Surprise second chapter, haha!
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[X780, Fairy Tail Guild Building]
— Mirajane Strauss —
"Alright! It's my turn to be S-Class! Elfman, Lisanna, come on! We got some missions to do!"
A whole year had passed after Dannis' near death experience. The next S-Class trials were coming up and she was determined to win it. While she had only been in the guild for two years, she had swiftly climbed up the ranks and became one of the stronger members of the next generation.
The Master was surprised at her progress, and while she was proud, she admits that most of it she could only attribute to Dannis. He was the one who tutored her to control her magic when she first came to the guild. After his S-Class trials and she became her chosen partner, they trained together much more frequently.
"As if someone like you could become S-Class. I will win this year's trials." Erza scoffed.
Mira narrowed her eyes as the redhead as they both glared at one another.
"You wanna say that again, tin can?" Mira threatened.
"I'll say it as much as I want to, you skimpy whore." Erza shot back.
She smirked at the insult she's heard her say numerous times. "Is that really all you can say? At least I'm proud of the way I look, unlike you! Come on scrap metal! Don't tell me your insults are just as bad as your skills!"
Erza screamed a cry of rage as she drew the sword on her waist and slashed in Mira's direction. However, that strike was way too telegraphed. She had trained against a swordmaster who was way better than Erza could ever hope to be. Mira activated her Satan Soul, the speed of her transformation allowing her to immediately raise an arm in defense.
Her demonic arm, something she used to be so ashamed of, easily blocked the sword without a scratch. Mira grinned as she punched Erza in the breastplate with her other arm, sending her flying back.
The requip mage instantly recovered, as her form glowed in light before tens of swords were sent in Mira's direction.
Erza was considered to be one of the stronger mages in the guild. Just behind the likes of Gildarts, Laxus, and Dannis. Proving she's just as strong as her would be a really great show to put in front of Master Makarov, who was currently considering who the candidates would be for the S-Class trials.
Grinning from all the excitement, she shouted. "Come on, redhead! Show me what you got!"
"DIE BITCH!" Erza shouted a war cry as the both of them continued to demolish the entire guild in their attempt to get the better of the other.
"Of course you fought her again." Dannis sighed as he idly talked with her while cleaning his sword in the living room of his house. Lisanna is helping to bandage up Mira's wounds that she got from the fight against Erza.
"Fighting her is fun! And don't take that tone with me, I know you fought against Laxus all the time when you were younger!"
"That was a long time ago. I'm an S-Class mage now, the guild building wouldn't be standing if the strongest of us go into fights all the time. I pity the Master, the damage you and Erza did to the guild wasn't small." He said with a shake of his head, earning a pout from her.
Lisanna just giggled. "I was there when the Master came down to check on the noise. He was really pale, his face was funny too."
"But hey, at least I didn't lose! That counts for something, right? Erza's been at this a lot longer than I have."
"And that's the wrong thinking to have." Dannis pointed out as he held his sword up, looking into the reflection cast into the blade. "It's great to have friends to push you forward, Mira. But if you get stronger for the sole purpose to match someone's strength, or for your own ego, then you'll find yourself quickly running into a wall. Having power just for the sake of power is never a good idea."
Mira quieted as he continued. "Tell me, why is it that you grow strong?"
"...I just never wanna feel weak again. Not like that time back in Rackshaw Village. I never want to be in a situation where I can't protect my siblings. Elfman and Lisanna mean the world to me."
Her words caused Lisanna to slip in her bandaging her wounds, before she cried and hugged her sister for dear life, no doubt remembering their days back in Rackshaw.
Dannis merely smiled. "That's great. Looks like I had nothing to be worried about." He stood up as he sheathed his sword back on his waist. "I'll leave you two alone. I have to go help out Master Makarov to prepare for the trials. Get well soon, Mira."
She smiled back at him. He really did always know what to say.
— Dannis Martell —
This year's trials were exceedingly simple.
All the candidates had to do was just get through a maze that were a series of caverns interconnected inside a mountain, survive the numerous beasts and monsters that were prowling inside that maze, and make it to the end with both members of the team completely intact.
The second phase of the exam involved making their way towards Master Makarov, who hid himself somewhere on the mountain. What the candidates didn't know was that us S-Class mages would be waiting for them and to stop them with the best of our abilities.
It just happens that the team that stumbled into the clearing that I was on were Erza and Gray.
"Welcome to the second phase of the trials." I gave them a lazy smirk. "For today, I will be your proctor."
I could see Erza narrowing her eyes as both she and Gray studied the location of our impending battle. No doubt looking for traps or anything they could use to their advantage.
"Dannis…" Erza started slowly. "I'm assuming that we have to go through you in order to proceed."
"That's correct. Feel free to go about this any way you wish. You can come at me one at a time, or you can go together. It doesn't matter to me." I replied as I slowly unsheathed Obsidian. Just to see how they would react, I unleashed my magic power, the air vibrated as a dark aura appeared around me.
Both Erza and Gray visibly sweated, and I noticed Gray's knees buckling slightly from the pressure. Erza however, remained firm. While I barely emitted even half of my full power, the fact that she could handle that much pressure is impressive.
'T-This is crazy! He has this much power?!' Gray thought in the privacy of his own mind.
Erza's form shifted as she requipped into her Black Wing Armor. "When I heard there was another swordsman in the guild, I was intrigued." She said, "Truth be told, I've always wanted to cross blades with you, but you were rarely ever in the guild."
She took a stance, as she held her sword aloft. "You are an S-Class mage, considered by everyone to be one of the most powerful mages in Fairy Tail, highly trusted by both the Master and Gildarts. Despite not knowing you on a personal level, I respect you, Dannis. But magical ability is very different from swordsmanship."
She narrowed her eyes, blazing in determination. "The Dark Swordsman. We shall see which one of us is the superior blademaster."
Hearing her declaration, the edge of my lips twitched as a unique form of excitement welled up within me. "Very well then, Titania. Let me test your resolve." I lifted a hand and did the come-hither motion. "Come at me, both of you. Let's see whether or not you deserve the title of an S-Class."
Erza took in a deep breath, a clear sign to any superior combatant as she dashed in swinging her sword, her speed greatly enhanced by the two dark metallic wings behind her back.
I merely raised my own blade and calmly blocked and parried every single blow. Her overhead swing was countered by a quick slash that nicked the side of her armor. She tried to push for aggression as I nimbly ducked before kicking her in the center of her chest, pushing her back.
"Ice-make: Lance!"
A quick buildup of magic made me look up as I coated my sword in darkness and cut down the spears of ice that was launched my way.
"Ice-make: Hammer!"
Gray slammed his fist into his palm, creating a large hammer construct above me before slamming it down. I simply jumped back, avoiding the attack as the force of the move caused the rocky terrain to crack and dust to be upturned.
Without giving me a chance to recover, Erza charged towards once more, now in her Heaven's Wheel Armor. She held a sword in each hand as the ferocity in her attacks increased. I quickly matched her speed while slowly moving backwards, making sure that Erza remained in between me and Gray at all times.
'So their strategy involves her fighting me in close range while Gray bombards with his magic from afar, making sure to allow me as little breathing room as possible by keeping up with the neverending attacks.' I smirk. 'Not a bad plan.'
Erza then pulled out a huge amount of swords as they started to float around her in circles.
"Circle Sword–"
She took a knee as she aimed the sword in her hand in my direction. At the same time, Gray dashed to the side as he planted a palm towards the floor.
"–Dance my blades!"
"Ice-Make: Floor!"
The ground beneath me was covered in a layer of frost, causing me to slip slightly as all the swords that Erza had with her were now launched towards me.
"You two sure make a good team. Make sure to keep this up in the future."
"Black Cocoon."
A spherical shell of darkness emerged from my palm that defended me against the rain of blades. I then moved, much faster than previously, completely ignoring the slipperiness of the floor as I appeared right in front of Gray, a palm holding his midsection.
"There's something I have to talk about with Erza. Nighty night, Gray. Void Burst."
Dark energy coalesced into a single point before being released in a devastating explosion. Gray screamed in pain as he was launched backwards, hitting a rocky wall and was lodged deep into it with his legs dangling in the debris, clearly unconscious.
Erza was shocked. She never expected for her partner to be taken down in one attack. She most definitely never expected for me to move so fast. She must've realized I've been holding back on her.
At this point, both of us had a good distance from each other. Erza still held onto her stance, some swords still circling around her. Her eyes were narrowed with focus, waiting for me to make the first move.
Contrary to her expectations, I merely stood there casually, with my sword resting on my shoulder. "You're pretty good, Erza. That small exchange we had earlier was enough for me to know you're S-Class in strength already. Your regular showings of strength in your fights against Mira also proves this. But tell me, what exactly do you fight for? Why do you gain strength?"
My question caught her off guard, as she stammered an answer to the question.
"...I fight to become S-Class obviously."
I nod. "Okay, true enough. But why do you want to become S-Class? Is it merely a stepping stone for you to take before going for something else? Or do you wish to use this title for some other personal reason? Tell me."
"I–" Erza struggled to form words as her mind began thinking of an answer. Much to my chagrin, her gaze became unfocused, as if she was seeing something else.
— Erza Scarlet —
The first thing that appeared in her mind when Dannis asked that question was the face of Uncle Rob. That face then shifted into Jellal, Simon, Milliana, Sho…
She left them behind.
She knew where they were, but she kept quiet in fear that Jellal would kill those that remained. So, like a coward, she did nothing while her friends remained behind. In that hell hole of a tower that they spent years on as slaves.
"I haven't fought many swordsmen in my years. But I know enough to recognize when someone strikes without conviction. Tell me if I'm wrong, but you're confused, aren't you? You don't know where your future is heading because you're incapable of moving on from the past. Be honest, did I hit it right in the head?"
Dannis' words caused her to look back up at her opponent in shock. She could see a swirl of emotions behind his eyes, but the biggest thing she could pick up was his firm protectiveness and sheer willpower.
She never really knew Dannis that well. His lack of presence within the guild never makes it possible to actually form any type of friendship with him. She's starting to see why Mirajane, the Strauss Siblings, and Mystogan likes him so much.
Despite his elusiveness, there's no hiding his love for the guild.
So for the first time in forever, she lowered the walls within her heart.
"I just…I wanted to protect the ones close to me. Uncle Rob, my friends, had I been stronger, I wouldn't have lost them. I want to be strong to make sure I never lose the ones I care about ever again." She said in small sobs as she lowered her sword.
To her surprise, Dannis smiled. "That's it. That's the conviction I was looking for. I don't know what you went through before this, Erza. But if protecting the people close to you is your resolve then so be it. Raise your sword, show me your strength of will."
With one last sob, she nodded as determination flooded through her veins. Her figure glowed as she once more donned her Heart Kreuz Armor, a mark of Fairy Tail visible under the cross of her right arm.
She raised her single blade in defiance as Dannis shifted into a quickdraw stance, one hand on his sheathed sword while his knees bent slightly in the ground.
"Get ready, Erza."
A fallen leaf from a nearby tree was the unspoken signal as both mages dashed towards one another. The exchange was so swift that nothing short of the best fighters in Fiore could glimpse it.
Both stood on opposite sides with their backs facing one another. It only took another second before a crack appeared on Erza's armor before it fell apart into pieces. Erza wobbled as she collapsed onto the ground, face down.
Dannis took off his jacket before covering Erza's naked body.
"I–I lost."
"Yes you did. But you showed enough today for me to realize your strength of will. Rest up, Erza. When you wake up, things will turn out for the better. I promise."
The last thing she saw as she succumbed to unconsciousness was his smile. It felt reassuring. She had no more thoughts as the world turned black.
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AN: The next S-Class trials with Dannis proctoring. I swear all the characters in Fairy Tail are so well made. Their backstories and personalities are *chefs kiss*. One of the best animes that did very well with their side characters.
Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Cheers.