[Re-Edited 03-04-22]
Welcome back for the last big battle with the Oración Seis.
I know I've said it before, but I'd really love it if any of you following along could drop a couple words in the reviews, let me know what you like or don't. It's needed encouragement and helps me improve. Anyway, hope you enjoy the last big battle, lots of Dragon Slayer action.
~Onward!
7
-Zero-
Speeding through the forest at a dead sprint, the Twin Dragons ran in silence, trying to keep their focus on the task at hand for now. They would have to come to terms with their experiences when they had everyone home safe, though Natsu did make a mental note to find out what Haru had seen while trapped in his void. Over three years partnering up, and there was still a lot the fire mage didn't know about his partner, Haru wasn't exactly an open book like he was. There was a lot of mystery surrounding him and the only things Natsu really knew about his past was that his dragon, Oceanus, had disappeared in the year X777, just like Igneel, right down to the day. After wandering aimlessly, he'd ended up in the Northern port town for years, refusing to allow himself to form bonds with anyone. Natsu thought it was probably a subconscious mechanism to avoid opening himself up to potential abandonment again, and likely the reason Haru had been so reluctant to joining him three years ago.
"What?" Haru asked harshly, breaking Natsu out of his thoughts. The Fire Slayer hadn't realized he'd been blatantly staring, Haru narrowed his eyes.
Deflecting the subject until there was a better the time, Natsu said instead, "I'm picking up Erza's sent, not too far from here."
Haru's irritated expression faded as he noticed that the pinkette was right, "Erza, can you hear me?"
"Haru? Yes, did you guys find Kageyama?"
"Unfortunately not, we ran into trouble and had to split up. Natsu and I are on his trail now, but suffice to say, Brain got to him first."
"Shit!" Haru winced as the curse rang out loudly in his head. He was aware of Natsu watching him in concern, not being able to hear the conversation himself.
"Has your team found Brain yet?"
"No. We don't have much to go on," she replied, Haru could feel her impatience and anxiety tainting their link.
"We have Kageyama's sent, it's almost a guarantee that that will lead us to Brain. Hold tight, we're making our way to you."
Haru closed the telepathic link, and abruptly changed direction to detour to Erza's group. Natsu didn't question him, just followed. Their comrades weren't far off, and soon they were reunited and running as a unit through the forest back on the dispeller's trail as Natsu caught the others up on what had transpired with their team.
"Are Freed and the others okay?" Laxus asked gruffly, trying and failing to keep the concern from his voice.
"Freed and Gray will pull through, we just have to have faith in them. I bet they'll be catching up with us before we know it," the scarlet knight said. The group didn't say anything else as they continued east, until Carla suddenly gasped loudly. A few heads turning in her direction, but she didn't explain before she whipped up through the leafy canopy to get a better look at something. Jura signalled them to stop running and they slowed to a momentary stand still.
The white cat dove back down through the trees, pulling up and hovering in front of the confused group. "Cait Shelter!" she gasped out, her eyes huge and body quivering slightly.
"What do you mean Carla?" Wendy asked, reaching out to grasp her friend's paw to try to offer some support.
"We are headed straight for Cait Shelter!" the cat shouted, "I think Cait Shelter is the first target for Nirvana, the girl at Fairy Tail was right! They're going after the light guilds, what other explanation is there?!" The sky mage's expression quickly mirrored her companion's and she turned toward Natsu, desperately seeking reassurance. The small dragon slayer could not know the internal plight currently plaguing him as well though, after all, some of their companions had taken shelter there.
'Lucy, Happy… be safe. We're coming.'
No one said anything to reassure each other, what could they really say? Words couldn't help, only action could. Pushing his own fears down, Natsu just placed a strong hand on Wendy's shoulder, "Let's get moving, we have a deranged psycho to stop." the fire mage knew from very recent experience, that having the mission to focus on was the best cure for halting the paralyzing grip of one's fears. Carla swooped down and lifted Wendy into the air so she could keep pace as the rest of the mages broke into a sprint toward the isolated guild.
The allied forces had been a few miles out from the forest perimeters, but they made quick work of racing back into the grassy plains that separated them from the small guild. The pointed peaks of the Cait Shelter guildhall could be made out on the horizon when they emerged from the forest, but in the grip of night that was only possible due to an unnatural golden glow banishing the dark. Natsu sucked in a breath, that unnatural light couldn't possibly be good for the light mages.
"I'm going on ahead," he announced, "Fire Dragon's flash step!" His body burst into flames, vanishing and reappearing in another burst of flames 20 meters ahead, and repeating the process as he moved further and further away from the group at incredible speed.
"Me too," Erza echoed. Her body flashed into her Flight Armour, and her body blurred forward, the armour affording her speed as fast as the cheetah that her armour was designed after. Without saying anything, Laxus and Haru exchanged a glance, before following suit with Natsu. The lightning mage zapped forward in bolts of lightning, and Haru similarly in streams of water that skipped in arches across the rolling grass hills toward the guild.
The fireball dispersed as Natsu materialized in front of Cait Shelter just as the encompassing golden glow to the North narrowed to a pinpoint. The dark of night folded back in on him for a split second and then the light burst forward in a wide beam of dense magical energy that enveloped the entire guild. "LUCY! HAPPY!" Natsu exclaimed, lurching toward the guild. A strong grip wrapped around his wrist and wrenched him back before he could dive blindly into the danger. Natsu's head whipped in his captor's direction and found Erza staring at the guild and wearing the terror he felt on her face too.
"Let me go Erza! I have to save them!"
"You CAN'T! I won't lose you too!"
"You don't know that we have lost them!" he screamed in a tortured voice. He broke out of her grip as the flames of his Flash Steps crawled up over his lower legs, but once again, someone stopped him. Arms wrapped around his torso, pinning his arms to his sides and pulled him back. Natsu continued to struggle, yelling for his friends and kicking his legs desperately as he was held in place.
"Natsu, stop, rushing in, we can't help them if we get caught up too!" Natsu looked over his shoulder, realizing it was Laxus this time, who had him in a vice grip. The older dragon slayer looked to be on the verge of breaking as well, and realization dawned on Natsu when he recalled that Evergreen and Bixlow had gone on ahead and had likely experienced the same fate.
When the blinding light finally dissipated, the Fairy Tail mages were shocked to find the structure of the guildhall completely unscathed. It would've been unrealistic not to assume they'd be picking through an obliterated building for any survivors.
Laxus released him and they all shot forward, bursting through the doors of the guild with the names of their comrades on their lips. The first thing they noticed was a blueish dome of pulsing magic in the corner. The spell shattered a moment later to reveal Yuka on his knees, hands pressed out in front of him for a short period before he collapsed forward in exhaustion. Sherry, behind him, dropped down next to him and rolled him to his back to see if he was alright.
Natsu tore his eyes off the Lamia Scale mages and whirled around, frantically scanning his surroundings. The Cait Shelter members were scattered on the floor in various states of shock, trying to sit up and calling out to each other. "Lucy! Happy! Has anyone seen them?" Natsu shouted indiscriminately to the occupants of the hall. He was only partially aware that Erza and Haru were making their way to aid the downed mages. Erza located and helped Cait Shelter's guild master to sit up through his disorientation.
The fire mage felt a tap on his shoulder and spun around. He was caught off guard to find himself face to face with, 'A grandfather clock?! What the hell?!' Natsu wondered. But then the clock opened and Lucy climbed out, holding Happy to her chest. Happy jumped from her arms and plowed into Natsu, fisting his paws into his scaled scarf, already bawling his relief. Natsu barely registered the blue cat's blubbering though, still staring at the stellar mage with his mouth slightly agape. Lucy gave him a small smile, stepping forward to wrap her good arm around his neck and pulled him into an embrace. His hands slowly came up to her hips, before threading around her waist to bring her flush against his body, squishing Happy between them. 'Thank goodness.'
The trio stayed like that for a long moment before Natsu brought her to arms distance, noticing for the first time that someone had managed to set and properly sling her shoulder. "Evergreen and Bixlow?" he asked her in concern as Laxus appeared over Lucy's shoulder.
"Not here... We ran into the Naked Mummy guild on our way over. Evergreen and Bixlow sent us on ahead, promising to hold them off." Worry etched into her face as she looked down in shame at not being able to help her friends, again.
"Don't worry blondie, my team wouldn't be my team,if they couldn't handle a few dark guild grunts."
"Yeah, I'm sure they'll be rejoining us any minute," Natsu added. He was so relieved to see that none of the allied force mages had been hit by whatever Nirvana had blasted the guild with.
"Their magic is gone!" Erza called out. That answers that...
"What!?" The team turned to the entrance and found Wendy and Carla in the doorway. Wendy's eyes huge and brimming with unshed tears, "what do you mean?"
The redhead looked apologetic as she explained, "I can't sense any magic power coming from any of them." Erza looked over at the Water Slayer, who dropped his eyes in response. They could all take that as an unspoken confirmation that he couldn't either, even with dragon-enhanced senses.
"It's reversible, isn't it? It has to be," the young girl cried out, frozen in her spot.
What becomes of a magic guild, without magic?
No one had a chance to respond though, as the ground began to quake beneath them. Natsu shouted for everyone to get out of the guild hall immediately, and the large group darted chaotically for the doors, pouring out of the hall and looking northward. A huge imposing rock wall stood stretching around the entire side of the guild now. A barrier between it and Nirvana that floated a few miles out, if the eerie glow in the distance was anything to judge by.
"Jura, what happened?" Laxus called to the Wizard Saint. Jura was in a half kneel, his palms both planted on the ground, he stood and turned to the group of mages approaching him.
"I am not sure, Brain attacked again, but it wasn't the same magic signature as before, this was more physically destructive." Jura absently watched in the direction that the explosive energy had shot from, not really hearing the questions and comments of the alliance.
"Attention Fairy Tail!" a voice boomed, projecting from a far distance. Everyone stilled and the discussions all cut off as they listened in anxious silence. "You were warned to stay out of our way. For your insolence, your guild will be the next to be wiped from the magical world."
"Where in the hell—" Natsu barked, but his question was abruptly answered before the words had left his mouth. A large airship was gliding toward them, painted in blacks and golds with the Oración Seis guildmark taking up most of the nose of the ship. The familiar shape of Nirvana hovered at the front and two large magic circles appeared in front of canons mounted on the sides, charging power as the ship advanced. Dense beams of energy tore into the ground toward the mages, ripping scars through the earth. The group jumped, scattering outward to dodge the blast and the now powerless Cait Shelter members ran for cover screaming. The ship continued gliding toward them slowly, for now.
Natsu's body burst in flames, snapping across the field in seconds before he leapt into the air below the ship's belly. Rocketing toward the airship, he pierced straight through the left wing in a storm of fire. The vessel lurched in the air before a bright green magic circle appeared in place of the missing wing and Brain laughed wildly.
"This ship won't go down so easily, little firefly. Not with my spatial magic."
Reappearing safely on the ground far from the light mages, Natsu watched as the unaffected ship continued to glide through the night. Wielding his Flash Steps, he rejoined his comrades again, "We have to get up there, and take him out!" he announced.
"Aren't you forgetting something?" Erza questioned, "what about your motion sickness?"
All three dragon slayers paled a bit.
"Jura and I can—" the redhead started, only to be cut off.
Streams of mixed magics burned through the darkness from all over, converging on their position. Suddenly, the alliance was being overrun with hundreds of dark mages. Their new foes were likely from remaining guilds under the Oración Seis branch, judging by the odd banner being thrusted into the sky. The light mages responded by releasing long-range attacks, knocking back large groups of enemies in single sweeps.
"Damnit!" Erza hissed out as she requipped into her Black Wing Armour. Shedodged several attacks before slashing outward and sending multiple dark mages flying. "Wendy!" she called, appearing next to the petrified girl, "I hate to ask you, but I need you to accompany Natsu, Haru and Laxus to the ship to cast your equilibrium spell on them."
"T-troia?" the girl asked her as Carla shouted her disapproval in the background, though the cat's protests fell on deaf ears.
"Jura and I will protect your guildmates with our very lives, so I am putting my trust in you to help those three protect my guild's future." She brought her hands to the Sky Slayer's shoulders, "can I count on you?"
Determination replaced her fear and Wendy nodded, "I won't let you down!"
"You hear that boys?" Erza shouted over to the dragon slayers. Three matching and equally intimidating smirks appeared on the trio's faces as they exchanged glances, itching to provide a beat down.
. . .
Magic circles formed behind the jets of the airship, as Brain prepared to warp toward Magnolia. The male dragon slayers vanished in flashes of their respective elements and Carla lifted Wendy into the sky to trail after them, all four slayers shooting toward the ship at top speed. The Fairy Tail mages landed on the deck at the bow of the boat, lurching forward at the motion, and immediately struggled to stay on their feet as they succumbed to motion sickness.
Brain arched a brow at the embarrassing display, "This is Fairy Tail's best attack force?!" he asked condescendingly. He strutted forward, grabbing Natsu by an arm and lifted him from the deck, "I can just throw you overboard!"
Carla dropped Wendy onto the deck before agilely headbutting the Guild Master hard in the ribs. Brain stumbled back slightly but otherwise just appeared irritated with the interruption. It was just the distraction to give Wendy time though, and she already had a hand on each of Natsu's temples. Gold-flecked, onyx eyes shot open, a wide grin splitting Natsu's face, "I knew we could count on you, Wendy!"
Before Brain new what had happened, a flaming fist had collided up into his chin, fuelled by the momentum of Natsu springing up from his previously crouched position. Brain's body arched through the air and landed hard on his back, only to receive a hammer kick straight into his gut that sent electric shocks pulsing through his whole body. Just as he started to shake off the tingling static, a heel caught him in the temple from a water-enhanced spin kick and the dark mage's body flew to the side once more. He crashed painfully into the railing of the ship with an audible groan.
When Brain cracked his eyes open, all three Fairy Tail dragon slayers were looking down at him, mirroring the same dangerous looks that made even Brain gulp in a flicker of fear. Carla snagged Wendy and retreated back into air to ensure she wouldn't get caught in any stray attacks. Her battle experience was far too minimal to have the trained reflexes that the guys boasted. But she had other ways she could help...
Natsu and the others shared a moment of surprise when they noticed a light, airy feeling washing through their bodies. Wendy called down, explaining that she had enchanted them with support magic to aid their fight, further boosting their already impressive combat prowess.
Brain looked positively vengeful when he climbed back to his feet. Dark magic erupted off him, striking the slayers in front of him to send them all flying across the deck. Natsu turned in the air, driving his feet into the deck and roared out a breath attack even as he slid back. Laxus did the same and the two breath attacks converged in a vortex of flame and lightning, barreling down on Brain. He didn't have enough time to dodge and just barely got his arms up in front of him in time to absorb some of the blow. Flames licked at the deck and Brain ended up sprawled out flat on his back again.
Natsu and Laxus threw up a high five, sharing a grin.
"It's not over; keep your guards up!" Haru alerted them as the dark mage laid out before them vanished into shadow.
Brain reappeared behind them, "Dark Capriccio," he droned. Multiple tendrils of shadow slashed through the space, sweeping under the slayers and whipping the trio into the deck. Haru threw an arm up, blocking another strike from the dark magic and rolled to the side, dissolving into a watery arch and reappeared on the other side of Brain. The Water Slayer launched into a barrage of punches and kicks, keeping Brain absorbed in hand to hand to allow Laxus enough time to sneak up from behind. Laxus connected a kick to Brain's neck at the same time that Haru sunk a fist into his ribcage on the opposite side.
"Water Dragon's tidal wave!" Haru called, conjuring a watery wall that submerged Brain, and carried him back as Laxus dodged to the side.
Taking advantage of the water drenching the dark mage, Laxus snapped forward with electricity licking over his arms. "Lightning Dragon's heavenward halberd," he added, a torrent of lightning consumed Brain and an anguished scream tore from his lungs. The dark guild master collapsed forward, residual static dancing across his unconscious form.
"Did that do it?" Natsu asked from across the deck near Wendy.
"I think so," the lightning mage responded hopefully.
The four dragon slayers dared to relax, exchanging premature cheers until magic pressure exploded off of Brain's still unmoving form. Carla crashed to the deck under the pressure, dropping the Sky Slayer and gasped for breath as Wendy curled into herself, her support spells breaking.
"What is this?! I feel nauseous," Wendy choked out as the magic pressure continued growing to suffocating levels.
The boys resumed defensive postures in front of Wendy and Carla as they eyed the dark guild master. Brain's arm shifted, bracing a palm on the deck to push himself up and when he looked back at the Fairy Tail mages his eyes were a deep red. Laxus cursed, and burst forward in a bolt of lightning, colliding with Brain who easily blocked and sent him flying. "Laxus!" The Twin Dragons shouted, angrily turning and anxiously taking in the drastic change to the Seis Master's magical signature.
"Now you've done it," Brain's voice reverberated around them darkly, "you've awoken Zero."
A stream of dark magic struck Natsu straight in the chest and he was launched into the air. Haru screamed his name as Brain used Dark Capriccio to snap a whip of shadow into the fire mage's stomach. Natsu's body folded in half as he crashed hard into the deck, boards of wood fracturing on impact. Rolling with a pained groan, Natsu spat out a mouthful of blood. Laxus was back on his feet and unleashing a full-power lightning roar at Zero in the next second, but the dark mage negated it with a simple sweep of his arm.
The dragon slayers shared in collective awe, realizing Zero's power had spiked exponentially. The drastic change in the very nature of his magic didn't seem possible. Laxus turned to Natsu and Haru, "I will hold him off, you two need to finish this!" The lightning mage didn't wait for their answer, he'd been the target of their combined power once before... The devastating power of First Gen dragon slayers. He trusted them fully.
Natsu struggled back to his feet, and the Twin Dragons brought their fists up, roaring into the night as their own magic power rose rapidly.
Exchanging blows with Zero, Laxus felt their pressure building up behind him and smirked as he blocked a punch. "You don't know what you're in for," he told the dark guild master.
Fire and water whirled around the Twin Dragons, expanding and contracting, before it vanished, leaving just a spike of magic pressure that pressed down on all the mages.
"Fire Drive."
"Water Drive."
With crimson and cerulean scales respectively coating their skin, and their eyes taking on a more draconic look, the pair vanished and materialized on either side of Zero landing a shower of element-enhanced hits all over his body. Laxus leapt back, grasping his ribs where a deep bruise was already spreading over his torso and dropped into a kneel beside Wendy, prepared to jump back in, should his comrades need the support. It appeared the Drive State, which power was only surpassed by the legendary Dragon Force itself, had Zero on the ropes.
"ENOUGH!" Zero commanded, throwing his arms out to his sides as a pulse of dark magic forced the slayers back. "I am ending this, NOW!" With his arms still spread out, he began tracing through the space before him, one arm descending as the other ascended in wide arches. Bright green ribbons of magic followed the path of his hands until the separate arches connected in a large circle. "Genesis zero," their enemy boomed.
The overwhelming power of the spell unexpectedly overtook the slayers, who both gave agonized screams as the spell engulfed them fully.
"Natsu! Haru!" Laxus roared, running forward only to get forced back by the spell. He retreated quickly and snagged Wendy and Carla before jumping out of the way of the encroaching spell. Landing on the upper deck, he watched the pitch-black cloud beneath them anxiously, his eyes darting over the spell in search of signs that the guys were unharmed, or at the very least, still in the fight.
Struggling with the immense pressure of the spell, Natsu and Haru grasped each other's hands as they built up their own magics in response. Fire and water collided, swirled and pulsed, in a quickly expanding sphere of elemental power. Releasing their grip to allow their hands to separate slightly, the boys pivoted with their inside arms extending behind them. The growing ball of magic pulsed larger and larger, challenging the boarders of Zero's spell. The dark shell blew apart revealing the Twin Dragons angled toward each other with a massive sphere of fire and water thrashing together at their fingertips. In unison, the boys leapt into the air, yelling, "Twin Dragons' elemental break!" Swinging their arms up in an arch over their heads, they unleashed the devastating spell, breaking through the remnants of Zero's dark magic. The spell overwhelmed the dark guild master in fire and water and annihilated a large chunk of the ship along with him.
"Haven't seen that in a while," Laxus mused. Wendy fixed him with a confused look, so he elaborated, "those two haven't used that, as far as I'm aware, since the last S class exam." They continued watching as the pulses of magic dwindled down, large puddles of water and fire eating at the wooden planks of the deck. "A unison raid. Still as impressive as ever, especially considering the natural opposition of their magic types..." The blonde shook himself out of his awe as he heard a deafening crack and turned in time to see the second wing of the airship explode in flames and fall from the ship. With Zero down, the spatial magic effects on the first wing were gone as well, and the ship was losing altitude fast now, going down in a torrent of flames.
Natsu was at the wing in an instant, inhaling the spreading fire that resulted from the explosion just as the ship started plowing through the trees. He turned, yelling out to his fellow mages, "Time to go!" With his magic partially replenished, the fire mage leapt over to Haru, pulling his exhausted partner onto his back and escaped the doomed ship. He had full trust that Laxus would be following suit after grabbing Wendy and Carla, so he didn't need to wait for them. The group absorbed a rough landing in their exhausted states, rolling and skidding to a stop in a grassy plain.
The airship sped toward the ground, colliding just beyond them and kicked up a huge cloud of dirt that blew over them. They all coughed and spat out dirt before the guys broke into laughter at the sheer craziness of everything that had happened in the last 24 hours.
Shoving himself up into a cross legged position, Laxus gazed east as light pinks were bleeding into the horizon. "What a cliché," he laughed out, "the battle is won, and the sun rises another day."
His comrades joined him in fits of uncontrolled laughter, before Wendy cut in uncertainly. "Hey, guys? Aren't we hundreds of miles from Cait Shelter now?"
They all froze and looked at her, their expressions the epitome of 'oh shit,' before promptly dissolving into uproarious laughter again. Wendy watched their carefree attitudes in a blank stare. "They've lost it..." she told Carla who just rolled her eyes.
. . .
Haru had contacted Erza through telepathy to check in on the status of the rest of the alliance. She and Jura had taken down the low and mid tier dark guilds without too much trouble, especially after Evergreen and Bixlow had shown up. All the Cait Shelter members were safe, and there had only been some minor injuries.
The water mage relayed that their team had also successful in defeating Brain, er, Zero, he'd corrected himself. But that was a story for the inevitable party that would be sure to follow their victory. They had Nirvana in their possession as well, the runes had faded and the weapon looked like nothing more than a large glorified paperweight now.
The dragon slayers headed for Clover Town to see about renting a magic mobile so they could rejoin their comrades. They were lucky Wendy was still with them or they (with their shared motion sickness) would have been screwed. Erza had laughed through the link at that.
"Any sign of Gray and Freed?" Haru asked as the dragon slayers reached the outskirts of Clover Town.
"Unfortunately, not yet, but Jura and Yuka are on their way to locate them." Her concern was impossible to hide through their link, but she quickly added, "but they'll be fine, they are Fairy Tail mages after all."
"Definitely. Laxus is just signing for a vehicle now, we should be seeing you within a couple hours."
"Good, don't any of you overdo it, we'll see you soon."
Wendy regretted to inform the boys that she didn't have enough magic power to cast Troia on all three of them again, which caused the boys to squabble over who should get to drive. Haru begrudgingly admitted his magic stores weren't likely replenished enough to get them all the way to Cait Shelter, and even though Natsu had snuck in some fire from the airship's wreckage, he was still more depleted than the Lightning Slayer.
Laxus claimed victory and climbed into the driver's seat, slipping on the SE plug as the warm blue glow of Wendy's magic settled on his temples. "Hey… If all three of you have severe motion sickness…" Wendy started in concern, the three boys looked at her curiously as she trailed off. "...Does any of you even know HOW to drive?"
"How hard could it be?" Laxus said with a grin on his face.
"I am surrounded by idiots." Carla bit out.
"It was nice knowing you Carla," Wendy said as she finished casting the spell on Laxus.
Natsu and Haru climbed into the back seat with the Sky Slayer, wrapping themselves into seated fetal positions as they prepared for the unavoidable nausea. Laxus peeled away from the curb with more recklessness than Erza, the wheels squealed in protest as he laughed and cheered loudly. "This is AWESOME!" he announced with a giant grin.
"We faced off with an entire branch of the Balam Alliance, and this is how we're going to die..." Natsu groaned out.
A/N. Alright, there we have it! Next chapter is nice break from fighting, lots of fluff and a little bit of Nalu comfort and humor.
I just returned home from a three week trip so I am back to work and college, as such, updates may slow down in the future. But I just completed Chapter 18 this morning, so as long as major writer's block doesn't rear its ugly head… you'll likely see regular updates for a while.
See you Saturday my lovelies!
R&R