#ch: zeke hudson

[felicitykings]

BETSY ROSS & ZEKE HUDSON

NATIONAL TREASURE: EDGE OF HISTORY (2022- ) ↳ 1.10 Treasure Protectors

[navek15]

Fairy Tail: A New Day Ch. 1

Author's Note: I don't own anything except my OCs and any original magic I come up with. Also, it's been a while since I've seen the first episode of Fairy Tail, so the dialogue isn't 100% accurate.

Chapter 1: The Quartet becomes a Quintet It was early morning in the port town of Hargeon. As such, the daily train had arrived in town, and the passengers were leaving and entering. Among the passengers was an interesting looking group featuring two men, a woman, and a cat. The cat stood on two legs, had blue & white fur, a green scarf, a green backpack and black eyes. The scrawny man had scruffy brown hair, green eyes, lightly tan skin, wore a black t-shirt, jean shorts with a short sword with a black handle with a matching sheath, a green pentacle pendant on his left wrist, and a set of black & white sneakers. The woman was the tallest of the group with an amazonian physique, long orange hair that covered her cheeks, purple eyes, tan skin, a sleeveless red shirt, red fingerless gloves, long purple spandex pants, and black booties. Rounding off the group was the second male who was wearing a long-sleeve red shirt, a silver scarf, sandals and a green backpack. He had black eyes, spiky pink hair, and was currently writhing in pain on the station floor. "Oh thank Mavis! It's over!" He said. "You know, you could try to learn a spell to help with your motion sickness, Natsu." The brunette man stated. "Impossible. Natsu sucks at any magic that isn't Dragon Slayer magic." The cat replied. "Shut up, Happy." The woman sighed and helped Natsu on his feet. The pink head leaned on her shoulders. "Thanks, Alyssa." "No problem. Now come on, let's find Sala..." The three noticed that their friend had already started walking away. "Zeke, wait up!" Happy yelled as the three followed after him. A little while later, the quartet was walking through town until they heard some woman screaming. "It's Salamander!" "He's so hot!" "Did you hear that, guys? He's here!" Natsu exclaimed as he ran with glee. "Well, what are we waiting for?" Alyssa said as she smiled. "Aye." Happy ran after them. "Um, guys. Don't you think this is a little strange?" Zeke asked as his friends ran off. "Guys? Wait up!" The two reached a large circle of women. The group cut through as Natsu started exclaiming, "Igneel! Igneel! It's me, Natsu!" The quartet finally reached the middle and found a man with blue hair, a tattoo on his face, wore a white button up shirt, a jacket over his shoulder, plaid pants, and several rings on his hands. "Who the hell are you?" The four of them asked. "Why I am the great and mighty Salamander." The man smugly stated. He pulled out four pieces of paper with his name on them. "Would you care for my autograph?" "Ya, no thanks." Zeke replied with a deadpan expression. In response, the fan girls tossed him violently against a dumpster. "Why me?" As his friends helped him back up, Salamander told the ladies they were all invited to a party on his yacht later that night before taking off on a stream of fire. "So is it me, or did that guy seem like a real creep?" Alyssa asked. "That's probably cause he is a creep." The four turned and saw a blonde girl with an hourglass figure, brown eyes, a blue & white shirt, a blue skirt and black boots. On the sides of her skirt was a keychain with several gold and silver keys. "Hi, my name's Lucy." A little while later, the group was eating at a local restaurant. After introducing themselves, Lucy told the group about how Salamander was using a forbidden form of magic known as a Charm Spell. The team's sudden arrival broke her out of her trance, and that's why she was treating them to lunch (which she was starting to regret as Natsu was savagely eating every item on the menu as everyone else ate a regular meal.) "That reminds me. Why weren't you affected by the Charm spell, Alyssa?" Lucy asked the orange-haired woman. "Well, it's quite simple. Why would I fall for a charm spell..." She reached under Natsu chin and turned his head, making the stare into each other's eyes. "When I already have my dream guy?" Natsu blushed a bit at the compliment. "Nice to know I can ward off charm spells for you." Lucy almost swore she saw the air sparkle around them. "Oh, Natsu." She said dreamily. "Alyssa." He replied back. "Natsu." "Alyssa." Zeke and Happy sweat dropped as the two keep repeating each other's names. "They're at it again." The cat stated. "Nice going, Lucy." The blonde girl laughed in embarrassment. "By the way, you guys said you were looking for a different Salamander, right?" The question broke Natsu and Alyssa out of their couple trance as Natsu answered. "That's right. We heard a rumor that a Salamander was in town." "Too bad that guy was a total dud." Happy responded. "No kidding. He looked nothing like a dragon." Alyssa stated. "I bet he can't even breath fire." "So your friend looks like a dragon?" Lucy asked. "No, he doesn't look like a dragon. He is a dragon." Natsu answered. "And you thought a dragon would be in a town?!" The blonde asked. The four suddenly had the same realization about the fallacy in their logic. "Are you just realizing that?!" After paying the check, Lucy got up and left. However, as she turned back, she saw the Natsu and Happy bowing on the floor as Zeke and Alyssa nodded while standing up. "Thank you for the meal!" The four of them said. "Stop it! You're embarrassing me!" Later, the four were walking around the town at night since their train wasn't leaving until tomorrow. The group stopped at a bridge that overlooked the city and ocean, giving them a fantastic view. "Well, better luck next time." Zeke said to cheer Natsu up. "Ya." The salmon-haired man replied as Alyssa rubbed his head. However, the group overheard a few girls walking past them. They were talking about Salamander, but this time they said he was the same mage from the Fairy Tail Guild that Lucy mentioned that she wanted to join. This got the group's attention as they stared down a yacht in the distance. Meanwhile, on said yacht, Lucy (who had gotten invited by Salamander on the grounds that he would put a good word for her at Fairy Tail) was being held by two goons. She had just learned that Salamander had drugged all the women he invited and was planning on selling them in Bosco. To make things worst, he had thrown her Gate Keys into the ocean. "You're the worst kind of wizard!" She yelled out. Suddenly, the roof of the ship exploded as Zeke landed on the floor. "All I needed to hear." The brunette man said as he held a green longbow in his left hand and pointed it at Salamander. "Now prepare to face to the might of the Hudson Legacy!" "Zeke!" Lucy happily exclaimed. "Well, well. If it isn't the rude brunette from earlier." Salamander angrily stated. "Hi, Lucy!" Happy said from above. However, the blonde noticed something different about the cat. "Happy, when did you get wings?" "I'll explain later." The winged cat said as he wrapped Lucy in his tail and took off. "Wait, we can't leave Zeke! He's fighting a wizard plus a bunch of goons with just a bow! He didn't even have any arrows on him!" "Don't worry; he can handle himself." Happy replied. On the ship, Zeke was staring down the human traffickers with genuine hatred. "Let's rock." He said as his right hand glowed green. Back at the port, Natsu and Alyssa were waiting on the sea wall, bored out of their minds. "Why did we have to wait?" Natsu sighed. "Because you would get motion sickness on the boat and I'm too heavy for Happy to carry." The amazon sighed along with her boyfriend. Suddenly, the two spotted a tidal wave heading in their direction. "HOLY SHIT!" They yelled. "Alyssa!" Natsu exclaimed. "Right!" She replied and disappeared in a flash. After the wave hit, Natsu quickly got up and started looking through the ship. "Zeke! Where are you?!" "Over here." A voice said under some rubble. The salmon-haired man quickly threw off the debris and saw his pal crouched and covered in a green bubble, which dissipated. "Thanks, bro. I don't know what the hell happened. One minute I was beating up some schmucks, the next minute I get swept up in a freak tidal wave from nowhere!" "Hey, guys!" The two turned and saw Alyssa run towards them. "Are you okay?" "Yep." The two answered. "I don't know about you guys, but I am 110% done with this impostor." The tall woman said as she cracked her knuckles. "Well then. Let's show give these guys a Team Morningstar beat down!" Natsu exclaimed. "Here, here!" Zeke said as the three of them headed up to the top of the wrecked ship. "Hey, Salamander!" Natsu yelled, catching the blue-haired charmer and his goon's attention. "You said you're a Fairy Tail Wizard, right?" "Yeah. What of it?" "That's funny." Alyssa said as she put her hair in a ponytail, revealing a purple mark on her cheek. Natsu tore off his tattered jacket, revealing an open black vest and the same mark in red on his right shoulder. Zeke lowered his t-shirt and showed the same mark on his collarbone but in green. "Cause we happen to be Fairy Tail wizards ourselves." "So you mind telling us why we've never seen you before?" Zeke said as his pendant glowed, releasing a stream of magical energy into his left hand that turned into the green longbow from earlier. "Well, there's a simple explanation for that. You see...PROMINENCE BLAST!" He unleashed a stream of violet fire and hit their position. "Oh no!" Lucy yelled. However, the fire started to get sucked into something. When the smoke cleared, it was revealed that the something was Natsu eating the fire. "Geez, this is the worst fire I've ever tasted." Everyone besides the four friends gasped in surprised. "Wait, I recognize these guys!" A goon stated. "Those marks. Those are real Fairy Tail marks Bora." "Don't call me that, you dunce!" The blue-haired man exclaimed. "Bora? So you're Bora the Prominence!" Alyssa stated. "Didn't you get kicked out of the Titan Nose Guild for bad behavior?" The brunette archer. "Don't just stand there you idiots! Get them!" Bora ordered and a group of goons charged. However, an orange & red blur took knocked them faster than they could react. The blur stopped and revealed herself as Alyssa. "Here's the thing, Bora." Natsu said as heat started radiating off him. "You try to dirty Fairy Tail's name; your ass is as good as beat." More goons charged as Natsu inhaled. "Fire Dragon's..." He held his hands out in a tunnel in front of him. "ROAR!" The salmon-haired wizard unleashed a massive torrent of flames. Some more goons tried to get them another direction, but Zeke smirked and created several energy arrows in his right hand. He loaded them and aimed. "Arch Shot: Rapid Succession!" He unleashed a stream of arrows that quickly hit the goons. "Speed Queen: Hundred-Strike Kick!" A purple magic seal appeared behind her as Alyssa kicked the biggest goon with hyper-fast kicks, knocking him out. "They're really Fairy Tail wizards!?" Lucy asked. "Aye. Natsu's Fire Dragon Slayer Magic gives him all the properties of a dragon. Alyssa's Speed Queen Magic allows her to move at hyper speed. And Zeke's Archery Magic lets him create a bow and arrows using his own magic energy." Happy exclaimed. "Together, these three form one of Fairy Tail's greatest teams: Morningstar!" "Okay, enough of this!" Bora exclaimed as he rose on his Red Carpet spell. "Prominence Shower!" He unleashed a torrent of violet fire, but the three dodged the blasts. Zeke created a single arrow and aimed it. "Arch Shot: Seeker Arrow!" He let go and fired a stream that Bora evaded. "You missed!" The brunette smirked. "Think again." He held up his right pointer and middle fingers, which had a green magic seal over them. He waved his hand, and the stream turned, surprising Bora and forcing him to dodge. However, as he was evading the green stream of death, Alyssa ran underneath the flying impostor with a smile. "Got ya! Speed Queen: Twin Twister!" She spun her arms so fast she created two twisters that consumed Bora. "What the hell?!" Bora asked as he was tossed around by the winds. Natsu jumped into the air and covered his fist in fire. "Time for a hot fisting, you fake!" "Say what?!" "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" He punched the slaver so hard, he flew and hit a close-by bell tower. "And that's another win for Team Morningstar!" Alyssa said as she gave her teammates a tight hug. "Wow, you guys went completely overboard!" Lucy yelled. The three stopped their celebration and saw that most of the town near the beach had been totaled. "Don't worry. I got all the civilians out in time." Alyssa stated. "And to be fair Lucy, you and the fish lady did most of the damage." Happy said. "You caused that tidal wave?!" Zeke yelled. "What fish lady?" Natsu asked. But before they could continue their conversation, the five noticed the military heading in their direction. "Oh shit! We gotta move!" The team ran as fast as they could, Lucy being dragged off by Zeke. "Why are you taking me?" She asked as Happy flew over them. "You said you wanted to join Fairy Tail, right?" Zeke asked. Lucy looked at the three smiling wizards in surprise. "So let's go!" Natsu said excitingly. Lucy smiled back at them and started willingly run away with the four. And thus, a small circle of close friends gained a new member.

So that's my first real foray into Fairy Tail Fanfiction (I love alliteration). Now let me explain my OCs.

First is an OC that any of you familiar with my stories is aware of, Ezekiel 'Zeke' Hudson. I decided to sort of make him the straight man to some of Team Morningstar's more wacky moments. Also, I based his magic on a power set from another favorite anime of mine: The Quincys from Bleach.

Second is the one that might get some NaLu shippers mad. And that is my sort of expy of Shadow Skill's Elle Ragu (at least in terms of body type), Alyssa. I always thought that Natsu needed a girl that wouldn't punch him at the slightest instance of stupidity and I wanted to throw some people's expectations. Plus, this Natsu is a tad smarter than his Canon counterpart. Also, since super-speed had become one of my favorite superpowers (Thank you Flash), I decided to give her a form of Speed Magic. It also provides a reason on how Team Morningstar can cause so much damage without civilian casualties.

And as for why they're called Team Morningstar...it sounded cool. Hey, if the Avengers could get away with it, why can't I?

And don't worry, I'll explain the history of these two as the story progresses.

[felicitykings]

AGENT ROSS & DOCTOR HUDSON

NATIONAL TREASURE: EDGE OF HISTORY (2022- ) ↳ 1.09 A Meeting With Salazar

[navek15]

Fairy Tail: A New Day Ch. 6

Chapter 6: Alyssa VS Erza

Eisenwald’s failed attempt to assassinate the guild masters with Lullaby ended up being big news. It made all the papers and it seemed like everybody was talking about it. Before joining Fairy Tail, I never would’ve imagined I’d be part of such a big event. It feels awesome, but I’m not gonna let it go to my head.

It still makes my heart skip a beat when I think about everything we went through. Kageyama gave himself up to authorities and Makarov put in a good word for him, so he might be out in a few months if he behaves. They even caught most of Eisenwald, so that’s reassuring at least. Scary thing is, they still haven’t able to track down Erigor. I’m worried he might show up at Fairy Tail looking for revenge.

But I’ll be okay, cause I’m with Team Morningstar. Alyssa, Zeke, Natsu and Happy all have my back no matter what. Not mention Gray and Erza, who are still trying to come up with a name for their team. Fairy Tail is awesome, and my fellow members are really great people. So don’t worry Mom, I’m doing fine.

P.S. Please don’t tell Dad any of this, kay?

Lucy sighed as she sealed the letter in an envelope. It had been three days since the battle with Eisenwald and Lullaby and she was looking forward to a relaxing day. As she stretched, she heard a knock at the door and walked towards it. She opened it and saw Zeke and his dad.

“Morning, Lucy.” Zeke greeted with a smile. Lyle whistled as he looked the apartment.

“Not a bad place for 70,000 Jewel a month.”

“Oh, hey Zeke. Mr. Hudson.” Lucy greeted back. “What are you guys doing here?”

“We came to remind you about the fight.” Zeke stated, confusing Lucy.

“What fight?”

“Don’t remember what happened before we left for Onibas a few days ago?” The archer asked. The celestial wizard thought for a second before remembering Alyssa challenging Erza to a fight when they got back.

“They’re seriously going through with that?!”

“Yup. In fact, the fight’s gonna start in about twenty minutes.” Lyle said as he looked at his watch. “Should be pretty exciting.”

A few minutes later, the three of them walked towards the back of the guild where most of Fairy Tail had crowded in a circle. Lucy looked at the center and saw Alyssa and Erza standing in the middle as several spectators cheered their names.

“Look like we made it.” Zeke stated.

“Oh, hey guys.” Mirajane said as she noticed the three new arrivals.

“About time.” A shirtless Gray stated.

“If those two value their manhood, they better fight with their all.” Elfman proclaimed.

“Um, Erza and Alyssa aren’t men.” Lyle replied with a sweat drop.

“But you gotta admit they’re both manly.” Macao replied. Suddenly, he smelt something burning before noticing the bottom of his coat was on fire. “Real mature, Natsu.” The purple flare wizard said as he put out the flame.

“Then don’t say my girlfriend’s manly.” The group turned and saw Natsu and Happy decked out in cheer uniforms (which they borrowed from Jet and Droy) while Natsu carried a flag with a chibi version of Alyssa’s face and the word ‘Victory!’ in bright red. Happy on the other hand was carrying a tambourine.

“Don’t you guys think you’re going a bit overboard?” Zeke asked.

“Nope.” The salmon-haired wizard replied as he started waving the flag in the air. “Kick her ass, Alyssa!”

“Aye!” Happy replied as he played his instrument. The orange-haired woman turned and smiled at her boyfriend and his cat cheering her one as she was putting on a pair of purple metal arm guards.

“So much for the strongest team in Fairy Tail.” Lucy sighed.

“What are you talking about?” Gray asked.

“You, Natsu, Alyssa, Zeke and Erza ya dummy.” The blonde replied. “You’re the five strongest wizards in the guild.”

“Ya right. What idiot fed ya that line?” The ice wizard asked, causing Mirajane to tear up. “Oh, you’re not an idiot, Mira.”

“Smooth move, Gray.” Zeke said.

“I’ll hand it to Natsu and Gray, they’re tough little dudes. But neither of them are even close to being the strongest. There are guys in Fairy Tail stronger than both of them combined.” Elfman stated before he pointed to himself. “Like this guy!”

“But Erza and Alyssa are in top three for the strongest woman in the guild.” Levy stated.

“As far as guys go, it’s a tough call, but I’d put my money on Laxus, Mystogan or Lyle.” Jet said, surprising Lucy as she turned towards the older man.

“You’re one of the strongest?”

The bespectacled man rubbed his head in embarrassment.

“All I meant was that the five of them work well together and they have the best team chemistry in all of Fairy Tail.” Mirajane said with overly dramatic tears.

“If you were just talking about Me, Natsu and Alyssa, then you’d be right. But throwing Gray and Erza in mix screws up our entire team dynamic.” Zeke stated. “Lucy, however, meshes much better with the team.”

“Aw, thanks.” The aforementioned blonde replied.

“Gotta say, I’m pretty synched to see how this fight turns out.” Elfman said.

“It’s a bit of a close call, but I’m putting my money on Erza.” Gray said before turning towards Elfman. “By the way, me and her are putting a team together. Want to join?”

The manly man thought for a bit before smirking. “Sounds like fun! Count me in.”

“Great. Now we just need one more member.” The ice wizard said.

“Why don’t you ask Cana?” Mirajane asked with a certain smile. “I’m sure she’ll have no problem working with you.”

Gray raised his eyebrow as he turned to where Cana was. The heavy drinker was in charge of taking bets for the fight and she was currently bending forward to take Romeo’s bet. While the younger man wasn’t paying attention, the Ice Wizard’s face reddened at the sight of her bikini-clad cleavage. “Sure, I guess.” Gray said as Mira giggled.

“It’s been quite a while since we’ve squared off like this.” Erza said as she stared down her taller opponent. “Though I hope you don’t mind me asking about those arm guards.”

“Just some extra safety measures.” Alyssa replied as she made the last adjustment. “Wouldn’t want to punch one of your swords and cut myself.”

“So you’ve learned.” The redhead smiled as she summoned her winged hilt sword. “Don’t expect me to go easy on you.”

Alyssa got into a fighting stance, giving a smirk of her own. “Wouldn’t be much fun if you did.”

“Go Alyssa! GO!” Natsu and Happy cheered as the two woman stared each other down. The tension building up.

“Round 1 starts!” Makarov said, signaling the beginning of the fight as Alyssa blasted and started throwing super-speed punches at Erza, the armored woman parrying with her swords as the clanging of the sword and the arm guards echoed through the air. When Erza swung down, Alyssa blocked the strike and smirked.

“Gotcha!” She stated, kneeing the redhead in the face.

“And first blood goes to Alyssa.” Wakaba commented.

Erza quickly recovered as her armor started to glow. “Requip: Heaven’s Wheel!” The light faded to reveal her Valkyrian armor and she took off, her many swords spinning in a clock formation behind her. “Dance, my swords!” Erza chanted as she swung, causing the wheel of swords to spiral towards Alyssa. However, the orange-haired woman had a counter for this.

“Speed Queen: Tornado!” Spinning at such high speeds caused a tornado to appear on the battlefield. The spiraling swords were sucked into the torrent of wind. Inside the tornado, Alyssa grabbed the swords as she spun and tossed them back at Erza, causing the flying woman to evaded and block her own swords as they were fired back at her. Using the last of the tornado’s strength, Alyssa shot herself towards Erza and the two unleashed their respective attacks.

“Spiral Swords!”

“Speed Queen: Hundred-Strike Punch!”

Sparks flew through the air as superfast punches and flying swords countered each other.

“Woah!” Lucy said, astonished by the ferocity of the battle.

“Now this is a fight!” Elfman commented as Natsu and Happy continued their cheering.

The two opposing wizards landed on the ground as Erza requipped to her Black Wing Armor. 'Looks like it’s time try out a new trick.’ Alyssa thought to herself as her arms started rapidly vibrating. She raised her arms over her head.

“Speed Queen…” However, a loud gong-like noise stopped the fight and drew everyone’s attention to an anthropomorphic frog creature in elaborate clothing.

“This fight is over!” The frog said in a womanly voice, not paying attention to Happy and Natsu booing her. “May I have your attention, please? I have come here on behalf of the Magic Council.”

“No way!” Levy said in surprise.

“Seriously?!” Jet exclaimed.

“Why would the council send her here?” Droy asked.

“Am I the only who noticed she’s a frog?!” Lucy asked.

“Believe it not, I’ve seen weirder stuff than this.” Zeke replied.

“As a result of the Eisenwald incident, a member of your guild has been charged with eleven counts of criminal property damage.” The frog lady stated. “Erza Scarlet, you are under arrest!”

“WHAAAAT?!” The guild exclaimed. Erza looked at the frog-woman in shock before requiping her back to her base armor and holding out her arms.

“Very well.” She said solemnly. “I’ll come along peacefully.” She stated as a pair of magic-blocking handcuffs were placed on her.

“Hold up!” The redhead and the frog turned and saw Lyle walking towards them. “I assume there’s going to be a trial, right?”

“Yes, that is correct.” The frog lady replied.

“In that case…” The bearded man said he raised his glasses, giving them a glaring effect. “I will act as Ms. Scarlet’s legal defense!”

The crowd of wizards started chatting amongst themselves as Macao and Wakaba shared a look and grinned.

And then…

It had been two hours since Erza, Lyle and the frog lady had left for the Fiore branch of the Magic Council and for most, the tension in the air was still high. For others though…

“Got any eights?” Zeke asked.

“Go fish. Mmmmm, fish.” Happy replied with drool coming down his mouth as Zeke pulled another card from the deck. Alyssa was laying her head on the bar counter, pouting as Natsu patted her on the shoulder.

“Hey, you were still awesome today!” The dragon-slayer said as he tried to cheer his girlfriend up.

“I still wanted to finish the fight.”

“Aren’t you guys worried about Erza?” Lucy asked, surprised by her teammate’s nonchalant attitude.

“Normally, we would be. But my dad knows the Council’s laws inside and out.” Zeke replied.

“If anyone can get Erza off the hook, it’s Lyle.” Wakaba stated.

“I just don’t get it.” Elfman said. “We’ve destroyed plenty of stuff in the past and they’ve never made a big deal out of it.”

“I know. It doesn’t make any sense.” Laki replied.

“You think they got some kind of ulterior motive?” Natsu asked.

“Whatever the case, all we can do now is wait and see what happens.” Makarov said with a grim expression. While the old master did have faith in Lyle to get Erza off the hook, he couldn’t help but feel like trouble was brewing.

Meanwhile, Erza was being escorted to the courtroom by the frog lady. However, the two stopped when they saw a man about Erza’s age with short blue hair, a strange tattoo on the right side of his face, black eyes and a white outfit.

“Siegrain.” Erza said in shock as the frog-woman kneeled.

“It’s been quite a while, Erza.” The blue-haired man said as he noticed Erza tensing up. “Please relax. I’m only here in spirit. I’m sending this projection from Era. In fact, all the wrinkled faces in that courtroom are projections as well. We didn’t think it necessary to be here for such a trivial matter.”

“I see. So you’re the one who’s behind this farce? You make me sick.” The redhead said with a scowl.

“Let’s be civil.” The projection said as he approached her. “I’ve always been a staunched defender of Fairy Tail. But the elders are worried that the blame for Clover’s destruction will into their laps. And the only way to avoid that is to place the blame on someone else entirely. You’re their scapegoat.”

“Enough!” The armored woman yelled.

“Just a friendly warning. In fact, it’s another matter altogether what I wish to discuss with you.” The projection said as it placed its hand on Erza’s chin, leaned in and whispered. “Don’t let a word slip about you know what. For both of our sakes.”

He ignored Erza’s glare as he walked back. “I must join my colleagues on the council. I’ll see you shortly on the other side.” And with that, the projection vanished.

“Oh wow.” The frog woman said. “You know from very important people.”

“He’s evil.” Erza replied under her breath.

“Well, that was ominous.” A piece of the wall said before it changed into a humanoid shape and then back into Lyle, who was holding a glowing lacrima. “You know, it’s people like him that make the common man hate politicians.”

“And still don’t see why you decided to hide.” The redhead said.

“Call it a hunch, but I wanted to see what kind of argument I would need to bring up.” He then held up the lacrima. “But it looks like this case is already in the bag.”

A few minutes later, Erza and Lyle were standing before the judge and the Magic Council.

“This courtroom will now come to order.” A frog person said. “Before us is the defendant Erza Scarlet. Please take the stand, Ms. Scarlet.”

The redheaded woman did just that as she walked forward and faced the Magic Council, Siegrain watching with a bemused expression.

“Erza Scarlet, you stand before the council accused of the destruction caused during the Eisenwald incident.” The judge stated. “These charges include the extensive damage to Oshibana station, the collapse of the Ryushika Gorge bridge and the complete destruction of the Clover Conference Hall. We understand that you have a legal defense with Mr. Hudson and we allow to make your case.”

“Thank you, your honor.” Lyle said as he took the stand. “Now, I can go into an argument about how all the collateral damage was purely accidental. I can say how the lives of the guild masters outweighed the integrity of their meeting hall. But that’s all things I would do for a real trial, not this nonsensical farce.”

The council members started talking with each other. “What do mean by farce?”

“Well, I have evidence that this trial is nonsensical right here.” Lyle said as he pulled out the lacrima from earlier. “If it pleases the court, I would like to present my evidence.”

“You may.” Lyle smirked as he held out the lacrima which shot out projections of Erza, Siegrain and the frog lady. The projections started to speak exactly like the real people had spoken to each other earlier.

'A recording lacrima?! But he wasn’t even in the room.’ Siegrain thought to himself before remembering what Lyle’s magic was. 'Very clever, Mr. Hudson.’

And then…

“Hear hear!” Wakaba said as the three friends tapped their beer glasses together. It was a few hours later and Lyle & Erza had returned to the guild hall. “I told these kids you’d get her off the hook.”

“I didn’t even have to bring out the handbook for this.” Lyle gloated. “After I showed them the recording and pointed out that Ms. Scarlet was never read their rights, the whole trial pretty much folded in on itself.”

“Ya, most of didn’t even notice that.” Macao said as the rest of the guild was celebrating Erza not going to jail. But then again, they didn’t need that much of an excuse to throw a party.

“So, you want to continue our fight, tin can?” Alyssa asked the redhead as she ate a strawberry cheesecake.

“Perhaps another time. Right now, I’m not in the mood.” Erza replied, making the taller woman pout in disappointment.

“Well then, I guess the only thing to do make our team official.” Gray said as he, Elfman and Cana sat in the same table as Erza. “I’ve got a few names for our team.” The ice wizard said as he pulled out a rolled up piece of paper. “Snow Storm.”

“Nope.” The other three replied.

“Avalanche.”

“Nope.”

“Tundra Blast.”

“Nope.”

“Blizzard Wizards.”

“Okay first off, that name is incredibly stupid.” Elfman stated. “Two, are all these names some kind of play on Ice or cold stuff?”

“Um, no.” Gray said as he quickly crossed off 97% percent of the names on his list.

“I can’t believe all that worrying was for nothing.” Lucy said as she laid her head on a table.

“Told you not to worry.” Zeke replied as he was drawing up some blueprints. Lucy looked at the blueprints in confusion, which the brunette archer noticed. “Just some ideas for an improved bow.”

“You can do that later!” Natsu yelled as he held up a jug of fire whiskey. “Come on! Let’s party!”

“Aye!” Happy replied as the guild continued to have a good time.

“Now this is much better.” Mirajane said with a smile as she watched her guildmates partying it up. However, she heard the master groan and saw that he was having trouble keeping his eyes open. “Are you okay, Master?”

“Ya, I’m just feeling…a bit…tired.” Makarov said as his voice started to waver. Mira suddenly felt very tired and fell to the floor. “He’s here.”

All around the guild, everyone started falling asleep left and right. “Oh come on dude, don’t be a di…” Zeke said before he passed out on the table.

As the majority of the guild aside from Lyle and Makarov were soundly asleep, a man in several robes that concealed everything aside from his black eyes and a sheathed sword on his back. He went to the job request board and pulled a poster from it. He approached groggy Makarov and placed the poster in front of him.

“I shall return.”

“Wait, Mystogan. Lift the sleeping spell before you go.” The shorter man grunted.

“He’s right.” The covered man turned and saw Lyle struggling to stay awake. “You can’t keep doing this.”

Mystogan just turned and started walking away. “5…4…3…2…1.” He counted down as he exited the guild hall. As soon as he left, the sleep spell wore off and everyone started waking up.

“Aw man. Was Mystogan here?” Jet asked.

“What a jerk.” Droy said.

“Who’s Mystogan?” Lucy asked.

“He’s a contender for Fairy Tail’s strongest wizard.” Elfman answered.

“But over the years, he’s gotten so anti-social that he casts a sleeping spell whenever he enters the guild.” Alyssa stated with a bit of gloom in her voice. “Lyle and the Master are the only ones who have seen Mystogan in the past four years.”

“That’s not true.” A voice from the second floor said, drawing everyone’s attention. The man who said that was a spiky blonde-haired man in his mid-twenties with a lightning-shaped tattoo on the right side of his face, a buttoned-up shirt, pants, spiked headphones and a fur jacket draped over his shoulders. “I saw him.”

“Laxus?” Erza asked.

“Well, this is rare.” Elfman stated.

“So that’s Laxus.” Lucy stated, remembering the name of one of Fairy Tail’s strongest wizards.

“Mystogan’s just a little shy.” The blonde man said. “You should all respect his privacy. Not it concerns any of you weaklings.”

“He’s our friend, so of course this concerns us!” Natsu yelled up at the older man. “If you weren’t affected by the sleeping spell, why haven’t you tried to snap him out of his loner attitude crap?”

“You should be careful with your tongue, Natsu.” Laxus said with a menacing grin. “Or do you want a repeat of our last fight? What was it, two minutes you lasted against me before you passed out?”

“Why don’t come down here and fight me?! See if that happens again!” Natsu growled as he ignited his fists.

“You come up to me, little man.” The feral-looking man taunted. The pink-haired growled some more and was about to charge until Alyssa put her hand on his shoulder.

“Just keep this in mind.” Laxus said as he addressed the guild. “The strongest wizard in Fairy Tail isn’t some chick in armor, a guy in a hood, or a couple past their prime. If you want to know who the strongest on here is, you’re looking right at him!”

“That’s enough out of you, Laxus!” Makarov yelled at his grandson.

“Tell me something, Laxus.” Zeke said as he walked past his downed friend and started walking up the stairs to the second floor. “How comfortable is your head when it’s shoved so far up your ass?”

“Ah, Zeke. Still overcompensating with your mouth, I see.” Laxus replied with his shit-eating grin.

“And you’re still acting you own the place, Thunder Crotch.” Zeke retorted back.

“Considering I’m next guild master, I technically do.”

“And what makes you think you’ll ever be Guild Master?” The brunette archer said with a glare.

“Well let’s take a look at my competition.” The blonde man said. “A womanizer who isn’t here half the time, a woman who spends more time with the Royal Knights than her family, an old man who’s already past his prime, an anti-social numbnuts who hasn’t spoken to anyone but the geezer in years, a redhead with severe anger issues…” He stood up, showing his large figure as he continued to mock his guildmates. “And then there’s you. The weakest S-Class wizard in the guild who only became an S-Class because Mommy put in a good word for you.”

“That’s a damn lie and you know it!” Zeke yelled as he started channeling his magic.

“So what are you gonna do about it, Momma’s boy?” Laxus smirked as lightning started appearing out his hand.

“That’s enough, you two!” Lyle shouted. Hearing his dad’s voice got Zeke out of his rage and made his magic disappear.

“That’s right. Know your place.” The blonde man taunted. “After all, I’ve taken on three S-Class missions this month. The only one you took ended in disaster.”

Zeke scowled at the taller man before turning away and walking towards the S-Class job board. He looked at the three and pulled one from the board. “Master, I’d like a word in private.” The archer stated. The old guild master looked with a concerned expression and jumped off the counter, the two of them headed for his office as the rest of the guild looked on with concern.

A few minutes later, Zeke and Makarov walked out, the archer having a determined look on his face. He held out a poster with the S-Class marking and a picture of an island. “Natsu, Alyssa, Happy, Lucy! Pack your bags! Team Morningstar is going on our first S-Class quest to Galuna Island!”

Everyone in the guild was shocked, except for Laxus, who just keep his arrogant smirk. “Better start planning the funeral arrangements.”

“Oh yeah! We’re ready for the big time!” Natsu cheered. Alyssa looked with surprise before slamming her fist into her palm.

“Finally! I’ve been waiting for this!” The speed queen said with a smirk.

“I got get my fishing gear ready!” Happy stated as he ran off.

“Wait? What? Who?” Lucy asked in confusion. “What the hell’s an S-Class?”

Lyle looked at his son with concern and saw the expression on his son’s face. His mind went to an image of his wife with the same expression. 'He really does take after you, Amelia.’

Meanwhile…

In the hall of the Tortoise Shell guild, all of the wizards laid unconscious as several men & woman in pirate attire searched the building. The floors, tables, bar, and walls had been torn up from the earlier battle as a young man was walking through the wreckage, a modified saber sheathed on his left waist and a modified flintlock in his right holster. With outfit consisted of black boots, black pants, a white buttoned-up shirt, and an elaborate red pirate coat that contrasted sharply with his short dark blue hair and right brown eye. The other one being covered by a black eye patch.

“Pathetic.” The one-eyed man stated as walked past some downed wizards. “I know Tortoise Shell isn’t a top-tier guild, but I expected a better fight than this.”

“Captain!” The young man looked up and saw an orange and black-stripped anthropomorphic male tiger that was standing on his hind legs. He wore a pair of black pants and had a few scars on his face. “I found something you might be interested in.” The tiger jumped from the second floor and landed in front of the young pirate. The tiger then handed the blue-haired man a piece of paper.

“Galuna Island? Why would that interest me, Hu?”

“Look at the reward. And I’m not talking about the 7,000,000 jewels.” The one-eyed man looked down at the reward offered and smiled.

“Excellent work, old friend.” The Captain said as he pulled out a red key from his coat. The key had a claw as the teeth and a claw-slashing symbol on end of it. “Tell the others I said hi.”

“Sure thing.” The tiger said with a grin as he vanished in a stream of light, the Captain put away the key.

“Alright, guys! Collect our fee and ready the ship!” The young pirate said with a mischievous glint in his eye. “We’re headed for Galuna!”

“Aye-aye, Captain!” The men and women replied, ready to follow their young leader.

To be continued…

[navek15]

Fairy Tail: A New Day Ch. 4

Chapter 4: Team Morningstar vs. Eisenwald Zeke groaned as his alarm started to ring. Still a bit tired, the archer turned off his alarm and walked towards his window, opening it to reveal the morning sun. Team Morningstar had just come back from the Everlue job yesterday and the brunette was looking forward for another day at Fairy Tail. His room was pretty standard. A desk/bookshelf containing some of his favorite literary works, a few mechanisms spread over the room, and two pictures on his dresser. The first picture showed Team Morningstar when they were younger, Zeke wearing a pair of spiral-patterned glasses and Alyssa being the smallest of the group along with a silver-haired girl and another brown-haired boy. The other picture had Zeke as a kid as he was in the arms of his smiling parents. After getting dressed and grooming himself, the archer wizard walked down the stairs and smelled something cooking as he entered the kitchen. "Good morning, bud." A man in his late 40s greeted him. He was a large man with brown hair and a matching beard with brown eyes behind a pair of rectangular glasses. He wore a white undershirt and black sweatpants. He also had a blue Fairy Tail mark on his left forearm. This was Lyle Hudson, father of Ezekiel Hudson and husband to Amelia Hudson. "One of your friends showed up." Zeke raised an eyebrow and turned to see Happy on their dinner table eating a cooked fish. "Good morning, Zeke." "Morning Happy." Zeke said as he sat down at the table. "So what brings you our humble abode?" "Natsu and Alyssa are on a date and I didn't want to feel like the third wheel." The cat answered. "Sorry about that." "It's okay." Happy said with a smile. "Natsu promised that he would take me fishing after our next mission." "Good for you." Zeke smiled as his dad put down a platter of pancakes. "Kind of early for a date though." Lyle said as he sat down. "Aye. But then again those two aren't a normal couple." "That's true." Lyle chuckled, having known his son's teammates for years. "By the way, I talked with Amelia last night and she said she should be able to visit next week." Hearing this brought a smile to Zeke's face. "Mom's coming home? Awesome!" After the three had finished breakfast (and Lyle had changed into a blue polo shirt, black slacks and brown shoes), they headed for Fairy Tail and saw that the place was lively as ever. "Lyle, you old son of a bitch!" Wakaba said as the two shook hands. "Finally back from that Translation mission in Bosco, huh?" "Well ancient Vulandrian isn't exactly the easiest language to decipher." The bespectacled man replied before seeing his other friend. "Macao! I heard you beat nineteen vulcans! Pretty impressive." "Thanks." The blue-haired man said as the two shook hands. "Hey, Zeke. Happy." Lucy said as she greeted the two. "Morning Lucy." The two greeted. "Have you guys seen Natsu and Alyssa?" "They're on a date." Zeke answered, the blonde girl nodding in understanding. The archer then motioned to his father. "Anyway, I'd like to introduce to someone. Lucy, this my dad Lyle. Dad, this is Lucy Heartfilia, the newest member of Team Morningstar." "Nice to meet you." Lucy said with a smile. "The pleasure's mine, Ms. Heartfilia." The older gentlemen said with a bow before whispering into his son's ear. "She's kind of cute, don't you think?" "What are you getting at?" Zeke whispered back. "I'm saying I don't see a ring on that finger." Lyle said with a grin, making his son flabbergasted. "Haha, just pulling your leg buddy." He said with a pat on the back. "Don't joke about that kind of stuff, Dad!" The archer exclaimed as his teammates chuckled. "Well then, what else have you got going on?" Macao asked as the three friends sat down at a table. "Well, a certain Royal Knight is coming to town next." The bearded man stated. "Amelia's coming back? That's great! A good old Team Crosshair reunion!" Wakaba exclaimed, referring to their old team. "Let's celebrate. Hey Mira! Three beers over here!" He called out to the passing by barmaid. "It's ten in the morning." Lyle stated with a sweat drop. "Don't you think it's a wee bit early to get plastered?" "Oh, lighten up." The smoke wizard replied. "Make that two beers and a water." "Sure, coming right up!" The cheerful woman said as she approached. "And how about a date while we're at it?" He followed up, blowing out heart-shaped smoke from his pipe. This made his friends slap their heads. "Really?" Macao asked. "You do this every day." The white-haired barmaid just smiled as she placed their drinks on the table. "But Wakaba..." Mira was covered in and transformed into an older lady. "You already have a wife at home." "Will stop turning into my wife?! It's freaky!" Wakaba jumped back his friends chuckled. "It's always so noisy in here. Can't a girl drink in peace?" Cana asked as she brought her drip to her lips, only to find it empty. "Damn, empty already." "Maybe it's a sign that you shouldn't drink so much." A lilac-haired girl named Laki commented. "Oh shut up." The brunette groaned as a certain ice wizard passed by their table, making the two women blush in embarrassment. "Gray, your clothes are gone." "OH CRAP!" The black-haired man said, rushing to get redressed. At the job request board, the three members of Team Morningstar were looking for the right job. "I didn't know wizard jobs were so varied." Lucy stated. "It's not all fighting monsters." Zeke replied. "Aye." "Hey, Lucy." The three turned and saw Loki walking towards them. The playboy grabbed Lucy's hand and held it close to his face. "If you're still looking for a team, how about you and me form a team of love?" Before he could kiss her hand, the celestial wizard quickly pulled away. "Ya, no thanks." Lucy replied as she motioned to her friends. "I've already joined Team Morningstar." "Such a shame." The orange-haired man said as he pressed up his sunglasses. "A princess like you joining a team of trouble makers like them." "If anyone's a trouble maker, it's you." Zeke stated, annoyed by the ring wizard. "Or do I need to remind you of what happened when you flirted with Alyssa?" Loki's body suddenly became pale as he remembered the day he flirted with the speed queen. It ended up with him going through a wall, third degree burns and a major bruising to his nards. He could recall the yell of a certain dragon slayer. "So you think it's okay to hit on someone else's girlfriend!? Fire Dragon Iron Fist!" "Please don't mention that again!" The ring wizard begged. "I still have nightmares from that day!" "And yet you still haven't learned your lesson." Happy said. "Yes I..." He then thought back to how many women he had hit on, and remembered that a few of them were already taken. "Okay, you made your point. But I can't help myself. When I see a beautiful woman, my heart aches at their divine presence! Is it wrong to try and share my love?" "You're confusing love with flings." Zeke stated. "Me personally, I'd rather have a serious relationship with one girl than a lecherous playboy." "And how many girlfriends has that attitude got you?" Loki asked with a smirk. "Oh right, zero. So anyway, Lucy..." He turned to her (ignoring the glare Zeke was giving him) and was about to flirt with her again, but he noticed the key ring on her belt. "Ah! You're a Celestial Wizard!?" He recoiled in shock. "Ya, what of it?" Lucy asked, confused at his reaction. The orange-haired playboy turned away and ran, tears falling out of his eyes as he ran out of the guild hall. "What a cruel twist of fate! I'm sorry, but we can never be together!" He cried dramatically. "Okaaay, that was weird." Lucy stated with a sweat drop. "Rumor has it that Loki had a relationship with a Celestial Wizard that ended on bad terms." Happy said. "Makes sense." The blonde replied as the three went back to looking for a job. Meanwhile... "Dare! Dare to believe you can survive!" Natsu and Alyssa sang together. The two had come to a local karaoke place for their date and were drawing a crowd. "You hold the future in your hand! Dare! Dare to keep all of your dreams alive! It's time to take a stand!" The two sung as the crowd applauded. A few minutes later, the two were walking through the streets, their arms linked. "That was so much fun!" Alyssa exclaimed. "Can't argue with you there." Natsu replied. "Sorry I couldn't take you somewhere more extravagant. Maybe we should have taken a little bit of Mr. Melon's reward money." "It's fine." The amazonian woman said. "As long as you're with me, any place is great." Natsu blushed and gave his signature smile. "You're awesome." He said before leaning up and kissing his girlfriend's marked cheek, making her giggle. However, this tender moment was interrupted by a certain ring wizard running past them as he screamed. "Was that Loki?" The speed queen asked. "Yup. And it looks like he's headed for the guild." The dragon slayer observed as the couple ran after their fellow wizard. Unbeknownst to them, a red-haired woman in silver armor and a blue skirt was walking through town, carrying a large decorated horn over her shoulder and wearing a serious expression on her face. Back at the guild, Zeke, Lucy and Happy were sitting at the bar, chatting with Mirajane as they waited to tell their teammates about their new mission. Mirajane had told them about how Master Makarov had left for the Guild Master's Conference in Clover and explained to Lucy the nature of the Dark Guilds, wizard guilds unauthorized by the Magic Council but still operated, usually doing underhanded jobs. Everyone in the guild was doing their usual routine until Loki slammed the door opened. "GUYS, WE HAVE A PROBLEM!" The playboy exclaimed with a panicked expression. "Erza...she's back." Everyone except Lyle, Zeke, Happy, Mira and Lucy froze in fear and started to panic a little. The most terrified one was Gray as he began sweating severely. "She's back?" A voice behind Loki said causing him to jump and turn, seeing Natsu and Alyssa. "Ah! Where did you guys come from?" "We saw you screaming through the streets and followed you." Alyssa said before scowling. "So Ms. Tincan is back. That's just freaking fantastic." The couple joined their friends at the bar. "Well, it's official." Zeke said as he rubbed his forehead. "Today is gonna suck." "Aye." Happy said with little to no energy. "Everyone else is scared at just the mention of her name." Lucy stated. "But you guys just look annoyed." "That's because she's not really scary." Natsu replied. "Once you realize that the worst she can do is beat us up, the fear of her tends to fade." "She won't be beating up anybody if I have anything to say about it." Alyssa grumbled as she crossed her arms over her chest. The sound of metal boots clanking against cobblestone was heard as most of the guild started to sweat. "That sounds like Erza." Laki muttered in fear. "Those are definitely her footsteps." Wakaba said as he bit down on his pipe. The entire guild watched as the red-haired woman walked into the guild hall. She placed the giant horn the ground, making a loud noise at it hit the floor. "I have returned." She said as she looked around. "Where is Master Makarov?" "Welcome back, Erza." Mirajane greeted with her usual cheery demeanor. "The master already left for the conference in Clover. He should be back by tomorrow." "I see." The armored woman said. "So, what is that?" A wizard asked, pointing to the giant horn. "It's the horn of a monster I defeated. The locals were kind enough to decorate it in a show of gratitude." She looked back at the man. "Is there a problem?" "No, not at all!" The man answered in a panic. "She doesn't look as monstrous as you guys described." Lucy whispered to her team. "Looks can be deceiving." Natsu whispered back. "She's probably heard about what happened at Mt. Hakobe." Lyle whispered to Macao. "I'm screwed." He whispered to himself as he started to sweat. "Listen up!" Erza addressed the guild with a stern expression. "During my travels, I've heard that Fairy Tail has been causing trouble again. While the master may not care, I do!" She turned her attention to Cana, who was drinking out of wine barrel. "Cana! If you keep drinking like that, you'll blow out both of your livers!" She then turned to a dancing man. "Vijeeter! Take the dancing outside!" She turned to Wakaba. "Wakaba, get rid of that filthy habit!" The older man dropped his head on the table. Erza then turned to Nab, who was standing by the request board. "Nab, I figured you would be by the board. Stop being indecisive and pick a job already!" The tribal looking man nodded in fear as she turned her attention towards Macao. "Macao!" She said, making the blue-haired man sweat as she said nothing and just sighed. "Please just say something!" He whimpered. "I don't even know what to say." The redhead groaned as she rubbed her forehead. "You've caused so much trouble." "It's like she's a one-woman disciplinary committee." Lucy whispered to her team, the other agreeing. "Now, are Gray and Team Morningstar here?" Erza asked. A few scared wizards pointed to the ice mage and the team. 'Traitors!' Natsu screamed in his mind. "Hey, Erza." The half-naked man said as he shook like crazy. "What's up?" "Frostbite still hasn't gotten over the beating Erza gave him years ago." Natsu whispered to Lucy. "No kidding. He picked a bad day to walk around nude." Zeke whispered. 'To be fair, I kind of understand.' The blonde girl thought, thinking back her first reaction as seeing Gray naked. Erza then turned her attention towards Team Morningstar, making Lucy flinch as the rest of teammates did nothing. "Ah, Alyssa. Nice to see you're eating healthy." A vein appeared on the speed queen's head. "What's that suppose to mean?" She asked as she approached the redhead. "Oh, nothing. I think it's great that you're not self-conscious about your body." "Tough talk coming from someone so insecure about their femininity that she has to hid behind a cheep set of armor." The orange-haired woman retorted as she leaned down, pressing her head against Erza's. "Oh, so the woman who out-muscles every man in the guild except Lyle and Elfman wants to talk about femininity!" The redhead scowled as she pressed back. "And for your information, this armor is a one-of-kind custom made!" "Ya, and it still looks cheep!" The amazon replied as figurative sparks came from the two's eyes as the growled at each other. "Anyone else getting a sense of deju vu?" Happy asked. "Ya, they're kind of like Natsu and Gray." Lucy stated. "Please don't compare me to her." Gray requested. After a few more seconds of scowling, Erza moved back from Alyssa and looked at the whole team. "Now I know we've had our...disagreements in the past. But right now, I have a serious favor to ask you guys. While was in Onibas, I heard something troubling. Normally I would consult with the master about this, but since he's out at the moment, I figured the five of you would be the next best approach." This statement shocked everyone in the guild, especially the aforementioned wizards. 'What would worry Erza so much that she would willingly work with us? Especially Alyssa?' Zeke pondered. "Team, group huddle! That means you too, Lucy!" The five of them huddled together and started whispering. After a minute or so, the group broke and looked at Erza. "Mira, cancel our bandit mission." Zeke said before continuing. "As of this moment Team Morningstar has formed a temporary alliance with Gray Fullbuster and Erza Scarlet." "Sure thing." Mira responded with stunned expression. "Meet me at the train station tomorrow morning." Erza ordered. "I will explain the details there." "Hold on!" Gray exclaimed. "You have a problem?" Erza asked with a glare, making the ice wizard shake his head no in fear. "Erza...Natsu...Alyssa...Zeke...and Grey." Mirajane whispered to herself, catching Lucy's attention. "With the five of them joining up, this might just be the strongest team in the history of Fairy Tail!" "EEEEHHH!?" 'Stay strong, my son.' Lyle thought as he looked at Zeke with a serious expression. 'I have a feeling you're going to need it.' And then... "AHHH! What was Erza thinking?!" A certain salmon-haired dragon slayer yelled as Team Morningstar and Gray were waiting at Magnolia Station the next day. "Working with you is the worst!" Natsu yelled at the fully clothed ice wizard. "Hey, I'm not happy about this either, Pyroboy!" Gray yelled back. "Ice Prick!" "Fire Crotch!" As the two argued, the rest of the team just stared at the two. "There they go again." Happy commented. "Don't they ever get tried of yelling at each other?" Lucy asked. "I've know these guys since we were kids." Zeke replied. "They've been fighting since then and I don't think they'll ever stop." Lucy sighed and turned towards Alyssa, who was staring off with a bored expression. "Hey, Alyssa." She started, getting the speed queen's attention. "Is there a reason you have a grudge against Erza?" Alyssa blinked before sighing. "It's not that I hate her or anything. It's just that we were never on the best of terms when we were kids." "You weren't on good terms with Mira, but now she's your best friend." Happy stated. "That's different. Mira apologized for what she did. I've never heard Erza apologize even once." The orange-haired amazon said, confusing Lucy since Mirajane was one of the nicest people in the guild. "Sorry for the wait, everyone." Erza's voice said. "I hope you haven't been waiting long." "It's o-" Lucy turned and was shocked at what she saw, which was Erza pulling a large cart of luggage behind her. "THAT'S A LOT OF LUGGAGE!" "Well let's go good buddy!" Gray cheered with a fake smile as he wrapped his arm around Natsu, angering the dragon slayer. "Take your arm off me before I burn it off." Natsu said through gritted teeth. "Ah, it's good to see you two getting along." Erza said with a smile. "Are you kidding? I'd take a bullet for this guy." The ice wizard said as he sweated. "That's a lie and you know it." Natsu replied. "Shut up." The black-haired man whispered. Erza turned her head and saw the flabbergasted blonde girl. "Oh, you're the new girl. What was your name again? Lu...Lu...Luigi." "It's Lucy!" The blonde corrected. "That's it." The redhead said. "Why are you here?" "She's the newest member of Team Morningstar!" Happy proudly stated. "Oh, I see." Erza said with surprise as she examined the girl. "Normally I'd be against bringing a newbie on a mission like this, but you must something special if these guys let you join their team." 'Was that a complement?' Lucy asked in her head. "Look, Erza." Alyssa said as she walked towards the redhead. "For the sake of the mission, I'll try to get along with you." The taller woman then pointed at her with a determined expression. "But when this is all over, you and I are gonna have a rematch! One on One!" The speed queen's statement surprised everyone. "Does your girlfriend have a death wish?" Gray asked Natsu, who said nothing as he looked at the orange-haired woman. "I've gotten a lot stronger now." Alyssa stated as she clenched her fist. "So don't except an easy win this time." Erza was stunned but then a smirk appeared on her face. "As much I hate to admit, I can tell that you've indeed gotten a lot stronger since our last bout." The two stared down each with matching determined expressions as the redhead held out an armored glove. "Very well, when this mission is over, the two of us will fight. May the best woman win." Alyssa smirked and shook her hand. "Don't worry. I plan to." "OH YEAH!" Natsu yelled as his head lit on fire, also setting a part of Gray's jacket of fire. "I'M ALL FIRED UP NOW! LET'S GO!" A few minutes later, Natsu's tone was different as he laid on his girlfriend's lap, her caressing helping him deal with his severe motion sickness as they rode the train. Sitting next to them was Zeke reading a novel and Happy polishing one of his Lacrima bombs. Across from them was Gray staring out the window, Lucy who had Plue in her lap and Erza looking at the couple. "You know, I can help you with your motion sickness." The armored woman stated. "No way!" Alyssa exclaimed. "The last time you said that, you just punched him in the stomach!" "What? He can't be motion sick if he's unconscious." Erza replied, not seeing the fallacy in her logic. "Please no." Natsu groaned. "You just traded one form of agonizing pain for another." Zeke stated as he turned a page, not caring about the glare Erza was giving him. Feeling that the tension was high, Lucy decided to ask Erza a question. "So what kind of magic do you use, Erza? There was no info about it in Sorcerer Weekly." "Erza's magic is really pretty." Happy stated. "It makes her enemies bleed a lot." "How is that pretty?" The celestial wizard asked. "It's not that great." The armored woman stated. "Personally, I think Gray's magic is more beautiful." Hearing this got the Ice Wizard's attention and he decided to give a demonstration. He held his left hand out and placed his right fist against his palm. After creating some frost, he removed his fist and revealed an ice sculpture of the Fairy Tail emblem. "It's no big deal. Just Ice Magic." "So you use Ice and Natsu uses fire." Lucy stated. "That's why you guys don't get along. You guys are opposite elements." "I've never thought of it that way." Erza replied. "Nah, I just hate his guts." The rivals said as they briefly glared before Natsu's motion sickness kicked back in. "So, are you going tell us the mission details?" Zeke asked Erza as he put in a bookmark and closed his novel. "We're going up against the dark guild, Eisenwald." The armored woman stated. "When I stopped over in Onibas, I overheard a couple of Eisenwald wizards talking in a bar. They mentioned the name Erigor." "Erigor, the ace of Eisenwald." Zeke clarified as he pulled out an information Lacrima and brought up his profile. "This guy's been known for his preference in assassination missions. That's why they call him the Grim Reaper." "Grim Reaper." Lucy said nervously. "That's right. The Magic Council prohibits wizards from taking assassination requests, but Erigor chose money over the rules." Erza explained. "Because he and his guild disobeyed the council, they were kicked out of there magic league. But despite this, they still operate as a dark guild." "Still doesn't explain why you think we should intervene." Alyssa stated. "Dark Guilds are usually handed by the Royal Army." "That's true. However, I heard them mention a magical artifact called Lullaby and how they were having trouble with the seal that was placed on it. And given Eisenwald's track record, if they're after a sealed item, it can't be good." "So that's why you needed all of us." Gray concluded. "I'm not so arrogant that I believe I can take on an entire guild on my own." Erza replied with a nod. She clenched her fist and slammed it against her seat arm. "I should have stopped them when I had the chance, but now we have to stop Eisenwald before they do something horrible." "You mentioned Lullaby." Zeke said. "Before we came back from our last mission, we encountered a group of bandits that knew something about Lullaby. They might have been members of Eisenwald, but we'll never know for sure." "Why is that?" Erza asked. "They were killed by some kind of shadow magic." Happy answered, shivering at the memory of the group being sucked into the ground. "Then our mission is simple." Erza stated. "We find Eisenwald, defeat anyone who gets in our way, and take this Lullaby." "Maybe I shouldn't have come along." Lucy muttered. "Lucy, you're making a lot of juice." Happy stated. "It's sweat!" A few hours later, the group had arrived in Onibas and departed the train. After his motion sickness wore off, Erza lead the group to the bar where she had overheard the Eisenwald wizards. "Natsu, do your thing." Zeke ordered. The dragon-slayer nodded and started smelling the table were the dark wizards had sat two days ago. Most of the scents were faint, but he raised his eyebrow as he recognized one of the scents. "Sulfur." He stated. "It's almost identical to one I smelled in the woods, just without the scent of ancient wood." "That wood smell must be Lullaby." Lucy theorized. Suddenly, Natsu's eyes widened and he yelled. "What's wrong?" Alyssa asked. "I recognize the scent from somewhere else!" The dragon-slayer exclaimed. "I thought I was just confusing scents because I was so out of it, but this confirms it!" "Confirms what?" Zeke asked as the salmon-haired man turned towards his team. "The guy behind that shadow magic was on the train!" He said, shocking the team. Meanwhile, a group of wizards were forcing the passengers off the train in Kinugi station. Leading this effort was a man with silver hair, a black scarf, a bare chest, black gloves and a pair of japanese style pants. He had bandages on his wrists and feet, markings on his face and carried a large imposing scythe. "All passengers and crew off the train!" He ordered as the rest of his guild was shoving people off. "Eisenwald is taking over." "Master Erigor." The silver-haired man turned and a saw a man with white clothing and black hair in a pineapple-shaped ponytail. "Ah, Kageyama." He greeted the black-haired man. "I assume you did your part." "Just as planned." Kageyama said as he pulled out a flute with a three-eyed skull at the end. "Lullaby is now ours." "Excellent." Erigor said with a sinister grin as he took the flute. "But we might have to move up our plans." Kageyama stated, causing his master to raise an eyebrow. "There was a group of Fairy Tail wizards on the train." He said, remembering the mark on the orange-haired woman's cheek. "Did they follow you?" "No sir. They got off at Onibas." "Then there's still time." Erigor concluded before addressed the rest of his guildmates. "Double time, people! We're headed for Oshibana! Make sure everything we need is on board." Unknown to the dark wizards, a maniacal laugh was echoing inside of the cursed flute. 'Soon.' Meanwhile, the Master's conference in Clover was in full swing as Guild Masters from all over Fiore were chatting and trading stories. One of these was Master Makarov, who was sitting on table as his cheeks were red from the alcohol he had just partake in. His currently conversing with an...interesting gentleman in a red dress, a bald head, some stubble on his chin and small decorative wings on his back. This was Bob, master of the Blue Pegasus Guild. "I'm so jealous, Maki." The strange master stated. "Your wizards are so full of life. I hear your newest member gave someone quite the thrashing." "Ahh, you mean Lucy. Yep, she's stronger than she looks." The short man said with a smirk. "And let me tell ya, she's got a body that won't quit." "Oh! So naughty, Maki!" Bob responded. "You shouldn't be talking about your wizards like that. Speaking of your new girl, I heard she's joined your guild's demolition squad." Makarov sweat-dropped at the nickname Team Morningstar had gotten. "Yes, that's true. But she seems to be getting used to the Fairy Tail lifestyle." "Oh, you mean acting like a bunch of wild animals?" The two turned and saw a beautiful woman in her early thirties. She had purple curvy hair, black eyes, and tan skin. Her outfit consisted of a black t-shirt with a brown jacket draped over her shoulders, green pants and black combat boots. This was Sicilia Vasquez, master of the Titan Nose Guild. "While I do admit that they did a good job defeating Bora, they still leveled part of Hargeon in the process." "She has a point." A man with brown hair, a black t-shirt, a spiked neck collar, shades and a wizard hat said. This was Goldmine, master of the Quattro Cerberus Guild. "Your wizards do tend to go overboard a lot. The council is afraid that one of these days, Fairy Tail might destroy an entire city by accident." "Ahh, what do I care what those council blow harts say?" Makarov replied. "They're just jealous that my wizards are hot." "And that's the kind of attitude that's going to land you in hot water." Sicilia commented. "Master Makarov! Master Makarov!" The four turned and saw a tiny bird with a wizard hat flying towards them, carrying a letter in it's claws. "You have a letter from Mirajane, sir." "Thank you, little guy." Makarov said as the bird dropped the letter into his hand. He activated the letter, creating a magic seal over the envelope and showing a miniature image of Mirajane. "Hello master." The image said with a smile. "I'm glad you made it back to the conference." "Take it in fellas." The short man said as he showed off the image. "Quite the looker, ain't she." "Not bad." Sicilia said as he parted her hair. "But she's still a got few years left before she could match me." "Something incredible has happened! Erza and Gray joined Team Morningstar on a mission! This might be the strongest team in the history of Fairy Tail!" Any other guild master would have been ecstatic at the possible founding of their guild's strongest team, but in Makarov's case, the thought of those five wizards teaming up almost gave him a stroke. He stared into space before collapsing on the table. "Maki?" Bob asked. "I guess the council has reason to worry." Goldmine commented. 'This is a nightmare!' The twitching master screamed in his head. 'Those five really could destroy an entire city! Okay, calm down. The conference ends today so I can make it back by tomorrow. I just hope nothing happens until then.' And then... After realizing that the wizard with Lullaby was on the train, the group rented a magic-mobile (a vehicle powered by a wizard's magic energy through an arm-placed SE plug) and headed for Kinugi station since that was the next stop on the train's route. Erza was the one at the wheel as they reached Kinugi Station. The group saw that the military had arrived and were helping the civilians. So the they decided to head for the next stop in Oshibana. "Slow down, Erza!" Gray yelled as he held onto the roof of the magic-mobile. "You're gonna blow up the SE plug!" "It doesn't matter!" The armored woman stated as she drove at high speeds through the streets of Oshibana. "We have to stop Eisenwald, no matter the cost." "But you'll use up all your magic by the time we get there!" "Then I'll have to resort to hand-to-hand combat. Besides, I have you guys to back me up." Gray looked at her until a groaning voice came from underneath, he turned and saw Natsu halfway out the window as the rest of Team Morningstar (sans Happy) were trying to pull him in. "Stop it Natsu!" Alyssa exclaimed. "You'll fall out at this rate!" "That's the plan!" The motion sick man groaned. Inside the vehicle, Happy was pondering something. "Hey Lucy. I feel like I'm forgetting to tell you something important." "Something important? What is it?" She asked. "I can't quite remember." The cat said as he tried to think. "But it had something to do with you." The group then saw a large crowd of people gathered by the train station. "I think we might have found them." Zeke said. Erza nodded and parked the magic-mobile. The group got off (with Alyssa carrying her still motion sick boyfriend by his shoulders) and saw smoke coming from the station as the station personal addressed the crowd. "Everybody, please remain calm. There has been a train derailment. Until repairs have been made, the station is closed for the moment." The crowd started discussing that some of them had heard that dark wizards had taken over the station. Erza walked up one of the employees. "What's the situation?" "Why would I tell..." But before he could finish, Erza headbutted him. She turned the next employee and asked the same question, headbutting him when he didn't tell her. She was about to do the same to a third employee, but was stopped by Zeke standing between them. "Easy, Erza. Let me try." Zeke said before turning to the scared employee. "I'm sorry about my associate's behavior. We're from the Fairy Tail guild and we think that a group of dark wizards we've been following have holed up in this station." The employee thought for a second before whispering to Zeke so as not to cause a panic. "You're right. A group called Eisenwald has taken over the station. A few army groups have entered to secure the building, but none of them have come back." "Thank you." The archer whispered back before turning to a confused Erza. "Ever heard of the phrase you catch more bees with honey than with vinegar?" He then turned towards his teammates and Gray. "Alright guys, let's go!" "That was surprisingly easy." Lucy commented. "That's Zeke for ya." Happy replied as the group ran into the station. The seven of them eventually saw a bunch of soldiers covered in bruises and in some cases, their own blood. The gang's reactions ranged from sadness, repulsion, and fear. "They didn't stand a chance against an entire wizard guild." Alyssa sadly stated. Zeke gave the fallen knights a salute and the group moved on until they reached a large room. Inside was the entirety of Eisenwald, all staring down the group. "Welcome to our parlor, Fairy flies." Erigor taunted as he was perched on one of the loudspeakers. "We've been expecting you." "There's so many of them." Lucy said with fear evident in her voice. "Erigor, I presume." Erza said as she glared up at the Grim Reaper. "Where's Lullaby?" "Oh, you mean this?" The grinning man as he pulled out the aforementioned artifact. "A flute?" Alyssa asked as she helped Natsu stand up. "Gotta admit, I wasn't expecting that." "Flute?" Lucy asked, suddenly gaining a look of realization. "Guys, I know where I've heard that name before! Lullaby's a cursed flute that uses a form of death magic! Anyone who hears it's song is killed!" "Intelligent little fly, aren't you?" Erigor asked. "What's your plan, Erigor?" Zeke asked, trying not to show that he was disturbed by this new info. "I'll give you a hint. What do all train stations have in common?" He said, motioning to the speakers underneath him. "So you're going play it through the speakers?" Erza asked as she grit her teeth. "If you do that, hundreds will die! What reason could you have for committing such as nefarious act?" "They committed the sin of a turning a blind eye to the injustices of the world." The silver-haired man stated. "So the reaper has come to cleanse the world of those that flaunt their rights so carelessly." "It's your own damn fault for taking all those illegal requests." Zeke stated. "And killing them won't get you your rights back!" Lucy shouted. "We no longer care about our rights, we want power!" Erigor said as wind slowly started blowing around him and he clenched his fist. "And with our power, we'll erase the past and control the future." Natsu glared at the grinning wizard as fire started to gather around him. "Power? You're going to kill innocent civilians because you want power? Well, Erigor...let's see how powerful you are when I take Lullaby and shove it up your ass!" "Eisenwald!" Erigor exclaimed as he rose into the air. "Shows these flies what happens when they get in our way!" And with that, he disappeared in a mini tornado. "Wind Magic." Alyssa stated. "We have to stop him!" Erza exclaimed. "You're not going anywhere!" Kageyama said as unleashed a swarm of shadow tendrils at the group. However, Natsu destroyed the tendrils with a flaming fist. "We'll have to divide and conquer." Zeke stated as he conjured up his longbow. "Agreed." Erza said. "Natsu, Gray. You guys look for Erigor. The rest of us will deal with these guys." "Are you kidding me?" Grey asked, not up for teaming up with his rival. Natsu looked at Zeke and saw the archer nod. "Alright. Give 'em hell!" And with that, the two ran out of the room. "You're not getting away!" A man with Egyptian apparel said as he released a bunch of black wrappings from his arms and followed after them. "I, the great Rayule, will make them suffer." "I'm coming too." Kageyama said as he disappeared into the shadows. "What?! Just the five of us against an entire guild?!" Lucy panicked. "Make that four." Zeke replied. "Alyssa, you go look too." "That's seems like a bad idea." Erza said. "With my magic, I can find Erigor faster." The orange-haired woman said before turning to the redhead. "Unless you think you can't handle them." An anger tick appeared on the armored woman's forehead. "Of course we can handle this! NOW GO!" "Fine." Alyssa said with a grin. She saw Lucy panicking and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, Lucy. I believe in you." Seeing her teammate's smiling face lightened her fears a bit and she nodded. After that, the taller woman conjured a purple seal behind her back and took off. "Enough talk!" One of the Eisenwald members exclaimed. "Let's waste these idiots!" Erza summoned a red magic seal that transformed into a long sword with a winged hilt and grabbed it. "Couldn't agree more." A group of dark wizards armed with various weapons charged at the redhead. As they got closer, the armored woman swung her sword with such force that it destroyed all their weapons and knocked them back. "Show off." Zeke said as he jumped into the air to evade some energy blasts. He held out his right hand and created several specs of light that transformed into a single arrow, loading it and aiming. "Arch Shot: Arrow Rain!" He fired and unleashed a massive stream of arrows, hitting several dark wizards. Erza charged into the crowd as two Eisenwald members attacked with giant swords. In response, her sword glowed and transformed into a double-bladed sword and she destroyed the swords with a swing. "Take this!" Three wizards said as they joined their attack and launched it at the armored woman. She was going to react, but Zeke landed in front of her and held out his right hand. "Shield Up!" He conjured up a shield out his magic energy and blocked the blast. While magic arrows were the easiest thing for him to create, a basic shield spell was a good alternative. "I was going to deflect that." Erza stated as she swapped out her blade with a pair of twin swords. "Sure you were." Zeke replied as he created some more arrows for a Rapid Succession spell and fired. "I've never seen someone Requip as fast as her." One of the Eisenwald wizards said, gaining Lucy's attention. "Requip?" "It's kind of like your magic, Lucy." Happy explained. "But instead of summoning spirits from another dimension, Requip wizards can call weapons they store. And that's only the tip of Erza's power." "Really?" Lucy asked, watching as Erza fought off more goons up close and Zeke was jumping around and firing arrow spells. "Still this many left. How annoying." The armored woman said as her body started to glow. When the glow faded, Erza was in a different set of armor, this one giving her the appearance of a Valkyrie with silver wings behind her. "That's Erza's true power." Happy stated. "Along with swapping weapons, she can also swap out different armors. Each of them giving her new abilities. This is a unique ability to her called the Knight." "Wow." Lucy said with astonishment. "Dance, my swords!" Erza exclaimed as she summoned multiple swords that started spinning in a circle behind her. "Spiral Sword!" And with that, the circle of flying swords hit most of the dark wizards, knocking them out. "You bitch!" A man with whisker-like marks on his face leaped at her from behind with his hands covered in magic energy. Erza turned and swatted the man away with the butt of one her swords. "She took out Byrad with just one hit!" An obese wizard with green hair said in fear. "There's no doubt about it! It's the queen of the Fairies, Titania Erza!" He used his magic to phase through a nearby wall to escape. "He must be going after Erigor." Zeke said, noticing Erza changing back to her normal armor and leaning on one of her swords, sweat coming down her face. "Lucy, Happy! Let's finish this!" "Got it!" Lucy said as she pulled out a golden key. "Open, Gate of the Giant Crab - Cancer!" And with that, the familiar crab spirit appeared. "Take these guys out with style!" "Right on, baby." The crab spirit said as he charged a group, using his scissors at blinding speeds. When Cancer landed on the other side, the dark wizard's weapons split to pieces and all their hair fell off, causing them to faint from the shock. Happy jumped up and tossed a few lacrima grenades and Zeke fired another Rapid Succession spell, taking out the rest of Eisenwald. "You okay, Erza?" Lucy asked the sweating requip wizard as Cancer went back through the spirit gate. "I'll look after her." Zeke said, helping the redhead stand up. "You go find our missing pal." The blonde girl looked at her friend before nodding. Happy decided to follow her, leaving Zeke and Erza alone with the unconscious dark wizards. "You really have a lot of faith in her." Erza stated. "She hasn't let me down yet." The archer replied. "But you should have let me take charge. Strategy is my niche." The redhead said nothing as she turned away, not wanting to admit that when it came to strategists, the archer was one of Fairy Tail's best. Meanwhile, Alyssa was running through the station at super-speed, looking through every room in as she searched for Erigor. Since she couldn't find him inside the station, she decided to search the exterior of the building. As she reached one of the balconies, she noticed some wind appearing around the station and looked up. In the air above the station, Erigor was had both his hands out as he was chanting a spell. Taking this chance, the amazonian woman reared her right fist back as a magic circled appeared behind elbow. "Speed Queen: Momentum Punch!" With a burst of speed, Alyssa ran up the building and leaped, knocking the surprised wind wizard towards the other balcony. "You actually hit me." Erigor said as he got back up and cleaned the blood off his lips. "It won't happen again." "We'll see!" The speed queen exclaimed as she charged. The two started exchanging and evading attacks, Erigor's wind magic able to match Alyssa's speed. "Wind Slicer!" Erigor yelled as he swung his scythe, creating a razor-sharp torrent of wind that Alyssa jumped away from, the attack slicing part of the balcony away. "You'll need more than speed to defeat me, Fairy Fly!" "You'd surprise what a little speed can do!" The orange-haired woman proclaimed as another circle appeared behind her as she started vibrating her hands as they were close together. A ball of vibrational energy started to form in between the hands as Alyssa moved them to her side. "Speed Queen: Vibration Blast!" "Wind Spiral!" Alyssa thrust out her hands and fired the vibrational energy as Erigor unleashed a spinning blast of wind. The two attacks collided creating a massive back draft that pushed the orange-haired woman back. When she removed her arms from her face, she saw a massive tornado had surrounded the station. "What the hell is that?" "It's your prison." Erigor said as he appeared behind the amazonian woman and pushed her into the wind before she could react. She quickly got back up and saw that the station was unharmed as the twister continued to spin. "While would love to reap your life, I have a schedule to keep to." The Grim Reaper said from the other side. "You mean your murdering spree." Alyssa replied as she launched at the wind. "Speed Queen: Momentum Punch!" As her fist made contact with the raging wind, she felt a stream of pain go through her arm and screamed in pain as she was knocked back into a nearby pillar. She got back up and heard Erigor laughing. "Looks like you just found out the power of my Wind Barrier. You're welcome to try and break it, but any attack you use will be sent back at you." The wind wizard explained. "You can keep trying to escape and eventually this place will be your tomb!" "Nice plan." Alyssa replied. "Except for the fact that you can't use the station's PA system to spread Lullaby's cursed song. So what now, you silver-haired bastard?" "Let's just say that by tomorrow, the entire wizard world will be changed and our revenge shall be fulfilled!" Erigor proclaimed as he flew off into the distance. "Erigor!" Alyssa yelled as she unleashed her Twin Twister spell, only for it to be knocked away. "Whatever your plan is, we will stop you!" To be continued...