Rogue Cheney

Rogue Cheney (ローグ・チェーニ Rōgu Chēni) is a Mage of the currently strongest Guild in Fiore, the Sabertooth Guild and a member of its team, Twin Dragons of Sabertooth.

Appearance
Rogue is a slim young man of average height with rather messy black hair, which almost reaches down to his shoulders, along with some strands pointing upwards on top of his head and a prominent tuft obscuring most of his forehead. His hair is later brushed to the right side of his face covering up his right eye. He has red eyes with slit pupils similar to that of a snake's, like Gajeel Redfox's eyes.

Rogue wears a long, black cape reaching down to his feet, with golden edges, a much lighter collar circling his neck, and a prominent, white ribbon hanging down on his chest. Such cape bears a light Sabertooth's symbol on it, almost in correspondence to Rogue's left shoulder. Below it, Rogue seems to wear a plain greyish blueish tinted white shirt, with prominent brown cuffs and what looks like a large metal band circling each of his biceps. From a light sash circling his waist hangs a distinctive, pale blue cloth waistguard, consisting of four long pieces of cloth reaching down below his knees. Each of these pieces is adorned by a large, dark cross with fan-shaped arms. Below such waistguard, Rogue wears a pair of armored boots, which, on the front, bear plates bearing the very same motif which appears on the waistguard.

Personality
Rogue is the quieter of the Twin Dragon Slayers. He mostly keeps a calm face and rarely seems to show emotions. He also wasn't as interested in watching the matches as Sting was, stating that he is only interested in Gajeel.

Although, he is part of Sabertooth and one of the five strongest Mages, he seems to question the way their guild handles things, namely failure and weakness, and holds a strong belief on comradeship. After Yukino lost her match against Kagura and their Guild Master immediately banished her, he told Sting that despite her failure, she was still their comrade. Sting simply says that this is the way their guild works, and didn't think much of what just happened.

However, Rogue does have a softer, caring side. When his Exceed partner, Frosch, starts worrying and crying, and asks him if he would disappear since he is weak, Rogue smiles kindly and says that it would never happen since he was with him.

He also has not yet shown the ruthless, sadistic side displayed by some of his Guild mates. When Lucy was being tortured by Minerva, the other three members of Sabertooth's top five were laughing at the sight of Lucy being beaten. Rogue however was not laughing with them, and was earlier looking at the torture with a stern expression. He appears to be unusually kind for his Guild.

History
Rogue was raised by a Dragon, Skiadrum, who taught him Shadow Dragon Slayer Magic. He eventually used this Magic to kill Skiadrum, in order to become a "real" Dragon Slayer. At some point in his life, he also implanted Dragon Lacrima in his body, which made him a Third Generation Dragon Slayer.

Seven years ago, Rogue was a fan of Natsu Dragneel, as well as a fan of Gajeel Redfox.

Grand Magic Games arc
Sting and Rogue talk about how the Fairy Tail members from seven years ago have returned, though Rogue says he does not care. Sting knows he is lying, and points out how he admired Natsu Dragneel so much seven years ago. Sting continues talking about seven years ago, including Rogue being a fan of Gajeel Redfox. Just then, an archer from a Dark Guild arrives and shoots an arrow at the two. Sting grabs the arrow as it comes towards them and eats it, and then uses his Dragon's Roar. The attack barely misses the archer, which causes him to flee. Sting calls him scum for abandoning his comrades. Just then, Lector and Frosch appear praising the two Dragon Slayers. As they all walk away, Sting asks Rogue if they want to duel Natsu, but Rogue shows no interest.

Five days before the beginning of the Grand Magic Games, Frosch and Lector inform Sting and Rogue about Natsu deciding to participate in the tournament. Sting gets enthusiastic with the tournament while Rogue expresses his disinterest.

At the city of Crocus, he and Sting fight and defeat some Mages before meeting Natsu, who they make fun of for being a Dragon Slayer who couldn't defeat a dragon. They then announce that they are third generation Dragon Slayers who killed the dragon that taught them Dragon Slayer Magic. Rogue, Sting, and their Exceeds then leave, but not before Sting tells Natsu that they will show him the true power of a Dragon Slayer if the main event ends up being a battle.

Later on, the teams which passed the preliminaries of the Grand Magic Games arrive at the stadium one by one. After the teams are revealed, Rogue walks out with Sting and the three other members of his team who took 1st place in the preliminaries, meeting his former role model, Gajeel, along the way.

Rogue remains quiet and solitary throughout much of the first day. While Sting and Rufus begin talking about War Cry from Team Quatro Cerberus, Rogue walks away saying he doesn't care, and telling himself silently that he's only interested in Gajeel. By the end of the day, Team Sabertooth is in the lead with 20 points in total.

The next day during the Chariot, seeing how Sting, Gajeel, and Natsu are all affected by transportation sickness, Rogue realizes that this affects all Dragon Slayers. The second day eventually ends with Sabertooth gaining 0 points, moving them down to second place.

That night, Rogue is present with the rest of his guild when Sabertooth's Guild Master Jiemma talks about how Sabertooth is supposed to be strongest guild. Rogue looks away when Yukino is forced to strip, and when she has been excommunicated from Sabertooth. Afterwards, while walking down the hallway, he questions Sting about their guild and says that Yukino was their comrade, but Sting replies that Yukino disappeared because she was weak. Frosch then asks if he will also disappear because he's weak, but Rogue says that he won't since Frosch is with him.

Later on, the Sabertooth lodgings is attacked by an intruder. Rogue and Frosch report the news to Sting and Lector, who are also awakened by the noise, and they rush to find the intruder. As they hurry, they witness several of their guildmates being attacked by Natsu, making the Twin Dragons of Sabertooth shocked. Their Guild Master, Jiemma, appears and is challenged to a fight by Natsu. Rogue is left speechless and wonders if Yukino's excommunication is the reason for his intrusion. He watches as Natsu fights Dobengal and then Jiemma, only for the latter fight to be interrupted with Minerva's arrival with a captured Happy. Happy's capture forces Natsu to leave, but not before sharing a small piece of advice. Listening to Natsu's words about how Sabertooth should take better care of their guild mates, Rogue thinks of how those types of bonds don't seem to exist in Sabertooth.

At the end of the Third Day's events, Rogue goes back to Sabertooth's lodgings to wait for the next day. He's seen looking down, thoughtful, after his partner Sting expresses his feelings about the next day.

During the fourth day of the Grand Magic Games, Rogue is seen quietly watching as Minerva and Lucy face each other. Later on, when the new Team Fairy Tail is formed, Rogue and his teammates look at the new team. As the fourth day's tag battles commence, Rogue enters the battle field with Sting Eucliffe as his partner as they get ready to fight Team Fairy Tail's Iron Dragon Slayer, Gajeel Redfox, and Fire Dragon Slayer, Natsu Dragneel.

The Pumpkin Man gives the signal to begin the battle when the bell is rung, Rogue and Sting rush towards Gajeel and Natsu but are left stunned when they meet their opponents face-to-face. Rogue receives a powerful punch from Gajeel and is left unable to counter attack as Gajeel keeps attacking him without stopping. Sting's White Dragon's Roar gives Rogue a chance to attack Gajeel with his Shadow Dragon's Slash but his effort is futile as Gajeel easily blocks it with his Iron Dragon's Sword, and sends him towards Natsu with a powerful shock wave. Rogue is then dragged towards Sting by Natsu and attacked with Natsu's Fire Dragon's Wing Attack alongside Sting.

Rogue, after mumbling Gajeel's name, powers up with his Shadow Drive, enhancing his abilities. He takes the form of a shadow and attacks Gajeel, gaining the upper hand. However, before he can land another attack, Gajeel grabs his hand and uses his elbow to land a hit. Nonetheless, Rogue picks himself up and walks towards Gajeel, whilst calling out his name, but ends up getting punched yet again. After many hits, Rogue lays on the ground next to Sting. With Mato questioning the outcome of the match, Rogue and Sting get up and enter Dragon Force mode.

Though he activates his Dragon Force, Rogue is told by Sting to back off from the rest of the fight. Rogue complies and lets Sting take on the two other Dragon Slayers head-first. When Sting seemingly defeats them, having taken the battle underground, both his and Rogue's Dragon Forces deactivate. Rogue states that things change over time and that they have become real Dragon Slayers; additionally, he claims the old generation to be over. However, to his shock, both Old Generation Dragon Slayers are virtually unaffected by Sting's attacks. Rogue then watches, to his discomfort, as Gajeel is knocked into a mine cart, and as Natsu proclaims himself to be a good enough fighter for the Sabertooth Slayers.

Hearing this, Rogue states that he has no business with Natsu and he wants to battle Gajeel instead, but Natsu states that Rogue must beat him before he could fight Gajeel. Rogue attacks Natsu with his Shadow Dragon's Roar, however, Natsu stops his attack with his Fire Dragon's Roar, weakening Rogue. When Natsu overwhelms Rogue with his attacks, Rogue and Sting prepare for a Unison Raid and attack Natsu with it, to which Natsu counters with a Dragon Slayer ultimate technique, creating an explosion in the Domus Flau. After the smoke created by the explosion clears, a weakened Rogue states that he can't see the bottom of Natsu's power, and then falls to the ground, knocked out. Rogue is left immobilized afterwards beside Sting, astonished by the true power of Natsu Dragneel.

Rogue is later bandaged and brought to the Sabertooth lodgings with the rest of his Guild. When Jiemma questions how the duo could lose, Rogue says that he has nothing to say about his defeat and that Natsu Dragneel is too powerful. However, when Jiemma shows his true rage at his and Sting's defeat, he beats them, particularly punching away Rogue. After Lector is attacked by the master, a frightened Frosch begins to cry and Rogue hugs him quickly to protect the Exceed. Rogue is shocked to witness an enraged Sting attack Jiemma with White Dragon's Punch.

When the last day starts, Rogue enters the arena with the rest of Team Sabertooth. As confusion ripples through the crowd, Rogue points out to Sting that Natsu is not in Team Fairy Tail. Sting tells him that they must consider themselves lucky. Rogue waits with the rest of his team as the rules for the final fight are explained. As soon a the game begins, Rogue separates from the rest of his team a heads into the city alone. After witnessing Rufus' defeat, Rogue remarks on how powerful Fairy Tail truly is and begins thinking about defeating Gajeel. Later on, during Minerva's battle with Erza Scarlet and Kagura Mikazuchi, Rogue simply remains silent.

Soon after, Rogue walks into a building and comes across Gajeel, whose name he utters with interest as the latter tells Rogue that he's persistent and to get ready, as he's not as nice as Natsu.

Rogue is later seen taking a hit from Gajeel's Iron Dragon's Club. He is pushed back a distance, while Gajeel states that it's impossible for Rogue to surpass him in a single day and that if Rogue couldn't defeat Natsu, then there's no way that he, himself, could be defeated. Rogue then quickly retorts that Gajeel possesses strength nowhere near Natsu's level, which makes Gajeel visibly angry.

A short while later, a defeated and resolve-shattered Rogue is towered over by a victorious Gajeel. Rogue attributes Gajeel's strength to the guildmates he has in Fairy Tail, understanding why after Phantom Lord disbanded, he joined and stayed in Fairy Tail. Rogue then questions his very existence and purpose, saying that Sabertooth doesn't understand the concept of friendship, thereby implying that he is weak and has no friends. Gajeel then reprimands Rogue for not considering Frosch his friend. The two then argue over what species Frosch is, which ends with Rogue reaffirming the fact that Frosch is his friend. The two Dragon Slayers are then interrupted by a mysterious voice. Rogue turns around, repeatedly asking who and where the voice is, while the latter tells him to kill Gajeel, claiming that it is his destiny. Rogue looks down with an expression of shock, seeing that it is his own shadow who is telling him to kill his idol, offering him the power to commit the deed.

Magic and Abilities
Shadow Dragon Slayer Magic (影の滅竜魔法 Ei no Metsuryū Mahō): A Magic which allows Rogue to transform the physiology of his body into that of the Shadow Dragon, making his body into a shadow that cannot be touched by normal means. With this Magic, the user is also able to fade himself into shadows to move swiftly, dodging efficiently and making surprise attacks. However, if the user is caught while in a tangible form, they are then vulnerable to attacks. As a member of the Third Generation of Dragon Slayers, Rogue learned this form of Magic through two means, by both receiving the teachings of a Dragon named Skiadrum and having Dragon Lacrima implanted into his body.


 * Shadow Dragon's Roar (影竜の咆哮 Eiryū no Hōkō): Rogue releases a large burst of shadows from his mouth. The true extent of this attack was not shown, seeing as Natsu countered this attack with his own Dragon's Roar.


 * Shadow Dragon's Slash (影竜の斬撃 Eiryū no Zangeki): Rogue covers his arm in shadows and punches the target with it.


 * Shadow Dragon's Crushing Fang: Rogue generates shadows from his hand and use them to attack the target. (unnamed)


 * Shadow Dragon's Kick: Rogue generates shadows from his feet and use them to attack the target. (unnamed)

Shadow Drive (シャドウドライブ Shadō Doraibu): A type of Magic-amplification technique used by Rogue that brings out the true power of his Shadow Dragon Slayer abilities, excluding the power boost granted by Dragon Force, at the same time seemingly enhancing his physical prowess to a degree, particularly his speed.. It grants Rogue an aura of shadows that continuously rises from his body. The technique also obscures his eyes, leaving only his round, blank irises visible. According to Rogue's fellow Dragon Slayer and partner Sting, Shadow Drive harnesses "the power that kills dragons", and it indeed allowed the Shadow Dragon Slayer to momentarily overwhelm Gajeel Redfox, who had him completely outmatched beforehand. This technique is very similar to that used by Rogue's fellow Dragon Slayer and partner Sting, the similarly named White Drive.

Dragon Force (ドラゴンフォース Doragon Fōsu): Rogue is capable of activating the most powerful form of the Dragon Slayer at will, something which greatly surprised those who had intimate knowledge of Dragon Slayer Magic. When activated, Rogue is covered in an even thicker aura of shadows than that provided by Shadow Drive. He also gains dark, intricate scale patterns underneath and around his eyes, extending down his neck and onto the rest of his body.

Unison Raid (合体魔法, ユニゾンレイド, Yunizon Reido): A spell which allows two Mages to unite their Magic into a single, combined and stronger attack. Rogue has shown to be able to combine his magic with Sting's creating powerful spells.
 * Holy Shadow Dragon's Flash Fang (聖影竜閃牙 Seieiryū Senga): Rogue and Sting combine their magic together releasing a large amount of shadows and white light from their hands, creating a strong burst of white light and shadows.

Expert Hand to Hand Combatant: While always carrying around a sword by his side, Rogue's melee moves shown so far are unarmed ones, and include punches, kicks and elbows. He employs his Shadow Dragon Slayer Magic to boost his offensive power as well as to outmaneuver opponents, landing enhanced blows from different angolations through the use of the evasive form granted him by Shadow Drive. The latter combination allowed him to fight and even overwhelm Gajeel Redfox for a while, despite ultimately being struck by the opposing Dragon Slayer.

Enhanced Durability: Rogue possesses good physical resilience, being struck by powerful melee blows from both Gajeel and Natsu and undergoing the latter's Fire Dragon's Wing Attack without suffering substantial injuries, and continuing to fight and even employing some of his best techniques afterwards.

Enhanced Speed: Rogue has been shown to possess above average speed, as shown from him being able to outmaneuver Gajeel during their battle, though he was using his shadow drive Magic Spell. Enhanced Endurance: Rogue has shown to possess a high amount of physical endurance, being able to confront two fellow Dragon Slayers at the same time with his partner Sting, being struck by powerful melee blows from both Gajeel and Natsu all the while showing moderate signs of weariness and still have the strength to stand back up on his feet just a little later to attack the opponents again with a powerful Dragon Slayer Magic Technique. And also near the end of the Battle with Natsu and Gajeel Rogue was still capable of performing a powerful Unison Raid Dragon Slayer Magic attack with Sting and only collapsed after being struck by Natsu's Secret Dragon Slayer Attack.

Enhanced Reflexes: Rogue possesses fast reflexes, having been shown dodging multiple close range attacks from Gajeel, one of which was a Dragon Slayer Magic attack while employing his Shadow Drive technique, to the point that Gajeel couldn't even follow his movements which allowed him to give rapid counter-attacks to the opposing Dragon Slayer.

Equipment
Katana: Rogue carries around a katana, a traditional Japanese sword, on his left hip, with its sheath tucked inside his sash belt. The weapon is fairly simple in appearance, sporting a tsuba whose shape is vaguely reminiscent of a four-leaf clover, and a hilt, wrapped in a traditional, dark tsuka-ito, which seems to get larger near its pommel. The sheath is dark in color.

Battles & Events

 * Twin Dragons of Sabertooth vs. Unnamed Dark Guild
 * Twin Dragons of Sabertooth vs. Unnamed Mages
 * Sky Labyrinth
 * X791 Grand Magic Games Inauguration
 * Natsu Dragneel & Gajeel Redfox vs. Sting Eucliffe & Rogue Cheney
 * Rebellion within Sabertooth
 * Grand Magic Game

Trivia

 * In Volume 32's extra content, Mashima provided the battle statistics for 31 of the 40 X791 contestants in the Grand Magic Games. The stats, however, were provided not from Mashima's point-of-view as the author but from the view point of Sorcerer Magazine reporter Jason. Which explains why some stats are missing and why others may be inaccurate. According to Jason from the Sorcerer Magazine, during his participation in the Grand Magic Games of X791, Rogue's stats are:
 * In the anime, Rogue's cross-shaped design on his shin guards and katana were absent. The katana later appeared at the beginning of the Grand Magic Games.
 * In Rogue's original manga debut, he had longer black hair. From his next appearance onward, his hair was styled shorter. In the anime, Rogue is portrayed from the beginning as having his shorter hair-style.
 * During the last day of the Grand Magic Games, Rogue is shown bandaged and sporting a very different attire than what he usually wears. In his next appearance, he is shown un-bandaged and wearing clothes reminiscent of his original attire, with the addition of a dark scarf.

Quotes

 * (To himself about Gajeel Redfox) "I have no interest. My interest is only in you, Gajeel."
 * (To himself regarding Natsu Dragneel's speech about 'Nakama') '"Nakama... Bonds that don't exist in our guild, huh..."
 * (To himself about Natsu Dragneel) "Natsu Dragneel... I can't see the bottom of his power..."
 * (To Gajeel regarding himself and his guild) "There had to be a reason...for you to stay in Fairy Tail. I didn't understand, but now I do. It was your nakama, right? Our guild lacks that concept. We are the Master's soldiers. His orders were absolute. Victory was a must. What is a 'guild'? What are 'nakama'? What am I even fighting for?"