A/N: Episode 191.

Enjoy!

CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR: STING VERSUS ROGUE

Sting turned to face the group. "Luke, get everyone outta here!" He ordered.

"But..." Lucas began to protest, looking down at his future self.

"Sting-san knows Rogue better than anyone. Let's leave this to him!" Fera told him.

"Lucy is the one being targeted, we gotta get away from him!" Happy added.

"R-Right!"

"You're not getting away!" Future Rogue exclaimed.

With his fist covered in holy light, Sting slammed Future Rogue onto the ground.

"Sting!"

Sting sent another punch at Future Rogue, causing him to skid back.

Lucas looked back at Sting in worry. "Be safe, Sting..." He thinks to himself.

"Who knew you of all people would stand in my way." Future Rogue mumbled, getting covered in shadows before disappearing and climbing on the walls.

"Is this how you've always been?" Sting questioned.

"Time changes a person." Future Rogue replied as he reappeared and sent shadows towards Sting, who crossed his arms and placed his head down. The shadows soon dispersed.

"You stole somethin' dear to me right before my eyes. I got no faith in the way you do things. I'll protect the future with the way we do things!" Sting claimed, having an angered look in his eyes.

"Yukino!" Mira shouted out.

"Yukino!" Drake called out as well.

"Where are you?! Yukino!" Mira yelled.

"Mirajane-sama... Drake-sama..."

The two spotted Yukino sitting down with her arms crossed over her chest. Mira and Drake walked towards her. "What are you doing here?" Mira asked.

"I'm sorry. I..." Yukino started to say.

Mira held out her hand towards her. "Come on. Let's go."

"I can't." Yukino informed, getting Mira's attention and confusing Drake. "If you're with me, you'll be stuck with misfortune. It's always been that way with me. Bad things always happen to the people around me."

"None of the people around me blame anyone else when bad things happen to them." Mira claimed.

"But..." Yukino teared up.

"It's okay."

Yukino opened her eyes to see that Mira was hugging her. "Everyone's life has meaning. Your life has meaning." Mira said as Drake just smiled at the sight of the two women hugging.

"Yeah. I can see why Shiro has a crush on her." Drake thought.

"To prepare for the dragons' attack, I shall enter the Eclipse Cannon firing sequence." Hisui raised her hand in the air. "Unlock!"

"The portal will open at last..." Darton noted as the portal slowly began to unlock.

"I'll bear witness to the will of the princess to the very end." Arcadios told himself.

Hisui turned back around. "Is there news of the dragons' advance?"

"There are no sightings from the western observation posts!"

"All is clear in the east as well!"

"What of the citizens' evacuation?" Hisui asked.

"The soldiers are guiding them in an orderly manner."

The portal continued to unlock. "I pray we're able to destroy all of them with one strike. It'll take a matter of years to replenish this much magic power." Hisui said.

Everyone peeked their heads out from behind a few bushes. "We've stumbled across something big." Carla commented.

"It looks like the portal is opening." Wendy added.

Happy looked around. "Huh? Loke isn't here." He realized.

"That's because magic doesn't work near the portal." Lily reminded.

"Neither is Natsu-san." Fera realized, noticing that the Fire Dragon Slayer was nowhere to be found.

"He said he had a bad feeling about Rogue and went back to help Sting." Lucas explained.

"When Rogue came from the future..." Lucy trailed off.

"Someone interfered with the opening of the portal. Because of that person, the portal wasn't opened. The Eclipse Cannon that was pointed at the 10,000 dragons couldn't fire. Someone led the world to destruction."

Lucy looked down as she recalled what Future Rogue had said.

"There's no need to hide." Arcadios spoke up, getting Hisui and Darton's attention. "Come out."

Happy jumped out from the bush. "We didn't do anything wrong!" He declared.

"If Arcadios is with the minister, then..." Carla started to say.

"Various circumstances have changed." Darton explained.

"Fairy Tail... God Pegasus..." Hisui muttered.

The group soon stood in front of Hisui, Arcadios, and Darton. "You have my deepest apologises. Owning to our current emergency situation, I'll give you a formal apology at a later date." Hisui said.

"She's the princess, Carla." Wendy spoke in awe.

"Yes."

Hisui turned to look at Lucas and Fera. "Also, congratulations on winning the Grand Magic Games, brother." She said.

"We won?!" Fera asked.

"Naturally. I knew those guys could do it." Lucas smirked. "But Nero's gonna have fun holding this above my head for a while."

"You're still our main strategist, Lucas. And still the best." Ace reassured.

The sound of the portal being unlocked got their attention. "Why are you opening the portal? The dragons aren't here yet!" Lucy said.

"They know about the dragons..." Hisui mumbled.

"Yes. They're aware of the situation." Arcadios told her, looking at Lucas. "Come to think of it, where's the you that came from the future?"

Lucas, Lucy, Wendy, and Fera all glanced down. "He was murdered." Lily revealed, opening his eyes. "By another man who came from the future."

"That man said something. He said the Eclipse Cannon didn't fire because I interfered with the portal opening." Lucy informed.

"That's why he tried to kill you?" Arcadios questioned.

"Are you going to interfere with the opening of the portal?" Hisui asked.

"Of course I'm not!" Lucy replied, shaking her head. "I'm just wondering why you're opening the portal when the dragons aren't here."

"That's simple. It takes time before it can fire. We wouldn't have time if we waited for the dragons to appear." Hisui stated.

"Will that really be able to defeat the dragons? All of them?" Lucas questioned.

"I can't say that with any certainty, but I'm sure his Majesty is also taking measures to prepare for a worse-case scenario." Hisui answered.

This is the city of Crocus. At its center is the Li In Crystal.

All of the guilds were gathered in front of an elderly man surrounded by guards.

And this man is the king of Fiore, Toma E. Fiore.

"And so, I'm terribly sorry we don't have time to bask in the afterglow of the Grand Magic Games, but I just heard that this country is facing a critical moment."

"10,000 dragons?!" Makarov exclaimed.

"Even though we were no match for just one of them, Acnologia..." Cana claimed.

"And even if that was a special case..."

"...10,000 of them..."

"Right now, a large-scale strategy is underway at the palace. The Eclipse Project." Toma continued.

"Eclipse?!" Lisanna quoted.

"The objective of this strategy is to eradicate all 10,000 dragons."

"Eradicate? Can you really do that?" Cana asked.

"I couldn't really say... As the enemy is a swarm, I'm sure several of them, maybe even several hundred of them, will survive." Toma replied.

"Yes, that's more realistic." Makarov commented.

"Wizard guilds, I must request that you please lend us your aid. I would like you to use your power to slay the dragons that survive." Toma said. "That is all. Please save this country!"

It went silent for a moment before everyone cheered.

"Naturally!"

"Leave it to us!"

"Yeah!"

"We won't let any monsters do us in!" Lyon claimed.

"Right!"

"This country, which goes hand in hand with magic..." Nero started to say.

"...is our country!" Atlas finished.

Toma began shedding tears. "Our comrades and a few members of Fairy Tail have been captured by the royal armed forces." Shiro spoke to a nearby guard.

"They're safe. We just got a report that they joined up with the princess."

"All right! I'll go on a rampage one more time!" Gajeel claimed.

"Where is our lady?" Rufus asked.

"I dunno." Orga replied.

"All of the guilds' wills are one."

"What a lovely parfum."

"Dragons versus Pegasus, huh? It'd be perfect for a painting." Eve said.

"Let's do our best." Hibiki stated.

"Crap. Guess we have to." Ren said.

"Kagura-chan, you need to rest!" Millianna told her.

"No. Everyone must fight." Kagura informed.

"Wild Four!"

"We're the Sexy Four." Arana claimed.

"Fighting alongside you brings back memories." Lyon told Gray.

"Don't hold me back." Gray said.

"A battle, eh?" Jura said.

"I'll spin, too! Violently!" Obaba claimed as she spun around.

"Thank you... Thank you..." Toma thanked them all.

"King..." Erza trailed off.

"Thank you... Thank you... kabo..."

His last line leaves everyone stunned. "'Kabo'?" Erza quoted.

"The parfum of that last bit..." Ichiya trailed off.

Toma looks around at everyone's stunned faces. Toma cleared his throat.

"Everyone, I'm counting on you!" Toma said, making everyone cheer.

Lahar and Doranbolt were standing on a balcony, watching the guilds get together.

"This is unbelievable." Lahar commented.

"All of the wizards coming together..." Doranbolt said.

"Eclipse? Its very existence violates 30 laws. I think we'd better contact Council headquarters about this." Lahar claimed.

"Lahar and Doranbolt..."

The two men turned around to see Jellal standing behind them.

"Jellal!"

"What are you doing here?"

"I have a favor to ask." Jellal replied.

Sting charged forward as Future Rogue did the same thing, their magic colliding with one another as both of them flew back. Future Rogue disappeared into the shadows once more before striking Sting and causing him to skid back and drop to the ground.

"Did you really come to save the future?" Sting asked, a dark shadow casted over his eyes before he glanced at Future Rogue. "'Cause you sure as hell smell evil!"

Future Rogue only grinned in response.

The Eclipse Portal soon opened slowly as fog showed up. "The portal... is opening!" Lucy claimed.

A bell rang throughout Crocus, signaling that it was midnight as the date changed to July 7th.

"July 7th..." Gajeel muttered.

"That's the day the dragons disappeared, right?" Levy questioned.

"Are the dragons gonna appear on this day?" Gajeel asked himself.

"Fairy Tail will defend this central plaza!" Makarov informed.

"What about the guys from the other guilds?" Warren asked.

"They're all standing by throughout the city." Max informed.

Cana was carrying a barrel. "Erza, with those injuries, you need to sit this one out."

"This is nothing." Erza reassured.

"I can more or less move again thanks to Lyon, this healing girl, and the royal healer." Gray said.

"Although if Wendy were here too, we'd be healed a little more." Juvia stated.

"At any rate, that's a creepy moon." Freed commented, looking at the now full blood red moon.

"Eclipse... a lunar eclipse..." Laxus muttered.

The Eclipse Portal continued to open.

In the palace halls, the ceiling began to shake. "What's that sound?" Sting questioned.

"The sound of Eclipse opening." Future Rogue charged forward. "I'm surprised it opened with Lucy surviving!"

Sting easily blocked his attack from hitting him. "But I'm sure she'll interfere!" Future Rogue claimed as Sting leaped back. "The portal is destined to close!"

Future Rogue fired shadow spheres at Sting. "Listen, I don't know Lucy-san that well, but within the time frame I've been around her, she doesn't seem that type of person to destroy everyone's future." Sting stated.

"Move!" Future Rogue ordered, blasting Sting with shadows once more. "I'm off to kill Lucy!"

Sting flew up into the air. "Like hell you will!" He shouted, striking Future Rogue with another blast of holy light that lit up the hallway.

"I see. So this is the power Minerva wanted you to unleash seven years ago." Future Rogue said.

Future Rogue's eye soon flashed white as he got covered in holy light along with black shadows. "White Shadow Dragon Mode!"

Sting widened his eyes in shock before holy light struck his side. "These are the twin attributes of light and dark." Future Rogue claimed as Sting clenched his side in pain.

Future Rogue's hair was now spiked up. "White Shadow Dragon's Rough Silk!" He called out as streaks of shadows and holy light struck Sting.

Sting flew back and collapsed to the ground. "Impossible... How in the hell do you have my magic?" He questioned.

Future Rogue grinned. "It's the power I stole from your future self after killing you!" He revealed, shocking Sting. "That being said, it's a little while after this time period."

Sting gasped as he recalled what Future Lucas had said to him.

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry I couldn't save you. I wasn't... strong enough."

"Let me ask you this." Sting started to say. "When you killed me... Was Luke there?"

"Of course he was. Though, he couldn't do anything to stop me. After all, he sacrificed his Magic to save Atlas's life. He was powerless - quite literally." Future Rogue chuckled.

"Did you always think... people's lives were worthless?!" Sting asked.

"That's right. And you're going to die here, too. Shame Lucas isn't here to rush to your side." Future Rogue responded.

Sting struggled to stand up. He could feel his energy leaving his body and his vision getting blurry as Future Rogue was about to send another attack at him.

"White Shadow Dragon's..." Future Rogue began. "...Rough Silk..."

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

A blast of flames headed straight for Future Rogue, causing an explosion as Future Rogue disappears into the shadows. Sting soon collapsed on the ground as it was revealed Natsu had saved him, with Ultear and Meredy right behind him.

Meredy looked around frantically. "He escaped!"

Natsu rushed forward towards Sting. "Sting! Wake up! Sting!" He tried to shake Sting awake.

"Meredy, bring first-aid meds, quick!" Ultear instructed.

"Right!"

Meredy glanced over at a deceased Future Lucas with a saddened expression.

"Hey... What is this?!" Ultear suddenly exclaimed.

"Sting!" Natsu shouted.

Sting began sinking into some shadows. "This is bad! He's sinking into the shadows!" Ultear said as Sting sunk lower.

"Look! The portal for the hope of the human race is opening!"

"The portal of victory is opening!"

Everyone continued to stare at the portal as Happy's whiskers moved. "That's incredible magic power, you know? My whiskers are wiggling." He said.

"Certainly, with this, we may have a chance of exterminating the dragons." Carla stated.

"All this magic concentrated in one place..." Lily muttered.

"The future can be saved with this, right?" Wendy asked Lucy.

"Yeah." Lucy nodded.

The door continued to open as Wendy smiled. "And Lucas-san from the future can rest in peace." She said, tearing up a bit.

Lucy's eyes widened as she stepped towards the portal, confusing Wendy. "Lucy-san..." She called out.

"No... The portal mustn't be opened..." Lucy mumbled as a dark shadow casted over her eyes before she looked up.

"I need to close the portal now!"

Lucy's statement shocked everyone that had heard her.

A/N: In case you didn't know, Lucas released Third Origin - which you already know the user loses the ability to use Magic. As for what Future Rogue was referencing to... Well, you'll have to find out. I didn't want to give too much away.

Thanks for reading!

~ Kaleb.