Chapter 116
Purification
"Speech"
'Thoughts'
"Magic"
Flashback
Location / Date / Time Skip
"What are you trying to say, Erza?" Natsu repeated in confusion.
"I'm a spy, genius." Gray said back. "You really think I would join some creepy Zeref cult? It's time to get moving, Me and Erza can explain on the way." The group quickly stole some mounts and raced out of the forest.
"Several months ago, Jellal asked me to do a favor for his guild." Erza explained on the other line. "I was to investigate Avatar and discover their connection to Zeref. The trail grew cold, but then I bumped into Gray. It ended up being a lucky break."
"After Tartaros, this weird pattern broke out all over me." Gray added. "So I went Porlyusica's to get some help. As you can see, I can make disappear and reappear now."
"After we discussed our current situations, it was obvious we need to come up with a plan to work together." Erza explained. "It was a good thing Gray is still looking for that book to honor his father."
"And what was the reason you couldn't just tell this to Juvia?" Laki asked, making Gray grow quite.
"I asked him to." Erza declared. "It was always going to be better to have less people know about it. And knowing her, she could have gotten herself into trouble. I didn't want to drag this mission out for so long. It was just supposed to be scouting, but we learned of their purification plan. Avatar is planning to wipe out an entire town to lure Zeref here. They actually believe mass death like that will attract their 'dark lord'."
"We gotta stop that from happening!" Lucy shouted.
"Why didn't you just wipe them out from the start?" Natsu asked the ice mage. "Something like that would be easy for the two of you."
"You'd think, but you'd be wrong." Gray confessed. "This single building isn't enough to crush a town that big. I only infiltrated a single portion of it. I never even saw the main branch location, let alone another branch."
"And if we make any careless moved, we could lose the chance to stop the whole ritual." Erza added. "The only to stop them was to wait for today."
"For the day when the branches get together. And destroy them all at once." Gray declared. "Sorry about everything back there, guys. I had to fit in."
"That makes things a whole lot easier." Natsu said with a chuckle. "Let's go wreck that ritual! I'm all fired up now!"
Malba Town
All of Avatar stood on a cliff before they suddenly charged the town, murderous intent for all of them. The leaders watched as suddenly their army was launched into the air. "You ain't getting past us! Step up and I'll roast you." Natsu declared as his group blasted the attackers back.
An explosion of fire and ice knocked the army back as Lucy summoned Taurus. Laki unleashed a swarm of spiked logs at the mob as the leaders growled in frustration. "What are you doing!? Get rid of them!" Jerome shouted.
"Lord Jerome! We're under attack from behind as well!" A hooded member declared. "And it's blowing holes in our ranks!"
"Impossible! The council forces couldn't be already here!" The blonde asked.
"N-n-no." The member mumbled in fear as another group was launched into the air. "It's just one person."
"It's been a while since we had a party like this." Natsu chuckled, igniting his hand.
"We're gonna have some fun." Gray added, a cool mist leaving his hands. The mob charged the two before the two elements crashed into each other, the explosion of elements blasting the army back.
"Let's show them we can keep up." Lucy declared, swinging her whip. Taurus swing his axe as Laki swung her Grain Blade and whip, knocking back anyone who tried to get close. One member jumped up from behind only for Gray to freeze them solid.
Gray snapped his fingers and a pillar of ice shot up, knocking a large amount of cult members into the air. Natsu jumped off the ice and slammed his fist down, crashing into the ground and a pillar of fire blasted the army back. He turned back to the swarm and unleashed a flaming roar, launching even more back.
"What… are they?" Mary asked in horror. "They're like animals! Beasts!"
"You can work on your vocabulary later." Briar snapped back. "Right now, we need to purify them ourselves."
"Allow me to handle the enemy in the rear." Jerome spoke up. "The traitor and his friends are yours."
"That sounds like a perfect plan." Briar declared as she and others walked forward. "It's time we show these sewer rats the true horror of dark magic."
"This lone fighter is fearsome, a worthy opponent." Jerome declared, drawing his black sword. "However, this dark sword was forged in forbidden magic. And with this blade, I shall end them."
Erza swung her sword from horseback, knocking out anyone who was stupid enough to get in the way. "Counter her with magic!"
Blasts of magic shot at the redhead, only for Erza to jump off her horse and transformed her armor into an elegant dress, swords hovering around her. "Dance, my swords!" She swung her arm and the wings of blades slashed at the army. A final slash knocked the swarm back as the swords returned to her back. "Do you yield?"
"She's a monster." The cult mumbled.
Erza turned to the side and blocked a black blade, forcing her back. "Beautiful and deadly." Jerome declared. Erza watched as her a black mass covered her sword before it completely shattered, pushing her back even more. "My dark swords energy corrodes anything it touches, be it steel or flesh."
"You must be very proud." Erza declared, holding a single blade. Jerome suddenly screamed in pain and fell over, hos clothing torn by slashed. "But my sword cuts without you feeling it."
The cult members stared in shock as the woman returned to their normal outfits. "Summon all your courage." She warned them.
Gray froze another swarm of cult members as he turned to the sound if footsteps. "Briar!"
"GRAY!" The dark skinned woman shouted in anger. "How dare you betray us, lie to us!" She got close enough and started swinging her fists. "Were all those times you spent with us a lie!?"
"Of course they were, you idiot!" Gray snapped back, dodging every fist. "You really think I'd be all chummy with a bunch of murderers like you!?"
"And that talk about the Book of E.N.D… was that all lies too!?" She growled in anger.
"No, that was true." He declared, rolling to the side of another blow. "But it won't be anything like what you're doing. How could I ever face my father if I did." He launched a wave of spiked ice at her, only for the girl to suddenly split apart into four copies. "So you're finally using your Clone Magic…"
"I'll kill you!" One clone shouted as it charged him. A torrent of water suddenly crashed into her, making Gray turn to see an angry Juvia glaring at Briar.
"Why are you here?" Gray asked, freezing the other three.
"I had this bad feeling you'd be in trouble, so I came here as fast as I could." She declared, hugging his arm.
"How did you get here?" He asked, pushing her away.
"Wendy's sense of smell is really good." She chuckled to Gray, a guilty look on his face
"I'm sorry." He said. "I'll explain everything later, but for now…" The two threw off their coats before their elements shot off their arms. "We gotta take them all down!"
Taurus, Lucy and Laki fell over gripping their stomachs in pain as Mary walked over to them. "Remember my Virus Magic? It's the kind that eats you from the inside out. You must be Gray's old friends from Fairy Tail, right? Wizards from the famous Fairy Tail, yet you're so weak. It's hilarious."
Surprisingly, Lucy suddenly stood up. "My stomach doesn't hurt anymore."
"Dispel and Enchant." Wendy declared from behind next to Carla. "Your power doesn't work with my Air Magic in effect."
"Laki, behind you!" Rose shouted from above.
Mary charged from behind as Laki turned, her fist glowing. "Wood Dragon Redwood Fist!" The magically powered fist hit square in Mary's gut, launching her back into the mob. "Thanks. So why are you three here?"
"Let's just say… hell hath no fury like a woman scorned." Rose nervously chuckled.
"Juvia's all better now?" Lucy asked. "Way to go, Wendy."
"Oh, it was nothing." The girl nervously chuckled.
"Can we please focus on the army coming at us?" Laki asked, a roar shooting out of her lips.
"Not a problem." Wendy suddenly started glowing as her hair changed color. She waved her arms and a giant tornado ripped through the ground troops.
On the top of the cliff, Arlok watched the battle unfold with a few followers. "Master Arlok… our forces at the back have been diminished. And we can't proceed any further from the front. These people are too strong for us. We're losing the battle."
"One of then's coming!" A member shouted as fire ripped through the ground. "I-impossible… We have two thousand people here…"
"It doesn't matter how many you've got. We're Fairy Tail wizards!" Natsu declared as ghe smoke cleared.
"…All that has happened up til now has been as I've predicted." The masked master declared. "And when Ikusatsungai shakes the earth, that is when the purification begins."
"So you're the master, huh?" Natsu asked as he walked over. "You should just give up. We're kicking your ass."
"Ah, the vigor of youth." Arlok chuckled. "How I envy you. Once, I was like you, but everyone grows old, entering a phase of their life filled with regret… and despair!" He fired a blast of magic from his staff but Natsu merely batted it away and charged, shocking the cult members. "Such skill is commendable." The masked master waved his staff around before a magic wall blocked the teen.
"The hell?" Bolts of magic shot out from behind the barrier, forcing him to dodge. "Of course your attacks go right through. That's cheating! Here goes nothing!" He rushed through the barrage and crashed into the wall, forcing himself through it before it shattered. Arlok summoned a line of walls, but Natsu crashed through them all, bursting in front of Arlok.
"Fire Dragon Iron Fist!" A single flaming haymaker knocked the masked man to the ground and blasted the entire cliff to pieces, sending the other cult members flying.
As the dust settled, Natsu stood over the beaten dark master as he started laughing. 'The hell's so funny?"
"You've already lost…" Arlok declared, his mask cracking to show his face, burnt by something in the past. "I burnt the flesh off own my face just for this day. It was worth every last second of pain!"
"What's with all the crazy talk?" Natsu asked, extremely confused.
"Now, hear my call! Oh mighty god of war, the time has come for you to seal your part of the deal! Grant me your powers now! Ikusarsunagi, I summon the!"
A giant storm cloud gathered over the battlefield as a massive pressure wave of magic startled everyone. "Is that storm?" Laki asked.
"It's like the very air itself has changed…" Wendy pointed out.
"It's Grandfather's spell…" Mary chuckled from the ground. "Now all of you will die!"
The storm clouds open up as a massive bestial foot fell to the ground. "Out of the way! That gigantic monster is gonna-" Gray shouted, only for the sole to crush every cult member under it.
"Stop it!" Natsu grabbed the old man and started shaking him. "You're gonna kill your members, too!"
"This is the purification ritual works!" Arlok chuckled, shocking the Dragon Slayer as a second foot landed. "The true sacrifices are the devoted followers of Avatar. The town's people were just a bonus! They have pledged their lives to Zeref, and now they give their very souls! With their deaths, our Dark Lord will appear and guide them into a new age!"
"You sick bastard!"
"The god of war will not stop until he stomps out every life that stays here!" Arlok laughed as a colossal, heavily muscular being with black, armor-like skin landed on the ground. The face resembles that of a lion's, jutting out of which his cheekbones were two horns , which in and of themselves are eclipsed by bone-like horns that encase the jawline, and travel up the side of the head. On the chin is a long, pointed tuft of facial hair that appears to be a goatee, and a wild mane of hair juts upwards, growing from the top of his down past his clavicle.
The Battle God looked down with pupil-less eyes and black sclera, and demonic, clawed hands. "It's one of the 18 war gods… how is that possible?" Erza said in shock as Mary nervously laughed.
"I can't believe it… treating your friends like this… I'll show you!" Natsu growled in anger.
The massive being lifted its sword, scaring everyone. "Everyone, MOVE!" Erza shouted before the war god slammed his blade down. The metal cracked the ground and split the earth open, killing any cult member under it. Laki blocked her eyes from the blast and looked at the sword, a spec moving up it.
"Someone's on the sword." Lucy declared, making the rest of the team smile.
Natsu roared as he ran up the blade before jumping onto the hand. "What is this foolishness?" Arlok asked, shaking on the ground. "What can a human do against a mighty god of war… Brothers, sisters… It is time we sacrifice ourselves for our Lord Zeref."
"ENOUGH OF THAT BULLCRAP!" Natsu shouted as he ran up the arm, dodging the other hand. "What do you think friends are for!?"
"You'll soon realize that your comrades mean nothing when faced with a higher purpose…" Arlok declared.
"You're wrong!" Natsu roared. "Your friends are the people who share the same purpose and move forward with you! Their purpose doesn't have to be the same as yours! They'll laugh with you, be by your side when you need them! You believe and trust in each other…"
"Dependance, that's all it is." Arlok snapped back.
"Call it what you want! That bond is all I need to keep me going!" Natsu shouted as he jumped onto the god's head. "So don't you dare make fun of our bond!" Igniting his fist, he slammed it down onto the forehead, making it buckle from the massive explosion. "And I'll do anything to protect those I hold dear. So I don't lose anyone anymore…"
A massive ball of crimson fire gathered over his fist, shocking the others. "I WILL BECOME STRONGER! Fire Dragon King Demolition Fist!" He slammed the fireball down with his fist, causing the war god to crumble to ash.
Am I the only who feels like Avatar was a massive let down after Tartaros? Seriously, we had a dark cult and they went out like a bitch. Especially the 'war god'. You should lose that title any time you get taken out by ONE! HIT! Even Zeus could take more of a hit than that.
I didn't want to just cut it off after dropping a god, so I put in the ending. See ya next time.
Beta read by General Feng Xiang
