Back with the continuation
"speaking"
""thinking""
On with the story
With END
END was sitting on a chair while Kyôka and Sayla were on the bed with ragged breathing as END had knocked out their senses to heaven
END who was wearing only pants, leans back to the chair as he had a rather satisfied look on him
"never felt this satisfied in a long time" END said as he looks at the bed where the two demoness were resting on before looking away
He chuckled a bit as he imagined the possibility of a demon child being born from within the both of them
"the children of END" he said with an evil smile "the world will truly end"
END then looks at the clock in the room as he sees that it was reaching 2-3 o'clock
"looks like it's time" END said as he stands up and went to do his plan
He snaps his fingers as his body burst into flames
The flames form a coat on END's body as a black vest that appeared on his upper body along with a black bandana on his right shoulder
The Fairy Tail mark on Natsu's right shoulder burns away as it was replaced with Tartaros
"the game has begun"
In Hell's core
Inside the laboratory, Lamy shook her butt happily from side to side as she monitors her allies regeneration.
"What'll we do? What'll we do if they're born early from all the shaking? Should I worry?" Lamy quickly grew serious, raising her arm to her forehead.
"Never!" she then just as quickly returned to her happy demeanor.
"I mean they're already revived, right?" She turned to a man with shoulder length blonde hair and brown skin.
The man raised his hand to his face. "Is this my new body?"
"That's right, Tempester!" Lamy nodded.
"Tempester? Is that my name?"
"It sure is! And look how hot you are!" Lamy gushed. "I mean if we have to revive you, then a hot guy would be best, right?!"
"I do not care about looks."
"What's the big idea?!" Jackal complained, emerging from his own pod. The only thing that had changed about him was his outfit, longer ears, and his now bushy tail.
"How come you only did that with him?!"
"Because you were cute to begin with Jackal!" Lamy answered happily, hugging the revived demon's arm.
"Get off me would ya?!" Jackal pushed away. "You're creeping me out!"
"Jackal?" Tempester asked.
"What's up, Tempester? Guessing you don't remember me, huh?"
Lamy began to sob. "Tempester loses his memories every time he regenerates. It must be because of his anti-magic particles." She wiped her tears away. "Poor guy." She once again turned serious. "But I am here for him!"
Jackal remembered the reason for his regeneration and began to shake in fear as he remembered the message END left for him.
"WHERE IS MARD GEER!?" Jackal exclaimed while looking afraid
"You're so hot when you're angry!" Lamy squealed. "It revives my spirit!"
"You're so annoying!" Jackal groaned.
Footsteps approached from the right. Each of the demons looked to the source.
"Who is that?" Tempester asked.
"Yeah. Who are you supposed to be?" Jackal questioned.
The figure was a woman with long black hair and horns sticking from her head. Her right eye was covered by what looked like ink and she wore a cloak that opened in the front, revealing her bandage covered breasts and waist. A black mark trialed from her chest to her leg and her Tartaros guild mark was positioned on her abdomen.
"Oh yea, I forgot." Lamy giggled. "That's Minerva. She's a human that Kyôka-sama found." Lamy sighed with boredom.
"I gotta say though, I have no interest in girls."
Minerva looked at her newly formed claws. "So this is a demon's power? I can feel it coursing through my veins."
"Minerva." Tempester repeated.
"A new member to the club, huh?" Jackal smirked
"Speaking of things I have no interest in…" Lamy ran to another pod, pressing her face against the cold glass. Inside it was an unconscious Mirajane, whose limbs were being held by demonic tentacles.
"What was her name again? Mira something, right?" A sadistic smile crossed the bunny girl's lips.
"You think you're so cute, don't you?" she said to the unconscious Fairy Tail wizard. "Well I'm going to turn you into the ugliest caterpillar in the world." She began to laugh manically.
"Shut up will ya!" Jackal shouted. "You're pissing me off!"
Jackal then remembers what he wanted to know as he grabs a hold of Lamy
"where's Mard Geer!?" Jackal exclaimed at her
"at his usual throne, why you ask?" Lamy said to him in reply
"he's coming back that's why!" Jackal said before he heard clapping from in the corner of the room
"late as ever to do my orders, Jackal" a dark and deep voice spoke as Jackal's body shake in fear
"i-i-I'm sorry for not being able to do your orders, Master E.N.D!" Jackal apologizes as he bowed down on the floor
"um, Jackal? Who are you bowing to?" Lamy asked before an ominous presence was felt by both Lamy and Tempester
Metallic footsteps were heard as END steps out of the shadows with a grin plastered on his face
"you are!?" Tempester exclaimed in shock
"what? Are you going to say you forgot my name too, Tempester?" END said while tilting his head to the side as Tempester and Lamy bowed down beside Jackal
"no! I can never forget the name of my one and only Master!" Tempester exclaimed as he looks in fear
END looks at the three demons before his eyes spotted Neo Minerva who looks at him with shock in her eyes
"Natsu….Dragov!?" she said in shock while END grins
"you said that like I remind you of someone"
In a monitor room
Inside a giant room further in the guild hall, Crawford used his Super Archive magic. Establishing what he called a "real time link" he searched the entire continent for any trace of Jellal.
Franmalth watched him wiggle his fingers before looking up at the giant hologram globe above them.
"Hmm." Crawford mused. "Let's see…" his eyes narrowed, a sadistic smile forming on his features.
"There we are." He walked down the stairs of the tall platform, Franmalth following behind him.
"Have you found Jellal?" the demon asked.
"Even better." Crawford answered with evil glee. "I've transferred his key to me using my super archive powers!"
Franmalth was even more confused. "Huh?" he tilted his head.
Crawford sighed and held up his finger to explain. "In layman's terms I've take possession of Jellal's key."
"You have?!"
"Indeed." The former chairman nodded. "And using those same principles I'm able to transfer it to someone else on the continent and we can kill them to eliminate the ward! We could use one of those fairies we caught."
"Hold on, chairman. You're saying that you now possess the final key?"
"Yes, you nincompoop! To be honest, not even I thought this could be done! My Super Archive magic is beyond magnificent!" He looked back the transparent globe.
"Now once we take down the wards around Face, the world will be ours to control!"
"Wow. It's hard to believe that such a well-guarded key could be stolen so easily." Franmalth marveled.
"This is just proof of how powerful I am!" Crawford boasted.
"I wonder if that is really the case." Franmalth said darkly.
"What are you- gah!?" Crawford couldn't finish his sentences as he was pierced from behind by a sharp blade.
"This would do away with the final ward, yes?" Kyôka asked as she was the one who stabbed Crawford.
The former chairman gargled and gasped for air before falling to the ground, dead.
"Oh my. Oh my." Franmalth cackled.
Suddenly the floating cube began to shake, alerting the two of them
Kyôka looked around the shaking room, not the least bit fazed by the tremors. "Even the cube reacts." She observed.
"Face's wards have been vanquished."
As the cube shakes, END who was walking down the hall felt the tremors
""it's time"" END said as he snaps his fingers
With Natsu and Lisanna
As the cube continued to shake Natsu and Lisanna were slammed against the wall. Hearing a clink just up ahead, Lisanna looked to the bars of their cell.
"Natsu, look!"
Natsu looks at the front of the cell and sees a sword
"A sword!" he said
"Maybe we can use it to break off these cuffs!" Lisanna suggested.
"Yeah!" Natsu got on his stomach and inched his way to the prison bars before sitting on his butt. He stuck his feet out, reaching for the sword on the other side.
"Come on~!" He strained, his big toe grazing the hilt of the sword. "Almost there!" He reached out one last time, managing to grab the sword by the hilt with his feet. "Got it!"
"Way to go, Natsu!" Lisanna cheered.
Natsu pulled the sword back into the cell and turned to Lisanna. "Hurry and turn around so I can cut your shackles."
"Oh! Ok." Lisanna turned around, raising her arms as high as she could.
"Alright." Natsu raised the sword into the air. "Hold still."
"Be careful." Lisanna warned worriedly.
"Here we go!" Natsu swiped down, slashing Lisanna's shackles apart.
"You did it!" Lisanna exclaimed in delight. She rubbed her sore wrists as Natsu threw the sword down to her and turned around.
"Now me."
"Right." Lisanna nodded. She grabbed the sword with her newly freed hands and cut off Natsu's cuffs.
"Let's go save the others!" Natsu said while holding the sword in his hands
"Ok!" Lisanna changed into her Cat Animal Soul and stood next to Natsu who equips on some pants and a shirt
With Kyôka
Inside the archive room Kyôka and Franmalth were beginning to succumb to the effects of the tremors.
"This is quite the reaction!" Kyôka noted, trying to keep her footing.
"There's no doubt! The wards on Face have been released!" Franmalth exclaimed while holding a pillar for life
"What are its coordinates?" Kyôka said to him
Franmalth slowly moved to a screen near the wall and typed away. "It's quite a long way from where we predicted."
"No matter. Begin the operation!" Kyôka ordered.
"Well…about that…" Franmalth began. Just as he was going to voice his concerns, the rumblings stopped. "Hey the shakings stopped."
"Never mind that." Kyôka deflected. "What were you saying earlier?"
"Oh. We can't activate Face from here."
"What?!" Kyôka exclaimed at him
"Face can't be controlled remotely." Franmalth clarified. "It can only be activated manually. Well to be more accurate, the chairman could have activated it but…" the demon began to cackle.
Kyôka grimaced, looking at the dead body of Crawford.
"Perhaps this one acted…prematurely. We have no other choice, we must send someone there to activate Face."
"Fine with me! I just hope Fairy Tail doesn't interfere again!"
Sayla walked into the room. "You need not worry on that account. In but a few moments, the tale of the fairies will come to an end. And the tale of the demons has begun"
"what of Master, Sayla?" Kyôka asked Sayla
"he is going to meet with Mard Geer" Sayla replied to her
"so, the two of you had met with Master already?" Franmalth asked the two as they nodded
"yes" Kyôka replied before she holds one of her claws over her abdomen
"and the two of us have been given a gift by our master" she said with a bit of a blush on her face as so did Sayla who holds her own abdomen
Franmalth just looks at them confused as he had no idea what they were talking about
At Fairy Tail
Elfman knelt before the bomb lacrima he had placed on the ground as he was in the basement store room.
Tears streamed down his face as the bomb reached critical mass. He hated himself for what he was doing to his friends and his home, but he wanted Lisanna back, and he would do nearly anything to see her again.
"Elfman…" Cana called out to Elfman as she walks down the stairs
"You've been acting strange lately. So I just came to check on you and-" as Cana entered the room, she saw the glowing orb. "What's with that lacrima?"
In a rage Elfman leapt towards the fortuneteller. "Stay back! Don't interfere!"
"Elfman!" Cana was tackled into the shelf, knocking over all of the bottles and charts. "What the hell is wrong with you?! Get off me!"
"Don't interfere!" he repeated. "Don't interfere!"
Cana struggled under his grip, barely managing to turn her head to look at the lacrima again.
She began to recognize the strange symbol. ""A bomb?!""
"Someone! Hel-"Elfman covered her mouth, muffling her cries to the others.
""Is someone controlling him?"" Cana pondered in a panic. Her mind was racing, thinking of any possible way to avoid the bombs inevitable explosion.
""If I don't do something quick, we're all gonna be blown to hell!"" She managed to move her mouth free.
"Elfman, snap out of it dammit!" she kicked against his ribs, but it had no effect.
"Fairy Tail will be destroyed…" Elfman muttered. "Destroyed."
Cana reached into her pocket and pulled out a blank card. "Sorry, big guy, but I have no other choice!"
She slapped the card against Elfman's face, and pointed the index and middle fingers of her right hand at it.
In a flash Elfman was sucked into the card, still repeating the word "destroyed" as he banged on the invisible barrier keeping him there.
Cana grabbed the card and rose back to her feet. "Good thing that hot friend of Erza's taught me that trick a while back." she thanked. She looked back at the bomb and then ran up the stairs.
"It's gonna blow any minute! I have to save the others!"
Above ground, Fairy Tail continued their preparations, unaware of the danger just below them.
"I got it!" Levy shouted. "I've located their base!"
"Good job, Levy!" Jet praised.
"I knew you could do it!" Droy cheered.
"Where are they?" Makarov asked.
"Right above us!" Levy pointed.
"Huh?" Lucy questioned. "What do you mean 'right above us'?"
"Judging from what Natsu said, they were on the Bosco national border before he came back here. Judging by their speed and direction, they should be above Magnolia right now!"
Gajeel's eyes narrowed. "So they came to us."
"It seems that way." Lily nodded.
"We can save Natsu and others now." Lucy said happily.
"Aye!" Happy agreed.
"Then what are we waiting for?!" Gray shouted. "Let's go!"
"Yeah!" everyone yelled in unison.
Suddenly Cana emerged from below, a deck of cards in her hand. She swiped the cards, all of them flying towards her guildmates.
"All of you, into cards!" A bright light enveloped the wizards, and soon they were all sucked into the card dimension.
"What's going on?" Lucy asked.
"What is this?' Yukino questioned.
"Wait, I know this magic…." Gray remembered.
"What's going on, Cana?" Levy asked worriedly.
"Salavage!" Cana exclaimed as all of the cards holding her friends all returned to her hands
She then turned herself into one. "Charla! Lily!"
The exceeds – who remained in their normal states – ran to the cards.
"What is this?" Lily inquired.
"The guild is about to explode!" Cana explained hurriedly. "Take the cards and fly us to Tartaros' base! It's time for a counter-attack!"
"go it!" Charla said as she and Lily grabs the cards and barely escaping before the building exploded.
With Natsu and Lisanna
Natsu and Lisanna ran down the corridors of Tartaros' guild hall, the dragon slayer taking out any guards standing in their way. Luckily he was now covered - or at least his lower body was - after having taken a pair of pants from a guard.
"How far is it?" Lisanna asked.
"Close. We're almost where Erza is being held. I can smell her." Natsu replied without letting her know that it was END that told him where Erza was held
"there!" Natsu exclaimed as they reached to a locked cell door
"stand back" Natsu said as he uses the sword that he got from back there and swings it at the lock
The lock was broken as Natsu bust in and sees Erza being tortured by Yakdriga
"you!" Natsu growled in anger as he burst in flames and clawed his hands at the creature's face before turning it into crisp
He then turns his attention to his wife as he cuts off the cuffs on her and then held her in his arms
"Erza!" Natsu called out to her as he sees the wounds and bruises on her body
"Is she ok?' Lisanna worried.
"Erza?" Natsu called. "Come on, Erza, wake up." He shook her lightly. "Wake up…please…"
Erza began to stir. "I don't know…" she mumbled. "I don't know...where he is…" She slowly opened her eyes, her first sight being the worried face of her husband. "Nat…su…?"
"Yeah." The dragon slayer smiled. "It's me. Sorry I'm late."
Erza smiles in joy as she hugs him
Natsu hugs back before he turns his attention to her wounds
He summons a medkit as he started treating her wounds with Lisanna helping
"Who did this to you?" Natsu asked while putting some bandages on her ankle
"A demon named Kyôka. She was torturing me in order to find information on Jellal's whereabouts."
"Why Jellal?" Lisanna asked while giving Natsu some ointments
"She said he was one of the links to Face." Erza answered. "They were planning to kill him."
"Do you know where he is?"
"No, I don't. But apparently she thought I did. If I didn't give her what she wanted she would have killed both me and Mirajane."
Lisanna's eyes widened. "Do you know where Mira is?"
Erza shook her head. "I don't, but Kyôka mentioned something of remodeling her into one of their number."
"Oh no." Lisanna gasped.
With Kyoka
Kyôka watched Fairy Tail's explosion along with Franmalth and very pleased Sayla.
"It is as you see, Mistress Kyôka." Sayla smiled with pride, directing her eyes to the smoking crater on the screen.
"Excellent work, Sayla." Kyôka commended.
"I wonder how much life has been lost." Franmalth cackled. "How much?"
"If the fairies have been completely annihilated, then there is no need to guide the Cube into this airspace. We will return to our original objective. Face! The time has come! How fitting is it that the legacy these humans have created for themselves out of jealously and fear will ultimately bring their destruction! We will use Face to wipe out the humans, and usher in a new demonic age! Then all of our efforts will bring about the world our master Zeref dreamed of."
Franmalth saw lights flashing on a nearby screen and began to type. "Hmm? What's this?"
"What is it, Franmalth?" Kyôka requested.
"It looks like we're picking up multiple magical energy readings."
An armored guard rushed into the room. "There's trouble!" he shouted. "Scouts have confirmed two objects flying towards the Cube!"
"Two?" Franmalth questioned. "The scanners are picking up much more than that."
"We've only confirmed two, sir!"
"An explanation is required. Sayla." Kyôka requested.
The horned demon typed on another screen. "I will check the Under-Cube images."
On the screen Sayla was shown, the radar picked up three small dots, surprising both Sayla and Franmalth.
"What is that?!" Sayla implored.
As the objects drew closer, the three dots were revealed to be Charla, and Pantherlily.
"Cats…?!" Sayla questioned.
"You say there are multiple readings emanating from these small creatures?" Kyôka inquired.
"Look, Mistress!" Sayla pointed. "The cats appear to be holding something." She squinted her eyes to see.
"Cards?!"
Charla and Lily flies closer to the Cube with all they got
"Those cards must be holding the Fairy Tail humans!" Franmalth deduced.
"No…" Sayla shuddered. "My attack…failed?"
Kyôka turned to the guard and began to give orders. "Establish defensive parameters! Engage the Under-Cube's gravitational field, and set the rear and side cubes to battle condition one now! Let none reach the top cube!"
"Yes ma'am!" the guard saluted and bolted out of the door.
Charla and Lily got closer to cube with their friends in the cards
"We're almost there!" Lily told his comrades before they felt a force pull them to the underside of the cube.
"What is going on?!" Charla shouted.
"Were' being sucked in!" Lily yelled.
Charla landed with a thud, but Pantherlily managed to land on his feet.
Charla got up and sees a group of armored men advancing towards them with weapons. "The enemy is approaching!"
"Ok!" Cana said, coming out of her card.
"I'm going to release everyone!" With a wave of her hand, the other Fairy Tail wizards were back to normal. Each of them ready for battle. They began their charge.
"Fairy Tail, attack!" Cana shouted.
In Hell's core
Lamy stood in front of Mirajane's pod, an irritated look on her face as she listened to all the commotion from above.
"There sure is a lot of noise going on out there." She shrugged her shoulders and smiled again.
"Whatever. Who cares?" She turned back to Mirajane. "First, I'm going to mess up that pretty face of yours!" she giggled menacingly. She watched in shameless mirth as the tentacles holding Mirajane infused her with demon genes.
"Well?" Lamy rhetorically asked. "How does it feel to have your body flooded with demonic genes?"
Mirajane's face began to react negatively, further amusing Lamy.
"You'll be reborn ugly!" the bunny-girl squealed. "So ugly that you'll hate it! You will hate it so much!"
Suddenly Mirajane's eyes opened and the pod holding her shattered, the force sending Lamy sliding across the floor. "W-What is this?! What is this?!" Lamy yelled hysterically.
"Sorry." Mirajane apologized. She turned to look at the surprised bunny-girl, the tentacles holding her now draped over her body.
"I already have my fair share of demon genes thanks to Satan Soul, but I do thank you for the pick me up. Now I'm all revived."
Lamy shrieked in fright, scampering back to the nearest pod.
With Kyôka
Kyôka hurriedly walked through the corridors of the Cube. Time was running short, and she needed a way to stall Fairy Tail.
"Perhaps Erza will be of use." she implied. "Hostages tend to be the most effective with humans."
When she approached her torture room, she was shocked to see that the look to the door was completely destroyed.
"What happened here?" When she entered the room her eyes went wider at the vacant space. "Where is Erza? Who made this hole?!"
Kyôka suddenly felt a dark aura approaching from behind, before she could react her arm was trapped behind her back, and her neck was clutched tight.
She tried to reach for the arm around her neck, but failed as the grip got tighter
"I've got you now." A dark voice snarled.
Kyôka turned her head as much as she could and sees that Natsu was the one holding her.
""Master!?"" she thought with wide eyes before remembering END's words
""the game has start, you must defeat Fairy Tail with all you can muster, even the one who looks like me""
""so he must be the one Master implied of""
"How did you escape?" Kyôka said before she sees Erza coming out of the hole in the wall
"You showed me such hospitality while I was your guest." Erza said as she stepped out of the whole with Lisanna beside her
"Allow me to repay you in kind."
Kyôka gritted her teeth in anger, her obstinate glare focused on her former prisoner.
"Or if you would like…" Erza trailed off, watching as Natsu tightened his grip on the demon even more.
"I can leave your care in the hands of my husband. Though he may not be as gentle as I."
With Fairy Tail
Elfman's eyelids twitched before flying open as he sat up and sees a battle waging just a few meters ahead.
"What's going on? Where am I?" he asked without realizing what he had done
"You back to your senses?" A familiar voice asked.
Elfman looked up and saw Cana standing over him, a smirk on her lips as he remembers the things he did to the guild
"What have I done…?"
"You're about to save your sisters, right? So get on your feet!" Cana exclaimed at him as she kicks his back
Elfman's eyes narrowed in determination as he stands up "You're right." He said before he changes into his Beast form.
"Let's go!" he roared as he raced into the fray.
Cana grinned. "That's more like it." She pulled out a deck of cards and joined the battle alongside him.
That's a wrap!
Bye bye