Fairy Tail: Threads of Infinity

The atmosphere inside the Tower of Heaven was thick—magic hung in the air like a storm about to break. After Jellal's crushing defeat at the hands of Shinra, silence reigned in the central core chamber. The once-proud dark mage lay unconscious, his body limp on the fractured stone, the lingering traces of his immense magic dissipating like ash on the wind.

Shinra stood tall amidst the debris, his white coat fluttering, his expression unreadable as he stared at the unconscious Jellal. The swirling shimmer of his Limitless barrier dissolved with a snap of his fingers. The battle was over—but the war wasn't.

A sudden beeping noise echoed through the tower.

**BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.**

Shinra turned slowly toward the Lacrima core. His eyes narrowed. "Here it comes," he muttered.

Just as he feared, a holographic sigil burst to life above the Lacrima crystal—red, pulsing, deadly.

"Etherion sequence engaged."

"Time until firing: **10 minutes.**"

–––—

*On the upper floor*

Erza groaned, still weak from the earlier battle. Blood seeped from a wound on her thigh, but her eyes widened as she heard the robotic voice echoing from the walls.

"Etherion…"

Simon, limping beside her, clenched his fists. "No way… they actually went through with it?!"

"Jellal… he planned to use me as the key to activate this thing," Erza whispered, trembling. "But now, even without me, the sequence…"

"What the hell is going on?!" Natsu barked, looking around wildly.

Mira's eyes widened. "It's the countdown to the Magic Council's satellite weapon!"

"Wait, the *giant magic death laser*?!" Lucy screamed, paling.

Gray cursed under his breath. "Why would they fire it now?!"

Juvia clenched her fists. "Because they think Jellal is still in control of the tower…"

Mira turned toward the direction of the core. "We don't have time to wonder. We have to evacuate now!"

---

*In the Lacrima core room*

Shinra stood with one foot resting on a broken piece of the floor, eyes scanning the floating runic timer above the Lacrima.

*9 minutes, 2 seconds.*

Behind him, a groan echoed. Jellal's fingers twitched.

"He's still alive," Shinra murmured, glancing over his shoulder. "You should stay unconscious, you know. It would be less humiliating."

He walked over to the group, who finally arrived, breathless and wounded.

Erza met his gaze. "Is it true? Etherion… is it going to strike?"

Shinra gave her a grim nod.

"I can try disabling it," he said. "But they've likely embedded magical seals on the Council's end. Even I can't stop it without knowing the core enchantments."

Simon growled. "Then what do we do?! We can't outrun something that vaporizes islands!"

Shinra looked at him calmly. "We don't need to outrun it."

"We just need to redirect it."

---

**Elsewhere in the tower…**

Vidaldus and Ikaruga unconscious body twitched as they lay half-buried in rubble. A few floors up, Fukuro's broken mechanical wings sparked uselessly. The Tower had become a graveyard of magic and ambition.

But none of it mattered anymore. Not when a beam of pure annihilation was about to descend.

---

**Back in the lacrima room*

The sky was already darkening unnaturally, clouds swirling like a vortex over the ocean's horizon.

"I didn't think it'd come to this…" Lucy said, heart pounding.

"Wait," Natsu looked up. "That magic… it's coming and it's huge!"

Gray swallowed. "So that is Etherion."

"Time until impact: **5 minutes.**"

Everyone turned to Shinra.

"Can you really stop it?" Mira asked worriedly.

Shinra slowly shook his head. "No. But I can redirect it."

He turned to the others. "I'm going to manipulate the dimensional barriers around this tower using runes etched on the tower as a medium. Then I'll create a 'reverse domain'—a space where the Etherion will collapse on itself the moment it touches the tower."

"But you'll need time to do that…" Erza realized. "which we don't have enough. "

"Then *buy* me time," Shinra replied simply.

---

Everyone worked fast and began supplying magic to the runes across the tower.

Meanwhile, Shinra levitated above the tower's peak, floating within a spiral of shifting blue and white sigils.

*2 minutes…*

Below him, the others watched in awe and fear.

"His magic… it's so fascinating," Simon whispered.

"It's like he's bending reality," Lucy murmured.

Mira, despite the situation, smiled a little. "That's Shinra for you."

"Damn showoff," Natsu muttered, secretly impressed.

Erza turned her gaze skyward. Shinra looked so calm, so focused. Even after all he had done for them, for her… she still didn't know *who* he truly was.

But she did know this.

"If we live through this… I'll make him tell me," she whispered.

---

*5 seconds…4...3....2....1*

The sky turned violet. A lance of searing magical energy pierced the clouds—Etherion's descent had begun.

From the heavens, a roar of magical pressure pressed against the sea and land alike. The sky tore.

And then… it struck.

The beam slammed into the Tower of Heaven—

—only to ripple, bend, and then vanish into a spiraling sphere of collapsing light above the tower.

Shinra hovered at its center, eyes glowing with pure Limitless energy.

"Domain: *Inverted Reality.*"

The beam twisted on itself.

Then—

**BOOM.**

A colossal explosion of light surged upward—but the tower remained.

And then it was gone.

The sky cleared and the sea calmed. Etherion had been nullified.

---

Everyone stared in stunned silence. Juvia clutched Gray's arm. Lucy had dropped to her knees in disbelief. Mira's eyes glistened with pride.

Erza whispered, "He… did it."

Moments later, Shinra floated down slowly, the back of his coat fluttering in the wind. His feet touched the ground gently.

"You can thank me later," he said, visibly exhausted but still managing a smirk.

Happy zipped into the air. "That was… AWESOME!"

Natsu burst into laughter. "You're insane, you know that?"

Lucy ran up and hugged Shinra suddenly, surprising everyone—including herself. "You… you actually did it…"

Mira gave a sly smile. "Careful, Lucy. Someone might get the wrong idea\~"

Lucy immediately flushed. "W-what?! No, it's not like that!"

Mira winked. "It's okay. I've *seen* the way you look at him sometimes. And at Natsu. And at Loke."

Lucy shrieked. "MIRA!"

Erza, oddly silent, watched them with a smile.

Simon stepped forward, placing a hand on Shinra's shoulder.

"You saved us all," he said sincerely.

Shinra simply nodded. "It's over."

He looked over at the sunrise beginning to light the eastern sky.

"Now…we go home."