Massacre at Era

Massacre at Era is an event that takes place during the Tartarus arc.

Prologue
At Era, several members of the Magic Council discuss the fact that Fairy Tail won the Grand Magic Games, with one in particular claiming that the moment that the Tenrou Team returns, this is what they give them; another Council member claims that Fairy Tail enjoys standing out above the rest. Meanwhile, as the Council members also discuss the possibility—and difficulty—of forbidding the continuation of the Grand Magic Games, Lahar and Doranbolt sigh at one another. Just then, however, Magic Council Chairman Gran Doma clanks his staff on the ground, calling for silence; he states that their topic of the day is Tartarus. Gran then goes on, explaining that over the past seven days, many guilds thought to be affiliated with Tartarus have inexplicably been wiped out and that, despite not having found any possible ideas as to who the perpetrators were, are both thankful and worried over such a thing. An unnamed Council member then chimes in, stating that if the perpetrators were a Legal Guild, then they will have to worry about being retaliated upon, though two others discuss the possibility that Crime Sorcière did the deed. However, two Council members bring Fairy Tail into the conversation, claiming that this happening could very well have been their statement to the Magic World that they are powerful, though Org chastises them for thinking such a thing; Org claims that the perpetrator was none other than Tartarus themselves. He explains that in order to make themselves stronger, they weeded out the weak guilds affiliated with themselves. Such an absurd notion, unfortunately, merely causes Org to be laughed at.

Baffled by his colleagues' laughing at him, Org is insulted by his fellows, who not only claim that Dark Guilds taking each other out is impossible (and that Tartarus should have the forces they need), but also claim that Org is going senile in his old age. Contrary to the beliefs of his fellows, Gran takes Org's theory to heart, calling it extremely plausible, much to the shock of the other Council members. Growing more serious by the second, Gran states that after turning a blind eye to Tartarus for so long, now is the time for them to take action: though their true form remains unknown to them, and if they were to fall so would the Balam Alliance, the Magic Council must take up their strongest arms and make a stand; such a statement unnerves many Council members.

Massacre at Era
At that very moment, however, one of the frog-like messengers of the Magic Council comes bustling into the meeting hall, screaming that something terrible has happened; such a thing earns him a reprimanding from one of the Council members, but as he states that there isn't any time for meetings and that someone has invaded their sanctum, the headquarters of the Magic Council is destroyed in a great explosion, sending bodies flying freely through the air. Badly wounded and laying in the wreckage, Doranbolt awakes to find himself next to Lahar, who, after vigorously shaking his body, finds that he is dead. Looking around the wreckage, Doranbolt horrendously marvels at the corpses of the Magic Council members. After getting up and quickly falling down, Doranbolt shouts if anyone is still alive, and with an expression of happiness finds that Org is among the living.

Doranbolt's happiness doesn't last for long, though, because just then the dark hand of a demonic looking man descends upon Org's head and pushes the elderly Council member's face into the debris. With a snicker, the man mockingly states that letting Org live isn't an option as assassinating all nine members of the Magic Council is their directive. Muttering the word "explode", the man's arm begins to light up, prompting Doranbolt to shout for the man to stop; Org orders Doranbolt to run. Doranbolt, hearing this, sadly says that he cannot, though Org quickly begs him to think of what will happen if he doesn't; the man smirks, stating that running from his explosions isn't an option. With the light from the man's arm reaching its peak, Org screams for Doranbolt to run, something which Doranbolt contemplates very seriously. With the explosion finally on its way, the man introduces himself as Jackal, one of Tartarus' Nine Demon Gates, and orders Doranbolt to remember his name when he goes to Hell as the one who single-handedly murdered the entire Magic Council; Org screams one final time for Doranbolt to run and, with tears in his eyes, Doranbolt screams Org's name as Jackal, with a devilish grin, creates one final explosion.

Aftermath
Elsewhere, as news of the entire Magic Council's murder reaches far and wide, Doranbolt slowly makes his way to the underground prison where Cobra is kept; the Poison Dragon Slayer sarcastically greets Doranbolt. Doranbolt asks Cobra if he "heard" what happened above, though Cobra mocks the man, stating that he knows full well that using Magic in his cell is impossible and that he merely heard the explosions via normal means. Unamused, Doranbolt viciously demands that Cobra reveal everything he knows about Tartarus, though Cobra laughs at this, stating that the only way he'll reveal what he knows is if he and his comrades are released; Doranbolt states that he doesn't have the authority to do so and Cobra tells him to talk to those higher up than him. In response, Doranbolt solemnly tells Cobra that all the higher ups have been murdered, shocking Cobra. Then, with a grin, Cobra jokingly states that they took things to an extreme, something which greatly angers Doranbolt and prompts him to teleport behind Cobra, knife in hand. Holding the blade to the Dark Mage's throat, Doranbolt tells Cobra that his friends are dead and that his patience is wearing thin, demanding that he reveal all his knowledge or his last breath will be breathed. Without losing his composure, Cobra grins and tells Doranbolt that he isn't going to budge regarding his condition, as the Oración Seis are his allies regardless of any circumstance. Meeting Doranbolt's angry gaze, Cobra does, however, say that he will tell the man one thing.

Meanwhile, at Tartarus' headquarters, Nine Demon Gates member Kyouka greets her fellow member Silver, who remarks that, as always, she looks stunning. With a stern expression, Kyouka remarks that she is surprised that Silver arrived in his "human" form, something which Silver describes as "manly". Turning around to meet the gaze of another Nine Demon Gates member, Kyouka asks where Jackal and Tempesta are, to which she is met with the reply that they are out on their respective missions. With a smirk, Kyouka states that their absences can only mean that their operation has begun. With her six other fellows behind her, Kyouka states that they, Tartarus' Nine Demon Gates, will show the world what kind of Hell can be wrought at their hands. Back in the underground prison, Cobra tells Doranbolt that not a single member of the Nine Demon Gates is human; they are all Demons from the Books of Zeref and their Master, E.N.D., is Zeref's strongest Demon.

In the end, 119 people were killed and wounded (the deceased Council members included) in the bombing of the Magic Council, marking it as a major catastrophe.