Chapter 32 - End of Time
Grand Magic Games
Gray was overpowering Rufus who was having a hard time trying to use his Memory Make to memorize certain spells. He attempted to do this in order to overwhelm Gray. However, the ice mage was not giving Rufus enough time to remember a good set of spells to counter Gray's attacks.
"If you want something to remember, remember how I kicked your butt!" Gray yelled as he threw his ice spear at Rufus' head.
Rufus barely avoided the attack but not without his hat being pierced along with losing a few strands of hair. Rufus was starting to feel anxious as he saw Gray barreling closer towards him.
"Two can play at that game!" Rufus said as he conjured something up. "Memory Make: Ice Spear of Lightning!" he shouted as he threw an electrified spear of lightning at Gray.
Gray threw his shield of ice at the spear, reducing it's speed and impact only slightly. Giving Gray a slightly better chance to move closer towards Rufus.
"This one is for Erza and Leonidas, Ice Make: Spear Storm!" Gray chanted as he summoned a barrage of ice spears.
Rufus raised his hands in his defense, "Memory Make: Cold Dark Shield!" He shouted.
Rufus conjured up Gray's ice shield and made it bigger and supported it by adding a little bit of Rogue's magic. This resulted in a large shield made of black that blocked most of the ice spears. However, it wasn't enough as Gray came charging through the shield.
"Ice Make: Ice Bringer!" Gray shouted as he slashed through the shield.
Before Rufus could react, Gray cut through the masked Sabertooth wizard. Resulting in Rufus crashing through the library's wall and losing consciousness. Granting Gray another point for the guild and reducing Sabertooth's team by one member.
"I can only imagine where the rest of your team is at." Gray said before hearing a loud splash in the distance.
"Sherria and Lyon are now eliminated! Remember folks, never challenge the power of a bride!" Lola announced.
"Did Erza stray from Master Mavis' plan?" Gray asked.
Erza was the only person that Gray knew that owned a wedding dress. Perhaps Bisca still has her own wedding dress from when she married Alzack a year after Team Tenrou disappeared but she isn't a game. Then Gray realized who Lola meant as he knew Erza is someone who follows a plan without trying to deviate.
"I guess Juvia is the only other person besides Erza who is desperate to be married." Gray said to himself.
Meanwhile with Erza
Erza stopped in place, "Who said that? I'm not ready to be married!" she shouted.
Erza looked around, feeling suspicious that someone was questioning the reason why she has a wedding dress in her arsenal. It took a minute before Erza managed to snap her head out the thoughts. She continued running down the street and went to look for Minerva who is meant to be Erza's next opponent according to Mavis' strategy.
Only for it to be innaccurate Kagura appears before her.
'Was Master Mavis wrong?' Erza wondered, unaware of how depressed Mavis will be.
Erza raised her guard as she saw Kagura give her a serious stare. Like herself, Kagura was difficult to read as the young woman composed her self and stayed serious but unlike Erza… Kagura is not a closet pervert. However, she was still ready and willing to fight Fairy Tail's strongest female mage.
"Forgive me for being blunt, but I was not expecting to face you so soon." Erza told her fellow swordswoman.
Kagura didn't say it nor did she care to talk. She can understand that a lot of people wouldn't want to go near her as her strength was greater than most of the wizards of this competition. Unlike some individuals like Erza, Laxus, Bacchus or most of Sabertooth, most of the wizards here are flashy people with a few nice skills but weren't good for direct combat.
Without thinking much after Erza's comment, she rushed at Erza. Erza blocked Kagura's initial blows and noticed the Mermaid Heel wizard wasn't removing the sheath of her blade. The Titania believed that the sword must be special or necessary for a special part of Kagura's style.
'Kagura doesn't display the arrogance or haughtiness of most. I should be careful.' Erza thought as she parried Kagura's next blow. 'But that does not mean I will hold back!' she thought.
Erza began taking the offense and tried to push Kagura back. However, the battle would not go too far as a large green orb appeared in between them. Both swordswomen jumped away as they saw Minerva revealing herself and looking quite smug.
"You two seem quite content with each other. It looks like a battle of the strongest females and yet, I was not invited." Minerva said as she noticed both women aimed their swords at her. "Now, now, before we get excited how about one last wager?" she asked.
"Your predecessor was not too thrilled to fulfill her wager." Kagura pointed out.
Minerva scoffed at the memory of Yukino when the girl offered to turn her fight into a death match. It only made Minerva angry to know that Sabertooth was embarrassed by Yukino's failed attempt to make the guild look cool only to beg for her life. Minerva would see to it that Sabertooth would not be embarrassed again as well as guaranteeing this to be another year where Sabertooth reigns victorious.
While Minerva is inferior to Mavis as a strategist, she still had her wits and methods to gain a victory. She wants everyone to know here guild is strong, not that they were honorable.
"I am not as pathetic as Yukino. Sabertooth honors it's deals to an extent." Minerva said. "Not that either of you would consider ignoring my challenge." she said.
"And what would that be?" Erza asked.
Minerva smirked, "To prove who the strongest female mage is." she said.
"That actually sounds acceptable." Kagura said, seeing no way for Minerva to back out of this challenge.
"Very well." Erza said, also accepting the challenge.
Minerva's smile only grew, "Then let's not waste anymore time, Niel Wielg Mion Terse Elcantaeus Yagd Rigola!" she shouted.
The next thing anyone knew, Minerva conjured two colorful orbs in her hands. As she waved them around, Minerva summoned some kind of stone statue or effigy that looked like a monster. It only appeared for a moment before the entire battlefield was flashed with a powerful wave of magic light. Erza and Kagura stood their ground, resulting in them taking a few large scratches as the area around them was destroyed.
When the light calmed down, the two women saw Minerva's form had changed and she was now wearing black veil, a black and blue dress and a large axe shaped staff in one hand. Minerva grinned under her veil as she had used a class card that was given to her by the mysterious dealer.
'I honor my deals, but I don't play fair.' Minerva thought.
With The Rescue Team
The Garou Knights were on their last limbs but couldn't help but feel worried about their chances. Fairy Tail was really intense and it didn't help that they saw an Aztec Goddess crashing through the wall with Neppa in her arms. The smoker was screaming as Quetzalcoatl held him in a headlock.
"You had the homefield advantage, but I'm sorry to say this." Quetzalcoatl said as she raised Neppa in the air. "You lose the handicapped match, luchadore!" She yelled as she threw Neppa hard onto the ground.
"AUGH!" Neppa screamed.
"Hey Coco!" Panther Lily yelled as he ran at the goddess. "Tag me in!" he said.
"There's no tagging in handicap matches." Quetzalcoatl said.
"Fine, whatever!" Panther Lily yelled before delivering a heavy elbow drop on Neppa.
The smoking executioner let out a massive plume of smoke from his mouth as Panther Lily crashed on top of him. The man was knocked out cold and left alone as Cosmos and Kamika came stumbling in.
"What the? Neppa?" Kamika asked.
"Look out!" Cosmos said as they narrowly avoided Mirajane.
Realizing that so many women were coming together in the same room. Shirou had a great idea which probably would have earned Makarov lots of money under different circumstances. The boy ran up to Quetzalcoatl and whispered into her ear.
"Hey Coco, why don't you and Mirajane team up? You can both fight in a women's league tag team match." Shirou said.
Quetzalcoatl smiled, "Buena idea, Shirou boy." she said. She then pulled Mira closer to her, "Let's go Mira, when we defeat them and we earn the championship title." she said.
"Sure, whatever that means." Mira said.
"What are they planning?" Kamika asked.
"I don't know, but this won't be beautiful." Cosmos said.
The girls raised up their papers and seeds as they were rushed by the two women. Moments later, Quetzalcoatl choke slammed the female executioners. Then both women grabbed the girls in a backwards headlock before slamming their head into the ground.
"Please stop." Kamika pleaded.
"Tap out please!" Quetzalcoatl said.
"We can't, you and this girl are bending our arms the wrong way!" Kamika replied.
"What do you think, luchadora?" Quetzalcoatl asked.
Mira grinned, "I only win by knock outs." she said.
"Lo lamento, chicas." Quetzalcoatl said before slamming their heads together.
Cosmos and Kamika lost consciousness when their heads collided before hitting the ground. Moments later, they saw Uosuke crashing through the ceiling and landing on top of them. To make it worse, all three of them were actually on top of Neppa who probably had the worst of it by now.
"Hola Lucy, where have you been?" Quetzalcoatl asked, looking up to see the dark maiden.
Lucy jumped down to greet them, "I've been better, tell me. Did you win the tag team match?" she asked.
"How did you know about my match?" Quetzalcoatl asked.
"I know everything. I will also be seeing to it that the princess will compensate us and personally give you a championship belt." Lucy explained.
"Oh, how sweet of you." Quetzalcoatl said.
"Where's Natsu?" Wendy asked. Lucy sighed as she raised her fingers, "Five? Five minutes?" she asked.
Lucy shook her head.
"Five seconds?" Wendy asked.
Lucy shook her head again.
"Five feet away?" Wendy asked.
Lucy nodded as she bent down and pulled on Wendy's cheeks, "You are so smart." she said before hearing a wall collapse.
"Ouch! Lucy please let go!" Wendy pleaded.
"Mama, you're hurting her." Shirou said.
Lucy looked surprised, "Oops, my mistake." she said.
Wendy rubbed her cheeks once Lucy had let go. She wasn't fond of Lucy's dark half and it felt like her cheeks were stretched out by a cold pair of needles. Luckily Lucy would be distracted by the sight of Natsu throwing Kama onto the pile.
"And that will teach that jerk to guilt trip me!" Natsu yelled. Then he noticed everyone else, "Am I last? What the heck!?" he angrily asked.
Dark Lucy decided to tease Natsu, "And you call yourselves my rescue team? I'm all fine now, so what's the point?" she asked.
"Hey don't mock us! All of a sudden you have your powers back now and you think you can make fun of us?" Natsu asked.
Dark Lucy stuck out her tongue, "My other half is just impatient!" she said.
Natsu suddenly surprised Dark Lucy by lifting her over his shoulder, "You're getting rescued whether you like it or not!" he exclaimed. "Now, where's the exit?" he asked.
"That would be… somewhere." Shirou said as he looked around.
Just as everyone looked lost and confused, Sherlock came stumbling out with some wounds. The Ruler took a few good hits from Uosuke and barely managed to survive the massive path of destruction made by Lucy. However, that did not hinder him as he still analyzed the dungeon.
"Hey, Sherlock is here." Panther Lily said.
"That I am and if I can be given a moment to rest. I can craft some clue as to where the path of our departure is." Sherlock said as he sat on a nearby stone.
"Sherlock-san, please let me heal you." Wendy said as she channeled her healing magic into him.
"Healing isn't so much of the issue. I just need some extra mana." Sherlock said.
Dark Lucy grinned as she raised her hand, "Drink up, Mr. Detective man." She said. "Maybe find the clue as to why Natsu is such a slowpoke." She added.
"Luce, you might be scary in this form but you are getting on my nerves." Natsu said. "It's one thing to have a girlfriend with high standards and acts serious all the time, but it gets annoying when they start making fun of me." she said.
"Ah, don't be like that." Dark Lucy said, proving how affectionate she is compared to her real self.
"I mean it!" Natsu said.
"And I'm afraid that should we find out exit. We will not be able to depart before running into one more foe or possibly a group trying to camouflage their numbers." Sherlock explained as he raised his magnifying glasses.
"More executioners?" Panther Lily asked.
Arcadios then spoke up, "No, no one ever gets past the Garou Knights. There is nothing left unless they somehow managed to quickly recover." he explained.
"Well I'm not standing around to find out what's waiting for us." Natsu said as he began to walk.
"Maybe they updated security." Happy said.
"It's unlikely, but I'm hoping that's the case and that it isn't more dangerous individuals." Charle said.
The rescue team decided to move onward. Not knowing that Sherlock did guess correctly about the incoming threats. In terms of numbers, it was difficult to explain but it was best to say that the new challenger would be one individual who can take multiple forms. A literal one man army, but not the kind who attack from the front.
Back in the Games
Only the strongest were still in the game and some were already feeling overwhelmed as they felt the intensity of Minerva's spell. A few others only got excited or motivated as they recognized where that power came from.
"You see that, Fairy? That's the power of Sabertooth." Orga told Laxus, whom he was fighting.
"So what? My guild has faced a whole lot before." Laxus said as he raised his ax.
"Well it wasn't enough because you're facing a lightning god slayer." Orga said.
Laxus scoffed, "Whatever, Lamia Scale had a god slayer too and Wendy stalemated her. Even that idiot, Natsu, fought some crazy guy claiming to be a fire god slayer." he said.
If there was any magic behind the title or the power that comes with it. It's gone now and Laxus wasn't going to be reeled into it. However, this only annoyed Orga, but before he could continue his fight. They both noticed Jura's arrival.
"I hope you two boys don't mind me interrupting your battle. I can see how strong Sabertooth is despite how proud they are." Jura said.
Now Orga's confidence was gone. For a god slayer, he had a lot of ample power but now he felt like it was nothing in comparison to a Wizard Saint like Jura.
"Why not make it a three way battle? We're all some of the strongest members of our respective guilds." Jura suggested.
"Where's your confidence now?" Laxus asked, noticing Orga's anxiety.
Orga shook his head, "It's here, besides I can beat the both of you. I bet the Wizard Saint can't even block my power!" he said.
"Your guild has a tough time honoring wagers but I will humor you." Jura said, making Orga feel frustrated. "I believe I can counter any one of your attacks." He said.
Orga glared at the Wizard Saint, "Lightning God's Charged Particle Cannon!" He shouted.
'It was a trap. Jura isn't going to block that.' Laxus realized.
Laxus assumed correctly as Jura moved quickly enough to avoid the attack. The impact of Orga's attack destroyed a building that was behind Jura. Despite the great power Orga had, his reflexes were too slow and he wasn't able to prepared for Jura to land a blow to his head that made him hit the ground and lose consciousness.
"I'm actually feeling disappointed. I thought Orga would have done better." Jura said before looking at Laxus. "And here we find ourselves again, young Laxus. Are you ready to break our tie from last time?" he asked.
Laxus raised his ax, "Only if you don't use titles." he said.
"What do you mean?" Jura asked.
"In this fight, this isn't between "Makarov's Grandson" and "A Wizard Saint". This is a fight between two men." Laxus answered.
"I see, I should have guessed with that serious look you have." Jura said, respecting Laxus' view on the upcoming battle.
Laxus then threw down his signature coat onto the ground. He stretched his limbs before rushing at Jura at full speed. While the Wizard Saint didn't have the speed to match Laxus, he still had great strength and precision. Jura slammed down his hand, attempted to karate chop Laxus into submission. Instead, Laxus raised up the ax, blocking Jura's attack.
Jura showed a bit of surprise as he saw Laxus struggling to raise his guard. Laxus used the surprise and delivered an uppercut to Jura's chin, shocking the spectators. However, that wasn't enough to stop Jura as he was much more durable than Orga.
"I am glad to see that this won't be a one sided battle." Jura said, looking amused. "But do not think that I will not go all out, regardless of whichever title you wish for." he said.
Laxus kept his composure as he saw Jura raise his hand, summoning a wave of stone spikes from the ground. Laxus quickly speeds around the spikes as they come around him. He then charges up his lightning as he speeds directly towards Jura who is exposed. Laxus raises his ax into the air and prepared to strike Jura who claps his hands together.
"Talus!" Jura shouts as he summons a massive stone column to block Laxus' strike.
Laxus delivers a big blow to the column, but is unable to destroy it. He decides to move around and tries to reach Jura before his defense is raised again. Laxus then finds himself having to avoid more stone spikes coming from the ground.
'Damn, this is going to get annoying.' Laxus thought before having to destroy a few of the spikes with his ax.
Eventually, Laxus manages to break through Jura's offense and crashes through one of the Talus columns. Laxus slashes at Jura who stumbles backwards and continues to press his attack. Jura raises one hand to bock the handle of the ax, nearly finding his face meeting the weapon. Jura then palms Laxus' chest, making the younger mage stumble backwards.
Jura then engages Laxus in close quarters hand to hand combat. Throwing several slow but deadly blows that Laxus manages to avoid, but finds trouble in trying to break through his defense.
"My magic is not my only defense." Jura said.
"You'll grow tired eventually, old man." Laxus said before slashing at one of Jura's arms. Jura grunted in pain before Laxus kicked him across the ground, "There's also your pain tolerance to worry about!" he added as he jumped high into the air.
Jura quickly rolled out of the way to avoid being hit by the ax. Jura then raises an arm and points at Laxus as the stone around him breaks into smaller rocks.
"Rock Avalanche!" Jura calls out.
The rocks then fly directly towards Laxus.
"Lightning Dragon's Roar!" Laxus roars as he obliterates the incoming rocks and hits Jura along the way.
Jura slowly recovers after hitting the ground very, "I'm impressed, I never knew you had such great strength. I am glad we have the opportunity to not hold back." He said.
"I used to look down on others for being weak, you know." Laxus said. "Now, I learned how much stronger I can be by fighting for something other than myself." He said as he charged more lightning into his ax.
"That sounds like a good motivator. It has been so long since I've been this excited." Jura said as the ground started shaking around him.
The use of words was over and now was the time for the two end their battle. Jura summoned the stones around ground that he used in his battle and made them float around Laxus. As Laxus prepared to attack Jura, the stones surrounded Laxus and tried to trap him inside.
"Supreme King Rock Crush!" Jura shouted as he clapped his hands.
Two stone hands then appeared beside the stones encasing Laxus. Just as he was about to crush Laxus inside and defeat him. Laxus generated enough lightning to destroy his stone prison. Matching the speed of his element, Laxus dashed towards Jura to end this battle.
"Lightning Dragon's Golden Spark!" Laxus yelled as he slammed his ax onto Jura.
The resulting attack shook the entire town as a massive dragon shaped streak of lightning appeared over the sky. After the lightning dragon disappeared, the town was surrounded by a large dust cloud. When the smoke cleared, the spectators witnessed Jura was barely awake and Laxus was still standing despite looking quite exhausted.
"I will have to give this victory to you, Laxus." Jura said, surrendering to the younger wizard.
Laxus sighed as he nodded, hoping he gained the acknowledgement as someone other than Makarov's grandson.
With Erza
Erza was having a tough time with Minerva who had used a Class card that granted her the powers of Morgan Le Fa. To make matters worse, Minerva started losing the motivation to fight. It wasn't that she believed she would lose the battle, but didn't feel like she needed to work hard. Kagura and Erza are both strong, but it would be easier if they fight each other.
'I can deliver the final blow to the loser then defeat the weakened victor.' Minerva thought as she raised her hand.
"Why the defense, Minerva? Can you not fight?" Erza asked.
"This style of fighting does not match my preference." Minerva answered. "Perhaps I should change up the game." she said before opening a small portal.
Kagura and Erza stopped as they witnessed Minerva summoning Milianna who was bound by Minerva's magic.
"You took my own teammate as a hostage!?" Kagura asked, sounding furious. "And I almost believed you would honor your word." She said.
"I am, but I never said I would play fair. We are wizards, not children." Minerva replied with a laugh.
"Minerva, there are no words to describe your level of selfishness. Using Milianna as a hostage for what purpose? A human shield?" Erza asked, angry that her childhood friend was once again pawn.
"Of course not, I go low but not that low. However, I will not guarantee this girl's safety unless one of you defeats the other." Minerva said.
Before Erza could respond again, Kagura suddenly attacked her. Erza was surprised but raised her guard and blocked Kagura's rapid attacks.
"What are you doing?" Erza asked.
"I'm defeating you, saving Milianna and then defeating Minerva." Kagura answered.
At that moment, Minerva made Milianna disappear and teleported away to watch from a distance. The Sabertooth wizard watched and waited patiently for one of them to fall first.
Erza gritted her teeth their respective swords clashed. Erza leaned back, letting Kagura slowly overpower her. Only for Erza to break her hold and cause Kagura to slip up and nearly hit the ground. Kagura quickly turned around and raised her sword as Erza tried to strike her from behind.
"Milianna's in danger and you are willing to play Minerva's game? Are you that arrogant!?" Erza asked.
Kagura didn't look like the type to be open to friendships and bonds, but neither was Erza at first. At the very least, Erza expected Kagura to have some sense of camaraderie for her fellow guild mates.
"Do not pretend that you are Milianna's friend!" Kagura yelled as she placed pressure on Erza.
"I've known Milianna since we were children!" Erza replied before parrying Kagura's next strike. "If anything, you are putting Milianna in more danger by letting Minerva have her way!" she said.
Kagura wasn't listening and this only made Minerva more happy. Minerva has no knowledge about the history with Erza and Milianna but that only got her more excited. The daughter of Sabertooth's guild master may not be some psychic, but she is able to recognize someone with a lot of pride. Minerva sincerely doubts that Kagura is an idiot, but her pride won't allow her to think things through or consider a way of saving Milianna.
'These relationships are only making them weaker. This is why my guild will win. Any and all drama has to stay out of mission.' Minerva thought with a smirk.
However, just as the two swordswomen continued their battle. Erza shoved Minerva back and revealed a class card much to Minerva's shock. In a single instant, Erza's form was completely replaced with Artoria's lancer form with heavy armor and a duplicate of Rhongomyniad on hand.
"Kagura, I can understand your concern for Milianna but I will not jeopardize her safety because of reckless pride!" Erza yelled.
"My pride has nothing to do with it! My other reason for fighting you is because you are sheltering the man who hurt us!" Kagura screamed.
Erza felt confused, "To whom you are referring to?" she asked.
"Jellal Fernandez!" Kagura answered. "You are harboring that criminal!" she accused as she noticed Erza's surprise.
Minerva continued to look confused, 'Maybe is this is more interesting than I thought.' she thought as she kept watching.
Back in the dungeon
Lucy finally reverted to her base form and groaned as she felt a massive headache. All the while Natsu continued to carry her over his shoulder.
"Don't worry Luce, when this is over. We're gonna find out that the guild won, the King will pardon you and that princess has to apologize to us for being a jerk." Natsu said.
"Do not speak of the princess in such a way!" Arcadios exclaimed.
"Wasn't she the one who had you locked away?" Shirou asked.
"No, it was that fool, Darton." Arcadios answered.
"Oh yeah, the old guy who decided to arrest Lucy and Yukino for no reason." Natsu said, remembering the short old man. "Okay, we can ignore the princess but I get to punch the old guy in face. Deal?" he asked.
"If things go wrong, I believe a punch may be too swift of a punishment." Arcadios said.
"It sounds like there is more to this incident than a mere grudge." Sherlock said, paying close attention to Arcadios.
"Darton did appear and have us arrested for wanting to utilize the Eclipse Gate." Yukino said.
Then Arcadios realized something, "The Eclipse Gate! What day is today!?" he frantically asked.
"Today is July…" Wendy tried to answer.
Wendy then found herself being pulled away by Shirou. Happy did the same with Charle and Panther Lily. Even Natsu found himself hopping away, looking like an animal that was threatened.
"I smell some nasty crap." Natsu said.
"Me too!" Shirou said.
"And you Happy?" Charle asked.
"The dungeon already stinks, but I can't help but feel like something tried to rip our heads off." Happy said with a shiver.
Suddenly, the group found themselves avoid a series of shadow like hands with bladed weapons trying to take them out. Everyone panicked and broke off into small groups as to avoid the attacks. However, it didn't stop as several individuals with skull shaped masks came out from the shadows.
"Spooky shadowy skeletons!" Happy yelled.
"No wonder they smell bad. I thought I smelled death." Natsu said.
"These aren't skeletons, they're the faces of Hassan-i-Sabbah. They are all Assassin class servants." Lucy said before one tried to attack Natsu from the ceiling.
Luckily Shirou managed to fire a quick arrow at the incoming Assassin, stopping their attack. Only to find himself being attacked from behind.
"Sky Dragon's Roar!" Wendy yelled, sending the second Assassin back.
"Thanks Wendy." Shirou said.
"How many of these things are there?" Panther Lily asked as he transformed.
"Too many and they are a lot more annoying than those executor guys." Natsu said before avoiding another attack.
"Ark!" Lucy shouted as she fired an Ark at the ceiling. Resulting in the entire room illuminating, "This won't bring them out, but they will lose all the advantage of a surprise." She said.
As Lucy said, the faces of Hassan weren't forced to break their presence of concealment, but their surprise attacks would be reduced. It was also a lot more difficult for them to hide back in the shadows once they have been spotted. Allowing for most of them to be defeated fairly quickly.
"Open! Gate of The Paired Fish: Pisces!" Yukino shouted as she used one of her keys.
"There's no room fish in here!" Happy yelled.
"Pisces has a second form. That of a mother and a son." Yukino said as Pisces turned into a human male and female.
"Mom, if we're being summoned in this form then that means…" the son trailed off as more faces of Hassan appeared.
"It means we have terminate the enemy, son." the mother answered.
Just as the Assassins kept appearing, the mother quickly rushed at the incoming Assassins. The mother quickly dispatched them with her hand to hand combat skills, dealing quick blows to knock them away while also avoiding their weapons. Even with great reflexes, the mother version of Pisces was still one woman against many.
As another wave tried to strike at her and the other wizards while their guards were down. The son version of Pisces raised his trident at assassins and released a powerful wave of water. Sending all the assassins crashing into the walls.
"Everyone takes cover, we can try and flush out the rest of the enemy." Yukino said.
"Good idea, I can try to find the central Assassin and hopefully collect her." Lucy said.
Everyone listened to Yukino's suggestion and avoided the son's attack. The whole hallway was flooded as the Assassins were too slow to flee and were either drowned or crushed against the walls due to the pressure the water had pressed against them. After a few minutes of intense water blasting, the son stopped and everyone looked around for any remaining assassins.
Only to watch as the Assasins slowly disappeared like ashes from a flame.
"Hey Luce, do you see the main Assassin or did Yukino's spirit accidentally kill it?" Natsu asked.
"It's hard to tell, but I think that's the end of them." Lucy said before hearing a loud crash.
"I found one." Quetzalcoatl called out.
Everyone looked up and saw that the Rider had thrown her club straight at the ceiling. Just as the light from the Ark had dimmed down, another Face of Hassan had come crashing down to the ground. Along with some blond girl in a cloak. Quetzalcoatl ignored the Asssassin but she caught the girl.
"Eh? Lucy, did you always have a twin sister?" Quetzalcoatl asked.
"What kind of question is that?" Lucy asked.
Quetzalcoatl revealed an unconscious Future Lucy to the present day Lucy. Everyone was confused and had a lot of questions on their minds. Lucy immediately got suspicious and decided to try something.
"Magic Cancel!" Lucy said as she placed her hand over her counterpart.
Nothing happened and Lucy repeated it just in case.
"Well she's not an illusion or one of the Assassins that can disguise themselves." Lucy said.
"Then who is she?" Wendy asked.
"Is she Scary Lucy from Edolas?" Happy asked.
"We'll figure it out later. For now, we need to leave this dungeon." Lucy said.
"Yeah, we better leave before anyone realizes that we defeated the Garou Knights." Yukino said in agreement.
Then Sherlock spoke up, "I never thought my own procrastination could reach this level. Then again, I am not sure if I can call it that without making it sound like an excuse." He said.
"What do you mean?" Lucy asked.
"I've been meaning to speak to you about my recent findings with Jellal. It appears that now is the best time to explain it." Sherlock answered.
Back with Erza
Erza shoved Kagura away with her spear as she glared back at Kagura who seemed to suddenly hate her. However, there was a strong reason behind this sudden hate.
"Why do you hate Jellal? What is your connection with him?" Erza asked.
Kagura replied with silence as she rushed at Erza again. Finally drawing her blade and delivering great pressure against Erza's lance. Even if it was a weak copy of Rhongomyniad, the spear was still strong enough to withstand Kagura's attack. The heavy armor also helped defend Erza from Kagura's attacks.
'It feels like I'm fighting Ikaruga again, but Kagura is much more fierce in her attacks.' Erza thought.
Unlike the pink haired assassin from Trinity Raven, Kagura was serious and only holding back as to not go for the kill. Still, this only meant that Erza had to keep her guard up and also keep up with Kagura's speed.
"The reason I feel only disdain for Jellal is for keeping my brother bound to him and nearly killing him as well!" Kagura said.
"Your brother?" Erza asked before blocking another sword strike.
"I'm referring to Simon!" Kagura said, surprising Erza enough to where the Titania was exposed.
Erza felt Kagura slash at her chest, causing the upper portion to expose her cleavage. Causing a lot of the male spectators to pass out from bloody noses. It didn't help that the real Artoria didn't cover up when in this form. However, this only caused Erza to wake up.
"If Simon is your brother, then you should be happy that he is free! You can finally move on now that you have reunited!" Erza argued.
Erza knew Simon well and could barely remember if he mentioned having a sister. To be fair, she learned that Wally was the brother of Richard, better known as "Hoteye", from the Oracion Seis. Hopefully Simon actually caught up with her and isn't on the road with Wally and Cho like Milianna told her a couple of nights ago.
"That's what I thought, but now that I know Jellal is alive and running free like the coward he is. It only infuriates me!" Kagura said before having her sword parried.
"Then if vengeance is your choice, then so be it!" Erza yelled before charging up her spear. "If you wish to blind yourself in hate. Then that is your own fate." she said.
The two women then charged at each other. Rhongonmyniad spins at fast speeds as Erza thrusts it at Kagura. Kagura quickly tried to parry, if not avoid the attack. The two exchanged blows about five or six times before one more clash was delivered as it created the most sparks of energy. When it was over, Erza came tumbling out of the final the last clash and landed on her knee.
Erza looked over her armor and saw parks of it was cracked with a chip having falling off in some areas. She looked back and saw Kagura's outfit was badly damaged and Kagura was struggling to stand and grunted as she fell to both knees. Erza stood up and raised her spear as she walked over to Kagura who glared at her. Kagura slowly stood up before trying to raise her sword again.
"You are only hurting yourself, Kagura." Erza said.
"You don't know anything so be quiet!" Kagura yelled as she slashed at Erza again. "Milianna told me everything! I will kill Jellal myself for what he did!" she yelled.
Erza blocked the strike with minimal effort, "There is nothing to avenge." she said. "Are you willing to hurt others like yourself just to feel some sense of satisfaction. Angry because of "what could" have happened?" she asked.
With a cry filled with anger, Kagura lunged at Erza and delivered another blow. Erza parried the attack, but it resulted in damaging a nearby pillar. As Kagura stumbled back in pain, she murmured something as the ceiling above her began to crack. Erza noticed the pillar breaking apart and saw the ceiling beginning to fall. Unlike Kagura, Erza was able to think clearly and quickly shoved her opponent away.
Kagura grunted as she hit the ground and rolled away. Recovering in time to witness the debris collapse on top of Erza, burying her up to her neck.
"What?" Kagura asked, feeling confused as to why Erza would risk her own life for her own foe.
"I understand your feelings, I cannot agree but I understand why you are angry. I grew up in Rosemary village as well." Erza said.
Suddenly, Kagura was flooded with memories of the Cult of Zeref attacking her home. Rosemary village is where Kagura is from and where she grew up with Simon. She remembered running from the dark mages and another little girl had found Kagura put her inside of a crate. Telling a young Kagura to hide there until the dark mages left.
Kagura never saw that child again and hoped that she left the village instead of being captured. Kagura vividly remembered the scarlet colored hair of the girl who protected her from the invaders.
"I was trapped on that prison island with Simon for so long. I dared to forget it, but I learned I was hurting myself by denying what had happened and who stayed behind." Erza said as she struggled to move.
Erza managed to get an arm free and felt Kagura grab her arm. Erza was about to say something before Kagura tried to pull her out. Erza was unsure of Kagura's intentions, but she could see that Kagura was breaking her cold facade and looking emotional. She wondered if she got through to the Mermaid but before she said anything, Minerva arrived.
"That was such a disgusting story. It makes me want to unclog my ears." Minerva said as she stabbed Kagura with her own word.
"NO!" Erza screamed as she managed to kick the debris off of her lower torso.
"You two were about to become friends, weren't you? This is a competition, not a shojo manga." Minerva said.
"Minerva, you heartless witch!" Erza yelled.
"You can call me what you want, but I'm the real mage here and a winner." Minerva said before revealing Milianna.
Milianna's body hit the ground, revealing various slashes across her exposed body. Erza glared at Minerva with enough hate to make her almost lose her mind. Erza knew Minerva had no honor and any deal she made could not be done without adding some dirty background actions.
"Minerva, words cannot describe how despicable you and your guild are!" Erza yelled with enough age to make Rhongomyniad spin wildly.
"Well you are a hypocrite. Wasn't there some message you were saying about blind hatred?" Minerva asked with a smirk behind her veil.
In the castle, with the rescue team
After the team made it out of the dungeon and into an empty dining room. Sherlock started to explain his findings with Jellal while Happy and Natsu were messing around with the other Lucy's body. Shirou was trying his best to make sure they weren't harassing her while she was exposed.
"Don't do anything weird, you pervs." Shirou said.
"Like I would, Lucy's not as gorgeous as Charle." Happy said.
"You still admitted to being a pervert!" Charle yelled as her face turned red.
Natsu was poking Future Lucy's chest, "I'm sure she's fine. She's just sleepy. We'll call this one, Lazy Lucy or L.L. for short." he said.
"Stop it!" Shirou said as he tried pushing Natsu.
"What? What did I do?" Natsu asked.
"Natsu, stop touching an unconscious girl!" Mira yelled as she pried Natsu off of the other Lucy. "I swear, you've been getting more and more perverted. This is all Erza's fault." she said.
If Mira still had any negative feelings towards Erza even now as an adult. It would likely be that she's a pervert and does little to deny it. Mira can only hope that Shirou remains pure as Erza sees herself as his aunt.
By this point, the other Lucy started to stir awake and looked around in confusion. She felt anxious, scared and unsure of what to do. She was in the castle, but did not know what to do next before noticing the rescue team.
"So Lazy Lucy, care to tell us your story?" Happy asked.
"I… I need your strength." the other Lucy said before crying.
"Aw, there's nothing wrong with being weak. Look at the other Lucy, she needs to be scary before she can do anything useful." Happy said.
"Happy, there is no time for your stupidity." Panther Lily said, sounding impatient.
Wendy decided to be the civil one here, "Excuse me, Lucy Number Two, can you tell us who you are and what you meant by needing our strength?" she asked.
The second Lucy looked up at Wendy and opened her mouth to speak, but looked back down and started to cry.
"Maybe we should call her, Wimpy Lucy." Happy said.
"What did I just say?" Panther Lily asid.
Happy ignored the black exceed and marched up to the second Lucy, "Tell us what you want or else I'll make you cry." he said.
"Tomcat!" Charle said.
Happy then looked her in the eye, "Seven years passed, time has moved but I did not age. With that, I did not get seven years worth of fish. Pretty sad, right?" he asked.
Now the second Lucy looked indifferent. However, the original Lucy just turned in time to hear what Happy said and began to laugh loudly.
"Hey, it's not a joke! It's a sad story!" Happy said as Lucy kept laughing.
"Seriously Luce? Happy is going to whine about not getting any fish after missing seven birthdays!" Natsu said.
Lucy started to calm down, "Sorry, that was cold of me. So cold, it was like raw fish. Raw fish that Happy will never get, HAHAHA!" She laughed.
Panther Lily snorted, "That one was good." he said.
"Now we have a Happy Lucy and a Sad Lucy." Quetzalcoatl said.
"There's no time for jokes! Danger is coming to Fiore!" the other Lucy said.
Lucy started to calm down, "Right, sorry. For once, Happy made me laugh." she said. "Anyways, where did you come from? Sherlock did not answer that for me." she said.
"And you better not clam up and start crying again." Natsu said.
"I'm from the future." Future Lucy said, expecting a lot of disbelief.
"I want to say that we need proof, but Shirou is from the future too." Natsu said.
"Hey Shirou, is this future Lucy that gave birth to you?" Wendy asked only to see Shirou shrug.
Shirou was a toddler when he was found by this timeline's Lucy. He could barely remember his own mother when he met her. While it's likely that Lucy took care of herself to look the same as she did at age 17, it could be possible that Lucy in the future looks different. Shirou remembered Lyla's portrait and she didn't look much older than Lucy despite dying in her early 30s.
It didn't help that Future Lucy looked confused.
"What are you all talking about?" Future Lucy asked.
"You don't recognize Shirou? He's your son and Natsu's your husband." Happy said.
Future Lucy looked beyond confused, "I'm not married and I don't have children." she said.
Present Lucy felt concerned, 'So she's not the one married to Laxus. Ugh, what did I see in that thick headed brute?' she wondered. "I guess we have more time travel issues. She's from an alternate timeline." she said.
"That's so much more confusing!" Natsu said.
"No I'm not!" Future Lucy argued.
Present Lucy sighed, "Look, if you haven't met Shirou at all. Then your future is a different future." she said. "Then again, when did you arrive? There's a chance you changed something on accident." she asked.
"Just a couple of days ago. I don't recognize this boy. In fact, I don't remember those people being in our guild." Future Lucy said as she pointed at Quetzalcoatl and Sherlock.
"A massive conundrum we have here." Sherlock said as Quetzalcoatl started to get a headache.
"Look, regardless of timelines. Why are you here?" Lucy asked. "There's gotta be some reasoning behind you messing with time travel." she said.
Future Lucy was going to answer before looking depressed.
"And no more crying!" Natsu yelled.
It took a moment for Future Lucy to compose herself. If the danger that she faced in her timeline was going to happen in this timeline. Then it would be pivotal to say it right away. This may sound insensitive, but the present individuals did not have a whole lot of time since the guards were likely looking for them.
"I arrived on July 4th because on July 7th, the Eclipse Gate will be opened and Fiore will be destroyed." Future Lucy said.
"I knew that gate was trouble." present Lucy muttered. "What did it do?" she asked.
"About ten thousand dragons from four hundred years ago will be unleashed and destroy the town." Future Lucy answered.
Suddenly, Charle started looking shaken up as she remembered her vision but with more detail. This caught the attention of the children and exceeds.
"Charle?" Wendy asked.
Charle did not reply as she was shaken up by her prediction. At the same time, Arcadios also looked heavily concerned and a bit anxious.
"That can't be right. The dragons wouldn't be able to destroy the kingdom because of the eclipse." Arcadios spoke up.
"What are you talking about old man?" Natsu asked.
"From what I have guessed, with the recent Solar Eclipse about to begin any day now. That sounds irrelevant." Sherlock said.
"It's true, the Eclipse is a catalyst for the gate. It can't be used to harm the dragons." Future Lucy explained.
Arcadios cursed, 'Did the princess lie? The dragons arriving is a part of the plan, but she said they would be dealt with unless she was misinformed.' he thought.
"Then we must be on our way." Sherlock said. "I remember this version of Lucy mentioning that this all begins on July 7th, which is tomorrow I might add." he said.
"Are we really in danger? I mean, time traveling is confusing but it's always some detail that's off or whatever." Natsu said.
"We're not taking that risk." Lucy said before looking at her other self again. "Now, where do we begin?" she asked.
Future Lucy composed herself before explaining what needs to be done. Whether or not these two timelines are connected doesn't matter. At the very least, another timeline could have hope.
That and even if Future Lucy saved her own time, there's the chance that she might be erased from existence.
A few minutes later
The group made their way into one of the hallways in Castle Mercurius. As they were following Lucy, Arcadios said that he would be leaving the group. Wendy had managed to heal him a bit while they were speaking with Future Lucy on what to do, but he still looked exhausted and hurt. Regardless, this loyal knight was adamant about moving on his own.
"Are you sure you can move on your own, Sir Arcadios?" Sherlock asked.
"I can, I thank you for the assistance but what I still have one more duty to do on my own." Arcadios said.
"Hey pal, you might want to turn down the chivalry. It might hurt you more." Natsu suggested.
"Like you wouldn't do things that would end with you getting hurt?" Lucy asked.
"It's different, knights have stupid stuffy rules and it's hard to do if you're hurt." Natsu answered.
"Magic guilds have stuffy rules too, you just don't listen to them." Lucy said making Natsu groan.
"Just go, all of you. I have my own mission as you all have your own." Arcadios said before entering another room.
"He's right, lots of dragons are about to attack soon and we can't waste time by standing around." Panther Lily said.
"Right!" everyone else said.
The group then proceeded to follow Future Lucy. When their luck had gone bad and a wave of royal guards had arrived to block their path. This included an odd looking man who had a dolphin for a lower torso.
"Is that a celestial spirit?" Yukino asked.
"Virgo had an odd appearance, so maybe." Lucy said.
"The prisoners have escaped the Abyss!" one of the guards yelled.
"Don't let them escape!" another guard said.
The heavy amount of guards quickly charged at the group only to be stopped by Quetzalcoatl who jumped in the middle. The Aztec Goddess slammed her spiked bat onto the floor, causing a massive shockwave that sent the guards flying back. Most of the guards were defeated as the remaining tried to recover from the massive attack.
"This shouldn't be too bad, los gatos could handle them on his own." Quetzalcoatl said as she pointed at the exceeds.
Happy smirked as he quickly started kicking the air like an amateur. That's when the floor broke open and the Garou Knights appeared again despite being injured from their previous fight.
"Let's do this Happy!" Panther Lily said as he transformed.
"Uh… okay." Happy said, feeling less confident.
"We don't have time for you jerks!" Natsu yelled.
Kama glared at Natsu, "We are not letting you leave!" he yelled as he pointed his scythe at Natsu.
Lucy could only glare at the Garou Knights for getting in the way. She quickly stood in front of her counterpart in preparation to defend her. When the whole floor was suddenly surrounded with a massive dark shadow. Lucy picked up Future Lucy in her arms and gestured for Yukino to climb onto her back.
"Hop on!" Lucy told Yukino.
"What's happening?" Yukino asked.
"There's some darkness surrounded the room." Lucy said as they noticed the shadow.
"That's not a normal shadow!" Future Lucy exclaimed.
Future Lucy may not be as intelligent as her counterpart of this present timeline, but she can tell the shadow was unnatural. Instead of just being the darkness that appears when light is obscured. The shadow looked like a river of a black thick liquid. It almost looked like everyone was staring at a pit of tar. Like tar, it started to devour the people standing above it.
"What is this?" Kama asked.
"This is not beautiful!" Cosmos said as her feet started to sink down to the bottom.
"Hey! What is this!?" Kamikas asked as she frantically tried to escape.
By this point, everyone realized the danger of the shadow. The guards tried to escape but found themselves surrounded. The remaining Garou Knights tried to attack the shadows, thinking they could destroy the shadow and rescue their comrades. But the shadow would only devour the attacks.
"What is this? Some kind of moss?" Neppa asked as he shot acid at the shadow.
"I just lost my good fishing rod. Either this tar pit is endless or Kamika and Cosmos need to lose some weight." Uosuke said, still smiling despite the circumstances.
Eventually, Uosuke and his comrades found themselves being taken away. The rest of the Fairy Tail rescue team also tried to fight back but their attacks did nothing. Leaving them with no choice but to run away despite no sign of any exit.
"This castle has one nasty yeast infection." Natsu said.
"Then let's run before we catch it." Happy said as he grabbed Natsu and flew towards the ceiling.
"Satan Soul!" Mirajane yelled as she transformed and took flight as well.
"Hang on child!" Charle said as she grabbed Wendy.
Panther Lily grabbed Shirou and took flight as well. Leaving only Quetzalcoatl and Sherlock, with the former having little room to summon a pterodactyl to save herself.
"Hold on you two, I'm sending you back to the Throne." Lucy said as she recalled the two.
"Wait, those are Celestial Spirits?" Future Lucy asked.
Lucy sighed, "It's too complicated to explain. Also, was there some kind of mossy darkness in your time?" she asked.
"No, but it looks familiar." Future Lucy said as she shivered.
"Hey look! It's going away!" Yukino said as she pointed at the floor.
After a couple of minutes, the shadow retreated to the end of the hallway. A moment later, a man with long black and white hair came stepping out. Lucy narrowed her eyes as she can sense a lot of negative energy surrounding him. There was also some sense of familiarity around him.
"Who the heck is that guy?" Natsu asked before Happy dropped him.
"You all survived my shadow, that is good. I was hoping to have reached you before the guards did." The man said.
"Who are you?" Natsu asked as everyone came back down.
"I'm surprised you can't remember me, but then again. Time has changed so much for me." the man told Natsu.
"Can you hurry up with the lame cool guy act?" Natsu asked.
The man sighed as he revealed his face, "I am Rogue Cheney, I'm from the future." he said, revealing his face to be covered in dragon like scales.
"How many people from the future are there?" Shirou asked.
As Rogue presented himself, Lucy could only feel suspicious. She knew her future self was honest mainly as she can mostly sense despair and desperation in her. Meanwhile Future Rogue seemed difficult to read and was filled with a malicious aura. Normally someone shouldn't be judged based on their speciality in magic, but those shadows were alive.
"I'm here to help prevent the dragon attack." Future Rogue said.
"I don't trust this guy. He literally smells like a full dragon, he's super shady." Natsu said.
Wendy nodded, "I agree, Depressed Lucy is one thing but this man screams evil." he said.
Even Charle looked nervous as she saw a strange creature in her visions. Only it was so ferocious that even an army of Acnologia's look like sad injured puppies. For some reason, she received the same aura as that creature from Future Rogue.
"You have to listen to me. The dragons won't just attack to destroy a few cities. They will reign as the new rulers of this world." Future Rogue said.
"Okay, that sounds really scary." Wendy commented.
"But it can be prevented. The eclipse that is coming tomorrow will stop them." Future Rogue said, trying to assure them.
Lucy already had a red flag, "Arcadios just mentioned that." she said. "What exactly would the eclipse do?" she asked.
"It's going to create this energy that will be powered by the Eclipse Gate. Doing this will open the gate and defeat them." Future Rogue explained as simple as possible.
"That makes sense." Happy said.
"It does not!" Charle said.
"Right, it makes no sense." Happy said, now agreeing with Charle.
"Arcadios did say the Eclipse Gate is a time machine. The plan was to go back in time." Yukino said.
Now everyone felt suspicious, minus Natsu who just looked very confused.
"Wait, so is it a time machine
"You're overthinking it." Shirou told him.
wrong on then their on red i el road ur is te ot trapper imene avenes fargue is reathe ture this timeline or there both
"What?" Future Rogue asked, feeling a headache from Natsu's theory.
"It makes sense, dragons are prideful and so the one Wendy summoned actually lied because he didn't want to admit to being trapped like an idiot! We did guys! We saved the day already!" Natsu exclaimed.
Yukino groaned, "That explanation hurt my head." she said.
Future Lucy just smiled, "Natsu is still Natsu in any timeline." she said.
Future Rogue was not happy, "NO! We need to augh... we have to stop the Celestial Spirit mage on your team! The gate is meant to be opened but she will close it before the dragons are stopped!" he said.
"Then it sounds like we need to keep the time machine turned off." Shirou said.
Now everyone felt suspicious, minus Natsu who just looked very confused.
"Wait, so the gate is a time machine that is stopping the time traveling dragons or is it not a time machine at all, but a weapon that stops the time traveling dragons? If it's the latter, why didn't the dead dragons save themselves the first time?" Natsu asked.
"You're overthinking it." Shirou told him.
wrong on then their on red i el road ur is te ot trapper imene avenes fargue is reathe ture this timeline or there both
"What?" Future Rogue asked, feeling a headache from Natsu's theory.
"It makes sense, dragons are prideful and so the one Wendy summoned actually lied because he didn't want to admit to being trapped like an idiot! We did guys! We saved the day already!" Natsu exclaimed.
Yukino groaned, "That explanation hurt my head." she said.
Future Lucy just smiled, "Natsu is still Natsu in any timeline." she said.
Future Rogue was not happy, "NO! We need to augh... we have to stop the Celestial Spirit mage on your team! The gate is meant to be opened but she will close it before the dragons are stopped!" he said.
"Then it sounds like we need to keep the time machine turned off." Shirou said.
Future Rogue gritted his teeth in anger as a mixture of white and black magic surrounded him. It was enough pressure to make the wallpaper of the castle's walls start to peel. By this point, everyone was sure that he was the villain. Even if they chose to ignore Rogue's beast like appearance, the discrepancies and lack of information from Future Rogue's part was already a mes.
"I'm telling you! Only I can help you stop the dragons!" Future Rogue yelled.
"We're not trusting you, Rogue. You can't even keep your stories straight. You think we're idiots!?" Natsu asked as his fists were surrounded by large flames.
"If that's the case, then I will have to take you all out at once." Future Rogue said as a dragon like wing came out from his back.
Everyone took a defensive stance as Rogue released a powerful wave of black flames towards Lucy. Natsu tried to devour them but found them to be tasting worse than Zancrow's Godslayer flames. This time it felt like he was eating an endless void that rotted his insides. Allowing the flames to move past him and towards Lucy.
"Sanctuary!" Lucy shouted as she summoned a crystal barrier to block the flames.
"WHAT!?" Future Rogue asked angrily.
"Idiot! You were so cocky, you never realized that you went into the wrong timeline!" Shirou said, confusing Future Rogue.
"That's right, you didn't even notice that this isn't Crybaby Lucy, she's Priest Lucy… Nun Lucy… Luce, what was your nickname again?" Natsu asked.
"We don't have time for that, we gotta stop him and the knights from turning on the Eclipse Gate." Lucy said.
"Right!" everyone said.
Shirou immediately started firing a barrage of arrows at Future Rogue. Future Rogue raised his arm, summoning a large talon to block the arrows before raising it up as Natsu tried to punch him. Each punch and kick was blocked before Future Rogue slapped him away. Wendy cameflying in with Charle's help to further weaken Future Rogue.
"Sky Dragon's Roar!" Wendy shouted as she unleashed a wave of wind at Future Rogue who stood his ground.
Future Rogue slammed his palm into the floor, causing black circles to appear all over the floor. Everyone moved as several demonic looking hands came out and tried to grab Wendy while Charle was carrying her. Shirou decided to try and cut through the arms, but his generated weapons weren't sharp enough to cut through.
"Don't let up!" Panther Lily yelled as he tried to punch Rogue.
"Out of my way, feline!" Future Rogue yelled as he slapped Panther Lily away.
"I beat a stronger version of you and Sting by myself! You think you're better now that you have a stupid haircut and forgot to moisturize?" Natsu asked.
"Give it a rest!" Future Rogue angrily yelled as he entered White Shadow Dragon Mode. "I don't care how tough Sting is. I'm the one who killed him and took his power!" he shouted.
"You're just some greedy bastard, aren't you!?" Natsu asked.
"White Shadow Dragon's Rough Silk!" Future Rogue shouted, causing several light and dark threads to attack Natsu.
Natsu growled as he sent flames all over his body, "Explosive Wave!" He yelled, causing the threads to burn away.
The whole stared hall started to shake and break apart from the destruction caused by the battle. Lucy lowered the barrier and tried to find an escape path.
"Come on, let's get out of here." Lucy said.
"What about the others?" Yukino asked.
"They will catch up. This isn't the same Rogue as the present day one." Lucy answered. "But just in case." She said before summoning a servant.
In that instant, Tomoe Gozen appeared and immediately saw Future Rogue rushing through Natsu and Shirou while shrouded in shadows. The Archer immediately pulled back her bow string and prepared to fire a massive arrow of fire at him. Future Rogue tanked the attack and continued to rush towards her direction. Tomoe narrowed her eyes as she reached for her naginata.
"My flames will burn through your darkness." Tomoe said as she charged at Future Rogue.
Just as Lucy and a few of the others were about to make their escape. They heard an explosion coming from where Tomoe was. Lucy looked back and saw Future Rogue clashing with Tomoe before eventually overpowering the Archer of Inferno. Tomoe was then sent crashing through a wall as Future Rogue went straight towards Lucy. Where he used only his bloodlust to light the path he was making.
"Incoming!" Yukino said as she fumbled with her golden keys.
"Random Ball!" Lucy yelled, trying to stop Future Rogue with a wave of projectiles.
Future Rogue cut through the projectiles and extended his talon shaped arm. Lucy tried to raise up another barrier while Yukino was still fumbling with her keys. Natsu and everyone else also tried to attack Future Rogue but it was too late. Future Rogue's talon pierced Lucy, but not the present day one.
"NO!" Lucy screamed in terror.
Seconds before the talon reached her, Future Lucy jumped in front of her and used herself as a shield. Time felt as if it had come to a stop and the world felt as if had gone silent. All Lucy could hear were her counterpart's words.
"Even if my future… is doomed… you can still save your own…" Future Lucy said before sliding off of Future Rogue's talon.
Just as everyone continued to run and try to stop Future Rogue. Lucy's eyes turned gold again and her Dress of Heaven became black yet again. Instead of Black Lucy's sadistic and twist personality coming out. Future Rogue was met with a blast filled with fury.
With Gajeel
Gajeel let out a sigh as he stood over Rogue's unconscious body, "You were tough kid, but you were too cocky for your own good. Still, you could always do better." He said as he left Rogue alone.
As Gajeel left, he wondered if the rescue team had reached Lucy yet. His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of an explosion in the distance. He watched in surprise as he saw the explosion coming from the castle.
"Please tell me that's just the salamander." Gajeel said, unaware of how much worse things have become.
As Gajeel looked around, his eyes had briefly saw a nearby clocktower. The tower's bell started to ring, announcing that there was only one hour left until Midnight.
TO BE CONTINUED…
Omake - Horse?
Happy was panting and gripping his chest as he heard everyone arguing about the whole business relating to who is right and what to do about the incoming dragons. That's when Panther Lily and Charle noticed Happy's odd condition and actually felt concerned.
"Are you alright?" Charle asked.
"This is wrong." Happy muttered.
"What are you speaking about?" Charle asked.
"I see it now. It's so clear to me now." Happy said.
"Are you feeling sick?" Panther Lily asked.
Happy tugged on his backpack, "Deep down, I am a proud majestic… horse." he whispered.
"Horse? This isn't a time for jokes!" Panther Lily yelled.
Happy then threw down his backpack, "And I doubt the future!" he yelled.
As Future Rogue argued and Natsu continued his weird theories. Happy filled the room with an intense amount of magic as he grew a blue lion's mane with a crown and exotic clothes.
"Wherever Lucy is in danger, I will be there!" Happy said with a new voice.
Lucy was shocked by the sound of the voice, "My paralyzed horse?" she asked.
"The paralyzed horse!?" Future Lucy asked.
"Rogue Cheney, blinded by your desire for power and pride. You have become the embodiment of the evil of humanity and become a beast." the paralyzed horse said.
"What the hell is this?" Future Rogue asked.
"Now your quest for destruction ends with me! Form Exceed Laser!" Paralyzed Horse said before firing a barrage of lasers at Future Rogue.
"Ow… ow… OUCH! QUIT IT!" Future Rogue yelled as he tried to run away.
"Your righteous anarchy has come to an end!" The Paralyzed Horse said as he kept shooting at Happy.
"Get him Happy!" Natsu cheered.
"Knock it off! Why aren't my powers working?" Future Rogue asked as his skin started to burn from the lasers.
"Inter-dimensional animals are the natural predator of the Beasts of Humanity." the Paralyzed Horse answered.
The Lucy's laughed as they watched their horse chase Future Rogue around the entire castle. All the while thinking about the same past they shared. Albeit, the story behind the horse is a bit weird.
Flashback, Lucy's childhood
A 7 year old Lucy was smiling as she stroked a horse that was lying on the ground as it was literally paralyzed.
"Horsy, you are so lazy. When are you going to stop taking naps with your eyes open?" Lucy asked.
Layla and Jude just watched the scene with mixed reactions. Layla looked sad and concerned for her daughter while Jude just sighed in disappointment.
"Layla, we have to put down that poor animal." Jude said.
"Hold on now, perhaps there's a magic for fixing the spines of equestrians." Layla said. "Perhaps one of my celestial spirits know something among each other." He said.
Jude shook his head, "Layla, we have to be realistic here. I love our daughter as much as you do, but the girl can't live with this… I can't describe what this is." he said.
They just kept watching Lucy trying to speak with the paralyzed horse.
"I love you, horsy." Lucy said.
The paralyzed horse moved its eye towards Lucy, 'I love you too, Lucy. I will defend you from all the evils of this world.' he thought.
"Alright, we'll have to put down the poor creature." Layla said.
Now the paralyzed horse felt scared, 'Wait, are they going to euthanize me!?' he mentally asked.
"I'm gonna go get lunch. Wait right here." Lucy said as she left.
'Lucy wait! I promise to defend you if you protect me from your parents! Lucy come back! Lucyyyyyyyy!' the paralyzed horse mentally pleaded.