"SSSMAAAAAASSSSHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!" Crashing sounds rippled through the forest as trees fell from the intense battle that was taking place.
"Come out, come out, wherever you are...." said Exisio in a taunting voice as he got up from slicing a tree in half with his claws. "You can't hide forever."
Like a mirage, Mystia faded into view and thrust her large staff outwards. "One Layered Magic Circle: Phantom Bolt!!"
A large blast of purple energy shot out of a magic circle that had formed at the head of the staff. Exisio flipped away, dodging the blow easily. "Hahahahaha!!!! Missed again!!"
Exisio leapt forward and swiped at Mystia with his claws, but Mystia faded away like a ghost and reapeared 50 meters away. "And it looks like you've missed again as well."
"Hmph....you really are Mystogan's apprentice." said Exisio. "You've got all his tricks memorized right down to the letter."
"How would you know that?" said Mystia. "You were only just born..."
"Ohhh..." said Exisio. "Interesting....you know of my origin....you really have been doing your research little girl. Well, to answer your question, when I was born, my Father's ancient knowledge was downloaded into me.....like a program if you wish to look at it from the Science World's point of view."
"I see...." said Mystia. "No wonder....But I'm afraid that is as far as you'll ever know of anything.....because I'm going to kill you before you get the chance to learn anything else..."
"Harsh." said Exisio. "But I was never one to just lie down and take my beatings.... "ROAR OF THE DEATH DRAGON!!!!!"
Exisio opened his mouth and a large blast of blackish, reddish, energy propelled outwards.
Mystia held her staff out. "Three Layered Magic Circle: Mirror Water."
3 Magic Circles opened up in front of Mystia like a shield and absorbed the blast. Then, like a mirror, the blast richocheted right back at Exisio.
Exisio dodged the repelled blast easily and used his claws to cling to a nearby tree like a strange lizard. Exisio cackled as he slithered up the tree like a gecko, "Foolish girl....I was designed to destroy the Railgun....it will take more then a pitiful trick like that to destroy me!!"
"You think I don't know that?" said Mystia. "I know more about Hydra Head then you think Exisio. I haven't just been following Fairy Tail you know..."
"Hehehehehehe.....I imagine you've been all over the place." said Exisio. "Your meddling in the affairs of others knows no bounds....however, it seems you have such confidence in your abilities that you forget that my colleagues also can take more then just a single hit from you."
The ground behind Mystia burst as Gore Beastwalker came out of the earth and grabbed Mystia in a massive restraintive hug. "How boring....that blow you hit me with didn't even come close to my last combatant...Now Laxus Dreyar,.....that was a real fight."
"Tsk tsk tsk..." Aurumnus Rager came out from in between the trees. "Did you know that before Aqualas snuffed it, I was the 4th strongest right under Noiress? My friend all the way back home is 5th strongest....it would take more then a spell at that level to snuff any of us out."
Aurumnus took from his pocket a solid gold bar. "It's such a pity that food for us Golden Dragon Slayers are so rare.....makes it hard to find a good snack if you know what I mean." Aurumnus took a large bite out of the gold bar.
Mystia grinned. "You didn't think I underestimated you after watching for so long did you?"
Mystia's body started glowing with a bright burning light. "Take from the hand that feeds you...learn from the one that teaches you.....heed the songs that warn you.....and pass the knowlege you recieve......."
As Mystia continued to chand, flashes of light shone at random intervals all over the forest in the sky, with each flash, another magic staff similar to the ones Mystia already carried with her would appear, each one unique and strange in their design.
"Eh..?" said Gore looking unconcerned as usual. "What is this...?"
"This is the last spell my master taught me before he dissapeared..." said Mystia. "It was one of the spells that earned him his reputation as being equal to Laxus in Fairy Tail......."
The flashes of light stopped flashing. Now their were at least 1000 magic staves floating in mid air.
"One Thousand Layered Magic Circle!!!! Gabriel's Tower!!!"
A ginormous magic circle the size of a football field opened up in the sky, then another of equal size opened up on top of that....then another....and another....and another, till a ginormous tower of circles hundreds of feet hight was formed. A massive beam of light shot down from the circles and lit up the entire forrest and sky with an earth shattering boom.
When the dust cleared, there was a football field sized clearing of ashes in the forest. In a burst of dust, A ginormous bear the size of a house dug itself out. The bear had numerous scars on it's body from years of combat. The bear hacked a little then spat out Aurumnus Rager who stood up in disgust.
"UGGGGHHH!!!" Said Aurumnus. "That is just nasty!!! Gross....when was the last time you brushed Gore!?"
The bear morphed into the form of Gore Beastwalker. "Brush..? I see no need for such a strange tradition.....my very mouth is cleaner then your hands....."
Gore looked around the area...but he could see no sign of Mystia and Exisio. "That spell was strong...had I not reverted to my original form, we would have been surely become ashes just like the trees here....."
"So where's our little weapon?" said Aurumnus. "Don't tell me he's gone and snuffed it?"
"No...." said Gore. "He and that apprentice of Mystogan's are still alive. Both of them left before I was able to dig my way out of these infernal ashes....They are headed in two different directions though.....Mystia is headed to castle....I believe she means to spy on Diablo more....either she thinks she's too injured to fight anymore then she has.....or she believes she's killed us."
"And what do you think?"
"The injury is likely.....that spell is quite unstable....and I can smell female human blood in the air." said Gore.
"And as for our fearless weapon?" said Exisio. "What about him?"
"Oh that's easy...." said Gore looking in the direction of the Guild's camp. "A natural predator will always go after the prey that it was made to hunt...."
Miles away, Mikoto lay on her sleeping bag fiddling with a blue Gekota finger puppet she had on her finger. Her watch was already over....but she was afraid of what she would see if she went to sleep. The dreams she had been having lately scared her almost as much as Dravis did on that instinctual level that was natural to most dragons.1
Mikoto hated to admit it...but the dreams were getting worse. Aside from the weird stupid dreams she had ( like the giant Happy attacking Tokyo for instance.) the other nightmares she had been recieving had been becoming more gruesome every night. All of them seemed to end with her either being eaten by Dravis, her friends dying, or learning that millions died because she couldn't do what she had to. It was almost enough to drive her to tears.1
Suddenly Mikoto snapped back to reality. There seemed to be sombody groping at her stomach and chest area...Mikoto turned to see that Kuroko was clinging to her with a creepy drooling smile on her face.
"WHAM!!!!" Mikoto kicked Kuroko right off.
"OWW!!!" Kuroko said sitting up and clutching her nose. "SISSY!!"
"Kuroko!! What the heck are you doing in my sleeping bag!?"
"Well...." said Kuroko getting back that creepy smile. "I figured since the others are asleep, we could get some alone time...."
"Kuroko, your perverted antics are really killing me here." said Mikoto. "And we're not the only ones awake, Lyon's awake on watch....." Mikoto suddenly noticed a feeling of sombody watching.
She turned around to find that Lyon was standing 5 inches from her. "Hello Mikoto darling! Just making sure you don't get sick or anything!! I'll do anything for you!!"
"YOU'RE WATCHING ME WHILE I SLEEP NOW!!!!!??" Shouted Mikoto jumping up and running backwards. "What the heck!!? Have the both of you been hanging out together!? All I need now is Ichiya to be awake too and I'll lose it!"
"Men..... All you need to do is ask, and I'll be here." said a voice whose breath was right on Mikoto's shoulder.
Mikoto, getting a frightened and disturbed look on her face turned slowly to find Ichiya was clinging to her shoulder's piggyback style. (Hey he's short, how else is he supposed to reach her shoulders?)
"*sniff* *sniff* My....what glorious parfum...."
"AIEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!! GET AWAY!!!!!!" Mikoto screamed as lightning shot out of her bangs in every direction.
Natsu woke to the sound of lightning bolts blasting all over the place. He sat up groggily and looked to find Ichiya, Kuroko, and Lyon lying all over the place charred and burned.
"Meh? is there something wrong...?" muttered Natsu.
"N-no...." said Kuroko weakly putting a thumbs up sign into the air as she lay there. "It's all good.......just another day in my life...."
"M-men.....what a Tsundere." said Ichiya. "M-men...."
"Wait....for me.....my darling..." said Lyon weakly reaching his hand out.
"Oh....." said Natsu still feeling too sleepy to register much. "Everything's normal..." Natsu went back to sleep.1
Mikoto ran through the forest for a bit before finally stopping next to the giant chunk of ice that held the memory of the demon Deliora. She stood for a moment with her hand against the unmeltable ice, panting.
"I have got to tie those three to a tree somewhere and leave them..." said Mikoto. "Is this what it's like for Gray every time he's with Juvia?.....no, even she can't be as insane as Kuroko."
"Nice night for a stroll.....isn't it?"
Mikoto whirled around in a panic....but she could see no there. For just a moment.....she had felt a twinge of instinctual fear.....much as if Dravis was with her in the forest.
"Whose there?" said Mikoto.
No answer.....But something was wrong....
Mikoto sniffed the air nervously...and immediately a foul unholly stench filled her nostrils. It wasn't a smell that stank in the sense of something you found in a boy's public restroom, more like a stench that in itself was so foul, loathsome, and evil, that it made your very heart want to scream in pain.
"Wh-what is that!?" Said Mikoto her eyes widening... Suddenly she realized she couldn't move....her body was completely paralyzed.
"Wh-what is this....." said Mikoto to herself. "Wh-why can't I move...?"
"HAHAHAHAHA!! You tried to use your Dragon Slayer smeller to sniff me out didn't you!? Big mistake..."
Exisio emerged from the bushes like a silent hunter. "You see.....Father specifically tuned my scent so that those with the blood of Thundaarix would get a rude awakening if they tried to find me that way. Funny enough....it only works when you actually TRY to smell for me....weird huh?! HAHAHAHAHA!!"
"Y-you..." said Mikoto. "St-stay away...."
"Hmm? Are you scared?" said Exisio. "Oh right! I almost forgot, the blood of my father drives all dragons and Dragon Borns crazy with fear!! HA! This must be like a nightmare to you....unable to do a thing while standing so darn close to something as repulsive and frightening as me...."
Exisio moved in close and whispered sinisterly right into Mikoto's ear. "And now.....here's the best part.....I'm.....going...to......KILL....you."
The mere sound of Exisio's breath in her ears was like a never-ending horror movie. Like that one time she accidentally watched 30 minutes of the American movie Alien when she was 5 and was too scared to go near a single boiled egg for 5 months. (Man that movie series was gross.....I mean really gross.)
"N-no....no.....NO...NO!!!!!!!!!" Mikoto screamed as black lightning crackled all over her body.
Exisio stepped back looking surprise. "What!? What is this power!?"
"NO NO NO NO NO NO!!!!!!!!" Mikoto continued to scream as she broke from her paralysis and started clutching her head in pain.
Her Thunder Dragon Wings activated, this time they were black instead of a bright bluish white. They crackled and solidified into more bat wing shaped forms, shooting out plasma rings shaped like diamonds at random intervals. Her left eye turned black as her iris and pupil in that eye turned as white and round as the moon.
Mikoto screamed and punched Exisio in the face with a fist engulfed in black lightning. Exisio blasted through the forest, destroying dozens of ancient sky scraper sized trees in the process.
Mikoto looked at herself, absolutely scared out of her mind. She stumbled next to a small creek that was nearby and saw her reflection briefly.....her one left eye crackled a bit with energy.
"What's happening to me....?" said Mikoto as a sizzling crackling tear came out of her dark eye and a normal one came out of her right eye. "Am I broken or something....?"
"Hehehehehe..." that was a good punch." Exisio leapt out of the smoking wreckage of burning wood and popped his neck. "You actually woke me up a bit there.....now I can really stretch into a good fight!!"
Stay back!!" said Miktoto backing away, her black plasma wings flapping threateningly. "I'm warning you!!!"
"And what would be the point in that?" said Exisio. "I was designed to kill you remember? It would be against my entire life's purpose to just back away because of a little power boost you got....."
Exisio engulfed his fists in blackish reddish energy. "Unholly Barrage of The Death Dragon....."
Exisio launched himself forward, the ground shaking from the power of the blow he was about to deal.
Mikoto clutched her head again as she once more began to feel intense tormenting pain. A massive tail made of black plasma shot out from behind her and slammed Exision into the ground, creating a shockwave made of black lightning that demolished much of the surrounding forest. A forest vulcan (big giant green gorrila, not something from Star Treck.) ran away in a panic going. "Woman dangerous!! Woman dangerous!!!"1
"Ow....ow....ow.....oww...."Mikoto stumbled around in a daze as her power began to go further and further out of control. "H-help.....somebody.........owww..."
Exisio got up from the crater clutching his side. He growled ferrally but reluctantly retreated backwards. It would be pointless to try and kill his prey while she was in this state......it was time to make a temporary retreat.
"This isn't over Railgun..." said Exisio. "I assure you, I will be your worse nightmare....when we next meet....I will take your power....and I will dance on your rotting flesh....."
Exisio jumped into the undergrowth of the forest as a black lightning bolt narrowly missed him. Mikoto barely processed what her hunter had said. She was busy screaming in pain at the moment, her wings were shooting massive energy rings into the forest, killing off a bunch of animals that were desperately trying to escape.
Mikoto's vision was covered in multiple colors as her head swirled in dizzy tormenting pain. Images and memories of her life flashed before her mind's eye, she saw Natsu, Touma, Lucy, Erza, Elli, and everybody else who was important to her....then her random visions formed into one solid vision.
She saw a massive red dragon with glowing eyes standing in a land of molten rock and magma. Ashes darkened the sky as volcanos erupted all around the majestic beast.1
"Daughter of Thundaarix...." said the dragon. "Return to the palace.....within the throne room lies a secret copy of the second half of the prophecy....find it and do not open it until the time is right........and tell Natsu Dragneel that we shall meet again soon enough...........These are my words....."
The vision dissapeared and again Mikoto was stumbling in random circles around the forest in a dizzy dazed pain as destructive lightning and energy rings shot out all around her.
Suddenly Mikoto felt sombody hugging her, calling out her name....she came out of her daze just enough to recognize Erza in her Lightning Empress Armor.
In the backround, she could make out the blurred forms of Natsu, Gray, Happy and Elli. However her vision was too blurred to make out what they were doing. Suddenly she felt a different hand touching her. This hand seemed to be covered in a rough bark-like armor.
"Sleep..." said the voice of Angelus. "And let no pain ravage you further..."
Immediately Mikoto's pain dissapated and the black lightning and plasma wings and tail dissapeared. Her left eye returned to normal and she became extremely drowsy. The last thing she remembered thinking before her vison blacked out and she fell asleep, was that Angelus would have made a fantastic doctor.....