It was over before it even started. The dragons that arrived on the isle to aid the humans completely destroyed the isle's inhabitants. Gaius, Nasir, Venoma, Kurthnaga, Edna, Drake, the dragon soldiers, Acnologia, and even Dhegensea were all defeated. And now…there was a lot…a LOT of explaining to do. First things first, Ena ran up to Igneel who kept his grasp around the downed Dhegensea and Acnologia. "Y-You are Igneel, yes…?" Ena stuttered while looking up to the Fire Dragon King.
"Yes, that is I…it is good to see you again, Ena. You've grown quite a bit since I've last seen you." Igneel nodded.
"Y-You remember me!?" Ena then found herself bowing repeatedly apologetically. "I-I'm so sorry for all the trouble my father has caused! I never thought that he would do something like this and put everyone in danger! So, so sorry!"
"She didn't even do anything wrong…" Lucy let out a minor giggle, though she appreciated Ena's apology to them, and to Igneel.
"You did nothing wrong, therefore you don't have to apologize." Igneel said while shaking his head. "I always knew that he would try something of this scale eventually…I just never expected it to be during this time. But the crisis has been avoided."
"Just barely…" Hisui let out a huge sigh of relief. "There have been quite a number of close calls today and I think the stress has sufficiently cut down a number of years of my lifespan…"
"I don't think you're the only one with a rise in blood pressure after everything today…" Yukino said while rubbing her temples. "Today's been quite the day for us…I just want to go home and sleep now…"
"Agreed…" Lisanna said with a heavy sigh. "Everyone looks like they're out of magic…but I haven't seen Erza in a little bit…and Mira-nee is still…"
"What were you saying about me?" Mira appeared before both Elfman and Lisanna, giving a soft smile.
Lisanna's eyes widened, tears immediately running down her cheeks. "M-MIRA-NEE!" Without a second though she tackled her elder sibling down to the ground, followed right by Elfman for a family hug. "I-I knew you were still alive!"
"I told you I wasn't going anywhere." Mirajane smiled softly, though she couldn't help but wince since she was still injured. "I wouldn't leave you both like that. It was a little hard, but I didn't intend to break my promise."
"My sister is as Manly as ever…!" Elfman wept.
"Isn't that sweet…" Even Tia couldn't help the tear of happiness that ran down her cheek from the Strauss family reunion.
"Did you just shed a tear…?" Strong glanced at Tia with a look of disbelief.
"No." Tia immediately denied the accusation, but hushed when Ace wrapped an arm around her shoulder.
"Hey, enjoy the scenery." Ace remarked with a slight smile.
Upon watching the scene, Spark couldn't help but give Spade a slight hug. The familial bond was strong and they wanted to express their own affection for one another. "It's good to see them back together."
Heartless tilted her head, obviously not quite understanding the emotion herself but she got a feel for it with everyone's reactions. So she forged a smile on her lips before staring at Joker, who was rather apathetic about the situation. "It wouldn't hurt for you to smile."
"What do I look like? A human?" Joker scoffed at the thought. "I'm serving for Dealer's purposes, don't expect any more of me."
"Can't you just command him to smile? I bet it would look stupid funny!" Jack chuckled.
"Do it and I'll kill you." Joker shot.
"Geez…still so violent…" Diamond rolled her eyes.
"As long as it's not directed at us…" Spade gave a nervous laugh before both Tia and Diamond had a firm grip on his ears. "O-Ow!? Watch it…!?"
"Oh, don't even think the three of you are off the hook yet. We have a LOT to talk about when we get home." Tia scolded Spade, Ace, and Heartless.
"Yes...we have lot to talk about." Daigo cleared his throat.
"Hey…" Lucy began looking around. "Has anyone seen Erza…? I think she's the only one not accounted for…I haven't seen Mii since she ditched us, either…"
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"Okay, let's pause for a second!" Daryan shouted while pointing at Skeletalus accusingly. "I'm 100% certain that I killed you! What are you doing alive?!"
"I thought Daryan said he killed you?" Hikaru, Dayran's adorable exceed, pondered aloud to the bone dragon.
"Yes…" Rogue nodded in agreement with Daryan while staring up at Skiadrum. "I'm certain that we killed you…"
"So what are you doing here in front of us?" Sting questioned Wiesslogia.
"AH!" Skeletalus let out a hearty laugh before looking to Skiadrum and Wiesslogia. "Do you want to explain this, or shall I?"
Wiesslogia could only roll his eyes at Skeletalus before beginning to explain the situation. "Though Igneel was against it, we took the liberty of altering your memories. We wanted you to know what it was like slaying a dragon; therefore we changed your memories to make it appear as though you did kill us. But in reality, we've been inside you the entire time…and when the time called for it, we showed ourselves."
"Seriously...?" Sting had a hard time accepting this. Simply because it went against everything he knew for the longest time.
"W-wait…" Daryan began sweating profusely. "T-The entire time…? So that means…" There was an awkward pause as Daryan recalled his grand speech at he Grand Magic Games in x792. This was awkward.
"Wow." Kagura looked at him with a deadpanned expression.
"Yikes…I…I'm looking pretty stupid right now, aren't I…" Daryan let out a very nervous laugh. That oh so confident outburst was coming back to bite him in the ass now.
"Only 100% stupider than usual." Melody said with a widening smirk.
"Yeah, I gotta agree. Not your finest moment, Daryan." Hiruka was perched on Melody's shoulder, giving a few firm nods as a result. The switchup was unreal.
"Thanks…" Daryan rolled his eyes at Melody and Hiruka before reaching over and tried wrapping an arm around Kagura's shoulder. "But hey, Dad! That aside! This girl here is…!"
Before he could get close Kagura stepped on his foot and jabbed his stomach with the hilt of Archenemy, causing the 1st generation dragon to crumple to the ground. "Don't touch me like that again or your head is coming off."
Skeletalus merely let out a chuckle at his foster son's folly. "I expected no less from you…you haven't changed a bit. But I see you've found a strong woman that has captured your attention at last. You take good care of my son now, you hear? Clearly you're strong enough to keep him in line."
"Wh-?!" Kagura's eyes went wide. Was this dragon really supporting this? She couldn't allow it.
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Grandine leaned forward, eying Cynthia rather curiously. Cynthia began sweating slightly, wondering if Grandine thought she was odd because her draconic features had yet to disappear yet. So the little girl just kept quiet and almost forgot how to breathe until Grandine finally spoke. "So Wendy, are you going to introduce me to your friend? I think she forgot how to breathe."
"O-Oh!" Wendy let out a small laugh. She gently patted Cynthia on the back, which helped the girl remember how to breathe. "T-This is Cynthia! She's my best friend and she means more than the world to me! She's made me a lot stronger since we've met, too…"
"Is that so?" Grandine had a soft smile. "Well, thank you, Cynthia, for befriending my daughter."
"A-Ah…" Cynthia sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "She befriended me…but I owe her a lot, even if she's stubborn and denies it."
"I think you're both a little stubborn, actually." Carla remarked.
"They totally are." Chelia giggled. "And a little more than friends."
"Hey!" Wendy and Cynthia blushed in unison at this insinuation.
Grandine held her soft smile. "Your dragonization will fade in time. You were saved by the Mystic Water, were you not? Don't worry, I do not think you strange. I can tell that you are an adorable human as well."
"T-Thank you..." Cynthia giggled sheepishly. Was this a sign of approval? She wasn't going to say no that!
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Evanee and Gaia stared up at Stalagmus. This was a meeting he had long since been hoping for. He looked to Evanee with a fond smile. "Evanee...you've grown into a beautiful young woman. And I can sense your magic power as well, it's extremely potent..."
"Yeah, but..." Evanee looked away, a pensive expression on her face. This meeting wasn't actually one she was expecting. She wasn't prepared. "A lot's happened since then. I'm not even a Dragon slayer anymore. So...what we had doesn't exist anymore."
"Hahahaha!" Stalagmus just laughed at that statement. This put Evanee into shock. "Don't be so silly. Whatever may have happened doesn't change what we are. You are my foster daughter that I proudly raised. Whatever happened to your magic...that will never affect the days we had together."
"See? I told you that you had nothing to worry about." Gaia said with a cheeky grin. Evanee just jabbed her sharply with an elbow as a response. "Ow! Hey, watch it, I'm sore."
"Thank you for bringing her here, Gaia." Stalagmus said with an appreciative nod. "Seeing you two together, despite whatever circumstance...it fills my old heart with joy. I suppose this means you found the book that I wrote?"
Gaia and Evanee looked at one another in confusion. "You wrote a book?" Gaia turned to Stalagmus. "When?"
"Hm?" The elder earth dragon tilted his head in confusion. "I wrote a book about the Isle. I believe I handed it to Evanee before..." Before the dragon slayers were separated. When those events played back in his mind, it suddenly made sense.
"I don't remember some things from when I was younger." Evanee replied while shaking her head. "So I guess I lost it at the same time I lost you. I'm sorry."
"No...it's alright. You're here." Stalagmus could shake that off. He just wanted to focus on the present. "I can see that you have some doubt within you. But just remember your experiences from before. You've never enjoyed being truly alone, now have you? If your friends are near, you should go to them."
"...My friends, huh?" Evanee thought back to Twilight Zone, but they all went their separate ways. It was just her.
"She has a lot to think about." Gaia said with a giggle. Evanee just gave her a death glare as a response.
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Metalicana stared right into Gajeel's eyes, remaining silent for a few moments before finally speaking. "I see you still got that vile look in your eye."
Gajeel immediately took offense to that. "What the hell is that supposed to mean!?"
Levy found herself giggling at the interaction between Gajeel and his dragon. "Aheh…"
"Wha!? That's not funny, shrimp…!" Gajeel exclaimed in a comical fit of rage.
"It's a little funny." Levy responded.
"Just a tad." Pantherlily commented.
When Metalicana saw this interaction, he couldn't help but pull back a little bit. There was a grin on his lips. Even though Gajeel still had something of a vile look in his eye, Levy and Pantherlily helped it soften a little. "I guess even the vile can grow into something respectable."
"You wanna repeat that!?" Gajeel exclaimed with a comical look of anger.
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"Do you want to explain why you left? Why did you abandon me!?" Waiston shouted at Tunundra. "You left me in the cold alone that day…what was I supposed to do!?"
"I'm sorry, Waiston…" Tunundra lowered her head. "I couldn't explain it to you then, but it was for your own good…the other dragons have no doubt said the same to their children as well. There is something that we were hoping you could all accomplish when you grew older. You were too young to remember... But I see you still kept that jacket I gave you…" She gestured to the one he was wearing right now.
"Of course, it was all I had." Waiston replied with a slight cough, looking away to keep his cool.
"I'm glad I got to see what kind of a person you got to grow up to be, Waiston." Tunundra said with a soft smile. "You've become a strong wizard. That's all I've wanted for you."
"You're not going to leave again, are you?" Blues asked Aquareon, sadness evident all over his face. With how the day's events have panned out for him, he couldn't really take some more heartbreak. "I don't want to be alone…I already lost Kuro…"
"You don't have to worry about being alone." Aquareon gestured to Quatro Cerberus. "You've already found a group of fine young friends, I'm sure you're aware of that."
Blues turned to look at QC, a soft smile spreading onto his lips. "Yeah…"
"That's right, Blues!" Bacchus exclaimed. "We've always got your back!"
"No matter what!" Warcry exclaimed as tears shed down his cheeks.
Aquareon then leaned down, gently pressing his head against Blue's forehead. "Listen to me, Blues. Life is full of pain and parting...but life itself is as deep and expansive as the ocean. You are the embodiment of the seas. The waters will get rough, sometimes too much to bear...but you are strong. Whatever adversity comes your way, I believe that you will be able to see it through. You are the son of the ocean. When you realize your full potential, you will be a forced to be reckoned with. Just like me, your dear friend will always be with you."
"Dad..." Blues' voice quivered. "I...I missed you so much."
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"You've grown into a strong young woman…" Adamantia said to Selene, who was basically clinging onto her. "I'm proud of you, Serena."
"I missed you…" Selene said while clutching onto her mother's leg. "Even though I know why you left now…I still wish you hadn't…"
"We never truly left…" Adamantia said with a small grin. "We were inside you all this entire time, producing antibodies that would prevent you from turning into a dragon. Overuse of your magic does that, but now we don't have to worry about those chances anymore…but there is one thing…we cannot stay for long. Since we're already dead…and we cannot return back to your bodies…"
"What...!?" Selene's eyes widened.
"This is a lot to take in…" Luke said while scratching his head. "I'm a little lost even now, honestly…"
"So the dragons did vanish…but not truly…?" Zalen pushed his glasses up. "This is something to wrap our heads around all right…I wonder if the dragon slayers back in Fiore have their dragons visiting them. Seems likely." He then turned to Takeru, who's arms were crossed. "Hey, where's yours...?"
Takeru was standing off to the side, his arms crossed. "...Better that he's not here. He wouldn't be on friendly terms with us anyway."
"Heather?" Luke looked over to Heather, who was also standing off to the side. Although her expression was less sour than Takeru's."
"I don't remember." Heather replied, curtly. "Second generation, third generation...I just remember having this lacrima inside of me since I was young. If I did have a dragon, they'd be here, wouldn't they? Maybe they're dead." She didn't seem sad about it, though.
"It was only a matter of time before they showed…" Adam stated while returning to his normal form, covered in scrapes and bruises.
"Thank you, Adamantine." Adamantia said while looking to Adam.
"I didn't do much. I was just keeping my word as a dragon that fought for humanity all those years ago. The humans of this generation...they're alright." Adam said with a faint grin. This made Adamantina chuckle. "But the reason you all vanished was more than that, wasn't it?"
"Yes...but there's hardly any time for us to explain." Adamantina sighed quietly. She then looked over towards Igneel, who had both Dhegensea and Acnologia under him, unconscious. "But if Acnologia can be defeated on this day, none of it will matter anymore."
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"We have to leave soon." Grandine said, causing Wendy to frown.
"N-No…you just got here…! I wanted to tell you all about what happened after I lost you…!" Wendy cried.
"It's okay, Wendy…" Grandine gave a soft smile as a light began to wrap around her and the other dragons, save for Igneel. "I've been with you every step of the way, and you've grown into a strong young woman…I'm so proud of you. I love you, Wendy!"
"I love you too!" Wendy's tears began to flow, but Cynthia pulled her into a tight embrace.
"Hey…see her off with a smile, okay…?" Cynthia pleaded.
"Y…Yeah…" Wendy held back her tears for now and waved her mother goodbye with a smile.
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"…And you still got that vile look in your eye." Metalicana smirked as he began to disappear.
"THOSE ARE YOUR LAST WORDS?!" Gajeel shouted, but on the inside he was feeling a bit of sadness; finally reunited with the dragon that raised him briefly, only to have to say goodbye once more. One by one, the dragons started to leave; Metalicana, Stalagmus Grandine, Skeletalus, Wiesslogia, Skiadrum, Adamantia, Tunundra, and Aquareon.
"So they're leaving…" Ena stared up as the dragons began to vanish.
"Igneel!" Natsu finally made it to Igneel's location, panting softly due to how fast he had to run to catch him. "The job's been done! Now spill the beans!"
Igneel nodded. He had a lot to explain, but he was worried he didn't have the time to do it. That's why he was going to get through this as quickly as he could. "As you may have heard…we dragons were inside your bodies to create antibodies to prevent dragonification…it was also a way to salvage ourselves after Acnologia attacked. The Magna Carta was put in place…a way of us dragons always watching over you humans, however Dhegensea violated that law and attempted to rule mankind on his own. It appears that Yggdrasil had a stronger influence on him than any of us realized. I knew that something like this could happen, but I never thought he would go off the deep end like this. Luckily, even at half strength, we were able to put an end to his plans…But Natsu…there is something more you must know. This is about the book of E.N.D."
"Eh…?" Natsu tilted his head. "I heard that name before…" Recently, too! When he thought about it, he recalled that Zeref said something about it before they started fighting with Dhegensea.
"Whatever you do…you mustn't allow that book to fall into the wrong hands. You mustn't destroy it, nor can you open it…just put it somewhere that no one can ever find it, do you understand me?" Igneel's gaze lowered.
Meanwhile, Gray ended up muttering. "I can't allow that." If it was a demon, he had to slay it. Plain and simple.
"I got it…" Natsu nodded. "But what's so important about that book…?"
"That book is…" Igneel started, but stopped when the eyes of Acnologia snapped opened.
"DESTRUCTION!" Acnologia freed himself from Igneel's grasp and sank his teeth into the Fire Dragon's chest, causing Igneel to let out a roar of pain and everyone else to back away. Blood spurted from the wound before the two dragons were suddenly fighting in the air again. "DESTRUCTION!" Acnologia repeated. "DESTRUCTION! DESTRUCTION!" As Acnolgoia carried Igneel into the sky, his attacks on him became brutal and ruthless. Igneel was unable to pull himself away from Acnolgoia's vicious assault.
"I-IGNEEL!" Natsu shouted in worry. This was the first time in such a long time that Natsu felt his heart drop. Flames ignited around his body and he was about to launch himself into the fray, but...
"G-Get back!" Ena pulled Natsu away from the falling debris despite his obvious want not to move.
"Get off me, Ena! Igneel needs help!" Natsu roared, but Ena was asserting her dominance with her strength. She was dragging him away from the scene despite how much he wanted to go fight.
Dhegensea finally awoke, eyes shooting open and he took to the sky after the other two dragons. "I WILL NOT ALLOW YOU TO STOP ME!"
"FATHER STOP!" Ena pleaded. Things were going from back to worse!
"I will eliminate all that stand before me!" Acnologia charged towards Igneel and Dhegensea. Everything occurred in slow motion as all three dragons flew past each other within the blink of an eye. Igneel snatched Acnologia's arm right from its socket, holding the severed limb in his mouth; Acnolgoia tore of one of Dhegensea's legs…but Igneel got the worst of it all: his entire side was torn apart by Dhegensea; he was essentially half a body. Igneel fell towards the island as Acnologia prepared one final roar, aiming straight towards Igneel.
"IGNEEL!" Natsu cried out, tears beginning to form in the corners of his eyes.
Igneel felt his life fading fast from such an intense exchange. His vision was blurring as his body fell from the sky. He could see Natsu off in the distance, managing one last smile as Acnologia's arm fell from his mouth and elsewhere onto the Island. If only he had more time... "Natsu…I'm glad to have seen you grow up…there is one thing I will never forget..." He'd seen all of Natsu's trials and tribulations as he grew up. He was reckless, an idiot, but his heart was always in the right place. His heart connected to others and he had a family in Fairy Tail. Igneel had nothing to worry about... "You gave me the power to love humans..."
Those were Igneel's last words as Acnologia unleashed his roar upon the falling Igneel. A large explosion occurred and the ocean raged while the isle trembled. Igneel's charred carcass fell somewhere on the island with a large thud. Meanwhile, the injured Acnologia flew off without his amputated arm.
"…." Natsu was speechless; he couldn't even utter any words. There were just tears in his eyes from the horrid sight he just witness. He finally found Igneel and now he was...
Though he was missing a leg, Dhegensea gently hovered above the island, staring down the humans with a wicked expression. With the dragons gone, Igneel dead, and Acnologia's retreat, any and all obstacles to his plan were gone. "I will allow nothing to stop me now…I've come too far to have my plans halted. Even if I do it alone, I will follow Fate's order!" With a roar, a blanket of darkness spread from the island onto the mainland; Dhegensea activated Night Tide once again, only this time the island wasn't affected by the darkness. Instead, everything out in Fiore and the other countries was covered in a blanket of darkness that no light could pierce through.
"T-This again…!?" Lucy's eyes widened as she looked out to the mainland, but she couldn't see anything.
"I-I can't see anything…!" Mirajane panicked slightly while huddling closer to her siblings.
"Keh…" Kurthnaga's reawakening couldn't have occurred at an even worse time. He shrugged off the 'KO' blow Natsu delivered and planned to stalk the humans just to see how things would play out. Even though the other commanders suffered defeat, Night Tide was enough to revive the dragon soldiers, while not in their full forms, still posed a threat regardless. In Kurthnaga's eyes, this was in fact the end for the humans and their fight.
"This is no good…" Ena panted heavily while staring at her father. With everyone just about exhausted and out of magic…there was hardly anything to stop Dhegensea. "Is this the end…?"
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Next Time: Miracle.