AN: Thank you AliceCullen3, Goku275, and MDM11. MDM11, I'm sorry but I don't plan on showing the Dragon Eaters. I just needed elements for some of the Eclipse Gate dragons, thought that Blade Dragon Slayer Magic would be fitting for Scissor Runner, and ended up using all three. I agree that all the new Dragon Slayer Magics are cool, though.

Also, sorry I took a bit longer than usual to post.

The Dragneels made their way back to land as quickly as possible. Natsu flew them and the other survivors he was carrying to the nearest city. The injured received medical treatment and the Alvarez soldiers were imprisoned.

Natsu was approached by the local Magic Council and explained what had happened to them. Ships were sent to search for any more survivors, and an emergency message was sent to Magic Council Headquarters.

The next day, Mest arrived to bring the Dragneels back home. After one of his former coworkers contacted him about dragon Natsu showing up with a bunch of wounded people, the Fairy used his Direct Line magic to rush their location.

Because of Millianna's injuries, the return trip was much slower, with them not getting back to Magnolia Town until late at night. Upon arriving, the first thing they did was bring Millianna to Porlyusica, who gave her a more in-depth treatment that her previous doctors had been too overwhelmed to provide.

Then, the following morning, Natsu, Millianna, Happy, and Mest (who had been informed during the return trip) delivered the bad news to their guildmates. The Alvarez Empire had declared war on Fairy Tail and was bringing its most powerful mages.

This led to questions about why an empire would declare war on a single guild, which prompted Mavis and Makarov to reveal the truth about the Lumen Histoire — the Fairy Heart — and, by extension, Mavis and Natsu's relationship with Zeref. Those who didn't already know were astounded to find out that an infinite source of Magic Power existed, although they all understood why it had been kept secret.

It brought tears to Mavis's eyes when all of the Fairies accepted everything, from her reasons for not using Fairy Heart to her romance with Zeref. This… this was the guild that she had always dreamed of and fought her hardest to create.

The conversation, after a brief clamor once it sank in that an immortal dark mage was actively plotting to wipe out humanity, turned to how they could even kill Zeref. This resulted in the third big surprise of the day.

'I can take Zeref down! I've got a secret plan for that right here!'

Natsu made this bold claim, showing off the set of bandages that had been wrapped around his right arm for the past several weeks. He wouldn't say anything more on the matter, though, and the commotion produced by his words died down soon after.

At least, until Blaze caused the fourth big surprise with an idle comment.

"…then, despite being one of the Spriggan 12, she started mourning the destruction of the star mango gelato stand like a little girl whose pet goldfish died," said Millianna. After explaining Brandish's power, she had moved onto the woman's less impressive personality.

"Wow, mya!" exclaimed Blaze. "And I thought Ajeel had been kidding about how childish she could be!"

"…"

Those present froze as they processed the girl's words.

"What!?" they all exclaimed. "How do you know that!?"

"Mya?" went Blaze, confused. "Don't you remember? Future me told you about how Acnologia destroyed the Alvarez Empire and two of the Spriggan 12 joined our base camp. Ajeel would tell us stories about them pretty often."

"…Blaze," began Makarov, forcing himself to stay calm so he wouldn't scare the girl. "Could you please tell us everything you remember about the Spriggan 12?"

The dragon slayer girl considered the question for a moment before answering. "Alright… but only if you let me join Fairy Tail first, mya!"

The guild master locked eyes with Blaze's parents, silently communicating with them.

"Only if you promise to stay away from all of the fighting with the Alvarez Empire," Makarov told her. "Her request is actually a bit convenient. With the guild mark, Mavis will be able to directly communicate with Blaze, making it easier for her to strategize and assist the girl if any of the Alvarez Empire's forces make it to the guild hall."

"Deal, mya!" agreed Blaze happily. Her excitement at the thought of finally becoming an official member of Fairy Tail eclipsed her annoyance about being sidelined. "Okay, so first…"

Later, though, she would remember this and realize that not joining the fight was for the best. With her future self's memories of befriend people from the Alvarez Empire, it would have been like having friends suddenly try to kill her. Not to mention all of the other reasons why allowing a young child to participate in a war was a terrible idea.

Magnolia Town was evacuated not long after. The mages of Fairy Tail were the only people who didn't leave, instead preparing their minds and bodies for the conflict ahead. However, they were still caught off guard by the Alvarez Empire's opening move.

Fifty flying warships suddenly appeared above the town, headed by Desert King Ajeel. The Spriggan's voice, amplified by the magic of a subordinate, was heard by the entire guild.

"Fairy Tail, we're here for the Fairy Heart, for our Emperor Spriggan!" boomed Ajeel. He paused for a moment, relishing the knowledge that his next words would fill the Fairies with fear and despair. "…Although you Ishgar people know him as the Black Mage Zeref! Now, by his command, the ultimate Dragon Festival — between Fairy Tail, the Alvarez Empire, and Acnologia — shall begin! Fire!"

With that order, Ajeel's fleet opened fire on Magnolia Town. But, contrary to the Spriggan's expectations, the assault did not annihilate the town. A Jutsu Shiki barrier came into existence around the town (courtesy of Freed), protecting it.

Furthermore, at Mavis's command, two of Fairy Tail's attack forces struck Ajeel's fleet. The first, a long-range team consisting of Bisca, Alzack, and Sorano (plus Asuka watching) bombarded the ships with a blast from a Jupiter Cannon (aimed by Bisca) and beams of light fired by the angel Shamsiel (summoned by Sorano).

The second, consisting of Gajeel, Wendy, Sting, and their Exceed partners, took to the sky to destroy the ships directly. It was all according to Mavis's plan, at least until the dragon slayers landed on Ajeel's ship to battle the Spriggan directly. Motion sickness (which Mavis forgot about, to her embarrassment) brought all three of them to their knees.

Ajeel, after recovering from a moment of surprise at the dragon slayers' state, prepared to kill them. But, before he could, the section of the ship they were on was cut off from the rest and fell away. The person who did so landed on the ship's deck, defeating all of the foot soldiers present in seconds.

"Who are you!?" seethed Ajeel, grinding his teeth. The veins on his face throbbed with barely-contained fury.

"I am the one who will cut you down!" declared Erza in her Heaven's Wheel Armor, blades in both hands. The sword in her right hand pointed at the Spriggan, not as a threat but as a promise to defeat him.

As Ajeel began to fight Erza aboard the flagship, all of the other ships landed to the west of Magnolia. Their passengers exited and started marching toward the town, led by the highest ranked soldier of those remaining; Bakel, a man with incredible physical strength.

They did not get far, though, before Gajeel, Sting, Wendy were flung into the squadron by their Exceed partners. The dragon slayers, having recovered from their motion sickness, went straight to beating up the soldiers.

"Iron Dragon's Club!" shouted Gajeel, transforming his right arm and swinging it to take out a dozen enemies at once.

"Holy Ray!" yelled Sting, bombarding a cluster of soldiers with blasts of white light.

"Sky Dragon's Wing Attack!" cried Wendy, throwing her whirlwind-coated arms apart and blowing away the enemies around her.

The Exceeds weren't skipping out on the fun, either. Panther Lily and Lector underwent a Battle Mode Shift, the former drawing his Musica Sword while the latter simply crackled his knuckles, and Carla changed into her human form. They joined the fray, defeating soldier after soldier (though not as quickly or as many as their partners).

"Bah ha ha ha!" laughed Bakel, entertained by the notion of fighting powerful mages. Bakel swung his arm in Sting's direction, using enough force to produce a shockwave that shot at the White Dragon Slayer.

Noticing the attack, Sting turned in the direction it was coming from and crossed his arms defensively. Despite blocking the strike, he was still knocked back a few feet.

Bakel grinned. He had found his opponent.

"A fissure has opened up in Freed's Jutsu Shiki… or… a hole!?" reported Warren, a bit uncertain about the information being relayed through his Telepathy.

"Could it be that there's a magic canceller among the enemy!?" theorized Mavis.

"But that would mean…" said Makarov. He paused, hesitating to even suggest such a disagreeable thought. "…another of the Spriggan 12 is here!?"

Mavis knew that Makarov was, unfortunately, right. Not wasting a moment, she had Warren use his magic to transmit a message to the Fairies not fighting the Ajeel Squad.

"We have invaders within the town! Everyone! Get ready to intercept!"

The Fairy Tactician barely listened to the various affirmations sent to her through the Telepathy. Simulations ran through her mind, based on the information she had on the Alvarez Empire, the Spriggan 12, and Zeref. They were soon forgotten, however, because of Warren's next announcement.

"Wait… What!?" exclaimed the Fairy, stunned by the latest information. Despite his terror, he relayed the intelligence. "A force of more than 300 ships is approaching from the north. And, judging from the Magic Power level, I'd say three more of the Spriggan 12 are with them!

And that isn't all! Another force of the same size is coming in from the south! With maybe three more Spriggan 12! We're surrounded by three different forces!?"

Warren, already shaking with fear, started to cry as a new piece of information came in.

"I was wrong…" began the Fairy weepily. "There's also a force coming in from the east of more than a million troops… three more Spriggan 12… We're surrounded in all directions! There's no place left to run…"

As the other Fairies reacted to the news with shock and horror, Mavis's mind was already racing through every possible strategy they could deploy. Sadly, nothing she came up with would allow them to win. The Fairy Tactician hadn't given up, but it was clear that their chances of winning were slim to none… and getting closer to 'none' with every passing second.

"My forearm throbs," said Acnologia, his appearance the same as it was before his dragonization. "The left arm the Fire Dragon consumed…"

It had taken him a while, but the Black Dragon had finally recovered from his clash with those five dragons. Acnologia had spent more time in a human form (skin-deep, at least) than he had in centuries. It had been easier for him to treat… more familiar.

(Not to mention, it allowed him to pretend that he wasn't a dragon for a little while. Although, that illusion never lasted long. Food was tasteless and nights were sleepless).

"The Dragon King Festival begins," spoke Acnologia. He had not been blind to the outside world during his period of recovery. He knew of Zeref's scheming and had only waited to annihilate the cursed man because those plans were convenient for his own. Every dragon and dragon slayer — just future dragons, really — from two continents would be in one place.

He was done waiting. The phantom pain of his missing limb was still there, but he had grown accustom to the sudden bursts of agony. They were slowly growing less frequent and intense, in a substantial part due to the knowledge he had gained from treating amputees.

"I will devour everything," declared Acnologia, casting off his false human appearance. Over the centuries, these words had become a mantra that he repeated anytime he was going to kill a dragon or dragon slayer. "For I am the Dragon King! I reign supreme! I am Acnologia!"

Omake

Mavis puffed her cheeks in frustration.

"All our time together and he didn't bother telling me he was an emperor…" the Fairy grumbled. She knew for a fact that the Alvarez Empire came into existence before Zeref's curse rendered her body comatose. "Were we not close enough? Even though we were close enough to do that? I gave him my first…"

Around her, the members of Fairy Tail present did their best to pretend they couldn't hear Mavis and purge the mental image created by her words.

AN: The war has begun, and admittedly this chapter isn't too different from canon. So far, the only big change is that Brandish didn't break into Lucy's home, on account of how they haven't met yet. There will be more differences, though.

That is all. Goodbye!