[X784, Cathedral atop Nirvana]
— Dannis Martell —
The instant Brain collapsed, the countless floating screens above their heads fizzled away and disappeared as if they were dispelled. One by one, the illusions of shifting symbols and projections winked out like dying stars.
"So…he was the one controlling them?" Mira questioned.
"Probably, though Nirvana is still moving despite that." Dannis replied, sheathing his sword. The whole cathedral trembled as more dust filtered down from the ceiling.
Dannis frowned. "Jura's still out there fighting it. But I don't know how much longer even he can last against something this massive."
He knew the man was a Wizard Saint, but Nirvana was a magic as ancient as they come.
Mira looked at him, her expression thoughtful. "Couldn't you use your Dimension Slash to cut it apart?"
Dannis' brows furrowed. He had certainly considered it, but shook his head. "Maybe. If that's what it comes down to, I'll try. But I don't think it'll be that easy since not even Jura could dent this thing."
Before Mira could answer, a voice shouted from behind.
"Dannis! Mira!"
They turned just as a glowing platform of words soared through the Cathedral doors, carrying Levy and Gajeel. Natsu flew in with Happy carrying him.
"About time," Dannis muttered, though relief softened his tone.
The moment the platform came close enough, Gajeel leapt off with his usual reckless abandon.
"I wouldn't—" Dannis began.
"Urp!"
Gajeel hit the floor and immediately doubled over, clutching his stomach and mouth, groaning
"Oh dear…" Mira raised a delicate hand to her cheek. "So Nirvana counts as a vehicle? How odd."
Natsu cackled. "Pff! Ahahaha! Nice landing, metal-head!"
"Shut it, Salamander!" Gajeel growled between gags, dragging himself upright with a hand against the wall.
"You beat Cobra, then?" Dannis asked, his tone shifting back to serious. His gaze locked on Natsu, then Levy. "Good job."
"Yeah!" Natsu's grin widened, a fire in his eyes. "Took him down myself!"
Levy, panting slightly from continuously channeling her magic, quickly filled in. "We saw Gray and Lyon from afar. Their fight looked intense, but they waved us off and told us to head here instead. Said they had it under control."
Dannis nodded once, absorbing that. His gaze flickered toward the center of the chamber, where Brain's motionless body lay.
"This place…" Levy turned slowly, her eyes scanning the murals carved into the pillars. "…what is it?"
"The heart of Nirvana," Dannis replied. He gestured toward Brain's prone form. "Brain called it the King's Hall. It's where he controlled Nirvana's movements."
Levy's brows furrowed. "Then… does that mean we can stop it from here?"
Another violent tremor coursed through the chamber, throwing shards of dust from the ceiling. Looking out, Dannis saw one of Nirvana's legs carve a big chunk out of Jura's golem.
"We're not sure how," Mira admitted, her calm voice carrying an edge of unease. "This isn't exactly our specialty. Hibiki would know better, with his Archive magic."
Dannis let his gaze drift over the walls, the floor, the inert magical conduits. His instincts told him that if there was an answer, it wasn't written here anymore. With all the magical screens now dispelled at the defeat of Brain, there wasn't much they could actually do.
His jaw clenched as he considered the one path left.
Slowly, his left eye burned crimson, the sclera darkening as magic flared. The world seemed to slow, stretch thin, and then dissolve into threads of light. Futures unfolded, a thousand possibilities crashing into his mind at once. Piercing pain emerged from behind his eye, blood tracing a hot line down his cheek.
That's when he found it. Members of the Light Alliance rallied. Six lacrimas breaking and Nirvana collapsing on itself.
The vision broke and a smile appeared on his face. 'Looks like I worried for nothing.'
He wiped the streak of blood with his thumb and turned back to the others. "Come on. Erza and the rest are waiting."
They moved together out of the Cathedral's great doors, stepping into the blinding sunlight. They could feel Nirvana slowly lumbering forward as the cannon at the front continued charging for its second shot.
From their vantage, they saw Jura holding the massive construct at bay, and nearby, Erza descending with Wendy and Ichiya at her side.
A flare of energy lit the battlefield as Gray, Lyon, and Juvia unleashed a synchronized strike. Midnight's distorted magic shattered, and the mage was sent sprawling, finally defeated.
"You guys!" Wendy's voice cheered at the sight of them.
Relief washed briefly over the group before Erza's voice cut across the noise. "Everyone, listen! Nirvana's core is protected by lacrimas spread across its body. We must destroy them all simultaneously!"
Dannis' eye gleamed faintly. He had already seen this moment.
"Understood," he said simply, gripping the hilt of his blade.
Natsu's grin widened, fire sparking from his fists. "Finally! Something to smash!"
"Gihi," Gajeel cracked his knuckles, metal ringing. "Now this I can get behind."
Levy, catching her breath, nodded firmly. Mira's calm smile returned.
With Erza's orders, the alliance split into groups, spreading out across Nirvana's colossal frame to seek and shatter the lacrimas.
…
[X784, Worth Woodsea]
— Jura Neekis —
How long had it been? An hour? Two?
Time blurred in the haze of sweat, strain, and ceaseless battle. Even for him, a Wizard Saint, it was rare to face something that pushed him this far. His heartbeat pounded like a war drum in his ears. Steady, yet heavy.
Through Hibiki's voice in his head came the reminder, eight minutes. That was how long he had to hold. Eight minutes for the others to strike from within.
A daunting task, yes. But as the most powerful mage of the alliance, it was his burden to bear. The title of Wizard Saint was not just an honor, it was a duty. And Jura Neekis had never once turned from his duty.
Jura roared once more as the golem beneath him grew six arms that held back the continuous walk of Nirvana. Even then, it was only slowing down minutely.
From this distance, he saw Cait Shelter. A small guild hall, nestled in the woods. His jaw clenched. All it would take was a single blast from Nirvana to turn all those good people into incarnations of evil.
He would not allow that. Not while he stood.
3:00.
Three minutes left. That was what Hibiki's timer showed, flickering at the edge of his vision. Three minutes was all he had to endure.
Sweat trickled down the bald slope of his head. His magic reserves burned hot, dwindling to embers with each passing second. The Earth Golem trembled, joints of stone groaning as it braced against Nirvana's massive stride.
He could feel it. From the way things are going, he could only hold onto the Earth Golem for another thirty seconds or so.
The Earth Golem was never meant for this. It was a spell of overwhelming offense, of short, decisive battle. Strong enough to contend with S-Rank beasts and monsters. But it was never a spell meant to be held for long periods of time.
It was one of those do or die type spells, where using it means planning for instant victory. It was practically a miracle that he held Nirvana for a whole hour.
But now, he was barely holding on. He was reaching the end of his tank. If nothing changed, Cait Shelter would fall.
Whatever material Nirvana was made off has proved to be indestructible. Any damage he managed to inflict was repaired mere seconds later from the ethernano it sucked from the earth itself.
A weapon that could reshape the continent, that's what Nirvana was. It belonged in the same tier of power as the Etherion. Usually, fighting against those was folly.
Nevertheless, he would try. By god would he try.
0:30.
Thirty seconds left, that was good. It means he lasted longer than he expected. But it was still nowhere near enough, and the strain nearly brought Jura to his knees.
The Earth Golem shuddered violently, cracks spiderwebbing across its arms as Nirvana retaliated. A mechanical leg swung upward, smashing through stone and shattering one of the golem's legs in an explosion of rubble.
The giant tilted. Jura grit his teeth, forcing magic into the spell, regrowing the limb in desperate defiance.
But Nirvana had anticipated it. Another leg shot upward, faster than the others, a sharpened spear of steel meant to pierce directly through the Golem's head, right where he was hiding inside.
With no choice, Jura leapt free. Stone split apart beneath him as the mighty construct crumbled, dissolving back into raw earth. He soared into the air, robes whipping around him, his chest heaving from exhaustion.
That was what Nirvana wanted. Freed from the Golem's weight, the fortress-machine resumed its relentless advance.
And the cannon began to charge. The hum of gathering energy rumbled through the woods like thunder. Its target, Cait Shelter.
0:10.
The countdown screamed in his mind. He had only moments left.
With the last vestiges of his magic, he slammed both hands together, not caring at the speed of which he was falling. The ground beneath Nirvana convulsed as his magic surged one final time. He poured everything he had into the earth, veins bulging at his temples as his entire body trembled in the air.
The land split open. A sinkhole yawned beneath one of Nirvana's legs, swallowing the steel construct to its knee. The entire machine tilted, its aim thrown wide just as the cannon's beam missed the guild hall.
0:00.
To his relief, the moment the clock struck zero, one after another, Nirvana's six legs exploded at the joints, fire and metal bursting outward in catastrophic succession. The titanic body lurched as equilibrium failed, its advance brought to an abrupt and violent halt.
Jura's body sagged as he let out a breath of relief.
…
AN: There we go! With this, the Oración Seis arc comes to a close.
Aftermath will be handled in the next chapter, where I tie up all remaining loose ends that I've introduced in this arc.
After that, we're heading straight to Edolas, where I have major things planned out. It's gonna be a lot meatier and fun than Oración Seis, I can assure you that.
More chapters ahead on my Patreon and all that jazz. Check it out if you're interested. There should be 4 chapters ahead as Chapter 97 should be available by the time this chapter was posted.
Anyways, hope you enjoyed the chapter, cheers!