"I wonder what that rumbling was…" Jaxon wondered aloud while fighting alongside Cygnus.
"Probably those bastards getting some hits in…" Cygnus cursed the Fairy Tail group that snuck into the throne room.
"Those bastards!" Gajeel shouted in a comical manner, taking out the aggression he had ready for King and Joker on the group of security robots. "I was supposed to sneak in too!"
"Complaining about it won't solve anything," Laxus replied to Gajeel's outburst. "We'll just clean up as soon as possible and help them out. It's the only thing we can do now."
"Fuckin' Salamander…" Gajeel scoffed. "Outta my way, we're on a tight shift here!"
"Juvia hopes Gray-sama is okay…" Juvia spoke to herself, though she wasn't watching her back, so Aira had to be the one to cover for her.
"Juvia! Snap out of it! You'll get hurt if you're not focusing!" Aira shouted at Juvia to get her back into the battle.
"O-Oh! Right! Thank you, Aira-san!" Juvia gave an appricative nod.
.
.
"HERE WE GO!" Natsu roared while leading the charge against Dread Joker RR for the final battle. "This time, we're gonna win!"
"Insolent insects!" Joker roared out in anger, finishing his charge of yet another Dread Lazer. "Disappear!" He shouted before throwing his hands forward, unleashing the high powered beam of magic in the group's direction.
"Not a chance!" Erza exclaimed while leaping ahead of Natsu, using her spear to cut through the Dread Lazer with ease, leaving Joker wide eyed and stunned from the sight.
"Lightning Flame Dragon's Firing Hammer!" Natsu roared, slamming his fire and lightning coated fist into Joker's skull, causing Joker to stagger back from the blow.
"And!" Wendy rushed forward with wind and omega flames surrounding her arm. She leapt to close the gap between the two, swinging at Joker with an immense amount of power behind. "Omega Flame Sky Dragon's Claw!" The strike was a direct hit, causing Joker to nearly lose his balance from the blow.
"With!" Cynthia leapt forward after Wendy followed through with her strike, earth and omega flames surrounding her arm. "Iron Fist of the Omega Earth Flame Dragon!" She exclaimed, throwing her fist forward into Joker's chest, completely blowing him back with the sheer power.
"Ice Make: Rampart!" Gray shouted while throwing his hands into the ground, creating a large, thick wall of ice behind Joker, allowing the male to slam into it to halt all his momentum, keeping him stunned for just a few more seconds. "You're not getting away that easily! Lucy, you're up!"
"We're already on it!" Lucy had Happy fly her up, giving Gray a thumbs up.
"You're still heavy…" Happy chimed in; of course, he had to make that comment.
"Shut up and throw me already!" Lucy shouted in a comical manner. Happy obliged, throwing Lucy down towards the stunned Joker. She called forth Gemini in the process, who took the form of her! The two Lucys reared their legs back, swinging it harshly across Joker's face with all the physical might they could muster. After her signature Lucy kick, she attempted to back flip away but Joker wasn't letting them have it easy anymore. He swung his arm forward, catching Lucy in her spacing attempt and threw her to the ground so hard she bounced once before rolling back. Gemini-Lucy was punched away in the process/
"Lucy!" Natsu and Gray shouted, looking over their shoulders to see if she was okay.
"I-I'm alright…" Lucy replied with a groan. She forced herself up, as this wasn't the time to stay down.
"I've had enough of you!" Joker said while pointing his arm forward, multiple magic seals appearing around his palm. "Even if you've brought out your latent power!" Then, missiles began to fire out from the magic seal, crashing into and around the Fairy Tail mages, creating a thick cloud of smoke that rendered them unable to see. "It won't matter in the end, because your wounds still haven't healed! It only takes one good blow to take you out!"
"Not on my watch…" Diamond mumbled, grunting as she extended her palm out, focusing what was left of her energy on the large ice wall Gray created.
"Diamond, what are you…" Spade began, but Strong quickly hushed him.
"Hey, Joker…!" Diamond shouted while shattering the bottom of the ice wall, causing it to tip over.
"Wha…?" Joker turned around, eyes widening at the wall beginning to fall. "Don't think you can take me down with such simple tricks!" Joker reared his fist back and sent it towards the wall, shattering it into pieces with ease. "You thought that was enough to take me down!?" Joker asked Diamond with look of disapproval.
"Who said anything about trying to take you out…? I'm far too weak to do such a thing…" Diamond asked with a slight giggle. "I was only trying to get your attention…there are about 6 other people in this room who are more than capable of doing so."
"Wha…!?" Joker caught on, but it was too late. By the time he turned around, Erza slashed her spear across his chest, causing Joker's eyes to widen underneath his shades. He let out a hiss of pain before holding his ground, batting Erza away with his free hand.
"Ice Make!" Gray called out while rushing towards Joker, taking a huge leap into the sky. The legendary blade Excalibur morphed into his hands, which he then swung down towards Joker. "Cold Excalibur!" He swung the blade at the defending Joker, a large geyser forming around the Dealer Ace.
"Grah!" Joker let out a battle cry, breaking free of the ice with ease. But, things weren't as the seemed as he broke free. The area was darkened, only lit with the light of the nearby planets. "Wait…planets…?"
"Shine!" Lucy exclaimed from the distance. "Urano Metria!" The planets began to close in on Joker, stars now coming from the make-shift space created by the blonde. Everything around Joker exploded in a bright yellow light, though there was still no sound of pain coming from Joker; he refused to let it out.
As the light died down, Joker was still seen standing tall, but the damage on his was very noticeable; he refused to let it show how much it actually affected him. "You…you pests…!" Joker growled. Natsu lunged towards Joker with a blazing punch, but Joker brought his leg up to kick Natsu in the chest and knock him away. Wendy moved in right after, swinging her arms down to release an Omega Flame Sky Dragon's Wing Slash upon him; the heat and wind bombarding him without mercy. Joker growled and lunged from his poisiton, grabbing Wendy by the scruff of her shirt and throwing her down in the ground. Cynthia moved in to catch Wendy before she fell, exhaling a Roar of the Omega Earth Flame Dragon in the process. Joker covered his body by crossing his arms, landing on the ground. As soon as he did, Erza was already moving forward.
"Nagakami Starlight!" She thrust her spear straight into Joker's chest for a direct hit. Joker's eyes widened under his blue shades, but he gripped Erza's spear before she could advance any further on him. "Do you yield!? This is your final chance!"
"Yield!? My strength exceeds your own! I'll destroy you weaklings once and for all!" Joker roared as he brought his foot into Erza's stomach, knocking her away while tearing her spear from his chest and callously tossing it aside. Even with all the damage dealt, he was still going strong! He then reared his hands back as thick dark red magic began to form around his palms. "I'll finish you all off right here!"
"Let's go!" Natsu shouted to Gray, Cynthia, and Wendy.
Wendy nodded, puffing her cheeks out, now unleashing a massive funnel of omega flames and sky towards Joker. "Roar of the Omega Flame Sky Dragon!"
"Roar of the Omega Earth Flame Dragon!" Cynthia followed suit, unleashing a funnel of omega flames and earth right alongside Wendy's, the two merging together to create a powerful unison raid.
"Ice Make: Unlimited!" Gray created a spiraling chain of ice weapons around him. He sent the chain forward, wrapping it around Wendy and Cynthia's unison raid. "Natsu, finish it off!"
"This is almost all I have left!" Lucy said while pulling out Scorpio's key. He was summoned onto the field, and she pointed her hand forward. "Scorpio, give it all you've got! Natsu, you can do this!"
"We are! Sand Buster!" Scorpio placed his hands on the ground, his stinger vibrating before releasing a high powered sandstorm that exploded forward, merging with Wendy, Gray, and Cynthia's attack.
"You don't have to tell me twice!" Natsu grinned before dashing behind the unison raid, lightning and flames covering his body. "Lightning Flame Sword Horn!" Natsu took a leap forward, propelling himself into the center of the dangerous unison raid that went full speed towards Joker.
"Dread Lazer: FULL POWER!" Joker threw his hands forward, unleashing an enormous beam of magic in Natsu's direction. It was surprisingly a clash, the two meeting in a stalemate, neither unable to overpower the other. "Gah!" Joker grunted in frustration, curious as to why the mages weren't down when they should've been. "What is it about you that continues to defy me!?
"I already told you!" Natsu roared as he slowly began to push back against the Dread Lazer, steadily making progress to Joker. "You've harmed too many people, and you've messed with the wrong guild!" Natsu continued to get closer and closer, causing Joker's eyes to widen as the realization set in. "Lisanna…Fairy Tail…Ace…all of them! This is for all the people you've brought harm to! JOKER! DISSAPPEAR!" Natsu shouted at the top of his lungs as he overpowered the Dread Laser, slamming right into Joker's chest.
"GYAAAAAH!" Joker finally let out a scream as Natsu struck him, a large explosion occurring shortly after. This explosion was enough to nearly throw everyone back. Natsu flew back and rolled across the floor before miraculously landing on his feet just in front of the long stairway.
"I think…we got him…" Natsu said with a loopy smile, now beginning to fall backwards.
"NATSU!" Lucy scrambled to her feet, quickly lunging forward to grab Natsu before he fell down the stairs. She pulled him forward, both falling on their knees after.
"Thanks…" Natsu replied to Lucy's help.
.
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"Did they get him!?" Hisui asked while squeezing the life out of Freed, since the battle was so intense she needed something to grasp onto.
"I-I hope so…." Freed struggled to speak, his face turning a blue color. "Help…"
"Princess…" Arcadios tried to get Hisui's attention, but she was far too absorbed in seeing the result of the battle. No one could blame her, as everyone watching.
"Come on, brats…" Makarov mumbled to himself.
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"Is it over…?" Heartless asked while peering into the smoke that covered Joker's entire body.
"There's no movement…" Spade whispered.
"I hope he's done…" Cynthia winced, falling to a knee as the scales around her faded.
"S-Same…" Wendy exhausted all of her magic, falling to a knee as well and leaned against Cynthia for support.
"Don't let your guard down just yet…" Erza warned them, but even her magic reached its end, and she was wearing nothing but her Clear Heart Armor. It was a tense few moments until the smoke finally began to clear.
"Here we go…" Gray mumbled, preparing himself for the result of all their efforts.
"You know…" Joker began. His blue eyes shone brightly though out the smoke. As it cleared, he was still seen standing tall, arms crossed over his chest with a menacing smirk. "That one actually hurt…Perhaps you mages of Fairy Tail are stronger than I originally gave you credit for…" Everyone's (excluding King) eyes widened immensely, a fearful expression now covering all their faces.
"N-No way…!" Lucy stammered, grasping onto a now snarling Natsu.
"He's still standing!?" Wendy spoke in a shaky voice, but Cynthia quickly moved in front of the sky dragon and Carla in a protective manner, though she was heaving heavily and could hardly stand.
"I-I'll…protect…you…" Cynthia spoke to both Wendy and Carla, but the fact of the matter was she was scared as well.
"Nothing worked…!?" Happy began to flail in a fearful manner, at a complete loss at what to do next.
"You've gotta be kiddin' me…!" Gray grunted, grasping his arm.
"Is he…truly invincible…?" Erza pondered aloud, unable to help but think that the possibly was true. They unloaded everything they had into him, and in the end, Joker was still standing! Was this truly the man that could defeat even Acnologia...?
"This can't be happening…" Carla spoke to herself, unable to believe what was happening.
"After all that, he's still standing…? I don't believe it…Joker…just what the hell are you…?" Strong asked aloud.
"Ngh…" Cana groaned, staring at the situation her guild mates where in.
"HO HO HO!" King let out a boisterous laugh that echoed throughout the room. "Do you see now, Fairy Tail!? There is absolutely no way you can stop the master plan! If you couldn't defeat Joker, even with Fiore's End at your side, then there's no way Joker can be stopped at all! This means that Operation Endgame is…the Endgame."
"Shit…" Ace cursed.
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"J-Just what the hell kind of monster is that guy!?" Bickslow asked in utter bewilderment. (Monster, monster, monster!)
"We should've gone with them!" Sting slammed his fist into the nearest wall. "Damn it!"
.
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"You put up a good fight, Fairy Tail…" Joker said while pointing his hand at the group of eight, gathering magic for another Dread Lazer, one that would no doubt finish the job. "After I finish you off, your comrades will be next. This is where the story of Fairy Tail comes to an end." Everyone had no choice but to brace for impact. They closed their eyes and waited…for the blow that never came. Joker's magic dispersed, leaving everyone confused. "What…?"
"Joker!" King shouted, slamming his fist on the arm of his throne. "What do you think you're doing!? Finish them off already!"
"I'm trying…" Joker grunted, but before he could make another move he clutched his chest instead, heaving heavily. "Ngh…!?"
"What's going on…!?" Lucy questioned.
"Gah…!" A bright light shrouded the entire room, and when it faded Joker was no longer in his Dread Joker RR suit, he was in his normal attire, heaving heavily as a strange wound was on his chest.
"He changed back…!?" Diamond shouted in amazement.
"His chest…" Heartless spoke under her breath. She knew exactly what was happening. "That blow from Erza damaged his core...so then..."
Joker then fell to a knee, arms hanging by his sides and his head hung low. "Emergency shutdown. Warning…warning…shutting…doooooooown…" Joker's voice got deeper and began to fade until…his eyes went completely black. Dread Joker was offline.
It took a few seconds for it to sink it, but once it did, everyone jumped for joy. "We…WE WON!" Lucy exclaimed with a wide smile on her face.
"We finally took that bastard down!" Natsu felt like he had energy again, now bringing himself up to his feet.
"No way…" Diamond stared in utter amazement, her jaw dropped along with Spade and Strong's.
"They beat Joker…" Was the only thing Spade could say.
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"They won!" Hisui jumped for joy, releasing poor Freed in the process.
Freed gasped for air, immediately rushing over to his comrades. "Why did you let her grab me like that!?" He questioned Bickslow and Evergreen.
"She's the Princess." Evergreen replied with a slight teasing grin, knowing full well how flustered Freed was.
"Aw, man up, Freed!" Bickslow said while patting Freed on the back.
"They're amazing!" Yukino clapped her hands together with a wide smile. "To think they actually managed to beat the unbeatable!"
"That's just the kind of people they are…" Sting said with a soft smile.
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"Ha…hahaha…!" Ace let out a few hearty laughs before finally standing up. "Looks like Fairy Tail really may be the strongest guild in Fiore after all!"
"HEY!" Reve shouted while walking up the stairs with everyone else, the group that entered Nirvana included. "The CURRENT strongest guild in Fiore takes offense to that."
"Oh, glad to see you guys finally made it!" Gray said with a slight grin.
"Yeah, no thanks to you!" Flynn scoffed.
"Yeah!" Cygnus grunted. "We had to clean up that mess you guys left for us!"
"Sorry?" Ace replied with a slight chuckle. "Oh, I see the Nirvana group is back!"
"It took a while to get back. Blue Pegasus is waiting right outside for us," Kairi nodded.
"Alright guys, quick roll call!" Ace exclaimed, turning to face everyone. "Fairy Tail!"
"Here!"
"White Eclipse!"
"Present!"
"Twilight Zone!"
"All here."
"Extras!"
"Here!" Kairi and Chelia exclaimed before realizing what Ace just called them. "Wait, did he just call us extras…?" Chelia asked Kairi with a confused brow.
"I think he did…" Kairi said with a huff.
"Ex-Dealer?" Ace said while looking to Diamond, Spade, and Strong.
"We're all here…" Diamond said with a soft smile.
"Excellent!" Ace nodded and looked ahead to King and Heartless. "All that's left is the final push. Come on everyone! King!"
"Hm…I should've placed my bet on you all after all…" King admitted. "But to think you actually bested Joker…"
"Give us Cana back!" Lucy demanded.
"Oh, right…" King shrugged and snapped his fingers, releasing Cana from the ropes. She landed rather harmlessly on the ground. "I did lose the wager, and I am a man of my word."
"Cana, are you okay!?" Lucy asked while rushing over to the brunette.
"I'm fine…" Cana gave a slight cough. "The only thing that was really close to killing me was the heart attack I had from watching you guys almost lose…"
"What else happened to you…?!" Lucy asked.
"I was trying to protect you…" Cana replied with an exhausted smile.
"Huh…?" Lucy blinked a few times. "I don't understand…"
"You haven't changed a bit, King…" Ace stated while taking a few steps forward. "It's a shame you won't have the chance to reform! Dealer and all its evil doings will end today!"
After Ace spoke, King began to shuffle his deck. "Ho ho…ho ho ho ho ho! You are HILARIOUS Ace! What a superb joke!"
"Give me a…!" Ace grunted.
"Heartless!" King commanded.
"Yes, sir." Heartless responded with a nod. She took a step forward and snapped her fingers, creating a large card beneath her and King's throne. The card then rose into the air a few feet.
"This should be fine here." King stated. "You all look like the despicable and worthless little ants that you truly are! Ho ho ho ho ho!"
"Why you…!" Ace growled now, staring up at King with distain.
"Err…" Elfman scratched his head. "How're we gonna get up there…?"
"You're not getting away!" Natsu shouted as he began to run forward, but stopped when he heard a voice.
"Wait."
Everyone turned around, only to see Jack and Tia at the top of the stairway. "J-Jack!?" Lisanna exclaimed in surprise.
"Tia?!" Ace's eyes widened.
"What the hell are you two doing here!?" Diamond asked.
"Oh, how pleasant!" King exclaimed with a grin. "My loyal children have come home to me!"
"…" Tia remained silent.
"Would you do your father a favor, and take out these pieces of garbage for me?" King inquired with a false fatherly tone. "Ho ho ho! Such good children!" Though the idea seemed far-fetched at first, it really wasn't. With the exception of Evanee, Jack and Tia had the potential to sweep the entire group with ease. They seemed to realize this pretty quickly.
"…" Still, Tia remained silent.
"…King." Jack spoke, causing King to let out a surprised gasp. Jack and Tia then began to walk towards the throne, standing ahead of Natsu. "Why don't you give us all that magic you've collected? It's not like you need it anymore."
"…What are you trying to say, my dear boy…?" King asked with a brow raised.
"First, you lost Ace, everyone has turned on you…now Joker has been defeated…" Tia finally spoke out. "Dealer is done for…Just accept your defeat, King. Does everything make sense now?"
King paused for a few seconds before speaking with a bit of a harsher tone. "…You would dark turn your back on the man who raised you…?"
"Raised us!?" For once, Tia's voice actually got above a shout. "How DARE you presume to be our father!"
"I know you were planning to rub me out after my attack on Magnolia!" Jack grunted. "I'll say this once…we never have, and never will think of you as your father!" Jack exclaimed with a glare towards King.
"…" King fell silent, his head dropping. Soon, his shoulders began to bounce up and down. "Ho…! Ho ho ho!" He placed his hand on his head, breaking out into the loudest laugh he'd ever had in his life. "Hoooo! Ho ho ho ho ho ho ho!"
"…!" Tia quietly gasped at King's reaction.
"What's he laughing for?!" Strong questioned.
"What the hell do you think is so funny!? Jerk…" Jack grit his teeth in slight anger at King's laughter.
"You…You truly ARE foolish children!" King exclaimed in the midst of his laugh. "You came back here nonchalantly, with your noses pointed all high…and now you actually believe that they have me defeated?!"
"Enough bull! Spit it out!" Jack demanded.
"Joker!" King shouted, and on that cue Joker stood up, rebooting rather quickly.
"He's back up again…" Laxus said with a low growl. Joker teleported into the left side of the throne room, everyone staring at him as they tried to figure him out.
"What's he gonna do…" Evanee questioned silently.
Joker spread his arms out, his entire body glowing red. The magic pressure around him began to spike drastically. Ace's eyes widened as he caught onto what this meant. "No way…I think he's going to self-destruct!"
"Self-destruct!?" Taya's eyes widened in disbelief. "He wouldn't dare do such a thing…!"
"No way!" Mirajane clenched her fists. "Joker, you're going into dangerous territory here!" Mirajane warned, but it didn't seem like Joker was listening to her.
"Ho ho ho!" King let out his signature laugh. "That is correct, Ace! Joker will soon self-destruct. I always have a trump card up my sleeve! At least you'll be in the company of friends when you go down!" And with that, the card he and Heartless were on rose into the air, leaving them far out of reach.
"Hah!" Joker laughed with a grin, staring directly at Ace. "What are you doing to do, Black Ace?! Are you going to let everyone here die?!"
"…" Ace silently stepped forward.
"Ace!" Lisanna and Mirajane exclaimed with worry.
"Ace…!" Tia yelled, covering her mouth with her hand after.
"I'm sorry…but there isn't enough time to explain." Ace replied, a bright flash of light occurring as he transformed into his Acid Ace BB armor.
"What the hell are you doing…!?" Gajeel asked.
Ace walked towards Joker, and then leapt towards him. The two clashed, now pushing back against each other. "Hah!" Joker grunted before breaking out into a laugh. "Hah hah hah! That's it, Ace! Absorb all the explosive energy I plan on releasing!"
"He's doing what!?" Selene couldn't believe what she was here.
"We'll both die…but the lives of your friends may be saved!" Joker continued as the room began to tremble from the magical energy.
"I can't think of a better way to go out!" Ace exclaimed with a wide grin.
"Hah…That is truly…despicable…" Joker admitted. "I am impressed by your determination, nonetheless. Goodbye, Black Ace! Aaaaaargh!"
"Ace, get out of there!" Natsu shouted.
"Hey…Diamond, Spade…Strong…" Ace called out to the three.
"Huh…!?" Spade answered for them.
"You three…you've come a long way, ya know…? Keep on heading on the right path, and you'll find the light soon enough…" Ace chuckled.
"H-Hey! Don't talk like you're actually gonna die!" Strong objected.
"He's right! It's not fair! You can't do this to us!" Diamond nearly screamed.
"O-Oi…! Jack!" Ace called out to Jack, which surprised him and caught his attention.
"W-What…!?" Jack replied.
"You have to take care of Tia now, okay? I'm trusting you," Ace replied.
"Don't say things like that!" Aira objected to the attitude Ace was taking. "You can make it out of this! I'll just heal you after!"
"Always so kind…even in the face of adversity you're looking out for me…" Ace chuckled at Aira's sentiment.
"Lisanna!" Ace looked to Lisanna, who's wide were wide in shock. "...Thanks for being by my side. If it weren't for you...I never would've realized that it's okay to lean on people..."
"Wait, don't say that...!" Lisanna gasped, eyes beginning to water.
"Queen…Tia…!" And last, but certaintly not least...
"Huh…!?" Tia's attention was on Ace and nothing else. For a moment, it seemed like they were the only two people in the entire world. "A-…Ace…!"
"Tia…" Ace began. "The reason I left deal and gained all this strength…was so I could make my wish come true…my wish was that one day…I could see you smile again. That you could be happy again."
Tia froze for a second, eyes wide with shock as she allowed what Ace told her to sink in. She remembered their last meeting; and though it wasn't a pleasant one, this all sounded somewhat familiar. "You…You were always so selfish!" She nearly screamed. "I never asked that of you! All I wanted was for my own dream to come true…! If you really wanted me happy, you shouldn't have left Dealer…you could've worked together with me…with us. I…always believed that you would come back…I never stopped believing."
"I see…" Ace cracked a small smile. "That might've been alright. Haha…If I would've done that, we could've still been together. Guess I'm the fool for leaving and trying to make you join my side, huh?"
"Ngh…" Tia averted her gaze.
"But, we can't change the past, now can we…?" Ace asked. "Hah…Regret doesn't make any difference in the end."
"Ace…" Tia slowly looked back up to Ace.
"Goodbye, Tia. Don't forget to smile and eat lots of chocolate…" Ace replied with his saddened smile growing ever more.
"W-wait…" Tia pleaded; she didn't want him to go.
"I…lov….y….Tia…"
"NO!" Tia screamed with her eyes beginning to water. She reached out for Ace, but before she could get close they were ripped apart, and large explosion filled the area.
.
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"Gah…!" Sting grunted as the explosion was enough to cut off the lacrima footage, completely shutting the transmission down.
"Oh no…" Romeo stared at the fuzzy screen, hoping it would turn back on.
"W-What happened!? Are they okay!?" Sherry asked, honestly worried for everyone's wellbeing, especially Chelia's.
.
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The explosion was still strong enough to blow everyone away slightly, moderately damaging them as well; it began to die down, and when it did, Ace and Joker were no longer where they once stood. They were gone, not a single trace of them left. Tia's eyes widened and she scrambled to her feet. "A-ACCCE!"
"…I can't smell him…" Cynthia whimpered with tears beginning to well in his eyes.
"N-Neither can I…" Wendy sniffled.
"Idiot…" Gajeel growled slightly.
"A-Ace…" Tia fell to her knees, then to her hands and knees. Then it all just came out, she started wailing as loudly as she could, tears beginning to spill out uncontrollably. "P-Please…come back…I-I…"
"T-Tia…!" Lucy ran over to Tia.
"Man…" Draco rubbed the back of his head, letting out a heavy sigh. "I don't get it…why didn't anyone do anything…?"
"He was the only one who could do anything," Evanee replied. "He died foolishly, despite that…"
"How can you be so cold?!" Chelia snapped at Evanee. "He…He…!"
"You're still a child…so you don't understand. But there are just some things you have to die for, like it or not. That's how life works sometimes." Evanee brushed Chelia off after delivering the harshness of reality.
"I hate the way she said it…" Reve began with a slow shrug. "But she's right."
"Are you sure there was no other way…?" Juvia asked while rubbing her arm.
"The way he was looking…it didn't seem so…" Luke sighed.
"S-Sis…" Jack slowly approached Tia, not sure how to deal with the situation.
"HO HO HO HO!" King let out his laugh once again as the card he and Heartless were on descending to just above the original location. Everyone turned to King with hateful glares. "I hate to interrupt such a touching scene…but I must thank Ace for his foolish final sacrifice!" King then held up a container, absorbing all the lingering magic in the room. The container shone a bright blue before he put it away. "Ace supplied me with so much more magic I hardly have any idea what to do with it all!"
Tia was still crying her eyes out; she didn't have the willpower to do anything else at the moment. Upon seeing this, Jack clenched his fist in anger. "You…you made Sis cry…" A bright light appeared around his body as he entered his Corvus armor. "YOU BASTARD!" Jack turned, unleashing a line of Wicked Flames in King's direction. Only to have these flames blocked by Heartless, who put up a large heart barrier that shattered after impact. "Heartless?! What the hell do you think you're doing!? Don't you see what's going on here!?"
"Yeah, what the hell, Heartless?!" Diamond nearly screamed, choking back the tears from the incident.
"She would get in the way…" Luke growled, not letting the prior incident between him and Heartless go to rest.
"Ho ho ho!" King chuckled once more, still feeling at the top of the world. "There's still one more loyal subject of mine you must go through! And in your state, I highly doubt you'll be able to take her! For the exception of you, Ace of Twilight Zone, you'd put up somewhat of a fight in your condition."
"You wanna test that…?" Evanee rose a brow while speaking in a threatening tone. It appeared that their last obstacle before King was Heartless.
"I've seen enough…" Heartless spoke out. She then turned to King, giving a glare. "Jigan King."
"Huh?!" King turned his eyes wide as Heartless referred to him as his full name. "What are you referring to me like that for!?"
"To protect and serve…" Heartless continued as she reached for the top of her dress.
"What are you babbling on about!?" King asked with a slight hint of irritation. "Heartless, do you job!"
"As you wish…" Heartless nodded, and then pulled off her dress, revealing an entirely different outfit. It was a Magic Council outfit, the number "1" plastered on the center.
"That outfit…!" Erza's eyes widened. "You can't be…!"
"First Captain of Seven's Magic Council, Heartless, reporting for duty." Heartless revealed her true identity, causing a sweat drop to appear on King's face, along with a look of complete shock.
"Y-You were the traitor…!" King barely managed to proclaim.
"And!" Daigo appeared next to Heartless in the same uniform, the number "2" plastered on his chest. "Second captain; Daigo, reporting for duty!"
"The remaining members of Seven's Magic Council!?" Spade's jaw dropped.
"I KNEW THERE WAS SOMETHING UP WITH THOSE TWO!" Diamond shouted at the top of her lungs, pointing at the pair accusingly.
"So that's why he ditched us mid fight…" Pantherlily said with an understanding nod. "It all makes sense now…"
"Now, King…" Heartless spoke while crossing her arms. "I don't think I need to explain to you the grounds I WILL have you arrested on. If you try to resist, you'll get shut down. Just look around, you're surrounded, outnumbered, and outmatched." Heartless pointed to all the mages down below, just waiting to rip King's head off.
"H-Ho!" King objected with a laugh. "You think I'm afraid of them!? After that explosion they all can hardly stand straight!"
"How about a fresh pair, then…?" Sidney asked as he and Gildarts finally appeared on the scene in a puff of smoke.
"Gildarts!" Cynthia exclaimed with a wide grin.
"It's about damn time…" Laxus scoffed.
"G-Gah…!" King scrambled out of his throne and backed into the wall. Now he was truly in a corner.
"Give up, King!" Daigo said while tapping his temple. "It's over. You've lost."
"You…" King growled at everyone and everything. "In your little act of betrayal…you seem to have forgotten who I really am…" King stood up straight, preparing to snap his fingers. "I'll just have to use…that if I want to ensure that you pest never bother me again!"
"You wouldn't!" Heartless spoke with widened eyes."
"I always have an ace up my sleeve, dear…" King replied with a smirk before snapping his fingers. The entire base began to rumble before an automated voice spoke out.
"Base self-destruct sequence activated. Time until explosion: 10 minutes."
"WHAT?!"
"You can't be serious!?" Gray shouted. "The entire base?!"
"All within ten minutes! You can pursue me if you'd like, but know that if you do you won't come back alive! Oh, and one more thing! Mr. Clive, don't even try and use your Crash Magic to create any shortcuts, unless you want to see the entire building fall down on you and your beloved friends." King chuckled and tapped the wall behind him, opening up a door and walked through it so oh casually.
"DAMN IT YOU GET BACK HERE YOU BASTARD!" Natsu screamed, running up the stairs to the throne and followed after King, the door still open.
"NATSUUUU!" Lucy and Happy shouted after him.
"HEY! Why the hell does he get all the fun!?" Takeru asked with an annoyed grunt.
"We don't have time for that right now!" Selene exclaimed. "We have to get out of here!"
"It was a long way here. We aren't going to make it back so quickly." Waiston admitted.
"Tia…can you stand…?" Lucy asked.
"…" Tia remained silent, her cheeks puffed and red from all the crying she did. She did stand up, however.
"Follow me," Heartless said, placing her hand next to the spot where King left, creating another door. "This is the back door. We can make it out through here. The explosion will take out this entire mountain range, so we'd better get to your ship quickly."
"Why the hell should we trust you!?" Luke questioned, and with good reasoning too.
"We can trust her…" Tia spoke out weakly.
"I feel you…" Luke let out a weak chuckle, understanding Tia's situation before nodding. "Fine…only because she said so."
"Perfect, follow me." Everyone then began to follow Heartless out the back door.
…Except for Lucy and Happy. They didn't feel right leaving Natsu behind. The two exchanged a look before nodding, moving to the right and followed Natsu and King.
.
.
"You're a pest…" King sighed, rubbing the back of his head as he was near a teleportation device. He turned, facing Natsu with a grin. "You'd pursue me this far just to get revenge on Ace, even though you could die in the process?"
"I still have enough magic left in me to finally wipe that smug grin off your face!" Natsu declared lightning and flames crackling around him.
"You believe that to be true, huh?" King chuckled before shuffling his deck of cards. "Very well…I have time to spare to deal with you. Project Endgame will still go on, even if everyone else around me does not."
"Your plan ends here!" Natsu then ran forward, planning to dethrone the king once and for all.
.
.
Natsu: "This is where it ends, King! For Ace, I'll take you down!"
King: "Do you truly intend to take me on alone! How foolish!"
Lucy: "He's not alone, because he's got us right by his side!"
Happy: "Aye, sir!"
Lucy: "You're not the only one with an ace up your sleeve!"
Natsu: "Alright! Lucy! Happy! Let's finish this once and for all!"
Next time: Dethroning the King!