Ch. 11 Thunder Palace
As the battle ensued, yellow beams fired around a small portion of Magnolia. Evergreen continued to take the initiative while Erza made it her goal to try and not get hit. Erza requiped two long, steel swords. One in each hand. Evergreen immediately dodged Erza's swift strikes, but the smoke tower they had passed sliced in three. Both landed on opposite buildings across from each other. "We've got a score to settle," said Evergreen.
"Saves me the trouble of hunting you down, I suppose," Erza replied. She quickly rushed forward at Evergreen. "The sooner I defeat you, the sooner the others will be turned back!"
"My, aren't you confident," Evergreen raised her glasses as her eyes glowed a mystifying yellow. Erza, however, kept only her right eye open as she continued her charge.
"That won't work!" She lashed out her right sword while Evergreen jumped backwards to evade it.
"So that heinous, artificial eye actually worked in your favor?" Evergreen asked. "Then let's see how you like my fairy machine gun." She crossed her arms and summoned forth a bombardment of missiles at Erza. "LEPRECHAUN!" As the storm of beams fired, the sound of impact was like gold coins dropping. Fortunately, Erza managed to repel back the shower by swinging her sword at the oncoming fire. As Erza came close, Evergreen jumped back in the air. "Try again," she taunted. She continued to fire off more from her hand. Erza just kept on coming.
"Coward!" Erza yelled. Roof after roof, Evergreen repeatedly fired her missiles. Erza chased after her and reflected back all her attacks.
"You're quite adept at reflecting my thorns, aren't you?" Evergreen considered. "But I'm just getting started. I wonder…can you handle twice as many?" With a sweep of her fan, Evergreen brought out a heavy rain of yellow needles on Erza. With each swing, Erza tried with all her speed to slash away the rain. The heavy fire began to be too much; parts of her clothes started to become scratched and torn. Evergreen laughed as she started to witness the downfall of Titania. "Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! From this day forth, I shall be known as Titania; for I am the true Fairy Queen!" Erza wasn't going to go down without a fight. As she leapt forward, she requiped away her shoes and socks and replaced them with two more swords in between her toes! With four swords, she now hacked away twice as many missiles than she did before.
"WHAT!?" Evergreen cried. Erza climbed through the rapid fire until she was within range. She kicked her swords straight at Evergreen and pinned her sleeves at a nearby chimney tower. She dangled as her body was a few feet from the ground. Erza now made her way in front of Evergreen.
"Personal character aside," Erza stated, "You're still a member of Fairy Tail. The same as anybody else. So, if you want to call yourself Titania, then feel free. I don't even know who gave me that name in the first place." Evergreen felt ridiculed by Erza who was willing to throw away her title. "If you cease this nonsense and turn the girls back to normal, then I promise I will not harm you." Evergreen gave a slight chuckle.
"You're being a bit naïve, aren't you? I'll have you know my stone eyes grant me another ability as well." Erza walked forward. "Remote Control." Erza stopped. "Drop to your knees and bow before me! If you refuse, then I'll use my powers to topple your precious little statues and shatter them!" Erza was shocked. The threat of killing off the girls automatically froze her. Her body began to glow and her outfit had now changed. The light encased her for a short time. When the light subsided, Evergreen lost her confident smile with a dumbfounded one instead. Right in front of her was an armored Erza with a steel breast-plate, iron gauntlets, an iron skirt, and large white wings coming out of her back. In each hand she held much longer iron swords with wings at the hilt. These were not her only swords. Dozens of swords surrounded Evergreen in every angle. It wouldn't be cliché to say she was an angel in armor.
"I'm impressed Evergreen," Erza stated, "I never thought you were the kind to sacrifice her life for her ideals. If they must be shattered, then I have no other choice but to collect your soul as retribution for their demise." The swords all pointed directly at her. They were ready to fire at her command. Did Evergreen wince? Did she surrender?
"KYAAAAAAAAAAAA!" she did.
{Bam!}
Erza's fist made contact with Evergreen's face. "If you're going to bluff, then do it right," suggested Erza.
"Alright, you win," Evergreen muffled.
Fairy Tail
The stone around Lucy disappeared as she returned to normal. The same happened to all the girls. They all felt dazed.
"My, what happened to us?" Juvia asked.
"I can't remember," Levy answered. The guys walked over to the stage; now relieved that the girls were safe.
"Welcome back, ladies," Rai greeted.
"They're all back to normal!" Natsu cheered.
"LUCY!" {Ploof} Happy flew directly into Lucy's chest as he cried with tears of joy.
"Uh, Happy?" Lucy was glad, but not quite fond of the greeting.
[Erza vs. Evergreen]
[Winner: Erza]
Makarov smiled at the odds how everyone was no longer under Laxus's control. "Well Laxus, looks like you're all out of hostages, boy!" he said. "Can't continue with your game now, can you?"
Laxus gritted his teeth as the anger took a hold on him. His eyes were wide open with rage and his veins bulged out of his forehead. "You failed me!" Laxus punched the support beam of the building. "I put my faith in you Evergreen, and this is how you return the favor? I come to find out you're weaker than Erza? Damn!"
"Titania is stronger than you think," Freed appeared behind Laxus. "Bickslow and I should have gone after her, instead."
"…Why are you here when you should be fighting?" Laxus asked.
"Because…the game is as good as over," Freed pointed out. "Without hostages, we can no longer force The Master's hand." Laxus glared over at Freed. A bolt of lightning crossed past Freed as he folded his arms from the attack. "What are you doing?" Laxus's headphones gave off sparks.
"This ain't over. If you don't want to follow me, then you can get lost. There's no place for weaklings in my Fairy Tail."
Fairy Tail
"He called it The Battle of Fairy Tail?" Lucy asked.
"Laxus outdid himself this time," Cana added.
"At any rate, it's over now," Makarov declared, "I've played along with his foolish game because your lives were in danger. But, I won't indulge him anymore."
"This guy has a real sick sense of humor," said Rai.
"Master," Mirajane spoke, "We can't let him get away with hurting our friends."
"Yeah, they're right!" Bisca shouted, "If we don't teach Laxus a lesson, then he'll never learn!"
"Oh don't worry," Makarov pointed out, "I'll give that boy a punishment he'll never forget. He should no better. You can mess with me, but you can't mess with my guild."
"Which is why I'm sticking to the 'lightning rod up the ass' promise I made," Rai warned. The girls stood there…confused.
"Did he just say what I think he said?" asked Lucy {…}.
"Aye! He did say that to him," Happy responded.
"Hey now, hold on a sec," Natsu raised his hand in protest. "I don't know about taking hostages or lightning rods, but I don't see any harm in finding out who's the strongest. I think we should keep the battle going." Everyone was dumbfounded at Natsu's statement. "In the end, I bet he was trying to have a little fun for the festival." He smiled. "Give him a break."
I don't know what I'm going to do with you, Natsu, Makarov thought.
"So in other words," Natsu cheered, "what are we waiting for? We got enough people here! Let's start brawling! Come on, Round Two, right now!"
"WHAT!" Bisca, Levy, and Lucy shrieked.
"DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT, YOU NINCOMPOOP!" Makarov yelled.
"Aw, come on," Natsu began punching the air. Rai just stared at him. "I gotta do something about this pent up energy I've got!"
"Give it a rest," Lucy sighed, "You're always looking for new excuses to pick a fight."
"If you need to blow off steam that bad, I'm always ready to rumble," Cana offered.
"Don't encourage him, girl," Bisca disagreed.
"You know," Happy raised his paw, "I don't think it's nice to beat up on girls. Especially when they're your friends."
"A girl, a guy, a friend, an enemy, a reaper; who cares," Natsu shrugged.
"Hey!" Happy yelled out, "Keep this up and I'm gonna fight ya!" Natsu started to chase after Lucy past the other girls.
"Come on, Lucy!" Natsu shouted, "Let's see what you're made of!"
"No way!" Lucy cried," NOOO!" Juvia and Gajeel stood away from the group and watched from the side. Rai walked in beside Gajeel.
"Hey man, why the long face?" Rai asked.
"It's nothing" Gajeel replied.
"This guild is rather fun, isn't it?" Juvia asked.
"I like it," Rai responded, "It has a kind of homey feeling to it."
"It ain't boring, at least," said Gajeel. The red letterings on the wall started to activate and float into the air. They all swarmed into the middle of the guild hall.
"Huh?" Mirajane was the first to notice, "What's going on?"
"That's weird," Natsu added.
"I bet he's up to something else," followed Cana, "You're going to have to fight us this time." The scriptures bonded to together until they formed one massive, red skull.
"Now that's a big ego," said Rai.
"Can you hear me, old man?" Laxus's voice came out of the figure. "The rest of you better listen up too."
"What do you want?" Natsu asked.
"Looks like one of the rules has gone out the window," announced Laxus. "That's fine. I'll just add a new one. In other words, since I would hate to end The Battle of Fairy Tail early, I've decided to activate the Thunder Palace."
"Are you out of your mind, Laxus!?" Makarov yelled out.
"You've got an hour and ten minutes," Laxus informed, "You think you can win? Then you better get moving! Unless you're ready to hand the guild over to me now, Master." Makarov started to grow furious. "HAHAHAHA!" The scriptures separated.
"THIS GAME HAS GONE ON FOR LONG ENOUGH, BOY! I WON'T LET YOU DRAG INNOCENT PEOPLE INTO THIS!" In a shock, Makarov cringed onto his chest. He fell forward to the floor.
"Master, no!" Cana cried.
"Is he hurt?" Natsu was worried.
"What's going on?" Lucy panicked. Rai rushed over to Makarov.
"He might be having a heart attack," Rai deduced. "We need a doctor, now!"
"I'll go get his medicine!" Mirajane ran for the infirmary.
"Master, can you hear us?" Bisca kneeled over to try and help him.
"Hang in there, Master," Levy cried, "It will be okay."
"What'd he mean by Thunder Palace?" Natsu asked. Makarov continued to cringe in pain on the floor. Natsu became more worried. "Come on, Gramps."
"Hey," Mirajane ran back with a white jar in her arms. She pointed out the window. "Look outside, you guys!"
"First things first, we gotta get Grandpa checked in," Rai stated.
"Right," Bisca agreed. Levy and Bisca placed Makarov on Rai's back while Lucy took his scythe.
"I'll meet you guys outside in a sec." Rai rushed off toward the infirmary. After Makarov was being taken care of, Rai made a dash for the second story balcony and had just ran into the others. Just like them, he saw the large floating orbs that surrounded the entire town of Magnolia. Based on appearance, they looked to be giant transparent, yellow spheres with a lightning bolt in the center. Around them were grey rings with sharp spikes.
"What in the heck are those?" Natsu asked.
"They look like Lightning Lacrima to me," Levy stared up.
"That means Laxus did this," said Cana.
Magnolia
The giant orbs were not undetectable because almost everyone in town started to look up and see them flying above. They wondered whether it was something that Fairy Tail had come up with for the Harvest Festival or not.
"What are those?"
"Beats me."
"Probably something crazy those Fairy Tail goons cooked up for the festival."
"If you ask me, they've done too much already."
"Oh! I bet they're fireworks for the parade!
"Yeah! You're probably right. They must be planning something big this year!"
Fairy Tail
"They're floating all over the town," said Lucy.
"So, does anyone know what those round things are for?" Rai asked as he overlooked the many.
"They may not look that dangerous," Cana answered Rai, "but they're overflowing with Lightning Magic. This could get ugly. Let's just hope he doesn't set them off."
"Could this be the Thunder Palace he was referring to?" Juvia asked.
"Yes," Cana replied, "and it's surrounding Magnolia." Lucy pointed over to the spheres.
"If those things are full of lightning, what will happen if he activates them?" Lucy asked.
"...Everything within it will be burn to a crisp," Cana answered. Rai pictured a storm of lightning and electricity flooding all over the town. The destruction of homes and panic of people being killed on every street and corner filled his mind. The ending result can most likely be an explosion that would wipe Magnolia off the map.
"You gotta be shitting me," Rai shocked at the news. Everyone else was just as shocked.
"I won't let that happen!" Bisca cried out. "Requip: Sniper Rifle!" In her arms, she held a large, brown rifle attached with a black scope lens on top. She lowered herself and readied a shot right at one of the spheres. Bisca looked through the lens to see her magic rings act as a precision mechanism. "Target Lock On: Stinger Shot!" The shot fired out from the barrel and flew straight at the target. The sphere began to glow green and exploded. The pieces fell to earth. There was now one less orb in the sky. Bystanders watched nearby as they witnessed the orb being destroyed.
"Oh, maybe they're not fireworks after all."
"It looks like they're trying to blow them up."
"Nice shot!" Lucy cheered.
"Awesome!" Natsu agreed.
"Lucky we got a sniper," Cana looked at the sky. Bisca held up her gun.
"Now all I gotta do is take out the rest-..." Sparks enveloped Bisca. She dropped her weapon as the electricity increased in power. Everyone watched as Bisca screamed from her electrocution. "KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
"Bisca!" Natsu yelled out.
"What happened!?" Happy asked.
Magnolia
The people nearby could hear the cries coming from Fairy Tail.
"I don't like this."
"My thoughts exactly."
"Was that a scream?"
"I don't wanna stick around to find out!"
Fairy Tail
The electricity reached full power as Bisca's body couldn't take any more damage. "KYAAAAAAAAAAA!" She fell to the ground unconscious.
"Bisca!" Levy ran over to help. "Come on, Bisca; get up!" Levy tried her best to wake her up. Bisca was sizzld with burn marks over her skin and clothes.
"I don't get it?" Rai asked, "How did she get zapped when she was down here?"
"It must be Body Link Magic," Cana analyzed
"Huh, what's that?" Lucy asked.
"It's a type of spell cast on the Lacrima. If you destroy one of them, then the magic energy used in your attack will be reflected back at you. In other words…"
"It's an eye for an eye," Rai finished.
"What should we do?" Levy cried, "Those things could wipe out the whole town!"
"We gotta take down Laxus; fast!" Cana stated.
"Okay," Lucy agreed. "In the meantime, I'll help the citizens evacuate!" She quickly turned and threw Rai his scythe. "We're gonna need all the help we can get."
"But Lucy-!" Rai tried to explain, but she ran out of the balcony.
"I'm coming with you!" Happy chased after Lucy.
"Bickslow and Freed are still out there," Cana shouted. "Be careful you two!" Natsu and Cana stared for a second, and then she took off. Juvia quickly followed behind. Natsu and Gajeel growled at the mess that was taking place. Rai stood with determination to find a way to stop the destruction of Magnolia. The people watched from below at the spheres that continued to float above.
"Those things sure are weird."
"You don't thing those are weapons, do you?"
"There must be hundreds of them!"
"I've got a bad feeling that Fairy Tail is about to cause our town some major trouble."
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Laxus laughed at his newfound attempt of the guild takeover. "How do you like that, you old geezer? Now everyone in the whole stinking town is my hostage!" Freed was unpleased that Laxus would pull such an insidious move as this.
Fairy Tail
"This was all fun and games at first," Natsu stated, "but now you've crossed the line!" Natsu went rushing forward over the balcony and onto the roof. As he jumped, his face slammed into the barrier.
"Natsu!" Levy cried. Natsu repeated to slam his forehead, hoping to break free.
"I think you're taking this too far," Freed declared. Laxus only smiled.
"Too far, huh?" he asked.
Fairy Tail
"You coward!" Natsu yelled out.
"I'll decide how far is too far," said Laxus.
Fairy Tail
"If you wanna be master so bad, then why don't you come her and fight Gramps for it yourself!?" Natsu rammed his forehead multiple times.
"THIS IS A FIGHT TO THE BITTER END!" Laxus announced. "AND THAT MEANS IT WON'T BE OVER UNTIL ONE SIDE IS WIPED OUT!"
Fairy Tail
"When I get out of here, you're gonna pay for this!" Natsu shouted. He rammed his forehead again.
"Stop!" commanded Levy, "Just calm down!" Natsu started to use his fists to punch the invisible wall.
"I can't calm down!"
"That's not gonna work, Natsu!," Rai yelled to him. "We already tried this before. Grandpa said the enchantment won't let us out of here."
"This sucks! Stupid Invisible walls are everywhere!" Natsu began to kick the barrier.
"Wait!" Levy responded, "This is an enchantment?"
"Yeah, but we've been having a problem with this for a while now," Gajeel laid back against the wall.
"Well," Levy explained, "Since it's a kind of Script Magic, I think I might be able to break the spell!"
"Oh yeah?" Gajeel was surprised.
"Can you do that?" Natsu turned to Levy. "Really?"
"Of course," Levy smiled. "And when I do, you guys will be free to take down Laxus."
"That's what I like to hear!" Rai gave the thumbs up.
Inside the infirmary, Makarov and Bisca were resting and sleeping soundly. In the hallway of the guild, Levy sat on the floor, busy trying to decipher the enchantment with many books all around her. With a quall in her hand, she was hard at work. Rai and Gajeel kneeled nearby to see how she was pulling it off. "Hmm, if I break down the loge letter's sequence data into component blocks, and then pen point the terms used to make up the rules, I get L-O-S-U. Okay, if I convert that into guild grammar…"
"Wow, you're something else," Gajeel complimented. "We speak the same language, but I don't have a clue what you're saying."
"Kinda reminds me of my first semester in college," Rai added.
"Wait!" Levy shouted. "Hold on!" Rai and Gajeel froze. "The L and Fs are nothing but bluffs! That means the key code must be R!"
"Uh, sure thing," Gajeel just went along with it. Rai nodded in agreement (even though he didn't know himself).
"Don't worry, I'm almost there," said Levy. "I promise I'll get you guys out of here."
"It's no big deal to me," said Gajeel.
"Well, it is to me," Levy responded. "You have to stop Laxus."
"Don't worry, we've got this," Rai confirmed.
"And what can you do?" Gajeel asked.
"Rai's a Celestial Reaper," Levy informed. "He keeps the balance of other worlds, even if he's not from this one. Rai was brave enough to stand up against Laxus; that's why I have faith in him as well."
"Sorry for the late introductions," Rai offered a hand to shake. Gajeel just turned the other way.
"Whatever," he said. "I still don't see how that's supposed to help." Rai put his hand away.
"Believe me; I've been known to pull off a miracle sometimes," Rai explained. "Besides, I've grown to like this guild. It'd be a shame if your friends lose a nice place like this. Levy and the others aren't the only ones who think it's important." They all looked over to the entryway where Natsu continued to head-butt the invisible wall.
"Let me out," Natsu growled under his voice.
"We can still win," Freed spoke with Laxus. "We don't need hostages. Stop this."
"…What are you still doing here?" Laxus asked. "Shouldn't you be out there, hunting fairies with Bickslow? The old man is counting on Erza, so I'll take care of her…and Mystogan too. In the meantime, you deal with Cana and that Phantom girl. I don't need either of them in my Fairy Tail. Exterminate them." Freed was shocked.
"Even if they're our enemies now, we're still in the same-!"
"WHEN I GIVE YOU AN ORDER, YOU HAD BETTER DO WHAT I SAY!" Electricity sparked from Laxus's headphones. Freed stood there, paralyzed by fear. Without question, he followed his orders.
"We've chosen our path, haven't we? There's no turning back at this point. As you wish, I'll follow you. No matter where that road may take me. If you want me to exterminate, then so I shall. But, their blood is on your hands." Freed began to walk out. Laxus smirked.
"Like you said; there's no turning back for us now. It's time for seizing victory, not wallowing in remorse...Freed: The Dark."
Magnolia
Erza had reached her destination. Traveling around town for some time had led her to what she believed it to be Laxus's secret hideout. "According to what Evergreen said, Laxus should be inside this building." As she marched in through the front, she drew open the sliding door and shouted, "I HAVE YOU, NOW!" She paused in terror. Erza had just walked into the Men's Public Bath. Almost all the guys did their best to use buckets and towels in hiding their 'swords'.
"C-Can I help you?"
"P-Please don't look, ok?"
"This bath is men only, you know!"
"~It's fine if you want to stay~."
"Laxus, where are you!" Erza continued to search the bathhouse. So far, she had only seen grown men or elders naked and trying to wash themselves. She started to tremble; trying to keep her composer, even in front of naked children. Erza couldn't take it anymore. She dropped to her knees. "She…she played me for a fool," Erza groveled. In her mind, she could imagine Evergreen laughing at the trick she played.
Elsewhere…
"Damn it!" Cana shouted. "I don't know where else to look." She and Juvia were running down the streets in search of Laxus or any other members of the Thunder Legion.
"Is there a place in town where he has some sentimental attachment?" Juvia asked.
"Well, we've known each other for a long time. But, with the way he's been acting lately I have no clue what he's thinking."
Elsewhere…again…
"Why don't we just warn everybody over the guild's loudspeaker?" Happy asked. While he walked on the wall's handle beam, Lucy walked right beside him.
"There's an enchantment cast on it that will only allow the master to use it if he chooses to surrender the guild to Laxus," Lucy answered. "They worked really hard to stab their friends in the back." Lucy and Happy looked down on the unsuspecting townspeople. "Anyway, we just have to warn the people about this mess on our own."
"Lucy," Happy said, ""I'm starting to think it's best if they didn't know."
"What do you mean?"
"There are tons of people from other towns here for the Harvest Festival. In other words, the town's jam-packed and everybody's all worked up. "
"Of course they're worked up! They're worried about those weird things floating in the sky!"
"That's what I'm saying! And they'll be even more worried if they find out that those things are filled with Lightning Magic! They all might panic and hurt each other!"
"Then what should we do?" Lucy started to ponder up a sort of solution. "Think Lucy."
"Yeah!
"Think Lucy!"
"While you still can!" Three tikkis appeared beside her.
"Get out of the way, Lucy!" Happy dived in. The five tikkis abruptly fired green lazers from above. Happy quickly flew from behind and grabbed onto Lucy. They started to soar high onto the tops of nearby buildings.
"WHAT ARE THOSE THINGS!?" Lucy screamed. Happy safely dropped Lucy on a grey rooftop.
"They're Bickslow's minions!" Happy cried.
"Yo!" Bickslow stood on a flagpole above a tall building that read: TOY WORLD. "You must be the newbie everyone's been talking about."
"Is that so?" Lucy shouted back sarcastically. "You wanna tell me what they've been saying because I've been dying to know."
"Just that you're into reapers, playing dress-up, and bossing people around!" Bickslow stated.
"GEEZ! YOU MAKE ME SOUND LIKE A TOTAL PERVERT!"Lucy shrieked.
"Haha, nice cheerleading technique back there." The tikkis joined in.
"A cheerleader!"
"Go Team!"
"Defense!" Lucy felt somewhat dirty in her outfit.
"No, I just…" She tried to cover herself.
"Alright, babies," he proclaimed, "Time to tear it up!" The tikkis fired off the raining lazers from before. Happy and Lucy ran from the barrage of beams and rolled across the roof.
"Too bad," Bickslow apologized, "Normally, I'd go easy on you since you're still a newbie. But this here's a war and losing is simply not an option for us!"
"You think The Master is gonna let you get away with this then you've got another thing coming, pal!" Lucy yelled back.
"The Master can suck it for all I care! By the time this is over, Laxus will be the new master of Fairy Tail!" Two beams fired at Lucy. She quickly jumped back.
"You flying things are really annoying!" Lucy pulled out one of her gold zodiac keys. As it spun, she grabbed it and called forth her ally. "Open; Gate of the Archer: Sagittarius!" As the spell chimed, yellow smoke filled up the area.
"Horse Power!" From the smoke appeared a man with black hair, but wore a costume that looked like a horse. The suit covered his arms down to his wrists that allowed his cufflings to look like hooves. His head popped out from the neck of an actual horse head prop. However, he managed to wear a fancy green vest with a brown belt and a quiver full of arrows. In his right hand was a white bow. Surprising enough, all this gear was worn over the horse suit. "Howdy do, my lady! You called?"
"Oooo," Bickslow was impressed, "A Celestial Wizard. So your spirits like to wear costumes too?"
"That's real funny!" Lucy shouted comedicly. She pointed to her spirit's targets. "Aim for those stupid flying things, got it?" Sagittarius took aim with his bow and arrow.
"Righty-oh my lady; as you wish!" he replied. With each arrow, he pierced each clean shot through all five tikkis. Bickslow sounded upset that he started to lose his minions.
"My poor babies!" he cried. "You've been frozen, fried, and now you've been blown to pieces!"
"Alright!" Happy and Lucy cheered.
"And to you fine fiends, I say cheerio!" Sagittarius saluted.
"No, my babies," Bickslow sobbed. All the tikkis were shattered and their pieces drifted down from the sky.
"You wanna surrender?" Lucy offered, "Now's your chance!"
"Take it or leave it!" Happy jumped with joy.
"The choice is yours!" Sagittarius spoke gallantly.
"What am I gonna do, my poor babies!" He looked up with his tongue sticking out. "Syke!" A large, green, energy ray blasted directly into Lucy's spirit. The impact resulted in an explosion.
"Sagittarius, are you ok?" Lucy cried.
"Oh no!" Happy added. The spirit looked to be scorched up and bruised over his suit. He didn't look to have any strength left.
"That's it!" he spoke. "I'm afraid I'll have to high tail it back to the Spirit World. Tootleloo!" He vanished.
"What the heck?" Lucy didn't know what just happened.
"For me, this is more than just a toy shop!" Bickslow called out. "It's an armory!" In the air, five small dolls floated high above them. A pink cat, a blue blockhead, a brown bear, a purple grandma with an orange skirt, and a pointed nose Pinocchio with blue and green colors on his chest. All of them were giggling with glee.
"You're controlling the toys?" Lucy asked.
"Nah, they're just tools. You can break as many as you want. What I really control are souls."
"You're kidding me?"
"Bickslow's Seith Magic allows him to move souls between objects and use them to fight for him," Happy explained. Lucy pulled out her spirit keys.
"Only one thing to do," she said. In a quick zip, the bear swooped in and swiped her keys. "Hey, you jerk!" Happy went after the flying doll.
"I'll get them back for ya!" As Happy flew closer, Pinocchio drop-kicked him back to the ground. All the toys were now ricocheting around Lucy until she stumbled over. Bickslow was enjoying the scene.
"Too bad, little Miss Cheerleader," he smiled, "I'm afraid the game just went into sudden death." Inside his helmet, hissing green eyes were revealed in the shadows. "Don't worry, I promise I'll take extra good care of your soul." All the toys began to circle on another until their speed began to increase. "Baryon Formation!" Once ready, a super charged beam fired directly at Lucy.
"BUT I LIKE MY SOUL!" Lucy screamed.
"LUCY, RUN!" Happy yelled. The beam came crashing down on her.
KABOOM!
"What the-?" Happy was blasted away. Bickslow looked down at the massive crater he had made. However, he was shocked to see Lucy had survived. From the other side of the building, she was being carried by a mine with orange spiky hair and wearing a black tuxedo. His key feature was his thin-round glasses.
"It's strange isn't it?" he said, "For some reason, I have no problem travelling between our worlds without you having to summon me. That means the wall between humans and spirits is no more. Together, you and I have broken it down, and it's all thanks to the power of love." He helped Lucy get back on her feet.
"Power of love?" Lucy asked nervously. "Oh come on, don't joke around like that." Bickslow realized who this mysterious man was.
"I know you! You're Loke!" he called out. Loke flexed his wrists as he prepared for a tough battle ahead.
"So," Loke peered over to Bickslow, "the time has come to fulfill my promise, huh?"
"Thanks, Loke!" Lucy cheered.
"Well, what do you know," Bickslow smiled. "So, you were a Celestial Spirit. I've kept your secret safe all this time and this is the thanks I get?"
"But how did he know?" Lucy asked.
"Because he has the power to control souls, he's able to see them too!" Happy flew in close.
"So, now the spirit wants to join The Battle of Fairy Tail too?" Bickslow laughed. "Huh!" Loki didn't lose his cool. He only adjusted his coat.
"No," Loke stated. "I don't care about your battle, Laxus, or any of that nonsense. Listen up." Loki glared with seriousness in his eyes. "The only reason I'm here is to protect Lucy. I'm not gonna let you hurt her, understand?" Bickslow chuckled at his show of bravery.
"HAHAHAHA! Is that so? Oh, that's rich! You've never beat me before, you know. And, for the record, I've always gone easy on you little lion cub." Loki stood ready. "Let's give them one last beating for old time's sake, babies!" The dolls flew into the air, ready to pounce. Loke stopped Lucy from advancing.
"Stand back," He warned, "I'll handle this."
"Not gonna happen," Lucy snapped her whip to the ground and stretched it out with her arms. "Any decent Celestial Wizard treats her spirits as partners; not as shields." As Loki turned to her, he smiled. Lucy stared back in their combined efforts to fight as one team.
"~Lucy loves him~!" Happy grinned.
"I DO NOT!" Lucy cried back. The dolls fired their beams at the fighting trio. Everyone separated to avoid the strikes.
"I'll try to do something about those toys!" Loke yelled out. "Once he's open, you go take care of Bickslow!"
"Okay, let's do this!" responded Lucy.
"Aye!" Happy agreed. The dolls charged in at high speed for Loke.
"O Regulus…" Loke chanted, "Lend me your strength!" He bent his right arm and clenched his bicep with his left. A radiance of yellow light flowed out of Loke as he continued his focus. He readied to release his power as Leo: The Lion.
-To Be Continued-
Hey, sorry for the long wait but-WHO BROKE THE BULLETIN BOARD!
Happy: Natsu did it…again!
Man, do you know how long it took me to make this chapter!
Happy: You should see how mad Mira gets at Natsu for breaking the request board.
Natsu: Don't even joke about something like that! You don't know what happens when she loses her temper!
Come on, Ms. Sunshine? How bad can she be?
Natsu: Well, I would consider having every-single-bone in my body broken one-by-one pretty bad!
Happy: Oh…
Riiiiight.
Next Time: Advent of Satan
Happy: All rights reserved and materials used in this story belong to their rightful owners.
~Hey Mira, you wanna leave a review on the bulletin board~?
Natsu: No! Please Don't! I wanna live to see the next chapter!