Celestial Empress
They arrived at the Celestial spirit world.
Lucy was welcomed by her contracted spirits and the other celestial spirits.
"Welcome, old friend! We missed you." A great masculine voice sounded. Lucy saw the Celestial Spirit King.
"Celestial Spirit King, I'm here to-"
"I know what you're here for but no. I can't give you permission." Even before Lucy finished her sentence, she was outright denied by the king. It looks like they are expecting her visit and knows all about her plans.
"B- bu- " "Your Majesty, I plead you to give Lucy permission" Loke knelt down and pleaded the King. While being a celestial spirit, he is also a member of Fairy Tail, and the disaster that happened also scarred him.
"We also plead you, your Majesty!!!" The other contracted spirits also knelt down and pleaded in unison. They are already accepted to Lucy as their master. Their bonds grew stronger as days past by.
"Hmm. It's not that I don't want to but it's because I also don't have the right to give you my permission." The king said with an apologetic smile.
While the king ruled over the silver and gold celestial spirits, he was not the ruler of the celestial spirit world. With the vast space, the spirit world has, the inhabitants in this world vastly numbered, with a few beings as strong as he is and even stronger. He can't just give permission to Lucy who will be going to do a forbidden ritual.
"This Empress gives her my permission." While Lucy is thinking about who and how she would be able to get permission, an ethereal voice that astonished the King was which sounded heavenly to ears of all who heard it.
"Everyone, the Celestial Empress, her majesty, the ruler of the Celestial Spirit World." While the figure is nowhere to be seen, the king still introduced her like a butler introducing his master. Every spirit was overwhelmed by her aura alone that they knelt down just with her voice.
Lucy was not compelled by her aura but she was also feeling the divine aura from the owner of the voice.
"Thank you, your majesty! Thank you very much." Looking at her surroundings, trying to search for the Empress.
"Good!" After she said that Lucy and her contracted spirits vanished and appeared in a different place.
"Where are we?" They can still see stars surrounding the vast empty space but in front of them, they saw a large serpent biting its own tile with its eyes closed.
"The Ouroboros!" Loke exclaimed.
"Ouroboros, the symbol of infinity." Lucy said as she slowly steps closer to the snake.
"Thank you Celestial Empress!" She then turned back as she thanked the Empress again. Although they can't see the empress, Lucy feels that she is watching them at this moment. Hearing no reply, Lucy just scratched her head as she turns around. Then gathering her resolved and focusing once more, she walks forward.
She looked at her celestial spirits and nodded to each of them then, looks back to the sleeping serpent. "Let us start."
She released the 13 keys in the space. They glowed as they float in front of her. The 12 Celestial spirits also glow as they encircle Lucy. "Here goes everything."
"Ophiuchus, your turn." the seemingly mechanical-like snake flew around Ouroboros.
"No Beginning No End." Lucy put her hands in front and starts to mutter the chant.
"No End No Beginning." Shining glyphs surround Lucy as she continues to chant. The circle of spirits around Lucy closed their eyes as they gave their essences to Lucy. Their essence flows through Lucy, then, to Ouroboros.
"The Beginning will be The End and The End will be The Beginning. Open the Gate of Time, Ouroboros." As she pours all her magic, the pain went through her body. Ouroboros opened its eyes as Lucy continues to pour her magic to it. Her whole body felt like freezing, burning, and electrocuted all at the same time. Then, she felt like her body is rotting away. She wanted to stop the ritual but memories of the guild appeared in her mind.
A rowdy bunch of mages smiling and fighting each other for stupid reasons like kids, friends which you can trust, and a family who will fight the world just to protect each other. Reminiscing the guild, she perseveres in the spell that might take her life. She felt like the spell has no bottom, it continued draining her magic.
'It's not enough. Our magic is not enough. Lucy, stop the ritual.' Aquarius shouted anxiously in her mind. Her body can't move due to being bound by the ritual. 'STOP IT LUCY OR YOU'LL DIE.' 'No. No. No' Without any other choice, she poured more of her celestial magic into Lucy. The other celestial spirits followed this action.
'Again? The magic is not enough again. Will I fail?" asks Lucy to herself.
"NO"
"To protect the world"
"To protect the guild"
"To protect my family"
"To see my family once again"
"I can't fail"
As she pours every magic she can pour from her body, her body started to slowly dissipate.
"I underestimated your determination, little mage. I'll lend you my help." As the flames of their hope dwindle, a voice reignited it. It was the Empress. Lucy opened her eyes. Her celestial spirits started to glow. Then, as they pour their essence, Lucy's body glows as it continues to dissipate.
"Good Luck to your journey little mage" The empress said as she watched Lucy disappear.
'And I wish you to stop the impending doom to the worlds' The empress thought to herself.