Control

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"Ho, ho~! Look who's back!" Rin scoffed, quickly pushing past the tan male before her. "Hold up, hold up." He jumped in front of her in an attempt to stop her, but she swept him aside with her magic. Ajeel groaned in frustration, visibly noticing how tense she was after her mission. He walked closely behind her and grabbed her arm to keep her from walking further. "Rin." She shivered at his stern tone.

"What?"

"What happened?" Her purple eyes traced the pattern of the tiles beneath their feet. He nudged her slightly to break her out of her trance.

"I saw him."

"Your old loverboy?" She nodded. "So what? Breakups happen. You just need to move on." With a growl, the brunette twisted his arm and slammed his back into the nearby wall. With one hand holding him still, her other pulled her collar down to reveal a pearly, white scale. Ajeel's eyes traced the outline of the shimmering object, eyebrow quirking up in sudden curiosity.

"Dragon Slayers like me are given mates from the day we're born. I was fated to meet him and will always be stuck to him. And this mark," she pointed at the scale, "is proof of our mating. I'm bound to him for eternity and he is the only person I can ever see that way." The shirtless man rolled his eyes.

"Is that why you never gave me the time of day?" The sneer in his voice made Rin want to break his face in. However, she chose to destroy the wall beside him instead. The wall shattered like glass beneath her fist, making Ajeel jump in his place. She leaned in dangerously close to his face, her eyes glowing in fury.

"I didn't give you a chance because your single-mindedness disgusts me." She gave him a rough shove before turning her back on him.

"And what if he dies? You'll be free from him."

"And you think that would give you a chance? Mated or not, I'm still human. I can get with anyone I want." She glanced at him over her shoulder. "I just choose not to." She stormed away, unable to keep her cool around him anymore.

竜

"Master!" Multiple people glanced at Lucy, thinking she was speaking to them. Erza, Makarov, and Mavis raised their hands and gave a simultaneous "yes" in response. "Uhh... the old man one. Could you tell us about the enemy we're about to fight?" The short man gave a hum of approval and a nod of his head.

"That's a good question. I'll tell you everything that I do know. First: Emperor Spriggan. Here in Ishgar, he's known as the mightiest black wizard of all: Zeref. And beneath him is an elite force known as the Spriggan Thirteen. During my time there, I only managed to meet seven of them. Because it's such a large region, it's apparently quite rare for all of them to get together.

"Invel, the Winter General. He is Zeref's chief of staff and his chief administrator. Given his title, I believe he uses ice-based magic, but I don't know any detail. Ajeel, the Desert King, is the sand wizard we encountered during our escape," he motions to the group that had rescued him from Alakitasia. "He's one of the Thirteen's most aggressive members.

"Brandish, the Nation Destroyer. She isn't particularly aggressive, but she has enough magic power to wipe out entire countries." Erza thought back to the green-haired woman. She shivered at the memory of her completely erasing the ground they stood on.

"We encountered her before, on Caracol Island. I believe she uses magic that can alter an object's mass." Nodding to himself at the additional info from Erza, he continued.

"Dimaria, the Warrior Queen. I don't know what magic she has, but she's a knight revered as a goddess of the battlefield."

"She's a knight? Not a wizard?" A hint of jealousy crossed over the scarlet mage's face which made Laxus scoff.