Chapter 7: Aftershock

Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or High School DxD. The former is owned by Hiro Mashima and the latter is owned by Ichiei Ishibumi.

Akeno was flying at a high speed with Natsu chasing after her. Natsu had a hard time keeping up since Akeno's lightning magic gave her a speed boost. She was heading into the forest like before to avoid attracting attention from civilians or putting them in danger. Akeno was worried that this fight would turn out like their last one, but after talking with Meredy she regained her confidence.

Flashback, Grimoire Heart Guild

Akeno was in her room getting ready to set out again. After a few days, she had fully recovered and is ready to fight again.

"Going back out little dragon?" A familiar voice asked. Akeno was now irritated at the presence of her unwanted guest.

"Why do you care, Zancrow?" She asked coldly as she turned to face him. He had that usual psychotic look on his face.

"You should just forget about the mission and leave the guild now. It's bullshit that Master is actually giving you a second chance." Zancrow replied.

"Mind your own business for once!" Akeno shouted. She honestly had no patience for this man.

"What are you gonna do about it bitch?" Zancrow said as black flames surrounded him.

"I'm not scared of you."

Akeno didn't have time to react as Zancrow quickly landed a flame-covered fist to her gut. She collapsed to the ground while clutching her stomach. He then lifted her head up by her long ponytail while she cringed in pain. He bent down and got close to her face while grinning maliciously.

"Don't be stupid. You're still that same pathetic little girl that joined this guild. It pisses me off that a weakling like you is part of our ranks. It was bad enough that Master let Ultear take in that pink-haired crybaby, Meredy. This guild isn't an orphanage. I can't wait when you come back a failure once again and you're finally kicked out."

Zancrow let go of her hair and quickly stomped her head into the ground before leaving her bedroom. Akeno covered her face in shame as tears came out of her eyes. She did have great power, but was always too scared to stand up and unleash it on that psychopath. She stayed on the ground until someone else came into the room and rubbed her shoulder reassuringly.

Akeno looked up to see Meredy standing in front of her with an outstretched hand. Akeno accepted the gracious offer and Meredy pulled her into a hug as she got up.

"It's alright. Don't let that asshole get to you." Meredy said affectionately. She was always there to comfort Akeno. They grew close over the years since they were both looked down on in the guild. They both have had more than their fair share of suffering. Like Akeno, Meredy feels inclined to stay because Ultear has been like a parent to her. Ultear could be cold to other people, but she was always caring towards Meredy. Akeno was actually envious of the relationship those two shared.

"I'm sick of being afraid of him." Akeno spoke softly. "That fear is why I failed miserably on that last mission. Just the feeling of flames is enough to put me on edge. How am I supposed to beat him this time?"

Meredy let go and looked at Akeno with a sincere face.

"I know you've had a lot of bad experiences with Zancrow, but it's not because of the magic he uses." Akeno was intrigued by what Meredy had to say.

"He did those horrible things to you because of his psychotic personality. His magic has nothing to do with it. Your target may use similar magic, but he is a completely different person. Just focus on fighting him and forget about Zancrow. You may not be to stand up to him yet, but I know that your magic is very powerful when you were fighting other people. I have faith in you.

Akeno smiled genuinely at her words. She was grateful to have someone her like during all of those rough times. Meredy gave her the confidence she needed to go through with this again.

"Thanks so much Meredy. You can stop worrying. I will fight with the best of my ability."

"I'm glad!" Meredy replied happily.

"I wish you luck on your mission. Show no mercy and you will turn out on top. Master Hades will be very pleased."

Meredy then left Akeno's bedroom to let her finish her preparations. Akeno now had her own fire burning inside of her. She had a renewed passion to fight her best and see the mission through. Though, there was still one question that she tried to push to the back of her mind to avoid distraction. Focusing on the actual person could be a problem as well.

'What if I don't want to kill him?' Akeno asked herself.

End Flashback

Akeno felt that they were far enough from the city now. She started to descend and eventually landed on the ground softly. She was in the middle of clearing in the forest surrounded by a lot of large and small trees. She took a deep breath and prepared for the fight of her life. She just stood there with her hands in her large sleeves waiting patiently for the fire dragon slayer. Natsu finally caught up about a minute later and landed a few feet in front of Akeno.

"Last chance, if you wanna back out?" Natsu offered.

"I never took you as the peaceful type. This could make my job a whole lot easier." Akeno said with a smug grin.

"Good point." Natsu replied. "Well I can't back down after hearing you say that." Flames began to dance around Natsu's body.

'Hopefully I will get something out of her once she's been exhausted. I'll find out if she really was holding back before.' Natsu thought.

"Excellent. You won't be disappointed this time." Akeno said as she licked her lips. 'I definitely underestimated him last time. I better start this round off stronger.' She thought.

"Lightning Drive"

Akeno's body started crackling with lightning, but something was different about it this time. There was so much more lightning coming off her that she was giving off a bright purple aura. The ground actually began to crack at the pressure of her power.

Natsu was surprised at first, but smirked when he recognized the ability. 'She can use the same ability as Sting and Rouge.' Natsu thought remembering his rivals.

"So you can use that ability too. I've only seen two other dragon slayers that can pull it off. Impressive." He said still smirking.

"Interesting. You seem excited about this ability I possess." Akeno replied smirking as well.

"Hey, I'm always up for a challenge. Guess that means I better power up as well." A flame pillar shot out of Natsu like their last fight as his eyes turned a crimson red.

'That ability is basically supposed to increase the user's strength, speed, and endurance. Though, there might be something else because Rouge was able to turn his body into shadows with it. I wonder what she could do with it.' Natsu mused.

Akeno tensed up after seeing that devilish version of him again, but remembered to stay strong. If she could be beat him, maybe she could finally do the same to Zancrow and end her fear.

They could both feel the magic pressure coming off the other as the ground was cracked and the grass was singed. Both dragons waited for the other one to make the first move. Natsu decided to take his chances.

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Natsu shot out of the flames with his fist ablaze, but Akeno wasn't moving. Natsu was confused because she didn't look paralyzed in fear like before, she was still smiling. His fist connected with her lightning-enhanced body. She cringed slightly from the blow, but looked pleased for some reason.

"Gah!" Natsu uttered in pain as he felt an electrifying surge of energy flow up his arm.

"I see you discovered my new ability. If you try to hit me with any physical attacks in my lightning drive, you're gonna feel a little recoil." Akeno spoke proudly that her plan had worked.

'Damn. I knew there was something more to her ability. This is gonna make things difficult.' Natsu thought.

"My turn." Akeno said quickly. Her body disappeared as it completely turned into purple lightning and starting moving swiftly close to the ground. The mass of lightning magic started zooming around Natsu in a circle to confuse him. He couldn't pinpoint exactly where she was and just picked up her scent everywhere. All he could see was a ring of purple lightning around him

"Lightning Dragon's Scattershot"

The lightning was still circling Natsu as multiple lightning orbs shot off at him and exploded on impact. Natsu used his flame wings to try to get away from the ground, but she wasn't done yet.

"Lightning Dragon's Slash"

Akeno's body came flying up out of the smoke cloud from of the explosion and fiercely swiped at Natsu's side. This pushed Natsu back down to the ground as he slammed into a tree. Akeno was in front of him again in the blink of an eye.

"Lightning Dragon's Whip"

An electrified whip grew out of Akeno's hand as she lashed against him repeatedly. Blood flung off of Natsu every time the whip cracked against his skin. He gritted his teeth in pain with the lightning stinging his wounds at the same time. Akeno had no hard feelings against Natsu, but her sadistic side took over. She couldn't help, but enjoy other people's pain because of the pain she has been through over the years. She stopped lashing when she noticed his motionless body.

"Done already. I didn't think my lightning drive would overwhelm you that fast." She teased Natsu. She knew that this was far from over and waited for him to respond.

He quickly got up and gave her his toothy grin. Akeno was taken aback by fast recovery. She knew he could still keep going, but she thought he would have been more worn out by that barrage of dragon-slaying magic.

"I'll admit I still can't keep up with you, but I needed to see what that ability is capable as well. I can tell you're definitely faster and stronger, but it's only a matter of time. I know from watching Sting and Rouge that you can't hold it for very long. The reason I feel recoil from attacking you is because your body is constantly emanating lightning magic like it is now.

Akeno's face got serious. She didn't expect him to be so knowledgeable of her ability. This is definitely the thinking of an S-class mage. 'He's right. I already fired off three attacks in a row, and I've still barely damaged him. I better break through his defense fast, before I run out of time.'

"You're very clever, but you may not survive before my ability wears off." Akeno said with a smirk.

"Let's find out what happens first then." Natsu said getting excited. "I'M ALL FIRED UP NOW!" Natsu exclaimed his catchphrase.

Both mages began flowing magical energy out of their bodies again. Both of Natsu's fists were set ablaze while Akeno formed her lightning claws.

The dragons charged at each other striking each other's fist upon impact. A small gust of wind blew from the area. Akeno swiftly sent an uppercut towards Natsu's chin sending him up into the air. Just as he sprouted his flame wings, she was right above him as she drove her foot into his gut until they landed again. Blood spewed out of Natsu's mouth as they the ground cracked beneath them.

She shot back a few feet to put distance between them as Natsu got back up.

"Fire Dragon's Impact!"

Natsu's wings grew larger as his body looked like a meteor shooting at Akeno with a trail of flames coming off.

"Lightning Dragon's Striker!"

Akeno flew at Natsu in a similar meteor-like form with a trail of lightning coming off her.

They rammed into each other as hard as they could. They were stuck in the middle as both of them fought for dominance. Shortly, the fire and purple lightning combined and generated a giant explosion sending both slayers backwards.

The explosion sent them back a far distance while a giant smoke cloud formed. Luckily. Natsu was able to land his feet on a tree and bounce back with the velocity from the explosion.

"Fire Dragon's Sword Horn"

Akeno couldn't see Natsu coming with the smoke barrier and he was able to land a fiery head-butt against her breaking the bark of the tree against her back. Natsu still felt the electric recoil, but he was able to land a great hit on her. He back-flipped off the tree to get away from her and catch his breath.

'She definitely ain't messing around this time. I should use my long range attacks, but I probably wouldn't have a chance of hitting her with that speed. I don't know how much lightning my body can take, but I will just have to suck it up. It's gonna be a battle of wills. Even so, I bet she has already taken a chunk out of her magical container. She's gonna be all mine once she slows down.' Natsu thought as he came up with a strategy.

Once Akeno got back on her feet, she took in a deep breath. Natsu noticed this and followed her lead.

"Lightning Dragon's..."

"Fire Dragon's..."

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"Roar!"

"Roar!"

Both dragons breathed out their respective elements. The massive blasts of fire and lightning collided in mid-flight. Natsu was slowly gaining dominance as Akeno tried hard to push him back.

'I'm not going to suffer this any element anymore.' Akeno thought. "I have to win!' Akeno screamed in her head as her breath-attack grew larger and shot through Natsu's fire.

The radiance of the lightning roar blinded Natsu as it engulfed his body. When the roar had passed. Natsu was laying a good distance away with a broken tree in front of him. That last attack left his body growing numb.

'Damn it! That last attack contained a lot more volts. The lightning is starting to take its toll on my body. I haven't felt like this since my last battle with Laxus.' Natsu thought getting frustrated. His eyes were starting to close on him. 'No! I'm not going down yet. My family would never forgive me. I'm living for all of them, especially you Wendy. I'm not gonna leave you!" Natsu forced his body back up as Akeno appeared in front of him.

"You're are definitely a dragon-slayer. That passion. Determination. Nothing like I have ever seen before. Even so, I'm not failing my master again. I promised that I would destroy you and I'm willing to put my life on the line. He will see me as the capable mage I am and reward me with honor." She spoke nobly like how a royal guard would speak of their king.

Natsu just had a blank look on his face. He did not seem interested because he has heard these words before.

"Listen up because this could be of your benefit." Natsu spoke up. Akeno's face looked intrigued. "I'm just gonna put this bluntly. You're nothing, but a puppet." Akeno was taken aback by his statement.

"Similar words have been spoken to me by many dark mages. They say how honored they feel to feel to serve their guild master. They work hard to gain their master's respect and rise in power. I don't care how you close you are to your master, you're no different than any other pawn. You think he would put his life on the line for your sake. When the pressure is on, the loyal servants get stabbed in the back and left for dead."

Akeno eyes looked empty as she took in his powerful words. Her hair shadowed them as she looked at the ground in despair.

"You're wrong." She spoke softly trying not to believe the harsh reality.

"Stop acting like you know me!" She shouted furiously. Natsu's body twitched at her sudden outburst.

"I don't care about your experience, you still will never know what's like to be in a dark guild. You're living in a happy fantasy land in your goody guild. I bet you all get along perfectly and it's all fun and games there. I won't let you talk bad about the master who took me in as his daughter!" Natsu let out a small gasp.

"He may be cruel, but he saved my life and gave me a home after Ramos left me. You're insane if you think he doesn't care about me!" She screamed while trying to keep the tears in her eyes. Her mind was an emotional wreck now. She didn't know what to believe.

She charged at Natsu and sent lightning slashes at him in every direction. Natsu did his best to block, but there a lot of hits got past him. He felt shock after shock go through his body after countless hits. He gritted his teeth in pain trying to bear with it. He knew she would just keep at it so he made his best decision.

Natsu grabbed both of her wrists as hard as he could surprising Akeno. She tried sending more electricity to her hands, but he just held on tighter and looked at her with a determined look.

"Zap me all you want. I ain't lettin' go!"

"Fire Dragon's Burst!"

The two were caught in the middle of a giant fiery explosion as Akeno screamed in agony. Natsu pushed her back and prepared his next attack.

"Fire Dragon's Crushing Blow!"

Natsu launched a giant flaming fist taking Akeno with it.

Her skin and clothes were both really burnt up and parts of her clothes were torn. She got up weakly and charged lightning in her right arm.

"Lightning Dragon's Discharge!"

She pushed her arm forward as a huge blast of lightning came spiraling out destroying part of the ground in its path. Natsu was able to dodge the attack this time and sprinted towards her. She attempted to punch him with her free hand, but he just caught it effortlessly. Akeno gasped as her lightning aura suddenly vanished.

"Looks like you finally exhausted your power-up." Natsu remarked. "And for the record, I ain't lying to you...You're lying to yourself."

Akeno just stared back and said nothing. Deep down she knew he was telling the truth.

"Time to end this!" Natsu yelled as his body erupted in flames. He used his other arm to support the arm gripping Akeno's fist.

"Fire Dragon's..."

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"Grip Strike!"

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"Flaming Elbow!"

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"Talon!"

With her lightning drive gone, Akeno's speed, offense, and defense had been lowered back to normal. She still had magic left, but she now has to face the wrath of Natsu.

Natsu took the opportunity to unleash a barrage of his fire dragon-slaying magic. Flames exploded from the arm holding Akeno pushing her back. Then, fire shot out of Natsu's right elbow causing his fist to rocket into Akeno's gut. On top of that, he rammed a flaming kick into her side. Then, he jumped into the air as fireballs formed around his hands.

"With a flame on the right hand...And a flame on the left hand...When you combine the flames together..."

"Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!"

Natsu joined his hands together to form an even larger fireball above his head. The fireball was hurled at Akeno and exploded on impact with such immense force that it left her in a small crater.

After all of that, she could still rise, but was weakened substantially. She now had many more bruises and scorch marks all over her body as she tried to stand on her knees.

"Now for the grand finale." Natsu said as he landed on the ground again. He charged his power as what appeared to be a dragon made of fire forming around his body. Akeno panicked and knew she had to match his power. She sprouted her lightning wings and quickly flew up into the sky despite the agonizing pain.

Natsu was shocked that multiple magic circles hovered above the area around them as Akeno charged up her special move. Once both mages were ready they spoke the incantations to their devastating attacks.

"Dragon Slayer's Secret Art..."

"Dragon Slayer's Secret Art..."

"Natsu!"

"Huh?" Natsu lost his concentration and turned his head in horror to see Wendy sprinting towards the area in her pajamas.

"OH NO!" WENDY GET OUT OF HERE! IT'S NOT SAFE!" He screamed.

"Thunder Cracker!"

Akeno finished her incantation and unleashed a storm of lightning bolts from the magic circles. They encompassed the entire area with multiple bolts striking Natsu.

"AAAHHHH!" Natsu screamed in agony as Wendy watched her brother speechless. She didn't notice a stray bolt heading straight for her.

"AAAHHHH!" Wendy experienced the worst pain she had ever felt as the lightning surged through her delicate body.

Bolts rained down destroying all of the ground in their path. People could the radiance of the explosions from miles away.

When the attack had dissipated. Natsu was left motionless in a large carter with multiple small craters around the rest of the area. All that was on Natsu's mind right now was his little sister.

"Wendy...No." He spoke softly trying to lift his body up. He slowly limped his body out of the crater with one of his legs now paralyzed from the shock.

"When Natsu emerged from the crater. Akeno was standing about 20 feet away from him holding a spear made of lightning above her body. Natsu opened his mouth in shock as he recognized that attack from Laxus. Akeno said one final word before unleashing her attack.

"Goodbye."

Her word seemed to echo in Natsu's mind as he stood there paralyzed in pain.

"Lightning Dragon's Heavenward Halberd!"

She hurled the spear at Natsu with lightning spiraling off it as the spear tip formed. It stabbed Natsu with great force and sent him crashing through multiple trees in its path.

"NASTUUUUU!" Wendy screamed in horror.

Gonna be the evil author and leave you guys hanging right there. I hope you guys enjoyed the fight scene. I'm sorry to make you guys wait longer, but I had to edit some scenes. Also, with a few weeks left of school, I've really been going at it with homework and studying. I'm sure my fellow college students here will understand. Thanks so much for helping me break 50 Followers and Favorites. I'm so happy to see so much support for my first story.

Review Responses:

DarkPlasmaDragon: Thanks for taking the time to write out that part of the fight. I'm happy to see you're really into the story. I'm planning for the fight with Hades to be the finale. I will see if I can fit your scene into my story.

Natsu013: Thanks for the positive feedback.

fangs of death: Glad you're looking forward to my chapters. I'm surprised you guessed Wendy would show up, minus the frying pan. Have no fear, the frying pain will make its debut later.

ValinNight: Hoped you enjoyed the fight scene. Things are definitely getting heated up now.

Guest: You will see plenty of that later.

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See you guys next time.