Earth Land, Ishgar, Tenrou Island.
December, x779.
"Good job, Bickslow." Laxus said, calmly walking around a tree toward the battlefield. "You distracted him enough that I could launch a sneak attack."
"Haha! Yeah!" Bickslow exclaimed happily. "It feels great to see him get what he deserves."
"Exactly." Laxus replied with a nod. "That will teach him to be disrespectful to the next master of the guild."
"Are you two fuck boys done? Or should I let you chat a little longer?" Alfonzo's voice drifted from the cloud of debris Laxus' lightning bolt kicked up.
Hearing the voice, both Laxus and Bickslow immediately snapped their heads in the cloud's direction. When they did, They saw that it was dispersing. And inside the cloud was a black cone that seemed to be moving.
"What the hell is that?" Laxus asked in a dumbfounded tone.
"Oh, didn't you know?" Alfonzo asked, walking out of n opening that appeared in the black cone. "There are trace amounts of metals in most things. On top of that, below the surface, if you go deep enough, you can find iron sand in large amounts."
"Are you saying you pulled enough iron sand to shield you and ground the lightning strike… In the time it took for the lightning to fall?" Bickslow asked, just as dumbfounded as Laxus.
"Of course not." Alfonzo replied, shaking his head. "A lightning bolt drops from the sky at a speed of over 200,000 miles per hour. (approx. 320,000 kph) As good as my reaction speed is, I'm still not at that level yet. I mean, sure, I could dodge it with my body, but I can't draw enough iron sand to shield myself that quickly."
"Then, how?" Bickslow asked.
"If figuring out where people are with the metal they are wearing was the only way I could track people, I'd be a pretty shit A-Class wizard, now wouldn't I?" Alfonzo asked. "But why would I tell you how I do it exactly? We're only in the same guild, and the two of you hate me."
As he spoke, Alfonzo shrugged his shoulders, causing Laxus and Bickslow to frown.
"That doesn't matter." Laxus said. "Either way, you won't be getting promoted to S-Class with me here."
"Are you two delusional?" Alfonzo asked while cocking his head. "I've beaten the two of you together before. Why would that change now?"
In response, both Laxus and Bickslow gritted their teeth.
"We'll see about that." Laxus said as his body was engulfed in his lightning.
In the next instant, Laxus appeared in front of Alfonzo, his fist already headed toward the younger boy's face. However, before his fist could land on its target, the cone of iron sand unraveled and turned into a curtain that placed itself between Alfonzo and Laxus.
When Laxus fist landed on the iron sand curtain, much of the sand was drawn together. Seeing this, Alfonzo's eyes lit up.
"Hmm… Thanks, man. You just gave me a good idea, Laxus." Alfonzo said with a smile on his face. "I should start studying [Magnet Magic]. it would complement my [Metal Magic] quite nicely."
Although Alfonzo was thanking Laxus with sincerity, Laxus, due to his dislike for the boy in front of him, could only see it as mockery. As he continued to rain down lightning charged punches, he heard Alfonzo muttering about electro-magnetism being even better. That statement almost made him spit out a mouthful of blood.
"You're too arrogant!" Bickslow shouted as he, now with all five of his dolls, charged an attack. "How dare you get lost in your thoughts in front of us? [X Formation]."
With Bickslow's chant, a cross-shaped energy slash flew at Alfonzo from behind.
Looking back over his shoulder, Alfonzo saw Bickslow standing on the ground. In front of him were all five of his dolls, linked together in an X-shape with their energy attack approaching him quickly.
"Tch! Arrogant?" Alfonzo asked with disdain in his tone. "It's not arrogance if I have the ability to do so. [Spring Launcher.]"
Like when the fight with Bickslow first started, Alfonzo's legs and feet were covered in metal wires that coiled beneath him. Then, as the wires uncoiled, he was shot straight up into the air, the iron sand rising with him. When it did, Laxus found himself right in Bickslow's line of fire.
"Shit! Laxus, look out!" Bickslow cried in panic.
Laxus, like Bickslow, was also caught off guard by the course of events. However, he was still able to dodge the incoming attack after coating himself in lightning and throwing himself to the side.
Meanwhile, Alfonzo looked down on Laxus and Bickslow from the air, supporting himself by densely compacting the iron sand and using it as a foothold.
"That was a good move, Bickslow." Alfonzo said from above the battlefield. "I'm sure defeating one of the S-Classes will get you some extra points on the evaluation."
Hearing that, Laxus frowned while Bickslow began to panic even more.
"No, Laxus, that's not what I was trying to do!" Bickslow exclaimed, afraid that Laxus would get the wrong idea after Alfonzo's statement.
"Shut up!" Laxus roared. "You think I don't know that. Why would you even take what--- Watch out!"
Raising his head at Laxus' shout, Bickslow saw that Alfonzo was now directly in front of him, his hand outstretched, about to grab his visor.
'When? How?' Bickslow asked himself, completely unaware of when Alfonzo got so close.
*Boom!*
A moment ago, after Alfonzo insinuated that Bickslow was trying to take out Laxus, as soon as he saw Bickslow start to panic, he wrapped his feet with he iron sand. Then, he used it to point himself toward Bickslow. Once he was aimed correctly, he used the iron sand to propel himself forward much faster than he could move with the [Spring Dash] spell.
When he was close enough, Alfonzo wrapped his hand around Bickslow's visor, and with the momentum from being launched from the sky and gravity, Alfonzo slammed the back of Bickslow's head into the ground.
Standing up after the collision, Alfonzo looked down at his handy work. Seeing Bickslow lying unconscious with his eyes rolled back in his skull, Alfonzo nodded with satisfaction.
"And that's a textbook example of using your words to distract your enemy long enough to land the finishing blow." Alfonzo said with a smile.
"Why do you look so smug?" Laxus asked, anger evident in his tone. "You sneak attacked him like a coward."
"Oh, don't give me that shit." Alfonzo scoffed in return. "And just how did you insert yourself into this fight between Bickslow and I? Pot calling the kettle black much?"
"Rah! Shut up!" Laxus roared angrily.
Then, cloaked in lightning, he charged forward once again. However, before he could even travel half the distance between himself and Alfonzo, he slammed face first into the ground. Looking down at his feet, he saw that a pair of anklets that were connected to a chain were hooked around his ankles. ON top of that, the chains were anchored into the ground.
"Damn you! The same trick again!" Laxus shouted. "Don't think it will work a second time!"
While roaring angrily, Laxus began accumulating magic power, intending to destroy the ground. That way, even if he was shackled, they wouldn't be attached to anything. Unfortunately, Alfonzo had no intention of just leaving him stuck to the ground.
"Nope, not this time." Alfonzo said, appearing next to Laxus, using his [Spring Dash] spell and pumping his magic power into his legs to increase his speed. "I can't have you hunting me down for the rest of the exam if you escape. So, we'll say good night for now."
*Bang!*
While he spoke, Alfonzo created an Eskrima stick out of a metal that absorbs lightning. Then, once he finished, he swung it down, hitting Laxus in the temple, robbing him of his consciousness.
"Damn, why won't these dickheads just let it go?" Alfonzo said in an annoyed tone. "I mean, I can understand why Bickslow is so hung up on fighting me for Lici. Anyway you look at it, Lici is fucking awesome. But Laxus, that asshole provokes me first every time."
Taking a deep breath to calm himself down, Alfonzo turned away from the two unconscious wizards. Then, he spread his magic power sense and started walking into the forest.
"Fuck it." Alfonzo said as he walked. "I'll just kick their asses as many times as they come. I wasn't before and I'm still not to be fucked with."
Back on the ship the Fairy Tail wizards used to travel to Tenrou Island, Makarov was watching the projection that let him monitor the movements of the participants in the exam.
"It looks like Mest is out." Makarov said in an intrigued tone. "I thought he would last much longer. Did he run into one of the S-Classes? No… It was Elicia. I knew she was good. But she's better than I expected. Taking down Mest can be quite tricky."
Continuing to watch the projection, Makarov drank more and more.
"Those kids, Macao and Wakaba really are unlucky." Makarov said with atone of pity. "It's been three years in a row, now. And in all three years, they've run into Gildarts and Ur as their first challenges in the promotion exam. Definitely a steep hill to overcome."
After that, Makarov's eyes wonder to the last fight that had started during the early stages of the exam.
"*Sigh* It looks like Laxus and Bickslow challenged Alfonzo again." Makarov said after taking a sip of his ale. "I don't know why he's so fixated on beating the boy. I know he wants to become the next guild master, But he really doesn't have the mentality for it. You can't oppress your wizards and demand obedience. *Sigh* I can only hope he grows up soon."
Taking another sip from his mug, Makarov frowned when he realized that it was empty.
"Well, I guess this is a sign…" Makarov said as he lowered his mug. Then, with a smile on his face, he continued. "… That I should go and get a refill."
Back on the island, Fried was walking through the forest. Taking every step with caution, he walked with his right hand on the hilt of a sword that hung on the left side of his waist.
"I wonder if Laxus and Bickslow won against Alfonzo yet?" Fried asked himself in a quiet voice. "After seeing the lightning strike, I knew they found him. I just hope the battle goes in their favor. Personally, I don't think it is the best idea to target that guy. But I will support any decision Laxus makes."
As he spoke, Fried's eyes were a little brighter than usual every time he mentioned Laxus. However, his musings were brought to a halt when he felt a presence approaching him.
Unable to sense his surroundings as accurately as Alfonzo or Elicia, Fried unsheathed his sword and swung it around, using it to implement his particular style of [Letter Magic], [Jutsu Shiki], and his [Eye Magic], [Dark Ecriture], To inscribe runes around himself.
Fried's [Eye Magic], Dark Ecriture], that allows him to write runes in the air with either his sword or finger, is the perfect supplementary magic for [Jutsu Shiki], his variation of [Letter Magic] that is specialized in creating barriers using runes. However, once someone sets foot in the barriers, they are not allowed to leave until they fulfill the conditions Fried sets.
These conditions could range from meeting a certain age requirement, to waiting for a certain amount of time to elapse, to defeating any other people inside the barrier.
The major flaw with this magic, however, is that the barriers can be rewritten if someone knows [Letter Magic] and understands the runes Fried uses.
After putting down barriers that would be able to buy him time after seeing who the approaching wizard is, Fried patiently waited for his opponent. But when the new arrival finally stepped into his field of view, he exhaled a sigh of relief.
"Ever, it's you." Fried said, letting go of the tension in his body.
"I'm surprised I found you too, Fried." Evergreen replied, also relieved. "Have you fought anyone yet?"
"No, not yet." Fried replied with a shake of his head.
"Me neither. But since we ran into each other, I think we should stick together until we're the only ones left." Evergreen said, placing her hands on her hips. "There's no rule about us working together, after all."
"Well, considering this is an exam to promote to the S-Class, I would think that seeing how well we can work together with others is part of the grading criteria." Fried surmised.
"Then that settles it." Evergreen said with a smug smile. "We'll stick together 'til the end. Then, we'll fight each other to see who the ultimate victor is."
"Agreed." Fried replied with a nod.
With that, Fried disengaged his barriers. Then, along with Evergreen, they began walking through the forest, looking out for any of the other examinees and the S-Class wizards.
Meanwhile, hanging upside down from a tree branch, Elicia watched the two members of the Thunder God Tribe walk away with a smile on her face.
"Well~, well~, well~." Elicia said in a sing-song tone. "Although it wasn't the case with Mest, I see two people wearing the clothes I made for them. Hehehe."
With a that, Elicia disappeared among the leaves and branches as she followed Fried and Evergreen.