OH MY GOD ! It's been so long since my last update ! I'm really, REALLY, sorry, but as you know, there were a few things recently that made me unable to write. Christmas and New Year's Eve. Oh by the way…

HAPPY NEW YEARS TO YOU ALL !

More seriously, I also had family problem that kind of killed my mood and writing wasn't my priority during those times so I'm sorry. I hope you'll like this chapter even though it's a bit short. Anyway, enjoy !

Chapter 51 : Stopping it, no matter what.

The Dragon Chain Cannon. A massive weapon that was powered by Dragon Slayer Magic and meant to create an infinite amount of magic. The objective was simple : shoot the dragon shaped chain at the floating island on which was located the giant Lachryma that represented the magic of all of Magnolia's inhabitants and drag it into Extalia, the country of the Exceed, the two magic would then fuse and rain down on the city, creating the desired unlimited magic. But this plan might fall apart as things were right now. The King was currently pacing in front of said cannon, waiting for his men to bring back the key that was needed to fire the cannon. His patience was running thin when the door of the room opened, letting his most loyal soldier, Erza Knightwalker, walk into the room, dragging two Earthland mage behind her.

- "Erza !" Greeted the King, hoping she had good news for him. "Did you brought the key !?"

- "I'm afraid it was destroyed. But everything's alright." Reassured Edo-Erza by lifting and throwing Gray at her feet. "This one can create another one."

- "He can ?!" Wondered Faust, his eyes not leaving the ice mage who was glaring at him.

- "He's a mage from Earthland who can mold ice to build anything he want. He's an ally of the Dragon Slayers."

- "It couldn't be… is he related to the disappearance of the Lachryma in the plaza ?"

- "That's precisely it." Confirmed Edo-Erza.

- "Well, that's fine !" Smiled the king. "Hurry and have him activate the Dragon Chain Cannon !" He ordered, Knightwalker nodding as she cut open the rope that held Gray before lifting Natsu, pressing her sword to his neck, using him like an hostage.

- "Stand, Ice mage. And don't try anything funny." She warned, Gray glaring at her. "Activate the cannon."

Gray didn't liked it at all, but knowing Natsu's life was at stake, he couldn't do anything else and he did as he was told, approaching the cannon. However, he had a plan.

"I'll only get one chance…" He thought as he created the key. "Once I activate it, I can quickly change its aim and have the Dragon Chain Cannon strike the Lachryma directly. If I can do that, I can save my friends !" He inserted the key and armed the weapon. But once he had done it, he began to look all around, trying to find how he could change the aim without finding anything.

As he began to panic, Shadow Moon, who was also in the room, looked at the ice mage but also at Knightwalker and Salamander with suspicion. He had a lot of doubts concerning the redhead. He had a hard time believing that she could have defeated her counterpart, then Gray and Natsu all by herself, without even counting the Riders that were with them. It was a bit too much for him. And he was proven right when, while the king ordered to fire the cannon, Edo-Erza mumbled something.

- "This is where it ends… Natsu !"

- "Yeah !" One moment, Edo-Erza let go of Natsu, and the next, he used his magic to send the guards flying away, Edo-Erza using this distraction to get closer to the king and hold him hostage.

- "Halt the firing sequence !" She ordered to the awestruck guards who couldn't believe that the famous Knightwalker was betraying them.

- "What is the meaning of this, Erza !?" Seethed the king, stopping when she began to shine, reverting to a far more familiar appearance, one that made jaws fell to the ground among the Edolas citizens.

- "My name is Erza Scarlett, Earthland's Erza !"

- "Sorry about that, that was close." Smiled Gray. "Thanks for letting yourself be fooled."

- "Kakaka !" Laughed Natsu. "This is plan D ! Plan D for Deception !"

- "Change the target to the Lachryma." Asked Erza.

- "Don't listen to her ! Fire immediately !" Ordered the king, his men not knowing what to do. Seeing that the mages weren't kidding around, they decided to do as they were said, but Faust wasn't one to give up and he was ready for anything to reach his goal. "Don't worry about me ! Fire ! For the sake of destroying the Exceed !"

The soldiers weren't really listening to him, thinking about saving their king first, but as they were re-aiming the cannon, something no one could have anticipated happened and threw a wrench into the mages plan, a shadow looming above Erza and shooting at her.

- "SCARLETT !" Roared Knightwalker, coming from above, spear aimed at Erza, an expression of pure fury on her face, everyone else looking up in shock for some and relief for other. Erza had no choice but to let the king go to counter her doppelganger, which meant that they had now no way to force the soldiers to do as they pleased. "This isn't over yet, Scarlett !"

- "His majesty is free ! Now ! Change the target back !"

- "NO !"

- "FIRE !"

And this time, everything was over. A soldier had slammed his hand on the large button on the cannon, firing the weapon, which shot a massive dragon shaped chain at the island, latching onto it, much to the mages horror and Edolas natives relief.

- "Well, looks like your plan worked in the end. But I do know one thing." Said Shadow Moon, looking at the mages. "Those are the kind of people who'd rather die than give up. I think you better not take any chance."

The soldiers nodded, already turning to the mages when out of nowhere, a flurry of bullet rained down from the sky, making the one who survived look up, only to see a massive black and blue flying creature hovering above them, with Lucy, Gaim, OOO and Ghost, weapons in hands, looking down at the others.

- "Guys ! Get on !" Shouted Lucy, the others freeing themselves of their attacker to join their friends, covered by the Riders who kept firing.

- "A Legion ? How can she control one ?!" Wondered Faust, glaring at the blonde when a little girl appeared next to Lucy.

- "This is my Legion !"

- "Coco ?"

- "We can stop it with this ?!" Asked Natsu, getting onboard the Legion with the others.

- "I don't know, but we have to try anyway !" And with that, they took off, leaving the soldiers and a pissed off Faust and Knightwalker behind.

- "Scarlett…" Seethed the redhead before suddenly grabbing a knife, cutting her hair to make them shoulder length before turning around and walking off. "After them, second magical warfare corps ! All members of the Legion corps, sortie ! And you !" she stopped to point at Shadow Moon who looked at her with crossed arms. "Bring me one of those robots of yours !"

- "And why do you need one, if I may ?"

- "This damned blue and orange Rider dared to interrupt our fight ! I won't let him do it again ! So give me one of them RIGHT NOW !" To say she was pissed would be one hell of an understatement at this point.

- "Alright." Agreed Shadow Moon. "With all the help you brought, I guess I can make another gesture." He said before walking toward his lab. "I'll send it to you in a moment."

- "I'll go as well." Suddenly said the King, surprising his soldiers, but what he added was much worse. "Prepare the Dorma Animu."

- "B…But sir, that's forbidden !" Said one of the soldier. "By article 23 of the imperial charter…"

- "Prepare it !" Needless to say, at this point, discussing was out of the question. Blood was about to be shed, and Edolas was going to make sure it would be fairy's.

/- Meanwhile, with Gajeel and Haruto -/

While Natsu and co were fighting in the amusement park, another fight was currently ongoing on the floating island carrying the large Lachryma. The characteristic noise of metal clashing against metal echoing through the air and if one got close enough, he could see the reason of those noises : a huge sword clashing against the iron scales of a black haired Dragon Slayer.

- "Gajeel !" Shouted Happy, worried for his comrade who was facing Panther Lily, the large and buff Exceed wielding a humongous sword.

- "I wonder if this sword is heavy as hell and he's really strong or if she's lighter than she looks." Wondered Ankh, floating next to the cat, observing the Dragon Slayer who was glaring at his opponent.

- "To think you'd stop my sword, which can smash iron, with your bare hands." Said the Exceed. "You Earthland mages are full of surprises."

- "Sorry, but Iron Dragon Scales aren't just your ordinary iron." Revealed Gajeel. Suddenly, Haruto walked up to him.

- "Hey, Gajeel. If you're so busy fighting with him, maybe you can fuse your magic in this so I can try to free everyone." He said, handing him the Land Dragon Ring, but as Gajeel was about to grab it, the large sword landed between them, forcing the two of them apart.

- "I think you'd better not talk about your plan in front of the enemy." Advised Panther. "Besides, don't go thinking I can't fight the two of you at the same time."

- "There's one thing I don't understand." Said Haruto, addressing the knight who glanced at him. "You're an Exceed right ? So why are you working for the Royal Army when they're trying to destroy Extalia ?"

- "That's a story from long ago." Grumbled Panther as he raised his sword high above his head. "I've discarded my home ! That fake country !"

He then slammed his sword on his two opponents, both of them blocking it with either their arms or their sword, the ground breaking down beneath them.

- "Fake country ? What do you mean ?" Asked Haruto. As for Gajeel, he had something else to say.

- "So you're on the outside looking in, huh ? Nice, same as me." He said, Haruto looking above his shoulder at the Dragon Slayer, seeing the grin appear on his face. "Kehehe… I like him. I'm gonna make him my cat !" He finally said as he shattered the large sword, much to the large Exceed's shock.

- "WHAT !?" Shouted Happy, not believing what he just said.

- "Now's not the time to look for a pet, dumbass !" Shouted Ankh.

- "Did your desire to have a cat really gave you the strength to break that sword ?" Asked Haruto, a little disturbed by the change in Gajeel's attitude.

- "But first I've gotta show you who's stronger !" Shouted Gajeel as he jumped at the Exceed, unleashing a flurry of punch at the Exceed. "KEHEHEHEHE ! Now I won't be outdone by Salamander or by the little girl !"

- "Who would have known he could be so childish about something like that." Said Haruto, sweat dropping as he watched the Dragon Slayer pummeling the Exceed in midair before finishing him with a point blank Iron Dragon's Roar which crushed Panther Lily against the ground.

- "Gajeel's face is scary !" Cried Happy as he saw the feral look on the Dragon Slayer face as he landed on the ground.

- "I don't think that's how you get yourself a pet." Muttered Haruto. As soon as he said that, Panther surprisingly jumped out of the hole he had been buried into, a smirk on his face as he ran straight at Gajeel, landing a strong punch to his face, Gajeel then returning the grin as they began to fight bare-handed, clearly enjoying themselves.

- "Great… now we've got another battle crazy guy. One was more than enough." Sighed Ankh as Haruto sat down next to him. "You're not joining ?"

- "I think at this point, it's not a fight in which I can get involved." Explained Wizard, letting the two others do as they please. However, they were brought back to reality as out of nowhere, something pierced through the stone of the island, making it shake and confused its occupants.

- "What the … ?!"

- "What is that thing ? What's happening !?" Asked Ankh, confused while Panther grinned. "Wait… Is the island moving ?!"

- "The Dragon Chain Cannon's been attached !" Said the knight. "This is our military's plan. We're going to smash this Lachryma into Extalia and destroy them both."

- "How…" Began Happy, his body shaking as tears pooled in his eyes. "How can you do such a horrible thing ?"

- "Don't you fell into despair Happy." Said Haruto as he got up, taking the Drago Timer out of his magic storage. "As long as we're here and still fighting, there's still hope." And indeed, he was right to think like that. Soon after, Coco's Legion arrived, the mages and Rider on board ready to do anything they could to stop the island. The Legion slammed his head into the island and began to push as hard as he can.

- "You can do it ! Legion !" Encouraged Coco, however, this wasn't enough as the island kept advancing.

- "It's no good ! It doesn't look the least bit like it's gonna stop !" Noticed Gray.

- "Then we're going to have to push it ourselves." Said Kouta as he and the two others Rider changed their armor.

TAKA ! KUJAKU ! CONDOR ! TAJADORU !

KURUMI ARMS ! MR KNUCKLE MAN !

KAIGAN : NEWTON ! RINGO GA RAKKA, HIKIYOSE MAKKA !

Using their armors, the Rider joined the Legion, trying to stop the island from reaching Extalia, soon joined by Natsu who was standing on the beast head. As they were pushing as hard as they could, Happy flew to them.

- "Natsu !"

- "Happy !"

- "I… uh…" Happy didn't knew what to say, wondering what his best friend though of him after everything that happened. But there wasn't any need to be afraid, Natsu looking at him with a grin.

- "Help me out, partner !"

- "…Aye !" Answered the cat as he joined Natsu and the other as the island got dangerously close to Extalia, soon followed by Gajeel and Haruto.

- "Let's make a plan first, black cat !" Said Gajeel, said black cat glaring at him.

- "You planning on running ?!"

- "I won't run or hide !" Said Gajeel as he jumped to the Legion. "I'm gonna settle things after I stop that thing !"

- "Stop it !? That huge floating island attached to the Dragon Chain !?" Panther's eyes were wide in shock, not believing a single second that they could do it. "It's useless ! There's no future for us ! We've got nothing left !"

- "Afterwards, I'm bringing you back to the guild, even if I have to drag you." Smirked Gajeel at Panther. "Then you're going to become my cat… Gihihi…"

- "It won't work ! It's gonna hit ! Bear it !" As the two island hit, the Riders and mages kept fighting, pushing with their arms on one island and with their legs on the others. Eiji even turned to Sagohzo to add more strength, everyone giving everything they had to try to stop the island, everything happening right under Panther Lily's nose who couldn't believe what he was seeing, though one of them shocked him even more.

- "Coco ? What are you doing here ?"

- "Lily !" Coco lifted her head as she pushed on the island as hard as she could, smiling at Panther. "So you noticed ! I… Don't need infinite magic. I want an infinite smile !"

- "What are you blabbering on about ?!" Roared Panther. "Hurry up and get out of here ! We won't be able to stop this island no matter what !"

- "I'm gonna stop it !" Countered Natsu, shouting it with all of his heart. "Even if it splinters my body, I'll just stop it with my soul !"

- "It doesn't matter what kind of hardship we're facing." Added Haruto, surrounded by his different elemental clones. "As long as we're alive, hope will exist. We'll never cease to fight !"

/- Much sooner, on Extalia -/

Now, lets see what happened with Wendy, Carla and Emu, gone to Extalia to warn the cats about the possible incoming destruction in case the others failed to stop the King's project. And of course, when they entered the town, they were met with wide eyes and gasps, the Exceeds wondering why a fallen angel and two humans were doing here. Its surrounded by whispers and tensed faces that they walked through the crowd, until coming to a stop in the principal plaza.

- "I'd like an audience with the Queen." Asked Wendy. "Danger draws near to Extalia."

- "Out of the way, out of the way. Make way for me…" Came Nadi's voice, making it's way though the crowd, heading straight to the group, his fist shaking along the way as usual. When he finally pierced through the crowd he glared at them, sweating slightly. "Y…You guys are in trouble ! Fallen angels and humans are prohibited from infiltrating Extalia."

- "This is not the time for that." Said Carla. "If you value your lives, listen to what we have to say."

- "Where'd Nichiya and the rest of the people chasing you go ?" Asked the long black cat.

- "They were turned into a Lachryma by the Royal Army." Revealed Emu, eyes widening all around them soon followed by… laughter.

- "As if Extalia's Imperial Guard could be taken by mere humans ! Stop talking nonsense." Apparently, the mere idea of a human being better than an Exceed was unfathomable to them. In fact, Nadi was the only one who wasn't laughing, even shaking and sweating slightly.

- "It's true !" Added Wendy, trying to convince the Exceed that the incoming threat was real. "The Royal Army is going to attack this place next !"

- "Let them do as they please ! The Queen will just brush them off with Magic !" Laughed the Exceed, clearly not taking this seriously. And Wendy was starting to lose her patience.

- "If you don't all flee, you'll be in grave danger !"

- "Shut it, human !" Shouted a cat who, suddenly, threw a rock at Wendy, hitting her on the head, before being imitated by the others as rock soon rained down on the three. If Emu wasn't bothered by the projectile who didn't reached above his shoulder, he was on the other hand getting mad as he listened to the cats who were pummeling the two girl with stones. "you don't even know about the Queen's magical power ! We're Exceed ! We're greater than you humans ! Get out of here, you humans and fallen angel ! This is Extalia, the nation governed by the Queen ! We can't lose to humans so long as we have the Queen !"

- "If you hate humans so much, do as you like with me !" Shouted Wendy despite the rocks hitting her head. "But not Carla ! She's one of you, isn't she !? Listen to what she has to say !"

But the Exceed weren't listening to her, throwing rock after rock at the girls who were now holding each other, crying as they suffered when suddenly…

MIGHTY ACTION X !

GEKITOTSU ROBOTS !

The stoning stopped as the digital screen appeared, the Exceed looking at Emu with curiosity, wondering what a lowly human could do. But what followed made their eyes go wide.

- "Henshin…"

GACHAN ! LEVEL UP ! MIGHTY JUMP ! MIGHTY KICK ! MIGHTY MIGHTY ACTION X ! A GACHA ! BUTTOBASE ! TOTSUGEKI ! GEKITOTSU PUNCH ! GEKITOTSU ROBOTS !

Now transformed, the Exceed were awestruck, not expecting this kind of development. Wendy and Carla looked up, wondering what he was about to do.

- "I don't care how superior you think you are and how powerful your Queen is, I won't let you stone those girls who, knowing they weren't allowed here, came anyway to warn you about something that might happen soon. The least you can do would be to listen to her instead of acting like superior pricks."

- "You… Don't you go thinking your armor will protect you ! The Queen will obliterate you anyway !"

- "Maybe… But are you powerful too ?" The question took the Exceed by surprise, wondering what he meant. "Because to me, it looks like you're acting all mighty when you're simply hiding behind your Queen. According to you, how many of you I could eliminate before your Queen arrive ? If you're that strong…" Emu then raised his large arm, resting his other hand on it. "Then come and beat me."

But of course, no one moved, the confidence Emu displayed putting the Exceed ill at ease. They tried to stay strong, but some of them had a hard time keeping a strong front. However, before any of them could add something, the island suddenly shook violently, a deep and growing rumble coming from the edge of the island, Carla remembering that this was were this couple that helped them lived. And of course, the Exceed understood what it was.

- "The Royal Army's attacking !"

- "Despite being humans, they're going against Exceed !?"

- "Those foolish humans know nothing of the Queen's power !"

- "It's time to let them understand once and for all ! There's nothing to be afraid of ! The Queen's behind us !"

- "It hit the Lachryma…" Said Wendy, feeling her worst fear becoming reality.

- "No, it looks like it's stopped. But it won't last long and they're just going to let thing happen, sure that their Queen will save them. What a sad sight." Sighed Emu.

- "I'm sorry Carla… Things shouldn't have…"

- "What are you saying ?! It's too early to quit now !" Chided Carla, under Nadi's gaze before turning to the other Exceeds. "Everyone, listen up !"

- "You're still here ?! You fallen one !" Shouted an Exceed, throwing a rock at her but before it could reach her, Nadi intervene, using his own body to protect her, taking everyone by surprise.

- "It's dangerous… to throw rocks…" He began, before straightening himself. "These people informed us about the danger ! But no one listened, and look what happened !"

However, the people wasn't convinced, keeping on calling for the Queen, not understanding why Nadi was acting like that, much to the black cat uneasiness, Emu noticing that he didn't looked as confident as they were about their Queen power.

- "That's enough, Nadi." Speaking of the Queen, everyone turned as they heard that new feminine voice, only to found a white female Exceed wearing regal clothes, followed by four old Exceed. "The time has come." All of the Exceed fell to their knees, bowing down at the Queen who approached the crowd, Wendy, Carla and Emu looking at her with wide eyes as she came to a stop a few meters away from them. "Everyone… please raise your heads. Now calm down and listen to my words." The Exceed did as they were told, smile on their faces as they wondered what she was about to do, hopefully punish the humans with her magic. "Right now, Extalia is facing the danger of destruction. We can no longer avoid our fate… therefore I have decided on something."

- "Exterminate the humans ?!" Hopefully wondered an Exceed, making Emu take a step forward.

- "I have to warn you : if you want to harm anyone, you'll have to go through me first." Warned the Kamen Rider, which only made the Queen smile a little.

- "You won't have to do that." Said the Queen as she, shockingly, let her regal robes off her shoulder, basically undressing in front of everyone. "As I am here to tell you all the truth. I am a mere Exceed." As she said that, she took her jewelry off, throwing them to the ground, the Exceed's eyes widening with each action she took, fear and disbelief appearing on their faces. "Not a queen and certainly not a God. I am the same Exceed as all of you. I have no power with which to fight against humans." Now wearing nothing more than a tank top and some shorts, she stood there, looking nothing like a Queen in the middle of the others feline, the only thing that differentiate her from the others being the fact that she had simply one wing, silence having fell on the city.

- "Now this is something I wasn't expecting." Admitted Emu, abandoning his defensive demeanor.

"I am deeply sorry for hiding it from you. Wendy-san, Carla-san and Emu-san, was it ? I apologize to you all too. It is all my fault. Please do not hold grudges against everyone else here."

- "What do you mean ?" Asked Wendy, not understanding what she meant when one of the older cats took a step forward.

- "No… It falls to the responsibility of us elders who made up such a thing as a 'Queen'. We're a very weak race, and long ago, the humans did many horrible things to us. That's why, in order to protect ourselves, we made the humans think we had some sort of powers. And in order for all the Exceed to regain their confidence, we even made all of Extalia believe in the power of God. Humans who didn't believe at first eventually came to embrace and fear the power of God. Rather than the power of God, however, it was really just a part of the bluff we Exceeds made. For example, the 'Human Management' that picks who we kill, that's all made up afterwards. We aren't choosing which humans to kill. We have no such powers, of course. There is one power though… and that is Shagotte's slight ability to see the future, she can see the death of humans. We made people think that these people were being killed due to the Queen's decision, too."

At this point, the Exceed were all crying in disbelief, which was understandable. They just learned that everything they believed all their lives was nothing more than a lie. Emu and Wendy were shocked to learn such a thing, that they could have gone this far just to assure their people would survive. One person however wasn't feeling like crying or pitying them.

- "Sophist…" Began Carla, glaring at Shagotte. "Whether or not you really have power, you ordered us to kill our friends ! And that is the truth !"

- "Shagotte never gave such an order !" Said one of the elders. "It was probably made up by some humans abusing the Queen's existence."

- "No it wasn't !" Shouted Carla. "Strange memories were implanted on me, my heart was controlled ! You ordered me to carry out the Dragon Slayer massacre ! From before I was born !"

- "N…N-N… No she didn't !" Jumped in Nadi, trying to appease the situation. "There's a long, deep story behind this !"

- "I don't care what the story is, I will not forgive her !"

- "Carla ! Let's no talk about that right now." Asked Wendy, as they had more important things to do. But Shagotte looked like she agreed with Carla.

- "It's exactly as you say, Carla-san. You are innocent. And yet, I hurt you the most." With that, she threw a sword at Carla before kneeling in front of her, eyes closed. "Please, judge my sin with your hand. As one who loves both humans and Exceed, you have that right."

Of course, the reaction were numerous. Wendy asked Carla not to do it, Shagotte ordered the Exceed to get away from here, wanting to go down along with Extalia, the Exceed crying and refusing to leave, feeling like giving up now that they had nothing to hold onto. The maelstrom of fear, cries and tears was starting to get out of control as Carla grabbed the sword, raising it before…

- "DON'T JUST GIVE UP WHENEVER YOU FEEL LIKE IT !" She jabbed the sword in the ground, making everyone go silent as she address everyone. "This is your country, isn't it ?! Can't you do anything without a God or a Queen ?! Even though I was lying up until now, I was living with all my might ! How can you give up so easily like that ?! It's okay to be weak ! If we all put our strength together, we can make it ! This country will not be destroyed ! This is my homeland, after all ! It won't disappear ! I will not give up ! I will stop it no matter what it takes !"

And with that, she took off, leaving behind her a bunch of taken aback and crying Exceeds, looking at her go to try and save this country despite everything it did to her in the past. The stayed silent and unmoving for a moment when someone stepped out of the crowd, his wings already deployed, tears running down his face.

- "I'll go with her…" Said Nadi, turning to his 'queen'. "Because I love this country."

- "Would you mind giving me a lift ?" Asked Emu, walking to the black cat. "I just can't stay here and do nothing when lives are at stake. I have to do something. And you all CAN do something, too." He said, addressing the Exceeds. "I can understand that you're all currently undergoing things that can't be forgotten or put aside, but if this is your home, and if you want to, you can change its fate, with your own hands ! Now let's go Nadi ! We have an island to save !"

- "Okay !"

Meanwhile, not that far away, mages and Riders were struggling, giving everything they had to stop the Lachryma from reaching Extalia, a task that proved to be much more difficult than they first though, but it didn't mattered. They kept fighting against it, to protect the country of cats and their friends from disappearing. The only person here who didn't tried to help them was Panther Lily, who was looking at them, not understanding why they were even trying.

- "It's useless !" He shouted to them. "I'm telling you that it's not something that's possible with mere human strength !"

- "First of all, we aren't mere humans." Reminded Eiji, in Sagohzo Combo, his back against the Lachryma island, his legs pushing against Extalia, his eyes noticing something approaching from above. "And secondly, we aren't alone !"

Just as he said that, Carla came flying, immediately pushing on the island to push it back, giving everything she had.

- "Carla !" Said Happy.

- "I'm not giving up !" Shouted the white Exceed, tears in her eyes. "Fairy Tail, Extalia, I'm going to protect them both !" Then, someone else appeared next to her, pushing with everyone else. "You…"

- "I want to protect it too…"

- "Nadi…" Whispered Lily, not believing that Extalia's Minister of State would come and help.

MAXIMUM GASHAT ! GACHAN ! LEVEL MAX ! SAIDAIKYUU NO POWERFUL BODY ! DARIRAGAN ! DAGOZUBAN ! MAXIMUM POWER X !

Then, it was the massive Maximum Gamer Level 99 that appeared among them all, pushing with everyone else.

- "And he's not the only one who want to protect it… Everyone want to…"

Much to Happy, Carla, Panther Lily, but also everyone else, every single Exceed came flying from Extalia to the Lachryma, one of them carrying Wendy, each and everyone of them being there for the same thing.

- "One should protect one's own country !" Said one.

- "For the sake of the Queen who's braved perils to continue to protect this country and its people as well !" Added another.

Speaking of Shagotte, she too was here, struggling to even fly with just one wing.

- "Shagotte ! It's impossible with that wing." Said one of the Elders flying behind her.

- "It's something… I have to do." She said, forcing herself to fly so she could help everyone in protecting their country. "We've all got to do what we can !"

Just underneath them, Marl and Lucky were looking at the Exceed with wide eyes, not believing what they were seeing.

- "Is this some kind of… dream ?" Muttered a wide-eyed Lucky, his eyes locked on the Exceed above them.

- "Extalia has unified ?" Asked Marl, tears in her eyes, not believing it either.

As for Panther, seeing them all here made him think. Thinking about a very specific event, one that explained why he was on the Royal Army's side nowadays.

/- Flashback -/

- "Lily ! Why have you saved a human child !?"

Many, many years ago, back when Panther Lily was still a citizen of Extalia, he happened to save the life of a young child, which he then brought back to Extalia, which of course was forbidden. It lead him to being called by the Elders who weren't happy with the situation.

- "It was badly wounded…" Explained Lily, his head hanging low as he was on his knee, facing Shagotte and the four Elders who weren't listening to him.

- "Idiot ! How inappropriate to bring something like that to Extalia !"

- "But… Even though it's a human, I can't just ignore a wounded creature." Said Panther, trying to justify himself, his explanations falling into deaf ears.

- "Have you forgotten the law, Lily ?! You are hereby banished from Extalia as a Fallen Angel !" This shocked Panther Lily to his core, not believing they would go that far for something that, in the end, was pretty much trivial. And that's how Panther left Extalia, with the wounded children.

/- Flashback end -/

This event was what made Lily join Edolas army, to try and destroy this country. But seeing the Exceed all working together alongside humans to try and save Extalia made him think and look at thing differently. Suddenly, among the Exceed, Shagotte, incapacitated by her lack of wings, began to fall, plummeting to the ground, only to be saved, unexpectedly, by Panther, much to the now ex-Queen and the Elders surprise.

- "Lily…" Whispered the white feline, not believing that Panther was here and saved her, memories of the day he was exiled coming back to her mind, memory of a thing she always regretted.

- "Your Majesty… has creating fate tired you out ?" Asked Panther Lily, making the cat wince slightly.

- "I'm sorry… I…"

- "Me too." Suddenly apologized Panther, tears in his eyes. "No matter how much I may despise it… Extalia is my homeland. But it's too late… Even with this mass of Exceed, it can't be stopped ! I'm sorry ! It's my fault ! I could have stopped it ! I could've topped the humans !"

- "I appreciate your feelings." Sadly smiled Shagotte, tears falling from her eyes; looking at the large island which was slowly crushing its way toward Extalia despite everyone's best efforts. Everyone was pushing as hard as they could. Eiji and Emu's feet were digging trench a s they were slowly pushed back, everyone's hands suffering from the effort, but no one could even think about letting go.

And then, it happened.

Suddenly, the island began to move back and judging by the wide eyes of all of those who were pushing the island, it wasn't due to them. They all let the island go just in time as a large bolt suddenly struck it. The Exceed, mages and Riders all looked bewildered at the island, wondering what the hell was happening, his locked on the large cloud of smoke that covered the island after the bolt struck and, much to everyone shock, when the smoke disappeared, the Lachryma was nowhere to be seen, replaced by a massive hole that took most of the island.

- "The Lachryma… is gone !?" Said Gray, eyes wide, not believing what he just saw. "What happened ?!"

- "It's returned to Earthland." Everyone looked up to see none other than Mystogan and Shinnosuke in Speed Type, standing on the back of a large owl, flanked by Sento in HawkGatling and Gentaro who hovered on the other side with Gyro. "I apologize for being so late, I was searching for the vestiges of the giant anima in order to send it all back and we wouldn't have made it without everyone's strength. I thank you."

- "Mystogan !" Exclaimed Erza, looking up to their comrade.

- "Sento ! Gentaro ! Shinnosuke !" Smiled Haruto. "What are you doing here ?"

- "Do you know what it feels like to come back home and see that a town completely disappeared without a trace ?" Asked Gentaro.

- "We found Mystogan who explained everything to us. And luckily, we came here just in time." Added Sento.

- "Wait, sent it all back ?" Repeated Happy, wondering if he understood correctly.

- "That's right." Confirmed Mystogan. "Using the Anima once again, the Lachryma has been returned to Earthland in its original form. It's all over."

And with that, everyone cheered, realizing that they succeeded. They protected Extalia and saved everyone, putting an end to the King's projects. While they were all cheering, Panther looked up at Mystogan who looked back at him, before taking his scarf and hood off.

- "Lily. This is the life you saved…" He said, revealing his face at Lily, showing him the same tattooed face that the child he saved all those years ago had. "I'm glad to have protected your homeland."

- "Yes… Thank you…" Thanked Lily, tears running down his face. "Your Highness…"

- "The prince has returned…" Cried Coco, realizing who Mystogan was, people around her looking at the blue haired mage in shock. But as the saying state : all good things eventually come to an end.

Out of nowhere, a blast of energy shot and pierced Panther Lily from behind, much to everyone shock and horror who could only look at the human sized Exceed who was now falling, an angry voice coming from behind him.

- "Not yet… IT'S NOT OVER YET !" The identity of the shooter was now known as Erza Knightwalker, who was carrying a large smoking cannon on her shoulder, standing on top of a Legion, followed by what seemed to be the whole army of Edolas, all of them flying at them all, everyone looking at them with shock and anger.

- "Do they even know when to give up ?" Asked Sento, looking at the incoming army as some Exceed, following Shagotte's order, flew down to save Panther Lily. "The Lachryma has been sent back to Earthland, how could this not be the end ?"

- "I don't know, but I don't think they care." Said Takeru as Knightwalker's Legion came to a stop, the redhead glaring at Erza.

- "SCARLETT !"

- "Knightwalker." Before Erza could add anything, Mystogan interrupted, looking down at her Edolas counterpart.

- "Do you intend to point your blade at me, the prince of Edolas ? Erza Knightwalker."

- "I do not think of a punk like you as my son !" Came the King's voice, which seemed to echo all over the sky, making everyone wonder where it was really coming from. "After having concealed your whereabout for 7 years, now you brazenly return ?! I am well aware that you were traveling about in Earthland closing up the Anima. You traitor !"

- "Where the hell is this voice coming from ?" Wondered Eiji, looking all around to find Faust.

- "Hey ! Show yourself !" Roared Natsu, feeling his desire to pummel the king grow with each passing seconds.

- "Your Anima plan has failed." Simply stated Mystogan. "There's no longer any meaning in this battle, is there ?"

- "Meaning ? Meaning in battle, you say ? This is no battle. This is retribution against those who would make themselves enemies of the King. This is unilateral extermination." As the king said that, which made some people question is sanity, they also heard noises coming from the forest under them, making them all look down to see something that made their eyes go wide in shock. "If you intend to stand in my way, I will erase even you and not leave the merest trace behind. I am not your father. I am the king of Edolas. Come to think of it… If I just finish you here, the person closing the Anima in Earthland will have disappeared. I can create giant Lachryma and try to fuse them with the Exceed as many times as I please. FUHAHAHAHAHA ! Nothing is impossible before the power of the King ! The power of the King is absolute !"

As he said that, he had stepped out of the forest, revealing that he was controlling nothing more than a giant robotic dragon whose roar made everyone shake as they looked at the machine in shock and slight fear, even more for the Exceed who knew what this was.

- "Dorma Anim… In the language of this world, it means 'Dragon Knight'." Explained Mystogan. "It's got the reinforced armor of a dragon !"

- "What do you mean by reinforced armor ?!" Asked Carla, gaining an answer from Coco who was looking in terror at the machine underneath them.

- "It's wizard canceller, a manned armor that negates any magic coming from the outside. His Majesty is piloting Dorma Anim from the inside !"

- "This is clearly not good." Said Haruto, looking down at the dragon. "And here we though that it was all over…"

- "Come, my army !" Shouted the King. "Capture the Exceed !"

- "Yes sir !" The soldiers then all charged at the Exceed, some of them taking out some kind of projector shaped cannon they used to shot beams of light at the Exceeds, turning those they touched into Lachryma, creating chaos among the feline who were now trying to flee and escape the soldiers as fast as they could. As for the mages and Riders, they all gathered on Coco's Legion to decide what they would do.

- "Those guys are a pain, seriously !" Stated Takeru. "Never in my life have I felt such need to beat the crap out of humans !"

- "We've got to protect the Exceed from the royal Army !" Said Erza. "Let's pursue Knightwalker's group !"

- "And what are we going to do about that huge thing ?" Asked Gray, looking down at the armored dragon with a glare.

- "It's useless to just oppose it, since magic don't work on it." Said Coco, Haruto looking at the creature with squinted eyes.

- "Magic don't work on it…"

- "It can't be avoided, we have to go !" Added Mystogan. "The Exceed are defenseless right now ! We've got to protect them !"

- "But we'll also have to fight !" Corrected Sento. "Those soldiers won't stop until they made Lachryma out of every Exceed !"

- "That may be true, but we first need to regroup and think about a plan !" Advised Belt-san. "Once the Exceed are secured, we'll think about a way to stop that thing."

- "Alright ! Let's go !" And with that, Coco made her Legion go forth, but Faust wasn't going to let them go just like that.

- "I will not let a single person escape ! Every last one of you will perish here !" As he said that, a magic circle appeared in front of the dragon's head, aimed right at the flying mages. "DISAPPEAR !"

He then fired a massive blast at the Legion, something that surely would obliterated them is it hadn't been stopped by Mystogan who used his own magic to stop the attack.

- "Mystogan !" Shouted Erza, looking back at the mage whose scepters were out, forming a magic circle of their own.

- "Mystogan ?" Repeated Faust with a grin. "Is that your name in Earthland, Jellal !?"

- "Erza ! Go now, while you have the chance !" Ordered Mystogan, or rather Jellal, buying some time for his friends.

THREEFOLD MAGICAL FORMATION : MIRROR WATER !

Converting the power of the dragon blast into his own magic, many blasts of bluish magic shot out and rained down on the mechanical dragon with enough force to raise a large cloud of dust around it, cutting everyone view for a moment but they immediately after saw that it did literally nothing to the robot.

- "Magic does not work on Dorma Anim !" Shouted the King in glee as he shot at Mystogan, hitting the mage before he could dodge, which made him fall from the large owl he was standing on, sending him crashing down to the ground, much to everyone's horror. "Crawling on the ground suits you ! You should die there on the ground, just like that !" He then lifted his dragon's head up to look at Coco's Legion. "You bastards are next !"

- "Shit ! We've got to avoid that thing, fighting is out of the question !" Said gray and though everyone agreed, Lucy also noticed that something was off.

- "Wait ! Where's Natsu !?"

- "DIE ! *KABOOM* What !?"

Out of nowhere, something exploded on the dragon's neck, putting a sudden end to his incoming attack. Then, right after that, something struck his torso with a loud 'KLANG'

- "Who !? Who is inflicting damage on my magic-proof Dorma Anim !?"

SKY DRAGON'S ROAR !

Then, it was a burst of wind that struck the dragon and forced it back a few feet, the robot managing to stay up as the three responsible landed in front of him.

- "Hey, that's pretty good, Wendy." Said Natsu, as he cracked his knuckles.

- "Not at all… You two inflicted more damages." Said the little mage.

- "You bastard… how dare you touch my cat." Asked Gajeel, standing next to Wendy, the three of them facing Faust. Meanwhile, up on the Legion, many were looking down at them in worry.

- "I think we should go and protect the cat." Stated Sento. "They got it covered."

- "Are you sure !?" Asked Lucy. "Will they be alright with just the three of them ?!"

- "There's nothing to worry about." Reassured Gray. "Their opponent is a Dragon. They're the only ones who can defeat it. The mages who hunt Dragons." Lucy's eyes widen as she realized that he was right, remembering who the three mages down there were. "Dragon Slayers."

- "Besides, as long as they got hope, they won't lose." Added Gentaro with a smile. "He'll make sure of that."

- "You really think the 3 of you can hope to defeat my Dorma Anim ?!" For Faust, those three were nothing more than a nuisance he had to get rid of, the side of his body opening to reveal many cannons that Natsu and the others already saw before.

- "Wait, those are…"

- "I see you already know what those things are ! They are a little gift from this Shocker guy." The revelation made the mages' eyes go wide. "I let them do some upgrade to Dorma Anim just in case. Let's see if you can beat that !"

And he fired the cannon that shot laser beam at the three mages who were ready to jump to dodge the attack when something else happened that made them stop in their track and their eyes widen.

DEFEND, PLEASE !

A large wall of stone suddenly rose from the ground just in front of them, blocking the laser as well as taking by surprise Faust and the mages who quickly identified who just gave them a hand.

- "If three isn't enough, what about 4 ?" Asked Haruto as he walked to the Dragon Slayers who either smiled or grinned at him as he came to a stop next to them. "If it's hope they need, I'll gladly provide it to them. After all, I am the ultimate hope." In his machine, Faust was seething, glaring at the now four brats that dared to face him while on the other side, the mood was much brighter.

- "Alright ! I'm fired up !" Stated Natsu, fists ablaze with a cocky grin.

- "I'm going to wreck that ridiculous lizard !" Stated Gajeel with a glare at the machine.

- "We're going to win this, everyone !" Added Wendy with a fierce expression on her face.

- "Right. Now, it's showtime !"

Here it is. I hope you liked it. If you did, or not, leave a review to let me know about it, even if it's advises or questions, I'll listen to them all and if I can, I'll add them to this story. See ya !

Next time : The war begin ! Dragons vs Dragon. Massive reinforcement from two worlds. The Shogun and the Knights.