Hyde watched as Lucy pulled off the seemingly impossible turnaround victory against Hollow, a brow raised in interest. "She won…?"
"I knew she would…!" Wendy exclaimed as a sense of relief came over her. It wouldn't be long before the others would arrive to stop Hyde. "How's that for your script?"
Hyde's response was an indifferent shrug, he genuinely didn't care about the results of the battles. "Honestly, her victory doesn't change the course of this production at all. The bare minimum required for the production to continue is at least one of your members to emerge victorious, and so far that holds true for three of them, while Titania tied with Knightwalker over there. I personally think things would be better if all of your friends won their fights, but the script can easily change with unexpected development to the actors…"
"W-What…?" Wendy turned her head over to Hyde quickly; a look of worry appearing over her face after Hyde spoke.
"Terra Condor, Brachio, Apollo, and Augria have yet to show their true power," Hyde replied as he walked to a machine connected to the transparent sphere Wendy was locked there. "And frankly I don't think your friend Natsu is going to get past the God of the Sun."
"S-Shut up!" Wendy shouted, banging her fist against the interior of the sphere. "Everyone will win, and everyone will stop you!"
"Oh, no need to get so emotionally flustered now…" Hyde said in a dismissive tone as he waved his hand. "Now, it's time to get started."
Wendy let out a soft sigh and whimper, staring at Hyde as he began to press buttons on the machine. "Cynthia…" She was doing this for the person who meant the most to her in the entire world, so she had to stay strong.
"Let me explain to you how this machine works…" Hyde began as he pulled a lever on the machine, a low hum signifying the beginning of the process. "This machine will insert magic into your body. Eventually, your body will be forced to enter your dual mode because of all the magic going through, and perhaps even higher if possible. Unfortunately, the process is a little slow, and you decided to waste your magic attempting to strike me."
Wendy could feel a slight tingle around her body. It meant the machine was working, first restoring the magic power she lost by attacking Hyde. "I believe in you all…"
.
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Terra Condor circled around Mirajane and Lisanna at near blinding speeds. The two siblings could hardly keep up with the bird's movement. Every so often, he would move in, slashing the two sisters with his talons, causing the two to shriek from the pain. "What's wrong, can't keep up?!"
"He's so fast…!" Lisanna commented while wincing, turning her head to try and keep up with the blur that was Terra Condor.
"Keep focus!" Mirajane said as she attempted to hone in on the speeding bird's movements. She closed her eyes, honing her senses on nothing but Terra Condor.
"I'll finish this now! Flying Impact!" Terra Condor exclaimed, rushing once again towards the two takeover siblings, wings spread out, with the intention of finishing the battle right then and there.
Mirajane listened carefully, and right when Terra Condor was close, her eyes snapped open. "Lisanna, now!" After shouting this, the pair both flew to the side, completing avoiding the wing span of the giant bird, throwing it off guard.
"Ngh!" Terra Condor realized he missed. Unfortunately for him, the miss sent his momentum out of whack because he had to correct himself.
"I got this!" Lisanna replied as she flew high into the air. Once she reached the peak of her height (near the ceiling) she changed into her giant rabbit, now plummeting towards the thrown of bird with immense momentum.
While Terra Condor tried to correct himself, he noticed a large shadow over him. He tilted his head and looked up, eyes widening. "No no no no!" Slam! Lissanna landed right on the back of the large bird, crushing it right into the ground. Terra Condor let out pained comical squawk of pain while Lisanna hopped up, changing back into her half bird takeover.
"Excellent!" Mirajane said while cupping her hands together, forming a sphere of darkness in the empty space between her hands. After getting the desired size for the sphere, she threw her hands forward, unleashing a beam of darkness towards the downed bird.
"D-Don't think you've won yet!" Terra Condor struggled to say before flying back into the air, completely avoiding Mirajane's attack and the small explosion let off from impact. Terra Condor flew straight up, aiming for Lisanna with his mouth open wide. "If I'm going down I'm taking one of you with me!"
"G-Gah…!" Lisanna froze as she watched the giant bird coming in with his gaping mouth. Before she could move, Terra Condor managed to close his jaw with Lisanna inside.
"L-Lisanna…!" Mirajane's eyes widened immensely at the sight of seeing Lisanna eaten. Though, she didn't feel worried for some reason. Probably because it looked like…Terra Condor was having trouble downing his pray, noted by his flailing about and aggravated squawking. "Huh…?"
"Annoying little turd!" Terra Condor squawked while flapping around. Lisanna managed to enter her Armadillo takeover and curled into a ball, just large enough to where she as stuck in Terra Condor's beak.
"Release her!" Mirajane demanded, flying forward with a fist held back. Once she reached Terra Condor, she threw her fist towards his stomach, causing him to spit out Lisanna. Funnily enough, Lisanna rocketed into the nearest wall, but with her shape she bounced off the wall and slammed into Terra Condor's face, causing the bird to fly back.
Lisanna returned to her half bird, shaking her wings in attempt to get the saliva off her. "Ew…"
"Time to finish this," Mirajane said while flying forward, darkness magic surrounding her fist.
"Right!" Lisanna nodded, flying beside Mirajane with a blazing blue aura around her person. F
"N-No!" Terra Condor attempted to counter with his Flying Impact, but Mirajane beat him to the punch, slamming her fist across his face, sending him spiraling back. Then, Lisanna came in with her blazing blue aura intensifying. She slammed right into Terra Condor with a force so great the impact was explosive, sending both the giver and the receiver flying back. Lisanna hit the ground on her back, returning to her regular state while Terra Condor slammed into the wall, completely KO'ed in his regular form.
"H-Heh…!" Lisanna gave a large grin as she sat up, looking at the KO'ed Terra Condor.
Mirajane touched down on the ground, returning to normal with a proud grin on her face towards her younger sibling. "Lisanna, that was incredible…"
Lisanna stood up slowly, rubbing the back of her head. "I'll be as strong as you one day, Mira-nee."
Mirajane nodded, turning to walk to the newly revealed elevator. "You will be…" Mirajane replied before she and Lisanna rode the elevator up to meet with the others.
.
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Back outside, Ace's group (Taya, Luke, Aira, Selene, Rylo, and Leon) were still stuck dealing with the small lacrima spheres that seemed to have all their magic. "This is more annoying than anything else…" Selene groaned before puffing her cheeks out, unleashing a Diamond Dragon's Roar upon a small group of lacrima, destroying them on impact.
"You're telling me! They keep using my magic!" Luke replied with a comical tick mark on the side of his forehead.
"Luke, it's not exactly your magic…you know that, right?" Aira asked while sending a quick Sonic Boom towards a lacrima or two, not even turning to look at Luke.
"That's beside the point!" Luke replied with a groan.
"Come on, guys!" Ace said while dashing from side to side in his standard armor, just avoiding the incoming attacks of the lacrima. With his speed, he appeared behind them with his blaster pointed forward. "Squall!" After clicking the trigger, a green tornado appeared around the lacrima, not giving them the chance to escape.
"This is a pretty good warm up if I do say so myself…" Rylo said while leaping to the side of an incoming acid attack. He then pointed his top hat forward, unleashing a funnel of lightning that destroyed the lacrima. "The guild's been quiet, and I've been getting lazy."
Taya and her vectors had no problem taking out any lacrima within a few foot radius. Of course, she had to keep moving to avoid getting hit, but that was no problem either since she was quick on her feet, even with heels on. "I just hope those Fairies hurry up, because I am never playing back for them again." After saying that, she cut her eyes towards Ace, who merely gave a shrug and a laugh.
"Guess it can't be helped! Then again, you and Luke are the only ones who have a problem with it." Ace replied.
"Because we don't like them?" Luke replied.
"I'm only here to help Sensei and Cynthia," Selene replied with a nod.
"I have no problem helping out Fairy Tail!" Aira said with a kind smile, though she was pretty much slaughtering the lacrima that came her way with no trouble at all.
Leon was in his zone, too focused on combat to really reply. The acid dragon slid to the right, avoiding a wind burst. He pushed off his right foot after, slamming an Acid Dragon's Steel Fist into the lacrima, easily destroying it. After landing, he pivoted on his left foot and preformed a side flip, avoiding a Fire Dragon's Roar. While flipping, he puffed his cheeks out and opened his mouth, unleashing an Acid Dragon's Roar of the fire lacrima, destroying that one with ease as well. Once he landed, he looked around, noticing that he was surrounding by about ten lacrima, all preparing very large attacks. "Heh…" Leon smirked as a green cloud appeared above him and the lacrima. "Acid Dragon's Rain." After stating this, acid poured down over the small radius, destroying the ten lacrima around Leon.
"Damn, he's good…" Luke said with a nod of approval.
Tia seemed unbothered by the fact Ace's team was easily dealing with the lacrima constantly coming towards them. "That's right, use all the magic you can. It'll save me the trouble of coming down there later…"
"Weaklings…" A voice said from nearby.
"Eh…?" Luke looked around, wondering where the voice came from. "You guys heard that too right…?"
"Yeah…" Rylo nodded. "Where did that come from…?"
Future Rogue rose from Luke's shadow, arms crossed. "…"
"Eh…!?" Luke jumped back, sliding into a stance. "Who the hell!?"
"Who is….?" Taya also slid into a stance, completely unfamiliar with Future Rogue. "Who are you?"
"He looks familiar…" Selene said while keeping her guard up.
"The Dragon King…" Future Rouge replied while taking a few steps forward, standing in front of the group now. "Rogue Cheney."
"That's Rogue…?" Aira blinked a few times. "I don't believe that…they don't look alike…"
"That's where you'd be wrong…" Future Rogue replied with a smirk. "I am Rogue from the future…"
"Time travel…?" Ace raised a brow. "But how…I don't think even King has that kind of technology yet…"
"King…?" Rogue raised a brow at the name. "That name sounds vaguely familiar. No matter…" Rouge looked on to the incoming swarm of lacrima, and estimate of fifty and more. "You're all having difficulties with these things? Pathetic…"
"I don't remember stating we were having trouble…" Luke said with a glare towards the future shadow dragon. "They're just annoying little turds…"
"Excuses…" Future Rogue said while walking forward, extending his hand. He created a simple shadow katana, similar to Takeru's. "Watch and learn…" Future rogue drew his arms back, waiting for the lacrima to get in the desired range. "Be gone." Once they were, he swung once, and with that simple slash, he got rid of all of them all with the amazing reach. Future Rogue was clearly much stronger than he was during the Dragon Festival.
"He took them all out in one shot?!" Luke gawked at Future Rogue's strength.
"Hmph…" Future Rouge turned his back, letting out a sigh after. "Where is Dragneel? I have revenge on him for ruining my plans."
"I dunno!" Aira replied with an innocent smile.
"Is he not inside that tower…?" F. Rouge asked while pointing to the tower.
"He could be." Ace replied.
"Hmph…" F. Rouge shrugged. "Very well…" He then dipped back into the shadows.
"W-Wait…!" Luke tried to stop Future Rogue, but was too late.
Tia's brow twitched slightly in annoyance at Future Rogue taking out the largest swarm she sent towards Ace's group. "Who the hell was that…?"
.
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Natsu ran in a zig-zag formation, avoiding the rain of meteors Apollo sent towards him. Once close, he leapt off the ground, lunging headfirst towards Apollo while flames covered his body. "Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!"
"That won't work!" Apollo exclaimed rather arrogantly while placing his hand out. "Sun Barrier!" A golden aura appeared around Apollo in the shape of the sun just before Natsu hit. Natsu collided with the Sun Barrier for a few seconds before the immense force pushed him back.
"Guah!" Natsu shouted out as he was pushed back. He rolled across the grass before hopping up, his cheeks puff out. "Fire Dragon's Roar!" After exclaiming this, Natsu threw his head forward, unleashing a funnel of flames towards the Sun God.
"Hmph…" Apollo scoffed at the incoming attack before dashing forward, leaning his body to the side to avoid the roar, now pointing two fingers forward. "Flame tornado!" Apollo skidded to a halt while three tornadoes of fire appeared before him, all rushing towards Natsu.
"Heh!" Natsu smirked at the incoming flames. When it seemed as though the consumed him, he actually began to inhale them, since they were just basic fire, not even God level. After finishing them, he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "Thanks for the meal, I was feelin' a little hungry…"
"H-How…?" Apollo sneered as Natsu ate his flames, but he eventually regained his composure. "So, he consumes just regular fire based attacks…?"
While Apollo thought to himself, Natsu used his recharged magic to his advantage, fire blazing around his arms. "Fire Dragon: Crimson Lotus!" Natsu rotated his arms counterclockwise, unleashing a massive wave of flames with immense pushback. Apollo found himself caught in the attack, sliding backwards a few yards as a result, burn marks over his body.
"You…!" Apollo gasped as he felt the burns marks around his body.
"There's more where that came from!" Natsu exclaimed as he rushed forward once again, his flames flaring intensely around his arms. "Crimson Lotus: Fire Dragon's Punch!" Once in arms reach, Natsu began a series of intense flaming punches, aiming for various spots on Apollo's body.
Apollo ducked and weaved the incoming punches, having little trouble dodging them. He was unable to dodge about three, leaving large marks on his chest, but otherwise he was handling it all pretty well. At an incoming punch, Apollo grabbed Natsu's arm and flung the Salamander away, pointing a finger forward after. "Sun Beam!" From Apollo's index finger, a large beam of solar energy shot forward, ripping through the beautiful grass field as it raced towards Natsu.
"Gh…" Natsu caught himself after being thrown; now sliding across the grassy field. With no other options, he crossed his arms, bracing himself for the impact. And there it was, the impact sent Natsu skidding back across the grass, a dirt trail showing how far he slid back. "Is that all you got!?"
"Of course not…" Apollo replied as he pointed an open palm to the sun above. "Now, Fire Dragon, you shall bear witness to what sun is capable of as I use half of its power!" The sun actually began to shine brighter as Apollo focused his energy on it. "Prepare yourself!" The solar energy Apollo gathered focused into a bright yellow sphere just a few inches above his hand. "Solar Beam!" Apollo threw his hand forward, unleashing a devastating laser-like beam completely composed of solar energy towards Natsu.
Natsu's response was obvious. He formed two spheres of fire in his hands, quickly joining them together over his head. "Dazzling Blaze of the Fire Dragon!" Natsu threw the large sphere of fire forward, clashing with the Solar Beam. Unfortunately for Natsu, the Solar Beam cut right through his blaze and landed a direct hit, sending him tumbling backwards.
.
.
"Natsu…!" Happy shouted as the match began to turn in Apollo's favor.
"He's getting his ass kicked…" Gray clenched his fist before shouting at the lacrima screen. "Oi! What are you doing you idiot!? Stop messing around and kick his ass already!"
"Come on, Natsu…!" Cynthia pleaded while focusing her efforts on the door before them. Luckily, Terra Condor's lock shattered, meaning there were only three left before they could advance. But Cynthia was trying to break the door down to make life easier; sadly, it wouldn't budge.
Just then, Mirajane and Lisanna stepped out of the elevator, and Lucy's elevator opened up at the same time. "Guys…!" Lisanna exclaimed while running forward.
"You two look like you've been hit by a truck…" Carla commented.
"Almost…" Mirajane replied as she went over to Lucy, shaking the celestial mage a bit to see if she would wake up. "Lucy…?"
Lucy stirred before lifting her head up. Vision blurry. "Ngh…."
"Don't try to move too much…" Mirajane cautioned. "You're in a very critical state…"
"W-Where's Natsu…?" Lucy asked.
"Still fighting…" Gray replied.
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"And here's another!" Apollo shouted while slamming his foot into Natsu's chest, causing Natsu to stumble back. "Do you now see why you're "fire dragon" magic is inferior to the magic of the sun!?"
"I'm not finished yet you obnoxious bastard!" Natsu roared as he charged forward, flames flaring around his feet. "Talons!" Natsu jumped forward, swinging his leg upwards towards Apollo, but the sun god blocked the hit with ease. Natsu changed his momentum, flipping as he aimed an axe kick towards Apollo's head, but the sun god saw this one coming and blocked his one too, much to Natsu's annoyance. But, Natsu quickly saw an upside to his upside down position. He puffed his cheeks out, and without warning, unleashed a point-blank Fire Dragon's Roar onto Apollo, the massive funnel of flames consuming the sun god.
"Grhk!?" Apollo shouted as he staggered back, not so much bothered by the fire, but by the force of the attack. He shook it off and grinned towards Natsu. "Well, well, Fire Dragon…You certainly are a tenacious opponent…"
Natsu regained his footing, keeping a stance as he glared towards Apollo. "I can say the same for you…"
"Unfortunately, your tenacity can only get you so far…" Apollo stated as he spread his arms apart, looking as though he was ready to accept something. "Just as you consume the fires of man to regain your strength…I absorb the rays of the sun to regain my strength…" Apollo's body began to give off a slight glow, and all the damage he took from Natsu was starting to recede.
"Like hell am I letting you do that!" Natsu shouted as he broke into a sprint, fire covering his body as he prepared to launch an attack. "Iron Fist of the Fire Dragon!" Natsu threw his fist forward, but by that time, it was already too late. Apollo recovered, and he beat Natsu to the punch, slamming his fist into the face of Salamander. Natsu flew back across the grassy field, rolling in the grass before managing to catch himself. "Gah…!"
Before Natsu could react, Apollo was already behind him. "It's over, Salamander." Apollo placed his palm on Natsu's back, a sun shaped magic seal appearing. "Sun Burst." The magic seal exploded, sending Natsu flying forward with a pained yelp. However, before Natsu could even catch himself, Apollo was right there in his flight pattern, fist at his side as another sun shaped magic seal appeared over his fists. "Rising Sun!" Apollo swung his fists upward in a golf clubbing motion, and with the power of the sun to back him up, the impact was much more destructive. Natsu was hit by the attack and soared into the air. He was completely aggravated that he couldn't move. That was going to change now.
Natsu flipped as quickly as he could, aiming his head down at Apollo while he was still there. Fire appeared in a trail behind his arms as he "flew" forward. "Fire Dragon's Wing Slash!"
Apollo raised his hands over his head this time, the same magic seal from before appearing. "Setting Sun!" Just before Natsu could reach, Apollo swung his hands down, landing a devastating impact on Natsu's skull. The force so great that Natsu laid in a crater after impact, completely stunned.
"Natsu…!" Happy's flailing continued as he watched from the lacrima screen.
"N-Natsu…" Lucy managed to whisper.
"N-Ngh…." Natsu shook his head as he slowly brought himself up. He could see Apollo floating in the air a few yards away. "Damn…that hurt…"
"You've lasted this long…" Apollo said while chuckling. "For that, I will give you a present." Apollo held his hand up, once again gathering solar energy in his palm. This time, however, it was a large sphere of golden fire equal to the sun's temperature. The sphere grew and grew until it reached the size of a large asteroid. "So for that, I will show you the ultimate power of the sun! GOD ART: SOLAR FLARE." Apollo threw the large sun-based sphere forward towards Natsu, the speed of the sphere literally caused the air to roar.
Natsu's eyes widened at the size of the sphere. It was monstrous. Then, his eyes narrowed as he placed his hands out, catching the sphere, but by no means stopping it. He grit his teeth as he attempted to hold his ground against the immense power, but he just kept sliding back, and he could feel it starting to overpower him. "G-Gah…!"
"Try as you might!" Apollo laughed as the grass around began to incinerate into nothing, and the ground began to rumble, break apart and incinerate. "You'll never match the power of the sun!"
.
.
"T-That power is incredible…!" Carla gawked at the size of the Solar Flare.
"He's gotta stand up to it!" Lisanna said with a clearly worried tone. "Come on, Natsu!"
"That power…" Cynthia said as she stared at the sphere. "Natsu…we need you…"
.
.
Natsu could feel his arms staring to give out, meaning the Solar Flare was staring to overpower him. "Grah…I'm not…gonna lose here…"
"Give it up!" Apollo shouted. "You're just delaying the inevitable now!"
"I don't know what those words mean!" Natsu replied as he placed his foot into the ground, now starting to get some kind of balance. Now, Natsu was taking a risk. With the help of his Lightning Flame Mode, he managed to lift the sphere above his head, despite how his arms felt like jelly.
"What is he..?" Apollo raised a brow. "He won't be able to throw it back at me…so why is he lifting it…?" It was then that Natsu opened his mouth….and slowly began to eat the golden fire sphere. "WHAT?! THAT'S INSANE! YOU CAN'T EAT THE POWER OF THE SUN LIKE THAT?!"
Natsu held his stomach as the consumption changed from a huge pain…to a giant surge of power as the golden flames erupted around his person. With a shout that soon changed into a roar, scales began to appear over his arms and forehead. "RAAAAHHHHHH!"
"W-What…!?" Apollo's eyes widened immensely as Natsu entered the state of Dragon Force. "What is that?!"
Without a word, Natsu dashed forward, appearing as a blur. In the next second, he appeared above Apollo, feet blazing with golden fire. "Talons!" Natsu slammed his flaming feet onto Apollo's head, sending the god the sun rocketing into the ground, creating a large crater. Natsu wasn't even finished yet. He cupped his hands above his head, creating a large sphere of golden fire over it. "Dazzling Blaze of the Fire Dragon!" Natsu hurled the sphere forward towards the crater, a large fiery explosion taking place after impact.
When the smoke from the explosion cleared, Apollo was swaying from side to side but regained balance. "W-What are you…!? How could you EAT the sun's power like that!?"
"It's just a big ball of fire…" Natsu replied with a serious expression. Now, with his body ignited in golden flames, he charged towards Apollo. "Time to finish this!" Natsu swung his fist upward, landing a swift uppercut on Apollo's chin, knocking him into the air.
"S-Sun Barrier!" Apollo shouted after he was knocked into the air, now in a state of panic.
Now, Natsu leapt into the air in a manner similar to his sword horn, but the shape was a golden flaming arrow. "Hidden Form! Crimson Lotus: Phoenix Blade!" Natsu slammed into the Sun Barrier, but this time he shattered the defense, and rammed into Apollo's stomach while letting out a battle cry, rising into the air at an incredible pace. Apollo let out a constant scream of pain while rising into the air because of Natsu's attack. This continued for who knows how long, but in the end, Natsu ran right through the ceiling and into the room with everyone else, creating a hole in the floor. "GRAAAAAH!" Natsu finished things off by flipping, slamming his foot into Apollo's chin, sending the god of the sun into the ceiling. Apollo's eyes X'ed out and his body dissolved into nothing, and Natsu hit the ground on his back with a grin.
"Natsu!" Everyone shouted with glee after witnessing Natsu's victory first hand.