Lullaby

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[X784, Oak Town]

— Dannis Martell —

He soared through the air from his previous position, dodging another monstrous blow from Lullaby, a fist the size of a small building that sunk deep into the earth, dirt and rocks exploding from the impact. 

The demon's roar reverberated through the battlefield, shaking the surrounding trees and sending a murder of crows fleeing into the darkened sky.

The air shimmered as Dannis activated his dark armor once again. Swinging his sword in an erratic manner, numerous avidya slashes were unleashed across the demon's skin, slicing through its hide and leaving trails of searing black energy in their wake.

Lullaby howled in anger, its massive arms swinging like wrecking balls. Dannis took to the air, twisting and rolling in mid-air to avoid the demon's claws. The force of its missed attack carved deep gouges into the earth below, sending debris flying in every direction. 

Seizing the opening, Dannis extended his sword with a surge of dark magic, the blade elongating into a lethal spear. He spun in the air and slashed downward, carving a jagged line across the demon's shoulder. Black ichor sprayed like a geyser, hissing and sizzling as it struck the ground.

Lullaby staggered but retaliated with terrifying strength. Its hands plunged into the earth, ripping free a chunk of ground the size of a mountain boulder. The demon hurled it with a deafening roar. The massive projectile rocketed toward Dannis, blotting out the moonlight as it approached.

Dannis's eyes narrowed, his stance shifting mid-air as his wings beat furiously to stabilize him. He grasped his sword tightly, the dark aura surrounding it intensifying.. 

"Getsuga—"

The air vibrated with power as his blade glowed an ominous black. With a burst of speed, he slashed the sword in one swift, deadly motion.

"—Tensho!"

A colossal arc of dark energy erupted from his swing, slicing through the boulder like a scythe through wheat. The shattered fragments were obliterated into dust as the wave of darkness continued, crashing into Lullaby with cataclysmic force. The demon roared in pain, its massive body recoiling as the attack cleaved a deep, smoking gash across its chest.

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— Natsu Dragneel —

Natsu sprinted through the forest alongside his friends. Erigor had managed to run off, but none of them were about to let him get away. They had all just finished the fight in the train station when they found out that Erigor had escaped. 

Just when Lucy had summoned a new spirit to dig a hole through the tornado, the massive winds all disappeared as if it was dispelled. Erza furrowed her eyebrows in confusion at the display before shaking her head and telling them to run to catch him. Natsu took a sniff into the air, detecting Erigor's scent and leading the others towards it. 

It was then that the atmosphere shifted. An oppressive, grotesque aura slammed into them, so heavy it felt like the air itself had turned to lead. Natsu clenched his fists, gritting his teeth as he fought off the suffocating pressure. Beside him, Gray and Lucy struggled but managed to hold their ground. Erza was barely affected, easily brushing off the weight. Happy, however, dropped to his knees, his wings disappearing as his magic was forcibly canceled.

"Happy!" Natsu yelled, scooping the blue cat into his arms. 

Looking up, they saw it—a massive, hulking figure towering above the forest canopy. With oozing bark-like skin and three grotesque eyes, it looked every part the demon that it was.

"What the hell is that thing?!" Gray exclaimed in shock.

"Who cares what it is?!" Natsu snapped, flames leaking out of his mouth. "Let's pound that thing into the ground for what it did to Happy!"

"That must be Lullaby's true form." Erza muttered with narrowed eyes. "It's fighting something."

It was then that Natsu looked back and squinted. His enhanced eyesight from his Dragon Slayer magic allowed him to see it in vivid detail. Through the haze of magic and flying debris, he spotted a figure darting through the air, clad in dark armor and unleashing devastating attacks against the demon. His eyes widened in recognition.

"It's Dannis! He's fighting that thing!"

"You mean Dannis Martell? The Dark Swordsman?! He's here?!" Lucy exclaimed in awe. Natsu wasn't surprised. Dannis is one of the most famous mages in Fairy Tail after all.

Erza didn't waste time with questions. In an instant, she transformed into her Black Wing Armor. She unsheathed her sword, ready to leap into the fray.

"We have to help him! Come on!" she commanded.

But before they could move, the ground shook violently. Looking up, their eyes went wide as a massive boulder, nearly the size of a meteor, blotted out the moonlight.

They all widened their eyes.

"What the—?!" Natsu began, but his words were cut off as an arc of pure darkness erupted in the sky.

The wave of energy carved through the boulder effortlessly, reducing it to dust before continuing toward Lullaby. The attack crashed into the demon with a deafening explosion, a shockwave rippling through the forest as the beast was sent sprawling onto its back. The light of the attack faded, and Lullaby's monstrous form began to shimmer and shrink, turning back to the wooden flute they saw Erigor had held just ten minutes prior.

The group stood frozen in shock for a moment before Erza let out a sigh, a rare smile gracing her lips. "It was foolish of me to think that man needed help. He's as incredible as always."

"Unbelievable," Lucy muttered, staring at the scene with wide eyes. "He beat a demon from the Book of Zeref all by himself."

Natsu, however, had a completely different reaction. His fists ignited with fire as he grinned fiercely. "Man, I wanna fight him so bad! I wanna see just how far I need to go to catch up to him!"

Gray scoffed. "As if, flame brain. You'll get defeated in one hit like you always did."

"What did you say, ice-breath?! You wanna go, huh?!"

"Yeah, come on. I'll take you on. Let's go!"

Before the two could start brawling, Erza brought her gauntleted fists down on their heads with a resounding clang. "Cut it out, the both of you. We still need to secure the flute. I don't know how much Dannis knows about our mission, so it's best if we catch him up to speed."

"Aye, sir!" Happy chirped, his spirits lifted now that Lullaby's aura had dissipated.

The group rushed toward the crater where the battle had ended. There, they found Erigor lying unconscious, his body sprawled on the ground. Standing nearby was Dannis, his dark armor dissipating into smoke as he inspected the wooden flute in his hand.

"Oh, you guys are here," Dannis said, glancing up as they approached. His voice was calm, almost casual, as if he hadn't just fought a towering demon. "I assume everything went well at the train station?"

"Dannis! Fight me!" Natsu yelled, charging forward with a flaming fist.

Before he could get close, Erza intercepted him with a swift, well-placed kick that sent him face-first into the dirt.

"The remnants of Eisenwald are being arrested by the Rune Knights," Erza reported, ignoring Natsu's muffled grumbling. "Are you all right?"

Dannis nodded. "Just a bit winded. Is this what you were looking for?" He held up the flute.

"Yes." Erza confirmed. "It seems our missions overlapped."

Dannis's lips quirked into a faint smile. "So it seems. I followed rumors about Eisenwald getting their hands on one of Zeref's artifacts. Found Erigor trying to escape near Onibus and decided to intervene. I'm glad I made it in time."

"So are we." Erza replied with a small smirk.

Dannis then looked towards Lucy. "I don't think we've met. I'm Dannis. Are you a new member of the guild?"

Lucy fumbled for words, startled by the attention. "Y–Yeah! I'm Lucy! I just got into the guild a few weeks ago. It's nice to meet you!" She awkwardly introduced herself. Natsu snickered at her before she kicked his shin, causing him to yelp.

Dannis nodded politely before turning back to Erza. "I'll take Erigor to the council myself. There's something I need to follow up on in Era." He handed the flute to Erza. "You should take this back to the guild. Master Mavis will know what to do with it. We can't trust the council with something like this."

Erza immediately connected the dots as she nodded, taking the flute and putting it in her requip space. Natsu saw Lucy raise an eyebrow, confused at the interaction.

"Got it. Stay safe." Erza replied back.

With a final nod, Dannis recreated his dark armor and unfurled his wings. Holding Erigor like a sack of flour, he launched into the sky, disappearing into the horizon.

As the group watched him go, Natsu stood, fists still blazing. "Next time, I'm not letting him have all the fun. I'm gonna beat him and show him what I've got!"

Erza sighed. "Let's focus on the mission first."

"Aye, sir!" the group chorused, ready to head back to Fairy Tail.

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AN: What do you think would happen with Dannis securing an artifact of Zeref and letting Mavis study it? The repercussions of this are probably gonna go crazy.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter

Cheers lads.