{LEXI'S POV}
It's one thing to watch a battle from the relative safety of the guild box, where I can observe all actions through an objective lens. The lack of danger thanks to the barrier doesn't trigger me.

It's another thing entirely to be right in the splash zone, feeling the wind as Reiki clashes repeatedly with Yuuki. Sometimes even Yuuna, although she definitely favors ranged combat.

Reiki initiates those scuffles, attacking her until Yuuki intercepts them. I can barely track what's going on. Only that Yuuki has a massive advantage in magic power, but he and Reiki are roughly even in combat. Reiki's just that good at compensating.

Yuuna tips the scales, shooting rays of moonlight at Reiki and spells to increase Yuuki's speed, strength, and power. It's because of her that Reiki struggles to hold them off. Sky magic isn't the only type of magic that can bestow buffs on allies.

The twins lock eyes for a second, communicating without words. Yuuna abruptly withdraws from the battle, leaving Yuuki to duel Reiki solo. After a few minutes of white magic versus twin swords, whatever she's preparing is done.

Yuuna raises her arms. Yuuki immediately retreats, leaving Reiki alone in the magic circle that just appeared underneath their feet. No time to run.

Yuuna smiles a little. "Gotcha. Eclipse: sight!"

Reiki's eyes fill with inky black. Not just his irises, even the whites of his eyes aren't spared the squid treatment. He tenses. If I had to guess, he's completely blind until the debuff spell wears off.

"Humans rely on sight more than any of our other senses. Let's see how long you fare without." Yuuna says, looking slightly smug.

Reiki adjusts his grip on his swords and closes his eyes. Yuuki jumps at him, but Reiki listens and dodges just in time as a white laser whistles by. Yuuki tries some punches and kicks, but Reiki dodges most of them by sound alone. He almost lands a solid slash on Yuuki's neck with his swords.

Yuuki jumps back. "Yuuna! It's not enough!"

"Already on it." Yuuna goes through the same motions with her hands again. "Eclipse: hearing!"

Now Reiki looks like he's gotten a tattoo on his ears. Whatever sense Yuuna steals, it turns any associated external sensory organ black.

What happens next is a dance. Yuuki attacks, and as soon as the attack brushes Reiki's skin and he feels it, he estimates it's direction and swerves away. Like this, he amasses light injuries but never anything serious. Lacking sight and hearing he still manages to keep up the fight. But how long can he last?

Yuuna puffs out her cheeks in annoyance now. "Very well. Usually I find this a bit too cruel, but now I'm irritated. Yuuki, get back."

Yuuki obliges. "Are you serious?"

"Eclipse: touch!" Yuuna chants.

All of Reiki's skin changes color. He's now lost every vital sense, except for those of taste and smell, and is completely vulnerable to attack.

Yuuki hesitates, then narrows his eyes. "Yuuna's doing her best and I will too! I'm not a bully so I'll knock Reiki out with one move!"

He begins concentrating a ball of white energy in his palm, probably akin to a bomb which will explode when he throws it at Reiki.

Is this it? Reiki still looks calm. He raises his twin swords in front of him and stabs them into the ground. Reiki lets go of his weapons, a risky move since he might not be able to find them again.

He summons one sword. I recognize it. It's a Lightning Empress sword. He throws it into the air.

"I was looking for that!" Aunt Erza shrieks above us.

"Is Reiki attacking randomly now?!" Chapati screams, but I know better.

That's not an attack. It's an offering.

Reiki is telling me that he's done his part, so now I have to do mine. He wants me to use the sword as a conduit for my magic. It's time to decide.

Do I reject the offering? We'll lose and Reiki will get hurt by Yuuki's white bomb. I'll stay crippled by fear until Apophis swallows us and devours the world.

Or do I stand up? Can I really swallow my fear and become someone worthy of standing by Reiki's side?

You're not afraid of magic, Lexi Dreyar.

As I watch Reiki's sword spin through the air, I believe in myself for the first time in almost a decade. What I fear isn't magic. Yes, magic hurt me. It traumatized me. But Apophis was controlling it.

The thing I fear was sealed inside the boy I love. I could never fear Reiki, so I directed my fear at the medium Apophis used instead. But I love magic, so fearing it only hurt me worse.

My magic wants to be free. That doesn't mean it wants to hurt me. It was just trying to protect me from threats like Opal; it healed the damage it caused after rampaging by knitting the cracks together.

Apophis is the bad guy. He's the one that made my magic attack me.

I was being foolish. My magic is mine to control, not his. I finally face the rising flood of yellow within me, and I take hold of it.

You want to be free? Yes. I'll set you free. Rampage all you want for me.

I stop fighting the unebbing flow of magic power and it stops pushing against me. We accept each other. Lighting charges my legs, doing exactly what I want, and I've never felt more like me.

I'm Lexi Dreyar. I'm a Fairy Tail wizard!

I leap high, catching the sword midair. "Raikiru!"

Dark clouds swirl in the sky. A bolt of lightning connects with Reiki's sword, which glows yellow as electricity crackles in the air around me. Thunder booms, drawing everyone's attention.

My body disolves into lightning and I blast forward, landing in front of Yuuna. Her eyes are wide. I swing the charged sword, twisting it midair so she'll be hit with the blunt side. I don't want to maim her.

My attack never reaches Yuuna. Yuuki pushes his sister (who has no defenses up) out of the way. He takes her place as the recipient, repurposing his white bomb into a white shield.

Sword hits shield and electricity thrashes. My static magic autonomously activates and shocks Yuuki, propelling his body into the arena wall. His impact leaves a giant smoking crater.

All of this, from my leap to Yuuki hitting the wall, happens in the span of five seconds.

My guildmates stare at me, wide-eyed and open-mouthed. In fact, pretty much everyone in Domus Flau wears that same expression.

Nobody expected me to join the fray. After my major flop of a fight against Opal Moody, everyone thought that I was incapable of using magic. Their eyes were solely focused on Reiki and the royal twins.

"Wha-Wha-Wha-Wha-Wha-Wha-Wha-Wha-What's this?!" Chapati roars. "L-Lexi Dreyar is using magic?! I-I don't believe my eyes!"

Yuuki groans and slumps, clutching his abdomen. Down but not out. My focus is fully on Yuuna. I'll force her into close combat and make her cancel the spells on Reiki. I have to protect Reiki.

Yuuna shoots a lunar ray at me, buying time to gain some distance since the air around me is charged. Trying to force me into ranged combat, eh?

"Did you forget me? This is a two v. two battle!" I kneel, slamming my palms down into the ground. "Kaminari Ryōiki!"

The air is tinged yellow, and electricity crackles through it. Tendrils of electricity rise out of the dirt like vines. This spell works within a certain diameter, powering me up and making the terrain inhospitable for non-lightning mages. A specialty of mine back when I officially worked as a mage.

Thunder Territory, for the uninitiated. This arena is my domain now and I control everything within it. The air. The ground. All of it belongs to me.

The first thing I do is use the tendrils of lightning rising from the earth to create a static barrier around Reiki. Anything that touches it will be blasted backwards twenty feet. I'm gonna protect him from anymore attacks. The goal of the cage is technically to hold someone prisoner, bouncing them around like a ping pong ball inside if they try to escape.

Reiki smells the ozone and grins. He sits down comfortably. I know he won't move because he trusts me. He knows he's no help until his senses return.

Several bolts of lightning strike down around the arena, giant yellow pillars from the swirling clouds to the stormy earth.

Yuuna summons a crescent moon scythe. She uses it to slice any bolts that attack her. But each time she touches my magic, a jolt of electricity passes through her conductive body and her arms feel a little more numb. I'm good at battles of attrition.

She's panting, having been whittled down bit by bit. I raise my arm in her direction. "Rairyū!"

A lightning bolt in the shape of a dragon lunges at Yuuna. She desperately raises her weak arms to protect her face, squeezing her eyes shut.

And Yuuki is there again, a barrier between me and Yuuna with his arms spread eagle and eyes clenched shut. I admit, I was focused solely on Yuuna since she's the one limiting Reiki, so I forgot about him. Yuuki takes the brunt of the damage head on for his sister. His body gets folded like a lawn chair and blasted back into hers by the force of my attack.

Yuuki sandwiches Yuuna between the arena wall and his now unconscious form. Yuuna looks exhausted and her arms are probably numb. She succumbs to her injuries too, slumping over her brother.

We won. I used magic. Most importantly, Reiki's senses have returned.

I stop releasing my magic power and the thunder territory fades without constant sustenance. I run to Reiki and tackle him in a huge hug.