A/N: And so the curtain rises on the first arc. The actors have begun to gather and soon old ghosts would soon start to surface.

You know what this means. Dark Guild OCs submissions are now open XD. The form will be included at the bottom of this chapter so please support.

This chapter will be a bit shorter than usual so please bear with me because I'm sorting out most of the OC's histories as too many of them are joining around a certain time frame :P

Thank you all my lovely reviewers and supporters. We've almost hit past the 50 mark and that is amazing considering the number of chapters. Couldn't have done it without you guys.

W. R. Winters: Yep, I'm so pumped up as well! Can't wait to get started. Kozmotis does seem to have a tendency to get involved in dark magic. Wonder what would happen

OleanderBleedingHeart: All good things are worth waiting for haha XD. Glaive probably went easy on Gram. Killing the head of the magic council ain't such a good idea.

reven228: Thanks, hope I did well with Shinji!

Fairy Lori: Awww, thanks! I had a lot of fun writing that chapter too XD Things are about to get really good from here out.

Arclin: Heck yeah! Scarlet Nova's mages are better than Fairy Tail's. But poor Cora, her hands are gonna be very full in the days to come.

Sora no Kagayaku Tsubasa: Yea, dark guild bashing time! Hope you enjoyed the chapter.

Ishiguro: Oooo, such a craving for destruction. You will enjoy the future chapters to come XD

Credits

Kaguro, Neo and Rin – Death Obelisk

I do not own Fairy Tail, except my OCs.

Enjoy!

Location Unknown

The Dark Continent, an area not frequented by men. Its location was lost since the dawn of time and only few had the pieces of the map that lead to it. Even with the map, one still needed the key. The Dark Continent did not open for everyone. Only those with the key could enter it. The doors to the Dark Continent were scattered all across Magnolia and Alvarez but their locations too were shrouded in mystery. There were many who had claimed they had found the portal gate and led expeditions to it. They never returned and those that did were either in a coma or died eventually.

Well that was actually no surprise when if one knew who was guarding it.

As of now, there were currently two figures heading towards one of the many portals. The duo had chosen to take the longer path, walking across the mountainous regions beyond the town of Ea. While there was the option of travelling by train, it would be too suspicious. Two men wearing cloaks and reeking of blood would set alarm bells ringing long before they could get on the train. Not that it mattered to the duo. They would have easily slaughtered everyone present to keep their identities a secret but their master had orders not to give themselves away to the public.

And so they trekked through the night, attempting to reach their destination before mid day. As luck had it, they arrived at their destination just at sun rise. The distance was by no means short, extending from Ea, to Valgore and then some but the two men have learnt the need for urgency, especially during the eve of the upcoming war.

Their final destination was somewhere in the woods, inhabited by some of the most fearsome beasts known to mankind. Wyverns, Vulcans and the occasional Hydra lurked in these woods, known to devour anything that came across their path. However when the two travelers passed through, they immediately became docile, bowing their heads and staying clear of them. A sign of utmost respect and fear, something which they had all learnt the hard way.

"Can we take this thing off already?" grumbled the first figure, his voice slightly irritated. While the cloaks had special properties to conceal one's presence, they were unnecessarily hot and thick. Having worn them for the past night, the figure was eager to get rid of them.

"We're deep enough I guess." The second figure replied as he scanned his surroundings. No one should be in so deep or have followed them thus far. Even if they did, they wouldn't stand a chance against either of them.

With that, both figures removed their cloaks.

The first figure was a sight to behold. Not that he was beyond handsome to make women swoon, but rather utterly disfigured. He was tall and slender, standing at about 6'5. Not much could be made about his appearance as his body was badly burnt, charred black and red. The only thing that could be discerned was his unnaturally large eyes that were yellow with red irises. His body was swathed with bandages from head to toe, revealing only the few strands of black hair left on his head. He was wearing a black robe with frayed red trims and went around bare footed. He had a smirk on his face, something that was permanently etched there due to the destruction of his facial nerves.

The second figure was a sight for sore eyes compared to the first. He had jet black hair that was at shoulder length and was swept back instead of being brushed down. He was heterochromatic with crimson red and lime green eye on the left and right respectively. This mage had a sharp and angular face with a tall build, standing at 6'7. His teeth were unnaturally sharp as a direct result of his magic, giving off a feral grin whenever he smiled. His slightly tanned skin tone was marred with stitches as far as the eye could see. For clothing, he wore a bright red trench coat with golden buttons and three tails. A chrome –colored skeletal like pattern was etched on the right side of the jacket. It was left unbuttoned to reveal his well-toned body and to finish up; he wore a pair of black jeans with a white hakama and combat boots. His knuckles were tattooed with the words gore on the right hand and blood on the left. The twin metallic bracelets on his wrists were long enough to serve as arm guards.

"Aaaah! This feels so much better!" the mummy mage said as he inhaled in the surrounding air and stretched himself. He really hated that thick piece of clothing. It stank and it was so freaking hot.

"Kaguro, you can't feel anything." The second mage deadpanned with a smirk on his face, earning him a glare from Kaguro.

"Do you want to die, Neo?" Kaguro asked as he held a blade against the jugular of Neo's neck. Even though he was under a threat, Neo hardly seemed fazed at all.

"Drop it man, you know that I can't die." Neo replied as he batted the blade away, causing Kaguro to laugh as he retracted the weapon back into his palm.

"Sorry about that. The forgetfulness of the elderly is really a terrible thing." Kaguro shrugged to which it was Neo's turn to laugh. While it wasn't entirely true that he couldn't die, his magic made him near immortal. Even so, he wasn't planning on dying just yet. At least not before until he was finally reunited with him.

As for Kaguro, he literally could not die. Because he was already dead. That was one of the main reasons why they had to wear the cloaks in the first place: to conceal Kaguro's stench and presence. A walking corpse simply would not do in the streets of Fiore.

The two mages then proceeded to walk towards a stone plate that was carved with various runes of all sorts. With a quick flick of his wrist, Kaguro shot another blade out of his palm. This one was slightly different though, being black in color and covered in a flame like pattern. His eyes scanned the runes present and upon locating the one he was looking for, he drove his sword straight through it. There was pink pulse that emitted from where the blade was inserted, coursing through the entire rock surface before vanishing into thin air. As if on cue, the two mages walked straight into the rock surface, vanishing completely as ripples indicated their entry. The split second they entered, the rock surface began to distort and cave in on itself like a black hole. Within seconds, there was no evidence that either mage or portal door had ever existed.

Inside the portal door, everything was pitched black and yet both mages seemed to know where exactly they were walking towards. They came to a stop in front of eight stone pillars. The pillars were shaped that they surrounded a black pond in a circular manner. All around the pond, there were candles that burnt with a green flame, one located beside each stone pillar. Only two remained unlit.

Both mages leapt from their position, landing on top of the two pillars with candles that were not lit. With a whoosh, the green flames came alive, signaling that all members were present.

Six shadowy silhouettes appeared on the other six pillars making it hard to discern if they were male or female. Not that it really mattered since they knew each other either way.

"Did you manage to get it," one of the figures asked, a mechanical voice interrupting the silence. Once again, this made it difficult for them to discern the gender of the member.

"Yea," Neo replied with a smirk as he held out a black lacrima. Within it contained the artifact from Zeref's book. He then proceeded to drop the lacrima into the pond, causing it to vanish which indicated its passing into the other dimension. All this while, Kaguro sat cross-legged and yawned incessantly. He just wanted this to be done and over with soon. Meetings were all so boring and that aspect of his did not change regardless dead or alive.

"With this the preparations are almost complete." A different silhouette spoke up. "Return to base soon you two. We have to prepare for his revival."

'Roger that," Neo laughed as he did a mock salute whereas Kaguro simply got up from his position. The six silhouettes then vanished and so did the green flames on their candles. Both Neo and Kaguro then jumped off the pillars, with Kaguro activating that unique blade of his once more. With a slash, he distorted the space within that dimension as he and his fellow mage stepped through the gap created.

Outside, somewhere in the valliere woods, a ripping sound could be heard as a similar slash appeared out of thin air. Out stepped Kaguro and Neo who once again began to identify their surroundings.

"I really hate that damn thing," grumbled Neo, referring to the portal gate connecting their world to the Dark Continent. After each use, the portal gate was designed in such a way that it would close in on itself and teleport to a different location. While it was meant to keep intruders out, it also served as a major hassle to relocate them.

"At least it dropped us off somewhere we know." Kaguro retorted. "Didn't your precious drop by here as well. You should be grateful for that."

"True," Neo acknowledged. His partner had decided to take a detour from their current route, saying something about stocking up on supplies and stuff. By some dumb luck they had arrived right where they had left her.

"We'll go pick her at sundown." Neo said as he surveyed the town. Meanwhile Kaguro grunted in agreement, lying against a tree for a nap to pass the time.

Below them, the town of Valgore continued to bustle with life, unknown of the two potential threats that lurked too close to home.

Habara, Shopping district of Valgore

News of the breech in the magic council building has yet to spread. They were in the midst of investigations and trying desperately to find the nicest way to phrase it. They couldn't possibly mention that their incompetence had caused the most secure facility in the country to be intruded upon and that the intruders almost killed a Wizard Saint. That would have caused chaos. So until then, everything went on as usual.

"It such a bright and sunny day!" cheered Padme as she walked down the streets of Habara, the shopping district of Valgore. "And this means it's a good day for shopping!"

That earned the laughter of the rest of the mages that were following behind her. Padme really could get excited at anything. Apart from her there was Klein, Chantal, Liliana and Vali. The newest member, Gemma had also taken it upon herself to travel with the group, wishing to bond with them.

"Well, for once things are actually peaceful around here," remarked Vali as he admired the shops lining the streets. Habara had the widest variety of clothes and delicacies in the whole of Valgore. Knowing that Valgore was a mages' town, most merchants shipped large amounts of their finest goods here in hopes of making a profit.

"Oh yeah Chantal, where's Aengus?" Klein asked, noticing that her feline companion wasn't around her for once.

"He's off on a play date with the rest of the exceeds." Chantal replied with a smile on her face. "They said it was something about cats only." Despite that, deep down Chantal really hoped Aengus wasn't imparting his skills of seduction to them. One flirtatious cat was enough for the time being. At that thought, a small giggle escaped her lips.

Klein just simply watched her with a puzzled expression on his face, chalking it up as something to do with Aengus' flirtatious nature.

"So have you guys been in the guild for a long time?" Gemma asked, curious if there were any newcomers like her.

"Well, not exactly." Padme replied as she brought her hand up to her chin, thinking how many people were in the guild when she joined. "I only joined about three years ago so I don't really know who has been here for a long time."

Chantal nodded her head in agreement. She had only entered the guild last year and as such was also slightly curious as to who the founding members of the guild were.

"I've been around for about five years," Klein said with a smile on his face. "When I first joined, the guild didn't really have a lot of members. I remember seeing Shinji, Vali, Liliana, Scar, Aiden and Ryuga."

"Oooo," Padme's and Gemma's eyes were glistening at this point as they turned towards the two veterans that were travelling within the group. "Do you have any stories to tell?"

"Huh? Errr, sorry I don't remember." came Liliana's monotone reply which left both of them pouting. It wasn't that she didn't want to share, but she really could not recall anything.

Vali just sighed with a weak smile. Trust them to ask the birdbrain of the guild for stories. If she could remember what she ate for breakfast, it would be a miracle already.

"Well, I guess I could share some information with you guys." Vali spoke up, wishing to bond with other members of the guild apart from his own team. He had been with Scarlet Nova for about 7 years so he knew most of the things that went on in the guild.

"Hooray and Hoopla!" cheered Padme and Gemma as they jumped into the air for joy, causing Klein and Chantal to burst out laughing at their excitedness.

"Why not we get some food and drinks while we're at it, since this is probably going to take a while." Klein suggested which received approving nods from the rest of them.

"Ok, we'll meet at the giant fountain by the middle of Habara in an hour then." Vali said as the mages went off in their own ways. Padme with Gemma, Vali with Liliana and Klein with Chantal.

Padme and Gemma were responsible for getting the cutlery. They went to a nearby party shop and bought a set of plastic forks, plates and cups. After that, they then proceeded to a nearby clothes shop to check out some of the latest fashion trends, trying to kill some time before they went on their way.

Vali and Liliana had chosen to go for the food. They went to a bakery as they had decided to grab some sweets. In the end they ended up choosing strawberry shortcake that had sprinkles on the top as well as some hot apple pie. But given Liliana's short-term memory, she almost walked off without paying for them, earning herself shouts from the shopkeeper and Vali before she realized her mistake.

Klein and Chantal were in charge of getting the beverages for the picnic. They settled for some fruit punch that they saw was on discount in the nearby convenience store, thinking that it was a common drink for everyone to have.

On the way to the fountain, the duo passed by an accessories shop. While Klein did not really pay notice, Chantal had stopped walking and was currently staring into the shop window. Upon noticing his partner was missing, Klein traced his footsteps back to the shop, wondering what had caught her attention.

In the middle of the shop window sat a green hairpin with a pink floral design. It matched the green sweater that Chantal was currently wearing which was no surprise why she was attracted to it.

"It looks good on you," Klein remarked with a smile. Chantal turned to face him, a smile etched on her face too. "You think so?"

"Yea, totally! You should go try it on," Klein said. Chantal nodded immediately and went inside the shop with him.

"Let me help you with that," Klein suggested as he saw Chantal was currently having trouble with adjusting the hairpin. Before Chantal could say anything, Klein was onto her already, his hands combing through her hair as he rearranged the hairpin.

"Too close, too close," Chantal thought to herself. She could practically feel his breath around her neck and that was causing her face to turn beet red. Her heart was beating fast in her chest and the butterflies in her stomach had begun to dance. While she did not really hate it, she wasn't really comfortable about it either causing a well of emotions to rise up in her.

"All done," Klein said with a smile as he was finally finished. While Chantal breathed a sigh of relief internally, she also felt a pang of regret in her heart. Deep down somewhere, she really wanted the moment to last a little bit longer.

"Are you ok?" Klein asked when he saw the deep shade of red her face was in. Chantal immediately snapped out of it, waving her hands dismissively as she repeated "I'm fine. I'm fine."

"That's good." Klein said with a smile on his face. "Consider this my gift to you, Chantal."

"What for?" Chantal asked with a puzzled expression.

"Well," Klein started, rubbing the back of his head as a goofy grin came to his face. "It's been a year since you joined our team. So treat this as an anniversary present."

Now it was Chantal's turn to smile.

"Thank you, Klein." She said softly as she held the hairpin close to her heart. "I will definitely treasure this."

That smile made Klein's stomach and chest feel weird. It had been happening for a while already and it only occurred when he was near Chantal. He wasn't sure what it was but it didn't feel bad. Better to let Coraline have a look at it when she had the time, he decided.

"No, give that back! Please!" a shrill voice came by which snapped the two mages out of their thoughts. Immediately, they ran out of the store to investigate.

Out in the street, there were two young mages who seemed to be in their teens. They were dressed in black jackets and matching black pants. The taller of the two was currently holding a pair of gloves high in the air whereas the other was currently pushing against a young girl who was pleading with her arms outstretched. The girl looked like she was no older than 11 years of age, having a short and petite figure. She had wavy strawberry blond hair that was waist length with straight cut bangs. Her amethyst eyes were currently brimming with tears as she tried in vain to retrieve her belongings. She was wearing a navy bomber jacket and an olive sweetheart neckline dress with white petticoats, accompanied by navy ankle boots.

'Hey! Stop bullying the kid!" Klein demanded as he shouted out to the mages. Both mages then turned to face him, wondering who was interrupting their fun. When they saw Klein and the frosty magic that was swirling around his fists, they put two and two together. Realizing that they were dealing with a Scarlet Nova mage, they threw the gloves back to the girl and pushed her onto the ground before running off.

"Typical bullies!" Chantal remarked as she ran up to the girl. "Are you alright?"

The girl nodded fervently though she was busier inspecting the gloves, allowing Chantal to get a better look at them. They had slightly curved metal tips at the ends of each finger and a circular disk at the back of the palm region. If Chantal had known better, it look more like a weapon than an accessory.

"Thanks for helping me!" the girl said with a sweet smile as she bowed her head in gratitude.

"No problem. My name's Chantal and the gentleman behind me is Klein. What's your name?" Chantal asked gently as she knelt before the girl.

"Rin!" the girl said with a chirp in her voice.

"Are you alone Rin?"

Rin furrowed her eyebrows as she looked down at her feet and fiddled with her thumbs. "My brother is coming to pick me up, but he's only coming at sun down."

"If that's the case, why not stay with us for now. We'll take care of you till your brother returns." Klein suggested to which Rin gave an elated smile.

"Really!? Thank you so much!" she jumped with joy which caused both Klein and Chantal to give her a passionate smile.

Habara Fountain

An hour later, all the mages gathered at the fountain which was at the centre of Habara. The fountain's water was lavender in color and it gave off a pleasant scent which reminded the mages of roses. It was the ideal location for a picnic.

"So who's the newcomer?" Padme asked as she noticed Rin.

"My name's Rin. Nice to meet you guys!" Rin cheered.

One by one the mages introduced themselves to the little girl, causing a wide smile to spread across her lips.

"So Vali, tell us more about the guild." Gemma said as she dug into a plate of strawberry shortcake.

"Well, Scarlet Nova was founded about three years before I joined. Back then we had a lot fewer mages due to the guild being newly formed." Vali said in between sips of his drink. "The first member of the guild was probably Ryuga and I think Aiden joined about a year before I did."

"Oh, so you know Ryuga very well?" Klein asked. While he had seen the S-class mage many a time in the guild, he didn't really talk much and was usually either reading or playing the harmonica. That really piqued his interest as to what the S-class mage was really like.

"Yea, we go way back." Vali said with a smile. "He was the one who brought me to the guild and I served as his apprentice for about half a year before joining his team."

"Sorry, but what's this apprentice thing about?" Padme asked. Chantal and Gemma nodded as well, curious on finding out. They had all joined the guild less than a year ago so they weren't very clear on some of the guild protocols as of yet.

"The apprenticeship is like a rite of passage for Scarlet Nova mages," Klein explained. "When a mage first joins Scarlet Nova, Master Glaive would assess their magic as well as their abilities. According to these two properties, he would allocate the mage an S-class mage with similar abilities to train under to refine them. About a year later, he will re-evaluate the mage to determine if they are ready to take on missions on their own. By then, the mage has the choice whether to go solo or stick as part of the S-class mage's team." Klein had been paired up with Otis when he first joined due to the similarities in their magic. When he passed his apprenticeship, he had decided to stick with Otis to train the next batch of newcomers.

"I see," Gemma said as she understood. "So who do you think I'll be paired up with?"

"I'm guessing Aiden," replied Vali, thinking of how the two of them both had a tendency to get into brawls.

"Well, I'm currently under Hikari," Padme said with a smile. While the S-class mage was hard on her at times, she knew that it was all for her sake.

That got Chantal thinking. Master Glaive hadn't really had the chance to assess her yet so she didn't know who she would be paired with yet. She didn't mind being paired with Klein though; too bad he wasn't S-class.

All the while Rin just sat in a corner drinking punch and eating cake, listening with interest as the conversation went by.

"You guys have been around for so long; I'm betting you're super strong!" commented Klein as he gazed at Liliana and Vali.

"Not re…"

"You bet!" Came Liliana's response, much to the surprise of most of the group. All this time she had remained silent while eating her cake, making them wonder how much had she actually been listening in to.

"Oooo, I wanna see!" Padme said excitedly and Gemma nodded eagerly as well. Even Klein sat up straight, anticipating some action from them.

"Guess we have no choice then," Vali sighed. He did not really like sparring but he was not one to decline a request either.

Liliana was up on her feet in an instant as well, dusting her knuckles as he prepared to spar. While she was absent minded, her mind was as clear as the day in a fight.

Both mages took a few steps forward to the right of the fountain, making sure that they had an open space to spar in. The last thing they needed was collateral damage.

The rest of the Scarlet Nova mages and Rin clustered together, interested in the spar about to take place.

"Same rules?" Liliana asked to which Vali acknowledged with a nod. "One spell only."

Liliana assumed a battle stance, a silver magic circle appearing at her feet. "Deflection: Exosuit," she called out as the magic circle travelled upwards, engulfing her entire body. When it disappeared, her appearance had changed slightly. Her entire body was now hugged by a chrome steel suit that seemed organic. It was as though a second layer of skin had been wrapped all over her, with the exception of her eyes which were now covered by a black visor. A pair of gleaming tonfas was also now attached to her forearms, glowing in the same material that the suit was.

Vali summoned forth his black staff, one of the red orbs attached to it glowing as a violet magic circle appeared. "Gate of the Ifrit King, I open thee!" he commanded as the magic circle expanded in size. "Ignatius!" There was the sound of crackling flames as a lava golem appeared. It looked as though it was made up of lava infused bricks that were piled on top of one another. Its entire body was set ablaze, eyes, mouth and arms all made of flames and lava from its body began to pool all over the floor, causing an immense amount of heat to be released.

Ignatius let out a roar and bellowed a stream of flames towards Liliana. Liliana took the attack head on, pushing through the heat as though it was nothing but a cool shower. She then swung her tonfas at Vali who retaliated with a counter from his staff.

Liliana backpedalled to avoid a fiery fist from Ignatius who then followed up with another jet of flames. Liliana shielded the blast with her left arm, deflecting the flame stream into the ground. That left her open to an attack by Vali though, who raked his staff across her back.

Not that it really mattered to Liliana who could hardly feel the impact. Instead she took the opportunity to aim a kick at Vali's chest, only for Ignatius to rush forward and take the attack for his summoner.

"Wow," breathed Gemma and Padme as they watched the two mages spar. Experience really did go a long way, given how the two mages seemed to know where to block and predict each other's moves. There was a reason why they functioned well together after all.

"Well, I guess that's it for now." Vali said as he and Liliana dispelled their magics. It was refreshing to have a spar once in a while and that also earned them the applause from the rest of their guild mates.

Sun down

"Are you sure we don't need to wait for him to come?" Chantal asked with a worried face as she escorted Rin to the edge of Valgore, near the woods. She wasn't so comfortable leaving a kid alone in the dark

"Nope, it's ok. I'll be fine." Rin insisted with a smile.

"Ok then. You take care," Chantal said as she turned to leave with Rin waving back at her.

After walking halfway, Chantal stopped. She still didn't feel comfortable about it. So she turned around, only to find that Rin was already gone.

Meanwhile, Rin had already taken off into the woods, running in between trees at breakneck speeds.

"Coo Coo!" came a voice from behind one of the trees, causing her to stop dead in her tracks. That was the signal only she and her brother communicated by.

"Neo!" she exclaimed with a warm smile as she spotted the mage, running up to him for a hug. Beside him stood Kaguro, who had just awoken from his nap.

"Hello, Rin. How's the town?" Neo asked as he allowed Rin to sit on his shoulders, the normal way in which she travelled with them.

"It's so fun and lively!" Rin remarked with a smile on her face, causing Neo to grin in happiness as well. "I even managed to meet some members of brother's guild."

"How are they?" Kaguro asked, slightly curious.

"They are all super duper nice and friendly. They even gave me food!" Rin cheered before the smile on her face gradually disappeared, her expression now downcast.

"Neo, do we really have to kill them?" she asked in a quiet voice. She really did not want to do it, particularly to the two that saved her from the bullies.

Neo rubbed her head, gently as he spoke. "I know Rin, but we have to make big brother come home right? That's the only way we can achieve that."

That caused Rin's expression to brighten up again. "Yep! Big brother must come home, so all of us can be reunited as a family!"

"Enough with the family talk. Can we go home please?" Kaguro pleaded. He really wanted to go back to sleep.

"Ok!" chorused Neo and Rin in unison as the trio took off even deeper into the forest, the darkness consuming them completely.

A/N: And that's a wrap for the first chapter of the arc. Hope you guys have enjoyed it. And as promised, here is the form of Dark Guild OCs. A slight note to clarify though. Orochi is not the name of the Dark Guild but its elite executives. Both Kaguro and Neo are a part of Orochi but Rin is not so there are only six spots left in Orochi waiting to be filled.

Name:

Age:

Personality:

Appearance:

Magic: (Include spells)

History: (can be related to your OC or any canon character. Please do tell how they managed to join the dark guild)

Who do you wish for them to fight in Scarlet Nova:

Member of Orochi: (They do not necessarily have to be a part of Orochi but can be the grunts under the command of each member. If they are to be a part of Orochi, please give a reason why.)

Outcome: (what happens to him in the end. KIA? Captured by Magic Council?)