Lucy groaned as she slowly came to. She opened her eyes and gasped when she was met with an unfamiliar ceiling. She sat up and looked around to see she was in a warehouse full of old crates pushed off to the side.
"You're awake!"
She jumped and turned to see Levy and Reedus smiling at her. It took a moment for her mind to catch up with what happened, and she quickly got to her feet.
"Levy! Where are we? I know Mira put me to sleep but…"
"Woah, hey now. Take it easy." The script magic user raised her hands and made the celestial wizard sit down. "We're at one of Fairy Tail's safehouses, we're safe here. After Mira put you to sleep, she told Reedus to bring you here."
"Oh…hold on, is everyone still fighting Phantom? Shouldn't you be over there fighting them? What about-"
"It's fine," Levy said. "I didn't want you two to be all alone. I know this is a safe place but I couldn't just leave you on your own. Not if Phantom plans on pulling something underhanded again."
"I see." She looked down, thinking of what to say next. "Is…everyone okay? As far as you know?"
"Most likely," Reedus looked up from the mini canvas he brought along. "We heard a few explosions in the distance, and we believe that was on Fairy Tail's end."
"Knowing what we do, it was probably Natsu wrecking the canon. If that's the case, then things are probably looking up."
Lucy managed a small smile at the mention of the dragonslayer, but it fell after a moment. She stood up to look at Levy and Reedus.
"I know you all brought me here to keep me safe, but I still wish I could be over there fighting. I'm responsible for all this, so shouldn't I be helping out?"
"Lucy…"
"I know I'd be a target, but I can fight! I know all of Fairy Tail is involved, but it still doesn't feel right that they're fighting because of something I caused. I just…" She instinctively reached for her keys for comfort, only to find nothing.
She gasped looked around. "M-My keys! I- where are they? When did-"
"You dropped them yesterday, when Juvia and Sol tried to kidnap you. Izuku had grabbed them before we split off. Didn't he stay at your apartment last night? I thought he would have given them back to you?"
"Izuku has them?"
At Levy's nod she looked down. He most likely still had them, and he was so far away.
He probably meant to give them back to me, but after everything we talked about it probably slipped his mind.
"We don't blame you Lucy." Reedus cut through her thoughts. "We could never do that."
Lucy bit her lip and sat down beside Levy. She hated this, she couldn't help them. Instead all she could do was wait and imagine what was going on over there.
While the hidden group talked over what was happening, and what to do next, they were blissfully unaware of a shadow lurking nearby, and a group of Phantom wizards walking through the streets of Magnolia.
-FH-
Gray found himself running around the legs of the giant. After he caught his breath he began to explore. He had seen the remaining arm of the giant was drawing out a giant magic circle. He couldn't tell which one it was, but if Phantom was doing it, it probably wasn't good.
Issue is, he had no idea how to stop it apart from making the arm collapse. He couldn't do that from his current position, and he doubted he had enough magic left to damage the arm to that extent.
Though, knowing Natsu and Erza, they probably knew about it and were finding a way to deal with it. Even so, that didn't mean he could slack off. He was sure there was something he could do from where he was.
While he looked around for a way inside the giant, he heard something drip. Then again, and again. Then he felt it, a slight chill as water began to fall onto him.
"It's raining?"
"Drip. Drip. Drop."
He turned around when he heard the voice, but saw nothing. At least, not at first. It took a moment to find her. She almost blended in perfectly with the rain. A woman clad in blue with an umbrella in her hand.
She approached him with an impassive look on her face. She stopped a few ways from him, looking him up and down. She said nothing to him.
She didn't need to, Gray already knew who he was dealing with. The way she stared at him made him tense up, she wasn't going to let him leave so easily. He was sure he had plenty of magic left. Just enough to get through this fight.
"Doubt just any of you Phantom members are crazy enough to stay when your guild hall is crumbling. You're one of Phantom's Element 4, aren't you?"
"Quite perceptive. Yes, I am Juvia the Rain Woman, and you are a Fairy Tail wizard." She stopped walking and simply stood across from him.
They continued to stare at each other. The longer it went on the more uncomfortable she seemed. She averted her eyes and stared off in a different direction.
"I must say, it's rather impressive that you were able to strike down one of our Element 4. However, you'd be wise to not underestimate those of us who remain."
"If you ask me, it's par for the course. Only took one of us to send you and your friend running the last time you came here."
He didn't miss how she tensed up.
"You're referring to that boy, aren't you?"
His silence was answer enough.
She gripped her umbrella tightly, and Gray readied himself. He put his hands together, but before he could channel any of his magic, Juvia spoke up again.
"Before we begin, a question if I may." She saw him raise an eyebrow, and took it as a sign to continue. "I'm sure you're aware of the kind of danger he poses, having the ability to drain one's magic to the point of near death. And I'm certain that some of your anger towards us comes from his encounter with Gajeel."
"Get to the point."
"If you're aware of the kind of threat he is, knowing very well what he could do to your guild- why do you defend him? How certain are you that he won't turn that power on you, like he has to us?"
Gray paused. He didn't say anything for a bit, and she continued to watch him.
"He won't," he finally said. "I know he won't."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because he's a good kid. I've dealt with him before, and he fixed what he did." His hands clenched into fists. "He's one of us, and when you hurt one of our own, you get to deal with the consequences. He didn't ask to have that kind of magic, but it's the hand life dealt him. I don't get any room to judge him for that."
The rain seemed to intensify for a moment.
"'That good enough for you?"
"I…yes." She fidgeted.
"Now come on," he put his hands together once more. "Let's get this over with."
He tensed up when she stiffened up, only for her to turn the other way and walk away briskly.
"W-Well, no need to fight. I give up. You win."
"Wait, hey!"
She didn't answer him, if anything she sped up.
"If you're not going to fight then tell me how to stop the giant!"
She fidgeted as she walked away, becoming more and more uneasy. Before he could get too close to her she turned around and a magic circle appeared below him. He was engulfed in water and shouted in pain.
Through the water he could see Juvia startle and look around. He scowled and began to channel his ice magic once more. He spread the cold energy around him, then shattered the prison.
She gasped in awe as he fell to the ground. He panted and looked up at her.
"You almost had me with that sneak attack. But you're going to have to try a lot harder than that." He braced himself.
"Nice to know we're past all the niceties. Go ahead and give it your all, because I'm not holding back!"
-FH-
Izuku cried out as intense gusts of wind cut through the air and attempted to slice into him. Once again Gajeel's stolen magic saved him. He fell to the ground and slowly got up.
"Damn it nerd! Get your head in the game. Finish this creep off already!"
"I'm trying!" He looked at the flying cat.
He knew what he needed to do, but it was easier said than done.
I can't get close to him! I can't take back Master's magic!
"How stubborn you are. How sad. Such a spirited child, and yet you seem insistent on making this place your grave." Aria stood across from him calmly, the man hadn't even moved from where he first appeared..
He had been keeping Izuku away with long range attacks, continually pushing him back or flinging him across the room. It was admittedly impressive how he could use Air Magic in such a way. But it quickly lost its charm when it was becoming annoying.
Izuku used the sword Erza gifted him to keep his balance, then stood up on his own.
"Tell me child, how do you hope to defeat me? You should know you are nowhere near my caliber of power. All you will find is agony."
"What's the fun in telling you, you weepy freak?" Katsuki yelled.
The man hummed and held up a hand and a magic circle appeared before him.
Izuku's eyes darted around for any tell of the attack, only for the air in front of him to explode. Multiple explosions followed after, preventing him from recovering.
I can't even touch the spell and absorb the magic! I can't even tell where it's coming from!
Izuku once again fell to the ground and struggled to catch his breath. His body was aching, and the past effort of stopping the Jupiter cannon was starting to catch up with him. He slammed a fist to the ground and pushed himself up.
"Come on nerd…"
Get up. Don't pass out, don't you dare pass out! You haven't finished your job yet. You still need to take him down.
"Still getting up. An unwise decision."
Izuku stumbled, but managed to stand up again. It was an effort to even do that, but he managed.
He continued to catch his breath as he glared at the man. He needed to buy some time, to come up with a plan. He needed some breathing room.
"Hey Aria, I've got a question for you, if you don't mind."
The man barely looked up, but he took that as a sign to continue.
"Your magic, how does it work exactly? One would think that if you took Master Makarov's magic, you'd be using it to fight. He's a pretty powerful wizard, or is that you just can't? Does his magic not work with yours?"
Aria paused. He stared at the boy for some time before a new stream of tears poured down his face. A low sob broke from him and he shook his head.
"How sad, you came to face me with no knowledge of how my magic works. How sad, how foolish. No child, my magic does not function as yours does. Though perhaps I can understand how you came to believe as such."
Izuku faltered. "W-What? How does your magic work then? You can take magic but you…"
"I drain mages of their magic, but it is not mine to keep. No, I take their magic and it scatters to the winds, allowing it to eventually dissipate. Leaving them in a sorry state for the rest of their days."
Izuku paled, and suddenly his borrowed sword felt incredibly heavy. "But…your magic. Can you use it to give it back? You make it scatter, can't you use your wind to gather it again?"
"Perhaps, perhaps not. There's been no reason to try."
His hands shook, but he forced them to steady. "Then that means there's still a chance to save him."
Aria shook his head. "And I assume you believe my magic is the key to your plan?" At Izuku's silence he continued. "The window to successfully gather his magic is gone, it's likely all gone by now."
"Even so, it's still a chance. Quite frankly I'd be dumb to not try it."
"Despite the impossible situation you've put yourself in, you still cling to hope. I suppose that's admirable." The man put his hands up, palms facing forward. "I believe we've dragged this out long enough, child. Allow me to give you a swift death."
The air grew heavy. Wind slowly began to swirl around Izuku, kicking up dust and whipping his hair around. As the man focused on his spell, Izuku tried to run forward to strike him, only for the wind to intensify. He stumbled back and quickly recovered.
He was about to try and free himself when he realized he couldn't breathe. His lungs began to burn as he desperately tried to get a breath in, but there was no air. What little air remained in his lungs felt like it was being sucked out.
"Deku!" Katsuki could only watch Izuku drop to his knees and claw at his throat. Izuku felt himself becoming lightheaded, black dots dancing at the edges of his vision.
"You blindfolded bastard!" Katsuki turned around and tried to charge at the wizard, only to get batted away like nothing.
Stay conscious, stay conscious. Come on figure a way out…No. No, I can barely think…
He tried to get to his feet again, when he couldn't he tried to crawl over to the violent winds caging him in. Much to his frustration his body gave out on him, and he couldn't move.
He could faintly hear Katsuku yelling at him to get up already. To take the magic in the air or something, to fight back. He wanted to, he really did, but it was hard enough to stay conscious.
He hardly made any progress before the magic energy in the air intensified and the spell suddenly collapsed. The area of the spell exploded with magic energy and sent Izuku flying.
He couldn't even cry out in pain, too focused on trying to breathe between the pain now that the air wasn't being taken from him. He dragged in air with desperate gulps, and tried to get up. He could breathe now, he just needed to catch his breath and get to his feet.
He couldn't lose, that wasn't an option.
Izuku shakily got to his feet as Aria disappeared. He glared at the room through blurry vision, it was taking everything he had just to not fall over. He couldn't pass out. Not now. He needed to focus, and see where the next attack would come from. A mist began to form, only making him more nervous.
"You have fought valiantly, and so I will reward you. I will allow you to share a similar fate with your Master." Aria's voice echoed all around him.
Izuku felt the air shift behind him and he whirled around to see Aria had appeared, towering over him with palms facing each other.
"Deku! Get the hell out of there!"
Izuku tried to will himself to move, but the spell was faster.
"Airspace: Drain!"
Two large magic circles appeared around him. Before he could react an intense light surrounded him.
Izuku screamed as the magic energy surrounded him, digging into him and trying to rip away at the vital piece of him. He only screamed louder as something terrible burned through him, fighting back against the spell and pulling against the intense magic.
It was like being torn apart from the inside out.
"So sad! To see such a young soul suffer, but you will feel as others have felt! The pain you've imposed on others, you will feel too!"
An intense feeling settled in his chest, burning him through to the core. An intense anger that slowly grew to a boiling rage.
"Beast Arm Black Bull!"
"Fire Dragon Roar!"
The spell was interrupted as Aria received a blow from a newcomer, and a stream of flames followed after, narrowly dodged by the man disappearing.
Izuku fell forward, but was caught before he could hit the ground.
"We got here just in time. You okay kid?"
He looked up through blurry vision and saw Elfman looking down at him.
"Izuku, you okay? Come on, say something!"
He looked to the side and saw Natsu running over.
"Does he look okay to either of you dumbasses?" Katsuki shouted.
"Katsuki, you're okay too!"
"Shut up fleabag!"
Izuku wanted to push himself up, and stand without support, but his body wouldn't listen. Despite the raging, instinctive anger in his chest he couldn't move.
He didn't realize the green sparks danced around his form as he slumped forward.
"I couldn't…"
"It's alright. Just leave the rest to us buddy, you did good." Natsu ruffled his hair.
No, that's not it. There's something…wrong…
Izuku blacked out, going limp in Elfman's arms.
Elfman and Natsu watched him pass out, then looked up at Aria who had appeared at the end of the room.
Elfman laid Izuku down and stood up to glare at the man. "So, you must be the guy that hurt our Master, right?"
"Yeah, this is the guy." Natsu clenched his fists.
"Well, picking on a kid, and an old man ain't manly. Especially if it's with cheap tactics!" Elfman stepped forward. "If you wanna prove that you're a real man, then you get to deal with me!"
"We got a score to settle, so don't think you're getting off easy!" Natsu grinned.
"A dragon and a beast have wandered onto the battlefield. Very well, if you wish to suffer as your dear friend has, I will oblige."
As Natsu and Elfman charged forward they didn't notice the green sparks around Izuku growing in intensity. The boy clenched his fists and opened his eyes. Green faded into red.
-FH-
The sound of metal striking metal filled the room. Small shards of broken swords and chipped metal were all over the place.
Gajeel was pinned. His back was to the wall as Erza struck his metal covered arms again and again. Whenever there was a brief moment she wasn't attacking, he took the time to try and put some distance between her and himself. However she made sure to close the distance every time.
She shouted as she brought a sword down on his arm, and it shattered.
Gajeel grinned as it gave him an opening and he darted forward.
"You're open, Titania!"
She raised her remaining sword and blocked the blow. Before he could do anything else she called upon another sword and sent it flying his way. He was forced to dodge to avoid getting slashed.
The sword came to her hand and she charged forward, once again bringing her sword down on a metal covered arm.
They were at a standstill as they glared at each other. In the distance they could hear more shouts and yells as members of Phantom tried to flee the building.
Gajeel panted as he pressed against Erza's swords, she was trying to catch her breath too. Though her anger seemed to make her recover faster, she hadn't let up ever since Izuku left.
"You know Titania, I don't really get what the big deal is about that little brat. You're really willing to try and do me in for the sake of that parasite?"
She grit her teeth and shouted as she pushed him away, and brought her swords down again. They both shattered, and took some of Gajeel's armor with them.
"You have a lot of nerve to speak about him like that." She backed up and went through which armors she could use in her mind.
"Now why would you say that? I've actually dealt with the kid, and I know what he's capable of."
"I'm aware of your hand in harming him. And I intend to pay it back tenfold."
"You're really going to try and kill me over that brat? By all means I was defending myself, and actually doing you fairy flies a favor." He narrowly dodged a blade that went through the wall. "You don't even know what he is. Do you?"
Erza threw her sword and watched as it embedded itself in the wall, right next to Gajeel's head. A line of red formed on his cheek.
"If you're referring to the kind of power he wields, I know very well what it is." The armor on her body began to glow. Her Heaven's Wheel Armor disappeared and her Black Wing Armor appeared in its place. She raised a hand and summoned the sword that paired with her armor.
"I don't care about what sort of magic he has, it doesn't change who he is as a person. He's a child with a strange power he was only made aware of recently. A child that was forced from his home and only now found somewhere to rest. A place where he's cared for, a place I'd like to think he could call home."
She gripped her sword tightly. "You've already hurt him once and your guild seeks to hurt another one of our own- and I won't allow it to happen again."
"Aw, how touching." Gajeel grinned. "It almost makes my heart melt."
Erza raced forward and raised her sword to strike him. The dragonslayer grinned as a magic circle appeared in front of him.
"Iron Dragon Roar!"
The onslaught of magic came quickly and Erza only had time to raise her arms to shield herself from the shards of metal that flew through the air.
The wall of the hall they stood on exploded outward with the magic roar. Erza ended up outside in the rain, and floated in the air thanks to her armor. She panted and looked over herself, only a few scratches, she was still in one piece.
She looked up when she heard cackling, and saw Gajeel standing at the edge of the building and looking outside.
"Well, well look at that. Looks like your guild is toast Titania!"
She shot him a glare, and hesitantly looked behind her. She gasped as she saw a giant magic circle being drawn by the giant's remaining arm. She recognized it immediately.
"An Abyss Break? Are you insane? A spell that large will destroy the entire town!"
"So what? Why should we care? It's just some crappy backwater town that houses an equally worthless guild!"
Erza grit her teeth and forced her hands to stop shaking. She wasn't scared, no. If anything her rage had only been stoked further. Innocent lives, people who had nothing to do with the conflict between the guilds!
She looked around and tried to piece a plan together, only to be interrupted by another laugh.
"What's wrong Titania? Shaken up all of a sudden? Lost your nerve?"
Her temper flared, and before either of them could blink she was back in the room. Tearing through the place as she chased Gajeel down. She had been driven into a rage induced frenzy. Shouting as she tried to strike him again and again. Whatever Gajeel couldn't block he was forced to dodge, and whatever suffered from her attack didn't stand a chance. It was immediately destroyed.
It was clear now. She wasn't going for accuracy, no instead she intended to rip and tear whatever was in front of her until it didn't exist anymore, and she didn't care what was in the way.
He was forced to go on the defensive again and wait her out, if he survived that long.
He kept suffering from close calls, and saw the floor or a wall in his place be torn to shreds. It wasn't long before he ran out of stable footholds, and he struggled to really go anywhere.
For a moment he was able to get steady, and she hadn't closed the distance. Gajeel took the chance to throw his arm forward, turning it into a metal beam. She dodged to the side, and the beam collided with the wall.
He grinned, and more beams appeared from his arm, and Erza made sure to dodge every one of them, seeing them impale the surrounding walls and floor. She looked down to see Gajeel panting, and still trying to give that cocky smile.
"What's wrong Titania? Get tuckered out? You're looking kind of winded."
She landed across from him, and looked up with a smirk. She tried not to make her panting obvious. "No, I'm just fine. Though I do have to thank you."
He looked confused.
"Thank you for ducking and dodging all over the place, and then with your last attempt to get me. And always keeping an eye on me of course. You've certainly helped out a great deal, truly I couldn't do it without you."
"What are you on about?"
She smiled as a piece of the ceiling crumbled, and only then he pieced it together. He looked outside at the magic circle being drawn and realized where they were in the giant.
"You damn fairy fly!" He transformed his arm again, instead it looked more like a blade with spikes lining the edge. He swung his weapon toward her and only served to tear up more of the room.
"I believe it's time we end this!" She evaded another set of beams that came from his sword arm. She raised her sword and dashed towards him. "I've wasted enough time here on you, now fall."
As he raised his arms to defend himself once more, she channeled magic energy into her sword and slashed forward in a cross pattern, unleashing waves of magic. She landed past him and watched her attack cut through Gajeel, and through the rest of the room.
She braced herself and saw the magic energy tear through everything, causing the room to explode. There was a moment of triumph, and then the world began to tilt. She quickly darted out of the room and distanced herself from the collapsing section.
She looked behind her and saw the Abyss Break spell shimmer and fade as the shoulder of the giant detached and fell from the main body, taking the arm with it. She watched the area to see Gajeel sprinting out of the room, and getting to the connecting room of the next section just in time. His arms that had been covered in metal were bleeding now.
He glared up at her as she just watched the arm fall down into the ocean. There were loud cheers in the distance. As she turned her gaze downwards she heard a loud scream, and saw a burst of ice magic erupt from the ground.
Gray!
From the looks of it, he was in a fight as well, and just won.
They were doing well, even without Makarov it looked like there was at least a chance at victory.
"Titania!"
Erza glanced toward the dragonslayer and flew down, landing on the connecting section. What stood beyond that was a path to the main body.
"You're still standing." Erza said. "Impressive, you're stronger than you look."
"I ain't some random punk!" He shouted. "This ain't over till one of us is dead."
"Oh I'm well aware. And after what you've done, we are far from finished."
He was bloody and broken, but not beaten. If he wanted to go further, then Erza would happily oblige. After all, defeating Gajeel was considered one of the priorities to winning this fight. By all means she had a responsibility to do this.
She changed back to her Heaven's Wheel armor and summoned a set of swords that formed a circle at her back. The giant had finally stopped shaking and the ground was settled.
Gajeel raised his hands as Erza raised his sword. They stared at each other, daring the other to move. They both tensed up, and just as they were about to charge towards each other an intense air of dread fell over them.
They both faltered and Erza looked around in a panic. There was something wrong, it both set them on edge. Pure instinct demanded that they run from the source, but both refused to move.
Gajeel actually looked shaken, and looked behind him at the path to the main body. He'd felt this before.
There was an intense energy in the area, almost suffocating. There was static in the air, ready to spark and zap at anything around.
"What is this?" She gripped her sword tightly to keep herself from shaking.
The dragonslayer didn't say anything at first, but turned back to her with a grin. He clenched his fists as he looked at her. "Uh oh, that doesn't seem too good. Looks like that parasite of yours might be in trouble."
Anger brushed away the momentary fear and she charged forward, pinning Gajeel to a wall with a sword beside his head.
"In the time it takes you to finish me off, you think that little brat will still be standing? I'm willing to bet a couple Jewel that by the time you do me in, he's gonna be dead. He's got plenty of people gunning for him as it is."
Erza stopped. "What? Who else is after him?"
"Come on, you can't be that dense. Master Jose ain't exactly too happy with the brat, he's been screwing a lot of stuff up. Being a pain in general."
"So he'd kill a child?"
"What do you think? He's pretty set on finishing all you fairies off. That one is just more of a pest!" He lunged to the side and bit through the sword, making her back away and summon a new one.
"Tick tock Titania, you gotta choose. You wanna finish me off? Or are you gonna go save that thing?"
She scowled and raised her blade, then stopped. She was sure Izuku could handle himself, she trusted him to deal with Aria. But if the cause of that dread was Jose the poor boy didn't stand a chance.
She continued to glare at Gajeel before donning her normal armor and dashing past the dragonslayer, into the depths of the Phantom guild hall.
Gajeel yelled after her, hurling taunts at her that she ignored. He was worn down enough, no longer a priority.
Izuku, you have to be okay. Don't you dare die!
-.-
"I really hope everyone is okay…"
"I'm sure they are Lucy. They're all tough. Just wait, before you know it, it'll all be over and Fairy Tail will have won."
Levy leaned against Lucy who hummed her thanks. It felt like they had been hiding forever. Lucy would get up and pace for a bit before settling down again. Levy kept talking to her and Reedus worked on painting the two.
"And once that's all done, you can get your keys back."
Lucy groaned and put her head on her hands. "They're going to be so upset that I lost them, and that they haven't been with me this entire time."
"They can't be too mad. It's not like you meant to lose them."
"Oh one in particular is going to be livid."
"Yeah?"
"Yup. Pray for me."
Levy began to laugh, but that was cut short by a loud bang. They all stood up and looked at the front door to the safe house. It had been dented, and then another one appeared, and another.
"No way, did Phantom find us? But how?"
Levy put herself in front of Lucy as another dent in the door appeared. "No idea, but Lucy, you need to run."
"What? No, I can't leave you two behind!"
"Don't worry about us Lucy, we'll be fine." Reedus assured her. "It's you who needs to make an escape."
"But you…"
"We'll be okay. Please Lucy." Levy gave her a smile and turned to the door again.
Lucy took a step back, then another as the door began to wear down. She instinctively reached for her keys, but of course they weren't there.
The door came crashing down, and a large group of Phantom Lord members walked in. They looked around and smiled at each other when they saw the three wizards in the safehouse. Two of Jose's shades accompanied them.
"Well, well, well, looks like we caught ourselves a couple of fairies." A girl stepped inside.
"And a princess." One sneered as he looked at Lucy.
"Lucy, run!"
"But-"
"Just go!"
A magic circle appeared in front of Reedus as he painted vulcans on his stomach. They came to life with the spell and shot towards the group.
"Solid script: Thunder!" Levy pointed up at the ceiling and cast her magic. The word thunder, spelled out with energetic lightning shot up before raining down.
The girl from before grinned and jumped in front of the attacks. "Mirror Magic: Form Mirror!"
A set of mirrors appeared before her and absorbed the attacks. She grinned as they glowed and the attacks were directed right back at them.
Reedus dove in front of Levy and took on the brunt of the attack, and was sent flying into some of the crates around.
"Reedus!"
Reedus slowly got to his feet. "Levy…take Lucy and go."
Levy looked at him in shock, then turned to the rest of the wizards. All of them were smiling, ready to take their turn at inflicting pain.
They couldn't win this, not without it being a total defeat. Still, it didn't mean that she shouldn't try. "I'm not going anywhere. Lucy, you need to go! We'll hold them off as long as we can. Please!"
The celestial mage stared at them with watering eyes before turning away and sprinting towards the other exit.
"Oh no you don't, princess!"
One of the mages held out a hand and a magic circle appeared in front of him.
"Sound Blast: Howling!"
An unbearable screeching filled the room, making all of the Fairy Tail wizards cover their ears. Reedus cried out, once again taking the brunt of the magic before falling over unconscious.
"Reedus!"
"Does this guild seriously just let anybody in?"
Levy held up her hands, trying to think of what spell to cast next.
"I know right? I mean look at this ball of lard, this guy didn't even stand a chance."
One of them kicked the unconscious Reedus as they passed, and approached Levy.
"But then again, I guess they've got decent taste. So at least we can have some fun."
"You lot have no manners, do you?"
A bright light burst out from the entrance, and the Phantom members at the entrance were struck down.
"Knuckle Plant!"
Small magic circles appeared on the ground and plants sprang up to hit the people further inside.
"Falcon Heavenward!" A figure came dashing forward and struck down the Phantom member right in front of Levy.
"Jet, Droy! And Loke!" Levy looked relieved.
The few members who weren't struck down yet stumbled back in surprise. The two shades faded into the shadows of the warehouse, watching.
"Levy, are you okay?" Both Jet and Droy rushed over.
"I'm okay, but it's Reedus you should be worried about. He's out cold."
Loke ran forward and put himself in between the group and the remaining Phantom wizards.
"Lucy, are you okay?"
The celestial wizard took a moment before managing a nod. "Y-Yeah, I'm okay. How did you guy know we needed help?"
"I had a feeling." Loke looked forward. "It must mean we're connected somehow."
Lucy's awe dropped and she raised an eyebrow. "Really? Right now of all times?"
"What can I say? I can't help it sometimes."
"Well can you help it now?" Jet looked over at him. "We're kinda in the middle of something."
Loke smiled as his ring began to glow. "Levy, you should get Lucy out of here. We'll buy you two time. Get back to the guild where there's more people, you'll have more cover that way."
"But you guys brought me here so I wouldn't be out in the open." Lucy protested.
"True, but plans have changed. We didn't realize they'd track you. At least at the guild you'll be safer, and things are a lot better right now." The glow in his ring intensified.
"But what about Reedus?" Lucy looked over to the unconscious man.
"He'll be fine, we won't let anything happen to him." Droy pulled some seeds out of a pouch. "We promise. Please you two, get out of here."
Levy grabbed Lucy's hand and nodded. "They'll be okay. Let's go."
"But-" Lucy was cut off as Levy pulled her away.
"We're all Fairy Tail wizards Lucy!" Levy guided her to the other side of the safehouse. "They're strong, and they'll be okay. I promise."
As they ran away the two shades moved from shadow to chase after the girls.
Loke saw shadows stretch and warp out of the corner of his eye and turned to see them shifting unnaturally.
"Eyes forward, pretty boy!"
One of the wizards recovered and casted a magic circle on the ground. The ground began to upturn on itself and race towards him.
Damn it!
"Jet, Droy, cover me. I need to-"
Loke stopped mid sentence as a cold feeling washed over him.
No, no, no! Not now!
He stumbled forward and fell as the spell struck him, at the same time a shimmer came over his form. He grunted in pain as he tried to walk forward.
"Loke!" Jet looked over as Droy threw more seeds to the ground. "Hey, what's going on man?"
"I'm…I'm trying!"
Lucy looked over her shoulder and saw Loke's face, screwed up in pain. Something in her heart dropped at the sight of him like that, something felt wrong.
"Loke!"
"Lucy, no!"
Levy tried to pull her along, but the shadows had gathered around their feet. When she tried to guide Lucy forward, they only sank into the ground. The pool of shadows, with two pairs of eyes glared up at them, long shadowy arms reached up to wind around their arms.
"Levy!"
Loke shook his head and raced forward, a golden glow surrounding his hands.
"No, stop! Don't take them!"
Levy raised a hand, trying to reach her magic, only to realize how weak she felt. She couldn't muster up any magic energy.
Lucy tried to reach for Loke, who was just within reach. Only to be pulled completely under by the shadows. Into the ground.
Loke reached them late, and smashed his hand into the floor where the shadows had been.
"No."
The three Fairy Tail wizards looked at the ground in horror. The one job they had, they failed. And another one of their precious friends had been taken as well.
"Looks like it really was a good idea for us to bring those creepy things along." One of them pushed his glasses up. "Don't worry you three. I'm sure they'll be just fine. It's not like we want them dead or anything. At least…not that little miss princess."
Jet dashed forward to punch him in the face.
"Where did you take Levy and Lucy?"
The man grinned as he recovered and held his hands up. "Where else would they be?"
-.-
Gajeel panted as he made his way to a calmer section of the castle. The overwhelming dread was still there but less intense than before. It was dying down though, which gave him some hope. Maybe that damn brat was dead.
Gajeel gripped a stray pipe on the wall and quickly ripped it out, then bit down on it.
Titania really wore me down… Damn it!
He drove a fist into the wall, then continued walking forward.
He reached the area he was looking for and kicked open the door, just in time to see some of Master Jose's shadows coming together and forming a dark pool in the air. He was confused, until two body came falling out and crashed into the ground.
The Heartfilia girl they had been after, and some other wimpy girl.
The blue haired girl groaned as Heartfilia pushed herself up.
"Levy? Are you okay?"
"I think so…"
"Well well, look at this!" Gajeel grinned as he slammed the door shut behind him. "Look who decided to join the party."
The blonde looked up with a gasp and got to her feet. "You! You're the Iron Dragon Slayer, aren't you?"
"Got it in one." He chewed through what was left of the pipe and swallowed with a satisfied sigh. "Glad you finally decided to stop by. Now it's gonna be a minute until we put the rest of those fairy flies into the ground, and I'm in a pretty bad mood."
Gajeel cracked his knuckles. "I think I'm due for a little entertainment."
-FH-
The sensation that washed over them nearly stopped their hearts.
Natsu and Elfman had barely gotten a chance to fight Aria at all before the air grew cold. Something deep down in them, all of them, told them they were at the center of what could be a disaster.
Some primal instinct told them to run as fast and far as they could. It took all of their willpower to not give into it, and instead turn toward the supposed source.
The Fairy Tail wizards looked behind themselves to see their recently fallen ally slowly get to his feet. For them, there was a unconscious sense that this anger, this boiling rage wasn't directed towards them. The only blessing about the situation.
"Your arrogance is astounding." Izuku spoke, but many voices followed and overlapped over each other. His fingers twitched, then his hands, then his arms.
Izuku…no, the thing that looked like Izuku, the thing that wore his skin and talked with his mouth seemed to struggle with the body it's using. Moving stiffly and unnatural at first, until it seemed to understand how to move like an actual person. Or pretend to.
He- It looked up with an irked look. Instead of the green eyes they were used to, harsh red eyes focused on the man at the end of the room. Green hair whipped around his head. Sparks of green lightning appeared at the edge of his eyes, casting eerie shadows across his face. Smoke appeared around him, beginning to spread throughout the room.
"Deku…?" Katsuki's whisper went unheard.
Aria's hands shook as he brought them up. He tried to channel his magic into some kind of spell, any spell. Any means to defend himself from the child- no monster in front of him.
'Izuku' began walking forward, in a few heartbeats he was right in front of Aria, fist raised.
The man barely had time to cry out and disappear, causing Izuku's fist to collide with the wall instead. There was a crater left behind, and the puppeteer shook Izuku's now bleeding hand.
"Figures." It muttered.
Natsu and Elfman gathered themselves in time to jump away as they felt the air around them shift, and Aria appeared. Katsuki and Happy managed to move off to one side of the room.
The imposter turns around and spots Aria, its eyes pass over Natsu and Elfman, hardly registering them. The green lightning crackles with more intensity, and a moment later it was in front of Aria again.
"You don't get to run away from this." It hissed. "You have some nerve, trying to steal that which cannot be stolen!" The overlapping voices raged, almost drowning out Izuku's.
Aria tried to back away and disappear once more. As his form shimmered, 'Izuku' was quick to retaliate and slam a fist into the man's side. It sent the man flying back to crash into a pillar. The mage gasped and wheezed for air, and barely had time to disappear, just in time to dodge a blow that nearly destroyed the pillar.
The thing grunted and looked at his further bloodied fist.
"It seems that Sol was correct in calling you a monster." Aria's voice echoed, and it made 'Izuku' bristle. "I almost thought the man weak for running away once he discovered you were here, but now I can see why. I will gladly put you down like the beast you are."
Aria appeared behind Natsu and Elfman, a hand reaching up to the blindfold.
"I assume there's some reason remaining inside you. If you wish to for at least one of your friends to survive, I suggest you-"
Green lightning flared, and the two were thrown back. Aria barely had time to slip the blindfold off before receiving a blow to the face hard enough to snap his head back. He wasn't offered any relief as the imposter rained more blows down on him. Almost erratic in a sense, like it was struggling to control itself.
After a particularly hard blow that sent the man to the ground, 'Izuku' walked over and slammed a foot onto the man's shoulder.
"You really thought you would be able to rip this power away from me?" Echoes followed after that last word, whispers of 'us' and 'him'. "That, on top of hurting our his, their, the Master, and threatening my his friends?" He dug his heel in harder, and leaned down, eerie shadows casted across his face as he smiled.
The green lightning suddenly came to a stop, along with the smoke, leaving his face completely obscured. A more sinister presence filled the air.
"You're correct in that there's some remaining reason. Perhaps not the kind you may like though." The other voices faded, now only Izuku's remained. Only it sounded far colder than it should.
It didn't suit him. It still wasn't Izuku.
Aria was frozen as the boy in front of him bared his teeth in a mockery of a smile. He couldn't move, a primal sense told him if he did, he would die.
"You can take others' magic with yours, but it's made useless. Only to drift away in the wind before eventually fading. It's pathetic, a mockery of what could be, but you already know that don't you?" He raised a hand eagerly.
"Don't."
"Don't?" The fake raised an eyebrow. "I wonder how many people said that before you've subjected them to your Drain spell. Now let's see, what was it you said to me? Oh yes, you fought valiantly, and so I will reward you. You get to share a fate similar to what you've subjected others to, Aria of the Great Sky."
'Izuku' placed a hand on the man's face.
"Unlike you, I'll make good use of your magic." He grinned, and the man began to scream.
Natsu and Elfman shuddered, feeling the intense vortex around the thing that pretended to be Izuku. It was like a black hole, craving everything around it and threatening to consume anything that came close.
The dread further intensified.
They all were so focused on the scene in front of them, they almost didn't register the sound of armored footsteps making their way into the room.
Erza ran in and came to a sudden halt with what she saw. Katsuki and Happy were off to one side, the latter hiding behind the former. Elfman and Natsu were stuck watching as well, as if they couldn't move.
"What's going on?" Erza's voice made Natsu and Elfman snap out of their terror.
"Erza…" Elfman muttered.
"Erza!" Happy looked almost relieved to see her.
"It's Izuku." Natsu clenched his fists. "I think that creep tried to take his magic and…well…"
Erza looked up and frowned. She didn't bother to listen to any warnings Happy tried to sputter out. Instead, she walked forward until she was only a few feet from Izuku.
"Izuku, that's enough!" She raised her voice to be heard over Aria's cries.
"Deku…" Katsuki was finally shaken out of his fear. "Deku, knock it off!"
The imposter didn't seem to register their words at first. The terrible vortex intensified for a moment as white streaks began to appear in green hair. Until green lightning began to spark around its eyes again and it drew back its hand like it had been burned.
Aria stopped screaming, and instead gasped for air. Wheezing pathetically as he tried to reach for his magic. Only to feel the remains of dregs. He was out, but it wasn't gone.
The imposter stared its hand in surprise, as if it had moved away on its own. The confusion changed to irritation, and it turned to look at the audience before it. Its eyes focused on Erza who was closest, and glanced over the others.
They looked…scared.
Even Katsuki, who was trying to put on a brave face.
"That's enough, you can stop now. In fact I encourage it." She spoke firmly, looking him in the eye.
The fake narrowed its eyes.
"He tried to take from me first." He almost sounded like a petulant child, maybe whatever was pretending to be Izuku was one.
"And that warrants you to kill him? Or almost do as such? If you do, then you're not better than Aria." She stepped forward.
His eyes widened, recognition flickering through them for a moment. The dread grew less intense as he glanced from Aria to Erza.
"He won't die."
"That so?"
"He won't! I'm He's, We're not a monster!" He snapped, green lightning flared out again, before it quickly settled down again. Like closing the gates on an intense tidal wave.
Erza could see the gears turning. The near bottomless gradually subsided, slowly being replaced with confusion and regret. "I'm He's, We're, You're not a…"
The red in his eyes began to fade, and give way to the familiar green they were all used to. The way he had been holding himself changed, from standing tall and proud to hunched forward, hands drawn to his chest and grasping tightly at his shirt.
"There you are." Erza murmured as Izuku took in a shaky gasp. She stepped forward with a hand reaching out.
Izuku looked up at her in horror, his entire body shuddering as tears burned his eyes. "I-I-"
She didn't give him the chance to say anything. Instead grabbing the back of his head and pulling him closer, away from Aria. "You've done enough, you should rest now."
Izuku barely let out a sob before his body finally gave out, and his went limp in Erza's arms.
She hugged him tightly with a relieved sigh. "Thank you for coming back to us."
Elfman let out a shuddering sigh as Erza lowered a now unconscious Izuku to the ground. Natsu stepped towards them, and knelt down to look at the unconscious Izuku.
Katsuki hurried forward and looked over the boy. He didn't say anything for once, just quietly hovered.
"That was…something." Elfman muttered.
"What happened here?" Erza looked at them all. "I'd like some explanation, sooner rather than later."
"Uh…" Elfman rubbed the back of his neck.
Natsu looked unsure as well.
"The damn windbag tried to use a Drain spell on him." Katsuki said, speaking calmer than they had ever heard him. "As you can see, that fucking backfired."
"I'll say." Happy flew over and looked over Natsu's shoulder.
"Knowing the nature of his magic, he likely didn't take it well to the attempt of being stolen." Erza muttered. From the looks of it, Izuku hadn't even been aware during that episode, as if he was running on nothing but instinct.
"It looks like the little man is down for the count." Elfman said. "I don't think he'll be getting back up again for a while."
"After dealing with Jupiter, a momentary encounter with Gajeel, and then with Aria and this strange outburst, no he likely won't be." Erza brushed some hair out of Izuku's face. It was a mess again. The braid she had made was practically gone now. "It's fine, we can handle the rest."
"He's done all the heavy lifting for you sorry fucks, damn right he ain't getting back up." Katsuki snapped.
"Yeah." Natsu nodded. "So, what now? We took care of the cannon, If Erza's here then that means you beat the crap outta Gajeel, and we took down that wind guy. Wait! Wasn't Izuku supposed to use his magic or something to get Gramp's back?"
"Gah!" Happy looked over in shock and quickly flew down, trying to shake Izuku awake. "Wakey wakey! Don't fall asleep yet! Come on! Don't do it!"
"Knock it off fleabag, he ain't waking up!" Katsuki swatted at him.
"It's fine, we'll figure something out." Erza said. "We've completed most of the priorities laid out. Phantom's giant is practically harmless now, and I'm fairly certain all of the Element 4 are down. Gajeel is injured. I'm not sure how they'll proceed from here but-"
A chime in the air cut Erza off. Static crackled before Jose's voice rang out.
"Attention you Fairy Tail brats, listen up because I'll only say this once."
"It's Master Jose!" Happy looked up.
"What does that creep want?"
A pained scream rang out, causing all of them to look up in horror.
"That's Lucy!"
"Lucy?"
"Oh no." Erza grit her teeth.
"We've captured your dear Lucy Heartfilia. Along with her, we're graced with another guest. Go on dear, say something to your friends."
A second voice cried out, making all of the Fairy Tail wizards' anger spike further.
"And we've managed to capture another one of you. Though she's not as valuable, though she'll have some uses no doubt."
"You scum!" Erza cried out.
"Even so, our first order of business is out of the way. That leaves us with just one more thing, the best part. Wiping out the rest of you worthless lot!"
-FH-
Jose grinned as he stepped away from the microphone. He looked to the side to see Gajeel grinning down at the blue haired girl.
The dragonslayer, one of his most prized wizards looked rough. The boy still had the gall to look proud as he gripped the hair of the blue haired girl. He had worn them down before Jose came to see if his shades had retrieved the Heartfilia girl, and they did, along with a bonus.
"Keep an eye on those girls Gajeel." Jose scowled at him. "There are still plenty of pests running around our guild hall, pests that you in particular have failed to deal with."
The dragonslayer looked up at him, keeping his grip on the girl tight.
"If I find out you let one of these miserable worms escape, it'll mean you've outlived your usefulness. And that will mean you have no choice but to die at my hand. I've no use for weak mages, Black Steel Gajeel."
Gajeel said nothing as Jose turned away.
"Those brats have been lucky thus far, but that's come to an end. It's time I exterminate them myself."
