Fairy Tail: Metal and Threads

Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia.

October 10, x789.

"Hmm? Where is everyone?" Irene asked shortly after walking through the guild hall's sliding doors.

"Did they all leave on quests?" Juliet asked in her usual upbeat tone.

"I doubt it." Heine replied. She then pointed at the tables scattered around the guild hall's first floor. "Look, there are a lot of empty plates and glasses on the tables."

"You're right, Heine." Irene replied with a nod. She then focused on the lone person sitting at the bar. "But I think there is someone we can ask sitting over there."

At the end of Irene's line of sight, Ur, nursing a glass of wine, sat at the bar, seemingly deep in thought.

"Ur, good afternoon." Irene said as she, Heine, and Juliet approached the bar. "Quite the unusual sight to see you sitting at the bar alone. Did something happen?"

"Oh, Irene." Ur said, her eyes lighting up as she laid them on Irene. "Just the person I wanted to see."

Immediately, Irene went on guard. Ur looked way too excited to see her. And she did not like it. Not one bit.

"And what can I do for you, Ur?" Irene asked, making sure not to show her caution in her tone.

"There are two things, actually." Ur replied with a smile. "As I'm sure you are aware, there are a couple of openings among the Wizard Saints, most notably, one of the Four Gods of Ishgar. And I was hoping---"

"No thank you." Irene replied before Ur could finish her sale's pitch. "I'm simply not interested."

"Well, can't say I didn't see that coming." Ur replied, undeterred. "As for the second thing, how would you like to be the fifth guild master of the Fairy Tail wizarding guild. And before you reject, hear me out, at least."

Ur's last sentence cause Irene to not decline immediately. So, she gestured for Ur to continue. Meanwhile, Heine and Juliet were excited by the prospect of Irene becoming the next guild master. In their opinions, no position in the guild would fit her better.

"You see, ever since the Grand Magic Games started, I haven't had the opportunity to participate." Ur continued.

"Because guild masters cannot participate." Irene said, nodding in understanding.

"Right." Ur replied with a nod of her own. "In fact, that's the reason Alfonzo always rejects whenever I ask him to be the guild master in my place. He's always wanted to participate in the Grand Magic games. Unfortunately, his work has gotten in the way for the last few years."

"I see." Irene replied, once again nodding in understanding.

"So, I got to thinking…" Ur said, leaning a little closer to Irene as she did so, her eyes sparkling in anticipation as she continued.. "Since you aren't interested in taking part in the Grand Magic Games, it would be the right call to put you in the position of the guild master."

"I can definitely see where you're coming from." Irene replied with yet another nod after letting Ur's reasoning sink in.

"I know, right?" Ur replied with a wide smile stretched across her face.

"You're still young enough to compete with the best the kingdom has to offer." Irene continued. "Powerful enough, too. It's no wonder you want to join the Grand Magic Games."

"Exactly." Ur said, nodding her head with great vigor as she did so.

"But…" Irene said before pausing for dramatic effect.

That one word was enough to make Ur's smile freeze on her face, the feeling that she was not going to like what followed after the "but" rushing to the forefront of her mind.

"I really have no interest in taking the position of guild master." Irene said. "I truly enjoy the fact that I can spend my days as leisurely as I'd like. Taking quests when I feel like it. Not having to deal with the Council, spending time with my daughter and my new family. It's all I could ask for."

Immediately after hearing that, Ur hung her head in defeat.

"*Sigh* I understand." Ur said in a defeated toen. "I suppose it would be cruel to ask you to take on a responsibility like that after everything you've been through and what you've finally been able to attain after so much hardship."

Seeing Ur's downcast mood, despite how sadistic she could be, Irene felt pity for her. So, before Ur's mood could spiral downward any further, she spoke once again.

"But I may have a solution." Irene said.

As if a light had shined down from above, Ur snapped her head up to stare Irene directly in her eyes.

"Wha… What is it?" Ur asked as if she were grasping at straws.

"Well, why not ask Mavis?" Irene suggested. "I'm sure she would love to take charge of the guild she founded. Especially since her time as guild master was cut short thanks to Ankhseram's curse."

Ur's eyes shot open, surprise and realization dancing in their depths.

"Plus, Alfonzo sacrificed a Philosopher's Stone to have that curse removed, didn't he?" Irene asked, a smile spreading across her face at the sight of Ur's excitement. "And that means, not only will she finally start aging like anyone else, but she doesn't have to worry about hurting anyone she cares about, either."

"That's right, he did.!" Ur exclaimed happily. "I'll definitely ask Master Mavis once she gets back from visiting Warrod!"

"Good." Irene said. "Now, may I ask you a question, Ur?"

"Of course." Ur replied, clearly on cloud nine at the moment. "anything you want."

"Where is everyone?" Irene asked.

At the same time, in the large training chamber on the tenth floor of the guild hall, most of the guild was gathered, standing against the walls of the training room. Meanwhile, at the room's center, Alfonzo and Brandish stood across from each other.

"Are you sure you want to do this, Brandish?" Alfonzo asked, not really interested in having this match.

"Why, afraid you'll lose?" Brandish asked in an almost bored tone.

Despite her tone, the excitement in Brandish's eyes could not be hidden. It was clear shew as looking forward to her upcoming fight with Alfonzo.

"*Sigh* Fine, if this is what you really want." Alfonzo said as he started shaking his arms to loosen up.

Instead of replying, Brandish raised her guard in a standard kickboxing stance. At the same time, she started bouncing on the balls of her feet, which looked a little strange with her high heeled sandals.

"Are you ready?" Brandish asked.

Seeing that Brandish was not using a weapon, Alfonzo did not draw his own, either. Instead, he took a Philly Style boxing stance, with his left hand dropped low and his right hand up near his chin. Then, he two started bouncing on his toes.

"Yeah, I'm ready." Alfonzo replied.

As soon as Alfonzo gave his affirmation, Brandish shot forward in a blur of speed. Then, once she was close enough, she snapped a jab at Alfonzo's chin.

In response, Alfonzo, though not wanting to have this fight, was focused, his right hand shot out, batting Brandish's Jab to the side while simultaneously tilting his head to the side, as well, as Brandish's hand opened just after her punch was batted away.

"[Command T: Expansion]." Brandish chanted.

*Boom!* *Boom!* *Boom!*

Alfonzo's left hand then shot up from below, knocking Brandish's left arm up before she could retract it. Then, Alfonzo stepped in and ducked under her raised arm while he hooked his left arm under hers and shifted his body around behind her in one motion.

Unfortunately, the spectators behind Alfonzo's starting position missed the smooth transfer into a grapple as the barrier separating them from the sparring ring was impacted by nearly a hundred tree limb-sized splinters.

"What the hell?" Gray exclaimed as he jumped at the pieces of wood that came flying from out of nowhere.

"Hmm… She must have had a hand full of saw dust or something like that in her closed hand before she opened it." Erza analyzed.

"Wait! Are you saying she was trying to throw all that in Alfonzo's face?" Lucy asked in horror.

"It looks that way." Erza replied with a nod. "Not that it would have harmed him, though. It would have probably pushed him back at the very most."

"Still, that's really dangerous." Lucy said while shifting her gaze back to Alfonzo. "By the way, why are those two fighting, anyway."

"I have no idea." Erza replied with a head shake.

Meanwhile, After slipping behind Brandish, Alfonzo tried to hook his right arm under Brandish's right, as well. However, Brandish reacted quickly, throwing her right elbow back with all her might.

*Bang!*

*Crack!*

"Argh~~~~~~~~~!" Brandish screamed from the unexpected pain coming from the tip of her right elbow.

Unfortunately for Brandish, Alfonzo reacted just ass quickly, materializing a sheet of Adamantite on the surface of his skin at the point of impact. As a result, the sound of bone cracking echoed around the training room, causing a few of the guild members with weaker wills or pain tolerances to wince, pangs of phantom pain shooting through their own right elbows and arms..

Despite the pain, Brandish moved her arm once again, her hand surging towards the metal plate her elbow just slammed into.

"[Command T: Expansion]." Brandish chanted once again.

In the next instant, the thin plate of Adamantite swelled in size, forcing Alfonzo to release Brandish's left arm quickly before stepping back. Even so, while stepping back, Alfonzo tapped the tip of his right index finger on the sheet of Adamantite.

"[Electromagnetism Magic: Static Discharge]." Alfonzo chanted just as his fingertip touched the adamantite.

In the next instant, a bolt of purple electricity exited Alfonz's finger, the adamantite sheet conducting it into Brandish's body.

"Ahh~~~~~~ Ah baba-ba-baba." Brandish screamed unintelligibly due to the electrical current flowing through her body.

The sheet of Adamantite then disappeared, having been dispelled by Alfonzo before he shot forward again, still in his Philly Boxing stance. Then, when he was in range, his left fist shot out, burying itself in Brandish's abdomen.

"Gah!" Brandish grunted involuntarily as she doubled over Alfonzo's fist.

Then, in one smooth motion, Alfonzo slipped past Brandish, his left arm wrapping around her throat and causing her body to straighten up. Then, he hooked his right arm under her right, forcing her once again into a half-nelson before his left hand locked around his right bicep as he flexed his left bicep slightly as he lifted Brandish's 5'6" tall frame off the floor.

"You giving up? Or do I have to shock you again?" Alfonzo asked with is hold locked in.

However, it took a few moments for Brandish to recover enough to speak, with the injury to her elbow, her body still spasming from the electric shock, and having her breath knocked out of her by Alfonzo's punch.

Meanwhile, a short silence fell over the training room. Although most people expected Alfonzo to win, they did not expect him to win so easily. Brandish had magic power on par with, if not a little lower then, Gildarts, after all.

"I don't' get it." Droy said in a confused tone. "Why didn't she try to use her [Command T] on Alfonzo directly?"

"It's because [Command T] doesn't work on individuals who vastly out strip you in power." Levy replied. "And although it may not look like it, Alfonzo usually hides how much magic power he's outputting at all times."

"But is Alfonzo really that much stronger than Brandish?" Jet asked curiously.

"Honestly, if you had asked me earlier today, I would have said there was no way." Levy replied. "but now, I'm not sure."

"It's not that Alfonzo is that much stronger, actually." Gajeel, looking like he was ready to jump in the ring himself, said, cutting into the conversation. "Instead, he's just that much faster than her."

"what do you mean?" Jet and Droy asked simultaneously.

"I'm pretty sure she has to touch him with her hands to activate [Command T]." Gajeel asked. "Right, Pipsqueak?"

"If I had to guess." Levy replied with a nod while shooting an annoyed pout at Gajeel. "At least, I've never seen her cast it with any other parts of her body."

"That is actually incorrect." Irene, having entered the training room with Ur just a moment ago, said in reply to Levy's analysis. "Brandish doesn't actually need physical contact to cast her magic. The real reason Brandish did not use her magic on Alfonzo directly, is because she couldn't."

Hearing Irene's voice from so close by, Levy, Jet, Droy, and Gajeel all turned to look at her in surprise. However, they still paid close attention to her following words.

"And that's because, despite not having that much more magic power than Brandish, Alfonzo's magic power is so much denser than hers." Irene continued while watching Brandish tap her uninjured left hand on Alfonzo's bicep three times, signaling that she was giving up. "Honestly, it amazes me just how dense his magic power is. And he's not even twenty-five yet."

'Though, I'm not actually a hundred percent sure about that.' Irene muttered to herself. 'Not after all the things I learned about other worlds from him and his and Elicia's guests that stopped by a couple of months ago.'

While Irene was considering the possibilities of interdimensional travel, Alfonzo set Brandish back on the floor. Then, he gestured towards Wendy, asking her to heal Brandish's cracked elbow. Meanwhile, everyone else discussed the rather short spar that just took place. Not long after that, everyone got back to what they were supposed to be doing. Namely, Harvest Festival preparations.