Chapter 77

Ikusatsunagi

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

"Magic"

Flashback

Location / Date / Time Skip

"Undercover mission?" Natsu repeated in confusion.

"You didn't think Gray would actually join a bunch of creepy bastards like this, did you?" Nicholas chuckled.

"We don't have time now, so we'll talk while we move." Erza said as the group quickly stole some mounts and raced out of the forest. "I found out about Avatar and how it was connected to Zeref about half of year ago with help from Jellal. We hit a dead end, but it was then I met Gray. Soon after, we found Nicholas and Brianna working with Sabertooth."

"I began getting those weird marks on my body after Tartaros." Gray added. "So I started going over to old lady Porlyusica's place, and as you can see, I've learned to control it."

"And after a little bit of catching, we came up with this plan." Nicholas spoke up, breaching out of the ground like a whale. "Think of it like a request from Erza. I mean, Gray is practically obsessed with that damn book and his old man's wish."

"But don't you think you could have at least told Juvia about this?" Lisanna asked. "She's worried sick about you." Her words had the inadvertent effect of shutting Gray up.

"I told him not to." Erza declared. "It was always going to be better to have less people know about it. And knowing her, she could have gotten herslef into trouble. I didn't want to drag this mission out for so long. It was just supposed to be scouting, but then this whole purification ritual mess. Avatar is planning to wipe out an entire town to lure Zeref here. They seem to think that Zeref appears where death is abundant."

"We gotta stop that from happening!" Lisanna shouted.

"All you gotta do is crush them!" Natsu declared. "Between you two, Erza and Brianna it wouldn't be a problem!"

"It's not that simple." Nicholas confessed. "This single building isn't enough to crush a town that big. Gray only infiltrated a single portion of it. He never even saw the main branch location, let alone another branch."

"And if we make any careless moved, we could lose the chance to stop the whole ritual." Erza added. "That's why we've been waiting until now."

"For the day when the branches get together. And destroy them all at once." Gray declared. "Sorry about everything back there, guys. I had to fit in."

"Now that makes our job easier." Natsu said with a chuckle. "Let's go wreck that ritual! I'm all fired up now!"

Malba Town

All of Avatar stood on a cliff before they suddenly charged the town, murderous intent for all of them. The leaders watched as suddenly their army was launched into the air. "You ain't getting past us! So come on!" Natsu declared as his group blasted the attackers back.

An explosion of fire and ice knocked the army back as Lucy summoned Taurus. Lisanna glowed and transformed into her tigress form. "What are you doing!? Get rid of them!" Jerome shouted.

"Jerome! We're under attack from behind as well!" A hooded member declared. "And it's blowing holes in our ranks!"

"Impossible! The council forces are already here!?" The blonde asked.

"N-n-no." The member mumbled in fear as another group was launched into the air. "It's just two women."

"EAT IT, LOSERS!" Shouts of violence scared the cult members as the Fairy Tail members charged into battle with smirks.

"Let's go!" Natsu shouted as he ignited his fist.

"Yeah!" Gray added, putting his hands in the Maker position.

"You got it!" Nicholas cheered, raising his foot.

The army of dark wizards rushed the trio before a triple element explosion blasted them all back. "They got strong." Taurus mumbled in amazement.

"Let's show them what we can do." Lucy declared, swinging her whip. Taurus swing his axe as Lisanna swung her claws, breaking weapons and kicking anyone who got close. One member jumped up from behind, only for Happy to crash into the gut. The 'mother-son' duo smiled before Happy flew into battle, his speed knocking members into the air.

Gray snapped his fingers and a pillar of ice shot up, knocking a large amount of cult members into the air. Natsu jumped off the ice and slammed his fist down, crashing into the ground and a pillar of fire blasted the army back. He turned back to the swarm and unleashed a flaming roar, launching even more back.

"What are they?" Mary asked in horror. "They're like monsters! No, animals! Beasts!"

"Stop showing off your horrible vocabulary." Briar snapped back. "We need to stop them."

"I'll go after the enemy at the back." Jerome spoke up. "I leave Gray and the others to you."

"It's time we show these rats how scary dark magic can be." Briar declared.

"They must be good if they can throw chaos into an army with just one soldier." Jerome declared, drawing his black sword. "But I shall purify them with the forbidden power within it."

Erza swung her sword from horseback as Brianna rushed the mob next to her, her Minotaur form trampling the cult members. "Counter them with magic!"

Blasts of magic shot at the two, only for Brianna to tank the hits. Erza jumped over her and transformed her armor into an elegant dress, swords hovering around her. "Dance!" She swung her arm and the wings of blades slashed at the army. A final slash knocked the swarm back as the swords returned to her back. "Do you yield?"

"…Monsters." The cult mumbled.

Brianna turned to the side and punched a black sword, her fist meeting the flat of the blade. "I want the knight, not you." Jerome declared. The Take-Over mage felt her fist burning before she jumped back. "I see you felt it. My sword corrodes anything it touches."

"Not bad…" Brianna chuckled. "But her sword…" Jerome suddenly screamed in pain and fell over, Erza holding a single sword. "Cuts without you feeling it."

The cult members stared in shock as the two returned to their normal forms/outfits. "Still not giving up?" Erza asked.

Gray froze another swarm of cult members as he turned to the sound if footsteps. "Briar!"

"GRAY!" The dark skinned woman shouted in anger. "How dare you betray us like this!" She got close enough and started swinging her fists. "All this time you spent with us a lie!?"

"Of course it was, you idiot!" Gray snapped back, dodging every fist. "I've got too much standards to be associated with a bunch of murderers like you."

"And your brave words about the Book of E.N.D… was that all lies too!?" She growled in anger.

"No, that stuff was mostly true." He declared, rolling to the side of another blow. "But it won't be anything like what you're doing. It'll be a way that'll make my old man proud." He launched a wave of spiked ice at her, only for the girl to suddenly split apart into four copies. "So you're finally using your Clone Magic…"

"I'll kill you!" One clone shouted as it charged him. A torrent of water suddenly crashed into her, making Gray turn to see an angry Juvia glaring at Briar.

"Why are you here?" Gray asked, freezing the other three.

"I had this bad feeling you'd be in trouble, so I came here as fast as I could." She declared, hugging his arm.

"How did you get here so fast?" He asked, pushing her away.

"Wendy's sense of smell is really good." She chuckled to Gray, a guilty look on his face

"I'm sorry." He said. "I'll explain everything later, but for now…" The two threw off their coats before their elements shot off their arms. "We gotta take these losers down!"

Taurus, Lucy and Lisanna fell over gripping their stomachs in pain as Mary walked over to them. "Remember my Virus Magic? It's the kind that eats you from the inside out. You must be Gray's old friends from Fairy Tail, right? Wizards from the famous Fairy Tail, yet you're so weak. It's actually hilarious."

Surprisingly, Lucy suddenly stood up. "Hey, I feel fine now."

"Dispel and Enchant." Wendy declared from behind next to Carla. "Your virus's won't work with my Air Magic in effect."

"Lucy, behind you!" Carla shouted from above.

Mary charged from behind as Lucy turned, only for a heavy club to crash into her head. The girl stumbled back before falling over as the blonde looked to see Slate flying in the air, holding a club. "Thanks. Wendy, why are you here?"

"Let's just say Juvia is feeling much better now." Carla nervously chuckled.

"Juvia was sick?" Slate asked.

"It's a long story." Wendy confessed.

"Less talking, more fighting!" Nicholas shouted, his stone chain whipping around the battlefield. "We can't let these creeps kill anyone in the city."

"Not a problem." Wendy suddenly started glowing as her hair changed color. She waved her arms and a giant tornado ripped trough the ground troops.

On the top of the cliff, Arlok watched the battle unfold with a few followers. "Master Arlok… the rear forces have been completely demolished. And we can't proceed any further from the front. These people are too strong for us. We're losing the battle."

"One of them's coming!" A member shouted as fire ripped through the ground. "I-impossible… We have over two thousand people here…"

"It doesn't matter how many creeps you've got. We're Fairy Tail wizards!" Natsu declared as the smoke cleared.

"…This is all within the realm of expectations." The masked master declared. "And when Ikusatsungai appears to shake the earth, the purification begins."

"So you're the boss, huh?" Natsu asked as he walked over. "You guys are getting your asses kicked. Just give up already."

"Ah, such youth." Arlok chuckled. "How enviable. I was once like you. But everyone grows old, entering a phase of life filled with regret… and despair!" He fired a blast of magic from his staff but Natsu merely batted it away and charged, shocking the cukt members. The masked master waved his staff around before a magic wall blocked the teen.

"The hell?" Bolts of magic shot out from behind the barrier, forcing him to dodge. "You can attack from behind that thing!? That's not fair! Screw it!" He rushed through the barrage and crashed int the wall, forcing himself through it before it shattered. Arlok summoned a line of walls, but Natsu crashed through them all, bursting in front of Arlok.

"Fire Dragon Iron Fist!" A single flaming punch knocked the masked man to the ground, and blasted the entire cliff to pieces, sending the other cult members flying.

As the dust settled, Natsu stood over the beaten dark master as he started laughing. 'What's so funny?"

"You've lost…" Arlok declared, his mask cracking to show his face, burnt by something in the pass. "I burnt my face off just for this day. That was the price I paid, and I did it willingly!"

"The hell are you talking about?" Natsu asked, extremely confused.

"Now, hear my call! Oh mighty god of war, the time has come for you to seal your part of the deal! Grant me your powers! Summon: Ikusarsunagi!"

A giant storm cloud gathered over the battlefield as a massive pressure wave of magic startled everyone. "What is this?" Lisanna asked.

"It's like the air itself has changed…" Wendy pointed out.

"It's Gramp's magic…" Mary chuckled from the ground. "Now all of you will die!"

The storm clouds open up as a massive bestial foot fell to the ground. "Move out if the way! It'll crush all of you!" Gray shouted, only for the sole to crush every cult member under it.

"Stop that!" Natsu grabbed the old man and started shaking him. "You're gonna kill your troops, too!"

"This is the purification ritual…" Arlok chuckled, shocking the Dragon Slayer as a second foot landed. "The sacrifices needed were the souls of Avatar's followers. I couldn't care less about anyone in the town. The ultimate offering is the souls of those who believe in Zeref, with him coming to guide us!"

"You bastard!"

"No one can stop the war god! It will not rest until it has consumed every soul in the area!" Arlok laughed as a colossal, heavily muscular being with black, armor-like skin landed on the ground. The face resembles that of a lion's, jutting out of which his cheekbones were two horns , which in and of themselves are eclipsed by bone-like horns that encase the jawline, and travel up the side of the head. On the chin is a long, pointed tuft of facial hair that appears to be a goatee, and a wild mane of hair juts upwards, growing from the top of his down past his clavicle.

The Battle God looked down with pupil-less eyes and black sclera, and demonic, clawed hands. "He summoned one of the 18 war gods…" Erza said in shock as Mary nervously laughed.

"Treating your own guildmates like this… it's unforgivable!" Natsu growled in anger.

The massive being lifted its sword, scaring everyone. "INCOMING!" Erza shouted before the war god slammed his blade down. The metal cracked the ground and split the earth open, killing any cult member under it. Laki blocked her eyes from the blast and looked at the sword, a spec moving up it.

"Someone's on the sword." Lucy declared, making the rest of the team smile.

Natsu roared as he ran up the blade before jumping onto the hand. "What is he doing?" Arlok asked, shaking on the ground. "What can a mere human do against a god of war… Brothers, sisters… It is time we sacrifice ourselves for our Lord Zeref."

"ENOUGH OF THAT CRAP!" Natsu shouted as he ran up the arm, dodging the other hand. "What do you think guildmates are for!?"

"You'll soon realize that your comrades mean nothing when faced with a higher purpose…" Arlok declared.

"You're wrong!" Natsu roared. "Your friends are the people who share the same purpose and move forward with you! Their purpose doesn't have to be the same as yours! They'll laugh with you, be by your side when you need them! You believe and trust in each other…"

"Dependence, that's all it is." Arlok snapped back.

"Call it what you want! That bond is all I need to keep me going!" Natsu shouted as he jumped onto the god's head. "So don't you dare make fun of our bond!" Igniting his fist, he slammed it down onto the forehead, making it buckl from the massive explosion. "And I'll do anything to protect those I hold dear. So I dont lose anyone anymore…"

A massive ball of crimson fire gathered over his fist, shocking the others. "I WILL BECOME STRONGER! Fire Dragon King Demolition Fist!" He slammed the fireball down with his fist, causing the war god to crumble to ash.

Am I the only who feels like Avatar was a massive let down after Tartaros? Seriously, we had a dark cult and they went out like a bitch. Especially the 'war god'. You should lose that title any time you get taken out by ONE! HIT! Even Zeus could take more of a hit than that.

I didn't want to just cut it off after dropping a god, so I put in the ending. See ya next time.

Beta read by General Feng Xiang