Electrified Shorts

What Did You Say?

Cedar Town, Wonder Bar (X784)

"Can I get a beer, old man?" The bartender grinned, turned away, and grabbed a cold glass mug from the fridge. "You got it, young man," he said, as he got to work. I leaned over the counter, eyes drooping from the quest I finished earlier. Cedar Town dealt with rabid hoards of critters and asked me to throw them out. All thanks to my magic, they rewarded me with 300,000 jewels. It wasn't too bad, but I could ask for more. When the bartender slid the mug to me, I caught it and snickered at him. "Thanks, old man!" Before my lips touched chilled glass rim, a conversation startled me.

"Aw, man, here's a member of Fairy Tail. I bet he'll destroy this bar like the rest do."

"Yeah. Their guild master won't lift a finger to stop their reckless shit!"

The corner of my eye saw two men with rosy cheeks, chuckling like banshees. I groaned, but returned to my drink, feeling the frigid alcohol wash down tints of dryness. Despite the refreshing taste, the men's discussion on Fairy Tail grew. "I heard the guild demolished—hic—three flower shops. Their quest was to watch one shop until the owner came back. When he saw the shop in horror, the fire spread across two neighboring ones! Hahaha, you should have seen it!" My fingers tightened around the mug's handle, as I listened. "Last week, during an escort quest, a thug group attacked them. Fairy Tail defeated them, but ended up hurting their escort! 'Giant icicles surrounded the mistress, almost freezing her to death.' It spread like wildfire!"

Eavesdropping wasn't my best hobbies, but if someone talked dirty about Fairy Tail, it became helpful. I know Aunt Donica told me not to get agitated. My magic would explode with rage, causing collateral damage. As I took three breaths and sipped more beer, one of those drunken bastards noticed me. He thought of splashing his unfinished drink at me, specifically the face, to get attention. Well, he did, as bitter beer foam dripped against my cheek. "Hey, you're from Fairy Tail! Are you? C-Can you—hic—show us a party trick!? And, please... don't—hic—blow up our tavern!" Their laughter sounded like scratches on a chalkboard—they were annoying the hell out of me! I slammed the mug, a giant crack forming at its bottom, as I stood. The bartender stepped back, not wanting to see the carnage.

"Alright... I'll show you a party trick, but first. Are there good things about Fairy Tail?"

Even though my menacing smirk made the question uncomfortable, one drunk replied. "If there's one good thing about Fairy Tail, it's how they cause destruction that excites me" My chest pounded like a beast going on strike. It went into my ears, heating the lobes to a scarlet hue. Lightning wrapped around my body, illuminating the bar in golden yellow. All bystanders watched as my magic struck fear in those bastards' hazy eyes. They hugged for dear life, skin turning white from my physical prowess. "Okay, here's your party trick!" After my arm dropped, a rain of lightning bolts showered the drunks. Their skeletons showed in hilarious fashion, as the attack lasted for thirty seconds. Afterwards, they fell unconscious; their skin coated in soot.

I paid the bartender, left the tavern, and walked down the dirty path. Aunt Donica won't be too happy, as her emotion magic connected my bottled anger. "Laxus? I felt intense wrath from you. Did something happen?" I sat on an open wooden stool, and tilted my head. "Nothing happen, Aunt Donica. Just some jerks who disrespected our guild." Donica huffed, although we were conversing telepathically. She ordered me to apologize to those idiots. Why would I, the most powerful Fairy Tail mage, apologize to some tipsy morons? "Because they did nothing wrong. Sure, they drank too much, but their minds weren't balanced, Laxus. Besides, Fairy Tail is doing fine. You shouldn't take their rants too far." With an eye roll, I hung up on Donica and strolled out of Cedar Town. Fairy Tail has gone down a rabbit hole of despair. No thanks to Tanya and Gramps being absent dumbasses, it was up to me. I'm going to fix the guild back to its glory, and I knew how.

~***~

Magnolia Town, Fairy Tail Guild (Two Hours Later)

"You want to create a battle royale?"

"Yes, Freed. If Fairy Tail doesn't grow stronger and teach other guilds who's the boss, then a death battle sounds like the best motivational tactic."

We sat on the guild hall's second floor, discussing the ultimate plan. Bickslow and Evergreen were completing a quest, so Freed will repeat our conversation later. "Is this the best move? Surely, Tanya and the Artificial Three won't agree." Right, those four will monitor Fantasia and its parade event. To separate them, I asked Evergreen to write a fake quest poster. Theresa, Allisa, and Donica will travel to various towns, searching for a dark guild that doesn't exist. For Tanya, she has grocery shopping, so a long list should do the trick. "Once those chicks are gone, I can enact the tournament. This event will show me how weak Fairy Tail is to us. If Erza or Mystogen prove themselves as S-Class mages, I'll face them at the cathedral." Aw, yes—the cathedral. I picked that location, because of its interiors. The perfect area for an ultimate battle. "If you're dedicated in this plan, I'll follow no matter what." With that, we began our Fairy Tail renovation project.