What's up guys, and Slender's Father here once more. Or you can call me Dine On Corpses, for those you who have Steam accounts.
So here are some answers to the reviews I have received, which btw, thank you for the support!
Are Aizen and Yamamoto alive?
Yes. I started the original story when the Fullbringer Arc was coming to an end. So the Thousand Year War didn't start. As you read in the Interlude, the Quinciies decided to take a more legal approach after the unveiling of the world's hidden powers.
Bya/Ren
I don't do yaoi. I gender bend for a reason. Maybe I could gender bend Byakuya, but no. I don't like their pairing in the first place.
Also, please remember that there are elements in this story that are AU from the original (like the timeline and several indiviudals). Just take the story as it goes.
Chapter 7:
Getting Down to Business
In Acnologia's opinion, the first part of the Grand Magic Tournament was similar to men bragging the size of their muscles ... except there were some women here who had bigger brawn than some men. She cackled a bit.
Initially, she had wanted her Ichigo to participate in this part of the tournament, as he was sure to participate in the Sparring Tournament she told to join. It would have shown the rest of this petty kingdom how powerful her Ichigo was. To be fair though, had she been a human, she would have easily become one of the "Ten Wizard Saints" that Fiore seems to uphold in awe for their magical prowess.
Ichigo would dominate all of them by himself with his Bankai.
How did she know this? Because she saw it. She saw him slice open demons which would have easily wiped the floor with the lower ranked Wizard Saints in the fortresses that they raided together -with terrified Laxus in tow. Demons she herself would have trouble with. And he took them on by the hordes.
To show the world the power of her love ... it would have been magnificant.
But then she realized once she got here that ... just showing power was not enough. She wanted his power to be shown as the absolute. For example, analysts among the mages could argue that even if her love could pump out an unimaginable amount of magic, if he doesn't know how to use it, he's useless; even a danger, depending on his lack of control.
She didn't want a single 'nay' about the invincibility of her love's power. So ... she convinced him to participate in the Dungeon Tournament. It was similar to the constant raids she and Ichigo carried out on the demon fortresses all over the world. Considering that most of the "mobs" that the participants were going to face were made for strong mages, Ichigo should have no problem.
Which now leads to the lack of excitement for the first part of the Grand Magic Tournament. There was no one who was exciting! They were all humble and whatnot.
At least it was coming to an end.
"Ichigo, let's go somewhere else," she said as she stood up. "You're not going to be in this tournament until tomorrow anyway."
Ichigo glanced at her before nodding. He stood up and followed her out.
Makarov watched the two top tier fighters of his guild leave. He guessed that they got bored. He knows he was bored by this. Granted, most of the participating mages of this part of the tournament were A-rank at average with few S-ranks scattered about the roster.
Perhaps it was stagnation among the mage population.
This decade had been the worst decade that the Kingdom of Fiore had faced in terms of finding the number of A-rank and S-rank mages, whether they be inventors, fighters, enchanters, explorers, questers, or just plain old guild masters.
According to the consensus released to the guild masters early this year by the Magic Council, the number of mages becoming A-rank or S-rank had hit a century low at 193.
193 may sound like a lot, but when 10% of the population was a mage in Fiore and the rest of the world, this was a serious deficit, especially when one considers that Fiore has a total human population of around 17 million people.
Yes, 1.7 million people were mages, and this year, only 193 of them had become A-rank and S-rank, bringing just above 3,000.
Compared to other kingdoms like Peregrande Kingdom, which has more than 7,000 A-rank mages and 200 S-rank mages, Fiore was falling behind in terms of magical manpower.
Despite this, Fiore housed the strongest group of individuals; the Four Gods of Ishgar. The top four members of the Ten Wizard Saints, they were individuals who could bring about cataclysm of their own fashion.
That made him wonder...
Just how strong were the Black Dragon Slayer duo compared to any of the Ten Wizard Saints?
He knew that Ichigo could fight him and come out on top, so the question was how much effort would Ichigo have to use to defeat him?
Makarov frowned. "Great, now I wish I had participated," he muttered just as the first part of the Grand Magic Tournament came to an end. It would be just thrilling to show the youngsters the power of their parents and grandparents.
Ichigo sat bored as he stared into empty space as Acnologia chased after bandits.
Currently, they were more than twelve kilometer away from the border of the Crocus, the capital city of Fiore and where the Grand Magic Tournament was being held.
So why were they out here? They were bored. Ichigo certainly did not like sitting for no reason. At least out here, where there were bandits and evil-doers for him and Acnologia to stomp on, there was something to do.
Or in her case, torture.
"Where is your candy?!" she shrieked as she tossed a screaming bandit high into the air, clearing the treetops before he fell back down. Unfortunately, Acnologia spun him around before tossing him up into the air. "Where are you hiding your candies!"
"Somebody save me from this crazy bitch~!"
"What'd you call me, human?!" she roared before tossing him higher.
Ichigo pulled out a small notepad with a minituarized version of a wanted poster. [Johnson Brothers. 5,000 jewels for each head. 7,500 jewels for each alive.] He looked up. "Ah-chan, don't crush their head for any reason! We need them for identification!"
Acnologia didn't hear him.
She changed into a dragon and snapped her teeth down on the screaming -now dead hysterical- dead man.
He facepalmed. "Goddamn it, Ah-chan..."
She changed back to her human form, acting as if she had not just swallowed a man.
"What?"
"You just swallowed a man. With a bounty. That's lost money."
Acnologia just scoffed. "I don't care about human-"
"Money that could have been used to buy more spirits."
She immediately changed back and regurgitated the man. Surprisingly, he was still alive.
"Oh, he's alive. That's more money."
"Yay."
Everyday life of Acnologia and Ichigo.
Back in the city...
Gray was not happy.
He had participated in the first portion of the tournament, which was the only portion that he had been allowed to join under the reasons of age and inexperience. Still, he got to participate... Except he didn't get what he wanted.
He thought he was strong! He could launch ice lances that pierce houses and metal plates!
...And he came in at the 7th place among 90 participants. It was embarrassing! He was Frost Mage of Fairy Tail! ...And he came in not even within the top five?
It was frustrating! Those two years of improvement? Nothing!
"Grrr..."
While he sat in a corner heating himself up with his self-depreciation and frustration, Natsusat in another corner of the inn, the Honey Bones where Fairy Tail had rented out, and sat coolly, calmly thinking over what he had been through today. Just like Gray, he had been allowed to only participate in the first portion of the tournament, but unlike Gray, he had scored lower.
With the position of 8th place.
He had to ponder on why he ended up there. Ever since his match against Ichigo, he had been training. He had climbed moutains, crushed hills, set said debris of hills on fire 'til there was nothing left, and even went as far as to crush bandits he came across with a vigor. He knew he grew stronger. No, he knows he was strong now. Stronger than he had ever been!
Yet on the weakest portion of the Grand Magic Tournament, he had scored the 8th place. He too was frustrated, but he was calculating on why...
Most of the mages were in their prime; 80% of the participants were in their 20's and 30's. There were few like him and Gray, who were below 20. Hell, he and Gray were the youngest mages there. Getting 8th place was actually not a bad placement.
Despite such logical reasoning, he was still ... unsatisfied with his placement.
Because despite the turnout of the Grand Magic Tournament, he and Gray were still top fighters beneath the S-rank mages. Outside of Laxus, Mystogan, Erza, Mirajane, Gildarts, and few others, he was on the top!
So why?
Did he underestimate the other guilds just because his guild was known as a the strongest? Did he not put in enough effort during the tournament? It was actualy unlikely he didn't put enoguh effort; he was currently lacking more than 80% of his magic. If dumping all of his mana into what was basically a measuring device was not trying, he didn't know what was.
Makarov, on the other hand, sat drinking with Yajima, who looked very interested in the ruckus that Fairy Tail members were causing in the inn.
"It's nice to know to it's the same as ever," Yajima commented.
Makarov nodded.
"There were even some good mages, especially from your guild. I believe your fire dragon slayer and ice mage will become a powerhouse."
Makarov understood the words beneath those words. Yajima, despite being a laidback man, had to deal in politics and high society due to his position within the Magic Council. His words, while it may sound like a praise, were a single warning. He used the word powerhouse instead of a strong mage.
Powerhouse was the code word for "marked by special interests."
Special interest being anything from dark guilds, Rune Knights, or private employees.
Using the jobs instead of names of the mages in question meant it was Rune Knights who were interested.
"Well, they'd better be! They trained day and night to come where they are now!" he said proudly, despite the fact that the words he had been implied to were less than cheerful.
Yajima smiled.
He too did not like the Rune Knights, despite their usefulness. While Rune Knights kept good care of the public order, when it came to things outside of their normal operations, like special operation, black flag operations, terrorism, or power struggle, they were completely useless. There was a glaring need for such operations, though. Unfortunately, the Magic Council was supported the nations of Ishgar, and many of the member nations were squeamish about allowing an organization without ties to any single of them with a black operation trained mages.
Considering that there were precedents that served to dissuade each of the nations involved (Water Bomb Terrorism, Yuhavolis Destruction, Warthi Golden City Bombing, etc), it was a no-brainer. Especially with the Smolensk Mountain Rebellion only having occurred two decades ago-instigated by a rogue special operativeby another kingdom.
The fifty years ago, the Peregrande Kingdom stood at the top of the Ishgar international food chain as the nation with the largest standing army, navy, income, trade, and magic. They had been that way for three centuries. However, they had assimilated smaller nations during their golden era, and the minor ethnic groups were starting to become a problem. At first, it was a small thing. The nobles of the old kingdom, before the kingdom had expanded, looked down upon the newcomers, noble or commoner. There was a no discrimination other than a preconceived notion. Next, the notion became action as the minor ethnic groups were segregated from taking position in the government. Then, the actions led to more reaction as both the citizens of the old kingdom began to discriminate and the minorities began to protest.
Finally, it blew over. Spurred on by a captivating militiaman to take action for their grievances, the Rus and Byelossi people rose up as one against the Peregrande Kingdom.
A rebellion consisting of 3 million people, and of them a third were active fighters in the upcoming civil war. The other two million working harder than the rest of the kingdom combined to produce the necessary materials of war and survival. The rest of the kingdom looking down upon the minority to not even field a army matching the rebellion. It would be a year before the kingdom took the rebellion as a serious threat, but by then it was too late.
Hearing that Peregrande was in rebellion, rival nations inside and outside of Ishgar began to supply the then fledgling rebellion with gold, master armsman, and mercenaries. Peregrande Kingdom, in turn, turned to its only ally, Kingdom of Fiore for help.
Fiore sent its help.
Its magic guilds.
Among them was a newborn guild by the name of Fairy Tail.
It was also the time when Makarov had been part of the guild for maybe a year. He was a young boy; his father was one of the founders of the guild, and he decided to join them to learn more about him.
That's when Fairy Tail was called to war by the King of Fiore.
It was also the war that Mavis Vermillion, the founder of Fairy Tail, got her nickname, the Fairy Tactician.
He was small back then, no more than 10 years old. But he remember the details clearly. Of the hate. Of that anger. Of the sorrow. Of the guilt.
Fairy Tactician? It was a nickname given to her for her military achievements. She cried every time she ordered others to kill, loathed herself every time her traps went off, and raged every time her own people died.
Makarov grew up seeing a depressed Fairy, not the Tactician she was to the world.
It was also the reason why he had made the "no kill" rule into Fairy Tail's list of sparse rules.
To spare the children of the horrors. To not taint their mind and soul with death.
All of this, and so much more around the world, was caused because a single black op from Peregrande Kingdom took the slight on his skin tone to the extreme.
A slight that would become wedge. A wedge that would become a rebellion.
A rebellion that would shatter the peace of Ishgar.
He had been stunned helplessly when he found out the true cause of the rebellion. He had never been so angered.
...But it was the past.
Right now, Natsu and Gray were being watched by the incompetent Rune Knights. No, it would not do. They were better off within the guild, where they could thrive without having to worry about restrictions.
"Ah, but I do bring other news as well," Yajima continued.
By the time Ichigo and Acnologia came back with slightly heavier dimensional pouches, most of the Fairy Tail members were asleep, whether it was in their own bed or passed out on the inn's lobby floor.
"Che, I din't even get to fucking join in on the fun," Acnologia grumbled as she first made her way up to the stairs to their room.
Ichigo made his way over to Makarov, who was still talking to Yajima.
"Yo," he greeted simply. Yajima and Makarov both looked up to the tall shinigami.
"Ah yes. Did you have fun whatever you did today?" Makarov asked. "I saw you leave the stadium early."
Ichigo shrugged. "Acnologia got bored, so we went bounty hunting. Took care of some of the bandits bothering the local roads."
Makarov narrowed his eyes. "I assume none were killed?"
"... I didn't kill, if that counts."
The guild master grunted. Unlike Ichigo, Makarov did not know much about Acnologia. This was in part due to Acnologia's inconsistently consistent reclusive and secretive nature. Some times, she would blurt out about her prowess upon the battlefield and the number of enemies she had felled -including dragons, but no one believed that.
And at other times, when asked to speak her opinion regarding a subject, she would growl and just leave.
But Ichigo had informed the guild through implication that Acnologia was as strong as Makarov himself. Laxus alluded to it plenty of times as well, mostly by speaking of how she raised hell in a demonic fortress.
Yeah, that was a shocker.
Often classified as a decade quest or even a hundred year quest, raiding demon fortresses was the epitome of suicide mission that any mage could take on. However, such a thing was still a necessity for a magic-oriented civilization like the whole of Ishgar and many parts of Earthland was.
Simple answer to why such a thing was needed: essence.
Essence could be used in a lot of ways. While Ichigo and Acnologia were into distilling the essences they gather into spirits and indeed, such items of luxury were often what essences were used to make, many common household applications were also made of or required essence to be made or to operate.
For example, the most simplest and the most widely used item of them.
Communication lacryma!
One of the most crucial ingredient involved in production of communication lacryma was the essence of wascandi, or more commonly known as the blue essence. This essence was responsible for holding the long distance communication magic. If this essence, which was a crystal mined from the depths of the earth, were to crack, then the spell would perform one last time before the lacryma became useless.
Thankfully for the economy, wascandi essence was extremely fragile, and at best perform a hundred times (forty at worst).
Still, due to its cheap cost, it was a common household item.
Which led to a booming industry of essence mining a century ago. One that holds a lot of political power today.
The wascandi essence was worth about 15.9 jewels per kilogram. Its price range always ran below that of silver's.
The demonic essences that Acnologia and Ichigo brought in? They were worth a lot. Makarov felt the magic contained within them. He knew that based on what he felt alone, those essences were worth entire plots of rich, fertile farmlands in the safest areas around the world. And what do they use it on? Alcohol. They make essence alcohols with S-rank essences!
Sure, if they sold the spirits, it would be worth a lot, but they didn't even sell any of their products, even to him!
Makarov yawned. "Alright, get yourself to bed, then. You're in tomorrow's event, right?"
Ichigo nodded. He gave both of the elders a nod before he made his way up, just as Acnologia came through the inn's doors and followed after Ichigo.
"Ichigo, you promised to buy me meat~!"