With their plans decided, Fairy Tail was off.
One group consisting of Team Shadow Gear, the Raijinshuu, Cana, Alzack and Bisca headed to Era. Both to back up the Rune Knights in defending the city at such a time, as the three knights had their suspicions of Jellal unleashing a second attack on the council.
Erza and Makarov had also made a point of warning them about Siegrain, neither could bring themselves to trust the man as far as they could throw him. And they could throw quite, quite far…
Meanwhile, Team Natsu would head off with Laxus and the Strauss siblings to the Tower of Heaven, taking the fight straight to the enemy.
It didn't take them long to find out that Jellal was very prepared. The number of enemies on the beach leading to the Tower was more than enough proof. Their reaction to the group only emphasized as much.
''Look what we have here boys. Good ol' Fairy Tail comin' to the rescue again!''
''Time for a little payback!''
The two speakers grinned as their teammates approached, surrounding them with their sheer numbers.
Elfman wasn't even remotely impressed. One reason being ''Didn't you get the idiots in the ugly green armor arrested, Nee-chan?''
Mira nodded; there were in fact, quite a number of dark mages here. Fairy Tail was responsible for throwing many of them in jail and vengeance was clearly on their minds. A scowl settled on Gray's face as he recognized some of the old members of Eisenwald amongst the crowd, recalling Kageyama's words about his former teammates. Did Erigor escape through all the chaos when those guys fled?
''Let's get rid of those idiots already-we've got plenty on our hands as it were.'' He decided.
''You make that sound easy.'' Lucy found their numbers daunting.
Natsu on the other hand...''No sweat, Luce-we got this.''
''Mmhm, ready when you are, boys.'' Lisanna shared a meaningful look with him and Hope before she and Natsu took off. She assumed her Tigress form as Endymion flew up, now in his normal size. Hope aimed a pistol and fired at his friends, to some surprise. But the bullet broke off, hitting them and they were surrounded by a silver aura, moving so fast that they were hardly even seen.
''Wait, was that bullet-?'' Lucy knew the answer even as she voiced the question. That silver power reminded her of Hope's Memoria spells and considering their increased speed, it had to be…
''It's a condensed Accel Force. Those idiots never stood a chance in the first place but the sooner we wrap this up, the better.'' Laxus smirked.
And indeed, Natsu, Endymion and Lisanna went to town on the enemies. Their sheer speed, nearly doubled by Accel Force left their opposition with very little room to retaliate. It wasn't long before half their numbers were cut down to size. And the enemies who managed to evade them were taken down by the rest of the group. The stragglers gathered to use magic only for them trapped by a myriad of luminous swords that pinned them down. Hope snapped his fingers and the spell went off, knocking them out.
''You guys, that was amazing!'' Lucy exclaimed.
''Eh, nothing to it, teamwork's real easy for us.'' Natsu grinned.
Erza made a point of punching two of the Eisenwald members' faces in. ''You people are despicable, Kageyama really was better off without you.''
''Oh and thanks for making this so much easier.'' With one wave of his hand, Laxus struck many others down with a widespread lightning blast. The current environment only helping him, all the water left them with little chance of escape. Happy's sudden outcry brought his attention to the rest of the enemies, who had managed to flee back to the tower the second they realized they were losing. ''…Apparently, I spoke soon.''
''Nah, what's the big deal? We can deal with them later. Come…!''
''Hold it.'' That wasn't what Laxus meant and Endymion knew it ''The man has certainly prepared; charging straight ahead is just going to lead to trouble. I'm picking up on quite the troublesome magic hidden around the entire beach.''
''Then how about we fly over?'' Happy suggested.
''It's risky…but…maybe…'' Hope couldn't help wincing even as he tried to use the sight spell; the sheer magic of the tower was like a bright beacon. There were even some defensive spells around the structure and by the looks of this nasty magic, Hope didn't want to know what that would do. ''…Endymion, do you think…?''
A nod ''It's safe to say that if he really does want to finish what the cultists started, then all this magic would make sense-I don't think even most lacrima gather such power so well…''
''That R-system thing they were working on, right?'' Elfman wondered.
''We'll likely find out soon.'' Endymion flew off Hope's shoulder and grew to his normal size, waving a wing before a sphere of light appeared. ''I don't think this'll be easy either, I can't carry you all and defend as well so you'll have to run interference when any trouble arises.''
Lisanna assumed her Harpy take-over in a flash of light ''That'll be just fine.''
In a moment, he took off. Everything seemed relatively calm but they weren't fooled for a second. And indeed, the forming magic circles only confirmed their suspicions, a myriad of various elemental spells surging at them. Mira raised a hand, a multitude of water pillars doused all the fire spells. Lucy enlisted Sagittarius to shoot down any weapons or enemies he could see, an easy task with his abilities. Erza covered them both by using a shield to fend off any stray attacks and sending a multitude of swords to deflect others. Laxus put a stop to the oncoming lightning magic with ease and hurling it right back to senders. Lisanna seized on the opportunity, waving her wings fast to conjure wind blades that merged with the lightning, the newfound storm mowing everything in its path. Its collision with the enemy magic caused a big smokescreen which Endymion sped through. That was when Hope saw someone he certainly hadn't expected nearby.
What was she doing here?
Everything seemed all right in Era for the most part. The Rune Knights were busy interrogating their most recent captives, intent on using any information they had to get to the bottom of this. But it seemed that Jellal had trusted them even less than anyone realized, they just knew he planned to take out the Council.
''So far as details or anything of the sort go, those guys are pretty much useless.'' Doranbolt recounted to the pensive Levy. ''Those idiots who attacked your guild weren't even supposed to do that; it sounded like their ambitions got the better of them. They sure talk big but I'm pretty sure all Jellal ever wanted them to be is cannon fodder.''
The blue haired girl had that same impression ''So safe to say he's buying time-and if he's being that smart about all this, there's no way he revealed himself…''
''Oh, he didn't. Lord Siegrain did, he was already looking into the prison break and he claimed to have tracked the prisoners' movement to the tower's general location. That's all he told us but he's had trying to deal with them ever since.''
Levy pursed her lips ''…Say, how much do you actually trust him, really?''
''If we're being completely honest?'' Doranbalt sighed ''Sure, I respect him for his accomplishments but I can't say I ever trusted him. A bunch of us feel the same way but the higher ups like him so we know there's no point saying anything. It's just, he gives off this incredibly respectful attitude but sometimes…some of the things I've seen and heard make him seem so fake. A few of the other Councilmen can be pricks but at least they're upfront about it. I don't know what to believe.''
Glad to hear it, Levy proceeded to reveal the other reason they were here ''Truth is, we're also here to keep an eye on him. Master and Erza don't trust him one bit. And this whole thing about him being Jellal's supposed brother doesn't seem right, Erza's known the guy for years and he flat out told her his family was killed by the cultists. He's never had a brother, let alone a twin.''
''Wait, but if that's true…''
Who the hell was Siegrain then?
''Wait, is that…?''
''Juvia?!''
The water mage started and turned, certainly not expecting to be found now and least of all this soon. ''Oh, you're…Gray-sama!''
''Sama?'' Natsu and Happy turned to the ice mage. But Gray was clearly just as confused as they were.
''Juvia's delighted to see Gray-sama again! Juvia has never had to deal with all the rain surrounding her since our fateful battle, and Juvia's never been happier!'' Everyone could see that, the formerly stoic member of the Element 4 acting like this was a real eye opener.
Gray suddenly remembered her reaction when his spell froze the rain. Her sheer emotions when she felt the sunlight...she really hadn't been able to witness the sun for herself all her life…Gray had had trouble believing it at the time. To think something one took for granted everyday could be such a prized commodity to others…
He hadn't realized how much he spaced out until Elfman spoke ''Okay, we're definitely going to shelve that one for later-what're you doing all the way here?''
''Juvia missed her boat to Bosco so she had to travel alone, but then the waves grew completely out of control and the next thing Juvia knew, she was here. There were people swimming away and someone in this strange tower was attacking them so Juvia made sure they could leave.'' With that, it was safe to conclude that she wound up here accidentally as she really didn't seem to have any idea what was going on.
''Juvia could've sworn she heard some evil laughter...it reminded her of Jose's…but everything happened so fast that Juvia didn't know what to do. Is everyone here because of this thing?''
''Yeah, pretty much.'' Happy offered a quick explanation.
The flabbergasted girl could only gawk ''All of that happened here? If those people believed in Zeref so strongly…Juvia heard of a number of dark guilds who want to bring Zeref back-is that what they're up to?''
''I wouldn't be surprised.'' Erza made no effort to hide the bitterness in her voice. Jellal had become so much like their captors and that would be right up their alley. ''At any rate, what will you do now that you know the truth?''
''…if it's all right with everyone, Juvia would like to come along.'' She began ''Juvia wants to help. Fairy Tail saved us from Jose; it's only natural to repay you. Juvia knew he could be selfish but the fact that he had no trouble leaving us in that situation after all we've done for him is sickening. Besides, if this man really is that dangerous then it won't be long before he turns on anyone he deems a target. Isn't it better to deal with such an issue now before it worsens?''
None were about to argue with that logic, her disgust with Jose was also understandable. All members of Phantom Lord had been subjected to heavy investigations after the guild's dissolution with Jose's crimes being discovered. Thus leading to the discovery of a number of the members guilty of similar crimes, some of which they'd done with Jose's blessing and clout to hide. Yajima had made it clear that they weren't taking any chances after the reveal with Jose so they were leaving no stone unturned. That Juvia was even here now was actually reassuring enough for them to give her a chance.
''Well then, thank you. I think we could very much do with a mage of your caliber.''
Juvia's face lit up at Endymion's words ''Juvia will do her best!''
Juvia immediately proved true on her promise by leading them inside the tower via an underwater route she saw earlier, using her magic to take them with a water bubble.
''Oh, we're already inside-nice one, Juvia!''
The water magic smiled at Natsu's words, Lucy nodding along ''Yeah, good call. Going right through the gate would definitely have been more trouble than it was worth, lucky you were there…'' Becoming aware of the azure glare directed at her, Lucy couldn't fidgeting ''…ah, is there something wrong?''
Juvia fought to remind herself that this wasn't the time. She'd been the one who asked them to let her come. It wouldn't do to treat any of them rudely and the situation was dire as she'd just learned.
Still, she fought to keep from letting her resentment for the girl show ''…No, we should…''
That was as far as she got before the sound of running footsteps reached their ears. They barely had time to react as a figure leaped in mid-air, a wide-spread hail of bullets coming their way. Natsu quickly grabbed Lucy and jumped away, Juvia opting to cover him, believing that her water body would render the attack pointless. Thus, imagine her surprise when the first bullet tore at her shoulder, the second one nearly landing in her leg had she not immediately jumped away.
But how?!
''This is a trap! Did she set us up?'' Happy wondered.
She whirled around with a start as Elfman scowled ''Guess it might have been too good to be true after all, what're the odds we can trust anyone from that guild…?''
Gray froze the oncoming bullets with an ice blast ''Wake up! He literally just attacked her in front of us-which part of this seems like a set up to you?''
Juvia's heart leapt at the defense ' Gray-sama! Thank you…'
''And it's not like she stands to gain anything by turning on us in the first place-if she did want revenge we would've known by now.'' Mira reasoned.
''Well, isn't this cute?'' The new arrival was a burly man with orange hair and sharp dark eyes, holding a large revolver out ''Why don't I start with the little lovebirds over here?''
Juvia froze, lovebirds?!
She was so caught off guard that she hardly noticed him aiming at her before Gray pushed her down. Feeling her face flush, the girl managed to mumble a thank you.
What was she doing?! They were in the middle of a battle. Focus, Juvia! She couldn't let Gray-sama in this dangerous situation alone!
The man waved his weapon and it unleashed a wave of fire which Juvia promptly doused. ''Not bad, not bad…really, it was pretty obvious that someone would try to use this path sooner or later. It only made sense to wait here; I didn't think you'd make it easy though. Eat this!''
Elfman leaped in front of the two, his arms now black and scaly as he swatted the bullets aside. ''Sorry, Juvia-that was stupid…'' Both heard Happy mumble in agreement. ''…you guys better get going, we've got a whole lot to handle now and we can't stop here.''
''You sure?'' Gray prodded.
''Absolutely, I'll handle this chump-no problem!''
Lisanna bit her lip as the others started leaving, Elfman getting in the man's way when he tried to stop them ''Be careful, okay?''
''We'll leave it to you.'' Mira added.
Grinning at his sisters, he held his hand in a thumbs up ''Don't worry about a thing, I won't lose.''
His opponent spoke once they were out of earshot, giving up on that ''Well then, big boy, let's see how you handle the great Cannon-sama.''
''Bring it on!''
It wasn't long before they were met with gunfire, lasers and a variety of artillery from different directions. While Hope was still adjusting to their surroundings, luckily, they had Endymion, more than able to stay on point and ward any attacks that came close. With his directions, they knew where the weapons would come from and were able to react accordingly. This was far from the only obstacle however, as there were more enemies hidden in the shadows.
Endymion's eyes roamed the floor ''Strange…''
''What is it?'' Mira prompted.
''I can see other weapons and set ups, but they remain untouched. We must've passed at least ten that were the same way.''
Arching an eye, Laxus spotted one of the defeated enemies trying to get away. ''Let's get some answers…'' He leaped over, landing just in front of him before hauling the man up with an arm ''…in case that wasn't enough of a hint, you better cooperate if you know what's good for you.''
The dark mage gulped, the memory of the trouncing he and his comrades received very fresh ''W-what do you want to know?''
''Start with the R-system.''
As it turned out, the man didn't know the specifics but he'd been able to confirm that Juvia's random comment had actually been right. The R-system was a recreation of an old spell some dark mages came up with to bring Zeref back from the dead many years ago. From what they'd been told, the cultists discovered the plans to recreate it and it was indeed what they had the prisoners building the tower for. Jellal had spent the last few years gathering enough magic power to use it. ''…and we're so close! Just a bit more time and the great Zeref will return, he'll bring us to a world of magic-a world where we'll be free…''
''That's an awful lot you're expecting from the darkest wizard in history.'' Gray couldn't help the acidic bite in his tone, thinking of the man who created monsters like Deliora possibly coming back made him want to punch something. What would someone like that know but death and destruction?
Juvia felt the same, even if for different reasons ''You people really are insane…''
''Say whatever you will! We've come this far, let's see you self-righteous idiots stand up to us with Zeref on our side!''
Gray's anger was only matched by Erza at the moment. All this only confirmed the folly of her actions; she'd just looked away and done nothing, when all of this was going on. And in doing so she played right into Jellal's hands, he'd really turned just as bad as their captors. Not only had he tricked her old friends to such an extent, he'd continued that thrice be damned goal and actually went so far to make it happen.
She felt so sickened with herself, why had she been such a coward?
''Now it really makes sense…they're trying to keep whatever magic they can in their preparations, that's why those defenses were still inactive.'' Endymion knew his partner had come to the same conclusion he had.
''…It's not that this tower just has to do with the system. This is a giant lacrima on itself, isn't it?'' Hope tapped one of the floorboards under his feet, missing the dark mage gawking at him. ''We're standing on a shell. That's why those defenses were only active to keep as many people away as possible, huh? It's not that he's really invested in whatever's going on in Era. This place is what he actually needs.''
''How'd you know?!''
Happy started sniggering ''We didn't-until now. Thanks for that!''
''And now that that's settled…'' Laxus knocked the man out ''…we know what to do.''
Mira allowed a smirk reminiscent of her old self to grow on her face ''Time to cause some chaos.''
With that, they went to town on the tower even as more opposition came their way making sure to cause as much devastation as possible.
Happy flew past an axe user, knocking said weapon out of her hands before one flick of his empowered feathers slammed her into a wall ''We fought a bunch of dark guilds before but seeing all those numbers really brings it home, you know?''
The newly summoned Taurus slammed another enemy to the ground ''Yeah, seeing all those chumps together like that is something…''
''Hold on, how do you…?'' Mira wondered ''Can you guys see what's going on from your world?''
''Well, yeah-of course. That's how we can help our owners on a moment's notice. A few of us could actually cross over in emergencies but that's because it can really take a lot of a spirit. We can keep track of whoever we make a contract with.''
They supposed that actually made sense. About to question him over the mention of spirits crossing over, Mira became of Taurus' eyes roaming her body. ''But I have to say, Lucy-san's new friends are just so loooovely! You're so bewitching I can barely look away, what do you say to giving this big, strong cow a smooch as thanks for all the help?''
Juvia blinked twice, a little creeped out by Taurus' grin. She supposed the question on her mind had been obvious based on Endymion's next words ''Yes, he's always been that perverted. And despite the attitude, he's useful and loyal…to an extent so I imagine Lucy learned to put up with it.''
The girl idly wondered how many times they'd had to deal with such a situation. Then again, Taurus had already gone right back to fawning over Lucy and Erza, recoiling just before the redhead could hit him and now moving on to Juvia herself…
Yeah. okay, no wonder he saw that coming.
As much as Lucy wanted to protect her spirts, Juvia's quivering form told her what was coming and...well, he deserved the consequences ''You can hit him.''
Mira and Gray smirked while Natsu was left muffling his laughter. Laxus only rolled his eyes as Taurus ran past them from another potential blow of the water whip coming after him seconds later.
''…Taurus-san really needs to stop asking for it…'' Hope trailed off.
''Pretty sure that's as likely as Happy giving up fish.'' Lucy shook her head.
''Well, well, well…'' A blue haired man in a long dark coat, white shirt and black pants and boots appeared above them. His sharp brown eyes and even the red tattoo were just a reminder of how much he resembled Siegrain ''…I think this is a bit overdue but welcome, dear guests, to the Tower of Heaven.''
Erza's furious expression only confirmed what they suspected, this had to be ''Jellal…''
''I knew you'd come back, Erza. You can't cut off your past, no matter how hard you try.'' His tone oozed smugness ''How does it feel knowing your once dearest friends are now your enemies? But then, you didn't have much trouble replacing us, hm?''
That couldn't be further from the truth but she certainly wasn't about to waste her breath now ''You're going to pay for all you've done. I'll make sure everyone gets the freedom they deserve!''
''That's some nerve you got, at least now there's nothing you can hold Erza to this time!'' Natsu snapped.
''Aye! Threatening her with her own friends' lives was despicable!'' Happy added.
His best friend wasn't done ''So get off that high horse and…''
Jellal's continuing chuckles cut him off ''Oh, I'd save that if I were you. After all, the game's just beginning. Let's see if you have what it takes to reach me.''
''Game?! What the hell are you…?'' Natsu clicked his tongue as the man vanished ''…so he really wasn't even here, huh? No wonder I couldn't get the bastard's scent.''
''Yes, it looks like a spell to make projections. Does this mean he really knew what's happened all along?'' Juvia wondered.
''Well, since this is apparently some game to that psycho, safe to say you're right.'' Gray scoffed in disdain. Jellal was clearly rather proud of himself despite all his heinous actions, thinking nothing of using his once close friends in this twisted scheme.
If he was really anything like Erza said…how did anyone change this much?
Lucy's expression was pensive ''But then, he could've stopped us like he did the rune knights who came before, right? Why…?''
''You won't have time to worry about that.'' The new voice left them on high alert. Endymion realized that they were so distracted with Jellal that they never saw the new enemies arriving. A large sphere of darkness descended to the ground, revealing a number of dark mages with a single figure in front of them. He was a burly figure with sharp dark eyes, his purplish black hair almost hidden under a turban as he regarded them coolly.
''So you're next in line, huh?'' Bracing himself for a battle, Gray was all set to begin when Erza's voice called out for him to wait.
''…Simon?''
So this was one of her friends…Erza had told them a bit about their small group which formed in the adversity. Jellal had been the brave and strong unspoken leader and Simon; the oldest, had been a kind and reliable figure for them all. Had he fallen for Jellal's lies and manipulation too?
''Erza, it's been long.'' His expression gave nothing away.
Despite that, Erza knew him long enough to notice the sadness in his tone ''Wait, do you even know what's really going on? You can't possibly agree to…!''
Simon only shook his head, a spell circle flashed before his arm changed into a serrated sword. Erza's eyes widened ''No, I can't…I won't fight you!''
''You have no choice.''
One swipe of his blade unleashed a widespread blast of power. Happy reacted at once, lifting Erza into the air ''What're you doing? How can you all believe that jerk over her?!''
Simon said nothing but this seemed to be the signal the other enemies were waiting for, immediately jumping into the fray. Lisanna struck an enemy who'd been about to attack the two with her Harpy Take Over, looking back at Simon ''If you guys were so close, Erza deserves at least the benefit of the doubt. You don't even know what actually happened!''
''I know more than you realize.'' Was all he said before jumping up to attack her, the girl immediately kicked him, her claws meeting his blade before they fell back.
Erza's heart sank, she might have told herself she'd handle this but that was a complete lie. Coming back to this nightmare had been bad enough but even Simon-seeing kind and caring Simon so different now…it was terrible…
The three realized too late that they were far too distracted when a multitude of magic blasts flew at them from a myriad of directions. Erza was oblivious to her friends' alarm, endeavoring to defend Happy and Lisanna at least.
Just then, a silvery wave washed over the area, the attack freezing in mid-air before being dissolved into magic particles. This was Nega Ray, a Memoria spell that could extinguish magic and even add it to the caster's reserve if he wished. Hope fired a swift silver beam from one of his pistols that unleashed an explosion on impact, blowing some of the nearby mooks back while Simon was forced to look away.
Endymion landed next to his best friend ''Even if you can't fight now, that's fine. But what matters is that you don't lose heart, Erza. You know the truth and you're not fighting alone.''
''We'll handle this, you take care of the rest.'' Hope gave her a reassuring look when their gazes met. Uncertainty mixed with guilt left her at a momentary loss, what was she doing? She'd vowed to do something about this terrible part of her past for good and yet here she was, failing at the first test. And to think she'd originally intended to do this alone…she really was a fool.
As if sensing her mood, Lisanna grabbed her hand ''It's okay, come on. You know Hope and Endymion can take care of themselves.''
Hope couldn't help sympathizing with Erza. Talking about this was one thing but actually doing it…hesitating was only natural. He didn't know what he would've done if any of his friends had become enemies either.
Still, something was really wrong here. The more he thought it over, the more he knew-the situation wasn't as simple as it seemed.
Endymion kept his gaze on the nearby enemies even as he addressed Hope ''We can figure that out later, stay focused.''
Nodding, Hope fired a pair of bullets from left and right. Simon transformed both his arms into blades to fend them off before slamming both blades to the ground. Hope jumped to the side to dodge, easily switching tack as wings appeared on his back. Simon held up his blades to block the oncoming strike, one of his arms transformed into a spinning drill that nearly made Hope lose one of his swords. The boy flew back in time, only to be surprised when pieces of Simon's blade broke apart and came right at him. His instinctive response was to dodge, discovering that they were homing in on him. Thus he immediately used Stop Flow, the projectiles clattering on the ground a moment later. Simon revealed he could also darkness magic but his attempt to use it to ambush Hope immediately fell flat. He seemed to realize that Hope could keep track of him with ease as he'd quickly started using it sparingly.
Gray was sure he was missing something here. Hope had been holding back, he knew the boy long enough to conclude that it wasn't just because Simon had been a friend of Erza's. Hope wouldn't have stepped in to fight him if that was the case. What was going on?
Endymion had been planning to help his partner, mainly due to the strange issue they'd noticed. He knew what it meant and why Hope was handling things this way. He didn't quite approve but it was just like him to do such a thing. Hope had this under control, he didn't doubt that. The sight of the oncoming grunt convinced him that he was better off focusing on defending his best friend.
Simon raised an arm, his arm changing once more into a broad blade that unleashed a wide spread wave of water. His other arm then released more darkness magic to get in the others' way. Taurus, who had been about to attack an enemy, chose to do a barrel roll and knock him out with a kick from behind. Others like Natsu and Endymion were able to circumvent the issue with ease.
Simon used a pale blue rapier, unleashing winds that began freezing the water. Seeing it approach his friends, Hope immediately destroyed the ice with Nega Ray, holding up his swords as Simon dove in to attack.
Frost started forming on one of his blades, Hope focused his magic. Seconds later, a fast beam manifested to Simon's far left and he noticed just in time to avoid the worst of the attack, holding his arm up in defense against the resulting shockwave. Said arm then glowed, turning into a tachi. But instead of attacking, he raised the blade, which surrounded him in a bronze aura before he struck. Startled at the sudden speed, Hope tanked it to the best of his ability, transforming one of his swords to a pistol and taking the chance to fire.
Casting Star Gladius, Hope wasn't surprised to see that the enhanced speed let Simon dodged with ease. But he knew what to do about that too.
With a snap of his fingers, the four swords of pure light shone brightly, his opponent immediately looking away. The silvery aura of Accel Force surrounded Hope as he struck again, sending out three bullets in rapid succession, each one nailing the mark. Leveling his swords, his last attack sent Simon to the ground.
The sight of the blade pointed at him only made Simon close his eyes in acknowledgement of the loss ''…I fail to understand why you only shot to disable when it should've been to kill. It wasn't as if your enemies were going to take mercy on you.''
''Simon…'' Erza trailed off sadly.
''Well, that's the thing...I doubt an enemy would've been this reluctant to fight.''
Both Simon and Erza stilled, most of those present immediately realizing how he put it together.
And indeed, thanks to Endymion's teaching, he was starting to get a decent handle on the empathy magic, which was why he knew. Simon acted like an enemy but all Hope and Endymion could pick up from him was sadness, guilt and a great reluctance as well as resentment. It was clear that he still cared for Erza and wanted no part in this.
And thus it was with confidence that Hope could finally get to the issue at hand ''…How did Jellal make you do this?''
''Wait, what?'' Happy stared.
''So he's been threatening the guy all along?'' Taurus added.
It all made sense to Mira then. Like Gray, she'd noticed Hope's restraint and concluded that there had to be a reason. ''Of course he'd do this again. Look what he put Erza through.''
Simon's lips quirked humorlessly ''Ah, so that's why…you saw through me the whole time, impressive.'' A sigh ''It's true. I never considered Erza a traitor or an enemy, no matter what Jellal claimed. I knew she wouldn't have left everyone behind without a good reason. Although I didn't actually know he'd essentially held us hostage against her until today but I certainly wouldn't put it past him either.''
''Then why'd you stay? If you know the guy was rotten to the core…'' Laxus began.
''I couldn't give up on them.'' The answer was simple and heartfelt. ''This place is the reminder of our darkest memories but we were still able to make special bonds, friends who helped us through the worst days. I think that's why they believe in Jellal to such an extent. He's been a close friend for so long that the idea of him betraying them is one they simply can't fathom.''
Natsu made to demand why Erza didn't deserve that kind of faith but Simon was already providing the answer ''We had so little back then so holding on to what we treasured most, our friends, only came natural. I'm not making any excuses, mind you. I know they're wrong but that's simply their view. Jellal played on their worst fears and magnified them so much that they can't bear to consider it any other way. At the end of the day, they still see Jellal, the friend who helped them believe that they can freedom. Not the monster he's become.''
No one could bring themselves to speak after that. As much as they disagreed with the twisted beliefs, Erza's friends had been manipulated by a master. He'd seized on their moment of weakness and simply kept going. Hearing the scope of the situation made Erza's heart sink, it was on the tip of her tongue to apologize but how could she even begin to express how sorry she was? What good would it even do now?
But rather than focus on her regrets, there was another important matter ''…You never answered Hope's question. What did Jellal do?''
Simon's shoulders seemed to slump at the reminder ''…You remember when I talked about my sister?''
''Of course, you and Kagura were separated when the cultists attacked and-don't tell me, you found her?!''
''I did and that's the problem.''
Knowing how much he wanted this, Erza immediately wondered why he would even say such a thing but Laxus saw where this was going ''Let me guess, that asshole figured it out?''
Anger flashed in Simon's eyes, his fists clenching ''Yes. I knew it could be dangerous, I didn't want to drag her into my trouble-if I could just make sure she was all right…that would've been enough. But I underestimated Jellal. I used all the resources I could muster and I managed to track her down, but when I arrived at the area-no one was there. The place looked like it had been ransacked and I found a letter from the one responsible, there was never any hint of an identity but it was rather clear. Jellal never came out and said it but his words made it clear that he knew exactly what happened. Essentially, if I don't play along, Kagura pays the price.''
''That bastard!'' Natsu found himself wondering how far he would sink. This was despicable.
Juvia was similarly seething that he'd even managed to ruin a long awaited reunion between the siblings after all those years. The two were the most vocal about their emotions but their ire and disgust was shared amongst the team.
''I failed her before but…''
''Oh, don't be ridiculous.'' Endymion cut in ''You will be failing her if you give up now. After all, we have a perfectly viable way of figuring this out.''
Happy's face lit up ''Yeah, you guys can find Kagura! Can you see her anywhere in this place?''
Simon was frowning in confusion ''It's not that simple, I've already searched the tower thoroughly…''
''Yes, but this is his base-at the very least there could be a clue to her location. And I think I have one.'' Startled, he gave the phoenix his full attention. ''There's some sort of strange oddity where the magic is particularly different, like some sort of veil or something hidden within. I think it's worth looking into.''
''And where is that?'' Erza asked at once.
The answer came from Hope ''One of the higher floors, it's hard to get more details from here with all the magic but it's true that something seems especially different there. It's not just our only clue but it might be the best to do for her too.''
Mira didn't like what she was about to say but… ''There's no telling how long he'd even keep her there. He had no trouble killing those knights and only Juvia's arrival saved the others, nothing would stop him from doing it again if he felt like it.''
Taurus let out a dismayed noise ''You think he'd really do that?''
Simon already knew the answer. Damned if he did, damned if he didn't…the thought had occurred to him. But the only thing he could do was play along until he found a way to get Kagura out of this. And now even that was meaningless…
''Stand up, Simon.'' Erza's firm voice snapped him out of his thoughts ''We will save Kagura. You can't give up now-not when we're so close to ending this nightmare, to ensure you all have the true freedom you deserved. Will you stand with us?''
Despite everything, he knew there was only one way he could respond to that ''…You don't even need to ask.''
With their new companion giving them much info about the tower, Natsu and Happy were left making cracks about Jellal being in the top. Just like the bad guys who like to make themselves superior. He just watched from his throne and laughed, it was so typical that it was practically cliché.
''That's the kind of stuff you said about Jose and he didn't exactly turnout that simple, did he?'' Laxus drawled.
''Yeah, so? We were still right about him being at the top!'' His fellow dragon slayer countered.
''I bet he's just sitting there smugly thinking everything's going according to plan.'' Happy mused ''I can just imagine the look on his face now…''
''Well…'' Amusement flashed in Simon's tone ''…that doesn't sound too far off from the truth and he does stay at the highest floor a lot.''
''I knew it!''
Lucy rolled her eyes as the pair continued to crow ''Please don't humor them. They're bad enough on a regular basis already.''
Juvia on the other hand was looking around the rooms they went past and immediately regretting it. A number of them had weapons and armor which did make sense but there were also a good number of what she was sure could qualify as torture devices and cells. She could've sworn she saw blood in a few of them too.
The girl had to hold back a shudder ''Simon-san's friends must be desperate if they want to believe in someone like this. Don't they see anything wrong with these rooms?''
''I wondered about that myself.'' The young man shook his head ''I suspect they're just too scared to consider anything else, to face that they might have made the wrong choice after all this time.''
''That better be wrong or I'm decking them all on principle for a start.'' Frankly, Gray couldn't blame Juvia one bit. The rooms really were creepy.
If anyone had paid close attention at the moment, they would've noticed Natsu stiffening a bit. His expression falling…these words resonated with him far more than he would've liked.
''Quite the spirited bunch we have here.'' A blonde woman in a dress emerged from a room to stand in their path. ''You really have no idea what you've gotten yourselves into, do you? I almost pity you idiots.''
Erza immediately went on the offensive, clad in her Heaven's Wheel armor as she unleashed a multitude of swords at the enemy. The woman only smirked; in a flash of light she also donned a red suit of armor. With a thrust of her hand, she launched a volley of scythes to counter-both blades soon falling down.
''Her magic's like Erza's?'' Natsu stared.
But that wasn't the only surprise. The blonde then pointed at Erza and the next thing they knew, her armor was gone.
''What?!'' The girl righted herself before she hit the ground, understandably thrown for a loop. How…?
''Even the famous Titania won't be a match for me.'' The woman produced two more scythes and flew at her, only to be struck with bolts of blue thunder. Not only did she not see it coming, her weapons and armor essentially made her a lightning rod so she had no room to escape.
Lisanna stopped next to Erza in her Thunderbird Take Over, something that didn't go unmissed by their adversary ''You little brat! You'll pay!''
The girl froze when her own spell was canceled next. She got rid of it again. What kind of magic was that?
Mira's warning cry galvanized the girl, immediately transforming her arms and legs as the enemy advanced on her. The blonde found her blade blocked by thick, scaly arms before a similarly scaled leg lashed at her, forcing her back.
Lisanna silently thanked her brother, who'd been her inspiration for this trick. This was based on one of his defensive forms and knowing how effective it was had given her a very useful shield.
With a wave of her hand, the woman summoned some flaming blades which Lisanna jumped back to dodge. Happy yelped as he realized they came at him next. Natsu came to the rescue, grabbing both weapons before swiftly inhaling the fire and tossing the blades aside.
The woman unleashed a widespread barrage of scythes, a translucent wall manifested as Hope reversed them back to sender with Minuere. Growling, the woman made them disappear with one flick of her, summoning a blade that was practically larger than her. She swung it around before striking the ground, the sheer force it produced rattling the area badly. A wave of her hand sent it flying away in seemingly random directions, leaving all those in its path to dodge. This led to the area becoming damaged enough to make parts of the ceiling fall and Lisanna being separated from the others, to their alarm.
''Lisanna!''
''Hold on, we'll-!''
''It's fine!'' Mira and Natsu stopped at this ''Someone's got to handle this and the more time we spend here, the worse things get. Especially for Kagura-we have plenty on our plate as it were so keep going!''
Natsu's expression made it clear that he had every intention of arguing but Hope spoke up ''Do what you have to do and catch up-as soon as possible.''
Lisanna felt a smile beginning to form, winking ''That's the plan.''
Mira bit her lip but relented, returning Lisanna's reassuring smile with one of her own before she followed the others.
The blonde woman, Coordinator, took a step forward ''Looks like you're all alone now-your little boyfriend can't do anything to help this time.''
Lisanna pretended to consider that ''Oh, dear-whatever am I supposed to do?'' Putting a hand on her cheek, her mock worried expression turned calm again ''You should be glad, Hope would kick your butt-no doubt. It's just that he trusted me to handle things now. Although I do feel bad, I can't let him watch me win now.''
Okay, normally she wouldn't be gloating like that but her opponent's reaction made it worthwhile.
As expected, Coordinator charged to battle once again…
Mira pursed her lips as Happy and Lucy voiced their concerns for her siblings, she didn't have a chance to mull it over earlier but she didn't like this one bit either. She didn't like it either but Elfman and Lisanna weren't helpless. They'd worked so hard over the years to grow stronger and she was all the more proud of them for it.
''It'll be fine.'' Hope's voice held absolute confidence ''They can handle themselves, Elfman was already matching up to that man when we left. Lisanna trusted us to handle things now; the least we can do is return that faith. She earned that and then some.''
Natsu almost smiled at this ''Yeah…yeah, let's just wait for the good news.''
Juvia didn't miss how the brunet's words seemed to help soothe the group's worries. Everything she learned about Fairy Tail only assured that they had complete trust in their friends but it was natural to be concerned ''Juvia thinks Lisanna-san had the right idea. We're pressed for time now more than ever and even with Simon-san's information, there's a lot we don't know.''
''I was wondering about that too.'' Lucy looked at the young man in question ''Jellal might actually know you weren't really on his side and so he kept a lot from you.''
''I wouldn't be surprised…'' He agreed ''…I've come to learn quite a bit but I'm sure only he knows the full scope of the plan. About the enemies for instance, I think there's one group in particular you need to look out for. Jellal hired members of Death Head's Caucus.''
''Whoa, those guys?!'' Happy recoiled.
Erza may be calmer but her disgust was clear as day ''He really spared no expense…'' Picking up on her friends' confusion, she added ''…remember the stories about Erigor and what he did to his own guild? Well, those monsters make him look tame.''
Lucy blanched in horror, Gray grimaced ''Damn…I guess it's not too out of the norm with all we've learned but still…''
This seemed to make Juvia's mind up ''Erza-san, Juvia thinks we need to make this clear. Juvia wonders if Erza-san is really ready to face any of her old friends, including Jellal. The sooner Erza-san makes up her mind, the better.''
The redhead found herself unable to respond, knowing Juvia had her doubts after their face-off with Simon. And even Erza knew she hadn't herself well there to say the least…
''That's a bit harsh…'' Lucy faltered.
Surprisingly enough, Simon was the first to counter ''Maybe but it's true. I've done everything I can to make them see the truth but Jellal turned them against Erza. Keep in mind that Jellal also has it out for her the most. They'll most definitely single her out and she has to be ready-even if she wants to save them…things changed far too much to go back to what they used to be. If there's anything I learned over the last few years, it's that there was no saving someone who doesn't want to be saved.''
Natsu could see where they were coming from ''You…did kind of avoid that back there.''
Erza also remembered the subject being raised before. But despite what she said before, she'd just learned that it wasn't anywhere as easy as she thought. Because no matter what everyone, she still held herself responsible for things coming to this. She knew it was no use wondering on the what-ifs but she couldn't help thinking that if she'd just taken action sooner, things might have been different. Simon's words rang particularly true to her as well.
Back when she'd just left years ago, she'd been at her lowest point and only Rob's words about his guild serving as her lifeline, Erza always wondered what she could've done differently. If there was any way she could've made sure her friends would be safe. Back then, she still thought of Jellal as one, blaming the cultists for whatever changed him so much. But in the end she found that it was pointless, he was the one who wouldn't put the past to rest, the one who had no issue becoming just as horrid as the cultists. Simon and Juvia were correct; she couldn't keep treating them like her oldest friends. As much as it hurt, she'd have to face the possibility that it may just be too late to save them after all.
''I'm not making any promises I may not be able to keep but I still stand by my earlier words. This tower will fall and this nightmare will end for good this time. I will do all I can to make sure of it.''
''That's more like the Erza we know.'' Natsu grinned.
She started as a hand smacked her shoulder, looking back to see it was Mira ''Good to see you finally shaping up, Tin can.''
The return of that nickname would've been aggravating but she now found it hard not to smile back. Just having her friends there was doing wonders for her. ''Try not to slow me down, Demon brat.''
Juvia appeared bemused by the interaction while Lucy was fighting back a giggle, looking at Happy ''You weren't kidding about the old rivalry, huh?''
''Aye, old habits die hard.''
Gray snorted ''No kidding. Still, you're really helping us out, Juvia. Good attitude.''
Her face lit up, both from the praise and that it was coming from him. ''Oh, Gray-sama! This is nothing at all-nothing compared to these wonderful words…!''
''Well, so much for that…'' Endymion mused; any semblance of the professional attitude was long gone.
Laxus rolled his eyes, the girl continuing her excited rambling ''Is she schizophrenic or something?''
A laugh escaped Mira ''Oh, don't be silly. It's much simpler than that.'' Natsu looked like he was about to ask but she carried on ''I've been meaning to ask. Simon, do you know anything about Siegrain?''
''I actually wondered if you did.'' The response was unexpected ''I know for a fact that he isn't Jellal's brother, no matter what he pretended. Jellal himself told us that all his family was long gone and he never had siblings. The cultists certainly didn't leave any survivors in their raids, the only reason Kagura escaped is that someone helped her hide and that's why they just missed her in the chaos. He's definitely involved in this scheme, although I can't quite figure out his role.''
Erza could certainly believe that but…''How do you know?''
''As I understood it, he's actually been to the tower quite a few times. But that's not all, I wasn't certain at first but Erza, do you remember that monster from the lower levels?''
She couldn't help grimacing at the memory. They never discovered what went down but the cultists found some sort of creature back before their scheme began and brought it to the tower. They'd managed to shackle it to study extensively and attempt to replicate its power but what they hadn't anticipated was it breaking free and attacking everything in sight. Erza and her friends had managed to avoid it with Rob's help while the cultists barely managed to subdue it. To this day, the memory of that monster sent chills down her spine.
Erza barely heard Simon fill the others in, his attention settling on Hope and Endymion ''If you can see magic so well, didn't you detect anything off about him?''
''We could never be sure since he hardly ever left Era, which means the same problem we're facing now.'' The phoenix summarized.
He nodded in understanding, recalling that the tower's magic was also impeding their sight ability ''Right-at first, I was sure I was imagining it but Siegrain…the few times I've seen him…his presence was exactly the same as that monster.''
''Wait, so what does that mean?'' Happy wondered.
''Nothing good, that's for sure. The guy's totally rotten.'' Gray concluded. ''Mira, you have the lacrima, right? We better give the others a heads up.''
Nodding, the eldest Strauss sibling produced said item, channeling her power for it to connect to Era…
Well, that's that!
I thought about how to handle this arc for a long time and I found something which I feel is for the best. So yeah, I'm changing a bunch of stuff from canon because that really doesn't sit right with me. I considered using OCs but the Fairy Tail world has enough characters for me work with now so yeah, I'm using the movie characters because I'm not using either of the movie's stories. I never watched Dragon Cry but I read the story and let's just say this not going to work with what I've planned here either. Besides, a lot of the reviews I read online weren't really all that encouraging.
Juvia's attitude with Gray was both cute and funny but sometimes it was just unnecessary so I'm trying something else. And that's the same reason I want to handle how Erza views Jellal differently, she knows how much Simon wanted to see Kagura and the fact that Jellal ruined that of course infuriates her more. Simon's magic is called Variable Trigger, he can basically create weapons so long as he is able to understand and handle their power. Ultear isn't actually involved in the tower here, it's partly because of that monster. Which is also why people like Makarov and Endymion are so wary of Eigrain and why things are worse here in some ways than canon; I'll get into that soon.
Anywho, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it. Till next time!
