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CHAPTER START---
---April X773, Minstrel...
"That should do it," Oberon mutters as he inspects his prize, a rare flower that is found only in this monster-infested region of Minstrel, and can only grow deep underground, within this very cavern system.
Softly glowing Light Spheres hover around the small cavern for Oberon to inspect it, and the signs of the monsters he'd scared off are still fresh. The ground of the chamber, and even the air itself, holds a stench of death.
The small and empty riverbeds carved in the floor had been deprived of all water, just as this area was deprived of Magic Energy due to this plant.
With a flick of his finger, Oberon uses Gravity Magic to excavate it, and immediately traps the soft blue glowing plant in a Capture Card, and it rumbles instantly through the area.
Rocks crack and fall apart as the room shakes, and looking down at the empty riverbeds, Oberon can see water rising from underground and flowing through them once more.
"I guess that means this was the last one. Finally, no more parasites…" He beams with pride as the water begins rushing to the main entrance of the cave.
He observes while flying just above the water, following it uphill as it rushes up to the entrance of the cave. The depth never goes beyond a few inches, nor does the water ever break the banks of its confinement, but it does flow uphill until it reaches the vertical shaft in the earth that acts as the entrance to this system.
Oberon is awed at the sight of the gently flowing water hitting the wall then coating all sides of the shaft as it climbs up to the surface. As if a river and waterfall were reversed, but the water was more like a simple flow you'd see on the street during the rain.
Not the raging rapids one would expect, but a subdued serenity and magical wonder. All of which was restrained for over a decade by a few parasitic plants.
Oberon rises with the water, exiting the top of the shaft to the morning sun barely shining through the overcast sky, and tracks the water as it spreads through the rivers in many directions from the cavern.
All around him, the dry and barren chasm begins rapidly growing lush green grass and entire fresh trees, from saplings to fully grown trees in mere seconds.
He looks around at the area he's in, the base of a bowl-like natural formation with high vertical walls. This is the smallest layer, the third concentric layer of this strange natural formation.
And he watches with pride as the water reaches the far walls and flows up the sides to the middle layer, carrying the natural rejuvenation effect with it, then to the first and largest layer of the three bowls above, and but there it stops, not climbing to the barren landscape on the surface.
Oberon immediately rushes up to the other two levels and takes note of everything he can, carefully studying the newly healed magical oasis in such a dangerous part of the Minstrel Desert.
While he's floating about and studying this magical phenomenon, in a small cave along the walls on the second level, members of Grimoire Heart lay in wait, carefully observing him.
The brown-furred goat man samurai, Yomazu, holds his sheathed katana at his side, leaning against the wall to remain concealed while staring at Oberon's back.
"He's even more oblivious than we suspected," he glances back to his allies, nodding to a human-sized chicken-man. "Kawazu, you're with me. This is our chance to test this boy's mentality, Master Hades will reward us more for his capture and conversion to the cause."
Beside some of the other robed members is a person cloaked and wearing a hood, along with a white and purple faceless mask, only a few inches taller than Oberon. "Then you should let me go first."
"Maybe for the next operation," Yomazu says. "Your Time Magic is too inconvenient to share a battlefield with. You need more combat capabilities than just that one big Spell. Be patient, Ultear."
The young girl, only a few years older than Oberon, nods and steps back, allowing her elders to take the lead. "I will inform Bluenote, he's almost found Naos Till…"
Minutes later, Oberon is back on the deepest level of this oasis, sitting on a rock as he carefully sorts the information gathered and updates his internal map while observing the hole where the water flows out of. He enjoys this for a while until a deep voice calls out to him.
"Oberon!" Yomazu yells, making his presence known while approaching.
Oberon turns away from the water source to see a brown-furred goat-man, wearing traditional red samurai armor and holding a sheathed katan in his right hand. "Wow, are you from one of the Primalist Tribes?"
Yomazu stops mid-step, frowning deeply. "How did you know that?"
"You're a goat-man…"
"Ah, right," Yomazu chuckles as he approaches. "I suppose that's fair. But if you're going to ask about the ritual, only those from our special bloodline can perform it. And no, I didn't know I was going to be a goat. We don't know until the ritual is complete."
"I already knew that. But, was becoming a goat-man worth it?"
Yomazu flexes his right arm, showing off his muscles…that are hidden beneath the fur. "Regular humans can't handle power like this, totally worth it. I got other abilities too, anything a goat has, really."
"Cool! So what's your name anyway?"
"That's not something I can give out so easily," Yomazu says. "You should know it's not common courtesy to disclose your name and guild on first meeting, especially while on a Job."
"I know, but I like to be polite. Besides, everyone knows who I am."
Yomazu walks closer, keeping his blade sheathed and posture relaxed. "True. I know exactly who you are and what you can do, which is why I'd rather this not come to a battle. I have been tasked with retrieving one of those parasitic plants from you, and I hope you can oblige."
Oberon remains seated, cross-legged on the boulder, but slowly taps his chin while staring at the man. "How much money do you have?"
Yomazu frowns, but internally he cheers, seeing this is becoming a conflict that can't be avoided.
Grimoire Heart officially doesn't exist, and normally he'd have no problem bragging about his guild and intentions. However, Oberon is famously powerful. Master Hades was formerly the second Guildmaster of Fairy Tail, Master Precht.
He has assured that without someone around to protect, Fairy Law is off the table. But even if Oberon cannot capture them, preventing his escape is also a challenge in itself. So they aren't taking the risk of giving him any information he can use against Grimoire Heart.
The best-case scenario is Oberon's capture to be brainwashed by Master Hades. If that cannot be accomplished, they will seek to kill him here and now. But in the absolute worst-case scenario of his escape or their defeat, they must safeguard Grimoire Heart.
Oberon's story must simply be that of a rival Wizard Guild seeking the same prize as him, not a powerful Dark Guild led by a founder of Fairy Tail attacking him.
"I spent all my money to get this far," Yomazu says, hoping for negotiations to break down. "But I have people depending on me to return with that flower, so, I absolutely cannot leave without it, no matter what."
Oberon pauses for a while, and Yomazu can't get a read on what the boy is thinking. All because his years of mercenary and assassin training had never led to an encounter with someone like this, someone who considered variables that no person in their line of work survives long enough while considering.
"Alright," Oberon shrugs and begins retrieving one of his cards. "I'll give you one."
Yomazu feels as if cold water was poured down his back. 'What the hell?! One little claim that people are depending on me to complete this Job and he's willing to give me a expensive treasure, just like that?! This kid is so soft headed, Master Hades will be able to mold him into a great weapons for us!'
"And your client name," Yomazu says, and Oberon stops reaching for the card.
"Excuse me?"
"I also need to know your client name, that's arguable more important than the plant itself."
Oberon frowns, crossing his arms over his chest. "All but one of the flowers are mine as part of the reward, giving you that only cuts into my profits. But giving out the client information is illegal, it puts Fairy Tail's Guild Charter at risk, I won't do that."
"Unfortunately, I can't leave without it."
"And yet, you will…"
Yomazu narrows his eyes at the boy while carefully drawing his katana, but internally he cheers as negotiations have successfully broken down. 'Everyone, get into position!' he telepathically commands while pointing his blade at Oberon.
"Tsuranuki!" Yomazu yells, and at his word the blade rapidly extends toward Oberon.
The boy raises a hand and allows it the clash against his palm, and unable to pierce the Cosmic Armor, it pushes Yamazu back a few feet.
Oberon raises a brow at this attack, and simply closes his hand around the blade. Yomazu tries to pull it from his grasp, but can't even make it budge, so instead he stops the previous Spell.
The blade rapidly shrinks, pulling him toward Oberon, but as he closes in, the width of the blade itself shrinks, enough to make a gap in Oberon's grip.
He pulls the blade free and pivots into a spin, using the momentum gathered to unleash a slash down onto Oberon.
"Zan!" Black Kanji appears in the air along his blade, forming an energy slash along the edge as he brings it down onto Oberon.
The boy raises his hand and flicks it with one finger, using just enough force to counter it and momentarily halt Yomazu's momentum. He then uses the same hand and gently taps the goat-man's chest plates.
"Bo!" Another black Kanji appears, this time creating a defensive barrier on his chest before Oberon could tap it.
His gentle tap shatters the barrier and sends the man rolling through the soft grass, eventually coming to a stop a dozen meters away.
"The oriental variation of Solid Script Magic," Oberon says. "That's pretty rare. Most people use the common language variation. But it seems like you prefer to creating active phenomenon than solid objects…that's much better for battle."
"Flattery won't save you from this battle."
"Save me? From what? You?"
"From us!" an excited voice yells from the middle level of the oasis. "Bok-Bawk!"
"Uh…" Oberon looks up to see a tall chicken-man leaping off the edge of the second level. Wearing an orange apron-like top and black pants, but aside from being a large chicken-man, Oberon couldn't help but feel bothered by the long white feathers growing from the shoulders above the humanoid arms.
Especially as he spreads his arms and uses those feathers as wings, allowing him to fly.
"This is getting too weird. Am I getting attacked by a farm? Is this how vegetarians are made?"
"Kan!" the goat-man yells behind Oberon, and the boy doesn't even lift a finger, merely reinforcing his Cosmic Barrier as insurance. In the same moment, a beam of white piercing Magic Energy shatters against his back.
"Oriental Solid Script is no good at sneak attacks," Oberon mutters, narrowing his eyes at the chicken-man above. "Now that's just wrong."
He sees the chicken man open his mouth and rapid-fire eggs in his direction. They're larger than normal eggs but move with the speed of bullets, raining down like automatic gunfire.
"Get down here," Oberon reaches up and seemingly grabs the air, controlling gravity on the chicken-man and ripping him from the sky. He pulls his so quickly and violently toward himself that the man slams into his own onslaught of egg bombs, all of which explode against him before he slams into the ground in front of Oberon.
Before Oberon could check on the chicken-man, a battle cry reached his ears from the second level, and dozens of robed figures descended.
He waits patiently as they close the distance, ignoring the two animal-humans getting up and repositioning, allowing everyone to show him more new and interesting things.
Within the crowd, Ultear slinks to the side of the battle before it can resume, holding a pair of Magic Binding Cuffs and preparing her most powerful Magic.
As they're just a few meters from Oberon, with swords raised and ranged attacks in mid-air, she unleashes a coveted Lost Magic.
'Arc Of Time: All Stop!'
The world in a 20m -60ft- diameter around her becomes varying shades of grey as time stops. She grits her teeth and rushes forward in the precious seconds she can hold this for, sacrificing life force with each passing second and defying the order of her master to do so, all in a bid to prove her value to Master Hades.
But it all falls apart when, within the frozen world, Oberon turns to look at her. "Time Magic!"
"Huh?!" She immediately leaps back, cursing herself for not fully mastering this Spell yet. Now she was trapped in here until the predetermined Magic Energy was expended, because either that or she leaves the area. But attempting to do so would likely cause Oberon to attack, while all her allies are frozen.
"Where did you learn this?"
"I…uh," she panics and draws a dagger from her robes, pointing it at him. "How aren't you frozen?"
"It's a bit complicated, but you just can't affect me," he shrugs as if it were such a simple matter, pissing her off even more.
"No matter. No Magics works in a place without time, you're vulnerable."
"True, except," he smiles mischievously, raising a hand and preparing a flick of his finger toward her. "Gravity transcends time. We'll discuss your Magic when you wake up."
"Wa—" Ultear is hit with absurd gravitational force, instantly breaking many of her bones and sending her into shock. The 'gentle' attack rockets her out of the time zone and sends her tumbling through the grass before the rolls to a stop.
Time Magic demands vast Magic Energy, and in most cases his attack would not have been more than a simple hit to knock someone out of the fight. Because Magic Energy Capacity directly influenced vitality.
However, Oberon had no way of knowing a child only a few years older than himself was beneath those robes, or that her rare condition made her body unable to keep up with her Magic Energy Capacity.
Before he could apologize for the unintended damage, the time zone collapsed and his attackers continued.
As the battle on the third level continues, high above on the first level is a set of boulder which provide some shade under the morning sun.
Walking through them toward the edge of the wall to observe the battle is a tall man with short black hair, wearing a purple shirt and black pants.
He stops at the edge and leans against the boulder, watching Oberon play with his guildmates.
"I'm not as oblivious as the child. Show yourself before I crush you…" he says in a deep and serious voice.
"I should have known better," An older man with an obviously frail and fragile body appears sitting on the floor, leaning against the other boulder. He doesn't bother watching the fight, preferring not to take his eyes off the monster beside him. "How did you find me? And since when did you start working for Hades?"
"That's none of your business. And as for how I found you, I didn't. Your Stealth Magic is still perfect, but this was the optimal place for you to remain while stalking that boy."
"Heh, clever. Here for a fight with me too?"
"What's the strongest Avatar you have?"
"Makarov, and God Serena. What do you think, ready to fight a Wizard Saint?"
The man doesn't look away from Oberon, but he frowns deeply at those names. "If you're collecting Wizard Saints, why this boy?"
"I need his Gravity Magic. Only he can do what I need to accomplish."
"Will you unleash those Avatars if he's to die here?"
"That would be inconvenient, but, no. Those are too rare."
"And I have your word on that, Naos?"
"You can't trust my word. But you can trust my desire for revenge on the Magic Council. But I'd rather you now kill him. A few more months of leeching the Magic Energy from his battles is all I need. The kid is strange, doesn't leak any passively. What a hassle…"
"Interesting, we knew about that, but the extent and reasons remain a mystery."
"Yeah well, ask him during your little contest. But you should hurry, your friends are about to get crushed flat. Well, if it were you they'd get crushed, but the kids too nice for his own good."
"If you interrupt, I'll you first. Don't forget, I know how that cowardly Magic works," the man says before leaping directly to the third level, toward the battle.
At this time, Oberon has most of the attackers conscious but writhing in pain on the ground, looking toward him while the man is on his knees.
His sword is pointing upward as he thrusts it toward Oberon, but the boy holds it between two fingers and pushes down, straining the goat-man's shoulders while pushing him into the dirt.
"C'mon, who sent you, just tell me."
Yomazu grits his teeth, but his pained expression shifts into a confident smile, confusing Oberon until a loud impact occurs nearby.
While still restraining Yomazu, he turns to see the man who leapt down to the battlefield casually walking toward him.
"Bluenote Stinger," he instantly recognizes the man, having studied him thoroughly after joining Fairy Tail. He releases Yomazu and allows everyone to slink away from the battlefield, turning to stare down a man who, not only uses Gravity Magic.
But is also the absolute equal of Gildarts Clive.
CHAPTER END---
Discord: discord .gg /eHuxNeZfyS [Come chat with me]
pat.reon: Keanu_Eugene [Read ahead & support me]
You.tube: @KeanuEugene [Giving away all my writing knowledge]