The rain on the Isle even spread out to Fiore. Port Hargeon had a heavy rain with the Isle of the Dragons visible in the distance. Jura stood at a dock as though he didn't mind the rain, arms crossed while staring at the Isle. "Hmm..." Just what was on his mind? "Surely they are going to need help of sort, but with that countdown it's going to be exceedingly difficult to secure some way across in time…unless…" Staring at the ocean, Jura had an idea in mind. "Ah, there we go." With a nod to himself, he placed his arms together as a golden aura emanated from around him. What was the Iron Rock Saint planning this time?

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Lucius and Hisui sat at the bases of two large trees, the wide leaves providing adequate protection from the rain. Lucius didn't seem focused on Hisui as he usually did this time; instead he stared off into the distance with his eyes narrowed. He could feel Lex's presence fade away…it was the same with Wes' earlier. His comrades were dropping one by one. "The mages on this isle must be stronger than we originally thought…to have beaten both Wes and Lex…"

Hisui sat there with Lucius' white coat around her still. Though it reeked of the pleasant smell of roses and did a good job in keeping her warm, she had the feeling she really shouldn't have been wearing this attire. It was a bit of an awkward silence between the two considering their interactions a while ago. "Uhm…" Hisui spoke up, causing Lucius to turn in her direction. "Are you…well…?" She questioned. He saved her life, and was keeping her alive thus far; the least she could do is ask about his wellbeing.

"Oh?" Lucius chuckled at Hisui's curiosity. "I'm quite all right, thank you for asking. Although I do not think I can say the same about my comrades…" He let out a false sign before shaking his head slowly. "Worry yourself not about it, my dear."

"I...see…okay…" Hisui just nodded. She didn't want to pry. From the sound of things the others were fighting against Lucius' comrades, which seemed to be a good thing…but for how long?

"There you are." Brax sighed while walking onto the scene along with Xen and Laura. "We've been looking everywhere for you. We split up at first but then the rain decided to put a cramp on my style."

"I see you've company with you…" Laura sneered at Hisui who just blinked, attempting not to look as afraid as she was on the inside. "Why the hell is she wearing your coat? That's your symbol of proof, you dumbass…!"

Lucius merely sighed, shaking his head as he stood up from the dry ground with a small grin plastered on the handsome face of his. "Oh Laura-san, my dear…as a lady, I thought you'd understand how to treat one. But I suppose the treatment you're used too isn't very becoming of men, is it not?"

That was quite possibly one of the lowest blows anyone could deliver to the blonde. She wasn't even sure how to react aside from her brow twitching in annoyance while her hand curled into a tight fist. Yet she couldn't actually retaliate because Lucius was a superior. Instead, she just spoke through her gritted teeth with an annoyed smile. "How charming…it's funny how such a pretty face can be the holder of a horrifyingly ugly person…" With that, her smile shifted to a crooked one.

"You two and your needless fighting…" Xen sighed while placing two fingers on his forehead in annoyance.

Meanwhile, Hisui just sat there with widened eyes. "A-Are these his allies…!?" She thought to herself while just staring at the four Commandants. "T-They don't seem very well coordinated…"

"I know, it's a mess…" Brax leaned against the tree Hisui was resting under, startling the princess horribly. "Oh, did I scare ya? Sorry about that. It's interesting that he's kept you nice and safe this entire time. Name's Brax, keep it memorized will ya?"

"It's come to my attention that both Wes and Lex have fallen…" Lucius spoke first, staring at the others for their thoughts.

"HAHAHA!" Laura let out another laugh upon hearing Wes' face. "That good for nothing slacker finally got what was coming to him! If he took his job seriously maybe the freeloader could've won. But instead he fails his only notable mission! So now we're stuck with the job." Digging in her coat pocket, she pulled out the very same whistle Wes had used against Lucy to confirm suspicions. "Found this while looking around, not even sure if the damn thing works or not because we never got a report. But I'll keep it around."

"So they got Lex too, huh?" Brax placed his hands behind his head. looking up at the gray clouds above them. "That must've been one hell of a wizard. Here I was confident that Lex could take out anyone here. Maybe Fiore isn't as weak as we thought them to be?"

"Oh, please." Laura waved a hand dismissively at that. "They just got lucky. Besides, the rest of us are higher in rank than Lex was. So we aren't taking anymore losses."

"Hahaha, now that's something I can agree with!" Brax said with a nod.

"I see…" Lucius nodded slowly. "Wes' defeat will not be in vain, however. It alerts us that the mages here are nothing to take lightly. Same with Lex…I felt his presence vanish only a few moments ago. I can only imagine whom he had to face in order to be beaten…"

"I could care less." Xen huffed. "I just want the results on that traitor! They've been in hiding for so long…and now they're finally within reach. I can't wait to pull them apart…"

"That's just a bonus, Xen," Lucius spoke calmly. "Remember our true reason for coming here?"

"Oh yes, how could I forget?" Xen's expression changed to that of a sinister grin. "I remember our true goal all too well. Has it been confirmed?"

"Oh yes…" Lucius nodded, now having Brax and Laura's attention as well. "I've confirmation that what were are looking for, and what controls this island are one and the same. The Scared Gem will fall into our hands soon enough…" It was almost as if they all forgot about Hisui. Then again, she was filled with so much fear and shock she couldn't even make a sound; she could only sit there as the Commandants began to discuss their grand plan. It didn't help that she couldn't communicate with the others…she was neck deep in enemy territory with no way out…

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"W…We made it…" Lucy huffed while placing one hand on the cave's interior, trying to catch her breath. It hurt trying to run with injuries. Everyone was soaking wet from the rain outside.

"That was an unpleasant surprise..." Rogue said with a grunt.

"Should we really have left Kagura-san behind like that?" Sting glanced back. "I know she can handle herself, but..."

"Are we all here…?" Mii questioned while glancing around. Natsu, Selene, Luke, Draco, Sting, Rogue, Yukino, Happy, Frosch, and Lector were all there. "…Wait a second…" Green eyes narrowed while glancing around again. "I know Kagura is fighting that weird guy, but…"

"We're a few short…" Selene tapped her foot, unable to put her finger on it either. "Who's missing…?"

"Wait…!" Yukino gasped when she finally noticed it before the others did. "Where are Chelia-sama and Raven-sama? They were behind us, weren't they…?"

Eyes widened as everyone finally noticed. "Stupid kids…!" Luke grunted.

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Kagura and Hubert were locked in fierce close combat. Kagura swung her unsheathed blade towards Hubert's chest, but he blocked it with his dual sided lance. It looked like Kagura held the offensive momentum until Hubert evaded one of her slashes, sending a kick to her side. It was a direct hit and the Mermaid staggered slightly in the mud, but she'd had much worse. "You will surrender immediately. You've no quarter in this battle." Kagura demanded while keeping Archenemy out.

Using two fingers, Hubert adjusted his glasses. "It's nice to think you're the stronger opponent, isn't it?" He questioned with such honesty his tone came off as condescending.

Brushing off the comment, Kagura simply used her gravity magic to decrease the gravity around her, making her lighter as a result. She was off once again, speeding through the wet ground while aiming another slash at Hubert, who blocked it, though he did slide back a few feet from Kagura's sheer force. She continued her assault, aiming relentless slash after slash at the blue haired male. Only some of her slashes even managed to graze him, much to her annoyance. "Tch…"

"Gravity manipulation? Interesting…" Hubert muttered before blocking yet another one of her slashes, only to pull apart his dual sided lance into two separate swords. With this, defending against Kagura was much easier than it was before. His weapon was special in more ways than one, and the Mermaid was about to learn this. Leaning away from the blade Archenemy, one of the swords in his hand shifted into pistol. With a sinister grin, he pointed the barrel at Kagura from closer than point blank range. "Flare Shot." Clicking the trigger, a bullet composed completely of heat shot out from the barrel in attempt to fly right through Kagura's arm.

"…!" Brown eyes widened at the sight of the pistol. Kagura was quick to shift to the side, though the bullet still grazed her arm, incinerating her sleeve while inflicting a second degree burn. Mermaid Heel's ace hissed in pain while leaping away from Hubert to distance herself. It was worrisome how even in this rain he could unleash such a powerful heat based attack.

"Quite hot, don't you agree?" Hubert chuckled before shifting his other blade into a pistol, now unleashing continuous Flare Shots upon Kagura. Even with this heavy rain the strength of the shots did not lose their potency.

"Ugh…" Kagura had no choice but to evade the incoming bullets of flame while closing the distance between herself and Hubert. Though no bullet was a direct hit, they did graze her arms and legs. Gritting her teeth to keep from letting out any pained noises, the Mermaid continued on her path towards the Empyrean wizard.

Hubert noticed that Kagura was getting closer and closer with each passing seconds. Seeing how his Flare Shots were essentially ineffective, he shifted to a different kind of bullet. "Scarlet Salvo." He uttered, clicking the trigger on one pistol yet again; a blood red bullet flew out from the handle while racing towards Kagura.

"…" That bullet looked much more dangerous than the previous. Kagura shifted to the side; however the bullet still struck her leg, just barely missing that vital artery. That didn't stop her eyes from widening in pain as she collapsed to a knee, letting out a pained yelp. "W-What on earth…m-my leg…" She could hardly feel it, only the pain throbbing in the limb as blood started to trickle down.

"Looks like you are faster than you appear…" Hubert remarked before shifting the two pistols back into the two blades and clicked them together once again. Taking a huge leap forward, Hubert aimed the very tip of his lance at Kagura, but Kagura still had enough fight in her to leap away, so he ended up impaling the ground instead. Not that this changed anything for his assault. "Detonation Bloom!" The male exclaimed as his lance released an explosion that sent a large amount of debris flying towards Kagura. This was only the tip of the iceberg; with a snap of his fingers Hubert turned all of the debris into little soldiers, all of them holding different weapons based on their distance away from Kagura. Those farther away held little machine guns that shot at her from afar, while those closer held swords and aimed to slash at her. "Command Order: Attack."

"Wha…?!" Now even Kagura had to be surprised at what Hubert was capable of. Eyes narrowed at the soldiers composed of dirt attacked her; wasting no time she sped forward even with her injured leg while sheathing Archenemy for a mere second. "Archenemy: Flipped Form!" In what looked like an invisible slash, all of the soldiers were reduced to nothing but the dirt they came from. Keeping her assault strong, she unsheathed the blade once more while using her own speed to pass right by Hubert, delivering a plethora of slashes in the split second process. "Slashing Form!" Turning after to see how she damaged him, her expression told everything she needed to know.

Hubert was relatively unharmed. There were slash marks along his clothing and some grazes, but no serious wounds. He didn't even move from his spot. Turning slowly, his glasses adjusted once more while he faced her. "Surprised, are we?" He questioned while bringing up his hand, showing off the sapphire gemstone adorned on his ring finger. "A military mind already knows how a battle will play out, and that includes the minds of his opponents. Every opponent is a unique puzzle…whether it be simplistic or complex, everyone is unique in their own mindset. However, a true mind will solve these puzzles no matter what. And I believe I've solved the puzzle that is you, Ms. Mikazuchi."

"Is that so." Kagura responded with her composure still as firm as ever. She silently clicked Archenemy back into its sheathe, and in that instant Hubert felt it.

"…!?" Hubert's eyes widened briefly as his sleeve was torn off, revealing a cut along his arm. His composure was still the same however he was incredibly impressed. Perhaps Kagura was a stronger opponent than he initially anticipated. "I thought I dodged that…you're better than you look…"

Kagura was not letting Hubert have any reprieve. She made an opening and now it was time to finish this bout. She decreased the gravity around herself while increasing it around Hubert to ensure he wouldn't be moving anywhere. With that she leapt forward, aiming her blade forward in attempt to plunge it through his chest and end this battle once and for all. "This is where you fall!"

"Oh…" Hubert felt his knees buckle just briefly under the increase in gravity. "I'm disappointed…" He said while pulling his dualblade into pistols again, taking aim at Kagura as she drew near. "This sort of tactic is far outdated…it only works when you know they're weaker than you. Are you trying to insult me? Gravity Blast." Just as Kagura was within range, Hubert clicked the trigger, unleashing a bullet that exploded with a powerful gravity field; the fields of gravity were shifted. The weight on Hubert went to Kagura, and the lightness went to Hubert. With that, Hubert leapt into the air, fusing the dual pistols into a large singular blade. "X-Passion!" Swinging his blade down, he aimed to take off Kagura's head right there, following up with several other slashes if he missed the first slash.

The field of gravity was stronger than Kagura thought, causing her to unintentionally let out a surprised yelp while using her own gravity to cancel the field out. She was back to a normal center of gravity and just in time to block Hubert's slash. Sparks flew from the collision of their blades. Once again, their blades clashed constantly, though Kagura was forced back and losing ground due to her leg injury. She was struggling to keep up let alone stand, gritting her teeth whilst fighting through the pain. She just had to wait for an opening…that opening came within the transition of Hubert pulling his sword apart into two blades. "Hyah!" In that instant, Kagura swung Archenemy for Hubert's side. The hit wasn't as deep as she was going forward and she ended up going on the defensive immediately; she swung her blade to defend against one blade…only to be open for the other. Hubert's blade plunged right through her stomach. A choked grunt of pain escaped Kagura while blood flew from her mouth, dropping Archenemy onto the muddy ground in the process.

"Checkmate." Hubert grinned while lifting his arm up, lifting Kagura up as a result. The Mermaid could only desperately grasp the blade in attempt to pull it out of her. Hubert grinned sadistically as he could see the color draining from her face as the life slipped away from her; he enjoyed seeing her blood run down his blade. "That's the look I was waiting to see." He put Kagura back on the ground, immediately joining the two blades into one once more for a devastating diagonal slash along Kagura's chest. The Mermaid Ace staggered back before falling over on her back, vision red as she laid in a small pool of her own blood. "I expected a bit more of a fight…tis a shame…" One pistol was held out, aimed directly for Kagura's forehead. "Oh well…I suppose not all expectations can be met."

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Bang. The sound of a bullet echoed through the rainy island. Instantly, Milliana and Melody froze on the spot, having the same shiver quickly crawl down their spine. "…!"

"What's up with you two?" Cygnus questioned before turning at Reve. "Was that you…?"

"No…" Reve shook his head while narrowing his eyes.

Milliana stared in the distance where the gunshot came from, only able to utter one thing. "Kagura-chan…"

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Next Time: Hard Time.