Natsu's fist was still trembling, flames flickering restlessly in his palm.
The stone statue had just finished standing up. Red light shot from its hollow eye sockets, locking directly onto the entrance. Natsu stepped forward, crushing loose gravel beneath his boots.
Erza raised a hand. In an instant, armor wrapped around her body. She didn't speak she simply took position half a step behind and to Natsu's side. Gray brought his hands together, ice blades forming in his grip as cold spread along the ground.
Wendy closed her eyes, hands clasped at her chest. Wind surged from every direction, coiling around the group. Her voice was soft but steady.
"We're ready."
Bickslow crouched low, star-map crystal pressed against the rock layer. His fingers flew, images refreshing nonstop. He looked up.
"Energy nodes are behind it three meters deeper than before. Two main supply conduits running in parallel."
Happy rose into the air, wings fully spread. He watched the statue's movement rhythm closely. Carla leaned against his back, ears twitching as she whispered something to him. Panther Lily landed solidly, feet braced apart, claws digging into cracks in the rock.
The statue lifted its arm. A beam of light began to gather in its palm, spiral energy compressing inward as the surrounding air warped.
Natsu charged.
Gray instantly formed an ice runway ahead smooth as a mirror. Natsu hit it at full speed, acceleration exploding upward. Dark red flames ignited around his right fist. This wasn't a standard Fire Dragon Wing it was a point-blank detonation, the power of the Dimensional Flame Core compressed into the shortest possible burst.
Erza moved at the same moment.
Her figure flashed, already circling to the statue's rear flank. Her blade gleamed black Armament Haki layered over the edge. Her target: the third connecting pillar on its back.
As the two closed in, Romeo raised the rune tablet.
The Blue-Flame Flower against his chest trembled violently. Two energies resonated, projecting a sharp blue beam that struck the precise junction where the conduits met.
BOOM!
The statue's arm locked mid-motion. Cracks spiderwebbed across its chest. Natsu's fist smashed straight into the energy sphere in its palm, flames flooding inward through the fractures. Erza's sword severed the connecting pillar metal snapping with a shriek.
The entire statue let out a piercing screech, like a machine pushed past overload. Red light flickered wildly. Its body tilted, trying to swing its arm but the motion stuttered. Black smoke poured from its joints.
With a final explosion, the statue ruptured from the chest outward. Fragments scattered in all directions. When the remains collapsed, dust billowed and the ground shook.
The ruin's entrance stood fully open.
Natsu exhaled hard, shaking out his overheated arm. The flames were still burning but steady now. He glanced back at the others and gave a short nod.
Wendy opened her eyes. "There's still movement inside."
Bickslow didn't look up, fingers still working the crystal. "More than one point is moving. Deeper levels. Looks like additional guardian systems are activating."
Gray peered over the edge. Purple light flowed deep within the crack fissures, branching like veins underground.
"This place is alive," he muttered.
Happy landed. Carla hopped down from his back, staring into the darkness.
"The temperature's dropping," she said. "Not natural something inside is absorbing heat."
Panther Lily clenched his fists, claws scraping his palms until thin red lines appeared. He stared into the blackness without a word.
Romeo hugged the rune tablet, stepping back half a pace. Data on the screen spiked erratically. He bit his lip.
"The frequency changed… it doesn't match the Blue-Flame Flower anymore."
Natsu reached into his coat and touched the flower. The heat was far stronger than before almost scalding. He pulled it out briefly; the edges of the petals had begun to turn violet.
"Whatever's in there," he said, "we're going in."
A low rumble answered him.
Everyone turned toward the sea.
On the horizon, silhouettes formed in a tight line dense ship outlines advancing rapidly. At least twenty warships arranged in a circular blockade. The flagship flew a black banner marked with a silver insignia.
Bickslow snapped his crystal shut, face tightening.
"SWORD unit. World Government's direct purge fleet. They're using magi-tracking signal was extracted from the first statue's wreckage."
Engines roared overhead.
Three small aerial craft detached from the fleet, circling the island once before dropping signal flares. Red light splashed down around the ruins, forming a perfect ring.
Gray let out a cold laugh. "That's not a warning. That's a lock."
Erza swapped out of heavy armor, switching to a lighter combat model. She checked her sword belt, ensuring instant draw.
"Don't strike yet. Let them speak first."
Natsu stood at the front, flames pulsing in his fist. He said nothing, eyes fixed on the approaching fleet.
Minutes later, a loudspeaker crackled to life. The voice was filtered cold, precise.
"Members of the Fairy Tail Guild. You have violated World Government Decree 114 by illegally excavating an ancient magi-ruin. You are hereby declared wanted across all zones. Surrender within ten minutes or be purged."
Wendy pressed her lips together, gaze wavering. She glanced down at her hands, then back at her companions.
Happy tightened his grip on Carla's shoulders. "Can we fly out?"
"No," Panther Lily said, eyes on the sky. "Those stealth units are faster than us and they've got lock-on systems. We'd be targets."
Romeo clutched the tablet, fingers shaking. He looked at Natsu's back, then at the ground beneath his feet. Several seconds passed.
Then he lifted his head.
"I don't want to leave."
Gray pulled off his coat and tossed it aside. He lit a makeshift torch, watched the flame dance across his face, then hurled it into the sea, watching it drift away.
"Neither do I. I'm done being locked up."
Erza stepped forward and placed a hand on Natsu's shoulder.
"We're not pirates. We're not criminals. But we are Fairy Tail. If they want a fight then we fight."
Wendy nodded softly, raising her hands. A faint glow spread around the group the prelude to healing magic.
"I'll protect everyone."
Natsu turned, meeting each of their eyes. His gaze lingered on Romeo.
"If you want to go," he said quietly, "now's the time."
Romeo shook his head. "I'm not going. I want to get stronger with you, Natsu."
Natsu smiled faintly, his fist tightening.
The fleet halted five hundred meters offshore. Every cannon was aimed at the island but none fired. The aerial craft continued dropping flares, red light pulsing steadily.
The loudspeaker sounded again.
"Five minutes remaining. Surrender to be spared. Resistance will be executed on sight."
Gray rolled his wrist, ice blades reforming. "They think we're scared?"
Erza drew her sword and planted it tip-down into the ground. She stood beside Natsu, shoulder to shoulder, facing the sea.
Wendy closed her eyes, Observation Haki spreading outward. She mapped every ship, every firing angle.
Bickslow crouched at the edge, star map active again, tracking enemy formation patterns. Happy and Carla took to the air. Panther Lily guarded the flank. Romeo hugged the tablet, eyes locked on the data feed.
Natsu stepped forward.
Flames spilled from his feet, scorching a black trail across the stone.
"However many come," he said, "I'll burn them all."
The sea wind died.
Red flare-light washed over every face. The fleet didn't move but they all felt it. Time was running out.
Suddenly, Natsu's flames lurched violently.
His left hand slammed against his chest as searing heat flared beneath his clothes. His guild mark burned like it wanted to melt through fabric.
At the same instant, the ruin behind them shook again.
A crack fissure split the ground. Purple light surged upward, releasing pressure far stronger than the statues before.
Natsu clenched his teeth, forcing his flames to stabilize. He looked toward the fleet then back into the darkness of the entrance.
Erza ripped her sword free, taking position beside him.
Gray slammed his hands down, ice spikes rising into a semicircular defensive formation.
Wendy's healing aura pulsed, unwavering.
Bickslow murmured, "They're about to move."
Natsu drew a deep breath. Crimson-gold flames roared around his right fist this time threaded with dark red and violet, as if something foreign had been absorbed.
He raised his fist toward the sky.
"We "
Before he could finish
One of the aerial craft suddenly dove straight down.