And we're back with another chapter of Son of the Primordial Dragon. You know I think I should shorten the title or something like that. Don't know but if you think I should give a review and the name you think would suit it. If you think it should stay the same then do the same and leave a review. Anyways were going to begin the chapter.
"Tetsuryukon (Iron Dragon's Club)" Naruto called sending a Iron club into an enemy.
"Karyū no Yokugeki (Fire Dragon's Wing Attack)" Natsu yelled as he called upon his fire.
"Ice Make: Cannon!" Gray said as he created a cannon that shot a large sphere of ice into the enemies number.
"Water Nebula!" Juvia called sending a spiraling wave at the large amount of enemies.
"Get 'em Virgo!" Lucy said pointing to the enemy.
"Of course, Princess." Virgo replied.
The chaos of Fairy Mages, Virgo, and Juvia assaulting the guards of the lower level encompassed everything as the new cult members were knocked off platforms and fell towards the patches of water. The remaining guards watched in fright as their enemies completely overwhelmed them in a matter of minutes. They weighed the options of what to do against these strangers before just deciding to run away as fast as possible.
Once the last person had been beaten and knocked out of sight, the Fairy Mages regrouped. Natsu cracked his knuckles "These guys suck big time. They definitely need to get better guys to guard this place. It was wide open." he said.
Lucy sent Virgo back to the Celestial World and walked up to her friends, still wet from entering through the water and dressed in the bikini she was wearing underneath her clothes. She wrung out her hair "Well, to be fair, I doubt they were thinking that anybody'd be stupid enough to swim a dozen meters under solid rock and pop up in the water." she said to the pinkette.
"They underestimated Juvia's ability to adapt in the ocean." Juvia said calmly before sneering in Lucy's direction, "Yes, she was extremely valuable in the effort to get here, unlike some people." Juvia said looking at the blond.
Lucy deadpanned, "Yes. You were a big help. Now wipe the grin off your face." she yelled at the water mage. Naruto stepped forward on the platform and looked around at their surroundings.
He silently stared at the intricate platforms and water basins beneath them as Gray asked behind him "What's up Naruto? Did you notice something?" he asked him.
They could see the anger building in the blond's blue eyes, not even bothering to ask when they could see how angry he was coming here. This whole place might just be one big trigger for him. Lucy hesitated, "Naruto? We...we should keep going." she said nervously. Naruto spared her a look before staring back at the lower level.
He finally nodded before steeping away from the edge "Yeah, good idea." he said.
She nodded and started leading them towards the wall to exit while Natsu psyched himself up "Stupid jerks! Why the hell would they take Happy in the first place?" Natsu whined.
Cyclone answered, "That was probably the cat looking girl you told me about. You might be hard-pressed trying to take him back from her." he told the pink haired dragon slayer.
"And she's pretty quick too." Naruto noted, getting a grumble of agreement from Lucy and Juvia. They knew full well how much of a pain in the ass that cat tube thing she used could be, "If she pulls out a tube and throws it at you, get out of the way. You do not wanna get caught in that thing." he stated.
"No worries. I'm way better at avoiding that crap than you guys." Natsu said. Juvia hung her head in shame and Lucy aimed a small glare at him while Gray struggled not to punch him in the face "I just got to get a good hit and-" Natsu, Gray and Naruto froze in place as the air that smelled of salt water and moldy rocks suddenly became drenched in something else. It reeked of it.
Blood... Lucy looked back, "Nat-" she started to say before all three slayers yelled out to the others "GET DOWN!" the three yelled. Natsu dashed forward and tackled Lucy to the floor as several projectiles went over their heads faster than they could see. They all suddenly got into a defensive stance as projectiles started getting hurled around their heads at blinding speeds. Natsu kept Lucy's head down as she screamed, "Ah! What's going on?" she asked fearful.
Juvia's body continually changed from physical to liquid as the projectiles flew through her body. She looked around desperately "Juvia cannot tell where they are attacking from!" she said.
"Shit!" Gray created a shield of ice to block the attacks from every point of vision above them "We gotta do something or else we'll be turned into kebabs." the Ice Wizard yelled.
Naruto stood clad in his iron scales taking the full power of the attacks that went for his head and body while trying to figure out the point of origin for the attacks. His eyes darted back and forth, trying to find the enemy that was striking from the shadows before landing in a crouch. *Clack*Clack*Clack* the blades sounded as they clashed with the iron scales. The blond parried and knocked each strike out of the air as the projectiles flew in every direction with simple waves of his hands. Most of them fell over the side but one sharp kunai fell by his foot.
He slipped his shoe underneath it before kicking it up and grabbing it out of the air. He examined it closely and narrowed his eyes "A ninja." he said with a raised eyebrow.
"That's right." A voice echoed out through the entire level "Most people don't survive the onslaught of flying knives piercing their bodies, let alone blocking them and guessing who their attacker may be. You're a strong opponent. But then again you're also wearing a armor made of steel." a voice said. A man stepped out of the shadows further down from the platform they were standing on, surprising them all on how he was able to get down here without getting their attention. He was an older man, with a relaxed expression on his face and shaggy black hair. He was wearing a purple hakama and had both his hands hidden away in his sleeves. He cracked a small smile "I can understand why Jellal-sama suggested I handle the most dangerous element first. You could be a big hassle in the plans for today." he said.
Gray shattered the shield he was hiding behind and stared at the strange man cautiously. He shook his head, "This guy is strong. We gotta be careful." he voiced out.
Natsu stood up and engulfed his hands in flame "Don't care. If this guy's getting in our way then we just gotta kick his ass like the others!" he said angrily. Natsu started running toward the strange man as the new opponent just stood in place. He smiled and placed one foot back.
"No!" Naruto said as he grabbed Natsu's shoulder and pushed him aside before throwing the kunai he had picked up at the ninja.
The black-haired man smirked and dashed forward at staggering speed, knocking the kunai aside with another he pulled out of his sleeve as he soared at the blond man with intent to kill him. Naruto transformed his arm ith his magic and swung his sword out and parried the rapid strikes of the skilled killer that turned in the air and landed behind them. The assassin extended his hands and kunai slipped into his palms, dashing forward to attack the group of Fairy Mages before they could counter.
Naruto intercepted his advance and blocked the kunai with his blade, sparks flying off between the two men who struggled for ground against the other. Naruto pushed forward with his sword arm but met equal resistance from the assassin who smiled menacingly at him. His friends yelled, "Naruto!" in worry.
The blond yelled back at them, "I'll handle this guy! You guys go ahead and get Erza back!" he yelled at his friends.
"But-" Natsu started to say but Naruto interrupted him., "Go! I can do this piece of trash!" he yelled at them.
The Fairy group hesitated for a moment before deciding to follow his wishes and recuse their friends. The team ran down the platform and followed the wall to the inner levels of the tower as Naruto held off the ninja. The man smiled and pressured the whiskered man further with anticipation "You have much confidence believing you can handle me by yourself, young one." he told Naruto.
Naruto smirked in return, not wanting to reveal how focused he was in keeping the other fighter at bay "Well, I feel like I need to focus taking you on myself. I mean, who better to face swordsman than a swordsman, right?" the blond said.
"Oh... I thought that I had recognized the teachings of a killer in your movement. Guess I was wrong then. Your actually a slayer that also falls back to rely on other means to win a fight." the man stated.
The sound of metal clicking emanated around them and Naruto felt his skin crawl in response. He jumped back just as the section of platform they stood on was sliced apart into thin pieces and exploded violently. Naruto looked back up and saw his opponent had vanished from sight in the chaos and the remaining debris fell towards the bottom of the water basin.
Naruto looked up and saw the man was now standing firmly in midair like there was an invisible platform beneath his feet. He abandoned his hakama to reveal his muscular form and weapon patches around his legs. He held out his hands and summoned kunai from a Requip space before smiling down at the Fairy Mage, "I am the master of the mercenary guild, Death's Head Caucus. I am the assassin, Tobita, also known as the Ruby Spider. I hope you can prove to be an entertaining prey." he said in a menacing voice.
"Hmmm." Naruto hummed to himself.
The assassin raised an eyebrow, "Did I say something of interest, young one?" the ninja asked him.
"No I just find it funny we are in a place that was built by slaves, and my friend was once a former slave nothing big. Now are we going to fight or are we going to talk all day?" Naruto asked the assassin.
At the Magic Coucil
"What you are suggesting, Siegrain, is in direct violation of each and every code the Magic Council has established since its creation." Org told the blue haired wizard.
The young Council member furrowed his gaze and spoke with a firm edge "If that was true, then you would have decommissioned the entire thing years ago. But you kept it around. Because you knew, in desperate times, we might need to use it again." he replied to Org.
"That may be, but keeping it functional and actually using it are two very different things." Org retorted before continuing. "For one, the destruction and fallout of using it would be on a catastrophic level. We would be receiving flak from the press, population, and anyone that could see it coming. Plus, the king and his advisors would need to be forewarned any time we believe it is necessary to use the weapon." he told him.
Ultear shook her head at the mans antics "Getting the information to the king and then waiting for their permission would take too long. We would be sitting here waiting for a yes while we would be letting Jellal succeed in finishing the damned R-System." She vigorously looked at the other members. "And sitting by and letting it happen would be a grievous mistake on our part! We have to act now!" she told the others.
"We aren't just going to decide to use it because you're yelling louder, child!" Michello yelled back with a grouchy tone as he tapped his cane loudly against the marble floor. "The ramifications of using that weapon won't just be limited to this country! Alvarez has been keeping a watchful eye on us ever since their invasion attempt two years ago! If they see us use a weapon like that so close to the coast-" he started to yell before Ultear interrupted him.
"And yet Alvarez is nowhere near where the tower was spotted!" Ultear argued. "It's off the south coast! It's closer to Caelum! Nowhere near Alakitasia! Alvarez will have no jurisdiction or knowledge about how we use it!" she said.
"When a neutral country like ours uses a weapon as powerful as Etherion, everyone will get their hands on that knowledge! We cannot be so hasty to resort to it like this!" Org said.
Siegrain stood out of his seat and everyone turned their attention in him. The blue-haired man looked between them all with a reserved stare. His voice came out quietly "I know how dangerous it is to use something like Etherion. By its nature it is not a device that should be used at the whim of man. Some of us even scrutinize our predecessors for creating something that destroys everything in its path. But the fact is that it was created so that in the face of an unprecedented danger we could stop it, and we have kept it working up until now for that same reason." he said softly
The young Wizard Saint looked down at the table "We have heard about the atrocities Zeref created during his reign. The horrors he brought to the world centuries ago carved deep scars into our history like no other. The monstrosities he called demons whose effects and damages can still be seen even to this day. But these are mere legends. Stories passed down from generations because they wished to warn us of the horrors a man like Zeref can cause to this world." he said to them.
"We have never personally seen what happened 400 years ago to make him so feared and yet his presence is still powerful enough to influence people to this day to continue his evil." He then looked up from the table and stared directly at everyone around him. "Would you be willing to let a man like Zeref be revived to the land of the living because we couldn't come to a decision? Will our negligence be the thing that condemns millions of people to Hell?" he asked them.
"It's not just about the after-effects of the weapon, Siegrain-kun." Yajima stated, his usual soft-spoken tone abandoned for a much firmer one. "Etherion erases everything. Matter. Magic. Everything. It will literally wipe its target from existence like they were never there to begin with. There will be nothing left when the light clears." The old man said as he looked the younger boy in the eyes. "There are people on that island. People that would cause harm to others if they could but people none the less. If we use Etherion while they're still there then they will just cease to exist. There wouldn't even be anything left of their souls when it was done. You won't be killing them Siegrain. You would be condemning them to oblivion for all eternity. Can we make that choice so easily?" he asked him.
Siegrain shook his head and looked at the older man with a solemn face "It seems like a simple answer to me, Yajima-San. I am willing to live with the sin of sacrificing the lives of those people if it assures salvation for the rest of the world. The question is if the rest of you are willing to shoulder that sin as well." he replied.
Gray, Lucy, and Juvia took a moment to catch their bearings and reconvene in an empty hallway of the tower's interior. The Maker Mage looked around cautiously for any more tough enemies or cult members that may try to attack them while they rested. He couldn't spot any more approaching enemies or anyone else in the hallway. He nodded "I think we're clear. We can take a second before we need to keep moving." he told them.
"There's so many of them! A-and it's like they just keep making more guys to attack us with!" Lucy was panting lightly and looked back from where they had just run from in a panic. She gave a small huff and pushed off her knees, "And what the heck was with that guy?" She shivered and held her arms tightly, "I felt cold just looking at him." she said with a shiver.
"Naruto said he was a ninja." Gray noted as he remembered the precision the assassin showed trying to take them out. The Maker Mage looked back at them. "He definitely looked the part." he said.
Juvia looked back at the shirtless Fairy Mage and asked, "Are you sure Naruto-sama will be able to handle that man by himself? He seemed extremely powerful. Maybe we should go back and-" Juvia started to say but Gray shook his head no.
"He can handle himself." Gray interrupted the Water Mage before she could voice her worry. "Naruto's more than enough to take on a killer like that. But he trusted us to make sure we find Erza and take her back from this place. So that's what we're gonna do." he told her.
"Princess." Virgo suddenly appeared behind Lucy from the Celestial World, carrying a beautiful outfit over her arms. She bowed her head respectfully to her key carrier. "Here are the garments that I promised you. They should be sufficient in covering you for the rest of this journey while also protecting you from physical danger as well." Virgo said to Lucy.
"Thanks Virgo!" Lucy cheered as she took the clothes from her maiden spirit and nodded thankfully. "Tonight looks like it's gonna be a tough one. Go tell the others that I might be calling on them soon." she told the spirit.
"Of course Princess." The pink-haired spirit gracefully nodded her head before her body glowed brightly and disappeared back through her gate.
Lucy looked over the clothes she had received and ducked into a corner out of the way of the rest of the hall. She peeked out, "Gray, I need to change. Don't you dare look this way." She saw Gray turn around and give a lazy wave over his shoulder as Juvia scowled at the blonde. Lucy started changing. "Don't you look either Natsu. I'll be angry if you do." She received no answer in return and stopped removing her swimsuit to peek around the corner, "Natsu?" she asked.
They all looked around and spotted no sign of the pink-haired Dragon Slayer anywhere. Gray felt his scorn rise and yelled. "God dammit! That idiot is gonna get us all killed!" Gray yelled.
Juvia raised a eyebrow "Where could Natsu-san have run off to?" she asked.
Gray ran his hand over his face and moaned "He went to look for Happy. If that dumbass had just waited a moment so we could plan something to make sure we wouldn't be running in blind!" he moaned out.
"Should we follow after him?" Lucy asked the demon slayer.
Gray took in a sharp breath before shaking his head, "No, let's leave him. He's an idiot but he won't get himself hurt too bad. If anything all the crap he'll be doing will probably draw their attention off us. Let Natsu focus on getting Happy and we'll take Erza back." he told her.
"Over here! I heard something!" a voice said.
Gray and Juvia looked over and saw a large group of new cult members coming from the corner with spears in hand. The one leading the charge pointed his weapon towards the Fairy Mages, "There's the intruders! Get them!" he ordered.
"You spoke too soon." Lucy said as Gray prepared to attack and Juvia stepped up beside him "Get ready!" he told them. Lucy yelled from her changing spot, "W-wait! I'm not done yet!" the celestial wizard said to him. The cult members were approaching them faster and faster ready to fight. But a shadow quickly dropped down behind them and the new cult members looked back in surprise.
*Schwip*
The sound of a blade slicing through metal and air resonated through the hallway before the cult guards were all swatted away. The Fairies watched in stunned silence as the defeated guards crashed into the floor while a familiar redhead had her sword outstretched and kneeling on the ground. The others stared at her in shock as Gray spoke up, "Erza?" they exclaimed. The woman with brown eyes heard the familiar voice's and looked up in shock to see her friends in front of her. A sense of relief filled her chest that they were alive before immediately being replaced with dread that they were here. She stood up and looked between them, "Gray. Lucy..." she said looking at them.
Juvia stepped forward and gave a small bow to the warrior they came to assist. She humbly spoke up, "H-hello, Erza-San. We haven't been introduced-" Juvia began before Erza interrupted her.
"Leave." the redhead told them.
"H-huh?" Juvia said.
"Leave. All of you." Erza waved them off, walking past them without meeting their eyes as she pointed her sword down the hall "Get out together, get back on whatever you took to get here, and go back to the coast. I'll meet up with you there." she told them.
Lucy finished dressing up in her long celestial gown and tried to persuade her friend, "Erza, we came to help." she told the redhead.
"I know you did. But I won't need help here." Erza stopped before turning back at the blonde and asking with absolute seriousness, "Was anyone hurt in the hotel after they took me?" Erza asked.
"Huh? Um, Natsu got a little roughed up but he's fine. And Naruto was okay too." Gray said.
"I see. That's good." Erza muttered to herself with a relieved sigh before she realized that if they had come here, Naruto probably had as well. The thought caused a cold pit to fill in her stomach before asking, "Where are they right now?" it was Gray who answered her.
"Natsu ran off to look for Happy and Cyclone followed after to help him out." Gray's eyes drifted off to the way they had just came from. "Naruto's fighting someone back there. Some kinda killer hired to protect this place." he said as she looked back at him in confusion and he shook his head "He can handle it. He said we needed to focus on getting you back. And that's what we're here to do." Gray told her.
"No. You just need to get Happy and leave as fast as possible." Erza responded. "I have business here that I can't leave unfinished." she told them.
"You mean your family, right?" Lucy asked her. Erza stood in place silently as Lucy's question hung in the air. The long silence was enough of an answer for all of them to know Lucy was right. The redhead stayed silent before Lucy stepped towards her friend, "Naruto...he told us what this place is. What it means to you. What happened here." she said.
Erza didn't show any outward reaction to what Lucy admitted as Gray spoke up too. He assured his old friend, "If they're your old family then we'll understand if you want to help them. Or stop them. Whatever you want to do, just tell us." Gray proudly knocked his fist against the Fairy emblem on his chest and spoke with a solid tone. "As long as we have this mark, we're you're family too. And that means we're ready to stand by you no matter what. You don't even need to ask." he told her.
Erza looked back at her team, a sad look in her eyes and a weak smile. Gray gave a confident smirk and nodded as Lucy asked "Erza, what are they trying to do with this Tower? Is it really what Naruto said it was?" she asked the redhead.
Erza wiped the tear forming in her left eye and nodded, "Yes. That's right. Jellal... h-he's trying to resurrect Zeref." the redhead revealed to the group of mages who now had shocked expressions written on their faces.
Natsu raised his nose and took a deep whiff of every room he passed by in the tower hallway. He stopped in front of a door and sniffed, "No."Cyclone himslef stopped in front of another door and sniffed, "No." he told Natsu as they moved on. He stopped in front of another door and sniffed, "No." Natsu and Cyclone repeated this process over and over while climbing each level of the tower to find their lost friend. After searching for a few minutes and getting a deep whiff of every room, Natsu finally stopped in front of one in particular. It smelled like fur... and Happy.
Natsu didn't waste a moment as he kicked the door down and barged in. "Happy!" He said as he looked around, startled by the sheer amount of cat paraphernalia in the room but still focused on the cat he needed to retrieve. He called out again, "Happy! C'mon Buddy! I'm here to take you back!" he said as Cyclone came in behid him. Happy's scent was somewhere lingering in this room. He was here, or at least he was here recently. He yelled again "Happy! Happy! Hap-" he started to yell before-
*Bang*
Natsu and Cyclone quickly ducked down quickly and jumped back to the other side of the room as the pinkette looked up at the man that tried to shoot him from behind. Emerging from behind the entrance was the block-faced gunner that had attacked him earlier. The well-dressed man groaned and lowered his revolver, "I'm impressed. Not only did you survive but you came all the way here to get in the way again. Not very dandy, man." the man said.
Natsu lifted himself back to his feet and glared his attacker down with contempt. He growled through his teeth "Shoot me once, piss me off. Shoot me twice, and I'm gonna send you flying you bastard." to the block lik man.
"Mmm." Wally hummed uninterestingly at Natsu's threat as he flipped his gun open to dislodge the used bullet casings. He thought he would be able to end it quickly with a shot to the back of the head, but it looked like this was going to take a little more time. He pulled out six bullets and started sorting them into the weapon before speaking once more "Well I hope you realize, that the moment you stepped into this tower, you sealed your-" he started to say before-
"WRAH!" Natsu yelled as he attacked Wally. Wally dematerialized and turned himslef into cubes and dodged the flaming fist that threatened to cave in his face. Natsu yelled when his punch missed as the gunman appeared behind him again and aimed his gun at the mop of pink hair "Fate." he finished before shooting some more. *Bang*Bang*Bang* the gun went again and again.
Natsu flipped and dodged across the room as Wally's bullets followed after him and destroyed their surroundings. The bullets pierced the cat toys and pillows that littered the room as the Fairy Mage jumped through the floating cotton and debris. Wally's rapid fire stopped for a moment as he needed to reload his shots. Natsu took this chance to dash at his enemy and try to finish him off in one shot. But the moment before he impacted the man's chest, the square-shaped man spread apart into cubes and let the Dragon Slayer pass through him. Wally sweat a little in worry "That was close." he commented.
Natsu yelled angrily "God dammit! Stop dodging me you freak!" he yelledat him.
"You're one to talk, pyro." Wally said as he reloaded and aimed his revolver again, locking Natsu's head down his sights and ready to end this fight. He prepared to pull the trigger "If you'd just stay in place I can promise a quicker end than-" he began before he was interrupted.
"WALLY!" a enraged feminine voice yelled out. The usually composed gunner flinched when the female voice pierced the heavy fighting atmosphere. Another door on the other side of the room swung open at the cat-themed girl was looking around at the remains of her room in tearful despair. She looked at her friend and cried a little "What did I tell you about firing your gun off in here! I knew this would happen!" she said exasperated. Cyclone himself began to sweat as he realized this girl was just plain crazy.
"Milliana!" Wally grumbled and kept his eyes on his opponent while trying to calm down his companion. "This guy is a serious threat! He has to be dealt with right now." he told the now introduced Milliana.
"Not in my room!" she retorted.
Natsu pointed at the new girl, "Hey you! Where did you take Happy?" he demanded as Cyclone smacked his forehead.
Milliana looked over at the Dragon Slayer and leveled an annoyed glare at him for helping destroy her room. She stuck her tongue out at him indignantly, "No way! The kitty is mine now and I'm not giving him to you no matter what!" she told him.
"Sorry kid." Wally noted, "Once she's got her hands on a cat she won't let it go. If it makes you feel any better we'll take real good care of him." he told Natsu.
Natsu glared at the two angrily and enveloped his fists in flames, "Like I'm taking your word after you kidnapped Erza and brought her back here." he yelled.
Wally's eyes narrowed behind his shades and he grumbled, "What's are you talking about?" he asked the fire user.
"What the hell do you think I'm talking about?! You attack us! You try to kill Naruto! Then you bring Erza back to this shithole!" Natsu just shook his head with disdain. "Some friends you guys are." he grumbled to himself.
Milliana and Wally both glared at the Fairy Mage intently as the gunner coldly asked "What is that supposed to mean exactly, kid?" he asked the fire user.
"You know exactly what it means." Natsu retorted, "Naruto told me all about what you guys are trying to do. That you guys would stick around here at all is nuts. But now you bring Erza into it so she can suffer all over again is just sick." he yelled at them.
Milliana's eyes turned cold as she glared Natsu down, "You don't know what you're talking about." she growled at Natsu. Cyclone stayed hidden, but he started to sweat when he felt the tension rise so he snuck out and continued the search for his fellow feline.
"And you guys are just trying to convince yourself you're not hurting her! Coming back to this place is hell! And you're a part of it!" Natsu yelled back at them. "No friends wouldn't do something like that to someone they cherish like you say you do! And if this place is as bad as I heard then you guys are just torturing yourselves by staying here! If you guys wanna suffer then that's on you but I ain't gonna let you bring Erza back into this!" he yelled at them.
"Shut up!" Milliana yelled as she jumped up and went in for a dive kick that Natsu sidestepped at the last moment. The cat girl landed on her feet and she followed up with a flurry of kicks and swipes at the Dragon Slayer's head. The pink-haired man dodged the brown-haired girl's attack as she desperately continued with a furious look in her eyes, "Don't act like you know the real Er-chan! Like you know the real us! You jerks just pretend to understand but you'll never know who we really are! What we've been through!" she yelled at the dragon slayer in anger.
"And I don't care!" Natsu grabbed her wrist and held her back as he showed his teeth, "I don't care what you went through because she's my friend! What I care about is that you're bringing her back into something that scares and terrifies her so much! And if you try-" he began to say before Wally reappeared beside them and pointed his gun at Natsu's temple and pulled the trigger.
*Bang*
Natsu released his grip on Milliana's hand and flipped back to avoid the shots that followed him. Wally fired shot after shot to force Natsu to evade before Milliana collected herself and fired a Nekōsoku Tube in his direction "Take this!" the cat lover yelled at him. Natsu landed on his feet and watched as the rubber tube came his way and he could make no effort to dodge while landing. He prepared to propel himself with fire before a voice called out to him-
"NATSU!" Happy said as he and Cyclone came flying in. Happy came flying in from another part of the room and dove into the cat-girl's attack, binding himself in the magic rope and deactivating his wings. He fell roughly on his face, "OOF!" he grunted as Cyclone smacked his forehead again.
"Happy!" Natsu said in releif.
"More like dummy if you ask me." Cyclone said.
"Two cute and cuddly Kitties!" Milliana gasped as she saw the two cats.
Wally clicked his teeth. "Now we got-" he began before the girl stopped him.
"No!" Milliana pushed her friend's gun away and pleaded desperately "Don't shoot the kitty cats!" to Wally.
"I wasn't gonna shoot the cats! How bad do you think my aim is?" he asked her.
"You shot the rest of my room!" she said with a blank face.
"Happy!" Natsu quickly picked up his feline friend as he struggled with the constricting rope around him. He gripped a part of rope and pulled it tight until it ripped apart. He held his best friend carefully, "Happy! You okay buddy?" he said in relief.
"Not the first word that comes to my mind." Cyclone grumbled.
"Shut up Cyclone!" Happy yelled before he looked at his friend. "Y-yeah." Happy shook his head to focus again and looked up at his best friend. Little tears formed in the sides of his eyes and he hugged the Dragon Slayer's torso, "Natsu! I didn't think I'd see you again!" he cried.
'Seriously?" Cyclone said but they ignored him.
"Pfft." Natsu patted the cat's head. "C'mon man. Like I would actually leave you behind." he told the blue cat.
Happy looked up at his friend sadly "Natsu, that girl told me about this place. It's...it's really bad." he said.
"I know man. Naruto told us too." he told Happy.
Happy teared up a little, "They said Erza went crazy or something. They... they really, really want to help bring Zeref back." the cat cried.
Natsu looked down at the cat before sparing a look towards the two opponents that were talking between each other. Natsu thought for a moment before smiling and patting Happy's head "Erza's always been crazy. No worries Happy, we're here to help Erza instead." He reached over and grabbed the remains of the magic tube Happy was caught in, made sure it didn't distrust his magic anymore now that it was broken, and wrapped it around his fist "And if that means we gotta knock these guys down for a bit and tumble this tower, we'll just do what Fairy Tail does best." he said.
Happy looked up at his friend with relief at his optimism in this bad situation. His eyes started to water and his nose started running, "Natsu." he said as Cyclone placed a hand on his shoulder. Natsu gave a confident smile to his friend's before standing up and meeting the glares of the girl and the blocky man as they probably caught the end of his reassuring statement to the cat.
Natsu smirked and held his hands up like he was issuing a challenge "You guys wanna come at me again and see if you can do a little better now?" he told them in a serious voice.
Wally and Milliana's faces were twisted with anger and annoyance at the man in front of them. The gunman cocked the hammer back on his revolver and sternly warned the rose-haired man, "Don't get cocky kid. You haven't been able to stop us yet." he told Natsu.
"I was more worried about my friend before. But now I'm focused all on you." Natsu replied to the gunner mage.
"WRRAAAHHHH!" Milliana charged forward in fury and threw her hand out, releasing several more tubes that stretched out to entangle the Fairy Mage. Natsu dashed forward, weaving around the magic tubes that promised to restrict and trap him if they connected. But Natsu dashed past them with renewed vigor and appeared directly in front of the cat girl.
Milliana shot up with a start "Wha-" she gasped in shock.
Natsu grabbed her wrist "Got you!" He stepped back and swung her off her feet, causing the younger teen to shriek in shock as he spun her around. His back started catching fire and while Milliana was in line he created an explosive wave of flames that caught her, "Karyū no Yokugeki (Fire Dragon's Wing Attack)" Natsu called out.
"AHHH!" Milliana yelped as she was knocked back by the explosive fire and crashed into the wall across the room.
"Milliana!" Wally yelled back to his friend as she moaned in pain before falling to the ground unconscious. He pointed his barrel at Natsu and started firing "Bastard! I'll kill you for that!" Natsu engulfed one arm in blistering fire and created a massive wave between him and the gunner. The bullets were engulfed in the fire and it created a screen that blocked Wally's vision of his opponent. He panicked, opened up the revolver and tried to change the ammo as quickly as possible, "Shit!" he cursed.
As the flames started to dissipate, a familiar orange tube spiked through the remaining orange glow and struck Wally between the eyes. His shades broke in half and he stumbled back, "What the-" he began to say before Natsu dashed through the fire and landed his palm against the block-like man's chest. Wally was so shocked he couldn't break apart in time and Natsu's voice pierced him, "Sorry man..." Natsu said. "Karyū no Akugeki (Fire Dragon's Grip Strike)" he called out before-
*Boom*
Natsu's hand burst in a fiery explosion that covered Wally instantly and sent him through the wall and into the hallway. Natsu looked out at the unconscious man before sparing a look to the resting girl on the other side of his room. His eyes softened with empathy but his voice kept its stern edge. "But Erza is my friends too." he said. He then looked at the two cat's and motioned for them to book it and they all left.
*Sching*
Naruto jumped into the air and felt his blade cross with Tobita's knives, leaving a cloud of sparks from the quick exchange. The blond flipped through the air before landing on another platform and sprinting ahead as a rain of knives chased after him and littered the ground behind him. He immediately stopped and swung his blade around to scatter the knives trained on him until they clattered against the ground and stopped. Naruto stood his ground with his sword at the ready, his eyes darting back and forth as his fingers tightened around the handle of his sword.
He felt something speed toward him from the side and jumped back as a blur passed by him while trying to slice his throat. "Ranryu no Go Ken (Storm Dragon's Hard Fist)" the blond called out sending his fist out covered in black lightning. The lightning sparked off of his fist and shot out as several large thunderbolts. The barrage of lightning attacks flew through the air at staggering speeds and nearly caught up with the speedy assassin before he made an unnatural turn upwards and avoided the attacks altogether. Naruto clicked his teeth in anger before looking up as the assassin dashed around in the air like he could fly.
The Wizard Saint's eyes attempted to keep up with the ninja's experienced moves but he could only catch glimpses before he disappeared again. Like he was ricocheting through the air. It was so similar to Laxus's Lightning Body. But this wasn't that. And he bet it was much simpler than that. He heard something split the air again and Naruto vaulted back as something pierced through the stone platform and reduced a section of it to nothing but rubble. Naruto soared through the air before he landed on the ground before he heard the mercenary's deep voice echo through the room with a chuckle, "I must admit... You're putting up quite the challenge. Not even my own son could do something like this. It's intriguing to see you do something like this. Quite unorthodox." the man said.
Naruto looked up and saw his enemy, the hired mercenary Tobita, crouched in the middle of the air and looking down at him with a condescending glance. Naruto grumbled "Pot meet Kettle. Kettle meet Pot." to nobody in particular. The rugged man smirked before he stood back up and crossed his arms.
He chided the blond below him "Don't go saying that so soon. You put up a good show earlier but I barely sense any killing intent from you blondie." He then raised an eyebrow skeptically and looked at the blond "What kind of slayer doesn't slay?" he asked.
Naruto jumped off the wall and sped towards the Ruby Spider like a bullet. He swung out at the ninja but the black-haired man leaned back as the sword passed just over his head. He jumped and positioned his feet towards the Fairy Mage's chest before kicking forward and knocking them away from each other "I never lower my guard." he said to the blonde as he grabbed the sword from the air and broke it with his bare hands.
Tobita then fell from the air before he landed on something and spun around before launching himself back up towards the blond. He let a pair of kunai slip into his palms and prepared to eviscerated his enemy but was shocked to see his opponent pull a new sword from his own arm and it was exactly like the old one. Naruto turned in the air and created a massive wave of fire that spread out around him to block any attack, "Shakuryu no Jigoku (Scorch Dragon's Hellfire)" Naruto calls out
*Squelch*
Naruto's eyes widened in shock as something almost invisible shot through the flames and actually pierced through his shoulder. He looked down to see pool of blood start to form under his shirt from his shoulder. He felt it start to pull him in and he swung his arm down in front of him to cut off whatever connection that was binding them. He fell through the last of the fire and aimed for a platform to land on. The moment he landed and felt he wasn't in danger, he reached up to check that his arm was still usable.
The entry and exit wounds were small. And the object was nearly invisible. He had a guess before but this definitely confirmed it. Tobita's voice rang out through the massive room in a patronizing tone, "Are you okay? I certainly hope I didn't hurt you too badly with that last attack. I was just so startled by that fire that I reacted without thinking. You know, if you're having trouble keeping up, I could give you a day off and put you out of your pain." the man told him.
Naruto clapped his hands together like he was praying before the pools of water at the bottom of the basement shot up like torrents, "Furyu no Yōbachi "Steam Dragons Boundless Curse)" Naruto called out as he breathed out more blue flames. The streams of water finally collided and splashed against the ceiling until they spread apart and let a steady rain pour down across the entire room before they fell through the fire and turned to steam. Naruto looked up amidst the steam as the droplets of unboiled water collided against something in the middle of the air and spread out along thin lines of steel tied between the walls.
Steel wires. So that's how he was 'walking on air' was it. The assassin walked along his steel wire into the open and looked down at his opponent, his hair matted with sweat as he looked down at his opponent with some intrigue. He nodded, "You figured it out. That's impressive. Most people never realize it before I kill them." he told Naruto with a bit of respect in his tone.
"I'm just pissed it took me this long to notice." Naruto grumbled out angrily. "My head's so filled with other crap that I can't think straight. Took me longer than it should have to realize you can manipulate sting's to suspend you in the air or attack." the blond replied.
"That's right." Danzō leaned forward and hung upside-down with a wire around his foot to keep him suspended. He hung there unnaturally before craning his head back to look down at his opponent. "I use Magnet Magic to manipulate the wire to kill my targets. I can twist it in any direction or manner I wish to complete whatever task I'm met with." He said before he spread out his arms before swing them down towards Naruto "Like this!" he yelled out.
Naruto grit his teeth and swung his sword as several wires shot out towards him. He used his arm to parry and block the steel wires that scraped and scratched along the steel of his sword and scales. He gathered some fire around his free forearm and used it to knock away the wires that twisted in the air and tried to attack his blind spot. He was pinned on both sides by wire and sharp blades that threatened to make him a pin cushion if he slacked off for even a second. But it was also a good thing he had his Iron Scales active or else it would be a bigger pain in the ass to deal with his enemy
The assassin took this opportunity and landed behind Naruto to try and slice at his scales. But Naruto felt the killing intent bearing down on him and inhaled deeply to fill his lungs with Wind before breathing out and letting it explode violently around him, "Furyu no Hoko (Wind Dragon's Roar)" Naruto called out. He then exhaled a large gale of wind creating a whirlwind that threatened to blow all away.
The pressure from the wind was so great that the assassin and his wires were blown off the platform entirely. But he threw his hand out and pierced another wire into the formation around him to swing and launch himself back up to his opponent. As he came back over the platform he caught sight of Naruto creating a tornado around himself. His eyes widened as he created a barrier of wires to protect himself from the torrential onslaught of shredding wind, "Furyu no Hoko (Wind Dragon's Roar)" Naruto called out again as he released another wind roar.
The wire barrier was blasted backwards until it roughly impacted into the wall and the assassins wires fell apart entirely. He groaned in discomfort and opened his eyes to see the blond jumping at him. The hired ninja braced against the wall and kicked off it to jump high into the air as Naruto's sword slashed through the stone. A portion of the wall exploded and Naruto landed against it before jumping after his opponent. The black-haired killer pulled out two kunai and blocked Naruto's blade before it made contact.
The Fairy Mage and the hired mercenary crossed blades and attempted to get the advantage against the other before they landed. Naruto swung his sword with staggering force and yelled "You can't beat me! So just stay out of our way and leave this place and I'll let you off before anyone else needs to get hurt!" to the man. Sparks flew across Danzō's face as the sword creeped closer past his knives as they were falling towards the ground.
He seemed panicked before a calm smile took its place "See? No desire to kill. Can't call yourself a dragon slayer if you don't follow through." he told Naruto. Tobita then swung his arm down and a garrote wire came shooting down from the ceiling and wrapped around Naruto's sword arm. The Wizard Saint was abruptly stopped in the air before being roughly pulled upwards until he slammed into the ceiling. The blond gasped in pain as several more wires shot out to entangle and bind him to center of the ceiling. He struggled to breath as one pulled around his neck and he squinted as the Ruby Spider smiled beneath him. The older man chuckled and waved his hand, "Goodbye, young slayer. It was fun while it lasted." he told Naruto.
"WRAHHHHHHHHHHH-" A part of the ceiling was sliced apart by the steel wires and a large chunk slid out of place with Naruto tied to the bottom of it. It slid from place and plummeted downward, destroying any platforms or bridges in its way as it was careening straight down the massive room. Naruto let out a rage-filled scream before it was drowned out with the sound of the ceiling chunk crashing into the ground and water with Naruto in the middle.
The entire basement shook with the force of the collision as Tobita looked down at his efforts with a smile. He leapt down from broken platform to broken platform as he descended down to the lowest level. No one could survive getting crushed by that, but he wouldn't risk the chance considering the stories of how his opponent to never seemed to die. He had a reputation as the master of a mercenary guild to make sure his target was always dead. The guild master of Death's Head Caucus landed on the lowest floor, standing between the docking bays for boats and the broken remains of the ceiling. He smiled and walked towards the center of the rubble as a knife slipped into his hand.
He'd present the head of Fairy Tail's Primordial Slayer as a gift to Jellal in good fortune. He stepped between the rubble and smiled, "I hope Jellal-sama won't be too mad that I killed you. He said he had plans for both you and that little redhead he captured earlier. But maybe he'll still be able to have fun tormenting Titania with your head when I-" he began to say before the stones glowed red before the words "Bakuryu no Jiraiken (Explosive Dragon's Landmine Fist)" reached his ears as a voice called out and-
*BOOOOOOM*
The largest pieces of debris in the center of the ground exploded violently and sent pieces of rubble flying in every direction. The assassin reacted quickly and sliced through any rocks coming his way before he had to cover his eyes from the wind and dust. "What is he doing?" Tobita wondered to himself. His eyes widened in surprise as he looked up through the smoke cloud and saw a figure start to step out of it. The blond Wizard Saint stepped into sight, bruises over his arms and face and a steady trail of blood going down from his forehead but not defeated by the ceiling falling on top of him.
His whole body was glowing with his magic before it receded and disappeared back into his body. Naruto's dark blue colored eyes were covered by his bangs before they parted and a chilling glare locked squarely on his enemy. "What does Jellal want with Erza?" he growled out as his eyes took on a different color of bright red that seemed to appear before all slayers when they were angry.
Tobita looked on in surprise before a small smile came over his face. He felt a cold sweat drip down the back of his hands as he gripped his kunai tighter. Well...this really was going to be interesting.
"And I attacked him in retaliation. And then we just started fighting like we were possessed. We'd trade blows and despite our injuries we persisted forward to beat the other one." Erza continued retelling the last dark memories of their past and time in this place to her companions, "But Jellal's new powers were just so much stronger than anything I could do. Before I could do anything he blew up the remnants of the tower and separated us from one another. I fell into the ocean and drifted in the sea for an entire day before washing up on the beach. And Jellal..." Erza growled.
Her blue and brown eyes closed as she clenched her fists tightly with regret and anger. She looked back up at her friends with determination burning in her eyes, "This tower being rebuilt. My friends having to spend all these years building here again. Everything Jellal does today is because I couldn't stop him eight years ago. I need to stop Jellal and destroy this tower once and for all. To put an end to this madness." she told them.
Gray looked at the redhead in silence as Juvia seemed saddened by her tale and Lucy wiped a tear from her eyes. Hearing the hardships Erza and her friends had gone through really put weight into how much meeting them again after all this time meant for her. And how devastating it must feel to see them being warped and manipulated by their oldest friend. Gray grit his teeth and sharply inhaled to try and calm himself down. He looked around at the Tower's hallway and elegant interior and could feel the inside of his stomach start crawling as the stories she told them started becoming images in his eyes. He balled his fist tightly "No wonder you hate the idea of coming back here. And were even more serious about not wanting us here either." he said.
"Being back here, even after all this time, still feels like too much." Erza's eyes shifted downward in shame "I can't imagine what it must have been like to stay here and rebuild it after it had fallen." The redhead's look shifted to a sad but relieved smile aimed towards her friends "But it makes being here easier knowing that you came to help me." she told them with a smile.
Lucy rubbed her eyes and nodded her head, ignoring the redness around her eyes as she prepared to do whatever it took to help her friend. She pumped her arms "What do we need to do?" Lucy asked her.
Juvia gave a small bow "Whatever you may need, Juvia will provide assistance however she can." she told Erza.
Erza looked between her team "What we need to focus on is stopping Jellal and his plans for the Tower of Heaven. If I can meet with him face-to-face then I can try to convince him. If that doesn't work then I'll be prepared to take him down myself if I have to." she said with conviction.
Gray pointed out "What about your friends? They'll still be on his side if we can't get them to join us." he pointed out.
A conflicted gleam filled Erza's eyes before they closed "They've been here following his command for many years now. It might take time we don't have to try and make them understand that we're trying to help. If that's the case then it would be better to focus on stopping Jellal now and trying to convince them afterwards."
"It might not be as hard as you think." a voice said gaining their attention. Erza jerked up and turned around to see a large figure step out from the shadows. Simon, in all his statuesque glory, walked up to the Fairies unbidden before stopping just a foot away from them.
Lucy panicked "Ah! That's one of guys that attacked earlier!" she exclaimed pointing to him.
Gray realized Erza couldn't fight her friend this quickly and slammed his fist down on his palm in preparation for battle, "Erza, get back!" he told her as he readied himself for a fight.
"Wait." Erza said stopping him from acting. Erza just raised her hand and motioned for her comrades to stop before they could react in any way. Erza stepped forward and craned her neck back to look up at her old friend. The only visible part of his face beneath the metal jaw and cloth was one of his eyes. But unlike earlier when it was cold and stern, his eye seemed much softer and familiar with her. Her shoulders eased and she felt a warmth fill her chest, "Simon..." she whispered.
"I'm sorry you had to come back here Erza. I'm sorry we had to bring you here. And attack your friends." Simon's voice was filled with remorse as he lowered his head, "But what's about to happen here is too much for me to handle by myself. And I believe if anyone is strong enough to to stop Jellal, it might be you." he told her with a sincere voice.
"Woah woah, wait a minute. Just hold on." Gray sputtered before pointing at the big man in shock, "You aren't brainwashed or loopy or whatever? You know what's going on?" he asked him with a raised eyebrow
. Erza looked up at him, "How long have you known?" she asked Simon.
"Since the very beginning." Simon answered. "Since the moment Jellal returned from the remains of the Tower I've known something was wrong. The Jellal I knew would have stopped at nothing to bring you back even if it killed him. And he never would have returned to that place even if you forced him. But the way he spoke and carried himself changed." he told her.
"He started speaking to the people and trying to convince them that rebuilding the Tower of Heaven could actually fix everything bad that had ever happened to them. He lied to Shō and the others, saying you killed Old man Rob. And that we needed the Tower to help you bring him back. To make everything right. The way he talked and manipulated the others with his words was just...unnatural." Simon said with a shiver.
"But you stayed." Erza said.
Simon nodded, "I stayed because I needed to watch over the others. Make sure they didn't get hurt. Or killed. I wanted to try and figure out a way to stop Jellal myself so I learned how to use magic like the others. I thought I was becoming strong enough but the rate and way Jellal grew was unbelievable. In just a few short years he had become stronger than any monster and there was nothing I could do. It seemed like he was unstoppable. But Jellal showed us what had become of you. What you were doing. He was weaving more lies and convincing the others to follow him to bring you back but I saw you... growing so strong...strong enough that you might be able to stop this." he said to her with a hopeful smile on his face.
Erza's eyes softened, "Simon." she said with quietly.
"So when the day came that the Tower was near completion and you were close enough to retrieve, I realized this might be the only chance we had to finally put an end to all this. I followed the others to retrieve you and bring you back here because if you, the person they've been reaching for all this time spoke to them, maybe you could convince them that this was wrong. But Jellal was keeping an eye on us even when we were on the coast so I couldn't say anything." he said. "So I attacked your friends. Not to kill but to delay and show we were still alive and where we were going. I organized each of others to attack your friends with the least likelihood that it would kill them, long enough to deceive Jellal and for them to escape and help. I know how much being here hurts you but you are our last hope. I'm sorry but you are the only one strong enough to stop Jellal and the Tower." Simon's head lowered even more, "You're the only one that can make them see the light." he said in a whisper.
Erza stepped forward enough for Simon to open his eye and see the smile on her face. A small tear filled her left eye and her voice trembled with hope, "I'm sorry that I left you to handle the mess, old friend. It must have been so hard to bear this on your back." she said crying.
Simon blinked in surprise before a tear welled up in his eye too and the corners of his smile showed over his metal jaw, "I'm just glad to see you again." he said to the redhead.
Simon bent down and the two old friends embraced in a hug. The cold and piercing anxiety that had filled them just a moment earlier melted away as the two companions finally spoke again after so many years. "W-what are you talking about?" a voice asked nervously. Everyone looked back and saw Shō with bags under his eyes and a bruised nose standing behind them.
The cards in his hands he was about to use to attack slowly slipped from his grip as his eyes trembled rapidly. His mouth opened and closed over and over as he stuttered "S-Simon, what are you talking about? What did Big Sis mean about all of that? What did you mean about Jellal lying?" he asked nervously.
Simon separated from his hug with Erza and the redhead looked up at him with worry. He placed a hand on her shoulder and gave a reassuring nod before stepping forward, "Shō..." The younger blond hinged on his word as the scarred man answered "It's true. Everything I've said to Erza. Everything she said to her friends. It's all true." he told him with a unreadable expression.
A look of complete devastation crossed the dark-skinned teen's face as Simon's words sunk in. His shoulders slumped disparity, "W...what?" he asked.
"It's true Shō." Erza affirmed as she stepped forward and nodded to the younger man. "Jellal has been deceiving you all this time. Yes Rob died, but I never tried and brought him back. I escaped. And he's been keeping you all around this entire time to help him recreate the Tower." She looked at the anguish in his eyes and felt her stomach turn at the confusion he must have been feeling, "Jellal has been lying to you all." she said to him.
Shō legs nearly gave out from shock before he steadied himself and looked down at the ground in horror. His thoughts were going rampant and his heart was beating so loudly that he could feel it through his ears. He couldn't make sense of it. Jellal told them what had happened. What they needed to do. They could use this place to fix everything! They could finally put all their suffering to good use by fixing this world! He looked up desperately at the one person that had been by his side through these past few years and pleaded "S-Simon, you have to be joking! Please-please tell me what's going on! I-if this was real then you could have told me! I would have understood-" Shō stated before- "No you wouldn't Shō." Simon interrupted with a shake of his head as his eye softened with pity for the crushing reality he was presenting to his friend.
"You love Erza too much. You would have done anything to protect her again like she protected you. But Jellal twisted that love and affection and turned it into an obsession he could control. And the goal of helping Erza slowly changed from a purpose to an excuse." Simon shook his head sadly, "We aren't helping like this. We're hurting her by doing this." he said to the other man.
Shō trembled some more and grit his teeth until they almost cracked. He lowered his head and screamed, "Why?! What was this for?! What was he trying to accomplish?! What's this all been for?" he yelled angrily.
"I told you Shō...I'm doing this to change the world." Jellal's words spoke through the walls. Everyone flinched and looked around for the disembodied voice that echoed through the walls around them.
Lucy shivered and looked around in a panic "W-where is that voice coming from?" she asked scared.
Erza then stepped forward "Jellal. Where are you?" she demanded enraged.
"Everywhere Erza. I'm in every inch. Every tile. Every grain of this Tower. My eyes are everywhere. And I see all of you. I see how lovely you've become over the years. And I see how strong you are now after all this time too, Naruto. Don't look so surprised. I've been keeping a watchful eye on all of you since the moment you entered through the waterways. The perilous fight happening in the basement. This little heart-to-heart in the hallways. I'm even watching you, Salamander, running back through the halls trying to find me. Don't waste your breath screaming, I'm not anywhere near you. All of you Fairies are so interesting to watch." Jellal said.
Gray yelled out, "What do you want you freak?! I hope you didn't call out to us just to show how creepy you are!" he said to the man.
"Oh, that's right. There's some business we have to address. Now there are a lot of you running around and some of you are scheming to stop me. And I have prepared for this outcome by acquiring the help of some gifted individuals in the art of riding annoyances like you lot from the system" Jellal said to them.
"However, just a moment ago I received a very interesting piece of information from an informant of mine. The Magic Council has been notified of our existence and plans. And to make sure that our plans can not follow through and that no one could ever use its remains for their original purpose ever again, they've prepared to fire the Etherion cannon directly at us." Jellal said to them.
Several of the Fairy Mage's eyes widened in horror as Juvia covered her mouth, "E-Etherion." she said.
"To the ones who are blissfully unaware, Etherion is the most powerful magical weapon capable of destroying nations that the Magic Council keeps lying around for the most dire situations. Apparently they deemed the Tower of Heaven as one of those terrible circumstances and plan to erase us from existence. But I happen to know that this magical weapon needs some time to gather a suitable amount of magic to fire. And I suppose it would reach its peak and fire within the hour. So here's how this may play out..." Jellal told them.
"There is a group here that has reclaimed their prize and may choose to run. My hired help is prepared to scour every level of this structure in an effort to pick you off and retrieve the prize once more, the integral sacrifice for Zeref's revival. However with a ticking clock now in play, we are at the endgame of this little match. Will the Fairies try to stop me before I can activate the Tower or run away to save their skins? Will I be able to activate it before anyone takes my head and revive the Black Mage once and for all? Or will the Magic Council prove victorious and wipe us from the map? I'm very excited to see who comes out on top in this little game of ours..." Jellal said with a laugh in his voice.
Gray furrowed his eyes, "This guy is a lunatic." he said.
Lucy looked around worryingly before settling to face Erza for guidance, "What should we do Erza?" she asked.
"We can't let Jellal use this Tower. If we run then he'll escape and just try to recreate this place again wherever he can." Erza looked up sternly at the walls and ceiling knowing her friend was watching them. "We need to stop him here and now. Once we do then we can leave this place and let Etherion take care of it." The redhead faced down the hallway and narrowed her eyes...
"This all ends tonight." she said getting nods from all of them. "Let's end this nightmare before it ever begins." she yelled out. This caused them to yell out in agreement before they charged down the hallways ready to face anything that was thrown their way.
And that's all for now. Leave a review and I will see you on the flipside. Peace out.