The intimate moment shattered like glass as a deafening roar split the air above Tenrou Island. The sound was primal, ancient, and filled with malevolence that made every Dragon Slayer present freeze in instinctive terror.
"No..." Natsu breathed, his face pale. "It can't be..."
The black dragon descended from the clouds, its massive form blocking out the moonlight that had moments ago painted such a peaceful scene. Acnologia, the Dragon King, had arrived.
"Everyone, defensive formations!" Erza commanded, requipping into her strongest armor.
What followed was a desperate battle that showed just how outmatched even Fairy Tail's strongest members were. Natsu's flames bounced harmlessly off the dragon's scales. Gray's strongest ice spells shattered before making contact. Even Gildarts, who had joined the fight, could barely leave a mark.
Wendy cast every support spell she knew, enhancing her guildmates' power, but Acnologia seemed to shrug off their combined might like morning dew.
Odyn stood at the edge of the battlefield, his orange eyes narrow with concentration. The dragon crest still glowed faintly on his forehead, but he was too exhausted from the battle with Hades to attempt the Dragonoid transformation again.
"There might be one way," he said quietly, causing Wendy to turn toward him. "An ancient dark elf technique, passed down through my bloodline..."
"Odyn?" Wendy could feel the gravity in his voice.
He grabbed her hand, squeezing it gently. "The legends speak of a form that can only be achieved under specific circumstances – when faced with a being of godlike power, when protecting those you love, when standing at the crossroads of fate itself." His eyes tracked Acnologia's movements. "This might be the only chance we have."
"What do you need?" Wendy asked without hesitation.
"Time," he replied, his orange eyes meeting hers. "And a lot of it. The transformation requires a complex ritual, drawing on powers that haven't been summoned in millennia. But with Acnologia here..." He glanced at their struggling guildmates.
Understanding dawned in Wendy's eyes. "We'll give you that time," she said firmly. "No matter what it takes."
Odyn pulled her into a quick, fierce embrace. "Be careful," he whispered. "I just found you. I'm not ready to lose you."
"You won't," she promised, then turned to the others. "Everyone! We need to buy Odyn time! He has a plan!"
The Fairy Tail wizards, battered but unbroken, rallied to the call. They formed a protective circle around Odyn as he began the ritual, their determination renewed by having a purpose beyond mere survival.
Odyn sat in a meditative pose, the dragon crest beginning to pulse with a different rhythm than before. Ancient dark elf runes began to materialize in the air around him, each one glowing with an otherworldly purple light.
"By the ancient blood that flows through my veins," he began to chant, his voice taking on an ethereal quality, "by the sacred rites of the shadow realm..."
Acnologia's roar shook the island again as the dragon realized something significant was happening. The beast's attacks became more focused, more desperate to break through the Fairy Tail defenders.
"Hold the line!" Erza shouted, blocking a blast with her adamantine armor.
"Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!" Natsu's attack provided cover for Lucy to summon multiple spirits at once.
"Sky Dragon's Wing Attack!" Wendy's magic helped deflect debris threatening to interrupt Odyn's ritual.
Behind them, Odyn's chanting grew more intense, the runes spinning faster around his form. Dark energy began to seep from the ground itself, responding to his call. But would they be able to hold out long enough for him to complete the transformation?
The air crackled with ancient power as Odyn stood before the mighty dragon, his transformation sending waves of energy across the battlefield. His newly silver-streaked midnight hair whipped in the magical winds, each strand seeming to catch and channel the lightning that danced around him. The elven runes that had encircled him during the transformation now pulsed with an inner light, etching themselves briefly in the air before fading like afterimages.
Wendy watched in awe as her companion's form took on the legendary aspect of his people - the Blazing Arkynorean. Divine light wrapped around him like a second skin, casting shadows that seemed to move of their own accord. His orange eyes now blazed like twin suns, reflecting the power of generations of dark elven warriors who had achieved this legendary state before him.
The very air seemed to bow away from him, creating a sphere of calm in the chaos of battle. Even the dragon, for all its terrible might, took an instinctive step backward, its scales reflecting the otherworldly glow of Odyn's transformed state.
"This ends now," Odyn's voice carried the weight of ages, echoing with a power that made the ground beneath them tremble. The elven runes flared once more, answering his resolve with ancient magic that had protected his people for millennia.
The Dragon Crest upon Odyn's forehead pulsed with an intense light, like a star brought down to earth. Intricate tattoos, previously invisible, now manifested across his skin in patterns that seemed alive with energy. They flowed like liquid silver, creating complex geometric patterns that all connected back to the crest, each line and curve resonating with the same divine power that surrounded him.
Wendy's breath caught in her throat as she watched him hover there, defying gravity with the same ease as the dragon they faced. The air around him shimpered with holy light, making him appear almost too bright to look at directly - like staring into the sun itself. But she couldn't tear her eyes away, her heart swelling with both pride and worry for the one who had become so dear to her.
"This power..." Natsu muttered, his usual bravado temporarily forgotten in the face of such raw magical energy.
Beside him, Gajeel's eyes widened, his iron-studded features reflecting the golden light. "Never felt anything quite like it," he admitted grudgingly.
But it was Makarov's reaction that spoke volumes. The guild master's weathered face creased in a knowing smile, his eyes distant with memory. He had seen this transformation decades ago, when another dark elf had called upon the power of the Blazing Arkynorean. The old man's hand unconsciously touched a medallion hidden beneath his clothes - a gift from that time, from another warrior who had stood against impossible odds.
As Odyn and Acnologia faced each other in the sky, the tattoos connecting to the Dragon Crest pulsed in rhythm like a heartbeat, each surge sending ripples through the divine aura that surrounded him. The dragon's eyes narrowed, recognizing in this ancient elven power something that might actually pose a threat to its reign of destruction.
"The legends of your people," Makarov whispered, though none but the wind heard him, "they never did do justice to the real thing."
The impossible was unfolding before their eyes. The Black Dragon of the Apocalypse, the being that had brought them all to their knees, was being driven back by Odyn's relentless assault. Each strike from the Blazing Arkynorean landed with devastating force, sending shockwaves across the island that made the very earth tremble.
Acnologia, who had shrugged off their most powerful spells like raindrops, now roared in genuine pain as Odyn's fist, wreathed in divine light, connected with its scales. The impact sent the massive dragon reeling backward, dark scales actually cracking under the force of the blow.
"Is... is this really happening?" Lucy whispered, her hands clasped over her mouth in disbelief.
Erza stood rigid, her armor gleaming in the light of Odyn's power. "One person... just one person is doing what our combined strength couldn't..."
The dragon attempted to retaliate with its breath attack, the same move that had earlier devastated the island. But Odyn moved with impossible speed, his form blurring as the tattoos connected to his Dragon Crest blazed even brighter. He appeared behind Acnologia, delivering a devastating combination of strikes that sent the dragon crashing into the ocean, creating a massive tidal wave that threatened to swamp the island.
Natsu, who had always dreamed of defeating dragons, stood slack-jawed. "How... how strong is he really?"
Makarov's expression was grim but knowing. He watched as Odyn channeled power through the connected tattoos, each pattern amplifying the already overwhelming force of the Blazing Arkynorean state. The old guild master's fingers tightened around his staff, remembering whispered tales of what this form truly represented - not just a transformation, but the culmination of centuries of dark elven warrior tradition and divine blessing.
Wendy could barely process what she was seeing. The person who had become so special to her was single-handedly overwhelming the most feared dragon in existence. The divine light surrounding Odyn seemed to pulse in time with her own heartbeat, and she could feel the ancient magic resonating with something deep within her own dragon slayer abilities.
Acnologia burst from the water with a roar of fury, but for the first time in living memory, there was something else in that terrible sound - a note of uncertainty. The Dragon King, who had known no equal for centuries, was facing something beyond its experience. Its next attack was met by Odyn raising a single hand, the connected tattoos flaring with such intensity that everyone had to shield their eyes.
"Now you understand," Makarov murmured, his words carried away by the wind and the sounds of battle. "This is why they were called god-killers in the ancient texts..."
The air itself seemed to hold its breath as Odyn's aura reached new heights of brilliance. His hands moved with deliberate grace, creating a space between them where reality itself appeared to bend. The light that gathered there was unlike anything the guild had ever witnessed - a swirling vortex of power that combined the familiar azure radiance of his Doruaura with new streams of golden yellow and royal purple energy.
"Final..." Odyn's voice resonated with otherworldly power, the Dragon Crest and its connected tattoos pulsing in perfect synchronization with the gathering energy. "Spirit..."
Acnologia, perhaps sensing the true threat of what was building before it, reared back and unleashed its most devastating breath attack. The dark energy that had earlier laid waste to portions of Tenrou Island now focused entirely on Odyn's position.
"FLASH!"
The collision of powers created a moment of perfect stillness before chaos erupted. Odyn's beam erupted forward, a prismatic force of nature that seemed to draw strength from both the physical and spiritual realms. The tri-colored energy - azure blue representing his elven heritage, golden yellow channeling the divine power of the Arkynorean state, and purple manifesting the unity of his dragon-blessed power - spiraled together into an overwhelming force.
Where the two attacks met, there was no contest. The Final Spirit Flash cut through Acnologia's breath attack like sunlight piercing storm clouds. The Dragon King's roar of disbelief was cut short as the beam engulfed its massive form, the holy energy searing against scales that had previously seemed impervious to all damage.
"Impossible..." Gajeel breathed out.
"Beautiful..." Wendy whispered, tears streaming down her face as she watched the person she cared for most rewrite everything they thought they knew about the limits of power.
The beam carried Acnologia far beyond the horizon, its light creating a new dawn in the dark sky. When it finally faded, there was no sign of the Dragon King - only the distant rumble of thunder and the lingering sparkle of divine energy in the air.
Odyn remained floating there, his form still radiating power but his breathing now heavy with exertion. The connected tattoos pulsed more slowly now, like a heartbeat gradually returning to normal after a sprint. Even the Dragon Crest's glow seemed to soften, though it remained as clear and defined as ever on his forehead.
Makarov let out a long breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "So that's what it looks like when used at full power," he murmured to himself. "The Final Spirit Flash... I'd only ever seen it mentioned in the oldest scrolls."
Wendy cradled Odyn gently as he descended, his previously radiant form now returning to its natural state. The divine tattoos faded like starlight at dawn, though the Dragon Crest remained visible, albeit dimmer. His midnight blue hair settled back to its normal hue, the silver streaks dissolving like morning mist.
"Odyn!" Wendy's voice trembled with concern as she supported his weight. Her healing magic instinctively reached out to him, searching for injuries.
He managed a tired smile, his orange eyes heavy-lidded but warm as they met hers. "Don't worry... just need... some sleep..." His words were soft, already trailing off as exhaustion claimed him.
The air shimpered, and First Master Mavis materialized before them, her bare feet hovering just above the ground. Her green eyes held ancient wisdom as she surveyed the group. "The Blazing Arkynorean form," she said softly, "is one of the most powerful magics known to this world. But it comes with a price. Odyn's body and spirit must recover through a deep slumber - seven years of regeneration."
A heavy silence fell over the group as the implications sank in.
"Seven years..." Lucy whispered.
Mavis nodded solemnly. "I can use Fairy Sphere to seal the island, protecting you all while he sleeps. But the choice is yours - you may return to your lives in Magnolia, and we will ensure Odyn is protected until he awakens."
Natsu stepped forward first, his trademark grin spreading across his face. "Like hell we're leaving him here alone!"
"Seven years or seventy," Erza added, her arms crossed and her expression resolute, "Fairy Tail stands together."
One by one, they all nodded in agreement. Gray. Lucy. Gajeel. The Thunder Legion. The Strauss siblings. Every single member present made the same choice without hesitation.
Makarov looked at his children with pride swelling in his chest. This was the true spirit of Fairy Tail - not the power they wielded or the battles they won, but the bonds they shared.
Wendy held Odyn closer, tears of gratitude sliding down her cheeks as she looked at her guild mates - her family. "Thank you... everyone..."
Mavis smiled, a gentle, knowing expression. "Then it is decided." She raised her hands, and golden light began to emanate from her form. "Fairy Sphere: Seven Year Seal!"
The spell rose around them like a dome of golden stars. As the magic took hold, time itself seemed to slow. The last thing they saw was Mavis's gentle smile as she whispered, "Sleep well, my children. When you wake, show the world that Fairy Tail's spirit burns as bright as ever..."
The dome solidified, becoming opaque, and Tenrou Island vanished from the world's sight. Inside, the members of Fairy Tail began their long slumber, surrounding their friend who had saved them all, ready to face whatever changes seven years would bring - together.
To be continued in Chapter 4: 7 years later..