A/N: Hello, readers! Another chapter is here!

Enjoy!

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE: DAY 4, NAVAL BATTLE

Crocus Garden...

"Can't sleep, Sting?"

Sting looked over, seeing Lucas shirtless as his mate joined him on the balcony.

"Luke..." Sting mumbled before looking at the moon. "I have a feeling that I'm going to fight Natsu-san tomorrow. I've been waiting for that day... for seven years..."

Sting looked over at his boyfriend. "It sucks though. You most likely won't be joining the fight." He added.

Lucas laughed. "That's perfectly fine with me. It just means you gotta win for the both of us." He told him.

Rogue was laying on his bed with his hands behind his head while Frosch slept next to him, lost in thought.

While various feelings crossed each other, the third night of the tournament wore on. We were heading for that day.

We had four days... until that fateful day.

Cheering erupted from the stadium as a water sphere appeared. "Day four of the Grand Magic Games! In just a moment, today's competition will begin! The name of the competition is 'Naval Battle'! In other words, a sea battle! Any player who leaves the sphere is out!" Chapati announced. "The last person to remain in the sphere is the winner! However, when it gets down to two people left, a special rule will come into effect. That's the five-minute rule! When there are two players left, they've got five minutes. The one who leaves the sphere during that time will be in last place."

"So it's basically a sumo match in water." Yajima stated.

"I can't wait! Thank you very much for inviting me!"

"Our guest today is Rabian-san, leader of the Scheherazade Theatrical Troupe." Chapati informed.

The sound of the competitors hitting the water was soon heard. "All of the teams are entering the water. Sherria from Lamia Scale!" Chapati announced as Sherria soon appeared wearing a bathing suit.

Jenny soon entered the water. "Jenny from Blue Pegasus!" Chapati said.

"There's no way I'll lose this time!" Jenny claimed.

Another splash of water was heard as Risley appeared. "From Mermaid Heel, Risley!"

"Better not underestimate a mermaid!" Risley said.

"Juvia from Fairy Tail B has also entered the water!"

"Juvia is the water. This is Juvia's exclusive territory." Juvia stated.

Minerva chuckled as she entered the water. "Sabertooth's Minerva has arrived." She announced.

The crowd started cheering. "There she is... Minerva! Listen to those cheers!" Chapati said.

"Sabertooth certainly did choose their top five strongest to compete." Yajima stated.

"Thank you very much!" Rabian exclaimed.

"Lucy from Fairy Tail A!"

"I can't lose either! I have to redeem myself after blowing it on the first day!" Lucy said.

"Hana from God Pegasus A!"

Hana wore an orange two-piece bikini as her silver keys were dangling from a belt, clearly showing her pink God Pegasus guild mark on her left waist.

"I'm not losing this!" Hana exclaimed.

"And Rialle from God Pegasus B!"

Rialle was wearing a modest two-piece bikini that was fire-red color in color and had faint native floral patterns. Her bikini top covered more of her shoulders.

"This is my first time participating in an event, I'm not holding back!" Rialle claimed.

"What a gorgeous tapestry we've got before us! All of the players are female and they're wearing swimsuits!" Chapati said.

"Thank you very much! Thank you very much! Thank you very much!" Rabian thanked.

"Um... I'm here, too... and I'm wild." Rocker, the only guy in the group, spoke.

"Tch! A man?" Rabian questioned.

"You clucked your tongue at me?!" Rocker shouted.

"The rules are simple. If you leave the water, you're out. In just a moment, the Naval Battle will begin!"

"Go get 'em, Lucy!" Natsu encouraged.

"Since she's in water, she can use Aquarius, right?" Gray asked.

"This is a good contest for her." Erza replied.

"Yep!" Wendy nodded in agreement.

"I think this match is Juvia's to lose." Lisanna said.

"I dunno..." Wakaba mumbled. "Lucy can use plenty of other Celestial Spirits beyond Aquarius."

"We probably shouldn't make light of Mermaid Heel either. After all, they do have 'mermaid' in their name." Jet pointed out.

"That Minerva looks like a tough costumer, too..." Droy added.

"Lu-chan, do your best!" Levy cheered.

The gong soon rang out, starting the competition. "And now, let the Naval Battle begin!" Chapati shouted.

"Sorry, everyone, but right off the bat..." Lucy made the first move. "Open! Gate of the Water Bearer! Aquarius!"

Aquarius soon appeared as her usual self with her urn as she smirked. Sherria looked in shock. "A Celestial Spirit!" Jenny exclaimed.

"They got a mermaid, too, huh? The more the merrier!" Risley commented.

"Water is my garden!" Aquarius claimed as she attacked everyone in the sphere.

"Oh, no, you don't! Water Cyclone!" A dark blue Magic Circle appeared from Juvia's hands as her attack collided with Aquarius's.

"Aquarius and Juvia's attacks are colliding head on!" Wakaba exclaimed.

"We've got a highlight right away!" Levy said.

"Wow! I wonder which one of them is stronger?!" Lisanna stated.

"Good luck, Juvia! After her, good luck to you, too, Lucy! And then, just a little bit of good luck to Jenny!" Mira cheered.

"The way you cheer is a pain." Gajeel commented.

"Well, who do you think is going to win?" Cana asked.

"It's not even worth asking. You let Juvia into water, nobody else stands a chance." Gajeel responded.

"I haven't seen you for a while, Aquarius-san." Juvia said.

"Just because we're acquainted, don't think I'm gonna hold back." Aquarius informed.

"You took the words out of my mouth." Juvia said.

"Aquarius really is amazing, huh? I mean, she's not even takin' a licking from Juvia's power!" Natsu claimed.

"But by that same argument, I get the feeling that Juvia-san's amazing for not losing to Aquarius-san!" Wendy said.

"We're even?!" Aquarius exclaimed in shock.

"Juvia is going to win! Juvia can't let Gray-sama see her shameful in battle!" Juvia claimed, side glancing at Gray.

"It seems Juvia is worried about how you see her." Erza said as Gray stayed silent.

"Juvia!" Lucy exclaimed.

"My romantic rival!" Juvia shouted.

"You've got me all wrong!" Lucy yelled as the other competitors moved out of the way.

"What kind of fight is this?!" Risley wondered.

"The toughest opponents are taking each other out. In that case, while I've got the chance..." Jenny charged forward and kicked Rocker in the face. "I'll start with one!"

"Wild!" Rocker exclaimed as he went out of the sphere.

"Quatro Puppy is out! He was sucker punched by Jenny! But only Quatro Puppy feels bad about that! This crowd only cares about the girls!" Chapati announced.

"Thank you very much! Thank you very much! Thank you very much!"

"What was the point of me being in there anyway?" Rocker muttered.

"That woman's cheap tricks know no bounds." Gajeel said.

Mira giggled. "That kind of fighting is Jenny all over." She stated.

"You know, that wasn't a compliment..." Cana informed.

"I've gotta do my best, too!" Sherria said as she charged at Risley who became skinnier.

"Never underestimate the chubby!" Risley exclaimed as all of the men had heart eyes.

"We'll never get anywhere at this rate! I'm going back for now!" Aquarius spoke.

"Wha? Why?! In water, you're the one I can count on the most!" Lucy told her.

Aquarius turned to face her. "I've got a date!" She replied.

"Hey!" Lucy shouted as Aquarius disappeared.

"Oh, my! The Celestial Spirit, Aquarius, left to go on a date!" Chapati announced.

"She is a girl..." Yajima mumbled.

"Boring..." Rabian scoffed.

Lucy just laughed nervously. "You're wide open! This is my chance to take out my romantic rival!" Juvia shouted, thrusting her spell forward.

Lucy flew into the air as she got out two keys. "Virgo! Aries!" She called out as the two celestial spirits appeared, Aries's wool blocking Juvia's water.

"I'm sorry this is so fluffy!" Aries exclaimed, causing the men to have heart eyes.

"I'm your sexy guard, Princess!" Virgo added, carrying Lucy above her head.

"That was close..." Lucy breathed out.

"Thank you very much!" Rabian rubbed his hands together.

"No matter how many you bring out, the result is the same!" Juvia sent out another cyclone of water.

"Virgo, Aries, do you best!" Lucy told them.

"I'm better on land than in the water..." Virgo began as she moved Lucy to safety.

"...but I'll try my best!" Aries finished, sending another wave of wool to block Juvia's attack.

"I've gotta do my best to impress, too!" Risley said.

"Then give me your best shot!" Jenny challenged.

"Don't forget about me either!" Sherria called out.

"Entanglement!" Rialle shouted as several chains binded Sherria's body.

Rialle suddenly got attacked by a wave of water. "Sorry, Ria-sama!" Hana apologized as the River Spirit, Eridanus, disappeared back into the celestial spirit world.

"Juvia is going to knock you all out at once! Nobody can win against Juvia in the water!" Juvia raised her hand up. "Juvia learned this move when Second Origin was released... This new special technique! Go forth, wings of love!"

"Gray-sama, love!" Juvia shouted as pink hearts appeared.

"Knock it off!" Gray shouted, his cheeks were tinted pink.

Juvia ended up pushing Jenny, Risley, Sherria, Hana, and Rialle out of the water sphere. Minerva avoided the spell using her Magic while Lucy was holding onto Aries. "Fluffy guard at full throttle!" Aries shouted.

"Princess, hang on!" Virgo said, holding onto Lucy's bottom.

"Would you believe it?! Juvia has knocked out five at once!" Juvia's spell disappeared as she extended her arms out. "In a water battle, Juvia is unbeatable!"

Sherria looked down in disappointment. "I wasn't able to muster as much power as I thought in the water..." She mumbled.

Juvia had pink tinting her cheeks. "Did you feel something while watching Juvia, Gray-sama?" She wondered, turning around.

Gray was pale white. "He's totally turned off!" Juvia thought.

Suddenly, Juvia was pushed out of the water sphere while distracted. "Juvia!" Lucy shouted as Juvia crashed onto the ground.

"She was outstanding, but unfortunately, she's out! But even so, for third place, her team gets six points!" Chapati said.

"That idiot..." Gajeel muttered.

"She went out of the sphere." Cana pointed out.

"Why? Was she not paying attention?" Mira asked.

Minerva smirked. "Our lady is a mischievous one. With her magic, she should've been able to get them all out of the sphere in an instant." Sting commented.

"She's already won this." Lector added as Rogue stayed silent.

Lucas suddenly got a bad feeling wash over him. "What's wrong, Lucas?" Olga asked, noticing his distressed state.

"W-Well, I've known Lady Minerva for a long time. I'm just really worried about that Lucy girl. Lady Minerva doesn't hold back." Lucas replied.

"That's true... I hope she'll be okay..." Alyssa mumbled.

"Only Minerva and Lucy are left. Lucy's Celestial Spirits have gone home for now." Chapati said.

"To avoid depleting her magic and physical strength, most likely." Yajima stated.

"Alright! Who's gonna win this, Sabertooth or Fairy Tail?!" Chapati questioned.

Five minutes soon appeared on the hourglass. "The five-minute rule comes into play now! The next person who leaves the sphere in the next five minutes will be in last place!" Chapati announced.

"I wonder what this rule is for..." Yajima said.

"It's to keep the tension high to the very end. Thank you very much." Rabian thanked again.

"With my magic, I could have you outside of here in a flash, but that would spoil the fun." Minerva raised her hand. "Try to withstand this, Fairy Tail."

Minerva soon activated her Magic. "What is that?!" Lucy wondered before she got blasted with heat.

"Heat?" Erza questioned. "In the water?!"

Lucy soon got attacked again as she screamed. "Lucy!" Natsu shouted out.

"What the hell kind of magic is that?!" Gray exclaimed.

Lucy kept getting attacked by heat, screaming as it burned her. "Th-That time it was heavy... Felt like lead." She mumbled to herself, holding onto her head. "If I don't get a Celestial Spirit out here..."

She soon noticed her belt was missing. "Huh? Where are my keys?!" Lucy wondered before looking up to see that Minerva had her belt that contained her keys. "When did she...?!"

Lucy soon got blasted with heat again as she headed towards the end of the sphere. "If Lucy exits the sphere now, she'll be in last place!" Chapati said as Lucy tried to swim up before finally catching herself.

"Oh?" Minerva said as Lucy got blasted by heat again. "It's hot again! Feels like I'll get burned!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Lucy!" Happy shouted out in worry.

"She can't use any magic with her keys stolen!" Carla exclaimed.

"No matter what... kind of attack you throw at me..." Lucy started to say before getting blasted by Minerva's Magic once more. "...I'm gonna... take it!"

The timer had one minute on the hourglass. "Maybe it's about time for me to put you outside?" Minerva asked.

Lucy had a dark shadow casted over her eyes as she was holding onto her arm. "If I lose now... I won't be able to face everyone... who got me here!" She announced, the dark shadow disappearing. Flashes of Erza and Wendy appeared in her head.

"I can't betray everyone's feelings! That's why... there's no way I'm gonna give up!" Lucy declared, making Minerva widen her eyes. It was silent between the two women as the timer continued counting down.

"W-What's going on here?! Minerva's attacks have stopped! And just like that..." Chapati began as the timer ended. "...the five minutes are up!"

"Yes!" Natsu cheered.

"All that's left is ranking them!" Chapati exclaimed as Minerva got a crazed look in her eyes and activated her Magic once more. She fired heat at Lucy who screamed in pain.

"Lucy!" Natsu shouted.

Minerva kept attacking Lucy with her Magic. "You're arrogant, Fairy Tail! What do you know of us?! We are this world's number one guild! We're Sabertooth!" She shouted as Lucy headed towards the end of the sphere.

"This time for sure she's going out..." Chapati said until Lucy disappeared. "She vanished?!"

Lucy soon reappeared directly in front of Minerva, who kicked her. "Lucy was going to be knocked out of the sphere... but somehow, she's appeared in front of Minerva!" Chapati shouted.

"Is it that woman's magic?!" Droy asked.

"Why would she bother bringing her back?" Levy questioned.

"Does she intend to rough Lucy up?!" Cana exclaimed.

"The match is already over!" Gajeel added.

Minerva then punched Lucy in the stomach. "And now a body blow! Even without using magic, Minerva has incredible power!" Chapati stated.

"Please stop. Now you're just being cruel." Rabian commented. "Thank you very much!"

"She's still in the water, so she's not down! She's just taking a beating!" Chapati announced.

Lucas clenched his fist. "This isn't even a match anymore..." He thinks to himself. "...this is pure torture!"

Atlas was also seen getting angry as he clenched the railing of the balcony, causing it to break. "Calm yourself." Nero told him.

"Stop!" Natsu screamed.

Sting was smirking while the rest of Team Sabertooth was laughing. Erza, Gray, and Natsu looked at them with pure rage. "Sabertooth!" The three of them exclaimed.

"Do you know what it means to dis Sabertooth? I'm gonna teach you with her body!" Minerva claimed.

"Stop this! She'll destroy the Celestial Spirit wizard!" Arcadios ordered. "Stop the competition!"

Mato quickly stopped the competition. "The referee has stopped it! The competition is over! The winner is Minerva! Sabertooth really is strong!" Chapati announced as Minerva was holding Lucy by her throat outside of the sphere. "Lucy hasn't moved for a while, but is she okay?!"

"Lucy!" Her team shouted out in worry as the rest of the competitors looked up.

A/N: This is just a minor shift to see God Pegasus slowly realize just how cruel Sabertooth is and change over towards having Fairy Tail's back.

I'm gonna have Lucas replace Gajeel and he'll be fighting alongside Natsu, shocking both Sting and Rogue. As for the outcome, I haven't decided yet. (Obviously I have to have one of them find the dragon graveyard - most likely it'll be Natsu, since this story is focused on God Pegasus, NOT Fairy Tail).

It'll also mirror Future Lucas fighting Future Rogue in the Eclipse Arc (and yes, I just spoiled it).

Please leave your answers!

Thanks for reading!

~ Kaleb.