There was a woman donning a samurai's outfit, standing out at the balcony of Seven's castle. This woman was tall, had long purple hair that came down to her back, and matching purple eyes. She held a grip on the hilt of her sword, staring out into the distance. "...Did you intercept the transmission?"
"Yes, Queen Vena!" One of the guards within the castle nodded. Their outfit was similar to Queen Vena's, a samurai's attire. Everyone in Seven's castle wore one. "It appears that the broadcast came from the border with Fiore!"
"I see." Vena nodded slowly, turning and beginning to walk off. "Dealer is making their move once again. They were lingering in Fiore, so I was unable to track them...but this time...we will get our vengeance for what happened several years ago."
"B-But my lady, are you certain?" The guard questioned. "What if they aim for the castle? You saw what happened to Fiore's capital! We don't even know if there is anyone left..."
The Queen paused, her battle ready nature almost getting the best of her for a moment. She couldn't just adventure out and hunt Dealer down, not when they had such a powerful weapon and motive at their disposal. "...Then I shall defend it." Vena responded with a firm nod. "As Queen of Seven, it is my duty to protect this country. I am not alone in this endeavor."
"Whatever do you mean?" The guard questioned.
"Our Magic Council was destroyed." Vena recalled this tragic event with her eyes closed. "It was a ploy by Dealer to keep us out of the picture. It worked...or at least, so King thought. What he fails to realize, is that the will of our Magic Council lives on. Do you remember their motto?"
"To protect and serve?" The guard recalled.
Vena nodded and a smile crossed her lips. "That's correct. When King least expects it...the ghosts of the past will come to haunt him."
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"Man…" Jack said while rubbing the back of his head, glancing over at Tia, who was rather speechless by the end of King's speech.
"I never thought…" Tia spoke silently, now thinking back to Ace's words before her imprisonment. It wasn't long Siegrain, Kemuri Lahar, Doranbolt Odin, Layanna, and Rize showed up, standing just before the sibling's cells. "To what do we owe this pleasure…?" Tia asked while raising a brow, arms crossed.
"I assume you heard the speech?" Lahar asked the siblings. They just returned from the Crocus evacuation effort.
"Of course," Jack replied with a snarky tone, scoffing rudely afterwards. "He broadcasted it to all of Fiore, it would be hard NOT to hear it. In fact, he probably let the whole world know what he's doing, because he's just that arrogant about everything."
"Jack," Tia snapped at her younger brother, warning him not to be so rude. "Yes we heard it…and I'm being honest when I say this…but we're just as surprised as you all are about King's ultimate goal…"
"Do you honestly expect us to believe that?" Odin said while cocking a curious brow. "You two are S class mages of that guild, how would you NOT know anything about your leader's plans?"
"That's the thing…" Jack sucked his teeth. "King's a picky one. He doesn't trust many people, and he certainly didn't…or doesn't trust Sis and I. Considering how he didn't even bother to even raise a finger in freeing her…and he even tried to rub me out for my actions the other day. I bet he doesn't know I know that."
"If that's the case…" Siegrain asked while rubbing his chin. "Who DOES King trust? Surely there must be some people within your little group that hold some merit to him."
"If we're going to be honest here…" Tia began with a small sigh. "King thinks nothing of Diamond, Spade, or Strong. They're nothing but pawns to him. He hasn't said it aloud, but it's clear he doesn't care for them in the slightest…if they get their jobs done, it gets a mere thumbs up. Everything is for the sake of this plan, which we now all know of…However…King does hold his trust within Joker, Heartless, and Heartless' assistant, Daigo, to a smaller extent. Joker and Heartless are incredibly loyal to King."
"I see…" Siegrain replied. "And what is your stance on this matter? Both of you?"
"I hope he gets screwed over," Jack replied with a grunt. "He made no effort to help and tried to get rid of us."
"Yes…same…" Tia replied with a slow nod.
"You hear that, Siegrain?" Kemuri had a confident expression on his face. "It appears that everyone's goals are aligning for this common enemy."
"Is that so…?" Slowly, a grin formed on Siegrain's face. "If that's the case, then I have a job for the both of you…"
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"Ow…" Lucy said while rubbing her head, looking up from where she fell from. "What happened…!? Did they see us coming after all…!?"
"It looks like it…" Aira said while sitting up, shaking off the rough landing. "We're all separated again…"
"Juvia doesn't like this!" The water mage said while flailing her arms around in a flustered/upset manner. "Juvia wants to be separated with Gray-sama, not you two!" Aira and Lucy then proceeded to stare at Juvia with a comical deadpan expression, causing her to poke her fingers in a sheepish manner. "Of course, Juvia doesn't mean any offense when she says this…haha…"
"Oh, whatever…" Lucy said with the roll of her eyes. She was used to this behavior from the water mage. "I do wonder where he, along with everyone else is…"
"LOVE RIVAL." Juvia's tone lowered to a threatening one, towering over a now cowering Lucy. "ONLY JUVIA CAN THINK OF GRAY-SAMA."
"B-BUT I WAS JUST-" Lucy started to defend herself, but luckily Aira was there to break the two apart.
"Now, now…!" Aira said with her usual sweet smile. "I think we have bigger things to worry about, right? Like where we are!"
"She's right!" Lucy said while slowly backing away from the still angered Juvia, who was slowly beginning to calm down. "Geez…" Lucy said while looking around, noticing how all the walls had cards on them. "Talk about a house of cards…"
"Someone likes their card games, that's for sure…" Aira said with a slow nod as the three females began walking forward, seeing how it was the only direction for them to go.
"Juvia wonders what goes on through King's head…" She commented while looking at the walls. "Some of these cards have his face on it…"
"He really does top Reve in an ego contest…" Aira snickered at the thought, trying to lighten the atmosphere.
"I hope I can find Taurus and Gemini…" Lucy said to herself.
"Are you sure you can get them back?" Juvia asked with some concern in her voice. She knew how much Lucy loved all of her spirits, but with Taurus and Gemini, it seemed as though they wouldn't be coming back.
"They have been under Heartless' control for a long time…" Aira pointed out.
"That doesn't matter to me," Lucy replied with a serious expression, looking straight ahead. "They're my spirits, I know they're in their somewhere, and I'll do everything I can to bring them back! I swear it."
"But…what if you can't…?" Aira threw the suggestion out there fearfully, but she wanted to know what Lucy would do in the face of absolute impossibility.
Lucy stayed silently, not wanting to answer that question, so instead she responded by twisting the subject slightly. "Just be careful, alright?"
"I should be saying the same to you…" Aira mumbled.
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"Damn…" Selene said while rubbing her head from the fall. "That hurt…"
"Why did he think a frontal assault was the best idea…!?" Luke questioned while sitting up, glancing around to see who else was with the pair. "So it looks like it's you, me, Wendy, Warren, and Wendy's little exceed friend…"
"I have a name, you know," Carla replied to Luke with a slight glare.
"I don't care much for talking cats if we're going to be honest here…" Luke said with a shrug.
"Luke-san…" Wendy said while puffing her cheeks out.
"Ignore him," Selene said while giving a dismissive wave. "Anyway, are you two hurt?"
"I think I bruised my backside…" Wendy said while rubbing her hands up and down her lower back. "But other than that, I think I'm okay…"
"I'm fine…" Carla said with a nod. "I don't know if I can say the same for the others, though."
"Nothing we can do about that," Luke stated before standing up. "We're in this for the long haul now, so we might as well make the best of it."
"I think you're right on that," Carla responded. "I'm sure the others will be fine."
"So, let's get moving! Dealer isn't gonna stop itself!" Luke exclaimed while pounding one fist into his open palm.
"Slow down, copycat…" Selene urged Luke. "We're not going to get anywhere but creamed if we rush. I know we're in enemy territory but we have to take things slow…"
"Selene-san is right…" Wendy agreed. "We could get ambushed by anyone from anywhere…"
"Aye, fine…" Luke sighed. "We'll do it your way, I guess."
"In the meantime, I'll see if I can establish a telepathic link with everyone…" Warren said while placing two fingers to his forehead. "This place isn't so big that I shouldn't be able to reach everyone eventually."
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"YAAAAAAH!" Cynthia ran forward across a hallway with her hands raised above her head. Right beside her was Chelia, and Zalen, both running for their lives right after her. Multiple deadly projectiles were being hurled their way from behind them, various traps they somehow managed to set off.
"This place is a walking death trap…!" Chelia nearly screamed.
"No kidding! But you have to admire…" Zalen started, getting ready to comment on the interior of the building.
"NO! There's no time to admire something that's about to KILL YOU. MOVE!" Cynthia interrupted the building mage. "I hope the others aren't having a hard time like us…!" And funnily enough, that was the case. Cynthia's small group was the only one unlucky enough to be set within a hallway of deadly traps.
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"I hope you're ready!" The three Strongs said to Ace, Natsu, Gajeel, Takeru, Happy, and Pantherlily. "Because here comes the power! Strong Swing!" The three Strongs raised their clubs up, the slammed the ground, sending a triangle of shockwaves to the small group.
"Let's go!" Natsu roared with excitement, igniting his fists in his orange flames. He leapt towards the nearest Strong, avoiding the shockwave while drawing his fist back. "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" He exclaimed while throwing his flaming fist forward, slamming his fist into the Strong's face, causing him to stagger back and fizz out a little after. "Nani?"
"Something's already not right about this…" Takeru said while dashing towards the same one Natsu struck, shadows covering the length of his arm. "Shadow Dragon's Slash!" He swung his arm forward, slashing the Strong across the face. The hit was a direct one, and that Strong faded into nothing. "What…!?"
"It's a thought projection…!" Ace grit his teeth while his blade and a Strongs club collided. Even though it was a fake, the strength was real.
"That guy can think!?" Gajeel exclaimed, clearly the part of Strong ability to think coming as a larger surprise than the fakes they were fighting.
"He's just stalling us for time!" Panterlily growled.
"Oh, looks like you guys aren't as stupid as you looked!" Strong said with a laugh that echoed throughout the room. "You're not gonna get to King unless you get through me!"
"Dammit, Strong!" Ace grunted, jumping back from the thought projection. "We don't have time to be playing around with you!"
"Looks like you're gonna have to make some time then, eh?" Strong laughed once again, the other two thought projections faded. A door opened nearby, and a narrow and unstable pathway was revealed. "If you want to get to me, let's see if you can get through here first! I'll be waiting for you at the very end, so don't wait up!"
"Tch…" Gajeel retracted his arm, glaring at the space ahead. "I don't like the way that looks, but we don't have the time to be worrying about the little details, huh?"
"Don't sweat the details," Ace said as usual. "Let's get going, the sooner we take out Strong the better. I'm sure the others can deal with Spade and Diamond. Maybe Daigo too, if necessary. He was always a strange one…"
"Aye, sir!" Happy exclaimed.
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"I hope you're ready to face Fairy Tail's light!" Cana exclaimed while running right for King, the tattoo on her arm glowing even brighter.
"Joker, Heartless, stop her!" King demanded.
"On it," Heartless said while drawing three cards. "You won't take a step further…" She proclaimed, hurling the three cards at Cana with precision.
"Sorry, but not even you can stop me!" Cana replied with confidence, waiting until the last second to evade the cards thrown by Heartless before pulling out her own cards. She threw three at Heartless, who avoided them just by leaning to the side, allowing them to strike the wall behind her.
"Useless…" Heartless commented while pulling out a few more cards.
"I knew you'd dodge!" Cana grinned, and before Heartless had the chance to react, the cards behind her exploded, causing her to let out a surprised yelp and stagger forward.
"Gah!" King grunted, now pointing to Joker. "Joker!
"You won't take another step forward…" Joker said while extending his hand, multiple magic seals appearing on the floor around and under Cana, Giga Pillars popping out to impede her progress.
"G-Gah…!" Cana staggered forward from the mass of Giga Pillars popping up from the ground. She jumped left and right, narrowly avoiding the pillars rising from the ground. One appeared right under her feet and shot her into the air. "Ah…!" The card mage grinned, quickly using this to her advantage. She descended down quickly while placing her tattooed arm forward, which began glowing brightly. "It's finally ready! FAIRY GLITTER!"
"G-GAH…!" King exclaimed while using his arms to cover himself from the bright light.
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"Ichiya-san, look!" Hibiki pointed to the bright light emitting from the top of Dealer's base.
"That light….!" Ren exclaimed.
"No doubt about it!" Eve said with a large grin. "That's gotta be Fairy Glitter!"
"Let's hope this brings things to a swift end, men~!" Ichiya posed.
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Cana landed on the floor, panting somewhat heavily from the use of Fairy Glitter, but she stared into the large pillar of light it caused that surrounded King, Joker, and Heartless, eager to see the results. "Heh…" The smoke slowly began to clear, and Cana's eyes widened. The only one relatively damaged was Heartless, but other than that, Joker and King were fine; only a few scratches here and there. "W-What…?"
"Ho ho ho…!" King laughed at Cana's reaction, waving his finger in a disapproving manner shortly after. "Did you really think a weakling like yourself would make a difference with a nuke of a spell?!"
"How the hell!?" Cana growled, now taking a step back.
"You think this throne I sit on is just for show?" King asked while tapping his fingers on the arm of the throne. "This throne has a magical barrier strong enough to withstand anything thrown! It doesn't matter how strong your magic is; if you're weak, it's worthless, just like you."
"Hmph…" Was all Heartless really had to say, dusting herself off nonchalantly. "It was a decent effort, I suppose…"
"This is where you learn your place," Joker said to Cana, suddenly vanishing from her line of sight. In the next second, he appeared behind her, his hand gripping her skull, beginning to squeeze down on it. Cana let out a scream of pain and desperately tried to kick free.
"W-What are you doing this for…!?" Cana questioned King while trying to escape Joker's wrath. "Y-You don't know what you're doing by bringing that monster here!"
"I know exactly what I'm doing!" King replied while shuffling a deck of cards. "You humans fear anything stronger than you, and when someone claims to have the ability to control said thing, they all try to talk them out of it. It won't work on me. I've spent countless years hunting for that beast, and I will become the King of Earthland!"
"Y-You're insane…!" Cana cried out, feeling her consciousness slip away. "B-But Fairy Tail will put an end to your plans…!"
"…Joker, drop her for a moment." King said with a raised brow. Joker did as he was told and dropped Cana, who held her head in agony. "Foolish scum, you don't even know the gravity of the situation yet. You come in here with your nose pointed high, thinking you can stop me that easily? I've been keeping tabs on you all for a very long time now. Jack and Tia were useful for that, at the very least. I know all of your strengths and weaknesses, and all of your weakness lie here within this very hideout."
"W-What are you talking about…?" Cana asked while standing up slowly, but Joker kept his foot on her back to keep her down on all fours, forcing her to bow to King while she spoke. She couldn't hate Joker any more if she tried. "Bastard…"
"Let's take your S class wizard, Erza Scarlet for example. One Grand Magic Games ago, she successfully fell 100 powerful monsters on her own, correct?"
"Yeah, because she's Erza…" Cana replied.
"And she made it out just barely standing, yes?" King questioned even more, making Cana feel rather uneasy. She didn't answer, but King continued anyway. "I wonder…how would she fare against 100 monsters stronger than that 1 S class monster she took on…?"
"100…!?" Cana's eyes widened at the number, but she shook her head quickly. It felt like King was underestimating Erza Scarlet of all people, which was a very common folly for many! "Ha…100 will be no problem! She could do it once so she can do it again!"
"Hm, I figured you'd say as such. Your blind loyalty and false faith in your friends made that easy to figure out. But, what if I were to say…double the number? Erza Scarlet vs not 100 monsters, but 200, all within the basement of this establishment!"
"2-200…" Cana nearly choked on her words. A number like that? That was very worrisome.
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"Ngh…" Erza regained consciousness slowly, bringing herself up to a sitting position. She nearly jumped at the large claw that stepped on the ground right in front of her. The monster didn't seem to notice her and continued walking. "…!"
"So, you're finally awake…" Knightwalker said while leaning against the nearest wall.
"You…!" Erza immediately hopped up and conjured a sword, pointing at Knightwalker. "What are you doing here?! How did you even get here?!"
"I'm not the one you want to be pointing that thing at…" Knightwalker said while nudging her head to the right. "Look." Erza looked, and her eyes widened; a mass of monsters just chilling within the depths of Dealer's hideout. She was speechless about it, to say the least. "Surprised, are we…? I'm sure you know where this is going. As much as I want to end your life here, I can't. The second we begin fighting 200 monsters will be on us."
"So what are you saying?" Erza asked with a raised brow. There was an ulterior motive somewhere and she knew it.
"Since fighting against each other isn't an option here…I propose we play a little game," Nightwalker suggested, and she had Erza's attention. "I'm tired of being your equal, and I think this should settle it quite nicely. There are 200 monsters here, and 2 of us. I'm sure you can handle yourself against them, right?"
"So…you're saying whoever kills the most monsters is the superior one…?" Erza asked while quirking a brow.
"That's right," Knightwalker said with a nod. "But, don't mistake this for me working together with you. I'm simply acting in my best interests, do you understand?"
"That's fine by me…" Erza replied with her own nod. "I don't intend to lose. I have to make it up to King and show him why you don't mess with a Fairy Tail wizard."
"If you can defeat me, that is…" Knightwalker replied. The two Erzas stared down at the 200 monsters before leaping forward.
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Happy: "200 monsters?! That's insane!"
Wendy: "If anyone can do it, it's Erza-san!"
Natsu: "Meanwhile, I'm gonna clock this Strong guy right in the face!"
Next time: Erzas vs. 200!