The Ouroboros Potioneer - Book 2: Chapter 22: Curtain Call (Patreon)

AN: 1 - Shoutout to my first Tier 4 member, Silver! And a shoutout to my first annual member, who has not responded to my message so shall be referred to as He-Who-Lurks. You guys are awesome!

2 - I highly advise listening to music with this chapter, as it works best with Orchestral or EDM songs. I tried hard to find something that I could recommend, but I'm not confident in my choices, instead, feel free to put on one you like, or randomize it and let fate choose. I'd love to hear what worked for you.

3 - This chapter is something I've been building to for a while, and I poured all I had into making it a reality. I genuinely hope you enjoy the show.

Chapter #4 of October's quota for Tier 2.

Beta'd by Plum - thanks for all the help bro.

.

Book 2: My Life With An S&M Maid Teacher

Chapter 22: Curtain Call

“If he is the one you saved.”

Moonlight reflected off sapphire-blue eyes, an explosion of wind and mana blowing pink hair back in the night air.

Virgo’s gaze locked onto the young mages.

The martial artist, twirling with steps as light as rain and palm thrusts as heavy as ballista bolts. Countless strikes meeting hardened earth in a test as old as time as man fought nature with his fists.

The mechanic, ingeniously turning mana into machine as she skated across the air on boosted propulsion, her metal arms shifting into water jets that fought to quench an elder fire spirit.

The humbled mage, lightning arcing off his form in waves like the fiercest of storms as he faced the incarnation of ice, reined in to avoid wide-scale damage and concentrated on his foe.

And at the center, moving with more trust in his affinity than mind, a hunter danced with death as he spun between sound-shattering whip strikes enchanted with fire, ice, and earth.

Pride swelled in her chest as she saw not only her master, but those he surrounded himself with, fluttering in the waves of fate, their destinies growing with each hard-earned step.

Her eyes slowly closed, senses stretching along pulses that spread faster than her physical senses could ever touch.

Every pulse of the earth rang in her soul, her senses peeled to a razor's edge as Virgo prepared to act at the slightest hiccup.

One pulse.

She felt the surrounding forces gathering en masse, the shadows of the king of these lands containing and preparing to strike when the timer closed.

Two pulses.

She felt the creaking five-story building, once reinforced beyond necessity, now teetering on collapse, hundreds of fallen mages within its walls from the average Grain, hardened Malt, and veteran Cask.

Three pulses.

She felt the heartbeats of each combatant, blazing in tune to their souls and magic. Unfettered wildness. Shining beauty. Stormy passion. Nature embodied. And…

Four pulses.

Her eyes slowly opened, saddened gaze locking on the madly laughing woman burning bright. A collapsing star, once dormant, now hollowing itself out in its final journey.

“He’s no mortal.”

Her master. Her student. Her lover.

Dante drew closer with every moment, lines opening and healing on his skin in inhumane torture, yet his calm green eyes remained undaunted.

Facing a foe he could consider a senior.

One who had walked a possible path to fruition and decline.

One who overcame hardship and fell to luxury and pride.

One who could have shined ever more.

“You know the risks.”

Her fists clenched silently as Leo's words continued to reverberate.

‘Witness it, Student.’ Virgo willed her thoughts through her mind so as not to disrupt his focus. 'Witness her final act.'

Karen laughed wildly, her skin pale as snow, as she snapped her weapon with a fervor few had seen in her for years.

'Witness the cost of falling to burden, Dante.' Virgo refused to flinch at every line that drew his blood, even as each strike felt shared across her skin. 'Witness why your journey holds no end.'

Dante lunged, sparks igniting along his knife as he deflected, rearing up like a serpent as he snapped out, seeking her flesh.

'Witness what the weight of sacrifice may cost you, My Love.' Virgo's heart pounded in tune with the pulse of the earth as blood that wasn't her master's flew, a faint curve of her lips at the sight. 'Witness what I shall never allow you to become.'

Risks were for those who held no faith.

And no other held her faith more than the one who held her heart.

An explosion of mana erupted from the S-Class mage, rising high enough to ignite the sky and stir up heavy winds as healthy green hair began to grey.

A roared command left Karen Lilica's lips as each of her loyal golems stomped an elemental storm as one to aid their master.

Searing fire. Freezing ice. Heavy stone.

The roof exploded as magic lit up the night sky like fireworks, raising a resounding cheer across the city for those who thought it a festival.

Yet Blackvein’s stronghold finally refused to accept the abuse; its foundation cracked and structural points caved in, forcing the fighters to scatter and survive as they fell within.

‘Have no fear, young ones.’ Virgo took a breath and bent the earth to her will, key pillars rising up on all sides of the building to stabilize it from collapsing in on itself.

A massive feat, enough to leave those watching gaping in awe.

The sixth Zodiac dropped to a knee, the weight of her act draining her dwindling energy as she fought to support their battleground.

‘Fight courageously.’ A grin stretched across her lips as she felt each of their souls pulse within.

'Grow to become the pillars of a new age to come.' She grunted and straightened her spine, staring up at the full moon seemingly enveloping her form.

Her eyes flashed dangerously with Leo’s warning.

‘Rise and support my love…’ Her eyelids slowly closed. ‘When I cannot.’

The moonlight dimmed as dark clouds spread with an oncoming storm.

000

“Did anyone get the number of the train that hit me?” Bacchus’s feet twitched in the air as he was buried in a pile of rubble.

“Who collapses a building?” A metal ball shifted, bleeding back into Jenny’s form. “That’s cheating.”

Laxus shiftily glanced away, arm raised above Jenny’s body as he flung aside another falling boulder. He was pretty sure if he said anything, he’d jinx himself from the karmic weight of his guild’s repair bills.

Jenny coughed as she recovered and noticed his gesture, her eyes curving into slits. “I can protect myself just fine.”

“Have a fucking medal.” Laxus scoffed and flung out his cloak to dust it off. “I do what I want.”

Jenny stared for a moment before her lips curled into a small smile, and she laid a hand against his arm as she stood straight. “Thank you.”

Laxus glanced at her eyes and quickly looked away. “Don’t mention it.”

Jenny giggled, a light air spreading between them.

“Ey, not to be a cockblock or nothing.” Bacchus’s voice made them blink and turn to the pile of rubble where an eye was poking through a crack. “But I’ve got a rebar between my gonads and really don’t wanna break out that way. Lend a hand?”

Laxus and Jenny deadpanned, looked at each other, nodded, and pointed their mana-charged palms at the pile.

"Hey now." Bacchus gulped right before lightning, and an air cannon freed him, a split-second reaction saving his future generations from a timely demise as he did a one-handed handstand. “Ya dicks! I’ll pour Blackvein ale in your drinks!”

The two smirked and flipped him off in unison.

“I can smell it.” Laxus grinned arrogantly.

“I drink for pleasure.” Jenny flipped her hair behind her ear.

"Heathens." Bacchus looked stricken before he did a little hop and flipped them both off in return.

“Stop messing around.” Dante landed between them; a flask nearly upended on his lips as steam rose off rapidly closing wounds. “She’s rallying.”

“Dante…” Jenny looked at his flask in concern. “How much have you had to drink?”

“As much as I need to.” Dante stoppered the flask, noting it had only about three servings left. "She is skilled with a whip."

“I’ll take her.” Laxus sparked angrily, frowning at how much blood drenched Dante’s clothes. “I’ve barely had a chance to flex my mana.”

“Not when I’m the only one resistant to your element.” Dante denied, meeting his eyes with easy understanding. “You haven’t mastered control in a month.”

A vein pulsed on Laxus’s forehead, but Dante’s calm gaze stopped his instinctive response.

Jenny gently rested a hand on Laxus’s arm, the blond rolling his gaze to her.

“I could use your lightning.” She smiled at him, feeling his muscles loosen beneath her touch. “I have the tools but not the reserves to take down the fire golem.”

“As much as it grates me.” Bacchus ran a hand through his loose hair, expertly tying it back up into a bun. “I’m running low on juice as well. I can wail on the pile of stones all day, but if ya want a quick response, I’ll need a spark.”

Dante raised a brow at the guy in silent question.

“Heh, I got tricks now, bro.” Bacchus grinned sharply, canine teeth pronounced. “The old man made sure of that.”

“Good.” Dante nodded at the guy’s confidence, his senses already feeling the mana within the air stir as the building shook from the steps of approaching golems. “I can only distract her for so long. Jenny, anything on where she’s pulling all this mana from?”

“No, I’ve never seen her fight with anything more than Leo and Aries.” Jenny shook her head with a complicated expression of mixed sadness, anger, and frustration. “She’s more desperate than I’ve ever seen her, and I can’t understand how she got to this point.”

"She's snapped from the pressure." Laxus shrugged carelessly. "It's rare, but it happens. Mages who think themselves untouchable begin to lose everything."

“This coming from you?” Bacchus hiccupped as he was emptying his gourd of the last drop, spinning a finger at the side of his head. “Woman’s lost her marbles. I say punch her.”

"You can't just-." Jenny started, but Dante held up a hand to stop her.

“The King’s Agents gave us sixty minutes for this operation. We’re down to nine.” He gave them all a serious expression. “If we’re still here when they rush in, they can’t pretend we weren’t here. We need to finish this now.”

Laxus and Bacchus both grimaced at the idea of dealing with legal shit. Only Jenny bit her lip and tried to speak up.

"Dante, I know this is selfish, but can we-." A wave of heat cut Jenny off.

An exploding fireball split the group, expanding and searing a hole through concrete and metal to show the floor beneath.

“Out of time!” Laxus flashed upwards, still holding Jenny’s arm as he funneled lightning into her. “Focus.”

Jenny blinked back tears and nodded, her skin cracking as she shifted into her combat form, her arms turning into water-jet cannons. "Throw me."

Laxus grunted, spinning as he flowed lightning around the mechanical woman and tossed her like a javelin toward the fire golem, his own eyes landing on the ice golem rushing forward to skewer Jenny.

‘Don’t get cocky.’ Laxus’s eyes glowed with power, lightning crackling as he flashed forward with his arm pulled back, throwing his full weight behind a fist connecting with the ice spirit. “YOU FUCKING SMALL FRY!”

A dust cloud exploded.

Meanwhile, Dante landed on the other side of the floor, having dragged Bacchus backward to avoid the searing heat.

“Ow! Fuck! That stings.” Bacchus rolled on the ground at the burns that covered his back. “Bullshit surprise attack!”

“How much have you had to drink?” Dante unhooked a vial and poured a burn heal over his skin. “Your senses are fucked up.”

“How much have you?” Bacchus growled as he picked himself up, shivering at the sensation of his skin rippling back to a healthy sheen. “I know that healing shit ain’t a low ABV. Also, how the fuck are ya not burned?”  

“Mana Armor, bitch.” Dante answered simply, trusting his senses more than his eyes, ignoring the intoxication comment as he thumped the guy’s shoulder armor to get him to focus. “We’ve got company.”

The floor shook as stone legs approached, a pile of shifting stones locked onto them with an S-Class mage riding its shoulders.

“You’re still alive.” Karen hummed, her face twisted with sadistic madness. “Good, I’ll only be satisfied when I crush you myself.”

“You say that.” Dante tapped Bacchus’s shoulder again, got a silent nod from the guy, and jumped away to put some distance between them. "But you're not looking so good there, Karen."

The woman was sickly pale, her earlier green hair greying from the tips toward the top of her head in streaks, eyes bloodshot and manic.

But more than that, Dante focused on her arm, where a last-second reaction from the woman managed to prevent Dante's knife from slipping between her ribs.

Her arm was bandaged tightly, the white cover already turning red as it fought to stop her blood flow.

“Lucky bite.” Karen scoffed arrogantly, kicking off her golem’s shoulder as she met him in their new battleground. Her voice turned condescending. “Or will you try to run and wait till I’m out of blood too?”

Dante narrowed his eyes and dropped into a crouch. "If you knew, why chase me?"

"Why?" Karen tilted her head, her sudden smile as tragic as it was mad. "You think I can't tell Leo betrayed me?" A soft laugh, little more than a dry bark, left her lips. "In the end, I couldn't trust anyone."

“It doesn’t have to be the end." Dante held his bloody knife at the ready; the metal cracked and chipped despite buying it not long ago. "You can live a long, happy life on a farm or something."

“A farm?” Karen’s face twitched incredulously before she burst out laughing. “Me? Karen Lilica. Farming?”

"A name means little." Dante met her eyes neutrally, without judgment. "Only you may walk your path."

“Heh.” Karen shook in a mix of rage and hilarity, grey hair shadowing her face as her whip’s length fell to the ground, her grip tightening on the handle. “Compassion doesn’t suit you, snake.”

“You keep calling me that.” Glowing green lines brightened along his skin as Dante burned with what he still had. “Why?”

“I never failed to read the nature of my prey before.” Karen whispered, half speaking to him and half to something beyond her line of sight, before her vision cleared. Muscles flexed along her arm as she reared back. "Let's finish this show."

The whip lit up with flames as she swung, the air screaming as it was ignited.

Dante’s body hit the deck just as the flaming whip cut through the room, leaving a line of scorch marks in its wake.

‘And I thought the whip alone was bad.’ Dante lunged forward, emptying his mind to let his instincts guide him just as she wound back for another strike, this time covering the whip in freezing ice. ‘Hurry up, guys.’

000

‘Karen, you hardheaded bitch.’ Jenny’s arms whirred as she funneled power into her hydro jets, drenching the screeching fire golem and sending up bursts of steam as the spirit tried to race after her. ‘Stop being so stubborn and stop fighting!’

Jenny grew up in Blue Pegasus and saw the guild change with her own eyes as they gained fame and fortune.

Once upon a time, the guild was small.

Small but lively.

Barely a dozen members gathered personally by Bob, their hearts warm and the hall filled with laughter as they declared their dreams upon a small wooden stage.

And at the center of it all was Karen, the proud Ace of their guild, a shining example for her and the others to follow.

'What drove you to this point?' Thrusters rapidly changed direction as Jenny twirled, her engines expelling nearly as much steam as followed her, while she restrained the fire golem from unleashing its elemental hell on the building. ‘What corrupted you to this extent?’

The fire golem shrieked, its temperature skyrocketing as it blew away the steam, curved obsidian claws coming together to form another ball of condensed fire magic, its heat enough to melt the surrounding debris by proximity alone.

Jenny crossed her arms, the heat searing her through the gaps in her machine parts, a scream leaving her lungs as parts of her skin turned an angry red, blisters forming along her leg.

‘Karen.’

Her teeth locked, the pain pushed away as a dozen memories of her first steps as a mage, shielded under the notoriously bright, shining woman's umbrella, flashed through her mind.

Showing her the value of her magic.

Shadowing her on her first job.

A kind hand on her shoulder when the world's harsh words grew too much.

Unending confidence shared freely when doubt suffocated her.

The gathering point for a family with dreams of grandeur.

Jenny’s eyes sharpened, her hand flashing as a vial appeared within.

‘I refuse to accept this.’

She popped the lid and poured the first portion of Temperflesh Draught down her throat.

A gasp escaped her lips as her irises dilated, human eyes transforming into mechanical lenses.

Inner flames burned bright as a hammer slammed the anvil within her soul.

‘I refuse to accept you falling like this.’

Her caster seed glowed brightly, changing as Jenny reached in and manually rearranged her parts.

“Take Over:… no.”

Skin split, pistons fired, and cogs whirred as Jenny began to shift like never before.

‘I refuse to accept seeing a part of my family fall to their demons!’

Blood dripped from her nose as Jenny pushed her magic beyond the limits she ever had.

Her caster magic mutated; what once wasn't became what was.

The storm within, a donated supply of energy from her ally, was cannibalized as Take Over and Machina Soul swapped places.

Her lips parted in a whisper.

“Machina Soul: Take Over.”

A thousand moving pieces smashed together and reoriented under her control as Jenny turned theory to reality under sheer force of will.

‘Blue Pegasus is meant to shine.’

Soft flesh gave way to a forged chassis, limbs vibrating with humming turbines, head replaced with a cold helm, eyes glowing like spotlights as a dozen internal features launched at once.

‘If you lost your way…’

The fire golem was scanned, studied, diagnosed. Optimal course of action organized. Vector of attack aligning. Elemental loadout adjusted. Set.

The silver spirit of flame flared, a ball of heated magma launching at Jenny to erase her existence and disrupt the ongoing battles in its master’s favor.

‘Then I will shine ever brighter.’

Jet thrusters sparked, metal glowing from the rapid temperature rise as Jenny accelerated to a speed fast enough to tear skin from bone.

She met the attack head-on, a piston firing through her entire frame as a pressurized force was released in a sharpened burst of water that connected her body to the heavens for the briefest of moments.

A moment of silence passed before the building groaned as supports were cut, yet the fireball was vertically cut down the middle.

A glowing machine passed between the two halves, its arms shifting into widespread jets that doused the heat and sent an explosion of steam into the sky.

The dark clouds above condensed further as the heat supercharged a draft of air.

‘I will shine bright enough to illuminate your path.’

Machine parts popped out and connected, all condensing into a singular sniper rifle aimed at the core of the spirit.

A bullet filled with Jenny’s emotional storm filled the chamber, pistons pulling back and slamming home, sparks flying as an explosion condensed through the barrel, the bullet rotating and traveling at supersonic speeds.

The steam cloud dispersed in that single shot, the glowing red machine form bracing and bleeding off the pressure.

Jenny watched on silently as the fire golem paused, the heat snuffed out as a gaping hole in its chest was revealed, the section of the building behind it shattered like glass.

Its form turned translucent.

Glowing pools of magma stared up at Jenny.

Blinked once.

Softened.

A keening warm wind touched her cheek.

And then the pools cooled, slowly closing as the spirit was returned to the Celestial Realm.

A mournful cry echoed through the floor, and Jenny saluted the spirit for its loyalty before slowly turning her mechanical head toward the cries' direction.

‘I will catch you when you fall.’ Light flashed behind her visor, a single tear rolling down metallic cheeks. ‘Like you once did for all of us.’

Parts began shifting to shoot her forward before Jenny gasped, engines sputtering as she began to fall.

Metal shifted back to flesh as the potion's effect faded along with Laxus’s borrowed lightning.

Jenny hit the ground hard, rolling to bleed off momentum and coming up in a crouch, her breath coming out in pants.

She rose on shaky legs, one step in front of the other, taking her toward her friends.

000

Karen stumbled, her body wracked by pain as the backlash of her connection snapped something within her chest in her current state.

The fire whip fell limp mid-strike as the flames winked out.

Dante's eyes widened at the opportunity, and he charged forward like a wild beast, ignoring the burns where the whip ate through his mana armor.

His hands gripped a rebar sticking out of the ground, muscles tensed as he pounced, body flying through the air as his knife thrust toward her heart.

“Don’t get cocky.” Karen’s gaze jerked to him, blood dripping from her lips. “I’M KAREN LILICA!”

A burst of frigid cold air slammed into his side, sending Dante skidding across the ground, half his body covered in frost.

The whip quickly followed, its frozen edge seeking his head.

000

Lightning warred with ice; elemental storms condensed into a battleground occupied by only two souls.

Fierce yellow eyes glared at the glowing blue orbs the titan of ice used to see.

“Annoying gnat.” Laxus spat as lightning sparked wildly off his body, arching through the air to destroy his foe, only for the spirit to groan in response and shoot out deadly ice spears to match each bolt.

The golem responded by slamming pillars of ice into the ground, a wave of freezing air creating a domain around its body and trying to suffocate the air from Laxus's lungs.

'As if.' Laxus scoffed, his lightning crackling through the domain as it fought the ice for dominance. 'I can't unleash my big shit.'

His gaze swept over the building, where his allies fought their own battles.

“You haven’t mastered control in a month.”

Laxus clenched his jaw, long-held arrogance fighting against newly rising humility.

‘You think I don’t know that, Orobo?’ Laxus growled and stomped the ground, a lightning chain lashing out to keep the spirit occupied while he flashed to its side. ‘And now I’m fighting this jackass while you’re being torn apart.’

It irked the young lightning mage fiercely.

This was his S-Class exam.

This was where he proved he could take the next step.

This was… where his friend called for his aid, and Laxus felt useless.

'First, that #14 bitch hands me my ass because I go overboard.' Laxus punched the titan, his skin nearly freezing off at the contact despite his mana armor. 'Then some random copper woman stalls me because I try to restrain myself.’

The ice spirit thrust a sharp-tipped arm at his chest, and Laxus unleashed a point-blank explosion of electrical energy, his lightning pushing against the spirit in a raw exchange before he threw it off course and flashed back.

He growled as lightning arched between his teeth, melting the frozen particles that got in his throat.

‘If I go too big, I fuck them over. If I go too little, I’ll waste too much time.’

His body pulsed as lightning fought to break free, the dragon seed deep within his core crackling as it roared, pride rising like an awoken beast of legend.

‘No. I can’t let loose here.’ Laxus grunted, his heart squeezing as lightning coursed through his veins. Dante’s words from back on Thunder Mountain rang through his mind, only making Laxus growl in greater frustration. ‘How the fuck am I supposed to let it flow as it wishes without zapping everyone in the vicinity?’

He had made incredible progress since the journey through Thunder Mountain, able to at least walk proud and confident of his control.

But he had to increase the intensity to defeat this overgrown popsicle.

The golem stomped, a fresh wave of frost spreading around it as ice shards flew his way.

A flare of lightning exploded outward in a net, deflecting or melting most before it could reach him, but a single shard clipped his cheek, drawing a thin line of blood and freezing the skin around it.

'This little shit.' Laxus's eyes flashed white, his wrath and frustration reaching their peak as the sky far above rumbled from the thick ethernano bleeding off his body.

"You want to fucking go?!" Laxus roared, his body swelling and scales spreading across his skin as the dragon grew thoroughly incensed.

Thunder boomed from dark clouds, casting a wave of silence over Fiore's capital.

All the combatants paused as a bolt of lightning fell from the sky, slamming into the battleground where lightning and ice met.

Bacchus grinned at the sheer raw power, nodding as he dove back into battle with fervor, reaching ever higher.

Jenny’s sensors took it in, yet she was focused on her own foe.

Dante and Karen paused, both turning to the source with frowns.

“From a child?” Karen muttered in disbelief.

“Laxus…” One of Dante’s eyes was blinded by blood, but he gazed through the flashing light and held faith. ‘Let it flow.’

Almost as if he could hear him, Laxus’s ear twitched, his expanded form radiating so much lightning it was melting the metal beneath his feet.

With a single raise of his arm, Laxus could bathe the whole building in lightning, drown out his enemies and allies alike, but something felt wrong about the action.

His inner insecurities, pride, and humility fought a war for who Laxus wanted to be.

Was he the prideful dragon, who made those beneath him tremble in fear?

Was he the grandson of a legend, his accomplishments forever rewarded to another?

Was he the scarred and scared child of a monster, his magic forever tainted by forbidden magic he never asked for?

Or was he Laxus Dreyar, the hunter's friend, inheritor of his guild's responsibility, and the youngest S-Class mage in Fiore's history?

A weight settled in his enlarged palm, and white eyes gazed down at a golden vial, a living lightning bolt seemingly trapped within.

“To be a mage is to walk with death.”

An annoying maid's voice rang in his ears.

“At least he has the balls to be a mage.”

‘Goading me like I’m a fucking child.’ The cork popped off as the first potion of the Stormsong Tonic washed down his throat. ‘I hate that maid.’

Laxus’s world slowed as the potion took effect.

The constant crackles and zaps he had been accustomed to since he first awakened his magic suddenly sounded odd in his ears.

The arching lightning dancing around his body suddenly looked different.

Laxus looked at his palm in confusion, lightning dancing from each digit as effortlessly as breathing.

In fact, his own breath birthed electrical charge.

For the first time in his life, Laxus felt what a higher attunement to lightning felt like, and he found it… warm.

Another wave of frost came his way, the titan of ice generating a sub-zero storm around its form.

With each step, more deadly sharp shards joined the growing storm, and Laxus idly watched in slow motion as it spread, expanding past the boundary of their battleground to reach the rest of the building.

It was trying to disrupt his team’s fights.

Laxus narrowed his pure white eyes, a silent zap echoing as his body vanished at speeds he had never held before, appearing in the air directly above the spirit as his legs glowed with electrical potential.

‘Lightning cage.’ He stomped on the air.

Like flowing water, lightning stretched out from his foot, spreading in all directions and forming a dome over a fourth of the building’s floor, caging in the spreading frost and burning off anything that tried to get past.

Not a single bolt acted out, nothing overcharged, nothing undercharged.

The lightning acted as he willed, speaking a language Laxus was only beginning to grasp.

The ice golem glared up at him, a shriek like howling winter winds, as a fresh barrage of frozen spears assaulted him.

Laxus watched as they approached, slowed to a crawl.

Instead of dodging, he simply watched, his body buzzing as flesh turned to lightning, the ice passing through where it didn’t immediately vaporize.

He watched his body elementalize while standing still, a skill he had never attained before, now opening a path before his eyes.

'Lightning.' Laxus marveled as it spun around him, almost alive in joy, as if it could sense his higher attunement. 'Orobo told me to let it flow as it wished.'

His gaze shifted down to the rampaging golem, now growing into an iceberg as it attempted to rise and meet him.

‘Who knew how right he had been.’ Laxus hummed, his body pulsing as electricity gathered in his arm, concentrating into a trident that took shape in his palm, his fingers closing around a shaft of destructive power. ‘Cocky bastard.’

His body vanished with a near-silent zap, appearing before the ice golem with his arm pulled back, the point of his weapon aimed at the rising spiked arm of the spirit aiming to skewer him, Laxus meeting it head-on.

“Lightning Dragon's Heavenward Halberd!” Laxus’s roar overlapped with the crackle of lightning as he thrust his weapon forward.

Mana poured through his core like never before, concentrating through his veins as lightning bowed not to its master, but to its conduit.

Weapons met, grinding against each other as Laxus's white eyes locked with the spirit's frozen orbs.

One moment they glared with the desire to freeze his soul, and the next they thawed, the ice golem’s head inclining forward ever so slightly in gratitude.

The ice mountain beneath the golem cracked and shattered, the halberd traveling through it all and detonating, taking the iceberg and the floor beneath it with it.

Laxus watched the spirit slowly fade, its head turning toward the distance at the last moment, as if taking in something before it was sent back to the Celestial Realm.

A frown crossed the blond’s face despite his victory, the high of his heightened attunement already beginning to wash away as his senses returned, the world speeding up back to normal.

Cold touched his cheek, and Laxus looked up as a light snowfall began, flakes falling with a trace of something more.

Something tragic.

Laxus turned his gaze toward where the golem had looked in its final moment and attempted to flash forward, only for his eyes to widen as his lightning stuttered.

He hit the ground with a groan, digging a trench as he felt the lightning within his core seeming to be recalibrating.

‘Bastard did warn me not to use it in a fight.’ Laxus grumbled and got to his feet, digging his heels in as he took off to aid his friend. ‘Don’t you dare fall before I get there, Orobo.’

000

A second mournful cry left Karen’s lungs, echoing all around as the woman stumbled, coughing up blood in a mouthful despite her attempts to staunch it with her palm.

Blood dripped from her fingers as she heaved, the freezing ice vanishing from her whip as another connection was snapped.

It was the perfect moment to strike.

If only Dante could.

Heavy breaths left Dante’s lungs as he pulled shards of ice from his back; his high-speed duel with Karen was not going very well in a direct confrontation.

His mana was finally not the first thing to give, as his body refused to cooperate with the accumulated damage.

‘Note to self, invent a B-Grade healing brew.’ Veins popped on Dante’s neck as he pulled an ice thorn from a nerve cluster. ‘C-Grade has limits.’

He had used nearly an entire flask of Heartknit brew in forty-five minutes, and aside from the alcohol content numbing his sense of pain and making him see double, his body was revolting from the rapid injuries and heals.

Even if the injuries healed, the nerve endings and body signals were all thrown off, making Dante feel like someone swapped out the controller settings.

“W-Who’s not looking so good now?” Karen coughed harshly, yet her eyes stayed locked on Dante’s squirming form.

“Woman.” With dark green hair stuck to his face in sweat and dried blood, Dante heaved and slowly pushed himself to his feet, cracking the ice that encased one of his legs. “You crazy.”

“Yeah, so what?” Karen’s lips curled behind her hand, her neck tilting up as it began to snow. Her lower lip trembled as the snowflakes touched her skin, a sensation of loss welling up within her that was squashed beneath the unbearable pain radiating through her chest. “The strong can be whatever they want.”

“That kind of thinking is how tyrants get shanked.” Dante tiredly raised his blade, the knife barely holding its shape after blocking whip strikes. “Enough, Karen. Is killing me really worth dying for?”

“Killing you? Please.” Karen huffed, a bloody hand throwing grey hair over her shoulder as the woman stood tall on pure pride and fragile ego. “Do I need to say it again, snake?”

She flicked her whip, the worn leather glowing as it was covered in hardened stone.

Like a burnt tree before its fall, still clinging to its roots, Karen glared defiantly and raised her arm. “The strong do what they want.”

Dante finally felt his long-run patience wither as he gritted his teeth, burning mana channels flaring once more as he prepared to dodge. "Do you want to die, woman?!"

The bloody smile she sent his way would haunt him for a long time to come.

Karen swung.

000

“Ya are one tough bastard.” Bacchus cackled tiredly, palms wrapped in white mana hitting like raindrops on stone as he attacked.

The earth golem, more a pile of boulders in humanoid shape, tried to catch the smaller, faster mage with grasping limbs, to no avail.

“I can’t do shit to you.” Bacchus used a palm strike to regain distance as he slid back, scratching his chin with cracked nails while gazing at the spirit. “How the fuck am I supposed to do this?”

He had been avoiding the golem’s attacks for the better part of two minutes now, doing what he could to damage it and coming up empty.

Unlike Shell, the golem didn’t have vulnerable flesh underneath for Bacchus to target.

He was quite literally fighting a pile of sentient rock.

On top of that, he had just finished cracking a guy's defenses, and his stamina was flagging with mana running on dregs.

Bacchus frowned, his gaze glancing to the side where he caught glimpses of Dante’s brutal fight, his brother in all but blood getting torn apart by that mad bitch and continuing on fearlessly.

“This ain’t a fun fight.” He looked down at his shaking hand, the skin roughed up like he’d been hitting stone sandpaper. "And worse, I'm out of ale."

His empty gourd hung from his belt.

The golem opened its mouth, the sound of grinding gravel coming out as it lifted a foot and prepared to stomp.

“Aw shit, not this again.” Bacchus grimaced and crouched, leg muscles tensing as he launched himself up just before a carpet of earthen spikes erupted where he'd stood, rising higher to reach him. "Ya fucker!”

Despite his complaint, Bacchus stayed hyper-focused as his adrenaline spiked, his body twirling through the air as he watched the spikes approach.  

His arms moved faster than the eye could track, leaving white trails in their wake as he maneuvered along a tightrope, each second bringing more spikes that sought his flesh.

In seconds that felt like minutes, he dodged countless strikes, yet it wasn’t enough.

With a heavy impact, Bacchus hit the ground, his knee cracking the stone as he panted harshly.

“Bastard almost got me that time.” He wheezed with a cocky grin.

Blood dripped on the ground, and he froze.

His eyes slid to the broken earthen spike stuck in his shoulder armor, his medium for casting spells, and widened.

“Shit.”

The golem rumbled once more, its foot coming down like a hammer to the back of his head.

“Gruh!" Bacchus's face hit the dirt, veins popping as he felt the spike dig deeper into his flesh, its weight multiplied tenfold. "B-Bullshit."

His other arm quickly acted, experienced hand sliding into the secret latch on his armor that only he knew; the piece unlatching as he ripped his arm out.

Blood splattered as he worsened his shoulder wound, and Bacchus grunted in annoyance. “That was my favorite set.”

Without the piece, how was he supposed to cast?

Without magic, how was he supposed to support his bro?

Without being able to help his bro, how could he call himself a Quatro Cerberus mage?

Red irises glared at the golem, and it stared back impassively.

“Ya think I can’t hurt ya?” Bacchus rolled his shoulder, wincing at the sharp pain, but found his arm still usable. “I’ll fucking break you.”

The golem responded by raising an arm and launching a fist-like projectile his way.

Bacchus ducked and charged, closing on the spirit as he swung his armored right arm, his glowing palm slamming into its chest, where a hardened core sat behind layers of stone.

‘If one strike isn’t enough.’ Bacchus growled, his palm rebounding, setting, and swinging again in a fraction of a second. ‘Then I’ll hit ya a dozen times.’  

Constant thumps rang out, each blow enough to dent metal and penetrate a veteran mage's shields, yet doing little to harm his foe.

‘Fifty times.’

The white glow on his palms dimmed as he redirected mana to attack instead of defend.

‘A hundred!’

Blood ran down his arm in streaks. 

A massive stone fist came his way, but Bacchus remained undaunted, roaring as he sped up.

‘TWO HUNDRED!’

The core cracked, and Bacchus’s grin grew, only for the stone fist to smash into his good shoulder, the force knocking him clear off his feet and sending him flying like a ragdoll to slam into a broken wall.

A silent breath escaped his lungs as his vision dimmed, his entire skeleton rocking from the blow.

‘No.’

Bacchus fought to stay awake, distant whip cracks ringing in his ears.

‘Dante is still fighting.’

Cracked nails dug into hardened stone as Bacchus clawed his way back with sheer force of will.

The sensation of Dante thumping his shoulder rang through his soul, the sign of trust an extension of a bond that refused to break.

‘My brother needs me!’

Bacchus gasped, light blooming back to life as his eyes opened, his everything reporting pain all at once. “I’m not out yet.”

A wheezing cough escaped him as Bacchus pushed himself out of the indent he left in the wall, an odd weight pulling on his right arm. 

He slowly turned to see his armor piece hanging off in tatters.

His breath hitched as he took in what it meant, shakily reaching up and unclipping the armor piece, revealing the deep burn scarring of his childhood trauma underneath.

The armor hit the ground with a resounding thud, met only by the approaching footsteps of the stone golem, its shadow towering over him like a mouse to a mountain.

Bacchus couldn’t help but gulp, staring down at the destroyed spell medium and feeling an honest trace of panic at the thought of losing his magic, not helped by the naked feeling of his scars being uncovered.

Something cold touched his skin, and Bacchus started, looking up.

‘Snow?’

Flakes fell from dark clouds above.

Crystals of glittering ice reflected the light into his eyes.

Almost unbidden, Bacchus’s mind traveled back to a memory he tried so hard to drown out with alcohol.

Screams echoed, blood rushing in his ears, and a begging nine-year-old Bacchus stared through blurry eyes as his father smiled one final time before going limp in his arms.

The smell of smoke and death filled his nose, drowned out by the harsh winter gale that penetrated his bones.

His village burned as laughing Minstrel nobles on horseback pretended to be bandits, ransacking it for another pointless war.

And then that terrifying howl.

That beast from legend arrived, three heads snarling as it tore the invaders down to the last without remorse.

“Bacchus.”

Bacchus blinked, suddenly standing before a gravestone, an odd man claiming to be his uncle at his side, a spiked collar around his neck and a cigarette hanging from his lips.

The man’s hand was on his left shoulder, avoiding the heavy bandages on the right.

“What do you want to do?”

The man asked softly; the smoke cleared and dust settled in a hollow valley that once held a vibrant village, snow falling gently from above as their breaths came out in steaming trails.

“I…” Bacchus’s body trembled, fingers balled up in fists and blood dripping from nails piercing his palms. “I wanna be strong.”

The man tipped his hat, covering his face in grief. “Why do you want to be strong?”

“Cuz being weak hurts.” Bacchus’s eyes were locked onto the names carved into the tombstone, a hiccup leaving his lips. “I don’t wanna lose nothing again.”

Tears fell in rivulets down his cheeks.

The man gripped his shoulder comfortingly, exhaled a cloud of smoke, and gently dropped to a knee beside him. “What would you do if you were the strongest?”

“I’d fight.” He growled, turning to meet Uncle Goldmine’s face. “Until it doesn’t hurt.”

“The hurt never goes away, Bacchus.” Goldmine raised his hat, revealing his own wet cheeks as he gazed at his brother's legacy. “You won’t make it far fighting for that.”

Bacchus chewed on his cheek. “Then what do I fight for?”

Goldmine breathed deep, flicking his cigarette to remove the ash. “If you must fight, fight to defend.” He gave a small broken smile, hiding his pain. “A mage is never stronger than when they are defending their family.”

“Family?” Bacchus asked incredulously, pointing at the tombstone.

“Family is not only those who share your blood.” Goldmine reached forward and gently tapped Bacchus over the heart. “As you live, you will make bonds. Bonds that will help you grow. That you will defend with your all.”

“I don’t have any bonds.” Bacchus frowned, turning back to the cold stone. “They’re all dead.”

“Then you’ll make more.” Goldmine shook his shoulder firmly, following his gaze as his teeth clenched. “When the walls cave in, when the world feels heavy, remember them.”

His grip tightened on Bacchus’s shoulder. “When life tries to tell you you’re not enough.”

The grip felt like iron, embers burning bright on the end of his cigarette. “Go wild.”

The snow fell, and Bacchus carved those words into his heart like the words on the stone.

The ground rumbled, and the carved tombstone shifted into a towering rock golem with its arm raised.

Wind screamed as a massive dust cloud exploded upward, and the building shook, the fifth floor threatening to collapse entirely.

The golem stood at the center of a crater.

The spirit of earth made a sound of confusion, lifting its arm from the rubble and seeing nothing beneath.

The tinkle of a glass hitting the ground rang out, an oddly sectioned vial rolling along the ground as it reached the spirit's foot.

It looked down and saw broken glass, all the sections seemingly cracked open at once.

A deep breath disrupted the dust cloud, and the golem quickly locked onto where a shadowed form stood slouched over, hair falling over their face.

The sound of gravel churning rang out as it approached, ready to finish off its foe and go assist its master.

Yet it didn’t make it far before something pressed against its chest.

Red eyes glowed, intelligence taking a back seat as something primal stared back.

A growl escaped Bacchus’s lips.

“One Palm.”

The golem was launched backward like a stone skipping along a lake's surface.

The martial artist blinked down at his hand in bewilderment, thoughts fading, yet senses opened like never before.

A falcon's cry rang in his ears.

Sparks of white light caught his attention.

A warm and instinctively familiar feeling bubbled up, wanting out.

White light flared from his palms, stretching further as it flowed over his skin and enveloped his body.

Something deep within him shrieked as a connection was made.

The golem rose fearlessly, its outer layer cracked, a leg rising and stomping down with tremendous force.

Between one step and the next, Bacchus was airborne, dodging the exploding forest of spikes rising to meet him.

Empty eyes stared into the approaching storm, his neck rolling as he spun headfirst and dove right in.

“Two Palms.”

This time he didn't simply dodge; he smashed his way through, glowing palms meeting sharpened earthen spikes and coming out superior.

Bacchus landed on his feet, the ground caving in around him as he held an earthen spike in his palm.

Hot breath left his lungs in a stream of steam, like an exhaling dragon.

The golem groaned as it stomped; not only the spike in Bacchus’s hand but the broken spikes still in the air suddenly had their weight multiplied many times over.

Cracks rang out as the spike in his palm snapped in two, Bacchus’s form flowing like a stream between each falling spike in a dance.

“Four Palms.”

Each spike that approached was shattered.

Bacchus appeared before its body.

“Eight Palms.”

The golem didn’t register the strikes that robbed it of its limbs.

“Sixteen Palms.”

The golem's outer shell crumbled; the hardest layer of stone beneath still protecting its core.

Stone eyes snapped open as a wave of force pushed Bacchus back.

The sound of a rockslide left its mouth, the ground rolling as the golem's broken parts rose above them, gathering tons of stone debris from all around into a massive sphere.

Bacchus didn't miss a beat, somehow finding the spirit's center of gravity and tipping it over.

“Thirty-Two Palms.”

Each blow struck the core from below, launching the golem's remains into the air and driving them into the bottom of the falling sphere.

The stone eyes glared, a final roar of shifting stone echoing as the golem funneled its remaining mana into the falling sphere, increasing its weight tenfold.

The shadow of the falling stone blotted out the light, its weight threatening not just to crush Bacchus, but to bring the building down around them, assisting its master and disrupting Bacchus's friends.

Snow swirled around his body as Bacchus crouched, white light gathering brightly on his skin as he launched upward, the snow following his outstretched arms like the wings of a soaring falcon.

“Sixty-Four Palms.”

Strikes so fast they resembled a continuous white line launched, smashing the golem through the sphere in an explosion of stone shards.

The building shook as boulders rained down; the weight enhancement gone.

A core flew through the air attached to a head, desperately trying to gather surrounding stones, only for Bacchus to appear above it, palms pulled back and mana flaring.

“One Hundred Twenty-Eight…”

Stone eyes met the martial artist's gaze before it nodded ever so slightly in approval.

“Drunken-Chop Hanging Palms.”

White, glowing palms descended, each strike stacking on the last as they moved so fast the golem’s core seemed to vanish, connecting sky and earth in a single line before slamming into the ground with punishing force.

The fifth floor finally shattered in the surrounding area, Bacchus's heightened state fading as his mind once more took the pilot's chair.

“Holy shit.” He gaped at the sheer destruction spreading beneath him, nearly a fourth of the floor crumbling down as the entire building rumbled. “Now that’s wild.”

A grin crossed his lips before he was hit by a piece of debris and realized his white glow was gone, mana entirely spent.

And he was falling along with tons of stone, metal, and debris.

"Oh, come on!" Bacchus struggled to move, his eyes widening at a boulder hurtling toward his face. "Not wild!"

He urgently tried to air-swim away as it approached. 

“Fucking bullshit.” Bacchus braced.

Only for a lightning bolt to slam into the boulder, knocking it off course just in time for a grapple to shoot out and grab Bacchus around the waist, reeling him in like a caught fish.

“And they warned me about property destruction.” Laxus’s voice came through the dust, the blond panting but still standing as he shot off bolts to deflect anything that got close.

"You should see their guildhall." Jenny's voice sounded beside him as her grapple dropped Bacchus at their feet. "That thing is property destruction to an interior decorator."

“Ya guys.” Bacchus coughed out the dust in his lungs and raised a middle finger. “Are assholes.”

““You’re welcome.”” Laxus and Jenny said as one, shooting each other smirks while Bacchus rolled his eyes.

"Didn't expect to be a third wheel at this party." Bacchus stumbled as he tried to stand, his limbs trembling from the strain. "Fucking hell, that B-Grade shit was intense."

“You’re not kidding.” Jenny eyed the sheer destruction he caused and shook her head, stepping forward to throw one of Bacchus’s arms over her shoulder. “And I thought mine was crazy.”

"I've never heard of something like it." Laxus agreed, taking the martial artist's other side.

A mournful cry rang through the air, and they turned as one to the only remaining battleground.

Battered, bruised, drained, burned, unstable.

The three stepped forward.

000

"Put out that fire, now!" Voll directed another squad toward where flying debris had sparked a blaze. "Nightshade, 2 o'clock!"

His agents sprang into action, each displaying their magic to absorb the worst of the damage escaping the cracks in the building.

The surrounding King's Agents were sweating in the dead of winter, the combination of mana pressure and elemental explosions rocking the area like a battle of titans.

Only the remains of the fortified building somehow still blocked the worst of it and kept things contained.

“The collateral damage is spreading.” Voll tensed, shielding his face as a dark shadow charged the largest falling debris and split it into four pieces, gleaming executioner axes spinning through the air. “Sir, there is barely over five minutes remaining, and they are still fighting!”

“Hold.” Kama’s calm voice resounded, easing the pressure on his subordinates with his own mana. The leader of the King’s Agents glanced at the nearest clock tower and pointed an axe at it. “Someone contact the control room. I want it to ring every minute until the hour is up.”

The nearest agent froze and pointed to himself, only for Voll to belt out his orders at the wasted time. “Do it!”

Voll didn't know if it would help, but he trusted his leader.

‘Come on, Hunter.’ The earth shook from a strong quake, and Voll saw a gap that he threw himself into, his mana flaring as he tanked a chunk of debris. ‘Do what you do best.’

His eyes flashed ruthlessly.

‘Finish the job.’

000

A distant clock tower chimed, an idle glance through a crack in the wall revealing the timer down to five minutes, and Dante couldn’t be damned to care.

“Are you done yet, woman?” He leaned heavily against a broken wall, his feet impaled with earthen spikes keeping him in place, the pain the only thing keeping his swaying vision from spiraling into unconsciousness.

A quick check of his flask provided the same message as a dozen times before. He was down to a single dose of Heartknit brew.

"Done?" Karen knelt, coughing up mouthfuls of blood as the earthen enchantment faded from her whip. "I."

She retched and heaved, body shaking from the final backlash, yet her grip remained tight on her weapon.

Her eyes narrowed furiously as she tilted her head up to meet his gaze. "I'm just getting started."

Snow fell around them, the two at the center of a battleground of torn-up trenches.

Scorched lines burnt into metal.

Shining ice blocks growing at random.

Sharpened earthen spikes and pocketed craters.

“I don’t think anyone has ever wanted my life this much.” Dante groaned, his chest undulating as he tried to control his breathing and slow his heart rate. “But even worse than that is that you don’t even hate me.”

He slowly pushed himself up, ignoring his bleeding, nailed feet as he growled. “You’re just using me as an excuse, you bitch.”

“Heh, guilty as charged.” Karen chuckled, gripping a broken desk as she shakily pushed herself to her feet. “It’s convenient when all your issues focus on one target.”

She slowly tilted her head back up to the dark, snowy sky, the last of the earthen mana falling from her coat. "I didn't expect it to go this far, but here we are."

Her eyes grew distant, memories flashing by unbidden as a silent tear rolled down her cheek, the pain in her chest now spread through all her limbs. “A final show.”

“Go find a stage or something.” Dante wasn’t in the mood for whatever drama she had going on. “Find a different dance partner.”

“Sorry, snake. You were a good dancer, but this duet has to end." Karen brought her gaze back to him, a genuinely broken half-smile on her face. Her muscles trembled as she raised her whip, knowing Dante could no longer dodge her. “Bad luck.”

“I don’t believe in luck.” Dante’s pupils narrowed into slits.

Instincts rose, screaming of impending danger and guiding his path, yet Dante was physically incapable of acting.

“Neither do I.” Karen nodded in respect as her arm fell.

Dante’s heart pounded, the world slowing in his perception.

The whip's length twirled with a master's precision as it danced in the falling snow, the leather tip piercing snowflakes, its reflection in his eyes.

“DANTE!”

Three voices overlapped, their desperate call shaking the air.

A massive lightning bolt shot forward, the aim off-kilter, splintering into the sky.

A precise sniper bolt missed its mark, the targeting features offline.

A thrown rock, anything to help, tried to intervene and fell short.

The sharp crack of the whip rang out, the broken wall behind him shattered, and Dante’s vision darkened as blood splattered.

His knife cracked as he fell, the stakes keeping him in place as his back hit the cold ground, his mind slowing as he felt the approach of something familiar while a distant clock tower chimed.

A rumbling pulse shook the capital of Fiore; even the King, standing out on his castle's balcony, gripping the railings with a stern expression as he watched the distant light show, cast a worried glance at the ground.

Yet a pair of cold sapphire-blue eyes in the dark simply watched, a horridly displeased expression on their face.

"Get to him!" Laxus yelled, his dangerously sparking body unable to tap into his dragon lacrima, yet still more than game as he charged the S-Class enemy, putting himself between her and Dante.

Jenny and Bacchus didn’t hesitate, bursting forward and dropping beside the heavily bleeding body. 

“He’s fucking staked!” Bacchus ripped out the spikes in his feet, quickly tearing up bandages to wrap the thankfully small puncture wounds.

“Dante!” Jenny’s scanners went over the worst of his wounds on his chest. “Stay with us!”

“I know which of his shit heals.” Bacchus grabbed the flask from his belt, his eyes opening wide at how it was near empty. “How much did he fucking drink?!”

“It can’t be that bad.” Jenny’s arm swapped to a heated prod, already pressing down against the bloody line diagonally crossing Dante’s chest to try and suture the wound. “Your gourd is bigger than that flask.”

“Woman, my gourd was full of ale!” Bacchus gripped the flask tightly and waved it. “This is high ABV shit. He drank the equivalent of bottles of liquor in less than an hour!”

Lightning exploded in the background, the crack of a whip breaking the sound barrier intermixing.

“I have a stomach pump.” Jenny frowned as sparks flew, her entire concentration focused on making sure she didn’t injure Dante further. “I can’t do both at once. Wait. What are these black spots?”

She lifted her arm, noting the black lines wiggling beneath his wound.

"What black spots?" Bacchus leaned over, taken aback by the moving black lines spreading from Dante's shoulder. "The fuck? Did he drink a potion?"

"He's half unconscious right now; he didn't drink anything." Jenny tried to sense it, her sensors focusing on Dante's mana, only for her eyes to widen in the next second as a connection was made.

Chills ran over her skin as an image of a spinning red orb glowed menacingly in the dark.

“Mortal.” A slurping growl echoed in her ears. “I’m eating.”

The connection snapped, and Jenny recoiled, her eyes fearful as she nearly fell over. “What the hell was that?!”

“What was what?” Bacchus frowned at her odd reaction before a closer explosion stole his attention. "I can't do anything here. Lightning boy isn't doing too good."

He patted Dante's shoulder and gritted his teeth. "Dying isn't wild, bro."

The martial artist said no more, rising and rushing off to join the fray.

“Wai-.” Jenny’s voice caught as she watched the black lines intensify, pushing the edges of the wound she was trying to seal back together. “What the hell is going on, Dante?”

She bit her lip in worry and shook her head, her arm once more heating up as she returned to stopping his bleeding.

00

"Just stay down, you relic!" Laxus dropped another massive strike on the woman, only for her to laugh as it skimmed off her mana armor and shook the ground with minimal damage.

“Learn how to aim, little Dreyar!” Karen manically laughed and swung her whip, blood leaking from her lips all the while. “And to think you had me nervous!”

Laxus sparked violently, his teeth clenched as he tried his best to control his magic. 'Stupid fucking potion. I shouldn't have drunk it!'

His lightning still wasn’t responding as he was used to.

Karen cracked her whip, and Laxus flared in defense, unable to teleport or dodge.

Lightning cushioned the blow before it crashed into mana armor and sent Laxus flying back as if he had taken a punch from a fully charged-up #14. 'Orobo has been taking hits like this the whole time?'

If anything, that just made Laxus more pissed off as he damn near exploded with what he had.

‘If I can’t control it, then I’ll stop controlling.’ Laxus dug his feet into the ground to slow and launched himself back at the veteran S-Class mage.

“That’s it!” Karen laughed and cracked her whip, the blow slamming into Laxus’s chest to keep him away from her. “Stand! Fight! Make it a grand finale!”

“You’re out of your damn mind!” Laxus roared as he fought through the pain to approach, feeling a rib snap from her next strike.

"Dante's good at attracting these types." Bacchus's voice cut in as he came up behind Laxus, using him as a shield from the next strike. "Thanks."

"You shit!" Laxus heaved, digging his hands into the ground and lunging back in. "Orobo’s luck sucks!”

“Tell me about it!” Bacchus reached striking distance and made eye contact with Karen. “Ya hurt my friend.”

He launched a palm lacking a white glow.

“Cry me a river.” Karen blocked it with a knee, smirking in his face. “A warrior should feel no shame for falling in combat.”

Bacchus’s eyes widened in realization, but he had no time to respond as Karen punched out.

The two fell into a brief trade of blows; Bacchus was hampered by his injuries and lacked mana, but he was still shocked by her display of skill before she got her whip up and swung sideways.

Bacchus was unable to dodge, being thrown back by the strike, but in that window Laxus finally got close enough.

“My turn, bitch!” Laxus lit up like a generator as lightning flared in all directions.

“AHH!” Karen screamed, her body seizing up and scorching her skin, yet still her eyes remained clear as she flared mana and swung her whip. “Inexperienced brat!”

The blow connected, Laxus’s eyes rolling up momentarily as another rib snapped.

Bacchus got behind him, catching the flying blond and wincing as electricity burned his skin. “Ya done, blondie?”

“Y-Your nicknames suck.” Laxus breathed in deeply from the pain, pushing off the martial artist to avoid hurting him. “You be the bait next time.”

“Fuck ya, that whip is bullshit.” Bacchus favored one of his legs. “And it was a glancing blow that hit me.”

The two matched gazes and understood just how fucked up it was that Dante lasted as long as he did before turning back to their enemy.

Karen was bent over, dry heaving as she gripped her chest tightly, the burn within maddening as it reached every corner of her being.

Yet even still, her hand refused to drop her weapon.

“You kids aren’t bad.” Karen laughed, the sound broken as mana pulsed from her body, the roots of her hair completely turning grey. “Might be something in a few years.”

“Ya don’t even look like you have a few minutes!” Bacchus called back.

“Just fucking stop.” Laxus prepared another strike. “Is pride really worth throwing your life away for?”

Had Dante never appeared, Laxus wasn’t sure if he would be able to say no to his own question.

“Is it worth it?” Karen panted as she stood tall, spine straight and posture strong. “Children, pride is necessary.”

She swung her whip, and the two scattered in an attempt to dodge.

“Pride is what holds the door barred from the storm!”

The two mages went down with broken bones, only to roll over and charge back at her.

“Pride protects the weak in its shadow!”

Laxus flared to soften the next strike, Bacchus grabbing his electric shoulders and flipping over while dragging the hit Laxus with him.

“Pride raises a guild from nothing when everything wanted to tear it down!”

Karen roared and slammed her whip down between them, an explosion of dust spreading.

She panted heavily, vision beginning to dance as she stumbled on her feet.

“Pride…” Karen mumbled, the cold of the falling snow seeping under her skin. "Pride… is all I have left."

“That’s not true!” Jenny’s voice cracked across Karen’s ears like her own weapon. “You have the entire guild, Karen!”

The dust parted, and Karen’s arm paused as Jenny appeared over the two downed mages.

“Upstart.” Karen’s numbing lips twitched at the corner. “Come to join the closing scene?”

“What closing scene?!” Jenny’s flesh refused to shift, her mana unable to support another transformation. “What is this suicidal bullshit? No one wants you to die!”

“No one?” Karen’s gaze was half mocking, half teasing as she looked upon the young woman.

Burned skin, torn clothes, disheveled as if she'd rolled in the mud, yet her eyes still shone brightly with defiance.

"Your innocence is disgusting." Karen's eyes lost their warmth, her arm shaking as she fought an internal battle. "But I'm the one who forged that innocence."

“Fucking excuse me?” Jenny stepped forward, her face furious. "I've been with the guild since the year it was opened!"

"You were a child!" Karen's whip slammed into the ground before Jenny, throwing debris at the beach-blond but missing by a hair. "You had no idea of the sharks surrounding us on all sides! You think Fanta City was conquered without spilling blood?!"

“What blood?” Jenny covered her face with her arms to protect herself from the flying stones. "And what does it have to do with any of this?!"

"It has everything to do with this!" Karen frothed, a truly furious expression on her face, as if everything she kept inside finally bubbled forth along with the very roots of her mana, pushing down on everyone. "After everything I did. After everything I sacrificed. After all my efforts to raise my guild to greatness."

Bacchus and Laxus writhed, their broken bones vibrating as the pressure beat down on them.

Karen shook violently and ignored the two, glaring solely at Jenny. “You all turned on me.”

“No one turned on you!” Jenny countered, taking a step forward without fear even as her legs buckled under the weight. “You were turning into a monster, Karen! We just wanted everyone to be friends again!”

“I became a monster for all of you!” The ground shattered beneath Karen’s feet, the air warping under her pressure as she bore down on Jenny as her focus. “I was the shield and weapon for a nest of traitors!”

“That’s not how the rest of us felt at all!” Jenny got within fifteen feet of the enraged woman, sweat beating down her face as she was nearly crushed beneath the pressure. “Karen! We’re family!”

The pressure stilled for just a moment.

“Family?”

Dark eyes stared, and Jenny finally felt fear as she didn’t recognize who was looking at her.

Karen’s arm rose. “I don’t have a family anymore.”

“No!” Bacchus and Laxus dug their fingers into the ground and rushed to get closer.

“Kar-!” Jenny couldn’t finish, shutting her eyes as she desperately tried to shift her arms into metal.

The whip came down.

A crack split the air.

Blood splattered.

Bacchus and Laxus froze ten feet away in shock.

“Enough.”

A distant clock chimed.

Jenny’s eyes fluttered open at the familiar voice, widening in surprise. “Dante!”

Dante stood before her, knife raised, catching the tip of the whip on dark teeth protruding from the spine.

A line of blood dripped across his cheek from where the tip grazed him.

Black whirls covered his face, mixing with the glowing green lines of his affinity, his green pupils surrounded by black sclera.

“You…” Karen’s eyes flashed with recognition of his markings, yet her rage simply found a new target. “Stay dead, snake!”

She ripped out her whip tip and reared back to swing again.

“I said enough.” Dante’s dark eyes flashed, and the three surrounding mages barely blinked before he appeared behind the S-Class mage, his dark blade drinking in a red sheen.

Something hit the ground, and Karen stared blankly at her severed hand, the handle of her whip still in its grip.

"Not bad." Karen whispered, her eyes closing briefly as she took a breath before they snapped open, and she turned with a raised leg to strike. "Finish it, snake!"

Dante met her gaze and sighed softly, flipping his knife in his grip.

“Dante, wait!” Jenny tried to rush forward, but she was too far.

Karen swung her leg just as a black knife cut through the air, reaching for her jugular, a small smile on her lips.

Her leg connected with flesh, a bone cracking under the strike, and she closed her eyes in peace.

Only for her to frown as no end came.

Karen opened her eyes, and her expression twisted in confusion at the blade inches from her throat.

Dante wore the same look.

“I’m only going to say this once.” Dante glanced around, resigned. “You bitches better hold me back.”

The dark sheen receded from his knife, leaving a chipped mess that fell apart quickly.

“Already on it.” Bacchus wheezed, his arm broken from blocking Karen’s kick, but his other arm was around Dante.

"Didn't seem right." Laxus wasn't in any better shape, as stopping Dante's strike jostled his broken ribs. "Jenny wasn't done."

“What?” Karen was the one truly confused, her features gradually shifting to anger as she realized she was robbed of her end. “How dare you!”

“No, how dare you!” Jenny’s voice came from behind, and Karen whipped around just in time for a palm to connect with her cheek, her head snapping to the side as her cheek reddened. “How dare you try to kill yourself and put the guilt on my friend!”

"Guilt?" Karen scoffed and spat out blood as she turned on the younger woman. "It's called a warrior's end, girl. Or do I need to teach you even that?"

“You already did!” Jenny grabbed Karen’s collar, screaming in her face. "A warrior dies for a worthy cause! That's what you said!" She waved her arm around them at the destruction in all directions. "What part of this is worthy?!"

"Worth is subjective." Karen's head swayed, but she still gritted her teeth and grabbed Jenny's hand, mana pulsing up from within. "Worth is-!"

A crack like breaking glass rang out from Karen’s chest.

“Karen?” Jenny whispered in concern as the woman slumped, falling against Jenny’s body to remain upright.

“S-should have…” Karen breathed softly, head momentarily on Jenny’s shoulder. “Let him kill me, upstart.”

The S-Class slipped off, falling out of Jenny’s shocked arms and hitting the ground.

“Karen!” Jenny finally reacted, reaching for the woman. “Dante! I know how this sounds, but please help!”

The beach blond's fingers just barely managed to shift into mini heated rods, pressing against Karen's stump to stop the blood flow.

“Yeah, yeah.” Dante grunted, yanking on his arms. “Guys, I’m good.”

"Fighting done?" Bacchus released him, taking a swaying step before he slumped over against a piece of debris. "I could use a drink."

"Do you ever shut up?" Laxus released Dante next, moving gingerly so he wouldn't jostle his wounds further, but still managing to punch Dante's shoulder. "Glad you're not dead."

“Won’t hear me complaining.” Dante stepped forward, dropping to a knee beside the paralyzed woman who nearly took his life a hundred times in the last hour. “Just so you know, I’m not a doctor.”

“That’s better than nothing!” Jenny held Karen’s head in her arms, the grey hair unable to hide how pale her skin was. “She’s lost too much blood.”

"It's more than that." Dante had a feeling as he glanced at the woman, his fingers pressing to her neck as he followed the pulse to her heart.

“What do you mean more?” Jenny asked desperately.

“Her Mana Channel is crippled.” The answer didn’t come from Dante, but from the soft footsteps of the approaching Virgo. “Her core has sustained heavy damage.”

Jenny’s face paled, while Laxus and Bacchus winced at the notorious death sentence for a mage.

Dante glanced her way, meeting the eyes of his maid, who looked back with a face he knew was holding back the storm of her emotions.

A distant chime sounded.

"Is it the same?" Dante asked simply, no judgment in his voice.

“It is.” Virgo nodded in understanding. “She will die from her wounds within the hour.”

“There has to be something that we-.” Jenny was cut off by a flash of light from Karen’s belt where her keys hung.

“Her contracts are breaking.” Virgo muttered, a trace of sorrow in her voice as if she was witnessing something tragic. “Her spirits are resisting the pull.”

The trio of silver keys on her belt pulsed weakly, fighting to stay connected.

The two golden keys, however, glowed as the dimension veil opened from the other side.

“Karen!”

“Mistress!”

Two Zodiacs appeared in a flash of light, both spirits fueling the summoning with their own energy as they landed at Karen’s side.

Neither showed issue with the surrounding mages; attention focused on their contractor.

Karen’s eyes fluttered open at the familiar voices. “Leo… Aries…” A harsh cough escaped her, her body wracked with pain. "Come to mock me in the end, traitors?"

“Karen. It wasn’t. I didn’t.” Leo stumbled over his words before his face twisted in frustration. “WHY DID YOU GO THIS FAR?!”

“Heh, noble Leo.” Karen chuckled softly. “Still… don’t understand.”

Leo went to say more, but Aries placed a hand on his arm, stopping him as she leaned in. "Mistress."

"Aries." Karen met the horned spirit's eyes, seeing not Leo's frustration but understanding. "You… get it."

“This was unnecessary.” Aries said softly, her shy façade gone as she reached forward to tuck a strand of grey hair behind Karen’s ear. “There were other ways to forgive yourself.”

“Those weren’t my ways.” Karen scoffed. “You should know that.”

Of the two Zodiacs, Aries was the first to be acquired, having walked alongside Karen for many years.

Aries smiled sadly, her hand grabbing Karen’s. “You silly child.”

Karen chuckled.

“Forgive what?” Jenny spoke up, tears in her eyes as she held her weakening role model. “What was so bad that this was necessary?”

Her tears fell, landing against Karen’s skin.

Karen smirked up at her, a trembling hand leaving Aries to rise up and wipe at Jenny's cheek. "Nothing at all, upstart."

“Stop lying.” Jenny hiccupped. “Stop hiding the truth.”

“The truth is whatever the winners say it is.” Karen’s hand fell, the strength leaving her arm. “Grow strong, Jenny.”

“Karen!”

Aries closed her eyes, a silent bygone prayer leaving her lips.

Leo was the one of the two still confused, never having expected things to go this far, but he still held his silence in respect for the warrior he knew his master to be.

Bacchus and Laxus stood, no matter the difficulty, each on their feet to witness the end of a renowned mage. 

A distant chime rang.

Virgo stepped up behind Dante, a hand falling to his shoulder.

Dante said nothing, his hand rising as well to meet hers.

No words were said, but a conversation passed between them.

An audible sigh left Dante’s lips.

Karen’s closing eyes shifted to him. “Snake.”

“Crazy woman.” Dante met her gaze. “You were a pain.”

Her lips twitched up. “You… were hard to kill.”

“I adapt.” Dante matched her look. “The farm is still an option.”

“Heh.” Karen chuckled, her eyes down to thin slits. “Maybe… in a… next… life.”

Her eyes slowly closed.

“Karen!” Jenny hugged her head as it went limp. “You’re not supposed to leave us!”

Leo's face scrunched up in a grimace as his contract shattered.

Aries silently wept as her own contract broke.

The three silver keys lost the fight, their contracts shattering as one.

Karen Lilica, the Ace of Blue Pegasus, the first S-Class of her guild, sword and shield at their front, went still.

Snowflakes fell gently from above, outlining a face that looked like it was finally at peace.

Bacchus’s hands itched for his gourd.

Laxus’s fists clenched, his own question to her still unanswered.

Jenny’s sob broke through.

The curtain fell on her grand finale.

“A second life, huh?”

Everyone flinched at the sharp voice.

Dante’s words cut through the gloom like a knife, a dark golden vial rolling in his hand. “Let’s put that to the test, crazy woman.”

He leaned forward. Virgo smiling proudly behind his back.

Leo frowned and reached out to stop Dante from whatever he was doing, but Aries snapped out and gripped his arm tight, the vambrace groaning under her strength.

The first Zodiac's gaze shifted from the vial to Virgo's expression, then back, before her eyes widened in shock. "In this era?"

“Dante?” Jenny’s tear-filled face looked up in confusion as Dante put the vial to Karen’s lips, her voice coming out small. “Is that going to help?”

“Shush.” Dante gently chided and closed his eyes to concentrate. “I didn’t give her permission to die.”

The liquid fell down Karen's throat, her body beginning to glow with a thousand glittering lights that quickly gathered over her heart under the awe-filled gazes.

A distant chime rang out once more.

00

The clock struck.

“Sir?” Voll stood at the ready.

Teams Wolfsbane and Nightshade stood ready.

The encirclement was complete, and not a mouse would sneak by.

Kama stood at the front of the surrounding army of agents with a heavy heart.

He held up his fist.

“Move in.”

Chapter End.

AN: Thoughts?