"Fire Dragon's Roar!"
"Iron Dragon's Roar!"
"Future Flash!!"
Everyone unleashed their signature techniques one after another, and it wasn't long before the dark guild mages were sent fleeing in every direction, crying for their mothers. Kabe flew alone through the sky, casually loosing blast after blast of precise ki fire to pick off any stragglers who slipped through.
He hadn't taken out many before he stopped and turned his attention to a spot much farther off. Out there, the six strongest presences had already gathered together and were moving quickly toward the southwest.
'That's not the direction of a retreat. Don't tell me they've actually found Nirvana already?'
Even after all this time, Kabe still vaguely remembered that in the original story, Brain had only found Nirvana with Jellal's help. So how had they managed to pull it off entirely on their own in this world?
'Another damn butterfly effect,' he muttered irritably to himself. Raising a hand, he fired off several energy blasts, sending a cluster of enemies flying, then called out to Ultear:
"Pick up the pace. It looks like Brain's group may have found something."
With that, he stopped holding back entirely, pressed both hands together, and began sweeping fire across the area where the enemy had massed. The already crumbling formation of dark mages fell apart the instant Kabe joined the fight directly. Hearing his warning, the others charged in at once, cutting the last of the resistance down quickly and efficiently. With everyone working together, the dark guild mages were wiped out in short order.
Once the small fry were cleared, Kabe wasted no words. He turned and gave a quick instruction:
"I'll go on ahead and hold them off. Catch up as fast as you can."
With that, a ring of white flame surged around him, and he shot off toward where he sensed the Six Demon Generals to be.
Watching the sky, where only a trailing streak of flame remained in the blink of an eye, Wendy, Sharuru, and Happy, who'd been held back as reserves, stepped out from behind a nearby tree.
Wendy's little mouth fell slightly open as she murmured under her breath:
"Did you see that, Sharuru? Kabe is just as terrifyingly strong as I thought."
Sharuru's shock ran even deeper than Wendy's. She too stared up at the sky, her tone a mix of complicated feelings and quiet awe.
"That range of sensory perception, that overwhelming destructive power, and a flying speed so fast I couldn't even track it. Is that man really even human?"
"Strictly speaking, Kabe technically isn't human."
While the two of them were still marveling, Happy puffed out his chest as though he shared in the glory somehow and sidled up to Sharuru to show off.
"According to Kabe himself, he belongs to a rare race called the Saiyans."
"Saiyans?" both Wendy and Sharuru said at once, looking equally puzzled, clearly hearing the term for the first time.
"In Kabe's own words, the Saiyans were once the strongest warrior race in the world, but they're on the verge of extinction now. Kabe might be the very last one left."
"The last one? Does that mean all of Kabe's people are gone?"
At that, Wendy couldn't help covering her little mouth, a look of sympathy and heartache flickering in her eyes. Sharuru's ears drooped as well, some thought crossing her mind, and alongside her awe of Kabe she now felt a touch of pity for him too.
"I never imagined Lord Kabe had a background like that. I'm hearing this for the first time too."
Jura's voice suddenly cut in, startling all three of them.
"But now isn't the time for stories like this. The Six Demon Generals still haven't been dealt with. We need to hurry and catch up to support Lord Kabe."
The other non Fairy Tail members present clearly wanted to hear more about Kabe, but with Jura speaking up, they had no choice but to set the curiosity aside for now.
Just then, Natsu came bounding over anxiously, calling out to Happy.
"Happy, hurry up, let's catch up too. I'm not letting anyone else steal our kill!"
"Aye! We're on our way!"
Happy answered at once, spread his wings, and flew up behind Natsu, gripping the back of his clothes as they took off after Kabe.
Seeing this, Wendy fixed Sharuru with a determined look.
"Sharuru, let's go too."
"Well, it's rare of you to be brave for once..."
Sharuru unfurled her own pure white wings and settled in behind Wendy.
"We're heading out first. Catch up quick!"
"Damn it, using a cat to cheat like that!"
Gajeel cursed bitterly at the sight of Natsu getting a ride from his cat, then broke into a sprint after them, still not realizing Wendy was a Dragon Slayer too. If he'd known both Natsu and Wendy had cats and he didn't, he'd have been even more furious.
"I'm not letting you two beat me there!"
Gray shouted and broke into a run as well. After him came Lyon, Sherry, Yukino, Ichiya, and one by one, everyone else set off in pursuit.
Deep within the Dark forest, a group of shadowy figures was moving swiftly as well. At the center, leading the group, was a middle aged man with dark bronze skin, none other than the leader of the Six Demon Generals, a man now at the top of both the Magic Council's and multiple kingdoms' most wanted lists: Brain.
Beside him walked Cobra, a man with wild red hair and a white coat, codenamed for his snake like nature. Midstride, his ears suddenly twitched, and his expression darkened at once.
"Boss, I can't hear them anymore. Every last one of those useless subordinate guilds has gone silent."
At this grim news, Brain and the rest of the Six Demon Generals all tensed for a moment.