Within the Guild, Natsu, Gajeel, Makarov, and Levy had read the outcome of the two fights, causing Natsu to loudly cheer in joy while clenching his fist, excited for the battle that was to come.
"Hahaha! Nice job, guys!" Roaring towards the ceiling, followed by a breath of flames, Natsu leaped in place; Gajeel, on the other hand, just folded his arms while raising his eyebrow. "Lucy and Cana? Didn't realize those two weaklings had it in them." "Heh, Cana has always been strong and Lucy is still growing; you can't count them out." Natsu flashed Gajeel a smirk, causing him to half-heartedly nod.
However, while the two were still in a good mood from their victories, Makarov poured a bucket of cold water on them. "Their victories mean little; we can't stop Laxus. Even without the Thunder God Tribe, Laxus is…" Makarov didn't need to finish his own sentence, as everyone present knew what he meant and had experienced Laxus's strength.
Without Makarov's help, the chances Fairy Tail had in defeating Laxus were next to zero; the gap in strength was just so massive that quantity wouldn't help overcome it. However, even knowing so, neither Natsu nor Gajeel was afraid. "Hah, stop worrying, Gramps! I'll beat up Laxus real good!" "Hmph, I still have a bone to pick with him." As Gajeel remembered his first interaction with Laxus, which nearly resulted in him being killed, he spat on the ground in annoyance.
"Well, looks like you'll be able to pick a bone with him." Standing up with a smile, everyone glanced at Levy, whose bright smile answered the question that hadn't even been asked. "You've got it, Levy!?" "Yep! It'll take a few minutes for me to implement, but soon, you guys will be able to stop Laxus." Confidently smiling, Levy approached the entrance to the guild, using her knowledge of runes to alter the enchanted barrier.
While Natsu and Gajeel were standing off to the side, eagerly waiting for Levy to finish, Laxus, the man in question, had just stood up from his seat in the city's cathedral.
Sporting an expression of slight annoyance, Laxus cracked his fingers and spat on the ground. "I wanted to have a little bit of fun before taking the guild over, but it seems that if I want anything worthwhile achieved, I have to do it myself." Softly grunting, Laxus walked towards the entrance, exiting the cathedral, only to spot three figures standing off in the distance.
Two of them were a common sight, but one of them was a rarity; glancing at Mystogan, standing beside Mirajane and Erza, Laxus faintly smirked while stepping down the stairs. "Heh, didn't think even you would arrive, Mystogan, though it's good; I can deal with all the S-class mages." Without a shred of nervousness, Laxus put his hands in his pockets while calmly observing his opponents.
"Laxus, are you really planning to go through with this?" Narrowing her eyes, Erza glared at Laxus, who roared with laughter into the sky. "Hahahaha, don't you think it's too late for that nonsense, Erza?" Hearing Laxus' response, Erza softly sighed and reached down, grabbing the hilt of her sword before lifting it, prompting Mystogan to grab one of his many staffs from his back while Mirajane transformed into her Satan Soul, Halphas variant.
Seeing them prepare for combat, Laxus wickedly smirked before flaring his magic power as a show of might, forcing the three to defend themselves from his overwhelming amount of magic power. "Do you really think you three will be enough to stop me?" Once they regained their bearings, Erza and Mirajane flared their own magic power as an act of defiance, though their magic power was like a flickering candle that tried to withstand the powerful storm that was Laxus.
"We won't know unless we've tried." Forcing a confident smile, Mirajane glared at Laxus, who grinned before raising one of his arms, pointing it at them. "Good, I like your confidence; just try and survive this."
Knowing he was about to attack, the three of them sought to do so first; Mirajane flew at Laxus first, followed by Erza, who had requipped into her Lightning Empress armor while Mystogan kept himself at a distance.
However, even so, Laxus was faster; indiscriminately, he released numerous bolts of lightning from his palm, which tore through everything it touched like a devastating blender. Seeing his attack, Mirajane collected darkness energy between her hands, Erza channeled lightning down her spear, and Mystogan pointed his staff at Laxus.
Simultaneously, they attacked, releasing a wave of darkness magic, a thick bolt of lightning, and a beam of magic at Laxus's monstrous attack; the four magic attacks collided, creating a large explosion as well as a crater in the ground from the collision.
"Ho, you three managed to stop my attack? Not bad, I'm somewhat impressed." At Laxus's nonchalant surprise, Erza and Mirajane sported ugly expressions, their confident bravado nowhere to be seen; it required all three of them to match Laxus, and to make matters worse, they knew he wasn't serious.
"Dammit, we only stopped his attack? I was hoping to at least pierce through it." Clicking her tongue, Mirajane floated in the air beside Erza, who, despite feeling similar, regained her composure. "Don't give up, Mira. We knew this wouldn't be easy." "I'm not giving up, just disappointed."
"Our job isn't to defeat Laxus, anyway; none of us thought we could." Stepping forward, Mystogan addressed Mirajane and Erza while standing beside the former, causing them both to furrow their brows, understanding the innuendo. "A girl can't dream?" Mirajane's casual remark was quickly glossed over as Laxus once again gathered magic power within his palm.
"Let's see, can you guys stop this?" Smirking, Laxus released the same attack, yet this time, it was stronger, causing the three of them to separate while forcing them onto the defensive, incurring light injuries.
"Hehehe, c'mon, keep fighting! Let's see how long you guys can survive!" Laxus laughed in amusement as he watched three of them cling to survival amidst his destructive spell.
While the three S-class mages were fighting, or I should say, stalling Laxus, the others could sense the battle from afar.
"All that lightning, that must be where Laxus is." Standing atop the edge of the roof, Cana and Lucy stared off in the distance, watching the destructive lightning attacks that tore through the street and buildings. "Who could be fighting him?" Concerned for Laxus's opponent, Lucy stared at the battle, trying to discern the faint figures she'd occasionally see.
"Must be Erza and Mirajane… C'mon, let's go." "Huh, go where?" "Go help them." With a solemn expression, Cana turned around, heading to the roof access while Lucy stared in disbelief before pointing at the battlefield. "I-I want to, but how? You saw the same battle I did, right? We'd be killed before we even get to close!" "Even so, I can't leave such a crushing burden to Erzan and Mirajane alone. If we don't stop him here, the Fairy Tail as we know it will cease to exist, and I refuse to allow that to happen."
Listening to Cana, Lucy bit her lip while staring at the battlefield before heaving a deep sigh that seemed to contain the acceptance of her own death. "I really don't want to die… I'm still a virgin." Muttering softly in defeat, Lucy followed Cana, the two leaving the roof and heading to the first floor, where they spotted Macao and Wakaba leaning against each other.
"Ah, Cana, Lucy, glad to see you're okay." "What happened to Bickslow?" Raising their heads, they glanced at Cana and Lucy with smiles, while they told them the current situation, causing their faces to harden.
"Man, I was hoping Cooper would've returned by now." Muttering under his breath, Macao slowly stood up, his body groaning in protest. "For fucks sake." Wakaba, in a similar condition to Macao, also rose to his feet. "Alright then, ladies, let's go beat up an ungrateful brat." Smoking a pipe, Wakaba glanced at Cana and Lucy, the former flashing a smirk before they all began walking towards the battle.
Off in the far distance, Laki, who had seen everything from the top of a tall wooden pillar she had made, informed the others, causing their expressions to harden. "We've got no choice but to go; everyone else will be heading towards them, so we have to do so as well." With a solemn expression, Gray's words entered everyone's ears, causing them, Laki, Juvia, Bisca, a recently awakened Alzack, and a rescued Reedus, to glance in the direction of the battle before firmly nodding.
"Feel like we're walking to our deaths." Muttered Alzack softly, earning a nod from everyone else as they all rose to their feet, beginning their march to the battlefield.
Within the depths of Magnolia, after being saved by Mirajan, Nab has scoured he city, gathering the remaining mages, Jet, Droy, Max, Elfman, and even Happy.
"What can you see, Happy?" "Mhm, just a lot of lightning." Descending, Happy reported his findings to Elfman and everyone else, causing them to frown, realizing Laxus had risen to the stage. Though without warning, Elfman suddenly stood up, surprising the others. "Eh, Elfman, where are you going?" "To Laxus. My sister is probably fighting him, and it's not manly to sit back and do nothing. I'm a man, even if it kills me, I'll go out there and fight!"
Driven by his desire to protect Mirajane and his natural manliness, Elfman sparked courage within the others, causing them to exchange glances before rising to their feet, sighs of defeat escaping, which failed to match their smirks and smiles. "Wait for us then. It ain't manly to let a friend walk into a dangerous battle by himself." Smirking, Max brushed aside his hair while patting Elfman's back, while the others followed with Happy flying above.
Back at the guild, Levy, who had been focused on rewriting the barrier, suddenly stepped back. "Alright, guys, it's finished. Y-You're free to go." At Levy's words, she looked at Natsu and Gajeel, who wasted no time and ran through the entrance. "Hahaha, freedom!!" "Tch, finally."
"Watch out, Laxus, I'm coming for you!" Grinning, Natsu dashed down the street with Gajeel following closely behind. Seeing them head out, Levy chased after them; now that her job was finished, she could join the battle. "W-Wait for me!"