Fairy Tail Guild Hall – Three Days Later
The guild was uncharacteristically quiet.
Not silent—Fairy Tail could never be truly silent—but subdued. The usual roars of laughter, the clinking of mugs, the occasional flying barstool... all were replaced by hushed conversations, stolen glances, and a heaviness that clung to the air like dust after a storm.
At the center of it all, Master Makarov stood with a thick packet of parchment in his hands. The full report. Every detail of what had occurred at the Bastion site: the cult, the ritual, the dragon shard... and Y/N.
Makarov's hands trembled slightly as he read the final page. The last line stood out in Levy's firm, deliberate script:
"Confirmed dragon presence."
He set the report down, lips pressed into a hard line. Fairy Tail had seen demons. Gods. Wars. But this—this was ancient. This was old magic, forgotten for a reason.
⸻
Upstairs – Infirmary Room
Y/N sat shirtless on the edge of a cot, wincing as Porlyusica adjusted a glowing rune strip across his chest. The magical scar left by the Bastion's shard still pulsed faintly beneath his skin, a faint green shimmer flickering like embers.
Porlyusica scowled as she slapped the last rune down.
Porlyusica: "That's the third time you've flinched. Act like a man or leave."
Y/N grunted, forcing a crooked smile.
Y/N: "Thanks for the bedside manner."
She huffed.
Porlyusica: "Whatever you absorbed... it's not gone. That thing branded itself to you. If it stirs again, I might not be able to suppress it."
Y/N: "Then I'll make sure it doesn't get the chance."
Porlyusica gave him a long, searching look—then muttered something about idiots and dragonfire before storming out.
⸻
Guild Hall – Evening
Y/N descended the stairs with Diana and Masumi flanking him. The rest of the team—Levy, Gray, Erza, even Natsu—turned as one to greet them.
Natsu: "You fought a dragon spirit and didn't bring me?"
Y/N grinned.
Y/N: "Next time we find one buried under a nightmare forest, I'll send a postcard."
Erza's expression was unreadable as she stepped forward.
Erza: "You were the center of a sealing ritual. The focal point."
Y/N nodded, face serious.
Y/N: "And I stopped it. Barely."
Levy held up a handful of papers—copies of the runes, the layout of the altar, and a sketched map.
Levy: "There's more. The Bastion was just one. There are seven. Seven seals. Seven dragons, maybe."
Masumi exhaled.
Masumi: "Let me guess. Each one's worse than the last?"
Makarov finally stood, clearing his throat. His voice, when it came, was heavy.
Makarov: "The Bastion of Verdant Flame... it was a lock. If what you saw was real, and the cult nearly unsealed it, then we're facing a crisis older than the guild itself."
Diana stepped forward.
Diana: "So what do we do?"
Makarov looked to Y/N.
Makarov: "That shard didn't just choose you. It tried to consume you. But you fought it. That means something."
Y/N's fingers brushed the faint glow beneath his shirt.
Y/N: "It tried to make me its vessel. I chose not to be."
Erza: "You are the vessel. The difference is, you're still in control."
Y/N's gaze swept the room—his guild, his friends, his home. And then he said the words they all knew were coming:
Y/N: "Then we find the others before the cult does. And we end this."
⸻
Somewhere Far from Magnolia – Midnight
A shrine lay buried beneath overgrowth and time.
Within, robed figures gathered in a circle, heads bowed. At the center stood a tall figure in layered dark robes, hands resting on an ancient stone altar carved with runes no longer spoken aloud.
Voice 1: "The Bastion cracked. The Anchor resisted."
Voice 2: "The Verdant Flame stirred... but did not awaken."
The leader looked skyward—eyes glowing faintly green.
Voice 3: "No matter. The process has begun. The others will feel it. And they will awaken."
Together, the cultists chanted the words like a prayer, like a prophecy:
"Verdant Flame, guide us through ruin."
⸻
Y/N's Room – That Night
The window was open. The wind was cold. But he didn't mind.
Y/N sat by the sill, watching the stars. His journal lay open beside him, sketches of runes and maps scrawled across the pages.
Diana's voice echoed in his memory: "Whatever that crystal was... I felt it."
He didn't know what was coming next. But he knew it was coming.
And this time, he wouldn't run from it.
Not anymore.