Chapter 131: A Rivalry's End
"I must apologize for earlier." Erza revealed before the two lunged for each other. "You were right. I am not your savior. I am Fairy Tail's S-class, Erza Scarlet. Your safety is not my concern, because you refuse my help. Fairy Tail has never been anyone's hero purposely, and I don't know what weakness came over me, but I've expelled such thoughts from my mind. From this moment forward, my goal is to make sure you do not walk out of here as champion."
"For the sake of Fiore?" Reve asked facetiously.
"For the sake of Fairy Tail." Erza replied, giving the obvious, yet correct answer.
"Ricochet!" Reve shouted to start the final round between the two. As he fired a plethora of bullets from his assault rifle, Erza charged forward to close the widened gap between the two. She would parry and avoid any bullet that came her way, but that would be a proverbial double edge sword as the ricochet bullets would continue to bounce and pick up speed until they were destroyed or made connection with their target. The velocity behind the bullets were now to intense for Erza to simply swat away, so Titania took the time to focus as she redirected the powerful bullets once more; this time back at Reve himself. It was a perfect counter, but even that was thwarted as the vector reappeared, shielding Reve from his own bullets and sending them high into the air until they lost their velocity and momentum before falling to the ground harmlessly again.
Erza sucked her teeth in frustration, but at least the bullets were no longer an area of effect type of threat. As she charged in again, Reve readied for the close combat to commence. She swung her first sword, and the gunslinger dodge by shifting to the side. The second of the dual blades followed up, only to be parried by the vector. It then followed up with its own counterattack, and Erza parried with both blades in return. She pushed off, but the vector gave chase regardless, causing her to backpedal, swinging her blades to guard against the entity that attacked on its own. As she did, a plethora of emerald coated bullets appeared to her left, following her as if tracking her path before finally closing in on Erza. Homing Bullets — Reve was showing off his bag of learned and heightened skills, and the corner he was putting Erza in was admirable, but Titania had tricks of her own learned through experience.
Erza stopped on a dime, pushing back against the vector in a stalemate for a passing second. That second was all that was needed as Erza then removed herself from the struggle, allowing the homing bullets to slam directly into the appendage instead of her. A smoke cloud appeared from impact, and as Erza leapt through it unscathed, she looked back to take note of the vector that took damage from Reve's magic. "It's not moving. So it can be hurt." She took observed before turning back to the Reve she was charging for. Both blades at her side, Erza didn't miss a single step as she sliced through the incoming spray of bullets from Volver, completely closing the gap between them to begin her advantageous onslaught. It started with a swing of her left sword, and though Reve avoided it with a swift shift to the opposing side, it didn't save him from taking a rising knee to his chin, followed by a strike to his exposed chest with her right handed sword.
The freshly opened gash caused two things. It caused Reve to instinctively drop his guard as he reached for the open wound, causing Erza to believe in the potential opening, but it was the second reaction that saved Reve. It was as if it could feel Reve's pain, because the unmoving vector came stampeding back towards Erza and himself, violently breaking apart the ground on its short trek back into the fight. Erza stopped mid strike to turn and swing at the vector, but the entity lunged underneath and retracted into Reve's spine before then lying over his recently opened chest wound. Watching this happen caused Erza to leave herself open as Reve landed a strong thrust kick to her abdomen to send her away. She quickly recovered, but as she skidded to a stop, she found herself surrounded by the sudden manifestation of various firearms floating around her. A classic signature move of Reve's was now in effect. "Devil's Wheel!" He shouted, and the plethora of guns that surrounded Erza fired simultaneously. Erza was last seen covering herself with her blades as a smoke cloud gradually came over her. The parade of bullets went on for what felt never ending, but when they finally cease fired and the smoke cleared, no miracles were performed as Erza remained standing there, panting heavily while holding her defensive stance. She was covered in bruises and bullet sized wounds, but her facial expression never faltered as Reve's didn't either.
She would crouch low, and then take off to slam a spinning kick to Reve's jawline. That blow really rocked him, widening his eyes as he stumbled a few steps backward. Erza swung her dual blades for his stomach, but Reve had just enough wherewithal to use his larger Assault Rifle to parry the incoming strike, but that wasn't enough to stop Titania completely as she simply took Reve's feet from under him with a leg sweep. He tried to keep his balance by planting his hand to the ground, but it was expected, and the upside down gunslinger found the heel of a barefoot slamming against the bridge of his nose. Already in an uncomfortable position, the S class of White Eclipse went tumbling crown first, causing the audience watching to cringe and gasp at the awkward landing as he hit the side of a random building.
It seems as if Erza was now in control, but through the debris created from Reve's landing point, shot out another group of bullets that took to the air before spreading into multiple, smaller versions of themselves. Erza looked up to predict where they would land exactly, and the Spread Shots took course, crashing down as Erza charged forth. It was about halfway to her destination that Erza learned that she was running right into a trap as Reve aimed his revolver directly at her. As he did, the raining bullets took path, falling away from her on both sides. That meant only one thing. That he was banking on her to avoid the revolver, giving her no choice but to take on the raining Spread Shot instead. He was sacrificing his magic container for this next play, and the gunslinger was all in on this plan as he pulled the trigger, firing off the third of six bullets directly for the crimson haired knight of Fairy Tail.
Erza slammed her feet into the ground in an attempt to halt her momentum, and with only a second to make a decision, she decided anything was better than the revolver. So she leapt off to the right, just barely avoiding the powerful beam that came from Reve's strongest gun, and held her swords over her head to quell the incoming damage that was the Spread Shot bullets. But this game of chess didn't end in best case scenario for Erza, because as her focus remained on the incoming rain of bullets, guess who made their reappearance? In an instant, Erza found her arms and legs — her entire body constricted by the black vector. It had snuck in from below, traveling on the surface of the ground until it reached Titania, and now she was helpless as Reve's rain of bullets landed on top of both the vector and herself.
Erza had no choice but to wait it out, fighting against the urge to scream out in pain, baring her teeth in anger and hurt, but it was when the storm cleared that tragedy struck. Bruised from head to toe from the direct hits of the prior attack, Titania slowly looked up to see a bright light barreling her way. Her eyes slowly widened, and before she could realize it, she was swallowed completely by a fourth revolver bullet, sent flying away until she finally slammed into a stray building yards away. Enveloped by an explosion, Erza was unseen for the time being, but the vector that held her down was seen on the ground just feet away, unmoving just like when it was hit by Reve's bullets from before. It slowly retracted back to the gunslinger, who was heavily panting now. He was using up a great deal of his magic power, now with only two bullets remaining — bullets that represented how much he had left in the tank.
"Sorry…" He said to the retracting vector as it made its way back to his spine. It didn't respond, and Reve just stood there, waiting for the inevitable comeback of Erza Scarlet.
"Two direct attacks.." Gray murmured. Natsu then leaned over the railing, shouting for her. "Erza!" Lucy looked on with worry in her eyes, hands clasped in front of her. "What can she do with that thing attached to him? It's basically a two on one.."
"Don't make excuses for her. It's a fair fight." Laxus interrupted. "She'll come out of this on top. She definitely isn't done."
Lucy looked up at the bulky S class, then simply nodded before turning back to Happy who held the same expression." Come on…Erza!"
"He wasn't kidding when he told me about that." Sidney said aloud. Of course he garnered the guild's attention. "To clarify, Erza is halfway right. That nonsense she was shouting earlier.. half of it wasn't exactly off. Every demon has a parting gift when they die, as some of you experienced. We forget, but Taya was indeed a demon as well, and her parting gift was a single vector; attached to Reve in every sense. Mentally, emotionally and physically. Reve is the new host of that vector, so of course it has to feed off his energy to survive, but the temperament Reve is showing.. I don't ever remember Taya acting such a way…"
"So you agree?" Everyone turned back to Cygnus, who then gave his own hunch. "You agree..that something is wrong here, right?"
Sidney nodded. "We'll address it after the games. For now, let's just watch him closely, and keep rooting for him."
Cygnus smirked. "That goes without saying. His victory here will usher us into a new era, led by the young rookies of White Eclipse. I hope you runts are ready. New beginnings and rivalries will be created, and you brats will have VIP passes to White Eclipse at its peak reputation; it's undisputed reign as the strongest guild in Fiore! So the louder you cheer for Reve, the less chance we have of waiting a whole year once again for that to come to fruition. So everyone, off your feet, and eclipse the cheers of the fairies across from us with your own boisterous support! Anyone who gives less than their full effort is getting their asses kicked by me!"
There she was. Erza pushed away the rubble that held her down as she stood up again, limping. The legs of her pants were torn to shreds as the binding to her chest was losing bandage. Her hair was becoming disheveled, but she continued to burn a hole into Reve with her eyes, unwilling to give the gunslinger true satisfaction until the end. Reve on the opposite side however, stood there with an evilish grin, walking towards Erza while hiding the fact that he was losing strength by the second. Erza would do the same after regaining her balance. Every step forward was purposeful, Erza dropping her left sword to conserve magic as she remained with her single blade. Reve on the other hand opted to keep both his guns viable, and once he was in midrange, he took position and aim, firing off a line of standard bullets directly for Titania.
Erza once again rushed straight through, never faltering as she parried every bullet with her single sword until she made her way to the red eyed gunslinger. Close quarters was now available once again; advantage: Erza. Reve guarded against the opening strike with his larger gun, and even the following kick with his own raised leg, but it was only a matter of time until Erza took helm as she slammed a left fist across his jawline. Reve's head snapped to the side, and in an act of desperation he took aim while falling backwards, only for Erza to smack his assault rifle out of his hand with the power of her sword.
"Shit!" He audibly gave her desperation, and as he swung for her, Erza not only ducked it without any loss of momentum, but as the vector tried to intervene once again, Titania raised her left leg as it slithered toward her. With that leg, a powerful stomp echoed through the city, and now, beneath her bare foot, the vector remained trapped. Reve fell to his seat with limited options as Erza raised her blade for a powerful strike. All he had on him was his revolver, packed with only two bullets left in the chamber, and he refused to waste it. So in one single motion, Reve pushed off the ground and held out his bare left hand. Even Erza was in shock as she watched him catch her sword. Reve would literally scream out in pain as Erza's weapon was more than halfway through his hand, but the gunslinger forced himself forward, punching Erza in the stomach with the nozzle of his revolver. He also threatened to fire the point blank shot, but Erza quickly recovering from the punch was what he was looking for. Reve pulled back, exposing Erza to the feint and scoring with a pistol whip to the temple.
"A clean hit!" Reiss shouted, but as Reve tried to follow up, he grabbed his gun with both hands, only to have the realization of his left hand set in from the grip. Immediately… he dropped his revolver and cradled his gashed open hand as he cried out in pain once again.
"Erza! Your chance!" Laxus shouted, and the teetering Erza shook off the throbbing headache she was feeling at the moment to turn and see an unarmed Reve Volver cradling his hand.
"Reve! Move!" Zalen shouted to deaf ears. Instead, Reve turned directly into an incoming Erza. He bared his teeth once more, but this time instead of an act of desperation, the gunslinger grabbed his final gun and shot at the ground to create a violent mess of debris that separated the two.
"Oh no. He's in trouble…" Selene noted. Sidney sighed heavily. "He wasted that bullet. He's running out of strength and magic. He can't even hold a second gun either. Reve.."
"What an ending match! This has lived up to the hype ladies and gentlemen!" Chapati exclaimed as the crowd cheered. "Erza and Fairy Tail are determined to make sure White Eclipse don't become champions! Reve seems pretty damaged! Can he overcome the impossible obstacle known as Titania!?"
Erza flipped backwards once to regain footing from the close range explosion. With a deep breath, she gripped her sword with both hands, turning sights back to Reve as she focused her magic power into the blade. "One left. He's weak. This is the time to win." She said to herself. Reve himself struggled to his feet, proving her words correct. All the magic Reve had left resided in one single bullet, and the gunslinger was barely in any shape to get a shot off. Still, he wobbled to a full stance, spitting once as he gradually raised his gun to point it at Erza. And slowly, he began to squeeze the trigger. "From there!?" Erza raised a brow. "What are you doing!?" Cygnus yelled. "She'll dodge it from there, and you'll lose!"
"Dodge?" Reve said aloud. "Dodge Reve Volver… the greatest gunslinger to ever exist? The S class mage of the greatest guild to exist? They're giving you too much credit, Erza. You dodging this shot is actually impossible for you."
"You're so tired that your psychology doesn't even make sense, Reve." She replied, holding her ground. "You're telling me that I won't avoid a straightforward attack from this distance, when there's nothing holding me down?" She was referring to the vector, which was now attached to Reve's nearly severed hand, holding it together by wrapping around it.
"On the contrary." Reve stated. "This is no psychological warfare. This is the end of this fight and this tournament. Take it all in, Erza! For the first time, you will bring shame to your guild! They've given you everything! Their hopes lie on your shoulders and you failed them! But it was inevitable. I'm your opponent, and losing to you just isn't in the plans life has for me. That's right! You've never beaten me! We had one draw right here last year, and our first encounter..I put a hole in your chest!"
The instant memory caused anger to spark within Erza. "That cheap shot…!"
"No cheap shot!" Reve shouted back. "You were just unaware of your opponent! That was unfortunate for you, but I'm the one in the lead here! One win, to your one loss, and a draw! Today will make two wins for me, and after that, I'll never see your face anymore! When I sleep, when I train for my next stepping stone, my next obstacle, I'll never see your image again! I never fret against those below me, and today I will live in peace knowing that's exactly where you are officially! White Eclipse can't grow if we worry about those we already defeated, so this is me being a leader to my guild! I'll be leaving you behind now, Erza.. but I must thank you for the very little growth you aided me with. Hopefully my next rival will actually be of use to me."
Her brows furrowed as she glared at Reve in silent anger. Soon, Erza began walking… then jogging, then sprinting forward. "Goodbye, Titania!" Reve shouted, pulling the trigger to his final bullet. From the nozzle of the gun, a powerful blast released, charging right for Erza as she ran forward. And just like it was predicted..
… Erza easily dodged it.
"No…."
"Idiot!"
Natsu then shouted. "Go…. EEEERRRRRZZZA!"
At the sound of his voice, Erza launched herself at him, both hands gripped tightly around the blade as she came for the teetering Volver….
"..ERZA!"
"…..ERZA!"
Those weren't chants, but calls of warning…
{One second ago.}
As Erza dodged the incoming blast, the powerful abundance of magic curved? Prior to firing off his final shot, the vector that was holding up his hand, quickly moved to Reve's revolver, giving it the ability to move in any direction as a vector does. So once Erza avoided the initial attack, the blast made a swift u-turn without Erza noticing until it was too late. Reve kept his ruined hand hidden just in case, but as Erza took to the air, the ending script of this battle was written. The revolver blast slammed directly into her back, and as she went flying over the head of the gunslinger, he watched as Erza screamed in horror and pain until finally the vector violently dug her into the ground with another quick turn. Upon impact, a massive blast took place, causing Reve to shield his eyes. Once the blast subsided, Reve took in a deep breath, and raised a single hand in the shape of a W as Erza's body was indeed found lying unconscious.
"Ladies and Gentlemen…" Chapati began. "It is with great honor to announce… that your new Grand Magic Games, and the top guild in Fiore for the next year is…—"
They were already sprinting towards him. White Eclipse had jumped the barricades, Zalen and Skye in front as the others were right behind. The entire guild cleared the stands, and as Reve teetered, Skye and Zalen jumped him, embraced him with tears in their eyes as the rest of the guild dog piled him.
"….— White Eclipse!"
