The darkness starts to fade from view as we travel farther from the fight. "Elizabeth, are you okay?" Diane asks worriedly. I furrow my eyebrows as a sudden pain enters my forehead.
"Elizabeth!" Erza yells in terror. I fake a smile, forcing myself to stand up. Meredy exchanges a nervous glance with Juvia as she releases a heavy sigh. "E-Elizabeth, please..." Meredy says nervously.
Juvia nods in agreement. "Juvia agrees!" The water mage exclaims, eyeing me carefully. "Juvia thinks Elizabeth should get some rest!" I sigh heavily, narrowing my eyes at the water mage.
"What do you mean!?" I say harshly, shooting her a cold glare. "I feel fine! I don't need you to tell me how to feel!" Juvia's eyes widen in surprise as she nervously takes a step backwards.
My eyes widen in horror. I place my hand to my mouth as guilt forms in the pit of my stomach. "Juvia, I—" I begin as tears well in her eyes. Juvia anxiously stands behind Erza.
"That's very out of character for you," a familiar voice came from behind. I slowly turn my head in that direction, seeing Merlin standing there. "Merlin..." I say sadly, staring at the ground in disappointment.
"This can only mean one thing," Merlin says, furrowing her eyebrows in concentration. "The darkness you saved me from is slowly consuming you." My fists clench as I recall Zeldris' words.
"There must be someway to stop it," Diane says in a hopeful tone. "...Right?" Merlin sighs heavily, staring at the ground in disappointment.
"I'm afraid not," Merlin says with a conflicted frown. "There's no permanent way to stop the curse." Tears threaten to roll down my cheeks as Erza furrows her eyebrows in concentration.
"There's always a way," Erza says calmly. "We just haven't found it yet." Merlin furrows her eyebrows in concentration, glaring at Erza.
"What will happen when there's no way to save her?" Merlin asks bitterly, narrowing her eyes at Erza. "There's not a solution to every problem out there!" The scarlet haired female narrows her eyes at the mage, meeting her gaze.
"Stop acting like you know everything," Erza says angrily, forcing herself to stand up. "You don't! No one knows everything and that's why we shouldn't give up hope! You're ignorant to think that!" I exchange a nervous glance with Diane, not daring to move a muscle.
"I've been alive long enough to know enough," Merlin says coldly. "I was present during the first holy war and watched as the supreme deity and the demon king destroyed my village."
Erza's eyes widen in surprise as she exchanges a nervous glance with Jellal. "I understand how it feels to watch your home being destroyed," Erza says with a sad smile. "Jellal and I went through something very similar."
Jellal sighs heavily, placing a hand on Erza's shoulder. "Adults were brutally murdered, and the children were taken as hostages," the blue haired male says, clenching his fists. "We were forced into creating the R-system."
"What's the R-system?" Diane asks sheepishly. Erza sighs heavily, forcing a small smile. The scarlet haired female exchanges a nervous glance with Jellal, releasing a calm sigh.
"The R-system was a creation made to revive Zeref," Jellal says as he tightly held Erza's hand. "I-It was my fault..." Tears form in his eyes as he clenches his fists. Jellal's hair covers his eyes as he puts his face in his hands.
"Jellal..."
"What happened next?" Gowther asks with a blank stare. He shifts his gaze from Erza to Jellal, having a serious expression on his face. "We planned escape after escape but failed each one," Erza says sadly.
"They blamed me for everything and took me to get punished," Jellal says, clenching his fists. "I was so angry that I allowed myself to get taken over by darkness! It was my fault! I almost used Erza to revive Zeref using the R-system!"
Instant tears stream down his cheeks as Erza gently pulls him in for a hug. "Jellal..." Erza says in a soothing tone, making sure to stay by his side. "Please stop blaming yourself for what happened." Erza wraps her arms around Jellal as he tightly holds her.
I furrow my eyebrows in concentration as instant curiosity forms in the pit of my stomach. "I-If you don't mind, please tell me how the darkness has effected me..." I say, staring at the ground.
"The darkness is effecting you in two major ways," Merlin says sharply, eyeing me cautiously. "First, it's effecting you mentally. You have casual headaches that increase in pain when you're exposed to darkness."
Tears appear in my eyes as my body starts to tremble in fear. "N-No..." I choke out, clenching my trembling fists. "I..." My voice trails off as worried looks appear on their faces.
"Also, your darkness is increasing," Merlin says worriedly, clenching her fists. "Your actions won't be your own." I stare at her in horror as my eyes widen.
"Y-You don't mean..."
"Sometimes, you'll be yourself," Merlin says as tears form in her eyes. "Sometimes, you'll be almost evil." I stare at her in horror as my hand covers my mouth. My fists start to tremble as tears roll down my cheeks.
"P-Please no..."
"Elizabeth..." Juvia says, rushing to my side. The water mage supportively hugs me, seeming extremely worried. I sob into her chest as instant despair wells over me. "You look different," Ban says casually, gulping down another drink.
"W-W-What do you mean...?"
"Wait, you don't know!?" Ban says with a hysterical chuckle. Merlin shoots him a harsh glare, exchanging a nervous glance with Erza. "Your appearance has changed as well," Merlin says.
"P-Please show me..." I say sadly, exhaling loudly. Merlin snaps her fingers as a mirror appears in front of me. My eyes widen as I stare at the mirror in surprise. I look exactly like this:
"T-This can't be me..." I choke out, feeling the tears roll down my cheeks. Juvia tightly holds me. "This is you," Merlin says quietly.
I release a heavy sigh as an intense darkness fills the air. "W-What's that!?" Erza asks sharply as her eyes widen in surprise. I turn my attention to Meliodas as darkness surrounds his entire body.
"The darkness in the air is thickening, and he is reacting to it," Merlin says sternly. I exchange an anxious glance with Merlin, knowing that this wasn't good.