Chapter 13: The Queen's Express
The team stared at the giant, monstrous horn Erza had brought back from her last quest. It was easily twice the size of a person, intricately carved, and pulsed with a faint, residual magic.
"Erza... what is that?" Lucy asked, bewildered.
"A trophy," Erza replied simply. "The horn of a Vulcan Demon. Its primary function was to generate immense kinetic force." She patted it, a strange glint in her eye. "In other words, it's an engine."
Before anyone could fully process this, Erza got to work. With a flash of light, her armor was gone, replaced by a simple, durable mechanic's jumpsuit. She dragged a nearby railway handcart into position, then single-handedly lifted the massive horn and slammed it down onto the cart's platform. Placing her hands on both the horn and the cart, she poured her own magical energy into them.
"Requip: Weld!"
A blinding blue light enveloped the components. Metal groaned and fused as Erza magically bonded the demonic engine to the simple handcart, creating a bizarre, overpowered hybrid vehicle. It was monstrous, impractical, and utterly brilliant.
"All aboard," she commanded, her armor returning as quickly as it had vanished.
Gray and Lucy scrambled on, holding on for dear life. Happy flew on, excited. I floated onto the front, intrigued. Erza grabbed the still-dazed Kageyama by the collar and threw him onto the cart like a sack of potatoes. That just left Natsu.
"There's no way I'm getting on that thing!" he declared, his face already looking a little pale.
Erza simply glared at him. It was a glare that promised pain and suffering far worse than any motion sickness. Defeated, Natsu reluctantly climbed aboard, looking as though he were walking to his own execution.
Erza placed her hands on the horn. "Hold on," she warned.
I could teleport us, I thought, my internal monologue running as always. A single jump and we'd be at Clover, waiting for them. But that's not the point. This... this is a team-building exercise, Fairy Tail style. Kageyama needs to see this. He needs to witness the sheer, untamable force of will that drives this guild. This ride will do more to convert him than any of Erza's threats.
With a roar, Erza poured a massive amount of her own magic into the demonic engine. The horn blazed to life, and the cart shot forward with the force of a cannonball.
"WAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Lucy screamed, her hair flying straight back.
"URRRPP..." Natsu groaned, his face instantly turning the familiar shade of green as he collapsed onto the floor of the cart.
"FASTER!" Happy cheered, loving every second of it.
The Queen's Express, as I mentally dubbed it, rocketed down the tracks at an impossible speed. The scenery blurred into a green and brown streak. The wind howled past us, so strong it was hard to breathe. Erza stood at the front, a grim look of determination on her face, her magic flowing into the engine in a visible, shimmering torrent. The sheer power she was expending was immense; it was a testament to the raw strength of an S-Class wizard.
Gray, who was holding on tightly, looked over at the groaning Natsu. "See, Natsu? This is what you get for being a pain!" he taunted, though his voice was strained from the wind.
Kageyama, the captive, was simply staring at Erza, his mouth agape. He was a powerful wizard in his own right, but this was something else entirely. This wasn't just magic; it was raw, unfiltered willpower made manifest. She wasn't just piloting a vehicle; she was being the vehicle's heart, soul, and fuel source all at once. He was witnessing the difference between a dark guild that fought for selfish gain and a Fairy Tail wizard who would literally burn her own soul to protect her family.
Yes, watch closely, Kageyama, I thought, observing his reaction. This is what true strength looks like. Not scheming in the shadows, but facing a problem head-on with everything you've got.
I glanced at Natsu, groaning on the floor. I could stabilize him again, but I decided against it. This was part of the experience. Erza's tough love, Gray's taunts, Lucy's panicked shrieks—this chaos was the glue that held them together. Natsu's motion sickness, in a strange way, was a vital part of their team dynamic.
"There!" Erza shouted over the roar of the wind, pointing ahead.
On a parallel track, we could see it: the magic four-wheeler, carrying the bulk of the Eisenwald guild. They saw us coming, a plume of dust and raw magic hurtling towards them. They were fast, but we were faster.
"They're heading for the trestle bridge up ahead!" Gray yelled. "They're going to try and cross before we can catch them!"
"They won't make it," Erza said, her eyes narrowing. She poured even more of her magic into the engine. The demonic horn let out a guttural scream, and the cart surged forward with a bone-jarring lurch, rapidly closing the distance.
The chase was on. We were seconds away from a high-speed collision course with an entire dark guild, hundreds of feet above a rocky canyon. For anyone else, it would be a nightmare.
For Fairy Tail, it was just another Tuesday.
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