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[X784, Phantom Lord guild Building]
— Gajeel Redfox —
The dust still hadn't settled from the destruction of the guild hall. From the floor to the ceiling, a thin line separated the guild into two neat halves.
Gajeel stood still, shoulders tense, feeling the sting of his own breath scraping down his throat. He couldn't believe what he'd seen — a single mage splitting the guild in half like it was made of paper. He remembered the buildup of magic prior to it, he remembered his iron scales that propped up by instinct to defend himself.
'A single mage.' How the hell had it come to this?
Jose was pacing furiously, his red pupils mere pinpricks in the white of his eyes. The Master of Phantom Lord was practically unraveling, his usual composed mask slipping with every second. He had already ripped into everyone yesterday for failing to capture the Heartfilia girl as well as the capture of Totomaru. It was clear to anyone with a brain that Jose was grasping at straws now.
"ACTIVATE THE ABYSS BREAK." Jose's voice thundered through the broken hall. His magic flared so suddenly that the surrounding mages flinched away from him. "IT DOESN'T MATTER THAT TOTOMARU ISN'T HERE! I'LL HANDLE THE FIRE ELEMENT! ACTIVATE IT NOW!"
Gajeel's gut tightened. His jaw clenched involuntarily.
"Shit…" he hissed under his breath.
Gajeel knew that Jose was getting desperate. Abyss Break was a powerful spell, but it was something not to be used lightly. The fact that Jose was even considering activating without Totomaru present was proof of it.
Not to mention that as powerful as Jose was, he only had rudimentary proficiency with the fire element. Him taking over Totomaru's role is simply making an already flawed spell even worse. He could force the fire element into place, sure. But without proper balance, the spell would barely function— and Fairy Tail had already proven they could tank a fully charged Jupiter Cannon.
'This is a waste.'
And yet Jose's order was absolute. The runes began to form in the air, dark shapes twisting and interlocking over the wreckage of the guild. A dark blast was shot forth from it that threatened to swallow both Fairy Tail and the mages that they had sent from the battlefield.
However, his sharp eyes caught the masked mage rushing ahead once more. Mystogan, his mind supplied. He raised his staff high, magical circles sprang into existence, forming in the shape of gates between the spell and its intended target. The dark magic collided with the barrier in a flash of black and gold.
A deafening crack sounded as both spells fought for supremacy. However, unlike the Jupiter Cannon, Mystogan's barriers were more than capable of defending against the flawed Abyss Break, who was torn apart after breaking through only one rune barrier.
A collective breathlessness spread through the Phantom Lord mages. No one spoke.
"KILL THEM!" Jose's scream split the silence. "KILL THEM ALL!"
No one answered. No battle cries. No enthusiasm. Just a lingering, uncomfortable silence that stretched out the room like a hanging noose. The Phantom Lord mages began to shuffle toward the battlefield — slowly, hesitantly, like prisoners walking toward their execution.
A tremor shook the ground beneath them.
The main hall doors slammed open, and a ragged mage stumbled inside, clutching his side as blood trickled down his chin.
"M–Master Jose!" he gasped. "It's Makarov! He's in the building! W-We can't stop him!"
Gajeel saw as all the rage seemingly melted away from Jose. A cold smile stretched across his face. Slowly, he inhaled, letting out a long, slow breath as his eyes darkened with a predator's gleam.
"Finally," he said softly. "Perhaps I was the fool for going about this in circles. In the end, nothing else matters but Makarov. If he falls… Fairy Tail falls."
Aria stepped forward, his expression hidden beneath his blindfold. "Shall I proceed with the plan to drain him?"
Jose merely waved away the larger man. "No need. I've had enough of your failures. I'll handle this myself."
Gajeel's eyes tracked Jose's figure as he vanished into the darkened hall. He swallowed hard. This was spiraling faster than he expected. He felt Juvia's hand grab his arm, her grip tight.
"Gajeel-kun," she whispered. "What do we do?"
He was about to answer when the air shifted. His gaze darted toward Aria, who had remained still since Jose had talked to him. His large hands that were clasped in front of him were trembling. Magic began to thrum in the air.
Gajeel's instincts screamed.
"Shit. Juvia, hold on!"
He drove his feet into the ground, iron spikes extending from the soles of his boots and anchoring him in place. Juvia latched onto his arm as Aria's magic surged.
A deafening gale erupted from Aria's position. A vortex of slicing wind shot through the hall, cutting into everything and everyone without mercy. The weaker mages were lifted from their feet, tossed like ragdolls into the walls. Cries of pain filled the room as Phantom Lord's own members were torn apart by their supposed ally.
The only ones not affected were Gajeel, Juvia, and Sol. Though the latter was visibly struggling as he called out to the Ace of Phantom Lord.
"A–Aria! Wait!"
"The Master called us failures," Aria said coolly. His voice was flat and lifeless. Gajeel couldn't remember the last time he saw Aria like this. "Perhaps I have been too lenient. It was my duty to see his plans succeed, and yet…"
The wind stilled as quickly as it began. The sound of bodies hitting the floor echoed ominously through the wreckage. Of the dozens of Phantom Lord mages, barely half stirred. Most lay still. The rest twitched feebly on the floor. The air thinned this time, and Gajeel found it harder to breathe.
Aria's head turned toward them. "Gajeel. Juvia. Sol. Finish off the remaining Fairy Tail mages. Capture Lucy Heartfilia. Do not disappoint me again."
Gajeel's jaw clenched. "And you?"
Aria's hand lifted to the blindfold covering his eyes. His mouth curled into a thin smile. "I will kill Dannis Martell."
Gajeel's lips curled back into a snarl. "Right…" He watched Aria's back until the man disappeared into the shadows after Jose.
"I swear this guild is getting more fucked by the day," Gajeel muttered under his breath.
Juvia's hand tightened around his bicep. He glanced down and found her trembling slightly. Gajeel frowned. 'I swear if we don't die today, we're leaving this godforsaken guild.'
"Come on," he said aloud, brushing off the tension in his chest. "Might as well get this over with."
Juvia nodded silently. They moved toward the battlefield, leaving Sol behind.
…
— Dannis Martell —
Dannis landed heavily inside the chamber, his boots scraping against the smooth stone floor. Erza, Natsu, Gray, and Happy followed closely behind, each of them landing beside him.
They took a look around, only to see the Jupiter Cannon's power source, a massive lacrima positioned at the center of the room, was completely split in half.
"Damn," Gray muttered. His eyes narrowed at the shattered lacrima, a scowl forming on his face. "Guess they're not firing that thing anytime soon."
"Hey, Dannis!" Natsu's voice was loud and as unbothered as ever, as he called out with a wide grin on his face. "When all of this is done, fight me!"
"Pass," Dannis replied, not even bothering to look at him. His gaze remained focused as his left eye flashed red. "Now focus. We're in enemy territory here."
"Dannis is right." Erza replied as she stepped beside him, her hand resting lightly on the hilt of a sword. "So what's the plan?"
"Stick together for now," Dannis said, the magic in his eye dimming. "Mira and Mystogan have everything handled outside. Master's fighting Jose. Our job is to make sure no one else interferes."
"So all I gotta do is beat that metal bastard, right?" Natsu said, excitement burning in his tone. His fists ignited with flames as he ran ahead deeper into the building. "Alright then!"
"Aye, sir!" Happy cheered, flapping his wings energetically beside him.
"Natsu, wait, you idiot! Don't go by yourself!" Gray shouted as Natsu bolted toward the nearest hallway. Gray cursed under his breath before chasing after him. "You're not leaving me behind!"
Seeing this, Dannis rubbed his temple with a sigh "Why did I even bother?"
Erza's hand twitched, a small blush of embarrassment creeping over her otherwise stoic expression. "I'm sorry for them," she said, bowing her head slightly. "Feel free to hit me as punishment."
Dannis gave her a flat stare. "I'm not gonna do that…" He exhaled heavily. "In any case, the two of them wreaking havoc on the guild also works to our benefit. More chaos means less coordination for Phantom Lord."
Erza straightened, her expression sharpening back into focus. "Agreed."
"Come on," Dannis said, his sword slipping into his hand in a smooth motion as he started down the opposite hallway. "I saw a pretty interesting future this way."
They left the ruined chamber, moving through the dimly lit corridors of Phantom Lord's stronghold. Erza's footsteps echoed behind him as she fell into step beside him, her sword drawn.
Their path was obstructed by Phantom Lord mages as they continued to emerge from the shadows. Dannis' sword flashed left and right, a grunt of pain meeting him every time. He cut down an attacker with a precise slash to the chest, pivoting swiftly to parry a second strike from another mage. Erza, with two swords in hand, tore through their enemies with brutal efficiency.
A wave of magic pulsed down the hallway, followed by silence. A shift in the atmosphere. A sudden weight in the air that pressed down on his chest.
He stopped, raising a hand to halt Erza beside him. His gaze sharpened immediately as his grip tightened on Obsidian.
"He's here."
A subtle shift in the air pressure. A faint rustle of fabric.
"There you are."
A sharp blade of wind whistled through the air. Dannis' sword snapped up in an instant, dark energy flashing along the blade as it intercepted the attack. The wind howled as it split apart, leaving deep gashes in the stone wall behind him.
A figure emerged, tall and muscular, dressed in Phantom Lord's dark robes. Long black hair cascaded down his back, and a blindfold covered his eyes.
"Hello… Black Blade."
Dannis' eyes narrowed. "Aria."
Aria's thin lips curled upward in a chilling smile. "It was truly a magnificent piece of magic you performed, destroying the guild hall. If the Dark Swordsman is my opponent, then perhaps I should get serious."
A sudden cacophony of noise erupted from the opposite end of the hallway. A horde of Phantom Lord mages came barreling toward them that numbered in the hundreds.
"Dannis!" Erza shouted.
"Take care of it." Dannis' gaze remained fixed on Aria. He raised his sword, dark energy coiling along its length. "Cover my back. I'll handle Aria."
"Got it!" Erza's swords materialized around her, as she requipped into her Heaven's Wheel Armor. "Be careful!"
Aria's hand rose toward his blindfold, his fingers curling around the cloth. "It would be a shame not to see you with my own eyes, Black Blade."
Dannis' eyes sharpened as Aria's blindfold slipped away, revealing his closed eyelids. A thin breath of air slipped from Aria's mouth. The atmosphere around them thinned instantly, and Dannis felt a sharp pressure in his lungs.
"Shall we see if you can breathe when the very air betrays you?"
Aria opened his eyes.
A wave of crushing magic exploded through the corridor, the air distorting violently under the pressure.
Both mages surged forward. Dark steel met air as their clash exploded with raw magical force.
…
AN: Gajeel and Juvia's friendship is underrated. I love their dynamic.
These next few chapters should be filled with plenty of action. A lot of fights are gonna happen between Fairy Tail and Phantom Lord.
Anyways, quick question. I've been getting back into Skyrim lately, picking it back up after years of playing the game. That's when I had the idea of writing a fic set up in the Elder Scrolls universe. Would anyone be interested in that? I don't know how large the fandom for that game really is.
Aside from that, I hope you enjoyed the chapter.
Cheers lads.