Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.
Fairy Tail—The Master and the Dragon
Chapter 24
Vanish and Stealth stopped their Spatial Walk Magic about a mile away from the battlefield.
"Is this far enough, Stealth?" Vanish asked while trying to spot the battlefield on the flat plain.
"I believe so, Vanish," Stealth replied. "The order from Master Severo was to take the dragon far enough away from the fight until we can't see the battlefield anymore." Stealth mimicked Vanish. "And I can't see it. Can you?"
"There you are!" Nikolias roared as he ran towards them, shadows whipping around his body.
"I suppose it doesn't matter now," Vanish said. "He's here."
"My, you're a fast one, dragon," Stealth commented. "I thought that we'd have more time to prepare."
Nikolias kept charging at the two, an orb of shadow in his right hand. "Like I told you two fuckers the last time we met," he said as he leapt towards their location, "I'm just full of surprises! SHADOW DRAGON PULSE!" Nikolias fired the orb at Vanish and Stealth with enough power to obliterate them. However, at the last second, they vanished and reappeared behind Nikolias, causing the attack to destroy nothing but the earth.
"He still thinks he can hit us, Stealth," Vanish said. "How foolish."
However, unlike the last time they met, Nikolias wasn't frustrated or angry at all after seeing his attack miss. Instead, he smiled. 'I could see it. I could hear it. I was right; it's not teleportation at all. They're just moving incredibly fast. Had I been more focused before, things could have been a lot different.' Nikolias turned to the two mages, his smirk still on his face. "You two are as fast as ever I see."
"Why is he smiling, Vanish?" Stealth asked.
"I'm sure it's nothing but a façade," Vanish assured.
"Believe what you want," Nikolias said with a malicious grin as his black blades shot out of his arms. "It won't change the fact that you two are about to get sliced up. And I'll start with those goddamn legs of yours."
"FIRE DRAGON ROAR!" Natsu shouted as flames shot from his mouth towards Juggernaut. The flames collided with the massive Bloody Moon mage, engulfing him in fire. Natsu pumped his fist. "Direct hit!" However, Natsu's celebration was cut short when Juggernaut walked slowly out of the flames completely unharmed. "What the hell?"
"That won't work, fire brain," Gray said. "This guy's skin is far too tough."
Juggernaut sighed. "I can't remember the last time I was actually challenged. How dull. Oh well, I guess I'll be happy as long as you all lie dead at my feet." He then lifted his fist over his head and punched the earth with incredible force. The ground began to split open and the Fairy Tail mages had to jump to safety. Juggernaut chuckled. "That was slightly amusing. Let's try it again." Over and over again, Juggernaut sent massive tremors through the Earth with his fists, breaking open the plain and causing the Fairy Tail mages to dance around to avoid falling in to the crevices.
"We can't keep this up much longer!" Lucy cried. "We need a plan!"
"How's this for a plan?" Gajeel asked while charging forward. "Go on the offensive! IRON DRAGON SWORD!" Gajeel's arm became an iron jagged sword with rotating teeth which he swung at Juggernaut.
Juggernaut lifted his arm and caught the blade with his hand. The teeth caught in his skin, but didn't break through. "I believe you tried this one and it went exactly the same way. Perhaps you need a reminder." Juggernaut lifted his free arm and sent a powerful punch at Gajeel.
However, Gajeel smirked. Before the punch could connect, he swung his body to avoid the attack and caught the arm with his legs, causing him to be suspended horizontally by Juggernaut's grip. "I was lookin' for this opportunity. Let's see just how tough your skin is!" Gajeel transformed his free left arm into a large iron spearhead. "IRON DRAGON LANCE: DEMON LOGS!" Gajeel thrust his spearhead in the direction of Juggernaut's face. A magic circle appeared in front of the spearhead and multiple spears flew at Juggernaut at high speed. Juggernaut had no way to defend his face from the onslaught of steel. He roared as multiple spears pierced his eyes, ears, nose, and other places in his skin. Gajeel smirked as he kept up his attack. "Alright, while he has open wounds! Someone hit him and hit him hard!"
"You got it!" Natsu and Gray said simultaneously.
"FIRE DRAGON ROAR!"
"ICE MAKE: LANCE!"
The two fired their attacks straight at Juggernaut's face, the only place where he had open wounds. Juggernaut's arms were still being restrained and he couldn't block the fire and ice combination.
At the last second, Gajeel released his grip on Juggernaut and leapt away just as the attacks collided with Juggernaut and exploded. He landed a safe distance away with a massive grin. "Geehee. How'd that feel, asshole?"
From the smoke, Juggernaut trudged out. His face was glowing red where his wounds were and he had an angry snarl. "That was most annoying."
"His wounds are glowing!" Lucy commented. "Is that his magic?"
"Yes, girl, this is my magic; Clotted Blood Magic," Juggernaut explained. "My blood is hardening to seal my wounds. I have to say, though, I'm impressed that you were able to harm me at all with your meager attacks."
Gajeel spat at the ground. "You still got the balls to say we're weak after that?"
Juggernaut looked at him. "The attacks were weak, but you aimed at areas on my body that were weaker since they couldn't be trained."
"Excuses," Gajeel returned. "We'll show you just how strong we are."
"I'd be interested to see this."
Gajeel leapt over to the group and prepared for a fight. "Your funeral."
Lucy hadn't taken her eyes off of Juggernaut. "Hey, why isn't he moving?"
Natsu raised an eyebrow at her. "Whaddya mean?"
"I mean he hasn't counterattacked or really moved since our last attack," Lucy noted.
"I think you're right," Gray said. "Do you think he can only use his magic if he's relatively still?"
"Maybe," Lucy said. "So if I'm right, we should take this time to come up with a plan."
"I think I have one," Gajeel said.
"We don't need a plan!" Natsu said with a smile.
"Can it, ash face," Gray shot at him. "Go ahead Gajeel. What's your plan?"
Gajeel smirked. "It's a bit complicated, so try to keep up. I'm only gonna say it once."
While the four mages quietly went over their plan, Juggernaut watched while his wounds healed. He would never admit it to them, but they were right; his magic was designed to work only if he were standing still. If he moved around at all, his magic would simply not activate and he would have to rely on the Red Eye to heal his wounds at an agonizingly slower pace. Since he needed his wounds closed in case of another attack, he decided that it was in his best interest to stay still and heal quickly. Fortunately for him, his magic and strength were enough of a threat that the fairies decided it unwise to charge in. 'Just a few more seconds and they're as good as dead,' Juggernaut thought to himself.
Lucy took a step back after hearing Gajeel's plan. "Are you sure, Gajeel? That sounds a bit risky."
Gajeel's smirk had never faded. "Oh I'm sure, bunny girl. This will do some serious damage for sure."
Natsu was grinning also. "I like it! Let's do it!"
Lucy sighed but couldn't help but smile at her Natsu. "Alright, I'm in." Lucy whipped out her keys. "OPEN GATE OF THE MAIDEN: VIRGO!"
In a burst of light, a pink haired and blue eyed woman appeared in front of Lucy, dressed in a maid outfit with shackles around her wrists. She bowed to Lucy. "You summoned me, Princess?"
"Yes, Virgo, we're going to need you for our plan," Lucy said. "Be ready."
"Of course, Princess."
"Alright then, let's get this started," Gajeel said.
Juggernaut's wounds stopped glowing to reveal that he had fully healed. He cracked his neck and grinned. "So you all truly believe that you can take me down? Very well, entertain me! Make this a fight worth remembering!"
Gray was the first to make a move as he put his hands to the ground. "ICE MAKE: FLOOR!" Ice shot out from his hands and covered the entire ground in thick ice. Juggernaut watched as the ground beneath him froze over and chuckled. "It would appear that that was ineffective. Nice try."
Gray smirked. "Don't get cocky, jack ass."
"And why shouldn't I get cocky? This is no challenge for me," Juggernaut replied while raising his foot. He slammed his foot against the ground, shattering the ice beneath him. He smiled at his success, but that smile quickly faded when the ground refroze beneath him. "What the hell?"
"I told you not to get cocky!" Gray shouted. "Natsu, go!"
Natsu ran forward, careful not to slip on the ice. "Hell yeah! I'm all fired up!" he shouted as he leapt at Juggernaut with flames surrounding his feet. "Take this, you bastard! FIRE DRAGON CLAW!"
Juggernaut put up his arms in defense. "Another weak attack that stands no chance of doing any damage whatsoever."
"We'll just see!" Natsu cried as his fire-empowered kick connected with Juggernaut's thick forearms. The force of the kick didn't do any damage, but it did cause the massive and heavy Juggernaut to lose his balance on the slippery floor.
Juggernaut began stumbling backwards to regain his balance when Lucy shouted, "Now Virgo!"
From behind Juggernaut, Virgo burst from the ground, creating a hole about two feet in diameter. "As you wish, Princess."
As Juggernaut continued to attempt to regain his balance on the slippery floor, his foot caught in the rubble of Virgo's hole, sending him crashing down to the earth on his back with enough force to shake the ground like an earthquake. Ice then moved to cover his arms and legs, attempting to render him immobile.
Virgo landed next to Lucy. "Shall I be punished now, Princess?"
Lucy sighed. "I'm not going to punish you, Virgo."
"Pesky flies!" Juggernaut shouted from his position on the ground. He was shattering the ice on his limbs, but it would only reappear every time he broke it. "This was all pointless and its only success was making me angry."
"We're not finished yet!" Lucy shouted at him. "Do it, Gajeel!"
Gajeel, however, was already in the air, ready to go. 'Let's hope this move packs as much of a punch as I think it could,' Gajeel thought to himself before he began spinning faster and faster in the air. He then positioned his head towards the ground while spinning and summoned his magic, creating shards of metal that began rotating around his spinning body. "IRON DRAGON DRILL!" Gajeel's spinning intensified the closer he got to the ground, giving the appearance of a cone-shaped drill. He collided with the immobile Juggernaut, hitting him with enough force to push him deeper into the ground and creating a massive dust storm.
Natsu pumped his fist. "Nice Gajeel! That was a hell of a lot stronger than your first one!"
Gajeel leapt from the dust storm and landed next to the group. He immediately took a knee as he began heavily panting. "I'm starting to get the hang of it, but damn it I feel drained."
"So do you think he's done?" Lucy asked, watching the dust cloud intently as it began to dissipate.
Gajeel gave a tired laugh. "I'd be surprised if he wasn't. I aimed for his neck. Without a brain, what's gonna tell him to heal?"
The four mages and one spirit watched as the dust cleared and revealed Juggernaut getting slowly to his feet, his neck glowing red as it began to heal.
Lucy's eyes widened. "No way…"
Gajeel growled. "How the hell? I totally hit him with everything I had!"
Juggernaut stood straight up and smiled at his opponents. "A most impressive finisher, Gajeel. Any other opponent would have been obliterated. Unfortunately, my body is far too strong and not even that attack could end me."
"What do we do now?" Lucy asked. "If that didn't finish him off, what will?"
Natsu clenched his jaw. "We keep at it! That's what we do!" he shouted as he ran towards Juggernaut. "I'll aim for his wound!"
"Natsu, don't! It's too dangerous!" Lucy cried.
However, Natsu wasn't listening. He was charging straight for Juggernaut. His fists became engulfed in fire as he leapt towards Juggernaut. "Eat this! FIRE DRAGON IRON FIST!" he cried as he sent a powerful punch towards Juggernaut's neck.
And to everyone's surprise, Juggernaut made no attempt to block the attack as the punch hit him square in the neck. He let out a gurgled sound as he fell back to the ground.
Gray's mouth was agape in surprise. "Did…did anyone else see that?"
"Holy shit," Gajeel said. "Bunny girl was right; if he's using his magic, he can't move."
"We should take advantage of that," Gray said.
Everyone nodded as they prepared their next onslaught of attacks.
"Aim for his neck!" Gray shouted. "ICE MAKE: ICE HAMMER!" A giant spiked hammer made entirely of ice appeared above Gray which he motioned towards Juggernaut's neck, forcing it to slam into his throat.
"OPEN GATE OF THE ARCHER: SAGITTARIUS!" Lucy cried as she summoned Sagittarius in a flash of brilliant light.
A tall lanky man wearing a horse costume appeared before Lucy and saluted. "Moshi moshi. What can I do for you, Lucy?"
"Fire your arrows into that guy's neck!" she ordered.
Sagittarius readied his bow and prepared three arrows. "Right, moshi moshi." He leapt into the air, pulled back on the bow string, and fired the three arrows with pinpoint accuracy down towards Juggernaut, each arrow embedding itself in Juggernaut's throat.
Natsu leapt into the air and inhaled deeply. "FIRE DRAGON ROAR!" Natsu let loose a stream of fire from his mouth that hit Juggernaut directly in the throat.
Gajeel shakily got to his feet. "Heh, guess it's my turn. Now you'll stay down for good." Using all of the energy he had left, he leapt into the air and inhaled deeply as well. "IRON DRAGON ROAR!" Gajeel let loose a tornado of steel that hit its mark as well.
All of the mages and two spirits watched anxiously, hoping that this last attack barrage was enough to down Juggernaut.
Juggernaut then let out a cough, sending drops of blood into the air. "Shit," he rasped. "I won't go down to these weaklings. It's not possible."
"You were too confident in your abilities," Gray said. "You truly believed that we couldn't win, so you never really went on the offensive. That was your mistake."
"You little pests," Juggernaut hissed. "You're all weak. You can't defeat me. I'm Juggernaut, the perfect weapon. Unmatched defenses that add to an already strong offense. I can't be defeated. I am ultimate power. I am divine power."
"You're done," Gajeel said. "We know how to beat you so just lie there nice and quiet."
Juggernaut coughed again, the arrows in his neck keeping his wounds from closing and the ice on the floor keeping him from moving his weakening limbs to pull out the arrows. "It can't be. I, Juggernaut, am going to die?" he whispered as he felt his vision begin to cloud. "These fairies are so weak. How could I lose? Ah, what does it matter now?" His eyes began to slowly close. "I'm too tired to care." And with that, his eyes closed for the last time as he exhaled his final breath.
The Fairy Tail mages sighed.
"We did it," Lucy said while dismissing her spirits. "I can't believe we did it."
"That wasn't so bad," Natsu said with a smile.
"That wasn't easy at all," Gray shot at him. "I just hope the other fights aren't that tough."
"Ready or not, here I come!" Stryke bellowed as he charged at the Fairy Tail women.
"Is he really challenging all three of us by himself?" Gracie asked. "Could he really be that stupid?"
"Keep on your guard," Erza warned. "Who knows what kind of secret power this man could have?"
"Right," Gracie said with a nod as she readied her weapons.
Stryke leapt high into the air and came down towards Erza with his blades raised over his head. He was laughing like a mad man as he descended.
Erza readied her bisento to block the attack. However, as soon as Stryke's blades would have met with the staff of the bisento, they liquefied. "What the hell?" Erza said, caught off guard.
The blood recollected itself instantly and reshaped itself into blades. "Surprise!" Stryke cried as he thrust his blades forward.
Erza's reactions were quick enough to parry the blades, but she couldn't escape the surprise attack unscathed as Stryke's blades cut through her thighs slightly. She hissed at the pain, but regrouped and swung her bisento's head at Stryke.
He smiled wildly as his body bent backwards to avoid the blow. Erza kept attempting to hit him, but his body kept bending in incredible ways, avoiding taking any damage whatsoever. He leapt away from Erza and stretched. "Ah, what a good warm-up! I really got to stretch out my muscles there. Soon I'll be able to get really serious!"
Suddenly, from behind Stryke, Gracie appeared, swinging her katanas swiftly at his head. He grinned wildly as he sidestepped slightly to avoid Gracie's swings. However, he never expected Gracie to land on her feet and redirect her attack so fluidly and swiftly. Her left handed katana spun in her hand and she thrust it out to the side, impaling Stryke in the right side of his chest. She pulled out her blade and readied herself for another attack.
Stryke examined the wound. "I'll have to keep an eye out for you. You're nimble," he said and then licked his lips. "I like that."
Gracie shivered. "Oh God, that's disgusting."
"Hey, don't knock it 'til you try it, baby!" He paused. "Oh wait, I have to kill you now. Eh, maybe I'll save you for last."
"You're vile," Gracie hissed. "We're gonna kill you and shut you up forever."
"So cold hearted. Say anything more and I may just fall for you," Stryke said with a wink as Gracie felt some vomit climb up her throat.
"Enough talk," Mira said as she charged up a ball of dark energy in her hands before firing the energy at Stryke. "DEMON BLAST!"
Stryke grinned as he leapt high into the air, evading Mira's attack. "Nice try, sweetheart!"
"Keep at it!" Erza cried as she charged towards the area where Stryke would most likely land, her bisento poised to strike.
"Right!" Gracie called as she followed Erza's lead.
Stryke laughed at the sight below him. "This is fantastic! It's like you're begging me to cut you up!" Stryke held out his blades and began to spin around at an increasing rate of speed. "BLOOD CYCLONE!" As Stryke got closer to the ground, his speed kept increasing to the point where he looked like a red top with razor-sharp edges.
Erza and Gracie stopped in their tracks after seeing this move. "Damn it," Gracie cursed. "We can't block something like that."
"Right," Erza agreed. "Mira, can you take care of this?"
Mira had already begun charging up dark energy in her hands. "With pleasure. SOUL EXTINCTION!" Mira fired the energy as a beam towards the spinning Stryke. With his spinning, he couldn't see or react to the attack and it hit him full force. He collided with the ground, sending up a cloud of dirt and dust.
"Alright Mira!" Gracie cheered. "Solid hit. Erza, let's finish him off before he can recover."
"Good point," Erza said before she and Gracie once again resumed their charge.
From the dust, a blood red spear shot out and impaled Gracie in the leg. She cried in pain as she fell to the ground.
"Gracie!" Erza cried while stopping her advance.
The spear was pulled from Gracie's leg and retreated back into the dust cloud. Soon after, a powerful gust of wind blew away the cloud and revealed Stryke, a spear resting on his shoulders and a wild grin on his face. "That was fun! I have to admit, that attack packed a punch. I wasn't expecting that kind of power. Too bad you two couldn't get to me quicker." He looked at the downed Gracie. "My, that looks painful. Mind if I do it again?"
"You monster," Erza hissed. "You will pay for injuring Gracie!"
"Aww, how sweet. You wish to avenge your friend?"
"Thanks, Erza," Gracie said as she struggled to her feet. She was able to stand, but it was clear that putting weight on her leg was painful. "But I can still fight."
"Gracie, it's clear that you're in pain," Mira said as she flew over to the two.
Gracie giggled. "Of course I'm in pain, but if I don't fight through this, how could I face Niky?"
"What do you mean?" Mira asked.
"If Niky could fight full force with a hole in his chest while bleeding out, then I can fight with a small flesh wound in my thigh," she said with a determined smile.
Erza smiled in return. "Alright, but don't push yourself, okay?"
Gracie spun her katanas. "Got it."
Stryke lowered his spear with his right hand and pointed it at the trio in front of him. He laughed manically. "I love your fighting spirit! You truly are making this amusing! I can't wait to carve out your hearts!"
"You really are a sick bastard," Gracie spat at him.
"I do what I love, darling!" He leapt towards them while spinning his spear above his head. "And I love to slice people up!"
Erza took point and blocked the spear with her bisento. "We will defeat you, so don't start believing that you'll win."
Stryke gagged. "You're so positive. It's making me nauseous."
Gracie ran around Erza and took a swing at Stryke with her katanas. However, he leapt away and dodged at the last second. While he leapt away, Mira appeared behind him and raised her right hand. Stryke made to block her attack with his spear, but was surprised to see Mira's lips curling in a smile.
"EVIL PUSH!" Mira said. A black and purple magic circle appeared in front of Stryke, creating a tremendous force that pushed Stryke backwards towards Gracie.
"What the hell?" Stryke said in surprise.
"Nice move, Mira!" Gracie complimented. Her katanas had vanished and in a flash of brilliant light, a halberd was gripped firmly in her hands. With a fierce battle cry, she thrust forward the halberd, impaling Stryke through his back with the sharp tip of her weapon, the metal and a small piece of the shaft protruding through Stryke's chest. She smiled as she kept Stryke suspended in midair. "Checkmate, douche bag."
Blood ran from Stryke's mouth as he smiled. "You think that's it? You think you've won? My, you're all very stupid if you think that." He turned his head to look at Gracie with glowing red eyes and a crazed smile on his face. He broke out laughing as blood continued to pour from his mouth. "I'm disappointed in you. You seemed smarter than that." He grabbed the tip of the halberd and began to slowly pull himself off. Squelching sounds could be heard as the weapon scraped against his flesh and muscles.
Erza stared in disbelief. "How? How can he be alive?"
"I wanna know how he's pulling himself off?" Gracie said while in shock.
Stryke finally freed himself from Gracie's halberd and landed gently on the ground, his crazy laugh never stopping. "This is amazing! What a rush! To feel the Red Eye at work; there's nothing like it!"
Gracie narrowed her eyes. "So that's how you didn't die."
Stryke turned to fully face her. "I can tell you're upset, so I'll give you this much; your attempt was solid, but you had no way of finishing it off."
"What does that mean?" Mira asked.
"Think about it. It'll come to you," Stryke said before laughing. "Of course, I'm not saying that I'll tell you even if you guess it right!"
Erza thought about his words. "Could he mean that it's not enough to just fatally wound him?"
"Maybe," Mira said. "It's very possible."
Gracie watched as Stryke's wound began to close. "It's the Red Eye alright. Niky was right after all."
"You keep mentioning this Niky person," Stryke said. "He your boyfriend?"
"None of your business," Gracie shot back.
Stryke snapped his fingers. "Oh! I bet you anything that Niky is that dragon. Am I right?"
"Like I said, none of your business."
"Enough talk," Mira said, her tone now much more menacing. "EVIL EXPLOSION!" Mira charged together a sphere of darkness before firing a beam of energy towards Stryke.
Stryke laughed as he leapt away. "My, your mean. You can't even let me heal? A low blow, fairy."
Erza ran forward and swung her bisento at Stryke who dodged without issue. "Like we're going to just sit back and wait for you to heal using your power," she said as she kept up her attacks with her bisento.
"Can you just let me heal?" Stryke whined. "It's no fun cutting people up when you get your own blood all over 'em."
Gracie ran forward with her halberd drawn back and ready to strike. "That power you have is nothing but evil." She slammed the halberd down at Stryke who managed to parry with his spear. However, the force of the blow pushed Stryke into the ground.
Stryke grit his teeth. 'Damn, this wound is getting painful. I really do need it to heal.'
Erza appeared behind Stryke and drove her bisento through his abdomen. Stryke coughed up blood as he continued to try and fend off Gracie's attack. "Damn, you guys are annoying."
"And we're not done," Gracie said. "Finish it, Mira!"
Mira, who was hovering in the air with an enormous sphere of darkness in her hands, nodded. "SATANIC BLAST!" Mira fired the energy as a beam directly at Stryke. Right before the beam hit, Gracie and Erza leapt away, allowing the beam to fully connect with Stryke. He screamed in pain as the energy exploded, creating a pillar of Darkness Magic with Stryke at the center.
The three Fairy Tail wizards watched the Satanic Blast while panting. Mira had retaken her human form after using up her remaining energy to fire that finishing blow. Gracie was bent over, the pain from the wound that Stryke inflicted starting to intensify. Erza stood proudly, confident that this time Stryke was done for good.
The pillar of Darkness Magic died away revealing Stryke standing motionless, wounds covering his entire body. His weapon was gone and his mouth was frozen with a wicked smile.
"Is it over?" Mira panted.
As if in answer to her question, Stryke fell to his knees and laughed. "I can't believe it. This is how it ends; killed by fairies and I couldn't even cut any of them up. How pathetic. This Red Eye didn't do jack for me in the end. Damn you…" He fell forward, burying his face in the dirt as his life left him.
Gracie breathed a sigh of relief. "Man am I glad to see him die. He was beyond repulsing."
Erza nodded. "We fought well." She looked around the battlefield. "It looks as if the rest of the guild is finishing things up. We should get to Wendy and heal up."
"Right," Mira and Gracie said as they ran with everything they had left over to where Wendy was waiting to heal anyone who needed it.
"You truly believe that you can hit us with any of your attacks?" Vanish asked. "It seems you have an air of positivity that is hard to break."
Nikolias chuckled. "What can I say? I'm confident in my abilities." He then charged forward with his shadow-enveloped blades. "SHADOW DRAGON SWORD SWIPE!" Nikolias slashed at the two and right as the attack would hit, they disappeared and reappeared almost immediately several yards behind Nikolias.
"Are you getting the feeling of déjà vu, Vanish?" Stealth asked. "I can't shake the feeling that we've done this before."
Nikolias burst out laughing.
Vanish raised an eyebrow. "What's so funny?"
Nikolias wiped away some tears. "It's just funny how you think I'm stupid."
"What do you mean?" Stealth asked, a little suspicious of Nikolias' attitude.
"I mean, you two actually think that I would approach this fight exactly the same as last time. But doing that would get nothing accomplished. I already know a lot more about you two and I plan on using that information to end you."
"I apologize for poking holes in your story, but so far everything has been identical," Vanish said.
Nikolias sighed. "So I have to spell it out for you two, huh? Alright, let's put it this way instead. I'll tell you three observations I've made and incorporated into my plan of attack. First, I know that you have the Red Eye, which immediately sheds light on your 'special magic'. You don't teleport; you just run fast. That already changed my approach. If your magic plus the Red Eye allows you to break the speed of light, then catching you to hit you is going to be difficult, but not impossible.
"Second, and perhaps most important, I know that this is a diversion. You're trying to get me away from my friends. Normally, this wouldn't make sense, but you two aren't fighters, so the whole point of this is simply to distract me so that your friends can kill them. Well, that plan is going to backfire on you 'cause my friends are far too strong to be beaten by anything that you can throw at them. So all this has done is given me the opportunity to kill you without distraction or interruption."
"Well we must admit that if you figured those two things out then you certainly are bright," Stealth commented. "But you underestimate the strength of the Bloody Moon guild. Your friends will die and there's nothing that you can do about it."
Nikolias glared at them. "Normally, a comment like that would be unwise because it would have sent me into a crazed state." He smiled. "But I have faith in my friends. They won't die."
"You definitely are far calmer this time around," Vanish said. "Maybe you will get a lucky shot in at some point."
Nikolias' eyes widened and he snapped his fingers. "That's right! I almost forgot my third observation."
"And that would be?" Stealth asked.
Nikolias grinned. "For mages who pride themselves on observing and collecting information, you sure are oblivious." He held up his right palm and then closed it. "SHADOW PRISON!"
Stealth and Vanish looked around, but saw nothing. "What, was that you're big finish?' Vanish asked. "Sorry, but it seems that it still needs work."
Nikolias chuckled as his blades became shrouded in shadows once more. "We'll just have to find out, won't we?" He charged forward, bending low to take out the legs of his enemies. "SHADOW DRAGON SWORD SWIPE!"
The two Bloody Moon mages waited for Nikolias to approach and as soon as he was about to swing, they activated their Spatial Walk Magic to evade.
Except it wasn't working.
Nikolias' blades completely sliced through the legs of Vanish and Stealth, allowing their upper bodies to topple over as their legs parted from the rest of them. The two screamed in immense pain as Nikolias looked down at them with golden dragon eyes.
"Why didn't our magic work?" Vanish cried as he clutched the stubs that were once his legs.
Nikolias grinned. "Simple. You two were so confident that I could never hit you that you just let me talk and distract you from my attack."
"Your attack?" Stealth hissed. "What attack?"
"You see, it started with getting you two in the proper spot where your shadows were closest to me, which gives you two the reason for my first Shadow Dragon Sword Swipe. I was positioning you. I was surprised it happened so quickly, but I wasn't going to complain. Then, the entire time I was talking, I sent shadows through the ground to attach to your shadows. I needed the time to allow them to slowly and discretely make their way over, so thanks for giving me the time to set things up. After all, once those shadows pick a direction, they can't redirect themselves, so I really needed you two to stand still. And as soon as I was ready, I just needed to activate the attack." He chuckled as he held up his right hand. "In other words, Shadow Prison."
Vanish's eyes widened. "That was your attack?"
Nikolias nodded. "Simply put, my shadows held down your shadows. It doesn't matter how fast you are; you can't go anywhere without your shadows." He walked closer to them. "And now that I've separated you from your legs, I think now would be the time to kill you. Don't you agree?"
Stealth and Vanish backed away in fear. "Stay back!"
"You know, you two were far more confident a few seconds ago. What happened? Were your legs really that important to you?" Nikolias shrouded his fists in shadow and stood on their abdomens to keep them still. "Allow me to alleviate some of your pain. SHADOW DRAGON FIST!" Nikolias drove both of his fists downward and through the two mages' skulls. They twitched for a couple seconds before lying completely still.
Nikolias stood still for a few seconds before pulling his fists out of their flesh. He glared at their corpses. "That was for Mira, you bastards." He then ran as fast as he could back to the battlefield.
"Damn that stings," Gracie complained.
"Sorry, I'm being as gentle as possible," Wendy said.
Everyone was gathered around after finishing off their fights. The only ones who suffered injuries of any kind were Gracie, Erza, Laki, and Romeo, but none of the injuries were serious in any way. Wendy had immediately begun healing Gracie's leg for it was the most serious of the four.
Wendy stopped her magic and wiped her brow. "All done!"
Gracie flexed her leg and smiled. "Thanks a bunch, Wendy! That feels great!"
"Happy to help. Who's next?"
"I think you should look at Romeo next," Makarov suggested. "Foolish boy bit off more than he could chew."
Romeo looked at his feet while holding his left arm, which was sporting a small gash across the tricep. "I'm sorry."
"I should have kept a better eye on you," Macao said. "Your magic just simply isn't developed enough."
Wendy motioned for Romeo to come closer. "Okay, I'll heal Romeo next."
The boy blushed and walked over.
Gracie finished flexing her leg and looked around at the battlefield. Several Bloody Moon mages were still lying unconscious. Some had gotten up and retreated and others…well the others were unfortunate enough to face Nikolias and herself. Her attention then came to Mira who was looking around. She walked up to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "What are you looking at?"
"Where's Nikolias?" she asked.
Gracie giggled and turned her slightly to the left. "Right there."
Mira looked to see Nikolias running back over to the group and her face lit up. "Nikolias!"
Nikolias heard her call his name and he gave a big grin as he ran up to her. "Sorry to keep you guys waiting. I had to deal with those dicks back there. I hope I didn't miss anything big."
"Well you missed Mira, Erza, and I kick a psychopath's ass," Gracie said with a look of pride.
Nikolias held Mira's hand and laughed. "I'm sure that was quite a sight. Sorry I missed it."
"I was also sexually harassed," Gracie added.
Nikolias raised an eyebrow. "Okay…not sure how to respond to that."
"How was your fight?" Mira asked.
"Easy. Those two were far too overconfident in themselves. It made it too simple a task to end them quickly."
"Good. I'm glad," Mira said as she kissed his cheek.
Makarov faced everyone. "Alright people, we should all be proud of how we fought, but be ready for another attack. They haven't completely fallen back yet. Mira, can you bring Wendy any supplies that she may need and assist her?"
Mira nodded and smiled. "Of course." She released Nikolias' hand and walked over to Wendy.
Gracie turned to Nikolias and smiled at his smile. "Look how happy you are, Niky."
He looked at her. "It's been a while, but I feel at peace, you know? Like the past is in the past and all I can see is a future with Mira and Fairy Tail."
Gracie felt some tears fill her eyes. "Finally."
Nikolias chuckled. "Are you really gonna get emotional over this?"
"Damn right I am!"
"Suit yourself then."
"You haven't changed at all," a voice boomed across the plain. Everyone turned to see who spoke. A tall, large, muscular man with jet black hair and red eyes stood on the hill, looking down and grinning at the Fairy Tail mages.
Bloody Moon mages, who were still trying to get back up, began to cheer.
"The Grand Lord!"
"He's joining the fight!"
"Kiss your lives goodbye, fairies!"
Erza grabbed her bisento tightly. "So this is the Grand Lord of their guild? The guy in charge of it all?"
"I think so," Makarov said. "Their Master answers to him I believe."
"What are they, a chain guild?" Gray asked. "Why do they need a Master and a Grand Lord for one building?"
"Let's look at the big picture here, Gray," Laxus said. "We need to be prepared for whatever he throws at us."
Gracie summoned her katanas once more and spun them around. "Alright, another good fight. Whadya say, Niky? Should we see what he's got?" However, she got no response. "Niky, you there?" She looked over to him to see him standing there, completely still and a look of shock on his face. "Niky? You alright?"
"No, it can't be…," he whispered.
"Nikolias, what's wrong?" Mira asked, concerned by Nikolias' sudden change in demeanor.
The Grand Lord let loose a deep and loud laugh. "I see you remember me. Good."
"Who the hell are you?" Erza demanded. "Why is Nikolias looking at you like that?"
The Grand Lord stopped laughing. "We're very old friends and he's ecstatic to see me again."
"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Nikolias bellowed. His eyes had gone dragon like and his lips were curled back to reveal fangs.
Everyone looked at Nikolias with surprise after that outburst.
"Niky, what's wrong?" Gracie asked.
"How?" Nikolias called out. "How the hell are you alive?"
The Grand Lord chuckled. "You should know the answer to that."
Nikolias clenched his fists. "You're a madman."
"I prefer visionary."
"ENOUGH!" Nikolias shouted as shadows began dancing around him.
Gracie had never seen Nikolias react in such a way to anyone before and she couldn't deny that she was feeling a little afraid. "Niky, talk to me! What's going on?"
However, Nikolias was paying attention to no one but the Grand Lord. "I'm done talking with you. You dared to show your face to me and now I will rip your organs out one by one for all that you've done!" The shadows around him intensified. "Your life comes to an end today.
"Gorn."
