Burning Hearts of Fairies

by Jacob Pendra-Huth

The story surrounds itself around the story of Fairy Tail, where four individuals from the western continent in order to seek out the man named Salamander. Palva, Dori, Leon and Pastry all meet up with the man in order to help Palva, who possesses uncontrollable flames inside of her, while they will find answers they seek, and a place where they belong.

10. The Vengeance of Fire and Sisters!

PREVIOUSLY ON FAIRY TAIL:
Fairy Tail's rival guild, Phantom Lord, was prepared to destroy all of Magnolia with a giant Abyss Break spell, so Natsu, Palva and a few others had to find a way to stop it from happening. Leon, Elfman and Pastry all worked together against one of the Element 4, Sol of the Earth, and nearly defeated them with the usage of Elfman's memories of how he killed his younger sister, Lisanna. However, after witnessing Mirajane anguish after begin trapped by Phantom Lord's giant, Elfman master the Full-Body Take Over: Beast Soul, laying some punishment on Sol before Leon send him crashing through the giant to the ground, and saving Mirajane.

Meanwhile, Gray and Palva encountered Juvia the Rain Woman of the Element 4, who seemed entranced by Gray and considered Palva a love rival. Despite the confusion, Gray and Palva were at a disadvantage with Juvia's rain and her scalding water created by her rage. However, her rage caused her to relinquish Palva of her Dragonic Fang, unleashing her raging flames against her. Her rage against Juvia's gloomy rain caused Palva to defeat her, and almost kill her had it not been for Gray giving her back her lance.
Now, only one of the Element 4 remain, and through Mirajane and Dori's deductions, they learn they are the source to stopping the giant. And for Natsu, Dori and Happy, they managed to discover him; Aria, the strongest of the Element 4.

---

Back on top of the giant, Gray was crouching next to Juvia and Palva, the former unconscious and the latter barely conscious and breathing heavily. He looked back at Palva, recounting how she suddenly went ballistic in her battle against Juvia.

'When she was fighting her at the beginning, it looked like Palva was just like Natsu whenever he got really pissed off.' Gray recalled, 'However, she suddenly started to change as the fight went on, as if she was no longer herself anymore. She said that she loses her sanity when she gets angry, but it seemed more than that. It was like she was becoming a completely different person. Do Dori, Leon and Pastry know about this?'

"Gray!" "Palva!" a group of voices. The said mage turned to see Elfman, Leon, Pastry and surprisingly Mirajane racing towards him. "Elfman, Leon, Pastry." He noticed, then added, "Wait, why's Mira here, too?"

As soon as the group arrived, Pastry came down to Palva's side as he demanded, "What happened?! Is she gonna be okay?! Say something, girl!"

"Relax, she's fine." Gray assured him and the others, "She ended up losing control of her magic, but she defeated this other chick." He was indicating Juvia.

"That explains those burn marks." Leon understood, "Based on what I could tell, her flames must've been incredibly intense. How far did she go with her flames?"

"I'll explain it to you later." Gray assured him. He definitely needed to speak about this when Dori was also around.

"It looks like Palva burned through a lot of magical power." Mirajane stated, crouching right next to her, "She looks fatigued, too. Just how powerful could her flames get?

"Man, she must've had one hell of a manly fight." Elfman stated.

"That's not even close to accurate, since they are both female." Pastry corrected him.

"Well, in any case, there's only one left." Mirajane pointed out, "If we defeat the last of the Element 4, that will stop the Abyss Break."

"Mirajane figured it out. The Giant is powered by the Element 4." Elfman explained.

"We can do this, right guys?!" Mirajane declared, to which they nodded in response, and looked to the giant magic circle. Compared to how they saw it before, the giant's hand was moving much slower than before, meaning Mirajane's hypothesis on defeating the Element 4 was correct.

"Fire, water, wind, and earth." Gray listed.

"Just like Mirajane said. The giant is powered by the Element 4." Elfman stated.

"Since fire, earth and water are out of the way, that leaves wind." Pastry deduced, turning to Mirajane, "Any idea who that might be?"

"The final one is Aria of the Great Sky." she answered, "He's the strongest of the Element 4, and he's the one who took the master's magical power! He's a fearsome opponent."

"Porlyusica said that the magic spell was a Wind spell, Drain." Leon recalled, "That's the one spell we can't get touched by. Anything else we should be worried about?"

"Yes. His eyes." Mirajane added in.

"What about his eyes?" Gray asked her.

"Aria usually has his eyes closed." she explained, "By closing his eyes, he suppresses the overwhelming magical power he possesses, it seems."

"So it's all in his eyes?" Elfman asked.

"That's right. So when we find him, we need to defeat him before he opens them up." Mirajane instructed them, "If he does open them, you might lose any chance at victory."

Gray and Elfman looked worried, while Leon looked down at Palva, pondering. He could think of someone else who also restrains her magic for when it's necessary.

"Anyways, let's get moving. The sooner the better." Mirajane told the team.

"I'll carry Palva with us." Leon told them, "We can't have her here by herself, especially in her helpless state."

"Right. If someone else from Phantom Lord comes and sees her, they will surely take her in." Pastry stated, "Let's make sure no one does that." Gray, Elfman and Mirajane all nodded in agreement. It was part of the reason why they were fighting in the first place.

---

Back inside the large room, an explosion took place, and Dori and Natsu skidded backwards from Aria, who somehow remained uninjured by their attacks. Both of them were panting and slightly injured, but otherwise still able to continue.

"You've taken my attacks, and are still standing." Aria stated, "Very impressive."

'What's with this guy?!' Happy questioned, 'I've never seen Natsu in such a one-sided fight. Even Dori's fighting with him, and they're still not able to damage him.'

"Why you…!" Natsu barked, racing towards Aria with a flaming fist. "Natsu, hold on!" Dori shouted at him, but too late.

"Let's see how you fair against my Airspace magic." Aria declared, placing his palms in front of him in a formation, creating an invisible force of wind magic.

"I don't see any Airspace magic!" Natsu barked, but he ended up slamming into an invisible wall that sent him reeling backwards. He flipped back onto his feet again, but he

"An invisible magic?!" Happy exclaimed. "I knew it. Airspace magic allows a user to manipulate the airspace around an environment." Dori explained, "It's invisible, so it makes it difficult to see or even detect easily. This guy's pretty good at using it."

"So you can still stand, Salamander?" Aria questioned.

"I can take whatever you dish out." Natsu growled, "Never underestimate the power of a Fairy Tail mage. I'm all fired up now!"

"Natsu, calm yourself!" Dori ordered him, "You can't beat him if you let him get to you!"

"Airspace Seven!" Aria shouted, creating a magic circle with his palm. Suddenly, multiple blasts of air suddenly blew up from around Natsu and Dori, causing the two to be sent flying in pain, but both skidded to a halt on their feet.

"Are you alright?!" Happy asked Dori, who stood right next to him.

"No worries." she answered, "In fact, I'm done testing him out." Happy seemed surprised at this. She was only testing him out.

"As far as I can tell, he's holding back his magic." Dori stated quietly, "I bet it has to do something with that blindfold that's suppressing it."

"He's holding back his magic, and he's this strong?!" Happy questioned, "Then we stand no chance at beating him!"

"I told you not to worry." Dori repeated, "In fact, I have an idea. I need to get a hit in before he unleashes his magic at full power, but I need to wait until he's vulnerable. I'm gonna need your help in this, Happy." The cat was confused at this. What could he possible be able to do against a guy like this?

"There's always someone better, young dragon…" Aria told Natsu, who was giving a struggling glare.

"Then how about this!" Natsu barked, producing his own magic circle, "Fire Dragon's Roar!" He blasted flames from his mouth at Aria, who suddenly vanished before they hit him.

"He disappeared!" Happy exclaimed. "No. He's moving through the airspace!" Dori corrected him.

Natsu looked about, wondering where he went to. Suddenly, he heard Aria's voice echo, "I shall end this with a gift, Salamander. Let me give you the same suffering I gave to Makarov, along with the girl, as well…"

He suddenly appeared right behind Natsu, who turned to see him chant, "Airspace: Drain!" Dori's eyes flashed at this as two magic circles encased Natsu, and he started screaming in pain as he felt his magic starting to be pulled from his body. At the same time, Aria started to cry as he balled, "So sad! No matter the mage, inside this airspace, their magic power will empty!"

"Crystal Launcher!" Dori shouted, slamming the ground and forming a magic circle. A platform of crystal suddenly came underneath Natsu's feet, and launched him high into the air, out of range of the magic. He stopped screaming in pain as he squinted to see what Dori had done. Aria also turned to her, realizing she had stopped him from draining Natsu of his magic.

"Let me end this guy, Natsu!" Dori declared, "Happy, let's fly!" Happy hesitated a bit, but decided to give it a shot as he grabbed her by the back, produced his wings, and sent her airborne.

"It's pointless. Even high in the air, I can still attack you." Aria warned her, "Airspace: Seven!" At this, Dori closed her eyes, and she started to sense the wind gathering in certain pockets around her. "Move back!" Dori shouted to Happy, and the flying blue cat pulled her back just as the air exploded all about them. Some came close, causing the two to jostle in the air, but otherwise remained unscathed.

"We dodged them?!" Happy exclaimed, shocked at how they did that. "How did she do that?!" Natsu gasped.

"Very impressive. You sensed my magic." Aria stated, "Not many are skilled enough to detect it."

"Let's just say you're not the first mage I faced who knew a bit of Airspace magic." Dori stated, curling a fist in front of her, "My turn. Crystal Pinnacle!" She encased her fist in an obelisk of crystal, from her lower arm down, and she raised it at an angle.

"Is that all? Are you planning to attack me with that?" Aria questioned, raising his hands in front of him, "Your crystals will never break through my Airspace, not matter what it is."

"Then how about I introduce you to my next level of magic!" Dori declared, placing her free hand on her crystalized fist, "Lacrima Release: Air!" Her hand suddenly pulsed energy into the crystal, causing it to vibrate and glow as wind started swirling around it. "Crystal Diety: Njord!" she roared, raising the Crystal Pinnacle high, which glowed with a foggy white color as wind surrounded it.

"What the… I never see her do that!" Natsu gasped quietly as he landed on the side. Aria even seemed intrigued by this sudden new technique.

"My magic doesn't just revolve around crystals, but lacrima, too." Dori explained, "By imbuing my crystals with different kinds of lacrima, I can create all kinds of techniques. And guess what? My bodies chalk-full of all kinds of lacrima I've absorbed thought the years!"

She unleashed a blast of wind with a thrust of her fist, causing a cyclone to shoot out at Aria. He created a shield in front of him with his Airspace magic, stopping the attack from hitting him. However, as the wind blew over, Dori suddenly appeared through the wind, directly in front of Aria. He was startled at this as she reeled her fist back, and sent it forward. Instead of the shield blocking it, she ended up punching him hard in the gut, and causing a blast of wind to follow through, sending him flying backwards into the staircase, where he crashed.

"You got him!" Happy stated, shocked at how she went through his barrier.

"Airspace is a powerful offense and defense magic, but it can only sustain a form for so long." Dori stated, "He can only unleash the airspaces in short pulses. That's what I was testing; to see how long he could sustain his attacks."

Now it all made sense to Natsu and Happy. When she said she was testing him, she meant the longevity of his attacks. Now that she knew of his limits, she could stop him.

Suddenly, Aria vanished from the spot he laid, causing everyone but Dori to be concerned. "An amazing deduction. I never once met a mage as wise as you before." Aria stated, "But this is merely a fraction of my power. As sad as it may be, you cannot stand to defeat me. Now, I shall drain you of your magic, just like I was going to do to Salamander."

"Drain…" Dori muttered, quietly waiting. She knew that attack well, as she had seen it used once before on her sister. The results, however, were disastrous.

She suddenly detected a presence behind her, and she didn't need to turn around to know it was Aria, preparing to use Drain on her. "Behind you!" Happy exclaimed. "Watch out!" Natsu roared.

Dori was well prepared to counter him, but before either side attack, someone came in with a flying kick to Aria, causing him to fall back and use Teleportation to disappear. That person was Erza.

"Erza!" Happy exclaimed. "Wait, she's here?!" Natsu gasped, "But I thought she was too injured to move!"

"Thanks for that, but are you gonna be okay?" Dori asked Erza. She returned her answer by looking at her with a glare, frightening Natsu and Happy. "Guess I'll take that as a yes." the Crystal Mage understood, not afraid of her glare, but knew she was not gonna back down from this fight.

The two ladies suddenly saw Aria reappear on the opposite side of the room, closer to the door. "So you're the one who harmed our master." Erza deduced.

"The great Erza Scarlet?" Aria noticed, grinning, "How sad. For me to have the head of not only Salamander and this young lady, but Titania as well!"

"The only head who's gonna be taken is yours." Dori retorted angrily.

"You're the bastard who laid hands on him. I will avenge him!" Erza growled. Natsu and Happy could only watch the two ladies, worried for Erza, but also knew Dori was there right with her. If anything, he could tell the two were gonna put the hurt on him. His thoughts were halted slightly when he heard Aria chuckle.

"I have seen the power of you, young lady." Aria told Dori, "But since I get to face Erza, the I suppose I have no choice but to fight seriously!" He reached up and removed his blindfold, opening his eyes, revealing maroon pupils, which suddenly transformed into a partner like a circle with an X through it. Immediately, the team in the room could feel the increase in pressure as Aria's magic suddenly rose to another level.

Suddenly, Dori sensed another powerful surge of magic, coming from outside. She turned to where she sensed it, and figured out what it was. 'Crap! The Abyss Break spell is about to fire!' she realized.

"Now come, ladies." Aria taunted, and a surge of wind started to surge around him intensely, "Step into Airspace of Death, Zero! This airspace will consume all life within it!" The wind intensified, consuming everyone, and sending Natsu and Happy flying backwards. Erza and Dori, on the other hand, were unfazed by it, but were angered by this attack.

"Magic that consumes life?!" Erza growled, summoning a sword to her hand, "How can you take people's lives so easily?!"

"People like you who enjoy using magic to kill are the people I hate the most!" Dori growled, stomping the ground, and summoning a slab of crystal with a sword-shaped piece of crystal on top, "You are the scum that needs to learn their place!" She dislodged the sword from the crystal plinth, and released her Crystal Pinnacle, causing the wind energy to transfer to her blade instead.

"Now, let's enjoy this!" Aria calmly stated, his eyes glowing red. "Erza! Dori!" Natsu shouted to the two inside the vortex.

"I'll cut a path for you, Erza!" Dori declared, charging ahead of Erza as they dashed through the attack to Aria.

"Can you withstand this Airspace?!" Aria questioned, and he unleashed a powerful force of airspace and small specks of light at the two. Dori was not even phased as she placed both hands on her crystal sword, and tightened her grip as she transferred more wind lacrima magic into it. Suddenly, the blade became encased in a green hue as the magic energy started to look like a chainsaw blade encasing the sword. She roared as she spun around and unleashed a pair of slashes, sending the energy flying in an X-shape as it cut cleanly through the attack, immediately dissipating it.

"Impossible!" Aria gasped, shocked at what had just happened, "She slashed through my Airspace so easily?!"

"You like death so much, then here comes yours!" Dori roared, "Erza!" Erza responded by leaping upwards, glowing as she Requipped into a new armor. "Heaven's Wheel!" she shouted, taking on said armor as she cross-slashed right past Aria, followed swiftly by several dozen swords that rained down on him afterwards, "Blumenblatt!" Aria roared in agony as he took the full blast of the attack, falling to one side, defeated. Erza landed gracefully to the ground again, turning to Dori, who nodded in acknowledgement for her victory.

"They both took him down so easily!" Happy exclaimed. "They're both dangerous, that's for sure!" Natsu added fearfully.

"The likes of you should never have been able to beat the Master." Erza told Aria, turning to him with a glare, "You will only be remembered as a sobbing coward who fell by our hands."

"The only thing you had the advantage in was the element of surprise, and that's all." Dori added, glaring angrily at him, "Otherwise, you're totally pathetic. Death is too good for you."

"That's…so sad…" he moaned, and he went unconscious. At the same time, Dori sensed the magic energy outside dissipate. The Abyss Break was stopped completely. The Element 4 was defeated.

Suddenly, the ground started to shake around them, and they felt as if they were falling towards the ground. "Wha-wha-what's going on?!" Happy exclaimed, holding to the ground with one paw.

Dori knew, but couldn't say, for she was growing weak. She used a lot of magic energy in this fight, and it took its' toll on her. Evidently, Erza was also feeling the strain, for she had not fully recovered from Jupiter before this. She glowed as she went into normal garments, and started to fall backwards, while Dori fell down to her hands and knees. Natsu dashed in just in time to save Erza from falling on her back entirely.

"Erza! Hold on!" Natsu told her, worried for her and Dori, who he turned to and asked, "You okay, Dori?!"

"Looks like…the Element 4 was defeated…" the Crystal mage moaned, looking up at Natsu, "They can't power the giant anymore…"

---

In another area close to their position, Leon and Gray's team were gathered together, looking about as they could feel the area shake, while the ground seemed to fall underneath them. Leon was holding Palva in a piggyback position, wrapping her arms around his neck and holding them in front with her Dragonic Fang.

"What the…?!" Elfman gasped. "Is this Natsu and Dori's doing?!" Gray questioned.

"It sounds like something powering down." Leon listened.

"They did it!" Mirajane cheered, "The Abyss Break is terminated!"

"If that's the case, then someone defeated the final member of the Element 4!" Pastry realized, looking ahead, "Way to go, Dori, Natsu!"

"Let's go meet up with them!" Gray suggested, "Any idea where they could be?"

Suddenly, Leon could hear Palva weak cries as she was waking up again. She was trying to say something. "Palva, you waking up?" he asked her, turning to her as she slowly opened her eyes. Everyone gathered around, grateful to see her wake up, but wondering what she was trying to say.

"Two…two floors…up…" she moaned, "Straight…ahead…Natsu…"

"Is she telling us where he is?" Elfman asked.

"Gotta be. She's got an amazing sense of smell, especially for special flames." Pastry stated, "If she says he there, then we'd better go find him. Dori and Happy must be with him, too." They all nodded in agreement, and took off to where Palva directed them.

---

In the control center, José stood there, gritting his teeth in anger. "Impossible…" he growled, "Those pieces of trash from Fairy Tail managed to take out the entire Element 4?!" Some of the guild mages behind him were terrified at their master's anger.

"Where is Gajeel?!" he demanded, turning to the others.

"Well, the truth is…we don't know where he is…" a spiky-haired mage answered fearfully.

"I'm right here, Master." said a familiar voice. Gajeel had just entered the room, and he was carrying a limp body in his left arm. It was Lucy.

"If the Element 4 were beaten by trash, that just makes them trash as well." he chuckled, "Guess you should've just sent me out there to take them on in the first place."

"So you've returned, Gajeel." José noticed, "And I see you came bearing a gift."

"Yeah, I picked you up a little something while I was out." Gajeel stated, dropping Lucy onto the ground next to him.

"That was quick." José stated, "But you did an impressive job finding her, Gajeel."

"Never underestimate the nose of a Dragon Slayer." Gajeel answered, rubbing the said body part. The other mages were also shocked at Gajeel's achievement.

"She is still alive, right?" José asked, "She's useless to us if she is dead."

"True, I did rough her up a bit." Gajeel considered, then he grinned as he declared, "Let's find out!" And he kicked Lucy hard in the gut, shocking the mages, excluding José. She was sent flying into the wall, but fell to the ground again, coughing profusely. "Yep! She's alive and kicking!" he snickered, "Though the big guy who was with her might be dead."

The Phantom Lord master mouth contorted into a grin, pleased at these results. "Excellently done, Gajeel." he commended him, "As expected from the strongest man in my entire guild."

He then picked up the PA, ready to declare the news to all those fighting in and out of the giant. "Attention all of you Fairy Tail." he announced, "Please listen carefully to this voice." Gajeel went to Lucy and picked her up by her hair, causing her to scream in agony.

In one area, Elfman gasped, "I know that scream!" "It's Lucy's!" Pastry exclaimed, recognizing it.

"But how did they find the hideout?!" Mirajane questioned.

"We've captured Lucy Heartfilia." José announced, "So we've accomplished one of our objectives. Thus, we have two final goals that remain to be fulfilled. The capture of Palva Himeka, and whipping you off the face of the earth! You worthless Fairy Tail scum!"

He then placed the mike down, and turned to walk out of the room. "Keep an eye on Lucy." he told Gajeel, "There are still a number of bugs still in my guild hall, including our second prize."

"You talking about Salamander and that Pyro Princess?" Gajeel asked.

"Yes, them, and their friends." José answered, "I'll show them there won't be any more miracles. I'll clean them up myself!"

---

Back in the large room, Natsu was still holding Erza in his hands as he furiously looked at where the voice was coming from. "Damn him!" he growled.

"So they got Lucy." Dori grimaced, "Damn it! We didn't even consider them still going after her! How can I be so stupid?!"

"Calm down, Dori." Happy told her, while Natsu looked a bit concerned at her anger.

"It…wasn't your fault…" Erza's weak voice spoke up, and everyone turned to her to see her wake up.

"Erza!" Natsu gasped, worried about her condition.

"We all…were trying to protect…both your sister…and Lucy…" Erza told her, "But…it's not too late to save her…" She turned to Natsu as she continued, "Natsu. Unleash…your power." Natsu seemed startled at what she was asking.

"You have…the power…sleeping within you…" she told him, "Believe in yourself… Break through…and call it forth. Now is the time… Protect Lucy… Protect the guild! Go, Natsu! You're the only one who can surpass me!"

Natsu gritted his teeth. She wanted him to surpass her. She wanted him to protect Lucy, Palva and everyone else in the guild. She was counting on him to surpass the powers he has, and become even stronger. If that's what she wanted, then he had to do it. He had to unlock the full power of his magic.

He placed Erza on her back again as he stood up. Dori and Happy could feel the intense increase in his magic, causing his clothes to flutter like they were in an updraft. His body then glowed with flames, which bursted forth and took on the form of a dragon. He began to roar with rage himself, tapping into every corner of his being, unleashing the full power of his magic.

Erza smiled at this, while Dori was just amazed. Considering she had only seen Palva reach powerful flames such as this before, Natsu was doing the same, and still fully controlling them.

She stepped forward as she told Natsu, "Take this." she concentrated a magic circle in her palm, and in a few seconds, she produced a orb that was glowing hot red. "This fire lacrima should help you if you need it." she told him, "It's filled with a ton of flames."

"I got it." Happy told her, flying to her and taking the orb from her, placing it in his bag.

She turned to Natsu again as she added, "You'd better save Lucy, you hear? Afterwards, you'd better help my sister tap into the power of controlling her flames. I'm counting on you, Natsu Dragneel!"

Natsu looked back at her for a second, then nodded in assurance. "You can count on it, Dori." he answered, then to his partner, he declared, "Let's go, Happy!"

"Aye, sir!" he responded, producing his wings. Natsu unleashed flames at his feet, and rocketed up to the ceiling breaking through it, with Happy following after him.

A minute later, Dori had just settled Erza right next to one of the pillars nearby, sitting herself down next to her. "We should rest up." she told Erza, "I get the feeling the worst isn't over, yet."

"Agreed." Erza stated, "Even if the Element 4 were defeated, we still have to deal with the Iron Dragon Slayer, Gajeel, as well as Master José, who's one of the ten Mage Saints. If we are to fight him, we have to be at our best."

"True. That battle with Aria was a bit rough." Dori stated, looking at the hand she used to make the Crystal Pinnacle, "Using the Crystal Deity spell requires a good bit of my magic. I have to recover from using that."

She then looked to where Aria laid, then back down at her legs, particularly the right one with the longer stocking. She started getting flashbacks to Natsu almost being sucked dry of his magic, then of something that happened five years ago.

"That guy's Drain spell…" she started, getting Erza's attention, "It certainly brought back bad memories."

"What memories are you talking about?" she asked, "Have you seen that spell before?"

Dori nodded, then said, "Five years ago, someone used that spell on my sister. They thought it was the only way of capturing her, and it almost did work. However…"

---

(Flashback) Five years ago, an eleven-year old Dori was sent crashing to the ground, covered in injuries, while surrounded by a group of mages, about ten or so. She looked up to see someone performing the Drain spell on the eight-year old Palva. She was screaming in pain as she felt like her body was being pulled apart by the magic.

"Stop! You're gonna kill her!" Dori exclaimed in horror. She was answered with a foot to the head that sent her face into the ground.

"Shut up, squirt!" the muscular guy pinning her down chuckled, "We're doing you and the whole world a favor by eliminating her magic!"

"Honestly, we don't know why you want to stay with her?" questioned a goggle-wearing mage, "Are you just that stupid to not take advantage of her bounty?! You can't seriously see her as a sister, can you?"

"She's…innocent of her powers." Dori grimaced, "She has no control over it. She needs help!"

"Well then, let us help you out…by taking her magic away from her!" one of the mages taunted, then to the one casting the Drain Spell, he demanded, "Is she finished?!"

"She's almost drained dry." the wind mage answered with a snicker, "Just a few more…" He then suddenly noticed something strange about Palva. Her screams of agony were starting to change. They became as if they were roars of a demonic beast. Her body was no longer flailing, but tense. Her hands started to flex like they were claws ready to slash.

"Hey, what gives?" one of the guys demanded, "She's suppose to be weak at this point!"

"I don't know!" the wind mage answered in shock, "She should be lifeless at this point! I don't get what's going on!"

Palva's eyes suddenly glowed a red hue as she turned to the wind mage in fury, and in a couple seconds, the guy was suddenly sent flying by a powerful force, crashing into the stone wall nearby, and breaking through it. He laid on his back, unconscious.

All the other mages were stepping back in horror as Dori looked up, seeing her younger sister standing there, her magic energy returning to her, and her body igniting in flames. "YOU…SHALL NOT TAKE MY MAGIC!" she roared, and she charged at the group like a demon ready to kill. (Flashback ends)

---

Erza was in shock at what she had just described the situation back then. "Never in my life did I ever see my sister act that way before." Dori explained, "It was like she was no longer human. She killed every one of those mages like it was nothing. And…" She rolled down her right stocking leg, and Erza gasped as she saw a long, deep scar that ran down her entire calf.

"My sister didn't even know what she was doing. She lost control of all sanity, and took a good bit out of me." Dori told her, "I barely brought her back by giving back her Dragonic Fang. But what happened that day…was not normal. I don't know what it was, but I believe that might be the result of her uncontrolled magic. I can only hope, after all this is done, that Natsu can help find out what it is."

Erza looked down, wondering. She knew of Natsu's rage quite well, and at times, he did strike in an uncontrolled manner. But this felt like a completely different level of rage she had not heard of. She should've been completely helpless against the Drain spell, but something else awoken inside of her as a result. Was it the rage of her Dragon Slayer magic? Or was it something more?

"Erza!" "Dori!" shouted a group of voices. Dori rolled up her stocking as the two girls saw Gray, Elfman, Leon, Mirajane, Pastry and the barely conscious Palva racing into the room.

"Guys, you're all here." Dori stated, then looked shocked at the sight of her sister on Leon's back. She stood up and demanded, "Palva! What happened to her?!"

"Ask Gray. He would know." Leon answered, turning to the Ice-Make mage.

"Looks like there were some fireworks here, too." Elfman noticed, looking at the carnage in the room.

"Are the two of you okay?" Pastry asked Dori. "We're fine. No need to worry about either one of us." Dori assured him, "Natsu and Happy went on ahead to save Lucy."

"Whoa!" Elfman gasped, drawing the attention of the others towards the unconscious Element 4 member.

"That's Aria!" Mirajane gasped. "Crap, his blindfold is removed, too!" Pastry pointed out.

"You got shot by that cannon, and still fought this guy?!" Elfman asked Erza.

"What were you thinking on letting her fight?!" Gray asked Dori.

"I could've taken him myself, but Erza insisted getting revenge for the Master." the Crystal mage explained, "Nevertheless, we managed to defeat him together."

"The two of you defeated Aria?" Mirajane asked her.

"Well, Happy helped me in one attack that made its' mark, so give a bit of credit to him, too." Dori added.

Erza smiled at the group as she stated, "I really didn't want you to see me in such a weak state. Guess I have a long way to go."

"Weak? Far from it. You're amazingly strong, Erza." Leon commended her.

Pastry looked down at her as Dori helped her onto her feet. 'Yeah. You share the same stubbornness as her.' he added mentally.

"Sis…" moaned Palva, reawakening again.

Dori turned to her and, with a sweet smile, she asked, "How are you feeling, Palva? Doing okay?"

Palva whimpered a bit, but she answered, "Sorry, sis… I got really angry again, and…"

Dori's smile vanished in replace of an expression of concern. "I see. That explains it." she understood, turning to Gray, "She lost her sanity in the fight, didn't she?" Erza looked to Gray, reminding herself of what Dori had just told her about the incident before.

"Yeah. She got pretty ticked and almost killed one of the Element 4." Gray answered, "I gave her back her Dragonic Fang before she followed through with that."

"I see…" Dori answered, sighing in relief, "Well, we can consider this a close call…"

Suddenly, the pressure around the area suddenly changed. It became cold, and dreading. The group stirred in fear and/or concern as they felt it.

"What's that?" Gray question in shock. "This is…!" Mirajane gasped.

"I sense death!" Erza described. "This ain't a good feeling at all!" Pastry shivered.

"Leon, ready yourself!" Dori ordered, not afraid, but prepared to fight. "Got it!" he answered, prepared to protect Palva.

"What is this feeling?!" Gray asked fearfully.

"I'm super manly, and it give me chills!" Elfman described.

"The malice is truly potent." Leon added.

Dori sensed the direction of where the pressure was coming from, and turned to the top of the staircase. "There!" she shouted, drawing everyone's attention.

The team heard a slow round of applause from that direction, and saw, coming into the room, the man that was causing the pressure.

"Bravo. You are very impressive, my Fairy Tail mages…" he told the group, "To think I would be able to have such fun. I never would have dreamed it. You destroyed Jupiter, defeated the Element 4, and even brought my Magic Giant to its' knees!"

"Master José!" Erza growled. "So this is the guy, huh?" Dori questioned. Indeed she could feel the intensity of his magic from where she stood.

"He's Phantom Lord's master?!" Gray gasped.

"Dang, I already got goosebumps from what he was emanating!" Pastry stated, cowering behind Mirajane.

"What incredible evil magical power!" Mirajane shuddered, covering her mouth from the black cloud surrounding the area, "I feel nauseous just standing near him!"

"Now, I must thank you for the fun you've given me." José told the group, "I also must thank you for bringing Palva straight to my feet."

"There's no hell way I'll ever give you my sister!" Dori barked, stepping forward and preparing to fight.

"Elfman!" Gray called out. "Right!" he answered.

"I'll return my gratitude in full…" José snickered, raising a hand that pulsed with the evil dark energy.

"Ice-Make Saucer!" "Beast Arm: Iron Bull!" the two leapt forward, casting their magic.

"Wait, don't be hasty!" Erza shouted to them, but it was too late. Dori hastily reacted by shouting, "Crystal Wall!" she summoned a wide wall of crystal in front of those behind her.

"Pathetic!" José shouted, raising a hand and producing a dark magic circle. Streams of skull-faced dark energy shot at the two boys, sending them flying in agony and falling to the ground far behind the team. "Elfman! Gray!" Leon shouted to the two.

José then swished his arm horizontally, and a blast line struck the crystal wall, shattering it and sending the team behind flying backwards. Elfman, Gray and Pastry got hit hard again. Mirajane was sent tumbling, only to be caught by Leon as he skidded backwards with Palva in tow. Only Dori and Erza were able to endure the attack as Erza leapt forward with sword at hand, and Dori produced a magic circle, unleashing Crystal Barrage right behind her.

José summoned another magic circle, and a cyclone of black energy shot at them, destroying the Crystal attack. Erza raced right through it, unfazed as she Requipped into her Black Wing Armor, making a leaping dash at José, raising her blade high. José easily dodged the slash, and grabbed ahold of Erza's sword arm, stopping her. The scarlet-haired swordswoman was shocked at how easily he stopped her, and was soon thrown away by him. Dori produced a slab of crystal that Erza landed on neatly, regaining her footing. She then charged forward at the said slab and thrust her palm into it, producing a magic circle that pushed the slab at José, causing Erza to backflip off of it. The evil master slashed with a free hand, and broke the crystal before it came close.

"You okay, Mira?" Leon asked. "Yeah, I'm okay…" she muttered, turning to the three behind her, "But those guys…"

"Hold onto her, will you?" Leon asked, shouldering off Palva carefully, and placing her in Mirajane's arms. He turned and walked over to where Erza and Dori stood.

"Wait, you can't beat him!" Mira cried out to him.

He stopped and turned to her with a serious glare. "I'm gonna do everything I can to save you guys." he told him, "I promise you…" Mira looked frightened as Leon walked ahead.

"You two." José addressed Erza and Leon, "I'm pretty sure you took a direct hit from Jupiter, "How is it you can stand?"

"Because my friends strengthen my heart!" Erza answered, raising her blade forward, "I'll withstand any physical pain, to protect the ones I love!"

"There are some battles that you just have to stand up against." Leon growled, readying his large blade, "Plus, there are people I promise to protect, and I ain't backing down from my vow!"

"We won't fall to those who are as cruel as you!" Dori barked at him, crossing her hands in front of her, "For the guild who welcomed my sister and I in, I will make sure that their enemy is vanquished!"

"Powerful, courageous, and beautiful…" José described them with a sinister pleasure, "It will be such a pleasure to destroy you and take everything you love away from you!"

He summoned a black magic circle, sending more skulls of black energy at the group. "Aegis Blade!" Leon roared, transforming his blade into the shield form and blocking the attack. However, he was sliding backwards from the attack, as he was already straining from the exhaustion after facing Sol.

Dori roared as she stomped the ground, producing a magic circle, and shouting, "Crystal Launcher!" She sent José flying upward, though he didn't seem phased by it. Erza flew up at him with the power of her armor, ready to slash at him again. José looked back at her with an evil grin, as he summoned another magical circle, creating another cyclone that consumed her, along with Leon and Dori on the ground, creating an explosion of damage.

When the attack died down, Erza was on one knee while Leon and Dori were still standing, with a few scrapes on their body, but otherwise unfazed.

"Good…" José stated, "If you were to fall to that attack, then this would be boring, now would it?"

"Believe me, we got a few more tricks up our sleeve!" Dori barked, creating a magic circle in one hand, "Just you watch!"

---

Near the head of the giant, Gajeel had Lucy pinned to the wall in a similar manner as he did with Team Shadowgear before. He was practically playing throwing darts at her, throwing one iron kunai after another, as she hung on the wall, completely helpless. He threw another kunai at her, and it barely scraped her left cheek.

"Ooh, nasty…" he snickered, "I thought that one was going to hit for a moment there."

"Uh, Gajeel, you really shouldn't do that." one mage warned him, "You might actually hit her…!"

"But I'm bored." Gajeel sulked, producing another kunai with his Iron Dragon Slayer magic, "The master is cruel, making me watch over blonde here like this, and going to deal with the flies himself. I ain't even had a chance to get back at that Pyro Princess's sister for what she did. This sucks. Now, where to aim for next…?"

"Stop it!" the mage begged again, "If the master finds out, he won't let you off so easy!"

Gajeel got irritated at his pleads, and produced an Iron Club, sending it crashing into the guy's face. "Shut up!" he growled, retracting his club, "I know master thinks she's important, but to me, she's nothing but Fairy scum. And even if she's a woman, she's still a mage. She should be prepared for this when she joined a guild."

"But you're going overboard!" warned the bald, dark-skinned mage, "Let it go…"

"Master's gonna be pissed, big time." a green-haired female mage added.

"If that happens, I'll blame it on you guys." Gajeel responded, causing the mages to become scared at the thought, "But man, I do feel sorry for her. Now that they know she's rich, and that other girl's bounty so high, those Fairy scumbags are frantic to get them back."

He then heard a slight snicker…coming from Lucy, and he turned to her in surprise. "Hmm? You wanna say something, blonde?" he asked.

"You guys really are complete idiots, aren't you?" she questioned them, "I feel so sorry for you, it makes me want to cry."

"Wha-what is she thinking?!" the bald mage asked in shock. "She's provoking Gajeel!" the girl noticed, "She has the guts to talk smack to Gajeel?!"

"Phantom Lord? The ruler of spirits?" Lucy asked with a smirk on her face, "What a joke! I'm not scared of you at all!"

Gajeel suddenly threw his next kunai close to the right side of her face. "You got some balls bluffing in a situation like this, princess!" he told her off, "I must say that you got guts. But I wanna here more than this trash talk act you're pulling! I want some screams!"

Lucy shivered a bit, but she kept her ground as she continued, "You're the ones who'd be in trouble if I died, you know. There's no way Fairy Tail would ever forgive you! That's the kind of guild they are." She raised her head, giving Gajeel a confident smirk, "You'd be shivering under the shadow of the world's scariest guild every day, for the rest of your lives!" This intimidation did get under the skins of the mages watching the two.

"So they're gonna come after me, huh?" Gajeel questioned, not even phased by the threat, "That sounds like fun. Let's test that out!" He threw the last kunai he had on him, and it definitely look like it was gonna hit Lucy for sure, in the head. The mages were in a panic, fearing the wrath of José as he went for the death blow.

Suddenly, something or someone shot out of the ground in a blast of flames, startling everyone in the room, including Lucy. The person suddenly grabbed the iron kunai in his teeth, and broke it to bits. He then roared as he sent flames flying everywhere, terrifying the mages on the sidelines. The person revealed himself to be none other than Natsu, igniting with rage.

"I knew it…" Gajeel stated with a sinister grin, "I thought I smelled you comin'…"

"It's Natsu…" Lucy sobbed, happier than she had ever been to see him.

"GAJEEL!" Natsu roared with all his fury, his flames encasing him turning into a dome as he stood between his opponent and Lucy.

"Hehehe! You really get lured out so easily, Salamander!" Gajeel taunted, "I was hoping to get that Pyro Princess or her sister in the mix, but you'll have to do!"

"Unlike you Phantom creeps, I watch out for my friends! I won't let you lay a hand on her!"

Lucy's grateful smile to Natsu's save was replaced with amazement. Something had changed in Natsu since she last saw him. There was a new intensity in his flames. It was similar to that of when Palva unleashed her flames on Sherry on Galuna Island. A justified anger that made his flames more potent than before. "Hang tight, Lucy." Natsu assured her, "I got this…"

"Gajeel!" gasped the bald mage in the watching crowd. "This one's mine." Gajeel snickered, and he leapt at Natsu with an Iron Club ready for him.

"Bring it!" Natsu roared, leaping at Gajeel, who extended his club at him. Natsu dodged to one side and grabbed ahold of the iron club, throwing him around and to the wall above the watching mages. He withstood the impact with his feet, but saw Natsu close in on him with fiery fists, and placed his club up in defense. There was an explosion, and the watching mages scurried to get out of the way, but were sent flying by the shockwave.

Gajeel leapt out of the explosion, with Natsu charging directly into his face. Startled, he was sent crashing into the far side of the room by another fiery fist, creating a crater with his body. He had only barely recovered before Natsu came at him again, shouting, "Fire Dragon's Talon!", unleashing a fiery drop-kick that Gajeel barely blocked, resulting in another explosion that sent Natsu recoiling backwards.

Just then, Happy appeared, and leapt up to the restrains holding Lucy's arms to the wall, asking, "You okay, Lucy?"

"Happy!" Lucy gasped, seeing him pull out the bolt that held the metal pieces together, till it finally pulled out. He fell to the floor, dropping the bolt, then looked up to see her expression as she watched Natsu and Gajeel fight.

"Is something the matter?" the blue cat asked her, hopping up to the next bolt.

"I've never seen Natsu like that before." Lucy pointed out, seeing Natsu stomping towards Gajeel with a furious look on his face.

"Aye. Same here." Happy agreed, finally pulling out the last bolt that restrained one of Lucy's hands, "But right now, Natsu's really strong!"

"Don't get so damn cocky!" barked Gajeel, and he came back at Natsu with an Iron Dragon's Club, which Natsu dodged. Both Dragon Slayers glared fiercely at one another, determined to put down the other, for good.

---

Back down below, Leon had just Requipped into his Shadow Rain Armor, dashing in with his dark blade ready. José unleashed dark, skull-faced streams of energy at him, but he sliced them with a black arc of energy from his blade.

"This armor halves the damage of Dark-element magic like yours!" he warned him, and he unleashed a slash of his blade at José, who leapt up to avoid the attack. He was soon joined in the air by Erza, who charged at him quickly. "Moon Flash!" she roared, swinging her sword in a cross-slash as she came at him. The Phantom Lord master grinned as he unleashed a blast of energy from his entire body, causing Erza to fall back.

"Let's try this…" Dori growled, slamming a palm to the ground, and producing four obelisks of crystal around José. "Lacrima Release: Lightning!" she roared, placing a palm on the nearest crystal, "Crystal Deity: Thor!" She channeled a surge of magic energy into the crystal, which connected with the other crystals, making them glow a neon yellow.

José looked to the pillars with a slight grin as he stated, "Very interesting. Your magic seems to be beyond my expectations. As expected from the sister of the Fire Demon!"

Dori growled at this statement as she roared, "Never call her that again! Crystal…" Streams of electricity started coursing around from each crystal, forming a cage of volts around José, "…Thor Prison!" The electricity converged onto José, creating a powerful blast that was followed by a thunderclap. Erza and Mirajane were in awe at the sight of the damage she unleashed. It was something that their best lightning mage would even do, but at an advance level.

For a moment, the trio of fighters, including Mirajane and the slowly awakening Palva, watched as the smoke covered where José stood. Dori narrowed her eyes, knowing for a fact, that this was far from over. True enough, she detected the magic energy surge, and shouted, "Duck!" The two girls ducked as a blast of phantom energy shot at where they stood, nearly hitting them.

Leon held his blade up, slicing a couple phantom attacks in half. He then saw, in the corner of his eye, the sight of a few phantom streams heading towards Mirajane and Palva. "Crap!" He gasped. Dropping his sword, he Requipped his leggings down into the Swift Armor pieces, making a mad dash. I can't Requip the rest of my armor to pull them out of there! I'm barely running on reserves! he told himself, gritting his teeth. He then saw only one thing to do; be the guardian.

With all his speed he can muster, he got directly in front of Mirajane and Palva, and took the full blow of the attack, grimacing in pain. With parts of his Shadow Rain armor removed, his resistance to the attack was cut in half. Mirajane was in shock at the sight. "Leon!" Dori shouted in horror.

"No! He's been hit badly!" Erza noticed.

When the attack ended, Leon fell to the ground face-first, barely conscious. "Leon, no!" Mirajane shouted, racing to his side, with Palva in tow.

"Leon…" the female Dragon Slayer moaned, seeing her trusted friend on the ground.

The guardian looked up at the two, seeing that they weren't damaged by the attack, and smirked. "Guess I did my part…" he muttered, "Please… Don't let him have Palva…" Mirajane, with tears forming in her eyes, nodded in answer to this. With that settled, Leon faded from consciousness, leaving a worried group of girls to see him in such a state. José, on the other hand, cackled with laughter.

"A valiant effort, but a vain one." he stated, "He should know, as do all of you, that I will not allow any of you to live after this day. It's the end of the road for all of you! And I'll take my prizes from it all; Lucy Heartfilia, Palva Himeka, and the destruction of Fairy Tail!"

Dori and Erza rose to their feet again, glaring harshly at José. "Leon's sacrifice will not be in vain!" Erza hissed harshly.

"You're going to regret ever THINKING of taking my sister!" Dori barked, curling her fists. Yet, even so, she could feel a good chunk of her magic used up in that last attack. Nevertheless, the two scarlet-haired ladies leapt into the battle once more with battle cries.

Mirajane watched the two continue to face off against José, then felt Palva struggle to move in her arms. "I…need to fight, too." she moaned, trying to get out of Mirajane's arms.

"You have to rest up, Palva." Mirajane retorted, "You're too injured to help out."

"I don't care…" she answered, rolling herself out of the white-haired beauty's arms and onto the ground next to Leon, her lance clattering next to her. She struggled to get up as she muttered, "My sister…Leon…Pastry…all of Fairy Tail…they are trying hard to fight a battle that was clearly started because of me and Lucy. I can't just lay here and act like a helpless child. That's what I've been doing so much of my life!"

"But you aren't helpless." said a voice from behind. Mirajane turned to see Pastry hobble over towards them. "You destroyed that cannon with Natsu, and defeated two of the Element 4 guys. That's nothing to sneeze at."

"He's right." Mirajane agreed, turning to her, "You, your sister and Leon have done a lot for us in this fight. You can't say you are helpless."

Palva got to a kneeling position, panting heavily as she looked to see her sister and Erza struggle against José, countering his shadow with their crystals and blades.

"But…I haven't done enough." she muttered, her eyes full of determination as she found the strength to slowly get to her feet again, "My sister has trained so hard to protect me. I trained and fought alongside her, hoping for one day to be the one to do the protecting. I don't want to fight just for the people around me." She stumbled a bit, but used her lance to regain her balance, then glared fiercely as she declared, "I want to fight…in order to keep living!"

Mirajane was amazed at Palva's drive and ambition. She was just like Natsu in that way; refusing to back down or run away from a fight that needs to be won. However, her reasons to fight were different. She had a bounty, and her life was filled with people wanting to capture or kill her. She had to fight in order to survive.

Palva gripped her lance tightly as her feet started to combust. She then unleashed a Fire Dragon's Pounce, heading to Leon's dropped sword. "Erza!" she cried, and she unleashed a roundhouse kick upon the blade, sending it flying towards the called swordswoman. She turned to see it coming, and instinctively un-Requipped her sword, and grabbed the hilt of the blade, using the momentum it had to spin and slice through José's hurricane of dark magic.

"What?!" José was startled, then saw who sent the blade towards her. However, he soon saw Erza coming at him with Leon's shadowy greatsword, and got back into the fight.

"Palva, you shouldn't be moving around!" Dori told her younger sister.

"Don't worry! I'm perfectly fine!" she assured her older sister, thought a stumbled of her feet gave way her physical condition, "I won't let anyone take me without a fight. Besides, that phantom freak is gonna pay for Leon."

Dori looked to her younger sister, knowing for a fact that she would not go back on her word at this point. However, she also knew she was in no physical condition to fight up close and personal. So she knew the best compromise for her sister's situation.

"Fine, but let me and Erza handle the battle up close. You stay back and send your flames flying." the crystal mage instructed as Erza got sent skidding backwards from a blast of energy by José.

"You got it!" Palva assured her, and she spun a flaming foot, shouting, "Fire Dragon's Brilliant Talon!" She sent a stream of flames in a curve towards José, who backed off enough for it to zoom past him, exploding into the wall nearby.

The guild master grinned as he saw the trio glare fiercely at him, while Pastry and Mirajane were watching from the sidelines, standing next to Leon. "This couldn't have been more fun, even if I wanted it to." he snickered, "I'll make sure to enjoy every last moment before I crush you all and send you wallowing into despair!"

---

Outside the guild giant, the phantoms created by José were starting to gather together in a large sphere of dark energy. When all the phantoms gathered together into it, it sprouted seven tentacle-like arms, and red eyes came from the sphere. It roared as it raised its' arms, and started hammering the Fairy Tail guild hall with them.

"What the heck are you doing to our guild hall?!" Cana demanded in a petrified manner.

"Shoot it down!" "We can't let it destroy the guild!" The mages all focused all of their magic against the giant phantom creature, trying to stop it with all they had. However, this was proving to be pointless as it continued to destroy the building bit by bit. Cana, throwing her cards at it, had tear-strained eyes, desperate to stop it before it ruined everything. Guys, you have to stop José before it destroys our guild hall! she pleaded in her mind.

---

Near the head of the giant, Gajeel and Natsu were still fiercely at it, blasting one another with fists, flames and iron. Natsu was starting off strong, but Gajeel then created Iron Dragon Scales all over his body, increasing the physical damage of his attacks and creating a powerful defense against Natsu's attack. Despite this, Natsu wasn't gonna give up, and even placed a crack in Gajeel's scales after the two exchanged Roar attacks that blasted apart the room.

The Phantom Lord mages were constantly in the way of collateral damage, while Lucy and Happy were enduring the shockwaves, the Celestial mage constantly trying to keep her skirt down to prevent panty shots.

The two Dragon Slayers were only just warming up as they took their battle outside, clashing with one another so fast, that they were barely recognizable to the human eye. However, they were fighting so powerfully, they ended up breaking off the horn of the giant, sending it point-first into the room the others were in. At this, Natsu and Gajeel were both pretty exhausted, both physically and in magic.

"Gajeel looks like he's feeling the pressure." the female mage noticed.

"No, look." the bald mage pointed out, "That Salamander seems to be breathing pretty heavily, as well."

Just as the guy was saying, both mages were panting heavily from the usage of magic. However, Gajeel had a solution, and he reached down, taking some of the iron scraps, and started munching them down as easily as they were pieces of meat.

"Bastard, that's not fair!" Natsu barked, "You're eating by yourself!"

"Oh, shut up!" Gajeel scoffed through a mouth full of shrapnel.

"He's really eating iron?!" Lucy said in a startled tone. "I wonder if it's any good?" Happy asked.

"As soon as Gajeel finished his meal, he grinned maliciously as he stated, "Now I'm starting to feel like I got a fire in my belly!"

"That's my line, you copycat!" Natsu growled.

Gajeel then started unleashing a powerful blast of energy, his magic now restored.

"What's with this surge of magic energy?!" Lucy asked in shock.

"Dragon Slayers can restore their strength or power up by eating things made out of their own element!" Happy explained.

"Then, Natsu needs to…" Lucy started, but she stopped as she realized something.

"Right. Natsu can't eat his own flames." Happy stated, digging into his bag, "But Dori did give me something that'll help." Lucy looked surprised as she turned to see him pull out the red lacrima orb.

"A lacrima?" Lucy asked. "Aye. She said it was full of Fire Magic." Happy explained, looking at Natsu, "We just need to get it to him!"

"I'll tear you to shreds!" Gajeel roared, raising an arm as it glowed strongly, "Iron Dragon's Lance: Demon Logs!" He fired off several iron lances from his fingertips at Natsu, peppering him and causing him to cry out in agony.

"We can't even get close to Natsu without getting hit by all those attacks!" Happy stated, shivering despite holding a hot lacrima in his hands, "If only we had a way to send it over to him!"

"Maybe one of my Celestial Spirits could help us!" Lucy started, reaching for her keys, however, she stopped when she realized her satchel was missing. Of course. It disappeared after getting kidnapped by Sol and Juvia. However, there was one she hadn't used yet; the Gate Key she got from Galuna Island; Sagittarius, which she fortunately had in a spare pocket (Author's Note: considering I am a guy and a gentlemen, I do not know where pockets are on a girl's skirt, so let's pretend there is one, okay?)

"I know I haven't made a contract with it, yet, but this is all I can do!" Lucy stated, witnessing Natsu struggling to get back up again. She waved her key as she shouted, "I'm one who forges a path to the Celestial Plane. Answer thee my call and pass through the gate! Open! Gate of the Archer: Sagittarius!"

A magic circle appeared, and from it came a new character. He had the appearance of a tall, lanky man in a brown horse costume, wearing a fancy green shirt with yellow trimming, red and yellow striped pants with purple frills, and he was equipped with a large bow and a quiver on his back.

"Horse!" he shouted, saluting straight forward as he greeted, "Well, howdy do, my lady!"

"Wow, that really worked!" Lucy stated with glee. "A guy in a horse suit?!" Happy exclaimed, wondering how in the heck that was the celestial spirit's form.

"We can go through this properly later!" Lucy stated, taking the orb from Happy, juggling it a bit at the heat it was emanating, then turned to Sagittarius, "I need you to deliver this lacrima to that pink-haired guy over there, but we can't get close without that other guy attacking us. Is there anyway for you to send this to him?!"

"Certainly, my lady." the horse man answered, taking an arrow out of his quiver, "It's a simple task for me." He took the lacrima and tied it to the tip of his arrow. He then pulled it back as he asked, "Should it be near him or directly at him?"

"It doesn't matter, so long as he gets it!" Lucy answered, then turning to where Natsu was, she shouted, "Heads up!" Natsu and Gajeel turned in time to see Sagittarius fire off the arrow directly at Natsu's head. "That's not what I meant!" Lucy gasped, realizing it could actually kill him on contact.

"That's the…" Natsu noticed, but he looked open-mouthed at it coming at him head-on. However, by some miracle, this was a benefit, as the lacrima-tipped arrow went right into his mouth, jamming the lacrima between his lips and making him falter back.

"He caught it with his mouth?!" Lucy exclaimed in a dumbfounded manner.

"Hopefully, he doesn't choke on that." Happy added.

"What is she trying to pull?" Gajeel questioned, looking at Natsu regained himself, growling as he slowly cracked the lacrima with his teeth, finally breaking it entirely. Suddenly, there was an explosion of flames that surrounded him, given off from the released magic of the lacrima.

"Oh, wow! It really worked out!" Lucy stated, giving a thumbs up to her spirit, "Great job, Sagittarius!"

"Well, I do aim to please." he answered, saluting to no one.

"If you wanna salute Lucy, she's right over here." Happy stated, pointing to Sagittarius's left.

"That man-horse thing is really get in my way!" Gajeel growled, then he turned at the sound of a deep inhale. Natsu was sucking in all of the flames from the fire lacrima, taking it all in. The replenished magic energy started to pulse from his body in a bright orange hue as he limply bowed his head after sucking it all in, then raised it with a grin and a thumbs up as he snickered, "Just what I needed. Thanks a million, you guys!" Lucy, beaming to see Natsu regaining his magic, gave a thumbs up right back.

"So you ate some flames. Big deal!" Gajeel barked, racing at him. "Oh, yeah?! Natsu barked, setting his body aflame and rocketing himself at Gajeel. Both Dragon Slayers collided, and with their magic replenished, they were stronger than ever. The shockwave caused the ongoing viewers to brace themselves.

Gajeel then used an Iron Dragon's Club to uppercut Natsu in the chin, and extended the club to carry Natsu higher into the sky. "Natsu!" Lucy cried, watching him fly.

Natsu shook it off as he was airborne, then heard the sound of something breaking and falling apart. He looked onward, and his pupils shrunk. He saw the jellyfish-like phantom from afar, and it had finally done enough damage to send the entire Fairy Tail guild hall to collapsing to the ground. It was completely destroyed.

Down below, Lucy, Happy and Sagittarius just noticed the destruction of the guild hall, while Gajeel cackled as he called up, "Hey, can you see from up there?! We're doing a little remodeling to your guild hall!"

Still hanging in the air, Natsu's mind went all the way back to when he first saw the guild hall for the first time. He remembered the first day he came to the guild, and met Gray, Erza, the Strauss siblings, and all the other members. He remembered how he started to love the guild with all his heart, because of the people in it. He remembered when he found Happy when he was just an egg, and hatched him, with help from Lisanna. He remembered how excited Lucy was to join the guild. He remembered the night when Palva decided to join Fairy Tail.

Now, he could only hear cries of panic from afar. He could even hear Cana crying from the loss. There was no way he was gonna walk away from this without taking some sort of revenge against Phantom Lord for doing this. They were gonna pay.

"First your guild hall, and next, it'll be you to fall, Salamander!" Gajeel shouted, using his strength to launch himself up at where Natsu was.

Suddenly, Natsu combusted in rage, causing Gajeel to be startled enough for him to spin around and hammer Gajeel in the face with an explosive fist. This was followed by a blast of flames that sent him careening down to the ground, creating a crater with his body. Natsu's face was nothing but absolute rage.

"You punks are gonna pay for messing up our guild hall, and hurting my friends!" he barked, his mind flashing back to when he saw the condition of Team Shadowgear, the news of Makarov's defeat, and both Lucy and Palva crying.

He shot down at the Iron Dragon Slayer before he could recover, slamming him like a flaming meteor. Lucy and Happy were excited to see this, while the Phantom Lord mages were shocked at the damage he delivered. Gajeel was then picked up and thrown into the iron horn of the giant, causing it to be tilted slightly upon impact.

"Levy, Jet, Troy, Lucy, Palva, Gramps, my friends, and now, my guild!" Natsu named all the people and groups that Phantom Lord hurt, his eyes full of rage.

"Iron Dragon's Roar!" Gajeel shouted, unleashing a blast of shrapnel at Natsu, who blocked it with his bare hands, and repelled it. "He deflected my breath attack with his bare hands?!" the Iron Dragon Slayer gasped.

"How many people do you have to hurt until you are satisfied?" Natsu growled, "It doesn't matter, cause it ends now!"

"There's no way…" Gajeel muttered, shocked to see his attack deflected so easily, "I can't lose to him! It's impossible! He's nothing but Fairy scum!"

"I'm gonna make you pay for what you did to my friends!" Natsu roared, his body blazing with flames, "Messing with Fairy Tail is the biggest mistake you've ever made!"

Gajeel regained himself as he barked back, "The only mistake I've made is letting you live this long!" He leapt forward as he shouted, "Iron Dragon's Hard Fist!" With his fist encased in his Iron Scales, he attempted a punch at Natsu, who countered with his own fist. Both produced magic circles that pushed off of one another, but it was Gajeel's iron-coated fist, all the way up to his shoulder, that was breaking, much to his shock.

"You're through, Black Steel!" Natsu roared, intensifying the flames in his other fist, "Flame Lotus Fire Dragon's Fist!" He started peppering Gajeel with an endless barrage of fiery fists. "This is for Levy, Jet, Troy, Nab, Macao, Gramps, Erza…" He left the unconscious Gajeel hanging as he finished, "…and Lucy and Palva!" He unleashed a powerful punch that sent him near the edge of the hole they made from their collided breath attacks.

"And this is for destroying our guild!" Natsu roared, unleashing the last of his fiery magic into several more punches, causing explosions that were visible to the Fairy Tail mages outside, sending the Iron Dragon Slayer flying out of the giant. His attack was so destructive, it even dislodged the head of the mobile guild hall, causing it to crash into the water below.

The mages of Phantom Lord were in total surprise at the defeat of one of their best. Happy flew Lucy into the sky as the two searched for Natsu. They found him, standing on a platform above where Gajeel laid.

"You…can't…defeat me…" Gajeel groaned, barely conscious.

"Oh yeah?" Natsu panted, "It looks like I just did." He then fell to his knees, then onto his back, battered up and out of magic. He then looked up to see Lucy and Happy's worried faces. He grinned as she moaned, "Well, this was fun, but I think I'm gonna rest a bit…"

Lucy broke into a smile, and saw the destruction of the battle all about them. "What a mess…" she muttered, "Aw man. Talk about overdoing it."

"Aye. That's Natsu for ya." Happy stated. The two of them looked down at the grinning idiot, pleased at his victory, and chuckling at the amount of destruction he delivered.

---

Down below, the battle between the Fairy Tail mages and José still continued, although they paused at the sound of destruction from above. Pastry and Mirajane were able to drag Leon over to Gray and Elfman, tending to them while avoiding the falling rubble. Palva, who was able to sense her fellow Dragon Slayer's flames, grinned. "Looks like Natsu was able to win the fight above, and cause a lot of damage, as well." she stated.

"Indeed. He one tough son of a dragon." Dori agreed.

"My, our dragons have run quite amuck." José stated with a chuckle.

"Natsu has a huge amount of strength within him." Dori stated, raising a crystal saber she produced in the battle, "I can tell he's definitely the kind of guy who will help my sister in controlling her flames."

Erza, who was panting heavily, readied her blade as she found the breath to add, "It doesn't seem like you accounted for Natsu's battle strength. He is just as powerful as I, if not more so!"

José chuckled as he retorted, "There's no need to be so modest, Titania Erza. Your magical power, along with you, Mrs. Dori Himeka, are indeed amazing. I have never met mages who could hold out against me for so long. If you, Erza, hadn't taken damage from Jupiter, I suspect we may have had a better match. I can't stand Makarov gaining mages this powerful in his or any other guild."

"Well, guess what? You ain't gettin' me, even if you begged!" Palva barked, slamming her lance on the ground, "As far as I can tell, Fairy Tail is the only guild that had welcomed me with open arms. True, they had not known of my bounty, or what I had done. I don't know what they plan to do with me after all this is over. However, I do know you won't take me!"

"My dear Palva, you have it wrong." José retorted, grinning maliciously, "If you were to walk on my steps to be a part of this guild, I would've sold you off anyway. Your bounty would've made a nice substitute for what I had plan for Lucy Heartfilia."

"You bastard!" Erza roared, lunging at him. "No wait! Erza!" Dori shouted, but too late. José raised a hand, and flicked one of his fingers like his shot a coin from them. A pulse of magic energy shot at Erza, sending her rocketing back into the wall behind the sisters.

"You'll pay for that!" Palva barked, inhaling deeply, "Fire Dragon's Roar!" She blasted a stream of flames at José, who leapt out of the way to avoid the attack, then produced energy from his fingertips, blasting the spot where Palva stood. She endured the hits as they blasted about her, but it made her fall to her back.

"Not a chance!" Dori shouted, slamming her hands on the ground and creating a magic circle, "Crystal Halfpipe!" From the wall behind José, Dori produced crystal that formed into a half-loop halfpipe. Palva's breath attack went right into it, changing course and came back at José, who turned to see it coming. He got blasted in the back from it, creating an explosion of smoke.

"Incredible!" Mirajane gasped, "Dori redirected Palva's attack!"

"Well, it's not like they haven't trained together for so much of their lives." Pastry stated, "They've worked on each other's magic to perform combinations that take others by surprise."

Erza and Palva recovered, seeing the billow of smoke in front of them. Dori narrowed her eyes, then widened them as she and the others avoided oncoming bullets of magic energy from José.

"Very clever! You're more than just magic power." the master told the girls, as he continued to fire at them, "You have incredible wits and strength to back you up. How fun, but not as much so when I drive Makarov to despair after demolishing your guild and killing all of his children! When he reaches that state, I can swoop in and kill him, but not before making him suffer endlessly until he withers and dies." He chuckled at this thought.

"You're seriously twisted!" Dori barked, unleashing a Crystal Barrage from her hands, countering the blasts from José, "You hate Makarov that much, that you intend to destroy everything he loves to make him fall into despair? What has he done to you?!"

"You monster!" Erza roared, coming at him with Leon's blade, unleashing a slash that was missed. He teleported away from her attack, reappearing right behind Palva, who turned at his scent.

He then raised a hand to her, and dark skull-faced streams shot at her, wrapping themselves around Palva's body and holding her up off the ground, where she squirmed and cried out in pain.

"No!" Mirajane cried. "Palva!" Dori shouted. "Let go of her!" Erza demanded.

"Why should I? She is one of the two people I intend on gathering." José stated, walking right next to her, "Now, all is left is Lucy Heartfilia, and the destruction of your guild."

Erza and Dori prepared to fight him, but he stopped them, "Uh-uh-uh. I wouldn't do that if I were you. I could enjoy fighting you, but it would be better if I watch the two of you suffer as one of your own is within my grasp." He thrust his magic circle at her, and the energy binding Palva amplified, sending red sparks emanating and Palva howling in pain. Neither Erza or Dori made a move. He had the upper hand on them.

Dori grimaced. She had to find a way to stop him, but she didn't know how. Instead, she decided to buy more time as she demanded, "You still didn't tell me; Why do you hate Makarov so much?! Why go to such lengths?!"

José snickered as he stated, "Of course you wouldn't know. You're from a different continent, aren't you? If you did hear anything about this land, you would've known that Phantom Lord was always the number one guild. We had the most powerful magic, the most talented people, and the most money in the country."

He then gave a glare at the two as he continued, "But in these past few years, Fairy Tail has suddenly gotten powerful. The names Erza, Laxus, and Mystogen were known far and wide, and the tales of Salamander spread like wildfire. Suddenly, Phantom Lord and Fairy Tail became equals. The top two guilds of this kingdom."

José's eyes flashed in anger as he spat, "The very thought of it disgusts me. I refuse to be acquainted with such a feeble guild!"

"SILENCE!" Erza roared, suddenly coming at José with a slash of her blade. But he teleported away, taking Palva with him, and landing on top of a pile of rubble.

"You mean to tell me you are doing all of this because you can't handle sharing the spotlight?!" Dori barked furiously, "What kind of nonsense is that?!"

"Nonsense, you say? That's absurd!" José retorted, "I wanted to show everyone our superiority!"

"How could you? And for such a petty reason?!" Erza demanded, about to strike at José again, but he was prepared this time.

"I wouldn't strike me if I were you." he stated, placing Palva directly in the line of fire, "Not unless you want her to be a victim of your attack." Erza grimaced, but Dori placed a hand on her arm, stopping her from even trying.

"Erza…Dori…I'm sorry." Palva apologized, unable to struggle against her bindings.

"Don't you worry, Palva! I won't let him have you!" Dori assured her, but inside, she was struggling for a way to stop José without harming her sister.

'I won't let him take me!' Palva told herself, 'Sorry, sis. But I have no choice!' She began to relinquish her grip from her lance. She planned to let her flames go berserk again. However, this plan was stopped as with a flick of his hand, José press Palva's lance right back into her.

"Sorry, my dear. I won't let you destroy this place any further than it has been." the Phantom Lord mage stated, "You've already shown just how much you can do without that lance suppressing your magic."

Palva looked shocked at this, while Dori growled, "He must've been watching her fight, and figured it out! Damn it all!"

"Now, it's your turn to join with her!" José roared, and he unleashed two more streams of skull-faced energy, binding the two red-heads and squeezing them, causing them to feel the dark magic electrify. Erza cried out in agony, while Dori gritted her teeth.

"Stop it!" Mirajane begged, racing towards them. "Put them down!" Pastry demanded, flying alongside her.

"You two stay out of this!" José ordered, using a spare fingertip to blast the two backwards, making them fall to their backs.

"Stop it! You're hurting them!" Palva begged, "Please let them go! Don't hurt my friends!"

"Sorry, but it's too late for that." José retorted, "Besides, you're my prisoner. Why should I make demands from you?" He amplified the magic in the bindings around Palva, causing her to scream in pain once more.

He turned back to Dori and Erza, who struggled against the pain of their restraints. "While I've had a long distaste for your guild, it was not the reason why I triggered this war. You see, I had a request to return the first daughter of the Heartfilia family."

"Lucy…" Erza muttered, recalling what she remembered hearing about Lucy's story.

"A daughter of one of the richest families in the country in Fairy Tail? Now Makarov's trying to buy his way to the top?!" He increased the magic energy restraining Dori and Erza, and that even caused Dori to gasp in pain.

"If you bastards can use the Heartfilia's money as you wish, there's no mistaking that you could gain power greater than ours. That, I cannot allow." He once again placed magic on the two of them, causing the two more pain.

"Then I hear, as of recently, that you allowed the Fire Demon Palva to join your guild. Considering how her wanted poster had only been recently brought over to this kingdom, I would've believed Fairy Tail would use her to gain even more wealth. I can't believe how greedy your guild is to go this far to surpass me!" Another pulse of energy, and more pain. However, there was something that one of them did that made José raise his eyebrows. Erza was smiling and chuckling.

"Making such a big deal about who's on top… It's almost pitiful." the scarlet-haired swordsman stated, "But it's your lack of information gathering that's laughable!"

"What do you mean?" José questioned.

"Lucy ran away from home. She doesn't have access to her family's fortune!" Erza pointed out, "She lives in a rented house for 70,000 jewels a month! She does jobs and fights, together with us! We laugh together. We cry together. She's a mage like any other in the guild!"

"And as for Palva, she's nothing but an innocent girl!" Dori argued, "She and I have fought for our lives for a decade, all because she can't control her magic. The damage she has done was not on purpose at all, but her flames have destroyed town, killed people, including our parents! We barely have the chance to sit down and rest, as many guilds like your own have tried to hunt her down to capture or kill her. The only friends we made in our lives were Leon and Pastry, and Fairy Tail, who decided to help my sister and us! And she and Lucy are the reason why this war had started?!"

"Lucy may be part of the Heartfilia family, but just like how flowers cannot choose the places it blooms, neither can a child choose their parents!" Erza added, "And Palva may have a bounty, but the price on her head doesn't say that she's guilty of the crimes listed!"

"A fiend like you knows nothing of their tears! You can't know them at all!" both girls shouted in unison, their struggle against the bindings stronger than ever.

Palva was just speechless. The fact that Erza stood up for her and Lucy, despite her own pain, was something to behold. She knew she could trust Natsu and Erza before, but now, she had no shred of doubt inside of her. Erza would never betray her, no matter what.

"Well then, I'll learn soon enough!" José answered, startling the trio, "Do you really think I'd just hand Lucy over to her father? If she doesn't have any money, I'll make her my prisoner until her father meets my demands! I'll bleed the entire fortune from the Heartfilia family! And as for Palva, what do I care for her past! As long as I get her bounty from the Western Continent, then that's all that matters to me!"

"Curse you!" Erza barked. "You have no mercy in any bit of you!" Dori hissed. Both girls continued to struggle against their restraints, trying to break free.

"I…won't give up either!" Palva barked, struggling against her restraints, "I won't be the damsel in distress in this situation!"

"I wouldn't struggle if I were you!" he told the trio, summoning three skeletal beings made of his Phantom magic, "It'll just cause you to suffer more!" The trio of phantoms got in front of the two red-haired mages, and started to inhale. They cried out in agony as they felt as if their life force was being ripped away from their bodies. They could no longer struggle, and were barely holding the strength to hold themselves together.

"No! Erza! Sis!" Palva screamed, stopping her struggle after witnessing in terror the two's agonizing pain, "Let them go! Stop it right now!"

"You two aren't feeling well, are you?!" José questioned, ignoring Palva entirely, "Now, shall we start the horror show? I want the two of you to make an appearance in front of your entire guild! Once they see the two of you, who were so full of pride, in such a pitiful state, the rest of you scum are sure to give up!"

Despite the state she was in, Dori shouted through her pain, "Erza! You can't let someone as cold-hearted as him win! Fight!"

"That's good! I want you to keep struggling until your spirit is withered away!" José retorted, "The more wretched you look, the easier it will be for your peers to surrender!"

"STOP! PLEASE, I'M BEGGING YOU!" Palva screamed, her eyes filled with tears at the sight of her sister and Erza.

Erza, who was not finding any way to escape the scenario, squinted with one eye at Dori, who made eye contact with her. 'I'd rather die than cause my friends to surrender!' she thought to herself, looking behind her to see her Black Wing Armor sword in the ground nearby. She could only think of one thing to do; Not give José what he wants. 'I leave the rest up to… Natsu… Everyone…' she finished, closing her eyes and focusing.

Dori looked at her, then detected movements behind her. She saw Erza's sword float upwards, flipping around, and pointing towards her back. 'She's telepathically connecting with her sword to…' she realized, then her eyes dilated in horror, "No, don't do it!" Her pleas were not answered as the sword was shot towards Erza, who was ready for the strike. "NO! ERZA!" Dori cried, desperate to stop her from committing suicide. There was no way of stopping her. The sword nearly reached her.

Suddenly, there was a loud thunder rumble. Erza stopped her sword's movements as she felt something, as did the rest of the group. A warm light suddenly enveloped the entire room. The Shadow magic was dying down. The Fairy Tail mages armor and clothing were starting to repair themselves. Their wounds started to heal thanks to a glowing light surrounding them.

"But how?" Erza started. "This light…" Dori muttered, feeling it encase her being.

"It's…so pleasant." Palva added, her shadowy bindings disappearing, as did Erza's and Dori's.

All three of them landed on the ground, while José was startled at what had just transpired. He looked behind him, seeing something appear floating out of the light from the outside, already knowing who it was. Palva looked up at the person, and Dori and Erza turned at the feeling of his presence. It was Master Makarov, fully restored.

"You have shed the blood of our children, and that is unforgivable." he growled, landing on a taller pile of rubble, "Because of their parent's failure, the children have suffered and shed tears. This war between us has gone long enough. Let's end this, here and now!"

Erza was started to shed a tear from one of her eyes, but she brushed it away as she beamed up at the sight of Makarov. "Master…" she muttered, happy to see him.

"Looks like he's arrived in time to save all of us." Dori muttered, amazed at the magic energy he used.

Everyone started to come around at this point, as well, blessed by Makarov's magic energy. Dori looked to her sister, who was struggling to rise to her feet, but otherwise stable. Thanks to Makarov's light, she was slowly regaining her physical strength. Looks like she's able to move, too. she noticed, sighing in relief.

Her body expression then shifted as she curled her fists, and turned to Erza, who rose to her feet, still at awe at their Master's presence. "Erza?" she spoke up, drawing the scarlet-haired swordswoman attention.

"Dori, are you oka-?" she started, but she was interrupted by a hard slap across the face by the Crystal mage, startling her and the others who noticed the action.

"First Gray on Galuna…and now you, here…" Dori snarled, and she gave Erza a glare that even scared her a bit, "Killing yourself is not the answer to anything! I will only cause pain to those who care about you! If you so much as try that again, I WILL PERSONALLY PUMMEL YOU UNTIL YOU LEARN YOUR LESSON! NEVER DO THAT AGAIN, YOU HEAR ME?!"

Erza took a step back at this lecture. She had gotten harsh remarks from people close to her age before, but this was the first time that she was afraid of someone's rage and words towards her. Dori was absolutely serious about what she had said, especially when she then added, "GIVE ME YOUR WORD! NEVER TRY TO KILL YOURSELF LIKE THAT AGAIN!" Erza was still in shock, but she answered, "Y-Yes…I understand…"

"Dori, I understand you have some sort of anger towards Erza right now, but you must leave at once." Makarov ordered her, "You did your part here. I'll end this war, right now!"

José snickered as his retina's turned black as night. his pupil's became yellow, and he pulsed with evil black energy, having full confidence that he will end Makarov's life on this day.

"If we fight here, it could cause a catastrophe." the evil guild master stated.

The veins on Makarov's forehead showed as he concentrated light magic into one of his fingertips. "For the sake of the guild, I will gladly take that chance!" Both masters were pulsing with so much energy, it caused the entire guild to shake and for small pieces of rubble to rise.

Dori looked to the Makarov, then back at José. She glared harshly at him, and saw her sister slide down the rubble towards her and Erza. Dori had gone beyond the level of reasoning or care. There was no mercy for the man before her. The kids gloves were off.

"Erza, take my sister, and go." Dori ordered, walking around the rubble, not even showing the slightest bit of fear, "I'll stay."

"But the master said-!" Erza started.

"I know what he said, but I'm disobeying him." Dori interrupted, stepping forth and taking a stand in between the two guild masters, "I have a score to settle…" Makarov looked down at Dori, concerned about her reckless decision.

"So you plan to interfere in a battle between two Mage Saints?" José questioned Dori, "I must admit, you are brave, but a foolish child! As far as I'm concerned, you are nothing but a piece of trash just waiting to be crushed under my feet, like the rest of Fairy Tail."

"You attacked Fairy Tail, hurt so many innocent mages, destroyed the guild hall…" Dori listed down, "You tried to kidnap Lucy, and you tortured my sister and Erza in front of me." Her eyes flashed in anger as she barked, "You pissed me off beyond belief! Now, you're gonna pay for it!"

She closed her eyes, placing a hand on her chest. "I've been holding back all this time." she warned him, "It's time for you to see what I'm truly capable of!"

A light magic circle shined from her hand as she chanted, "Second Origin…Release!" The magic circle shined, reacting to her words. All of a sudden, a blast of shining white energy surged from her body, skyrocketing into the air like a geyser. The burst of magic energy was so powerful, her hairband near the end of her hair snapped, allowing her hair to fan out wide from the updraft of her magic power. Her eyes opened up slowly, glaring fiercely at the startled José. 'Where in the heck did this come from?!' the dark mage questioned.

"Unbelievable…" Erza muttered, holding Palva up as she felt the sudden surge of magic, "I never even knew…she had this much power in her!"

Mirajane and Pastry were the first to rise from the other fallen comrades, looking up to see the scenario take place. "Master. He's here!" Mirajane gasped, "And…what's going on with Dori?!"

"Oh boy. She's serious now!" Pastry stated, "José must've drove her to showing off her full power to him."

"Her full power?" Mirajane questioned.

The two heard groans, and saw Gray, Elfman and Leon rise up. "What is this warm, familiar magical power?" Gray asked.

"I know…this power…" Leon muttered. All the guys looked up and saw, to their surprise, the scenario taking place, with Makarov standing on one end, José on the other, and an empowered Dori standing in the dead center of it.

José sneered as he unleashed several skull-faced streams at Dori, who stomped her foot, creating a crystal wall that, somehow, was stronger and sturdier than before, taking all of his attacks with ease. She then stomped the ground again, launching the crystal out of the ground, and with a thrust of her palm, she sent it colliding with the rubble José stood on, destroying it entirely and causing him to flip off of it, standing a good ways away from her.

Dori stepped in front of Palva and Erza as she repeated, "Did you not hear my orders? Take my sister and everyone else out of here. I'll stay and fight."

Erza, who was just stunned by Dori's sudden surge of magic energy, was unable to move for a moment. Then, she felt the younger Himeka sibling grab her by the arm as she stated, "We have to go. If we don't we'll just get in the way."

"I'll stay by her side in case things go wrong!" Makarov called out, "Just go!" Understanding her master and Palva's assurances, she decided to put her faith in Dori.

She carried Palva over to the rest of the group as she ordered, "We have to do as they say."

"But what about Gramps and Dori?!" Gray demanded, as Elfman and Leon were making sure Mirajane was okay.

"Don't worry about a thing." Pastry assured the group, getting their attention, "When Dori unlocks her Second Origin, her strength is insurmountable. Trust me, Leon and Palva when we say she is the strongest among us for a reason."

"Second Origin?" Mirajane echoed, rising to her feet thanks to Elfman

"What the heck is that?" Elfman asked.

"We'll explain outside. Right now, we have to go!" Leon ordered. Erza led the team out, supporting Palva as they left the interior of the iron giant.

Once they were in the clear, José looked curiously at Dori. "You know, I was planning on fighting Makarov, now that he's here, so that I can demonstrate myself as the superior Mage Saint." he started, causing Makarov to narrow his eyes, "But now that I see this whole new side of you, I might as well take you out before I crush him! Then, I'll be able to swoop in and take Palva away for my own purposes!"

"You think you're so tough." Dori taunted, "Trying to show up at Fairy Tail's doorstep with this giant tin can, showing off your big weapons and mages like they were play things, and acting like a school bully who wants someone's lunch money. That's exactly what you are!"

Both mages sparked with powerful energy from their body; dark violet from José and shining white from Dori. "But I'm more than just that, my dear. I'm one of the ten Mage Saints!" José stated, "That means I'm one of this kingdom's strongest mages. Do you think you have a chance against me?!"

"Let's find out!" Dori answered, producing a magic circle at her feet, "This time, I'm fighting not just for my sister, but for the people that fought alongside me against you to protect her and Lucy. The guild I am proud to be a part of; Fairy Tail!"

Both mages charged up their energy, and José shot a powerful blast of energy from the palm of his hand, while Dori shouted, "Crystal Stardust!", sending a gust of crystal dust straight back at José, concentrating all of it to hold back the shadowy magic. The two entered into a stalemate, with shadows and crystals countering one another, with neither one being able to push the other back.

José then used a free hand to send another stream to curve around and hit Dori from the side. She countered by stomping her foot again, creating a magic circle and another Crystal Halfpipe, curving José's attack right back at him, hitting him square on and causing him to stop his attack. Dori's Crystal Stardust then followed, pushing him and scarring his clothing with the shards blowing past him.

"Is that all you got?" Dori asked, diminishing her crystals without raising a finger.

José growled as he raised a hand, gathering a huge amount of magic energy into a sphere. "Death Wave!" he roared, unleashing the full blast in a similar manner to that of the Jupiter Cannon. Dori got hit by the attack, and there was a massive explosion that could be seen from the outside, along with the shockwave of the attack. Makarov was in shock she took the blast, and was worried for her safety.

His worries were soon diminished when it revealed she placed up a Crystal Dome around herself. She shattered it, and with a magic circle, she transformed the crystals into two long Crystal Pinnacles that encased her arms. "Crystal Deity: Njord!" she roared, slamming the two crystals together, aiming at José as she made a warcry, unleashing a typhoon directly at him. He merely cackled at he took the blast, which caused a humongous blast of wind and rubble to explode all about the area.

---

Up above, Natsu got flung off of where he laid from the impact of Dori's attack, landing on the floor below.

"Natsu!" Happy cried, still carrying Lucy. "Are you okay?" the Celestial mage asked.

"Yeah, I'm just fine!" Natsu answered.

"What the heck is going on?" Happy asked, looking at the sky.

Lucy watched as Natsu questionably sniffed the air, then looked surprised as he stated, "I can smell it… This is Dori's magic!"

"Wait, Dori?!" Lucy asked, both she and Happy startled at his discovery.

Natsu was surprised for a second, then he beamed a grin as he stated, "I don't know how she got so strong, but it looks like she's settling the score!"

---

Back in the battle, Dori watched as the debris fell all about the area, waiting for José's appearance out of it. When he came to, he was slightly injured, but otherwise unfazed.

"If that's your best, then I'm far from amused!" the dark mage roared, unleashing a hurricane of darkness at Dori, who slammed the crystals to the ground, pull-vaulting herself over José's attack with them and a gust of wind. She then dislodged the crystals from her hands, sending them like torpedoes at her target. José swished his hand, sending a crescent of dark energy to slice the crystals before they hit him, creating an explosion.

"Crystal Deity: Baldr!" the Crystal mage shouted, and through the explosion, José saw an oncoming blast of light magic shooting at him, hitting him head on. Dori had revealed herself, still in midair, wielding another Crystal Pinnacle, with four short spike sticking out from all around the sides.

"You think I'm using my best?! You haven't seen anything yet!" she roared, and she grasped the arm of her crystal-encased hand, and unleashed the pinnacle at him like a rocket. The spikes dislodged themselves from the main crystal, creating a scattering shower that José dodged.

Dori landed on the ground as José swiped his hand, unleashing a blast of darkness that encased the area around his target. Dori doubled back before the attack came through, skidding to a halt as she slammed her palms to the ground, creating a magic circle. "Crystal Lock!" she roared. A magic circle appeared at José's feet, and he looked down in time to see himself getting completely encased in crystal, from head to toe.

Dori then further added to it as she growled, "Lacrima Release: Light!" The Crystal Lock suddenly shined brightly, masking José in the blinding light and preventing him from using his Phantom magic.

"A Mage Saint? Don't make me laugh!" Dori scoffed, producing a crystal that angled behind her feet, "You don't know the strength people have in the Alvarez Empire, do you? Well, I've fought them so many times in my life, that I can tell you right now…" She used the crystal at her feet to create small Crystal Launchers that shot her at José, "…Compared to them, you are merely standard level at best!"

She produced a magic circle at her fist, and punched the crystal encasing José, jettisoning him out the other end, flying up the stairs, and causing him to slam into the wall on the far end, creating an explosion of smoke. Dori skidded to a halt, glaring harshly at her opponent.

Meanwhile, Makarov was wide-eyed at the battle he was witnessing. 'Unbelievable! I had no idea there were children of her age with this much magical power.' he thought to himself, 'She might even be on the same level as Gildarts! How could she had gained such a level of power is beyond me!'

José fell down the wall, landing on his hands and knees. He soon realized his position, and he seethed with rage as he pulsed with an great amount of black energy. "Unbelievable… To think I would stoop so low as to be kneeling before one of Makarov's children!" he growled, slowly rising back up to his feet, his eyes practically bulging in anger as he looked at the person who struck him back, "HOW DARE YOU MAKE A MOCKERY OUT OF ME! I AM THE MASTER OF THE ALL-POWERFUL PHANTOM LORD GUILD! YOU SHOULD BE KNEELING BEFORE ME!"

He began summoning a pair of large skull-faced will-o-wisps, black and dark purple, floating all about him, cackling and staring at Dori with looks that even made the skulls of skeletons seem tame. "I won't hold back anything on you, girl!" José barked at her, "You, Makarov, and all of Fairy Tail will perish from existence!"

Dori looked at the attack he was preparing to use. She then closed her eyes, spiraling her hands until they came together in front of her, like she was holding a ball. "Lacrima Release: Earth! Wind! Light!" she chanted, and the two forms of magic suddenly started to come from each of her hands, blending together. She then clapped her palms together, and slammed the ground with both hands, creating a shining magic circle. The ground began to shake from the tremendous magic power she was pouring into her next attack. She then stood up as a crystal started to take a form from behind her, glowing an amber and white hue. As the crystal grew, it started producing numerous branches all about, nine in total, and despite being crystal, they moved in a fluid motion.

"THIS IS IT! NOW DIE!" José roared, unleashing the two massive skulls at Dori, their power breaking the ground as they charged.

"Great Crystal Deity: Yggdrasil!" Dori shouted, raising an open palm in the air, making the tree-shaped crystal behind her shine. She then waved her hands forward, and the branches of the tree suddenly shot forward as fluently as elastic. The shining branches pierced right through José's attack, diminishing it before it came close to Dori. The branches then came at José, who stood in shock as five of the lower branches bound his wrists, legs, and waist, shoving him back into the wall once more. He stood, gaping-mouthed, unable to move or even fight back. He was helpless.

"All you ever did was take from others for your own selfish desire." Dori stated, slowly walking up the steps towards him, "You are so obsessed with power and being number one, that you showed little to no remorse for your actions of what you done to this guild and the people within it. You are a sorry excuse of a human being, let alone a master of this guild, for you have no care for the pain of others around you."

She stopped meters away from the pinned José, with the four remaining branches surrounding above and around her. "Let me demonstrate to you what you were so ignorant of learning, and make you understand the consequences of your actions!" Dori declared, the tips of the branches starting to bloom flowers. "Unleash thy power, Yggdrasil! The winds of the four gnawing beasts from the highest shoots! Grímnismál Hirtir!" From the four blossomed branches shot forward at José, and his eyes were blinded by the oncoming threat.

---

From the outside, everyone watched as there was a light shining from the place where the battle took place, and it became brighter and brighter. The magic energy of the light was so powerful, it was destroying José's phantoms with ease, while blinding everyone else.

"What's with that light?!" Alzack questioned, "It's so strong!"

"It's destroying the phantoms, but not us!" Bisca noticed, feeling a slight tingle from the magic, but nothing damage inflicting.

Then, as soon as the light started to shine brightly, there was a massive explosion coming from the back of the giant. The Fairy Tail mages who escaped it turned at the sight and sound of the attack.

"What the heck is that?!" Gray questioned in surprise.

"That's Dori." Leon answered, "This is what happens when you are an enemy that drove her to using her full strength."

"This is her power?!" Erza questioned in surprise, "I thought the Master's magic was tremendous, but I never expected Dori to possess magic of this caliber!"

"When the entire continent is set out to get me, Dori made sure to become strong enough to fight the entire continent back." Palva explained, gaining enough strength to stand on her own, "She has fought for so long, training herself so hard, studied so many books, that she has gone beyond the levels of anyone twice her age. This is why, when I know I can't fight, that I can always rely on her to save me."

"Indeed." Leon agreed, "She is, without a doubt, the strongest among all of us. And the one with the greatest heart, as well." The others continued looked to them, then back at the giant beyond, as the light was dying down.

---

Back inside, or rather, what remained of it after everything above was destroyed, Dori stood there, staring down at the unconscious José, who's head was dangling off the end of the broken hallway. His eyes were blank, and his mouth was gaping. His clothing was singed, and covered in dust. He was completely, and utterly defeated.

Makarov approached to her right as she finished, "Those who are ignorant of other's pain should understand what they're missing. When they learn, they grow stronger to prevent themselves and others they hold dear to them to feel that pain. And that is what I have done for a decade; I fight to protect, not to gain, unlike him."

The Fairy Tail guild master looked to Dori, then back at José. "So the source of your magic is to protect." he understood, "I can finally see where your power comes from, and it is indeed a righteous power. One worthy to be a part of Fairy Tail."

Dori looked back at Makarov, smiling weakly at him. She had used a lot of magic in this fight, and it was starting to catch up on her.

"I bet he won't ever cause us trouble again." Makarov continued, turning away, "Though, I can tell the Magic Council will not stay silent after all this chaos. We might as well be on our best behavior."

Dori looked to him, wondering. The Magic Council. She had almost forgotten about them when she came to this land. If they learned about Palva being among them, how would they react? Would they act the same way as the people of Alakitasia? She was worried about so many things involving them and Palva. What would she do if and when they arrive? These were questions that needed to be asked, but they could be answered later on. For now, she had to go back and check up on the others.

Just then, Aria suddenly reappeared out of thin air, approaching Dori from behind, his eye and mouth wide open, tears pouring from his eyes. 'The master has fallen! How sad!' he told himself, preparing a Drain spell, 'The girl who defeated me and him has left herself wide open. This is my chance!'

"You just don't know when to give up, do you?" Dori questioned, not even turning her head as she felt his presence. She was about to act when a =fist suddenly came from in front of her, slamming Aria in the face and sending him crashing into some rubbles. The fist came from Makarov, who didn't even turn as his arms stretched out like rubber. Aria's hat hit the floor as the guild master retracted his limb, standing in one place. Dori looked at Makarov, waiting for a reaction.

"The war is over. The battle the guilds is finished!" he told the defeated Aria, "But if you try anything more, I'll wipe out your entire guild without hesitation." He then turned with a calm face as he finished, "Now you kids run home, and take José with you." Dori smiled at this, although his change in personality in the last bit was a bit puzzling.

All of the other guild members down below, with Lucy and Happy in the sky, and Natsu still laying on his back, all realized the conclusion of the fight. "ALL RIGHT! WE BEAT PHANTOM!" they all cheered, and started celebrating with joy in their hearts. The day was won for them. Everyone could finally stop fighting.

Dori and Makarov approached the outside edge, on the roof of where Gray, Palva and Juvia had their fight, looking down at the celebrating guild members. "We are victorious!" he announced to everyone, "But I had very little to do with it. This victory is yours, my children!"

Dori looked down at where Palva, Leon and Pastry were, along with the rest of Fairy Tail around them. They all smirked back up at her, while she smiled and nodded back. Truly, this was a victory for the guild they only recently became a part of. They managed to protect the people most dearest to them. Now, they could rest…for the time being.

---

Sorry for the long time it took to do this, but IRL, my job had started picking up quite a lot, due to the lack of staff working in the devision I'm part of. So I'm pretty much working 5/7 days a week, eight hour shifts (8am-4pm), and they require a lot of energy. So when I'm not working, I'm usually resting my weary bones, mentally relaxing myself, and not having enough mentality to constantly write. As the fall comes in, I should find myself with more workers, so I might catch up with next chapter soon, along with reviews for a certain friend of mine's work.

Anyways, that's the conclusion of the Phantom Lord arc. A nice and long story, including several battles. But were you guys surprised by the introduction of Dori's full power? The names of her Crystal Deity attacks are based off of Norse Mythology, which is where I'll focus a lot of her magic from. She may seem overpowering, but soon, everyone will catch up with her. Right now, she's pretty much at Gildarts level of power, so a definite force to be reckon with for someone who's only 16 years old. Where she gets this tremendous amount of power is something that will be shown more in later times, and trust me when I say that she will grow a bit stronger here and there as time goes on.

Now, you might think I would go into the Tower of Heaven arc, but there is a slight detail that needs to be notified; Palva & the Magic Council. They will arrive and there will be conflict involving her, her friends and family, and the solution to curing her of her curse. There will be a two-three episode arc involving Natsu and her finding a way to help the female Dragon Slayer control her flames without her lance. It's called 'Rise of Ashes' Arc. The name of the arc will be explained during this time.

What are you opinions of my story so far? I know a lot of you are still wondering about my SAK: Heart's Origin story on hold, but please be patient! In due time, when the inspiration once again kicks in, I'll get back to it. I know the next chapter of that is Tarzan's world, and I had played that place in my 'Kingdom Hearts 1.5 & 2.5 Remix', and let me just say how annoyed I was with the vine swinging mechanics. Never again! I'll stick to gliding! I'm also assisting my buddy, Coral the Leviathan' in her work 'Huntsmen in Kalos', developing story chapters for her in that. I'm pretty swamped with things I need to do, and with so little time and energy to do it.

As always, leave a review and a like. I love people reviewing my work, and I don't mind criticisms, as long as they aren't just plain abusive. Please be patient for the next chapter of Burning Hearts of Fairies!