Sorry all. My laptop died shortly after my last submittal and it's taken me a long time to save up for a new one. This year has been the year of challenges. But like Fairy Tail; you can't keep me down. \(^o^)/
Chapter Seventy-Seven
"I'm in position." Meredy murmured and heard Alfie hum.
"Same." Ultear's voice was calm but firm. She was in the dead end to the side of her. Juvia was in the dead end directly across from Ultear's. Her soft voice came through their comms, stating she was also in position.
"Who woke up Gray to let him know he was with the shuttle?" Meredy asked, she had jumped out of the shuttle because she hadn't desired to be the one to tell him that.
"I didn't. I didn't want to argue with him." Ultear sniffed in annoyance. "I needed all my energy and focus on the draconics and not his fragile male ego about being the decoy protector."
"Nor did Juvia. For the same reasons." There was a giggle. "Alfie, can you please notify Gray either when he wakes up on his own; or if draconics manage to make it into the dead end where the shuttle is?"
"Of course. Flare has already encased that dead end with her hair." The A.I. stated cooly. They all inhaled.
"Don't worry; my hair and I can handle all of this. I promise." Her voice came through their comms and they all felt a heaviness settle on their shoulders. They knew the risks she was taking. The pain she was going to suffer. Gray's words; about her feeling the pain that is inflicted on her hair; and they knew that the draconics were going to try and destroy her hair; especially when it forms the barriers.
"How will they not see the hair and be weary?" Ultear asked frowning.
"I'm sitting on a ledge of a fountain. My hair is behind me and has travelled under the earth. Unless they can feel the minor tremors of my hair tunneling through the earth to get where I want it to go; they won't suspect anything." Flare's voice was sure and even. "It's a sneak attack I was taught by my old Guild Master."
"Interesting attack. Attacking from below." Ultear murmured. Feeling a bit annoyed at the underhandedness of it.
"Most wouldn't suspect it. That's for sure." Juvia concurred and sighed heavily. "But in times of war; we have to use every available means to get an advantage against our enemies."
"Juvia is right." Meredy hopped on her tiptoes. "Everyone, just play this as smart as you can. Don't take any greater risks than necessary."
"Same to you. Don't be a brat as I can't get to you as quickly as normal." Ultear chided with a smile to her voice.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Meredy rolled her eyes.
Alfie hummed, her systems searching the Shuttle. Gray was propped up against the wall; his arms crossed; breathing deep and even. Ice was slowly encasing him; starting from his feet and rising up his legs.
"Grrrrowlk!" Flare's muscles tensed and she slowly opened her eyes. She watched as the draconics appeared at the mouth of the intersection. She didn't move, she held her breath, and watched through half lidded eyes. The wind blew; coming up from the direction of the shuttle's dead end. The draconics closest to it veered off; taking off with barely constrained hunger. They turned the corner and their growls filled the air. More draconics came through the mouth of the intersection and headed for the two far dead ends; towards Meredy and Ultear and she tracked them briefly before watching as some headed for the dead end to her right where Juvia was waiting patiently.
That left her with three draconics that were pacing near the front of the intersection. Still too far for her to safely weave her hair as a barrier. So she didn't move. She blinked slowly and waited.
"There are no other draconics in the area." Alfie's voice was soft, barely above a whisper in her ear. "Four are sniffing the hair barrier in front of the shuttle; three are nearing Ultear, three are nearing Meredy, four are nearing Juvia."
"Seventeen in all." Meredy whispered softly and there was a deep growl that echoed through the comms. Flare shuddered and the three in front of her went still and then turned and stared right at her. She didn't move; just waited. Patience was a skill she had learned at the knees of her adopted family. But patience also was something she didn't want to engage in. She wanted to move; her muscles were ready to spring; the energy building in the depth of them was almost electric.
"Fight well, my friends." Juvia whispered to them through the comms and Flare felt warmth in her chest.
"Be safe girls." Ultear instructed and the squawks of the draconics grew louder. Suddenly the three in front of her leapt forward. She felt her lips twitch. Her eyes opened fully and the draconics skidded to a stop. Eying her warily. She slowly stood up; lifting her arms slowly. Her hands reaching out wide; fingers spread wide. The draconics tilted their heads, trying to understand what she was doing. She took a deep breath. One of the draconics started to move; opening its wings.
She ducked, feeling the shurikens fly over her head; slicing through the air where she'd been standing seconds ago. She ran, zigging and zagging, feeling her rage building. She slid her right eye to the side and smiled as she saw her hair already half way up the opening of the intersection. She returned her attention fully to the enemies.
"Oh crap." Meredy murmured as the three draconics entered her quadrant, and she watched as red hair immediately sprang up like bloody reeds and started to shoot upwards while more sprouted and started to weave in from the sides. The hair moved quickly, silently, and the draconics were none the wiser. The three snarled; greenish gray ooze dripping from their mouths.
She watched as the furthest to the left took a step; screaming in pain as the spell work she'd laid down cut off its leg and purple blood started to splatter against the ground. It wobbled for a moment, before it started to fall. However, her joy at seeing it land on the ground fell when its stubby tail caught its weight and kept it upright. She snarled as it screamed in pain and outrage. One of the others ran by it; spitting a bright green substance that as it landed on its open leg; started to sizzle.
"Acid spit." She shuddered and twisted the bracelet on her left arm. Armor started to spread out over her body. She ran forward, jumping high as the draconic who had gone right; swiped at her. She threw out a spell; watching it hit as she twisted, barely missing the acid spitter. It's stumpy tail tried to whip out but didn't come close. She inhaled, glad for the modification for a split second before the stump acted as a brace to keep it from skidding too far from her.
"You are very annoying." Ultear rolled her eyes as the three draconics were circling her, the furthest back was circling to the right, the one in the middle was circling to the left and the one closest to her was circling to the right. The constant crossing made her head hurt. She kept pivoting on her heels, waiting to strike. She listened as Meredy commented on hers. When she heard the word "acid" she'd felt dread filling her.
"Snirkkk." The weird snarl, growl sounded and Ultear rolled out of the way as it flung itself at her. She leapt backwards; waving her hands as she used lasers to distract them by casting 3D recordings away from her. They fell for it. She quickly struggled to catch her breath. She clenched and unclenched her hands a few times loosening up her fingers. The draconics turned their attentions back to her when they ran into a wall as the recordings disappeared.
"Their mouths don't open far. As if trying to limit their ability to make sounds.' She muttered and Alfie hummed, storing that tidbit of information away into her storage archives.
"They also don't have the same physiology." Juvia's stated as she stared down at the decapitated draconic at her feet. Its head was upside down on one side of her and its body on the other. "Looks like their vocal cords have been shortened and tied down so they can't move much."
"That's just cruel." Meredy's voice sounded conflicted and Juvia melted as another draconic pounced, missing her by inches. She solidified and threw her arm out.
"Water Slicer!" The draconic jerked to the side as if pulled by an invisible hand; but the one that had been behind it wasn't so lucky. The blade of water cut its way down the creature's side. Its cry of outraged pain echoed off of the buildings around them. Juvia flinched and quickly started to run as the uninjured draconics turned their attention to her.
"They are faster than the older generations."
"By a fourth of a snorcik." Alfie said. "I have been studying their attack timings from previous recordings of battles."
"A fourth of a snorcik? That's pretty impressive." The Aquaterran murmured and spun, the claws that should have disembowled her sliced through thin air and she flipped, her hands absorbing water that had been on the ground. As she flipped onto her feet she flung the droplets she had collected. The droplets flew like bullets hitting their mark with impressive accuracy.
"Finally!" Flare smiled to herself as all of the intersections were sealed off by her hair. She was breathing heavily having to dodge the draconics and their acid attacks, while ensuring her hair never fully got severed from her hair. If it did, it would instantly collapse and everyone would be in trouble. She spun, her hair flaring out around her like a tornado and then shrinking when the draconics tried to slice and bite it.
"Sckrockkk." One croaked and ran forward; but a braid tripped it. As it hit the ground, it growled and struggled to get back up. Flare slapped it with a larger braid and the draconic rolled onto its back and its short tail struggled to give the proper leverage to help it get off of its back.
"They aren't able to get off of their backs easily!" She announced and Alfie hummed softly. Sending the information out to the others. She pulled out a fire blade and swung it; its flame hit the spew of acid and ran up it into the mouth of the draconic. Her eyes widened as its throat expanded briefly before it exploded. She covered herself in a quick shield of hair and shrieked.
"What was that?" Ultear demanded. The explosion shaking the ground and knocking her off of her feet. She scrambled as the draconic closest to her hurried towards her. She rolled over onto her back and shot out a spell that had the draconic thrown into the wall across from her. She got to her knees and panted.
"Flare managed to learn the hard way that the acid spit is flammable, and if you can get it enflamed while the draconics are still spitting; it travels back to their mouths and they explode. Upon a re-watch of the footage;" Alfie hummed and there were some beeps in Ultear's comm." "that due to the limitations Mard Geer put on their vocal boxes and throats; they cannot regurgitate nor cut off their spit mid-stream."
"Flaw found. Good job Flare!" Ultear spun on her knees and jumped up and headed for a metal ladder on the side of the wall.
"Currently two draconics of the seventeen have been eliminated." Alfie stated and Ultear nodded with resolution as she gripped onto the second lowest rung and pulled herself up.
"No losses on our side right?"
"Correct." Alfie assured her and she sighed as her feet caught the rung and she climbed higher. The draconics scratching at the wall as they tried to scale it.
"Seems they have trouble clawing and climbing these walls."
"Do not be fooled. The ones trying to get to the shuttle are climbing the walls." Alfie warned and Ultear sneered.
"They're trying to lull us into thinking the high ground is safer than the low." She hissed and jumped from the wall as one used its tail to and fellow draconic to spring towards where she had been.
She used a spell to cushion her landing, the air kicking up and making the draconics shuffle backwards.
Alfie measured Gray's metrics but seeing no signs of distress, left him alone. The ice was now waist high. A frown was starting for knit between his brows.
"Will you…just…die!" Meredy shouted as she sent spell after spell at the draconics but somehow they kept evading each one. Their stump of a tail allowing them to pivot with more dexterity than she would have imagined.
"Calm down and focus Meredy." Ultear ordered and the girl took a deep breath. There was one split second of calm before the closest one tried to spit acid on her. But she managed to flip out of the way and avoid injury. She spun, her hand on the ground and she sent multiple spells out. Two of which caught the furthest two draconics and they growled lowly in pain as their feet were severed from their legs and they fell to the ground.
"Okay. That's a little bit better." She murmured.
"Water Slicer!" Juvia shouted and spun out of the way; watching through the back of her own head as the water struck her target with lethal accuracy. She stopped moving, solidifying and taking several deep breaths. All around her; the corpses of draconics lay in pieces. She'd gotten the advantage, but only just. Their scales were tougher; but they had more joints; which she was able to target. She needed to get that information to the others. She headed for the wall of hair, prepared to help Flare when Alfie chirped in her ear. She nodded, and turned and headed for the wall instead. She stopped, took a deep breath, and then threw both hands palm down at the ground.
"Water Geyser!" She shot off of the ground, the water of her legs and hands propelling her to the top of the building and she landed gracefully. She walked over to the edge and looked down. Flare was cornered but holding her own with two of the three with her. She looked around, confused. Where was the third.
"Look at the wall where to the shuttle's area." Alfie alerted her and she turned her head and gasped. Flare's third draconic was clawing and spitting acid at the hair wall; and was actually making a small hole. She started running and jumped off of the roof; watching as the draconic threw its head back ready to spit another acid blob. She sent water flying and it collided with the acid and sent it splattering backwards. As it hit the draconic, it gave it's warbled cry and then it fell to the ground.