Chapter 40: Titania and The Big Bad Wolf

Erza floated in the air behind Scarlet as she glares at her. She pointed her sword at her, she noticed Scarlet turn her head to look at her after she had finished speaking as if the Grimm girl was referring to her when she spoke.

"Just who the hell are you?" Erza asked. "Answer me."

Scarlet turned around fully as her Nevermore wings flapped a bit. "Me? How rude, I should've asked you that." She grins as she swung Black Rose as blood flew off the blade. "My name is Scarlet Rose, and you are?"

Erza saw the blood fly off the blade as she grits her teeth but assumed nothing of it yet. "My name is Titania Erza, but I go by Erza Scarlet." She smirks as she chuckled a bit. "Funny, didn't think I'd run into someone else with the name Scarlet. So tell me... Where did that blood come from?"

"Ara ara, I'm surprised you've noticed it was blood." Scarlet said as she grips Black Rose. "If you beat me, I'll tell you what you want to know.... Titania."

Erza gave a blank stare as she scoffs. "Fine by me, but don't think I won't go easy on you."

Scarlet grins widely as the Grimm girl flew towards Scarlet as she swung Black Rose at Erza. Titania blocked Scarlet's attack as she summoned multiple swords and threw them at Scarlet, Scarlet used her magic to deflect the swords as she resumed her speed towards Erza and struck her down with a single blow to the head.

Erza went shooting down towards a opened filed on the outskirts of Magnolia. She crashed through some rocks as she stood up bleeding. "Damn it.... I didn't have time to change my armor."

"You're too slow Titania!" Scarlet said from below Erza as she reached up from underground and grabbed her legs dragging her under. "Come on now, show me a real challenge. Or I'll have to slaughter everyone you love!"

Erza's armor changed in a blink of an eye as she was in her purgatory armor. "This is my purgatory armor, you won't last long against me now... No on gets away with making threats to my friends and guild!" She dashed towards Scarlet even though they were underground. "EAT THIS!"

Scarlet licks her lips as she took the blow from Titania, getting pushed back. Her entire shoulder was almost cut clean off, luckily her regeneration kicked in quicker than anything as the cut was closed up. "Not bad, but now it's starting to get fun... Let's see what you can do against this big bad wolf!" She shot magic at Erza with one hand as she switched Black Rose into it's mini-gun form and started shooting dust bullets at her.

"What the?" Erza asked as she blocks. "What the a forbidden magic? Regeneration, a rainbow colored magic and her scythe is also a gun? What is she?" She kept blocking, trying not to lose the fight. "I have no choice in the matter, Requip!" Her armor changed as she had bandages wrapped around her breast. Her red hair was in a pony tail as she had red samurai like pants on. "I'll put all my strength into my swords to beat you!"

"Ara, is that so?" Scarlet asked as she snickered. "Then if we're getting serious, by all means. Strike me down Titania! Let's see who the strongest warrior is. You or me? Scarlet vs Scarlet, the battle of the ages!" She dashed towards Erza and landed a upper cut to Titania's jaw, sending her up through the ground and back to the surface.

Erza landed as she stood up and glances around. "She's still underground... No doubt about it, she's going to get the advantage on me more than once. I can't lose, seven years may have gone by for me... But I can't let myself lose here." She glanced around more seeing if she could notice any movement from the ground or not. "Where are you Scarlet?"

~~~

Erza lunges at Scarlet as she swings her katana furiously at the Grimm girl, only for her to dodge and move out of the way. Scarlet caught Erza's katana with her bare hand as she punched Erza in the face with her other hand, causing Erza's nose to bleed.

"W-What? You caught my blade." Erza said applying pressure to the weight of her katana. "You can't be this strong...just what the hell are you!?"

Scarlet's grip on Titania's katana got harder as the blade started to crack. Shattering the katana blade, Scarlet kicked Erza in the gut, causing her to stumble back. "Hmph, I guess you'll never get that answer about the blood Erza." She kicked Erza's side as she grabbed her by the throat. "If you're so desperate to know what I am Titania, then why don't you give your life to me and become part of my dark army?"

Erza bit down on Scarlet's hand, she had forced her to let her go. She dropped to her feet as she bashed her head up to Scarlet's chin. "Like hell I will!" She reached out and grabbed Scarlet's arm and flung her over her shoulder and onto her back. She summoned her mother katana as she held the blade up to Scarlet's neck. "This isn't the time for games, answer my damn question!"

Scarlet started to laugh as her eyes shrank. She held her hand up to Erza's stomach and shot a spiral of magic straight through Titania's side, nearly puncturing her kidney as Erza gasped and spat up blood. Scarlet watched as Erza fell over onto her back, she slowly stood up and grins widely. "Blah, blah, blah... Is that all you know how to do Fairy queen?" She slams her foot on the opened wound on Erza's stomach. "Why don't I put you down like the dog you are? Or are your friends going to come save you?"

Erza felt Scarlet's foot slam onto her opened wound as she cried out in pain, blood squirted out from the wound and out from the back. "Y-You....."

Scarlet leans down putting her ear towards Erza's mouth. "Yes?"

Erza struggled to sit up, she bit Scarlet's ear and ripped it off. She spat the Grimm girls ear out of her mouth as she grins and fell back onto her back. Scarlet applied pressure to the open wound on Erza as she stood there and twisted her heel, Scarlet's ear grew back slowly as the Grimm girl snickered.

"Your attempt to make me lose an ear was fruitless." Scarlet said as she glances around, she sniffed the air as she could smell someone coming. "Ara ara, it seems someone is coming." She flew into the air and glances down at Erza. "Our match will resume another day Titania. Maybe by then you'll be strong enough to defeat me."

Erza raised her arm up as her vision was going blurry, she could seen Scarlet fly away as her arm dropped down to her side as she dared not close her eyes. "I...I can't die here..."

~~~~

"ERZA!" Natsu yelled as he busted through Lucy's door of her apartment. "Who did this?"

"Geez, learn to knock." Lucy said as she looks down at Erza. "Elfman found her like this, by the time he had gotten to where she was. There was no trace of an enemy in sight, luckily Wendy used her healing magic on her. But it wasn't enough to help her sit up, she almost lost a lot of blood." She turned to look at Natsu. "She's going to need rest before she can give us answers on who did this."

Natsu clinched his fist as he grits his teeth. "I swear, who ever did this is going to pay!"

Erza was bandaged up as she laid in Lucy's bed, passed out from the battle with Scarlet. Natsu stormed out of Lucy's apartment as he left, Happy followed behind him as the blue cat flew next to him.

"Natsu?" Happy asked. "What are we going to do? We don't know who did this to Erza."

Natsu was silent for a moment as fire emitted off his body. "...We need to get stronger Happy, we need to make whoever killed the Twilight Ogre guild and hurt Erza pay! I'm all fired up now..."

"Aye sir." Happy said. "I'm fired up too!"

Ryuko over heard them as she was sitting by the river near Lucy's apartment. "So she's taking us down one by one...Senketsu, we need to get stronger as well... There's no telling if she's going to come after me next or not."

"A very good point." Senketsu said. "Not to make the situation any worse, but we've been frozen in time for seven years. Erza likely didn't stand a chance against Scarlet, considering we couldn't do anything while stuck frozen in time." He looked up at Ryuko as he let out a sigh. "If Satsuki was here, she'd help you get stronger."

"Yeah well my sister isn't here." Ryuko said clinching her fist. "She's dead... The Grimm made sure of it..." She fell over on her back as her arms were sprawled out. "I miss everyone.." She saw a crow fly by as she closed her eyes. "....I just want to go home where everything can be back to normal." She stayed quiet for a moment as if she fell asleep, her eyes slowly opened as she felt tears trickle down her face. "Why...why am I crying?"

"It's because you miss your home world child." Carla said as the white cat stood behind her with Wendy. "I'd be home sick too if I were in your shoes Ryuko, but now's not the time to mope around."

Ryuko tilts her head back as she saw the two. "Carla, Wendy... How's Erza?"

"She's okay... For the most part." Wendy said as she rocks on her heels a little. "Nothing fatal from the looks of it." She sat next to Ryuko as the young dragon slayer looked down at her. "Tell me, who's this Scarlet person you want everyone to keep an eye out for?"

Ryuko glances over to Wendy. "I'll tell you when you're ready... right now Carla's right, we can't mope around.... I'm sorry for the water works."

"Don't be." Wendy said as she smiled. "Tell ya what, I'll help you train Ryuko."

Ryuko's eyes widen as she smiled, she sat up and nods her head lightly. "Alright, thanks Wendy."