Chapter 12: Memory Lane
Woodland creatures relished in the peace and tranquility of the Evergreen Forest. Their home and sanctuary away from human hands, where they could frolic in peace without fear. Home to both mundane animals and those magical in nature, it was a hotspot for wildlife, teeming with life and fertility. As such, it typically remains untouched by the surrounding villages, and is used as a tourist attraction to garner revenue, allowing travelers to watch the animals from afar in their natural habitat.
The ground began to rumble, alerting the inhabitants of the sudden disturbance. A white streak of fur bounded through the woods at an alarming speed, beyond the natural running speed of an animal belying it's size. A veil of magical energy shrouded the small creature's body as it leapt into the air and perched itself on a branch that could withstand it's weight.
Pip exhaled, her nose twitching as she peered over her shoulder with a squint. It had been over a month since she had joined the guild, and things have changed since then. She wore a dark blue outfit reminiscent of a sailor uniform worn by girls entering middle school with a white color shirt and tie to match. An outfit that Taruko personally commissioned for her, and one that she had quickly grown accustomed to... among several others.
In the span of that month, she had been able to put her magical potential to good use, learning a handful of spells to aid Taruko on his job requests. One of which was Reinforcement, taught by the young swordsman himself.
Peering down the road, a large cloud of dust was steadily making it's way towards her. The Vorpal Bunny hopped off the branch and landed on the blur as it whizzed past her. Taruko adjusted himself to the additional weight, lightning crackling off his body and wind racing against his skin as he zipped down the forest road. "It's right behind us."
Pip looked over her shoulder again and yelped as a massive figure lumbered towards them at frightening speeds. It's eyes glowing red with malice. "Scary~!"
What could only be described as a cross between a boar and a beetle rampaged through the woods. It's horns and tusks sharper than the sharpest of blades gleamed under the sun's rays. The beast was living up to it's reputation as a raging monster close to River Village, north of Crocus. It'd been terrorizing the surrounding area, attacking civilians, farmhands, and eating the livestock.
With it's rampages destroying their crops, they wouldn't have enough food to sustain their village and trade. The natural solution to remedy this was to employ the help of Wizards. Which is where Taruko and Pip came in. They'd been chasing down this beast, the Chitinboar, for the better half of a day. Their job was to either kill it or drive the beast away from River Village and the Evergreen Forest.
Taruko had no qualms with slaying the beast.
Despite it's massive size, it was deceptively swift and nimble, and had evaded their capture on several occasions. It was only due to Pip managing to warn it's ire through a series of taunts and teasing jabs that they gained the upper hand, as it put all it's focus into chasing them down and not running away.
"Pip! Let's get it out into the clearing!"
The Chitinboar roared, leaping into the air and curling up into a ball. This breed of monster was notorious for their ability to curl up into a compact ball form and move around at high-speeds. The longer they moved, the more kinetic energy they could build, making their armored shells tougher and stronger - which made it difficult for Wizards to defeat in a battle of attrition.
It's been speculated that the Chitinboar are capable of using some sort of magic revolving around kinetic energy because of this.
"It's revving up." Taruko clicked his tongue and whirled around to face the spinning beast as it began to build up speed and energy. "Gotta stop it now. Pip, I need a trench!"
Pip nodded with a determined huff and leaped off Taruko's shoulder. Wriggling her tail, her body flashed with magical energy and her form split into several duplicates of herself. The bunny scurried off with haste, her copies following after her and together, they all began to dig up a massive hole in the ground.
The guild had a library that contained several books that were informative. Most of them were textbooks on the arts of magic and various other subjects - in those books, Taruko and Pip discovered a magic known as Duplication. Taruko quickly made comparisons to the Shadow Clone Jutsu technique from Naruto, because it was exactly that... but magic.
The magic was similar to Thought Projection. Although instead of making holographic projections for communication, they made tangible copies of the user. It would divide the user's magic power for every copy created, but once the copy was restored, they'd gain their magic power back, alongside the memories and experiences from the copy.
Apparently it was thought to be a rather useless magic for combat, consuming far too much magic power to be optimal, and you could only make up to 3 or 4 copies of yourself depending on your reserves. Taruko thought that notion was stupid.
He wanted to learn the magic himself but was having trouble separating his magic power and giving it physical form into an exact replica of himself. Any copy he made came out faulty - to the point where he was reminded of when Naruto made shitty clones due to his piss poor Chakra Control before learning the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu.
Pip took to the magic quickly, though, which surprised him greatly. She was packing a lot of magic power in that tiny body, but she was only able to create 4 clones at maximum at her current level. 5 if she pushed herself at the risk of draining all of her magic energy dry.
The four Pips hopped out of the massive pit they formed and merged back into one. She shook the dirt off her fur and huffed, backing away as the Chitinboar burst forward with terrifying speed, shrouded in a veil of blinding energy. Taruko smirked and held out his hand, a blue magic circle spawning to life in front of his palm as he fired a concentrated blast of water into the pit. Quickly filling it up with water and forming a thick sea of mud.
Normally an animal Pip's size wouldn't have been able to make solid ground so quickly, but lucky for the two of them that Reinforcement was the first spell Taruko had taught her. And thanks to his recently acquired Water Magic, it made it effortlessly for them to slow the Chitinboar to a crawl.
Taruko smirked. 'Hope you're proud, Pops.'
Summoning a second sword in his hand while unsheathing his other sword. He bent his knees low and felt the muscles within his legs tighten as he launched himself into the and crossed his sword together. With narrowed eyes, he inhaled sharply. "Sword Saint Style...!"
"CROSS SLASHER!"
*SCHWING!
*CRCK!
*SCREEEEEEEEEEEE!!!
Taruko swung his blades with precision as he dove down upon the Chitinboar's back, a massive X-shaped gash cutting deep into it's armor as he sliced through the gaps in it's shell. Ignoring it's thrashing, Taruko leapt back and flipped his swords into a reverse grip, his body vibrating as lightning licked his skin and the wind sped up in intensity. He built up energy and speed...
"Mana Burst: Wild Slasher."
And rocketed forward with a calm utter, lightning crackling through the air as he blurred past the trapped, thrashing beast. Several concentrated Mana Bursts in the form of sword slashes cut up the squealing Chitinboar from various angles, exploiting the deep gashes and vulnerable chinks in it's armor. Mana Burst: Wild Slasher combined blinding speed with high cutting power, amplified by the raw explosive might of Mana Burst.
As the Chitinboar's squeals died down, Taruko exhaled and flicked the blood off his swords, dismissing his second one back into his Requip space while twirling the first in his hand and sheathing it at his waist.
The young swordsman shot a grin to his rabbit companion, holding out a fist. "Mission complete! That's another job done!"
Pip hopped up to him with a giggle, bumping his fist with her foot. "A new record! Yup yup!"
Taruko placed his hands on his hips with a proud smirk on his face. "And with little to no damage to any property or the forest! I say that's a job well done!"
"Yup yup!"
X-X-X-X-X-X
One of the farmers of River Village let out a chirpy whistle, walking with a pep in his step. He was really glad that boy from Fairy Tail had come along, they were in desperate need of his help with that damned Chitinboar. The blasted beast had been a nuisance for him and his neighbors for a long while now, so he was glad it was finally getting taken of.
So while the swordsman and his pet rabbit dealt with the beast, he decided to take a nap...
Chewing the wheat in between his lips, the farmer hummed happily and prepared himself for another day of hard work in the fields, stepping out of his house and rounding the corner, he made his way towards his barn-
Eh?
. . .
The farmer's eyes widened in horror as he stared at the remains of his barn. A once beautiful orchard with pristine red painted oakwood had been completely and utterly demolished. The farm had been a part of his family for generations, and the barn was there ever since the start. He remembered the first time his father had brought him into it and taught him all about his family history...
And now that barn was destroyed.
. . .
"What the FU-!"
X-X-X-X-X-X
BAM!*
I slapped a stack of papers onto the bar counter. These were all the job requests me and Pip had taken today, and had finished in the same day. Eliana blinked in surprise, pausing in cleaning one of the beer mugs used by the guild to shift through them all.
"Well I'll be damned..." Eliana muttered. "You really did 'em all in one day?"
"I was going for a new record." I grinned proudly.
I'd been motivated to get even stronger over the course of the month. I don't know why, I just felt I had to. Plus, everyone around me was growing leaps and bounds, too. The gap between me and Laxus was still massive. Everytime I felt like I closed the gap he got even more powerful and I was left in the dust... Erza and Mira's competitive rivalry pushed the two of them to get stronger so they could one up the other. The same with Natsu and Gray, who didn't want to get left behind.
Hell, Cana, Levy, Jet, Droy, even some of the older members of the guild like Macao and Wakaba were motivated. Needless to say, seeinr everyone get even stronger than they were before fired me up. There were still new limits I could reach and surpass, and I needed to bust through 'em!
...am... am I training junkie?
"I'm honestly impressed." Eliana hummed, smiling. "You and Pip sure do make a good team, don't you?"
"Yup yup!" Pip and I chirped.
"Taruko, Pip,"
I swiveled around to see Erza walking up to me with a wave and a smile. "It's good to see you two made it back okay."
I blinked, arching a brow to see Cana walking up next to the redhead. "Yeah. Me n' Pip made it back okay. And you...?"
"Cana and I went on a job together," Erza confirmed.
Cana beamed softly, nodding her head. "Mhm! It was really just babysitting for a mother who was swamped with work,"
"Did Erza try reaching the baby how to swing a sword?" I asked with an arched brow.
Erza squeaked, her cheeks turning red. "Why did you ask so casually?! Like I do that regularly with any child?!"
Cana whistled and glanced off to the side. "Well... she didn't NOT teach it how to swing a sword..."
"CANA!"
I laughed. "I knew it!"
"You guys teach babies how to swing swords? Wouldn't they get hurt?" Pip asked innocently with a tilt of her head.
"... It's a joke, Pip."
"Oh."
"But Erza's definitely ignorant enough to do it - OOF!" I groaned as her fist dug straight into my stomach. I wheezed and collapsed to the floor, grovelling in pain. "D-Deserved..."
Erza scoffed, pulling her steaming fist back. "You've paid for your insolence."
"Of course Erzy gets all violent when she can't defend her blunder! That's so like her~!" Mira snarked from the back, a sneer on her face. "Honestly, Taruko's a saint for putting up with such an ogre~!"
Erza was in the Take Over Wizard's face in an instant, snarling. "What the hell did you say you ill-faced TRAMP!"
Mirajane glared at the redhead, grinning. "You heard me, you pig-brained HUSSY!"
"C'mon, you two... now really isn't the time to be fighting." Lisanna sighed, shaking her head.
Elfman laughed nervously. "It's no use... when Mira-nee gets like this, there's no calming her down."
"I still don't know how it's fair that whenever those two fight, it's okay, but whenever we start brawling, we get thrashed by the she-hulk." Gray grumbled as he walked through the front door, his hands stuffed in his pockets.
"Hey, Gray..." I whimpered from the floor as Pip kept poking my cheek with a half-bitten carrot.
"The hell happened to you?"
"He was teasing Erza and she clobbered him." Cana shrugged.
"Oh, so just his daily beatings, then?"
I flipped Gray the bird.
"Have you seen Natsu?" Cana asked.
"Why would I know?," Gray grumbled at Cana's question. "That Ash-Brain is probably out training in the woods again after getting trounced by Erza."
"I still don't understand what your problem with him is..." Cana mumbled, sweat-dropping.
"Fire and ice don't mix," I groaned, climbing to my feet. "It's no wonder they're always butting heads."
Cana appeared enlightened. "Oh~! That makes so much sense!"
Gray rolled his eyes. "Nah. I just hate his guts."
*WHAM!
"ARGH, YOU BITCH!"
"LET GO OF MY HAIR!"
"YOU FIRST!"
Sweat rolled down our cheeks as we saw Erza and Mirajane tumble to the floor, punching and kicking at each other and yanking at the other's hair. Eliana snorted, shaking her head. "Anymore of this and clothes will start coming off."
Gray and I blinked before looking up in thought at an attempt to visualize such an image. Cana smacked us upside the head with a twitching eye. "None of that."
Natsu stepped into the guild hall with a cheerful wave. "Hey, guys! What's up!"
Lisanna beamed. "Natsu-!"
*BONK!
"GAHAHHH--!!"
Lisanna went white in horror as a chair flew through the air and collided with Natsu's face, sending the young Dragon Slayer sprawling into his back in a daze. I blinked languidly and turned back to the fight between Erza and Mirajane somehow got worse. Now they were throwing chairs at each other. Natsu was unfortunate enough to get caught in the crossfire.
"YOU DAMNED SKANK, LOOK AT WHAT YOU DID!"
"ME?! THAT WAS YOUR FAULT, YOU RED-HAIRED HARLOT!"
"Natsu, are you okay?!" Lisanna ran over to the boy with a look of worry.
Elfman winced. "That looks like a nasty bruise..."
"I'm okay..." Natsu groaned, sitting up and rubbing at his forehead.
I frowned and sighed, moving to stop Erza and Mira's fight before it escalated...
"Enough."
Everyone froze when an oppressive aura washed over the hall. Braaking out into a cold sweat, Erza and Mira craned their heads in Eliana's direction. A maelstrom of magical energy swirled around her body as she glared at the girls with a calm fury, narrowing her eyes, she placed the flat of her palms against the counter and leaned forward with a frown. "You'll stop fighting this instant, understood?"
The two swallowed thickly and quickly separated, nodding fervently. "Yes, ma'am!"
"Now apologize to Natsu for hurting him."
They grimaced, shuffling on their feet. Erza was the first to turn to the boy, schooling her expression and bowing deeply. "I'm sorry, Natsu."
Mirajane clicked her tongue, crossing her arms and peering off to the side. "Yeah, what she said."
Natsu blinked owlishly, scratching the back of his head. "Uh... it's okay?"
The pressure finally relented and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding, my heart thumping harshly against my chest. Eliana sighed and smiled, clapping her hands together. "Good! Sorry about that, kids~" the woman walked off into the back with a merry hum, leaving us with several questions.
Gray shivered. Which was astonishing, because Ice Wizards aren't supposed to get cold. "What. Was that."
"I don't know. I've never felt that from Eliana before..." Cana mumbled, squeezing her shaking hands.
Pip hugged my leg. "T-That was scary..."
"No kidding." I grinned. "Anybody who could scare those two she-devils is definitely terrifying~!"
Erza and Mira shot me venomous glares. "What was that?!"
"Nothing~!"
"Haven't felt that kind of pressure from her since Claudia was around." Macao mused, with Wakaba nodding in agreement.
"Yeah, kind of nostalgic... in a scary way."
I perked up at that, slowly turning to them. "What do you mean by that?"
They flinched and exchanged a glance. Macao coughed into his fist and scratched the back of his head. "Ah, well, Claudia and Eliana used to be rivals, y'know? Got into scraps like Erza and Mirajane would."
. . .
"EHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?!"
"Taruko's Mom..." Gray trailed off with a gaping jaw.
"And Eliana..." Cana swallowed the growing lump in her throat, her brows rising in surprise.
"... were rivals?" Erza and Mira muttered in a hushed whisper, blinking in surprise.
Lisanna gasped. "Eliana used to be a Wizard?"
"Eh? What's going on?" Natsu blinked in confusion, looking between everyone. "Who's Claudia?"
"My Mom. She was an S-Class Wizard here at Fairy Tail before she ended up marrying and having me and my sister." I muttered.
"Woah, so she's crazy strong then?" Natsu grinned brightly, then paused and yelped in surprise. "WAIT YOU HAVE A SISTER?!"
Clenching my fists with a frown. I looked at the two men with furrowed brows, squinting my eyes. "Why wasn't I told about any of this?"
Wakaba cringed, rubbing his neck nervously. "Well..."
"... Because it doesn't matter. Not anymore." Eliana walked out of the bar with a solemn expression, she turned to me with a sad smile. "That was all in the past... I didn't feel like it was worth mentioning at the time."
I bit my lip. "But you knew Mom. Why wouldn't you...?"
I felt Pip hop onto my shoulder and nuzzle my cheek. I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath, getting a reign on my emotions. I don't need to get so worked up... I can remember my Mom telling me and Sachi stories about her time at the guild but it was all fuzzy. She mentioned a rival too I think, but at the time I didn't know the guild in question was Fairy Tail...
Or that Eliana was one of those rivals. I wish my memories weren't so damned foggy and jumbled. But ever since waking up here it's been all over the place. I remember some things vividly, and then other things are a complete blur and need time to bring clarity. Memories of two different lives and experiences all thrown into a pot haphazardly and mixing them together to see what concoction came out.
"I'm sorry," Eliana apologized, sighing. "Knowing Claudia is gone... it's just... thinking about her hurts." she smiled sadly, taking a seat on a bar stool and folding her hands gently. "We were rivals, yes, but she was also my best friend. I remember first seeing you in the guild and I was in disbelief... it felt like I was sent back in time... to that day."
I swallowed the lump in my throat, flexing my sweaty hands. "Can you tell me? About how you two met?"
Erza stepped forward. "I'd like to know as well." a smile crossed her face. "I've been curious about the kind of woman Claudia was."
"I wanna know how strong she is!" Natsu pumped his fists with a grin.
Cana smiled. "Me too, if that's okay."
Gray scratched the back of his head and shrugged. "Can't say I'm not interested."
Mira crossed her arms with a huff. "... well, it beats doing nothing."
"I wanna know too!" Lisanna beamed.
Elfman nodded with a sheepish smile. "I-If you wouldn't mind..."
Eliana pursed her lips with a frown, tapping her thigh with a finger. Hesitation was evident in her eyes as she chewed the inside of her cheek. As the barmaid had internal debate with herself, Makarov came down from the second floor with a gentle expression.
"I think it would be good for them to know."
I blinked in surprise. "Gramps..."
Makarov smiled, folding his arms behind his back. "After all, we all carry the memories of family that have come and gone from this guild. It is only natural we share these memories and experiences with the next generation so that they may flourish and grow."
Eliana stared at Makarov in mild surprise and swallowed the lump in her throat. She nodded slowly and took in a deep breath, smiling. "... Alright then. Everyone gather around then, I'll make us something to eat while I talk."
Natsu let out a loud holler of excitement as Eliana made her way into the bar. I let out a deep breath and felt a hand wrap around mine. I blinked again and turned to see it was Erza's.
"Smile... this a good opportunity to know more about your mother." Erza let go of my hand and closed her eyes. "I wish I knew about my birth parents..."
"Yeah..." I trailed off at that and resisted the urge to cringe, putting on my best poker face.
Don't mention Irene. It's not worth it. Under any circumstance do NOT mention that bitch...
Erza blinked, and squinted at me. "What's with that tone...?"
I grinned and laughed forcefully, patting her on the back and pushing her forward. "Nothing! C'mon, it's storytime!"
Erza blinked in confusion before shaking her head with a sigh. 'Must be the nerves.'
X-X-X-X-X-X
"Where to start... well, I guess it'd be at the beginning."
"It was like any other day... long before I retired my life as a full time Wizard and became our guild's barmaid."
Year X756.
"... Fairy Tail. This is the guild that's been holding the number one spot, huh?"
A young girl whispered, eyeing the guild in front of her with a grin. She clenched an excited fist and narrowed her silver eyes, stepping forward and shoving the doors open with a strong heave. "I'll forge my legacy in this very guild...!"
Within the guild, tables flew through the air and the young girl ducked to avoid getting trounced by one of them. She blinked in surprise at the almost devilish laughter as two young boys around her age crashed to the floor in front of her with a groan. A young Macao and Wakaba slumped against the floor, littered in bruises, the Fire Wizard's hair was messy and short, while Wakaba still possessed his signature pompadour.
"Mercy..." Macao whimpered.
"That isn't a girl... that's a demon...!" Wakaba hissed with a twitching brow.
"Man up, boys! You had this coming!" a young Eliana around the age of 15 stepped out of the smoke. Her fiery orange hair was cut short and messy. She wore burgundy crop-top underneath a black leather jacket, a plaided skirt, and black boots. She smirked and folded her arms over her chest. "That's what you get for trying to mess with my damn food!"
She clashed her fist against her palm and popped her knuckles, growling. "Now c'mon, I ain't done with 'ya yet-"
The girl blinked when she noticed a blade pointed at her. All chaos fell silent as Eliana eyed the girl across from her. She had long light blue hair that fell over her shoulders and cascaded down her back, with a heart-shaped face, fair skin, and sharp silver eyes. She wore a sleeveless dark blue dress with white collar and black tie underneath a black jacket, with a white short-skirt, black stockings, and blue boots.
Her sword was made of pristine gold and silver, the guard shaped like a cross with a silver star embedded in the center, a peerless silver blade that gleamed under the light in the hall.
Eliana narrowed her eyes. "Who the hell are you s'pposed to be?"
"Claudia Valoran." Claudia answered coldly, her eyes carrying a steely glint. "Step away from this two, now."
Eliana eyed the blade aimed at her neck before snorting. "Heh." she closed her eyes and shook her head. "You're a long way from home, girly..."
"IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHO I AM!"
*BAM!
Claudia coughed in shock, her eyes bulging out of her skull as Eliana's fist dug into her stomach, a dense shockwave of magical energy erupting from the girl's knuckles that sent the young swordswoman flying out the guild and into the street. The guild members paled and their jaws hit the floor. Macao and Wakaba gawked in horror.
"ELIANA, WHAT THE HELL?!"
"ARE YOU CRAZY, YOU CAN'T JUST ATTACK PEOPLE LIKE THAT!"
Eliana scoffed, waving her hand dismissively. "Whatever, losers. She pointed her sword at me, first. It was self-defense..."
Macao's brow twitched. "I don't think that's how it works..."
"Blades Magic..."
Eliana's eyes narrowed and she leapt out of the way as a hailstorm of blades made entirely out of ethernano impaled the floor where she once stood, nearly hitting Macao and Wakaba in the process - which forced them to scuttle back with a squeak. Claudia burst through the door with a thunderous scowl. "HEAVEN'S RAIN!"
Eliana squinted, her fists expelling magical energy. "... that didn't look like Requip-"
!
She whirled around when Claudia blurred behind her, her body shrouded in a veil of lightning. The swordswoman's eyes narrowed. "Lightning Magic: Storm Step." she gripped her sword in her hands and swung it down in a horizontal arc, unleashing a wave lightning upon her. "Lightning Magic: CLEAR EDGE!"
Eliana growled as she was sent flying across the guild and crashing into the nearest wall. The surrounding guild members began to scramble out of the way to avoid getting entangled in the destruction. Through the chaos, a young man with tanned skin, slicked back black hair, and pointed ears watched on with a smirk.
"Interesting..."
Eliana's body twitched and spasmed as she wrenched herself out of the hole in the wall, scowling at Claudia. "Damn you...!"
"I thought Fairy Tail was a place where Wizards came together to learn more about magic and form strong camaraderie." Claudia coldly said, swiping her blade through the air. "I didn't think this was a place for bullies."
"Bullies?" Eliana scoffed haughtily, popping her neck and unleashing her magic aura. "You really don't know a damn thing..."
"Force Magic: Seismic FIST!" Eliana thrusted her fist forward and fired off a concentrated blast of pressurized air at Claudia. She raised sword to block the attack and yelped in surprise when her weapon was slammed straight out of her hands and into the air. Eliana grinned ferally and clapped her hands together, channeling her magic. "What we do here... is JUST OUR WAY OF DOIN' THINGS!"
"Force Magic: Tectonic Shift!!" she slammed her fists into the ground and generated a powerful shockwave, spreading spider-web cracks through the floors and walls as several guildmates were sent spiraling through the air, along with lots of furniture.
"ELIANA'S GOING WAY TOO FAR, NOW!!"
"WE'RE SO SCREWED!"
"ONE NORMAL DAY, CAN'T WE JUST HAVE ONE NORMAL DAY?!"
"Ghk-!!" Claudia grit her teeth as the magical shockwave slammed into her like a rampaging Chitinboar. With her sword out of her grasp, she struggled to clasp her hands together. "Blades Magic-!"
With a roar, she spread her arms out and released a dense wave of raw magical energy, clashing against Eliana's spell and resulting in a powerful explosion. The Force Wizard covered her eyes with a shout of surprise. As the dust settled, Claudia landed on the ground with a large, glowing broadsword with a semicircular hilt and guard. Claudia raised the massive sword with narrowed eyes. "Durandal."
Eliana rolled her shoulders and huffed. "Definitely not Requip."
"My magic allows me to create, manipulate, and transform any bladed weapon I can think of. That is the power of Blades Magic!" Claudia declared, lightning crackling off her skin. "I'll cut you down with this next attack!"
"Blades Magic as well as Lightning Magic, huh...?" Eliana grinned, flexing her hands as she prepared to charge. "You'll prove to be a suitable challenge then, you damned gorilla!"
A vein throbbed against Claudia's temple and she scowled. "GORILLA?! NOW YOU'VE DONE IT!"
*BOOM!!
Both girls launched towards each other, their respective magics flaring wildly as they prepared to clash. A man blurred in between them and blocked their strikes with his bare hands. Ethernano rippled through the air and shattered the floor, kicking up dust and debris. Claudia's eyes widened in shock as she stared at the man before her. He was tall, with wild blonde hair that was beginning to gray, with a prominent mustache and calm onyx eyes.
She tried to pull away, but found herself unable to. His grip was unyielding, and she recognized the man that had intercepted her clash with Eliana. 'This man...'
'Is one of the Ten Wizard Saints and Master of Fairy Tail!'
"I believe that's quite enough." Makarov said calmly and shoved them back. Both girls stumbled and Eliana began to stammer.
"M-Master!"
"I was wondering what was going on downstairs. Luckily Ivan has informed me of your little spat." the Guild Master drawled.
Eliana twitched and found herself directing a glowering towards the aforementioned teen, who waved at her with a smirk.
Folding his arms behind his back, Makarov regarded the young Force Wizard with a calm stare. "What started this?"
Eliana grimaced, shifting on her feet awkwardly. "Macao and Wakaba tried to steal my cake... again." she bit out harshly, shooting the two boys a glare. They laughed nervously before she looked back up at Makarov. "So I was roughing them up for it."
She pointed at Claudia with a squint. "Then this chick came outta nowhere and pointed her sword at me!"
"I saw you beating on two defenseless boys! They were already down, you didn't have to go any further!" Claudia rebutted, glowering at Eliana. "So I stepped in."
"It wasn't any of your business to begin with!"
"Well I made it my business!"
"I've barely known you for 10 minutes and I ALREADY don't like you!"
"The feeling's mutual, you tramp!"
"TRAMP?! WHY I OUGHTA-"
"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Makarov bellowed, extinguishing the fires of their anger. Once they appeared chastised, Makarov sighed softly and eyed Eliana firmly. "You mustn't abuse the power given to you, Eliana. You are strong, but don't let it get to your head. You may end up committing an act you will regret later in life."
Eliana frowned and clenched her fists, bowing her head. "... Yes, Master."
Makarov smiled and rested a hand on her shoulder before turning to Claudia and arching a curious brow. "Now, who might you be, young lady?"
Claudia removed her gaze from Eliana and looked Makarov in the eyes. A grin stretched across her face and the young swordswoman slammed her fist against her chest. "My name is Claudia Valoran, Sir! I'm here to join Fairy Tail!"
"Hoh?" Makarov's brow rose further, and he smirked. "And why did you decide to come to our humble little guild."
"Your guild has been ranked top 5 for over a decade. Every Wizard that comes from Fairy Tail has been noted to be absurdly powerful. I want to be apart of that." Claudia's smile turned fierce. "I want to leave a great legacy behind, and this is just the place to make it happen!"
Eliana scoffed under her breath and rolled her eyes. Makarov hummed, stroking his chin. "And what pray tell would this... legacy, be?"
Claudia's eyes lit up and she held up a hand, a tendril of electricity lashing out and coiling around the hilt of her sword which had found itself rooted in the ceiling. With a tug, she wrenched it out and pulled it back into her hand. Twirling the weapon skillfully, she rested the blade on her shoulder and exclaimed confidently:
"To become the greatest sword master in all of Fiore, of course!"
X-X-X-X-X-X
"She sounds just like Taruko!" Mira snickered, earning a twitch from me.
"Oh, bite me!" I snapped at her with a twitching brow.
Mira smirked. "You sure you want me to do that? I bite hard~!"
I blinked.
... Hah?
Erza rubbed her chin, closing her eyes with furrowed brows. "I don't mean to come off as rude, but it sounds like Eliana came off as...?"
"A bitch?" Natsu, Gray and I droned in unison.
*CLANK!!!
And then our faces collided with the counter as Erza's fist crashed against our skulls. "Ow...!"
"What's a bitch?" Pip piped up in confusion, but nobody answered her question.
"I'll be the first to admit that I was..." Eliana hissed through her teeth and smiled nervously. "Rough... around the edges."
"Understatement of the century." Macao grumbled from the back.
Eliana shot him a silent glare before looking back at us with a chuckle. "But I got better!"
Cana stared at the woman blankly. "I somehow doubt that."
The barmaid sulked. Lisanna cupped her cheek and hummed with a smile. "Well, they do sound kind of like Erza and Mira-nee..."
Elfman nodded. "Mhm. Real scary."
"We're nothing like that!" Erza and Mira barked, then twitched and glared at each other. "Are you copying me?!"
"You're right, you're both probably worse." Makarov drawled and took a swig of his beer.
Erza and Mira paled at Makarov's blunt words and soon joined Eliana in her sulking. I pulled my head out of the counter and nursed my bruise. "Got any more stories?"
Whining, Eliana raised her head. "Well-"
She paused, sniffing at the air. Her eyes widened in horror and she dashed into the back. "THE FOOD IS BURNING!"
Makarov watched the woman run off and hummed, stroking his chin. Then he turned to us and smiled. "Well, I may have an interesting one..."
X-X-X-X-X-X
"LIGHTNING MAGIC: CLEAR EDGE!"
"FORGE MAGIC: WAVE BURST!"
Makarov watched on calmly as Claudia and Eliana did battle on the coast of Magnolia. It was a suitable location to fight without causing too much property damage. They'd already destroyed a café in town during one of their spats... fixing it came out of his money, much to his chagrin. However, unlike the many times where he'd let them duke it out in the guild and would stop them if they went to far... he forced them to pick a different location...
Because they weren't fighting each other.
*BOOOOOOOOOM!!!
A young man stood amidst the explosion, completely unscathed and wearing a confident smirk on his face. He had slick dirty blonde hair and sharp onyx-eyes, dressed in a simple form-fitting black shirt, tan cargo-pants, and black boots. Claudia landed on the sand and blinked in shock. "You can't be serious...!"
Gildarts swiped the dust away and yawned into his hand. "That all you got?"
'So this is Gildarts Clive... his power is truly impressive. I don't think our attacks even phased him...!' Claudia shook her head in disbelief.
"Take this seriously, damn it!" Eliana shoved Claudia to the side and rushed towards Gildarts, channeling her magic into her hands, she leapt into the air and swung them down in a powerful arc, releasing a burst of unrelenting magical force. "Force Magic: Gravity Crush!"
As Eliana's magic weighed down on him, Gildarts boots began to crack the earth. He narrowed his eyes and grunted as the weight and force increased as Eliana poured more energy into her spell. With a smile, the young man clenched his fist and charged it with magic power. "Alright, little lady. You want me to take 'ya seriously-"
"I AIN'T LITTLE!"
"-THEN HERE IT IS! CRUSH MAGIC: ASTRAL BREAK!" Gildarts thrusted his fist upwards with a fearsome uppercut, his chaotic energy colliding with the weight of Eliana's magic. The Force Wizard growled under her breath and paused, her eyes widening as she saw cracks spread along the surface of her magic circle.
'What's happening...?! Wait, is he breaking my spell down with his magic-?!' Eliana's widened in horror as her spell completely shutdown and an invisible force slammed into her chin, making her cough up spit as her body spun through the air and crashed right next to Claudia. "Ugh..."
Claudia gripped her sword, Caliburn, with a frown. She turned to Eliana. "We can't keep going like this, we need to work together to beat him!"
"I ain't workin' with you, you damn She-Ape!" Claudia's brow twitched at Eliana's insult. The girl staggered to her feet and nursed her chin with a huff. "I can beat Gildarts by myself!"
"Wakaba told me that you've lost to Gildarts approximately 48 times."
"That fucking SNITCH!"
Claudia narrowed her eyes. "And last I recall, you decided to butt in when I challenged him to a duel. So whether you like it or not, he compromised by fighting the two of us." she tapped Eliana's chest with her finger. "So if we want a chance at winning, we have to work together."
Eliana's sharpened and opened her mouth to reply-
"CRUSH MAGIC: MIZUWARI!"
The ground split apart and ruptured open as Gildarts drove his fist into the dirt. As the fissures grew worse, Claudia and Eliana both leaped out of the way to avoid destruction as a pillar of debris and sand erupted into the air. Both girls stepped back cautiously, with Eliana gritting her teeth and glowering at Claudia.
"Fine. Got any ideas?"
Claudia smiled. "Just follow my lead."
"You girls done talking?" Gildarts yawned into his hand. "Because you're starting to bore me-"
"...!" Gildarts narrowed and he leaned back as Claudia's sword sliced through the air, shrouded in electricity. The Crush Wizard ducked to floor and flipped out of the way as Eliana swooped in with a barrage of punches. Claudia blurred past Eliana and thrusted her hand out, discharging a blast of Lightning Magic that coursed through his body, causing him to spasm uncontrollably and briefly lose control over his own muscles. "Damn...!"
Eliana surged forward, her fist rocketing through the air and slammed into Gildarts' chin, a magic circle coming to life upon the moment of impact. "Force Magic: IMPACT CANNON!" a concentrated beam of Force Magic sent Gildarts hurtling into the air.
'So this was their plan, getting me immobile so I wouldn't be able to counterattack...?' Gildarts smirked as he clenched a trembling fist, feeling his control return. 'That's smart... but it won't be enough!'
Claudia appeared above him in flash of crackling thunder, and Gildarts grinned, channeling his Crush Magic in preparation for a devastating blow. "That was a nice little strategy you two came up with! I can take you both a bit more seriously, now-!"
"Force Magic: Gravity Crush!"
What?
Gildarts grunted as his body was encased in a veil of dense pressure, weighing him down. He narrowed his eyes. This was the same spell as before, but that was fine. 'I'll just destabilize it!'
Before he could, Claudia overcharged Caliburn with lightning, a golden magic circle gliding along the surface of the blade as she swung it down in a powerful overhead strike, releasing a burst of electrical energy so intense it bathed the entire sky in a blinding, golden glow. "LIGHTNING MAGIC: THUNDERCLAP STRIKE!!"
"GAAAAAHH!!!"
Gildarts' smoking body fell towards the ground, and Eliana launched herself at him, her magic flaring as she threw a ferocious punch into his stomach. "Force Magic: Seismic Fist!"
*BAM!
"WHAT?!" Eliana yelped in shock as Gildarts caught her punch. The young man growled in pain, tendrils of electricity sparking all over his body as he struggles to move. With a heave of sheer will and overwhelming strength, he whirled around and threw her into the ground. "GAH!!"
"Blades Magic...!" Gildarts whirled around as Claudia dove at him mid-air, as a giant sword, if it could even be called a sword - resembling a glowing battle axe with ragged, stone-like edges, appeared in her hands. It eclipsed her body in size and was just as big as him, yet she wielded it as though it was weightless. "TITAN CLEAVER!"
Gildarts grit his teeth and clenched his fist. "Crush Magic...!"
Claudia narrowed her eyes. "Valoran Sword Arts...!"
"ATOMIZE BURST!!"
"SEVERING ARC!!"
Claudia swung the gargantuan sword down, unleashing a terrifying slash of crackling magical energy. Gildarts unleashed his Crush Magic with a powerful roar cry, during a wave of pure white energy that clashed against Claudia's attack. Both magical constructs grinded against each other, yet Gildarts' magic was simply far too potent, breaking Claudia's spell down and tearing straight through. The young swordswoman's throat tightened and her eyes widened in horror as the blast collided with her sword.
*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!
"GAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH--!!!"
The sky lit up with a brilliant explosion of magical particles as Claudia's sword shattered into motes of light and her body crashed into the ground from the devastating force of the shockwave generated from their clash. Gildarts landed safely and panted harshly, his slick hair disheveled and out of place. "Fhu...! Well, wasn't that something...!"
Eliana pulled her head out of the sand and groaned, coughing. "D-Damn it... I thought that would have worked...!"
Claudia sat up and huffed, sweat rolling down her chin. "I've... used up all my magical energy..."
Eliana scowled. "So even when we worked together, we still lost."
Gildarts laughed, rolling his shoulders with a wince. "Don't look so glum! Honestly, you two had me for a second there. You finally started making ground when you worked together."
"Indeed." Makarov smiled and walked up to the three. "You both set your differences aside to find common ground against a greater opponent. Having strength alone is good... but relying on the strength of your friends is equally as important." he closed his eyes and nodded, chuckling. "I believe you two learned a valuable lesson, today."
The girls blinked. Claudia smiled and sat up straighter. "... yes, Master. I think we did!" enthused, she turned to Eliana with a determined smile. "Let's continue getting stronger together then, Eliana! As friends!"
Eliana stared at Claudia blankly before scoffing and turned the other cheek. Claudia flinched and squeaked indignantly.
"Why are you giving me an attitude?!"
"As if I'd team up with an ape like you! This was only a one time thing, got it!"
"WHAT?! WHO ARE YOU CALLING AN APE?!"
"ARE YOUR MONKEY EARS DEAF NOW, TOO?!"
"THAT'S IT! YOU WANT TO GO YOU VULGAR HUSSY?!"
"BRING IT, SWORD-FOR-BRAINS!"
Gildarts let out a loud belly laugh, and Makarov sweat-dropped with a sigh, shaking his head.
'... or maybe not.'
X-X-X-X-X-X
"So even when they worked together, they still found a way to argue?" Cana mumbled as she sipped on some apple juice through a straw.
Erza, taking a bite out of some strawberry cake, hummed. "Now they sound like Natsu and Gray..."
Gray and Natsu choked on their food and slammed their fists against the counter, barking. "NO THEY DON'T!" they blinked, and glared at each other. "HUH?! ARE YOU COPYING ME?! STOP THAT! YOU WANNA GO?!"
Lisanna tapped her chin. "And Taruko and Laxus..."
I laughed nervously and scratched my chin. "I don't know if I'd consider Laxus and I rivals..."
Mira snorted. "You'd be surprised, Sword-For-Brains."
I slowly looked in her direction. "Stop."
Pip tilted her head. "Sword-For-Brains?"
Mira winked at the bunny. "It's a little nickname I gave Taruko here! Because he's dumb as a bricks and can only think about swords all the time~!"
"HEY!"
"Ooh," Pip nodded and beamed up at me. "Sword-For-Brains~!"
My face went white with horror.
Erza glowered at Mira with disapproval. "Don't go tainting Pip with your ill-mannerisms."
"It's just a joke~! Lighten up, geez!"
Makarov chuckled softly. "It seems their passion lives on in the next generation..."
"Hi, Eliana!" Pip chirped happily.
Elfman perked up. "Do you have anymore stories?"
Soon, the entire guild began to gather around with enthused chatter. Wakaba chuckled and rubbed his chin. "How about that one time Macao tried askin' both Eliana and Claudia out and ended up getting clobbered! Couldn't get him out of the ceiling for hours! Haha!"
Macao squawked. "WAKABA?!"
"Got any more stories about you two fighting? Those are awesome!"
"What about your first ever job?"
"How did you get into cooking?"
"... got any interesting stories with my Old Man?" Laxus stepped forward hesitantly.
Eliana stared at everyone in surprise, and Makarov laughed warmly, raising his mug to her. "It seems we'll be here a while."
The barmaid smiled warmly. "I'll prepare a feast, then."
X-X-X-X-X-X
It was well into the night when things finally began to wind down. Eliana let out a tired breath. As per tradition in the Fairy Tail guild, whenever a feast was prepared, alcohol and booze was sure to follow. And that led to the older guild members getting drunk. It took a while for everyone to slowly unwind and calm down, but it was finally time to close up shop. She loved her family, but they could be such a handful... even after all these years.
'I just want to lie down and sleep...' today took a lot more out of her than she expected.
"Eliana!"
She perked up and blinked, turning around to see Taruko running up to her with Pip rested on his head. The boy hardly looked winded at all as he took in a deep breath and stared up at her with a narrow-eyed gaze. Eliana paused at his stare, and furrowed one of her brows. "... Taruko? Pip? Is something wrong?"
"Hi, Eliana!" Pip chirped happily.
The boy's expression softened and he shuffled on his feet awkwardly. "Why did you... quit being a Wizard?"
Eliana's lips parted in surprise. "Huh?"
"You were a Wizard before! You were probably as strong as my Mom, and maybe could have been as strong as Gildarts. But... you're the resident barmaid now." he frowned. "What made you quit?"
Eliana fell silent, processing the boy's question. She sighed and closed her eyes, and shakily smiled, her brows creasing with effort. "... some people are born talented, Taruko. Stronger than others, faster than others, smarter than others... all of the above, in some rare cases. And then there are those with no talent at all." her eyes softened and she gazed off into the distance, staring at nothing in particular. "I was born with nothing, yet I carved my way to the top. I grew strong through my own merits. It made me confident in myself, maybe a little arrogant. I believed myself to be the strongest, and then I joined Fairy Tail to push myself further..."
She closed her eyes. "And then... I met people like Gildarts. Like Claudia." she clenched a fist. "They were so amazingly talented and powerful... I didn't want to admit it, but I was starstruck by their power. I thought I could match them. Maybe at some point I did... but as we grew older and grew stronger, the gap continued to widen. No matter how hard I trained, they continued to eclipse me. They achieved S-Class, and I didn't. They continued to surpass the limits... while I hit a wall."
Her lip trembled. "At one point... I guess... I plateaud. This was as far as I could go. Hard work alone wouldn't push me past that threshold. Some people are born stronger, born for greater things."
"You can't possibly mean that, can you...?"
She paused, staring at Taruko. His silver eyes squinted at her incredulously. The boy shook his head. "You don't mean that...! You couldn't have just... given up! After getting so far? You could've still gotten stronger! Hell, you still can now! You proved at one point that it didn't matter if you were born weak or strong... so why contradict yourself?!"
Eliana's lips thinned and she crouched down in front of Claudia's son, unbothered by his heated reply. She smiled softly and placed a hand on his head, gently running her fingers through his hair, careful not to push Pip off. "... maybe at one point I would have turned around and thought differently, but... Taruko, you have to understand that sometimes people lose the passion for the things they love. As we get older, we lose interest in the things we once treasured in our younger years... but then, we'll find something new to be passionate about."
His eyes widened slowly and her smile grew wider. "I may no longer be a Wizard, but I am still a member of Fairy Tail. And I've gained a new passion. Cooking meals, sharing drinks, telling these stories to you kids... passing my experiences on to the next generation. I've had a long time to grow content with my life."
"I loved being a Wizard, I loved going on quests, I loved butting heads with Claudia and seeing who could surpass the other... but those days have long since passed. And I'm okay with that. Because you're all here." Eliana said warmly.
Taruko stared at the barmaid in surprise as she began to rub Pip's head tenderly. The young swordsman fell quiet and stared at the ground. Gritting his teeth, he clenched his fists and looked up into her eyes with determination, speaking up and grabbing Eliana's attention. "Then...!"
"Then I'll just get stronger for the both of you... for you and my Mom." Taruko declared fiercely, grinning. "And I'll show you just how far hard work can get you! By becoming S-Class in your stead!"
Eliana gasped softly, staring at the boy in surprise. For a moment, she looked up and past the boy, and saw a woman with long flowing blue hair and warm silver eyes staring at her with a soft smile. Eliana felt her throat tighten and her eyes water as the image of the woman vanished, and she laughed softly in disbelief. '... I see. You're not truly gone then, are you, Claudia?'
"Eliana?" Taruko blinked in confusion.
He grunted in surprise when Eliana pulled him and Pip into a warm embrace, resting her chin against his forehead as tears streamed down her cheeks. "I look forward to it."
Taruko's confusion continued to grow, but he wrapped his arms around the woman nonetheless and reciprocated the gesture.
Eliana's smile trembled as she opened her eyes and stared up at the moon. For a moment, it felt as though Claudia was looking down at her, smiling...
'You live on in him... in me. In everyone.'
A/N.
Hey, everyone. It's me. I'm sorry for how long the latest chapter took. Things... happened.
I'll simply rip the bandaid off and say that my mother passed away almost a week ago. For two years she'd been battling cancer and she became cancer free. Earlier this year she then developed a brain tumor. It was cut out, and she was recovering, but then it grew back. It caused her... a lot of pain.
Most days I could only sit around and hear her scream in pain from how bad it got - she was scheduled to go to a neurologist before she passed away. It was so sudden... and she was young, too. She passed away at 39 years old. Can you believe that...? 39. She had so much more left in her, but I guess she was just... tired of hurting. God took her home.
... she loved my stories, y'know? She'd always be ecstatic whenever I showed her a chapter of whatever idea that popped up in my head. Even when she didn't know about the series the stories were based around. She wasn't as much as an anime junkie like I was. But she was always so proud and happy of what I wrote, and she'd share it with her friends along with my drawings.
It always made me embarrassed, when she did that. I'd always ask her to stop - but she never did, because she was proud of my creativity, and what I could create, and pushed me to be greater, because she knew I could be greater.
I'd give anything for her to share my stories and ideas with people again... but that's not how life is. As sad as it may be.
It made... writing this chapter hard. Because this was the last chapter I showed her when I was working on it. I couldn't even find the strength write a simple paragraph because whenever I looked at this chapter, it reminded me of her. It reminded me that I'd never be able to share my stories with her again.
But just because I can't share my stories with her... doesn't mean I can't share them with other people. That's what she'd want me to do. So I finished this chapter. I dedicated this chapter to her. And I'll finish this fic and beyond to honor her. I'll give everything I do all of my effort.
It may be slow. Sometimes updates won't be frequent, but I will do it. Because I love my mom. And I love you guys, for all the support for this story, for any of the stories I've written.
The fact that Sword Saint is so close to 1k followers and favorites is mind-blowing. I didn't think the story would get this far. I didn't think people would enjoy it so much - and yet, here we are!
Of course, there will be people who don't like this story. Hate it, even. Some may find my writing decisions questionable, but that goes for every author and their own fanbase. I'm not a professional. Just a teen doing this for fun... but that doesn't mean I can't give it my all.
So thank you, to everyone that's supported Sword Saint. I want to make you and my mom proud. It'll be hard from here on out, but I'll manage. So don't worry too much.
This Author's Note has gotten pretty long, so this is where we'll part ways for now. I'll see you guys when the next chapter drops! Stay safe, live your life to the fullest, and love your family and parents with all your heart. Through the struggles and the good times. Don't take it for granted like I did.
Peace!