Astro and Margrada stared at each other in silence for a few tense seconds, each trying to read the other's next move. The tension in the air was so thick it almost pulsed — until Astro moved first.
He dashed forward in a blur, his long coat whipping behind him, and swung his purple wind-forged sword in a sharp horizontal arc aimed straight at the top of her head.
Margrada didn't dodge. Instead, she raised one hand, and just before Astro's blade could connect, a pitch-black sphere materialized in her palm.
"Destruction Ball."
The sphere met his sword mid-strike, and the blade disintegrated on contact — scattering into fragments of fading purple wind..
"I can destroy anything," Margrada said with a grin. "Be it living beings, objects, or even magic itself. No matter what you try, it won't work, boy."
Astro narrowed his eyes and leapt back, boots sliding across the cracked marble floor as he assessed her calmly.
Margrada didn't wait for Astro's attack this time. She created another black sphere in her other hand, then hurled both toward him at blistering speed. Astro moved just as quickly, side-stepping to the left, then twisting to the right — both attacks whistled past him, leaving faint trails of dark energy in their wake.
He didn't waste time replying to her taunt. Instead, he connected his mind link to Hibiki.
"I've got Margrada with me downstairs," Astro said sharply in thought. "I'll get her to clash with Riser. You and the others go upstairs through the hole I made earlier. Take out all the wizards up there — they seemed pretty strong, so don't hold back."
"We're already heading up," Hibiki's voice replied with his usual calm humor. "But seriously, you didn't even warn us before you went off risking your life. I guess recklessness runs deep in Fairy Tail."
Astro smirked faintly as he caught his breath, dodging another round of black spheres thrown at him. "It's because I know I can take it," he muttered under his breath.
He lifted his hand and conjured his own bright purple sphere of compressed air, then hurled it toward Margrada. She instantly summoned another black sphere, ready to intercept it. But before the two spells collided, Astro whispered:
"Aero Dominion."
The purple sphere detonated mid-air, expanding into a massive dome of raging purple wind that engulfed Margrada completely. Her scream cut through the roar as thousands of razor-sharp wind currents tore into her body like invisible needles, slicing through her robes and skin.
Her expression twisted in pain, but her fury burned hotter. Her eyes glowed with an eerie blue light.
"Entropy Field!"
A massive dome of blue-black energy erupted around her, annihilating the wind dome around her and even expanding outward violently. The ground cracked and trembled as the field surged across the hall, obliterating everything in its path.
In an instant, it was upon Astro. His eyes widened as he felt the destructive pressure drawing near — air, matter, even ethernano was being devoured by the encroaching dome.
But instead of retreating, Astro launched himself forward. His right hand glowed a deep, intense purple as he thrust his fist toward the oncoming wave of energy.
"Tempest Rotation!"
A spiraling dome of wind spun to life before him, its vortex centered around his body as it met Margrada's destructive field head-on. The collision shook the entire castle, thunderous shockwaves blasting outward in every direction.
Astro clenched his teeth, pouring more and more magic into his defense, but he could feel his dome weakening — cracks of unstable wind starting to appear within it. The force pressing against him was immense, crushing, merciless. And every bit of magic he was pouring in was getting destroyed as soon it touched Margrada's magic.
At the last moment, he was forced to disengage. He leapt backward, boots skidding across the ruined marble floor as his own wind barrier finally collapsed. Landing in a crouch, he exhaled sharply — but even as dust billowed around him, he could tell his counterattack had done its job.
Margrada's expanding dome did not expand any further, and it slowly started disappearing.
"You're being too annoying, boy. You should have figured it out by now — you can't win against me."
Margrada's voice echoed through the wrecked hall as she stepped forward, holding a swirling black orb that floated just beneath her right hand. The deep cuts she got all over her body from Astro's Aero Dominion before were closing rapidly, healed by a soft green glow that pulsed along her skin.
Astro was not willing to fall behind, purple smoke rose from his right hand — the same one that he used to attack the entropy field from before.. The decayed flesh was already knitting back together, his body healing unnaturally fast, just like hers.
"Oh, I could say the same to you."
Astro took a deep breath, inhaling sharply as wind surged around him. His chest swelled from the wind, and the wounds across his body began to fade even faster.. Margrada froze mid-step, her eyes narrowing as realization struck.
"You're not just any devil related magic user… you are a Slayer Magic user as well," she said, astonishment flashing across her face. She'd heard rumors about them — people who could devour their element to recover magic power. She remembered Fiore had two of them, but she never heard of any of them using wind elements.
"Well, you're well informed," Astro said with a faint grin. "I'm a Sky Devil Slayer. I eat wind to replenish my magic."
Winds rose from beneath his boots, swirling in purple arcs that lifted his coat and hair as his aura intensified after he finished eating enough air.
Margrada's lips curved into a sharp, toothy grin. "That just makes it better. You'd make a perfect torture dummy. I could use my magic on you, force you to heal yourself, and do it all over…again and again. And you won't even run out of magic. I love it."
Astro's expression flattened completely. "Just when I thought you couldn't get any more twisted. Also, can you please stop smiling? It's creepy."
Margrada chuckled darkly. "Well no matter what, I can see now why you had this much confidence. And I have to admit, you're the only person I've met who isn't scared about fighting me."
"As for my impression of you." Astro replied, eyes glowing purple as magic surged through him, "I can only think you need a therapist. And maybe a dentist."
Her grin faltered — just for a second.
"But before that," Astro said, his tone sharpening, "you have another pending appointment."
He dashed forward in a sudden burst of speed. Margrada reacted instantly, conjuring a long black spear in her hand.
"Black Wither Spear!"
Astro's fist, wrapped in purple wind, shot toward her in a direct strike. The spear's handle met his blow with a heavy clang that sent shockwaves across the floor.
Astro's hand began to decay again under the contact with her weapon, flesh peeling back to bone — but he didn't even flinch. His glowing eyes locked onto Margrada's face, close enough for her to see the reflection of her own twisted smile in them.
A sharp chill ran down her spine. Her instincts screamed danger.
Before she could react, Astro opened his mouth.
"Sky Devil's Rage!"
A massive tornado of purple wind burst from his mouth point-blank, engulfing her completely. Margrada's scream was drowned out by the roaring gale as she was hurled backward, smashing through several stone walls before being blasted clean out of the castle and into the royal garden.
She lay there motionless for a few seconds, surrounded by shattered marble and uprooted roses. Then, groaning, she raised her hand and bathed herself in a green healing light. Slowly, the wounds across her face and arms closed. She wiped the blood from her lips, her expression twisting in fury.
"Damn that bastard," she hissed. "I forgot he could attack with his mouth."
She was about to dash forward again when her body froze. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of a figure — one she did not want to see.
"I've told you many times, Margrada," came an aged, steady voice. "You've always been far too confident in your own abilities — a trait I wish you hadn't inherited from her."
An old man with long white hair and a beard stepped into view, walking toward her with calm, deliberate steps. His presence alone was enough to silence the crackling air.
Margrada's expression darkened instantly. The playful grin vanished. The arrogance melted away.
Her eyes filled with raw hatred.
If Astro had been there to witness it, he would have been stunned…, Margrada wasn't smiling anymore and she wasn't relaxed either.
She was tense.
And afraid.
But Astro at least knew exactly where Margrada had been sent — straight to Master Riser.
That old monster could keep her occupied for a while.
He started healing his hand again, as well as activating the mental link Hibiki had established earlier.
"This is your chance, Sylvain. Go get the Aetherkrone. Master Riser will keep Margrada busy."
"Thank you, Astro," Sylvain's hurried voice echoed in his mind, already laced with adrenaline. Astro could sense him moving fast — heading toward the throne room.
Astro didn't care to imagine what was happening between Riser and Margrada right now. He could already feel their overwhelming magic clashing in the distance. But that wasn't his priority.
With a surge of wind at his feet, Astro propelled himself upward through the jagged hole in the ceiling — the same one Margrada had crashed through earlier. He could already sense the absolute chaos that was happening upstairs.
Actually, from a little while ago, it was already complete chaos as the Fiore's guild wizards clashed with the Joya's royal wizards.
"Stone Make: Hammerfall!"
One of the blue-robed wizards shouted. A massive stone hammer, even larger than his own body, materialized above him and came crashing down toward Shawn's small frame.
Shawn was getting ready to dodge, but it wasn't needed.
"Protect!"
A charming voice called out. A huge yellow holographic screen appeared between Shawn and the incoming hammer. The hammer slammed against it with a deafening impact, cracks spreading across the screen's glowing surface but it did not break.
Shawn didn't waste the opening made by HIbiki. He aimed both palms forward and shouted, "Ash Make: Lions!"
Three huge lions made of thick gray ash materialized and charged toward the stone wizard with feral roars.
The wizard however didn't panic. Instead, just as he landed, he instantly crouched down and slammed both hands into the ground.
"Stone Make: Spiked Floor!"
Several sharp spikes erupted from the floor beneath the lions, piercing through them with deadly precision. The ash beasts disintegrated into dust mid-run.
"Leave him to me, Shawn." another young voice shouted behind Shawn. Before Shawn could understand what was happening, Gray was already behind him.
"Ice Make: Death Scythe!"
Gray leapt from behind Shawn, soaring toward the stone wizard. A massive ice scythe formed in his hands, its curved blade gleaming under the light. He rotated the weapon in his hand once before swinging it vertically in one swift motion, but the opponent dodged by dropping low.
"Stone Make: Spear!"
The stone wizard extended his right arm, conjuring a huge spear of solid rock with a sharp tip. He hurled it straight toward Gray, who was still midair and seemingly defenseless.
But Gray didn't panic.
"Ice Make: Shield!"
He shouted. Releasing the scythe, he instantly created a circular ice shield before him. The stone spear struck the shield with a thunderous crack, as Gray landed safely on the ground.
Without wasting a moment, Gray crouched and pressed one palm to the floor.
"Ice Make: Ice Geyser!"
A towering spike of ice burst from the ground beneath the stone wizard. Startled, the man leapt backward, narrowly avoiding being skewered. But even though he managed to dodge the spike, it grazed his leg, tearing through fabric and drawing blood. He groaned from the sharp pain but tried to steady himself fast.
Gray, however, wasn't finished.
Using the momentum from his last attack, he spun his body and roared.
"Ice Make: Heavy Hammer!"
A colossal hammer of pure ice formed in his grip, matching the size of the one the stone wizard had created earlier. But he managed to create it way faster than the stone wizard. With a mighty swing, Gray swung the huge hammer toward his opponent, who was still midair and exposed.
"Switch!"
A sudden voice echoed through the battlefield. In an instant, the stone wizard vanished in a flash of light and reappeared behind Gray on the air.
Gray's eyes darted to the side, spotting another tall blue-robed wizard standing further away, his hands glowing black faintly from a spell circle. The space wizard barked, "Focus, Rockwell! What are you doing?"
Rockwell — the stone-make wizard — scowled in irritation as he adjusted his stance, his leg still bleeding slightly. "Shut up, Kairon!." he snapped back, clearly annoyed by the interference.
But he didn't dare to waste the opening.
"Stone-Make: Longsword,"
Rockwell shouted, summoning a colossal blade that he swung down from above toward Gray.
Gray didn't look back. He simply rolled sideways and slammed his right hand to the floor looking back at Rockwell.
"Ice-Make: Floor."
In an instant, the ground around Gray froze into a slick, icy plain and Rockwell ended up landing on the icy floor without any preparation, slipping backward uncontrolled.
Gray seized the opening this time and dashed forward.
"Ice-Make: Ice Bringer."
Two ice swords formed in his hands, and he moved in a precise X-pattern, slashing through the air at the enemy. Rockwell, who was falling down from slipping on the ice, could only watch helplessly as Gray advanced towards him with brutal speed.
"Switch!"
Kairon yelled again, and Rockwell vanished with a shimmer at the last second, reappearing behind Kairon this time. And in Rockwell's place stood a wooden puppet. Gray recognized the exploding puppet from before and did not stop, as he sliced through the puppet cleanly; it froze behind him. The explosion could not get off in time.
"Focus, Rockwell," Kairon snapped, irritation clear in his voice. "This is the third time in last five minutes I've had to bail you out. What are you doing?"
Rockwell panted in fear and had no answer. He never felt so close to death this much before today.; he looked at the puppet's broken and frozen body and face and could not help but imagine that it could have been his own.
"It's not my fault," he muttered. "How is he casting magic that fast? By the time I prepare one attack, he's already casted three, and preparing for the fourth one. Damn it. What's up with these Fairy Tail wizards? I thought from Fiore only the Phantom Lord could cause us trouble."
Even from a distance, Gray could hear their voice. Amid the chaos, he slowly started walking back past the dust and debris, dodging an incoming wizard's body casually, and looked towards Kairon and the shaken Rockwell. He tore off his shirt in one fluid motion and dropped into his signature Ice-Make stance, one fist pressed into the palm of the other. A cold breath escaped him, and his voice dropped into a low but steady tone.
"Sorry for scaring you but my family is on the line here," Gray said. "You can run all you want, but I won't stop fighting until I stop every threat coming towards my family."