Chapter 16: The Battle of Fairy Tail Part II

Another Perspective/ P.O.V

Power and Betrayal: The Battle of Fairy Tail

The tension in Magnolia had been simmering for days following Laxus's return. Though Kizuna had temporarily disrupted the fragment's control, its influence lingered in subtle ways. Laxus grew increasingly dissatisfied with what he perceived as weakness in the guild, his frustrations amplified by the fragment's whispers.

Three days after the confrontation in the guildhall, Laxus made his move. Standing atop Kardia Cathedral, lightning crackling around him, he announced his ultimatum to all of Magnolia through a projection of himself in the sky.

"The Battle of Fairy Tail begins now," his voice boomed across the town. "Only the strongest deserve to shape our future. Prove yourselves worthy, or step aside."

Across Magnolia, members of the Thunder Legion activated Freed's enchantments, creating a massive network of rune barriers that transformed the entire town into a battleground. Guild members found themselves trapped in magical enclosures, forced to fight each other to advance—or be eliminated from what Laxus called "the tournament to determine Fairy Tail's true heart."

In the guildhall, Makarov slammed his fist against the bar, cracking the wood. "This has gone too far! The fragment's influence is stronger than we thought."

Mirajane nodded grimly. "The disruption wasn't permanent. It's been rebuilding its control over him, twisting his existing doubts about the guild into something darker."

Kizuna paced anxiously, his energy fluctuating with his emotions. "We need to reach him before he does something irreversible. Where's Uruk when we need him? He'd know how to counter this."

"We still don't know who took him," Erza reminded them, already requipping into her Heaven's Wheel armor. "But right now, we need to focus on stopping Laxus before anyone gets seriously hurt."

The guild mobilized quickly, teams forming to counteract the Thunder Legion's enchantments while stronger members prepared to confront Laxus himself. Natsu and Gajeel, despite their rivalry, agreed to work together to challenge the lightning mage.

"I'll burn away whatever's controlling him," Natsu declared, flames dancing around his fists.

Gajeel merely grunted in agreement, his arm transforming into an iron club. "Just don't get in my way, Salamander."

As teams dispersed throughout Magnolia, breaking through Freed's enchantments and freeing trapped guild members, a slender figure slipped away unnoticed from the guildhall's back entrance. Gine, daughter of Teilanne Clive and Gildarts, moved with purpose toward Kardia Cathedral where Laxus waited.

Unlike her brothers Kizuna, Uruk, and Cumber who had inherited more obvious Saiyan traits, Gine's power remained largely dormant—or so everyone believed. With her father's auburn hair and her mother's delicate features, few connected her to the family's formidable fighting legacy. Even fewer knew of her feelings for Laxus, feelings that had begun years ago when he had saved her from a group of bandits while she was training alone in the forest.

Natsu and Gajeel arrived at Kardia Cathedral first, bursting through the doors with their typical lack of subtlety.

"LAXUS!" Natsu's voice echoed through the massive space. "This ends now!"

Standing before the altar, Laxus turned slowly. The purple glow in his eyes had intensified, pulsing with an unnatural rhythm. Lightning crackled around him, leaving scorch marks on the cathedral floor.

"The Dragon Slayers," he said, his voice carrying that same eerie echo from before. "Come to challenge the lightning itself? Bold, but futile."

"Cut the crap," Gajeel growled. "Whatever's controlling you, we're gonna beat it out of you."

Laxus laughed, the sound sending chills down both their spines. "Nothing controls me. I've simply evolved beyond what Fairy Tail has become—a shelter for the weak masquerading as a family." He gestured broadly. "Family doesn't make you stronger. It holds you back with sentiment and misplaced loyalty."

"You don't believe that," Natsu fired back. "That's the fragment talking!"

"Enough talk," Laxus said, gathering lightning between his palms. "Prove your worth or fall like the others."

The battle that followed shook the cathedral to its foundations. Natsu and Gajeel attacked with everything they had, their Dragon Slayer magic tearing through stone columns and stained glass windows. But Laxus had indeed grown stronger, his lightning no longer just yellow but streaked with that unsettling purple energy.

"Lightning Dragon's Heavenward Halberd!" Laxus thrust his hands forward, sending a massive spear of lightning toward the Dragon Slayers.

Natsu dodged narrowly, the attack grazing his shoulder and sending him spinning into a wall. Gajeel countered with his Iron Dragon's Roar, the metal shards clashing with Laxus's lightning in a deafening explosion.

Despite their coordinated attacks and individual strength, Natsu and Gajeel found themselves gradually pushed back, Laxus's enhanced power proving more than they could handle together.

"Is this all Fairy Tail has to offer?" Laxus taunted, barely winded while his opponents struggled to stand. "Pathetic. Perhaps Fairy Law will be the kindest way to end this farce."

Natsu's eyes widened in horror. "You wouldn't use that! It's meant to only affect those the caster sees as enemies!"

"And what do you think I see you as now?" Laxus replied coldly, beginning the incantation for Fairy Tail's ultimate spell.

Light gathered between his hands, growing in intensity until it threatened to blind them. The fragment's influence was clear in the purple tint that corrupted the normally golden glow of Fairy Law.

Just as Laxus prepared to release the spell, the cathedral doors burst open once more. A figure silhouetted against the light stood there, smaller than any of the men but radiating a presence that commanded attention.

"That's enough, Laxus."

The voice was soft but unyielding. Gine stepped into the cathedral, her auburn hair caught in the breeze from the open doors. She wore a simple blue battle dress with the Fairy Tail emblem embroidered over her heart, so different from her usual casual attire.

Laxus paused, the spell flickering between his hands. "Gine? Come to watch your precious guild fall? Or is Daddy Gildarts too busy to handle his own battles?"

A flash of pain crossed her face at his mocking tone. "I came for you, Laxus. Not as Gildarts' daughter or as a member of Fairy Tail, but as someone who believed in you when no one else would."

Natsu and Gajeel exchanged confused glances, neither aware of any connection between Gine and Laxus. They wisely remained silent, sensing the charged emotions between the two.

"Believed in me?" Laxus laughed, but there was a hint of something else beneath the mockery—uncertainty. "The little fangirl who used to follow me around? I thought you'd have grown out of that childish crush by now."

Gine stepped forward, unflinching despite the lightning crackling around Laxus. "It wasn't a crush, Laxus. It was admiration for someone who I thought understood what it meant to live in the shadow of a legacy." Her eyes met his directly. "My father's strength, my mother's courage, my brothers' power—I know what it's like to feel you'll never measure up."

For just a moment, Laxus's expression faltered, the purple glow in his eyes dimming slightly. "You don't know anything about me."

"I know you're better than this," she replied steadily. "The Laxus I admired wouldn't need to tear down others to prove his own worth. He wouldn't let something else control him—not his grandfather's expectations, not his father's bitterness, and certainly not some fragment from another world."

Laxus's face contorted with rage. "I'm not being controlled! I'm finally seeing clearly!" He thrust his hands forward, completing the Fairy Law incantation. "Fairy Law: Activate!"

Blinding light erupted from his hands, expanding outward to engulf the cathedral and beyond. Natsu and Gajeel shielded their eyes, expecting devastation to follow—but when the light faded, nothing had changed. No one was harmed.

Laxus stared at his hands in disbelief. "Impossible... why didn't it work?"

"Because your heart knows the truth," Gine said softly, taking another step toward him. "Fairy Law affects only those the caster truly sees as enemies. And despite everything, despite what that fragment wants you to believe, you don't see Fairy Tail as your enemy. They're still your family."

"LIES!" Laxus roared, lightning erupting from his body in all directions. "You're NOTHING to me! None of you are!"

As bolts of lightning tore through the cathedral, Gine didn't dodge. She stood her ground, allowing one bolt to strike her directly. The impact sent her sliding backward, her clothes singed, but she remained standing.

"I didn't want to do this," she whispered, a single tear trailing down her cheek. "I wanted to reach you with words, not fists. But if this is the only language you'll understand right now..."

Something changed in Gine's posture. The air around her began to waver with heat, small stones and debris rising from the floor as if gravity itself responded to her emotions. Her normally gentle eyes hardened with determination, and the tear that had fallen seemed to evaporate from her skin.

"What the..." Gajeel murmured, sensing the dramatic shift in power.

Natsu's eyes widened. "Is she...?"

With a cry that held years of restrained potential, Gine unleashed what she had kept hidden for so long. Golden light erupted around her, her auburn hair rising upward as it transformed to a brilliant gold. Her eyes shifted from soft brown to piercing teal, and the aura around her pulsed with raw power.

"Super Saiyan," Natsu breathed, having seen Kizuna transform only once before.

Laxus took an involuntary step back, genuine shock breaking through the fragment's control. "Impossible. You were always the weak one. The normal one."

"I was never weak," Gine replied, her voice deeper, resonating with her transformed state. "I just never needed to prove my strength to anyone—least of all myself." She moved forward, crossing the distance between them faster than Laxus could react. "But I'll use it now, to save you from yourself."

What followed was unlike any battle witnessed in Fairy Tail before. Where Natsu and Gajeel had relied on brute force and overwhelming power, Gine fought with precision and calculated strikes, her Saiyan training evident in every movement. She wasn't fighting to defeat Laxus—she was fighting to exhaust him, to drain the fragment's hold over him through sheer persistence.

Laxus fought back with everything he had, the cathedral becoming a storm of lightning and golden energy. Windows shattered, stone cracked, and the very air seemed to burn with their combined power.

"Why fight for them?" Laxus demanded between attacks. "You of all people should understand! Always in the shadow of your brothers, your father—never recognized for your own strength!"

"That's where you're wrong," Gine countered, deflecting a lightning bolt with her bare hand. "True strength isn't about recognition or domination. It's about protection. It's about standing up when it matters most."

As the battle raged on, Laxus's movements began to slow, the fragment's energy visibly draining as Gine systematically dismantled his defenses. With each exchange, the purple glow in his eyes dimmed further, his own consciousness fighting to reassert control.

In a final, desperate attack, Laxus gathered all his remaining power. "Lightning Dragon's Roaring Thunder!"

The massive bolt of lightning struck Gine directly, engulfing her in electrical energy. For a moment, it seemed she might have fallen—but when the light faded, she stood firm, her Super Saiyan aura burning even brighter.

"It's over, Laxus," she said quietly, gathering energy between her palms—not destructive, but purifying. "This ends now."

With precise control that would have made Kizuna proud, she released a wave of energy that washed over Laxus, designed not to harm but to disrupt—specifically targeting the fragment's frequency that she had been analyzing throughout their battle.

Laxus fell to his knees, the purple light finally leaving his eyes completely as he gasped for breath. "Gine... I..." He looked up at her, truly seeing her for the first time since the battle began.

The Super Saiyan transformation faded, golden hair returning to auburn as Gine approached him. Tears streamed freely down her face now, not of fear or pain, but of sorrow for what had been lost between them.

"Why are you crying?" Laxus asked weakly. "You won."

"Did I?" she responded, kneeling before him. "The man I admired—respected—would never have put his own guild through this. The Laxus I... cared for... is still lost to me."

Understanding dawned in his eyes, along with genuine regret. "The fragment... it took my doubts, my frustrations, and twisted them into something unrecognizable. But they were my doubts to begin with."

"We all have doubts," she said gently. "What matters is what we choose to do with them."

As Natsu and Gajeel watched in stunned silence, Makarov, Mirajane, and Kizuna arrived at the cathedral, having fought their way through the enchantments across town.

"Gine?" Kizuna exclaimed, taking in the destroyed cathedral and his sister's battle-worn appearance. "Did you...?"

She nodded simply, helping Laxus to his feet. "The fragment's control is broken—really broken this time. But it's still inside him. We need to find a way to remove it completely."

Makarov approached his grandson cautiously. "Laxus..."

"I know what you're going to say, Gramps," Laxus interrupted, his voice heavy with resignation. "I have to leave Fairy Tail. After what I've done..."

"That's not for me to decide right now," Makarov replied, surprising everyone. "The fragment influenced you, yes, but as you said, it worked with what was already there. When you're fully healed, when we know the fragment is truly gone, then we'll talk about your future with the guild."

Mirajane stepped forward, examining Laxus with her enhanced senses. "The fragment is dormant again, but different from before. It's... retreated deeper, like it's hiding."

"Which means it will try again," Kizuna concluded grimly. "We need to find my brother. Uruk might be the only one who knows how to extract these fragments without harming the host."

As the others discussed next steps, Gine moved quietly toward the cathedral doors. Laxus noticed and broke away from the group to follow her.

"Gine, wait," he called, his voice lacking its usual harshness.

She paused but didn't turn. "There's nothing more to say, Laxus."

"There's everything to say," he countered, coming to stand beside her. "You transformed. You were a Super Saiyan all this time?"

A small, sad smile touched her lips. "Since I was sixteen. The same age I was when you saved me from those bandits in the East Forest. The same day I realized that power isn't a gift or a curse—it's a choice."

"Why hide it? From everyone?"

Gine finally turned to face him, her eyes reflecting a wisdom beyond her years. "Because I wanted to be known for more than just being a Saiyan, more than being Gildarts' daughter, more than being Kizuna's sister. I wanted to find my own path." She glanced back at the others. "And I didn't want to become a weapon. The world has enough of those already."

Laxus was silent for a long moment. "I never saw you," he finally admitted. "Not really. You were just... there. Background. Part of the guild I took for granted."

"I know," she replied simply.

"But you saw me," he continued, realization dawning. "Before anyone else did. Before the fragment. Before all of this."

"I did," she acknowledged. "The question is: who will you choose to be now, Laxus? When all of this is over, when the fragments and the Convergence have been dealt with—who will you be then?"

Before he could answer, she was gone, slipping through the doors and into the daylight beyond. Laxus stood alone for a moment, watching her depart, the weight of her question settling on him like the rubble of the cathedral around them.

Back with the others, plans were already forming to track down Uruk and counter the growing threat of the fragments. The Battle of Fairy Tail was over, but the war for the very fabric of reality had only just begun.

And in the quiet corners of the guild, people would whisper about how Gine Clive, the quiet daughter of Fairy Tail's strongest wizard, had defeated Laxus Dreyar not just with the power of a Super Saiyan, but with the strength of a heart that understood what true power really meant.

Power and Betrayal: A Moment of Truth

The sun cast long shadows across Magnolia as evening approached. Three days had passed since the Battle of Fairy Tail, and the guild was still recovering—both physically and emotionally. The Thunder Legion had been detained separately, their own actions under the fragment's influence being evaluated by the Council. Freed's enchantments had finally dissipated completely, allowing the town to return to some semblance of normalcy.

Laxus sat alone in a small room at the back of the guildhall, his grandfather's decision regarding his future with Fairy Tail to be announced at sunset. He stared at his hands, the lingering sensation of corrupted lightning still tingling in his fingertips. The fragment within him remained dormant, but he could feel its presence—a cold weight nestled somewhere behind his heart, waiting.

A soft knock at the door pulled him from his thoughts.

"Come in," he said, expecting Makarov or perhaps Mirajane with more questions about the fragment's influence.

Instead, Gine stepped through the doorway, closing it quietly behind her. She wore a simple white dress, a stark contrast to the battle-worn appearance he'd last seen her in. Her auburn hair was loosely braided over one shoulder, and despite everything, Laxus felt something stir within him at the sight of her.

"Didn't expect to see you before the verdict," he said, his voice rougher than intended.

Gine moved to the small window, looking out at the setting sun. "I wanted to see you once more. Alone. Before whatever happens next."

Laxus studied her profile, seeing her now through new eyes. How had he missed it for so long? The quiet strength in her posture, the resolute set of her jaw, the subtle power she carried with such grace.

"You should hate me," he said finally. "After what I put the guild through. What I put you through."

She turned to face him, a sad smile playing at her lips. "Hate is easy, Laxus. Understanding is harder."

"And which do you choose?" he asked, genuinely uncertain of her answer.

Gine approached slowly, taking a seat across from him at the small table. "I choose to understand that the fragment amplified what was already there—your frustrations, your ambitions, your desire to step out of your grandfather's shadow. But I also choose to understand that it wasn't entirely you."

Laxus let out a humorless laugh. "You're too forgiving."

"No," she countered firmly. "I'm realistic. The Laxus who saved me in the East Forest years ago is still inside you. The man who stood up against injustice when no one was watching, who trained until his hands bled to master his magic—that person exists alongside the one who nearly destroyed Fairy Tail."

They fell into silence for a moment, the weight of unspoken words hanging between them.

"I never thanked you," Laxus finally said, "for stopping me. For seeing what I couldn't."

"You don't need to thank me for that."

"Yes, I do." He leaned forward, meeting her gaze directly. "You could have killed me, Gine. With that power... you could have ended it all. Why didn't you?"

Her eyes softened. "Because that's not who I am. And despite what the fragment wanted you to believe, that's not who you are either."

Laxus studied her face, searching for any sign of deception or hidden agenda. He found none—only an openness that left him feeling strangely vulnerable.

"When did you know?" he asked. "That you had feelings for me?"

A faint blush colored her cheeks, but she didn't look away. "The day you saved me from those bandits, I admired you. When you stood up to your father to protect the guild, I respected you." She paused, measuring her words. "But I think I truly fell for you during the S-Class trials three years ago. You were assigned as my examiner."

"I remember," Laxus said, recalling the event with newfound clarity. "You didn't pass."

"No, I didn't," she agreed. "But you told me something I never forgot. You said, 'Power without purpose is just noise.' I didn't understand what you meant then."

"And now?"

"Now I understand perfectly." She glanced at her hands, the same hands that had channeled Super Saiyan energy days earlier. "Power isn't what makes someone worthy of admiration or love. It's what they choose to do with that power."

Laxus felt something shift inside him—not the fragment, but something else entirely. A realization, perhaps, of what he had nearly thrown away.

"Gramps is going to exile me," he said quietly. "He has to. After what I did."

Gine didn't contradict him. "What will you do? If that happens?"

"I don't know." He ran a hand through his hair, a gesture of rare uncertainty. "Find a way to get this fragment out of me. Figure out who I am without my grandfather's legacy hanging over me. Without Fairy Tail."

"That sounds like a good start," she said softly.

Their eyes met again, and Laxus found himself leaning forward slightly. "Gine, I—"

She placed a gentle finger against his lips, stopping his words. "Don't. Not yet." Her eyes shimmered with unshed tears. "Whatever you're feeling right now—gratitude, confusion, attraction—it's all tangled up with everything that's happened. And I won't be your anchor to a guild you're leaving behind."

Laxus caught her wrist lightly as she withdrew her hand. "Is that what you think this is?"

"I think," she said carefully, "that you need to find yourself before you can offer yourself to anyone else. Even if that person has been waiting longer than she'd care to admit."

The confession hung in the air between them, Gine's feelings finally laid bare without pretense or hesitation.

"And if I find my way back?" Laxus asked, his voice hardly more than a whisper.

A single tear escaped, tracing a path down her cheek. "Then I'll be here. Not waiting—I have my own path to follow, my own strength to discover now that I'm not hiding anymore. But I'll be here."

She stood, her hand slipping from his grasp. "Your grandfather will be coming soon. I should go."

Laxus rose as well, towering over her small frame yet somehow feeling as though she was the stronger presence in the room. "Gine, I don't deserve—"

"It's not about deserving," she interrupted gently. "It never was. It's about choosing, every day, to be better than you were the day before." She stepped closer, standing on her toes to press a feather-light kiss to his cheek. "Find yourself, Laxus Dreyar. And when you do, if you still want to, come find me."

She turned to leave, but Laxus caught her hand one final time. "One question before you go. That day in the forest with the bandits... you could have handled them yourself, couldn't you? You already had your power."

Gine smiled, a genuine smile that reached her eyes for the first time since she'd entered. "Yes, I could have. But then I wouldn't have met the man behind the lightning."

With that, she slipped from the room, the soft click of the door leaving Laxus standing alone once more. But something had changed—a weight lifted, a possibility planted where before there had been only regret.

When Makarov arrived minutes later to deliver his judgment, he found his grandson standing tall, facing the window where the last rays of sunset painted the sky in shades of promise.

"I'm ready, Gramps," Laxus said without turning. "Whatever you decide."

In the streets below, Gine walked steadily toward her own future, neither looking back at the guildhall nor rushing forward into uncertainty. Like the power she had kept hidden for so long, her heart remained her own—patient, resolute, and ultimately free to choose its own path.

Both knew, without words or promises, that their story was far from over. The fragments, the Convergence, the battles to come—all would shape their separate journeys. But in that moment of parting, something new had begun. Something that, like Gine's transformation, had always been possible but needed the right catalyst to emerge.

And perhaps, when the time was right, lightning would once again meet golden light—not in combat, but in recognition of a truth both had finally learned to see.

Secondary P.O.V

Power and Betrayal: Saiyan Resolve