Zeref was standing with his back turned to Mavis, who just now arrived on the isle to see how things were going to turn out. He didn't move, instead he just began to speak. "You don't truly believe they'll make it in time, do you? They're running thin on time and they still have far too much to accomplish."
"I believe in them." Mavis said with a firm nod. "They always come through when things are coming to a close."
"I wonder about that." Zeref then began to walk off, keeping the book of E.N.D in his hands.
.
.
Raven, Jack, Alex, Spark, and Romeo stood before an incoming dragon soldier ambush. Those dragons were attempting to get the better of the others by pinching them, but this group wasn't allowing to happen! "There's a lot of them..." Romeo said with a gulp. He was beginning to question if this was a good idea. "How are we even going to damage them? Alex is the only one who can! Wendy and Cynthia can't fight either..."
"...I have an idea." Raven looked back to Wendy. "Hey, Wendy! You can use enchantment magic, right? Is there any way you could enchant some of us with Dragon slaying!?"
"What!?" Wendy's eyes went wide at that request. "I...I don't know. I've never done anything like that before."
"It can't be too different than your usual support spells!" Alex realized what Raven was after. "I can mow down these dragons, but if anyone else could borrow Dragon Slaying, even for a little bit, it would be a huge help!"
"I can try." Wendy looked back at Cynthia. Since they couldn't fight physically right now, Wendy figured this was the least she could do. She closed her eyes and spread her arms apart. She wasn't sure what she needed to do exactly, but she let her instincts and experience take over. A faint light began to appear around her and Cynthia, as she channeled both of their magics into her spell. "Enchantment: Dragon!" A magic circle appeared under the others, as she tried to focus. "I can give it to everyone, but it wouldn't as effective...! I'm sorry..."
"No, that's okay." Spark shook his head. "We just need one person, right?"
"...Let it be me." Raven said with a firm nod.
"Are you trying to impress?" Jack lifted a brow.
"No!" Raven shook his head, his grip tightening on his bow. "I need to make up for not being there! I want to be strong enough at least one time!"
"..." Chelia frowned. Her decision against Xen pained Raven so much. All she did was bring him trouble...
"I don't think we have the time to complain. Wendy, do your thing! We'll handle the rest!" Alex said confidently.
"Okay!" Wendy nodded. She focused the enchantment on Raven, temporarily imbuing his bow with Sky and Omega Flame dragon slaying magic. "It won't last long, so hurry!"
"Right on time." Jack turned his attention to the incoming dragons. "Think you can take them out, Raven?"
"If I can get to the center of them." Raven said while readying his bow. "I have just the move to do it."
"Then we have a plan!" Alex grinned while cracking her knuckles. "Leave the charge to me. The rest of you better back us up, got it?"
"Got it!" Spark and Romeo nodded.
"LET'S GO!"
"What are those kids doing!?" A dragon soldier laughed as they approached. "Trying to stall us? We'll just kick them down!"
Alex was the first one to move in. She reared her arm back as it morphed into a gigantic fist, covered in her special armor. Not only that, but she imbued the earth into it as she did so. "Earth Dragon's Mighty Fist!" She swung her fist forward, punching the first dragon soldier in her way. The impact was more than enough to take it down, and after that, the chunks of earth around her fist exploded outward, throwing back a number of dragon soldiers in the process. "Don't underestimate me! I was raised by a dragon, so I know what hurts!"
"What the!?" The dragon soldiers gasped at Alex's display of strength. However, before they had a chance to even register her as a threat, multiple orbs of purple fire began to rain down on them. They covered their heads at first, but the damage being dealt wasn't all that much. "What are these sparks!?"
"Oh, just wait for it!" Jack said while tossing a flame up and down within his palm. "My Wicked Flames will burn you from the inside!" And as he said this, he flew over the dragon soldiers while unleashing Wicked Flames on them. They didn't feel much damage, but soon they began to feel a steady drain of their magic.
"This brat! Get him!" A few dragon soldiers spread their wings. Even if they couldn't outright fly, they could still use them to gain altitude. They attacked Jack, who was forced to defend for a little bit. Luckily, he didn't have to do that for long, as several wind arrows pierced the dragons and forced them to fall.
Jack looked down, only to see Raven taking shots while running ahead. "This could actually work!" And as Raven said that, a large dragon soldier landed right in front of him. The force of this landing was so great, Raven was thrown backwards. "Gah...!" And when he looked up, this dragon was about to release flames upon him. He braced for impact, but it never came, because Alex stood in front of him. "Alex!?"
Alex turned her arm into a shield. Since she was experimented on as an anti-fire countermeasure, these flames bounced off of her harmlessly. "I got you!" She replied to Raven with a grin.
At that moment, a red magic seal appeared on the current dragon's face. He didn't notice at first, but then Romeo attacked with a fist of rainbow fire. "Rainbow Fist!" Romeo exclaimed, his fist striking the cheek of the dragon soldier. Normally, a hit like this really wouldn't do much and he knew it. But, Spark planted a red magic seal on his fist, which exuded a positive magnetic charge; the same as the dragon's cheek. As such, when two positives met, they repelled each other. Romeo's impact activated this magnetic charge, and sent the dragon soldier flying back! The momentum he carried was so strong he crushed several others in the process.
"Nice one!" Spark grinned at his and Romeo's combined efforts.
"They could actually do this...!" Carla was shocked. That training session not too long ago really was paying off here!
"They know the ins and outs of their magic, since we had to train together..." Wendy said with a smile. She glanced back at Cynthia who was hanging in there as well, despite how difficult it was for her. "Hang in there..."
"Enough!" A dragon soldier yelled while letting out a roar. This was an ice roar and it struck all of the group fighting right now, causing them to slide back from the heavy impact. It was at this moment they were reminded that they were fighting dragons. Even though they were restraining their power, they were still strong!
"Damn..." Jack grunted, feeling a bit of a chill. "That one hurt...you guys aren't done, are you!?"
"Cold, but fine..." Raven sucked his teeth. Realistically, he knew they wouldn't be able to keep up if the dragons kept attacking them like that, and they were starting to catch on.
"What do we do next..! They're about to attack again!" Spark warned.
Romeo had an idea. He lifted his hand up, a yellow flame appearing on his hand. "Cover your noses! Raven, do the rest!" They recognized that flame. They did as instructed as Romeo tossed the yellow flame forward. Harmless in appearance, but the moment Raven shot at it with a wind arrow, it exploded into a noxious fume! Dragon's had sensitive noses, and the absolutely awful smell of this flame caused them to gag and cover their noses in response. "Natsu-nii hates it when I use this flame!" Romeo spoke with a slight grin as well.
"Let's make it even worse for them!" Jack smirked evilly while flying into the air, spinning around as purple flames began to rain down on the already exhausted dragons. The magic dragon of his Wicked Flames already took hold, and now he planned to weaken them entirely.
"We've got our opening!" Alex said while beginning to inhale. "Earth Dragon's Roar!" Alex threw her head forward, a large funnel of earth shooting from her mouth. Since the dragons were distracted by their noses, her roar slammed into a number of them and knocked them down. This cleared a path for Raven, right in the center of it all. "Raven!"
"Spark, that's the spot!" Raven said while rushing ahead.
"I got you!" Spark said while planting his hands on the ground. He created a blue magic seal on Raven's feet with a negative charge, and blue seal on the ground where Raven wanted to be. "It's all you!"
"NOW!" Raven leapt into the air, landing on the magic circle. The magnetic properties repelled each other to then launch him into the air, where he flipped around and aimed his bow down at the group of dragons. As he did, a large magic circle appeared under all of them, completely sealing their movements. For Raven, he was hovering above a gigantic target, one eye closed as he peered down to his bullseye. He created a large cylinder and a situation where, no matter what, he could not miss. "Take this! CRISIS RAIN!" Raven let loose the bowstring, firing off multiple arrows of wind infused with dragon slaying. These arrows rocketed down through the cylinder and exploded against the dragons who all roared in pain. There was a gigantic pillar that shot into the sky as a result.
From far away, Drake could see that pillar of magic rising, along with feeling a number of his soldiers going down. "...Hah. So that's where they are..."
As the pillar faded and Raven landed on the ground, he looked around. Every dragon soldier was taken down, left unconscious by the group's efforts. "W...We did it?" Even he was shocked at the outcome.
"We did it!" Alex cheered, throwing a fist into the air.
"That's what I'm talking about! I told you my bootcamp would come in handy!" Jack crossed his arms and had a wide smirk.
"Nice work, everyone!" Spark gave Romeo a high five.
"I can't believe we really did it..." Romeo was still in shock, but this was huge! They did it...
"Wow..." Carla had no words.
Wendy clasped her hands together. However, she couldn't congratulate them, because Cynthia let out a loud groan as a result. Her eyes widened and her attention went back to her. "Cynthia...!" That cry of her name caught everyone's attention, but they weren't the only ones who were concerned about Cynthia.
.
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"Come on, you humans are absolutely boring!" Edna shouted while weaving through a few attacks aimed for her without too much effort. The battle against the White Eclipse wizards was going very easily for Edna. Whenever they threw something at her, their attacks did nothing, and she countered with something powerful. As such, White Eclipse was on the back foot against the Crystal Dragon. At this rate, they'd...! "Things are coming to an end and I don't think I can stop yawning…" She even yawned as she started speaking. "I'm getting tired…maybe I can just nap the night away…"
"This woman is so frustrating…" Waiston grunted in annoyance for various reasons. "She doesn't even have a rack, what's up with that? The poison dragon was at least good to look at."
That comment was enough to tick Edna off. She growled before stepping on the ground, creating several crystal spires that rose from the ground to strike the Eclipse mages, though they all managed to evade with the swiftness.
"Aw, Waiston…" Jaxon said while stifling a laugh. "Come on, buddy. It's clear she's not as mature as her other dragon brethren. It's okay, Edna, some people mature slowly than others." They were mocking Edna and it was working, because she was losing all sense of clarity from being taunted by humans.
"Why you little…" Edna started to speak, however a diamond coated fist from Selene met her jaw and harshly snapped her head to the side, but nothing more.
"Wha…?" Selene blinked slowly while quickly withdrawing her arm.
"Crystal Scales." Enda said with a cocky grin. "Much stronger than that puny material diamond, didn't you know?"
"Oh, she's pompous too…" Luke rolled his eyes before throwing his arms forward, unleashing several spears of ice in Edna's direction, though they all shattered against her crystal scales. "Oh come on…!"
"It's what happened before all over again…" Cygnus scoffed. "Those things repel almost any attack!" As noted by the various waves of gravity Cygnus was shooting at Edna, but she didn't so much as flinch this time due to her scales. "It's Selene but worse!"
"Then I guess we'll just have to melt them!" Draco said with a cocky grin before looking over at Kuro. "You ready?"
"Oh yeah!" Kuro nodded. With that the two fire users were off side by side, white flames appearing around Draco's fist while devil flames appeared around Kuro's fist. "Flame Devil's Thermal Fist!"
"Ardent Spark!" Draco yelled in unison with Kuro. The two flame users slammed their fists into Edna's chest, the force strong enough to send the dragon staggering back a few steps, but otherwise no damage was dealt. "No way! Those crystals really are tough!"
"I got this!" Takeru entered his Shadow Drive, pointing one hand forward. "Shadow Dragon's Rough Silk!" The shadow dragon unleashed several piercing beams of his magic towards Edna. They all struck but did very little damage. "Man!" Takeru shouted in annoyance.
"We're not going to break through at this rate…" Zalen said while adjusting his glasses. "Crystal is a material I don't have the experience with yet…"
"How about you all stay down this time." Enda raised her foot and stomped heavy on the ground, trapping everyone within a crystal prison. "Terra Mine!" On that cue, the crystals exploded and sent everyone scattering in several directions. When they hit the ground, they were all struggling to move after. Enda was toying with them, reveling in the fact that they didn't have the firepower to break through her impressive defenses.
"Shit…" Reve grunted in pain while pulling himself to a knee.
"She's a tough nut to crack…" Heather admitted while panting slightly.
"Now…" Edna dusted her hands off. "Which one of you lameos to get rid of first…" And just then, Sidney appeared before Enda with his arms crossed. "Oh…was that supposed to scare me?"
"…" Without a word Sidney's hand extended while phasing through Edna's scales. Sidney actually PUSHED Enda out of her scales, leaving a shell that shattered into harmless pieces.
"H-Huh!?" Edna's eyes widened as she attempted to get her bearings straight, but Sidney didn't get her the chance and slammed his fist into her stomach, causing her to hunch over.
"Oh…" Jaxon flinched for Edna at that moment. "I've taken that punch. It doesn't matter who you are, it's not good for your health."
Sidney then remained stationary while the others began to move in. The dragon slayers knew what to do at this point and Selene was the first to start, creating diamonds that held the exposed dragon in place. Soon after, a plethora of diamond weapons began to appear around Edna. "Secret Art: Gleaming Essence: Riot!"
"Roar…" Heather, Takeru and Waiston inhaled as their auras exploded, all of them entering Dragon Force or Dual modes.
"Of the Poison Dragon!"
"Of the Frozen Sky Dragon!"
"Of the White Shadow Dragon!"
The three of them unleashed their roars in unison, a vicious torrent of ice, wind, light, shadows, and poison all racing towards Edna, and just as Selene unleashed the tornado of diamond weapons. "H-Hold on a second…!" Edna's eyes widened as all of the attacks converged on her all at once for a devastating explosion. When it faded, the wounded Edna was seen on her back, eyes white in KO.
"Finally, she stopped talking…" Cygnus rubbed his temples in relief.
Just then, Aira, Leon, Juvia, and Meredy appeared on the scene. "Oh…we missed one…!" Leon sighed.
"Leon! Aira! You're okay…!" Selene let out a sigh of relief before glancing at Juvia. "What happened to you…?"
"Mystic Water!" Juvia quickly exclaimed. "No time to explain, where is Cynthia!?"
"Down there! She stayed behind with a few others!" Luke pointed at the city's entrance.
"Thank you!" Juvia nodded before leaving the others to help Cynthia. "Hold on, Cynthia-san…Juvia is almost there!"
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Nasir was stuck dealing with Quatro Cerberus, Cobra, Angel, and Midnight, and he was highly irritated by this unusual band of humans. They were more stubborn than he would've liked to deal with, but it was widely accepted that he was a bit of a brat by this point. Even Cobra couldn't help but chuckle at the thoughts Nasir was having as the battle went south for him. "I never expected a dragon to be a giant baby…"
"You…!" Nasir growled at Cobra's words. "I'll show you what I'm capable of!" He spread his wings and took to the sky, only to be immediately shot down by several beams of magic from above, crashing onto the ground with a large thud. "What…!?"
"Men!" Ichiya shouted from above in the Christine. "Your foul, unhandsome parfume is not allowed in these skies! Stay on the ground where you belong! Men~"
"You tell him, Ichiya-senpai!" Eve shouted with glee.
"Oh, you humans are so frustrating…!" Nasir yelled, but at this point he was assaulted by several angels due to well, Angel of course. He was being bombarded from magic at all angles. On top of this, his injuries from dealing with multiple dragon slayers, Jura, and Gildarts, were finally starting to slow him down as well.
"I have a severe dislike of humans as well…" Angel commented. "But unlike you, I'm far more mature about it."
"I grow tired of this whining…" Midnight raised his pointer finger up. "Spiral Pain." From Nasir's location, a spiral formed around him and distorted blades began to cut into him, a roar of pain escaping the dragon as a result.
"I WON'T BE DEFEATED BU THE LIKES OF YOU!"
"Alright, let's start wrapping up this wild party…!" Bacchus grinned while speeding towards Nasir. "Chop hanging palm: UNDER MOONLIGHT!" And in one swift motion, Bacchus brought his palm up to Nasir's chin, lifting the dragon off the ground and into the air slightly. "Wild!"
"I'll put an end to this farce…" Cobra lunged into the air, a claw composed of poison forming along his arm. "Poison Dragon's Claw!" In one fluid slash, Cobra sliced through Nasir's side, the sky dragon collapsing on the ground on his back with his eyes white in KO. Cobra landed and dusted his hands off. "Finally, those annoying thoughts ceased…I couldn't bear hearing another second of that incessant noise…"
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Natsu and Gray were hurrying up the staircase. They were getting closer to the throne room but came to an abrupt halt as an unexpected person stood before them. Zeref merely smiled towards Natsu and Gray while keeping the book in his hand. "In a hurry, are we…?"
"Zeref…" Natsu scowled, flames immediately erupting from around him. "I'll deal with you later…for now, get out of our way!"
Zeref ignored Natsu while holding the book up. "Do you know what this is? This is the book of Tartarus' true guild master…E.N.D."
"E.N.D…?" Gray tilted his head. That name was familiar…too familiar.
"If things continue to go at this rate…this book may have to open." Zeref said.
"I'll kill that demon then." Gray said while pounding his fists together.
"You wish to kill E.N.D?" Zeref found this incredibly amusing, especially as he stared at Natsu. "How ironic…" Without another word, he vanished.
"What was that all about…?" Natsu wondered before shaking his head. He wasn't going to waste time thinking about it and they continued up the stairs.
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"White Dragon's Holy BREATH!" Sting inhaled before unleashing a massive beam of white dragon slaying magic from his lips, aimed directly for Eizen. The White Dragon was fueled by rage for Eizen's actions against Yukino.
"Guh…!?" Eizen crossed his arms, sliding back as he felt the sting (no pun intended) from Sting's attack. "W-What on earth…?! That was nothing like the previous blow…!?"
Rogue's body lit up in a flash of white. He was activating his White Shadow Dragon mode, courtesy of his future self as a parting lift. "White Shadow Dragon's Claw!" Rogue yelled while swinging his leg at Eizen's chest, a powerful flash of light and shadows emerging from his leg, knocking the sliver dragon away a few steps. The aftershock of Rogue's kick was enough to demolish the floor after.
"Memory Make: Karma of the Burning Land!" Rufus placed two fingers on his temples, a red magic seal appearing behind him. Once it formed the floor Eizen was standing on became incredibly hot, forcing him to take to the air…but Orga was waiting for him.
"Lightning God's Bolt!" With a mere clench of his fist, a block of black lightning dropped down on to Eizen, shocking him violently and sent him crashing back down to the ground. Minerva followed up with a territory infused fit to drive Eizen's face into the floor, an angered expression painting the Tigress' face.
"I'm going to rip you apart." Minerva stated before raising her hand again for another strike…but a silver explosion blew all of them away and Eizen stood up.
"You humans are still blinded by your emotions." Eizen said while dusting himself off. "I'll never understand it is about emotions that drives you so. Fighting for your fallen comrade? What will that do when you cannot defeat the one that defeated them in the first place?"
"You bastard…" Sting rose to his feet, growling towards Eizen. "I won't let you get away with that!" Sting lunged forward while swiping at Eizen's chest. "White Dragon's Claw!" The hit was blocked, but that didn't matter to Sting, for the white stigmata appeared on Eizen to restrain any and all movement.
"W-What…!?" Eizen attempted to move, but his body was completely paralyzed.
"Rogue!" Sting shouted while holding his hand to his side, generating a sphere of white dragon slaying.
"Sting!" Rogue mirrored Sting's action, a sphere of shadow dragon slaying appearing on his hand; the magic of the Twin Dragons merged together and shrunk for a brief second. The two then threw their fists forward, unleashing a massive unison raid towards Eizen that destroyed the very floor it travelled over. "WHITE SHADOW DRAGON'S WAXWING FLASH!"
"GYAAAH!" Eizen let out a scream as the Twin Dragon's attack landed directly, shooting out of the castle and into the distance. Sting and Rogue believed this to be the end…but it was far from it. Eizen was still standing, though his outfit was ruined and he was covered in bruises. "Did you think that was it?"
"He withstood that!?" Lector's jaw dropped.
"No way…" Frosch said with tears in his eyes.
"This one's tougher than we gave credit for…" Rufus adjusted his hat.
"Silver Dragon's Beam." Several silver magic seals appeared in the air above Sabertooth, unleashing countless beams of silver upon them, resulting in a large explosion that shook the foundation of the castle. "Are you done resisting…?"
"No…" Sting was hunched over, growling towards Eizen. "I'll never give up…as long as I draw breath, I'll make you pay for what you've done to Yukino!"
"Yes…" Rogue was right next to Sting, though he could hardly keep his balance.
"What do you humans intend to do about this!?" Eizen laughed. "You're powerless before the might of a dragon!"
"Hah…" A grin curled onto Sting's lips. "I don't think you know who you're talking to…Rogue and I…we've slayed dragons before…you seem to know them well…Wessologia…Skiadrum…"
"You didn't actually slay them…!" Eizen sounded like he was about to correct them, but he was halted. "Wait…"
Sting slammed his fist into the nearest wall, a bright white light radiating off his being. "Rogue, get ready. It's time to unleash the Order."
"Right…" Rogue nodded slowly while glancing at the others. "We'll settle this. Go find Yukino."
"You two have grown up…" Minerva had a slight grin before nodding. "But we're going to watch you wipe the floor with this one first, got that? I want the satisfaction."
"As if we'd ever deny you of that, Milady." Sting nodded to Minerva before turning to Eizen.
In the blink of an eye Sting closed the distance between them and slammed a white fist into the dragon's chest, forcing him to stagger back. Sting kept up the pressure while Rogue was right beside him, shadow dragon slaying magic infused with each hit. Soon, their hits began having explosive properties, black and white erupting from each successful strike while Eizen roared in pain. "SABERTOOTH ORDER: WHITE SHADOW PIERCING FANG!" The Twin dragons continued their relentless assault before preparing for the final blow; a simultaneous punch that created the Sabertooth symbol, which exploded in a brilliant black and white light.
Eizen lay on the ground, broken and battered from Sting and Rogue's assault. The Twin Dragons fell to the hands and knees and in their regular forms. "…E-Excellent…"
"H-He's praising us now…?" Rufus tilted his head in confusion.
"What's this all about…?" Minerva questioned.
"Dhegensea…is truly a madman…" Eizen struggled to breathe. "He used his Dragon Manipulation to control most of the dragons on this isle…the truth be told…most of us do love humans. I don't hate humans...my sister doesn't either. But we were among the many that were manipulated to act against you all. Only Nasir, Gaius, and Venoma acted out of their raw hatred. But now, that love most of us has turned into unwarranted hatred…now he wants to rule them, to destroy them…please…you must stop him…" Eizen stared at Sting, holding his hand out. "Son of Wessologia, please, take my hand…"
"So...you were pushing us to win...because you felt as if..." Rogue trailed off.
"Yes...I needed to test your resolve." Eizen replied with a wince.
Sting nodded slowly, taking Eizen's hand. He felt a brief surge of power run through his body and Eizen's hand dropped. "What was that…?"
"The last of my power…I know you'll use it well…for you are a great leader…"Eizen said with a weary smile. "I apologize for what I've done to your friend. If it were my own sister, I would feel that same rage. I know Venoma...has a similar rage deep within her heart. I made sure...to hold back. Your friend should still...be alive...but you must hurry. Please, save my sister, and save these dragons. They do not want to fight...they only wish...to live in peace. That was...what this Isle was for..." With that, Eizen's eyes closed. The Silver Dragon had been slain.
"…So the king is the real bad guy after all, huh…?" Orga commented. "Let's find Yukino…you guys can take a break. Don't worry, we'll make it."
"Of course we will." Rogue said with an exhausted smile. "Especially with that one going to confront him first…"
Minerva stared down the hole Yukino fell down; her brow quirked before she leapt down it, feeling some sort of familiar presence down below. She went without a word, so her disappearance, left the others a little confused.
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Cynthia was getting even worse. Dragon wings sprouted from her back and she was writhing around in constant pain, Dragon Force activating on its own without her say so. "Rrrrg…."
"C-Cynthia…!" Wendy went over to try and help Cynthia but even she could no longer withstand the heat her dear friend was giving off. "A-ah…!"
"She looks like she's about to lose it…!" Raven grit his teeth.
"This isn't good…she's too hot to even think about approaching now…" Carla winced while backing away rom Cynthia.
"Where's Juvia…!?" Chelia asked. Suddenly, the shelter they were using was completely blown away by none other than Drake himself, who stood with a wide smirk as he watched Cynthia suffering. The Dragonification of Cynthia was almost complete and he was right on time to see it occur for himself. This was not a good situation…Wendy was wounded, Chelia had no magic, Cynthia was unresponsive; Raven, Jack, Spark, Romeo and Alex were really the only two who could fight, but with their injuries, and against Drake, who knew how long that was going to last…
"Too little…too late." Drake said with a widening smirk.
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Next Time: Uncontrollable.
