Chapter 23

"Welcome, welcome, welcome!"

The entire Spriggan team stiffened in tense anticipation as the now familiar voice blared into the stadium through giant lacrima speakers. The arena was packed and the crowd roared and cheered with enthusiasm. They themselves remained completely silent, hearts heavy from the night before and minds afraid for the horrors to come.

The coliseum could be clearly split into four groups of spectators. Three of four sections were designated for the three guilds of the Baram Alliance: Oracion Seis, Grimoire Heart and Tartaros. Their banners were proudly presented above their sections, but Lucy quickly noticed that the actual guild members of the Baram Alliance weren't present. Instead their aligned guilds were seated within their relative sections, showing off their smaller banners within their own area.

The last section was designated for unaligned guilds. This was where the nervous members of team Spriggan currently waited. As competitors, they had a separate booth to themselves, similar to the other three teams in the tournament.

"Welcome to the official start of the Fiftieth Baram Tournament! Tehe. Congratulations to those who suriv-eh hem- who passed the preliminary rounds."

The rest of the Spriggan team listened with somber dispositions, all of them sporting dark circles and bags under their eyes. It was clear that none of them had a clear night's sleep after the events of the day prior. None of them were prepared for the events of the day. Though, 'day' wasn't quite the word for it. Despite the clocks displaying a time of 9am, the skies were dark, stuck in a perpetual night. The only semblance of moving time was the strange moon cycle: full during the mornings and new during the night. Right now, the moon casted a cold, blueish tinge over the coliseum.

"To start off, let's introduce our four teams in order of their finish in last nights preliminary rounds. In fourth place, oh, we have a completely new team." A spotlight beamed towards them and Lucy had to turn away for a moment. "Never before heard of and ruthlessly taking down their opponents in last night's preliminary, we have…Spriggan!"

Mild murmurs spread through the crowd and curious eyes turned towards them. People within their unaligned section threw them jealous glares. It was obvious that some of these groups had been vying for their spot for quite some time.

"Next! Aligned under Oracion Seis and overtaking last tournament's Naked Mummy, we have Eisenwald!"

Spectators within Oracion Seis' banner cheered ferociously as the spotlight turned towards the competitor's box for Eisenwald. Lucy counted a total of twenty members, many of which she had never seen before.

"In second place, aligned under Grimoire Heart, having come in second place in last year's tournament, we have Death's Head Caucus!"

As expected, those under the Grimoire Heart banner bellowed their support as the spotlight turned towards Death Head Caucus. Five members, Lucy counted.

"Finally, the guild you've all been waiting for." The entire stadium was on edge. "In first place and winner of last year's tournament, aligned with the wonderful guild of Tartaros, tehe, we have Succubus Eye!"

The entire arena exploded into cheers as the members of Succubus Eye took to their competitor's box. Lucy inhaled sharply. They only had three members. One of them was a large, imposing and muscular man, while the second Lucy recognized as the woman with the metal bow from the night before. Their last member was a lean man with wild blue hair and an equally wild grin on his face.

Once the arena settled down, the voice returned. "Now, it's time to explain the rules." There were plenty of chuckles and laughs from the crowd. To be honest, Lucy was surprised there were even rules at all.

In a flicker of light, a giant parchment materalized in the center of the coliseum, detailing the outline of the competition in large black ink:

RULES

Each guild's competitor is worth one point

The competitor loses their point upon incapacitation or death

Should an incapacitated member deem themselves capable of re-entry, a point will be re-awarded to the guild.

Should a team place first in any event, additional points are awarded to the team.

The guild with the most points after all competitions is deemed the champion

"Sounds simple enough," Gray said, after reading the rules.

"I wouldn't say that," Levy said. Worry was written all over her face.

"What do you mean?"

In that moment, the voice returned. "And now, we will rearrange the placements of the teams based on our rules." The rules were wiped off the parchment and the names of each guild replaced them:

STANDINGS

1st Place: Eisenwald Points: 20

2nd Place: Spriggan Points: 10

3rd Place: Death's Head Caucus Points: 5

4th Place: Succubus Eye Points: 3

"W-Wait!" Natsu exclaimed as he looked up at the standings. Lucy glanced over to the pink-haired mage beside her. She was glad that his complexion had lightened up from last night. He still bore some signs of exhaustion on his face, but his mentality managed to recover. It surprised Lucy how fast the man could bounce back from anything. "That doesn't seem fair. You could win as long as you bring more people."

"Not necessary," Erza said. "That tactic only makes sense if each of your members are capable of holding their own in combat. It makes no difference how many members you have if they are only going to be incapacitated in battle."

"Oh…"

Lucy noticed a troubled look on Levy's face. It appeared that she wasn't the only one who noted the underlying issue with this tournament. And it seemed neither of them were ready to voice it out loud.

Franmalth's voice returned to announce the first competition. "This year's tournament will feature four events, one on each day. Our first competition of this tournament, sponsored by Oracion Seis, is Search and Destroy!" There were a few murmurs amongst the crowd, predictions of what the event will be. "Teams will now get to the choose the number of participants to send out, but the details of the event won't be revealed until the number of participants are selected."

A large number pad appeared in front of their team. Almost immediately they all looked to Laxus, who had been silent for most of the morning.

"Four events, one on each day," he murmured to himself. "To be safe we shouldn't send out our entire team." He moved towards the keypad, pressing down the number three. A confirmation message popped up in front of them, asking them if they were sure. Laxus looked to all of them. Slowly, each of them nodded their approval and Laxus confirmed their selection. The keypad then shimmered out of view.

Once the other guilds had made their selections, the rules of the game were presented on the giant parchment in the middle of the arena:

SEARCH AND DESTROY

Each team is presented with one bomb to protect.

If a team's bomb is detonated, the team can no longer participate and remaining participants will be removed from the game

If all team members are incapacitated, the team can no longer participate.

The game will end when only one team remains.

Points awarded to champion team: 2

"Alright, this makes sense," Gray said. "So, who's going?"

It turned out they had no choice. The rules shimmered away from the parchment and three of their members cried out in shock. Lucy spun around to find Erza, Wendy and Juvia missing from their booth. The rest of them looked to each other in a panic before running to the railing.

There they were, the three of them, standing in the middle of the arena with the rest of the contestants.

The names of the participants appeared on the parchment. From Eizenwald, there were a whopping fifteen members on the arena floor. Death's Head Caucus had only two members: Ikaruga and Fukuro, and Succubus Eye surprised them the most, bringing out only one member: Doriate.

"This can't be happening," Mira said, worried. "Wendy…"

"D-Don't worry," Levy said, though it was tough not to notice the tremble in her voice. "Erza and Juvia will protect her."

"I'd like to welcome the competitors in our first game! Tehee. Fifteen members from Eizenwald. Impressive. I wonder how much those lives are worth…"

The stadium rumbled with fervor. The crowd watched in awe and excitement as the terrain of the arena started to change. Old, beaten-up buildings rose up from the floor until the entire arena transformed into an abandoned city. Almost all the contestants were now hidden from view.

The stage was set.

"Competitors are in place and bombs have been laid. I wonder who will come out on top?!"

A large horn sounded from the lacrima speakers.

"Baram Tournament Event One: Start!"

Lucy glanced down at the stadium floor, her eyes searching from her three guild members but finding none of them. A bad feeling settled in her stomach and for once she was starting to worry…

Down on the arena floor, the only person remotely calm was Erza. The three of them were currently hidden within a large empty warehouse and smack in the middle of the space was one large bomb. She knew they had precious little time to waste, and needed to come up with a battle plan.

"Wendy, Juvia."

"Y-Yes," the two of them answered. It was clear to Erza that the two were frightened.

Erza walked up to the two of them, placing a hand on each of their shoulders. "We are in this together, alright? Have faith in our abilities and we will come out on top."

"Yes!" The two of them shouted, feeling slightly more confident.

"Good," Erza said. "Now, we have no idea where our enemies are. From the quick glance we got just before the stadium changed, there appears to be eighteen mages on the floor, not including us. We don't know what tactics the others will use, but it is clear that if we are to stop them from attacking, we need to detonate our enemies' bombs."

Wendy and Juvia nodded.

"But what about our own?" Wendy asked, glancing nervously at the object behind her. Her voice echoed softly in the large warehouse.

"You and Juvia will stay here and guard the bomb. I will go and scout out the locations," Erza commanded.

"A-Alright."

"Ah," Wendy called out as Erza headed out. "Be careful!"

Erza nodded. "You two as well." She disappeared out of the warehouse, leaving the two mages on their own.

Wendy and Juvia turned back towards their bomb.

"Now what?" Wendy asked.

Juvia frowned. "Now, we wait."

"Where did they go!" Aggravation was clearly written on Gray's face. He leaned over the railing, his eyes darting left and right, searching the abandoned city in the stadium below. Lucy had a feeling he was looking for a certain water mage.

"Relax icicle," Natsu said, though it was clear he was just as worried. "Erza's out there. They'll be fine."

Gray calmed only a smidge. Lucy herself was studying the large playing field, but like the others, she couldn't locate any of her guild members. There were cameras and lacrima visions up over the stadium, but even they had failed to catch any movements yet.

Only minutes into the game, a loud explosion broke through the silence in the stadium. Smoke rose from the north. One of the buildings, an old hospital, had its top floor completely blown apart. When the dust settled, there was a man sitting casually on top of the debris, leaning back against an intact bomb. His eyes were closed as if he were sleeping.

"He's sending a signal," Mira said with a frown. She was standing off near the back of their booth, as if afraid to look too closely.

Laxus scoffed, his arms crossed in front of him. "He's arrogant, that's for sure."

"Reminds me of someone," Lucy joked, earning her a glare. But Mira was right. The man was broadcasting where he was. His message was clear: 'come get me.'

One of the men behind them in the stands laughed. "You don't know who that is? That's Doriate of Succubus Eye. Practically the one who won the games last year for the guild. No one would be dumb enough to go up against him!"

Interesting. The man was right. After five minutes, there was still no movement amongst the other teams. No one came out to attack the lone competitor from Succubus Eye.

Next came commotion from the east. Ten members of Eisenwald ran out from what looked to be a rundown haunted house. They scattered into two teams of five. One team headed south and the other headed west. None of them ran towards Doriate in the north. They must be searching for the other two teams, one of them being Spriggan.

Lucy perked up when she noticed a small flash of red moving through one of the building windows in the west. It was gone in a moment, but it popped up again a few minutes later in an adjacent office building. She elbowed Laxus, and he raised a brow at her. She discretely nodded down towards the arena. "There."

His eyes followed and it took him a minute, but he managed to catch the next flash of red. His lips curled slightly. "Erza."

Lucy nodded, watching the woman head south-west. She didn't run out onto the streets like the members of Eisenwald did. No, she moved through covered alleyways, hoping to avoid all eyes. It was working.

Commotion to the south drew Lucy's eyes towards an abandoned aquarium. The cameras followed and soon enough, a battle was broadcast over the stadium. Five members of Eisenwald against the two members of Death's Head Caucus, who were guarding a bomb hidden inside an aquarium tank. The members of Eisenwald were completely unmemorable, but the female from Death's Head Caucus, Ikaruga, seemed powerful. A long katana rested against her hip and she stood with a confident smile in a long kimono. The other member was of the odd variety. Lucy didn't know what to think of the man who boasted an owl's head.

"They're going to fight," Natsu said, his eyes glued to the lacrima vision screen.

Gajeel scoffed, "What's the point? If they get incapacitated they'll just get up and try again at a later event."

"Exactly," Levy said with a heavy voice. "And because of that and taking into account the goal of the tournament-"

Down in the aquarium below, Ikaruga drew her blade.

"-the most secure way to win would be to-"

Ikaruga swung.

"Kill them," Lucy finished, her voice having gone cold. "And prevent them from coming back all together."

It was a massacre. Blood splattered against the walls of the aquarium and stained its waters red. Bodies rested in pools of the red liquid, dismembered, all cut clean with the blade of the sword. Even Lucy had to look away from the grotesque image for a moment, despite having seen similar images before.

Gray and Natsu had gone pale. Levy had covered her eyes, having anticipated the outcome and tears streamed down Mira's face. Gajeel and Laxus had similar reactions, grit teeth and fists clenched so tightly their knuckles turned white. Disgust radiated from all of them.

The crowd however, was eating it all up.

"Death Head's Caucus takes first blood!" The roar in the stadium was deafening. Lucy could tell they were craving it and Ikaruga delivered. "I wonder what those lives were worth?"

Lucy took a quick glance to Eisenwald's competitor's booth. There was a man that stood out from the five remaining members there. He had grey hair and tattoos below his eyes. His expression remained the same, despite witnessing the death of five of his members. Apparently, those lives were worth nothing.

The scoreboard was updated with Eisenwald losing five points, bringing them down to fifteen.

After the attacking members of Eisenwald had drawn their last breaths, Ikaruga and Fukuro split up. Fukuro headed out of the aquarium turning east, most likely moving to take down the five Eisenwald members guarding their bomb. Ikaruga stayed behind, waiting patiently in front of the aquarium tank that housed their own bomb.

Team Spriggan turned their eyes towards the other five members of Eisenwald which were running out in the open, heading west. If Succubus Eye was to the north, Death's Head Caucus to the South and Eisenwald to the east, then the process of elimination left Spriggan to the west.

Lucy and Laxus shared worried glances when they remembered that the members guarding Spriggan's bomb would be none other than Juvia and Wendy.

Mira whispered quietly behind them. "Please be safe…"

The air inside the abandoned warehouse was cold and stale. Juvia paced along the concrete floor, nervous, scanning the entrances to the warehouse every five seconds. She looked up to the windows, twenty-feet up in the air, and was still unnerved by the perpetual night they were stuck in. Erza had left for more than half an hour already, and to their luck, nothing had happened yet. To them at least. They had heard the explosions and the commotion and it only made them more nervous.

The moment Juvia heard footsteps approaching the warehouse, she forced her spirit to calm. She looked to Wendy. The sky dragon slayer was standing protectively over their bomb. She gave a nod back to Juvia. Juvia released her breath and her eyes darkened, channeling her Phantom Lord self.

Bring it on.

The main entrance to the warehouse slammed open and three mages poured in. Juvia counted backwards in her mind, waiting. Three, two, one.

Columns of water blasted upwards from the ground like erupting geysers. A chorus of screams filled the air as two of the mages were caught up in the trap Juvia had set. They were slammed up into the ceiling before being encased in an orb of water. Water Lock. The two mages struggled to breathe inside, but failed to find air. Juvia knew they would fall unconscious soon. Two down. She had no time to feel sorry for the mages as the remaining one was running straight for her.

"Water Slicer!"

The arc of water blasted towards the mage knocking him backwards. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to render him unconscious.

There was another loud slam and Juvia whipped around to find the back entrance of the warehouse knocked open. She cursed to herself. She couldn't protect both entrances at once. "Wendy!"

"Got it!" Wendy shouted back. She quickly ran around the bomb, positioning herself between the object and the mages that were running in from the back entrance.

"Sky Dragon's Roar!"

The blast of wind sent the mages flying backwards, slamming into the walls of the warehouse. She was about to attack again when a high-pitched scream brought her to her knees. The windows of the warehouse shattered instantly, sending shards of glass falling to the floor.

Juvia had expected the man she was facing to run towards her again, but he stood still. The man had opened his mouth to scream and pain immediately pierced through Juvia's brain. She gripped her hands to her ears. A banshee?!

Everyone was held at a standstill. Juvia and Wendy were unable to move and the banshee couldn't either while it was still screaming. Juvia had to do something. She lifted her hands away from her ears. Sheer pain ripped through her eardrums, but she bit her lip and endured it. Using her hands, she generated a barrier of water in front of her, shaped like an arrowhead. She prayed that the water would refract enough of the sound waves to lessen the blow. It worked. Using that free moment, Juvia pulled one last attack.

"Water Nebula!"

The water helix charged around her barrier and straight for the banshee. Unable to move, the man took the hit directly, sending him flying into the walls. The screams stopped just as he slid to the ground, incapacitated.

Juvia fell to her knees, her hands grasping her head. A loud ring echoed inside her head, refusing to leave. It hurts. She couldn't hear a thing. A few minutes later, Wendy came running over to her.

The girl's mouth moved, but Juvia couldn't make out what she was saying. Concern was written all over her face. Wendy's hands moved to her ears and she felt a warm, soothing sensation wash over her. The ringing started to subside.

The pain soon disappeared.

Wendy sat back, breathing heavily. "Are you okay?"

Juvia could hear again. "Y-Yes, Juvia thinks so." She craned her neck around. "What about the other two?"

"I took care of them, don't worry," Wendy said with a tired smile.

"Great. Juvia hopes Erza is doing alright…"

Lucy had a feeling Gray didn't take a single breath while he watched Juvia's fight on the screen. Her own ears were still ringing from the sound that burst out into the stadium. She could only imagine what it would've been like inside the warehouse.

Relief was painted over the rest of their faces, but she knew it would be short-lived. The crowd, on the other hand, was only getting more excited by the minute.

"And yet another five members of Eisenwald incapacitated!" Franmalth announced over the speakers. "Not looking to good for the Oracion Seis representatives. Tehe!" The scoreboard changed yet again, bringing Eisenwald's points down to ten.

"They're okay," Mira sighed in relief. She had been gripping onto Natsu's arm the entire time, her nails digging into the poor fire mage's skin.

For now. Lucy thought. She had a feeling it wasn't over yet. The same couldn't be said for Eisenwald. Her eyes drifted back towards the screen. Death Head Caucus' Fukuro had just infiltrated the broken-down haunted house to the east where the rest of Eisenwald was hiding. It wasn't even a fight. It took only a few rocket launchers to decimate the remaining members.

Lucy couldn't even tell who was who in the sea of flesh after the dust settled. It was sickening, even by her standards.

"Oh," was all that left Mira's lips. Gajeel had pressed Levy into his chest just so she wouldn't see the bloody scene. The poor girl was sobbing into his shirt.

Lucy walked over and whispered into Levy's ear. "I know its tough, but we need to stay calm."

"Calm?!" Gray exclaimed.

Lucy glared at him and hissed. "We're starting to attract unwanted attention." The spectators around them were casting odd looks in their direction, confused by their behaviour. They weren't acting like a true dark guild should. They shouldn't be showing emotions like this. "Remember who we are."

Gray winced, but he nodded stiffly. Levy also pulled herself back from Gajeel, managing to compose herself. They knew she was right. They knew things would turn out much worse if they were outed as a registered guild.

But despite knowing all that, Lucy found herself trying to drag Natsu away from the railing. The man was turning green.

He shook off her hand. "No, I need to see this." His voice was barely a whisper and his breaths came out like shudders.

"No, you don't," Lucy insisted, but he didn't listen.

Mira then reminded them of something else important. "Where's Erza?"

All eyes shifted towards the lacrima vision, but no one could figure out where their red-haired friend was.

Erza found solace in the deafening silence that blanked the arena after the latest fight. The crowd seemed to have calmed down, watching the competition with earnest. The red-haired mage had no idea what was happening out there and she didn't need to know. All her focus was geared towards finding her next target.

Once leaving Juvia and Wendy, it didn't take her long to realize she was near the west end of the arena. Taking to the shadows and weaving in and out of buildings, Erza avoided the view of both the crowd and the cameras. She didn't need her location given away.

Right now, she found herself in a small apartment complex near the south. She had heard the commotion here and figured she would check out this end first. Her eyes narrowed in on the abandoned aquarium just across the street. She had seen a man exit out of the aquarium not too long ago. If what she supposed was right, then there would only be one member of Death's Head Caucus waiting for her when she moved inside.

Erza took a deep breath. Let's do this. She snuck through the back alleys and underneath the coverings of nearby buildings until she made her way into the aquarium. It was dark and quiet, with only the sound of dripping water and her own soft footsteps to accompany her. Grasping her sword in her hand, she walked past two exhibits, the glow from the lights inside the tanks casting an eerie shadow over everything else.

Out of the corner of her eye, Erza caught a camera following her. There goes my cover. No matter. That meant her hunch was right: someone was here.

She didn't notice the flash of pink passing by on the other side of one of the tanks.

Erza soon found herself on a long, metal walkway. Glass circled around her like a long, underwater tunnel. Had it been actually filled with fish and plants, Erza would have found it mesmerizing. Instead, the water was blood-stained and she swore she saw body parts floating in there. Disgust creeped its way up her spine, but Erza forced herself to focus.

She stopped when a figure appeared at the end of the walkway. A woman with long pink hair with a matching pink bow. She wore a loose, white kimono and an arrogant smile. Flower petals surrounded her like an aura. Her feet echoed against the metal floor as she walked towards her.

"I am called Ikaruga. Greetings. To challenge me on your own is quite…foolish."

Erza scoffed, pulling herself into a fighting stance. "Whether its one or a hundred, I'll take them on all the same."

"Your confident, I like that." Her eyes landed upon Erza's sword. "Ah, you also wield a sword. How refreshing." She unsheathed her katana. "Perhaps you will entertain me a little more than the others did." She gestured towards the glass around them, specifically to the human remains floating in the water.

Anger spiked in Erza. The level of disregard the woman had for the human life was despicable. She ran forward, sword in hand. "I will do more than that!" She paused in shock when she felt a small chink in her armour. A second later, her armour shattered.

"Oh? Don't tell me…you didn't see me move?" Ikaruga said with a raise brow.

That speed! Understanding the strength of her enemy, Erza requipped into her Heaven's Wheel Armour.

"Blumenblatt!"

Several dozen swords flew towards her opponent at breakneck speeds. But with a few swings of her katana, Ikaruga destroyed them all.

Erza took a step back, gritting her teeth. A split second later, Ikaruga was right in front of her. Erza barely had the time to lift her sword to block. She grunted from the impact of their blades. Pushing her back, Erza made a swing for Ikaruga's legs but the woman jumped, dodging the attack gracefully.

The woman landed a few feet away. Erza moved to follow, but pain suddenly shot through her arms. Her arm guards shattered, having been hit by one of Ikaruga's swings. Pushing back the pain, Erza attacked again, exchanging blow after blow with her opponent. She knew she couldn't afford to slip up here.

Her opponent was fighting not to win, but to kill.

She had to stay strong.

Juvia had mostly recovered in the past half an hour of tense peace. There was still a small ring in her ear, but it was manageable. Thankfully, their opponents remained obediently unconscious.

Juvia could tell that the stress was getting to Wendy. The small girl was huddled by her side, slightly shaking. Juvia could do nothing but whisper reassurances in her ear. This was worse than Juvia could ever imagine. Even in Phantom Lord, where they committed acts of questionable honour, she never experienced such chaos and destruction like this.

So this was what it felt like to be a dark guild.

The small whispers in the wind served as Juvia's only warning before the roof of their warehouse blew apart in a flaming explosion, revealing the night sky. Despite her shock, Juvia managed to push Wendy to the ground, shielding her from the falling debris above. She made a barrier of water around their bomb, hoping that would be enough to protect it.

She only had a few seconds before the next two rockets arrived. They whistled into the warehouse, but to Juvia's surprise, neither of them headed for her nor their bomb. Instead, the two rockets exploded near the front and the back entrances of the warehouse.

Exactly where they left Eisenwald's unconscious members.

"O-Oh! Fukuro has removed the final five Eisenwald members from the match, even after incapacitation. The bloodlust in the air is simply…delicious!"

Wendy screamed in horror and Juvia turned to the sky. A man with an owl's head hovered over the warehouse on a jet pack.

Juvia shouted at him in pure anger. "WHY?!" Those people were already incapacitated. There was no more need to attack them. To kill them. That was pure evil.

"Weak members deserve to be removed from the game," the man said. "THAT is my code of justice. Hooo. My name is Fukuro. As the warrior of justice, I am honoured to take you two out of the game as well."

"Juvia will not let you hurt any of her guildmates! Water Slicer!" The arc of water hurled towards the owl man, but he managed to dodge. He countered with a missile from his pack, flying straight towards her.

Juvia stood her ground, watching as the missile through straight through her water body, colliding into the wall behind her with a loud explosion. "Juvia's body is made of water. Physical attacks like yours is useless."

"Hoo, hooo," Fukuro replied. "What an amazing ability. And how…unfortunate." He launched another missile down from the sky.

"Juvia already said, that attack won't work on Juvia!"

But the missile didn't head towards Juvia. No, instead, it flew straight for Wendy.

Juvia turned around and shouted her name.

Wendy's cries pierced the air. Smoke and fire filled the warehouse, blinding the water woman, rendering her unable to locate her teammate. Guilt and horror laced her soul until she heard the smallest of voices coming out from within the smoke.

"I-I'm fine."

The smoke cleared in a large gust of wind, revealing the small dragon slayer. Her feet had dug into the ground and her arms were crossed in front of her. Somehow, she had survived the blow.

"Don't worry about me Juvia!" Wendy cried out. "I-I reinforced my defense with magic." The girl straightened up, glaring daggers at the man in the sky. "I-I want to help! I won't let you hurt Juvia either." The girl swallowed a huge amount of air in her lungs.

"Sky Dragon's Roar!"

The burst of air travelled towards the flying man. Fukuro dodged the attack, but Juvia was faster.

"Water Slicer!"

Fukuro, unable to dodge the subsequent blade of water, was hit directly. Losing control of his jetpack, he fell to the ground in a loud crash. Juvia quickly ran towards the man, prepared to deliver a finishing blow, when another loud screech filled the air. Still injured from the banshee, Juvia held her head in pain and screamed.

That noise sounded strangely like a screeching guitar.

Juvia glanced all around her, but couldn't notice where the sound was coming from.

But up in the stands, it had been all but obvious.

"Cheater!" Natsu shouted, glaring at the one of the men standing in Death Head Caucus' booth. The man had long, dark hair and punk-rock makeup on. He carried an electric guitar on his person. It was obvious the sound came from him. "That's against the rules."

Both the man and the crowd laughed around him.

"What rules?" the man replied with a dark smile. He raised his hand and strummed the strings again. The sound waves aimed straight for the abandoned warehouse below.

Juvia couldn't take it anymore. J-Juvia's ears...it hurts so much! It hurts! She was in so much pain. Tears collected in her eyes, but she didn't dare shed them. She couldn't show weakness now. Not when she had someone to protect.

But Juvia was incapable of doing anything. She couldn't even move her limbs.

Fukuro returned to his feet. He faced her. "It's time for you to face justice." He leapt towards her.

Somewhere behind her Juvia thought she heard the words, "Enchant: Re-Raise!" The screeching dulled, but even then Juvia wasn't fast enough to dodge. But just before the man reached her, a flash of blue moved in front of Juvia.

"Sky Dragon's Claw!" Wendy's kick hit its mark, slamming the owl straight into the ground.

"W-Wendy…"

"I'll protect you Juvia!" Wendy shouted. She enchanted Arms and Vernier onto herself, increasing her strength.

Exhausted rolled off Erza in waves. Wounds were littered across her body and she could smell her own blood in the air. No matter what armour, Ikaruga managed to destroy them all with the strange sword she held. None of Erza's attacks were making its way through. She simply didn't have enough power.

She tried another one of her armours: Purgatory Armour. It was one of her strongest. It was her last hope.

"Still haven't given up?" Ikaruga laughed.

"Never."

The pair leapt towards each other and collided in an explosive blast. The glass walls around them trembled from the pressure, threatening to break. Swing after swing, the two swordswomen traded blows, neither of them giving way.

Ikaruga made a wide sweep for Erza's side, but the redhead quickly blocked the blow before countering with a swing for her legs. Ikaruga dodged quickly, leaping over the blade and flipping backwards. In the midst of her dodge, the woman swung upwards, making a clean strike straight into the glass above.

Both women immediately leapt backwards as the glass was cut open. Water crashed down like a bloody waterfall, flesh and all. The sickening scent of copper and iron saturated the air.

Her vision having been blocked by the blood, Erza had no time to dodge the swing as Ikaruga burst out through the waterfall like a red witch. Her armour shattered upon contact and Erza was ill-prepared for the subsequent attack. Her scream filled the air as Ikaruga's katana stabbed her clean through her abdomen. Pain overwhelmed her senses, leaving Erza defenseless as the woman ripped the blade from her body and kicked her away.

Erza flew across the walkway, colliding with the ground in a painful roll. She choked on the iron-like taste of her own blood as it rose up her throat. She looked across the walkway and let out a choked laugh as she saw the wound on Ikaruga's shoulder.

At least I managed some damage.

Erza's fate had been sealed the moment she showed the smallest hint of hesitancy. That wasn't something her enemy would have shown her.

The rest of the water drained away into the walkway and area below and the night sky was revealed overhead. Erza struggled to remain conscious as she watched Ikaruga approach. The only sound she could hear was the women's shoes against the metal walkway. Clang. Clang. Clang.

Erza reached for her sword, which was lying just inches away from her fingers, but it soon was kicked away by the woman.

Is this the end?

The tip of Ikaruga's katana pressed against her throat. The woman's other hand was cradling her injured shoulder. "I'll have to admit, you were much more entertaining than the others. You've even managed to inure me. I'm…impressed." Erza winced as the blade drew blood from her neck.

"Unfortunately," Ikaruga smiled. "This is the end for you."

The woman lifted her sword.

It wasn't enough. Fukuro proved much too hardy for the young dragon slayer. Her hits were unable to provide enough damage to his body. She tried again and again. Punch, kick, roar. In the end, Wendy was left with barely enough energy to stand, panting from exhaustion.

She collapsed to her knees.

"I do hope that is all," Fukuro said. Two missiles were once again aimed towards them.

Fear dominated Juvia's senses. Fear for her own life and the life of her teammate.

She was going to die.

No. She had to do something. Anything! There has to be a way out of this.

Her eyes snapped wide open. The bomb!

If the team's bomb is detonated, the team can no longer participate and remaining participants will be removed from the game

Juvia had to detonate the bomb. Using the last of her strength, she pulled herself up, turning away from the enemy and running straight for the explosive. She wasn't sure if she had enough power left to destroy it, so she had to rely on something else. It was dangerous and reckless, especially with Wendy still here, but she had no other choice. She had to take the risk.

Fukuro seemed to sense what she was thinking. "I refuse to let you leave this game!" The missiles fired, both aiming for Juvia.

The moment Juvia heard the whistle of the rockets behind her, she smiled. "You forgot Juvia's most important property." She turned her body to water and watched as the rockets passed straight through her and towards the bomb. In the last few seconds, Juvia removed the water barrier over the explosive, returned her body to its flesh form and dived towards Wendy, who was lying only ten feet away.

Juvia didn't dare change her body back to water. No, she had to protect Wendy.

Wendy's face contorted into horror and at the last second, she shouted. "Enchant: Armor!"

Juvia didn't know if that would be enough to protect her, but she didn't care. Juvia had done many bad things during her time in Phantom Lord. It was time for her to repay them all back.

In her last moment, Juvia thought she had heard Gray-sama's voice the chaos.

"JUVIA!"

The last thing Erza saw before her eyes closed was the glint of the blade in the moonlight.

The explosion rocked the entire coliseum to its core, filling the arena with terrifying light.

One ear-piercing scream rose above the noise, overshadowing the sound of steel clashing against metal.

"JUVIA!"

Natsu and Gajeel had to hold Gray back as he attempted to jump over the railing to Juvia's aid. The rest of them stood in complete disbelief and horror.

The cloud of dust and debris over the warehouse dispersed and to the team's shock, neither Juvia nor Wendy was there.

"No way…"

"It can't be…"

"They're gone," Natsu whispered. His trembling hands clenched into tight fists before he slammed them into the railing. "Damn it!"

Lucy, just as shaken as the rest of the team, turned towards the aquarium. To her utter surprise, Erza was also missing. Huh?

The speakers screeched as the voice returned. "Spriggan's bomb has been detonated! The team is now disqualified…"

"Who the hell cares about that anymore!?" Natsu bellowed.

"…and the remaining team members will be returned to their stand!"

"Returned?" Levy said, with a hint of hope.

Lucy felt a tingle of magic before she heard the thud behind her. Spinning around, she gasped when she saw the three bodies lying there.

"Erza, Wendy, Juvia!"

Alarmed, she ran over to the three women. A quick check reaffirmed her hopes. "They're still alive!" Erza and Juvia were both unconscious, one still spilling blood from her abdomen and the other covered in intense burn wounds. Wendy, to her relief, was still conscious, albeit disoriented. Despite that, she was the first to respond. Crawling over to Juvia, she immediately proceeded to heal the water mage of her life-threatening wounds.

Down in the aquarium below, Ikaruga scoffed, a look of annoyance apparent on her face. She pulled her katana out from metal walkway before glancing up to the Spriggan stands. Disappointed, she left the aquarium, heading towards her final stop.

Everyone else in the Spriggan stands moved fast. Gray materialized on the other side of Juvia, face contorted in worry and panic. He wanted to help, but Wendy needed space to work. Mira quickly pushed her way over to Erza with the first aid kit. Her and Levy worked as fast as they could to patch up the gaping wound in Erza's stomach.

The rest of them watched over in worry. The crowd around them in the stands did nothing but laugh and jeer at how weak they were. Lucy had to hold Natsu back from attacking any of the bystanders. It would do them no good to start a fight now. They needed to tend to the others. She dragged him away from the mess and back towards the railing.

"The game isn't over," Lucy reminded him.

"What does it matter anymore," Natsu said through gritted teeth. His hands were committed to a death grip on the railing.

Laxus came over to join them, pain written just as clear on his face. His voice was heavy with emotion. "We will watch for our comrades who fought hard for our guild. If we are to have a chance to survive the other events, we need to get a better understanding of our enemies."

Enemies, not opponents. Lucy thought. Right. The three of them continued to watch. It was clear that Ikaruga and Fukuro planned to meet up at their last target. The one man from the one guild that had been left out of all the commotion.

"Oh! It seems like the two members of Death Head's Caucus are now converging on the final guild left!"

Doriate from Succubus Eye.

The two members from Death Head's Caucus reunited in front of the abandoned hospital on the north side of the arena. Together they entered the building. Doriate, not having moved from his spot since the beginning of the game, waited for them on the top floor. Everyone had a perfect view of the floor, seeing as Doriate blew it open at the start of the match. He sat with his back against the bomb, eyes closed.

They opened the moment the pair entered the floor.

"Can't say I'm surprised," Doriate said with a smirk. "Though, you do seem a little more…roughed up than I expected."

"Hooo. We ran into a little trouble on the way here, that's all," Fukuro responded. "It wasn't anything justice couldn't handle."

Ikaruga stepped up. "Well, now that the flies were taken care of. Let's get this over with, shall we?"

"Just like prior year, the final showdown in this year's first event features Ikaruga and Doriate!"

Doriate smirked. "Well, we all know what the outcome was last year." He laughed when he saw Ikaruga's twisted expression. "Unfortunately," he said as he slowly moved to his feet. "This wasn't quite the stage I wanted. So, I guess we'll just have to wait."

"Don't you dare-!"

Doriate's fist slammed into his own bomb.

Lucy watched in shock as a second explosion erupted from the arena floor. Fire blazed upwards from the hospital roof and the two Death Head's were blown backwards. The crowd went silent for once, stunned from the outcome of this event.

When the flames died down, Doriate was still standing perfectly unharmed on the hospital roof.

"What the-" Laxus said. "Is that monster even human?"

Doriate dematerialized off the rooftop a few moments later. Like what happened with Erza, Wendy and Juvia, he reappeared in Succubus Eye's booth. His other two teammates didn't seem affected by his decision to withdraw.

"What did he do that for?" Natsu asked, bewildered. His eyes darted between the rooftop and the competitor's stand.

"He's playing the game," Lucy said quietly. "Two against one is too big of a risk for him. Especially this early in the tournament." That man was smart.

"O-Oh! How…disappointing. I guess that means the end of the first tournament!" Despite the uneventful end of the event, the crowd was still hooting and cheering, high off the bloodshed. "The winner of the first round and awarded with two extra points is: Death's Head Caucus!" The crowd went wild.

The scoreboard reanimated above the stadium, adjusted for the outcome of the first match.

STANDINGS

1st Place: Spriggan Points: 8

2nd Place: Death's Head Caucus Points: 7

3rd Place: Eisenwald Points: 5

4th Place: Succubus Eye Points: 3

"Eight," Natsu said, breathless.

Eight. Two less than ten, with which they had started. Lucy glanced behind her towards Juvia and Erza. A strange part of her heart gripped and twisted as she watched them in pain. She felt angry and pissed off at what happened to them.

She couldn't believe it, but for once, she found herself caring a lot more about the people around her than she should. It was unsettling.

That feeling only grew when she glanced up at the scoreboard again.

"We're the ones with the highest points," Lucy noted.

"That means they'll be gunning for us next," Laxus added. "We need to be prepared."

She nodded. It was only day one and Lucy could tell their team morale had been devastated. The event was a deathly wake-up call to those who didn't get the message from the preliminaries the night before. No one was going to play fair here. No one was going to show any mercy. If they wanted to get out of this alive, they needed to give it everything they got, and then some.

"Tehe, the first event is now over! Contestants will be returned to their hotels. Guests feel free to enjoy the festival in the tournament grounds! Don't forget, Oracion Seis will be opening up their tent tonight!"

Just before their team was transported back to the hotel, Lucy turned to Laxus.

"It's clear now isn't it."

"...Yeah."

"Our goal isn't to win anymore. Our goal is to survive."

A/N: Man that was tougher to write than I thought. Combat scenes completely exhaust me. I didn't intend to take it this far, but the scenes with Juvia and Erza seemed to write themselves. I also didn't intend to make it so gory and imagining the aquarium scenes kinda grossed me out even as the writer, sorry about that.

The first event was inspired by Call of Duty's online multiplayer option: Search and Destroy, though with magic in replace of guns. I've really appreciated the suggestions some of you have given me and I'm looking to incorporate them into the second event.

Let me know what you thought!

Until the next chapter!