Eric frowned as he moved & weaved around numerous punches & kicks, inverting gravity around him and smirking as he watched the Quartum Army bots being lifted into the air before flicking his finger downwards.
In an instant, deafening crashes echoed all around Eric as the robots were slammed into the ground, the mage looking at the army waiting at the back before raising an eyebrow as he watched the robots climbing out from the ground with minor scratches on their armoured plates.
'Hmm, they're tougher than I thought. Flare, how goes your end?' Eric asked as he turned to where he last saw Flare before blinking at the monstrosity tearing through the army.
'…Is that a Vulcan-Wyvern hybrid you're currently riding on, Flare?' Eric asked as he stared at the winged primate tearing through the army in front, the beast expelling jets of flame from its maw while Flare happily rode on its head before waving at Eric.
"Yep, I've been keeping this one a secret from you as my ace in the hole!" Flare spoke with a happy smile as she stopped next to Eric, who looked at her mount before shrugging as he floated up to be level with her.
"These things are stronger than I expected so I suppose it's time we turned this up a notch."
"Ooh~Are we doing team ups?" Flare asked with a giddy smile as her hair retracted to its normal length, a violet glow covering her and keeping her afloat as Eric chuckled & nodded.
"Yes, we are. Shift." In the blink of an eye, a vast deep crimson crest appeared above the entire army before the ground under them shattered as they were all forced face first into the ground, Eric raising a hand & placing it on Flare's shoulder as her hair swiftly morphed into a large rifle barrel.
"Hair Shower: Crimson Flare." A deep scarlet glow exuded from inside the rifle barrel as she aimed it at the ground whilst a dark crimson magic crest appeared in front of it, Eric letting go of his spell just as a monstrous beam of vivid flames rained down upon the army.
"Huh, suppose everyone survived that, right?" Eric asked with a nervous smile as he turned to Flare, who looked back at the devastating crater left by her attack before letting out a nervous giggle.
"I think so." She said and Eric blinked as he zoomed in past the smoke clouds before giving a relieved chuckle as he saw nothing but charred robot scrap and unconscious bodies.
"They have severe burns, but they'll survive. Oh, look. There goes the other guys along with…more than two hostages? Oh man, this is going to be rough.." Eric said with a sigh as he zoomed out to see Bacchus & Screecher escaping through the far northern gate of the town, Flare letting out a giggle before Eric frowned as he saw three large ethernano signatures rapidly rushing to where Bacchus & the others were.
"Flare, we have incoming on Bacchus & Screecher. Hang on." Flare just nodded as her hair wrapped around Eric's waist before he rocketed towards the location of the other two Quatro Mages.
"You good?" Bacchus' voice echoed inside the invisibility bubble Screecher had cast over them, to which the Sonic Mage just gave a grunt as his hands were clasped together as if in prayer while being seated in a rather big carriage that Bacchus was pulling throughout the town's streets.
"Being on the move while using this spell is quite the pain, but I'm slowly getting used to doing rapid changes."
"Good to hear. You ladies okay?" Bacchus asked as he turned to look past Screecher at the five girls at the back of the carriage, four of them nodding slowly as the fifth woman spoke for them.
"O-On behalf of them and a-as the former leader of the White Tiger, Sir Bacchus, thank you from the bottom of our hearts." Captain Riana thanked Bacchus with a bow of her head, her visage that of a beautiful black-haired princess despite the wounds across her body and the ragged state of her clothing.
"My pleasure. Now, I can feel Eric getting closer so we need to-!" Bacchus stopped talking as he felt three large presences rushing towards their location, quickly turning into an alleyway before frowning at the sight of a muscular man, a rather beautiful tan-skinned woman and a young boy sitting on a glass orb coming to a stop in the middle of the street.
"Crap. Are those the Three Stars?" Screecher asked Bacchus, who nodded with a frown as he stared at the thigh-high boots on the woman's legs, the gauntlets the muscular man was wearing and the chest plate that the boy wore.
"Yeah, and they're wearing Stellanium armour so they're definitely ready for battle."
"Our 'King' said that there was four intruders here, but apart from the two that attacked the main gate, I didn't see anyone else on our way here, Doll." The young boy, Gapri, said with a frown as he continued to float in his boll, to which the muscular man just frowned before both the boy & their female friend, Swan, sighed as the man struck a pose with his hips struck out whilst flexing his biceps.
"Then we shall find these hidden foes and figure out who they truly are."
"No need, I'm right here." The Three Stars' eyes widened as they heard a voice behind them, Gapri flying into the air while Doll & Swan jumped to the side while turning to see a smirking Bacchus sitting cross-legged on the ground behind them.
"D-Doll, t-that's the Drunk Falcon Bacchus." Gapri said to his colleagues with wide eyes, Doll and Swan both equally shocked as they stared at the Quatro Ace who chuckled as he stood up.
"…We're retreating."
"And why would we let you leave?" Eric asked with a smirk as he landed softly behind Swan, Flare giggling as a miniature Wyvern under her kept her afloat next to Gapri.
"Mm~Well, aren't you appetizing?" Swan spoke with a smile as she turned to face Eric, who just gave a nervous chuckle before quickly ducking down just as Swan swiftly turned around & blocked a hammer of hair that sent her crashing through buildings.
"You want her?" Eric asked as he looked up at Flare, who didn't answer as she rocketed after Swan, to which the dragon slayer shrugged before looking up at the nervous Gapri.
"So…you want to fight or just give up?"
"The same to you, also." Bacchus said to Doll, to which the two fighters looked at each other before a pair of dolls dressed in Stellanium armour appeared from behind Doll's back while Gapri's orb was swiftly covered in layers of Stellanium steel.
"I guess you've made your choice. Bacchus?"
"They have information, so alive is preferable." Bacchus said with a frown, to which Eric nodded as he turned to Gapri before the boy quickly dove to the ground just in time for a series of flaming chains to barely miss wrapping him up.
However, his eyes widened as Eric appeared in the front of him before he could even move, Eric just smirking as he flicked a finger upwards and inverted their gravity.
Bacchus smirked as he watched Eric carrying the kid far up into the air before twisting to the side just as a jet of blazing flames barely missed hitting him.
"Now that they're gone, want to give up without your group trying to force you into fighting?" Bacchus asked as he looked back at Doll whilst rolling his shoulders, who frowned slightly before pointing flamboyantly at Bacchus.
"FranÇoise Catelyn! Burn him!" The two dolls' eyes glowed before they blasted towards Bacchus, who raised his arms behind him in his signature stance before Doll's eyes widened as the mage appeared in front of him while FranÇoise & Catelyn were smashed into the ground below the two of them.
"Soaring Falcon." Doll quickly raised his arms in a closed guard in front of him before a wheeze escaped his lips as two palms slammed through his guard & into his chest, sending him flying head over heels across the ground before his vision went white as another crushing blow slammed into his back & smashed him face first into the ground.
"You're good, but not even close to my level." Bacchus said with a smirk as he reached down before throwing Doll's unconscious form over his shoulders.
"Wonder if Screech is still in the spot I left them." Bacchus muttered softly with a whistle before looking up at the sky just as a loud boom echoed through the air.
Gapri grunted as he finally managed to get control back from his body, quickly morphing his orb into its hoverboard form whilst glaring at Eric as the mage floated in front of him with a carefree smirk.
"So, you still don't want to give up?" Eric asked, to which Gapri just smirked mockingly as he shrugged.
"Depends. You giving up?" He asked, to which Eric just sighed before shrugging as he went into his fighting stance.
"I gave you a stance to give up. Nothing that happens after here is my fault." And before Gapri could ask, his eyes widened as he was pulled to Eric in the blink of an eye, the mage in question swiftly stomping away his board while also parrying away Gapri trying to punch him as he pulled a palm back.
"Pull." Eric chanted and Gapri's world spun as Eric's palm slammed into his chest, not only from the palm strike knocking the wind out of his lungs but also unable to breathe as it felt as if his heart was being pulled out from his chest.
Eric was not done as his hand flashed out, catching Gapri by the wrist before grunting as he spun the young man and smashed him back first into his own board.
'Hmm, he's not bad. Then again, I've only been at this for a year and I'm not even close to the strongest of the world.' Eric thought with a frown as he watched Gapri falling to the ground before sighing as he dove after him, accelerating more & more as he increased gravity around him while vivid crimson flames began to surround his hands as he pulled them back.
"Dragon Slayer Secret Art: Three Headed Hydra." Eric chanted as he spun with a flourish before slamming his palms forward at Gapri, whose eyes widened as the draconic flames expanded before taking the shape of a serpentine beast with three heads.
Quickly grabbing his board out of the air, Gapri spun around while flattening himself against his board before taking off as fast as he could, the Hydra head in hot pursuit along with its caster as Eric dove down after him.
'Damnit! Damnit! Damnit! Can I dive to the side? No, if I do, he'll probably be waiting for me. I need to get to the ground!' Gapri thought urgently with a frown as he accelerated even more, waiting until he was just a meter away from impact before swiftly turning and just barely missing the earth.
However, he spun around and grinned as the Hydra impacted the ground, the flames transforming into a blazing pillar that evaporated the grounds before he frowned as Eric wasn't anywhere near the spell.
"Gravity Secret Art: Black Coffin." Gapri's eyes widened as Eric appeared at his side, the dragon slayer smirking as he placed a hand on the young man's shoulder before the world around them went pitch black.
"Urgh, who the hell fights with hair?" Swan groaned as she kicked a destroyed roof off of her, dusting off her shoulders before frowning at the slightly purplish bruise on her left forearm.
"I do." She blinked as she heard a voice in front of her, looking up before her eyes widened slightly at the sight of dozens of needle-like hair strands descending upon her.
"Grand Fouetté." Swan chanted as she pun rapidly on her left heel while pulling her right knee close to her chest, Flare frowning as the woman turned into a living whirlwind before cursing as her hair needles were swiftly repelled by a flurry of crescent blades of light.
Without stopping, Swan lunged upwards while spinning with a flourish, Flare's hair quickly wrapping around her own legs as she spun before a shock wave echoed through the sky as the two clashed.
Swan frowned as she wrapped her outstretched leg around Flare's before pulling her close, lashing out with her free leg only for Flare's hair to wrap around her arms as she caught the kick.
"Grand Foue-!" Swan tried to use her Spin Magic, but her eyes widened as Flare's hair swiftly extended and wrapped her in a tight cocoon, spinning the both of them around before throwing Swan towards the ground as hard as she could.
"Hair Shower: Firefly Flame!" Flare exclaimed as her long hair was coated in scarlet flames before unleashing a barrage of fireballs after Swan, who impacted the ground with a gasp before being obscured by a scarlet inferno as the fireballs crashed into her.
"Hair Shower: Crimson Flare!" Flare was not done as her hair swiftly reformed into a smaller variant of the rifle barrel she made earlier with Eric before unleashing a jet of flames at the smoking crater, keeping the blast up for a few moments before gasping as she finally stopped the attack.
"Damn, didn't expect that." Her eyes widened as she turned to see Eric floating peacefully next to her before quickly glancing at the man floating next to him with flame chains wrapped around his body.
"Don't worry, he's still breathing and so is yours." He said as he flicked a finger upwards, Flare letting out a relieved sigh as the burned form of Swan appeared coated in an azure glow from the smoking crater before blinking as a series of crimson crests appeared around Swan and more fire chains wrapped around her.
"Now, I can see your ethernano. Take some rest." Eric spoke with a frown and Flare sighed as she nodded, dismissing her mini wyvern before letting out a sigh of relief as her body was made weightless.
"Seriously, though, good job."
'Especially considering that in a year's time, she would have been on par with Erza.' Eric thought to himself with a smile as he lifted Flare to his arms in a bridal carry, to which the redhead just smiled as she nodded before the tiredness took her to sleep.
Activating his Heavenly Vision, Eric frowned slightly as he scanned the entire town before humming as he saw a bubble where no ethernano was visible, making sure that both Swan & Gapri were locked up tightly before he began flying to where Bacchus & Screecher were hiding.
"So…what do we do now?" Eric asked as he carried the carriage with the prisoners, hostages and Quatro mages through the air, to which Bacchus just hummed as he looked at the awake prisoners before sighing.
"Well, we're not the torture types, but we need the locations of the artifact and Zash so I guess that's our only option."
"Then, leave it to me." Eric spoke with a frown as he took a deep breath while slowly increasing his own gravity, keeping the carriage weightless as it took a few minutes before he landed safely on the ground.
"Screech, you can dispel the invisibility." Screecher didn't answer as he unclasped his hands while taking deep breaths, Bacchus patting him on the shoulders before turning as a trio of chains wrapped around the surprised & paling prisoners.
"Eric, what are you doing?" Flare asked with a frown, to which Eric just sighed before shaking his head.
"Something I'm not going to be proud of." Before anyone could stop him, Eric rocketed up to the sky as fast as he could, sonic booms echoing through the sky & deafening the three prisoners as he continued climbing until he was far past the clouds & high in the night sky.
"All right, listen up. I'm currently speaking to you telepathically to make sure no one can listen in on this conversation so if you want to answer my questions, you can just think about answering me in your mind. Now, is Zash in Altair?" Eric asked them as he crossed him arms, watching as none answered before nodding.
"Where is the artifact stored?" He asked, nodding as no one answered.
"How many of Zash' Quartum Army is currently in Altair?" He asked on last time before shaking his head as they all stayed silent.
"Are you willing to die for him?" He asked, surprising Gapri & Doll as Swan smirked.
"You're a Light Guild mage. The moment you kill us, you're going to be declared as a Dark Mage and your precious friends will have to kill you."
"And?" That question surprised Swan as she lost her mocking smirk, Eric just letting out a low chuckle before their eyes widened as he unleashed the full amount of his ethernano.
"You think I care for such foolish little things?" This time, Eric didn't use telepathy as his words echoed throughout the sky, the tanned trio unable to speak as they watched crimson scales cover the lower part of his face & his arms.
"I kill you guys, take Flare away, destroy Altair to take back the artifact, give the artifact back to the King and he'll give me a royal pardon because I'm powerful and a close friend to his niece. In the end, I still win, Fiore gets rid of a potential enemy and you three along with Zash still die at the end of the day."Every word made the Three Stars pale more and more as they were pulled closer and closeruntil they were face to face with the Devil himself as he grinned ferally.
"Will I have nightmares about it? Oh most definitely, but if it means that those I love & cherish get to sleep peacefully, you can be damn sure that I will destroy continents with a smile on my face. So, will you tell me where Zash & the artifact is or will tens of thousands of innocent lives need to end tonight for your foolish pride?"
A/N: And there we are! The true side of Eric shown in all its glory!
Next chapter…we'll find out!
As always, read, enjoy, review and until the next one…
Ba-Bye~!