Chapter 111

Soaring Above Ishgar

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

"Magic"

Flashback

Location / Date / Time Skip

The pair of Slayers charged at the demon, who opened his wings and unleashed a swarm of vines at the two. Instantly, half of them were frozen solid while the other were burned to ash. The attack was a distraction as Mard Geer was now flying above them. He grabbed their heads and slammed the pair into the ground before flying upwards, the two still in his grasp.

"Let go, you bastard!" Natsu shouted.

"Welcome to the others side of Tartaros." Mard Geer declared. "The end of the road for those who encounter demons." Flying through the hole, he slammed them on the side and they cried out. "I'll scrape away every part of you, even your feelings."

Below the flying demon, Sting jumped back from an arm thrust and glared at his former guild master. "So it was you who dragged Minerva into this as well?"

"She was of no use at all." Jiemma declared. "It was foolish of me to think she'd be any better with demonic powers."

"She's your daughter!" Rogue snapped back.

"No." Jiemma said, punching the Shadow user back. "Her only purpose was to carry on the strongest bloodline, but she failed even at that."

"SHUT UP!" Sting punched him hard in the head, sending him sliding back.

"…Is that all?" Jiemma chuckled before a palm strike blasted Sting in the face. He then waved his hand and cut Rogue out of a shadow. "Do you children seriously think you've taken over Sabertooth at this level?"

"We've… recovered Sabertooth…" Rogue gasped out. "Returned it to what… it's supposed to be."

"What a joke!" Jiemma slammed his boot into his back, making the Dragon Slayer gasp in pain. "Sabertooth is meant to be the strongest! And you weak fools have made a mess out of it!"

"We were weak…" Sting declared, forcing himself up. "But our weakness was nothing like the one you speak of. We're not going back to being that thinks nothing of its own guild members."

"To be a truly strong guild… We need to start there." Rogue added, pushing the boot off his back. "That's why it's high time you disappear."

Both threw a punch from either side and Jiemma blocked both. "A truly strong guild!? I've never heard of something that absurd!" Jiemma laughed back. "The word 'strongest' only exists for one being! And that's me!"

"You're wrong." Sting declared. "A strong guild exists and it's nearby… We were lucky to meet such an honest guild."

"ENOUGH!" Jiemma flexed his muscles and blasted the two back. "Only one person can be the strongest! Relying on others is the very definition of weakness! You fools are the ultimate weaklings!"

"Even if we are, we're living for the sake of someone else! Learning to love another as a reason to stay alive!" Sting shouted back.

"We'll become strong just like Fairy Tail!" Rogue added as rhe pair gathered their elements around them.

"I've heard enough!"

"We'll stitch the wounds you crafted shut-" Rogue declared.

"With a bond of black and white!" Sting finished before lines of Shadow and White magic punctured the demon.

"White Shadow Dragon's Rough Silk!" Both pulled on the lines and Jiemma cried in pain as his necklace shattered and he collapsed to the ground, covered in wounds all over the body.

Both slayers panted before they dropped to the ground. "The rest… is up to you…" Sting said before they fell over to the ground.

Natsu and Gray roared before they grabbed Mard Geer arms and flipped over, punching the demon in the face with their elements. The explosion of fire and ice caught Mard Geer off guard and forced him back before throwing a kick that punted Natsu back.

He flipped over and unleashed an inferno from his mouth, forcing Mard Geer back. "Ice Devil Rage!" He turned around and was meet with a torrent of ice that froze one of his wings.

Pulling his hand back, the Underworld King gathered a large amount of Curse energy. "Dea Yggdrasil!" A massive chunk of vines fell down from the sky, aimed squarely at the Slayer duo. Fire and ice punches struck the trunk over and over until it cracked into a thousand shards.

"Ice Make: Gungnir!" From the frozen shards, Gray crafted a massive spear and shot it into the sky.

Mard Geer moved to the side and the attacked missed, onlu for it to crack. Turning around, he found Natsu above him, having hitched a ride inside the spell. "Fire Dragon Brilliant Flame!" A massive ball of fire hit his face and sent him crashing into the ground.

Natsu landed next to Gray as the dust was blown away with a flap of the wings. "How the hell do we hurt this guy?" Natsu questioned in annoyance.

"If my magic could just hit him…" Gray mumbled.

"You've entertained me, humans." Mard Geer confessed before throwing an open palm. Black mist started surrounding the two before it latched onto the two. "A long time ago, magic was born. Then Master E.N.D. created a new power: curses. In this new world, Curses are superior in all aspects. Fall in to Purgatory. This is the ultimate Curse I've devised for one purpose!"

The power started glowing before the pair screamed in horror. "The memory of death. Memori Mori!" An explosion of wailing sounds blasted the two upwards. "To kill an immortal, I must destroy the concept of life and death. Those hit by this curse are neither alive or dead. They merely vanish.

"Their future becomes nothing…" The blast faded as chunks of stone fell to the ground. Mard Geer looked out over the destruction and returned to his normal form. "I have completed the ultimate Curse, Memori Mori. With this, once E.N.D. is revived, I'll be able to kill you, Zeref."

Staring at the massive crater, Mard Geer showed no expression of victory. "This is the ultimate Curse, Memori Mori." The sound of movement caught him by surprise before the ground burst open. To his shock, Gray and Natsu were still alive, the former covered in black marks. "Impossible… Half of his body's been demonized… Are you telling me that's how he survived my ultimate curse!?"

"All… I can do now…" Gray mumbled as he fell over. "…is believe in Natsu…"

Natsu rushed forward as Mard Geer returned to his Etherious mode. "DAMN YOU!" Natsu punched the demon as hard as he could, fire blasting the Underworld King back.

He crashed into a wall and the stone shattered behind him, much to his shock. "What is this power?" A knee strike hit him in the face, and that's when he noticed the scales on Natsu's face. "Ia this Dragon Force!?"

"Dragon Slayer Secret Art!" Natsu shouted from a chunk of stone, fire erupting around him. "Crimson Lotus: Phoenix Sword!" He burst upwards and speared Mard Geer right on the gut, making both gasp in pain.

"THIS ISN'T OVER!" Mard Geer grabbed onto Natsu's head, flying straight towards the ground. "I'll destroy every bit of flesh on you!"

"…Unbelievable…" Natsu mumbled. "My magic's at zero, and you're still going."

"DISAPPEAR!"

"But… I believe in Gray!" The pinkette shouted.

Mard Geer glanced down and found the Ice wizard standing, a frozen bow in his hand. "Ice Devil Zeroth Destruction Bow!" Firing the bow, the attack hit Mard Geer in the chest before it exploded, ice out if his back and front. Natsu and Mard Geer crashed to the ground, sliding apart.

"We did it…" Natsu said as the mark on Gray's arm faded.

"Not yet…" Gray declared. "This isn't over until I destroy E.N.D."

"Oh yeah! That book…" Natsu started crawling over towards the tome. "Listen, I'm supposed to get that book for Igneel."

Gray reached down and picked it up. "You're not getting it." He declared.

"Just hand it over!"

"Not going to happen." Gray snapped back, holding up the book. "This thing made Tartaros and he's the most powerful demon in any of Zeref's book. This might be the only chance we have to kill him."

"I made Igneel a promise…" Natsu growled, pushing himself up. "Now give me the book!"

"No." The two glared at each other before the ground started shaking. "The hell?"

"It can't be…" Natsu mumbled. "Face…"

Mard Geer chuckled on the ground, catching their attention. "I should never have doubted Kyouka's power…" He said. "Magic will disappear from the continent. The world of magic ends today."

Lucy crashed to the ground as her body lost all of its strength. Lisanna dropped to a knee as her cat features faded away, returning her to her normal clothing… or rather her lack there of. Mest quickly threw his coat over her to save her modesty. "The ethernano's weaking…" He stated.

"This feeling…" Wendy mumbled, worried about the panic happening in the world.

With Mard Geer

"You do know that this is only the beginning." The Underworld King declared. "Once all of your magic is rendered obsolete, the seal which binds my master will break. The moment the mightiest Etherious has been restored, your species will find itself devoid of both magic and hope. Your time is up."

Natsu was forced to a knee as he glared at the demon. "Damn it!"

Up in the sky, a bellowing roar scared everyone before Acnologia crashed onto the ground. He pushed his head up, only for a red claw to press against his neck. "Do not despair, humans!" Igneel shouted, turning to the sky. "All is not lost."

Far away from the battlefield, the Christina flew around a Face pillar. "What the hell is up?" Ren complained. "We couldn't destroy this thing, even with all of our cannons."

"And we're losing magic fast." Hibiki added. "We're about to fall. What do we do, boss?"

"You need to move!" A voice shouted around them, forcing Jenny to look around the window.

"What is that?" She questioned as the white object flew closer at them.

"Evasive maneuvers!" Ichiya shouted as the ship dodged, letting the object crash into Face… and completely obliterated the pillar before flying onward. "Wha-what was that!?"

"Some kind of bird?" Jenny questioned as the dust settled, revealing a large, four-legged Dragon. The white body, which appeared to be covered in tissue similar to bird feathers, rather than scales. The feet resembled bird talons as well. The head was covered in what appears to be fur and the skull is somewhat broad and flat. The fur extended down the neck and to the upper chest region.

"A dragon!?" Eve shouted.

Gajeel collapsed to the ground and Laki dropped to a knee, both gasping in pain. Sting and Rogue did the same in a mix of confusion. Far away, their dragon parents crashed into Face again and again, destroying them. "My kin are freed at last! We soar through the skies of Ishgar once again!"

Igneel roared in triumph as Mard Geer went wide eyed in horror. Natsu smiled at his dad as the six dragons roared over the land. Drusta swung her tail and toppled the last one to the ground, crushing the visage and roaring. "We've stopped E.N.D.'s resurrection…" Igneel declared, unaware that the humans were cheering in victory.

"Defeated…" Mard Geer mumbled in horror.

Across the ground, Sting and Rogue were still in a shock of the revelation. "Weisslogia's still alive…"

"As are Drusta, Skaidrum, Metallicana and Grandeeny." Igneel declared. "We've all been inside you Dragon Slayers… or rather, sleeping inside you due to a sealing spell."

"Oh yeah, I didn't hear about that, ya know!" Natsu shouted at his father. "Why the hell were you in me!? I don't remember eating you!"

"There were reasons for that." The dragon declared. "The forst would be so we could stop you from transforming into dragons like Acnologia did. The second-" His claw was pushed off the massive beast as Acnologia forced himself free. "We'll finish once I deal with him! Get that book!"

The two monsters took to the sky as Natsu turned to Gray, still clutching the demonic tome. "I made my own promise. I'd kill E.N.D." He declared, his hand never leaving the book.

Above the battlefield, the two beasts crashed into each other head first. "To sop the Dragon Slayers from transforming, you hid inside those filthy creatures…" The Black Dragon growled.

"What more do you want, Acnologia!?" Igneel shouted. "The end you fear is no more!"

"Fear? Me?" Acnologia mockingly repeated. "Fear is for the likes of humans or the abominations of Zeref's books. I am Acnologia, the king of the dragons!"

"You were once human yourself." Igneel reminded his foe as the two crashed into each other head first. "We won't let Natsu and the others become like you!"

Gray's hand was suddenly empty as the book was pulled away. "This book belongs to me…" All five slowly turned their heads as footsteps crept closer and closer. "So I'll be taking it back. It's really important, you know."

"Zeref…" Mard Geer mumbled in shock.

One more chapter and then we are done with Tartaros, but its a hell of a chapter left. Seriously, what happens next is such a gut punch that it STILL hurts. And add in what I have planned for Laki, damn I'm a sick fuck. I apologize for being a day late, beta reader probably had some stuff to do IRL. Not butting in anymore than that, so see ya next tome.

Beta read by General Feng Xiang