Time until Face goes off: 30 minutes.
Fairy Tail was met with a number of Tartarus soldiers. As expected that their defenses would be on high alert, but the numbers were slightly staggering. Still, that wasn't going to stop them! Gajeel was one who made sure of this by beginning to inhale, lurching forward while parting his lips. "Iron Dragon's Roar!" From his mouth, a vortex of metallic shrapnel launched forward, taking out several grunts as it travelled down the hall. "C'mon! I'm just getting starting you demonic fucks!"
"G-Gajeel is really fired up about this, huh…?" Levy had to stand back and watch Gajeel do work, because he wasn't wasting any time! Of course the others were right along and began to engage Tartarus in battle; however none of the big guns made their appearance quite yet.
Glancing around, Lucy didn't exactly find a way to make it to the lower levels, likely where the rest of the action was occurring so easily. "How are we going to break through…? We'll be stuck up here for too long and end up being sitting ducks…"
"It's simple!" Levy pointed out. "We find out where the soldiers are coming from and follow that route!"
"Excellent work as always!" Jet praised Levy, though she didn't really think too much of it at the time.
Cana walked over to Elfman, who needed some time to himself after the incident that occurred. "Oi…you feeling okay now big guy?" The brunette questioned with a soft smile.
"Yeah…" Elfman nodded slowly. His somber expression didn't last too long and he stood up with that determination he had in the beginning. "I don't know what came over me in those moments…but I won't let it happen to me again. My sisters are in need of my help and I know they're in here!"
"You better not!" Diamond was awake now, and placed a hand on her hip. "You really had me frightened back there."
"It won't happen again. I promise." Elfman told Diamond.
"That's the spirit!" Cana grinned, slapping Elfman on the back. "Don't make me have to do that again. You really gave me a heart attack there." Speaking of medical issues, the drunken fairy's eyes wandered to Laxus, Freed, Bickslow, Evergreen, and Yajima. They were still suffering from the Magic Barrier Particles yet were under the watchful eye of Porlyuisca. "How are they holding up…?"
"They're not getting better." The medic stated with bitter bluntness. "I still need a blood sample from the demon that caused this if I am to make a cure for them."
"If they were active, we would be making it through this so much faster…" Romeo gave a slight nod. For now, they'd just have to continue fighting on their own.
"I'm going to see if anyone else is here yet…and perhaps through my telepathy, we can find a way to bring Tartarus down within the blink of an eye…" Warren placed two fingers to his cranium, using his Telepathy to seek out other mages within Tartarus. He could sense many and planned on communicating with them whether they liked it or not.
As the fighting went on, Diamond made sure to stick close to Fairy Tail. As she did, she opened her communication lacrima to Dealer, and Ace was on the other line. "Ace!"
"Diamond! What's going on over there!?" Ace asked.
"It's Face!" Diamond answered. She was filled in during the flight to Tartarus Castle. "Tartarus is trying to activate Face! You guys have to find a way to destroy the units in Seven, just in case we can't stop it here!"
"Face...!?" Ace's eyes widened. He nodded. "Alright, we're moving out. But you're with Fairy Tail, aren't you? I know we shouldn't have a reason to worry, then." With a cheeky grin, Ace ended the communication.
Wendy glanced around the castle. She couldn't be patient enough to wait another moment as her nose tracked down that all too familiar scent of Cynthia's. Even when apart like this, those two were still acting in unison, for once the other's scent entered their noses, they spoke at the same time from two different locations: "She's here in this building…"
"You smell her too, don't you?" Alex asked, running alongside Wendy, who nodded in response.
Lucy didn't want to leave Wendy and Carla alone so she followed along with them, with Alex right behind. "Wait, Wendy! I know where you're trying to go…but have you even decided what you're going to do? I know you've been juggling this decision in your mind for a while now…but what will do you if you run into Cynthia…?"
Wendy continued on her way; however she did pause for a moment as both Lucy and Carla gave her concerned looks. "I've been thinking a lot about it recently…I don't know what happened to Cynthia, but we did make a promise. She told me that if something like this ever happened I have to confront her. I really don't want to fight Cynthia, but her behavior is making it an impossible confrontation…I think the only way I can talk to her is by fighting and that scares me. But…I want to…no, I have to save her. So I'll do anything I can."
"Hah..." Alex managed a grin at Wendy's words.
Wendy's resolve brought forth a small smile on both Lucy and Carla's lips. "You've grown so much…I'll be with you every step of the way." Carla responded with a widening grin.
"And I'll be here for backup!" Lucy reassured. "Now let's go get Cynthia back, stop Face, and kick these demon's butts!"
.
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Bang! Bang! Reve was shooting down soldiers as they tried to step up to him without even batting an eye. Once the coast was clear, by some horrible timing he heard the voice of Warren in his head. "You know…this is the second time you've appeared in my head uninvited."
"Ah! So White Eclipse is here! Wonderful!" Warren's voice could be heard for everyone between Fairy Tail and White Eclipse. "Good! Fairy Tail is here too on the higher levels. Some of the other guilds will also be here soon! So it's time to work together and crush Tartarus once and for all!"
"Look at the nobody, trying to sound all important…" Reve shook his head. "We were already planning to destroy Tartarus when we got here. We don't need your encouragement, but we'll take your information."
"We're still in a situation here; your ego can inflate after we've won." Heather chided Reve who really didn't think too much of it.
"How much longer do we have to share a channel with them?" Cygnus complained.
"Not much longer." That voice…didn't belong to anyone from White Eclipse or Fairy Tail. In fact, Warren wasn't even conscious at the moment for his telepathy was hijacked by the one…the only…
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"Humans." Marde Geer held his fingers to his forehead, an amused grin crawling onto his lips. "I think your little parade has come far enough. The first time you walked into our home, I allowed it because it was Daityas' game to play. But he is no longer here, nor was he ever in charge. I will not allow you to trespass any farther than you already have; you've already defaced the name of Demon King with that unsightly defeat of Daityas…Face will activate shortly and it would be in poor taste for you to interrupt my plans before they go off. Therefore…I have decided that your graves will be in this very castle." Pointing said hand off to the side, he was going to activate one of his many spells. "Alegeria." And on that simple command, the entire castle began to rumble violently. "It's time for you to sleep."
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"Huh…?!" The ground started to soften and liquefy underneath everyone's feet. Not only that but it seemed as if the walls were reaching out to grab everyone not affiliated with Tartarus. Try as Wendy, Lucy, and Carla might, they weren't having any luck escaping. "Ah…! No, not when we're so close…!" Wendy cried out, reaching out for something, anything that could help them escape!
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"What the…?" Zalen found himself unable to move…it was as if the castle itself was beginning to assimilate him! To make matters worse, the Tartarus soldiers in front of him were completely unaffected. "Crap! This is no good!"
"Agh…!" Takeru was having even worse luck! The entire castle was beginning to swallow him whole…not to mention he could feel the building itself beginning to come to life! "This isn't good! I still have to find Serena…! I'm not going out like this damn it!"
"Like hell am I going down this way!" Clearly resisting the inevitable fate, Waiston tried his hardest to fight against the spell Marde activated…however it was just no use.
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Ah…how pleasant it was for Marde. In a matter of mere seconds this human infestation would be taken care of nicely and Face would activate without a hitch. Sitting back with the book of E.N.D in his hands, he just waited for the inevitable result of all the humans being silenced. Still…there was a slight presence that bothered him. In the midst of this spell, something didn't sit right with him and he couldn't put his finger on it.
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Standing at the very top of the morphing castle was Ruika. In her hand was a golden replica key. Since she bore the mark of Tartarus on her shoulder, she wasn't being pulled into the spell. "I knew this moment was coming...and I'm the only one who can stop it. I won't let her break another key. I won't let Tobias' sacrifice be in vain." She held the golden Zodiac key out, a golden shine appearing from the end of the key. "Celestial Spirit King! Please, hear my plea!"
"What do you think you're doing?" The Celestial Spirt King questioned Ruika. "You who have attacked my dear friend, made her bleed...why do you think you can call me with that fake key of yours?"
Not the warmest reception, but she expected that. More importantly, he responded! She just needed to catch his attention one way or another. "I need your help. I'm not asking for you to attack Lucy or anything of the sort...but she and a lot of other humans are in danger right now! Your power is the only thing that can stop the Alegeria. If you don't right now, Lucy and the others will be killed!"
"..." The spirit king did not respond.
"...I get it, you don't trust me. That's fair. All I've done is hunt Lucy and Yukino down to get their keys. I've killed and killed, all for reasons I don't even agree with anymore." Ruika's grip on that key only tightened. "I don't want to be that person anymore. I've lost...someone. They stuck their neck out, and that's the only reason I'm here right now. I have to make things right. If you don't believe me, then I'll even do this! I make a vow, to you, that I will not bring harm to Lucy or Yukino! I don't care about owning the Zodiacs anymore. I just want...to live a half decent life for a change! If you don't believe me, then if I break this vow, I'll release the contacts with all my keys!" She could feel the castle getting worse with each passing second. "PLEASE, HELP ME!"
"...You cannot summon me with that fake key." The Spirit King said. Ruika's eyes widened in shock. She knew it was a long shot, but...
"However. Your words resonate with me. I sense the glimmer of hope within your heart. Your desire to help is pure." As the Spirit King said this, the key that Ruika was holding flew into the air out of her reach. The key shattered in a golden explosion, and a gate did open. From it, however, was not the Celestial Spirit King. But rather, his sword. His sword stabbed into the floating castle. "Galaxia Blade!" From that sword, a purifying magic shocked the living castle, forcing the Alegeria spell to stop in its entirety.
"AAAAH...!" Ruika hugged herself tightly. Even summoning a fraction of the Celestial Spirit King's power took an immense amount of magic she barely had.
.
The spell stopped in its tracks. Marde's eyes briefly widened in surprise as the castle rumbled, and his trap came to an immediate halt. He sensed a familiar magic. "The Celestial Spirit King? But how...?" He then made the connection. "Ruika..." So Tobias lied, did he? That was his fault. He should've known better. "So another one with our mark has to die as well. I warned Daityas that it was dangerous to bring those insects into our home..."
But that was far from the end.
It soon came to light…literally. A magic seal in the shape of a star shone brightly in front of Marde's throne. It wasn't just in the throne room; six other identical symbols appeared in various other sections of the castle. "What in…"
"Be judged by the seven stars, demon."
How?! Even while incapacitated Jellal still proved to be a thorn in Marde's side! These stars exploded with Heavenly Body magic, interrupting the Alegeria spell violently! Several eruptions occurred in a large chain, silencing and destroying most of the castle that threatened to come alive while saving the skin of everyone who was caught within what could've been the end.
Marde looked rather disheveled for a moment after the trick Jellal pulled. "When did he…" Ah…when DID Jellal have the time to pull this off? When Marde was keeping Jellal as company…as it turns out, such a plan now backfired on the King of Hades since Jellal likely had this planned since the beginning of his capture.
Jellal himself was standing at the hole in the wall, panting heavily. Marde looked surprised at this, because despite his injuries, he was still alive. "That was the beginning of your judgement."
"You're alive?" Marde narrowed his eyes. With those wounds, he knew Jellal should've been dead! No matter, he would properly finish the job this time. He extended his one hand forward, causing multiple vines to rush forward to finish off Jellal. But the vines bounced off of him, as a purple barrier formed around him. "What...?" They were runes. Runes that read: No demon of Tartarus can kill Jellal. "Tobias!?" Even when that man was a soulless puppet, he found a way to vex him.
"I don't know why he did it...but I owe him my life." Jellal gave a tired grin, before using Meteor to speed off.
Right after he did that, Kiora, riding Cerberus appeared. "Having a little trouble, oh great and mighty Demon King?" Kiora smirked at Marde Geer. While his expression was slightly unchanged, she could tell he wasn't amused. That was enough to get a giggle out of her. "Don't worry, I'll catch him. I haven't been this excited for a hunt in a long time!" With that, Cerberus rode ahead, and Kiora laughed all the while. "One, two...Kiora's coming for you!"
Marde settled back into his seat. He wasn't going to allow himself to be riled up by such childish antics. "Hmph…it matters not. Your attempt to vex me will only end in your comrade's death, Jellal. The outcome is still the same…merely delayed…"
Right after Marde finished speaking; the throne room doors were nearly blown open. Standing in the newly opened doorway was a grinning Luke Cloud, a black and white aura flaring around his body as he stared Marde down. "So I'm gonna take a gander and say you're the one in charge of this operation. Well allow me to be the one to put an end to this game!"
Marde remained seated, now unamused at Luke's intrusion. "Foolish human…this is a confrontation you stand no chance of winning. If you grovel at my feet and beg for mercy, I'll make your death swift."
"Ha, good luck with that." Luke retorted with a sly smirk. "Cats have nine lives, didn't you know? Besides…I've cheated death many a time. Don't say I didn't warn you."
.
Natsu and Lisanna weren't having so much luck within the jail cell. They were tumbling around due to all the violent vibrations that shook the castle. "Gah! What the hell is going on out there!? And why am I not a part of it!?" Natsu growled while attempting to break through the bars with his own skull…and was just as effective as the last time and Natsu bounced backwards. "Agh!"
"There's got to be something we can do…" Lisanna grumbled. It was then the 'clink' of steel could be heard rattling down the hallway. A few seconds later and a thin, yet large great sword appeared in front of the jail cell. "Huh…that's a sharp weapon…where did it come from?"
"I think I can grab that from here…" Natsu judged the distance and it seemed plausible. "Yeah…yeah…!" Reaching out with his feet, he managed to slide the blade between the bars and handed it off to Lisanna who had her hands at her front. "Got it!"
"Yes!" Taking the sword, Lisanna used it to slice the magic sealing cuffs from around Natsu's wrists. The moment Natsu was free he returned the favor and Lisanna took to her Tigress Take Over so she could have SOMETHING covering her. "Ah…so much better!"
"Now let's get out of here!" Natsu grinned while slamming his fist into his palm before flames ignited on his fist. In one punch he blew open the prison cell and stood there all proud of himself.
"You're still naked. Put some clothes on or something!" Lisanna turned away from Natsu with a red face.
"What's with all this commotion…?" Angel peered out from around the corner. Once her gaze landed on Lisanna and Natsu, she quirked a brow before rounding the corner, throwing Natsu a bundle of clothes in her hands before glancing away. "Ugh, put some clothes on. It's disgusting seeing you like this."
"Huh…?" Natsu blinked, putting on the clothes (Tartarus arc outfit) before staring at Angel confusedly. "Angel…? What the heck are you doing here…? Where are the others? And what happened to your arm!?" He questioned while pointing at Angel's clearly injured shoulder that hadn't healed since Crime Soricere was ambushed.
"It's a long story…" Angel grumbled while trying to ignore whatever pain lingered in her shoulder. "When I woke up in here my cell was open and that pair of magic sealing cuffs were already off me…along with the bundle of clothes next to me. But what matters now is getting revenge for being made a mockery of! These demons will descend back into hell where they belong if it is the last thing they do!"
"She's very determined…" Lisanna whispered to Natsu. "Hey…it's dangerous to go alone…so why don't we go together? Natsu and I were about to look for Erza!"
"…Hmph. Very well, I'll accompany you." Angel nodded reluctantly, although she knew much better than to try and solo run this building in her condition.
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"A minor setback…" Kyouka happily hummed while making her way back to the torture chamber. "But it doesn't matter. Everything is still going according to plan…now then, Erza. I think you and I still have a little more fun left…" And when Kyouka opened the door…Erza was not where she should have been. The demon that was used to give Erza treatment akin to that of the electric chair was just lying on the ground dead.
The same instant Kyouka entered the room a sword was pressed firmly against her neck, just barely not cutting into the skin. Erza stood with a wicked smile of her own. "Yes, I agree…let's have some 'fun'. I have to repay you for your hospitality.
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Next Time: The Countdown.