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[X784, Somewhere in Fiore, Two months ago]
— Laxus Dreyar —
"Laxus."
The voice came out of a lacrima crystal, the communication that the master gave to every S-Class mage. The figure of his grandfather was visible on the crystal's face.
Laxus sat back in his chair, boots propped up on the table, drink half-empty by his side.
"What do you want, old man?" Laxus asked with a gruff voice. The relationship between them was still strained, Laxus unwilling to do anything with the old master aside from guild business. The relationship they now had was strictly professional.
"Just so you're updated, Phantom Lord attacked Fairy Tail just last night. They merely roughed up our guild building, but it is still an act of aggression that I can't ignore." Makarov's expression remained neutral.
"Then why tell me?" Laxus grunted. "You and I both know you won't do anything unless they actually hurt anyone. It's this kind of passiveness that makes people like Jose think we're weak."
"I'm not here to debate with you about our principles. God knows we've done that hundreds of times already." Makarov sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "No, I'm here to talk to you about your father."
Laxus narrowed his eyes. "What about him?"
Makarov gave him a knowing look. "Stop this charade, Laxus. Did you really think I wouldn't know you've been looking for him?"
Laxus' hands cracked the wooden table in front of him. "First, you excommunicate my dad, and then you forbid me to look for him?"
Makarov's gaze softened in that infuriating way that Laxus hated. "I'm not forbidding you from doing anything. As a matter of fact, I encourage it."
That surprised him. "What?" Laxus asked incredulously.
"You're not the only one trying to keep tabs on my wayward son. However, I received troubling news recently. My sources say that Ivan is working under Oracion Seis, though I'm not sure what exactly it is they're working on."
"Let me guess," Laxus's tone was flat. "You want me to find out."
"Yes." Makarov nodded. "I know it's a bit of a sensitive subject, but I can't trust this to anyone else."
Laxus frowned. "What about Dannis? Or Gildarts?"
"Dannis is on vacation with Mira. Mavis knows that boy deserves it. Gildarts is still at Alvarez."
"Right…" Laxus mused.
"Besides, I know you still have plenty of questions about the truth of your father's excommunication." Makarov stated resolutely. "I know our relationship isn't the best right now. Truthfully, I realize most of it is my fault, but you're way past listening to my reasons. So perhaps seeing him yourself would provide you the answers you need."
A contemplative scowl appeared on Laxus' face as he processed the words. The tension in his chest tightened painfully, but he refused to show it. "Fine. I'll do it. Where is he?"
"We don't know yet. But considering that he works for Oracion Seis, there is bound to be alliances in that hierarchy. Scour the dark guilds and look for one that has a connection to Raven Tail."
Laxus's mouth twisted. "And what happens when I find him?"
Makarov's eyes hardened. "I trust you'll make the right decision then."
Laxus stared at the lacrima for a long moment before snapping it shut. His reflection stared back at him in the darkened window of the pub, distorted and hazy.
"Yeah," he muttered. "Whatever."
…
[Present time]
The cold mountain air bit into his skin as Laxus pushed through the snow. His breath fogged the air in short, harsh bursts.
The peaks of the Velothi Mountains stretched out around him, he was so high up that snow was present all over. In the distance, he could spot the massive city of Crocus, now only the size of a pebble from this far up.
Laxus's boots crunched through the frost as he approached the rock formations ahead. The Thunder God Tribe had already left.
They had been hunting down dark guilds for months now, following one loose thread after another, all in search of Ivan. Even prior to Gramps' giving him the mission, they had taken down and interrogated every dark guild they could find. Only that time, they had done so blindly.
The last solid lead they'd gotten on Ivan's whereabouts was four years ago when they took down Mummy's Fear. He had learned then about the underworld meeting that would happen in Scrapyard's Den, though he was too late to do anything about it.
It was the next day when word of the creation of the Balam Alliance reached his ears. He wasn't one to believe in coincidences. That meeting must've been what kickstarted the whole thing, and he was willing to bet that his dear old dad must've been present.
But now, with Gramps' intel, they now know enough to target the guilds that were associated with Oracion Seis. They had continued to do so in the past two months, only recently finding a connection to Raven Tail from one of the dark guilds that regularly does collaborations with them.
A quick interrogation revealed that Raven Tail was based around the Velothi Mountains, and here he was now.
Laxus stopped when he spotted the strange clearing ahead — a circle of land barren of snow, the frost melting away unnaturally. The twisted fortress of Raven Tail rose from the rock, a jagged, ugly spire of stone and darkened steel.
'Found you.'
Laxus narrowed his eyes as he crept closer. Taking a sniff of the air, he detected an odd and decently strong presence in the area. Suppressing his magic to remain undetected — a feat any mage worth their salt should be able to do — he slowly and quietly followed the trail.
What he found was very interesting. There was a very young girl — who couldn't be older than twelve — with short pink hair that currently held a Raven Tail mage by the throat. She wore some sort of gold wing-like headgear around her ears, with a purple leotard and thick thigh-high boots.
[Image]
Her grip was unnaturally strong, holding up a man twice her size with one hand. From the sounds of it, she was interrogating him for something.
What caught Laxus' attention was the guild mark that was present on the girl's shoulder cape. The guildmark of Grimoire Heart.
'Well, that's interesting.'
"What are Ivan's plans?" the girl asked, a seal of pink magic on her wrist that was shaped like a heart. A quick look had him notice the similar seal located on the Raven tail mage's wrist.
"W–What plans?!" The Raven Tail mage wheezed, clawing at her hand. "Please Meredy-sama! I don't know anything!"
"Ivan isn't in the guild. Where is he?" Meredy ignored his pleas, her expression remaining stoic and calm. Laxus noted how the seal would spin, the Raven mage screaming in pain as a result.
'Some kind of pain-inducing magic?' He mused.
"M–Master Ivan is on a mission by Lord Brain! Something about a tower near the coast of the Caelum Kingdom!"
"I see. That makes sense. Thank you." Meredy clenched his fist, the seal spinning faster as a result. The mage in her hands began convulsing as his mouth opened into a silent scream. She dropped his lifeless body not a second later.
Hearing what he needed, Laxus smirked as he decided to announce his presence.
"Now that's some real valuable information. Mind if I use it myself?"
The girl's head whipped around as she jumped back a good distance. The seal on her wrist spinning erratically as she met his gaze.
"Laxus Dreyar. S-Class mage of Fairy Tail." She said expressionlessly, though Laxus could see the twitch in her eye for being snuck up upon. Laxus' smirk widened at that.
"I thought Raven Tail was working under Oracion Seis." He crossed his arms, leaning his head to one side. "Why is a mage of Grimoire Heart interrogating a member of Raven Tail? I'm pretty sure you dark mages aren't buddy buddy enough to involve yourselves with another guild's subordinate."
"That's none of your business." Her green eyes narrowed.
"On the contrary." Sparks began to emit from his figure. "You're asking all these questions about my pops. I can't help but be interested."
"Ivan Dreyar is your father?" Meredy's eyes widened. "Yes, that makes sense. You are Makarov's grandson."
A frown appeared on his face upon hearing those words again. "Makarov's Grandson, eh? Is that still all I'm known for?"
"Hardly." She lifted her hands in preparation, the seal glowing. "Your name is known by many as one of the strongest mages of Fairy Tail."
A loud bark of laughter exited his mouth. "Is that right? Knowing that, do you really still wanna fight me? I won't hold back just because you're a kid. Being a mage of Grimoire Heart already took away any kind of sympathy I would've had for you."
"For my guild, I'll do anything."
Laxus could smell her genuinity. His smile widened, revealing a fanged grin. "Good, then show me what Grimoire mages could do."
Lightning roared to life around him, crackling in fierce, wild arcs. With a single step, he vanished — reappearing directly in front of Meredy.
Her eyes widened as his fist crashed into her crossed arms. The force sent her hurtling backward, through the outer wall of Raven Tail's fortress.
Laxus followed her trajectory with his eyes before lightning coursed his veins. He shot forward, reaching the guild in record time.
He arrived to see her coughing from the dust and smoke. Raven Tail mages looked at them with shock and confusion.
"Raven Tail!" Meredy called through a series of coughs. "My name is Meredy, of Grimoire Heart." She cast a gaze at Laxus. "That man is Laxus Dreyar of Fairy Tail! He is here to assassinate your guildmaster!"
"Laxus Dreyar? The boss' kid?" A Raven Tail mage questioned. He was short, stocky, and had a prominent slouch to his posture. Others would be quite distraught at his appearance, especially considering his strange pale, purple skin. But Laxus recognized him. Nullpudding, one of Ivan's elite mages.
[Image]
"It can't be him, can it?" a smooth and reverbed voice called out from the side. Another of Ivan's elites. Kurohebi, a tall and slim man with odd snake-like pupils. He was covered entirely in black attire.
[Image]
"Help me defeat him, and you'll have the favor of one of Grimoire Heart's elite mages." Meredy finished.
"Bahahaha! You think we care about that little girl?" Nullpudding laughed, the sounds coming out like sandpaper. "Though I admit, the boss' son coming here was unexpected. What do you think, Kurohebi? You wanna kill him?"
"Of course." Kurohebi licked his lips. "The more precious something is, the more I want to destroy it. How much do you think the Master would praise us if we gift him his son's head?"
Laxus merely looked at this with an amused smirk. Nullpudding and Kurohebi began to circle him, with the other Raven Tail mages joining in.
"Tch." Meredy clicked her tongue. "Whatever." Meredy will point a palm towards Laxus, the same heart-shaped seal appearing on his wrist. He merely raised an eyebrow towards it.
Surrounded as he was with Raven Tail mages at all sides, a large grin appeared on his face. "So you're my old man's soldiers, huh?"
Laxus cracked his knuckles. Lightning surged across his arms. His eyes flashed dangerously beneath the shadow of his hood.
'Gramps told me to find the answers myself.' His grin widened. 'Time to see what these bastards are made of.'
"Come on then!" Laxus roared, his form crackling with golden light.
"Lightning Dragon's Roar!"
For miles across, anyone within the Velothi Mountains would hear the crack of thunder. A massive blast of white-hot lightning erupted from his mouth, cutting through the air like a storm.
…
AN: I don't know if y'all remember a bit of detail back in chapter 48. I mentioned that Makarov would talk to Laxus. This is that conversation.
Laxus is pretty fun to write. His whole arrogant persona that looks down on everyone and everything makes for a great inner monologue.
Hope you enjoyed the chapter.
Cheers lads.