"Hmm…" Irene looked down as Gajeel was fighting against Bloodman.
"Irene." She heard a voice behind her.
"Zeref? What are you doing here?" she asked, looking behind herself and finding her emperor standing there.
"What were you planning to do about Acnologia?"
"Well, clearly I won't be able to take him on without sacrificing something. He is still heading this way, right?"
"No, not anymore. For some reason, he's turned in a different direction. He seems to have gone back to his cave. I suppose he's still biding his time."
"I see. Then, nevermind, I suppose." She looked back down at the fight. "Oh! It looks like he entered Dragon Force." Zeref walked forward and watched with her.
"That's Gajeel…"
"Yes."
"I see. Well, I'll be off now. I have other business to attend to. Try not to do anything too reckless."
"I know." she said before he created a black portal and left.
X
"..." Brandish and her group were silent.
"An exceed...a mage who is a former member of the Magic Council… And those two...What exactly are you playing at Brandish?" August asked.
"I've come to negotiate with you."
"Has Jacob been killed?"
"He was defeated at the hands of these two. He isn't dead. He's been taken prisoner. What of God Serena? He should have been with you."
"He's here with me." the old man responded, placing a hand on his heart.
"Brandish's magic power is absurdly high, but...August's…" Lucy whispered.
"Yeah, it's a bit more…" Natsu agreed.
'Have Natsu and Lucy's senses gone dull or something?! This guy is in a completely different dimension!' Mest thought.
"Now then, do you mind clarifying exactly what you mean by 'negotiate'?"
"I would like you to halt your advance." Brandish said calmly.
"Hrm...From what I can gather, it doesn't appear you've been tortured…Am I to interpret this as betrayal?"
"That couldn't be farther than the truth. I am and always will be a loyal citizen of Alvarez, through and through. It's just...I cannot find any meaning in this war." Brandish answered quickly.
"Those very words are in direct betrayal of His Majesty's will. Need I remind you, we Spriggan 12 have dedicated our minds, bodies, and souls to his majesty. If, in spite of that, you still cannot comprehend why you must fight for his cause...then you are nothing more than an enemy who must be eliminated."
Everyone's facial expression turned grim.
X
"GAJEEL!" Levy screamed.
"What the hell is this?! My body is getting sucked in!" he yelled, getting pulled down to hell with Bloodman.
"The door to the underworld...Thou shalt never return...Never...Again…" the reaper gasped out his final words.
"GUARRRGGHHH!" Gajeel shouted.
"Gajeel!" Levy started running towards him.
"STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!" he screamed at her. "It's too late for me...my body...has already...become nothing but...a mass of Magic Barrier Particles…If you touch me...then you'll also become…"
"I don't care about any of that!"
"LEVY!"
"You're coming back with me, Gajeel! No matter what!" She started towards him again, before he held his hand out and with the last of his strength, shackled her to a boulder.
"What do you think you're doing, Gajeel?!"
"You left me with no other choice…"
"I'll have you know, I'm not the damsel in distress I was when you first met me!" She created Solid Script: Sword on her feet and swung upwards, cutting her out of the chains.
"I'm begging you to stop!" Gajeel yelled. Before Levy could move another muscle, Lily appeared behind her and held her back.
"UNHAND ME LILY!" Levy cried out.
"I must refuse your request...Lest you get dragged in too." he said weakly.
"I DON'T CARE! LET ME GO! AT THIS RATE, GAJEEL WILL BE…!"
"..."
"Levy…" Gajeel said in a normal voice. "Back then...I really was...nothing but a degenerate scumbag...But then I met you...and you were able to...bring out all the best parts of me...what little there was of it anyway...You taught me what it means to love...And for that, I will be eternally grateful." Levy started to cry.
"Ga...Jeel…" She cried.
"With you by my side, for the first time...I was able to discover and think about things that had never occurred to me before...The future...A family...Happiness...I can't help but laugh...who would've thought that the Great, Badass, Gajeel of Old...Would actually consider acting like a respectable, competent adult...I really did...want to walk with you...side by side...forever...After everything I've faced...having a future with you snatched away from me...is definitely the most terrifying thing I've ever had to endure…" he said, crying.
"Gajeel…!" Levy sobbed.
"I entrust my future to you-"
"NO! YOU CAN'T DO THAT TO ME...GAJEEL!" she screamed.
"You've gotta live to the fullest now...For your sake and mine…"
"I WON'T LET YOU GO! I WON'T LET YOU LEAVE ME!"
"Lily...You be sure and get Levy back to the guild safe and sound...swear it...on your life…"
"...I SWEAR IT!" And with that, the portal closed completely, and Gajeel disappeared.
"NOOOOOOOOOO!" Levy shrieked. "GAJEEEEEEEEL!"
X
"And now...only 6 remain...until all 'Dragons' are completely annihilated…" Acnologia muttered.
"Oho…? So that's your true objective, is it?" Irene asked, hovering over him.
"Get out of my sight...I've got no business with you. Your's is a terrifying, intense strength indeed…"
"You intend to block my path...knowing full well who I am?"
"But of course...Oh Great Acnologia." she replied almost mockingly.
"I wonder...will you be able to provide me with even a moment's entertainment?" he asked, radiating a dark aura.
"When it comes to men...I aim to please…" she replied.
X
"Please, August...Listen to me. What His Majesty is attempting to achieve is absolute genocide, and nothing less. The Dragon King Festival...Ragnarok...Call it whatever you'd like, but in the end, it amounts to nothing but a one-sided massacre. This war is nothing but murder. It's not a clash of noble ideals between our two countries...surely you can tell that much?"
"..."
"I know that among the twelve, none are wiser than you. That is why you must realize that at the end of this fight, there will be no future. All that awaits us...is an empty abyss…"
"Where we are headed at the conclusion of this battle is to be decided by His Maj-"
"Think for yourself!"
"M...Maybe you shouldn't be coming on so strongly...Just a thought…" Lucy said nervously.
"That is what I have decided to do...I have reached the conclusion that these people are not evil...Far from it."
"Th...Thanks…" Lucy muttered. August looked at Natsu.
'This Child...It's him…'
"Natsu! Stop burning a hole through his body!" Lucy protested. "Please?"
"August, I beg of you...At least try talking to them."
"Hmph...Well, I suppose...I would sooner listen to what they have to say than make a fool out of you, Brandish."
"You're the best, Grandpa~!" she said, excitedly.
"I have no recollection of you being my granddaughter."
"But to me, you've always been my grandpa~! Grand...Pa…"
"Hm?" Brandish quickly took out a knife that she hid in her coat and impaled August through his chest.
"KYAHHHH!" Lucy screamed.
"What the fu-?!" Natsu yelled.
"Aha...The one I must kill...stands before me now…Grand…" Brandish muttered.
"MEST! WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU DONE?!" Natsu yelled at him.
"I altered her memories of course. I implanted the sentiment of 'I must kill August, no matter what the cost' within her mind."
"YOU SON OF A-!"
"I DID IT TO PROTECT THE GUILD!"
"Brandish…" Lucy muttered.
"It's all...crystal clear to me now Brandish…" August said. "This...This is their way of resolving things!" August yelled, his hair spiking up, his skin turning darker, and white line marks going down his face.
X
"Hm? Mm…Those idiots." Layla said, looking up from the book she was reading. She, Yury, and Zeref were at the palace in Vistarion.
"Another one who overstepped their boundaries?" Zeref asked.
"Yes. It seems that Bloodman took Gajeel with him down into the underworld."
"That fool. But it's not as if it's the end." Yury responded.
"No." Zeref responded. "If the other four fail, then I'll just leave the task of killing Acnologia to you two."
"You overestimate me." Yury said humbly. "I may be as strong as Acnologia, but I don't know for sure if I could beat him. It would be hard. You saw that he took my clone down in one strike."
"And need I remind you that that same clone was able to defeat four of the Ten Wizard Saints, three of which were Gods of Ishgar? The real you is far stronger." Layla reassured. She looked up. "And it seems like Irene is taking on Acnologia."
"What?!" Zeref said suddenly. "Layla, go help her." he said quickly.
"Yeah, yeah. Here, Yury, hold the book." She put END's book down on the table and slid it over to him.
"I'll be right back." Layla created a black portal and walked through it, heading towards Irene.
End.