Massive ways, far larger than normal, lapped upon the shores of the coast several miles from Akane Beach. Meredy had sensors lain on the area near where Kai had encased all of Fairy Tail's stuff to detect when they'd arrive. Ultear stood near Kai as he was bent over, bruises riddling his body. He was barely able to keep his eyes open.
Jellal stood out in the ocean, arms crossed, a golden aura lighting the nighttime for Kai. He lowered into his sprinting position.
"Again," he muttered.
Ultear's orb flashed above them and the waves got even larger and even stronger.
Kai dashed forward into the ocean without a signal.
"Ice Dragon Tundra!"
The ice coated everything, momentarily freezing even the heavy waves and ocean in place before the pulse of the ocean took over. Kai leapt off the glaciar and landed on another one, sliding down the backside of a wave before another came to swallow him. He shot a trail of ice into the air and followed it as well, flipping over the tidal wave.
For a moment he floated in the air completely free of pain and inhibitions, able to see Jellal dead ahead. His target.
All he had to do was reach Jellal.
And he'd thought it'd be easy. Sure, he'd writhed in pain for about a day after unlocking his Second Origin, but the power gain he'd gotten was massive.
But Crime Sorciere was prepared to make sure the training Kai got was anything but easy.
"While we'll focus some on your magical abilities, that's already hit an area you can't even comprehend," Ultear had said after Kai's Second Origin unlocked a day ago.
"From our fights, I noticed that you would rely a lot on your physical skills," Jellal had said.
"Not to mention Master Hades wanted to make you a weapon," Meredy had said. "So it's probably best that we do that. Turn you into a martial arts master."
"That way when your magic does come to full realization for you, it'll flow quite naturally off your body," Ultear had said. "You're going to be pushed physically and mentally as far as we can get you in three months. You have no idea what's waiting for you in the Grand Magic Games, and we have no idea what sort of dark magic is waiting."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Kai had asked, and while a small part of him wished he hadn't, that part of him that was suspended in the air, already feeling the effects of training, knew it would all be worth it.
Ultear's Orb of Time then flew into his sight and Kai started his descent. What he'd just done? That was the easy part.
The orb darted at Kai and then flicked away. He tried to instinctively dodge as well as land on one of his little islands of ice but it broke beneath his foot and he was forced off of it, exerting all of his strength to leap over the wave that would've swallowed him.
The orb cracked him in the back, hard, and winded him long enough for another wave to gobble him and fling him back ashore, where he sprawled, coated in a few bits of seaweed.
Kai punched the ground, his body begging him to stop.
And the image of Acnologia goading him on.
"We've got two and a half months still, Kai," Meredy said. "You don't need to push yourself this hard."
"I don't," he agreed. "But I will anyway."
Ultear grinned. "Typical Fairy Tail." Ultear's orb flashed red and the waves died down. Jellal walked across the water and joined them on the shore. "But that is enough for now. Any more and you'll be doing your body far more harm than good. We'll attempt this test once more without about a week until the Grand Magic Games. If you can pass that test, well…"
"I'll be ready?"
"You'll have certainly mastered abilities it's taken others years to," Jellal said. "But we've a long way to go before that can happen. So rest up. We have a job in the morning."
And so it went for two and a half months.
Each morning, Kai woke up before all of them and did his calisthenic exercises, improving the amount of them he did as well as the power at which he did them, often asking Ultear to increase his body mass or for Jellal to increase gravity around him to push through it even better.
While they traveled around a bit for jobs, they never veered too far away from the area. Turns out, though, that there were plenty of Dark Guilds and Wizards who enjoyed summertime by the coast and it gave the small guild plenty of opportunity to wipe the ring of darkness in the area.
In the evenings, or on days off, was when the real training got underway. Kai trained with the Orb of Time to learn how to dodge it and used it as a target for where and how to execute certain kicks and punches. While none of Crime Sorciere were necessarily martial arts experts, Jellal was versed enough to know how to improve upon basic techniques.
Meredy was quite exceptional at supporting Kai's training, too, able to determine where he was lacking in terms of his stances and techniques with her sensory training. She helped him keep his emotions in check so he never lashed out at any of them in frustration. The prolonged connection gave Kai pause a few times; it drew them quite closer, if a little too close, wondering if feelings were blossoming between them either from her or from him.
But he had to push it aside. Whatever was going on there was artificial because of the magic.
Eventually, with about a month left to go, Ultear introduced a blindfold into the training with the Orb of Time. Kai's reflexes were already top-notch and they wanted to take things up a notch.
At around the same time did Jellal start Kai's training with his magic, seeking to learn more about Dragon Slayer magic as well as how Kai used his magic. They never sparred one on one, but Jellal taught Kai control, taught him how to use magic as not just a weapon but an art. How to brandish spells quickly, how to use magic in unorthodox ways.
Kai mastered the Ice-Make spell Copy in that time, thanks also to Ultear, and was able to naturally flow from one Ice Dragon Slayer spell into another. The difficulty came in melding his magic with combat.
Thankfully, though, Kai's training helped them all improve their skills as well, with Ultear learning even more Ice-Magic thanks to Kai and Jellal feeling the need to brush up on fundamentals. And having four strong wizards connected at all time allowed Meredy the opportunity to get in tune with her own magic and work beyond a sensory level. They sometimes moved out to great distances so Meredy could expand the range of her magic, too.
When the week timeline at last arrived, Kai returned to the ocean to practice the drill he'd once failed at. Everyone took up their proper positions. He'd grimaced a bit at the thought of it; Ultear had worked on her control over her Orb in the intervening months, meaning she would be going at him even harder than before.
He'd completely failed the first day, but on the second day, he managed to reach Jellal after about his third attempt, expertly dodging the Orb of Time and using his magic to manipulate the ocean.
Then came the blindfold and Meredy cutting off her Sensory magic to him, which was quite a strange sensation, since they'd been connected for months.
With the blindfold came an immense increase in difficulty. He had to react not only to the Orb of Time, which he could no longer see and was far out in the distance, but also to the sporadic nature of the waves and had to gauge how high or low they were in response to his magic. All of his senses came into play, minus the one that, surprisingly, had been leaning on the most: sight.
With about four days remaining until the games, there was still no sign of the guild anywhere, and Kai knew that he had to get this done. He already understood the leaps and bounds he'd made since starting the training, but there was something about the drill that told him if he could do this, the Games would be a cakewalk.
Kai approached the shores of darkness, flexing his fingers out and allowing magic to ripple off his body and freeze the little laps of waves at the edge of the coat. The Orb of Time floated by overhead. The afternoon sun bathed his sweating, bruised, and bleeding body in warmth. He shook off the pain as he'd been trained.
He sprinted toward the water unprompted like always, casting his Ice-Dragon Tundra to freeze the ocean. Jellal had had to increase the power of the spells he used to create the waves, otherwise Kai could easily freeze everything.
The initial ice broke as he reached the peak of one wave and he soared into the air, dodging the Orb of Time that came from overhead and, he heard, broke into the ice. He created a pillar of ice and landed atop another froze bit of wave, skirting around the Orb of Time that came toward him. He slid halfway down a wave before leaping forward and freezing more of the ocean, bounding off of it with one hand to avoid the Orb of Time again.
Kai held his hand out and his sword appeared in hand, yet another item he'd gotten not only a ton of time to train with, but something that was essentially just an extension of his arm. Immediately, in his grasp, it was coated in ice magic to protect it from—
He swung and knocked the Orb of Time away into the ocean.
"Ice Dragon Talon!"
He swung down at the ocean and the sheet of ice that came from his aura gave him a slide and enough of a sheet to get another running start. Kai's ears pricked and he spun around, deflecting the Orb three times before the ice broke beneath him and a tidal wave cast over him. Kai jumped back.
"Ice Dragon Roar!"
The blast slammed into the wave and then Kai turned his head to plunge into the air, feeling the warmth of the sun all over him. He did one rotation of his body, contorting it to block the Orb of Time one last time before falling back, head-first toward the waters.
Kai quieted his mind and body, summoning even more magic. The Orb turned on its course and headed right for him.
"Ice Dragon Glacier!"
The glacier shot up beneath Kai with enough force for him to push his arm out and over. The Orb crashed through the ice.
Kai dropped to the ground onto a solid, if wet, sandbar. He rolled back his shoulder and deflected the Orb of Time once more into the ground at his feet and removed his blindfold, where Jellal smiled down at him.
"Good job," he said with a curt nod. Kai sheathed his blade, nodding back to the man who, over the last three months, he'd learned to call a friend.
Then, on the morning of the third to last day before they had to head out for the Games, Meredy shivered and her eyes widened. They'd just finished up lunch, and at first Kai worried they'd eaten something poisonous, but her smile said otherwise.
"They're back!" she exclaimed, her eyes falling to Kai right away. Kai couldn't help but show off his biggest smile and they all prepared to get to the beach.
Crime Sorciere and Kai arrived not long after receiving word, meeting them on the other side of the island so to draw themselves away from attention. Kai also wore one of their blue cloaks, at least for the time being, in case anyone passed by and thought he'd betrayed Fairy Tail to work with a few known criminals. Once the rest of the guild arrived it'd be okay, since they would know it was just some strange guild business.
Kai could hardly contain himself as he saw the Fairy Tail members crossing the drawbridge near their location. He stood with the other three stoically, but likely had the goofiest grin on his face.
Fairy Tail stopped at the intersection and the four of them made their way out, Natsu, Wendy, and Gajeel picking up on Kai's scent pretty quickly, looking around for him. Fairy Tail all still bore a scent similar to Lucy's Celestial Spirits.
"Thank you for coming, Fairy Tail."
Everyone tensed up.
Jellal stepped forward and the three members of Crime Sorciere threw back their hoods. Kai sighed and did the same, forcing an even bigger gasp out of everyone.
"What the heck is going on here?" Natsu cried out.
"We leave for three months and Kai joins up with Jellal?" Happy shrieked.
"Hang on, there has to be an explanation," Erza said.
"Doesn't he look different, too?" Gray asked.
Kai shrugged. Probably more toned, no doubt his hair was a bit wild, too, as he hadn't gotten a chance to cut it during their training.
"Good to see you guys," Kai said. "Stood me up on training for three months so I had to find some new friends."
"Some friends," Natsu said.
"We found Kai alone after you all had vanished," Jellal said. "And I'm glad we ran into him. He was the first to meet Crime Sorciere, our guild of three."
Gray turned toward Ultear, who maintained a flat expression. "You in on this?"
"It's been a long seven years, Gray," Ultear said, her orb floating around her. "A lot's changed in the world and for myself."
"You managed to create a guild?" Erza asked.
"Not a legal one," Jellal said. "We operate to destroy Dark Guilds and snuff out any connections with Zeref, hoping to one day find and destroy him."
"How's Kai involved with this?" Lucy asked.
"Only insomuch that they helped me train quite a bit," Kai said. "And in return I helped them take down a bunch of Dark Guilds."
"Why not go legit?" Gray asked.
"Because they'd never get approved," Erza answered on behalf of the independent guild. "Jellal probably broke out of prison and the other two are high-profile members of Grimoire Heart."
"Which still makes them less than trustworthy in my book," Gray said.
"And makes them fully trustworthy in mine," Kai said. "I spent three months with these guys. Their dedication is unmatched. And…well…"
"There's a real reason we wanted to see you, other than to reunite you all with your lost Dragon Slayer," Ultear said. "And it has to do with the Grand Magic Games."
Fairy Tail stayed quiet so Jellal could explain the situation to them as he had to Kai. Kai eyed Erza rather lovingly, and she blushed when her eyes fell upon him.
None of the Fairy Tail members seemed to truly acknowledge how long they'd been gone. Had it been three months for them and why didn't they look any different? Something had to be up there.
Jellal wrapped up his questions. Everyone glanced curiously at Kai.
"It's legit to me," Kai said, shrugging. "And it makes sense. Grimoire Heart pissed Zeref off royally on Tenrou and he may be looking to make a move. We're the only ones that can help out. I say we go for it."
"And in exchange," Ultear said. "I'll give you a way to not only recoup those three months you lost, but all seven years from Tenrou Island."
"That's impossible!" Lucy exclaimed and Kai chuckled.
"I can use my improved Arc of Time abilities to unlock your Second Origin," Ultear said. "Kai has already gone through it and can attest to the increased abilities."
Kai nodded and flicked his wrist, immediately rendering the next several yards of foliage to a completely frozen state. Even Erza nodded in approval.
"Unfortunately," Ultear said, "the process is quite painful. You'll all likely be out of commission for an entire night, and for some of you, perhaps about a day."
"Trust me, though, it's the only way we're going to get remotely close to our competition," Kai said. He specifically locked eyes with Natsu. "Anything less than number one is going to be a failure for us as a guild."
"You're right," he said. "So let's do it! I'm ready."
"You're just going to jump in?" Lucy asked. "A second ago you weren't trusting of these people at all!"
Ultear waved her hands. "Not to worry, I won't do it right away. We should get somewhere for you all to rest."
"And thank you," Jellal said. "You have no idea how much this will come to help us."
While some were a bit trepidatious about all of this, it was Erza who smiled and flashed an approving gesture at the group.
That night, with the screams of their comrades echoing in the background, the three survivors of the Tower of Heaven stood upon the rocky cliff shores of Akane Beach while the full moon glistening upon the lapping waves.
"For several years after my memories returned I questioned why I'd been given a second chance," Jellal said. "I wondered if it was part of some sort of atonement I was meant to be undertaking, or perhaps some sort of suffering. I would wake each morning wondering if I deserved to be doing so."
Jellal glanced down at his hand, filled with magic, then cast a rock out toward the ocean. It cut through the waves and bounced out toward the horizon. Erza, standing opposite Kai to Jellal, brushed back some hair.
"But in studying magic and in seeing the true underbelly of darkness I know now that my atonement is to strength myself toward the light," Jellal said. "The path to good is a much harder one to carve than the downhill one of evil. I don't anticipate gaining favor with the world and I don't intend to if it means I can still do what I need."
"Having the Magic Council constantly hounding you doesn't help," Kai said.
"I'll fight alongside them anyway," Jellal said. "I'll do what it takes until Zeref is defeated, until justice is served in Fiore."
"You mustn't torture yourself over it," Erza said.
"No." Jellal shook his head. "But neither can Ultear or Meredy. They bear their deeds as much as I do."
"So you're not alone."
Jellal pursed his lips. "None of us are. But it's still so difficult. Each day we make progress, we're reminded of a day we slipped. A day we committed an atrocity."
Kai nodded, unable to think of anything but the Clover Town incident. He balled a fist.
"We all carry sins," Kai said. "And letting them stop us from that progress is another one we'd have to carry. It's the most dangerous one."
"You're doing great deeds, Jellal," Erza said. "We're proud of you."
Jellal sucked in a breath. "Y—you have no idea what those words to me…after all I've done, especially to both of you…"
Kai rested a hand on Jellal's shoulder. "You helped us so much, too. You saved us at Nirvana. You trained me, you're helping us have a fighting chance in something that may save our guild. Jellal, you're a hero of Fairy Tail's, too."
"A…hero."
The word rolled so foreign from his lips. Jellal, then, broke his own smile, and cast his gaze wide to the ocean.
All three stood silent for the rest of the night, until Meredy called out to Jellal, and he at last left them.
Ultear and Meredy waved to Kai as well, and it at last struck him that they were leaving to be seen…when? In Crocus, during the Games, where they'd be exposed.
Rather than call out their names or draw attention to them, he just waved back with a great beaming smile.
They vanished behind the rock face. Kai dropped his arm and for but a moment emptiness filled his heart before Erza took his hand into her own.
"Three months, huh?"
"It must've flown by for you," he said, nudging her with his elbow. She quickly grabbed his arm and yanked him close.
"Too long."
Her lips met his and Kai the Ice Dragon Slayer melted before he returned the kiss and the two quickly found themselves tumbling naked into the ocean, the stars twinkling above and their love the passion that burned light into the sky.