And now we're at the point where the demons of Tartarus will clash with the mages of Fairy Tail. This is a chapter I've been waiting to do as it kind of let's me say my thoughts concerning Erza's personality. Might seem harsh but hey some lessons are learned better the hard way.
(Erza and Mirajane)
As she gazed towards the demon calling himself Abaddon, Mirajane knew that this person was strong, very strong. If it weren't the demonic presence he was leaking out then Mira would also know from how he was standing. His body posture was calm and composed, as if he wasn't nervous of facing against two S-class mages at once. She also recalled how Silver had warned them about avoiding fighting Abaddon if they could, that only solidified that this demon was dangerous.
"We were aware that Silver had made contact with your guild, since his son is a member of Fairy Tail." Abaddon said calmly, breaking Mira from her thoughts. "Because of that we took precaution to have the Ex-Chairman moved back to our HQ. I was ordered by our Master to remain here and deal with you two when you arrived."
Erza narrowed her eyes. "E.N.D knew that us two specifically would come?" She demanded.
Abaddon glared at Titania for a moment before replying. "Indeed though I would appreciate that you wouldn't say the Master's name so casually." Abaddon said.
Erza kept her eyes on the demon, waiting for him to make a move or an opening for to make one. However something off to the side caught her eye, something in a trashcan. Her eyes widened as Erza Scarlet recognized said object and her grip on her sword faltered. "I-is that…"
Abaddon raised an eyebrow in curiosity before turning his head slightly towards the trashcan, Mirajane doing the same however the latter expressed disbelief at what Erza was referring too so dramatically. "Yes that would be strawberry cake." Abaddon said as he motioned towards the said cake in the garbage. "I wasn't really fond of it so I threw it out."
No sooner had he said that his face was struck straight on by Erza's armored fist. "HOW DARE YOU DO THAT TO A DELICIOUS SWEET!" Erza roared with fury in her eyes, her face taking on what it usually does when the great Titania was enraged.
Mirajane sweat dropped at her fellow S-class mage's actions before planting her face in her palm. 'Of course that get's her mad.' Mira thought to herself.
"Seriously?" Abaddon's voice said, catching both women's attention. From her fist you could see that not only was Abaddon unharmed by Erza's punch, but had a look of what appeared to be annoyance. "You got so mad over some cake that you would punch me?" Abaddon asked again as he easily gripped Erza's wrist and moved it from his face. Erza let out grunts of pain as she tried, unsuccessfully, to resist Abaddon's grip. "How immature…" The demon said before landing a punch of his own into Erza's face.
Unlike Erza's, Abaddon's punch actually did some damage as the redhead girl was sent backwards. "Erza!" Mirajane cried out before a large blast of energy was released from Abaddon's fist. The blast caused an explosion that destroyed the entire house and everything with a 1-mile radius.
"You two are suppose to be some of the most powerful members of your human guild…of course that's what I hear from our sources." Abaddon said moments later as the dust from the explosion began to settle. He stood in the center of the former house without a scratch on him. Ahead of him were two slightly bruised but still conscious mages. Both of them had already activated their respective magic; Mirajane had gone into her Satan Soul Mode while Erza was wearing her Black Wing Armor. There was blood running down Erza's forehead down to her lips, courtesy of Abaddon's punch earlier. "I hope that you two prove that those stories are true." Abaddon said.
"Gladly." Mirajane said. Then she took a glance at Erza. "You okay?"
"I've felt worse." Erza said as she wiped the blood from her face. "You know I believe that this is the first time that we fought alongside together?" She commented offhandedly.
Mirajane smirked. "Then let's show him how we Fairy Tail mages fight." She added as the two women looked back at Abaddon who removed his cloak.
(Back in Tartarus)
"Report! Torafusa-sama reports that three cities in the western sector have suffered heavy casualties!" A soldier said to Mard Geer.
"Tragen-sama and Rosa-sama have reported similar results and have engaged a group of Rune Knights and Guild Mages confirmed to be from Lamia Scale and Blue Pegasus Guild!" Another Tartarus soldier said.
"We've received word from Broma-sama! Target has been neutralized, no changes in FACE's seal." A third soldier said.
Lord Mard Geer-sama!" A Tartarus soldier cried as he ran up towards said person.
The Underworld King, sitting calmly on his throne above the command center and Kyouka by his side, turned towards the messenger. "Yes what is it?" He asked.
"We've received word from Keith-sama. He and the other Demon Lords and their forces have gathered outside the town housing the human guild Fairy Tail. They await your word." The soldier said. "Also the Ex-Chairman has arrived and Abaddon-sama has engaged two S-class mages from the same guild."
"S-class mages huh?" Mard pondered before a smirk formed on his face. "How foolish. He may be a bit stern but if the humans hope to defeat Abaddon then they should've sent more people. Oh well." He mumbled.
"Aside from that however, it seems as if though things are moving a little bit slower then expected." Kyouka added.
"True, despite it being a diversion the humans are putting up a better fight then I anticipated." Mard Geer said in agreement.
"If you permit me to go without restraint." A voice from behind began. "Then such variables wouldn't even exist."
Mard, Kyouka and the Tartarus soldier turned around to see a person approach. The person was tall, even taller then the other Demon Lords. He had a grey stone-like skin with crack lines, and a muscular build, with broad shoulders that were connected to very long, long arms that almost reached the ground. He wore black gi pants that were tucked into long golden sandals that went slightly passed his ankles. He had a yellow sash around his waist holding his pants. For the upper part of his body was a black chest plate with shoulder pads that had golden trims. Along with that were long black gloves over his hands. Finally he wore a stylized Greek helmet on top of his head, covering most of his face too. Underneath the helmet you could see that the demon had purple eyes, with flat teeth in his mouth.
"Black Lance Shengyin…" Mard said as he looked at the large Demon Lord. "While it is true that your curse is well-suited for dealing with large amounts of people and wide-spread places, your curse is also very useful in protecting the Cube as well as the Master." Mard finished.
"Guarding the Master is unnecessary. No one will be able to find Cube, not even Silver." Shengyin retorted. "And no one can harm Master E.N.D. You of all people should know this, Lord Mard Geer. Having me stay back is a waste of power and will make it longer for us in reaching our goal."
"Shengyin" Kyouka began. "You have your orders. Do not act like a spoiled child. The time will come for you to be sent to the battlefield."
Seeing how neither would budge Shengyin relented and backed down before walking away. Once he was gone Mard turned his attention towards the Tartarus soldier, who had been sitting silently on the sidelines. "Back to the matter of Fairy Tail has there been any confirmation of Silver's presence?"
"No Lord Mard Geer-sama, but we did detect a brief magic output before vanishing. We believe that it was someone using Teleportation Magic." The soldier replied.
"That must've been Silver." Kyouka commented. He was the only person she knew that uses that form of magic. "However it doesn't make sense as to why he would leave so suddenly unless…" Her eyes widened at the realization.
"It appears as though father wishes to past his legacy onto son." Mard finished calmly. "Very well tell Keith he may commence at the attack. With Silver gone it will be much easier for them to crush that pesky guild. And be sure to send an image to the Master's chambers when it starts." Mard ordered the soldier.
(Fairy Tail)
"How's it going?" Makarov asked Cana.
It had been several hours since Fairy Tail had decided to locate the former council members and the sun was just going down. Silver and Gray had already left by then for parts unknown, much to Juvia's disappointment. This left the rest of the guild to find and protect the former council members. Laxus and the Rajingshu had left to find Michello. Gajeel, Pantherlily and Shadow Gear went to find Belno, whom Gajeel seemed to have a history with while Elfman and Lisanna went to find a council member named Leiji (A/N: He's the council member with the glasses, hood over his head and huge sideburns. I changed characters just because I felt it was kind of stupid in the manga that they didn't show him, even if he was killed off screen).
"No nothing yet." Cana said as she sat on a table, several of her magic communication cards laid out while a barrel of beer was on the other side. "It's possible that with all the havoc Tartarus is causing everywhere they're having trouble reaching the former council members." Cana suggested.
"I hope not." Makarov commented grimly. "It makes me feel like Tartarus is just using the carnage to slow us down and give their members time to further their plans."
At a nearby table Lucy was sitting with Happy, Wendy, Carla, Lisanna and Juvia, the water mage sulking that she couldn't go with her beloved Gray-sama.
"How much longer are you going to moan?" Carla asked Juvia. "It's very inappropriate for someone your age." The white exceed commented. The water mage ignored her, keeping her head staring at the wooden table with a sullen aura around her.
"A-and they probably want to have time alone. It would be rude to interrupt them." Wendy said in her usual timid voice.
"Aye! Remember when Lisanna came back from Edolas? Mira and Elfman made sure she was with them for the whole day and the day after that. They canceled everything else just to spend time with her." Happy commented.
"Besides Gray said that his father had a way to teach him quickly about Ice Devil Slayer Magic. They'll be back in a few hours." Lucy said as she adjusted Natsu's scarf around her neck. Happy sat next to her, munching happily on a fish.
"What!? Juvia had not heard any of that!" Juvia exclaimed as her head snapped back up from the table. "How did you know that love rival!? Are you conspiring behind Juvia to get Gray-sama for yourself!? Love Rival!"
"Oh good grief." Lucy muttered as she promptly ignored the rage that Juvia was letting off. However what did catch the Celestial Mage's attention was the noise outside. Apparently she wasn't the only one as several other people in the guild heard it too.
"What on earth is going on out there?" The sand mage Max asked as he walked towards the door to check it out. But before he got even close the doors were blasted open, courtesy of an explosion from outside.
"What the hell?" Warren exclaimed as he caught Max.
Outside the town of Magnolia was in turmoil. Buildings were on fire as the citizens were running around trying to get to safety or put out the fires. Tartarus soldiers, Etherious Elites and Hybrids running amok over the entire town as well as fighting a few Fairy Tail mages that were already outside when the attack happened. Still it was clear as day that Tartarus had the edge due to their numbers.
"What is this!?" Wakaba exclaimed as he looked at the burning buildings.
"Are they demons?" Lucy wondered before the answer hit her. "Tartarus!"
"They're attacking the whole town!" Carla cried. "And right when most of our members are away!"
"Everyone there is no time to get into shock!" Makarov yelled out to all of them. "Get out there and push them back while getting the citizens to safety! Now go!" The Guild Master of Fairy Tail ordered. And with that everyone head off to protect Magnolia.
"Cana! I want you and some of the others to remain here and protect the guild. Try and get in contact with the groups out there. Tell them to hurry back here as possible, that includes Gray and his father." Makarov said to the Card Mage and the Barmaid assistant.
"Got it Master." Cana said as she went back to the Communication Lacrima.
Elsewhere in Magnolia, several Fairy Tail mages were thrown back by an invisible force. The cause was a demon standing in the center of a destroyed house. She was of average height with pale green skin and a very well fined hourglass figure and large breasts. Her hair was red and smooth, reaching her mid back. They were completely pushed back and thus revealing her face clearly as well as her dark green eyes and a pair of antenna on her forehead. She wore a metallic-purple colored, long sleeve leather jacket that had red lines around the elbow parts. Under that was a sleeveless black leotard suit that revealed her midriff. The she-demon also wore tight fitting grey leather jeans that went all the way down her legs and into black trench boots with metal bottoms. All in all her outfit gave off a biker vibe. On her sternum, right above her breast, was her guild symbol, a yellow version of it. She was Iron Maiden Niebla, one of the Demon Lords of Tartarus.
The demon was about to move on when a giant fist nearly crushed her. She managed to move out of the way in time, the fist creating a small crater in the ground where she once stood. Niebla looked up and saw that it was Makarov, the short Guild Master floating in the air before her. "A woman? I came here since you were causing the most damage but I have to admit that even if you are a demon, it'll be hard for me to fight you fully. Hitting women isn't one of my strong points." Makarov mused.
Niebla said nothing, instead she raised her left hand out and suddenly multiple large rubble went flying in the air towards Makarov. The Wizard Saint merely dodged them or smacked them to the side with his large hands. Then Makarov fired a ball of light magic towards Niebla, only for the female demon to deflect it with her hand, her stoic face never changing. She then countered by raising her left hand again and before Makarov could react he was pulled towards Niebla by an invisible force. 'What the!? Gravity!?' Makarov thought as he tried to break free from the gravitational pull but to no avail.
"If you fight my Law with half a resolve." Niebla said in a monotone voice as she delivered a punch to Makarov's face when he was close enough. The old mage could feel another invisible force increasing the power of her fist. "Then you'll die." She added as she sent Makarov crashing through several buildings.
"Ugh" Makarov groaned as he slowly got up, rubbing his nose a bit. "Guess she's got a point. And I can't let her destroy the town." He finished as he charged towards Niebla.
Elsewhere in the plaza Ezel was laughing maniacally as he fired waves after waves of cutting shockwaves that slice apart anything they hit. "Oh man I don't know if Silver is really here or not but slaughtering all these fuckers is one hell of a stress reliever." Ezel exclaimed as he fired more slashes.
Suddenly a blast of energy struck him in the back, causing Ezel to cry out in shock. But it was quickly followed by more blasts as a barrage of magical bullets courtesy of Bisca and Alzack Connell; the Gun Mages of Fairy Tail struck him. The two had seen the explosions from their home and after making sure their daughter, Asuka, was safe, the couple headed out to confront the closes enemy, in this case Ezel. By the time they finished a large cloud of dust covered the plaza where Ezel had stood.
"Think that finished him off?" Alzack asked his wife as he reloaded his gun.
His question was answered when a large energy blade soared at him and Bisca. The two mages just barely managed to get out of the way as it sliced a building behind them in half. Coming out of the dust was a bruised Ezel who had a vicious grin on his face.
"Does that answer your question dear?" Bisca asked as she summoned one of her guns again.
"Those were some pretty nasty wounds you guys gave me." Ezel commented as he his tentacles began to move in excitement. "I hope you two make things more interesting for me then those other mages I ran into." He said with a sadistic smile before firing waves of slashes towards the couple. Bisca and Alzack jumped to the opposite sides to dodge the barrage.
Recovering Alzack fired a barrage of magical bullets at Ezel. The demon however merely deflected them with his arms. Trying a different tactic Azlack pointed only one of his guns and said, "Sunlight Shot!" And fired a bullet that released a bright light. The sudden flash of light blinded Ezel temporarily, forcing the demon to use his arms to shield his eyes. When he could finally see he was greeted with Bisca standing a few feet in front of him, her magic pumped-up shotgun in her arms. "Shit!" Ezel cursed.
"Wide Shot!" Bisca cried as she fired the gun. It released a single bullet that suddenly split into several dozen magical shards. All of them struck Ezel at once, creating a huge explosion that consumed Ezel. Bisca then moved back towards Azlack as she kept an eye on the smoke for any signs of Ezel.
Just as they thought they had won, the Connells heard the sound of laughter coming from the smoke. Ezel's silhouette could now be seen from the smoke. As he took another pose the demon yelled, "Now that's what I call teamwork. Here, you two can die together! Mikazuki!" And he waved his arms around rapidly, firing moon shaped shockwaves that soon caused a large explosion around the area.
Standing on a cliff that overlooked the town, Keith watched as the carnage raged everywhere in Magnolia. "Today brings forth destruction and the dead will rise to heed the bidding of the demons." Keith murmured as he used his curse, Necromancy, to bring the recently deceased back to life to do his bidding and aid Tartarus' forces.
"Do not forget why we were sent here Keith." A voice from behind said. "Have you found the traitor?"
The skeleton-like demon turned around to face the newcomer, whom was walking towards him. Said person was slightly taller then Keith and wore a white, black-trimmed armor that appeared to be a mix of a Japanese's Samurai and a European's Knight with a long black cape wrapped around his neck collar. Underneath the armor was dark grey colored skin and black clothing. Over his hands were black gloves, while his feet were covered by dark, grey boots that went past his ankles. The person wore a Pickelhaube that covered the top of his head and the back too (A/N: Its an old German Helmet usually worn by military commanders). A bundle of yellow tassel was sticking out from the top of the helmet and going down the back. He also wore a mask plate that covered the lower part of his face. On the sides of the helmet were black colored Tartarus guild symbols. Of his eyes, all that could be seen were glowing yellow dots.
"White Night Homoru" Keith said as he looked at his fellow Demon Lord. "I have used my Necromancy to scan the entire area. Silver was here but has left some time ago. And Askari is blocking any communications from entering or leaving the town. From what he's learned, Silver has left with his son to train him in Devil Slayer Magic."
"Then us being here is pointless." Homoru said as he crossed his arm while looking down at the town.
"Not entirely. Silver will show; this is his son's guild after all." Keith replied. "Plus we have a chance to wipe out a possible threat while their forces are spread."
Homoru looked at the skeleton Etherious before turning his view back to Magnolia. Suddenly the armored demon began to float off the ground. As he did he said, "Then in that case I will deal with the source."
(House of Former Council Member Belno)
"God damn thing! Why won't it work!?" Gajeel roared as he kept playing with the communication lacrima.
"I don't think hitting will fix it Gajeel." Pantherlily said to his partner.
"Well do you have any ideas?" Gajeel retorted angrily.
"Short tempered-as ever huh Gajeel?" Belno asked as she walked out from the kitchen with a tray of drinks.
Gajeel, Pantherlily and Team Shadow Gear had managed to arrive to Belno's house, situated on the outskirts of a village, pretty quickly since Gajeel knew the address already. The others found out that Gajeel and Belno knew each other already and while he didn't show it, Gajeel deeply cared for the elder woman in his own way. It was shown with his urgency to get to her place quickly.
Belno was quite shocked to see Gajeel and several Fairy Tail mages at her door. But she was more shocked that Tartarus was after her and other former council members. Granted Belno was a bit skeptical at first but upon Gajeel mentioning FACE, she knew that they were telling the truth. At the moment all of them were staying put in case Tartarus showed up. That and they couldn't contact the guild for some reason, the mages were wary of moving just yet.
"So you knew Gajeel before he joined Fairy Tail?" Levy asked as she politely took a cup of tea.
"I first met Gajeel when he was still in Phantom Lord. Back then he caused a lot of trouble, even more then he does in your guild." Belno said as she sat down. "The last time I saw him was seven years ago, a few days before Phantom Lord and Fairy Tail had their guild war. He reminded me a lot about my son who passed away so I tried to look out for him. When I heard he joined Fairy Tail I was quite surprised but it seems to have done some good for him."
"I wouldn't say that…" Droy muttered quietly with Jet silently agreeing. Though they have grown use to the Iron Dragon Slayer, the two male Shadow Gear members didn't complete forgive Gajeel for what he did to them, despite Levy's claims he had changed.
"By the way you're name is Levy correct?" Belno asked the petite blue haired girl.
"You've heard of me?" Levy asked, genuinely surprised. Not a lot of people outside of Fairy Tail or other close contacts have really heard of her, or at least not by name.
"There's a lot of talk about Fairy Tail ever since the Grand Magic Games in the Sorcery Weekly. Some of it talks about how you and Gajeel are a couple." Belno commented.
"A-a-a couple?" Levy shrieked. Her entire face became as red as Erza's hair. Jet and Droy went pale and their jaws dropped, hitting the floor, the thought of their beloved Levy being with Gajeel. Gajeel and Pantherlily didn't seem to hear it but knowing Gajeel's enhanced hearing, he most likely did but probably just ignored it.
"I don't really believe what that magazine says but I was interested of how they mentioned you two with each other at Ryuzetsu Park, like you were on a date. Honestly I was just curious since Gajeel could use someone to keep that temper of his in check." Belno commented, amusement in her voice, watching Levy become embarrassed.
Levy was about to respond when Gajeel shouted, "Everyone, get down!" He yelled as he tackled the group to the ground.
Soon a large explosion engulfed the house. It was so large that it reached the sky before finally dying down. The entire top of the house was gone along with most of the lower level where the Fairy Tail Mages were with Belno. Standing on top of the destroyed roof was Jackal, cackling. "Well, that was pretty easy." The demon said until he saw the figures of people in the smoke. "Huh?"
"I barely felt that!" Gajeel said. He was coated in his Iron Dragon's Scales and stood in front of Belno and Pantherlily, both of whom were on the floor while Gajeel protected them from the majority of the blast. Across from him was Levy whom had used her magic to create 'GUARD' to protect her and her teammates too.
"Fairy Tail huh?" Jackal murmured when he saw the guild emblem on Gajeel's shoulder. "I'm impressed that you managed to survive one of my bombs. But don't get ahead of yourself."
"We'll see about that! Let's go Lily!" Gajeel yelled as he charged forward.
"Right!" The black Exceed exclaimed before he switched into his battle form, his sword in hand.
"Gajeel!" Levy exclaimed as she prepared to go help him.
"You and the two losers protect granny! Lily and I got this bastard!" Gajeel ordered as he dodged several of Jackal's explosions.
"Whose he calling losers?!" Droy shouted.
"Never mind that! Just help get Belno-roshi out of here!" Levy ordered as she helped said woman up to her feet. The four made their way out of the destroyed house while Gajeel and Pantherlily dealt with the demon.
"You think I'm going to let you get away!?" Jackal exclaimed as he prepared another explosion only to be intercepted by a sword strike from Pantherlily. But he managed to jump over the slash before landing a kick to the Exceed's face. The force caused Pantherlily to fly into the wall while losing a grip on his sword. "Is that it fur ball?" Jackal asked mockingly.
"Iron Dragon's Club!" Gajeel roared and soon an iron club shot out of the Dragon Slayer's right arm and struck Jackal in the back. The Demon was sent flying backwards but managed to recover and land on a couch.
"That was a pretty bad-" Jackal didn't get a chance to finish when Lily delivered a punch right into Jackal's right cheek. "Bugh!" Jackal yelled as skidded across the ground.
"Now Gajeel!" Pantherlily yelled.
"I'm on it!" Gajeel replied as he appeared in the air above Jackal. "Iron Dragon's Roar!" He yelled before releasing a blast of iron shards right towards the demon. However Jackal managed to jump out of the way before raising his hand.
"Explode!" Jackal exclaimed as he engulfed Gajeel in another explosion. However Gajeel managed to dodge it and dived towards Jackal. "A frontal assault against me isn't smart! It's just plain stupid!" Jackal said before he prepared to release another explosion. But before he could do that he was again hit in the back, this time from a dropkick courtesy of Pantherlily. This led Jackal wide open to a barrage of punches from Gajeel who finished it up with a powerful uppercut, sending Jackal flying backwards.
Gajeel stood in his fighting stance as he stared at the down Jackal. "I think we got the bastard." Gajeel commented to Pantberlily, who landed beside him with his sword.
"We should probably let Levy and the others know. And bring him back to the guild for interrogation." Pantherlily suggested.
"That is if you have a guild to return too." Jackal said as he calmly got up. He was covered in several bruises but acted like nothing happened.
"What the fuck?" Gajeel asked as he looked at the demon. "It's like he didn't just take an ass-whooping a moment ago."
"He's pretty durable that's for sure." Pantherlily added.
"By the way." Jackal began, catching their attention. "That wasn't really a smart move, hitting me all the time. Well, you're about to find out why right now though." The demon commented.
"What…?" Was all Gajeel could say before he noticed glowing marks on his body. Pantherlily had the same marks on his body too and before either could react the marks exploded, engulfing their bodies in violent explosions. The two collapsed to the ground in defeated slumps.
"See?" Jackal asked, not really expecting an answer. With a final chuckle the Demon Lord dashed off after the former council member. "Well I'm off! Got places to go and councilors to kill!" He said as he laughed, leaving behind two unconscious Fairy Tail Mages.
Elsewhere Team Shadow Gear was leading Belno through an old path in the woods at the outskirts of the small village. It was in order to avoid getting any bystanders involved. "Do you think Gajeel will be alright?" Jet asked as he and Droy followed behind Belno and Levy.
"Yeah that demon looked pretty tough…and crazy." Droy added.
"This is Gajeel we're talking about. He'll be fine." Levy said as she kept running. "And he has Lily with him. They won't lose."
"Oh I wouldn't be so sure about that." A voice said.
Suddenly explosions appeared all around the group, nearly consuming them if not for Levy quickly shouting, "Solid Script: Guard!" Forming a large dome, protecting the four from the explosions. As the smoke died down team Shadow Gear and Belno saw Jackal standing on top of a tree branch looking over them. "Found you." Jackal said with a smirk.
"No way!" Jet exclaimed in shock.
"What happened to Gajeel and Lily?!" Levy demanded as she stood in front of Belno defensively.
"The iron head and muscle cat? Last time I saw those two were out of commission…permanently maybe." Jackal said sneered. "Now then, surrender the old hag now and I promise I won't give you a horrible death. I'm a considerate guy after all."
"Bastard! Don't look down at us!" Jet yelled back as he got in front of Levy.
"Yeah, now we'll show you the strength of Team Shadow Gear!" Droy added as he pulled out some seeds from his Live Coal container. "Knuckle Plant!" Droy shouted as he threw the seeds on to the ground. Quickly large vines with fists popped out and went straight towards Jackal. However the demon merely waved his hand and the vines exploded. But through the smoke Jet suddenly appeared, using his High Speed Magic to get the jump on Jackal.
"Falcon Heavenward!" Jet yelled as he kicked Jackal right in the chest.
Jackal smirked. "Shouldn't have done that." Was all he said before Jet was consumed by an explosion and sent flying backwards towards Droy, burnt marks over his body.
"Jet!" Levy and Droy shouted as the latter caught the Speed Mage.
But Jackal wasn't done there. Bringing his arms behind him and gathering energy, Jackal yelled, "Exploding Spiral!" As he swiped his arms at Jet and Droy, engulfing the two in a large explosion in the form of a spiral.
"GUYS!" Levy cried in horror as her two teammates fell to the ground, both unconscious and were covered in bruises and burns.
"I guess you're next huh pipsqueak?" Jackal asked as he casually made his way towards Levy when he was suddenly flung back by an invisible force. The force wasn't strong but it caught Jackal by surprise and he crashed into a tree. Levy turned around to see Belno with her hand raised.
"Belno-roshi!" Levy said in surprise when she realized that the older woman was using telekinesis.
"Take your friends and get out of here dear! I'll hold him off for as long as I can." Belno ordered as she moved past a shocked Levy.
"What? We can't abandon you!" Levy protested.
"He's after me not you! If he kills me then he won't go after you kids." Belno explained before wincing. Her old age and time from practicing had weakened her magic powers considerately. To prove that, Jackal easily freed himself from Belno's grip.
"Ha! Doesn't matter the order! I'll kill all of you damn humans!" Jackal declared maniacally before lunged towards Belno. He was about to grab her when suddenly his face with the feel of a iron fist.
"Back off bastard!" Gajeel roared as he sent Jackal skidding across the ground. The Iron Dragon Slayer was a bit bruised but was still holding strong. Following behind him was Lily who was equally bruised but still capable of fighting.
"Gajeel! Lily!" Said a relieved Levy as she saw that the two were okay.
Jackal grunted in annoyance when he saw that the Iron Dragon Slayer was still alive. "Got to admit, you're pretty tough to still move after feeling one of my bombs. But your memory doesn't seem to be working. Haven't you forgotten what happens when someone touches me?" Jackal asked mockingly.
Just as he said that Gajeel was consumed by another explosion. But when it cleared everyone minus Pantherlily, were shocked to see Gajeel still standing, covered in his iron scales. A little bit bruised but still fine. "What!? How?" Jackal roared.
"Gihihi" Gajeel snickered his signature laugh. "Compared to another pyromaniac I know, my iron scales are more then enough to deflect these lame explosions of yours." The Iron Dragon Slayer declared.
"You're scales!?" Jackal roared, not fully understanding what the mage meant.
'Gajeel used his Iron Dragon's Scales to take the brunt of the explosion. That way he take less damage from it.' Levy thought in awe.
"Lily! Protect shrimp and granny!" Gajeel told his partner before he dashed off towards a still shock Jackal. "Iron Dragon's Hard Fist!" He roared as he landed a powerful punch into Jackal's stomach, sending the demon back again. Once more the curse marks began to glow on Gajeel's fist.
"Hahaha!" Jackal laughed as he got up. "There! Kaboom!" He yelled as the explosion consumed Gajeel again. But he's laughter was cut off when Gajeel appeared from the smoke, unharmed and his scales still holding, though slightly cracked.
"Iron Dragon's Lance: Demon Logs!" Gajeel yelled. That's when several iron spears were fired rapidly from Gajeel's hand, which had morphed into a large iron spearhead. The barrage struck Jackal head on, delivering multiple bruises to the demon's body as he crashed into a crater.
"D-damn it…Damn it!" Jackal cursed as he began getting his way out of the crater. Despite all the damage he took the demon surprisingly still move. As he finally got up Jackal was met with Gajeel standing a few feet away from him a grin on his face.
"When the ice stripper's old man said you guys were a threat, I almost believed him." Gajeel commented as he made his way towards Jackal. "But now I think you guys are a bunch of pussies. If this is all you 'Demon Lords' got then kicking your Master's ass will be easy." Gajeel mocked.
Those words seem to have been the last straw for Jackal. Suddenly his body began shaking violently before everyone's eyes. Slowly he began to morph, getting bigger and bigger. All the time he kept muttering. "Don't you, don't you…DON'T YOU DARE LOOK DOWN ON US DEMONS!" Jackal roared as his transformation was complete.
Standing before Belno and the shocked Fairy Tail Mages was a large demonic dog. Jackal's shirt was now torn due to the change of size and he had gained a scar over his left eye. "What the hell-" Was all Gajeel could say before the transformed Jackal delivered a powerful punch right into Gajeel's stomach. The contact created an explosion that sent the Iron Dragon Slayer flying.
"Gajeel!" Levy cried as Gajeel managed to recover and land on his feet.
"He can create explosions on contact now?!" Pantherlily exclaimed in shock.
"There is no way humans can ever overcome the power of demons!" Jackal yelled as he threw another punch at Gajeel. This time however the mage was able to dodge it. But the punch still caused an explosion to occur but Jackal paid it no mind as he kept going after Gajeel. "There is nothing that can defeat E.N.D! He is the firstborn of Zeref, the first Etherious! HE IS THE GOD OF DEMONS! E.N.D CANNOT BE DEFEATED BY INSECTS LIKE YOU AND NEITHER CAN WE!" Jackal roared again as he kept swinging wild punches at Gajeel.
"Iron Shadow Dragon Mode!" Gajeel yelled as shadows began to surround his body. His iron scales became more sleek and smooth, covering his body like a silver skin while his eyes turned pitch white and his black hair stood up. Jackal threw another punch at him but Gajeel merely disappeared into the shadows, avoiding the attack. "WHAT?!" Jackal roared as Gajeel seemingly disappeared.
"Iron Shadow Dragon's Club!" Gajeel cried as he came out of the shadows behind Jackal and delivered a powerful blow to the demon's head with an iron club covered in shadows. Jackal howled and swung around to hit Gajeel. But Gajeel quickly turned into a shadow again and dodged it, as well as the explosion afterwards.
Meanwhile the spectators were struggling to stand on their feet at the intense battle. "Damn it! We need to get out of here!" Pantherlily yelled as he tried to cover Levy, Belno and the down Jet and Droy.
"Lily! Get Jet, Droy and Belon-roshi out of there!" Levy ordered as she ran towards the fight.
"Wait Levy what are you doing?!" Pantherlily asked as he picked up the two unconscious mages.
"To support Gajeel! He can't keep fighting that guy for long!" Levy replied as she kept moving forward. "Gajeel!"
Gajeel had just dodged another one of Jackal's explosion when he heard Levy's voice. "Levy! What the fuck are you doing?!" He roared back.
"Solid Script: Iron!" Levy said as she used her magic to create a giant piece of iron and shot it towards Gajeel. "Finish him!" Levy yelled back.
Gajeel smirked, impressed with the little mage's courage and quick thinking. "Roger that!" Gajeel replied as he grabbed the iron and quickly began eating it.
"The only one who is going to be finished…IS YOU!" Jackal roared as he lunged towards Gajeel.
Having just finished eating the iron and deactivating his Iron Shadow Dragon Mode, Gajeel made a stance before clapping his hands over his head. "Dragon Slayer Secret Art! Karma Demon: Iron God Sword!" He cried as his hands morphed and turned into a giant iron sword that went pass the trees. Then with a single swing, Gajeel brought the gigantic weapon downwards on top of Jackal, crushing the demon and destroying a large part of the forest in front of him. What followed afterwards was a final explosion from Jackal that consumed Gajeel.
That attacked had done it. As the dust cleared it revealed an unconscious Jackal amongst the rubble and back into his original form. Gajeel was also tired, panting heavily as his hands returned to normal before plopping his butt on the ground. The rest of him followed as he fell backwards with his back hitting the ground.
"Gajeel!" Levy said as she rushed up to the down Dragon Slayer. Belno and Pantherlily were right behind her, the latter holding Jet and Droy in his arms. "Gajeel are you okay?" Levy asked.
"Gihihi…I feel like I got hit by one of Salamander's punches." Gajeel muttered as he opened one of his eyes, a smile on his face as he looked at the others.
Levy smiled at Gajeel's words along with Pantherlily while Belno shook her head. "Honestly you never change do you boy?" She asked exasperatedly as if scolding a child but there was a small smile on her lips.
Gajeel just did his signature laugh again. But the moment was ruined when a bright light began to glow from nearby. The source was none other then Jackal. The demon had woken up and managed to flip himself over so he was facing the ground. But he couldn't really move yet but he paid it no mind as the glow intensified and pillars of light shot out of the ground too.
"This is ridiculous…for me to lose to a human." Jackal muttered. Then a small smile formed on his lips. "Sorry Abaddon-san, Master, at the very least…I can take them all with me."
"What are you doing?!" Pantherlily demanded as he drew his sword, ready for an attack.
"The power he is releasing is enough to destroy the entire village!" Belno cried as she could feel the massive amount of energy the demon was releasing.
"Stop it!" Levy cried.
"Haha, you all lose. I am the bomb." Jackal explained. "Everything will explode even if I die." Jackal then began laughing manically. "Guess we'll see each other in hell!"
"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Pantherlily roared as he turned back into his battle mode before grabbing Jackal and taking to the air.
"Lily!" Gajeel yelled as the Exceed took to the sky.
"Bastard!" Jackal cursed as he tried to free himself but Pantherlily held firm.
Once he was high enough Pantherlily reared his arms back. "Don't think we'll lose to a bunch of scum like you!" The black Exceed roared and threw Jackal higher into the air.
As his body began to glow brighter Jackal cried out one last time. "SHIT!" He yelled as he released a large explosion high in the sky. Fortunately Pantherlily was away from the explosion but the sudden change in wind pressure hit him hard as he was sent hurtling back towards the ground. The black Exceed managed to perform a crash landing while changing out of his battle form. The now smaller Pantherlily was quickly caught by Levy. "Well…that was a close." Lily muttered with a grin, but wincing soon afterwards.
"You two…" Levy muttered as she smiled softly at the both of them. Belno was helping Gajeel up just as Droy and Jet woke up.
"Ugh my head hurts…" Droy moaned.
"Damn it, where did that bastard go?" Jet muttered as he looked around for signs of Jackal. But to his surprise all he saw were a beaten up Gajeel and Pantherlily, a slightly bruised Levy and Belno and a devastated forest that looked like it came out of a warzone. "W-wait, what happened?" Jet asked confused.
"So now you losers decide to wake up?" Gajeel sneered at the two males but neither heard him.
"We should head to the village. There's a hospital there where we can get these two checked out." Belno said as she handed Gajeel over to Jet and Droy.
"No…" Gajeel protested weakly. His body was hurting all over from that fight and was just barely staying awake. "Need to…get back…guild…in trouble…" He managed to say before he finally lost consciousness.
"What's he talking about?" Levy asked as she looked at Pantherlily.
"Back at the house, that demon, Jackal, said something." The Exceed said as he recalled the demon's words.
"That is if you have a guild to return too." Those were Jackal's words to Pantherlily and Gajeel from the house and to the Exceed only one thought came to mind.
"I think the guild might be in trouble." Pantherlily said to the shocked people.
(Back with Erza and Mirajane)
Abaddon's head snapped towards the direction where Gajeel's group was. Even though the location was very far, the leader of the Demon Lords could feel the disappearance of an Etherious's Curse Power. "That's where Jackal was. Was he defeated?" Abaddon wondered before turning his attention back towards his two opponents.
The area around him was even in worse shape then where Gajeel and Jackal fought. The ground was completely decimated, with trees uprooted and large boulders in pieces. Craters of various sizes could be seen a mile away. In front of him were Mirajane and Erza and both women looked worse for wear then they were before the battle started.
Mirajane was in her Satan Soul: Sitri form. However she was heavily bruised, purple disfigured marks covered her body along with multiple scratches, with a few bleeding. Several ribs were broken too and her vision was a bit blurry too. Beside her Erza didn't look much better. She was wearing her Flame Empress Armor but it had seen better days. The left boot and lower part of the greave had been torn off, revealing her foot and leg. Both wings on the back of the armor were destroyed, her right gauntlet was also gone, revealing her arm and hand while the bottom portion of the breastplate was gone, revealing her stomach. She also had her own share of injuries, including several nasty bruises plus a swollen cheek and blood going down her face from the forehead. Both were exhausted but manage to stand.
Abaddon however was the total opposite. He had no wounds on him and seemed completely fine, not the least bit winded despite fighting two S-class mages. In fact he looked rather bored and disappointed at how easy this fight was going.
"T-this guy is strong." Mira muttered as she glared at Abaddon. Never in her life had she faced off against someone that could take her on with just ease. Worse, he managed take her and Erza on at the same time without breaking a sweat. "Erza…maybe we should retreat."
"N-no…" Erza muttered as she walked forward, raising her sword and got into a fighting position. "I will not retreat whatsoever. As a Fairy Tail Mage will neither run nor lose, not against people like you." She declared bravely, her glare towards Abaddon.
Mirajane just looked at Erza as if she had gone crazy. She knew that the redhead was a prideful woman but in this situation such a thing would get Erza killed. Abaddon seemed to share similar thoughts as he spoke. "Are you sure that's your warrior pride?" The demon asked calmly. "Or the act of a stubborn child."
And in a flash he reappeared right in front of Erza. The Requip mage had little time to react as Abaddon delivered a devastating blow to her chest, breaking a bone or two too. "Hado: Genkotsu" Abaddon said as he launched Erza backwards.
"Erza!" Mirajane cried before glaring at Abaddon. She tried to deliver a kick at the demon. But Abaddon managed to block it with his arm before countering with a punch into Mira's face. That sent the Take Over mage back several feet, but she managed to recover and flew to the air. Once she was high enough Mira began to gather magical energy around her until it began to form into a dark sphere. "Evil Explosion!" Mira yelled as she fired the sphere down at Abaddon, resulting in an explosion upon impact.
"Impressive…" A voice said from behind Mirajane. She had only a few seconds to turn around before a hand gripped the side of her head and launched her into the ground. Back in her previous position was an unharmed Abaddon, standing in the air with energy pulsing from his feet. "But against my Hado Curse nothing you do will come to avail."
Lying in a crater that she made, Mirajane struggled to get up, but was suddenly and violently pinned down by Abaddon, landing on top of her. Mira could only let out a gasp before a hand gripped her neck. "My curse raises my physical capabilities to supernatural levels with demonic energy and is empowered by my emotions, which I have learned to master for the past 400 years. In other words you have no chance of defeating me." Abaddon explained as he tightened his grip around Mirajane's throat.
"Get off of her!" Erza roared. She had already changed to her Purgatory Armor and lunged at Abaddon with her large spiked mace ready to strike. However just as she brought her mace down, Abaddon moved faster and with his spare hand grabbed the weapon easily. "What?" Erza said in surprise. No one had ever been able to stop her mace before, let alone with their bare hands.
"Hado: Mashu: Konagona!" Abaddon said as he squeezed his hand on the mace before eventually breaking it apart followed by a small shockwave. Erza was forced backwards by the shockwave.
However Abaddon was focused on Erza that he hadn't been looking at Mirajane. Said person was able to free her hands and place them on Abaddon's chest. The demon had just enough time to notice when Mira said her attack. "Evil Spark!" And the S-class mage released a powerful volt of electricity right at Abaddon's chest through his entire body. But instead of letting go of Mira, Abaddon shrugged off the attack easily and grabbed Mira's face.
"It appears you two fairies need more demonstrations until you realized how outclassed you are." Abaddon said as he easily threw Mirajane at Erza, the redhead still in her Purgatory Armor. The Titania managed to catch Mira, but that just gave Abaddon and opening to attack both of them.
"Hado: Teppo Soin!" Abaddon said as he extended his arms out wide before launching at them with incredible speed. He caught each girl with an arm, hitting them hard in the stomach, causing them to cough out blood. The two girls had little time to counter before Abaddon launched them forward. Erza and Mirajane both crashed into a large piece of rubble that was once the Ex-Chairman's house. The impact cause Mirajane to revert back to her normal form as she next fell to her hands and knees. She was heavily bruised and out of breath, her yellow kimono covered in dirt with a few holes on it. The hit from before really messed up her body inside as she could feel several bones were broken. Erza was also slightly winded from the obviously one-sided fight; her stomach was heavily bruised from the last attack, but she refused to back down as she changed back to her Heart Krutz armor.
"Why don't you just give up?" Abaddon asked as he walked up to them. "It's quite obvious you cannot win. I rather not inflict anymore damage then necessary and frankly it's depressing to fight children like yourselves…especially you Erza Scarlet."
"Shut up!" Erza roared as she clutched her stomach with her left hand while summoning a sword. But she was lifted upwards by Abaddon, who suddenly appeared before her. He held her by the throat with his right hand and held her off the ground.
"Ever since our Master returned seven years ago, we've been watching your guild, which has caused unknown pain to our Master." Abaddon said calmly as he held Erza by the throat. He ignored Mirajane's presence beside him, since she could barely move with her injuries. "And from what I learned of you Erza Scarlet…you're nothing more then a childish bully, not a warrior." The demon said.
"W-what?" Erza asked as she fought to free herself from Abaddon's grip but to no avail.
"You act like an adult and a warrior but really you're nothing but a little child who uses force on others. Even on your so called 'friends'." Abaddon stated. "You become quickly impatient when people don't speak quick enough, you become angry and use physical force on anyone, even your guild mates, when they don't do something you say. You even struck me out right away merely because I wasted your favorite sweet." He said as his left hand took the sword from Erza's. "You have strength and power worthy for an S-class mage, you lack maturity and patience, making you nothing more then a bully whose own comrades ignore and wish to avoid. And you can't tell me that you've never noticed how they acted around you?"
Erza paused from her struggling as she took in Abaddon's words. As much as she wanted to deny it, most of what he said made sense. She always resorted to violence whenever she was mad or didn't get what she wanted. Even her closes people, like Lucy, Gray and Natsu, tended to be a bit weary of being near her. And the other people in the guild seemed a bit scared of her even though they were friends. Could it really be true? Was she nothing more then a childish bully who used force? Even on her friends, her family?
"No you're wrong!" Mirajane cried weakly from where she laid. "Erza is our comrade!"
"She may be your comrade but that doesn't change the fact that she is nothing more then a child undeserving of her reputation." Abaddon retorted. "Plus saying that doesn't mean you're denying my claim. Though you being her former rival means you have a better idea of her."
Mira's eyes widened in horrifying realization that Abaddon had used her protest against her, but this went unnoticed by the Etherious as he looked back at Erza. "While I admit that I do not know your personal history, I can say this. Erza Scarlet: the people who gave their lives for you…died in vain. For they died for a child who can never grow up. And while killing you would be a waste of time."
STAB! SQUEALSH!
Erza's world suddenly came to a halt as she felt something sharp and metal pierce her body, with a stream of blood coming out of mouth. Looking down she saw that Abaddon had rammed her sword through her gut during his monologue. Her blood began to seep out of the wound onto the sword's blade and eventually drip towards the ground. Her eyes wide, Erza looked back at Abaddon's face, his yellow eyes still looking at her.
"Killing you would be doing the world a favor." Abaddon finished as he let go of the sword's handle.
Mirajane's eyes were as wide as saucers as she watched the scene unfold. Her voice finally came back when Abaddon tossed Erza's body like a rag doll, sword still impaled as she hit the ground. "NOOOOO! ERZA!"
However the redhead did not respond to Mira's loud cries, even as barmaid kept screaming her name. Mirajane was soon silenced by a well place punch to the head courtesy of Abaddon. "You however, I have orders to bring you back, alive if possible." Abaddon said to the unconscious Take Over mage.
Erza, still conscious, could only watch silently as Abaddon slung Mira's still form over his shoulder. "M-Mira…" Erza said, but her voice was so low that Abaddon made no indication that he heard her. The demon began to walk away with the white hair mage while Erza's world finally went dark.
(Magnolia; Fairy Tail Guild)
"We got more wounded!" Someone shouted.
"Move them over to the far right!" Macao said back. "Take them to the second floor if there is no room!"
The battle in Magnolia had dragged on, creating heavy casualties for both Fairy Tail and the citizens. The mages had set out towards where the heaviest damage was happening in order to deal with the more dangerous invaders. Others focused on protecting important places like the hospital and spreading all over town to evacuate the civilians. The mages even began using their guild building to house civilians and the wounded too. But with so many of their people out trying to locate and protect the former council members or on missions, Fairy Tail had little firepower to fight back and protect the Magnolia citizens.
At the bar Cana and Warren were hard at work with a different subject. Cana was trying to contact the Fairy Tail mages out on missions with a communication lacrima and her magical cards. Warren was trying to use his telepathy to contact the others too while sometimes shifting to act as a messenger to the ones in the town. Kinana was also with them, ready to assist them if they needed any.
"Are you getting anything yet Warren?" The buxom Card mage asked.
"Nothing" Warren said grimly. "Either the others are too far out for me to reach them or something is blocking my telepathy. Fortunately I can still reach those in the town."
"Damn" Cana cursed. She too was having little luck with calling anyone. "I can't believe our luck. Tartarus attacks us when most of our people are out of town. Was this deliberate or just a stroke of bad luck on our side?" Cana muttered to herself.
"But we have the Master here with us. With him we can push these demons back, or hold them off until the others get back." Kinana said, trying to lighten the mood.
Cana looked like she was going to respond, but was cut off when the guild began to shake. This caused everyone to stop what they were doing as they looked around nervously. The shaking soon stopped, but before they could let out a breath of relief, the wall where the request board was exploded, sending several mages nearby flying backwards.
Cana, Kinana and Warren shielded their faces from the smoke that came after. "What the hell-" Was all Warren could say before several yellow laser beams appeared, blowing him away from the girls. They struck everywhere, causing large explosions every time they hit. People screamed in panic and terror as they tried to get to some kind of cover. The remaining mages tried to defend themselves, the wounded and the citizens with their magic but the beams were very strong.
After a few minutes of constant beams and explosions did it die down. The entire guildhall was now up in smokes and flames. Voices from the occupants could be heard through smoke as they tried to get out of the burning building. Near where the bar used to be a slightly bruised Kianna slowly got up from the floor, painting heavily after the whole ordeal. "What in Mavis's name was that?" The buxom purple haired assistant barmaid wondered as she looked around.
A groan caught her attention. Spinning around Kinana spotted Cana through the smoke and flames. The brown hair girl was also equally banged up and her right leg seemed broken. Surprisingly her bikini was still in tact but that was the least of anyone's concern.
"Cana!" Kinana yelled out as she rushed towards the down Card mage. But she stopped when a grey boot appeared beside Cana. Both girls looked to see that it was Homoru, the demon standing above Cana menacingly. From the tips of his left fingers smoke came out, along with wisps of smoke coming from his yellow eyes too.
"Tartarus…" Cana groaned as she tried to reach for her magic cards. Homoru swiftly stopped that as he roughly grabbed her left wrist. This caused Cana's body to jolt upwards, making her release a gasp of pain. Her body was pulled up more until she was on her knees while the demon still had a grip on her wrist.
"Defiant until the end?" Homoru asked mockingly. His eyes began to glow brightly as he stared down at Cana's form. "It is time you humans learn your place. All that awaits you is death when you challenge the might of the demons." He commented as his eyes became bright and brighter.
Kinana could feel the power coming from Homoru's eyes. The demon planned to finish off Cana once and for all. "Stop it!" Kinana cried desperately, trying to find a way to save Cana. But she knew there was little she, someone who wasn't even a mage, could do in this situation. All the purple hair girl could do was watch in horror as Homoru prepared to kill the Card mage.
But just at the last second, as if the heavens themselves were looking down upon them, something unexpected happened. A brown and orange blur appeared out of nowhere and struck Homoru, followed by a brief explosion and small shockwave. The result was Homoru's right arm being split in half and his grip on Cana too. Said girl was grabbed the blur and taken near Kianna.
Homoru seemed recoiled, though it was more from surprise rather then pain of having his arm torn off. As the glow in his eyes died down, the demon took a moment to look at his attacker. "Who are you?" Homoru asked as he gripped what was left of his right arm.
The person said nothing at first, merely laid Cana gently on the ground. Said girl seemed a bit winded over what transpired the last few seconds. Kinana quickly rushed over to her while the third person stood up, showing that he was wearing a long brown tattered cape, tan skin and had orange hair combed back. "I am a lot of things." The man said calmly as he slowly began to turn around. "I'm a ladies man, a mage, a traveler, a Guild Ace, and I was recently a Guild Master." The now revealed Gildarts Clive paused as he glared at Homoru. There was nothing but pure rage in the man's eyes while his magical power spiked, covering him in a white aura. "But right now, I am a father."
(The Cube; The Chambers of E.N.D)
The Guild Master of Tartarus sat casually on his throne. His chamber was dark, the only exceptions being the moonlight creeping in from the window and the several screens hanging from the ceiling before him. E.N.D watched with mild interest of the actions that his guild was causing all over Fiore and would shift the image back to Magnolia, watching the battle in the town from various angles.
"Lord E.N.D, Abaddon has returned with a prisoner. It is the Take Over mage that can absorb demons." A voice said somewhere in the darkness.
E.N.D nodded, not taking his eyes off the screen. He was about to look at another screen when something on the center screen caught his attention. Whatever it was made E.N.D's eyes widened in what looked to be shocked, denial and…hope. "Pause" E.N.D ordered quickly and the image stopped automatically. "Zoom" He said next. By now the demon was on his feet, leaning closely towards the screen. His eyes focused completely on the image, trying to see if he was being deceived or not.
The Etherious watched as the screen zoomed in on the image that E.N.D desired. Said image was somewhere in Magnolia. It showed Lucy moving through the town, instructing the citizens to get to safety. As E.N.D continued to stare at Lucy's form, his mouth parted slightly. A single word escaped his lips. "Leandra…"
And there we go! Battles are now raging everywhere between Fairies and Demons. And is Erza still alive? Well I'm the writer so only I know that. And for those of you wanting to see more of Lucy and her part in all this, that will be next chapter! Make sure to review!
Translation:
Hado: Genkotsu (Wave Motion: Fist Bone)
Hado: Mashu: Konagona (Wave Motion: Demon Hand: Shatter)
Hado: Teppo Soin (Wave Motion: Iron Cannon Sweep)