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[Fairy Tail Guild Hall]
— Makarov Dreyar —
Makarov Dreyar lounged in his office, the only place of solace that he could relax in silence.
The chaos of the guild hall was always a welcome sight to him, it symbolized his children's freedom and excitement after all. But there were moments where he needed to rest his old bones, this place served for exactly that.
He took a sip from his mug, savoring the warmth of the beer as it flowed down his gullet. His thoughts drifted to the numerous tasks awaiting his attention, the council has been a buzz recently due to the rising number of dark mages, there were even some concerning rumors in the underworld regarding movement from the bigger dark guilds. Even his son, Ivan, has been making worrisome moves. It was concerning, but for now, he allowed himself a moment of peace.
A lacrima in his desk buzzed to life, breaking the silence. Makarov's brows furrowed. It was unusual for someone to contact him at this hour. Laxus isn't currently on any missions, and Dannis gave his monthly report just a few days ago.
Opening the right shelf on the desk, he realized the one buzzing was the one directly connected to Dannis.
"Dannis, my boy, how are you?" he asked.
A female voice, soft yet urgent, answered instead. "Master Makarov, this is Mavis Vermillion."
Makarov's heart skipped a beat. "Mavis Vermillion? The first master? How—?"
"Forgive me, but there's no time for explanations. Dannis is severely injured and needs help."
Suspicion clouded his mind. Mavis Vermillion, the very much dead first master of Fairy Tail, contacting him through a lacrima? This was either a really bad joke or something else entirely. "If you're really Mavis, then prove it. Tell me something only she would know."
The voice didn't hesitate. "Lumen Histoire. The greatest secret of Fairy Tail."
Makarov's breath caught. "Master Mavis... it really is you."
"Yes. Now, please, Dannis needs immediate help. He's near Mount Hakobe."
Makarov didn't waste another second. "I'll contact Gildarts. He's the closest one to that area."
He activated another lacrima and connected to Gildarts. "Gildarts! We have a situation. Dannis is severely injured, he's near Mount Hakobe, get to him as soon as you can!"
Gildarts' voice, one usually filled with joviality, turned serious. "Understood. I'm not far. I'll be there in a few hours at top speed."
"Thank you, Gildarts. Hurry."
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— Grilthos the Wizard Killer —
Grilthos fled through the dense forest, his breaths ragged and labored. The wounds inflicted by the Darkness Wizard throbbed painfully with each step, but he pushed on.
The memory of the battle replayed in his mind, interspersed with the telepathic message from Mard Geer.
"Hello old friend," Mard Geer's voice had echoed in his mind, cold and commanding. "It's been a while."
Grilthos had taken one step, his claws poised to strike down the wizard. "Mard Geer, how did you find me?"
"Did you really think you could hide from me forever?" Grilthos could hear the arrogance in his tone. "Using the Etherious Form while being in the same world as me is basically putting a beacon right on your back. What did you expect?"
He was silent as his face turned to a scowl.
"I assume you're in the middle of a fight with quite the capable wizard, if he's pushing you that far. Funny enough, I sensed something else coming in the same area as you are right now."
Grilthos couldn't see him, but he felt the mocking smile that Mard Geer was giving him. "Whoever you are fighting, I want you to spare him. I suspect he might be the Eclipse-born."
Grilthos' eyes had widened. "The Eclipse-born? But that's just a myth."
"Is it?" Mard Geer's voice was laced with amusement. "You always have been quite a non-believer. You do not share the same want and need to return to our creator as the other Etherious, which I had believed to be due to your innate curse ability. You destroy magic, yet we were created by magic. Quite the contradiction, no?"
Grilthos growled.
"Nevertheless, the long-awaited power has finally awakened. Do me this favor for once, will you? It's good enough that I know that the Eclipse-Born has been reborn. I have my own ways of finding out their identity. All I ask of you is to leave. Do this, and Mard Geer will forget your previous misconduct and Tartaros will no longer hunt you down for the dog you are. Is that understood?"
Grilthos gritted his teeth, his pride grated at being talked down on, but he knew enough that Mard Geer was an enemy he couldn't provoke as of yet. At least not more than he already did.
He hated leaving an enemy alive, especially one as dangerous as this one.
"Fine," Grilthos had replied, pulling back from the fight. The decision gnawed at him as he retreated. He was so close to killing that wizard, and now, he would probably escape with his life.
As he tore through the forest, he vowed to properly finish that fight. His pride as a demon compels it. The next time they meet, only one would be walking away.
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— Gildarts Clive —
Gildarts moved at a speed that defied belief, his immense power leaving a trail of destruction in his wake. Mountains crumbled, forests split apart, and deep chasms formed wherever he set foot. The urgency in Makarov's voice had driven him to push beyond his limits. Dannis was in trouble, and Gildarts would not let anything stand in his way.
He was the Ace of Fairy Tail, it was his duty to shield his members. To become the person they could always rely on when going gets tough. It was time for him to do his job and save his successor.
The landscape blurred around him. What should've been a four hour journey was finished in a quarter of the time, the distance between him and Dannis shrinking rapidly. Soon enough, he arrived at the cold plains of Mount Hakobe.
He stopped and closed his eyes, extending his senses as far as he could, trying to find the location with the most lingering magic in the air.
His head whirled to the right, finding exactly what he wanted. It didn't take him long to spot the small village where the battle had taken place, smoke still rising from the aftermath.
Gildarts landed with a thunderous impact, the ground shaking beneath him. He surveyed the scene, his keen eyes spotting the injured figures of Dannis, not far from him was the prone figure of a rune knight, plenty of blood leaking from the stump of his arm.
A small, ethereal figure stood beside them, which Gilarts believed to be Mavis.
"Are you the first master?", Gildarts asked with a frown on his face.
Mavis turned to him, her eyes filled with relief. "Gildarts, thank you for coming so quickly. We need to get them to the nearby rune knight outpost. They're both severely injured."
Gildarts didn't really trust this figure that showed up out of nowhere and started claiming to be the founder of Fairy Tail, but for now he'll cut her some slack.
He carefully lifted Dannis and the rune knight on his shoulders. "Lead the way."
Mavis guided him through the forest, effortlessly gliding through the landscape with her ghostly form. The rune knight outpost was a few miles away, Gildarts made sure to keep his movements as steady as possible.
He didn't want to accidentally make their wounds worse after all. A lot of people like to claim that he was a reckless mage with barely any control over his magic. While in some cases they may be right, but that wasn't because he was innately careless, but simply due to the fact that his Crash Magic is just uncontrollable by nature.
It took a prodigious amount of skill to be able to tame a magic as wild as his, and he would say he did a pretty good job at it. It was like living in a world made of cardboard really, the slightest touch that could destroy everything in his path.
He's already learned long ago how to live in that kind of world. The ability to be gentle and soft with everything around him came par for the course.
Due to this, they managed to arrive at the outpost in record time. Upon arrival, the knights on duty sprang into action, taking Dannis and the rune knight captain to the medical wing.
He took note of the massive amount of people that stood in the lounge area of the outpost. A majority wore basic leathers and peasant rags, and he could spot a few families here and there, snuggling together in a secluded corner.
"They were the villagers that Dannis and Crust saved from the demon."
Gildarts turned to Mavis who appeared beside him, his expression serious. "Tell me everything that happened."
Mavis sighed, her ethereal form flickering. He noticed how no one in the room paid any attention towards the girl, as if she was invisible.
"Grilthos, a demon from the book of Zeref, attacked. Dannis with Crust as backup, managed to fight him off long enough for the villagers to evacuate. But they were overwhelmed in the end. I did what I could to help, but it wasn't enough. Grilthos managed to escape."
Gildarts let out a breath as he rubbed the back of his head. "The master and I knew he was going after one of the etherious. But I never thought it would end like this. I should've stopped him when I had the chance."
The first master shook her head. "I don't believe so. Despite his condition, he had grown much from this conflict, especially regarding his nature of magic."
"So he got the answers he was looking for? That's good I guess."
"He did. Dannis is strong. You know that yourself." She smiled at Gildarts, her long blonde hair swaying slightly. "I was there during the trials on Tenrou Island. You chose him as your successor, Gildarts. I have faith that when he wakes up, he will strive to become even stronger."
For the first time since he heard the news, Gildarts smiled before chuckling. "Aye, that I know."
As they spoke, the rune knights worked tirelessly to stabilize Dannis and Crust. In any other circumstances, Gildarts would choose to bring Dannis to Porlyusica as soon as he could, but the distance from here to Magnolia was far. There was no way Dannis would survive the trip if he wasn't healed first.
And Mavis was right, despite his worry, he had to have faith that Dannis would pull through. The kid was strong, stronger than Gildarts had been at that age.
There was one thing clear, Grilthos the Wizard Killer just earned himself a new enemy.
The next time that demon would show his face, there will be blood.
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AN: Aftermath of that fight from 3 different perspectives. Hope you enjoyed it.