Chapter Four - Battle
As everyone climbed off the ship, they settled around the master, waiting for his orders. He sent all the guests in different directions, followed by all the S - Class mages. The remaining people were the six contestants and their partners.
"Listen up my children. This exam is going to be tough, no doubt. All of you will choose a random lane that will lead you to a battle between the following; Sting, Rogue, Hibiki, Milliana, Ren or Eve. As you can see, all of them have different levels of magic ability, so the first test is about luck. After that, your partner will leave you behind as you continue and meet your final match - fighting against one of the S - Class mages; Mirajane, Erza, Gildarts or Laxus."
"That doesn't make sense, what if all six of us get through the first stage?" Cana pointed out. Master smirked.
"Four of the lanes will cross paths at one point. If you're in the unlucky lane, and after defeating one of our guests, you will have to fight one another to move on," he explained. "There are six lanes. Two lanes are lucky, four unlucky," he explained.
"So this game is all about luck," Freed pointed out.
"Seems a little unfair," Evergreen complained.
"Whatever! I get to take down Sting, Glidarts and Gray while I'm at it," Natsu cheered playfully. Lucy face palmed herself. That wasn't something he was supposed to look foreword to.
"Luck has a lot to in battles. If you're an unlucky character, you'll bring a lot of problems upon yourself and the guild. Or, you can be unlucky and powerful enough to fight through that unluckiness," the master explained. "However, the two strongest mages; Rogue and Sting, will be in the two 'lucky' lanes."
"Ah so it's about personal taste," Lucy stated. "Would you rather fight opponents weaker and on par with you but twice, or just one opponent much stronger," Lucy explained.
"So I don't get to beat Gray's ass?" Natsu complained.
"Not if you end up fighting Sting or Rogue," Evergreen told him.
"Alright, can we get started?" Bixlow asked. His dolls squeaked alongside him in agreement.
"Get ready kids, and wish you the best of luck. Here are screen lacrimas. It will show you who's fighting who if you have the time to watch," he explained, handing out the balls to each one of the teams. "Remember, the final battle will be against an S - Class mage and you must fight without the support of your partners. Fair well," he finished.
"Let's go, Happy!" Natsu punched his fist in the air excitedly.
"Aye," the flying blue cat agreed.
"Let's go Bixlow," Cana said, already running towards a lane.
Freed and Evergreen nodded at each other, agreeing on a lane. Gray and Juvia went on ahead.
"Levy," Lucy walked up to her friend. "Take the furthest lane away from me," she explained.
"Hmmm?"
"I don't want to take any chances..." Lucy explained with a painful look in her eyes.
"It's okay. We won't fight against each other," Levy smiled.
Lucy gave her another discomforting look to her best friend. "Please stay safe," Lucy almost begged.
"Don't worry bunny girl," Gajeel smirked, wrapping his large arm around her tiny girl's shoulders. "I'll keep Shrimp safe."
"I know you will," Lucy sighed in relief.
"Lucy, let's go," Panterlily said.
"Let's do this," Levy high fived her friend.
"Wish you luck," Lucy winked at Gajeel before running up after Lily. Lucy watched as the blue haired girl kept up with Gajeel until finally, the trees completely blocked sight of them. Lucy was jogging alongside side Lily, keeping a slow pace for the small - legged friend that ran with her. Lucy slowed down after a few minutes, continued to walk in the same direction of the footpath.
"What are you thinking?" Lily asked her. Lucy frowned.
"I need to check something," Lucy pulled out the lacrima from her pocket and began scanning through her friends. Sure enough some battles had begun. Gray and Juvia encountered Hibiki, Gajeel and Levy were with Ren, Natsu and Happy were with Milliana and finally, Cana and Bixlow were battling it out with Eve.
"Just as I thought..." Lucy whispered.
"What is it?" Lily asked in confusion.
"All the weakeast mages have been encountered because the path is the shortest for them. This allows some distance for another cross over battle later before reaching the S - Class mages," Lucy began mumbling. "That means we're on the longest path, heading straight towards one of the dragon slayers," Lucy finished her sentence. Lily gulped, understanding Lucy's logic.
"Who are we hoping to encounter, Sting or Rogue?" Lily asked, looking about at the short haired girl.
"Sting," Lucy explained.
"Why?"
"Rogue can disappear like a shadow so your magic would be useless against him," Lucy explained. Lily nodded his head in agreement, understanding Lucy's logic. Finally, the path began to clear up into a large opening. Lucy felt nervous as she approached it, knowing exactly who was standing on the other side.
"Well look who it is," the blonde haired dragon slayer laughed. "If it isn't Lucky Lucy Heartfilia," he smirked. Lucy smiled at him.
"You have no idea," she grinned. They stood on opposite edges of the field, a wild grin on Sting, his arms crossed tightly against his chest.
"You think you can beat me, Blondie?" Sting asked with a sly smile. Lucy grimaced.
"You do know you're blonde too... Blondie..."
"Lucy, what's the plan?" Lily asked, prepared to transform.
"We attack him at the same time, let's put him on the defense straight away," Lucy said. Sting's smile widened, hearing the plan even from across the large distance.
"Let's go!" Lily said, transforming into his large cat form, a sword in his hand. He began running at Sting, swinging back his sword.
"Gate of the bull, Gate of the Scorpion, I open thee... Taurus, Scorpio!" Lucy swung her keys, summoning her spirits.
"Moooooo! Protect Lucy's body!" Taurus bellowed.
"Alright!" Scorpio cheered.
"Let's take him out!" Lucy ordered, pointing to Sting who was dodging Pantherlily's attacks. Performing a Unison Raid, the two spirits used their weapons and joined forces. Scorpio's sand blast built up in Taurus's axe as he swung it effortlessly at the dragon slayer. Between Taurus and Lily, Sting was having a hard time dodging these attacks.
"Gate of the Twins, Gemini!" Lucy screamed, summoning the twins. "Do what you have to do," Lucy told them.
"Piri Piri," the two blue figurines formed together and with a poof of white spoke, they turned into Erza Scarlet. Sting noticed this from the corner of his eye.
"What the hell?" Sting gasped as the red haired mage ran up to help Lily and Taurus, swinging their blades and swords about violently. Sting's arms and legs were already cut and bruised. Having three strong opponents fight him at the same time was beyond unfair and crazy. Sting swung his head around.
However, if I defeat Lucy, Gemini, Taurus and Scorpio won't be here anymore.
Sting dodged one of Lily's attacks and ducked under Tauru's swinging axe.
"White Dragon's Roar!" a white laser was aimed directly at the celestial mage.
"Lucy!" Pantherlily gasped, unable to stop the dragon slayer in time. The laser moved with alarming speed, hitting directly the spot where Lucy was once. Once the light and explosion settled, there was no one to be seen.
"What...?" Lily took a step back. "Lucy?"
"Hey there," Lucy's voice ran from above. A cloaked person jumped from above Sting, landing a punch straight into his face. Sting jumped back, landing on his knees, rubbing the side of cheek painfully.
"Fuck," he spat blood out. "How did you...?"
"Dodge it?" Lucy raised her eyebrow playfully, crunching her knuckles. "You just need to be faster than light," she joked. Sting smirked and rose up from his stance.
"Alright Lucy, you pass," Sting said. Lily lowered his sword, eyeing the blonde suspiciously. "You'll waste a lot of magical power having three gates open for so long, but if we continued this fight, you'd probably be able to defeat me," he explained his thoughts.
Pantherlily poofed in the air and transformed back into a normal cat. Lucy smiled, a small trickle of sweat on her forehead. Her three gates closed and she loosened her stance.
"Tell me how you managed to use someone as powerful as Erza," Sting asked.
"I only used Erza as a human being," Lucy began telling him. "I didn't use Erza in her magical form. Just Erza alone with a swinging sword is scary enough," Lucy explained.
"True that," Sting agreed. "Titania is one hell of a mage."
"Sting... why didn't you use white drive?" Lucy asked.
"We aren't allowed to. If you used something that powerful that's like trying to defeat two S - Class mages one right after the other," Sting shrugged.
"Right," Lucy straightened up. Pantherlily walked up to her.
"That was really amazing Lucy, summoning three spirits at the same time and... you dodged..." Lily didn't know what to say. Lucy smiled.
"Yeah, but I saw it coming. As soon as Sting realized I summoned three spirits, his target was me," Lucy told him.
"But still..."
"Don't think too much on it," Lucy dismissed him. "I need to get going," Lucy sighed. She took out her Lacrima ball to see how everyone got on. Freed and Evergreen were still fighting against Rogue. Levy and Gajeel had defeated Ren and now were facing off with Cana and Bixlow.
"That must mean Natsu is going to go head to head with Gray..." Lucy sighed.
"And Juvia," Lily added. "Lucy, you're on your own now."
"I know, thanks for your help," Lucy smiled, bending down to his level. "I told you I chose the right partner for this job."
"Be careful Lucy," Pantherlily warned her before she rose up and walked on. Sting and Pantherlily watched as Lucy continued on her path. She didn't run or jog, taking her time and checking up on her fellow team mates. Evergreen and Freed were defeated by Rogue. Gajeel had defeated Cana and Bixlow completely on his own, with Levy feeding him Iron every now and then. Gray and Juvia were facing off against Natsu. Lucy's heart began to flutter as an opening began to appear in front of her. Who was it going to be? The demon Mirajane? The almighty Titania? The perverted Laxus? Or the all-powerful Gildarts?
Once the opening widened, Lucy felt a stab to her heart and back at the same time.
"Laxus," she whispered, unable to contain the disappointment. She wished she could have avoided him.
"Hey Blondie," Laxus smirked, standing at the centre of the field. "Didn't I tell you, I knew this outcome would happen," he had an odd smirk about him. Lucy walked closer to the field and stopped in her tracks, disappointment and anger filled up her expressions.
"Don't get so worried," Laxus said. "I'll go easy on you," he smiled.
"Don't bet on it," Lucy gritted through her teeth.
"What you going to do? Summon your spirits simultaneously and attack me?" he asked. It meant he watched the battle she had with Sting.
"It won't work on you," Lucy pointed out. "You can strike lightning any time you want from anywhere," Lucy continued. "I need to keep moving with you, never stoping," Lucy explained her opinion and tactics with her foe.
"That's smart," Laxus leaned back on his heels. "You know, that's one thing you have going for you... you're smart," he said, a sudden change of expression in his voice. Lucy frowned. Was he messing around with her? Reading her expression, Laxus sighed. "No I was giving you a genuine compliment," he explained.
"Whatever," Lucy gritted through her teeth. "Let's just get on with this show please."
There was a lingering silence between them for a very long time until finally, Laxus made the first move. He swung his jacket off his shoulder, lightning bolts beginning to form around him. Lucy pulled out a key, preparing to open a gate.
Levy, Gajeel, Freed, Evergreen, Master, Cana, Bixlow, Levy and Juvia all watched intenstly as Lucy was the first mage to face the S - Class wizard.
"Wait a second," Levy gasped. "Her key... it's..."
"Bronze," Juvia finished the sentence, watching the match.
"Are you ready, Lucy?" Laxus grinned.
"Gate of the Shield, Scutum!" Lucy roared out. Suddenly there was a poof of spoke. Laxus watched patiently, waiting for some sort of magic being to appear.
Nothing.
Instead something did appear, but not human. Lucy stood the way she had before. There was a massive sword that she held in her hand, it's pointy end buried in the ground. The sword was a little longer than she was and just as wide as Lucy herself. The sword looked ragged and out of shape, as if it could detach into several different swords if needed be.
"Well this is different," Laxus watched, his eyes narrowed. "I don't understand, this isn't a spirit."
"This is a spirit," Lucy said. "This is spirit of the shield... though it acts as both, a weapon and a shield, if I'm strong enough to wield it. There are three colours to the keys. Gold representing the zodiac, silver, the other spirits and finally bronze - the items. These are weapons or items that have magical energy but can never take on a human form," Lucy explained to him.
"Are you going to tell me you can lift that sword? It's so heavy most of it is buried in the ground," Laxus pointed out. Lucy smirked, pulling up the sword from the ground as if it was weightless.
"Those who are blessed by the spirit king are given permission to wield these weapons," Lucy muttered. She pointed the sword at him.
Laxus placed his hands deep in his pockets as Lucy's threatening stance continued.
"Are you sure you don't want to take the bet back?" Lucy asked. Laxus struggled to hold back laughter.
"No princess, I ain't taking the bet back," and with that statement he took his hands out of his pockets. "Resounding through the air, the roar of thunder..."
"Laxus is going to destroy Lucy in one go!" Evergreen gasped.
"What is he thinking? He's going to kill her!" Freed exclaimed.
"...plunge from the heavens and reap destruction!" A large ball of yellow and blue lightning shot from the sky, aiming straight for Lucy. The explosion was huge, vibrating under the feet of the viewers all the way at the beach. Natsu had just returned to join them after defeating Gray and Mirajane.
"Hey guys, look, I'm S - Class!" Natsu laughed.
"Shut up Natsu," Master muttered, watching the lacrima ball in worry.
The dust settled and Lucy wasn't there anymore. Everyone who was watching gasped, tears beginning to form in Levy's eyes. "Did... she...?"
"Peek a boo," Lucy whispered, directly behind Laxus. She swung her sword with full strength, just barely grazing his waist.
"Shit," Laxus jumped out of the way, landed on his knee, staring up. "You did that move again..." Laxus hissed, recalling the exact same thing that happened with Sting. Lucy put a hand on her hip, a wide smirk on her face.
"Dragon slayers... you go about thinking because you have so much power, you're the strongest ones of all. Idiots. Your attacks are all about power and size. Take that away, they are huge, blinding and predictable," she told him.
"I was right about you... you really are smart," Laxus dusted his pants.
"How did Lucy..." Bixlow was completely blown away.
"Come on Lucy, kick his ass!" Natsu cheered.
Lucy swung her sword over her shoulder, placing it on her neck. The weight alone looked like it could chop her neck in half. It didn't. Lucy stood there with a wide grin. Laxus straightened up.
"This fight is going to be much simpler," he sighed. "I can't defeat you with magic so instead... I'll defeat you with brute force." And with that, Laxus launched himself at Lucy, punches and kicks flying from sideways and above. Lucy managed to defend all of them with her massive sword, but was definitely struggling. Laxus's punches were equipped with lightning, forcing the power to increase. Laxus finally managed to land a punch into Lucy's stomach. She jumped in the air, landing on a branch above him.
"Fuck," Lucy hissed, spitting out blood from her mouth. The electrical current was still tingling around her. Lucy was beginning to feel her magical power draining. The Scutum demanded a lot of magical power to keep it's gate open. If Lucy was going to do something, she needed to do it soon. Lucy pulled out a golden key, ready to summon someone from the zodiac. Laxus watched carefully.
"Gate of the Lion, Leo!" Lucy bellowed and from the magical circle appeared Loke, dressed in a fine black suit.
"Laxus," Loke smiled comically at the mage.
"Long time no see, ladies man," Laxus smirked. Lucy jumped down from the tree, walking beside Loke.
"We need to go at this together," Lucy told him. "Use Regulus to distract him as much as possible," Lucy ordered. She knew Laxus heard everything, that is what she was counting on anyway. "Let's go!"
Lucy ran towards Laxus and began waving the humongous sword around, slashing it like she wanted to kill him. Loke's Regulus Impact did distract Laxus, enough for Lucy to get close. Laxus dodged their attacks, using sheer force to push Lucy back. Then suddenly he grabbed Lucy's wrist and swung her around, pinging her back against his chest. Loke was about to attack but froze, knowing he'd hit Lucy instead of Laxus.
"Remind you of last night?" Laxus whispered seductively in her ear. Lucy grunted, kicking his shin and swinging her sword around. Laxus laughed as Lucy jumped beside Loke, catching her breath back.
"Loke go back," Lucy ordered, and he obeyed.
"Lucy... the things we can accomplish if we're together," Laxus continued laughed. Lucy grimaced.
"You disgust me."
"Sweetheart, sex is natural. If it disgusts you to sleep with me, perhaps you're into something like your blue haired best friend... what's her name... Levy?" the corner's of his mouth curled up. Lucy made a mocking vomiting sound.
"What's with this sudden character? I thought you were the good guy?" Lucy asked, narrowing her eyes.
"Let's just put it this way. Yes, I'm a good guy. I love my grandfather and I respect all guild members. However, I've always horsed around," he explained to her, playing with a ball of lightning in his hand, bouncing it up and down. "Understand this. I am a man with desires. You've always being good looking but never the right character. You were always too nice and too sweet," he shrugged, rolling back on his heels, continuing to bounce the ball in his hand. "I like this new Lucy. Angry, sexy, passionate..."
"Stop messing with me," Lucy spat.
"Hey, I'm a man of desires," he told her, glaring a little. "What's wrong with desiring you?"
"Here I come," Lucy was done with his crap. She swung the sword angrily at him, punching and weaving it around, letting out a battle cry. Lucy was bouncing around like a feather, spinning at Laxus from all angles, her sword being used in different ways. Sometimes she'd attack, other times defended. Then she would even it by pushing the sword into the ground and using the handle to support some enhanced kicks and flips. Laxus was defending with ease, keeping up with Lucy's flexibility. He was having the time of his life.
Gajeel had also returned from the battle with Erza, watching the match intently.
"They're fighting ability is on par," Gray gasped.
"This is incredible," Evergreen murmured in agreement.
"Fuck," Lucy cursed when she didn't manage to dodge one of Laxus's kicks and fell on her back to the ground. Her sword disappeared going back to the spirit world. Lucy's chest heaved in and out, trying to catch her breath and stop the painful throbbing she felt in her face from the powerful kick. Laxus put his hands in his pockets, smirking.
"It's okay to loose princess. Heck you cut me and bruised me plenty, I say that's impressive already," he muttered. "Just give up now and I'll take it easy on you when we're alone together."
"SHUT UP!" Lucy growled, getting slowly up. Laxus watched in surprise as she grunted and moaned up onto her feet. She grabbed her cloak and tore it off, letting the wind take it away as it pleased.
"You don't have much magical power left," Laxus pointed out. "It's the biggest flaw of being a celestial mage."
Lucy gave him wicked grin. She closed her eyes, straightening her body up and looked to sky. Suddenly, there was a bright white light forming around Lucy, blinding Laxus's vision. Layers and layers of yellow magical circles formed on top of her, dozens upon dozens as if they reached right up to the heavens. He tried to see what the mage was up to but couldn't keep his eyes on her, the light was that blinding. When the light disappeared, Lucy was gone again. Laxus's eyes darted everywhere, trying to spot her.
"You loose," she whispered from behind.
Again?
Laxus wasn't prepared for the attack from Lucy. She had kicked him in the face, sending him stumbling back.
"Scutum!" Lucy screamed, summoning the sword back to her side. "Let's end this," she gritted through her teeth, and jumped in the air, the sword swirling.
"Grant me the power to wield thy shield..." Laxus stared at the dark figure above him. He sensed her magical energy had returned completely back to normal. How in the world was that possible? Was that what that bright light was? Some sort of recharge spell? "Give me aid from thy neighbors..." Lucy continued the chant in mid air. "Aquila, Sagittarius, Serpens and Cauda! Exitium!" Lucy swung down the sword, landing it directly over Laxus. A huge explosion occured with fire and smoke filling up the air.
"What was that?!" Natsu yelled.
"Did you see that?" Pantherlily gasped.
The smoke slowly settled and sand fell down to the ground. Lucy was using the sword as support, unable to stand up without it's aid. She was breathing heavily, gasping for air like she was under water for a very long time. Her sword disappeared, unable to keep it's gate open. Lucy feel to her knees, wheezing and coughing for air.
Laxus lay on the ground, flat on his back looking up at the sky.
"What... was that?" he managed to say. Lucy was unable to reply for a while as she too lay down on the ground, trying to catch her breath.
"Exitium... a massive destruction spell..." Lucy gasped.
"You were trying... to... kill me?" Laxus managed to say it, despite being out of breath and in horrible pain himself. His clothes were torn and his bruises were visible all over his body.
"Just a little," Lucy giggled but her laughter turned into severe coughing. Finally she stopped, able to catch her breathe and lay down on the ground, looking up at the sky.
"So... a draw," Lucy spoke. The others from the beach we're probably on their way.
"Yeah... a draw," Laxus said, watching as some black birds flew over head. "That means I buy you an apartment... and have sex in it with you," he smirked, looking at her face. She was lying only a meter and a bit away from him. Lucy laughed. It was a genuine laugh that Laxus had never heard before from her. Laxus smiled, watching as the girl began tearing up a little.
"How about we call a truce," she suggested. She looked at him stretching out her hand to him, still lying down on the ground. "How about we just call each other friends?" Lucy suggested.
Laxus stared bewildered into the eyes of the celestial mage. The shining glowing hint in her eyes... that was Lucy. The Lucy he recognized from before seven months ago. Kind, sweet, friendly... and brave. That's right. Lucy didn't change. It was her bravery and courage that changed. She became more daring and powerful in ways he only wished to find out.
Laxus took hold her hand, and with a lazy shake, he grunted "friends."