Hey everyone! Back at college and the chaos has already begun. But, I've got time to write, so I'm using it. Here's a new chapter! Enjoy!
The Dark Fairy
Chapter 52
Heavy steps echoed along the stone walls of the Palace, Mercurius. Each step accompanied by the clink and clank of armor as a solitary figure strode through the dimly lit corridors towards the king's throne room. His body was clad in thick, steel armor that showed his rank as leader of the Cherry Blossom Knight Squadron, one of the most elite guard units in the entire kingdom of Fiore. His dark brown hair stuck up in wild waves on his head. His chin was cradled by a pointy beard that was as dark as his hair was. The powerful looking man stopped in front of a large pair of white doors before placing his large, armored hands on them and pushing them roughly open.
The knight entered the bright main hall of Mercurius. It's walls shimmered like diamonds at the many lights illuminated the throne room. Sitting high above the entry to the throne room, was none other than the king himself, his throne casting a shadow over his body so that he was barely visible. As soon as the doors opened, the King's head seemed to slowly look up.
"Colonel Arcadios." said an old yet powerful voice.
"You summoned me your majesty." Replied the Knight as he knelt to one knee in front of the throne.
"Yes, I wanted to discuss the games with you Colonel." The king started, "Are you enjoying them?"
"It matters not if I enjoy, only if you do your majesty." Arcadios replied.
"Hm…" The king seemed to rub his shadowed chin, "What did you think of the first day?"
Arcadios paused a moment, "I have a feeling that the Imperius guild will be trouble."
The king nodded, "Especially after what occurred today. The people will no doubt be nervous."
Arcadios nodded in agreement, "I assume you have a plan for calming the masses?"
"No calming," The king replied, "More like distracting while we launch an investigation into who the Imperius guild is."
Arcadios was taken aback by the proposal, "An investigation?"
"Yes, they are new guild. But none of their members have ever been seen until recently. They seemed to have appeared out of thin air. I want to know who they really are, Arcadios. I ask that you help with the investigation."
Arcadios bowed his head. He couldn't have any distractions during such a critical time, but this was the King's direct order, "Of course your majesty."
"Now, as for the distraction, I think the crowd needs a thoroughly entertaining fight. Mystogan and Jura was supposed to be that, but mysterious circumstances caused that one to end rather strangely."
"It did leave something to be desired." Arcadios replied as he remembered the last one on one fight of the day between Fairy Tail's enigmatic Mystogan and the Wizard Saint Jura. It started very well and the crowd was successfully distracted at first. But then, Mystogan began to behave rather strangely and ended up passing out under mysterious circumstances. So the crowd's thoughts traveled back to the first fight, Nullpudding vs. Grand Inquisitor. Worry had started to spread among the masses as they wondered if this was really all just a game anymore.
"I propose a battle between two people the crowd loves." The king stated, "Bacchus being one. Of Quatro Cerberus, he's a charismatic fellow."
Arcadios took note in his mind, "And the other?"
"He has a rivalry with someone from the Fairy Tail guild? Oh… what was the name. Scarlet something-"
"It will be done your majesty." Arcadios said quickly as he recognized the name. "The crowd will almost certainly be pleased with that matchup."
"Oh good." The king sighed reassured, "You may be on your way."
Arcadios bowed his head before rising to his feet and exiting the throne room. He quietly shut the doors behind him, his mind wrapped deep in thought.
So… the king wants an investigation launched on Imperius. Arcadios strode down the hall, I can't afford to do that now, not with the project being so close to completion. No time for rest… no time…
….
"Hey bartender!" Cana shouted from the table she was sitting at. She held up an empty glass mug, "Another beer please!"
"Another already?" Lucy questioned as she sat beside the card mage.
"You really questioning my drinking habits?" Cana replied as she took a new mug from the bartender and took a large gulp from it. "I thought you'd be used to me drinking a lot by now."
"CANA CAN'T HANDLE MORE THAN ME!" Shouted Master Makarov from a table nearby as he gulped another drink down.
"Master's wasted." Lissanna giggled as she saw the old man's flushed cheeks and wobbling head.
"Silensh!" He slurred, "We have a miserable defeat to celebrate!"
"But we didn't lose!" Natsu bellowed.
"We're in fifth and last!" Gajeel roared back, "So we lost!"
"You lost but Joshua won the event!" Natsu shouted back.
"Doesn't' matter when you don't even get a fight shit for brains." Gajeel retorted.
"What'd you call me lead foot!" Natsu rushed Gajeel and the two crashed into each other, starting a massive brawl in the Honey Bone lodge.
As the chair flew and wooden tables shattered, Wendy calmly sat at the bar beside Mirajane and Erza, letting the rest of the guild vent their frustrations with the day. Through all of the chaos, Wendy noticed that Joshua had not come out from the team's room. He had been in there since leaving the Domas Flau with Porlyusica. That was hours ago, just before Ren of Blue Pegasus battled Arana of Mermaid Heel. The blue haired girl felt a metal fist nudge her shoulder.
"Hey, don't look so worried." Erza said.
"Are you telling that to calm me down or yourself?" the Sky dragon slayer replied as she saw the equally worried expression on Erza's face.
"Eh, probably both." The redhead replied.
"Well you both should listen to that advice." Mira stated, "Joshua has been in worse shape than this." The white hair girl specifically looked at Erza, "He's tough like his sister."
"Was that a genuine compliment from my old rival?" Erza wondered, amused by Mira acknowledging her as tough.
"Don't get used to it." Mira snapped back with a warm yet terrifying smile, at least it was terrifying for Wendy.
"Is there something I don't know about?" Wendy asked before bending her body to the left to dodge an oncoming chair.
"You don't know. I swear I thought it was common knowledge." Erza stated.
"What?"
"Me and Erza were once bitter rivals." Mira smiled.
Erza nodded, "We hated each other's guts."
Wendy's eyes widened as she tried to not only picture Mira actually hating someone, but also attempted to fathom the amount of destruction caused by the old rivalry. She shook her head.
"I don't know why, but I find that hard to believe."
"Oh hoh hoh!" laughed an older voice nearby. Laxus sat down in a bar stool beside Wendy, a beer mug in his left hand which he casually set down on the counter, "You better believe it. Those two were at each other's throats all the time." His face then turned a little fearful as he recalled some memories, "It was actually pretty terrifying."
"But Mira seems so nice." Wendy protested.
"She is called the She Devil for a reason kid." Laxus replied, "Ain't that right Erza, I seem to recall you coining that name for her."
"It was one of my best insults." Erza said with a smug grin on her face.
"Sure it was… bimbo brain." Mirajane let the last words drag out of her mouth. Erza's brown eyes instantly became filled with a fire that made Wendy shake in her chair.
"You wanna go!?" Erza whipped around to face Mira as the two glared at each other.
"Restart the rivalry!? Fine by me!" Mira growled.
Laxus and Wendy audibly gulped and Wendy began to shrink away as the two powerful wizards stared each other down.
"Oh for pete's sake." Said a voice at the stairs that led up to the bedrooms, "I go meditate for a couple hours and there is already a full scale brawl and a rivalry being reborn."
Erza stopped glaring at Mira and smiled as Joshua walked over to them and took on the other side of Mira.
"Feeling better?" Erza asked.
Joshua nodded, "A little bit. Still kinda foggy upstairs but I should be alright after getting some more sleep tonight." Joshua glanced around momentarily, "I see Lucy is better, but where's the blue haired bastard?" he asked.
"Mystogan had a battle with Jura today." Wendy stated.
Joshua spat beer out of his mouth and it splattered against the far wall, "WHAT!" he exclaimed, "I missed that! I missed Jura fighting!"
"You're still freaking out over Jura?" Erza asked with a raised eyebrow.
Joshua grinned, "He's only gotten cooler in the past seven years!" The golden light of requip magic enveloped Joshua's right hand. As soon as the light faded away Erza's eyes widened and she fell out of her chair. Joshua proudly showed what he was holding to Wendy, "Behold! The Jura Neekis action figure!"
"Oh wow." Wendy said doing her best to sound enthusiastic, "They even got his hair right."
"I know!" Joshua exclaimed happily, "The shine on his bald head is almost perfect."
"I was being sarcastic." Wendy deadpanned but Joshua didn't seem to notice.
Erza regained her wits after being shocked by her little brother pulling an action figure out of nowhere. She slowly climbed back up onto her bar stool and resumed eating the luxurious strawberry cake she had ordered. Meanwhile, Joshua stored his prized possession away and observed his guild mates around him. The majority were still brawling, trying to take down Natsu and Gajeel who were at the center of it all. Cana was knocking back drinks like it was going out of style. Lucy was hiding behind an overturned table as she hid from the brawl, and Master Makarov was passed out on the floor with Lissanna fretting over him as she called for some water to help the drunken master.
"No matter where we are, it feels like home." Joshua chuckled before sipping his own drink.
Erza and Wendy smiled while Mira excused herself to go assist the Master who was finally awake again and doing his best to grab another drink.
"YOU WANNA HAVE A DRINKING CONTEST WITH ME!?" they heard Cana shout in the background.
Joshua laughed a little as a new beer was placed in front of him, "I pity the poor soul who challenged her."
Erza nodded and returned all of her attention to her strawberry cake while Joshua turned to watch the drinking contest. Strangely enough, the contest was with someone who was not from the Fairy Tail guild. Cana's challenger was a tall, muscular man with fair skin and dark hair wrapped up in a bun on top. He wore no shirt, just purple pauldrons that extended like sleeves on his shoulders and arms, and dark pants. On his back was a large, red number four.
What's a Quatro Cerberus member doing here? Joshua wondered as the challenger and Cana began to chug drink after drink after drink.
Joshua's pity soon turned to admiration as he watched the man keep pace with the resident alcoholic of the Fairy Tail guild. After another hour of drinking, Joshua's admiration became shock as he saw Cana sway in her chair before falling backwards, completely drunk.
"WHA!" Macao and Wakaba exclaimed as their jaws hung open.
The challenger drunkenly giggled before reaching down and plucking Cana's bikini top from her chest.
"T-thanks for the *Hic* trophy." He slurred as he stumbled towards the door.
Macao and Wakaba seemed to snap out of their stunned stupor and raced to stop the man from leaving with Cana's clothes. Joshua's became even more surprised when, despite being heavily intoxicated, the man was able to knock out both wizards by expertly slamming them into the wooden floor. The loud commotion was what finally drew Erza's attention away from her dessert. Her brown eyes narrowed and she rose from her stool.
"Erza?" Joshua muttered as he saw the strange look on his sister's face.
The redhead strode towards the drunk man, "Bacchus?" She questioned.
"*Hic* eh… that you Titania?" Bacchus drunkenly leaned forward to the point that Erza could smell the stink of alcohol on his breath, "It is! *Hic*, damn, after seven years you're still smoking hot." his eyes darted down to her chest momentarily before glancing back up at Erza's face.
Joshua lost all admiration for the drunk as his left hand tightened around his beer mug and shattered it.
"You're competing in the games?" Erza continued, not even fazed by the lewd comments.
"At first no. *Hic* I just tagged *Hic* along to sample to local nightlife." Bacchus replied, "But after *hic* War Cry's embarrassing performance today I'm gonna enter as a substitute for my team." His gaze drifted back down to her chest, "Damn, why do you gotta spoil a man's fun by wearing that stuff? Show me a little skin!"
"THAT DOES IT!" Joshua roared. Wendy acted quickly and did her best to hold the raging seventeen year old from charging at Bacchus.
Bacchus looked over at Joshua and giggled, "Boyfriend Erza?"
"GROSS!" Joshua cried as he struggled against Wendy who was now being assisted by Mirajane.
Erza sighed, "No, he's my little brother."
"Oh shit… that's little Joshua!" Bacchus chuckled, "I remember *hic* you telling me about the kid. He's definitely got your temper."
"AND THAT TEMPER WILL MAKE ME BEAT YOU TO A BLOODY PULP!" Joshua bellowed, "LET GO OF ME!" He shouted as he continued to struggle.
"Don't make me go Satan Soul on you!" Mira warned.
"Please don't make her do that, Joshua." Wendy trembled a little.
Bacchus laughed a loud before stumbling towards the door, "Well… maybe you can use that temper in the games *hic* kid." He turned back to look at Erza again, "and… maybe you *hic* and I can finally settle the score." His large hand ripped the door open and he stumbled off into the night.
After waiting for several more minutes, Wendy and Mira finally let go of Joshua, who promptly lost his balance and fell from his bar stool.
"Who the heck was that guy Erza?" Natsu asked.
"Yeah." Joshua grumbled as he got to his feet, "Who the hell was that fuck?"
"Language!" Erza scolded.
"Yeah yeah!" Joshua snapped back.
Erza gave her little brother one deadly look that made him instantly back down. She then exhaled.
"That was Bacchus Groh. An S-Class wizard for Quatro Cerberus. He and I have had a few run ins while on jobs. We have fought several times, and it has already ended in a draw."
Natsu's eyes widened, "He's that strong!?"
Erza nodded, "And that was seven years ago. Who knows how much he's improved."
"I don't give a crap about how tough he supposedly is." Joshua snarled, his left fist tightening, "If I see that drunk in the arena, I'm going to beat the crap out of him."
Erza smirked, "I would like to see that actually."
"EVERYONE STOP BEING SO DAMN SERIOUS!" the Master bellowed, "WE AREN'T DONE WALLOWING IN DEFEAT! MORE DRINKS!"
"Not for you!" Mira snapped before storming over to the cowering master.
Erza and Joshua could only shake their heads as Mira disciplined the old man.
"And to think at one time Mira was even scarier." Joshua laughed.
"For you all maybe." Erza replied. She then stretched and yawned.
"Sleepy?"
"A little." She replied, "I think I'm going to turn in for the night. You coming?"
Joshua was about to say no when he remembered the last time she asked him to come rest with her. It was all the way back when they went to Akane resort, before the Tower of Heaven. He was so young back then. And he told her no then. It was one of his biggest regrets while she had been trapped on Tenrou Island, separated from him. Joshua sighed.
"Fine, but I'm not sleeping in the same bed as you."
"I wasn't asking you to." Erza replied back before yawning again.
"Goodnight you two." Mira smiled before glaring at the drunk Master.
"You too Mira." Joshua replied before shutting the door to the Lodge's dining area behind him.
….
"WELCOME BACK EVERYONE TO DAY TWO OF THE GRAND MAGIC GAMES!" Chapati Lola bellowed into the mic before wiping a long strand of brown hair out of his face, "With me as always is Yajima, and Bob Cat. Our guest commentator today is none other than Jason from Sorcerer Weekly."
A man with short blond hair and an excited look on his face grinned widely and tightened his fists in front of him, "SO COOL!" He shouted.
"Well, it is anything but cool for some of our contestants on today's event, Chariot!" Chapati replied. "For those of you just tuning in, this event is a simple contest. Each team's contestant has to stay on the chariot as long as they can. During this time the train will do a dozen laps around the stadium. Once the laps are complete, the train will turn towards the finish line in the center. Whoever crosses first, wins!'
"Right!" Bob Cat nodded, "But as you can see Fairy Tail's Natsu Dragneel and Gajeel Redfox are currently struggling to move at all along the train!"
"Sting Eucliffe of Sabertooth is also struggling to get any momentum going." Yajima noted, he turned to Chapati, "Is it just me, or do they look a little pale?"
"They look more than a little pale." Bob Cat noted as the crowd watched the three dragon slayers struggled to move at the back of a long train being pulled around the Arena.
"Sickness is not cool!" Jason said solemnly.
Over in Fairy Tail A's box; Joshua, Erza, Gray, and Wendy watched speechless as Natsu crawled along the train car in the very back of the long train.
"This… this was a bad idea." Joshua muttered as a drop of sweat formed on the side of his head.
Over the loudspeakers they heard Natsu gulp and nearly vomit as his body was punished by his motion sickness.
"There was no convincing him out of competing today." Erza noted as she crossed her arms over the black turtleneck she was wearing.
"You'd think the name Chariot would've raised some red flags for him." Wendy commented.
"He probably thought a chariot was something you eat." Gray deadpanned.
"OH! Yuka of Lamia Scale has expertly maneuvered his way into second place thanks to his anti-magic waves!"
Joshua's head snapped towards the front of the train. Three figures sprinted at the front. The first was a man with crazy black hair. He wore a black body suit over his thin body and had eyes that seemed to sink back into his sickly skin. Behind him sprinted a member of the Imperius guild. This one's features were entirely hidden behind a black mask and helmet. The only unique thing Joshua could see about this one was that his hands and feet only had three digits on them.
"Eighth Brother squeaks past Yuka before using telekinesis to push him behind our new third place competitor, Risley Law of Mermaid Heel!"
"Wow." Joshua commented as he watched the plump member of Mermaid Heel sprint past Yuka, "She's shockingly fast."
"She's been going nonstop about never underestimating a chubby's speed." Gray noted.
"I didn't think she'd actually prove it though." Joshua replied.
"Ichiya of Blue Pegasus has decided to use direct inhalation of his legendary speed parfume!"
Joshua chuckled as Erza's shivered at the mention of Ichiya's name.
"And lagging behind them is none other than Bacchus Groh!"
"He seems to be a little sick too." Yajima commented.
"Is it motion sickness like the dragon slayers all the way in the back?" Bob Cat asked.
No it is not. Joshua laughed internally, It's a good ole fashioned hangover.
Suddenly, Bacchus smashed his palms into the train car he was standing on. The entire train flew up into the air after bouncing against the ground. It then plummeted quickly back down to Earth causing several cars to ram into each other, sending all of the other competitors off balance. Taking advantage of the imbalance, Bacchus turned on the speed. He raced past every competitor with the exception of the Eight Brother, who gracefully adjusted to the crashing cars and seemed to land on each car with ease as he leaped from one to another. But Bacchus was gaining on him, and fast.
Joshua could hear the crowd chanting loudly for Bacchus to win.
"It seems the crowd doesn't like Imperius very much." Erza observed.
"I don't blame them." Gray snarled as he glanced over at the guild that had killed someone during yesterday's one on one matches.
"I can't believe I'm hoping that drunk wins." Erza grumbled.
"FINAL LAP!"
Joshua stared down at the train as it stopped circling the arena and turned sharpley towards the center. The leaders made one final push. Bacchus and the Eight Brother were neck and neck as they sprinted for the finish line. Joshua felt the force gather around the Eight Brother.
He's going to push Bacchus off!
Before the Eighth Brother could use the force to shove the Quatro Cerberus wizard off of the train, Bacchus lashed out with a lightning fast palm that caught the inquisitor in the chest. The Eight Brother grunted and tumbled backwards, allowing Bacchus to take the lead, and Black Snake of Raven Tail to pass him up. The train careened towards the finish line. Bacchus threw his hands up in victory as his body passed beneath the finish line's banner and he grinned out at the crowd, soaking in their adoration as he won the race.
"BACCHUS WINS!"
"COOOOL!" Jason shouted.
"And in second place is Black Snake of Raven Tail followed by Eight Brother of Imperius."
A few moments later, Risley Law crossed the finish line for Mermaid Heel followed closely by Yuka of Lamia Scale and Ichiya of Blue Pegasus. The latter was thoroughly exhausted as he crossed the finish line then collapsed in the dirt.
"That leaves only Natsu, Gajeel, and Sting." Erza muttered as all eyes turned to the dragon slayers who were desperately clawing across the train.
"Why do you all even keep trying!?" The stadium heard the voice of Sting Eucliffe echo around them, "You all are just going to embarrass yourselves even more!"
"We won't quit! We won't let others look down on us!" Natsu shouted back as he clawed ahead of Gajeel.
Sting sighed, "What the hell happened to Fairy Tail? The one I knew. The one that didn't care what others thought of them and did whatever the hell they wanted! If you all are doing this so you can become popular than I wish I never looked up to you when I was a kid!"
"WE ARE DOING THIS FOR OUR FRIENDS!" Natsu roared back, sweating dripping all over his body as he battled against the motion sickness, "We are doing this for those who were left behind for the past seven years! For our friends who suffered through so much, yet kept fighting! They kept fighting! SO I WON'T STOP FIGHTING EITHER!"
Over in the Fairy Tail guild's seats, many of the members had tears in their eyes as Natsu pulled his limp body forwards. He passed by Gajeel while Sting looked on in shock.
"Fine…" Sting muttered, "I'll let you have this one, it's not like a point will make any difference."
"A point can make all of the difference kid!" Gajeel snapped at the younger dragon slayer. He then yelled out and heaved his body forward one more time, crossing the finish line just after Natsu did.
"AND IT'S OVER!" Chapati announced, "Fairy Tail A comes in seventh! Fairy Tail B comes in eighth! And Sabertooth comes in last!"
Joshua then heard the scattered chants of Fairy Tail around the stadium. The young man glanced over at Wendy and saw the wide smile on her face. She had never heard anything like this before. Every year her guild was booed for being the worst. But now they were cheering for them, which meant they were cheering for her. She practically glowed with the joy she was feeling.
"That must sound nice." Joshua grinned.
Wendy looked over and smiled widely, "You have no idea."
….
The teams took a short break before the duels of day two were set to begin. Fairy Tail just sat quietly in their area of the stadium and patiently waited.
"Say Joshua?"
"Yeah Gray." Joshua glanced over at the ice make wizard.
"You've got like… crazy mind powers right?"
"Kinda." Joshua snorted.
"So can you tell us who will be battling today?"
Joshua sighed, "I have crazy mind powers, but I can't exactly see the future Gray."
"Damn…" he mumbled.
The sound of a finger tapping a mic caught everyone's attention.
"We're on… alright! Good!" Chapati said quietly before leaning into his microphone, "Welcome back everyone! As per tradition, our guest speaker will draw the name of the unlucky guild that will not have a fighter participate in today's battle round!"
"COOL!" The reporter dug his skinny arm into the top hat and pulled out a name. He squinted down and cheered as he shouted the name, "IMPERIUS!"
The crowd cheered wildly as the guild they hated was taken out of the battle round for the day. It didn't seem to faze the Imperius guild. The main four just stood silently near the railing while the lone human looking figure sat quietly near the archway that led to their balcony.
High above the press box, was the King's personal seat. The king turned out to be a short, elderly man with a kind face and warm smile decorated with wrinkles and a thin white mustache. Standing next to him was Arcadios and sitting beside the king was a young woman with greenish blue hair.
"I assume that was you who took them out of the battle round Colonel?" The king asked as he looked up at his trusted knight.
Arcadios nodded, "I did."
"Oh thank goodness." breathed the young woman, "Who knows what they would've done today?"
"Indeed Princess Hisui. We must be vigilant about that guild." Arcadios noted
"Now then, our first battle!" Chapati announed.
"Oh, I'm excited for this." The king said with a smile, "I can't wait to see Erza Scarlet and Bacchus battle." Arcadios's eyes widened and his heart jumped to his throat, "Their rivalry is legendary."
"D-did you say Erza Scarlet, your majesty?" Arcadios stammered.
"Why yes. You said that is the fight you could arrange, no?"
Arcadios gulped and he knelt before his king, "Forgive me your highness. I'm afraid I misunderstood you. When you said Scarlet as well as someone the crowd could cheer for, I-I assumed that you meant Joshua Scarlet. Since he has become a fan favorite after the hidden event."
"Hm?" The king frowned down at Arcadios, "That's rather disappointing to hear."
"Don't worry yourself with that father." Princuess Hisui smiled, "It could still be a good fight after all."
The king looked over at his daughter and smiled back at her, "Of course." Arcadios let out a sigh of relief, "But I really wanted to see Erza versus Bacchus."
"Jason, do you want to announce our first battle!"
"YES! This is so cool!" The reporter cleared his throat, "Our first battle of the day is… Bacchus Groh of Quatro Cerberus!"
The crowd cheered loudly.
"Versus… Joshua Scarlet of Fairy Tail A!"
"Oh no!" breathed Erza as she looked over and saw the triumphant smirk on Joshua's lips.
"Oh yes!" Joshua smirked.
"Oh crap!" Wendy squeaked.
"KICK THE CRAP OUTTA HIM JOSHUA!" Natsu roared.
Joshua grinned and jumped up onto the railing. He turned on his heel to look back at his team.
"Sure thing." He salutued the fell backwards.
"JOSHUA!" Erza shouted while Wendy gasped.
The crowd screamed out as Joshua plummeted towards the ground. The young man then flipped over so that his feet were pointed at the ground. Willing the force around him, he used it to slow him down quickly so that he could make the most epic entry to a battle round possible. With a loud wham he hit the dirt. Dust came up in large clouds and the crowd waited silently, hoping that their fan favorite hadn't injured himself from falling so far. Erza and the others peered over the side, holding their breath. The dust began to clear and the crowd saw black robes and a black cape flapping the breeze.
"He requiped while he fell!" Gray exclaimed, "I thought only you could do requip that fast Erza!"
"He's obviously been practicing." Erza replied.
"ARE YOU CRAZY!" Wendy shouted down at Joshua over the cheers of the crowd as he reappeared from the dust, "HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO PUT YOU BACK TOGETHER BEFORE YOU STOP ACTING SO STUPID!?"
Joshua looked up at Wendy and smiled up at her before he heard some slow clapping coming from the center of the Arena. Joshua's hazel eyes glanced over and he saw Bacchus casually laying down in the dirt, bottle in his left hand and right hand cradling his head.
"Nice entrance kid." Bacchus commented before he clipped the bottle to his hip and yawned.
Joshua felt a tick mark form on his head, "Are you going to take this seriously or do I have to go over to you and kick your ass?" Joshua strode towards the center of the arena so that he was only a few yards from the S class wizard.
"Eh, I don't really like fights without high stakes." Bacchus grumbled, "Safe fights are boring."
Joshua scowled, "So, how do I get you to take this seriously?"
Bacchus shrugged, "Dunno, but I suppose we better start before the crowd gets any more restless."
In a flash, the man flew at Joshua and hit him hard in the chest with his right palm. Joshua felt the wind leave his body as a burst of magic power hit his chest and sent him reeling backwards. Bacchus quickly attempted a follow up by swinging a right hook at Joshua's head. Joshua felt the force ripple around him, warning him of incoming danger. With lightning quick reflexes, Joshua brought his left arm up and blocked Bacchus' palm by slamming his forearm with Bacchus'. The two stood their silently for a moment as they realized the crowd was going ballistic already.
"Unreal! We didn't even sound the bell and the two are already going at it!" Chapati announced.
"COOL!"
"Heh, guess we got a little ahead of ourselves, eh kid?" Bacchus grinned, "But I don't mind, my soul is quivering."
"GET HIM BACCHUS! WILD!" shouted a member of Quatro Cerberus.
"FOUR!" The others cheered causing Bacchus to beam with pride.
"JOSHUA!" Erza shouted from the balcony, "YOU CAN BEAT HIM!"
The teen's eyes glanced over at the balcony and he silently smiled.
"Hey, kid." Bacchus now had a crazed look in his eyes as he heard Erza cheer Joshua on, "I just thought of a way for us to make this fight interesting."
"Oh really?" Joshua grunted as their arms continued to struggle against each other.
"Yeah…" Bacchus grinned widely, "If you lose… I get Erza for a night."
Joshua's eyes narrowed at Bacchus.
"Eh!?" Erza exclaimed. She quickly shook her head, "Joshua you better not-"
Joshua grinned, "Alright."
"JOSHUA!"
"But if I win perv," Joshua smirked at him, "Your guild has to go by the name Four Kittens for the rest of the games."
The faces of the entire Quatro Cerberus guild went as white as sheets with fear.
Bacchus frowned and jumped away from Joshua, breaking the arm lock they were in. Then a wide grin spread across his lips again.
"Oh… I think I'm gonna like you kid." Bacchus chuckled, "Deal."
"WE DIDN'T AGREE TO THIS!" Both Quatro Cerberus and Erza screamed.
"Alright then." Joshua smiled, "I'm glad to see you are taking this seriously now." he said as Bacchus dropped into a fighting stance.
"Oh believe me," Bacchus grabbed the bottle at his hip and uncorked it, "I am now deadly serious."
Erza's eyes widened as she saw Bacchus down the contents of the bottle.
"Oh no!" Erza gulped.
"What is it Erza?" Natsu asked.
"Bacchus, his magic is palm magic. Basically it allows him to channel magic to his palms to enhance the power behind his strikes," Erza explained, "It also allows him to become faster and have quicker reflexes than a normal human."
"So?"
"So," Erza continued, "His skills are greatly enhanced whenever he drinks… alcohol. And guess what's in that bottle."
"Um…" Natsu rubbed his chin.
"Alcohol you idiot." Gray grumbled.
"I knew that!"
"He's an S-Class wizard without that power up. But with it, he's nearly unstoppable." Erza then felt rage build up in her, "And Joshua… just agreed…" Her grip began to crack the stone railing of the balcony, "To his bet." she glared down at her little brother, "IF YOU DON'T WIN THIS YOU WON'T LIVE TO SEE ANOTHER NIGHT!"
Bacchus finished drinking from the bottle then tossed the thing to the side, "Ahhhhh…." he exhaled satisfied, "That's more like it."
Joshua stared at the man completely confused, "I thought you were taking this seriously?"
Bacchus hiccuped then grinned madly, "I said I am." in the blink of an eye he raced to Joshua and hit him hard with his left palm, sending Joshua flying to the left, "I won't let my guild's name be trashed!"
Joshua yelled out as he felt the pain run through his body before he hit the ground. Before he could jump back up to his feet, Bacchus was on top of him again. A flurry of palms hit Joshua at every single point on his torso. Joshua squeezed his eyes shut and screamed out in pain as Bacchus tossed him back and forth around the arena with incredibly fast and powerful strikes.
"I can't wait to have Erza to myself!" Bacchus declared.
His right palm slammed into Joshua's back. Joshua's eyes widened as he felt his spine bend awkwardly before his body was launched into the arena wall.
"OOOOOH! It seems Bacchus has this one in the bag!" Chapati announced.
In the Fairy Tail area of the arena, the guild stared down solemnly as Bacchus sauntered over to the rubble Joshua was covered in. The only one not sad was Mavis. Instead she was frowning.
"Third master."
"Y-yes Master Mavis." Makarov replied.
"Why is Joshua not going all out?"
Makarov blinked, "Eh, what!? He's not fighting all out?"
"Nope." Mavis shook her head, "He's holding back. May I ask why? Especially since he has something on the line."
Makarov's brow furrowed. He was about to reply when he heard Bacchus talking to Joshua.
"I know that's not all you got kid!" Bacchus said before hiccuping, "You're Erza's brother after all… you should be way tougher than this." Bacchus grabbed Joshua by the neck of his black robes and hit him with another flurry before throwing him across the arena back to the middle, "Did I not give you enough incentive! Cause this is getting boring!"
Joshua gasped and felt some ribs shift. Blood dribbled from the corner of his mouth which he quickly wiped away with his gloved hand. His watery eyes winced before looking up at his team and seeing Wendy staring back down. Bacchus followed his gaze and grinned.
"Oh… I see… I see." Bacchus laughed, "I used the wrong person in the bet then. How about this? If you lose, then I get both Erza and the blue haired girl. What's her name again… Wendy? I bet she's just as good loo-" Bacchus shook his head for a moment before opening his mouth and closing it. His head twitched a moment and his hand reached for his neck before he dropped to his knees.
Mavis' eyes widened as she felt a dark power like one she had not felt in years enter the arena. The entire arena seemed to grow cold and fear took hold of the living. Mavis felt some fear of her own as she looked down at Joshua. The boy's eyes were no longer hazel, they were a deep shade of crimson.
"That's why I told him not to go all out!" Makarov frowned, "His magic is too dangerous."
"What is he doing!?" Romeo shivered as he watched.
Mavis looked closer and saw that Bacchus appeared to be choking. She looked back at Joshua and saw his fingers forming a pincer shape.
"Don't choke on your goals, Bacchus." Joshua snarled darkly as Bacchus grabbed his throat and gasped for air, which he was not getting.
"Oh my! It appears Joshua is depriving Bacchus of oxygen!"
Mavis narrowed her blue eyes. There was no doubt about it. It was His magic.
"You see Bacchus," Bacchus flopped back onto the ground, writhing in the dirt as Joshua stalked towards him, "I can deal with you threatening Erza with your company. I'm confident she'd beat the ever living shit out of you if you tried anything. But Wendy…" His pincer like fingers tightened, "You crossed the line."
Joshua was about to finish choking the last bits of oxygen out of Bacchus when he felt a bright light rip through the force. Joshua's eyes squeeze shut and his choke on Bacchus lifted as he reached up to his head and grabbed it. The pounding was enough to send the teen to his knees. His vision became bleary and shaky and he felt like he was going to be sick. He looked up to see Bacchus slowly rising to his feet. Then the sight changed to a planet covered in ice.
Bacchus took a shaky step forward.
Joshua saw a ship with X shaped wings drifting in space before powering up and blasting away into the depths of space
Another step forward.
The rhythmic mechanical breathing echoed in Joshua's ears.
He stood over Joshua now.
There was a dark room with large windows looking out at a massive city sparkling with lights against a dark sky. A hooded, decrepit figure sat hunched over in a large, gray chair. The darkness in the room was enough to choke any confidence or hope Joshua had in his body. The stooped figure's ancient eyes opened revealing crimson irises that made Joshua want to crawl into a hole and hide.
"My my…" Croaked the figure in the chair, "You have grown strong boy."
The lights went out.
And chapter! Another fun chapter to write! I hope you guys enjoyed it as much as I did. What do you think happened at the end? Let me know what you guys think. As to why Joshua didn't go after Bacchus much, I want to save the best fight for the last day of the GMG. I've got something awesome planned and I don't want Joshua to let loose completely until then. So, that's my explanation. As always, I hope you all enjoyed! Have a nice day!
