20 Minutes Earlier

Mard Geer had thorns all around him, smirking maliciously as he stood against Nic and Greninja. The fire in both their eyes, even if it was intense and he could feel the heat from them, it was but of arrogance he only saw. "You pathetic creatures." He scolded. "You? Take me on? Whether it's confidence or arrogance, I have hit my patience with the likes of you; especially you…Nic Pularis."

Nic readied himself. "Then come."

"With pleasure." Mard Geer reached out, his brambles shooting after Nic and Greninja.

The brambles were looking like stiff versions of Frenzy Plant, at least to Nic and Greninja's eyes. They both waited carefully as the attack had begun.

"Greninja, Water Shuriken!" Nic commanded.

Greninja's eyes sharpened as he swiped both his arms, unleashing blinding fast stars of compressed water. The shuriken all blazed through the brambles in blue glints, slicing then apart to even bits as mist clouds erupted, obscuring both sides' field of vision.

Mard Geer narrowed his eyes. "Is that so?" He snapped his fingers, and just like that, an explosion of white with twirling silver petals erupted in the middle of the explosion. The bright flare made him smirk as it faded away, revealing nothing there but empty space.

Within his engagement, he grew stiff when he sensed a pressure from behind. Behind him revealed to be Greninja, who was in midair and had a foot pulled back. 'How did me blindside me so easily?' Caught surprised as he looked behind, Nic reappeared in front, a purple needle as dense and sharp as a blade in his hold.

"Night Slash!"

As Mard Geer glanced back forward, Nic slashed in an upward, diagonal arch, making a dense purple trail across Mard Geer's chest. The attack made a gash in his clothing, and pain shot through him. Greninja swung his kick around while still behind, sending another painful jolt, this time through Mard Geer's back.

As Mard Geer faltered forward, Nic grabbed his shoulders and used him as leverage and flipped over his head, while making Mard Geer fall forward. With him falling forward, Nic was in midair upside-down while Greninja was underneath, respectively either having jumbled dark and purple rings in hands or taking in a deep breath.

"Dark Pulse!"

"Scald!"

Within that second's time, Scald and Dark Pulse were launched. Mard Geer was hit with a boisterous volume of boiling hot water that seared to the touch and dark rings that pushed him forward, yelling out as his front was propelled by the attacks into a nearby broken wall. He smashed into the thick rock, enveloped in a steam cloud and dark explosion that made rock turn over.

Nic flipped and landed on his feet, him and Greninja facing the steam cloud as it dissipated. Suddenly, both caught a sense of something and miraculously shifted on their heels backwards, avoiding brambles that shot up straight beneath their feet. As both landed, they again shifted, but this time in opposite directions as brambles shot again from below, but in angles.

"Not bad." Mard Geer emerged from the smoke cloud, standing tall with a cocky grin. Though it was clear beneath his calm exterior that he was mad. "I have to say, you most certainly put a scratch on my back. Allow me to return the favor." This time, Mard Geer reached both arms out, making his Curse Power manifest a cyclone of bright petal-like light swirl in a funnel across the shaking ground towards Nic and Greninja.

Both looked at the other and nodded, knowing the next plan of action. Nic and Greninja dove past the funnel, taking opposite sides and dashed after Mard Geer. The Underworld King narrowed his eyes, further expanding the range of his funnel. As the light reached, Nic and Greninja jumped above, spiraling their bodies in upside-down pivots as the flare beneath gave them levity.

"Water Shuriken!" Nic yelled in the upside-down position.

While upside-down as well and spiraling, Greninja fired two Water Shuriken simultaneously, tilting his body in the process if arching.

The Water Shuriken was fast, very fast, but they reflected in Mard Geer's eyes as he smirked. "Hmph." Extending a hand out, the Water Shuriken met his palm, where he countered with a flare of his Curse Power. The bright light and shuriken created another shimmering burst of mist and brightness. Which enveloped Mard Geer.

"Gngh!" Overwhelmed, Mard Geer slid back from the explosion, getting to a knee and clutching his hand. "He…he cut straight through my light?" He baffled. "What power…"

Nic adjusted in midair and faced the mist cloud. Greninja leaned back and had his feet touch Nic's. Using a powerful thrust, Greninja shoved Nic, launching him towards Mard Geer.

"Quick Attack!"

Outlined in white, Nic's speed intensified as he dove from his springboard maneuver and blitzed through the cloud, his elbow reaching Mard Geer's hand. The Underworld King, while shocked, blocked with said hand, yet Nic shoving from his momentum made the king slide backwards. Barely holding ground, Mard Geer grunted at the force implied.

Nic eventually used up the momentum and planted his feet on the ground. While still engaged in close-range, Nic right uppercut Mard Geer's chin, sending the king off his feet and a few feet into the air. "Greninja! Return!"

Mard Geer's eyes opened again, the shock finally recovered. To his disbelief, he was in midair, and his chin felt the crackling pain. He ignored it as he saw Greninja overhead. His right leg was in a glowing purple, the aura in which he and Nic signified their bond on. Raising it, he yelled out as he came down on Mard Geer.

'How is this happening?' He questioned.

"HRAH!" Greninja axe kicked Mard Geer's face, making a purple ripple exert from the air. Down below, the ground was silent for a few placid moments before the impact reached it, and the area diced apart, dust and wind erupting like volcanoes. Rock tore apart from the power of Return. Mard Geer smashed into the earth, creating an intense rumble as the earth shattered to pieces yet again.

Greninja landed in a crouch position and adjusted beside Nic. Both stared at the dissipating dust cloud, unfazed by their efforts. They knew Mard Geer wasn't easy to take down, given his pressure, but in truth they knew they wouldn't hold back against a headstrong and durable adversary. They were right of course as the dust cleared, revealing diced earth that spread for several meters around them, and an uneven crater in the center, where in the middle there was a hole that went down for several meters. In the hole was Mard Geer, grunting in agony.

"Do you intend on having your ambition overcloud your judgment?" Nic asked. "You think humans and Pokémon are inferior, but all that proves is how arrogant you are. I don't appreciate the lack of respect you're giving the position you're in."

The ground began to shake again, but this time briefly. Nic and Greninja swiftly jumped away in time as brambles again shot straight up, failing to skewer them. As they found footing once again, they looked back to see Mard Geer rising out of the hole, slowly getting back to his feet. His bangs covered his eyes, but even so, raspy breathing was heard.

"So this was the power you shared." Mard Geer took a moment to catch his breath, the pressure around him churning from his emotions boiling. "This was the power…that allowed you to tame the most powerful mage on the continent. This…was the strength that defeated he who I dare not mention…who dared to end everything. He…"

Nic and Greninja readied themselves. They felt another swell of pressure from Mard Geer, this one making a small breeze pass them. The power he was giving off was so strong that it was making gravity around them intensify.

"It was your kind…Pokémon…who put us demons to shame!" Mard Geer snapped. "You have proven to us what lethal torture you can carry out, the likes that makes us demons feel inferior beneath such species! With Pokémon everywhere, ruining my plans of proving our superiority…" Mard Geer raised his head, his bangs no longer covering his eyes. They were all white, and it only made Nic and Greninja even more unnerved as he smiled wide. "I am feeling emotions I wanted to lock away, ones that clouded my judgement as you say. I am not afraid of you. I am..." His hair began to shift as it contradicted gravity, beginning to float. "Angry."

Nic managed a small grin of his own. "You say humans and Pokémon are weak due to emotion? Then what you feel makes you no different from us."

"People suffer hypocrisy all the time. Accusing is one thing, saying something you're not is another." Greninja added.

Mard Geer was again met with another spike of pressure. Their confidence – or arrogance as he considers it, made his blood boil to extremes. "Your emotions and status is what shall be my fuel to end my own rage."


Vanessa swiped her arm and balled her fist. "Sliggoo! Dagon Pulse!"

Sliggoo obeyed and opened her mouth, where she unleashed a multicolored, dragon-shaped beam that blitzed through the air and closed in the small group of Lamy cluttered together. They all squealed and crackled before they screamed out in agony upon impact. They were all enveloped in a multicolored explosion, with smoke eventually fading to reveal the group lying on the ground in defeat.

Vanessa and Sliggoo panted, both exhausted from the onslaught of Lamy they mainly dealt with. "Is that…the last of them?" The Pularis girl labored.

Jet looked left and right, seeing no signs of the enemy. "Looks like we cleared the house!" He smiled.

"Alright! Finally!" Droy exclaimed.

Lisanna leaned over, looking at Vanessa with worry as she noticed her hands on her knees. "Are you okay, Vanessa?"

Vanessa craned her head, glancing at Lisanna. "Yeah…I just need to catch my breath…" She huffed.

Sliggoo hunched over, her horns dropping as she looked like she was about to pass out. "Everything's a little dizzy." She gurgled.

Elfman looked at Vanessa and Sliggoo with equal worry. "First that battle with that demon, and now she had to stomach all those weird demon rabbits." He said. "Takes a real man to push themselves."

"Yeah, she's wiped out." Warren said.

"Hey, rather than being a peanut gallery, how's about helping her out!" Jet berated.

"Sorry!"

Vanessa slowly inched to a knee, careful so as not to distress her exhausted body. Sliggoo was catching her breath still, but by no means was she holding up as well as the Aura Mage.

Footsteps were heard from nearby, and coming running revealed Lucy and Sophie, the two blondes thankfully on their feet.

"What happened here?" Lucy asked.

"Everyone!" Sophie exclaimed.

The group present turned their attention towards the shocking entrance of Lucy and Sophie.

"Lucy! Sophie!" Droy shouted.

"You're okay?! Thank goodness!" Lisanna commented.

"You're all okay." Sophie turned towards Vanessa, the exhausted mage's condition shocking her roommate. "Vanessa, you're here too?"

"Hey Sophie." Vanessa panted.

"What happened here?" Lucy asked. She looked all around, her eyes catching the dozens of Lamy in debris, the weak cackling sending chills up and down her spine. "Ehh…"

"It's a long story that we don't got time to explain right now." Jet answered.

"What happened to you? Are you two the only ones who made it here?" Elfman asked.

Lucy looked away, albeit with some hesitation. "In a way, we met up, but then parted…" The blonde couldn't help but feel a sharp sting in her heart when she mentioned the last part. The thought of Aquarius departing left her frowning mournfully.

"Lucy…" Sophie trailed off.

'Man, them working up some nice bodies right now.' Warren's telepathy was not private, but he wasn't wrong. Lucy's attire was tattered, revealing a large mass of skin. Sophie was no different, with her boots chipped and her lower cloth and skin-tight spandex torn up. The fishnet around her chest was torn as well.

"We can still hear you!" Jet and Droy berated.

"Aw crud." Warren whined.

"So then where is everybody else?" Lisanna asked.

Sophie turned to face the group. "Gajeel, Levy, and Juvia are off to Porlyusica to rid of the Magical Barrier Particles for good." She answered. "And Gray got this new power as well. Natsu…" Sophie looked towards the sky, the shrieking of Rayquaza circling around Acnologia catching attention.

Vanessa, having caught her breath, turned towards the sky with a frown. "Who is that red dragon?" She asked.

Lucy smiled. "That's the dragon Natsu gave up finding. Igneel, his dad."

"You mean…Igneel Natsu's been talking about?!" Jet exclaimed.

"Just when things couldn't get any freakier! And there's Rayquaza too! Does this mean we're in the clear?" Droy questioned.

"Not quite."

The voice came from nearby. More sets of footsteps were heard and everyone shifted their focus from the sky towards their backs. There, they saw the shocking presence of Wendy, Carla, and Doranbolt. What baffled everyone was how this time Wendy had her hair cut to a bob cut.

"We still have to deal with Face." She answered.

Vanessa's eyes widened. "Wendy?"

"Carla…and that guy from the council!" Lisanna exclaimed.

Jet, Droy, and Warren all noticed Wendy's hair, making them gape their mouths. "What happened to your hair?!" They shouted in unison.

"Forget about that. We've got bigger problems." Carla chided.

"Define 'bigger'." Sophie inquired.

"It's Face." Doranbolt answered. "As we speak, there are thousands of them set across the continent. We've gravely misjudged the situation here."

Everyone went wide-eyed at the revelation set into motion.

"Wait…y-you said…t-t-thousands?!" Droy shivered.

"That can't be right." Warren said.

"We may have a way to strike them all down. But we need everyone on Ishgar and Fiore to hear us out on this." Wendy turned to Warren, who was looking crestfallen. "Warren can you get the message out?"

Warren looked down at the ground, frowning with a despondent look. He wasn't pleased with what he was about to say. "…I…I can't. I can only go a range of 5 kilometers. It's impossible."

Wendy's eyes widened in horror. "No way…"

"You mean we can't relay this to anyone?" Elfman inquired.

"But if that's true…" Lucy was beginning to think on a melancholic level. The possibility of magic disappearing forever was starting to make its way into reality, and devastation was amongst them.

"But there are thousands." Lisanna remarked.

"How are we going to stop them now? I don't get it?" Sophie questioned.

Warren began to grit his teeth, his tears beginning to stream down his cheeks. "Damnit!" He shouted. "This was our chance! I just had to go and blew it! Damnit!"

"Warren…" Carla murmured.

'It's too soon for us to give up!' Another telepathic voice entered. It wasn't Mard Geer, and it wasn't Warren himself nor his thoughts. No. It was someone they'd least expect.

"That voice." Elfman said. He looked around, seeing that said person wasn't around.

"Master?" Lucy questioned.

Vanessa turned her head left and right, but like before, no sin of him. "Where is he?"

'My children, listen well.' Makarov announced. 'Fear not. We have hope yet on our side. There is still our trump card! Lumen Histoire!'

"Our trump card?" Sophie blinked.

"Lumen Histoire?" Lucy repeated.

Warren looked towards Jet and Droy. "Do you know what he's talking about?"

The two questioned shook their heads.

'There is no time for me to explain. Everyone and all personnel must return to the guild hall this instant!'

"M-Master, we hear you…" Jet's head began to droop, a nervous look on his face. "But the guild hall was…"

Elfman got the notion, but it only left him even more guilty than before. His depressed aura was sensed by Vanessa, who looked sadly at him.

'Do not worry. The guild itself may have been reduced to ruins, but the basement is in one piece. Return at once.' Makarov ordered.

"I…" Elfman clutched his fists tight. "I can't."

"Elfman?" Lisanna wondered.

"Why?" Lucy asked.

"It was my fault that the guild has been destroyed. I have to pay the price." He drooped his head, staring in resolve at the dirt on his shoes. "I'm sorry."

'What happened was not your doing.' Makarov reasoned. 'No one blames you for what happened.'

"But I…"

'Elfman. You are a good sport, and we need you. Whatever you decide, it is up to you alone.' Instantly, Makarov adjusted the channel for Doranbolt. 'You shall come as well.'

Doranbolt's eyes widened. 'Wait, me? But I'm not a member of the guild.'

'Perhaps so, but I request your powers. When this is all over, I need you in erasing the memories of everyone.'

'What?' Doranbolt was caught off guard. 'What are you on about?'

'Just about Lumen Histoire. Unfortunately, that includes you as well. I'm sorry, but there's no other recourse.'

Despite the bizarre request, Doranbolt can understand the grave secret and how disastrous it would be. He agreed. 'Alright. I'll do it.'

'You have my thanks.' With that, Makarov cut off the connection.

"Alright then, let's get going." Lucy said.

"Vanessa, can you get up?" Sophie asked the Aura Mage.

"Yeah…" Though hesitant, she managed to get back on her feet thanks to Sliggoo nudging her side and holding her up. Once on her feet, Vanessa wobbled a little, but afterwards finally gained ground. She turned towards Sophie, nodding.

"I'm staying behind." Elfman said.

"Okay, be careful, Elf." Lisanna took off, though she initially wished Elfman could tag along. However, she left him be out of respect for his guilt.

"Let's go, Sliggoo." Vanessa tagged along, following the best she could.

"Right!" Sliggoo lagged, hurrying with haste.


Mard Geer glared coldly at Nic and Greninja, every second staring into their orbs that they call eyes serving to fuel his anger. "Emotions cloud judgement and your thoughts, hence why one can never function properly in battle. That is the folly of a tactician."

Nic and Greninja glared back at the Underworld King with hostility. It was ironic given Nic had to fight a tactician before, a psychotic one at that. However, he dismissed the commentary and remained steadfast.

"You had the audacity to steal away my precious master. E.N.D's spirit dwelled within those closed pages and you went and stole him like he was some material possession. How deplorable of humans." Mard Geer turned towards his throne, which was miraculously in one piece some feet away. "I really do hate humans, but I never allowed emotions to best me. Fear. Anger. I have only experienced these two emotions as of recently, and I cannot begin to tell you what is more annoying than not being yourself. Disgraceful." The Underworld King turned around slowly, gingerly setting himself on the throne. He continued to frown at Nic and his Water/Dark-type, showing nothing but distaste. "I beg to question myself this: Just how much longer can I hold myself back against you?"

"Nic…" Greninja trailed off, feeling the gravity around them suppress again.

"Yes. It would appear his own arrogance is starting to make him loosen up his own hold. We may not have long before he gets anxious." Nic answered.

"Then let's dethrone him." Greninja advised.

Nic spread his legs, a small wind surging around his feet. "Exactly was I was thinking." As dust began to surge at Nic's feet, there was but another pressure change. The air began to shift once more, this time expanding out and the gravity around them began to return to normal.

Mard Geer frowned, his nerves beginning to crawl. "What now?" He groaned.

A small heated wave circulated around Nic while the ground beneath him began to heat up. The energy he gave off made the air itself increase in terms of temperature. A dome of fire and melted stone encompassed Nic and enveloped him for a few moments, until a few moments passed and it popped like a balloon, lava and hot rock dripping towards the ground.

Nic stood in his Flame Form, but the edging, boots, belt, and shirt beneath were all of the Stone Form. He stood tall, sharing a vibrant leer alongside his froggy accomplice. "Fire/Rock!" He announced confidently.

The new atmosphere was making Mard Geer stuffy in his attire, but he chose to ignore it. "So you've transformed I see." He analyzed. "And just what do you intend to do now?"

"First off…" Nic stomped on the ground once. When that happened, Mard Geer's throne suddenly flattened. The sudden jerk of the stone and skull-decorated piece of furniture left the Underworld King to stand upright. "Making sure you don't consider us pushovers." Nic finished.

Mard Geer looked down, seeing that Nic's powers of rock flattened and turned his throne into the ground. "You…" His anger rising, he looked back at Nic, reaching out once more. "You…IMPUDENT!"

In his rage, the Underworld King summoned a wave of brambles, the largest wave he's made yet. It was one spiky thorn after another, rippling green heading for Nic and Greninja.

Nic pressed his two palms in a loud clap. "Lava Plume!"

The ground beneath began to rumble at the heated pressure given off. As Greninja disappeared with grace of a ninja, Nic was enveloped in a pillar of pressurized fire as an explosion of broiling flames shot in all directions. The shockwave of raging flames enveloped the waves of thorns. The thorns immediately shriveled up and disintegrated to ash, and the expanding waves brightened up Mard Geer's shocked expression.

"Another omnidirectional attack?" He gasped before covering up. As Lava Plume enveloped him, the searing fiery waves. The impact left him grunting in agony, eventually leaving him with too much to handle. He yelled out in the bright flare, sliding back as the flare waves dissipated.

As he slid back, Greninja reappeared overhead, sailing with his hands unsheathing a dense purple needle. "Night Slash!" The Ninja Pokémon brought the Dark-type move down overhead in an axe-like manner, meeting Mard Geer's forearm, which he used to block. The blade burned into his clothing, making a purple burst of energy that made Mard Geer again lose ground and slide back on his heels.

Once finding his heels, he looked ahead and moved his arms in a circular motion. He summoned another funnel of light and silver petals after Greninja. Again, the intense brightness shook air and earth alike, but Greninja held his ground.

"Scald!"

Greninja unleashed a voluminous stream of boiling water from his mouth, meeting Mard Geer's attack head on. The two attacks made a large, flashy steam explosion that bellowed out. The humidity suddenly thickened, and it made it hard for Mard Geer to see.

"Persistent." He murmured ruefully.

Nic clutched a fist and drove it into the ground. "Stone Edge!" At his own command, giant light blue pillars of pointed rock shot up in a linear fashion, racing through the mist cloud and reached Mard Geer. The impact to his abdomen made a harsh airwave, dissipating the humid cloud around the area. Mard Geer gagged as the Rock-type move sent him skyward.

Nic swiped his arm forward, reaching at Mard Geer as the demon was in midair. "Water Shuriken!"

Greninja again jumped into the air, reaching for compressed stars he conjured and swung his body in an acrobatic manner. Several Water Shuriken were thrown, blazing right for Mard Geer.

Mard Geer caught himself and saw the swift stars heading right for him. In midair, his eyes widened and knew to act swiftly. Reaching an arm forward, shimmering silver light began to formulate in a large sphere.

"Dea Yggdrasil!"

A wooden pillar-like beam reached for the incoming compressed stars. The huge column of wood and roots closed in, yet Water Shuriken only spun and gained momentum from the distance. Both attacks met in the middle, where a blue explosion enveloped the airspace between Mard Geer and Greninja.

As both fell, Mard Geer landed soundly, while Greninja was still in midair, chunks of wood cut apart still heading right for him.

"Incinerate!"

Nic opened his mouth, where the inside glowed bright orange. He whirled his head around in a clockwise fashion, making several fireballs with black highlights that were launched altogether. The Incinerate blasted the residual wooden fragments, making small flares that made a wind that Greninja used to backflip and land back on ground with a small slide on the heels.

He looked back with a nod. "Thanks for the save."

Nic nodded. "No problem."

Mard Geer adjusted and looked ahead with a frown. He raised his right hand and moved his middle and index finger up. "This is far from over." True to what he said, the ground around Nic and Greninja cracked and brambles started to rise from beneath their feet. Nic and Greninja were on separate brambles that arose like a tower. "Bramble Pinnacle!"

Mard Geer ignored the vibrating earth and frowned on as he watched Nic and Greninja ascend with the tower of uneven thorn brambles. He couldn't help but continuously spite as they still remained calm, even from such a distance.

Nic began to lose footing, but that didn't stop him from crouching. "Greninja!"

"Right, let's go!" He shouted.

Together, Nic and Greninja began leaping from bramble to bramble, jumping to no end to the top while evading the thorns in the process. The action left Mard Geer with distaste as even more brambles grew more spikes, but Nic and Greninja were too nimble as they leapt constantly. As they jumped, they found an opportunity where there was a singular bramble that slithered passed them both, reaching for the top. The two jumped onto the bramble, using the momentum to run up it. They used the thorns as knee and heel holders as they speed up it.

Shooting up as fast as rockets, they blitzed to the pinnacle in no time, faster than a Frogadier, which can scale a 1,000-foot-tll building in less than a minute. When both reached the top, they jumped high, flipping to face the scaling tower that grew right for them.

Nic opened his mouth, where a blue cyclone of heat began to converge. As the tower closed in, his Flame Form's solid sections began to rise in temperature.

"Inferno!"

Nic roared, unleashing a violent and monstrous blast of blue, cindering flames. The voluminous blast wave expanded, enveloping the tower and shooting all the way own, from floor to floor. The thorns and brambles burned up and reduced to ash, until the enlarged and powerful Fire-type attack reached the base. A blue, and searing explosion sent linear blue embers across the ground randomly, passing Mard Geer as the shock on his face was proof that he was overwhelmed.

"No way…" As he was watching the flaming blue tower rage on, the heat was intensifying his exasperation. "Pokémon…what are they?"

Within the dying flames, still above, Greninja was seen with a singular Water Shuriken manifested. It swirled over his head, as opposed to Nic, who's hand was engulfed in flames and moved it in a clockwise motion. As Greninja threw the large shuriken from overhead, Nic fired an orange streaming fire from his mouth through the flaming rings, via Mystical Fire. As the two attacks raced for Mard Geer, they combined in the center, the orange fire streaming with a shining blue comet heading for the target.

Mard Geer saw the shimmering combination close in, but he was still in shock from the previous assaults. In a rush, he made another converging sphere of silver light.

"Dea Yggdrasil!"

Same as before, a beam of wood and green brambles went sailing for the incoming attack. However, Nic and Greninja's fire and water combo shot into the column-like beam, reducing and cutting wood and thorns to ash. The beam was no match as the comet reach a distraught Mard Geer, who was enveloped in an orange and blue explosion. The flash was bright and intense, making his screams hollow as he slid backwards. As he shot through the air, a blue aura enveloped him, the effects of Mystical Fire lowering his long-range prowess. Cursing beneath what breath he had, he smashed into a nearby broken structure, sending rock everywhere as the earth beneath shuddered.

Within the dust, Nic and Greninja were seen falling back to earth, with Nic pointing two fingers to the ground below. As they feel, a smooth rock-like slide was made. Both gained momentum and slid along the smooth slide towards the curved ledge, where they shot off and flipped onto their feet, landing in similar on-knee poses.

Both arose to their feet, staring into the pits of the smoke cloud that was made by their attack. They stared out, knowing that something even as powerful as that wasn't going to keep the likes of Mard Geer down. They knew that someone who had a vendetta like his would stop at nothing. They knew from experience; Gran Doma and God Serena were examples.

There was another rumble, followed by a shift in pressure from the atmosphere. The wind began to die down, and both could see a figure slouched forward. The figure revealed himself to be Mard Geer, coughing and frowning, but his hair was defying gravity. As every second passed, his body began to give off dark embers. Both Nic and Greninja narrowed their eyes, aware of his power flare.

"You've most certainly pushed your luck now, human and Pokémon. I commend you, however, as I can't remember the last time I was pushed into a corner such as this one." The dark embers soon flickered, becoming a black veil, concealing Mard Geer. "We demons from the Books of Zeref have been envied by our power granted by Zeref, but what they all failed to register was that we had our own purpose in mind."

"Is it to return to Zeref?" Nic questioned.

"Return to Zeref?" Mard Geer paused as the dark fire began to expand a little, winds shifting Nic's coat. "You are not wrong, but that is but a superficial necessity. Humans have sought Zeref's books for the solemn purposes of pleasing and reviving our great master and creator, but your kind has been so selfish that they had not considered our own purpose. Tell me, Nic, are you not aware of the purpose we carry?"

Nic was unclear as to what Mard Geer was going on about, but he knew it was on a more sadistic and cruel note. Nevertheless he and Greninja plated along. "Can't say for certain." He answered.

"As I thought." A new figure of Mard Geer could be seen within the flames, his new dark silhouette carrying bat-like wings and what looked like an armored body. "Let's start with simplicity. If Face is successful, magic shall be erased, and that will revive Master E.N.D once again."

"The book?" Greninja clarified.

"That book holds E.N.D's spirit as I said before. With him revived, Tartaros shall at last return to Zeref."

"But what you said still isn't clear." Nic imposed. "You said you demons have a purpose, did you not? Was it to revive E.N.D, or is it something that's more than just returning to your master? That much I can't make out."

Inside the dwindling flames, Mard Geer smirked. "I see at least one human is bold enough to answer…"

As the flames died down, energy streams flared faintly, but Nic and Greninja were again caught surprised by Mard Geer's Etherious Form.

Standing before them was Mard Geer, in his Etherious Form, which was primarily black armor and wings. The body had silver trimming all around, with his face having a silver mask and the wings outlined in silver. His hair was straighter and sharper than before, and his power was so great that a dark aura encompassed him.

"My fellow Etherious were all unaware of this realization." Mard Geer's vice was darker than before, gravely one might say. "It wasn't to return to Zeref and follow him. No, that was simply a homing instinct. Saying we want to 'return to him' is but one prime concept that is as hollow as logs. Zeref, our master, has been immortal for over 400 years, cursed by the gods for his deeds of tampering with life and death. That was the price paid, and what he wanted more than anything was to die. He eventually created something, something that could kill him and end his suffering…"

Nic and Greninja remained quiet, thinking over Mard Geer's words. "Created…" Greninja murmured.

"To kill him?" Nic's eyes slowly widened in realization. He and Greninja gasped in unison. "You mean…"

"Yes…created the Books of Zeref to not torture humans…but to kill him. The Demons of the Books of Zeref."

The two could feel an uneasy swell of goosebumps growing in their scarred backs.

"E.N.D was the masterpiece of Zeref himself. For some unknown reason, E.N.D has been sealed back into his prison, and with that, the chances of Zeref dying dropped. We thus have the obligation to fulfill the wishes of our creator, and restore E.N.D to end his suffering. It is the least we can do. It is his and our wish."

It was a lot to take in, especially with such a cause. Nic was dumbfounded at best. To learn the shocking truth that you were born to kill your creator was a concept he never thought highly of. He and his family always valued life, and preferred to live it out for as long as they could. Could they really kill those who brought life to them? Of course the deeper Nic thought about this, the more crestfallen he felt. In a way, he could relate to Mard Geer, though admitting it wouldn't make the situation any better. He killed his Uncle, to end his suffering and free him and to move on. He ended his suffering, and a half-dead family member. Though it pained him, it was meant to save the world and the man who saved it long ago. Nic looked back at Mard Geer, seeing a cause that he at least acknowledges, but at the same time wouldn't support. He ended Vince's suffering and bloodlust so that everyone could be happy and live on, including himself. It was depressing to see him and his parents go, but even with that purpose fulfilled, that didn't mean he still had anything else to do. He can live on and forsake everything once more to keep on fighting and battling to the ends of his days, and he will always have that path to share with the frog who stands by him and Erza.

"I may understand and sympathize with what you and your master want." Nic finally said. He spread his legs, readying himself once more. "But to slaughter for that sake is nothing to respect for."

"So it may be, but I will follow that obligation. I bring down weeds that stand in my way, and those weeds are of humans and those creatures that you carry. For the sake of my mission…" Mard Geer stretched his wings out, making small gusts shift Nic's coat again. "I shall use every ounce of my power, and destroy you! Nic Pularis! Come! Let us decide this!"

Mard Geer ascended, making dust and wind shift passed Nic and Greninja as both watched Mard Geer reached a small altitude before lunging at them with a loud shout.


In the skies above, the air was constantly in shifting turmoil as three legendary beasts were still duking it out. Chaos stirred the clouds across the atmosphere, the air itself thin as Acnologia let another dark snarl escape his throat. The sight of Rayquaza and Igneel working together left him angry, as one of the two was someone who could seriously hurt him. He hated that thought. He needed to win.

Acnologia brought his head back and unleashed another beaming roar at the two dragons, blitzing with intensity so great that no magic could stop.

Igneel and Rayquaza both roared out once again, fearlessly maneuvering around the roar. They skimmed along either side, dodging the destructive blast and closed in on Acnologia. The two dragons collided into his chest, pushing the Dragon King back through the atmosphere. The beast, however, was not as willing to give up so easily.

Acnologia took one large flap of his wings, kicking up a violent shockwave that made enough wind power to make Igneel and Rayquaza jerk away. With his sights set on Rayquaza first, the Black Dragon roared as he whipped his stinger tail, smacking into Rayquaza. The impact of the tail across Rayquaza's face sent the gargantuan serpent skyward, swerving with little momentum set. Igneel used this chance to get close and enveloped his fist in fire. He thrust at Acnologia, but the Black Dragon jerked to the side, allowing Igneel to falter forward with lost momentum. Acnologia seized Igneel by the shoulders and threw him in another direction, making the Fire Dragon King spin uncontrollably.

"Oh please, like you think I'm a pushover. Not this time." Acnologia declared.

Rayquaza roared overhead, gathering multicolored energy into an orb in front of his mouth for Dragon Pulse.

Acnologia hurriedly turned to look up once again, opening his mouth and unleashing a swift beam. The roar bellowed upwards, where Rayquaza lurched down and fired his Dragon Pulse at the last second. A massive smoke cloud was enveloped in high strung shockwaves that brightened up the skies once again in an expanding field of energy. As a result, the shockwaves propelled Rayquaza further skywards, crying out as the close-range attack made him vanish into the night clouds high above.

"You'll pay for that!" Igneel declared his retaliation with his claws igniting once again. He closed in on Acnologia once again and slashed at him. The Black Dragon turned right into the attack, earning him a slash across the face. Igneel recoiled as he watched as Acnologia looked back ahead, not a single graze from that attack.

"How?!" He yelled.

"So-called Fire Dragon King, I expected much more from someone as mighty as you. What a disappointment you are." Acnologia lunged after Igneel with vicious red in his eyes. "Matching up to the likes of Pokémon? You can't even land a scar!" He collided in another headlock with Igneel, both dragons yelling out in a roaring frenzy. Their cries of power were heard from miles away, worrying the many Fairy Tail members down below.

All anyone could do was watch as the battle raged on, Acnologia holding his ground as the Dragon King.

The two dragons gripped each other and spiraled around in the skies, trying to overlap the other and rip them to shreds. Neither side was allowing such an opening to occur, and as they challenged the other in a furious clashing of heads and spinning through the air, they were both silenced with the sound of Rayquaza's shout from above.

"What now?" Igneel asked. He looked up towards the clouds, but he barely caught the image of Rayquaza within the darkness. What perplexed him was that there was a strong light that pierced through the clouds.

Acnologia felt a power pressure change, one that made him back away from Igneel and look up. He looked up towards the piercing light, the cries of Rayquaza booming in his ears. "What is he doing now?" He couldn't explain it, but something about the piercing rays and this sudden change in pressure left him unsettled.

The light was so bright that everyone below were equally as surprised.

"What's that light?" Romeo questioned.

"I don't know, but it's bright. I can barely see." Macao shielded his eyes, blocking some of the searing rays.

"Well it isn't the sun, I know that much." Wakaba answered.

Cana stared up at the fight in the sky, the cries of Rayquaza bellowing through her ears. "This light…and this power…" She could feel the atmosphere pulsate overhead, and the goosebumps on her intensified. When it hit her that the familiar light was of a transformation, her eyes widened. "Is that what I think it is?"

The skies were brightened by the radiance and Rayquaza's shouting, and after a few moments, the light faded away, and as silence grimaced in the atmosphere, there was an odd ripple of energy that spread through the clouds above.

Suddenly, the clouds broke apart as a massive Hyper Beam came crashing down. The black and purple beam of destructive energy pulsated with so much power the air shuddered like an aerial earthquake.

Acnologia was hit head on by Hyper Beam, the intense impact making him roar out in agony; louder than any damage he's sustained. The Hyper Beam shoved the insidious beast towards the earth, where he crashed into the ground and created another seismic shudder. The Hyper Beam attack dragged him across the wasteland, creating linear explosions that arose the landscape. From miles on end, fires and dark explosions pelted the land, leveling earth and enveloping anything within the atmosphere in chaos.

Everyone found cover behind debris and screamed out as winds and fires went over their heads. If they were standing they'd be capsized. They all felt the rattling ground beneath, and even the land was scared.

As the explosions diminished, the raging swell of the destructive beam reduced to winds that carried dust off. Starting from straight below was a deep ditch that was too dark to see the bottom, and it traveled for miles to where kicked up rock looked like a mountain, and at the base was a deep crater. In the center was Acnologia on his back, his body covered from head to toe in bruises. The beast let out a hot breath as he looked back to the sky, seeing where that attack that grounded him came from.

Igneel looked up to the source, eyes widening at the sight and the sheer power he was feeling. "No way…"

With the clouds parted, there was Mega Rayquaza, who raised his head and exerted yet another echoing roar. Ripples of energy stretched out to where Igneel was nearly pushed back. Once the roars died down, Mega Rayquaza looked down, glaring at the ground below.

Cana looked from behind cracked debris, her eyes hoping they were playing tricks on her. "Mega Rayquaza."

Igneel looked back up, his initial shock turning to a sneer. "Not bad." He said.

Mega Rayquaza swerved down towards Igneel's level, looking irritated at the Black Dragon of the Apocalypse. "My patience with this defaced creature has worn thin. One way or another, this beast shall learn the hard way to not tamper with the likes of my kind!" The Mega-Evolved Sky High Pokémon declared.

"That makes two of us." Igneel said.

Acnologia began to stir, rising to his feet. He faltered for a bit, but the dragon hunched over and glared back up, his tail swinging from one end to the other. "So it's come to this." He bitterly snarled. "It seems there is no holding back. Mark my words, dragon, I will destroy you! No matter how many times you hit me!"

"Then prove it!" Mega Rayquaza declared.

Igneel roared, his wings spreading out. "No holding back!"

All three dragons glared once more, their spirits reignited with the tide rising.


Natsu was running through the field of broken rock and walls, heading away from the ruckus from behind. He was looking up, seeing Mega Rayquaza in the air. "Alright! Looks like Dad's doing great up there!" He was glad that his father was doing well in his fight, but Natsu felt short-sided on his end. True, he did want to see what the Underworld King had to offer, but he also knew that the book he was carrying was equally as important. He had to stay true to his word and get it far away from Mard Geer as possible.

As he jumped over a fallen pillar, he began to stir his own thoughts. "I wonder where I'm going? I can't smell the others well. It's gotta be all this dust and gross gunk everywhere." As he ran past an overhead arch of rock formation, he looked down at the book once again. He couldn't explain it, but something about the book was of. It was like something he never felt before, and he couldn't tell if it was good nor bad. "What is with this book? There's something about it that's creeping me out. Hmmmm…maybe I should find Levy! Yeah! She knows a thing or two about books!"

He ran a little farther out, but as he took off, he saw two familiar figures approach.

"Huh?" As they closed in, he began to get a better picture, and to say he seemed surprised would be an understatement. "Sting! Rogue!"

Sting blinked, seeing Natsu ahead. "Natsu?"

"What is he doing here?" Rogue questioned.

Natsu ran over, meeting up with the Twin Dragons of Sabertooth with a jovial grin. "Hey, good to see you guys are doing okay! What's up?"

"I should be asking you the same thing. Been awhile." Sting smirked.

Rogue nodded in agreement. "I can see you're doing well."

"What are you kidding me? I'm feeling ready to kick some ass right about now!" Natsu beamed. Though, if he ws honest, he was feeling a little exhausted. Taking on Jackal, Franmalth, and then Tempester in a span of less than 48 hours did a number on him, but he wouldn't show it and instead took the matter in stride.

"Uh, r-right." Rogue could tell Natsu was exaggerating, but dismissed the matter. "Anyways, where are you heading? Aren't you supposed to be heading over there?" He pointed behind Natsu, where there was a field of explosions going on, indicating Nic's fight with Mard Geer.

"Huh?" Natsu's eyes widened. "Oh! Right! I gotta go find a place to stash this!" He held up the book to Sting and Rogue, the two giving a confused look. The latter looked unamused.

"What the heck is it?"

"Well it's clearly a book." Rogue teased.

"Shut it!"

"This is what that creepy guy was holding back there. It's supposed to be a book that contains Tartaros' so-called Master E.N.D."

This incite left the Twin Dragons with shock. "Wait, what?!" Sting exclaimed.

"Their Master is within those pages?" Rogue clarified.

"Yeah, something like that. I'm thinking about finding Levy since she may know what to do about these things." Natsu said. "Say, you guys look a little banged up."

Rogue gave a despondent stare. "You just now noticed?"

"Ignore him. He's just tired." Sting assured. "That Mard Geer guys gave us these. He's stronger than what we thought. But we're gonna find him and show him what it means to mess with Dragon Slayers!"

Another loud explosion was heard from the distance, this one rattling the ground. It nearly threw Natsu and the others off balance for a moment.

"Guess even from this distance Nic's got it raging." Rogue commented.

"Bah, don't worry about Nic. Don't you remember? He kicked that God Sir Ema's ass off this continent. This guy's got nothing on him!" Natsu said.

"I…think you mean God Serena." Rogue sweat dropped.

As they were chattering up, another set of footsteps was heard, these ones leaving the atmosphere to decline in temperature quite a bit.

"Huh?" Natsu felt the chill intensify, making him turn towards the side, where he saw another figure enter the area. His shock arose.

Sting and Rogue turned as well, surprised with this strange sense of prowess.

"Is that…?" Sting trailed off, seeing the shirtless man walk firmly towards them. To all of their critical surprise it was revealed to be Gray, and the air around him was as cold as ice.

"Gray?" Rogue questioned.

Gray walked towards them, standing firmly in front of Natsu. He looked at him up and down, seeing the Dragon Slayer with accumulated scratches. "I see you're bad on your feet already." He commented, though his tone was oddly serious.

Natsu blinked out of wonder. "Uh…yeah. I could say the same about you. Where's your shirt?"

"Funny." Gray sneered. He turned towards the area where Natsu came from, his wonders piqued. "Where's the head honcho?"

"Head honcho?" Natsu questioned.

"I think you mean Mard Geer." Rogue answered. "If you're looking for him, I wouldn't go near there." He pointed at the area where there were shimmering lights and hectic whirlwinds produced.

"Good." Gray began to turn, walking slowly away from the group and towards the battle.

"Wait, what are you doing?!" Sting shouted. "Nic's back there!"

Gray continued to walk on, his mind set on his goal. "I don't care." He answered. "I'll stop Tartaros all by myself."

Sting and Rogue went wide-eyed at the cold shoulder given, despite the warning they provided.

Natsu faced Gray, looking at him with narrowed eyes. "Hey, what's your problem?"

"Nothing. I just need to take care if some business." Gray said. He stopped to turn and look at Natsu with his own questions in mind. "I could ask you the same thing. Why are you here?"

Natsu held up the back cover of the book to Gray. "This is what. I'm getting it away from here."

"Is that so?" Gray raised a brow. "I thought you'd be fighting some demons or burning up the place, not be some delivery man for something you never read."

"Huh?" While Natsu did take offense to Gray's insult, he did have a point. It took a short while for the Dragon Slayer to process, but when it boiled down to it, he had to ask himself something out loud. His eyes widened as he gawked at the bewildering epiphany.

"Wait, what am I doing?!" He yelled. "Did Nic trick me or something?! I'm not letting him hog all the glory! What's he doing kicking ass without me having a punch, huh?!"

Sting and Rogue despondently stared at Natsu with disbelief. 'Seriously?' They thought in unison.

"That does it! Before I take another step with this book, I'm marching back and showing that demon what an iron fist can really do to his teeth!" Natsu declared.

Gray looked away, staring at the area where he was heading. "Fine, but I ain't stopping till these guys are gone for good." He began to walk once more, leaving Natsu and the others again. "I gotta finish what my old man started."

"Old man?" Natsu questioned. He reached out for his comrade. "Hey, hold up-!"

Before Gray got too far, the area ahead of him began to glow. His eyes widened as the light got brighter. Acting fast, he jumped back in time before the ground erupted in a loud blast wave. Smoke and dust bellowed as the Ice Devil Slayer slid back, covering up.

"Gray!" Natsu shouted. He was about to act, but he heard something from the side. Turning his head, he saw blast waves traveling across the ground, hitting his side and engulfing him in a large explosion. As smoke arose, Natsu slide off to the side, grunting as his arm shielded the book, resulting in bruises.

"Damn!" He cursed.

"Natsu! You okay?!" Sting shouted.

"What on earth was that about?!" Rogue questioned.

"Pathetic!" A rude and rough male announced. "You insects deserve no less than to be crushed for being meddlesome!"

Natsu caught himself, the voice ringing in his ears. When he caught whiff of a certain smell, it was like a pungent flare went off. "That smell…!" When he looked to where a dark shadow was towering, his eyes widened. "Wait…"

To Sting and Rogue especially, horror took over. Their eyes shuddered as the man before them resembled some significant backlash.

Before them stood a very tall and monstrously muscular man, whose prowess was thicker than Elfman even. On his front were scars from his previous confrontations, but on his left pectoral was a circular tattoo that spread like a web all over his bare body. Thick beads acted as a necklace, visible with his pointed edged beard and spiked up hair. His eyes had dark circles, and he had elf ears. His body gave off a very dark aura, one that made them all shudder.

The resemblance was uncanny.

"Master…Jiemma?" Sting stuttered, fear in his voice.

"It can't be." Rogue gasped.

"Hey, wait…" Natsu began to recall who Jiemma was, as it was someone long ago he dueled during the Grand Magic Games. His shock grew. "You mean that old Sabertooth Master?!"

"So then he was turned into a demon like Bellona." Gray figured.

"Worms." Jiemma rebuffed. "Turned? No, I knew from the start that power suited me best. That's why I demanded to be transformed into a demon." His fists balled tighter. "All for the sake of becoming the most powerful there is!"

Sting nervously stared at the former Sabertooth Master, his nerves shuddering. "He's a monster."

Jiemma's aura thickened once again, the ground shuddering from his absolute might. As he drew out power, stones around him began to defy gravity. "I dare not be compared to monsters or these demons." He growled. "This is my power now! This is the wrath that trumps this guild! When all is done, I will crush the remainder of everything! Starting with you!" The demon went lunging after them, yelling out a venomous battle cry.

Sting and Rogue stood there, paralyzed as they saw the demonic creature bellow out. The longer they stared, the more petrified they felt. It was like their darkness was confronting them head on, and they were far from ready.

"Snap out of it!" Natsu yelled.

Sting and Rogue gasped as Natsu snapped them out of their distraught trances.

"This battle isn't over yet! We can still beat this guy! And Tartaros!" Natsu started a mad dash for Jiemma, his fists balling in searing flames. "We aren't afraid! We can do this!" With a loud battle cry, Natsu reeled his fist forward, colliding with the muscular power of Jiemma. Blast Magic and Fire Dragon Slayer prowess collided. The ground shuddered as the two fields of fire and purple were of two entities that were fighting to hold ground. Natsu cried out louder, pouring whatever he had while having the book secured in his left arm.

"Gnnngh!" Natsu felt his footing get pushed back within the bright collision, his teeth gritting louder than before.

"Get lost, I have no business with a weakling like you!" Jiemma overpowered Natsu, following through with his punch. The ground pulsated dust as Natsu went flying backwards in a loud shout.

"Natsu!" Sting shouted. Both him and Rogue's trances snapped completely, and in a furious act of courage, they zoomed to intercept Jiemma from both sides. They lunged at him, but Jiemma caught them with his giant hands and held them in the air.

"Sting. Rogue. You have no idea how long I've been waiting to destroy you both." The demon snarled. He brought their heads together and bashed them. The impact left them gawking, much to Jiemma's joy. They fell to the ground, blinded by the pain their skulls felt.

"Is that really the best you have?" Jiemma questioned. He watched as the Twin Dragons began to stir beneath. "Hm?"

Sting arose to a knee, eyes covered. 'We're not afraid.'

'We can do this.' Rogue clutched his fists.

Both glared at Jiemma, jumping for him head on with steeled resolves. 'We're heading forward!'

Sting swung a light-cloaked kick around while Rogue slashed his hands raptured in shadows. Jiemma used his huge hands and blocked them both, catching the bright leg and dark hand.

"This isn't over yet!" Rogue shouted.

"Natsu! Gray! Leave him to us!" Sting shouted, flipping backwards onto his heels. "We'll handle this chump!"

Natsu and Gray, both recovered, looked at the battle unfolding. They looked at each other with serious expressions, each knowing that it was in their best interests to go see of Nic needed help. They knew Mard Geer was a powerful threat, and that came first. Natsu looked back ahead, giving them a smirk.

"Alright. Be sure to keep him down, alright?" He said.

"Yeah, no sweat." Sting smirked.

"Alright then!" Natsu pivoted and carried the book, its front cover still hidden from sight. "Let's go, Gray!"

"Gotcha!" Gray followed Natsu, both embarking towards the explosive battle in the distance. That left the Twin Dragons to deal with their past, one that they will personally rid of for good.

Jiemma's solid glare intensified. "Come, Twin Dragons!" He slammed his fist into the ground, attacking Sting. The new Sabertooth Master jumped and dodged the attack, leaving rock and dirt to kick up from where he once stood.

Sting regained footing and shot a glare at Jiemma. "It's your fault Sabertooth was nothing but tyranny!"

"Tyranny is the only choice to dominate." Jiemma challenged. "One has to commit to being the strongest, or else their hearts and mind will remain weak and flimsy, just like that pathetic Minerva girl."

"But she's your own child and daughter! Didn't you feel anything for her?!" Jiemma glared at Rogue for his answer, the grim silence established beginning to make the Shadow Dragon Slayer feel a depressing energy.

"I did feel something. I felt my own expectations destroyed when she chose to treat others like allies than put her own heel down! That annoying Nic and his ideals corrupted her, now she and that useless Bellona are nothing more than useless garbage!"

Sting smashed his fist into Jiemma's face. "Take that back!"

Jiemma slid back several feet, but recovered without flaw. "Is that all you got?" He put his hands together and watched Sting charge for him. He used his magic and blasted energy in front of Sting's face, making him stagger backwards. His ears then twitched, catching wispy noises from behind. He turned around as Rogue materialized from the shadows and knife handed his chest, making Rogue gag. Jiemma grabbed him by the collar and slammed him into the earth, making an indent. "You seriously think that you took Sabertooth with the level of power you two have? What a joke you are!"

Rogue struggled to stand, but found his footing at last. "We…didn't take anything. We…made something better out of it."

"Foolhardy!" Jiemma raised a burly arm and chopped at Rogue's shoulder, sending him back to the ground. "Sabertooth is meant as the strongest! Anything else is of no meaning! All this talk about effort and care only brings its pride down!"

Raspy breathing was heard from behind, the panting belonging to Sting as he was back on his feet. "Yeah. We were pretty weak, we admit." He said.

Jiemma looked back at Sting. "Hmph."

"…but all this crap about weakness you spill, it's only the weakness that you see. We're not going back to a guild of individuality, no, we're making a stronger guild; one that hopes to make others feel welcome. Rather than leave our comrades who fail us to die." He thought back to when Jiemma had Yukino strip down, bare of all her dignity and bow before Jiemma. He again thought of Lector when he was seemingly blown to smitherings. Hs fists balled tighter than ever before. "We've had it. We want nothing to do with that guild you made."

"He's right." Rogue started to get back up once more, again catching Jiemma's attention. "If we want to become 'strong', then we need to rebuild." He was back on his feet. "We started a new Sabertooth!"

"Which means…" Sting and Rogue's glare sharpened. "We don't need you anymore."

"Now begone!"

Sting and Rogue cloaked their hands in their respective magic and thrust forward. Jiemma used his forearms and blocked their advance from front and behind, a malicious smirk on his bearded face.

"A strong guild you say?!" He laughed sinisterly. "Never have I expected such a group to become strong! There is no such a thing as a strong guild, for it is the individual alone!" He pivoted and swung his arms again, making Rogue come around and slide with Sting away from Jiemma.

Sting regained footing, dust quickly dissipating and gave Jiemma a sinister glare. "That's not true in the slightest."

"We have found those who can prove you wrong!" Rogue's argument began to bring him and Sting into the thoughts of Fairy Tail; Natsu, Gray, Erza, all of them who they saw in action. "They're more than just a guild!" Both thought of Nic and his Pokémon. "They're family!"

"And you don't mess with family!" Sting yelled. "They were there when the other was down, and we were beyond lucky to have met such amazing people and fight alongside them! Their kindness is what brought them forth and shed light on the darkness you created!"

"It's time for the guild Minerva sought to be realized!" Rogue announced.

"SILENCE!" Jiemma slashed his hands like they were razor blades. The two chops grazed into Sting and Rogue's shoulders, blood spilling out from the deep impact.

The Dragon Slayers maintained intense glares through their pain.

"Only the individual matters! Teamwork and compassion is futile and but a handicap! It's weakness! I am not weak! I am the strongest! I am the most powerful there will ever be!" Jiemma's roaring was so intense that the ground beneath shuddered. "I make the heavens tremble! I am not weaklings like any of you!"

"You are weak!" Sting snapped. "You threw away everything for power with no point! I don't give a damn, because I'm living for someone else's sake!" He thought briefly of Minerva and Lector. For the briefest second, Bellona was seen as well. "We're making it so that we can give those people something to fight for, so that no one will feel lonely as long as we're around!"

"NEVER!" Jiemma's anger fumed. He charged for the Twin Dragons to end them and exact his reign. Every step taken shook the ground.

Despite how they felt, they had to end this battle. By ending Jiemma, by stitching the wounds he's inflicted on their reputation and Sabertooth, they would have truly moved forward. They knew that. This was their chance, and now was the opportunity to prove Jiemma wrong. As he charged like a bull, Sting and Rogue's fingertips began to cloak in their respective magic. White and black outlines that looked like Slash almost left thick trails as they closed in on Jiemma.

"This ends here!" Rogue screamed.

The Twin Dragons slashed with hundreds of small glints.

"White Shadow Dragon's Rough Silk!"

Both passed Jiemma as hundreds of very thin beams of light and shadow slashed at him, piercing his body multiple times. The Twin Dragons heard Jiemma's howling agony as one beam after another, his body was punctured with furious tenacity.

The demon's eyes were wide as his gawking expression covered his face. "Im…possible…how…"

Sting and Rogue panted deeply as the light and darkness of their fingertips faded. As they tried to catch their breath, they looked back to see Jiemma falling backwards. The demon's decrepit body smashed into the ground, his weight making a crater as his dismembered body laid there, the demon's life at its possible end, for good this time. Sting and Rogue looked back at one another, dirt and red painting them.

"Hey." Sting grinned. "Guess we won."

"Yeah." Rogue snickered. "Guess we…did…" Rogue began to fall to his side, exhaustion finally kicking in.

"Fairy Tail…has it covered…" With that, Sting also sundered, with no more energy to stand.

Both thudded at the ground at the same time, laying on their stomachs as a warm wind breezed past them. For the oddest reason, their Sabertooth emblems felt warm with the wind.


Mard Geer flapped his wings, the shockwaves and winds generating solidifying into thorn brambles that shot as waves towards Nic and Greninja. As the earth-shaking assault closed in, Nic crossed his arms.

"Heat Wave!"

Nic lashed his arm, the shockwaves and gust generated that of incinerating fire and orange and red flares. The Heat Wave incinerated the attack, reducing everything front to smoke.

Mard Geer's figure was seen through the smoke cloud, the Underworld King seen clearly as his claw reached out for his prey. He missed as Nic ducked the jab, keeping him at stomach-level.

"Fire Punch!"

Nic's fist engulfed in flames, viciously scoring a hit on Mar Geer's gut. The Underworld King gagged as the impact made him recoil several feet, whereas he spread his wings to catch himself. With momentum back, he ascended into the air in a steep slant. Once high enough, he positioned himself and looked down at Nic and Greninja, arms joined by the wrists.

"HRAH!" Mard Geer used his Curse Power and unleashed a voluminous blast of shimmering light at them.

"Greninja, Night Slash!" Nic commanded.

Reappearing in front of the incoming beam in midair, Greninja unsheathed a purple needle. With a violent shout, he slashed vertically downwards, his attack edging its way through the beam. The blast split apart, becoming two diverged beams that exploded in shimmering light some distance away from each other.

The beam dissipated, but Mard Geer reappeared in the dissipating blunder. In front of Greninja in the altitude, the Underworld King whirled a leg around to strike. Greninja's reflexes kicked in and his Night Slash dissipated as he used both hands and seized the leg. "Go down!" Greninja twisted hi body, throwing Mard Geer from over his shoulder straight below.

As the demon went sundering, Nic glowed and transformed into his Iron Form. His hair glistened and became shimmering armor as he lunged right for Mard Geer.

"Iron Head!"

Mard Geer reacted fast enough and straightened out as he fell. He saw Nic jumping for him to where the impact would be held and he brought his leg down. As Mard Geer's foot collided with Nic's Iron Head, the air was caught in a ripple that exerted outwards; reaching for the ground even and making rocks fly away. After a few moments, both parties recoiled away, with Nic and Greninja landed back on the ground while Mard Geer regained airspace.

"You're very light on your feet, human." Mard Geer commented. "Surely you aren't feeling tired now, are you?"

"I could be asking you the same thing." Nic retorted. "Surprised you're not laboring."

Mard Geer held up a clutched fist. "It is my demon will to free Zeref and destroy you. The very thought of exterminating you at last is what drives me forward. Until that goal is reached, I won't waste a single breath further."

Nic and Greninja glared up with hostility for Mard Geer, both parties having it in for the other. From the distance, however, there was an odd green light and static flaring. The flaring caught Nic and Greninja's attention, surprising them.

"What is that?" Greninja inquired.

"Green lightning?" Nic wondered. 'Is that where Erza is?'

Mard Geer looked over at the field far away to see the green static flaring. He looked on in amusement. "My, seems Kyôka is occupied at the moment." He glanced back at Nic. "Oh well, nothing can be done about that. You on the other hand…" He reached out for Nic and his comrade, where on their chest roses bloomed.

Both looked down, bewildered with what Mard Geer had done.

"Rose Explosion!"

With a swipe of his arm, the roses exploded in a small burst of energy, the impact on Nic and Greninja making them grunt and slide back on their heels from the attack delivered. They caught their own footing, each wincing with one eye open.

"You let your guard down." Mard Geer spread his wings, an intense shockwave rippling. "Now perish, human and Pokémon!" The airwaves solidified, becoming wild brambles that reached out for its prey. The thorns and spikes expanding reached earth, heading towards the pair.

"Greninja…" Nic began to glow.

Greninja's legs spread. "We won't let him beat us."

Nic finished glowing, becoming another dual type form. This time, it was the Mind Form, but the edging, belt, pants, shirt, and shoe laces were of the Iron Form's design. With a Psychic/Steel Form, he steeled himself. "Let's go! Agility!"

Nic disappeared in split seconds before a wave of brambles met him. Greninja vanished as well, both reappearing in various directions, in midair, on brambles, and both were seen dodging fruitlessly. They both back flipped, twisted, pivoted, and maneuvered Mard Geer's onslaught of brambles. They were maneuvering to the best of their abilities, without much effort in getting close to Mard Geer however.

'He isn't letting us get close. He's figured out our versatile methods.' Nic thought.

'We'll need to go long range as long as these thorns are utilized.' Greninja thought.

As both landed on the ground, they jumped up, dodging a thorn vine that pierced the ground. As they back flipped once again, sliding alongside earth, they began to see various openings within the jungle Mard Geer unleashed. Using their eyes and wits, they saw a single opening of the melee unleashed. Both glanced at the other, nodding in understanding and jumped right for the nearest bramble.

They landed on it, both dashing up the vine for the clear opening for the Underworld King.

Nic ducked from a bramble shot from an angle overhead, but maintained a steady pace with Greninja. Telepathically, he tried to use his Mind Form's prowess, homing in on Erza. 'Erza? Are you there?' He asked.

'Nic? Is that you?!' She answered, much to his satisfaction.

Nic leaned to his right, evading a bramble from behind.'Yes, it's me. You know better than to doubt this voice, do you?'

'I suppose you're right. My mistake. How are you talking to me right now?'

'I'm using my Mind Form's powers to make a telepathic connection. I saw green lightning in the distance and I got a bad feeling. Is everything alright?' He saw dozens of brambles heading their way. Making action happen, he swiped his arm, unleashing Psycho Cut. The pink crescent expanded outwards, reaching measures that cut down the brambles to diced pieces ahead. The Psycho Cut sliced through the incoming field Mard Geer was generating, and when it reached outside, he jerked away to avoid the Psycho Cut as it faded into the distance, making a pink explosion.

"What was that?!" He exasperated. He looked back down, shocked as he unleashed more of his brambles to the bramble jungle he was making.

'Honestly, I wish I could say no. This demon has it in for me I'm afraid.' Erza stated.

'That makes two of us.' Nic answered.

'What does that mean?'

Another bramble shot straight across Nic and Greninja, but they both ducked beneath it and continued their steep dash up the vine. 'Mard Geer really has it in for us. Greninja and I are barely getting close with his thorns intervening. Apparently he isn't letting us get out of this alive.'

'Mard Geer is giving you a hard time? That sounds foolhardy.'

'Tough call, but didn't you say you were in a bind yourself?' Nic opened his mouth, making silver light and light blue traces converge. Unleashing a Flash Cannon, he again shot through brambles heading right for him. He obliterated the brambles that disappeared within the light.

The burst of energy was seen outside, where Mard Geer was looking annoyed. "Pesky human."

'Is this really the time to pull the other's legs?' Erza replied

'Guess not.' Nic answered.

'Nic, do you know why Acnologia is here?'

The question caught Nic by surprise, but he was even more surprised as he and Greninja were closing in on the opening.'I can guess…it's because he's still after Garchomp and I. We came across him as we were dealing with Face's bombs and he challenged us. He intends to exact revenge for being humiliated as the Dragon King.'

'You battled Acnologia?!'

'Yes, though it did a number on us, we sundered him with heavy tolls. I went back to my world to ask Rayquaza in assistance against Acnologia, giving Garchomp time to handle destroying Face's bombs.'

It took a moment for Erza to reply back. 'You really did wonders this time. You know that?'

'I wouldn't worry about Garchomp. I have faith in him, just like I do for you.'

"Incoming!" Greninja warned.

Nic saw it too; a massive, slithery thorn reaching from ahead. It was thick and targeted for Nic. The man continued to dash on as he crossed his arms in front like a shield. "Iron Defense!" His forearms were coated in a thick layer of iron, his Defense increasing. The bramble, however, had heavy momentum behind it. Though it did hit Nic, it wasn't successfully in piercing him. All it did was make him slide backwards down the steep vineyard. He grunted as he was losing momentum.

Greninja pivoted and looked back. "Hang on!" He whirled his tongue around, uncoiling its scarf-like appeal as it reached for Nic. The pink tongue reached out and Nic held his wrist out, where the tongue coiled around the wrist and yanked Nic back. The tongue shortened up again as Nic went flying back to Greninja's side. As he landed, Greninja's tongue returned to position and both pressed on, saving their thanks unsanswered.

'Nic? Are you still there?' Erza asked, her voice unsound.

'…yeah.' He said.'Greninja and I are pouring everything onto this demon. You said you were in trouble, right?'

'Sadly.I was in battle against Kyôka. Minerva and I were holding her off well until she used Organic Link Magic and changed her form.'

'Changed her form?'

'Yes. Minerva was struck down regrettably, and now she's attacked my pain receptors. I can't feel anything anymore. I was deprived of my sight, taste, smell, touch, and hearing. All I saw was dark before I heard your voice. Honestly, I wonder if I can actually defeat her in time.'

'You can.' He assured with a smile.

'Huh?'

'You and I both know lying down on the job will not solve our problems. Remember when we were separated during the war? What do you think motivated me to get along with Jellal? You.'Brambles again shot as waves for them both, but this time Nic was prepared. His eyes glowed, initiating Psychic. The attack outlined the incoming brambles in light blue, and suddenly they did a U-turn back from where they came from, The thorny brambles smooshed and pressed themselves together, creating a barrier that blocked incoming brambles and allowing Nic and Greninja to soar up to the opening in the attack once more. 'You were in my thoughts even when I was chained up when the Rivolta enacted their plan. I can't think of another reason for me to not stand when I'm fighting for something I want to return home to. We fought by the other's side. We saw the other bare pain. We survived the apocalypse. We chose to stay and be with each other, forever. We even made a house for our unity. I won't throw it all away just because I lost senses. I have a reason to fight, and it's because of that I won't lie down.'

'You're right. What was I thinking? I can't stay down like this.' Erza answered with a better tone.

'Then rise. You will find a way. You always do.' Nic swiped his arms in opposite directions, his Psychic dissipating the brambles shielded and reducing the ones inflicted to shattered bits.

'No, WE always do, Nic. The Pokémon always help us with that.'

'Yeah. That's true…Erza.' Nic took one last leap alongside Greninja, the pair narrowly diving out of the wavy opening with perfected timing and in midair in front of Mard Geer.

"Impossible!" Mard Geer gasped.

Nic and Greninja reeled their fists back. 'When this is over, when we finish our ends, let's find the other. Let's find Vanessa, and let's just be that way for as long as we can.'

'I would like that.' Erza said.

'I wouldn't have it any other way.' Time slowed down as their fists were at maximum kinetic energy.

'Nic, wait for me…I love you.'

'I love you too, so very much.' Nic ended the heartwarming transmission, unleashing a mighty cry alongside Greninja as they drove their fists into Mard Geer's face. The furious impact made Mard Geer's face twist and contort – to him – as the pressure and force made some of the sharp teeth in his mouth fall out. Their punch followed through, shooting Mard Geer back down to the earth in a powerful and heinous thud. The ground shuddered as dust bellowed and the brambles disappeared.

Nic and Greninja both landed several feet away, staring at Mard Geer as he was on hands and knees with eyes wide open with shock facing the ground.

"I…I can't believe it. How?!" Mard Geer looked back at them with increasing exasperation. "What are you?! You couldn't have made it through all that! Is this a farce?!"

Nic and his Greninja stood right beside one another, their right fists raised and balled up. "You wouldn't understand what humans have to strive for in order to live. That will we carry through us is what we use to push us towards the future. Every battle we come across is of experience that we carry to the next confrontation."

"With each battle, we gain something more precious that we use to the extent that our hearts pulse." Greninja announced.

"Shut up!" His patience at a thin point, Mard Geer flapped his wings, sending petals made by his Curse Power at Nic and Greninja. "Rose Explosion: Bloom!"

The petals of light closed in on Nic and Greninja, surrounding them in a cyclone of light that held them trapped. The petals expanded, becoming a slowly-growing explosion. As the earth shook with the impending destruction, Nic and Greninja looked at one another, staring into the other's eyes. The longer they stared, the more they could see the other.

Outside of the silver dome, Mard Geer maliciously sneered at the pulsating explosion. The longer the rampage went on, the more he could feel victory assured. His senses, however, caught him being a fool, as the air suddenly pressurized. The Underworld King went wide-eyed at this awesome sensation he was getting, which was made the nearby dust die off.

"This power…" The demon trailed off.

Inside the growing explosion, Nic and Greninja's eyes were starting to glow as they stared forward, seeing Mard Geer clear as day. As they remained still, their fists balled tighter as their heartbeats began to synchronize.

"We won't let you stop us! No matter what!" The two yelled out in unison, their ethereal images overlapping and everything turning purple…

Mard Geer remained shocked as he saw his explosion expanding, yet this odd prowess wasn't fading; rather it was growing. It was tremendous. It was beginning to make him go mad with how intense it was feeling. "What is going on? Why…" He stepped back. "But why isn't this power going away! It just keeps growing!"

Mard Geer heard yelling and the vision of water expanding outwards. His explosion attack immediately dissipated as gusts raged at his feet and covered up as a giant cyclone pillar of water expanded outwards, escalating to great heights. The pillar of astronomical disbelief kept climbing, its raging energy leaving him startled.

"What is this?!" He cried out.

High above, there was a purple light that guided the pillar skyward. Once it reached a pinnacle, all the water that rampaged broke apart, revealing Nic and Nic-Greninja high above Mard Geer. Both looked to be suspended, their eyes closed for a moment before they opened in unison, revealing their irises to be purple. All the broken water that remained stationary in the midair from the ground up began to converge and stream into vast currents around Nic-Greninja. The water streams continued to compress and absorb into the Water/Dark-type, until all the water from the pillar was gone, having been morphed into a medium-sized shuriken of water on Nic-Greninja's back. Around the frog was also a coat of dark water to give him similar appeal to Nic.

As Nic's purple colors around his normal attire also glowed purple, the power they felt was as staggering as was the time they fought God Serena a while ago. This was their power – the might of man and Pokémon beyond limitation, and Mard Geer was seeing it first-hand.

The Underworld King looked up, startled with this sudden climb of power. "What have you done?!" He shouted.

Both Nic and Nic-Greninja screamed out loud as they had similar positions when folding their bodies and diving for Mard Geer. "We're coming for you, Mard Geer!" Nic declared. They both soared for the mastermind, their glares as serious and calm as could get.

Frustrated, Mard Geer was losing his calm – whatever was left that is. 'This…this power, is this what they used to trump the mightiest of Ishgar after all? No, that's absurd! They're only humans! They can't have that much power compared to us demons!' He spread his wings and left the ground, soaring right for the two falling from the ground. "I won't be beaten by you!" He declared. He put both wrists together, creating another sphere of light, unleashing a heinous barrage of petal-like lights at them.

As they descended the duo glared at the incoming crescents, their purple eyes simultaneously seeing right through the other's vision. They both saw the exact same thing, and the crescents reflected in their vision. Their purple eyes sharpened when the large-scale assault got close enough, and then they disappeared. They miraculously reappeared on different crescents, but equal distance from one another, lunging and disappearing almost to where they were invisible, flashing every few seconds on a crescent before vanishing once more.

"What?!" Mard Geer cried out.

Both skimmed from crescent to crescent until they passed every single one with ease, reaching Mard Geer's proximity. With knees raised, they let out battle cries as they stomped down onto him; Nic using his right leg, and Nic-Greninja with his left. They struck Mard Geer's chest, causing a large ripple to exert outwards from the force of the impact. Mard Geer's pupils briefly turned white as time slowed down for a few seconds, and then shot down like a comet. He crashed into the ground, kicking up a gust of dust as he slid on his back.

Nic and Nic-Greninja flipped vertically and landed on their heels, remaining on their one-knee poses as they glared at the dissipating dust. They saw Mard Geer struggling to stand, but otherwise his armor on his chest was broken to pieces.

Barely getting to sit up, he stared at them with disbelief. 'How did they achieve such power? Is human bonding really that special?' He managed to muster enough strength to rise to a single knee. 'No, it must be something greater. I'll see to it!' "I'm not done yet!" He slammed a claw onto the ground, making a shockwave flow through the earth until it faded. Meters away, thorns began to rise, snaking out of the ground and attacking Nic and Nic-Greninja.

In unison, both jumped and dodged the dozen brambles that struck their position. Within the dust below, the thorns snaked their way to attack them again.

"Night Slash!" They shouted together. They spiraled through the air, materializing water-like purple kunai they held in both hands. In a furious second, they slashed through every bramble, splitting them all into half without a scratch.

Mard Geer clutched his fists and grunted. In another attempt, he raised both hands overhead, creating a sphere of light with his power once more. He dropped to a knee and slammed the palms down, sending a large, linear silver light at them.

"Scald!"

Exhaling together, Nic and his mirror image opened their mouths, firing a combined blast of boiling water that was of monstrous size. The attack tore through the ground below, making rock fly everywhere. The two Scald met the linear silver blast, making a misty burst of blue expel in between. Within the mist, however, the Scald powered through, the silver energy of no match.

As it traveled across the land, Mard Geer was getting paranoid. 'Kyôka, are you still there?' He telepathically asked

'Lord Mard Geer!' She answered.

'What is happening? Why hasn't Face gone off yet?'

'I don't know! The markers and Faces are all rapidly disappearing!'

'What?!' He looked beyond exasperated.

'I don't understand, what is going on here? At this rate, Face will be lost!'

Scald approached, but he was still stuck on the fact he was being tricked. '...these humans and Pokémon…they are ruining everything! Kyôka! Destroy them and detonate the remaining Faces-!' Mard Geer went wide-eyed and hurriedly ascended, dodging second before Scald hit where he once stood, making a boiling blast of mist and steam rattle the earth below. In his shock, he was feeling his black heart palpitate in fear he might be losing, which left his mentality shaken as Nic and Nic-Greninja reappeared in front of him, their fists balled with a powerful purple energy.

"Return!"

Together, they punched at Mard Geer. The Underworld King used his wings as shields at the last second. The two fists connected and purple beams flared everywhere before the attack that represented their almighty bond made a large purple flashy explosion. A ripple exerted through the air, pulsating outwards. The energy reached the ground, overturning the rock and everything else; almost changing the landscape.

The explosion of purple faded, and Mard Geer shot back down and landed with an insidious smash, while Nic and his Nic-Greninja landed on their feet, both having fists clutched as their opponent was stirring in the dust cloud.

Mard Geer groaned, his chest armor battered, and that Return attack was so powerful that his wings paid a terrible price. He groaned as the stinging pain of them no longer being there rang through his center. With his wings blown off, he could no longer fly, and his eyes shuddered with exasperation.

"I…I can't…accept this!" Mard Geer again struggled to stand, but was beginning to stand one last time. He was at his limit, and his body was about to give out. If not for his ideals of destroying Nic he may have continued laying on the ground. "I refuse to be bested by you!"

"We said it before. You're nothing but a blind being who's been toying with his own destiny." Nic said. "You think demons are superior because you've been born from Zeref, yet you fail to recognize what other species may be capable of. That's nothing more than foolhardy pride that's been stripped from you."

"You claim and consider yourself worthy of killing Zeref, but you never considered what you can o by yourself." Nic-Greninja said. "You could've done something better than fall into the bottomless pit that you dug for yourself. All this to return to Zeref and destroy him. And for what cost?"

"Shut up…shut up…" Mard Geer growled. "I will not be defeated! I will make you two suffer! Human! Pokémon! I don't care! My destiny is clear, and I will destroy all who are in my path of certainty!"

Nic and Nic-Greninja's eyes narrowed. "Then let's end this once and for all! Nic-Greninja!"

"All the way!" Nic-Greninja seized the Water Shuriken on his back. As he pulled for it, the surrounding moisture began to spiral into the shuriken, thickening it to a greater extent. As Nic-Greninja held it in his left hand, Nic reached and held on with the right hand. Above their heads, the Water Shuriken spun and doubled in size, equaling their length.

"Water Shuriken!" They shouted.

Mard Geer watched the blue saucer rotate at a high velocity. If it hit, he'd probably lose. He wasn't going to take it, and no more chances. He had to end the fight, even if it meant using his ultimate spell. The anger in his eyes began to shrink, his pupils returning to normal. "Very well." He said. "I was saving this for Zeref himself…but now I must invoke the ultimate curse." He closed his eyes, concentrating all of his Curse Power. "I shall now sentence you to the norm, and end you for good."

As Nic and Nic-Greninja were spinning the shuriken overhead, they noticed the ground around them was seeing with dark ghoul-like ghosts. They all wailed frantically as they seeped their way towards them.

"What is this?" Nic asked. "Mist?"

"No, something much worse." Nic-Greninja figured.

The ghouls around them began to stretch, reaching for the skies and enveloping the atmosphere in a pitch-black around them. As Nic and Nic-Greninja tried to keep calm, they didn't falter as the ground beneath was shaking. When they both looked down, they saw that there was no ground, but pitch-black. All around, the ghouls summoned by Mard Geer maliciously began to brighten up into a light pillar.

Nic and Nic-Greninja looked at each other, their ears ringing with widened eyes. The explosion of wails and deafening eruption made them both fade into the light, the shuriken in hand fading, but still spinning.

The pillar of wailing ghouls made the ground roar, the heavens screaming out loud. Mard Geer stood at its vase, basking at the ultimate curse released. "This is my last resort to you, the memory of death itself! Memento Mori!"

The land beneath shattered to pieces as the ghouls became a vibrant light, obliterating everything within its reach. The skies and clouds above dispersed as the pillar of death rattled everything within the vicinity.

Inside, Nic and Nic-Greninja – though no longer visible - could still feel the other's heartbeats. Their visions were cloudy, but the longer they stared at each other, the more they began to see the other clearly once more.

'Nic…'

'Greninja…'

No words were needed. This was their time to shine through death. They knew this was nothing, as they knew this was but foolhardiness that only gave earlier foes bad names. This spell of death was but an obstacle they would surpass.

Nic's purple eyes faced forward, staring outwards. His twirling and hold on Water Shuriken didn't waver. "I believe!" He screamed out.

"I believe!" Nic-Greninja screamed out.

"WE BELIEVE, THAT EVEN DEATH CANNOT STOP US!" As they cried out inside Memento Mori, a veil of water surged around them, obscuring them from the eruption. Their silhouettes were seen holding the shuriken higher, the purple all over their bodies glowing brighter than before. For the oddest reason, the Water Shuriken began to turn purple as well.

Outside the light pillar, Mard Geer glared with a satisfied grin. "The key to kill Zeref…is to destroy what is known as the concept of Life and Death. It was not originally I who sought to cease life and death…but it was he who defaced us all. Lysandre. He destroyed life and death itself. There was no purgatory. There wasn't nothing itself. He wanted to vaporize all meaning, a void of pitch-black. With what he sought, I shall remodel it, and make it so that we demons are proven superior!"

As the pillar of light flared, there was a whisk of water seen.

"Hm?!" Mard Geer looked back up. "What now?"

Another bleak streak of water was seen, and then another. Various water streams circled about around the pillar, and the light of the ghouls began to become wavy. The wailing and booming began to wash away.

"No…"

The light pillar expanded, only to glint blue beams everywhere before it cracked apart. Blue cracks encompassed the whole pillar, and like an egg, the light shattered. To Mard Geer's horror, his spell was replaced by a giant pillar of water, one that made mist at its base. Streaks of purple were seen on occasion, but the primary purple was seen in the center, where there was something saucer-like at least five times greater than a Water Shuriken.

Mard Geer was oblivious to the mist that was at his legs as he was petrified by the amount of power he was feeling. "This can't be for real…"

"You've disgraced yourself!" Nic announced.

Mard Geer gasped at the sound of Nic's voice within the tornado of water.

"You thought you could be as mighty as Lysandre! You thought Zeref was the most powerful there was! You thought you could best the few beings who even shamed Acnologia and your creator! You're blind! If you thought you were stronger than Lysandre, then let us tell you something…"

The pillar of water suddenly broke apart, just like when Nic and Nic-Greninja transformed, only this time the air shifted as a small whirlwind was high above. Air tore apart as Nic and Greninja's purple parts were glowing, and the shocking part that as their eyes and purple glowed, that very shade of purple was what the giant Water Shuriken was.

Mard Geer was petrified in fear. "That's-!"

"You aren't half as strong as God Serena!" Nic-Greninja declared.

"You aren't even a remote fraction of Lysandre! You can't begin to compare the grief and anguish he and the Impure Underworld caused that you could never hope to achieve!" Nic shouted. "You've been dealing with the illusion that you're the mightiest demon to be feared because he may hope to slay Zeref, when you know that will never be the case!"

"No! Stay away!" Mard Geer hollered.

"This is for all the mayhem you stirred for the sake of Zeref and chaos alike!" Nic and Nic-Greninja shouted. In unison, both brought their arms back and the high frequency of the spinning purple shuriken intensified.

At last, they threw it with all their might.

"WATER SHURIKEN!"

The airspace shredded to pieces as the attack was launched. Purple streams followed as the shuriken sailed down at intense speeds, far faster than anything Mard Geer had seen, even during his battle with Nic. The attack closed in, but all Mard Geer could do was go wide-eyed as a purple light brightened up the atmosphere. The Underworld King's heart stopped as he could only see light overshadowing darkness that we was creating. The light was shredding through any and all evil that he manifested for the sake of E.N.D.

There was an intense moment as everything was but of silence and white. '…Tartaros…lost.'

The shuriken made impact, and Mard Geer was enveloped in a rapidly expanding explosion of mist and purple. The energy was so intense that the ground shredded to bits. The purple bellow was that of a giant dome with density that crushed everything in its path. Nic and Nic-Greninja descended from the high altitude, watching with serious expressions as their attack engulfed what was Mard Geer. Mard Geer's screams got louder as the demon was enveloped in the explosion of water that signified the eternal bond he failed to tear apart. The demon let out one last bellow as his figure began to fade away, his destruction at the shuriken of Nic and Nic-Greninja.

The shockwaves sent mighty winds in all directions, another pillar of purple light bellowing towards te sky with ripples at the dome-like base before it all collapsed into mist. The winds caught Nic and Nic-Greninja, giving them a draft as they sailed backwards towards the earth. As the winds and mist cloud faded into oblivion, they landed on their heels, sliding backwards to a harsh halt that engraved their feet into a soft dirt trail that stretched for meters on end.

As they both were catching their breath, all that was left in place of Mard Geer was barren ground, leveled by the assault made. Everything fell silent. Silent as a grave.

At last, Mard Geer was defeated.

Nic turned to look at Nic-Greninja with a relaxed front, but even he was still caught up with the uncertainty the air held. "You believe that did it?"

Nic-Greninja looked back ahead, staring at the landscape as fresh dust blew. Eventually, he nodded.

Nic looked back. Half-grinning. "Yeah, I thought so."


Back in the control room, the alert was clear in front of Erza and everyone else to see, much to their own surprise.

00:00

FACE

SIGNAL

LOST

Tartaros' plans have finally crumbled.


Here is chapter 54, and I made this one very special because I updated on my sister's birthday, so I really had to dig my time these past few days and finish up today while my sister is out enjoying her day. Also it's another one of my fellow writer's b-day as well, so happy b-day bud! So many birthdays, wow.

Anyways, this was primarily what happened during Nic's perspective. I know this was almost twice as long as last chapter, which was mainly around Erza, but there was also the Twin Dragons and the fact I needed to get Mega Rayquaza in there as well. But that aside, I know it's been a long time coming, but Nic-Greninja has finally come back, and I know you all missed him so much. To be honest, it was either Nic-Greninja or another Legendary Force, but I chose to bring Nic-Greninja instead.

So in terms of how I will make the rest of the arc go, let's see how it plays out, but I intend to make it end in 2 chapters. So if you loved the battles this chapter had, let me know and thanks for reading! I hope to end the Tartaros Arc by next weekend!