Sorry this is late guys... It's been a bit chaotic, here, but here I am with a longer chapter! 

~~~~~~~~~~

Going through town was an enlightening experience in and of itself, all around me were groups of people, all of whom were chatting happily as they watched Fairy Tail fight. Apparently, they were under the impression that Fairy Tail was putting on some kind of performance with their fighting. It was a good thing that the general public wasn't panicking, but I couldn't help but wince at the amount of property damage that was being done in the fights.

Sure, Freed was a genius when it came to runes, but could he not have been a bit more aware of the houses when he was setting this up? The bill that the guild would receive when this was over would be horrendous...There were definitely those who were entirely invested in this, as was made evident by all the smashed rooves that were scattered around the city.

Never in my life had I been happier to not be affected by Freed's magic, I was able to walk through the fights entirely unnoticed, except for the situations where it became apparent that citizens were likely to get hurt.

The shield lacrimas I had bought at Gavin's were already running low because I was placing them in area's that seemed to have a high amount of damage being done. I needed to find Ever and quickly because once I did that Laxus would lose his hostages... Not that it would stop him from continuing with this hairbrained plan, but it would allow Fairy Tail to stop fighting each other for a few minutes.

Ever's blood was just as easy to track as Laxus' was, in fact, I could sense where the entirety of the Thunder God Tribe was with pinpoint accuracy. The urge to just grab the blood and pull it was still prominent, but I was beginning to appreciate this new sense; overpowering or not, it was extremely useful. 

Laxus' POV

I lounged against a pillar as Freed and I watched the outcomes of the fights, a smirk lifting my lips as I saw the outcomes of mini-battles, "Just like I thought, they really are tearing each other apart, this is almost too easy." My thoughts were less than pure as I chuckled maniacally, "The old man should be giving in at any minute."

A heavy sigh caused me to look over at Freed with scorn, "What? Do you have something to add?"Quickly I pushed off the pillar and stalked towards the magic display, glaring scornfully at Freed, who seemed to be doubting something, "Don't tell me you're getting cold feet?"

Once again Freed signed, but this time he shook his head, "No sir, that isn't it.." He faded off as he cast a look at me, making my scowl deepen, "I simply think that you shouldn't be so quick to claim victory; after all, Ember could be out there and we have no way of knowing... I think we both know she'll be against us in this."

Coal head... I would have asked her to join our fight when we fought a week ago, but the way she looked at me was unsettling. Perhaps it was because I knew just how serious she was about protecting those she respected, but the look in her eyes when we fought was different in a way I had never seen before.

' If your plan does anything to hurt the guild, I will destroy you before forcing you to apologize to the old man.'

I could feel my hands tightening as her words invaded my thoughts, did she really think she could make me do anything? No matter what I had to do, I would prove her wrong, in the end, she would be the one lying beaten before me. I would make sure of it.

"You don't have to worry too much about Ember, she showed up briefly before wandering off into the woods last night, I wouldn't be surprised if she was still wandering around lost." That drew his attention right too me a small glint of worry flashing across his face, all of us were fully aware of just how terrible Ember's sense of direction was. In fact, more than once we had to rescue her from her terrible sense of direction.

That's how things always went, they had been saving her for years, but that didn't mean she was weak. I wouldn't have let her stick around for so long if she couldn't hold her own, it seemed that for every time we saved her, she helped us out, even after she split from the main group. At that thought, something lapped at my heart, a pressure that I simply didn't care to look too deeply into because it would only be a distraction.

Freed cleared his throat, pulling me out of my inner world, "Fortunately, it seems like that isn't the case," He gestured to a fight that just ended, between two of the guild members, instead of the typical 'win/lose' that appeared above the names, this time both of them sported a 'forfeit' with no apparent reason for the ruling, "Ember must have gotten involved, which would have thrown the rune system for a loop, since it wouldn't have been able to detect the reason both people to drop out so suddenly. Forfeit must simply be the explanation it came up with."

My mind raced, so Ember was here, was she? This could pose a problem with the battle because we all knew that she could beat all three of the Thunder God Tribe in combat without even trying... I highly doubted that the three of them combined could overpower her.

My sharp upper teeth dug into my lip as I considered the situation, as much as I wanted to, Ember was a problem I simply couldn't ignore... "Just leave Coal Head to me, got it?" I barked out, glancing at Freed, "Tell Evergreen and Bickslow as well, if any of you come across her, you need to retreat. am I understood? I  can't afford to lose you guys to her when there's still so much that needs to be done"

I could see the apprehension that had been growing in Freed's eyes recede slightly as he nodded and walked away, his posture stiff, militarial almost, which left me alone with my thoughts. Ember was here, which meant that we would certainly fight... At this moment she was the biggest threat to my plans, and although I was stronger than I had been, it was obvious that she was too. Despite the fact that we had fought over a thousand times throughout the years, I still had to question myself...

Could I really beat her?

Ember's POV

Two of the idiots dropped to the ground unconscious as I finished smashing them together, they had gotten far too close to the public so I decided to step in and take them both out. It wasn't the first time I had done this, and I doubted that it would be the last, Fairy Tail just didn't know how to hold back, which was a virtue and a headache in the same breath.

Unfortunately, that quality of their's had been leading to the atmosphere around town changing, instead of curiosity mixed with irritation, I was starting to see real fear bubbling up in the eyes of the townspeople. They could tell that something wasn't right with this 'festival entertainment' which meant that it was even more important for me to quit stalling and actually find Ever, though... I really didn't want to do this.

I had fought against Ever only three times throughout the years, but this was so much different; I didn't want to fight her when there was so much at stake, just the idea of it left a bitter taste in my mouth. That didn't mean I had a choice though.

I smiled out at the crowd who were all staring at me with dropped jaws before I ran towards the nearest wall and jumped, catching the roof and pulling myself up. I could sense that Ever was nearby but above ground, which meant that my flashy exit was not only the best way to gain myself some attention, it was also the most practical.

As I ran along the roof feeling like a total badass, I couldn't help but admire just how good of a plan this was. Not only was Laxus weeding out the weak by forcing everyone to fight,  he also was handily breaking several long-established bonds in one move. This would be a good test of Fairy Tail's commitment to family. 

Not that I was too terribly worried, there were enough people who shared the pink-haired idiot's beliefs on family to help the guild get through this.

Out of the corner of my eye, I couldn't help but notice a state of the giant man I had helped pull along during the Phantom Lord battle. He must have tried to fight Ever, that petrification magic of hers really was something.

As I jumped past the statue, Ever's presence disappeared, only to pop back up right above me. Instinctively, I sprang out of the way just in time to see the roof of the building explode, "Hey Ever, watch out, do you really want to make the bill we'll be getting after this is done even higher than it already is?" My voice held no small amount of exasperation as I looked up in the air at her, a hand propped on my hip and my over hand in from of my eyes to shield them from the sun.

"Why would I care?" She was barely visible, due to the bright sun that was directly behind her, but I knew from experience that she was rolling her eyes at me.

A sweet smile touched my face, which was something that I knew was more disturbing to her than my scowl, "Well, I thought you would have realized," I slowly began to tense my muscles as I waited for the perfect time to spring, "The old man will definitely be taking a portion of the repair costs out of your shopping money.

Her offended gasp was all I needed to know I had gotten to her, "Excuse me?" Before she could say anything else, I struck, my magic fueled jump reached where she was still hovering as I pulled her into a headlock and allowed gravity to pull me back to the ground.

Ever's wings attempted to keep us aloft, but they failed, seeing as how I weighed significantly more than she did.

The building below us trembled slightly at out landing, but I wasn't concerned with that, my attention was on Ever, who had pulled away and was looking at me rather nervously, "You seriously think Makarov is going to remain the Master of Fairy Tail? Laxus has been planning this for months, he's more determined than I think I've ever seen him, which is saying something." She took another step towards the edge of the building, "Sorry Ember, but Freed told me to retreat if you came after me... I should go."

Unfortunately for her, I was faster and I had a solid, grounding grip on her arm before her wings could even take form again, "It's funny that you thought you could get away from me, though it was a smart idea to retreat, you might have actually been able to stay away from me for more than a minute. How about we have a chat Ever? Just you and me."

Her face paled significantly as her wings reflected the agitation by fluttering weakly, "What... What would we have to talk about?" I didn't even need to answer that, the blank look I shot her conveyed the message well enough, "O-okay... We'll talk."

I grinned at her before tugging her away from the edge, "I won't lie, normally I wouldn't look for you guys, we both know I could take you down in a heartbeat and my main beef is with the Spark Plug for coming up with the plan in the first place. This time, however, you placed yourself in a bad position by taking hostages, which means that you painted the target that is prominently on your back right now; I have to say Ever, that wasn't your smartest move."

She immediately looked away from me at that, "I know... I wasn't my idea."

My heart clenched at the shame-filled look that filled her eyes, now I just had one more thing to beat Laxus up for later. He had a group that would follow him to the ends of the earth willingly, no matter how bad the consequences could be, yet he still treated them like crap. It pissed me off probably more than him hurting the rest of the guild did.

Despite everything that was willing me to run to where Laxus was and beat the crap out of him, I forced myself to relax my muscles and lift a hand to drop on Ever's head gently, ruffling her hair, "Of course it wasn't your idea, only the Spark Plug could come up with something this incredibly stupid." Once again Ever looked at me, but this time there was hope in her eyes, "Sadly, that does leave us in a bit of a bind."

The hope vanished and in an instant the guarded Ever was back, nodding resolutely, "Either you forfeit and release the girls from their petrification or we fight and I force you to release the girls, either way, you will release them and I will win."

We stared at each other for a solid twenty seconds as we sized each other up before Ever lost the serious look with a snort, "Heh, that's a funny joke, like I could ever beat you in any form of fighting, I honestly prefer not to be slaughtered by you..." I returned her grin wholeheartedly, she may be a bit overconfident in a lot of things, but stupid she was not. "I forfeit, don't worry, I'll release the spell."

A set of runes flashed over Ever's head, announcing that she was 'Disqualified,' in large purple letters. In the same moment, an odd sensation pressed against my mind, it was as though a taut string had just been cut and the recoil was echoing around me in waves. I blinked slowly, trying to understand what just happened.

"-Fight Laxus now?" Ever, thankfully, didn't notice my momentary lapse in concentration and continued talking, pulling me out of my head.

"What?" I asked, feeling as though her voice was reaching me through deep water, what was going on?

"Are you okay Ember?" Instead of reasking her question, Ever was looking at me in concern, "You look pale... Well, paler than normal."

Was I okay? I honestly had no answer to that, as the simple act of feeling the string snap had thrown me for a major loop, "Yeah, I'm fine, just tired... I think, what did you say?"

The look Ever threw me was far from being convinced, but she continued, "Are you going to fight Laxus now?"

Once again, it took me a moment to get my bearings and figure out why I would be fighting Laxus, but thankfully I recover more quickly this time, "No, I... I plan on talking to him and try to talk him out of going through this stupid plan, but fighting him wouldn't help the situation."

She looked confused, but my sudden mental absence made me reluctant to continue, "This is something Fairy Tail needs to do." I muttered before I stood and shook my head again, trying to get rid of the feeling of being stuck underwater. My abrupt shift in demeanor caught Ever off guard as she watched me walk away with a worried look on her face.

I could still feel Laxus' blood flowing around me as I made my way towards the source, only slightly unsteady. The origin was in the center of the city, but that only took up a small portion of my brain as I walked through the city in a daze. What was it about feeling that string that got me so... scrambled?

It happened at the same time Ever was disqualified and I could feel the fact that it originated from her, so I knew it was more than just a reaction to Freed's magic. The only guess I had was the fact that that had to have happened at the same time that Ever dropped her petrification spell. But Why? 

I've been around them when they were using magic, even after my blood magic came roaring back I'd been around them as they used spells, so what was different?

Unfortunately, my hazy brain didn't want to function as I arrived at the place where Laxus' blood was originating from before I could come to a conclusion. My thoughts had cleared up slightly, so I wasn't too terribly worried, but that didn't mean the sensation wouldn't come back... if it came again in the middle of a battle, then that could spell some major trouble for me.

The origin of Laxus' blood was at a place I was relatively familiar with, Kardia Cathedral, a place that we had used as a base when we were younger and playing our war games. Before I could even enter, an odd sensation began to surround me, a pressure on my chest that I simply shrugged off. If I actively paid attention to all the weird crap that was happening to me today, then I would be left paralyzed, unable to do anything.

The door creaked slightly as I slid it open, but that didn't seem to disturb the Spark Plug who was alone inside, cackling wickedly, "I bet you Fairy's think you're safe now that you have the hostages back, but just you wait, soon you'll be clawing at each other's throats to hand control over to me, then all you weaklings will be gone!" I was irritated the first time I heard him talking like this, but now I was just irritated.

"I thought you knew that you had to be stroking a cat while you divulge your evil plan to empty air." I remarked dryly, slipping inside, "And it helps if you have a swivel chair as well, otherwise this whole cliched villain thing just doesn't work."

Thankfully, that cut him off mid-chuckle as he swung around to face me, "What the hell are you talking about, coal head?" Lightning crackled around him as we glowered at each other.

"Isn't it obvious?" I shrugged, not allowing my voice to reflect how truly angry I was, "Jellal and Jose tried to do the whole villain monologue thing as well, but I promise that it doesn't work without the cat and swivel chair. You just end up sounding like a pompous asshole without them." 

He shook his head angrily as he swept his cloak from covering his arms in an unnecessarily dramatic manner, "Are you really calling me a villain, Coal head? I thought you of all people would have been able to see past the opinions of everyone else in the guild."

Ah, so there really was a part of him that thought he was doing the right thing, was there?

My hands dropped to settle comfortably on the pommel of my sword, the door shutting behind me with a final-sounding clunk, "Oh, I'm not here because of what anyone else thinks, I'm here because what you're doing is wrong and I'm sick of watching you throw your temper tantrums when things don't go your way. You're dragging everyone else into your daddy issues, so I would appreciate it if you would stop."

There was a threat behind my words that I knew he could hear, though the only effect was him bristling in more way than one, "You really want to piss me off, don't you? I don't know why I thought you would be on my side with this."

He seemed to be gearing up for a fight, but I couldn't help but grin wryly, "I don't know either, I'm certainly not as compliant as the Thunder God Tribe is towards you."

"Have you seriously not noticed how weak our guild has gotten? It's pathetic!" He practically shouted, apparently being pushed to the edge by my lack of understanding.

I took another step towards him as I answered, "No, I think I've mentioned before that I find their dedication to each other admirable trait, why would I side with you when your main reason for being mad came from the bars you frequent... Which, may I add, says more about your alcoholism than it does about Fairy Tail."

"Raging Bolt!" He yelled, sending a blistering attack my way. 

I think I may have struck a nerve.

It seemed that talking would get me nowhere, so I jumped towards a window that wasn't too far away, "Just so you know, when you've been defeated by the 'weak fairies' as you call them, come talk to me. I have something to tell you, and I promise it won't be I told you so."

With that, I made my hasty exit, leaving just as another bolt of lightning flew over my head, along with the receding sounds of his cursing.

***

As I made my way back towards the guild I couldn't help but feel a little high strung. Laxus wasn't one to make empty threats, so I certainly believed him when he said that he wasn't done just yet. As scary as it was, it probably had something to do with the threads of power I could feel becoming more apparent by the minute... 

My brain still wasn't functioning at 100%, so no matter how hard I thought about it, I couldn't figure out what would be causing this feeling meant, and before I could even reach the guild hall, it became apparent that I couldn't afford to think about this any longer. 

The first indication that something was wrong happened to be the strings becoming taut, to the point of nearly snapping. I could feel the strain they were under as though the strings were in me, an odd feeling to be sure, though things swiftly went downhill after that.

My breathing grew ragged as the strings, which seemed to be situated throughout the city, rose in the air like bullets. It was a good thing that no one was around when this happened, because when it did I collapsed to the ground as the strength was leeched from my muscles.

I tried to control my breathing, but despite that my vision went red, my magic reacting to whatever was happening.

For a moment, I could feel the blood in my veins change direction, causing my whole body to stiffen, similarly to how it had when I was frozen by the celestial spirit king. I couldn't move, I couldn't see, and for a moment, I couldn't breathe either.

Panic filled me as I struggled, but just as quickly as it started, the feeling vanished and feeling slowly returned to my limbs.

I gasped, shaking uncontrollably as I continued to lie on the ground... What was that?

"Ember?!" A panicked voice called out, one that I was sure I could recognize if my mind were in a better place, but as it was, I was lucky to recognize my name. The call of blood filled me prominently as this new person approached and without thinking...

I instinctively grabbed at the heartbeat.

Whoever it was gasped slightly before their body came completely under my control, leaving them defenseless for a moment before another heartbeat literally popped into existence beside the first, but I was to recognize what was happening.

Red tinged my vision of the ground as I savored the feeling of the blood under my control, it was familiar, like an old friend, it reminded me of something... Something warm and powerful... Something heady.

A small amount of blood touched my nose and I inhaled it greedily, it tasted so good, just as it did back then.

...More...

I

Wanted

More

.

.

.

Before I could grab on to that sensation further and fulfill the carnal desire, a blast of light hit me, throwing me all the way down the street. This woke me up as I was forced to right myself so I could land without being injured. The red disappeared from my vision as I looked up only to see an irate Lion standing over me.

"How dare you attack Lucy, I thought you were on our side?" He seethed, but all I could do was blink at him, unsure of what he even meant.

Attack Lucy? Why would I do that? The feeling of something sticky dripping down my chin caught my attention and I jerked away as my eyes widened. My hand flew to my mouth and I wiped myself before staring in horror at the red that covered my hand.

Once again my breathing began to speed up as I fumbled with the satchel around my waist, searching for the potion Porlyusica had given me. I just about lost control again, and it was because of something I didn't understand.

As steadily as my legs would allow, I stood, still completely out of it as I looked around frantically for my would-be victim. "Is she alive?" I croaked out, my voice sounding as though I had just been gargling gravel as I took a large gulp of the potion.

The Lion was still standing to the side, glaring viciously at me, "Why do you want to know, are you looking to finish her off?" 

Thankfully, I spotted her about twenty feet away, leaning against a wall as she stared at me. The Lion moved to get between us, which was totally understandable, my actions were unforgivable.

Without another thought, I dipped into a low bow, not even trying to conceal how badly I was trembling. The look Amber had sent me before she died swimming at the forefront of my mind... It almost happened again... 

"I... I'm so sorry Lucy," I said quickly, still immersed in the memories. Thankfully, the potion had kicked back in and my senses were now dulled slightly. 

I could feel both the Lion and Lucy staring at me as I remained in my bow, my eyes were frozen in a wide open position, but I didn't pay attention to that. A slightly stumbling footstep approached, completely ignoring the Lion's protests, "What was that?" 

Lucy's voice was quiet but there was no mistaking the concern that was hidden in there as well, "Was that your magic? I don't think I've seen... or felt anything like it before."

Why wasn't she running away from me right now? I could have killed her, she should be running away! I nodded my head, still in the low bow as I struggled to prevent myself from hyperventilating, not trusting myself to speak.

The lion seemed to share my distrust as I could feel his heartbeat right behind Lucy, he was tense, ready to pull her away if need be. "You don't have to bow Ember, look, I'm not even bleeding anymore, it's okay."

I still couldn't bring myself to stand up even as my nails broke the skin of my palm. It wasn't until the Lion seemingly became fed up with me, "Enough. We can't stay here anymore Lucy, let's go before she decides to attack you again."

That caused an involuntary flinch to tear through me even as a hand landed on my shoulder, "Stop it Loke, we can go when we make sure she's okay."

Knowing that she was willing to stick around until I stood up was the motivation I needed to stand. "Don't worry about me..." I faded off as I looked at the Lion, who was still scowling at me, "Thanks for snapping me out of that." I muttered before seeing a small orb behind him.

"Wait, what's that?" My question caused Lucy to grimace as she stared over my shoulder, causing me to realize that the whole city was encircled by the orbs... Wait... the strings, these were all connected to the strings.

"It's Laxus' Thunder Palace," Lucy said with obvious distaste in her voice, "He's threatening the Master that if he doesn't hand the guild over to him in the next hour he'll set it off and destroy the city."

Before she even finished speaking I froze, I knew Laxus was determined, but this... This was too far. He was going to regret this forever if he went through with it. This passed the boundary of what I was willing to allow.

There had to be something I could do.