Firefall || Fairy Tail

37 : t h e . u n d e r w o r l d . k i n g

"Kia," Gray shouted, "what happened to you?!"

Even Sting and Rogue began to rouse at the odd commotion, tilting their heads to take in the condition of the Phoenix Slayer. Blood was dried to her skin around the array of holes that spotted the visible skin on her arms, but Kia showed no signs of pain or exhaustion besides the heavy rise and fall of her shoulders as her breaths came out ragged.

And she didn't respond to any of the boys behind her, her glare locked on the Etherious that was rising to his feet.

"I see the Celestial Spirit King did miss you when he took down the Plutogrim?"

Confusion crossed the other four's faces though Natsu asked the question, "What?"

But again, his sister failed to turn to him. "You should have known that he would make things as difficult as possible for you."

Though the smirk could not be seen on his demonic features, it was evident in his tone, "You think that you'll be a difficulty for me?"

Kia clenched her fists tighter, "I'm done playing, Mard Geer."

"And I assume you're also done playing diplomat."

Flames began rolling up the Phoenix Slayer's body. She knew that she didn't have a lot of magic power to use, but she also knew that she now had limited access to the power that had been sealed away long before the events on Tenrou Island. "You should have taken the chance to back down when I offered it."

Natsu and Gray shared a look, trying to understand why it sounded as if the pink-haired female in front of them was speaking to the being who called himself the Underworld King as if she knew him.

"Why would I ever concede to your wishes, little phoenix? Especially when you're determined to stay in that measly form."

"That form?" Gray turned to Natsu again. "What does he mean?"

The Fire Dragon Slayer only continued to stare at his sister's back, "I don't know."

"Though I wonder," Mard Geer's eyes squinted slightly, "when did you get the courage for your betrayal?"

No one in the immediate area was prepared for the laughter that came from Kia. She even allowed herself the luxury of closing her eyes for that moment of amusement.

"What do you find so amusing?"

Her laughter pulled back to a chuckle, "I never thought you were that dumb, Mard Geer." She stopped laughing, her gaze locking back to her enemy with a smirk on her lips, "You can't betray anything if you weren't on its side in the first place."

A growl sounded in his throat, "That's impossible."

"Wrong." Kia stopped holding back, her flames flickered rapidly as they began to engulf her entire being, "We're Fairy Tail..." she pushed off from the ground, leaving a small crater as she charged, "...and nothing is impossible for us! Phoenix Talon!"

Mard Geer lifted his arm to block the flaming kick, pushing her back. Kia flipped, resummoning her wings to take to the air. And he followed.

Raising an arm, another glowing sphere appeared in front of his palm before streams of vines shot directly for her. "I always did prefer you in chains and screaming for mercy."

She twirled through the vegetation, focusing her magic toward her hands. "You should have stayed in hell!"

Kia paused her dodging long enough to slam her hands toward in front of her, a few of the thorns ripping into her side. "Phoenix Tornado!"

The cyclone of fire cut through the curse, making Mard Geer dart around to miss the larger part of the attack. However, there was something different with Kia's flames. As they flickered up her body, the occasional ring of black could be seen mixed in with her normal magic. Gray clenched his right fist tighter as he felt another tingling in his arm, almost as if it were reacting to Kia's spell. It gave the new Demon Slayer an uneasy feeling that he just couldn't shake. There were too many things that had been said between the Phoenix Slayer and the Underworld King that weren't helping his suspicions any.

But it wasn't like he could ask any of his questions right then as the two winged combatants went back and forth in the air above them. Kia was keeping the fight low as she switched to her more basic spells that used less magic, her cry and her talon. As much as she wanted to destroy Mard Geer, she knew that she didn't have the strength right then, but she could wear him down, she could let the boys see how he fought.

Her brother watched eagerly, wanting to jump in and help, but Natsu knew his sister well enough to understand what she was doing. He would be getting in her way until she said otherwise. This was how they used to do missions when they had first joined Fairy Tail and he was still young. She would do the bulk of the fighting and leave space for him to get experience as well. Kia would also tell him to pay attention to how she moved, when she thought a move through versus when she reacted on instinct. "As a little dragon, you should be able to tell the difference. It will be key if you ever have to fight other wizards: knowing how they fight can help you to understand why they fight as well." In a weird way, it was like Igneel had continued teaching him through his sister. It was one of the main reasons why he was so good at fighting, what they were doing at that moment.

"Phoenix Talon!" Kia was upside down in the air, foot looped around Mard Geer's forearm. Holding him in place, she amassed everything in her core. The warmth swirled in her chest before the mixed flames of red and black with the light specks of silver shot from her mouth right into the Etherious' face. "Phoenix Cry!"

Mard Geer used his other arm to smack her leg away in an attempt to change the trajectory of her cry, but he only saved himself from a little more than half the damage. Kia had already assumed that he could try that, but it didn't mean she had the ability to counter as her last attack drained her completely, her wings flickering to pieces and leaving her to freefall, back first.

"Now!"

Fully prepared for her sign, Natsu took in a quick breath and attacked, "Fire Dragon Roar!"

Catching on only a millisecond later, Gray followed suit, "Ice Demon Rage!"

And then Kia realized what the difference in Gray's magical energy had been, he had acquired Demon Slaying magic. That was something she would have to worry about later, right now there were more important things to think about: the first being the best way to crash without breaking her entire body.