Chapter 25 – Divide and Conquer
I have nothing to say except a lack of Reviews for last chapter, so on with the program.
To Recap:
Nic, Sophie, and Team Natsu all combine forces with Blue Pegasus, Lamina Scale, and Cait Shelter to take down the Oracion Seis. Conflicts arrive rather quickly, but they all manage to cooperate. They all race to find the Oracion Seis's stronghold, but were disrupted when the Oracion Seis themselves appear. Though it was a tough fight, the Allied Forces were hammered and Nic went down protecting Erza. Brain captured Wendy and Happy and fled.
Chapter 25 – Divide and Conquer
The Allied Forces were getting up, all scratched up from their scuffle that ended up turning into their painful experience with the Oracion Seis. "We wiped the floor with us." Ren muttered.
"They're stronger than what we thought." Eve said, getting up right beside him.
"The Oracion Seis. Just six members yet they wield unimaginable power." Lyon stated.
The members turned their heads at the wreckage that was aside from them, revealing it to be the Christina. Sherry was slightly shaken. "Just look at what they did to Christina in the blink of an eye."
Jura turned back towards the others. "According to Angel, they know everything about our mission, plans and everything. We were fortunate that there were no casualties."
"What about everyone inside Christina?" Asked a worried Sophie.
"Don't worry pretty lady." Hibiki assured.
"Christina is equipped with a remote control setting, so no pilot is required." Eve stated.
"We were about to climb aboard once we've found their base, but as you see we didn't make it that far." Hibiki continued. Sophie sighed in relief that there wasn't anybody inside and everyone came out alright.
"We were fortunate that you came out unscathed." Lyon said to Jura. Jura turned with some disappointment.
"Unfortunately, I had sustained some serious damage." Jura said. "I barely made it out alive. Their power terrifies me." He then looked at Ichiya, who was scratched up, but was posing like a boss. "I hate to admit it, but if it weren't for Ichyia-dono's Pain Relieving Perfume, I wouldn't be standing as of now."
"Detestable Oracion Seis." Ichyia stated. "Instead of facing your foes, you have chosen to flee." Then he posed like a champion. "Which means we win by default!"
"THAT'S NOT HOW IT WORKS GENIUS!" Gray reprimanded.
Ichyia then turned towards the others. "Now, we may be down, but are most certainly not out! Here! Take a whiff and let my Pain Relieving Perfume ease you!" Then he opened up a tube and a turquoise scent came rising from the tube and everyone saw the scent disperse, making their pain from their injuries dispel significantly.
"Wow. What a relaxing scent." Sherry commented. "My pain just died away."
"It works so efficiently." Sophie commented. She then turned towards Ichyia, who was posing and saying men again. "If only that timhoni and just stop that nilag posing."
"Nice going chief!" The Trimens cheered.
"They called him something different again?!" Lucy exclaimed.
Natsu was up on his feet and was downright annoying. "What the heck we do now? Those punks took off with Wendy and Happy." He then took a leap forward and began running. "I gotta go find-!" He was then tugged by his scarf by a flying Carla and Natsu fell to the ground onto his back.
"You mustn't be reckless!" Carla scolded. "You need to calm down and relax."
Everyone behind her were whispering about her Aera Magic and how some if not all didn't witness it yet.
"That's so cool!" Eve admired.
Carla turned towards them with a slight sense of surprise. "You've never seen Aera Magic before? Well then, I suppose it's only natural that you would be surprised."
"You're trying to copy Happy, aren't you?" Natsu stated.
"Am not!" Carla retorted. She then turned towards the others again. "Though I am concerned for Wendy and that tom cat, I'm afraid we cannot go up against them again until we have a plan of attack."
"I agree Carla-dono." Jura said. "The enemy is far stronger than what we could have predicted."
"Men." Ichyia said.
Carla then turned. "But first…we have bigger priorities at hand." Everyone turned to see what she meant. They all saw a severely damaged Nic, still in his Toxic Plate Form, unconscious and lying down on the ground. Erza and Arbok were looking over him with upmost worries. Erza was wincing in her failure to help Nic, and Arbok was hissing in his failure to aid Nic as his fight with Cubellios clogged up his senses.
"Nic, I can't believe I let you get beaten before my eyes." Erza muttered with a small tear forming. "I can't be forgiven for what I have done." She was replaying Nic's bold actions, reliving him getting hit with Hoteye's attack, followed by Racer's and then a triple spiral combo that completely shut off Nic's lights. She let a few gasps escapes.
"Nic-ssssama. I sssswear to you. I shall make amendssss for my failure." Arbok stated, looking down with sadness at his trainer.
Everyone rushed over to where Erza and Arbok were tending Nic. They all saw the damage that Nic took. Almost seventy percent of his body was bruised and scratched. They saw big marks on his face from Racer's knee to the face, and even saw his sunglasses had fallen off and landed close by.
"Oh man, is he alright?!" Natsu stated in worries.
Lucy had a clenched hand close to her chest. "It looks really bad. Nic had taken several attacks head on."
Sophie looked depressed and she clenched her fists. "We gotta do something! If we don't act now, and as in right now, he might…!"
Arbok bared his fangs while Erza turned sharply towards Sophie. "Don't you dare draw to that conclusion!" Erza scolded with a dark look on her face.
"You sssay Nic-sssama will perish, then I'll make you go down firsssst!" Arbok scowled in defense of his battered up master. Sophie stepped back in shock that the two were being this heavily defensive.
"Oh man, poor guy." Gray muttered.
"Agreed." Lyon said. "One of our strongest is out of commission, and just when we needed him the most."
"What a disappointment. You fairies should be a shame of-!" Before Sherry could even say another word, she froze in shock as Arbok was in front of her and was staring with a demonic expression, everyone being on edge.
"Keep talking ssssmack of Nic-ssssama, and you die." Arbok warned, making Sherry shake in absolute fear. Sherry was unable to even move, let alone speak a single word after Arbok's dark warning. They watched as Arbok retreated back to Nic's side faster than the speed of sound.
"This tension is very worrisome." Jura stated. "Ichyia-dono."
"Men! Do not freight, for I shall cure he who makes My Honey happy. Pain Relieving Perfume!" The turquoise scent was even bigger than last time, but was all concentrated on Nic. Erza and Arbok backed away slightly, but hovered over him as they saw a very small fraction of the bruising and scratches fade away.
Over some time, they saw that Nic wasn't budging still, which brought up even more worry. "Men?" Ichyia himself was beyond baffled that his Pain Relieving Perfume wasn't working.
"What's wrong? Ichiya-sama's Pain Relieving Perfume has never failed before." Eve stated.
"The damage must be greater than what we could ever imagined. He got hit with three massive blows at once." Lucy stated. "I'm afraid it's going to have to take more than what Ichyia has to get rid of his wounds."
Erza looked back and was panicking like there was no tomorrow. Her heart was racing about a thousand miles a second. Even her own face felt pale at the thought of losing Nic. The very feeling even made her shed a tear that fell upon Nic's cheek. Arbok was choking up inside. It was Nic who he respected and if Nic were to kick the bucket right here, who knows what will happen? You know, other than the universe dying and such.
Erza laid a hand on Nic's cheek with Arbok close by. "Nic, wake up! Please wake up! We need you now more than ever! We can't go on without you…I can't…" Another tear was shedding off of her, to which she was about to wipe.
She was surprised to feel a scaly, yet smooth tip brush the tear off like that. To her shock and gasp, Arbok gave a serious look towards her as he had wiped away the tear. Erza remained quiet and surprised that Arbok had helped her shield her weakness.
"Nic-sssama would not want you sssulking thissss way." Arbok stated. "We musssst tend to him."
Erza turned back towards Nic and she put her head on his chest, trying to hear his heart beat. She heard his heart beating slowly, but it was faster then what she had expected. She jerked up towards the others. "His heart is okay, but we need to heal him and fast! NOW!" Erza roared the last part and everyone could see the stress piling onto her. She turned back to Nic and examined his closed eyes. She closed in onto his forehead and she nearly made contact with her forehead as she was all shaken up and she looked like she was going to cry again. Arbok gave a low hiss at his own discomfort.
Everyone there looked and saw how the great Titania Erza had a weakness – Nic. They all saw with some despondency at how this looked bad as the Multitype Mage's breathing was slow, as was his heartbeat.
"That combination of brutal attacks, it was terrifying." Sophie said. "I was still in shock that the Oracion Seis had their own Dragon Slayer. We were lucky that Nic was in his Toxic Plate to take that roar, otherwise he would be decomposing."
Natsu rammed a flaming fist into his palm. "So, that jerk was a Dragon Slayer huh, he's gonna pay!"
"This is not the time to think of revenge." Jura protested. "As of now, our priority is to sustain Nic-dono's health and life. If we don't find a remedy to accelerate his recovery progress, then I'm afraid this will be the end." With that, Erza turned towards the others with a gasp and teary eyes at the news. This meant they didn't have a lot of time on their hands. She sharply turned back and she narrowed her eyes in even more worry for Nic.
Carla examined the situation and spoke. "We need Wendy. She can heal him." She state, shocking everyone, especially Arbok and Erza, who jerked towards Carla. "This is no time to sit and watch an ally fall from a severe overall body damage. We need a plan to get Wendy back…and that tom cat I suppose."
"Wait a second, are you saying that Wendy can restore Nic?" Sophie asked.
"Not only just that, but she has anti-venom, relief pain, and cease fevers." Carla boasted.
Ichyia then scooched into the conversation with a denial-like pose. "Excuse me, put I feel as though my role in the group is weakened by this news and I find that unsettling."
"That's crazy. Healing Magic is lost Magic." Sherry said, which made Arbok hiss very loudly.
"We need all the help we can get!" Arbok shouted. "You, albino feline, hurry up before I get really mad!"
"I am heavily insulted! I am not albino. My fur is white, and it's not even flesh you pestering snake!" Carla retorted. "But since there is no more room for arguing I must proceed on with your demand. Wendy is a Sky Dragon Slayer. She's Wendy the Sky Dragon!"
Everyone there gasped loudly in shock of this news. Wendy was the Sky Dragon Slayer. Erza turned towards Carla. "So Nic's hunch was true! She was a Dragon Slayer!"
"Details can come later." Carla said. "Right now she's the only one who can save your friend, and I'm afraid the Oracion Seis needed her as well." Erza turned back to Nic and leaned in and kept and extremely close eye on Nic to wait and see if she'll get any sign of him moving or if his breathing changes.
"In that case, we now have two priorities." Lyon stated, with everyone now giving determined looks.
"We have to rescue Wendy." Eve said.
"And we're doing so for Nic's sake!" Sophie stated.
"And Wendy and Happy too!" Lucy stated.
Natsu clenched a fist. "OKAY! ARE YOU WITH ME?!" He raised a fist in the air. Everyone, exclude Erza and Arbok, all gathered in a circle and shot fists up too and they all shouted yeah in agreement.
"It's clear that the Oracion Seis is still out there, so we must split up and cover more ground in our search. We will split up in small groups. A couple need to stay behind to look after Nic." Jura stated.
Almost immediately, Erza turned towards them. "I'm staying to watch over him!" Her tone sounded almost heavily demanding, and nobody blamed her. Arbok raised in tail in agreement.
"Very well, and Lucy and Hibiki will be as lookouts." Jura said, earning nods. "That leads the rest of the Allied Forces to search!" They've all agreed and the groups were Lamina Scale, Blue Pegasus, and the rest of Fairy Tail as their own group. The group of Natsu, Gray, and Sophie, and Carla all ventured off together while Lamina Scale and Blue Pegasus went their own way, leaving Hibiki, Lucy, Erza, and Arbok to tend to an unconscious Nic's life-threatening damage.
"Nic. Don't worry. Help will be here soon." Erza said. Erza was so caught up in trying to save Nic that she was still in her Flight Armor. When she had realized that, she transformed into her Heart Kreuz Armor yet again and watched over him, as did Arbok.
"I'll use my Archive Magic to keep tabs on the others, and to keep note of our position as well; that way when they find Wendy and Happy they'll be able to locate us and save Nic." Hibiki said, making a keyboard appear in midair again and he pressed buttons.
"Oh wow. You have just about everything covered, don't ya?" Lucy said.
Hibiki turned to her. "You can thank Ichiya-sama. I'm just doing what I was taught." He then pressed buttons and then a bunch of red marks appeared on the top screen. "I found Natsu's group."
With the Fairy Tail group
The team ran through the woodsea in search of Wendy, though Natsu was still rather curious.
"So Wendy's a Sky Dragon Slayer." Natsu stated. "So what does she eat?"
"Air of course." Carla said.
"Does it taste good?" Natsu asked.
"Natsu, you breathe air!" Sophie stated. "That's almost like the same thing!"
"I still don't get why Erza didn't come along? Normally she would be all ready and up." Gray said.
"True, but don't forget that this is Nic, Erza's…whatever he is to her." Sophie was honestly a little bit confused. Was Nic Erza's boyfriend or best friend or what exactly. "Let's just say that he's a necessity to her, agreed?"
"Yeah, we all know that." Gray said.
"And I don't think she will have anyone come within five feet of Nic." Sophie then shivered. "She can be mavhil that way."
"She's always like that." Gray informed.
"The only reason Wendy came on this mission was to meet you." Carla said to Natsu.
Natsu turned his head to her while running. "Why me?"
"Because you're a fellow Dragon Slayer. There was something she wanted to ask you."
Natsu was surprised. "What was it?"
"She said her dragon that taught her the Dragon Slayer Magic mysteriously disappeared seven years ago. She was hoping you knew her whereabouts." Carla said.
"I need more info. What was the dragon's name?" Natsu asked.
"I believe Wendy called her the Sky Dragon Grandeeney."
Natsu then looked to the ground while pondering. "Grandeeney. Seven years ago." He then failed to look up and he ran into an overhead root head first, knocking him to the ground. Gray and Sophie both turned back to see Natsu get up, focusing on the dragon and not the pain. "Hold up, maybe Laxus knows!"
"That guy's a loser." Gray said. "And remember, Gramps said that he wasn't a real Dragon Slayer."
Carla then gasped, which made Natsu and Gray and Sophie all turn front and they too gasped in shock.
"Holy cow!" Sophie shouted. "That the heck is this?!" In front of them, they saw absolute darkness. The trees were even blacker than the night sky. There was a death-like fog that encased the evil that was in front of them.
"The trees, they're black." Gray said.
"Blacker than the night sky itself." Sophie commented. "Does this mean that Nirvana might be close by?" Suddenly, they heard footsteps from behind and they saw two ape-like creatures approach in human clothing with a bunch of other monkey-like creatures now surrounding the team.
"Word on the street bro that this Magic be so powerful that the earth itself can't take." The large ape with green hair and red tip said.
"Yup, everything just withers and dies bro." The ape with an afro said.
"Whoa! Those two have got be the dumbest set of monkeys I've ever seen!" Natsu cheerfully said. They then saw the monkeys get riled up when Natsu called them stupid. They were starting to shout and they showed anger.
"Great." Sophie said. "Now they're going to drive us bananas."
"Hey whoa, you wanna drive us bananas? I got news for you blondie, we're part of the Oracion Seis, so don't go messing with us!" The afro ape said with a vermilion fist ready.
"This must be the dark guild that Lucy told us the other day." Gray said.
"They've got us surrounded." Carla stated. "They made us think we were facing six Mages!"
Gray got a misty and solid hand ready while Sophie had a finger pointed to her head. Sophie grinned. "How about we put these monkeys in a barrel of pain? " Sophie joked, ready to initiate her Memory-Make.
"Bring on the monkeys!" Natsu teased, imitating a monkey and scratching his head and making monkey sounds.
"You guys are crazy!" Carla proclaimed.
"We ain't leaving until they tell us where their base is." Gray stated.
Natsu then got a flaming fist and rolled it about in the air. "Where's Happy and Wendy?" The monkeys then closed in and they began their assault and they were met with Natsu immediately pounding the ground with fire, sending a big wave of fire that swallowed up and inflicted pain on a number of the members.
Gray grabbed and held a face and froze it. He then threw the body and left a shattering trail of ice that crashed through many more members.
Sophie grinned. "I guess it's my turn now huh?" Sophie then created a chain of memories and then she created countless halberds in the sky that were made of nothing but fire. "Let's give this a shot! Firestorm Halberds!" The countless halberds of fire then went raining down and then bombarded every single ape there, creating huge pyro explosions upon impact. Every single one of the apes yelped and when the smoke cleared, it was revealed that they were all down. "Not really much of a challenge."
With the fight easily won in less than a minute, Natsu went up to the afro ape that was barely conscious and held him up by the collar. "Alright blabber-ape! Where's your base."
The ape turned his head. "I ain't telling you, stupid!" He protested. He then laughed, making Natsu angry and deliver a severe headbutt that conked the ape's lights out.
"You guys are insane." Carla said.
Meanwhile, at the Oracion Seis Base…
In a cave with a multitude of candles, Racer had just set down a coffin that was purple with chains. "Sorry it took so long." Racer said. Brain looked with a heavily satisfied look on his face, appeased to see this T-shaped coffin was in his presence.
Racer took a breath. "Being so heavy, it was hard for me to build up any speed. I thought I was fast but after that trip I'm starting to doubt myself."
"Rest assure Racer, you're speed is unmatched." Brain said, easing Racer's self-doubt.
Wendy and Happy both looked in confusion at the purple coffin with a gold goblin-like seal on it, all wrapped up in chains. "What is that?" Wendy asked.
"It's a coffin." Happy said with deep worries.
Brain gave a dark smirk. "It's time Wendy. Are you ready to use your Magic to resurrect the man inside?"
Wendy protested almost immediately. "No! I won't and you can't make me!" She shouted.
Brain's face then became even more dark than it has ever been. "I'm sorry, I didn't make myself clear. You have no say!"
The red knob on the latch to the chains then glowed, and then the chains began prying themselves off and fell to the ground. The front of the coffin began to disintegrate in a light blue, giving off heinous steam and a faint blue-green light was seen from inside. The steam was beginning to dispel rather quickly and everyone looked to see who was there.
"Whoa! What the-?!" The rest of the frontal section of the coffin dispelled and it revealed a man with a huge amount of marionettes of blue-green on the sides of his face and on his arms. The man that was in the coffin was one that Happy and Wendy recognized all too well.
It was Jellal.
Wendy gasped super harshly, seeing Jellal. Brain smirked and turned. "I believe that you should know him. Allow me to introduce you to Jellal. A brilliant wizard who once infiltrated the Magic Council!" Brain said.
Happy stepped back in shock. "There's no way. That can't be him!"
Brain grinned with an evil smirk. "But it is him. Once he's revived, he'll lead us to Nirvana."
"Revive him?!" Happy exclaimed. "What do you even mean by that?!"
"It's really him." Wendy said.
"What?!" Happy exclaimed. "You know him?!"
"Overexposure to Ethernano caused him to go into a hyper sleep sort of speak. He's far from dead, that is certain." Brain explained. He then turned to Wendy. "You are the only one that can revive him. Isn't that the least you can do?" His tone made it sound fairly obvious.
Wendy stood frozen in absolute shock. "Jellal..I don't understand."
Happy then informed Wendy with a serious tone. "That guy is bad news. What the heck is he doing here?" Happy demanded to know.
Wendy turned to Happy. "What are you talking about? Do you know him?"
"We aren't friends one bit. He tried to kill me, Erza, and a bunch of others. He even made us thought Nic was dead. He's the one who got the Magic Council to fire the Etherion Cannon."
Wendy's bangs casted over her eyes as she was shaken slightly. "I know, I heard about that."
Happy stepped forward. "But I thought Jellal was ancient history?"
Brain then frowned. "He is indeed. A shell haunted by a ghost, full of foolish ideals. But humanity gave him the greatest gift."
"It did?" Happy asked. "What does that mean?"
"This is Wendy's chance to return the favor and revive him!" Brain stated firmly.
"Don't do it Wendy. No matter what this guy says, don't wake him up!" Happy stated towards a shaken up Wendy. He then had a sad expression upon seeing how she was heavily conflicted. "Please don't."
They both then saw Brain pull out a knife. "Are you refusing?" Then he proceeded to slowly thrust the knife at Jellal.
Wendy panicked. "No stop!" Brain then gave a warning by purposely missing and barely got Jellal's right ear by a mere centimeter. Wendy then dropped to her knees. "Please, I beg you."
Brain then extended his arm and then burst the ground beside Wendy, making her yelp and jerk. "Revive him. You are the only one who can do so."
"Wendy, that's the last thing you want to do." Happy said, seeing Wendy even more shaken up.
"But I…I have to repay him." Wendy squealed. "I wouldn't be here if it weren't for him." This information confused Happy. Wendy then began to shed some tears, having them fall in her clenched fists. "He looked after me." Happy saw her sadness and now even he was conflicted to a great degree. "I've heard all of those horrible stories of him…but I don't believe them!" She then stood up.
"I swear to you, they're as real as they get-!"
"He's not the kind of person who did that!" Wendy shouted, making Happy silent for a bit.
"But he did Wendy." Happy stated softly.
Wendy was still having confliction. She heard of what he did, yet she didn't know what to do. "…please…just…just give some time to think about it."
Brain stood quietly, his half-grin fading. "…very well. You have five minutes."
With Natsu and co.
After the three effortlessly took down the Naked Mummy Guild, the ape with green hair and a red tip muttered. "Okay, they're all yours." Then he fainted in defeat.
The three then stood still. "What does that mean?" Gray said.
Sophie then gave it some thought in a flash. "Probably a trap of sorts." Just as she finished, they then heard a maniacal laugh and they turned to see where it came from. Sophie then spot where the laughter came from and saw a man with white hair, a black coat with yellow edges that went down to his legs with a dark shirt underneath and some white pants. "Up there!" Sophie pointed, with Natsu and Gray turning to see where she was pointing.
"Well, well, well, it looks like you pesky little flies are still buzzing around." The familiar man said with crossed arms. "That's why I was summoned here to come and swat you down once and for all."
It was someone from a long time ago, it was Erigor.
Gray and Natsu's gazes sharpened. "No." Gray said.
"You've gotta be kidding me." Natsu stated. After a brief pause, he waived an arm at him. "Hey! Long time no see breezy! How's it going? I haven't seen ya since Chapter 3!" He cheerfully shouted, breaking the fourth wall.
Erigor was in deep revelation and him, Gray, and Sophie all face palmed.
"What?! We're enemies you idiot!" Erigor reminded.
"I suppose you know this guy?" Sophie sighed.
"Apparently yes." Gray informed. "He was the one behind the plot to kill Gramps and the other guild masters with Lullaby."
The memory then flooded back to Natsu. "Oh yeah! I remember now! Wasn't he that wind guy I toasted? Talk about a jerk."
Erigor then used his Air Magic and slowly levitated to a fair elevation above Natsu, Gray, and Sophie. "After the fall of Eisenwald, I used my expertise and became a free agent in the service of the Oracion Seis." Erigor said with a devious smirk. "I was biding my time until this very moment, the moment where I would have my revenge! The day Erigor the Reaper would rise again!"
"Never heard of you." Sophie stated.
"I'd expect not, considering I was laying low." He then looked battle ready.
"So, you came looking for a rematch huh?" Gray asked.
"Sounds fine by me." Natsu said. Erigor then grinned and he didn't even give a warning before launching a full-scale tempest that blasted Natsu, Gray, and Sophie and send them crashing through the forest and into a nearby rock quarry. They were lucky to have hit no trees and they all sustained little damage. That must mean Erigor must be getting warmed up.
Natsu, Gray, and Sophie all got to their feet.
"Looks like this joker wants to play a mean game." Sophie said.
"Yeah, he means business." Gray said.
"I got this guys!" Natsu said before jumping. "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" Erigor didn't budge at all, rather he was waiting and he held out a hand and when Natsu made contact, he blew wind from his hand as a counter. Sophie, Gray, and a now out-from-the-trees Carla watched Natsu collide with wind.
"Fire doesn't seem liable against wind, right?" Carla asked.
"You'd think. Natsu may have had a tough time beating this guy, but he's a lot stronger now than before." Gray informed, showing confidence.
"Good thing I've memorized everything up to this point." Sophie said, hoping all of this Magic she saw in her previous surveillances and encounters will come in handy, as this will be a new edition.
Erigor was surprised that Natsu was actually pushing back his wind attack. "Impossible!"
"Fire Dragon's Claw!" Natsu's feet ignited and he dealt a spiral kick that landed a direct hit on Erigor, making the former Eisenwald leader get shoved back in the air with some pain dealt into his abdomen.
Erigor grunted, not expecting Natsu to have grown and get stronger as he did. 'This guy's on a completely different level than before!' He thought in frustration. He descended as Natsu landed on the ground. "I see you've grown you little fly!"
"Glad you noticed!" Natsu said. He then gave an angry glare and he ignited himself in his flames. "But I haven't got the time to chat right now! I gotta kick your butt quick so I can rescue my friends!"
Erigor got annoyed really quick. "You still got a big mouth. This will shut you up!" The then put two fingers from each hand together and made a light purple seal. "Emera Baram!" He then unleashed a heavily concentrated blast of wind blades. The blast consumed a huge amount of the area they were battling on, sending rock and dust spiraling in just about every direction. Gray grabbed Carla and covered up, as did Sophie. They awaited to see the dust and win cease to find Erigor laughing.
"What do you think pest? You're not the only one who's improved. Ever since our last encounter, I've been training nonstop to enhance my destructive powers. Building up my strength to take you down for good." Erigor explained with a sense of mockery and pride.
As the smoke cleared, it was shown that Natsu was engulfed in flames and didn't looked damaged at all. The only thing he did look was mad. "That's just pitiful. If you only thought of revenge, then you haven't changed one bit!"
Erigor descended slightly and was surprised. "What?"
"Guess I should be flattered." Natsu said. "I didn't realize I was that important to ya!"
Gray smirked, as did Sophie. They both saw how this was gonna end, and they knew Natsu would never give into someone with a heart as black as Erigor's.
Erigor had a scowl on his face. He then smirked and chuckled. "You don't know a thing." He calmly stated. "This has nothing to do with Eisenwald, nor on behalf of the Oracion Seis. It's not about you at all! It's about me!" Erigor declared. "I won't be beaten!"
"We'll just see about that." Natsu argued. He then made the ground shake with rocks flying and fire spiraling all about. "YOU AND ME! RIGHT NOW!" Erigor charged at Natsu with wind enhanced fists, to which Natsu countered by leaping up at him. "I'll blow you away!"
"Not a chance! Magic Wind Palm!" Erigor clasped his hands together and moved them towards Natsu. A powerful vortex was unleashed at Natsu and the area around him was engulfed in a rapid cyclone and crumbled with immense strength.
Still, that wasn't enough to stop Natsu. Natsu leaped up and he lit his fists in super intense flames. "Crimson Lotus: Fire Dragon's Fist!" He then bombarded Erigor with a rapid succession of explosive flaming punches that Erigor was no match for. Natsu bombarded him repeatedly, and after one last hook, everyone watched as Erigor was deprived of pupils and fell to the ground with a crash in defeat, as to where Natsu stomped his feet on the ground upon his landing, looking away.
Gray crossed his arms. "Why'd that take so long ya dumb pyro?"
"My, that was impressive." Carla noted. "I had no idea the Salamander was this powerful."
Natsu then picked Erigor up by the collar and started shaking him. "Alright up miserable jerk, wake so you can tell me where your creepy friends took Wendy and Happy!"
"Geez." Sophie said.
With Erza and co.
The team at the camp was trying keep tabs on the enemy, which was Hibiki's job. Using his Archive, he could track down their comrades and keep positions. While he was busy doing that, Lucy was looking out and Erza and Arbok were tending to Nic.
Lucy looked back at them. "How is he?"
Erza looked back at her for a brief moment. "Not too well. His pulse is remaining steady, but his body still suffered lethal damage." She turned back to him and didn't see him move still.
"This is bad. Those guys need to hurry." Lucy then looked forward to keep a watchful eye. Erza and Arbok both looked back and they kept close to Nic.
"Nic." Erza said. Her brown eyes kept locked onto his closed ones. She didn't dare look away.
"Nic-ssssama. We will make thisssss right." Arbok vowed. He shifted his gaze to see a shaken up Erza. He turned towards her. "You care deeply for him, do you?"
Erza's worried gaze turned upsetting. "Yes, I do. I was broken when I thought he died. I don't want to go through that again." She then turned towards Arbok. "Tell me, what was Nic like to you?"
Arbok hissed and looked back at his master. "He'ssss a pure being. At firssst, thingsss were fairly rough." He then looked up at the sky. "Let me ssstart from the beginning…"
Arbok was still an Ekans at the time while in Route 14, all coiled up in the trees along with the rest of its group. It was in the morning, about daybreak in the hazy light given. A horde of Ekans is fairly hard to come by since they're not as easy to find compared to hordes of Skorupi and Bellsprout, of which dwelled below. It was here in Nic's world that the pokémon weren't able to speak human, so you couldn't tell what they were saying.
Ekans awoke with a cranky disposition, hissing in spite of the morning. The horde was beginning to wake up and were about to look for something to eat. They were about to descend to do so, but some smell had got picked up. Something…human?
The Ekans were beginning to turn their heads and they heard rustling a few trees away. Ekans opened his mouth and was more than ready to destroy what was to come. They all slithered through the tree branches and they had seen what looked like human indeed. Ekans at this point didn't realize it was a fifteen-year-old Nic that was beginning to learn to climb the trees.
"Geez. This isn't easy one bit." Nic stated, talking to himself. "Now, since I just started climbing trees about yesterday or so, that's a first step. Now I just need to…" He then heard rustling in the trees beside him and he turned and saw a horde of Ekans, all focused on Nic. "…seriously?"
The Ekans all began to open their mouths to launch a Poison Sting. "Uh oh!" Nic tried to evade by grabbing a nearby tree branch and he narrowly dodged. He latched on tightly while hanging upside down like a sloth. "I don't see how this is fair!"
The Ekans all closed in on Nic, so Nic had to resort to drastic measures. "Okay, okay. I guess I'll have to fight as well." He let go of the branch, having only his legs latch on and leaving him upside down. He used his hands to grab a poke ball. "Frogadier, a little help please!" He tossed the ball straight up and Frogadier appeared on the branch adjacent to Nic.
Frogadier said his name and Nic used his core to prop himself up. "Okay! Now we got ourselves a fight." The Ekans all hissed and they all sneered at Frogadier, though Ekans himself was more than anxious to clobber Frogadier for disrupting his morning. Though Frogadier's Attack fell a lot by four Intimidates, Ekans was the only one with Shed Skin. "Frogadier, Smack Down!" Between Frogadier's hands, a golden orb with orange energy was made and then it was launched with expertise at an Ekans without any trouble with the tree branches, considering Frogadier was more limber than Nic at this point in time. An Ekans screamed as it had met its apparent demise as the Smack Down bashed into it, making an orange explosion and the branch it was on fell into the swamp below.
The four remaining Ekans all looked on with shock as their member was taken down. A fellow Ekans used Screech, making its mouth turn red and emit red sound waves. Frogadier and Nic both covered their ears as another Ekans accompanied the Screech with its own, making it even more painful and Frogadier could feel his Defense drop. Ekans lunged at Frogadier with a Bite, but Frogadier saw it coming and he leaped to another branch, leaving Nic open as Ekans lunged at him. Frogadier tried ever so hard to react fast enough but he couldn't as he saw Nic hold out an arm and had Ekans bite his arm.
Nic winced, but with the training he had with his team, this was nothing. He just had Ekans latch on as he gave a command for Frogadier to unleash a Water Pulse on the other Ekans, to which he didn't argue. Frogadier unleashed a Water Pulse and the Ekans all screamed as even their Poison Sting attacks didn't even faze the incoming attack. They all were hit and there was a blue explosion. The three Ekans all fell into the swamp below.
All that was left was the lone Ekans that was trying to bite Nic's left forearm. Frogadier was tempted to strike out with his new Bounce move, but he was afraid he might hurt Nic.
Nic looked at Ekans as the snake was giving sharp spiteful glares. Nic didn't even flinch. "You can stop now." He said. "You have no idea what I do."
Ekans blinked and then he surprisingly let go, but coiled up as a way to keep his guard up. He hissed at Nic and then Nic stood up on the tree branch, startling Ekans even more.
"Buddy, I train with my Pokémon, meaning that my strength has grown as well. I deliberately have them come at me with everything they have. I learn to dodge attacks far faster than anyone, I can take a multitude of hits and still get back up to my feet, and I return the favor. Everyone on my team has reflexes that reflect mine; and if you think that a mere Bite is going to shut me down, you're an even bigger fool than I thought."
The Ekans slightly recoiled, hearing how this human told his tale. It was true, Ekans Bite didn't do much of anything. It was a fluke. There was no way Ekans could match that power in his current state. The two things that ran through his mind were to either attack or flee.
Ekans was planning to do the latter, but then everyone there heard the branch Nic and Ekans were on snapping. Nic and Ekans both looked down and they knew that their weight was a little bit much. They were about to get away, but the branch snapped and the two began to fall.
Froagdier gasped and he reached and grabbed Nic's hand, catching him just in time. Nic held on and then he kicked his feet up backwards to use his calves to catch Ekans. "I got ya!" Nic shouted. Froagdier was using both his arms to try and pull Nic up, but Nic was so heavy that this was taking every bit of muscle he owned.
Nic didn't look down as he feared that if he did, he might fall. He then heard Ekans yelp in shock and Nic had to do what he did not want, which was look.
They were forty feet high above the ground and if they fell, the least that they would receive would be searing pain. No chances were going to be taken. Nic was one to show mercy after all.
"Hang on!" Nic shouted. Frogadier was grabbing Nic's left arm, which left his right arm open. He turned back and focused on Ekans. "Listen to me! Do you wanna end up like your pals?!" Ekans turned his head towards Nic. "Now listen, just do as I say and we'll be alright! Now look, hold onto my arm and don't let go!" Ekans was surprised, as was Frogadier, both saying their names.
Nic looked up at Frogadier. "I know what I'm doing!" He then turned back at Ekans. "Listen, just bite my arm and keep a grip, okay?!"
Ekans was reluctant, but this human was trying to save an enemy. Even though it wasn't Ekans style, he slowly slithered and used Bite, grasping Nic's arm. Ekans would normally try and attack with no mercy, but Nic was giving him a chance. Nic then turned back towards Frogadier.
"Okay, Frogadier!" Frogadier looked ready. "I need you to use Bounce and drive us into the air. That way we can land somewhere along the canopy." With a nod, Froagdier spread his legs and he then took in a big breath and he leaped with his legs, dragging Nic and Ekans with them. The three went an extra sixty feet in the air. The three then sailed downwards close by, though no one was screaming. The three all landed in the thick tree canopies close by, feeling more leaves than spiky branches, which was fortunate for everyone's sake.
"Ohhh man. Talk about a jump." Nic groaned. "Nice job buddy." Frogadier said his name and Ekans had let go at last. The three slowly made their way to the branches below, now able to chill. Nic and Frogadier both sat on a more sturdy branch and Ekans was wrapped around the branch. Nic turned towards Ekans. "Well, you're spared. You can be on your way."
Ekans blinked and he kept still. He was slightly hesitant as this human and Frogadier went out of their way to spare him. Ekans wasn't sure whether to be thankful, but he didn't budge.
"Are you going?" Nic asked. Ekans remained still as he hissed and nudged Nic, which wasn't his way, but he did so just this once. Ekans hissed and realized this human had made him change slightly. Ekans bowed.
"What a minute…" He turned to Frogadier, who was thinking the same thing. Nic then turned towards Ekans, who remained still and bowed to allow himself to be captured. Nic just proceeded with a kind heart and tapped Ekans's bowed head with a poke ball and he went inside.
"It wassssn't much, I know. But that human lying there wassss the one who ssstuck hisss neck out for me." Arbok said. "That day, Nic-sssama wasss the first and only thing I had ressspect for. I alwayssss did asss I wasss commanded. Not onccce have I disssobeyed him. He hassss my ressspect now and forever." He turned towards Erza. "I have never been more honored to fight alongsssside sssuch a great human being." He then turned towards an unconscious Nic. "He'ssss a good man."
Erza nodded at Arbok's tale. "Yeah, he is. It sounds like he can make the darkest of hearts see a light."
Arbok turned towards Erza and hissed again. "You need him, his team doesss to. Without him, we wouldn't be where we are today."
Erza smiled. "Nic has grown strong, as did the rest of you. We'll get Wendy back and heal him for all of our sakes."
"Thank you…Erzzzza-ssssama." Arbok finally recognized Erza as a figure that earned his respect. He watched with no hesitation as Erza leaned down and gave a quick peck on Nic's cheek when no one was looking.
With Natsu and co.
Natsu, Gray, and Sophie were looking over a deserted camp ground close to a waterfall. Close to that was a cave.
"This it?" Natsu asked with a flaming fist ready. "Happy! Wendy!" He called out.
"Quiet. The enemy might be down there." Sophie stated. "Do you want to blow-?" Before she could even say another word, she saw a glint of something racing at high speed from the cave. "…never mind."
Racer raced right past them, knocking Carla, Natsu, Gray, and Sophie all back and had them skid.
Natsu was the first to react upon ceasing his skid. "The heck is this guy doing here?" They all turned up (ha!) and looked at Racer, of whom was standing on a low tree branch.
"Gray and I can hold this guy off while you go and rescue Happy and Wendy." Sophie stated.
"Yeah, got it." Natsu said.
"Hmph!" Racer was then racing down the tree to intercept them. "You're staying put!" He then slipped all of a sudden because they didn't see that Gray had froze the tree trunk. Racer landed on his back with a thud.
"Come on, give me your wings!...Uh…" Natsu turned to see that Carla was still out of commission from being knocked into by Racer.
"Here, use this instead!" Gray quickly made an ice slide, which made its way down to the camp grounds.
"Alright, let's go!" Natsu grabbed Carla, who was conscious and screaming, and he skid down the slide.
Racer appeared behind Gray and Sophie. "You little punk. Nobody dares to put the brakes on me."
Gray and Sophie turned towards Racer. "Traction ain't your thing." Sophie regarded.
At the bottom of the slide, Natsu was on his feet and had puffed up cheeks. Carla looked at Natsu.
"Are you sick?" She asked, not realizing that Natsu had some motion sickness. After a minute of composing, she and Natsu began to call out to Wendy and Happy repeatedly, trying to get where they are.
"Natsu!" A faint cry from Happy called out. Natsu and Carla both turned to where the cry came from and found that it came from the cave. They raced towards the cave and they went inside in no time, only for Natsu to freeze.
His eyes widened at the site. "…no." He muttered. "…but how?"
Natsu and Carla saw Wendy and Happy on the floor, but standing up from the coffin was Jellal.
Happy turned with tears. "Natsu."
Wendy was crying. "I'm so sorry."
Natsu was shaking immensely and he saw the blue-haired being turn to him. "Jellal."
Wendy was wiping her eyes. "Sorry." She said. "I'm so sorry. I had to." She then dropped to the floor, drained and tired.
"Wendy!" Carla shouted and rushed to her side. Jellal just looked on with no emotions.
Natsu clenched his fists. "I don't know why you're here, nor where you came from…" He then engulfed his fists in flames and rushed towards him. "But you don't belong here!"
Jellal turned with no surprised and held out a hand and unleashed a blast of yellow that swallowed Natsu and made him yelp and crash into the side of the cave, making rocks bury him slightly.
Brain walked towards Jellal. "Thank goodness that you still have your immense power."
Jellal then turned towards Brain with no emotion and moved his arm in an arc. The ground under Brain was engulfed in yellow and exploded, making Brain yelp.
Happy rushed to Natsu's side as his upper body was under rubble. "Natsu!" Happy turned and then watched as Jellal looked forward and walked out of the cave. He then looked back still tried budging Natsu. "Come on, get up!"
Immediately, Natsu's body sat up and flew rock off in a flash. He swayed his head left and right. "ALRIGHT! LET'S ROCK! BRING IT ON!"
Carla crossed her arms. "He just left."
Natsu then got up. "That coward!"
"I'm aware that you guys have a history with him, but our biggest priority is to take Wendy back to the others as soon as possible." Carla pointed out. Natsu just stood there with clenched fists. "You do want to save your friend, right?"
Natsu stomped his foot and roared. "MAN I HATE THAT GUY!" He then looked forward. "But you're right. Nic's in deep trouble. Let's go!"
"Aye sir!" Happy said. Happy then grabbed Natsu and Carla grabbed Wendy and the two flew out of the cave, leaving Brain alone…well, him and a sleeping Midnight.
Brain arose with dust flying and he looked where Jellal blasted him, which was a big hole in the ground. He blinked. "That was unexpected, but perhaps I removed his shackles too early. On that note, his hostility towards me means a grudge of sorts. Was he aware all of this time? Did he overhear us discuss our plans for Nirvana?"
Then Brain gasped as he came to a serious conclusion. "No it can't be! Does he intend to take Nirvana for himself?! IT SHOULDN'T HAPPEN! IT'S OURS! Cobra, do you hear me? Jellal has escaped to claim Nirvana! Stop him at once!"
Deep in the Worth Woodsea…
With his Sound Magic, he heard him. "I hear you loud and clear boss man. As loud as I hear that coward's footsteps." He grinned and Cubellios hissed.
With Gray and Sophie
Gray and Sophie were shoved into a tree trunk and Racer went in to drive a knee into their faces, but the two saw it just in time and they both ducked and rolled away to avoid the knee. Gray and Sophie both looked up and saw Racer vanishing left and right in an upward motion, watching him disappear into the leaves and watch him reappear on a branch.
"This guy is crazy fast." Gray said.
"That would be an understatement." Sophie remarked.
"I'm the fastest man alive." Racer stated. "You'll never beat me, because you'll never catch me. That's why they call me Racer." He then looked up and then saw that Natsu and Wendy were being carried.
"They found them!" Sophie said.
"But how? Brain was there! How did they get passed him?!" Racer exclaimed.
"Don't ask me?" Sophie said. "This is Natsu we're talking about."
"Well, end of the line." Racer then vanished, and Gray and Sophie could guess that they were after them in the air.
"HEY! LOOK OUT!" Gray shouted. Natsu looked down, but that was all as Racer appeared and knock them all down with a swing of his kick from above. Happy and Carla were hit and they screamed as they fell. Natsu landed and crashed, but then he scooted as fast he could and caught her. He saw the cats were down, so he had to pick everyone up and started running.
"I told you it's the end of the line!" Racer then went after them.
"Memory-Make: Jagged Barrier!" Sophie made a chain of memories and she pressed her hands down on the ground. From there, a huge wall of stone with ice spikes covering it rose from the earth and Racer went wide-eyed as he came to a screeching halt so as not to touch the spikes. This made Racer stop in his tracks.
Natsu looked back. "You guys okay?"
Without looking back, Gray and Sophie continued to hold off Racer. "Hurry and get back to Nic!" Sophie stated. "Don't worry, we can hold him!"
"You guys sure?" Natsu questioned.
"Just go already!" Gray shouted. "We can stop him, no matter what! GO! Nic's life is at stake!"
Reluctantly, Natsu then turned and ran away with Wendy and the flying cats. "Fine, but once he's healed, we're coming back!" Natsu shouted back.
Gray grinned. "I know."
Racer then looked down. "Impressive. This is the second time you two stopped me."
Sophie turned to him. "Yeah, and it most certainly won't be the last."
Gray then turned towards Racer as well. "When we're through, you're going to slow way down pal."
With Natsu
Happy was regaining consciousness under Natsu's arm. "Uhhhh…Natsu?"
Natsu was still running as fast as his legs could carry him. "Rest up little buddy."
"But Jellal is out there." Happy reminded.
Natsu's frown grew. "I know. I'll make sure he doesn't stick around too long."
'Natsu.' A voice called out. Natsu stopped and turned left and right.
"Who? What? Where?" Natsu frantically said.
'Can you hear me?' The voice called out.
Natsu turned and looked at a tree. "Is this tree talking to me?"
'Can you hear me Natsu?'
"Yes Great Tree." Natsu said, confusing Happy.
'Great what? The tree isn't talking Natsu. This is Hibiki. At any rate, I'm glad I could reach you. Nobody else responded so far.'
"Wait, so you can talk through trees?" Natsu asked.
'No; keep your voice down. The enemy has scouts throughout the woodsea. That's why I'm speaking directly into your head. What's the status? Where's Wendy and Happy?'
"Uh, they're both with me. Wendy's unconscious but okay, and Happy's already awake."
'That's wonderful. Hang tight, I'm gonna upload a map into your mind. You can use that to find your way back to the temporary camp we've set up.'
Natsu was suspicious. "Hold on, what's this upload stuff?" He then saw a bar appear above him and then it went from blue to yellow, with the word 'downloading' on it. When it was filled, Natsu marveled with the map in his brain. He then started running.
"Natsu, I think you need to see a professional" Happy said.
"Not now, I have to follow this map inside my brain!" Natsu said. "I can even see where Nic and Erza are! This upload stuff is so cool! Thanks Great Tree, er Hibiki!"
"Okay, now you really need help." Happy said.
'Hurry.' Hibiki said.
With Erza and co.
Hibiki had just finished talking to Natsu and he turned back towards the others. "I'm afraid time is not on our side." Hibiki stated coldly, looking at a badly injured Nic. Erza was still close to him, as was a worried Arbok. Erza grunted and clenched her fists.
"His pulse is getting weaker." Erza warned.
Lucy turned to Hibiki. "Hey, how did Natsu know where to go?"
"I used my Archive Magic to send it to him. It packages the information so that the information itself can be transmitted and shared with others much faster than verbal responses." Hibiki explaned.
"I had no idea that was even possible." Lucy remarked.
Hibiki turned to her. "Magically converted data like this is a fairly new concept, so I wouldn't expect you to know."
Erza turned towards Nic. "Did you hear that Nic? Wendy will be here soon. I promise you, just hold on for a little bit longer." Erza then kept close again and Lucy and Hibiki watched as Erza tried her very best to comfort Nic.
"The damage he must have taken was too drastic." Lucy said. "That triple attack would've killed any one of us. We were lucky that Nic's body was in one piece."
Hibiki smiled at the affection and attention Erza was giving Nic. "It's nice to see some light in the darkness."
With Gray and Sophie
"Once I'm done with you two…" Racer disappeared and reappeared behind Gray and Sophie. "…I can catch up to that fire-breathing nincompoop." He then disappeared and reappeared repeatedly, making their gazes shift left and right repeatedly. "This won't take long."
"You're going down!" Gray shouted. He then shot his hands to the floor and then spikes of ice went at Racer, who easily vanished.
"You think you can stop me?!" Racer shouted, reappearing behind and kicking Gray.
"Gray!" Sophie shouted. "Hold on!" She then pointed her finger at her head, but that was all the time she got before Racer appeared in front of her and kicked her side. Sophie flew back and skid.
Racer then stopped. "Tell you what you two, I'll let you off the hook if you lie down." He bargained. Gray and Sophie turned towards Racer.
"Over our dead bodies." Sophie said.
"That can be arranged." Racer said with a smirk. He then raised his arm up. "Let's kick it into overdrive!" Then then brought his arm down in a chop. "Dead Grand Prix!" When he said that, Sophie and Gray heard a lot of engines running. They then saw lights in the forest.
"This looks bad." Sophie stated. The two then saw a multitude of green motorcycles appear and coming after them without riders.
"What the heck is that?! Vehicle Magic too?!" Gray shouted. Just then, Sophie and Gray ducked and swerved to evade all of the Magic Cycles that were flooding by.
'This is bad.' Sophie thought. 'At this rate, he'll mow us down like grass. And the crazy part is that I can't seems to 'forget' his Magic since I can't figure it out! They're so strange!'
Racer rode on a red cycle and he bashed his cycle into Gray and Sophie, sending both Mages flying. They both landed with a thud and were surrounded by Magic Cycles that were circling them in.
"You can seriously ride these things?" Gray exclaimed.
"Watch it you two. These things are almost as fast as I am." Racer explained
"Oh really?" Sophie cued for her and Gray to both get one each. With perfect timing, both Mages jumped on their own Magic Cycles and followed Racer. "I love me a good race!" She then 'memorized' the vehicles for further use in the future.
Fortunate for them, Gray and Sophie inserted the plugs onto their wrists and they had the vehicles under their control, much like what Erza did a long time ago with Eisenwald. "I sucks. This thing is sapping away my Magic, but let's go!" Gray then picked up the speed and accelerated, as did Sophie.
"Both of you seriously want to race me? Get real!" Racer exclaimed. They then began racing side by side, a three way tie. They were both going at least a hundred mph and they were starting to come across a terrain shift. The terrain went from forest to a rocky cliff side.
Racer watched as they evaded large rocks with swerves. "You know, for a pathetic guild, your guys' instincts are top notch!"
"Don't count us out yet buddy! Ice Make: Lance!" With a free arm, Gray launched ice lances.
"Let me try! Charge Blades!" Sophie used her free hand and pointed a finger at her head, making a chain of memories. Following the lances were giant rock blades that were trailing Racer with yellow on the tips for an extreme blast of lightning upon impact. The lances barely missed Racer as did the blades, which resulted in a small explosion in which Racer left unscathed and raced off a cliff, with Gray and Sophie following.
"We're not letting you choleh jock get away!" Sophie exclaimed. They then raced down the steep slant and Racer was getting even more speed.
As they were entering another section of the forest, Racer turned back with an arm. "Try and take this faries!" A green-blue Magic seal appeared and then tires went shooting at them both. "High Side Rush!" The tires then went at the two.
"Oh no you don't!" Sophie made yet another chain of memories. "Pyro Saucer!" Using the combo of Natsu's flames and Erigor's wind blades she had recently witnessed, she made rapid fire saucers that countered the incoming tires. The saucer had cut up the tires and then tried hitting Racer, but Racer looked and he shifted about and sped up to avoid them.
"Hey, not too shabby there!" Racer commented. They then entered a tunnel and Racer turned his Magic Cycle sideways. "End of the line!" The back of his bike then opened up and blasted away at Gray and Sophie. Sophie yelped as she and Gray narrowly escaped and watched the tunnel explode behind them.
The two narrowly escaped. "Man, this guy has some tricked out gear!" Gray commented.
"I gotta get me one of these when I have enough jewels!" Sophie huffed.
"What's the matter? Too intense?" Racer mocked. The sides of the front and the front itself then opened up to reveal more blasters, which made Gray and Sophie both worry tremendously.
"Run –er, I mean, drive!" Sophie shouted. The blasters all fired away and the two were driving as fast as they can to avoid a full on blast, which resulted in an explosion behind them. Then Racer blasted away some more, the attacks still missing.
"We have to protect Nic, we're not gonna loose to this freak!" Gray declared with Sophie nodding in agreement as they avoided more shots aimed at them. Racer then stopped firing and he drove over a long root that went over a trail.
He was spotted below by Sherry and Lyon, to which Sophie and Gray both saw.
"Lyon! Your timing couldn't be better man!" Gray shouted.
"Yeah, we need all the help we can get!" Sophie shouted. "This guy is on fast turkey!"
"Hop aboard!" Gray said.
Lyon looked shocked. "Excuse me?"
"You heard me! Come on, let's go!" Gray said. With that, Lyon reluctantly hopped behind Gray, and Sherry hopped behind Sophie. The four then ventured onwards in a chase, in which led to a grassy field.
"Gray, did you find Wendy?" Lyon asked as they were in pursuit of Racer.
"Yeah, and Happy as well. Natsu is taking them back as we speak!" Gray explained.
"Good. What's the plan?" Lyon asked.
Sophie then closed in on the guys right beside them. "Me and Gray can't aim well while riding. You and Sherry will have to do just that!"
"Oh? So it would seem you two can't do this without me." Lyon said, rather humbled.
"It's so much love!" Sherry exclaimed.
Gray sweat dropped. "Less talking, more casting!"
"Very well then." Lyon then used two hands to make his eyes, to which Gray realized that Lyon has only used one hand this entire time.
"Lyon, you never casted with two hands!" Gray noted.
Lyon paused and then grinned. "…that is how Ur taught us right?" Gray then grinned.
"Ice Make: Eagle!" Lyon then launched several eagles make of ice at Racer and his vehicle, to which Racer looked back and saw the incoming attack. With no choice, Racer disappeared and his vehicle was trashed by the incoming eagle attack.
"Did we get him?" Sherry shouted.
"No, I don't think so!" Lyon shouted, and Racer appeared above them all.
Racer looked dissatisfied. "You're gonna pay for trashing my ride. Motor!" He turned upside down and then kicked in a painful spiral. Lyon, Gray, Sophie, and Sherry all got off and evaded just in time so that they didn't sustained much of any damage.
"Ice Make: Ape!" Lyon created a huge ape made entirely of ice and it tried punching Racer from behind, to which Racer vanished and reappeared close to Gray.
"Ice make: Hammer!" Gray made a Magic seal and a huge hammer of ice was above Racer. Racer vanished as the hammer came down, literally, and missed.
"Memory-Make: Scorn of the Armored Winds!" Sophie made a chain of memories and then small twisters of iron became noticeable and then they closed in on Racer, beginning to corner him. Racer disappeared and evaded the winds that vanished once they combined.
"Not too bad, but you'll have to do a whole lot better than that!" Racer then appeared and kicked Lyon in the chest, sending him flying. He appeared in front of Gray then and he kicked him as well. He reappeared in front of Sophie and kicked her also.
Everyone except Sherry, of whom was a fair distance away and acted as a standby, was on a knee as Racer appeared in front of them all. "If you want to land a hit on me, you'll have to be faster than lightning." He boasted. Then he disappeared.
Gray and Lyon and also Sophie got up. All were back to back.
"We're not getting anywhere!" Gray shouted.
"Don't lose your cool Gray!" Lyon shouted.
"I see him! He's coming at four o' clock!" Sophie exclaimed. "We can do this guys! Nic's life is on the line!"
"We hear you loud and clear." Lyon said. "With us three working, that creep won't get far."
"Alright…" Gray and Lyon then took their tops off, making them topless. "Let's get him!"
Sophie turned red and looked back at them in deep shock. "S-Seriously?!" She then groaned. "Fine. Whatever."
Racer was confused as he was running towards them. 'That's weird, why are they taking off their clothes?'
Sherry was blushing passed the trees. 'Oh wow, Lyon-sama's stripping too! It must be out of love!'
The trio then kept their focus and they watched as Racer was zooming in. They watched as Racer was leaving dirt marks as a way of tracking. When they got a visual, they were able to predict where he was coming from.
"In front of us!" Lyon exclaimed.
"Ice Make: Geyser!" Gray slammed his hand on the ground and then he made a tower of ice shoot upwards. Racer was evading the ice as he escalated and disappeared again.
"Ice Make: Snow Dragon!" Lyon then made an ice dragon that went and tried to crush Racer, but Racer dodged that as well.
"Memory-Make: Mirrors of Cold Retribution!" Using a mixture of ice and some of that Dark Rondo she saw earlier, she made several ice mirrors on her sides and she launched green blasts of energy that blasted away at Racer, but Racer was still too fast and evaded them.
"You've gotta be kidding me!" Gray exclaimed.
"He's faster than before?!" Sophie exclaimed. Racer raced through their formation and they all yelped.
Racer had a smirk on his face. "What's the matter, getting tired?"
Lyon then opened his eyes and then saw something that was a key – He saw birds flying super fast. 'The birds…wait, I know how to beat him!'
Racer then came to a halt. "You can attack me for eternity, and you won't even come close to hitting me. Been fun, but I'll make this as quick as possible."
Lyon then grinned at Gray and Sophie. "Don't worry you guys, we've won. I figured out how we're going to beat this guy." Gray and Sophie then closed in as Lyon then whispered and explained his idea.
Sophie and Gray went wide eyed as they realized what Racer was able to do. They then nodded with Lyon's plan.
"Strategize all you want, but you're still going down." Racer said.
Just then, he saw a Magic seal of Lyon's appear under Gray. Gray was then covered in spiked ice. "There can only be one ice wizard running this show." Lyon said. He then made the ice increase in height and Gray looked as though he was in a tower of ice.
Sherry and Racer were confused. "Why are you freezing him like that?!" Sherry shouted.
"Quit screwing around! You can't take this guy on by yourself!" Gray shouted.
"Heh, just sit back and watch the show." He then turned towards Sophie. "Sophie your time is up, you better be getting your butt away from this fight." He then used his Magic and then made a big eagle and it grabbed Sophie, though she didn't scream.
Racer watched as he saw Sophie get taken up into the sky. Racer crossed his arms. "Man that was kind of harsh. Is that how you treat your friends?"
"Those two are not my friends." Lyon boldly stated. "The one without a shirt and I simply trained under the same master when we were young, and the blonde I send packing was annoying."
Sherry rushed out by Lyon's side. "I don't understand, we need their help!"
Lyon kept a grin. "No need for those two. Together we'll give Lamina Scale its finest victory. Now let's get to work."
"I'd be careful if I were you guys." Racer commented. "Your arrogance may get too high, and you're sure to lose."
"Doll Attack: Rock Doll!" Sherry then made a big doll from the earth that arose to attack Racer. The monster punched, but Racer dodged.
"Nice trick girly, but it's too slow to catch me!" Racer then vanished and he began bashing the doll in a rapid succession of blurs. "It's standing still!"
"Fine, how about this! Doll Attack: Wood Doll!" Sherry dispelled her Rock Doll and an animated tree puppet from an actual tree came forth and attacked. It continuously swatted, but Racer dodged left and right. Sherry then extended her arm and had several branches trap Racer. Racer was seemingly caught, but he vanished.
"But how?!" Sherry exclaimed before delivering a quick blow.
"Gotcha!" Racer shouted. He then narrowly evaded an ice dragon from behind. Racer turned to see where Lyon was and then he saw Lyon running.
"Over here slow poke!" Lyon shouted, running into the forest.
Racer then sneered and then raced at high speed at Lyon. "I don't know about you pal, but you got things backwards!"
Lyon then pivoted and skid to a halt and put two hands together. "Your speed doesn't matter if your attacks have no power! Ice Make: Hedgehog!" He then coated his body in long and very sharp ice, resembling a hedgehog. This tactic made Racer stopped just like when Sophie had put up that wall from before. "Don't get too close or you'll end up a shish kebab." Lyon then turned and leaped away, getting more distance in between. "What's the matter Racer, afraid that speed of yours will get you skewered?"
Racer then smirked. "Not a chance kid. Gear Change: Red Zone!" A blue-green Magic seal appeared under Racer and then he lit up red. Suddenly, he reappeared faster than what Lyon could blink. Racer reappeared in front and kicked Lyon across the chest, the impact coursing through his body and shattering the ice on Lyon's back.
Lyon crashed into the ground with dust flying about as Racer landed. "Did you honestly think that I was using my full speed from the beginning?" He then saw Lyon get up from the dust and witnessed him running away.
"Come get me!" Lyon insisted.
Racer then reappeared in front of him. "You are so on!" He then kicked Lyon and send him overhead. Lyon landed and ducked and rolled and then continued running through the forest. Racer caught up and delivered a kick behind, making Lyon yelp. Still being as persistent as could be, Lyon still kept running as Racer was pounding him left and right.
Racer watched after beating Lyon senseless as the Ice Make Mage ran through the forest. "Boy, talk about a glutton for punishment."
Lyon ran through the forest, close to a clearing up by a cliff side. He turned as Racer came after him. "Ice Make: Eagle!" The eagles crashed into the ground, making patches of spiked ice. Racer raced past them all and he delivered a bunch of attacks from all directions at Lyon. Racer then delivered a quick kick and drove Lyon into a log. Lyon gagged as he was unable to get up and was trying to catch his breath.
Racer appeared in front of him. "You honestly think I don't have the power to land a decisive blow?" He asked, not in a mocking tone. He chunked off an ice spike and held it like a knife. "Why don't I show you!" Racer then brought the ice spike down. When Lyon thought he was a goner, Racer stopped the ice spike from an inch from his neck.
Racer then spoke rather more seriously now. "I don't need that power to put the brakes on this fight. As fast as I am, I can take you out way faster than you can use any sort of fancy Magic. Don't get me wrong, you got serious skills kid. You would've been fine if you never crossed paths with me…but I'm one of the Oracion Seis. Six Generals. Six Prayers. Six Pillars that can't crumble. Anyone who gets in our way will pay the final toll. So, say goodbye."
As Lyon finally caught his breath, he finally spoke. "Just as I thought. I figured out the truth being your Magic. While I was fighting with Gray and Sophie, I noticed that the birds in the background were flying incredibly fast."
Racer then gulped, realizing Lyon was catching on. Lyon continued. "You were never as fast as lightning. You just altered our perception of speed so it would seem that way. You used Slowing Magic, that's all. Once I got outside the perimeter of your Magic, I realized what was going on. Despite your name, you're just as slow as the rest of us. Now that we're out here, Gray and Sophie are outside the perimeter and can take you down."
Far away, Racer saw the top of the ice pillar Gray was on shatter, revealing Gray to have ready an arrow of ice. Just right beside Gray, Sophie was on the eagle and she used her Memory-Make to make a spear made of the energy from that Dark Capriccio she saw and encased it with spiraling ice energy.
"Now that you can't move, Gray and Sophie will have a clear shot." Lyon stated.
"Wait! You guys weren't arguing, you were giving them sniping positions!" Racer shouted.
With Gray and Sophie
"Now this is more like it!" Gray commented from atop the pillar. "Fresh air and I can see it all!"
Sophie grinned as she narrowed her eyes. "Ready…aim…"
With Racer and Lyon
"There's no way they can hit me from there." Racer commented. "They're both a mile away!"
Lyon grinned. "Oh, they'll hit alright. If there's one thing I learned, it's to never underestimate a member of Fairy Tail. There's no stopping them."
With Gray and Sophie
"…Fire! Memory-Make: Piercing Frigid Darkness!" A lock-on for Sophie appeared so she had a better perception and then she moved her hands in opposite arcs and she remained still as she launched the spear with her Memory-Make.
"Ice Make: Super Freeze Arrow!" Gray then unleashed his arrow of ice. Both attacks increased in speed thanks to the gravity and air pressure, making them fly at Racer at blinding speed.
With Racer and Lyon
The two attacks came in a mixture of light blue and a hint of green and red. All of the blinding colors shooting at Racer.
Racer covered. "No! It's too fast!" The light then got even closer until all he saw was light and his sunglasses broke.
'…My prayer…To be fast…faster than anyone else…that's all I want.'
Both attacks smashed into Racer and he was engulfed in a powerful array of light. Feeling the full force of the combination of ice and darkness. Racer screamed as he had fallen.
Sherry, Sophie, and Gray all caught up to Lyon after the fall of Racer.
"Boy, I still can't believe that worked." Gray noted.
"What I can't believe is that there are five more." Sophie said.
"On another note, could you try and include me in on future plans?" Sherry asked.
"Don't look at me, Lyon's the man with the plan." Gray said.
Lyon turned to Gray with a grin. "Thanks."
Gray then extended a hand. "You need a hand getting up?"
Lyon turned away. "I just need a bit more time." He said with pride, which got a giggle from Sophie and Sherry.
They all didn't realize that Racer was getting up and he unzipped his jacket. "IT'S NOT OVER!" Racer shouted, making everyone turn towards him. Sherry provided herself to keep Lyon up. "I swear in the name of the Oracion Seis, I'll take you with me to death!"
Strapped to his abdomen was an actual bomb with yellow lacrima at the five ends and in the middle was a big red one.
"Is that what I think it is?" Lyon asked.
"That's no question, that's a Bomb Lacrima." Sophie stated in worry.
"Is that guy insane?" Gray asked.
"We're crossing the finish line together!" Racer heinously proclaimed, running towards them.
"Oh no you don't-!" Sophie was about to point a finger at her head to initiate her Memory-Make to get some distance, but she and Gray both dropped to their knees.
"Crap! We're on empty!" Gray shouted. "We used a lot on those Magic Cycles and we used up every bit on that last shot!"
"Ze lo tov!" Sophie exclaimed as Racer was getting closer.
As Racer was getting closer and closer, they all thought they were screwed…that is, until Lyon made the choice of pouncing and tackling Racer, throwing them both off of the cliff.
"What the hell are you doing?!" Gray exclaimed with wide eyes.
"No! Lyon-sama!" Sherry exclaimed. Gray, Sherry, and Sophie all watched in shock as Lyon fell off the cliff with Racer and the bomb was about to detonate. An orange light was beginning to swallow up Lyon and Racer.
As Lyon was diving down latched to Racer, he grinned and closed his eyes. 'Gray…the things I do for you kill me…'
Lyon and Racer then disappeared under the trees and then there was a big white flash and the bomb went off, making everything explode in a white dome. There was an immense booming noise as the bomb went off that echoed about through the area.
Gray, Sherry, and Sophie all looked with wide eyes and deep horror as Lyon had sacrificed himself to save them just like that, and with no warning.
Sherry and Sophie had their mouths covered in horror while Gray was as still as a statue. He could not believe went out with a bang, literally. After the dome subsided, an enormous smoke cloud arose from the ground and up into air.
Sherry screamed in horror as her love was taken from her right before her eyes. She dropped to her knees and looked over the cliff. "NOOOOO! THIS ISN'T HAPPENING! HE CAN'T BE GONE!"
Sophie dropped to her knees and she had tears in her eyes. She just watched as a human being gave his life up just like that.
Gray clenched his fists as he had tears in the corner of his eyes. "LYON!"
The three there just watched as the smoke kept rising.
With Brain
Still in the cave and awaiting for Jellal to be stopped, he felt a sheer pain rushed through him, which felt like a headache.
He clenched his head with his left hand and one of the lines on the left side his face slowly vanished.
"Racer's been defeated, but how?" Brain said to himself. "That's impossible. How could one of the Oracion Seis have been defeated?!" He swerved as he was composing himself, knocking over a bowl and a skull.
"No." He said. "It would appear that I have underestimated our adversaries." He then he turned towards Midnight. "I'd never thought I would have to resort to sending him. Wake up Midnight."
Midnight was leaning against the cave wall and his head slowly went up. He then opened up his eyes from his slumber, revealing his red eyes.
"You have work to do." Brain ordered. Midnight grumbled and he got to his feet. "Find our foes and eliminate them."
Midnight scratched his head and looked at Brain. "Yes…Father."
With Erza and co.
Everyone there heard some sort of blast from afar that echoed about, making them all turn. They were very alarmed by this and wasn't sure if it was an ally or an enemy.
"What was that?" Lucy asked.
"I don't know, could be an adversary launching a very devastating attack." He suggested. He turned to her. "You should be ready." Lucy nodded and remained alarmed, ready to pull out a key if anyone approaches.
Erza looked down at Nic again and saw his face getting pale. This was very bad. The damage was making his body suffer the longer Natsu takes. Arbok hissed and he grunted.
"Where'ssss that damn pyro? How long doessss it even take to get here anyway?" Arbok impatiently asked.
"If we're lucky, he should be here in less than half an hour." Hibiki said, tracking Natsu.
"But we don't have half an hour!" Erza shouted. "His injuries are too drastic and he's internally suffering!" She then put a hand on Nic's chest and she looked in desperation at his face. The bruises were practically black and blue, scratches were everywhere. There might be a chance that…that…
Erza was begging for an answer, and then she felt a small vibration echo through Nic's chest. She gasped as she was feeling something pulse through him. She quickly put her head to his chest to see if it was a heartbeat, but it wasn't. His heartbeat was still slow and weakening. The feeling was more centered and it echoed even further inside of Nic.
"Erza, what's wrong?" Hibiki asked.
Erza slowly looked up. "I think Nic's body is reacting to something."
With Natsu
Natsu stopped when he had heard a loud explosion. He turned towards the direction of the explosion and he looked with worry.
"What the…what was that?" He asked. "Was that rumbling? Happy, did you hear that?" He looked down at Happy, who was still tired from being hit by Racer from before and he wasn't able to move much.
"Aye." Happy groaned. Natsu grunted and he reluctantly pressed onward with such energy to get to Nic as soon as he can. Happy's eyes opened as he was getting some energy back. He turned his head and then saw something in the darkness of the trees on their left.
It was hard to tell, but it looked as though it was a quarter mile away; still, Happy was able to see a dim light in the darkness. "…that light…what is it…?"
When I want to get the plot moving, I get the plot moving. I would say the rest of the Oracion Seis Arc will go on for maybe four chapters roughly, if not more or less.
My computer almost backfired as I was finishing up, so I was super lucky to have this uploaded before I checked out the problem.
Please Favorite, Follow, & Review this story and/or chapter if you guys support this story and love the action and battles I make.
Next Time: Change of Heart