[X784, Worth Woodsea]
— Gajeel Redfox —
They were flying to the massive city of Nirvana when he smelled it.
"Above us!"
A massive swirl of purple miasma bloomed like a thundercloud just over the treetops. The gas writhed and twisted as it threatened to swallow the whole of the Allied Force.
Tch. Not today.
His arms shifted mid-air, flesh melting steel as he fused both limbs into a jagged, oversized iron greatblade. With a grunt, he swung the blade in a wide arc, slicing through the air. A blast of compressed was released that dispersed the gas into the air.
Cobra was already diving below, mounted atop the massive snake Cubelios—since when could snakes fly dammit?— aiming straight for Dannis, who was leading and carrying everyone on his summoned wraiths.
"Don't think so!"
Natsu came in and intercepted, rocketing through the air on Happy's back and slammed his heel straight into Cobra's gut, knocking him off course.
"Go!" Gajeel shouted. He leapt from his Wraith transport, swiping his arm as thin blades of iron shot forward in rapid succession.
Cobra twisted his body as the snake swerved left and right to dodge, his mouth crafting into a sneer.
"Crafty bastard," Gajeel muttered.
Wind tugged at his coat as he plummeted, but he didn't panic. A glowing script appeared beneath him just in time, one of Levy's Solid Script platforms.
"I swear," he grunted, landing with both feet, "I gotta get myself one of those flying cats after this."
"We'll handle this guy!" Natsu barked, landing next to him with a confident grin, a fist slamming into his palm. "The rest of you go on ahead!"
"Got it!" Dannis called back, rushing forward with the others. "Good luck and don't die!"
Cobra hovered before them, eyes narrowed. "That's twice now you've gotten in my way."
Gajeel scoffed. "We'll stop you all damn day, you sorry excuse of a dragon."
Cobra's grin widened as his magic power flared. "So you know then… about us next-gen Dragon Slayers. Good. Then you'll understand why you're obsolete!"
Gajeel knew what was coming, so did Salamander by the looks of it.
"Shrimp, get some cover!" Gajeel called back to Levy, standing on a script construct just above them.
"Solid Script: Guard!" she chanted, forming a thick protective wall of glowing letters between her and the fight.
All three Dragon Slayers inhaled in perfect unison.
"FIRE / IRON / POISON DRAGON'S ROAR!"
The simultaneous Roars collided in mid-air—flames, poison, and metal tearing through the sky like clashing storms. The explosion boomed outward that sent shockwaves in all directions, the sound only trumped by the still heavy and loud noises of Jura's golem fighting Nirvana.
The smoke cleared, revealing three figures already racing forward.
"Shrimp, stay back and focus on support!" Gajeel said, his voice hard. "Salamander and I'll take point!"
Levy nodded from her high perch. "Got it!"
"Happy, stay with Levy!" Natsu called out.
She scrawled glowing words mid-air, conjuring the word "Fly" twice, slapping each one onto their backs. Wings made up of the word extended from their backs.
The platform beneath them vanished as Gajeel rushed forward, iron forming over his right arm until it became a massive spiked hammer, slamming it down as it tore through the air.
Only to be surprised when Cubelios twisted, allowing the hammer to whistle past harmlessly.
"What—?"
"I can hear you, bastard!" Cobra crowed. "I can hear everything!"
He whirled, Cubelios's tail lashing like a whip. Gajeel barely raised an iron arm before the impact sent him flying backward, tumbling through the air.
"Take this!" Natsu cried, appearing behind Cobra. "Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!"
A flaming headbutt aimed squarely at Cobra's back that missed when Cubelios dipped low, Natsu's attack sailing over his shoulder.
"I told you, fool!" Cobra shrieked, "You can't hit me! Poison Dragon's Twin Fang!"
Two massive, fanged waves of swirling red poison shot from Cobra's hands like tidal strikes, the air around them corroding with their passage.
"Solid Script: Vacuum!" Levy yelled.
A glowing vortex of words formed in front of the toxic fangs and sucked in the poison with a loud shloop, spiraling the venom harmlessly away.
Cobra blinked. "What?!"
"Gihihi! That's Levy for ya!" Gajeel reappeared, iron now covering his leg like a massive cleaver, and swung it upward in a rising kick.
"ACKH!" Blood sprayed as Cobra's chest was slashed.
"Don't forget about me!" Natsu shouted, diving in. "Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!"
Twin arcs of flame collided into Cobra's side. He screamed, tumbling in the air—but recovered fast.
Natsu grinned. "Looks like you can still get hit if you're distracted!"
"Poison Dragon's Scale Fangs!" The dark mage swung his arm, a large number of scale-shaped masses of poison sent flying to their position. It covered a wide area, big enough that Levy couldn't bag them all in one swoop.
Gajeel and Natsu were forced to dodge, flying erratically through the air.
"Seems to me that she's the reason for all this trouble!" With a twisted grin, Cobra rushed and directed Cubelios toward Levy. Mouth wide open as if to swallow her whole.
"NO!" Gajeel shot forward, appearing in front of Levy and taking the bite that would have killed her. His arms morphed into thick iron clamps as he grabbed the snake's jaw, holding it back.
"Solid Script: Hold Person!" The words formed a circle that surrounded Cobra, immobilizing him and making him incapable of moving.
Cubelios hissed and thrashed but couldn't break through Gajeel's grip. "Not today, snake-bitch!"
"You–!" Cobra cursed.
"Solid Script: Hold Person!" Levy chanted.
The words encircled Cobra's body like chains. His limbs seized, body straining as the magic constricted him midair.
"Nnnghh—! You think this would hold me?!" His power rose and rose as a Dragon Slayer would to break Levy's bindings.
"You're done!" Gajeel shouted, driving an iron spike into Cobra's shoulder, breaking the flow of magic. "Can't dodge anything if you can't move, huh?!"
"NGGHH!!"
Cubelios hissed as it thrashed, attempting to retreat from Gajeel's crushing grip.
"Now, Salamander!" Gajeel roared.
"Yeah, I hear ya!"
Natsu's fists burned like twin suns.
"This is for Erza and Lucy! FIRE DRAGON'S BRILLIANT FLAME!"
Both orbs of flame combined into one glowing sphere that lit up the entire forest below. Then—with a roar—Natsu hurled it forward like a comet.
The explosion that followed painted the sky orange.
Fire consumed Cobra and Cubelios entirely, engulfing them in a blast of blinding heat.
"AKHHH!!"
Cobra's scream echoed for miles.
Gajeel floated beside Natsu and Levy as they hovered in the sky, eyes tracking the scorched body as it tumbled through the canopy, crashing through the trees of Worth Woodsea far below.
…
[X784, Atop Nirvana]
— Mirajane Strauss —
The tremors still hadn't stopped.
Mirajane landed softly atop a crumbling stone platform as the others steadied themselves. The sheer scale of the structure beneath their feet—the legendary Nirvana—was overwhelming. It was a massive city, at least twice the size of Magnolia itself.
One thing that was clear was that the Nirvits were incredible mages. Looking and feeling everything, there was a hum of strange magic in the air. One of wonder and sorrow that Mira couldn't begin to transcribe.
Massive towers reached into the sky like skeletal fingers. Bridges, both suspended and broken, stretched across empty chasms, and below them, the colossal legs of Nirvana took another thunderous step. The entire world seemed to shudder with each movement.
Another city-wide shake had Mira turn, to see Jura still busy fighting with Nirvana itself.
One of Nirvana's arms had seized the creature's rocky body and torn it as easily as a child might pluck a flower. But Jura's golem reformed instantly.
The sight had Mira shake her head. She couldn't even imagine the type of magic power one would need to keep up a construct as big as that. Wizard Saints were truly powerful wizards.
"This place is huge." Lyon commented, looking around at the odd architecture.
"Doesn't matter. We need to stop it before this thing reaches whatever it is targeting." Dannis said. "Jura's still going strong, but I doubt he could stop this thing without destroying it from the inside.
"You think it's going somewhere?" Gray asked.
"It's walking, isn't it?" Dannis replied without missing a beat. "Brain must have a destination in mind."
"Wherever it is, it can't be good," Mira murmured to herself. A chill wind swirled around her, tugging at the white locks of her hair. Her gut twisted in unease.
"How do we even find Brain?" Juvia asked, glancing about. "Juvia cannot sense him at all."
"Neither can I." Dannis said, "I heard rumours that Brain was once a member of the Magical Research Department of the Magic Council. He must've figured a way to activate Nirvana somehow."
"This whole place is riddled with magic." Gray said, looking around. "Looking for anyone here would be searching for a needle in a haystack."
Mira agreed. Whatever strange magic that permeated in the air almost blanketed the whole city, making it hard to actually sense anything. However, that didn't mean it was hidden from other senses. Her enhanced eyesight granted from Satan Soul caught something in the distance.
"Not necessarily." Mira said, looking up. "Look there."
At the highest peak of the city was a building that looked like it used to be a cathedral. It had withered through time, with much of the walls and pillars having already crumbled.
But more than that, it shimmered. Mira pointed to the Cathedral itself, where multiple screens of magic were outlayed, showing many symbols and sigils that they couldn't recognize from this far.
Lyon followed her finger. "Well," he muttered, "I'm willing to bet that's where Brain is."
Slow claps were suddenly heard as their heads turned toward the sound.
A figure stepped out from one of the alleyways carved between stone halls. Draped in velvet robes, with a cruel smile on his face and a glint of madness in his eyes.
They all recognized him, Midnight, one of the Oracion Seis.
Mirajane felt her magic stir on instinct. The man oozed menace, but not in the way a brute did. No, it was precise and calculated, like a viper hiding behind the tall grasses in a field.
She didn't notice it before, but something about this man was dangerous.
The dark mage stopped at a distance from them. "Congratulations, you made it this far. But you will not reach or bother father as long as I'm here."
Dannis raised a brow, "Father? Brain's your dad?"
"Adopted, but yes." Midnight bore an amused expression. "I've heard all about you Dannis Martell, Dark Swordsman. Consider me surprised when you managed to cut off Racer's hand like that. Not many could boast the ability to do so, I would admit."
"You say it like it's something that you could do." Dannis idly replied.
"Why of course." Midnight smiled, "after all, I am the strongest in Oracion Seis. Stronger than even father."
That statement had everyone freeze.
Mira's eyes narrowed. Stronger than Brain?
Even if he was bluffing, there was something chilling about how casually he said it.
"You're stronger than the Guildmaster?"
"Father is not the Guildmaster of the guild, but yes essentially." Midnight lifted his arms like a shrug. "Nirvana will never stop as long as I live."
Brain wasn't the master? That was different from the information that they had received. Even Hibiki had confirmed it with Archive magic.
All of this could easily be a trick, to distract them and allow Brain more time to do whatever it is he wanted to do.
Glancing at Dannis, he bore nothing but a blank mask of an expression, showing nothing outward towards him.
"What a load of bullshit," Gray suddenly stated as he stepped forward. His shirt was suddenly missing. "All of this crap is just to gain our attention isn't it? Awfully convenient you're saying all this the moment Mira pointed in the direction of that Cathedral."
Midnight just tilted his head.
"Yeah, you're thinking what I'm thinking, Gray?" Lyon joined Gray as his shirt also disappeared.
"Dannis, Mira. The two of you go on ahead." Gray suddenly called out.
Dannis furred his brow. "You sure?"
Gray nodded, "Yeah. The four of us will take care of this guy. Even if he tells the truth and is actually that strong, we can buy enough time for you to beat Brain and end all of this."
"Juvia will help Gray-sama!" Juvia cried, stepping beside him.
"So will I." Sherry moved forward, her expression grim.
The dark wings extended once more from Dannis' back as Mira did the same.
"Good luck," she said softly. "We'll see you at the end of this."
With that, he and Mira took to the air and flew off. Midnight had shouted something incoherent, launching an invisible magical blast to intercept them both, only for a massive wall of ice to block the path.
"You're not stopping them!"
Mira had a bad feeling, but she chose to trust Gray in the end. He was strong, and it wasn't like he was alone.
She turned her head slightly to look at Dannis. His eyes were fixed forward, his jaw clenched.
"I have a bad feeling about this," she said over the wind. "What did he mean that Brain wasn't the master?"
"I have no idea. But we'll find out soon enough." Dannis replied.
"I guess we will."
…
AN: Pretty big chapter here, a lot of things happened.
First off, Cobra is defeated. I swear to god, the way this guy was beaten in canon was a joke. You're telling me Natsu beat him by screaming loudly? Hiro Mashima crafted such a wonderful story but always had these small moments that made me wonder what he was thinking.
The party arrives in Nirvana, where they run into Midnight. In terms of power levels, Midnight is stronger than Brain. That part is true and canon.
It was Zero that was leagues and leagues above Midnight and the true Guildmaster.
Anyways, more chapters ahead on my Patreon and all that jazz. Chapter 94 should be available by the time this chapter was uploaded. Check it out if you're interested.
Anyways, hope you enjoyed the chapter, cheers!