Fairy Tail: Metal and Threads

{A/N: Someone pointed out that I've been writing Chapati's name wrong for a while. And to be honest, I was just too lazy to change it. But I will be going back to make changes whenever I get some time.} 

Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Crocus. 

July 6, x791. 

After Alfonzo returned to his suite, he spent time with his family until it was time to go to bed. Then, the next morning came quickly. And the atmosphere in Crocus was palpable. It was the final day of the Grand Magic Games, after all. 

As the spectators filed into the Domus Flau, the eight teams participating in the Grand Magic Games could be seen standing in the arena, waiting for the event to begin. 

"I wonder which town they'll pick for the Grand Magic Game this year." Gray said casually while sizing up the other contestants. 

"Any town is fine as long as Juvia can be with Gray." Juvia said happily as she hugged Gray's left arm. 

"It doesn't matter!" Natsu shouted with flames spewing from his mouth. "I'm gonna kick everyone's butt. Especially Alfonzo, Elicia, Laxus, Mira, and Gajeel!" 

"Yeah, you mean you're gonna get your butt kicked by the people you mentioned." Gray said disdainfully. "The only one you might have a chance against is Gajeel. And you'll probably end up both getting beat up. Well... At least you didn't mention Erza. You're at least smart enough to remember who's on your team." 

"What did you say?" Natsu asked as he snapped his head in Gray's direction. "Maybe I should start with you!" 

"Why don't you give it a try, you fiery mouth-breather." Gray said while narrowing his eyes. 

Meanwhile, Ultear and Erza watched as the two more hot headed members of their team started their usual song and dance. 

"I don't know how you put up with this all the time, Erza." Ultear said while shaking her head. "Being on the same team as them all the time must be exhausting." 

"It's not as bad as it seems." Erza replied calmly. "When we're on a quest, they take things seriously." 

"Yeah, instead of fighting each other, they destroy everything around them." Ultear muttered. "And you're the ringleader. Now, I feel bad for Lucy. She would never have enough for rent if she didn't live with us." 

While Fairy Tail Team C was up to their usual antics, the five non-Fairy Tail teams were amazed at how low the tension surrounding the team was. As for the other two Fairy Tail teams, they just talked amongst themselves while pretending they did not know them. 

{"Okay, ladies and gentlemen, the time you've been waiting for has arrived!"} Lola, his voice projecting through the broadcast system, said excitedly. {"Any moment now, the final event of the Grand Magic Games, the Grand Magic Game will begin. Are you ready?"} 

*Cheer~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~!* 

{"It looks like the audience is just as excited as you are, Lola."} Yajima said, the smile on his face audible in his tone. {"Though, I must admit, this part of the Grand Magic Games always raises my anticipation, as well."} 

{"I know exactly what you mean, Yajima!"} Lola shouted energetically. {"And since that's the case, let's not keep them waiting anymore."} 

{"Wait!"} Yajima interjected. {"Before we get started, did you forget? We have a guest commentator with us today."} 

{"Ah... Oops..."} Lola said, his tone making it clear he was feeling some embarrassment. {"You're right. Sorry about that, Commander Arcadios. It would seem I let my excitement get the better of me."} 

{"Think nothing of it, Lola Chapati."} Arcadios said calmly. {"Seeing the most powerful guild wizards of our great kingdom is enough to make anyone excited. And when you add the fact that two of the Ten Wizards Saints are among them, I could never blame you for your oversight."} 

{"Thank you for your understanding, Commander."} Lola said gratefully. {"Anyway, now that our guest has been introduced, why don't we take a look at the scoreboard before the final event begins?"} 

{Grand Magic Games Overall Scoreboard 

Rank Team Score 

Fairy Tail A 75 Pts. Fairy Tail C 56 Pts. Mermaid Heel 49 Pts. Fairy Tail B 48 Pts. Quatro Cerberus 32 Pts. Sabertooth 23 Pts. Lamia Scale 17 Pts. Blue Pegasus 11 Pts.} 

{"Hmm... There's only one team who is mathematically incapable of claiming the championship going into the last event."} Yajima said while rubbing his chin. {"Because if one team were to be able to claim all the points from all the other teams, they would receive 63 Pts. In total. Meaning, the only team out of the running at this point is Blue Pegasus."} 

*Boo~~~~~~~!* 

Immediately upon hearing Yajima's analysis, all the Blue Pegasus fans, as well as most of the wizards on Team Blue Pegasus, started to boo loudly. 

{"Though that may be correct, the probability of one team defeating all thirty-five other wizards is quite low."} Arcadios pointed out. {"So, the number of championship hopefuls drop even further. Because none of the other teams are going to just stand around and allow themselves to be defeated, after all."} 

{"That's true."} Yajima said with a nod. {"I was just pointing out that there is always a chance. Even if it's quite slim."} 

{"So, do either of you have a prediction about who the champion will be this year?"} Lola asked curiously. 

{"Honestly, it's hard to say."} Yajima replied diplomatically. {"But if I had to choose, I'd say either Fairy Tail Team A or C. But I wouldn't count out Mermaid Heel or Fairy Tail Team B, either."} 

"So, you're basically just picking the top four..."} Lola said while narrowing his eyes at Yajima. {"That's kind of a cop out, isn't it?"} 

The glare Yajima shot in Lola's direction was enough to make him turn his head away with cold sweat forming under his hair piece. Meanwhile, Arcadios found the dynamic between the long time Grand Magic Games duo quite entertaining. 

{"Well, I think I'll go with the returning champions."} Arcadios said, deciding to save Lola from the predicament he put himself in. {"Other than the draw during the first day's Battle Round, they've managed to dominate every other appearance they've had throughout the Games."} 

"That's a safe pick, too." Lola said quietly away from his microphone. "Where's the drama? The controversial choices?" 

This time, Arcadios was the one to shoot a glare in Lola's direction while his eyebrows twitched violently. 

{"*Cough* Well, now that we've heard the predictions from our commentators, why don't we throw it to Mato to get the last day of the Grand Magic Games under way?"} 

{"Thanks, Lola!"} Mato shouted energetically as his image appeared on all the Domus Flau's Lacrima-Vision screens. {"I think you all know how this event goes by now. It's a free-for-all. Each defeated member of each team will be worth one point on the overall scoreboard. Well, except for a chosen captain, who will remain secret from the other teams, that will be worth five points. And it will take place in a recreation of one of our great kingdom's towns. And this year, the town will be..."} 

Reaching that point, Mato paused for dramatic effect. Then, as soon as Mato spoke again, all the Lacrima-Vision screens changed to show the chosen town. 

And when the screens changed, the audience could see a beautiful port town with a marina in its southern part, a public park, a train station, and a tall clock tower with a large iron bell that looked as though it had been repaired in the last ten years. 

{"Hargeon~~~~~!"} Mato shouted at the top of his lungs as the image changed. 

"Look!" Natsu cheered excitedly. "That's the bell I destroyed." 

"Hmph!" Alfonzo snorted disdainfully. "What a shotty recreation. I was the one who fixed that fucking bell when Natsu destroyed it. Do you really think I left any signs that it had been destroyed?" 

Hearing the comments from Alfonzo and Natsu, the wizards from the other five guilds could only look at them dumbfoundedly. Meanwhile, the Fairy Tail wizards could only look away sheepishly. Almost all of them had caused excessive property damage in the past, after all. 

{"Well, I think we've waited long enough."} Mato continued. {"Now, since we've already received the names of the team leaders for this event, let's get right to it!" 

*Cheer~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~!* 

*Flash!* 

As soon as Mato made his announcement, the crowd cheered loudly while the entire arena was obscured by a flash of light. Then, when the light dimmed, the flat arena area was no longer visible, replaced by the recreation of Hargeon. It even had an artificial body of water around the marina. 

{"And now, let the Grand Magic Game... Begin!"} Mato shouted, signaling the beginning of the last event of the Grand Magic Games. 

Meanwhile, almost all of the wizards participating in the event started to assess their surroundings to figure out which part of the town they were in. The only exception was Alfonzo. 

"Alright, ladies." Alfonzo said as he created a chair with his [Metal Magic]. He then continued while dragging the chair to the end of one of the docks at the marina. "You can go and have fun. I'll be right here." 

"And what exactly will you be doing?" Ur asked with her hands on her hips. 

"Working on the magic item." Alfonzo said as he sat down. 

"You're not gonna fight?" Sun asked. 

"Nah." Alfonzo replied while waving dismissively as several [Archive Magic] screens appeared floating around him. "Y'all got this. I believe in you." 

"You know, that actually makes me, like, way more nervous." Marin said while twirling a lock of her hair around her right index finger. 

"Don't worry, we'll be fine." Elicia said with a smile as she wrapped an arm around Marin. "We're strong. Even without Fonzie." 

"I'm actually glad you've decided to sit this one out, Kid." Ur said while cracking her knuckles. "That just means I get more opportunities to show these kids what it means to be a wizard." 

"That's the spirit." Alfonzo replied with a smile while he started creating components for the world-hopping item with is [Metal Magic]. "Go out there and give 'em hell." 

Receiving nods from his teammates, some more confident than others, Alfonzo stopped outwardly paying attention to them altogether. Though, everyone knew he was keeping track of everything going on in Crocus, which included the recreation of Hargeon, as well. 

Meanwhile, Elicia, Ur, Marin, and Sun exchanged glances. Then, they all sped off to find opponents. Though, [Magic Power Detection] would make sure they were able to find the opponents they wanted. 

The other Fairy Tail wizards were doing the same, using [Magic Power Detection] to find opponents. And some of them already had opponents in mind. For example, Mirajane was making a b-line straight towards Erza. Meanwhile, Erza, having felt Mirajane coming, was waiting for her with a sword drawn. 

Natsu, although he was unable to use Magic Power Detection], was also making a b-line towards his first chosen opponent, who just so happened to be Gajeel. 

"First, I'm gonna take down Gajeel." Natsu said to himself as he ran through the town. "Then, I'm gonna find Mira, and Laxus, and Alfonzo. And by the time everything is over, I'll have beaten them all up. It's too bad Erza, Ultear, and Gray are on my team. Otherwise, I would beat them up, too." 

However, the Fairy Tail wizards were not the only ones on the move, as the other twenty-five wizards were also moving. Though, most of them chose not to move alone, deciding to work in groups of two or three. 

Even Rufus, instead of starting the event with his [A Night of Falling Stars] spell, decided to get moving to find an opponent. And the reason for that was simple. With Alfonzo's ability to reflect his spell and Laxus' properties as a Dragon Slayer, it just was not worth the magic power. 

{"Yajima, Commander Arcadios, are you seeing this?"} Lola asked while looking over the screens showing the event. {"Just what is contestant Alfonzo doing?"} 

{"It looks like he's building something."} Yajima replied while stroking his chin. 

{"Yes, that's how it looks to me, as well."} Arcadios added while looking closely at the screen showing Alfonzo's position at the marina. {"The real question is, what could he possibly be building at a time like this?"} 

{"Should the other contestants be worried?"} Lola asked, his excitement rising as time went by. {"Is Alfonzo making a weapon that could destroy the entire town?"} 

{"As the best magic item crafter on Ishgar and a member of Fairy Tail, I wouldn't put it past him."} Arcadios replied. {"But until we see it in action, we have no way to tell."} 

{"I actually disagree."} Yajima replied. {"Ever since the day Alfonzo took his first quest at the age of nine, he's never caused excessive property damage. Even during the Grand Magic Game last year, he kept damage to a minimum despite not needing to. So, making a weapon that could destroy the entire town doesn't really suit his way of doing things."} 

Hearing that, both Lola and Arcadios stopped to think. And when they thought about what Yajima said, they had to agree. Though, that made them even more curious to find out what Alfonzo was building. 

"If they only knew that he was making something that would let him travel to another reality, what do you think their expressions would look like?" Mavis asked with a smile on her face. 

"Oh, it would probably be priceless." Irene replied with a wide smile on her face. "I kind of want to tell them. But if we did, it would probably get back to the Magic Council. And something tells me they would try to stop him, which is completely understandable. But since I've never been to another world before, I'm curious to see just how different things will be." 

"Oh, I didn't know you were planning to come with us, Irene." Future Lucy said in a surprised tone. 

"Yes, I'm curious to know just how strong your world's version of me will be." Irene said with a smile. "I wonder if we were to fight, would I need to use Belserion to defeat her. Or would the training I've done in the gravity chambers and whatnot be enough." 

Future Lucy did not know how to answer those questions. Luckily, they were rhetorical. So, instead of even trying, she just turned back to the Lacrima-Vision screens and focused on the ongoing event. 

{"And it looks like our first battle is about to start!"} Lola shouted, interrupting the conversations going on in the Fairy Tail seating area. {"And this one will be between guild mates! As the She-Devil, Mirajane Strauss is speeding towards Titania, Erza Scarlet as we speak. What a way to start off the event!"}