Chapter 105: Snow Way We're Losing This
The night after the second day of the Grand Magic Games, some of the members of Phoenix's Eye - specifically, those staying in a tavern near the centre of town, not with Ariel's cousin - were awoken by a tumultuous racket.
Masquerade, who was an insomniac by nature, was crouched on the roof when it happened. "Holy shit; is that the Sabertooth tavern?" he questioned in disbelief, adjusting his lenses to zoom in.
A few moments later, Lync and Artorias - both of whom always slept alert, for reasons of their own - joined him on the roof. "What's going on?" the Blood Wizard quietly asked.
"Some chump's making a ruckus at Sabertooth," Masquerade explained, gesturing to the smoking tavern.
"Think we should go investigate?" Lync questioned.
"Bad idea. If we're seen anywhere near Sabretooth at a time like that, we might get mistaken for trying to sabotage the other teams. We're already in the lead, Sabretooth would jump at the chance to get us disqualified on trumped-up charges. We'll find out what's happening tomorrow,"
"Back to bed, then?" Lynx suggested, standing up, but neither Artorias nor Masquerade moved. "Whatever's going on, it might target us next," Artorias pointed out. "I won't be caught with my glasses off," Masquerade agreed.
Lync shrugged, not really believing there was a threat. "Suit yourself," And with that, he went back downstairs.
-[CoT]-
The third day of the Grand Magic Games dawned bright and early, and at ten o'clock the crowd and competitors had assembled and were ready to begin.
"Good morning, everybody!" Chapati burst out. "I'm Chapati, joined here by my friend Mr. Yajima, and also today's special guest! Please welcome, a representative of the Magic Council's Custody Enforcement Unit, Lahar!"
"It's a pleasure to be here," the man in question smiled.
"So, Lahar, who are you rooting for in this year's games?" Chapati questioned, and he gestured to the two Phoenix's Eye bays. "I'm happy to see my friends in Phoenix's Eye have been performing well thus far. They've got my support,"
"Good to hear. I'd also like to warmly welcome back Mato!" Chapter declared, gesturing to the punpkin-headed mascon in the centre of the arena. "Great to be back!" the little man waved.
"But, without further ado, let's get today's proceedings underway!" Chapati declared, pressing a button and bringing up a massive screen that showed the scoreboard. "Lahar will be happy, because Phoenix's Eye is dominating! Phoenix's Eye A is in the lead with 26 points, and Black Eye Pirates is right behind them at 22! Safe bet Sabertooth is in a three way tie for third with Mermaid Heel and Blue Pegasus at 20 each, with Lamia Scale at sixth with 16 and Fairy Tail A and B clawing their way back with 12 apiece! But that could all change today!"
Phoenix's Eye erupted in cheers. "You show 'em!" Feng hollered.
Sarph, ever observant, eyed the Sabertooth team for their reaction. "That's odd," he observed. "That Celestial Wizard who lost yesterday. She's not there anymore,"
"Man. One loss and you're out? Tough," Tyria observed.
"I'm glad we're not like that," Pierce agreed.
"Now, today's event is one I've been looking forward to for quite a while!" Chapati declared, and the timetable shone as the '?' on the third day's schedule was replaced by a single word. 'Bobsleds'.
"I'm out," Gajeel, Sting and Rogue immediately declared.
"Sounds like an ice event. I'm in," Gray declared, only for Erza to hold up an arm. "You already had a turn. I'm going in today," she declared, striding out to join a waving Mato in the arena.
"If the event is focused on a sledding race, a person with more weight will be able to go faster. Therefore, the person with the most weight should enter," Sarph surmised.
The other members of Phoenix's Eye A looked at his bulging muscles and heavy gold armour. "You could have just said 'I'm going,'," Boomer pointed out as he strode in.
Over in Lamia Scale, Jashie and Eishaj looked at each other for a moment, an entire conversation transpiring in a few seconds. "Eishaj is competing," Jashie told her teammates.
Fairy Tail B looked among themselves. Specifically, Gajeel and Laxus.
"You two are the biggest ones here," Mirajane pointed out.
"No," Laxus grunted.
"This sounds like a vehicle event. If I'm getting motion-sick now, I'm not touching no sleds," Gajeel snorted.
Mirajane, Juvia and Cana all exchanged nervous glances. "But - none of us are bulky at all!" the barmaid protested.
"Tough, figure it out yourselves," Gajeel snorted.
"Stand back, ladies. I'll take this one, and I have an ace up my sleeve," Cana declared. "But I might need a hand," she winked.
Over in Mermaid Heel, everyone's attention was on the Gravity Wizards. "I'd go, but I already competed once," Risley pointed out. "And I might get rostered for a match today. I haven't done one yet," Everyone remembered yesterday, when Artorias had competed twice sequentially and lost the battles round. Mermaid Heel perfectly understood Risley's concern.
"I'll go," Kagura accepted, striding into the arena.
Blue Pegasus exchanged glances. "The guy in the bunny suit's the biggest one here," Ren pointed out. Ichiya drew breath to protest, but the mystery figure saluted, before striding out onto the scene.
"I have been itching for a chance to show off. I'm taking this one!" Masquerade declared.
"But we need someone heavy," Donna pointed out.
"I am wearing a titanium breastplate under my coat," the Brawler retorted, pulling his white coat open to reveal dark metal. No one could argue with that, so Masquerade joined the ring.
Sabretooth, finally, finished deliberations. "I'm up," Orga declared. Over in Phoenix's Eye A, Tyria watched this and fumed. "Damnit. Sarph, can we switch?!" she hollered.
"What about weight?" Sarph hollered back.
In response, Tyria cracked her fists together and commanded; "TechType: Tectonics!" to morph her fists into massive metal clubs.
"Oh, so Phoenix's Eye is making a last-minute substitution! In that case, our contestants this morning are Tyria from Phoenix's Eye A, Masquerade from Black Eye Pirates, Orga from Sabretooth, Kagura from Mermaid Heel, Eishaj from Lamia Scale, Erza from Fairy Tail A, Cana from Fairy Tail B and the mystery contender in a bunny suit from Blue Pegasus! With that, let's get this event started!"
In several flashes of light, eight bobsleds appeared in a row, each marked with the respective guild's logo; the sole exception was the Black Eye Pirates, which instead bore Kenzie's eye-and-crossed-feathers standard in black. As soon as Tyria entered the area, the circle of ground rose high into the air much like it had yesterday, until it towered above the arena. In a glistening aurora of Ice and Snow magic, a massive, curving halfpipe snaked around the pillar until it reached the ground where the finish line appeared.
"The rules for this event are simple," Mato explained. "Each wizard must ride their team's sled down the slide until they reach the finish line. The order in which you arrive will determine your standing. But be warned; if for any reason both rider and toboggan leave the track's area, they are immediately disqualified and will end up way down at the bottom of the leaderboard. So if you want to make sure someone loses, give them a knock. But be careful, because you might take a knock yourself! Now, is everyone ready to begin?"
"Hold it!" Cana burst out, looking down at the Fairy Tail B bay. "Boys? Mind sending up my fuel?"
"With pleasure!" Gajeel shouted up at her, as he and Laxus each punted a two-gallon keg of beer high into the air. Eyes followed the kegs as they landed, only to be caught by Cana and Erza and deposited into the back of Team B's sled. "Okay, now I'm ready," the alcoholic declared.
"Impressive! It seems that Cana's strategy is to use her booze as bonus weight!" Chapati narrated. "Any further interruptions?"
"Wait, that's legal?" Erza spluttered, having been convinced until that moment that the referees were going to shoot down the alcoholic's plot. "I should have brought my luggage!" she moaned, thinking of her massive trailer of equipment and supplies that she always brought when travelling.
Each wizard obligingly took their places on their sleds.
"On your marks!" Mato counted down. "Get set! Let's go!" Immediately, the eight participants kicked off, Cana's extra weight scoring herself an early lead.
"TechType: Jetpack!" Massive silver struts that bore blue turbines unfolded from Tyria's back and whirred into life, propelling her forwards. Unfortunately, Kagura was to her left and wouldn't stand for it. Standing, balanced effortlessly on the moving vehicle, she drew her sword, Archenemy, wrapped in bandages and sheathed as it was. "Style of the Undrawn Long Sword; Slashing Form!" In a swift stroke, she severed Tyria's left turbine, causing it to go flying away before dissipating into ethernano. The demigoddess screamed in both pain and loss of control, as her single remaining turbine caused her to cut Kagura off and swerve to the left. The swordswoman's eyes widened as her manoeuvre backfired, causing her sled to hit Tyria's flank head-on and send them both toppling into a painful crash.
"Ooh! A spectacular move from Kagura backfires and puts Phoenix's Eye and Mermaid Heel in last place!" Chapati winced.
Five of their competitors carefully avoided the crash site and continued onwards, but Orga skidded to a half, regarding the two dazed wizards with contempt. Reaching into the rubble, he pulled out Tyria's dazed form and sneered, "Who's the fake now?" before throwing her across the course and straight over the edge.
Gasps rang out throughout the crowd as the Electrian fell through the air from the highest part of the course. "Oh my! Orga seems intent on dealing with his greatest competition! But I don't think he thought this through!" Chapati gasped, knowing that his words were most likely false but working regardlessly to keep the crowd convinced of fair play. "Surely that's a violation!" Lahar exclaimed, looking thunderstruck. "Unfortunately, it's perfectly legal," Yajima sighed.
"Tyria!" Pierce screamed, the entire Phoenix's Eye team bursting out of the bay in a futile effort to catch her. Grace screwed up her face and focused, casting. "Bent Gravity Loop!" In a blur of distorted space, Tyria vanished from her place sixty feet up and appeared, upside-down, only a few metres above them, where her lingering momentum carried her a ways into the air. Pierce, Boomer and Sarph all scrambled to get beneath her - but a massive felt oven mitt appeared, catching her in its folds before shrinking back to normal size.
Hephaestus inspected his granddaughter as she rubbed her eyes with a solemn frown. "You've made an enemy today, Sabretooth," he growled.
"Amen to that!" Pierce roared as Tyria was set in her feet. "D-did I lose?" she blearily murmured.
"Hey, don't worry about that. We'll catch up in the battles portion," Pierce assured her.
Meanwhile, back on the course Orga was in the process of yanking Kagura out of the rubble, intending to do the same to her - but the moments it had taken him to deal with Tyria had provided the Mermaid with enough time to recover. "Not today!" she spat, a glob of phlegm landing in his eye, and Kagura took advantage of the momentary distraction to wrest herself free of Orga's grip, grab her sled, and throw herself back down the slope.
"It seems that Orga's manoeuvre has cost him; Sabretooth is now in last place!" Chapati observed. "Serves them right," Yajima huffed.
Meanwhile, the race for first place was going on. "Requip! Purgatory Armour!" Erza invoked, and in a flash of light, an empty suit of armour landed in the sled behind her. "Requip! Giant Armour!" Another joined the growing pile. "Requip! Adamantine Armour!" Her freshly repaired shield was dropped on the back of the sled, providing both a defence from the rear and more weight.
"So that's your plan. Pile up your armour to increase your weight," Masquerade observed with a feral grin. "I think I'll take a more direct approach, though. Amaterasu Formula 4!" Four magic circles appeared around each of his arms, and he pointed them backwards, before firing the spells. The recoil from the twinned magics launched him forwards, sending his toboggan rocketing past Erza's mountain of metal and approaching Cana.
The card magician cast a glance at the approaching Phoenix and gulped. "Card Magic: Fizz!" she hastily cast, throwing a playing card into the rearmost of the two barrels on her sleigh, causing it to crackle as the liquid inside was rapidly carbonated. "C'mon, mama needs some points!" she declared, reaching back and banging on the barrel - which immediately burst its lid, launching a geyser of cheap beer that propelled her forwards, maintaining her lead and splattering Masquerade with alcohol.
"You'll pay for that!" Masquerade roared, before clinging to his sled and trying desperately not to lose control.
Meanwhile, behind the three, Eishaj glanced at the bunny suit man from Blue Pegasus, not saying a word.
The felt eyes of the fur suit gazed back, its permanent creepy smile boring into his soul.
Eishaj leaned over the nose of his sled, coaxing ever more speed out of it. Not just for the race. That suit creeped him out.
There was a whistling noise, and suddenly Kagura shot between them, riding her bobsled like a surfboard, Archenemy's sheathed point digging into the ice behind her and being used as a rudder. The dark-haired girl gritted her teeth in focus, pouring her Gravity Magic into her sled to increase its weight and propel her further.
It wasn't enough, though. She was still nowhere near first place. And a thought struck her.
Suddenly, Kagura leapt from her sled, hissing; "Slashing Technique," and with three deft strokes cut a hole in the ice beneath her, spinning in mid-air as she did. She had just enough time to leer at Eishaj and the bunny man before her sled shot beneath her, in which she landed and effortlessly fell backwards through the hole, fully expecting a rough landing that would put her in first place. "Incredible! It seems that Kagura will do whatever it takes to win!" Chapati exclaimed.
Instead there was a clatter of metal, and her sled started to list to the side. Frowning, Kagura peered over the edge.
She had, apparently, landed on top of the mountain of armour that Erza had loaded her own sleigh with. At the bottom of the pile, the redheaded Fairy looked up in surprise, before frowning. "No passengers!" she shouted, standing and wheeling, drawing a sword and clambering up the pile, fully intent on removing the unwelcome guest. Kagura just snorted, raising Archenemy and preparing to do battle.
Meanwhile, Eishaj, with gritted teeth, dove through the hole that Kagura had left behind, dropping to the level below. The bunny of Blue Pegasus decided it wasn't worth the risk of crashing and took the long way around.
"Incredible!" Chapati exclaimed as Erza and Kagura's swords met. "It seems that a spontaneous sword fight has broken out on board Erza's mountain of metal!"
In front of the duelling swordswomen, Masquerade was launching himself forwards with a series of Amaterasu Formulas, neck and neck with Cana.
He promptly dodged a thrown empty barrel. "Hey!" the Brawler shouted, returning fire with a blast of magic.
"Sorry, had to clear the way," And then the second barrel on Cana's sled burst open with a geyser of fizz, rocketing her onwards. Masquerade watched her go with a frown.
Over in Fairy Tail's stand, the ghostly Master Mavis cupped her hands to her mouth and shouted; "Now, Cana!"
"You got it, First!" the lady retorted, pulling her sleeve back to reveal an intricate tattoo.
Masquerade frowned. "What's this sudden feeling?"
Erza and Kagura also paused, each craning their necks to look at Cana. "Is she serious?!" the other Fairy exclaimed.
"120mm Black Lightning Cannon!" Suddenly the hill of armour exploded with black lightning, knocking Erza backwards and Kagura skywards, and sending an avalanche of assorted armour tumbling in every direction as Orga, leaving a trail of electricity in his wake, blasted past them both and into third place.
But it was rendered moot as Cana stood up and shouted; "Gather! Oh river of light that's guided by the fairies!" The intricate tattoo around the Fairy Tail mark that had appeared on her arm shone, and Masquerade drew back, recognising the pure Light magic and knowing that it would be particularly dangerous to a being of negative energy such as him. "Shine! In order to perish the fangs of evil!" Cana continued, raising her arms and preparing to unleash the power.
In a flash, Orga rounded the corner and narrowly avoided the slowing Masquerade, grinning at the fact that he had claimed second place. But his smile slipped as he saw Cana preparing to cast one of the three Great Magics of Fairy Tail.
"Fairy Glitter!" Cana burst out, unleashing the accumulated magic power, pointing the spell straight down.
The resulting shockwave blasted a massive gash into the side of the pillar, arcing from Cana's position halfway down the circular sled run, straight to the lowest level far below. Orga screamed as the ice around them both was vaporised, and Cana whooped as they fell, driving the nose of her sled, printed with the Fairy Tail symbol as if was, straight down, turning her vehicle into a missile to increase her aerodynamics.
"I don't believe it!" Chapati exclaimed from the commentator's booth. "Cana has destroyed the track and blasted herself a shortcut straight to the finish line!"
"That magic power was unbelievable. What was that spell?" Lahar questioned in disbelief.
Masquerade blanched, before shaking his head and driving onwards, dropping into the gulf in hot pursuit of the Fairy and Sabre. "Crazy bastards," he growled as he fell,
Erza and Kagura, having both recovered, drew to a halt at the edge of the gulf Cana had opened, and each paused, wondering how best to circumvent this.
"Requip! Heaven's Wheel Armour!" Erza commanded, cladding herself in the armour of Titania. Clinging to her sled, she dove into the gap, spreading her wings and diving downwards.
Kagura watched her go, growling to herself, before pausing. "They said we had to cross the finish line with our sleds. Not that the sled had to be intact," One slash from Archenemy later, she was holding the metal plate that bore the symbol of Mermaid Heel in one hand, and without further hesitation, leapt into the gulf.
Meanwhile, Cana saw the ground approaching fast, and pulled out a card from her pocket, throwing it at her impact site. "Prayer's Fountain!" she cast, and a torrent of water burst from the card to cushion her impact, spreading outwards in every direction. Steering her sled like a surfboard, Cana aimed towards the finish line, but frowned as she lost momentum.
This quickly ceased to be a problem as Orga landed, headfirst, in the water behind her, sending out a wave that spurred the Card Magician onwards.
"And she's done it! In a reckless and destructive, but successful gambit, Cana Alberona has claimed first place for Fairy Tail B!"
A few floors up, Erza and Masquerade exchanged a quick glance before Erza pulled up, swooping diagonally towards the finish line. Masquerade gritted his teeth, silently wishing that Hydranoid hadn't gone back to New Vestroia, and splayed his fingers, summoning a massive Amaterasu Formula circle around his sled - then another, and another, and another - and then he hit the ground with a spasm and bounced, the soft ethernano, reinforced a dozen times over, acting like a cottony wheel and sending him rolling towards the finish line.
Orga, who was slowly paddling towards the swamped finish line, watched him go in disbelief. "Is he serious?" He frantically redoubled his efforts as Masquerade rocked his way onwards.
"And Erza claims second place!" Chapati declared as the Requip Mage landed next to Cana, before looking back at the competition. "How creative," she observed as Masquerade rolled onwards.
Meanwhile, the water finally having drained enough for him to stand, Orga started pacing his way the last few metres towards the finish line. But a splash behind him alerted him to the fact that Kagura had landed, the chunk of her sled tucked under her arm, and was in hot pursuit. And she was gaining on him.
"And now Kagura, Masquerade and Orga are in a dead heat! Remember, folks; Mermaid Heel'e guild hall is right by the beach, Kagura knows her way around water!"
"Knees up, feet out of the water," the Gravity Mage remembered the lifeguard sessions that their master had insisted everyone take, and hightailed it through the shrinking current. Orga had no such training, and was slowly, inefficiently wading towards the finish line. Meanwhile, Masquerade frantically tried to shift his wait to make the last few feet across the finish line. The three were neck and neck, inched away from the finish line - and one of them crossed just a second ahead of the other two.
"And third place goes to Orga of Sabretooth, while Kagura takes fourth!" Chapati declared.
"Don't help me! I can make it!" Masquerade shouted and finally managed to cross the finish line. He gladly dispelled the formulas - and the freed sled promptly fell on of him, pinning him beneath its weight.
"By using a rather creative, albeit ineffective, application of his Amaterasu Formulas, Masquerade finally rolls into fifth place!" Chapati declared. "Now, let's see how the last two teams are going?" he questioned, and the screens around the arena panned up to the edge of the gap that had opened where Cana cast Fairy Glitter.
The man from Blue Pegasus hidden within the bunny suit shook his head vigorously, waving his arms to indicate his refusal to follow his fellow competitors.
"Hold on. Where's Eishaj?" Chapati asked in confusion.
Slow clapping echoed from behind the competitors who had already crossed che finish line, and they all turned to see the Positive Power Mage smugly smiling at them.
"Wow! How long has he been there for? And . . how did he get there?" Chapati spluttered in confusion.
In response, Eishaj gestured at a freshly-melted tunnel through the heart of the ice pillar.
"As impressive as that is, technically you only place when you cross the finish line. By going around the finish line Eishaj technically has not finished yet," Yajima's words wiped the smile off the man's face, and, dragging his sled behind him, he pushed through the other wizards and stood over the finish line.
"And it's settled! Lamia Scale takes sixth and Blue Pegasus seventh! Meanwhile Tyria's early elimination puts Phoenix's Eye A in dead last. What a pity. Let's hope they can make up the difference in the battles portion of today's events!" Chapati excitedly exclaimed. "Now; can someone please go rescue Blue Pegasus' mystery man?"
-[CoT]-
"I can't believe that jerk knocked you out like that!" Grace exclaimed, looking unusually angry. Ripples in the air around her demonstrated that her power was starting to vent.
"We're gonna make them pay," Pierce agreed.
"No," Tyria growled. "The rest of Sabertooth is fair game. But Orga is mine,"
-[CoT]-
Meanwhile, while the event was going on, Kynigós had been busy. As soon as he saw that Mystogan was, for some reason, absent from the Games, he had infiltrated the stands, and started asking questions about Mystogan.
But all he got were the basic; Mystogan was an unknown. In every sense of the word. Kynigós was on the verge of giving up when he obtained a crucial detail; these Games were the first time Mystogan had been seen since X784.
Kynigós growled, his suspicions confirmed. "He really is here for me," It made sense, too; helping them represent in the Games must have been Fairy Tail's price for helping him find Kynigós. Equal trade.
He growled to himself. He'd agreed with the princess not to hunt down and kill Mystogan. Politics or something. But if Mystogan confronted him again, well . . he didn't know that Kynigós had become a Dragon Slayer.
He might find himself biting off more than he can chew.
-[CoT]-
"It's time for Doctor Kit's Documentaries!" Kit cheered.
"Now, the author thought you might be wondering how it is that Masquerade managed that last stage of today's Bobsled event,"
"Simply put; magic circles, especially Amaterasu Formulas, are constructs of ethernano. They are tangible and can be touched. And while they're pretty flimsy, if you stack up enough of them it is possible to use them as a physical object!"
Kit paused. ". . . Wait, is that seriously it? Give me screentime, damnit!" he protested.
A/N
A/N
I am proud to say that I found a more wasteful use for Fairy Glitter than blowing up an MPF!
Destroying a sled track is more wasteful, right?
Maybe this isn't something I should be trying to compete with Mashima on . . oh, whatever. You know I'm right. Anyway, score tallies!
Phoenix's Eye: 26
Sabertooth: 26
Black Eye Pirates: 25
Mermaid Heel: 24
Fairy Tail B: 22
Blue Pegasus: 21
Fairy Tail A: 20
Lamia Scale: 18
. . Okay, seriously. I did not expect Phoenix's Eye to dominate so much. Fairy Tail and Sabretooth are supposed to be winning, damnit! I mean, that's gonna change by the end of Day 3, but . . damnit!
Also, an interesting little note; this chapter marks the hypothetical halfway point of the entire story of Phoenix's Eye! Granted, it would surprise me immensely if this chapter proved to be the halfway point in terms of word count, but in terms of chapter number, we're halfway there. In case you haven't already worked it out, I'm planning for Phoenix's Eye to end up as a trilogy of three seventy-chapter stories - not counting, of course, spin-offs like the Filler Episodes or Apocrypha - and this is the thirty-fifth chapter of the second part of the trilogy. Ergo, it is the 105th chapter of a planned 210. We're halfway!
I feel like I should be doing something more important to celebrate . . oh well. Peace!