Skywing
Vagabond Dream
June 30th/X784
A man dressed in a black jacket with white accents, grey shirt and white trousers stood, one leg behind the other and a single arm out. Two young men in their late teens stood a couple feet away from him, both in fighting stances. One had silver hair, and the other had black.
"Stroud! This is where you stop," declared the silver-haired mage, reinforced by the wind circulating over his fist. This man had powerful, bright beige eyes and his hair was styled in a spiky, messy and unkempt fashion. He wore a white jacket with a red inside, white trousers that ended at his shins, and brown sandals; a red t-shirt was lazily pulled over his torso, and he wore finger-cut gloves on his left hand.
"That is but merely what you think. I shan't stop here, for my faith to Anubis is too strong! He gives me the power needed to overcome you...and everything!" the man laughed chaotically, a dark aura exploding from his frame.
"Skion," the black-haired teen said quietly, "guess you can handle this yourself?" His companion, now identified as Skion, grinned.
"But of course," he agreed, and dashed towards Stroud, brutally attacking the man with a couple of swings to his face. Skion was fast, enhancing his attacks with the properties of his magic. It didn't take long for Stroud cut it out and place some distance between the two.
"Damn it," Stroud yelled, more darkness exploding from him. "Dark Magic: Grave Funeral!" he chanted, all the black energy leaking from his body condensing into a small sphere the size of the man's palm. Skion looked at it with disinterest, but nevertheless got on the defensive. Then, Stroud unleashed the sphere and it powered towards Skion in a torpedo-like wave of impressive power.
Skion braced himself for the impact by opening his mouth slightly. The attack connected, pushing the silver-haired teen up and following right after with a concussive explosion. There was a short scream of agony before the beam dissipated, leaving Skion to fall in mid-air.
Below him, a magical construct that looked oddly like a coffin appeared and Stroud laughed maniacally as Skion fell into it, the magical construct shutting closed. He put his twisted red eyes on Skion's companion. "Well, I guess it's time for you. I do hope you put up much more a fight then your misguided friend!" he chuckled, only to stop at the sound of the black-haired teen's laugh.
"It's not over," he said simply.
"What?"
Just then, the magical construct burst apart and shooting out of it came Skion, twirling up into the air and gathering wind into his mouth. He stopped himself in the air, body remaining still and eve and his cheeks full of air. "Gale Dragon's...ROAR!" he let all the oxygen whoosh out, combining it with his magical power; the breath attack hurtled towards Stroud in an exploding wave of sharp zephyrs and gales.
"Shield!" cried Stroud, summoning a black shield just in time to protect himself from the blast. Skion's attack clashed against it, dissipating after it couldn't break through. The moment he had landed on the ground, though, he had used it to propel himself forward with his fists out and covered in spiraling winds.
"Gale Dragon's Iron Fist!" his magically enhanced fist collided with the shield, and it shattered upon impact. Covering his other fist in magic, he swung his arm full force into Stroud's stomach, sending him flying into the trees. "Damn, Stroud. I didn't expect that Grave Finale attack or something to be so harsh," he said, promenading forward. "Honestly, it might've took me down hadn't I started strengthening myself from before the attack even hit me. You see, your attack created several gusts of wind as it spiraled towards me, and I ate those gusts of wind," he rambled on, expecting Stroud to actually listen to him.
Stroud grimaced from his position, and struggled into a sitting a position. "He's open," he muttered under his breath, and threw a small ball of dark magic at him. It acted like a bomb, detonating upon contact with its target.
"—yeah, it's really impressive technique, isn't it—huh?" the silver-haired teen's arm shot out and caught the ball, and flung it away where it burst in a large explosion on pure reflex. "Hey, I was trying to explain something to you..." he mocked, feigning hurt feelings. Stroud stood up, staring at him with a hateful expression.
"I have nothing to learn from someone like you," he spat, before turning around and running in the opposite direction!
"Guess not," Skion replied easily, before making a mad dash after his enemy. He caught up with Stroud, grabbing him by his shoulders and tossing him up into the air and throwing him back into the ground in an impressive feat of strength as he skidded to a halt. "This would all be easier if you just told me where I could find this Anubis guy," Skion said, watching Stroud stand from the rubble, blooding gushing from his head.
"Never. I'd never betray Anubis like that!" He said, charging Skion hands open. "Funeral of Gods!" he screamed, and suddenly the world changed into the black and white. What's going on...? He blinked, and the colours of the world returned just in time for him to see Stroud launching an arrow of dark magic at him! He jumped back, creating distance between him an the arrow before then jumping forward and launching his fist in Stroud's stomach so quick that the arrow dispersed in an explosion. The explosion blew Stroud into the ground, while Skion, remaining otherwise unaffected, dropped to the ground. "Alright then, Stroud. I'll just beat it out of you."
A large gust of wind blew from Skion as he started powering up. Sharp gales circled his fist as he lifted Stroud by the collar of his shirt. "Gale Dragon's...Iron Fist!" he punched Stroud in the stomach, which was then followed by series of punches. Skion continued to manhandle Stroud and obliterate the environment around him with raw, destructve. A final punch sent Stroud crashing into the ground, his ribs shattered and destroyed. Skion stood over him, a dauntless look on his face.
"Ready to talk now?"
"I'll never speak."
"Famous last words," Skion grabbed Stroud's face before running forward and dragging Stroud through the ground. His accomplice in the black-haired male arrived to the scene.
"You can stop now. It looks like's he submitted."
"Alright then, Shizun." Skion replied, stopping and letting go of Stroud's head. He looked down at Stroud's bloody face. "Where is he?"
Much to Skion's surprise, Stroud did not reject this time. "The mountains...to the left. There's a cavern. You'll find him there. Just know...this will be your last time seeing the light," he laughed slowly, passing out. Skion's beige eyes dropped on Shizun.
"Well, it's time to complete this mission."
Amaranth Mountain Caverns
It had taken a couple of hours for them to reach the cavern, considering the sun was setting and it was now daybreak. The trek above the mountains had been devious, especially for Skion who now regretted sending his exceed, Dom, back to get some Rune Knights to arrest Stroud. As Skion and Shizun approached the cavern, the latter almost cursed.
"There's no sand around here for me to use," he said, looking in all directions as if sand was randomly going to appear.
"Just use your Sand Make then. I don't know why you're so against generating sand from your magic power, but whatever," Skion whistled innocently as Shizun glared at him, brushing a stray strand of black hair from his face.
"It's a waste of magical energy. I can last longer in fights if I don't have to generate sand." Skion tuned him out, not really caring for his explanation. They were a apart of a team called Vagabond Dream, which they had formed with Dom and Cana Alberona; he had heard Shizun's explanation before, but still decided to pester him about it.
"Whatever. Let's just go in, knock some skulls together and turn this Anubis guy in!" Skion said rather confidently, striding up to the doors and kicking them open. Immediately, several men stood up from their tables. The cavern had been renovated into a temporary base of sorts, complete with a bar and wooden tables and benches for the men to sit on.
The man closest to Skion and Shizun unsheathed his sword and dangled it at them dangerously. "If I were you two, I'd leave right now. This isn't a place for two kids to be." he gruned, taking them with a grain of salt. Shizun placed his fist over his palm with a gentle sigh.
"Well, what if these kids just wanted to have fun?" he asked, raising a brow.
"Huh?" the man gave him a confused look. Shizun only offered a fake grin.
"Sand Make: Cannon!" he chanted; a cannon of hardened sand appeared, the top crashing into the body of the man and sending him flying backwards. The canon then started releasing cannonballs of sand at various people! Skion charged, delivering a wild punch into a random warrior's jaw, sending him flying into a hard, stone boulder. He followed up by coating his foot in magic and kicking a man across the room. He charged into a group of people, sending kicks and punches everywhere.
The pair wreaked havoc all over, and it took a couple minutes for Skion and Shizun to realize a strong wall of bronze stone had been formed, shielding the rest of the cultists away from Shizun's cannonballs and Skion's physical onslaught.
"I wonder who had the magical power from this group of weaklings to form something strong enough to render your canon useless," Skion examined, dropping a battered cultist onto the ground. "It was getting real fun, too. Some of them decided to start triple-teaming me!" Shizun's cannon dispersed into sand and returned to him as he walked closer to the bronze wall.
"That's layered rock," he discovered, ignoring Skion. "It's going to be very hard to break through with one of my cannonballs or just your brute strength." Skion frowned. What was the point of building a wall? He put his mind to it, and in a couple seconds, he spoke.
"Shizun! They might be retreating behind that wall! Use a heavy explosion attack, and I'll combine that attack with my own!" Shizun nodded as Skion leaped way, presumably to gather a distance so his attack could gain wind and become stronger.
"Sand Make," Shizun placed a fist over his open palm, "Tsar Cannon!" A huge canon was made form Shizun's sand, about the three times the size of his regular cannon. The barrel was about the size of half the wall. "Ready when you are."
Skion's hair slowly started flowing up, magical wind energy flowing from him as he stretched out his arm. He bent his knees a little, and placed his left arm over his right wrist. Then, he began focusing all the magical energy into his hand.
"Gale Dragon's...Eruption of Heaven!"
A large wave of sharp gales and zephrys and pure ethernano magic energy went clashing towards the bronze rock wall, and Shizun took this as the signal to fire his cannon. A large cannonball and Skion's attack collided with the wall, cracking it. The wall of layered rock folded under the immense might and pressure of the combined attack from the Vagabond Dream members.
Once the smoke cleared, it was clear that something had obviously took place here. There were destroyed walls, broken benches and stables, craters in the ground, and beaten and bruised people all over the place.
In other words, your basic Fairy Tail battle.
However, there was one last layer of rock. It was further back, and it was made for just one person this time. It shattered moments after, revealing a girl in her late teens.
"Huh? You don't like an Anubis," Skion pointed out, noticing her long, flowing light brown hair. Matched with her sparkling purple eyes, this was not the Anubis described that Stroud had described to them.
"Agreed," Shizun noted. "So, you aren't Anubis, are you?"
"Anubis?" the girl asked slowly from the shadows. "Hah. He was never even here. He simply orchestrated the strings behind it; he never comes to these types of missions. Too easy to get caught by the Council. Or," she narrowed her eyes at the silver guild mark on Skion's neck, and then to the lime green one over the hand of Shizun, "guilds."
"Anyways, don't expect this to be easy," she continued on, walking out of the shadows. "Stroud was weak, even after he was renewed. But, I don't know the details. Me? I'm the worst person you could have ever hoped to face in this damned cult!" she charged forward in a zip of speed.
"Earth Dragon's Stone Geyser!" she enchanted, and then immediately engaged in a physical fist fight with Skion, matching him blow for blow.
"Where's the gey—gah!" rock exploded from the ground behind Shizun, slashing across his back and sending him flying forward. Skion looked over, pausing from his fight.
"Shizun?"
The girl took this time to launch her rock-hard fist, literally, into Skion's jaw and send him hurtling backwards. Soaring through the air, he flipped himself around and landed on his feet, skidding backwards.
"Jeez, you really are a dragon slayer," he said, rubbing his now aching jaw. "Only some people can hit me with that force."
The girl said nothing, and only charged for Skion again. Their knuckles collided in a punch that sent all debris around them flying away. Skion sent a blow for her middle, but she managed to grab it just in time for the perfect counter. But, years of nonsensical fighting with Fairy Tail had sharpened Skion's battle instinct.
"Gale Dragon's Talon!" Skion covered his foot in his slayer magic, slamming it into the girl's side, knocking the air out of her. "Shizun, if you wouldn't mind sitting on the sidelines for a bit," Skion licked his lips in excitement, "I'd really like to fight this guy."
The girl readied herself, wheezing.
"Earth Dragon's Stone Geyser!" With a swerve of her hands, she sent several clusters of rock from the ground shooting from the ground in an attempt to impale Skion, who rapidly dodged. A second too slow, and he was out for the count. He couldn't let that happen, now could he?
Suddenly, the geysers stopped. Then, Skion finally caught on to what was happening. She had known he'd be fast enough to dodge the geysers, so she planned it so there'd be a cage around him! "Tch. You tricked me!" he accused, grabbing onto the bronze rock.
"No, I outsmarted you," she said simply, her hands stretching out to her sides. "You get way too caught up in your battles, hence why you've lost. That is your flaw." she flicked her hands forward and rock erupted from the walls, bursting towards Skion's cage, hoping to impale him. Skion flinched, bracing for impact when...it never hit. He opened his eyes, going full circle to see two hardened walls of sand prevented the geysers from ever reaching him. The girl's head flicked behind her, eyeing Shizun.
"Well, I can't just let you kill my partner, can I?" he stood up. "I'll let you two fight, though."
"Hah!" Skion shouted, crushing the bronze rock. "Come on, let's keeping going!" he completely disregarded the fact that the girl had told him his fatal flaw; like she had told him, he was too in love with the fact he might get a real good fight. She flicked her head back towards Skion, then jumped away from him, if only to put distance between them.
Skion climbed out of his cage, then in a surprising feat of strength, he ripped out one of the geysers from the ground, positioning it over his shoulder like a javelin. The girl's eyes widened in shock, as Skion took one step forward and launched the massive bar at her face.
Then? It shattered off her forehead, which was now slowly being covered by an orange color...
"...scales?" Skion asked skeptically. The girl nodded, raising her hand, and showing that it was covered in the same orange scales.
"It's the ultimate dragon slayer attack. It enhances my defense and offense to the point where things like my stone geysers? They're nothing to me. All the attacks you've just landed? I can now return them triple-fold." she briefly explained her scales, before stopping. "Earth Dragon's Dirt Scales: Fins." she chanted quietly, and fins sprouted on her arms, just behind her wrists. Skion was surprised by this sudden transformation.
"Wow, you have some impressive tricks up you—" the girl didn't wait for Skion to finish, attacking him and slashing at him with her fins. Skion jumped back, but the fin grazed his stomach and ripped a hole in his shirt. He looked up, jaw clenched as went on the defensive as the girl got ready to continue her onslaught. And she did, with renewed vigor, she forced the dodging and blocking Skion onto the icy mountains. Outside the cavern, it was dangerous to fight. It was icy, and a single wrong step meant one of them could be sliding off the mountain. The girl slashed again, grazing his cheek.
"Damn," he bit his lip, twisting and turning his body while moving backwards. There was just no way to stop this onslaught! Skion paused when he noticed a different maneuver with the girl's arms. She was pushing him...? It dawned on him, but it was too late. His head snapped back, and he realized he was at the tip of a cliff, and she was just about to push him off.
The force of the push sent him backwards, and he toppled down the mountain, sliding on his back a bit before he bounced off and began to fall in the air. The last thing he could see was the sparkling, purple eyes of his enemy.
Skion was still falling when he felt the all too familiar of paws holding up his jacket. In a matter of seconds, he was zipping back up towards the mountains. "Dom!" he cried out, bending his head backward to see the red-furred exceed. "You saved me!" his exceed looked down, nodding.
"Of course! You're my best friend, Skion!" Dom grinned with round, blue eyes. Skion nodded slowly.
"Yeah! Now, I'm going to beat that dragon slayer girl!" he thundered into the sky, sucking wind into his mouth to gain power. By the time Dom had flew him back up to the mountain, he'd fully regenerated his magic power AND he gained a significant boost. To Skion's surprise, the other dragon slayer was in the entrance of the cavern, eyeing Shizun. Shizun had not made a single move, besides standing up, but it looked like they were going to duke it out.
"Dom? Are the Rune Knights here?" hhe asked his pet quietly.
"No. They're coming up the mountain!"
"Good. I'll end this quick then," he said, walking towards his fellow dragon slayer. "Hey!"
The girl spun around as fast as lighting. "Aren't you supposed to be falling to your death?" she cursed, a bitter edge to her voice. Skion shrugged in response, gesturing his hand to Dom.
"Flying cat." he said as if it were the simplest thing in the world. He heard Dom call back 'Exceed', but it didn't matter. His eyes focused on the girl. He said nothing, but they instantly knew to clash, scales against pure magic. They traded punches, before Skion got the upper hand, launching a fist into her temple. She stumbled backwards, and her scales cracked. "Gale Dragon's Iron Fist!" He slammed a fist into her stomach, following up with a kick to her jaw, continued with an axe kick. She was losing her footing.
Skion took his chance to officially end the fight there. He charged, repeated slamming his fists, his feet, his elbows; anything he could hit her with, he did. Her scales shattered, little pieces falling to the ground. One last punch from Skion sent her to the ground, physically beaten and magically exhausted. The silver-haired male's magical power quelled, and he rushed his hand through his hair with a tired a sigh. The dragon slayer had some serious fighting power, and destructive strength even beyond his own. He didn't want to let her waste away in the dungeons of the Council.
Skion took soft steps toward her. "Here. Take my hand, and let's get out of here before those Rune Knights show up." the girl looked at him confusingly from her position.
"...why?"
"Everyone deserves a second chance," Shizun interrupted, walking closer to the pair. His hand was still holding his back, but he looked better then before. Rayn nodded slowly. She said nothing, but she slowly outstretched her hand.
"Sure."
Oshibana Town/June 30th/X784
Night had fallen, and the trio[four including Dom] had been on their third train ride from Amaranth. Shizun, Skion, and Dom had been talking a bit, but the girl had not said a single word. Skion turned to her. He watched as her eyes peer curiously outside the window, as if she'd never seen the town before. "So," he began, offering a small smile once he got her attention. "What's your name?"
She replied after a moment. "Rayn. Rayn Tenpa." she introduced herself, and then glanced at them, as if asking them to do the same. Skion quickly nodded.
"I'm Skion Skywing. Sitting next to me is Shizun Akari, and this talking cat is my Exceed, Dom. We're part of Fairy Tail, in a team called Vagabond Dream," he introduced. She nodded, then turned her head back to the window.
"She's not very talkative," Dom whispered. Skion shrugged. "We should stop in Oshibana. There's no point of going any further," Shizun nodded in response, then proceeded to stand up.
"Yeah." Skion stood up too, and then Rayn proceeded to stand up with them. They piled out of the train, and onto the platform minutes later. The train left moments after. "I'll find an inn."
Oshibana Town/July 1st/X784
It was the middle of the afternoon, the peak of the next day. Together in the inn, the team had begun eating their breakfast. "Shizun, I don't think we should head back to the guild just yet," Skion said through a mouthful of eggs, his free hand moving to grab the violet amulet that hung over his neck. "I don't feel as if I'm strong enough to defeat Laxus...if I returned right now, it'd be a disappointment."
The mention of Laxus had gained Rayn's attention, but she decided she'd be better of saying nothing and eyed her plate. Shizun rushed a hand through black hair, pressing his lips together. "Its been three days since we've last seen the guild. I agree with the fact we shouldn't go back yet, but are you sure you want to go increase your power?" his dark red eyes seemed soft and kindred.
"I don't see the problem," Dom chirped in. "I love a sweet adventure. Plus, if it means we're one step closer to defeating Laxus and his Thunder Tribe, that's great!" he high-fived Skion cheerily.
"What's your obsession with Laxus, Skion?" although her voice was cold, it didn't seem intentional this time. Rayn was asking a question out of genuine curiosity, and this time it was not a jab.
At first, he didn't really know what to say to that. When he had first joined the Fairy Tail guild, Laxus showed more than just crazy impressive power; he, himself, was cool and gutsy and everything Skion had aspired to be. However, the Thunder God Tribe had never let him join and he was never able to match his power. That's why he wanted to grow stronger, and why he eventually ended up creating Vagabond Dream. "Heh," Skion grinned, "it's not thing more than a goal of mine. I've been wanting to fight on par with Laxus since forever."
"Its true. I've known Skion for five years, and ever since I met him it's been all he could talk about. Admirable, but I personally think we're still a bit away from reaching his level," Shizun shrugged, and Skion glared at him.
"No need to get me down!"
"I see," Rayn responded quietly, pressing her food with her fork. She had never known a goal like that; and she wasn't sure she ever would.
"Dom, why don't you go find the local quest board? Maybe we can find a good quest," Skion sent the exceed away, before his beige eyes settled on his fellow dragon slayer. "Okay, I haven't said it yet. But, if you're gonna stick with us, you're going to have to join Fairy Tail at one point. Until then, no running away, okay?" he reached across the table to bump her fist. She seemed surprised at the action and uncertain of how to respond, before a soft chuckle escaped her lips.
"Okay, Skion." and her knuckles met his.
Well, that's the first chapter done. I know it was a little on the more action-oriented side. I promise next chapter, which takes place while Natsu is finding Lucy, it'll shine more on the characters' personalities as they discover how this new quest is going to work out! More team dynamic and more development, probably going to focus more on Skion's guild history as well!
Make sure to review!
~Daige~
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