Alright, time to post another one! This chapter will (sort of) start the Phantom Lord arc, as well as have Sora introducing himself to the guild. He might even see someone he knows… Anyway, onwards with the show!

Review responses

ahurtrojo1: Glad you like this! The Phantom Lord arc will start soon, and good to know that Erza apparently has another vote. Still considering a few others, but rest assured I am leaning towards her now. Also, don't worry. You aren't the first one to call him Star on accident, and still got the point cross anyway.

pokeheroaadyn: I agree, no growth is boring, and glad I made him crazy enough! That said, my next few chapters are already planned out, and unfortunately I did not write the Changeling episode. I honestly wasn't sure what to do with it, so I sort of settled for not doing it. That said, since this is Fanfic, I may simply change things so that it happens later in the series, when I actually have an idea of how I might do that. Hope you're alright with that.

"Man, that job was a blast!" Natsu walked down the path with arms behind his head as the others walked behind him.

"Not only was the client happy, but we found a potential new guild member!" Happy flew around like his namesake and looked at Sora, who was looking back at all of Erza's luggage.

Gray then turned to Sora. "Gotta admit, you were definitely way out of our expectations for when we took up the job. Not to mention that Clay fella."

Sora smiled at that. "Well if you guys had not been surprised by me, I WOULD have been surprised. Still, if Natsu hadn't been on the team, you guys might not have even noticed me, so I gotta hand him props for that."

"That's right! Our success is all thanks to me! What did you do, you stripper?!"

"What'd you call me you little ashtray?"

Before the two of them could get into their argument, Erza walked up and thrust their heads away. "Enough playing around." She then looked at Gray. "Put on some clothes."

Gray looked down in shock to see he was once again down to his boxers. "What the hell?!"

Lucy looked at them all with a small smile. "I may have originally wanted to do this request on my own, but considering what may have happened without the rest of you, I'll let it go this time."

"What do ya mean this time?" She looked at Natsu, who was smiling brightly. "We're a team, so as a team, we've got each other's backs. After all, we're Fairy Tail's strongest team!"

Lucy looked at the confident expressions on everyone's faces, before smiling brightly. "You got that right!" She then peeked back at Sora who was once again eyeing Erza's luggage. "Hey Sora, something the matter?"

He shook his head as he kept looking at the numerous cases stacked upon Erza's wagon. "No, nothing's wrong. It's just…" He turned to Erza quizzically. "What's with all the cases? It almost looks like you live like a nomad."

Erza blinked at him. "Of course not. They are filled with food and ingredients. I like to go prepared for if I should ever be lost and unable to find civilization. There's also Natsu's appetite to consider sometimes."

"… How long do you think you'll wind up lost?! And how bad do you think Natsu's appetite is?!"

The others just blinked at this, not actually having tried to ask Erza about her luggage before out of fear for the answer. Not a single one of them thought it might be food.

Sora just shook his head and lifted his hands in surrender. "You know what, never mind. I do not know what it is like in your head, so I will simply leave your decisions up to you. If it works for you, then it works."

Erza nodded at this and they all began walking again. "So, you guys are the strongest team? I thought you guys told me there were even stronger members?"

Lucy nodded at Sora's question. "Oh yeah, the words were first said by our friend Mirajane when Erza had Gray and Natsu join her for the mission that ultimately led to them taking down Lullaby. She thought that the three of them would be unstoppable and could take down anyone who got in our way." She then sweat-dropped as she remembered what happened after the mission. "But then everyone mentioned how there were way stronger members, and even Gray didn't buy into being called the strongest team at first."

"I see. Well, with the different types of magic you guys use, I'd guess you'd be pretty close to being unbeatable. Not a lot of people can prepare for fire, ice, blade, and spirit combinations. Not to mention the way you guys use your magic."

That got confident grins from the others as they made their way down the path, getting the attention of the locals. Sora looked around, noticing the kinds of looks they were getting. "Hey, do people always look at you all like this?" That got the others to look around, and soon they heard a bit of what people were saying.

"Are those Fairy Tail wizards?"

"They must not know yet…"

"I feel bad for them…"

Gray looked about in confusion. "This is unusual. Why is everyone looking at us like that?"

"I got a bad feeling about this…" Happy said in a not-him way.

"They're afraid…" Erza then spotted a shape ahead and stopped, getting the others to look as well.

Sora looked at the structure in the distance with confusion and worry. "Umm… Where about would you guys say your guild hall is?"

"… Right there… But… it doesn't look right…" They then hurried to where the building was and soon found themselves in front of it.

Sora wasn't sure what to expect when he first saw the guild hall, but seeing it look so trashed and busted was nowhere near what he had prepared for. Large metal columns stuck out like a demented pin cushion, making Sora very interested in what could have led to the building looking like it did now. The others were in a "slightly" worse state.

"What the…" Gray said in shock.

"What happened here?!" Erza spoke, a very serious look on her face.

"Wh-What the…?!" Lucy had a hand to her mouth in slight fear.

While Happy lay on Natsu's shoulder speechless, the fire mage looked at the scene in fury. "Our… Our Guild…!"

Sora could only look at the damage in thought. "What the hell could have happened?"

"Phantom…" The new voice brought their attention away from the hall and over to the speaker, a girl in a red dress with long white hair.

"Huh?" Lucy asked confused.

"What did you just say?" Gray asked curiously.

Natsu, not having turned at first, did so now, slowly and with a look of fury. "Did you say, Phantom?"

The girl didn't even look up. "It's frustrating to admit, but they got us good…" She then looked up, and was a little surprised to see Sora there. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize you were there at first."

Sora smiled softly at her. "It's no trouble, really. Considering what seems to have happened, I wouldn't have been surprised if you were depressed to the point of complete silence." He then held a hand to her. "I'm Sora. You?"

She took his hand softly. "I'm Mirajane, but everyone just calls me Mira." She then looked at the others. "Everyone is gathering in the first underground floor of the guild. I'll show you the way in." They all nodded and followed her in silence.

After a short while, they were walking down some stairs and arrived at what looked like a makeshift pub. Looking around, Sora saw many figures he didn't recognize, but most definitely noticed that their faces all held looks of either sorrow or depression, or in a few cases anger and frustration. They eventually made it to the bar, where Sora saw a short old man wearing an orange and blue outfit that made him think of a jester. "Yo! Welcome back!" And was apparently drunk off his ass. He was in the back of the group and Sora could still smell the alcohol in his breath.

"Huh?" Lucy looked surprised at his attitude, while Erza spoke confidently.

"We have just returned."

Natsu then stepped forward and demanded answers. "Gramps! How can you be so carefree?!"

The old man took another swig as they were talking and looked at Lucy. "How was it Lucy? Did the job go well?"

Lucy hesitantly replied. "Uhh, yeah…"

Erza then spoke up before any more was said. "Master! Do you understand the current situation?!"

Sora's eyes widened as he looked at Erza, then the apparent master, then back at Erza. 'Master? This little old fella who is drunk off his ass is the master?! Wow, even now they keep surprising me.'

"The guild's been demolished!" Natsu said angrily.

Mira stood to the side a little worriedly as the master laughed a little. "Now, now. Calm down. It's hardly worth fussing over." He then took another swig.

"W-What?!" Gray and Natsu exclaimed simultaneously as Sora observed the Master.

The Master then lowered his mug. "Phantom, huh? Is that the best those fools can do? Dunno what they're so happy about, attacking an empty guild like that…"

"Empty?" Erza asked confused.

Mira spoke up then. "They apparently attacked at night."

"Then no one was hurt? I guess that's one thing to be thankful for."

"There's no point in fretting about people who can only do sneak attacks! Forget about `em!"

Natsu smashed a hole in a nearby wall at the Master's drunken words. "I can't agree with that! I won't feel satisfied until we've destroyed them!"

"That's enough of that subject. We'll handle our job requests down here until things are fixed upstairs."

"Th-This is no time for work!"

"Natsu! That's enough out of you!" Their little commotion began to draw the attention of the rest of the present guild members. As the Master looked drunk angry at Natsu, his arm stretched out, much to Sora's surprise, only for said shock to turn to a deadpanned look as it spanked Lucy's butt.

"Why my butt?" Lucy said quietly.

Mira then pouted at the Master at his actions. "Don't make me angry, Master!"

The tiny master then retracted his arm and stood up cheerfully, before hopping down, much to Natsu's ire. "Gramps!"

"Just a sec. Nature calls…"

Sora watched the old man jog away to a bathroom, nodded, then looked back at the others. 'Yep, a crazy master for a crazy guild. Don't know what else I expected to see.'

Natsu looked down a little miffed. "How can Gramps be so calm about this?!"

"He isn't." Natsu and the rest looked at Sora, a serious look on his face. "How often does he drink to the point of actually being drunk like that? Because unless this happens at the drop of a hat, then he's drinking himself into a stupor to either keep himself from doing anything stupid, or to keep him from being too worried. I'm sure he has his reasons for not rising to the bait of the ones who did this."

"He's right Natsu." They then turned to Mira. "The master feels just as frustrated as you do. But the council forbids physical conflict between guilds."

"But they started it!" Natsu yells angrily.

"That isn't the issue."

Erza looked down in conviction as the others around her had their own looks of determination. "If that is what the master wants… then so be it."

Sora let out a long sigh as he looked about the room, until he saw someone he recognized. "What the… Loke? Is that you?"

The orange-haired mage in question, who was leaning against a wooden support, looked up as his name was called. As he recognized Sora, his face adopted a look of disbelief. "No way. Sora?!" He then got a light smile as he walked up to him. "Hey man, what are you doing out here?"

Sora smiled as he and Loke shared a fist-bump. "Haha, I was just about to ask you that. I didn't know you became a member of Fairy Tail!"

Everyone in the room who was paying attention looked at the two of them, surprised that a friend of Loke's that they didn't know was there. The people who had met Sora already were even more surprised, as evident when Gray spoke up. "Wait, Sora, how do you know Loke?"

The two grinned as Loke spoke for him. "Easy. You see these rings I use for my magic? Sora here is the one who fashioned them. Without them, I wouldn't be considered a mage. Best rings I've ever used, let me tell you."

Sora smirked at the praise. "Thanks man. Always happy to hear praise. Unless it comes too often."

Mira looked at Sora in surprise now, as did a few other members in the room as they slowly caught the attention of the rest of the guild. "Wait, you can make magic tools?"

Sora rubbed the back of his neck. "Not exactly. Just the crystals used as the catalysts, as well as the basic enchanting to make them work. I happen to be pretty good at shaping crystals of all sizes, even fully-sized statues if I have enough time. Even went freelance for a few years just wandering the country."

"Wow, you must be really good!" Seeing the smile on her face, Sora felt pretty good for distracting everyone for a little bit about what happened.

He nodded back at her. "People seem to think so. I've lost track of the number of offers I've gotten to stick around and have regular pay. But I had my reasons so I just kept turning them down."

"What kind of reasons? And don't just say wanderlust." Loke smirked at him, remembering those very words from when they met way back when.

"Well, for one thing, it was easier to practice without any prying eyes."

"Hmm?" Loke looked at him quizzically at that. "Practice what?"

Sora smirked at that and turned to the counter, getting behind it to the confusion of everyone but Team Natsu, who looked a little happy to see Sora showing off. He then rubbed his hands together before placing them over the counter, a white magic circle appearing on the counter. Everyone watched in amazement as crystals then began to form and shape until it looked like a small lion almost as tall as Happy, looking like it was in the middle of a roar!

Said cat then flew over to it and looked at it in awe. "WOW! This is the greatest thing you've ever made, Sora!"

Sora sweat-dropped at that. "Somehow, I think it's just because it's a lion, isn't it?"

Several members began to crowd around to look at the construct. Loke in particular looked at it in awe. "No way! I know you were able to work on magic crystals, but you didn't tell me you were an actual mage!"

"Of course not. It was too much fun watching people begging for my secrets, so there was no way was I going to spoil the surprise."

A somewhat short girl with short blue hair then leaned over the counter to get a closer look. "Wow, is this crystal?" She then looked at him in shock. "Are you a Maker mage like Gray?"

He nodded. "Yup. I'm a Crystal Maker mage. As such, I have a pretty good understanding of crystals."

"Wow… I've never heard of Crystal makers. And I've read a lot of ancient history and magic theory."

"Well, I have yet to meet another one, so you probably know only a little less than I do."

"Huh?" He then turned to a duo, one having a pipe in his mouth with a pompadour hairstyle, and the other in a white coat and purple hair, purple hair talking. "Then how did you learn your magic?"

"Ehehe, bit of a long story. But the short version…" He then let the crystal lion fade away (much to Happy's disappointment) and held a hand to his left eye, dropping the illusion and letting them all see his crystal eye. "Painfully."

The one who asked him whistled slightly while the other mages looked at him in sorrow or slight shock. One of the mages, who was a woman who appeared to be wearing the top part of a swimsuit in place of a shirt, spoke a little bluntly to him. "Sorry about this, but that eye looks both pretty, and not pretty."

Sora chuckled a little. "Yeah, I get that. The eye itself looks awesome, but thinking about what may have happened to the real eye must not be fun." He then blinked a moment, then looked flustered, looking straight up and blinking rapidly. "Ah hell, not now." He muttered.

Everyone looked at him confused, and Erza came around the counter to see what was wrong. "Sora? Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, yeah, everything's peachy. The new vision just decided it wanted to stretch its legs without asking."

"The new vision?"

Sora turned his head back to the bluenette, trying not to look at her. "Yeah, my eye may have a bad story behind it, but it comes with a few perks. For a while now, I could use it to see over long distances, or even to spot fine details along a small object, such as the crystals I worked with. But this morning, I picked up a new one, and I don't have full control over it yet."

"Which one is that?"

Sora then blushed slightly. "… I'd rather not say right now."

"Oh!" Natsu dropped his fist in his open palm as he remembered. "You must be talking about that one that let you see through stuff!"

'Damn it Natsu…' He then kept staring up, as the mages in the room processed what Natsu said, before looking back at Sora and the look on his face. Then some of the female members looked at their own outfits, some feeling slight amounts of embarrassment, while swimsuit looked amused.

Sora tried to distract himself from the different feelings he was sensing from the others in the room and tried to get a handle on his new vision, so he looked at what was left of the hall upstairs through the ceiling. He could tell that it was once a pretty awesome place, despite now being thoroughly trashed. 'Man, someone really did a number on this place.'

"Dude," Loke looked at him with a smirk. "Are you telling me, that if you wanted-"

"I could give every female here a reason to kill me? Maybe, but I prefer living as opposed to creating an angry hoard of female mages. Besides, it causes headaches if I'm not careful." He then blinked a few more times before it finally stopped. "Finally, that is still a bit disorienting." He then rubbed a hand over his eye.

"Haha, man, that is a fun skill. By the way, what are you even doing here man?"

Sora looked at him with a grin, before looking over at team Natsu. "Do you guys want to say it, or should I?"

Happy flew up before anyone could even say anything and shouted "Sora wants to join Fairy Tail!"

Silence, before the guild erupted in shouts of joy and disbelief. Mira then walked up to Sora with a bright smile on her face. "You really want to join Fairy Tail?! Even after seeing what's happened to this place?!"

"Well, your master isn't exactly wrong. If those guys will smash your hall when no one's around, then they don't have a lot of guts. Besides, I know a thing or two about breaking laws, and so far, all they've done is vandalism. This is nothing compared to other stuff they could have done."

Mira looked at him questioningly. "Wait, why do you know about breaking laws?"

Sora blinked at that, before adopting a sunny smile and waving it off. "That's a story for later, don't worry about it." He then promptly ignored the looks Team Natsu was sending him. "So, is there a process for joining the guild?"

Mira then looked down dejectedly. "Not really, but our tool for placing guild marks was destroyed in the attack. I'm afraid we can't make it official without that."

Sora shrugged. "Oh well, then I'll just be an unofficial one until it gets replaced. How's that?"

She perked back up at that. "Are you really okay with that?"

"Why wouldn't I be? You guys seem to be a lot of fun from what I've seen, so as long as I get to hang with you guys, all's well for me."

"Is that so?" Everyone stopped a little and cleared away for Sora to see the master from before, walking over a little more calmly and seeming a bit soberer. "Sorry for the late introduction, I didn't quite notice you at first." He then held up his small hand. "I am the third master of Fairy Tail, Makarov. What did you say your name was?"

Sora smiled at him and knelt slightly to reach his hand. "It's Sora. Sora Hoseki. Nice to meet you Master Makarov."

"I see." He then held his hands behind himself, still a little red in the face. "I am sorry that your first look at Fairy Tail is in its current state. That said, as soon as we can, we hope to welcome you as family. Therefore, as the master, I feel it is my duty to tell you that I view every member of this guild as my precious children. Phantom may have destroyed our hall, but my children are alright, so it doesn't matter to me. The hall is just a hall. It is the people in it that make a home. A family."

Sora smiled at Makarov's words. "I understand sir. I myself have a similar ideal. I wouldn't dream of joining a guild of any other sort."

"Well said, lad. I'm sorry we can't yet induct you into the guild, but I suppose a mark can wait. For now, simply enjoy yourself and get to know your new family."

Sora nodded at him. "Yes, master."

At that, everyone cheered a little and began introducing themselves, Sora working to remember everyone's name so quickly.

"Ah, hey!" Sora then took a break from meeting everyone and looked at Natsu, who looked like he was ready for a fight. "You still owe me a rematch, Sora! Come on, let's fight!"

Erza then smacked him in the head. "This is no place for a fight you fool."

"She's right." They all looked at Sora, who had a smirk on his face. "But I do owe you a rematch. So how about we go somewhere where we can let loose?"

Natsu looked up at him in joy. "Seriously!? Alright! I'm fired up now!"

Meanwhile, the rest of the guild looked about in anticipation.

"Natsu's getting into a fight with the new guy?"

"I wonder how good he is if Natsu is demanding a rematch?"

"I gotta see this!"

Sora took a quick look around, glad that agreeing to this has gotten everyone to perk back up and ignore the current events a little. With that, everyone began to file out to find a good spot for the match.

A while later, Natsu and Sora were in the middle of a clearing, the rest of the guild watching from the sidelines. Swimsuit girl, who Sora now knew was named Cana, was sitting on a barrel with a blackboard and a bowl of cash. "Alright, place your bets! Will the winner be Natsu the Salamander, or Sora the new guy!"

Sora just sweat-dropped at this. "Is she seriously setting bets on this? Man, this place is crazy." He then shook his head with a small smile. "Then again, I'm asking to join these guys, so I must be just as crazy." Looking at Natsu, he then grinned. "Oh, and Natsu? Just to keep things fair, I'll try to avoid using your motion-sickness against you, and I won't use my Ruby powers. No eating for you, and no fireproofing for me. Sound good?"

"Sounds fine to me, now let's do this!" He then slammed his fist into his palm, making flames burst out.

Makarov, looking soberer, walked to the edge of the clearing, a smile on his face as he stood between the fighters. "This will be a friendly bout between Natsu and Sora! This will go until either I decide a victor, one of them yields, or something else forces us to stop. With that, let the match begin!"

He then hopped out of the way as Sora held out his arms and spread his legs. "Crystal Make," His arms and legs began to glow, quickly decking them out in crystal armor. "Gauntlets, Greaves!" He then brought his arm up to catch a blazing fist from Natsu as the two of them grinned.

The mage in the white coat, Macao, looked at his magic in surprise. "So this is how the kid fights. He uses his magic to make armor for himself. Not bad."

The mage next to him with the pipe, Wakaba, nods. "Yeah, another melee type mage has a fair chance against Natsu. But I hope that isn't all he's going to try and do."

Sora then pulled Natsu's fist to the side and attempted a swing at him with his free hand, to which Natsu maneuvered out of the way and brought his leg up to kick him, foot blazing. This sent Sora back a few feet before Natsu tried to charge after him.

Creating a crystal mace, he swung it at the ground as it glowed blue, creating a wave of water that swept Natsu away before he could get close.

Aside from Natsu's teammates, everyone watched the move in shock. The short blue-haired mage, Levy, looked at the display in awe. "No way! How did he do that!? I thought his magic was about crystals?"

"It still is." She and her teammates, Jet and Droy, looked at Lucy as she stood next to them. "Sora's magic is unusual. He's apparently able to use his crystals to create other elements, so long as he's unlocked the right gem-type with his magic. He currently has 4, but he just told Natsu he wasn't using Ruby, which would give him fire."

"You gotta be kidding me!" "Maker Magic that makes more than one element?!"

Levy looked back at Sora as he was once again engaging Natsu. "Wow. That actually sounds a bit like my Solid Script magic. I didn't think that sort of Maker magic was possible."

Lucy nodded at this. "Yeah, really surprised us when we learned about it."

Natsu and Sora had been trading blows for a bit now, each blocking or dodging the other's attacks, before Sora held up his mace, let the head glow purple, and slammed it into the ground, creating a shockwave that sent Natsu flying back. "Waaaaagh!"

Sora then looked at the mace and noted that the part that had glowed was completely shattered. "Damn, this is a strong one. Still need more practice I guess." He then reformed the mace, let it glow completely purple, then grinned as he wound it back. "Hey Natsu! Bet you can't catch this!" He then hurled it at the recovered slayer.

Natsu grinned back in challenge. "OH YEAH?! Bring it!" He then let the mace come to him, and held his hands out to catch it. But the moment it touched his hands, it burst into an even greater shockwave that knocked him back once more, as well as making a number of the mages present try to keep from being knocked back at the force.

When Natsu got back up, Sora laughed at him. "Hahaha! Geez Natsu, I guess you did catch that. You sure proved me wrong."

Natsu blinked, before looking at him angrily. "Hey, you tricked me!"

"Well duh. We're sparring. Why would I hold back? I know you can take it."

"Fine then!" Natsu then spread his legs and began to inhale. "Fire Dragon's…"

Sore widened his eyes, recognizing the stance, and formed several tops in each hand and had them glow blue.

"ROOOAAARRR!" Natsu unleashed his roar attack as Sora tossed his tops against the ground, creating a massive wall of water that rose to challenge the flames, holding back half of it before the other half powered through, the smoke and steam hiding Sora's position and condition.

Natsu looked back at the smoke and eagerly awaited the result. "Did I win?!" At that moment, a hard impact hit the back of his head, sending him to the ground and Sora appeared behind him, holding a mace over his shoulder.

"Come on man! That could have hurt someone… I mean, other than me!"

Loke blinked as Sora appeared out of nowhere. "Wait, did he just turn invisible? How did he do that?!"

"It is also part of his powers." Gray stepped up next to him. "One of the gems he unlocked gave him access to Light magic, and one of the first things he learned to do with it was to bend light around himself to render him invisible."

"Nice!"

Cana smirked from next to them on her barrel. "So, you're telling me this guy can not only look through objects, but also go anywhere he wants undetected? Man, this guy has all the powers a young man could want to get to know the opposite sex REALLY well." Everyone around her did a pratfall before she turned her attention to Gray. "Your clothes are gone again."

"Awe man!"

Natsu then got himself up and wiped his chin as he looked at Sora with a grin. "If I held back, I wouldn't consider this a proper rematch!"

Letting out a sigh, Sora just looked at him. "And if someone else here got hit by that?"

"Meh, Fairy Tail mages can handle it. We already get into full-blown brawls every other day." Natsu then lit his hands once again. "Now let's get back to it!"

Sora smirked, then shrugged his shoulders. "Eh, might as well." He then spun his mace around before he and Natsu charged each other. Before they collided, Sora jumped over him, creating his board and propelling himself along the edges of the clearing. "Think you can keep up, hot-head?"

Natsu grinned. "You're not getting away with that! Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!" Natsu then flung his arms about, sending flames every which way in hopes to get Sora with area rather than accuracy.

Sora leaped with his board and spun it around, blocking the flames coming at him with a burst of water, but obstructing his vision long enough for Natsu to get in close with a surprise attack. "Fire Dragon's Talon!" Natsu's flame-coated kick was strong enough to send Takumi off his board and into the middle of the clearing, where he leaped up off his back and moved away from a punch delivered by Natsu, cracking the ground and giving him time to take his own swing at him.

After a while of trading blows, Natsu had grabbed Sora's weapon and Sora had grabbed Natsu's fist, now stuck in a deadlock trying to overpower each other. Sora smirked at this. "You know; this feels oddly familiar."

"Oh yeah? How come?"

"Because I got into a deadlock like this with Erza. Remember how I got out of it?" Natsu's face dropped a moment from those words, trying to remember, before the mace glowed brightly, hurting his eyes and making him recoil before Sora smacked him in the torso and knocked him away.

When he got up, Sora was swinging the mace around tauntingly. "Oh now you're gonna get it! RAAAGH!" Natsu then seemed to get even faster than before, and hitting even harder. Sora did what he could to avoid the attacks as direct hits, but he wasn't able to keep it up forever and was soon knocked back just as much as he had sent Natsu.

Getting up, they shared a grin as Sora dispelled the mace and cracked his knuckles. "Alright, this is fun! Thanks for helping me test so many things. Mind if I do another test on something?" He then held his arms out and a large magic circle formed underneath him. "Crystal Make," Several pillars then formed around him and slowly took humanoid shapes. Soon, there were 3 crystalline figures standing around Sora, each a different color. "Centurion!"

Natsu looked at the creatures in surprise, as they each then formed a shield and sword and began to charge at him. Smirking, he lit his hands on fire and met them halfway, throwing a fist at one of the figures, but being shocked as it disappeared! It then reappeared behind him and kicked him into another one, who's shield glowed purple and bashed him with it, creating a pulse that knocked him back and into a roll, while destroying the shield. As he tried to get up, a surge of water blasted into him, as the third one was pointing its sword at him with the water surging forth.

Meanwhile, as everyone was watching the display in awe, cheering for both sides, Sora kept his hands out and a bead of sweat came down his forehead. 'Man, this is harder to maintain than I thought it would be. Least I'm not trying for 4…'

After a while, Natsu let out a war cry as he burst into flames, the water quickly evaporating. The second construct then glowed purple as the first one vanished again. It then charged at Natsu as he had begun walking through the surge with a hand up to keep it away from him.

As it came within a foot of him, he swung his fist and released a burst of flames that sent it flying back, bursting as it hit the ground and making a shockwave that rocked into Sora. The remaining 2 Centurions ceased moving and using their abilities as he recovered, with Natsu taking the opportunity to smash them both before they could do anything.

Natsu then ran after the recovering Sora as he held a hand up. A bright light shone before Natsu, who quickly covered his eyes so he could keep running. He then stopped when he ran into something and opened his eyes in surprise. They then widened in shock as he stared right at a Ballista of crystal, a large blunt bolt in it that was glowing purple (which was just about touching his stomach), and Sora giving a tired smirk. "Oh boy. This is gonna hurt, isn't it?"

Sora nodded. "Most likely." The ballista then fired, taking Natsu out of the clearing and out into the nearby woods. After a few seconds…

*BOOOOM!* Those present could feel a small wind blowing out though the trees, and Sora created his board again to go see the damage. As he got to the blast site, he was surprised at the damage the attack had done. There was now a small crater in the grass and the trees that had been in the blast zone had been knocked to the edges, knocking down a few more trees almost like dominoes. At the center of the impact site, Natsu was laying on his black with white eyes and an open mouth, twitching ever so slightly.

As some of the other mages moved in to see what happened, Makarov hopped to Natsu's side and took in his condition. He then stood up straight and raised an arm. "The battle is over! Sora is victorious!"

Cheers went out from among the mages, having enjoyed the match. Cana and Loke cheered even louder, having been among the few to bet on Sora.

Sora meanwhile, sighed happily, and walked over to and fell down beside Natsu, giving a tired laugh. Smirking, he let his gauntlet glow blue and drop a bit of water on Natsu's face to wake him up. Sputtering, Natsu sat straight up, looking to see Sora next to him. "Makarov called the match. Just relax now man."

"WHAT?! Are you saying I lost again?!"

"This time, yes. But hey, it was a close one. If you hadn't run right into my Ballista, you might have had me."

"Urgh." Natsu then collapsed again, before laughing alongside Sora. "That was a blast though."

"Definitely. Haha."

They then saw Happy flying over to his partner. "Natsu, you lost again. Sora is way stronger than you!"

"Say what?! No he isn't! I'll definitely get him next time!"

"Aye!"

Sora laughed some more, before seeing a hand reached out to him. Following it, he saw Loke, a smile on his face. "Man, I didn't know you were good enough to give our resident Dragon Slayer a run for his money. Way to go man!"

Taking the hand and standing up, Sora smiled back. "Thanks Loke. It was a bit of a close one though. Next time, I won't be going easy on him."

"Wait, you went easy?!" Sora looked at the shocked and standing Natsu with a smile.

"Natsu, if I were to seriously try and take you down, I'd just do what I did last time. Remember that?"

Natsu thought about it, before his face went green.

The rest of Team Natsu and a few more mages came in close to congratulate the duo for a great fight, and Gray walked up to Sora. "Nice to know there's someone else who can put Ashtray in his place. Nice work."

"What'd you call me you stupid walking pop-sickle?!"

The two then butted heads and began another argument. "I think you heard me you loud mouthed Pyro!"

Erza then pushed their heads away hard enough for Sora to hear a crack, slightly putting him off. "Enough!"

Sora chuckled at the sight. "Hahaha, man this place is awesome."

"I know, right?" Loke agreed with him.

Loke laughed a bit with Sora, as Lucy walked up. "So, what now Sora?"

Loke noticed her and immediately backed behind Sora, looking at Lucy in fear. "I'm sorry."

"I haven't even done anything yet!" Lucy looked at him in annoyance.

Sora just looked back at him as he cowered from Lucy. "Seriously? Celestial wizards STILL freak you out?"

Lucy looked at Sora in shock. "Wait, Sora, do you know why Loke is like this?! Please tell me you do!"

He shook his head. "Sorry, no. I did put quite a bit of work into creating the rings he requested, but one time there was a Celestial mage in the same shop and he freaked. Not my place to ask him, even if he likes my work."

Lucy sighed at this as Mira walked up, accompanied by a tall man with large muscles and similarly white hair. Sora remembered he was Mira's little brother (despite his larger size), Elfman. "That was incredible Sora! We're more than shocked at the sorts of things you can do!"

"And the way you fight is that of a true man!"

"Thanks guys, though I probably should have waited to try out that Centurion spell. Really drained me."

"Well that's just another thing you've learned." They then turned to Master Makarov, who had a mug of alcohol with him. "Now that you know a bit more about your magic, you can tinker with and improve it to accomplish even greater things. Magic isn't something that comes naturally, you must work for it with every aspect of your being, and in the name of what you hold dear."

Sora's eyes widened, before smiling warmly at Makarov. "Thank you Master. I really do feel those words." He then stretched his arms out and looked at the sky that was beginning to gain an orange tint. "That said, I also feel a bit tired from the match, so I think I'll go and find a place to stay for the night."

"I'll go with you." Loke offered. "I'd actually like to talk more about the rings you made me, and maybe if it were possible for you to improve them. I did just make a bit of money off of you, hehe."

"Sounds good to me, but I'm entitled to a bit of that money." He then looked over at the girl who also made a bit of money off him. "That goes to you too Cana! I expect at least 10% of your winnings!"

"Sora, you just paid my tab up to the next month. You've got a deal!"

Laughing, he looked to Team Natsu. "You guys don't mind if I go and catch up with Loke, do ya?"

The others shook their heads. "Nah, we should be fine without you. Just don't get into too much trouble alright?"

Sora looked at Lucy in mock hurt, a hand at his chest dramatically. "Lucy, your words wound me! Who do you think I am?!"

"Considering how we met, do you really want us to answer that?"

Sora blinked at her rebuttal, then held up a finger. "No comment." He then turned and walked into town. "Come on, Loke! You and I have business to discuss."

"Oh, that there is a story here that I absolutely NEED to hear." He then ran to catch up with Sora as the others began to either wander back to the hall or head home.

"HAHAHAHAHAAA! So THAT'S how you met Natsu and the others?!" Loke and Sora had been walking for a little while, looking around for apartments or homes for rent, while Sora told the story that Loke had asked for. Sora had found a few candidates, even a few that were for purchase. He had his eye on one that was for sale in the outskirts that was 2 story with a basement. Loke pointed out that it was pretty pricy, but then Sora told him how much was in his bank account, making him nearly trip into the canal. Never say it doesn't pay to work freelance.

"Yup, swear to god. I still can't believe Natsu's nose was that good."

"That, I can believe. The part I wasn't expecting was that you were moonlighting as a thief all these years! Hahaha, you really are full of surprises."

"You're one to talk," Sora looked around for any onlookers, before turning back to Loke with a small smile and speaking softly. "Mister leader of the Zodiac."

The one formerly known as Leo the Lion of the Celestial spirits looked down with a sad smile. "Yeah. Thanks for not saying anything back at the guild. Hehe, though did you really need to make a lion out of your magic?"

"Yeah, well, I did promise not to tell anyone. And that trick was just to remind you that I knew, and to see if anyone else did. Guess you still have a little while."

Loke fiddled with the ring on his hand. "Thanks again for these rings. They've definitely made things a bit more comfortable for me, as well as buy me a little more time."

Sora shook his head slightly. "Yeah, well, I tried the best I could. Containing Celestial energy isn't easy. I'm just glad I got to meet you again." He looked back at the fallen star. "So, have you figured out a plan?"

"… Of sorts…"

When he didn't continue, Sora stopped walking as his eyes widened. "No way, don't tell me you just plan on passing away!" Loke then stopped, but didn't turn to him. "You have GOT to be kidding me. You haven't even looked into a way to return haven't you?"

Loke sighed. "I've told you what happened, and I've told you about how Celestial Law works. They are absolute."

Sora sighed. "Seriously man, isn't it even a LITTLE possible to argue your sentence?"

Loke just shook his head. "That's just it. I don't want to overturn it. It was my fault about what happened. I kept her from being at full strength. I drove her into taking that job out of desperation. I killed her."

"The way I see it, that was manslaughter at most, not murder. Sure, she may have died. But it wasn't your fault! You couldn't have known she would go and do something like that."

"Sora." Loke then turned to him, a sad look in his eyes. "Just stop. Even if I didn't accept my punishment, there is no way to overturn something like this. I'm going to die, and there's no stopping that."

Sora stared at him, then sighed in defeat. "Man, you really are an idiot. Then again, I suppose it isn't quite my place… Come here."

Sora then took the hand that had the ring on it and placed his own hand above it, creating a magic circle underneath. "You may not want to live anymore, but I do know that the lion has his pride. You won't let your life end until the absolute limit. So," He then released Loke's hand. "I can at least make sure you live long enough to stop being so freaked out by Celestial wizards like Lucy and maybe find some manner of peace. Both the attack magic and sustaining magic are now twice as strong as before. Be advised, I still think you are being a complete and utter fool about all of this, but seeing as I don't have any other ideas, I guess I have no choice right now. I keep my word, and I promised not to tell until you were good and ready."

Loke looked back at Sora in shock, before giving him a genuine smile. "Thanks Sora. Really."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Now come on, I want to check out a few more places before choosing one." They then started walking again. "And seeing as I already know your past; I think it's only fair that I share a bit of mine with you. You aren't the only one who's made a mistake that cost others everything after all."

A/N: And so the day ends. Sora meets the guild, finally gives Natsu his rematch, and Sora apparently met Loke in the past. To those of you questioning what the heck is going on there, it will be fully explained in a later chapter. Anyway, I sort of planned to introduce Sora at this point in the story from the start, thinking I could have more fun with this before Sora would start getting a reputation, making him someone Phantom wouldn't expect.

And to anyone who complains about what I said Erza's luggage held, the creator Hiro Mashima himself said in an interview that it was food. Search online if you doubt me.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the duel between Sora and Natsu. Took me some time before I was satisfied with it, especially in trying to discern how much control he had over everything. The Centurions may make a return later on, but for now they will just be something Sora experiments with, seeing how much strain they took for him to use.

Now then, let me know what you think in whatever way you decide to. Every little bit will go a long way to help me and my stories improve. See you all next time.