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CHAPTER START---
Standing under the pale light of the crescent moon, Ichiya and Jura are well rested after one night and day of traveling through the skies. Now, enjoying their afternoon coffee, they gaze out at the jagged, rocky mountain peaks around them.
All barren of life, capped with bits of snow, far too steep and unwelcoming for anyone to scale in the traditional ways. The perfect natural defense for the Dark Guild that specializes in flight. While Jura drinks his coffee and cautiously gazes down at the clouds below them, occasionally giving way for him to see the miles of space between them and the ground, Ichiya turns his back to the railing.
He leans against it and enjoys his hot drink, fighting against the cold night air while they approach their target. But his gaze is cast toward the deck, where Oberon sits. Crossed-legged, deep within his meditation.
He wears his usual black combat pants and boots, item belt stocked and equipped, along with a simple white long-sleeve shirt. With a thought, Ichiya taps into the connection between himself and the control room crew via Archive Magic, getting the all clear before glancing at Jura.
"Have you never been this high up before?"
"The monastery is built on a summit far higher than these," Jura says wistfully. "The Barrier Magic protects us from the cold and intruders, but Master Aven once asked Master Makarov to alter it. Because of those alterations, ever since I was a boy, I could always look up and see the stars, just like this…"
Ichiya follows Jura's gaze upward, and can't help but feel bad for the man, and simultaneously inspired by him. "Leaving your home and starting a mostly new journey. That is a terrifying thing for anyone, and a might brave thing to choose. But I'm sure the people back at your home think of you whenever they look up at the stars as well."
"It is a moment we would often share together," Jura says before turning and leaning against the railing. "But I dare not pity my life or choices, when far more tragic origins exist on this very deck."
Ichiya glances at Oberon before taking a sip of his drink. "Pain and sadness is not a competition. The suffering of others does not make yours any less real."
"True. But gratitude is the basis of our teachings. That is why we can keep moving forward, because we are grateful for the opportunity to try."
"Mhm. And how do you feel about being so far from your precious earth?"
Jura grumbles. "I miss the earth beneath my feet. I can use my Earth Magic here, but making material always takes far more energy than manipulating that which exists."
"Try not to think about that fact that we've only been training with this airship for a few weeks." Ichiya chuckles.
"Guild Wizards truly are strange."
"That includes you now. But, speaking of Magic Energy. That game you played with Oberon…"
"It was only a game to him. For me, it was a true test of might."
"Yes, well…never do that again," Ichiya gives Jura a serious look, lowering his voice to a whisper. "When Oberon came to Blue Pegasus, I didn't meet him then. He thinks it's because I was busy with the festival, but really, I was getting Master Bob to the hospital, quietly."
"What happened?"
"While training Oberon in some Magics, Master Bob connected to that Cosmic of his. It's dangerous. He said it forced him into a contest of Magic Energy, and damn near drowned him. He was almost fully drained in seconds. Granted he doesn't have much Magic Energy since he's the strategist type, but still, don't play that game with Oberon."
"I see. Dangerous. Is there anything else?"
"That's all Master Bob told me. He gave the boy his word he'd keep the properties of his Magics confidential."
"And we Guild Wizards take those agreements very seriously, I understand."
"The Celestial Spirit Magic thought, that's interesting," Ichiya says. "I didn't know he had it until I saw a picture in Sorcerer Weekly. There is a girl about half his age in town, not yet a member of my guild. But she has a single silver key, yet it takes so much Magic Energy she can only use it a few minutes each day."
"They take that much? Or does she have so little?"
"In her case, both. But Master Bob has friends with that Magic and from the way they talk about it, keeping one of the golden zodiac gates opened for ten minutes would be a real pain."
"Lady Virgo and Aries have been below decks helping the crew for hours," Jura says.
"And we can't sense his Magic Energy at all," Ichiya narrows his eyes at Oberon. "He mentioned yesterday that his control is perfect. And I've seen him use Super Archive, he's better than Master Bob already. Yet he can't transfer data…"
"What are you saying?"
"I don't think he has Stealth Magic at all. I think we have a little prodigy on our hands. Or at least one of a magnitude we hadn't realized before. It's almost like his control is so perfect he doesn't let any Magic Energy in or out without permission, allowing him to replenish it faster than he spends it."
"You solved that so easily?"
"Not easily at all," Ichiya says as he finishes his drink. "I've spent more time than I'll ever admit piecing together articles and information about this. And coordinating a guild as large as Blue Pegasus demands a certain level of knowledge of various Magics. Without the information from Master Bob's incident this also would have been impossible, assuming I'm correct."
"Regardless of the reality around him. He is competent, and more importantly, trustworthy."
"Something we could always use more of, considering the state of the world."
Jura chuckles, bitterly. "I chose maybe the worst possible time to become a Guild Wizard, didn't I."
"Of you certainly did. If someone doesn't try to be a great uniter for the Dark Guilds so we can take them down, we may be looking at a 5th Trade War."
"I pray such a thing never happens," Jura finishes his coffee, and the moment he does both Ichiya and Oberon perk up.
They simultaneously receive telepathic communications from Virgo, standing on the bridge, and the Blue Pegasus members there.
Ichiya sets down his cup and looks ahead at the clear sky with only a few mountain peaks ahead of them. "They said Magic Energy signatures are ahead, but I can't see anything."
"I'll take a look," Oberon says as he flies upward, using Telescopic Lens to scan the horizon. Far in the distance, he sees a mountaintop that looks to have been cut off, hosting a modest fortress atop it. "Turn us five degrees left and we'll be heading straight for them. A mountaintop fortress, it has space to land this!"
"I've already relayed it. What else do you see?!"
Oberon focuses for a moment, and seconds later, he sees dozens of streaks of energy fly out of the fortress, twisting and winding the air before altering course and heading toward them.
'Are those—' He zooms in even farther and sees that each streak is a Dark Wizard flying through various means. 'That's not even half of their members, and we know they should all be there tonight.'
Oberon turns to Ichiya. "We have incoming, around fifty of their people."
"A third of their forces? Then we need to reach their fortress before the others meet us in the air, we can't properly fight them up here!" Ichiya sends a message, and members of Blue Pegasus rush to the upper deck.
Most of them use long ranged attack Magics, and those who don't are equipped with Magic Sniper Rifles and other Magic Guns. Even Virgo and Aries were using the borrowed weapons.
"I was hoping we'd get closer before being detected, but I suppose this will have to do," Ichiya turns to Oberon. "Take Jura and get to the fortress!"
"What?" Jura and Oberon turn to the man.
"You're faster than the airship, and a harder target. You take Jura and get him to that mountain," Ichiya turns to Jura. "When you get there, make a dome or something. Just stop them from getting into the air. Oberon will deal with most of the ones already airborne and we'll defend the airship while moving in, got it?!"
Jura nods and walks over to Oberon, who immediately uses Gravity Magic to lift him into the air and carry them both toward the fortress.
Oberon sees the dozens of Dark Wizards moving toward them and smiles, then is overtaken with worry about the people on the airship. "Can you make a dome over the fortress?"
"Something like that, just get me there and I'll handle it," Jura says.
"Alright, but I need to get you to it before I can start fighting them. I don't want to accidentally drop you from the sky. So just hold on!"
"To what?!" Jura asks as they speed up, and he's floating beside Oberon.
They suddenly accelerate, surprising the enemies. And in that moment, Oberon forms a Light Sphere in his hand and tosses it ahead of them.
"Close your eyes," he says to Jura, and the moment the man obeys, golden bright light illuminates the sky, temporarily blinding everyone unfortunate enough to be looking at his Spell.
In the thirty seconds it takes for everyone to regain their full vision, Oberon is already far past them, and unleashes the same attack.
This time they wisely keep their eyes closed, so he makes the flash last longer, long enough for him to reach the outskirts of the fortress unbothered.
They open their eyes and fly back to the fortress, mostly ignoring the airship for now because two famous S-Class Wizards are at their base. But when they get closer, Oberon is standing alone at the edge of the plateau, hundreds of meters from the fortress walls.
With everyone taking a moment to assess the situation, and not finding Jura anywhere, he gets a proper look at them.
Different types of Magics, mainly Wind and Air Magics. Magic Items such as Windwalker Boots or even Wind Packs, and they were all wearing special goggles to protect their eyes from the wind and bugs, along with thick coats.
Most of them had weapons in their hands, while others prepared spells. But what made Oberon smile the most is what was on their wrists.
"Emergency parachutes," he says. "Yeah, you're going to lose. Because you came prepared for it…"
With a wave of his hand, he Requips his S-Class Coat into his grasp and pulls it on, smiling while aiming a single finger at the Dark Wizards.
In front of his finger, a single golden Magic Circle forms, hosting the Fairy Tail Emblem in the middle, and the Dark Wizards prepare to all fire at once, ready to overwhelm him.
But in the next instant, fifty more identical Magic Circles form a wall in front of him, and before they could react, a wall of Lightshots are sent their way.
They abandon all plans to fire and rush into one big group, around one man. He raises a square shield in front of them to block the attacks, but Oberon commands them to turn and move around his directional shield.
The man grits his teeth and bends his shield into a dome, pushing himself beyond his limits and protecting everyone as the Light Magic shatters against his defense.
"Wow, you're pretty good," Oberon says as he lowers his hand.
The man drops the barrier, but stays centered in the crowd as they slowly spread back out in a wide line. "I am a commander in our guild for a reason. One of our four war commanders."
Oberon smiles. "Yeah. I read your file. Barrier and Wind Magics, plus you have some weird Telepathy Magic. I'm guessing that's why you all are so coordinated, right?"
The man raises a brow at the strange questioning, looking down at the boy who is a few hundred feet away from them. "And what if it is?"
"Great, that just means I have to take you down first!" Oberon takes a combat stance, ready to leap forward, and the man smiles as everyone fires.
Their projectiles form a wall of death for most, blocking Oberon's direct path to him.
But a second later, the man feels a weight on his body and items, his gravity is multiplied for a moment, pulling him far below the formation.
He barely has time to understand what happened before seeing Oberon closing in with a fist reared back aimed at his face, all while the people above are still firing at his previous position…
CHAPTER END---
Discord: discord .gg /eHuxNeZfyS [Come chat with me]
pat.reon: Keanu_Eugene [Read ahead & support me]
You.tube: @KeanuEugene [Giving away all my writing knowledge]