Countdown until Etherion Fires: 9 hours.
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"Ugh…" Erza groaned while pushing herself up from the ground, glancing up at the hole made above, she could tell by this that it was still daytime. They fell down quite the distance; it was a miracle if anyone came out unharmed… "Is everyone okay…?"
Blues held up a hand, waving it around as he pulled himself up. "I'm…alive…so I can say that much for now."
"Ditto…" Kuro coughed while sitting up.
"Cana went off with Gray-sama…" Juvia's mind began to wander, only imagine what those two could be doing now that they were alone…yeah, she was okay.
"How did we survive that fall?" Meredy questioned, rubbing her head while looking up. "That was quite a drop…oh my gosh! The Princess! She's still up there!"
"We have to hurry back up there!" Aira exclaimed.
Blues was about to say something in agreement, but he halted. Eyes narrowed while glancing in the darkness of the area surrounding them. "Wait a second…something else is in here. And it smells like a dragon."
"Company…?" Meredy tsked while sliding into a stance. Footsteps could be heard echoing throughout the underground passage, causing everyone to get on guard. A few moments passed and the owner of the footsteps was revealed. It was Ena! "Huh…who's that girl with the pink hair…"
"Ena!" Erza exclaimed, a smile appearing long her lips. She was more than happy to see Ena was okay! "I'm so glad you're…" Blues held his arm out to prevent Erza from moving. Titania's head turned towards Blues, confusing painting her features. "Blues? What are you doing? She's an ally."
"Are you sure?" Blues questioned while gesturing to Ena's eyes. There was a strange look to them…she looked like she was in a trance. "I'd second guess that thought for now if I were you."
"Erza-senpai…it's so nice to see you…" Ena's voice was low, but at the same time it had that unnatural happiness. Like one had when they were blasted with laughing gas, only without the laughing. "And you brought more friends…! I love it…this is so nice…I missed you…"
"I-Is she okay…?" Meredy glanced towards Erza who was on edge at Ena's new personality.
"Ena, what happened to you?" Erza asked while taking a cautious step forward. "What is Dhegensea trying to do? Where is he now?"
Ena took a step forward, causing everyone to take a step back. "Didn't you hear? He wants to rule over the humans…they were meant to be ruled over. He's sitting in his throne room, he hasn't left since you left…but now here we are...be nice, Erza-senpai…and come with meeee…" A pink aura began to appear around Ena as she steadily walked closer. "You can bring your friends, too…"
"She's not making any sense…" Aira turned to Erza. "What do we do…? I think she's been brainwashed by Drake…or maybe Dhegensea…and she wants a fight…"
Blues stepped forward, a blue aura surging around his body. "Let me take care of this. She is a dragon…"
Erza shook her head, standing in front of Blues as a heavenly light wrapped around her body. Once it faded, she was donning her Flight Armor. "I will be the one to break Ena free of whatever chains are binding her…I feel I must."
"Be careful, Erza-san…" Juvia cheered on Erza while the others took a step back.
"You're going to play, Erza-senpai?" Ena twisted her head.
Erza bent her knees, gripping both blades in her hands tightly. In the next instant she was off, the speed granted by the Flight Armor making her incredibly difficult to follow with the normal human eye. "Ena! I will break whatever hold is on you, because you're better than this!" Within a second, Erza dashed passed Ena while slashing at her abdomen. The slice cut through Ena's shirt, but that was about it. Erza turned, eyes narrowing at the lack of damage dealt. "Did that not do anything?"
"I've seen you fight, Erza-senpai…I know your tricks." Ena responded while turning around, grinning slightly. "My skin is much more durable than those blades of yours…~"
"Is that something you want to put to the test!?" Erza demanded while shifting once again before darting forward, holding both swords at her sides. "Sonic Claw!" All one could see was a blur while Erza aimed a series of furious slashes at various locations on Ena's body. Parts of her clothing were ripped to nothing from Erza's assault. At the end of it all, Erza slid past Ena while turning to see the outcome of her assault.
Ena dusted herself off with a small tch. "Come on, Erza-senpai…I thought you were smarter than that?"
Before Erza could make another move, her blades shattered; the red head's eyes widened in shock. "W-What!?"
"I told you, Erza-senpai…" Ena spoke with a grin stretching along her lips, pink hair beginning to waver in the wind created from it. "My dragon skin is special. Same goes for my brother Kurth…since we are direct descendants from Dhegensea, who holds the toughest dragon skin of all. If you can't break my skin, you won't be dealing that much damage, and there aren't many things that can break the hide of a black dragon…"
"Ah…" Erza grit her teeth at Ena's words while remaining slightly confused. Ena was a pink dragon…at least from what Erza saw from her wings earlier. Ena's genes must've been special…but she had no time to think about it.
"I can tell you're confused…my wings are pink. But…" Ena held one arm out, allowing black and red scales to form along her arm which eventually turned into a claw. "I'm a special breed."
"Erza watch out, she's about to move!" Meredy exclaimed.
Ena was off like a bullet, closing the distance between herself and Erza within mere seconds, while pulling her arm back, a black aura forming around her limb. "Black Dragon's…Claw!" She slashed Erza's side with incredible force, sending Erza flying back into a cavern wall with a yelp of pain.
"Erza!" Everyone cried out.
"And…" Inhaling, the dragon female gathered a strange mixture of black and red magic swirling around her lips. "Roar!" Throwing her head forward, a massive beam of black and red raced towards Erza at incredible speeds. Everyone else had to jump out of the way due to how fast and powerful the funnel traveled. BOOM! The roar exploded on Erza, who didn't make a single sound.
"Is she okay?!" Kuro questioned while looking towards the others.
And there was Juvia, sitting there with a slight smile on her lips. "That's a silly question to ask, Kuro-san…Erza-san is incredibly strong."
As the dust settled, Erza was seen using her Adamantine Armor to shield herself form Ena's roar. She felt the potency of the attack and knew Ena was a dangerous foe…but even still. "You're strong, Ena…I wonder why you're referring to me as Senpai, still…I think it's because you're still in there somewhere…" Another light washed Erza's body as she dashed forward; the Giant's Armor. Erza pulled her armored fist back while exclaiming; "And I WILL set you free!" In one motion, Erza slammed her fist against Ena's skull, the force more than enough to send the female flying backwards.
Ena flipped and caught herself, sliding across the rocky ground with a noticeable bruise on her cheek. "…I don't think you broke skin. But that really did hurt."
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Mii raised her hands as Drake prepared to pounce on Hisui. "Oi…! Take a joke! Lighten up! We're supposed to bring her back alive!"
"Dhegensea didn't say anything about bringing her back in more than one piece!" Drake responded before leaping off the wall to lunge at Hisui, who could only cringe at what she thought was going to occur. Only everything stopped as a breeze blew by, showing a single rose petal drifting in the wind. "Huh…?"
"I'm taking off your arm!" Drake exclaimed while thrusting a hand towards Hisui, only to halt once he collided with something else. "What the…?" He collided with a scythe, one that belong to one of the 13 Commandants of Pergrande: Lucius; his white robe and pink hair flowing handsomely in the breeze. "Who the hell…?"
Mii blinked, staring at Lucius curiously. "What the…"
"How concerning…" Lucius' voice was smooth and slick. It almost had both Hisui and Mii swooning. Almost. Lucius turned to look over his shoulder to look at Hisui while holding Drake at bay. "Princess, what are you doing wandering this dangerous island on your own? Don't you know how dangerous that is?"
"A-Ah…" Hisui had to compose herself. Lucius was just so handsome and she was still terrified and confused she could hardly figure out how to respond. "W-Who are…"
"You may call me Lucius," With one swipe, Lucius forced Drake backwards. "I'll be your protector."
"Hey, that's not fair!" Mii huffed while stomping her foot in a childish manner. "Why does the hot guy come to HER aid!?" Lucius turned his gaze to Mii, lifting a brow. But he didn't say anything.
Drake regained his balance, growling due to the irritation building within him. "Ugh! You! Take care of him!" He pointed at one of his experimental soldiers. The soldier nodded and lunged towards Lucius with intent to kill.
"Brutal beasts…you'll never learn with mindless soldiers rushing down targets like this." Lucius shook his head whilst readying his scythe for the soldier coming his way. "Find peaceful rest in the afterlife…" Just before the solider could fully near, Lucius swung his scythe faster than anyone could see. In the same second, the soldier just…collapsed eyes white. There were no cuts on his body. Not a single mark.
"W-What the?!" Drake's eyes widened at this sight. "How the hell did he…!?"
"One shot…" Hisui muttered in amazement.
"He's dangerous…" Mii was serious again while examining Lucius. For some reason she felt like she'd met him before. "Let's get outta here. We can't risk watching your creations go down…plus I'm not in the mood for your temper tantrums…"
"Tch…" Drake scoffed while staring at Lucius. "Interesting human…we'll be back for you, Hisui." With that, Drake, Mii, and the rest of the soldiers left.
Hisui let out a sigh of relief, feeling her heart slow down. "Thank you for saving me…"
Lucius shook his head while his scythe dispersed into harmless rose petals. "You needn't thank me, Your Highness." He then extended his hand to her with a pretty smile. "Come with me, I'll escort you to the King of Dragons."
Hisui felt entranced by this man's appearance. It was an odd feeling, one she was not used to. She began to extend her hand but then halted after realizing something. "W-Wait…!" She pulled her hand back quickly. "I have to make sure Erza and the others are okay…and I have to warn the others about the betrayal!"
"Yes, I suppose it would be important to tell your comrades about this…" Lucius paused for a moment. "Allow me to escort you to them." By the way he was sounding…Hisui didn't have much of a choice…
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"Damn…" Gray huffed while leaning against a tree for support. "Icy bastard got away…"
"What were you thinkin'!?" Cana yelled at Gray, panting softly to catch her breath. "You can't just go running off like that! We were supposed to stay together!"
"S-Sorry…" Gray rubbed the back of his head. "I guess that idiot fireball's rubbed off on me…speaking of, still haven't seen him since he was being dumb. He better still be alive…"
"He'll be fine." Cana reassured before turning her head back in the direction they came. "What's more important is that we warn the others about that bitch and her second round of betrayal." Cana then began digging in her pants pocket before pulling out yet another card. "She thought she was clever by swiping the spare I had in my top, but I always keep a backup just in case people like getting handsy…"
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Lucy and Wes were in a stare down, neither of them making the first move just yet. Lucy was prepared to summon two spirits when the card in her possession started blaring loudly. "Huh?"
"Hey, what's that racket?!" Wes groaned.
Lucy pulled out the card which gave a hologram of Cana's person. "Attention everyone! Mii is a traitor! She's sided with Drake and the other dragons once again and is trying to kill us! If you run into her, do NOT treat her like a friend! She is a threat!"
"Mii betrayed us again!?" Lucy's jaw dropped at the news.
"Mii…?" Wes blinked, placing a hand on his chin. "Now where have I heard that name before…?"
"I knew she was up to something…" Lucy started going off, ignoring Wes in the process. "I can't believe she'd set us up like that…what is she trying to do, flipping sides like this!?"
Wes was beginning to grow annoyed that Lucy was ignoring him. He pulled out the whistle once again while glaring at the blonde. "Hey! I'm over here and I'm your opponent! Pay attention to me!" He blew on the whistle which made Lucy's eyes widened, the indescribable pain coursing through her body, resulting in a pained shriek.
"S-Stop that…!" Lucy cried out and Wes did stop. Lucy's eyes flashed a crimson shade for a few seconds unbeknownst to her, but Wes seemed to notice. "Ugh…what is that whistle…"
Wes put the whistle away, strumming his guitar gently now that he had Lucy's attention. "Now that we're back on track…let's see how well you dance!" Wes strummed his guitar; while there was obvious sound that was not the attack. The real attack were the spears of water emitting from his rhythmic tune, shooting towards Lucy in what she perceived to be an awkward manner.
"Eh!?" Lucy hardly had any time to recuperate from the whistle. She quickly shifted her body to the side, the spears of water cutting her sides and legs, causing her to let out a slight hiss of pain. "This water…"
"Dance!" Wes threw his body forward while strumming a single chord on the guitar, causing a pillar of water to rise from Lucy's location, sending her spiraling into the air with a pained yelp.
Lucy hit the ground with a thud, groaning while picking herself up. She was practically drenched but shook it off and held up the two keys. "Gate of the Lion! Gate of the Maiden, I open thee! Leo! Virgo!" Three flashes of light occurred along with a bell chime; Loke and Virgo were summoned while Lucy changed into Star Dress: Leo.
"I'm here, Princess! Is it punishment time!?" Virgo questioned. "…Against an opponent like this? This truly is punishment."
"Ay…" Loke said while adjusting his tie. "This looks like a sticky situation…" He glanced at everyone trapped within the spheres of water, a serious expression crossing his visage while turning back to Wes. "Hurting the nakama of my friend and owner…that's something I can't take lightly." He was speaking out of anger, but just like Virgo, he could sense the power Wes held.
"Oh?" Wes looked intrigued by Lucy's summoning and her star dress. This caused a grin to cross his lips. "Wow! Now you're properly outfitted to ROCK! Let's jive!"
Loke adjusted the cuff on his wrist while a light surrounded his fist. "Let's show him what the Celestial Spirits are made of." With that, Loke was off in a sprint while rearing his arm back. "Regulas…IMPACT!" Thrusting his arm forward, his fist slammed against Wes' cheek, causing the male to stagger back.
Lucy reared her leg back with light surrounding it, Virgo right beside her while mimicking the action. "Lucy…KICK!" Lucy swung her leg in time with Virgo, the two managing to kick Wes right in the chest, their power more than enough to send Wes flying back quite the distance. "Nice Virgo!"
"Wah…!" Wes cried out briefly before a smirk crossed his lips. Quickly flipping, Wes shifted his momentum and lunged forward towards the trio, sharp pillars of water rapidly erupting behind him in a stream line. "Come on, feel the beat!" He exclaimed while cutting through Lucy, Loke, and Virgo in one attack, sending them tumbling violently to the sides. "Can't you rock!?" Strumming a few more chords, a large pillar of water erupted from the ground, beginning to increase in volume.
"I will not allow it!" Virgo exclaimed while beginning to dig into the ground. This caused the pillar of water to drop down into what became a large crater, keeping everyone safe and dry.
"Trying to ruin my flow!?" Wes merely smirked at Virgo's intervention. "Alright, it's time to change up the tune a little bit!" Wes' guitar levitated in front of him and he began to strum it with both hands, creating a soft, gentle tune as he entered the zone. "Dance water dance!" From his very being, 10 clones of water strumming guitars began to form, spreading out all over the place.
"What the…?" Loke stayed close to Virgo and Lucy. "Clones of water?"
"He's not moving…" Lucy nodded to herself and took the initiative, sprinting forward while pulling her fist back, allowing light to form around it. "Regulas…IMPACT!" Lucy put all of her physical might into the punch, but a barrier of water appeared around Wes the moment impact was to be made. Lucy found herself flung back from the force of the barrier, landing harshly on her back. "Ugh…! What the…?"
Virgo glanced around at the clones; they didn't make a single aggressive move. "Princess! I believe we have to destroy these clones first! Though it is strange they aren't fighting back…"
"That makes them an easy target!" Loke exclaimed while throwing his fist towards one. A direct hit, but what occurred next was unexpected. The clone of water turned into a musical note, violently slashing at Loke before he had any time to react. "…!" Loke's eyes widened as he was nearly cut in half from the blow. He fell to a knee, gasping heavily for air. "D-Damn…"
"Leo-san!" Virgo was quick to race to her brother, crouching down to see if he was okay.
Lucy glanced around, noticing that there was a small timer above Wes' head. There were ten seconds left and she didn't want to find out what happened if time ran out. Things didn't help that Wes' tune started to become more aggressive, beginning to turn into musical notes to slash at her, Loke, and Virgo. Each slash made Lucy feel like she was being cut into deeply, electing a pained cry from all of them. Lucy was on a knee, but she quickly stood up as another light washed around her being. "Star Dress: Sagittarius!" Once the light faded and she was revealed in the star dress, the celestial blond pointed her bow and arrow into the air, pulling the bowstring back whilst exclaiming, "Falling Stars!" Unleashing the string, a singular arrow flew into the air, only to fall back down into multiple arrows that scattered on the ground. The low numbers of water clones were unable to stand against the high number of falling arrows.
The second the last clone dispersed, Wes snapped out of his trance, holding his head in agony. "Agh…! A tune out…"
"Now!" Lucy pulled the bow string back once again while taking direct aim at Wes. "Break on through! Get out of here, this concert is OVER!" Several arrows were unleashed, all of them aiming to converge on Wes from all angles. Since he was in a daze, all of the arrows hit their mark and Wes was sent flying backwards. "Ah…" Lucy started panting heavily. Having two spirits out, and using two star dresses was starting to take a toll on her.
"She's using too much magic…at this rate…" Loke realized the situation rather quickly.
"Princess!" Virgo called out. "You must close the gat-"
Before Virgo could finish, a pillar of water exploded just in front of her, causing her to jump back. Several pillars of water began erupting violently within the crater Virgo created. Wes was dancing along with his guitar still in hand, practically unfazed from Lucy's assault of arrows. "The snow may be over, but I hear the crowd asking for an encore! NOW DANCE!" Another, high pitched strum was taken, causing the pillars of water to spread out and grow in size and power.
"Ah!" Lucy cried out as the area began to flood. She swam around while getting tossed by the current, trying to reach Virgo and Loke. Once realizing that it was too late for that, she realized she had to call someone else to help in this fray, no matter how awful the result could be. "Gate of the-!" Before Lucy could finish she was swallowed whole by another pillar of water. Lucy, Loke, and Virgo were all trapped within the watery prison Wes was standing atop of as the warden.
"Ah…That was quite the concert…" Wes grinned while dusting his hands off. "You put up a bit of a fight, that's for sure…but now I gotta take you in." As he spoke, the water levels drastically began to drop rapidly. "W-What…Huh!?" The water was funneling into a jar, Aquarius' jar to be precise. Aquarius had her other arm wrapped around Lucy, who was coughing from almost having drowned. "Who's this stage hog?!"
"Stage hog?" Aqaurius stared at Wes with disdain. "Your noise is atrocious, my ears are bleeding just from listening to you talk. And the way you use water is absolutely deplorable…"
"Three gates…!?" Loke gasped, mixed with his pants for air.
"Princess…" Virgo shook her head. "You mustn't!"
"Stupid girl…" Aquarius shook her head while staring at Lucy. "You can't possibly…"
"If it's to save everyone…" Lucy stood up shakily, knees quivering due to how weak she felt. "I won't give up! He has them all at risk…and he hurt you guys…so I won't give in so easily!" She then glared at Wes with her spirits behind her. "You're not taking me anywhere…you said there was an encore, right? Well let me show you how a Celestial Spirit Mage rocks…"
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Dhegensea stood out on the balcony, staring out into the island, primarily near the jungle. He could feel the vibrations in the earth from all of the fighting occurring, which brought a slight grin to his lips. "So they've begun to clash at last…"
"Just how you said they would, Dhegensea sir~" Venoma cooed. "It was rather devious of you to send Ena in like that against the human she adores so much. Do you really think she'll tear them to shreds?"
"She's a special dragon…" Dhegensea nodded slowly. "Along with my Dragon Manipulation, she will be unable to resist my control. She will slaughter her dear Erza-senpai and any other humans along with her. As for those other humans quarreling with Drake's experiments…I believe it's time to unveil a little secret…" The sun was high in the sky by this point, causing Dhegensea's grin to widen. "It's bright out. The sun is shining…it's only a matter of time until Etherion fires, but we're still in the clear. It'll all be according to plan as fate wrote…but I believe it's time to give these humans a taste…of everlasting darkness."
"You won't…!" Venoma's eyes sparkled at those words. "No, wait…please do! I've been bored sitting around doing nothing! Let me join the fray!"
"You'll have your time soon, Venoma…" Dhegensea responded while spreading his arms out, a dark aura forming around his being. "It is time…for Night Tide." A veil of darkness slowly began to shroud the entire island, blocking out the sun and making it nearly pitch black on the island. Night Tide was a support spell for dragons, giving them an incredible buff in every aspect: strength, speed, defense, endurance, everything. "Now…my dragons. Go…destroy everything within Night Tide! Tear the humans apart limb by limb!"
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Next Time: Night Tide!