No Way, Jose...

In The Last Chapter:

The entire Phantom Lord Guild has become mobile and made its way towards an injured Fairy Tail Guild. When Jupiter Cannon fired, Nic showed up and saved everyone. Nic, Elfman, Gray, and Erza all stormed the menacing guild while Natsu and Happy destroyed the Jupiter Cannon. Meanwhile, Lucy and Reedus were found by Gajeel, but was defeated by Nic's Kecleon, allowing the two to make another escape. Mira's transformation was found false and the giant snatched her up. Inside, the team splits, with Elfman saving his sister and taking down Sol, Gray defeating a love struck Juvia, Natsu going to fight Gajeel with Nic's Arbok as backup, Erza going to stop the last Element Four member, and Nic and Greninja heading off to quarrel with Jose...

Chapter 10: No Way, Jose...

At this point, only one member of the Element Four was still standing. If he was defeated, then the Abyss Break would be put to a halt. However, there were other obstacles in the way, such as a certain Dragon Slayer and a typical Wizard Saint, both aching to fight.

With Erza...

She had entered a spacious room at the end of the hall that she ran down. She looked about and didn't see anything nor anyone; regardless, there was a potent Magic energy in the room. She knew someone was here, but which member could it had been?

She felt the presence concentrate behind her, and spun around to see Aria floating in the air. She summoned two swords in the blink of an eye and got into a battle stance, not wasting any time with said opponent.

"So, Titania, it would appear that you are my adversary today. It makes me sad to see a worthy foe fall, but it must be done by the order of Jose." Aria said with streams of tears coming down his blindfold.

Erza's grip tightened around her two swords. She glared at Aria with deep animosity, not forgetting what he had done to Makarov. "I know it was you who drained the Master of his Magic. I shall repay you in full for your actions."

Erza then lunged at Aria and attempted to slash him, but he teleported away at the last second. Erza grunted as the attack followed through with no target. She felt his energy above and looked up. Aria was above her and showed his palms downwards, making a Magic Seal.

"Zetsu!" He then launched his Airspace Magic down on the mighty Titania. Erza jumped back multiple times, dodging the bombarding explosions. She then jumped and trie slashing once more, but Aria then created an Airspace shield and blocked her assault. She fell to the ground and Aria shot forth another Zetsu in the process, prompting Erza to slash at the oncoming explosions as an act of defense. Fortunately, the Airspace barrages were all sliced and went past her, exploding behind her as she landed with grace. "You are not without reflexes and skill, oh mighty Titania. It would appear that I will have to step it up." He was smiling ever so confidently, believing Erza was no match for him. Yeah…sucks to be him right now.

He took off his blindfold, revealing magenta eyes that unfolded into four evenly spaced slices, four in all. Just then, a huge surge of power enveloped the atmosphere all around, causing winds to be stirred. "Now Titania, see if you survive Zero, also known as 'The Airspace of Death'. It consumes all life that happens to step in it!" A monstrous wind then enveloped the entire room, causing chandeliers and debris to shatter into little pieces

Erza wasn't feeling at all fazed by this act. She held up her sword at Aria. "Tell me, how is it that you could go so low as being such a sadistic character, relishing on other's misery?! Answer me!"

"It'd be more fun to show you how I do this so called claim!" Aria shouted with an evil grin. Aria then brought his hands before him, with the right being on top of the left, with palms facing the charging Erza. He then fired small Airspaces at her, which somehow looked like stars (looks like that to me). Erza yelled as she slashed through Aria's Zero with ease, even gliding her sword through the small Airspace attacks. She charged even further, slicing through the very wind herself.

This shocked Aria, for he was surprised that his Airspace was being beaten. "But how?! She's cutting through my Airspace! It just can't be possible!"

"Requip - Heaven's Wheel!" Erza then requiped into her Heaven's Wheel Armor and soared above a shaking Aria. She then came down on him and slashed at him with a multitude of swords from out of the blue. "Blumenblatt!"

Aria screamed as Erza had dealt with him with upmost ease. He fell onto his side, defeated. Erza landed safely and softly while looking back at the fallen Aria with unfriendly glares.

"You can never defeat our Master with such tactics. You'll only be remembered as a coward who fell by my hand."

"That's so sad." He said before going unconscious.

In a matter of moments, the entire place was shaking up. The Abyss Break Spell was nullified outside. Everyone saw the giant's Abyss Break Spell shrinking and its eyes stopped glowing, meaning the power had shut off. It drooped slowly downwards into the water. The giant had gotten to a knee as one of its arm splashed into the water. Everyone cheered, seeing the giant defeated.

Back with Erza, she turned once the giant had stopped shaking. She requiped back into her Heart Kreuz Armor and turned back towards the way she came, hoping to find the others.

"If I had to guess, the Abyss Break had shut down, and so has the giant." She indicated. "The others must have finished with their tasks. Better go and meet up with them." She then hurried along the corridor and the thought of Nic had sprung into her mind for that one little second. 'Dammit Nic, why didn't you take us all with you to stop Jose?' Her sense of worry was escalating, but she had more problems to deal with than Nic fighting Jose, like finding the others first.

With Natsu and Happy

Natsu had just finished burning his way to the top, literally. He burst through the ceiling and entered the head of the giant, where there was a few lackeys and an Iron Dragon Slayer with an appetite.

Natsu was encased in flames and ready for action. "Gajeel!" Gajeel himself had just finished chomping on some iron, with his reserves back up and running. He wasn't fully recovered, but it was manageable and endurable with the amount of iron that went down into his stomach. He turned to face his new adversary, the Fire Dragon Slayer, Natsu Dragneel.

He smirked. "This should be easier than last time. At least I got a chance against this punk." He gloated.

One of his lackeys stepped up. "Gajeel!" He was about to ask if they should do something about him, but it was clear to them Gajeel wasn't one for answers from those beneath him.

"This one is mine!" Gajeel and Natsu then lunged at each other. Gajeel unleashed an Iron Dragon's Club in mid-air, but Natsu dodged and grabbed the column, doing a full three-sixty and hurling him back from where he came from. He planted his feet against the wall and defended from an oncoming flaming fist from Natsu, resulting in an explosion that frightened the subordinates.

"We gotta get out of here!" The male lackey from before said. Just then, he felt as though all nerves and feeling within him went numb, as did the female lackey that accompanied him.

"What's going on? Why can't I move?" He then heard a hiss from behind, which immediately had sent goose bumps running down his spine. The girl turned her eyes and saw a big cobra creature with its pattern on its body glowing, via Glare. They were both paralyzed and their movements were heavily restrained.

Happy had shown up just as when Natsu had delivered a successful blow with another flaming fist at Gajeel, sending him crashing into a wall. He looked over and saw Arbok scaring the crap out of his victims. He flew his way around the main battle and went over to see if Arbok was in need of any help. It was clear that help wasn't necessary for either participants.

"Sssso, you're with that piercccced lunatic, huh?" Arbok sneered at the two, making them almost whimper with Arbok closing in on them. He then bared his fangs and they glowed light blue, grew larger, and were covered in ice. "Out with you scoundrels!" With one swift movements, he slithered in a fast motion past them both at once. They never even saw it coming, he was so fast. Then again, they were paralyzed. They had half of their bodies frozen in ice, which was where Arbok's fangs had strike them. They both fell with the ice shattering and were unconscious, lying along a pile of debris. Arbok looked back and hissed with a glare, looking down at his fallen victims. He then looked back at the fight that was more important than his, awaiting to see if Natsu needed assistance.

"Whoa. That attack was scary." Happy commented. Arbok then looked down at Happy and hissed once more, making him jump on the spot.

"Focussss, ya flapping feline!" Arbok said in a snobbish tone. He slithered past Happy and waited patiently in a position that made him look as if he was going to lunge out when the time called for it. Happy looked to see Arbok, noticing that it was doing exactly as Nic told him to do. Recalling that Nic ordered Arbok to assist in taking out any goons and await for when Natsu is in need of backup. Happy then turned and watched the fight.

Gajeel cracked his neck, adjusting from that warm up. "For fairy scum, you sure are push overs." He noted.

"You're the real scum here pal. For trying to hurt Lucy, I'll melt through your rusty old skin." Natsu retorted. This got Gajeel thinking.

"Hold up, how did you know that I tried to kidnap your friend?" Gajeel demanded to know. Natsu had a fist with flames with Gajeel's name written all over it.

"Because Nic told me. He made sure to have someone there to stop ya, just like how he and Greninja will stop Jose." Natsu responded.

Gajeel was shocked on the inside. That guy from before had anticipated such actions and had Kecleon take care of him and shatter his defenses like glass. 'So, that Nic guy is much smarter than he looks. He must have known that I would also come back here to recover, leaving the two of us to duke it out while he fights Jose. What an idiot. He'll fall to Jose, leaving me to demolish this guy!' The thought of beating Salamander made his iron spine crawl with such anticipation. At this point, Nic wasn't his focus, but taking down Natsu, someone who he had a chance of beating.

Both he and Natsu then charged at one another with him having a club and Natsu with a flaming fist. Both attacks collided and they were on opposite sides from before. Gajeel changed his arm into an extended blade, but Natsu jumped and dodged and delivered a foot to the face. Gajeel stepped back while Natsu jumped away with caution. The blades on Gajeel's Iron Dragon's Sword now spun like a chainsaw, ready to cut Natsu down like lumber.

"How about I rearrange your body with my Iron Dragon's Sword!" Gajeel shouted. He jumped and slammed the blade downwards. Natsu narrowly dodged while the ground shattered by the blades impact. "Not much of a push over now, are ya!" Gajeel mocked while striking multiple times as to where Natsu was trying to evade the attacks.

He then retracted his sword and smirked. "We've still got a score to settle from the other day, how about settling it right now?"

"You're on, you iron-chomping scumbag!" Natsu challenged. Gajeel then changed into his Iron Dragon Scales, making his skin look just like iron.

He jumped and was going to punch Natsu. "Iron Dragon's Hard Fist!" He then delivered a blow that had send Natsu into the wall, frightening some nearby lackeys that were hiding among the debris. Natsu's arm was badly bruised, almost as bad as when Nic was badly bruised from before.

"Those scales are amplifying his defenses and offenses!" Happy shouted, in shock that Natsu was being overpowered. Arbok wasn't taking this highly. He saw some goons hiding and saw Natsu being pummeled by another oncoming fist. He had to act, as in now.

"Hey, flame brat! Jump now! You too cat!" Arbok warned loud and clear. Arbok then brought his long tail into the air, gaining momentum when he was going to bring it down. Happy flew in the air and Natsu heard his warning. He jumped away, making Gajeel lose focus when doing so.

"Earthquake!" Arbok then brought this tail down hard, unleashing a disastrous rippling quake about the entire head. Since Natsu had jumped, he and Happy were spared, while Gjeel was off balance and feeling the quaking ground giving him trouble for some reason. The lackeys in the area have all shrieked as the trembling and hyper vibrations, as well as the magnitude, made them fall to the floor and flop about unconscious. If you were outside, you would've seen the head rapidly vibrating, but still attached.

"Whoa! Now that was scary!" Happy shouted as the attack simmered after twenty seconds. Natsu smirked and gave a thumbs up at Arbok.

"Be lucky that wassss minimum power cat. If it were maxxximum power, then thissss building wouldn't be sssstanding." Arbok remarked

"Thanks there, snake man!" He shouted, just about landing safely. Arbok hissed and backed away until the time felt necessary again. Happy flew back down and landed right next to Arbok, putting his focus back on the battle. Natsu then delivered a Fire Dragon's Claw and landed aclean hit on a somewhat damaged Gajeel. He was still in shock and pain from that Earthquake Arbok had dealt. He couldn't explain it, but it felt as though the ground was biting at him. Gajeel reeled away and then got out of his initial shock and went to strike Natsu. Natsu managed to dodge a few attacks that back some wind to them, which also made the ground quake when missing.

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" He then punched Gajeel right in the face, but not a scratch appeared. Natsu recoiled and rolled about from the pain his hand had received. He rolled and turned on the ground in amusing fashion.

Arbok chuckled. "Quite the comical one."

When Natsu had settled down, Gajeel walked up and gave a headbutt that send Natsu into the ground with a slight tremor. He quickly bounced back by jumping out of the crater and got some distance between themselves.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

"Iron Dragon's Roar!"

Both breath attacks collided into one another, creating a vast whirlwind all around. Happy was freaking out from the sheer power that was blowing him away, but Arbok was unfazed, clearly showing some high level of endurance.

The entire wall behind Gajeel had burst and debris was all over the place. Gajeel didn't look injured at all, but Natsu himself was huffing and puffing, drained from the Magic he had exhausted.

"Is that really the best you got, Salamander? Your flames can't burn me the slightest."

Natsu then smirked. "Oh yeah, sure you're not cracking up there buddy?" He berated. Gajeel then felt his cheek cracking up, but only a thin crack. This surprise Gajeel for sure. He experienced this two other times, and the outcomes were not so good. "I don't breathe regular fire. The Fire Dragon's Roar burns anything it touches." Natsu then took off his shirt, leaving his upper half with only his scarf.

"Hm, didn't know that walking popsicle's clothes habit was contagious." Arbok sneered. At any rate, Natsu's body was consumed in flames, ready to dish out more pain.

"Enough warming up, let's go!" Natsu declared.

Gajeel then ripped off his shirt and Magic surged from all around him as well. "Bring it!"

Meanwhile, with Cana and the others…

Under different circumstances, Alzack would have loved to spend some time with Bisca on the rooftop. Unfortunately, this wasn't one of those romantic moments; well, unless you count blasting shades down as a date, then they would be having a great time.

Down below, the Fairy Tail Wizards were giving it everything they got to drive the shades away, but they just kept coming. The swarm of shades didn't stop, even with their most lethal spells being used. Regardless, the shades were still coming about, and they all were flying into one another, creating some sort of blob that was growing in size.

"What is that thing?" Wakaba shouted. The shades all then morphed into a giant dark purple blob with two red eyes.

"Did they all just combine?!" Macao shouted.

"Yeah, and it looks like we'll have to try even harder now." Cana remarked. Everyone was shouted to attack and kill the thing, but their spells weren't very effective on the beast. It expanded four large appendages and made four giant fists. The shade monster than rammed its fists into the building repeatedly.

Lzack and Bisca were no match for the monster as they were blown off the roof. They both were send flying and smashed somewhere in a pile of debris, temporarily taking them out of commission.

"Bisca! Alzack!" Cana shouted, she then looked to see the Guild Hall getting hit repeatedly to no end, which was a great disbelief to the Fairy Tail Wizards. "The Guild Hall!"

Even with everyone's spells attacking the thing, it kept up its assault and didn't let up for an instant.

'Nic! Guys! Just hurry already! We're at our limits!'

With Natsu

After Natsu and Gajeel's fists had smashed into one another, the top of the dome head smashed open, allowing the two to soar high and deliver fast and rapid punches against one another. To Happy's disbelief, neither side was giving an edge. Arbok looked up at the fight and narrowed his eyes, looking as though he was sharpening his focus. He kept his eyes and focus only on how Natsu and Gajeel delivered blows. He indicated that the two had a similar fighting style, delivering powerful punches with little thinking behind their actions.

As they descended, they duked it out with more combat on one of the horns of the head. The horn eventually snapped off from the power shots that both delivered evenly and the horn crashed through the dome of the head. The two had just jumped off and a dust cloud was in their way. Natsu was out of breath, as to where he saw Gajeel eating on some iron, which ticked off the Fire Dragon Slayer.

"Hold on man, that's cheating!" Natsu complained.

"So what?" Gajeel remarked with a mouth full of iron. He then finished chomping and smirked. "Heh, now I got a fire in my belly!"

"Hey pal, that's my line!" Natsu complained one last time just before Gajeel was surging with a Magic power boost from that iron he took in.

Adios Salamander. Iron Dragon's Lance: Demon Logs!" A large seal appeared in front of Gajeel and out came a multitude of metal spears that attacked Natsu in rapid succession. Natsu gasped and wheeze as the attack hammered him, making him step back in agony. After the dust cleared, he slowly got up.

"You think those metallic pencils can stop me? Well, here's my shot!" Natsu engulfed himself in flames and charged at Gajeel with what strength he had remaining. "Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!" He rammed his head into Gajeel's iron abdomen, but that only tickled him.

"Heh, I sure got a fire in my belly, but you sure don't." Gajeel noted before giving Natsu an elbow to the head, and then using his Iron Dragon's Club to drag Natsu's head backwards and along a wall, hurling him towards the broken wall that opened to the destroyed Fairy Tail Guild. "I've had my fun with you, now beat it chump."

Happy looked as though he was about to cry. He watched as Natsu laid there on the ground, hardly able to open his own two eyes. He couldn't bear to see his pal get hammered like this anymore. He was shaking about, something that didn't go unnoticed by Arbok. Arbok looked down at the unhappy Happy. He stared at him, looking at how upset this feeling was. Arbok had to admit even though he can be very snobbish, except to Nic, even he knew the boundaries of horror and sanity and he didn't cross it, not even once. Seeing this fight sickened him. Gajeel had no pride and he was nothing more than a scumbag. Arbok glared furiously at Gajeel, prepared to strike, but then saw the Guild Hall go down, something that Natsu saw when he had opened his eyes.

"Check it out Salamander, we're doing some redecorating." Gajeel gloat, laughing demonically.

Natsu watched, baffled by the very thing he treasured getting trashed into the earth. All of those memories, up in smoke. Those times when he first joined when he was little, with the guidance of Makarov. He remembered when he first met Gray, that very moment when he fought him almost two seconds after meeting eyes. He remembered meeting Erza and how she beat the snot out of them. How he found Happy's egg and nursed it with the help of Lisanna. How Lisanna went on an S-Class request with Elfman and Mira and died while doing so. Finally, meeting Lucy and Nic and getting into a heck of a lot of trouble. All of those memories, gone.

With rage, he got up to his feet and turned to face Gajeel. He won't let Fairy Tail be sullied nor bullied anymore. He carried his own two feet and walked heavily towards Gajeel, who was waiting for him to approach.

"So, your Guild Hall is trash. How is that?" He asked before swinging his arm, slamming Natsu back against a machine. Once again, he got back to his feet, but barely. Gajeel then approached him. "This holding back crap is a bore, so I say it's best to stay down before I start beating your insides."

Happy was streaming tears, seeing how Natsu will never give up, a trait he would take to his grave. He was quivering and shaking. "He took down Jupiter, and took on a member of the Element Four. His Magic is depleted. IF HE COULD JUST EAT SOME FIRE, HE WOULD BE ABLE TO BEAT THIS GUY!" Happy cried. Arbok looked at Happy once more before looking back at the two duking it out, which was one-sided at this point. Gajeel then held Natsu by the collar and was readying a sword.

"End of the line kid." Gajeel sneered. Arbok then noticed the large machine behind them. Arbok knew a bit about these things and how if they were to explode…

This was Arbok's shot. He opened his mouth and a silver white was beginning to merge in front of him. Happy saw what Arbok was doing and saw that it turned into a garbage bag with a purple outline.

"You're attacking with garbage?" Happy exclaimed. Arbok showed his sneering glare at Happy, which made him shut up and step back, allowing Arbok to concentrate. He then unleashed his Gunk Shot at the speed of sound and it went past Gajeel and Natsu, having a critical impact on the machinery, making an explosion of fire from the destroyed machinery.

"Oh wow, that attack was amazing!" Happy exclaimed, shocked to see such force being applied in battle, especially with garbage.

Arbok hissed and watched as Gajeel looked at him.

"That snake thing is getting in my way again!" Gajeel shouted. Everyone then took note of the explosion's fire being sucked up by Natsu. Every bit of it went into his belly. Now,he was back up with energy to burn and a certain Dragon Slayer to demolish.

"That hit the spot. Thank a ton, snake man!" Natsu gave a thumbs up. Arbok stared, but then grinned.

"Beat his sssorry assssss for the ssssake of you and your friendssss!" Arbok said, still a bit rude, yet encouraging. Natsu then turned and saw Gajeel dashing towards him with a fist with Natsu's name written all over it. Now it really sucks to be in Gajeel's boots right now.

Natsu effortlessly engulfed himself in flames and swung his arm and bashed Gajeel backwards. Into the horn that fell previously, causing it to move.

"Iron Dragon's Roar!" Gajeel then unleashed in roar on Natsu, but the blast was easily deflected it, resulting in no damage.

"I don't know how many have to suffer from your hands, but it ends now." Natsu said, giving off a vibe that can make any spine shiver.

"No. I can't be defeated, it's impossible!" Gajeel was freaking out. He's only lost two fights ever, and he wasn't going to take a third one.

"I'm going to make you pay for what you did to my friends! MESSING WITH FAIRY TAIL WAS THE BIGGEST MISTAKE YOU'VE EVER MADE!" Natsu cracked his fists and the heat was intensifying.

Gajeel gritted his teeth, not taking this lying down He jumped and came down at an angle. "Iron Dragon's Hard Fist!" The attack collided with Natsu's own fist. Much to Gajeel's shock, the scales on his arm were cracking up, all the way up to his shoulder.

"You're finished, Black Steel! Crimson Lotus: Fire Dragon's Fist!" Natsu's hands were set ablaze and he fired rapidly at Gajeel over and over. "For Levy, Jet, Droy, Nab, Macao, Gramps, Wakaba, Cana, Loke, Gray, Erza, Nic!" He then delivered a fast uppercut. "And Lucy!" Gajeel then slammed into the ground, gagging as he had hit hard. "GRAAAAHHHHHH!" Natsu roared, igniting his body in a blaze of glory. He then lashed out a multitude of Wing Attacks and knocked Gajeel around furiously. "This is for attacking my friends, and destroying our Guild Hall!"

There were a huge amount of explosions that were set upon the giant. He repeatedly smashed Gajeel until fell over and screamed as he crashed into debris, smashing and shattering his scales. The entire head of the giant finally gave into the damage and it fell off its own shoulders, falling into the water below.

Gajeel laid in the debris, defeated. "You can't…defeat me…not you too…" He then fell unconscious and Natsu was looking over him.

"Well, well I just proved otherwise." He said before falling back and lying to face the sky. It wasn't long before Happy showed up with wings. Arbok came close behind.

"Heh, he'sssss a ticking time bomb." Arbok noted.

"That's Natsu for ya!" Happy responded. Natsu did a toothy grin, and Happy laughed in joy while Arbok hissed, just glad that he fulfilled Nic's orders.

With Nic and Greninja

During all of those events that transpired with one another, Nic and his ninja accomplice were running through a really long hallway. Even as of now, he sensed all of the battles that had taken place while he was running down the longest hallway. He felt the ground from above shake violently. He knew that was Arbok's Earthquake, and a few more violent shakes erupted. He even sensed Natsu's power triumphing over Gajeel. Sadly, he sensed the energy from the Mages defending Fairy Tail, it was diminishing. He had to quicken the pace, foor there was only one person left.

Nic pushed open a large set of double doors that lead to a very large room. It was not only wide, but very spacious. Aside from the huge chandelier, a long red carpet lead to a wide staircase. If the two had to guess, they must either be in Jose's quarters or a party room; if it weres the latter, then it was going to be one wild party.

"Nic, how do you think Arbok is doing, as well as the others?" Greninja asked Nic.

Nic turned and looked at his buddy. "You know Arbok as well as I do Greninja. He's sturdy enough to take tough blows. Aside from his demeanor, he's never failed to follow any of my commands." Greninja then nodded, knowing that was true.

Nic then sensed a very foul and deadly energy blooming nearby.

"You feel that deadly Magic?" Nic asked.

Greninja got ready. "Yeah, he's here."

"Welcome, young Nic and friend." The two then tensed up when they had finally came face to face with Phantom Lord's Guild Master, and one of the Ten Wizard Saints, Jose Porla.

His attire was different this time. He had on a long blue coat with a belt around his waist, with another one over his right shoulder, sporting Phantom's insignia on the buckle. The coat had golden stripes all about, had a brownish-red cape along his left shoulder, and had a black ribbon tied around his collar under the emblem that meant he was a member of the Ten Wizard Saints.

"I hope you don't mind the lack of commodities." Jose said as he casually made his way down the stairs with his hands behind his back. "If I had known that I would have guests, I would've arranged for a more suitable welcome, no?"

Nic decided to play along, make a bit of humor before the fun started. "It's fine. It would be messy later on anyway."

Jose's expression slowly turned dark, but he maintained his grin. "I have to say, taking on Black Steel, two of the Element Four, and then stopping Jupiter without damage. I'm impressed with your talents, you must have a huge amount of Magic reserves within you."

In retrospect, Nic did go through a bit. Taking on Gajeel, then Sol and Juvia, and then stopping Jupiter with just Mirror Move. Technically, since he didn't have Magic to begin with, he had nothing to gain or lose from that blast; and besides, he used Synthesis before he entered the room, so he was one hundred percent however you looked at it.

Nic faked it. "You can say that." He then prepared to attack by gathering green energy between his palms. The energy then shaped into a seed and he threw the green seed at Jose. Jose didn't blink when he caught the football-sized seed with his Darkness Magic.

Jose sighed. "Honestly, do you really think something like this could-?"

He was stopped in mid-sentence when Nic snapped his fingers, forcing the See Bomb to explode. Since Seed Bomb didn't explode on impact, not that it made contact anyway, Nic manually detonated it. The Seed Bomb exploded and sent Jose flying into a wall. Pain flared about as Jose was off guard by the attack. Jose shook off his momentary flaw and glared at Nic with discontent.

"Just shut it already clown face." Nic berated. He and Greninja both got in defensive stances, ready to take action.

"We're not here for your taunts, so I advise that you prepare yourself already." Greninja warned.

Jose's grin turned evil. "Very well, then. I say we start your torment and misery now. You and your friend there will suffer your own insolence." Then then began to conjure and concentrate Magic into his hands and a seal appeared. "Dead Wave!"

Jose then fired a large beam of energy at Nic and Greninja. The attack had made the ground shake as it sailed towards them. The two quickly sidestepped as the attack passed them and create a massive hole from the wall they had just entered. If that happened again, perhaps the hallway would be obliterated. The building shook a bit and Nic and Greninja didn't have time to process Jose popping in front of them with a fist ready.

'So fast.' Nic noted. Greninja jumped in and blocked the assault with his forearms and followed it up by jumping backwards and unleashing a Water Pulse.

Jose intercepted by extending his fingers and shooting little beams as though they were bullets. He shot one at the Water Pulse and that only weakened it, but the second shot cancelled out the Water Pulse. Jose then kept up his Dark Beam and was shooting bullets in succession of one another. It didn't prove too helpful as Greninja diligently evade and dodged with speed, being able to avoid every shot.

As Jose was distracted with Greninja, he had forgotten NIc for a brief second. Nic sped into him and was about to do yet another Seed Bomb, but Jose caught a glimpse of him while he was preparing to do so. With his other hand, he fired his Dark Beam at Nic and that drove him away. Nic dodged left and right and backed away. He then countered with his own bullets.

"Bullet Seed!" He then spit out multiple golden seeds with green aura enveloped around each one in rapid succession, fiercely fending against each Dark Beam shot at him. Jose and Nic each shot at one another, every shot being intercepted by Bullet Seed and Dark Beam. After a whole ten seconds, Jose and Nic had decided to stop and get up close and personal. Greninja managed to get in close as well. Jose then made his fist envelop in some Darkness Magic and he punched forward, but not without an interception from Nic. Nic brought him arm back as fast as he could and his hand started glowing light green. It then extended into a long green sword, via Leaf Blade. The two attacks then collided, creating an explosion that Greninja backed away from. The ground between the two was a crater that covered their distance apart, which was roughly five feet. They both grunted and then proceeded to attack one another again. They kept trading blows, both assaults clashing into one another every time. Neither side was giving an edge when they collided. It was darkness Magic against Leaf Blade.

As Nic and Jose dished out repeated blows with accuracy and speed, Greninja sat aside and tried to do some experimenting. He did a Water Pulse, but then he held it in his palms. He looked as though he was compressing it. 'Nic, we need an edge. I know you won't have a problem with me re-learning an old ace in the hole.'

As he was experimenting, Nic and the Wizard Saint had gotten tired delivering blows and they jumped away from one another.

"Dead Wave!" Jose then unleashed a massive beam at Nic.

"Energy Ball!" Nic made a light green ball in his hands, of which he threw to block the Dead Wave. The two attacks exploded and the walls all around now began to crack up from the sheer force those two attacks dealt. 'Good thing Grass Types have above-average Attack and Special Attack.'

Greninja was cut off from his concentration, but he was able to compress the water. Now all he had to do was shape it.

After the dust cleared, Jose and Nic both had a few scratches on them. Aside from those, they didn't take much damage. They were both now probably thirty or so feet from each other.

"Not bad for a young Mage." Jose remarked grudgingly. "I was right. You are indeed impressive and your skills show no bounds. I was astounded that you managed to keep track off my speed."

"You can say I've seen faster." Nic remarked, thinking back to when he was battling against speedy pokémon with fast attacks. Thanks to those, he can read attacks a lot faster than your average fighter.

"That Makarov! Where does he find people like you?"

"I have no idea." Nic said. Regardless of Nic's answer, Jose continued on talking.

"For as long as I can remember, Phantom Lord has been at the top. We had the most powerful Mages with a variety of spells, the profits were endless, and then your guild started competing with us." He said with distaste. "Fairy Tail has been getting even more attention than Phantom Lord, and I detest such competition." He said the guild's name with disgust.

They began to circle about, both pacing each other, almost like a circle, watching each other's movements and not taking their gaze off of one another. Jose still pressed on talking, though Nic didn't think it was necessary.

"Names such as Laxus, Mystogan, and Titania have been sprouting everywhere. Even a man called Salamander had begun spreading like wildfire. Even YOU are already making a name for yourself, despite the fact that you only joined recently!" Jose snarled, now making the room quake.

Now this had gotten Nic's attention for sure. Even Greninja was all ears as he was hiding away and was rotating the compressed water.

"Do tell." Nic said, intrigued by Jose's statement.

Jose glared and pointed an accusing finger. "Don't play coy with me boy! The guild masters in Clover caught sight of you defeating the demon known as Lullaby alongside some Fairy Tail Mages. And then, reports from Freesia say that a man named Luminous, alongside his animal accomplices, defeated three members of a Dark Guild as well as a demon!"

"Huh, didn't know I got a name. Guess that means I brighten up others' futures sort of speak." Nic said, trying to make sense of his new alias. Jose didn't take this likely.

Dark purple magic encased Jose's body and he roared. "I REFUSE TO HAVE SUCH SKILL BE MATCHED TO OURS! PHANTOM HAS ALWAYS BEEN AT THE TOP AND ALWAYS WILL BE!"

They were both cut off with a few compressed stars being spun and heading for Jose, which had cut straight through his magic. Jose saw these stars cut through his magic and managed to side step fast enough and watched as the stars crashed into some debris, slicing it up and crumbling. Jose looked over and saw Greninja go by Nic's side.

Nic looked at Geninja with a smirk. "So you decided to re-learn Water Shuriken. Not bad, I kind of missed that move as well, it cuts through a lot of our problems." Nic said in a casual tone. Both glared at Jose and saw his magic resurface again.

"Yup. So long Water Pulse." Greninja sighed as he made some cover for the two by using Smokescreen. Jose growled as his vision was blocked off. This only complicated things as he couldn't sense magic from either of them. This was troublesome for the Wizard Saint.

He then saw a Razor Leaf coming through the thick black smoke. Jose swiftly dodged it and saw it come another direction. He dodged that as well. He then saw Nic burst through the now dispatched Smokescreen. He used Grass Knot and managed to catch Jose's feet when Jose was trying to evade him. Jose fell on his face and then looked up at Nic, but then failed to see Greninja from above. Greninja came down with a brutal Bounce and smashed Jose into the ground.

Nic retracted his Grass Knot and Greninja returned to Nic's side.

"If I had to guess, I'd say he was just warming up." Greninja noted. Nic only nodded in response.

'He wasn't using full power yet. This ain't good. Energy Ball and Leaf Blade were my best offense moves. I'll have to use a more strategic approach. That is, if I can.'

They both tensed up when Jose got up and grinned. He wasn't going to hold back much longer, so Nic and Greninja had to end it, as in now!

With Erza and Co.

Everyone who had went to stop the Element Four eventually met up with one another. They all went and saw Natsu lying on the ground, tired but can still manage. Happy saw the guys coming towards them.

"Hey guys!" Happy shouted and flew over to Elfman, Mira, Gray, and Erza. All four had proceeded and made their way to where Natsu was. Arbok looked over and hissed. They all went up and looked down at the tired Dragon Slayer.

"Well, you did a number on the place, I'll give you that." Gray said, looking about the place. The place was nothing but a wreck. Even a few floors had debris on them from al of the rumbling that transpired between their brawl. For Natsu, for his explosiveness, one a scale of one to ten, you can say he breaks the scale twenty fold.

"So you've managed to beat Black Steel Gajeel I see." Erza noted, looking down at the defeated Gajeel. The poor guy just never caught himself a break with the defeats that have been piling up on his shoulders.

"Didn't even break a sweat." Natsu said. Arbok shook his head and Happy sighed, seeing how Natsu was being modest.

Mira then took note of Arbok's presence. Mira approached the Cobra Pokémon and looked up at it. "Are you one of Nic's Pokémon?" She asked curiously since she's only seen Greninja and Kecleon. Arbok nodded and then the ground shook, making the whole place tremble.

"What was that?" Happy asked. Arbok then set his body down and his head onto the floor, not moving an inch. Everyone watched as Arbok did this trick.

Natsu sat up and saw Arbok's head resting on the ground. "You tired or something?"

"I'm detecting the vibrations you idiot, now be quiet!" He scolded, freaking Natsu out a little.

"Man, this one is obedient to Nic, but when not him, he's a beast." Gray indicated.

"I said quiet!" Arbok scolded, making Gray step back. Now everyone was dead silent with Arbok detecting vibrations. After a good fifteen seconds, he lifted his head and looked at everyone.

"Nic-sssama isss doing battle with the Guild Massster assss we ssspeak." Arbok sounded much more mild since he was talking about Nic. Everyone, except Erza, was stunned to hear that Nic was doing battle with Jose.

"Is he an even bigger idiot than Natsu?! What the hell was he thinking?!" Gray shouted.

"He's fighting all by himself, pretty bold." Elfman said.

Erza looked at the ground. As much as she wanted to help, he could see that Nic and Greninja were in a big enough mess without them. She looked up at the others. "He's not alone. He has Greninja with him. Nd besides…" She turned and looked at the shore, and everyone followed her gaze "…we've got enough problems on our hands."

The team was shocked to see their Guild Hall being trashed by some large jellyfish being that was also tormenting their guild mates. The ground beneath them began to quake once again, signifying Nic's quarrel with the Ten Wizard Saint was heating up.

"It's not safe here. We need to get back to the guild and stop that thing." Erza said. Everyone there was reluctant to stop and turn when Nic was doing battle, but it was clear that if they did help him, no one would be there to help the guild members.

Even Natsu had trouble. He got to his feet and looked out at the destroyed Guild Hall. After a while, he turned his head and looked at the others. "Okay, let's go. Nic can handle this one."

The team was a bit surprised, but then again, this was Nic. He hasn't lost a fight yet. They all felt the same as Natsu. Though it didn't feel good to leave behind, they believed in him, and they had to put their priorities into making sure that the monster was stopped. No objections were made, and everyone started to look for an escape route as quick as they could. Happy started flying Natsu to shore, and Gray used his Ice Make: Floor to make a path that lead downwards and over the water.

Arbok had faith in his trainer. It was clear that Nic and Greninja had this covered. Arbok hissed and started following the others, deciding that this was one of those times to improvise.

With Nic and Greninja

"Dark Pulse!" Jose moved his arm in a long arc that was followed with a chain of explosions. The attack had such a massive range that Nic and Greninja didn't have any room to react. They were sent flying into the air and they smashed into the wall.

They both were wide eyed when they saw Jose readying an attack immediately after. Jose grinned. "Dead Wave!"

'Uh oh.' Both thought in unison. Upon instinct, Greninja used Dark Pulse and Nic used Seed Bomb to stop the attack. It resulted in a big explosion that nearly destroyed the room, not to mention the entire wall itself. The wall was completely destroyed, and it showed a view of the Fairy Tail Mages fighting hopelessly and failing. He just grinned triumphantly at the sight.

He looked over the edge and saw the rocks falling. He saw Nic and Greninja both landing on some rocks.

"Greninja!" Nic shouted.

"Got it!" They didn't need words to communicate, for they both knew what to do. That's why the two were unstoppable, they thought alike and read each other's minds and movements. A duo that no one can seem to beat single-handedly.

At any rate, Greninja grabbed Nic's wrist and yanked him up as he used Bounce to leap from rock to rock, all the way back up to Jose. Jose grunted with distaste as they made their way back up with the help of Greninja's Bounce.

Nic was then thrown upwards and was seen above Jose. Jose was ready for him and coated his fists in Darkness magic. Nic's arms were glowing and were enveloped in long sharp needles and he came down on Jose. Both collided with Darkness magic against Needle Arm this time. The two were exchanging a few blows, and then they collided once more, with neither side giving in. Both were trying to push the other back and overpower the other. They looked each other, dead in the eye as they were slowly overpowering the other.

Nic then grinned, which caught Jose off guard. "What could you find so amusing?"

He got an answer, it just came in the form of Bounce, of which that he couldn't dodge with Nic and him gripping one another. Greninja quickly jumped off and watched as Jose was getting back up. Nic's eyes glowed light green and two green-glowing vines burst from underneath Jose and intertwined with each other. The Grass Knot grabbed Jose's feet and made him airborne for a few split seconds before driving him into the ground. The Grass Knot was dispelled and Nic and Greninja backed away from the scene.

The two had exhausted some energy, with this being probably the opportunity, Nic was about to use Synthesis and gather whatever energy that was lost. Before he could do so however, Nic and Greninja both felt a sense of dread almost paralyzing them. This didn't feel good one bit. They felt a foul and malevolent energy skyrocket and it began to fill the room. It was so potent that the two were having a little difficulty in regards to their breathing. This sense of dread wasn't dying down, which prompt Nic to change into his Dread Plate Form, since that form could take in dread and filter it through him. His breathing became regular, but Greninja was still gasping quite a bit.

They both turned and saw where it was coming from. Jose rose from the small crater and he looked more demonic than ever. His eyes had turned black and dark purple energy enveloped him. He glared at the two with so much hatred swelling up.

"Makarov was the only one who could push me this far." He informed Nic and Greninja. "To think that youth such as yourself could cause me so much anguish…I was planning on killing you quickly…but now…you and your accomplice are going to suffer a slow and painful demise, watching each other wither away to nothing!"

Nic curse silently as Jose's Magic energy spiked. This wasn't good one bit. That meant his attacks were going to be increased, which had the two at a disadvantage. It's unlikely that they can block any future attacks if Jose cranked up the power even more. The two were huffing a bit, feeling exhaustion starting to kick in at this point.

"Now…" Jose was showing off the grin of a pure maniac.

The two fighters' eyes widened when the Wizard Saint disappeared in a split second. A cold chill ran down Nic's spine, though he was in his Dread Plate Form.

That maniac's voice was behind him. "…shall we begin, Luminous?"

With Lucy and Reedus

The two were riding another carriage that Reedus had created with his Magic. They riding through the forest and trying to get away.

After Kecleon had appeared and saved them, the two had ran off to a more safe location. They only knew one place that would be considered safe, and they believed the host wouldn't be too fond of their welcome.

They ventured into the East Forest of Magnolia Town to find this location. The location was easily confused, since it was a tree. They were able to find it regardless.

Within the sanctum, Porlyusica had noticed that Makarov was coming around. His body wasn't green anymore and he looked like himself again. He slowly began to open his eyes, seeing that he was inside Porlyusica's place. The place was indeed a hollow tree with natural remedies everywhere you looked.

Porlyusica tuned and started walking towards Makarov. "Seems that you're better."

Makarov slowly got up and began to get out of bed, and that's when Porlyusica slapped him.

"The heck was that for woman?" Makarov shouted.

"You deserved that for being such a reckless old fart." She said. "You still need your rest as well."

Makarov wasn't one to take things lying down, especially when his children are at stake. There was a war going on and he could sense it from where he was now. He got out of bed and started off. "Since when do I ever listen to you?"

Porlyusica shook off said comment and watched as he trailed off. "You're recovery was quick, especially with someone your age." She noted.

He then got on a long sleeve shirt that was purple and looked back at her. "Is that so?"

She then paused before saying words again. "Are you jst marching towards your death?"

"If it looks that way, then so be it. My children mean everything to me, and I won't risk seeing them fall to those monsters." Makarov replied. He then began walking towards the door, with Porlyusica's gaze never leaving him. He opened the door and looked back one more time. "Thank you for your help." He said somewhat rudely. He then exited the place and the door closed behind him.

Porlyusica then looked back to her old framed photos of Team Makarov. There was Goldmine, Bob, Makarov himself, a young Yajima, another guy, and herself included.

'I swear. He never changes.'

As Makarov was beginning to walk away, he saw a small carriage approaching from a distance. He made no attempt to move as he had recognized who was in it. The carriage had stopped a few meters ahead of him and peering from the driver's seat was Reedus and Lucy. Makarov looked up and saw the shocked look on their faces.

"Master, you're alright!" Reedus exclaimed. Makarov nodded as a reply.

Lucy looked in shock and jumped out of the carriage. "Master, you're okay!" Lucy exclaimed. She was about to walk over, but Master had no time.

"I can understand your concern, my children. Do not freight, I am well. We must go back and fight." Makarov said in a very serious tone.

This somewhat shocked the two. "For real?!" Lucy shouted.

"Yeah Master, are you sure that's such a good idea?"

Makarov looked down and closed his eyes. He paused and then spoke.

"We have to. For the sake of Fairy Tail. I will not abandon my children when they are risking their lives for our home." Makarov pointed out.

Lucy stepped forward towards him. "Master, they wanted me. They tried taking me prisoner, and we managed to escape. We came here to find refuge."

Makarov paused again and looked up. "Is that so? Well…" He then got into the carriage. "…I'll protect you, my children."

"Master." Lucy said.

"Let's get moving!" Master ordered. Just then, they felt something coming approaching. Lucy and Reedus turned, as did Makarov.

They all saw that it was Kecleon, who trailed them to make sure they weren't attacked along the way.

"It's you!" Lucy exclaimed. She ran up and saw that Kecleon was a bit damaged, but could still manage. "Are you okay?"

Kecleon looked up and tilted her head. "This software is still fully operated" She said. In a way, she was saying she was fine, though Lucy didn't have a clue.

"Ooookkayyy. Uh, what's happening so far?" She asked. Kecleon turned her head and looked back from where she had came from. She had a discern look as she turned to look at Lucy.

"The Abyss Break was put to a halt. The guys went in and are taking down Phantom as we speak." She responded.

Makarov was surprised. 'So, Jose had more tricks up his sleeve. My children had stopped him in his tracks. Now I must join in on the fight.'

"There isn't much time. The Guild Hall is being trashed. We have to hurry." Kecleon then turned and jumped into the trees and started running. Lucy ran towards the carriage and got in. Reedus then turned the carriage around and they went back in the direction of the battle.

With Nic and Greninja

Keeping up with Jose was easier said than done. His Dark Beam was blasting away nonstop. Greninja managed to use Water Shuriken to cover more range and stop several shots, but more just kept blasting away with greater force. Nic and Greninja were all over the place, trying to evade Jose's powered-up assaults. They had little to no room to make a counterattack.

Nic reeled back when he saw Jose flash before him in an instant, his black eyes fixated to strike. Fortunately, Nic managed to get a surprise of his own in. Before Jose could thrust an elbow into Nic's gut, the Multitype Mage used a quick Sucker Punch and drove the fist into his face, driving them both into the air. Jose didn't look affected as he grabbed Nic's wrist and did a full three-sixty turn and threw him into the ground with a harsh crash sound.

"Nic!" Greninja shouted. Now Jose appeared in front of him as well. A large grin came across his face before he punched Greninja into an unbroken wall with a Darkness Magic coated fist.

Jose turned and saw Nic get up, he rammed into Nic with amazing speed and pinned him to the opposing wall by grabbing his throat. Jose watched as Nic was beginning to struggle. The evil glare on his face was getting even wider as he pinned Nic even harder, now driving a knee into his torso.

Nic gagged as pain flared almost everywhere in his body. He was literally against the wall and couldn't do much about it. He was only down to so few options.

He disappeared from Jose's site and grip and came from behind, via Feint Attack. He was about to deliver a kick when Jose brushed it away with his right arm when turning around and tried knocking him down with Dead Wave.

Nic narrowly dodged as the attack flew through the ceiling, making a rather large whole that showed the cloudy sky. The trainer and his pokémon saw this power boost. If one had hit them, it would mean lights out.

Nic then changed his approach by changing into his Meadow Plate once more. If he could somehow sap some energy, he could get the upper hand again.

Suddenly, the two felt something coiling around their bodies. The next thing that happened was that they were lifted off the ground by a long ghost made of Jose's Magic. They grunted in pain as the two shades tightened their hold on their two victims and electrocuted them, Nic saw Jose below them, grinning.

"You are indeed troublesome young Nic. You and your accomplice had come this far and had put me through my paces, but now you two will finally suffer the slow and painful deaths that has been eluding you two."

Nic had to think of a way to get out of this mess, him and Greninja. He could try using Feint Attack again, but that would take too much effort since he was stuck and being shocked at the same time. He could also try and use Leaf Blade; or would, if he could move his arms. His options were very limited now.

"Uh, Nic." Greninja asked Nic while stuck. "If you have any ideas, I would love it if you would…oh, I don't know…APPLY THEM!" Greninja hollered out the last part as he was shocked.

They both then heard Jose chuckle. "There you have it. Checkmate."

Nic and Greninja both then followed their gazes and saw through the shattered wall. Their eyes widened when they saw their Guild Hall destroyed. He sensed his guild members not doing well, but he didn't exactly sense the guild itself being trashed. The giant jellyfish shade had smashed the guild with its tentacles and he saw all of the heartbroken faces. He could see Cana crying, Macao punching the ground in anger. A lot of Fairy Tail members were screaming and crying. They were exhausted and almost defeated.

Jose chuckled at the sight of victory. He couldn't wait to be finished with Nic and move onto Makarov. He'll make him suffer a slow demise and watched his children die.

Jose then felt something change within the atmosphere. He frowned and saw where this energy was coming from. He saw that Nic was glaring in a feral manner at Jose. His eyes were filled with vengeance and such distaste.

Greninja looked at Nic and was wide eyed. "Uh oh. You've done it now clown head." Greninja said, which rewarded him a shock. Even Nic was shocked, but he didn't look as discomforted as were the previous shocks. It only made him spike in more distaste.

"You destroyed our Guild Hall…" Nic muttered in a foul manner. "…You had destroyed our home. The home that everyone cherishes…I'M GONNA BURY YOU AND STOMP ON YOUR GRAVE!"

Jose stepped back, but kept his cool. "My, my. It would appear that you don't like it when I destroy precious things. Your Guild Hall must be one of those things. Your guild mates will be next, so don't worry!"

Nic was at first shocked, but that only turned into anger until he exploded with a mad expression on his face.

"JOSE! PREPARE FOR HELL!"

"Though I don't get as angry as my comrade here, I agree. You're going to wish that you've never messed with us!" Greninja shouted, now trying to overcome the repeated shocks.

Now Jose was facing two monsters ready to unleash their fury.