[X784, Edge of Magnolia, Dannis' house]
— Dannis Martell —
"Are you sure about this, Mira?"
"Yes." Mira nodded firmly, eyes shining with determination. "We kicked the hornet's nest when we went after Oración Seis. It won't take long until the rest of the Balam Alliance retaliates. When that time comes, I need to be as strong as I can be."
Dannis nodded, understanding the logic. "I do feel the need to warn you. This guy was a Wizard Saint. It took both me and Laxus to take him down. Even then, it was the Etherion that killed him instead of us."
"I'm sure," Mirajane replied without hesitation, her lips curving into a smile.
"Alright." Dannis couldn't help but smile back, proud of the She-Devil he called his girlfriend.
With a simple gesture, black mist swirled at his side as Wraith Jellal emerged across from Mirajane, the right side of his face where the tattoos had been in real life glowing an eerie red.
Mira's body glowed, bathed in light as she shifted into her Satan Soul form. The bat-like wings unfurled from her back as her smile sharpened into something more dangerous.
They charged, forearms clashing as the ground cracked from the force.
Dannis stayed back, watching closely. While Wraith Jellal did not have the same strength that he had when he was alive, it was close.
All Wraiths retained their memories as well as their instincts, which means that this Jellal still had all the combat experience he gained as a Wizard Saint.
His attacks were sharp and methodical, and his intelligence had not waned in the slightest. He continued to probe Mira for weaknesses, knowing what to do to push her to her limits.
Mira met the challenge with a devilish grin, matching him with ferocity. Her claws raked against Jellal's hexagonal shields as she turned, whipping at the former saint with her tail.
It won't be an easy fight for her, but the experience of fighting a Wizard Saint will do wonders for her training.
Dust plumed into the air as their battle echoed across the forest, shockwaves rattling the leaves.
"Not bad," Dannis muttered under his breath. The sight of Mira fighting like that lit a fire in his chest. If she was pushing herself forward, then he had no excuse not to do the same.
Fairy Tail had never been stronger. He knew it, Makarov knew it, and Mavis knew it. In fact, he had heard from Wakaba saying that the current generation of mages was the strongest that Fairy Tail has ever had.
Their generation was stacked with S-Class mages, with even more waiting in the winds.
All of the higher ups of the guild had held the meeting just days ago regarding the coming S-Class trials, specifically about the potential candidates that would be chosen.
Natsu, Gray, Elfman, Levy, Gajeel, Juvia, Freed, Bickslow, Evergreen, Cana, Lucy, even Wendy. Each one had the potential to be S-Class.
Yet strength attracted enemies. The potential danger that Fairy Tail would face in the future was astronomical. The other two heads of Balam Alliance still lurked, along with Alvarez breathing down their necks.
Gildarts' story about his clash with August the Wizard King still had Dannis shaking his head to this day.
Eclipse-Born, a person born from the descendants of the Etherious, which allowed them to utilize demon curses as well as have a 100% affinity to demonic magic. Since the Etherious were Zeref's creations, that made Dannis, in some way, a descendant of Zeref himself.
It wasn't a pure lineage of course. Zeref's blood did not flow through his veins, but it did make him consider.
Zeref had lived for hundreds of years. Was there a chance for him to have had children in all those years? Didn't Master Mavis talk about knowing Zeref at some point? He put a mental reminder to ask her about it sometime.
What did Alvarez even want with him in the first place? Gildarts had yet to explain to him everything he found back in Alvarez. What did being Eclipse-born have to do with an Empire half a continent away?
All these thoughts made him sigh. Somewhere out in the world, there will always be dark plots getting stirred by evil people.
It was that thought that steeled him. The need to get stronger raged within him like a blaze. He was the future Ace of Fairy Tail, it was his duty to shield the members from harm. His duty to be the strongest.
He walked to a separate clearing, far enough from Magnolia to not destroy anything by accident, and closed his eyes.
Meditation had been a key part of Dannis' training back when he was young. The growth of magic required equilibrium. Without it, the Soul Curse could easily overwhelm him.
Ever since he unlocked it all those years ago when he first fought Grilthos the Wizard Killer, hundreds of independent thoughts swirled through his head. The whispers of the lingering souls that had long since passed. It needed an iron will and a stable mind to keep them at bay.
Dannis had learned long ago how to incorporate his Soul Curse into his Darkness magic, but the only thing that ever worked were offensive spells The reason for it was due to the existence of an anchor point, which was Obsidian, the Arcaneum steel allowing him to channel magic through the sword.
Without one, combining Curse Power and Magic Power was difficult. It needed a level of balance that he hadn't quite yet figured out. Till now that is.
His recent experiences had allowed Dannis' magic to grow. From the fight with Jellal at the Tower of Heaven, to witnessing Jura's fight with Nirvana.
The title of Wizard Saint meant achieving a level of power that most mages could only dream of. But what most people did not know was that Wizard Saint meant more than just strength.
It required an understanding of magic so profound that the mage was able to utilize their magic in ways that were previously unattainable to them.
It was how Jellal managed to pull a meteor out of the sky, how Jura was able to create a golem that could go toe-to-toe with an ancient weapon like Nirvana, it was how Makarov and Jose managed to affect the weather on such a large scale during their clash.
That was what Brain had done as a mistake. The man easily had the strength of a Wizard Saint. But instead of embracing the power, he locked it away and shackled it within his own soul. After years of being so, the power grew and grew until it formed another personality all together.
Taking a deep breath, Dannis centered himself. Black tattoos emerged on the left side of his body as the Wraiths appeared around him in droves. Ten, fifty, a hundred. They filled the space until the clearing became a sea of black and purple.
Aside from Jellal, who was still training with Mira, the only other S-Class level Wraiths he had were Midnight and Racer, who stood still among the others in wait.
After that, he channeled his Dark Armor into being, the black armor of his Dark Samurai wrapped around his body.
But this time, he didn't stop there.
"Come," he whispered, drawing the Wraiths back into himself. Their essence fused with his own, purple threads of Curse Power weaving into the armor. His Dark Samurai swelled, towering higher and higher until it loomed like a giant above the forest canopy.
The Avatar of Darkness stood complete, dozens of meters tall. The armor gleamed with black steel as the edges curled like mist. Streaks and spots of violet covered the left side that mirrored the tattoos he had on his body, as well as a glowing purple scar that went across the left side of the avatar's eye.
[Image]
Dannis stood within the chest, sword in hand, as the Avatar mimicked his stance with a colossal blade.
"Let's test this."
He swung.
The Avatar mirrored him, releasing a titanic arc of darkness that ripped through the landscape. The air howled as the slash carved across the horizon, cleaving into a distant mountain and splitting it in half.
Dannis blinked, stunned at the sheer destructive force. "...Right. Don't aim that at Magnolia."
The Avatar flexed its massive arms, its armor dense enough to withstand at least one of Gildarts' punches—or so he hoped. The outer layer was coated with the absorption and dispelling aspect of his Darkness magic, meaning that whatever spell that comes in his direction will be majorly reduced in power.
It was the epitome of offense and defense in one form. His ultimate trump card.
Satisfied, he released the spell. The Avatar crumbled into mist, dropping him back into the utterly wrecked clearing.
'Okay, incredible destructive potential. I have to be careful where I use it in.'
Dannis wiped the sweat that formed on his brow as his body felt lethargic from the drain. Half his reserves had gone from the initial forming of the armor. Holding it up for little under a minute had bled his magic and curse power dry.
It was probably the only major downside from the spell, but it was more than worth it. It was the type of power that could turn a battle around. He just needed to ration it carefully.
…
A week later
"That mission was fun!" Levy beamed as they walked down Magnolia's main street.
"You just like it 'cause of all the damn books in the secret library," Gajeel grumbled. "That mission was boring."
"Juvia enjoyed it!" Juvia chimed, smiling brightly. "Juvia has never been to that part of Fiore before."
Dannis chuckled at that. Team Shade had just returned from a relatively mild S-Class mission. They were sent to investigate an old abandoned site that used to be a magical school. According to the client, strange sounds and flashes of light had been detected there and they asked for help.
Despite the lack of description that detailed the danger level, the reason the mission was labeled as an S-Class job was due to the history of it. Apparently, a team of mages from another guild had already accepted the job before and didn't return.
And so Dannis, Gajeel, Juvia, and Levy accepted the job. It turned out, the magical school had been taken over by a mage with a weird obsession with spiders, and had been magically experimenting with them by implanting them with all kinds of different lacrima.
Lightning spiders, exploding spiders, venom spiders, earthshaker spiders. There were a whole bunch of them. The dark mage himself wasn't powerful, though the amount of spiders he had was certainly concerning. Until Dannis pulled out his wraiths and evened out the numbers almost instantly.
The fight ended swiftly. Gajeel had bumrushed the mage expecting a good fight, only for him to go down in one hit.
However, after completing the mission, they made an interesting discovery. Juvia had leaned against a wall when she accidentally pressed a certain section of the wall.
It resulted in a secret entrance opening that revealed a set of stairs that went downwards. Intrigued, they investigated, only to find the secret stash of bookshelves filled to the brim with books and tomes of all kinds.
Levy had salivated and squealed excitedly at the discovery, and even Dannis gave a whistle of appreciation. They spent about half an hour down there, ignoring Gajeel's loud yawns, exploring and reading.
They took the most interesting books back home to fill in Fairy Tail's own library while leaving the rest to be picked up by the Magic Council.
"Should we get lunch?" Levy suggested, pointing to a sunny little restaurant with outdoor seating. "We haven't eaten anything since we got back."
"Sure." Dannis said.
"Juvia will join as well." Juvia said, "What about you, Gajeel-kun?"
"I'll pass." Gajeel said as he continued walking, hands in his pockets. "I still need to find a damn cat. I ain't losing to Salamander and the squirt."
"You're still on that?" Levy sighed.
"Gajeel is a very competitive person." Juvia nodded. "Good luck on the search."
"Well, just meet back with us in the guild when you're done." Dannis called after him. "There's a briefing by Mystogan and Master Mavis later tonight. I'll catch you up to speed in case you miss it."
"Got it." Gajeel nodded before continuing walking.
They settled into the restaurant, securing one of the outdoor tables that had a large umbrella for shade. A server came to take their orders as Dannis leaned back, relaxing for the first time in days. He ordered roasted chicken and, of course, a glass of chocolate milk.
"So Dannis," Levy leaned forward, a sly smile on her face. "When are you planning to propose to Mira?"
Dannis nearly choked on his drink. "What?"
"Come on, everyone's thinking about it! There's even a betting pool going around about when you guys are tying the knot."
"You people bet on Mira and I's relationship?" Dannis asked incredulously.
"Mhm." Juvia nodded, completely serious. "Juvia hasn't even been in the guild long and has participated in it."
Dannis sighed as he rubbed his forehead. "Figures. Remind me to have Erza lecture the guild on personal privacy after this."
Levy just giggled at that. "So come on, tell us! You guys have been acting all lovey dovey recently. So people thought…"
"We've only been together for a year." Dannis said. "Any talk about marriage would come later, though we have talked about our future together."
"You have?!" Levy said. "That's great, I'm happy for you guys!"
Juvia sulked as she muttered. "If only Gray-sama wants to talk about the future with Juvia…"
"Enough about me." Dannis replied as he turned it back on Levy. "What about you and Gajeel? The two of you have been going on in circles ever since the Tower of Heaven.''
"W-What're you talking about?! There's nothing going on between us!" Levy stammered, her cheeks going red.
Dannis chuckled. "Man, for someone so smart, you sure are stupid, Levy."
"Dannis!"
Their food came then as they all dug in. It was during the meal that the world darkened slightly, clouds rolling overhead that blocked out the sun.
"The clouds sure are strange today." Juvia said.
Dannis and Levy looked to the sky as her words. The clouds were swirling like a gigantic whirlpool as rain started to drizzle across the city.
"The weather in Magnolia has been crazy this past week." Levy said. ""Now that I think about it, it's not just Magnolia, but other parts of Fiore as well."
"Juvia isn't causing this." Juvia said. "Rain usually always comes whenever Juvia is sad, but it stopped happening ever since Juvia joined Fairy Tail."
"No this isn't you." Dannis' eyes widened in alarm. He could detect a faint trace of magic in the clouds. "It's too soon, this shouldn't happen yet."
"Dannis?" Levy questioned. "What's going on?"
"We have to get back to the guild now!" Dannis said as he whirled around. "Come on!"
Levy and Juvia instantly went on alert at the tone of his voice as massive winds started to appear around the city. The sky churned like a vortex, whipping everything that wasn't nailed down around.
Levy stumbled slightly at the run as she caught herself. "W-What? It feels like the Ethernano in the air got thinner all of a sudden."
"You two get behind me!" Dannis shouted as he quickly called upon his magic.
"Dark Avatar!"
A swirl of darkness encased all three of them as the Dark Avatar rose, bursting into existence. The street that they were on broke apart as several buildings tilted and shattered at the force of his magic.
Dannis instantly sent Wraiths to save the citizens, mentally apologizing. But it was necessary.
Inside the armored chest, Dannis, Levy, and Juvia stood.
"Soulbound Aegis!"
With his call, layers and layers of protective darkness covered them from head to toe. The Avatar braced itself. Dannis hoped it was enough.
But the sky only widened, the vortex pulling harder. Magnolia itself groaned, its streets buckling as if the entire city was being dragged upward.
"Dannis!" Levy shouted, clutching his arm. "What is this?!"
He grit his teeth, pouring everything into the Avatar's defenses. "The Anima!"
"Is it a large-scale attack on the town?! What about the guild?!" Juvia cried out.
To their horror, the guildhall twisted unnaturally and vanished into the sky in a deafening roar. One by one, buildings followed. The Avatar trembled, dragged helplessly toward the vortex.
"Hold on!" Dannis roared, but his voice was lost as the Dark Avatar, Magnolia, and everyone within it were ripped from the world, vanishing into the endless whirl of light above.
…
AN: There we go, Edolas here we come!
As we've now past the Oracion Seis arc and have Wendy in the guild, the fic will return to be majorly Dannis focused. Expect the return of a lot of previous plotlines regarding Alvarez, Etherious, and Eclipse-born.
Like I said previously, this arc will be a lot bigger than in canon. This isn't gonna be like those alien movies where everything is centered in America.
Edolas' invasion of Earthland is going to be a clusterfuck where the Anima appeared everywhere. Back in canon, the reasoning that Mashima gave as to why Fairy Tail was targeted was because 'Fairy tail housed plenty of strong mages'.
This doesn't make sense to me, since there were plenty of other guilds stronger than them at the time. Hell, in canon, neither Gildarts or Laxus was in the guild when it was taken by Faust, which lowered their power level pretty majorly.
The Wizard Saints, the other major light guilds, Grimoire Heart, Alvarez, even the damn Rune Knights which had enough numbers to completely trump Fairy Tail in terms of numerical magic power. There were so many juicier targets aside from Fairy Tail that they could've taken.
As always, I'll be taking my liberties whenever these kinds of things happen. It's gonna be another of the longer arcs, so I hope you enjoy it.
Anyways, sorry for the rant. It just had to happen with how much I love this damn series. The plot holes inside have always been a damning thing to me.
More chapters ahead on my Patreon and all that jazz. Chapter 100, should be available by the time this chapter was posted. Check it out if you're interested.
I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, cheers guys!