𝗟𝗜𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗛. - 𝖿𝖺𝗂𝗋𝗒 𝗍𝖺𝗂𝗅.¹

‣ 𝟬𝟰

The woman in armor took a moment to reply, her eyes clashing with Vanessa's. At first they were harsh and in the form of a glare, but once she noticed Vanessa was allowing her worry to swim in her eyes, her gaze shifted to soften. "It's nothing, but as we speak, Erigor is nearing the masters."

Vanessa visibly frowned at Erza's topic change, her hold on the redhead's arm loosening gently until it was completely out of her grip. The brunette was not one to worry for those other than herself after the incident and her life change, but those in Fairy Tail brought out a different side of her. She could not think on whether she despised that side or held a deep fondness for it. Perhaps it had shown she was capable of human emotions, just like any other ordinary person was capable of them.

"Come to think of it, there was someone in Eisenwald named Kage," Erza addressed, her words snapping the brunette woman out of one of her many dazes that day. "He managed to break the Lullaby's seal all by himself."

"A dispeller...a seal breaking wizard?! He could remove the Magic Wind Wall, too!" Gray had made the connection Erza was hinting at fairly quick. However, the knowledge they gained on Eisenwald's true motive, as well as the panicked and hurried state they felt in their bodies was beginning to eat away at their brains. It was causing them to think less and less, but Vanessa did not have a problem with it. Of course she enjoyed being acknowledged and needed, but to use an ability she had not used in over a month was something she did not look forward to.

"Let's find him, you two! Find Kage!" The redhead ordered, the raven-haired man and the brunette woman nodding in agreement. Soon enough, Erza and Gray were running up the stairs and onto the second story of the station, failing to notice Vanessa's hesitation for a split moment. She felt as a fallen member of the Dark Guild's eyes were set on her, but despite his eyes, there were a different pair, as well.

She turned her head to stare down the wall beside the conscious Eisenwald member, her cat-like eyes narrowing. The presence of another was strong, but she felt no confidence emitting from whoever the mystery person was. Perhaps it was stupid to do nothing about them, but she had no large amount of distance from her own Guild members to do something to put them out of commission.

With a sigh, she placed her hands in her coat pockets before climbing the stair steps at her own pace. Her shoes clicked with every step, both Erza and Gray out of sight, but close enough to hear the echo of their hurried steps. The farther she grew, the more at ease the conscious member of Eisenwald grew. Now, Vanessa's current problem was catching up with Gray and Erza, finding Lucy and Happy, and at last, finding Natsu and the man called Kage.

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

      THE BEATING OF THE HEART CAME WITH every split second. No skips were supposed to take place, unless an individual was ruled with anxiety, they had a condition serious to their well-being, or they were simply fighting a powerful sense within. In Vanessa Sato's case, she was fighting the furious magic she held within her veins. It seemed as if she could hear the beating of her own heart inside of her ears. Her breathing was beginning to grow harsh and pounding ensued in her head, growing worse and worse every second.

She had grown farther away from her two companions ever since the effects began to take place, which was a nuisance as it would take her a bit more time to catch up to them. She blinked her eyes rapidly as she made an effort to catch her breath and regain her senses, but she was only met with failure. As she felt the screw on her concealment coming loose, she leaned against the wall to her right, gripping her hand against it.

She gritted her teeth as she closed her eyes once again, keeping them shut as she focused on concealing what came loose. The pounding in her head grew worse the harder she tried, which caused her focus to come in and out. Trepidation began to swirl deep inside her body, a feeling she had not felt in what seemed like eternity, due to the thought in the back of her mind on what might happen if she did not keep it from unsealing.