Fairy Tail - Twilight Empire

Chapter 105 - A Real Dragon Slayer

Gildarts used to make fun of Lucy for her fighting style. He'd call her out for her style, relying on a lot of kicks, thanks to her long legs.

"Dad!" Cana had called out. "Come on!"

"What?" Gildarts had pleaded. "I mean it, Cana! It's natural for Lucy to want to use her legs in combat. But it also makes it really easy for opponents to read her. She has no variety in her fighting style. This girl can't throw a punch."

Lucy wondered if Clarke, as the rubble of the various wooden huts settled, thought differently of Lucy and her punches. She raised both of her fists as a golden light enveloped her.

"Star Dress: Leo," Lucy cast, and the black dress flashed onto her body as her hair wrapped into a bun. Light still filled and coated her fists.

The guards around Clarke, stunned as the attack hit and the fallout began, finally snapped into action, but were at once whisked away by tendrils of water that crashed into them. Juvia stepped up next to Lucy.

"Let me hold off these buffoons while you deal with him," she said.

"Thanks," Lucy said. "Think this'll get me in trouble with Hisui?"

"Well. No point living with regret now, is there?"

"No. I don't think there is."

She sprang forward as Clarke recovered. He dodged away from Lucy's next punch, then tried to cave in the ground around her, but Lucy was much too fast to fall for that. She leaped away and slammed her knee into his chest, striking the lacrima. However, he braced, ensuring she wouldn't be able to fully shatter it again.

Clarke spun her away. Lucy flipped in the air but pushed forward toward him, elbowing him across the face. Momentarily stunned, Lucy punched him in the jaw, wrapped his arm around him, then slammed him to the ground.

Heh.

And Gildarts thought she wouldn't be able to pull that one off.

But maybe, she realized, it wasn't the best move, as all Clarke had to do was flick his wrist and the ground beneath them seemed to activate, and cave in several feet. Lucy scrambled, kicking out against the falling rubble, and landed just outside the crevice while Clarke happily sank into it. The ground sealed immediately.

Lucy's thoughts spiraled, trying to think of what Kip would do, how Kip would handle this fight. Then, it hit her.

Clarke wasn't Kip.

Clarke was some newbie with this power. Sure, he could collapse the earth, but Kip was capable of so much more. Instant tunnel creation, able to use actual Dragon Slayer magic, combined with the power of the ground around him.

Clarke had just shown an ability to manipulate the ground in rudimentary ways. Which meant...

Lucy stomped her feet on the ground once, twice, then backed away. As she did, the ground caved in right on schedule, and out burst Clarke, who was quickly on the receiving end of one of Lucy's fists yet again. This time, she packed a little more punch to it, allowing her magic to explode on impact.

Clarke spiraled, landing amidst the other business types and politicians. They quickly scrambled, running away from the fighting. Guards whirled, trying to find the source of the commotion. Lucy stepped up, cresting the hill they'd been on.

"What the hell is going on?" Clarke shouted. "Who the hell are you?"

"My name is Lucy Heartfilia, a Fairy Tail wizard," she said.

The crowd, which was listening and not running for their pathetic, rich lives, gasped. All the guards immediately turned toward her.

"You don't deserve to have that lacrima," she said. "It belonged to a real wizard, a real Dragon Slayer."