Nalu One Shots

The Collector

Finished - August 9, 2021

Word Count - 6222

Music - Efisio Cross - A Sacrifice to Save You

Summary:
Natsu, Lucy and Happy and on a Mission to retrieve a special artifact for "The Collector" when something goes wrong. Natsu and Lucy walk into a trap and are caught! Will they be able to escape? What do their captors want?

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How could she have been so blind? How did she not see the obvious warnings?! They waltzed head on without any precaution and now they were paying the price.

The job seemed easy, therefore there was no need for weariness. A humble collector requested the retrieval of an ancient relic. The only dangers they faced were endless tunnels and bearing each others company for a few hours in the dark. However, a much greater threat awoke from inside those caves.

Lucy had overlooked the position of the relic and exactly what the relic was. She had been more focused on how to find it, rather than what it did. This was their downfall.

The relic was called the "Living Glass"; a porcelain basin, hand painted and extremely delicate. The large fragile bowl held dozens of living memories of fallen Mages from hundreds of years ago. All collected by wizards and preserved in the magical vessel.

What Natsu and Lucy found out too late, was the great ability the simple bowl held. As the two mages were about to complete their task and claim the relic, something unexpected happened.

Natsu was about to touch the glossy surface, but before he could even lay a finger on it, hell broke loose.

Firstly; their only light source (being Natsu's flame) suddenly went out. Leaving he, Lucy and Happy in complete darkness.

Secondly; the ground started to shake and their foundation shook so violently that no one could keep their balance.

They soon realized why Natsu's fire disappeared, for Lucy couldn't use her Spirits and Happy couldn't fly. None of them could use their magic.

In the darkness Lucy smelled something sour, her eyes stung and started to water violently. She couldn't see anything but she knew that her vision was going dark because the odd gas was making harder to breathe and her hearing was becoming fuzzy.

Everything happened so quickly and Lucy barely remembered any of it. But at the moment she was less focused on what had happened and more worried about what was in store for them.

Because when Lucy woke up, she found herself somewhere unfamiliar. She was strapped up against a brick wall, her wrists already numb from their tight restrictions. Her legs spread about a foot apart and her arms stretched out on either side of her, each appendage bolted to the wall behind her.

Natsu was in the same position, directly next to her. Since he was taller his left arm hovered just above her right. He had not woken up yet and it looked like he was injured. Blood from a wound ran down his face and met with a large spot on his left side.

Lucy considered herself lucky, finding herself unharmed upon her arrival. However she waited to count her blessings for she had not yet seen their captors, nor learned of their intentions. Lucy took advantage of the solitary silence and looked for signs of weakness in their small prision room.

Unfortunately, not many imperfections were found. Four solid walls of concrete held no windows, one heavy metal door with no handle on the inside. The floor was barren save for one empty table tucked in the far corner. One lonely light fixture hung from the high ceiling, every so often it would flicker, sending the room into momentary darkness.