This Chapter has been re-edited as of February, 2019!
Hey there, we're almost through with this Arc!
So, another remake, another part for me to edit up. Just the usual, filling the word count, putting in the details that deserve to be mentioned, and so on and so forth. Nothing much for me to say.
As usual, I own nothing related to the subject of Ben 10 nor Fairy Tail. Please support the official releases, and happy reading to you all!
Chapter 10: Iron and Fire (Phantom Lord Arc Part IV)
…
Inside the Giant's cranium, a stone room was revealed, showing that it was in fact the control room for the entire mechanical guild hall.
Phantom Lord's Master, Jose, was not pleased with the coming events that had recently passed. In fact, he was pretty much livid at this point in response to Fairy Tail's very presence itself.
Jose himself was a tall, slim man with long, straight, black hair reaching down to his shoulders and a thin mustache. He had a long and sharp face, vaguely pointed ears, prominent eyelashes and dark-colored lips.
His attire bore a resemblance to fictional depictions of a sorcerer, consisting of a flamboyant coat with a high collar featuring two prominent wings similar to a bat's, with a matching witch-like hat bearing Phantom Lord's symbol. A plain dress shirt sported his Wizard Saint's medallion around the neck, with two light ribbons falling down from it; loose striped culottes paired with long socks, and a pair of pointed shoes each bearing two furry balls, one on the front and one on the back of the foot.
"This is blasphemy! How dare they!" Jose yelled, veins popping on his forehead. "The Element Four, four of my own very best Mages… Defeated by those pesky filth from Fairy Tail!"
"Those who are beaten by trash are worse than trash, am I right?" Gajeel commented from below his throne.
"Oh! You've returned, Gajeel-san." Jose turned and looked down to see the Iron Dragon Slayer.
Heaved over his shoulder was a familiar blonde Celestial Spirit wizard. Lucy herself was pretty beaten up, her clothes torn and shredded in places to show further evidence.
"Yep. I got a little souvenir for you as well, something I picked up along the way back." He replied back, tossing Lucy's unconscious body onto the floor.
"That was quite fast, even I have to admit that." Jose responded, please at what he saw. "That was some quite good work, but how did you track her so quickly?"
"Heh. You should never underestimate the nose of a Dragon Slayer." Gajeel boasted, rubbing his nose in recognition.
"Yes… However, the girl is alive though, is she not?" Phantom Lord's Master looked down at the blonde with an unsure look. "Otherwise this endeavor of ours would be pointless."
Gajeel hummed as he cupped his chin, giving him a snarky answer in the form of fake thinking. "Well… I was pretty rough with her... Oh, I know, let's see for ourselves!"
Without warning, he then skipped over to Lucy and kicked her right in the gut, launching her into a wall and even making a dent in the process. To his pleasure, the blonde Mage coughed herself out of unconsciousness, clenching her stomach as she began to spit out a bit of blood and saliva.
"I hear groans of increasing discomfort! I'd say she's quite alive, Master!" Gajeel remarked arrogantly.
"Then I applaud you for your fine work, Gajeel." Jose commended with a sinister smile. "As expected of my most powerful Mage!"
Grinning, Jose went over to his throne, picking up a mic to access his PA system. "Now then, let's give these hooligans a bit of a scaring…"
…
…
A moment later, a loud ding was heard from Phantom Lord's PA system. Everyone in the Giant, and everyone outside in Fairy Tail's courtyard looked over as Jose began to speak.
"Attention, scum of Fairy Tail!" He first called out. "I have a bit of news for you, so you'd better listen, because I'll only say this once!"
"Master?" Gajeel called from afar. "Shall I do the honors?"
"Do it!" Jose replied. "Let them hear her screams!"
Suddenly, Gajeel pulled Lucy up from the ground by the very hair attached to her skull, causing her to scream hysterically. The horrific sound of the blonde blasted through the speakers, making all the Fairy Tail Mages freeze in horror.
"As you can now tell, we have successfully captured Lucy Heartfilia, accomplishing one of our goals. All we have to do know is something I'll take a load of joy in… Destroying each and every one of you pathetic Fairies!"
Jose let that message burrow itself into the ears of his enemies before logging off. After threatening Fairy Tail with his declaration, Jose walked to the room's exit, a disdainful frown appearing on his face.
"Gajeel. Please, keep an eye on the girl for me, will you?" He ordered. "There are some pest littering the halls of my Giant."
"You mean Salamander and that Take-Over Mage?" Gajeel looked over.
"Yes. Them and their measly friends." Jose answered. "They've been fortunate thus far, but their days of glory are about to run dry. After I'm done with them, that is…"
…
Back with Ben, Erza, Happy, and Natsu, the Omnitrix wielder growled after hearing Jose's haughty speech over the PA. Natsu and Erza were equally as livid, the former ready to literally tear up the entire building to look for her.
However, before any one of them could make a move, the squad heard a tumble of footsteps coming from the entrance of the room.
"Natsu, Happy!" Mira cried out.
The four turned over to see Mira, Gray, Echo Echo 2, and Elfman sprinting into the room. The three of them still had bruises and other small wounds from their respective fights, while Echo 2 had soot on various parts of his suit.
"Mira? Why are you here for?" Erza asked.
"I could say the same to you." The white-haired teen replied. "In all honesty though, I'm here because I tried to impersonate Lucy. Phantom captured me, but thanks to Elfman performing a Full-Body Take-Over, he and Ben were able to defeat one of the Element Four and save me in the progress."
"See? I knew I heard roaring from below." Ben answered, merging himself back with Echo Echo 2 after giving the Sonorosian a high five. "And now that we've defeated all of the Element Four, the Giant has stopped moving."
"Yeah, but now Phantom's got Lucy. How in the world did they track her down?" Gray then asked.
"We've gotta save her!" Natsu yelled. Before anyone could react, he began to release a large amount of Magic Power, surging his entire body in flames.
"Natsu? Hey, what are you—"
Without warning, Natsu released a loud cry as his flames took on the silhouette of a Dragon. Leaping in the air, he literally smashed through the ceiling, disappearing from everyone's sight.
"Did he just…?" Ben frowned, before sighing. "I'm not even gonna retort on that…"
"Natsu!" Happy yelled as he went after him. "Wait for me!"
Before anyone could comment any further on Natsu's bizarre take off, it was that a dark haze began to fill the room. Ben looked on with a heightened sense of danger as everyone else felt horrid, unpleasant sensations riling up in their bodies.
"This feeling… I haven't felt this in a while." Ben stood straight, his eyes dead serious as he began to look around. "Who's giving off such a malicious amount of murderous intent?"
"W-What the…?" Gray mumbled, holding his mouth.
"What is this…?" Mira looked around in worry.
"This feeling… It's death; the very essence of death itself…" Erza tried to explain with her own look of unpleasantness. "How foul…!"
"T-This is even making a real man like me get shivers down his spine!" Elfman admitted.
As they continued to stand in this nauseous room, Ben and the others began to hear portentous clapping through the massive room. They turned over to see Master Jose in the entrance, wearing a different outfit from before.
His second outfit was more militaristic than his last one. It consisted of a long, blue coat, closed on the right side of Jose's chest by a belt circling his waist and by another one going over his right shoulder, sporting Phantom Lord's symbol on its buckle. Covering Jose's left arm was a brownish cape, sporting a wide golden-colored stripe near the edges and some small shield-shaped ornaments. The outfit was completed by loose pants tucked inside boots.
While the Master of Phantom Lord looked menacing enough, what really made the group stand on their hairs was a dark purplish-black aura radiating from Jose's body. His pure Magic Power, deathly in both appearance and might.
"I have to admit, I'm rather impressed with the things you have achieved. Bravo! Very impressive, you wizards from Fairy Tail." Jose applaud them as he approached them. "But never in my wildest dreams did I think that this would get this fun!"
"Master Jose…" Erza growled.
"Redirecting Jupiter's beam of might right back at itself, defeating my elite squadron, the Element Four… And even bringing down my mighty Giant down to its knees…" Jose went on.
"Phantom's Master?!" Gray gawked. "Crap…"
"No way! We're going to have to fight the Master of a Guild?" Elfman yelled in worry.
Mira held her mouth in anxiety. 'It's like a dark miasma is invading this room. I'm getting sick just from being near him!'
"You've done such a task, entertaining me for so long! Isn't it right that I return the favor towards all of you?" Jose then proposed. "I think it's appropriate."
Erza growled at him while clenching her sword. "Beware, everyone. We must take care not to make any mista—"
All of a sudden however, Elfman and Gray rushed him, the latter in front first as the two began to charge their Magic.
"Elfman!" Gray called out as he began to bring his palms together. "Let's take him out in one go!"
"Yeah! Let's go!" The younger Strauss yelled, clenching his right arm in a magic circle.
"Ice Make: Saucer!" Blasting out a razor-sharp saw circle made of Ice, Elfman converted his arm into a Taken-Over'ed state.
"Partial Take-Over! Beast Arm: Stone Bull!" Right before they could attack though, Jose grinned, summoning an amethyst magic circle in front of himself.
"ELFMAN, GRAY!" Erza cried out. "You idiots!"
"WAIT! Don't go off and attack by yourselves!" Mira warned them.
"Here you go, filth!" Jose grinned. "Darkness Spawn!"
Swinging his arm out, Jose's magic circle launched out a barrage of purple skull projectiles, launching the two away as they crashed down in a mess of rubble.
As he saw the duo Mages land smack down in the middle of the debris, he swiped his arm again, summoning a magic circle that released a chain of red energy, exploding that line of stones and dust. "Dark Pulse!"
"Damn it! Elfman, Gray!" Ben yelled as he began to go for the Omnitrix. "And they call me impatient!"
"It will be a pleasure destroying the first of you Fairies!" Jose yelled out.
"JOSE!" Erza growled, blasting forth in his direction as her body started to flash.
Activating her Requip to change into her Black Wing Armor, the redhead flew at Jose with the flapping of her wings echoing through the room. The Master of Phantom grinned as he drew another circle that launched a blast of energy. Dodging by flying above its attack range, Erza did a front flip as she began to tower down and attempt to swipe at the Guild Master. He dodged continuously until he grasped her wrist and threw her back.
Landing on her feet, she glared at him. 'He has untimely reflexes…'
"Fascinating… Entertain me more, Titania!" Jose yelled out. "Someone of your caliber is a piece to behold!"
"Justice will always prevail…" Erza said, narrowing her brown eyes at the black-haired man. "And Fairy Tail will settle the score with Phantom."
A wicked, malicious smile took shape on Jose's lips. "Powerful, courageous, and beautiful… Destroying you will be the hardest thing I've ever enjoyed."
Erza swung her sword again at Jose, who dodged and leaped away, firing another blast of magic in response as he backed off. The redhead dodged as the spell exploded at a distant area, leaving the shockwave to wring the ears of the unconscious Take-Over Mage and Ice Mage.
"Ugh, my ears…" Gray growled.
"It's like firecrackers in my head…" Elfman rubbed his head.
Elfman and Gray groaned as they got up, shaking their heads as they then eyed the fight between Erza and Jose. She then glances back at the two before focusing back on her foe.
"I suspect you two won't try to just muscle through this fight now, I presume?" She spoke with a mockingly laidback voice.
The two sweat dropped as they nodded. "Y-Yes, ma'am..."
Erza then smirked as they started to gather next to her. "Now then, shall we boys? Ben, come forth as well!"
"Already on it!" Ben replied. Leaping in front of the trio, he slapped down the Omnitrix.
Even Jose was forced to look away from the blinding intensity of the light. As everyone opened their eyes again, Echo Echo replaced the young Omnitrix wielder again.
"You know, I never got a chance to get a good hit on Aria with this form. So, I guess you'll have to do in his place, Jose!" The Sonorosian exclaimed.
"Oh? And what can this form do, Take-Over Mage?" Jose grinned smugly. "Yell at me to death?"
The duo stared down at each other, with Echo Echo frowning at Jose, before grinning in response. "…You could say that."
He then narrowed his eyes at Jose as he ran forward. "Everyone, back up and cover your ears!"
The four looked at him in confusion for a bit, before doing as he said and leaping back, covering their ears. Jose then looked at the small creature as he tilted a brow.
"As if I'd let you attack me! Begone!" Jose then snarled, summoning another magic circle.
As it fired off another wave of dark energy, Echo Echo stopped in front of him and duplicated into five copies, the aliens being aligned in a delta shaped formation. Jose's eyes widened at the Sonorosian's ability as the Echos then inhaled while crossing their arms, before opening their speaker like mouths to scream out.
"Wall… Of… SOUND!" They all screamed out.
The Echos retaliated against Jose as they blasted out an ear-killing sonic blast from their mouths, the waves of sound screeching against Jose, who began to cover his ears as he went down on a knee, growling in pain. Even the magic spell he released was diverted back into the opposite direction, exploding as it crashed back into Jose.
Ceasing their screaming a moment later, the Echos reformed into one as he waited the for the smoke to clear out. It wasn't long though until Phantom's Master emerged from the debris, specks of soot and a few scratches on his body as he growled.
"Now everyone, while he's still recovering!" Erza yelled.
Elfman and Gray then proceeded to attack once again. Erza attempted a sword swipe as she flew onto Jose, with Gray and Elfman in tow as Echo Echo began to charge up another scream.
"Ice Make: Lances!" Gray yelled as he summoned a magic circle that fired off several ice lances.
"Iron Bull: Metal Crusher!" Elfman let out a cry as he jumped and slammed his iron arm into the ground, sending off a shockwave through the ground.
As Gray and Elfman began their attacks, Jose roared loudly as his Magic Power surged and blasted forth. He then released a burst wave of magical energy that blew the others back and canceled out their attacks. Erza was blown away as well before she could inflict any further damage, but she managed to land safely back with everyone else.
Growling, he stood up, his hand on ear as he glared at Echo Echo. "Clever little trick, Take-Over Mage... But that won't happen again!"
"Sheesh, this guy is hardheaded…" Echo Echo remarked as he took a stance.
…
With Gajeel, some Phantom Mages watched as the Iron Dragon Slayer had begun to pass the time, and by that, it meant torturing Lucy for the fun of it.
Kicking her again, Lucy was launched and thrown into the stone wall in the control room for the umpteenth time. Her clothes were torn and her body was beaten badly, even worse from before.
From the middle of the room, Gajeel smiled as he transformed his arm into an iron club.
"C'mon, princess." Gajeel taunted, "You've gotta give me more of a response than that."
Lucy whimpered, the pain from Gajeel's continued strikes coursing through her body was agonizing. "G-Gaaah…"
"Seriously…" The Iron mage scoffed. "You're not even putting up much of a fight anymore."
"H-Hey, Gajeel… Haven't you done enough?" A Phantom mage called out, standing alongside a small group of fellow Phantom members. "The Master said not to roughen her up too much."
Gajeel cocked a brow as he glanced back. "But I'm bored, there's nothing else better to do."
He then turned away, grumbling a bit in disappointment. "The Master's having me babysit this girl while he's out having fun. That ain't fair, to face all of those opponents."
He then stepped toward Lucy, who was still on the ground and trembling. "And besides, all I'm doing is trying to pass the time. What's wrong with that?"
"Yeah… But if the Master learns about this, he'll be furious, even with you!" The Mage tried to argue. "Listen to me…"
Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Gajeel frowned as he turned back and extended out his iron arm, slamming it into the man's face. This made the other Mages in the room gasp in response.
"Ugh… Shut your trap!" Gajeel rolled his eyes. "I know that Master Jose thinks that this girl's important, but she's just another member of those Fairy Scum in my eyes. And even then, she's a wizard first and foremost. She should've expected something like this to happen when she chose the line of Magic."
"Come on, you're getting out of hand with this, man." Another called out. It was the same Mage that Bisca shot back during the previous fight. He was named Boze.
"Master's not going to like this, you know?" Added a dark-skinned girl next to Boze named Sue. She wore a purple, jester-like hat adorned with the Phantom Lord mark, along with a blue shirt with ripped sleeves, and green pants held up by a buckle belt.
"Well, then I'll just put the blame on you fellas!" Gajeel smirked before began to snicker
Boze and Sue both sweat dropped in response. " So horrible… As expected of Gajeel-san…"
Gajeel then turned back to Lucy, who was beginning to pick herself off the floor. "Even so, this is kind of sad. Those Fairies are all after her since they know that she's loaded."
To the Iron Mage's surprise however, Lucy actually smirked and chuckled darkly. She stood up shakily, leaning against the wall for support as she began to look up.
"He… Hehehe...! I can't believe it… You guys are truly idiots. It's so pitiful…even I'm feeling sad for you all." She stated.
Gajeel let out a hum in interest as the remaining Mages in the room sweat dropped. "…Hm?
"W-What? Is she crazy, trying to do something like this?" Boze asked himself.
"She's actually trying to provoke Gajeel…" Sue added in disbelief.
As Lucy gained a steady footing, she turned to Gajeel, the latter seeing a smile of confidence on her bruised figure. "So… Phantom Lord, right? You guys are supposed to be the Ruler of the Spirits? Please, you couldn't even scare a kid if you tried!"
Gajeel smiled sinisterly in response. "Oh? I see..."
Within a blink of an eye, the Iron Dragon Slayer morphed his arm and slammed it into Lucy's abdomen, pinning her against the wall hard enough to make the stone crumble behind her.
"You've got some guts to go and try bragging right in front of us in a situation like this. However, I have to admit, I like people who are like that!" He replied.
He then released his hold on her as he pulled his arm back, letting Lucy descend to her knees to wail in pain. "But I'm not looking for your tenacity. I want to hear your screams, girlie. If you don't start screaming some more, it's gonna annoy the crap out of me."
Despite the ever so growing pain, Lucy gave the Iron Mage another smirk. "Then… Why not kill me? Go on, finish me. End my life! If you do that… Then I have no doubt that you'll all be in for the worst moments of your lives."
"Oooh… Now that sounds interesting." Gajeel admitted. "I'm curious, tell me more about it, why don't you?"
The other Phantom Lord Mages could only watch in horror as Gajeel began to approach Lucy. In their minds, Lucy was either really brave, or really stupid for trying to provoke their strongest Mage.
"Fairy Tail will never let you escape, they'll never forgive you… That's the kind of Guild they are. You'll be quivering in fear under the shadow of the world's strongest Guild!" She yelled out with assurance.
Gajeel's eyes narrowed. "Is that so? Well then, how about we test that theory, shall we?!"
Responding to Lucy's threat with a delighted grin, he changed both of his arms into iron-clubs, crossing them as he leaped into the air. "Come on, blondie!"
"Gajeel!" Boze shouted. "Wait, don't do it!"
"NO!" Sue yelled.
However, right before Gajeel's feet could stomp on Lucy's face, the floor beneath him erupted with embers as it crackled. All of a sudden, a torrent of flames blasted forth, separating Gajeel from Lucy. An instant later, Natsu jumped out of the fire and delivered a terrific uppercut into Gajeel's face, scowling at him while doing so.
Gajeel went flying back, but he managed to flip midair and land on his feet, recovering shortly as he skidded along the ground for a second. Kissing his teeth, he looked over to see Natsu letting out a loud war cry, his body once again engulfed flames that took the shape of a Dragon.
The black, spiked hair wizard grinned. "I knew it. I did smell you coming this way!"
Lucy began to tear up upon seeing the pink haired Mage. "…Salamander!"
"GAJEEEEEL!"
"Ha! Now this is what I call entertainment!" Gajeel cackled as Natsu stood in front of Lucy. "Come on! Show me some fun!"
"Stay back, Lucy. I've got this chump." He reassured her. "You take it easy."
"Gajeel, wait!" Boze called out.
"Oh no, you stay out of this!" The Iron Mage brushed him off as he and Natsu blasted forward at one another.
"COME AT ME!" Natsu yelled as he dispatched flames into his fists. He caught Gajeel's arm as he swung his morphed iron rod in his direction.
Growling loudly as he landed on the floor, Natsu yelled as he began to spin around, eventually letting go to throw Gajeel into a wall. The Iron Dragon Slayer however was quick to balance himself, his feet landing on the wall and creating a crater as held up his arm to block a double attack from Natsu.
The fire strike was so intense that the stone walls then tumbled apart behind Gajeel, causing a cloud of dust and ash to storm out into the room.
The Phantom Mages cried out in fear as they attempted to dodge the incoming debris. "LEAVE US OUT OF THIS!"
A few clashes further on, Gajeel and Natsu both leaped out of the ash cloud, the latter's fist still engulfed in flames while Gajeel's arm reverted back to normal. The Iron Dragon Slayer's eyes widened in surprise as Natsu twirled midair to delivered a right hook into his face.
The Fire Mage's attack was powerful enough to send Gajeel hurdling back all the way into the opposite end of the room, crashing into the stone wall in the process.
The wall had dented inward, with Gajeel lying in the center. He rubbed his chin and frowned as he opened his eyes. He was silently impressed and surprised that Salamander had managed to inflict some damage onto his body. However, as he got out from his musing, Gajeel looked up in time to spot his opponent coming down at him from above while lighting his right foot on fire.
Doing a flip downwards, Natsu landed a flaming axe kick on Gajeel's quickly transformed arm. "Fire Dragon's Talon!"
With the chain reaction of Magic Power between the two, the attack ended up created a small explosion, pushing Natsu back into the air and careening backwards.
Lucy in the meanwhile had begun to recover from Gajeel's attacks, only being able to watch the devastating fight with awe. She was shocked to see the Fire Dragon Slayer acting so violently. As she continued to watch, it was then that The Celestial wizard was brought out of her musings Happy approached her.
"Lucy! Are you alright?" He called out.
"Happy!" The blonde smiled in response. "Yeah… But…"
However, she then turned her attention back to Natsu, who had the angriest scowl she ever saw as he walked out from a dust cloud. "I've never seen Natsu like this before."
"Aye, me neither…" Happy replied. "However, I can say for a fact that right now, Natsu's really getting into the heat of things."
Gajeel cracked his neck and smirked as Natsu stood in front of him. "I gotta say, for scum like yourself, you Fairies sure are cocky."
"Yeah right, speak for yourself!" Natsu barked back as Gajeel revved his arm, cracking a few bones. "Not only did you destroy our Guild Hall, but you also hurt Shadow Gear and Lucy! I'm gonna smash your face into scrap metal!"
The Iron mage chuckled, an excite smile appearing on his face. "That sounds like a challenge. Just try it then!"
"Gladly!" Natsu beckoned.
The two Dragon Slayers yelled as they charged at one another. The Iron Mage morphed his arm into an iron club while Natsu kept his fist on fire. As they exchanged a right hook with each other, they both dodged as they passed by. Skidding back, Gajeel quickly turned to extend his club at Natsu's feet. Luckily, the Fire Mage was able to leap into the air and land upside down on Gajeel's club with his left hand, using it as a springboard to kick Gajeel in the face.
However, right as he kicked him, Gajeel retracted his iron arm and morphed it into a long, black blade with revved edges, forcing Natsu to skip back to avoid a dangerous slash. The Fire Mage landed in a crouching position as he glared back at Gajeel
"Sheesh, what's with that gnarly looking thing?" Natsu looked back. "What, an iron rod ain't enough?"
"The Iron Dragon's Sword. Anything that comes into contact with this will be ripped to shreds!" Gajeel responded with a confident smile. "And now…"
Grinning as he sent a mental thought down to his bladed arm, the razor-sharp edges started to spin around the blade in a rapid pace, reminiscent of a chainsaw. "Let's test how durable it is against you, Salamander!"
"Ha, as if! That thing's got nothing on me!" Natsu retorted, seemingly unimpressed.
The Fire Dragon Slayer's friends were pretty intimidated by the chain blade of an arm that Gajeel was wielding. Lucy herself was pretty confused on how someone could morph their own body into that kind of shape. "How's that supposed to work?!"
"Obviously because that's Iron Dragon Slayer Magic!" Happy answered dreadfully. "Natsu, watch out!"
The Iron Mage snickered hysterically he crouched down, leaping high into the air towards Natsu with his sword arm cocked back to slam down. Natsu was forced to hurdle back as the chain blade stuck the floor with an awe-inspiring amount of force. Some of his own guildmates were throttled in the process as tons of debris began to scatter out.
As Natsu landed, Gajeel charged at him again, swiping his blade at the ground. Again, his opponent dodged the attack by scouring back.
"What's the matter, Salamander?! Is it just me—" Gajeel taunted as he swiped again at Natsu, forcing him to move away from the sword's line of range. "—Or are you scared?!"
The Iron Dragon Slayer continued his relentless assault on his fellow Dragon Slayer, cutting to his left and then his right, ending his momentary movements with a vertical slash downwards, smashing the floor again as a result. Natsu however managed to dodge every one of his strikes, annoying Gajeel as well as impressing him to a slight degree.
"It pains me to admit it, but you're quick on your feet, for a little Fairy." He smirked.
"You're not so bad yourself, as much as I hate to say it." Natsu growled in admittance.
With those exchange of words, the Iron Dragon Slayer reverted his sword arm back to normal, smirking mischievously towards his opponent. "But you know, we still have to finish up what we started from that other scuttle, you know? Come on, let's settle this!"
Natsu scowled at Gajeel's face as he prepared to leap. "Fine then, I'll smack you metal face in submission! I'm all fired up now!"
However, before Natsu could make the jump, Gajeel clenched his fists as a pale green magic circle flickered under his feet. It was a shock to the spectators as Gajeel's entire body was suddenly layered by a thick coat of iron scales, with sharp talons grew from his fingertips as his teeth became more serrated. It was truly as if he just turned over a bit to his Dragon side.
"How do you like the Iron Dragon's Scales?" Gajeel quickly asked as he leaped at Natsu, flickering a magic circle right as his fist was about to smash its way into him. "Iron Dragon's Hard Fist!"
Natsu, being unable to react in time, only managed to hold up his forearms in a crossed fashion to block the blow. However, the sheer amount of strength behind the punch lifted Natsu off from his feet, blasting him off into a wall.
Gajeel's face shadowed over, with his eyes glowed a menacing red as he chortled malevolently. "How did you like that? That felt pretty good to slam you into that wall."
Leaping back into the fight, Natsu however fell to a knee due to the recoiling in pain. Gajeel's fist was able to leave a nasty black and blue bruising on his left arm, sufficient enough to make the Dragon Slayer stay silent in accord to his usual retorting.
Lucy's eyes widened in shock as she placed her hands over her mouth, concerned at the expression Natsu was making. "He injured Natsu that much with just a punch?"
"That's because Gajeel coated his entire body in Iron Dragon Scales, effectively increasing his durability and attack power." Happy explained.
Gajeel proceeded to hit Natsu while he was still aching with an uppercut, forcing him back with a powerful right hook after making the Fire Mage stand on his feet. Ignoring the pain in his bruised arm, Natsu quickly charged out from the debris. Gajeel rose a leg to kick Natsu, though Natsu managed to duck underneath his foot at the last second.
However, that's not to say that Gajeel's attack didn't do anything. The force exerted by his Magic enhanced kick blasted forth a shockwave, resulting in a strong gale of wind coming forth.
Lucy yelped as she was forced to close her eyes from the pressure exerted. Her hair flew backwards, with Happy hanging on for dear life off of her shoulder in order not to be blown away. "His kick was powerful enough to blast forth a wave of wind as well?!"
"I told you, he's stronger with those scales on his body!" Happy cried out.
Rising from underneath his opponent, Natsu doused his fist in flames, letting himself perform an uppercut into Gajeel's jaw. Astonishingly however, it didn't appear to had done much of an effect. Gajeel himself merely shrugged it off as he looked down at Natsu with a smug smirk.
"What's the matter, can't make a dent on me?" The Iron Dragon Slayer heckled. "Your flames may be able to destroy a lot of stuff, but not the scales that I've made!"
Gajeel only proved to make his point clear as Natsu clenched his teeth, his arm beginning to swell a bit from punching such a hard material. Wincing, the Fire Dragon Slayer staggered back to let out a yell of agony.
"His armor's too powerful for Natsu to destroy!" Lucy exclaimed in shock. "How hard is it?!"
"Natsu!" Happy cried out. "Are you alright?!"
Even though this situation was everything but fun and games, Lucy and Happy watched as their pink haired friend began to roll across the floor, yelling and clenching his aching hand in a comical fashion.
"C-Come on! You've gotta be kidding, Happy! T-This doesn't hurt! N-N-Not one bit…!" He claimed, before letting out a pitiful whine of discomfort. "…Ow."
Lucy sweat dropped. "…Uh-huh, keep telling yourself that, buddy."
"Aye, sir…" Happy agreed.
"Alright, that's enough with that, you pathetic wimp!" Gajeel yelled, running over to Natsu to headbutt his opponent down onto the floor. "I get it that you don't want to look like a sissy, but just admit it, my attacks are doing their WORK on you!"
He then stomped the floor with his iron enhanced fist, forcing out a shockwave that launched Natsu into the air. "Come, show me something that's worth fighting against!"
Natsu growled as he managed to correct his figure while in the air, landing on his feet and skidding back a few feet from where he landed. "Alright then, you metal bastard! Let's get to the roasting!"
He slammed his fists together, summoning a red magic circle in front of his mouth. Lucy and Happy then watched as Natsu took a deep breath. "Fire Dragon's…"
Gajeel summoned a magic circle in front of his face as well, inhaling deeply in conjunction to Natsu. "Iron Dragon's…"
"Both of them are using breath attacks?! Get down!" Lucy looked over between the two of them, surprised by how similar their move sets seemed to be.
As she said that, both Dragon Slayers aimed at each other as their magic circles glowed, before flickering away to activate their spells.
"—ROAR!"
From both of their mouths blasted torrents of their respective elements. Gajeel's mouth released a whirl of silvery iron particles, in comparison to Natsu, who blew out a massive torrent of dark red flames. When the two Roars met to clash against one another, the result between the two Dragon Slaying spells was a torrent of blazing red and grey wind that sent everyone spectating off their feet.
After a moment, the outburst of Magic Power between the two Roars caused the spells to overload against one another, causing a massive explosion that blasted out a section of the room's wall.
When the shaking of the attacks ceased to shock everyone, the room was left in tatters, dust and ash hazing over the area. In the middle of the collision, Gajeel and Natsu stood across from one another, observant of the giant hole their attacks trenched into the ground.
"…Though the both of us may be Dragon Slayers, I suppose that there's a vast difference between Fire and Iron Dragons, huh, Salamander?" Gajeel smiled sadistically, but with a sense of excitement.
As a result of their Roars, both Gajeel and Natsu had their tops shredded off, revealing their torsos, the former cackling in the meanwhile. "Your flames might burn and scorch everything else, but they don't do jack to my iron body. On the other hand, however, it seems my Roar did plenty of damage to your scrap body!"
Lucy struggled to lean against a wall as she glanced over to her exhausted friend. "Natsu…!"
"You can do it, Natsu! Come on!" Happy tried to stimulate his partner.
Natsu lifted his head after a moment of panting, his slit gray eyes glaring in onto Gajeel's figure. Expecting a look of despair, Natsu however responded with a smirk, confusing Gajeel. "You say I can't do squat against you? You better think about that again!"
"What do you…" Before Gajeel could retort, suddenly, the scales on the right side of his face cracked, making his eyes widen in shock.
"He managed to do some damage!" Lucy smiled. "Way to go!"
"Look, pal... My flames aren't like regular fire." Natsu growled lowly.
Suddenly, a magic circle appeared under Natsu's feet, consuming his body in flames. "The flames of a Fire Dragon burn all in their path! If you think otherwise, you'll be surely mistaken. Now come on, you piece of scrap metal! I'll tear your scale armor into a million pieces!"
Gajeel's response to Natsu was expressed with glee as his body began to glow with a pale green coloration. "OH YEAH! Try me then, Salamander!"
"Come at me then, Black Steel!" Natsu snarled. "I'll turn that smile upside down!"
"You know, the sky's not big enough for two Dragons..." Gajeel grinned. "So, you're going to have to fall, here and now!"
"Natsu…" Lucy gulped in nervousness, clenching her guild-marked hand.
Beginning round two of their fight, Natsu and Gajeel roared loudly as they clashed and punched each other in the face. Their Magic Power collided with one another, sending off explosions of iron and fire particles around the area.
Blasting the whole room to smithereens practically, Gajeel and Natsu broke out from the busted roof to continue their slugfest, with Natsu channeling his flames through his feet. Both Mages had used their respective elements to fly off into the air. Everyone was quite shocked to see the two Dragon Slayers in the air.
"Did Natsu learn that by seeing Heatblast?" Lucy looked up.
"That's pretty smart… For Natsu at least." Happy replied.
The two Mages continue their slugging of one another while Lucy and the others continued to observe the battle. They watched as each time their fists clashed, blasts of Magic Power and shockwaves fired off in multiple directions. As they began to fall back down to ground level, the Dragon Slayers landed on each side of the Giant's horned cranium. Crouching low, the two fighters, yelling as they clanged each other in the head. As wincing as it appeared to be, on the contrary, it didn't seem to hurt any of them.
After backing off, the two threw a few more punches and kicks until they bashed each other in the leg at the same time. The force from their attacks blasted a shockwave that broke off a large chunk of the Giant's horn, causing it to control room, right near Happy and Lucy.
"Eeeek! That's way too close for comfort! We've really gotta get out of here now!" Lucy screamed.
"A-Aye!" Happy squeaked in agreement.
After the dust settled from the giant horn falling into the room, standing in the middle of the room was Gajeel and Natsu, both of them panting heavily from their sudden phase of melee. Natsu began to wipe some sweat off his forehead as he tried to catch his breath... But he then stopped once he saw his opponent begin to crouch down.
Everyone was shocked when the Iron Dragon Slayer began to pick up pieces of broken iron, chewing them up like it was piece of meat.
Natsu himself wasn't exactly please. "What? Hey, that's not fair! How come you get to eat?!"
Gajeel looked up at Natsu, blinking a few times in a nonchalant matter as he swallowed a piece of iron. "Ah, shut ya trap."
"H-He really does eat iron!" Lucy commented. "How bizarre…"
"It is actually tasty?" Happy wondered with an intrigued look. "Ben said it tastes like juicy meat to him…"
After finishing his dose of iron, Gajeel grinned as he began to stand up, being a lot more energetic than a few minutes ago. "Alright, now I've got a fire in my belly!"
"Hey, not cool, man! Don't copy my lines!" Natsu barked.
Without warning though, Gajeel all of a sudden released a loud, nearly ear-shattering scream while his body began to exert a glowing green light. This meant that his Magic Power was now being restored and he was powering up.
"What's going on? His Magic Power is skyrocketing!" Lucy inquired apprehensively.
"That's because of all that iron he ate." Happy answered. "Just like Natsu, when Dragon Slayers consume their respective elements, they regain their Magic Power and become stronger!"
"So, that means that Natsu in turn needs to eat flames!" Lucy realized.
"Aye… That would certainly be helpful, but Natsu can't eat the flames produced by his own Magic." Happy mentioned with a bit of worry.
"Shoot, you're right… Alright, we need a way to make some fire, but how?" Lucy then wondered.
"Let's tear something up, shall we?!" Gajeel grinned, aiming his right arm at Natsu while clenching it with his left arm. A magic circle flickered in front of him as his arm transformed into a large spearhead.
"Iron Dragon's Lance: Demon Logs!" He yelled as his circle began to glow brightly.
Outward from Gajeel's magic circle then launched out a torrent of iron spearheads. Pricking and firing into Natsu, the Fire Mage wailed out in agony as the force from Gajeel's attack began to pile up a dust cloud.
Gasping, Lucy began to dig into the pockets in her skirt, taking out her keys in a hurry.
"O-Okay, fire, fire, fire… Wait, do I even have a Celestial Spirit that can use fire?" Her brown eyes blinked a few times as she began to recall the types of Spirits she had. "…You know what, even if I can't make fire, there should be things that I can use to help Natsu out!"
As she decided her course of action, her attention was pulled back to the fight in front of her when she saw Natsu getting launched out from Gajeel's next attack, landing hard on his back with groans of increasing discomfort.
She then pulled out a golden key with a symbol reminiscent to the letters M and J combined together stamped on its bow. "I don't think any of my other Spirits can break through solid metal... And I certainly can't bring Ms. Splashy over here, so…"
After seeing Natsu get slapped in the face again, Lucy smiled as she gripped her key. "Here goes!"
Twirling it in her hand, the blonde Mage then swiped her key down in a vertical matter, a cyan terracotta magic circle flickering alongside the sound of a doorbell being heard throughout the room.
"Open, Gate of the Maiden: Virgo!" She yelled.
With a puff of smoke, the Celestial Spirit of name appeared a moment later. She took on the form of a maid with chains and shackles around her wrists, short, pink hair, and blue eyes. She wore a typical maid outfit, consisting of a black under coat and a white, frilled-trim apron and a white knee-length white with black shoes.
"A pleasure to see you, Hime." Virgo bowed politely. "…Is it time for my punishment?"
"N-No, Virgo…" Lucy sweat dropped, before turning over to Gajeel and Natsu. "However, how would you like to administer a bit of punishment for yourself for a change?"
The Spirit blinked, glancing over to see Natsu knocked down again. Ironically enough, the Maiden Spirit seemed to be envious. "Natsu-san seems to be in quite the pickle… However, he's certainly getting a dose of a good punishment."
Lucy sighed a little, before pointing at Gajeel. "A-Anyways… Can you distract Gajeel for a little bit? I need time to find a way to create some fire."
"As you wish, Hime. Though with your current line-up of Spirits, I'd find it difficult to do so." Virgo then noted, before noticing another golden key in her collection. "Ah… That one might work, however."
"Which one? Taurus? Cancer?" Lucy asked. "…Plue?"
"Seriously, Lucy?" Happy looked at her in a rhetorical fashion.
"I'd suggest that you use your newly acquired key, Hime." Virgo simply said as she then turned over to Natsu and Gajeel. "I shall now assist Natsu-san, please excuse me."
"Huh? Use Sagittarius? Hey, Virgo…!" Lucy tried to call out to her Spirit, but was ignored as Virgo went towards the fight. "Alright, fine…"
Blasting over towards Gajeel, Natsu's eyes widened as the Spirit lashed stood in front of him and lashed out her chains, which grew in length to slap away at Gajeel's Iron Scales. The Dragon Slayer grunted as he was forced back, raising a brow in response to the Spirit's interference.
"Hey! Who are you?!" He barked.
"Virgo? Hey, it's been a while!" Natsu smiled. "Thanks for the save."
"A pleasure to meet your acquaintance again, Natsu-san. My Hime has instructed me to help you while she calls another Spirit to find a way to fabricate flames." She revealed.
"Oh, really? Cool!" Natsu's eyes gleamed. "Thanks, Lucy!"
"What?!" Gajeel's eyes widened. "Hey, this is supposed to be a one-on-one! Get out of the way, you weird looking maid!"
Blasting forth, Gajeel attempted to slug at Virgo, however, to his shock, the female Spirit caught his arm and threw him into another direction with an arm throw, causing him to land on his back with an unsettling thud.
With Lucy, the blonde smiled at her Spirit's work. Taking out another golden key, this one had a green arrow cross with a line to resemble a cross on its now. Clenching it, Lucy closed her eyes as a magic circle began to glow underneath herself as she held her arm out.
"I know we don't have a contract yet, but I'm pleading for your support…" Lucy mumbled, before focusing.
"…Upon thy will, I call upon thee from the Gates of the Celestial Spirit World! Thou shalt answer thy call to traverse the Gate and beckon to thy side!"
Opening her eyes, Lucy swiped her key down, causing the circle underneath her to disappear and for another cyan terracotta circle to appear in front of herself. "Open, Gate of the Archer: Sagittarius!"
Puffing into existence, Lucy suddenly felt a wave of fatigue take over her body. "Ooof… Maybe summoning two Spirits at once is a bit taxing on my body."
Compared to the name regarding to his constellation, Sagittarius appeared as a tall, black-haired and lanky man sporting a horse costume instead of having a half-horse, half-humanoid appearance. Horse costume aside, Sagittarius's attire consisted of a green shirt with yellow trims followed by a red and yellow pair of striped pants and purple frills. His weapon of choice, a large longbow, was fastened to his back by a red strap along with an equally large quiver.
"A pleasure to meet you, my lady! Moshi moshi!" Said Spirit greeted his summoner with a salute.
"H-Hey!" Lucy exclaimed, bewildered at her successful summoning. "It worked! He's here!"
"But a horse suit though?!" Happy asked. "I though Sagittarius is supposed to be half-man, half-horse or something!"
Ignoring Happy's remark. Lucy got back to being serious. "Alright… Um, I'm sorry for not establishing our contract yet, but I have to ask of you; can you make fire?"
"Unfortunately, I cannot. However, I have an astounding profession for the art of archery. Moshi moshi!" The horse-man replied as he saluted the air, causing Lucy and Happy's expressions to dwindle.
"Oh, I-I see…" The blonde mumbled. '...Why did Virgo tell me to summon him then?'
"Why's he saluting for? And…to who in particular?" Happy wondered.
They were brought out of their conversation as Natsu stepped towards them. "Lucy, keep clear of Gajeel's attacks while Virgo and I keep him busy!"
"Natsu-san, if you'd please." Virgo called out to the Dragon Slayer as she rushed at Gajeel.
"You're a tough lady, I gotta say!" Gajeel growled as he intercepted her movements, forcing her to block a punch. "Iron Dragon's Hard Fist!"
As expected, even Virgo could not stand still after taking that, being launched off of her feet. However, she didn't give him the satisfaction of a pained expression, and instead, planned her next attack as she threw her chains at him. They began to extend once more, wrapping themselves around the Iron Dragon's body.
"Oh, these chains again?!" Gajeel grinned. "If these are iron, then I'll just—"
"—I will not let you, unruly one." Virgo however interrupted him as she suddenly sunk into the ground as she began to fall on her back. "Natsu-san!"
"Alright!" Natsu growled.
Digging into the remaining Magic Power he had left, Natsu's body was engulfed in flames. He crouched low and launched himself at Gajeel, hitting him in the abdomen with his head as the Iron Dragon began to fall foward. "Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!"
The attack made Gajeel slide back a couple meters as it snapped Virgo's hold on him; unfortunately for Natsu though, his opponent was unharmed. It seemed that Virgo's attacks had done more damage than Natsu himself.
Gajeel sneered with a smug grin. "Can't fight on an empty stomach, huh? The maid hurts more than you at this point, Salamander!"
Lifting his arms up and backwards, he struck down on Natsu's back, promptly smashing him into the ground. Gajeel then grabbed Natsu's head, pumping his face across the floor as he morphed his arm into an extending iron rod.
"Maybe you should eat some iron, huh?!" He mockingly suggested.
Lucy covered her mouth in horror. The Iron Dragon Slayer then threw Natsu across the room, his body landing near the giant hole in the wall. "Natsu!"
"Hmph… I've had enough with you. Scram, you filth!" Gajeel yelled.
"I'd stay focused if I were you though." Virgo suddenly then said as she reappeared behind him, however…
"I didn't forget about you though, maidy!" Gajeel grinned as a magic circle flickered underneath him, causing his back to generate rows of spikes that quickly launched out, pricking a few times into Virgo's body. "Iron Dragon's Hedge Logs!"
Virgo's eyes widened as she quickly backed off. There were a few holes in her body, though instead of flesh and blood spewing out, the empty spots simply bore glowing spots of yellow "…I took more damage than I expected."
"Virgo!" Lucy cried out. "Are you alright?!"
"…No need to worry though, Hime. Everything will be fine, as Celestial Spirits cannot be killed." The pink haired Spirit then smiled as she began to glow. "But I must return back to recover. I bid you adieu…"
As Virgo faded back to the Celestial Spirit World, Lucy and everyone else looked over to Natsu, who collapsed on his stomach to the point of near unconsciousness.
"No…!" Lucy breathed in. "Natsu, come on! You've got to get up!"
While Natsu was recovering, Gajeel looked out through the hole in the wall to see the Phantom Troopers. They had clustered all into an abysmally sized ball of darkness, and had started to smash down Fairy Tail's Guild Hall with a bunch of shadowy fists. Try as Fairy Tail's Mage might, they unfortunately couldn't prevent it from doing so.
Gajeel smirked in satisfaction, showing his sadistic side. "Ha! Take a look at the things that you've tried to protect. Pathetic, if I say so myself."
Natsu weakly opened an eye in response to his taunting. It soon opened wide in horror and shock as he witnessed the Phantom Mass smack down on the Guild Hall one more time, causing it to collapse on itself and fall apart. Now, it was nothing more than a pile of debris… Kind of how Ben made it at first, though obviously this was more impactful on everyone's souls as compared to before.
Gajeel began to snicker, and continued to do so until it became a loud, maniac-like cackle, further exempting his own boasting over the situation.
With the fall of the Guild Hall, memories began to flow through Natsu's mind like a valve being released. Memories from his early childhood; Of his first encounter with Makarov and entering Fairy Tail for the first time... His first encounter with Gray and the rest of the Fairy Tail members he'd get to be acquainted with like family; Erza teaching him to read and write, and his experiences with Lisanna and the birth of Happy.
Through that, memories of the more recent pass started to play out. Meeting Lucy, going through and returning from the S-Class mission, his fight and meeting with Ben… And then Makarov having his powers drained, forcing him to show his fragility to all of his family…
Amazingly, and stupidly enough, Natsu gradually got back to his feet, his face etched with fury, and the right amount of determination to settle things. He turned around and, with his arms dangling on his exhausted body, slowly attempted to drudge his way back to Gajeel.
"Natsu… Please." Lucy whimpered, tears threatening to trail down her face. "You don't have do this anymore. If I let them take me, they'll leave you all alone…"
"Lucy…" Lucy gasped a bit as she looked down to see a tearful Happy clutching her boot. "He hasn't given up yet..."
The Celestial Mage's eyes widened, but her expression quickly turned to a determined one as she looked back at Natsu. "…Yeah."
"Oh, come on, why bother? Your Guild Hall is all wrecked and crumbled, and you're all wasted. You've lost this war, admit it." Gajeel taunted as he folded his arms.
While Natsu tried to give him one last punch to the face, Gajeel reared back his arm and slapped him away. As a result, Natsu went careening back until he collided with a large mechanical structure. He fell to his knees before collapsing to the floor, uttering cursing words towards his opponent.
"I can't bear to watch anymore…" Lucy covered her face.
"Stand down, Salamander." Gajeel advised as Natsu tried to get up again, though he was really smiling the entire time "I really hate going easy against my foes. I don't care what happens to you, so I'd say things are going to be fine after this…"
Happy sobbed as he watched Gajeel get closer and closer. "Natsu took down the Jupiter Cannon and fought a fierce battle with one of the Element Four. He's used up too much of his Magic Power. If he could just have some flames to eat, he'd clobber this guy to a pulp!"
Gajeel lifted the weaken Natsu off the floor by his scarf as he morphed his other arm into his Iron Dragon's Sword form. "…Is what they said. It's too bad for you though."
…It was then though that Sagittarius got the idea of what Lucy wanted him to do. His gaze narrowed nearby Natsu and Gajeel as he himself bore a determined look.
"…I see now. It seems as though I've misunderstood your intentions, my crying lady. I'm sorry for that, moshi moshi." The Spirit replied. The archer Spirit pulled an arrow out from his quill and placed it in his bow, aiming it right between the two Dragon Slayers.
"H-Huh?" Lucy and Happy looked over.
"Lucy-sama. You asked if I could produce flames, to which I answered with the implication that I could not… However, what is in fact vital to this situation is not whether if I myself can produce flames—but whether I can start a fire for you, moshi moshi!" He then explained.
"This is it, Salamander! The clincher to all of this!" Gajeel roared in sinister glee as he began to cock his sword arm back.
Suddenly, a majestic dark blue light glowed from beneath Sagittarius as he shot the arrow in his bow. The arrow then transformed into a ray of light, which then materialized into a volley of arrows that struck the metal machinery behind Natsu and Gajeel with little to no sound. A second later, the contraption began to spark out of control, exploding into a glorious conflagration of flames that engulfed the two Dragon Slayers, blowing Gajeel away while Natsu bathed in the glorious birthing of fire.
"Flames!" Happy inquired.
"You created flames by destroying the machinery of the Giant!" Lucy's eyes widened. 'So THAT'S what Virgo meant! Since we couldn't bust anything without Gajeel trying to interfere, Sagittarius could blow something up from afar instead!'
"I was able to pierce through the steel because of my precision and the trajectory I created for my arrows. Excellent skill can allow you to pierce through the thickest of materials, moshi moshi!" Sagittarius explained with a proud look.
Gajeel stepped out of the smoking flames, scowling at the trio. "For crying out loud! First that weird maid, and now a guy in a horse suit? Is that your doing, blondie?!"
"Amazing! You're such an archery genius, Sagittarius!" Lucy smiled as she praised her Spirit.
"I aim to please, my lady. Moshi moshi!" Sagittarius saluted again.
"…Who are you saluting to though?" Happy asked again.
While everyone was distracted by Sagittarius' expertly placed shots, the firestorm in the room was pulled away and vacuumed into Natsu's mouth. After inhaling all the flames, Natsu's body hanged low as a magic circle flickered under his feet. Looking back up, his eyes were full of life once more as he grinned.
"…Thanks for the meal." He then gave Lucy a thumbs up. "Thanks a bunch, Lucy!"
Lucy smiled in return and gave him a thumbs-up in response. "Now go! Kick his ass!"
Gajeel snarled as he began to charge at Natsu. "Oh please! Don't get cocky just because you ate some fire now!"
Coming close to Natsu, as Gajeel trespassed his space with intent to smack him with his iron fist, Natsu turned around at the last moment, scowling at him as his body was engrossed in flames. Before he could react, Gajeel was given a flaming uppercut into his chin. The attack sent the Iron Dragon Slayer bowling back until he crashed into the Giant's horn, cracking it upon impact as it began to shake the entire room.
Natsu clenched his fist, his anger growing more intense by the second. "Levy, Droy, Jet, Lucy, Gramps, all my friends... And Fairy Tail."
Quickly recovering as he landed on his feet, Gajeel inhaled, flickering a magic circle. "Iron Dragon's Roar!"
A torrent of iron particles fired out of Gajeel's mouth and toward Natsu as per traditional Roars. However, before it reached out to him, Natsu's eyes gleamed a menacing red as he held out his palms and whacked it away, causing Gajeel's mouth to drop in surprise and bewilderment.
"What?! He repelled my Roar with his bare hands?!" Gajeel commentated with astonishment.
Natsu glared at the Iron Dragon Slayer, his face shadowed and his eyes still glowing a deadly red coloration. "…How many more? How many more people must you make suffer before you're satisfied?"
"No, this is bullcrap!" Gajeel muttered in disbelief to this situation. "I can't lose to this scum from Fairy Tail!"
The veins on Natsu's head showed as he bared his sharp teeth with ferociousness. "Now then… How about we start round two, Gajeel?! I'm gonna make you pay for everything you've done so far. Messing with Fairy Tail was the biggest mistake you've made!"
"Grr…! Who the hell do you think you're talking to, you trash?!" Gajeel roared, before leaping head first at Natsu after charging his magic up. "Iron Dragon's Hard Fist!"
"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" In response to Gajeel's attack, Natsu cocked his own arm and released a flaming fist. For a second, nothing happened until magic circles from both sides flickered. Unfortunately for the Iron Dragon, the scales on Gajeel's arm began to crack coming from the fist up. The cracks worked their way up his arm and to his face, making him wince in pain.
'No…! I'm… The strongest…!' He uttered in his mind.
"This is the end for you, Black Steel!" Natsu yelled, before smirking. "But, let me quote someone first…!"
"What is he…?" Lucy looked over with a weird expression, but was smiling nonetheless.
"Oh! I know what he's gonna do!" Happy grinned. "He's gonna—"
"Let me tell you something, Gajeel Redfox, Iron Dragon Slayer of Phantom Lord! You can hurt me, you can hurt the things I stand for… But no one, and I mean NO ONE, messes with FAIRY TAIL!"
Condensing a massive amount of energy into each of his flaming fists, a bright orange-red magic circle flickered underneath Natsu's feet as he cocked his other arm back.
"Dragon Slayer Secret Art!" Natsu started as he slugged Gajeel in the face. "Crimson Lotus: Fire Dragon's Fist!"
Natsu then began to launch a continuous barrage of crimson red flaming fists, each punch producing an explosion as he began to step forward with each hit.
"This is for Levy… Jet… Nab… Macao… Gramps… Ben… AND LUCY!" He yelled in between blazing punches.
Gajeel's eyes blanked out as he continued to get pummeled by Natsu's attacks, eventually destroying his scale armor in its entirety and destroying the Giant itself from all the devastation.
"And this…!" Natsu roared as he began to release another dosage. "IS FOR DESTROYING OUR GUILD HALL!"
Giving Gajeel another heaping of blazing fire punches, large explosions blew out from the Giant's torso as Gajeel was launched outside the room, screaming as he did so. As it started to cool off, the Giant's head itself fell off from its body, dripping down into the lake with an earth-shaking tumble.
To avoid being crushed under the now raining debris, Happy and Lucy were in the air, the former carrying the latter. The two looked around, desperate to find their pink haired Dragon Slayer
"Natsu!" Lucy yelled. "Where is he?"
Both Lucy and Happy kept calling out for Natsu before they found him standing on the edge of the Giant. Below him, laying without being able to move a single muscle, was a beaten and bruised up Gajeel.
"That… Pi-piece… Tra…" Gajeel tried to curse at Natsu, his consciousness fading in and out.
"Yay! Natsu won!" Happy yelled with happiness.
"Ha… Now, we're even…" Natsu chuckled, before collapsing to the floor.
"Natsu!" Lucy called out as the duo hovered near him.
Despite the understandable amount of fatigue he had accumulated, Natsu looked up to Lucy and Happy, smirking to reassure them. "Well, I might've won the battle… But now, I can't move a muscle. Heh, figures…"
"You idiot…!" Lucy scolded, though she was grinning the entire time. "That was so cool!"
"Aye!" Happy agreed, before looking elsewhere. "Now… We need to focus on Master Jose…!"
And so, Chapter 10 is complete!
I'm looking quite forward to re-editing the next two chapters. Jose vs. Ben and Erza, Ben meeting with Wendy… Oh, I can't wait!
So, with all said and done, I'll be seeing you all in the next re-edited and new chapters! Emiyn, out!