by the rain.
Happy looked between Aelius and the nurgling. "So… it just did it on its own?"
"That's not how they work," Aelius said, quieter now, but more certain. "They're extensions. Not… independent."
He looked down at the crushed bundle again, thumb pressing lightly against one of the leaves where the edges were uneven. The nurgling chirped again, softer this time, shifting from foot to foot like it was waiting for approval. His brow furrowed slightly, something close to unease creeping in under the confusion. "You shouldn't be able to want anything," he said under his breath. The nurgling just stared up at him, wide and expectant, like that sentence didn't apply to it at all.
Wendy glanced between them, hesitant. "Maybe… maybe it's trying to help?"
Aelius didn't answer right away, because that was the problem; it shouldn't be able to help like this, it shouldn't even know how to.
"What's the big deal? It's helping, isn't it? Not like that's a bad thing," Natsu said, already stepping in closer like the whole situation was the most natural thing in the world, crouching down behind the creature and peering at it with open curiosity instead of caution, his hand hovering like he was debating whether to poke it or pat it. The nurgling didn't recoil, didn't hiss or bare teeth or do anything Aelius would have expected from one of his own summons when approached without direction. It just turned its head slightly toward Natsu, chirped once, then refocused entirely on Aelius as nothing else in the world mattered.
"Imagine if Gray's ice suddenly gained consciousness," someone muttered off to the side, low and unsettled, and it drew a few uneasy glances from the others nearby. Even Happy hovered a little higher in the air, wings beating slower, eyes locked on the thing like he couldn't decide if it was cute or something that would bite his face off. Wendy stayed a step back, hands clasped tight in front of her, clearly unsure whether to approach or keep her distance.
"I mean, this is closer to Heartfilia's keys," Aelius said, voice quieter now, slower, like he was working through it as he spoke rather than explaining something he already understood. "I'm not making them, = I'm pulling them from somewhere else, something that already exists. But even then…" He trailed off, his brow tightening slightly beneath the edge of his mask as he looked down at the nurgling again like he was trying to find something in it that wasn't there before. "They follow orders. Always. Even when my magic was unstable, when I couldn't control it properly, they didn't… do this."
The creature shifted closer, its small, uneven body pressing lightly against his arm as if trying to reassure him, or maybe just seeking contact. It made another soft, wet chirping sound, nudging the crushed bundle of plants in his hand again insistently, like it needed him to take them.
Aelius took a slow breath, like even that much still pulled at something that hadn't fully healed yet. His hand moved on instinct more than thought, reaching out further than before, fingers brushing against the top of the nurgling's head. The thing leaned into the touch without hesitation, nuzzling into his palm with a small, pleased sound that didn't belong in anything he had ever created or summoned before.
"I've never been able to feel them like this," he said, quieter now, almost to himself, but loud enough that the others still caught it. His fingers stayed where they were, resting against the creature as it pressed closer. "I don't mean physically." His gaze unfocused slightly, in concentration, like he was listening to something no one else could hear. And maybe he was. "I can tell it's proud," he continued after a moment, the words coming slower, more deliberate. "Proud of what it did. Like it thinks this matters." His fingers shifted slightly, brushing along the side of the creature's head, and it made another soft noise, almost eager. "And it's worried. About me.… And excited," he added, voice lower now, edged with something that wasn't quite disbelief, nor unease, but close to both. "Both at the same time. Like it doesn't know which one to be more."
Natsu blinked at that, glancing between Aelius and the creature like he was trying to see whatever it was Aelius was describing. "So it's just… thinking for itself?" he asked, scratching the back of his head. "That doesn't sound like a problem. Sounds kinda cool, actually."
"It's not supposed to be able to, how many times do I have to say that?" Aelius replied immediately, sharper this time, not directed at Natsu so much as the situation itself. His hand didn't pull away from the nurgling, but his posture shifted slightly, tension creeping back in. "They don't deviate. They don't choose. They don't feel. They aren't supposed to do anything like what it just did."
The word lingered heavier than the others. The nurgling chirped again, softer this time, pressing its head more firmly into his hand like it could sense the shift in him, like it was trying to counter it in the only way it knew how.
Aelius exhaled slowly through his nose, his grip tightening just slightly around the bundle of crushed, poisonous plants in his other hand. Poison ivy, nightshade, things that should have been gathered for harm, for rot, for something far less… this. And yet here they were, clumsily packed together like a gift.
"And they definitely shouldn't be able to care. I killed their god, their father, their creator… so why did it seem so happy?"
Gajeel barely got the words out, a rough mutter of "why the hell does the rain feel heavier…" before it cut off into a sharp grunt, his knees slamming into the mud with enough force to crack it, metal grinding as his arms buckled under him.
Others didn't even manage that much. Bodies dropped flat, bones groaning under the strain, breaths knocked out in harsh bursts as the weight forced them down, pressing them into the ground like it meant to bury them where they stood. Tents caved in around them, poles snapping clean, canvas folding under the force, and even the rain changed, each drop hitting harder, faster, dragged down like gravity itself had turned against them. The nurgling didn't get a chance to react at all, one moment standing there, the next it was crushed into the mud with a wet, quiet pop, gone so fast it barely registered over the sound of everything else hitting the ground.
Aelius didn't move. Not because he couldn't, though there was pressure on him too, heavy enough to make his skin ache and the ground creak beneath his boots, but it didn't crush him the way it did the others; his magic was too strong to crush like the others. His eyes shifted slowly, taking in the scene around him without any real urgency. Gajeel was half-buried in mud, teeth grit, trying to push himself up and failing. A few others were pinned completely, faces pressed into the mud, fingers digging uselessly at ground that might as well have been stone. Even the rain felt wrong now, thick and dragging, every drop hitting with more force than it should.
"So this is where the fairies were hiding." The voice carried easily despite the rain, calm and almost conversational, like whoever it belonged to hadn't just pinned an entire camp to the ground without effort. There was no rush in it, just a quiet certainty that made the air feel even heavier.
Around Aelius, the others weren't adjusting. They were struggling, breaths turning ragged, bodies shaking under the pressure, the kind of force that didn't just hold you down but threatened to grind you into the ground if it felt like it. Gajeel let out a low, strained growl, trying to force himself up inch by inch, metal creaking under the strain, but every bit of progress was crushed back down just as fast.
Aelius exhaled through his nose as he rose and finally took a step forward. The ground cracked under his foot from the force pushing down. Another step followed, just as steady, the pressure dragging at him but not stopping him, his posture straightening slightly as he moved. His eyes never left the figure ahead, though the rain and the distortion in the air made it hard to make out anything more than a shape at first. "Bit dramatic," he muttered, voice low, more to himself than anyone else, though it still carried in the heavy silence between strained breaths and shifting mud.
Whoever this was, Aelius could feel why they were around Gildart's level. His gaze flicked once more, briefly, to the others still pinned, then back to the figure. "Gonna assume you're not here for conversation," he said finally, voice even, almost bored despite everything pressing down around them. He let out a slow breath through his nose, eyes half-lidded as he studied him, "If I asked you to leave, I doubt you would, right?" The question came out flat, almost idle, but there was a thread of something real buried in it. Not hope, exactly. Just… curiosity. It would've been easier if the answer had been yes. It never was.
The man's grin didn't shift, but something in his gaze sharpened, like he'd picked up on that small honesty and decided it was amusing. "Ah. You're a jokester, aren't you?" he said, voice easy, almost friendly in a way that didn't match the pressure crushing the camp around them. "Tell me, fairy… can you fly?" The last part lingered just a bit too long; it felt like a test, like he was reaching for something specific, waiting to see how Aelius would respond.
Aelius's head tilted slightly, rain sliding off the edge of his mask as his eyes narrowed just a fraction. "Depends on who you ask," he answered, tone just as casual, but his weight shifted subtly, grounding himself a bit more, like he was bracing for something he couldn't see yet.
The man's grin widened, just enough to show teeth. "My name is Bluenote Stinger. The strongest member in Grimoire Heart. tell me where I may find Mavis Vermilion's grave," he continued, voice dropping into something quieter. "and you can die painlessly."
Aelius stared at him for a moment, letting the rain fill the space between them, letting the weight press in around his ribs and shoulders, testing him again. Then he huffed out a short breath, something almost like a laugh slipping through. "I've never done anything painlessly," he said, voice rough but steady. "Trust me."
Bluenote watched him for a second longer, head tilting slightly, like he was reassessing something. Then, without warning, the pressure shifted.
Aelius felt it slam into him like a second impact layered on top of the first, the ground beneath his boots cracking as his knees bent despite himself. His muscles tensed instantly, every part of him locking as he pushed back against it, teeth grinding together behind the mask. This wasn't the same as before. Before, it had been wide, spread across the camp, pinning everyone equally. This was focused and compressed. Meant for him and him alone.
The mud beneath his feet sank, boots digging in as he forced himself to stay upright, spine straightening inch by inch against the invisible weight trying to fold him in half. His breath hitched once, sharp, then steadied again.
Blue Note's eyes lit with something closer to interest now. "There it is," he murmured. "You're different from the others."
Aelius didn't answer immediately. He was busy not getting driven into the ground. His arms shifted slightly at his sides, fingers flexing once as if testing their range under the pressure. He lifted his head slowly, meeting Blue Note's gaze again through the rain.
"Yeah," he said quietly. "I get that a lot."
The pressure began to increase again, slowly, like Bluenote was turning a dial just to see where the breaking point was. Aelius's shoulders shook once under the strain, then stilled. He shifted his footing again, forcing one leg forward half a step, the motion small but deliberate, the ground shifting a little more under the effort.
Blue Note smiled lightly. "You can still move," he said, almost approving. "Interesting."
Aelius exhaled slowly, then let his head tilt again, that same almost lazy motion, like they weren't standing in the middle of a crushed camp with gravity trying to tear him apart. "Yeah," he repeated. "Kinda ruins your whole dramatic entrance thing."
For a second, nothing happened. Then Bluenote laughed. "So you can fly," he said. "That means this won't be boring."