"It's over huh Natsu?" the black wizard Zeref sighed.
Zeref looked out over where Tenroe Island once stood. Now it was as if it had never existed. Thanks to the breath of the black dragon, Acnologia, there was only the vast horizon of the ocean in sight.
Zeref lifted his emotionless gaze and descended to the wrecked deck of Grimoire Heart's airship. The two sole surviving members of the dark guild Grimoire Heart sweat with fear as Zeref landed in front of them. They had failed to destroy Fairy Tail but had succeeded in meeting the black wizard Zeref. Though the cost was far greater than they anticipated. Not only were the other Seven Kin of Purgatory and their second in command Bluenote Stinger dead or lost, but also their master, Hades, had died at the hands of Zeref himself.
Zeref glared at them as they shook. "Listen up trash. You came here in the hopes of using me to fulfill your own ambition of creating a world where only the strong wizards survive. Now your master is dead, and you have lost all of your troops. You are completely at my mercy. So I'll give you a choice, die or obey me."
The grey haired wizard, Rusty Rose, gulped. "O…of course Lord Zeref. What do you wish?"
"Take me to Dragon Claw."
He walked past them. The fat, pale skinned Cain Hikaru shivered as he was passed. "Then… you wish to see… him?"
"Yes, it's time to pay my respects to my old friend." Zeref looked back at them with a calm face. "Who knows? He might even reward you for bringing me to him."
Far in the northern mountains, remote from the rest of the Kingdom of Fiore, was a valley where the waling winds of the snow echoed like dying screams. The Valley of Demons, a forsaken land known to be haunted by the spirits of those who were unfortunate enough to venture there. Within that accursed valley, was the impressive stronghold of Dragon Claw, the head of the dark guilds. The fortress itself hovered above an abyss with no connection to the large plateau that sat in between a jagged ravine. The palace walls stood fifty meters high, with red tipped battle towers positioned along them. The towers behind the walls were also red tipped and measured seventy meters high. They resembled teeth of a beast.
The airship landed in front of the small gate that sat at the bottom of the fortress, overlooking the void of the abyss. As Zeref set foot on the ground, the gate opened. A large muscular man walked out. He was dressed in black armor lined with red and had the mark of Dragon Claw emblazoned on his breastplate, the three-toed claw of the dragon. He was accompanied by two black masked ninjas who wore the same symbol on their chest. The man's long, blond ponytail flapped in the wind.
He stopped in front of Zeref and bowed his head. "Welcome Lord Zeref," he addressed. "The master is expecting you."
Hikaru walked behind with his black afro flapping in against the wind. "We're expected?"
The man gave a beastly stare at the marshmallow of a man. "You should know that nothing gets passed him." He looked back down at the black wizard. "Follow me."
The man led Zeref into the palace, with Rusty Rose and Cain Hikaru trailing behind.
After walking through the vast halls of the palace, they finally arrived before the entrance to the throne room. The two large doors opened up. The chamber was large enough to fit over a hundred people. It had windows built along the walls, separated by columns. At the opposite end of the doors, was demonic throne that sat on an elevated platform, emblazoned with the mark of Dragon Claw. However, the main focus of the wizards' attention was on the demon that sat upon the throne.
The muscular man bowed his head, "Master, Lord Zeref and the surviving members of Grimoire Heart have arrived."
Zeref retained a stoic face as his gaze met with the one demon who rivaled him in strength. He was heavily armored. Large, pauldrons with jagged blades sat on his shoulders, which were connected by a chain. His grey chest armor covered his upper body save for his arms, which were clothed in black sleeves. Both his forearms wore bladed gauntlets, though the left gauntlet had two blades that stuck out like a claw. A red sash sat around his waist. Armor flaps hung down his lower body, leading up to his knees. Each kneecap displayed a red three-toed dragon claw. His feet wore grey armored shoes. The demon's pale hands were the only visible part of his body. His helmet consisted of a grey mouthpiece, a metal layered lamellae that circled around his head, and a red three pronged spike at the top. Only his red blazing eyes could be seen through the helmet. Though Zeref saw him as an old friend, the rest of the world knows him as one of the greatest fiends to walk the earth, the Archdemon, the head of the dark guilds, and the master of Dragon Claw, Oroku Saki, the Shredder.
Cain and Rusty Rose immediately bowed before the Shredder.
"Master Shredder," Rusty rose addressed. "I gladly present you with your old friend Lord Zeref. Through the storms that raged we…"
"Silence!" the Shredder growled. "Spare me your muses and speak only when spoken to!"
Rusty Rose trembled and quickly shut up. The bloodlust behind his voice and the maliciousness of his red gaze instilled sheer terror within Hikaru and Rose.
The Shredder fixed his eyes on Zeref. "My old friend… the Black Wizard."
Zeref smiled. "My old friend… the Archdemon."
"How long has it been? Two? Three? Four hundred years? You haven't aged a day."
"You're one to talk Saki, you're even older than me."
"Well, that's true. Two of the Seven Kin of Purgatory bring you before me and not their master? Where is Hades?"
"Dead." Zeref flatly answered.
"Dead?"
"By my hand."
The Shredder gave a small laugh. "You always did have a habit of exterminating those beneath you."
"Does it upset you Saki? He was your ally."
"You know me better than that Zeref. Hades was a powerful ally. Apart from you, he was the only human who dared to go into the depths of darkness to learn about the truth behind the One Magic. But he was a fool. A mere pawn at my disposal."
"A pawn? A fool?" whispered Rose.
As the head of the dark guilds of Fiore, all guilds answered to the Shredder. Even the strongest guilds of the Baram Alliance: Oracion Seis, Tartaros, and Grimoire Heart must obey the orders from Dragon Claw. They idolized the Shredder since he was the rival of Zeref. The legend tells how when the two first met, they fought as enemies. However, both of their immortality and overwhelming power never brought their battle to a conclusion. After days of fighting, the two unholy magical beings understood that fighting each other was pointless, and decided to form an alliance instead.
Since the Shredder knew Zeref better than anyone, he instructed Grimoire Heart to obtain the keys that would awaken him from a deep sleep. To their unfortunate realization, the keys were never necessary; fore the black wizard was never asleep to begin with. Instead of obtaining power from Zeref to conquer the world, the black wizard took the life of their master as a penance for all the havoc they caused while following the false lead.
The Shredder gazed at the two Seven Kin. "Rusty Rose. Cain Hikaru. Though you succeeded in bringing Zeref to me, you lost over half of your wizards, including your master, Hades. But most of all… you failed to defeat Fairy Tail!"
"We're so sorry my lord!" Cain shook with sweat, nearly crying. "It will never happen again!"
"No… it won't."
Suddenly, Rose and Hikaru were wrapped in iron chains that neutralized their magic and rendered them immobile. Ninja wizards of Dragon Claw dropped from the ceiling and grabbed hold of them.
"My lord, what is this?!" begged Rusty Rose.
"Didn't you boast about how only the strong can exist in your grand magic world? Your guild has served me well in the past but you failed to destroy Fairy Tail and have outlived your usefulness!"
"No! No! Please my lord!"
"I do not tolerate failures among my forces. In my army, you live as long as you succeed. Failure is not an option!"
The two wizards were dragged screaming out of the throne room.
The Shredder removed his helm, revealing his pale demon face, and rose from his throne. His crimson cape hung down to his shins. "Come Zeref, we have much to discuss."
The two walked along the outer wall of the fortress. The cold air blew violently throughout the Valley of Demons making the Shredder's red cape flap in the wind.
"So," Zeref began. "You intentionally lied to Grimoire Heart about the so called keys of Zeref in order for them to cause enough destruction to summon Acnologia."
The wind grew more violent at the mention of that name.
"That was the plan," spoke the Shredder. "The Black Dragon is the herald of the apocalypse." He stopped to look out over the valley. "Can you feel it old friend? A change is riding along the winds. The dawn of a new era is upon us."
The Black Wizard stood beside the Archdemon. He sighed, "Once again, humanity will be thrown into chaos."
"Yes, soon, the old kingdom will burn. And out of the ashes, a new empire will rise. My empire." He turned his head. "Hun!"
At the summons of his master, the muscular man Hun came before the two of them and bent his knee.
"Send word to all dark guilds across Fiore. Instruct them to arrive at the Valley of Demons within one week!"
"Yes Master."
After one week, the plateau was crowded by thousands of dark wizards. Then a horn sounded. From a balcony of Dragon Claw's outer wall, the Shredder appeared. Thousands of cheers echoed within the valley. Once he stopped, the Archdemon waved his hand, silencing the crowds.
In a loud and strong voice, the Shredder announced, "Wizards of darkness, take heed to my words. As you are all aware, we have suffered the loss of powerful allies within the past year including the Oracion Seis and Grimoire Heart of the Baram Alliance." The crows began to murmur with unrest. "And who is to blame for their downfall?!"
"Fairy Tail!" shouted the dark guilds.
"Yes! Fairy Tail and the rest of the light guilds. For years, the light guilds of Fiore have sought to purge us from the face of the earth, giving more control to the Magic Council and their pitiful king, ensuring light guild dominance!" More angry shouts rose. "However, let it be known that a new era is upon us! As you have heard, the black dragon Acnologia destroyed Tenroe Island along with Fairy Tail's strongest members. Though our chief opposition has been weakened, the coming of Acnologia has issued forth a new era for the magic world. Our era!" Cheers sounded. "It is time to remind Fiore, no, the world… who its true masters are! For glory's sake, for vengeance sake, and for the sake of the new era…"
Zeref sighed. War.
The Shredder spread out his arms. "Waaaaaaaaarrrr!"
Thousands of battle cries thundered from below. The choice had been made; Fiore would once again be victim to the horrors of war.
The Shredder left the balcony and met with Zeref.
"Excellent speech," Zeref said. "Inspiring and full of wrath. It would appear that war is the one thing that will never vanish."
The Shredder's eyes glowed. "Exactly. I have also instructed the guild masters to meet with me."
"And Mard Geer will be among them I presume?"
"Indeed, do you wish to present yourself to them?"
"This is your moment my old friend. In time I may choose to show myself. But for now, I will observe."
"Very well."
Within the hour, the guild masters of the dark guilds assembled in the Shredder's throne room. There were at least fifty of them, but the one who stood out from them was Mard Geer. Mard Geer was the acting guild master of Tartaros, renowned as the King of the Underworld. Though he had a fair appearance with his long black hair, light skin, and ebony eyes, he was actually a demon from the books of Zeref. Like the rest of the members of Tartaros, he was determined to find his creator but for now, he must adhere to the bidding of Archdemon. Even though he himself was a demon, Mard Geer's power was pale in comparison to the power of the Shredder.
Mard Geer bent his knee along with the other guild masters. "My lord," he grinned. "From the moment you summoned us, Mard Geer predicted that a great change was about to unfold."
The Shredder tapped his talons on his armrest. "Your prediction was correct Mard Geer. There are many preparations to make for all dark guilds to operate as a joined army."
One of the other masters raised his head, "My lord, although we are all dark guilds, it doesn't guarantee cooperation." The Shredder's eyes glowed red causing the guild master to nearly piss himself. "But we'll make sure that such a thing does not come to pass!"
Another spoke, "Our guild was allied with Grimoire Heart! We are fully prepared to go to war and do whatever it takes to wreck vengeance upon the light guilds!"
"Agreed! It's our era now!" declared another.
The Archdemon gave a small laugh, "Nothing unites old enemies like a common foe. Though you all have wizards who are well suited to battle, I will take no chances. All wizards must be evaluated for their strengths and weaknesses. If there is any weakness, then they will be submitted for improved training."
"With all due respect my lord," spoke another master. "Our guild's wizards don't require more training. We are fully capable."
"You dare question me?!" growled the Shredder.
The master lowered his head, breaking a sweat. "Of course not my lord. We will follow your orders to the letter."
"Need I remind you all that this is no small operation such as robbery, theft, or murder? This is war! None of you know what war has in store for you. But I do. In war, only the strong survive while the weak perish! And I will have no weaklings among my forces! You are no longer separate guilds. You are all soldiers within the same army now. And you will operate as a whole and obey my authority! " His eyes glowed. "Otherwise… failure means… death. Is that understood?!"
"Yes my lord!" saluted all guild masters except for Mard Geer.
Mard Geer kept smiled cruelly. "Well spoken my lord, yet Mard Geer believes that that is not the real reason why you summoned us, is it?"
The Shredder's stare remained unfazed. "No. It is not." He raised his hand, beckoning them to rise. Then he himself stood up. "There is something I wish to show you." He walked down from his throne to the base and waved his hand in front of the steps. The steps sunk back and revealed a new door. It led down a dark tunnel. "Come."
The walk down the tunnel was a long one. Torches quickly lit up on their own as they were passed. With each step, the air grew fouler with decay, and the heat rose. Soon an exit came into sight. Then there was a loud roar that halted the guild masters, sending shivers down the spines of a few of them. Though the Shredder continued to walk. What followed next was the sound of clashing weapons, groans, and more individual roars.
"My lord!" a guild master called out. "What was that?!"
The Shredder did not answer and continued to walk.
"It would appear that we will soon find out," Mard Geer grinned.
They followed the Shredder out of the tunnel. They entered a large cavern enlightened by rivers of lava that flowed below. The Archdemon stopped at a ledge overlooking a flat area of rock. Upon the rock was a small battle. After Mard Geer and the rest of the guild masters stopped at the edge, their eyes widened. They saw a ragged, grey haired wizard with broken glasses fighting desperately against a band of green skinned monsters. The wizard was covered in bruises, cuts that dripped with blood and his once fair skin was splattered with black discoloration. He may have been greatly beaten down, but one of the last members of the Seven Kin of Purgatory was easily recognized.
"Rusty Rose!" pointed out a guild master. "He's alive?!"
"He lasted longer than that fat oaf of a wizard," the Shredder spoke.
Another guild master pointed his shaking finger. "My god!" he exclaimed. "Are those…?!"
"Indeed."
The creatures were clad in strange, spiked armor. Their weapons consisted of axes, swords, spears, maces, sickles, and clubs. Aside from their green, rotten skin, they had pale eyes, nostrils that sunk into their faces resembling skeletons, baldheads, pointed ears, and fangs that stuck out of their mouths. Most of them towered six and half feet tall while others measured at least four. Despite the difference of height, each of the creatures was heavily muscular.
The Shredder gave a small laugh. "It has taken centuries of breeding but the darkspawn are finally ready to return to the surface."
The guild masters save Mard Geer cringed.
"D…darkspawn?! But I thought they were a myth! A folktale to scare children!" A guild master sweated.
Mard Geer smiled. "Our lives are built on stories and folktales but from the depths of hell, the darkspawn have returned. As you can see."
Rusty Rose was surrounded by at least twenty of the creatures. His right arm was transformed into a black claw while his left held a golden shield. His panting could be heard among the darkspawn growls.
He turned his head left and right until his eyes caught sight of the Shredder and the guild masters.
"Master Shredder!" He screamed. "I beg you… do not let me perish at the hands of these beasts!"
The Shredder crossed his arms and said nothing. It was clear that he had no intention of sparing him.
Suddenly, a darkspawn ran behind him. Rose swung his black claw and swat the fiend away. He grunted at the pain from the black taint that spread through his neck like a parasite. His veins could be seen bulging with the poison. Two more darkspawn charged. Rose blocked a large axe with his shield and deflected a sword with his claw. Then Rose was hit from behind by a fireball. He groaned as he was blasted to the dirt face first. His clothing was scorched, leaving a hole on his jacket. Before he had a chance to regain his senses, a darkspawn brought down his axe, severing Rusty Rose's black claw arm. He yelled in agony, echoing throughout the cavern. But, it was not over. The darkspawn surrounded the crippled wizard like wolves encircling prey and began stabbing and hacking. A few of the guild masters shuddered at the sight. Though the body was hidden from view, the short-lived screams could be heard and blood sprayed the ground.
Mard Geer chuckled, "As relentless as the stories are told. Magnificent."
The Shredder raised his hand. The darkspawn quickly diverted their attention and stared at him. Next, they moved away from the dismembered corpse and knelt down.
"Let it be known that this war does not only herald a new age for dark wizards," The Shredder spoke. "Its significance is far greater. After a thousand years, the Sixth Blight… begins."