My Light and My Darkness

An Odd Day

After Erza is taken to the infirmary for her many injuries after that epic performance, The game organizers step aside for a little bit of discussion on what to do next for the rest of the team players who didn’t even get a chance to go into Pandemonium. Eventually, the referee pumpkin guy comes back and says, “Okay. After some deliberation, we’ve decided that the seven remaining teams still need to be ranked. So we’re having another contest. This game may be a little on the boring side compared to Pandemonium, but I think it’ll suffice.” As he says this, a floating machine thingy appears next to him. “What is that thing?” The guy from Quatro Puppy asks, and the referee answers, “The Magic Power Finder, or MPF for short. Pretty snazzy, yeah?” The wizard saint, Jura from Lamia Scale then asks, “In other words, it measures a wizard’s magic power?” “Right-O!” The referee confirms, and continues, “You cast a spell on this device, and it’ll display your magic power in numerical form! I’ll use this number to decide the rankings for the remaining teams! Quick and easy!” Hibiki then speaks from next to Cana, who’s chugging a bottle of alcohol, “So it’s a contest of strength? I wonder if I could work around it.” He smiles and looks at Cana, “But the real question is are you free later tonight?” Cana smiles drunkenly at him, “Well I could be, but then I wouldn’t have room for another barrel!” As she says this, I notice that she already drank about 20 barrels of alcohol. Hibiki smiles nervously and says, “You might have a problem.” The Quatro Puppy guy looks at him stupidly, “Might?! How is she not dead yet?!” He shouts, pointing towards the pile of empty barrels. I chuckle quietly at that, amused by everyone’s concern for Cana’s drinking.

The referee announces that they’ll continue in the straw order they drew earlier, and Milianna, a member of Mermaid Heel, and an old friend of Erza’s, speaks up, smiling. “That means it’s finally my turn!! Here it goes!” She takes off the cape she’s been wearing, and gets ready to hit the MPF with all she’s got. She shouts, “Kitten Blast!!” She hits the MPF with an attack, and the number 365 appears above it. Everyone doesn’t know what to make of this, so the announcer mentions how he’s confused. Marshal Lahar, the guest announcer from the magic council then speaks up, “Maybe I can help. We rune knights use MPF in training fairly often. She actually did very well. That score would qualify her for squad captain.” Milianna smiles and says, “I am one pumped up kitty!” She’s so freaking adorable! Quatro Puppy’s guy goes next, and he makes a score of 124, kinda embarrassing. Although, I didn’t expect much from him. Then Hibiki goes, all of the girls in the audience going crazy for him. I don’t know why, I mean yeah he’s attractive, but he’s always been like a random friend of an older sibling to me. Don’t ask me why, that’s just how I view him. Not to mention he’s literally 6 years older than me. Hibiki makes a sad score of 95, and he starts crying out of embarrassment. Okay, I take it back. That one is the most embarrassing, sorry Hibiki. Hibiki hugs Cana looking for some comfort, and Cana smiles, “Aw, come on cute stuff. Don’t be like that, I can cheer you up tonight if you really want me to.” Hibiki pouts like a child, “I can’t wait that long, I need comforting now!” Next up is Obra from Raven Tail, and I find myself paying way closer attention to him, wondering what kind of magic he’s going to use. He just opens his cape and a little animal creature thing flies out from it and barely hits the MPF. I wouldn’t even call that a hit, more like a tap. The number appears as a meager 4! “Talk about suspicious. I swear, those guys are such freaks!” I say out loud, and Rufus nods, “Well, up until a year ago they have been known as a dark guild. What else did you expect?” I shrug my shoulders, glancing up to Ivan warily, “I don’t know what to expect from them. They’re all so……….icky.” I say, shivering from disgust at the mere thought of them, and Sting chuckles at my dislike for them. “Okay! Milianna from Mermaid Heel is currently in the lead with 365 points!!” “Meow! This is better than chasing my own tail!!” Milianna shouts out, but her joy is short-lived as Olga steps up, “I’m about to change that.” We all smirk down at him, knowing he’s about to get a crazy high score on that thing. The crowd starts to go berserk for him as he shouts, “120 millimeter Black Lightning Canon!!” His crazy strong attack hits the MPF and the number appears above it. 3825!! “Yeah!!! Go Olga!!!!!” I shout, excited. Olga smirks and starts to rap again on the microphone, annoying the referee. Next is Jura. Oh, he might be strong enough to beat Olga. I grow a little nervous as he steps up. “Do you mind if I give it my all?” He asks, and the referee says, “That’s the game isn’t it?” Jura nods and takes a long, deep breath. Great, he’s definitely going to beat Olga. He activates his power and it makes the ground shake around him, he then shouts, “Rumbling Fuji!!” With that, a huge beam of light erupts from the ground, surrounding the MPF. The number that appears above the MPF is 8544!!! That’s insane!!! Olga looks at it shocked, but I shake my head. Honestly I was expecting it to be a little higher. The last challenger is Cana, and she’s wasted. How is she going to follow up Jura?! Everyone watches in anticipation as she suddenly takes off her jacked, stripping. She smirks and reveals some kind of emblem on her arm that’s glowing red. It’s strangely resemblant of the Fairy Tail emblem. What is that? She shouts, “Now, the grand finale!!” She raises her arm in the air, and a huge golden beam of light appears around her, as she shouts things that lead up to the spell she’s about to cast, but my brain isn’t registering them. I’m too busy watching in shock. “Wait a minute! I know what that spell is!! There’s no way Cana can cast that!!!!” I shout, surprised. The others look at me in confusion, but quickly continue to watch, interested in what she’s about to do. “Shine your light, so that I may vanquish the sins of wickedness!! FAIRY GLITTER!!!!!” The spell hits the MPF in a huge explosion of overwhelming magic power, and I’m breathless. “SHE CAN CAST THE FAIRY GLITTER SPELL?!?!” I shout, completely bewildered. Once the smoke clears, the MPF itself is completely gone, yet the number of her power is still there. 9999!!!! What the hell?! That’s completely insane!!! Cana smirks up at the audience and shouts, “There’s no stopping us!! We’ve just started to rock your world!! Fairy Tail will be number one again!!!” The crowd is eating out of her palms! A thought hits me as the challengers clear the arena. “That’s completely insane!” I say, in shock. “Something wrong?” Minerva asks, facing me. I look at her, realizing that I said that out loud, “Uh, no. Sorry, I’m just shocked that Cana is the one who can bear that spell. I mean, it’s not easy to cast any of the three Grand Fairy Spells.” “Grand Fairy Spells?” Sting raises an eyebrow, and I nod. “Yeah, the first master of Fairy Tail, Mavis Vermillion created them. There’s Fairy Law, Fairy Sphere, and Fairy Glitter. Fairy Glitter is an offensive attack, mainly used against one large powerful foe who needs to be wiped out with one blow. Fairy Sphere is a protective spell that can protect the caster/casters from any possible threat. Then there’s Fairy Law. That one is mainly used in war, and it completely eliminates everyone the caster views as his enemy. They’re all extremely powerful spells, and I honestly, until today, had only ever seen one of them ever cast, and it was Fairy Law. They’ve always felt like myths or something made up until now.” Rufus nods and Minerva suddenly asks, “Would you by any chance know how to cast any of those spells? Specifically Fairy Law?” I look at her like she just grew a second head. “What? No, like I said, I never really believed they were real until very recently.” She nods, and without saying anything else, directs her attention back to the arena. Rufus then goes up to me, “How recently?” I give him a questioning look, and he clarifies, “How recently did you start believing the Grand Fairy Spells were real?” The others look at me, expectantly and I hesitantly say, “When the members of Fairy Tail turned up alive on Tenrou Island. It was Fairy Sphere that saved them. Even Acnologia himself couldn’t break through it.” Minerva smirks, “Then you should probably work on mastering that spell. You’ll need it someday if you still plan on killing him.” With that, she walks away, leaving the balcony and walking down the hallway. Something about the way she said that leaves me with chills. We all decide to ignore the conversation that just took place, and direct our attention to the first battle of the day, which is Milianna vs. this giant dude from Quatro Puppy. At this point, I don’t care about anyone from that guild enough to learn their names. To sum it all up, Milianna beats him easily. She’s gotten a lot stronger since last she and I spoke. Next is Rufus against Eve from Blue Pegasus. Sorry Eve, but you’re going to lose this one. The gong is rung, and Rufus deceives him by using memories from his brain and he easily destroys him using a heat based spell, which is kinda ironic considering Eve uses snow magic. Rufus smirks at the audience's praise and with that, the match is over. Now it’s time for the third match of the day, Laxus vs. Alexei, a member of the Raven Tail guild. I sit on the edge of the wall that Lector and Frosch stand on, swinging my legs over the edge. To anyone else, it looks like I’m bored and trying to entertain myself like a child. However, I’m not bored at all. I’m nervous. Raven Tail has been known to cheat in the past, it’s what they did with Lucy. And I’m not entirely convinced that Alexei is going to be easy to beat, especially considering he’s yet to reveal his face from behind the mask he wears OR his magic to anyone. I’m also suspicious of the team players for Raven Tail, because they haven’t moved at all, I’m not even sure they’re even breathing. They’re just standing there like weird statues. The same goes for Master Ivan over in the audience. I’m going to watch this Alexei dude really carefully. Sting and Rogue can both see right through my cover up of my nervousness, and I’m starting to think that Olga and Rufus have started to understand me better as well. Not as much as Sting and Rogue, however, but they know enough about my past to know I still care for Fairy Tail. I don’t really care about them finding out, it’s Minerva and Master Jiema that I’m worried about. The gong is rung, and Laxus starts his usual talk before a fight, “A mysterious member of my old man’s guild, nice mask. Wanna tell me who you really are?” He stops in his tracks however, when Alexei charges right at him, attacking him easily and knocking him back like he’s nothing. He keeps attacking Laxus easily, beating him to a pulp. Or at least, that’s the illusion that’s been set for everyone to see. I’m immune to illusions, and can see straight through this little fake sharade that’s been set up. Behind the illusion, Laxus and Alexei haven’t even moved. They’re still at a standoff. Laxus looks at Alexei in confusion, “Care to explain what’s going on here?” Alexei answers, “A type of illusory magic. It’s the only way we could have a private conversation. Those here cannot see nor hear us, even though we’re standing right in front of them.” Laxus glances up at me for a moment, and realizes I can see and hear him, and looks back at Alexei with a smirk, “Okay, sure.” Alexei ignores him and continues, “They’re watching an illusion of the two of us fighting. Incredibly convincing isn’t it? Not a single person has noticed. Well, maybe except for your little friend up there. Unfortunately, she’s unaffected by illusions, so I’m afraid we’ll have to involve her in this as well.” I widen my eyes as I suddenly appear standing next to Laxus. He also widens his eyes in shock as he and I look at each other, then up at Sabertooth, seeing an illusion of me sitting there with an unimpressed look on my face. Laxus and I glare at Alexei, wondering what his goal is. He points at Laxus after hearing the Thunder Legion shout for Laxus not to give up. “It must be nice to know that your guildmates hold you in such high regard. I’m sure they’re absolutely heartbroken. Watching you fall to your enemy like this.” Laxus then says, “I don’t get it. This plan of yours doesn’t make any sense at all. What’s the point of beating me with an illusion? I mean, can you even call that a win?” Alexei simply answers, “Obviously, victory in this match is not our ultimate goal. The purpose of the illusion is to distract those around us. And if I control the illusion, I control the outcome of the match as well.” With that, Alexei makes the illusion change to Laxus suddenly beating the crap out of Alexei, and the members of Fairy Tail go crazy, happy that he’s winning now. I glance up at Lahar from the magic council and notice he’s also ignorant to the truth. If he’s suspicious of them for cheating, he would be able to arrest them, and they wouldn’t be able to compete in the games anymore. Alexei continues, “The point is, I could allow Fairy Tail to win this match. Depending on how our negotiations fare.” Laxus glances down at me and we both share a smirk, then he drops his coat to the ground. “Ain’t no way we’re falling for that. I don’t really give a crap about your stupid illusion. But I can’t wait to get my hands on the real you so I can defeat you here and now.” Suddenly, Flare’s voice says, “That’s not going to happen.” Then, the other four members of the team for Raven Tail suddenly appear next to Alexei, and Laxus and I realize that they’re also really down here instead of up there. I realize that they’ve broken one of the main rules for the games, and know that If I can get Lahar to see through the illusion, he can see they’re cheating and need to be arrested. I look back up to Lahar, and realize how I can make him realize that this is all an illusion. Alexei notices me glancing up to them and says, “Forget about trying to get us arrested. Last time I checked, Marshal Lahar would rather commit treason rather than listen to you, Candace Bane.” I look at him with a questioning look and he chuckles, “I know of your actions against the Magic Council. You weren’t really trying to hide your face that day.” Laxus looks at me in confusion, and I sigh, annoyed that Alexei knows about that. “You know, Lahar doesn’t care. As long as he’s arresting criminals, it’s a win-win. Besides, he’s already suspicious of your guild for cheating, thanks to Mr. Yajama up there. All I have to do is help him see through the illusion and you’re dead.” Flare looks like she’s about to say something, but I glare at her, shutting her up. Yup. She’s still scared of me. Alexei ignores me, and addresses both me and Laxus, “Your powers are impressive. But not even the strongest of wizards could defeat all of Raven Tail all at once. There’s one more thing to consider,” Alexei reaches up to grab his mask, taking it off and revealing that he’s actually Master Ivan! Ha! I knew he was suspicious. “I’m sure you’re aware of just how powerful I am, aren’t you my boy?” Laxus seems unbothered by this and says, “You know, I had a feeling you were behind that mask, my deadbeat dad.” Ivan smirks at him and says, “Makarov would rather die than reveal his secret. On the other hand, you’re a different story. Surely I can depend on my son. Now, tell me where to find the Luminous Duior.” “The lumie-what what what?” I ask, wondering what the hell he just said. Laxus is just as confused as I am, and shrugs it off like it’s nothing “Sorry, never heard of it.” Ivan smirks, “Don’t try to play dumb with me.” “I’m not.” “If Makarov was to tell anyone, it would be his beloved grandson.” Laxus and I look at Ivan like he’s dumb. He clearly doesn’t know a thing about Laxus and Makarov’s relationship. “Guess not, ‘cuz I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Ivan looks at him, slightly shocked, “He must’ve told you something about it.” “Nope. But even if the old geezer had, it’s not like I would ever tell you.” Ivan smirks, “Come now. I’m offering you the chance to emerge victorious from what is otherwise a hopeless situation. If you dare to refuse my terms, your illusory form won’t be the only one getting a thrashing.” I smirk at his attempt to intimidate. This guy really thinks he’s all that, huh? I snort and say, “So this is where you got it from.” Laxus looks down at me, insulted. “Got what from?” “Your crazy ideas you used to have that everyone will either bend to your will or die.” He rolls his eyes at my reference to how he was all those years ago. “Would you please not bring that up? It gives me a headache just thinking about it.” I stifle a laugh, trying to keep my composure, “Now all I can think of is who in the hell is your grandmother? She must be the one Ivan gets this power obsession from.” Laxus looks like I’ve just said the most horrid thing in the world, “That’s disgusting! Why is that the first thing on your mind?!” He shouts, and I laugh at his reaction, “Sorry! Guess I haven’t changed much at all.” The members of Raven Tail look at us, dumbfounded that we’re not even fazed by their ‘intimidation routine’. “Why aren’t you answering my question?! I’m not playing around Laxus!” Laxus goes serious when he hears Ivan’s voice again. “Tch. You think you can scare me? Better think again old man. It’s no wonder the old geezer gave up on you! Come at me! All of you! If you’re an enemy of Fairy Tail’s master, then that makes you my enemy too!” Ivan smirks evilly, “I think it’s time for your father to teach you an important lesson. The guild standing before you was created for one reason. To take down Fairy Tail once and for all.” They all start laughing maniacally and I chuckle. They’re really not as scary as they think they are. This isn’t new to us, they didn’t hide that truth very well. I know Laxus can take down these clowns easily, so I pat him on the back as I head to go sit where my illusory self is sitting, so that way when the illusion is lifted, it looks like I never moved. “Alright, you’ve got this one buddy. I’m going to go sit down again.” He looks at me with a playful smirk, “What? You’re not gonna have fun? And here I thought we were bonding.” I shrug my shoulders, “Maybe next time.” He chuckles slightly and directs his attention back to the Raven Tail schmucks in front of him. “So you created Raven Tail just to take us down, huh?” Flare smirks, “Isn’t he brilliant?” Ivan also smirks, “I hand picked every member of our guild because they each specialize in a form of magic that Fairy Tail members are woefully ill equipped to deal with.” Black Snake then speaks, “And aside from our master, we’re the four most elite!” Ivan then continues, “Taking us all on would be akin to suicide boy.” Laxus smirks, “Oh yeah? The old geezer’s been doing his homework too, you know.” He then goes on to explain how Makarov spied on them, and Ivan looks at him in shock. “The little troll spied on us?!” “You got it, pops. Everything from Raven Tail’s ranks and locations, to its operating funds, and activities over the past seven years. He knows it all.” “What?!” Ivan shouts, enraged. Flare then speaks, “It must’ve been Gajeel! I knew he would betray us, Master!” Ivan widens his eyes in shock, surprised to hear that Gajeel was a ‘double agent’ the whole time. “Does this seem strange to anyone else?” “If Makarov knew our secret, why didn’t he act on it when he had the chance?” Flare and Nalpudding question, to which Laxus replies with, “‘Cuz the stubborn old fool has a real knack for holding back when he shouldn’t. Hurts, huh? After everything you’ve done, the old geezer still managed to have a little faith in you. ‘Cuz you’re his son.” Ivan grits his teeth so hard he chips them, and suddenly snaps, “SILENCE!!! EVERY WAKING MOMENT I LIVED IN THE SHADOWS WAS TO PREPARE FOR THIS DAY!! SO THAT I COULD FINALLY HAVE THE LUMINOUS DUIOR WITHIN MY GRASP!! DID HE THINK I WAS BEING PASSIVE OUT OF THE GOODNESS OF MY HEART?! OF COURSE I WASN’T. ‘CUZ I KNEW YOUR GUILD’S PATHETIC LEFT OVERS WOULDN’T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT WHAT I WAS LOOKING FOR!! THE GUILD HALL!! MAGNOLIA!! EVEN TENROU ISLAND ITSELF!! I CHECKED EVERY PLACE CONNECTED TO FAIRY TAIL, BUT I STILL NEVER FOUND IT!!! TELL ME WHERE THE LUMINOUS DUIOR IS LAXUS!! STOP HIDING IT!! YOU’RE MY SON AREN’T YOU?! WHERE’S YOUR LOYALTY TO YOUR FAMILY?!” Ivan lands a huge attack on Laxus, however, it doesn’t even hurt him. Laxus stands there, glaring at Ivan as he teases him, saying how he can’t bring himself to strike his own father. As if. Suddenly, Makarov’s voice shouts out, “Laxus!” He holds up his hand in the ‘L’ shape, showing him that he’s supporting him. Laxus and I both smirk and I shout out to Ivan, “Hey Ivan!! You forgot one major factor that creates loyalty!!” He glares up at me and says, “And what is that you little punk?” I smirk, “Actually caring for your own goddamn son.” He widens his eyes at me, and Laxus smiles at my words. Ivan then shouts for Obra to drain Laxus’ magic power, but he’s too slow. Laxus knocks him out suddenly before he can do anything. “The next time you pick on a little girl, you better make sure I don’t hear about it!” He then takes out Nalpudding, saying, “As for you, Gray sends his regards!” Flare grabs his wrist with her hair, “I got you now, blondie!” Laxus glares at her, “Think so? Think again!!” He then sends a Lightning Dragon Roar her way, sending her flying. Then, Black Snake appears behind Laxus saying, “Sand Fake!” Laxus gives him a disgusted look, “Man, you are a creep. Get lost, loser!!” He attacks him too, also sending him flying. Ivan looks at Laxus, terrified. “How?! My elite squad’s been taken out?!” Laxus stomps his foot down onto the ground, “Listen, deadbeat! I don’t know what your goal is here, and frankly I don’t care! There’s only one thing you’re getting for all your trouble! PAIN!!” Ivan tries to reason with him, “No! Wait! I’m still your father, don’t you have any respect?! You won’t harm me!! Laxus, I’m your own flesh and blood!!” Laxus glares at him, “Fairy Tail is my only family now!” “Then you’ll share in their doom you pathetic ingrate!! Take this!!!” He sends an attack his way, but it doesn’t even hit him. Laxus dodges it and suddenly appears underneath Ivan, “Anyone who threatens them, gets no mercy from me!!!!” He lands one final blow on Ivan, knocking him out. With that, the illusion disappears, and everyone can see that Laxus is standing with barely a scratch on him, and the entirety of Raven Tail is lying unconscious on the ground, everyone clearly seeing that they broke two major rules that play into the game. The crowd realizes that Laxus took them all out at once, and they all go crazy for him. I smirk from my place on the balcony, and Olga smirks as well, realizing that Laxus uses lightning just like him.