''Wow, that explains a lot…''

Cana and Bickslow shared baffled looks before turning back to the lacrima. ''We knew this guy had to be off his rocker, Zeref bringing freedom? In what crazy, mixed up world?''

''No arguments here. Anything we should know on your end?'' Mira clarified.

''We just finished dealing with another goon squad. Their attacks seemed completely random until we figured out they were bait to wear Era's defenses down.'' Bickslow grimaced. ''Ever went with Freed and Levy to help patch things up. So maybe those bozos didn't know anything about you guys and they're just attacking here as a distraction?''

''Sounds about right.''

''Oh, and about what you guys mentioned, the monster? Uh, we just heard something pretty interesting…'' Cana glanced to her left where Doranbalt was waiting. ''…I'm pretty sure we know what it is.''

''It's not really well known but the cultists actually discovered a demon even before they built the tower.'' The knight didn't even blink as Natsu and Happy cried out in shock, certainly commiserating.

''Wait, so the place used to be some sort of base for Zeref before or something?''

''No, people generally forget because of that nutjob's legacy but demons actually did exist in the world long before his time. They slowly faded into obscurity over time for many reasons but supposedly they had powers far beyond the magic we know of.''

''Yikes…'' Happy frowned ''…but wait, isn't that thing already gone?''

''Hard to say for sure.'' Was the immediate response ''I've been reexamining all our information about the tower. There's nothing about what happened to it over the years, almost like it faded into the years. Knowing what we do now, I'm wondering if it's been hidden there all along…''


Elfman's newest battle was a reminder that not everything is at it seems at first glance.

Cannon's girth and confidence led him to assume that he was also someone good with close combat if perhaps with a preference for guns and other weapons. But nope, the man was strictly a long-range specialist, much like Alzack and Bisca in a way, he also employed a variety of shots. However, while he was built like a tank, his punches were weak. He seemed to prefer traps and keeping his distance while sniping from a far, but compared to the pair (who insisted that they were not a couple but Elfman was utterly convinced that it would happen someday. Many in the guild were even betting on it) his accuracy fell short.

Another bonus about mastering his Beasts now, he had enhanced senses which kept him on his toes while alerting him to a number of his opponent's traps. Elfman generally preferred brawls and he understood that others had their own choices, this definitely wouldn't have been his cup of tea. But the one thing that was really getting on his nerves?

This guy was so. Damn. Cocky.

Only a few lucky shots and he thought he already had it won; some may have seen it as an advantage but it was really getting old fast.

Elfman batted a fast bullet aside and it hit the ground with a loud bang. He was still a bit unused to combat with a full Beast form but he'd been working on it since the Phantom incident. Like Lisanna, he'd been inspired after learning how hard Hope trained. The boy always skirted around the issue but everyone in Fairy Tail knew fully well that the experiment's effects were a lot worse than he let on. He couldn't even imagine having to deal with something like that on top of everything else that had happened at the time.

It may still feel awkward to even do a full transformation after years of dread but the training was already paying off. Forget the boost in speed and strength, just the fact that he managed to do this at all never failed to buoy his spirits.

''You're not bad at all, handsome.'' Cannon licked his lips. Did he mention this guy was a creep?

There was something that kept nagging at him ''…You know, I just don't get it. We heard a bunch about how Jellal's followed by a bunch of dark guild nutjobs and fanatics who'd love nothing more than to see Zeref back but you don't really seem to care.''

''Eh, you're right.'' The easy confession was a surprise. ''In all honesty, I think the guy's nuts and this is more than likely doomed to fail.''

''Then why the hell are you even here?!''

''A job, obviously. It doesn't matter what we think, Jellal made a deal with the boss and it pays well. All I have to do is make sure it happens.''

Elfman knew the reasons would definitely not be acceptable but that didn't make it any less upsetting. ''So, all those lives, all this devastation, it means nothing if you get your quick buck? As a man, I won't lost to someone like you!''

A snort ''Then what does that make me, a duck?''

''Oh, please-that'd be an insult to ducks everywhere.''

He found it hard not to take satisfaction in the man's clear aggravation at the insult. Aiming his rifle once more, Cannon unleashed a burst of flames. Elfman however, kept charging, his arm transforming into stone before he plowed right through, his gawking opponent soon thrown to the ground hard with the oncoming punch.

Growling, his opponent tried to fire another attack only for Elfman to jam his weapon with a rock. The man could only stare as his weapon nearly imploded, the blast knocking him off his feet again.

Cursing, he grit his teeth ''This isn't over.''

''What do you know, for once we agree!'' Elfman charged back into battle. He fully trusted his friends to handle things ahead so he would definitely handle his part now.


''This just got a whole lot more complicated, huh?''

Lucy felt Happy's words were an understatement ''No kidding! I mean, natural demons? I thought Lullaby and Deliora were bad enough. I don't even want to think of what those must've been like.''

''Well, you did say the people of Galuna Island were demons, right?'' Hope recalled.

Both paused, wondering how they forgot that. Erza nodding ''That's one example, yes. I'm afraid they're likely to be the exception rather than the norm though.''

''For sure...'' That reminded Happy ''...wouldn't you know, Endymion?''

''Hardly, I'd only heard of them but their numbers were quite low back then too. Of course, my former powers were among the most dangerous to demons so they generally tended to steer clear of my species.''

Come to think of it, on the subject of natural demons…

Mira had considered it before but that likely meant the demon from the incident that awakened her powers was a natural born one too. She had in fact looked into a good number of records about demons over the years in an effort to understand her magic but none of Zeref's demons had been anything like that one.

Judging by Hope's speculative expression, he was coming to realize the truth as well. It made sense, for he was among the few in the guild who knew the truth about her past. As much as she admired that he had the strength to tell them the truth (even if the real reason behind that left her wishing to tear his old guardians a new hole) she didn't think she could do the same.

Laxus certainly agreed that the situation was spiraling, Jellal was obviously off his rocker but the lengths he went for this plan were astonishing. The real question bugging him was Siegrain. He couldn't help remembering Makarov, Yajima and Endymion's misgivings about the man. The fact that all three of them were this discomfited by him was as odd as it were suspicious. How was he connected to all this? And if he'd been to the tower before-then he was likely aware of all this-so what was his end goal?

The unfamiliar scents nearby put his thoughts on hold, immediately picking up on the approaching presences. ''…Not even subtle, are they?''

''Well, they're not likely to pull off a sneak attack anyway.'' Gray's deceptively light tone was a contrast to his tense stance. They had the two slayers and their enhances as well as Hope and Endymion with their sight magic, dropping the chances of an ambush to near non-existent.

Almost as if to emphasize this, seconds later, a shadow approached the rapidly growing battle before materializing into a human shape cloaked within darkness. It had been advancing on Juvia and Lucy when the sound of a gun went off, a bullet just barely avoiding his shoulder.

Both recoiled in shock in time to see a man fall back, Hope keeping a wary eye with his weapon at the ready.

Lucy almost slumped as she realized what happened ''Thanks! Now…'' Her eyes widened as the attacker melded with the shadows again. But this proved to be for naught as he was soon forced to reveal himself while dodging Endymion's attack.

''How…?!'' His query died off with a pained gasp as Hope's next bullet nailed his leg. Juvia seized the opportunity to trap him with a thick watery tendril. It wasn't easy to get a good look in this situation but they could see the man wearing a strange mask and a dark cloak that obscured his clothes.

The ongoing battle forced them to take their eyes off the enemy, who deemed it fit to flee with the surprise factor lost to him. Natsu was already going after him when Happy spotted another enemy jumping in to stop him. The next thing they knew, both found themselves unable to move so much as a muscle as the new arrival picked up a card, eyes gleaming in satisfaction.

''The heck…?!'' Gray couldn't help gawking, did he just trap them in that card?

''Well, it figures those guys couldn't stop you. Not that it matters, really-well, those two can't get out unless I say so you better do what I say if you want them back.''

Eyes narrowing, Mira held her hand as if firing a gun. Then a sphere of magic materialized, bursting right in his face. A cry escaped him as he recoiled, momentarily blinded, Endymion swiftly snatching the card before giving it to Erza as she held the remaining enemy at sword point.

''Let us go! I can't do anything, what kind of magic is this?!'' Natsu griped, his voice tinny.

Erza had been all set to demand the duo's release when she took a closer look at the blonde's face, finding it startlingly familiar. ''…Sho?''

Her only response was a steely look which transferred to Simon. ''How could you help them? What're you playing at?! She betrayed us, remember?''

''I told you all years ago that you shouldn't be taking Jellal's word as gospel and I stand by that.'' Even calm as he was, Simon couldn't restrain the anger in his words as he explained his discovery about Kagura.

''And you think Jellal actually…? No way, there's got to be some kind of mistake!'' No one was really surprised to hear this ''She's turned you against us already, huh? Just like she had no problem turning her back on us! Having new friends wasn't enough for you, huh? Now you want to come back and take what we have now?! Jellal would never do something like that!''

Okay, something wasn't right here.

Endymion took note of Hope's confusion, something he found he found gratifying as it proved he'd noticed the issue too. Their training was paying off, his partner was just too inexperienced with empathy magic to understand the situation.

''Are you really that obedient to him?'' The phoenix wasn't about to mince words now. ''He decides Erza is an enemy and that's that? Surely you must have noticed some inconsistency with the story-would the Erza you knew simply turn her back on her friends? If you truly resent her like you claim, why do you even care who her friends are? And most importantly, how long are you planning on living in fear?''

As Sho spluttered in protest, Mira only shook her head ''So it really is just like we heard…they can dress it up anyway they want but they really are scared.''

''You're wrong!'' Neither of them blinked at Sho's ire. ''We're going to change the world. This is all to obtain true freedom!''

''See, that-that right there!'' Gray exclaimed. ''What freedom? You had all the chances in the world to take your freedom but you never did! Simon tried to tell you but you just stayed in your little hidey-hole because it was easy. You were so scared of the world you knew little about that Jellal just got to play you guys like a harp. You're allying with dark mages, with people who believe in Zeref just like the cultists who ruined your life before. And Jellal's the one who set this all up, you don't see anything wrong with that?''

Any attempts he had at a rebuttal died with Hope's quiet question ''How do you expect to find freedom when you let the past control your life?''

''You talk of wanting to believe in Jellal because he's your friend, weren't Simon and Erza friends as well? Your record isn't exactly promising.'' Endymion waved a wing, conjuring images of the devastation Jellal's scheme caused so far. ''This is the sort of havoc Jellal was all too happy to wreak-and he's only just gotten started. Is this the kind of person you want to call a friend? Someone who has no trouble destroying everything in his path no matter what, how is this any different from the cultists?''

Erza couldn't have said it better herself. While she still believed herself responsible for their situation, the fact remained that her old friends were indeed averting their eyes from the truth. She hadn't missed the doubts resurfacing in Sho's gaze as her friends went on, one thing that hadn't changed about him was the tendency to wear his heart on his sleeve.

''You're perfectly in your rights to hate me. I was weak…too much of a coward to bear facing my past, facing you all. It seemed like I had no other choice; I couldn't do anything but keep going forward. Then I found Fairy Tail, Grandpa Rob's old home. I'm not sure I would have stayed if it wasn't for his faith in the guild. You see at the end of the day, Sho, I never forgot about you. I couldn't possibly…you were my first friends, my light in the darkest of times. Not a day has gone by where I haven't wished I could've done things differently. Whether or not you believe it, Jellal forced me to leave that way by threatening your lives.'' Sho froze. ''He changed so much, look away all you want, Sho but the fact is the friend we once knew is no longer there. By following Grandpa Rob's words, I found a home and family. You know what this place is like more than any of us, can you really call it home? Is this the kind of life you want to be leading or is it one that you simply felt compelled to follow? No matter how you all feel about me, you deserve your chance at freedom and I won't let anyone take it again.''

The former ducked his head, fighting back tears at the heartfelt words. Simon chose to press forward ''You never answered the question, Sho. Erza rose to protect us, just as weary and hurt as we were yet she was the one who led the rebellion which stopped our captors. Do you really think someone like that would just turn on us? Why?''

Almost a minute passed before the response ''…I know! I know, okay?! It didn't make any sense! But she just up and disappeared-just when we thought it was all over! Losing old man Rob was bad enough but at least we had each other, then we find that Erza's gone just when freedom was in our reach…'' His gaze lowered. ''…but…it's just like you guys said after all. We just convinced ourselves that this is the way it has to be but truth be told…we couldn't face the world and Jellal knew it. He told us exactly what we wanted to hear…we didn't even make the slightest attempt to escape the place we hated with a burning passion. It was just easier to blame someone-to believe all he told us but we did suspect, how could we not? It's not like we're not wary of those dark mages too. Turns out looking away from the truth is a lot easier than it seems.''

Even as Sho began fighting back tears, Laxus couldn't help noticing a pair of presences that hadn't been there before. They seemed particularly intent on remaining in the shadows, which was rather odd. Before he could voice these thoughts however, a new voice spoke.

''Pathetic.'' A swarm of magic coalesced in the center of the room, revealing a man garbed in dark clothes, his beady eyes on Sho. ''So, this is all it takes to make you abandon our cause, vermin? I told Jellal he was better off disposing of you weaklings anyway.''

Happy looked at Simon ''Who's that?''

''Alok, Death Head Caucus' new guild master.'' The young man's stance was terse ''And one of Jellal's most ardent followers, he might even the only person who's actually invested in this asinine plan just as much as Jellal.''

''Asinine? Hmph, I warned Jellal he was far too careless keeping imbeciles like you around.'' A shake of the head ''We are here to usher a glorious age of darkness with the great Zeref. Any dissenters…'' He raised his staff ''…shall be disposed of.''

An intense aura of magic surrounded him for a moment before it suddenly grew in intensity, almost covering the whole floor in its glow. It was so intense that even Mira and Gray's attacks were destroyed before they even reached Alok. The condensing magic suddenly formed a myriad of blasts that rained everywhere, everyone scrambling to dodge.

Feeling the familiar magic near him, Hope's gaze automatically drifted to the pendant, wondering what was going on. This wasn't like when a shard was nearby, the reaction seemed different…he couldn't help noticing the strong sense of foreboding…almost like it was…from the pendant itself?

Was it…trying to warn him about this? He knew it was bad but he had no idea what to short of trying to get everyone away…and they likely didn't have time. Not when trying to fly amidst all this gathering magic would surely spell trouble…

Wait-that wasn't quite right…there was one but…using that spell after last time...

A cry brought his attention back to the others, Lucy trying to help steady Erza as the shield she'd quickly summoned almost buckled while fending off another attack. She was already donning her adamantine armor but even that couldn't stop the devastation around them. Juvia had joined Mira, Endymion and Laxus in trying to get up close to stop Alok but all the chaos was making that difficult.

The boy shook his head vigorously, what was he doing hesitating now?! He couldn't stand to watch-if that was his only choice…then that was just what he had to do.

Concentrating his magic, Hope targeted the immediate area around Alok. The pendant shimmered as the silver founts of magic into being, distorting the surroundings. In moments, the magic gathered into a translucent sphere of power and everything seemed to come to a standstill there. Before they quite knew it, the gathering magic power was dissipating…

''What…?''

''What just happened…?''

''I thought Stop Flow wouldn't work around huge concentrations of magic…'' Gray mused.

''It doesn't…that was…'' Endymion's expression turned contemplative as he flew to join Hope.

''Whatever it is, I'm glad that's-whoa!'' Lucy's yelp made them follow her line of sight to Alok.

Or where he used to be, because all they found was a strange human shaped machine which seemed to have imploded. Erza scowled ''So it was nothing but a fake all along. I've seen dark guilds use such sneaky methods, they charge that thing with magic so it takes their exact likeness and they control it from afar. He must have overloaded the machine with magic on purpose just to get at us.''

Hope was almost overcome with relief and revulsion at these revelations. Relief that this was what it really meant in the end and revulsion that he'd had to use that spell now…

''Don't you ever think that.'' He looked up at Endymion with a start. ''You were thinking of everyone's safety, it's only natural to do what you can and help.''

''B-but I…''

''Do you regret intervening now?'' Hope shook his head at once. ''I'm sorry it had to come to that but you made the best choice. It's all right, more than, really. You'd never abuse your power, just the guilt you feel now is more than enough proof.''

Mira was sure she wasn't the only completely lost here but it didn't take a genius to figure out the root of the problem ''…What was that spell?''

''Momentary Mirage, it distorts the flow of time around a specific area or target.'' That sounded impressive but it still left the matter of just what was eating away at Hope. ''The problem is, if used on living beings it can cause terrible side effects. It can make them forget what they were doing, which was Hope's intent, but if used for long, it may lead to permanent damage.''

Lucy and Juvia gasped, Erza staring at Hope in similar shock as well. It then hit her-Hope's sight spell had a limit depending on the amount of magic in the vicinity. So given the situation, he hadn't even known Alok was…

Her fists clenched, if only she'd been able to do something. Then he wouldn't have had to…!

''I guess you found out the hard way, huh?'' A part of her wanted to let Laxus have it for his nonchalant tone. Couldn't he see how serious this was?

''I read about it in a book years ago, once we understood how it worked, I thought it could be useful. It…it was just supposed to distract some monsters so they wouldn't hurt anyone else but then…they all just lost it and…I didn't want…''

Laxus then understood. Before he joined the guild, he'd had no choice but to teach himself for so long. While it was good that he could be independent, that way also came with its own set of problems. Spellbooks only went so far. In fact, not many of them described the necessary information for magic.

It reminded him of why Makarov insisted on teaching him when he first started learning magic. Not only had his deadbeat father been a completely pathetic excuse of an instructor, learning magic hardly ever came without setbacks. Having a teacher like Makarov made a world of difference indeed, yet another reason he was grateful to their grandfather.

And it was a luxury Hope hadn't had.

While he was certain Endymion would've tried to help, the phoenix wouldn't have known how to evade such pitfalls. Not when his experience with humans was so limited. That was without the complexities involving their powers too.

''It worked, remember? Focus on that. As much as we'd hate it, sometimes we have to make hard choices and I know you're not letting something like that get you down. Besides, we have to take care of this trash heap and make sure that nutjob doesn't wreck anymore lives, right?'' Laxus was well aware that they needed to talk about this but not now. Not with the situation so dire.

He pointedly ignored Lucy's mumbling about having no tact, smirking as Hope met his gaze and nodded. ''Atta boy, come on. Let's go.''

''That…actually helped?''

Lucy hadn't realized she'd verbalized the thought until Mira chuckled ''Well, I think Hope's just used to how Laxus operates by now.''

''Sounds about right, I mean, can you even imagine Laxus being comforting? Even he knows he'd suck at it.'' Gray added.

The former bit back a smile ''You do realize he can definitely hear you?'' Gray winced, almost feeling the glare coming his way and far too unnerved to look at the blond. ''But either way, it's true. We should keep moving.''


Juvia's expression was pensive as she watched the brothers ''Hearing about the White Paladin, people wouldn't know it…but Hope-san's still so young…''

''Aye, he never told us about this it. He knew that spell all this time but he never used it…whatever happened the first time must be awful.'' Happy added quietly.

''I was wondering about that, actually. How long has he been a member? It seemed like he fits so well with you all but at the same time…'' Simon began.

''Just a little over two years.'' Both he and Lucy turned to Erza in surprise. ''We've known him for longer but it took us some time to convince him to join…''

''It's not that he didn't want to join, he thought he'd be nothing but trouble for us.'' Mira added bitterly. The desire to throttle the people who hurt him to the extent that he perceived himself this way remaining. ''People failed him for far too long and we refused to let that stand.''

''Speaking of failing, what do we do with this guy?'' Gray cocked his head towards Sho, who had been trailing behind Simon with a despondent expression.

The blond himself spoke up ''I won't ask you to trust me but mistakes or not, Simon's my friend and I won't let the bastards who took his sister get away with it.''

Nodding, the ice mage was about to ask Simon and Erza for their opinions when he noticed Simon stopping. Arching an eye at his expression, he followed the man's line of sight as Erza frowned ''What's wrong?''

Unlike the other areas they'd passed so far, this place was surprisingly empty with nary a soul in sight. However, that didn't mean the fight wasn't still going on. As the next arrival would prove.

''…Kagura?''

The dark haired girl smiled, her yellow eyes never leaving Simon's…


Lisanna was once again very, very grateful for the sparring matches against her friends. For thanks to that, she had a good understanding of her opponent's abilities.

Coordinator's style was a lot like Erza's. Quite skilled with Requip magic, she had her own means of handling it with armor and weapons of the likes she'd never seen before. She also had that annoying dispelling trick which somehow worked on her take-overs too. Luckily, Lisanna had done the best she could to build herself up as a tricky opponent and it was really paying off now.

Her Tigress form's quick reflexes allowed her to dodge the woman's blades with ease, before striking back with her claws. Coordinator looked smug, calmly raising her blades up for defense, only to be taken aback when one of Lisanna's arms changed into a much larger, bestial form, causing a punch that sent her careening further into the air. The girl allowed herself a grin, Coordinator continued to dismiss her, thinking this to be an easy victory since the heavy hitters like her sister and Laxus had left. And Lisanna was more than happy to bring her ego down to size.

''You and that guy from back there, you're not dark mages, are you?'' Over the years, they'd gotten to learn about dark guilds in all the battles and stories around them, which left Lisanna to wonder ''I've never heard of Carbuncle before.''

''What, you think anyone who stands against you is a dark mage?'' Coordinator shook her head ''We're from the Principality of Veronica, it's just a little nation now but the higher ups are looking to expand our might. And we'll do anything to make it happen.''

''Even if it means sacrificing so many lives? If it brings back the darkest wizards in centuries?!''

''Hey, if you want to blame anyone for that, look at your own government. They had this much trouble under their noses but nobody even noticed a thing.'' The blonde shrugged, smirking ''They basically all but greenlit this, I mean Siegrain was one of their trusted members for crying out loud.''

''So, we were right, he really is involved…no wonder Master warned us never to trust him…'' Lisanna muttered.

''Well, I guess that makes your master smarter than those idiots put together. But that's enough talking…'' Coordinator took a step forward ''…so many big names like Titania, the Demon and Laxus Dreyar involved and yet you're left behind. You're nothing compared to them, little girl!''

Having heard such taunts plenty, Lisanna didn't so much as bat an eye. She was proud of her sister and their family for rising to such prominence but that didn't make her weak. ''Fame and reputation don't have anything to do with us being here now.''

''Fair enough, I'll give you that.'' The blonde launched a sword which unleashed an explosion once it hit the ground, Lisanna immediately guarding from the shockwave. ''It's no use!''

A series of explosions followed as more blades flew, raising a smoke cloud. Coordinator squinted as it began to clear, startled to find no sign of Lisanna anywhere. Then she heard a low hissing sound that brought her attention to her surroundings which appeared to be…melting? What the heck?

Frowning, she kept her weapons at the ready, only to be shocked when a swift claw strike came from her far left. Gritting her teeth as she clutched her arm, the woman looked over to find Lisanna landing, clad in a strange camouflage lizard like take-over. Before she could even think of dispelling it, the girl transformed back before switching to her bunny form, using the leg power to jump up high before using the momentum to descend for an extra sharp kick.

Lisanna allowed herself to feel a bit of triumph for catching her opponent off guard again. Using her slug take over (which she'd honestly obtained by accident and as much as it used to gross her out, it had proven useful) as a distraction, she'd snuck away, using the smoke and her transformation magic to sneak away. Then she'd assumed her new chameleon take-over, obtained from their recent escort mission, to get in her opponent's blind spot. ''Still think this is an easy fight?''

''Tch-! You just got a couple of lucky strikes, brat. And it won't happen again!''


Hope felt a knot in his chest as he registered the numerous emotions from their group. Simon's shock and joy, Erza and Sho's relief, Juvia's doubt, Lucy and Happy's delight…so much at once that it was hard to parse.

And the strangest thing was this odd urge to…follow them? But it didn't seem to coming from anywhere in particular and was in fact much more far off…and everyone was just leaving after the other…what on…?

Somewhat dazed from the emotional overload, Hope shook his head a few times. Noticing Natsu running after them, he immediately grabbed his arm.

The dragon slayer blinked a few times, feeling as if some fog was lifted from his mind ''…The heck?''

''Back with us, hothead?'' Laxus clarified.

''I…think so? What just happened?''

''Beats me. I was just trying to tell those three it couldn't actually be Kagura because she didn't even have a scent but they wouldn't listen. The next thing we know, they're all taking off. Looks like you were affected with whatever happened there too.''

Mira pursed her lips, that couldn't have been normal. Juvia and Gray had expressed their skepticism as well but even they had gone after the others. ''Natsu, can you describe what happened there?''

''It's like…it felt like I absolutely had to go, no matter what. Then my head really cleared up once Hope grabbed me.''

''So that's it…'' Endymion's eyes narrowed ''…they've fallen to an attempt at emotion manipulation. Simon, Erza and Sho are the most invested in saving Kagura and that left them especially susceptible. The rest were simply caught off guard and we were too far for it to work at once. Hope and I are empaths, so we're far less likely to be affected. Hope accidentally used the empathy magic to snap Natsu out of it.''

''They can do that too?'' Disgust rose in Mira at the thought. As if Jellal hadn't hurt the siblings enough. The fact that he'd even toy with Simon's emotions like that turned her stomach.

''What're we standing here…?'' A scream reached their ears, Natsu immediately jolting as he recognized the voice ''Lucy!''

Before they even knew it, he was running off towards the source. Laxus clicking his tongue ''That idiot, sure we've got to help but rushing like this means we'll probably get into the trap too-!''

''…I don't think we have any choice, actually.'' The alarm in Endymion's voice made him pause, realizing the phoenix was scanning the area.

Hope quickly followed suit, his eyes widening ''Why…?''

The former met his gaze ''I can do something about this but I'll need your help.''

''What do I have to do?''


Natsu arrived in time to find nothing but chaos.

Happy was attacking Lucy, seeming far angrier than he'd seen him in a long time. The girl had chosen to hide behind the boulders scattered in the vicinity, though she seemed completely paralyzed for some reason. Juvia was curled up on the ground nearby, her expression one of abject fear, tears streaming down her face. Erza and Gray were locked in some sort of fierce argument and they looked this close to doing battle. He couldn't see Sho anywhere but Simon was on his knees, his head lowered.

''What the hell?'' Shaking himself, Natsu decided to approach his partner ''Happy, what're you doing? Cut it out!''

''If you're not going to help then get out of the way, she's a traitor!''

Whatever he expected, it certainly wasn't that. ''What're you on about?!''

''Sho got caught up in one of the traps because of her and thanks to her freezing up, another trap nearly sliced my wings off!''

''I-I'm sorry, it was…it was an accident!''

''I don't want to hear anything from you!'' Happy all but snarled.

''Oi, knock it off-this is nuts!'' Natsu was ignored again as Happy flew up. ''Lucy, get out of there!''

''Why're you helping her?!''

The blonde was quivering, her expression one of abject fear ''I-I can't…I don't know where to go…I'll just mess up again…''

Gritting his teeth, Natsu looked around, wondering why no one was seeing what was wrong with all this. Somehow, Gray and Erza were still glowering at each other. Juvia seemed to be in some kind of shock, her expression haunted. She was mumbling a lot to herself, something about being gloomy and her magic being out of her control again…? What?

Come to think of it, where was the fake Kagura? Did that have to do with Simon's state?

''What's wrong with you guys? Snap out of it already!'' Turning at the sound of footsteps, he was quite relieved to find the others catching up. Mira immediately went to stop Happy as Laxus decided to handle Erza and Gray ''Hope, Endymion-you guys can put an end to this, right?''

Before either could even formulate a response, a chuckle reached their ears as another figure emerged from the other side of the hall. It was a person they'd all seen at least once, the familiar blue hair and white and black ensemble belonging to none other than the very council member who'd aroused their suspicions, Siegrain.

''You!'' Erza spat; her aggravation only grew at the sight of that seemingly permanent serene smile. ''I knew you were involved with all this, you bastard! You're just like Jellal, acting like we're nothing but puppets for your sick amusement, you'll pay for what you did to Kagura, to all of us!''

But Siegrain's expression never wavered. The reason for that became clear as in moments, Erza faltered, the sword dropping from her hand as she landed.

''Wait, he didn't even move…'' Natsu managed, baffled.

Hope knew it was because he didn't need to. This was why Endymion stressed the importance of training the empathy magic. The ability worked in subtle ways but that didn't make them any less dangerous. But this person…just looking at him practically set off alarm bells for Hope, which he would later learn was his empathetic abilities warning him of something being amiss.

There was a chill in the air…and that strange sensation again, of having the urge to act…and it was definitely coming from Siegrain. Hope tried to get to Natsu again as the teen bristled, stumbling as he picked up on the new arrivals' emotions, they were so strong…the sheer malice sent shivers up Hope's spine as his head spun. Natsu reached out to steady his friend, alarmed.

What…what was that?!

While he'd learned to keep the magic under control in general, he'd never faced such vile emotions before. They were so intense and twisted that he could feel his heart racing as if in an attempt to evade them.

''Hope?!''

Trying to apply Endymion's advice to calm himself, Hope found it quite difficult when he was such a maelstrom of darkness. It was practically suffocating...

A golden wing wrapped around him a moment later, the familiar gesture providing some sorely needed comfort. He hadn't even noticed Natsu was charging at Siegrain until then ''S-sorry…''

Endymion shook his head ''You've done well. I hadn't thought we'd encounter something of this scale. And I definitely didn't expect to find an answer so soon.''

''Answer to what?'' Laxus quirked a brow.

''The monster…'' Hope's voice was shaky as he tried to steady himself ''…it's him.''


Lisanna's next attempt at an attack was halted when a smirking Coordinator donned her multi-sword armor, taking advantage of the girl's surprise to grab her by the neck and throw her down. Wincing, Lisanna spotted the three swords flying towards her then, immediately rolling away and jumping to her feet. But the swords then followed her, trapping the girl in a triangle formation. Coordinator raised a hand and one flew to her, shining with power. Thinking fast, Lisanna assumed her partial bunny form, not even surprised when her opponent dismissed it as something not even worth dispelling.

A notion she quickly regretted with the girl taking the chance to launch a sharp kick to the side that threw her off. Growling, she made to unleash more swords at her. Lisanna focused her magic on her transformed feet, kicking one of the metal plates on the floor hard enough to lift in front of her as a makeshift shield. ''I know I'm not as strong as my siblings but that doesn't mean I'm weak, as one of my best friends reminded me. It doesn't mean I can't be strong in my own right.''

''Spare me the mushy crap…'' Coordinator frowned in confusion as the girl transformed her arms into bulky ones like her brother's Beast King form.

''Here, you can have those back!''

The woman blanched as she tossed the metal plate with her own blades pointed at her. Coordinator was forced to dodge the speedy projectile, Lisanna seizing the chance to use her alkonost take over, freezing her opponent solid. But she didn't let her guard down, wondering if the battle truly was over.


Siegrain smirked ''My, revealed so soon? I suspected you two would be trouble, the White Paladin and his partner but certainly not to this extent.''

''You've got to be kidding me…all these years and he's been running around like this. I knew they were full of themselves but is everyone on the Council completely blind?'' Mira hissed.

''I'm actually surprised it was so easy to pull the wool over their eyes too.'' He shrugged ''Yajima and Belno were the troublesome ones but considering their views tended to be far more reasonable than the rest of that arrogant lot, they tended to be shoved aside.''

Endymion blinked, Belno suspected something too? Come to think of it, she never left Hope around Siegrain alone during all their visits to Era…

''Not that it did much good in the end. For all their oh-so vaunted positions and power, they really are nothing but worthless humans in the end.'' His sneer turned twisted, almost emphasizing the fact that he was anything but human. ''But I think that's enough of you lot running around here so…''

With one flick of his hand, everyone stumbled in shock, the sheer wave of negative emotions like a tsunami threatening to engulf them. Lucy cried out, Happy curled into a ball, tears in his eyes as he whimpered in the makeshift prison Mira trapped him in. Gray's expressions turned furious, while Erza turned her venomous glare on Mira. Juvia and Simon were clearly more despondent than ever…

''You…you're just like them, aren't you?'' The girl's eyes widened.

''You heard her, you're a demon too. You set us up!'' He spat.

Mira could only look in shock. She knew Endymion had been protecting her and the others from his manipulation but the fact that Siegrain's power went so far…

''Stop that!'' Natsu snarled, Laxus aimed a bolt of lightning at the fiend who simply jumped away.

His gaze landed on Endymion ''You're the one trying to get in my way, aren't you? But your power still depends on the child and for someone this inexperienced…'' Hope's frame continued to tremble against his partner; the emotions leaving him barely able to think straight ''…there's only so much that can be done.''

Loathe as he was to admit it, Siegrain was right. They'd been progressing nicely but it had only been a few weeks since Hope discovered this ability. Dealing with something of this magnitude required the kind of fortitude gained from years of experience. He'd reacted immediately to protect their friends from the new attack but the others were already compromised and holding this up kept a significant strain on Hope.

If that monster's power could even twist things to such an extent…!

The feeling of the familiar magic gave him pause, looking back at Hope, who nodded. He could feel his friend's wish to protect everyone, to give them peace of mind and end this torment. Despite everything, he couldn't help smiling. Hope was doing exactly what they talked about earlier, helping him project a sense of serenity to counter the demon's powers. And that was all he needed…

Within moments, everyone came to a stop. Erza and Gray blanching as they realized they were fighting Mira, Happy looking around in confusion. Juvia blinking a few times as she finally registered her surroundings as Lucy came out of her hiding spot. Simon stood, looking back ''What just…?''

''Mira, did we…?'' Gray began, alarm and guilt clear in his gaze.

She shook her head with a smile ''It's okay.''

In spite of the myriad of emotions now, Hope registered nothing but relief as their group came together again. His vision blurred as the world spun once again, slumping against Endymion. He could barely hear a number of voices talking over each other but it was hard to make anything out.

''What just happened?'' Happy yelped.

Juvia shook her head, stricken ''Juvia felt like she was back when…what was that…?''

''We found the mysterious monster.'' Laxus cocked his head at Siegrain. ''It messed with your heads and nearly got all of us too but luckily, we have empaths of our own here.''

''So, when everyone came…that corpse…''

''Yeah, definitely a fake.'' Gray glowered at the fiend, anger reigniting as he recalled how horrible it was to see Kagura impaled on the ground, her blood seeping everywhere. Just a sick trick intended to shake them up.

Simon stood, fury practically radiating off him. The joy of finally seeing his sister and safe and sound only to find her moments later, battered and broken. All he could think of was how he failed her and now this…''You bastard…''

Erza took up her weapon once more ''You'll tell us where Kagura is, this instant!''

''And ruin the game now? Oh, I think I'll be enjoying watching you struggle to the bitter end.'' He was gone in a flash of dark light, just in time to avoid Erza's sword, leaving to land on the ground.

As much as he shared her ire, Simon was also very, very glad that this had been a trick because it meant Kagura could still be saved. Happy wrapped his arms around himself, shuddering ''That's the kind of thing empathy magic can do? Thanks, Endymion, you guys really saved us.''

''I'm glad we could help.'' The phoenix returned for the both of them as Mira helped Hope sit down, letting the boy lean against her.

''Don't we have those elixirs?'' Natsu thought out loud.

The girl looked curious ''I'm pretty sure I distributed them to everyone, including you.''

''They're with Happy for safety. Natsu still can't figure out how to use the personal dimension, remember?'' Gray put in, taking one out and handing it to her. Mira nodded gratefully, helping their friend drink it.

Juvia was sure this some kind of joke ''But that's such a simple spell! How could someone not know it and yet possess enough magic and skill to beat Gajeel-kun?''

''Word to the wise, don't try to make sense of Natsu. You'll just wind up with a headache.'' Lucy offered, the girl humming thoughtfully as Natsu threw them a look.

''Anyway, I'm still a little confused. So that freak really was one of those natural demons Mest talked about before? And he's been running around with no one the wiser?'' Gray clarified.

''Looks like.'' Laxus nodded, thinking that it did make sense given his powers. Strangely enough, it reminded him of a thought projection. Having gotten some experience with the spell himself, he found it easier to discern them over time. It would explain why he looked so much like Jellal at least; it may be a similar thing to what Endymion could do.

''Why would he be helping Jellal though?'' Lucy wondered.

Hope blinked a few times as his head cleared, feeling re-energized with the elixir taking effect ''Mira…?''

She smiled, patting his head ''You did great back there.''

''Aye!'' Happy jumped to his knee ''You guys really came through for us!''

Lips quirking, Hope looked at his partner ''I would've been lost without you, actually. Thanks.''

''Just like I would've had much more trouble stopping him had you not interfered so likewise. Abilities of that level require quite a bit of experience and their subtlety is why they're so dangerous.'' The phoenix looked ahead ''At the very least, I know what to look out for this time, he won't be getting past me.''

Juvia was incredibly relieved, that horrid monster made her relive some of her worst memories to the point where she'd been paralyzed. Certainly not something she cared to experience again.

Erza's fists were clenched so tightly that they could draw blood, her entire frame quivering with fury. At herself, at Jellal, at the entire situation-she wasn't sure. What she did know was that she'd had enough. She wasn't going to falter again-the tower of heaven would fall for good. The knight mage swore she would make it happen.


To say the past hour or so were an emotional whiplash for Sho would be an understatement.

After that trap teleported him up here, it hadn't taken him to find his friends Wally and Millianna. He'd expected that explaining the truth would be hard, only to be surprised that his friends had been present when everything was revealed to him. Initially intending to help Sho and ambush what they thought to be their enemies, the pair were floored to say the least with the outcome. Millianna was nearly hysteric with emotions at the thought of all their struggles for the past decade or so being nothing but a sham, leaving her to flee. This also led Wally to chase after her, not that they blamed the girl. It was a lot to swallow.

But with the truth blown wide open, the three did the only thing they could do, begin planning what they could do to stop this madness. What they hadn't accounted for was some of the present dark mages discovering their talk, inevitably turning on them for the perceived attempt at betrayal.

Trapping another attacker in a card, Sho glared at the approaching enemies. His anger continuing to burn as he recalled the sight of that dead Kagura…Gods…they practically helped make this happen…

'And we trusted Siegrain! We thought he would help like he promised but seeing him back there, just smiling with that…how could we be so stupid?!' The blond ranted in his head 'I'm so sorry, Simon…'

He'd tried to tell them, all this time. That they were wrong, that Jellal couldn't be trusted. But they wouldn't listen and now their ever-reliable friend had been the one to pay the price. He wouldn't blame the young man for hating them now. Sho could barely to stand to look at himself!

An enemy Millianna trapped laughed ''Well, I don't know why those idiots are being so reactionary. It was pretty obvious you weaklings didn't have the stomach to do what it takes. You were just fodder Jellal-sama and Siegrain-sama used to smooth things along and your roles are finished. So, I'll just take out the trash!''

She threw a Lacrima just as Wally attacked her, it released a flash which forced them to look away. A loud thud drew their attention to two big golems a lot like the ones in Phantom's HQ towering over everyone.

Sho's immediate instinct was to try trapping them in cards like he'd done with Natsu and Happy, only for his weapons to be completely repelled. Similarly, Wally's bullets were ineffective. Millianna stepping back, knowing she had nothing that would work against such an adversary ''W-we have to get away!''

The dark mage laughed ''Sure, run away like the rats that you are. But where would you go? You certainly won't find anything but enemies!''

Her eyes widened as she froze, Sho wondered if he could manage to use his cards to get them to safety. But the golems were already attacking, one raising a fist while a sphere of power coalesced before the other. The blond had grabbed his cards for a last resort that could get them out of this but then…

The sound of rapid footsteps reached their ears just as a figure in beautiful silver armor leaped into the air ''Trinity Sword!''

Numerous blades flew out to strike the two golems, almost too fast for the eye to see. The second golem unleashed a beam that was reflected by a large shield, the blast enough to finish them off. The dark mage could only gawk as the attacker descended with the beauty and grace of an avenging angel.

''Th-that's…Titania?''

She looked back at the four, her gaze holding nothing but determination burning with the force of a thousand suns.


Well, let's stop here.

Yeah, it took me a while to decide what to do here but aside from the general plot, I have no intention of following the canon route. I'm using the movie characters because honestly, I'm not doing either of the movies. I'll be showing more about him next chapter but the enemy who failed to sneak up on them from the shadows was Chase from the Carbuncle guild. Hope's abilities make him a natural counter to his magic. Lisanna's more of a technical fighter compared to her siblings but she's got her forms figured out. That chameleon is what she got after the escort mission by the way, I think I mentioned this before but I want to make the take over spells work sort of like the zoans from one piece in that there's two transformations.

I should also point out that Sho doesn't actually realize Kagura's alive because the trap teleported him out of there before they could make sense of things, Wally and Millianna were the presences Laxus picked up on as explained. But it's that more than anything that's convinced him that they need to do something. About the part with the mirage spell, let's put it this way, Hope was a ten-year-old who'd just gotten accustomed to his memoria magic. Then reading about the spell seemed handy but it really backfired, the monsters he'd intended to stop went berserk and things would've been much worse if Endymion hadn't been there. And it's why he's never been able to use the spell since. Siegrain's trap needed someone with a lot of experience with empathetic abilities, which is why it affected Hope that badly. Siegrain's up to his own schemes which will be revealed soon. Just to be clear, I'm not doing the whole Jellal was possessed by Ultear angle because it just seems so pointless and kinda nonsensical too.

Anywho, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it. Till next time!