Date: X791, July 7
Location: Crocus – City Outskirts and Castle Courtyard
The sky above Crocus had turned the color of burnt ash. Whatever light the morning might have offered was smothered by black smoke and the glow of fire. Roars rolled down from the heavens like waves of thunder, shaking stones loose from the city's oldest walls. In a heartbeat, the capital of Fiore had become a war zone.
High over the shattered plaza, Future Rogue stood atop the back of the dragon Motherglare. The air around him burned hot, whipping his white hair into a frenzy, yet his cold stare was as steady as stone. Dragons wheeled through the sky around him, blotting out the sun like dark stars.
He lifted a hand, and his voice carried across the chaos.
"Humans! Your era ends today! The age of dragons has returned—under my rule!"
His words roared over the city louder than the people's screams. Spells and arrows shot upward from desperate mages and soldiers, but every attack fizzled harmlessly against scales older than kingdoms.
Fairy Tail's fighters were scattered across Crocus, each locked in their battles.
At the south wall, Natsu and Gajeel drove fists and iron-hard blows into the hides of two massive dragons, refusing to yield so much as a single step.
In the royal gardens, Laxus and the Thunder God Tribe hurled bolts of lightning at each other, their magic flashing brightly against the stormy sky.
In the market district, Wendy worked through exhaustion, healing the injured before leaping straight into the path of Zirconis, the jade dragon, her eyes full of fierce resolve.
Among the smoking streets, Romeo darted through clouds of dust and fire. His purple-flamed sword cut arcs through the air as he dodged crumbling walls and burning beams. He had stopped counting the people he'd guided to safety—there was no time for numbers, only the next rescue.
A child's scream tore through the din. Romeo turned just in time to see a small girl stumble near the ruins of an archway.
He sprinted.
In a blur of movement, he scooped her up as a dragonling dove toward them. His sword swung upward, cutting deep through the creature's belly. It fell with a heavy crash, sparks and blood spraying across the cobblestones.
The girl clung to him, sobbing into his shoulder.
"It's okay," Romeo panted. "I've got you. You're safe now."
Nearby, Panther Lily and Carla swept through the streets, guiding panicked civilians toward safer ground. At a barricade that looked seconds from collapse, Kinana and Macao fought hard to keep the path open. Even in the shadow of dragons, Fairy Tail's heartbeat refused to stop.
From a quiet rooftop, Teresa watched the chaos unfold. Her pale hair streamed in the wind, her white cloak stirring just slightly. She stood still, eyes scanning the battle with the detached precision of a hunter.
She counted.
Seven dragons rampaged through the city. And then there was the eighth—larger, heavier, wrong. Its three heads twisted and snapped at the air, silver scales streaked with sickly colors. Even from here, she could feel the unnatural energy in it, a corruption that stirred faint memories from her world.
"Seven dragons… and one anomaly," she murmured. "Eight predators for a city of echoes."
Future Rogue's voice thundered again from above.
"Cry, break, and vanish before my new kingdom."
In a broad square, Sting and the present-day Rogue of Sabertooth stood back-to-back, blood streaking down their faces.
"I don't care who you are or where you came from!" Sting shouted up at his future self. "We're not letting you take this world!"
Present Rogue gripped his blade tighter.
"We fight together."
But as one of the dragons locked its burning gaze on them, Sting shoved Rogue aside.
"Go help the others! I'll hold this one off!"
There was no time for argument. Rogue sprinted toward another collapsing street.
On her perch, Teresa's eyes followed them. For the briefest moment, she saw something she recognized from a life long gone—warriors bound together by trust and fire. A warmth she had known once, and had long since abandoned.
She shifted slightly, testing the give of the roof beneath her boots.
Through the smoke, Romeo glanced up. Their eyes met. He found nothing soft in her gaze—only the cold steadiness of a weapon waiting to be drawn.
Elsewhere, Lucy stumbled to her knees, the ground beneath her trembling. Beside her, Yukino gasped for air. Their Celestial Spirits had returned to their realm, leaving the two mages with nothing but the sight of claws and wings tearing the city apart.
"Natsu…" Lucy whispered. "Please… we need you."
At the edge of Crocus, Natsu stood atop Atlas Flame's back, fire roaring around him in great waves. He glared at Future Rogue with every ounce of fury in his body.
"You don't get to decide our future! This is our fight—our friends, our city!"
Atlas roared, molten breath blasting a dragon backward.
From her rooftop, Teresa heard those cries of defiance cutting through the air. They didn't stir her heart—they sharpened her focus.
"Echoes are warmth," she said under her breath. "And warmth burns."
Romeo carried the rescued girl into the shelter, handing her to a trembling mother. Then he turned back toward the battle. His voice was low but steady.
"I'll fight for them… even if she never does."
A screech ripped across the city, deeper and more piercing than the rest. The eighth dragon smashed through Crocus's outer wall, its three heads writhing in fury, each mouth glowing with sickly green fire. Towers fell like paper as it advanced.
Romeo froze for a second. The monster was too close to the shelters. Too close to the people who couldn't run.
He gripped his sword tighter and charged toward it, though every step felt heavier than the one before.
On the rooftop, Teresa's eyes narrowed. She didn't move to defend the weak. She didn't move to stand in front of the blow.
She moved to kill.
The ground shook under the weight of wings. The city screamed under the claws of dragons.
And the Valkyrie descended into the war.