11 Chapter 10

October 21st, x784.

Laxus Dreyar was waiting near a caravan of merchants, just outside of a small village. He didn't fully trust the woman he met at Magnolia, but she was right. He can't afford not to check if she is telling the truth.

There was only one group of merchants in the town that she had told him about, and he had been following them all day now. The moon was beginning to come out and the merchants were camping on the outskirts, but Laxus still hadn't seen any indication that they would be attacked.

Just when he began to think he had wasted his time, something peculiar caught his eye.

A man's face just emerged from the trunk of a tree across the road. He was a tan man with a beard and hair that flared out in all directions. When his entire body emerged from the tree, he was massive, towering over Laxus. He perfectly matches the council's description of one of the high-ranking members of Grimoire Heart, Azuma. It appears that the woman from before was telling the truth.

Azuma had only taken three steps towards the caravan's camp which held his target when pain engulfed his body. Lightning had struck. A blonde man appeared before him, tossing aside a heavy black coat. Azuma recognized him as Fairy Tail's recently excommunicated S-class mage, Laxus Dreyar.

This would be a difficult obstacle in what should have been an easy mission, but Azuma welcomed it. Laxus Dreyar was strong. That was something that every dark mage knew. He hunted down dark guilds with a vengeance, destroying them with no mercy. The only person who had taken down more dark guilds than Laxus would be the kid from Azuma's guild, White. Regardless, Laxus was strong and Azuma wanted to fight him.

"Azuma of Grimoire Heart, what are you doing here?" Laxus questioned the big man.

"Does it matter?" Azuma retorts. "Now that you are here, we will fight. That's all there is to it." He raises his arm to Laxus. "Bleve"

An explosion bursts out in front of him. Laxus dodges it, but the caravan camp has been completely engulfed. Laxus doesn't have time to regret their deaths as another string of explosions follows his path in a straight line. He can already tell this will be a difficult fight. Perhaps the most difficult of his entire life, but a fight that he can't afford to lose.

That night, the citizens of Oakridge town cowered in their homes as explosions and thunder strikes repeated over and over again outside. They gradually moved further and further away, but they did not cease until an entire hour had passed.

Two voices could be heard in the distance.

"Lighting Dragon Slayer's Secret Art: Roaring Thunder!"

"It's over! Terra Clamare!"

A view from above would show a massive explosion blast of fire encompassing the already ruined landscape. A single spot of lighting sparked at the blast's origin, but it too, was engulfed in flames.

When the flames died down, two bodies were strewn about on the ground: One had been charred to a crisp and thoroughly dismembered, the man was unquestionably dead, the other had also sustained severe burns and had his right arm entirely blown away, his status was unclear.

.....

October 22nd, x784. I have been called to Hades' office.

Yesterday was the day that Azuma was supposed to steal the key, so that is likely what this is about. Whether Laxus succeeded or not, I don't know. I will find out soon enough.

When I enter the room, Hades says nothing. He simply stares at me from his seat with an unreadable expression.

"Master Hades," I bow after closing the door behind me. "I am here to answer your summons."

Hades responds with continued silent scrutiny, only motioning to the chair across from him. If I hadn't closed all my sweat glands before entering here, I would probably be sweating buckets from the pressure he is giving off.

"Master," I sit down and force my voice and actions to be as composed as always. "Do you have an assignment for me?"

"White," When he finally breaks the silence, it is with a grave voice. He is not in a good mood. "Are you aware of what Azuma is doing?"

"Yes, yesterday I heard from Meredy that he was out somewhere, retrieving a key," I answer with truths and lies mixed together. "I presume that it is most likely one of those Keys of Zeref that you have been seeking."

"I see, so you found out yesterday." There was a long pause where we both stared at each other before he continued. "Azuma is dead."

"Oh, that's surprising." My voice is even and uninterested. "Who killed him?"

"... Surprising indeed. He was killed by Laxus Dreyar, formerly of Fairy Tail. Ambushed when he attacked the caravan. Laxus was found at the site severely wounded and missing an arm, but still alive, if only barely."

"Are you sure Azuma didn't see Laxus there and decided to attack him? I wouldn't put it past him to prioritize a good fight over his mission."

"That is a possibility. However," The pressure coming from the old dark guild master suddenly multiplies in force. "White, are you aware of my reason for calling you here yet?"

"..." For a moment my voice catches in my throat. I still can't see myself winning against this old man if it comes down to a fight. "I am unsure. I do not believe that you would single me out just to tell me that Azuma died. Do you want me to kill Laxus Dreyar?"

"So, you truly don't know?" The pressure stabs at my mind, threatening to break my composure and force me to slip up.

"That is correct, I am unsure why you've called me here."

"I see." The pressure vanishes and the hard look on his face fades away. "You've always been a bit dense, White. I am planning to announce it to the guild later today, and I wanted you to hear it first. Azuma's position as a member of the Seven Kin of Purgatory will be passed on to you. Congratulations."

"Thank you, Master." I don't let my relief show on my face. "Should I take over his mission to retrieve the key then?"

"No, I've already sent Caprico to collect it. Another matter has recently developed that I want you to be free for. You are dismissed now."

"Understood." I get up and leave the room. A voice from behind stops me at the doorway.

"Still," Hades called out. "It's truly unfortunate about Azuma. Don't you think, White?"

"Yes, unfortunate indeed." I walk out into the hall and close the door behind me.

I don't stop walking until I'm locked in my room and collapsed on my bed. All the stress and tension from that encounter released into the embrace of my pillow. For a moment there, I had thought that the old fox would kill me, but…

I did it!

The first phase of my plan went perfectly. Azuma is dead, I took his place, and my involvement didn't get found out. Hades appears to be suspicious of me, but either he isn't certain, or he doesn't care. Either way, I got everything I wanted.

The fruits of this plan won't appear for a while, not until phase two starts, but the groundwork has been laid. Phase two should be much easier to accomplish. Now, all I need to do is follow orders and act as the perfect little soldier until it's ready.

...

A week later, I was called to Hades' office once again.

"White, I have your first assignment as a member of the Kin." Hades states after I've entered and given my respects. "Though, it is much the same as what you are used to."

"An execution then?" I ask.

"Yes, though this time will be a direct race against the light guilds. You will be at much greater risk than usual." Hades warns.

"Understood. Who is the target?"

"I think you will enjoy this one." Hades smiles at me. "The target is a man you know well. Brain of the Oracion Seis."

"... Are we betraying the Balam Alliance?" If it is a race against light guilds, then this is most likely about that thing from the story. I don't remember it well, but I think it's where Wendy joined the guild. I didn't expect us to get involved with the Oracion Seis arc of the story. Is this another change brought on by my presence?

"No, Brain has a lot of very sensitive information that would severely hamper our movements if the council found out," Hades replies. "Your mission is the same as always, eliminate the leak before it can spread."

"Is the Oracion Seis not an important member of the alliance? If we know that they are being cornered by the light guilds, why not help them?" I inquire. "It shouldn't be too difficult to ambush a group that only expects to face one dark guild."

"Why should we expose ourselves for his sake? If he got himself found out, that means that that is all he is worth." Hades sneers. "Besides, the reason he has been found out is that he has been looking for something. Something I do not wish for him to have."

"Looking for something?" I feel like there was something like that in the arc, but I can't remember.

"It's called Nirvana, a magic tool which reverses the darkness and light in people's souls." That sounds familiar, I think in the story he found and activated it too.

"What do you mean? That description is too obscure." I admit my confusion.

"It's a type of mind control magic, just far more permanent and far more terrible," he explains. "It can take someone who is feeling some type of powerful emotion, negative or positive, and make that part of their personality. If used correctly, it could destroy the council and all the light guilds from within."

"In that case, will we take it for ourselves?" This could be a problem, I can't afford for Grimoire Heart to get too strong before the war. If I don't think Fairy Tail can beat them anymore, I would have no choice but to abandon my plan and stick with Grimoire Heart.

"No, I want nothing to do with the thing." Oh, never mind. "It is a faulty magic tool, filled with problems. A weapon like that would most likely bring us more harm than benefit. I do not wish for an object that can permanently alter my mind to come anywhere near me."

"Understood. Then, what exactly is my mission?"

"You will wait until Brain discovers Nirvana, at that point, your mission will consist of two parts: the execution of Brain before the Council can take him, and ensuring the destruction of Nirvana. Other than that, allow the light guilds and the Oracion Seis to fight amongst themselves. Hopefully, they can rid us of a few of our enemies." Hades announces my mission as if it were something simple, but this will be nearly impossible to do discreetly with the light guilds being there.

"Do you not wish for me to eliminate the other members of the Oracion Seis as well?"

"That will be up to you." Hades surprises me by being so lenient. "This mission will be very difficult with light guild mages and council members all over the area, there may be little chance to kill Brain if you are focused on the others and keeping them out of enemy hands. Fortunately, Brain is a paranoid man and has told his subordinates almost nothing about the Alliance, so they do not have much information to give. If you want to kill them or take their magic, feel free, but make sure you prioritize the mission."

"Understood. It will be done." I am relieved. I don't remember much, but I seem to remember the five of them coming back as allies to Fairy Tail later on. I don't know if killing them would cause any problems in the future, but it would be best not to.

"I shall inform you when it is time to act, be prepared to act at all times. Dismissed."

"I will remain vigilant, Master Hades." I bow and leave the room.

I think about everything that I can remember from the Oracion Seis arc on my way to my room. It's not a lot. Several guilds joined with Fairy Tail to attack them. Jellal was there for some reason. Brain became Zero and successfully activated Nirvana. Natsu defeated Brain and somehow, Nirvana was stopped. After that, Wendy joined Fairy Tail. That's all I remember.

Once inside my room, I channel my magic, and the skin on my arm begins to writhe, like some type of worm was crawling beneath from my shoulder to my hand. A rolled-up slip of paper is pushed out of my palm, entirely dry.

This is an application of my magic that I started using a year after arriving here, but nobody else is aware of it. I can keep certain objects within my body, as long as they are small and flexible enough not to interfere with my movements.

I unroll the paper and begin to read my writing from 6 years ago. I didn't have the luxury of writing all my memories of the story down until after so long had passed that I'd forgotten most of it, but this is better than nothing.

Reading the Oracion Seis part, I see much of the same things from above, but there is a bit more. It seems that Jellal will be there but having lost all his memories. I have written about the magic of all five members other than Brain and the names of some of the light mages who will participate: Natsu, Lucy, Gray, Erza, Wendy, Jura Neekis, Lyon (Gray's rival or something it says) and Ichiya. It also says that Nirvana will be destroyed by them, so it looks like I won't need to personally act for that. Finally, it says something about a ghost town. Not sure what that means, so I'll have to be cautious.

It looks like neither Mirajane nor Elfman will be involved in this mission, so that's a good thing. Other than that, there will be two wizard saints there for me to look out for. I would rather avoid having to fight against either one of them, especially not after fighting Brain, but certainly not before either. Although, hopefully, I won't need to actually fight Brain. Just kill him.

I scan further down the paper, looking for any more mention of the Oracion Seis, but all I find is a single line.

Oracion Seis, minus Brain, joins Jellal in Crime Sorciere after escaping prison. I think.

Not very convincing, but one of the last lines does manage to convince me to leave them alone.

All the dragon slayers come together with the power of BS to defeat Acnologia.

I don't know if I can rely on the power of BS, but it would be a very bad idea to get rid of one of them before that happens. Either way, while Racer and Midnight do have magic that interests me, I already have a target in mind for my fifth and final magic. I will leave the five of them alone, even if there is a chance to kill them.

Regardless, this could become my first direct encounter with the main characters of Fairy Tail. It could become my first fight with them as well.

.....

On November 2nd, I am standing just south of the Warth Woodlands, hidden a short distance away from a manor owned by the Blue Pegasus guild master, Bob.

I've watched as the mages filed in one after the other, starting with Angel of the Oracion Seis, so I am aware that this meeting will likely not end well for the light guilds. There are 4 mages from Blue Pegasus: Ichiya Vandalay Kotobuki, Eve Tearm, Hibiki Lates, and Ren Akatsuki, as well as that large airship. Fairy Tail has also brought 4 mages, they are those that had been indicated in my notes: Erza Scarlet, Lucy Heartfilia, Gray Fullbuster, and Natsu Dragneel. Representing Lamia Scale are Wizard Saint Jura Neekis, Lyon Vastia, and Sherry Blendy. Finally, Cait Shelter has only sent Wendy Marvel, who is younger than even me by a year.

I've already enhanced all of my senses, so I have no trouble eavesdropping on their plans and tracking each of them. Eyes of the Hawk. Ears of the Bat. Nose of the hound. Other than the ears, there are no physical changes brought by the rest of the modifications, only enhanced senses. Altogether, it gives me a superhuman level of perception that allows me to pick up on anything around me without missing a single detail.

That is how I've come to know everything that the light guilds have done since arriving. They've acted like fools and are setting themselves up for failure. Fighting and flirting amongst themselves, do they think this is a game? Am I truly supposed to believe that these irresponsible halfwits are going to take down the Oracion Seis with no significant losses?

The Oracion Seis may be the weakest of the 3 dark guilds at the center of the Balam Alliance, but they are by no means pushovers. As if to prove my point, I sense Ichiya of Blue Pegasus getting taken down and replaced by Angel.

Angel is now fully aware of the light guilds' plans and preparations and has successfully manipulated the amount of information given to them. Not that she needed to, seeing how the impulsive mages just ran out of the building for a direct confrontation with the Oracion Seis.

I genuinely can't believe that these are supposed to be among the best and most renowned light mages in Fiore. They're complete fools. If I were their opponent, I could probably kill them all without much effort needed. After all, nobody ever said that their opponents need to fight them upfront and directly. Even their wizard saint is so naive that he has just been stabbed by Angel's celestial spirit, Gemini.

When Angel leaves, I head to the side of Jura Neekis. I can't teleport because I am covering myself in a layer of Silence Magic to avoid Cobra. I can only use one of the eyes at a time. He is fading out of consciousness, so he hasn't noticed me. After inspecting him, I realized that it was not a fatal wound. Stopping the bleeding should work fine.

I can hear Ichiya crawling over here, so I leave in the direction the mages fled to catch up and watch the confrontation. On my way there, I think over a theory I've had about this world for a while now. One that would explain a lot of the things that I always found hard to fathom. Hopefully, this upcoming confrontation will help me confirm it.

I watched as the Blue Pegasus airship fell from the sky, and could hear the Oracion Seis members saying a lot of really lame things. What was the word for that again? Chuunibyou?

Either way, now that everyone's eyes are away from the sky, I grow out a fleshy pair of wings from my neck and rocket straight up. Acceleration to the point that I would only look like a blur if anyone was watching. I only stop when I'm at a height where I would barely look like a speck in the sky.

My Hawkeyes scanned in on the fight just in time to see Natsu and Grey get taken down by Racer. That looked really weird considering Racer was moving rather slowly from my perspective. They just didn't react.

The light mages proceed to get completely thrashed until Brain sees Wendy. He calls her the "Miko of the Sky", takes her, then leaves with a parting shot. What's up with that?

Throughout the entire fight, the Oracion Seis never once aimed for a fatal blow. Cobra poisoned Erza, but that is a slow burner that leaves room for rescue. The final attack was blocked by Jura Neekis who caught up in the nick of time, but it didn't look like a killing blow either. I think that that confirms my theory.

In this world, magic is run on emotions, just as Makarov always said. However, it doesn't need to be love, just any type of strong, passionate emotion will do. You cannot use magic without any emotion involved, and when you do use magic, the emotion that fuels it is boosted and multiplied.

It's why the villains from the story often seemed to go crazier and crazier throughout their fights. If their magic was fueled by their obsession for power for example, as obsession is a sort of emotion, they will grow more and more obsessed as they use more of their magic.

In the same vein, it is also the reason that killing is so rare in the series. While beating someone down and showing off your power over them can trigger passionate emotions, killing is something done most often in cold blood. Even if outwardly a murderer acts passionate and happy while killing someone, on the inside most are feeling cold and empty. Very rare are the few who genuinely take pleasure in killing, those like Zancrow from my guild.

With their emotions being heightened by the use of magic, most people in this world find it difficult to turn them off and deal a fatal blow. I'm not sure if this is true, but it's the theory that I am most inclined to believe. It's the only reason I can think of why the "bad guys" from this world seem so soft in comparison to my last.

It would also explain why Acnologia and I are among the only ones I know who kill their enemies without any hesitation and without fighting and toying with them first. Neither of us needs to actively use magic to fight. Acnologia relies on his overwhelming physical strength, and I rely on my body and sword skills. Even if I use magic, it is either just something small to modify myself or it is someone else casting it.

That is really the only thing I can think of that explains how these naive and reckless light mages haven't all died yet. The very rules of this world are against killing, and if the bad guys can't kill the good guys, they stand no chance. There are way more people on the good guys' side or at least way more competent people, and they will just keep getting back up and fighting.

With my thoughts in order, I fly in the direction of the Oracion Seis. I can't attack until they've found Nirvana, but I shouldn't let Brain out of my sight for too long until then.

Lost in my thoughts and so assured of my safety was I that I failed to notice a certain dragon slayer, staring up at me from the ground below with an expression of confusion.

.....

Thus begins the Oracion Seis Arc.

.....

Side note: White is straight.