Phantom Lord Guild — Nightfall
"Gajeel," Jose's voice cut through the air like a knife, sharp and venomous. "There will be no next time. Get yourself together. We're declaring all-out war on Fairy Tail."
As Jose Porla stepped back into the guild hall, dark magic surged from his body like a storm unleashed. The crushing pressure hit Gajeel first — that familiar, suffocating weight that reminded him of Kael's overwhelming power days ago. He'd faced it once before, and now, as that same sense of dread washed over him, he finally understood what it meant to face one of the Ten Wizard Saints.
Every other Phantom Lord mage felt it too. The air itself seemed to thicken under Jose's magic. Only the Element Four could still stand upright; the rest were forced to their knees, gasping for air, faces pressed against the cold stone floor.
"Y-Yes, Master Jose," Gajeel managed to growl through clenched teeth, forcing his head up in obedience.
"Juvia, Tōtōmaru," Jose continued, his cold gaze turning toward the two mages standing near the doorway, "you'll separate from the main group. Move independently — your task is to capture Lucy Heartfilia and bring her to me."
"Yes, Master Jose," Juvia said, her usual softness replaced by chilling resolve.
"Roger that!" Tōtōmaru replied, gripping the hilt of his blade.
Jose turned back to the rest of his guild. "The rest of you — attack Fairy Tail head-on. Do it right, and all of this will be yours."
With a sinister grin, he waved his hand, and several chests clattered open — overflowing with glittering jewels, gold bars, and treasures beyond measure.
Greed lit up every eye in the hall. The air thickened again, not with magic this time, but with hunger — the kind that made men forget fear, rules, even sanity. None of them cared that Jose's orders violated the Magic Council's laws. The promise of wealth drowned out everything else.
Jose's grin widened as his guild roared its approval, the hall echoing with chants of his name. "That's right," he whispered darkly, turning his gaze toward the direction of Magnolia. "Savor it. Because by the time this is over, Fairy Tail will be nothing but rubble."
As his power rose again, the entire guild began to tremble violently. Outside, the Phantom Lord guild itself — an enormous, fortress-like structure — began to shift. Iron appendages burst from beneath its base, slamming into the earth like the legs of a mechanical spider.
With a groan that echoed across the plains, the monstrous fortress began to walk.
Its destination: Fairy Tail.
The Next Day — Magnolia Town
Boom! Boom!
The ground shook violently, sending tremors through every street and home. People screamed and ran for cover as a vast shadow fell over the city.
"What the hell is that?!"
Inside Fairy Tail's hall, dust rained from the ceiling as the walls creaked. Mages scrambled for balance as the building shuddered again.
Then the doors burst open. "Everyone — outside! You need to see this!" Alzack shouted, panting.
The guild poured out into the sunlight — and froze.
On the horizon, an enormous fortress loomed, its iron legs slamming into the ground as it advanced step by step. The sun was blotted out by its size.
"That… that's insane," one mage gasped.
"Damn it," Erza muttered, her eyes narrowing beneath her scarlet bangs. "I never thought Jose would go this far. To move the entire Phantom Lord headquarters — he's openly defying the Magic Council!"
Makarov stepped forward, towering over his guild as his body expanded in a flash of light — his Titan magic taking hold. The ground shook again beneath his massive feet.
"Everyone, prepare for battle!" he roared, his voice booming like thunder. "We're at war with Phantom Lord!"
"Yes, Master!"
The guild members snapped into motion. Some readied their magic, others sprinted toward the city to evacuate civilians — exactly as they'd planned for this scenario. Fairy Tail would protect Magnolia, no matter what.
At the front line stood the three S-Class mages: Mira, Erza, and Kael.
Erza's armor shifted with a flash of magic — the sleek, obsidian wings of her Black Wing Armor spreading behind her. Mira's form darkened as her body morphed, the demonic power of Satan Soul enveloping her in violet flames. And Kael stood between them, radiant and calm, his hands already pulsing with holy light.
Inside the Moving Fortress — Phantom Lord Guild
Jose lounged atop a high throne, a cruel smile curling his lips. Before him, massive cannons gleamed — rows upon rows of them, powered by intricate magic crystals.
"Kael, Makarov… both of you are here already, I see," he murmured, eyes glinting with madness. "Perfect."
He raised his hand. "Fire the Etherion Cannons!"
"Yes, Master!" came the reply.
From the fortress's front hull, a colossal cannon unfolded, its barrel glowing as concentrated magical energy gathered within. The hum of power filled the air, heavy and menacing.
"That bastard…" Makarov growled. "He's actually using those weapons."
He was about to cast a barrier when Kael stepped forward. "Master. Leave this to me."
Kael extended both arms. "Fivefold Holy Aegis!"
Five concentric shields of light expanded in front of him, each one shimmering like a sunlit crystal.
The cannon roared.
A beam of devastating energy exploded forth, crashing against the shields with a thunderous boom!
The first barrier shattered instantly. Then the second. The third cracked, barely holding for a heartbeat before it too disintegrated. Kael gritted his teeth, pouring more magic into the final two shields. They flared with divine brilliance, halting the beam just inches from him.
Jose laughed from his throne. "Impressive, Kael! You blocked the first shot. But let's see how you fare against three!"
The ground shook again as two more cannons emerged from the fortress's sides, their barrels already glowing with lethal energy.
"Damn it!" Kael threw up another series of holy shields, light swirling around him in a radiant storm.
"Kael!!"
Cana tried to rush forward, but Erza stopped her, drawing her sword. "I'll handle this! You and Mira — take the others and defend the city perimeter!"
"Requip — Adamantine Armor!"
In a flash of green light, Erza's armor transformed, her massive twin shields forming before her just as one of the beams fired. She braced herself, crossing the shields in front of Kael as the impact shook the entire battlefield.
The blast subsided, smoke rising from scorched earth.
"It's not just an Etherion cannon," Kael muttered, his face grim. "There's something else in it… a dark curse."
They barely had time to recover. The second and third beams struck almost simultaneously.
Erza's shield cracked, the recoil throwing her backward. Kael staggered, but his remaining barriers absorbed the rest of the blast, dispersing it in a flash of golden light.
Both were left panting, their magic drained.
"Jose!" Makarov bellowed. "You've gone too far!"
His massive form surged forward, fist cocked back. The Titan slammed a punch into the side of the fortress — only to be stopped by a shimmering, invisible barrier.
The air rippled. Then the barrier cracked under his might, shattering like glass.
But before he could strike again, a massive black claw shot out from the fortress, catching his fist in midair.
"Did you really think I was the same as before, Makarov?"
Jose floated into view, his cloak falling away to reveal his body — twisted, monstrous, entirely demonic. His once-human features were now a grotesque mix of shadow and muscle, his skin marked with infernal runes.
"This isn't Take Over magic," he sneered, his voice thick with corruption. "This is true demonization. My power now is more than double what it once was."
He spread his clawed hands, dark magic boiling around him. "You and Kael together couldn't stop me — and Kael's already spent. Face it, Fairy Tail… this is your end!"
His laughter echoed across the battlefield — cold, cruel, and filled with madness.
The war between light and shadow had begun.