Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.
WARNING: From the beginning of this chapter on THERE WILL BE SPOILERS! Read at your own risk. This story will be jumping into the Fairy Tail storyline beginning at the start of the Tenrou Island arc. There's still original stuff in here, but if you haven't gotten to this point in the anime/manga, then some things may be ruined for you. I advise catching up to the anime/manga if you haven't already (for more reasons than just reading my story)! Thank you and enjoy!
Fairy Tail—The Master and the Dragon
Chapter 30
Gracie skipped alongside Makarov. "I wonder how everyone is doing?"
"I'm sure they're all doing fine," Makarov replied. "They were all deserving candidates."
Gracie giggled. "I kinda feel sorry for whoever has to fight Niky during this thing."
Makarov laughed. "None of the S-Class members will be easy to defeat. That's the whole point to having the candidates fight them."
"So is the whole point to just keep bringing up stronger and stronger S-Class?" Gracie asked. "It seems like at some point there won't be anyone who can ever pass."
"That's why not every path has an S-Class member," Makarov explained. "The point to having four S-Class members be included also tests the candidates' luck."
Gracie raised an eyebrow. "Their luck?"
Makarov nodded. "Yes, luck. All teams would much rather face one of the other teams than one of the S-Class. That's where luck comes in. There's no skill involved in selecting a route."
"Hmm," Gracie said as she thought about it. "Well the whole thing certainly seems fun. I wish I could do it, but I don't use magic."
"You have Requip Magic, Gracie," Makarov said.
"Yeah, but I fight with weapons. I don't want to seriously hurt anyone."
Makarov scratched his chin. "True. I guess it's a good thing, then, that I decided to make you S-Class alongside Nikolias."
Gracie's eyes widened as she looked at Makarov. "Really? I'm considered S-Class?"
"Of course. You did beat Erza in a fight after all. Don't you remember?"
"That was just a scrimmage, an innocent sparring match. I didn't know that could bump you up."
"I watched the fight, my dear. Erza threw her best at you. She saw it as more than just a sparring match because she recognizes your strength. You beat Erza's best effort. I can't ignore that. Besides, you and Nikolias are a team in my mind. If one of you is S-Class, it only makes sense that the other is S-Class as well. That way, you can be sent on S-Class missions together."
Gracie's eyes sparkled. "Wow, I'm S-Class! So why wasn't I asked to be a challenge?"
"For the same reason Laxus wasn't; I only wanted four S-Class members, so I went with who I felt was best for the challenges."
"Then why not Laxus over Niky? Why ask Niky?"
Makarov smiled. "Nikolias has a very teacheresque quality to him."
"Teacheresque? Is that even a word?"
"Who knows. Probably not. The point is I feel like he won't just go out there to fight like Laxus would. He, like Erza, Gildarts, and Mirajane, will fight hard and afterwards will give feedback whether he wins or loses. Like in his sparring match with Natsu, for example."
Gracie nodded. "Okay, I think I see. Niky will really help them to grow, basically."
"Exactly. That's why I chose him over Laxus for this Trial despite his lack of experience in the guild."
Gracie hopped onto a rock and balanced on one foot. "I see. Well, Niky is a strong fighter. I just hope whoever he faces doesn't get disheartened, cuz there's no way he's gonna lose."
Makarov chuckled. "Your confidence in each other truly is inspiring."
She hopped down and continued alongside Makarov. "We trust each other with our lives in situations that sometimes don't allow for detailed communication. If we don't believe in each other's abilities 2000%, we're dead."
"I hope you find that you can trust everyone else just as much."
"It'll never be as much, but don't you worry; Niky and I fully trust every single person in Fairy Tail."
"Good. I'm glad to hear it."
"Say Master, where are we going anyway? I kinda just realized that I'm following you blindly," Gracie noted while looking around.
"We're headed to the location that all passing teams will meet so that I can explain the second round."
"Gotcha."
"Tell me something, Gracie."
"Hmm?"
"It's about Nikolias' relationship with Mira."
Gracie sighed. "Don't tell me that you're worried about Niky's behavior."
"Not at all. I just wanted to know how serious it is."
Gracie pondered this. "How serious, huh? Well you'd have to ask Niky that one. However, if I had to venture a guess, it's very serious. He loves her more than anything."
Makarov nodded. "That much was apparent during the Bloody Moon fight."
"Then why ask?"
Makarov had a mischievous grin. "I'm not getting any younger, you know. I'd love to hear the pitter-patter of little feet around the guild."
Gracie giggled. "I'd love that, too. They'd have such cute kids!"
The two continued on, gushing over what Nikolias and Mira's kids would look like, be like, how many there would be, and who would be the favorite between the two of them.
"Come on, brother," Mira taunted in a dark voice. "You can't win if you just stand there." With that, she fired a ball of Darkness Magic at Elfman and Evergreen. The two leapt out of the way, landing away from each other.
Evergreen kept her eyes on Mira, but directed her growl at Elfman. "Elfman, you need to focus. If you don't, there's no way that we can beat someone as strong as her."
Elfman nodded slowly. "I know that, but…she's my sister."
"Not now she's not!" Evergreen shouted. "Forget it, I'll handle it alone." Evergreen whipped off her glasses as her eyes glowed a faint yellow. "You can't fight us if you can't move!"
Mira took to the skies and smirked. "Nice try, but that spell is completely useless if I don't look you directly in the eye!"
Evergreen summoned wings on her back and took off after Mira. "Well then, I guess it's a good thing that it's not the only trick I have up my sleeve. FAIRY MACHINE GUN: LEPRECHAUN!" Upon command, bolts of magic flew at Mira.
Mira never lost her smirk as she summoned yet another ball of Darkness Magic. She threw it, knocking away all of the bolts of magic from Evergreen's attack and colliding with her stomach.
With a cry of pain, Evergreen rolled on the ground and collided with a boulder.
"Evergreen!" Elfman cried before returning his attention towards Mira, who had just landed on the ground before him. He gritted his teeth. "Come on, Mira. I don't want to have to fight you."
"Then don't," Mira replied simply, her face showing no emotion. "Turn and leave. Just know that it means you fail the S-Class Trials."
Elfman clenched his fists. 'I was really hoping that I would get to fight another team. If I had to get an S-Class, I would have preferred Nikolias over any of them so that I could at least get some shots in against the guy who was dating my sister. But to have to fight my sister? How can I do that?'
"Decide quickly," Mira said. "I'll finish you off soon if you don't decide. I'd like to finish things here and get back to the base camp where I'm sure Nikolias is waiting."
Evergreen was beginning to stir from the last hit she took. 'Nikolias? Wait…could it be that simple?'
Suddenly, Elfman let out a roar and began to glow. Soon, he was in his Beast Soul form. "I didn't want it to come to this," Elfman said in the voice of the Beast, "but you left me no choice!" He charged at Mira and cocked back his fist. "FULL BODY TAKE OVER! BEAST SOUL!" He threw a powerful punch right at Mira. However, she easily blocked it by simply holding out her hand and catching his fist. Elfman pushed with all his might while Mira just smiled, showing no signs of strain against Elfman's attack.
"I'm glad you chose to fight," Mira said with a cocky smile. "I would hate to think that my brother was too scared to fight me." Then, with a simple lowering of the hand, Mira upset Elfman's balance towards the ground and performed a quick back flip, slamming her lizard-like tail into Elfman's face and sending him flying into a boulder.
"Damn," Elfman groaned. "I've never had to fight Mira like this before."
Mira grinned as she raised her hand. "It's over now, brother." She began charging a ball of Darkness Magic in her hand with the intention of ending things now.
"Wait!" Evergreen cried as she stepped in front of Elfman, shielding him from Mira.
Mira chuckled. "You think that you can stop me? Don't make me laugh. I'll just blow you both away!"
Evergreen remained motionless, a small, playful, and confident smile on her face. "That's fine, but before you do that, I think that there is something you should know. After all, you are his sister."
Mira lowered her attack, for she couldn't help but be intrigued by this. "And what might that be?"
Evergreen walked over and wrapped her arms around Elfman's Beast Soul form. "Elfman and I are getting married."
Mira's eyes widened. She couldn't believe what she had just heard. "You two…are getting married?"
Evergreen nodded. "But of course. We love each other. That's what people do when they're in love, right?"
Mira was only half listening. 'They're getting married? I wasn't even aware that they were dating. And they're in love…that's why they're getting married. I wonder if Nikolias and I will get married. I mean, we love each other, so we should get married…or is it too soon? Is he ready for that kind of thing? Maybe I should talk to him about…' She didn't have enough time to finish that thought before Evergreen's Fairy Machine Gun: Leprechaun collided with her body full force, sending her flying into the cliff side.
Evergreen stood proudly and smirked. "A direct hit!"
Elfman, who was now in his human form, was still staring at Evergreen, dumbfounded at what just happened. "Evergreen…what was that you were saying? We're not getting married!"
Evergreen fixed her glasses, attempting to hide her blush. "I know that, but I needed to come up with something to distract her. Not only was the news shocking, but it totally had her thinking about Nikolias."
"So it was all a trick?" Elfman asked for clarification.
"Of course."
"Oh. Good job then!" Elfman cheered before realizing that his sister was still in the cliff. "Oh crap, Mira!" He ran over to her, Evergreen close behind. He pulled her body from the rocks. "Mira, are you alright?"
Mira groaned as she slowly opened her eyes. She was back in her human form after taking that hit. "Well, I guess I lost, huh? Congratulations you two. You get to move on."
Evergreen pumped a fist. "Yes!"
Elfman was excited, but was more concerned about his injured sister. "Are you gonna be alright?"
Mira gave him a sweet smile and sat up. "I'll be fine. The rock scratched my cheek a bit, but it's nothing that I can't handle. I'll make my way back to base camp now. You two should head to the Round 2 clearing. Master and Gracie are waiting there."
Elfman nodded as he stood. "Got it. Take care, Mira!"
Mira waved as the two ran off, her mind still fantasizing about white wedding dresses and black tuxedos. "Being married to Nikolias…," she whispered dreamily.
"Now before we begin," Freed began before turning red and looking away, "can you two please put some clothes on?"
Lucy raised an eyebrow. "You want us to what?"
"Put clothes on, please," Freed stated again. "It's very distracting."
Bickslow just stared at Freed. "You're kidding right? It's way better this way! Just don't ogle them and you'll be fine."
Freed closed his eyes, his head still turned away from the girls. "It's not that simple. In order for me to fight, there must be absolutely no distractions."
Bickslow groaned. "Who knew you were such a prude?"
"I am not a prude!" Freed objected.
While Freed and Bickslow continued to argue about the fact that Freed was a prude, Cana was beginning to get an idea. She slightly leaned towards Lucy. "Hey Lucy, I think I have an idea. Follow my lead, okay?"
Lucy nodded. "Got it."
Cana whipped out a card from her bag. "Here we go then! SEXY LADY CARD!" In a puff of smoke, multiple women clad in bikinis were surrounding Freed, hugging him closely and pressing their breasts against him. "Your shyness will make this real easy to win!"
Freed's entire face turned a dark shade of red. "What dark sorcery is this? Summoning bikini babes? Stop this immediately!"
"We love you, Freed!" called out one of the women.
"Do you love us, Freed?" another asked.
"No I don't. Now get off of me!" Freed exclaimed.
Lucy grinned. "I get it." She whipped out one of her keys. "OPEN GATE OF THE MAIDEN! VIRGO!" From a magic circle, Virgo appeared wearing nothing but a black bikini. "Virgo, go for Bickslow!"
"As you wish, Princess," Virgo said as she attempted to distract Bickslow with her assets.
Bickslow laughed. "Let me show you how much I appreciate all is this eye candy. Go, my babies!" Upon command, Bickslow's five dolls charged at Virgo, colliding with her over and over.
"My apologies, Princess. I suppose I wasn't sexy enough," Virgo said before disappearing to the Spirit World.
"Damn it," Lucy cursed. "It didn't work."
Bickslow stuck out his tongue. "Unlike my friend here, I won't be distracted by the sight of cleavage. In fact, if anything, they're encouraging me. You're little plan won't work on me! Go, my babies!" Bickslow's dolls followed his command and began attacking Lucy and Cana. Lucy and Cana dodged countless attacks, barely avoiding being hit by Bickslow's dolls while Bickslow continued to laugh. "I love it when you dance for me!"
Cana whipped out more of her cards. "You pig! Take this!" Cana threw her cards at the dolls, but the dolls were able to easily dodge the attack.
"Oops, that's strike two. Now you'll have to pay for that. Get 'em, babies!"
Lucy and Cana continued to dance around, trying not to get hit by Bickslow's dolls.
Lucy whipped out another key. "OPEN GATE OF THE RAM! ARIES!"
In a flash of light, Aries appeared in front of Lucy. "Wh…What would you like me to do?" she asked sheepishly.
"Just do something!" Lucy shouted. "Anything!"
"Anything?" Aries repeated. "O…Okay." Aries put up her hands and summoned a thick cloud of pink fluff. ""WOOL WALL!" All five of Bickslow's babies and Bickslow got caught in the wool. She turned to Lucy. "H…How was that?"
Lucy smiled at her. "Awesome! Great work, Aries!"
Bickslow struggled against the wool. "First bikini babes and now a chick who shoots cotton candy? What the hell?"
Aries returned her attention to Bickslow. "Oh, I'm terribly sorry!"
"So much indecency!" Freed shouted at Aries, his blush growing as yet another scandalously clad girl had appeared before him.
Aries put her hands up again. "WOOL WALL!" Another thick cloud of pink fluff floated over to Freed, completely surrounding him and the bikini girls.
"What is this strange sensation? My body feels wooly and warm, like I'm being hugged by a cloud," Freed said.
Bickslow groaned. "Look man, can't you hold off on puberty until after we beat these bimbos?"
"Who are you calling a bimbo?" Lucy asked before running towards Bickslow. "Now take this! LUCY KICK!" Lucy leapt at Bickslow, kicking him square in the jaw. He fell to the ground with a thud. Lucy pumped her fist. "Hell yeah! Take that!"
"Um…Miss Lucy?" Aries said. "I'm going home now. I'll see you next time." With that, Aries disappeared in a puff of pink smoke.
Cana shot Lucy a sideways smile. "Lucy Kick? How long did it take you to come up with that one?"
Lucy giggled. "It kind of developed over time when Natsu would sneak into my room and I would kick him."
"Okay, seriously. Please stop this!" Freed cried. "I'm going to reach my limit soon!" And then, in a puff of smoke, the bikini girls vanished.
"Shit," Cana hissed. "The spell wore off already?"
Freed glared at the two. "That was utterly degrading, but now that I'm free, you won't trap me again!" He put his hand on his rapier. "DARK ECRITURE: WINGS!" Freed drew his sword as wings appeared from his back. He leapt into the air and prepared to strike. Cana threw cards at him, but Freed simply sliced through them. "I've had enough of your cards!" Freed sliced through all of her cards before hitting Cana with the flat of his sword.
Cana was knocked to the ground, but quickly sprang back up. "Is that your best shot? Ha! Try this on for size!" She whipped out one of her cards and threw it on the ground. "PRAYER'S FOUNTAIN!" Water erupted from the ground and shot out in all directions.
Freed sliced through the water with his rapier. "It's no use! You won't defeat me with such simple tricks."
"Water, huh?" Lucy said with a smile as she slowly crawled towards it.
"No, Lucy!" Cana cried. "This water is volatile magic! If you touch it, it could kill you!"
Lucy took out a key and stuck it in the water. "You got any better ideas? OPEN GATE OF THE WATER BEARER! AQUARIUS!" In a flash of light, Aquarius appeared.
Freed froze, blush staining his cheeks once more. "Another bikini babe?" he asked incredulously.
Lucy pointed at Freed. "He's distracted! Take him out, Aquarius?" Aquarius just tsked and smacked both Cana and Lucy with her urn. "What the hell, Aquarius? He's the enemy! Over there! Not us!"
Aquarius continued to glare at her. "Every time I see you, you're wearing less and less. So you think you can seduce a man, huh?" Aquarius laughed. "Good luck with that. You're body is so scrawny."
Before Lucy could say anything, Cana got up in Aquarius' face. "You lookin' to get battered and deep-fried, fish? How can you not tell an ally from an enemy?"
Aquarius gritted her teeth. "All women are my enemies, moron! You think just because you let your titties bounce around, you're hit stuff?" She put her hand to her mouth and giggled. "I had no idea girls these days were so desperate. You're never going to land a man this way."
Cana wasn't about to let Aquarius know how much those words hurt. 'Is that why Nikolias wanted nothing to do with me?' She chuckled. "I bet you settled for the first ugly merman who showed you his little trident. It must be tough to be 20,000 leagues of pure slut."
The two continued to throw insults at each other while Lucy sighed.
Finally, Aquarius broke away. "I would love to chat more, but I have to meet my boyfriend." She shot Lucy a smile with the word boyfriend.
Lucy returned the smile. "I wish I could see my boyfriend right now, so I get it. Go have fun."
Aquarius blinked. "Wh…What?"
Lucy tilted her head. "What is it?"
Aquarius pointed at her. "You…have a boyfriend? Hah! Yeah right!"
Lucy shrugged. "Believe what you want." Aquarius gritted her teeth before disappearing. Lucy giggled. "I guess I won't have to deal with Aquarius' attitude as much anymore."
Freed coughed. "Look, this has been amusing, but it needs to end now."
Cana whipped out a card. "Right, the guy we're supposed to be fighting. I forgot. Well, I'll just go with this!"
Lucy turned her head and noticed that Cana was holding her Sexy Lady Card. "Cana, this is Freed we're talking about. He won't fall for the same trick twice."
Cana smiled and activated her card. Once again, bikini girls swarmed Freed. And once again, he was rendered immobile.
"Not this again!" Freed cried.
"You're shitting me, right?" Lucy asked.
"Please stop. I can't fight like this. Don't you want to fight fairly?" Freed asked.
"To hell with fairly!" Cana cried as she threw out more cards. In multiple puffs of smoke, more bikini girls swarmed Freed.
"You're despicable," Freed hissed. "I won't let you beat me like this!"
"I beg to differ!" Cana said as she summoned even more bikini girls. Before long, Freed was surrounded by a tower of women.
He looked around him. "What's…happening?"
Lucy stared in disbelief. "You made a cage out of bikini babes?"
Cana chuckled. "Too easy."
Lucy looked at Cana. "So…it's great that he's trapped, but we do have to actually beat him to move on."
Cana's face fell. "Rrrrright."
Freed looked around. "There must be a way out." Then he spotted a boulder that kept the cage from being completely closed. "There! A weak spot!" With his rapier, he cut through the boulder, reducing it to rubble. He sighed. "I'm out." And with his next step, a flash of light appeared below Freed. He looked down. "What the hell?" And there he saw cards laid all around him. He looked up to see Cana and Lucy smiling at him.
"He fell for it!" Cana cheered.
"Alright!" Lucy shouted.
"Oh dear," Freed said.
Cana held up her hand and summoned a magic circle. "SUMMONED LIGHTNING!" With that, the cards began to glow and lightning shot into the sky, shocking Freed. He cried out in pain as the lightning struck his body. Once the lightning stopped, he fell backwards and onto the ground.
Cana and Lucy stared at the ground. "We beat him," Cana breathed. "We actually did it."
"Yeah, we did," Lucy said before looking up. "Look, the gate! It's wide open!"
Sure enough, the gate to the second round was open.
Cana smiled. "You know what that means?"
Lucy nodded and the two high-fived. "It means we're awesome! You're going to be S-Class, Cana!"
The two ran off, ready to take on the next round. As soon as they disappeared, Bickslow sat up. "You sure this was for the best, Freed?"
Freed sat up as well. "Yes, I'm sure."
"But S-Class," Bickslow said.
Freed smiled. "Had it been anyone else, I would have given it my all. But," he turned to look at the gate, "I owe those to a debt and with this victory, I feel like I have repaid that debt."
"And Laxus' footsteps?"
"That is important to me, but it is not what is most important. That would be being in Fairy Tail."
Bickslow laughed. "Those girls really hit the jackpot. What are the odds they run into us? Guess they're pretty damned lucky."
Freed stood. "Perhaps. For now, we will take our leave. We are done here."
Bickslow stood. "Yeah sure. Let's head back."
"Let's begin!" Erza shouted while requipping into her Sea Empress armor.
Lisanna stared at Erza. "She will be difficult to beat in that armor. Your attacks will barely scratch her."
Juvia raised her hand. "I will not give up. What would Gray-sama think if I quit now? WATER CANE!" Juvia extended her hand which turned into water and shot towards Erza as a whip.
Erza jumped away and landed on a nearby rock. "Not good enough."
Juvia retracted her water and re-solidified it into her hand. With her other hand, she made an arcing motion. "WATER SLICER!" Multiple scythe-like water projectiles made their way towards Erza.
This time, Erza stayed put. The Water Slicers hit her, but did absolutely no damage. "Not good enough!" With that, she raised her crystal sword and sliced through the air. "WATER SLASH!" A large, scythe-like mass of water flew at Juvia and Lisanna.
Juvia smirked. "You cannot hurt Juvia with her own element." However, as soon as the Water Slash hit her, she felt pain rip through her body. She cried out in pain as she was pushed into a large stone slab.
"Juvia!" Lisanna called out. She was too distracted by Juvia to notice that the Water Slash was still travelling. It collided with her and knocked her into another stone slab.
Erza watched them struggle to their feet. "You have to be better than that, Juvia. At this rate, you'll never become S-Class."
Juvia grimaced as she tried to straighten up. "I don't understand. How did my attack do nothing and how did your attack do so much?"
"Simple. My armor negates all Water Magic, so your attacks are useless. And my sword can unleash Water Magic that can damage even your Water Body," Erza explained.
Juvia gritted her teeth. "No. I will defeat you!" With that, Juvia's entire body became water as she charged Erza.
However, Erza seemed uninterested. She raised her sword and slashed through Juvia's Water Body, causing her to change back.
While in midair, Juvia tried again. "WATER SLICER!" Scythe-like projectiles slashed at Erza, but she easily deflected them with her sword. The Water Slicers cut through multiple stones, but Erza remained unharmed.
From the sky, Lisanna charged at Erza, hoping for the element of surprise. She had summoned bird wings and was dive bombing Erza. "I've got you now, Erza!"
However, Erza was not about to be caught off guard. She drove her sword into the ground and used it to propel herself feet first into the air. Lisanna was the one caught off guard as Erza landed a strong kick that sent her crashing into the ground.
Lisanna pushed herself up. "I'm not done yet. TAKE OVER!" In a flash of light, Lisanna had become a large purple rabbit. She leapt at Erza, but Erza simply used her as a springboard to dodge, sending Lisanna crashing face first into a wall.
Erza landed gently on the ground. "You certainly have improved, Lisanna. I truly am impressed. That being said, your timing is off and your choices are questionable."
While Erza was talking, a thought came to Juvia. 'I see. She's vulnerable when she tries to dodge Lisanna's attacks. If I time it right, I can beat her.'
Lisanna leapt into the air. In a flash of light, she had bird wings, a bird tail, and bird feet and claws. "How's this form then?" She once again charged at Erza.
Erza easily predicted her movements and leapt out of harm's way.
However, this was exactly what Juvia was waiting for. "I've got you! WATER WHIP!"
While in midair, Erza sliced through Juvia's Water Whip before redirecting her body to slam Lisanna into the ground with a fierce kick. She then once again redirected her body to slam another kick into Juvia to send her crashing to the ground as well.
Erza landed so that she could watch both women as they tried to push themselves up. "You two both have promise. However, neither of you are truly giving it your all. You're both distracted. And for that, I'm disappointed." She looked at Juvia. "Your strategy was far too predictable. Attacking me while fighting your partner is the most obvious decision in a two on one. When we first met at the Tower of Heaven, there was a fire in your eye. A fire that screamed confidence and power." She lifted her sword and slashed through the air with her Water Slash. "Where is that fire now?!" The attack arced, hitting both Lisanna and Juvia and knocking them away. Erza put down her sword and requipped to her regular armor. "This fight is over."
Juvia and Lisanna were both finding it difficult to push themselves off of the ground.
"I…I lost…," Juvia muttered.
"Erza," Lisanna called out. "You said that we were distracted. What did you mean?"
Erza sighed. "Both of you were distracted by your personal problems."
"Our personal problems?" Lisanna repeated. "What does that mean?"
"Your love problems," Erza clarified. "Juvia, you're far too concerned about Gray and whether or not he notices you. When you fight, it's clear that you fight with him in mind. That's fine, but don't let it cloud your judgment. I know that you are more capable than what you have shown here today."
Juvia looked at the ground. "Juvia just wants Gray to notice her."
Erza smiled gently. "And I understand that, but again, there's a time for that and a battle is not that time. If I were an actual enemy, you would be dead."
Juvia nodded slowly. "Juvia understands."
Erza looked to Lisanna. "And Lisanna. A broken heart is one of the most painful things in this world and dealing with it is extremely difficult. I understand that the fact that Nikolias doesn't return your feelings hurts, but you can't let it hold you down. I could tell from your attacks and movements that you were attacking with more anger than you should. It kept you from thinking clearly."
Lisanna clenched her fists.
Erza tried to speak as gently as she could. "You're in love with Nikolias, aren't you?"
"How did you know about that?"
"I noticed how you act around him. I'm sorry that it hurts so much."
"I don't want to talk about it!" she shouted as tears started to sting her eyes.
"My apologies. I didn't mean to upset you. The point that I'm trying to make is that in order to become S-Class or even just become stronger people, you must realize that fighting with a clouded mind due to emotions will only get you into trouble." Erza turned. "Head back to base camp when you're ready." With that, she walked off towards base camp.
Juvia looked over to Lisanna. "Are you alright?"
Lisanna wiped away some tears. "No, but I have to be."
Juvia looked ahead. "I wasn't aware that Nikolias was the man you were talking about."
Lisanna pushed herself to stand. "There's nothing I can do," she whispered. "He loves Mira. Mira loves him. They're together. I should be happy for them, especially since it's my sister and I should want what's best for her. But I just can't help but wish that it was me. Why couldn't he fall in love with me?"
Juvia pushed herself to stand as well and walked over to Lisanna. She embraced her in a hug. "Juvia understands. We can stop talking about it now."
Lisanna couldn't stop the tears. She buried her face in the rain woman's coat and cried. And Juvia just let her, gently patting her back.
"I have to say, your energy has always amazed me," Gildarts said with a smile. "Nothing seems to bring you down."
Natsu pumped his fist. "That's 'cuz I know I have the strength to beat anyone!"
Gildarts chuckled. "You certainly are growing up."
Natsu raised an eyebrow. "Whaddya mean?"
"Your confidence in yourself drives you to become stronger. Plus, you've got yourself a girlfriend now."
"Okay," Natsu said. "Not really seeing your point."
"I guess it doesn't matter," Gildarts said. "I guess we should get started then. Show me the strength that will get you to S-Class, Natsu!"
"You asked for it. FIRE DRAGON ROAR!" Natsu released a powerful column of fire from his mouth as Gildarts.
Gildarts held up his and, negating the attack with his Crash Magic. "You'll have to do better than that to pass this round, Natsu!"
But Natsu was already charging forward. "That was one attack. FIRE DRAGON PULSE!" Natsu fired an orb of fire towards Gildarts.
Gildarts smiled as it went right past him. "I guess your aim is a little off with that one."
Natsu smirked. "No I hit what I was aiming for."
Gildarts scrunched his face in confusion. However, he would soon have his answer. The pulse hit the wall behind Gildarts and the angle forced the discharge to head straight for Gildarts. He heard the discharge and turned around just in time to put up his hand. With his Crash Magic, even this attack was nullified.
"Damn it," Natsu cursed.
"Very good, Natsu. That was an excellent strategy. I commend you for that attack," Gildarts complimented.
"Thanks, but I'm just getting started!" Natsu shouted. "I was working on this all week to try and recreate his attack. Here we go!" Natsu created orbs of fire in each of his hand. "FIRE DRAGON RAPID PULSE!" Natsu thrust forward Fire Dragon Pulse after Fire Dragon Pulse directly at Gildarts at a rapid pace.
Gildarts put up his hands and used his Crash Magic to constantly negate each attack. "I see. You're trying to recreate Nikolias' rapid fire of Fire Dragon Pulses from the Bloody Moon fight? Impressive, but he was easily four times faster."
Natsu grit his teeth. "Damn. Not even this is working. I gotta find a way through." Natsu fired the last two Fire Dragon Pulses in his hand and leapt into the air. "FIRE DRAGON ROAR!" Natsu shouted, unleashing yet another column of fire.
Gildarts held up his hand. "DISASSEMBLY!" Gildarts released a white grid from his hand and completely broke apart Natsu's Roar. However, the attack kept travelling, hitting a surprised Natsu and causing him to disappear. "Oops."
'NATSU!" Happy cried.
"Crap. I overdid it," Gildarts said.
"You jerk! This was just a test!" Happy cried. "And you killed him!"
"Relax. He's not dead. Look."
Happy looked up and was shocked to see mini Natsus falling from the sky. "Oh God! There are so many Natsus!"
"What the hell happened?" one Natsu asked.
"Hey who said that?" asked another Natsu.
"Why do you sound like me?" another Natsu asked.
"Why do you look like me?" another Natsu asked.
"This is annoying!" another Natsu shouted.
Gildarts put a hand to his head. "Great. My inability to hold back has created an even bigger headache. Sorry Natsu, but I guess that this is it. It's game over."
"Hell no!"
Gildarts looked down to see hundreds of determined glares. "What?"
"You think we're done?" a Natsu asked.
"C'mon, whaddya take us for?" another Natsu asked.
"We'll still cream ya!" shouted another mini Natsu.
"Let's see you take all of us on! CHARGE!" another Natsu cried.
With a determined battle cry, all of the Natsus charged Gildarts.
Gildarts laughed. "You truly are something. No one has ever challenged me while in this state. However," Gildarts paused to swing his cape, batting away numerous Natsus, "don't think that you have the advantage because of numbers!"
"ATTACK!" several Natsus cried as they fell from above.
Gildarts looked up but couldn't stop the Natsus. They landed on his head, pulling his hair and his face as they tried to inflict damage. Some even unleashed mini Fire Dragon Roars in an attempt to burn him. "Alright, I've had enough of this," an annoyed Gildarts said. With a snap of his fingers, all of the mini Natsus came together and rejoined into one big Natsu.
Natsu grinned. "Big mistake, Gildarts! CRIMSON LOTUS: EXPLODING FLAME BLADE!" Natsu unleashed a massive fire attack at Gildarts. The attack hit its mark, forcing Gildarts backwards.
Gildarts grinned at Natsu. "You really are strong, Natsu. You have proven yourself worthy of S-Class. I hereby—"
'No way!" Natsu shouted. "I wanna beat a real S-Class wizard! I ain't done here yet!"
Gildarts blinked before laughing. "I shouldn't be surprised. Very well, Natsu. I will show you the full power that I possess as an S-Class wizard!" And with that, Gildarts released his magic power, disappearing in a column of incredible magic.
Natsu stared at Gildarts in disbelief before clenching his fists. "I ain't giving up!" He charged forward, hands ablaze, fully intent on attacking. But as soon as he got close enough to land a punch, he fell to his knees before Gildarts, a look of terror on his face.
Gildarts saw Natsu fall and stopped his magic power. He watched as Natsu trembled before him, head down as he tried to compose himself.
"I," Natsu began, his voice shaky and soft, "accept defeat." Sweat clung to his face as he fought to keep himself from shaking. But he was ashamed of himself. He had fought with everything he had and he couldn't beat Gildarts. He had lost and now the chance to become S-Class was gone.
"Natsu…," Happy sobbed.
Gildarts continued to look at Natsu's trembling frame before smiling. "A wise choice, Natsu. I applaud anyone who has the courage to stand up and face their enemies. However, the wizards who are the most courageous are those exceptional few who know when enough is enough and to admit defeat." He paused for a moment. "Remember Natsu, there is nothing wrong with feeling fear. After all, without fear, how would any of us come to understand our own weaknesses? You need to know them in order to become a stronger and gentler person." He looked up. "Think about it. Everyone has their weaknesses, even me. You think I got where I am by refusing to acknowledge them? And take Nikolias. His fear drove him forward so that he could become stronger. Without acknowledging his fear, he wouldn't have worked hard to become stronger and to better protect those he cares about." Gildarts looked back down to Natsu. "Finding our weaknesses is a necessity for someone who wants to become S-Class. And now that I've shared this knowledge with you, you pass, kid."
Natsu was shocked. Gildarts just said he passed. "But…I didn't beat you. I lost."
"Don't argue with me," Gildarts said. "I'm your examiner and I say that you've passed. You've now made it past the first round, but this is only the beginning." Gildarts chuckled. "You know how Master Makarov can be. I bet whatever he has lined up is a whole lot worse than this." He paused to see Natsu still trembling. "Have confidence in yourself. I know you can do it." He slightly turned. "Now that your test is done, let me tell you something not as your examiner or superior, but as your friend." He looked off into the distance. "Possessing powerful magic isn't the most important factor. One thing that I can truly appreciate is your hunger and your drive to win. That burning desire to be victorious." He laughed. "I say that because I have it, too. Just like you, I don't ever wanna lose." He turned to Natsu with a smile. "I'll take you on again anytime. Now go become an S-Class wizard. You hear me, kid?"
All Natsu could do was stay frozen on his hands and knees, absorbing Gildarts' words while crying.
"Oh man," Levy said. "How are we supposed to beat Nikolias? Not even Natsu could beat him."
"You're forgetting," Gajeel smirked, "that I'm ten times stronger than Salamander." He cracked his knuckles. "This'll be a cake walk."
Nikolias chuckled. "Your confidence is fantastic. However, you're gonna have to prove that you're not all talk."
"Oh don't you worry," Gajeel promised. "I'll back it up right now! IRON DRAGON ROAR!" Gajeel unleashed a tornado of steel directly at Nikolias.
Nikolias smiled as he raised his hand. "SHADOW WALL!" A wall of thick shadows appeared in front of Nikolias, completely shielding him from Gajeel's attack. "Not bad."
Gajeel lifted his hand and pointed his fingers at Nikolias. "Try this! IRON DRAGON LANCE: DEMON LOGS!" A magic circle appeared in front of his fingers and multiple iron spears flew at Nikolias.
Nikolias kept his wall up and deflected the attack. "I don't see the strategy here, Gajeel. My Shadow Wall never even dissipated."
Gajeel kept firing his attack. 'Doesn't look like I'm even remotely destroying his barrier. Alright then, I'll try something different.' He smiled at his new idea. "Hey shrimp! Attack Nikolias from the side while I keep this up. I wanna test something."
Levy nodded. "Sure!" she said as she ran so that she was facing Nikolias' right side. "SOLID SCRIPT: FIRE!" The word FIRE appeared in the air before red-hot flames shot out at Nikolias.
Nikolias sighed as he lifted his other hand and crossed it over his body. "SHADOW WALL!" Another wall of shadow appeared, completely blocking off Levy's attack.
Gajeel growled. "Damn it. He can use it multiple times at once? I thought for sure he'd have to choose which attack to get hit with."
"I applaud your teamwork," Nikolias said while taking down the Shadow Wall facing Levy, "but you have to do better! SHADOW WHIP!" Thick shadow tendrils shot out of his left arm and wrapped themselves around Levy. He then used his hand to guide the tendrils to lift Levy high into the air. Then, with a simple flick of the wrist, Levy was released and sent flying.
"Shrimp!" Gajeel shouted. He stopped his attack and immediately ran after Levy. He was able to reach her and catch her before she hit the ground. "You alright?"
Levy nodded as she got down and stood. "I think so. Thanks."
"Good decision, Gajeel," Nikolias complimented. "No battle is worth the safety of a comrade. I'm glad you chose to protect her than to continue your pointless assault."
Gajeel grit his teeth. "We gotta find a way to take him down and fast. I feel like the longer we fight him, the more of an advantage he'll have."
"I think you're right. Alright, I'll try this then!" Levy lifted her hands to her chest. "SOLID SCRIPT: HOLE!" The word HOLE appeared on the ground below Nikolias before becoming a massive hole. However, Nikolias was undeterred. He simply leapt backwards and out of harm's way. "Damn, he saw that coming."
"Well long range is out of the question, so I'm gonna try close range. Give me cover, shrimp," Gajeel said as he charged forward.
"You got it," Levy said as she prepared to help however she was needed.
Nikolias smiled. "You think close combat is going to give you any more of an advantage?"
Gajeel's body became covered in iron scales. "Hell yeah! Try blocking iron with your shadows up close! IRON DRAGON HARD FIST!" Gajeel unleashed an incredible punch straight at Nikolias.
Nikolias dodged at the last second. "I think the real question here is how can your iron hold up against my shadows? SHADOW DRAGON FIERCE KICK!" Nikolias repositioned his body so that he could launch an incredible kick at Gajeel.
Gajeel was able to block the kick with his arm, but the iron cracked as he leapt back. "I've seen that move enough to know how to block it."
"Impressive," Nikolias said. "Still, it looks like I was able to damage your iron."
"Gajeel, here!" Levy called out as she wrote the word 'iron' in the sky. "SOLID SCRIPT: IRON!"
A large, iron, 3-D version of the word IRON appeared in front of Gajeel. He chuckled as he began to devour it. As he ate the iron, his scales that had been cracked were mending themselves. He wiped his mouth. "Thanks, shrimp. I'm good to go now."
Nikolias scratched his chin. "Interesting. So Dragon Slayers can eat their element and replenish their magic from that act? Huh. I gotta say, that's pretty cool. Half-Dragons can eat their element, but we don't get any kind of boost from it. All it does is ensure that we can't be harmed by our own element."
"That's too bad," Gajeel joked. "I guess that means that I can outlast you, huh?"
"Don't get carried away, Gajeel," Nikolias warned. "I have more energy than both of you combined. My stamina is far beyond either of you. Levy will run out of magic energy replenishing you before I even use up 10% of my energy. Believe me, you don't wanna get into a battle of stamina with a Half-Dragon."
"Then I'll just have to finish this now!" Gajeel said as he ran forward, making his arm into a long steel blade with rotating jagged teeth. "IRON DRAGON SWORD!" Gajeel swung his blade down at Nikolias, but his attack was blocked by Nikolias' black blades that he had summoned from his arms.
Nikolias smirked as he held back Gajeel. "I can feel that you're strong, but don't underestimate the shadows. They're more than capable of holding back your steel."
Gajeel continued to push down on Nikolias. "I feel like you're underestimating me and that's never a good idea. Right shrimp?"
Nikolias peered to the side to see Levy standing off to his right again.
Levy smiled. "That's right! Take this, Nikolias! SOLID SCRIPT: STONE!" A large, stone, 3-D version of the word STONE flew at Nikolias. With no way to block it, he took the attack head on and flew into a cliff face.
Levy leapt into the air. "We did it!"
Gajeel smirked. "That was nothin'. We had him from the start."
Suddenly, shadows violently erupted from the dust. "I suck at holding back," came Nikolias' voice from the dust. "Well no more warm-up. Time for the real test!"
The shadows burst forward, causing Levy and Gajeel to leap away. They stared intently at the dust cloud, awaiting Nikolias' next attack. And then they saw it.
From behind the dust cloud, they could see Nikolias had taken his partial-dragon form. He flapped his wings as he let out a powerful roar before taking an offensive position.
"Guess we ain't finished here yet," Gajeel huffed. "He wants a second helping, huh? Fine by me!" Gajeel charged forward once more. "IRON DRAGON HARD FIST!" He swung his fist at Nikolias. However, he was not expecting Nikolias' tail to wrap around his wrist and stop his attack completely. "What the hell?"
Nikolias snarled at Gajeel as his fists became shrouded in shadows. With another roar, he unleashed a rapid succession of powerful punches at Gajeel. The punches couldn't be seen, but the impact on Gajeel and the shattering of his iron scales could be seen.
"That's his Shadow Dragon Barrage attack!" Levy cried. "I have to help Gajeel." She lifted her hands. "SOLID SCRIPT: HOLE!" Once again, the word HOLE appeared beneath Nikolias before causing the ground to cave in and create a hole.
Before the ground gave in, Nikolias threw Gajeel's body away and leapt high into the air, avoiding the attack. He growled at his two opponents.
"Damn it," Gajeel coughed. "I can't believe Salamander endured that kind of attack without any armor. Those fists hit like wrecking balls."
"Here," Levy said while creating another 3-D version of IRON. "Eat this."
Gajeel started eating it, but Nikolias saw this and knew what it meant now. With a small roar, he unleashed a jet of black flames from his mouth directly at Gajeel.
"Look out!" Levy cried as she leapt in front of Gajeel. "SOLID SCRIPT: GUARD!" The word GUARD appeared in front of them. The black flames collided with the barrier, forcing Levy to fight to keep it up. "I can't hold this much longer! It's so strong!" Suddenly, the flames stopped. Levy looked to see Nikolias flying at immense speed directly at them. Levy felt her body was frozen at the very sight.
"Shrimp, look out!" Gajeel shouted. He grabbed Levy around the waist and jumped away before Nikolias could slam his body into the barrier, shattering it immediately. The two landed away, panting heavily.
"What do we do, Gajeel?" Levy asked. "He's so strong in this form."
Gajeel grit his teeth. "I dunno. He's not gonna let me eat iron anymore now that he knows. And he's too strong for your barriers. I'll run to his right and try to distract him. Hit him with everything you've got!"
"Right!" Levy said as Gajeel ran to enact the plan.
"Alright, Nikolias, show me what you've got!" Gajeel shouted.
Nikolias followed Gajeel with his eyes and, once he was far enough away, he made a bee line for Levy. He drew back his right hand, pointing all of his talons forward. Shadows surrounded his hand. He roared as he prepared to strike.
Levy knew she didn't have time to put up a barrier and she also knew that her barrier wouldn't hold. All she could do was screw her eyes shut and put her arms up in a desperate attempt to block.
"Shrimp!"
Levy opened her eyes to see Gajeel running towards her. He threw his body in front of Levy, holding her close in an attempt to take the attack.
But the attack never came.
Gajeel turned around and Levy peered around him to see Nikolias completely still, his golden eyes staring at them and his hand still poised to strike with shadows dancing around it. Suddenly, the shadows stopped, Nikolias' hand dropped to his side, and shadows danced around him. After a few seconds, the shadows disappeared and Nikolias stood before them in human form, a big smile on his face.
"What the hell?" Gajeel asked.
"Congratulations," Nikolias said. "You pass."
The two stared at Nikolias, dumbfounded. "Care to repeat that?" Gajeel asked.
"You. Pass," Nikolias said slowly. "In other words, you move on to Round Two."
"But…how?" Levy asked.
"We landed one hit," Gajeel said.
Nikolias laughed. "True. You only landed one attack."
"Then what gives?" Gajeel asked.
Nikolias looked away. "There's more to fighting than just winning and losing. Just because you only landed one hit doesn't mean that you lost the round. All it means is that you lost a fight."
"I don't get it," Levy said. "What do you mean?"
"When Master Makarov explained to me that I would be part of this Trial, he said it was because I was considered S-Class. I, of course, had no idea what this meant, so I asked what an S-Class wizard was. He told me that they were the strongest members in the guild." Nikolias looked at Levy with a smile. "But there's so much more to being strong than being able to win. You two demonstrated strength to me. Your ability to communicate with each other and coordinate your attacks was incredible. You fought extremely well together, playing off of each other's attacks and constantly looking out for each other. And what really proved to me that you were strong was that you were willing to risk your life for her, Gajeel. While I would never kill her, I could tell that that didn't cross your mind. All you were thinking was that you had to protect her. You had to protect someone you care about. That is why you two pass. You're both strong enough to be S-Class in my mind and you're worthy of passing on to the second round."
Levy had a huge smile on her face. "We…we did it! We passed!"
Gajeel crossed his arms. "I still think we need to win a fight to pass."
"Even though you didn't win the fight, you showed strength and that's what matters. Now go on," Nikolias said as he stepped aside. "Go be S-Class, Levy. And stay by her side, Gajeel."
The two nodded before running down the path to prepare for the next round.
Nikolias watched them run off with a smile. 'I really saw myself in you, Gajeel. You're willing to protect the girl you love, even if it costs you your life. I'd be lying if I said that that wasn't another reason why I passed you.' He stretched his limbs. "Now that I'm thinking about it, I wonder if Mira's back at base camp yet?"
"Here they come!" Wendy shouted.
Loke was the first to make a move. His hand lit up as he swung his fist at Mest. Mest easily blocked it with a forearm and jumped out of the way before Loke could land a follow up uppercut.
Mest landed on a rock while Wendy landed a safe distance away as well.
Loke grinned. "I'd love to kick Mest's ass, but I gotta say, I feel bad that I have to beat you, too, Wendy."
"I don't care either way," Gray said. "I won't go easy on you, Wendy! ICE MAKE: HAMMER!" Gray fired a massive ice hammer at Wendy and Mest. It smashed into the ground, but missed its target as Wendy and Mest leapt away again. Suddenly, Mest appeared behind Gray, poised to land a kick. Gray turned his body. "Going for a sneak attack, huh?" He blocked the kick with his arm before attempting to land a counterattack. Mest was easily able to dodge.
Wendy stood with her eyes closed and her arms outstretched. "Grant me the power of the Heavens! SKY DRAGON ROAR!" A column of wind shot at Loke from Wendy's mouth.
Loke's hands lit up. "Regulus, lend me your strength!" Loke thrust his two hands forward, unleashing a massive blast of light. His attack met with Wendy's head on, neither attack making any progress. "I had no idea you were this powerful, Wendy!" Loke shouted.
"I'll help ya out!" Gray called. "ICE MAKE: FLOOR!" Gray turned the whole ground into ice, causing Wendy to lose her balance and slip.
Mest used the opportunity to land a swift attack on Gray, using a slide tackle to knock Gray into the air. He quickly leapt to safety as Gray easily regained his balance and landed on his feet.
Loke had positioned himself perfectly. As soon as Mest landed, he leapt forward, light surrounding his cocked back fist. However, Loke's attack met only with a boulder as Mest quickly disappeared and reappeared behind Loke. However, Loke wasn't about to be caught off guard. He illuminated his hand so that it gave off a bright light, blinding Mest as he attempted to shield his eyes.
Gray saw the opening that his partner made for him. With a cannon made of ice, Gray shot a blast towards Mest. The attack created a large explosion and, when the dust cleared, the two could see Mest resting against a rock.
The two then redirected their attention to the now solo Wendy.
"That just leaves you, Wendy," Gray said. "Remember, I ain't goin' easy on you. Here it comes! ULTIMATE SECRET ART: EAT A BUNCH OF PICKLED PLUMS!" One by one, Gray downed pickled plum after pickled plum. After about three, he couldn't take it anymore. His entire face twisted and puckered from the overwhelming sour taste.
Wendy began to shiver, the sight of Gray eating such sour foods proving to be too much for her. "They're so sour that just the sight of you eating them makes my lips start to pucker! This must be some sort of telepathy magic! I gotta run now!" Wendy turned in an attempt to escape the torcher.
"Not so fast, Wendy!" Loke shouted as he blocked her path. In his hand was a jar of pickled plums that he summoned from the Spirit World. He then poured the whole jar down his throat and, in no time at all, his face began to glow from the magic as well as pucker.
Wendy ran screaming, but found her path blocked by Gray and Loke's puckered faces. The sight was too much for her small little body. She collapsed on the ground, the thought of the sour foods forcing her into unconsciousness.
Gray and Loke high-fived.
"We did it," Loke said through puckered lips.
Gray nodded as he tried to talk through his own puckered lips. "S-Class here we come!"
Wow. School has been keeping me way too busy. Not proud of how long it took to update. Unfortunately, these longer updates may be a common theme for the next month-ish. I'll try to fight it as best I can and come out with more regular updates, but I feel like the warning should be out there. Anyway, hope you enjoyed Round One!
