Fairy Tail: Swallow the Fire

42. In The Shadows

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Inside a temple deep within the heart of a desert, sat in a room buried deep within its structure was a large round table with a topographical map of Earthland carved into its stone surface. In two of the half-dozen thrones that sat around its circumference were two men.

The first was in his thirties, the physical prime of his life, and didn't even deign to give the one sitting across from him any attention. He was instead focused on the sword spear in his lap. The bluish-purple metal of the blade glinted to reveal his reflection, his dark and sickly green hair was slicked back and a thick moustache tilted downwards as he frowned in irritation. Unbeffiting of his broad and muscular stature, he wore a corset that thinned his waist and overlaid a white shirt. The formal trousers he wore completed the look of refinement he seemed to be looking for, but the thick and heavy boots counteracted the gentlemanly appearance.

Across from him sat an elderly man of equal stature, one of his green eyes having been covered up by an eyepatch. His long and white hair stretched down to his lower back while the long beard curled on his lap towards the end. He wore a red button-up shirt and beige pants, while a dark black cloak draped over his shoulders. The sounds of clinking filled the room as he mindlessly drummed his gauntleted fingers on the horned helmet resting on the throne's arm.

Occasionally, the latter's figure would flicker, a sign that he wasn't there and was instead using a thought projection.

Silence between the two stretched on until, finally, another flickering figure emerged from the dark and empty hallway. He, much like the others, was muscular in build with pants and a cloak lined with fur, and an open shirt that revealed several black lines across his dark torso and face. The clinking of a wooden and skull-adorned staff accompanied each step of his heavy boots.

"You're late, Brain," said the elderly man.

"Apologies, Lord Hades, but when a certain project of mine broke free she destroyed a lot of equipment in the process. Equipment I'm still repairing," the dark-skinned man said as he sat in his chair. "How is little Ultear, anyway? I haven't heard from her since you gave me my most recent apprentice."

"She is doing remarkably well. I can say with confidence she has the largest collection of tomes regarding the Arc of Time magic in the entire world. And what about your little gifts? The ones you plucked from the Tower?"

"Those six kids are quite gifted, and I would say it's only a matter of time before I have five of them fully trained for combat."

"Only five? What about that one child Ultear used her possession magic on?"

"Ah, Jellal Fernandes. He's the one I invited all of you here to talk about. It's only been a few years and I can quite confidently say he deserves a seat at this table. One of the first lessons proved that he was a prodigy beyond understanding. His first time using the Square of Destruction, a spell I created, he destroyed an entire mountain in one attempt without experiencing any magic fatigue. He was still ten at the time"

"How quaint," said the man with a spear, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Ah, forgive me for not acknowledging your presence Walraven. It is uncouth of me to bring up matters your unscholarly mind cannot begin to comprehend."

"Just get on with this little soiree so we can all leave."

"As you wish," Brain waved his hands over the topographic map causing a holographic image of the capital of Fiore to appear. "Jellal has successfully managed to infiltrate the Magic Council. He signed up as a member of the academy, yet quickly proved himself too competent for any grading system they could provide. The Council, as the school's primary ruling body, took notice and prospected him about joining the Rune Knights as a junior investigator. Once again, he continued to prove his prowess, this time as a combatant."