Smoldering Ember - Hiatus

by DomYang

Framed for a crime he did not commit, a Dragonslayer is left and forgotten by the ones he cherished before vanishing as they did. A forgotten fugitive with a new purpose, along with a new guild of close friends, Crime Sorcière's mission is to ensure that Fiore remains safe for all. But what happens when remnants of the past resurface and seek redemption? What of the future? (OOC)

3. Chapter 3

"Natsu!" - Person Talking

"Natsu!" - Person Thinking

"Natsu!" - Large Being Talking

"Natsu!" - Large Being Thinking

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" - Magic

Hey guys, Dom here with a new chapter. This one is another kinda recap, kinda new stuff chapter. I'm sorry that they're so long and full of recaps mostly but after this, it's going to be all pretty much new stuff. Again, it's kinda boring for a lot of you who've already read and watched the manga and anime but I still hope you enjoy this no matter how little. So yeah, do what you want with that information. Well, you all came to read right? Well, let's a go.

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Smoldering Ember - Chapter 3

The weeks passing by as quickly as they appeared to come, Crime Sorcière remained diligent and focused as they continued their eradication of the dark guilds. After the first few weeks however, the number of dark guilds in Fiore had dropped to a basically nonexistent number, the independent guild being so efficient in their duty. As they approached the first month, Natsu dropped a statement that made them all a little surprised.

"Hey Ul, Meredy, Jellal; I think I'm going to go off on my own for the last month before the games." Natsu said as the three gave him curious looks in response to his statement.

"Alone? Why Natsu? You usually never part with any of us, is there something wrong?" Ultear asked in a concerned tone, Natsu simply smiling and shaking his head in the negative.

"Nothing's wrong, I just have to go check up on someone for a bit then I'll be right back." Natsu said as they nodded their heads in understanding.

"I assume that the person you're going to check up on is the same person from all those years ago correct?" Jellal asked as the other man nodded, Jellal simply sighing before giving him a smile.

"I wish you the best on your trip Natsu, be sure to stay in touch though." He said as Natsu nodded, giving the bluenette a firm handshake.

"Aww... I hoped to get some Natsu time for myself." Meredy pouted as Ultear jabbed her in the side with her elbow, the two glaring at each other.

"Don't worry you two, I'll be fine. I'll only be gone for the month, then I'll be right back!" He said, trying to ease the worries of the two as he moved to give them a hug.

"Oh!"

"Kyah!"

Ultear and Meredy squeaked as they felt the Dragon Slayerembrace them, eventually returning the gesture for a few seconds before they reluctantly parted. Flashing them all a smile, the donned his cloak and pulled the hood up before heading out of their temporary base of operations. Smiling at his shrinking form, they let their stares linger on him for a moment before sighing and turning to face each other.

"Well, what do we do for the rest of the month? We've eliminated nearly all of the dark guilds in Fiore and the others are still unconfirmed as being dark guilds." Meredy asked as Jellal mulled over the topic.

"I think it would be best if we rested for the month. I have a feeling that this year's Grand Magic Games are going to be very different from the previous years." Jellal said as Ultear and Meredy nodded at the underlying message in his statement.

(Scene Change - Unknown Village)

Standing in the shadows of the large houses that covered the village, Natsu glanced at the brightly burning flame in the village center. Smiling at it, he glanced down at his hand as a crimson and dark red colored flame sat in the middle of his palm, different from his usual red and orange flames. The closing his palm and ending the flame, he moved out of the village and towards a large mountain in the distance, rolling his shoulders and neck.

(Time Skip - One Month Later)

(Scene Change - Celestial Spirit World)

"Um... We had a really good time." Erza said as she stood up and stretched, her relaxed muscles tingling.

"You bet we did, I just had the best food in the world!" Gray said in a happy tone as he patted his stomach, grinning widely.

"W-Wow! Is this really for me!" Levy asked, staring fondly at the large book that she was given.

"T-Thank you! I like the clothes!" Wendy said as she twirled a bit to see how her new clothes behaved.

"Juvia only wishes that Gray-sama was looking at her." Juvia said as she stared at Gray with heart shaped eyes.

With Lucy, she was bidding farewell to her spirits, each and every one of them announcing that they were her partners and that they would always be there for her.

"Thank you all, for everything!" She said in a tearful and happy tone, a brilliant smile on her face as the spirits returned it.

"Everyone, please take care of Lucy!" Aries asked as they all grinned at her, before the Celestial Spirit King moved to address them.

"All the stars will bless you on your way, my dear friends!" He said jolly tone, a smile on his face.

After the festivities, Virgo moves to transport them back to the beach, and the group questions the flow of time difference between the two plains, wondering if they could train for longer in the Spirit World. Virgo however reveals the opposite, stating that they have just lost the three months they had to train, dropping the group back on the beach with only five days until the Games start.

"Eh?" Gray and Erza said with a blank expression on their faces.

"Hey guys! We've been waiting for so long!" Jet shouted as Droy and himself made their way over.

"The Grand Magic Games will be held in five days! You all must have been training really hard if you were gone for that long!" Droy said in an excited tone as Erza and Gray turned pale before falling face first into the sand.

"You Mustache Bastard! Give us back our time!" Lucy shouted to the sky as Wendy cried behind her at their complete waste of time.

Fairy Tail isn't the only guild preparing for the Games though, Lamia Scale's master Ooba Babasaama forcing Lyon and Jura to participate whilst Blue Pegasus also decides to send their strongest into the fray. Sabertooth's Sting is also excited after hearing of Fairy Tail's participation, whilst Makarov's son Ivan Dreyar gathers his Raven Tail team, swearing to crush Fairy Tail.

Back at the beach, Team Natsu mopes over their lost time before Erza scares everyone by declaring that she will start a training course from hell for their last remaining days. Before she can however, a messenger bird lands on her head, the note asking the group to come to the bridge in the West Woods.

"Why are we getting ready to fight?" Wendy asked in a wry tone, holding Carla close to her chest as they moved through the woods.

"Was it a prank?" Gray asked as he scanned the area, seeing no signs of anyone close by.

"I told you all that we shouldn't have wasted our time coming here." Lucy said as Happy walked beside her, also unable to find a trace of any people.

"Hmm... That is rather odd..." Erza said as she too, wasn't able to sense the presence of people nearby.

As they headed deeper into the woods, they came across an old and destroyed bridge. Stopping, they moved closer to it and saw that it was indeed abandoned, having not seen any use in over a decade with the amount of vegetation overgrown on it. Sighing, they were about to turn back when the bridge started shaking violently. Then, before their eyes it started to regain its luster, connecting to the other side as it was renewed.

"I-It's fixed! It's connected to the cliff on the other side!" They shouted, staring at the scene with wide eyes.

"This must be our invitation." Erza said in a sure tone, the others looking a little more apprehensive.

"This might be a trap after all..." Levy said in an unsure tone, a bead of sweat running down her head.

"I-I'm getting a little scared now." Wendy said as she held Carla a little tighter, the Exceed wincing slightly.

"Well, we won't find out just by standing here all day." Gray said as the others slowly agreed, proceeding past the bridge and releasing a sigh of relief when it didn't collapse.

Venturing deeper into the forest, they froze mid step when they saw a quartet of hooded figures standing before them. Tensing and sweating slightly, they readied themselves to launch a counter attack should the group of four do anything that seemed remotely hostile. But they only tensed more before gaping in shock when three of the four removed their hoods, revealing a trio of faces that they thought they'd never see again.

"J-Jellal..." Erza whispered in shock, seeing the face of her childhood friend smiling at her.

"U-Ultear?!" Gray shouted as he stared wide eyed at his mentor's daughter, the older woman smiling at him.

"Meredy!" Juvia shouted as the pinkette gave her a wide smile, the bluenette stunned but soon happy that she was able to smile so brightly.

"It's been quite some time Fairy Tail." Jellal said as he gave a small half wave at the group, Ultear and Meredy mimicking the action as the Fairies continued to look on in shock.

After Jellal and Erza quickly discuss Jellal's jailbreak and the return of his memories six years prior, the three reveal that they have formed an independent guild by the name of Crime Sorcière, their goal being to destroy Dark Guilds and anything related to Zeref so that people will never fall to the dark side as they once did. When asked by Gray why they just don't become official, the trio answer that due to Jellal's status as a criminal and Meredy and Ultear's connection to Grimoire Heart, being accepted by the Council is impossible.

"As you can see, our guild is fine the way it is." Jellal finished as they nodded, digesting the information presented to them.

"And, the reason we summoned you here was not just to introduce ourselves. We've heard that you plan on entering the Grand Magic Games, am I correct?" Ultear asked, the Fairies nodding their heads in confirmation as the Crime Sorcière mages exchanged glances and nodded.

"We can't come near the event grounds, so it would appear we have a favor to ask of you." She continued as they listened intently, knowing that a favor from one of them could only mean something serious.

"Every year, during the event... I've felt a strange magical force. I want to identify the source of that magic." Jellal said as the Fairies blinked in surprise at the statement.

"Well, all of Fiore's guilds are going to be there right? There's going to be one or two suspicious magical forces right?" Lucy asked as Jellal nodded in agreement.

"I thought that at first as well but this magic had an evil presence to it, like Zeref's. Perhaps the presence is coming from us, since we've been so close to Zeref." He explained as Fairies flinched at the name.

"We want to find the true source of this magic, with it we may be able to track his location." Ultear said as they nodded in understanding.

"Of course, winning or losing is a different story. We're all going to be cheering you all on from the shadow. But meanwhile, please search for the mysterious magic." Meredy said Erza nodded her head slowly.

"It sounds like you're on a wild goose chase, but we'll help you out the best we can." She said as her friends turned to her in a bit of apprehension.

"You sure, Erza?" Gray asked as she nodded her head.

"I feel uneasy about a mysterious magical force in a gathering of Fiore's guilds, even more so if it has a similar presence to Zeref." She explained as they nodded in understanding.

"Of course we'll give you your compensation up front." She said as Lucy and Happy lit up instantly.

"Is it rent money!"

"Is it fish!"

"No, it's not that kind of reward. With my improved Arc of Time I can raise the levels of your abilities." She explained as they all gave her blank and confused looks in return.

"Think of it as a power up, but a bit different!" Meredy chirped as Ultear nodded before explaining what it entitled.

"I can use my Arc of Time to open your "Second Origin", a dormant magic container generally not used by mages that, if opened, can allow you access to heightened amounts of power." She explained as their eyes brightened considerably.

However, she also warns them that the process will be incredibly painful, but the Fairy Tail Mages are more than happy to receive the help and start celebrating. That is, all except Erza, who stares sternly at Jellal and the still hooded figure behind him.

Then, the two groups moved to meet each other as Meredy and Juvia hugged each other, smiling brightly as Juvia told the pinkette how happy she was to see her truly smiling. Ultear and Gray starting up a conversation about the past few years, while Erza stared at Jellal and the person who still hadn't introduced himself. As the group introduced themselves to each other, the Fairies were rather happy to see the former dark mages.

"So... Who's that?" Gray asked after a few minutes of talking with the former dark mages, prompting everyone to turn to the still hooded figure.

"That's our other guild member, he doesn't speak much." Meredy said in a causal tone though there was an underlying hint of something in her voice.

"Does he have a name? He seems kinda fishy to me." Lucy said as the Crime Sorcière mages bristled a bit in anger.

"He's our comrade who's saved all of us countless times!" Ultear said in a stern tone, Meredy and Jellal standing firmly in front of him.

"He doesn't give out his name to people he doesn't trust, it took us nearly three years for him to trust us enough to give us his name." Jellal explained as the Fairies nodded slowly, still suspicious about the man but opting to shelve their questions.

Ultear starts the process on Gray, who writhes around in terrible pain as the others fearfully watch. Carla then realizes that Erza is gone, to which Happy states that she went somewhere with Jellal. At a nearby beach, Erza and Jellal sit and discuss the latter's returned memories, Jellal confirming that he remembers Nirvana and killing Simon, stating that Erza can seek revenge if she so chooses. Erza declines, asking if creating Crime Sorcière was part of Jellal's atonement. Jellal states that he's unsure, as he still feels lost, and upon then saying that he would probably be better off dead.

"I was trying to redeem myself my sins when I founded Crime Sorcière. But now I realize that no matter what I do, I will never be able to make up for the things I did in the Tower of Heaven. If that's the case, what exactly am I doing all of this for?" He lamented as Erza looked on in shock, unsure what say.

"No matter how hard I try, I still can't find an answer. Perhaps... It would be better if I just died." He whispered as Erza's eyes widened before narrowing, pulling her hand back and slapping him.

"What are you talking about you coward!" She shouted in anger, Jellal simply looking down.

"What? So you're just going to quit living because you're not strong enough? Because that's not true! You, right now being alive is a sign of strength!" She shouted as tears began to build up in her eyes.

"You're not the same Jellal as before! Not the one who struggled to survive!" She continued, tears now falling freely from her face.

The atmosphere turned tense with Erza grabbing him roughly by the collar of his shirt. Shaking him in anger, she glared at him with tear filled eyes as he stared back in a bit of shock before a small smile appeared on his face. Stunned seeing him actually smile, Erza loosened her grip and lost it completely when he laughed, tears falling from his eyes as he moved to wipe them away.

"J-Jellal...?" She asked in concern and shock, never having seen him act in such a manner.

"I'm sorry Erza, it's just humorous. I was told something similar a long time ago by a very close friend of mine." He said as she stared at him in confusion, before swallowing the lump in her throat.

"W-What did they say?" She asked as he smiled, Erza gulping as she awaited his answer.

"He told me that "You shouldn't die for your friends, that you live for them."" He said as Erza's eyes widened considerably before she lashed out and grabbed him by the collar once more, startling him.

"T-That person... W-Who said it?"She asked in a shaky and desperate tone, Jellal's eyes softening as he saw the hope and love in her eyes.

"Yes... It was Natsu..." He whispered as her eyes widened even more before tears began to fall from her eyes once again, Erza doing her best to bite back the sobs that tried to escape her throat.

Unable to do anything else without exposing the identity of his best friend, Jellal simply held her as she cried into her hands. Sometime later, the rest of the team have taken Ultear's procedure and are all enduring it inside a small hut, save for Erza. Crime Sorcière heads off, stating they can't be in one place too long, but promising to keep in touch throughout the Games. The quartet stop in a cave for the night, where Meredy asks Natsu why he didn't expose himself to his old friends.

"So, why didn't you want us to tell them who you were Natsu?" Meredy asked as Jellal and Ultear turned to face him, curious as well.

"I wonder why myself actually." He said in a quiet as he turned and stared at the stars, the others giving him a slightly sad smile as they gave him his space.

(Time Skip - A Few Days Later)

(Scene Change - Crocus)

A few days later in the capital of Fiore, Crocus, Team Natsu are still in pain from Ultear's spell, Erza scolding them for their embarrassing whining. Lucy wonders why Erza isn't in pain like them as well, with Gray suggesting that she probably already had her Second Origin to begin with.

Makarov, Bisca, Alzack, Asuka, Jet, Droy and Levy soon find the group, Makarov encouraging the Mages to do their best despite the snide comments they keep hearing from passing people about their weakness. Lucy recalls how only five members of the guild are selected to enter the tournament, being surprised that Makarov chose Erza, Gray, Elfman, Wendy and herself.

When they ask why the master doesn't put in stronger members, he replies that none of the other Fairy Tail members have returned. The group then goes over some of the rules of the tournament, Levy reading the rule book and telling everyone the most important rules, which include the guild master not being able to participate, only members of the guild being able to participate, each event being a secret until the competition, and the rule that all members must be in their sleeping quarters by 12:00AM.

Lucy and Happy then run off to explore Crocus whilst Erza goes to their sleeping quarters, Honey Bone Lodge, and inspects the place for anything suspicious. Juvia meets up with Gray and asks him if he wants to go eat alone with her, but the two are interrupted by Lyon, who strikes a bet with Gray in which the winning guild gets to take Juvia as a member. Wendy and Carla visit the Fiore's King's Castle, Mercurius, and while they talk, a mysterious imp-like creature looks down on them from the balcony, smiling.

Lucy and Happy notice a fight going on in the middle of a street and realize it's the Twin Dragons of Sabertooth, Sting and Rogue. The two Dragon Slayers recognize Lucy, while Frosch and Lector surprise Happy by being Exceed. Together, the Sabertooth members begin to berate the late Natsu, stating that they could have easily defeated Acnologia and bragging about their status as "Third Generation Dragon Slayer", Dragon Slayers who were both taught by Dragons and whom contain a Dragon Slayer Lacrima. When they told the pair that the killed their parents, Lucy and Happy are horrified at the revelation.

"Oh, so that's what's got them feeling so high and mighty eh?" Meredy asked as she observed the group in the middle of the street.

"But killing their parents? Even if they are Dragonslayers, isn't that a bit cruel?" Ultear asked as Natsu shook his head.

"They can talk all they want, it doesn't concern me what they did to their parents. Though, it does make my blood boil a bit." Natsu said in a quiet tone, the air shimmering a bit as the pair began to sweat.

But before anything happened, Rogue and Sting departed the scene, leaving behind a crying Happy and tearful Lucy. The altercation finished, the trio parted ways in search of the source of magic that Jellal had sensed, a bit confused as they weren't able to sense anything similar to what Jellal had described.

When Team Natsu finally returns to Honey Bone Lodge, Erza scolds them for being late, however Lucy can only think about the encounter with Rogue and Sting and their threat to show Fairy Tail "true Dragon Slayer power" in the tournament. Erza then asks where Wendy and Carla are, and everyone begins to worry about Wendy and what she might be doing, stating that she is too young to be out so late. They consider going out to look for her, but remember the rule about having to be in their lodge by midnight. Before they can reach a decision on what to do, Elfman and Lisanna show up, having returned from their training in the mountains.

The clock finally hits midnight, and the announcer for the tournament, taking the appearance of a giant pumpkin-man, greets all the guilds as he floats above the city. He declares that a preliminary event will begin to reduce to total number of guilds participating from one-hundred and thirteen to eight. Lucy immediately notes that there is no way one-hundred thirteen guilds exist within Fiore, and Erza also questions the set-up of the tournament and the organizers. The announcer describes the event, the goal of the preliminary round being to get all 5 participating group members to Domus Flau, any form of Magic or technique being acceptable to achieve this. Stating that only the first eight teams will pass, the whole city then changes into a huge maze ball that floats in the sky, the announcer declaring Sky Labyrinth is about to begin.

(Scene Change - Wendy's Location)

"Carla, we need to get back now!" Wendy said as Carla nodded in agreement, seeing the large structure in the sky.

As they hurried to the Honey Bone Lodge, the failed to notice the strange creature that stalked them from behind. Rounding a corner, they were in a concealed spot near some bushes when the creature advanced on them. Springing from its location, Carla's ears twitched as her eyes widened when she heard the creature. Turning to shout at Wendy, her eyes widened even more when Wendy turned around and saw it as well. A scream about to leave her mouth, it was stopped when a hand placed itself gently on it. Their eyes nearly bugging out of their sockets when they saw the unknown member of Crime Sorcière, they practically did bug out of their sockets when he grabbed the creature in a crushing grip.

"Cheating this early? You must be more filthy then I thought." They said in a hushed tone before hurling the creature to the Sky Labyrinth.

Still in shock, Wendy and Carla stuttered and struggled to come up with a response to what had just happened. Turning slightly, the young mage and Exceed squeaked when they felt an immense amount of magical pressure rolling off of the man, who seemed to be unaware of the pressure he was exerting. Scanning her from head to toe, he nodded before turning around.

"You should get going, the preliminaries are about to begin." He said in a quiet tone, snapping the two out of their stupor.

"Y-Yes, t-thank you!" Wendy stammered before bowing and rushing to her guildmates with Carla flying behind her.

Releasing a sigh, Natsu turned to the direction she had left as a somber smile made it to his face when he was reminded of how the young Dragon Slayerwas. Turning to face the direction he sent the creature flying, he could only frown as it lacked the presence that Jellal was talking about. Shaking his head, he returned to his search as the Grand Magic Games were finally about to begin.

(Scene Change - Sky Labyrinth Entrance)

Arriving at the Sky Labyrinth, Wendy was hugged by a worried Lucy and Erza, the two scolding her for being out so late. When they asked where she was, she stunned them by retelling the event that took place; the attack by the creature, the unknown mage saving her and finally the amount of power she felt rolling off of him. A little stunned by the story, they were almost disqualified for not entering the Sky Labyrinth.

Once inside the maze, after an encounter with the members of Twilight Ogre, various rotations of the playing field and several wrong turns in the maze, the team realizes that if they steal the maps of the other teams, they can piece the maze together. After defeating several guilds, Fairy Tail successfully reaches the end, only to discover that they barely managed to get the eighth place.

(Scene Change - Crocus: Domus Flau)

Former member of the Magic Council Yajima has joined Chapati Lola as commentator of the Games. As the preliminary eighth place winners, Fairy Tail is introduced first, but are booed by the crowd. However, the other Fairy Tail members have also come to watch and cheer over the crowd, everyone becoming shocked when Mavis also appears.

"No way..." Lucy said as she stared at the petite figure of the first master.

"Could that be..." Erza added on as her eyes were as wide as saucers as she watched Mavis kick her feet.

"Hooray! Hooray! Go Fairy Tail!" Mavis cheered in a joyful tone, pumping her fist and kicking her feet.

"Master Mavis!" The entirety of the guild in the stands shouted, unable to believe that she was here and not at Tenroujima.

"I came to cheer you on!" She chirped as Makarov sweat dropped, unable to comprehend what was happening.

"Oh, and don't worry! Only people with the guild mark on them can see me so you don't have to worry about anything!" She added on as his sweat dropped spread to the other members.

"Umm, First. That's not exactly what I'm worried about..." Makarov said as she puffed out her cheeks in a pout.

"I've been stuck on Tenroujima for years! I wanna experience the new world outside of it!" She shouted as the Fairy Tail members in the arena laughed wryly.

"Well, having the first master looking out for us is kinda reassuring..." Gray said as the other sweat dropped at his statement.

The seventh place team, Team Quatro Cerberus, arrive on the field followed shortly by the all-female guild; sixth place Mermaid Heel. Fifth place in the preliminaries was taken by Blue Pegasus' Trimens and one new member in a bunny suit, whilst fourth place was achieved by Lamia Scale. Among the team members is Sherry's cousin, Chelia. Lyon reminds Gray about their bet regarding Juvia, though Gray angrily claims that no bet was made but also that Fairy Tail will not lose regardless.

"Moving on, coming in third place we have! Oh, now this is a surprise! In third place we have a first time competing guild! The midnight raiders, Raven Tail!" Chapati announced as the crowd cheered them on, though Fairy Tail was confused and concerned.

"W-What? A dark guild?!"Makarov shouted in shock, not believing that his son had established a proper guild.

"Well, according to our official information, Raven Tail existed over seven years ago. But had only been approved as an official guild recently." Chapati reported as the crowd calmed down, the Fairies calming but never losing their tenseness.

"T-That's the thing that tried to attack Wendy and I last night!" Carla shouted as it sneered and laughed at them, their guildmates bristling in anger at the piece of information.

With two more guilds set to arrive the crowd becomes confused as they believed Sabertooth and Lamia Scale to be the two highest ranking guilds. As Erza wonders if this unknown team have anything to do with the dark energy Jellal mentioned, the second team is revealed, shocking the crowd, as it is Fairy Tail B, consisting of Laxus, Mirajane, Gajeel, Juvia and Mystogan. Fairy Tail A are shocked at both Mystogan's appearance and the fact that they believed they were the only Fairy Tail team present. After the crowd expresses shock about the fact that two teams from the same guild arrived, it is explain that each guild could send at least two teams to participate, Lucy noting that this accounts for the large number of teams in the preliminaries.

The commentators talk over whether this gives Fairy Tail an unfair advantage, as they have twice as many participants as the other guilds, however a conclusion is reached that the fact that Fairy Tail managed to get two teams into the finals has earned them such a privilege. It is soon revealed that the mysterious individual is not Mystogan, but Jellal, disguised as his Edolas counterpart. Erza asks him how he managed to get a position on a Fairy Tail team, with him replying that the Master allowed him to come once Jellal told him of his concerns, and though Erza questions his ill following of the Games' rules, Jellal pushes this aside. Mavis too realizes that Jellal isn't actually a member of the guild, but she allows him to compete for Fairy Tail's victory.

"That idiot..." Natsu muttered under his breath as he face palmed, Ultear and Meredy sweat dropping when they saw the reaction of the Dragonslayer.

"Well, I guess he'll be able to pinpoint if any of members of the guilds competing are the cause of it, right?" Meredy asked in an unsure tone, Natsu shaking his head while Ultear laughed wryly.

"I guess he really wants Fairy Tail to win, a lot more then we expected." Ultear said as Natsu sighed as he shook his head, Meredy and Ultear patting him on the back.

"I just hope he doesn't blow his cover." Natsu said as he stared down at Jellal, the bluenette stiffening as he felt the Dragonslayer's gaze.

"Hmm? Something wrong?" Laxus asked, Jellal shaking his head in the negative.

"N-No, just a little worried about people finding out my true identity." Jellal replied as the larger man nodded, seeing as it was an understandable concern.

Erza and Jellal discuss the mysterious Magic, and although Raven Tail has been acting odd, they don't seem to be the source as the Magic has existed previously in the Games, and it is their début year. Soon after, the first place team of the preliminaries, Sabertooth, arrives. All teams present, the program of the tournament is announced, with the first round being an event, followed by a battle. As per the rules, the teams will earn points depending on how they place in the event, and each team may choose one member to compete. In the battles, the sponsors will have a right to choose fighting pairs, the losing fighter earning zero points whilst the winner gets ten; five each in the case of a draw.

The first game is announced to start and each team must choose one member to participate; from Mermaid Heel, Beth is selected while Jäger represents Quatro Cerberus. Nullpudding from Raven Tail goes in, whilst Blue Pegasus sends out Eve. From Sabertooth, Rufus offers to go while Lyon chooses to represent Lamia Scale, causing Gray to step up for Fairy Tail A and subsequently Juvia for Fairy Tail B.

Gray steps up as the eight representatives are called out, and is shocked when a huge city is magicked into the arena, himself becoming separated from the other contestants as they are scattered in the playing field. The rules are that each member must find their opponents and hit them, but nobody knows where the others are. Whoever launches an attack first gains one point and the one who is hit loses one point, thus the game becomes 'hide and seek'. To make matters harder, numerous clones of each contestant will walk around the city to confuse everyone. Attacking a clone will result in a one point deduction. After the rules are explained, the game starts.

As Gray tries to do his best in the game, it becomes apparent that Raven Tail only wants to attack Fairy Tail, as Nullpudding repeatedly goes after Gray, causing Gray's team-mates to question Raven Tail's motives. Later as Gray walks the streets, he becomes entangled in a skirmish with a group of participants, being saved by Juvia, who states that she promised the Master that she would not lose, even to Gray himself. As part of agreeing to be Fairy Tail's B team, the members of the winning Fairy Tail team are allowed to make the members of the losing Fairy Tail team do whatever they want for a day, shocking Gray, who heard of no such rule. Whilst Juvia and Gray discuss this, Nullpudding shows up again and attacks them both, adding an additional two points to his score.

After Eve employs his Magic intelligently to earn some quick points and Lyon also advances the ranks, the players notice that Rufus of Sabertooth hasn't moved at all. He hasn't attacked anyone, nor has he been found. The masked Mage claims that the game is too easy for him and states that he remembers exactly where everyone is and has been as he unleashes his Memory-Make Magic, shocking the others, who realize he is using Molding Magic. Unleashing his attack, Rufus manages to take out all his opponents, giving him the lead with a single move. The game ends soon after with Sabertooth in the lead and Fairy Tail 'B' and Fairy Tail 'A' in the two last places. As the audience boos Fairy Tail, Gray apologizes and walks off, swearing to get back at Raven Tail and Sabertooth.

"Raven Tail. Creation Mage. I swear, I'll get them back for this." Gray muttered under his breath as he slammed his fist into a nearby wall, crushing the stone.

"Whoa, did you see that? That was some spell!" Meredy said as she admired the performance that Rufus showed.

"As flashy as it was, it was a lot weaker then what I expected from a member of Fiore's number one." Natsu said as he leaned against the wall of the arena, Meredy and Ultear smiling wryly at him.

"But that's only because you're Natsu! Nothing can hurt you!" Meredy pouted as Natsu laughed softy, poking her gently on the forehead.

"Meredy's right though Natsu, I can only name a handful of things that can seriously hurt you." Ultear added in as the pinkette shook his head in a playful manner, making the two women pout.

As they talked and joked around with each other, the guilds who were participating were all gathered together once again. The crowd cheering loudly for their favorites, Fairy Tail's teams were on the receiving end of not so favorable cheers but rather jeers. Ignoring them for the most part, they tensed up when they saw that the next event was about to take place. The sudden reduction in noise caught the attention of Ultear as she turned and got the attention of her guildmates.

"Oh, looks like they're announcing the battles." Ultear said as they turned to look at the arena, Natsu raising a brow when he saw a familiar shade of crimson.

"The first match of day one! Fairy Tail A's Lucy Heartfilia! Vs. Raven Tail's Flare Corona!" Chapati announced as the crowd went wild.

"Me?!" The blonde in question said, sweating a bit as she stared at her competitor.

"Blondie..." Flare said as she stared intently at Lucy, a bit of a crazed glint shining in her eyes.

Still standing in a bit of a dazed state, Lucy was snapped out of it by the cheers of her guildmates. Flinching, she dropped her head a bit as the combined pressure from being the subject of jeers and scrutiny started to overwhelm her. But like before, the cheers of her guildmates brought her out of her stunned state.

"Lucy-san! Show them the result of our training!" Wendy cheered on, pumping her fist out in a cheering manner.

"If we can manage to win here, it'll still be a tie." Erza said in a calm and collected tone, crossing her arms under her chest.

"Oooh! Knock em out Lucy!" Elfman shouted as he had his hand clenched into a tight fist.

Thinking back to the events of the previous day, their attempted attack on Wendy, the way they did everything in their power to get in Gray's way. She began to feel her blood boil as she steeled her resolve. Tightening her hands into fists, she turned to face her guildmates with a determined look on her face as they stared intently at her.

"Leave it to me, I'll definitely win!" She said as a smile broke out on the faces of her friends, all of them nodding at her in encouragement and trust.

Moving to the center of the arena, Lucy and Flare stared at each other, Lucy giving Flare a hard stare while Flare simply retained her slightly crazed look. The crowd growing slightly tense with anticipation, the noise in the area dropped considerably as they continued to stare down the other.

"The battle between Lucy and Flare will last for 30 minutes and if anyone is knocked out within that time, they lose. If the time limit is reached, a draw will be declared." Yajima explained as the teams nodded, knowing that failure to abide by the rules meant disqualification.

Lucy commences the battle by performing a multiple summoning and combining Scorpio and Taurus' attacks whilst the crowd watches in awe. Flare soon responds with her Hair Magic, and the two twist and twirl around the ring as Flare grabs Lucy with her hair and Lucy grabs her in return with her Fleuve d'étoiles. Flare however soon starts to play dirty by taking Asuka Connell hostage in the stands, threatening to harm the young girl if Lucy attacks her further.

"Don't make a sound. This is an order. I don't know what might happen if you disobey, no matter how much of a dimwitted blonde you are." Flare said in a threatening and crazed tone, Lucy gritting her teeth as she saw the tassel of hair swish back and forth near Asuka.

Up in the shadows of the arena, Meredy and Ultear were getting very worried and nervous when they saw the heat radiating off of Natsu, the air beginning to shimmer. Gulping as they moved to get to a slightly more comfortable distance, they glanced where his attention was located and felt their own anger bubble when they saw Flare's tassel of hair sway ominously near the little girl. Then they remembered that the easiest way to anger the Dragon Slayernext to them was to involve children.

"N-Natsu, c-calm down alright? No matter how dirty they are, they wouldn't stoop so low as to hurt an innocent little girl." Meredy said in an attempt to placate the anger coursing through his veins.

"Meredy's correct Natsu, they wouldn't be that brazen to involve someone as innocent as her." Ultear added, the two managing to calm him down enough to stand near him once again, wincing as they saw the molten slag that used to be stone.

Meanwhile, in another area of the stands, the Knight Squadron Chief Arcadios comments on the battle, stating that the "matured fruit" is ripening, such that it may be completed this year. He tells his Lord Zeref that he should just sit back and wait.

With Asuka as her hostage, Flare forces Lucy to not use Magic, move or say anything at all, lest something unfortunate happens. Remembering what happened to Wendy and Gray, Lucy attempts to forfeit the fight, though Flare stops her by gagging her with her hair. Raising Lucy into the air, Flare decides to brand the mark of Raven Tail over her Fairy Tail mark, despite Lucy's attempts to stop her.

"That's it." Natsu muttered under his breath as he raised his hands and snapped his fingers.

A small sphere of fire formed at the base of the tassel of hair before it imploded, destroying the tassel as Flare gasped, allowing Lucy to summon Gemini and free herself. The Celestial Spirit transforms into Lucy to activate a magic that they had practiced together, the two pooling their energies together to form a spell that Hibiki of Blue Pegasus recognizes instantly: Urano Metria. However, before it is cast, the power dissipates, leaving Lucy extremely weakened.

"It... Was erased?" Lucy whispered as she started to sway as the crowd looked on in shock.

"Obra! It was you!" Flare realized as he saw the creature flash her a victory sign, a twisted smile on her face.

"What happened!?" Erza shouted as she leaned forward in disbelief.

"The magic, it disappeared!" Elfman added on as he looked at the scene with wide eyes.

"What in the world happened! Lucy's magic didn't activate! Yajima-san, this is!" Chapati shouted as he stood up from his seat, unable to believe what had just occurred.

"..." Yajima stared at the scene with a sharp and slightly cold eye, knowing exactly what had happened as Chapati tried to get his input.

As everyone continued to look on in shock, Lucy finally began to fall to the ground as the eyes of everyone widened. First, there was absolute silence before the crowd erupted into a loud uproar of applause and cheer for the match they had witnessed.

"We didn't even see that redhead try to cancel the magic!" Pantherlily shouted as Happy voiced his own opinions beside him.

"It's assistance from her guildmates." Mavis said in a calm but cold tone, Romeo growing angered at the revelation.

"Those guys are dirty!" Romeo shouted as the other Fairies bristled in anger at the foul play that had just occurred.

"Ivan... Are you hoping for a brawl outside?" Makarov asked in a barely controlled tone, his eyes filled with anger.

"Its... It's my win. Serves you right, take a good look Blondie. Shameful! Unsightly! Pathetic loser! Ahahaha!" Flare cackled as Lucy raised her hand to shield her eyes.

With her statement, Flare caused the crowd to start laughing and booing the downed blonde. Gritting her teeth, Lucy laid there and tried to drown out their jeering as tears began to fall from her eyes. Even with the arrival of Erza and Gray, it did nothing to stop the jeers and boo's of the crowd as they picked up Lucy.

"Oi, don't start crying here Lucy. We've still got a ways until we win this thing remember?" Gray asked as Erza nodded in agreement, the two slinging her arms over their shoulders.

"You were incredible. You've proven to all of us that we are still more then capable of competing in this world." Erza said with a gentle smile on her face, Gray's smile mirroring it.

"What would that flame brain say at a time like this? Probably something about how having zero points makes things more interesting, right? We'll just have to turn the tide now." Gray said as Lucy choked back a sob, nodded as Erza had a small smile on her face.

"Yeah... I'm all fired up." She said in a shaky tone as larger smiles appeared on the faces of the two.

The matches continue with the second being Ren Akatsuki from Blue Pegasus faces Araña Webb from Mermaid Heel, which Ren wins. This is followed by a battle between Warcry of Quatro Cerberus and Orga Nanagear of Sabertooth, Warcry being defeated before being able to use his Magic.[51] The final battle of the day is then declared to be between "Mystogan" from Fairy Tail B and Jura Neekis of Lamia Scale.

"Here we go..." Natsu muttered as he stared at Jellal and Jura, silently praying that he didn't do anything that would cause an scene.

"It's Jellal Natsu, he won't go overboard!" Meredy said to reassure the Dragonslayer, only serving to make him worry a bit more.

"Meredy is correct Natsu, he won't endanger our operation knowing how much is on the line." Ultear added as Natsu sighed, returning his gaze to the arena.

The crowd cheers wildly for Jura as he and Jellal make their way to the center of the arena. Makarov notices that Mavis seems tense, but tells her that Jellal was once a member of the Ten Wizard Saints just like Jura, so their skills should be evenly matched. The battle begins with Jellal sticking to his disguise and employing Mystogan's Magic Staves to attack Jura, however the latter's supreme Magic abilities soon begin to outmatch Jellal's need to stay in character.

"Oh no..." Natsu said as he face palmed, Meredy and Ultear beginning to panic as Jellal began to mix in his own magic in addition to Mystogan's.

Annoyed at the thought of losing, Jellal abandons Mystogan's magic and begins to use his own, the two swapping blow after blow with neither seeming to have the advantage. Jellal then decides to go all out and prepares to unleash True Heavenly Body Magic: Sema, though before he can, he is knocked out by Meredy and Ultear, the two mages utilizing Meredy's Sensory Link Magic to stop Jellal from revealing his identity. Jellal out for the count, Jura is declared the victor.

"That idiot almost did something irreversible." Natsu said as he rested his head against the wall of the arena, patting himself on the chest to ease his racing heart.

"I'm sorry Meredy, it was the only way I could think of that would work." Ultear said in a strangely unapologetic tone, Meredy's eye twitching as she glared at the older woman.

"You liar!" She shouted as she ran into Natsu's arms, the pinkette and Ultear making a noise of surprise at her sudden action.

Laughing when he glanced between them, he patted Meredy on the head as she continued to glare at Ultear. Feeling left out, Ultear frowned and jumped the two, sending all of them crashing to the ground in a tangled mess of limbs and laughter. Then the laughter died when they remembered what Jellal had done, Natsu getting a savage grin while Meredy and Ultear shivered slightly.

Meanwhile, in the infirmary Carla suddenly stiffened up with wide eyes as time slowed to a standstill.

"The first day of the Grand Magic Games ended. We, of Fairy Tail, had the worst possible beginning, but... At this time, something even worse was already brewing... Several days after the close of the Grand Magic Games... I'll record this here. To my beloved Lucy Heartfilia, from Levy McGarden."

"W-What? What was that premonition?" Carla whispered to herself as she held her arms, shaking slightly from the ominous tone of the vision.

After their humiliating defeat, the members of Fairy Tail regroup, but are still hopeful that they will be able to make a comeback and start partying. Makarov faces his guild members and encourages them, telling them that they are the Guild that doesn't know the meaning of giving up.

Elsewhere, in the castle of Mercurius, Arcadios has a talk with Fiore's King, asking him if he has any requests concerning the second day fights. The King tells him that he wants to see Sting and Rogue fight, but thinks that they should leave the best for last. He then tells Arcadios to have Bacchus battle 'the one that transforms' from Fairy Tail. The King then dismisses Arcadios who quietly leaves, saying to himself that soon something will be complete.

Concurrently, Cana is approached by a man who challenges her to a drinking contest and manages to best her, making it her first loss. The man then turns to leave, taking Cana's bra as a prize. Macao and Wakaba try to stop him from disgracing their guild mate, but the man easily and effortlessly dodges their attack and strikes back. Erza then arrives and realizes that the man is Bacchus, the Quatro Cerberus S-Class Mage. Bacchus then leaves after telling them that he will be replacing Warcry as one of his guild's representatives. As Bacchus leaves, Erza tells her team mates that they had fought multiple times in the past and no one has yet won, surprising them. Meanwhile, Carla explains her vision to Porlyusica. According to her, she saw a white knight, a magical array and Mercurius crumbling, all with Lucy singing something as it happened.

(Time Skip - A Day Later)

As the second days challenge begins, it is revealed to be an event called Chariot, in which the representative of each team race through Crocus to the Domus Flau atop moving wagons. As the race occurs, Kurohebi from Raven Tail is far ahead in the lead, with the Ichiya in 2nd place, Yuka in 3rd, Risley in 4th and Bacchus in 5th.

"Obra. You know what to do, make sure it's not detectable." Ivan whispered to the creature, getting a nod and a smile from it as Wendy and Gajeel started to feel their magic leave them.

"T-This is..." Gajeel muttered as the motion sickness added with his loss of magic caused him to stumble beside a queasy Wendy.

"I-It's like what happened to Lucy-san..." Wendy said in a pained tone, unable to cast Troia as her motion sickness kicked in.

However, while this group nears the finish line, Sting, Gajeel and Wendy still lag near the starting line in 6th, 7th and 8th place respectively, all three Dragon Slayers suffering from severe motion sickness. To try and come first, the participants begin to utilize their Magic, however Bacchus puts his to use most effectively, managing to pass everyone and take first, Kurohebi soon following, with Risley coming in 3rd, Yuka in 4th and Ichiya 5th.

This leaves the Dragon Slayers pathetically competing for 6th and 7th place. Despite feeling completely awful, Wendy and Gajeel persistently push on forward. Sting proceeds to question the Fairy Tail wizards on why they are trying so hard, and Wendy then gives an emotional speech, stating that they are doing it for their guild, who had patiently waited for them. Her speech touches the Fairy Tail members in the audience, and the spectators, causing them to openly cry.

"We'll show you, all of you, that Fairy Tail hasn't failed! That it's kept moving forward! That's why, we'll continue and keep moving forward ourselves!" Wendy shouted as she took another shaky step, panting as her magic refused to return to her.

"Gihee..." Gajeel laughed as he matched her, unwilling to be shown up by the younger mage despite the fact his magic didn't return to him.

"What...?!" Ivan muttered in shock, unable to accept the fact that they were still moving despite his best efforts to keep them down.

With that, the two Fairy Tail Dragon Slayers pushes forward, Wendy earning 6th place whilst Gajeel gets 7th. Sting drops out, earning himself 8th place and his team 0 points, showing disdain towards the young Dragonslayer's explanation as it reminded him of the other Dragon Slayerwho used to reside in their guild.

"Sounds like something you'd say if you were down there Natsu." Meredy said in a somber tone, Natsu simply looking at the two Dragonslayers as they laid down at the end of the track.

"You think?" He said in a slightly mirthful tone, flashing her a small smile as she returned it and leaned against him.

Finishing the event exhausted, Wendy is carried to the infirmary by Lucy, who, leaves to join her team. Porlyusica asks Carla why she didn't tell Lucy of her premonition, to which the Exceed replies saying that she refuses to believe it actually was one, and that it must have been a dream instead. Lucy joins her team, and seeing that Raven Tail's Kurohebi will be fighting Lamia Scale's Toby, prompts her to glance over at Raven Tail, noting sadly that Flare is covered in bruises and being harassed by her team-mate.

The first match commences with Kurohebi receiving the upper-hand of the battle, with his Mimic Magic. Toby praises Kurohebi's strength and his name, with Kurohebi stating that it isn't his real name. This comically angers Toby, which prompts him to request that if he were to win, Kurohebi is to tell him his real name, while if Kurohebi wins, Toby will tell him his "super secret". After all is agreed, Toby is promptly defeated, revealing his secret is that he can't find his other sock, which is actually hanging around his neck, stunning the audience. Kurohebi points out Toby's sock, causing Toby to cry in happiness. The Raven Tail representative then holds out his hand, and as Toby reaches out for it Kurohebi grabs the sock instead and tears it, much to the amusement of his team-mates, the Raven Tail Mage stating that the more precious something is to someone, the more he wants to destroy it.

The second match then begins, with Bacchus coming out for Quatro Cerberus. At this point the King arrives and meets with Arcadios, eager to see the match between Bacchus and Erza. However, due to the King's vagueness, Arcadios arranged Fairy Tail A's battle representative to be Elfman Strauss, mistaking him for "the one that transforms". With everyone, including Elfman, doubting Fairy Tail's victory, the two enter the battle field. However, Bacchus decides to make things interesting by asking for his opponents sisters if Quatro Cerberus were to win, infuriating Elfman.

"After all that you said... I'll tear you apart..." Elfman said in a deep and threatening tone, his face unusually angered.

"Ohh? I'm glad we could come to an agreement." Bacchus said in a interested tone as he settled into relaxed stance.

Meanwhile, Natsu left the shadows of the upper arena to patrol the area when he saw a group of men running off with Carla, Wendy and Porlyusica. A small frown marring his face, he moved in the shadows beside them before springing out to surprise them. Freezing slightly, they returned to running only to stop when he appeared in front of them again.

"W-What the hell?" One of them asked as he took a step back, unable to believe the speed that Natsu possessed.

"Leave it to me!" Another shouted as he drew a pair of revolvers, only to be silenced when Natsu grabbed him by the face and slammed him into the ground.

The others shaking in fear at the speed and strength they just witnessed stood frozen as Natsu stalked his way over to them. Their legs shaking heavily, they fell to their knees as he stood over them like a tyrant or king, the air heavy and thick as an oppressive aura made it hard to take in breaths of air. Reaching over, he gently picked up the three who were kidnapped and moved them to the side before moving in front of the trio once more. Then, in a swift motion, knocked all of them out before tying them up. Sighing, he picked up the unconscious three and moved them near the wall along with the kidnappers.

Meanwhile, down at the arena, the battle has already started, with Elfman being thoroughly hammered. At this point, Erza reveals that Bacchus's strength isn't his Magic (which simply focuses Magic Power into the palm of his hands), but his mastery over the martial arts. Furthermore, as Bacchus hasn't taken a drop of alcohol since the fight started, he has even begun to fight at full strength yet.

"So that means..." Lucy said as the realization dawned on her, causing her to turn stare in a worried manner at her teammate.

"He's not even trying at all." Gray finished as Erza nodded, a serious look in her eyes.

After Elfman is struck down again, he struggles up again and states the term for his wager, saying that if he wins, Quatro Cerberus is to be renamed Quatro Puppy for the rest of the tournament, shocking the rest of Quatro Cerberus. Bacchus accepts, and deciding to take things seriously, takes a swig from his gourd. Elfman transforms again as Bacchus advances, and in an instant, the Drunken Falcon lands several blows. However, he then notices that his hands are damaged, and turns to see Elfman's new transformation, Beast Soul: Lizardman, is covered in spiked scales, making him virtually untouchable for hand-to-hand combatants.

"Heh, if I can't hit you, I'll just have you hit me..." Elfman said in a pained but confident tone, the entirety of the stadium looking on in confusion.

"Bring it! Come on! Your hands or my body! Whichever breaks first determines the winner!" He shouted as Bacchus stared at him with a stunned smile.

"What's wrong?!" Elfman shouted as Bacchus' stunned smile became a grin in return to the challenge.

"Haha! You're an interesting guy! My soul is shaking! Bring it!" Bacchus shouted as unleashed a heavy assault of palm strikes.

"This! This is sublime! Rather then a simple battle, this is a clash of will!" Chapati shouted as he once again rose from his seat, the crowd growing quiet as they matched the exchange.

"Will it end first for the attacker?! Or will it be the defender!? Who will be the victor!" He shouted as the two stood in front of each other, Elfman having lost his transformation.

"You were called... Elfman right...?" Bacchus asked as Elfman fell to his knees, the two panting heavily as silence dominated the stadium.

"Haha... HAHAHA!" Bacchus laughed to the heavens as he raised his arms above his head in victory, the entirety of the stadium looking on in shock.

"The one that stands is Bacchus!" Chapati shouted as the entire stadium roared with cheer and applause, the Fairies cursing their defeat.

"You know, you... Are a man!" Bacchus announced as he fell over unconscious as the crowd lost its cheers and applause and opted to look on in shock.

"D-Down! Bacchus is down! The victor is Elfman! Fairy Tail A receives ten points! That makes their total score twelve!" Chapati announced as the crowd went wild once again, cheering on Elfman and the battle that had just occurred.

"OOOOH!" Elfman roared as he lifted his head and arms up in victory, the guild grinning widely at his actions.

"Is this cry the beacon of Fairy Tail's rebirth?! Elfman! A spectacular victory over a powerful opponent!" Chapati announced as the cheers only increasing in volume.

At the top of the stadium, the kidnappers have been captured, and kidnapped awakened. The kidnappers are taken into custody, but not before claiming that Raven Tail were the one who requested them to retrieve "the girl from the sick bay". Porlyusica, Wendy and Carla believe that they weren't even the intended target, and that it was actually supposed to be Lucy. This is proven to be correct as Arcadios meets the ones responsible, angry that his plan failed and wanting to capture Lucy for Zeref's Eclipse Plan.

It is later revealed that the damage Elfman received during his battle against Bacchus wasn't enough to incapacitate him, but would cause him to perform less then efficiently. To make sure the kidnapping doesn't repeat itself, the Thunder God Tribe volunteer to guard the infirmary. As they leave, the group ponder why someone would need Lucy, but decide to put this off and instead cheer for Mirajane, who is fighting Blue Pegasus reserve member Jenny Realight.

However, due to a special rule, the "battle" turns out to be a swimsuit contests, with the commentators acting as judges and the participants using Transformation to change their clothing. As the "match" continues, Jenny decides to wager that whomever loses is to take part in a nude photo shoot for Sorcerer Magazine, which Mirajane agrees to. Jenny, thinking that she's won, transforms into her Battle Form. However, Mirajane also decides to take the battle seriously, using Take Over to change into Satan Soul: Sitri, ending the battle in a single hit and earning her team 10 points. Meanwhile, elsewhere, Fiore's Minister of Defense, Darton confronts Arcadios and inquires why he's after a Celestial Spirit Mage prematurely, to which Arcadios reveals that the "Plan" has already reached its final stage, and that he would be willing to sacrifice Lucy for the sake of the "Eclipse".

The last battle of the day takes place between Sabertooth's Yukino Aguria and Mermaid Heel's Kagura Mikazuchi. Entering the field, Yukino inquires if, as in the previous matches, they can make a wager, in which the two women surprise everyone by choosing to wager their lives. Kagura agrees and the battle commences with Yukino employing her Celestial Spirit Magic to take Kagura out, however Kagura strategically uses her Magic to continuously evade the attacks.

This forces Yukino to use the 13th Key, Ophiuchus, however Kagura uses her sword Archenemy to slice up the giant snake length-wise, and then, without even drawing her blade, defeat Yukino too. This earns 10 points for Mermaid Heel and, according to their bet, puts Yukino's life in Kagura's hands. It also upsets and shocks everybody, especially the members of Sabertooth. However, Arcadios is seen trembling with excitement at the revelation of a second Celestial Spirit Mage in the games.

With the day's events having ended, Erza meets up with Jellal to discuss the fact that they have yet to feel the curious Magic Power that he has felt at the previous games. After Jellal explains his theories, he decides to investigate further and leaves. As Erza walks back to join her team for the after-games celebrations the hooded girl from Mermaid Heel catches up with her and reveals herself to be Millianna, Erza's old friend from the Tower of Heaven, the two hugging and crying at their reunion.

Meanwhile, at the lodgings of Sabertooth in Crocus, Sabertooth's guild master, Jiemma, gathers his subordinates and preaches about strength. After letting Sting off with a warning about his failure, he turns his attention to Yukino and starts to express his anger at her loss at Kagura's hands. Stating that he is disgusted, Jiemma forces Yukino to strip and remove her guild mark, excommunicating her.

Later, Wendy, Lucy, Happy and Carla head to Honey Bone after finishing dinner, when Wendy and Natsu spot someone standing outside their lodging, the person being Yukino. Elsewhere, Erza sits with Millianna in a park, and the two talk about Kagura. Millianna starts explaining about the sword Archenemy and how both she and Kagura were geared towards having revenge upon Jellal, which troubles Erza.

Back at Honey Bone, the group heads inside to talk with Yukino, who offers Lucy the Libra and Pisces keys, telling the group she was planning to give them to Lucy after the Games, but as she is now not participating, wishes to hand them over now. She also mentions she wasn't part of the "Strongest 5" of Sabertooth, merely filling in for someone named Minerva, who was away on a job. She also states that once Lucy has the 12 Golden Key, the "Gateway That Changes The World" will be opened. When Lucy questions this, Yukino cites that it is an old legend she not sure of herself. Despite Yukino's offer, Lucy politely refuses, saying that she doesn't want to cut the Spirit's bonds to Yukino. Yukino understands and hopes they'll meet again before leaving.

While outside of the lodge, Yukino sighs as she made her way back to her own lodging. When she arrived, she was subjected to ridicule and jeers from the Sabertooth mages as she packed up her belonging to move to a different inn for the rest of the games. Once she gathered her things and headed out of the building, she was followed by the more prideful Sabertooth members as they surrounded her, intent on making her regret damaging their guild's pride.

"Even though you were just a replacement, you shouldn't have lost to anyone!" One of them shouted as she shoved her, the young lady losing her footing and falling onto her bottom.

"Kuh!" She winced as she felt her ankle bend at an unnatural angle as they sneered at her.

"Look at that? A pathetic mage staying where they belong, in the dirt. Ahaha!" Another jeered before laughing at her, Yukino doing her best to hold back her tears as they gathered around and continued to laugh and belittle her.

"Oi, why don't we just get this over with? I've seen enough of her face." The final one said as the others nodded, moving towards the downed mage as she raised her arms to defend herself.

Expecting more pain, she flinched when she felt the temperature of the area skyrocket. Feeling her sweat evaporate upon contact with the air itself, she managed to peek out of one of her eyes and proceeded to widen it when she saw a cloaked figure holding two of the Sabertooth mages by their heads while the other was imbedded in the ground. Scoffing, they dropped the two before turning and looking down at Yukino. Feeling an oppressive amount of magical power from him, she could only stare at him with wide eye as he slowly strode over. Expecting the worst, she snapped her eyes shut but slowly opened them when she felt herself being lifted up.

"W-What are you doing!?" She squeaked, half in shock and half in embarrassment as she felt their arms on her legs and back.

"I don't think you can walk." They said in a low tone, making her shiver slightly both by how handsome they sounded and by the power their voice carried.

About to protest, her words died in her mouth when she tried to move her foot, wincing as she felt pain race up her leg. Sighing, she nodded slowly as he shifted her to one arm while collecting her luggage with the other. A little stunned by his show of strength, she was in a bit of a daze until he snapped her out of it.

"Where were you going?" He asked as she blinked in surprise, forgetting her original objective.

"O-Oh, I d-don't know exactly. I can't stay in my original lodging anymore so I was looking for someplace else to stay." Yukino said in a quiet tone, the hooded figure mulling over her words for a few seconds before nodding and heading towards the lodging district.

Walking in absolute silence, she was beginning to feel a bit strange in the company of the person who saved and was helping her. Her cheeks tinted a bit pink, she shook her head to rid herself of any impure thoughts as they rounded a corner. Approaching the other inns, she was a little depressed when she saw that they were all occupied. Sighing, she was about to ask him to just set her down and leave her alone but he continued towards a plain looking building. Entering, she was a little stunned to see that it was in fact an inn as well.

"You should be able to stay here, this place isn't known by many people." He said as he set her down in one of the chairs before wrapping up her ankle in a quick manner, getting her to blush when she felt him holding her foot.

"T-Thank you..." She whispered in a slightly dazed manner, the hooded figure nodding before heading out of the inn.

When he exited the inn, Natsu returned to the shadows as he observed the guards that were patrolling the streets. Nodding his head as he didn't trip off any alarms while escorting Yukino, he relaxed before resuming his own patrol. Getting a bit tense when he felt a familiar but different magical power appear and vanish. Turning his head, he tried to sense it once more but when he failed to do so, he opted to return and report to the others.

(Time Skip - The Next Day)

Day three of the Games arrives and, at the Domus Flau, the Grand Magic Games continue with Lahar the day's guest judge. In the crowd is also Doranbolt, who Lahar brought along to purposely see Fairy Tail. The third event is introduced as "Pandemonium", and the teams all pick their participating members. Erza goes out for Fairy Tail A, whilst Cana Alberona volunteers for Fairy Tail B, much to her team-mates surprise when they notice that Jellal is gone. Cana, however, states that it's likely he doesn't wish to participate with a Magic Council official around.

The players gathered, Mato shows everyone Pandemonium; a giant building where monsters live. He explains that the monsters inside are classed from D to S, the D-class being quite formidable, whilst the S-class can even rival that of a Wizard Saint. The rules of the game are simple, each competitor will go in one by one and fight a number of monsters for points. They can select how many monsters they wish to face, but are warned that what level of monster they get will be randomized. When ask what happens when they lose, the judge states that their previous victories will still be counted, but they will be out of the event. The game will go on until all 100 monsters are defeated or everyone's Magic Power runs out. Holding out a box, the competitors all draw lots for their turns.

"Number one." Erza said as Cana laughed wryly behind her, lamenting the fact she drew last.

"You're lucky Erza, it'll go back to your turn the most." She said as she patted the redhead on the back.

"I was thinking that this competition would all come down to the luck of the draw..." Erza said as Mato sweat dropped at her statement.

"The luck of the draw? No, how should I put this. It's a game where maintaining your pace and situational judgment are more important then just the order of battle!" Mato said as Erza smirked at his answer.

"No... With this, it's not longer just a game." She said as her smirk changed to a small smile, confusing the others.

"All one hundred will be my opponents. My challenge right will be one hundred." She said as everyone looked on in utter and complete shock at her statement.

"T-That's impossible! It's not set up so that one person could possibly defeat them all!" Mato shouted as Erza entered building, the Fairies losing their look of shock and replacing it with a look of awe, respect and fondness.

"The Grand Magic Games, Day Three, Pandemonium. I think I'll never forget the events of this day. As she becomes covered in wounds, the fairy that should have fallen to earth dances. Here is Titania. Almost like..."

"A scarlet flower, blooming fully with pride." Natsu whispered as a small and fond smile appeared on his face as he looked at the battered, bloody but proud form of Erza, who had her sword raised high.

"U-U-Unbelievable! Someone, by a single person! All one hundred monsters have been defeated! I-Is this the true strength of the guild said to be the strongest seven years ago!" Chapati shouted with complete and utter shock and awe, his tone reflected among the crowd as they all looked on in equal parts shock and awe.

"A-Amazing!"

"What is she?!"

"I... I remember...

"She's Fairy Tail's strongest female mage!"

"Titania! Erza Scarlet!"

The crowd going completely wild over the unprecedented and overwhelming victory, they began to recall the memories and stories that the guild held. The pride, power and passion that the mages of Fiore's former strongest guild possessed in the past.

"I give up..." Yajima said in a jovial tone, a large smile on his face as he leaned his head back, unable to believe that once again, Fairy Tail surprised him to this extent.

"I don't have any words..." Lahar said with a sigh, shaking his head as he still tried to comprehend what had just happened.

"Erza!" Her friends and guildmates shouted as they raced towards her, tears and wide smiles on their faces as they moved to help and congratulate her.

"As expected, that was amazing!" Gray said as he moved to help her to the infirmary.

"I was so touched Erza..." Lucy said as she wiped her tears away, moving to aid Gray in helping the redhead.

"I... My chest feels like it's going to burst..." Wendy said as she wiped away her tears before starting to heal Erza using her magic.

With Erza defeating all the monsters, the judges get the remaining participants to take part in an event called MPF, in which the competitors are to attack a Magic Power Finder, a device which will record and display the level of Magic used, the ranks after Erza determined by the number each player obtains. The competitors then continue in the order of the lots they took previously, Millianna getting a fairly nice score whilst Nobarly of Quatro Cerberus and Hibiki of Blue Pegasus fail miserably. Orga and Jura then step up, both scoring in the thousands and greatly shocking the audience, though not as much as Obra, who scores a mere four on request from his team, as they do not want his Magic to be revealed. Finally comes Cana, who shocks all in Fairy Tail after removing her long sleeve coat to reveal a familiar tattoo on her right forearm.

"Well then, I'm going to strike!" Cana said with a vicious smile on her face, raising her arm as Makarov blanched.

"That mark!" Carla said as she recognized it from Tenroujima, Happy and Pantherlily also making a noise of surprise when they saw it.

"It... It couldn't be..." Makarov said as he turned to face Mavis, the blonde smiling at him.

I lent it to her specially for this. In order to win!" She said with shining eyes, Makarov paling in response to her reason.

"Gather! O river of light that's guided by the fairies!" Cana began, raising her arm as the dust at her feet was blown away by the magical power she was exerting.

"Her latent magical power is high, so there's no doubt that she'll be able to use it." Mavis said in a confident and sure tone and Makarov nodded stiffly.

"Shine! In order to perish the fangs of evil!" She continued as everyone felt a sudden spike in her magical power as she brought her arm down.

"Fairy Glitter!" She shouted as an brilliant tower of light consumed the MPF, shocking everyone as they were temporarily blinded by the spell.

As the dust settled and the light vanished, everyone could only gape at what the reading was. Trumping even Jura's score, Cana had maxed out and destroyed the MPF to the shock of everyone present.

"W-What's this?! The MPF broke... She maxed it out! W-What, just what is this guild!? It's a one-two finish for the competition portion! Nobody can stop Fairy Tail now!" Chapati shouted as the crowd went wild with cheer.

"We're unstoppable! We're Fairy Tail of course!" Cana shouted as she raised her arms in victory, her guildmates and the newly established Fairy Tail cheering section roaring with cheer and applause.

As Fairy Tail celebrates getting the top two places, Raven Tail has somehow managed to get their hands on the match-ups for the battle portions, Alexei stating that it's time for them to carry out their true mission.

The games soon move into the battle portions, Millianna defeating Semmes of Quatro Puppy, whilst Eve of Blue Pegasus is beaten by Rufus Lore. As the Trimens express their disappointment at Eve's loss, Ichiya claims they still have a secret weapon: the bunny suited member, the identity of whom not even Ren and Hibiki were not told of. The third match soon starts with Laxus against Raven Tail's Alexei. As they take the field, Fairy Tail reveals that they have set up lookouts across the coliseum to make sure Raven Tail doesn't pull anything again. Even Yajima is helping with the watch, warning Lahar to stop the fight if anything seems suspicious.

The battle starts with Alexei surprisingly trouncing Laxus. However, unbeknownst to them, the whole fight is an illusion, as the real Laxus and Alexei hadn't even traded blows yet. Laxus demands to know what's going on, with Alexei stating that he created an illusion so they could talk in private. Laxus isn't amused and prepares to take him on, but the rest of the Raven Tail members suddenly show up flanking their leader. Alexei then unmasks himself to be Ivan Dreyar, though Laxus had long since suspected this due to his underhanded methods. After greeting his son, Ivan asks for the location Lumen Histoire, thinking that Makarov told his grandson. Laxus however is ignorant of such an artifact and states that even if he did know, he wouldn't reveal anything about it. Claiming that he'll take them all on, Ivan and the rest of Raven Tail likewise prepare to attack, with Ivan claiming that they're the anti-Fairy guild.

Laxus informs his father that Makarov already has detailed information on Raven Tail, and Ivan correctly guesses that Gajeel was a double agent. Laxus goes on to say that his grandfather never made a move to stop Raven Tail, partly because they haven't tried to harm Fairy Tail, partly because there has been no leak in the sensitive information that Ivan knew, and partly because the old man wished to believe in his son. Angered, Ivan begins the attack, but Laxus surprises all there by powerfully managing to defeat all four of Ivan's guild members without receiving any damage. Turning to take out Ivan, Laxus is disgusted when Ivan tries to stop him by saying that they're family. Laxus proudly states that Fairy Tail is his family, and that he will destroy any enemy of the guild. He then punches his father, at the same time breaking the illusion, and revealing to the stadium the aftermath of the true battle, shocking and confusing nearly everyone.

Fairy Tail cheers at Laxus's victory, and as Laxus walks off the field, Ivan admits his defeat, but warns Laxus about Lumen Histoire, the dark side of Fairy Tail. Raven Tail is taken into custody, though Obra's 'black imp' escapes, and the audience is told that the guild has been disqualified with Raven Tail's 'participation rights' having been revoked for the next 3 years. Moving along though, the next match is announced, to be between Wendy and Chelia Blendy from Lamia Scale. However, Mavis feels something strange about Chelia's power and, simultaneously, Crime Sorcière suddenly detected what feels like Zeref's Magic.

"Hm!" Jellal sounded as his head snapped up and turned towards the source of the magic.

"This magical power..." Meredy said as she glanced at Ultear, the older woman facing the direction it originated from.

"Zeref..." She whispered as concerned look on her face, her eyes wide as Meredy began to feel a bit scared herself.

"There it is..." Natsu whispered as he turned towards the source of the magic and proceeded to head towards it.

"Ultear, Meredy, Natsu! Stay on standby! Don't move an inch!" Ordered over the communications lacrima, the three over the line nodding as they followed his orders.

The battle soon begins with Wendy going on the offensive against Chelia, the other young girl revealing that she has a similar Magic to Wendy. As the girls exchange blows with Chelia seeing to have the upper hand, those watching soon realize that Chelia's Magic is that of a Sky God Slayer. As the two continue to clash, Wendy gathers all of her Magic Power and unleashes the spell Secret Dragon Slayer Technique: Shattering Light: Sky Drill, seeming to finally knock out Chelia. However, as Mato begins to declare Wendy the winner, Chelia suddenly gets to her feet with all of her wounds healed, revealing that she, unlike Wendy, can heal herself.

From the stands, Doranbolt watches the fight with a worried expression, though he is not as tense as Jellal, the blue haired Mage through the crowd, trying to find the source of the malicious Magic Power, wondering if it is connected to Chelia. However, Doranbolt spots him, and, wondering what Mystogan could possibly be doing in Earth Land, pursues him.

On the field, Chelia offers to let Wendy surrender, but Wendy refuses, stating that she's fighting for her guild. Seeing that she won't back down, Chelia prepares her strongest attack: Sky God's Secret Arts: Heavenly Gathering of Clouds. Just as it looks to hit, the attack suddenly veers off, just barely missing Wendy. It is then revealed that Wendy used her Magic to enhance Chelia's physical strength, causing her to over-attack and miss. Now on even terms, both girls get into a hand-to-hand fight, neither letting up. Eventually, the time runs out and the match ends in a tie, giving both teams five points.

As those in the stand compliment Wendy's strength, Chelia heals Wendy and offers her friendship, which Wendy accepts. With that, the third day of the games ends. Jellal realizes that Chelia isn't connected with Zeref as he still feels the evil Magic moving. He chases it through the crowd, managing to locate the person trying to leave the stadium. Before he can reach the person in question however, Doranbolt gets in his way, stopping him and demanding Jellal reveal who he is. If the situation wasn't bad enough, Lahar and his Rune Knights come up from behind, trapping Jellal in between two of the Magic Council members.

"Who are you? I know you're not Mystogan, so who are you?" Doranbolt asks as Jellal tenses, his eyes wide as the crowd turns to see what the commotion is about.

"I'm sorry, I'm in a hurry." Jellal said in a rushed tone, moving past the man only for Doranbolt to swipe at his mask, removing it as the knight's eyes widened.

"Jellal!?" They all shouted as his identity was exposed for all to see.

But before things could get any more tense, the sound of footsteps caught the attention of a few members of the crowd.

"Oh, so you were in such a place? Mystogan-kun?" Yajima asked, getting the attention of everyone present as they stared at Jellal.

Yajima tries to convince the Magic Council members that Jellal was actually his Edolas counterpart. Seeing an ex-Magic Council elder vouching for 'Mystogan', they let the Mage go, with Jellal claiming that if he sees the "real Jellal", he will tell them. However, as they walk away, Lahar pulls Doranbolt aside and voices his suspicion that 'Mystogan' is the real Jellal. As the fugitive walks out of the stadium, he finds that the source of the evil Magic has managed to get away, much to his annoyance.

However, during Jellal's transaction with the Magic Council members, his face is seen by Kagura, who collapses at the sight of him. The other Team Mermaid Heel members, concerned for her health, start calling for a doctor. As Millianna also looks for a doctor, she too sees Jellal, and nearly attacks him in her rage. After claiming to be fine, Kagura gets up and walks away, all the while thinking how the target for her revenge was so close, Millianna wondering why Fairy Tail was hiding him and how Erza could allow it.

Elsewhere, Makarov and Laxus sit together as the Lightning Dragon Slayer inquires about the Lumen Histoire and how Ivan stated that it was 'Fairy Tail's darkness'. When Makarov seems reluctant to answer, Mavis comes forth and claims that it is the opposite. Asking Laxus to understand that it is a secret that only the Guild Master can know about, the young man says he won't ask any more if it is not something suspicious. The former and current Guild Master then contemplate and conclude that Ivan must have learnt about it from Precht, Mavis beginning to cry over her poor successor choice.

Meanwhile, at Bar Sun, the rest of the Guild celebrates day 3's success. Wendy is slightly depressed that she was unable to win in her fight, but Carla, Pantherlily and Levy encourage her. Someone then starts a game of wine barrel surfing, the rest of the guild joining in. In the meantime, at Crocus Gardens, Sting tells Lector that he believes he will be fighting Gajeel the next day, expressing his enthusiasm. Elsewhere, Yukino apologizes for dropping in unannounced while saluting to an unseen sergeant.

A few of the guilds partaking in the games head to a nearby water park called Ryuzetsu Land, where they split up and enjoy what the park has to offer. Meanwhile, the members of Crime Sorcière are all gathered in an unknown area, discussing what they had found during the course of the day.

"So whoever it was got away huh?" Natsu asked as he leaned against the wall, Jellal nodding his head in affirmation at the statement.

"Yeah, if I had been a little faster and if the Knights didn't get involved, I would have been able to catch them." He lamented, squeezing his fists tightly only to slacken them when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, what's done is done Jellal. We'll get them next time, only this time, why not let us in on the fun too?" Natsu said with a small smile on his face, Jellal's eyes widening for a moment before closing as a smile made it to his face.

"Natsu's right Jellal! You had us on standby when we could have been helping!" Meredy protested, making the bluenette laugh softly, getting a smile from the other three.

"Like Natsu said, we'll catch them next time. No need to beat yourself up over what could have been." Ultear added in as he nodded, the group finally settling in for the night.

(Time Skip - The Next Day)

Day Four of the Grand Magic Games begins with the event Naval Battle, in which a participant of each team is to enter a large water sphere, and try to push the other players out. With that being said, when two participants are left in the sphere, a five minute timer will start, and whoever is knocked out within the time limit automatically gets last place. After Rabian is introduced as day four's guest judge, the teams then send out their representatives. The game begins and Lucy starts off by summoning Aquarius. However, Juvia manages to counter Aquarius's attack with Water Cyclone. Using the confusion from the collision of the attack, Jenny manages to kick Rocker out of the sphere, eliminating Quatro Puppy. Aquarius then disappears on Lucy claiming that she had to get back to her date, giving Juvia the opportunity to propel the Celestial Spirit Mage out.

However, Lucy manages to summon Virgo and Aries just in time to stop her from falling out of the sphere. Juvia then unleashes a powerful attack which expels all the remaining players from the sphere, except for Lucy and Minerva. Juvia then glances at Gray to see what he thought of the attack she named in his honor, but is shocked when he appears appalled. She is then confused to suddenly find herself outside the sphere, due to Minerva's power. With only two remaining, the five minute timer starts, and with that, Minerva attacks, first with a heat attack to Lucy's right, and the a weighted attack from above. Lucy tries to counter but finds her keys were no longer at her hips, but in her opponents hands. Over and over Minerva continues to attack Lucy, who refuses to give up. However, instead of letting Lucy fall from the ring, Minerva continuously brings her back to attack again and again. Eventually the umpires call the event to an end, but by this stage Lucy is already bleeding, burnt and barely conscious, Minerva holding the immobile Lucy by her throat like a trophy outside of the water sphere.

Happy and Gray rush to Lucy's aid as Minerva carelessly drops her. They just barely manage to catch her before she hits the ground and a medical team is called out, though Wendy declares that she'll give her medical attention first, with Chelia and Jenny helping out. Gray nearly goes to attack Minerva, but Sting, Rufus and Orga suddenly appear in between them, while Erza likewise holds them back as both teams come to a tense standoff. Erza tells the Sabertooth members that she doesn't care if they're the strongest or the number one guild in Fiore, declaring that they've made a major mistake of intentionally making enemies of Fairy Tail.

Lucy is taken the medical ward where she is healed and patched up thanks to the efforts of Wendy, Chelia and Porlyusica. As Lucy sleeps with her keys by her heart, Makarov enters the room to deliver some news. Due to the disqualification of Raven Tail, the games committee can't pair up the fighters of the battle portions due to the odd number of teams, thus Fairy Tail must merge into one team for the rest of the competition. When asked about the points both teams received, it was decided that only A points would be used, which means Fairy Tail is in a tie for third place with Mermaid Heel and Lamia Scale. Gray then says that with only the Tag Battle coming up, there seems to be little point, but Porlyusica explains that after a day's break, the last day will have a game where all five members can compete at once, so the new team needs to be chosen carefully.

After some time, the match ups for the tag battle are brought up with Blue Pegasus vs Quatro Puppy, Lamia Scale vs. Mermaid Heel and Fairy Tail against Sabertooth. Fairy Tail reorganizes their team-mates and step out onto the field for the battle portions, with the new members being Mirajane, Gray, Gajeel, Erza and Laxus. In contrast to their status of the first day's event where they were booed, the audience now fully supports the guild and cheer for the new Fairy Tail. Watching this in the balcony above, Arcadios and Darton realize that Lucy isn't on the team, Arcadios declaring he has a new plan for claiming her. Darton, however, starts having second thoughts.

After Arcadios leaves, Darton thinks to himself that once upon a time, the Grand Magic Games once went by another name. He goes over to a mural on the wall depicting a Dragon fighting a Mage, before mentioning that the games were once called The Dragon King Festival, which was a banquet of Dragons, humans and demons.

The first tag battle starts with Team Blue Pegasus's Ichiya and the mysterious rabbit-costumed man up against Team Quatro Puppy's Bacchus and Rocker. As the battle starts, Ichiya tells the rabbit costumed person to reveal himself, much to everyone's anticipation. When the mask comes off, it is revealed to be the Exceed from Extalia and Ichiya's Edolas counterpart, Nichiya, stunning everybody. As the two Blue Pegasus participants start reminiscing about their first meeting, Bacchus charges forward, landing a devastating hit on Nichiya, and knocking him out. With that, the battle becomes 2 on 1, and, as Ichiya is knocked around by his opponents, he laments on how he dragged a weak person like Nichiya into this. With that, Ichiya 'dedicates' a Power Perfume to Nichiya, bulks up, and defeats Quatro Puppy in one hit. With Blue Pegasus's victory decided for the first battle, the next battle is between Team Lamia Scale's Lyon and Yuka and Team Mermaid Heel's Kagura and Millianna, both teams fighting their best, but neither coming out on top, the fight ending in a draw and 5 points each.

The second fight over, Chapati Lola excitedly announces the last tag battle to be between Team Fairy Tail's Laxus and Gajeel and Team Sabertooth's Sting and Rogue Cheney. As the battle is about to start, Metalicana observes, wanting to see if the pupils that Weisslogia and Skiadrum raised have really surpassed Dragons, or if it was just an empty dream; he comments that with the Dragon King Festival approaching, it will soon be time for them to take action. As the four Dragon Slayers stare each other down, Chapati announces the start of the third and final Tag Battle of the day.

The Tag Battle starts, with most of the Fairy Tail members supporting their own Dragon Slayers, while Jiemma is confident in Sabertooth's own victory. However as soon as the gong rings, Sting and Rogue find themselves face to face with Laxus and Gajeel respectively, the two Sabertooth Mages seemingly getting a real beating in the first few minutes of the match. Frosch, Lector, Chapati Lola and the audience are stunned to see Sabertooth's Dragon Slayers being pushed around so easily.

When Gajeel questions whether they really managed to defeat their Dragon parents with this level of power, Sting claims that they did and that they'll now show them the power to defeat Dragons. With that, Sting and Rogue activate White Drive and Shadow Drive respectively, and finally go on the offensive, the two managing to land a series of sharp blows and seemingly getting the upper hand before Laxus and Gajeel once again begin to step up and push them back. As Chapati and the audience watch with growing surprise and confusion as Rogue and Sting are once again starting to be overpowered, Chapati asks Yajima what he thinks is going on, to which the ex-Magic Council member states that the Twin Dragons are simply outmatched. As the Sabertooth Dragon Slayers struggle to get up, they then surprise their opponents (as well as Jellal and the Fairy Tail Guild Masters) by activating Dragon Force by themselves.

Sting then tells his tag partner to stand back, as he can defeat both the Fairy Tail Mages by himself, causing Gajeel to think they are being underestimated, though Laxus gets the feeling that Sting is more then he appears. Sting then starts his onslaught, managing to attack both Laxus and Gajeel at the same time. After unleashing one of his most powerful attacks, Sting destroys the battlefield and sends the participants plummeting into a mine below ground. As they fall, the Lacrima-vision comes on for the audience, just in time to see Laxus managing to get footing on a piece of rubble to perform a Raging Bolt on Sting, which Gajeel immediately follows up with a close ranged Iron Dragon's Roar. However, Sting easily stands back up after the Fairy Tail's Mages assault and hits them both with Holy Ray.

Laxus stumbles, but gets back up in time to block a punch from Sting. As the White Dragon continues his relentless assault on two, the Fairy Tail Mages in the audience begins to feel worry at the one sided fight against their Guild's own Dragon Slayers. Remembering a promise he made to Lector to surpass all those he faced, Sting knocks Laxus and Gajeel to the ground, the two not moving to get up. Seeing this, the Twin Dragons of Sabertooth cancel their Dragon Force, believing they are the victors whilst Chapati questions if the battle will end like this. However, all are proven wrong when Natsu and Gajeel suddenly get back to their feet, revealing that they took Sting's attacks so as to study his habits, which the Sabertooth Mage doesn't seem to believe. As Laxus and Gajeel get into an argument over Sting's abilities, the Lightning Dragon Slayer shoves the Iron Dragon Slayer into an old mining cart, sending it rolling and declaring he can defeat Sting and Rogue alone. Laxus then invites the Twin Dragons to both attack him, as payback for underestimating Fairy Tail, much to the Sabertooth Mages shock.

At this point, a dark-robed figure in the crowd starts to cry, and Crime Sorcière suddenly notice the suspicious Magic once more, with Jellal instantly pursuing it. In the catacombs below the arena, Sting is insulted by Laxus' taunt re-entering his Dragon Force to attack again, claiming to have killed Weisslogia with his power; Laxus responds saying that he will use his own power to fight for his guild, punching right back. Rogue then enters Dragon Force and attacks, the two not managing to get an edge, and eventually resorting to a Unison Raid. However, Laxus counters this with his Lightning Dragon's Roar, the meeting of the two attacks causing a large explosion. As the dust clears, the Twin Dragons collapse, silently acknowledging Laxus' strength and Team Fairy Tail's win. Earning 10 points, Team Fairy Tail moves to first place in the Games.

"And that's why you shouldn't look down on Fairy Tail." Laxus said, putting his hands back into his pockets before moving off of the stage.

"To think... A fake Dragon Slayer beat us..." Rogue thought as he fell face first into the ground.

"Lector... Laxus-san is just too strong..." Sting thought as he mirrored his partner's action, falling face first to the ground as well.

"Th-Th-Th-This is... Fairy Tail! Laxus, Laxus alone beat the Two Dragons!" Chapati shouted as the crowd went wild, unable to believe what had just happened.

As Fairy Tail celebrates their victory, Chapati explains that tomorrow will be a break day, the sixth day of the Games beginning the day after, the event being a survival game involving all the team members. While the Exceed's of Sabertooth are upset with the days outcomes, the members of Team Sabertooth seem to be excited, though Jiemma's rage is obvious, the audience around him running away in fear. Rogue thinks about how much he overestimated himself, especially if Gajeel is as strong as Laxus. Meanwhile, the cart carrying Gajeel finally comes to a stop, the Iron Dragon Slayer promising to kill Laxus for what he did. As he looks around he is then shocked to stumble upon a Dragon's Graveyard under the Domus Flau.

With the day ending, Jellal closes in on the mysterious person, while at Mercurius, Yukino gazes at the stadium, and marvels at the fact that Natsu defeated her former team-mates. As she talks to a nearby guard about it, she reveals her willingness to participate in the Eclipse Plan, being under the impression that it is a plan to save the whole world. At the same time, Carla has another vision of Mercurius collapsing, and after denying that anything is wrong when Wendy asks, Team Shadow Gear then enters the infirmary to celebrate the victory, and briefly wonders about Gajeel. As Levy narrates this, a scene is shown of a devastated battlefield and a heavily scarred Levy weeping as she writes down about how they lost to fate, and how the people she loves have died.

Jellal then finally corners the suspicious person, and after revealing his own identity, asks that the cloaked figure reveals theirs too. As the person turns, Jellal realizes that she is a woman, and when she shows herself, the independent Mage is shocked speechless. Having found the source of the Magic and questioned the girl, Jellal returns to the rest of Crime Sorcière and informs them of what he has learnt, which seems to shock them, the blue Mage revealing his knowledge about the Eclipse Plan and the Dragon King Festival.

"It that... True?" Meredy asked in a stunned tone, unable to believe what he had just told them.

"It can't possibly... I don't believe it..." Ultear added as she was also in disbelief in what Jellal had just told them.

"Looks like things are going to get real bad..." Natsu said in a quiet tone, mulling over what Jellal had told them.

"We had a huge misunderstanding... And at the same time we were locked up inside a destiny that we can't change. Eclipse, the door that can change the world. And the Dragon King Festival." Jellal lamented as they tried to figure out a plan for the future.

Meanwhile, at Crocus Gardens, Sting and Rogue stand in front of Jiemma, and when asked about the "disgrace" they displayed, Rogue simply admits Laxus' strength exceeds their own, which enrages their guild master. Thinking that they are showing weakness, Jiemma angrily demands that they remove their guild marks, while at the same time knocking the younger Mages off their feet with a burst of magic. However, Lector tries to support the Dragon Slayers, but when Jiemma fails to recognize who the cat is, the Exceed reveals his own guild mark.

This infuriates the Guild master even further, causing him to vaporize Lector with a blast of Magic, much to the shock of the rest of the Guild. Rogue then protectively covers Frosch, thinking that Jiemma was going to attack his Exceed next, though the Masters attention was instead diverted to Sting, who started crying and yelling in grief. Just as Jiemma is about to scold the White Dragon further, Sting unleashes a devastating attack on the Master in his anger, piercing him straight through the chest, much to the entire guilds shock, except for Minerva, who actually seems pleased.

As Jiemma collapses, Minerva congratulates Sting, claiming him to be a candidate for the Guild Master of Sabertooth, having surpassed the previous one in power. Jiemma tries to speak, surprised about the coup d'état, but Minerva tells him to be quiet, since according to his own logic, he has no right to speak. After explaining to Sting that he lacks (thanks to Jiemma's influence) the "power of feelings" that Fairy Tail possesses, Minerva reveals that she managed to save Lector prior to the Exceed's annihilation, sending him away somewhere. Thrilled by this, Sting happily begs her to bring him back, to which she bluntly refuses, saying that she is the same as her father in the aspect that she wishes for Sabertooth to be Fiore's no. 1 guild. Minerva tells Sting that if he wants his friend back, they need to win day five's event, to prove that Sabertooth is the strongest.

Elsewhere, under the Domus Flau, the Fairy Tail Dragon Slayers and Exceeds, along with Gray and Lucy, are lead through the tunnels by Gajeel. He then shows them the Dragon Graveyard he found earlier, much to everyone's surprise. As the discuss what this could mean, they contemplate whether their own Dragon Slayers Dragons were amongst the corpses, though this was instantly disregarded, as the bones were far older than the 14 years that the Dragons disappeared in. Wendy then brings up the Sky Dragon Slayer spell: Milky Way, which she learned from Porlyusica, a move that allows them to listen to the voices of the spirits of Dragons.

Wendy decides to use the move to listen to the Dragons voices that slumber in this graveyard, to find out what happened, and also about their own Dragon mentors. In the meantime, somewhere else in Crocus, the mysterious girl with the suspicious Magic is found by a guard in an out of bounds area, and whilst running away drops her notepad. Picking it up, the man reads something about an "Eclipse Plan" and a "Dragon King Festival" that are taking place on July 7.

Wendy manages to use Milky Way and searches the graveyard for any Dragon spirits. She manages to find one named Zirconis, the Emerald Dragon, who agrees to explain the Dragon history to them. About 400 years ago, the Dragons were the dominant species of the world and considered humans to be nothing but fodder for them. However, one Dragon sympathized with the humans, and wished to live in peace with them. He managed to convince a few fellow Dragons of his ideology, but many opposed the idea. These clashing opinions eventually lead to a civil war between the Dragons, reaching a stalemate until the Dragons pro-human side taught humans Dragon Slayer Magic so they could fight beside them.

The plan worked and the anti-human side was on the verge of defeat. However, the humans soon also turned on the Dragons who were helping them. But the worst was yet to come when one particular individual continued to kill Dragons and bathe in their blood, so much so that he became a Dragon himself and used his powers to near kill all the Dragons and become the King of Dragons. This Dragon is revealed to be Acnologia, much to the shock of the group, and after revealing this, Zirconis suddenly disappears. The group mull over the information given, Wendy and Gajeel especially worried if their Magic will make them into Dragons too. A voice however rebuffs this claim, explaining that Acnologia had help with his creation from Zeref and his book of spells. The group turn to the voice to find it belongs to Arcadios, who has arrived with Yukino. Arcadios finishes his explanation that killing Zeref will be the first step in stopping Acnologia, though Carla is shaken to realize that Arcadios is the knight from her vision.

Arcadios introduces himself and reveals Yukino's Sergeant rank to the group. He goes on to explain that they needed a Celestial Mage for their plan, hence why Yukino joined his team. Lucy demands he explain himself, and Arcadios complies and leads them to the castle, Mercurius. As they make their way through he admits he was the one who attempted have Lucy kidnapped earlier and that the Games are merely used to collect Magic from the stadium every year. When the group rebuff him for it, he mentions that his plan needs a large amount of Magic to work. Soon, the group comes across a large room holding a very ancient looking door. Arcadios explains the Eclipse Plan, in which the twelve gold keys of the Zodiac are needed and on the seventh of July, when the eclipse passes over, the door can unlock and allow the user to travel four hundred years into the past. What they hope to achieve is to go back in time and stop Zeref before he gained immortality. With Zeref gone, Acnologia will cease to be as well. The group are astonished, the Dragon Slayers even more so when they realize that its execution date falls on the same day their Dragon mentors disappeared.

However, just as Arcadios and Yukino ask for Lucy's assistance in the plan, the royal guard suddenly show up and surround the group. The minister of defense, Darton, appears, leading them. Displeased that Arcadios told outsiders of the project, Darton reveals that he won't let him go through with the plan, as it's too dangerous to change history. He then has Yukino and Arcadios arrested on treason, ordering Lucy be taken in as well. Wendy goes to protect her, but as soon as she tries to use her Magic the door saps it away and she instantly falls unconscious. The remaining Fairy Tail Mages are then thrown out of the castle. However, Darton quickly tells them the King has taken a liking to the group, and as such, if they manage to win the Grand Magic Games, they can gain audience with him and request Lucy's freedom.

The group return to their fellow members and reveal what happened at the castle. The group mull over their options, knowing that fighting against the kingdom would be a bad move on their part, but not trusting that Lucy will be released if they win. Just as Gray and Happy go marching towards the castle to get Lucy, Makarov stops them, claiming they need to act wisely considering their enemy this time.

Back at the castle and in the dungeon, Lucy and Yukino are put in the same cell. They talk, with Lucy mentioning her wariness on if the Eclipse Plan should be activated. Yukino explains her reasons for wanting to go through with it, stating that she lost her sister at a young age to Zeref's followers and hopes to change the past to get her back. Thinking this over, Lucy ponders if it is even possible to change the past.

The sixth day comes and Chapati announces the final event of the Games, the Grand Magic War Game. Makarov reveals that this was part of his plan: one portion of their team will battle in the tournament normally while another team will try to rescue Lucy. As everyone's focus is on the Games, no one will have their eyes on the castle. He silently wishes the rescue team luck as Elfman, Wendy, Mirajane and the Exceeds make their way to the castle.

The rescue team hear the Games beginning from afar and proceed to come up with a plan. Happy suggests wearing disguises, but Mirajane states that she has already come up with a plan of her own. As they go to put it together, Wendy wishes the tournament group good luck. Back at the Games, the rules of the final event, the Grand Magic Tournament, are laid out. The teams will go into the city and battle around it, gaining points for each downed member; five points if they manage to take down the leader of each team. The teams all meet in the city and discuss strategies, with Team Fairy Tail vowing to do their best, both to save Lucy and redeem their guild. Soon, the game is started, and the teams make their way through the city, save Team Fairy Tail, who oddly don't move from their starting spot, much to everyone's confusion, including their own members.

The game goes on with each member of Team Quatro Puppy taken down quite easily. Beth and Araña also get knocked out by the Trimens. Yuka and Toby are beaten by Kagura. Minerva orders her group to avoid fighting Jura and Kagura, hoping someone else will deal with them. Sabertooth retakes the lead, much to Makarov's panic, as his team still hasn't done anything. Mavis finally tells him that this is her plan, as she had been memorizing all of the opponents during the whole tournament and has formulated a strategy to help them, thus why they haven't moved yet. She then orders "Fairy Tail Star Strategy" to commence, and Team Fairy Tail finally go on the move.

Back at the castle, a guard brings in Elfman and Wendy tied up, telling another that they had tried to sneak in and save Lucy. They're ordered to be taken to the prison cell, but when out of sight, the guard is revealed to really be Mirajane, who had disguised herself to allow the group to sneak in. Meanwhile, another guard goes to the princess, Hisui E. Fiore, and tells her that its a good opportunity to commence the "Eclipse 2" Plan.

At the games, Team Fairy Tail go on the move, as guided by Mavis. Rufus, sensing this, fires a lightning attack at them, but, thanks to Mavis, the team manage to avoid it. Mavis then proceeds to move the team around the city to find opponents: Erza finds Jenny and quickly defeats her; Gajeel locates the Trimens and manages to knock out Ren and Eve; Hibiki manages to get out of his line of fire only to run into Gray, who freezes him, putting Fairy Tail back in the lead. As Mavis continues her strategy, Makarov remembers that she was known as the "Fairy Tactician" during her tenure as the guild leader. Ichiya, upon finding that the Trimens are defeated, vows to avenge them, only to get knocked out by Jura from behind, effectively knocking Team Blue Pegasus out of the game with all their members defeated. Elsewhere Chelia manages to beat Risley, putting Lamia Scale in a tie for first with Fairy Tail and Sabertooth. Seeing this and being questioned by the other members if she has a plan for Jura, Mavis admits she doesn't know how to deal with him yet.

Meanwhile at the castle, the group manage to find Lucy and Yukino's cell and break the bars, freeing them. The group are set to leave but Lucy wishes to get her keys back. However, the floor in the hallway suddenly opens up, dropping the group in an underground area with an archway exit. A video of Hisui pops up, the Princess telling the group that they've fallen into "Abyss Palace", where criminals do not last long. She accuses the group of being thieves and tells them they can rot in the underground dungeon. The guards congratulate the Princess on protecting the castle with the King away, but Hisui doesn't seem happy about the success.

In the Games, Gray manages to locate Rufus in a library area. Rufus cockily claims he doesn't remember Gray and asks to refresh his memory. But Gray tells him not to bother as he's going to beat him there and now. As Gray and Rufus stare each other down, the other Fairy Tail guild-members ask Mavis if Gray can beat him. She states she doesn't know, but beating Rufus is vital to their plans. Gray begins his attack, seemingly being bested by Rufus' ability to mix Magic attacks he has memorized, but eventually countering this by performing his Ice Molding Magic so fast that Rufus' ability to memorize can't keep up. Returning to simply conjuring older attacks, Rufus tries to burn Gray by creating flames, though Gray comments that he has faced much hotter and stronger flames in the past, pushing through and finishing Rufus with Ice-Make: Ice Bringer. Rufus goes flying before he lands, knocked out and defeated, Gray's victory wowing the crowd as he earns them a point. The other members of Team Sabertooth see this, but seem unfazed, while Sting recollects what happened after he defeated Jiemma and why he needs to win.

Meanwhile, in the Abyss Palace, the Fairy Tail members and Yukino try to find a way out, with Carla managing to discover a narrow crevice path. They manage to squeeze their way through, but are met with the form of a badly beaten Arcadios on the floor. When they awaken him, he tells them to run away, as five mysterious figures appear out of nowhere and attack them one-by-one. Arcadios then reveals them to be an independent team of executors that supports the kingdom from the shadows, the Garou Knights. The ex-knight states that because of them, it is impossible to escape the Abyss Palace, while the apparent leader of the enemy claims to have orders to kill all of them.

Arcadios warns him that they have Magic to kill efficiently. The group isn't phased and prepares to battle them Elfman, Wendy, Pantherlily and Mirajane order Lucy, Yukino, Happy and Carla to stay back. Two of the Knights, Cosmos and Kamika, attack first, with the group just barely managing to defend each other from the knights onslaught. Becoming excited, Kamika and Cosmos pick up the pace, unleashing even larger attacks and even paralyzing them. Wendy manages to save them and, in trying to destroy one of Cosmos' spells, Mirajane, Elfman and Pantherlily cause a huge explosion, crumbling the cavern walls and separating everyone in a landslide. Back upstairs, Princess Hisui overhears the knights talking about the Garou Knights engaging the group, prompting her to mention that her plans always seem to backfire as she prays for Arcadios' safety.

Back in Abyss Palace, Elfman, Wendy, Pantherlily and Mirajane find themselves against a member of the Garou Knights (Kama, Cosmos, the burly knight, and Kamika respectively) and forced to engage in one on one combat. While Lucy, Yukino, Happy, Carla and Arcadios end up with each other, only to have to face the fisherman dressed knight, Uosuke. As Lucy and Yukino prepare to face him, Arcadios warns Uosuke always leaves only the bones of his victims.

Elsewhere, Elfman and Kama begin fight, with Kama aiming for Elfman's head. Elfman just barely manages to keep ahead of him. The others in the rescue team find themselves struggling too: Pantherlily's opponent uses acid which he can't seem to bypass. Kamika uses green paper which produces poison forcing Mirajane to hold her breath. And Wendy is forced to dodge bombs from Cosmo's plants before she switches to a sleeping agent that Wendy seems to succumb to.

Meanwhile with Lucy's group, Uosuke begins his attack and cracks the ground, creating lava underneath. Lucy and Yukino avoid falling in but are barely clinging to the rocks, dangling over the magma. Happy and Carla try to rescue them but Uosuke uses his gravity powers to hold them down. Arcadios, seeing this, rushes to their aid through the lava at the expense of himself and hoist the two girls back up. As he sinks, he tells the girls to find Hisui and decide for themselves if they should activate the Eclipse plan. Lucy tries to save him but he completely submerges.

However Horologium appears having saved Arcadios within his body, he's soon followed by Leo who explains he managed to come through the gate. He returns Lucy and Yukino's keys to them. Now armed, the group prepare to counter-attack Uosuke. Back with Elfman, he manages to the catch one of Kama's axes barehanded and crushes it, declaring he will send him flying now.

After checking to make sure Arcadios is alright, Yukino begins the counter-attack by summoning Pisces who reveal they can turn into human forms, as well as showing they are a mother/son duo. As they attack, Uosuke tries to stop them with his gravity powers only to be countered by Yukino summoning Libra who negates this allowing Pisces to get a hit in. Uosuke summons water around him to knock them back, turning them into fish which Yukino reveals is their weakness (an irony that Lucy can't help but notice). But with the water setting, Lucy quickly summons Aquarius to battle.

Meanwhile Pantherlily battles his opponent, who continues to throw more acid his way. However Pantherlily recalls all his training with Gajeel and uses his sword to slice through the acid much to his opponents shock. With Wendy, Cosmos believes her magic worked. But Wendy revives having used her support magic to negate the sleeping agent before summoning her wind to blow away the plants. Meanwhile Kamika sees that Mirajane is in pain from the poison. However Mirajane states that since she's alone, she doesn't have to worry about any bystanders and can go all out. Going into her Demon form and sucking in all the poison. And finally with Elfman whose easily beating Kama into submission.

Kama questions if they really plan to make the kingdom his enemy but the Fairies counter they should've been prepared to have Fairy Tail as their enemy and that they'll go against the whole world if it's to protect their family. All at once, the Rescue Teams deal the final blows to their opponents sending them flying through a wall and into each other, all save Kama are knocked out. The team soon regroup and celebrate as Kama is dumbfounded all of the executioners were defeated. Mira then threatens Kamika to tell her where the exit is or she'll execute him, to which Lucy comments on her being "evil".

Later, the rescue team search for a way out. While discussing how Arcadios survived being the lava, Loke suggests that it was his jade amulet which protected him as it can act as a talisman. Lucy and Carla add that they need to meet the princess and decide for themselves if Eclipse is right or not. Suddenly, the door in front opens and they face a person wearing a hood and asks who they are.

Meanwhile, Princess Hisui is informed that the Garou Knights were defeated by Fairy Tail. Suddenly, Darton shows up and reveals he now knows Hisui was behind the Eclipse project and Arcadios took the fall for her. Hisui counters him, stating that the world should be changed and without it, the country will be destroyed as soon as the next day comes in.

Back at the Domus Flau, Fairy Tail takes the lead after Gray's victory over Rufus. As the team proceeds, Juvia is found by Chelia, just as Mavis predicted. Elsewhere, Erza heads to another area, expecting to fight Minerva but much to her surprise, encounters Kagura instead. While Mavis begins tearing up over her failed prediction, the two Mages fight. Suddenly, a wormhole opens between the two and Minerva materializes through it and attacks the two, wanting to join the battle. With that, the foremost female Mages in the tournament prepare for a three way battle.

As the women face off, the members of their respective guilds are confident in the victory of their guildmates. Analyzing their opponents, the three Mages rush into battle. Despite their attempts, none of them are able to overpower the others. Catching her off guard, Erza kicks Kagura through a wall and takes herself along with her. Minerva attacks Kagura at point-blank range but fails to inflict significant damage as she returns to deliver a blow. Minerva activates her Magic and summons Yagdo Rigora to attack, creating a large explosion which engulfs the area and attracts the attention of other participants. However, Erza and Kagura remain, injured but steady. In response, Minerva resorts to bringing a captured Millianna to the battle as a change of strategy, angering the feline's friends.

Inside Mercurius, having heard Princess Hisui's explanation of her actions, Darton suggests stopping the Grand Magic Games. However, the princess claims that she's still got doubts about what she was told. Stating that the person she talked to knows the future, she explains that the result of the game will be "unbelievable". If this is the case, she resolves to open the Eclipse gate herself.

Meanwhile, in Abyss Palace, the group confronts the hooded person, who begins crying. As she asks for their strength, the others take note of her voice. Subsequently, the person takes off her hood, revealing herself to be Lucy from the future. While crying, the Lucy in front of the rescue team claims she came from the future, stating she used the Eclipse Machine to do so. Before the others can question her further, she collapses, worrying the group. Deciding that they can't leave her, the group decides to take her with them as they escape and send up a flare to inform everyone else in Fairy Tail that they have Lucy.

At the same time, Darton questions Hisui sending Lucy and Yukino to Abyss Palace. However, she reveals she already used their keys to unlock Eclipse and will use it if need be, depending on how the games end.

In the games, angered by her capture of Millianna, Kagura angrily tells Minerva to let her go. When Minerva refuses, Kagura charges forth to attack but before she is able to, Minerva switches places with Erza, who narrowly blocks the attack. Minerva tells the two to battle one another and that she will fight the one who is left, admitting that fighting both of them was a mistake. Erza addresses her as a coward, though Minerva counters that she merely made the move which was most beneficial for her. As Erza tells her to let Millianna go, she is headbutted by Kagura, who agrees to fight Erza, stating that she will beat both her and Minerva.

Meanwhile, Gajeel comes across Rogue while going through the city. At the same time, Laxus finds Orga, who introduces himself as the Lightning God Slayer. As the fights continue, Hisui and Darton watch on the Lacrima vision while, sitting alone, Sting comes up with a plan for victory.

On the cliffs overlooking the Domus Flau, Meredy, Ultear and Natsu meet with Jellal. Revealing the information he obtained from the Lucy from the future. Meredy suggests evacuating the civilians in light of the impending danger, though Jellal claims there's something wrong with what he was told.

In the tournament, Erza clashes with Kagura. During battle, Erza uses her Heaven's Wheel Armor to battle while Kagura uses the various forms of her sword to counter and destroy. Despite requipping into various armors, Erza finds them ineffective as each one is destroyed by the Mermaid Hell Mage without inflicting any damage on her. As another armor is destroyed, Erza crashes to the ground below, much to the shock of her guildmates and everyone else, surprised that Erza is being overpowered.

While on the ground, Erza asks Kagura if her strength comes from her hatred towards Jellal, for which Kagura kicks her in the stomach. Erza tells her she doesn't care about why she hates him, but that she shouldn't drag Millianna into it. Kagura retorts that Millianna isn't being influenced and neither is she, causing Erza to ask what happened.

Revealing that Simon who died in the Tower of Heaven was her brother, Kagura reveals the history of her life with her brother and how he was kidnapped while she escaped, as well as how she met Millianna years later and found out what happened to him. Erza relents, tells Kagura that Millianna never saw Jellal kill Simon, and that though he did, his death was her own fault. Though she is not believed at first, Erza states it is the truth, causing an angry Kagura to draw her sword and cause the blood to spill. The draw creates a wave of destruction, however, Erza does not allow herself to die and uses her sword to block Kagura's attack. Claiming that she is alive thanks to Simon, Rob and her friends, she states she will not allow herself to be killed because of them.

Angry, Kagura moves in to attack. Erza defends herself, claiming that she won't lose and delivers a final strike, defeating Kagura. However, as a conscious Kagura attempts to get up, the ceiling above begins to crumble. Erza quickly pushes her out of the way but gets her leg trapped under the rubble as a result. When asked why, Erza states that she remembers Kagura, and that she was from Rosemary Village, just like her and Simon. Kagura recounts how, years ago, Erza saved her from getting caught by the followers of Zeref, bringing her to tears. Erza states Simon often talked about her and that she'd always hoped she was alright. Moved, Kagura lifts a piece of rubble off Erza's body but as she attempts to think about the battle's result, she is stabbed from behind by Minerva, who both earns points for her team and angers Erza with the gesture. Minerva taunts Erza, telling her she's next. Erza looks down at Kagura, who asks her to save Millianna. Upon hearing her name, Minerva brings the cat girl to the battle. As Erza checks up on her, she notices heavy wounds on her back, which Minerva states she inflicted in order to have fun while she waited, causing Erza to stare at her vengefully.

Meanwhile, Gajeel attacks Rogue, who is unable to land a blow. Gajeel tells the Sabertooth Mage that he should give up since, he couldn't defeat Laxus. In response, Rogue tells Gajeel that he isn't as powerful as Laxus. Elsewhere, Laxus and Orga clash. As they ready themselves again, Jura arrives, asking if he can join them. As the Wizard Saint approaches, Laxus calls him a monster.

At the same time, Juvia and Chelia continue their battle. As they fight, Lyon and Gray arrive. As the girls are surprised to see the two boys arrive, Lyon comments on Gray's beat-up appearance, though Gray retorts that they'll still take care of him. Juvia misunderstands Gray's words and asks when they'll go on their honeymoon. As Lyon stares jealously, stating that he needs to make Juvia realize, Chelia tells him he's the one who needs to realize.

Inside Mercurius, the rescue team, having gotten lost inside the massive castle, wonders about their next course of action. As a worried Lucy looks over her future counterpart, she suddenly wakes up and begins wondering where she is. Learning she's inside the castle, she recalls her memory which tells her that after escaping Abyss Palace, they get captured again since they came across the Eclipse Machine and couldn't use Magic, resulting in them being sent back to jail. Wendy asks her why she came to the past, to which she states that she did so to change the worst possible future, alarming the Mages. On her throne, Princess Hisui states she was told that a herd of ten thousand Dragons was coming. While Darton questions it, Hisui states that that the results of the Grand Magic Games will guide her.

The rescue team wonders what could be behind the upcoming events. Carla suddenly recalls her vision and realizes that, in it, Lucy was screaming rather than singing. Asking what happened to them in the future, Carla is met with silence, which the others interpret as meaning their death. The future Lucy explains that after the attack, she came back in time, but only to July 4, due to Eclipse being broken. She tells the group to use an underground passage to meet Jellal, who would be creating a strategy, apologizing for not having one. Arcadios recalls the princess telling him someone told her that Eclipse could be used against the Dragons in what would be known as Phase 2. As he wonders why she lied about not having a strategy, as well as the date she arrived, Lucy thanks her, promising to protect the future.

Away on rocky cliffs, Ultear comments that they don't know whether or not what Jellal heard was true, which Meredy asks if she means that the Lucy of the future lied, Natsu commenting that they shouldn't discredit anything. Reviewing what he was told, Jellal states that it doesn't sound right and that either what he was told was false or that the Lucy he spoke to was a fake.

In Crocus, a battered Rogue states he now understands why Gajeel joined Fairy Tail. Stating that it didn't make sense at first, he believes Gajeel stayed because of friendship, a concept which doesn't exist in Sabertooth. As Gajeel fights for his friends, Rogue states he can't win. In response, Gajeel asks Rogue whether or not Frosch is his friend, which he admits that he is, to Frosch's delight. Suddenly, Rogue hears a voice calling him weak. Turning around, Rogue realizes his shadow is talking to him, telling him to kill Gajeel and offering him the strength to do so.

While going through the underground path, the rescue team is confronted by the army. The group readies to fight, but they notice that Yukino and Arcadios have disappeared. Rather than fight, Mirajane leaves to find Yukino while the rest fight the army.

In the games, Rogue hears the voice of his "shadow". As he starts screaming, Gajeel asks him to calm down. Suddenly, Rogue attacks and makes Gajeel realize he's not fighting Rogue but someone named "Shadow". Gajeel's attempts to fight back are fruitless as Mavis notes him to be up against an evil Magic she's never seen before. "Shadow" tells him that he's not as strong as Gajeel but adds that even he can't stand up to him now.

Crime Sorcière senses the mysterious Magic and Ultear notes it to be coming from town. However, Jellal tells them if future Lucy is with the group, there is no need to worry. In the underground, the Mages battle the knights. As Elfman knocks down several of the knights, he is hit from behind by Magic. However, Elfman shrugs it off, saying that such Magic wouldn't hurt him.

Meanwhile, a near-defeated Gajeel is held choke-held. As he is being strangled, Frosch, feeling the need to do something, heads towards the city. "Shadow" then declares that Gajeel will disappear forever as shadows surround him. The grounded Gajeel starts feeding on the shadows and soon tells "Shadow" to get out Rogue's body, claiming that he's not Rogue, but his former sworn brother, Ryos. Stating that he will help "Shadow" remember to fear him, Gajeel enters Iron Shadow Dragon Mode.

Having activated his Iron Shadow Dragon Mode, "Shadow" notes that Gajeel now has two elemental types. Gajeel makes himself disappear by turning into a shadow before hitting "Shadow" from behind. "Shadow" takes on the form of a shadow as well but is grabbed by the shadow by Gajeel and tossed into the air. Gajeel unleashes his Iron Shadow Dragon's Roar, creating a devastating blast and defeats the Shadow Dragon Slayer. For his victory, Gajeel earns one point for Team Fairy Tail. "Shadow" leaves his Rogue's body as Frosch appears and asks Gajeel not to do anything else. Gajeel claims won't do anything else, resulting in Frosch going to his partner's side. Rogue wakes up and asks what happened to him, signifying that he doesn't remember being possessed.

Inside Mercurius, Elfman, Loke and Wendy continue to attack the guards. As Pantherlily moves in to attack, he is stopped by an acid attack from Neppa. The rest of the Garou Knights arrive as well, telling the Mages not to underestimate them. Kama arrives as well, stating he won't let them leave. Elsewhere in the castle, Arcadios dons a suit of white armor and heads to meet the princess, stating to himself that since the Lucy of the future wasn't lying, the princess was.

While the rescue team try to make their way out of Mercurius and Arcadios, Hisui and Jellal wonder about the upcoming attack. In battle, Minerva uses her Magic to pick up and throw Erza around, smashing her into a nearby pillar and saying this will be Erza's public execution.

In their own battle, Lyon teams with Chelia while Gray does so with Juvia. Juvia provides water upward for Gray use. Chelia blocks for Lyon and demands that he attack Juvia, though he tells her to do so instead. Gray notices that their teamwork and tells Juvia they have a chance to win.

Elsewhere, Orga tells Jura he wants to see the Wizard Saint go all out. With Jura agreeing and Laxus watching, Orga fires his attack but is grabbed by the head and smashed into the ground, knocking him out of the battle, much to the surprise of the viewers, barring Lamia Scale. Turning to Laxus, Jura states that he has wanted to fight Laxus due to him being Makarov's grandson. However, the Fairy Tail Mage tells him that in their battle, there are no formalities as they are just two men. Laxus goes forth to attack but before he can touch Jura, he is hit on the back of the head and sent slamming into the ground. Jura tells Laxus that there is always someone stronger than oneself. Laxus replies that it's good to look down too, as those stronger people may be just at your feet and uppercuts Jura as he does.

Laxus' hit on Jura surprises the audience and makes Fairy Tail happy until Jura recovers and retaliates. Laxus too engages in battle and both Mages prove powerful and repeatedly land blows, with Makarov surprised by the strength Laxus shows. Jura admits his surprise as well, with Laxus tells him the battle is getting him fired up, to which Jura tells him they should continue. At the same time, the rescue team continues their battle against the Fiore army. Meanwhile, an injured Erza attempts to stand up despite Minerva telling her she can't. Erza retorts that she must due to her anger, resulting in Minerva attacking. Though she is damaged and the audience is surprised by Minerva's Magic, Erza sees through it and releases her second origin, allowing her to Requip into a new armor.

Meanwhile, Lyon and Chelia prepare to deal the final blow to Gray and Juvia. However, Gray is convinced that the two of them have poor teamwork and that they can still win, telling Juvia who agrees with him. As Mavis begins reveling in the youth, Laxus deals a powerful blow to Jura, knocking the wizard saint out of the competition and causing him to admit defeat. As a result, Laxus ends up earning Fairy Tail five points for the victory, much to their happiness. Soon after, Gray and Juvia combine their Magic to defeat Lyon and Chelia, the latter of whom simply stares in awe and does not listen to her teammate as Juvia and Gray cast their spells, defeating the two of them. With their victory, Juvia and Gray smile and hold hands, which Juvia refuses to stop doing.

Meanwhile, Minerva attacks Erza with a powerful blast but it has no effect on her due to her Nakagami Armor, which uses a large amount of Magic but allows the user to bend Magic to their will. Minerva is left frightened over Erza's power as Erza strikes her with the armor's spear, defeating her. With her defeat, Fairy Tail gains five points, giving them a total of 63 points. With victory near, the crowd chants for Fairy Tail. However it's also noted that Sabertooth still has Sting, who may be able to beat Fairy Tail and win.[199] Sting sends out a signal to Fairy Tail and the battered members make their way to him. Sting demands they attack him all at once and Erza agrees to his challenge. Sting prepares to attack but as he's about to do so, he sees Fairy Tail show no hesitation in facing him. Freezing up, Sting is ultimately unable to go through with his attack and concedes, giving Fairy Tail the last point and victory in the Grand Magic Games, making them the #1 guild once again.

As the stadium celebrates, Erza asks Sting why he didn't attack to which he answers he can see the bond between them makes them strong and he feels he wouldn't be able to see Lector again if he had attacked. At that moment, Millianna suddenly arrives carrying Lector who is revealed to be alive and well. Sting races over and hugs his friend. Thus the games come to an end. At the castle Arcadios reaches the throne room but finds no one there, having just missed Hisui and Darton who make their way to the Eclipse door. Having seen that the future prediction is coming to pass, Hisui goes to activate the Eclipse 2 plan, the Eclipse Cannon.

As everyone congratulates and compliments Fairy Tail, Erza asks if they saw a signal from the Rescue Team but nobody has. Gray looks towards the castle and prays for the safety of the team. Inside the castle, the group are still combating the guards and the Garou Knights, but are on the verge of being overwhelmed. Suddenly, the shadows of the corridor attack the guards and the Garou Knights and sweep them into the darkness, much to the Rescue Team's confusion. As this goes on, Jellal realizes that the Future Lucy had told him that she arrived on July 4th but really came July 3rd, a day earlier then the prediction and doesn't fit in with the time they had sensed the dark Magic within the stadium. The reason they had been sensing the dark Magic is because of the residue on her clothes she had used to go through the Eclipse., meaning there was another person they had been sensing.

Back in the castle, Arcadios finally catches up to Hisui and Darton. She tells him all the solders are up to speed and she is about to commence operations. Arcadios apologizes in advances for what he's about to do and give her his sword, citing if his doubt is unjustified against a royal, he will take his life. He then asks about who told her about the bad future, citing his meeting of the Future Lucy and her uncertainty not matching up to what Hisui had told him. However, Hisui reveals that it was not a girl who had told her of the predictions but a man. Back in the corridors, the rescue team hear someone coming toward them. Elfman calls out for the person to identify themselves and he does, revealing himself as Rogue Cheney, and claiming that he came from the future.

Surprised to see the man claiming to be Rogue from the future, the Mages question why he came back to the past. Elsewhere, Hisui tells Arcadios there can be multiple people from the future in the present, she claims she will protect the country while at the same time, Crime Sorcière heads to Mercurius. Meanwhile, Future Rogue explains that he came back in time to make sure they open the door, stating that Eclipse can be used to defeat the attacking Dragons. However, the Dragons are the rulers in his future and humanity is almost extinct because someone prevented Eclipse from being used, and he's therefore come back to kill that person. Believing that the door will be closed if the person lives, Future Rogue attacks Lucy, who he claims is the culprit. However, his attack is intercepted by Lucy's future counterpart, who takes the blow, much to everyone's surprise. Injured, she falls to the ground, claiming she'd have never done such a thing. As she dies, the future Lucy tells the others not to cry for her, but they say otherwise since she is still their Lucy. Saying she wished to travel with them, the Lucy of the future dies as her Fairy Tail comrades shed tears. However, still believing that Lucy will cause doom in the future, the Rogue of the future attacks again but before he can do so, he is sent flying by another hooded figure.

As Future Rogue reels from the strike, Lucy is advised to escape by Loke, with Wendy, Happy, Carla, and Pantherlily accompanying her. Future Rogue tries to go after Lucy once more but is knocked back by the hooded figure, who vows that they'll protect the future their own way. Meanwhile, Mirajane manages to locate Yukino who sits depressed against a wall, feeling she'll be no use to the others as she brings misfortune to those around her. Mirajane disagrees and comforts her. Over at the Eclipse Door, Hisui commences the operation, having the city evacuated in the process. However the guards have yet to see any Dragons coming toward the city. Lucy's group (sans Leo who had to go back due to the magic sapping door) come upon them and speak with the princess. Lucy reveals what Rogue told her to Hisui but states she wouldn't close it, leaving Lucy wondering why they're opening it early. Hisui states the door needs to charge and they wish to be ready. However, Hisui still doubts even this will be enough to stop the Dragons.

Near the city's central square, the King of Fiore, Toma E. Fiore, has gathered the guilds together and informs them of the coming danger, asking for their help. While shocked at the news and most still injured from the games, the guilds nonetheless agree to help him. With Crime Sorceries' sudden appearance, to Doranbolt and Lahar's shock, Jellal simply asks for a favor from them. Back to the fight, the hooded figure notes that Future Rogue reeks of evil and questions if he truly did come back to save the future. Future Rogue simply smirks while up above the Eclipse Door begins to open.

Midnight soon hits, welcoming the arrival of July 7th, the Fated Day. The Guilds are kept separate, with each one covering a specific section of Crocus, and Fairy Tail keeping watch in the town square. Although several of Fairy Tail's Mages are healed, courtesy of Chelia and the King's soldiers, all are experiencing unease, as the Eclipse has begun. Deep underground, as the Eclipse Gate opens above, the hooded figure and Future Rogue continue to battle, with Future Rogue continuously declaring that he will kill Lucy. After sending the figure flying with a powerful spell, the figure voices his unwillingness to let Future Rogue do as he wishes, before attacking him. Future Rogue seems unharmed, and, expressing his delight at seeing someone able to stand up to his power, blinds the mage before he can attack again. As the light subsides, Future Rogue enters White Shadow Dragon Mode.

Before they can react, Future Rogue rushes past him, and delivers a fatal slash to his side, before ultimately defeating the figure with his White Shadow Dragon's Rough Silk. Falling to the ground, they stand back up and marvel at the light that Future Rogue is utilizing, and the Shadow Dragon Slayer gleefully explains that he killed the Sting of his time-period to attain such a power, though he notes that his present-self has yet to do such a thing for a very long time. When they ask if Future Rogue was always as heartless as he is now, he replies that he was, but, before he can deliver the killing strike, Ultear and Meredy arrive, with Ultear attacking Future Rogue with her Flash Forward. The man from the future, however, turns into a shadow and flees the scene.

As Ultear orders Meredy to prepare the first aid, the two blink in confusion as Natsu simply removes his cloak, revealing that he is in fact, unharmed even after all the attacks that Future Rogue threw at him. Then, they shrank back slightly when they felt the air temperature start to rise, Natsu's eyes holding a strange glint to them. Atop Mercurius, Wendy states that their future doesn't seem as bleak now that the Gates are opening, and adds that Future Lucy can rest in peace. Lucy, while agreeing at first, walks towards the Eclipse Gate, and rebuts her prior statement, saying, to Wendy's shock, that she must close the Eclipse Gate.

Lucy goes towards the Eclipse Gate and states that it needs to be closed. Hisui states that the Eclipse Gate is the only weapon the country has against the Dragons but Lucy states that there is no such thing as the "Eclipse Cannon", and that the entire device can only be a gate that accesses different points in time. As Lucy reveals that the Gate connects their spot in time to that of Fiore over four hundred years ago, tremors are felt by everyone as a Dragon comes out of the Gate and roars, sending those nearby flying. The Dragon goes on to cause more destruction, causing those far away to wonder what is happening. As another Dragon comes out, Lucy asks how the Gate can be closed and is pointed to a pedestal near the Gate.

As she tries to get to the lever, Lucy is pushed back by the exuding Dragons power. Just as another Dragon emerges, Lucy manages to grab the handle, stating that she can use her Celestial Spirit powers to close the door. Wendy asks Lucy how she knew all this, to which Lucy states she had Crux analyze the Gate and was told it combined Celestial Spirit Magic with writings from the 'Book of Zeref' to work. Lucy says that, due to the lunar eclipse, the Magic has been corrupted and resulted in its current state. While Lucy is unable to seal the Gate, Hisui begins crying over her mistake and the doom it will cause to the country. While Lucy continues trying, she declares that they will protect the future.

Despite her attempts, Lucy is unable to close the Eclipse Gate by herself. However, Yukino suddenly arrives alongside Mirajane and tells Lucy to take out her Golden Keys. As she does the same, Lucy follows suit and the two girls combine their magic power to summon all 12 zodiac spirits at once. Together, the spirits take flight and proceed to close the Eclipse Gate, despite more Dragons trying to get through. Working together, the 12 spirits successfully close the gate, much to everyone's relief. However, this relief is short-lived as Future Rogue arrives and proclaims that the number of Dragons present is enough for him.

"Hmph. From this moment forward, the human species shall become extinct. Now begins, the era of dragons!" Future Rogue announced as everyone looked on in fear and shock at the sky full of dragons above them.

"For a start, find all the mages in the town, and eliminate them." He commanded as the dragons roared in confirmation of his order, spreading out as they the people below panicked when they heard their roars.

"T-The dragons... They're listening to what he's saying..." Carla said in shock as Pantherlily and Happy looked on in fear.

"The secret art of dominating dragons... Dragon Supremacy Magic..." Future Rogue said as he hopped on top of one of the dragons, the dragon flapping its wings before taking to the skies.

In Crocus, the Fairy Tail Mages are attacked by Atlas Flame as the other guilds attempt to take down other Dragons by using their superior numbers. Despite their attempts, the mages are able to inflict little damage, making them doubt their chances of victory. Flying above the city, the Future Rogue joyfully tells the Dragons to show their wrath just as he spots someone approaching.

On the ground, Fairy Tail has a deal of trouble fighting their Dragon, with even Makarov's attacks not working as their opponent Atlas Flame claims that humans cannot defeat a Dragon. Elsewhere, Sabertooth has their own problems against their Dragon opponent. Sting and Rogue reveal that though they killed Dragons, Weisslogia asked to be killed to further Sting's strength while Rogue merely helped Skiadrum in suicide.

Sting notes that he didn't expect a Dragon to be so strong but Rogue states that despite this, he does wish to help their comrades. Meanwhile, the Future Rogue reveals that in the future, the ruling part didn't come from the gate; Acnologia alone rules the entire world with no opposition. Explaining that his Dragon Supremacy Magic didn't work on it and that only a Dragon could kill it, he reveals such is why he wanted the Eclipse Gate opened so he could overthrow Acnologia and become King of the Dragons.

"Guh! Looks like only Dragon Slayers can even damage these things!" A mage shouted as they tried to overwhelm the Dragon using their sheer numbers.

Stating that Dragon Slayer Magic can kill Dragons, the mages exclaim that since they have five Dragon Slayers to fight seven Dragons, they will be unable to win. Future Rogue smirks when he sees that they finally have taken notice that they only have five Dragon Slayers. On the ground, Doranbolt returns from afar, heavily exhausted after having brought Cobra from prison to assist in the battle after having been forced to ask for his assistance.

"Oh? Looks like things are getting interesting..." Future Rogue said upon seeing the arrival of Cobra.

Continuing their battle, Future Rogue states that the Mages' efforts are pointless, as humans are unable to defeat Dragons. Future Rogue then calls for Motherglare to attack; it does so by producing eggs and sending them plummeting into the streets below. Upon hitting the ground, the eggs hatch into small Draconian entities. Upon seeing this, Laxus orders the Fairy Tail members to focus on the hatchlings while he and the Thunder God Tribe deal with the fiery Dragon. Meanwhile, Sting tells Rogue to go help another Dragon Slayer-less guild while he and Sabertooth fight the Dragon in front of them, citing that Fairy Tail's words gave him the courage to protect his friends. Rogue then hurries off, stating that Sabertooth's era of dispassion has ended.

Seeing that Blue Pegasus is at a disadvantage as they don't have a Dragon Slayer in their guild, Ichiya attempts to attack the Dragon they are fighting with his perfume to no avail, as the Dragon doesn't have a nose. Cobra, however, arrives and strikes the Dragon from above, offering his assistance. Lahar and Doranbolt, watching from afar, worry what'll happen to their standing in the Magic Council because of their releasing of Cobra, but the two men resolve to think about such things later, as they must ensure that everyone has a future first. Back atop Motherglare, Future Rogue remains confident in his victory.

Back near the Gate, Zirconis taunts those in front of him, causing Wendy to ask him if he remembers her. Subsequently, Carla reminds her that they spoke with Zirconis' soul, and that this is the real Zirconis: the one from four hundred years ago. Carla then states that because of her Sky Dragon Slayer Magic, Wendy is the only one who can defeat the Jade Dragon, just as Zirconis releases a large breath attack. However, rather than killing the soldiers caught in the blast, the attack simply strips the soldiers of their clothes, much to the embarrassment of everyone affected. Seeing the confused looks of those present, Zirconis explains that although he likes the taste of people, he detests the taste of their clothing, hence the need to remove them. However, Zirconis decides that even with clothes removed, he doesn't like the taste of men, and prefers women. As such, the Jade Dragon aims a small blast of his Magic at Lucy, which strips her of her clothes as well.

"Was that... Magic?" Wendy asked in a low tone, Zirconis simply smirking at her.

"My magic is made to steal human's dignity. " He sneered at her, Wendy meeting his sneer with an uncharacteristically angry glare.

"Then my magic... Is made to defeat you." She said in an angry but calm tone, the Dragon laughing at her statement.

At that statement, Zirconis then challenges the Dragon Slayer if she can do so before he eats Lucy. Wendy then casts Arms X Vernier on Mirajane, before declaring that she will. Roaring at the girls confidence (which knocks everyone within range back), he then takes to the sky and taunts them. Just as he's about to eat Lucy, Mirajane transforms into her Satan Soul: Sitri, and charges into his jaw as a distraction, while Wendy attacks from above with her Sky Dragon's Roar. Enraged, the Dragon tosses Lucy aside as he prepares to confront his two opponents. Happy goes flying after Lucy in order to save her. As the Exceed inquires about their battle, Lucy complains about the Dragons, mentioning Atlas Flame, Zirconis and the rock Dragon, and the fact that they aren't equipped to defeat them.

Meanwhile, Rogue Cheney is told by the Dragon he's fighting that he should stop as they have orders not to kill him so he could be King. Rogue states that he doesn't want to be King and asks the Dragon to tell him who gave him such orders. The Dragon explains that Rogue himself did as part of his plan to rule the world. Rogue refuses to believe this, however, a voice tells him it is true. Rogue sees his shadow speaking to him, telling him that it is an entity of what Rogue could have been from a possible future. The Dragon tells Rogue to accept his future and, upset, Rogue tries convincing himself it's all a lie as Ultear looks at him from afar.

Ultear thinks about when it was revealed that the man she chased off was the Rogue from seven years in the future; their enemy. Ultear had suggested that they could kill the Present Rogue which would result in Future Rogue not existing. However, the others stated that they wouldn't kill the Present Rogue since he hasn't done anything wrong, and that if they killed him, then they would be the ones who would do wrong. Ultear then promised that she wouldn't kill the Present Rogue. However, after leaving the vicinity of the other mages, Ultear concludes that the only way to fix everything is by killing Rogue.

Elsewhere, Jellal and Erza are found by Millianna. Erza tells Millianna that she has forgiven Jellal for what he did, angering her as she asks if she's serious and recalls what he did. Suddenly, Ultear arrives and tells Millianna that she's the one she should hate, stating responsible for the events in Tower of Heaven as wells as Simon's death. As Ultear leaves, Jellal and Millianna talk about what is wrong in the world, but noting they must continue to live. After eavesdropping from around the corner, Kagura sheathes her sword. As she walks away, Ultear remembers wanting to kill Rogue as well as the other mage's opposition to the idea and falls to the ground, calling herself an evil person.

Meanwhile, Rogue struggles while fighting his Dragon due to his recent discovery. Suddenly, Sting runs towards him and offers his help, also revealing that he's being chased by his Dragon. As the two Dragons argue over their goals, Sting convinces Rogue to take down the two Dragons with him as a team, to which he agrees. On the road, Ultear breaks down, believing her sins will not be easily washed away.

In the ruins of a bar, Meredy, while looking for Ultear, and Juvia are saved from Motherglare's minions by Gray as he gets both of them to the ground before they can be hit. Lyon tells them to focus in battle while Gray approaches Juvia, telling her that he has something to talk to her about. Thinking he is confessing, Juvia becomes flustered, though before he can speak he sees another minion approaching and as it fires at Juvia, Gray pushes her out of the way. Taking the blow, the Magic beam hits Gray through the heart. More of Motherglare's minions appear, firing multiple beams at Gray and piercing his body while Juvia, Lyon and Meredy watch in horror. As Gray falls to the ground, Juvia screams his name in anguish. Meanwhile, Ultear decides that she no longer has the right to live.

As the battles rage across Crocus, things seem to be going badly for the Mages, with not only Gray being killed, but Bacchus and Droy receiving fatal wounds, and Macao being pinned down by Motherglare's hatchlings. Elsewhere amongst the rubble, Ultear grieves over her sins, and is ashamed of herself despite Gray granting her a second chance in life. She then recalls when she was learning her magic, the Arc of Time, and how she came upon a spell that reverses time, known as Last Ages. Back then, Hades advised her to never use the spell, since the cost of reversing the time of everyone in the world would be her life. In the present, in order to make up for all the evil she had committed in the past, she chooses to use the forbidden spell, hoping to at least reverse time to before the Eclipse Gate was opened.

"If I can make the world go back to normal by sacrificing my life... I'm ready to do it!" Ultear thought as she slammed her hands onto the ground.

"Arc of Time: Lost Ages!" Ultear shouted as a surge of magic erupted from her body, pain like no other surged through her.

"Please, take the world back... At least, before the gate was opened... Bring back my life's worth of time..." Ultear pleaded as her body was devoured by a surge of magic, Ultear never noticing the hand that reached out towards her.

"Time is... Ba-" She started, her thoughts dying as she glanced at the clock, her eyes widening when she saw time had only been rewound by a minute.

"One minute... Is my life... Only worth... One minute..." She whispered as she fell, expecting to meet cold ground only to feel the warm embrace of someone.

"H-Huh...?" She whispered as her eyes fluttered opened, before widening when she saw the tearful and also burnt face of Natsu.

"You idiot... Just what the hell do you think you were doing..." He asked in a shaky tone, tears falling from his eyes as her own tears began to flow.

"N-Natsu... I... I..." She said, trying to find an excuse for her actions only to quiet down when he tightened his hold on her.

"Shut up! Is that... Is that how much you value your life? That you'd give it up so easily, without thinking about who you'd leave behind?" He asked as she remained quiet, her face scrunching up into a sob as her tears fell freely, matching Natsu.

"You idiot... I've told all of you... You shouldn't die for your friends, you live for them... If you don't have a reason to live Ul or think that you deserve to, then let me give you one." He said as he leaned in and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead, her eyes widening as she felt the brief flash of heat that came from his lips.

"I'm glad that I made it in time Ul... I don't know what I would've done if you died..." He said as he brushed away her tears, Ultear snapping her eyes shut as she sobbed into his chest.

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." She sobbed, clutching onto him tightly as Natsu held her, letting her cry her heart out.

After a few moments, she fell asleep in his arms as a group of the Draconian monsters surrounded them. Giving her another kiss on the head, he gently set her on the ground, his vest as a pillow for her as he glared at the monsters, all of them shrinking back as their instincts were screaming at them. Raising his head, Natsu let a savage smile grace his features as his tears evaporated, cracking his knuckles as he moved away from Ultear.

"You've really pissed me off..." Natsu said in a low tone as he sped towards the nearest monster, impaling its chest with his hand before tearing its head off.

Throwing the corpse at its brethren, he quickly crushed and killed the remaining monsters as he rolled his shoulders. Glancing up, he saw that Atlas Flame and Motherglare were still wrecking havoc on the city with little opposition due to the mages focusing on the dragons on the ground. Smirking, he made his way to the top of a building before unleashing his magical pressure, the entirety of the city freezing before they turned and looked up at him.

"Looks like it's time." Natsu said as a savage smile appeared on his face, taking an inhale of air as Motherglare and Atlas Flame gave him a curious look.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!" He roared, firing a concentrated beam of fire as the air around him ignited, an explosion of flames melting the building he was standing on and those nearby.

The beam racing towards the two, they were unable to react as the beam collided with them. A brilliant sphere of fire resembling a miniature sun consuming the two dragons, the jaws of everyone dropping when they slowly began to see the figure in the light of the sphere, many had tears fall from their eyes when they saw his locks of pink hair.

"N-N-N..." Lucy stuttered, unable to form a complete word as she covered her mouth with her hands.

"Na-Na-Na..." Erza continued, like Lucy, she was unable to form a coherent sentence or word due to the shock of seeing him once again.

"Natsu!" Meredy shouted as she grinned with tear filled eyes at the pink haired Dragon Slayer.

Smirking at her, he passed in front of the stunned mages before cocking his hand back in front of Levia. The aquatic look Dragon flinching when he felt the sudden surge of heat, he was sent flying back when Natsu slammed his burning fist to the Dragon's jaw, making the eyes of the Lamia Scale and Mermaid Heel mages widen with the power he had. Dropping, he cocked his arm back and took a step forward as the air crackled with the lost of moisture.

"Fire Dragon's Flame Wave!" He roared as he swung his in an upwards arc, sending a large scale wave of fire towards Levia, the dragon roaring in agony as the flames seared his hide as Natsu moved to the top of another nearby building, while he grinned in a savage and predatory manner at Future Rogue.

"Natsu... Dragneel..." Future Rogue said in a stunned and slightly fearful tone, loud enough to echo across the area.

"I'm all fired up..." He said in a fierce tone, the sobs of many people sounding out as the truth was finally revealed.

---

And that's that. So, what'd you all think? I know it's written a little or a lot funky, but you know how it is. I had a blast writing that bit with Ultear and Natsu and the mini battle scene at the end. Ah, well that's all said and done so I'll catch you all on the next update alright? Till next time, stay awesome.