Chapter 15

From the higher level of Tenrou Island, I watched as a titan and an airship clashed.

With his bare hands, Makarov tore the airship to pieces. He punched a hole in its side, crushing the armor like paper. When faced with a blast of the magical convergence cannon Jupiter in retaliation, the titan simply blocked it with his massive forearm.

Watching this clash, I realize exactly how much of a monster that old man really is. I still feel confident that I could have killed him without him noticing at first, but if it came down to a head-on clash I would have been crushed. I wipe the sweat from my forehead at the thought of what could have happened had Makarov been a little more impulsive. There's no sense in worrying about it now. Makarov is strong, but there's no way that he can stop Grimoire Heart from getting on the island.

From behind the smoke created by Jupiter's blast, Makarov winds up and kicks a massive hole in the airship, nearly tearing it in half. The sight makes me scoff, even as Ultear reverses the damage.

What a hypocrite. That ship is packed full of people, exactly how many did he kill just now? Ultear can repair the ship, but the dead won't come back unless she uses much more power than that. That idealistic fool of an old man probably just squashed dozens of mages into meat paste. He was so angry with me for killing two people, but it's okay when he does it. This is why I hate light mages, they condemn others while turning a blind eye when they do the same.

Well, Whatever. This isn't any new concept to me, there's no need to dwell on it.

It's time to begin.

Caprico has taken everyone on board the airship into bubbles with his Human Subordination magic and is flying out to the island. Hades has also emerged to block Makarov from using Fairy Law. Caprico uses his ridiculous jetpack to scatter the troops and the rest of the Kin all over the island, although only on the first layer. The top layer remains as just me and the tree for now.

After Caprico lands, I once again enhance all my senses to find out where all the Seven Kin of Purgatory are, as well as where the prominent mages of Fairy Tail are in relation to them.

In the distance, I can see a boat returning to the island. It should be the same one Glidarts Clive, Freed Justine, and Bickslow left on. Next, I looked to where I saw Caprico land. He landed in some ruins area, above four members of Fairy Tail. Standing opposite him are Lucy Heartfilia, Leo the Lion spirit, Gray Fullbuster, and Cana Alberona.

In a head-on fight, Caprico is one of the weakest members of the Kin, so many fighters should be enough to defeat him. Three of them will have their magic somewhat suppressed, but for Caprico to choose to land in the only spot on the island with a celestial spirit was a stupid decision. This idiot's magic works as a counter to any humans, but his arrogance made him choose to confront the only nonhuman here (well, besides the cats).

I'm pretty confident that such an incompetent fool will be defeated, so I decide to look for the rest. even if he kills one or two of the Fairy's on his way down, it won't be an issue. After this battle, none of them are essential anymore.

The first person I find is Ultear Milkovich. I can't see her, but I can pick out her scent. She's alone, wandering into the depths of the forest. I can only assume that she is seeking out Zeref, and, somehow, she is on the right path. About a mile away from her, in the direction she is walking, I'm picking up the scent of death. It's not the scent of dead people or corpses but of death itself. My instincts are screaming at me to avoid that place at all costs.

It can only be the black wizard that is causing such instinctive fear in me. The others don't have as sharp of senses as me, that must be why they are willing to approach such a monster. I make a mental note to avoid that scent at all times on this Island and quickly shift my focus to searching for the rest of the Kin.

Rustyrose is walking around on his own talking nonsense to himself, I find him by tracking his voice. He isn't all that close to anyone, so I don't think I'll need to worry about him for now. If he doesn't change his current direction, the first people he will encounter will be Mirajane and Lisanna. Elfman and Evergreen are also in the area, but, with their current course, they shouldn't meet. I'm a bit worried there, but Mirajane should be able to defeat him.

Still, I think I'll eliminate him first while he's alone. Just in…!

My vision snaps to the sight of a pillar of black flames and I know I've found another Member. Zancrow is confronting Natsu Dragneel, Wendy Marvel, and Pantherlily. That's a fight that could easily go south for Fairy Tail. They are also near the location where Makarov is lying after his defeat to Hades.

I wonder if I should go help with that fight. I don't need Fairy Tail after this fight, but I do at least need them to win. Also, there are two dragon slayers there. Would it be better to save them so they can deal with Acnologia? But, doesn't Acnologia just want to kill the dragons and that's it, or does he want to kill everyone? Damn it, I can't remember enough about the story to tell if their removal from it would give me a death sentence!

Whatever, I'll just go and kill that lunatic Zancrow, and then I can figure the rest out later. Regardless of whether the dragon slayers have to survive or not, I need Grimoire Heart dead, so there's no loss in killing him.

I pull out my sword and open the second eye. A moment later I'm in the air, still out of sight from Zancrow and the Fairy Tail mages. The best way to do this is to strike a fatal blow without being noticed after all.

While I'm in the air, I look around and notice Kain Hikaru fighting Gajeel Redfox and Levy Mcgarden. Kain's an Idiot, so I doubt he'll be able to kill them. There's no need to be worried there.

I prepare to teleport into the treeline near the clashing flames when my plans suddenly change and I teleport to a different location.

...

Meredy was resolved.

Even though the 4th ranked enemy has left the battle, she is still being pressed. For some reason, the 13th-ranked enemy gained an incredible boost to her power. Now, even one-on-one, Meredy was having a hard time keeping up with her opponent.

However, for Meredy, that isn't an issue. Her magic overcomes differences in ability with ease. Strong, weak, it all means nothing in the face of her magic. Everyone has someone precious to them, even if they don't realize it. Meredy's magic finds those bonds, regardless of how hard they try to hide them, and uses them to bring her enemies to their knees.

She cannot defeat her enemy in her current state. That doesn't mean that she will fail her mission. For the sake of her beloved mother, Ultear, Meredy will give everything. Having linked her enemy to Gray Fullbuster, the enemy of Ultear, she has made it so that they will share their deaths. Even though she still cannot win, it doesn't matter. She has added herself to that link.

Now, all she has to do is kill herself. Once that is done, both her enemy and her mother's enemy will die. Her objective will be completed and Ultear will be happy. All that matters to her is that Ultear is happy. For a moment, the face of a white-haired boy with a subtle smile enters her mind, but the thought is brushed aside by the weight of Meredy's resolve.

She crosses her blades against her neck and prepares to end her life. The water mage struggles desperately, even to the point of heavily wounding her leg, but it's not enough. Did that woman seriously think that a bit of pain would shake her resolve? Or was she counting on her desperate words to change Meredy's mind? Either way, it won't work. Meredy is giving up everything for this, her resolve won't be shaken so easily.

She closes her eyes and the blades begin to move, cutting deep into her flesh.

'Goodbye Ultear. Goodbye White.' Knowing that her end has come, Meredy can't help but shed a tear as she thinks about her goodbyes which will never be heard.

The blood spills out of her neck, her artery has been cut. It's a fatal wound, but why have the blades stopped? Meredy's mind is fuzzy from the blood loss, and she's losing consciousness, so she doesn't think more about it. She can tell that she is dying anyway.

Still, who is that? She can feel someone holding her and shouting at her, but she can't make out their face or their words. Why are they being so loud? They're blocking out the sky too. She wanted to at least look at the sky as she died.

When her vision fades away completely, Meredy knows that it's over. She wonders if this is the afterlife, but then light enters her vision once again. Her mind rapidly clears up and she can feel the blood flowing back up her neck and into her body. She can now see that it is White who is leaning over her. He is no longer shouting, but his mask is nowhere to be seen. He looks desperate.

Meredy continues to watch his face as the skin on her neck reforms itself, even after the wound is closed, he continues until there isn't even a trace of a scar. When he is finally finished, her frets over her for a while, tracing her neck with his fingers to make sure everything is okay. Once he is certain that she won't be dying, White turns his gaze to meet her eyes.

He is pissed.

Even so, Meredy won't back down. He just trampled on all of her resolve. This isn't something that she can just brush off. She's just as angry as he is.

"Why'd you do that?!" She screams at him. Her voice cracks at first as she gets used to her reformed throat. "If you hadn't gotten in the way, Ultear's enemy would be dead and I would have completed my…"

"Shut the hell up!" White interrupts her in a voice that isn't loud but carries so much weight that she might suffocate. "Why did I do that? I'll ask you instead: Why the hell did you do that?! Killing yourself for what? To kill Juvia Lockser? Grey fucking Fullbuster? Just to kill them, you would give up your life? Is your life so worthless to you?"

Meredy bites her lip so hard it bleeds. He doesn't understand! Her life already belongs to Ultear. Ultear saved her and became her mother. If her life can pay back that debt, she would gladly give it.

"My life doesn't matter! As long as I can make Miss Ultear happy, I would sacrifice myself whenever I need to." Meredy stares at White in defiance.

"..." White looks at her in silence. It seems as if he were making a weighty decision in his mind. "Undo your Sensory Link."

"Don't think that you can just come here and tell me…" Meredy begins to protest but is once again cut off by White.

"Do it." He demands. "Now that I'm here, I won't let you hurt yourself anymore. If you don't undo the link, I can't fight."

"...Fine…" Meredy turns her head away and begins to stand up. The bracelet on her wrist disappears along with the one on Juvia's. "Now what?"

She turns back just in time to see White's sword extend out and pierce through the water woman's heart. She may be made of water, but as long as she is alive, she still has cells. White's magic directly attacks those cells once a part of him is in contact with the enemy. Unfortunately for the water woman, his sword is an extension of himself, made of his flesh. He can't manipulate much from that distance or in that short amount of time, but from within her heart, there is no surviving that.

Juvia was on the ground struggling to stand up after the shock and pain of having her throat slit, but when she finally reached her feet she was immediately killed by White and fell back down. Meredy can't help but swallow her saliva at the sight with deep fear in her heart. White is seriously furious right now.

"See, it's as easy as that," White sheathes his blade and turns back to face her. "If you weren't a suicidal fool who added herself to the link, Gray Fullbuster would have died there as well."

"That's…" Meredy struggles to find her words for a moment, but, soon enough, her Anger overcomes her fear. "That's because I was alone you idiot! If I had known you were nearby, I wouldn't have needed to go that far!"

"Then why didn't you signal for help?" White asks with his voice rising. "Why were you first thought 'How about I kill myself'? You suicidal idiot!"

"It was the most efficient method to eliminate the targets." Meredy answers, averting her eyes and slipping back into her robotic mission speech.

"'It was the most efficient method to eliminate the targets.'" White repeats in a mocking copy of her voice. "Bullshit. You've just got a death wish, thinking something stupid like 'I was already supposed to be dead anyway, if I can give my life for my savior, it will be worth it.'. You complete fool, I know that your life is worth more than that. Do you think that that savior would be happy to hear that you gave up your life for them? Then what was the point of them saving you? To give up your life would be nothing more than spitting in the face of their efforts!" White rants on, more than Meredy has ever heard him speak, and much faster too. "Also, don't go trying to shirk the responsibility for this with that stupid robot attitude you do."

Meredy was at a loss for words. She had never seen White so frantic before. She had seen him angry that one time, but this was so much different. Was he worried about her? Is that why he is so mad? That's what it looks like, but that shouldn't be right. White shouldn't be the type of person who cares if she lives or dies. Her resolve crumbles away, but there's still a part of her that won't let go.

"But, if my life can help Miss Ultear, it's only right that I give it up. She saved me." Her words are soft but hold conviction in them.

White looks at her and sighs heavily. It's a face that says he is about to do something unpleasant, but necessary.

"Meredy, Ultear Milkovich never saved you." He started with words so unbelievable that Meredy wanted to interrupt him right away, but he held up a hand to stop her. "Ultear, Zancrow, and Kain were all sent to your town to collect one of Zeref's keys. They razed the town and slaughtered all the inhabitants. Ultear felt bad when she heard a crying child and took you in. She saved you from her attack on nothing more than a whim, is that really someone worth sacrificing your life for?"

Meredy already had tears streaming down her face. She didn't want to hear this, didn't want to listen. Ultear was her mother, her most precious person. She didn't want to hear someone talk about her like this. Why would he say these things?

"No… It's not true." She chokes out. "Ultear saved me. She raised me in my parent's stead."

"She spared you. She only raised you as an interesting pet." White corrected. "You can't tell me that you haven't suspected it. After learning about our guild and what we do, you had to have questioned what those three were doing in your town when it was destroyed. I never said anything because you were happy, and you would be killed if you rebelled, but everyone knows about it except for you and the grunts."

"But…" Meredy sinks to her knees in devastation.

"Listen, Grimoire Heart is going to lose this war." As White speaks, his left eye is pushed out of his head and a new one takes its place. The new eye doesn't bear the mark of Grimoire Heart. "When you have the chance, find a boat and get off the Island. This whole place will be destroyed, so the sooner you leave, the better."

White looks down at Meredy, but she doesn't move. She is frozen in place, her world has just collapsed on her. He knows that she heard him, she will just need some time.

"Listen, I need to leave to check on the other battles and make sure that once we get away from here, nobody will be following us." White kneels down in front of her and puts his hand on her shoulder. He doesn't speak until she looks up and into his eyes. "Take your time, I know that this is painful. Just know that there is a whole world out there for you, Ultear can no longer block that world off from you. Just promise me that you will leave here, and you won't try something stupid like giving up on life ever again."

Meredy's face is covered in tears and she has almost bitten through her lip, but, even so, she manages a slight nod when White squeezes her shoulder.

"Good!" He smiles at her. "After all, I'd be lonely if you died."

After one more squeeze to her shoulder, White gets up and turns to leave. A pair of wings grow out from his neck and he launches himself up into the air.

Meredy wipes away the tears and watches with an unreadable expression as he flies away.

Mentally exhausted, I fly in the direction where Zancrow and Natsu are fighting. I stay at a low elevation to avoid being noticed, but my mind is completely distracted.

What the hell was that?

If I had been an instant later, Meredy would be dead. When I was in the air earlier, I looked down and saw her with her Maguilty blades cutting into her neck and I damn near had a heart attack. Luckily, my reaction speed is much higher than the average human and there isn't a delay in my teleport. Otherwise, she would have died.

I had arrived just in time to block her blades with my sword and pull her back at the same time. The cut was already too deep, but as soon as I touched her I was already working on sealing it. I laid her on her back and healed her, all while shouting out abuse at her for her stupidity. I've never been so flustered in my life.

I was so blinded by rage that I outright killed Juvia. If someone from Fairy Tail finds her corpse, they'll never stop coming after me. Hopefully, Meredy gets away before they find her next to the corpse. I can only have faith that she is smart enough to leave before that happens, I can't afford to waste time going back.

My other concern lies in her mental state. I didn't want her to learn of Ultear until she was in a safe location, but there was no choice. I couldn't leave her as a suicidal maniac who keeps trying to sacrifice herself for someone who doesn't care. Once again, I can only hope that she is strong enough to overcome this and move on with her life. At the very least, she was responsive when I left her. That's a start.

Now, I need to get myself back on track. I smell Zancrow, Natsu, Pantherlily, Wendy, and Makarov all in the same place, just a short distance ahead of me.

I land in the forest and cover myself in Silence magic. I steadily make my way closer and closer to the group until I can see black flames through the trees. My target is just ahead of me.