//------------------------------// // Act IX: Possession // Story: Spike the Fairy // by PonyJoel //------------------------------// Many people return to their seats with food and drinks from the vendors. Laxus returns with his food and commands Natsu to stay put until the next intermission. Master Makarov thanks Laxus for using his winnings to secure Natsu from doing anything redundant. Happy brings salmon and a fish sandwich to munch. He offers food to Natsu, which he gladly takes. "I'm surprised you didn't want to stretch your legs, dear," Juvia said to Gray. "I'm fine. Honestly, when the Preying Mantis Guild comes and disrupts the play, that'll be the time I'll get out of my seat. Lucy, did Fairy Rage reach out to you during the intermission?" "He did. Rage said he'll have a thorough conversation with Happy on a stipulation regarding a date. Happy is supposed to be a butler for Rage and Carla. I imagine a humiliating uniform Happy would have to wear." "Wait, what?!" Happy overhears the conversation and goes into a panic attack. He breathes into a paper bag repeatedly. "That's right. You were supposed to be on probation with the fish punishment, Happy," Natsu remembers the story when Happy came home with the penalties Rage informed. "How did I forget when I promised Rage I'll keep a close eye?!" "Because you're a forgetful idiot, Salamander," Gajeel said while eating his iron. "He did forget to save a town for seven years," Gray refers to the time Daphne used artificial dragons to plague a town. The townspeople used their magic to become shadow people. "Oh, sure. Bring up an event when you were also helping the enemy contain me!" Natsu barks back at Gray. "You want to throw down, fire breath?!" Gray shouts. He's eager to knock some sense into Natsu after taking off his shirt. "Bring it on, Frosty!" Natsu springs into action. He and Gray brawl in the stands. Security and wizards come to break Natsu and Gray apart from their pointless brawl. Master Makarov gives Natsu and Gray a warning. If the two spur trouble again, they will endure a punishment game. After a thirty-minute intermission, the stage curtains rise, revealing a fortress with a hiking path with music faint in the background. Harps, violins, and trumpets play in melody and harmony. Suki reads the map while holding onto Galvin's claw. Angelina and Sara follow closely. "How far are we now?" Galvin asks. His new perception allows him to hear and feel more around him. "Not far," Suki replies. "Well, I want to say another five to ten minutes judging from the music I can hear in the forest. We're closer to Harp Citadel, the music kingdom," Sara said. "I've been there once during a patrol mission. The kingdom is like walking into heaven," Angelina states while relishing the moments of hearing the exotic tunes of relaxation in the citadel. The background changes for a split second as the four enter the kingdom. Pedestrians play elegant music to their heart's content while several small concession stands are visible. There's a castle so tall, painted in white mural marble with a black music note emblem on the front wall. At the front wall, there is a balcony where King Echo looks down. He sees four travelers and decides to come down and greet his potential new residents. "Look, someone approaches," Suki shouts excitedly. "Good. Hopefully, King Echo can lend us his relic for protection," Galvin said. "You mean us protecting it, huh, blindy," Sara rudely says. She still doesn't have high hopes for Galvin and imagines him doing something stupid to her again. "Behave!" Angelina sternly says to Sara. She has had enough of her rude remarks toward her brother. King Echo approaches the four and becomes awestruck by all their beauty. As for Galvin, he pays no mind to him. "My my, what lovely ladies we have. Are any of you single?" "Oh great, another perv," Sara said, looking at King Echo. "Me? A perv?" King Echo is Hibiki's character. He's wearing a blue colonial steampunk tailcoat jacket, a gothic victorian frockcoat uniform, black and white pinstripe pants, and brown medieval leather boots. "Do I look or sound like a perv?" King Echo formally says while speaking in a respectful manner. "Who are you?" Galvin walks up to the sound of King Echo's tone. "I am King Echo. Who are you four?" King Echo thoroughly sees Angelina, Suki, and Sara's body physiques and becomes attracted to all three. He doesn't mind starting a harem for his desire. "I'm the M-" Galvin coughs. "I'm Galvin." "I'm Suki. Galvin's girlfriend," Suki said. It causes King Echo to sigh heavily. "I'm Sara. Suki's sister." "I'm Angelina. Galvin's sister. We're here because King Chane has asked us to hand you this scroll," Angelina passes the scroll to King Echo. "Hmm, let's see what Chane wants," King Echo unveils the scroll to read and becomes heartbroken. He trembles, reading each sentence on the scroll. "No.., no, no, no," King Echo sits on the ground. He stares at the four. "The Gaia Staff and Dawnlight Nexus are gone..?" Galvin, Angeina, Suki, and Sara nod. King Echo inhales deeply. "Okay. I'll give you my relic since the other two are in possession by an unknown enemy." "I have a feeling who it may be, King Echo. It could be my brother who wishes to create supremacy." "Who's your brother, Galvin?" King Echo gets up and puts the scroll in his pocket. He will now have to assemble his army for an upcoming war. "Skeeter. He's why I'm blind and no longer the Mighty Galvin." "Alright," King Echo didn't want to believe that the Mighty Galvin was blind after hearing the rumors. Now he knows it's the truth. "Follow me to my vault." The stage curtains descend for a few moments after everyone follows King Echo. Then, the stage curtains rise, revealing a new vault room. It looks like a dungeon theme with no windows. There are lanterns all around, creating the light of the vault. King Echo rings bells in a tune; the ole shave and a haircut passphrase. It deactivates the traps within the storage room. "So, what relic are you in possession of?" Angelina asks. She scours the room and makes sure no one lurks in the shadows. "In my grasp, I have Faith's Iron Spellblade. It's the sword piece to attach to the Gaia Staff," King Echo opens the hatch in the safe and grabs the sword piece. It's a red blade not attached to a sword handle. "That's odd. I could have sworn the piece was supposed to be green with inscriptions labeled on the prop. Maybe there was a switch? I hope things get resolved if that's the case." "Was there a switch when we changed scenes?" Kagura thought to herself. She rolls with it until the color of the blade is corrected. "Interesting name," Angelina said. "Wasn't the blade supposed to be green with the inscriptions on it?" Spike, Wendy, and Sherria thought to themselves. Something is amiss. Gajeel smirks. "Smart move, Fairy Dragon. Honor your bro with a name for a weapon." "How do you know he did it for you? You think it'll be that coincidental, Gajeel?" Levy asks him while watching the play. "Well, yeah. Fairy Dragon and I have gone through a lot during his time in Fairy Tail, especially when we've trained during the year," Gajeel answers. "What's the purpose of Faith's Iron Spellblade?" Suki asks. Wendy resumes her character's role despite the mishap of arranging props. "The blade has no equal when it's merged with the sister parts; One slash, while having faith, can slice any attack at ease. Without the sister relics, it fathoms the best support magic by enchanting any wielder with strength, health, and endurance. The blade will allow the wielder to keep fighting for days on end while canceling the hunger and parching state." "That's something I will need," Angelina removes the handle of her sword. "Alright, Echo. Please, hand it over." "As you wish, beautiful," King Echo winks at Angelina as he gives her the blade. "I will protect this blade with my life!" Angelina proclaims after assembling Faith's Iron Spellblade to her handle. "When we get off stage, I'll correct this error." "Looks powerful," Sara said in awe. "Looks amazing," Suki said in astonishment. "Looks like you'll live with regret," Monika said, entering the vault with Milissa after attacking the guards." "Why is the blade red?" "You have something that belongs to our master," Milissa said. She meows a bit. "I think Rabian messed up with our props for the switcharoo." "I told you we'll meet again," Monika aims her sword at Angelina. "There is no escape for any of you!" Monika and Milissa throw their smoke bombs on the floor. They navigate around the five in the vault. "Keep your guard up!" Angelina shouts. She firmly grips her new sword, ready to attack either Milissa or Monika. "Understood!" Suki and Sara power up, preparing to use their wind magic against the two. "Take this!" Monika uses her sword to slash Angelina from behind. Angelina turns around instantly to counterattack the strike. On impact, the blade breaks. "Oh, crap!" Spike, Kagura, Sherria, Wendy, Millianna, Hibiki, and Minerva thought in unison. The blade they thought was strong to repel any metal blade snaps like a twig. Then, black smoke emerges from the sword. To the audience's dismay, they are confused about the relic already destroyed when it's supposed to merge with the others. Master Makarov is not fond of the black smoke emitting from the prop sword. The wizards in the stands feel unnerved by the black smoke. Spike whispers to his friends. "We need to call off this act and redo it." "Agreed," They whisper and nod in response. Before the signal for Rabian to step in takes effect, the black smoke goes up in Spike's mouth and nostrils, suspending him high off the stage. "SPIKE!" Wendy, Sherria, Kagura, Hibiki, Millianna, and Minerva shout in horror. The red alarms go off as people frantically panic. Spike gags and gurgles from the unsettling transition. The black smoke causes Spike to convulse and shudder. Spike roars demonically, but it's a different tone. It's not Fairy Demon Dragon but something more sinister in nature. "Everybody, get out of here!" Master Makarov commands the people in attendance. He instructs his children to help the citizens flee from possible carnage. Levy, Lisanna, Jet, Droy, Wakaba, Macao, Romeo, and others facilitate the people to escape. "So, someone has crashed the party," Gray activates his Ice Demon Form. He believes the strange occurrence has to do with the Preying Mantis Guild. "They just messed with the wrong guild!" Natsu taps into his Lightning Flame Dragon mode. Lightning and flames engulf his body. "Yo, what is happening?" Fairy Rage comes out after hearing a different demonic scream. Carla, Erza, Ren, Eve, Lyon, Yukino, Rufus, Orga, Rogue, Frosch, and Jenny comes out to investigate the demonic roaring they heard. They are frightened watching Spike's uncomfortable transformation. Fairy Tail, Sabertooth, Lamia Scale, and Mermaid Heel get closer to the stage. Spike grits his teeth as his head look like it's taking whiplashes. He groans in displeasure and anguish. Two demonic horns grow at the side of his head. A third one grows under his chin. "Get out of meeeeeeeeeee!" Spike is trying to fight whatever is in his body. He's failing miserably. "Spike, can you hear us!" Wendy shouts. She and everyone else is worried about his condition. Spike pants profusely. His purple scales turn red, his green spikes turn white, and his eyes turn bright yellow. Three more eyes appear on Spike's face. One above, one below, and one in the middle of his set. His body shape alters tremendously. Spike's teeth become crooked and sharper. His claws become razor-sharp, and his Fairy Tail Emblem disintegrates. Wendy is in a trance. She's unable to think of a solution to tackle the situation. Everyone else is silent after witnessing Spike's forced transformation. "Master, what should we do?" Lucy asks Master Makarov. She's dumbfounded after the terrifying experience she witnessed. "Who are you?!" Master Makarov uses his magic to increase his size, showing assertiveness on the unknown enemy possessing Spike. "What are you?!" His voice echoes, causing some wizards to cover their ears. The demon within Spike starts laughing devilishly. Sting starts sniffing and covers his nose. "Sting?" Lector turns to Sting. He knows what's up. "This demon is worse than Bloodman and possibly Zeref. His scent is beyond putrid," Sting says. "Erza, is this part of the play?" Happy flies up to Erza. She's not in her costume but has requipped into her Heaven Wheel's Armor. "No. We had no intention of doing anything remotely close to this outcome. Something doesn't add up. How did that thing come in contact?" Rogue sniffs the foul scent emitting for Spike the Fairy. "Ugh, that reeks!" Rogue covers his nose. "Rogue, I'm scared," Frosch is freaking out. "HEY! GET THE HELL OUT OF THE FAIRY DRAGON AND FIGHT US!" Gajeel activates his Iron Shadow Dragon mode. He's ready to throw down. "Don't make us do it the hard way," Lyon removes his jacket and shirt, preparing himself for battle. "Relinquish, my brother!" Kagura demands. Rabian tosses her sword from backstage. He notices someone cowering while wearing a dark hooded cloak. Rabian helps him leave the potential all-out brawl. "You made a grave mistake messing with my brother and taking his body. Now, release him!" Fairy Rage powers up. By doing so, he accidentally incinerates his costume. "Let's stop wasting time and give this demon a manly beatdown!" Elfman shouts. "I agree. However, the parfume is unlike what I smelt before. Whoever the host is, he's dangerously evil," Ichiya said. He smells decay coming from the demon within Spike. "Spike, please, fight it! I can't lose you like this!" Wendy is horrifically terrified about Spike's well-being. "Enough stalling! I say we beat it out of Spike!" Natsu shouts. The demon smiles and licks his mouth. Spike's tongue rips in two. "I possess.., the most powerful.., dragon.., in existence!" The demon cackles. "You believe.., you can defeat.., me?" The demon taunts every wizard. "You," The demon points at Fairy Rage hovering in the air. "I.., have.., no.., brother! You're just a piece of me..," The demon mocks the existence of Fairy Rage. "Don't make me use Fairy Law on you!" Fairy Rage threatens the demon with a powerful spell. "Is that the best you got?!" The demon sneers at Fairy Rage's feeble threat. "ENOUGH!" Irene walks onto the stage. She's dressed in her usual attire and holds her staff at hand. She looks into the demon's eyes and knows who it is. "IIIIIreene," The demon remembers Irene of long ago. His smile turns into a frown. He extends his claw at her, charging an inferno incineration blast. "Don't even try to exorcise me. You no longer have Larcade by your side." "Mom, you know him?" Erza turns to her mother. All eyes are on her except for Wendy. "Know me?" The demon laughs maniacally. "I'm surprised you remember me after all these years in exile!" "Who is he, mom, and how can we stop him?" Erza asks. She wants to save Spike from the demon's grasp. Irene fixes her gaze on Spike. "He goes by the name Ajax. A demon that once led a legion into the Alvarez Empire and nearly succeeded in taking host in Zeref." "WHAT?!" Everyone shouts in shock except for Wendy. She is still in a trance. "Nearly," Ajax uses Spike's index finger and thumb to leave the smallest gap of touching to show how close he nearly succeeded. "You and Larcade prevented me from taking possession of the Black Wizard. However, this body is beyond the capabilities of the Black Wizard! I have the freedom of creativity to counteract and counterstrike! Now, I will unleash my wrath, bring my legion, and bring this world to its' knees!" Ajax viciously laughs. "Here is a sample of my power!" Ajax's three horns light up in a reddish-black aura. He's preparing to unleash one of his most dominant spells. "ARCANE RAY!" Everyone is preparing to deflect the attack when- "White Dragon Holy Breath!" Sting launches himself into Ajax's face and unleashes a surge of an extremely-powerful burst of light from his mouth. The attack covers Ajax completely. "Graaaaaaaaaaaaah!" Ajax is corroding from the holy properties Sting has in his arsenal. His scales start to peel off his body as his spell gets dispelled. Ajax lands on the floor of the stage, bursting right through. "It buuuurns! It buuuuuurns!" Ajax squeals in pain. Irene walks up to Sting. "I'll need you to exorcise Spike. If I'm not mistaken, you were the one that took out Larcade, yes?" "I had Rogue's help in that department," Sting catches his breath. "I need you both to follow me," Irene calmly says. Sting and Rogue follow her to the crater of the stage floor. Ajax flies up despite feeling affliction from the impact. His scales start melting. "I admit, that was excruciatingly painful," Ajax cracks his neck. "You want this baby dragon?" Ajax extends his claw and appears to be splitting apart. Spike and Ajax splinter apart. Ajax loses a pair of eyes while maintaining his dragon form. Spike reemerges but is now in the claw of Ajax. Ajax holds him, choking the life out of him. "RELEASE HIM!" Erza demands while pointing her sword at Ajax. Ajax maintains the three horns on his head and under his chin, the red scales, and white spikes. His eyes reassemble themselves horizontally; They are still yellow. He's still brolic. Instead of a Fairy Tail emblem on the center of his chest, a devil's pentagram appears. "As you wish. I have collected what is required. A new body for my purposes!" Ajax throws Spike hard to the ground and uses his fire breath to teleport away from Irene, Sting, and Rogue. Makarov increases the size of his hand to catch Spike. Dead silence filters the air as many questions come into everyone's mind. Spike is unconscious while Wendy and Sherria combine their healing magic. "This is bad," Lucy said in horror. "A demon that has Spike's abilities is troublesome. That sounds-" Natsu interrupts Happy's statement. "AWESOME!" Natsu now has a tough opponent to overcome. Jobs back in the guildhall have become too easy for him to handle. "Moron," Gajeel shakes his head. Honestly, he does want to fight Ajax for having Fairy Dragon's body and copied abilities. "Not awesome, Natsu. Spike took down vicious foes, and now a demon made a copy of his body. We're up against someone possibly stronger than Acnologia!" Gray reminds Natsu of being an idiot. Makarov sighs and turns to Irene. "Has Ajax taken possession of anyone before Spike?" "He has. Ajax possessed many formidable wizards and acquired their experience in using spells in his stockpile." "I see. Then, is there anyone Ajax could be working for or teaming up with that you recall in your time in the Alvarez Empire?" "No. There's no one in the Alvarez Empire Ajax can partner with; I suspect he could be joining a dark guild or an underground empire." "Hmm," Makarov suspects that Ajax could partner with the Preying Mantis Guild. "Master," Wendy turns to him after she finishes healing Spike. "Spike is not waking up..," Wendy becomes teary. "Not even my Godly Sky Magic can uplift his condition," Sherria sadly states. "Spike could be out for a few days at best. Maybe a week," Irene predicts the stability of Spike after putter her hand on his head. "Master," Levy returns with her friends after the people vacated. "What's the status?" "The show is over. A new threat is on the move. We should head back home to Magnolia," Master Makarov commands. "This sucks," Orga complains a bit. "All of our effort for this awesome play, and this happens." "Not everything comes to fruition, Orga. Be glad that we got to play our parts," Rufus said. He, too, is upset about the unfinished play. "Think we can reschedule this for a later time?" Carla asks her friends. "I don't think we can reschedule. First, the Preying Mantis Guild showed up yesterday, and now this. More evil is lurking, making a name for themselves now that Zeref's following cults have dispersed." "So much for my character," Erza said in tears of sadness. She was hoping to showcase her character and prove to everyone that she can perform without stage fright coming into play. "So, what was the moral of the story?" Natsu asks his friends that performed. "Never be discouraged because you lost something. Embrace the change wholeheartedly, and happiness will soon follow," Everyone but Wendy and Spike said in unison. Fairy Rage grabs Happy's tail and pulls him close. "You and I have a lot to discuss." "Oh crap," Happy starts sweating in fear. Fairy Rage knows Happy has been evading his punishment to eat all sorts of fish.