"Got to go! Got to go!" Lucy said as she hurried to get herself dressed. There was somewhere she wanted to be. "I have to hurry because I don't want to miss a moment of this."
"What's going on, Lucy?" Stella asked.
"Freed Justine has an open spot on his fencing team. Tryouts are being held." Lucy said.
"You're going to tryout?" Stella questioned.
"Not me; Erza is. She's always had an interest in fencing and she thinks she's ready." Lucy said. "She pulled some strings and allowed me to come and see. As an added bonus, I get to see Natsu. If Erza makes the team, she can put in good words for me."
"Having Erza on the same team as Natsu does sound good for you." Stella said. "It's also great you're passing up a chance for you to get closer to Natsu so Erza can have a shot on the team."
"Which we'll miss if I don't hurry!" Lucy said as she tried to get dressed as fast as she could.
...
Francois Highschool
"Each of you are here because you wish to be on my team." Freed said as he stood before those who wanted tryout. "Sadly, I only have one open space on my team. Each of you will face off against one of my students and I will allow the best to enter. Now, prepare yourselves for a duel." All of them scattered and got themselves ready. Erza was feeling nervous, but she was trying her best to stay calm.
"I sure hope I'm ready for this." Erza said.
"You'll do fine, Erza." Lucy said. While she was encouraging her, she was looking around for a certain someone.
"Looking for someone?" A fellow fencer asked as he came to the girls.
"Yeah. Natsu Dragneel. Salmon hair, dreamy eyes, handsome." Lucy listed.
"Thanks for the compliments." The fencer said as he showed it was Natsu and Lucy got all nervous. "Are you both trying out?"
"Just me, Natsu." Erza said.
"I didn't know you were interested in fencing, Erza." Natsu said.
"I've had a keen interest in it since I was a child." Erza said. "Now that I have a chance to really take part in it, I'm not passing up the chance."
"Well, let's see what you can do." Natsu said as they both got themselves ready for some sparring. Lucy stepped away and gave them the space.
"Ready?!" Freed said as all of them were matched up. "Allez!" All of them started facing each other with Freed watching closely at all of them. Erza took the attack as she had Natsu on the defense. A few good moves and Erza was able to tap Natsu.
"Wow. You are good, Erza. You've got some moves." Natsu said.
"I'm just getting started." Erza said as she was starting to feel confident in herself. The two of them went another round. Lucy watched as closely as she could, but the movement were so fast. With how things were going, it was hard to keep up until Erza landed another strike on Natsu.
"Another point for you, Erza." Natsu said.
"Wait a minute." Lucy said. "Forgive me if I'm interrupting, but it looked like you touched Erza first, Natsu."
"We don't always know who touched the other first." Natsu said. "Everything is happening so fast, but you're able to keep up with some training. You got to watch very closely and carefully." There's clearly more to fencing than Lucy thought. "Come on, Erza. You still got to show your other moves."
"I'm ready." Erza said. Everyone did their best. Freed rather enjoyed all those who tried out. A while later, everyone performed splendidly. All that was left was to name which one made the cut.
"It was a difficult decision, but I've made up my mine. The contender is...Miss Erza Scarlet!" Freed announced. Erza almost couldn't believe she made it with her friends really happy for her.
"Wait!" The little celebration was over when they all looked and another fencer enter the place. "If it's not too late, I would like to tryout for the fencing team."
"I'm sorry, but I just made my decision." Freed said. Whoever this person was wasn't going to take no for an answer. They proved their worth by using their own saber to snatch Freed's, tossed it in the air, and was able to catch and balance it with just the tip. A clear indication that this person has some skill.
"Allow me to prove that I'm the better choice by taking on the one that you chose." The fencer said. Erza waited a long time for this. She isn't going to give it up so easily just by letting someone else come in and take it.
"I'm not afraid of a fight. I'll take the challenge." Erza said as she stepped forward.
"Erza, are you sure? You already got in. Are you really going to risk it?" Lucy questioned.
"I understand what this person is saying. I too would want to prove my worth to this team." Erza said. "If I back down from this challenge, it will diminish that worth."
"Very well. Allow me to get everything set." Freed said. Erza took the challenge and wasn't going to back down. Freed set up a matt and a machine for them to have this duel. A couple cables connected them to the machine and they tapped each other to confirmed it works. They'll be able to tell who landed the attack first.
"This is sure to be exciting." Natsu said as he stood next to Lucy. "You're about to see how a real fencing match works, Lucy." Lucy was getting all giddy with Natsu standing next to her, but she pulled it together to cheer for Erza.
"Ready?" Freed said as he acted as the ref. Both of them stood ready for this match. "Allez!" The two of them begun their match and they both appeared to be even in skill. The two of them kept going at each other until they went at each other. The machine went off for both sides. Freed declared this invalid.
"What happened?" Lucy asked.
"Mr. Justine doesn't know who scored the first point. They've got to go again." Natsu said.
"Allez!" Freed said as they started another round. The two of them went at each other again. It seemed like it was a good one. When the two of them touched each other again, the machine said both hit and Freed doesn't know who landed their attack first. "I'm sorry. I still can't tell."
"I have an idea." The challenger said. "Let's do this the old fashion way. We might be more at ease without the machine."
"Works for me." Erza said as they both detached the cables from their uniforms.
"But how will we know who landed the first attack?" Lucy questioned.
"By watching very closely." Natsu said.
"Ready?" Freed said as they were going all-out with no distractions. "Allez!" The two of them went at each other again and this one was a little more intense then the last two. With nothing holding them back, the two of them went all-out. Erza even got her opponent to move back and off the matt. When she tried thrusting her saber forward, her opponent rolled out of the way. They tried a counter attack, but Erza was able to block it. The two of them kept going at each and started making their way up the stairs.
"Is this really allowed? This looks like it's going out of control." Lucy said.
"This is the nature of fencing! Follow!" Freed said with excitement as they all tried following after them. Lucy went a different direction. The two fencers made their way up the stairs until they reached the library. They even knocked a cart of books down the stairs towards the others. "Back! Back!" Freed managed to get the other students back, but the cart actually ended up hitting him and smashing him into the wall. Lucy was the only one who managed to make it to the top and saw the two go at each other in the library.
"Let's finish this!" The fencer said.
"I'm ready!" Erza said. The two of them went at each other with such speed that no one could really tell what happened.
"Who got the point?!" The fencer asked as they turned to Lucy, but she wasn't sure what to say.
"Lucy, you saw what happened. Didn't you?" Natsu said as he and Freed reached the top.
"I think it was...Erza...?" Lucy said with uncertainty.
"Erza is the winner." Freed said. Erza might have been declared the winner, but the challenger wasn't satisfied with the results. They just walked out of there and Erza felt bad for them.
"Are you sure, Lucy?" Erza asked as she removed her helmet.
"Well... I don't know. It all happened so fast." Lucy said.
"I'm pretty sure he won." Erza said.
"The referee has final say." Freed claimed as he considered the matter closed. Lucy felt a little bad about all of it.
"It's okay, Lucy." Natsu said to make her feel better. "It was your first time. It's not your fault."
"I'm going to talk to whoever that is." Erza said as she made her way down with Lucy and Natsu following. The mysterious fencer left the school and headed for their car to leave, but felt such anger and disappointment at their self.
...
Black Wizard
"Wanting to prove you're the best, but you end up loosing. It is rather difficult to accept." Black Wizard said as he could feel those negative emotions. "I can help make this person even stronger." He took an etherious in his hands and filled it with his power. "Flyaway, little etherious. Let's give this fight a pick-me-up!" His idea of helping an athlete is turning their anger into something destructive. That is dangerous for someone who wields a sword.
...
Erza
"Wait!" Erza called with her catching the fencer before they left. With no need to hide their face, the fencer reached for the helmet and showed their face. It turned out the fencer was a girl with long hair and a white ribbon tied around her head. Lucy and Natsu showed up and were surprised to see the fencer's face.
"Listen, if you want a rematch, I would be more than willing to give you one." Erza said.
"Why bother? You won. A second chance is a sign of pity, at least in my family." The girl said as she got in her car and it drove off. Erza wasn't going to let things end like this. It didn't seem right to her. She hurried back to the school and grabbed Natsu.
"I need your help!" Erza said as she pulled Natsu and got in his car where Jacob was waiting. "Follow that car!"
"What?!" Jacob said with confusion.
"I think you should do it, Jacob." Natsu said. If Natsu says so, he does it and starts to drive after her.
"Erza's fired up." Lucy said.
"They say competition brings out the best or worst in people." Stella said. That point was proven when Lucy saw the etherious.
"Oh no! An etherious!" Lucy said as she hurried to a place to transform. "You're certainly right about the worst of people being brought out. Stella, Twinkle!" Stella was pulled into her earrings and allowed Lucy to transform. She can only hope she's not too late.
...
The Girl
The female fencer was most displeased about her failure. There's only one person she can think of that would be more disappointed, but she had to tell her. She reached for phone and dialed that person.
"Mother, I'm sorry. I have failed. Someone proved that they were better than me." She said as she left a message. She took her saber and tightened her grip out of frustration on it. When the car pulled over, it allowed the etherious to catch up with her and entered her saber.
"Fleche! I'm Black Wizard." He said when he was mentally connected to her. "You want to prove you're the best? Prove that you're a winner? I can give you the power to make sure that happens. However, you must bring me the miraculous of Celestria and Salamondra. That will prove you are better than anyone. Do we have an understanding?"
"Yes, Black Wizard." She accepted the deal and was encased with his dark power.
...
Erza and Natsu
"Any idea as to who she is?" Natsu asked as the two of them were close to catching her.
"No, but I don't feel right about winning like this. I think she's actually the better fencer." Erza said. "It seemed like she wanted on that team badly. I just hope I can fix this." Natsu understood and was more than willing to help. Just as they got close to her car, she jumped out through the roof. She landed on their car and was able to slice the car in two with Jacob's half spiraling out of control. When their half came to a stop, Erza and Natsu ducked out.
"What happened?" Natsu questioned.
"Trouble!" Erza said as they both spotted the trouble. The girl appeared to be made out of stainless steel and wore samurai-like armor with the mark of Black Wizard on her forehead with a sword over it. She was also holding a large saber in her hand.
"I'm taking you up on that rematch!" Fleche said.
"I'm not fighting you like this." Erza said.
"A real warrior wouldn't run from any challenge!" Fleche claimed. She jumped in the air and came down to strike Erza, but Erza rolled out of the way.
"Erza!" Natsu called as he was worried for her.
"Just go, Natsu! I'm the one she wants!" Erza said. It did provide the perfect opportunity for him to transform. He took off and found a spot for him to transform as he let Igneel out.
"Igneel, Fire Up!" Natsu had Igneel pulled in and allowed him to become Salamondra. As for Erza, she tried backing away from Fleche, but she wasn't going to let Erza off the hook. Just as she was about to strike, Celestria got her whip around her sword.
"Don't you know it's dangerous to play with sharp metal?" Celestria said. She tried pulling it away from her, but her whip just slipped right off. Celestria took a closer look and saw the truth. "It's attached to her hand!"
"You dare stand in my way? Couldn't wait for your turn? Very well." Fleche said as she went on the attack. She thrusted her sword with amazing speed, but Celestria twirled her whip around and used it like a shield. Fleche would have continued attacking, but Salamondra stepped in as he came down from above and swung his staff down and tried keeping Fleche's sword down.
"I'm all for a good girl fight, but don't you think this is a little much?" Salamondra joked. With her being annoyed, Fleche pulled her sword free.
"I don't care how many opponents I have to face. I'll defeat you all!" Fleche claimed. She tried attacking Salamondra, but he jumped out of the way as she sliced right through a light post.
"Let's see if she can use that sword after I burn it down." Salamondra said as he was about to use his powers.
"No, don't." Celestria said as she stopped him from doing anything. "Her weapon has become attached to her hand. You could accidentally destroy her with it."
"So what do we do?" Salamondra said.
"You'll do nothing except lose!" Fleche said. She tried attacking them, but Salamondra took the challenge. He used his fencing skills and was able to counter her attacks.
"En Guard!" Salamondra said as he was ready for a fight. The two of them went at each other like real fencers. The two of them clashed weapons and tried to push the other back. Fleche fought back and gave him a good kick. "Hey! That would be a violation in fencing!"
"You know fencing?" Celestria questioned.
"I dabble." Salamondra claimed.
"Time to claim victory!" Fleche said as she was set to finish this.
"Wait!" Erza called as she got in the way of them.
"What are you doing?! You need to get out of here!" Celestria said.
"Let me just talk to her." Erza said. "She's only like this because she believes she lost a fencing match."
"But I shall redeem myself! I am the best fencer!" Fleche declared.
"No one is denying that. My friend just made an error in judgement. I think you did win our match." Erza said.
"She is right. Referee errors can happen, but there's no reason to get so bent out of shape." Celestria said.
"I'm sure Lucy didn't mean to offend you. She's just not experienced when it comes to fencing." Erza said.
"It doesn't matter! The damage is done! Besides, you said I could have a rematch! That's exactly what I plan to do!" Fleche claimed as she went on the attack. She went straight for Erza, but Celestria pushed Erza down while Salamondra used his staff to block her. Celestria got her whip around Fleche and tossed her as hard as she could with Fleche sent flying down the street.
"That should buy some time, but we need to get you somewhere safe." Celestria said as she grabbed a hold of Erza.
"Ladies first." Salamondra said. They both took off to find a safe place for Erza. As for Fleche, she ended up getting thrown into a trashcan. Frustrated, she shred the trash to pieces.
"I will have my rematch!" Fleche claimed.
"You will, but remember our deal." Black Wizard told her. "You must bring me the miraculous."
"You have my word, Black Wizard. They will be the trophies I claim." Fleche said and began to hunt them down.
...
The Louvre Museum
Celestria and Salamondra brought Erza to the museum for there are plenty of places for Erza to hide in there.
"Evacuate the area!" Celestria called to the people around. "A villain will be here at any moment! You need to leave now!" When she warned everyone of the danger that was coming, all of them were evacuating the area. The three of them were left with in the museum.
"Where are we going to hide her?" Salamondra questioned. Celestria looked around and saw the Egyptian exhibit.
"Go hide down there. We'll keep her busy." Celestria said.
"Got it. Be careful." Erza said as she hurried down to the exhibit.
"You sure she'll be safe here?" Salamondra questioned.
"Don't worry. That girl seems pretty tough." Celestria said. "Besides, the museum holds plenty of places for her to hide. I also have an idea to trap her." As the two of them got ready to get Fleche, Fleche herself soon arrived at the museum. She smashed right through the glass pyramid and looked around for them.
"Where are they?" Fleche said as she looked around for them.
"Over here!" Salamondra called with her spotting him. "You've got to move faster than that if you want to win." He ran inside with Fleche after him. Salamondra ran inside one of the halls with Celestria hiding out and waited for them. "Sure hope this works." Fleche caught up with him and was ready to strike. She charged right at him with her blade out, but he dived out of the way with her piercing the wall. Celestria acted quickly as she hit an emergency switch and bars coming down and blocking the exits.
"Checkmate." Celestria said as they believed they had her trapped.
"Wrong sport, and not even close!" Fleche said. She pulled herself free and tried attacking them again. They ducked out of the way as she sliced right through the bars.
"Now what?" Salamondra asked.
"Pull back!" Celestria said as they tried to stay out of reach of Fleche. Fleche kept trying to attack them with them staying on their toes. Celestria looked back to the Egyptian exhibit and was worried about Erza. That did not go unnoticed by Fleche.
"Aha! So Erza is there!" Fleche said as she went straight for the exhibit.
"No!" Celestria called as she and Salamondra hurried after her.
...
Erza
Erza tried laying low in the Egyptian exhibit, but she was curious as to what was happening above her. She looked up and saw Fleche enter the exhibit and tried her best to lay low. Fleche looked around for her, but Celestria and Salamondra hurried to stop her. Celestria jumped her and grabbed a hold of Fleche, but Fleche tossed her right off. Salamondra tried attacking her, but she kicked him back.
"Some just can't seem to wait their turn." Fleche said as she held up her sword. She swung it down at Celestria, but Erza was brave enough to act fast and blocked it with her own saber.
"That's enough!" Erza said as she pushed Fleche off.
"Can't wait your turn either? Fine!" Fleche shouted with annoyance as she kicked Erza back. Fleche was going to finish her, but Celestria got her whip around Fleche.
"Leave her alone!" Celestria said as she tried pulling Fleche back, but she broke free from the whip with Celestria retracting it. Fleche was getting annoyed with the interruptions. The heroes had to end this and they could see where to start.
"The etherious has to be in her blade." Celestria said.
"But how do we smash it?" Salamondra questioned. There was only one thing that could help now.
"Open the Celestial Gate!" Celestria used her powers and it formed a sledgehammer with the Taurus sign on it. It landed in her hands with her having a hard time hold it, but she managed to get a grip on it. She looked around for how to use it. She spotted Fleche's blade and spotted a pillar. That gave her an idea as she positioned herself. "Come on, you metalhead. I'm right here."
"You're finished!" Fleche shouted as she shot herself forward. Celestria waited till the last minute to dive out of the way and Fleche's blade got lodged in the pillar. With her stuck, Celestria swung the hammer hard and broke Fleche's blade in two. That caused the etherious fly out.
"No more evildoing for you, little etherious." Celestria activated her whip to catch it. "Time to de-evillize!" She swung her whip and caught the etherious."Gotcha! Bye-Bye, little guy." She purified it and released it. "Miraculous Starlight!" She tossed the hammer into the air and everything that got slashed was restored to normal. Fleche also turned back to the girl.
"Pound it." The heroes did as the game was over.
"What happened?" The girl asked.
"You were etheriouized, but you're okay." Celestria said. "What about emotionally? Are you okay?"
"I'll be fine." The girl said as she shrugged it off and just left like nothing happened.
"Well, if all is said and done, I'm out." Salamondra said as he was on his way out. Celestria turned to Erza and helped her out.
"That was brave thing you did. Are you okay?" Celestria asked.
"I am. Thank you." Erza said. She looked and saw the girl left her saber. She hurried and grabbed it to return it to her. "I'm going to make sure that girl is really okay." She took off with Celestria glad to see her friend is doing well.
...
Black Wizard
"Fleche might not have been the opponent to defeat you, but I will find one eventually." Black Wizard claimed. "If no one is really unbeatable, that includes you. Just you wait." Black Wizard isn't accepting defeat either.
...
The Girl
"I'm at the Louvre Museum. You can pick me up there." The girl said to her phone and waited for her ride to show up.
"Hey!" Erza called as she hurried to her. Celestria turned back to Lucy, but kept herself hidden as she watched this unfold. "You forgot your saber." She handed it back with the girl taking it. "Listen, if you really want to be on the fencing team so badly, you can take my spot."
"I don't need your pity." The girl said.
"That's not it. We're both great fencers, but it seems like it's more important to you than to me." Erza said. "My friend, Lucy, didn't mean to upset you. She has no experience when it comes to fencing. You probably won that match, and I would like to take you on again." The girl was upset about her lost earlier, but she's having a change of attitude now. "My name is Erza Scarlet. What's yours?" She asked as she held out her hand.
"Kagura. Kagura Mikazuchi." She said as they shook hands. That was when Kagura's ride showed up. "I just might take you up on that rematch." She said as she went inside with Erza gaining a new friend from this experience. Lucy was also pleased with what just happened.
"You know, Erza is a great competitor, but she's an even better friend." Lucy said. Competition may bring out the best and worst of people, but it can also help make new friends. That's just what Erza did now and this Kagura might have more down the road.