The city was in chaos. Explosions, magic was everywhere. It was mage against mage. Guild against Guild...

The people were terrified. Everywhere they ran, there were mages battling against one another. The mages of Fairy Tail were painstakingly trying to spare the innocents harm, even at the cost of injury to themselves, but the seemingly Dark Guild they fought against would often laugh at their efforts.

Fairy Tail was at a loss. So suddenly they had been under attack, no outward reason being for the slaughter. One by one, many of them fell. Levy McGarden was one such mage. She had fought hard, harder than any battle she had faced before, but too soon her Script Magic was almost effortlessly beaten. Two fellow Fairy Tail mages were tied to the trunk of the great sakura tree in the towns square, beaten almost within an inch of their lives.

Levy was on the ground, blue hair and orange dress covered in her blood. The two mages who beat her grinning at her savagely, gleeful at the tears in her eyes. But she didn't let them fall, her pride stronger then this torture. "Trash" one of the men howled with laughter as he sent another kick into her stomach, Levy clutching herself and huddling into a ball.

"God. This fucking trash guild is so weak. This was too fucking easy." The other muttered as he watched on the sideline, fingers playing with the blood on his hands.

"No way Team Fate would have come to these bastards."

Then a voice called cheerfully, seemingly out of place on this bloodied battle field.

"I think maybe you should step back from the fairy shrimp before you get eaten alive by an iron dragon"

Levy, hazy and confused, was starting to lose time. Unable to make sense of these words.

Lucy Heartfilia fought with determination, proud of her companions and unwilling to see them fall. As one her team had acted on instinct as soon as they'd heard the first siren of warning. Wendy and Ryos, preteen mated Dragon Slayers had started directing civilians to the outskirts of town. A flying cat, PantherLilly, extraordinarily being capable of a large battle mode, had gone with them to make sure no one got in their way.

Lucy's best friend and right hand, Juvia Lockser had gone against her initial urge to cling possessively to her team leader, went to inform the local guild, Fairy Tail, of what was about to happen on their front step. Lucy has never been prouder of her Water Mage partner.

The Celestial Mage didn't need words with her first ever partner. They'd fluidly moved as one, the powerhouses of their team, to intercept the invading guild. Gajeel Redfox didn't even question her. Didn't say anything about how they should just continue onto their objective and leave this mess to the local guild. He'd just followed her lead, the two moving effortlessly as one well-oiled machine to destroy their former guild mates.

Team Fate, so ruthlessly loyal to Lucy Heartfilia had deserted Phantom Lord as soon as Master Jose had imprisoned her at the behest of her father. Even without her keys, she had been able to injure Jose and escape. She'd almost skinned alive one old guild mate who had been just about to sell her keys when she found them. Her intent had been to leave Phantom Lord, seek out her malicious father who first coursed this mess and end him. She never intended her team to be brought into the middle of this fight.

But their loyalty, their trust in her had been absolute. So here they were, fighting apart but together in their goal.

Lucy knew right away when something went wrong. Gajeel had stiffened, breathing heavily, his chest rising and falling. Back to back they stood, Lucy's steel thorn studded whip in hand and Gajeel's arm transformed into an iron club, his ability being Iron Dragon Slayer magic. "What is it?" she asked, eyes roaming around the empty street, searching for the threat. He growled, never being big on words. Tightening her grip on her celestial whip, hands inching for her keys she stopped in surprise when he grabbed her shirt and pulled her in the direction of the town centre.

"She's here..."

Confused, but never once not trusting his judgement she followed him as they jumped from rooftop to rooftop to his destination.

"I think maybe you should step back from the fairy shrimp before you get eaten alive by an iron dragon"

Lucy jumped down from her perch in the great sakura, her spirit Corvus in his crow form as he lessened her descent before turning back into his humanoid appearance to kneel at her side. His skin was pale as moonlight, his eyes and hair were the darkest black. As a human he'd been a mage mastering in Dark Magic. Now as a Celestial Spirit, one of the five Keys of Fate, he is able to enter dreams and cause horrific nightmares that often resulted in insanity, and maybe even death if his Master willed it.

The two Phantom Lord mages eyes were almost bulging out of their skulls, but when Lucy discreetly pointed behind them they turned, skin ashen, as they faced a feral Dragon Slayer. Gajeel's roars echoed the city, informing all that a very pissed off, very dangerous Dragon was on the loose.

Lucy knelt at Levy's side, Corvus hovering over his Master protectively, his cold eyes intent on everything around his Empress. Levy whimpered when Lucy touched her gently, flinching away from the other mage.

"I won't hurt you. You're safe, fairy shrimp. Right now there's a Dragon Slayer dealing with the pests that did this to you".

Levy eyes widen as she watched a man with wild black hair and feral red eyes decimate the mages she couldn't beat. Levy sat up from her huddled over position at the gentle urging from her blonde haired saviour. She shivered when a freezing cold cloak of crow feathers was wrapped her, eyes darting to the Celestial Spirit who had handed it to his Master for the injured girl.

"Who are you?" Levy asked roughly. With shaking hands she greedily held the water bottle handed to her to her lips. "I'm afraid your guild has gotten between my team and our old guild. We'll handle this now. I've got people leading the humans away" Lucy gently laid a hand against the shaking younger mages shoulder as Gajeel finally stopped his warpath rage. She would be honestly surprised if they lived.

Gajeel stared at the blue haired girl so intently her shaking got worse before Lucy hissed a warning to him. She turned and gentled her voice again "This is Gajeel. I'm Lucy. There's six of us in Team Fate. We'll be handling this situation from now on". Even as Lucy was saying this she was watching Gajeel closely from the corner of her eye. She had seen his rage before, but had never seen him so feral.

"Corvus, take this girl to Wendy. She'll heal her and keep her with the humans".

"No," Gajeel growled, ignoring how both his partner and the shrimp froze "We're taking her with us". Lucy and Gajeel stared at each other silently, knowing each other for so long they didn't need words.

"Wait, what? No! You can't kidnap me!" Levy yelled, clutching tightly to the cloak around her. Gajeel growled at her roughly "that isn't what I'm doing!". He was angry, unable to hold back his usual roughness. Gajeel was just so annoyed she didn't understand.

Levy looked pleading at Lucy, but Lucy nodded her consent at her partner. Turning to the young girl she petted her comfortingly "I give you my word we're not going to hurt you. Or kidnap you. When this is over we'll take you back to Fairy Tail ourselves". Lucy harshly looked at Gajeel when he made to protest.

Levy was hesitating seeing the open honesty on the blonde face. But it wasn't until the man grunted "stick by my side, shrimp. I ain't going to let them touch you again" that she settled and nodded. Strangely trusting their words.

"Empress!" Corvus hissed, hand suddenly pulling her back away from Levy and to her feet. A mage with scarlet hair descended on them, purgatory armour giving her the ability to fly. "Get away from her!" she screamed, eyes blazing even with substantial injuries already on her skin. Gajeel placed himself protectively in front of the fairy shrimp, skin turning to metal while Lucy and Corvus got in their battle stances.

"Wait! Erza stop!" Levy yelled. Immediately her blade stopped, and so did Lucy's whip. Levy got to her feet, the Iron Dragon Slayer keeping her steady with a heavy hand on her fragile shoulder. "They saved me Erza. There's no need to fight them!" Ezra looked over her young guild mate, grunting and relaxing her stance.

"I thank you then, strangers" Ezra said regally, gazing at them. She spied the keys, and the iron skin. Logically assuming the blonde was a rare celestial mage, and the other some sort of iron mage. Rarer still, maybe even a Dragon Slayer.

"Your words reached me. Do you intend to fight Phantom Lord?"

Lucy nodded, relaxing slightly as well. Her spirit Corvus though never stopped looking for danger. His protective instincts fierce. And neither did Gajeel.

"This was our fight to begin with. We'll get them back for all the trouble they've caused you" Lucy's words caused intense interest to spread across the Requip Mages face. Suddenly her blade was pointed at Lucy, causing Corvus to hiss, his Dark Magic pooling around him threateningly. "Later you will explain this mess, but for now, I fight besides you".