[Fairy Tail Guild Hall]
— Mirajane Strauss —
It was just another ordinary day.
She was sitting at the bar watching her siblings interact with the guild while sipping a sweet drink she ordered just a few minutes prior.
Lisanna was hanging out with Natsu and Happy as always, while Elfman was to the side munching on a cake with Alzack and Bisca.
She glanced upwards with a bit of a pout, seeing Erza Scarlet standing on the second floor. The newly appointed S-Class mage noticed her look and gave her a smug smile.
Mirajane's eyebrow twitched as her hold on the cup tightened, the wood creaking slightly from the force.
Her reaction made Erza's smile widen as she strutted around the second floor as if she owned it. Master Mavis was up there with her, sitting on the railings while cheering the other members who were having a fight.
The day Master Mavis was introduced to the guild was one of surprise. But in true Fairy Tail fashion, no one put much stock into it and instead threw a party in celebrations for their First Master.
Even now the celebrations still continue on, for one reason or another. Her companions never really did need a true purpose for pulling out the drinks or a cause to start a brawl. The joyous atmosphere was what endeared her to the guild all those years ago.
It felt like a lifetime ago that she and her siblings were cowering in Rackshaw Village, afraid that the bigoted villagers who knew nothing of magic would slam through their doors and drag them to the village square kicking and screaming.
They were lucky. Had the wizard called to cull the Demon of Rackshaw been anyone other than a Fairy Tail mage, other than Dannis, there was no doubt in her mind that she and her siblings wouldn't have lived to see the next day.
She watched as Erza struck a conversation with Master Mavis, something about the founders of Fairy Tail judging by the words she could pick up.
She really really hated the fact that Erza won the trials instead of her the year prior. It was just unfortunate that she and Elfman, who she had as a partner, ran into Gildarts of all people.
There was absolutely nothing she could have done against that man. Despite the numerous training sessions she's done with Dannis and even the occasional spar with Gildarts, the Ace of Fairy Tail still deemed her to not be ready for S-Class.
Still, she at least had solace in the fact that she managed to put up a fight. Gildarts held back enough for her to actually show the older man what she could do. It was a much better situation than Cana. Poor girl didn't even have a chance to fight back when Laxus defeated her with a single lightning blast.
She couldn't even blame Dannis for this. There was absolutely no way he would ever be biased during the S-Class trials.
She's heard a little bit of the fight from Gray. Erza really impressed Dannis if his words were truthful. She smiled a bit at that. She knows better than everyone just how rare it was for Dannis to give praise. Erza must have been incredible.
The doors to the guild suddenly opened and in walked a man that Mira didn't recognize.
He was tall, nearing Gildarts' height if a bit leaner. He had short and cropped black hair that revealed a tattoo of a skull on his forehead. Mira had thought him to be a merchant or a noble of some kind, wearing very formal clothing; a black blazer and pants over a tight spandex turtleneck. His hands were clasped behind his back, hidden beneath a pair of black gloves.
He had a focused look on his face as his head swiveled around left and right, as if looking for someone.
It was at this point that Macao and Wakaba noticed the newcomer and approached him.
"Hey there, I'm Macao. Welcome to Fairy Tail." Macao introduced himself. "Is there something we could help you with?"
"Ah yes. My name is Jacob." He said in a soft, baritone voice. Mirajane might have imagined it, but she thought there was a hint of a threatening tone in there. "Might I ask where Dannis Martell, the Dark Swordsman, would be?"
Wakaba raised an eyebrow in question, suspicion in his voice. "And what do you want with Dannis? Requests for a personal mage usually go through the guild. We don't entertain anyone who just walks in asking for our mages."
"Ah you misunderstand." He said as he unclasped his hands from behind his back. "This isn't a request. You see, Emperor Spriggan has personally requested his presence in the Alvarez Empire. I am of course under orders to take him by force if he does not comply."
A surge of surprise erupted from the people who not-so-subtly eavesdropped on the conversation. It only took a second before that shock turned to anger and hostility. Mirajane was no different. No one threatens a member of Fairy Tail and gets away with it.
Wakaba immediately got in the man's face, the smoke from the cigarette in his mouth flickered lightly as the Smoke Mage activated his magic. "Listen here pal, you got another thing coming if you think we'd just let you walk in here brazenly wanting to take one of our own. What the hell kind of business does an emperor want with Dannis anyway?"
Mirajane agreed wholeheartedly as she stood up from her seat. All around her, she could see others following her footsteps. Natsu and Gray stood side by side, pausing in their brawl as they prepared their magic. Cana had three of her cards in hand while Alzack and Bisca had their guns unholstered. Levy, Jet, and Droy had taken a triangular stance, ready for anything. Above on the rafters, Erza had put a hand on the hilt of her sword as Master Mavis narrowed her eyes towards the stranger.
"You really think you can just come into the guild and make threats all by yourself? Who do you think you are, punk?" Macao hollered from the other side of Wakaba.
Jacob, as the man had introduced himself, merely chuckled at the sight of them all. "You misunderstand. I didn't come alone because I was arrogant or believed myself to be all powerful. I came here because I alone am enough. Had August or Irene come here, then this guild would disappear from the face of the world with none of you the wiser."
He took a step back, creating some distance from Macao and Wakaba. Mirajane's eyes narrowed. He was planning something. The whistling sound of a sword being unsheathed that came from above told her that Erza had noticed as well. She molded her magic, preparing Satan Soul.
"I don't have troops, you see. Or any underlings for that matter. I don't really like to be tied down. But Emperor Spriggan has my loyalties, and I would do anything to make sure his orders are adhered to." He unclasped his hands from his back and brought them closer together. "I'm an assassin by trade. So whenever I appear in the field, most bodies and witnesses merely–"
She had detected it a split second before it happened. Mirajane and Erza blurred from their positions, breaking the wood beneath their feet as they launched themselves towards the self-proclaimed assassin.
But they were too late.
"–vanish!"
Jacob clapped his hands and a large amount of magic power was released from him. Mirajane and Erza staggered back from the force, as they lifted their hands to cover themselves.
"W-What is this?!" The scarlet haired mage exclaimed.
Mirajane couldn't reply for she suddenly felt doozy. As if a great thread pulled her insides, taking her to a place she didn't want to be. The last thought that appeared in her mind as blackness invaded her vision was that of Dannis.
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— Jacob Lessio —
How utterly easy.
Jacob's eyes ran along the interior of the guild. Despite everything, it definitely looked homely and comfortable enough. Wooden furniture with stone walls. It severely lacked the wealth and opulence he had gotten used to seeing from a decade living in the capital of the Empire.
There were even signs of breakage prior to his arrival here. Tables and chairs that lay broken on the floor, shards of glass from bottles, and pools of beer and liquor were prevalent all over the hall.
Despite everything, at least this guild knew how to party.
"W-W-What?" A small voice caught his attention as a little girl fell to her knees in the middle of the hall. He noticed her before, standing in the rafters with the red haired girl. She must've floated down at some point.
"H-He couldn't have…" Her body shook as grief was prevalent in her tone. "Erza! Macao! Cana! Mirajane! Where are you?!"
Jacob tilted his head in thought. There were few reasons how a person could avoid his Transport Magic. For one, the person's magic power would be large enough where Jacob would struggle pulling them into his pocket dimension. The other…
This little girl must be a ghost or a spirit of some kind.
"So there's one left, eh?"
His words caused the girl to go wide eyed in shock, but he didn't care. He pointed two fingers towards the ghost as a blast emerged from the invisible weapons he had in his hand.
The ghost girl cried out in pain as blisters formed in her ethereal body. She gasped as her form shook slightly.
"I have suspicions of who you are, girl. You are that Fairy Heart the Emperor has told us about, aren't you?"
The look of complete surprise told him the truth of the matter. He unleashed another blast that caused her to crumple to the ground. "However, my priorities for today only involve Dannis Martell. I didn't see him earlier and I know that I didn't catch him with my Transport. So tell me, where is he?"
"I won't…tell you…anything." She uttered slowly among gasps. He wasn't surprised. Loyalty amongst their number was one of the few things they had known when they investigated Fairy Tail.
It didn't bother Jacob at all. On the contrary, he relished in this part of the business. With a cruel smile, his hand clenched on an invisible weapon before he swung it down, the snapping sounds of whip meeting flesh reverberated throughout the guild hall.
The screams she made were like music to his ears. He could see tears forming in her eyes as the pain that wracked her body was no doubt unbearable. More and more he whipped her. Five excruciating minutes had passed, yet still no words were uttered from her mouth.
If pain isn't working, perhaps something else would suffice. "Time is of the essence. Tell me what I want to know and I shall spare your friends."
"W-what..?" Her breaths came out ragged and slow.
"Those people that I vanished. All of them are on death's door, but none had perished as of yet. A few more minutes in my space and their fates are sealed."
More tears spilled, but this time, it was one of relief. Jacob scoffed at the sight.
"Their lives are in your hands now. So what will it be? Which do you choose? The lives of one hundred of your companions or one Dannis Martell?"
Jacob waited patiently as her figure laid prone on the wooden floor. Her eyes shone with hesitance. But Jacob had no time for her contemplation. He lifted a hand, intent on quickening the pace, when all of a sudden, a fist larger than the biggest vulcans he's seen smashed through the guild doors towards him.
It moved faster than he could react and he found his body flattening against stone walls, squished between it and the large appendage. It didn't take long until the stone cracked as he found himself launched far backwards towards a bountiful lake located behind the building.
Jacob fought through the pain as he flipped in midair, utilizing the momentum to control his flight. His feet skidded against the dirt just before the large body of water as he looked up, a smile appearing on his face as a gigantic man stood on the hole of the wall.
"HOW DARE YOU!" A thunderous voice boomed that echoed through the entire city. "WHERE ARE MY CHILDREN?!"
Jacob had to force himself from being cowed by the 20-foot-tall beast. This could only be Makarov Dreyar, the Master of Fairy Tail. While far from being the most powerful man Jacob has faced, this was a fight that he couldn't take lightly.
Jacob set himself into a stance, prepared for the fight of his life.
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AN: The Spriggans make their move. Fairy Tail honestly isn't ready for a bout with the Spriggans at this point in time. It didn't help that most of the powerhouses weren't home. Hope you enjoyed the chapter.