A/N: Episode 190.

Enjoy!

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN: THE ONE WHO CLOSES THE PORTAL

"Still, wow! We can hear it from here." Gray commented.

"It sounds like all of Crocus is shaking from the cheers for Fairy Tail." Juvia stated.

"Jeez. Wish they'd shut up already. They're gonna make my wounds vibrate." Gajeel complained.

"Oh, don't be like that. Those are cheers of congratulation." Erza claimed. "Now we can give a good report to Master."

"Well, Gramps aside, this was good for our comrades who went through hard times these past seven years." Laxus said.

Juvia hugged Gray's arm. "Gray-sama, let's go on a date to celebrate our victory! Right now!" She suggested.

"Now?!" Gray exclaimed in shock.

Gray and Juvia looked towards Sting and Lector, who were still hugging each other as they smiled.

"Listen to that cheering!" Chapati announced. "The strongest guild, Fairy Tail, is back in full force!"

"It's a happy ending, eh, Mabo?" Yajima asked.

"Kabo! I never thought they'd get through the final day without any losses!" Mato commented before turning behind him. "Kabo?"

"Indeed, they started from last place and pulled off a major upset!" Chapati agreed. "Come to think of it, they were split up into Team A and Team B at first, right?"

"Natsu didn't participate in the final battle, but ultimately, maybe the guild's solidarity is what made all the difference." Yajima responded.

"I see! Mato-kun, what do you think?" Chapati questioned.

"Oh, it was amazing-kabo!" Mato responded.

"Still, we've seen a lot of great matches, haven't we?" Yajima asked.

"Mato-kun, which match made the biggest impression on you during these..." Chapati paused as he saw Mato was no longer there.

"Huh? I wonder where he went." Yajima said.

"Th-Then, what was the best part for you, Yajima-san?" Chapati questioned.

"The swimsuit competition, of course!" Yajima answered.

"That?"

"It's over, huh?" Gajeel asked.

"The tournament, anyway." Juvia replied.

"Erza, how's your leg?" Gray questioned.

"Nothing I can't handle." Erza answered.

"Still, you know..." Laxus started to say as his guildmates looked his way. "It just doesn't feel the same without constant screaming."

"Can't argue with that." Gray agreed.

"Although it's a pain in the ass with him around..." Gajeel added.

"Can't really argue there either." Erza agreed. "By the way, did anyone see a flare?"

"Nope. Other than the one moment that Saint monster had the upper hand, I had my eye out." Laxus responded.

"I didn't see it either." Gray said.

"The thing of it is, there ain't no way the Salamander would remember to signal us." Gajeel claimed.

"Well, Sam is with the group. Knowing him, he probably would've remembered." Gray stated.

"Right, Sam!" Sting thought. "Hey..."

His voice brought the attention to the Fairy Tail Mages as Gajeel got in his face. "Don't look at me with that annoying face!" He shouted as Lector hid behind Sting in fright.

Juvia was trying to hold him back. "Gajeel-kun!"

"I was just wondering where Sam had gone. I didn't see him with your guildmates, so..." Sting started to say as Gray narrowed his eyes at the mention of Samuel's nickname.

"Hey, what business do you have with my younger brother?" He questioned.

Sting blinked. "I see. He hasn't told you." He replied, confusing the Fairy Tail Mages.

"Huh? Are you trying to say Sam's hiding something from me?!" Gray asked.

"G-Gray-sama, calm down!"

"It's not my place to say. For now, let's just say I'm a... friend of his." Sting said.

"Did something happen to Samuel-kun?" Lector questioned.

No one answered him as Gray looked up at Mercurius. "Are you safe, Sam... Natsu... Lucy?" He wondered.

Mercurius...

"Fire Dragon's Roar!" Natsu shouted out, releasing his breath attack at Uosuke.

"Gravity zone!" He shouted, directing the flames away from him. "It won't work no matter how many times you try it-tai!"

"Natsu!" Happy exclaimed.

"I'm hungry, dammit!" Natsu complained.

Kamika had purple paper that was between her fingers. "Confetti! Purple Dance!"

Purple paper latched onto Samuel. "Again with this?! I think you need to change your tactics!" He insulted.

"Then how about this? I'll start by shredding your clothes!" Kamika said as gray paper were made into ninja stars and headed towards Samuel.

"Now, hold on just a second!"

Samuel soon disappeared into a hole made by Virgo. "Thanks for the save, Lucy-san!" Samuel thanked her.

"Glad I could help!" Lucy told him.

"You should be ashamed, coward!" Cosmos claimed as plants headed for Loke, who easily dodged them.

"You know, your angry face is very charming. What do you say the two of us slip out of here and get a bite to eat or something?" Loke suggested.

"You're pushy!"

"Melt! Melt!" Knepper exclaimed.

Purple acid shot up in the air as Wendy blew it away. "Please let us just get by already!" She pleaded.

"That ain't gonna fly! Come on and play with me some more, Dragon Slayer!" Knepper said.

Lily continued trading blows with Kama. "Give up, sinner!" Kama exclaimed.

"Let us pass!" Lily shouted back.

"I already told you! You're not going outside!" Kama said.

"Listen to me!"

"This is for the peace of the people of Fiore! Sinners must be put to death!" Kama claimed.

"We need to get out of here fast, for the sake of Fiore!" Lily argued. "Why won't you try to understand that?!"

"A sinner's words are nothing but noise! They have no meaning!" Kama said.

"W-We can't do this. There's no time to fight..." Future Samuel placed his hand against his forehead. "If we're too late because of this, then we'll..."

Future Samuel collapsed to his knees, making Carla turn to him. "Hey! Are you okay?" She asked.

"There's no time!" Future Samuel replied.

"According to Future Samuel, we were in the palace when that time came... We're not imprisoned, but in the end, it'll turn out the same way?" Carla questioned herself.

"Go! Go!"

A wave of guards were rushing towards the group. "Surround them!"

"More reinforcements... We won't be able to hold out at this rate!" Loke informed.

"There, you see? It's time to be executed!" Kamika said.

"The enemy way outnumbers your side, Princess." Virgo stated the obvious.

"I can see that for myself!" Lucy shouted.

Lily turned back into his Exceed form. "Crap! My body..."

Kama laughed. "So you've already hit your limit, eh?"

"Now I'm mad! Execution!" Natsu exclaimed. "I'm gonna execute all of you!"

"Charge!"

"Circle around him from there!"

A guard suddenly turned around in alarm, getting his colleague's attention.

"What's wrong? Is someone there?"

"No. Maybe just my imagination..."

"Happy! Carla! You two go on ahead and tell the others!" Lily ordered.

"Aye, sir!" Happy replied as him and Carla were flying.

"Understood!"

That's when they suddenly got stopped by Uosuke. "Oh, no, you don't-tai!"

"You again?!" Happy exclaimed.

"You people are not leaving this palace... tai?" Uosuke said as he suddenly got surrounded by black shadows. "What is this-tai?!"

"What the hell is this?!"

"I can't move!"

"What is it?!" Happy questioned.

"Moving shadows?!" Carla said.

The royal guards began sinking below the shadows.

"What is this?!"

"What's happening?!"

"What the...?" Natsu questioned as he was sticking his foot in a guard's face.

"What?!" Kama said.

"The shadows are swallowing people up!" Kamika exclaimed.

"What is this, magic?" Cosmos asked.

"We're sinking-tai!" Uosuke said, holding onto Knepper's wrist.

"Don't let go, Uosuke!" Knepper told him.

"What is this?!" Kamika questioned.

"Kamika! Cosmos!" Kama called out for them as he began sinking too. "You...! Th-The Garou Knights... done by this?! Princess!"

Future Samuel looked like he was about to throw up. "It can't be... not him..." He mumbled to himself.

The shadows soon retreated.

"What the hell is goin' on here?" Natsu wondered.

Far away from Mercurius...

"I see. So that's what it was..." Jellal muttered.

"Jellal?" Ultear questioned.

"How could I have missed something so simple?"

"Is something wrong?" Meredy asked.

"The Future Samuel said he arrived on July 4th with Lucy." Jellal began. "But it was actually at midnight on the 3rd."

"We've detected the mysterious Magic every year, but he arrived only recently?" Ultear questioned.

"No. The Magic force we've felt these past seven years was definitely Eclipse." Jellal responded.

"But this year, it came from a human." Meredy pointed out.

"He came back from the future by using Eclipse, the Magic from Zeref's books, and that left a residue of Magic much like Zeref's in his body." Jellal explained.

"Zeref..." Ultear muttered. "The Dark Wizard who can't be defeated."

"I have a bad feeling about this." Meredy claimed.

Jellal turned around. "I understand your anxiety, but right now, there's another problem we need to deal with."

"Right."

"If we assume that everything Future Samuel said is true, he came here late at night on the 3rd. Then the Samuel I saw on the evening of the 3rd..." Jellal trailed off.

Arcadios soon arrived in front of Hisui and Darton. "Princess..." He greeted.

"Arcadios-sama! Then you're safe!" Hisui said.

"Colonel! When I had you thrown into Hell Palace, I'm afraid I was terribly biased..." Darton started to say.

"Let's let bygones be bygones. Does everyone here already know about Eclipse 2?" Arcadios asked.

"Yes. We were just informing all of the soldiers. Hopefully word will spread quickly to the Garou Knights as well. The person who came from the future was telling the truth. From this moment forth, the Eclipse Project will move to Eclipse 2." Hisui replied.

"Are you abandoning the first plan to eliminate Lord Zeref?"

Hisui shook her head. "No. But first we need to remove the threat that's right in front of us."

Arcadios drew his sword, causing Hisui's eyes to widen. "What are you...?!" Darton questioned before Hisui was handed the sword.

"It is impermissible for a knight to doubt the words of his master. When your words are proven true, I shall lay down my life. By doubting my master for even one moment, I have brought on great shame..." Arcadios moved the tip of the sword closer to his throat. "...and am prepared to die for it."

"Bastard! Have you gone mad?!" Darton shouted. Arcadios looked at him with a serious look, making Darton get taken aback.

"Princess, please tell me the truth."

"Arcadios-sama, what is the meaning of this?" Hisui asked, her hands shaking.

"I met the person from the future. But they had no knowledge of Eclipse 2. The time traveler knew what would happen, but cried because there was no solution for it." Arcadios said.

"No, my contact told me exactly what to do to deal with it." Hisui argued.

"Then, that person from the future... they lied?" Arcadios questioned. "I can't imagine... how Samuel could profit from lying to his comrades!"

Hisui widened her eyes. "Samuel?"

This caught Arcadios' attention as Hisui was now sweating. "The person from the future who advised me wasn't him." She claimed.

"The person I saw on the evening of the 3rd wasn't Samuel!" Jellal exclaimed. "There must be another person from the future!"

A ball of black shadows soon formed. "All of the imperial soldiers..." Happy started to say.

"...sank into the shadow!" Carla finished.

"Why are we safe?" Lily asked.

A silhouette soon appeared. "Someone's there!" Loke informed.

"Be careful!" Lucy warned.

"Who the hell are you?" Natsu questioned.

Jellal, Meredy, and Ultear were running down the hill. "What do you mean, another?!" Meredy asked.

"Another person from the future who used Eclipse, so they're also tinged with the Magic that's similar to Zeref's. Samuel came back to save the future. Why did the other person come back?!" Jellal asked himself.

"The shadows are fanning out to the past or the future? Or perhaps to people's hearts? This brings back memories, Natsu Dragneel. I've come from the future. I'm Rogue." Future Rogue greeted.

"Rogue? You're Rogue?!" Natsu quoted.

"From Sabertooth?" Wendy questioned.

"You're from the future?" Samuel asked.

Future Samuel was shaking uncontrollably as he stared at Future Rogue.

"Why?!" Happy said.

Outside, the moon began to change to a blood red.

"Two people came from the future. One is Samuel. He came back to warn his friends of danger in the future." Arcadios claimed.

"The other one came back to warn the princess of danger." Darton added.

"Both of them have the same purpose, to save this country. I wouldn't be surprised if there's a third and fourth person." Hisui said. "And if you're a knight, then point your blade in the proper direction. I'm going to open the portal. To save this country, I shall draw my blade!"

The moon continued to change to a blood red slowly.

Jellal, Ultear, and Meredy were now in the town. "I don't know what the other person from the future is after. Let's hurry to the palace!" Jellal informed.

"Did you get rid of the soldiers to help us?" Loke asked.

"You know, you seem different." Natsu claimed.

"Why did you come back from the future?" Carla questioned.

"To open the portal." Future Rogue responded.

"You're talking about Eclipse?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"There are two ways to use Eclipse. One is time travel. The other is as the Eclipse Cannon, an offensive weapon. It's the only way to defeat 10,000 dragons." Future Rogue explained.

"Then that makes it easy. You're on our side!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Yay! We can beat the dragons!" Happy cheered.

"The future can be saved, right?" Wendy asked.

"No. It isn't that simple. I come from seven years in the future. Seven years from now, dragons rule the world." Future Rogue replied.

"They rule it?" Natsu repeated.

"Th-Then what about the people who are left?" Wendy questioned as Future Samuel narrowed his eyes.

"Not even 10% of the current human population has survived. Of course, Eclipse isn't nearly as powerful as it is now. If the dragons aren't stopped here and now, this world will come to an end." Future Rogue answered.

"Then let's open the portal and blow 'em away! Boom! Easy, right?" Natsu asked.

"However, seven years ago... That is, in the present, someone interfered with the opening of the portal." Future Rogue continued.

"Interfered? Why would they do that?" Lucy questioned.

"Because of that person, the portal wasn't opened. The Eclipse Cannon that was pointed at the 10,000 dragons couldn't fire. Someone led the world to destruction. I'm here to eliminate that person." Future Rogue claimed.

"That's barbaric! If you talk to the person about their reasons, maybe they won't interfere after all." Carla said.

"There's no need for murder." Lily added.

"At such a critical junction in time, words cannot prevent actions. Even if I did convince the person now, they would definitely close the portal. It's already decided."

"Decided?" Lucy quoted.

"Destiny is inescapable. The living will live. The dead will die. The person who closes the portal is going to close the portal. No matter what happens, as long as they're alive." Future Rogue said.

"I don't really follow you." Natsu commented. "But who is this person that interferes?"

Rogue opened his eyes. "You... Lucy Heartfilia!" He answered as a shadow blade headed for Lucy.

"Lucy!" Natsu called out.

Everything seemed to go into slow motion as Natsu tried going after the blade. However, the blade struck Future Samuel instead, making everyone turn around in shock.

Future Samuel collapsed on the ground, making his hood fall off in the process. "H-Hey! You!" Samuel shouted at his future counterpart.

"Samuel!" Happy shouted as he rushed over while Natsu's body was shaking uncontrollably.

"Another Samuel?" Future Rogue questioned in shock while Samuel took his future self in his arms.

"Hold on!" Lucy told him.

"Samuel!" Happy soon joined his side.

"Your future self didn't... close the portal..." Future Samuel spoke to Lucy weakly.

"I know! I would never do that!" Lucy said. "Why did you protect me?!"

"Do you really have to ask that? You're my comrade, I don't mind sacrificing my life for you." Future Samuel responded, making Lucy tear up. "Dying in my past self's arms... it feels weird."

"It feels weird for me, too! Don't die!" Samuel pleaded.

"H-Hey, what about Healing Magic?" Lily suggested.

"With a wound that deep, nothing can..." Carla trailed off.

"That's okay. Enough... I never thought I'd be able to see any of you again... but I did, one more time. That alone... makes me happy..." Future Samuel said.

"Samuel... No! Don't die!" Happy begged.

"I'm not... from this age... No. I'm not from this world." Future Samuel places his hand against Happy's cheek. "The me of this world... will live on with his comrades. Don't be sad."

"I am sad! I don't care what world you're from! I don't care what anyone says! Samuel is Samuel! You're my friend! Of course I'm sad!" Happy bawled as Future Samuel hugged him close.

"Hey, I have a weird request. Do you think you can show me your guild mark?" Future Samuel asked his present self.

"Huh? Sure..." Samuel muttered, lifting up his shirt to reveal his dark blue Fairy Tail guild mark on his right pectoral.

Future Samuel raised his left arm, causing his cloak to move a bit as he placed his hand against his present self's guild mark as tears fell from his eyes.

"Your left side..." Samuel mumbled in realization.

"I'm going to join Fairy Tail when I'm older!"

"Natsu-san! Did you defeat any bad guys on the job? I bet you took them down without ease!"

A twelve year old Samuel flashed in Natsu's mind, making him grit his teeth in anger.

"Finally, it's over. My life was... nothing but suffering..." Future Samuel spoke in relief, his body dropping to the ground as his hand fell from his present self's chest. Both Samuel and Lucy were in tears. "I leave the rest to you. Please... Protect the future."

Everyone soon turned to look at Future Rogue. "What did he mean by Lucy not closing the portal?" He asked himself.

"The hell with the portal! I would never have done that! But still, you..." Lucy started to say.

"That's now. But you'll close the portal several hours from now." Future Rogue said.

Natsu had a dark shadow casted over his eyes.

"I'm not gonna close the damn portal!" Lucy argued. "You talk all this nonsense! What are you after?!"

Future Rogue gritted his teeth. "The portal will be closed. It's already been decided. As long as you're alive..."

"The future Samuel said my future self didn't close it. I believe him!" Lucy exclaimed.

"There is no truth in his words! Everything is dictated by destiny!" Future Rogue argued, creating another shadow blade.

Natsu turned around angrily. "I'll burn your destiny to ash!" He screamed, sending a large amount of flames towards Future Rogue who easily blocked it with his arms, causing him to skid back.

"You have no idea who you just fucking killed, do you?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Please protect the future..."

Future Samuel's words rang in Natsu's ears as tears fell from his eyes.

"I promise I will!"

A/N: Another chapter is completed!

Thanks for reading!

~ Kaleb.