Hi everyone, welcome back to Fairy May Cry! I'm so glad that previous chapter was so well-received. Between the intense action of the five-person battle of Erza and Nero against Lucia and Kagura against Minerva, as well as that pompous Sabertooth bitch finally getting some righteous retribution for all the shit she pulled since making her appearance, I had a lot of fun writing that.
But now we've got ourselves a real emotional roller coaster as two swordswomen with intense emotions clash in the brutal and epic showdown that they both deserve, and we may finally get some answers of what's been going on with Future Lucy.
With that being said, let's get started!
Love That Transcends Time
Kurenai had stepped into the burnt out remains of a village that had just been attacked. Judging by all the smoke that was still in the air and the ash that covered the grounds, this village had been raided only the previous night.
The number one Wizard Saint clenched her trident as she growled in frustration. "I just missed them… Damn it!" She cursed. "All these people who suffer… and they use his name to do it…" Her frustration gave way to grief. "I'm one of the strongest beings in this world… so why is it… there are still people beyond my reach… even after all this time…?" She looked towards the sky with a mournful expression. "What would you all do… Sparda… Grandeeney… Igneel… Anna… David…"
However, Kurenai happened to sense something close by. Following this feeling, the Mother of Oceans rounded the corner and into a small space between two burnt out buildings that looked relatively untouched, and found a small box there. Walking closer, the female demon opened the box and was surprised at what she saw.
It was a little girl, with dark purple hair and hazel-colored eyes. The child looked up towards the woman and gave a startled fright as she curled up like a ball in terror.
"It's okay… It's okay… I won't hurt you." Kurenai eased, speaking in a soft and gentle tone, one that caused the little girl to slowly look up, where she saw the older woman back away slightly and gently place her trident on the ground before kneeling down, giving the little girl some space and speaking at her level.
'There's still someone here…' The female demon thought. '…Her family might be gone… but… I someone managed to survive… that alone is a great relief.' She thought with a smile.
"Where is everyone…?" The little girl asked as she looked around. "A bunch of bad men in masks came… My mommy… My daddy… My big brother… where are they? And… that girl with red hair who put me in here… Where are they?"
Kurenai's expression turned into one of somber. "There's nobody else here. I'm sorry." With that revelation, the child immediately began to cry, which made Kurenai all the sadder. This poor girl had lost everything in the blink of an eye. Kurenai understood all too well what it was like to lose a loved one.
"Those bad men that came here… I've been trying to stop them." Kurenai revealed, causing the crying child to look at her with tears still in her eyes. "And I won't give up." She spoke with determination. "I'll find them no matter how long it takes, and I'll make sure this doesn't happen again. And, there may be a chance that your brother or even your friends could be alive, if they were still children, they may have been taken. And if that's the case, I promise to help find them."
The child gave a light gasp as she saw the look of fierce determination in the older woman's eyes. Even if she only just met, she already believed every word she said. This woman was not only strong, but she was also gentle and kind. She could see that from the smile she had given earlier.
"But right now, let's get you taken care of." Kurenai smiled. "I'll take you to my home. I'll get you something to eat and you can rest and get cleaned up. I realize that it's not easy to trust a stranger, so… why don't we start with our names? My name is Kurenai. What is yours, little one?" She asked as she offered the child her hand.
The little girl looked at the hand offered for a moment and slowly reached out for it. "Kagura… My name… is Kagura."
Present Day
Sting continued to sit in the same spot he had found in Crocus and hadn't moved since then. He continued to remain in his secluded hiding spot in an alleyway, even after he heard the recent announcement of Minerva's defeat. Oddly though, that didn't bring him any sort of satisfaction.
'She lost.' The White Dragon Slayer mulled over. 'Well considering even Vergil can lose, it really shouldn't surprise me. But knowing her… she probably has Lector hidden away somewhere else, just in case. So even if she lost, he's not safe. Not yet. Nothing's changed. I'm going to win this for him. I don't care about anything else anymore. Winning is all that matters now. But… if for some reason… Lector isn't returned to me… and he's gone forever…' A dark look formed in his eyes.
"I will kill Minerva." He vowed to himself.
Suddenly, Sting felt a surge of demonic power throughout the battlefield. A rather strong one at that, or rather… he felt two opposing clashes of demonic power.
"What the…?"
Kagura had her Archenemy drawn. A katana coated in a blood red aura and had previously performed a quick draw that would have cut down any enemy in a single shot. But even with her rage-filled look, she couldn't help but express surprise…
At the sight of Erza clad in her Armadura Diabla armor, with her demonic spear lunged forward to block and intercept the katana. The resulting after-effect had blown away much of the roof and pillars of the surrounding area, with both warrior women standing firmly in the middle.
"HOLY MOLY! SHE BLOCKED THAT?!" Chapati practically screamed.
"That armor and spear of hers are unlike anything I've ever seen before…!" Yajima commentated.
"Oh my goodness… I'm getting chills…." Mato shook in her spot.
"That's Erza's Armadura Diabla!" Makarov said with a triumphant smile.
"Her Devil Arm armor and spear." Gildarts grinned. "One is for defense, to protect against other magical attacks; while the other is destroys anything it touches."
"I know Erza's been training her butt off to master that!" Patty smiled widely. "Having someone like Dante as a sparring partner really helped her! Go kick her butt, Erza!" She cheered.
"Let's not let our guard down just yet." Mavis said seriously.
"Indeed. Archenemy is a powerful Devil Arm, and from all indication… Kagura has more experience with it than Erza with her newfound weapon and armor." Sparda added in the same tone of voice.
"She blocked Kagura's Archenemy?!" Risley exclaimed. "Even with it unsheathed?!"
"How is that possible?!" Arana questioned.
"I don't know!" Beth said with worry.
"This can't be good!" Amarilla said with an equal amount of shock and worry.
Sho and Wally from their respective spots, Kurenai and her fellow Wizard Saints, as well as Vergil and even Frosch, were both paying close attention to this particular match with the Mother of Oceans looking with concern while the Devil Prince had a serious expression on his face.
Erza and Kagura had backed away from each other as the latter observed her opponent. "I see… It seems you wield a Devil Arm as well."
"I have no right to tell you who you should or shouldn't forgive." Erza began. "That's entirely up to you. You wish to hate me and Jellal, then I can accept that. But one thing is certain. Your brother saved my life, as did Grandpa Rob, and so did Natsu, Dante, Gray, Lucy, and everyone else in Fairy Tail. They gave or risked their lives to protect mine and show me that my life had value. If I were to throw it away, that would be the true dishonor."
Kagura glared, the red aura around Archenemy glowing brighter. "If you really wish to bare his sins too, then so be it! I'll beat you to bloody pulp!" She exclaimed as a red aura surged around her as well before she suddenly vanished in the blink of an eye.
A powerful force than impacted Erza in less than a second as Kagura appeared behind her, with Erza flying past her and crashing through multiple pillars and rolling across the ground.
"Blood Sword: Archenemy: Slashing Form!"
"Erza!" Levy exclaimed as everyone in Fairy Tail looked in shock.
"I didn't even see her move! Did she teleport or something?!" Evergreen questioned.
"No… it was her Gravity Magic." Freed determined. "Used in conjuncture with that Devil Arm of hers."
"That lady is actually kinda terrifying…" Bickslow commented.
'I ain't never seen Kagura like that before…' Wally thought.
'Is Erza really doing this for Jellal's sake? Or is it something else?' Sho wondered, but while he didn't quite understand her reasoning, he was also incredibly worried for her.
Erza picked herself up, using the spear of her Armadura Diabla to prop herself up before she coughed up some blood, the red liquid from her mouth spilling on the ground below her as she tried to catch her breath.
"How interesting…"She saw Kagura approaching her menacingly, the drawn Archenemy in her hand as the red aura surged around it like a fire and slowly spread up to her arm. "An attack like that would have completely severed my foe in half. And yet, you're still in one piece. I can only assume that armor of yours negates magical attacks, yet you still felt the physical force of it. Rather impressive, I admit."
'She's not wrong.' Erza thought to herself. 'During our three months of training, I've learned that my Armadura Diabla is capable or protecting me against magical attacks and even those of demonic power, but not physical. The force of her blow was so strong… I see. She uses her Gravity Magic to enhance her own natural speed as well as the strength of each of her sword-strikes. Used in conjunction with her master swordsmanship, as well as the power of Archenemy, which can draw on not only the power used against it, but even her own anger… the anger she's probably been feeling these past seven years towards Jellal… I would expect no less from someone who was raised and trained by the number one Wizard Saint, and the sworn sister of Sparda himself.'
"Guys… is it just me or is Kagura… acting kinda scary…? Amarilla asked nervously.
"It's not just you, Amarilla." Arana replied. "Even from here I can feel the hostility."
"Kagura's always been intense but not like this…" Beth was already shaking.
"I got a bad feeling about this…" Risley said with worry and concern.
It was a sentiment shared by their guildmaster as she, Bruni, Aurora, and Gandelina all continued to watch with Kurenai looking especially worried for her adoptive daughter.
Once again, Erza stood up fully and took a stance, the demonic power around her armor and spear began to glow as she prepared herself.
'It's hard to believe this is really the same girl from Rosemary Village.' Erza contemplated as she remembered that night. The night the Zeref cult showed up and destroyed everything, killing all the adults and taking all the children. All but one. There was one girl that Erza had helped to hide away so that she wouldn't be taken. And that girl was now standing before her, filled with rage and bloodlust.
'You've lived with this hate for so long, haven't you? Ever since learning what happened to Simon…' Erza thought with sympathy. 'But I promise, I will save you from it. I swear on the name of your brother and Rob, that I will relieve you of this hate before it consumes you!'
"Come at me!"
Juvia stopped briefly in the middle of a street with a canal on her right to see a bright flash of red that shot up into the sky.
'That was demonic power, quite a bit of it.' Juvia thought. 'Likely Erza with her Armadura Diabla. I guess that means she's no longer holding back.'
"Sky God Boreas!" Sherria had descended from the sky and threw out a cluster of black wind directly into the canal, which quickly expanded to create a black cyclone to suck up and blow away all the water in the canal. Juvia briefly braced herself but was shocked to find Sherria already on her "Sky God Dance!" She spun around to generate a current of black wind to send Juvia flying up into the air.
'She attacked the canal first so that I couldn't use the water to escape or attack! Now she's keeping me in the air so I have no cover to hide!' Juvia thought as Sherria leapt at her while still airborne and threw out several punches and kicks, all having black wind condensed around them, forcing Juvia to block and parry however she could as they fell. 'She may be young, but she's also powerful and a quick learner… this won't be easy!'
But even airborne, Juvia was far from helpless as her body transformed into water. "Water Jigsaw!" Multiple razor-sharp streams of water formed around her water body and spun around her like rapid-blades, this ended up cutting Sherria's hands and feet and forced her to stop her onslaught, allowing Juvia to land on the ground with Sherria landing in front of her with a glare, already the cuts on her hands and feet were healing.
"There's nowhere left for you to run!" Sherria pointed to her. "You're going to fight me fair and square! And I'm not letting you distract Lyon again with your wiles!"
"First off, I told you that I have no interest in him!" Juvia pointed back. "And second, there's no need for me to run anymore." A smirk fell on her face. "I'm right where I need to be."
Before Sherria could question or even react, a cluster of ice formed underneath her feet before she was shot straight up by a rapidly growing tower of ice from the ground. Said ice continued to build around her before Sherria was completely trapped.
"Right on time. Nice to know you're punctual." Gray said as he appeared from behind Juvia, having taken an Ice-Make stance to cast the spell to neutralize Sherria.
"Gray…" Juvia smiled with relief. "I'm glad to see you as well."
"Just following the First Master's plan." He replied as he stepped next to his teammate. "That probably won't hold her long though." Gray said to Juvia, referring to his ice-tower as he took a combative stance. "Let's get ready!"
"Right!" Juvia looked more than ready to fight herself.
However, a large ice serpentine dragon appeared out of nowhere to smash through the base of Gray's tower, much to his and Juvia's surprise. That very ice dragon continued to swirl upward and bash its way through the tower just as Sherria broke free with an explosion of black wind. She happened to land at the top of the head of the ice dragon as it lowered itself to the ground.
"I know that magic." Gray grumbled as he saw none other than his childhood rival stepping out from the resulting fog of the collapsing ice tower.
"You lured Sherria towards Gray so that you could take her both down together. How very clever, that's my Juvia." Lyon said, and despite the friendly tone in his voice, the look on his face was one of eagerness, ready for a challenge as he dissolved his ice dragon with Sherria leaping down to stand by his side.
"The First Master never said anything about Lyon showing up!" Juvia voiced her concern.
"Guess she was wrong. And to be honest, I had a feeling I'd run into him sooner or later." Gray replied.
"What happened to you Gray? You're looking rather rough." Lyon commented, looking at the bruised and battered from of his opponent.
"I was just taking care of unfinished business; you know how it is." He replied. "And I've got more than enough energy to take you down."
Juvia however looked towards Gray with concern. 'He may be able to continue fighting, but Gray's battle with Rufus was rather difficult. Even if Gray is more durable, Lyon looks rather refreshed by comparison. Not to mention he has seven years of experience over Gray. And now that he and Sherria are working together, do we have a chance for victory?'
"Hey Juvia." Gray got her attention. "We got this." He said with a smile as he offered his hand toward her. "Fairy Tail doesn't back down from a challenge, even with the odds against us. Right?"
The minute she saw the confident and faithful look in his eyes, all her doubts were washed away as she grasped his hand with a grim to match his own. "Right. Let's take them both, together my love!"
'Damn it!' Lyon cursed internally upon seeing Gray and Juvia interacting in such an intimate manner. 'I need to find a way to bring Juvia to her senses!'
"Hey, get your head out of the clouds, Lyon!" Sherria chastised. "We still have a tournament to win and we're way behind everyone else!"
"Oh, don't you worry." Lyon said as he turned back to his opponents, an ominous icy aura forming around him. "I have no intention of going easy on either of them."
Elsewhere, Gajeel found himself walking underneath an archway, one that was particularly shady before stopping for no apparent reason.
"You can come on out. I know you're there."
Stepping out from the shadows behind the Iron Dragon Slayer was none other than Rogue. "It seems I've underestimated you again. You were able to detect my presence even among the shadows."
"The nose knows, kid." Gajeel said as he turned to face his adversary. "Heard you've been offing some people with some sneak attacks."
"Yes." Rogue confirmed.
"Were you planning on doing the same for me?" Gajeel asked.
"No." Rogue answered. "I have my own personal reasons to win. But when it comes to you… I will not resort to such tricks. I will face you Blacksteel Gajeel, here and now!" Rogue had drawn his katana, and not only that, he went and activated his Dragon Force. Black dragon-like scales forming on his arms and up the sides of his face as his hair pointed straight upward. An intense wave of shadows blew over the area and even past Gajeel, though the Iron Dragon Slayer didn't budge an inch as he took note of his opponent.
"Huh, going all out from the start. Alright, I'll play along." Gajeel said as his right arm converted into his Iron Dragon Sword. "Who doesn't love a good old-fashioned duel?"
"I am not afraid of you." Rogue said as he took a stance, his katana pointing outward as he held the handle with both hands. "You may be strong, but you don't compare to Natsu Dragneel."
That caused Gajeel's smile to fade as he eyed Rogue with an intimidating glare. "The hell you just say to me…?"
Meanwhile, the conjoined group of Crime Sorciere as well as those from Fairy Tail had finally made it out of the Palace of Perdition and into a dining hall in the castle. It seemed like an open space to stop and hide out, while also applying some healing for the injured. Kyrie used her Arc of Seraph on Arcadios, while Wendy and Sheeree both used the same healing magic on Future Lucy, both remained unconscious. While Dante, Natsu, Lisanna, Yukino, Sorano, Modeus, Loke, Mira, Cana, Happy, and Carla stayed close to everyone else; Jellal, Trish and Ultear were at one doorway on the westward wall while Lady, Panther-Lily, and Meredy were at the one on the opposite side to keep an eye out for any unwanted company.
"It doesn't seem like we have any tails. I think we're in the clear for now." Panther-Lily said.
"Emphasis on the 'for now', part." Meredy put in. "We're on a time limit, so we can't stay here too long."
"I'm just glad we're finally out of that damned cave." Lady added.
"Even if we were to avoid causing a commotion the rest of the way, Princess Hisui knows that we're targeting the Eclipse Gate and it is likely to be heavily guarded." Jellal said.
"The fact that we can't even use our magic around it also makes it rather difficult." Ultear also said.
"Hey, don't you have fancy time magic too?" Trish asked. "Can't you just age the Gate to dust or something?"
"No, I don't think so." Ultear shook her head. "The Arc of Time is still a form of magic, and I will probably be drained if I end up using it on the Gate just like anyone else."
Dante heard everything they said and took all of that into consideration before looking toward the unconscious form of Future Lucy as Wendy and Sheeree both appeared to be applying their healing magics to her. He as well as all his friends got a real good look at her body with her cloak having been removed. There were cracks everywhere, like her skin could fall apart at even the tiniest of flicks, maybe even her whole body. He happened to look towards his genuine cousin as well and saw the conflicting look on her face, which caused him to look towards Natsu and Lisanna, both looked toward him as well as they were all thinking the same thing. One could only imagine what was going through the mind of their Lucy right now.
"How is Colonel Arcadios?" Yukino asked Kyrie as she seemed to have finished up healing him, the white aura vanishing from his body as she stood up.
"I treated all his injuries." She informed. "He should be fine now; he just needs rest. What about the Lucy from the Future? How is she?"
"I… I don't understand…" Wendy said as she and her older surrogate sister kept trying to apply their magic to Future Lucy. "None of her injuries are healing!"
"Even with me copying Wendy's magic and adding it to her own… nothing is changing at all!" Sheeree added.
"Even her magic power remains the same as it was… absolute zero." Loke voiced with worry.
"But I thought Wendy's magic can heal just about anything." Happy recalled.
"And with it being used two-fold now, it shouldn't be a problem." Cana added.
"We did have a similar problem once before…" Carla recalled with a grim expression. "When Credo passed away…"
That caused all the Fairy Tail members to look down with conflicted expressions, with Kyrie trying her hardest not to cry before coming over herself. "Let me try." She tried to apply the Arc of Seraph magic in conjunction to that of Wendy and Sheeree, but even with all of that combined, and the glowing white aura that surrounded Future Lucy, there was no change to her condition whatsoever, much to everyone's surprise as everyone soon came together in the center of the dining hall.
"I… this shouldn't be possible… I've healed almost everything I've used this magic on…!" Kyrie stuttered. "I don't…"
"This may not be a natural affliction." Modeus spoke up. "Something clearly happened to her that drained all her magic power completely as well as harm her physical body to such a degree."
"Maybe it was one of the dragons from the future?" Mira suggested as she looked towards Ultear and Meredy. "You guys did say she there were hundreds of dragons where she was from, right?"
"We did say that, but she didn't say anything about her condition." Meredy replied.
"And I've never heard of any Dragon Slayer technique that can do something like this." Ultear added. "Healing and restoration? Yes. But not the opposite."
"Hey Natsu, did Igneel ever say anything about a power that can drain someone's magic?" Happy asked.
"Nope. Nothing. He just taught me how to burn and smash stuff." Natsu replied.
"That explains a lot." Lady's eye lids lowered slightly.
"What about you Wendy? Did Grandeeney say anything about maybe doing the opposite with your support magic where you drain someone?" Lisanna asked.
"No, not even those spells that Porlyusica gave me had anything like that." Wendy shook her head.
"I've met many dragons in my time, but none of them, not even Acnologia had this capability." Modeus said.
"What about Zeref?" Dante asked. "I seem to remember him draining the life out of trees and stuff back on Tenrou Island."
"She didn't say anything about Zeref on the way here, though." Meredy disagreed.
"But he did build that Eclipse Gate, and we know it sucks away magic." Trish said.
"We've already covered this, while the Gate does drain magic from a wizard, it can't do that for Celestial Wizards because the Zodiac Keys are needed to open the Gate in the first place." Sorano said.
"And even when a person's magic is drained, this never been to this extent." Yukino added.
"Well why the hell didn't you ask what happened to her when you guys came here?!" Natsu questioned angrily towards Ultear.
"We tried to ask her that!" Ultear argued back. "But she was so desperate to get to you that she didn't say anything else!"
"Alright, enough!" Jellal quickly got in-between them. "We cannot fight amongst ourselves right now!"
"And besides… let's ask her ourselves." Carla said as she pointed toward Future Lucy, whose eyes were slowly starting to open, getting all their attention.
"Let's give her some space." Lisanna told everyone as the large group backed away somewhat before they all kneeled down to be at a somewhat equal level to her as she just woke up.
"Wha… what happened…?" She muttered as she tried to push herself up.
"You passed out again." Meredy answered. "But we managed to meet up with everyone else, thanks to your sense of direction."
"Where are we now…?" Future Lucy asked weakly.
"One of the castle's dining halls." Loke answered.
"We're still inside the castle…" Now she was starting to look really scared. "Please tell me the sun hasn't set yet…"
"We don't have any windows here, so we can't exactly tell." Cana said.
"And we still can't reach the rest of the guild yet either." Trish added.
That only caused Future Lucy to look even more worried, which caused her present self to move closer to her. "Ultear and Meredy told us that thousands of dragons attacked your future, is that the reason you came back?"
"Yes…" She nodded somberly tears already in her eyes.
"Lucy, can you tell us what happened?" Happy asked.
"I know it's probably painful but… we need to know what's going on so we can stop it." Lisanna told her in a tone that was gentle yet still pressing.
There was a slight bit of pause in her voice before she spoke again. "After Yukino and I were imprisoned, you all came to rescue me. We fought our way through the Palace of Perdition but ended up getting lost in the castle. We tried to fight our way through all the guards… but at one point… the entire castle crumbled all around us and we were all separated. I was knocked unconscious. When I woke up… I dug my way out and saw it all…" She paused once again as her whole body shook with terror. "All of Crocus…. Was destroyed. There were thousands of dragons… and everyone in the city… they were all dead." She could still hear the deathly roars in the back of her head, and it caused her to shake up even more, almost like she was about to have a panic attack at any moment.
Everyone around her… Dante, Natsu, Happy, Lucy, Jellal, Wendy, Carla, Sheeree, Lady, Panther-Lily, Ultear, Trish, Cana, Meredy, Lisanna, Mira, Sorano, Yukino, Kyrie, and Modeus, they all had their own expressions of surprise, fear, and seriousness all mixed together.
"There were some people that tried to fight back… including you two…" Future Lucy said to Dante and Natsu specifically. "But at the end… it was just myself, Levy, and Lisanna… At that point… we had no choice but to use the Eclipse… to find a way to travel back and stop all that from happening…"
"We have reason to believe that all those dragons came through the Eclipse Gate, given it's function to travel four hundred years into the past." Panther-Lily said.
"That was how Zeref designed it, to travel back and save his family, at least according to Lady Kurenai." Modeus added.
"But how were you able to use it to travel back to this moment in time?" Yukino asked.
"On our way here… I had Crux find out all he could about the Eclipse Gate and how to operate it…" Future Lucy answered. "Since it's powered by Celestial Spirit magic… I figured the one who knew everything about Celestial Spirits would know how it works and I was right… But on the way here… trying to evade all those dragons… we got separated from Levy. Lisanna and I had made it to the Gate… I changed its settings so that it could lead back a few days… I figured that would be enough time to warn all of you so that you could stop it… But by the time the Gate was opening… the dragons came down… Lisanna pushed me through, and I saw her… I saw her…." She couldn't even finish her words as she put her hands to her face and sobbed.
Nearly everyone looked in sympathy at that, with Lisanna being especially shocked? Did she die in this Lucy's future? She felt her hand being grasped as she looked to see her older sister looking toward her with an expression that mixed concern and fear. Easy to understand given how Mira thought Lisanna had died once already, she couldn't imagine it happening a second time.
"The palace comes crashing down… with Lucy in the middle of it…" Dante then looked towards Carla. "Sound familiar?"
The white Exceed then gasped. "Of course… my premonition! It must have been of that future! The palace Mercurius burning to the ground… and I thought Lucy was singing but…. She must have actually been screaming…"
"And that magic circle you talked about must be connected to the Eclipse." Lady added.
"Wasn't there also a white knight in your vision, Carla?" Wendy asked.
"Yes, but I believe Arcadios to be the white knight." She answered, gesturing to the man who appeared to remain unresponsive as he was leaned back against the wall. "The only thing that's still missing… is the sword shrouded in darkness." She then looked towards Future Lucy. "Does that mean anything to you?"
"No…" She shook her head. "I'm sorry…"
"Okay, so what happened to you then?" Cana asked. "Seriously, your body looks like it's gonna fall apart and you have zero magic power."
"We tried to heal you, but nothing was working." Sheeree told her.
"Even my Arc of Seraph didn't do anything." Kyrie added.
Future Lucy looked away briefly before answering. "As you probably know already… there are three things needed to properly use the Eclipse Gate. A sufficient amount of magic power to fuel it… the twelve Zodiac Keys to open it… and an eclipse as the final trigger. With all those dragons running rampant, it was easy to get enough magic power to make the jump. But an eclipse can only last a short while. If I had to use the Gate, I had to work as fast as possible… but I only had ten keys and we didn't have enough time to look for Yukino or her keys…"
"So how were you able to open the gate if you only had ten out of twelve keys?" Sorano asked.
"Did you use any of your silver keys?" Happy asked as well.
"The silver keys wouldn't work as substitutes." Yukino answered for her. "It's been tested. The only keys that can operate the Eclipse Gate are the golden ones. That's how it's designed, otherwise that power can easily be misused."
"Yeah… that's what Crux told me." Future Lucy confirmed. "But… he told me that there was another way…" There was a bit of pause, which caused everyone to look with concern.
"Lucy… what did you do?" Dante asked, having a bad feeling he wouldn't like the answer.
"…In order to make up for the missing two keys… I used my own life-force as a substitute." She revealed.
That hit like a bombshell as all of them looked in shock and even borderline horror, their eyes shaking as a few of their faces went pale. She used her own life force as a substitute for the missing two keys?!
"The Gate can be opened by the power of Celestial Spirits… it only makes sense that a Celestial Wizard like myself can provide enough energy to fill in the gaps…" She continued.
"B-but that's crazy…?!" Present Lucy exclaimed. "You used your own life-force to open the Gate?!"
"Just using your own life force to substitute even one key can be life threatening alone, but two?!" Loke questioned. "That's… that's practically a death sentence…!"
"Yeah, I know… but I didn't have any other options…" Future Lucy continued. "If I waited too long… the lunar eclipse would have passed… and all hope would have been lost. My own Lisanna begged me not to do it… but I had to. To be honest… I'm surprised I even lasted this long."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Trish asked.
Future Lucy lifted up her right hand and looked to the back of it, where her guild emblem would normally be. "Using the Eclipse Gate the way that I did took every ounce of magic power that I had. Even my guild mark was erased by the process." That caused many in Fairy Tail to look in grief, that emblem is a sigil of their family. "I can already feel my lifespan quickly draining. At this rate… I probably won't live to see tomorrow."
As if they all weren't shocked already, especially the present Lucy. Was this Lucy really going to die so soon?! Did she really throw herself this close to death's door to warn them all?!
'A Celestial Wizard's magic is tied directly to their spirits.' Sorano thought. 'But I never thought using one's own life force like that was even possible!'
"When I emerged from the Gate… it was Day Four of the Grand Magic Games…" Future Lucy went on. "I went to the colosseum… when you were having your match against Vergil and Sabertooth's Dragon Slayers…" She said to Dante and Natsu specifically before continuing. "I had to make sure… but I also knew that Jellal would be there… looking for whatever could be connected to Zeref."
"I see… so you wanted me to find you." Jellal understood. But this revelation caused Lady, Trish, and Lisanna to look to one another with confusion.
"Since I came through the Eclipse Gate, a device built by Zeref, I must have had some traces of his power on me… despite my own magic power being completely drained." She went on. "I hoped to bring you someplace where we could talk and not draw unwanted attention and complicate things… but when you saw me… I collapsed… where I've been apparently been out of it for a few days." She gave a hollow scoff. "Guess this is the price I pay for using my own life force so recklessly."
However, while most continued to listen, none appeared to be aware that Arcadios had regained consciousness and had listened to Future Lucy's story himself. One eye opening slightly as he looked directly at her.
'She says came through the Eclipse Gate and emerged on Day Four of the Games.' The royal soldier contemplated. 'But, Princess Hisui told me she was visited by a traveler from the future, and that was before the start of the tournament, as well as the Eclipse 2, how all that gathered energy syphoned by the Gate can be unleashed like a canon. But according to the princess, that time traveler had warned her that Crocus would be attacked by a horde of demons, not dragons.' His open eye narrowed slightly. 'Something's not right.'
"I'm sorry…" Future Lucy continued. "I guess I should have done more… but all I can do is warn you…"
"This is enough." Natsu spoke up, speaking softly with a smile, something that caused Future Lucy to look up in surprise as he walked over to her before putting his hands on her shoulders and gave her a gentle and appreciative smile. "You went through hell, but you still risked your life to come back and warn us. Thank you, Lucy. Because of you, we have a fighting chance." He gave his titular toothy smile.
Seeing that smile again brought her to tears. She had seen that smile countless times from her Natsu before, ever since she first joined Fairy Tail. It was that smile that inspired her to push herself and become stronger, to be someone that her guild and family could rely on. That smile was one of many reasons why she fell in love with him. And ever since her Natsu and Dante died trying to hold off all those dragons, she thought she'd never see it again. But seeing it now… even after everything…
Before she knew it, Future Lucy had leapt and wrapped her arms around Natsu, burying her face into his shoulder as she cried. All her pain and sorrow came out like a flood as he kept smiling and gently wrapped his own arms around her to provide her what comfort he could, with everyone else in Fairy Tail and Crime Sorciere smiling as well, a few even had some tears of joy in their eyes to boot.
"We're gonna stop em, you just watch." Natsu swore.
"Aye. Fairy Tail's beaten the odds before, we're not gonna stop now." Happy added.
"What's one other apocalypse? I mean we've stopped at least five already." Mira said jokingly.
"And we got Crime Sorciere to help us this time, right?" Wendy looked towards her surrogate sister and her own comrades with a hopeful smile.
"Well duh, it's why we came to Crocus in the first place, right?" Sheeree joked.
As Natsu helped Future Lucy to her feet, with present Lucy doing the same, both versions of Lucy exchanging eye contact as the present one gave her future self a reassuring smile, causing her to smile emotionally as well.
Dante then approached her as he handed her half of the Perfect Amulet, the one that she had when she came through the Eclipse Gate. "I believe this is yours."
Once again, Future Lucy cried as she took her amulet, the one that her Dante had lent her, and put it around her own neck just as she donned her cloak again.
"There's still one thing that doesn't make sense." Lady pointed out. "Lucy, you said you arrived on the Day Four, right? As in, July 4th."
"Y-yeah… that's right." Future Lucy confirmed.
"But if you came out on the fourth…" Lady glanced back towards Jellal. "Who did we see on the third?"
That got everyone's attention.
"That's right… we did find someone who had Zeref's power on third!" Lisanna recalled. "Right after Wendy's match against Sherria ended!"
"We almost got them, but the Magic Council got in the way." Trish added.
Jellal then looked towards Future Lucy with a serious expression. "Are you certain that you came through the Gate alone? Nobody else was with you?"
"N-no, it was just me." She confirmed.
That caused Jellal to look with fright as he came to a disturbing conclusion. "Somebody else has used the Gate and traveled to this time period! The person we saw on the third is another time traveler!"
"How much you wanna bet that whoever that is, is also responsible for all those dragons showing up?" Dante asked rhetorically.
"And they're likely using the princess' plan for the Eclipse to further their own objective." Lily determined.
"Then we have to stop them!" Kyrie stated.
"But how are we supposed to do that if we don't even know who the hell they are?" Cana questioned.
"We don't have to." Ultear stated. "Our plan to destroy the Eclipse Gate remains the same. Because if this person is responsible, we'll probably find them at the Gate."
"In addition, if the Eclipse Gate itself is destroyed, the dragons will have no means to come to our time, and Lucy won't have a reason to travel back." Modeus added as he looked towards Future Lucy. "We may still be able save her."
"Y-you guys…" They were still going to try and find a way to save her? Even though her death is practically guaranteed at this point? Before she could contemplate any further, she felt herself being hoisted up by Loke as he gave her a piggy-back.
"Don't worry, we'll get this figured out." He said to her with a smile. "I'm your partner, right? So it's my job to look after you."
This caused Future Lucy to smile again. "Thank you… Loke."
Sorano then gazed at her younger sister. "Yukino, I know you probably have mixed feelings about all this but…"
"I'll help." Yukino interrupted. "If the Eclipse Gate is really being used as a means to destroy the world, then it has to be destroyed. And since I helped to ready the project, I'm also responsible for this. So I'm going to do everything I can to help!" She vowed with a look of determination and a fierce resolve, something that caused her older sister and even Dante to smile. However, when Yukino looked to see if Arcadios would provide any aid himself, she was stunned to find that he was no longer there. "Arcadios is gone!"
"What?! Where the hell did he go?!" Lucy questioned.
"No time to worry about that." Dante stated. "We're on a deadline, with an extra emphasis on 'dead' now!"
"I know where to find the Gate. It should be moved to the surface by now in the castle's courtyard." Future Lucy said.
"And we don't have the time for stealth, especially since her royal pain in the ass is gonna try and stop us the first chance she gets." Dante said before looking at the Salamander. "Natsu, time to take the direct route!"
His fist was already set ablaze. "Read my mind!" Wasting no time at all, Natsu blasted a hole in the wall as the whole group ran out of the dining hall as fast as they could, with Loke carrying Future Lucy in the lead to act as their guide.
"I don't think the kingdom's gonna be very happy about this." Mira smiled innocently.
"They can send us the bill! We got the end of the world to stop!" Lady stated.
Meanwhile, in the city of Crocus, multiple streaks of red moved and clashed at rapid succession as Erza, still clad in her Armadura Diabla and, continued to battle against Kagura, who had unleashed the full power of her Archenemy. Erza lunged her spear forward as Kagura swung her katana, both attacks striking and unleashing a blow of red demonic power with such intensity that the force of it was enough to send them both back before Kagura sped at Erza, using her Gravity Magic to enhance her own speed as well as the strength of her strike, her glowing red katana striking Erza in the stomach and despite Armadura Diabla's armor being made to protect against magic and demonic attacks, she still felt the physical force of the blow as it sent her flying and crashing through multiple buildings.
Erza had recovered slightly from Kagura's attack and saw her quickly closing the gap with her gravity enhanced speed, but Erza was quick to counter as she lunged her spear into the ground, sending a wave of destructive power that obliterated the path that Kagura would have taken, sending her up in a wave of red energy and halting her movements, which quickly allowed Erza to close the gap as she slashed her spear at Kagura, blasting her into one building.
Kagura saw Erza spinning her spear rapidly and generating a wheel of the same destructive energy as before throwing it forward at her opponent, but Kagura already had a counter. "Blood Sword: Archenemy: Flying Form!" Performing a quick draw of her katana, an invisible red slash had cut apart Erza's attack, creating a devastating explosion that blew away the walls of the building. Kagura quickly came rushing out of the collapsing building and locked weapons with Erza.
The scarlet haired swordswoman of Fairy Tail noticed how Kagura's eyes were changing. Their hazel color was turning red, her waving up as the red aura that had enveloped Archenemy had not only spread to her arm, but most of her body as well. Once again, they both channeled the powers of their respective Devil Arms together before slashing at each other to create another explosion of red energy.
"This is absolutely insane!" Chapati commentated as he and Mato watched in genuine fright while Yajima had a serious expression. "Both of these ladies are fighting with everything they had and are still going! Just where are they getting all this energy?!"
"The Armadura Diabla, it is a unique Devil Arm." Sparda explained to the rest of Fairy Tail. "It's armor provides one the ability to protect against magical and demonic attacks, while the spear unleashes a literal destructive power that can obliterate anything it touches."
"That sounds a lot like the magic I got." Gildarts pointed out.
"When Erza first used that armor, I heard she almost went crazy." Romeo said. "But in the last three months, she trained hard to master it and not let that demonic power consumed her."
"And even now, it's taken a great deal of willpower to maintain that focus of hers." Mavis put in.
"That's one of the reasons she's never used this armor till now." Makarov commented. "Not only is it a secret weapon yet, she hasn't completely mastered it yet."
"But that scary Kagura lady is giving her a run for her money!" Patty said.
"No surprise there, she too wields a dangerous Devil Arm." Freed pointed out. "And based on what we've heard of this Archenemy, Kagura has more experience wielding it. That combined with her own mastery of her Gravity Magic makes her a truly dangerous foe."
"But Titania's known for beating the odds. She can push through this." Evergreen stated.
"Yeah but… something's going on with Kagura." Bickslow said.
"What do you mean?" Evergreen asked as her teammate took off his mask to reveal his face, his eyes glowing green.
"Even from here I can see her soul and it's looking like a real mess." Bickslow explained. "That Devil Arm she's using is looking like it's trying to take over or something."
"The Archenemy's ability to transform one's anger into power is impressive." Sparda said. "However, a Devil Arm is a demonic weapon, and all demonic power is drawn on negative emotions such as anger. From my understanding, Kagura has hated a single person for quite some time, up to the point where she vowed to use Archenemy's full power only to end his life."
"But Erza's recent revelation… Kagura's taking it out on her." Mavis said. "Maybe she thinks she can let Kagura get it out."
"But I feel that her intent may actually have the opposite effect." Sparda looked somewhat weary of the situation. "Archenemy is feeding off of Kagura's hate and is growing stronger, and she's losing herself to it. If this battle isn't resolved soon… Kagura may be lost."
Erza once again thrusted her spear forward to send a lunge of destructive power at Kagura, but she held up her katana, but rather than block the attack as it struck the side of the blade, Archenemy appeared to have absorb Erza's attack. Once the last of it was absorbed, and Archenemy glowed a brighter red, Kagura once again used her Gravity Magic to speed around Erza, moving at such swiftness it was almost impossible to find her, seeing only flashes for split second.
'Looks like her weapon can absorb an enemy's power, just as Sho and the others have said. But… her attacks, her movements… their far from the graceful and focused techniques she had used before.' Erza contemplated.
For one brief second, she saw Kagura's rage-filled face in front of her, before a powerful force sent her skidding and rolling across the ground, but Kagura sped after her as she continued to go on the attack, slashing at Erza repeatedly and pushing her even farther. All her attacks hit with such incredible force that Erza felt she was being struck by several trains at once. But she still powered through as she gave an upward slash with her spear to blast Kagura with a wave of destructive energy, breaking off the attack and lunging her spear forward once again to blast Kagura away, crashing into the second floor of a building on the far side of the general area.
Everyone in the audience continued to look in awe and concern as this battle continued, those in Mermaid Heel, including their guildmaster, and even Sho and Wally were especially worried.
"Sis… Kagura…" Sho clenched his fists in apprehension, unable to take his eyes off this bloody spectacle.
"This ain't a friendly fight… she's out for blood…" Wally muttered.
"…this whole thing…" Beth stuttered. "Why does it feel like…. Kagura… trying to… actually kill her…?"
"This is crazy…! They gotta call this match off…!" Risley exclaimed. "Or at least Sapphy and Lucia gotta come and cool her off…!"
"At this point… I'm not sure she'll listen to either of them." Arana said as they saw on the lacrimation Kagura emerging from the rubble, the red in her eyes glowing brighter. "Just look at her eyes… She's out for blood."
"It's that sword of hers!" Amarilla stated. "She has to get rid of it or she's gonna go crazy!"
Kurenai clenched her trident with fear as her body began to shake, something her fellow Wizard Saints were concerned with.
'I gave her Archenemy and trained her with it… because I had hoped she could use it to channel her anger. But that's not the case.' Kurenai thought. 'I think I see now… she's only bottled it up… for seven long years… she's stored her anger away, and it only grew. Now Archenemy is drawn to it… feeding off it like a parasite… she's forsaken all control now. Erza… please…! You have to end this now before she's lost!'
Erza appeared to struggle to so much as keep standing on her own two feet. Kagura was significantly faster with her Gravity Magic. The only armor-weapon combination Erza had that could probably keep up with her would be her Flight Armor combined with her Lightning Empress Spear, and she'd probably still have to push herself even then. But with the raw power of the unsheathed Archenemy… if it weren't for her Armadura Diabla… she'd probably would be broken and bloody in every possible way. But the sheer force from each of Kagura's attacks had rattled up all her insides as her body was covered in bruises, with some blood trickling down her face.
'There may be only one way to end this fight, now.' Erza surmised. 'But I have to get the timing right. If not… I could very well lose a limb at best, or even die at worst.'
She saw Kagura standing from her spot, perched on the hole of the building she had previously crashed into. The minute she saw her opponent still standing, Kagura's anger only burnt even more! How dare the one responsible for Simon's death?! The one protecting her brother's murderer keep fighting?! She deserved to be punished in the most painful way possible! The more these dark thoughts flowed through her mind, the greater Archenemy glowed as all those thoughts became darker and darker.
With a roar, Kagura had thrusted her hand forward as a strong gravitational force had impacted Erza, which caused her to slam face-first on the ground. The pressure was so intense that the ground around her was already cracking and breaking apart.
"Whoa! Kagura just hit Erza with a boat load of Gravity Magic!" Chapati exclaimed.
"That's a great deal of pressure right there. Far more than anything she's unleashed so far." Yajima added.
"I can practically feel it from here!" Mato stated in fright. "How is Erza not crushed under all that!?"
"No! Erza!" Patty screamed.
"She's gonna be paste under all that!" Levy exclaimed.
"No, I'm afraid it's nothing as gentle as that." Sparda said with worry. "That's just meant to pin her down!"
"Pin her down?!" Gildarts questioned.
From her spot, despite being under the pressure by such intense gravity, Erza was barely able to pull her face up and give her a view of Kagura leaping up and high from her spot, raising the glowing Archenemy up high as she soon came above Erza's position.
"If that hits her, she's gonna be cut in half!" Risley screamed.
"Kagura! No!" Beth shouted.
"Please stop!" Amarilla called out with tears in her eyes.
"Don't do it!" Arana also shouted.
"Erza! Move!" Wally screamed.
"Get out of the way!" Sho yelled.
"KAGURA…!" Kurenai screamed desperately for her daughter.
'Now or never… it's now or never!' Erza, despite her predicament, still held a firm grip on her spear as she activated it's power, sending bolts of the red energy of destruction in multiple directions. This caused the gravity magic to vanish around Erza and free her.
But Kagura was already coming down, roaring like a wild animal as she brought her blade down.
Only for Erza to throw up her left arm and catch the blade in her hand, while lunging her spear forward with her right arm to pierce through Kagura's abdomen.
Both attacks were struck at the same time as the raw force of Kagura's slash went through Erza's left arm, causing it to be twisted and cut up as blood sprayed out from it with Erza screaming in agony, just as a bolt of the destructive energy shot through Kagura and out her back. Her eyes widening like circles before they turned all-white as she fell to the ground, landing on her back as blood was already forming a puddle underneath, while Erza fell on her rear, moaning in pain as she held her mangled arm.
The entire arena had become deathly silent as the commentators, audience, and observing wizards all looked with absolute shock. None could even find the strength to speak as they feared even one word may as well kill one of the combatants. Everyone in Fairy Tail and Mermaid Heel, as well as Sho and Wally, had their eyes shaking at what they saw, with Patty, Levy, Beth, Amarilla, Sho, and especially Kurenai felt their eyes wet with tears.
Even Vergil said nothing as he kept his eyes focused on the lacrimation right in front of him.
Erza took a moment to collect her breath, despite the pain her arm was in. "I… avoided… her vitals… She'll live… but she'll be out of it… for a while…" She muttered in-between breaths. "She will need… medical attention… and perhaps so will I…" She said for some form of humor as she looked at her mangled arm.
'Honestly, if it weren't for Armadura Diabla's protection, I could have lost this whole arm. I suppose it's fortunate I'm right-handed, then.' She thought with a relieved smile as she slowly pulled herself up.
"It looks like that might be it folks." Chapati commentated as Erza tried to limp away, her back turned to her fallen foe. "With this… Erza Scarlet has claimed victor…"
*SLASH!*
What happened next caused everyone in the audience to turn pale… with Kurenai looking the most horrified as she put her hand over her mouth.
"No…"
Erza skidded across the ground to see something that made her look in genuine terror.
It was Kagura! Standing up, despite the hole in her! Not only that, but a red demonic aura was also surrounding her whole body, her hair wavering upward almost as if it was on fire! Her eyes were all red as she snarled like a wild animal… no… like a demon!
And clenched tightly in her hand… was Archenemy! The katana glowing so bright with a red aura around it, while the blade itself had grown darker to the point where it was almost black in her hands.
"W-w-w-what…?!" Mato and Chapati were both at a complete loss for words, unable to understand just what they were seeing as Yajima looked incredibly nervous. Everyone in the audience was also looking in shock and fear.
"How can Kagura be able to still stand after all that?!" Chapati questioned.
"Something's wrong..." Yajima noted nervously. "I don't think she's in control right now..."
"What's happening to Kagura?!" Amarilla questioned as her guildmates looked in horror.
"B-but Erza won!" Patty cried out as everyone else in Fairy Tail were just as shocked as she was.
"That attack… she shouldn't even be able to stand…!" Freed muttered.
"It's not her, it's that damn sword she's got!" Bickslow stated as he looked on through his soul-gazing eyes.
"Archenemy and Kagura's own anger have been tied together." Sparda looked deathly serious. "They feed off one another like a snake eating its own tail. The fire of Kagura's hate will continue to burn so long as she holds that sword… and it will burn on until Kagura's body can no longer hold out… and take Erza with her."
That caused everyone in Fairy Tail to look in shock and absolute dread.
The berserk Kagura gave a demonic roar as she slashed her sword to send a wave of red energy Erza's way, which she rolled out of the way to just barely avoid. Kagura tried rushing her to slash at Erza, which she weakly blocked with her spear and only remaining functional arm. But despite her own weakened state, Erza could tell that Kagura was in the same boat. She wasn't even using her own magic, and her strikes felt incredibly weakened. But the power of Archenemy was still there, and Kagura will keep on fighting until she died.
She grabbed Erza by the face and forced her down, knocking the spear from Erza's hand as she tried to hack her katana at her, but Erza caught Kagura by her arm as her opponent tried to push harder with both her hands, the blade just inching closer to her face.
Fortunately, Erza was able to kick Kagura back. But even as she stumbled to the ground, she pushed herself up, completely ignoring the pain and lack of physical stamina, ready to keep going, while Erza tried desperately to think of a way to end this without either of them dying.
"Erza! Erza! Can you hear me?!"
She gasped upon hearing the familiar voice in her head. "Lady Kurenai…?"
"I'm using telepathy to speak with you!" Kurenai herself said as she put her own hand to her head. "At this state, Kagura has more-or-less been possessed by Archenemy! She's not in her right mind!"
"I can see that." Erza communicated back. "Is there a way to break this? If I can get her to drop her sword…"
"That sword is the one holding onto her, not the other way around!" Kurenai responded. "She has to be brought to her senses and I think I know how to do that! But I need your help!"
"What do you need me to do?" Erza asked.
"Listen carefully…"
Erza had heard Kurenai's instructions and had a serious expression on her face. "I understand." She looked to see Kagura rushing at her like an unhinged zombie, snarling rabidly as she tried to bring her blade down, but Erza had ducked under the slice and swept her right leg at Kagura's feet to trip her. Once she was down, Erza wrapped her legs around Kagura's body to bind her arms to her sides and keep her from swinging her sword while Erza wrapped her right arm around Kagura's face, her own left arm still heavily damaged and dangling.
Despite their own weakened states, Kagura struggled with everything she had to escape her predicament while Erza struggled to hold her down. And then, she did something unexpected…
She began to sing.
"Hush… Hush… My little one…!" Erza struggled to sing as she continued to hold the rabid Kagura. "Hear the ocean sing…! Nevermind the cold… Let the emerald water be your wing…! Take my hand… hold it tight…! I will guide you through the storm of your heart… It'll be alright! I will be here… don't you cry…!"
"Is she…. Singing to her…?" Romeo wondered as Fairy Tail continued to watch. However, everyone, including all those in the audience, heard the same voice singing those same words. The beautiful voice that carried a gentle and caring tone.
All eyes set on Kurenai as she sung. "Hush, Hush, my little one. Hear the ocean sing. Nevermind the cold. Let the emerald water be your wing. Take my hand, hold it tight. I will guide you through the storm of your heart, it'll be alright. I will be here, don't you cry." As she sung, tears sparkled from Kurenai's eyes.
Sparda was the first to realize it. Kurenai was using her telepathy to communicate with Erza to sing this lullaby to Kagura through her.
These words…. Kagura had heard these words before. She felt her own eyes widening as the red glow slightly faded. Though she could feel a raging inferno inside her that was practically screaming to keep going, these words that came to her felt like a gentle ocean that slowly began to douse these flames.
It was in that moment that she felt her mind drift back to a moment that she would never forget and would be a part of her life forever.
Flashback
Kurenai had rushed into the small bedroom in the dead of night as she heard the little girl screaming and crying in her bed.
"No! Don't take me! Don't take me!" Little Kagura cried out, her eyes closed as tears spilled out from her sealed eyelids, flailing her arms around.
"Kagura…! Kagura!" Kurenai took the child who seemed stuck in her night terror and gently held her close despite the girl still screaming.
"They're coming! Don't let them take me!"
"It's okay… It's okay… Sssh. I'm here." Kurenai spoke softly before she began to sing for the girl. "Hush, Hush, my little one. Hear the ocean sing. Nevermind the cold. Let the emerald water be your wing. Take my hand, hold it tight. I will guide you through the storm of your heart, it'll be alright. I will be here, don't you cry."
Hearing these soft and gentle words made Kagura feel like she was being carried by the gentle waves of a warm ocean. She slowly stopped her crying, opening her eyes as she gazed up at the smiling face of the woman who held her close.
"Mama…"
Kurenai's eyes slightly widened as she heard that.
"Mama…!" Kagura buried her face into Kurenai's chest and held her tight.
Did this little girl just call her Mama? She's only been with her for two days and she's already calling her that? But that was alright. This girl had lost everything, and while she could never replace her birth parents, Kurenai decided that she would be the best parent she could be for her.
"I'm here, my little girl." Kurenai gently said as she gently placed her arms around her. "I'll always be here."
End Flashback
Kagura's body shook like a leaf as Erza continued to hold her tightly, all her memories coming back to her in a flood ever since Kurenai adopted her. All the years they spent together as they grew up, to meeting everyone else in Mermaid Heel and getting to know them, as well as Milliana, Sho, and Wally. All the time she had spent training with Kurenai to become a warrior for justice like her adoptive mother and even the Dark Knight himself.
But… what was she doing now?! She had let her hate take over, her desire for vengeance for her brother… all of that had overshadowed everything she wanted to be… and she was even on the verge of taking an innocent life! Just like Jellal had…
'When… when… did I become… what I hate…?'
She still felt her anger being drawn out, which caused her to turn to Archenemy still in her hand. She had to let it go! With every ounce of willpower she had left… she forced herself to drop the Devil Arm, which clanged against the ground before its red aura vanished.
The minute she let go, all of her anger and hate she felt at that moment was washed away and replaced by grief and regret. So much so that she openly sobbed and cried out, much to Erza's surprise as she let go of Kagura.
"I'm sorry…!" She cried. "I'm sorry…! Mama…! Big Brother…! I'm sorry…!"
Erza looked in empathy as she saw Kagura bawl her eyes out. And that took out the last of her strength as Kagura succumbed to her exhaustion and fell over, though Erza was able to catch her with her one good arm as she breathed a sigh of relief.
"It's over…"
"I-it looks like… that's it, folks. For real, this time" Chapati hesitated in making that comment, pausing briefly to make certain that it was over. But he could see it. They all could. Kagura was down and she wasn't getting back up again. "Erza of Fairy Tail has defeated Kagura of Mermaid Heel in one insane battle!"
"That's putting it mildly." Yajima added as half of the audience began to cheer and shout in joy, while the other half relaxed in relief.
"I think my heart skipped a beat more than once! That was crazy!" Mato fell back in his seat.
"And with this victory, Team Fairy Tail has scored one point, bringing their total up to fifty-eight!" Chapati announced.
"Which means they and Mermaid Heel are now tied for first place." Yajima put in.
"Oh, thank goodness…" Patty fell to her knees. "I almost had a heart attack watching that."
"You? I'm surprised that I didn't!" Makarov pointed out.
"It sure was scary… but Erza came out on top just like always!" Levy cheered.
"Well, she is Titania for a reason, after all." Evergreen pointed out.
"Crazy and strong at the same time." Bickslow grinned as he put his mask back on.
"Although, that fight did take quite a bit out of her." Freed noted seriously. "Not to mention the condition that her arm is in."
"You're right, Freed. I honestly don't know if Erza's going to hold her own in another fight after this." Gildarts pointed out.
"I've already relayed instructions to Erza for her to find a place to hide and get some rest." Mavis revealed. "Despite her condition, she is still standing and still competing. We have not yet lost any players."
"But even with Nero, Laxus, Gajeel, Gray, and Juvia… we still have a way to go and the remaining opponents they have to face won't be so easy to defeat." Sparda noted with a smile. And this wasn't just a smile in satisfaction over Erza's defeat, it was relief that Kagura was able to come to her senses before something regrettable truly happened.
"Man… am I glad that's all over…" Wally tipped his hat.
"Kagura…" Sho looked with concern. 'I know she's going to have to face Jellal at the end of all this… we all will. But… with what just happened and what she almost did to Erza… I have no idea what could happen… and that scares me.'
"Oh man… I don't think I've ever been so scared in my life…" Beth commented as the rest of Mermaid Heel looked more than a little relief.
"Even though Kagura lost, I don't feel all that upset over it." Risley pointed out.
"Same. I'm glad that she's alright." Arana added.
"So am I, and we're not the only ones." Amarilla pointed in the direction of their guildmaster.
Kurenai would have fallen over in emotional exhaustion, but she used her trident in support as Bruni, Aurora, and Gandelina approached her.
"Hey, you okay?" Bruni asked.
"I'll be fine." Kurenai sighed as she wiped the tears from her eyes, looking toward the lacrimation to see Erza trying to limp her way to a safe space while also carrying the unconscious Kagura with one arm over her shoulder. While she was proud that Kagura was able to pull herself free from that horrible state of mind, this also revealed that they had much to work on going forward. She really needed to have a talk with her daughter after all this.
"She still has ways to go." Gandelina spoke towards Kurenai, almost as if she could read her thoughts. "But she has grown stronger… You must be proud to have raised such a strong daughter." The hooded Wizard Saint said with a smile.
Kurenai smiled back and looked in the direction of Sparda as he gave a smile and a nod of his own, a gesture she returned.
Vergil's expression remained largely unchanged as the battle had come to an end. Kagura's rage-fueled power was certainly strong, but such a method was too deadly for the user, practically suicidal. Kagura was a fool to think she could use Archenemy in such a way. But credit where it was due, she was still strong… up to the point where she had to take Erza to her limit. Natsu would have certainly struggled against her if they were to fight like that. As for Dante… he would certainly win, but it wouldn't be easy.
Erza had managed to find her way to a narrow alleyway, and after laying Kagura gently down on the ground, Erza slumped with her back against the wall as her Armadura Diabla finally vanished, replaced by the clothes she wore at the start of this match. As she caught her breath, she took a note of her damaged left arm. It was twisted up pretty badly and was bleeding excessively.
Lifting her right arm, Erza bit down into the sleeve and tore it off with her teeth as she hauled her left arm up onto her knees and tried to wrap the torn cloth around her damaged arm like bandages to at least stop the bleeding, but she would still need medical help after all this.
'I'm sorry, everyone.' She thought. 'Though I'm not out of the fight, yet. I can't help any of you right now. Good luck out there.' She glanced towards the unconscious Kagura once again. 'I'll watch over you. And unlike all those years ago… I won't leave you behind. Not again.'
However, Erza didn't seem to notice that she had been spotted across the ruined street by Sapphire.
The Azure Dragon Slayer of Mermaid Heel had rushed her way here as quickly as she could once she sensed the intense demonic power. She was afraid that she may have to fight Kagura to calm her down. But it seems that Erza beat her too it.
According to the rules of the tournament, Erza was technically an enemy, and she was vulnerable. Sapphire could take her down right here and now and one point, maybe even five, for her team if Erza was the leader. It would be too easy.
'Nah. Not my style.' She thought with a smirk as she turned around to look for opponents who could put up a real fight, but she did pay one last glance back. 'Look after Kagura. She's important to all of us.' She mentally said before running off.
"Hey, you hear that. It looks like we're tied." Nero said as he faced Lucia in an open space with a fountain. "But unlike you, my team still has all its members." He said with a grin.
"Indeed. Fairy Tail is exceptionally strong." Lucia granted. "To push Kagura so far… you are all worthy opponents. But I think the tide is about to change, young Nero."
Nero gave a slight scoff. "Well then, what do you say we just throw off the gloves and stop holding back?"
Right as he proposed that, Nero closed his eyes as a blue demonic aura surged around him, his Devil Bringer arm glowing brightly as Masayoshi appeared in the demonic limb. Nero opened his eyes to reveal a red glow as a transparent demonic form appeared over the upper half of his body, his Devil Trigger fully activating.
"A Devil Trigger… but not like any I've seen before." Lucia noted. "Yours is very unique."
"What can I say? I'm one of a kind." He shrugged slightly, his voice becoming more eerie as his demonic projection above him did the same. "I was kinda saving this for my rematch with the Potato-head, but you'll do."
Lucia chuckled slightly. "I applaud your ambition. I too had hoped to use this power against Dante, but maybe you'll suffice just fine."
Like her opponent, Lucia had closed her own eyes as a white demonic aura surged around her. The energy condensed into her body as she was encompassed in a flash of white and black light. The flash vanished to reveal Lucia's own Devil Trigger, every bit of intimidating as it was before when she unleashed it upon Minerva.
The opposing demonic auras caused the area to rock as if it was hit by a small tremor, pebbles shaking on the ground as even the water in the fountain was disturbed by their presence.
"Whoa! We can't catch a break here, ladies and gentlemen! It's back to action!" Chapati commented.
"And like Lucia, it would seem that Nero has his own Devil Trigger as well." Yajima added.
"This feels just like when Dante and Vergil went all out back on Day Four!" Mato recalled. "Oh man, this fight may be even more intense than the one that just ended!"
As the area continued to shake, Nero's red eyes locked with Lucia's white, right before they rushed and swung their blades at one another.
Done.
See? Told you this would be an emotional chapter!
Erza really gave it her all to defeat Kagura, and even then, it took more than just battle prowess and technique to defeat her. Though she was almost consumed by her seven years of bottled up hate and anger, the love of her mother helped to save her and bring her back to her senses. But yeah, they are going to have a long talk later on once this is all over. They have a lot they need to work out with each other.
And with Kagura's defeat, Fairy Tail has gained one additional point. Here is the current score for the tournament…
*First Place – Fairy Tail/Mermaid Heel – 58 points
*Third Place – Sabertooth – 53 points
*Fourth Place – Blue Pegasus – 30 points (eliminated)
*Fifth Place – Lamia Scale – 27 points
*Sixth Place – Quatro Cerberus – 14 points (eliminated)
But the tournament isn't over yet. Gray and Juvia have met up and are about to face off against Lyon and Sherria; Gajeel and Rogue are about to go at it; and Nero and Lucia are giving it their all as they unleashed their respective Devil Triggers for what one can expect to be a bloody battle worthy of the name, Devil May Cry.
Now, on Dante's side of things, he and his group have heard Future Lucy's story and know now the reason behind her condition….
!SPOILER ALERT! (For those who aren't familiar with how the canon Fairy Tail ended, though I'm sure you all know at this point)
Future Lucy only had the ten Zodiac Keys she had on her and didn't have time to look for Yukino's, so she had to substitute the missing two keys with her own life force (much like what Layla did in canon when she used her own life force to substitute for Aquarius' missing key when she had to open the Eclipse Gate herself, which led to her eventual death). Her own magical power was drained completely, down to absolute zero, and her own life is hanging by a thread at this point. So… yeah. Pretty messed up, huh?
But now because of her efforts, Dante's group and Crime Sorciere now know what they're up against. Not only that, they know that there's another time traveler, the one that Jellal and the others ran into at the end of Day Three, whom they suspect is responsible for the dragons emerging from the Eclipse Gate.
All parties are slowly converging as the time of the Eclipse Gate's opening draws near. Will our heroes make it in time and stop the disaster that is to come? Find out soon on Fairy May Cry!
I wish you all a very merry Christmas!