~~~Author's Notes~~~
One of the worst parts of the older version of this story was how I written Izanagi. I felt like he was a pretty terrible antagonist so I worked pretty hard here to make him much better.
Thank you for reading and feel free to leave any feedback if you want!
The faint winds that blew through the icy air made the interior of the empty castle cold. Enough to even be felt by the angels who currently preoccupied the room. Stark felt his body shiver while gawking at the two standing in front of him. Izanagi and Gray exchanged eye contact with the former squinting his eyes while the latter scowling. Izanagi scratched the back of his head and chuckled.
"Ah, Gray Fullbuster was it?"
The ice mage immediately went on the offensive and attempted to throw a kick at the god, however he backed away immediately. He raised both hands and smirked at Gray. "Hey now, immediately resulting to violence are we?"
Gray popped one of his shoulders, keeping his eyes on Izanagi. "You're one to talk, trying to kill one of your own." He retorted before pointing at the god. "Now who the hell are you and how do you know my name?"
"Now why on Earthland are you wanting to protect him?" Izanagi asked, tilting his head. "Are you aware of the damage he caused?"
"Oh I'm completely aware. But I'm not going to stand here and let you kill someone who can't even move, it ain't right." Gray remarked.
Stark proceeded to approach Gray from the side and grip his shoulder, glaring at the ice mage. "You think I want pity from you of all people?! Know your place, scum! And don't butt in our affairs!" He chastised.
Gray proceeded to pull his arm away from Stark and swing it back right at his face, sending him tumbling on the floor across the hallway. The shirtless mage gripped the arm wrist he swung with and turned his attention back to Izanagi. "I don't care about your opinion. How about thinking of your own future for once, moron."
Izanagi gave a surprised whistle. "You all really do live up to your guild's reputation." He complimented.
"Answer me this…" Gray requested, pointing at Izanagi. "Are you the one these people call 'god'?"
Izanagi chuckles, placing a palm on his chest and lightly bowing to Gray. "Indeed, that is who I am. My apologies for not introducing myself earlier."
"Ice-Make: Cold Slicer!" Gray immediately conjured a slash-like attack made from ice and swung it directly towards Izanagi.
Izanagi quickly leaped right over the attack and landed gracefully, the attack slicing part of the wall behind him. The god sighed and pinched his forehead. "I see, you too waste no time." He muttered.
"What the hell did you do to Wendy?" Gray fumed, the black tattoo on his body growing larger.
Izanagi lowered his arm and closed his eyes, giving a soft smile to the mage. "I didn't do anything to her, she simply fulfilled her purpose."
Torian could faintly hear the sound of cracking as he began to stir awake. He felt extremely drowsy, as he was in the middle of a dream.
"But s-sir, please…I don't wanna water the plants today…" The angel murmured. "I've had enough water to deal with already…"
Right above where he was laying was the dome tower. It slowly began to succumb to the damage it dealt as it began to tilt forward. In the process, a large chunk of it fell off and began to fall right where Torian was.
"Huh…?" Torian popped open one eye and the first thing he saw was the large stone a couple feet away from landing on him. His eyes shot open and bulged in fear and shock. "GAAAAAAAH!"
However, the stone was suddenly vaporized by what appeared to be a large stream of water. Small pebbles land on his face in the process. He shook them off and glanced over to his right. To his surprise, he sees the one who defeated him earlier standing by him; Juvia.
"You're still here?" Torian questioned.
"If you're awake then Juvia advises that you should get up." Juvia suggested, looking up at the tower. "That tower doesn't appear stable."
Torian felt that his skin wasn't as burning hot as before so he was able to pull himself back up. "Why did you save me? Aren't we enemies?" He questioned.
"Even though you are our enemy, Juvia doesn't want to see anyone die." Juvia answered, looking at the angel. "Besides, she would need some assistance." She points up.
"What do you…" Torian followed Juvia's guidance and scanned the damaged tower. He noticed a large curvy crack on it, like someone sliced right through it. He also took note of the glass covering the garden completely shattered as more small chunks began to fall off.
Torian widened his eyes. "You're kidding…that tower is gonna collapse!" He exclaimed.
Juvia gasped. "There could be someone up there…like my darling Gray!" She frets.
Torian hovered his hand over his forehead to get a good look at the tower. "No…it doesn't seem like anyone is up there…" He assured. "However, if that tower falls…not only will everything and everyone around it will get caught in it. But it's heavy enough to break through the clouds and crash whatever is below us!"
"What?!" Juvia blurted.
"It doesn't look like Balrus can fix this either…" Torian clenched a fist. "This is bad…we need to do something quick!"
A loud creaking noise was heard as the tower started to lean even more.
"Ice Devil's…Geyser!" Gray gathers his hands and slams them on the ground. A path of purple ice spiked out of the ground in an instant as the path grew larger and larger in mere seconds. The ice particles it left behind caused the walls to freeze even more than before.
Izanagi spreads his silver wings and takes off above, leaving a destructive gust of wind below him. As he flew, he noticed the ice particles drawing near him. Gray clenched his fist, causing the particles to grow in size and nearly encase the god in ice. However, he swipes the ice with his hand covered in black winds like a blade.
"So you plan on trying to strike me down too?" Izanagi challenged, he flapped his wings which shattered the ice around him. "I'm not so fond of fighting, you know."
Gray raises his arms and conjures an intricate ice bow. He whips it down and steadily aims at the god. "Screw you!" He cursed before firing a straight shot.
Izanagi covers his right leg with black winds and dashes towards the ice arrow, mimicking leaping in the air. He proceeds to swing his right leg directly at the attack, sending it ricocheting inches away from Gray.
Gray covers his body with his arms from the debris flinging at him. Izanagi emerges from the dust with his left fist channeling black winds. The ice mage quickly raises both arms and conjures an ice shield. But is swiftly shattered by the god's attack in which turn lands right on Gray's palms, sending him sliding back several feet.
Once Gray stops himself, he lowers his arms and bites his lip. "What the hell am I even doing…?" He thought, appearing unsettled. "How can I be even more useless?!" He wipes his mouth with his arm.
Izanagi gathers black winds in both arms as he slowly walks towards the ice mage. Gray watches as the god lifts both arms up, preparing to attack anytime.
"Can I even save a single person?! Isn't that why I became a Fairy Tail wizard in the first place?!" Gray questions himself, grinding his teeth. He begins to think of those whom he lost or nearly lost before; Ur, Ultear, Silver and Juvia. Now recalling the events of last night, Gray looks down and clenches both fists in regret.
Gray takes a deep breath and slowly lifts his head back up. "No, no more excuses." He declares out loud, which causes Izanagi to stop in his tracks and raise an eyebrow. Gray lifts his left arm up and opens his palm, channeling purple ice. "I'm going to take you down."
"You Fairy Tail wizards really are all the same." Izanagi huffed. "Your stubbornness knows no bounds. It reminds me of my encounter with Natsu Dragneel, whom I had no choice but to take out." He revealed.
Gray however, showed no signs of wavering. "You really don't know a thing about our guild if you honestly believe Natsu was taken out by the likes of you." He mocked.
Izanagi bends his knees, preparing to charge. "I wonder about that…" He cocks his eyebrow and leaps towards the shirtless mage.
The ice on Gray's hand morphs into an intricate sword made from ice as he parries the god's attack with it. The impact of the clash caused more ice to build up on Izanagi's arm in which he took quick notice. The god pulls his arm back, breaking the ice in the process.
Izanagi retaliates by swinging his free arm and unleashing a barrage of thick black winds. As the wind scatters, Izanagi notices that Gray is gone. He glanced up and saw that the ice mage leaped high in the air.
Gray continues to scowl at the god, slamming his fist on his palm. "Ice-Make…Stream!" He swings both arms out and creates several dozen icicle spears in the air. The icicles begin to rain down to where the angel was standing.
"Hm, taking a note from Stark I see." Izanagi noted, raising both arms upward and twisting his hands. He creates a miniature tornado which sucks up the icicles and shatters them.
Gray widens his eyes and grits his teeth in frustration. He lands on the ground behind the god and melds both his arms to be encased with thick and sharp purple ice.
The tornado diminishes as Izanagi swings his left arm, scattering more wind. "Looks like I'm starting to get used to this body" He commented while examining his hand. Izanagi then notices Gray charging right at him and quickly grips both his ice gauntlets, causing them both to clash.
Gray begins to gain the upper edge as he pushes Izanagi back slightly. "You still didn't answer my question! How do you know my name and about Fairy Tail huh?!" He demanded.
Izanagi grunts, realizing that he's being pushed back. "Y-you really wanna know…?" He warns, clenching Gray's ice gauntlets tighter. "Very well…I'll give you a hint!"
A blue magic circle appears below Izanagi and Gray's feet, in which the latter quickly noticed. Izanagi's grip gets tighter as the ice begins to crack. "Strengthen thy arm to cleave the heavens…" The god chants.
Gray eyes shrunk and was caught off guard. "You're kidding!"
"Arms!" Izanagi crushes Gray's gauntlets like sandpaper. Before Gray could retaliate, his jaw gets smacked upward by the god and then kicked in the gut. Gray coughs out a small amount of blood before getting sent hurling back.
Gray lands on his back and coughs out some more. He quickly sat up and furrowed his brow. "That b-bastard! So he h-has…" He stuttered, still feeling the impact.
Izanagi proceeds to stomp his left foot and wind his body back, taking a deep breath. "Roar of the…" He then unleashes a fierce tornado from his mouth. "Sky Dragon!"
Gray was too caught off guard to avoid the attack as he attempts to stand back up as the tornado reaches closer. Before he was caught up in the attack, he felt someone grab his arm and was pulled away at the last moment.
The sky attack quickly diminishes as dust covers a good chunk of the floor. Gray rubbed the side of his head before looking above to see who grabbed him. To his surprise, he saw a man with spiky orange hair and wearing a suit. The man wiped his glasses to remove the dust before greeting him.
"Been awhile, Gray." Loke greets
"Heh, yeah no kidding." Gray jested, standing back up. The two exchanged fist bumps. "So, if you're here…"
Up by the end of the hallway behind him, Gray noticed both Lucy and Happy standing beside each other. Lucy whipped her golden key used to summon the lion spirit. "Gray! We heard everything!" She noted.
Izanagi turned his attention to the spirit and crossed his arms. "You…you're not human nor angel…" He commented.
Loke, mainly known as Leo the Lion, faced the blue haired angel and adjusted his sleeves. "I am the celestial spirit, Leo." He introduced.
"A celestial spirit…such tragic beings." Izanagi sighs, looking at his palm. "Beings that only exists to serve others, one of the many reasons a magic-dependent world is detestable." He briefly rants.
Lucy takes a couple steps forward, appearing angry at the god's comment. "Celestial spirits are my friends! We form bonds and work together, I will never see them as servants!" She protests, swinging an arm.
Izanagi brushes his hair and glances at Lucy. "That may be true for you, Lucy Heartfila, but that doesn't apply to all of them." He retorts as he slowly glances over to where Happy was. "And you must be…"
Once his eyes met with Happy, the god paused and slightly cringed. To the Exceed's confusion, he saw the god take a step back and wipe his nose.
"How dare you act like you know us!" Lucy badgered. "And using Wendy's magic too…you must be this country's ruler!"
Izanagi shrugged. "I know all about you, every single one of you." He explained before pointing at his head. "After all, that girl's memories are now my own…" He begins to pace around the hallway as he continues. "This was one of the benefits I obtained when-"
As the god was explaining, all of the sudden his foot got caught on some rubble. He falls flat on his face, interrupting the entire flow of the atmosphere. The four facing him appeared unimpressed.
"It looks like it wasn't just Wendy's magic and memories he inherited…" Gray snarks, a sweat drop sliding off the back of his head.
Izanagi stands back up and dusts himself off. He clears his throat. "When her entire being was transferred into mine." He finished explaining.
"He's completely ignoring what just happened." Lucy deadpanned.
"This guy is supposed to be a god?" Happy also deadpanned.
Izanagi lowers his brow and gives an intense expression towards the group. "Do you understand now? Your friend's entire individuality rests inside me, she sacrificed herself for the benefit of everyone." He revealed.
Gray scowls at the god while clenching one fist. Loke lowers his head as the shine covers his glasses to hide his expression. Happy widened his eyes and slumped his body while hovering. Lucy however, doesn't change her expression or demeanor.
"Hope isn't lost!" Lucy encouraged, channeling Leo's power in her left fist. "No matter what, we'll bring Wendy back to us!"
Izanagi scoffs, closing his eyes. The air shifts and begins to surround his body as he lifts both arms. "As the ruler of Exahelm…I cannot allow that. For the sake of our world peace." He insisted, shooting his eyes open.
Loke channels the power of Regulus in both of his fists and gets into battle position. "Just like old times, right Gray?"
Gray wipes his chin and places a fist on his palm. "Yeah, let's kick this guy's ass!"
The sounds of magic clashing and shaking of the castle managed to wake Sync up. She still laid by the wall as the girl felt dizzy. Her vision was blurry as she scanned the area she was in before standing up and rubbing her eyes. Shortly after the pigtailed girl stood, the castle shook once again, causing her to wobble in place.
Sync looked towards the direction where the noise was coming from and quickly realized that there was some kind of skirmish going on indoors. She lifted her scythe and held it closely, keeping on guard.
"Starky…and that nice lady…" Sync murmured, flapping her small wings and floating up. "I…have to stop them from fighting!"
Making haste, the girl stretched back and rocketed herself through the hallways.
The town of Exahelm was much more barren than it was earlier. Due to the orders from Hahlos, the civilians were gathered and escorted to a safer area. Especially now with the blue clouds that were created by the green haired angel suddenly evaporating. In the middle of an open street had a misty path quickly inching closer to the castle.
Natsu lets out a determined cry as he continues to look straight ahead and make no stops in his path. Erza was able to catch up to the pinkette after splitting up with Jellal, she also requiped back into her Heart Kreuz Armor in the process.
"Natsu!" Erza called out. "You need to quit running off on your own!"
Natsu smirked. "What's the big deal? You caught up to me did'ja?"
"That's not the point!" Erza badgered.
Not before long, the two could see their destination. Much like the rest of the area, there was no one in sight. Erza squinted her brows noticing this.
"The civilians must've evacuated to a safer area…this gives us a good opportunity…" She thought.
Unknowest to the fact that more individuals will show up soon, the battle rages on in the long winding hallway at the large white castle.
Gray and Loke had their backs against each other as they kept on guard. The two spotted Izanagi zip right past them multiple times. The god was covered in a blue aura in the shape of a ball as he quickly flew around the room.
"He used Wendy's Vernier spell on himself. Guess I now know how our opponents feel when it's used on us." Gray grumbled.
Loke lightly gripped one of his arms and clenched his fist. "In that case…close your eyes, everyone!" He requested as his fist began to glow brightly. "Regulus…lend me your light! Lion's Brilliance!"
Gray, Lucy and Happy comply, to the god's confusion. Loke proceeds to cast a bright light that covers the entire room. Izanagi stops in his tracks and covers his eyes with an arm. Seeing the opening, Loke and Gray charged right towards the god.
Both mages clenched their fists and prepared to land a barrage of punches towards the god. The two manage to land multiple hits at the god and slam him on the ground. Izanagi lightly growls before placing both palms on the ground and unleashing a burst of black winds.
Gray and Loke both slide back from the attack as they guarded their bodies. Izanagi stood back up and placed a palm over his eyes.
"Raise." Izanagi proceeds to heal the temporary blindness in his eyes and glares at the two wizards. He spreads his wings, in which Lucy takes quick notice.
"I won't let you do that!" Lucy called out as she pulled out her Fleuve d'étoiles whip and extended it to wrap around the god's right arm. She uses her other arm to unleash a bright light attack in the shape of a lion. "Regulus Impact!"
The attack lands a direct hit, covering the area with more dust. Lucy remained on guard while Happy looked nervous.
"Please tell me that at least it did some damage…" Happy feared.
Izanagi quickly flies out of the smoke and rockets towards Lucy. Before she could react, she was kneed in the jaw by the god and knocked on the ground. She lets out a yelp of pain.
"Lucy!" Happy exclaimed. Izanagi quickly swatted him away, the Exceed bouncing on the ground and hitting on the wall.
"Damn it!" Gray cursed. Before he could run to Lucy, the god glanced over at the ice mage and vanished from his sight. Gray was knocked down by a downward kick by Izanagi in mere seconds.
Loke widened his eyes and prepared another attack. But was struck in the gut by Izanagi's foot and sent hurling towards the wall.
During the battle, Stark began to stir awake once again. The bright light emitted by Loke earlier woke the angel up as he rubbed his face and groaned. He lifted his body up and witnessed what was going on. At this moment, he felt a familiar presence making their way to the hallway.
Izanagi dusts himself off and scoffs. "You're unable to keep up with me, give it a rest already and accept reality!" He condemns, channeling black winds in his right arm and lifting it up.
Lucy, Gray and Loke pick themselves back up, showing no signs of giving up.
"W-wait! Stop it!" A high pitched voice yelled out. Everyone's attention turned towards the direction of the voice, who was none other than Sync. She stood by the entrance of the hallway and leaned one hand on the wall.
"It's you!" Lucy exclaimed, eyes widened in surprise. Sync looked over at Lucy briefly and gave a soft smile.
Stark saw the young girl enter the room. He clenched his teeth. "Sync…don't get yourself involved…" He thought, a small amount of sweat leaving his forehead.
Izanagi ceased channeling his magic and lowered his arm. He gave a welcoming smile at the young girl. "Ah, Sync. You look just fine." He relieved. "While I appreciate you coming here, I can assure you I have everything under my control."
Sync lowered her head and stared at the god, noticing his long blue hair and brown eyes. She placed the pieces together almost immediately. She lets out a shaky breath, showing visible signs of fear of the god.
"What's going on here? Who's that girl?" Gray wondered.
Sync clenched her scythe tightly and huddled her legs closely, shaking in place. "A-actually…god…" She took a deep breath. "Can we just…s-stop th-th-this…?" She asked, shutting her eyes and looking away.
Izanagi raised an eyebrow. "You mean stop this fight? I don't really understand…" He was puzzled, resting both his arms on his waist. "You know that these intruders attacked *us* right?"
"I-I know…and I'm scared…" Sync admits, forcing herself to look back at the blue haired angel. "But they…they're not here to hurt anyone!"
Izanagi was even more confused, he faced his entire body at the girl. "I beg to differ…Sync. These humans had shown nothing but aggression towards me. Plus you've seen the damage around here have you not?" He questioned.
"I know…" Sync repeats herself. She shook in place and took another shaky breath. "But…that's because we hurt their friend!" Sync braves herself and exclaims at the god. "I did too! Everything about this is hurting all of us! Wendy, her friends, Starky, big bro…everyone! I'm…tired of it!"
"Sync…" Izanagi glares, giving a tone of warning.
Sync shuts her eyes tight, lowering her head even more. "B-but…we can stop this! We can…start over!" She lifts her head up, opening her eyes and giving a pleading smile. "Can we just…reverse the Soul Transfer, and work together to save you and our home?"
Gray widened his eyes. "You mean it can be reversed!?"
Happy lifted his head, the reveal sending shocks inside his body. "Does that mean…Wendy isn't gone yet!?"
Stark's eyes shrunk. "Sync! What are you doing?!"
Lucy smiles softly at Sync, taking note of her kindness. She had a feeling that she and Wendy bonded briefly before this situation occurred.
Izanagi however, showed no signs of movement. He was frowning while his hair shadow covered both his eyes.
Noticing the god not responding, Sync decided to continue. "They can help us…we can work together and-"
"Are you saying that a little fighting is more of an issue than the fate of the entire country?" Izanagi interrupts, not moving from his position.
Sync felt her heart stop, forcing her to take a few steps back. "N-no…that's not what I-"
"Do you know what it's like being in my position? Where something as simple as breathing and moving is almost impossible? Are you taking something like that for granted?" Izanagi interrupts once again, lifting his head up and showing his intense stare.
"Mmhn…" Sync lets out a depressive whine, not sure how to respond.
"Hey! Knock it off!" Lucy yelled at the god.
Izanagi ignores the blonde. "Will you give me an answer, Sync?" He practically demanded.
Sync however, remains silent.
The sky god lowers his head and sighs while shaking his head. "I had a feeling Hahlos' past behavior rubbed off on you. However, that's not the only thing I've noticed…" He lifts his head and points at the girl. "You used that sickening power of yours again did you?"
Sync shoots her head up and gasps. Her eyes shrunk as she shook her head desperately. "It…it was an accident! I didn't mean to-"
"I don't wanna hear it." Izanagi glares. "It seems every time I'm lenient towards these kinds of situations it backfires…" The god stops himself before clearing his throat. "It appears that you too…have become a threat to our way of peace."
Sync wanted to run, but she had a feeling she wouldn't make it far. Instead, she tried one last attempt to persuade the god. "That's not t-true! I love it here! I promise it won't happen anymore!" She blurted.
Izanagi does not listen as he begins to slowly approach the girl. "My apologies, Sync. These humans did more damage to the society here than I thought. I have to wipe it all clean, for the sake of world peace!" He declared, raising his right arm.
Lucy quickly runs in between the two and shields Sync with one arm. She glares at Izanagi intensely.
Right before Izanagi could do anything, a single beam shot right through his right arm. The god cocked an eyebrow and felt the arm numb as it slumped down. He turned behind him.
Everyone else turned their attention to where the shot came from. Stark was standing up, albeit barely, shakily holding a blue crossbow-like magic gun that was pointed at the god.
Sync widened her eyes. "S-Starky…?"
Stark clenched his teeth. "What are you doing…standing around like that…" He lowered his arm, the magic gun vanishing. "Get out of here already! And don't come back!"
"Well what do you know? You do have a heart." Gray smirked.
"Shut your mouth." Stark snapped.
Izanagi places his left hand on his arm and emits a green aura, healing the numbed arm. "Stark, what was the meaning of that?" He questioned.
Stark spat on the ground, releasing his weapon. He doesn't respond back as he wipes his cheek with the back of his hand.
The sky god slowly shuts his eyes and sighs. For a brief second, his hair flashes pink before vanishing from everyone's sight. Before they could react, Izanagi appears in front of Stark and lands a fierce punch on his gut. The force causes the slender angel to cough out blood and slam on the ground.
Sync gasps. "STARKY!" She shrieks, shoving Lucy out of the way and taking off towards the angel.
Lucy reached out. "Wait! It's too dangerous!"
Loke was stunned. "What was with that speed?! It was on a completely different level than earlier!"
Gray prepared to counter attack towards the god. "I have a pretty good feeling about what that was…" He quickly realized.
Izanagi towers over the gun-wielding angel and faces the group once again. Sync stopped in place and stared at him in horror. The blue haired angel takes a few steps towards the group.
"This is most regrettable…" Izanagi pinched his forehead, appearing disappointed. "This whole situation has flipped the world that was worked hard for completely around. I'll have to do more than just wipe it out…"
The group goes on guard as Izanagi channels wind magic, his hair flashing pink again.
"Ready yourselves! He's coming!" Gray warned.
"This isn't good…" Loke got in a casting stance.
Izanagi spreads both arms out and a large blue circle appears below him. The air shifts towards him and swirls around his body. His hair brushed through the winds gracefully as his expression was intense. "Dragon Slayer Secret Art…"
Loud cracks were heard from above. The ceiling crumbled as an individual bursted from above.
"THERE YOU ARE!" Natsu roared.
Izanagi ceases his spell and glances up with great shock. "What in the-"
Natsu gathers flames on his left leg and front flips while falling. "Fire Dragon's Crushing Fang!" He downward spikes his leg right on Izanagi. The force of the attack crushed the floor beneath the two, causing both Izanagi and Natsu to fall several floor downs and leaving a large hole.
Gray cocked an eyebrow. "Was that…"
"NATSU!" Happy flew up and exclaimed excitedly.
Lucy places a palm on her chest and sighs in relief. She then heard the clanking of boots behind her. She turns around and notices Erza slide to a stop in front of the blonde.
"Lucy! Everyone!" Erza called.
"Erza! You're here too!" Lucy beamed.
Gray wiped his mouth with his arm and gave a welcoming smirk to the swordswoman. "Heh, took you long enough."
Erza approached the group with a smile. "Apologies for our tardiness. I'm afraid I'm not accustomed to this place's layout. I tried asking Natsu…but he went on to climb the outside walls towards the top floor." She explained. "I can assume he was just here?"
"Aye." Happy pointed towards the large hole. "He went down there alongside that god."
Erza glanced at the hole. "Then we should follow him post haste." She ordered before noticing both Sync and Stark by the hole. The former on her knees looking worried, the latter sitting up and coughing loudly.
"Starky…" Sync lamented. "Are you…okay?"
"I thought I told *HACK* …to leave…" Stark groaned.
Erza walks towards the two angels. He passes by Loke who tried waving at her but was completely ignored, to the spirits dismay. She stops in front of the two, prompting Sync and Stark to turn their attention to the red haired woman.
Erza stares Stark down with her signature intimidating expression. "I take it you are the one who made that announcement to the public?" She assumed.
Stark felt a chill up his spine. For some reason, he felt more intimidated by this woman than the man who attempted to kill him prior. With his glasses broken, he was able to scan the swordswoman body for any weak points. To his horror, there were none.
"Y-yeah…what a-about it?" Stark gulped.
Gray can feel Titania's aura from a couple feet away. "Even he gets intimidated by her…" He sweated.
Erza grips the collar of Stark's suit tightly and slowly lifts him up. Her face was casted with shadows and eyes glowing red. Sync lets out some panicked whimpers. "The civilians are currently in refuge, you will go to them and inform them the entire truth of the situation. As well as calling off their retaliation, do I make myself clear?" She demanded.
"There's no point. I no longer have that authority." Stark explained. "Besides, why should I listen to the likes of you?!"
Erza pulled the slender angel to face level, glaring at him intensely. "This is not a matter of authority! That large tower is about to collapse and put many people in danger! Fix the problem that you started!" She ordered before dropping Stark.
Sync's eyes shrunk after hearing that. She slowly looks down and feels dejected, realizing that the damaged tower was more than likely her doing.
Stark lets out a groan of pain as he rubs his lower back. "...Fine, not like I have any other option."
Erza faces the group. She points at Happy and Loke. "You both will keep watch of these two and accompany them out of the castle. It's about to get more rough from here on out, so I'm counting on you!"
"Why me?!" Happy sputtered.
Loke looked over at Lucy as the blonde gave a nod at the spirit. He smirked back and adjusted his tie. "Very well, I'll use my own magic to stay around a little longer for Lucy's sake." He assured.
Erza now faces both Lucy and Gray. "Let's hurry after Natsu. He could very well be in combat and he's going to need our assistance."
Lucy pumps her fists. "Right!"
"Heh, you don't need to tell me twice." Gray crossed his arms and grinned.
Erza leaps down first followed by Gray. Lucy gives a friendly wave at Sync before leaping down herself. Stark watches on before covering his face with one palm, he sighed deeply.
"Damn it…what's gotten into me?"
Sync turns over and tilts her head at her companion.
Izanagi shoves the large stone debris that stacked on top of him. His body was covered in a green aura as his wounds were quickly being wiped away. He notices Natsu standing across from him and growls at the dragon slayer. They were one floor above the bottom floor, a great hall which had a large blue and white carpet covering the entire floor. Many flags hung by the walls with thick pillars laid out in a row throughout the hall.
Natsu points at the god. "Alright! I'm going to make you spit Wendy out once I'm through with you!" He declared.
Izanagi dusts himself off. "Spit out? You make it sound like I consumed her…" He bewildered before shoving his robe off his body, revealing a white vest underneath. "Besides, didn't I send you falling from a cloudy cliff earlier? And getting past Hahlos too?"
Natsu crossed his arm and gave a cocky smirk. "Heh! I came back, that's all!" He answered. Erza, Gray and Lucy landed right behind the fire mage shortly after. "And this time, I'm not alone!"
Erza summoned a broadsword and pointed it at the god. "You made an enemy of the guild you never want to anger. You will suffer the wrath of Fairy Tail for what you've done!"
Izanagi glares intensely at the four. "So you're really determined to endanger this country, all for the sake of one girl?"
Lucy swung her arm. "It's not like that! We desire the safety of the civilians here! But not like this, there will always be another way!"
"In this world, you always have to make sacrifices…make a choice." Izanagi comments. "You need to make the necessary decisions for the sake of a better future."
"Tch, and that better future includes hurting your own people right?" Gray scoffs. "Or taking away their right to use magic? Otherwise they'll be in trouble. What kind of peace is that?!"
Izanagi brushes his hair. "People like you will never understand. You're so used to your reality where magic is a daily occurrence, where almost anyone can have access to such powerful abilities." He clenches his fists. "A world where beings like Zeref and Achologia exist and bring turmoil to the innocent…"
"But we beat them!" Natsu corrected. "Because we all worked together! A world can't be run by just a single person!"
"So what if you beat them? Their influence will always be prevalent." Izanagi refutes. "They existed because of magic…magic that tilts the balance of the world! As long as common people can use magic, your world will never foresee a peaceful future!" The air shifts once again, but more intensely this time.
The Fairy Tail wizards get on guard as the air begins to feel slightly thinner. Izanagi takes a deep breath as the air gets sucked into his lungs. A loud heartbeat was heard as the god's hair spiked up and flashed into a bright pink color. The feather patterns on his legs and arms get thicker with his silver wings and halo shining brighter. The air shoots upward, creating an updraft which causes the rubble in the room to float up.
Izanagi focuses his eyes. "I worked for centuries to make this reality, and I won't let the likes of you take it away!" The rubble falls to the ground as the air shifts back to normal.
"I knew it…" Gray frets. "So he figured out how to use Wendy's Dragon Force…"
Lucy clenched her teeth, feeling the pressure in the room. She stayed determined however.
Erza swung her sword to the side. "He's going to attack. Get ready, everyone!"
Natsu clenched his fist, igniting it with furious flames. "Wendy, I know you're still in there…we'll take down this god and bring you home!" He declared.