Author's Note: Hey, everyone! Welcome back to the Fanfiction! I understand it's been over a month since I last updated, but I wanted to make sure this update was as intriguing as possible considering the last chapter I left off on. I hope the word count is able to compensate for the lateness of the update.
I'm already in the works of creating the next chapter, and if I plan things our appropriately, we could be looking at completing this arc next chapter! As for this chapter in specific, I left off on another cliffhanger, and I hope it doesn't disappoint any of you who visioned the arc going in another way. Hopefully, everything will piece itself together for everyone to enjoy.
If you've enjoyed the updates, feel free to leave a review or message me with any concerns. I read and respond to as many as I can! I hope you all enjoy the work I put into this chapter, and I hope to see you guys soon!
During Those 7 Years
Chapter 29: Origins: Part Six
Scene Change – Present Day Time
The silence that present throughout the room was maddening. Rebuke knew this moment was bound it happen sooner or later, and it was in her best interest to stop the flashbacks while she still could. It was the only way to reliably let everyone process the revelation that just occurred.
None of the Fairy Tail Mages noticed that they had returned to the house until they realized Akagi's head rested on Rebuke's lap. Unsettling emotions flooded the room to the point where none of the mages knew what to ask her. Even if they did, where would they even start?
The warmth of the fire in the background failed to ease and comfort the tense atmosphere enveloping the name just spoken, and the cups of tea in the hands of each mage had long cooled to room temperature. This left little to be desired in the hopes of a warm drink being able to soothe them. As Natsu noticed that Akagi had returned to Rebuke's lap, he shattered the unnerving atmosphere by asking the easiest question that was begging to be spoken by someone. "Why?" He could only bring himself to ask in a low tone.
Rebuke cringed as Natsu's question echoed throughout her living room. She subconsciously stroked Akagi's hair to distract her from the situation at hand, but even she grew aware of her actions as she was forced to raise her gaze to meet the looks of horror, surprise, and anguish of every Fairy Tail member. Macao, Sayuki, Kagura, and Natsu were all looking intently at Rebuke for some sort of response.
As Rebuke parted her dragon like lips, she brought herself to speak in the most straightforward tone possible, as to not disturb any of her guests more than they already were. "Are you asking… Why did I help Acnologia?"
Natsu reluctantly nodded his head with the rest of his guild mates. He was so shocked that he couldn't even come up with an appropriate outburst, forcing him to control his temper. "Yeah… Let's start with the basics at this point."
This didn't go unnoticed by Rebuke, who took a noticeable breath before continuing to speak. A truthful answer was what Fairy Tail deserved after all these years. "Well, none of us thought twice about it. I want you all to know that was at the time when we first found him," Rebuke full heartedly spoke with sincerity, "When I first met Acnologia and saw the state he was left in, it was almost as if I was looking at what had happened to me. His village was destroyed. My village was destroyed… And… I assumed that one day he would turn out to follow in my footsteps. I believed he could have been saved. All he wanted to do was kill the Dragons that destroyed his village," Rebuke was forced to pause and collect her bearings before continuing, "But that young boy, who you all now know what he once was, would one day turn into one of the most ruthless and unforgiving monsters of all time." She darkly described Acnologia's persona, as she remembered the day he was created.
Natsu couldn't tolerate the pain from hearing Acnologia be described. Losing his magic coupled with discovering that the Dragon who killed his closest Nakama was raised by the woman attempting to help him caused him to succumb to an emotional outburst. "IF YOU KNEW HOW DANGEROUS HE IS, WHY DIDN'T YOU KILL HIM THEN?! THAT BASTARD IS STILL OUT THERE SOMEWHERE!"
"Master Natsu." Kagura managed to whimper as she butted him with Archenemy's hilt.
Macao shook his head in sorrow and chimed in with the same tone as Kagura. "As much as it hurts me to hear that bastards name, I think we should listen to what Rebuke has to say. She's been up front with us up until this point, and I think it's in your best interest if you take a step back and look at the bigger picture here." He reassured Natsu with his fatherly tone.
Sayuki reluctantly nodded her head with the duo. "I agree with Kagura and Macao. We've already come this far, and it's not gonna do us any good if we can't get along."
"Wuh- Well… THAT DOESN'T CHANGE THE FACT THAT IT'S TRUE!" Natsu helplessly collapsed next to Kagura. As his eyes began to tear up in emotional pain, the anger that he released turned into that of sadness and helplessness. As Kagura managed to comfort him during his outburst by being his shoulder to cry on, Natsu managed to apologetically divert his gaze back to Rebuke. "It just doesn't make sense… Jellal told me that you have the magic potential to take on all ten Wizard Saints at once without any problem… So… Why's that bastard still doing out there?!" Natsu gritted his teeth in frustration as he referred to Acnologia. All the while, Kagura tried to comfort her Guild Master's frustration before he lost the only person in existence who could possibly help him regain his magic.
"There's no need to apologize." Rebuke began to empathize with Natsu's emotional pain, "In fact, I entirely deserve this. I of all people should understand how it feels to lose someone you love, and I couldn't even bring myself to prevent you from experiencing your loss caused by Acnologia. I know everything he did to Fairy Tail on Tenrou Island two years ago, and I still couldn't bring myself to kill him even after that unfolded."
To everyone's surprise, the look plastered on Rebuke's face was sorrowful and apologetic. Not overly defensive in the slightest. For someone as confident as her, this was obviously a topic where she invested most of her emotion in.
Sayuki immediately noticed Rebuke's change in persona and approached her out of concern. "You don't have to continue if you don't want to. I'm sure there's a way for Master Natsu to get his Dragon Slayer Magic back without having to bring up any sensitive topics." Sayuki optimistically stated while laying a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
"No… After everything Acnologia's done to your guild, you all deserve this much. Without it, you'll never understand why I couldn't kill him and why Dragnof was destroyed by those Dragons." Rebuke once again inhaled to help collect her thoughts.
Sayuki warmly smiled and continued. "It's okay, take all the time you need."
After a few seconds of collecting her thoughts, Rebuke lifted her head from staring at Akagi's body to the mages intently waiting for a response. All she could do was gauge each one of their reactions as she spoke with as much confidence as she could muster. "The reason I can't kill Acnologia, is because I love him."
If a silence existed which rivaled the original one where Acnologia's identity was revealed, all the mages would have agreed that it would be this one.
The Fairy Tail Guild members initially dismissed Rebuke's comment as nothing more than a joke. But as the guild members realized the look of shame and nervousness plastered on Rebuke's face as she revealed her burden, they all concluded that this could not be any more than the truth.
"Yuh- You're serious." Macao was the first to break the tense silence. This wasn't a question he asked, it was a comment he provided to ease the nervousness of Rebuke.
Rebuke could only silently nod in response.
Sayuki's face grew a blistering red as her eyes dilated from the response Rebuke provided. "Wait, you can't mean that you want to… You know? Kiss-"
Whether her antics were genuine or not, Sayuki's reaction was enough to brighten Rebuke's mood and cause part of her confidence to return. "Hahaha, sorry if I disappoint you, but it's not that type of love," She paused to give herself a moment to become genuine, "My love for Acnologia is unconditional. It's the type of love friends and family have for each other." A slight wave of nervousness and embarrassment ushered over her again after revealing this.
Natsu shook his head in response and used the moment as an opportunity to express his own opinion. "But Rebuke. You of all people should know how many people he's killed. It wasn't just my Nakama on Tenrou Island, was it?"
Rebuke shook her head in response. "No, you're right. He's done so much more than just that. But I just can't bring myself to kill him." Rebuke paused, but this time, to direct her attention towards Kagura. "If the closest person in your life did something terrible, but you two practically raised each other, would any of you be able to bring yourself to kill them?"
Kagura's eyes widened as she realized that Rebuke was referring to Simon. The use of the analogy represented the severity of the situation. "I don't think I'd ever be able to. Because I think I'd be the one to blame for that person being the way they are now."
Sayuki solemnly comforted Rebuke after hearing Kagura's response. "Is that how you feel, Rebuke? Are you blaming yourself for what Acnologia turned into?"
Rebuke narrowed her gaze and managed to confidently smile. "Believe it or not, I don't feel that way at all. Acnologia is acting entirely on his own accord. His actions are on his head. I provided him with everything he needed to know to help humanity, but he was driven mad by-" Rebuke paused as she grimaced at what she was prepared to say.
"Driven mad by doing what?" Natsu emphasized out of curiosity.
Rebuke nodded and began to regain her composure. "I can tell you guys a good story, or the real story."
Macao sheepishly rubbed his head. "I can't say I like the way that sounds, but I think the former would be appreciated… For Master Natsu's sake."
The rest of the mages nodded in agreement with Macao as Rebuke continued. "Acnologia was driven mad by the successfully slaughtering the Dragons he vowed to kill."
Sayuki reflexively covered her mouth in horror and commented on the revelation. "Huh- How could someone so innocent turn into such a monster?" She hiccupped.
"I don't think we need to travel back in time for you to know the answer to that." Rebuke paused to generate one of her golden flames in the palm of her hand. The flames took the form of a girl with light brown hair and blue eyes. Her attire took the shape of a beige cardigan over a plunging white blouse, a frilled skirt, heeled white thigh-high boots, and a scarf around her neck. It was Sonya. "Sonya was the only girl Acnologia ever loved, but we never knew his true motives until he was mad driven." Rebuke grimaced.
"I don't get it. Acnologia killed the Dragons who ate Sonya, so why didn't he stop there?"
"Acnologia's and Sonya's village was one of the many villages destroyed throughout the Dragon King Festival. More and more villages were destroyed by the Dragons, many more than we were able to save. It caused mass hysteria among humans. Over time, humans began to doubt any possible rationale of being able to coexist in harmony with Dragons. Instead, it was turned into a conflict between coexistence, the rulership of Dragons, and now humans who opposed even interacting with Dragons in the first place. Humans wanted nothing to do with the Dragon King Festival after they all assumed Dragons were without compassion. Our group that coexisted together was all we had to prove to the other Dragons our strength. No one else wanted to join us, and it was then we realized that the only way to coexist was to ensure that we defeated every Dragon who opposed this ideal, so that we could once and all end the rationale that Humans thought it was impossible."
"Does that mean you had to kill Dragons?" Natsu asked.
Rebuke shook her head. "Training Dragon Slayers wasn't so we could slaughter Dragons, it was so we could show other humans that we could coexist with these creatures: that they trusted us with magic that could very well kill them if we tried, but had good faith that we wouldn't."
"So… What happened after you raised Acnologia?" Macao asked to further immerse himself into the conversation.
Rebuke gritted her teeth in nervousness. She snapped herself out of this daze and sighed. She narrowed her gaze towards her guests and spoke in a serious tone void of any previous uncertainty. "You all need to understand that Acnologia was like a son to me. He trained under our Father, the Elder Dragon, and his progress was remarkable. Over the next few years, him and Irene were able to train their magical potential to unfathomable amounts… But no matter how much we tried, that still didn't change the fact that the villages we tried to recruit were too frightened to join our alliance. Villages even started to respond violently towards us, saying that the world would be better off without us trying to interfere. No matter how much oppression I faced, I vowed to defeat my opponents with honor: never to go for a kill. All I wanted was to incapacitate the Dragon I fought, and had ways to ensure that they would never harm humans again."
"But… Even though you were allowed to kill Dragons, you never had to kill any yourself, have you?" Natsu worriedly asked.
Rebuke shook her head. "No. But you all know that Acnologia was different. He vowed to kill the Dragons that ate Sonya," She paused at the time to chuckle with pity, "And at the time, I was foolish enough to empathize with him. We all agreed that killing Zirconis was acceptable under his circumstances, and we assumed that he would have stopped after he sought the vengeance he desired. And then… That final day came." Rebuke paused to outstretch her arm. "This is the final flashback you guys need to witness before Natsu would have learned everything about the history of Dragon Slayer magic. This will aid him in the final part of his journey."
Natsu nodded his head in response while focusing his gaze on his three guild mates. "I'm ready to get my Magic back… I'm all fired up now." He managed to sport a confident smirk.
Kagura jokingly butted him while Macao commented on his Guild Master's brightened persona. "That's the Master Natsu I know."
Macao and Sayuki excitedly inched towards where Rebuke had her hand outstretched. "You know, as much as I want to get Master Natsu's magic back, I have to say you've lived one helluva life Rebuke." Macao commented.
Sayuki nodded with a mesmerized tone tinting her voice. "Yeah! Everything you've lived through and helped with is super interesting when you think of how Ishgar is today."
"Well… When you put it that way, it's only about to get better or worse… Depending on how you look at it." Rebuke meekly smiled.
Before anyone was able to question the meaning of what Rebuke stated, Macao and Sayuki had already added their hands to the golden flame emitting from the palm of Rebuke's hand. They opened their mouths to form a response, but were unable to speak before they vanished in a torrent of Golden Flames: leaving Akagi to rest once again.
Scene Change – X400 (386 years ago)
"It's almost time for us to get going. Are you nervous at all?" A deep voice spoke outwards into the seemingly endless prairie.
"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't." A woman with long black hair calmly spoke. She surveyed the landscape around them with her hands resting on her hips and noted the ocean a mile out to the left of the duo, outlined by a sizable sand bank. They were currently standing within a prairie outlining the beach front, with the sun being cradled by the sea: a soft array of colors littered the horizon closest to where it set.
The Massive Figure towering above the prairie revealed the woman's name by responding to her previous statement. "Is that so?" He sarcastically stated. "Could it be that the confident Rebuke was finally reduced to-"
Rebuke rolled her eyes in slight agitation and chuckled. "Now's not the time to start with me, Atlas. This is about to be our first battle… TOGETHER. It took all of us six years of training as a group to one day be able to stand a chance against the amount of Dragons roaming Ishgar."
"Don't forget that unlike the other Dragon Slayers, you've been training for 12 years."
"Exactly." Rebuke agreed. "It's our duty to defend the capital of Ishgar from the Dragons that plan on attacking them. I have every right to be nervous today."
"Fair enough," Atlas Flame paused to gesture towards a faint cloud of smoke spiraling in the far distance, "And judging from that smoke in the distance-"
Rebuke finished Atlas Flame's comment before he could. "The Dragons are getting closer to the capital. We don't have much time until they've completely burned a path of destruction... Where's everybody else? We need to get moving." Rebuke anxiously fidgeted with herself.
"Remember, Rebuke. We can do this the slow way, or the hard way. Yuna's one of the only Dragon Slayers who isn't recognizable by the humans. She's the one who had to tip the capital off and all the nearby inhabitants of the attack. Plus, we have no idea the size of the army they've amassed to attack the capital. We must wait for the rest of our comrades while we still have the element of surprise."
"You're right… Everyone knows me as the first Dragon Slayer. If anyone in that capital resents me communicating with Dragons, then all it's going to do is call chaos.
Atlas flame reluctantly nodded. "If you still need other people's opinions for reassurance, remember that this was all part of the risk with me teaching you Dragon Slayer Magic. There's always going to be humans who want no involvement in the Dragon King Festival whatsoever."
"I know," Rebuke gritted her teeth, "But that doesn't mean I don't think about it at times. There would have been a lot less casualties if all we had was more support," Rebuke began to narrow her vision into the distance as she was left to her own thoughts, "Speaking of casualties… When things start to heat up… Are we going to let him kill them?"
Atlas Flame chuckled and focused on Rebuke out of the corner of his eye. "If you're talking about Acnologia and whether or not you should be worried about him making it out without getting killed, I think you should take a look in the mirr-"
"I wasn't talking about that," Rebuke sighed and fidgeted with herself, "Acnologia's magic potential can't be questioned. I'll admit that much. Him and Irene are the most powerful mages I've ever met. I'm just worried about what's going to happen if Zirconis shows up. If Acnologia kills-" Rebuke paused to tightly grasp her hair, "What am I saying? Of course he's going to kill them! WHEN he kills them… What's going to happen? Up until this point, no other human has killed another Dragon with the very magic they use to kill us. All hell will break loose."
Atlas Flame rested a reassuring claw on Rebuke's shoulder and chuckled. "All hell is going to break loose either way. The best thing you can do is not overthink the situation at hand. You've been training your entire life for this. When the time comes, we'll all know what to do." He spoke in a tranquil tone.
Rebuke closer her eyes and inhaled a large amount of air through her nose as a way to calm her. As she exhaled and felt her chest decompress, she took the time to reminisce over the last six years leading to where she was. The amount Rebuke matured into her adult years paled in comparison to the unfathomable Magical Potential stemming from her body. Her comrades could easily sense her approaching from miles away from the amount of magic she was capable of utilizing. Throughout her adult years, Rebuke opted to keep her original attire of a blue one piece bodysuit coupled with dark olive joggers.
Rebuke cocked her head slightly to the right and noticed Atlas Flame's claw still resting on her shoulder, comforting her during her moment of stress. It was at that moment she realized that the one person responsible for raising her throughout her childhood and even throughout her adult years was standing next to her. She smiled to herself in the distance, fully embraced the scenery and spoke to her father figure in a sincere tone. "Hey, Atlas?"
"What is it, Rebuke?"
Rebuke took a deep breath before speaking with complete sincerity. "We've known each other for the past 12 years. I don't know what's going to happen out here today, but I just wanted to let you know that whatever happens-"
Rebuke was never given the opportunity to finish speaking. Before she could, the duo reflexively perked their ears as the noticeable sound of flapping was heard from behind them.
As they turned around to focus their attention beginning to prepare themselves for a possible incoming attack, they were instead relieved to see their comrades flying towards them. The Elder Dragon and Igneel were leading Aqua Regia, Grandeeney, Metalicana, Skiadrum, and Weisslogia. All of them had their respective Dragon Slayers on their back, with Metalicana carrying Kyoichi and Kyoko.
Rebuke beamed at her fellow comrades approaching from above. After a few moments, she focused her facial expression toward Aqua Regia bolting across the prairie from below. Now that she was aware of the Water Dragon's presence, she was completely distracted from her original conversation with Atlas. It was because she was completely at ease in the presence of the group.
The group of Dragons hovered for a short moment above Rebuke and Atlas Flame before setting themselves down in front of the dup. Aqua Regia finished the remaining trek by slowing to a halt, allowing Irene to safely jump to the ground.
Rebuke smiled even brighter, now that she could comfortably approach the Water Dragon. She bolted up to where he rested and tightly embraced his extended claw.
"Hey Rebuke!" Aqua Regia sweatdropped. "It's cool to see you're as small as ever!" He sarcastically chuckled while referring to her size in comparison to his claw.
Rebuke shook her head and rolled her eyes. "Small or not, I'll still kick your ass if you give me the chance."
Aqua Regia proudly smirked at Rebuke's confidence. "Someone seems ready to put some Dragons in their place."
As Rebuke separated herself from Aqua Regia to respond to him in greater depth, another voice used the moment as an opportunity to join the conversation.
"If anyone's ready to put these Dragons in their place, it's going to be me. This is what Nakazato here trained me for." The voice of a young man gestured towards the Elder Dragon.
Her ears perked at the voice referring to the Elder Dragon by his real name, instead of exhibiting the respect he deserved. There was only one person who would be allowed to refer to the Elder Dragon by his real name. As she scoured to where the voice originated from, she was met with the sharp gaze of a rather muscular young man with long, dark blue hair nearing the shade of grey. His eyes sported black circles around them, while the main piece of attire draped over his dark, tan skin was a black cloak.
Rebuke smiled at Acnologia's antics and shook her head at his emotionless facial expressions. "The Void Dragon Slayer…" She was able to whisper Acnologia's magic to herself without anyone else noticing. Even just whispering the magic potential of the Dragon Slayer Magic Acnologia was capable of using sent a shiver down her spine. After all, she could feel his aura practically crushing her from where he was standing. "There's no doubt in my mind he'll make it out without a scratch on him. Everyone here can feel the amount of Magic Potential stemming from his body." Rebuke smiled to herself.
She eventually brought herself to approach Acnologia and embrace the Void Dragon Slayer in a brotherly hug. "You better not drag me down out there." Acnologia squirmed in Rebuke's embrace.
"I should be saying the same about you. I've been the one training longer-" Rebuke's embrace was cut abruptly by a gruff voice.
"Alright, Alright. Enough of this bullshit. When are we going to get a move one? I'm dying for some action." Metalicana grunted in selfishness.
Igneel shook his head at his rival's antics. "We're still waiting for Yuna to return! How could you forget about the very human you trained!"
"Oh yeah, we're missing one… Where'd she go again?" Metalicana scratched his head in utter confusion.
"YUNA WENT TO GO WARN THE VILLAGES TO EVACUATE SO WE CAN PULL A SURPRISE ATTACK OFF!" Igneel deadpanned in disbelief, trying to not raise his voice as to warn the opposing Dragons of their location.
"DID SOMEONE CALL MY NAME?!" The voice of a girl with lightly tinted black hair called out in the distance. As the group peered into the past where Igneel and Metalicana were quarreling, they were relieved to see the figure of Yuna approach them with her signature t-shirt and loose pants. Although she was out of breath, she was eventually able to muster the strength to sport a confident smirk.
"Yuna, it's a relief to see you made it back." The Elder Dragon comforted the Dragon Slayer's name before continuing. "I assume you successful in evacuating the village?" He rhetorically asked after noticing Yuna's grin.
Yuna responded to the Elder Dragon with labored breaths. "You bet I did. They ended up leaving a long time ago. I was just checking if anyone was left behind. Those Dragon should be passing through there any moment now. They'll assume that the inhabitants evacuated not too long ago, they'll end up searching this prairie to see if they can find anyone else. After that, you all know what happens."
"Everything is going according to plan. The last thing to do is set up on the side of the prairie closest to the village." The Elder Dragon gestured across from them towards the faint tint of smoke. "The moment they start advancing into the prairie, we ambush them by surprise and force them into the open… Preferably to where we're standing right now."
Being a seasoned duelist, Igneel nodded in agreement. "If we're able to control the tide of the battle and push them to where we are now, we'll have a better positional advantage then if we let them come to us."
"And from there… We watch the backs of each other and fight with our lives on the line. Is the plan made clear?" The Elder Dragon repeated once more for everyone to hear.
"Yes father." The Dragons and fellow Dragon Slayers placed their absolute certainty
With no more questions to be asked, the Elder Dragon spoke out loud once more with complete sincerity. After all, this was his last time opportunity to give a meaningful speech. "While we are out there preserving the coexistence between Dragons and Humans, all of us should be grateful for the reason we have been brought here today…" He paused to focus his attention towards Rebuke. "Rebuke, at one point, you asked me if we ever considered you our comrade. That was years back when we first met back at that Dinner Atlas Flame hosted. Rebuke…" He paused for dramatic effect. "You will always and forever be our comrade, friend, and above all… Queen of the Dragons!" He bellowed above the prairie.
Without hesitation, small cheer of gratitude was let out due to the nature of the situation.
Many of the Dragon Slayers surrounded Rebuke, offering their own words of kindness and expressing their happiness.
"I knew you were the coolest Dragon Slayer we have!" Aqua Regia smiled from afar.
"I can't wait to kick ass out there because of you!" The Dragon Slayer Skiadrum trained patted Rebuke on the back.
Kyoko and Yuna sighed in unison while reluctantly joining the display of affection. "I guess you're not ALL that bad. Don't expect any special treatment from us though."
"The same goes for me." Kyoichi added.
Rebuke sweatdropped as the trio mimicked Metalicana's persona. "It's great to see how much you guys take after Metalicana."
Even Acnologia managed to force a smile for her. "Yes. Thank you for allowing me to learn the magic I'll use to slay Dragons."
Acnologia's offset smile caused many of the Dragon Slayers to shiver in, while many of the Dragon laughed at not being able to take the Void Dragon Slayer seriously.
The only person not making an attempt to join the rest of the Dragon Slayers was Irene. As she heard the Elder Dragon declare Rebuke "Queen of the Dragons," A massive scowl of disgust and betrayal crept across her face. "Queen of the Dragons?! What has she done that the rest of us haven't?! We all use Dragon Slayer Magic… That doesn't make her any more successful than me!" Irene fumed to herself disgust. She began to assume that the past six years meant nothing to the humans and Dragons she was trying to support.
"If Acnologia wants to kill the Dragons who ate Sonya, I'm going to support him at this point in any way I can. It's the only thing I can do to demonstrate my power at this point!" She manically thought to herself while she intensely stared towards Acnologia. "You're the Void Dragon Slayer. Killing those Dragons who ate Sonya is only the beginning, don't act like it isn't. I think I know EXACTLY what you're planning to do now."
Acnologia sensed the magic potential of Irene staring directly at him He backed away from the Dragon Slayers embracing Rebuke in order to divert his attention towards Irene.
When he noticed the emotions of betrayal flooding Irene's facial expression, he sported his sharp glare in her direction. He mimicked the same expression as her as half of his nose shriveled in hatred for the affection being displayed around him. He mouthed something beneath his breath for Irene.
As Irene began to register what she believed Acnologia was mouthing towards her, her emotion went from hatred to absolute surprise at the revelation she received. Her surprised facial expression maniacally turned into that of mischief, hatred, and resolve to seek vengeance for the betrayal she was experiencing. "I was right… He's not going to stop with Zirconis. All this time, he was planning to go so much further than that." After realizing what Acnologia had planned, she nodded her head in agreement and mouthed a response in the same manner Acnologia did. "Let's do it." She whispered under her breath without hesitation. Irene fully supported the Void Dragon Slayer.
Before the duo could exchange any more glances between each other, their facial expressions returned to a stoic nature as the Elder Dragon interrupted the affection being showed to Rebuke.
"As happy I am to see everyone cooperating, I am afraid the time has come to position ourselves towards the outskirts of the village."
As the Dragons and Dragon Slayers nodded in understanding, they began to separate themselves from the embrace around Rebuke and mounted themselves on their respective Dragons.
Acnologia and Irene followed shortly, but not before parting with one last nod to each other. They eventually separated and mounted themselves with the rest of the Dragon Slayers, and prepared to approach the outskirts of the village.
"Is everyone ready?" The Elder Dragon asked while surveying the Dragons and Dragon Slayers around him.
"Yes sir." They confidently responded in unison.
With that, the Elder Dragon extended his wings and responded with authority. "Let us go then. Stay close together, and do not exceed my height." The Elder Dragon pushed off the prairie greenery with the force of his body and began gliding at a blistering pace towards the village. The rest of the Dragons, save for Aqua Regia, followed the Elder Dragon's movement by gliding directly above the ground.
Once in the air, the Dragon Slayers looked to the left of them and noticed the remainder of the sun disappear over calm ocean. They were barely given the opportunity to admire the last of the sun's rays dissipating above them before they were among the outskirts of the village.
The Dragons inaudibly planted themselves against the cusp of the hill surrounding the village. While they ensured that all of them had arrived safely, they carefully backpedaled towards the top of the hill where their ears reflexively twitched from the sound of thrashing coming from below them.
The Dragons and Dragon slayers immediately identified the source of the rummaging, but glanced over the hill to confirm their suspicions. "The Dragons, they're here." The Elder Dragon mouthed, as to not risk the Dragons in the village detecting them.
Rebuke scanned the village to gauge how many opponents they were facing. Her eyes bulged slightly when she realized how many Dragon were located in just the village. "There's at least a couple dozen down there. And that doesn't even include the Dragons that are still funneling their ways from all the destruction towards the other side."
Kyoichi confidently smirked and responded. "It's not too late to turn back if you're scare-"
"No way in hell. I was just commenting on their numbers."
Acnologia nodded his head in agreement. "It doesn't matter how many they have. Today is ending one way, and one way only."
Many of the Dragons and Dragon Slayers nodded their heads in unison, not realizing the true extent to what Acnologia was referring to.
Before any other observations could be made, the group was interrupted by the Dragons within the village. "C'MON! Let's just level this place so we can find where the hell he's hiding!" The voice of one of the Dragons boomed from the middle of the village.
"What good is that going to do if we end up killing him in the process?! I'm trying to enjoy my meal while it's still intact!" A second Dragon called out while scouring the houses below him.
"You two stop talking. Everyone come over here, I think I heard something!" A third Dragon called out while positioning his ear closest to the house he was looming over. A wicked smirk plastered his face as the other Dragons in the village approached. "You guys hear that?"
The Dragons immediately began to plaster a similarly wicked smile on their faces as they began to condescendingly laugh. "The little guy's crying somewhere in there. I bet he doesn't even know about our enhanced HEARING!" The third Dragon roared while swiping his claws through the house, causing it to collapse. As his claws emerged from the debris, his grip was tightly secured around an adolescent boy who was now frantically screeching.
"SOMEONE HELP ME! PLEASE!" The boy screamed while tears streamed his face.
The Dragon and Dragon Slayers continued watching the scene from far and widened their eyes in disbelief. Rebuke comically glared towards Yuna and hissed. "Yuna! I thought you evacuated everyone!" Rebuke hissed and referred to the little boy stranded in the claws of the Dragons.
"Uh- I did! I promise I told everyone to leave. But one of the villagers must have been left behind or wasn't fast enough."
"Hmph. I don't see that bastard down there anywhere." Acnologia referred to Zirconis while completely ignoring the helpless boy.
"Shouldn't finding Zirconis be the last thing on our minds?" Yuna sweatdropped.
"It should," Rebuke gritted her teeth while standing up, "We're not going to just sit here and watch that boy get eaten alive!" She began to raise her voice as the boy's body was brought close to the Dragon's mouth.
"Rebuke is right. Change of plans! We start the fight here, and push them as far into the prairie as we can."
Rebuke didn't need affirmation from anybody else. She nodded her head before immediately launching her body in the air above the village. Before the Dragons in the village could even react to her presence, Rebuke closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. She felt her chest rise to its apex when she slowly began to open her eyes. Che carefully curled each individual finger of her dominant hand into a fist while drawing the entire arm behind her. A red magic circle with the image of a Dragon formed at her knuckles tips. Without hesitation, she roared the spell she was prepared to activate for all of the prairie to hear. "FIRE DRAGON'S IRON FIST!" A sizable torrent of red flames appeared around her hand. She thrust her fist through the magic circle and towards the Dragon hoisting the boy over his mouth.
The Dragon never had the opportunity to react. Before he could, Rebuke's fist struck the Dragon's Jaw, causing it to instantly shatter while simultaneously lighting him ablaze. The Dragon's body hurled into the ground where it tumbled towards the other entrance of the village. His body came to a halt which caused the raging flames around him to dissipate.
The boy was immediately dropped to the ground where he was caught by one of the other Dragon Slayers.
The other Dragons in the village were awestruck at the power of the spell that was activated. They glanced over at their fallen comrade, and although they noticed the subtle rise and fall of his chest, the Dragon was in absolutely no condition to fight.
Before any of them could react to the attack that unfolded, the Elder Dragon roared even louder than the spell Rebuke activated. "ATTAAAAACCKK!"
All hell broke out across the village, as the enemy Dragons finally realized the severity of the attack. Dragons who hadn't entered the village and opted to search the opposite prairie immediately glided into the air and flew at a breakneck speed towards the chaos.
The Dragon Slayer who managed to catch the boy began racing towards the side of the village opposite to the ocean in the distance. She hurled over debris and barriers while avoiding spells being blasted over their heads. As she led him away from the village and into the prairie, she carefully instructed him with what to do. "Hey kid, you're gonna be all right," She reassured while comforting the boy's hysteric crying, "Get as far away from this place as possible. You should eventually reach a town with your parents in it. As long as you keep running away from the ocean, you're gonna be just fine."
"Thuh- Thank you!" The boy wailed while attempting to wipe the snot from his face. "And thank you for the lady who saved me."
The Dragon Slayer chuckled and ruffled the boy's hair. "I'll be sure to tell her what you said. Now go! Keep running until you get there!"
After a quick embrace, the boy parted with the Dragon Slayer and began spring as fast as he could into the distance. The Dragon Slayer nodded in satisfaction while bolting back towards the village.
"Where the hell did they all come from?! WHO THE HELL ARE THESE BASTARDS?!" A Dragon roared while attempting to defend himself against Aqua Regia.
"We're super cool! That's who we are!" Aqua Regia confidently declared. He positioned himself across from the Dragon who spoke and formed a sea blue magic circle a short distance from his mouth. He inhaled a massive amount of air before firing fired a scalding beam of water towards his opponent's eyes.
"GAH!" The Dragon roared while being struck in the eye with the blast. "IT'S TOO GODDAMN CLUSTERED HERE. GET TO THE PRAIRIE SO WE CAN HAVE SOME ROOM TO FIGHT!" He frantically gestured in a random direction to his comrades as he was temporarily blinded.
The rest of the Dragon grunted in understanding and momentarily ceased their retaliation. They spread their wings and launched themselves into the evening sky looming above the prairie.
"After them! We've got them right where we want them! Finish this while you still have enough Dragon Slayer Magic!" The Elder Dragon declared while noticing the fatigue across the battlefield.
The Dragon Slayers immediately slung themselves on top of their respective Dragons. The Dragons immediately pursued their enemies from behind, while Aqua Regia transported Irene to the center of the prairie by land.
Grandeeney nodded as she rapidly approached the enemy Dragons from behind. Before the invading Dragons were even able to turn around and gauge how fast the Dragons and Dragon Slayers were approaching, Grandeeney immediately diverted her attention to the Dragon Slayer residing on her back. "We both know what to do! Now's the time to give our friends an advantage!"
"I'll try my best!" The young woman declared while launching herself from Grandeeney's back. She used the momentum to arc through the air and create a series of light blue magic circles that pointed down around the enemy Dragons.
Grandeeney mimicked her Dragon Slayers movements and nimbly flew above her opponents, stacking another magic circle on top of the original ones created. She remained in the air above the fleeing Dragons. She then nodded her head towards her Dragon Slayer, signaling she was prepared to activate their spell.
The Dragon Slayer landed in the center of the prairie directly below the group of Dragons, next to where Aqua Regia and Rebuke were waiting. The Dragon Slayer returned the nod towards Grandeeney before closing her eyes and inhaling a massive amount of air, causing the image of a Dragon at the center of their magic circles to enlarge. The Dragon Slayer's eyes bolted open as she activated the spell out loud. "SKY DRAGON'S GALE!" The Sky Dragon Slayer roared above the prairie.
A massive torrent of wind was released from the Magic Circles, jetting downwards towards the center of the prairie.
Grandeeney lifted her wingspan above her head and generated a magic circle beneath both of her wings. As she began to simultaneously flap them, a massive downdraft was created further adding to the force of the Sky Dragon Slayer's magic circles.
The wind from the spell sharpened with each moment to the point where it began to cut beneath the scales of the Dragons caught within the blast
As the Dragons were forced towards the ground by the massive blast, they roared in pain from the wind attacking their skin. "DAMN THAT HURTS. WHEN I GET OUT OF THIS, I SWEAR I'M GONNA KILL EVERY ONE OF THOSE BASTARDS!" One of the Dragon roared in frustration and anger, followed by the others grunting in agreement.
The Dragons were no match against the downward force of the spell. Their wings eventually gave out of fatigue, causing them to be blasted towards the floor of the prairie.
"KABOOM!" The massive sound of their bodies made as they impacted the ground one by one. A massive could of dust was formed in the wake of the blast, allowing Grandeeney to safely land in the middle of the prairie where her fellow Dragon and Dragon Slayers were waiting.
As the dust began to dissipate, everyone's eyes widened as the Dragons completely regained their composure while emerging seemingly unscathed. "I don't even see a scratch on them." Rebuke whispered beneath her breath next to her friends.
"Now… You're gonna pay," One of the Dragons muttered before roaring an order out loud, "MAKE SURE NONE OF THEM LEAVE HERE ALIVE!"
Before Rebuke and her comrades were given the opportunity to react to the situation at hand, the opposing Dragons launched from the area they impacted and swooped towards where the Dragon Slayers stood with their wings fully extended.
"GET OUT OF THE WAY!" The Elder Dragon roared to his fellow Dragons. Rebuke, Acnologia, and Irene had enough magic potential to maneuver above the Dragons charging towards them. While the three Dragon Slayers and their fellow Dragons were able to either reflexively dodge or fly above the opposing Dragons to narrowly avoid being hit, Aqua Regia and the Dragon Slayers were unable to react in time.
They attempted to sidestep out of the way, but the massive wingspan of the opposing Dragons rammed into them with full force, causing the Dragon Slayers struck to immediately lose conscious.
Aqua Regia was thrown backwards with the rest of the Dragon Slayers, with his large size and whatever endurance he had left providing him with enough strength to remain conscious. He watched as Kyoichi, Kyoko, Yuna, and the other Dragon Slayers struck helplessly tumble through the air with him.
Aqua Regia's body was hurled the farthest towards the beachfront of the ocean, while the other Dragon Slayers were immediately pinned on the ground by the opposing Dragons.
Before the Elder Dragon could lead a counterattack with his fellow Dragons to save the helpless Dragon Slayers, the opposing Dragons who weren't surrounding the other Dragon Slayers maneuvered into the air to begin a second engagement.
"Now that they're distracted, let's finish this quick. I wanna get to the one without wings." One of the Dragons manically referred to Aqua Regia.
Rebuke, Acnologia, and Irene were the only ones capable of fighting.
Rebuke scanned the area for Acnologia and Irene, only to clench her fists when she realized they separated from her and were occupied by surveying the area around them. "What the hell are Acnologia and Irene doing?! They're been running around this entire time instead of fighting! No wonder they're not even breaking a sweat, I don't even thing they've fired a spell this entire time!"
Rebuke helplessly watched as Aqua Regia attempted to stand upright to fire a spell in the direction of the pinned Dragon Sayers, only to wince in pain from being struck from the opposing Dragons. "Nonononono... Aqua Regia's in no condition to fight… And I can't take all of those Dragons at once!" She frantically scanned the area for Acnologia and Irene. Her eyes rested on the two Dragon Slayers eyeing each Dragon in curiosity, before moving to the next. "I know what they're up to," Rebuke muttered before speaking to herself, "They want to find Zirconis so they can kill him. It's not like I can stop them now with all this chaos. I've gotta try and save the other Dragon Slayers!" She thought to herself while frantically scanning the area. "Everyone is getting way too tired. They've spent too much of their magic potential defending themselves from those Dragons in the village… And that doesn't even include all those Dragons on the other side of the prairie who came to help them."
Before Rebuke could continue speaking to herself, she was interrupted by one of the Dragons snarling out loud. "I don't think they have any last words. They're finished. Let's enjoy eating them while we still can." He concluded while slowly lowering his face towards Yuna's body. The other Dragons followed his movements and prepared to devour the Dragon Slayers they were able to pin down.
"I can't just stand here! I've gotta at least try to save them." She roared in her mind while preparing to face the Dragons. Before she was able to contemplate a spell, she was momentarily distracted by the rest of her fellow Dragons in the air. Igneel and Atlas were fending themselves from a group of at least a dozen Dragons launching attacks from above them.
Her eyes widened at a solution. "Wait… Maybe there is a way to stop this once and for all."
As Rebuke watched her comrades grow weaker with each passing moment, she confidently roared at the top of her voice. "EVERYONE! GET TO THE OCEAN… NOW!" This was the only opportunity she had to save the unconscious Dragon Slayers without Acnologia and Irene. And at the very least, she hoped it would distract the duo from searching for Zirconis on the off chance he was even there.
"WE'RE KIND BUSY UP HERE! WE CAN'T JUST ABANDON EVERYTHING RIGHT NOW!" Atlas grunted while Igneel and him defended themselves int eh sky.
"BUSY OR NOT, THOSE DRAGON SLAYERS NEED HELP DOWN THERE!" Grandeeney declared while gesturing to where the Dragon Slayers were pinned.
"HOW DO YOU EXPECT US TO JUST FLY AWAY TO SAVE TH-"
"GRANDEENEY," Rebuke yelled while interrupting Atlas Flame, "ARE YOU ABLE TO ACTIVATE THAT SAME SPELL TO PIN THE OTHER DRAGONS TO THE GROUND?! I THINK IT'LL BUY YOU ENOUGH TIME TO SWOOP DOWN TO GRAB THOSE DRAGON SLAYERS!"
"I'M ALREADY ON IT!" Grandeeney briskly maneuvered above her foes, as they launched a barrage of spells. "I HOPE YOU HAVE SOMETHING PLANNED, REBUKE. THIS SPELL ISN'T GOING TO BUY US MUCH TIME WITHOUT CASSIDY." She referred to the name of the Dragon Slayer she trained.
"IT'S ALL WE'VE GOT AT THIS POINT. JUST DO IT!" Rebuke prepared herself as Grandeeney completed the series of light blue magic circles.
Acnologia and Irene momentarily paused their search to witness Grandeeney and Rebuke communicate "I think those two are taking care of all the hard work for us. We'll fall back to the ocean on their word. I don't want to get caught up in whatever plan she's trying to carry out." Irene recommended to Acnologia.
Acnologia nodded in response. "Let's start heading over there. As long as we continue in their backline of the prairie, we shouldn't get caught up in any more spells. We've done a good job up to this point with conserving our Magic… Let's try to keep it that way for now." He spat.
As the duo began to bolt through the backline of the prairie and towards the ocean, Grandeeney spoke above the battlefield to her comrades. "EVERYONE! WHEN YOU HEAR ME ACTIVATE MY SPELL, RETREAT TO THE OCEAN!"
Skiadrum unsurely nodded his head in response while hurling a Dragon in his claws towards the ground. "I TRUST YOU GUYS! JUST MAKE SURE YOU GET ALL OF THEM."
Metalicana scoffed while dodging the Dragon that was thrown. "YOU RATS BETTER NOT SCREW AROUND WHEN WE TURN OUT BACKS TO THESE PRICKS. I DON'T LIKE GETTING ATTACKED WITH MY BACK TURNED TO MY ENEMIES."
Grandeeney nodded and eyed Rebuke one last time. The duo confidently nodded their heads in unison before Grandeeney closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. She suspended her body in the air and extended her wings at her side. As her eyes flew open, she roared the spell in her mind across the prairie. "SKY DRAGON'S GALE!" As she activated the spell, she continued to add as much magical potential to it by flapping her wings, creating a similar downdraft as before.
The Elder Dragon and his comrades immediately dropped their defenses and extended their entire wingspan upon hearing Grandeeney activate her spell. They used the entire surface area of their wings to soar at an inhumane pace towards the ocean.
In a burst of speed, the opposing Dragons bolted towards the ocean in a relentless pursuit, but were unable to escape Grandeeney's spell in time.
The force of the spell struck them with absolute resolve. The Dragons were unable to even withstand the sheer strength of the blast before the razor sharp wind tore into their scales and forced them downwards towards the prairie.
"GGGGGAAAUUUUGGGGHHH!" The opposing Dragon immediately roared in pain and anguish as their scales were ripped by the wind.
"KABOOM!" The sound of their bodies resounded as they plummeted into the ground, burrowing into a crater created by their impact. A massive plume of dust was created in the process,
The Dragons about to consume the Humans believed they were pinned on top of the bodies, crushing the Dragon Slayers in the process.
The Dragons who were preparing to eat the humans reluctantly lifted their heads in pain as the cloud of dust dissipated. After scouring each other's composure and realizing Grandeeney's spell caused gashes to litter their bodies, one of the Dragons manically thrashed in embarrassment and gestured to where she was hovering above the ocean. "YUH- YEAH. THET'S RIGHT, YOU BASTARDS. RUN AWAY SCARED JUST LIKE THE HUMANS YOU TRIED TO CATER. ANYONE WHO SUPPORTS THE EXISTENCE OF HUMANS IS AS GOOD AS DEAD TO US. NOW I'M GONNA ENJOY EATING THEIR CRUSHED BODIES RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU TRAITORS!" Without hesitation, the Dragon who was driven with rage dove his opened jaw to where he was initially pinning down the Dragon Slayer. As he sank his teeth into his target, he winced in disgust as his mouth was instead filled with dirt from the prairie. "WHAT THE HELL!" He violently wretched while focusing his gaze towards where he bit. "WHERE ARE THOSE BASTARDS?" The Dragon roared in confusion and frustration towards the Dragon Slayers he was referring to. As he slowly lifted his head up in confusion, his worst fears were confirmed as his menacing gaze turned into that of disbelief.
Grandeeney confidently smirked and unfolded her wings before the opposing Dragons gazing at her, revealing the Dragon Slayers in her embrace. "You seem to be forgetting that I am a Sky Dragon. It wasn't hard at all to save our friends while you were distracted by the rest of us 'fleeing.'"
"Thuh- That's impossible." The opposing Dragon began to scour the prairie for any target to release his rage and embarrassment on. His gaze rested on a young woman with long, black hair.
Her attire of a training suit, dark olive joggers, and sandals clung to her body as she was in a lunge position close to the ground. Her eyes remained closed as she concentrated on her form.
"That human." The Dragon muttered as his eyes focused on Rebuke; the Fire Dragon Slayer's body was close to the ground and prepared to retaliate with an attack towards the opposing Dragons, causing a golden hue to surround her body. Beneath her lowered stance rested a large Magic Circle with the image of a fire dragon formed in the middle. It was plastered on the prairie, pulsing a similar golden hue. The Magic Circle continued to fuel the dim aura around her body. It was the flame of Rebuke, the most powerful form of the flames of emotion.
Acnologia eyed the Magical Potential stemming from Rebuke's body. "That's it. There they are… That's all that I needed to see." He briskly thought to himself.
Before he could continue, his thoughts were interrupted by the opposing Dragons immediately losing their composure upon diverting their gaze towards Rebuke. "WE"RE KIILLING ONE OF YOU HUMANS TODAY EVEN IF IT COSTS US OUR LIVES!" The Dragon declared for the rest of his hesitation, he led the other Dragon in a mad pursuit to where Rebuke was activating her spell from across the prairie.
"NO! I THOUGHT SHE'D BE DONE BY NOW. WE'VE GOTTA GET CLOSE ENOUGH TO BUY HER MORE TIME!" Grandeeney declared.
The Elder Dragon restrained Grandeeney as she prepared to outstretch her wings and pursue the opposing Dragons. "GRANDEENEY!" The Elder Dragon bellowed while gesturing to the Dragon Slayers within her grasp. "You can't just run back in there when the lives of those humans are depending on you! We don't even know what spell Rebuke plans on activating!"
"Father is right!" Igneel frantically spoke for Atlas Flame. "Rebuke told us to retreat to the ocean for a reason! As remarkable as those golden flames are, anyone who comes into contact with them bear the sins of the wielder! That is the very definition of the flames of emotion in their purest form! Whether or not she's mastered the ability to control her emotions, we can't risk succumbing to their sheer strength!"
Before any of the other Dragons could react to Igneel's statement, Aqua Regia snarled with confidence. "If no one if cool enough to think of a plan, then I will."
"Aqua, there's no time! What do you plan on-" Atlas Flame was never given the opportunity to address Aqua Regia. Before he could, the Water Dragon launched his body into the air before arcing around and diving headfirst into the ocean.
"GHHER," Atlas Flame snorted, "THERE'S NO TIME TO GO FOR A SWIM. THEY'RE ALMOST TO-"
Before Atlas Flame was able to even suggest saving Rebuke, an omniscient rumble bellowed from deep within the ocean. A series of bubbles comedically broke the surface of the water as the rumble began to dissipate. After a few seconds of utter silence from Aqua Regia's companions and the ominous voice, an ear piercing screech pierced the sky. The opposing Dragons pursuing Rebuke immediately shrieked in pain, causing them to crash into the prairie below before they could even reach Rebuke.
In an instant, an enormous serpent like creature emerged from the darkened sea following the screech, larger than any of the Dragons could even imagine on Earthland. The serpent sported a glare of absolute resolve while sharing little resemblance to Aqua Regia's Dragonic form. The backside of his body was plated extensively with sea blue Dragon like Scales, while the frontside represented his white underbelly. A razor sharp dorsal fin ornamented with spikes traveled down his back's length and into the ocean, where his body seemingly ended.
Aqua Regia's companions immediately cowered beneath his serpent like form as he bellowed above the prairie in front of him. A massive sea blue magic circle with the image of a Dragon was projected in front of his gape mouth. "NOW I'M GONNA MAKE YOU GUYS PAY FOR TRYING TO HURT REBUKE. WATER DRAGON SECRET ART. HIDDEN WATER FORM. AQUA LOTUS…" The colossus serpent paused as he inhaled a massive torrent of sea water. "HYDROLYZED SERPENT BLAST!" Aqua Regia roared and unleashed a devastating column of pressurized water. The column was projected across the prairie, instantly demolishing the scenery lying in its wake.
The spell relentlessly struck the area around the opposing Dragons who were dazed by Aqua Regia's screech, causing the surrounding land to rumble upon impact while deafening their reactions.
Instead of a secondary explosion inflicting more damage on the Dragons, a growing orb of pressurized water was generated from the spell's impact. Each Dragon hit by the growing orb barely had the strength to roar above the prairie in frustration and pain. "AAAAaarrgghhh…" Their combined cries began to dissipate with each passing second of being encased within the pressurized water.
As the last of the opposing Dragons were struck by the spell, the now massive orb of sea water began to squirm uncontrollably before rupturing into a brilliant array of water droplets, allowing the Dragons to be released from it.
Aqua Regia's fellow Dragons watched in awe and admiration at spell they witnessed. "What sheer potential. I had no idea his serpent form was this powerful." The Elder Dragon remarked.
"Aqua Regia's actually a badass…?" Metallicana gritted his teeth in frustration, as he refused to accept the sheer magical potential of one of the other Dragons.
As the spell began to dissipate, Aqua Regia's body began to glow as his massive serpent appearance was transformed back into his Draconic form.
The Water Dragon was now panting heavily at the spell he mustered to activate, but widened his eyes as he realized his location. "Wait… Where am I?" He frantically looked around, since he was unable to feel the sea water beneath him. As he looked downwards, he realized his body subconsciously shrunk from above the ocean rather than into it. "NOOOO! I CAN'T FLY!" Aqua Regia squirmed in the air "AHHHHHhhhh…" His helpless cry dissipated once he plummeted into the water.
He deadpanned in embarrassment once he began to rise back to the surface. "Hehehe… Never mind. I forgot that I don't need wings to fly if I'm next to water."
"I take it back," Metalicana scoffed, "Being a badass doesn't make up for not having a brain."
The other Dragons ignored this comment while Igneel diverted his attention towards Aqua Regia. "Why didn't you activate that spell before, so you could have made yourself more useful?" Igneel questioned Aqua Regia's motives.
"Well… I can only enter that form when I'm by water… And… I sorta forgot I was by water up until Rebuke needed help."
As the Dragon deadpanned in disbelief, Metallicana sneered once more. "My point has been made."
"Cut the chatter. We need to make sure Rebuke wasn't harmed." As the Dragons began to divert heir gaze towards their opponents, they widened their eyes in disbelief. A massive column of destruction was carved through the prairie from Aqua Regia's spell. The water from the ocean had traveled into the created ditch and towards where the Dragons were sprawled.
Miraculously, although the opposing Dragons were reduced to being sprawled against the prairie, they were still conscious. They used as much strength as they could muster to extend their claws while pulling themselves to where Rebuke was still activating her spell. "Uh- I'm going to slaughter every one of you bastards… Even if I have to die for it…" The Dragon manically coughed.
The opposing Dragons managed to stagger upright on their legs before glaring towards where Rebuke was last seen.
The Fire Dragon Slayer's body was still close to the ground, but the golden hue surrounding her body was now raging freely: taking the form of her golden flames. The image of the Dragon inside of the magic circle beneath her was glowing intensely, causing a low rumble to echo throughout the prairie. Her flames of emotion were nearly ready to unleash their full potential.
The opposing Dragons refused to give her a chance to retaliate. "KILL HER WHERE SHE STANDS." One of them roared, causing the group to frantically rush in an attempt to overpower her.
"HOW ARE THEY STILL STANDING AFTER THAT ATTACK?! WE'RE OUT OF TIME!" Grandeeney feared. She was never given the chance to react
The Dragon ordering the attack led the pursuit around the fissure generated by Aqua Regia's attack; his gape jaw guiding his rage towards her body. In the few moments he needed to completely plow through Rebuke, ending her life, everything went quiet.
Rebuke's eyes shot open with absolute resolve. She roared at the top of her lungs and activated the spell residing in her mind after she inhaled a massive amount of air through her nostrils. "FIRE DRAGON'S RAGING HELL!" She boomed with the remaining magical potential coursing throughout her body as she lowered her fist towards the center of the magic circle.
The moment Rebuke's fist impacted the ground, a blinding flash of yellow hue shrouded the sky causing everyone to reflexively wince as they closed their eyes in pain. The final roars of the opposing Dragons were masked by the ghostly sound being produced from them massive sea of yellow flames lighting the prairie ablaze, generating relentless explosions with every surface the flames came into contact with and silencing the screams of its victims.
The Elder Dragon along with Atlas Flame and Igneel were able to adjust to the sheer power and watch in marvel as the Flames of Emotion assaulted the opposing Dragons without remorse.
"So, this is the power… Of a TRUE Dragon Slayer…" The Elder Dragon lowly lamented in awe next to the two fire Dragons. Each moment that passed by cause the golden flames to latch onto the opposing Dragons, completely draining their magical potential.
Igneel nodded his head in complete satisfaction. "You really did a wonderful task raising her." He referred to Atlas Flame's relation with Rebuke.
"Thank you, Igneel. I could not be more proud of her."
Unknowing to any of the other Dragons, Acnologia was intently observing the scene in front of him. He darkly smirked and commented. "That's just what I was looking for. All that raw power… The Flames of Emotion in their purest form."
The rest of the Dragons in the ocean managed to fully adjust to the intensity of the heat being Radiated from Rebuke's spell. They widened their eyes as they slowly realized the entire prairie was engulfed with an endless sea of golden flames. They could faintly see Rebuke's eyes peer outwards towards them, her gaze tinted a pitch black color as she stood up throughout the duration of the spell with her chest raised towards the horizon.
The final moments of awe and suspense began to subdue as Rebuke's intense gaze began to soothe, causing her golden flames to dissipate.
As the Dragons in the ocean finally rested their gazes on the prairie, their eyes widened in disbelief at the power of Rebuke's spell.
The beach front was moved back towards them from her flames instantly evaporating some of the water. Even the sand was converted into a massive sheet of glass from Rebuke's flames.
Half of the Dragons were immediately defeated. Scorch marks littered their bodies inhibiting their ability to breathe; many of Rebuke's friends realized that they could very well be considered on the brink of death.
In fact, as Rebuke's allies exited the ocean and walked across the dense sheet of glass towards Rebuke's frail body, none of them even considered the opposing Dragons to be conscious... Except for one.
One Dragon remained sprawled between Rebuke and her allies, his weak gaze wandering the prairie with a detached sense of reality. The Dragon's body was littered with jagged scales. His head consisted of a flat skull complemented by a flat nose and wide jaw. The Dragon's ears tapered off to his dominant side with darkened ends. Strands of hair jetted from his chin, and his claws were ornamented with dark, shiny talons. On his back was another row of spikes between his massive wingspan drooped in pain.
Acnologia noticed the Dragon stirring, which caused his face to darken as hatred and pain ushered over his body. Through his clenched teeth, he barely managed to spit the Dragon's name out loud. "Zirconis." Acnologia inhumanely growled.
"Huh- Who said my name?" Zirconis managed to snap his gaze looking for the voice approaching him. His eyes eventually rested on a muscular man with long, dark blue hair. He was sporting an intense gaze with dark circles around his eyes. The setting sun struck his tanned skin and outlined his high collared, black cloak with dragon like markings littered across it. The man's baggy pants echoed with each strut he took towards the Dragon.
Before Zirconis could even speak to the young man approaching him, Acnologia's body was engulfed in a layer of Void Dragon Slayer Magic. The Dragon Slayer figure atomized into the wind, causing the Dragon to grow concerned. "Wuh- Where the hell is he?! How does such a human have that much Magic Potential?! He just vanish-" Zirconis was never given the chance to finish speaking.
In an instant, a flash of Void Dragon Slayer Magic appeared in front of his eyes. Without hesitation, the flash of Void Dragon Slayer Magic wrapped around his throat, crushing it within its grip.
"ARRGGGGHHHhhhh…" Zirconis squirmed as his breathing was completely cut off. His body began to grow limp from the immeasurable pain caused by the Void Dragon Slayer Magic crushing the burnt portions of his throat.
The Void Dragon Slayer Magic then materialized into Acnologia's dominant hand. Splotches of Void Dragon Slayer Magic materialized into the rest of Acnologia's body in the air, with his eyes being the first thing to form. His gaze sported the appearance of death, and his eyes were tinted a glowing black hue. "DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM?!" Acnologia bellowed with resolve, while Irene approached from behind to watch the scene unfold.
Before any of the Dragons could even prevent Acnologia from asserting his dominance, Metalicana's eyes widened in disbelief. "Wait just a damn second… That's the bastard who killed Acnologia's friend!" Metalicana chimed in.
Grandeeney shook her head as Rebuke staggered towards them gathered behind Acnologia and Irene. Rebuke was barely given the opportunity to share a heartwarming moment with Atlas Flame, Aqua Regia, and Igneel before Grandeeney began to frantically yell towards Acnologia. "Stop this at once! You know how Rebuke feels about this! She's already weak as is from using that spell to save us! We all worked together to win this battle! Without her, we'd still be fighting and our other friends wouldn't be alive," She paused to gesture to the unconscious Dragon Slayers in her embrace, "None of us won this battle alone, so none of us can act on the accord of a single-"
"No." Rebuke interrupted with a lawful tone. Before she could even rejoice with her comrades, she staggered away from Aqua Regia's fading smile: managing to limp towards Acnologia holding Zirconis.
She sported a look of anguish towards Zirconis after realizing the destruction around her that she had to resort to. "At first… I was opposed to Acnologia doing this because of how the other Dragons would react," She momentarily paused to perform a grand gesture around them, "But now that no one is here to witness this, I think this is the best way to settle the score. We all have our own journeys in this world… Maybe this is Acnologia's way of expressing his."
Atlas flame tightly sealed his eyes and lightly shook his head. "Rebuke… You know I don't like this one bit…"
Rebuke turned around with tears beginning to pool within her eyes. "Dad…? I never said I liked this to begin with. But this is the only way we can all get what we want without fueling their rage if they were to ever find out that we killed one of them."
The Elder Dragon grimaced and silently nodded his head in agreement, realizing what Rebuke implied while accepting the situation at hand. Even Grandeeney knew what had to be done.
Atlas Flame's eyes immediately softened after hearing Rebuke speak. What she said caused him to completely grow oblivious to the Elder Dragon's declaration. The flames lighting the exterior of his body dimmed as a feeling of warmth enveloped him. "Did she just call me-"
Atlas Flame was never able to finish his thoughts.
As Acnologia looked over his shoulder to gauge the implied atmosphere. A wicked smile crept across his face. He knew what had to be done.
He slowly turned his head back around and looked into Zirconis' eyes for the last time. He wanted to watch the life fade from the eyes of the Dragon who killed the one human he truly loved. Zirconis attempted to open his mouth in an attempt to retaliate as the last of his life was squeezed from his dragon body, but to no avail. Instead, he managed to use the remainder of his strength to avert his gaze in disgust. "Duh- Do not look at me… Us Dragons eat humans for a reason… All of you are weak… Shuh- She was weak…"
Before Zirconis could continue, a wave of rage and anger coursed through Acnologia's body. The Dragon Slayer clasped his grip with immeasurable force, collapsing Zirconis' neck and piercing his scales as his fingers entered his throat. Everyone averted their gaze at the grotesque scene before them.
In the last moments of his life, Zirconis managed to divert his gaze back towards Acnologia to truly encompass the meaning with his words. "Just like you."
As the life faded from Zirconis' eyes, Acnologia felt the Dragon's blood trickle down his forearm past his elbow before softly pattering below him on the ground. As Zirconis was brutally executed by Acnologia's hand, he fully embraced the Dragon's blood caressing his skin and the path he chose. "Live by the sword, die by the sword. With Overwhelming force… My destination is clear."
With each passing moment Zirconis' corpse lay within Acnologia's grasp, the Dragon's blood began to trickle with even greater violence. The copious amounts of blood began to cling to Acnologia's forearm and trickle towards his face. Acnologia was so consumed in rage that he was oblivious to the single drop of blood that fell in his mouth, causing his void like eyes to return to their original color. He could feel an aura of Void Dragon Slayer magic usher across his body, causing Zirconis' blood to consume the little sanity he had left. It added to his Dragon Slayer's magical potential.
Irene watched in awe at the sight before her: even in slight admiration from being so close to the spectacle that was unfolding. Unknowingly to anyone else though, Acnologia was the first human to taste a Dragon's blood.
"HAUHAUHAUAHAUAH." Acnologia bellowed at the realization of what he had succumb to. The echo of his voice throughout the prairie immediately caused Rebuke as well as the other Dragons to grow unnerved. Acnologia slowly turned around with Irene mimicking his movement. "Rebuke… Do you truly stand by what you said?"
"What I said?" Rebuke unsurely responded as Acnologia's gaze pierced hers.
"Before we fought today… And just before I slaughtered that bastard… When you said that 'we all have our own journeys in this world.'"
"Of course I do… Mine has always been to help humanity coexist with Dragons. You know that. Where's all this coming from?"
"If that's the case… I hope there's no hard feelings after I do this." In that instant, Rebuke's life changed forever. Acnologia extended his dominant hand at his side: causing a spear of the darkest Void Dragon Slayer Magic he could fathom to form within his grasp.
All it took was that split moment for Rebuke's facial expression to shift towards that of absolute dread and anguish. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched Acnologia and Irene launch into the air towards Atlas Flame. Before the Fire Dragon could even react, a maniacal smirk plastered across Acnologia's face. He stared into the Fire Dragon's charcoal like eyes lit ablaze and spoke one word, "Die," Before plunging his void spear into his skull.
Atlas Flame's body erupted in a massive plume of Void Dragon Slayer Magic and Irene's Sage Dragon Slayer Magic as she followed from behind: taking the form of rotting leaves basked in darkness. It was then that Atlas Flame's corpse dematerialized into the air without another word.
Thank you for your time!
