Chapter 17: The teams arrive
'Thinking' – thoughts
"Speaking" – speech
'Thinking' – Dragon/God/Beast thinking
"Speaking" - Dragon/God/Beast speaking
Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or any of its characters they are the property of Hiro Masima.
NightSlayer04: Thanks for the input. I will be tweaking some of the events in the future chapters and I do hope you enjoy them as well as the fights on each day.
Ninjafang1331: Thank you, I want to develop some of the characters in the greater world as well.
Thicc-Chungus: The labyrinth wasn't the most exciting so I am skipping it in this story, just mentioning it happened basically. For Wendy learning from Natsu before, I want to go a bit of a different route that I will explore later on when they have more interactions over the course of the arc.
AllenCross: Thank you for the feedback, I will take a closer look at that going forward. With what I wanted to achieve I needed to have the background set so that is why some of the focus might seem a bit skewed.
-Crocus Gardens-
Wendy and Carla were taking a stroll through the gardens surrounding the Mercurius, the palace that houses the Royal Family of Fiore. They took in the beautiful sights as the flowers glowed in the soft light that illuminated the pathways.
'I hope I can see Natsu again, I feel bad that he was alone all this time,' Wendy thought to herself as her face slightly dropped.
"What's wrong Wendy?" Carla asked as she saw her friend's face drop.
"Oh, it's nothing. These gardens are beautiful," Wendy quickly changed the subject. A knot of guilt formed in her stomach as she thought about the abandonment that Natsu must have felt. She was no stranger to the feeling of being abandoned, first her birth parents, then Grandeeney, her old guild Cait Shelter, and Natsu when he left the guild. She still carried guilt over that feeling, but it vanished when Natsu told her he saw her as a little sister.
But she was gone for seven long years, and everyone, including Natsu, thought she was dead.
"They are wonderful. But we will have to head to the inn soon, they mentioned that all the guilds will have to be at their lodgings at midnight," Carla reminded, deciding not to press the matter of Wendy's mood at the moment.
"I think we are almost back at the entrance," Wendy said as the two continued on the path. 'Will Natsu be here at the games this year?' Wendy wondered. She heard that his new guild attended once, but no one mentioned Natsu, or what he was up to. It was almost as if the Fire Dragon Slayer just disappeared from the world around the time the Fairy Tail mages vanished.
A warm feeling filled her as the fiery sensation of the flames she gained after they exited the time stasis and the power she used to defeat Zancrow. A comforting feeling ran over her, as if Natsu was right there next to her, his presence calming her nerves. 'Could that have been him?' Wendy wondered, hoping for it to be true.
A small dark figure surveyed the two from a vantage point above a light post that fell further along in their path, waiting for its time to spring its ambush. As its unsuspecting prey neared it shivered in anticipation as a cruel growl of anticipation escaped its maw.
Though Carla was completely unaware of what lay ahead, Wendy managed to notice the sounds up ahead. Not sure what it was, Wendy decided not to raise it if she was just hearing things. Nearing the dangerous lamp post, Wendy heard the same cruel growl, confirming that she heard something and it was not just her imagination.
Wendy was about to raise her concern with Carla, but whatever it was that had been waiting for them decided to pounce. Wendy, being aware was able to react quickly enough to avoid its attack, but Carla was not so fortunate. Barely being able to call out to Wendy in concern, she succumbed to unconsciousness, her magic nearly drained dry.
"What did you do to her?" Wendy shouted in anger as she turned on their assailant. She was momentarily surprised when she saw that the assailant was a small brown being with a black cape and a crown of leaves held together with a yellow band.
A displeased growl escaped from the being as it prepared to pounce on Wendy. "Sky Dragon Sickle" Wendy called out as she swiped one arm in an upwards direction. A razor-sharp gale of wind rushed at the being. The creature let out a startled yelp before it waved its tiny arms sporadically around. The gale of wind suddenly disappeared and the creature let out a joyous squeak.
Wendy, having learnt that in a battle you must always be ready for whatever may come, did not hesitate in her surprise when her attack disappeared, unlike the creature did, and instantly followed up with her next spell. "Sky Dragon Claw" Wendy called out as her foot became coated in raging winds that she swiped up at the creature.
Still caught up in its celebration, Wendy easily landed her kick on the creature and sent it flying into a nearby hedge where it yelled out in pain from the twigs eating into its back. Sky Dragon Crushing Fang" Wendy called out and swiped at the creature with her fingers just as it released itself from the hedge, dealing the final blow and sending the strange creature flying.
Wendy didn't have any time to celebrate her victory as Carla was still in an unknown state after taking the first attack from the creature. In an instant, Wendy was by Carla's side, "Heal" Wendy said as her hand lit up with a teal-blue glow. Wendy grew worried when she didn't see any improvement in Carla's condition and confused when she couldn't pick up any injuries on her.
'What's wrong with her? Maybe Master will know,' Wendy thought to herself. She quickly scooped her friend up and dashed back to the inn where she would surely find help.
"Hmm, seems like our little friend failed its task. No matter, we just need to catch up to the little Fairy and clip her wings," a golden armoured man said as three other shadowy figures stood behind him.
"I'm afraid I can't allow that. That little Fairy still has heights as high as the heavens to achieve, but I will gladly rip the wings off a Raven or two," a dark male voice said from between the group and where Wendy ran off to. Malice seeped into its voice at the end while dark crimson flames started to creep over the surrounding hedges and the few lights burst into darkness.
"Your hubris is amusing, especially if you know who we are. No matter you will just be another body on our road to glory," The armoured man said as he and two of the figures with him started to advance revealing them as a short, stocky, purple male and a pale-skinned woman with red hair. With a slight wave of his hand, the last of the shadowy figures started to sink into the ground, merging with the shadows.
"I already said I can't allow you to harm the little Fairy," the dark voice said as dark flames burst from where the last figure disappeared to. From the shadows, a pale man was ejected with a cry of pain as the dark flames licked at his skin.
"I'm impressed, but my elite mages will soon take you down. Flare, Nullpudding, take out the trash," the armoured man ordered. Flare and Nullpudding immediately obeyed the order, Flare igniting her hair with a crimson flame as it flared up and poised around her and Nullpudding enlarging his arms with spikes covering his forearms and fists.
"Allow me to give you an introduction to Raven Tail's power," Nullpudding shouted as he jumped to lay a beat down on the guy who stood in their way of taking down the Fairy Tail guild, starting with the little Dragon Slayer to rile them up. Around him, crimson hair lit in fire formed to rush in alongside Nullpudding.
Nullpudding was poised to strike when a black-scaled hand appeared in his path, grabbing hold of his face while two black wings with a red bone-like structure appeared in the way of the flaming hair.
"A bad choice, but you can thank whatever gods you believe in that I have gained control over this form otherwise death would rain from the depths of hell," the owner of the scaled arms and wings declared before dark flames erupted from his hand and sent Nullpudding back towards the armoured man and Flare.
Both needed to dodge around the flying form of Nullpudding to avoid being hit. This caused Flare not to see the demonic-looking man with black scales covering his face and piercing red eyes that looked to the depths of her soul as he planted his fist in her gut as an explosion went off and sent her joining her two guildmates.
"Must I do everything myself?" the armoured man asked himself in anger and launched towards the demonic man with a fist cocked back. His anger grew as the man caught his fist in a scaled hand. His follow-up punch didn't fare better and he quickly found that he was stuck with both his fists being held tight by his foe.
Before the armoured man had a chance to attack again, the demonic man came in for a head but. Their foreheads connected, a mop of pink hair and a black-scaled forehead met the golden helmet. Cracks spread across the helmet before it shattered revealing the surprised face of the guild master Ivan.
"Just what are you?" Ivan asked. He managed to rip one of his hands free and quickly flicked his fingers upwards while calling out "Shikigami Torrent". A mass of shikigami dolls rushed towards the demonic man.
"I am merely a protector," the man replied as dark flames rolled around him and started to consume the magic attack.
Ivan felt the first instance of fear entering his mind as he saw his attack being consumed, irrespective of the power he siphoned into it in an attempt to push back. A saviour made its appearance as Ivan saw a small creature struggling up on a hedge behind the demonic man.
"You will not come out of this on top. Raven Tail will not fall here," Ivan roared as Nullpudding and Flare came in for another attack from the front after recovering from the previous attacks. From behind the demon, a pale man with black hair rose from the shadows while the small creature released its power towards the demon.
"Feel the might of Raven Tail as you watch your magic vanish at the hands of Obra. Feel your flesh roast at the burning crimson hair of flare. Succumb to the holes left by Nullpudding's terrifying needles. Fall to your own magic as Kurohebi turns it against you. Bow before my shikigami and beg for forgiveness. You will be the prelude to Fairy Tail's end," Ivan roared as he released his spell and fell back to his mages, ready to unleash an onslaught once the demonic man's magic is gone.
Once Obra's magical influence covered the man, Flare shouted "Hair Shower: Firefly Flame" sending explosive bits of her hair at their target, Nullpudding called out "Needle Impaler" as purple needles launched from all over his body towards the demonic man, Kurohebi hissed out "Dark Dragon Claw" having darkness envelop his foot before launching his kick, and Ivan roared "Shikigami Dark Bomb" releasing a massive amount of shikigami dolls to surround his target.
"This is the power you want to destroy Fairy Tail with?" the man asked as the spells connected, causing explosions to rock the area around him. Ivan found a grin forming on his face at the fool's demise while the other Raven Tail members started to cheer.
"Pathetic, even the Fairy Tail from ten years ago could have slaughtered you all. That would have been more merciful compared to me," The dark voice said from within the explosion causing the cheers of victory to be caught abruptly in the throats of the Raven Tail mages.
Shocked silence only just fell on the gardens before black flames erupted from where the explosion just occurred and a true demon rose into the sky.
"Burn," the demonic voice uttered as Kurohebi, Flare and Nullpudding were consumed by black flames while the demon grabbed Obra in his claws and started to crush the creature.
"You will not be missed by your true master," the demon said before closing his fist and crushing the creature.
"No, this can not be. All my work to create a guild that would bring Fairy Tail down, only to be thwarted moments before our plans would have fallen in place," Ivan said in disbelief as he watched all the years of preparations washed away in the blink of an eye.
"A waste of time. Your goal was never within your sights," the demon said before unleashing a wave of dark flames that washed over Ivan. The demon descended back to the ground, the demonic features falling away and leaving a mature man with pink hair in its wake.
"Now, what will be the best way to go about getting these guys locked away for daring to target Wendy?" Natsu thought to himself as he left the destroyed gardens and Raven Tail mages behind.
-Domus Flau-
The atmosphere in the Domus Flau arena was electric as the crowds streamed in to fill the seat in preparation for the biggest event of the year, the Grand Magic Games. Conversation speculating about the winners, potential matchups between renowned mages and rivalries that have formed in previous installations of these games.
"Sabertooth will claim the top spot again." "This year Lamia Scale will rise to the top." "Did you hear, that the new guild that competed a few years back is going to participate again?" "Did you hear about that one guild who vandalised the gardens around the palace?" "I heard they got arrested, serves them right." These and similar words roared around the arena as the crowds found their seats.
"Welcome, one and all to the X791 Grand Magic Games where the guilds of Fiore battle it out for the coveted title of Fiore's Mightiest Guild" a voice boomed over the noise of the spectators.
"I am Chapati Lola and I will be your lead commentator for this event. Joining me is former Council member Yajima," Chapati's voice boomed out over the speakers.
"It's a pleasure to be here Chapati," Yajima replied.
"Our participants spent last night going against one another to determine who of them will appear before you and compete for the Title of the Number One Guild in all of Fiore," Chapati announced.
"I'm excited to see if any new faces will join the games this year," Yajima mused.
"Then, without any more delays, allow me to introduce teams that made it through the preliminaries as the top eight teams. Squeezing in the eighth place we have the Hounds from Hell, Quatro Cerberus. Their team members are, Rocker, Jäger, Nobarly, Warcry and Bacchus Groh," Chapati announced.
"What are we boys?" Bacchus asked as he stepped out at the head of his team. A shout of "Wild" rose from the throats of the other Quatro Cerberus members, quickly followed by cheers from the crowd as the five mages made their way to the centre of the arena.
"I am expecting great things from you this year," Goldmine, the master of Quatro Cerberus said with a grin.
"Coming in seventh place we have a blast from the past, Fairy Tail. This team consists of Erza Scarlet, Gray Fullbuster, Lucy Heartfilia, Gajeel Redfox and Wendy Marvell," Chapati introduced the next team.
Instead of the cheers that Quatro Cerberus was greeted with, the Fairy Tail team was greeted with surprise and uncertainty. Words of disbelief that the weakest guild somehow made it and uncertainty if a mistake did not perhaps happen rose from the gathered spectators.
"What's their problem?" Gajeel asked as he glared at the crowds.
"They are simply misguided, don't pay too much attention to them," Erza dismissed the crowds.
From the uncertain and surprised rumbles of the crowd, a roar of encouragement rose. When the Fairy Tail team honed in on where the new roar rose from, they saw their guild, cheers flowing from their throats as the pride in their guild was on full display.
"With our guild behind us, we don't need anyone else," Lucy said.
"Do you guys hear that?" Gray asked.
In unison with the Fairy Tail cheers, a young feminine voice sang her own cheers for her guild. The cheers from the Fairy Tail guild momentarily died in their throats as they laid eyes on a young girl with long flowing blond hair.
"Is that the First Master, and she's cheering us on?" Wendy asked.
"With the support of our First Master on our side, our victory is all but assured," Erza stated with confidence while the rest of the team all wore confident grins.
"Moving on to our next team, in sixth place we have a guild filled with the fairer sex the Damsels of the Seas, Mermaid Heel. Representing their team this year are Risley Law, Beth Vanderwood, Araña Webb, Millianna and Kagura Mikazuchi," Chapati announced the next team.
The crowd, especially the male populous of the crowd, roared in approval of the all-female guild. As their team of five was announced, Erza heard a name that shocked her.
"Millianna?" Erza asked as she looked at the mages and stopped on a cloaked girl.
"Long time no see Erzy," a cheery reply came from the girl as she dropped her hood and revealed her cat-like features. Millianna quickly bounced over to the red-haired knight and enveloped her in a hug.
"It's good to see you again Millianna, we need to catch up once the games are over for the day," Erza replied as she returned the hug.
"You won't be able to keep me away even if you try and put me in a kitty cage," Millianna cheerfully said.
"Our team that managed to grab fifth place this year, with Azure wings that glimmer in the darkness, its Blue Pegasus, represented by Ichiya Vandalay Kotobuki, Hibiki Lates, Ren Akatsuki, Eve Tearm and Jenny Realight," Chapati said as the Blue Pegasus mages made their way to the arena.
The cheers that rose had this time held considerable weight from the female populous of Fiore. Once the team made their way to the centre of the arena, each of them struck a pose that brought about a reinvigorated cheer from the crowd.
"Next reaching the upper half of our qualifying teams, in fourth place, The Goddess of Love and War, The Sacred Destroyer, Lamia Scale. Represented by Toby Horhota, Yuka Suzuki, Sherria Blendy, Lyon Vastia and the fifth Wizard Saint, Jura Neekis," Chapati introduced the team.
Once again the crowd roared with cheers, this time with shouts of amazement and awe at a member of the Wizard Saint participating woven together with excited voices at the changes this could introduce.
"I expected you to be number one, why did you not get first place?" an old lady, Ooba Babasaama, Guild master of Lamia Scale shouted at her team.
"Sorry Master, it was my fault. I slipped and fell," Sherria apologised.
"Moving on to the top three guilds, in third place... Oh my, now this is a surprise. Ladies and Gentlemen, this year's competition just got a whole lot more interesting. Our third place team is Fairy Tail team B with their ranks being filled by Freed Justine, Evergreen, Bickslow, Laxus Dreyar and the Fairy Tail guild Ace, Gildarts Clive," Chapati declared as the powerful group of mages made their way into the arena.
Whereas the Fairy Tail Team A members were met with surprise and confusion, Fairy Tail Team B was only met with confusion. The confusion didn't just apply to the crowd as the participating teams also had various levels of confusion.
"I wasn't anticipating them to have two teams with such potent parfume," Ichiya said with a calculating gaze.
"It would be Fairy Tail who would have two teams, honestly I wouldn't expect less," Hibiki said with amusement as Ren and Eve silently agreed.
"Why do they get to have two teams, is this some sort of handicap?" Rocker voiced what quite a few of the participants who hadn't interacted with Fairy Tail much seven years ago felt.
"I believe the newly implemented rules this year have left our audience a bit perplexed. Care to explain Mister Yajima?" Chapati asked his fellow commentator.
"Sure thing, the Committee in charge of the Grand Magic Games permitted each guild to have two teams participating. They believe this would make the preliminaries much more interesting," Yajima explained.
"You never told us about this Master," Lucy accused as she looked up at her guild.
"Ha now that is how Fairy Tail does things," Makarov laughed, ignoring Lucy's accusation.
"I don't think the committee thought this one through, I mean this is a team-based competition. With one guild having two teams in the events this would surely give that guild an unfair advantage," Chapati stated.
"You worry too much, I don't think this will be a problem," Yajima dismissed.
but I guess that is their reward for being the only guild from over 100 guilds who managed to push two teams through to the main event," Chapati relented.
"You certainly have an upper hand, Maki," Yajima said with a laugh.
"Fairy Tail is back in action," Makarov said as he laughed jubilantly.
"These are two powerful teams, but Team B having Gildarts and Laxus, it feels like an unfair advantage," Levy said as she analysed the strengths of the two teams.
"Gi hi, none of you idiots need to worry about me working with Team B, I can't wait to give every one of you a beating," Gajeel said with a grin as his gaze locked onto Laxus and Gildarts.
"There are two more teams that need to be announced, you can bet that one of them is Sabertooth," Gray quietly said to Erza.
"And with all the well-known guilds already being announced, the other team might be connected to Zeref," Erza finished the idea.
"Even with the excitement and surprise from Fairy Tail having two teams in the competition, we can't stray from announcing our top two teams. In second place, a guild that is returning after not attending the two instalments of the Grand Magic Games, The Valiant Guardians, a Home for the Homeless, Griffin's Heaven. This year their team consists of Izayoi Coattue, Maz Stron, Samantha Rein, Elfman Strauss and Natsu Dragneel," Chapati announced.
Elfman's name drew the attention of the Tenrou team but the rest of Fairy Tail already knew he was in the Griffin's Heaven guild, but the mention of Natsu, all of Fairy Tail as well as most of Fiore reared in surprise. Almost no one knew of Natsu's whereabouts in the past seven years.
Though two of Fairy Tail's members had more prominent reactions. Joy took over Wendy's face as she dashed towards her big brother figure, happy to see him again and eager to show him how she grew. The other member with a more prominent reaction was Gildarts. Relief flooded his system as he saw a stable young man who stood with confidence and not a dark monster that he feared might have risen from the depths of a broken man. Even though there might still be something hidden away in the young man, it didn't seem, like it has risen and conquered the mage.
Wendy launched herself into Natsu's arms, catching him off guard and almost knocking him over. A low laugh emanated from Natsu as he held his little sister in his arms.
"Hello Little Dragon, it's good to see you again," Natsu softly said.
"I'm sorry," Wendy sniffed as she held her face in his chest.
"For what are you apologising?" Natsu asked perplexed.
"When we went into stasis, you must have thought we died, I'm sorry for leaving you," Wendy whimpered as her emotions ran wild.
"Wendy, you are here, healthy and alive. There is nothing to apologise for," Natsu soothed as he looked down at her.
"But..." Wendy started only to be silenced by Natsu.
"No buts, besides, this is a festival, let's not dwell on sad thoughts?" Natsu suggested as he gave the smaller Dragon Slayer a grin. The blue-haired girl looked apologetic for a few more moments before her face lifted as the grin infected her.
"I can't wait to show you how strong I've become, then..." Wendy said excitedly before trailing off.
"I can't wait to see how far you have come," Natsu said as he gazed proudly down at her.
Wendy felt the presence of someone else waiting for her, and with a blush stepped back from Natsu and with a quick 'Good bye', she returned to her team. Natsu turned to the mage who had stood patiently by while he shared his moment with Wendy.
"It's hard to believe the young brat who always tried to jump me has grown into a handsome young man. You have a good fashion sense and I'm sure you are a serious lady killer, no doubt," Gildarts said, a perverted grin forming on his face at the end. Natsu had changed a bit in the last seven years. He wore a cloak similar to Gildarts with a single long-sleeve jacket, revealing his right arm with a proud Griffin with its wings spread, the guild mark of Griffin's Heaven, on his shoulder. His face was more mature as he aged but his hair still held a strong resemblance to the style he had seven years ago.
"With the past seven years, I think I might get one over you old man," Natsu replied.
"Even though you changed externally, you are still the same brat on the inside," Gildarts laughed, though he was glad to see a lack of the darkness that had always bubbled below the surface.
"I am far from the kid I was, Gildarts. We should get a drink to catch up, this atmosphere is too lively to talk to an old bag like you," Natsu returned a jab alongside an invitation.
"With an insult like that you can pay for the first round," Gildarts replied.
The Thunder Legion and Laxus didn't have any specific reactions to Natsu, but they did seem pleased to see him doing well alongside the Strauss siblings, with Evergreen also being very happy for Wendy. The Fairy Tail Team A members were a bit more split. Gajeel was excited to test his strength against Natsu and Wendy was overjoyed at seeing him again. Erza and Gray were curious as to how he was doing.
Lucy was uncertain how to feel. It was clear when Natsu left the guild where he wanted to be, and their being in the same guild after seven years enforced that thought. She felt the hurt of not being chosen, but with time she would hopefully get over it, she did however feel regret creeping into her heart. The past three months gave her plenty of time to reflect on what she did, and with the counselling from Capricorn, she regretted her action. Her regret however did nothing to quell the fear that she had for the repercussions of her actions.
"And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, you know them, you love them, the team that took first place in the preliminaries. The Ferocious Tigers and the current Strongest Guild in Fiore, Sabertooth. Representing the guild with an equally strong team, Rufus Lore, Orga Nanagear, Yukino Agria and their Twin Dragons, Sting Eucliffe and Rogue Cheney," Chapati shouted as the crowd erupted in cheers for the favourite of the Competition as they walked into the arena.
"That is how the strong are greeted," Sting said as he looked at Laxus with a cocky smirk as the Sabertooth team planted themselves in the middle of the arena.
Even though Sting tried to goad Laxus, the blond mage simply ignored him, angering the Sabertooth mage slightly.
"Don't mind the rabble Sting," Rouge said to his partner.
"None of these teams will be able to reach our power," Orga declared proudly.
"My memory is ready to commit a new arsenal with the powerful mages attending this year," Rufus said.
"With all the teams revealed, what do you think of the lineup this year Mister Yajima?" Chapati asked.
"We have an impressive line-up this year, mages that were held in high regard from Fairy Tail seven years ago are back and powerful mages from the current era like Jura decided to join as well. I expect some terrific matches over the course of these games," Yajima replied.
"And do you have a favourite to win this year's tournament after seeing our teams?" Chapati continued his questioning.
"Sabertooth has shown their prowess and power in the past years, but with the return of the powerhouses from Fairy Tail and Jura joining, I would say they all have a solid change this year. Not to mention the mages from our other guilds look ready to throw some upsets into the mix," Yajima answered.
"Let's give another cheer for our team," Chapati suggested as the crowd roared once more in approval and anticipation.
"I believe our audience is ready for the schedule of this year's games," Yajima said to his fellow commentator.
"Right you are, Mister Yajima. So without further delay, let's unveil this year's official tournament schedule," Chapati announced. His words had barely left the lacrima speakers around the arena when the ground in between all the gathered teams stirred and a large stone tablet rose from the ground.
"Allow me to explain what you are seeing on the stone tablet. Each day we will have a main event followed by a set of battles. The event will have one member from each team competing against one another in line with the rules each event has set up. As you can see, our first event is called Hidden. Each team will have to choose a player to participate and only then will we reveal the rules of said game. The names of the events will be revealed on the day just before the teams need to make their decision of who they will send," Chapati started to explain.
"They have changed the basic format a bit since the last time we participated," Izayoi commented.
"Looks like there will be more action though, an event and battle each day. Sound like fun to me,' Maz replied excitedly.
"We will have to take the names of the events into consideration when selecting our participants. It doesn't sound like there will be any other tips on what it might entail," Natsu observed.
"Points will be awarded for events as follows: First place receives 10 points, Second places get 8, Third place gets 6 and then fourth place will get 4 points decreasing with each lower standing until eighth place that gets no points," Chapati explained the points system.
"Taking a top three spot holds more weight compared to the lower places with the jump in points awarded," Freed said.
"It won't matter for us though since we will only be getting 10 points each time," Bickslow said as his babies chanted 'Winners'.
"Remember we were in stasis for seven years, don't underestimate our opponents," Gildarts reminded as his mind went back to the shadowy entity they encounter when they re-emerged on Tenrou Island.
"After the main event, the fans will enjoy the battle phase of the tournament since your recommendation are taken into account alongside a few other rules behind the curtains when deciding on the matchups. The points for the battles are quite simple. Two teams will face off in a one-on-one battle with a thirty-minute time limit. If you manage to incapacitate your opponent you earn your team 10 points, while the losing team gets nothing. In the event that the fight reaches our time limit a draw will be declared and both teams will receive 5 points each," Chapati explained the rules further.
"So it's possible that you can participate in the event and have a fight on the same day," Lucy concluded.
"And the battles can quickly sway the standings with the possibility of not getting any points," Erza added.
"With that out of the way we can officially begin the main stage of this year's Grand Magic Games with our first event, Hidden. We would like the teams to select their participating mages now after which we will fully explain the rules of the event," Chapati requested.
"Let me start us off on the right foot," Jäger said to his team
"Let your soul shiver in anticipation," Bacchus replied, giving Jäger the go-ahead. The other three Quatro Cerberus team members shouted 'Wild'.
"This seems to be an easy event, are y'all good if I handle this one?" Beth asked her team.
"I will allow this," Kagura agreed.
"I'll go," Eve said as he confidently strode forward.
"I smell the parfume of Victory," Ichiya said as Hibiki and Ren cheered their teammate on.
"My memory is inspired by our inevitable victory. I will take the lead on this one," Rufus said as he stepped forward. The crowds cheered as the fancily dressed bard stepped forward.
"We will take this competition by storm from the get-go, I'll go," Lyon interrupted his team as they tried to figure out who will go for their team.
"If Lyon is going, I'll take this one. Besides, I'm dying to see what these games are all about," Gray said as he locked eyes with his fellow student of Ur.
"Please allow me to show the Thunder Legion's strength," Freed requested.
"Go right ahead," Laxus said, not being interested in playing hide and seek.
"Izayoi, I believe your skills will be best suited here," Natsu said. Izayoi didn't verbally answer but gave a quick nod and joined the other selected members.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, our contestants have been selected for Hidden. The other members of their teams will now be teleported to their booths while we prepare the Arena," Chapati announced as only the eight selected mages remained in the arena.
Suddenly a massive city rose from the ground as the arena was transformed into the playing field for Hidden. The mages were scattered around the newly generated city, each finding themselves isolated from everyone else.
"Please turn your attention to our Lacrima Vision where the event will be broadcasted from as Mato, the mascot of the Grand Magic Games will explain the rules of Hidden," Chapati said the familiar pumpkin face of Mato appeared on the screens that popped up all around the arena.
"Hello Pumpkins, today's event is Hidden, our very own take on Hide and Seek, pumpkin," a high-pitched but happy voice sounded from Mato.
"The objective of this game is to find your opponents and land any attack while dodging and hiding from your opponents, but there is a little surprise to make this game more interesting, Pumpkin," Mato continued as hundreds of clones of each competitor filled the streets of the city.
"As you can see, we have filled the streets with clones. Now, for the rules, if you manage to land an attack on an opponent you will receive one point while the mage that was hit loses one. If you were hit by an attack, you will be teleported away and after 10 seconds you will be allowed to re-enter the game at a random location. Attacking a clone will cause you to lose a point as well but you will not be teleported away. You can restart as many times as needed. After 30 minutes the game will come to an end and the points you collected will determine your placement, Pumpkin," Mato finished the explanation of the rules. The pumpkin mascot waved to the crowd before he disappeared from the screens.
"Thank you for explaining the rules Mato, now Mister Yajima, do you have any favourites for this game?" Chapati asked.
"Hmm, I would say that Rufus is likely to come out on top, but that is not to discredit the other mages. I am interested to see what Gray can do though," Yajima replied. The crowds rose in a cheer as Yajima mentioned Rufus being the most likely to rise to the top.
"It sounds like Rufus is a crowd favourite as well Mister Yajima. But as it is with these games, upsets are not out of the question. Let's turn our attention to our mages as the Grand Magic Games starts with Hidden," Chapati declared as a siren sounded to indicate the start of the game.
Hi all, hope you enjoyed this chapter, I know there isn't much action but don't worry, I will be keeping the introductions of the future events shorter than this one. I have the GMG planned out, but if you want me to add any specific things then don't be shy to give me a review and I will see if I can implement it somehow. For the battles after the events I tried to include at least one interesting one each day but some days will have more interesting fights compared to others so that I will be able to work with the overall scores more easily. I will have some changes in some of the events like Chariot because that one was quite boring in terms of the competition and was used more to have Natsu give his speech in the Anime. Let me know what you think of the teams that I have participating in. You are free to take a guess at what matchups will appear in the games, but I won't spill much haha. Anyway, please leave a review and I will see you all next time.