The Worst in All of Us [Mission]

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Kazuki didn't often leave the Guild Hall for an extended period of time; however, he had spent the day out and about with the people of Magnolia. Being a Guild Master as he was, though, it was important to go out and socialize with the inhabitants of the town. They allowed Fairy Tail to reside there, after all. Well, it was more like a business arrangement if Kazuki was going to be completely honest. The guild had to pay taxes to remain, which was a portion of the jobs taken each month. Fairy Tail also provided an excellent revenue for tourists to come to Magnolia and see the Guild Hall, which increased monetary gains for all businesses in the city.

Despite that, and some viewing it as a public relations that Kazuki would spend time among the people, he actually liked to. Magnolia was a quiet port town and the people were as kindly as they came. He cared about them as much as he cared about the members of Fairy Tail. And so, instead of just waving and greeting important people, he spent most of his time conversing with shop keeps and passer-bys. Some would call it a brilliant move, to sympathize with the little people, but in Kazuki's eyes they were all little people: himself included. Having been raised by a Dragon, he knew that if they ever resurfaced for whatever reasons, they were all little more than ants to a boot.

Reaching the guild hall just before the sun started to set, Kazuki met the usual cheers (which sounded drunken now) with a two fingered wave before he went to the stairs to the second floor, taking them two at a time. He had put off the days paper work long enough, and while he wasn't excited to do it in the least he knew it had to be done. Reaching his office he narrowed his eyes at an envelope jammed between the door and the frame. That was odd. Usually the bar tender received any mail and held it until he came to get it--and he didn't need to do that today, because he chatted up the mail man in town.

There was no mail for Fairy Tail today.

Reaching the office door he plucked the envelope from the door and opened it in the same motion. Stepping into his office he walked to the fire place and lit it with a single blow of his breath. Grant it, he could have used the lighting lacrima, but during the winter months he liked the ambiance that the crackling fire provided, as well as the lighting.

He opened the envelope as he sat upon the chair and pulled out the parchment enclosed. As his crimson eyes scanned it, he raised a brow. This was a job request, but it was titled specifically to him. He received these from time to time, but they were mainly fan-mail. Kids requesting to pay him 5 Jewels, their entire allowance, to beat up a playground bully and the like. Sent specifically to him because he was in Sorcerer Magazine. This was a serious Request, with a large jewel sum and everything. It seemed simple enough, travel to a cave behind a waterfall just outside of town and destroy a mirror within. But why the large payment for that? It seemed..too easy?

Kazuki pursed his lips in thought before he simply shrugged. Well, whatever the reason, he was sure he could handle it. He was himself, after all. There wasn't a challenge that a swift Iron Fist to the face couldn't handle. Standing he exited the office and decided to take care of the job. He had a rough guess of where this waterfall was, though he knew it'd be dark by the time he got there.

WC: 635/2700

Kazuki left the Fairy Tail guild hall for the second time that day, though this time he was dressed for combat. Rather safe than sorry, or so they say. His brown locks were feathered back, as always, and his crimson eyes held the mischievous glint they always had. His lips were lifted a one sided smirk, as he glanced around the street in front of the guild hall. His white dress shirt was worn, and over this his brown trench coat, the high collared garment's buckled rattling slightly as he sauntered on. Around his neck was his signature black scarf. The pants he wore matched his trench coat in color, tucked into well worn boots. If he was gonna travel, he might as well be comfortable, after all. And they weren't falling apart just yet!

The area the Request sheet had described was nearby, and the Dragon Slayer narrowed his eyes to scan the area. He saw nothing out of the ordinary, nor did he hear anything that would be alarming. Giving a small sniff of the air, only the scent of water invaded his nostrils, from the nearby river. Following along the bank, he heard the roar of the waterfall long before it came into view. The view, even at night, was rather spectacular. Maybe he should take more walks like this in the evening. See the world from a different perspective.

Reaching the pool that the waterfall poured into, Kazuki edged it and found that indeed there was a cave behind it. Kind of cliche' but if he thought about it, it actually was ingenious. It was so stereotypical that no one would seriously think to look back there. Careful not to get wet, Kazuki managed to get into the cave, finding the short narrow path to lead directly into a large antechamber.

In the center of the antechamber was a single mirror, complete with jeweled and engraved stand. The oval structure was dark, like the cave, and Kazuki raised a fist. The fist became shrouded in flame, providing a light for him to see and he approached the mirror. He looked it over. Why would someone want this destroyed? It was an antique! Hell, maybe he could just take it home. Looking into the glass he saw himself as he always did, though something was off.

He wasn't smirking, but this reflection certainly was.

He barely had time to react, dodging the attack as his reflection leaped from the mirror, using his fire shrouded fist as a weapon, aiming for Kazuki's head. The Guild Master skid to a stop a few feet away as his reflection rolled with the lurching punch and stood right.

"Oh. So this is why they want it destroyed."

The Reflection's smirk became sinister, even deadly. "Not if I kill you first..."

"...a me, that wants to kill me? I thought I loved myself far more than that," Kazuki quipped, extinguishing the fire on his fist. He quickly shrugged off the leather jacket and tossed it aside.

"Oh-ho, the jacket's coming off!"

"Don't read too much into it, I just really like that jacket," Kazuki returned.

"Your glibness does you no credit, Kazuki Kobayashi. I already know everything about you...every..minute...detail. Because you see--"

"Oh! I know! You're me, right? And you're going to kill me and take my place and do all types of nefarious deeds?"

"Not..precisely. I'd prefer to keep you alive as long as possible so you could see me destroy Fairy Tail and reduce to ash everything...everyone you care about to ash."

Kazuki looked the reflection over, his own smirk gone as his eyes hardened, ready for battle. This wasn't going to be easy, he knew. The reflection gave him a very important insight though, he claimed to be him. If that was true than he knew all of Kazuki's spells, or at least, had Dragon Slayer magic. He'd never fought another Dragon Slayer before, so fake or not, he had to be careful.

"Well then. I do believe those are fighting words."

WC: 1309

The reflection stared at him, that cocky grin making Kazuki rethink using it so much. Still, he was confident that he could best him in combat? The confidence was a silly one, based solely around that the reflection knew everything about him. But, didn't that mean that he too knew everything about the reflection? it made sense. The reflection's greatest strength was also his weakness.

"Well, when I said my greatest enemy was myself, this isn't exactly what I had in mind. Still, if I have to give myself a swift kick in the ass, I guess I will."

"You seem confident. I know what you'll do before you even do it, because I'll have already planned it."

"The same could be said for you, you know."

The smirk wavered.

"Maybe you aren't me after all, or you'd have figured that out already. And you can drop the carefree act, because you and I both know that's not who I really am."

"Tch." The Reflection removed his jacket as well.

"See! You knew I really do like that jacket."

The Reflection remained silent before he glared at Kazuki, quickly shooting a trail of fire from his eyes in his direction. Feeling the small amount of heat in such a paltry attack, Kazuki chose to merely side step the thin lines of the fire.

"Guess we're starting." Kazuki slammed a foot into the ground as he propelled himself forward, fists catching alight. Reaching the reflection, Kazuki stopped short, leaning back to dodge the retaliatory strike he knew the reflection would throw. He was him, after all, but he also knew that like him the man couldn't say no to a good old fashioned fist fight.

The fist passed harmlessly by, but he hadn't expected the reflection to lean in and strike him with his head, right on Kazuki's nose. He felt his eyes water, the bodies immediate reaction and growled. At point blank range he opened his mouth and spewed a column of fire onto the reflection. Following this up he leaned in and rammed his fist straight into the reflection's mouth. Falling back from two strong attacks in a row, Kazuki pressed the advantage.

Flames shot from his heels, moving him quickly. He slid back around behind the man and punched him again, this time aiming for his kidney. There was a shout of pain as the flaming fist struck true. His leg then came up in a quick kick, striking the Reflection on the back of the head and sending him skidding to the edge of the antechamber.

"Me? Hardly."

The Reflection stirred and pushed himself up, rubbing his head as he stood straight. He swivled his head around to Kazuki. "I am you, and you know it. And because you know that" flames began to pour from his form, "You know what happens when people make you angry."

WC: 1790/2700

330/400:

The flames that poured from his reflection lit up the cave, casting eerie shadows along the wall and caused the mirror to glint constantly. Kazuki couldn't help but grin at this. He had to admit, he could be pretty impressive. It looked different from the outside, seeing himself pouring flames with a scowl on his face. Certainly could be terrifying for those not like him.

"Flames of Emotion, eh? Reckon I must've struck a nerve.." He knew that when angry he had a hard time controlling his fire, and the heat produced was much stronger than that of his normal spells; however, he also knew he was prone to irrational mistakes. If he could bait the reflection, and keep his own cool, he could easily put himself down.

Er, the reflection. Put the reflection down.

Kazuki opened his right palm at his side, forming a fireball in it. "Bring it, Salamander." Using the pet name that many other wizards had made for him, that irked him, the Reflection let out a roar and rushed Kazuki. Just before the flames reached Kazuki he hurled the fireball, which struck the fire surrounding the Reflection and caused an explosion. Kazuki didn't wait for the smoke to clear. This was the time to strike, he knew it and his reflection would likely be stunned from being near the explosion, point blank.

Kazuki rushed into the smoke, fists coated in flame. His saw the outline of his reflection distorting the smoke and stopped, stomping heavy. Just as he expected, the force of the stomp caused his reflection to snap out of his confusion, instantly lashing back with a blow into the smoke. Kazuki was able to easily duck under this, pivoting into reach and unleashing a fierce flame wreathed kick into his Reflection's ribs. The blow caused the man to double over, the concussion of the blow blew the smoke away revealing both combatants. Kazuki immediately placed a palm down and brought his other foot forward, slamming it hard into his reflection's face. With enough room between the two now, Kazuki brought both feet from the ground and spun, unleashing a haymaker into the Reflection's face, sending him careening across the antechamber and into the wall.

Kazuki wasted no time, glaring at the wall and causing flames to erupt at the spot after a thin line traveled there. The Reflection slowly stood out of them, the fire relatively cool in terms of what he usually produced in combat. The reflection's shirt was torn a bit from the rocks, and singed in other places from Kazuki's various fire attacks. "Well. Good to see I'm still handsome when I get my ass kicked."

"E-nough! I will not be talked down to by a base Original!"

"And that would just make you a cheap imitation."

The Reflection let out a scream of frustration before he launched himself at Kazuki, wreathed in flame. He knew this spell: it was one of the Secret Arts. Specifically, Fire Bat. He knew he could stop it, but there was no time. The flame wreathed reflection struck him, carrying him across the antechamber and slamming him into the wall with enough force to shake the entire cavern. The blow made him cough. That had cracked a rib, he was sure. The followup he knew was coming, did, as the Reflection cared little about outsmarting him as much as he did over powering him. He opened his mouth wide and unleashed a column of flame at Kazuki, point blank.

Knowing what was coming next, as it was usually a favorite combo of his own, using his fists covered in flame to back hand the roar away, causing it to explode only meters away from them. Smoke again clouded their vision, but the Reflection was once again caught off guard with his Original's resourcefulness. Kazuki's mind was made up.

This had to end now.

Particles of fire drew in from all around him, swirling around his fists in a torrent. His own second Secret Art: Dragon Fist. He unleashed a barrage of blows, the first strike blowing away the smoke from sheer force. All of the thirty blows struck true, the last a hard haymaker that didn't send the Reflection across the antechamber like that last one had, this one laid the fake him flat on his back.

Kazuki wasn't finished. He slammed his foot onto the ground, expelling flames into the earth. These caused a large fist to explode from the ground, knocking the prone Reflection airborne. Before he could strike the ground, Kazuki was ready again.

A giant flame hand extended from his own, grabbing the Reflection securely. "Gotcha." And then promptly exploded, rocking the cavern for what seemed like the hundredth time that evening. The Reflection hit the ground, singed and body contorted.

Unmoving.

Kazuki heaved a heavy breath. He had used a lot of magical power. He was weary. He hobbled slowly over to the mirror. Looking to the reflection who slowly turned his head to him he glared back. "For Fairy Tail."

And tipped the mirror over.

As the mirror struck the ground and shattered, so too did the Reflection. Kazuki found himself slumping into a sitting position and sighing. "Man...I'm tough as hell to beat. I can't remember the last time I tried that hard to finish a damn job..."

He leaned back on his palms, looking at the dark ceiling of the antechamber. "Why couldn't it have been, like, a child reflection of me? Then I coulda just spanked me or something..."

A weary sigh escaped his lips and he grunted as he pushed himself up, wincing. Yeah. Rib. He figured he'd best return home and get that treated.


WC: 2742