Date: XX/XX/0784

Time Left: Approximately Seven Years Before Disaster

Location: Oshibana Station

Kageyama watched on as the Fairy Tail mages bickered with one another about the Wind Wall that Erigor had erected outside the station, with an unamused look. He had just woken up from getting his ass handed to him by the ice mage and before he had any time to gather his bearings, they were already jumping down his throat trying to get him to dispel the barrier outside…yeah, no chance that's happening, "Look…" He grabbed their attention, good, "…even if I wanted to, and trust me, I don't. But even if I wanted to help, I can't. I spent all my magic fighting that damned Dragon Slayer and the gigolo you call an ice mage."

"Hey! I'm not a gigolo you fuck!" Gray yelled out, though the only thing stopping him from taking off his boxers was a very irritated Lucy who was in no mood to see any of that right now.

Kageyama rolled his eyes, "Besides, Wind Wall is one of Erigor's strongest spells. It'll be at least a few hours before I build up enough magic to be able to break something like that."

Erza wasn't having it, she ripped Kageyama to his feet before giving him a hearty shake, "We don't have a few hours! Our friend is out there right now, no doubt trying to fight your guilds Ace! If you don't dispel that barrier, I'm going to make sure you regret it!"

Kageyama just laughed at the threat, "It's no use! As soon as Erigor is done with your little friend, all the guild masters are done for! Then, when all the major light guilds are left destitute without their leaders, the Magic Counsel will have to employ dark guilds again! Eisenwald will regain its lost glory! Eisenwald will rise again! Eisenwald-!"

Kageyama stopped his speech, his wide smile slowly twisting into a silent scream as a mind splitting pain exploded from his back, "Sorry Kageyama…" That voice, the dark mage recognised that voice, Karacka, "Can't let anyone leave until Erigor's finished…"

The Fairy Tail mages faces contorted in shock, the sight of a guild member stabbing another member unfeasible in their minds, "You…" Erza's voice grew very dark, sending a chill down Karacka's back as he sunk back into the wall in a vain attempt to avoid the armored woman's wrath, "You'd hurt your own friend!? Your own family!? How dare you!" Erza didn't even Requip into a different armor as she slammed her entire body into the wall, completely shattering it and brutalizing Karacka in the process, "He trusted you! He would've given the world to you! And you betrayed that trust!" A sliver of a memory from that damned tower entered her mind.

"Erza!" Gray's shout knocked his fellow mage out of her headspace, his hand gently placed on her pauldron in a comforting manner, "You're good, you got him."

Erza looked down to find her left hand gripping the shirt of the not beaten and bloodied form of the mage, before unceremoniously dropping him, "What now? Without the shadow mage, there's no way we can stop Erigor…"

Lucy stopped her process of bandaging the heavily wounded Kageyama for a second, before wrapping more gauze in thought, "It's times like these I wish I had a spirit summon that could fix all our issues-!" Suddenly, Lucy's eyes widened in realization, before scrambling through her keys. There. Lucy's face lightened up as she held the newest key to her collection, Virgo. The other two mages looked confused at Lucy's sudden mood change, but little did they know that Lucy had just given them a way out of here, "Open, Gate of The Maiden: Virgo!"

"Storm Bringer!"

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

Both spells exploded against one another as the two mages continued their assault on one another. Erigor played it safe and kept his distance from the fire mage by flying away whenever he got close and sending his sharpened blades of wind whenever he formed an opening, much to the annoyance of Natsu. How long had they been fighting? A few minutes? Erigor wasn't exactly keeping track of time, but he knew that if they prolonged this battle, that his Wind Wall would wear off and then he would have four powerful mages to deal with. Erigor dodged a fireball that Natsu threw with a grimace on his face. That wasn't even mentioning the amount of magic he spent making the barrier…safe to say he didn't want to pad this out longer than he had too.

"Storm Shred!" Erigor flung a volley of wind blades at Natsu, nicking him slightly, but otherwise doing nothing as the Dragon Slayer expertly maneuvered himself around the spell. Erigor gritted his teeth at the action, "Stop moving and accept your death like a man! Storm Bringer!"

Natsu grunted as a swirling cyclone of sharpened air struck his side, slashing the skin and muscle underneath, causing a large cut to form, "Dammit…Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!" Natsu swung his flaming whips to give him some distance, and hopefully some time to breathe. He let out a slow breath, not letting his gaze leave his opponent. This was a tougher fight than he thought it would be. Erigor wasn't the Ace of Eisenwald for no reason, the man obviously knew his way around a fight. Natsu dodged another wind attack with a flip. It also didn't help that the narrow bridge they were on gave the Shinigami an obvious advantage over the grounded mage, "Fire Dragon's Roar!"

Erigor laughed at the powerful torrent of flames that barrelled towards him, "Storm Wall!" A miniature version of the Wind Wall spell formed around the mage, protecting him fully from Natsu's spell.

"Fuck!" Natsu's frustration was very apparent. It also didn't help that the stress from the fighting was causing his slight headache to grow into a full blown migraine. It was annoying, especially when he felt his blood thumping in his ears in a rhythmic pattern, making his headache that much more apparent.

Just behind the Dragon Slayer, Happy had finally roused from his quick nap, just fast enough to see Natsu slowly get his ass kicked by the wind mage, "Ugh, Natsu? Natsu!" Happy tried to summon his wings to help his friend fight, but realized with a sour look that he still needed time to recover his magic before doing anything like that.

Erigor noticed the little cat awake with an amused glance. Knowing goody two shoes light mages, the Salamander would be more than willing to block an attack if it meant protecting his friend, "Oh! Looks like we have ourselves a spectator!" Before putting his pointer and index fingers on both hands into an 'x' in front of him, a large vortex of air swirling around him as he prepared one of his most powerful spells, "Too bad he won't be around to see you die! Emera Baram!"

Natsu's eyes widened in concern as he sensed a metric fuck ton of magic get pulled into the spell, and that it was aimed right at Happy, "Like hell you are!" Before jumping in front of his pal with his arms raised to shield them both.

Happy gasped in horror at what his friend was doing, "Natsu wait! That's Emera Baram, one of the most powerful spells a wind mage can learn! Taking the brunt of it head on is suicide!"

Though Natsu could barely hear his little buddy cry out in worry. The wind deafening the surrounding noise around him, as well as his thumping blood on his eardrums making it impossible for him to focus. Natsu steeled himself as the air coalesced into a small sphere in front of Erigor, before it fired out as a massive beam straight towards Natsu and Happy. Natsu gritted his teeth in resolve…just before his left eye twitched, "No…not now…" Then the attack hit.

After the spell dissipated, only the destroyed bridge remained. The entire top half of the bridge was annihilated from the blast, leaving only splinters behind. For a second, Erigor thought that he might have overdone it with how much magic he pooled into the attack, after all he did feel slightly light-headed after casting it. Erigor gave a stretch of his muscles before resting his scythe on his shoulders. Well, either way he had done what he had to, he had killed the Salamander and his pet cat.

"Not…over…"

Erigor's eyes widened in surprise, because, as the dust cleared, he could make out the kneeling form of Natsu Dragneel. Sure his vest had been vaporized by the attack, and sure his body was marred with dozens of cuts, but he was still alive.

Happy looked completely unharmed, but his face was still contorted in worry for the state his friend was in, "Natsu…"

Though Natsu simply slammed his fist into the wood below as a response, splintering it even further, "Not…over…yet…"

Erigor snickered at his foe's words, "By the looks of it, I'd say it is over, Dragneel." Erigor practically skipped towards Natsu's downed form with a smile plastered on his face, "Don't worry though…" He raised his scythe in order to decapitate the mage, "…I'll mail your head to your next of kin!" Erigor swung his scythe down! Only for its blade to be caught in between Natsu's fingers. A look of confusion passed the wind mages features, "Huh?"

Before he could react, a flaming fist sucker punched Erigor in the stomach, instantly knocking the air out of his lungs, as well as dropping his iconic scythe into a now grinning Natsu's hands, "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" Erigor was flung back from the force of the punch, the flames scorching his midsection and completely ruining the intricate tattoos on his torso. The dark mage wasn't given any time to rest though, as Natsu blasted forward with a now flaming scythe in hand and a wild look in his eyes. Then he struck. Pain exploded in Erigor's body as a deep gash ripped open from his shoulder to his thigh. He barely had time to fly himself away from the crazed Dragon Slayer before Natsu could slash him again.

Erigor flew himself high up into the air with labored breaths as blood seeped from his new wounds. For the majority of this fight, he'd been able to outmaneuver, outsmart, and outplay the Dragon Slayer. Then just like that! He was now on the verge of defeat, "I can't afford another hit. Looks like if I'm gonna win this, I'm gonna have to play a little more defensively. Storm Mail!"

Using the little magic he had left in his core, Erigor twisted the air around him and formed a thin suit of armor made of pure wind. He almost felt sorry for the fire mage, not only did Storm Mail give him a huge boost in defense, but it also increased his destructive power with no extra cost of magic. Well…he would have felt bad for Natsu, if the fire mage wasn't panting like a rabid dog below him.

Natsu gripped the scythe in his hands so tightly, it started to crack from the pressure. The weapon's metal blade began to melt from the intense heat of his flames, turning into slag slowly but surely. The wooden handle wasn't fairing much better, having crumbled to ash shortly after.

Natsu's left eye twitched much more frantically than before, the image of that hellscape flickering in and out of Natsu's vision. For a second, Natsu thought that his eye was going to roll back into his head again, but he made sure to stop that from happening by taking deliberate breaths, attempting to lower his heart rate at least somewhat. For how destructive the Emera Baram spell was, it had only broken through his skin at the worst spots. The spell hit like a freight train, but Dragon Slayer's like himself are made of tougher stuff! Still…it was taking everything he had just to stay awake at this point, what with trying to stave off the vision of the hellscape as well, "Fuck it. Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!"

Erigor swiped his hand and watched as he cut through the exploding fireball sent at him with sharpened wind. A smirk appeared underneath his newly made armor, "It doesn't matter what you throw at me now Dragneel! With this armor, I'm a fire mage's worst enemy!"

Happy struggled to his feet as Erigor and Natsu continued to throw blows against each other. The Shinigami was right, Wind Magic was just a bad matchup against Fire Magic, even Dragon Slayer Magic. Happy patted his paws on his forehead, there had to be something he could do to help him…wait. Happy knew Natsu well, the man practically raised him after all, so he knew exactly what buttons to push to get him the boost he needed to beat Erigor, "Hey Natsu!"

Natsu flipped away from another swipe of wind before skidding to a halt, "What is it, Happy!? Can't you see I'm a little busy at the moment!?"

Happy grew a coy look on his face, "I was just wondering when you'd finish with this guy. I mean seriously, a mage like this would've been no problem for Gray to take care of. I guess he's just better than you when it comes to fighting…" Happy waited for Natsu to react with a sly smirk. Happy knew that if he commented on Gray, Natsu's rival, being stronger than he was, that Natsu would go to hell and back just to prove his superiority.

At least…that's how he thought Natsu would've reacted to having his pride challenged. Instead Natsu turned to his friend slowly, a face mixed with a look of betrayal, rage, and an indescribable emotion, "Happy…" He started, his voice unnervingly calm, "…why the fuck would you say that right now!?" Natsu clawed at his head as if trying to grab at something burrowing underneath his skull, "I'm trying! You can see that!? What, do you get some kind of sick pleasure in seeing me falter, over, and over, and over again!? Does that get you off you sick fuck!?"

Happy felt a shiver run up his spine, Natsu had never spoken like this to him before, ever, "H-hey Natsu…I was just joking. N-no need to get so angry…"

Though the Dragon Slayer didn't seem to listen, "If you're not gonna help me out, then shut the fuck up and let me handle this!" Natsu lost control of his racing heart, allowing it to beat faster and faster as he worked himself up, "I mean, fuck, Happy! If Gray can do any better, then why isn't he here fighting this bastard!?" Natsu's left eye started to flit around inside its socket, "No…no! He isn't better than me! No one is better than me! None of you fucks could ever hold a candle to my power!" Natsu's headache grew into a sharp piercing sensation into his brain, almost unbearably painful, "Once I'm done ripping this bastard's entrails out, I'm gonna burn you alive and feast on your corpse!" The hellscape started to fully form around Natsu in his mind, now only brief instances of reality breaking through instead of the other way around, "I am the end of all things! The only being willing in this god forsaken world to bring what needs to be brought!" A disturbed laugh burst from Natsu's mouth as an uncontrollable grin stretched up his face, an uncomfortable amount of saliva spilling from his lips, "The end of the world!"

Erigor felt a certain level of terror fill his heart as he listened to the Dragon Slayer's horrific monologue, though he didn't have time to just sit idle and listen to this fucking lunatic. He had guild masters to kill, "Enough! Storm Bringer!"

Natsu's wild hair shadowed his upper face, his wide grin seemingly, impossibly, growing wider, "You…" The beam of wind blades winded down on top of the mage, "You…will all burn!" For a split second, just a split second, Erigor saw Natsu's full face, and faltered. Both of his eyes had rolled back into his head, and weird black tendrils had started reaching from behind his eyelids onto the white orbs. His mouth twisted into a crazed smile far too big for his face, and it parted slightly to allow an unsettling chuckle to pass, "Ǐ̷̱̖̗̖̊̂͝n̶̡͍̤̗̍̂̎̑f̷̝̻̕̚ȩ̶̨́̿̅̊ͅr̶̫̝̼̒͌͘n̸̊̆̅͜a̴̛̞l̴̪̭̕̚ͅ ̸̨̮͛̀F̸̛͖̩̾̓͊ḷ̶̉â̵͖̎͝r̶͉̬͈̀ě̷ͅ!"

And just like that, it was over.

Erigor couldn't even scream as hundreds of miniature suns exploded around his form, none close enough to incinerate him right then and there, but they were just close enough to make sure he felt the full brunt of the explosions. It only took the first few to knock him out completely, the next hundred or so searing his body into an unrecognizable, burned pile of flesh. The Shinigami, Ace of the Eisenwald guild, was no more.

"Let it all…let it all…" Natsu's breathing was incredibly labored, his body not daring to move as the hellscape slowly flickered out of his mind. His heart slowed to a calm and steady rhythm as his headache returned to a dull thumping sensation as a result. Natsu gave a long breath out of his still smiling mouth, and slowly, his eyes rolled back into place, "Let it all…end…"

Then everything went black.

"Natsu…Natsu…Natsu!" Lucy tried shaking the Dragon Slayer awake, but to no avail, the mage was out like a light.

"What happened here?" Erza asked herself as she looked over to the destroyed bridge with a critical eye. She knew that Natsu and Erigor would've no doubt had a serious battle, but this level of destruction…it was even more than Natsu usually caused.

The bridge was a smoldering wreck of splinters barely held together by support beams, the rocks of the ravine looked as though they had melted from intense heat, at least, the ones that hadn't completely incinerated from what had to be superheated craters that dotted the landscape. Though none of the massive amounts of destruction compared to the 'feeling' in the air. It felt as if the very atmosphere was filled with a burning sensation, as if the very air was yearning to attack any and everything around it with unfiltered rage. The funniest thing about it though, was that there didn't appear to be any magic in the air like they would've expected, instead just left with that burning wind against their skin.

"Erigor…" Kageyama mumbled to himself, a disheartened look on his face as he looked down on what little remained of his guild's Ace, who was little more than melted meat and bones at this point. His body was almost completely wrapped in bandages to help keep his very injured body from collapsing. These Fairy Flies had decided to bring him along for some unfathomable reason, even though they said it was because they wanted to make sure he was 'okay' he could clearly see by what that Dragon Slayer did to his guild member that they didn't care a bit about his well being.

Natsu…" Suddenly, a meek and scared voice sounded out from behind a melted boulder, catching everyone's attention.

Gray peaked around the boulder to find that Happy was huddled against the rock with a haunting expression on his face, Natsu's signature scarf closely held to his chest in order to comfort himself. Gray sighed in relief to see the little cat alright, "Hey Happy, are you okay? Do you know what happened here?"

Happy flicked his wide eyes towards Gray without moving any other part of his body, "Natsu-Natsu got a-angry…"

A shiver went through Gray's whole body at the comment, "O-oh…"

"Natsu, wake up!" Lucy slapped the Dragon Slayer a little harder this time. Though it was still ineffective in actually rousing the mage.

"Princess, please allow me." A maid wearing shackles said before taking Natsu in her hands before slapping him once, the force of the slap leaving a bright red mark of her hand on his face.

"Yeow! What's the big idea!" Natsu immediately hopped to his feet, an angry look on his face, before his knees buckled from the injuries he had sustained from the fight.

"Natsu!" Lucy yelled, though the pink-haired maid was quick to catch the falling Dragon Slayer and softly laid him on her lap to comfort him.

Natsu groaned slightly from high levels of soreness that radiated throughout his entire form, "Ow, I didn't think that guy would be so tough. I beat his ass though!" Natsu laughed, before it turned into a slight cough, "Ugh, my head…what happened?"

Erza marched forward with a sour expression on her face, "That's what we wanted to ask you. Erigor…Erigor is dead, and by the looks of it, by your own hands."

Lucy looked shocked at the information, "What, but I thought Fairy Tail doesn't kill!"

Gray walked up to the group with a still stunned Happy in his arms and scoffed at the statement, "You actually believed that little marketing stunt? Grow up Lucy, in the real world mages like us have to face life or death situations on countless occasions, and while we don't relish in taking the life of another person…sometimes they don't give you any other option than to do just that."

"Still!" Erza cut in, "What events could have led you to doing something so drastic?"

Natsu rubbed his head as he tried to remember, "I…can't remember, it's all a blur. All I can recall is Happy saying that Popsicle Prancer over there would be able to beat him faster than I could-"

"Valid statement." Gray commented with a smirk.

Natsu grit his teeth at the comment, "Yeah…anyway, he said that, I got really angry, then…blank. I can't remember anything after that." Natsu turned towards Happy with a smile, "Hey bud, could you help me fill in the gaps?"

Happy didn't meet Natsu's gaze, his haunted expression only growing more intense as the attention was directed towards him, "Natsu got angry…then the world was on fire…"

A chill ran through the air at those words, nobody really knew how to respond to something like that. Though luckily, Virgo was more than capable of switching everyone's attention to something else, "Hmm, do you dye your hair? I don't usually see people with natural pink hair."

Natsu grew a tick mark in irritation, "It's not pink, it's salmon!" Before his angry face took on a more confused look, "Who are you anyway!? Some kind of sexy, crazy, super-powered maid or something!?"

"Crazy?" Virgo asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Sexy?" Erza inquired, a confused expression on her face from the out of character comment Natsu gave.

Lucy sighed before she explained who she was, "No Natsu, she's Virgo."

Natsu's confused look grew even more at that, "Who?"

"You know, from the Everlue mission we went on."

"Not really ringing a bell."

"The one with the book that we 'technically' didn't complete?"

"Lucy you've gotta be a little more specific, that narrows down the quests I've gone on to a minimal extent."

"The one with the ugly maids!? With the even uglier Everlue guy!?" Now Lucy was getting annoyed.

Though something clicked in Natsu's mind at the mention of ugly maids, "Ooooh! That mission! Man they were some really ugly maids…" Before his expression turned to shock as he looked up towards Virgo, "Hold on, you're Virgo!? What happened to your original look!?"

Virgo just stared at Natsu with blank eyes at the question, "I change my form to best suit my masters needs and desires. Princess has asked for me to take on a more petite form rather than my previous one."

Natsu crossed his arms and gave a pout, "Huh that's a shame, I kinda liked your gorilla-maid form, made you pretty imposing in a fight."

"As you wish." Virgo responded, before her body transformed in a puff of smoke to that of a giant hulking maid that had very odd proportions than her petite form.

Lucy, Gray, and Erza all jumped back in shock at the sudden and drastic transformation before Lucy yelled out a demand, "No no no, go back, go back! I still have nightmares of you trying to crush me under that form!"

"Understood, Princess." Her deep voice boomed before she reverted back to her smaller form.

"Shame, was really itching to rematch you in that form." Natsu clicked his tongue.

Erza felt a tick mark form on her head, "Natsu you can barely stand! Don't go picking fights when you know you can't fight back!"

Natsu yelped out in fear of the violent redhead, "Yes ma'am, sorry ma'am!"

Gray laughed at Natsu's reaction, just as a thought came to his mind, "Hey, whatever happened to Lullaby? Did it get burned up along with Erigor or something?"

Happy seemingly snapped out of his headspace at the mention of Lullaby, "Actually…" Before pulling out a wooden flute from his green bag, "…Erigor dropped it during the fight. I've been holding onto it until you guys came."

"I'll kill you all, you fucks!" Lullaby yelled out, "Just wait until I find a dipshit that's stupid enough to play me! Then you'll see!"

"Ugh, would you shut the fuck up you stupid piece of wood? You lost, it's over, give up." Natsu said in an exasperated tone, much to the confusion of everyone present.

Erza squinted her eyes at her comrade, "Natsu, who are you talking too?"

Natsu pointed towards the flute, "Lullaby, I told you he could talk. Though, the freaking thing doesn't say anything useful."

Lullaby yelled out angrier than before, "You idiot! I told you, only Etherious and powerful demons can hear me while in this form!" Suddenly his tone grew very calm as if just noticing something, "Wait, wait wait wait…what's all this Curse energy doing in the area? I don't think I've been played…have I? No that couldn't be, I haven't eaten any souls yet."

Natsu massaged his temples as Lullaby's grating voice scraped across his ears, "See? Nothing useful, just a bunch of bullhockey about 'curses' and 'souls' and whatever…"

The group leaned in to try and listen to what Natsu said Lullaby was saying, only to hear nothing from the wooden flute. Gray furrowed his brows at Natsu, "Has the fire in your stomach completely roasted that pea you call a brain? The flute's not saying anything."

Natsu hummed in thought at that, "Huh, well none of you are Dragon Slayers. I guess my superior hearing allows me to hear the piece of driftwood."

Lullaby grew a tick mark at the insult, "Driftwood!? I'm the ultimate instrument of mass murder! The Etherious of the Cursed Song! I am superior in every way to you lowly flesh bags, and I will be shown proper resp-!"

Suddenly, a shadow hand materialized out from above the Fairy Tail mages and swiped the flute straight from Happy's paws, "Shadow Pull!" Kageyama's voice rang out as the magic four-wheeler landed and sped off down the rails towards the Guild Master Meeting, "See you later Fairy Flies! Next you'll hear of me, I'll be back as a light mage along with the rest of Eisenwald!" Kageyama laughed as he left the group of mages in shock.

Erza shook her head out of its stunned state and pointed towards Gray, "Gray, make us a ride!"

Gray nodded his head before placing his hands into a stance, "Ice Make: Four-Wheeler!" And with a flash of cold air, an exact copy of the magic four-wheeler that Kageyama took appeared in front of them.

Erza strapped herself into the driver's seat as everyone else clambered inside, the only exception being Virgo who decided to return to the Spirit World in order to make room, "We need to stop him before he enacts his evil plan!" With that, the four-wheeler sped off down the rails, Natsu half puking his guts out as they did so.

"Those fucks…not allowing an old man to read his literature inside." Makarov grumbled to himself, carrying a magazine of the more…mature variety into the woods right beside the meeting hall for the guild masters, "Those assholes wouldn't know fine art even if it hit them in the face." Makarov let out a sigh before leaning his small form against one of the many trees. The actual meeting had gone fine, sharing food and drinks with some old friends, talking about the guilds they called their children, complaining about those assholes in the Magic Counsel, the usual. Makarov mumbled to himself as he flicked another page in his magazine, his cheeks growing red as he 'read' through the pages contents. It had started to get dark now, and the meeting would most likely end soon as well…just in time for him to get home and deal with his guild. Makarov was about to flip over to the next page before a slight rustling in the bushes caught his attention, causing the older man to quickly shove the magazine into his orange hoodie with an anxious look on his face. He swiftly adjusted his little jesters hat just as a man covered in bandages with a strange, pineapple-styled hairdo stumbled out of the shrubs. Makarov raised a suspicious eyebrow as it seemed the young man had yet to notice him yet, "How interesting…"

Kageyama gave out another tired breath as he tightly gripped the Lullaby flute in his hands. He made it. He didn't have enough magic to keep the four-wheeler going for more than a dozen miles or so. He had to walk the rest of the way in his injured state, but he made it!

Now all he had to do was get all the guild masters in one place, maybe by stumbling in asking for medical assistance? Then he could play a single note, and some of the most powerful mages in the world would be dead, just like that, "Just like that…" But first, he needed to get into the building-!

"Hello there!" Kageyama whipped around to find, a short man wearing a jester's hat. Wait, no, that was Makarov! The master of those Fairy Flies! He almost didn't see him there. Makarov gave a welcoming smile to the young man before speaking again, "What brings you to this corner of the town, and with such grievous wounds to boot?"

Kageyama gave a nervous smile in return, doing his best to come up with a cover story on the spot, "O-oh, me? I'm just a traveling musician, I wandered a little too far from town and was attacked by some Vulcans, yeah." Eh, the story wasn't very believable, but it was fine enough for an old fool like him.

"Hmmm…" Makarov hummed to himself and stroked his mustache in thought. Kageyama faltered slightly when he saw a dirty magazine poke out from inside the guild master's hoodie, "Alright, I totally believe you! But we really must get you to a doctor, those wounds are pretty severe."

Kageyama strained to keep a smile on his face, "Right, yes of course! Though, if you would indulge me for just a second. I would like to play you a song on my flute here."

Kageyama brought Lullaby up and prepped it to be played, though Makarov looked at the flute with a critical eye, "That's one wicked looking flute you've got there…"

Kageyama gave a strained laugh as he could barely keep up his friendly facade anymore, "I know, right!? But trust me, it may look like nothing more than a useless stick, but it makes the most beautiful music you've ever heard!"

Kageyama heard the rustling of leaves just behind the Fairy Tail master, his eyes widening in fear as he saw the four mages, as well as their pet cat, that had been his nightmare for the better half of the day. He saw them point and prepare to charge him, only for a flash of something in pink and with tiny wings on its back pull them back into the trees…okay.

"Well…" Kageyama brought his attention back to a very oblivious Makarov who tapped his foot in thought, "…if you make it quick, I'm sure we can spare a few moments to listen to your song, but afterwards it's straight to the hospital, got it?"

Kageyama gave a genuine, if slightly crazed, smile in response, "Yes, thank you! You won't regret this! I've been practicing a lot!"

In truth, the shadow mage had never played the flute before, not once. But it didn't matter, all he had to do was play a single note, one simple note and Eisenwald would be restored to its former glory. He and his guild, his friends, could finally be a light guild once again. All he had to do was play that stupid note! Kageyama raised the flute up to his lips, took a deep breath…another deep breath…yet another deep breath…

A desperate look appeared on the shadow mage's face, no matter how much he forced himself to blow onto the flute, he couldn't. It was as if an invisible force was keeping him from forming that single breath of air that would end the guild master's sorry life! Just blow into the flute! What was all this for, what did Erigor die for, if you can't even play a single stupid note!?

"You can't bring yourself to do it, can you?" Kageyama faltered, his attention being drawn to the now solemn Fairy Tail master in front of him, "Your guild, your friends, you…all you've ever wanted was to be seen, to be respected. After the Magic Counsel made your main source of income illegal, made your guild into a dark one based solely off the jobs you took…well I'm sure I would lash out in retaliation as well." Makarov gave a smile at Kageyama, the flute slowly moving away from the dark mages lips, "But don't think for even a second that by harming me or my friends, that the Magic Counsel will change their mind. Trust me when I say that they're way too proud and stubborn to do something like that." Makarov gave a short laugh before continuing, "I'm sure you've killed a lot of people in the past, I mean, that's part of the reason why you're doing this. But do you truly believe that by taking my life, by taking the lives of my friends, that you'll gain back everything you've lost? Because if the answer is anything other than yes, why don't you put down the flute, and follow me to the hospital instead? I'm sure we can patch you up, safe and sound."

Kageyama listened in awe at the words Makarov spoke, his timeless wisdom and his fatherly presence made him second guess everything about himself. A vestige of a memory of his guildmates appeared in his mind's eye, a time when they were happy, a time when they were a light guild…

Kageyama felt his knees grow weak before he fell to the ground kneeling, "Alright…I surrender…" The Lullaby flute slowly rolled from his grasp.

Cheers instantly rang out, frightening Makarov as he was squeezed into a hug by four of his mages. The worst of which being Erza who practically flattened his tiny form against her armor, "Master, that was so beautiful!"

"I'll say!" Lucy added, with an equally large smile on her face, "Pure diplomacy at its finest! No violence needed!"

Everyone celebrated as the guild masters came out of hiding with happy faces as well. One particular balding man dressed in bright pink with a healthy dose of makeup couldn't help but clap at the speech, "I told you, didn't I? A guild should always learn and grow from the example their master sets." He then slid up next to Natsu and Gray with a hefty blush on his cheeks, "And maybe I can show you two a hefty example later on, hmm?"

The two young men immediately paled at the interaction before backing up away from the older man. Gray had a particular look of dread on his face as he spoke, "Sorry master Bob, but I'm afraid I'm just not into bald men in pink dresses!"

Natsu nodded his head fiercely in agreement, "Yep, yep, yep, only straight dudes here! If you wanna have any luck with younger gentlemen, I'd recommend you check local casinos! You're likely to find at least a few young men desperate enough for a quickie!"

An older man wearing a spiked dog collar and sunglasses laughed before placing his hands on the two mages shoulders, "Lighten up fella's, Bob's just messing with you."

Erza laughed along as the rest of the guild masters made their presences known, "It doesn't matter how much you tell them that master Goldmine. I don't think they'll ever recover from the Umami Incident." Goldmine laughed at that along with Makarov and Bob as Natsu and Gray shuddered as they were forced to remember the traumatic memory.

"Ugh! Do I have to do everything myself!?" Natsu immediately shot up in attention as the unmistakable voice of Lullaby spoke up from right besides Kageyama, thin wooden tendrils jutting out from its glowing purple eyes.

Natsu started moving towards the flute with a burst of speed, his toned body seemingly recovered from the more grievous injuries he had obtained, everyone seemingly unaware of what Lullaby was attempting to do, "No, wait! Pineapple guy, look out!"

Kageyama raised his sorrowful face in confusion for a split second, before it immediately contorted into pain as the wooden tendrils pierced his fingernails, "Holy-! Agh! Get this thing off of me! Get it off, get it off, get it off!"

Natsu ignited his fist in preparation for his spell as Kageyama's body quickly deflated and grew impossibly pale, as if Lullaby was sapping out his very soul, "Hold still! Fire Dragon's Iron-!"

But he was too late…

Kageyama's body exploded in bright purple light, thousands of wooden tendrils wrapping around his now skeletal form. An unseeable force pushed Natsu and the now very aware crowd back as the light hid a giant figure growing into a kaiju made entirely of wood. As the dust cleared, everyone gasped in awe and fear as the giant's form was finally revealed. It was huge, bigger than even some of the mountains in the distance, with a vaguely humanoid shape to its wicked branches.

Lullaby's three eyes filled with orbs of purple light, acting much like pupils for it to look through as its wooden horns twisted back and it's impressively wide mouth open to create an explosion of noise that caused all the forest life to wilt and turn gray from its exposure, "F̴͉̈́i̴͖̾ṉ̴͝ā̷̜l̵͇̓l̴̰̏y̶̽ͅ…̷͈͆Ḭ̶̈́ ̸͚̓g̵̙͌ü̵͔e̸͕͠s̶̥̎s̶̛̜ ̵̪͠t̸̠̀h̴̘͌a̷̳͛t̴͓̄ ̶̳̾g̷̜͆o̷̫͛ö̷͖́ḋ̴̝ ̸̞̅f̶͙̊ö̸͎r̶͖̿ ̸͈͌n̵͎̕o̷̳̕t̸̡́ḩ̵͛i̶̡͌n̴͕͘ǵ̷͜ ̸̢͊h̷̞̀ů̴͉m̷͓̌ǎ̵͕n̴̩̓ ̷̦̑w̷̟̔a̸̳͗s̶̻̆ ̶̗͊ǵ̴͍ȯ̶̦o̷͘͜d̵̯̕ ̴̤̒f̸̝̎ǒ̴ͅř̴̠ ̶͎̓s̴̲̈ŏ̷̪m̷͈̕e̴̤͆ẗ̸͓́h̴̨͝i̷̺͂n̶͍͐g̵͕̃ ̸̪̈a̷̝͋f̷͚̓t̶̰̔e̸̖͒r̸̪͠ ̶̦̀a̵̱̽l̷̹͘l̶̰̈́!̶̺̕"

Lucy as well as everyone in a ten mile radius slammed their hands over their ears as Lullaby's voice was finally heard by them all, "Agh! I can't even hear myself think! What is that thing!?"

Natsu seemed to be less affected by the voice, but still cleaned out his ear with a pinky as it scraped against his ear canal, "So, you've finally decided to show off your true form, huh!?"

Lullaby crouched down to look directly at the Natsu with a critical gaze, "Y̸̮̓o̵̺͝u̴̫͂!̷̲̾ ̵̙̓Ÿ̶̦́o̵̻͒u̷̩͋'̶̭̌v̶̘͑ė̴̩ ̶̲͐b̶̹̋ĕ̸̟e̸̲̒n̵̖̉ ̸̥̚a̶͉͌ ̷̤͂t̶̲̍h̶͎́o̸͕̽r̵͔̈́ṅ̸͍ ̵͖̚ḭ̷̈n̶̯͘ ̵̟̉m̴͔̈́y̵̲̓ ̶̱͆s̶͈̋i̶͍͒d̶̝͝e̴̱͛ ̶̱̀f̷̨̂o̸̪̍r̷͔̓ ̶͙̆t̸̥̎ȯ̵̡ö̶̥ ̸̹̓l̸̞͌ô̶̩n̴̉͜g̶̜̎!̸̠̈́ ̷̣̚P̵̱̎r̴̫̕e̷̮͂p̷̞̕ą̴̓r̶̰̊e̸͔̚ ̴̙͒y̷̖̓o̴̠̿ụ̷̂r̷̡̈s̸̟̕e̶̪̍l̴̬̈́f̴̬͠ ̸̯̋f̴̥͒o̸̭̍ṛ̵̌ ̷͔̍t̷̟̚h̴̦́e̴̮̋ ̷͖́p̶̻̀ŏ̶͍w̷̍͜è̸͜r̶̤̅ ̶̛͚o̷͔͌f̴͉̈ ̴̧̋ȧ̶̙n̷͂ͅ ̷̮̉Ĕ̸͉t̵̼̽h̴̪͘ë̶̖́r̵͓̕i̸̙͋o̵͍̾ü̷̢s̸͑ͅ!̵͉̏"

Erza unsheathed her sword and pointed it at the demon in front of them, "Foul beast! We won't allow you to harm anyone here! Natsu, Gray! Let's show this demon the might of Fairy Tail!" Erza's form glowed white for a split second before her armor was replaced with a winged suit of black metal.

Natsu ignited his fists aflame as Happy clung to his back with his white wings on full display, "You don't have to tell me twice! I've been meaning to turn this flute into ash since the very beginning!"

Gray's body swirled with frosty air as he planted his knuckles into his open palm in preparation to cast a spell, "Let's teach this wooden bastard why Fairy Tail's reputation is that of destructive hooligans!"

Lucy watched as Natsu and Erza blasted off the ground and soared in the air to cast their spells in awe.

"Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!"

"Moon Flash!"

As Gray formed mortars out of his magical ice that fired large icicles upon the demon from below, "Ice Make: Mortar Fire!"

Lullaby yelled out in pain as Erza slashed through its body, Natsu burned away his wood, and Gray blasted his form with icy projectiles, "F̷̫͗ị̵̒l̴̖͑t̵̞̀ḥ̶͗ý̷̪ ̸̧͠h̸̪̑u̴͈̐m̶̨̉ă̵͉n̶̯̄š̴̢!̸̪̽ ̴̺͐O̶̥̐n̸̜͝c̴̣̚ě̶̩ ̸̥͊I̴̠͒'̴̳́v̵̍ͅe̴̡̽ ̴̰̀f̸͇̓ë̶̙a̵̟̕s̸̢͂ţ̵͛ḛ̴͝d̴̟͝ ̶̢́ö̶̫ṋ̷̚ ̴̖͐ỷ̴̰o̵̭͊ű̷͚r̸͙̍ ̸͖̎s̶̤̀ó̷͚u̸̞͋ļ̴̐s̸̻̀!̴͔̾ ̴̟̽Ï̴͕'̶̞̔ṁ̷̳ ̶͕͌g̵̞̓o̴͓͋i̸̙̎ǹ̸̯g̴̡͂ ̶͓̀t̵̯̓o̸͕͒ ̶͙́r̷̘̋é̷̘t̸̻̋ù̷͚r̷̝̉n̸̢͐ ̸͍̄t̴̡̾ŏ̵͍ ̵̨̽Ẓ̶̐ȩ̸̉r̶̡͂ě̷̫f̵̺̑,̷̗̉ ̶̹̋á̴͜n̶̠̑d̷̞̍ ̸͈́t̵̢͝o̶̱̕g̵̝̀e̵̙̽t̸̠͌h̵̛̗ẹ̴̅r̴͇̀ ̴͑ͅw̴͙͝e̴̠͠ ̸̹̌w̴̢͒ǐ̷̳ḷ̷͂l̵̜͘-̴̩̀!̷̥̆ ̸͋͜Ŏ̶̠w̸͎̚!̴͔̄"

Lullaby's speech was cut short as Erza switched to her Heaven's Wheel Armor as well as her dozens of swords before sending them into the Demon's back, "Quit talking! I swear, you have the worst voice I've ever heard!"

"You can say that again!" Gray laughed as he summoned frozen lances and sent them flying at the demon, "Ice Make: Lance!"

Natsu flung another fireball at the beast just as Happy avoided a swipe from the monster, "You've hurt more than your fair share of people you demon! Time to face the music! Fire Dragon's Roar!"

Lucy watched as the mages took on the giant demon with relative ease! Then the sound of marching caught her ears, as Rune Knights by the hundreds charged towards the monster with magical weapons and spells, "Guys the Rune Knights are here, the cavalry has arrived!" Lullaby shot a ginormous laser of purple energy from his maw to try to catch Erza who had switched back into her speedy Black Wing Armor to avoid the attack. The laser cut through a mountain in the distance with ease…causing the Rune Knights to promptly turn around and run back the way they came. Lucy sweatdropped at the action before shouting, "Nevermind!" At her fellow mages.

Lullaby screamed to the heavens an unholy scream as he managed to trap Erza in his wooden claws, "E̷̗͆n̷̟̊o̵̭͝ủ̷̯g̶̭͂ḥ̷͛!̵̦̓" Before kicking up a dust cloud that blew Gray back. Lullaby focused his bright purple pupils on the flying Dragon Slayer in front of him, "Y̵̺͠o̴̘͊u̸̳̇!̶̮̓ ̶̤̉I̶̯͆ ̷̮͒f̴̺̐e̶̛̻l̷͉̒t̵̝̓ ̸͖́ş̷̈ȏ̷̗m̵̼͌è̷̤t̶͎̽h̷̝̾i̵̱͂n̶͎̆g̵͔͌ ̵̺͌b̴̘͠a̵̳̅c̶̫̎k̷̯̀ ̶͍͝o̵̮̊n̸̝͘ ̷̤͛t̷̬́h̸̲̎ẽ̸͓ ̵̪̍b̷̻̍r̶̥͘ì̸̠d̶̠́g̵̟͋é̴̗!̷̙͌ ̶͈̕Š̵̲ô̷͚m̴̹͝ḛ̷̽t̵̖̚h̷̡͊ḯ̴̦n̷̖̉g̶̳͗ ̵̲̽t̵͙̀h̴̦́a̵̧͋t̵̫̊ ̵̺̑Ĭ̸̮ ̶̙̓h̸̯̀ȁ̴͈v̵̦͛e̸͇͋n̴̗̔'̶͙̊ẗ̴̖́ ̸̙̎f̴̻͂e̴̩͘l̵̜͊t̵̰̚ ̸̲̈́f̶̗̆o̸̺͒ŗ̷̓ ̵̄ͅȧ̵̡ ̶̨̒v̶̥̅e̵͓͛r̴̙̂ÿ̶̺́ ̸̰̈́l̷̙̓o̸̭̓n̸̰͆g̸̦̏ ̷̤͝t̶̲̐i̵̱͊m̷̰̈́e̸̛̤!̵̬̿"

Natsu gave a cocky grin at the demon, "Uh, was it me being awesome!? Because if it wasn't, then you're sorely mistaken!"

Lullaby growled in annoyance, "Y̷̱͒o̴̜̍u̸̺͐ ̸̲̃l̸͓̍i̴̟̓ț̶͘ţ̶̊l̸̥̇e̷̥̅.̶̞́.̶̣̏.̵̻͐j̴̛̠u̵̢̅s̵̲͒ț̴̍ ̵̹̌l̵̝̔i̷̥̽s̸͙͒t̷̩̔e̶̬͂n̸̗͝!̸̖͒ ̵̨̓T̸̳͑h̶̼̔ō̷͍s̷̖̾ḛ̶̊ ̷̹̑f̷̬̂l̷̨͂a̸͊͜m̶̞̂e̵̩̿s̸͚̑,̶̻̿ ̸̨̒t̸̓͜h̵̰̋e̶̬̓ȳ̴̡ ̸͍̅ẁ̵̮e̶͖̍r̸͉͗e̵̻͐n̸̥͂'̴̪͛t̶̋͜ ̵̺̇ṃ̵͝à̷̘g̴̮̋i̶̼̽ċ̴͙a̶̞̓l̵͍͝!̸͇̈́ ̴̨͌I̷͔͘ ̷̼̈ḍ̷̕o̴̟͘n̶̤̆'̸̪͂t̵̫̀ ̸̻͠k̴͉̾n̵̤̿ō̶̢w̸̘̚ ̷̞̽ḫ̷̇o̷̳͝ŵ̵̭,̸̥̕ ̴̹̌b̵̂͜ũ̶͔t̴̙̎ ̵̖̆y̸͔̚õ̵̼ȕ̷͖ ̵̹̂m̶͇̐ų̵̉s̶̗̃ṱ̵̈́ ̸͈̈́b̵̞̆ē̴̻-̸̜̌!̵̱̽"̶̝̋ Lullaby wasn't able to finish as Erza exploded out of Lullaby's grasp with two large blades in her hands, causing the large monster to yell out in pain.

"Ice Make: Geyser!" Gray threw away his shirt before casting a giant tower of ice that tore through the Etherious' foot and made it fall over as a result.

Lullaby gave another guttural growl before standing up once more, "E̷̖͘n̸̝͐o̷̳͐ṵ̷̔g̵̲̋h̷̬̕!̶̛̳ ̶̟͝Ẏ̵̙ö̷̦́u̷̧͌ ̸͇́p̵͔̏ṳ̶̐ņ̶̅y̷̓͜ ̴̻́m̵̬͒ō̶̯r̷̰̂t̴̨͆ā̸̬ļ̵̆s̵̜͆ ̷̯̋h̵̩̋a̴̫̓v̵̯͝e̸̾ͅ ̸̲͊h̵͉͌ų̸͑m̸̋ͅi̸̠͑l̵̙̋i̸̛͓ă̷̧t̶̛̟e̴̘͒d̷̳̈́ ̷̑͜m̶̩̈e̶͚͒ ̷̗͠f̸̢͑ô̸̤r̷̙͂ ̷̪̌t̷͉̾h̶̼̚e̵͍̚ ̴͙͛l̶̪͒ą̶̏s̵͈̑t̸̰̋ ̵̮́ţ̶̔ì̸͎m̴̤̅e̵͔͋!̶̳̐ ̸̗̀P̸̞̽ṙ̶͉e̴͉͐p̸̜̾a̸̞̚r̷̨̛ě̸̹ ̶̬̂f̸̯͂ȯ̸̗r̷̪̅ ̶͇͝t̸͓͗ḩ̴̑e̴͍͌ ̴̩̏e̷̩̔n̷̙̄ḍ̸̾ ̷͎͝ò̵͕f̸̯̐ ̵͖́y̴̩̿o̸͉͝ȗ̴̗r̷͈͑ ̴̬̎p̸̤̏ȋ̶̥t̶͈͝i̴͕͋f̶̤̈́u̷̦̚l̸̩̕ ̸̥̕l̴͈̍i̷̮͌v̴̛͔e̴̪̊s̷̨͋!̵̖̕ ̶̖̄M̴̛̠ả̴ͅs̶̯͝s̵̢̔ ̶̩͝M̶̮̋ū̴̻r̵͍̚d̵̠͒ệ̷r̴̲̈́ ̵͙̀S̶̡͋o̷̅͜n̶̳̋g̶̢͝!̴̘̊" Lullaby took a deep breath of air, held a hand to his throat, and sang…

Though the only thing that came out was a small whimper of noise, clearly not the intended result if the demon's reaction was anything to go by. Makarov gave a laugh at the honestly pitiful display before he took the liberty in explaining what had happened, "I guess if you fill any musical instrument with more holes than it's supposed to have, that it'd sound like a dying dog more than anything else!"

Lullaby yelled out in pure anger as it began to thrash around without any rhyme or reason, "W̶͕̓ḧ̴̹́ô̸͇ ̷̥͑c̷͎͋a̷̜̕r̸̼͌e̴̜̊s̵̥͊!̷̪̿?̶̹͋ ̶̝͋Ẃ̶͇h̴̥̋ó̶̥ ̵̘̾c̵̲̉a̷̙̔r̶̞̅é̶̮s̷̩̊!̶̝͠?̵̟͠ ̶̡̂I̸̻̾'̷̝̔m̸̛͔ ̶̰̚s̶͙͒t̶͓̄ḭ̷̾l̴̮̕ḷ̴̂ ̶̹̌ä̴̺́ ̴͖͒D̷͓̊ę̴͛m̶̭͠ỏ̷̥ņ̴̍ ̵̇͜f̸͇͊ṛ̵͋o̶͇̿m̶̭̔ ̵̠͐t̶̿ͅh̵̠͘e̴̺̕ ̴̺̑B̵͖̊o̷̤̽o̵̧̿k̴̮̂s̷̢̓ ̴̰͠o̷̮̒f̸̰͋ ̶͉͝Z̷̩̒e̷͍̕r̶̞̐ḙ̸̎f̵͐ͅ!̴͎̂ ̴̢̈́I̵̛͍ ̶̛͙d̴̡̓o̵̧͊n̸̮̑'̶͙̃t̵͇͆ ̴͙̄n̶͙͌e̶͍̓e̴̲̋d̷̫̍ ̴̬͂m̶͙͊y̶̦͌ ̴̬̚c̷̞̒u̵̳͠r̷̳͂s̵̼̒e̷̓͜d̶͎̊ ̸̮̊s̶̟̓ŏ̶͔n̴̢͆g̵̛̥ ̵͉̈́ţ̴͠o̶̰̕ ̶̦̏k̵̲͗i̷̢̾l̷͔͆l̷͝ͅ ̶̥͝ț̸͋ḧ̶͇́e̸̼͝ ̵͓͒ḽ̶̈́ô̴̯ṭ̴̄ ̸̳͊o̵͜͝f̵̈́͜ ̸͎̃y̷̙͐o̴̢͝ű̴̡!̵̯̑ ̵͈̂I̷͝ͅ ̷̥͝c̴̤͂a̸̱͒ṋ̵̓ ̸̢̛d̷̫̀ȯ̶̩ ̶͈̄i̴͔͝ṫ̸͓ ̸̦̄j̷̻͐u̴̗̒ş̴̆t̵̛̥ ̴̜͐f̵̗͗i̵̢͋n̸̻̄e̴̦͠ ̷̮̂w̵̢̃i̷͚̾ẗ̴͔h̸̜̀ơ̶͔ư̸͔t̴̯̐ ̶͔̀ḭ̵́t̷͖͛!̶̘̐"

"Not gonna happen pal! Happy!" Natsu soared to the top of the demon with Happy taking the initiative to weave and dodge the monster's attacks. Natsu engulfed himself in powerful fire, making sure to leave Happy untouched by his flames, before shooting his open hands in front of him to activate his spell, "Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!"

Lullaby didn't have any time to react before his entire upper half was engulfed by a fireball ten times bigger than any of the previous ones. His giant body falling to the ground defeated as he slowly began to burn away from the flames. Though, after a large flash of purple light, the demon reverted back to its flute appearance. A notable crack appeared on the skull portion.

The three mages made their way back to the guild masters and Lucy with victorious grins on their faces. Erza in particular had a satisfied expression on her face, "Another victory for the beacon of light that is Fairy Tail!"

Goldmine hummed in amusement at the mages, "Looks like this new generation of mages is just as impressive as we were back in the day, right Bob?"

Bob gave a soft smile as memories of the past filled his mind, "No Goldmine, I'd say they're even more impressive." Bob made his way towards the mages with the same smile on his face, "You should all be proud of what you've accomplished today. It's not everyday that a group of mages can take on a Demon from the Books of Zeref and succeed. If Fairy Tail needs any help in the future…well we all owe you one."

Makarov replied with a soft smile of his own, "We're just glad we're able to help out where we can. Now, let's finish up our meeting before-"

That's when everyone noticed, that as Lullaby fell down in defeat not even a minute ago, that it had accidently destroyed the guild master's meeting hall. All of the guild masters turned to look at Fairy Tail…only for them to have raced off into the distance, trying and succeeding in avoiding the aftermath of their reckless actions.

Natsu laughed as carried Happy on his shoulder, and for a brief second, completely forgot about the dull headache he had, "Hey Erza!"

The Titania turned with a curious gaze, "Yes Natsu?"

Natsu slammed a thumb into his chest as a wild grin plastered itself on his face, "When we get back to the guild, let's have a fight! I've grown a lot since our last bout!"

Erza took a second to think about it, before a competitive smile crossed her face, "Sure Natsu, I look forward to seeing how much you've grown! But don't think that I'll take it easy on you for even a second!"

Natsu laughed at that, "Wouldn't dream of it!"

Suddenly Natsu was smacked in the face by a hearty fish from a frightened Happy, "Less talking, more running! The guild masters are starting to catch up!"

The Fairy Tail mages laughed onward into the night, all the way back to their guild.

Date: N/A

Time Left: N/A

Location: N/A

Seilah flipped the page of her book, making sure to read through it carefully, not wanting to miss any information that the old book could give her. Ever since Mard Geer had given the guild the incredible news of their masters imminent return, she had begun to read through her collection of old tomes once again to try and scrape any knowledge she could from the pages. Specifically knowledge on their master, E.N.D.

Seilah furrowed her delicate brows at the thought however. Information on the Demon King was sparse, incredibly sparse. Not to mention that any information they had was too vague to make out anything of significance. Hell, they didn't even know what E.N.D looked like.

Seilah flipped to the next page, a soft sigh escaping her lips. It had been…annoying to put it lightly. She had gone through all of the ancient tomes she had that even slightly mentioned the Etherious, but she still hadn't gathered anything she didn't already know. E.N.D was the first Etherious ever created, he was the most powerful being on the planet, even surpassing the Fire Dragon King Igneel in strength, he was a fire demon, he went on a rampage destroying every living thing he came across, and he was eventually sealed away by a powerful mage to stop his crusade of burning the world away.

Seilah gave another soft sigh as she flipped to yet another page, there had to be something more here, there had to be…

"How's it hanging Seilah!?" Seilah almost dropped her book as the amorphous form of Franmalth bounced his way into her library, his toothy grin stretching wide across his deep yellow features, "You wouldn't happen to know where your fuck buddy Kyoka is, would you!? I've got some pretty juicy info she's gonna wanna know!" Franmalth began stroking his chin as if in thought, "But…what would such information cost when I tell her? She's bound to get more than a little cranky…oh well!"

Seilah puffed out her cheeks at her guildmate's boisterous attitude, "Franmalth, what could be so important that you'd interrupt me while I'm in the middle of gathering information on our lord?"

Franmalth chuckled to himself before raising his hands to his sides, "Lullaby's been captured."

Seilah was silent for a second, "I thought Lullaby was still serving his sentence within that old tomb. How did he escape?"

Franmalth jiggled as bobbed back and forth impatiently, "Some human who was gifted in seal breaking broke the prison. Last I saw, he was in his concealed form and was being taken into the Magic Counsel's custody."

Seilah hummed at the information, "Interesting…can you retrieve him?"

Franmalth laughed at that, "Fat chance! Not even our mole on the Council has enough leverage to nab it! Especially after it was just taken in!"

Seilah closed her eyes and thought for a second, "I suppose…as long as he's not running around killing everything with that god awful voice of his, we should be fine. I'd just run it by Kyoka first just to be sure."

Franmalth saluted Seilah with way too much enthusiasm, "Roger that, Seilah!" The Etherious turned to leave but stopped just as he was closing the door, "By the way, what did Lullaby do that caused him to be locked away anyway's? It must have been something truly terrible if it cost him so much."

Seilah flipped to the next page of her book, not bothering to look Franmalth in the eye as she spoke, "He had tried to overthrow Tartaros during its earliest days, killing most of the Etherious in the process with his voice. Still, even though he can kill pretty much anyone with his song, he's not that impressive compared to the rest of the Etherious. It only took Mard Geer a split second to bring the traitor to his knees." Seilah slammed her book shut before telekinetically putting it back on the shelf, "Though we really must thank him, because if he hadn't killed most of the guild when he did, we would have never perfected our resurrection process."

Franmalth swished back and forth as he hummed in thought, "Must've been really early on if it happened before I joined the guild…do you think that Lullaby's Curse would be able to kill Mard Geer if he heard it?"

Seilah wondered to herself out loud, "Perhaps…though even a Curse as powerful as Lullaby's can be overcome by sheer force of will, and power. I'm certain that if Mard Geer or E.N.D heard that song nowadays, they wouldn't even flinch."

Franmalth chuckled at that, "True that! Mard Geer's a demon in a league of his own! And if the Underworld King is this much of a monster, I can only imagine what our true master is like…" With that, Franmalth slammed the door to the room shut behind him, no doubt heading to find Kyoka to give his report.

Seilah gave a bored sigh before pulling another tome from the shelf of the library and opening it up to the beginning. Lullaby wasn't worth the effort to retrieve, that traitor could rot in an empty box for the rest of his days for all she cared. After all…what kind of Etherious doesn't want to burn away the sin of this imperfect world, and replace it with a better, more beautiful one with the Demon King and their creator to guide them? Seilah's eyes grew steely at the thought. The answer? An Etherious that was an enemy of Tartaros, that's who.