Rin Miyuzaki's Story

“So Emerald Jay is it? Welcome to the guild! My name is Zane. Its always nice to see a new face! Anyways, how well are you guys doing?”

Blinking a few times, Emerald turned her attention away from Wynter to the red haired boy who approached them. ”Nice to meet you Zane.” She barely finished before he carried on talking.

“You know, its kind of funny. I just realized we could all be associated with a color. Emerald Green, Wynter Blue, and since I am a Wizard that mains fire magic, Fire Red. Plus my red hair.”

”I guess that’s true...”

”What’s this I hear about colors?” Emerald glanced over at the newcomer to the conversation who had put himself next to Zane. He didn’t seem to be that old, with blue hair and green eyes and a pair of goggles sat upon his head.

She smiled at the boy. “Zane was talking about how we’re like colors or something. I’m Emerald, nice to meet you.”
Zane then turned his attention to Wynter, starting to talk about an S-Rank mission he’d been on. ’S-Rank? Now I feel a bit overwhelmed, everyone here seems so strong...’
The red haired boy turned his attention back to her. [i]“Just wait, pretty soon you will have your own fun and great adventures to tell!”

”Eh? I-I doubt it... I’m not really that strong after all...” She started mumbling at the end, sinking in her seat. Immersed in her thoughts, she didn’t hear the next few things that Zane said, though she did feel like someone was glaring at her which caused the green haired girl so slump over, head resting on the table.

”Nice goggles.” That simple comment brought Emerald back from her thoughts and she realised that she had been fiddling with her goggles again. Straightening up, she looked over at the blue haired boy and smiled again.

”Thanks, yours are cool too.”

It was then that she noticed a girl with long red hair leave the guild and a couple of minutes later, another wearing a hood to hide themselves with enter. She tilted her head to the side, watching the hooded girl be practically jumped on by Mavis, much the same way the guild master had done to her when she first stepped into the guild. ”Someone new?” Emerald turned her attention back to the group she was with. ”So many people...” She slumped over again, this time with her face resting on her books.

Mary sighed. She hadn't expected Pommel to finally take the direct approach, but one could hope. She hated hearing the girl talk down about herself, although it happened often and rarely lasted long. She opened her mouth to say something, but after a moment, closed it with a frown. If Pommel's flamboyance wasn't enough to get Wynter's attention, what would? The poor girl had made herself known to just about everyone else in the guild, at least anyone who'd been there since she came out of her shell, yet the person she wanted to notice her the most was endlessly oblivious.

It came down to bad luck, it seemed. They were always just missing each other, something always just barely got between them and kept them from meeting. Of course, Pommel had had plenty of opportunities to simply walk up and introduce herself, but Mary could see how that just wouldn't be the same. Still, she was starting to get worried that if Wynter ever did notice Pommel, the baker would be disappointed. Pommel idolized Wynter, after all, and as wonderful as Cold Steel was, she was just as human as the rest of them.

Mary jolted upright, pulled suddenly from her thoughts by the banging. Before she could really figure out what was happening, Pommel had clasped her hand, thanked her, then ran off, apron flying in the air behind her. Magpie blinked twice at the spot where Pommel had vaulted herself over the counter, then her vision was intercepted by Slick. The woman was almost positive that there were big, blocky question marks bouncing on top of her head. "What, indeed," she replied quietly, voice a little far off. After a second, she laughed a little. "I haven't a clue, but I'm glad it worked, whatever it was."

She shrugged at his next question, finally finishing off her first cookie. "I hope so. Although, judging from past results..." She picked up another cookie, and looked briefly back and forth between the group and the stairs. In the background, the guy Riku'd drawn on looked quite flustered but had yet to realize what was on his face. Mary decided to give the boy a chance to go up and apologize on his own before she stepped in again, so she looked back to the man next to her. "Did you come over here only to swipe some baked goods while she isn't looking? Not very subtle of you, Slick." She narrowed her eyes, bit her lips remained in a small smile.

When Pommel started shouting at Vernon, it drew Mary's attention again. She quirked her head like a curious puppy, frozen with her second cookie halfway to her mouth. "Hm? Oh-! ...Is she taking a job?" Eyes widened slightly, the woman looked back to Slick, checking to make sure she wasn't the only one surprised at this. "That'll be her first, right?" Considering the girl had been with the guild for a couple years now and had yet to take any jobs from the board, Mary, for one, thought this was quite a big deal. She wasn't sure whether to be worried or proud; which meant she was a bit of both.

She watched as Pommel sped out the door, all but flattening an unfamiliar girl who happened to be on her way in. Judging by Mavis's reaction, she'd never seen the girl before either, which was interesting. Were they getting a new member? Mary's smile widened at the idea of her family growing. That was how she saw the guild, after all: one big, ever growing family. She hoped the girl was going to join, but being greeted by Mavis was like being greeted by a crowd, and she didn't want to overwhelm the newbie so Mary stayed where she was for now.

Just as she was starting to turn away again, taking a bite of the cookie, none other than Cold Steel herself went sprinting out the door after Pommel. "Mm!" Magpie exclaimed, pointing toward the door since she was far too polite to talk with her mouth full. She swallowed hard, feet kicking lightly in another attempt to get Slick's attention while she felt back for a drink, anything to help her wash it down. She finally found a mug of beer and took a long swig, nose wrinkling at the taste. She would have much preferred a glass of milk. "Looks like our Mel may get her wish, after all!"

Zane's usually friendly (and possibly over-energetic) self emerged as Emerald spoke down about herself. His warm smile lit up, and if Emerald had heard anything about Zane, his ability to make people feel welcome and even powerful from his smile almost seemed like a spell was involved. "Just because others are strong doesn't mean your weak. Everyone is strong in their own way at least. And I can tell just from looking at you, one day, possibly one day soon, it might even be tomorrow, you are going to save a lot of people's lives".

However, that is when Zane noticed the situation with Cold Steel. He looked around and heard some of the comment of others (As his senses are enhanced from being a Dragon Slayer), he pieced it together. "Well, I better go help. It IS my job, after all. That said, don't think your slacking just because I am so young but an S-Class". He leaned in closer and whispered the next part in her ear. "I am actually an emotionally scarred 44 year old. Trust me, people can overcome anything with enough willpower, and I bet you have a lot of it".

He smiled at her again and waved, before running off. He stopped for about one second at Mavis and Rin. "Hey, welcome to the Guild! Thanks for joining! Sorry I can't give you the full greeting, I gotta go make sure a fellow guildmember doesn't get smashed".

"I take it that the mission Pommel took was yours? Didn't she notice it was S-Class?" Mavis asked as Zane was already leaving. "And Zane, try to not have us get a large damages bill again!"

"Relax, nothing but mountains and monsters to damage! No bill possible, keeping my promise!" Zane yelled as he ran off.

Mavis shrugged, then looked at Rin. "Well, if its just those two, he should be too busy protecting her to damage...wait, didn't Cold Steel go after her too! Oh no....I am not sure how much a mountain costs, but if those two are going...hey, I can tell, your a power Wizard. How about for your first job going and making sure those three don't wreck...well, a mountain? There are actually quite a few jobs from that area we are going to anyways, so I need as many people as possible to go there and investigate".

Meanwhile, Zane finally reached the train station, only to see the train had already left and Cold Steel about to chase after it. Cold Steel was already away, so he used some boost magic on himself to make him lighter, and then used his fire magic to propel him like a rocket towards the train, the guildmembers, and the mountain. He quickly caught up to Cold Steel, but the train was another thing entirely. It was actually still getting faster!

Zane looked at Cold Steel with a half smile. "Well, guess we are teaming up again. At least Mavis wont have to worry about us breaking anything and having the guild get billed for it. I can't even remember the last time we teamed up anyways, but I am sure it happened at least once".

That was when Zane noticed something. And then, moving so fast it might have looked like teleportation, Zane wrapped his arms around Cold Steel and seemingly held on for dear life. It was because the train, and as a result them as well, had gone over a bridge that went over a giant lake. "Don't let go. Don't let go. Don't look down. Don't look down. You won't fall and drown. You won't fall and drown. Oh please, why cant we get over this any faster!?"

Zane couldn't swim. Well, sort of. Hot springs, ponds, small streams, he was fine with. But for some reason, anything remotely big, and he didn't swim or even float. He just sank to the very bottom. Not many people knew this, but a few of the more experienced guildmembers, mainly ones that have gone on missions with him or knew the truth about him, knew this as well. And as a result, he gained a deep fear of drowning.

"Please go faster..." he said, still panicked.

Meanwhile, Mavis also ensured Slick knew about the future potential damages. Mainly the mountain, since she was worried they might actually get billed for it.

Slick

Slick nodded slightly as he listened to Mary, ever modest about her contributions. Though that said, it seemed that with Pommel almost everything spurred her on. Words of encouragement gave her the strength to pick herself back up, while insults and derision fired up her competitive side. An admirable quality, to say the least.

Steadily making the most of the good food, Mary’s response to his next inquiry was about what he expected. She tended to want the best for everyone, though he couldn’t help but smirk at the last part. Truly, the games that Pommel played to get her noticed by Wynter were one of Slick’s most enjoyable things to watch. Why, that one time he’d made a point to try and introduce the tiny chef to Wynter she’d managed to hide herself by fleeing through the trash chute, and the earful he’d gotten from her afterwards still brought a smile to his face.

"Did you come over here only to swipe some baked goods while she isn't looking? Not very subtle of you, Slick." Magpie probed, seeming just a bit skeptical of the man beside her. Slick provided his best hurt expression.

“Miss Whitelock, you wound me so! Why, I merely wished to enjoy the company of a charming young lady.” Extravagantly exaggerating, he chuckled a bit, straightening up his posture and winking behind his glasses. “Alright, you caught me; Pommel’s none too fond of me, even though I like the princess about as much as her cooking. That is to say: a lot.” Helping himself to another cookie, he stopped before taking a bite, giving Mary another of his amused expressions.

“Although, you’ll never know if that’s what I want you to think. The best way to make something subtle is to make something else obvious.” Slick replied cryptically, turning back to watch the rest of the scene about the guild unfold. After all, he’d meant exactly what he’d said about Magpie. A soft nudge in his side drew his attention back to the noticeboard, watching Mel flounder about with Vernon. Ah, how he envied the comradery he’d grown with Pommel.

"Hm? Oh-! ...Is she taking a job?” Mary inquired, Slick nodding as he noted the papers she collected, turning to meet Mary’s eyes as she looked to him in bewilderment. Of course, he felt much the same, but his sunglasses and expression didn’t really show it. In 2 whole years, Pommel hadn’t taken a single job – Not that he blamed her when the pickings for B-ranks consisted of rescuing stray cats and taking old folks out for the day. As the cherry haired energy ball trotted off out of the guild, Mary followed with another query.

“Looks that way. Well, I’ll be damned.” Slick replied. Adjusting his glasses slightly, he shrugged a bit, before placing an arm around Mary jovially. “Seems like our little girl’s all grown up, eh? Hopefully we’ve taught her all she needs to be successful.” Giving Mary a playful jostling, Slick reached under the bar, pulling out a couple of beverages. Normally the celebration would be saved for after she was successful, but hey, this was still progress worth remembering! Setting them down, he was stopped from doing much more than filling them as a new commotion started, everyone eying up the newcomer to the guild hall. Slick couldn’t help but whistle, eying over the bod of what could end up being the newest babe of Fairy Tail. Heh, Crez’d be kicking himself for missing this one; she looked damn fine in that racy black and red ensemble. Hopefully their eccentric master didn’t end up chasing off another potential with her boisterousness.

If it wasn’t for the fact he was in the company of another lady, Slick would have probably mouthed off a bit or made his way over. After all, with his analysis eyes he was quite readily able to see just how fine a woman that was with measurements like that! Still, he’d keep his composure, idly staring no more so than any of the other members of the guild before returning to what he was doing, looking back down to his glass of beer.

"Mm!" Was the soft utterance from his partner, drawing out another smirk from Slick. Magpie was really cute when she wanted to be, and he couldn’t help but eye her excited expression as she danced a little on her seat and pointed across the room, though with her spare hand she was groping around the bar. He took a moment to appreciate that, before subtly moving to slide the drink he’d poured her into her grasp as he turned to see what the commotion was. Briefly, he caught the tail end of a blue ponytail flying through the doorway, with the Z-meister not far behind.

"Looks like our Mel may get her wish, after all!" Mary exclaimed, the joy in her voice readily apparent. Slick was a little more skeptical, getting up off his seat. “Maybe, but something’s not right if her and Zane are in that much of a hurry…” He moved forward slightly before stopping, eying Mavis’ conversation with the newcomer. With the aid of analysis eyes, he was able to read their lips, and quickly pieced together the information in his mind. Still, this was Cold Steel and Z they were talking about. Even if they could be reckless, there weren’t many more people in the guild that he’d trust to bring Pommel back safely.

Slowly, he took his seat again, looking over to Mary. “Well, I don’t think we need to worry too much. Those two are dependable at this sort of thing at the very least.” He wasn’t sure if Magpie would’ve pieced it all together, but he made the assumption that she was pretty switched on as well. Sliding his hands into his pockets, he felt the soft parchment of paper, and remembered one of the other reasons he’d headed over here. Rubbing it between his fingers, it amazed him how even after all these years; there was that nervous feeling in situations like this.

“And speaking of two, I was wonderin-“

“Oh Mr. Slick!” The young man was cut off by the sing-song voice of Mavis, who made her way over to the two of them. “Sorry to interrupt, but with what’s happening at the moment, would you be able to prepare a budget? Just in case Zane and Wynter get a little too excited.” She smiled sweetly, cocking her head. Slick stopped to look at Magpie, then back to Mavis a moment before shrugging. “Yeah... Sure. In fact, I’ve probably got something already prepared that can be re-purposed.”

Mavis nodded, thanking Slick before trotting off back to do… Well, whatever it was Mavis did normally. Still holding the paper in his pocket, Slick relaxed his grip on it, reaching instead to take another swig of his drink. Well, maybe he’d take that as a sign. He’d ask Magpie to join him on a mission another time.

---

Pommel Grade

“Now, let’s see here…” Pommel stated aloud, pulling out the map of the area she’d packed in her backpack, eying over the upcoming landscape and comparing it to the information in the flier. They were heading uphill into the northern areas, which she’d planned for. After all, it was almost always snowing in the villages near the mountains, and she’d be foolish not to have brought something to bundle up appropriately. The train was planned to stop off in the town of Eloria, a smallish place with roots in mining and the like. From there, she’d need to rent a snowmobile to be able to trek anywhere up the mountain at a reasonable pace. Between the harsh slopes, frigid blizzards and apparently, frequent avalanches, it wasn’t the kind of place to go about on foot. Briefly, she imagined that dork Zane getting buried, but quickly moved past that as the thoughts of her own morbid demise crossed her mind. Best not to jinx herself.

“So the flyer says to come back to the Mayor’s office once the monster problem has been dealt with and report for payment of...-!?!” Pommel’s heart skipped a beat, and her face flushed.

“1,000,000 Jewel?!” She exclaimed in alarm, her hands trembling. T-that was almost one… two… carry the 8… Uh… Geez, she was bad at math… Anyway, a lot times bigger than her wage working the kitchen! She squinted a bit, triple checking the information. Yep, 1,000,000… She didn’t even know how to spend that much money! How could a simple mission like this earn her that much money?! Was wizarding always this lucrative? There had to be a reason…

Moving to read further into the job, a sudden gust of wind ripped the flyer from Pommel’s hand, flying out the train’s window as the cold climate began filtering it’s way in. “Aw, shoot!” Pommel mumbled, poking her head out the side of the window before instantly regretting it as her arms became covered in goosebumps. It wasn’t like she needed the paper to collect the reward or anything, but still…

Sitting back down and shutting the window, she took a moment to unpack her bag and begin rugging up, getting on her winter parka and long scarf, as well as some other extra layers. She’d keep her hands free for her magic, but otherwise she’d be pretty well shielded from the weather. From there, the announcement that they’d be arriving at Eloria Station by Mt. Oldstone caught her attention, and she trotted off to disembark. Thankfully, there was only a light snow at this point.

Trudging down the village path, it didn’t take her long to find and rent the magic snowmobile, getting the magic Self-Energy (SE) plug attached around her wrist. It’d drain a little magic, but the convenience of not needing any real fuel was a big boon, and kept the cost down. The owner had been pretty persistent in warning the girl of the dangers of the mountain, but Pommel could not be swayed. When she made known she was a Fairy Tail wizard, that seemed to relax the gentleman, and he wished her luck and bid her farewell, letting the girl make tracks up the mountain.

At first, everything seemed fine. It was windy and bitterly cold, but there wasn’t really that much danger. In fact, if it wasn’t for the mission, she might have just enjoyed this as a daytrip. Keeping her eyes peeled for any kind of monster, Pommel didn’t notice the rock until far too late. With a crash, she was sent flying face first into the snow, the cable attaching her to the snowmobile snapping with the force of her impact. Groaning she sat up, shivering and rubbing her face a bit. Well great, now she was stuck up here.

“S-s-stupid mountain…!” Pommel grumbled, taking a step back towards where she’d collided her snowmobile, before stopping. Clearly, it wasn't going anywhere. Hesitating a moment, she turned around, and began hiking further up the mountain. She wasn't going to give up because of something stupid like this! "W-wish I was at least inside though..." She mumbled, rubbing her arms some more as the wind picked up. Then, with a sudden yelp, she was gone, leaving nothing but a smashed snowmobile where she’d been.

Screaming in fear and panic, Pommel rocketed down the shaft she’d broken into, sliding down the icy tunnel until it unceremoniously threw her out into another snow pile, this time in even less flattering a pose than after her crash. It seemed she’d been unfortunate enough to have stumbled upon the interconnected tunnels of the mountain where the mining town had made its start, though nowadays they were labyrinthine and dilapidated, as well as home to numerous monsters like Vulcans. Not that our wee wizard adventurer was aware of that.

“Great, just great…” She grumbled, once again blaming the misfortune that this day seemed to be bringing her. Why could nothing go smoothly for her? It was like she was cursed or something! Dusting off the snow from her outfit, she sighed, glancing about the tunnel. “At least there’s light here. About the only thing that could be worse would be a monster getting the jump on me…”

Moments later, a monster got the jump on Pommel.

"Just because others are strong doesn't mean your weak. Everyone is strong in their own way at least. And I can tell just from looking at you, one day, possibly one day soon, it might even be tomorrow, you are going to save a lot of people's lives". Emerald looked down at Zane's words, while it was nice that someone had confidence in her, she still doubted herself and would likely continue to do so until she actually did something to bolster her confidence.

Wynter took that moment to place down some food in front of her, Emerald barely had time to mutter out a thanks to Wynter for the baked goods before the woman was out of the door after the red-haired girl. She stared after her for a few moments before Zane spoke to her again. "Well, I better go help. It IS my job, after all. That said, don't think your slacking just because I am so young but an S-Class".

The last part was whispered into her ear. "I am actually an emotionally scarred 44 year old. Trust me, people can overcome anything with enough willpower, and I bet you have a lot of it". This statement left her staring at Zane for a minute as she wondered if it was really true. Still, if that was what he said his age was, she'd believe him for now.

With the newcomer running out after the red-haired girl, Wynter and Zane, Emerald turned back to face Riku. "I wonder if something interesting is happening, what do you think?" Even for the short amount of time she had been in the guild, she noticed that something was nearly always happening, still, this was the most activity she had seen at once for a while.



For the Kitsune twins, the day dawned bright and early. They had gotten home from their escort job late the night before, barely making to their house and collapsing into bed. Gabriel was awoken by the sound of Azrael falling out of his bed with a loud thud and complaints muffled by the covers he had gotten himself tangled in. This was nothing new, even asleep the silver-haired twin couldn't stay still.

With a stretch, Gabriel slipped out from his bed, going to the room across the hall to free his brother from his quilted confinement. "Thanks Gabby." Azrael smirked at his black-haired brother, ignoring the fact that he looked a mess from his wrestling.

Sighing a little at Azrael's antics, Gabriel waved him off. "Just get ready, we should probably report back to master Mavis."

An hour later saw them clean, dressed and fed. Leaving their home they started the trip to the other side of Magnolia where the guild hall was located. Turning down a street that led them past the train station, the pair saw a red-haired girl practically fly into the station. "Was that Pommel?

"Sure looked like it Gabby, not seen her outside of the guild hall before unless she was on the way there or home. Did she finally decide to take a job? Gabriel's response to his brother was to shrug and the pair carried on.

Wynter came running past them a few minutes later, closely followed by Zane. It appeared they were both heading to the station as well. Frowning a little, Gabriel turned to his twin. "Should we? Seems like it could be important."

Azrael shook his head. "Seems like they have it well in hand, you know how strong those two are. I'm sure it'll be fine." He gestured back towards the station where Cold Steel and Zane had just entered.

The rest of their trip to Fairy Tail went with little else happening, and after seeing an unfamiliar girl take to the skies on a winged horse, the pair entered the guild hall. Almost immediately they went over to where they saw Mavis, Gabriel quickly reporting their successful job while Azrael fidgeted in the background, clearly wanting to be doing something else. The black haired twin chuckled softly at their guild master's joy seeing as they hadn't needed to destroy anything with their mission, it was only a simple escort after all.

With that done, the pair headed over to Riku and dropped a small bag of sweets in front of the boy. The blue-haired teen had grown on them quickly during their stay in the guild, though with the twins being out on jobs a lot they didn't get the chance to see him much.

"Enjoy~" The pair knew that Riku was fond of sugary things, so when given the chance to, they would spoil the kid with sweets that they'd pick up while they were on their jobs, though sometimes they would bring back painting supplies instead if they came across any.

Their gift delivered, they politely nodded to Emerald, waved to Riku and headed over to the request board. Azrael and Gabriel might not be going on another job straight away, but it wouldn't hurt to see what sort of jobs had come in during their absence.

Slick

Finishing up another swig of his drink, Slick turned back towards Mary, wiping his mouth of the remaining foam. After catching sight of her stripping down, he quickly turned back to his drink, sculling down the rest. Hot damn he would never get used to her doing that! He knew the Mother Bird of the guild didn’t like the heat, but seeing her so confidently flaunt her body still caused him to falter. The gentleman in him declared it rude to stare, but the hot-blooded young male debated otherwise in his mind. Instead, he settled on a compromise, peering to the side of his glasses at Magpie while still tipping up the rest of his drink. For a moment, she seemed to want to question what he’d been talking about, but it was about then that Carson seemed to get his bearings. Slick watched the restraint slowly drain from his guild mate, and chuckled a bit, letting Magpie handle the babysitting. After all, she seemed to enjoy that sort of thing.

"Reverse!" Slick watched Mary wince from the feedback of her magic, striding over to stop the commotion between the boys. Like diligent charges, both moved to her side to receive their discipline, Slick openly laughing aloud as he slapped his leg. Man, he’d never get sick of the atmosphere at his guild. Gesturing to Mary as she returned, Slick winked. “Remind me to avoid you next promotional trial; I dunno if I’d be able to take you Mags.” Chuckling some more, he turned as a familiar voice rang out over the guild hall.

"Well you all seem as lively as when I left you!" The declaration came from by the entrance, Warren standing proudly and grinning like a fool. Slick was quick to wave him down, shouting across the hall.

“Yo, Warren, back so soon? Or did you hear about the new birdy we just got?” Slick sat up and headed to meet the fellow, giving him a firm cross between a high-five and a handshake. Even for the kid that he was, the two had some mutual ground in their appreciation of the ladies, and had at least a general sense of friendly comradery. Using his grip to pull Warren in close, Slick whispered a few choice words about the bust-waist-hip measurements of the Celestial Spirit Mage before they broke, striding back over to the bar in order for Warren to tell his tales to Mary and himself.

When he was done, Slick chuckled some, sitting up. “Well, speaking of jobs, I better earn my keep and get to training. I ain’t being outdone this year.” Placing a fist to his palm, he was of course referring to the promotional examination to become an S-ranked wizard at the guild. First had been Wynter, then Zane, Warren and Jazz last year. Four years running he’d missed his chance, but if his competition was going to be the twins, Mags and Carson, he didn’t feel he had too much to worry about. Assuming Crez wasn’t interested in the trial, he had his partner all set. He just needed one more shot. Briefly, he contemplated the new guild member before shaking his head. Celestial Spirit Mages were a bit of a joke compared to real mages. She wouldn't be any trouble.

“So unless you two will miss me, I better get going.” Taking the job from his pocket, Slick unfurled it, giving it another double check on what was going to be required of him…

Zane felt a lot better once they were not over water. "Thanks for that. And sorry, it just...it doesn't help when you literally sink in water". Which is what always happened with Zane. He doesn't float, he sinks. But as Wynter went off on her own, Zane had his own adventure. Of course, little did any of them know, they were being watched by those with ill intentions.

"I thought you said only one target was coming to the mountain?" "The arrival of those two were unexpected, but only one of them is an actual threat. I would be more concerned with the one that has yet to arrive". A celestial wizard stepped up. "I will handle that one". "Then we will handle those on the mountain. We will let the monsters wear them out, then finish them off".

"Just remember, kill the red haired boy first. Our Dark Master commands it".

Meanwhile, Zane had elected to use fire magic to propel himself through the mountain, since it was full of snow and what not, and noticed that all of a sudden, a freak blizzard showed up. Luckily for him, he had great eyesight and other senses, so this was nothing to him. By the time he made it up, he saw both Pommel and Wynter....as well as a Snow Golem about to eat Pommel without anyone seeing it!

"Fire Dragon Iron Fist!" Zane yelled, managing to smash...and melt....the golem seconds before it could eat Pommel. But that was not the only thing. Biting down on Zane's arm was a Hemeculous. Had Zane been a second slower, and it would have been at its original target, Pommel's neck. There was a reason this was S-Class after all. Each and every monster here could kill you in a second if you were not careful or powerful enough.

Zane threw the creature away, before looking back at Pommel. "What do you think you are doing, going on an S-Class mission when you are not S-Class like me or Wynter! You could have..." Zane punched another monster that tried to attack him from behind, without even looking at it. "....gotten seriously hurt or something! And then I would have been blamed since this was my job! That's kinda a jerk thing to do, steal someone's...." Zane swept the legs of another monster behind him, before hitting him with a Fire Dragon Iron Fist and sending the monster flying. "...job like that!".

Suddenly, a large snow creature burst out of the snow and went in for an attack, but Zane turned around and gave it a stare with an annoyed look. "Do you mind? I am trying to have a conversation here". The snow monster just blinked, and then went in for the kill, so Zane launched a massive fire attack and demolished the damn thing. "I told you to wait! Jeesh, monsters can be so rude. So, where was I? Oh yeah, you shouldn't steal from others, especially jobs! Its wrong!"

With that, he looked back towards Wynter. "Well, since we are both here, we should be perfectly capable of both protecting Pommel and clearing the mountain. What do you think? Or should we bring her back first?"

Little did anyone know, a group of Dark Wizards were planning to strike them all down, using a variety of rare and dark magic.

Pommel Grade

Dark. Slimy. Gross! Pommel would have screamed, if not for the fact that she was worried about getting this-this thing’s spit in her mouth! Flailing about, she couldn’t get enough traction to make a decent cut as the tongue began wrapping around and pinning her by the waist, attempting to drag her deeper into the pit of its belly. Reaching her arms out, Pommel attempted to grab hold of something, anything to save her. ”Please, someone…!”

Suddenly, there was light, the slimy insides parting way and tearing at the seams as they were sliced to ribbons, yet none of the slices strayed too close to Pommel, eventually leaving her unscathed as a hand reached to her, taking hold just above her hips and pulling her up and free of the now limp tongue. Shaking the gunk from her hair and eyes, she was met with the face of her idol, her brow and mouth intensely firm, but her eyes reflecting the worry hidden behind it all.

"And who said you were useless?" Her saviour spoke. Pommel stared back to Wynter, whose expression had changed slightly. Gone was the fierce warrior, replaced instead by a silent determination and knowing wisdom. Slowly, Wynter released Pommel, letting her ease onto her feet before turning back to face the monsters, striding forward a few paces before stopping, her back to the young mage. As the light of her magic faded, returning a number of her weapons from whence they came, the few sparkles remaining silhouetted Cold Steel, forever burning the memory into Pommel’s mind.

"We all have our starting points. We can't expect to be great just from the start.” Cold Steel spoke, a moment of clarity and peace amongst the chaos of the battle. Time seemed to hang a moment as Pommel continued to stare at her back, mesmerised in thought, before just like that, she darted forward, launching back into combat with some more monsters. All the while, Pommel sat, watching the fight. But somehow, it was different from before. Like she was seeing it in a completely different light. As the last of the beasts near them fell, Wynter rested her spear to the ground, a soft and far gentler smile crossing her face as she turned to Pommel.

"I think you helped more than you realize. I'm certain Zane couldn't handle this on his own, thus you had brought both yourself and me into this job." Pommel blinked, realising that once again, she was being addressed. Tentatively, she raised a hand to speak, but stopped herself. As kind as Wynter’s words were, Pommel could only see them as an attempt to alleviate the guilt she was feeling. It had never been her intention to have things be like this, and she couldn’t take credit for such an idiotic mistake that she’d made. In some respects, this was worse than a lecture. Here she was, listening to her idol give her pity and sympathy, almost as if she hadn’t earned the right to hear the harsh truths.

Looking to the right, she could see Zane still enjoying himself, tackling monsters with all the strength and valour of a hero. Would she ever be on the level of these people? Could she ever compete with them? Or was she to be doomed to the mediocrity and failure like today had brought her? Looking down to her reflection in the ice, she looked like a mess. Her hair was slimy, dulled and tangled. Her clothes were disheveled and torn. She had minor bruises and cuts all over, and worst of all: It was obvious that she’d been crying. This was what Wynter saw. She wasn’t anything special. She wasn’t strong.

…

…And yet.

…

…Pommel smiled. Smiled to the girl staring back at her in the reflection. Giving her the smile she needed to keep going, replaying the words in her head once more.

"We all have our starting points…

"…We can't expect to be great just from the start.” She finished, getting up and standing tall once more.

She wasn’t great. She was terrible, a horrible mess. But that wasn’t always going to be the case. She could be great. Slowly, steadily, she cleaned the slime from her outfit, looking back up to Wynter with her own determination. She wasn’t as good as Wynter or Zane. But deep down in her heart, she knew she could be. This was going to be her start. And when she finished… Well, maybe she wouldn’t have to force that smile in the reflection.

As her resolve kicked in, it almost seemed as if Wynter could sense it, moving over to Pommel and standing before her. "If you want, I can teach you how to fight, since I notice you use blades on your arms" Wynter had glanced down to the girl briefly, before scanning the room for more threats. When her face returned back to Pommel, she’d be greeted with what was possible the most heart-warming of expressions. Tearful, but this time in joy, Pommel could only stammer in flustered joy, her blades reverting to hands as she fiddled her fingers. “I-Hama-wh-ah…the..buh- they..ahhm..uh-hah-“ Pommel had no way to formulate her words correctly, and instead seemed to be lost in adorable girlish embarrassment. Finally, she managed to take a deep breath, her face completely scarlet as she tightly gripped her hands to stop fidgeting, looking down from Wynter so as not to lose her focus again. Then, through a cracked voice, she finally managed to get enough of sound bite together that it made sense.

“Yes.” She squeaked out, barely audible more than a whisper. For a moment, Pommel hesitated, knowing she needed far more strength than that to truly communicate how she felt. She needed to show her conviction to Wynter. Taking another deep breath, she dived into Wynter, nearly taking her off her feet as she hugged her.

“Yes! Yes! I’d love that!” Pommel was laughing now, her smile from ear to ear as she grinned, teeth bared in genuine happiness. Unfortunately for Wynter, this had the unintended consequence of Pommel getting the slimy Gorgirog juices all over her Masamune armour, but alas, at least Pommel was happy.

*Cra-koom!*

Pommel jumped a bit at the loud noise, turning to spot the source. Tracing the smooshed spider in the wall, and the new figure she didn’t recognise walking away, eventually her eyes landed on the girl a bit across the room. “Huuhh!” As Pommel sharply inhaled, Wynter could feel the trembling from the girl's arms as she blinked, confirming that she was really seeing who she thought she was. T-this couldn’t be possible! It was really her! The celestial wolf herself?! What in the world would she be doing here if-Wait, was she here on her own mission to eradicate the monsters? Pommel sighed in admiration, Wynter temporarily forgotten as she gushed over the new arrival, playing back information from Sorcerer’s Weekly in her head. She was even prettier in person! A heavenly body to match her celestial nature! Oh my gosh was that her bow?! Eeeee! This was so exciting! She was meeting another of her idols in the same day! Gosh, if that dork Zane wasn’t here and she could have Jazz, Candice and Magpie around she’d be in heaven!

Making ga-ga noises, Pommel’s earlier trauma was all but forgotten as she turned to Wynter excitedly, pretending like Rin hadn’t already noticed them and hurriedly trying to fix her hair and outfit. “H-how do I look? Is my hair good? What about my dress?” Baffling Cold Steel with her questions, Pommel eventually got a hold of herself long enough to make her way over to Rin, sparkles once again in her eyes as she asked her question.

“A-are you THE Rin?” She moved in even closer. Surprisingly, she seemed a lot shorter than what Sorcerer’s weekly made her out to be, not much taller than Pommel herself. As Rin barely managed to get out her answer, she grabbed hold of both her hands, pulling them up in front of her.

“Y-you’re amazing! C-can I have an autograph? I-is it true you accepted most eligible bachelorette award from Sorcerer’s weekly?!” Pommel pushed in, barely giving the girl a chance to answer her somewhat pushy questions, as well as completely preventing the girl access to her bow and arrow in her excessive excitement. Eyes catching sight of a glint on her outfit, Pommel continued her barrage of questions. “Oh my gosh, are those the spirit keys?! Was that a spirit just now?! Can I meet one? Wait, were you here for a mission? If it’s to do with the monsters we can all work together!” Barely pausing for breath, and probably intimately invading Rin’s private space, Pommel was so excited she would barely register Rin’s body language, nor her surroundings.

Suddenly, the worst day in the world had become the best day ever.

---

Slick

Slick paused a moment as he felt tender arms wrap around him, along with two bouncy buddies pressed against his chest. Was it warm in here, or was it just him? Doing his best to retain his cool composure (After all, he’d chosen the name ‘Slick’ for a reason), the affectionate hug was just a bit too much for the poor (See: Lucky) guy. Stumbling a bit, he looked away from Magpie, hiding his slight embarrassment as he scratched his head. Hoo-boy, Mary really did know how to push his buttons. Swallowing, he noted Warren’s lecherous and unabashed appreciation of Mary’s – Ahem -‘Derriere’. It was so crass the way that boy acted, but then again, he’d been the same in his youth.

"Have fun, okay?" Magpie added sweetly, reminding Slick of just what it was that she was hugging him for. That was enough to bring his thoughts back into line, as he was heading off on his own. Like usual. “Yeah… Yeah, you too Mags.” Slick stated slowly, before remembering himself. “I mean, with goodbyes like that, I should head out more often, am I right?” Hiding his earlier thoughts behind jovial laughter, he shrugged free of Mary’s grip, heading past the noticeboard and the twins on the way out. “You take care too Warren.” He stated simply with a two fingered wave over his shoulder.

That was supposed to be his goodbye line, but he was briefly stopped by Vernon, the man just done with his lecture from Mavis. With a practiced smoothness that the two had rehearsed a hundred times, Vernon slipped Slick another piece of paper, one of the newest jobs that had come in. “This the latest one?” Slick asked, standing beside the man briefly. “Yeah, the only copies are in my records. They didn’t even reach the board with me around.” Vernon replied, smirking in spite of himself.

Slick nodded, patting him on the shoulder. “I owe you one pal.” He stated simply, continuing on the way past. Without a moment’s hesitation, he tossed the job into the lit fireplace, letting it go up in flames. Some secrets were better left buried. With that taken care of, Slick needed to head down to the station, his job just out past Eloria. Seemed some archaeologists had discovered a set of trapped ruins with a rare artifact hidden deep inside. In this case, they needed a wizard to navigate the dungeon and recover the treasure. With his perception and grace, it was the perfect opportunity for an easy job, as avoiding or disarming the dangers of the temple should be easy for him.

Unlike a certain princess, Slick was not so lucky as to catch the train immediately, instead taking a seat on one of the benches to wait for the next train. Adjusting his cuffs and glancing about to see if anyone was around, he pulled out a small coin, and began running it through his fingers as he waited.

Zane was smashing a few more monsters when Wynter's comment finally registered. He just finished off several Frost Giants. "What do you mean? I could totally handle this, though I admit it is more fun with friends, I could have easily taken this mountain. Issue is, I can't employ my most powerful spells with allies in the area".

Suddenly, Rin the Celestial Wolf arrived. "I see our newest member is here! Welcome! Let me guess, Mavis sent you to try and have us avoid damages to the mountain? Seriously, even if we break it, will someone really charge us for a mountain?"

However, all other words drained from him as he sensed something nearby. Something....dark. His expression could be seen by all, but only one other person here would truly understood what made him feel this way, because this one other person was the only one to truly experience the horrors of a Dark Guild. Ironically enough, it was Pommel who might understand this feeling best, and she too might be able to sense the darkness in the air around them. But Zane didn't just sense it, he recognized it fully...

He immediately looked towards Wynter. "GET THEM OFF THIS MOUNTAIN NOW WYNTER! DON'T ARGUE, JUST GO, BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE!" he shouted, his expression becoming that of half anger and half fear. As he yelled that, he turned around and created a barrier just in time to stop a giant purple arrow of dark magic from hitting them all. However, it began breaking through the barrier, so Zane used it to deflect the shot just enough to allow him to dive out of the way and spare the others. Where it hit, a massive explosion occurred.

However, Zane was not done. Suddenly, he appeared next to Pommel and Wynter. In his back was a crystal shard that would have hit Wynter's head at a high speed, and in his hand, a second one meant for Pommel. His boddy erupted in fire to melt the shard and heal the wound using Primal Fire Regeneration, as he turned around to face their attacker. It was a child however, she looked to be just as old as Zane, wearing a black cloak with the symbol for the Shadow King's Dark Guild. Zane recognized her immediately, she had not aged a day in 34 years either. She was Morven's apprentice, Timal.

"Awww, look who it is. Just as energetic as ever, silly. Oh, and you got faster too since last we met! This is going to be fun!" Timal shouted with excitement.

By now, the others would have noticed Zane's complete and total change, from the silly, fun, happy person he usually is, to someone who is angry, enraged, upset, and overfilled with the desire for vengence. "Timal, you bitch! Where is that bastard Morven?! He can't hide from me forever!"

"Oh come now Zaney, that isn't how you should talk to your elder's. I am still a decade or two older then you". She didn't look a decade or two older, so the fact she was in fact a lot older then she looked much like Mavis should be easy to figure out. "Anyways, I wanted to play alone, but you know Morven. Always likes to be safe, so he sent some playmates with me!"

Suddenly, several Dark Wizards appeared from nowhere and surrounded them. Some only had average magical power, but others....they had a lot more. One of them looked at Rin with a ghostly face though. He stared creepily right into her face. "That's....that's not possible. I killed you! The boss told me to kill The Celestial Wizard Miyuzaki, before she became a threat, and I did! How the fuck are you still alive and younger?! The boss was very clear, lure you out so you were alone, and then kill you close up!"

Timal looked at him like he was an idiot. "She is probably Sakura Miyuzaki's daughter, you dolt. Great, thanks for shouting that to the world. Well, I guess we are here to kill them anyways, so it doesn't matter much".

"Does that guy have brain damage?" Zane asked curiously.

"Sorta. He was trapped in a similar prison to yours for over twenty years. To be honest, Morven completely forgot about him, and just decided to make him a tool due to the fact he survived and he has a high amount of magical power naturally...WAIT, why am I telling you all this!" Timal said, then casting a spell. "Lighting Destruction Magic Seventy Two Blades!"

The one near Rin took out two Red Keys, much like her Celestial Keys, though it was clear they were forged in a completely different manner and via dark arcanic ways. "Demonic Key! Gate of the Death Serpent, Basalisk! Open!" "Demonic Key! Gate of the Hell Hound, Cerberus! Open!"

Meanwhile, a few other took out Black Keys. As the giant Death Serpent and the three headed Hell Hound came up, several other weaker demons came up. Normal Hell Hounds were summoned, as well as a few other dangerous creatures. Meanwhile, Timal smiled. Suddenly, she had her hand right in front of Wynter's face, another aimed at Zane. "If I recall, Sorcerer weekly once named the Team of Burning Heart (Note: This is the first time Zane has been called by his true and most popularly known nickname in front of Rin and Pommel) and Cold Steel Team Dragonsteel, according to a poll by fans. Zane and Wynter, I think its time for this team to be disbanded...permanently. Explosive Palm!" Suddenly, explosions erupted from her hands right at both of them at a speed that couldn't be calculated.

As Timal then returned to her post on the cliff, Zane had moved above her and got a clean shot. Creating a giant molten fireball in his hand, he used one of his most destructive and powerful spells, despite others being nearby. "Primal Fire Dragon Meteor Smash!" he shouted as he hurled the fireball right into Timal. As he landed, he then used another powerful spell. He drew a circle of fire in front of him. "Circle of Flame! Resolute Destruction!" he shouted as he slammed his palms together and then pushed outward. As a result, several streams of fire shot out from the circle, attacking as many Dark Wizards and Demon Spirits as he could, as well as aiming quite a few at Timal. Those who tried to jump or block it would find that they could turn and track enemies, and navigate around blocks and shield spells. Additionally, once they impacted with their target, they exploded violently.

However, none of them were taken out by the spell, particularly Timal, who seemed to have focused on Zane. Likewise, Zane had focused on her. This was not going to be an easy fight.

---

---

Wynter watched Pommel's expressions, as she didn't intend to imply she pitied the girl, Wynter saw a great potential in the little girl named Pommel. Just because she wasn't as strong didn't mean she was weak in the mind of Cold Steel, whom easily was in that situation, though while Pommel didn't get a thorough tongue lashing, yet, Wynter was given a good one by both of her parents. Yet she was drawn off her thoughts by another ally, 'Rin Miyazuki, a strong Celestial gate key caster, along with a very good archer with the Celestial Bow. That's good-' As Wynter thought, something drew her attention away, and quickly, a presence of Dark energy around her, it seemed that Zane noticed it too, as he shouted to Wynter,

"GET THEM OFF THIS MOUNTAIN NOW WYNTER! DON'T ARGUE, JUST GO, BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE!"

As his words echoed around in the cave, the idea of escape was quickly dashed, once from the dark guild members having surrounded them, and second, because Wynter's dealt with this type of battle before, and knew she wouldn't and couldn't run. As Zane moved around attacking and blocking for his allies, even taking a hit for her, it annoyed the knight as she was often the one doing that, though the other small girl cast a spell against her and the others by her, "Move!" she yelled pushing Pommel aside, before taking a god brunt of the spell, though did evade some bit. The battle was going south fast, yet, Wynter took a gentle breath and soon her spear went back to her Requip pocket, as soon it was replaced by an unknown weapon, as she held it, she turned to the Dark Guildsmen, and her words were harsh, and intimidating as she displayed fair extennt of her magical power, though not all of it, "I am Wynter Vellant, otherwise known as Cold Steel. I suggest- No. I order that you surrender immediately or I will cut you down. This will be your only warning. For if my demands are not met, you can gauge what happens then." After those words finished echoing, she spoke once more, "You will have ten seconds. Starting now." as those words continued to echo, Wynter counted in her head, slowly reaching to ten, spreading several airspace bubbles around, since they're invisible, it'd be best to keep a counter-insurgence plan ready.

The ten seconds were up. Wynter walked forward, her face just as cold as ever, "Time's up." before those words could even hang in the air, the orbs that has surrounded her allies and intermixed with the dark mages, had exploded, while Wynter went to a weaker enemy quickly finishing him off, incapacitating him, and soon, the knight known as "Cold Steel" had started picking off a few in the enemy ranks, though she stopped, turning to one, her eyes meeting another woman, she felt a strange power from this woman, as she raised the hidden weapon, preparing for an attack on her as well.

---

---

It was cold up on the mountain, made colder still by Zena's lack of proper attire. A crop top on her flat chest and poofy shorts covering her wide hips were hardly what one would typically choose to wear in the snow, but it was all she had at present since a vulcan had gotten lucky enough to tear her cloak before she could eat it (the vulcan, not the cloak). She kept the shreds of the garment tied around her neck, but it barely fell to her elbows, unable to serve the purpose she'd brought it for. She sighed as the wind picked up once more, leaning down to brush frost off her thigh-high boots. At least these could keep her legs dry.

She'd come to the mountain like a lion following a herd of buffalo, drawn by the scent of prey and the hunger in the pit of her stomach. It had been six months since she'd left her last guild, and without hunt jobs to point her in definitive directions she'd been having a hard time keeping her hunger in check. When she'd heard rumors of the monstrous population boom in this region, it had been like a sign from god, made only stronger by the scent of magic which seemed to rise up from the very ground. It was this same scent she was following now; it had gotten stronger in the past few minutes, and even though she had no intent of attacking any wizards it still left her curious.

She stepped lightly along the mountain side, stopping occasionally to regain her bearings in the freezing cold. She felt she was on the right track, the smell of magic growing thicker as she walked, and she quickened her pace, eager to see where it might be coming from. And then she fell in a hole.

One of the damned abandoned mining tunnels which pockmarked the mountain, no doubt. She'd ventured into their labyrinthine depths a few times already in pursuit of her quarry, but it was always annoying when she found herself thrust into one by virtue of poor visibility and unfortunate placement under the snow. She sat up and rubbed the back of her head, cursing her failure of observation, then rose her cross-pupiled eyes to gaze around the tunnel. It didn't look like anyone had been in this section, but as she sat there she could hear the sounds of distant explosions echoing along the passage. She cast a look back up the hole she'd fallen through, then turned and started walking, curiosity getting the better of her.

This tunnel she was in now wasn't particularly long; Zena imagined it was some sort of side passage constructed in the event of a cave-in. She began to notice signs of others coming through as she entered into a conjoining tunnel, and the sounds coming from the end became sharper. She recognized them as the sounds of combat, and the lights coming off the spells illuminated figures standing with their backs to her. She approached casually and began stepping past them, curious about what they were watching, or... perhaps just eager to place a face to the swirling cumulus of magical scents which filled her predatory nostrils.

Before she could, however, she found herself momentarily stunned by some kind of previously invisible explosion. Caught off her guard she had no alternative but to take the bulk of the blast, sending her body crashing against the tunnel wall. Her ears rang from the force of her contact with the cold stone, and she blinked a few times to clear the blur from her vision. She placed a hand on the wall to steady herself as she got to her feet, trying to regain her senses as she heard the sounds of fire and ringing steel fly around the area.

"This is why you don't go wandering after random magic, dumbass," her thoughts spoke in the voice of her father. She'd been careless and wandered into a fight she had no part in, and apparently the only recourse was to shame herself using the voice of a dead man. Terrific.

She forced her eyes to focus on what was in front of her, and when they did they settled on a blue haired warrior just a couple of paces away.

Pommel Grade

Pommel was stunned. Amazing… Really, really amazing! She couldn’t even remember some of her questions, yet here Rin was responding to them with cool confidence! Truly, her reputation was well deserved. Pommel couldn’t help but beam back at the pleasant and patient look Rin was giving her. Wait. WAIT. Hold up. Did she just say she was here for the three of them? She was part of the rescue mission too? But… Why? Wasn’t she a solo wizard? That didn’t make sense…

Pommel pondered on this thought some more, hearing the shouts of Zane over her shoulder. Newest member?! The celestial wolf was joining Fairy Tail? Pommel could hardly contain her bursting excitement, instead finding herself bobbing up and down slightly in enthusiasm. Oh wow. This really was the best day ever! Cold Steel and the Celestial Wolf were here! With her! They’d get along great and train her and she’d soon enough be her own great Wizard! And yet… Pommel frowned, getting a sickly feeling in the back of her throat. Something didn’t feel right… Like, something rank was in the air. This was weird, since this was possibly one of the greatest moments in her life…

Unable to place why she suddenly felt so sickly, Zane’s sudden shout of alarm and what she could only place as fear startled Pommel, and briefly, her mind flashed back elsewhere. Frozen on the spot, she watched as the situation unfolded into an ambush, and amidst the shouts, fighting and confusion she was fairly certain she was saved several times between all three of her protectors. At the climax of it all, she found herself taking cover on the floor behind a rock, finally able to take stock of the situation.

First of all, Rin seemed locked into a duel with the malevolent key bearer of the opposing guild. As the Dark Guild wizard summoned forth two ferocious beasts, the celestial wolf didn’t bat an eyelid, instead flashing her own cocky smirk. She was as confident and cool in person as in the articles! With a simple gesture, she summoned forth one of her spirits, the sheep. She was so cute! Eying up the battle, Pommel was swooning over the intelligence and skill of the master key wielder, quickly disabling one of the enemy spirits with barely any effort. “Yeah, you do it Rin!” She cheered excitedly from her position behind a rock, pumping a fist into the air. This was probably far louder than she should’ve been considering she was attempting to take cover, but her excitement could not be quelled.

Next up, she looked towards Wynter, locked in a showdown with the vast majority of the Dark Guild grunts. For a moment, her words echoed out through the cavern, commanding the authority of all those listening to her. Ooo, she was so intimidating! How could these idiots not just throw down their arms immediately hearing that? Still, as the countdown happened, the Dark Wizards waited, seemingly testing Cold Steel’s threat. Pommel smirked. A bad move on their part. In seconds, the battle erupted into its second stage, Wynter flashing about the battlefield and cutting down the now scattered ranks of the enemy as ripples of energy burst all around them. So cool! This was so much more exciting than hearing stories back home!

Finally, there was Zane. Or rather, Burning Heart. Pommel was only just now coming to terms with just who Zane was, and in all honesty, who could blame her for not knowing that one of the powerful heroes heralded at Fairy Tail was - as far as she knew - just a kid? Ripples of flame coursing around him, he became locked in intense combat with the girl known as Timal, who also seemed equally powerful. Though Pommel wasn’t entirely following in on their conversation, it was clear there was already some history between the two. As the flickers of fire screamed out from Zane, impacting foes all across the cave, Pommel began to question whether she even needed to get involved. Between Zane, Rin, and Wynter, there was far more talent in the room for even 3 Dark Guilds to handle. This one little convent didn’t stand a chance!

Grinning like an idiot, Pommel didn’t notice the arm dart out to grab her, wrenching her wrist around her back. “Hah! Got the lass! All we have to do is threaten this one and those weaklings will have to surrender!” Came the booming voice holding her, along with the laughter of the other guild members that had gotten the jump on her. This was bad! If things continued this way, she’d not only be a burden to the others, but might even be the reason they lost here and now! She couldn’t let that happen! She would not let her family lose!

Wrenching Pommel up from the ground, the man began roughly jerking her upright. “Now come along quietly missy, or else we’ll have to-…”

“Free-Form…” Pommel whispered, barely audible.

“Huh?” The dark guild member paused, trying to understand what she was saying.

“Blade!” With a streak of light, her arm quickly shifted form, immediately cutting into the arm of the man holding her, allowing Pommel to break free as he cried out in alarm and pain, stumbling back. “Grab her you idiots!” He cried out to his companions, pointing as Pommel darted back, glancing around her surroundings as she made room backing up from the villains. There were actually a few tunnels leading out of this main cave, along with some mine cart tracks… Stuff she could work with if she got the opportunity.

The first guy ran at her, a large staff in hand as he came in with a heavy downward swing. Slipping to the side of it, Pommel was quickly surrounded on the other side by another enemy, a massive gauntlet swinging in to punch her as she lacked the time and room to maneuver away.

“Free-Form: Shield!” Was the panicked cry from the little wizard, as from her shoulder to her hand, Pommel’s left side of her body quickly changed into a solid tower-shield. As the punch came in, the force was too much for her to take, and instead she found herself slipping down on the ice. What this actually ended up causing was a deflection of the man’s fist, carrying it straight over Pommel and into her other adversary, knocking him for a loop. Now on her back, hiding under her shield, Pommel barely caught sight of the third man running at her, brandishing a huge club. As he closed in, he quickly launched into a jumping strike, intending to put his weight into the blow. Even her shield wasn’t that good!

“Free-Form: Cannon!” Shifting her arms around, both transformed into twin arm cannons, aimed up to blast the man from the sky. In her panic however, Pommel ended up firing far too quickly, the energy blast well below her target. As the wave of energy coursed upwards, it struck the nearby ceiling, shattering some stalactites and sending them scattering down onto another group of the dark wizards. But that wasn’t all. The force of the blast, along with the friction-less state of the ground actually ended up sending Pommel skidding along the ice at rapid pace. Squealing out in panic, her leg accidentally swept the man to the side of her, tripping the gauntlet wielder right into the spot where she’d once been. Moments later, club met skull as another unfortunate case of friendly fire occurred on the side of the Dark Guild members.

Finally sliding to a stop as she impacted a rock, a stray pick-axe lodged in place was suddenly bent and flung free from the force of Pommel’s impact. Spinning wildly through the air, it soundly clonked the club wielder in the face, knocking him unconscious. Dazed, Pommel slowly pushed to stand herself up, looking over the carnage. The small squadron that had intended to grab her had been left devastated, all in varying states of injury and consciousness. Perhaps her bad-luck had been in place to counterbalance her present good fortune? Still, Pommel beamed, laughing heartily as she gestured out a point.

“There’s more where that came from you dorks! Bring it on! I’ve got more than enough to take all of you on!” Continuing her haughty laughter, the greeting Pommel got when she opened her eyes immediately changed her expression to one of tentative fear. Hearing her boastful statement, more of the remaining wizards were now turning their attention to the braggart, having had quite enough of her mischief. Cautiously, she took a step back, and yelped as she found herself tripping. With a soft ‘Oof’ she landed awkwardly draped with her arms over either side of… Was this a minecart?!

Slowly, but steadily, she could see herself moving further away from the approaching wizards. Glancing about, she looked at what she’d tripped over. What she saw brought a more fearful expression to her face, the snapped brake of the minecart now lying beside the tracks. No, this wasn't right! She'd planned to send some of the enemies down the mine tracks, not herself! “No! Wait, stop, someone help me!” Panic settling in as she fumbled about in her seat, Pommel managed to get herself upright just in time to look where she was headed. Her scream would echo out through the tunnel as she headed down the first dip of the track, covering her eyes as it became a ride eerily similar to a rollercoaster, the little wizard not good with the idea of a high-speed trip. On a positive note, at least she was escaping the wizards that were trying to give chase to her.

"Primal Icestorm!" she yelled, and sent shards of ice at everyone. This ice was not normal ice however. It could shatter steel and magicsteel alike, so getting hit with it would not be wise. Timal then lunged right at Zane, as she conjured an Ice Sword. "Primal Ice Sword!"

"That's how you want to play huh?" Zane asked, as he took out....

(Meanwhile, off somewhere else in the world...)

"Hey Mavis, what is primal magic anyways?"

Suddenly, Mavis pulls out a teaching desk, apple, books, and a moving blackboard, with various writing and drawings that help explain stuff. "Primal Magic is a very old Lost Magic. You see, the reason its primal is because its actually some of if not the oldest magic in the world. Its a lot more powerful then normal magic, but its also harder to control. Additionally, they say that the magic itself is alive, and that those who harness it who are not careful, or try to eat it in the case of some other Lost Magic users, and it will kill you....if you are lucky. Primal Magic is incredibly powerful".

"And there are no side affects at all?"

"Tell me, what do you think the real reason Zane cant swim?"

"Ohhh. So its got some nasty side affects then".

(Back to the battle)

....a sword made of what appeared to be solid fire! "Primal Fire Sword!" The sword blocked the attack.

"I see you learned all about summoning Primal Fire magic while in that library for 34 years, Zaney" Timal announced as their fight went on inbetween Wynter and Rin now. "Too bad it couldn't stop you from suffering. After all, these two don't know do they? Not that your the legendary fire Wizard Burning Heart, but that your actually 44 years old, and under the affect of two curses? The first curse is preventing your body from aging, so you can never grow up physically and stay that scrawny kid forever. And the second curse, you placed upon yourself! That's right, I can see it! You placed a curse upon yourself to prevent your mind from aging, so that you wouldn't go insane from 34 years of isolation! Did you think you could just hide that forever?!"

Zane was getting more and more angry. His attacks were getting more and more brutal as well. Clearly, this girl annoyed him a lot. His attacks were also spreading fire a bit everywhere. "Okay! That's it! Circle of Flame, Resolute Destruction!"

He aimed all of the fireshots right at Timal, forcing her to use Primal Ice Shield to block. He then smashed right through the shield and landed a direct blow on Timal. Timal, however, used an uppercut punch to get Zane right in the gut, causing him quite a bit of pain, especially when she added a primal ice fist to it. Zane kept his ground however, and gave his own Primal Fire Fist right into her face.

The two were knocked away from each other, Zane landing near Rin, while Timal landed near Wynter and Harmony. "Oh yes, let me introduce my other new friend. This is Harmony. She can mimic the magic and spells of anyone she sees, increase their strength, and turns it against them. She also learns all of its strengths and weaknesses".

Zane noticed something however, something he hoped Wynter did as well. She knew the strengths and weaknesses, but not any personal stratagies or combo options the original Wizard knew. Timal launched an attack, but not at Zane. It was aimed at Rin! Zane managed to block the attacks with a Primal Fire Shield, but one got through and hit Zane in the shoulder. Still, the fire was melting it, and he was still in the fight. "I...am okay. Just please deal with that Demonic Wizard, okay?"

Zane had temporarily forgotten the Wizard shouted, out loud, that he killed Rin's parents. He was consumed with hatred for Timal, who had betrayed him. Which didn't help when Timal started insulting him. "Maybe you should open your eyes and pay attention Zaney! You might see better and actually notice things!"

"Would you just...shut...up! Primal....Fire....Ultimate....Fury!" Zane shouted, sending a tidal wave of fire right at Timal....and maybe a few others if they got in the way! Several monsters, which had been hiding, were certainly hit by this attack.

"That's it! No more being nice!" Timal shouted. "Terragenesis Magic! Ocean!"

"Hold on, what was that about ocean?!" Zane yelled, as suddenly water began to flow into the cave! Zane immediately jumped somewhere high, but at this point, the water level was somehow rising. "Timal! I hate you! Also, can someone please deal with the water!"

"Here, let me!" The Demonic Spirit Wizard shouted. "Demonic Key! Gate of the Sea King, Krakken! Open!"

"I meant get rid of the water, you idiot!" Zane shouted.

"Also, why did you answer him!" Timal chimed in. "Your on our team, you idiot!"

"Fairy Beacon!" Zane shouted, casting it on Timal. Timal just blinked.

"What did that do? I don't feel anything".

(MEANWHILE, BACK AT THE GUILD!)

Mavis immediately sensed the Fairy Beacon. She kicked the doors to the Guild wide open, and aimed her arm, charging up Fairy Glitter. "Beacon Locked. Coordinates Locked in. Fairy Glitter Cannon Charging. Height locked in. Location Marked, Beacon Locked, Target Locked, Fairy Glitter Charged. Firing in three, two, one..."

Suddenly, for all in the Guild, traveling nearby, and everyone at the mountain to see, a giant blast of Fairy Glitter was shot out.

(MEANWHILE, BACK AT THE MOUNTAIN!)

Timal just laughed. "Your spell completed fizzl...."

She was interrupted by being hit with Fairy Glitter at long range.

(Well, I wnt overboard again, but that last part was too good not to add.... XD)

---

---

As Wynter looked at the mage now named Harmony, as her opponent literally explained what she does, Wynter's expression remained the same, 'She can mimic my spells, hm? In other words this would be more based on skill with weapons, and skill and speed of Requip than power of magic. It doesn't matter the strength of her spells, if I can avoid it and beat her on pure skill alone. Yet, I should be prepared for any eventuality.' though she thought, approaching slowly at first, though her spells can be used against her, Wynter wanted to know how skilled her opponent was. Stopping about Five meters from her opponent taking up the weapon like it was a rapier, and right as she was about to move in for the attack, something happened that caught her off guard. As she came to a dead stop a beam of light had closed on their location, it was very shocking as she almost fell onto her tail, as the pillar of light slammed those whom would be deemed an enemy of those in Fairy Tail.

After leaping back, Wynter looked at Rin and Zane, whom seemed injured, things weren't in great shape. Especially as Wynter doubted the enemies were defeated by that. As she held her weapon, she glanced to Zane, whom had used what appeared to be Fairy Beacon, almost in pure shock, sshe spoke, "Do tell, where'd that party trick come from? That was interesting." As she kept her gaze around, Wynter noticed one thing, they were missing a certain cherry red girl, though it seemed Rin had it handled. As she let the dust settle the pain of the hit she took earlier. Gritting her teeth, Wynter raised her weapon again, expecting the three to still stand.

((Sorry, I have no clue what has happened in Zane's post... :/))

Pommel Grade

With a fearful yell, Pommel finally opened her eyes to see where she was going, the mine cart careening down the tracks and round a bend. Pits and rises, narrow weavings between hanging spikes and other rock formations. At one point, she even found herself flying between the legs of a huge ice beast, though he seemed more stunned than Pommel did, and not at all the aggressive kind with his big goofy eye and chicken wings. Slowly but steadily, fear had given way to cheering, as the ride was exhilarating to say the least. The joy at such fun was short lived however, as Pommel came out of another passage, coasting alongside next to another mine cart. This one however, was occupied by a couple of the dark wizards.

"Hey Moops, I found her!" The larger, more muscular and bald wizard shouted, pointed to Pommel, causing her to jump a bit and sweat profusely. "Well don't jus' stand there Vince, grab 'er!" The pint sized fellow with a long pointy nose continued to hold the mine cart steady, while Vince began lunging across the gap, attempting to grab hold of Pommel. Sidling up as far back against the wall of her cart as she could, Pommel was lucky that a track sign came up between them, forcing Vince to rapidly retreat back into his mine cart, standing on Moops's head.

"Oi! Git off me ya git and git her!" Moops complained, confusing the poor dolt of a partner. Pommel just sighed a bit that she was actually afraid of dopes like these, though she didn't get long to ponder that as Vince began leaning over into her cart again. Planting herself with her arms gripped firmly on the rim of the basket, she sent a solid boot to his face, trying to keep him back and out of her ride. It worked for a moment, but then he got hold of her leg, laughing to himself. "I got her, I got her!"

At that point, the mine carts diverged on their paths. Pommel still had a tight grasp onto the wall of her cart, and as the two turned away, Vince found himself clinging onto Pommel for dear life, flailing behind the cart as it careened further into the tunnels. ”Get off me you creep!” Pommel wailed, still kicking at his face repeatedly. The dark wizard grunted in pain with each kick, but he managed to slowly pull himself in, climbing into the mine cart with her. "I've got you now! Moops is gonna be so proud of me!" He laughed a bit, before his face fell into terror, and he pointed ahead. Pommel spun herself, and what she saw brought a similar look of absolute fear to her face. Dead end. Cliff edge. They were headed for a pit!

"Stop this thing!" Vince wailed, Pommel equally panicked. ”There's no brakes!” Bouncing along the track, the two were heading closer and closer to their doom. There was no way they could jump out at this point - they'd be smashed on the rocks and spikes of the mine. ”Quick! We gotta slow this down!” Pommel shouted, leaning over the side of the cart. ”Free-Form: Blade!” Drawing her arm back, Pommel shoved it to the ground, wincing in pain from the jarring friction that almost felt like it'd rip her shoulder from its socket. They were still going way too fast! There was no way they'd stop in time!

"Me help!" Vince called, grabbing hold of Pommel to brace her. With his other hand, he magically equipped a ball and chain, throwing it behind them as an anchor. Dust and shards of rock flew up all around them as the mine cart screech, slowly, steadily slowing as it approached the edge... And stopped, moments from careening into the pit. Both of them gave out a long sigh, before cheering, jumping up and down in their cart. ”We did it Vince!” Pommel congratulated him; Vince laughing as well as he hugged her. "Yeah! We make good team!"

Far off, and coming closer, the two heard a loud screeching noise. Soon enough, it became a voice. "GIT OUT OF THE WAY!" Came the terrified cry moments before they could see it. Moops was rocketing down the rails in his mine cart, equally out of control as he came down the steep hill towards the pit. Pommel tried to scramble to safety, but was gripped by both fear and the fearful hug of Vince as he saw their impending collision. All three wizards wailed out in terror, before finally...

*tink*

With a soft tap, Moops managed to bring his cart to a stop, barely shoving Pommel and Vince anywhere along the track. All three gave out a long sigh, before breaking out into laughter. "Dat dere was a real close one!" Moops stated, scratching the back of his head.

”Haha, yeah, I thought we were goners for sure! Who knows what would've happened if-” Pommel didn't get to finish her sentence as the loud rumbling broke out, the three stopping to look back down the tunnels they came from. It was weird, like the sound of rushing water, almost as if they were near a wild river or a broken dam or something... Moments later, it became apparent that was exactly what was coming as a literal ocean of water swept them away, knocking all three off the edge into the mine pit.

Pommel tried to scream, tried to grab hold of something, but the water engulfed everything, silencing and knocking her for a loop. Zane may have sunk like a rock, but Pommel was no better, having never learned to swim at all in her life, and certainly didn't stand a chance of learning amongst such rapid water. In the confusion, she completely lost track of Moops and Vince, struggling amongst the black abyss. There was no real light at all, no sense of space. And, most frightening of all, no air. Slowly, steadily she drifted, eyes clouding with darkness, chest burning up, fighting to try and breathe. Dim. Dark. Nothing...

And then... Strong hands suddenly grabbed hold of her, wrenching her upward. At least, she hoped it was upwards. Seconds later, she broke the surface, coughing and spluttering for air as she took deep, shivering breaths, the ice cold water really sapping her lungs. For a second, she thought it was Vince or Moops, but then noticed the steady beating of wings, along with catching a full glimpse of the hunk of a man that saved her. Looking up, she was immediately taken by his green eyes, and that charming smile.

”You know, cute girls like you shouldn't wander off alone. It's dangerous.” Oh god his voice was charming too. Pommel withheld a blush, and was about to speak before turning it into a soft yelp of surprise, being heaved up into a bridal hold. ”Now hold on a moment, let's get you somewhere safe to dry off.” The man spoke again, Pommel dimly nodding before giving a surprised yelp as they did a brief somersault in mid-air before gliding to a nearby ledge, watching the rushing water fall off into the depths below. As he began looking her over, and gently taking her hand, Pommel finally managed to find her voice again.

”Just who are you exactly?” She asked quizzically, and then made a brief squeak as he poked her in the nose. ”I’m HēiMǎ, you however, can call me Moru. I'm a Celestial Spirit.” Suddenly, memories began flooding back to Pommel. Memories of someone she disliked. Nay, someone she despised. Charming as this man was, she couldn't look at him without seeing that infuriatingly creepy man. Her expression wavered into one of scepticism.

”Uhuh. So I take it Rin sent you?” Pommel surmised, sitting up as he seemed content with her condition. She was still shivering from the cold, but there wasn't much he could do to help that. Moru could see the look that Pommel was giving him and decided to act more casual. ”Yeah, she was worried about you. If you're okay we should probably head back. Rin isn't a very patient person, especially when she's worried. So, you want me to carry you or would you rather I let you ride on my back?”

Pommel paused a moment, looking down to the swirling whirlpool of water, grimacing. She was lucky Moru pulled her out of that, but she could see no sign of Moops or Vince amongst the tide. Somehow, even though they were dark wizards, she felt bad for them. ”Do you think they..?” She trailed off a bit, biting her lip. She shook her head once. ”Never mind. Let's go back. Uh... So are you going to give me a piggy-back, cause that would be kind of weird...”

Moru followed her gaze and shook his head at her question. ”Don't worry, there's a tunnel at the bottom that they can get to and one of them uses some form of air magic. They're safe. And of course not.” Silverly blue light filled the area around Moru and Pommel and when it dissipated a gold-eyed, black stallion with large wings stood before her. Through telepathy he spoke into Pommel's mind, laughter filling his mental voice. 'Climb on.'

Pommel reacted with a startled jump as the sound filled her mind. Man, even creepier, he could be in her head, reading her thoughts. Best to keep her cool then and not think anything too weird. Still, she was happy to hear those two would be alright, and thankful he saved her life. But not THAT grateful. She would have thought of something to... Oh, who was she kidding? ”Ugh! Fine, thanks okay!” Pommel whined aloud as she climbed onto Moru. Keeping her thoughts private was going to be difficult, since she thought about a lot of things. ”You better not be listening in!” Pommel fumed a bit, grabbing hold rather roughly by the horse's ears, just to ensure he heard her. Moru snorted and shook his head, yanking his ears out of her hands. 'Telepathy isn't mind reading. I can only hear what you think at me and once I stop using the magic I can't hear what you're thinking.' Moru kept his voice calm, rather offended someone would think so low of him, but knowing becoming angry wouldn't do much for the situation.

”Well good! Keep it that way!” Pommel hmmph'd, folding her arms. After all, she didn't want him knowing what she REALLY thought about him. I mean, he was cute and charming, but if he didn't remind her so much of Slick she might've liked him more. Well, that and she couldn't get over her own hang-ups around men. It was difficult for her to really trust any of them, and she knew it was stupid. But somehow, she couldn't stop herself from being that bit on edge. That bit quicker to judge. She'd get better at it though. Just like her skills as a wizard. She just needed some time.

With that, she was forced to take hold of his mane as Moru took flight, quickly making his way back up to the cliff that she'd fallen from, navigating the complex tunnels back towards Rin. During their flight through a particularly straight part of the tunnels Moru activated a high speed spell and the cherry-haired girl on his back let out a yelp and wrapped her arms around his neck. The rate they were going at that point was far faster and scarier than the rollercoaster ride she'd previously taken. ”S-Slow down! I'm gonna be sick!” Pommel threatened with a wail, as the concept of falling and splitting her head open felt very much more real with the flimsy grip she had on his neck. Of course, her stomach was fine with this sort of thing, but hopefully Moru got the message. In response Moru let out a neigh that sounded an awful lot like a chuckle and slowed down, deciding to stay at a speed unaided by magic to keep the girl from panicking. Breathing a soft sigh of relief, Pommel snuggled in a bit closer to Moru, trying to use what she could of his body warmth to keep herself from freezing. Hopefully from here, it’d be smooth sailing to re-join the fight with the others…

Of course, when it comes to Pommel, nothing is ever that simple, a pair of eyes following the two as they approached. With a grin of misshapen and rotten teeth, the Dark Wizard prepared his devious ambush on the unsuspecting duo…