Fairy Tail: Metal and Threads

Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Crocus.

July 6, x790.

While the fights between Elicia, Karen, Sorano, Jura, Squall, Vivi, Marin, Yuka, and Toby were taking place, Alfonzo was exchanging blows with Yoruichi and Sui-Feng at high speed. However, despite the fact that he was facing two opponents, both at S-Class in power, he was not at a disadvantage.

*Bang!* *Clang!* *Zap!*

With the Eskrima stick in his left hand, Alfonzo parried a lightning clad punch from Yoruichi while simultaneously blocking a slash from Sui-Feng's Zanpakuto, Suzumebachi. Luckily, she had not decided to release it, though. Otherwise, Alfonzo would have decided to take things up a notch, as well.

As for Yoruichi, despite having seen her unsheathe a wakizashi several years ago, he had never heard anything about her Zanpakuto, let alone seen her release it. And for the last few times he had seen her, she did not even carry one.

Even so, Yoruichi was a force to be reckoned with. Unfortunately, her specialization in [Lightning Magic] was not doing her any favors in this particular fight. Because as it has been shown in the past, unless Alfonzo is hit in an area not covered by his own [Electromagnetism Magic], he is more or less immune to [Lightning Magic]. Which means, other than the boost in speed her [Lightning-Based Shunkō] provided, Yoruichi actually has no way of damaging Alfonzo with her magic.

"Damn it!" Yoruichi muttered while avoiding a strike from one of Alfonzo's Eskrima sticks. "I didn't think this all the way through."

"Sure doesn't look like it." Alfonzo replied with a grin as he tilted his head to avoid a kick from Sui-Feng. He then continued as he swung both his Eskrima sticks upwards at Sui-Feng's extended leg. "You really didn't do your research this time, did you? But there was a reason why I've never lost to Laxus, you know?"

"Enough talk!" Sui-Feng shouted as she quickly pulled her leg back and jumped away.

Sui-Feng then [Flash Stepped] in front of Alfonzo with her Zanpakuto drawn back to strike.

*Clang!* *Cling!* *Cling!* *Clang!* *Swoosh!* *Bang!* x 2

Then, in a high-speed flurry, Sui-Feng slashed at Alfonzo's left shoulder. However, Alfonzo quickly defended with the weapon in his left hand. He then thrust the weapon in his right at her throat. Yet, Sui-Feng recovered quickly and pushed the strike to the side, Alfonzo's Eskrima stick just barely scraping past the right side of her neck.

Not letting the stinging sensation on her neck bother her, Sui-Feng, after parrying Alfonzo's strike, slashed her Zanpakuto at Alfonzo's chest. Yet, he once again defended against her strike by parrying her slash upwards. However, as Sui-Feng expected as much, she quickly changed the grip on her hilt before slashing down at the space between Alfonzo's neck and right shoulder.

In response, Alfonzo decided not to defend. Instead, he chose to dodge, as Yoruichi had rejoined the fray, as well, with a kick aimed at his right knee. So, with a movement that did not seem to fit his size, Alfonzo jumped over Yoruichi's kick while adding a spin, which helped him avoid Sui-Feng's slash.

Then, while in midair, Alfonzo spread his legs. And with his spin, that movement resulted in his legs being lashed at the two Mermaid Heel wizards. Luckily for them, they were both fast enough to get their arms up to block his kicks. However, with the force behind those kicks, both Yoruichi and Sui-Feng were sent flying off the top of the Everlue Mansion.

"Seriously, as long as it's been, I thought there would be more people showing up here to help them put me down." Alfonzo muttered as he landed on the mansion's roof. "Well, two other aces are fighting each other right now. So, I guess they won't be helping. I wouldn't mind seeing that fight between Jura and Squall, though. Oh... But I could use that... I'll have to apologize to Vivi later, though."

At the same time as Alfonzo's words, the sky over the town darkened, covered in roiling storm clouds. On top of that, there were flashes of lightning streaking through the clouds, as well. A result of the spell Vivi cast to assist Squall in his fight against Jura.

"Well, I'll be taking that." Alfonzo said as he reached his left hand towards the clouds. "Yoink!"

With that, the lightning that was gathering in the clouds above was pulled towards Alfonzo's hand. Then, it mixed with the violet lightning that was arcing all across his body. And just at that moment, both Yoruichi and Sui-Feng reappeared on the roof after picking themselves up from the mansion grounds.

"We didn't pick a good time to come back." Yoruichi muttered after seeing the super-charged lightning arcing about Alfonzo's body.

"Nope, sure didn't." Alfonzo replied with a smile. "[Spider Lightning]."

*Zap~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~!*

In the next instant, the space above the Everlue Mansion grounds was bleached white by the [Lightning Magic] Alfonzo released. At the same time, both Yoruichi and Sui-Feng did their best to distance themselves from the indiscriminate attack Alfonzo released. And while Yoruichi, thanks to her superior speed was able to get away, Sui-Feng was not so lucky.

As a result, Sui-Feng, though unheard over the sound of the thunder and lightning, fell from the top of the mansion while screaming at the top of her lungs and smoking from the burns she received after being hit with Alfonzo's [Spider Lightning]. Yet, before she could hit the ground, Alfonzo appeared under her, catching her in a princess carry before her unconscious body could hit the ground.

"Even though I don't like you very much, there's no point letting you get hurt even more than you already are." Alfonzo said with Sui-Feng in his arms.

"I have to thank you for helping her." Yoruichi said as she appeared from a burst of speed next to Alfonzo. "I honestly didn't think you would, though."

Alfonzo only shrugged his shoulders as Sui-Feng was engulfed in particles of light before being transported away from his arms.

"[White Dragon's Roar]."

"[Shadow Dragon's Roar]."

With those two chants, a beam of intertwined light and shadow was shot through the wall surrounding the mansion, aimed at Alfonzo. Unfortunately, because of where she stood, Yoruichi was in the line of fire, as well.

Luckily, Yoruichi's reflexes were good enough to avoid the incoming [Dragon Slayer Roars]. Alfonzo, on the other hand, already expected such an attack, having sensed Sting and Rogue approaching during the high speed combat with Yoruichi and Sui-Feng. As a result, he already had a counter attack prepared.

"[Electromagnetism Magic: Big Bang Attack]." Alfonzo chanted as he raised his right palm towards the incoming attacks.

In the next instant, a blue orb, formed from a mixture of different facets of the EM spectrum, manifested in front of Alfonzo's outstretched palm. A moment later, the two intertwined [Roar] spells slammed into the spell that had formed in Alfonzo's hand. And to the surprise of everyone watching, neither spell exploded on contact.

"You two aren't bad when you work together." Alfonzo said as his [Big Bang Attack] spell slowly distanced itself from his palm while pushing back Sting and Rogue's combined attack. "But I know that's not the best you can do, right? Go ahead, use that [Drive] spell you showed off earlier. You can add [Dragon Force], too. Pull out all the---"

*Bang!*

"That was rude, Yoruichi." Alfonzo said after his hand shot out to grab Yoruichi's foot, which was aimed at the back of his head.

"You're acting like I should just wait for you to finish with them." Yoruichi replied with a grin. "In fact, I'm even a little jealous You just stopped paying attention to me when they showed up. Is that what I am to you, just a good time you can throw away when the boys show up?"

Alfonzo only rolled his eyes in response. Then, without warning, he threw Yoruichi up into the air. He then flexed his magic power, causing the speed of the [Big Bang Attack] to increase. As a result, it started splitting Sting and Rogue's attacks down the middle. Alfonzo then spun on his heels and created a plethora of metal weapons before sending them flying at his three attackers, beginning a new three way battle.

Meanwhile, two of the most unique characters taking part in the Grand Magic Games just happened to run into each other on a deserted road.

"Men~! Good afternoon, my friend from Quatro Cerberus." Ichiya said while bowing in a gentlemanly way.

"And a good afternoon to you, as well." Guy replied with a smile and thumbs up while his teeth seemed to sparkle for a moment. "I can feel it, your youth! It seems to be on the verge of exploding."

"As can I." Ichiya said with a smile of his own. "Though not as refined as I, you have quite the gentlemanly spirit."

"Hahaha!" Guy laughed uproariously. "Well then, why don't we start this youthful duel?"

"Agreed." Ichiya replied while taking a pair of perfume bottles from his suit pockets. "Let us engage in a duel between gentlemen. [Perfume Magic: Power Perfume, Fleet-Foot Perfume]."

"Yes, let's." Guy replied as he tensed his body. "[Eight Inner Gates: Sixth Gate, Gate of View, Open!]."

Simultaneously, Ichiya grew in size with is muscles bulging to the point they tore apart his suit while Guy's aura swelled, his skin turned red, his eyes turned completely white, and his hair stood on end. Then, in the next instant, they both vanished from where they stood.

*Bang!*

An instant later, the two reappeared at the center of the starting positions with their fists slammed against each other. On top of that, they were both smiling their trademark smiles. Then, after another instant, they both started moving again.

"[Leaf Hurricane]." Guy said, naming his technique.

Guy then threw a roundhouse kick aimed at Ichiya's head. However, Ichiya easily ducked under the kick. Yet, Guy's flurry of attacks did not finish, as he followed up with a leg sweep that Ichiya simply raised his front leg to avoid.

*Bang!*

Then, once Guy's leg passed his legs, Ichiya stepped down… hard. At the same time, he threw a punch towards Guy's mid-section. However, Guy also had one more kick coming, as his leg was streaking towards Ichiya's side.

*Bang!* x 2

Then, at the same time, both Ichiya's punch and Guy's kick landed. As a result, both Ichiya and Guy were sent flying. Though, they were both able to right themselves in the air.

When the two eventually touched down, they both got right back into the fight. While Ichiya used the speed enhancement from his [Fleet-Foot Perfume] to dash towards Guy, Guy widened his stance and pulled his fist back at his waist.

"[Morning Peacock]." Guy chanted as he started throwing punches that would never be able to hit Ichiya from this distance.

Even so, with the speed and force of Guy's punches, the friction caused his fists to be lit ablaze. On top of that, as his arms extended as far as they could, the flames coating his hands were flung forward in Ichiya's direction.

Yet, Ichiya seemed to be completely undeterred. Instead of trying to get out of the path of all the small flaming projectiles that were coming his way, Ichiya began to dance without losing his forward momentum. And with his elegant dance steps, Ichiya narrowly avoided all of Guy's projectiles until he was within range of his own attack.

"[Perfume Magic: Power Perfume: Max Men]." Ichiya chanted once he was in range.

Then, with all his momentum, Ichiya threw a punch with all his might.

Realizing the danger that an attack like that represented, Guy decided he would kick things up a notch, as well.

"[Gate of Wonder, Open!]" Guy chanted as the aura surrounding him turned from green to blue.

Guy then once again threw a punch against Ichiya's fist.

*Boom!*

As a result, thanks to the power behind the two blows, a shockwave originating from the point of impact spread around the two wizards. At the same time, all the dust on the ground was lifted and sent flying along with the shockwave.

Meanwhile, Ichiya and Guy held eye contact with smiles on their faces.

"This truly is a wonderful duel between gentlemen." Ichiya said.

"I couldn't agree more." Guy replied. "Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end."

"*Sigh* Indeed they must." Ichiya said in a somewhat dejected tone. It did not take long for his normal mood to return, however. "Well then, why don't we give it our all for our last attack."

"I was thinking the same thing." Guy replied with another sparkling smile.

Then, the two jumped away from each other at the same time. And while Guy took a stance to throw another punch, Ichiya reached into the pocket of his shredded pants. He then pulled out another two vials of perfume.

"This is an experimental perfume I've been working on." Ichiya said while holding up the two vials for Guy to see. "I'm not quite sure of its maximum output. But I'm sure it will definitely be strong. [Perfume Magic: Lightning Perfume]."

With that, Ichiya popped the corks on the two vials. Then, he stuck them directly into his nostrils before inhaling deeply. As he did, the hands holding the vials began to spark with yellow electricity.

"Ah~~~~! Men~~~~!" Ichiya said in a tone that would suggest he had been super charged. "Now, I'm ready whenever you are, my friend."

"Very well." Guy replied. "Then, let's allow our youths to explode splendidly. [Daytime Tiger]."

"[Justice Thunder Men~~~~]!" Ichiya chanted as he held his hands out towards Guy.

*Roar!*

*Zap!*

With that, Guy threw a punch so hard that a blast of pressurized air was shot forward in the shape of a tiger. At the same time, a powerful bolt of lightning was shot from Ichiya's fingertips. Before long, the two attacks met between the two wizards. And they struggled against each other for a short time, as well.

Unfortunately, as Ichiya mentioned, his [Lightning Perfume] was still in the experimental stages. Meaning, it was not as stable as he would like. So, the power of his spell quickly waned. As a result, Guy's [Daytime Tiger] was able to rip through the weakened lightning bolt before slamming into Ichiya and sending him flying.

*Boom!*

Eventually, Ichiya slammed into the ground and rolled for a while. When he stopped rolling, he was covered in cuts and bruises, and his hair was disheveled. Even so, there was still a smile on his face.

"That was a great duel. Men~~~." Ichiya said weakly. "I hope to do it again sometime. I would also like to sit down for a cup of tea to discuss the finer points of the duel, as well."

"Sounds good to me." Guy replied, giving the gentlemanly wizard a thumbs up.

In response, Ichiya smiled before losing consciousness. He was then engulfed in particles of light before being transferred out of the arena.

Meanwhile, Guy waited until the transfer was complete before closing the [Gate of Wonder]. When he did, however, it was clear to anyone watching that he was exhausted. On top of that, his muscles were spasming, making it seem as if just standing there was painful for him.

Yet, Guy smiled brightly as he straightened up to his full height. Then, he raised his head to look at a nearby rooftop.

"I'd like to thank you for waiting for our duel to conclude." Guy said happily. "I'd like to have a proper fight with you, as well. But it seems that I've overdone it a little in the last one."

"Well, for what it's worth, that was impressive."

With that said, a young man and a young woman jumped down from the rooftop Guy was looking at. As it turned out, they were Lyon Vastia and Sherry Blendy of Lamia Scale.

"Thank you." Guy said with a smile.

"Well, I'll make it quick." Lyon said.

"Yes, do it with {Love}." Sherry added while raising her right hand dramatically.

Roling his eyes at his teammates usual antics, Lyon made his casting gesture.

"[Ice-Make: Geyser]." Lyon chanted before slamming his palms into the ground.

Not long later, the ground under Guy's feet iced over. Then, a stream of ice shards shot out of the iced over ground from beneath Guy, sending him flying into the air while being pelted with more and more shards of ice. Then, shortly after Guy reached the peak of his ascent, his body was covered in particles of light.

"Well, that takes care of that." Lyon said as he stood back up. "Come on, let's see if we can find some more opponents."

"Yeah." Sherry said while nodding in agreement. "I hope Jura, Toby, and Yuka are okay, though.'

"Well, I don't think we need to worry about Jura." Lyon said as he started to walk in a random direction. "And with Toby and Yuka together, they should be okay. Unless they run into one of those monsters from Fairy Tail, anyway."

"You're probably right." Sherry said.

With that, Lyon and Sherry left the area to find their next opponents. However, if they knew they were the only members of Lamia Scale left in the event, they would probably be a lot more cautious as they moved.