"Why the hell are those bastards here!?" Natsu exclaimed while glaring towards the White Eclipse mages, and then at Ena, who merely gave a shrug as a response. "We don't need your help so get outta here!"
"On contrary, Salamander…" Reve stated while waving his hand in a dismissive manner. "We're the strongest guild in the country, remember? So, we don't need the help of second place…"
"N-Now now boys…" Mii decided to act as the mediator, since tension was high with everyone else. "I think we should all just take a nice deep breath and calm down…" Blinking, she then turned to Reve and White Eclipse. "Who even are you guys…?"
"You must not be from around here if you're asking that…" Luke said with a slightly cocky grin.
"No one's from around here, Luke…" Aira pointed out, completely ruining Luke's moment.
"…." Luke's head hung over in comic shame, blue lines wavering above his head.
"Leave it to the pros, Luke…" Cygnus said while pointing a thumb at himself. "We are Fiore's strongest guild, White Eclipse! Even if you haven't heard of Fairy Tail, the chumps over there, you should at least know about us."
"White…Eclipse…?" Mii blinked a few times at the name before giving a shrug. "I don't know anything about the guilds in this country…I know Fairy Tail is pretty strong from what I've seen…so you're saying you're stronger?"
"It's only a fact," Reve grinned.
Apparently Mii was oblivious to the rising tension in the area with White Eclipse and Fairy Tail, along with Ena and Kurthnaga. "Ah…I see…." She then turned, finally starting to get an idea of what was going on; she was now feeling like she had to be the mediator, or something like that. "Now, now…everyone…"
"Kurthnaga, I thought we talked about this!" Ena frowned towards her elder brother, placing her hands on her hips.
"We did!" Kurthnaga replied with a shrug. "You said you were going to hunt for the warriors you thought were the strongest and I went with the group that actually IS the strongest. I heard about what happened with Nasir, and honestly I have no idea what he was thinking…"
"Did you go through the same attack as well…?" Ena questioned.
"Yup…" Kurthnaga replied. "It was highly unexpected…but thankfully no one was injured…"
"I wish we could say the same…" Lucy frowned while looking at the unconscious Wendy that was being carried by Cynthia.
"I guess that's what happens when you're not as strong as us…" Reve made the sly remark at Wendy's condition, which only caused an irritated Erza to step forward.
"Reve, you will cease talking about us this way right now," Erza's eyes narrowed to a soul piercing glare, one that would freeze the soul of any mortal in fear. But Reve? He just stood there with his patented ass eating grin.
"Oh yeah…?" Reve questioned in obvious defiance.
"You wanna go you bastard!?" Natsu stepped up, prepared to punch Reve in the jaw if he said anything else he didn't like.
"Reve, stop it!" Aira huffed. "This isn't the time to be picking fights!"
"She's right, you know…" Selene crossed her arms, looking at Reve while shaking our head.
An unexpected figure was next to put their two cents into the current situation at hand. "I wonder we're all against each other…" Leon Shi spoke from the side of White Eclipse, looking on with an innocently confused expression. "I thought we were all on the same side now?"
"Leon, don't worry about it too much…" Waiston waved his hand dismissively at Leon's comment, now mumbling to himself. "He really needs to get out of that 'everyone is my friend' mindset…"
"Well, he's right about one thing…" Ena said while looking over at the front gates to the castle. "You're all here now, we can't change that. We're going to need you all to play nice when we visit the King, is that clear?"
"Yes, I will not tolerate any fighting in his presence…" Kurthnaga stood right beside Ena, both of them having a menacing aura around their beings. Even though one of them alone was scary enough, the both of them together caused a chill to crawl down most everyone's spine; to the point where everyone nodded at once. "Glad we're all on the same page."
"Now then, follow us." Ena turned and opened the gates, beginning the walk into the castle.
"T-That was frightening…" Kuro said while rubbing the back of his head.
"I wasn't frightened…" Takeru boasted with a small grin.
"Tak, your legs were, and still are quivering…" Zalen pointed out.
"…..Be quiet…" Takeru said before hiding behind Selene, pushing her forward to begin walking.
"Even if we don't get along, I do expect you all to tolerate each other…" Makarov spoke while eying his children, the White Eclipse mages, and then Sidney Castle, the ace of White Eclipse.
"That falls on your group," Sidney responded before turning, following everyone else into the castle.
The castle interior had contained that of any other normal castle. There were statues of dragons planted on the sides of the large corridors. Ena and Kurthnaga were obviously causal in walking towards the throne room, which wasn't a long walk. There was an elevator large enough to fit everyone, and it began heading up. The dragon slayers didn't even experience motion sickness on the ride up. The elevator reached the top floor and let everyone off; Ena turned back to everyone as they approached the large set of double doors that led to the throne room. "You can all have a tour of this castle, and this part of the island soon enough. So for now, I ask that you please continue to follow us…" Her eyes shifted directly towards Zalen, who was obviously captivated by the structure of the interior and the exterior.
"But…" Zalen tried to object before hanging his head in a comical manner.
"Are you all ready?" Kurthnaga questioned once reaching the doors, which had two guards on both sides.
"Yes, we are prepared to meet the King!" Mii said, speaking for nearly everyone. At the same time the option caused everyone to give her a comical glare, resulting in the young woman to shrink with a nervous smile. "I-I mean…I'm ready…what about you guyssssss?"
"….Why is she here again?" Luke questioned Fairy Tail with a skeptic expression.
"Why are YOU so cute?" Mii replied immediately, batting her eyelashes in a flirtatious manner.
"Ah…." Luke paused, the comment both unexpected and enough to fluster him.
"In any case…" Lucy said while tugging Luke's arm to bring him back into reality. "I think we're ready to see the King now."
"I wonder what he's like…" Happy questioned at the doors began to open. "Maybe he's got loads of fish…!"
"Father doesn't eat fish…" Ena replied with a sweet smile, but the words still managed to crush Happy's spirit.
"I wonder how strong he is…!" Natsu grinned, pounding his fist together only for Erza to smack him on the head. "OW!?"
"We're not here to pick fights!" Erza scolded.
"All right, all right…!" Kurthnaga waved his hands before a black aura formed around his body. "That's enough fighting. We are about to meet a dragon one should treat with respect." Everyone straightened out with Kurthnaga's spike in magic pressure. With that, Kurthnaga's aura's faded and he led the way into the large throne room. The throne room had several lit torches with a red carpet in the middle of a stone-tiled floor. The king of the isle sat on the throne, his figure shrouded by the dimness of the room from afar. Beside him was another, slightly familiar figure: Nasir seemed to be the king's right hand dragon. "Father…We have returned."
"And we have brought those we deem worthy of helping us fight in this case…" Ena continued, giving her father a respectful nod.
"Ah…" A deep voice resounded throughout the room, causing everyone to stand at attention. The king stood up and walked from the shadows, revealing himself. The king of the Isle of the Dragons was a tall, well-built bald man with a dark green mustache; wearing a short sleeved robe that showed off his muscular arms, completed with a pair of dark boots; that wasn't the only thing about the dragon king that made him intimidating; his presence demanded absolute respect, the power coming from his being was suppressed, but everyone could feel it, especially the dragon slayers. The Dragon King: Dhegensea. "I was under the impression only one guild would be joining…."
"SOMEONE can't seem to listen to reason…." Ena shot a glare towards Kurthnaga.
"I know, logic doesn't seem to reach that person…" Kurthnaga responded with his own glare towards his sister, comical lightning appearing between their gazes.
"Now now, you two…" Nasir attempted to calm them down, only to receive a shared glare from the both of them.
"I don't think you have room to talk, Nasir!" Ena exclaimed. "How DARE you attack us!?"
"What's this….?" Dhegensea blinked, turning to Nasir. "You attacked my children?"
"Ah…." Nasir paused, a cold sweat drop forming on his head. "King Dhegensea, I can explain…"
"He hurt Wendy!" Cynthia suddenly exclaimed, causing some people to look over at her. She didn't mean to shout, but it just came out. "S-sorry…"
"Do not apologize, young child…" Dhegensea said to Cynthia with a soft smile. "You are not the one at fault…." Glaring towards Nasir, the dragon king shook his head. "I apologize for Nasir's actions. They are unforgivable, even if he is protective of the skies in this area."
"We appreciate your apology…" Makarov said with a nod. "But I would like to hear the apology from your right hand dragon himself."
"Understandable." Dhegensea nodded. "Nasir. Apologize."
"Ah…" Nasir nodded slowly, looking as though he had to swallow some pride. "I am very sorry for my actions…my territory and duty involve protecting the skies around the island, and there have been many attempts to reach this island as of late…"
"What does that mean?" Mii questioned. "I mean…we've got the introductions out of the way, so why are we here?"
"Why are YOU here is the better question…" Juvia grumbled under her breath.
"Oh yes…" Dhegensea sat back on his throne. "Before I can explain to you what's going on…I must first explain the history behind this island. I assume you all know of the Dragon Achnologia, correct?"
"Ah…that bastard…" Natsu grit his teeth while clenching a hand into a fist. Their last encounter with Acnologia nearly resulted in all of them dead.
"Yeah, we know of him." Reve responded. "We had a nasty encounter a few weeks ago. What about him?"
"400 years ago, there was a war between humanity and dragon kind." Dhegensia explained.
"After he became the "King", so to say….all of the other dragons were forced to go into hiding. Those except Igneel, Grandneey…" Dhegensea went on with the list of dragons who happened to the be parents of a few certain dragon slayers. "Other dragons, went off to a different land entirely. I haven't the faintest idea what they intend to do, but they haven't made a move in ages. Anyways…the rest of the dragons were sent into hiding. We choose an island and lifted it into the sky, where I was chosen to become the Dragon King of this isle. With a few sacred resources at our disposal, we have lived in peace for many years, overseeing the events of the human world down below."
"Something tells me not everything has gone as smoothly over the past few years?" Mii deduced while messing with the strap on her dress. Her tone was rather informal, and since she was on the Fairy Tail side it left them uneasy.
"Correct, young one…" Dhegensea nodded. He looked at Mii and stared at her for a moment, as if to confirm something. He then went on. "There have been many dragons who have the desire to move to the human land down below and cause war and destruction."
"And you've been keeping them all in check…?" Erza questioned. "Dragons can fly, can they not…?"
"Yes, dragons can fly…" Dhegensea nodded. "However, the dragons on this isle cannot. To ensure that no such thing would occur, the power of flight has been removed from most dragons on the isle. Those who can fly cannot do so for long."
"Ah…" Lucy snapped her fingers. "I get it…so that's how they were able to fight so well…."
"They were…using the turbulence in the wind….to glide…" Wendy spoke while waking up slowly. She seemed to be slightly informed on what was going on.
"Wendy…!" Cynthia stared at the girl in her arms who began to regain consciousness. "Are you okay…?!"
"I'm okay…" Wendy gave a slow nod.
"We are bound to fate." Dhegensea continued. "Whatever fate decrees will happen, there is nothing we can do about this fact...We cannot fight against fate…but there is one who dares to stand against the peace I've made. His name his Gaius…and he has convinced many others to join his cause into attacking the humans. Half of the island is under his control now, which is why everything beyond this area is off limits. We are at a stalemate, but they have the advantage."
"How so?" Makarov asked.
"The Scared Jewel, the item that keeps this island afloat, is on their side of the island." Ena explained. "Half of it, anyway...The jewel's power keeps this island in the sky, and it has been broken into two parts….largely due to my actions just the other day."
"I have to admit…if Ena didn't break it when she did with her clumsiness, we'd be in a pretty bad situation…" Kurthnaga said, but the remark caused a comical tick mark of anger to appear on Ena's forehead.
"She broke it?" Sidney questioned for clarification.
"Gaius jumped the castle," Ena explained. "He grabbed the jewel, but just before he could I encountered him. I did my best to fend him off and retrieve the jewel, but in the middle of our battle I accidentally tripped…and I hit it, causing it to break. It's still fine, but we can't let the other half fall into the hands of Gaius and his men…If they take that other half they can sink this island back to the water like they desire."
"And I guess they'll use those boats you have to sail since they can't fly?" Aira guessed.
"Correct," Dhegensea nodded. "There are two things stopping Gaius and his men from attacking the humans below already. 1: The ships are located on this side of the island, meaning that they will have to try and come over to us if they want it. 2: The jewel is broken in two, and they cannot deactivate its power without both halves being in place."
"I am the one who is guarding the second half of the jewel." Nasir chimed in.
"I see…" Mii narrowed her eyes at Nasir. There was something about him that rubbed her the wrong way and she wasn't alone in this feeling, probably because he attacked White Eclipse and Fairy Tail. "So, what is this Sacred Jewel?"
"The Jewel was bestowed upon us by the Hero who aided me 400 years ago. Its power is what keeps this island afloat." Dhegensa explained. "It also serves as a symbol of unity and peace for us dragons in the sky. But now that it has been broken, it only serves as a symbol of our division now..."
"Why can't you just go over there and finish things?" Luke asked. "I can tell you're nothing to take lightly just by standing in the same room as you."
"We are bound by fate, and I, an oath. I made an oath to the Hero that I would not betray the fate of this island, no matter what." Dhegensea responded calmly. "Fate says we are not to move a muscle. Instead, warriors chosen by the kin of the King will help fight this war…they are the only ones capable."
"I'm not sure that makes sense…." Mii sounded like she was challenging the idea, but Erza was quick to shut her up by chopping the back of her head. But it took Mii a second to actually react to the hit. "Ow…!" The red-head held the back of her head after cringing in pain.
"Bound by fate?" Erza asked. "How so?"
"There is a scroll in the castle depths about the fate of this island…I read this scroll every year to learn the fate of this island, whether it be good or bad. In exchange for aiding us, this was what the Hero bestowed upon the Island to ensure that the Dragons here would not go mad with power. That being said. this war that Gaius has begun is not within the scroll, but fate says worthy warriors from the human world will help turn the tables. I cannot fight…I must protect the throne and ensure my people are safe. They have more forces than I soldiers. If I were to try and defy this fate, it would end disastrously for this entire island. I also do not believe in the conflict of dragons fighting dragons."
"Stubborn neutrality..." Laxus thought to himself.
"I understand…" Erza nodded.
"Worthy warriors...and a chosen hero with rainbow wings, right?" Mii asked. "But I guess you don't have one of those now, do you? A shame."
"How do..." Kurthnaga was about to ask...
"I read it in a book." Mii tilted her head with a smile.
"There is one more thing…" Nasir began. "Gaius has the nerve to try and change all of the residents on this isle into dragons…full dragon forms. Mindless creatures that will only want to destroy." This news caused everyone's eyes to widen. "Yes, it is horrible news…which is why we must stop him as soon as possible. If you meet him in battle, do not listen to his words. He will try to trick and convince you to join his cause."
"That's a lot to swallow…" Aira said while tugging at her shirt collar. "I didn't think we were signing up for something so large scale…"
"I have to agree with this…" Mirajane spoke with a concerned look on her face. "We did agree to hear you out…"
"I understand it is a lot to take in…" Dhegensea seemed quite calm about the feelings everyone had towards taking part in a war, one that especially didn't involve them. "Which is why I'm glad my children brought both guilds, if one doesn't feel up to the task, I can entrust the other to take care of this."
"Is that how it is?" Gray seemed a little skeptic at the idea, but the last thing he wanted to do was come off as rude.
"We have kept the enemy at bay for several days and there is no way they can make the first move on us. Therefore, I will allow you time to sort out your feelings on this matter. When you have come to a decision, come to me and I will arrange for everything."
"There's still a lot we don't know here…" Freed mumbled. "I don't think he's lying to us, but he's certainly not telling us everything he knows…"
"We can discuss this later…" Laxus whispered to his fellow member.
"What can we do until then?" Levy questioned. "Are we just stuck in this castle, or…?"
"Of course not!" Ena clapped her hands together, a bright smile forming on her lips. "Allow me to show you around the castle, Fairy Tail!"
.
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Next Time: Castle of Kings!