Lucy couldn't help but growl and rub her temple as she examined the lacrima display before her, her nearly depleted magical levels only adding to her migraine. Despite her best efforts, the various displays before her all revealed a single truth, a truth that made Lucy's stomach flip over in panic.
The joint forces of Fiore were losing ground, and if nothing drastic was done then the war would end in their defeat.
Their opening salvo of magical attacks had done more damage than either Lucy or the various guild masters had expected, shooting down more than a third of the opponents forces, but now that they were fighting against the Etherious on equal ground the various curses the world's most famous evil mage had granted them were beginning to turn the tide.
Sure, she had received a few scattered reports that certain squads with particularly powerful mages were pushing the opponents back. But most mages in Fiore didn't come close to the power levels that most false demons had. And for the rank and file troops provided by the kingdom had even a less chance of succeeding against their foes.
"Report! Demons have broken through the twenty third embankments! We require reinforcements!" A panicked voice echoed through her head, the fourth such report Lucy had received in the span of ten minutes.
"Understood, I'll send you a squad from the Slayer Squad. Fall back to point Epsilon to regroup and retake the defenses." Lucy spoke out loud in the most commanding voice she could muster, understanding that whatever mage was speaking to her would hear her words, before she cut the connection and turned to Abaddon with a face filled with both fury and frustration in equal measure. "What the hell happened to Roland?! He was the one who was supposed to handle these connections."
Abaddon shrugged slightly as he gestured offhandedly in order to create a shadowy barrier around them, a few demonic attacks bouncing off his barrier. "I cannot say Milady; perhaps you Hypernova spell damaged his ability to keep the connection intact. Or perhaps an Etherious has attacked him. Regardless, I'm afraid I can only offer you a token amount of aid in your endeavor to keep the connection alive. As mental magic is hardly my strong suit."
"Ya, and I just don't think about things that complicated after all." Lilith added with a giggle, Lucy groaning in annoyance at her joking attitude.
"Lilith…I really can't deal with this right no-." Lucy started to say as yet another mage contacted her.
"Reporting in! T-the our medics have come under attack from an incredibly powerful enemy! They destroyed our guards' seconds with some kind of thorns and are sweeping through the area! Please! We need help! We need…" The voice all but screamed in fear and panic before cutting off suddenly, the mage who initiated the connection either falling unconscious or…falling for the last time.
And while Lucy couldn't help but feel a pang of regret for the loss of the mage, what he revealed sending a chilling sensation through her mind,
"…thorns? Abaddon, do you think…?" Lucy murmured quietly as she turned to her demonic companions, both their faces now serious.
"Based off of how quickly this Etherious moved through our ranks and the description of their curse it is likely who you are thinking. It appears that the de-facto leader of Tartaros has revealed himself… Mard Geer is on the offensive."
"I thought that he was more of a tactician than a fighter. Why would he go to the front lines himself so early in the battle?" Lucy questioned as she looked over a map of the battlefield, trying to pinpoint where exactly the Etherious was.
"Perhaps he simply realized that our forces would overwhelm them in time, or perhaps it was simply to deal with our medical facilities. But it is impossible to know what strange thoughts pass though the mind of such a creature." Abaddon slowly stated with another casual shrug, Lucy sending him an incredulous look.
"Right…and what exactly do you mean by "our forces would overwhelm them"? From what I've seen we can't possibly be doing as well as you claim."
Abaddon chuckled at Lucy's confusion before bowing slightly and gesturing to Lilith, who was smiling just as smugly as The Lord of Pride was. "Has your time amongst us made you forget? You are the one who bends the Lords of Sin to your will. You are the one who could conquer the world if its what you desire."
Lucy blinked owlishly at the two demon lords before smiling just as evilly as they were. "Well then, would you mind showing me that power then…Lilith?"
"Yes Little Lucy?"
"If it's all the same to you, would you please go deal with the leader of the Etherious? If he's using so many thorns then maybe he has some roses to give you too."
"…Ah! Your right! Oh this will be delightful!" Lilith exclaimed in happiness before seemingly remembering something and turning to her fellow demon lord with a frown. "Abaddon…do you truly…"
"I will do nothing that is not asked of me…but if the choice is made then I cannot lie and claim that I will not be pleased at the results." Abaddon returned with a frown of his own, Lucy looking between the two in complete confusion, an emotion that was becoming far too common in her day to day life.
"…Fine then, just remember that I won't forgive you if things go wrong." Lilith finished with a pout before vanishing in a swirl of rose petals. Leaving Abaddon and Lucy staring at the spot she had been occupying as the ground shook underneath them.
"…Do I want to know? Or is this just some more demon baggage you two have?" Lucy eventually asked as she turned back to the lacrima display and directed a Fiorian division to reinforce the southern flank.
"…You need not worry yourself, Milady. Regardless; no matter what you do, a choice will be made in the near future."
"…A choice?" Lucy parroted, vaguely recalling something from her first few months in Underworld. But before she could continue a piercing screeching sound echoed in her head, causing her to cry out in pain and surprise as she tried to cover her ears.
"Well now…this is quite a nuisance." Abaddon commented with a frown, as he too was apparently hearing the high pitched squeal.
"Thank Lord Avirta that I finally got through." Roland's voice echoed through their minds, relief clear in his voice.
"Roland? What happened? Why were you out of contact for so long?" Lucy questioned, not fully able to keep her annoyance out of her voice despite hearing that he was alright.
"I was…no, this isn't the time to go into that." Roland started before seemingly changing his mind. "Lady Lucy, Lord Abaddon, something is coming. Something that is far more of a threat than any Etherious could ever be."
"Oh? And what would this threat be?" Abaddon questioned curiously, Lucy thinking the exact same thing.
"It…I can't…dra-…" Roland started to reply, but once again the connection cut away, leaving both Lucy staring at her demon benefactor with a look of confusion and dread.
She knew of only a few words that sounded like the broken words that Roland had attempted to convey…and if it was what she feared, then things were about to become much more complicated.
Mard Geer strolled through the remains of the human medical tents with a complacent smile on his face, enjoying the sight of flames licking the sky and weaklings fleeing from his curse. It had taken almost no effort for Mard Geer to anticipate the plans of the pathetic inscets that stood against them, and as such he had ensured that the inner Cubes were only used to transport the weakest of his minions and when they had been shot down by an admittedly impressive spell his smile had hardly faltered.
But things afterwards had not gone as smoothly as he originally perceived. Not only did the false demons, the being known as Lucifer, desert them only minutes after the battle was joined. But now he had received word that some of the Ten Demon Gates had fallen in battle. An unprecedented event that left a foul taste in his mouth…and almost brought him to anger.
"No, Mard Geer cannot allow himself those emotions. The leader of Tartaros must maintain his decorum no matter what situation he is faced with, even if the situation is simply pest control." Mard Geer commented with a shake of his head.
"Aww, really? If you don't get angry then I don't get as much enjoyment out of this. I find that men tend to put more effort into things when they get angry before throwing down, as fury isn't all that different from passion after all." A female voice commented, their tone all but implying a pout on their face.
Mard Geer turned around, ensuring that whoever was approaching could not attack the soul of E.N.D that he held in his hand, to see a blonde human casually approaching. She held a thorn covered whip at the side of her skimpy outfit, an outfit that had no effect on the lord of Tartaros.
"Yet another human fool seeking to defeat the lord of demons? Mard Geer cannot help but feel disappointed in the ignorance of humans." The black haired Etherious commented with a sigh as he prepared himself to use his curses.
But to his surprise the woman remained unaffected by his taut and instead seemed almost…disappointed?
"Well, that's a shame. I would have thought that the self proclaimed lord of Tartaros would have been able to see us for what we really are…but oh well, at least you're quite the looker." She commented with a chuckle, her hand slowly reaching for the whip at her side.
"Flattery means nothing to Mard Geer human; would you enjoy hearing compliments from a rat?"
"Oh, I don't know. There was this one mousy guy I hooked up with when Little Lucy was away…" The woman replied before blinking owlishly. "Oh, I nearly forgot. I haven't introduced myself yet." She admitted with a giggle before bowing. "My name is Lilith, pleased to meet'cha."
Mard Geer narrowed his eyes for a second, the name striking a cord with him for some reason, but he quickly dismissed the feeling. What did it matter what the human's name was? She would be dead soon enough anyway.
"…Thorns." Mard Geer chanted as he swiped his hand through the air, sending a stream of vines racing at the foolish human with the intent to bind her and tear her to shreds. However, he was shocked to see that instead of being sliced into ribbons, the human had vanished entirely from within the bindings.
"Hoh? It appears that this rat bears some ski-." Mard Geer started to say before something struck him in the side and sent him skidding backwards with a shocked look on his face.
"Oh wow. I was trying to sever your spine with that attack. Your built stronger than you look." Lilith commented with clear surprise in her voice. But Mard Geer refused to allow a mere human to goad him into anger after so many years of being above the emotion. Instead he chose to once again attempt to bind the blonde mage while simultaneously conjuring two of his exploding roses. Fully intending to piece the infuriating woman's chest for the crime of standing against him.
But once again reality refused to cooperate, as when the roses were only inches away from her chest her right hand seemed to fade from view for one second, only to be holding the roses between her fingers in the next with a smug expression on her face.
"Aw, you didn't need to get me flowers to show me a good time, but I still appreciate the gesture and I guess I should return the favor." She continued as magical energy began to swell around her form. "…Fourth Illusion: Rose Storm!" she shouted as the air around her exploded into a multitude of razor sharp rose petals, each one slicing through the air directly at Mard Geer.
But the lord of Tartaros was more than prepared for the attack, conjuring a burst of curse energy in order to deflect the attack and propel himself away from the attacker. But Lilith wasn't done just yet, immediately moving around her own storm of flower petals to lash out with her own thorn covered whip, striking the black haired Etherious across the cheek and leaving a red gash in its place.
And once again, Mard Geer could feel it. The long forgotten and most heinous of emotions…anger. "Damndable human! You truly think that one such as you has the strength to defeat Mard Geer? I shall show you the true fury of Lord Zeref and wash across this battlefield like a plague!" He shouted as his body began to change into the shape while wings began to appear on his back.
Under normal circumstances his true form struck fear into the hearts of those who viewed it, sending most mages into fits of hysteric sobs. But the mage in front of him almost looked excited to see his true form, her eyes wide and she was actually applauding.
"Oh, Oh! That's your etherious form right? You look so much better now than you did before!...but if you're going to use your true form then maybe I should do the same?" Lilith commented with a finger on her chin, a comment that sent a shiver of fear down the spine of the thorn-wielding demon.
But before he could question what exactly she meant the world around them exploded with magical energy, Lilith being at the center of the sudden ethernano maelstrom. Mard Geer couldn't help but take a step back as the once pure blue energy was stained black.
This is…her will is staining the magic? Her power is that strong?...It appears that Mard Geer has underestimated this foe. The black haired demon thought grimly as the storm of ethernano faded to reveal a very different looking Lilith.
She was a few inches taller than she was previously and her skin was covered in strange, swirl-like black tattoos that covered her exposed arms and legs. On her back Mard Geer could see two demonic wings; similar to his own but more angular, like they were comprised out of black blades. He could see a black armored tail twitching back and forth behind her in the same manner a cat's tail twitched before leaping for the kill.
But by far the strangest and most obvious change where the woman's eyes had become two shining red gemstones instead of her normal red eyes. An appearance that Mard Geer had heard legends of for nearly the entirety of his existence.
"It can't be…you can't be in this realm." He murmured in shock as Lilith began to laugh to herself, clearly amused by the Etherious's shock.
"Did you finally realize? Then allow me to reintroduce myself. I am Lilith; The Lord of Lust and true demon of underworld…and at the request of my Master it's time for me to punish you." Lilith commented with another giggle as she created illusions of three massive living thorn vines behind her. "Try not to enjoy this too much, that's my responsibility after all." And with that she gestured simply, the vines obeying her commands and lashing out at Mard Geer.
Natsu leapt back in order to avoid the stream of lava the fiery-skull bastard launched at him for what felt like hundredth time. Compared to the exploding bastard this guy was much more frustrating, simply tanking both his and Alva's fire like it wasn't there before launching bursts of lava at the two of them in retaliation. But the big dude moved so slow that even Natsu was able to see where he was aiming and move out of the way in time, the two slayers having yet to be even singed in the battle.
But the longer the fighting went on the more frustrated the two became. Despite being locked in combat they could still hear the nearby reports from their fellow mages, and from the sheer quantity of the screaming that was bouncing around in their head the battles weren't exactly going that well.
"Damn it! Why won't this guy just go down?!" Natsu screamed in frustration in between sending breaths of flame at the massive, lava covered skeleton. The massive Etherious simply allowing the fire to wash across its body as it slowly lumbered closer and closer with the intent to melt them down.
"…This is pissing me off." Alva growled, her own felfire having almost no effect on the creature either. "I need to help Luce…"
"Oh ya! I almost forgot!" Natsu shouted before switching his anger over to Alva, the younger fellow fire slayer shooting him a questioning glance. "I'm the only one that gets to call Lucy "Luce" so stop using my nickname!"
"…Oh? And what are you going to do about it?" Alva immediately challenged back, the two slayers now having completely forgotten the still approaching demon.
"I'll fight you for it! The winner gets exclusive use of that nickname."
"You? Fight me? You couldn't even land a single hit on me back during the tournament and you think you can win now? Don't test me, clutch of Igneel." Alva growled, uttering the longest sentence Natsu had ever heard her use.
"Ha! You think we're gonna fight the same way? How immature." Natsu gloated as he crossed his arms and grinned smugly. "Our next duel is gonna be to see which of us can last longer on a train…or are you too afraid?" he challenged, trying his hardest to ignore his own growing nausea while Alva's face paled just as much as his did.
"Y-you bastard…fine. I accept your challenge." Alva finally relented, her face twisted in both fury and dread. "But if I win then you have to call me "Big Sister" for one month. Otherwise no deal."
"Guh…fine, you're on!"
"Burn…away…" The lava skeleton murmured as it raised its hands to crush the two, having approached to the point where it was directly in front of the two during the time it took for them to work out the terms of their fight. Unfortunately for it, by interrupting them it forced all the fury and frustration that the two fire slayers were feeling directly onto it, both turning their glares on it in a fraction of a second.
"Shut up! Chaos Fire dragons Roar!"
"Begone! Felfire Dragons Roar!"
The two slayers shouted as they unleashed their dark red and pale green fires respectfully, the Etherious didn't even have time to react as the fires washed across his skin and burned both his flesh and soul away, not even leaving ash in its wake.
The two dragon slayers stood there for a moment, trying to get their breathing back under control, before Natsu stared at Alva with a look that was filled with both confusion and frustration in equal measure. "…why didn't we just do that to begin with?"
"…Because you're dumb." Alva returned with a childish pout, Natsu screaming out indignantly but Alva didn't bother to pay attention to him anymore. Instead, she turned back to stare in the direction of the command tents. "But Luce needs me…and I guess you can come along too."
"Wait what? Does that mean that you're finally acknowledging my strength?"
"What? No, I just need someone to take blows for me." Alva instantly denied as she revealed her dragon wings.
Natsu opened his mouth, intending to yell back at the indignant half dragon, but before he could utter a single syllable the air around them shook as a powerful roar shook their surroundings. A roar that Natsu could never forget from their time on Tenrou Island.
In that moment everything stopped, the roar shaking the air with such force that no one could ignore. Both human and etherious alike looked up to see a massive winged form break through the clouds and smoke that covered the battlefield, a draconic shape that no living creature on Earthland could forget.
The Black Dragon of the Apocalypse had arrived.
Within seconds of appearing, Acnologia released a beam of blue energy that cut across the center of the field, creating massive plumes of fire and smoke in its wake. The dragon circled twice, its massive wings sending human forms flying through the air with immense downdrafts, before finally apparently deciding on a place to land and slamming into the earth. Its form momentarily obscured by the plume of dust that was kicked up in its wake.
For the Etherious, the where the dragon landed was simply a random spot behind the Fiorian lines. But for the united Fiorian army the place the apocalyptic dragon landed was one of the worst it could possibly be.
Acnologia had landed in the dead center of the command center, crushing the backbone of their army under its massive claws.
Natsu ran, he ran faster than he had ever run before with panic in his eyes and his breathing coming in ragged gasps.
He had seen the damn dragon land exactly where he was headed. An image of his blonde partner flashing through his head the moment the earth stopped shaking. He moved through the battlefield so fast that the forms he moved past were simply blurs, Natsu not even registering whether or not they were friend or foe. He could tell that Alva was right on his heels, her own breathing panicked as well, but the Fire Dragon Slayer couldn't care less.
He needed to make sure; he had to ensure Luce was ok. That was the only thing that mattered now that he had obtained strength.
Natsu summated the last mound, knowing that on the other side was the tent that Luce and her demon compatriots were using as their headquarters, but stopped and forgot to breath at what he saw on the other side.
Gone were the structured tents that the Guild masters and military leaders were using as the headquarters of their forces, gone was the sadly smiling Blonde mage that he had brought with him from Hargeon.
All he could see was a blue haired man standing on the crumpled remains of the once white tent, a feral grin on his face as he impaled a limp blonde haired girl through the stomach. The two human shapes outlined by the raging fires that were consuming their surroundings.