Things in Fairy Tail were quite calm despite the fact that a dark guild was chasing some of its members, three of whom were inside the guild.
Suddenly, everyone turned their gaze to the entrance at the sound of someone coming in loudly, there, they saw Izuku resting his hands on his knees as he gasped for air due to how hard he had run.
"Izuku?" asked Shoto surprised to see his friend in that state.
"Where is Ochaco?" asked Tenya.
"Ochaco... They..." began Izuku letting out gasps between words. "They took her away!" shouted Izuku leaving the whole guild in shock.
Soon after, Izuku was sitting at a table with everyone else surrounding him, waiting for explanations.
"It's all right, Izuku. Tell us exactly what happened." said Makarov.
Izuku looked down at the memory.
"We had just finished the mission and were heading to the guild. On the way, Ochaco said she had a matter to attend to and asked me to wait for her. I waited for her, but that's when I heard her scream and when I got there, a man who turned out to be from Dark Shadows captured her and before I could save her, a black hole sucked them in." said Izuku before putting his hands on his head. "They took her away and I couldn't do anything."
"You didn't know this was going to happen. It's not your fault." said Lucy trying to calm him down.
"B-But if I... if I hadn't..." began Izuku unable to find the words.
Suddenly, Katsuki walked up to him and smacked his head.
"Listen to me, you stupid nerd! Don't you remember when I was captured by the League of Villains? It wasn't your fault, or the teachers', or anyone else's. The only ones to blame were those bastards. And this situation is no different, so stop whining about what's not your fault." said Katsuki.
Everyone in the guild was shocked. For the short time they knew Katsuki, they saw him as a proud boy unable to want to get help from anyone, but now he was there, giving encouragement to the one he calls 'good for nothing'.
"Wow. I thought you were just a brutish, wild boy." said Happy.
"I'm much more than that, you stupid cat!" exclaimed Katsuki scaring the exceed.
Thanks to the words of his former childhood friend, Izuku was able to pull himself together.
"Yes, you're right. Thank you, Kacchan. I needed that." Izuku said with a grateful smile.
"I didn't do it because I care about you or something! Is that clear?" asked Katsuki.
"And the usual Katsuki is back." said Happy.
"What should we do now? Even if we were to rescue her, we don't know where they are." said Tenya.
"I think I can help." said Charle as she climbed onto the table. "Before Izuku and Ochaco left I had a vision in which I saw Ochaco in danger."
"Vision?" asked Shoto.
"Charle has the ability to see the future, although it happens that rarely and she only sees small images." explained Wendy.
"Can you tell us the details of those visions? Maybe they can give us some clue as to where they are." said Gray.
Charle began to concentrate on the images he glimpsed hours ago.
"Well, the only thing I saw that might be important was a giant stone hand in a very dark place." said Charle.
"Very dark? Like a cave?" asked Lucy.
"No. You could see the sky, but even though the sun was overhead there was no light coming in at all." said Charle.
"A place where even sunlight doesn't get in." muttered Erza as she put her hand to her chin in thought.
"Can you think of anything?" asked Gajeel.
"Wait a moment." Erza said before leaving and returning a few minutes later with a map that she placed on the table. "When I was with Jellal, we made a list of places where the dark guilds could hide. One of those places is this one." said Erza pointing to an area on the map.
"What place is that?" asked Wendy.
"It's about the Doom Cliff. A place that is so deep that even if you see the sun at the top, not a ray of light will get in." said Erza.
"That must be the place where their guild is located." said Levy.
"And so, Ochaco." said Gray.
Suddenly, while everyone was talking about it, Izuku slipped away, which Natsu, Katsuki and Shoto noticed, so they decided to follow him.
"Judging by the distance, it would take us quite a while to get there." said Erza.
"But it's too far. I don't know if we'll make it in time to rescue her." said Tenya.
"What do you think, Izuku?" asked Lucy, but received no answer. "Izuku?" when she turned around, she realized he was gone. "Huh? Where is he?"
Gray began to look around.
"Not just him. Natsu isn't there either." said Gray.
"Neither are Katsuki and Shoto." said Tenya.
"Hey, where's Lily?" asked Gajeel realizing his partner's absence.
"And Charle?" asked Wendy looking for her cat companion.
It was then that Lucy understood what was going on.
"Don't tell me what..." said Lucy nervously and worried.
Izuku found himself being grabbed by Charle as they flew high and fast in the sky.
"I can't believe you made me do this." said Charle.
"I'm sorry, Charle, but I can't wait any longer. We have to save Ochaco as soon as possible." said Izuku.
"I admire your determination, but do you even have a plan for when we get there?" asked Charle.
Izuku became nervous when the white exceed pointed out an important topic.
"I'll tell you what the plan is." Izuku turned his head to the side to see Natsu being grabbed by Happy as they flew past him. "We go in, beat them up and rescue Ochaco." said Natsu with his trademark grin.
"What are you doing here?" asked Izuku.
"What do you think? We're coming with you." said Happy.
"You didn't need to come." said Izuku.
"Are you an idiot?" Izuku turned to his other side to see Katsuki being grabbed by Lily as they flew past him. "No way I'm letting you get all the action. This time I'm going to be the one rescuing someone."
"I'd like to point out that Gajeel is going to be very angry with you when he finds out about this." said Lily.
"I'm not afraid of that screw face!" said Katsuki.
"I don't plan to stay behind either." Izuku turned his head slightly to see Shoto flying on a ball of blue fire from behind them. "Ochaco is our friend and we're going to save her together."
Izuku smiled at his friends' determination to help him.
"Thanks, guys." said Izuku before focusing his eyes on his forehead. "Let's go fast." said Izuku before they all accelerated their flying speed to go as soon as possible. "Wait a little bit Ochaco. We're going to save you. I'm going to save you."
Ochaco felt her consciousness returning little by little as she opened her eyes. When she opened them completely, she put her efforts into getting up, but then, she felt a tug on her arms.
Turning her head, she realized that her arms were tied behind her back with handcuffs attached to a chain hooked to the floor and her legs were in a similar situation.
It was then that she remembered it, her encounter with that man in the alley, how he captured her and later revealed to be from Dark Shadows, the dark guild that had her and her friends as targets.
She blamed herself for letting herself be fooled and for falling into such a simple trap.
Suddenly, she heard the door to the room she was in open. Despite noticing someone entering, she couldn't get a good look at him because of the shadows.
"Forgive me if you don't feel comfortable, but given your abilities, I didn't want to risk it." said the man from the shadows.
"Who are you?" asked Ochaco.
"Oh, forgive my lack of manners." said the man before stepping out of the shadows, revealing himself to be... "I am Shadow, master of the Dark Shadows guild."
Ochaco froze in fear. The one standing in front of her was the man who knew she and the others came from another world, the one who sent those guys to attack them the other day.
"W-what do you want? Why did you capture me?" asked Ochaco finding enough courage to ask.
"You see, as I'm sure you've been told, I only need one of you for my plans and you seemed to be the most accessible." said Shadow.
"Whatever you're planning, I'm not planning to help you!" exclaimed Ochaco.
Shadow knelt down to be at her level.
"Well, well. You're a feisty woman." said Shadow before grabbing her face with his hand so she could see him directly. "Let me tell you, this isn't a request or a command. You will be the key to my plans coming to fruition. Don't worry, I'll set you free once this is over." said Shadow before releasing her face, getting up and heading for the exit. "Until then, I hope you enjoy your stay." said Shadow before leaving the room.
Ochaco started to shiver in fear. It didn't take a genius to know that once she fulfilled her role, they would dispose of her like a used handkerchief. What frightened her most was having seen the master's face up close. She didn't know what it was, but she could sense a dark and terrifying power in it. All she could do was wait for someone to come to her rescue.
"Deku, please save me." thought Ochaco letting out small tears.
After a while of traveling, the three students and the dragon slayer arrived at the Doom Cliff. After a few minutes flying around the place, they were able to see firsthand what they heard from that place.
"Unbelievable. Even though it's morning, there's no light at all." said Shoto.
"Yes. It's much more sinister than I thought." said Charle.
"Tsk. I don't mind. I'm not afraid of the dark." said Katsuki.
That's when Natsu started sniffing the air, which Izuku noticed.
"What is it, Natsu?" asked Izuku.
"It's faint, but I can smell a lot of different smells." said Natsu.
"It must be them. Can you detect them?" said Izuku.
"Yes. This way." said Natsu leading the others down a series of corridors in the cliff.
At one point along the way, they stopped and landed on the ground before hiding behind some rocks. As they peeked out, they could see a giant hand of rock with some holes that appeared to serve as windows.
They had found their target.
"That's the place I saw in my vision." said Charle.
"So that's the lair of Dark Shadows." said Shoto.
"So, Ochaco is in there." thought Izuku.
"How do you plan to get in? Stealthily or by looking for a hole to sneak through?" asked Lily.
Natsu smiled as he cracked his knuckles.
"Leave it to me." said Natsu.
Ochaco found herself at that moment being taken by a couple of the guild master's subordinates to a place unknown to her. She could use her magic to escape, but the handcuffs she was wearing had a special seal that prevented her from using it.
After walking through another pair of doors, the two men threw the student to the ground. When Ochaco got up, she could see that she was in a large room filled with more minions, most notably, the guys who attacked them days ago.
She let out a gasp of fear when she saw Shadow standing in front of her with a sinister smile.
"Good. Now that we're all here. Let's begin the ritual." said Shadow.
At the entrance to the lair, the two men who were guarding it were relaxed in the belief that no one would dare enter through the front door. It would be suicide.
BOOM
Suddenly, an explosion destroyed the entrance and knocked down the two guards, when the smoke cleared, Natsu, Izuku, Katsuki and Shoto could be seen entering the place.
They wasted no time in starting to run through the corridors, hoping they could reach Ochaco before it was too late.
Back in the room from earlier, they were about to begin the ritual call when another subordinate came running into the room.
"S-Sir, we're in trouble. Some intruders have entered the lair." the man said.
"Well, well, well. It seems we have some very unexpected guests." said Shadow.
Ochaco let out a small smile of happiness.
"Deku, you've come for me!" thought Ochaco hopefully.
The guild master turned to the remaining members.
"You'd better go give them the welcome they deserve. I don't care what you do to them." said Shadow.
"As you command, master." said Smash.
"Yes. I need to blow off some steam after the last fight." said Taisho.
"Same here." said Rika.
Just as the four of them turned to leave...
"Wait Ludociel." said Shadow making her stop. "Stay here. Let the others take care of them."
"I can finish them off without breaking a sweat! Why do I have to stay here?" asked Ludociel.
"I want you by my side by the time I finish the ritual. Believe me you'll be interested in what you can come up with." said Shadow.
"Pff. You better hope so." said Ludociel crossing her arms.
"My friends are here to save me! They'll stop your plans!" said Ochaco.
"Oh, yes? Well, I hope they can make it. That way I'll show them what happens when they annoy me enough." said Shadow, making Ochaco start to worry.
The three students and the dragon slayer continued to run through the halls.
"There's something fishy about all this." said Shoto.
"That's right. We've run into their lair at full blast and there's not a single guard coming to stop us." said Lily.
"Heh. They've probably fled like cowards." said Katsuki.
"I doubt that's it." commented Happy.
"Do you know where they might have Ochaco?" asked Izuku to the exceed white.
"I remember she was in a huge room, but I'm not sure where she might be." said Charle.
"In that case, we'll destroy this place until we find her!" said Natsu.
The four of them kept running until they came to a four-way fork.
"Looks like we'll have to split up." said Shoto.
"Normally, I don't like the idea, but time is important." said Charle.
"Right." said Izuku.
After deciding, Izuku and Charle took the first path, Katsuki and Lily the second, Shoto the third, and Natsu and Happy the fourth.
Natsu and Happy went running down their chosen path until they ended up in a rather large room.
"Could this be the room Charle talked about?" asked Happy.
"No. Ochaco's scent is far from here." said Natsu using his sensitive nose.
"Wow. You have a good nose." Natsu and Happy turned their gaze to the front to see Rika enter the room from the other entrance. "I'm beginning to understand how you found this place."
"Get out of my way! I don't have time to waste on you!" demanded Natsu.
"I'm sorry, but the master has asked me to take care of our guests while he's taking care of the ritual." said Rika.
"Ritual? What kind of ritual?" asked Happy.
"I'm sorry." began Rika before levitating some of the floor tiles. "But that's all I can tell you."
Natsu covered his fists with fire.
"If I have to fight you to get through, then so be it." said Natsu.
Shoto kept running until he ended up in a grid room.
He was about to continue when he felt something coming towards him and quickly pulled back in time to dodge a diamond pillar that sprouted from the floor.
"I'm impressed you dodged it." Shoto turned his gaze to the exit to see Smash blocking it. "So you're one of the intruders who snuck into our guild. Master wanted me to take care of you, so I'm asking you nicely to turn around."
"You have kidnapped one of our own." began Shoto as his hands became engulfed in blue fire. "I don't intend to leave without her."
"In that case, I'll have to stop you right here." said Smash.
Katsuki found himself in a cylindrical room. He looked around and finding no clue as to Ochaco's whereabouts, he prepared to leave, but before he set foot in the entrance, a wall of lava erupted from the floor and quickly solidified, blocking the exit.
"You're not going anywhere brat!" Katsuki turned to look at Taisho. "I don't intend to let you ruin our plans. Good thing we already accomplished the main objective, so nothing will happen if I kill you."
"One question. Are you the one who took on the half-half idiot before?" asked Katsuki.
"Who?" asked Taisho confused by the student's question.
"The boy with the scar on his face." said Katsuki pointing to the part of his face where Shoto had the scar.
"Ah, the boy with the freezing fire. So what if that's the case?" asked Taisho.
Katsuki grinned wildly as a black orb formed in his hand.
"Then it will be easy to finish you off." said Katsuki.
"Don't worry, I'll help you." said Lily about to draw your sword.
"Stay back, cat. He's mine." said Katsuki.
Lily was about to protest, but then he saw a sort of similarity between him and Gajeel, so he backed up a couple of steps.
"If I see you in trouble at some point, I'll help you." said Lily crossing his arms.
"Sounds good to me." said Katsuki.
Izuku kept running down his path, checking every corner he could find hoping to find the room where he had Ochaco, but for the moment, he found nothing.
"Hold on a little longer, Ochaco. I'm almost there." thought Izuku.
"Fire Dragon's Roar!" shouted Natsu firing a blast of fire from his mouth that destroyed the tiles thrown by the telekinesis mage as it continued its path towards her.
"Repulsion!" shouted Rika causing the fire from the attack to be repelled in other directions.
"But how...?" asked Natsu in surprise at that.
"Have you forgotten, Natsu? From what we were told, she possesses a magic that allows her to move things with her mind." said Happy.
"I see you know about me. That's good enough for me. Then you'll know who killed you. Psychic Shot!" shouted Rika stretching her arm forward and launching a bullet of air that hit Natsu until it sent him crashing into the wall.
"Natsu!" yelled Happy worried for his friend.
"Ugh. Damn." said Natsu as he got up.
"And you were the mighty Natsu Dragneel? Don't make me laugh. Lift!" shouted Rika causing more floor tiles to rise into the air. "Launch!" shouted Rika throwing the tiles like bullets towards the dragon slayer.
Fortunately, Happy caught him and lifted him high in the air to dodge the attack.
"Phew. That was a hair short. Thanks, Happy." said Natsu.
"You're welcome." said Happy.
"Damn. I forgot about your pet." said Rika frustrated that she missed.
"Happy isn't a pet, he's my friend!" said Natsu.
"I don't care!" replied Rika throwing more tiles.
With Happy's help, Natsu was able to dodge each incoming tile.
"Here we go, buddy!" said Natsu.
"Yes sir!" replied Happy before flying into a dive as he carried Natsu who was engulfing himself in fire.
"Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!" shouted Natsu as he sped towards the telekinesis mage.
"Block!" shouted Rika extending her arms forward, managing to stop Natsu, whose body stopped being engulfed in fire.
"W-what's wrong? I can't move." said Natsu trying to move a finger, but he couldn't.
"Me neither." said Happy finding himself in the same situation.
"What do you think? Now you can't do anything against my magic." said Rika.
"You think so yourself." said Natsu before starting to inhale air into his mouth. Before Rika could do anything. "Fire Dragon's Roar!" shouted Natsu unleashing fire from his mouth at her.
Due to the short distance between them, the attack sent Rika crashing into the wall quite hard. She got up with groans of effort and pain and when she looked up, she let out a gasp of horror.
"You want to see my power? Here it is!" said Natsu as he summoned fire in his hands and then brought them together to form a huge fireball over her head. "Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!" shouted Natsu launching his fireball.
Rika reached out her arms towards the fireball, managing to stop it with her power, but despite her efforts, the power put into the ball was more than she could withstand.
"I-Impossible. Where does it get so much power? Is it even human?" asked Rika using all her strength to stop the attack, but in the end, the fireball passed her blockade and continued on its way towards her. "NO!" shouted Rika before receiving the impact of the ball, which caused an explosion so big that it shook the entire room.
Natsu and Happy stayed in the air, being cautious in case their opponent was still standing. But when the smoke cleared, a huge crater came into view with her in the center and unconscious.
Seeing that their opponent was defeated, Happy placed Natsu on the ground.
"Ha. How did you like that? I didn't even try hard." said Natsu with a smile.
"Natsu, this isn't the time to show off." said Happy.
"It's true. We have to find Ochaco." said Natsu before he and his partner exceed left the room.
"Diamond-Make: Machine Gun!" shouted Smash firing a bunch of diamond chunks from his hands.
"Icy Flame!" shouted Shoto launching a torrent of blue flames, managing to destroy his opponent's thrown diamonds as it shot towards him.
"Diamond-Make: Wall!" shouted Smash causing a diamond barrier to sprout from the ground, protecting him from the attack. After that, he undid the barrier. "Taisho told me about your power. I dare say I'm surprised such magic exists, but that won't do you any good against my diamonds." said Smash before raising his arm into the air, causing three pillars of pointed diamonds to sprout from the ground and rise into the air. "Diamond-Make: Spears!" shouted Smash directing his arm forward, causing the pillars to rotate 90 degrees and shoot out towards the student.
Shoto stretched his arms out to each side, causing blue fireballs of his size to appear around him.
"Icy Comets!" shouted Shoto sending forward the fireballs which impacted against the pillars, managing to destroy them in the process.
"You'd better give up. The master will soon be done with your friend. There's nothing you can do." said Smash crossing his arms and as he uncrossed them, a pair of long, sharp diamonds appeared in his hands. "Diamond-Make: Swords!"
Smash accelerated as fast as he could towards the student and tried to cut him with his two swords, but Shoto managed to step aside and as he passed by him, he created in his right hand a whip of blue fire which he wrapped around his opponent's waist.
"Icy Whip!" shouted Shoto throwing the diamond mage into a wall where a block of ice on his burned waist trapped him.
Smash was shocked to end up like that before turning his gaze to the student whose body was being engulfed in blue fire.
"And I told you I'm not leaving without her! Icy Flame!" shouted Shoto unleashing a powerful blast of blue fire that impacted his opponent completely.
When the fire died down, Smash was seen with burns on his body and trapped in a block of ice on the wall.
Seeing that his opponent had been knocked down and the coast was clear, Shoto continued on his way with the intention of searching for his partner.
"Explosive Orb!" shouted Katsuki before launching his black orb towards the lava mage, who jumped to the side to dodge it.
"Damn it. Of all the opponents I could have encountered, it had to be this brat." said Taisho.
"What's the matter? Are you scared?" asked Katsuki preparing to attack again.
"Bullshit!" said Taisho angrily. "Damn. I can't use my magic in an uncontrolled manner, or I might affect the entire building and ritual hall in the process. I'll have to end this quickly." thought Taisho.
Extending his arms out to each side, he made lava-filled balls of rock surround him.
"Lava-Make: Meteor Fist!" shouted Taisho hurling his meteors at the student, who moved from side to side to dodge the attacks. "Hahahahaha. Who's the coward now, huh?"
"Now we'll see! Minefield!" shouted Katsuki causing several explosions to happen all over the room. One explosion happened so close to the lava mage that it sent him flying, which the student took advantage of by creating another black orb in his hand. "Explosive Orb!" shouted Katsuki throwing the orb at him which exploded on impact, sending him crashing to the ground.
"Not bad. Looks like he's learned how to handle his new power despite training on his own." thought Lily watching the fight.
Taisho stood up with a look of pure anger on his face.
"That's it! I don't care if I destroy the whole place! I'll finish you!" exclaimed Taisho before stomping his foot hard on the ground. "Lava-Make: Stomp!" shouted Taisho as cracks formed in the room along with several jets of lava splashing all over the place.
Katsuki took a leap to dodge an incoming lava jet at the same time Lily used his wings to fly high. While in the air, Katsuki analyzed his surroundings. Lily was about to go to his aid to give him aerial support, but he saw that the student grinned wildly, giving him to understand that he had an idea, so he stood aside.
With his magic, the student created a small black orb in each hand which he then blew up, sending it upwards like in the old days. Upon reaching the ceiling, he somersaulted, causing him to land on his feet on the ceiling.
Before gravity took effect, Katsuki propelled himself downward using the ceiling for support. As he fell towards the lava mage, his fist began to be covered in black energy.
"Explosive Fist!" shouted Katsuki impacting his fist into Taisho's head, who could do nothing to dodge it.
That caused such a powerful explosion that, not only shook the hall, but also some other guild halls. Izuku, Shoto, Natsu and even Shadow, Ludociel and Ochaco could feel the tremor.
When all the smoke in the hall cleared, Katsuki could be seen standing over Taisho, who was unconscious in a crater.
"Ha. Looks like you weren't as much as you made yourself out to be." said Katsuki.
"Truly that was impressive. I can tell you're strong." said Lily landing on the ground.
"Of course I am! Did you doubt it?" asked Katsuki.
"Let's leave that topic for another time. Now we must concentrate on rescuing Ochaco." said Lily.
Katsuki nodded in agreement before the two left the room.
Meanwhile, Izuku and Charle continued to wander through the corridors of the guild hoping to find the room where Ochaco was, but so far, they found not a clue.
At the lack of progress, Izuku stopped.
"Damn it. We've looked in several places and found nothing" Izuku said starting to despair.
"I wish there was a way to go faster, but we can't create our own path." said Charle.
At that moment, a TIC was made in Izuku's mind at the exceed's last words.
"That's it! How did I not think of that before?" asked Izuku before walking towards a wall.
"What are you doing?" asked Charle in confusion.
"If we can't find anything by following the path." said Izuku before his body was covered in blue lightning. "Then we'll create our own path by force!" exclaimed Izuku punching the wall, opening a hole of his size in the process.
After that, Izuku began to run in a single direction, with Charle following him. Each time they encountered a wall, Izuku would hit it on the spot, opening a hole through which to pass to the other side.
"Good idea. At this rate we'll get there in less time than before." said Charle.
"Yes." said Izuku hoping and praying he could rescue Ochaco in time. "Don't worry, Ochaco. I'll be right with you."
"AAHH!" the screams of Ochaco could be heard throughout the room.
She was floating above a magic circle and there were four men sitting in around the circle in a praying position as black lightning passed from the magic circle to the student, causing her to scream in pain.
"Heh. Looks like I was right to stay. This is much better." said Ludociel with a sadistic smile.
"Easy, little one." said Shadow to the student. "There's very little time left before the ritual is over, and when it is, it will all be over."
A couple of minutes later, the ritual ended, causing Ochaco to fall to the ground in a weakened state where she could barely stay conscious.
Suddenly, a huge blue portal formed in the middle of the room, much to the guild master's delight.
"At last, everything is ready. Ludociel, if you'll do the honors." said Shadow without taking his eyes off the portal.
"As you command, master." said Ludociel before turning to see all the guild soldiers. "All right, everyone, let's get moving!"
The soldiers let out cheers of congratulations and joy before following Ludociel through the portal.
Even though she felt like she was going to close her eyes at some point, Ochaco watched as hundreds of dark guild minions crossed the portal to who knows where. Then, her vision focused on Shadow, who stood in front of her triumphantly.
"Thank you so much for your cooperation. This wouldn't have been possible if not for you." said Shadow.
If it weren't for the fact that she was feeling weak, she would have shouted some insult or question at him.
"Now, as I promised you." said Shadow before pointing his hand at her. "I will release you from your existence."
Ochaco closed her eyes tightly, waiting for the end, as images flashed through her mind. Her parents, her classmates, the friends she made in the guild, and most of all, the person she cared about the most... the person she loved.
"Deku, I'm sorry." thought Ochaco.
BOOM
Suddenly, both she and the dark guild master turned their gaze towards the entrance. The smoke cleared and they could both see Izuku standing in the rubble.
"OCHACO!" shouted Izuku.
Ochaco couldn't help but smile and let out tears of joy at the sight of seeing the green-haired boy coming to her rescue.
"Deku..." was the last thing she said before fainting.
After going through many rooms and breaking many walls, Izuku had finally made it to where Ochaco was, but what he didn't expect was that she was lying unconscious on the floor with a man in a white suit next to her and a huge blue portal in the middle of the room.
"Get away from her!" demanded Izuku.
Shadow smiled at him before advancing a couple of steps towards him, meeting his demand somewhat.
"I must say, I'm impressed with you. This guild is very hard to find, but you and your friends have found it. I congratulate you." said Shadow.
"Who are you?" asked Izuku.
"Oh, right. I forgot that we haven't met. I'm Shadow, master of the Dark Shadows guild." said Shadow.
A shiver ran through the green-haired boy's body when he learned that he was standing in front of the man responsible for everything, but he had to steel himself if he wanted to save his friend.
"If you're the guild master... Why did you want us? How come you knew about us?" asked Izuku wanting answers once and for all.
"Well, in light of the situation. I don't see the problem in telling you." began Shadow. "You see, a long time ago, I found a book that talked about very special spells. One of them consisted of a mirror that allowed you to see other worlds."
"O-Other worlds?" asked Izuku.
"That's right, I've been observing many worlds, each different from the other, but the one that caught my attention the most..." began Shadow before pointing a finger at the student. "It was yours."
Izuku began to be startled at the direction the story was going.
"For days, I was watching your world, seeing how its people lived. It was like a box of priceless jewels. So I decided to take possession of that box." said Shadow.
Izuku was shocked when he finally understood. He took a quick glance at the portal before focusing back on the dark guild master.
"Y-You... want to conquer our world!" said Izuku finally understanding his intentions.
"Bravo." said Shadow clapping his hands together a couple of times. "You guessed it. That's right. my intention was to create that portal to go with my troops to conquer that world."
"So why did you want me and my friends?" asked Izuku.
"That has an explanation. Weeks ago, we attempted to cast the spell to open the portal, but the result failed, but half-heartedly, for, instead of taking us to your world, you were brought to ours. When I heard of your arrival, I knew that you would be the key to opening a portal to your world, but I didn't know where you were until recently." said Shadow.
Now Izuku understood everything. The strange circle that appeared and took them to that world was an experiment conducted by them with the intention of traveling to their world. And the reason he sent those guys to capture them was because he needed them to open a path to his world.
Charle, who stood by Ochaco's side to check on her condition, was shocked to learn of the man's plans. This was far beyond anything she could have imagined.
Suddenly, Izuku's fist was covered in blue lightning as he looked at the dark guild master with a look of determination and rage.
"I won't let you go! I will stop you and save Ochaco!" exclaimed Izuku with pure determination.
"You are very brave. Go ahead and try if you can." said Shadow.
Izuku wasted no time and lunged towards him with his fist at the ready.
"Lightning Titan's Fist!" shouted Izuku throwing his arm forward to hit him, but then...
Before the fist impacted him, the dark guild master inhaled air through his mouth.
"Shadow Agony!" shouted Shadow launching a blast of dark smoke from his mouth that impacted the student and sending him crashing into the wall.
"Izuku!" shouted Charle with concern.
Despite the pain of receiving the attack and the impact, Izuku managed to get up and look fearfully at the dark guild master.
"Have you forgotten that I'm the guild master? An attack like that couldn't do anything to me." said Shadow as some kind of dark smoke began to surround him.
"Who... What are you?" asked Izuku fearfully.
"I guess I'll have to tell you. While there are those who possess dragon slayer magic, god slayer magic and even titan slayer magic or angel slayer magic, I possess an entirely different slayer magic. I am... a shadow slayer." said Shadow.
Izuku let out a muffled gasp upon hearing that. Even Charle was shocked to hear that.
"A-a shadow slayer?" asked Charle.
"If you're a shadow slayer, that means that you..." began Izuku remembering what he had learned of slayer magic.
"That's right, I eat shadows. It's not as hard as it may seem and the best part is that when I devour someone's shadow, I get stronger and stronger. Now, shall we pick up where we left off?" asked Shadow.
Despite the fear he felt for his dark power, Izuku had to try if it meant saving Ochaco.
He began to inhale air from his mouth to perform that attack. "Lightning...!"
"Too slow." said Shadow before launching himself at full speed at Izuku, appearing in front of him in a second and punching him in the stomach with his fist, sending him flying into the wall again. "You know? I was really curious about you after seeing your fight with Ludociel. I wanted to check out your power in person, but I see you're not as impressive as I thought."
Izuku quickly stood up and pointed his arms towards him.
"Lightning Titan's Lightning!" shouted Izuku shooting blue lightning from his hands.
Shadow clasped his hands together and between them formed a sort of sphere of black smoke.
"Dark Orb!" shouted Shadow launching his sphere towards the lightning causing an explosion on impact. When the smoke from the explosion dissipated, both opponents stared at each other. "You should know that I'm not even trying my best and I don't think you're using your full power either. Probably because your friend is here. We'd better call it a draw, is that okay with you?"
"I'm not done yet!" exclaimed Izuku.
"In my opinion... Yes." said Shadow before pulling a tear from his suit and dropping it on the floor, shattering on impact.
At that moment, the walls, floor, and ceiling began to shake.
"W-what did you do?" asked Izuku.
"I activated the guild's self-destruct system. I don't think we need it anymore. You have a choice, Izuku Midoriya. You can try to stop me again or you can try to save your friend." said Shadow.
Despite the choices, Izuku already made his decision as he ran forward, passing by the shadow slayer.
"I guessed as much." said Shadow before walking towards the portal. When he was one step away from crossing it. "I hope you have a good memory of your world, because I'm about to change everything." said Shadow before crossing the portal, which disappeared shortly after, leaving the two students and the exceed.
"How is she, Charle?" asked Izuku.
"She's fine. It looks like she just fainted." said Charle.
"Hey, Deku!" Izuku turned his head to see Katsuki and the others come into the room. "What the hell happened? Why is the whole place shaking?"
"Now we don't have time! This place is going to be destroyed! We have to get out of here as soon as possible!" said Charle.
"Yes. He's right." said Izuku getting up while carrying Ochaco in a bridal position. "Let's get out of here right away!"
With Happy grabbing Natsu, Charle grabbing Izuku and Ochaco, Lily grabbing Katsuki, and Shoto using his flying blue fireball, the four students and the dragon slayer went flying at full speed in search of the exit, but due to how fast the place was collapsing, they didn't know if they would find it in time.
"At this rate we won't make it to the exit in time." said Lily.
"Then let's create our own." said Natsu before inhaling air into his mouth. "Fire Dragon's Roar!" shouted Natsu launching a blast of fire from his mouth that impacted against a nearby wall.
The impact managed to make a hole leading outside, which they used to get out of the guild before it ended up collapsing like a sandcastle.
"Alright, let's get back to Fairy Tail." said Natsu receiving a nod from everyone.
Izuku was worried, as he now knew that Shadow, along with his many minions had traveled to his world to conquer it, but now, he was more focused on something else.
He lowered his gaze to see Ochaco's sleeping face and smiled at how calm she was and that he had succeeded.
"Sleep easy, Ochaco. It's going to be all right." thought Izuku.
With everything finished, they all set out to leave the ravine and return to the guild.