Fairy Tail: The Dark Swordsman

64 - Chess Pieces

[X784, Magnolia]

— Dannis Martell —

"Ah. Home sweet home."

He let out a sigh of content as he sank deeper into the reclining chair he had set up on his patio. A light breeze wafted through the trees that brought the faint scent of Magnolia's cherry blossoms. It was a rare moment of peace.

Mira giggled beside him as she sipped her cool fruit drink. "It was nice of the master to extend our vacation for a bit," she said. "Relaxing like this is just what we need after that whole debacle with Phantom Lord."

"You're telling me," Dannis muttered, rubbing the side of his neck where the bruises still lingered. The relaxation was just what he needed. After all, he's got a lot on his mind recently.

Mira turned toward him slightly, eyes softening. "Are you okay, Dannis? You've got that distant look again."

He paused. Mira had always been quick to read him—quicker than most, honestly. He debated just brushing off her concern, but instead leaned forward with a quiet sigh. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just didn't expect to see the Thunder God Tribe of all people."

Having Freed, Bickslow, and Evergreen to pop in Porlyusica's hut while he was healing was something he didn't expect.

The whole conversation after that was also quite surprising. According to Freed, Laxus was getting better. He still believed in the whole strength superiority thing but it had milded out in recent years.

"They're up to something," Dannis muttered. "Some kind of secret mission."

While they didn't say anything outright, he knew them enough to realize that they were keeping something from him.

Mira tilted her head, curious. "You think the master sent them?"

"Has to be," Dannis replied. "The only reason they came back was to check up on me. It must be a pretty important one for the master to not call on him back during the war."

He ran a hand through his hair and glanced at the clouds. "I'm not worried, though. If Laxus is handling it... well, he always finishes what he starts."

Mira studied him for a long moment, then gently placed her hand over his. "You're thinking about them, aren't you?"

A small chuckle escaped him. "Can't help it. Been a long time since I thought about when it was just me and Laxus. We trained harder than anyone, took missions we had no business taking, and somehow survived all of it."

"You told me once you founded the Thunder God Tribe with him, right?"

"Yeah," Dannis nodded. "Back then, it was just the two of us. No one else our age in Fairy Tail except Cana, and she was... well, dealing with her own stuff. So we stuck together. Partners. Brothers."

His voice quieted, memory pulling at his tone.

"There was this mission." Dannis said. "We were supposed to stop a smuggling ring, only for it to escalate when we found out that it was a bunch of slavers led by former rune knights from Bosco. They already kidnapped a bunch of the townsfolk and nearly made an escape."

A small smile appeared on his face then. "That's when I had this stupid plan to try and combine our powers. We were nowhere near ready at the time, but we were desperate. Funnily enough, that was when we first did a successful Unison Raid."

Mira's eyes widened. "You and Laxus did a Unison Raid? That's rare."

Dannis smiled slightly. "Yeah. It just... happened. That kind of thing doesn't happen unless there's real trust. Real connection."