I own nothing appearing in this oneshot.

The cackle of hellish flames filled the night. The clash of lighting and steel echoed through the valleys. The screams of battle and pain broke the still night air. In the heavens the clouds gathered and the thunder roared. All of creation groaned as the full fury of the elements lashed out in anger. The valley burned as mage clashed against mage. The elements raged against each other as magic loosed its primordial fury. Lighting met earth, fire met water in a symphony of chaos. Here and there the mages slipped amongst trees and boulders bound for a single destination.

At the end of one valley lay a grand sight. High upon the mountain side a great castle had been built out of black stone. It was of an unknown design, but from it many terraces and buttresses mages hurled magic down into the attacks below.

In the sky four great airships of the Magic Council of Fiore assaulted the castle. Their great cannons roared with the fury of dragons, yet the castle shields held. Pure magic shots met the castle's black shield and were dissipated. The Council's soldiers climbed up the hillside, only to be blasted back by lighting and ice. In the sky the Council's army attempted to fly men in, but winged beings met them with sword and spell.

In the central courtyard of the castle many of the defenders converged. The airships attempted to bombard them, but the shield held. One of the men that looked up as the airships once more attacked was a tall red headed man. In his hands he carried a staff and a long sword, both artifacts of his. His gray cloak was stained in blood and his black shirt was torn in several places. He had been among the boulders and pushed back the Council soldiers with ease, yet still he had only been scrapped.

He pushed his way through the crowd. The crowd, men and woman sworn to him and the mistress of the castle parted once he made his presence known. He ascended the stairs and made for the massive oak door. He pushed them open with ease; the maintenance lavished upon them was great and squeaky doors were nonexistent in the mistress's castle.

He was at once confronted by the grand staircase, craved out of white marble, and a number of side doors. It was through on that he passed into a small study. The study was a cozy little room with a full bookcase, a writing desk and a fireplace. In front of the fire place there was a chair.

"We have to withdraw," he stated simply. "The defense will not hold and the Council- damn their souls- still have another army waiting in the next valley."

"How long can we hold?" a woman's voice asked from the chair.

"Until morning if we're careful. The shield will hold at least until noon tomorrow, but damage is already great. The hillside is stating to give way too. The lighting and ice spells have been blasting away what was holding us to the mountain. The scouts have reported that several cellars have collapsed, or rather slid away." He started to walk towards the chair.

"Which ones?"

He crossed the last few feet and grimaced. "Cellars nineteen, twenty-two and twenty-three."

"Negi, what was in those cellars?" Her voice was calm yet cold as ice.

"Those were the blood cellars. Nineteen also had what we salvaged from the palace…"

She was silent and Negi worried. After a minute she spoke, "HOW IN THE NINE HELLS DID YOU MANAGE TO LOSE ALL THE BLOOD? AND THE WINE? THE WINE!"

"It's war," he said simply. "We've done it before. Shit happens as the others would say." The woman in the chair was livid, not at him, but at losing of her favored drink. "Evangeline…" he said soothingly. "We'll find more. Blood is plentiful on the battlefield."

Evangeline was a beautiful woman by any standards. Blue eyes and long blonde hair had brought many a man to a halt when they sought to slay her. She was clad in a simple black corset and black skirt that was cut in such a way that the font was shorter than the back. A black cloak with a cowl hung around her shoulders, clasped with the emblem of their clan.

"Are you trying to get me on the battlefield?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes. The men need their leader. This clan needs our founder to show her face instead of drowning her sorrows in blood." Negi knew it was gamble to reference the latest tragedy they had suffered. She could be very fickle.

She gave him a level look and returned her gaze to the fire. "They have you. Lead them."

"No." He planted his feet and looked straight at her.

"What?" Evangeline asked coldly.

"No."

"Why you- Obey your mistress!"

"She would be ashamed of you. It was almost a year ago and you still are like this. We all miss her! Not a day goes by when I don't remember her! Do you really think she would want you like this? When your home, our home is under attack?"

Evangeline was quiet and looked away from his gaze. She fiddled with the edge of her cloak.

"If they take this palace, and they will in time, what will you do? Let them kill you while you feel sorry for yourself? With the Dark Evangel allow herself to be killed by a bunch of thugs while she broods in her chair? If that the woman we've followed into hell and back then I want no part of you!" he declared boldly as he walked to the door.

"Stop!"

Negi stopped just as he laid his hand on the door handle. A small smirk crossed his face. His gamble had paid off and the day was theirs. Soon her might would drive the fools back.

"Damn you Negi! Damn you for being right!"

"No need to damn me. I did that myself," he said with a small chuckle.

"Too true. But is being attached to me for all time really the worst thing that could happen to you?" she said as she stood.

"No, your one of the best things that every happened to me." Negi opened the door and walked into the grand entryway. He heard her soft footfalls behind him and turned. "You gave me strength, power and experience. And when I needed it, comfort. To all of us in fact." He felt a hint of a blush come on.

"Aw, that so cute!" she cooed with a sickening sweetness. "The little boy is thankful to the big bad vampire for putting him through hell. He's thankful for being damned for all time, what a boy!"

Negi pointedly ignored her. When she got rolling there was little he could do to stop her. His only options were to kill her or kiss her. The first was out of the question, that the equivalent of committing suicide. The other was an option, expect for the fact that at any moment any number of people could push the oak doors and see such a public display. He didn't mind so much, but when it came to matters like that Evangeline was rather shy.

"Anyway what's the status of the defenses? Causality rates?"

"So far, we've lost most of the lower turrets. The dolls legions manning them were blasted, all hands have been lost. The few left were under heavy bombardment by the foot soldiers when I left the front. The upper turrets are supporting our aerial forces and have suffered relatively little loss. As for causality rates… The Council isn't pulling any punches this time. They've given a kill on sight order, but I've seen a number of own people taken prisoner. The lower defenses have taken the most damage. I think we might be looking at fifty to sixty percent fatality or captured in that area. The upper and aerial forces have taken little damage, but we'll need to move some of them to the lower part ASAP." Negi finished as they reached the door. He graciously offered Evangeline his arm, but the woman just glared at him.

"So this is it then," she said softly.

The subject wasn't lost on Negi. "So it would seem. The second army consists of five legions and seven airships, along with several guilds worth of mages and a legion or two of mercenaries."

"Damn those fools!" Evangeline cursed. "We could slaughter 'em all if the rest of your group was here, but there not." She opened the oak doors and silence fell over the gathered mages.

She had recruited men and women from the world over. Mages of every type and caliber served her and her clan. Many hailed from the eastern world, master of the summoning arts and the djinn. Some came from the far western lands. They were gun mages and masters of the hunt. More came from the northlands were the tribes lived, fought and died on the cold earth. These men were stout and board, but utterly dangerous with their axes and melee based magic. From the southlands she had gathered the outcasts. Tall and lithe, these men and women were expert healers and scouts. All had heard the call of the Dark Evangel and came to her as she traveled the world with her clan.

"Commander!" a bearded Northlander shouted.

The milling mass snapped to attention. Evangeline walked down the steps and walked before the man who had spoken. "General Raki, what is the meaning of this gathering?"

The northlander swallowed hard and for good reason. The Dark Evangel was not a good boss to annoy. Her cruelty was legendary, her spite the stuff of legends, and her hate was older than all the nations of the earth. "Commander, we…that is to say I," he drew himself up and squared his shoulders. "I ordered my men to pull back from the upper levels. I saw that the lower defenses needed boosting and I made the call without consulting you. Forgive me, but it seemed to be the best action needed to defend this palace."

"Hmm…" Evangeline looked at Negi, who shrugged. He had nothing to do with Raki's decision. "Very well. For the time being I will not punish you. However…" she drawled darkly and the general's face went white. "We will talk about this once this battle is over. Get your men to the lower levels and defend your home."

"Understood," Raki saluted and the crowd began to move off towards the ramp leading to the lower levels.

"You send them to their deaths," Negi hissed in her ear.

"There is no choice. I've already ordered the house cleaning staff to begin transferring the treasure to the resort. We need only hold until that is done. Besides, the General must atone for his sins. I think dying in a rearguard action is the best he could do."

"You are evil."

"Why yes, yes I am. Never forget that Negi. I will betray anyone and anything to survive. Even you," she warned as she looked up. The airships were still trying to bombard her palace and the flying mages were meeting her aerial dolls. In the corner of her eye she saw movement, near the stairwell leading up.

Negi had noticed the moment and was slowly moving his staff and preparing a spell. Evangeline was quicker. Ice spikes the size of a man smashed into stairwell. Negi loosed a lighting bolt and was rewarded by a scream of pain.

The two rushed the stairwell. Negi drew his sword. Beyond the ruined wall, a short ways up the stairs laid a man in black. He was bleeding from ice shrapnel and Negi's lighting bolt had left him stunned.

"I missed," Negi commented. "I must work on my aim."

"Doesn't matter anyway. This guy is from the Council, probably an assassin if I place that ring right." She pointed to the ring on the man's gloved hand. It was a small golden ring with the stylized cross of the Rune Knights, the Council's main military arm. "But how did he get in?"

They exchanged looks and then looked up the stairs.

"They'll be waiting for us," Negi warned.

"Our people have probably already been killed or captured," Evangeline continued with a bloodthirsty smile.

"It's a trap."

"No doubt."

"What are your orders?"

"Charge of course."

"Really? Is that the best plan?"

"Your right. We should fly above them and get shot by the turrets that they probably control now," she snapped.

"Fine, we can charge. You want to take prisoners?" Negi asked as he began to gathered magic in his fist. Across his body black runes began to appear.

"No, crush them. Exterminate the vermin that have tried to infest my, our home. They deserve nothing less."

"Death is short, but torture is longer," Negi reminded her.

"So? This place will fall and I have no plans to carry any additional baggage on the way out, even if it's blood." She had crafted an ice rapier as they spoke. "You've done worse in my name. A little more killing won't change what you are."

"But what about who I am?"

Evangeline shrugged. "It doesn't matter." Her nails lengthened and she slashed the wounded man's neck was deadly grace. "We have no heaven or hell. No one will judge us and then only the final dying breath of all creation will snuff us out. Besides it's not like this is our world anyway," she said casually.

"CHARGE!"

Negi heard the roar and looked up the stairs. Down came angry Rune Knights yelling and screaming. Beside him Evangeline roared into action and he quickly followed.

He loosed the magic gathered in his hand and dozens of lighting bolts careened into the Knights. He smirked as they fell by the dozens. The fools had come with metal armor not even bothering to enchant it. The fools would pay in blood. His magic would kill all that felt it.

One man attempt to spear him, but he knocked the spear aside and grabbed the man with his free hand. His knee flew into the man face and the knight fell. Two more fell to his long sword and a third to his lighting bolts.

In moments the battle was over. The Knights had lay slain before them and blood began to pool up. Death by lighting or ice, sword or limb, they had been made to pay. Ice swords had impaled many of the fools. Evangeline grabbed one of the wounded and plunged her fangs into the neck.

The man died in agony as his life blood was literally sucked out of him. His face, twisted in agony, hit the ground and Evangeline stamped on the head, heedless of the gore on her black boots. "Damned fools! All this time and this is all they can spare to try to kill us? I am disappointed. They just don't magic knights like they use."

Negi nodded. These men were nothing compared to even the lowest of the Mage Knights of old. "Those were the days. The days of dragons and god soldiers, those soldiers could give us a quiet a fight too."

"I remember. It almost makes me wish we saved a few." Evangeline looked up at Negi with her now red eyes. "You know…we could go get the bones and…"

He saw the look in his master's eyes and was quick to rebuke her suggestion. "It would take too long. Not to mention those bones are in the Syndicate's control who, might I mention, are at war with the Northern Legion. We'd never get the bones out, even if we could reach them."

The woman sighed. "Your right, we have other matters to attend to. Like this siege." As she spoke another barrage of arcane blast impacted the shield.

Negi looked up and swore a bitter curse in a long dead tongue. The shield was cracking. The integrity of the crystal powering the shield was being overwhelmed faster than he expected. It would break and the siege would be over. Once it fell the ground forces would be decimated from the air. "This is bad."

"You don't say so, I really couldn't tell. I'll sound the retreat," Evangeline replied as she sped away.

He wiped the blood off his sword on the tabard of one of the dead and sheathed it. The upper battlements were lost if the group that lay dead at his feet was any indication. If the commander of those squads had been smart or alive for that matter then they would have pulled their men into the palace's upper levels.

With practiced ease he flicked his staff into flying mode and made hast to the lower levels. General Raki would still have to face his punishment, but Negi refused to allow Raki's entire command to be slaughtered in the rearguard action. Evangeline refused to accept the facts, but they were short on manpower. Every day came with news of more traitors, dead or captured.

If the clan was to thrive it would need soldiers to defend it. The clan itself, Evangeline, himself and their other kin, would never die and would survive. They would have to rebuild once more and none of the kinsmen and kinswomen were too happy about that idea. They had done it too many times already.

He would save as many as he could. Countless thousands had died for the clan over the last thousand years. Untold millions had been slain by their hands or actions. He knew his hands were stained red forever and accepted it. He would kill and kill again. It was the cycle they lived in no matter the age.

If he could prevent the death of a single person then he would be satisfied. It could be one less person to add to his eternal stain.

The guild house of Fairy Tail was oddly quiet on the day that war raged over the black palace. A sluggish atmosphere permeated the building. Guild members, normally loud and rambunctious, were still and quiet. Here and there a few talked quietly at the tables. Many had left for their homes or missions.

Every now and then the doors would open as a guild member returned from his or her mission. Sometimes a member would take a small mission and walk out the door, letting in the hot wind. For the guild master Makarov the day was a welcome relief. The young ones had been oddly calm. Natsu and Gary had been far less competitive the entire summer, but he had no hope that it was a permanent thing. Ezra was vanishing every morning and wasn't back until after dark. The three silver haired siblings had been oddly quiet expect as they talked something over in the corner. The other children that he had taken into his guild were scattered around doing their own thing.

"Each to his own I suppose," the old man muttered from his seat on the bar. He shifted to lean against the post and sighed. It was far too hot to do anything. He let his eyes close as old memories began to drift back…

The days of his youth passed by his mind's eye bringing with them all their pain, sorrow, wonder and glory. The endless hours of training by the sea, the missions with his long departed friends, the feeling of lethargy before the guild wars started…

He sat upright with a start. Once he felt this feeling that now filed his guild. Back then it had been the prelude of the largest guild war every fought on Fiore. Alliances between guilds had cascaded into a massive war that nearly tore the country apart. The guilds from those days were gone, they had reformed under new names, yet some still existed. Those few were the first Dark Guilds, but Makarov knew them better. They claimed to be the last of the true guilds and he secretly agreed with them. The newer guilds under the Magic Council of Fiore were not the ones he remember growing up in and fighting with.

The formation of the Magic Council was something he had never liked, but a greater part of the guilds on both sides, once they had been devastated by the destruction and death, agreed to abide under the Council's authority. He had gone along with it only because of the war orphans that the pervious master of Fairy Tail had taken in.

Fairy tail was one of the few guilds that had kept its old name at Markarov's entreaty. He had won fame during the wars for Fairy Tail and when the newly formed Council came against his guild he used that fame. The people had stood with their hero, his fellow Fairies had stood with their friend, and the Council had fallen back to his might.

He knew that his actions all those years ago would end up putting his guild at odds with the Council, but he accepted that. Fairy Tail carried the hidden embers of the true guilds of magic, were as the other True Guilds bore the flame in full view. So long as one of the True Guilds stood the fire of the old magic would never die not matter what action the Council took.

But he would not fight another war. His body was slowing down as age sought him out and slowly gained. If war came again he could not campaign and he wouldn't subject the children of the guild to a war led by or against the Council. The newest generation of Fairies would not be subjected to the fires of war, as his generation was, so long as he had any strength left in his body.

His fist tightened in anger. No one would hurt his guild or the children in it. He would show any who tried the reason he had been called-

"MASTER!"

"Wha! What?" He was back in the real world and the white haired boy was trying to get his attention.

"The door," Elfman said. "Those fake men from the council are here." The boy walked away muttered about real men or something of the like.

Markarov sighed and jumped off the bar. He looked to the door and suppressed a sneer. In the doorway stood four Rune Knights guarding a Council member he loathed. Jules Einhart was a balding old man with a grudge against Fairy Tail. He wore the traditional robes of wizards, long and cumbersome, but around his neck laid the signet of the council on a golden chain.

"Einhart," Markarov said coldly as he walked up to the man. "What do you want?"

"Now, now old friend, clam yourself," he replied rather jovially.

"I am not your friend. Any friendship between us was broken during the war." The old guild master knew the way Einhart worked. He was a snake with honeyed words that had undone guilds and nations. Einhart had nearly destroyed Fairy Tail after the war ended and Markarov would never forgive the man.

"I see," he responded icily. "No matter. I'm here on Council business anyway. May we go up to your office this information is…sensitive."

"No," Markarov answered barley a second after the man stopped speaking. "We will conduct this business in the open and full view. The time for cloak and dagger politics is long past. We will talk here or you can leave my guild at once." Markarov was keenly ware that the guild was attentively listening in.

A look of anger crossed Einhart's face before he soothed it over. He worked hard to maintain the image of the grandfatherly old man. "So be it. You're aware that in recent days we have begun a crackdown on the Dark Guilds."

"Yes, I do read the papers Einhart. What is your point?"

Einhart went on as if he hadn't heard Markarov. "What you don't know is that among the Dark Guilds we cracked down on was the Imperial Phoenix Clan."

Markarov sucked in a breath. He knew that guild by rumor alone. They were a brutal and ruthless group is the rumors were anything to go by. They had surfaced in the last days of the war, but had operated far from any battlefield had been on. They had confined themselves to the northern reaches of Fiore and had been at war with the Council since its formation. Its leader, the Vampire, was feared for her life sucking magic, clearly a dark mage, and tales of her actions on the border towns spoke of a monster of immense proportions. She and her guild were the reason he refused to allow Fairy Tail to take mission in that region. "How, dare I ask?"

"How else? We had help from the inside. Two of my best mages volunteered to infiltrate the guild and opened the gate for us. Of course this led to my current dilemma. I want your guild to house for the time being while we round up the survivors of the Imperial Phoenix. I fear they may be in danger due to their loyalty to the Council," Einhart finished in a whisper.

"You're asking me to put my entire guild at risk for two of yours. The Clan is powerful and I will not allow them to harm my guild," Markarov stated in a whisper.

"I haven't mentioned the best part yet. You see normally I would take them and hide them on my estates, but they're young. I want them to at least have something of a youth beside training and following my orders. It would only be for a short while, maybe two or three years."

Markarov's eyes went wide. "Only two or three years…only two or three…" If the Council needed two or three years to clean up the last of the Clan then the first attack must have succeeded somewhat, but broke apart and scattered the Clan..

"Yes, I shall return tomorrow to here your answer." Without another word Jules Einhart swept out of the doorway and into the street as if he owned the place. His knights quickly followed after, but not before one of them, a Captain, pushed a scroll into Markarov's hands.

The little guild master returned to his seat on the bar, the scroll in hand. The rest of the guild lost interest and returned to whatever sluggish activity they had been involved in before. Markarov was lost in thought as he idly tapped the scroll.

He had a soft spot for children and those trying to make a new page in their life. Taking in two strangers that had infiltrated a Dark Guild gave him cause to worry. Such children could unstable or murderous. Seeing as the Clan was a Dark Guild it was likely that the two in question had done some unspeakable acts of violence to get in on the Council's behalf.

If letting them in meant letting two spies from the Council in, not mention they might have compacted evil deeds, then he would be against it. But Einhart had spoken the truth. He knew from long years of experience with the man that Einhart was telling the truth. The two mystery mages were children that Einhart had all but admitted ruining their childhood and he had come to Markarov to give them that chance.

"He must have swallowed a bitter pill for that to happen… Einhart has always been a stiff necked fool," he muttered. "I might regret this, but I have no choice. With luck I can undo what ever he's done to them…"

Markarov waited patiently in his office for Einhart to arrive with the two mystery mages. He glanced around the messy office, but saw no reason to clean it up. He wouldn't give Einhart the respect of a clean office. The man would have deal with his office the way he preferred it.

He had made sure to remove anything important from sight. Tomes of magic and papers with missions he made sure were secreted away. Einhart would find no ammunition to use against him or Fairy Tail on this day. The business and missions of Fairy Tail was nothing for the Council to be concerned with. His personal studies were his own and his research was something he had no plans on sharing with the Council.

The door banged open and Einhart swept in. "Still as messy as every my old friend."

Markarov ignored the man and focused on the figures that entered after Einhart. Both were tall, but wore long black cloaks with the hood draw over their faces. "Please shut the door," he asked nicely. "And leave your Knights outside."

The four Rune Knights stopped trying to enter the room and the Captain ushered his men back into the hallway before he quietly shut the door. The black cloaked figures stood still and silent as Markarov studied them. Without being able to see their bodies or faces he could only guess, but he assumed that one was male and the other female if the builds were right.

"These are the two I spoke of. I am pleased you saw fit to accept the Council's request," Einhart started with an ambiguous smile.

"So I see," Markarov stated dryly. "Why don't we have some introductions then? I am the Guild master of Fairy Tail, Markarov."

The broader of the two cloaked figures stepped forward. "I am known as Negi Springfield," the man said softly. "My magic is lighting based and I know some wind based magic."

The little guildmaster nodded thoughtfully. Lighting magic was a rarer form of magic due the nature of it. Many lighting mages where unable to master the erratic power and ended up giving up on it; his grandson had nearly given up on it several years back. Only his timely intervention had kept the boy on that path. His mastery of all the elements had finally paid off. The seemingly useless ability he had brought to each battlefield of old had helped his kin.

"You may call be Evangeline Springfield," the slightly smaller figure said causing the man to look at her. "Ice and water obey me, just as lighting obeys my…brother."

Markarov noted Negi's odd reaction to the word brother. Either he had wanted the sibling relationship to remain a secret or it was false all together. It would merit looking into at a later date. "Well, it's nice to meet you. I need you to fill out these applications first. Purely a record keeping thing," he assured them. "We can get your guild marks in a little while. Are you still here Einhart?"

"Oh yes, I was just watching you work old friend. Quiet something really…to think that the feared-"

"Get out!" Markarov snapped, cutting off the serpent's words.

Einhart glared at him and turned on heel. "I leave them in your care. Remember, I will come for them in time," he snapped back as he left the office and slammed the door behind him.

Markarov started to pull two applications from the desk drawer when Evangeline tossed two applications on his desk. "One step ahead of you," she said as she glided back to her brother's side.

"Hmmm…" He flipped through the papers and found them to be in order. By they own admonition they were seventeen and eighteen years old. Evangeline, it turned out, was the older of the two. She didn't use any magical tools, but could create swords from ice. Negi had a staff that he had noted down as a gift from is father, but it wasn't required for him to cast magic. "It seems we are just about done here then. Now why don't you take off those cloaks and we'll talk about housing?"

A/n: Yeah, why am I writing this when I still have the Chaos Star to work on? It's an interesting plot bunny, but ultimately I have no idea were I would take it so I'll leave it as a one shot for now.