The air around Gajeel warped violently as a massive vortex of ethernano gathered around his body.
The iron scales on his arms thickened, turning a dark, jagged silver that reflected the dim light of the jungle.
Yomazu finished dragging his fingers across his heavy katana.
The blade pulsed with an overwhelming, suffocating black aura.
He held the sword high above his head, the dark magic pulling the surrounding shadows into a dense, swirling mass.
"Your armor means nothing to the abyss!" Yomazu roared, his muscles bulging as he brought the blade down.
"Dark Form: Execution Cleaver!"
A towering, crescent-shaped wave of pure dark energy erupted from the sword, tearing a massive trench through the jungle floor as it sped directly toward the Iron Dragon Slayer.
Gajeel didn't dodge.
He stood his ground, clapping his hands together above his head.
The dense iron magic sparked and screeched as it forged a colossal, jagged broadsword extending from his clasped hands.
"Dragon Slayer's Secret Art!" Gajeel bellowed, his red eyes burning with a feral thrill.
He swung his arms down, bringing the massive iron blade crashing toward the incoming dark energy.
"Karma Demon: Iron God Sword!"
The two devastating attacks collided in the center of the clearing.
The impact was deafening. The shockwave flattened the surrounding brush, kicking up a storm of dirt and splintered wood.
For a split second, the dark energy pushed against the iron, the corrosive kanji trying to eat through Gajeel's weapon.
Gajeel gritted his teeth, blood dripping from the gash on his chest. "I'm not losing to a damn dog!"
He poured every ounce of his remaining magic into the strike.
The heavy iron sword glowed with a fierce, silver light. With a brutal crunch of grinding metal, Gajeel's blade sliced right through the center of the dark energy wave, shattering Yomazu's magic into harmless black sparks.
The heavy iron sword didn't stop there. It slammed directly into Yomazu's katana!
The dark mage's eyes widened in shock as his reinforced steel blade snapped in half.
The blunt force of Gajeel's giant iron sword crashed into Yomazu's armored chest, sending the samurai flying backward.
He crashed through three thick tree trunks before finally collapsing into the dirt, out cold.
Gajeel stood there for a second, his giant iron sword dissolving back into ethernano.
He swayed on his feet, his iron scales fading as he dropped to one knee, panting heavily.
Levy ran over, sliding into the dirt next to him. "Gajeel! Are you okay?"
"Fuck, that sword was heavy," Gajeel groaned, spitting a mouthful of blood onto the grass.
He looked at the unconscious samurai and smirked.
"But I hit harder."
Levy let out a shaky breath, ripping a strip of fabric from the hem of her dress and pressing it against the bleeding gash on his chest.
"Don't move! You lost a lot of blood, i need to bandage this before we run into anyone else."
"We took down their lackeys," Gajeel muttered, wincing as she tightened the makeshift bandage.
"Now we just gotta find the rest of those Grimoire Heart bastards."
...
In the northern caverns, the battle against the Great Tree Arc was turning the frozen cave into a war zone of ice and shattered wood.
Gray slid across the frozen floor, his breathing ragged.
He slammed his fists together, a massive cloud of freezing mist erupting around him.
"Ice-Make: Cold Excalibur!"
A giant, heavy broadsword of solid ice materialized in his grip.
Gray lunged forward, swinging the frozen blade in a wide arc to chop through a cluster of thick roots shooting toward him.
The ice sliced through the wood, but Azuma didn't even blink. He raised a single hand, his tribal tattoos glowing.
"Tower of Burst," Azuma said calmly.
The roots beneath Gray's feet instantly swelled and detonated. A massive explosion of fiery, concussive force blasted Gray point-blank.
The ice sword shattered, and Gray was thrown violently into the cavern wall, bouncing off the stone and hitting the floor hard.
"Gray!" Loke yelled.
The celestial spirit dashed forward, his fists blazing with Regulus light. He threw a rapid barrage of blinding punches at Azuma's head.
Azuma parried the strikes with hardened wooden gauntlets that grew over his forearms.
He caught Loke's final punch, twisting the spirit's arm and delivering a brutal knee to his chest. Loke coughed, his magical form flickering with static.
"You rely too much on flashy lights, spirit," Azuma grunted, tossing Loke aside. "Your punches lack the heavy intent needed to break the earth."
Gray forced himself up, wiping blood from his mouth.
His muscles screamed in protest, but he refused to stay down.
He glared at the stoic dark mage. "We aren't done yet, you tree-hugging freak."
Azuma looked at Gray with a genuine spark of respect flickering in his eyes.
"You have grit, Fairy Tail. You take a heavy hit and stand back up. But grit alone won't close the gap in our power."
Azuma turned his back on Gray, walking slowly toward the cavern exit.
"Where the hell are you going?!" Gray yelled, forming another ice lance in his hand. "Don't turn your back on me!"
"I came here to fight monsters, not children," Azuma stated, not looking back. "You fought well enough to survive my opening moves. Consider that a victory. I have a feeling there's a much stronger opponent waiting for me deeper in this jungle."
Thick, impenetrable wooden walls erupted from the floor, sealing the cavern exit and trapping Gray, Loke, and the others inside.
Gray punched the wooden barrier in frustration, his knuckles bleeding.
"Damn it! He just brushed us off!"
...
A massive wave of black fire swept through the eastern clearing, turning the ancient Tenrou trees into piles of gray ash.
Zancrow stood in the center of the destruction, laughing like a maniac.
He threw his arms wide, his God Slayer flames burning so hot the air around him distorted. "Come on, shiny knight! Don't tell me you're getting tired already!"
Lobomon dashed through the burning brush, his white and blue armor glowing in the dark smoke.
He swung his energy sabers, slicing through the incoming fireballs with surgical precision.
But Zancrow wasn't just throwing fire anymore. He was manipulating the shape of the flames.
"Flame God's Supper!" Zancrow shrieked.
The black flames around Lobomon suddenly surged upward, forming a massive, terrifying set of jaws made of pure, dark fire.
The fiery jaws snapped shut, aiming to swallow the digital warrior whole.
Lobomon crossed his sabers above his head, catching the heavy upper jaw of the flames before it could crush him.
The sheer weight of the God Slayer magic pushed Lobomon's boots deep into the charred dirt.
Sparks and digital static flew off his armor as the intense heat fought against his firewall.
The black fire was heavy, corrosive, and incredibly hostile.
"Tough shit, isn't it?!" Zancrow grinned, stepping closer to the struggle. "You can't cut your way out of everything! That fire is gonna melt you down to nothing!"
Ace gritted his teeth behind his visor.
The God Slayer magic was definitely a step up from typical elements. It was trying to consume his power directly.
"You talk too much," Lobomon's synthesized voice buzzed.
He didn't try to hold the jaws open any longer.
Lobomon suddenly deactivated his energy sabers.
Without the resistance, the black fiery jaws clamped down violently, triggering a massive explosion of dark flames that engulfed him entirely.
Zancrow cackled, throwing his head back. "Yeah! Burn to cinders!"
A sharp, metallic whine cut through his laughter.
From the center of the black inferno, a massive, heavy barrel of a laser cannon poked through the flames.
Zancrow's eyes widened.
"Execute. Slide Evolution," a deep, booming voice echoed from the fire.
The flames parted, blown away by sheer physical mass.
The sleek, agile form of Lobomon was gone. In his place stood a towering, heavily armored mechanical beast.
KendoGarurumon!
His massive metallic chassis gleamed in the firelight, heavy tank treads replacing legs, and an enormous solar-powered laser cannon mounted on his back.
"What the fuck is that?!" Zancrow yelled, taking a step back.
"A reality check," KendoGarurumon growled.
Before Zancrow could gather another spell, the massive digital beast charged forward on his treads.
He didn't use fire or light.
He used thousands of pounds of raw, mechanical force. KendoGarurumon slammed his heavy metallic shoulder directly into Zancrow's chest.
The God Slayer didn't even have time to scream. The kinetic impact hit him like a freight train.
Zancrow was launched backward, tearing through the burning jungle like a skipped stone until he crashed violently into the side of a rocky cliff.
KendoGarurumon stood his ground, the heavy weapons on his back humming with power.
"You want to burn things down," Ace muttered from within the armored core. "Let's see how you handle heavy artillery."