Off to Shamballa

The carriage clattered on down the road. The five girls inside were restless and tired, their energy and enthusiasm for this vacation drained from this rickety ride they had been confined to all morning after having just been on a train for several days. Lucy was dozing in her seat. Cana was resting her head on the window sill, staring at nothing in particular, and wishing she had brought more booze for the journey. Levy's nose was stuck deep inside her book. Juvia was trying her best to stretch in the confined space. Erza contently snacked on a sweet roll she had packed. All five of the Fairy Tail mages couldn't wait for their vacation to start for real.

Suddenly, the carriage came to a sharp halt, jarring Lucy awake and causing everyone but Erza, who was poised as always, to be thrown from their seats.

"This is as far as I can take you," called out the coachmen.

The girls grimaced as they pulled themselves to their feet. They could feel the carriage shift slightly as he stood up and began unloading their bags off the roof. In a few moments he hopped down and opened the carriage door for them.

"You're going to have to walk the rest of the way from here."

The girls stuck their heads out and glanced around. There was no town in sight, just rolling hills filled with thick forest as far as the eye could see. Looking ahead, the road they were on clearly continued, just straight into a tunnel. This couldn't possibly be right, the girls collectively thought.

"Err, so why are we stopping here?" Asked Lucy, trying not to sound rude.

"Yes, Juvia would like to know too," piped up the water mage.

"The tunnel is too small for carriages, you'll have to make it the rest of the way on foot," the coachman stated in a matter of fact way. "But don't worry, Shamballa is right on the other side of it."

The mages piled out and began to stretch from having been seated for so long. Lucy quickly gave a quick glance at the tunnel, inspecting the tunnel, she could probably touch the top of it she got on her tip toes, clearly too small for a carriage.

"How long of a walk are we talking here?" inquired Levy.

"Eh, not long," he answered, Lucy was not amused by his vagueness. "The town is on the other side of this mountain, walking around it would take a couple more hours, and climbing it would take almost another day. So the Shamballa residents built this tunnel to cut down on that time."

"Then why make it so small and **** people to come by foot?" pressed the frustrated celestial mage. "This is a resort town that relies on tourists, why would they inconvenience their guests so much?"

He shrugged.

"Lady, I'm just the coachman."

Levy tried to diffuse the tension.

"There's no need to get mad, Lucy. This long journey is probably going to make us appreciate the vacation even more."

"Yes," agreed Juvia, "the sooner we get there, the sooner Juvia can relax in the hot springs!"

"I don't know about you," Cana joked, "But I bet that first keg I down will be the best beer I've ever tasted after this hike."

"Right," cut in Erza, "there's no point complaining about it, all that's left is to head out. Follow me!"

Is she really expecting us to haul our baggage all the way there? Lucy whined to herself. We still don't even know how long of a walk it is.

The other girls watched as Erza summoned a dolly, swiftly loaded her mountain of luggage onto it, and marched towards the tunnel. However, it became immediately clear that it wasn't going to fit through the passage. Erza, as usual, packed way too much.

"Here, let me help," offered Cana as she pulled out a card and activated it, sucking Erza's bags into it. "That should make traveling easier."

"Good idea, Cana! Would you mind doing that for me?" asked Lucy.

"And me?" chirped Levy.

"And Juvia as well?"

"Of course," Cana grinned as she pulled the rest of the luggage into her card. "There we go."

"Aren't you forgetting something?" the coachman butted in, extending his hand as he waited for payment.

"Oh, right."

The girls quickly paid and thanked the coachman for his services, then watched him turn the carriage around and begin heading back the way they came. All that was left was to follow the tunnel.

It couldn't be that long, please don't be that long, Lucy begged.

"Juvia can see the end of the tunnel!" called out Juvia.

They had been walking for what seemed hours in a mind-numbingly monotonous slog, though Erza insisted that it had only been thirty minutes. The tunnel seemed to stretch on endlessly with the only light inside being lanterns hanging from the ceiling every several yards. But now, the five could all spy sunlight in the distance. With renewed energy, the girls dashed forward into the light. It was so bright compared to the dimly lit tunnel, they had to blink and rub their eyes for a few minutes.

"Hello!" came a sing song voice. It was a woman dressed in a bright, festive robe approaching them. She gave them a big, almost unnatural, smile. "Let me be the first to welcome you to the wonderful town of Shamballa!"

They looked past the woman to see a sprawling and charming town behind her.

"I can't believe we actually made it," sighed Lucy in relief.

"Yeah, that trip was a pain," added in Cana.

"Oh, Shamballa is intentionally a hard place to get to," answered the woman cheerfully. "It's so our guests truly cherish and treasure their time here."

"See, I was right," said Levy.

"May I ask where you five are from?"

"We are mages from the Fairy Tail Guild, in Magnolia," Erza declared.

The woman's smile somehow grew bigger before she gave a quick bow.

"Amazing, we've heard incredible things about your guild and are honored to host you all. Though I hope the rumors that the towns you visit tend to blow up, aren't true."

"Looks like our reputation proceeds us," grumbled Lucy.

"I can assure you that no harm will come to your lovely town while we're here," declared Erza. "We'll defend it with all of our might."

"Oh ho, I was merely joking," the greeter replied with a clearly **** laugh. "Nothing bad ever happens in Shamballa."

The girls glanced at each other momentarily at the comment.

"Anyway," Erza spoke up again, "after all this traveling, my friends and I need a place to rest. I suppose you'd know where the town's inn is."

"Of course," the woman beamed, "as Shamballa's greeter, I'd be more than happy to show you to it as well as give you a brief tour of the town if you'd like."

"Is anyone else thinking she's acting a little... off?" murmured Lucy.

"Juvia agrees this lady is a bit strange," commented Juvia.

"Don't be rude," Erza ordered, giving the two a quick jab with her elbow before answering the woman. "If you could point out places as we make our way to the inn, that'd be enough."

"Certainly."

The greeter led them thrown the town, highlighting the various key locations they passed and telling the mages tidbits of information about them, most of which just went in one ear and out the other for the exhausted girls. As they rounded a corner, movement above them caught Lucy's eye. She glanced up to see people on top of the buildings stringing dozens upon dozen of large balls between the rooftops. Her curiosity was piqued.

"So what's up with that?" asked Lucy, pointing up at the strange decorations.

"Ahh, yes!" Their guide exclaimed with delight. "You all are very lucky to have come this week. It's a very special time here in Shamballa. Koule happens in just a few days and they are decorating the town in preparation."

"Koh-lay?" piped up Levy.

"The Festival of Colors; one of this town's oldest traditions," she answered in exuberance. "It's a celebration our history and community. Those clay gourds are filled with colored powder and during Koule we burst them and shower the streets with colors. We welcome guests to participate if they wish-- though I do recommend wearing something you don't mind getting stained, it takes days to clean it off of you. I'm sure you'll hear more about it as you stay in town."

Lucy, Erza, Juvia, and Levy stared up at the gourds in awe, imagining what the festival would be like in person. But one member of their party had other concerns.

"Hey so, where's a place a girl can get a drink round here?" Cana yawned.

"Why, right over there," the greeter pointed to a large rustic looking tavern at the far side of the block they were on. "That's Amora's Taproom, our famous beer hall and home to our Spiced Ale Brewery-- winner of several blue ribbons across Bosco, Fiore, and Minstrel."

Cana was sold.

"Well, see ya girls," she joked as she took off for the door.

The card wielder didn't get two feet before Erza had her on her ass.

"You're not going anywhere till we get our rooms, you still have our bags."

"Aww, come on, just one drink!" Cana pleaded.

"No!" snapped back the four other girls in unison.

The greeter seemed unfazed by the ruckus and continued on with her spiel, "-and right across the street is 'Duchess Bella', our town's bakery, known for their iconic strawberry cake."

Erza's head snapped around at this news.

"Erza, no!" pleaded Lucy, knowing what was going to happen.

Now it became a team effort to try and restrain Erza from ditching the group.

"-And just around the corner is the Traveler's Inn and the hot springs," continued the greeter, again not even acknowledging the scuffle happening right in front of her.

Erza relented, for now.

"So, the hot springs are right next to the inn?" asked Juvia.

"Of course, Shamballa was founded because of the hot springs and the Inn was built right around it."

"Well, we really appreciate your help. Sorry about our friends," Lucy thanked and apologized.

"Oh, there's no need to apologize, we here at Shamballa strive to make you feel as at home as possible. We hope to get to know you better over your time here!"

And with that she turned and headed back to the entrance to the town.

"Well that was weird-- but at least we made it!" cheered Lucy. The other girls joined in a small celebration.

The five quickly made their way into the inn and rented out a room for each of themselves. After getting their keys, they headed up the stairs to their rooms, marveling at how lavish they were compared to the humble exterior of the building. Cana unloaded everyone's the luggage and the girls organized whose bags were whose. Levy immediately collapsed onto one of the beds.

"There is some daylight left," observed Erza. "How about we each go our own ways for the rest of the day and reconvene for dinner?"

"Sounds good to me," Lucy said with a nod and everyone else agreed too.

With that, the five girls split up to go explore the town on their own....