"Now then…let's end these games and start playing for keeps…" Nasir glared towards the four dragon slayers before starting off with a simple motion; he drew his arm back before swiping it forward, and just by doing that a massive twister formed, heading for all four dragon slayers.
"What the…!?" Sting felt the very ground tremble at the might of the twister. He crossed his arms to soften the blow but he was just thrown off his feet like Rogue, Natsu, and Selene in a violent fashion. "Gah!"
"That was something else…" Rogue grunted.
"I guess he's really serious now…" Selene said while shaking off the impact.
"Like that's gonna stop me!" Of course, Natsu wasn't going to be one to stay down. He got right back up and charged Nasir, only to be surprised when Nasir met him more than halfway with his claw raised. "Ga…!" Before Natsu could utter another word, Nasir slammed his palm into Natsu's head, crushing the Fire Dragon into the ground.
"Natsu-san!" Sting gasped slightly at Nasir's improved strength. He then cupped his hands at his sides, forming a white sphere in the empty space within his palms. "White Dragon's Holy Ray!" Sting threw his arms forward, unleashing large rays of light towards Nasir.
"Hmph!" Nasir grunted and took to the air to avoid the holy ray much to Sting's dismay. He then twisted his body before sending a roundhouse kick at the air, sending a powerful gale towards the others that completely destroyed the ground in its wake.
"Gah!" Sting and Rogue were both blown back by Nasir's power, though Selene managed to hold her ground thanks to her diamonds.
"This is ridiculous…" Selene grunted in slight annoyance before allowing her arm to morph into a diamond blade with jagged edges, beginning to rotate like a chainsaw; this was based off of Gajeel's very own Iron Dragon's Sword. Bending her knees, the diamond slayer leapt into the air to challenge the sky dragon. "Diamond Dragon's Sword!" She brought her arm down in a diagonal motion, slashing Nasir's scaled chest. The hit seemed to make contact as the dragon hissed in pain and a slash mark formed along his scaled chest.
Before Selene could do anything else, Nasir's hand wrapped tightly around her neck. "You've been quite annoying…" He began lifting higher into the air, rearing the arm back that held Selene. "Let's see how well these diamonds you praise so much hold up under a toss from a mile in the sky?"
"You wouldn't…!" Selene grunted while attempting to pry Nasir's hand away from her throat with her own.
"Watch." Nasir then threw his aforementioned arm forward, sending Selene spiraling to the ground with such force a mini explosion occurred, kicking up a large cloud of dirt and smoke. "Those diamonds aren't invincible. Everything cracks eventually." He spoke while crossing his arms, descending back to the ground with a cocky grin."
"Those scales of yours seem pretty fragile now that I think about it…" Selene spoke as the dust settled. She was struggling to keep balance and staggered a little, though the overall damage she took was significantly reduced due to her diamond scales. "I mean, only one attack and there's a mark…? You just threw me from the sky and the only thing I got was a little motion sickness…" She admitted, though one couldn't see her pale face thanks to the sheen of her diamonds.
"You…!" Nasir grit his hand into a tight fist from annoyance. "Upstart…" Wings opened and he flew towards Selene at a low altitude, but she didn't move an inch. Instead she just wore the faintest smirk on her lips. "You should really watch your shadow. But I guess it is hard to see in this dusk lighting."
Nasir ignored Selene's remark, which was a costly mistake on his end. A pair of ruby optics shone from the dragon's shadow, and just before he could reach the diamond slayer, Rogue, in his Shadow Drive, emerged with shadows surrounding his hand in a claw-like form. "Shadow Dragon's Furious Claw!" He slashed right at Nasir's exposed stomach before retreating into the shadows; Nasir's eyes widened and he fell right to the ground, sliding across the rocky dirt in pain.
Sting, within his White Drive, was now the one falling from the sky, white dragon slaying magic wrapped around his extended foot. "White Dragon's Flash Stomp!" Sting's boot crashed directly onto Nasir's skull and a brilliant white flash exploded from impact. After the Flash Stomp, Sting leapt away while looking into the sky. "Now, Natsu-san!"
On that cue, Natsu was in the air with a wild fire blazing around both of his arms. "Secret Dragon Slaying Art! Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame Blade!" Natsu threw his arms forward while twisting his body in a counterclockwise motion, unleashing a gigantic wave of flame towards the downed Nasir, consuming the sky dragon in the sea of fire. Natsu landed on his feet, panting moderately hard after unleashing one of his strongest moves. A cloud of smoke formed at the sight of impact.
"Was that enough!?" Rogue asked the others.
"Here's hoping…" Sting replied.
"HYAH!" With a cry, the wind picked up and dispersed the smoke to reveal a damaged Nasir in the middle of a crater. Unfortunately the damage wasn't enough to put the dragon down.
"No way…" Selene grit her teeth.
"He's still standing!?" Natsu clenched his fist.
"You dragon slayers are starting to become rather annoying now…" Nasir said while dusting off some rubble. "I'm going to finish things right now. Then you won't be a potential bother to Dhegensea. Please understand…this is completely personal, but in a way you'd never understand."
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"Is there any way to bypass that barrier!?" Raven looked to Luke, Draco, and Cana since they were the eldest ones current on their side. "We have to help them…!"
"Brute forcing it doesn't seem to work judged by Mii's attempt…" Draco said while rubbing the back of his head.
"Oh, idea…!" Chelia nodded before turning to Happy. "Happy, fly me up!"
"Hey wait a second, you shouldn't be fighting!" Cana yelled at Chelia but the pinkette wasn't listening.
"O-Okay…!" It didn't seem like Happy was listening either. He went behind Chelia and lifted her into the air with his sprouted wings, only to find that the fence of lightning was actually a large helix that was impassable. "Whoa…!"
"It's covered on all sides…!?" Chelia clenched her fist in a slightly annoyed fashion. "Darn it…!"
"Sorry, sweetie," Laura spoke tauntingly towards Chelia. "Only those I want can pass through here, and right now I don't want any of you interfering with this little mission of ours. But if you really want to be next, I'll keep you in lin-" She was so focused on her little monologue she completely took her attention off Yukino and Lucy; as a result Yukino slammed her knee into Laura's gut, causing her to hunch over; a swift punch landed against her cheek, finishing off with a roundhouse kick to the temple. The surprising close combat assault sent Laura staggering backwards a few steps before coming to a halt, turning her head to the side to spit out some blood. "Well…that was rather rude, wasn't it…"
"Did you know she could do that…?" Draco looked incredibly surprised while staring at Lector and Frosch.
"It gets me every time..." Lector replied with shock in his eyes.
"That other guy was saying something about wanting Lucy for something…" Luke grumbled. "But I'm afraid I'm as clueless as the rest of us…and it's not like they're going to state their motives."
"Where's Sparky when you need him…" Cana growled lowly at Laura.
"Well, since you wish to be so rude…" Laura pulled out several lightning daggers. "I suppose I'll have to teach you a lesson!" In one swift motion Laura threw her knives forward towards Yukino, each one representing a bolt of lightning.
"Ah…!" Yukino squeaked while leaping back to avoid the daggers. She was unable to avoid all of them and multiple daggers grazed her skin while sending a high voltage shock through her system, causing her body to jerk without her consent. "O-Ow…!" And before she could do anything else, Laura moved in and slammed her electrified heel into Yukino's temple, sending her skidding along the ground.
"Yukino..!" Lucy's attention was completely on Yukino, therefore she left herself open for Laura's palm strike to her chest, sending her flying back until she hit a tree. "Oof…!" And right then was when her previous injuries from the battle with Wes started acting up. "O-Ow…"
"What's the matter?! Are we being slow already!?" Laura grinned sadistically as she placed several daggers between her knuckles, each one sparking dangerously with electricity; the Commandant closed the distance between the two of them rapidly, aiming to stab Lucy right in the chest. "Guess that little good for nothing had a little use after all!"
"Gate of the Goat, I open thee! Capricorn!" Lucy asked as quickly as she could, pulling out a golden key and swiping it forward. On that cue, Capricorn appeared and stopped Laura's charge by aiming his hoof right at her chest, more than enough power packed into the blow to send her staggering back.
"Are you, Lucy-sama?" Capricorn gave a small bow as Lucy recovered and gave a nod.
"Mhm…! Thank you, Capricorn!" Lucy gave an appreciative smile.
Yukino stood up, shaking her head to remove whatever dizziness she had. "Sorry about that, Lucy-sama…" She then pulled out a golden key, wearing a serious expression. "Gate of the Scales, I open thee! Libra!" A bell chime echoed in the area and out came the Zodiac Spirit, Libra. Yukino pointed at Laura while shouting; "Increase the gravity around her!"
"Hai." Libra nodded and a magic seal appeared over Laura, the gravity field increasing around the blonde to force her onto a knee.
"Tch…!" Laura grunted, feeling the gravity push her down. "I hope you don't think this will keep me down!" Suddenly, that annoyed expression of hers turned into one of a smirk and she literally vanished from sight, catching the celestial duo off guard. When Laura appeared, she was surrounding them with several clones, all of them preparing to charge.
"S-She can make duplicates!?" Lucy's eyes widened as she circled around to all of the clones surrounding them. Before anything else could happen, Laura and her clones zipped past her and Yukino with lightning speed, a miniature eruption of lightning occurring after impact that sent the celestial tag team spiraling away before hitting the ground. "Oof…! S-She didn't do that last time…"
"S-She didn't…?" Yukino gasped for air while placing her forearms on the ground, wincing as sparks danced around her body.
"Of course I didn't!" Laura scoffed at Lucy's incompetence. "Why would I show my entire hand to my opponent in the first round? I can't let you read me like a book, now can I?"
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"Ice Make: Lance!" Gray threw his arms forward, unleashing several lances of ice towards Xen.
"Hmph…such pitiful ice." Xen shook his head at Gray's attack, bringing up his shield by use of telekinesis. The shield absorbed the attack, glowing a bright shade of blue before eventually fading. "Allow me to show you a REAL ice attack!" The Commandant raised his hand, a chilling wind blowing through the small area within the electrical gate. "Ice Shard." Several large, but sharp pieces of ice raced towards Gray at breakneck speeds.
"What the…!?" Gray's eyes widened as his ice was absorbed into Xen's shield. Before he knew it, the Ice Shard was coming his way faster than he anticipated. "Ice Make: Shield!" Throwing his arms forward, the ice maker created a shield of ice to protect him. He underestimated Xen's power; each shard of ice created a large crack within his shield. It only took three to shatter Gray's ice shield, while the other shards struck him directly. "Gah…!" Gray was thrown back by the surprising power Xen contained. "What the hell was that…?" Gray grunted while brushing off the attack as best he could.
"That's the power of true Ice," Xen said with a condescending chuckle. "Maker magic is by far the weakest use of ice magic…" A magic seal then appeared under Gray; it was harmless and when he tried to avoid it, it followed him. "Don't mind me. I'm just collecting your data. Oh, what's this…? You were taught this by Ur Milkovich? Interesting…shame someone of such a high standard resorted to the lowest use of magic."
"You bastard…" Gray clenched his fist at Xen's insult. He then placed his fist into his palm again, another chilling wind wrapping around his body. "I'm not going to sit here and let you talk about my teacher like that! Ice Make: Cannon!" A cannon of ice formed along Gray's shoulders and he steadied his arm. With one flick of the trigger, the cannon unleashed a massive burst of ice that rapidly traveled towards Xen.
"I'm surprised you haven't learned after the first time…" Xen shook his head before bringing up his shield again. The explosion of ice that occurred from impact was absorbed into Xen's shield once again while he laughed. "Ice doesn't work on me, Gray Fullbuster! And now that I know your parameters…I can say this fight is as good as decided."
"You think so, huh…?" Gray grit his teeth in annoyance. He didn't appreciate being belittled like so, and he was looking forward to wiping that grin off Xen's face. He could only hope Lucy and Yukino were doing okay in their fight just a few yards away.
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"I know you've heard of random chance…" Julia said while placing two fingers on her forehead; in her head, a wheel of weapons began to circle around one another. "Ah!" Once she selected a new weapon, the Sonic Spear vanished, replacing with a blade that was all too familiar; Lex's Centurion blade. Here was the newcomer, wielding the late Commandant's blade like it was nothing. "What a lucky draw! I found this just lying on the ground nearby!"
"That weapon…" Lisanna attempted to move, but the gravity field Nina had kept her from moving. "Ooof…!"
"Come on, if you can't make it out of this, then the fun goes away…!" Nina had a small pout as she spoke. She was actually disappointed in the Strauss siblings thus far.
"Don't…underestimate…a MAN!" Elfman bellowed before suddenly burrowing into the ground in his Beast Soul. He vanished from sight, surprising the two females for a brief second.
"Going underground? I'll just flush you out." Nina stepped on the ground, causing another pulse of gravity to emanate in the area. Lisanna felt her bones being crushed from the increased intensity of the gravity field while the ground began to shatter and give way.
"E-Elf-nii…!" Lisanna cried out.
The ground cracked and shattered; Elfman leapt up with a rising uppercut to Nina's chin. The force was more than enough to throw the Empyrean off her feet, into the air, and backwards, causing the gravity field to disperse and free Lisanna. "MAAAN!"
"Nina…!" Julia's eyes widened upon seeing her sister thrown back. Immediately, her grip tightened around the handle of the Centurion and she lunged forward, raising the blade over her head to crush Elfman with it.
"I won't let you touch my brother!" Lisanna shouted while flying forward, slamming her heel into Julia's gut. Impact caused the green eyes of Julia to widen as the breath was taken from her. "And here's another one!" There was a follow up; the youngest Strauss twisted her body, slamming her heel against Julia's temple for a roundhouse kick that sent the opposing female tumbling along the ground. "Elf-nii!"
"Thank you, Lisanna!" Elfman exclaimed with a grin before opening his palm, allowing Lisanna to land right on top of his hand. He reeled his arm back before throwing Lisanna forward at breakneck speeds.
"Animal Soul: Armadillo!" Lisanna tucked her body in as a glow appeared around her; she shifted into an armadillo, spinning at such rapid speeds towards the two females. BAM! A direct hit, both Empyreans were sent sprawling along the ground. Lisanna bounced back and landed just in front of Elfman, giving her brother a grin. "Ah, I think we did it!"
"Nice job, Lisanna!" Elfman gave his younger sister a thumbs up.
"Wow, you two hit hard…" Nina groaned while bringing herself up. "You've got some pretty great synergy for a pair of siblings…that's what makes this pretty fun, right Jules!?"
Julia used the Centurion as a method to help herself up, coughing slightly while scowling at the two Strauss siblings. "Fun isn't the word I'd use for this…maybe a little more obnoxious?" At the end, the two didn't seem to fazed by Lisanna and Elfman's assault.
"No way…" Elfman clenched his fist. "That wasn't enough? These two are stronger than they look…Then I guess we'll have to hit them harder!" Elfman stayed within his Beast Soul and he was ready to move at a moment's notice.
"Mhm…! And then we have to catch up with the others to hunt for Mira-nee after!" Lisanna shifted to her Tigress Soul, preparing to pounce on the two females once again to initate round 3 of their bout…until two chakrams of flame raced to both parties. All four leapt away as a path of flames was carved into the ground. "W-What the…!?"
"Where did that come from…!?" Julia questioned before turning her head in the direction the two weapons came from.
The chakrams returned to their wielder, Brax, who hung one over his shoulder while giving a smug grin. "Well, didn't think I'd be one to run into a little sibling rivalry scuffle like this. I hope you wouldn't mind if I joined in, I've been pretty bored since I got on this island. And if you're wondering what who I am, I'll tell ya, just be sure to remember. The name's Brax, one of the 13 Commandants of Pergrande. Number 4. Got it memorized?"
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"Are you two SURE you're okay?" Tia examined Cynthia and Wendy as their group began to exit the jungle. Both of the girls seemed fine and were walking perfectly normal, which was impressive considering Cynthia's condition and how Dhegensea's roar affected them.
"Y'know…" Cynthia said while rubbing her somewhat scaled arm. "After that roar, it's not nearly as difficult to breathe as it was before, and I don't have the urge to kill everything in sight…but…" It was clear she was still worried about herself. The red scales that started from her shoulder were now running down the length of her arm and up her neck.
"Are you okay, Cynthia?" Wendy immediately turned her gaze to Cynthia. For now she wasn't holding onto the girl to keep her safe but that was ready to change at a moment's notice.
"For now…" Cynthia nodded.
"It looks like the use of magic speeds up the Dragonization process…" Spade deduced. "So that means that you can't use magic like before."
"Yeah, that was really dangerous…!" Diamond said with a small giggle. "I mean, even though I wasn't near you I could feel the heat all the way from there. But I can't deny that it didn't save us then."
"Aheh…well, you know…" Cynthia rubbed the back of her head in a sheepish manner with a small grin. "When you mess with a fire dragon slayer like myself you're in for no danger!"
"Oooh, I get it! Like inferno danger!" Strong was pretty amused with himself for getting the joke, while the others just groaned painfully.
"Yeah, she's doing okay…" Wendy giggled to herself at Cynthia's horrible pun.
"Just a little longer until we reach the city…" Ace nodded, but then stopped in place, taking a scan of their surroundings. "Uh oh…"
"Uh oh WHAT?" Diamond raised a brow while shifting to a defensive stance.
"You're surrounded, that's what!" Drake exclaimed while appearing from the front, his soldiers appearing around Dealer's group. "How's that for a surprise!?"
"Shit!" Jack cursed though Heartless thwacked him on the head for using such language. "OW!?"
"You're a child, act like it." Heartless scolded him in the middle of this situation. "Where do you even pick up this language…?"
"This guy again!?" Spark grunted ,while looking around them.
"Now's not really the time for that…!" Tia mumbled while glancing around. Unfortunately they were completely surrounded. "Shit…we' really are surrounded…"
"What do you want?" Ace was rather calm in this face of danger. Though he already had an inkling of an idea of what it was Drake wanted from them since he didn't come alone.
"It's pretty obvious what I'm here for." Drake pointed at Cynthia, who was currently being shielded by Wendy standing in front of her. "You, the one I bit. Cynthia, was it? Two things. One: How are you not a dragon by now!? It's been over 24 hours and what's that, it's only up to your arm!? And two: Come quietly and I won't be forced to hurt your friends."
"Ah…" Cynthia narrowed her eyes at Drake's question and his demand. "I have a good immune system…this is the first time I've been sick in ages…plus Wendy's magic helped a lot. And NO."
"I don't think you understand your situation here…you don't have a choice." Drake made one hand movement and the dragon soldiers opened their mouths, preparing to gather magic for a multitude of roars. "If you move an inch and I don't like it, my men here are going to blast you into oblivion."
"We're not letting you take Cynthia…" Wendy's guard over her best friend only increased at the threat.
"We're pinned down; I don't think we can negotiate in a position like this…" Diamond grunted while glancing at the others. "What do we do…?"
Spade looked to Heartless, Daigo and Ace with a nervous sweat drop. "Looks like we're going to have to bring 'that' out…"
"Are you serious…?" Ace blinked before looking at Spade and Heartless. "Already? Is it even ready?"
"Not quite…but it should be sufficient for the time being…" Heartless responded with a small nod.
"This...might be our only chance." Daigo said with a nod as well. Their options were very limited at the moment.
"What on earth are you three talking about…?" Strong tilted his head curiously along with Tia, Spark, Jack, and Diamond. Clearly there was something that was on a need to know basis.
"What's going on…?" Carla looked at the others, just as clueless as they were.
"I hope you're mumbling how you're gonna get out of this…then again you only have one option." Drake spoke cockily.
"Actually…" Spade took a few steps forward, causing Drake and his men to go on guard in preparation to swarm them. "We've another option. Option B, if you will. COVER YOUR EYES!" He yelled at the others and they did just that without question. Shine Spark!" Spade clapped his hands together, essentially creating a flash of lightning that shocked and blinded the surrounding dragons. "NOW!"
"Here goes nothing!" Ace said while pulling out a red sphere from his pocket, tossing it forward while clicking some things on the lacrima attached to his wrist. "Lacrima, activate! Project: RJ! Online!"
"RJ…? Where have I heard those initials before…" Carla couldn't quite put her finger on it.
"You little shits…!" Drake groaned while his eyes slowly recovered from the flash Spade delivered. When they opened, he just saw that lacrima sphere sitting in the middle of everything. "Is that your big idea? A lacrima!?"
"Not just any lacrima…" Heartless continued. "Rise…Joker."
The red lacrima pulsated violently before it began to take shape; a familiar built starting to to form: a large, bulky male started materialize before everyone. Soon, the one member of Dealer who had not been spoken of in months appeared before them all: Joker. Blue shades clicked over the eyes of the male and a bright shine emitted throughout the area. "Systems check: All green. Objective: Eliminate Dragons. Red Joker: Online!"
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Next Time: The Dreadful Joke.