Operation: Trident Pt. III

"I want these two-bit sons of bitches to pay! No one messes with a man's trucker hat!" Tyson Hammer roared as his magical energy began to imbue his body, making it appear as if his skin was turning blue.

"Tyson calm down! You don't need to use your full power!" Gajeel tried to reason with the raging major general, but his rage has really gone through the roof. "Keep powering up and you'll be blasting holes through everything!"

The iron dragon slayer couldn't believe that something that was so close to routine for the both of them, not including rescuing captives at the same time, went south fast once they got boots on the ground.

Things progressed as plan with himself and Tyson holding down the front lines, but it took minor mistakes to lead to one major one. Information was critical for this operation and it held true to very last detail they got, but what it never accounted for was the god forsaken army of goblins also stationed in the outpost. The little bastards were nothing to Gajeel, but numbers played a bigger role when both bandit and goblin attacked Hugo's men and that meant that he was made to watch even the reinforcements' back.

His Demon Logs managed to pulverize the mindless drones into paste without a problem, but what they failed in tactics was made up for in how nimble they were and their numbers. Hugo's men did their best against the onslaught, but the nimbly punks tried to run circles around them while they still had to contend with bandits who had more brains to them in a fight. Their sharp skills and quick wit allowed them to take control of most fights, but Gajeel could see how a goblin blade would scrape against a part of their armor instead of their shields or blades. Too close for comfort in his opinion and a part of him knew that Salamander would be itching to glass these bastards into the next era.

More problems arose when Tyson's troops needed to get on the ground, which was a challenge in of itself as they were being harassed by everything under the moonlight. Pot shots from bandits who were too cowardly to face them with a blade thought of them as easy targets, no position was suitable for them to mount their weapons since they were nearly half exposed most of the time and then there was the problem of the goblins who kept trying to flank them any way they could. Most of their firepower was still aimed at those in the main courtyard, but some of the Burst Platoon had to be diverted to keep themselves cover.

It brought a bit of a smile to his face for a brief moment, the feeling of having to keep on your toes and always trying to figure out what could go wrong at any given moment was a feeling Gajeel hadn't had ever since coming to the Special Region. Like all those times before, he never worried about himself but the lives of those serving alongside him. He could care less if any of the assholes around him got lucky enough to poke him, their weapon would likely break in any event, but everyone else wasn't gifted with an iron hide like he was. Surprisingly though, Lily was far more intimidating to goblins than he initially thought as they quaked before his Exceed when he transformed into his combat form.

What wasn't surprising was the fact that Panther Lily had taken to battle like a fish to water, his movements precise but powerful and he made sure that every swing he made had at least four bodies falling after it. Gajeel was grateful that he picked Lily to be his Exceed, but just as he knew how Salamander considered his cat a partner, Lily was no different. As the iron dragon slayer looked back at his partner, Tyson was just as focused and commanding as he always was since their first operation.

For someone who acted laid back when not on a job, he was ferocious in the battle as his burst magic let him capitalize on those stupid enough to think he was unarmed. Gajeel cut down three bandits before taking a glimpse to see how the trucker hat wearing man was faring, full knowing that the tossed body of a bandit overhead with a whole in his stomach meant he was still doing great. Not many that stood close against Tyson could handle his sheer power as soon as he locked on to them, only seeing a blitz of blue light before their end. Six bandits on the roof never got a chance to do much aside from disappearing in a brilliant explosion of light as Tyson didn't even turn to face them.

Gajeel's sense of nostalgia was interrupted when four blades slashed at him, each one shattering on impact against his sturdy hide. Suffice to say, the iron dragon slayer could here the shattering of bone as he began bashing the bandits with another bandit.

"Lug Nut, you get'n bored over there? You got yer head in the clouds!" Tyson laughed as he had caught the iron dragon slayer on autopilot for a while, Gajeel catching on as he was swinging away enemies with little thought.

"We're overqualified for this op, there's no real challenge here for us." Gajeel said as he pierced two bandits with his sword arm, sawing through the bodies to get to the goblins charging at him.

"Come on now, always be grateful for the lil' things. At least we ain't dealing with them ogres they had earlier." Tyson replied as he cleared away a band of goblins harassing his men, a look of disappointment on his face as he launched another attack.

"What's with the long face? Losing to boredom too?"

"Far from it Lug Nut, my boys aren't doing their jobs is all. Damn filthy goblins been biting at their shins since we started. No good vermin can't be killed fast enough for them to set up properly."

"Then let me make a dent in their numbers!" Gajeel swung his razor arms in a wide area to get enough space to breath, consuming as much metal lying about as he could.

"Iron Dragon's Roar!"

The devastating power of one of his signature moves was just as effective as it was back in Crocus as the death and carnage left in its wake attested to that. The attack gave their enemies pause long enough for the Burst Platoon to effectively secure an area for themselves and Tyson was just as blown away by Gajeel's attack as he was when he first saw it in action.

"I reckon ya been sitting on that one for a while?" Tyson jokingly asked as he inspected the dragon slayer's handiwork. "Next time, open up with that one, Lug Nut. Saves me the trouble of protecting yer hide."

"Where's the fun in that?" Gajeel said, giving Tyson a friendly smirk, but dropped it immediately at the sight of the archer in the tower. "Tyson lo-!"

Gajeel was too slow to warn his old friend in time, but was grateful that the white haired man had a fast reaction time as he ducked the arrow aimed for his head in time. It flew over him with barely any space between, but as Tyson stood back to his full height, did he begin to see red. It didn't take him long to realize that Gajeel was going to warn him and though he was fast, he wasn't fast enough as his trusty trucker hat became a casualty in the battle.

Tyson didn't hesitate for a second before he fired a full powered volley of his magic into the tower, obliterating the center section in a massive blast before it caved in on itself. Gajeel knew how powerful it was and knew that the Special Region made it that much more deadly than back home. He had little time to analyze it fully as he rushed Tyson, his magic power beginning to skyrocket as the hue of his magic began to shift into red.

"Yellow-bellied cowards are a hundred years too early to mess with someone like me!" Tyson roared as Gajeel grabbed hold to restrain him.

"Tyson, you've got to calm down! You can't go any further! Calm down man! It's too dangerous for you to go all out!"

"Let go of me! If these addle-headed sons of bitches want a real fight then I'll give 'em one! A man's trucker hat is sacred, you don't get off easy 'n ride the sunset if ya defile one!" Gajeel was doing his best to restrain Tyson as he continued to not only grow in power but overall strength.

"I'll get it repaired for you, just power down! We've got a job to do!" Gajeel knew Tyson was level headed and made for this job, but it was a rarity for him to blow his top like this.

"It's the principle of it Gajeel! My gran-pappy taught me how to be the man I am today and my trucker hat's one of the last things he gave me!" The iron dragon slayer knew this meant a lot to him if he actually used his real name, a thing the white haired mage hardly ever does with anyone and everyone he meets.

"Then prove to me that you're still that man he made you by reigning in your anger and think of the captives!" It was at this point that Gajeel was holding on to Tyson from going on a rampage, his body mass near doubling already and his destructive magic carving through enemies.

He couldn't do much when it came to that, but it was better than allowing him to bulldoze through the entire outpost and destroying the only entry way into the underground holding cells. The iron dragon slayer didn't need to see if the troops were doing their jobs since he was sure that Tyson scared them straight with his current behavior, making sure not to turn his anger towards them for not following orders. Gajeel was grateful for that since it meant that they were still on schedule if only the vanguard being a tad side tracked.

"Reign it in Tyson! I know how you feel!" Gajeel tried his best to keep the man in place, going so far as burying his feet into the ground to keep them in place. "I've heard the reports, there are kids down there. Innocent kids who've done nothing wrong and taken away from their parents to this god awful place!"

The iron dragon slayer's resolve grew strong as he spoke about the children, a personal subject to him that had been nagging him ever since he left for the Special Region. There was a part of him that couldn't stop thinking of the idea of what would he have done if it was Gale that was kidnapped along with them. He couldn't bear the thought of her being taking away from him and to see Levy's tears if there wasn't a thing she could have done to prevent it. He tapped into that power he'd been holding back and forced Tyson to the ground, the large man struggling to get out of his grasp.

"If my kid was down there, I'd become a one man killing machine too if I didn't have you to stop me. You'd keep me level headed so I don't risk it all and that's what I'm doing for you!"

The dragon slayer could tell that his words were getting through to Tyson, but he was near the peak of his full power now. His magic power had already been infused to his body as it turned his skin to a bluish hue, his body nearly twice as big as Gajeel's and strands of his hair had changed color. The iron dragon slayer knew his words could give Tyson pause, but the risk of him hulking out back into his rampage in this state was too high so he had to get the operation over with as fast as possible.

"Lily! Go help the rescue team to speed up the operation! I'll hold Tyson back as long as I can!" Gajeel ordered as his Exceed partner nodded to him and shrank down in size to weave through the battlefield and for the underground entrance.

Flying through the door without a second thought, Lily landed as softly as he could next to a scout left to guard the entrance. His daggers were at the ready to strike before realizing that it had been a member of the Special Forces, wasting little time in informing the small cat of the location of the rest of the team. Lily thanked him and made his way down as fast as he could, looking at the handiwork that the team had left behind as the muffled shouts he heard grew closer until he stood before a doorway flanked with two more scouts.

"Sir, we've dispatched seven marauders since entering the facility. Our captain is currently looking over documents that had been discovered in this room." One of the scouts had informed him as the Exceed looked further down the hallway to see one last doorway.

"I'll be going on ahead, inform your captain to join me as soon as possible." Lily instructed as he moved on, watching the rest of the scout team clearing each room down the hallway.

Most were cleared with one or two bandits cowering in surrender once the team entered, but Lily knew that what they were truly after was at the end of the hall. Once he got to the door, the Exceed carefully placed his ear against the it and tried to make out as much noise as he could. He managed to hear metal slide against each other, which meant bandits and the faint voices of worried woman and children. Lily carefully opened the door and slid himself in without drawing any attention, keeping an eye out for an ambush.

It turned out that the door lead down a short flight of stairs where light illuminated a doorway near the bottom, the various voices all sounding much clearer than before. Lily took careful steps in order to avoid detection and leaned in to look through the doorway to see three bandits in the room in total. One drinking off to the side, another pacing next to him and the last one arguing with a very short man with an impressively long beard given his height. The Exceed could use the element of surprise to draw them all out one at a time, but it would require more time than he had. He thought of a new plan of using his current form to his advantage, given that these fools were much too prideful of themselves for their own good.

Drawing his sword, Lily stepped out into the light with his weapon trained on the man arguing with the much shorter one. No one seemed to notice him at first until the drunkard pointed at him and started to laugh uncontrollably.

"Either I'm so piss drunk or there's some mangy cat with a blade at the door!" He laughed, taking another swig of his ale as his other two compatriots turned to look at Lily.

"No you bumbling idiot, there is a cat with sword here!" The pacing one yelled as he drew his blade, ready to attack but the arguing one stopped him.

"Is this the so called rescue you were hoping for, dwarf?" He mocked as he took a few steps towards the Exceed, placing his hands on his hips as he looked down on the cat. "I must admit that I am impressed, someone trained this fleabag how to hold a sword."

"Doesn't matter, just kill it already!" The pacer pleaded as the drunkard laughed at the whole situation some more.

"Too bad that training went to waste." The bandit brandished his sword and swung with precision to only have his blade be dwarfed by a much larger one, followed by a puff of smoke.

The smoke cleared for the bandits to be faced with a massive panther before them, wielding a much larger blade than before and a panicked cry went out before Lily cut down his attacker. He extended his sword towards the pacer, piercing him in his upper torso and finally whacking the drunkard with the flat of his blade. The Exceed took one final look around to make sure things were safe and could hear the footsteps of the scout team coming down the stairs behind him.

"Serves the bastards right." The short man said as he looked up to Lily. "It's been many a year since I've laid my eyes on a Panthera, though I don't recall your kind transforming into kittens like that."

"I'm very different from what you're used to, but right now we need to free all of you." Lily destroyed the lock with the butt of his sword and opened the cell, watching as the captives poured out and the scout team leading them towards safety.

Lily trailed after them once everyone was secured and out of the room, the short man lagging behind to speak to him along with three others of similar height. It was a curious thing to the Exceed as he wasn't expecting for anyone to be in the talkative mood over escaping their prison.

"Beggin' your pardon, Panthera, but how do you propose you and your team get all of us out of here? This may be an outpost, but the Imperials are never short in making them out like a fortress. If the plan is to fight our way out, then we dwarves shall stand by your side as thanks, but even we can't be enough to pierce their numbers."

"Your assistance is appreciated, but there is no need for you to take arms. This is just the rescue team; the real force is out dealing with the rest." Lily replied as he led the group up the staircase, paying little mind as the dwarves armed themselves with the weapons left behind.

An explosion shook the underground base around them, dust falling off the ceiling as the dwarves examined their surroundings, nodding their heads as the sped up to keep pace with Panther Lily. The Exceed understanding their worry of the base collapsing on top of them, which the possibility was high of, if Gajeel hadn't managed to calm down Tyson yet. Another explosion rocked them again and now worry began to spread amongst even the captives as they raced to the surface, the scouting team trying their best to calm them down before the situation could grow worse if they were discovered. Panther Lily made his way to the front of group and peered through the opening they came in from to see if they had a chance to make their escape yet, looking around to see where Gajeel was to notify him about the captives.

When he found him, his eyes landed on the sight of Gajeel knocking down a now semi-transformed Tyson to the ground with full force. The dragon slayer was a little worse for wear from the fighting he had done with Tyson, the major general slowly reverting back to his original form as his muscles began to relax and the blue hue of his skin returned to its lighter complexion.

Gajeel, tired from the arguing and fighting he had done with Tyson picked up Lily's scent again and noticed the Exceed signaling him about his success. Grabbing a flare gun off of Tyson's belt, Gajeel fired the signal for the Pelican for pick up as the rest of their forces began to clear out the last of the enemies.

The iron dragon slayer watched as many began to scatter as the Hammers began to open fire even fiercer than before and none dared to stand up to him as his latest fight proved how powerful he was. The collateral damages alone had taken care of a number of the bandits around him, but Tyson did have a point during their fight. The people around us shape the person we become and to see a part of their legacy tarnished won't be stood for if we could do something about it. The long haired man sighed to himself as he picked up the fallen trucker hat from a nearby wall where the arrow landed, watching as a teenager who could be no younger than Wendy come up to him with a shaky blade in his hand. Gajeel merely dismissed him as he turned his back to him and was about to make his way towards the downed form of Tyson when the familiar sound of a blade clashing against his shoulder and shattering rang in his ears.

"Listen to me kid, I could pierce through your armor and heart with my bare hands alone or kick you through a stone wall. Use the last of your brain to make the right decision and surrender to my forces." He didn't even turn to acknowledge the teenager, but Gajeel got his answer as the boy fell to his knees behind him.

Gajeel turn to see an explosion erupt from one of the defended walls his forces had taken and watched as more of them poured through, taking positions as they had trained to do so for years. Soon enough, the captives began to move towards the breach and the slayer could feel his hands forming into fists as the first captives out were children. He turned away from it all and went back to Tyson, outstretching his hand to the fallen man as he began to groan awake. Tyson took Gajeel's hand and stood back up while rubbing the soring pain on his jaw, chuckling to himself as he looked at the iron dragon slayer.

"You lookin' awful there, Lug Nut." Tyson said as Gajeel handed him the wounded trucker hat, already thinking of asking Alexis if she could sow it up.

"You should take a look at the other guy." Gajeel replied as Tyson looked around him, noticing the lack of heavy fighting, if any, as things began to wind down and the last Pelican too to the air again.

"How long was I out? All the fighitn's done now."

"Not long, just that collateral damage between you and me took care of most of them." Gajeel said as he caught sight of a number of bandits running into the forests nearby. "Those left ran into the wilderness, nothing but a bunch of cowards when we were nearly done with our fight."

"Looks like things got out of hand, huh?" Tyson said as he looked around the base, a number of the buildings destroyed and watch towers collapsed.

"A little? You almost fully transformed back there." Gajeel sarcastically remarked as he made his way to a pile of rubble, sitting atop of a large chunk of stone. "If I knew you wouldn't become a danger to the rest of us when you get enraged, I would've left you to deal with these idiots on your own."

"Guess I need to tread carefully, else Supreme Commander'll have my hide, right?" The white haired man said as he kicked off the arm of a dead bandit from another stone and planted his foot on top.

"If it weren't you, then it would've been me, but then I'd have to also deal with Commander Scarlet too." Gajeel joked, but his grin faded quickly from his face as dawn began to break through the tree line. "But I could care little if it meant I get to leave this place."

"You feelin' good there, Lug Nut? Never heard you want to turn tail'n run." Tyson had the slayer for a while now and if there was one thing the long haired man liked to do, it was to finish every fight he gets thrown in. "We've got a duty to help these people get home and stop this from happening again."

"I know that, but this place doesn't feel right. The way things work here feels like it can turn you into something you aren't and I've done terrible things in the past, but that ain't who I am anymore. It's as if this place is trying to bring that bastard of a person I was back and it's trying it's hardest too." In his travels across this new world, the injustice hidden away from the scenic views of open land have churned his stomach and brought a sting to his heart.

"And ya think leavin' is gonna help anything?"

"I don't, but I've got a family I care about back home and I made a promise to Levy that the bastard who hurt her was long dead. This world be damned if it thinks I'll be like that again."

"Bookworm's got a hold on you, huh?" Tyson rhetorically asked and was met with a sharp glare from the slayer. "Now don't get your hide in a bunch, I was just jokin', but it's good to see that you've got your priorities checked."

"For a guy who just went on a rampage and that I knocked out, you still find ways to make jokes."

"Hey now, you hit like a freight train and I still managed to ruff you up too. But for now, I'll let you have this win." Tyson grinned and Gajeel couldn't help but return it. "Look on the bright side, it's a brand new day and I've got the feelin' that changes are gonna come our way."

Gajeel merely hummed in response as he watched the sun rise over the tree line, wondering to himself of what really is coming next and how much longer of this will he have to endure before the only thing he can think about is coming back home to Levy and Gale as the same person when he left them.