"I see you've come…" Gaius sat on his little throne while staring at the White Eclipse members whom he let easy access into the castle he built. "I've been expecting you."
"We're not here to be your friends." Reve remarked while pulling out a pistol, keeping it trained on Gaius, aimed right between his eyes. "We've a mission to do, and you just made it ten times easier by letting us walk right on in. Unless you're confident you can take us all on?"
"I think you've misunderstood my intentions, human…" Gaius said while resting his head on his fist, crossing one leg over the other. "If I wanted to make sure you didn't get inside, my guards would've torn you apart on the spot."
"Where's Nasir?" Aira questioned, undaunted from Gaius' remark.
"Oh, he's safe and sound, don't worry…" Gaius responded to Aira with a small grin before continuing. "I let your guild in here because I simply wish to talk. There are some issues that need to be clarified, you know…"
"Oh yeah?" Reve kept his pistol trained on Gaius, Precision Eyes active in the event any sudden movements were made. "And what's that…?"
"You see…" Gaius finally stood, the towering man standing well above the humans. "It's about Dhegensea, and his motives…."
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Fairy Tail traversed through a large open field with large rocks scattered all over at every turn. Lucy glanced around; taking note of the dim clouds that took over the sky. "Dark and gloomy…" She muttered before a sharp pain occurred in her chest, causing her to cringe. "Ah…!"
"Are you okay…?!" Natsu was quick to check up on her, but Lucy swatted away his hand. "Eh…!?"
"Don't touch me…" Lucy growled for a second before calming down, letting out a heavy exhale. "…S-Sorry…I don't know what came over me…"
"It's all right…" Natsu nodded, though he was slightly cautious of how he should approach Lucy. She was acting odd since returning from her solo job before they left for the island. "Hmmm…"
"It looks like you two need a little team building exercise!" The bruised and slightly beat up Mii exclaimed while wrapping her arms around both Natsu and Lucy's necks. "Why don't you let ol' Mii here help you out, eh?"
"I don't think that would help…" Lucy responded coldly, causing Mii to back off.
"Yeowch…the cold shoulder…." Mii shrugged, taking a few steps back from the pair. "All right, that's fine…" It was around then that the ground began to tremble violently, causing everyone to halt in their tracks.
"W-What's going on…?!" Cana asked while frantically looking around.
"I-I don't know…" Wendy responded before Cynthia immediately leaned on her, feeling sick from Motion Sickness. "Cynthia…!" A few moments passed and the tremors slowly died down. "W-What was that…?"
"You don't think this is a result of them trying to sink the island, do you?" Gray suggested.
"If that's the case, then we have to hurry…" Erza replied. "White Eclipse won't be able to handle those Dragons on their own…no matter how strong they boast themselves to be."
"…Wait a second." Natsu halted, sniffing the air around. "Something's not right…" Shortly after that, the ground suddenly opened up beneath Natsu and Lucy, causing them both to fall. "WAH!?"
"AAAH!?" Lucy flailed while free falling towards the underground.
"Wha?!" Everyone jumped back to avoid getting swallowed up. "The ground-"
"Natsu! Lucy!" Happy was quick to fly down after them and the ground quickly started to close after he jumped down.
"Happy, get Lucy!" Natsu demanded while flipping around to right himself in the air.
"Aye sir!" Happy nodded and flew behind Lucy, now flying towards the entrance that was quickly sealing up. "Ah?!"
"It's closing!?" Lucy panicked. "Hurry up!"
"You're heavy and it's slowing me down…!" Happy replied with a comical pained expression. Just before they could escape back to above ground, the hole closed up; both Lucy and Happy hit the ceiling and fell right back to the ground, twitching from the impact. "Heavy…"
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"W-What the hell just happened!?" Gajeel looked between the others, but he was unable to get an answer.
"I-I don't know…" Levy said while patting the ground that just opened up. "C-Can we get them out!?"
"I'll try something." Erza stepped forward and everyone took a few steps back. Holding her hand up, Titania requipped the mace that went along with her Pugatory armor. "HAAA!" Swinging the mace down towards the ground, enough power to completely shatter it was put into the swing. However when contact was made, the ground didn't budge. "W-What the…?"
"Nothing happened…" Levy narrowed her eyes. "What is with this island…" Before she could fully take into account everything that happened thus far, the ground began to quiver once again and a loud roar echoed throughout the canyon, causing her to stand up. "W-Wha…!?"
"Something's coming!" Gray turned to see what the source of that noise was. Seconds later, a gray dragon dropped from the sky, a powerful shockwave emitting from the landing, strong enough to send everyone off their feet and flying back. "Gah!" Gray tumbled along the rocky ground before catching himself and sliding to a halt on his hand. "W-What the hell…!? A dragon…!"
"Not sure why you're acting so surprised…" Mii grunted while dusting herself off. "Although, it is looking at us like we're its next dinner…"
"This must be one of Gaius' men…" Freed deduced. "But if that's the case, White Eclipse should've already clashed with this dragon…yet it's completely free of damage. No marks, no nothing! Did they even fight this thing!?"
"No time to think about that!" Laxus stepped forward, cracking his knuckles as sparks began to dance around his body. "You guys go on ahead. Get to that castle, meet up with that idiot and Lucy, and I'll catch up."
"Laxus, are you sure!? We're right here, you know!" Bickslow exclaimed.
"GO!" Laxus barked his orders at the Raijinshu.
"He's right…" Evergreen patted Bickslow on the shoulder before nodding. "Don't get killed."
"You forget who you're talking to?" Laxus replied with a small smirk before glancing towards Makarov, who gave a silent nod and lead Fairy Tail in the direction of Gaius' castle. It wasn't that much farther, just over the large hill. "Good…" Laxus then turned to the gray dragon, tilting his head to crack his neck. "Let's dance."
"Puny human…you don't understand what you're dealing with…!" The dragon bellowed before raising a hand, bringing it down on Laxus with earth destroying force. The impact was enough to cause the ground to break apart in some places. "King Gaius shall rule!"
"Ha…" Laxus let out a small chuckle before utilizing his Lightning Body, zipping into the air at the speed of well, lightning. He evaded the slam with ease, quickly appearing at the top of the dragon's head; hands together, fingers interlocked. "Jaw of the Lightning Dragon!" Laxus' fist slammed on the dragon's cranium, a vicious discharge of lightning occurring on impact. The force was enough to slam the dragon back onto the ground violently, creating a small tremor. "How about you pick on someone your own size first before anything else? Otherwise you just look like an idiot." Laxus landed on the ground, arms crossed with his coat blowing in the wind.
Lifting itself up, the dragon shook its head, looking as if the blow from Laxus was a bite from a little bug. "Ha…too bad I don't see anything my size. I suppose I'll just have to settle for you as a light snack, then?" Opening its mouth, the dragon released a funnel of flames in Laxus's direction, the large wave completely consuming him.
"Tch…!" Laxus' eyes widened; every direction was nearly sealed off within the sea of fire. But even so…the Lightning Dragon slayer smirked slightly. "Lukewarm flames…" He muttered. "I've felt flames hotter than these before…so these flames of yours, dragon…they can't even burn me!" Arms uncrossed and thrown to his sides, a massive burst of lightning dispelling most of the flames, leaving lingering embers across the rocky landscape. "You call that fire? You don't hold a candle to that hot headed idiot…"
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"Ugh…" Lucy stood up, shaking her head. "That was really weird…what happened…?"
"The ground…" Natsu said while rubbing his head. "Happy, are you okay?"
"A-Aye…" Happy had swirls in his eyes, though he was just over exaggerating Lucy's weight once again.
"How do we get out of here…?" Lucy questioned while looking around. There were multiple tunnels, all of which likely leading to a different location.
"My nose…it doesn't really work down here…" Natsu grunted in annoyance.
"The guests have arrived…!" The sound of clapping echoed through the small cavern, causing both Natsu and Lucy to turn. A petite woman with short blonde hair, emerald eyes, and clad in a white coat walked in. Alongside her was a large, bulky male with curly red hair, a rigid face, and also clad in a white coat. "Oh…" The female sighed after looking Natsu and Lucy over. "Are these the people they were talking about…looking rather…lackluster…"
"Hmph…" The brutish male simply nodded in agreement. "I didn't realize we were being sent to check on weaklings…"
"Weaklings?!" Natsu pounded his fist together, flames erupting around his arms. "You workin' for Gaius!?"
"Who?" The female blinked before shrugging. "Oh, no…not him. We serve a different king. Allow me to introduce myself…I am Laura, and my friend here is Lex. And we're here to test you…well, that was the plan, but now it looks like we're going to end up killing you just by playing around."
"What was that…!?" Natsu growled before wasting no more time, lunging forward towards Laura with his arm cocked back. "We'll show you how strong we are! Iron Fist of the Fire Dragon!"
"Lex, please…" Laura said while waving her hand.
"Hmph…" Lex jumped forward and held up his arm, blocking Natsu's fist with ease, though he did slide back a few inches. "Interesting power level…but I hope that's not all of it…" Lex then grabbed Natsu's arm and flung him to the opposite side of the cavern; Lex quickly chased after, a heavenly glow appearing within his hand, which manifested into a stout axe-blade. "I will be your opponent!"
"Natsu!" Lucy turned as Natsu was thrown away and was immediately prepared to assist him, but a bolt of lightning just to her side caused her to jump. "Ha!?"
"Okay Blondie…" Laura said while forming small 'daggers' of lightning between her knuckles (like claws), grinning towards Lucy. "Don't disappoint me now." With a two flicks of both wrists, Laura sent the daggers of lightning towards Lucy at an alarming speed.
"Tch…!" Lucy sucked her teeth before preparing herself; the celestial wizard dove hard to the right to evade the daggers, landing on her feet before holding a hand up. "Star Dress: Taurus!" A glow appeared around Lucy's body; her hair was done up into two buns, and she was wearing the Taurus attire with her whip at the ready. Lucy raised her whip before slamming it onto the ground, creating a shockwave that travelled towards Laura at a breakneck pace.
"Child's play!" Laura gracefully evaded the incoming shockwave with a flip; with surprising speed, the blonde quickly approached Lucy with another set of lightning daggers forming. Once reaching Lucy before the shockwave even finished, Laura began slashing at Lucy who barely evaded by stepping backwards. "Come on, don't just dance around me!"
"Agh…" Lucy grit her teeth before standing her ground, balling her hands into a fist and threw a punch at Laura. To her surprise, Laura ended up blocking the hit and didn't even cringe, which was bad because this was with Taurus' added strength. "No way…"
"What's the matter?" Laura questioned with a wide grin, slamming a fist into Lucy's stomach, causing her to double over breathlessly; Laura continued, aiming a spinning roundhouse right to Lucy's temple. The blow was strong enough to send Lucy tumbling along the ground before coming to a stop on her hands and knees. The short haired female didn't stop there, she then threw three of her daggers at Lucy, all three of them surrounding the celestial wizard in a triangle formation with her in the middle. "Lightning Trap."
Lucy was still recovering from the harsh blow and needed to get her bearings straight. Before she could, however, the three daggers landed around her. A triangular magic seal formed under her and a powerful discharge of lightning occurred, a small barrier forming to keep her from escaping until the attack was finished. "Ack…!" A strangled cry of pain escaped the Fairy Tail wizard until the attack finished and Lucy collapsed onto her stomach, sparks dancing around her body.
Meanwhile, Natsu was dealing with Lex. After being thrown, the Salamander quickly flipped and pressed his feet against the wall, flames erupting around his body. "Fire Dragon's…" Pushing off the wall, now launching himself headfirst towards Lex. "Sword Horn!" BAM! Direction contact. Natsu slammed himself into Lex's sternum, causing him to slide back a few feet, almost falling over. Natsu used this time to follow up with a fiery kick. "Fire Dragon's Claw!" Slamming his flaming foot into Lex's face, causing the bulky male to collapse on his back. "Heh…the bigger they are, the harder they fall after all…" Natsu spoke with a cocky grin.
"The smaller the fry, the more they boast…" Lex replied while standing up, brushing off Natsu's attacks like nothing.
"Ah…" Natsu was surprised at first, but this just meant these two were nothing to take lightly.
"Haaaaaaaaa….." Lex let out a shout before a red aura briefly surrounded his body, pushing away some of the rubble. "Now it's my turn!" Lex dashed towards Natsu at the same speed, now delivering some slashes with his axe-blade. Natsu stepped to the side while backing away, feeling the immense power behind Lex's swings. "Die!" Lex swung his blade towards the ground, causing a large pillar of earth to rise up under Natsu's feet and throw him into the air.
"Guh?!" Natsu was thrown off guard by suddenly flying into the air, but he caught himself and raised his hands over his head, creating a gigantic fireball. "Dazzling Blaze of the Fire Dragon!" Throwing his arms down, releasing the large blaze like a meteor towards Lex.
"Pathetic!" Lex shouted while the red aura returned, causing him to power up and he slashed clean through the Dazzling Blaze like butter, leaving Natsu shocked.
"He cut through it…?! What is this guy…" Natsu muttered before landing on the ground in a crouched position, one hand resting on the rocky surface. "We'll just try this again…" Darting from his position, Natsu made his way over to Lex and grabbed his collar with a grin once getting close. "Fire Draogn's…Grip!" From his palm, an explosive burst of fire occurred, covering a large section of the cavern. Natsu was certain this attack would deal a heavy amount of damage if not put Lex down, but he was dead wrong about that. Before the smoke could even clear, Lex slammed his fist into Natsu's face with enough force to send him flying, though before he could Lex then grabbed Natsu's leg and hurled him in Lucy's direction, the two crashing into each other. "Agh…"
"Natsu! Lucy…!" Happy cried out in worry upon seeing their condition in this battle.
"How boring…I didn't think these 'heroes' would be so disappointing…but it was like taking candy from a baby…" Laura said with a shake of her head.
"Disappointing…I didn't even have to power up that much…" Lex sighed.
"They're strong…" Lucy struggled to pick herself up, but managed to do so, though she was hunched over slightly. "Who are these guys…?"
"I dunno…" Natsu responded while standing up. Even in the middle of this danger, there was a smirk drawn on his lips. "But it's been a while since I've gotten to punch something…so there's only one thing I can say to this." His fist pounded together yet again, flames erupting around his entire body again. "I'm all fired up."
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Standing at the castle gates of Gaius' castle were Fairy Tail. Sounds of Laxus fighting the dragon in the distance could be heard, though they tried to keep their minds on the task at hand. Laxus was going to be fine. "Finally…let's grab Nasir and put an end to this thing. If I know Natsu, he'll show up before we even reach Gaius."
"I don't think that'll be happening any time soon, Fairy Tail…" That voice belonged to none other than Reve. He was standing at the top of the castle gates, pointing a pistol down at them.
"Reve?! What the hell are you doing!?" Erza shouted. "Don't you know we're on the same side!?"
"Same side?" Reve tilted his head to the side before shaking it. "You're still working with that old fossil Dhegensea? That's a bad idea."
"A bad idea?!" Juvia couldn't believe what she was hearing. "But…Dhegensea was the one who assigned us this task…and Ena and Kurthnaga…!"
"I thought we were on the same side here…?" Mii looked between Fairy Tail and Reve, question marks appearing above her head.
"Didn't he tell you Gaius would try some dirty tricks to get you on his side?" Gray raised a brow. "Funny, I didn't think you guys were stupid enough to fall for them."
"We didn't hear anything about any tricks…" Reve shrugged. "Although, we did hear some interesting information…we'll tell you if you wise up and listen to what Gaius has to say. Otherwise, this may get ugly for you all."
"Reve, put that weapon down this instant." Makarov demanded, but it just made Reve laugh.
"That's rich, old man. Last time I checked, I didn't follow your orders." Reve responded with a snarky grin. "Last chance, you gonna waltz in peacefully, or are we going to have to beat the lesson into your head again?"
"I'm getting sick of that one's attitude…" Juvia grumbled.
"I'll take 'em down a notch…" Gajeel said with a widening grin. "After we knock some sense into you guys, we'll take care of the rest!"
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White Eclipse has sided with the enemy!? What could be the meaning behind this?! Who are the mysterious figures fighting against Natsu and Lucy?
Next Time: Castle Siege!