Hi everyone, thanks again for your patience. Welp, this is it. We are not entering the climax of the Order of the Sword arc, and this chapter is going to give you some answers, even those that you didn't see coming. With the reveal of Michelle as Imitatia, a member of the Neo Oracion Seis; and the capture of Dante, Natsu, and Lucy, things might be looking grim for our heroes. But now… the time has come to fight back!
Chaos Unleashed
His senses were almost completely dull. His vision blurry, a ringing noise in his ear, and the sensation of air being blown in his face. He tried to wake himself up but found himself unable too. His eyes open slightly, two white blurs were in front and above him before he blacked out again. Then he heard a voice.
"Dante, you must awaken! Your friends and loved ones need you! You must awaken now!"
His eyes shot open, the sound of his father's voice echoing through his head as Dante had now fully awakened. He looked around to see he was being carried in the air by two Bianco Angelos, each one holding up his arm as the rest of him dangled. However, he was not about to let himself be captured.
With a powerful swing, he kicked both his feet into the side of the Angelo on his right, forcing him to let go, allowing Dante to wrap his free arm around the neck of the Angelo on his left. He then used his left hand to wrench the lance from the Angelo that struggled in his grip before using it to impale that very same Angelo, causing the body to vanish before Dante began his fall back toward the ground below. The remaining Bianco Angelo flew down to try and intercept him, but Dante threw the lance out to impale it through the neck, causing it to explode as well.
In that explosion, Dante saw some flashes as he continued to fall and saw his sword and guns falling as well, that Angelo he destroyed must have been holding onto his weapons. As he fell closer to the ground, Dante stretched out his hand to call Rebellion to him first before swinging his sword to bring Ebony and Ivory closer to him; which he caught with his free arm just before he landed on the ground.
The landing was rather rough for the young Son of Sparda, evident by the large crater he made on impact; but he still landed on his feet regardless. In his right hand was Rebellion, which he quickly sheathed and allowed himself to grab Ebony and Ivory with both hands, before putting them back in his jacket and climbed out of the crater to observe his newfound surroundings.
It appeared Dante was in a small desert-like area. There really wasn't all that much around him save for sand in seemingly every direction. Though on the west, he made out the blurry figures of buildings in the distance, implying there was some civilization here. But, on the east, and much closer to him, was a large and black monolithic structure that seemed to emanate demonic power. Before he could approach and investigate the structure however…
"Hey! Mr. Dante!"
He turned to the sound of a familiar voice calling his name and saw something very fast moving straight toward him before coming to a stop in front of him. It was Coco.
"I… I saw you… in the sky!" She tried to speak but appeared out of breath. "I… I tried to catch up but… they were too fast and I…"
"Whoa, whoa, slow down kid." Dante stopped her. "Take a deep breath, okay?"
Coco did as he told her, taking a minute to catch her breath. "Okay… okay."
"Alright. First off, where the hell am I?" Dante asked.
"Fortuna, believe or not." Coco answered, getting Dante's attention.
"Fortuna? The Order's home base?" He took another look around. "Didn't know islands could have deserts."
"We don't, this isn't natural. It's because of that thing." Coco pointed to the demonic structure Dante spotted earlier. "It's called a Hellgate. My friend Kyrie found it while the rest of us were looking for the Clock Pieces, and there's four others scattered throughout the whole island."
"How'd you even know to find me here?" Dante asked.
"Nero and I saw you and your friend Natsu being carried here." She explained. "You were being brought in from separate directions; I went to get to you, and Nero went to get your friend."
Dante remembered what happened before, but it wasn't just him and Natsu that had been captured. "Lucy! Where is she?!" He quickly turned to Coco with a serious expression, startling her slightly. "We weren't the only ones caught! Where was Lucy?!"
"I… I don't know!" Coco stuttered. "We just saw you two!" Her eyes quickly widened. "Oh my gosh… they captured Lucy too?!"
Dante's fists clenched as he remembered everything that happened, particularly being stabbed in the back, figuratively and literally by someone that he trusted and even considered family. He remembered the kind, sweet, and innocent face of Michelle Lobster, before fading away to reveal the cold and emotionless expression of Imitatia, a member of the Neo Oracion Seis. So many thoughts and emotions whirled inside Dante right now, but his foremost one was anger. It was just like when he first met Trish back then.
Coco noticed his anger and it made her hesitant to speak to him, but there was something else that he needed to know.
"Um… Mr. Dante… Listen. We… we figured out how the Order… has been turning people into demons."
"Let me guess, those Hellgate things?"
"No." She shook her head. "Those are actually how they make the Angelos. They summon lesser demons and harvest their power to create the artificial ones. The Ascension Ceremony… how they turn people into demons… it's also why Nero's power is so similar to yours."
Dante gave her his undivided attention. She gulped, knowing he wouldn't like the answer, but she steeled herself and said it anyway.
"It's because the Order has Sparda's corpse!"
At the same time, Natsu was in a similar state as to Dante, being carried by two Bianco Angelo soldiers in the sky over what appeared to be the burnt ruins of an old village, with a Hellgate not too far away. However, though it had appeared long burnt, the faint embers that remained in the area were picked up the heightened senses of the Dragon Slayer. His ability to consume flame and heat stirred within him, along with something else, something deeper and more ancient.
The sound of a dragon's roar caused Natsu to wake up with a gasp. He then noticed the Bianco Angelos carrying him before his face twisted into a scowl.
Nero was drawn to the sound of a large explosion and a massive fireball that lit up the sky. "Guess he doesn't need any rescuing." Nero commented before running further ahead.
Natsu fell toward the ground and landed in the middle of the burnt-out village, just bellow the hill that the Hellgate stood over. "Where am I? Where are Lucy and Dante?"
"Hey! Flame-for-brain!" He heard Nero's voice and saw the young man quickly approach him. "Didn't know you…"
Suddenly, Natsu grabbed Nero by his throat and slammed him into the nearest wall. "Where's Lucy!? What happened to her?!"
"I don't know, alright!?" Nero shoved Natsu off and stood straight on his feet. "My friend and I just saw you and Dante getting flown in, nobody else!"
At this point, Natsu knew Nero was telling the truth. Despite everything going on, he knew Nero was an ally and had no reason to lie to him. "So where the heck are we?"
"My home of Fortuna." Nero answered.
"Wow, your home is a real dump." Natsu commented.
"Nobody lives in this old town, you moron! It's been abandoned!" Nero stated with an anger-mark on his head.
Natsu growled back before noticing the Hellgate. "That thing reeks of demonic power!"
"It's called a Hellgate, it's how the Order's been mass-producing all the Angelo soldiers." Nero answered.
"What about turning people into demons?" Natsu asked. "Can those Hellgate things do that too?"
"No… that's a bit more complicated." Nero muttered, looking to his demonic appendage. Though he felt gravely uncomfortable talking about this, he still needed to tell Natsu. He needed all the help he could get to not only rescue Kyrie, but stop the crisis that was unfolding right in front of them.
"What…?!" Dante looked to Coco as if she had grown a second head. His face becoming pale, his eyes widened beyond belief. He had been surprised many times before, but nothing could prepare him for what Coco had said.
"It's true… we… we've seen it." She spoke very carefully as the girl tried to explain as best she could. "They… they have Sparda's body… they harvested his energy… to… to create the Ascension Ceremony. I… I don't know how exactly it works but… that's the source of it."
Dante turned his back towards Coco so that she couldn't see his face. "And Nero?"
She gave a sigh, knowing just how much this affected her friend emotionally, but given this was also Dante's father, he had a right to know as well.
"The Order… they wanted to create an heir to Sparda… but they had no idea he had any sons." Coco explained. "So… they took a piece of him and… mixed it with a woman so… she could give birth to a Son of Sparda. So… in a way… Nero's… your brother."
There was silence in the air, his back still facing hers. It was almost as if he was trying to process what he had just heard. Honestly, she really didn't blame him for that. While seeing the body of Sparda being desecrated like that was beyond horrifying to her, in the eyes of the Order and her friends, Sparda was a being of legend and regality. But to Dante… he was his father. She can't even begin to imagine how he must be feeling right now. Suddenly however… an unspoken feeling of dread filled the air. She looked at Dante, with his back still facing her, and an aura of rage surrounded him. She could practically feel the fury that was being expelled from every pore in his body. She honestly felt terrified, looking at Dante like this was already making her sweat as she instinctively took a step or two back.
"Who. Do. I. Kill?"
Coco couldn't contain her gasp. It wasn't just what he said, it was how he said it. She didn't know Dante very long, but her first impression of him was a confident, strong, yet caring individual; even when he was serious, he had this air of nobility around him. But she had never heard him sound so murderous before, not even during his fight with Byro, when she knew he was serious. He looked like he was ready to slaughter everything in his path, and while that made her more than a little scared, she didn't blame him for feeling that way. He had every right to.
However, before she could even offer a response, the ground beneath them began to shake. Suddenly, Dante rushed to grab Coco and used his Quicksilver style to vanish from the area just as the sandy ground exploded and something massive emerged.
It was definitely a demon, and it had the appearance of a monstrous worm. It was covered almost completely in black scales, with spikes on its head almost like a crown. Four huge mandibles were on all sides of its mouth, which opened up three ways with glowing orange serrated teeth.
Dante re-appeared closer to the Hellgate, still holding Coco in her arms as they saw the demonic worm roaring to the sky.
"Got any idea what that thing is?" Dante questioned.
"Kyrie said that each of the Hellgates is supposed to have a powerful demon guarding it." Coco replied. "I think I've seen this one before in the Order's library. It's called the Stygian, it's part of a breed of demons called Ashworms. They dwell in desert-like areas, swimming through sand like sharks and devour anything smaller than them, even other demons."
Dante set Coco down. "Get some distance, kid."
"Wait… you're not gonna fight that thing, are you?!" Coco exclaimed.
"I don't think it's gonna let us just walk away." Dante told her. "Plus, I'm a Devil Hunter and a member of Fairy Tail. Killing monsters is my job. So get some distance and let me do what I'm best at."
Coco could tell he was not in the mood to argue, so she nodded and ran to get some distance as the Stygian turned to face Dante directly.
"Hey, you know I'm glad you showed up." Dante spoke to the Stygian. "I'm in a really bad mood right now, and I could use something to take my anger out on." He drew Rebellion. "Lucky me, not-so-much for you."
The Stygian gave a roar before it lunged at Dante, who leapt at it with Rebellion in hand, ready to make this demon suffer a very painful death.
"What?! They have Sparda's body?!" Natsu exclaimed, his face pale with horror as Nero had told him the same thing Coco had just told Dante.
"Yeah… and apparently, I'm his son… artificial but yeah…" Nero responded, his voice laced with anger and shock, still not over the revelation as he glanced at his demonic hand.
To say Natsu was stunned was an understatement. However, that shock quickly turned into rage as he delivered a fiery-fist towards the building behind him, striking with enough force to completely demolish it with one strike.
"First these bastards use us to find their doomsday weapon, then they hurt my friends and kidnap Lucy, now they dug up Dante's dad to use as some kind of experiment!?" Natsu roared. "I don't care if he's the Dark Knight or whatever, nobody deserves that!"
"Sounds like we got something in common." Nero said. "Not just all that about me and Sparda, but those guys kidnapped someone important to me and I'm gonna do everything I can to get her back! So… wanna help each other out?"
"Yeah, sounds like a plan." Natsu agreed instantly. However, the Hellgate on the hill above them erupted into a large explosion of flame. "Ugh, now what?!"
Suddenly, the burning demon known as Berial leapt from the Hellgate to land in front of the pair. Nero instantly drew Blue Rose and aimed it at the demon, while Natsu merely growled.
"More intruders." Berial growled, noticing the pair. However, he took a few whiffs in the air to notice something. "You… you bare the scent of the accursed Sparda!" He glared at Nero first before looking toward Natsu. "But you… Why do you bare that scent? Why do you reek of that wretched Igneel?!"
That got Natsu's attention. "How do you know Igneel?"
Berial roared in rage. "That accursed dragon! I came to this world to claim it as my own! I led legions of demons from the Fire Hell and was well on my way to taking what was mine! But then… he came!" Berial's fist clenched around his sword's handle in anger. "That vile Igneel, who stood against me and my legion alone, and wiped it off the face of the world! He destroyed my army! He humiliated me in battle! And to add insult to injury, he didn't even see fit to give me a warrior's death! He just threw me back into the Underworld! So why?! Why do you bare the scent of that damned Fire Dragon!"
"Easy. I'm his son, asshole!" Natsu declared.
That took Nero by surprise, but none looked more perplexed than Berial.
"You? A human claims to be the son of a dragon? Don't make me laugh! A weakling such as yourself could not compare to him!" Berial roared at Natsu. "But… anyone who speaks highly enough of that dragon to consider himself his offspring… cannot be allowed to live! I will slaughter anyone who speaks the air of praise about him!" He waved his sword to shoot a wave of flame at the pair.
Nero leapt out of the way, but Natsu remained standing as the wave struck. "You idiot! What are you doing?!" Nero shouted.
"Foolish mortal. No human can withstand my flames. You are…"
Suddenly, Berial and Nero looked in shock to see the flames shrinking, revealing Natsu inhaling the fire before it was all engulfed completely.
"Did… did he just…" Nero honestly had no idea what to say.
"Impossible… How… how can…?" Berial stuttered. "A human cannot… the only one who is capable of consuming my flames…!" The demon remembered his battle against the Fire Dragon, and how he was able to consume virtually all his flame attacks in the exact same manner. "You… who or what are you?!"
"My name is Natsu Dragneel!" His fists lit on fire. "I'm a Dragon Slayer of Fairy Tail, and like I said before, I'm the Son of Igneel! Listen up pal, I don't got time to play around with you! I got someone to rescue and bunch of other bastards to beat up, so I'm gonna make this quick!"
More flames shot around Berial as his rage reached its peak, evident by his roar. "Just like him! Just like Igneel, you think I'm unworthy! Well, I may not get the chance to kill that wretched dragon, but killing his son is the next best thing! You will die here, Natsu Dragneel!"
With another roar, Berial charged at Natsu full speed, while the Dragon Slayer leaping toward him as well, with Nero joining the fray too.
Fairy Tail guildhall
All the teams that had sent out to stop the Neo Oracion Seis had returned to the guildhall, alongside some newfound comrades and had begun to share what they learned with each other. However, there was one piece of news that struck them the hardest.
"What?! Michelle was a member of the Neo Oracion Seis?!" Trish exclaimed.
"Yeah… her real name is Imitatia." Elfman said with a scowl. "She was acting all cute and sweet to fool us!"
"I… I don't believe it…" Patty muttered.
"This is horrible…" Happy also muttered.
Everyone present in Fairy Tail had their own looks of shock, sorrow, disappointment, and even anger at this revealed deception. Among those most frustrated was Trish. Ever since Lucy told her that she considered her a part of her family, she considered Michelle the same thing. So to hear that someone you had considered family was really just a spy was quite shattering to say the least.
"Damn… who'd a thought that girl was really a bad guy." Dan commented as he stood with Sugarboy and Samuel. "She seemed so sweet."
"Guess we're not the only ones who were stabbed in the back, huh baby?" Sugarboy added.
"Listen, I understand that all of you must feel quite upset by this; and I know exactly what that's like." Samuel got the attention of everyone else in Fairy Tail. "But there are more important things to worry about at the moment."
"He's right." Elfman nodded. "Dante, Natsu, and Lucy got themselves captured. And it was my fault! I wasn't man enough to stop any of it from happening!"
"Don't be so hard on yourself." Mira told him. "Michelle fooled us all."
"I deserve some of the blame too." Cana said. "My cards didn't say anything about that Agnus-creep showing up at Kardia Cathedral, but their usually right on the money. And I'm sure no one would argue that the teams I picked out worked very well, right?"
"I can definitely see your point." Gray commented. "Most of these teams didn't work out well at all."
"Could Michelle have had something to do with that?" Juvia asked.
"Probably." Cana replied. "I honestly wouldn't be surprised if that were the case."
"There was also word getting out when we were looking for the Clock Pieces." Lisanna added. "I think Michelle was the one who leaked the information."
"We were able to take down Erigor though." Bickslow put in. "So, things worked out for us."
"To be honest, I think we just got lucky." Trish replied. "That fight was way too close a call."
"Not to mention the Neo Oracion Seis can also turn into those Fallen Angel things." Wendy added.
"Caduto." Carla recalled Racer undergoing that transformation himself. "And even more horrifying… the reason the Neo Oracion Seis were targeting the churches in the first place."
"You say it's to sever this body-link magic from the descendants of the Celestial Wizards from the original Order of the Sword?" Erza asked.
"The very same ones that helped Sparda and the Order's founders seal away the Infinity Clock in the first place." Samuel nodded. "And judging by everyone else's reports, not to mention the ominous presence in the air, it's clear our enemy succeeded in their objective."
"Yeah, we can see that." Lady commented with no attempt to hide her irritation. "More importantly, how the hell do we stop it?"
"Our first objective should be going to Fortuna." Modeus said. "Our friends are likely being held there as well. We'll rescue them and stop the Infinity Clock."
"It ain't gonna be easy." Dan said. "Fortuna is built like a fortress; plus, we probably got a whole army of those Angelo freaks to deal with."
"But on the plus side; Nero, Kyrie, and Coco are on Fortuna too." Sugarboy added.
"Indeed, so it is possible they will help to rescue your friends; but we shouldn't waste any time." Samuel also said. "We are facing a grave crisis, and the only way to prevail is to work together."
"I agree with Sammy." Lily nodded. "It's time to come up with a plan of attack."
"Excuse me, pardon the interruption."
Everyone turned around to see a group of four people entering the scene; people that Lisanna and Happy recognized right away.
"It's actually those actually guys!" Happy exclaimed.
"You're those archeologists we met!" Lisanna clarified.
Makarov addressed the group of newcomers. "Is there something you'd like to discuss with us?"
"Actually, we came here looking for Mr. Dante Redgrave and Ms. Lucy Heartfilia." Jean-Luc replied. "We are here on behalf of the Fiore Archeological Society."
"Come on inside." Makarov told them. "This isn't the type of environment to have a discussion."
The group led the archeologists into the guildhall where Macao and the others joined in on the conversation. "What's your business with Dante and Lucy?"
"And who are you?" Jean-Luc asked.
"My name I Macao, and I'm the Fairy Tail guildmaster. You'll have to talk to me instead."
"Well, you see actually…" Jean-Luc began.
"This is a matter of extreme importance." One of the elderly archeologists spoke. "So it's imperative that we speak with them directly."
"Indeed, it concerns the strange magic that is overflowing the land." Another added.
"They can't talk because they got themselves captured by a bunch of psychos." Lady stated.
"They took Natsu too!" Happy added.
"My heavens…" An old archeologist looked in shock.
"Can't you talk to us, instead?" Erza requested. "We desperately need all the information we can get right now."
"Actually, with the situation unfolding as we speak, there's no reason to keep it a secret." Jean-Luc began. "You see, I suppose it's safe to assume you're all familiar with the name Will Neville? You see, I'm actually his great-grandson. My name is Jean-Luc Neville."
That took them all by surprise.
"What?! You're also descended from the original Order?! Lisanna exclaimed.
"How are you even alive?" Dan questioned.
"Indeed. The Neo Oracion Seis have taken it upon themselves to hunt down and exterminate all the descendants of the Celestial Wizards who sealed away the Infinity Clock's power." Samuel said.
"Because I'm actually not a Celestial Wizard." Jean-Luc revealed. "I possess no magical power whatsoever."
"Well, lucky for you, baby." Sugarboy commented.
"No joke, we certainly know how relentless our enemies have been during this crisis." Carla added.
"And what's more; I'm also an old friend of the Heartfilia family." Jean-Luc continued. "I knew both Layla and Eva, as well as Jude, and even Sparda himself."
"You even knew Dante and Lucy's parents?" Gray questioned. "Care to explain?"
"It's a long story." Jean-Luc began. "And while I may not be a Celestial Wizard, and therefor have no body-link connection to the Infinity Clock, I have made it my sworn duty to help watch over the clock for as long as I live."
"Is that why you were trying to stop us from looking for the clock pieces when we first met you guys?" Lisanna asked.
"That is correct." Jean-Luc confirmed. "To be honest, I myself wasn't aware of all this till a later point in my life. During my first years as an archeologist, I actually stumbled across old ruins of the ancient Order of the Sword; and yet, I had found no other historical evidence to suggest that such an order existed. Before I became acquainted with the Heartfilia family, I was already acquainted with Jude; we attended college together, he studied business as I studied archeology. It was that connection that allowed me to actually meet the Dark Knight himself; so after my discovery of those ruins, I spoke to Sparda directly. He, Jude, Eva, and Layla then actually took the time to explain the whole story to me. How Sparda and Eva and Layla's ancestor, Anna Heartfilia, founded the Order of the Sword centuries ago, as well as its disbandment after accidentally creating the Infinity Clock. They even showed me the clock hand that the Heartfilia family had kept in their possession for generations. And even though I possess no magic, I actually made it my sworn duty to assist them in any way I could. After we parted ways, I would make it my duty to find and locate any other ruins that were connected to the original Order and see to it they would remain hidden and no outside force would discover them and actually learn of the Infinity Clock and risk unleashing its horrifying powers."
"So that's why you didn't want us finding the Clock Pieces." Happy said in realization.
"If you and the great Sparda wanted to keep the Order's secret an existence, how the hell did we end up with it?" Dan questioned.
"Yeah dog, what's up with this new Order that me and my pals have been living in since we were born?" Sugarboy added.
"I'm afraid I don't have an answer for that." Jean-Luc replied. "I actually didn't even know of the new Order's existence till after its official announcement shortly before this crisis began. If I had to take a guess, I would say that either this is a different group using the same name; or perhaps members of the original Order choose not to disband and have remained in secret for generations, building their society into what it is now."
"That would actually make sense." Makarov said.
"Yes, it would explain how they even knew of the Infinity Clock as well." Modeus added.
"Which would mean that Sanctus and those working closely with him, may also be descendants of those in the original Order." Samuel added.
"We heard how the Infinity Clock has the power to screw with reality. Is that true?" Trish asked.
"Indeed, it is." Jean-Luc confirmed. "The Infinity Clock was created through a combination of Celestial magic and demonic power, that combination of two completely different forms of energy has actually led to the manifestation of Clock's ability to distort reality. The strongest of metals can become soft and brittle, fire can rain from the skies instead of water, oceans can turn to deserts. And what actually makes it even more terrifying is how the ability cannot be controlled. If left unchecked, the Infinity Clocks' ability to twist and warp reality could literally tear the world apart."
"So, what, this Sanctus guy and the Neo Oracion Seis think they can control it?" Lady questioned.
"Or maybe they're just a bunch of nutjobs who wanna straight up destroy the world." Gajeel said. "Grimoire Heart tried the same kind of thing, right?"
"I don't really care what those bastards want! We gotta man up and stop them!" Elfman stated.
"Yes, you must stop them." Jean-Luc told them. "Whatever it takes."
"And we'll rescue Natsu, Lucy, and Dante too while we're at it!" Happy stated.
"If they hadn't rescued themselves already." Lisanna added with a smirk.
"Knowing Dante and Natsu though, they're probably gonna need all the help they can get." Patty joked.
"You can count us in too!" Dan stated. "Those guys used us to do their dirty work, and that don't sit well with me!"
"Got that right baby. Time to give those punks the what-for!" Sugarboy declared.
"Let us put an end to this evil before more innocent lives are lost." Samuel swore.
"Then it is time we put our heads together and come up with a plan." Makarov said. "The time for us to go on the offensive is now, my children! Let us show the Order of the Sword and Neo Oracion Seis that it was a mistake to make an enemy of Fairy Tail!"
"Yeah!" Everyone in the guildhall shouted as they raised their fists into the air.
Lucy's eyes fluttered open as she regained consciousness. "What… what is…?" She gasped in shock to find herself inside what appeared to be a gigantic heart of some kind. Most of her body was submerged in a glowing patch on the heart, unable to move. "Where am I?!"
"You're awake…" She turned toward her left to see Kyrie in the exact same position as her. "I was worried…."
"Who are you?" Lucy asked.
"My name is Kyrie… and I'm guessing you're Lucy from Fairy Tail?"
Lucy recognized the name. "You're… that girl Nero and Coco were talking about. But what are you doing here? And where the heck is here?"
"Salvation, my dear." Both immobilized young women found themselves facing the masterminds of this plot; the one who spoke was Sanctus, wielding the Devil Sword Sparda, the other was Midnight holding Klodoa, with Imitatia standing by his side.
"A pleasure to finally meet you, young Miss Heartfilia. I am Sanctus, the head of the Order of the Sword." He greeted with a bow.
Lucy glared at him but saw the sword he was wielding. "That sword does not belong to you!"
"Oh? Would you prefer it to be wielded by an artificial creature, a being created by that wretched demon Mundus?" Sanctus asked.
"I trust Trish far more than I could ever trust someone like you!" Lucy exclaimed.
"And look where that trust has gotten you." Midnight told the blonde. "You trusted her, didn't you?" He referred to Imitatia standing next to him.
"Michelle… please… tell me why…?" Lucy tried to plead to her. "Why would you do this to me?! To us?!"
"My name is Imitatia. I'm not Michelle. Get it through your thick skull!"
"What is this place? Where have you taken us?!" Kyrie demanded.
"This place we reside in is the Savior, a massive artificial demon of our own creation." Sanctus answered. "And as of now, the current vessel of the Infinity Clock."
"Vessel?" Kyrie asked.
"Indeed." Midnight confirmed. "The Infinity Clock's power to distort reality makes it difficult to control on its own. However, now that the Clock has been reassembled, its full power unleashed, we were able to place our own seals onto it that allows my comrades and Sanctus' followers to control it. Think of the Savior as a 'conductor' of sorts, one that lets us focus and control its power."
"So, all those Angelos…" Lucy seemed to get an understanding of it.
"They are not just our soldiers, but also prototypes." Sanctus finished.
"And now the Infinity Clock's full and terrifying power is finally ours!" Klodoa exclaimed with joy. "Congratulations, Brain II! You've done an excellent job, sir!"
"As have you, Klodoa." Midnight nodded. "Your performance as Gilver was top notch."
"All I did was give a little smokescreen to fool that pesky Dante and keep suspicion off Imitatia here." Klodoa replied. "Your father would be nothing short of proud of you. He put a great deal of trust in your skill, so you deserve most of the credit. You always were his favorite, after all. He knew you would take the job of continuing his legacy very seriously. That's why we call you Brain II."
"Why are you doing this?!" Kyrie exclaimed as she turned to Sanctus with a tearful expression. "We trusted you… put our faith in you… so why… why would you do so many horrible things!?"
"To bring salvation, the kind that Sparda himself was unable to do."
"Salvation?!" Lucy shouted in anger. "Teaming up with a dark guild is one thing… but you helped to kill so many innocent people! You even brought back the weapon that Sparda tried to bury forever! How is using a doomsday weapon that even Sparda was afraid of supposed to bring salvation?!"
Sanctus gave a small sigh before explaining himself. "I admit, my hands are far from clean, but it is a necessary evil. As much as I respect the Dark Knight, he was also quite foolish. He only sought to stave off the darkness, subjecting this world to a never ending war, and I do not speak solely of the demons from the Underworld. This world is filled to the brim with evil as well, the human race is a frail and corruptible species, unable to find peace and compromise, choosing to wage war with one another over the most pitiful of reasons. This world is already on the brink of destruction. However, with the power of Savior, now fueled by the Infinity Clock, we can tear this old world asunder, and remake it into something more pure. The new humanity will live in harmony with another, and will be strong enough to ultimately destroy the Underworld. It is my duty to see this through, as a descendant of the old Order of the Sword! I will accomplish what Sparda could not! And now, thanks to the Ascension Ceremony, his power flows through my veins!"
"His… power…?" Lucy asked in surprise. "Ascension Ceremony?"
"That's how they've turned people into demons." Kyrie told Lucy. "Byro… even my brother, Credo. And… it's the source of Nero's power to…"
"What… what are you talking about?" Lucy questioned, though something told her she would not like the answer.
"They…. They have his body… Sparda's body…" Kyrie revealed, her voice cracking and tears filling in her eyes.
Lucy's pupils shrunk at that revelation. "What…?!"
"It's true." Midnight confirmed. "How else do you think we were able to obtain such strong demonic power? Even myself and two of my comrades possess his power through the Ascension Ceremony."
"And since he's dead, it's not like he has any use for it anyway." Klodoa said with a slight laugh. However, that earned a subtle glare from Imitatia, but she dared not speak out.
"At the time, I was unaware Sparda had any children, so I sought to make one of my own… for the completion of the Savior." Sanctus explained. "That child is Nero, a Son of Sparda, and in a way… Dante's half-brother."
Lucy couldn't believe it. Though this explained why Nero's power felt so similar to Dante's, and why they bore such a resemblance towards each other. At the same time, this was nothing short of horrifying to her. To the rest of the world, Sparda was a legendary hero! A shining beacon of hope and freedom! An inspiration to many! But to Lucy… it felt so much more personal. He was a founder of Fairy Tail… but more importantly… he was her uncle, the father to her beloved cousin. Though she only met him once in her life, and seen his spirit on Tenrou Island, she felt that familial connection with him. So to hear how his body had been unearthed and desecrated in such a way, it made her sick to her stomach and her heart ache.
"How… how could you…?" She said through tears. "You… You didn't even let the man rest… how…?" She turned to Imitatia. "How could you let them do this, Michelle?! How could you let them do something so horrible?! You were the one who brought the clock hand to me, right?! To me and Dante?! Because my father thought we could protect it! Was that all a lie to?!"
Imitatia didn't respond, but simply closed her uncovered eye and tried to maintain a stoic expression on her face. However, Sanctus had a knowing look as he glanced at her.
"My dear Imitatia, would you please excuse us for a moment?" He requested.
"As you wish." She bowed before exiting the chamber, leaving Sanctus, Midnight and Klodoa alone with their captives.
Once she was out of earshot, Sanctus spoke. "Tell me, Miss Heartfilia, didn't you find it rather odd that no sooner did you obtain the clock piece from Michelle that all this started to happen?"
"What are you talking about?" Lucy questioned.
"Imitatia has a rather special ability." Midnight explained. "She has the power to enter the minds of the people around her and subtly influence their actions. I wouldn't call it mind control, but it does allow us to make slight alterations."
"How do you think you and all your friends were paired up in such unusual teams?" Klodoa added.
Lucy gave a gasp as the answer came to her. "You mean… you influenced Cana's divination?"
"We needed to separate all your friends in order to isolate you as well as Dante." Midnight confirmed. "That and see to it they could not prevent us from completing our mission. So, we used Imitatia's ability to alter your friend's divination ability and pair your friends into groups that were unlikely to succeed as we finished severing the last of the body links to release the Infinity Clock's power."
"But that's not all we've done." Sanctus revealed. "You received the Clock Hand from your father upon his passing, correct? And Imitatia was with him for quite some time. Coincidence? I think not. As said, Imitatia's ability allows us to subtly influence the minds of others, she acts as a 'conduit' of sorts between us and her victims. But… with the right amount of power, and when used on someone who has no magic power to begin with… it could for instance… help create a fatal tumor in their brain, such as the one that took the life of Jude Heartfilia."
Nothing could prepare Lucy for that. She almost felt her heart stop at that revelation, even Kyrie gave a gasp as she seemed to understand what that meant.
"Our original plan was to have Imitatia bring the clock piece directly to us after your father's passing." Sanctus continued. "But then you and your friends returned after seven years of absence, and so it fell to you, which is actually fortunate for us as we require a Celestial Wizard of the Heartfilia bloodline to complete our plan, as well as a child of Sparda."
Lucy didn't seem to process that last part, that revelation still being what she was most focused on. "You…. You killed my father….?" A look of sorrow and hatred filled Lucy's eyes as she screamed at the top of her lungs at Sanctus. "YOU KILLED MY FATHER!"
"Something that our dear Imitatia isn't aware of, but let's keep that to ourselves, shall we?" Midnight requested.
"And rest assured my dear, your father's death will not be in vain, nor will any of those who died before and will die in the future." Sanctus said. "Because the time is now, to show the world the pure and devastating power of the Savior!"
Just outside; the giant statue resembling Sparda, that was known as the Savior, gave a booming roar; the blue gemstones on its chest and forehead glowed brightly as the sky above it began to darken even further, the reality distorting powers of the Infinity Clock being activated at that very moment.
The skies above Fiore thundered, drawing the attention of all the people in a nearby city before the black clouds were set ablaze, and countless fireballs began to fall down like a rainstorm. Already, people ran and tried to find some form of cover as the raining fireballs laid waste to the area below; buildings being demolished and set on fire upon contact, trees and even hilltops suffering similar fates, as well as any unfortunate soul that couldn't find cover.
Other areas across the country suffered similar events as well; the people in a fishing village looked in absolute shock and horror to see the dissolving and skeletal remains of all their fish rise to the surface of the water that had just turned acidic; black tornadoes of iron sand began to descend from the sky into a nearby valley and tear it asunder; a large forest was encompassed in a powerful blizzard that almost froze it instantly; even all the snow on a mountaintop was set ablaze with blue fire.
Even in Magnolia, a large and glowing sphere appeared in the sky, which appeared to be a giant red sun, despite the black sky that was still present. The blinding light shining down on the people and city below before all the plants and trees began to die out, much to the people's horror.
Those in Fairy Tail, as well as the three defectors from the Order of the Sword, and Jean-Luc with his fellow Archeologists observed what was happening in shock.
"Good heavens…!" Erza gasped.
"It has begun…" Jean-Luc said in a grave tone of voice.
Back in Fortuna, Credo stood at the window of a medical ward within the main city as he saw the white streaks of lightning across the black sky. "The Infinity Clock's power has been unleashed."
This is what he had been working toward; what he and his Holiness had desired from the beginning. And yet, now that it was here, Credo didn't feel the least bit thrilled.
"I… I hope… you're happy."
He turned to see Mary, still injured from what Midnight had done to her, her upper body wrapped in bandages as she was almost out of breath, but she was still very-much alive as she glared at Credo.
"This is… what you and his Holiness wanted… right?" She glared at him as Credo tried to maintain a stoic expression, but his eyes wavered. "And Kyrie's… right in the middle of that…!"
"Mary…" Credo began, unsure of what to say at the moment. "What has happened… I… I didn't want… it turn out like this…"
"All my life… I was told that we… followed the way of Sparda…" Mary sat up on her bed. "The Order took me in… they saved me… you gave me a home… something to believe in. Even when… we were fighting those Fairy Tail guys… I still believed that… and all the people that we ended up hurting… I just thought it was… part of the mission. You can't make an omelet… without breaking a few eggs or… something like that. But… is this… really what he would have wanted? The people we love… in danger? The whole world… literally falling apart?! Tell me Credo… are we… are we the real monsters in this story?!"
Credo looked towards Mary; his stoic expression completely gone as he gave her a sympathetic look before sitting down on the bed next in front of her.
"This world we live in… it is flawed." Credo tried to explain himself. "Corruption, war, hatred, it is a part of our world's very history. But, his Holiness… told me that if we were to control the power of the Infinity Clock, we could… make a new world where… there was no corruption. And… everyone could live in peace."
"Does that look like peace out there?" Mary questioned.
"No… it doesn't." Credo replied. "Much like you… I thought any actions we took… even if they were dishonorable… were a means to an end. But… perhaps I was mistaken. Kyrie… she had nothing to do with this."
"Did… did you know they had Sparda's body?" Mary asked. "And… about Nero?"
Credo grimaced. "No. I did not know that."
Mary looked away with a look of shame. "When I fought that she-devil from Fairy Tail, she said that Sparda would look like totally down upon us in shame if he saw what were doing. I'm thinking she was right."
"Yes… perhaps she was." Credo then stood up. "Mary… I'm sorry. I never wanted things to turn out like this."
"So… what are you going to do?" Mary asked.
After a deep breath, Credo's eyes, once wavering and hesitant, had now become hard and solid. A strong feeling of determination filled his being. "What I should have done a long time ago."
Magic Council Headquarters
Despite the chaos that was being unleashed outside, Lahar was presented the broken remains of a lacrima by a Rune Knight. "This is an excellent find. Very good work."
"It's the only surveillance lacrima we could locate." The Rune Knight reported. "It wasn't easy, but we were able to recover some of the footage from it as well."
"I see, can you show me this footage?" Lahar requested.
"Sir." The Rune Knight then activated the lacrima, showing a magical recording of the prison chambers where the members of the Oracion Seis were contained, with a hovering platform of an individual approaching the cell that contained Cobra. "These are the only known images of the priest who regularly visited the Oracion Seis."
However, Lahar noticed a brief moment when the priest turned, getting a glance of his face. "Right there! Enhance the image!"
"Yes sir!"
The image paused and zoomed in, revealing the face of the Sanctus. Though he appeared clad in the robe of the Zentopian church, it was clear this was a farce to cover up his true reasons for visiting the Oracion Seis.
"That is Sanctus! The head of the Order of the Sword!" Lahar stated. "They really have been working together!"
While he and Doranbolt did hear from that one Exceed from the Order that the higher ups of the organization were working with the Neo Oracion Seis, he didn't have any concrete proof to present to his superiors. But now, he had it. Everything made sense now, all he had to do was present this information to the Magic Council and plan a response immediately.
"Fire Dragon Roar!" Natsu unleashed a powerful breath attack straight at Berial, who swung his massive blade to send a wave of his own fire to intercept the attack with explosive results. Both fire-users rushed towards the other as the smoke cleared, Natsu leaping up to deliver his next attack. "Fire Dragon Iron Fist!" Natsu dealt a flaming punch as Berial tried to bring his blade down on Natsu. The fist collided with the massive sword, sending a shockwave of flames that knocked both combatants back.
Berial skidded across his feet as he looked in shock and frustration. 'His strength far exceeds that of an ordinary human, and those flames are near-identical to Igneel's. There is little doubt that beast of a dragon trained him.' A scowl formed on his face. 'He and that accursed Sparda always did have a soft spot for weakness!'
The large fire demon was shot on his side, curtsey of Nero with his Blue Rose pistol. Berial turned his attention toward him as he tried to rush Nero, swinging his blade horizontally, but Nero leapt over the blade to roll on the ground and come up directly under Berial before slicing with Red Queen at his underbelly, hurting and causing Berial a great deal of pain before he leapt away. The second he landed, Berial plunged his blade into the ground. Suddenly, a large column of flame erupted below Nero, sending him flying into the air before Berial rushed him to swing his sword at him, sending Nero crashing through several old buildings.
"Fire Dragon Brilliant Flame!" Natsu threw a massive fireball at Berial, who sliced through it with his sword, causing both halves to fly past him and explode, but Natsu used this chance with Berial's blade down to shoot directly at his face, but Berial swept his free arm to swat Natsu back and send him crashing into the hill just below the Hellgate. Berial then roared as he unleashed a wave of flame at Natsu, but like his previous attacks, Natsu consumed the flames to rejuvenate himself.
"Fighting fire with fire ain't gonna work on me, ya demonic bastard!" Natsu shot flames from his fee to propel himself at Berial again delivering another fiery punch at Berial's face, but the demon quickly recovered to bring the flat of his blade down on Natsu and send him crashing onto the ground.
"If my flames cannot consume you, then I will simply crush you!" Berial lifted his front feet to stomp onto Natsu, but Nero quickly appeared in front of him, pulling his Devil Bringer fist back before throwing it outward to send a large and transparent demonic fist in the form of an uppercut to knock Berial back, right before the Masayoshi appeared, which he swung to send a vertical wave in Berial's direction, slicing at the demon's chest and knocking him back even further.
Natsu's pupils shrunk once he saw the katana. It looked exactly like the Yamato! The very same sword that scared him when it was used by… him.
"Hey!" Natsu put a hand on Nero's shoulder, turning him around to face his serious expression. "Where did you get that sword?"
"The hell are you talking about?" Nero questioned back.
"That sword! Where did you get it?!" Natsu questioned again.
"There are bigger things to worry about right now!" Nero exclaimed.
Their argument came to an end as Berial suddenly gave a loud and demonic roar, which was followed by a powerful shockwave of flame and raw force; one strong enough to send both Natsu and Nero flying through the air before through the roof of an old building and landing inside.
"This bastard ain't playing around, and we don't got time to mess with him!" Nero stated.
"You're right…" Natsu wiped his mouth a bit. "I can definitely see him giving Igneel some trouble. Okay, forget that sword for right now. You hit him on the left, I'll go on the right. He can't take both of us on at once."
"Sounds like a plan." Nero nodded before the two broke through the old wall and rushed Berial.
"Fire Dragon Roar!" Natsu shot another breath attack, just as Nero swung Masayoshi again. Nero's attack traveled quicker as Berial attempted to block it, but he was too slow as the sword-wave struck, leaving him open right as Natsu's fire-breath hit to send him skidding back.
Nero came at Berial's left side, firing Blue Rose into the his side while Natsu came from the right, leaping into the air to deliver a flaming punch to Berial's jaw, sending him reeling back where Nero leapt to swing Masayoshi downward, sending a slicing wave that cut through his side. Natsu attacked next, generating a large fireball that exploded in Berial's face, sending him back to Nero who shot his Devil Bringer out, creating another large transparent hand that grabbed Berial by his face and pulled him down into the dirt where Natsu followed by leaping into the air to deliver a flaming axe-kick to the back of Berial's skull.
'Damn it!' Berial crushed as he fell victim to their constant attacks. 'I can't break out of this! These two… their in perfect sync just like… just like them!'
Berial's mind was plagued with an image of the Dark Knight Sparda and the Fire Dragon Igneel in battle together against demons of various shapes and sizes. Both were back-to-back, despite the size difference as Sparda swung his blade down to cut down one large demon, while Igneel unleashed a fire-breath attack on a demon that was only slightly smaller than himself. That image alone spurred Berial's fury even more as Natsu and Nero continued to shower him with blows.
"ENOUGH!" Berial tried desperately to unleashed another explosive shockwave attack to get himself free; it did send Nero skidding back while Natsu was flown off into the air. "Sparda and Igneel…! The two most hated beings in all the Underworld!" Berial swung his blade at Nero, the force sending him skidding across the ground. "Anyone who bares their blood… or even remotely speaks a hint of praise toward them… MUST DIE!"
"Too damn bad!" Natsu shouted as he flew straight down toward Berial. "Cause I'm gonna keeping doing what my dad did best, and that's taking down freaks like you! Flame Lotus Fire Dragon Fist!" Natsu unleashed a salvo of flaming punches, throwing them out at a rate equivalent to a gatling gun, pounding Berial all across his upper body at least a two dozen times before finishing off with a powerful slug across his face that shattered his jaw and right horn.
Natsu landed with a thud as Nero recovered, both seeing the fire demon on his last legs as he glared at the pair.
"I don't got time to mess around with you, pal!" Natsu told him. "Why don't you crawl back through that gate-thing so I can go rescue Lucy already?!"
"I've suffered humiliating retreats against that wretched Igneel before, never again! Least of all with his so-called son!" Berial roared as his entire body exploded in flame, his own skull shooting straight out toward Natsu like a rocket, ready to devour him. But Natsu simply threw his fist out to strike and shatter Berial's projectile skull, killing the fire demon once and for all.
Nero looked rather impressed. 'So that's the power of a Dragon Slayer? Not bad.' He thought to himself with a smirk. He then caught Natsu's glance as the Salamander looked toward the katana still in Nero's hands, silently asking for an explanation.
The young Devil Hunter gave a sigh before explaining. "Look, the Order wanted to replicate a sword Sparda used in the past, so they made this." He showed Masayoshi before it vanished into his demonic limb. "It reacted with my power, so I thought I'd take it. There, happy now?"
'So it's not Yamato.' Natsu thought with a sense of relief washing over him. "Sorry man, it just reminded me of something else, that's all."
"Whatever." Nero brushed off before they both looked towards the Hellgate. "Let's go bring that thing down." The two of them then climbed up the hill and marched toward the demonic monolith.
However, before either could make a move to destroy it, Nero found himself looking at a glowing orb on a pedestal attached to the Hellgate. Natsu found himself looking at it to, sensing it was the source of the Hellgate's power. Nero reached toward the orb before his whole body was engulfed in a bright light.
When the light faded, it revealed Nero was now sporting a black metallic backpack-like device on his back. It had the appearance of an insect-like skull with mandibles and three blood red symbols on its forehead and a pair of glowing red eyes. It also appeared to have a pair of long insect-like claws stretching outward, almost like a pair of wings.
"What the…?" Natsu looked in surprise. "Is that a Devil Arm?"
Nero looked to his newly acquired Devil Arm with a smirk, which only grew before he leapt into the air, where a pair of glowing red blades appeared in each hand, which he threw out and struck into the Hellgate. As Nero landed, four more blades appeared around him, two in each hand, before throwing them into the Hellgate as well. He repeated the process over-and-over, generating a near-infinite amount of small demonic blades and throwing them into the Hellgate before what appeared to be a giant X had formed onto the structure. With one final smirk, Nero snapped his fingers before the blades all exploded, cleaving the Hellgate into four pieces, which fell apart, destroying the structure.
"Okay… I gotta admit that was pretty cool, pal." Natsu commented with a smirk.
"Yeah… it was." Nero looked at his new Devil Arm as the name echoed in his mind. "Lucifer, huh? Alright, with that out of the way…" The Devil Arm vanished before a serious look formed on his face. "We got a job to do."
"Right." Natsu nodded, getting serious. "Let's go rescue Lucy and your friend, Kyrie."
Dante roared as he dashed past the lunge of the Stygian, slicing at the side of its face before it burrowed into the sand, causing Dante to curse. It had been like this since the fight stated, the Stygian would burrow into the sand, almost swimming through it like some kind of literal land shark, before rising to attack Dante. Though Dante was able to get a few good hits in, the Stygian would quickly burrow back down before Dante could do any real damage. It was really grating on his nerves and he was not in the best of moods right now.
"Oh, come on! I'm getting real sick of this whack-a-mole bullshit!" Dante shouted. "Just come out so I can butcher you already!"
Coco continued to watch from a distance, she shuddered at Dante's tone. But given how frustrating this battle must be, not to mention everything that's happened all at once; from being betrayed by someone you trusted, having your cousin kidnapped, and learning your own father's corpse had been desecrated, it was understandable why Dante felt this way.
Suddenly, the ground below Dante exploded as he was sent flying into the air, with the Stygian trying to devour him alive, but Dante used this position to his advantage.
"Quicksilver! Beowulf!" Using a combination of his style to slow down time, as well as the Devil Arm that enhanced his speed and strength; Dante struck the Stygian all over its body with various punches and kicks as time slowed down all around the beast, laying a furious beatdown as Dante couldn't help but let out some of his pent-up rage on the monster.
Dante skidded across the ground as time resumed, the Stygian roaring in pain as several spots of its outer armor appeared caved in and were even gushing blood. It looked like it was ready to sink back into the sand.
"Oh no you don't! Cerberus!" Quipping his ice-nunchucks, Dante swung them to send a wave of ice-crystals toward the Stygian, more crystals forming around its body to pin and trap it, preventing it from sinking into the sand. With the monster immobilized, Dante took full advantage as he quipped Rebellion again, leapt toward the tallest crystal and ran up the Stygian's body, dragging Rebellion the whole way to slice up its side before landing on top of its mouth, forcing it open with his legs before pulling out both Ebony and Ivory and shooting down its throat.
The Stygian struggled desperately to escape, the ice-crystals around its body began to break even as Dante continue to unload everything he had. Finally, the crystals shattered with the Stygian's body reeling and waving, causing Dante to lose his footing before falling into the Stygian's mouth before it dove back into the sand.
"No! Dante!" Coco quickly ran to the spot where the Stygian vanished. For a second, it looked as if Dante had been eaten alive. She fell to her knees in disbelief and shock. Was that it? Was Dante really….? It… it shouldn't end like this… it shouldn't!
However, Coco's knees began to feel slightly wet, causing her to look down as she saw the sand below her beginning to rapidly soak. Her instincts told her to move, which she did just as a massive geyser of blood erupted from the sand. When it was finished, Dante stood there, Rebellion held out dramatically as he was almost completely covered head-to-toe in demon blood.
Coco looked with an excited and relieved smile. "You did it! You won!" However, her smile faded as she saw the look on Dante's face was anything but celebratory. "Listen… Mr. Dante I… I'm sorry."
"For what?" He asked, looking directly at her.
"For… for everything…" Coco began, tears forming in her eyes. "For what happened to Lucy…. F… For the Great Spar… I mean you're dad. For… for starting this whole mess whey my friends and I attacked you and Fairy Tail. If… if we just worked together… talked things through at the start like… like you and your friends suggested maybe… maybe all of this could have been avoided! I'm just… I'm just so sorry!"
She was caught by surprise as she felt a hand gently placed on her head and looked to see Dante with a slight smile on his face.
"It's alright. I don't blame you for any of that." He told her. "It wasn't your fault; that Sanctus bastard and his pals in the Oracion Seis are the ones to blame, you were just a pawn. So, what do you say we wipe away those tears and take care of the ones who really at fault here, kay?"
Coco wiped her face as she tried to steel herself as best as she could. "Alright. But… we should probably take care of that first." She pointed to the Hellgate behind him.
"Good point." Dante then walked straight toward the Hellgate, spotting the orb that severed as its power source. When he reached out toward it, he was engulfed in a bright flash before a new weapon appeared in his hand.
It was a Devil Arm, one that bore the appearance of a double-sided Egyptian axe: a long golden staff with a curved blade on each end, and a demonic skull on each blade. Dante held his new weapon for a moment, swinging it around to get a good feel for it before turning his attention to the Hellgate. Dante then swung his weapon down, the blades generating some kind of shadow-like energy around them as they cut through the Hellgate. Dante leapt at the Hellgate to slice several more shadow-slices around the Hellgate, causing a great deal of damage before landing on his feet. He then pulled his weapon apart, a 'chain' of shadow-like magic forming in the middle of the separated ends of the weapon, like a two-section staff almost. He held one end and swung the other over his head, the shadow-chain extending longer and longer while gathering enough force before Dante swung downward diagonally, cleaving the entire Hellgate in two before the extended end of his new Devil Arm returned to the one that he held in his hand.
Coco looked at Dante with a wide grin and stars in her eyes. 'He's so cool! He's probably just as cool as Nero!'
Dante smirked as he heard the name of his new Devil Arm echo in his mind. "Anubis. Well, looks like you and I are about to become good friends."
Fairy Tail guildhall
While chaos continued to erupt across Fiore, the airship owned by the Blue Pegasus guild had just arrived above the Fairy Tail guildhall.
"Hey look, it's the Christina Advanced!" Wendy exclaimed in joy as everyone from Fairy Tail and their newfound allies looked with grins.
"It seems your pals came to the rescue." Dan commented.
"Yep, it pays to have friends." Cana confirmed.
"And we need all the help we can get right now." Lady commented.
Ichiya appeared at the helm of the airship, before leaping off. "MEEEEEEN!" He shouted as he fell to the ground, only to comically land head-first into the cobblestone. "Ow… My beautiful face…!"
"Are we really counting on this guy right here?" Trish questioned.
"We need a ship to get to Fortuna." Modeus confirmed. "This is our quickest option."
"Alright, we have decided as to what we believe would be the most effective team to take part in this mission." Samuel said. "Using a combination of my calculations…"
"And my divinations…" Cana added. "The ones using the Christina to go to Fortuna will be Erza, Mira, Happy, Modeus, Gray, Lisanna, Trish, Wendy, Carla, Lady, Gajeel, Panther-Lily, Romeo, Warren, the Thunder Legion, our new pals from the Order of the Sword, and even Gramps. Everyone else will be staying here to help the people in Magnolia as well as research anything the can to find a weakness with the Infinity Clock."
With that all set, the Christina Advanced began its flight toward Fortuna with everyone on board. "Comrades, chaos has erupted clear across Fiore! All guilds, including Blue Pegasus, have dispersed across the country to mediate the crisis and save as many people as they can!" Ichiya told everyone as they stood in the control room of the ship. "However, I'm certain that this team we have will be more than enough to breach the enemy gates and stop the Infinity Clock! So away we go! Man!"
However, the entire vessel rocked, almost knocking everyone off their feet.
"What happened?" Lady questioned.
"I thought you could fly this thing, home boy!" Sugarboy said to Ichiya.
"It seems we have taken damage to the haul." Ichiya reported.
"Stay here, I'll go check it out!" Mira said as she ran outside.
"Mira, hang on, we'll help!" Lisanna followed her sister with the Thunder Legion right behind her.
The five of them were outside on the deck, observing the large hole that was on the port side of the Christina Advanced.
"What happened?" Evergreen questioned. "Did something hit us?"
"Maybe it was a giant ice-cube from the sky or something else from this reality-warping shit." Bickslow guessed.
"Perhaps." Freed seemed to agree. "The Infinity Clock's power to distort reality could be the cause of this."
"No… I think this was someone else…" Mira said, turning around to see another hole on the deck. Suddenly, Racer appeared behind her before striking to send her crashing into the ship's mast.
"Mira!" Lisanna exclaimed before turning around to face their attacker. "It's the Neo Oracion Seis!"
"Racer!" Freed glared just as Evergreen and Bickslow attacked with their respective magics; firing golden magic bolts and green energy beams, but Racer vanished to avoid them and appeared behind the pair to send them crashing into the sides of the ship with rapid attacks.
"You will fall… fall!" Racer stated before vanishing again, striking the ship's haul multiple times with his inhumane speed.
"Get him!" Lisanna transformed into her Harpy Take Over, with Freed drawing his sword to join her; but Racer struck faster with his own superior speed, sending them both skidding across the ground.
"Too slow." Racer muttered before Mira stood up to face him directly.
"You just made a big mistake." She glared at him.
Racer smirked challengingly. "Are you as fast as I am?"
"You wanna see?!" Mira transformed into her Satan Soul before rushing to tackle Racer off the Christina Advanced.
"Mira!" Lisanna saw her sister fall off with the enemy.
"Lisanna, you stay with the others and continue to Fortuna." Freed told her. "Bickslow, Evergreen, and myself will help Mira deal with Racer. After that, we'll join you." He conjured a pair of wings with his Dark Ecriture magic and flew off the ship after Mira; with Bickslow riding his dolls and Evergreen flying with her own wings as the Thunder Legion left the ship to assist Mira.
Inside the ship, Wendy spotted the scuffle that was taking place outside. "Did you guys see that?!"
"It was Racer!" Carla glared along with her fellow Exceeds.
"And Mira!" Erza stated.
"Freed and the others too!" Romeo added.
"Come on, we gotta go help them!" Gray stated.
"I'm sorry! But we can't!" Ichiya said at the controls. "The Christina has taken a great deal of damage already!"
"Guys, it's okay." Lisanna said as she entered the control room. "Let my sister and the others handle that creep."
"Are you sure, Lisanna?" Trish asked. "Can we afford to lose any members of our team right now?"
"According to my calculations; Mirajane Strauss and the Thunder Legion are the best suited opponents to handle Racer." Samuel commented.
"Plus, we still gotta get to Fortuna and bust some bad guys!" Dan added.
"We have no choice; we need to continue to Fortuna." Modeus said. "All we can do is hope Mira and the others are victorious."
"They will be." Makarov said without a hint of doubt in his voice. "My children are more than capable of handling him. But if were to stave off this chaos and prevent any catastrophic loss of life, then we must continue onward!"
"Alright, but we must make some repairs first!" Ichiya said. "I can put Christina on auto-pilot, so we'll continue along our path, but the rest of you please lend me a hand."
"Right!" Everyone said at the same time.
"Let's get this show on the road, baby!" Sugarboy added.
Racer landed on the ground as he was quickly surrounded on all sides by his four opponents. He quickly spotted the Christina Advanced again and tried to zoom back up to it and destroy the heroes' ship, only for Mira's Satan Soul form to appear and intercept him.
"Stop!" She threw out a punch, but he disappeared and re-appeared behind her to land a kick, but she quickly blocked his attack as Freed waved his sword to send a wave of Dark Ecriture magic at him, but Racer vanished, only to appear in the cross hairs of Evergreen and Bickslow's rapid-fire attacks. But just like before, he vanished in the blink of an eye to avoid the attacks.
"You're in the way." Racer said from the top of a pile of rocks before striking Evergreen first like a bolt, then moving to Bickslow, then Freed, and back to Mira, landing both his feet into her stomach to send her crashing into a large boulder. Racer stopped for a moment to see if his opponent was down. Only for the rubble to be blasted away in a flash of dark light as Mira appeared in her stronger Halphas transformation
"Didn't yo hear me? I said 'stop'!" She struck with a kick, but Racer vanished and zoomed away with Mira in hot pursuit. The contest of speed was witnessed by the recovering Thunder Legion as an idea came to Freed's mind.
"Bickslow, Evergreen." Freed spoke to his comrades. "Help Mira to hold off this villain. I believe I may have a plan to defeat him."
Though they couldn't even see the Christina Advanced anymore in the distance, the remaining members of Fairy Tail, and their archeologists allies, couldn't help but look in worry. Patty looked the most worried as she held her hands together, her eyes shaking as she thought about all of them; particularly Wendy, Dante, and Lucy.
'Please… all of you… come back safe.'
"Hey! Kinana's not here!" Jet shouted as he ran outside.
"She's not?!" Cana questioned.
"First her more frequent attacks now this…?!" Macao couldn't contain his worry. "What the hell is going on with her?!"
As it turns out, Kinana was also onboard the Christina Advanced, having snuck onboard and hid herself in the cargo hold while her friends were boarding. She had been fortunate to make it on board without anyone noticing, and to avoid getting caught up in the surprise attack. If her friends found her here, they would demand she return immediately, but she couldn't. She had to get to Fortuna. She could feel him, he was there, and she had to see him as soon as possible.
'I remember now.' Kinana thought to herself. 'I remember… everything.'
Meanwhile; within the Savior's heart chamber; Sanctus continued to stand alongside Midnight, Klodoa, and Imitatia as they watched over Lucy and Kyrie, both young women trapped inside the Savior's literal heart in a state similar to suspended animation.
"Hmm, how interesting." Klodoa thought as he sensed something.
"Klodoa?" Midnight questioned.
"It seems Dante and the Salamander have escaped." Klodoa reported, catching Imitatia's attention. "They've met up with Nero and that meddlesome Coco-girl, and even destroyed two of the Hellgates. They're on their way here now."
"Let them come." Sanctus said with a malevolent smile. "Let them bring us the final piece, be it Dante or Nero, one of them will complete the Savior. Right now, the Infinity Clock's power is being channeled through the Savior, creating chaos across the land. But once we have a blood descendant of Sparda merged with the last of the Heartfilia bloodline, and the power of the Arc of Seraph to keep them all alive indefinitely, we'll have complete control over the Infinity Clock's glorious power! Finally, our Savior has come! And this world shall end!"
Sanctus made his declaration, spreading his arms out wide as he let loose a maniacal laugh that not only echoed throughout the chamber, but even echoed through the Savior and into the chaotic sky above. The end was neigh.
Done.
So, some good news...
Dante and Natsu have been rescued by Coco and Nero respectively; they have destroyed two of the Hellgates and claimed new Devil Arms. Dante wields an original Devil Arm of mine called Anubis, which is something of a mix between an Egyptian palm axe and a two-section staff with shadow powers. And Nero is now the one wielding Lucifer. I found it annoying how in the canon DMC series, Dante was the one getting all the Devil Arms, while Nero got none other than Yamato. So, I decided to fix that up by giving Nero Lucifer, and that won't be the only Devil Arm he'll be obtaining.
Of course, with two Hellgates destroyed; only three remain. What is to become of Gilgamesh and Pandora, as well as the final original Devil Arm? You'll see soon enough. Yes, I'm aware in the canon DMC4 game there were only three Hellgates, but I decided to add two and raise the stakes a bit, giving Dante a new Devil Arm in the process. The Stygian is also a demon from the Darksiders franchise, look him up if he sounds unfamiliar to you. I also have a similar boss in mind for the other Hellgate besides Echidna and Bael/Dagon. You'll learn more in the next chapter.
But we also got bad news…
The bad guys now have near full control over the Infinity Clock's power, channeled through the Savior, now they're waiting for an heir of Sparda to complete the set. And we also just learned that Jude Heartfilia's death wasn't natural… Sanctus killed him (something Imitatia isn't aware of). Didn't see that coming, did ya?
If things weren't personal before, they most certainly are now.
I also decided to change the Infinity Clock's power from the anime. Instead of Real Nightmare which messes with one's perception of time, it actually warps reality. The Real Nightmare, while it sounds like something dangerous, the anime handled it pretty poorly and made it look silly. Now it's something that fits with the DMC lore. I hope you like my decision with that.
Our heroes are now on their way to Fortuna (yes Makarov is joining them. I have special plans for him); though Mira and the Thunder Legion will be delayed as they have been confronted by Racer.
How will our heroes prevail in the upcoming battle? Find out next time on Fairy May Cry!