Back with a new chapter. Sort of got a block since I needed to elaborate more on the choreography of the the fights without making them too long or nonsense. Hope you like it and if so please leave a review.

Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail nor Fate/Stay Night.

Arc 1

Chapter 9: Beyond limits

As the small, wooden ship reached the harbor, Nightingale jumped out of it with a single leap without even waiting for it to complitely dock. And not even a second after she touched ground, a trail of dust arose behind her as she dashed in the direction of the black tower.

Patients in need of medical attention were waiting for her. No time could be wasted for idle chats with the sailor, who was still baffled and full of confusion by the presence of that mysterious island which was not supposed to exist according to the map.

Day had passed and evening came. Up in the sky, the small, round moon, that now stood in the middle of the starry night, shined of a bright yellow. It was that time of the month, the night of full moon was here. A small amount of its dazzling light fell through the colorful windows and enlightened the stage of the final act. It was here, inside four white walls reminiscent the interior of a church, that the fierce battle between those two entity with vast different backgrounds took place.

On one side stood the imposing figure of a powerful Dead Apostole, his abilities far exceeding that of any mortal man. A being of untold knowledge and might, with hundreds years of life. Holding ambitions that were beyond the realm of possibilities and seeking a truth attained by none, nothing had value in front of him outside of his own desires. From betraying his friends to killing milions of people, even rejecting his humanity, he had no restrains when it came to accomplish his own goals.

"That's right, keep dancing in this ballroom of mine. Don't stop, let the beautiful dance keep me entertained until the promised hour. Eternity is finally within my reach, and such joyous moment must be celebrated with the most magnificent of the exhibitions."

Why boasting his achievement so loudly in front of an intruder? Because Michael Roa Valdamjong was that kind of being who could hardly contain his immense ego. Indeed, he was a very prideful creature that always looked down upon those he saw as inferior species that lacked in everything. Even after his mindset had changed over and over again in the course of his long life, he still had not given up on this arrogant side of his personality. Despite his view of the world was radicaly different from the time prior to his 'rebirth', he still saw the mankind as a pitiful existance limited by time. His goal was still that of true reincarnation, an eternal life not bound by body but linked to the soul.

The work he had dedicated all his life was nearly ready, its conceptualization reaching the climax soon.

He was having fun, drooling in joy for the instant the portal to the Root would open. Perhaps the only thing left was a way to pass the little time before the imminent realization of his dream, and this fight could not have come at a better moment. It was trully a blissful night.

On the other side was Titania from Fairy Tail, wearing the Lightning Emperor set while dodging the many strikes of thunder that came from all directions.

Hidden traps were everywhere. No matter where she stepped, it seemed like there was always a magical circle set there waiting to be activated.

She was inside an unbreakable cage made of Magic, put against the entire environment which kept firing spells nonstop. It felt like been caught in the lair of a predator. She was at disadvantage.

Erza bit her lips, uneasy at the tight situation she was in. Unable to break through the rain of lightning, she was forced to jump left and right to not be hit by those massive discharges. Despite the defensive properties of her armor, they still managed to wound her.

Projected bow and arrows, she went for a barrage of explosive darts that would surely bought her time to sprint ahead. Unfortunately they got vaporized half way through the flight.

What now? An idea then came. Perhaps if guarding was not possible, then she could try to use the attacks at he advantage.

First she needed a new armament, and so a large, dazzling blade took the place of the bow. A fork shaped sword with an affinity with the lightning element, capable of absorbing said type of Magic and making it its own. She was unsure whenever it had the capacity to fully absorb the attacks, but with the right enhancement to its original design maybe it could.

She lifted as a shield, holding with one hand the handle and the other its edge. As it charged up, she left the grip and made it float in the air. It started to rotate, faster and faster. A disc of electricity was now above her, and Erza didn't hesitate to throw it at her enemy.

Cracks were already visible, meaning that the projection would not last much. But it didn't need to as it would cut Roa before it would happen. But the Dead Apostole was not surprised in the least, and elegantly jumped in the air. A loud impact followed, and the throne was no more.

As he slowly descended, a scyte approached dangerously toward his head. He effortlessly dodge it, but didn't notice that attached to the weapon's end was a long chain that now was wrapping around his body. Titania then followed with a poweful kick that sent him crushing on ground.

Twin spears then materialized in both her hands. She sprinted ahead with lightning speed, making the floor shake a bit and debris levitate for a moment.

Her opponent summoned a magical barrier, but it proved useless. A single, accurate thrust of the red spear followed by a rapid swing upward that completely severed the left limb. The barrier got dissolved, leaving Roa open for the next attack.

The yellow spear then proceed to strike the chest. But as its cursed tip came near him, Roa caught it with his other hand.

An arm flew in the sky, leaving a red trail of scarlet blood. But it didn't go far. One second it was up there in the air, spinning nonstop, and the next instant it was back to its natural position, attached to the Dead Apostole's body as if it never left it.

Erza tried to back down. Unfortunately something blocked her feet as she stepped back. A black, liquid matter was under her, clinging on her torso and attempting to swallow her as if it was a living beast. A violent assault of powerful bolts then struck down, tearing her armor in pieces.

"Ugh!"

But she wasn't done. Not yet. Pushing forward with all her might, she forcefully emerged from that mass of darkness. Small cuts turned into large wounds, and blood dripped from her scorched body like water from a broken jar.

She equipped the Flame Emperor Armor and summoned a wall of fire that turned her into a human torch and freed her from the restrains. She then performed a powerful slash with the newly forged magical sword, coated in a blazing aura of Magic. But Roa didn't falter, his smile didn't disappeared. His body burned into ashes, but the matter didn't dissolve and instead kept expanding.

It had been a copy the one Erza just took down. The real one was now standing behind her, with hands in the pockets of his trousers and unfazed by the attempt of the young mage. It was surprisingly amusing to watch the struggles of the human, the failed attempts further increasing the despair in her eyes.

"Interesting. Really interesting. You're certainly no common mage. I must admit you 're exceeding my expectations. Please, keep coming at me with all your might."

Again words full of arrogance that echoed through the room. Even in the middle of the fight, Roa still found time to throw taunting remarks at his opponent. But it was to be expected since he was overwhelming her. He had hardly moved a single finger since the start and yet Erza was already in difficulty. From the beginning it was a battle Titania had no chance of winning. The difference in power was evident.

Titania needed to get away, and as soon as possible before being trapped again. She switched into the Black Wing Armor and soared in air, just in time to evade a huge snake shaped thunder that was coming her way. But if the first one didn't land, the second one did in its place. Another thunder descended from the ceiling, coming from a big pentagram with ancient scriptures inside of it. Hit by a destructive force of multitude of volts, she blacked out and fell on the ground.

"Well, well. Seems like this is the end. And here I hoped you would last longer than this. Perhaps I pretended too much from a mere human."

The situation wasn't faring well for Jellal as his opponent was easily countering each of his moves. It was like they had a sort of sixth sense or even a third eye behind their back because despite the many attempts he still hadn't managed even once to caught them off guard. And their physical prowess was far beyond those of normal humans. Even using layers of Reinforcement he still was not able to compete with them. A direct approach was not going to work.

Currently using 'Meteor' to leap around the room, he was preparing the next spell to fire while chased by dozens of chains.

"Is this all? Tricks like this will never work on me even in a thousand of years."

While the fight kept going on, their eyes looked up from time to time. Seemed like something was happening on the upper floor. A fight was taking place between Roa and that human girl from before, but nothing that really concerned them as long as nothing endangered the golden cup. Not difficult to keep track of what was happening on the entire island due to possessing the highest grade of 'Presence Detection' that allowed to easily detect any presence, even those hidden by Magic, within a large area.

"Tsk. Then take this!"

Around them Mystogan's five staves were set ready and summoned five different magical circle, one on top of the other above the designated target.

"Sleep! Fivefold Array: Mikagura!"

A single, powerful beam of light fell from the sky, passing through the five layers and descending like a fallen star.

But even that barely did anything as they went out of the smoke generated by the beam with seemingly no injuries.

"Are you done? If so then now is my turn."

Deciding it was time to end the fight, the white clad being leaped forward and closed the gap between they and their opponent in the blink of an eye. Hand shrouded by mana to form a blade of electricity, he slashed down violently.

Jellal had no way to escape, nor to protect. Too fast was the attack for him to properly react. That was it, something needed to be sacrificed. Not that he was too surprised since no battle was without risks. And it was not like a lost arm was going to tamper much his fighting ability.

But as that thought crossed his mind, a storm of fire and ice appeared in front of him and shielded him from the attack.

As it died out, two figure emerged out of it, two mages he knew very well.

"I'm totally fired up!" shout Dragneel, both his arms covered in flames.

"Looks like we are late for the party. Hey, Mystogan, think you need a helping hand?" followed Fullbuster, shirtless and with hands in position to launch another spell.

"Natsu!? And Gray too!? What are you two doing here?"

Shock and confusion. A bewildered expression was on his face for he could not believe what he was seeing. Either his eyes were playing tricks on him or it was real. But if so, how did those two ended up in such a place? Did they follow Erza by any chance? Probably, that was the only possible explanation he could came up with. Such reckless action. Yet Jellal was the last person that could say such thing since what he was doing was equally reckless as well. Still, it was dangerous for the kids to be here. What to do now?

"W-Wait for me, you lot. Geez, always leaving me behind." said Lucy as she entered the room panting and sweating, with Happy right behind her.

What to do now? The answer was clear, even if Erza probably wouldn't like it at all. But the situation was what was and that was the only option.

"...Sorry for the trouble. Seems like there is no other choices then, so I'll count on you all."

"Yet more unwelcomed intruders. This place's security is seriously lacking. Still maybe now, with this number, you'll finally manage to land a hit…" remarked the androgynous being, his sarcasm clear as the day.

A world of blades forged by blood and shaped through thousands of battles. An isolated land unknown to time nor known to space. The converging point between reality and dream, formed by countless swords that built up hills of steel. Piles of weapons forgotten by man were scattered in that void land made of scorched earth, under a clouded sky filled with sadness and full of rusty gears. Like a broken clock, nothing seemed to move. Trapped in a everlasting present, it refused to walk forward.

A single man standing there, his body still and imovable despite being pierced by many swords. White hair and tanned skin, clad in red and black, a broken soul filled with anguish and regrets that kept looking ahead instead of backing down. Holding tightly the black and white twin blades, he continued his fight against destiny and fate. Uncertain of victory, nor of loss, yet still struggling to fulfill his ideal.

She looked at him, hand stretched in an attempt to reach his back. She run, but the distance would not shorten. He was a stranger, yet she felt nostalgia. There was pain in her heart, but she didn't know why. She tried to catch up, but could not for it was too soon.

And then darkness obscured her vision as static took over her eyes once again.

Her eyes shot open as she stood once again. Looking at the enemy in front of her, a single thought crossed her mind. She needed to defeat him. Defeat him at all cost. And to do so she needed a weapon.

"...Not yet...I'll never lose to the likes of you!"

The image of two falchions appeared in her mind. A vivid picture of two beautiful work of craft that she never saw in her life, yet their history was etched inside of her. They were waiting to be called, and she would not let them wait any longerer.

Erza released her armor and equipped only a pair of blazing themed red trousers along a sarashi covering her breast, and nothing more. Normally it would have been a foolish move that of getting rid of her protection, but right now it was needed for her mana was running low and she required every bit she could muster up.

"I will change my very being to strength and defeat you!"

It was all or nothing.

"I -m -he -on- -f m- s-or-."

Words of power that came natural as breathing. An incantation she had never learned nor listened anywhere, but its sound was familiar and its meaning was clear. A body made of swords, a blade with a single purpose. Trully a reflection of her soul.

The lock of her heart was finally unlocked and the chains of the past finally broke. It was time to go beyond.

-Spirit and technique, flawless and firm-

Visualizing the best trajectory, she aimed for the neck and throw the first pair of swords toward the enemy.

Armed of a blood made scythe, Roa deflected the twin swords. But that was what she wanted. An opening presented itself the instant the Dead Apostole focused not on her, but on the attack.

-Our strength rips the mountains-

The second set took the place of the first one in her hand, and with them she went for chest and abdomen. Closing the gap with a single leap, she slashed with Kanshou and Bakuya.

-Our swords split the water-

"Futile."

But the crimson eyed monster caught their edges with his bare hands before they could sink in his body. Doing so tho left him unable to dodge her kick to the jaw that sent him flying toward the white ceiling.

-Our names reach the imperial villa-

Traps were set in the location were Roa stood, enabling a powerful discharge under Erza's feet as she stepped on them.

She spun back and threw away the second set of blades in air just like the first one, all the while a sword formed behind her and struck into the ground. Using it as a support, the scarlet haired mage landed on its hilt. With the third set of blades was already in her hands, ready to be used, she then jumped high into the sky

-The two of us cannot hold the heavens together-

Roa was ready to activate a spell, his hand, open and filled with Mana, pointed toward the girl beneath him. But as he was about to do so, a pair of swords struck him in the back. The first pair thrown had hit the target. He lost his focus, but that didn't bothered him much. The mage may getting closer, but she would not make in time. And in air she couldn't hope to dodge his attack.

"W-Wha-"

He didn't registered what happened exactly, but now both his arms were pierced by another pair of swords. He had been careless, and didn't notice the incoming second set of twin blades.

"Overedge! Triple-Linked Crane Wings!"

It was too late to stop her, and even the shield of blood did nothing to block the final strike of the last pair of married swords that were now much bigger. The cross slash of the two wing like longswords cut the Dead Apostoles body into pieces, this time for sure.

But Erza knew that she needed more to finish him. And so, as she turned around, a bow and a spiral shaped arrow were ready to complete the work.

"Caladbolg III!"

Not a second passed from when she nocked the projectile, and a dazzling light formed upon its contact with the head of the undead. A gust of wing blowed out and an explosion of devastating magnitudes got unleashed in the room. Once the mushroom like cloud disperesed, only stains of blood remained of the former Dead Apostole. But as she realesed a small breath of relief, a new twist of events happened.

"Argh!"

Something hit her. Something sharp. It was Roa. The monster was recovering. From a single, small piece of ankle he was rebuilding his entire body. Such thing was unthinkable, utterly impossible even for a Dead Apostole such as him.

"Kuku...Kukuku. You really had me for a second there. Under normal circumstances I'd be dead after that attack, but unfortunately in this night of full moon you can't cut me down no matter how many times you try."

A spear of blood pierced through her shoulder, and it would have hit the heart if she did not moved away at the last second. As it retracted, Erza's kneels gave away and she knelt down on the ground. Shacked by the unexpected turn of the situation, and powerless, she could do nothing.

"Pant...Pant...Pant…"

Weak. Her body was feeling extremely weak. It ached everywhere, from each muscle to all the bones. Her conscious was slowly drifting away, and this time there would be no recovery from it. It was painful to stay focused, to stay awake, or even to breath. The taste of blood in her mouth was the only thing she could feel as her senses were nearly all shut down. Was it the end? All her efforts were really in vain? She cursed herself for not being able to fight back, and the world for its unfairness.

"So do you surrender? In honor of having provided me with such wonderful show I'll kill you quickly. Maybe after this I'll make you join me."

But even then she refused to submit, her eyes contorted in a beastly gaze. A will of steel that did not bend and refused to do so until death.

"Relax. Once I've drunk your blood, you'll be mine. You know, if I was not so close to obtain eternity I would have used your body as the new vessel for my soul. But since I have no more use of that, I'll just let you serve me as a good puppet."

A small step. Another one. Taking his sweat time, he slowly but inexorably approached her at each ticking of the clock. It was time to put an end to the show.

"N-No, I'm not d-done yet…I-I'll not give up until the e-end…"

But as all hope was gone, a lightning came to her rescue and protected her.

"What?!"

And another followed, this one larger and more powerful.

"Tsk."

A laugh then boomed out of nowhere, echoing through all around without stop.

"Kuhahahaha."

Gray started with a flood of ice stakes.

The green haired being jumped up, but found Natsu waiting with his right fist ignited. They deflected the punch with easy and countered with a kick that sent the dragon slayer against the pile of ice.

Binds of light caught them in a tight grip, but it was not enough as they broke the spell almost instantaneously.

A rain of chains then came out of golden gates around them, but got blocked by a storm of arrow shot by Chiron.

As they landed, a wave of pillars started to emerge from the soil in response of their call. Natsu shot his breath attack and destroyed them all, but they leaped forward without care of the flames.

Gray went for a shield made of ice, but it didn't last even a second upon impact. In a single jump they closed the distance, and once close enough threw a kick that sent the two mages fly away.

Jellal charged a powerful spell, 'Altairis', but chains shot out of the floor and stopped him before he could finish.

Chiron tried for a surprise attack and went for a right hook, but it got caught just as it was about to hit.

A fist exchange followed, but since both were skilled fighters it ended in a stalemate.

They back jumped and touched the ground to create weapons of earth to launch. The blond Spirit could only defend and step back.

And at last a fist land on them, but it was not from someone that was in the room a minute ago. The nurse of steel had arrived, ready to end the conflict and to treat the injured.

Space warped, curling in a vortex of electricity.

"Not losing your will to fight till the very end. That's my accomplice for you."

A single bolt emerged out of it. And as it died out, a man clad in a black mist of Magic came out from inside of it.

"T-That voice…"

Erza knew it. A familiar voice from someone she knew very well. A nostalgic sound she couldn't possibly forget. Standing before her was her brother.

"Hahahaha. You've recovered quickly despite having just taken one hell of a beating. Never cease to surprise me, don't you? That face of yours tells me that your pretty down. But don't worry for I'm now here to assist you and will accompany you even down all the way to Hell if that is where our path leads!"

Author's note:

Doortolight47: You're sort of right in that it is indeed Kingu, but not exactly the same situation as in the Babilonia Singularity and that is why their eyes are green and not purple. For answers you'll need to wait future chapters.

Now that all the actors have appeared on the stage, it's time for the awaited finale of this arc. Hope you'll like it because I'm really put a lot of efforts to make it as good as possible.

And now to this chapter. The battle between Roa and Erza has ended with a clear winner. While the two were more or less on equal ground, what decided the end result was the location, which was full of traps since it was the Dead Apostole's personal boundary, and Roa's immortality, against which Titania had no counter. Even with a little bit of help, she still had no way to win. And as for Jellal's fight, well Enkidu was just too much and not even ganging up against them worked at all.

Well, see you all next time around. Bye!

P.S. Finally Yagyu came home through the 4 star ticket, but the lack of hero proofs has made it impossible to level his skills. Sigh, guess Imma back to farming.