The world around Natsu was like a scene out of a horror. Dozens of Shades flew around him, covering the hallway in a wave of darkness. They grabbed at his limbs, dragging him away to a fate he couldn't fight. He was completely drained from the battles against Totomaru and Gajeel, and he expected that Lisanna and Lucy were in the same boat. He could see them getting brought along behind him by the Shades, along with Gajeel for some reason. Eventually the spirits carried him through a great doorway and delivered him to their master.

Jose sat on a pile of rubble on the other end of the hall, held up like a throne by the surrounding Shades. He was leaning over with one hand on his chin, looking impatiently out the window as he weaved Dark Magic mindlessly with his other. His eyes turned as the three Fairy Tail Mages entered, and they lit up with excitement as he sat up straight. "Ah finally, they're here! You know the drill, Fairy's on the left, Phantom's on the right!" He ordered the Shades, and as they turned around to move to their ordered spot, Natsu's fear became full on dread.

Along the wall facing Jose, the Mages of Fairy Tail and Phantom Lord were being held in place by a multitude of Shades. On the right, a slowly awakening Gajeel joined the four unconscious members of the Element Four. On the left, Natsu, Lisanna, and Lucy joined their guilds S-Class Mages, along with Sieglinde and Simon. They all appeared to be conscious, but Jellal and Erza were struggling to do so due to the wounds they were sporting.

"Guys!" Natsu shouted in worry.

"N-Natsu?" Erza barely got out, struggling to even raise her head. "I'm sorry, we couldn't beat him…"

As Gajeel fully regained consciousness, he looked around at his situation in confusion. He turned to his Guild Master and started shouting. "Hey, Jose! What the hell is this?! Tell your stupid ghosts to let go of me already-mph!" He was cut off as one off the spirit's socked him in the chest.

"Quiet you boorish buffoon. I'll get to you in a minute." Jose growled, shooting Gajeel a glare that cowered the usually confident Dragon Slayer. He turned towards Fairy Tail and got up from his seat. Walking towards them, he motioned for one of his Shades to move forward, and the one carrying Lucy came forward. "Ah, Ms. Heartphilia. To think this all started from one little request from your father. When I received a missive from one of the biggest industrialists in the country, I didn't think it would lead to this."

"By this, do you mean your base lying in ruins, or your best mages being completely beaten?" Lucy asked, trying to keep a strong face. She could see Jose's face contort in anger, and he quickly brought a hand up to her face. Right before it had contact, he froze, and slowly began to school his expression. He then settled on pinching her cheeks a bit too roughly.

"I see you're still the same feisty little thing you were when we last met." Jose said, a forced smile on his face. The Shades floated Lucy over to Jose's throne and forcibly sat her there, holding her limbs down in a vice grip. "And I can hardly blame you for speaking the truth. This entire thing has gone completely off the rails."

"What… What do you mean by that?" Lucy asked, deciding to go along with his question this time.

"All I wanted to do was settle this little rivalry once and for all. Phantom Lord had always been the best in Fiore, and everyone knew it! Sure, Fairy Tail had Gildarts, but the man was never around. They all knew that if you wanted something done, you went to Phantom Lord over some group of drunk stooges! But then it all started going downhill when that woman joined Fairy Tail!" Jose ranted, less at her and more at the world itself.

Lucy raised an eyebrow. "That woman?"

At the question, Jose's Shades tore Erza from the wall and was being held in front of him. "The Scarlet Angel! The Slayer of Deliora and vanquisher of Zero! The Queen of the Fairies! Your god damn mother!" He spat at the redhead. "She went from a nobody to a Wizard Saint overnight, a feat that took me decades of work! And what does she do during her inauguration but declare to the world that she planned to join Fairy Tail! After that it was like a floodgate had opened, and the only guild name on anyone's lips was Fairy Tail, even after the woman vanished." His voice took on a mocking tone. "Have you heard that they have two Dragon Slayers? I hear they have twice the number of S-Class Mages than Phantom Lord! It was like you all started to haunt every inch of my life!"

"You say that… like Master Makarov stole my mother away from you." Erza said through shaky breaths. "My mother may have acted cold to you, but she still had a heart. Fairy Tail could've never existed and she'd still never give you a glance." A bolt of dark lightning shot from Jose's hand, and Erza let out a cry as she was blasted back into the wall.

"Erza!" Lucy cried out, but Jose ignored her as he continued to rant.

"I had planned to use this little job to finally show to that fool Makarov that Fairy Tail was nothing but talk. That Phantom Lord was still at the top and everyone only needed a reminder. But what did I learn instead?" He waved an arm at the blacked-out Element Four on the wall. "I found that not a single member of my own elite force could defeat even one of you! So, thank you Fairy Tail, for showing me that such failures were hidden in my midst, so that I may be rid of them. And speaking of failures, it's time I got back around to someone."

With a snap of Jose's fingers, the Shades holding Gajeel brought him to the middle of the room. He was placed on his knees, facing towards Jose and Lucy. There was a terrified look on his place as he began pleading with his Guild Master. "Wait! Why me?! I got Wendy! I got Lucy! I even beat Salamander!"

Jose raised an eyebrow at that last comment. "You did? I'd say not to lie to me, but your smarter than that. But it doesn't matter who you beat because you still lost to someone in the end. Just like you lost Wendy and Lucy."

"But I wasn't responsible for that, Ryos was!" Gajeel shouted.

"But the boy's not here right now, obviously having run like the coward he is. And you were the one who insisted to me that he should be allowed to help in this endeavour. That he would impress me with his hidden talents. Thus, his failures ultimately fall to you." Jose explained, summoning a ball of dark magic in one hand as he turned to the woman at his side. "Well, Ms. Heartphilia? I know this man was quite rude to you earlier. I hope my punishment to him can grant you some satisfaction."

"What? No! I can't get any happiness from something like this!" Lucy said appalled.

Jose shrugged. "Oh well, I suppose this is just for me then." He lifted his arm back, preparing to launch the dark energy towards his own defenseless subordinate.

"Wait!"

Jose froze as everyone tried to discern the source of the voice. The shadow under Simon began to move, making its way out from under him to beside Gajeel. The cloaked figure of Ryos emerged from it on his hands and knees. "Please don't hurt him, Master Jose!"

Simon struggled in the Shades grip. "Kid, what are you doing?! You have to get out of here!"

"No! Master Jose, it's my fault that those three got out. I-I was the one who convinced him to let me come along, but I screwed up. It's on me, not him! So please don't hurt Gajeel!" Ryos pleaded as tears streamed from his eyes, bowing his head down to the floor.

Jose stared at the boy in wonder. "Ah, such a responsible child. Willing to come forward and admit your mistakes." He said with a warm smile, before it warped into a much more sadistic one. "Then consider this your punishment for dragging down your fellow Phantom Lord Mages." He held out his hand towards Gajeel, and the ball of ominous dark energy began to charge.

"NO!" Ryos shouted out, jumping in front of Gajeel to shield him from the blow.

Gajeel's eyes widened in surprise, before yelling at the child. "Move brat, I can take it! Are you listening to me, move!" As the attack flew from Jose as a beam towards Ryos, he pleaded even more. "This isn't your fault damn it, so just run! Jose, just stop it already!" But Gajeel's words just made Ryos plant his feet down as he stared the attack down head-on. The beam hit him directly in the face and Gajeel looked away in shame. He expected to hear the kid cry out in pain, but when he made no such sound Gajeel turned back fearing the worst. "…What?"

Ryos was standing strong against the attack as the beam of dark magic flew not into his face but his mouth. Everyone stared in shock as he wolfed down the magic thrown at him. Eventually Jose stopped his attack and stared again at him, this time with a look of surprise. Gajeel just chuckled from behind him. "Fucking knew it…" He muttered in relief. "Why didn't you say anything, kid?"

"I-I was scared that you'd find out the truth." Ryos said, glancing back at his idol. "I'm not a good guy, I'm a monster! I was worried you'd find out and hate me. And you'd be right to do so." He thought back to the hazy memories of his childhood, of a sick and old Skiadrum falling by his own hands. Of waking up alone with a crystalized chunk of his own father's essence lodged inside him. "I don't deserve to use this power…"

"Of course you do!" Jose interrupted with a shout. "Why did you never say anything, you stupid child! I could have made you as great as your precious idol! No, greater! If you had such a power, you should have taken your rightful place beside us!"

"Amongst attempted thieves and murderers? I'd fit right in." Ryos chuckled with an unfit mirth for someone his age.

Jose twitched in annoyance, growling at him. Jose's eyes turned a pitch black, and the magical energy around him began to solidify into a purple aura. "Alright then! If you're so insistent on being punished first, I'll show you what happens when you dare turn your hands against Phantom Lord, you ungrateful brat!"

"I have a name you know! And it isn't Ryos, it's Rogue!" The Shadow Dragon Slayer shouted. With a surge of shadowy magic, his hair stood up on end as a black pattern appeared on the sides of his face. "It's the name of a real Dragon Slayer! And I'll slay you too for trying to hurt Gajeel!" As Jose summoned two Shades to fly at him, he called upon his real abilities. "Shadow Drive!" The two spirits only grabbed his cloak, as the rest of his body suddenly disappeared into the shadows. His shadowed form moved to directly underneath Jose before he could react. "Shadow Dragon Sword Horn!" He shot out of the ground below straight into Jose's stomach, wreathed in shadows. Jose could only wheeze as he was struck with such force that he flew up in the air. The Wizard Saint quickly caught himself, using his magic to levitate and swing an arm down, only for Rogue to fade into the shadows and reappear behind his opponent. "Shadow Dragon's Slash!"

Jose found himself launched back to the ground from the shadowy punch, letting out a grunt as he slammed into it. He turned to Rogue and commanded the Shades around the room to swarm him. As his army of Shades approached, the boy raised his arms and giant pools of dark magic emerged from them. "Shadow Dragon's Wing Attack!" With a swing of Rogue's arms, a wave of shadow surrounded him and blew away the Shades with a single attack.

"How?! How are you so strong?!" Jose shouted incredulously as he got tossed around by the child.

"I told you, I killed my own father. I killed Skiadrum and took his power for myself…" Rogue growled, before disappearing into the shadows. He shot out at Jose from the darkness again. As their fists connected, and Rogue pushed against the older man's strength. "I'm a monster for using this power! But if I'm fighting another monster then I suppose its fine!"

"You've quite a mouth on you once you get fired up, don't you?" Jose said through gritted teeth. He swung a knee up into Rogue's stomach and tossed the boy back while he recoiled from the blow. He shook his head in disappointment. "That doesn't make you a monster, that just makes you strong. If you were able to defeat your teacher, then he simply had nothing left to teach you. There's nothing wrong in turn then with taking his power for yourself!"

"How dare you say that about my father!" Rogue shouted at his Guild Master in anger, an inhuman growl emanating for his throat. He took a deep breath and shot a storm of shadows from his mouth. "Shadow Dragon's Roar!"

Jose smirked, holding a hand up as dark purple energy gathered in it. It then shot forward in a tight beam of darkness. "Dead Wave!"

The two attacks collided in the center of the room and began to struggle for dominance. The clashing point moved back and forth as each opponent poured more magic into the attack. Eventually the magic grew too much to handle, and there was a great explosion that covered the room in dust.

Rogue was knocked over by the blast, but as he tried to get up, he felt something snaking up his legs. He looked down and saw a serpentine spirit wrapping around him. Rogue tried to summon up his magic to turn himself into shadows but was interrupted by a Shade smacking him in the head. He swung a clawed hand behind himself in response, but another one grabbed his arm. He quickly found himself being mobbed by the Shades, and he was soon entangled completely by the snakelike wisps as they lifted him into the air. He tried to bite the dark magic surrounding him, but the Shades were smart enough to keep their distance. "Let go of me! Let go you-AAAAAAAH!"

A bolt of darkness shot into Rogue like lightning. Jose held out a hand sparking with dark energy with a smug look on his face. "Finally. That was unexpected, but enough playing around. It's time to begin your punishment." He said, and another bolt of dark lightning shot from his hand.

"AAAAH!" Rogue cried out as he struggled in his restraints as the lightning struck him. When the attack ended, he slumped over barely conscious.

"Jose!" Gajeel started yelling frantically. "Leave him alone! I'm the one you wanted to punish, right? I'll take his punishment, so just stop!"

"Quiet Gajeel, I'll get back to dealing with you in a moment." Jose laughed, preparing another strike. "I still must teach this one to respect the decisions of his elders!"

As Jose threw his hand out and another bolt flew toward Rogue, Gajeel struggled against the Shades holding him with all his might. "You Bastard! THAT'S ENOUGH!"

The bolt flew towards Rogue, but at the last moment it and the restraints holding him vanished in a flash. "My magic disappeared?! Who now?!" Jose shouted, looking around the room like a rabid animal. The whole room began to shake as an immense magical pressure could be felt. There was a giant flash of light that blinded him as it kicked up a wave of dust, and when he looked back all his Shades holding Fairy Tail and Phantom Lord had vanished. As they dropped to the floor, A gravely voice spoke from within the cloud of dust.

"You've bathed in the blood of too many today, Jose. None more of theirs will be spilled." Everyone present recognized the voice. The small figure of Makarov walked out into the room, a look of tranquil fury on his face "To think you would raise a hand to your children like this on top of mine own. Your madness ends today!"

As the rest of Fairy Tail stared in relieve at their formally bedridden Guild Master standing tall, Gajeel crawled over to Rogue who had fallen in front of him and picked him up in his arms. "Hey, kid, talk to me! Hang in there!"

"Gajeel? What happened?" rogue asked weakly, cracking a single eye open.

"All of you, leave at once!" Makarov ordered to his guild without looking away from Jose. "Take the Phantom Lord members with you. Go!"

They all wordlessly listened, and as they dragged the unconscious Element Four towards the exit, Gajeel turned to join them. "Don't worry kid, I'll get you out of here." As he staggered towards the rest of Fairy Tail with Rogue in his arms, Jose faced him as energy crackled in his hand.

"I'm not done with you ye-" A giant fist cut him off, and he was launched back by Makarov's enlarged arm. Gajeel used the chance to hobble off after everyone else and finally leave the two Wizard Saints alone.

"I said that you would spill their blood no longer." Makarov stated. "I had planned to get you to stop before the Council took drastic action, but after seeing what you've done to both guilds, I have no choice but to put you down where you stand."

"You are welcome to try." Jose laughed. "Speaking of the guilds, both of ours appear to be piles of rubble now. No problem for me though! It seems I needed to rebuild it up from the ground up anyways."

Makarov snorted in disgust. "A great guild is built on its people, and they must be grown and nurtured like plants, not whipped like beasts. It seems even those two boys of yours understood that concept better than you did."

Jose stared down at Makarov in annoyance. "That's a load of nonsense! I'm a Wizard Saint! All I need to do is find the strongest in the country and they'll join me without a second thought! I don't have to waste my time babysitting a bunch of whelps who'll end up screwing up the littlest things!"

"The fact that you still claim to be a Wizard Saint appalls me." Makarov spat. "The ten Saints are not just chosen based on strength, but by their ability to lead the world of magic towards a brighter future. And you deny that future by stomping down the upcoming generation with your malicious ego! And for that, you will be judged."

"Are you lecturing me now of all times?"

"Following the rules of Fairy Tail, you have until the count of three. Now, on your knees!" Makarov finished with a booming voice as he magically grew to tower over Jose. He held his hands in front of his chest as magic began to form between them.

"One…"

"You dare ask me to get on my knees? Who do you think I am?! I'm the greater Wizard Saint between the two of us! The leader of the greatest magic guild in the country!"

"Two…"

"And you ask me to kneel?! You're the one who should be on his knees! Aria's attack on you earlier was a mercy! I'll kill you, you senile fool!"

"Three!"

"Then I'll kill every last Fairy until there's no one left to even remember the guild's name. Until mine is the only one left in the history books!"

"Enough of your mad delusions!" The giant form of Makarov growled. He slammed his hands into the great ball of magic he had weaved between them, clapping them together as if in prayer. As a great light began to pour out from them, he stared down at Jose with judgement. "Fairy Law is invoked!"

The clouds parted above the Phantom Lord base as the great light spread across the waters to the members of Fairy Tail ashore, still fighting the Shades. As the light reached land, the Shades all evaporated with a single touch, while all the mages felt was a gentle warmth. The members that had escaped Jose had reached the front of the base, and they all looked back in amazement at the display.

"What the hell is this?" Gajeel muttered, staring up at the light in amazement.

"Its Fairy Law, one of our guilds three great magics." Jellal explained. "It's a sacred light that only targets those that the caster see's as evil."

Back in the room that had set off the attack, the light began to fade. As it did, Jose could be seen standing still like a statue. The color had faded from his skin, and it looked as if a light breeze could kill the man. As he crumpled to the floor defeated, Makarov turned and began walking away.

"You will never threaten Fairy Tail again, or any young mages with your foolishness." Makarov declared. "Not even your own guild will stand with you now. You must face the Council alone."

And with only a single move, the war between Fairy Tail and Phantom Lord was over.


Porlyusica stared up at the trees as they shook. She sighed in annoyance at the nuisance that a certain one of her patients was being. "That stupid Makarov. He knows that he shouldn't go running off the moment he's healed." She complained as she swung a broom around wildly. She could feel the entire forest around her house tremble from whatever the Fairy Tail Master had done.

"I agree with you, but it was a real emergency! Promise!" Wendy assured the elderly woman from a distance. She had managed to heal Master Makarov surprisingly quickly and was waiting to hear more news.

"Yeah! There's nothing more Manly than helping your friends in need!" Elfman shouted. He had taken a breather from watching her older sister and was standing outside waiting for more news as well.

"He wouldn't have been in this situation in the first place if he wasn't such a hothead!" Porlyusica shot back. "Seriously, all these years and nothing's changed about him."

Wendy stared up, feeling a great change in the sky. "I just hope they're all okay…"

"I'm sure they're fine. I mean they have Natsu, and he can beat anybody!" Happy said from his seat on a stump, munching on an apple.

"Your confidence is as incredible as it is oversized." Charla said from next to him.

"Thanks!" Happy said, not quite realizing what Charla had meant.

"While I'm sure that Natsu and Gajeel are an even match, Jose is on an entirely different level. I fear only your Master can take him." Panther Lily interjected, sitting away from everyone else.

"You have nothing to worry about anymore." The muffled voice of Sieglinde spoke out as she strolled into the clearing. Her armor was dented all over, but she appeared to be walking fine. "The battle is over, and your Master has won. But there's some injured, so you should head back to everyone."

Wendy slumped over in relief. "Thank goodness it's over! Charla, are you good enough to fly me there? I want to help as much as I can and make sure Erza is okay!"

"I suppose I can handle a single flight. Let's go." Charla said as she materialized her wings and picked the Dragon Slayer up.

As they began to fly away, Happy tossed his apple core to the side and jumped into the air. "Hey, wait for me! I want to see Natsu!"

"Hey Happy, take me with you!" Elfman shouted. He quickly turned to Porlyusica as he was picked up by the blue feline. "Can you watch Mira for me? I need to make sure Lisanna's fine as well!"

"Yes, yes! Just go already and give me some piece and quiet! Lord knows my remaining patient could use some." Porlyusica insisted.

As the Fairy Tail members disappeared over the trees, the cloaked figure of Mystogan suddenly appeared on the stump that Happy and Charla, fresh apple in hand. The three remaining all turned to him with barely a surprise. "So, it's finally done then?" He asked Sieglinde as he took a bite.

"It is. If you didn't help gather up Makarov's magic for Wendy, then he wouldn't have recovered fast enough. This could have gotten a lot uglier." Sieglinde admitted, she turned her helmet towards Lily. "That reminds me, you should probably head back too. Your friends with Gajeel, right? Some kid he seems to like got pretty beat up by Jose."

"What?! Why would he-?" Lily looked shocked and appalled at what Sieglinde had said. He turned to Mystogan apologetically as he summoned his wings. "Sorry, we'll catch up later."

"Of course." Mystogan nodded understandably. After watching Lily follow the Fairy Tail members into the distance, he turned to Sieglinde. "… I'm sorry for getting you involved. I know they're not your guild members, but-"

"Don't apologize." Sieglinde interrupted. "I promised to Jane that I'd take care of her family. It doesn't matter where they're from, I'll protect Fairy Tail with my life for her. Speaking of…" She turned towards Porlyusica, and the elderly woman huffed.

"Mirajane is fine. Likely just exhausted from whatever happened on that mission of hers." Porlyusica sighed. "Honestly the woman's just taking up space in my beds. I wish she'd wake up soon so I can be by myself again."

"…That's good to here, I suppose." Mystogan eventually replied. He stood up and rested his staff on his shoulders. "Well, the two of us should get going. The Council will probably be sending its people soon to investigate this whole incident, and we don't want to take any chances at being recognized. Let's go, Sieglinde."

The knight let out a sigh as she walked over to him. "You know you don't have to call me that when it's just us. Everyone here knows that's not my real name anyways. At least call me Knightwalker."

"If you insist." Mystogan chuckled, and with a wave of his staff the two disappeared in a puff of mist.

With everyone now gone, Porlyusica closed her eyes and tilted her head up. She listened to the melody of the forest around her in serenity. "Finally, some peace and quiet…" The sound of a door creaking open disturbed the peace however, and she turned back to her house in surprise. There was only one reason for her door to be opening currently. Sure enough, leaning against the doorframe was Mirajane. She looked exhausted and appeared to be struggling to even stand straight against the wooden beam. She had a confused look in her half-asleep eyes.

"What are doing up?! Go lie back down child!" Porlyusica ordered as she walked over to her patient. But as she stopped when Mira took a step back at her approach.

"W-Who are you?" Mira asked, staring at Porlyusica in fear. She began to look around at her surroundings with wide eyes. "Where am I? How did I get here? What… What is…"

Porlyusica rushed forward and barely caught Mira as her eyes fluttered closed and she fell forward. Gently dragging the woman back to her bed, she couldn't help but look at her patient in worry. 'It was just some exhaustion-based delirium. She'll be better with some more sleep, I hope…'


Juvia began to stir from her slumber. She was having the most pleasant dream of a black-haired angel. It had descended from the clouds and stole her heart in its frozen grasp. She knew such thing was just a dream though and began to open her eyes.

"Thank goodness you're awake. Are you feeling any better?"

Oh, it wasn't a dream. Juvia's eyes focused on the raven-haired beauty from her dreams leaning over her in concern. The events of earlier began flooding back to her, and she shot up beet red. "Yes! Juvia is completely fine! Ah?!" She put a hand to her head at the sudden movement.

"Take it easy there! The two of us got real rough up there." The Angel responded. She summoned a halo of icy vines in her palms and set it on Juvia's head like a crown. "There, that should help a bit."

Juvia felt the ice cool her aching head, and she looked down in embarrassment at being personally treated by the woman. "Thank you, um…" Juvia tried to thank the woman, but remembered something important. "Juvia most apologize, but what is your name? I don't believe you ever told Juvia."

"I didn't?" The woman said surprised. "Well, that's a bit rude of me. It's Ultear Milkovich, S-Class Mage of Fairy Tail. Pleasure to meet you!"

"L-Likewise, Ultear!" Juvia responded excitedly. She finally decided to look around at her surroundings but was unable to recognize where she was. The other Element Four were lying unconscious beside her, noticeably with much less happy looking Fairy Tail members standing watch over them. "What happened? The last thing Juvia remembers is fighting you. Is the war over?"

"Yeah, it is. We're currently next to the guild hall, or what's left of it. Master Makarov beat Jose, but before that…" A look of disgust filled her face. "Jose had strung up all of us in your Headquarters along with Gajeel and the rest of the Element Four. He was going to torture Gajeel and you four for failing to beat anyone."

"What?" Juvia stared in shock. She knew that Jose was a less than savory man, but to even raise his hand against his own fellow guildmates? She felt like a fool for believing that she was accepted by him even a little now. "Thank goodness that your Master saved us before Jose could punish us."

Ultear shook her head sadly. "I wish that was so. But that kid, I think his name was Rogue, appeared and stuck up for Gajeel. He ended up fighting Jose and…" She looked away from Juvia, who followed her gaze to see a strange sight.

Rogue, or who Juvia would know better as Ryos, was lying on the ground away from the others. On one side of him, Wendy was leaned over him as she healed him, While Gajeel and Natsu sat on the other side, nearly shoulder to shoulder. The fact that they weren't trying to bite each other's heads off made it clear how worried they were for the boy. Happy, Charla, and Lily all floated over them in concern as well.

"I think I've almost reached the limit my magic can heal. How do you feel?" Wendy asked.

rogue shuffled on the ground, before letting out a sigh. "I don't think I can move much…"

"It appears you were drained of your stamina. Your body's fine, but you'll need to rest to get that back. My magic can only restore so much." Wendy explained apologetically.

"Don't worry about it girl. You're a lifesaver." Gajeel said tiredly. "Come on Ryos-er, Rogue. We should get you home." He went to go pick up Rogue, but the boy began to cry the moment he touched him. "Ah crap! What's wrong kid? Did that hurt still?"

"No, I-, I don't get it!" Rogue cried, turning on his side and curling up. "I told you what happened to Skiadrum! I killed him! You should hate me, all of you!"

Wendy flinched, the only one of the three other Dragon Slayers who hadn't already heard him say so. Gajeel and Natsu both looked sadly down at the boy. Gajeel reached down and patted him on the shoulder.

"Look, I'm not gonna lie and say that doesn't mean anything to me. But I know the feeling of having Metalicana disappear on me out of nowhere, and I can only imagine what you must be going through on top of that." Gajeel began to explain. "I couldn't leave you knowing how alone you'd feel. Besides, if I did then Lily would kick my ass."

"Indeed, I would." Lily added with a nod. Happy and Charla both looked at the older Exceed in surprise.

Rogue didn't respond to Gajeel, but he seemed to have stopped shaking. Seeing as he wasn't talking yet, Natsu decided to ask him a question. "Hey Rogue, does the date July 7, X777 mean anything to you?" Both rogue and Gajeel turned to him in surprise.

"That's the day I killed Skiadrum! How do you know that?!" Rogue shouted at Natsu in disbelief.

Gajeel whipped his head between Rogue and Natsu in confusion. "Huh?! But that's the day that Metalicana disappeared! What the hell is going on here, Salamander?!"

"He knows because that's the day that his father Igneel disappeared, along with my mother Grandeeney." Wendy revealed in amazement.

Natsu continued to stare down at the younger Dragon Slayer. "Rogue, how much do you remember of that day."

"Oi, Salamander!" Gajeel began, turning to Natsu in anger. But before he could do anything, Rogue answered.

"Honestly, the whole thing was a haze to me. All I have are a vague recollection of fighting him, then waking up alone and with the lacrima in my chest." Rogue admitted. "No, I had to have killed him! I know the lacrima was made with his own power! How else could I have gotten it except by killing him?!"

"Um, that might not necessarily be the case…" The Dragon Slayers and Exceeds all turned to see Juvia had wandered over to them, leaning against Ultear for strength. "Juvia did not mean to overhear, but you said you have a Dragon Slayer Lacrima, correct?"

"Yeah, he did. What's it to you?" Gajeel asked suspiciously.

"Because Juvia has one as well." With that admission, she undid a button on her coat near the midriff. She pulled the fabric aside to reveal a faint scar along her skin.

"The fuck?!" Gajeel's eyes nearly popped out his head, and Rogue seemed equally surprised.

Natsu shot up excited. "Wait, were you raised by a dragon too? Do you happen to know a dragon named Igneel?!"

"Ign-, Igneel? Juvia's afraid not. And Juvia wasn't raised by dragons either, just implanted with a lacrima that allows the use of Dragon Slayer Magic." Juvia elaborated further. "But the process for creating a Dragon Slayer Lacrima doesn't have to be fatal, and the one that created Juvia's is still alive." After a few moments, she quickly looked away and continued speaking. "Or at least, that is what Juvia was told. Juvia has ever actually met a dragon, obviously!"

"Oh, I see…" Natsu looked disappointed for a moment, but quickly turned to Rogue with an upbeat expression. "But don't you think it's weird that you just happened to kill your dragon on the same day that all of ours vanished? And as Juvia here said, that lacrima or whatever isn't a guaranteed that you killed him."

"B-But…" Rogue crawled up from the ground, wiping the tears from his eyes. "But then what happened to him? I don't even remember why I fought him! If he's not dead, then where is he? Where did my dad go?"

"I don't know, but he's probably out there somewhere just like Igneel, right? So, you should stop crying and get out there looking! That's what I did!" Natsu proclaimed. "Hey, how about we team up and look together!"

Rogue stared at the Fire Dragon Slayer in wonder. He opened his mouth to answer but found himself dragged towards a now standing Gajeel before any words made it out his lips. "Hands off, Salamander! You already have the girl, this brat's mine!"

"What?!" Natsu shouted, getting to his feet as well. "He's welcome to hang out with whichever one of us he wants, Iron Head!"

The two collided heads as they continued to argue, and Rogue slipped out to stand next to Wendy. As the two older Dragon Slayers continued to argue, the younger ones couldn't help but start laughing at their antics. The somber mood had quickly evaporated, and the members of both guilds soon found themselves somehow coexisting.

Jellal looked over at the display while leaning against one of the ruined walls of the guild. He breathed a sigh of relief at finally seeing Rogue okay. "It seems everything is alright now. If only I had been strong enough to stop Jose. Then that kid wouldn't have been hurt. No one would have…"

"Don't sell yourself short. Jose was well beyond the strength of your average mage. You did well to last long enough for me to return." Master Makarov said to him. He was sitting on top of a box that had landed just outside the wall. "Seriously, you handled this well in my absence. You managed to rally everyone and organize a successful rescue attempt for Wendy."

"It doesn't feel like it." Jellal refuted. He looked over at Sho, Wally, Millianna all chatting to Simon. They had come back from the safehouse full of bruises due to Gajeel's interference, and he couldn't help but feel guilt for their injuries. "Simon's intervention was only due to me failing to protect Lucy sufficiently, not to mention Natsu did a bunch to help completely on his own."

Makarov let out a bark of laughter. "Oh, don't worry about that! Natsu's always an overachiever! Seriously, you did well today. I'm proud of you, Jellal."

"Thanks Gramps… Er, I mean, Master!" Jellal quickly corrected. He felt his cheeks redden in embarrassment as Makarov let out another laugh at his slip up. He looked away as the man chuckled to himself, only to see Levy, Jet, and Droy walk around the corner of the ruined hall towards them. "Oh, Team Shadow Gear is back!" He quickly pointed out, trying to change the topic.

"Hmm? Ah yes, so they are!" Makarov replied cheerfully. He scrunched up his face for a moment. "Wait, where were they again? I feel like it was something important."

"I'm pretty sure you ordered them to go request help from the-" Jellal stopped himself as he finally remembered, only to begin walking away briskly. "I think I'm going to go check on Simon and the others! Good luck Master!"

"Huh?! Jellal, my boy, where are you off to in such a hurry? Good luck?!" Makarov asked confused. He shrugged and turned back to Team Shadow Gear, only for his face to pale as an entire legion of Rune Knights turned the corner of the ruined building behind them. At the head of the unit their captain stood tall, looking over at the ruins of the Phantom Lord Headquarters in the middle of the ocean. He let out a tired breath and turned back to Makarov.

"My name is Lahar. I happen to be well acquainted with one of your members." The man said seriously.

Makarov searched his memories, and finally recalled where he had heard the name before. He snapped a finger as he finally remembered, and a hopeful look crossed his face. "Ah yes, you knew Irene before she joined! The one who helped us get Rob back! You must know how blown out of proportion these things can get. Maybe you could just let this all sort itself out?"

"Unfortunately, my experience has told me that when it comes to Fairy Tail, very rarely are the claims exaggerated." Lahar replied, trying his best to keep a polite smile on his face. "Could you and Jose come in for some questioning please? I'm sure we would all like to get this mess cleaned up as soon as possible."

Everyone then turned with a jump as another giant piece of Phantom Lord's building broke off and fell into the ocean with a crash. As Makarov stared off at the destruction Fairy Tail had caused, he felt tears begin to stream down his face. 'There's no way Yajima will be able to cover for all of this. I'm as good as dead!'

Next Chapter: Laws of Love (Part II)