The Rise of a Warrior: Fairy Tail

by The Legendary Dragon Reaper

Luke Drako, S-class wizard of the Fairy Tail guild, the true Lightning Dragon Slayer, student and son of the Lightning dragon Kaminari. This is his story. The story of a Dragon Slayer trying to find his place in the world, and make one hell of a strong team along the way. And with any luck, he just might win the heart of a certain brunette card mage. OC x Cana. Read and review.

50. Grand Magic Games VIII

I would like to thank everyone who reviewed, favorited or followed this story since I updated it, and I also want to thank you for getting this story to over 65,000 views! Also, I want to thank all of you for getting this story to over 300 favorites, as well as over 300 followers! I honestly never expected this story to get anywhere near as much love as it did, and believe me when I say that this story would be nothing without all of the support it's received from all of you over the past year and a half. Thank you all.

Altajir95: Thanks, I'm glad to see you liked it. Yes, Luke at full power in that form could've blown away Sting and Rogue with ease, but that wouldn't have been very exciting of a battle, and I wanted to clearly show just how much of a power gap their was.

Guest: Thanks, I'm glad to see you liked it. Yep, the Lucy and Rogue moments are something I enjoy writing out, and the showdown between Dragon Slayers was something that I was really looking forward to. The cliffhanger is also a great way to get people's attention.

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The city was in ruins, almost everything in sight was set ablaze, and the parts that weren't were practically covered in charred corpses and blood.

'I can't believe it…' Cana pulled herself out from within the rubble and looked at the carnage that was unfolding around her, her expression one of unyielding horror as tears began streaming down her face 'I just can't believe it… all of them are gone…' she glanced back at the sound of a loud crash, only to be met with the sight of the castle crumbling and a dragon of all things, several of them actually, unleashing a massive stream of flames that incinerated entire mountains before her.

It was only then that one of them set their sights on her and unleashed a roar, and with that roar a stream of flames greater than anything she had ever seen before.

'This is it… everyone…' she could only shut her eyes and wait for the inevitable, when…

"Dragon Sword Style: Thunder Dome!" fortunately for her, this was when Luke dove down onto the scene and thrusted his sword into the ground, erecting a barrier made of electricity that protected the two of them from the flames. It was only after they subsided that he removed his sword and dropped into a stance, glancing back at Cana as he did so "Sorry to keep you waiting so long Cana, are you alright?"

"Luke…"

"Yeah I know, hell of a stupid question. Just stand back and let me take care of it." he then proceeded to address the dragon in front of him "I'm gonna give you one warning here and now, you just picked a fight with the wrong people. My name is Luke Drako, the son of the lightning dragon Kaminari, a proud mage of the Fairy Tail guild, and a Dragon Slayer. Now you're about to see me live up to my title."

The dragon let out a snarl as it was joined by a number of others, all of them combining their roars into one massive stream of flames, engulfing Luke and Cana in the fiery explosion that resulted from it.

"You had your warning you damn dirty lizards, now you're asking for it!" Luke burst forth through the flames, now clad in the scales that came with the activation of his Dragon Force, his sword pointed forward "Dragon Sword Style: IRON HAMMER!" he thrusted his sword into the spine of one of the dragons and unleashed a powerful surge of electricity "Lightning Dragon ROAR!" he then followed up with a roar, earning a snarl of pain as a result "Lightning Dragon HEAVENWARD HALBERD BARRAGE!" he then used a burst of electricity to propel himself into the air above the oncoming dragons and unleashed a barrage of halberds made of his own lightning, each one hitting the oncoming dragons in at least one of their eyes, earning a series of simultaneous howls of agony as the series of explosions lit up the crimson colored skies above them.

"Luke please… it's no use…" Cana could only watch as Luke continued his assault on the numerous dragons, tears streaming down her face at the sight "Please just stop… I can't afford to lose you too…"

"I can't afford to give up now, and there's no way in hell I'll give up so easily!" Luke let out another roar, only for one of the dragons to rip through him and send him hurtling to the ground with a loud crash.

"Luke!"

"I'm fine…" Luke pulled himself back to his feet and spat out some blood, gritting his teeth and forcing himself to ignore the pain coming from the massive wound in his shoulder "I can't give afford to give up… not now… I won't run… I won't turn back… not when I have someone I love that I have to protect…" he glanced over at Cana and gave a small smile, then let out a primal roar as he hurled himself at one of the dragons charging towards him.

But before we get into that, we have to do some major backtracking, and show how things ended up this way in the first place.

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It was the night of the fourth day of the Grand Magic Games, and all seemed right in the world, at least as far as Fairy Tail was concerned.

Rather than the typical argument with Natsu, this time Gray was in an argument with Gajeel over a certain piece of upcoming media "There isn't a fucking chance in hell that's actually gonna happen!"

"Yeah well I say you're wrong about that you goddamn stripper!" Gajeel rounded on Gray "Why can't you just stop being narrow minded for a fucking second?"

"Because it's an absolute load of bullshit! Do you seriously think that the kid Ned from the MCU Spider Man movies of all people is gonna end up turning into the Hobgoblin in the next Spider Man movie?"

"Unlike you and Salamander over there I've actually read the comics before, I know that in at least one version that kid becomes the Hobgoblin. Granted he's just some stupid sidekick in the MCU, but with this version it would be that much more tragic and dramatic if they turn him into the Hobgoblin."

"Should we be worried about potential spoilers for the next Spider Man movie?" Lily finally offered his two cents.

"Probably, but then again who really gives a shit?"

"Okay fine, I'll admit that would make sense." Gray let out a sigh, now missing his shirt, not that he noticed this "But if you actually bothered to watch the mid credit scene in Spider Man Far From Home, you'd know that since Mysterio screwed him over and revealed his secret identity to the world, he's gonna have to go on the run. If anything, the next villain that he has to deal with is probably gonna be Kraven, since the government is going to be hunting him down like a goddamn dog. Wouldn't that make more sense?"

"On some levels yeah, but the only problem with that is that Kraven is a minor villain compared to the likes of one of the Goblins."

"But at the same time it would be perfect for building up the Sinister Six, and they're just as bad as the Goblins, maybe even worse. Can you name a single incarnation of the Sinister Six that didn't have Kraven the Hunter?"

"I can name at least three."

"Go ahead then."

"Fine. The version from the Spider Man Game for PS4: That one had Rhino, Scorpion, Vulture, Electro, Mister Negative and Doc Ock. Then there's both versions in Spider Man: the Animated Series, and then the first one from Spectacular Spider Man. And that's another thing, I refuse to believe that we're getting the Sinister Six in any way, shape or form without Doctor Octopus being introduced."

"The second version in Spectacular Spider Man didn't have him as part of the roster."

"But he was still the mastermind behind its formation, so it still counts."

"You two do realize that the actual title of the next MCU Spider Man movie hasn't even been announced yet." Lily pointed out "Don't you think it's a little bit premature to form theories as to what it's going to be about?"

"No." was the simultaneous chorus.

"Oh. Well fair enough I guess."

"Oh Gray my darling!" this was when Juvia made herself known, swooning over Gray in the same way that she always did "Even when you're a mixture of a nerd and a savage, you're the absolute epitome of hotness!"

"But Gray uses ice magic, shouldn't he be as cool as ice?"

"Oh for crying out loud, we don't need this right now." this was when Bolt blitzed onto the scene and promptly stopped both of them with a single movement, gripping both of them by the back of their heads "We've already destroyed the inn once already and the guild is already in debt as it is, we don't need any of this right now."

"Don't give it too much thought." this was when Elfman popped up next to him "We've got the day off tomorrow, I say we let them blow off some steam like real men do!"

"That's not the issue you walking stereotype, sure we got rid of Twilight Ogre pretty easily but the guild is still in debt, and we haven't won the prize money yet, and since everyone else is too drunk to form a coherent sentence or they just don't give a shit about it anymore, someone has to be the voice of reason, and for whatever the reason it looks like it has to be me."

"You know we weren't even fighting yet right?" Gray pointed out.

"I've been part of this guild long enough to know the signs of people getting ready to beat the ever loving shit out of each other."

"Speaking of the voice of reason, where the hell did Thunderclap get off to?" asked Gajeel.

"He's the one who no longer gives a shit about trying to stop you. Just take it outside before you guys do something stupid like ruin Erza's cake."

"...Oh yeah that's probably a fair point."

"As for where he is, he's still dealing with some of the strain from using his Dual Element Dragon Force on Sting and Rogue earlier, so Wendy is healing him now. The kid is something else too, it's pretty rare to find someone with a healthy balance of being kind and gentle and good at healing people, who at the same time knows how to fight and kick some hardcore ass if they have to."

"You mean like what Orihime from Bleach should've been?"

"More like the opposite end of that spectrum. Wendy has sufficient training as a fighter but also has healing skills, whereas Orihime is mainly a healer with some training in fighting. Not a lot, just some."

"Huh. Never thought of it like that."

"But that raises the question. If Wendy was raised right by her dragon, then where the hell did the likes of Igneel and Metallicana go wrong?"

"Well a hardy fuck you to you too!" Gajeel promptly summoned an iron sword on his right arm and prepared to thrust it forward.

"So now we're doing this?"

"Nope, because that's where I choose to draw the line." this was when Luke suddenly blitzed in between all of them, stopping Gajeel's advance with a single hand "Like he said, you don't want to awaken the beast over there. Don't forget that we're here to show everyone that Fairy Tail is still the best guild in Fiore, and that's why we're competing in the Grand Magic Games in the first place, and the last day is right around the corner. It took everything that we had to get to where we are right now, and even then we're still tied with Sabertooth, so now chances are all of the other guilds are going to be gunning for us. If you guys want to beat the ever loving crap out of each other, then have the decency to wait until after we claim the win for the games."

"As much as I'd like to give you points for the epic speech, it doesn't have as much weight to it when you won today's fight so easily." Bolt pointed out "Seriously, you busted out Dual Element Dragon Force and started throwing them around like a pack of rag dolls, or Broly going to town on Frieza in the movie."

"Yeah I'm gonna be honest, I think I got carried away out there. After what happened to Lucy in the Naval Battle, I let my anger get the better of me. I've sort of been doing that a lot since the Games started haven't I?"

"Maybe but you don't here anyone griping about it, so that's when you know everyone thinks it's justified."

"Maybe, but my point still stands. I shouldn't lose my cool like that."

"And look where it got you today, first place." this was when Noah suddenly barged his way into the building, looking more serious than he usually did "Take my advice and take a handout from life once in awhile, it's a lot easier than griping about it."

"Fair enough I guess, so what brings you here Aftershock?"

"It's not just pleasantries I can tell you that much, now where are the other Dragon Slayers at right now?"

"Wendy's over there with the Exceeds, Gajeel is right here and Natsu is over there doing god only knows what."

"All I need to know." so on that note, Noah promptly made his way over to Natsu's table, where he was doing whatever it was with Lucy and Lisanna watching him "Okay, so what the hell is he doing exactly?"

"He's showing us how long he can hold his breath for." Lisanna told him "He's been at it for over 7 minutes already."

"Uh huh. Hold that thought for a second." Noah then proceeded to walk over to Natsu and pinch the bridge of his nose "How about now?"

"What the fu-" Natsu smacked Noah's hand away, then bolted upright and didn't hesitate in rounding on him "What the fuck is wrong with you man, are you trying to make me look like an ass?!"

"I don't need to, you do that all on your own. But in any case you and Thunderclap and the others come with me, I found something you definitely need to see."

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Unfortunatley, not all was well with the other guilds.

At the hotel where the members of the Sabertooth guild were staying, Jiemma was in the middle of berating Sting and Rogue for losing in their match earlier, then proceeding to pummel the two of them before he demanded that they erase the marks of Sabertooth from their bodies for having brought shame to the guild. This was when Lector decided to speak up and asked Jiemma if he could go easy on them, since even though they had lost, he believed that they could become even stronger based on the information they had gathered from the battle. Jiemma simply turned and asked who Lector was, and upon learning that he too had the Sabertooth guild mark, he became enraged and promptly engulfed him in a blast of magic power, supposedy obliterating him in the process. Filled with grief and rage over seeing this, Sting turned his sights of Jiemma and lashed out at him, blasting a hole clear through his stomach, which left Rufus and Orga in shock. On the other hand, Minerva was seen smirking and seemingly happy over this development.

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The moon had long since risen above the skies of Crocus, and while it was shining brightly, the mood and foreboding atmosphere was a very stark contrast.

The mysterious hood figured made her way to a balcony overlooking the city, her mind drifting with each step she took 'It's only a matter of days now… that's how long I have before all of it is turned to ash all over again… before I lose everyone I love, just like I did before…'

"Stop right there, don't take another step." this was when Jellal finally chose to confront her as he removed his mask "I need you to reveal your true face and identity to me, keep in mind that I've already chosen to reveal mine. I can tell from the physique that it's a woman.'

"...You really want to know who I am? I'm warning you now that you're not gonna like what I have to say." the mysterious figure slowly turned to face Jellal, her face and true identity shocking him to the point where his blood ran cold.

"No way… it can't be…"

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A little while later…

"Back up a second, are you really serious about this?" Ultear shot a look at Jellal filled with pure skepticism over what he had told them "I don't believe this, if this is just some joke on your part then it's in very poor taste."

"I would never make a joke about something like this." Jellal told her flatly "I'm afraid that all of us have gravely mistaken the gravity of this entire situation, but if there was a joke in this then it would be that our fate was already sealed. The Eclipse Gate, the one that is supposedly meant to change the world."

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At the same time, the same cloaked figure sat somewhere in Crocus while writing in a small book she held, only to be interrupted by a man that had been passing through the area, telling her that the place that she was in was strictly off limits. The figure was alarmed by this and took off, though she disregarded her belongings as she did so. The man then went on to pick up the book and read what was written inside, but he wasn't able to understand behind certain words, such as the Eclipse Plan or the Dragon King Festival.

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Meanwhile, with the main group…

It wasn't long before Luke and the other Dragon Slayers (along with Cana, Lucy, Bolt and the rest of the Exceeds) were following Noah to the cavern underneath the arena "So what exactly did you find down here that made you get so serious?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I just told you, you'll see it for yourself soon enough." Noah told him flatly without looking back at him "Just keep walking with me, we should be there within a few minutes."

"Why so insistent on just bringing us though? Is it something to do with Dragon Slaye magic or something?"

"That's one way of putting it, but not in the way that you think. This is something purely for Dragon Slayers, I only let the blonde back there come along because apparently she was about as curious as the rest of you. Anyway we're here, so feast your eyes already." the group stopped walking when they reached that certain point, and he jerked a thumb at what was lying in front of them, causing more than a few jaws to drop at the sight.

"Aftershock… are we looking at what I think we're looking at right now?"

"That was about the way I reacted when I saw it too, but there's no doubt about it. What we're looking at is the skeletons and remains of real life dragons. Part of me wants to say that this is a gigantic middle finger to whoever says that dragons never existed to begin with."

"But that's pretty much overlapped by the question of what the hell all of them are doing down here to begin with. There has to be dozens of them down here at least."

"No doubt about it, and whatever the reason might be for it, part of me is afraid of the chance that I might end up finding Jishin down here. I haven't smelled anything though."

"Makes sense. It's only been about 14 years since our dragons up and vanished, but looking at the bones down here I'd say they've been here for a lot longer than that."

"That… That might work." Wendy muttered, which attracted the attention of everyone else in the cavern.

"You say something Wendy?"

"That spell Milky Way, it's one of the new Dragon Slayer Secret Arts that Grandeeny had passed down to me. Hear the voices of the dragon spirits that lead to the river of Heaven. I had assumed that it was some kind of attack back when I was first learning it, but now I'm starting to think that it was actually something else entirely. Maybe it's a spell that allows us to hear the voices of dragons that have already died."

"You sure about that?"

"I think that if we can somehow communicate with the spirit of these dragons, then one of then might be able to tell us what happened here, and then we might finally be able to find out why our dragons vanished."

"...Just be careful with it."

"I know." so Wendy grabbed a stick from nearby and started drawing a magic circle on the ground in front of them, and it didn't take long for everything to make sense "It's just like I thought, I had gotten these characters wrong before because I thought that this spell was supposed to be used for attacking."

"But it's more of a communication spell, not a normal one but still."

"Exactly, now then, I need everyone to step away from the circle." so they did, and she began to cast the spell "Oh wandering spirits of dragons long passed, reveal yourself and share your wisdom with me! Milky Way!" she activated the spell, causing a column of green light to engulf her and the magic circle, which then began spreading a number of smaller lights to the various dragon skeletons scattered throughout the cavern, which then started shaking.

'This doesn't look good, now even the skeletons are starting to shake. Talk to us Wendy, what's happening right now?"

"I'm trying to contact the spirit of a dragon, but the residual energy that's lingering down here is pretty weak and incredibly old, and it's fading too." then her eyes suddenly snapped open "There it is, I found one!" this was followed by a vortex of green colored magic energy forming above them.

'I'm not sure if that can really be called a dragon spirit, but whatever it might be I shouldn't let down my guard, not yet at least.' Luke calmly gripped the hilt of his sword as a massive claw emerged from the vortex.

This claw was followed by a primal roar as the form of a green dragon fully emerged from within the vortex, barking out a laugh as it was met with numerous screams of terror from those present "It's just like I thought, even in death I find it hilarious to be able to scare the crap out of humans! My name is Zirconis, they referred to me as the Jade Dragon back in my day. I have to admit that I am impressed you were able to conjure my spirit, and it seems to me like this is the word of Grandeeny the Sky Dragon. Alright come on, which one of you was it?" he then set his sights on Wendy "Oh isn't that just adorable, so this tiny Dragon Slayer was the one that woke me up then?"

"Yeah she was, she might be young but she has the most potential of any of us." Luke promptly stepped forward as he gripped his sword "And before you try and touch her, keep in mind that you can't touch anything as you are right now."

"Fine then, I'll go ahead and eat her, and she's just the appetizer. I'd much rather eat the likes of you instead."

"The same rule applies there, you'd pass right through us even if you did touch anything."

"You're a lot smarter than the stupid pipsqueak with the pink hair snarling at me back there, and you're calm, blunt and straightforward, and you love ruining a good joke. If that's not straight out of the notebook of Kaminari the Lightning Dragon, then I don't know what the hell is. Well maybe that sword you have there."

"Made from his own dragon scales, it can cut through just about anything. Anything except for ghosts I'm guessing."

"You guessed about right, and you've got his blunt and straight forward nature too. He never did learn to lighten up you know."

'What's funny is that out of all of the dragon skeletons, we get the one that enjoys screwing with people. Yeah that sounds about right for us.'

"Like I was saying earlier, my name is Zirconis, and they called me the Jade Dragon back in my day."

"You already told us that." Bolt pointed out dryly "So is there any chance you're gonna tell us about what the hell happened here? We want to know why there are the skeletons of so many dragons lying around in here, and that's the main reason why we summoned you here in the first place."

"Oh please, as if I would have any interest in talking with you humans."

"What about a cat that's spent the better part of a decade mastering transformation magic?" he flashed back to his cat form to prove his point, then flashed back to his human form "So how about that?"

"Oh those I have no problem with. Let's see here, it must have been about 400 years ago by now. The draconic kind had once ruled over every corner of the globe. We soared through the skies and raced over the land, and even swam over the great oceans. Everything in the world had belonged to dragon kind, which included humans. Your race was plentiful, and they also happened to be an excellent source of protein. But at the same time, there was one dragon that felt that our reign was unjust, as much of a fool as he was. This dragon then went on to spread the idea of a world where we would coexist with the humans, but as with any sort of fanatic idea, there were some that fully agreed with it and some that opposed it outright. It wasn't long before a full on war brokeout between the two parties. I myself was one of those that fought against the fanatics."

"So what are you saying then?" Cana frowned at what she was hearing "Are you saying that you're one of those that are against humans?"

"Sure I'm not fond of your kind unless you've been properly cooked, I like them medium rare personally."

"Don't get off topic, we came here so that we could hear about the war between dragons, not about how you like your meat grilled." Bolt remind him dryly.

"Right right. Anyway, both sides of the war were pretty evenly matched. The fighting was so brutal that entire continents were left barren and scarred as a result, until the time came where the dragos that supported coexistence came up with a plan that would end up inevitably dooming all of us. They bestowed upon humans what would come to be known as Dragon Slayer magic, and with this new power in their possession, the time had come for mankind to join the war."

"So then the first Dragon Slayers were some kind of ancient warriors?"

"Ancient by your stanrdards, but yes. The immeasurable power of the Dragon Slayers soon came to turn the tide of the war, and we were so overwhelmed by their forces that victory seemed certain for the other side. But none of us would've been able to predict the travesty that would come to pass. The Dragon Slayers eventually became so powerful, and subsequently became corrupted by that power, that they soon turned on the dragons that had given them the power they now wielded. It was a massacre unlike anything ever seen before. There was one man whose power had become so terrible that he ended up bathing the countryside in the blood of my kin. The very mention of his name still shakes me to my very core. This man slaughtered countless dragons and bathed in their blood, which in turn granted him the power of his victims, and he used his power so often and so great that his skin ended up turning into dragon scales, his teeth sharpened into fangs, and he ended up sacrificing his humanity altogether."

"Are you saying that… this one turned into a dragon?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying, ant that is the fate that will eventually befall all of those who practice Dragon Slayer magic. All of the bones that you see present in this cavern belong to the victims that fell because of that monster. Despite his origins as a human, he eventually became the king of all of dragon kind, and the war that he gave rise to eventually came to be known as the Dragon King Festival. The name of this monster was… Acnologia. He was once a human being, now he is a dragon that is cloaked in wings of darknes." now that got a reaction out of all of those present.

"Oh trust me, we know what you mean by that a lot better than you think." Luke muttered, his tone grim 'That was the beast we encountered back on Tenrou Island. All of us came together and attacked him with everything we had but we couldn't even scratch it, the thing just kept coming back for more. So you're telling us that thing used to be human at one point?"

"I'm still as shocked by it as all of you. Most of my own kind now rots in the ground because of Acnologia. All of this had happened in the distant past, but you and I are…" but then he disappeared, as did any of the light that came with him.

"Dammit, he disappeared before we could here what he was gonna say. Hey Wendy, are you alright over there?"

"Yes I'm fine." Wendy let out a sigh "I'm sorry, but any traces of mental energy that he had left is gone now. I think it's alright though, because wherever he is now, I'm sure that he's finally going to get some long needed peace."

"Don't worry about it Wendy, I think we've heard enough as it is. Looks like we got ourselves into another huge mess."

"Any chance we can just pretend we didn't hear anything?" Lucy seemed particularly freaked out by all of this, though she wasn't the only one.

'There's only one thing that really concerns me right now…'

"There's only one thing that I wanna know about right now." Natsu muttered "Does this mean we're gonna end up turning into dragons too?"

"I wish I could say that we don't have to worry about that Natsu, but I just don't know." Luke let out a sigh as he sat on a nearby rock.

"You may not be able to say such a thing with confidence, but I on the other hand can assure you that the chance of such a thing occurring is very slim." this was when another figure clad in the armor of a knight, actually Arcadios, appeared on the scene, with Yukino following close behind "I took the liberty of eavesdropping in order to ensure that our research is in line with historical fact after all. Tell me then, have any of you ever heard of the demons of the Book of Zeref?"

'The first one that comes to mind would be Deliora, the one that slaughtered Gray's family and master, and the one that Lyon and Aftershock almost revived on Galuna Island.'

"It is our understanding that Acnologia shares many similarities with them, for it had been the work of Zeref himself, as he had turned that Dragon Slayer into a creature that wrought such death and destruction. This means that if you wish to conquer the Black Dragon, then you must first find a way to subdue Zeref the Black Wizard."

"So to put it in simple terms, if we're gonna make that happen then we're gonna have a lot of work ahead of us."

'To overcome the likes of Zeref and Acnologia together, and isn't that girl the Celestial Wizard that used to be part of Sabertooth?' this was when Carla froze as a horrifying realization dawned on her 'In my visions I kept seeing a white knight, the castle crumbling, and then what I believe to be Cana singing… What does all of this mean?'

"But if you know that much about Zeref and Acnologia, then that does raise a lot of question to be answered." Luke took a step forward, his tone calm but his gaze hard and unwavering "So who are you exactly?"

"Of course, I should've introduced myself sooner perhaps." Arcadios was quick to introduce himself to the group as he gave a smirk "I am Colonel Arcadios, the leader of the Sacred Cherry Blossom Knights, the Crocus garrison force of the Royal Army of Fiore. And standing next to me is Yukino Agria, the acting Sergeant of the Sacred Cherry Blossom Knights.

'This means that he's high up in the Royal Army. So what business would the Royal Army have down here in a place like this to begin with? And for that matter, why is she with you? She was with Sabertooth up until a few days ago, so how did she get involved with the Royal Army?"

"Seeing how any loyalty she had to her former guild no longer exists, I saw a prime opportunity to recruit her into my ranks for the sake of utilizing her unique skillset that are essential for the sake of current operations."

"That's not very specific."

"Then please allow me to clarify. For the past several years I have been working on a highly classified project, but in order for it to succeed it requires a sort of power that can only be provided by a Celestial Wizard. This is where Sergreant Yukino comes in, as she is able to lend me her assistance in this undertaking."

'A Celestial Wizard then? So then that means Lucy… So you need the power of a Celestial Wizard, but for what purpose?"

"Get to the fucking point already!" Natsu was quick to lose his temper and round on Arcadios in a rage as "I'm running really low on patience right about now, so skip the stupid formal crap and tell us what you're doing down here!"

"Keep your shit together and back off Natsu."

"Like hell I will! I asked him a question and I expect an answer!"

"And throwing a tantrum isn't going to make that happen any faster, because the last time you lost any cool you had and started charging in fists blazing, you stormed the Sabertooth inn and almost got Lisanna killed, or had you forgotten about that?"

Natsu's eyes went wide at this, then his gaze hardened as he took a few steps backwards to join the others.

"That's what I thought. I might have been a little bit too harsh for my liking, but sometimes that's the only way to get through to him.' Luke breathed a sigh to calm himself down, then turned his attention back to Arcadios "Continue."

"Firm and unflinching yet compassionate, with an aura that radiates strength and unwavering conviction." Arcadios gave a smirk of approval "As I should expect of Luke Drako himself, the new ace of the Fairy Tail guild. It is an honor to make your acquaintance, and I must applaud you for your recent victory in the Grand Magic Games. Such power seen in one single wizard is a very rare sight indeed."

"I was just doing what needed to be done, nothing more and nothing less. But as much as I do appreciate the compliments, I think you know as well as I do that you came here to see us to do a lot more than just exchange pleasantries, so would you mind telling us why you're here and why you need the power of a Celestial Wizard?"

"Formal yet straight to the point, such traits are commendable. Follow me and I shall explain everything in detail. Your companions should hear this as well, for if our plan turns out to be a success, then the result will be the destruction of both Zeref and Acnologia."

"...You've definitely got my attention. Fine so be it, lead the way."

"Very well then."

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About 20 minutes later…

"And here we are." it didn't take long for Arcadios and Yukino to lead the group towards their destination.

"Okay not gonna lie, I wasn't expecting that." Bolt let out a low whistle "It does make sense given that you're part of the Royal Army, but seeing this place up close is still one hell of a sight to behold."

"I feel the same way every time I gaze upon it. Here we stand at the castle Mercurius, the luminaria palace and the home to his majesty the king and her majesty the princess."

"Granted it's fit for a king for a number of reasons, but are you sure it's alright to just take us in like this?" asked Luke.

"I'm quite certain, but before we do enter the palace I would like to give our most humble apologies to Miss Lucy Heartfilia. It was because of our misguided actions that she had been put directly in harm's way."

"What are you talking about?" as the dots connected, Luke shared a glance with Natsu, then turned back to Arcadios as his gaze hardened as they continued following him "Wait a second, are you talking about when the Elementals from Raven Tail kidnapped Wendy and the others?"

"Correct, I was able to persuade those former members of Raven Tail to act on my will, though they failed in that regard. My intention was never to put her in any real danger, but I see now that I was far too aggressive with my methods and orders, and I falsely hoped that she were the only source of Celestial Spirit magic that we so desperately need. It was nothing more than a simple lapse in judgement, and I must ask for your forgiveness. In truth, the Grand Magic Games were a ruse, or rather a mechanism intended to siphon the magic power of the participants."

"So you're saying that you've been stealing the magic power from the wizards in the games for years now, and the games were all a big cover up?"

"I can imagine that you would find the methods most deplorable, and all of you are certainly entitled to your opinion on the matter, though I firmly believe with every fiber of my being that the ends justify the means in this case." the group stopped when they arrived at what it was they were seeking, in the form of a massive gave standing in front of them "This is the Eclipse Gate, the door that will change the world, and without massive amounts of magic power it could never have been constructed."

"And how is that going to work exactly?"

"When the time comes for the sun and the moon to intersect, we will use the 12 Zodiac keys to open this door, and what lies beyond this door is time itself. It will allow us to travel back in time 400 years into the past and slay Zeref before he gains the power of immortality." now that got a reaction out of everyone else "The destruction of the Black Wizard is the ultimate goal of the Eclipse Project."

"So you're saying that you actually figured out a way to travel back in time? How the hell is that even possible?"

"Well it's our understanding that time flows differently in the Celestial World compared to how it flows in our world, can you confirm that?"

"Yeah it does actually, at least from what I've been told." Lucy gave a simple nod, still shocked by everything they were being told.

"What we intend to do is use the unique dimensional properties possessed by their world to make the Eclipse Gate work, and so in order to open the gate we need the power of Celestial Wizards, but seeing how Celestial Wizards are rather scarce these days we would have to resort to using a substitute source of power. However, now that we've located the two of you and all 12 of the Zodiac keys, the plan can proceed as it was intended. The time for us to take action is almost upon us. When the sun and moon intersect, this event will occur three days from now on the 7th of July, we ask for your help Miss Lucy."

"The 7th of July you said?" Luke shared a glance with Noah as he heard this 'That's the same day that all of our dragons disappeared, making it exactly 14 years since that day, so I doubt that it could actually be a coincidence, and on the day the sun and moon intersect, I guess that's where the term Eclipse comes from.' his thoughts were cut short as took a whiff of the air "Keep your guard up guys, we've got company."

"Yeah hold that thought for a second." Noah was engulfed in a cloud of smoke, and when it subsided a small brown cat was in its place, earning a few odd looks from his companion, so he lowered his voice so only they could hear "Keep in mind that I'm a fugitive like the rest of the members of Crime Sorciere, I can't let them see me or else our cover is gonna be blown straight to hell."

"I didn't think you cared about that sort of thing."

"Normally I don't, but right now we can't take any chances."

"Fair enough."

"You there freeze, stay right where you are and don't move!" this was when a large number of soldiers surrounded the group.

'And now we're surrounded by Royal Soldiers. Take it easy guys, whatever misunderstanding this is about we're not looking for a fight." he paused, then looked back at about half of those that were present with him "Okay let me rephrase that, about half of us aren't looking for a fight right now."

"It would be wise of you to surrender quietly Colonel Arcadios, before things get far messier than they need to be."

Arcadios' head snapped forward as he saw another figure approaching from within the crowd of soldiers "Defence Minister Darton, what is the meaning of this?"

"If anyone should be answering that question then it would be you, what business do you have here? You are aware that it is an act of treason to reveal secrets of the state to outsiders."

"You're making a grave mistake. These people here are not outsiders, they happen to be an essential component to the Eclipse Project."

"You do not have the authority to make such reckless decisions on your own."

"I will not allow your opposition to jeopardize the safety of the kingdom, now call off your men and end this ridiculous farce at once!"

"You are far too out of line colonel, this plan of yours is going to alter history! You two don't seem to realize that your actions will put our entire civilization at risk, now stand down!"

"I think he's right guys." this was when Luke spoke up as he removed his hand from the hilt of his sword, which drew everyone's attention to him "Just stop and think about it, what he plans to do is go back in time by a full 400 years and change the world as we know it, but if they do that then god only knows how the present and the future are going to change. Say for the sake of the argument they do succeed in wiping out Zeref and Acnologia before they come to power, but what's to stop something even worse from taking their place?"

"Colonel Arcadios, as Minister of Defense I hereby place you under arrest on the charge of treason against the kingdom of Fiore. Take the Celestial Wizards into custody as well, for they are accessories to this crime, and remove all of the others at once." Darton waved his hand to the soldiers, which prompted them to take hold of Lucy and Yukino before either of them could pull out their Zodiac keys.

"Now hold on a second, Yukino may be one thing but I know for a fact that Lucy hasn't committed any crimes."

"We're warning you now assholes, if you want her then you gotta go through us!" Natsu didn't waste a second in coating a fist in flames and prepared to charge at the soldiers, only for a light to start shining from the Eclipse Gate and cause him to freeze in place "What in… What in the hell is happening to me?!"

"Natsu take it easy." Luke was quick to catch Natsu before he could hit the ground "What the hell is going on?"

"Did the colonel not inform you about this?" Darton got their attention "The Grand Magic Games are little more than a method of fueling the Eclipse Gate, it is an extremely effective tool to use. In fact, if any wizard were to activate a spell this close to the device then the Eclipse would completely drain all of their magic power. I do hope you won't be causing any more trouble for us, keeping in mind that a wizard that is incapable of using magic power is hardly a threat to a group of royal soldiers."

"I wouldn't be too sure about that, piss off a member of Fairy Tail and you'd be surprised by what they can do, magic power or not. Besides, if you're nothing without magic power then you shouldn't have it to begin with."

"Whatever the case may be, I will not allow the Eclipse Plan to proceed, and I will do whatever is necessary to ensure that it doesn't." he then gave a not to the soldiers, which prompted them to drag Lucy and Yukino away, while he turned is attention back to Luke and the others "Now as for the rest of you, let's take our discussion away from the Eclipse Gate so as to have a repeat of what your friend there is experiencing."

"...Fine."

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A little bit later…

It didn't take long for Luke and the others to exit the castle, dragging Natsu's weakened and only semi-conscious form with them 'To think that just activating a spell in front of the gate was enough to completely suck him dry of any of his magic power.'

"Before we go any further, I must make it clear to you and the rest of your companions that it was never my intention to harm anyone." Darton was quick to get the conversation back to the main topic "Given the circumstances at the moment, there is far too much at stake. However, I will offer all of you somewhat of an olive branch for all of your trouble."

"Which means what exactly?"

"I will have you know that his majesty is extremely fond of the Fairy Tail guild, so if you can manage to claim victory in the Grand Magic Games then I will agree to grant you a private audience with the king. He is a man with a rather kind heart so who knows, you may be able to persuade him to pardon your comrade of her crimes. Until that comes, I can do little more than wish you the best of luck." and on that note, Darton promptly took his leave of the scene, with the royal soldiers following right behind him.

'Lucy…'

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It was the evening of July 5th, the day before the Grand Magic Games would at last come to an end.

"What the everlasting fuck?!" needless to say, Gray and Erza, along with the other members of Fairy Tail, were less than thrilled "What the hell do you mean Lucy got arrested?"

"To think that she would be involved in some sort of top secret plot." Makarov could only scowl at the thought "Such a thought is utterly ridiculous."

"And what's worse is that we can claim the win in the games and ask her to be let go, but that's assuming the king actually agrees to it." Luke pointed out "Truth be told, Arcadios is one thing but I have no idea if what Darton told us is even worth trusting. Whatever the case, we can't afford to take any chances right now."

"And how the hell is Natsu taking that?" asked Laxus dryly.

"About as well as you'd expect, or he would be if it wasn't for the fact that all of his magic power got drained so he's only semi-conscious. Wendy is still trying to treat him right now, but just in case we tied up to a post upstairs."

"Probably for the best, knowing him he's gonna try and charge in head first without thinking anything through."

"I know, I had to bring up what he did with Sabertooth earlier just to call him off. So in any case, what do you think we should do about this master?"

"This is a very complicated issue." Makarov frowned in thought "We can't afford to take any reckless action against the kingdom, and I'm sure they would never want word to spread that they mistreat innocent civilians. But in any case, I suppose we should consider her to be a hostage until this Eclipse Project of theirs is called off."

"So she's a hostage, looks like they've got us in a pretty tight spot with this. But that does raise another question though. If all of us know about what the Eclipse Project is and how it works, then why would they let us go instead of taking us in like Lucy did? It doesn't make that much sense to me."

"I think it's obvious that Colonel Arcadios was the primary target that they were after, so maybe they let us go so that we could testify against him later." Lily offered.

"Maybe, but even so they would still risk their big secret getting out. Maybe they feel like this secret of theirs can't be kept under wraps for much longer."

"It's still weird that they didn't keep us there like Lucy and the others." Cana pointed out "That way no one would've found out about their project."

"I'm not so sure about that. Keep in mind that we're all on one of the teams that's tied for first place, earning a lot of attention good or bad from everyone else, so maybe they think it would be too suspicious for all of us to just up and vanish the day before the finals."

"Well maybe the kingdom just doesn't want to get on the bad side of every high ranking wizard guild in the country, especially with heavy hitters on the level of Wizard Saints like Jura in their ranks."

"Maybe, but still…"

"The Royal Army isn't known for acting so rashly." Erza pointed out "It's very unlike them to take citizens for no reason, so if we knew what the real reason was for Lucy being captured then maybe we could use that way to help her."

"Which means that we have to find out what that reason is before anything else."

"And that's what makes this so frustrating." Bolt let out a growl.

"Take it easy man, I want to get her back too but it's like we've been saying, we need to go about this properly."

"Luke speaks the truth, as frustrating as it is." Makarov was quick to get everyone's attention "A member of our family has been taken against our will, so believe me when I tell you that all of us want justice right now. But with that being said, we can't just charge head first into battle like we usually do, since it's far too risky in this case. However, none of us are cowards and there isn't a chance in hell we're going to let them get away with this. We are the Fairy Tail guild!"

"So what's our plan then?"

"Well…"

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At the same time, in a cell beneath Mercurius, both Lucy and Yukino had been imprisoned after being taken away. Yukino was left sad and regretful over her actions, but Lucy was quick to tell her not to worry, and rather the two of them should be trying to come up with a plan to escape and find the Celestial keys that had been confiscated from them, while also reasoning that they would likely be released once the entire Eclipse Plan was called off. This was when Yukino had decided to interrupt her, insisting that the plan had to go ahead. She went on to explain that when she was younger, she had an older sister that she loved dearly, but that the two of them had gotten separated at a young age by a group of cultists that worshipped Zeref, and they had burned down their village and murdered their parents. She placed the blame on Zeref and reasoned that to kill him would stop the raid from ever having happened, and then she would be reunited with her sister once more. Lucy understood this even though she didn't necessarily agree, and then went on to remind Yukino that changing the past would not guarantee that things would work out for her the way she wanted.

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Morning came, and the final day of the Grand Magic Games was about to begin, and needless to say, the excitement had reached an entirely new level compared to the previous days, if the massive number of cheering and fireworks going off throughout the Domus Flau colosseum were anything to go by that is.

"This is it ladies and gentlemen, this is the day that we've been waiting for! To say that this week has been exciting is an incredible understatement, this week has been filled with incredible displays of magic power and emotional moments and turmoil that we'll never forget, but today is the day where only one of these guilds will win the Grand Magic Games and become number one in the kingdom of Fiore! Ladies and gentlemen, I can say with certainty that's been an honor to be spending this time here with you and with my fellow commentator Mr Yajima, and not only that but it just so happens that we have a very special guest here with us today. All of you know and love him as the official mascot of the Grand Magic Games, the always entertaining Mato in the pumpkin flesh! Usually he would be in the arena acting as the referee, but that's not going to be the case for today! Today that's not going to be necessary, because today is going to turn out to be something truly special! Now then, the time has come for us to get thing started and bring out all of the competitors! Currently in sixth place out of the six competing teams are the hunting dogs turned tail chasers, with Bacchus Groh leading the charge, the wild boys known as Quatro Puppy!"

"WILD!" this was when Bacchus and the rest of the Quatro Puppy team burst through the entrance into the arena like a pack of mad dogs, earning a fair number of cheers.

"It's true that these hounds from hell have been on the losing side of things this year, but they're still one hell of a force to be reckoned with. Next up in fifth place we have the guild that exudes class and an intoxicating level of parfum, with Ichiya Vandalay Kotobuki at the helm we have the team for Blue Pegasus!"

"MAAAAN!" this was when Ichiya and the rest of the Blue Pegasus team made their way into the arena in a blaze of glory.

"They may have been bumped down to fifth place, but today is their chance to claim the sweet smell of victory, so we wish you the best of luck! Next up we have our fourth place team coming from the guild of Mermaid Heel! These ladies are quite beautiful but you can't let yourself be fooled by their sweet looks, because I can confirm that these gorgeous flowers are anything but delicate. Don't forget about their leader Kagura Mikazuchi, because beneath that calm exterior of hers burns a fire of incredibly intensity! Now here comes our third place team, Lamia Scale, led by Jura Neekis of the Ten Wizard Saints! Can Lyon Vastia, the Ice wizard who rivals the likes of Gray Fullbuster from Fairy Tail, claim the heat in the battle today, or will his team just get frozen in their tracks? He doesn't have to do it alone either, we can't forget about the likes of the adorable God Slayer Sherria Blendy or the master martial artist Xian Lee, not to mention the likes of Jura of the Ten Wizard Saints! The chances this team has of claiming the title are pretty high in themselves! Now lets here it for one of the teams in first place, the nearly unrivaled tigers of the Sabertooth guild! Quite the shocker to see this guild of all of them, the one that's usually at the top spot undisputed, being forced to share their position! Is this a premonition to the end of an era? There's no doubt that Sting and Rogue, the Twin Dragons of said guild, are gonna have a major bone to pick with Luke and Gajeel from Fairy Tail after the crushing defeat they had to suffer through on the fourth day, so the question remains, will they be able to even the score with them and claim the top spot for themselves? Let's officially give it up for the returning Grand Magic Games champions, the mighty Sabertooth guild!"

Sure enough, the guild in question made their way into the open arena, with Sting and the others all advancing forward in silence, only one thought on his mind 'It won't be long now…'

"I can just feel the seriousness and intensity they've got going on right now, surely all of them have come to understand just how much they've got on the line. You have to give them credit for keeping cool under the pressure.'

"Oh please." Sting let out a scoff, his mind drifting 'Lector… I can still feel it, it's like part of you is still there with me, cheering me on and telling me how I'm gonna win… You're right about that part, because there's one thing that's clear as the morning sun in my eyes… I'm not losing. Not today."

"And now comes the other team that's tied for first place, the team making a historical comeback after literally falling off the map 7 years ago! Let's give a rousing welcome for Fairy Tail!" the sheer mention of the name was met with roars of applause from the audience.

"So they're finally gonna come out then huh?"

"It's almost time, are you ready for this?" asked Rogue.

"You'd damn well better believe I am. This is the day that I've spent my entire life waiting for, but now things have changed. You know what I've got at stake."

"I know, but don't forget that actions speak a lot louder than words. If you want to make it happen then- Wait a second."

"What's the matter?"

"Take a look and see for yourself." the two of them glanced over to a cloud of smoke somewhat obscuring the view for the most part.

"Wait a second, what do we have here? This is absolutely unbelievable, the team from Fairy Tail is keeping all of us on our toes thanks to this completely unexpected change in the roster! It would seem that Luke Drako, the man that had single handedly defeated the Twin Dragons of the Sabertooth guild, has been replaced by none other than Laxus Dreyar!" sure enough, the smoke had cleared to reveal the roster for the Fairy Tail guild, which consisted of Gray, Erza, Gajeel, Laxus and Natsu.

"Which means that Luke is out of the competition. It doesn't make sense, why would he back out of something like this?

"Whatever it is, it's perfectly fine with me." Sting gave smirk "As a matter of fact that's the best news that I've heard all day. Besides, even if he's gone Natsu and Gajeel are both still there, so that's more than enough for me."

"...You have a point I suppose."

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"After such a strong showing in the last round, a decision like this one turns out to be one that really boggles the mind. What could be the reason for it?"

"So that's what you planned to do in all of this." Mavis let out a chuckle from where she and the others were watching on the sidelines "I have to admit Sixth Master, that proved to be quite the clever move on your part."

"To be perfectly honest with you, it was the only real choice I had on the matter." Makarov told her flatly "There is a chance that winning the Grand Magic Games would result in Lucy being allowed to go free through more official means, but at the same time, we have to explore every option in a situation like this. We can't afford to put all of our eggs into one basket. Everyone is focused on the games, and so we will cheer our fighters on with gusto, and that's what the public is going to see, but some of our most capable wizards will be setting out on a secret rescue mission."

"A two pronged strategy, I have to admit that it's very nicely done on your part."

"Godspeed my children, we're counting on you."

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Meanwhile, with the rescue team in question…

"Come on you guys let's keep going, we've got a lot of ground to cover." the rescue team in question was being headed by Luke as he continued onwards through the empty streets of the city of Crocus, with Bolt, Cana, Mira, Wendy, Lily and Carla following right behind him 'We're coming for you Lucy, just hang on until we get there.'

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Meanwhile, back at the colosseum…

"Well I have to say ladies and gentlemen, it's been quite the exciting week but we're finally at the last day of the Grand Magic Games! Before we get things underway, I think it's only fair for us to take a look at the current standings. In sixth place is the newy dubbed Quatro Puppy, as they are going to be known until the end of the games, with 15 points. In fifth place we have the team from Blue Pegasus with a total of 29 points. A fair bit behind the others, but they still have a pretty solid chance of turning things around for their guild. Next on the roster is the team for Mermaid Heel in fourth place, with a total of 38 points, and in third place by a narrow margin is Lamia Scale with 39 points."

"Things are appearing to be quite interesting." Jura glanced around at the various competing teams within the arena "It would seem that all of the participants are raring to go as well, so I highly doubt this final bout is going to disappoint any of us."

"Perhaps not disappoint, but not everything about it is going to turn out to be pleasant, I know that much at least." Xian told him calmly, his gaze hard and unflinching as he looked forward and eyed one of the opposing teams in the form of Mermaid Heel, or to be specific, he was eyeing Kagura in particular.

"And now the time has come for us to introduce the two teams that are tied for first place with a total of 44 points each. First up, we have the returning champions in the form of the Sabertooth guild! And last but not least, we have the guild whose made a comeback that no one would've expected, myself included! Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for Fairy Tail!" this was met with a thunderous applause.

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Meanwhile, with the rescue mission…

Luke and the others continued charging through the streets in the opposite direction of the colosseum, and he took a quick whiff of the air around him as he did so "I can smell and hear the fireworks going off around the colosseum."

"So then the final round getting started?" asked Mira.

"If they haven't already then it shouldn't be long from now, but in any case this is the chance that we need."

"Right. You know rushing in while everyone is occupied with the tournament seems like a pretty solid plan, but the strategy master is using doesn't cover as much of the basics as I would've liked."

"It's not a perfect plan but it's the best that he could do on short notice, sometimes you just have to take what you can get."

"Fair enough. Speaking of which, do any of us actually have any sort of plan for sneaking into the castle without letting anyone see us?"

"Found a hole in the plan a lot faster than I expected, but in any case we didn't have time to come up with that so the only thing we can do is cross the bridge when we come to it."

"You're being surprisingly nonchalant about this."

"It was either wing it or wear a bunch of stupid costumes and try and use them to slip past the guards, I think we're making the right call. Besides, Erza and the others are gonna be doing everything they can to win the games so we have to be prepared to do whatever it takes in order to get Lucy back."

"Yeah I know, and I take it that if we have time to multitask then you'll find something else to work into things." she spared a subtle glance back towards Cana, which caused Luke to look away, blushing slightly as he did so.

"Let me take a wild guess, Bolt told you didn't he?"

"You're damn right he did." this was when Bolt popped up next to him, his voice low "I had to come clean about it in order to ensure that the pool was fair."

"You mean you had a pool on whether or not Cana and I were going to get together?"

"Of course not, I'd never be so insensitive to your feelings as to bet on whether or not you were going to get together. We were betting on when you were going to get together."

"...I don't know how to feel about that."

"Feel however you want, the pool is still a thing."

"Fine whatever, in any case we have more important things to focus on."

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Meanwhile, in the arena…

"It's almost time now." Erza looked around at the sound of cheers ringing throughout the stands of the colosseum "Hold on for just a little while longer, it won't be long now before Fairy Tail is whole once again."

"Alright then mages of the competing guilds, the time has come for all of you to show us your skills, your magic power and the bonds that tie all of you together as one! This is it ladies and gentlemen, the last round of the Grand Magic Games will feature all members of all teams fighting as one! It's only a matter of time before we see one of you come out on top! You had best prepare to strap in folks, because we have a very special arena prepared for the final battle of the games, which just so happens to be the entire city of Crocus itself! The teams have already been scattered throughout the battlefield, and now they're waiting on standby. The members will battle throughout the city and do battle with any opposing guild members they encounter. To knock out or incapacitate any wizard will earn a single point for the team that does the deed. Before we get started, each team must elect one member as the leader for the event, but there happens to be a catch to this rule. None of the opposing teams will know which member of which team has been given the role of the leader. Defeating the leader of a team earns the victor five points, which means that in theory, it's possible for each team to score 45 points, which means that every guild has a shot at winning the title. Whether the teams decide to work together or split up for the sake of meeting their goals, the fact is that strategy is going to be a strong factor for deciding the winner of this round."

"Listen up everyone, because I'm only going to say this one." Erza promptly turned to face the rest of her "We have to win this event just in case the rescue plan fails, Lucy is counting on all of us to give it everything we've got."

"Luke and the others have got it covered." Natsu told her flatly "Besides, blondie isn't the only reason we're here to fight. It's like I told Sting before, we're gonna win this one for the sake of all of our friends in Fairy Tail, for the ones in the stands… and the ones that didn't make it to see us win back the title."

"Yes I know how you feel, after all of the pain and suffering they've endured over the past 7 years, they deserve nothing less than absolute victory."

"Now the time has come ladies and gentleman, which guild is about to stand at the pinnacle of the world of magic? We're about to find out, because the time has come to rumble!"

"I hope you're ready everyone, because we're about to end up in the fight of our lives."

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"It's such a beautiful day for a battle, wouldn't you agree Mr Yajima?"

"Indeed I do, and most of the teams competing today have decided to split up, so that should prove to make things more interesting."

"Yes it will, so we can do little more than wish our teams the best of luck. An what do we have here, it looks to me like even the individually powerful members of Sabertooth have decided to split up for the event. Some of the members of the other teams have decided to split up into groups of two or three, so whose strategy is going to carry them to the gold?"

It was around this time that Orga landed on a rooftop and noticed Rufus looking rather perturbed by something "What's the matter, did you sense something?"

"I can see it and remember it clearly, none of them are moving." Rufus muttered quietly.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Well I have to admit, this is quiet the unexpected development. I can't say why for certain, but it looks as if the members of Team Fairy Tail are standing they're as if they're in a trance. They haven't even moven from the spot they started in."

"...Oh, that's what the hell you're talking about.."

"Yes, though it is rather strange." Rufus frowned in thought "I don't remember ever seeing any of our enemies leave themselves so open before."

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"Well then, while Team Fairy Tail is sticking to this bizarre strategy they've chosen to use for the Game, the other combatants have already set their sights on some targets!"

"Wait what?" Nobarly whipped around to find Sherria and Yuka of Team Lamia Scale standing before him "Oh crap, it's just my luck that I ran into two of you!"

"Yes, just your luck you ran into members of the guild that's going to claim the victory in the games this year." Yuka promptly shot a glance over at Sherria "How about this, you attack and I'll be sure to keep his magic at bay. Sound good?"

"Sounds good to me." Sherria gave a nod filled with determination "I'll make sure he feels all of the love of our guild."

"Yeah sure whatever, just get it done. Wave Boost!" Yuka needed only to hold out his hand to activate his Wave magic on Nobarly, cancelling out any spells he could've used "There it's done, now go in and finish it already."

"Right! Sky God HOWL!" Sherria blitzed in front of Nobarly and hit him with a Sky God Magic breath attack at point blank range, blowing him into a wall and leaving him in a heap on the ground as a result.

"Looks to me like the pain just keeps on coming for the Quatro Puppy guild. As a result of that little display, Lamia Scale takes 1 point for their victory, bringing them one step closer to catching up with the teams currently tied for first place!"

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At the same time, other teams were also getting moving during the event, as the Hibiki and the rest of the Trimens of the Blue Pegasus guild encountered Beth and Araña from Team Mermaid Heel. While Hibiki used his Archive magic in the battle, Ren and Even didn't waste any time in defeating the two of them, claiming 2 more points for Team Blue Pegasus.

However, while all of the carnage was unfolding, the team from Fairy Tail had yet to make a single move, which earned more than its fair share of confusion and frustration from those present in the audience.

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"Meanwhile the carnage within the Grand Magic Game continues to unfold, as the members of Team Lamia Scale continue to mow down one opponent after another, and now they're hunting down the Puppies one by one! This is absolutely incredible, if the team from Lamia Scale keeps this up then they're going to be in first place in no time! I mean they're already up to 42 points, but it's not very surprising when you think about it. With wizards like Lyon and Jura on their side, they have the odds stacked in their favor."

"Well this is going pretty well so far." Yuka and Sherria continued running through the streets of Crocus at full speed "Looks like Jura and the others are making this a lot easier for us, at this rate they might as well just go ahead and give us the win."

"But if they did that then we wouldn't be able to spread our love to the others." Sherria pointed out, earning an eye roll from Yuka in response.

"Is that all you and your cousin think about?"

"You two sure as hell sound sure of yourselves." a drunken slur quickly got their attention as the drunken form of Bacchus stumbled in front of them.

'Great, we had to walk right into the wall of drunken fury. No this isn't that bad, as long as I can use my Wave on him and Sherria hits him with her Sky God Slayer magic, we should be able to beat him.'

"So we're going 2 on 1 huh? That doesn't really seem fair to me, but it's still the sort of thing that really gets my soul stirring!"

"I guess we have no choice but to fight then."

"You'd best get ready, I'm about to show you just how wild we really are."

"How's this for wild! White Dragon IRON FIST!" this was when Sting suddenly dove down and dealt Bacchus a light-enhanced punch square in the spine, sending him crashing to the ground in a painful heap.

"Well that was an unexpected plot twist, Sting from Team Sabertooth drops down onto the scene from out of nowhere and trounces the leader of Team Quatro Puppy with overwhelming levels of force! That gives another 5 points to our reigning champs, and that gives them 49 points in total and pushes them all the way back up to first place, and now they can enjoy that spot for themselves, at lest for the time being. Yes I can imagine that all of you Sabertooth fans out there are incredibly happy about this."

"And that one puts us back up at the top, where I need us to be."

"You damn dirty thief, that one was ours!" Yuka didn't hesitate to round on him and prepared to unleash his wave.

"Prepare to feel our love! Sky God-" Sherria prepared to attack Sting with a God Slayer spell, only for her and Yuka to be cut down from behind by Kagura and her sword Archenemy, leaving both of them out cold on the ground.

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"And the lovely Kagura of Team Mermaid Heel makes her move, taking out Sherria and Yuka, and earning 2 points for her team! Now that the two of them are out of the way, one can only wonder what sort of epic battle between a Mermaid and a Tiger we have to look forward to right now… Wait a second, where the heck did Sting go? Well that's a bigger copout than the ending of the final battle of Soul Eater. But oh well, the day is young and I'm sure we have plenty of other epic battles to look forward to. As for right now though, Team Mermaid Heel has now earned a total of 41 points. Plus it would seem that Rocker from Team Quatro Pupp has found himself to be in quite a bind, like a true cat the grip Milliana has on her foe is unyielding. I think it's safe to say that this kitty truly is top dog, especially since Quatro Puppy is now out of the games entirely with a total of 15 points! I'm going to be completely honest with all of you, I had never expected the teams from Mermaid Heel and Lamia Scale to start rising through the ranks so fast, and one can only imagine that Goldmine, the master of Quatro Puppy, is thinking the exact same thing right about now. That's truly wild, just not for them. The scores keep changing with speeds that can leave people dizzy, and yet the team for Fairy Tail still hasn't moved a single inch from their starting point. I still don't get it, what sort of messed up strategy are they working with?"

"What is the matter with them?" Makarov could only grit his teet at the sight of the Fairy Tail members not moving an inch "Have all of them lost their minds, or did all of them suddenly just forget that Lucy's freedom is at stake?"

"Trust me, they haven't forgotten anything." Mavis assured him with a calming smile "As a matter of fact, it is the very reason why they must remain calm and focused. Over the course of the Grand Magic Games, I've been watching all of your opponents very closely. I saw their strengths and spells, as well as the patterns in their behavior, and I committed each and every one of them to my memory. With all of these factors in mind, I ran through millions of calculations in order to find the best strategy for us. And not only that, up to this point in the games, every one of my predictions concerning the synergies and casualties of the enemy, all of them are exactly as I had thought they would be."

"What?"

"I then went on to give my battle plan to our team before they went in. Leading my comrades to take the victory over all others, that is how a tactitian wages war and emerges victorious over the enemy."

"First Master… You said to wage war?"

"Indeed I did, and now the time has come. Let's begin with Operation Fairy Stars!" and that proved to be enough to prompt the rest of the Fairy Tail team to get moving.

"Well it took them long enough, but the team from Fairy Tail has finally decided to spring into action! Now things are bound to get very interesting."

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Meanwhile, outside Mercurius…

"Oh for crying out loud." one of the knights standing guard at the gates to the castle could do little more than gripe about the situation he was in "This sucks worse than the ending of Soul Eater, I wasn't even supposed to be here today."

"Neither was I, so quit whining and stay alert." the other guard told him dryly, mere seconds before they noticed a third guard appear on the scene before them "Halt, tell us what business you have here. And who are those three

As it turns out, the third guard in question was holding Luke and Cana in front of him with their arms bound "These two are intruders, if I had to guess then they probably tried to use the games as a distraction so they could spring the Fairy Tail girl from her cell."

"These two, you mean some nerd with a sword and that drunk chick that lost a drinking contest to the guy from Quatro Cerberus?"

"They're going by Quatro Puppy until the Games are over, and you have to keep in mind that looks can be deceiving. Letting down your guard for even a second can dost you dearly."

"Yeah well, whatever. Anyway his majesty and the Minister of Defense are out on business at the moment, just take them down to the dungeon and lock them in a cell, then we can sort the two of them out later."

"Yes sir, you can count on me." and so the guard led Luke and Cana through the courtyard in the direction of the dungeon, but after he escorted them beyond the point where the guards could see them, he revealed himself to be Mira using transformation magic "Like I said, let down your guard and you'll get fucked into a coma."

"That was a little bit on the graphic side you know." Luke pointed out dryly "But you did get us past the guards so I don't really have any reason to complain."

"Maybe you don't, but I sure as hell do!" Bolt poked his head out of the knight armor, where he had been stuffed in along with Panther Lily and Carla "Whichever smartass came up with this part of the plan can expect a battleaxe lodged up their ass in the very near future!"

"Hey it could be a lot worse, you could have Shatterstorm in there with you. Speaking of which, where do you keep Shatterstorm when you're like that?"

"Oh I keep it stored in a separate pocket dimension whenever I go into my Exceed form."

"You mean like Requip?"

"It's something like that, it was actually Bisca that helped me come up with the idea. This way I don't have to worry about it crushing me whenever I'm in this form. Now if only Lucy could do the same thing with her keys, god only knows how many problems that can solve."

"That… is actually a really good idea."

"I can't believe no one ever thought of that sooner."

"The same could go for every Celestial wizard that doesn't think of that. But in any case, we'll have to come back to that little idea later."

"We definitely should though."

"No arguments here."

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From her place inside the castle, Hisui E Fiore, the princess of the kingdom was addressed by her guards about getting started with her work, something that she agreed with, and so she promptly decided to get started with the Eclipse 2 project.

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"Let's begin with Operation Fairy Stars! Everyone proceed to your designated coordinates as I had instructed."

"Right!" so with Mavis giving the command, Erza and the rest of Team Fairy Tail (Natsu, Gray, Gajeel and Laxus) didn't waste any time as they started spreading out across the city in response to the strategy they had been given.

"Well I think I speak for everyone when I say that it took them long enough, I mean it was only after one of the other teams got taken out of the game entirely, but the Fairy Tail team has finally hit the ground running and scattered throughout the streets of Crocus! One can only wonder what sort of crazy plan this group is trying to pull off, but I think it's safe to say that trying to rack up the points is going to be difficult since they're starting this late in the game."

"Perhaps for any other team, but with my strategy are chances of victory are that much higher, case and point."

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"Phase 1: There is a 97% chance that Rufus is going to take action at this time."

"I see you all, and I shall remember it clear as the midnight sun." Rufus let out a chuckle from where he stood within the city "Your group is not the first to underestimate my talent for detection, and I am certain that you will not be the last. I will spare all of us a headache and take all of you out with a single attack. Memory Make: Night of Shooting Stars!" with a simple tip of his hat, he sent forth a series of energy beams throughout the city as they hurtled towards their intended targets "Those who were present from the beginning will remember this as the spell I used to claim victory in the Hidden even from the first day."

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"You have a 2 second window of opportunity to avoid being hit, and so you must evade them when their light is overhead."

"Not on your fucking life!" seizing the 2 second window, Gray promptly leapt out of the way of the blast, with Natsu, Gajeel and Erza doing the same.

"Laxus on the other hand is able to absorb the energy used to cast the spell, since they share the same element."

"Nope." Laxus needed only to hold up a fist and absorb the electricity from the spell "Well what the hell did you know, that actually feels kind of nice.

"As a result of watching his spell fail, Rufus will become agitated and unable to think straight."

"No it can't be, he was able to take it head on!" Rufus was left in a panicked stupor at the sight of his spell failing.

"In his confusion, there is a 68% chance that and engage one of the members of our team, which means there is a 32% chance he will stand by in his current position. Obviously the latter outcome will pose very little of a threat to our overall strategy. As she heads to the west, Erza will encounter an opposing wizard as she rounds a corner, and she will eliminate her with little to no difficulty. Gajeel will take out multiple opponents in the South, where one will attempt to withdraw from the battle, but Gray will ambush and defeat him. Once he does this and then retreats to the fountain square, his next destination will be Point B4."

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Sure enough, Mavis' predictions and calculations proved to be incredibly accurate, starting with the predictions regarding Rufus. As they progressed throughout Crocus, Erza found Jenny after rounding a corner and defeated her with ease, while Gajeel beats both Eve and Ren within a matter of moments, while Hibiki attempted to flee, only for Gray to end up picking him off himself, all of this earning a total of 4 more points for Fairy Tail.

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"This is absolutely incredible, there's no other word to describe it! Even though they were lagging behind because of their late start, Fairy Tail has once again found themselves in the running for first place, only one point behind Sabertooth now! They're really tearing it up out there!"

"Any victory is possible so long as you have a proper strategy." Mavis gave a smile filled with pride, then continued guiding the team throughout the event "Natsu will provide cover for the rear and strike down any opponents attempting to escape, Laxus should continue towards the point F8. Erza will go to S5, there should be plenty of targets for you to choose from. You don't need to worry, with my strategy our victory is all but guaranteed."

"So it would seem that the rumors are true." Makarov could only look on in awe 'She truly is incredible. Her deep understanding of psychology and strategy in battle had earned countless victories for her, and that's how she came to be known as the Fairy Tactitian. Those who are corrupted by arrogance my underestimate her because of her appearance, but they have to keep in mind that she was the one who founded Fairy Tail in the first place. If it wasn't for her actions, then none of this would be possible.'

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Meanwhile, with what was left of the Blue Pegasus team…

"Maaan~." by this point, Ichiya had discovered the frozen form of Hibiki, as well as the unconscious forms of Ren and Eve on the ground "It would seem that my parfum is the only one left to fight on behalf of our guild. Leave it to me, with one strike I shall-" he was promptly sent crashing to the ground with a single hit to the back of the head.

As it turns out, Jura was the one who dealt him the finishing blow "You were careless and let down your guard."

"The Wizard Saint strikes again, he defeats the leader of Blue Pegasus with no effort and scores another 5 points for Team Lamia Scale! Looks like we'll have to keep our eyes on Jura, from the looks of it he may very well be the strongest contender in the games!"

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Meanwhile, with another Lamia Scale competitor…

"You may be able to make yourself lighter and faster with your gravity magic, but there is one thing it can't do for you." Xian weaved his way around an attack from Risley and gave her a sharp jab to the back of the neck, causing her to hit the ground in a heap "It can't protect you if you leave yourself wide open."

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"And with some masterful martial arts moves, Xian Lee sends Risley from Team Mermaid Heel packing, which earns a total of 48 points for Team Lamia Scale! Looks like Fairy Tail and Lamia Scale are tied for second place, while Team Sabertooth is ahead of both of them by only a single point! At this point it really could be anyone's game. Well the obvious exceptions to that are Team Quatro Puppy and Team Blue Pegasus, since they've both been taken out of the competition entirely."

"Two teams are down, but three enemy teams still remain." Mavis noted "From this point onwards, I'm expecting the competition to be even more intense."

"Yeah no doubt about it, but I do have to ask though." this was when Lisanna spoke up "About the Wizard Saint down there, Iron Rock Jura, do you have a plan to take him down? I mean you saw that Luke fought him on the first day and had a pretty hard time with it too."

"That is a matter that I've put much thought into, but a solution to that problem is something that still evades me. That's how powerful this Jura is, he truly is something quite extraordinary. But you don't need to worry, I'm confident that a solution will present itself in time."

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Meanwhile, with the rescue team…

"Lucy, hey Lucy get up."

"What the-" Lucy's eyes snapped wide open when she found Luke and the rest of the rescue team standing right outside the door to her cell "You're here! God I can't remember the last time I was this happy to see you guys, now get me out of-"

"Woah take it easy." Luke quickly slapped a hand over her mouth, his voice soft "Keep in mind that the whole point of this is not to get spotted."

"Oh right, sorry."

"Yeah I know, the enthusiasm can really get to you when you're part of this guild." Cana pointed out dryly "But in any case at least you're doing okay."

"A lot better now that you guys are here, but how did you get past the guards?"

"A solid mixture of good acting and transformation magic on Mira's part, nowI need you to stand back a little bit." once they did, Luke gripped the bars and unleashed a small surge of electricity, which promptly disintegrated them and left a large gaping hole in the cell.

"I could've sworn pieces were gonna go flying all over the place when you did that."

"A little bit of subtly can go a long way, but anyway we brought some spare clothes and some food for you if that helps."

"Now all I need is a bath and I'll be as good as new."

"What about you Yukino, you want some?"

"I'll be alright, thank you." Yukino told him quietly, and then she and the girls held up a large tarp to make some room for Lucy to change her clothes.

"So far so good, now we just have to get out of here in one piece."

"If possible then we should try and find a room that will be able to keep all of us hidden from the castle sentry." Lily noted.

"Probably for the best, we want to avoid fighting as much we can."

"Hold on a second guys, those royal goons still have all my keys." Lucy pointed out "It was that creep with the scar on his nose, I swear as soon as I get my hands on him he's gonna get a grand tour of the Celestial-" she was cut off by the room beginning to shake around them, and then the floor beneath them giving out "Oh you've gotta be freaking kidding me, can't a girl just change in peace without getting flung into some gigantic death trap?"

"Not if you're part of this guild."

"...I should've seen that coming."

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About 2 minutes of freefalling and one comical crash later…

"Well all things considered, not the worst surprise freefall we've ever been flung into." Luke let out a groan as he pulled himself back to his feet, then proceeded to help Cana and the rest of them back to their feet "Everybody alright?"

"We've been freefalling for 2 minutes." Cana pointed out dryly "So all things considered, yeah I've been a lot worse. Not the first time the floor gave out under us and flung us into some creepy cave."

"Probably not going to be the last either."

"Greetings everyone, I welcome all of you to your personal holding cell. I hope that you found some enjoyment in the special trap."

"Not really special by our standards, we deal with that sort of thing a lot more than you think we do." Bolt pointed out dryly.

"Take a good look at your surroundings. This is the Palace of Predition, the City of Death. It's the last taste of freedom that is received by criminals, and to this day not a single enemy has been able to escape from it." it was then that a projection of Hisui appeared before them "I have my doubts that any of you will fare much better than the rest you thieves."

"You don't want to underestimate this guild, a lot of people have and it's resulted in them getting their asses handed to them. And speaking of which, who the hell are you exactly?"

"You are speaking to Hisui E Fiore, the princess of the Fiore kingdom."

"Which means that you're the one that trapped us in here, to what end?" the only reply that he would receive was the projection disappearing "Well that's just rude, you'd think she'd at least have the decency to answer."

"You'd also think we wouldn't be classified as criminals." Luke pointed out dryly "These past few days are just full of surprises aren't they? But in any case, for now we've gotta focus on finding a way out of here."

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"Which means that you're the one that trapped us in here, to what end?"

Hisui kept her gaze firm as she shut off the communications with the group, and only afterwards did her facade begin to crack "To the end where I do what I must to protect this kingdom and its people."

Of course the guards in the room with her were quick to praise her actions "You sure showed all of those damn lowlives princess, even with the absence of his majesty you were able to protect the castle with ease. As if there was ever any doubt."

"In your eyes, I suppose not." Hisui's face fell slightly, though she didn't let them see it 'I hope all of you can forgive me, but I do what I must to protect this kingdom and its people, regardless of the consequences.'

A/N:

And so after a long enough wait, this story returns in all of its glory with the second half of the Grand Magic Games arc. Things are really starting to heat up, with the revelation of the details behind the Eclipse plan, and the subsequent capture of Lucy by the hands of the Royal Army. Now Fairy Tail has split into two teams, one to compete in the games and one to rescue Lucy. But this is just the beginning of their struggle, and the worst has yet to come.

So yes, Luke is going to be heading the rescue team, with Bolt, Cana, Wendy, Mira and the other Exceeds backing him up. As for the Grand Magic Games, contrary to canon, I'm going to be having Natsu take his place, so he will be in the games for the final day instead of Juvia. Now this was something I was rather unsure of doing for awhile after I first thought of the idea, but eventually I decided that I would go with it, since it changed things up from canon, and it's more interesting that way. Besides, this way I can set up a unique dynamic between Natsu and a certain other character competing in the games. As for who I am talking about, you'll just have to wait and see. It's not Sherria I can tell you that much, since here she's been defeated pretty early on by Kagura. You might consider that nerfing, but keep in mind that while she might be strong, Kagura is on the level of Erza, so I doubt Sherria would be able to compete with that.

Now then, to close out this chapter I would just like to take a moment to thank all of you for getting this story to up to over 300 favorites and 300 followers, over the span of 50 chapters! This is a milestone that I've never even come close to reaching before, and it wouldn't be possible without all of the support you've given me over the past year and a half, and since this is the last chapter of the story I'll be putting out in 2020, let me just say it again: Thank you all very much, and I wish all of you a Happy New Year.