A/N: All right... Where do I start with my week?
My apartment flooded on Friday, and not with just regular ol' water, oh no... It was friggin' sewer water, and it got everywhere! Human waste and everything! I haven't been able to live at my place because the carpet doesn't get replaced until Friday (fortunately most of my family's personal affects were spared damage, but still)! Seriously, if Super Saiyan was a real-life thing, I would have done it this week out sheer frustration and stress! AUGH!
...Sorry, I just needed to get that out of my system. Now, for the new picture that I've put up with this chapter; if you read the preview from last chapter, you'll know who it is. If you didn't, well... Go read! Review! and enjoy!
Have a Happy Thanksgiving, even if you aren't American!
P.S. If you are not familiar with the Big Bang Kamehameha, go look it up, as it will be helpful to have a visual during the battle portion of this chapter.
Magic Battle Nexus Arc: Chapter 8
United We Stand
Gorun had probably never been more furious in his life. The raging power of the Super Saiyan that he normally commanded so well was threatening to take him over, blinding him, almost choking his ability to think straight. He was like a petrol-soaked pile of wood, ready to erupt into a blazing forest fire at the slightest provocation.
The cause of his current state smiled imperiously at the young man, secure in the thought that his comrades would hold him back- there was no need for her or anyone in the Sabertooth guild to sully their hands with such vermin, she thought. Minerva waved a hand for her comrades to stay back- for the moment.
She had just defeated Lucy in the Naval Battle event in a brutal show of power and control that proved to be too much for even the judges to condone. They had called off the match, likely saving Lucy's life in the process, for Wendy and Sherria were able to administer emergency healing treatment to the downed Celestial Wizard. The entire display had soured a good portion of the crowd's mood towards the number one guild, and had outright enraged a majority of the Fairy Tail guild members. Gorun had taken to the field alongside Natsu and Gray, immediately engaging his Saiyan Soul as soon as Minerva came near them. Even Erza, who was normally calm and collected in tense situations like this one, was to be seen glaring daggers at Minerva, though she regained her composure quickly enough.
Gorun, however, was not quite so calm as that. "Give me one good reason…" he seethed, "why I shouldn't blast you straight to hell right now?!" The other members of Fairy Tail that were on the field- Erza, Wendy, Natsu, and Gray- looked up at their comrade, tensing up as he took a fighting stance.
Minerva shrugged nonchalantly, an infuriating motion. "Aside from the fact that you are not strong enough to do so, you would be disqualified from the games, and your team would certainly receive a severe penalty for acting outside the rules of the event," she replied in a bored tone. "Despite your petulance, you should remember that I have acted in complete compliance with the rules of this competition- which is more than I could say for you and the Salamander."
"I said a good reason," he spat, bringing his hands to his side. "You using technicalities to justify your brutality is only fuel for your funeral pyre!"
Minerva's eyes flashed dangerously as her lips curled in contempt. "Please, as if you can speak," she sniffed. "I'd say that you've caused far more harm to our guild members than we have to yours."
"Lucy was an innocent in this," Gorun replied hotly. "Your grudge is supposed to be with Natsu and I. But if you're going to insist on testing my nerves, then I'll tell you exactly how this will end, Minerva of Sabertooth." Blue light began to spill from between his hands as he snarled, "This ends with a tombstone six feet above your head!"
"That's enough!" Laxus suddenly boomed, having rushed onto the field when he saw the beginnings of a Kamehameha. He grabbed Gorun's left arm and began to drag him back, saying, "This isn't the time, Gorun!"
"Get off of me!" the boy roared, struggling to break the other man's powerful grip. "I'm gonna kill her!"
"Not if you plan to take our guild down with us you, you won't!" Laxus grunted. Looking over, he added, "Erza! Help me out with this kid!" The redhead nodded and moved swiftly to grab Gorun's other arm, effectively restraining him as they dragged him off the field. All the way to the exit, they could hear Minerva's laughter, taunting them, mocking their defeat.
"Do send little Yukino our best!" she called out as they made it to the arena wall.
"Let me go!" Gorun screamed. "I'm gonna kill that witch!"
"Gorun, you need to restrain yourself!" Erza shouted back once they were in the tunnel. "You killing her would not help Lucy right now!"
"It'll sure help me!" the boy shot back, straining vigorously to escape their grips. He was honestly surprised that they were managing to restrain him in his Super Saiyan form. "She nearly killed Lucy, humiliated her! She kidnapped and terrorized Happy to get at Natsu! Now she thinks she can mock Yukino and get away with it?! I'm not going to stand for this!"
"You have to, or she'll win anyway!" Laxus growled, panting with the effort it was taking to keep his teammate restrained. "Now drop the takeover before I knock you out!" He raised a fist to Gorun's eye level as it crackled with lightning to punctuate his threat.
The Saiyan eyed the appendage warily, some of his anger automatically reducing as his finely-honed instincts went to work. One-on-one, he was confident that he could beat either Laxus or Erza, though the former would be a real challenge. Fighting both of them at once would be a foolish move on his part, especially if he wanted to be in shape to dispatch Minerva afterwards. Still…
"I can't let this stand!" he shouted angrily, causing Erza to glare at him sharply.
"You think that we plan to?" she asked him challengingly. "You must not have paid a great deal of attention to the bonds formed between each of us if you truly think that. Bear in mind that Lucy has been with us for a great deal longer than we've known you, Gorun. Trust me, Minerva will get what is coming to her."
"Yes, she is," he growled, his hair falling back to its usual place on either side of his head. "And I am the one who is going to make sure of that."
"That's up to the event planners whether you two fight or not," Laxus told him. "If you try to take her on outside the games, you'll be in a lot of trouble- not to mention the rest of us."
"No… it isn't up to them," he said with a strangely cold smile that distorted his face so that he looked very little like the relaxed, charming young man that could be found around Kinana. It gave Laxus and Erza, veteran S-class wizards though they were, shivers to look at.
At least he's stopped trying to go out and blast her right this minute, Laxus thought uncomfortably as Gorun relaxed in their grip and seemed to calm down for the moment. Still, something about the way that his magic was fluxing beneath his suddenly calm demeanor was disturbing. What the kid was planning, Laxus didn't know, but he knew it couldn't be good for the Sabertooth woman- or Gorun.
Fifteen minutes later saw both Fairy Tail teams in the infirmary with Porlyusica, hovering over an unconscious Lucy, who was beginning to stir. Gorun immediately readied a senzu bean for the girl, gripping the small bean in his hand, though careful not to crush it. His face was a mask of calm, but inside he was still seething. It was only an active effort on his part that kept his ki from racing out of control and exploding violently. He was certain that Kinana had noticed, and that Laxus and Erza were keeping an eye on him, but he forced himself to ignore the fact. Right now, Lucy needed her guild mates to support her, not witness a squabble while she tried to recover.
As if she were aware of his thoughts, Kinana gripped his hand, the one not holding the senzu bean, and leaned slightly on him. The warmth of her body and the soothing effect she always seemed to have on him eased the tremors wracking his body, relaxing him enough that he almost forgot that he was angry. Almost.
Seeing Lucy lying on the infirmary cot, beaten within an inch of her life, stripped of her keys and dignity was enough to still make him reaffirm his vow to see Sabertooth- especially Minerva- crushed into dust. However, he could see that the others were right to restrain him when they did- getting Fairy Tail disqualified would have just made Lucy feel worse. Not to mention that it couldn't have been easy for his girlfriend to watch him act like little more than a maniac. So he would bide his time, despite how much he wanted to act right then and there.
Just as he was having these thoughts, Lucy began to stir. Kinana released her grip on him as he moved up to stand next to her head, Wendy and Carla moving aside to let him through. "Ugh…" the blond mage groaned.
"Lucy? Can you hear us?" Erza asked urgently.
"I think so…" Lucy replied groggily. "Unless I'm dreaming…? Nope. No way I'd feel this awful in a dream."
"Yeah, dreams don't have these, either," Gorun said, forcing a smile onto his face as he held out his hand with the magic bean. "Eat up- you'll feel better once you do."
"Don't have to tell me twice," Lucy said before opening her mouth so that he could feed it to her, since she was still too banged up to really move her limbs in any sort of coordinated manner. She ate the little item quickly, then sat up straight in the bed, a sheepish grin on her face as all of her wounds faded away. "So, uh… sorry I didn't get first place," she said.
"Seriously?" Gorun snorted softly as he stepped back to be beside Kinana. "You're worried about that? You were just thrashed within an inch of your life, and you're upset because you didn't take home the gold?"
"We still have a chance to do that," Gray reminded them. "And the only way we do it is by bringing Sabertooth down, first."
"Those jerks are gonna regret the day they were born!" Natsu shouted, standing to his feet, having been surprisingly quiet until now. Aside from Gorun, he had been the angriest at Sabertooth- at least as far as outward appearances went- but apparently Makarov had threatened him with some unknown form of punishment if he didn't keep a lid on it.
"Wait a sec, guys!" Lucy exclaimed, a look of panic overtaking her features. "My keys! Minerva took them from me!"
"Here ya go," Happy said as he floated toward her, holding a familiar pouch. "Yukino grabbed them up for you while everyone else was carrying you out."
"Thank you…" Lucy said as she heaved a sigh of relief while claiming the precious items. In her relief, she seemed to have forgotten to ask- if Yukino had been the one to retrieve the keys in the first place, why wasn't the newest member of their guild there to deliver them herself?
Gorun, however, did notice the missing girl, and looked a question at his girlfriend, who shook her head ever so slightly. Later, the action said. He nodded, but hoped that everything was alright.
"The real bad news is that Sabertooth took back first place," Wendy said, breaking the silent lull that had fallen over the room. "One of our teams is gonna have to take the spot back from them."
"More bad news than that, I'm afraid," said a familiar, gravelly voice.
"Oh, Master!" Lucy exclaimed as the elderly man walked through the open door.
Most of the guild members frowned at their leader's countenance and words. "What's happened?" It was Erza who voiced their concern.
"Because of Raven Tail's elimination, there are now an odd number of teams left competing, which makes the battle lineup all but impossible," Makarov answered. "As a result, the event organizers want us to consolidate our two teams into one… and we may only keep the lower score of thirty-five points."
Gorun stiffened, and Kinana swiftly moved to soothe him with a firm hug that meant he couldn't move quickly unless he wanted to hurt her. He looked down at her, realizing what she was doing, and forced himself to take several deep, relaxing breaths. It seemed that his patience was being pushed to the limits a little too often these days, and it wasn't a trait he possessed in abundance.
Finally, he calmed down enough to say, "You couldn't push for us keeping team B's score?"
"I tried, but they insisted that was our consequence for taking on Raven Tail instead of letting them handle it properly," Makarov shrugged.
"Bet they would've made us stick with the lower score even we had let them handle it," Gray muttered. Several of the others nodded in agreement.
"Be that as it may, at least we're not out of the running, m'boy," Makarov shrugged. "I've already selected the new lineup, should the nominees be willing."
"Let's hear it," Lucy said eagerly, clenching her fists.
At least, Gorun thought, her ordeal wasn't in vain. The new team's score is as high as it is because of her holding on and standing up to Minerva. We have to make sure not to waste the opportunity that she fought to give us. There was no doubt in his mind that he would be a part of the new team.
"Er-hem," Makarov cleared his throat. "The members I've chosen are… Erza Scarlet."
"I'll see this finished," Erza promised.
"Laxus," the guild master announced.
"All right," the young man nodded seriously.
"Son Gorun."
The Saiyan hybrid stood up straighter as his name was announced. "I'll crush Sabertooth and secure our spot as number one," he vowed with a slight growl.
"Gray Fullbuster."
"Good," the icy mage remarked. "I've still got a bone to pick with Sabertooth, myself."
"Natsu Dragneel," Makarov announced.
"All right, now I've got a major fire in my belly!" the boy crowed. Turning to Lucy, he added, "Don't worry, Luce. I'll make sure that we carry your fight all the way to the victory circle!" She smiled back at him, touched by his words, and the thought that he regarded her efforts so highly.
"They'll be announcing the lineup for the rest of the day soon, so those of you that I've called on, be sure to make it back up to the arena by two," the elder mage told them before he turned around to walk out the door.
"We'll be there," Erza assured him before he left.
The first tag battle on day four of the Grand Magic Games was… strange, to say the least. Not only did things get downright weird when the Blue Pegasus blue rabbit was revealed as Ichiya's exceed/Edolas counterpart, Bacchus wound up being no match for the suddenly powered-up Parfum Wizard. Considering the lengths that Kinana had gone to in order to beat him during her match, to see the pride of Quatro Kerberos fall with only a couple blows dealt was somewhat unnerving. Then again, seeing how he had spoken to Kinana, Gorun wasn't too sad to see the 'wine god' fall. He wasn't entirely certain that Erza would be able to fight if called upon after seeing double Ichiya, though.
The second battle pitted Millianna and Kagura of Mermaid Heel against Lyon and Yuka of Lamia Scale. Gorun had Lamia Scale pegged as the stronger team overall, but he was quick to notice that Kagura's power was not only overwhelming, she had a frighteningly good control over it. Had she not let her teammate waste time in the fight against the two experienced men, she could have finished the match before things really got rolling. However, it seemed that she was more or less content when the announcers called the match as a draw at the thirty-minute bell, though the same could not be said for Lyon, who looked disappointed in himself.
Not that many people in the stands noticed. They were all too busy wondering who was going to be in the final match for the tag battles. It was clear now that the event planners had saved what they thought would be the best for last. Tensions between Sabertooth and Fairy Tail would make for a fierce match, which the crowds would love. The only question was, which four wizards would be facing off against each other?
It didn't take long for the answer to arrive. "Now, for a match that I am personally looking forward to- as are many people in the crowd, I'm sure," Chapati began dramatically. "We have… Sting and Rogue, the Twin Dragons of Sabertooth!" The two slayers walked out to the deafening roars of the crowd, Sting waving his arms to their fans with a confident smile, while Rogue simply strode beside him, every movement measured and deliberate.
"Versus… Natsu Dragneel and Son Gorun of Fairy Tail!" The crowd went even crazier than before. Natsu had won the hearts of many in the crowd with his valiant efforts on day two, and Gorun had earned the respect of many others because of the power and skill he had displayed on the first day in his fight against Jura, and again in the Magic Power Finder game. This was sure to be a fast-paced, unparalleled display of strength, agility, and skill.
The pair walked out, each of them dressed in their own clothing of choice. Natsu wore his usual one-sleeve waistcoat and scarf, while Gorun wore his blue-and-green gi from the first day, though with a new addition to it- a pair of heavy, stylized gauntlets that matched the color theme of his martial arts uniform. Each one of them also wore a gold-trimmed ring on their pointer finger, Natsu's nestled on his left hand, while Gorun's rested on his right. Neither piece looked special, but neither of them usually wore jewelry, either.
"Remember the plan?" Gorun muttered in an undertone as he kept his eyes locked on the red irises in Rogue's eyes.
"Yeah," Natsu grinned as he engaged in a similar staring contest with Sting. "Normally I'd think this kind of crazy plan would be something only Happy could come up with. But if it works…"
"It will," Gorun assured him as they came to stand ten paces away from their opponents. "Let's show them what Fairy Tail can really do."
"Hehe…" Natsu grinned, cracking his knuckles. "I'm all fired up."
"What're you two idiots talking about?" Sting remarked. "Trying to come up with some last-minute plan to try and win? Please."
"Come again?" Gorun demanded.
"You may be strong by the standards of other wizards," Rogue replied flatly. "But compared to a dragon, you might as well be an insect for us to squash. There is nothing in this world that can match their power, save for a true Dragon Slayer."
"And all I see in front of me is a guy with some flashy tricks, and an old-gen fire wizard that couldn't even slay a real live dragon," Sting smirked. "So this shouldn't take more than five minutes."
"Five minutes, huh?" Gorun replied grimly. "We were gonna be generous and give you ten minutes, but now it seems like we're on a tight schedule, eh Natsu?"
"Just say when," the Salamander smirked toothily.
"When," Gorun replied, noticing that the bell was about to sound.
Both of them squared themselves up so that they were lined only a few steps apart. Gorun stretched out his arms to his right, his hands flat like blades. Natsu did the same, only his hands were pointed to his left. "Fu…" they said slowly, in unison as they began to move towards one another side-on, their arms describing a pair of large circles.
"Wha-?" Sting wondered aloud, not understanding what he was seeing.
The pair of comrades were now only two paces away from each other, their fingers almost touching. Then they returned their hands to their original positions so that they faced away from each other while bringing their outer knee up to point towards each other's. Balanced on a single leg each, they growled, "sion…"
"Fusion?" Rogue repeated, just as confused as his comrade. Was this some kind of unison raid they were trying to get ready in time for the bell to sound?
"Ha!" The Fairy Tail pair bellowed, bringing their feet down flat on the sand once again. As they did so, they leaned their upper bodies towards each other, side on until their pointer fingers touched, keeping the rest of their fingers closed tight now.
A blinding light shone from where the pair stood, even as the bell sounded and the match was declared officially begun- just as Gorun had planned. Sting and Rogue recoiled, unsure of what to do- neither one of them had seen anything like this before, and had no idea of what to expect from this strange technique. What were the two fairies up to?
Again, answers were not long in coming.
"All right!" shouted a voice from within the luminance. Those that heard it were instantly confused further- it sounded like a pair of voices, perfectly intermingled and in perfect sync, yet coming from a single source.
That source leaped forward, a huge grin on his face as the light faded behind him. It was a solitary figure, dressed in loose, flowing white pants with dark blue shoes and green bindings to hold the bottoms of the pants in place. At his waist was a blue sash that somehow looked reminiscent of a set of dragon's scales. On top was an open black vest trimmed with dark blue that left his well-defined abs exposed, as well as a good deal of his thick pectoral muscles. On his right bicep was a Fairy Tail Emblem, colored in a rich green with a fierce red outline.
However, what really caught the startled dragon slayer's attention was the young man's face. The eyes were dark gray, not quite black, and the grin he was wearing showed off some sharp canines. Strangest was the hair- long and a little spiky, colored black save for the pink highlights streaked here and there through the mess atop his head.
"What's the matter?" he taunted them. "I'd have thought that you would feel more comfortable with odds of two on one."
"Wh-What the hell is this?" Sting demanded shakily. Something about that voice was familiar, but he couldn't quite place it. "Where are Natsu and that other guy?"
"Hehe… Guess that light must've blinded you worse than I thought it would," the young man laughed. "Natsu and Gorun are right here. Right in front of you. I am of them, they are me. But since I'm technically someone else, I guess I'll have to have a name of my own… how about Narun?" All around, they could hear the crowd reacting in shock at this new development, some of them even wondering if it was against the rules for this kind of technique to be used.
"Can they even do that?!" Rogue demanded, looking up to the judge's box, at a loss for what to do.
"I think they can… right?" Chapati asked his co-host.
"Well, they're technically two wizards using their own skill set to perform this technique without any outside assistance, so I suppose it is legal," Yajima replied after an uncertain moment. "I didn't read anything in the rules about combining people in the middle of a match, so that's my take on this."
"Well folks, I guess that's our answer," Chapati shrugged. "I suppose the fight can proceed as normal, then."
"All right, they gave us the go-ahead," the newly named Narun smirked. "Now come on, 'True Dragon Slayers'. Let's see that power you're so proud of."
Ten minutes earlier…
"You wanna do what now?" Natsu asked as he stared at the gold-trimmed ring that Gorun had handed to him moments ago. "Sorry, but this is all goin' over my head."
"Okay, you're familiar with unison raids, right?" Gorun sighed as he slipped his ring onto his right pointer finger. "Like the magic fusion we did at Sabertooth's hotel the other night?" The two of them were in the entrance tunnel that led to the arena, waiting for their names to be called.
"Oh yeah," Natsu grinned. "That was awesome!"
"Okay, similar idea, but instead of two spells combining to form a stronger one, think of it as combining two people into a single fighter," Gorun told him. "One that'll be way stronger than either of us, even if we work together."
"Okay, us getting stronger, I like that part," Natsu said toothily. "What I'm still confused on is why we have to dance…?"
"It's the best way to get our magic energy flowing in the way that we need to direct it in order to make the fusion work," Gorun explained as patiently as he could. He had already showed Natsu the steps to the fusion dance, though the dragon slayer had a hard time believing that it was really going to do what his friend said it would. "Look, are you willing to give this a shot or not? If not, I'll just take the ring back now."
Natsu's face darkened slightly as he looked down at the ring in his palm. "We do this, and we can crush Sabertooth for sure?" he asked.
"Yeah, no doubt," Gorun nodded confidently. "And if this works as well as I hope it does, maybe someday we can have a match with Laxus or Erza and beat 'em then."
"Nah," Natsu grinned confidently as he slipped the ring on the finger Gorun had told him to use. "I'll beat them on my own- and I'm pretty sure I could take on those lame wads from Sabertooth on my own, too. But after everything that their guild has done to our friends…"
"Not taking any chances?" Gorun smirked, and Natsu answered in kind with a fierce chuckle.
"Yeah," the Salamander answered. Then he frowned down at the ring he was wearing, and grumbled, "But do we have to wear these things? Rings ain't my style."
"Well, we could chance performing the fusion without them, but then we run the risk of turning into some kind of hideous blob or skeletal freak with basically no power at all," Gorun shrugged.
He didn't mention that a successful Metamoran Fusion performed without the rings that Bulma had invented would produce a much stronger version of the fighter that they would hopefully create here in the next few minutes. It was just too risky, seeing as this would be Natsu's first attempt at even trying fusion- they couldn't risk it going wrong on the off-chance that it could work. Not to mention that they wouldn't have to worry about the combination timing out like they would with a natural fusion. In addition, the newest metamo-rings even granted Metamoran-styled clothing.
They were the last things that he had taken from the Elder Kai before coming to Fiore. They weren't as powerful as potara earrings, but they were still valuable tools in the right hands.
"Got it, no rings make for a bad combo," Natsu muttered. Gorun almost went to correct him, then decided against it. He'd explain the intricacies of the various kinds of fusion to the pink-haired wizard some other time, when they weren't in more or less of a rush.
"Hey, you guys," said a familiar voice, causing the two wizards to turn and smile at a small group of figures approaching them.
"Yo, Happy and Lucy!" Natsu smiled at his best friend, and waved to the three girls following him. "Hey there, Kinana and Yuki… uh…?"
Gorun shot his friend an annoyed glance and asked, "Did you seriously forget her name?!"
"Yuki-bro?" he offered lamely, causing Kinana and Lucy to laugh, and Yukino to look supremely confused.
"Yukino, how's it going?" Gorun asked the girl with a sigh.
"Um, I'm all right," the girl said softly. "I just came down to wish you good luck… and to warn you."
"Warn us?" Natsu asked with a frown.
"Yes," the silver-haired girl said somberly. "Sting and Rogue are, without a doubt the strongest team in Sabertooth. Lady Minerva may be the strongest individual, but those two have power and coordination like you've never seen. Please, please be careful while you fight them. They may want revenge for you attacking the hotel, and I don't want to see a repeat of what happened to Lucy…" She shuddered at the thought.
Gorun smiled kindly at her and said, "Thanks for the heads-up, Yukino. But I think Natsu and I will be all right. This isn't his first fight against dragon slayers… Or mine, now that I think about it." He remembered his match with Natsu shortly after the Salamander had accidentally discovered his alien origins.
"All the same, be careful," the girl urged.
Kinana put a hand on their new friend's shoulder with a smile and said, "I told you he'd say that. And besides, I believe in him. He won't let us down." She turned her smile onto Gorun, and he returned the expression before moving in to seize her in a tight hug. Off to the side, the Saiyan was aware that Lucy and Happy were talking to Natsu in lowered tones, so he did his best not to eavesdrop with his sensitive ears.
"Thanks," he said quietly into Kinana's hair. "For standing beside me all this time. I'm gonna make it up to you."
"Go get 'em," she told him. "Yukino and I will be cheering for our team leader."
"Speaking of teams…" he said as he pulled away, albeit reluctantly. "I dunno what our name should be."
"I haven't figured that out, either, but since we're going to become an official group when we make it back to Magnolia, I figured that we should all have something in common with one another," Kinana grinned. She looked over at Yukino, who held up her right hand, where a white Fairy Tail emblem with a silver outline was now present.
"Yours' is on your right forearm, mine is on the right shoulder…" Kinana giggled. "Maybe it's kinda silly, but I figured a theme of some sort would be nice."
"I like it," Gorun beamed at her. Fixing his smile on his newest guild mate, he said, "Welcome to Fairy Tail, Yukino. We're glad to have you with us."
"I'm glad to be a part of it," she answered with the ghost of a smile.
Gorun opened his mouth to say more, but just then they heard Chapati announcing Sabertooth's team. That meant they would be next, sometime in the next few seconds. "Showtime," he muttered. Giving Kinana one last hug, he then turned and walked away with Natsu, both of them holding up the sign of Fairy Tail's eternal promise over their heads.
Back at the Present…
Narun shot forward without any further preempt, punching Sting in the face and sending him recoiling from the impact. A spinning back kick caught Rogue in the stomach, and with more force behind the blow, he went flying.
"Rrrgh…" Sting grunted, but he was not going down from something like that. "White Dragon… ROAR!" White energy spewed from his mouth, narrowly missing Narun, who swerved with inhuman nimbleness to dodge the spell.
"A laser, huh?" the fused fighter mused to himself. Then he was leaping high to avoid the blast as Sting swung his head to try and strike them with it. "Guess I better respond!" He cupped his hands by his ribcage, blue light shining almost immediately as he prepared to counterattack.
"Shadow Dragon SLASH!" The next attack came from below as Rogue leaped at them, his right hand wrapped in shadows.
Narun weighed his options briefly in the second before Rogue struck. Just as the young man came within striking distance, Narun dropped the attack and placed his right hand's forefingers against his forehead. Then he was gone, teleporting out of the way of Rogue's spell.
The Shadow Dragon Slayer only had a half-second to wonder where his opponent had gone, when he was grabbed by the scruff of the neck and thrown towards his teammate at high speed.
Narun grinned as he engaged instant transmission again, even before the two arrogant slayers collided with each other. In less than a second, he was running at them from behind, flames licking his fingers as he brought them up, then down again in a wide, swiping motion. "Fire Dragon WING ATTACK!" he bellowed, blasting his opponents away with Natsu's fire.
Everyone in the guild was staring at Kinana with wide eyes, making the girl turn red with embarrassment. "I didn't know he could do that!" she exclaimed.
"He never mentioned it, not once?" Makarov asked with a bit of disbelief in his voice. "You know nothing about this kind of unison raid?"
"N-Not a whole lot," she admitted. "He said that some of his ancestors way back when were able to use this technique, but he's never shown it to me before. Like I said, I didn't even know that he could do that."
"Well, what exactly does such a transformation do?" Mavis inquired curiously. Ever a seeker of knowledge, she found this new turn of events to be incredibly fascinating.
Kinana hesitated, trying to deduce how much she could say without giving Gorun's origins away. Then she answered, "It's supposed to combine and multiply their strength several times over… And this new guy should be able to use any of Natsu's magic in addition to Gorun's attacks."
"That's crazy!" Happy exclaimed. "Natsu's way destructive when he fights, and now he's got Gorun's powers, too?!"
"Are we sure there'll be a stadium left when this fight is over?" Mirajane wondered, concerned.
"If that guy has Salamander's brains with Gorun's power, I'd seriously doubt it," Gajeel muttered. He was still a little sore that he hadn't been put on the new team, but even he couldn't take his eyes off this strange and exciting new development.
"That's the other thing about this technique…" Kinana said, suddenly remembering one last important bit. "The fusion doesn't mix their personalities- it creates an entirely new one."
Narun's running carried him past the two smoking wizards, both of whom were getting painfully to their feet. "Don't tell me that's all you've got," he sneered at them. "I don't think I can bring myself to believe that a pair of this world's most powerful beings were brought down by the hands of two wizards such as yourselves. Tell me honestly now, did you really defeat dragons with that measly power?"
"Urgh…" Rogue growled. "Don't count us down yet. We're barely getting started."
"He's right," Sting added. "Maybe we didn't expect you to be this strong… but we've only been warming up. Besides, we didn't just defeat those guys… We killed our dragons, with our bare hands."
"Pretty trashy way to repay the ones that raised you," Narun growled. "With friends like you, who needs enemies?"
"That's none of your business," Sting snapped. "But if you really wanna see our dragon-slaying power, I'd be more than happy to show it to you." Standing up straight, he said in a commanding voice, "White Drive." Immediately, he was enveloped in a glowing white aura, and Narun could feel his power level rising rapidly.
"Shadow Drive," Rogue echoed, a dark, wispy aura surrounding him, and causing a similar effect to his magic power.
"Now that's more like it," Narun said as he assumed a ready stance. Up until now, he'd been at ease, not even taking a proper fighting position. Apparently the Twin Dragons were now posing enough of a threat to put him on his guard. "Bring it on!"
"You'll regret that," Rogue snapped, just before he transformed into a shadow and vanished into the sand.
"That's new," Narun muttered.
"So's this!" Sting laughed as he leaped forward at blinding speed. He threw six punches in the time it takes to blink, sending Narun reeling from the impact. He paused for a brief second to taunt him, shouting, "How do you like my Holy White Judgement?!" Then it was a slugfest, with Sting and Rogue attacking from every direction- front, back, above and below. Sting's agility was so enhanced that even wizards like Erza and Laxus were having a hard time keeping up, and Rogue's ability to become incorporeal made it hard for one to tell where he was going to attack from next, much less retaliate.
"This is insane!" Lucy exclaimed as they watched the fight from above. "I thought that this Narun guy would be way stronger than this!"
"So did I," Kinana muttered with a frown. "I was under the impression that fusion increased two people's powers far beyond what they could achieve simply by working together as individuals."
"Gorun…" Yukino whispered as she clung to the railing of the seating area. Seeing this fused fighter being pummeled so soon after witnessing the brutality of Minerva was getting to her. "Please be safe…"
"Beating the crap out of my idol is pretty friggin' sweet!" Sting laughed. "Even if you are some weird half-and-half, I'm sure Natsu can feel all of this!" Taking a more solid stance, he wound up his right fist for a second as he added, "All I've ever wanted was to show the world that I'm better than you- and today…" He threw the punch, his fist infused with an even brighter light than before. "…it's finally happening!"
"Augh!" Narun cried out as he was struck, sliding in the sand for several meters while Sting just watched, a knowing smirk on his face. The hybrid fighter went to strike the smug look off his face, then found that he was unable to even move his legs to walk. "Hey!" he demanded, noticing some kind of residual light on his abdomen. "What the hell is this?!"
"My White Dragon Talon is infused with holy magic," Sting bragged. "Once you're branded with the stigmata, you're paralyzed. Which leads to the really fun part…" Both of his fists shone with brilliant light again as Rogue reappeared behind the Saiyan/Dragon Slayer hybrid. "You're our new punching bag!"
"Hell no!" Narun shouted. There was a burst of heat, then Sting found himself being slugged in the face, grabbed, and then hurled at his companion for the second time that day.
Aiming a palm at the pair, Narun shouted, "Big Bang Attack!" The blue sphere was launched immediately, and the resulting explosion hid the two dragon slayers from view for a moment.
When the dust settled, Sting and Rogue emerged, looking more angry than injured. "What just happened?!" Sting demanded, confused and furious. "You shouldn't be able to move!"
"Hehe…" Narun grinned as he patted his lean abdomen, which they could now see was glowing with heat comparable to a forge. "Not a bad trick you've got there. But you'll have to do better to pull one over on me."
Sting's jaw dropped in shock. He burned off the stigmata?! He thought, feeling a mix of surprise and new respect for his childhood idol rushing through him.
Rogue was not so positively inclined to the merged fighter. Letting out a raging shout, he vanished and reappeared behind Narun, aiming to bash in his skull with a Shadow Dragon's Crushing Fang.
Narun's hand shot out and grabbed Rogue's wrist without so much as a glance in his direction. "Gotcha," the fusion grinned evilly. The shadow mage couldn't help but let out a small gasp of surprise as he was caught- this had never happened to him before. Narun wasn't finished with him, either.
"I seem to recall you saying something about Natsu and Gorun being nothing more than insects for you to squash," he sneered. "I guess we'll chalk up what's about to happen as a case of a nasty bug bite, then." He slammed Rogue into the sand hard enough to make the other wizard lose his shadow aura entirely, then threw him at Sting.
Sting, however, had an idea of what was coming, so he dodged the flying body of his comrade, though even with his enhanced speed, he barely managed to avoid the impact. Then he found himself flying after his companion, courtesy of a brutally powerful kick to his stomach that nearly made him vomit once he hit the dirt.
"You shoulda let me hit you with him," Narun chuckled as he lowered the leg he had used to deliver the kick. "Then again, I can't let myself become too predictable, can I?" Both third-generation dragon slayers merely groaned in response. Narun affected to smile again as he said, "You're right. I should try to vary things a little more… So how about this?"
He held out both hands in front of him, palms facing skyward as he shouted, "Twin Fire Stars!" Twin fiery orbs, each one comparable in size to a Brilliant Flame spell, or a Big Bang Attack, sprang from his palms and began to fly around him in an erratic, rapid orbit. Seeing that his experiment had been successful, Narun laughed and said, "Hey, look! I've got one for each of you!"
He stretched his hands back behind his head before miming a throw with both arms simultaneously, sending both of the orbs arcing towards the Twin Dragons of Sabertooth at high velocity. Both of them retaliated with short, precise breath attacks that pierced the orbs just a few feet away.
Still, a few feet away wasn't enough when both orbs detonated with overwhelming force, sending the two dragon slayers rolling away in the sand yet again, and partially blinding Rogue in the process. Sting, whose eyes were used to much brighter flashes of light, recovered first.
"Well, looks like you're one tough customer," he smirked as he assumed a wide horse stance. His aura intensified as he added, "Looks like I'll have to give it more than I thought." Rogue, sensing what was to come, vanished into his shadow form, retreating hastily from his comrade's light.
"What's this?" Narun taunted the blond man. "Are you finally getting serious?"
"Yeah, and you'll be regretting it in a second," Sting answered in kind. "When I decide to go all-out, there's no way fire and whatever the hell else you are can stop me." The light from his aura was now being magnified by the natural light that was seemingly drawn to Sting like a magnet, growing fiercer and brighter with every passing second.
"What's happening down there?!" Lucy yelled to be heard above the crowd, many of whom were shouting in confusion. "I can't see a thing!"
"That's one of Sting's strongest spells!" Yukino exclaimed, shielding her eyes from the glare as she answered. "A Secret Art!"
"It feels like he's gathering all of his magic into one spot!" Kinana added, trying to sense with her magic what her eyes could not tell her.
"Here comes, Natsu!" Sting yelled with a bright grin. "Dragon Slayer Secret Art… Holy… NOVA!" The light suddenly winked out as Sting shot forward at the speed of a magic bullet, the light congealed around his hand.
"More like Holy No!" Narun laughed just before Sting made contact. An explosion rocked the stadium, a mix of flames and white energy giving off enough light to rival the glare of the sun and forcing everyone to cover their faces to avoid getting blinded. It took some time, but eventually the dust and light settled enough for the crowd to see the result- and it shocked most of them. The two fighters' fists were mashed against each other, a burn scored across Sting's knuckles as he looked at the offending limb in dumbfounded shock.
"Nice try, but the next move is mine," Narun chuckled. Kicking out flat-footed at his opponent, he raised his hands above his head and shouted, "Masenko!" The yellow laser smote Sting in the back as he was beaten back, sending him sprawling in the dirt at the feet of his enemy once again.
"That's it…" Sting growled as he got to his feet. Rogue had moved to join him, seeing that his ally's attack had been ineffective. "No more games. I have a promise to keep- and I intend to fulfill it!" The air around him began to shudder, and Narun noticed a rise in his magic power that eclipsed his previous power-up technique ten times over. "I'm not gonna lose!"
There was a pulse of intangible force that erupted from Sting's body, lifting his hair up even straighter and spikier than it was before. Simultaneously, white markings akin to dragon scales appeared all over his body, though they only partially obscured his face. To his right, Rogue had undergone a similar transformation, save that his markings were black in color, and a shadowy aura had surrounded his body again, not unlike his Shadow Drive technique.
Narun recognized the ability immediately from the memories he possessed of Natsu. "Dragon Force…" he mused out loud, raising his guard again. This time, however, it was noticeable that his fists were actively on fire in preparation for the coming fight.
Up above, many of the Fairy Tail members were feeling very uneasy about this new development. Makarov, in particular, was looking supremely worried. "The Dragon Force…" he muttered aloud, though it was in such a low voice that only Mavis heard it.
"This is definitely unexpected," the ancient girl said to her successor. "I had always been under the impression that Dragon Slayers required an external source of surplus energy to attain that state."
"Sting once mentioned something about Dragon Slayers getting stronger after killing a dragon," Yukino said, surprising both guild masters with her forthcoming. "Maybe the fact that they both achieved that is what allows them to enter the state at will."
"That may be part of it, but I think that there is another explanation," Freed mused, his chin in his hand as mulled over his thoughts. He must have not realized that he had spoken out loud until everyone was looking to him for a further explanation. Clearing his throat, he added, "I mean, I've seen Laxus enter this Dragon Force you're talking about, when he battled Natsu and Gajeel, yet I know for a fact that he's never slain a dragon. However, he and these Twin Dragons do share something in common."
"What's that?" Macao asked when the script mage paused for breath.
"They both have dragon-slaying lachrymas implanted in their bodies," Freed answered. "While these two from Sabertooth were trained by dragons like Natsu, Wendy, and Gajeel, they also obtained lachrymas to augment their power. I believe that lachryma is acting a fuel source, if you will, for the Dragon Force."
"Well then, how long can they sustain that for?" Lucy asked, glancing worriedly at Narun, who had yet to make a move.
"I think it depends on how long they've had the lachrymas," Freed answered uncertainly. "The longer a lachryma is embedded in someone, the larger and more powerful it can grow, if placed correctly. But in this particular instance, I don't think it matters overmuch."
"Why's that?" Kinana asked this time.
"The fight will only last twenty or twenty-five more minutes," Freed replied grimly. "And that would be if it ended in a draw. Those two are not seeking to draw out this battle, but to end it quickly. And with such power at their disposal, I worry for Natsu and Gorun."
Yukino looked back down at the arena, worry written all over her face. Kinana saw it, and patted the other girl's shoulder while smiling at her. "I worry, too," the purple-haired wizard said. "But I also have faith that they're going to pull through and win this for us."
"Faith in which one?" Yukino asked, smiling nervously. Still, it was a smile, Kinana thought.
"I have faith in Gorun," she replied, her grin widening. "Lucy's the one to have faith in Natsu. So I guess we have a collective faith in this Narun guy, right Lucy?"
Lucy reddened a little bit at the question, but after a tense, awkward second, she returned the smile brightly and said, "Yeah, of course I have faith in Natsu! He's always pulled through before, and I have no doubt that he will again today."
Down below, Narun smiled to himself, his sensitive ears able to pick out the voices of his counterparts' closest friends. They sure are lucky, he thought to himself just as Sting launched a hyper-fast attack that sent him flying through the air, towards the arena wall. Still, instead of appearing to be surprised or enraged, the fused fighter let out a coughing sort of laugh as he righted himself in midair and floated to a halt, courtesy of Gorun's ability to fly.
"Now that's more like it!" he crowed. Sting and Rogue said nothing, though the former gave him a cold smile as they charged in together. Then it was a slugfest mixed with spell slinging that dotted the arena ground and walls with numerous holes. Unlike before, where it seemed to be a one-sided contest, Sting and Rogue were now actually gaining ground against Narun.
Somewhere in the middle of this ferocious battle, Narun was cut on the arm by one of Rogue's slashing attacks, right where his mixed-colored Fairy Tail emblem was located. His eyes flashed dangerously as he bellowed, "Guild mark's off-limits, you shadow-slinking prick!" So saying, he grabbed Rogue by the leg with renewed effort and speed, catching the young man off-guard so fast that he didn't have time to turn into a shadow.
Narun roared angrily as he slammed the raven-haired youth into the dirt, once, twice, three times before smacking Sting away with his body, then punting him as hard as he could with a flame-covered foot that sent him sprawling beside his teammate.
"I'm gettin' real tired of this guy throwing us like pillows," Sting grumbled.
"And I'm tired of your guild lording it over mine that you think you're better!" Narun spat, holding his hands at his side in a very familiar stance. Instead of blue light pooling between his cupped hands, though, a fiery orb began to form, growing swiftly in size until it was the size of a melon.
"We are better," Sting scoffed, waving a hand dismissively. In his ascended state, that impact had barely winded him- he just found it annoying that he and Rogue kept ending up full of sand during this fight.
Narun's left eye twitched before he roared, "Then be better in hell!" The fireball flared brightly before he thrust it out in front of him and bellowed, "Fire Dragon KAMEHAMEHA!" An orange magic circle, tinged with crystalline blue on the edges of it, appeared and spewed forth an even more intense version of the attack that Gorun and Natsu had launched against Jiemma only days prior. A fiery explosion rocked the entire stadium, swallowing up the twin dragons in the raging inferno.
When the fire dissipated, there was no sign of the two dragon slayers, much to the shock of the crowd, but Narun remained on guard. He could sense them somewhere nearby, but they were-
His head snapped up towards the sky just in time to see Sting open his maw and unleash a monstrous amount of light that slammed into him with devastating force- even more than the attack that he himself had just launched against the Twin Dragons. His attempt to block was taken out by Rogue, who appeared just long enough to kick his legs out from underneath him, robbing him of his concentration, and then vanishing back into a shadow that could escape the terrible damage about to be inflicted on Narun and the stadium.
This explosion didn't just rock the stadium- people all over Crocus could feel the hint of a rumbling in the ground as Sting's Holy Breath attack struck home. When the light was gone, the audience was shocked to see that he had bored several hundred feet down through what looked like a labyrinth that ran underneath the arena. Lachryma screens quickly popped up to show the three combatants falling down into the hole, Narun looking stunned and winded as he plunged down ahead of the pair, while Sting looked like he was having the time of his life. Rogue's face was a mask of calm and boredom as he hung back a bit, apparently content to let his comrade take the lead in this fight.
"You can't leave, cos we're not done yet!" Sting shouted as he tucked in his limbs and dove towards the fused fighter.
Narun composed himself and flashed a feral grin as he placed two fingers to his forehead and suddenly vanished, only to reappear behind Sting, bellowing, "Fire Dragon IRON FIST!" He slugged Sting in the small of his back, where he knew it would hurt the most, and sent the White Dragon Slayer plummeting to the new floor of their arena even faster than before.
Then he fixed his eyes on Rogue and took a deep breath. "Fire Dragon ROAR!" An inferno burst from his mouth, washing over Rogue and sending him flying into one of the buried floors that had been exposed by Sting's breath attack.
However, this left him open to an attack from below by Sting, who was already steady on his feet. Clasping his hands together at his side, he shouted, "The radiance of a white dragon purifies all! …Holy RAY!" As Sting lifted his hands skyward, he unleashed countless piercing bolts of light that slammed into Narun, bruising him and scoring many scores of shallow cuts on his body. He shouted in pain and surprise-it was the most effective hit that either Dragon Slayers had gotten in since the fight began. There were simply too many blasts coming in for him to dodge them all, and they came in too fast for him to focus on getting out with instant transmission.
The impacts didn't let up until Narun had crashed into the ground, aching and bleeding. "Ow," he muttered, glaring at Sting, who smirked again before launching himself at his opponent, fist glowing white. The Saiyan/Slayer hybrid got to his feet and met the blow with one of his own, growling, "Remember what happened the last time we did this?!" He was referring to the burn on Sting's hand from where he had tried to use a Secret Art on Narun, and subsequently failed miserably.
"Last time was more to see how strong you really were," Sting snorted. "Now I'm serious." Brilliant white light erupted from his arm like a volcano, pushing him forward, driving Narun back.
At least, that's what was supposed to be happening- but Narun wasn't moving at all. In fact, Sting's eyes widened as Narun began to push him backwards, step by step, without even a trace of magic power coming from his body. "So this is you being serious, huh?" Narun scoffed. "I expected more from a 'True Dragon Slayer'. Seems you're all bark and no bite."
"Rrrgh!" Sting gritted his teeth and redoubled his effort to push back Narun, managing to get them into another deadlock after a moment. "This is the power of a True Dragon Slayer!" he shouted above the noise of his magic. "I would know- it's how I killed Weisslogia!"
"Is that right?" Narun smirked. "Then how's about I show you the power…" His body was suddenly cocooned in a mix of flames and raw energy as he said, "That Natsu and Gorun use to fight for their friends that you laughed at!" An image popped into the combined fighter's mind- Lucy and Kinana, both smiling at him, encouraging him to win the battle. From within the fused being, Gorun and Natsu smiled back, ready to put Sabertooth where they belonged.
An explosive force broke through Sting's assault, followed by a thunderous impact that sent him flying back to crash into the ruined remains of a pillar. Narun paused to admire his handiwork for a second before he turned his attention to another problem.
"Shadow Dragon ROAR!" Rogue bellowed, a cyclone of darkness shooting forward to swallow Narun whole.
"Tyrant Lance!" Narun shouted in retaliation, leaping forward and thrusting a single fist forward, which emitted a short blue beam that pierced down the middle of the breath attack, nullifying it, and sending Rogue stumbling backwards when it struck him. Narun followed that up with a Fire Dragon Talon that put him firmly in the dirt.
His sensitive ears picked up on movement behind him, so he turned to face an enraged Sting, who was screaming, "I'm not done with you!"
"Bring it," Narun smirked.
"You can definitely tell that Natsu's in there somewhere," Gray chuckled as he watched the spectacle of the Twin Dragons being pummeled by Narun from the competitor's seating area. "Only that pink-haired idiot would be smiling in a time like this."
"I think that could be Gorun smiling just as easily," Erza smiled alongside him. "An epic battle like this right up his alley."
"I dunno how 'epic' you can call it when he's just toying with the two of them," Laxus muttered, though he was wearing the faintest hint of a grin.
"So he was lowering his power level the whole time," Kinana laughed softly. "I knew I shouldn't have worried about him."
"So he's been… toying with Sting and Rogue?" Yukino gaped, her eyes the size of dinner plates. Never had she expected the Twin Dragons to be so outclassed. "Just how strong is this Narun guy?"
"It's Natsu and Gorun put together, I'll bet that they're even stronger than Gildarts!" Romeo laughed, ecstatic.
"Normally I'd say you're crazy, boy," Makarov said with a wondering shake of his head. "But after seeing Gorun go up against Jura, I just might believe it."
Sting and Rogue were, panting, exhausted and covered in bruises from head to toe. Narun was standing about twenty feet away, arms folded, looking pretty banged up himself, but still smiling at the two of them. "Come on, already," he taunted. "I'm getting bored doing all the attacking here- try to at least come up with something to make me dodge, you know?"
Rogue glared at their enemy with undisguised hatred and settled into a crouch, extending his right arm back in a fist as he bellowed, "Now Sting!" Black energy erupted from his hand, swelling rapidly as Rogue strove to pour every ounce of magic power into this new attack.
"YEAH!" Sting cried, mirroring his comrades' actions, a white orb that glowed with the brilliance of the sun erupting into existence behind him as he stood abreast to Rogue.
Narun raised an eyebrow as he watched the two Dragon Slayers curiously, wondering what they were up to now. However, he made to movement to defend himself, instead going so far as to lower his arms to his sides, leaving himself completely unguarded. He knew that he had reached the endgame now. The two slayers were battered, their pride smashed by him and his refusal to go down and his undisguised contempt of them and the guild that they stood for. These, he sensed, were the strongest spells that they could possibly throw at him.
Inwardly, he smiled. This is for Fairy Tail, he said silently.
All the while, the simultaneous attacks of Sting and Rogue continued to grow larger and more dangerous with each passing second, until at last, the magic they had summoned appeared to disappear into thin air. For a moment, there was total silence in the arena as the audience held their breaths, wondering what was going on.
Then, between the hands of Sting and Rogue appeared a small ball of darkness that shone like a faraway star- a fusion of shadow and light. A unison raid, Narun realized.
"Holy Shadow Dragon FLASH FANG!" the Twin Dragon Slayers roared, directing all of their power, frustration, and hatred at the Fairy Tail wizard that had dared to defy them. They thrust their hands forward, sending the ball out in front of them before it exploded outwards, rushing towards Narun like a tidal wave of deadly magic power.
Up above, the guild was in more or less of a panic. "He's not moving!" Pantherlily exclaimed. "Does he think he can just block it?!"
"C'mon Natsu, fight back!" Romeo cried. As others in the guild shouted encouragement to the combined warrior, Lucy, Happy, Yukino, and Kinana held their breaths, praying that their friend knew what he was doing…
Before the fight…
Natsu grinned at Lucy and Happy while Gorun moved to speak in private with his teammates. "So what's up?" he asked. "Here to wish me luck?"
"Nope," Lucy chirped. "You don't need it."
"Aye sir!" Happy agreed with a huge grin.
"Well, thanks!" the pinkette replied, his smile brightening. "If that's all, I guess I should head on out."
"Wait, Natsu," Lucy said, grasping his hand before he could turn to walk away. "There is one thing I needed to tell you before you go out there."
"Yeah?" he asked as he turned back to face her.
Lucy smiled warmly at her best friend as she said, "I believe in you. And I always have, from the moment I joined the guild."
Natsu's eyes widened in surprise for a moment, then his smile returned, bigger than ever. "Thanks!" he said happily. "That means a lot to me, Lucy." The girl favored him with another smile before squeezing his hand and letting go.
Natsu turned to face Happy, who had surprisingly kept his mouth shut while Lucy had said her piece. His expression was unusually somber, and for a moment, Natsu feared that something was troubling his buddy. "Something wrong, pal?" he asked the blue exceed.
"No, nothing's wrong," Happy replied.
"Oh, okay," Natsu grinned as he turned to walk away, hearing his name being called by the announcers. "Later, guys!"
"Hold on!" Happy called, making Natsu pause where he stood. "I don't need to say anything, do I?" He hesitated, then added, "Know what I mean?"
"Yeah…" Natsu answered as he looked over his shoulder, his expression matching Happy's. "I hear ya… partner." Then he was heading out, the Fairy Tail salute held high above his head. Behind him, Happy and the three girls were holding up the same sign.
Back at the Present…
"Holy Shadow Dragon FLASH FANG!"
Narun watched the oncoming storm until it was halfway towards him before he made his move. Holding his hands out in front of him as if to brace himself for the oncoming attack, he let his power surge and flow freely for the first time since the fusion had occurred. A ball of fire the size of a Big Bang Attack appeared before his outstretched hands, burning hot enough that the stone around Narun began to soften and melt.
Just before the Flash Fang spell could overwhelm him, he bellowed, "Brilliant Flame KAMEHAMEHA!" The ball of fire erupted in a similar fashion to Sting and Rogue's attack, except that it was far, far more powerful than their unison raid. It swept aside their attack like a stiff breeze before a hurricane, then continued on to engulf them in a raging inferno of dragon fire and etherion.
Just before the attack struck them, Sting and Rogue could have sworn that they saw a flash of golden hair and scales. Then there was nothing but heat, pain, and then darkness.
The explosion was so intense, it shook the coliseum to its foundations. People all over Crocus could feel the violent tremors rumbling through the ground. The lachryma screens were overwhelmed by the energy spikes to the point where they completely cut out for a few seconds.
"Whoa, momma!" Chapati exclaimed as everyone in the stands tensed nervously. The attacks had happened so quickly that they had missed the final outcome of the battle, and now everyone wanted to know- who was left standing after such a ferocious explosion. "I have never in my life seen something like this! The lachryma screens are down for the moment, but should be back up soon!"
As if on cue, the giant screens flared back to life, but at first all they would show was smoke and dust- nothing of the competitors could be seen. Then, at long last, debris cleared enough to see the competitors- two of them lying on the ground, the remnants of their clothing smoking and their exposed skin covered in burns.
Narun stood tall, proudly holding his thumb and forefinger above his head as the undeniable victor of the battle. A great, ringing laugh came from his throat as he raised both fists to the sky while the bell sounded and the judges proclaimed him the winner. "And with that, we've reached the top!" he crowed as he flew up and out of the hole.
The crowd was going ballistic, some with outrage over Sabertooth's loss, but most of the spectators were cheering the fused fighter on, congratulating him on his victory. Smiling, Narun gave them all a wave of acknowledgement before floating down to land among his guild mates.
As soon as he touched down on the stone, he pulled off the ring from his finger, and a bright glow hid him from view. When it faded away, there stood Natsu and Gorun, both smiling hugely at their friends.
"That was totally awesome!" Natsu laughed. "We gotta do it again sometime!"
"I agree," Gorun laughed as he clapped a hand on his friend's shoulder. "But you know what's even more awesome?" He asked the question as he gestured at the scoreboard with his thumb.
Final Score of the Grand Magic Games Day 4
Fairy Tail: 45 pts.
Sabertooth: 44 pts.
Mermaid Heel: 40 pts.
Lamia Scale: 35 pts.
Blue Pegasus: 30 pts.
Quatro Kerberos: 15 pts.
"We're number one again!" Lucy cheered as she gave Natsu a big hug. "You guys did it!"
"We're not quite there yet," Gorun started to say, but he was cut off by Kinana grabbing him firmly by the head and kissing him silent, not caring that several of the guild members were telling them off.
When she pulled back, she grinned through her reddened face and said, "Let's just enjoy this win. You and Natsu did great today- I'm really proud of you."
"I must agree," Makarov said with a large smile directed at the two young men. As they disengaged from their hugs, the guild master added, "We're one step closer to winning this thing, thanks to you two. Tomorrow's a day of rest, then we're taking home the thirty million jewel!"
"That's not why we're here!" most of the guild shouted at the old man, exasperated.
Gorun ignored the old man, instead waving over to Yukino, who as usual, was hanging back from the main group, still feeling a little out of place. Slowly, the girl crossed over to where Gorun and Kinana were standing, a small smile on her lips as she looked at Natsu and the Saiyan youth with new respect. "That was amazing," she said. "I never thought… Sting and Rogue are…"
"They're just the first to go down under our fist," Gorun grinned a trifle darkly. "We'll show them what a real guild looks like- we take care of each other."
"For so long, I thought that they were right," she breathed. "Even after you stormed the guild… I thought for certain you'd lose to them. They've… They never lose."
"They did today," Kinana told her firmly. "Anyone that makes an enemy of Fairy Tail because of things like what happened to you will always lose out in the end."
"I…" Yukino held up her trembling hands to her mouth, overcome with emotion. "You really did it. Thank you." Kinana and the young man drew her into an embrace, smiling at her and each other as they did.
While several of the members continued to argue with Makarov, Mavis strolled up to the two victors with a large smile on her innocent face. "Congratulations on your victory," she told them. "I must admit that I am curious, though. How did you pull off that fusion thing? It felt similar to a unison raid, but then it didn't. What was that?"
Gorun smiled as he pulled away from his comrades, though he did keep an arm around Kinana while the first master eyed him curiously. "It's a technique that a few of my family members used back in the day," he said evasively. "Not many people can do it without help, which is why I had Natsu wearing that ring. Speaking of…" He turned to his partner and held out his hand, saying, "All right Natsu, give it back."
"But I wanna-"
"No."
"Fine… don't share," Natsu grumbled.
"Ooh, I didn't know you had proposed!" Happy giggled as Natsu handed the item in question back to his comrade so that he could pocket it. "I guess con-"
"One more word, and you'll be harder to find than Igneel," Gorun said threateningly to the blue exceed. Happy let out a yelp and dove behind Natsu for protection. Glaring at the tomcat, Gorun added, "I thought we discussed this the other night?"
"Aye sir," Happy nodded timidly, clearly afraid of another trip into the stratosphere.
"Good," Gorun smiled brightly. "Glad that's settled."
"Hey, no need to be fightin' right now!" Natsu laughed. "We're gonna be back on top in no time!"
"No fighting, huh?" Gorun said with a devilish smirk towards his girlfriend. Turning back to Natsu, he said, "Well, Gray thinks he coulda done it in half the time you did."
"WHAT?!" Natsu screamed, immediately angry. "I'm gonna roast that ice princess!" So saying, he dashed off, leaving Lucy shaking her head at his antics.
"He's so easy," Gorun snickered.
"That was mean," Kinana said with a tone of reprimand in her voice. However, even she couldn't keep the grin off her face that was fighting to break through. Everyone's spirits were high, and it was time to celebrate!
"I'm starting to regret being the go-between guy," Gorun muttered as he gazed down at the figure in a black cloak that he and Jellal were tracking. A scan of their energy signature confirmed that this was the same person that had evaded Gorun on day three- they had that dark energy taint holding onto them like a parasite. However, now that he was closer to, something about their power seemed vaguely familiar, but he couldn't quite place it.
He was tracking the person from the rooftops while Jellal maintained a safe distance behind them on the ground. The time was nearly midnight. "I should be with my girlfriend right now, having a party with my guild."
"You took an extra payment from Urtear, and this was the condition that you agreed to," Jellal replied neutrally. "What exactly did you two agree on anyway?"
"That's private," Gorun muttered. "And not what we need to be focusing on right now."
"I'm not the one that was complaining," Jellal chuckled. "Though I do have to admit, it is refreshing to get to work with someone outside of our usual circle."
"Hey!" Meredy exclaimed. "What's that supposed to mean?!"
"Nothing, Meredy," Urtear scolded her adopted child. "I actually agree with Jellal. Our line of work gives very little time to socialize. But right now is not the time for that- are you still on them?"
"Yeah," Gorun answered. "If they take a right up ahead, they'll end up backed against a balcony overlooking the sea, which would be the best place for us to set up an ambush."
"We're not ambushing them," Jellal argued.
"No, we're just following them to surprise them with a confrontation so we can find out their intentions," Gorun huffed. "Oh wait, that sounds like a textbook ambush to me. Also, they're turning right."
"We can argue the semantics later," Urtear interjected, cutting off any response that Jellal might make. "Just don't let them get away!"
"I know," Jellal replied. "Gorun, get into position."
"Moving in three…" Gorun murmured, placing his fingers against his forehead as the cloaked figure walked up a set of stairs that led to the balcony. "Two…" Jellal rounded the corner and began to jog up the stairs in pursuit. The figure paused, seeming to realize that they had taken a wrong turn or something of the sort.
"One." Gorun vanished from the rooftop, appearing on top of the balcony railing right in front of the cloaked figure, startling them into emitting a squawk of alarm. And now that he had heard their voice and could see some of their profile from the front, Gorun realized that they had mistook the person's gender- this was a woman.
"Hold it right there," he said in a stern, though not necessarily harsh, voice. "Take off the hood. I want to see your face."
The figure hesitated, backing away from Gorun, only to run into Jellal, who had removed his face disguise. "Reveal your identity," he commanded. "I've already revealed mine."
The woman slumped, a heavy sigh escaping her as she reached up to pull back her dark hood. When she did, Jellal recoiled a step and Gorun nearly fell off the balcony in shock.
"No way…" Jellal whispered hoarsely.
"What the hell is going on?!" Gorun demanded, eyes wide as they gazed upon a blond young woman, tears running down her face as she looked pitifully at the two of them.
"Please…" Lucy Heartfelia begged. "I need your help."
Saiki: I suppose one might chalk up what happened to you as a case of textbook karma.
Mataras: I have done literally nothing wrong.
Saiki: You kidnap me here, your apartment floods. Sometimes even psychics can let Mother Nature get even for us.
Mataras: I can still take back all the coffee jellies we agreed on.
Saiki: What a pain... Fine, I'll play along.
Mataras: Top man.
Saiki: Care to explain those Metamo-Rings?
Mataras: They're an item that originates in the video game, Dragon Ball Fusions, but I decided to make them a part of this storyline since it seems like something Bulma would eventually introduce to the Time Patrol if it were an actual series instead of two separate games.
Saiki: Did you stick to the rules of the game when you used those in your story?
Mataras: As far as I know, the only change I made was that the fusion ends up with Metamoran clothing, unlike in the game, where the result is more of a Potara clothes-mix. I did, however, make the sash out of Natsu's scarf, though I did change it to blue.
Saiki: Ah. And the artwork?
Mataras: Done by my wife and myself. I'm only leaving up the image until December begins, after which it'll go back to the 'official' cover for this story. I might make an instagram so that people can still see it after the fact, as well as any other art projects I will be working on...
Saiki: Are we done?
Mataras: Almost, and that's one coffee jelly deducted from this month's salary.
Saiki: ...
Mataras: Since my apartment was flooded, I haven't been able to record for my Fire Sword Audio Series this week. I should be getting back to that this weekend, for anyone that is interested.
Saiki: Finally, we're at the end of this segment.
Mataras: Wanna try that again, or do I have to summon Nendo?
Saiki: Next time on Saiyan Tail- Time Patroller
Mataras: Coming the first week of December! (Provided my apartment doesn't flood again)
Next time on Saiyan Tail...
"So should Lucy not have come back to warn us?" Gajeel demanded roughly, surprising everyone. It was the first time they'd heard him refer to the blond girl by her name, but he ignored their stares in favor of glaring at Gorun. "And if you're so against messing with timelines, why the hell did you think it would be okay to come here, huh?"
"Gajeel, hold on," Wendy began, but Gorun held up a hand for her to be silent.
"Unfortunately, he's absolutely right," the boy said heavily. "The Time Patrol was founded by the Supreme Kai of Time after one of my ancestors changed something in the past and created an entirely new timeline as a result. That's why the organization exists- to prevent things like this. Whether because Lucy has come back, or because I came here, or a combination thereof, we are now living in a parallel timeline. The havoc that could cause to the space-time continuum is immeasurable."
"Wait, what are you saying?" Jellal queried as Gorun began to back away from them.
"I'm saying that I've made an awful mistake," the boy said quietly, his eyes falling away from theirs'. "I… don't belong here. I never did."