Macao arc

Macao arc is the first story arc in the manga series, Fairy Tail. It is the introduction to the series, the characters and the setting as a whole.

Lucy meets Natsu
The story begins with a magic council convening and discussing the matters of Fairy Tail, which seem to have cause a bit trouble for them. Meanwhile in the town of Harujion, a teen name Natsu Dragneel and his walking talking cat named Happy have arrived, looking for an individual named Salamander.

Also arriving at the same time is a young girl named Lucy Heartfilia is milling around shopping, she runs across a few girls pining over someone named Salamander literally throwing themselves at his feet. Lucy also nearly get swayed into falling for him but is brought to her senses when Natsu bumps into her from rushing into the crowd upon hearing Salamander's name. However finding out it wasn't who he thought it was, he goes to leave the scene which earns him the animosity of Igneel's fans. Igneel himself calms the crowd down before departing.

Lucy goes to Natsu, thanking him for breaking her out of Igneel's spell (explaining that he was using illegal magic to make the girls fawn over him) and offering Natsu a meal as a reward which Happy and he gladly accept. At the cafe, the two get to know one another. Natsu explains his quest for looking for Igneel which as it turns out is not a person, but rather a dragon, much to Lucy's surprise. The two then parts ways with Natsu vowing to pay Lucy back.

Lucy then looks over a magazine with pictures of Fairy Tail mages and expressing her wish to join their guild. "Igneel" suddenly appears and, infatuated with Lucy, invites her to join him for a party on his yacht. Lucy is initially suspicious but agrees to come when Igneel promises to show her the way to Fairy Tail. Night soon falls and Natsu and Happy are having no luck in their search. As they're resting for the day, they overhear some girls talking about Igneel and his relationship to Fairy Tail peaking Natsu's curiosity.

Meanwhile Lucy is on Igneel's boat, whom constantly flirts with her. He then used his magic to make the liquid in the wine float and tries to get Lucy to drink it. However she realizes its another one of his tricks, specifically he laced the wine with sleeping drugs, and confronts him on it. Indeed he comes clean revealing himself as a mage named Bora who was using his magic to lure girls to his boat, drug them, then sell them into slavery. His henchmen soon reveal themselves, restraining Lucy and tossing her Celestial Keys into the water to keep her from trying anything. Just as Bora about to brand Lucy, Natsu suddenly crashes onto the boat and confronts Bora about his relationship to Fairy Tail. Happy carries Lucy off to safety using his aria magic but it wears off mid-flight and both Lucy and he fall into the ocean.

Natsu finds himself hampered by his chronic motion sickness. Lucy manages to find her keys and summons Aquarius who, despite her moody attitude, uses her powers to sweep the boat onto shore with a tidal wave. Those onboard survive the crash and what more with the boat no longer rocking, Natsu can now focus and use his full fire powers revealing that he is a member of Fairy Tail and has never seen Bora before at the guild. Bora tries to attack him with some fire magic but Natsu simply eats it then goes on the attack. While Happy explains to Lucy his magic is that of a Dragon Slayer which was taught to him by Igneel himself. The fire mage soon beats them but goes overboard and end up destroying the port in the process. Soon the military arrives to which Natsu, Happy and Lucy run for it. Along the way, Natsu promises to show Lucy where the real Fairy Tail is much to her joy.

The Magic Council soon receive word on their antics but one of the member, Siegrain, defends them and tell the council to leave them be as the world wouldn't be fun without them

Fairy Tail
Natsu, Lucy and Happy soon arrive in Magnolia Town where the Fairy Tail guild lays and Lucy experiences first hand the rowdy atmosphere when Natsu starts a brawl by kicking one of the members who gave him the supposedly false information on Igneel. Among the members, were introduced to Gray Fullbuster, an ice mage rival to Natsu that unconsciously strips down to his underwear for no apparent reason. Cana Alberona who drinks rum by the barrels. Elfman, who preaches about manhood then unceremoniously gets knocked out. Loki, a womanizer who instantly hits on Lucy but backs off when he realizes she a Celestial Spirit mage. And finally Mirajane, the poster girl of Fairy Tail and lead bartender of the guild who assures Lucy that brawls happen all the before getting decked with a bottle and gains bloody head, though it doesn't seem to flinch her.

After a bit of fighting barehanded, the FT mages begin to resort to using their magic but are stopped by their guild leader, Makarov, who complains to the bunch about the complaints he gets from the Magic Council for the members' antics and methods which usually leads to collateral damage. After repriming them a bit Markov goes on to say to forgot the council and to do what they think is right as it is the Fairy Tail way! The members all cheer in agreement.

Search for Marcao
After everything dies down and night fall, Lucy is officially made a member by Marajane via a stamp on her right hand. Natsu meanwhile goes to the job board to look for work, just as he about to consider one. He overhears a child, Romeo asking Markov when his dad, Macao, will return, worried as he hasn't been back within a week after going off to a mission on Mt. Hikobe. Markov however hasn't heard word of him and tell Romeo to go wait at home, when he refused to send a search party after him. Romeo punch him the face and leaves in a huff. Upon seeing this, Natsu leaves intent on going to look for Macao. Mirajane guessing its due to his own parental abandonment of Igeenel, who she reveals raised Natsu as a child but suddenly left him alone without warning one day and doesn't wish the same for Romeo. Soon Natsu, Lucy and Happy are on a carriage to Mt. Hikobe which Lucy discovers, much to her dismay are snow covered lands to which she came ill prepared for. The three trek on, with Lucy using her Celestial Spirit, Horoligum, a grandfather clock like spirit that Lucy able to ride in. Natsu reveal that Macao job was to subdue a monster know as Balkan, an ape like monster with tremendous strength which terrifies Lucy even more.

Natsu calls out to Macao through the snowstorm, but something find him in the midst of his search; said Balkan itself. However rather then fight Natsu, it dashes past him and grabs Horoligum with Lucy inside and takes it back to its lair. Horoligum disappears due to his time limit expiring leaving Lucy to fend for herself. Luckily Natsu manages to find the two demanding the Balkan to show him where he hid Macao. The Balkan however tricks Natsu into looking over a cliff to which it pushes him over. Angered at this, Lucy goes to summon the Celestial Spirit, Taurus, to combat the Balkan. However before he can attack Natsu reappears and attacks Taurus, thinking hes an enemy thus knocking him out. When asked how he survived, Natsu of course revealed that Happy caught him using his aira magic (and able to counteract his motion sickness as he doesn't consider Happy transportation).

The Balkan once again goes on the attack and a battle between him and the Balkan ensues. Natsu however triumph when he manages to melt some of the the metal from Taurus's axe (which the Balkan used against him) into fire and power himself up to deliver a finishing blow. As the Balkan lays defeated it suddenly turns into Macao himself who nearly fall through a crack in the wall where Natsu knocked him into and over a cliff. Natsu manages to grab him followed by Happy grabbing him, Lucy grabbing Happy and a revived Taurus helping Lucy pull them up. As they treat Macao's wounds, Happy surmises that the Balkan must've took over his body during the mission. Indeed Macao confirms it having defeated 20 Balkans before the last one possessed him. The bunch soon head back to Mignolia and returns Macao to his son. Romeo apologizes to Macao after nagging his dad to do a big mission after being teased by the resident kids. Macao in kind apologizes as well for making him worry, telling him next time the kids tease him, he can gloat that his old man defeated 19 Balkins. With the mission completed Natsu, Lucy and Happy head back to Fairy Tail with Romeo thanking them for bringing back his father.