A/N: With the last chapter, we finally see the closing of Ryuga's team's mission. I hope you guys have enjoyed reading it. Now we will be moving onto Aiden's group and I ensure you it will be just as good and thrilling. It will probably cover 5-6 chapters as well before we get started on Hikari's team mission. And that brings me to a question. Where would you like their team to have a showdown with Black Citadel? Of all the teams, I found it the hardest to come up with a good location for them to duke it out so I would like to seek your opinions on the matter. Send me your suggestions via pm and pm only because I don't want any spoilers to be in the reviews. So I guess, thanks in advance XD
Lots of love to my dear reviewers.
OleanderBleedingHeart: Thanks for the review. I was afraid that the gore would be a turn off for some, so I'm really glad that it worked out well XD
Klbubblepop786: Hope you enjoyed the chapter
Origm2012: Glad to see you back as well XD. I thought about what you said earlier about how it would be better to weave in characters into the main storyline instead of altering it. So I thought it would be a good way to introduce how Glaive got his title and tie him to Fairy Tail as well. Glad you enjoyed the fight with Athena and Neo. I was initially a bit worried that Athena's fight would be a bit too short and anti climatic, but I think I was just over thinking things hahaha. Don't worry about Neo and Ryuga's fight though; all other S-class/Orochi fights will be just as good if not better XD
Martyn: It's good to be back
madmissY01: #heartstopping #nervewrecking
NovaChrono: Hope you enjoyed the chapter XD
Credits
Caillace Fluer Geisel : Elegant Soul
Please refer to Chapter 1 for disclaimers
Enjoy!
Ion, around 7am
Liliana's eyes fluttered open to the feeling of something cold and wet on her skin. Her body felt numb for some strange reason that she could not recall all of a sudden. Her first thoughts were that it was due to her body still recovering from Vali's close range attack but something felt amiss. Especially that bright light she saw from the distance.
The light! That was no ordinary light! Liliana's brows furrowed as thoughts came back to her. A second passed before her eyes widened as the scene replayed itself in her mind. They had just subdued Athena when a crimson pillar of light erupted from behind them. With it came an enormous shockwave and explosion that surged towards them without mercy. The last thing Liliana remembered was the force that slammed her into the trunk of the tree before she lost consciousness once more.
"Oh no. GUYS!" she rolled over instantly and forced herself onto her knees, looking about anxiously. Vali was on the ground right next to her, his skin covered in burns and a trickle of blood ran down his forehead. Zephyr was a few feet above her, hanging from a loose branch. His face was covered in soot and parts of his clothing were burnt completely off. Apparently the force of the explosion was so great that it blew both of them out of the tree.
Along with the artifact. Nulgath's sheath now lay on the ground before them, the gleaming metal catching the rays of light from the early sun. If anything, it made it looked like a gift from God and that was ironic when one really knew its true power.
"Is everyone all right?" Liliana asked.
Vali gave a thumb up, groaning slightly as he raised his arm. His body was aching in so many places that even the slightest movement sent jolts of pain, so he resorted to lying down instead.
"Just peachy," Zephyr moaned as he loosened himself from the branch, dropping down onto the ground next to Liliana. He coughed slightly, exhaling a mouthful of soot. Just as he stopped, he almost gagged, the stench and sight of something causing him to feel nauseous instantly. That reaction was not lost on the two other mages as soon as they got a closer look at their surroundings.
All three of them, the giant tree and the ground before them were all caked in a thick layer of blood, a pungent stench permeating their noses. Despite the scene out of a horror story, none of the mages were severely hurt.
The blood belonged to someone else.
"The hell," Zephyr grumbled as he removed a blood soaked hand away from his chest. While he was glad that the blood was not his own or that of his teammates, it was just pure disgusting to be covered in the fluids of someone else.
"Do you think…"
"Yeah. It has to be him." Vali finished Zephyr's thoughts, both of them thinking of Neo instantly. If there was someone who messed and played with blood, it had to be the Orochi member. That explosion earlier on was no doubt his doing as well. Thanks their lucky stars that they were further away when it went off. Any closer and it may have been their blood that was spilt instead.
At that thought, all three mages froze. A sickening feeling crawled up their stomachs when they realized the implications of that last attack.
"RYUGA!" all three of them yelled, rushing to where they last saw the S-class mage.
Meanwhile, Ryuga was standing motionlessly still where he struck Neo down. Despite winning the battle, the Orochi member refused to go out without a fight, detonating himself as a last attempt to take Ryuga out with him. Although Ryuga was unable to escape, his armor managed to take the brunt of the explosion for him.
But even so, he barely made it.
Ryuga armor's was cracking and fragmenting in various places, pieces of it dropping off and vanishing into wisps of darkness. Ryuga himself was barely conscious, his body unable to take the sensory overload from the last attack. Unable to remain standing any further, Ryuga fell backwards and collapsed onto the ground. At the same time, the armor surrounding his body instantly vanished, leaving him in his normal clothing. The wound on his chest instantly reopened, causing Ryuga to cough out copious amounts of blood as he struggled to breathe.
"Damn," Ryuga cursed as he painfully shifted his hand to hold his gaping stomach, a futile attempt at stemming the blood flow. While his magic did provide a temporary relief to his wounds, it only lasted as long as the magic was active. In his current state, he could hardly stand, let alone keep up his magic.
"If I really go down like this, even Yura will be mocking me when she sees me again," Ryuga laughed weakly, attempting to shift his attention away from his wounds. It only lasted a second though, a sharp stab of pain bringing him back to reality instantly.
"Boss, you ok?" he heard a familiar voice call out from the distance, followed by the thundering of multiple footsteps.
"I'm…fine…" Ryuga breathed raggedly, though the voice that came out was far from fine.
"Thank goodness…THE HELL YOU ARE FINE!" Vali yelled in panic as he knelt next to Ryuga, his mouth agape like the hole in Ryuga's chest and stomach.
Liliana had her hands to her mouth, shaking her head in disbelief as she tried to process what was happening before her eyes.
"Damn it Boss," Zephyr croaked out, tears forming at the tips of his eyes already. "Please don't die on us. I still have a lot to learn from you." Over the past 2 years, he had always treated Ryuga like an older brother. He already lost his kin once and he was not ready to lose another so soon.
Liliana and Vali had even more pained expressions on their faces. Liliana was sniffling already, trying her best not to cry while Vali was also choking on his words, about to burst into tears as well. Having been recruited by Ryuga and trained by him for almost half a decade, neither of them was ready to see him go just yet.
Ryuga muttered something, though it was muffled out by the whimpering and his own blood filled throat.
"Don't talk," Vali sniffled as he placed a hand over Ryuga's shoulder. "Just get some rest, we'll find a way out of here soon."
Ryuga grabbed Vali's hand with whatever strength he had left, yanking him down to his chest level so that he could hear him speak.
"Sheath…Over chest…Now,"
"Ok, I understand," Vali answered and complied, placing Nulgath's sheath over Ryuga's wounds. His brows were arched in confusion though. What good could the sheath possibly do at this point?
The instant the sheath made contact with Ryuga, a miracle happened.
A golden light instantly erupted from the ancient artifact, blinding all the mages present. Zephyr and Liliana turned their heads away to avoid the glare while Ryuga simply closed his eyes. Vali shielded his with an arm, squinting as he tried to observe what was happening. From what he could see, the light was slowly closing up Ryuga's wounds, healing them completely. No, not healing. It was as though time had been reversed, as though all the battles he had fought in never took place to begin with. When the light died down, Ryuga looked as good as new, any trace of the wound ceasing to exist.
Zephyr stared there gob smacked while Liliana began crying tears of joy. Both mages instantly ran over and wrapped their arms around Ryuga and embraced him, sincerely glad that he was alright. Though there were burning questions like what the hell happened, they decided to save it for later when they returned back to the guild.
"Whoa, this is some voodoo shit right here,' Vali remarked as he picked up the sheath. If one part of it could do so much, imagine what could happen if all six pieces were reassembled as one.
"All the more we cannot let Black Citadel have them," Ryuga grunted as he tried to sit up, Liliana and Zephyr assisting him. While he was out of danger, he was still too weak to be moving just yet.
"What now? Do we return to the guild?" Liliana asked.
"Yeah, we should. We will need to rest and find out more about the artifact we collected." Ryuga replied, his gaze falling on her. "Someone grab the twins and Rin too. I think we have some questions that only they can provide answers to."
"Errr, not to pop your bubble Boss," Zephyr started, causing Ryuga to turn and face him. "But there's no one left."
All three mages glanced around, proving that what Zephyr said was true.
There was no one left in the area except them. The only evidence that the two groups ever clashed was the barren wasteland and the hilt of Balrog just sticking out of the ground.
So where did everyone go?
Location Unknown
Unknownst to the Scarlet Nova mages, Black Citadel had already packed their bags and left the battleground. While the other three mages went off to save Ryuga from bleeding out, Rin, Zora and Mara were picked up by someone and taken off to safety. If they were any other grunts, he would have left them to die or be captured by the magic council. Count their lucky stars that the guild still had some use of them or their talents.
And who better to ensure their safety then Kaguro himself.
Rin groaned as she came to. A black and blue bruise was already forming at the corner of her head where she collided into the barrier. The last thing she remembered was Zephyr striking her so she was quite surprised to find herself being carried when she awoke.
"So you're awake huh," came the voice of Kaguro. With that he hurled Rin onto the ground, not caring that she was grievously hurt in her fight. Rin yelped in pain as she tumbled onto the ground but Kaguro could not care less.
"Do it, "he growled lowly, killer intent seeping out from his body as he made his request. Rin trembled like a dead leaf in the wind, completely paralyzed by Kaguro's gaze. Despite the smile on his face, she knew that he would kill her without hesitation if he had to repeat himself. She nodded her head slowly, the fear in her eyes visible for Kaguro to see.
With a shaking hand, she reached into the inner pocket of her jacket and pulled out a transparent bottle. Most people her age would have freaked out or ran away when someone told them to carry it but for Rin, she considered it an honor that he was willing to leave something so precious in her care. It was proof of his trust in her.
Within that bottle was a heart.
Neo's heart.
Carefully, she laid it down onto the ground. Next she pulled out a strand of wire from her glove and wrapped it around her wrist. In a swift motion, she pulled at it, causing her wrist to bleed. She then directed the blood drops to fall onto the heart, waiting for the inevitable.
A second passed before the heart started to throb. With each passing moment, it began to beat even faster, as though Neo was alive. That was considered ironic considering how Neo just blew himself up into a million pieces.
And for the second time that day, a miracle happened.
As though pulled by a magnet, Neo's blood began to congregate around his heart. It flew in from everywhere, the earth, and the trees and even from Rin's clothes. Within seconds, there was a huge pool of blood enveloping the heart, causing it to sink. When the heart was completely submerged, a bright red magic circle appeared over the pool of blood. Slowly, it began to compact into that of human form and when the circle passed over it, Neo's body resurfaced.
It wasn't complete though. While his right side and face had more or less regenerated, his left side looked like it had been through a meat grinder and was still scorched. The twin scars on his chest were still fresh and his left arm was completely missing. It only meant that Ryuga's magic was still in effect, preventing him from healing completely.
Even so, Rin still knew it was Neo. With tears in her eyes, she embraced the Blood mage who returned her with a one armed hug. No matter how many times she witnessed that spell, Rin was always worried and terrified for him. She was always afraid that he would never come back one of these days.
"You failed Neo," Kaguro hissed, the disdain in his tone for all to hear.
"I won't next time. It was a simple mistake, I thought that…" Neo started only to be silenced by a glare from Kaguro.
"There will be no next time," Kaguro growled. "The only mistake made was me trusting you to handle Ryuga on your own. You are nowhere near him in strength and yet you have the gall to challenge him. I truly have overestimated you."
"What was that," Neo roared but he instantly shut up as soon as he felt the wave of killer intent pouring out from Kaguro.
"Huh, do you have an issue," Kaguro spoke emotionlessly, his head tilted to one side. Despite standing normally, Neo knew all too well that Kaguro was going to kill him if he spoke another word. If he dared challenge him again, he was sure to lose his head before he could even see him move.
Neo shook his head slightly, his body instinctively moving backwards to put some distance between the two Orochi members.
"Good boy," Kaguro finished, dispersing his killer aura. "You will receive punishment for your actions," Kaguro snarled as he opened up the gate to the Dark Continent. "I will make sure I see to it."
Neo said nothing, hanging his head in shame at the truth behind Kaguro's words. Reluctantly he followed Kaguro through the portal before it closed, ready to accept his fate.
In Aggra's mouth
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH! WE HAVE BEEN EATEN!" Gemma shrieked as she had her hands to her head, running about like a headless chicken and yelling her lungs out.
"HAI!" Judar and Flora screamed as well, joining Gemma in some sort of stupid ritual. Their first jobs as mages and they were all eaten alive. What a great way to go down in the annals of history.
"Dear whoever finds this letter, please let my body be buried under a sandy beach with a bouquet of fresh orchids every month," Judar whimpered aloud as he started writing his will on a piece of paper.
That earned him a knock on the head by Blitz and Asuna.
"OW!" Judar yelled as he rubbed the two swelling bumps that were currently growing out of his head. "What was that for?"
"Calm down man," Blitz said, causing Judar to shoot daggers at him.
"HEEEEELLLLLLOOOOO!" he cried out, "This is no time to be acting calm man. If you hadn't noticed, WE JUST GOT EATEN!"
And then it was Hanaku's turn to bash him on the head with her halberd.
"First off, quieten down. I'm getting a terrible headache with all your screaming." Hanaku said as she rubbed her temple. "Next, take a look around us before you start panicking."
Gemma, Judar and Flora instantly kept quiet and opened their eyes, observing their surroundings carefully for the first time. Sure they were definitely in Aggra's mouth given that one end of it was lined with razor sharp teeth but the other end of it was quite strange at the least. Where the gullet was supposed to be was a wooden door that had two fluorescent lamps hanging by each side of it.
"What's a door doing here," Gemma asked as she walked forward to inspect it.
"Maybe it got stuck when he ate a house or something?" suggested Judar.
"Then explain why the door has hinges," Asuna retorted. "That and the fact that it's so sparkling clean."
Judar just shrugged it off, running out of ideas to answer her. Meanwhile, Aiden had already walked up to the door and placed his hand against the handle.
"Are we really going in," Blitz asked.
"Well I see no harm in doing so," Aiden grinned. "Besides we don't have anywhere else to go now do we,"
Before anyone could say anything else, Aiden pushed open the door.
What lay before the Scarlet Nova mages' eyes was a sight to behold.
"What on earth?" Asuna whispered as she took in the view. What was supposed to be Aggra's body and throat was lined with chrome colored floor and ceiling. White florescent lights hung from the ceiling, illuminating the entire space. Golden rimmed seats with red cushioned seats lined the sides, separated by an aisle for people to walk through. What's more, there were freaking windows beside each seat, allowing the passengers to have a clear view of the outside.
"Did we just transport into another direction?" Blitz wondered out loud as he began walking down the aisle. It seemed so unreal, like they were in the carriage of a luxury train.
"It's official," Gemma declared. "That nut-job of a hydra tried to eat a train carriage and it got stuck in his throat."
"I can hear you," growled a low voice which seemed to emit from all around them.
"Oopsies," Gemma chuckled nervously while that same voice seemed to snort in disgust.
"Aggra was it," Aiden spoke up. "Do you mind explaining what's going on here?"
"What you are seeing is a result of bio-mechanical engineering and experimentation that the magic council performed on me," Aggra explained. "Back when I was just a fry, I was captured and tested as a guinea pig for the magic council's transportation system. The chrome material you are seeing actually grows as I do, becoming the carriage that you see before you now."
"Whoa," Hanaku breathed as she listened to Aggra's story. "That sounds like something out of a science fiction book. But then how did you wind up here?"
"The artifact you seek, I was put in charge of transporting it to Morgoth over a decade ago."
"And I assumed that Master Glaive accompanied you?" Aiden added.
"Correct," Aggra confirmed his thoughts. "Unlike the assholes in the lab, he was one that treated me with respect. It was as though we spoke like equals though the difference in our strength was that much obvious. When the transportation was completed, he destroyed the locating chip within my body, preventing the magic council from ever tracking me down. In exchange, I promised him that I would act as the guardian and protect Morgoth from any impending threats. That has been the way for the past decade."
"Cool," chimed Judar and Gemma. "It seems like the Master is a nice guy after all, despite his serious expression all the time." Aiden and Blitz smiled at that remark while Hanaku and Asuna smirked.
"Take a rest and enjoy the view for now," Aggra continued. "We'll be reaching Morgoth very soon. And don't disturb the other passengers."
"Sure thing, we'll just… Wait, there are others?" Aiden was about to take a seat when Aggra's words came through. Instantly he kept his guard up, sensing something bad about to happen.
"I thought there was only one entrance to Morgoth?" Asuna insisted as she double checked the map piece that they had. True to her words, there was only a single route inscribed there. How did the rest of them board Aggra in that case?
"Who on earth told you that?" Aggra laughed. "That map is outdated by 10 years my dear. Did you really think that no one will bother coming after the artifact all this while?"
"Indeed, you guys are not the only ones looking for the artifact." A voice called out from the back of the carriage.
All the mages immediately turned their attention to the source of the voice. Seated at the last few seats of the carriage were six hooded figures. They were all wearing thick brown cloaks which obscured their faces, preventing anyone from identifying them. One of them stood up from his seat and faced the mages, revealing his hood as he did so.
"Greetings Scarlet Nova," Vale bowed slightly as he spoke to them. "It is an honor to finally meet with you."
"I can't really say that the honor is mine now can I, Vale Sitri." Aiden replied, causing the other mage's eyes to widen slightly in surprise.
"So you have heard of me?" he asked, curious.
"Not really. I only know that you are a member of Black Citadel." Aiden said, causing the rest of the Scarlet Nova mages to tense up.
"That and you are a member of Orochi."
That got everyone into panic mode. Asuna instantly loaded two silver arrows onto her bow and took aim at him. Blitz stood next to Hanaku, both drawn their combat knife and halberds respectively. Sand began to twist and howl around Judar while Gemma had already formed an iron sword on her left arm. On Vale's end, the rest of the hooded figures instantly stood up, some of them assuming battle stances immediately. Only one of them continued seating in their seat, still gazing out of the window.
However, both Vale and Aiden seemed pretty relaxed, not even moving an inch.
"Aiden, what are you doing?" Blitz growled lowly, his eyes never leaving the Orochi member.
"Nothing," Aiden replied with a grin. "I'm not going to do anything."
"What! But they are our enemies! We should take them out now before they compete with us for the artifact!" Judar protested while Gemma and Asuna nodded in agreement. A member of Orochi was too dangerous to be let loose on Morgoth, especially since what had happened at Sand Dune City.
"Take a good look around you guys," Aiden insisted, turning around to face his team. "Have you forgotten where we are?"
Vale was smiling at this point. Not one of arrogance but rather of admiration.
"So you noticed as well didn't you? I'm impressed."
"Huh? What's he talking about?" Hanaku asked, confused at Vale's choice of words.
"We're currently inside Aggra remember?" Aiden explained. "If we fight inside here, we'll probably end up damaging the carriage and we'll all be exposed to the acid outside us. That way no one leaves this place alive. Either that or Aggra will spit us all out from a bad stomachache."
"Affirmative. If we fight now, we'll all die either way." Vale finished. "It seems that the data collected on you does no justice. And here I was thinking that you were a pure muscle head."
"Well even fighters have to think once in a while eh?" Aiden smiled, while Vale responded with a small one of his own.
"So what now?" Gemma asked. While Aiden did have a point, it still felt pretty uncomfortable having your enemies so close by.
"A truce," proposed Aiden. "None of us makes a move on each other until we get to Morgoth. We'll settle things there fair and square."
"Agreed," Vale nodded but Aiden shook his head, causing the former to raise a brow in curiosity.
"I was addressing the one at the back, not you." Aiden pointed at the hooded figure still seated. "She's in charge isn't she?"
Vale just laughed under his breath. Today really was filled with tons of surprises. For the third time today, the S-class mage had impressed him. "Your call Ayumi," he called out to the hooded figure.
The one named Ayumi did not even turn to face them, continuing to stare out of the window. However she heard them loud and clear.
"Alright," she finally answered. "Just as long as they keep their end of the bargain."
"Of course," Vale replied, bowing to her slightly as she dismissed him with a wave of her hand. "You heard her. We won't disturb you as long as you keep your distance."
"Fair enough," Aiden smiled and turned around, asking his team to stand down.
Vale did the same, though thoughts of excitement were running through his head.
"Aiden Cross, you are an interesting individual indeed." Vale smiled to himself. "I will be looking forward to the day I fight you."
Back with the Scarlet Nova mages, Aiden's smile vanished all of a sudden. A serious look was now on his face, his brows knitted with worry.
"What's wrong," Blitz asked with concern. It was rare to see the S-class mage looking troubled.
"Their leader, Ayumi," Aiden started. "She's definitely hiding something."
"What do you mean," Asuna probed, curious about Aiden's findings.
"If she's the leader and Vale's a member of Orochi, it most likely that she's probably ranked higher than he is."
"And what about that," Hanaku added. It made a lot of sense from where he was coming so she didn't understand what the problem was.
"My concern is that I'm not detecting any magic power from her." Aiden finished, causing the eyes of his team to widen slightly as his words sank in. "It's like a void. I sense absolutely nothing from her. If she really is a member of Orochi, we might have a problem on our hands."
"Can you take her," Gemma asked nervously. Judar shared her sentiments as well. Fighting an enemy without knowing her strength could prove to be suicidal.
"Maybe, but I can't be sure for certain." Aiden sighed as he cracked his knuckles. "At least not until I've confirmed her rank. Vale is ranked seven of the eight. So I guess I'll be fine if she's five or six."
Upon hearing this, the rest of the mages sighed in relief. At least they could rely on Aiden if they really had to clash with the Orochi members.
Unknownst to them, Ayumi was listening onto their conversation. She cackled softly after hearing their small chat, knowing that they'll be in for a rude shock when they did come fighting head on.
"I hope you last long enough, Scarlet Nova. Entertain me at the least." She whispered softly as she gazed out of the window once more.
From the reflection cast on the window, the number four shone brightly under her right eye.
Scarlet Nova Guild House
"Neel, you have to stop pacing up and down. You're gonna give me a headache." complained Shinji as he held his hands to his head. The younger mage was strutting to and fro across the guild house, humming nervously as she did so.
"But I'm worried Shinji," she said, turning up to face the Gunner mage. "It's been almost a day and we still hadn't heard any news from them."
"Look, Ryuga is S-class and his team is no push-over either. They definitely can hold their weight in a fight." Shinji tried to reassure her but that only seemed to make her more worried.
"That's exactly what I'm worried about!" she exclaimed, grabbing Shinji by the shoulders. The sudden physical contact instantly made Shinji take a step back, surprised by her actions.
"He always reports back every day, no matter what." She insisted, grabbing Shinji even harder. "Something must have gone wrong with their mission!"
"Calm down, Neel," Shinji replied gently, removing her hands from his shoulders. "All we can do now is being patient. I'm sure he'll come back soon."
"Ok," Neel whimpered as she crumpled into a chair, hugging her knees close to her chest. "I really hope he is alright." Tears were already brimming at her eyes, a drop or two streaking down her cheeks.
"Eh," Shinji backed up a bit, feeling a pang of regret as he watched the younger mage turn her back against him. He felt bad making her cry, though it wasn't entirely his fault. He just wished that he could assure her better.
"How about you train with your team," Shinji suggested, attempting to change the subject. "I'm sure that they are raring to go for a good spar."
"Not interested," Neel said, curling tighter into a ball. "Besides they aren't fighting anyway."
That caught Shinji's attention. Apart from Scar and Neel, the rest of their team was battle maniacs. Two of them were slayers to top that off. To see all of them not fighting was one thing. To see them sitting at a table and having a discussion was something new altogether.
"We should come up with a team name for ourselves," Zion started, a mischievous grin on his face. He had a foot on the table top, addressing his other two team mates.
"And what brought this on?" Aly asked, a bored expression on her face. She wasn't really big on names or good with them. She thought that as long as the team functioned well together, it was all that mattered.
"Muscle head here just wants to compare with Otis' team." Tsuki giggled, her legs propped up against the table as she kicked back and relaxed. She still recalled how the Magma God Slayer was complaining about their team having a name while they didn't. "Something along the lines of ice sucks, fire rules?"
"Shush," Zion snapped, causing both females mages to laugh. "Anyway," he cleared his throat. "We should really consider coming up with one for our team. It makes it easier for clients to relate to us as well."
"Like the Twin Dragons of Sabertooth and the Raijinshuu?" Aly asked.
"Exactly!" Zion exclaimed, pointing towards Aly. "So after a long time of consideration and selection, I think our name should be Igneous Eruptus or Magma Dome." He declared proudly, though the other two didn't seem very impressed.
"Last I checked, you're the only one who uses Magma based magic," Tsuki retorted as she kicked the table, causing Zion to fall on his tailbone. "If anything, it should be something like Solar Quasar or Ra's Descent."
That got Aly into a coughing fit. "I could say the same for you Tsuki, a pot calling the kettle black." She smirked at the younger mage who shot her a glance. "I think an awesome name would be Agni Kai or Hephaestus' Reincarnated."
"Lame," both Tsuki and Zion stuck their tongues out, causing Aly to glare daggers. Very soon, the originally peaceful discussion instantly turned into a brawl. Chairs and tables were being hurled and insults about naming senses were exchanged.
"Well, they are fighting now." Shinji sighed as he watched from a distance as the mages tumbled and stepped over one another. Why couldn't they resolve things peacefully?
A short while later, all three of them collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. Their clothes were slightly messy and their hair was in disarray but all of them were fine. Just exhausted from their squabble.
"Ok, how about we all say a name at the same time. Something that involves fire and does not incline too much to either of our magics." Zion suggested in between breaths.
"Alright," Aly agreed.
"Fine by me," Tsuki chirped, a name already popping into her mind.
"Well, then. In 3, 2 ,1,"
"Team Prominence!" all three of them shouted excitedly. A moment of silence passed as they glanced at each other, before laughing out loud when they realized that they had all reached a consensus.
"Heck yeah! Now that's teamwork!" Zion laughed out loud, glad that his teammates and him had the same thoughts. "And now to commemorate our establishment," Zion leapt to his feet before climbing up another table.
"Hey Sub-Zero, we Prominence challenge you to a tag battle!" Zion declared arrogantly, pointing to the table across them whereby Klein and Rhea were seated.
"Really, Zion," groaned Klein as he closed the book he was reading. He was already irritated from all the noise they were making from their discussion and the last thing he needed now was to fight an unnecessary battle.
"What's wrong Klein?" Zion gloated. "Are you scared that we will kick your ass in battle?"
"Why you," Klein growled, tick marks forming on his forehead. Why couldn't that idiot get the idea that they had to conserve their magic? Just as he was about to lash out, he felt Rhea place a hand on his shoulder.
"Calm down Klein," she reminded. "It's just a spar. Besides, it would make good warm up for the battle against Orochi."
"But…"
"We accept your challenge Zion," Rhea called back, causing Zion to grin wildly. While Klein had a somewhat worried look on his face, Rhea's one was rather calm and composed. "Don't worry about it." She reassured him. "Let's just get it done and over with."
"So its gonna be a three on three?" Tsuki asked.
"Nah, I'm too tired to fight now." Aly yawned as she slouched onto a chair, dozing off almost immediately to the surprise of her team mates.
"Well, I didn't bring my guns, so I'm going to sit this out." Shinji shrugged as he gestured towards his empty holsters. However, the main reason behind his reluctance to fight was so that he could watch over Neel. The least he could do was to stop her from thinking any stupid thoughts.
"So, a two on two then?" Rhea asked.
"Winner goes to whoever surrenders first." Zion smirked.
With that, all four mages assembled at the courtyard. From Team Prominence were Zion and Tsuki while from Team Sub-Zero were Klein and Rhea. All of them looked raring to go, eager to get some training before the big battle ahead. A small audience comprising Shinji, Sora and Shiro sat at the sidelines, waiting for the action to kick start.
"Come on Tsuki! You can do it!" Sora cheered loudly at his partner.
"Shiro believes you can win, Tsuki, Zion." Shiro mumbled timidly.
"Don't overexert yourselves," Shinji reminded, hoping that none of them would get carried away too much and injury either party.
"The first move is yours," Klein stated as he assumed a battle stance. Across him, Zion smirked as he did the same.
"Well I hope you don't regret it!" Zion wasted no time in gathering his magic, letting his cheeks swell as he roared "Magma God's Bellow!" He breathed out a thick column of black magma which shot straight at Klein.
"Ice Dragon's Roar!" Klein responded with his own breath attack, launching out a thick column of bright blue ice which collided head on with Zion's spell. An explosion of steam erupted from the impact of the two magics, temporarily obscuring the view of both mages. But that didn't stop them from calling out their next spells.
"Magma God's Sin!" Zion cried out as he fired a disc of black magma through the steam cloud. Even before the spell was complete, Klein could already sense the immense heat radiating from the other end without seeing it. Deciding to strike first, he drove his fist into the ground, calling out "Ice Dragon's Domain!"
The courtyard instantly froze over with a thin sheet of ice, stretching underneath Zion's feet. Zion cursed as he felt his footing slip, causing his spell to go wild and shoot up into the air instead while he fell backwards. Klein did not let up, charging through the steam cloud with blue magic circles surrounding his hands.
"Ice Dragon's Claw!" he cried as he brought down the frozen talons against Zion. Zion instinctively rolled to a side, narrowly missing the attack. "Dammit!" he snarled as he somersaulted into mid air, this time magma coated his legs as he prepared to dropkick Klein.
"Magma God's Rage!" he called out as he slammed his right foot across Klein's left arm. Klein hissed in pain as he felt his skin burn and was sent flying backwards. As his feet dragged along the ice, two more magic circles formed at Klein's palms and from them protruded two large snowflakes.
"Ice Dragon's Snowflakes" he yelled as he hurled the oversized projectiles at Zion. Both of them hit their marks, catching Zion by surprise who was not expecting a counter so soon. The first snowflake impacted across Zion's left arm while the other hit him squarely in the chest, both of them exploding with blue energy. Zion coughed as he felt the ice magic sting him, taking a few steps back.
"Switch!" both mages called simultaneously as they signaled for their partners to take over.
"Alright!" Tsuki cheered as she leapt from Zion's back, golden magic condensing into her right arm as it began to glow and hum with power. "Firing Hammer of the Solar Dragon!" she barked as she swung her arm, releasing a wave of explosive energy towards Klein.
"Not so fast. Winter Magic: Ice Wave" Rhea responded with a crescent blade made of ice of equal size and power, cancelling Tsuki's attack. Tsuki instantly dropped to the ground, golden magic circles lining the soles of her feet as she prepared her next spell. "Solar Dragon's Blazing Path!" she called out as her feet were instantly coated with golden light. She then accelerated towards Rhea, her feet burning away at the ice Klein had created and leaving orange trails of fire behind.
When she got into close range, she swung a left hook at Rhea, hoping to catch her off guard. Instead Rhea drew a small blue dagger from her pouch named Frostbite. As Tsuki's punch neared, she used the hilt of the dagger to knock against her wrist, causing her attack to fail.
"Ow!" Tsuki grimaced as she watched a bruise swell up on the back of her hand. Rhea did not let that few seconds go to waste, landing a kick squarely in Tsuki's stomach and sending the younger mage tumbling backwards.
Tsuki yelped in pain as she regained her composure, half a dozen golden magic circles appearing behind her. "Solar Dragon's Drones!" she yelled as she fired off the small condensed balls of solar energy at Rhea, launching an omnipotent attack.
Rhea skated across the ice as the lances of energy fired from the drones, gracefully avoiding most of them. Despite their size, the energy levels of the drones were considerably large, causing Rhea to be unable to evade their shots completely. Every now and then she felt her skin singe from the extreme heat of the lasers but she bit her tongue and maintained her composure. The only thing on her mind was getting up close with Tsuki.
"Not good," Tsuki called out as she watched Rhea get closer with each passing second. Just as she was about to call for a switch with Zion, another voice rang out in the courtyard.
"Terraforming: Arms!"
Without warning, four enormous stone arms erupted from the floors of the courtyard or the sides of the dorm and grabbed the mages into midair. No matter how hard they tried to get out of them, the stone arms' grip held fast, preventing anyone from escaping. When they all looked down from their stone prisons, they saw Seras standing at the entrance of the guild hall, both arms outstretched. Beside her was Otis and Scar.
And all three of them did not look very pleased.
"Oops, busted." Zion grinned sheepishly as he glanced at Scar who glared back at him with a disapproving look on her face.
"It's not our fault! They were the ones that challenged us!" Klein protested, only for Otis to sigh and cover his face out of embarrassment.
"You all should know better than to waste your strength now when we could leave anytime for our missions," Otis chided the four of them while Scar nodded her head in agreement. It was suicidal trying to spar before a potential death match and while she did encourage her team to practice their skills, now was not the best time to do it.
"We're sorry," came the collected response from all four mages.
"Do I let them down now?" Seras asked, but both mages shook their heads.
"Leave them there for a while, until they learnt their lesson." Scar replied emotionlessly as she turned and headed for the guild hall. Otis nodded as well as he followed suit, leaving only Seras left.
"Sorry guys," Seras smiled sadly as she too took her leave, causing groans and complaints to erupt from the four mages held captive.
"So who won that?" Sora asked.
"Well, I'm guessing Seras did." Shinji shrugged.
Clover Town
Glaive had arrived at his destination earlier than expected, having left the late afternoon before. As such he had arrived at Clover Town two hours earlier than the scheduled meeting for all Guild Masters as per request of the Magic Council.
That suited him just fine. It gave him enough buffer time to locate a certain someone that he knew. Someone he had not spoken to in person for over 15 years.
Instead of turning right from the train station and heading into town, Glaive took a detour and went behind, taking the small dirt path which lead deep into the woods. After walking for about 15 minutes or so, Glaive came to a small clearing. At the end of it stood a small two storey house that was made entirely of wood and dirt, having only four circular windows to let the sunlight pass through and a small chimney.
"At least she didn't change her address," Glaive thought aloud. "Guess some things still stay the same." She was never one who really liked to interact with others, often preferring the animals and the serenity of nature over everything else. That probably explains why she chose to live in the woods as well, away from civilization.
But at the end of the day, civilization still caught up with her. As Glaive walked closer to the house, he spotted the mailbox next to it bursting with mail. Taxes, invoices and even gambling debts littered the ground around it, causing sweat drops and a sigh to escape Glaive's lips.
"Yup, some things just never change."
He carefully threaded towards the house, lightly tapping on the wooden door to see if anyone was at home. A second passed before a somewhat raspy voice responded from behind the door.
"Go away. I have no money to return you, but I do have some hungry wolves behind the door. I'm sure you wouldn't want me to open it now, do you." There was the sound of someone clearing her throat before a very weird growl escaped her lips. It sounded like someone being constipated instead of a ravenous wolf.
That got Glaive laughing. Yup, she was the same person alright. Still using the same old threats to hide from her debtors.
"It's me Caillace," Glaive chuckled. "Can you open the door please?"
There was an awkward silence that passed, before the thundering of footsteps could be heard as someone ran within the house. Glaive saw the curtains of one window being pulled back slightly before it were closed once again. Another thundering of footsteps could be heard, followed by the clings and clangs of locks being opened. After which the door swung open, revealing the owner of the house.
"Damn it Glaive, write me a letter in advance next time," the woman chided though she had a wide smile on her face. She currently stood at 5'0, having a slightly hunched back due to years of age. Like Glaive, she had white hair but it was tied up into a bun instead. If anything was young about her, it was her eyes, still as brown as Glaive remembered them. She had a wrinkled face and a pointed chin, giving people the appearance that she was like a witch. To add on to that misconception, she was dressed in a black witches' robe and black heels. By her side was a brown broom that had blue runes and glyphs written on it.
"My bad," Glaive apologized, bending over to give Caillace a hug which the other mage returned with her own. "It was quite rushed so I had no time to make any preparations."
"That has always been a bad aspect of you," Caillace smirked. "Always leaving things to the last minute and not planning ahead."
"I guess we all haven't changed much eh?" Glaive laughed, the irony dawning on how he was just commenting on how she still acted the same as 20 years ago.
A short while later
"So what brings you here all of a sudden?" Caillace asked as she offered Glaive a cup of rose tea that she just brewed. The two of them were currently seated in her living room's sofas; in between them was a small wooden table with a teapot and two glasses. "I sure hope it's not because something happened to Chantal."
"Don't worry about it." Glaive reassured. "She's coping well in Scarlet Nova. She's even made many new friends and gets along well with everyone in general."
"Hmm. That's good to hear." Caillace nodded as she took a sip from her tea. She was really worried initially that her daughter would do something silly after that experience. It seems like sending her to join Scarlet Nova was a good choice after all. "But if it's not about Chantal, what could it be then?"
"Do you still remember our last mission?"
That sentence instantly caused Caillace's blood to run cold. Her face darkened and one could see that her body was tensing up to a very large extent.
"Glaive, you do know that subject is taboo right?" she replied emotionlessly, the details of what happened that day replaying in her mind all over. It was a silent agreement amongst the three of them to never bring up that topic for as long as they lived. Each of them had lost someone important that day.
For Glaive, it was his wife.
For Makarov, it was someone that he treated like his own son.
For Caillace, it was two of her best friends.
"I apologize," Glaive replied, his tone turning forlorn. "But there is something that I have to confirm. You have heard of the attack on Sand Dune City by Black Citadel right?"
"Yes, what about it?"
"I have a feeling that it has something to do with that incident 20 years ago." Glaive finished, a grim expression on his face.
"You don't mean that…" Caillace's face was now horrified, having reached the same conclusion as Glaive.
"I plan on checking the burial site after the meeting with the other Guild Masters." Glaive said. "I was hoping that you could come with me as well."
"Definitely," Caillace responded, her voice steeled with determination now. "I just hope that it is only our imagination and us over-thinking things again."
Glaive nodded grimly. If anything, he really hoped that his theory was not true.
If it did, it meant that the entire magic world would be plunged into death and chaos once more.
A/N: Well that's it for this chapter. Hope you guys enjoyed it. Stay tuned for the next one and remember to review and favorite.
Death Obelisk signing off.