Disclaimer: Hey guys! Firestorm40 here with a new chapter for you all. I do not own any of the characters except my own OCs. Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima.

Special thanks to the reviewers and to the readers who Fav/Alert this story, I really appreciate it. So without further ado, Enjoy!

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Somewhere outside the Cube...

"That's a lie!" Gray said as he looked at Silver straight in the eyes. "My father is dead! I saw him with my own eyes!"

"My name is Silver Fullbuster, I'm your father." Silver proclaimed, the smirk still etched in his face.

"You're lying!" Enraged Gray attacked him with Ice Make: Lance but the man simply disregarded the attack with just a wave of an arm, breaking the ice weapons like they were toothpicks. Not discouraged yet, the ice mage fell back on the usual fist fight but his efforts are in vain, for Silver quickly parries all of his attacks and blows him away with a simple attack of his own.

"You are so naive." Silver said when the ice mage skidded to a halt.

"My father cannot be alive." Gray stated, causing Silver to burst up laughing before going on the offense, unleashing every single attack he had in his arsenal.

"Hahaha, this is nice!" The ice demon slayer crows with glee, slamming Gray over and over again with his barrage of ice magic. "You're reacting exactly as I imagined! Your facial expression is one of perfection!"

"Gah!" Gray grunted as he raised his arms to shield from the onslaught of attacks.

"Indeed, it's true that I'm your father...but that story doesn't relate to me."

"What do you mean?" Gray asked, collapsing to the ground exhausted from enduring Silver's attacks.

"I'm someone much more important for you." Silver grinned a nasty grin when Gray looked at him in a confused manner. "We are destined to fight!"

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"Whoops!" Natsu grunted, somersaulting backwards as Tempester slammed his fist where the dragon slayer once stood. Concurrently as the two ice mages were fighting the dragon slayers and Juvia were continuing their battle with Tempester, Torafuza and Ki-su. Although they put up a fair effort, they were quickly pushed back by the Demon Gates' teamwork.

"Solar Dragon's Blazing Hammer!" Sora slamming his fist into the ground, causing Tempester to dodge it.

"Uuuh...uh..." Lucy managed to recover a little strength, enough to push her body half-way off the ground. "I can...still..."

"Rest, Luce." Sora said, getting her attention as he prepared himself for another bout much to the demons' disgust. "We'll be fine."

"Also, I've been sensing it for a while..." Gajeel spoke as he stood by Natsu's side, the fire dragon slayer nodding his head in agreement. "This smell...it's them."

"So, they came after all." Sora said with a smirk.

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The Dragon Slaying duo from Sabertooth who came to Minerva's rescue progressed through their own battle with Mard Geer in another location of Cube, though their attacks still do little more than nothing to the Underworld King. He just merely weaved back and forth between the attacks without so much as batting an eyelash, it was almost like the demon king was taunting them.

"Fight seriously, Bastard." Sting cursed as he and Rogue continued to drive Mard back.

"I see." The demon said as he is struck and goaded to fight seriously. "I can somewhat understand why Kyouka...likes to play with humans. You don't think that death awaits you. Your ideals and actions are mostly led by feelings." He cracks a smile that didn't have a faint sense of laughter. "And you don't realize your weaknesses. You're absolutely ignorant...so foolish that you're almost lovely."

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"Do you know where the control room is? Minerva." Erza asked. The two of them stumbled through ruins of the demon guild for quite some time after leaving the battle behind but they hadn't been able to pinpoint the exact location of the control room.

"It's hard to find the way with everyone destroyed..." Minerva replied, trying not to lean against Erza too much and focused on recovering her strength.

"Someone is coming." Lector spoke up, notifying the two ladies. The Saber Exceeds were in the lead and helped out with finding the right route by using their noses.

"Frosch agrees." Frosch said as they watched three small forms approaching them from the front.

"Ah!" Happy exclaimed when he, Lucas and Lily emerged, spotting the group.

"Lucas, Happy, Lily." Erza said with relief when she recognized them.

"Erza!" Lucas returned her call with a tail wave and rushed over with his paws outstretched.

"Minerva...and Saber's Exceeds." Lily commented as he followed Happy.

"It's been so long, Happy, Lucas." Lector said as he ran towards the Fairy Exceeds.

"It's great to see you guys!" Frosch said.

"Sorry, but we're in a hurry." Erza reminded them though she couldn't help but smile at their little reunion. "We'll celebrate later."

"We'll come with you." Lily said.

"Happy, your head looks so fashionable!" At that statement made by Lector, Minerva immediately honed in on the mushroom on the Exceed's head. Removing herself from Erza's side, she knelt down in front of the blue cat who trembled nervously in her presence and her eyes narrowed dangerously.

"GYAAAHHHHHH!" Happy yelped when she forcefully tears the mushroom right off, taking along a small chunk of fur. "What are you doing?!"

"This is one of those Nine Demon Gates known as Franmalth..." Minerva revealed as she tightened her grip on him, the mushroom wiggled violently in hopes of escaping but it was no use. "He probably knows where the control room is."

"You're great, Lady!"

"Lady~!" Lector and Frosch jumped up and down with glee.

"That was a nice one, Happy." Lilly praised the blue Exceed who admitted that he didn't do anything that special.

"Nice one." Lucas agreed.

"Less than one hour until Face is activated." Erza said, giving Minerva a nod. "Let's hurry!"

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Back to Gray's fight...

"Destined to fight?!" Gray asked as he got back to his feet, preparing for another attack.

"Where should I start from?" Silver asked as he repeatedly struck the Fairy Tail mage down. "Right...first of all I'll tell you about this body. This body is a vessel. It's just a corpse that I found."

"Bastard..." Gray growled as he pushed himself up to his feet once again. "What do you mean by that?"

"All members of Tartaros are demons from Zeref's book. Likewise, my real form is not human either." Silver revealed in almost a gloating fashion. "You know...having the aspect of a demon can be inconvenient sometimes. That's why we usually look like humans. Just when I was looking for a human I happened upon this nice body. And I've been using it ever since."

"...how could you..."

"But even though I thought it was a coincidence...this body might have connected you and me." Silver continued by explaining that he's been using the body ever since he killed the man and that by pure coincidence, their fates are even further bound by that one fact, as well as that he's been waiting years to be able to kill Gray with his own hands. "You don't know how much I've waited...for the day that I could kill you."

"What are you saying, Bastard?! How dare you use my father's body...? " Gray spat, expressing his utter disgust at Silver for using his father's corpse, "I have the right to hate you...but you don't have a reason to hate me."

"Actually...I want to annihilate all of Ur's pupils." Silver said which contradicted what Gray just said. The ice mage's eyes widened at the mere mention of his teacher's name. "She kept me trapped for 10 years..."

"What?"

"My name is Deliora." Silver said with a malicious grin, revealing his true identity hidden within his body. "I'm sure you haven't forgotten me, Gray." The ice mage stood with his mouth open as images flashed through his mind. He remembered seeing Deliora for the first time and witnessed Ur's last moments to protect him as well as the other villagers.

'I won't let you get close to my disciples!' She had shouted at the demon and her arms flew into an 'X' formation, her eyes flashed dangerously as she prepared to cast her spell. 'This is your end! Monster! Iced Shell!'

'UR...!'

"No way..." Gray mumbled as more images flashed through his mind. "Deliora was killed by Ur..."

"That's right." Silver agreed. "I was, in 10 years. But Tartaros had Hell's Core, a device to restore one's physical body."

"Are you really...that time's Deliora..."

"DO you want to see my real shape?" Silver grinned when he saw Gray trembled with anger. "The same as when I killed your parents?" Suddenly Gray snapped, his eyes filled with uncontrollable rage and he charged at a laughing Silver.

"DELIORAAAAAAA!" He roared as he conjured up his ice magic.

"Come, Ur's ghost." Silver growled in response. Dodging Gray's attack, he sent it right back to the summoner and also used the opportunity to push the ice mage away. Bouncing back, Gray continued his assault on his father.

"Ice Make..." Raising his hand sup into the air, he created a massive great-sword out of ice. "Cold Excalibur!" He swung it downwards in a high-arc upon Silver.

"Hahahaha!" Silver laughed as he caught the blade just inches from cleaving his face. Then to Gray's surprise, he started to eat away at the sword until there was nothing left. "Against slayer wizards you can't use the same type of magic as them. Wahaha!"

'Damn it...!' Gray gritted his teeth together in frustration.

"Ur's school only used ice. That's why I mastered demon slaying magic resistant to ice." Silver grinned as he starts to slice Gray's body with his Devil Slayer Magic and taunts him, stating that he's always wished to see Gray's face twisted in agony, adding that he'll go after Lyon next before killing all of Gray's friends.

"Stop saying bullshit...with my father's body and voice!" Gray growled before creating an intricately-designed hammer. "Ice Impact!"

"It won't work." Silver proclaimed as he gulped down that attack as well. "Here I come." Puckering up his cheeks he unleashed a huge blast of purple ice in Gray's direction. "Ice Devil's Rage!"

"UGWAHHHH!" Gray yelled as the blizzard inflicts great damage upon those it contacts, causing everyone unable to resist it to be sent flying away with great force, as well as leaving behind a trail of destruction in its wake, heavily damaging the area it passes through.

"Ahahahaha!" Silver laughed maniacally at the boy's pain.

'Ahaha...become strong, Gray.' Struggling to get up, the boy remembered his real father's words about getting stronger and stood shakily to both feet.

"I will defeat you with my own hands...at all costs..." He promised and glared at the ice demon that stood before him.

"Ice doesn't work on me." Silver responded with a sneer. "Your probability of winning is zero."

"Ice make...Cannon!" Crafting a small, ornate cannon from ice Gray fires nearby rubble at Silver, who commented that it was stupid before actually getting smacked in the face.

"Debris...So you created a rifle with ice...and used it to fire objects not made of ice." He figured out Gray's plan which proves to be effective. "However..." After repeated bombardments, Silver freezes the entire battle area, ultimately stopping Gray's attack and rendering further ones of a similar nature useless.

"This is..." Gray looked around at the frozen surroundings as his cannon disappeared.

"Now everything is covered in ice. Huhahaha...now you can't use neutral objects anymore." Silver gloated.

"You dug your own grave." Gray replied with a smile of his own as he pressed both hands upon the cold ground."This is the same magic that covered the Sun Village in ice. I can absorb this ice...and recreate it in my own shape."

"What?"

"I know very well that slayer wizards can't be defeated with their own magic type. But there is one exception." Gray explains as he remembered a talk he had with Natsu. The fire dragon slayer told him that he couldn't eat his own flame. "A slayer's immunity to their respective element is their element produced by their own magic...therefore you're gonna vanish!" Redirecting Silver's ice back at him the ice mage calls for the demon to disappear, but Silver emerges from the attack without much further injury.

"It's true that I can't eat my own magic. But still, ice doesn't work on me..." He smiled as he towered over the Ice-Make Mage. "Have you finally remembered the terror you felt...in front of Deliora?"

'This is...insane...' Gray thought as he was knocked backwards by Silver's attack.

"What's happening? You lost your energy. Are you scared?" The self-proclaimed Demon snarled as he continued to deliver strikes against Gray's body with a wicked expression. "Hahaha! I want your face to be more twisted. Feel more fear, human. You look too proud in front of a calamity! Did you think you had a chance of winning!? Did you think you could turn anger into power!? Remember!" He knocked his opponent back, sending the ice mage tumbling across the ground. "This is what despair tastes like. Humans can't win against demons!"

"Still...I...I...I have to win." In spite of his injuries, Gray gets back up, determined beat Silver no matter what it takes. He was covered in wounds and one of his eyes was mildly injured. It took awhile before he was able to have both eyes open.

"Ice doesn't work against me. I blocked your physical attacks and you can't win against me just with your feelings alone."

"Not yet...I still have something left." Gray says and to Silver's surprise, he took a stance that looked almost like he was going to cast Iced Shell; his right arm over left in the shape of an 'X', the right palm faced down while the left faced up. The ice mage once explained this particular magic to his friends, stating that the caster isn't necessarily 'dead' but is sill alive in the form of ice. He himself bared witness to this powerful spell when Ur performed it to seal Deliora back when he was young, destroying her body in the process. "Iced Shell!"

"I know it's a bluff." Silver says almost with certainty. "That magic freezes the opponent for eternity in exchange or the user's life. It uses your own life." He shook his head almost out of pity. "Plus, ice won't work on me."

"Really? Try to remember..." Gray replied casually. "...the magic that imprisoned you for 10 years."

"That's before I mastered Demon slaying magic!"

"Then have the guts to receive this!"

"You can't do it! You'll die!"

"I'll surpass the Deliora!" Gray roared as he poured all of his remaining strength into his last attack. Visibly scared, Silver attempts to counter-attack, but all his attack hits is a clone.

"For my family..." Gray spoke as he appeared behind Silver, his arms still in the same position as before. "And for Ur."

"Shit...it was a sculpture!" Silver cursed as the clone crumpled to the ground in various sized ice chunks.

'That time I stopped you cause I didn't want you to die.' Natsu's voice spoke through the ice mage's mind when he remembered the first time he attempt to use Iced Shell. The dragon slayer was quite pissed. 'Did you not hear my voice?' Suddenly multiple images of his guild mates flashed past his mind, even Lyon and Ur, they were smiling at him with such warm smiles.

'I love you Gray!' An image of Juvia popped into his mind, her splitting smile and the blush on her face whenever she greeted him either when he came back from a job or just for hanging out. She was always there by his side no matter what.

'Everyone...my teacher...Sorry.' "ICED SHELL!"

"Ice doesn't..." Silver grunted as he attacked Gray again, using both hands to push back against the swirling ice. "...work on me!" The might of his magic power shattered Gray's attack and flew right at the user who was left wide open and defenseless. "I crushed your Iced Shell!"

'Sorry...everyone...I was about to forget something important.'

"Another damn sculpture!?" Silver exclaimed when the second clone was destroyed right before his eyes.

'I won't die!' Gray told himself. 'I don't wanna see my friends crying.'

"A steel ball?!" Silver finally turned around to see the real Gray standing behind him, holding the object in his hand. "Where did you..."

"I'm the one who melted the ice in the Sun Village." Gray said as he covered the ball with his ice, creating a large gauntlet-like sculpture. "Ice Make...Vambrace!" He swung his arm forward like a baseball player, the steel ball sailed through the air like a bullet train and pierced Silver's torso before embedding itself into an ice-covered stone wall, severely cracking it down to the core.

"Well...done..." Silver praised him after falling to the ground defeated with a large circular hole in the middle of his chest.

"Shit..." Gray cursed, his body trembled uncontrollably as Silver watched. "Did you think...I wouldn't notice...? Why? Shit...! You're not the Deliora."

"Hrm...?"

"You're my father." Gray stated firmly.

"Land...the last...blow..." Silver spoke after he heard Gray's words.

"Don't be kidding me! You're my father, aren't you!?" The ice mage pressed, urging the man to give him the right answer. "What are you doing here!?"

"I was...waiting...for you to...kill me..." He said. "Yes...I was...your father...but now...I'm not a...human anymore...I'm not even a demon..."

"Then...what are you?"

"I'm just dead." Silver simply told him. "I died...17 years ago. Necromancer. It's a curse to control corpses. I was a corpse he collected for his experiments."

"Experiments?!" Gray repeated in shock.

"He was experimenting to see how much he could make corpses behave like living humans..." Silver explained. "I was just one of hundreds of corpses...but...I lived so far...or maybe I should say 'I moved'..." He grinned widely as he stared up at the sky. "It was all for the sake of...taking revenge...on the demons that took away my family..."

"...what?"

"I stayed in a demons' guild but went around secretly killing demons. I'm sorry for the Sun Village...in the end it seems that flame wasn't a demon. I was planning to weaken the other demons...and eventually carry out my plan of destroying Tartaros. But then...I found out that you were alive." Silver closed his eyes as he remembered watching Gray participating in the Games on a monitor, watched as his son unleashed his ice magic skills before the audience and won his battle against Rufus. It brought tears to the old man's eyes and he was proud of his son. "And I realized...that my hands were too dirty. I had no right to fight for you and your mother Mika..."

"Is that why you wanted to die?" Gray asked him.

"I'm already dead...I wanted to 'end'. Leaving...everything...to you..."

"That's too egotistic...!" The ice mage told him. "You didn't leave me anythi..." Then he paused when he remembered what he told Silver about his family, his friends, his teacher and how he'll surpass Deliora. He released a sigh instead.

"It's okay..." Silver grunted as he moved to a sitting position. "You're...fine now...I was cruel to you...I even hurt you...I'm sorry."

'He did all of that...so that I could overcome that nightmare...'

"You can forget about me...I'm just a dead man...in the end."

"But you're still...my father..." Gray told him gently.

"No." Silver denied it and when he looked at Gray, tears were falling from his eyes. "No father would hit his son. So please...just kill...me..."

"Do you want relief?" Gray asked as he used his ice magic to created a sword.

"Please..." Silver begged as he bowed his head to Gray. "Let me go to Mika's side..."

'Shit...why is this so difficult?!' Gray growled, his body trembling. Part of him didn't want to kill his dad and that's what made him self-doubt and hesitant.

"Don't hesitate!" Silver yelled, cutting through his thoughts. "I helped them with the Face Project! I even killed members of the council! I'm your enemy!"

"Yeah..." Gray said with agreement and steeled his resolve, striding forward with the intent to kill. "Even if you're my real father...you're my guild's enemy! That's how we've protected our guild, our family, so far!"

"That's how humans are."

"But...I still can't kill you." Gray then threw away the sword with frustration and started to bawl his eyes out. "Shit...shit!"

"That's how humans are too." Silver stood up slowly and walked over to Gray. For the first time since 17 years, father and son reunited with a manly hug. "Either why, my body isn't going to last long."

"Dad..." The ice mage whispered as he tightened the embrace, missing the warmth of his father and didn't care if his tears and blood stained his father's shirt. "Let me stay...like this for awhile...longer..."

"You became a good man. Gray." Silver said as he held his son close. "We're proud of you."

That's a wrap for this chapter! Hope you all enjoyed it. Next chapter will updated soon, look forward to it. Also, I was thinking of adding the Ovas in the story. Let me know what you guys think. Comment on your favorite parts and don't forget to vote!

Be sure to review. Until then, see ya!!!