Tartaros arc

The Tartaros arc is the fifteenth story arc of the Fairy Tail series.

The Dark Guild known as Tartaros makes their move on the Magical World. Beginning with an attack on the Magic Council Headquarters, the Nine Demon Gates quickly begin the execution of their plans, starting with the elimination of almost the entire council. In the aftermath, news of the event is quick to reach the ears of Fairy Tail. Soon after over one hundred victims are killed by Tempester's Magical Barrier Particles and Tartaros' targets are known to include former council members, Natsu declares war against the Dark Guild.

Tartaros arc Prologue
In the Magic Council Headquarters, the members of the Council discuss the recent victory of Fairy Tail in the Grand Magic Games. As the conversation begins to drift, Chairman Gran Doma reminds everyone that the topic of discussion is Tartaros and reveals that recently, the guilds associated with them have been wiped out. While some believe an Independent Guild to have been behind it, when Fairy Tail is brought up, Org instead suggests that Tartaros themselves are to blame. Though the others do not believe such is possible, Gran Doma states that it is within the realm of possibility and proclaims that now is the time to take up arms and make their stand. Suddenly, a messenger runs in and reveals the presence of an imminent threat; an explosion takes place and destroys the building. Doranbolt looks nearby, only to find Lahar and the council members lying lifeless. Searching around, Doranbolt finds Org but before he can get to him, another person gets to him first and pins him down. Revealing himself as Jackal of the Nine Demon Gates, the Demon prepares to kill Org with an explosion. As he is about to die, Org tells Doranbolt to escape, which he reluctantly does just as the elderly council member dies in an explosion.

Over at the Fairy Tail Guild, business continues as usual. Makarov is surprised to hear from Erza that Minerva has joined a Dark Guild and suggests informing the Council of it. Meanwhile, Juvia bakes bread buns with her and Gray's faces on them in an attempt to get him to eat them, though her plans do not work out as intended. Simultaneously, other Mages take a look into a book about Zeref and learn that E.N.D. is his strongest Demon. As Panther Lily wonders what Zeref's Demons are, Carla explains that they are his creations and can be summoned via his books. Natsu, knowing Tartaros likely has the book with E.N.D. in it, suggests attacking them, something Gajeel agrees with. Though Lucy berates the idea, Natsu claims that since Igneel attempted to destroy E.N.D., he might find a clue, with Wendy and Gajeel suggesting connections with their own Dragons. Suddenly, Jet and Droy return to the guild in a panic, announcing that something terrible has happened.

At the ruins of the council headquarters, medics arrive to tend the wounded and the soldiers securing the perimeter while Doranbolt visits Cobra in his prison cell and asks for his knowledge on Tartaros. Cobra demands the release of his comrades but Doranbolt, in no position or mood to grant his wish, threatens him, yet Cobra stands his ground and decides to reveal only one fact. At the same time, Kyôka meets with Silver and the rest of Nine Demon Gates barring Jackal and Tempester. Going forth, the seven members of the Nine Demon Gates prepare to bring despair upon humanity, while back in his cell, Cobra reveals to Doranbolt that all the members of Tartaros are Demons from the Books of Zeref and that their master is E.N.D., the most powerful of Zeref's creations. During their meeting, each of the Nine Demon Gates express their opinions on their current work, noting it is for Zeref that they intend to eliminate mankind. Meanwhile at the 8-Island Restaurant, Freed, Bickslow and Yajima read the newspaper and learn about the attack on the Magic Council and the arising death toll. As the Fairy Tail Mages work alongside Evergreen, they wonder where Laxus is, having gone out on an errand. Suddenly, a hooded figure appears in the door and, in an instant, destroys the establishment. Freed, Bickslow and Evergreen are all easily knocked aside by the intruder and he attempts to kill Yajima, however Laxus intervenes and takes over the fight.

Shedding his disguise, the man reveals himself as Tempester, one of the Nine Demon Gates. However, despite his attempts, Laxus is ultimately able to overpower and defeat him. Forced into a corner, Tempester sacrifices one of his lives and unleashes Magical Barrier Particles, particles which create Magic deficiency, illness and can spread quickly. As Yajima, Evergreen and Bickslow collapse from this powerful poison, Laxus begins inhaling the particles, able to do so due to his Dragon Slayer lungs. Though Freed tells him to stop, Laxus is determined not to let anyone die as he tells Freed to get everyone home. In the guild, the affected Mages are treated by Porlyusica, who reiterates their highly serious condition. Freed tells Makarov that Laxus is responsible for saving the town, but Makarov recalls that the particles still spread and resulted in both a quarantine and over one hundred deaths. Not knowing this, Freed asks if the town is alright, to which Makarov answers in the affirmative, relieving him. As the other Mages in the guild are saddened by these recent events, Natsu is furious and angrily declares that now is the time to go to war.

While Tempester regenerates, Kyôka monitors the captured Minerva's transformation into a Demon and fellow Demon Gate Franmalth puts high hopes on her in place of the failed Doriate, all at Tartaros headquarters, Natsu is throwing a violent tantrum, wishing to wage war against the Dark Guild, but without any clear direction of where to start. Both Makarov and Erza concur, with them realizing that they don't have enough information to take the war to the Dark Guild. The guild members conclude that their only course of action is that they need to stake out the hidden former Magic Council members who are currently being targeted; Loke appears and reveals he knows where some of the retired Council members are currently staying by means of seduction. With the location of four ex-Council members, Fairy Tail starts splitting into groups and heading to their locations in order to protect them, as well as find out more information on both Tartaros and the other retired members. After Porlyusica requests that, if possible, they get a sample of Tempester's blood, and Elfman and Mirajane Strauss say goodbye to Evergreen and Laxus respectively; Makarov gives a rousing speech before the teams split up to guard the ex-Council members.

As it so happens, Natsu, Lucy, Wendy Happy and Carla are sent to guard Michello, who is less than enthusiastic about having the Fairy Tail members guard him, regardless of the situation. His granddaughter, Michelia talks him into calming down and he ponders reasons as to why Tartaros would be targeting them, however just as he thinks of a possible reason, Natsu smells something and pushes everyone down, just before an explosion destroys Michello's home. Fortunately, Natsu's manages to consume most of the explosion before it could cause any casualties. Just then, Jackal appears above them, curious as to why no one is dead.

In light of the irksome wreckage to his house, Michello is advised to run from the Tartaros member by Lucy, from whom he is protected by the woman and Wendy. Before Natsu can take Jackal, the Demon creates a town-wide explosion that causes the populace to panic; the two now do battle, but Jackal finds that his heat-based attacks do nothing against the Fire Dragon Slayer, who eats each explosion, prompting Jackal to attempt to tell Natsu something, however he is interrupted. Meanwhile, Michello realizes that Tartaros may be after "Face" and attempts to flee so as to learn the locations of the other councilors, however Natsu stops the man and asks him to reveal everything he knows about what Tartaros may be after, which he refuses to do. Jackal then returns and reveals to Natsu that he has a "curse": whatever touches his body is doomed to explode; as marking appear on Natsu's body and detonate, putting him out of commission, Jackal threatens the safety of Michelia so as to force Michello to reveal all his secrets.

As Michello attempts to escape, Wendy and Lucy attempt to stop the pursuing Jackal but find their attempts futile as the Demon reveals that he and the members of Tartaros do not use Magic, but rather Curses, which stand above Magic. Defeating the two of them swiftly, Jackal leaves to chase Michello while Wendy and Lucy recover soon after, with the latter going after him as the former stays to take care of Natsu. In town, Michello attempts to get someone to hide him but fails as nobody does so just as Jackal appears. A pursuing Lucy is caught in Jackal's Landmine Curse, one which will explode should she move. Noticing the crowd, Jackal takes this to his advantage as he encases Michello and a woman in two bomb orbs which are set to explode and asks Lucy which one should survive. Michello argues adamantly for her to save him while the lady claims to be pregnant, making the choice hard for Lucy. However, before having to choose, Lucy is freed from the obligation as Natsu arrives and elbows Jackal, freeing the captives. Knocking out Michello, Natsu eats the curse laid upon his body prior to it exploding, shocking Jackal.

Natsu quickly delivers a beat down upon Jackal and though this brings the touch curse upon him, Natsu is able to eat it, preventing it from knocking him out. Jackal sees this and begins to feel fear and enters a more powerful form. As he states that humans cannot compare to Demons and should die, Natsu replies that they are humans who fight for their friends and will fight anyone for their sake. Activating his Lightning Fire Dragon Mode, Natsu attacks Jackal with his Lightning Fire Dragon's Firing Hammer, knocking Jackal away and causing him to revert to normal before collapsing himself. Before they can weasel information from Jackal, the Demon turns his body into a bomb and attempts to blow up the town, apologizing to Kyôka before he can do so. However, Happy takes Jackal's body and carries him into the sky before he can detonate to save everyone; Jackal's body creates an enormous, town-sized explosion that engulfs Happy. Everyone looks on in anticipation until the smoke clears and Happy is revealed to be relatively unharmed, relieving everyone.

Back at the Fairy Tail Guild, Makarov starts receives various pieces of news regarding the fates of the councilors that he sent his Mages to protect, all of which reveal a negative prognosis. Meanwhile at the house of ex-Council member Yuri, Elfman and Lisanna find the occupant already unmarked and deceased. Before they can report back to the guild, Yuri opens his eyes and destroys the Lacrima before collapsing once more. The perpetrator then reveals herself: it is Seilah, one of the Nine Demon Gates. She then uses her Curse on Elfman, which forces him to choke Lisanna, much to his dismay. Concurrently, Lucy manages to establish communication with the guild and informs Makarov that Michello is shaken but unharmed. Michello, at Makarov's behest, begins to explain exactly what Tartaros is after: Face; a weapon that nullifies Magic across the entire continent. Realizing that Tartaros will be unaffected because they use Curses, not Magic, Natsu demands the location of the weapon so that they can destroy it, however Michello reveals that three Councilors are the Organic Link Key and the only one who knows their locations is the former chairman. Now understanding that Tartaros is assassinating ex-councilors to unseal Face, Laki reveals that they've found the chairman's hidden address and have sent Erza and Mirajane to protect him.

Part One: Immortality and Sinners
Soon, the two girls arrive and meet ex-chairman Crawford Seam. Approaching the topic of Face, the chairman reveals that he only knows that those who are linked to it are unaware of the fact. Just then, intruders approach Crawford's house and Erza and Mira, determined to protect him, ready to battle. Meanwhile, at Yuri's house, Elfman prepares to sell Seilah his soul to stop her from harming Lisanna. At the ruins of the council headquarters, Doranbolt recalls how Cobra told him that Tartaros was after Face and solemnly affirms to destroy the Dark Guild. Elsewhere, Cobra has successfully earned the release of the Oración Seis, all of whom are happy to be out of prison. Brain commends Cobra for his actions, but is struck down quickly as he is about to proclaim his guild's return. Cobra reveals that Brain only thought of them as pawns and, earning the approval of Midnight, leaves him as is. As they then question what they should do, Cobra reveals that it's time for them to act as one once more; Jellal and Meredy approach them. Elsewhere, it is revealed that Doranbolt is leaving Jellal in charge of dealing with Oración Seis, who states that he will take care of business.

Elsewhere, Natsu suddenly has a revelation and flies away from his group with Happy, determined to find the ex-chairman under the pretense of suspicion regarding him leaking information about the Council to Tartaros. Theorizing that Erza and Mirajane are in trouble due to who they were sent to meet, Natsu pushes Happy to rush. Meanwhile, Erza and Mirajane defeat the forces, but quickly fall into a deep sleep as they are caught by Crawford, who calls Kyôka and tells her that he has obtained his targets.

Shortly thereafter, Natsu lands at the ex-chairman's house and discovers that the chairman drugged Erza and Mirajane with tea and brought them to Tartaros. He then destroys the chairman's house in a fit of rage and flies off to find them. Meawhile, Erza awakens and finds herself nude and help captive by Kyôka. As she asks for Mirajane and Crawford, Erza is informed of the former's demonic transformation and the latter's treachery. Kyôka then asks for Jellal's location. Elsewhere, Jellal tells Meredy to get to safety, preparing to take on the Oración Seis alone, although before he does he states his non-desire to send them back to prison. Besides Hoteye, the Oración Seis refuse to work with Jellal and one by one, Racer, Cobra and Angel attack Jellal, though he is easily able to fend them off, enticing Midnight. Back in the torture chamber, Kyôka tortures Erza for information and reveals that Jellal is the third on final seal on Face. Meanwhile, Crawford and Franmalth walk through the halls of Tartaros' headquarters and discuss their plans until Natsu breaks into their headquarters, alerting everyone to his presence.

Having broken into Tartaros' headquarters, Natsu angrily yells at Franmalth, wanting Erza and Mirajane back. Doing this, he manages to gain the attention of several Tartaros members. Upon seeing Natsu, Franmalth is astonished that he found their base. Meanwhile, before leaving to check out the disturbance, Kyôka orders Yakdoriga to look after Erza but not to touch her. Hearing that Natsu is after the girls, Franmalth reasons that he is from Fairy Tail and begins questioning him before being knocked away, while elsewhere, Gray quells Juvia's fears regarding what is to come. Back at headquarters, Franmalth sheds his armor and fights Natsu by attempting to drain his Magic Power, claiming at various points that his actions will cost him a large amount of souls. After a while,Silver appears, which frightens Franmalth, and orders Franmalth to tend to the unconscious ex-chairman, to which he complies. Silver then inquires as to whether Natsu unfroze the Sun Village, owning up to his mistake in the process. However, when Natsu mentions that Silver smells very similar to Gray, Silver, disgusted, freezes Natsu and demands that he never emit such utterances again.

Stripped naked (and relieved of his precious scarf) and thrown into a prison cell, Natsu quickly realizes that Lisanna is there as well, and the two trade information regarding the capture of Mirajane and Erza, as well as the disappearance of Elfman. The two try to escape, but quickly realize that their Magic has been stripped of them via their cuffs. Elsewhere in the Tartaros headquarters, Seilah tells Kyôka that Jellal is the only councilor left that is linked to Face and that they must find him; Kyôka replies that Erza will soon crack and reveal his location, as well as that Fairy Tail must no longer interfere with their plans, which Seilah says she is working on. Meanwhile, Jellal continues to fight against the Oración Seis and quickly tells them that their freedom is a lie as the thought-to-be-dead Brain awakens as Zero. Back at Fairy Tail, Lucy, Wendy and Carla apologize for Natsu running away before Happy wanders in and tells everyone of Mirajane, Erza and Natsu's capture, as well as of Crawford's traitorous nature. As he reveals that Tartaros' headquarters is a floating island and Levy begins pinpointing its trajectory, a Macro-possessed Elfman stumbles into the guild, preparing to execute Seilah's plan.

Elfman tells everyone that Lisanna has been captured and that Yuri is dead; the former statement earns him a reprimanding at the hands of Cana, due to him just leaving his sister, though Gray jumps to his defense. Walking down to the basement, Elfman recalls the mission given to him by Seilah and her Macro: destroy Fairy Tail and he shall be given Lisanna. With the explosive Lacrima gifted unto him in hand, Elfman states that for his sister's return, he will obliterate Fairy Tail. Concurrently, at Tartaros headquarters, Lisanna and Natsu struggle to get free; Silver arrives and throws Lisanna a blanket, remarking that he can't let them escape, but that he similarly can't let a girl stay in a state such as Lisanna's. With Lisanna thanking Silver, Natsu calls out to him and asks who he is before telling Lisanna that he smells just like Gray. As he walks away, Silver questions if the person they've captured is truly Natsu. Elsewhere in the headquarters, Franmalth and Crawford search for Jellal via the Chairman's Real Time Link as Erza continues to be tortured by Kyôka and Yakdoriga. At the same time, Jellal pants as Midnight questions his method to freeing them; Jellal states that he'll defeat them and motions to cast a spell, however at that moment, Zero rises and pierces Jellal with his Magic, shocking everyone except Midnight. Now lying on the ground mortally wounded, Jellal tries to make Meredy retreat, but she refuses to do so; Zero then kills Jellal as Crawford tells Franmalth that he's done more than simply find the man with his Super Archive.

With everyone staring in awe at Zero's total decimation of the former Councilor, in a shattering of light, Jellal reappears, revealing everything that transpired since Zero's "awakening" was merely an illusion; the man blinded himself to free both him and Meredy from Midnight's nightmare. Jellal then goes on to immediately cast Grand Chariot, severely wounding his four combatants. Before they even have a chance to recover, Jellal casts the mighty Sema, summoning a giant meteor that rains down on the group and defeats them, leaving them incapacitated in its crater. Rather than kill or imprison the group, Jellal asks them to join Crime Sorcière. Hearing this, Midnight asks Jellal for what sake should they fight; Jellal grabs the man and yells at him, saying that their goal is to defeat Zeref. Meanwhile, at Tartaros headquarters, Crawford reveals to Franmalth that he found a way to transfer Jellal's Organic Link to himself via his Super Archive, piquing Franmalth's interest. At that moment, however, Kyôka arrives and kills Crawford, thereby unsealing Face. Concurrently, the Lacrima in Elfman's possession prepares for detonation as the man cries, stating that he loves Lisanna.

With the third seal broken, Face begins to unseal itself; Cube reacts to such a thing rather violently. As the shaking progresses, Lisanna points Natsu in the direction of a sword that can free them from their cell. In the control room, Kyôka asks Franmalth for Face's coordinates, with him replying that they're rather far from where they expected it to surface. As she continues by asking him to activate, Franmalth states that Crawford was the only one who could and that they'll have to do it manually, causing Kyôka to regret her hastiness. Just then, Seilah enters to control room and tells her two fellow Demon Gates that Fairy Tail's time is almost at an end. Meanwhile, in Hell's Core, Lamy enters and heralds the revival of Jackal and Tempester, as well as the successful conversion of Minerva into a Demon, before going to Mirajane's tank and expressing her desire to modify her into something ugly. At the same time, in Fairy Tail's basement, Cana stumbles upon Elfman and the Lacrima, causing the man to pounce on her and tells her and Fairy Tail to perish; Cana realizes that he's being controlled. As everyone upstairs prepares to attack Tartaros, as Levy has found out that they're directly above them, the Lacrima goes off, completely eradicating the guild building, leaving Seilah in a state of triumph.

Part Two: Song of the Sky Dragon
With the explosion shaking the citizens of Magnolia, Kyôka congratulates Seilah on her act and remarks that their need to bring Cube to Magnolia was pointless. Before they can activate Face, Franmalth detects a large number of magical entities approaching Cube, warranting Kyôka's attention. A soldier then comes in and tells the three Demon Gates that three shadows are coming towards them, but Franmalth says that he detects many more. To end their confusion, Seilah displays Undercube and sees Fairy Tail's Exceed flying right towards them carrying cards. It is revealed that mere minutes earlier, Cana saved the entire guild by trapping them in her Magic Cards and having them be flown to Cube. With the Demon Gates now in a panic, a gravitational field is activated and the Exceeds are sucked into Undercube as the recently-deployed enemy approaches them; Cana releases everyone from her cards and they begin their counterattack. At the same time, she tells a now-free Elfman that he needs to stand up and help them so they can get Mirajane and Lisanna back. Back at Hell's Core, Mirajane awakens, frightening Lamy, and tells her that her experiments have only served to strengthen her. At that exact moment, Kyôka travels to the dungeons to check on Erza, but is ambushed by Natsu and Lisanna, who escaped their cells, with no Erza in sight. As Kyôka asks where Erza is, the woman emerges from a hole in the wall with Yakdoriga's body draped across her shoulders and tells the Demon that she intends to repay her acts to her in kind.

With the situation now reversed, Kyôka finds herself suspended by the Magic-nullifying cuffs with her former prisoners interrogating her. After easily offering information on Mirajane's location, though truthfully denying any knowledge of Elfman, Natsu and Lisanna run off to save their fellow captured friend. After they leave, Erza is told that Face was unsealed, but that Jellal remains alive due a different method being used. Kyôka then breaks free of her chains due to her using of Curses and attacks Erza whilst talking about her ideals. Before long, she is speared into the ground by Erza, who requips into a new armor. Meanwhile, at Undercube, the healthy members of Fairy Tail struggle against the Tartaros minions as they need to protect their wounded; their progress is hindered by the overwhelming numbers of their enemy. As they try to figure out how to get to the castle, Erza pierces through Undercube, having driven Kyôka straight through the floating island. This provides Fairy Tail the breach they needed to get inside the Dark Guild's fortress. Concurrently, inside Tartaros Headquarters, Natsu and Lisanna run into several of the Dark Guild's minions, who Natsu decides to fight away, offering Lisanna the chance to mind Mirajane. After a brief skirmish, Natsu notices that time has stopped and expresses his shock when he sees Zeref himself appear behind him, both praising and welcoming Natsu to the bookshelf for all of his creations: Tartaros.

Zeref and Natsu chat about the composition of Tartaros and their Guild Master: E.N.D.; Zeref's strongest creation. Natsu recognizes the name as the one Igneel tried to kill, but Zeref states that Igneel chose not to kill E.N.D. and that he'll have to make a similar choice. Natsu goes to attack, but his efforts are fruitless and Zeref walks away, saying that his visits aren't fair to the Tartaros that is trying desperately to reach him as well as wondering whether Natsu or E.N.D. will reach him first. Outside, Fairy Tail, led by Elfman, enters that breach and begins their attack on Tartaros while Kyôka insists on continuing her fight with Erza, though not before the latter tells Lucy that Face has been unsealed and that she needs to deactivate it. Concurrently, Lisanna reunites with Mirajane in Hell's Core, where she informs her that she, Elfman, Natsu and Erza were captured, however Seilah appears and tells them that Elfman was not captured; Lisanna warns Mirajane of her ability to control people. Seilah then recounts her order for Elfman to destroy Fairy Tail, but cites her failing embarrassment in front of Kyôka and states that she'll take her life as payment, which Mirajane crazily scoffs at. At the same time, in the control room, Franmalth goes over the large error in their calculations but hides when he notices Wendy, Lucy, Happy and Carla enter. They soon discover that Face has been activated manually (courtesy of Ezel) and has forty-one minutes until detonation; panic then continues to ensue when Keyes enters the room.

Now faced with Keyes, Lucy spots the timer and notices that one minute has already passed, concluding that they need to distract him and just move on. As the Exceeds note the possible danger of the situation, Franmalth comes out of hiding and tells them that it's already dangerous, which prompts Lucy to summon Taurus and Aries, who both proceed to attack the two Nine Demon Gates, which allows Lucy, Wendy and the Exceeds to get away. Their triumph, however, is short-lived as Keyes quickly materializes in front of them; Gray appears and punches Keyes, which turns his body into numerous particles, and allows Lucy and Wendy to fly past. As he reforms, Keyes makes note that Gray is something of Silver's. As she continues down the corridor, Lucy spots a window but is blocked by the appearance of Aries' wool, which confuses her. As she and Happy are revealed to have been captured by Franmalth, Lucy tells Wendy to continue on to Face without her; Franmalth makes a grab for Wendy, but he is stopped by the appearance of Natsu. As he wonders where Wendy is going, Lucy tells him that Face has been activated and that she's going to deactivate it manually, however Franmalth regains their attention by performing Revolution, taking on the appearance of Taurus, whose soul he absorbed alongside Aries' own. After a brief bickering session with Natsu, Franmalth refuses to return Taurus and Aries as they are valuable parts of his collection; Natsu goes to attack Franmalth, but he adopts the faces of Aries and Taurus, the latter of whom's face Natsu hits anyway. Now fed up with Natsu and his antics, Franmalth performs Revolution once more and draws out the power of his strongest soul, whose appearance shocks Natsu, Lucy and Happy; meanwhile, only thirty-four minutes remain until Face activates.

As Wendy and Carla rush towards Face, Franmalth reveals his strongest soul to be Hades, which he explains he obtained by following Zeref seven years ago and happening across his body. However, Natsu tells Franmalth that he defeated Hades and punches the Demon Gate away; Franmalth asks if Natsu did it by himself and retaliates, telling him that aside from the appearance, the Magic Power of the one who gazed into the abyss is real. Pressuring Natsu, Franmalth eventually grabs hold of the Dragon Slayer and tries to absorb his soul, however before he can, Natsu kicks his arm away and enters Lightning Fire Dragon Mode. Attacking Franmalth with his Lightning Fire Dragon's Roar, Franmalth revels in the power of the magic he's looking at and absorbs the soul of the spell, thereby giving him access to Natsu's Dragon Mode. Franmalth then recognizes Natsu as the one who defeated Jackal, but tells him not to take the Nine Demon Gates lightly, as one of them alone is enough to topple a country. Concurrently, Mirajane struggles in her battle with Seilah, as does Erza with Kyôka; Wendy reaches the location of Face and lands, going down an offshoot passage in search of the magical device, completely unaware that Ezel is lurking directly above her.

Back at Tartaros Headquarters, Franmalth tells Natsu that he doesn't believe that Magic can defeat their Curses as well as that Face will activate in ten minutes, meaning that the era of Mages will end. Realizing that losing their Magic in the middle of their crucial battles would be horrendous, Lucy prays that Wendy stops Face. Meanwhile, as she explores the cavern in which Face resides, Wendy is attacked by Ezel, who curses Kyôka for giving him nothing of a challenge. With her attempts at running from Ezel failing, Wendy resolves to fight the Nine Demon Gate and casts a series of enchantments that boost her defenses and fighting abilities before ultimately casting Sky Dragon's Roar, which Ezel cuts right through. As even her follow-up attack is useless, Ezel readies his Tenga Goken and attacks her with the destructive Onimaru, which Wendy barely dodges. Ezel then continues his furious assault, slicing the ground around her and attacking her with his tentacles. As he catches her off-guard with his Juzumaru, Wendy's resistance enchantments fail and she is thrown backward, gravely wounded; she is pinned to the ground by Ezel, who directs her to look overhead at Face, which only as five minutes left until activation. With Ezel cursing the smell of the Ethernano radiating off of Face, Carla attacks Ezel in an effort to get him off of Wendy, which fails. With Ezel motioning to eat Carla, Wendy begins to eat the Ethernano-rich air and enters Dragon Force, pushing Ezel back and allowing her to counterattack.

As Ezel wonders what's happening to Wendy, Wendy pushes him back with her now extreme control over the air, quickly overwhelming the Demon with her enhanced physical attributes, which both angers and intrigues Ezel. Carla then makes note of the time left until Face activates (just over four minutes), which prompts Wendy to surround Ezel with wind and cast Shattering Light: Sky Drill, however, with his Mikazuki he gleefully slices through the wind and renders her spell useless; Ezel enters his Slash Attack Mode, which gives him more cutting power and strength. In response, Wendy tries to surround Ezel with wind yet again, though he once again slices through it until, that is, she increases the volume and sends Ezel crashing through Face, trapped in a tornado, which destroys the gargantuan bomb. However, even with Ezel defeated and the monolith destroyed, the countdown doesn't stop, which sends Wendy and Carla into a panic. Now having exited Dragon Force, Wendy loses all her strength and collapses, unable to move as Face finally nears activation.

Back at Tartaros Headquarters, Natsu and the others fighting Franmalth feel Face's activation tremors as Gray and Mirajane curse their inability to harm Keyes and Seilah, respectively; Lamy latches onto Lisanna, starting their own conflict amidst everyone else's, and Kyôka takes note of Face's impending activation. Meanwhile, back at Face's location, Wendy apologizes for her inability to stop the bomb, however Carla, thanks to her premonition ability, tells Wendy that if they convert the Ethernano around Face into something else, they can cause it to self-destruct. Following what her future self did, Carla pulls up the self-destruct character for Face and tells Wendy that if they press it, they will be killed in the explosion. In response to Carla's request to get away, Wendy tells her she doesn't have the strength to and that, even if she could, she won't leave the Exceed behind. Crawling up to her friend and hugging her, Wendy thanks Carla for all the fun times they had and, as they both remember their adventures up until this point, press the character together, which sets off an extremely large explosion that eradicates the canyon they're in. However, as the dust from the blast settles, Doranbolt appears with Wendy and Carla in his arms, revealing to have saved them from the blast just in time. Looking at the wreckage of Face, Doranbolt smiles and expresses his surprise at the two girls' heroics.

Part Three: Underworld King
Meanwhile, Franmalth begins expressing mass amounts of joy at Face's "activation", however Natsu notes that his Magic hasn't disappeared, which causes Franmalth to realize that their plan failed. Descending into a panic, Franmalth quickly enters a blind rage and attacks Natsu, screeching for him to hand over his soul countless times before attacking them with Hades' Magic, creating a large explosion. Concurrently, as Kyôka fights Erza, she realizes that Face's activation failed and runs off, leaving Minerva, who now refers to herself as Neo Minerva, to deal with the Fairy Tail Mage. As she hurries off, Kyôka wonders what could have possibly happened to derail their plans and opts to forcefully awaken E.N.D. Back at the sight of their battle, Franmalth latches onto the bodies of the three extremely injured Fairy Tail Mages and begins to absorb their souls; Natsu, Lucy and Happy struggle against Franmalth's absorption and Lucy calls for Taurus and Aries to close their gates, which prompts Franmalth to eject them out of fear. She then tricks him by calling out the same for Natsu, which allows Natsu to break free and defeat Franmalth with a boulder. Franmalth's absorbed souls then float free; the soul of Hades materializes itself and tells them that Tartaros isn't after just Face and passes along a message for them to deliver to Makarov: release the light.

After Hades disappears, the group wonders what the deceased Guild Master was referring to before Happy flies off to find Makarov. As the other two leave to find Mirajane, Franmalth gleefully states how Demons are virtually immortal as long as their lab is intact, which allows them to be endlessly reborn, before he too disappears. Meanwhile at the lab, as Lisanna attempts to get Lamy off her, Mirajane is struggling against Seilah, who is in turn confused about the Mage, wondering why her Macro is ineffective against her. Seilah then reveals that any who she had cursed in the past are still under the effect of Macro and can be remotely controlled no matter where they are. Realizing that Seilah is threatening Elfman, Mirajane demands her to stop, just as Ezel appears in a nearby glass tube, rudely demanding to be revived. Lamy explains that they are in Hell's Core, a regeneration facility made by the "Underworld King". Hearing this, Mirajane uses her Take Over to detonate the demonic tentacles and destroy the lab, which kills Ezel and causes the newly-appeared Franmalth to vanish. The two women then release their strongest abilities: Sitri and Limit Release, the latter of which Seilah uses to completely dominate Mirajane, as well as endanger Lamy and Lisanna, and destroy the remainder of Hell's Core. Elsewhere in Cube, the Underworld King, Mard Geer, states that humans are no match for Zeref's almighty Etherious and that their darkness will swallow the world's light.

Continuing their battle, Seilah attacks Mirajane at full power, and though the Mage tries to Take Over the Etherious, the Demon deems it useless, having ordered herself to rip apart her opponent; Lisanna tries to help Mirajane, but is restrained by Lamy. As Mirajane is being knocked around, she recalls her past, where she and her siblings were kicked out of their village because of Mirajane's "exorcism" of a local Demon, which resulted in their finding of Fairy Tail, where Mirajane learned that she could use Take Over; Elfman and Lisanna learned two different kinds of Take Over so that she wouldn't feel all alone, and offered to protect her as she had always done for them. Her determination rising anew, Mirajane succeeds in performing a partial Take Over of Seilah, stealing her Macro for her own. At her own behest, Mirajane orders Elfman to come save his family, which he promptly does by dropping down from the sky and delivering a fierce blow unto Seilah, knocking her out.

The news of Seilah's defeat spreads to Mard Geer, who reveals it to Kyôka as the latter is breaking the news of Ezel and Franmalth's deaths. Shocked, she asks about releasing E.N.D. to help them but is told that it is impossible due to the lack of Curse Power, but also adds that Face's destruction is a mere triviality. Asked what he means, Mard Geer forces Kyôka to reiterate Tartaros' nature, goals and beliefs, following which he binds her with rose vines. Asked what he is doing, Mard Geer states that Kyôka is too fond of humans and though she claims she was trying to get information, he remains disgusted with her. As Kyôka accepts her punishment, Mard Geer expresses his dislike of the humans present in Cube and contemplates using Alegria. Meanwhile, as Lucy and Natsu are searching for their allies, they are contacted by Warren, who states that Mirajane is safe and sound with them. Lucy and Happy reveal via the communication that Wendy destroyed Face and that Hades wants Makarov to "release the light", which makes him think of Lumen Histoire. Suddenly, Warren screams as his telepathic communications are hijacked by Mard Geer, who both introduces himself to everyone and degrades them before casting Alegria, which shifts Cube into a monster called Plutogrim and releases a mysterious fluid that traps and freezes all of Fairy Tail and much of Tartaros' own. Calling humanity foolish, Mard pauses in shock as he realizes that there is but one human survivor and states that she is unlucky for having been left at the Underworld's footsteps all alone.

As Lucy wonders what has happened, upon looking outside a window she witnesses Plutogrim causing massive damage to Magnolia. Closing up her ears to block the racket, the Celestial Spirit Mage then receives a telepathic message from Mard Geer, who was broadcasting to everyone the annihilation of Fairy Tail, as well as putting a bounty on Lucy. As the soldiers cheer at the thought of ascending to the position of Nine Demon Gates, Lucy is swept away, as the corridor she is in is suddenly filled with water. Coming across some of the minions, the lone Mage easily defeats them using Fleuve d'étoiles. When another trio appears casting long ranged attacks, Lucy quickly summons Sagittarius and defeats them. Lamy then appears; Sagittarius' strikes fail and she recalls him, opting for Virgo and Loke to protect her from the arriving Torafuzar, however Jackal arrives as well, thereby escalating the conflict. Fighting for her friends, Lucy attempts to fight Jackal on her own but is defeated and tortured by his explosions. Determined to save her trapped friends, Lucy summons Aquarius despite her already having two gold Spirits active and collapses, prompting Aquarius to chastise her master.

Aquarius catches Lucy and begins to fight, however Torafuzar makes use of the water to his advantage and attacks Aquarius, which opens up Loke and Virgo to explosions from Jackal. Collapsing from fatigue, she is stood over by the Demons; Torafuzar walks away, not wishing to torture her, but Jackal kills Lamy before turning his attention towards Lucy. Just then, Aquarius rises again and sweeps Jackal away with water before telling Lucy that none of her Spirits can take on Tartaros, though she tells Lucy that by destroying one golden key, she can summon the Celestial Spirit King. Lucy refuses adamantly at first, but at the behest of Aquarius, she sorrowfully sacrifices her key, which causes a tearful Aquarius to return to the Spirit World forever; the Celestial Spirit King then rains down and destroys Plutogrim, much to Jackal's surprise, and confronts Mard Geer, the Underworld King, whom he recognizes as an old foe.

As Mard Geer expresses his surprise that there was someone capable of summoning the Celestial Spirit King, the Spirit in question observes that the Underworld King is still holding onto E.N.D.'s book. The Celestial Spirit King then vows upon Lucy's determination and his contract to defeat her enemies; the Underworld King welcomes the battle, their clashing Magic and Curse destroying the land. Elsewhere, Jackal again angrily demands to know what Lucy has done, though she continues to weep over Aquarius' key. Annoyed, the Etherious casts an explosion at her but, much to both their surprise, it is deflected by a water shield. Shocked, Lucy looks around hoping to find Aquarius before noticing her Magic Power rise and her wounds heal due to the Celestial Spirit King giving her Aquarius' power. Lucy stands and thanks both the Spirit King and Aquarius from the bottom of her heart. Frustrated, Jackal starts barraging Lucy with a series of explosions, which she easily defends using her newly acquired Water Magic. Again resolving to cry later so that she can save her friends now, Lucy casts Urano Metria at Jackal, defeating him, before she herself promptly collapses.

Jackal's defeat does not go unnoticed, as the other members of the Nine Demon Gates feel the disappearance of his power. Back at the battle between the two kings, Mard Geer notices that the Celestial Spirit King has slowed down with Lucy's collapse. After the Spirit silently asks for all her remaining Magic, he casts Galaxia Blade, which the Demon believes to be a full-frontal assault. The King smiles and Mard Geer quickly realizes that Alegria has been dispelled, freeing all those trapped and allowing interrupted battles to continue; the Underworld King is also petrified by the spell, and as the Celestial Spirit King returns to the Spirit World, Mard Geer expresses his malice for humanity. Meanwhile, Tempester, Torafuzar, Silver and Keyes all converge upon Lucy's location in an attempt to kill her, however Gajeel, Natsu, Juvia and Gray appear and intercept them.

Part Four: Father and Son
As the two groups face off, Gray takes note of Silver's presence and the Devil Slayer grabs Gray and teleports away from the battle. Before the others can react to this, Tempester attacks with his wind, but finds this ineffective against Gajeel, who is confronted by Torafuzar. As the groups fight one another, Keyes notes that things are not over yet. Elsewhere, the Mages of Fairy Tail deal with the aftermath of Alegria. Happy finds himself stuck with a mushroom atop his head, unaware he has been possessed by Franmalth, while Makarov leaves the group to return to the guild building, remembering what Hades told him. Elsewhere, Wendy awakens to learn that she and Carla were saved by Doranbolt. Though ecstatic at first, she is soon brought to tears as she learns that though they destroyed Face, there are multiple such devices numbering well over 2,000 spread across the continent. As Carla proclaims it as the end, Wendy tells her not to do so, as she will no longer whine. Cutting her long hair off, Wendy declares that she will not give up.

Elsewhere, Erza and Minerva continue their battle. As they fight, Erza continues to ask Minerva what it is she is after. Remembering her father and the abuse she suffered at his hands as a child, Minerva begins growing frantic. Hitting her, Erza claims that she does not want to fight her, at which point Minerva asks Erza to kill her, not wanting to live the life she has lead. As Erza tells her not to ask for such a thing, the two are interrupted by a de-petrified Mard Geer. Recognizing his voice, Erza is hit by his attack, after which she urges Minerva to run. However, as it appears that Minerva has been done in by his attack, Twin Dragons Sting and Rogue of Sabertooth appear alongside their Exceed, having saved Minerva and wishing to bring her back to the guild.

Asked about their appearance, Sting and Rogue explain that they received Erza's earlier sent letter but were delayed in arriving due to its illegibility. Unconcerned, Mard Geer tells the group that their efforts are pointless as Face will soon activate. Though Erza states that Wendy destroyed it, Mard Geer reveals that there are over 3,000 Face devices around the continent. Telling them there is less than an hour until activation, Mard Geer reveals that the dead Crawford Seam can activate them from the control room thanks to the necromancy abilities of Keyes. Asking Erza to take Minerva away, Sting and Rogue prepare to fight Mard Geer together. Though the two put up a fight, their attacks do little to truly hinder Mard Geer, who comments that he hates seeing Dragon Slayer Magic being used by humans while Sting and Rogue retort that they hate him for hurting their friends, whilst Gray, who is told about the 3,000 Faces by Silver, recognizes the man as having the body of someone he knows and demands to know who he is.

Seeing Gray's determination to know who he is, Silver reveals that he is his father. Angry, Gray attacks the Tartaros Demon, claiming his father is dead and that he cannot be alive. However, Silver brushes his attacks aside and reveals that though he is Gray's father, he is also someone else to him. Concurrently, Natsu and the remainder of his group struggle against the Nine Demon Gates they face, and when Lucy tries to stand and fight, Natsu urges her to rest and let them handle the situation. Natsu and Gajeel then smell Sting and Rogue as they fight Mard Geer, with the Underworld King, after being hit, stating that he understands Kyôka's fascination with humans. Meanwhile, Minerva, Erza, Lector and Frosch happen upon Happy and Panther Lily, where Minerva reveals that Happy is quartering Franmalth and that he will know where the control room is. Back with Silver and Gray, the Demon Gate tells his story of how he took Silver Fullbuster's body and claims that he has been waiting to kill Gray. Though Gray believes he has no reason to hate him, Silver states otherwise due to his status as Ur's pupil. Revealing himself as Deliora, Silver laughs and claims that he was resurrected by Hell's Core after being killed by Ur and contemplates showing his true form as Gray rushes in to attack.

While attempting to fight, Gray soon comes to know that ice will not work against Deliora, who mastered Ice Devil Slayer Magic specifically so he could take down Ur's pupils. As it is revealed that Silver was acknowledged by Mard Geer and became a member of Tartaros, the Devil Slayer proclaims to Gray that once he is dead, Lyon will be next and each of his friends soon after. Angry, Gray attacks but upon seeing his ineffective his attacks are, creates a cannon to fire rocks at the demon, bypassing his immunity to ice. However, Deliora retaliates by freezing the vicinity, cutting off Gray from any ammunition. Despite this, Gray remembers the events of the Sun Village and knowing that Slayer Mages cannot consume elements created by themselves, redirects Deliora's ice back at him. However, he is shocked to see that this too is ineffective as, while Deliora cannot consume his own ice, he is still immune to it and moves in on Gray, asking if he is now recalling his despair.

While Wendy comes up with a plan to stop the Faces and his guildmates are battling the Nine Demon Gates, Gray is on the receiving end of an assault from Silver. With his Ice-Make and physical attacks useless, Gray prepares for Iced Shell, much to the Demon's fear. Attacking Gray, the Tartaros member realizes that he has instead hit a clone. As Gray appears elsewhere to cast the spell, thinking of his friends as he does so, he is once again attacked, with this Gray also revealed to be a clone. Stating that he does not want to see his friends cry, Gray appears with a silver ball and, utilizing Ice-Make: Vambrace, pelts the ball at the Demon. Driving it through his torso, Gray stands over his defeated opponent, stating that he knows that he was never Deliora, but rather, his father.

Silver reveals that he has been dead for seventeen years and it was Keyes who resurrected him via necromancy as part of an experiment. However, having been angry at the Demons who killed his family, he decided to kill them and planned to eventually take down Tartaros before learning that Gray was alive. Feeling disgusted with himself, Silver resolved to accept his fate. Asking Gray to kill him, Silver asks for the relief of death, even listing his sins to force Gray to obey his last wishes as a means to protect his family. However, Gray still cannot bring himself to kill his father. Embracing him, Silver tells his son he has become a good man and that he and his mother are proud of him.

During her battle, Juvia receives a telepathic communication from Silver, who explains to her that if she defeats Keyes, she can end his control over Crawford Seam, this stopping the Face project from going forth. However, Juvia, who now knows about him from Keyes, realizes that this will cause Silver to die as well. Keyes reveals that he always knew Silver was planning to rebel but nevertheless allowed him to remain as he found him an interesting test subject. Offended at how he views humans as mere tools, Juvia charges in to attack Keyes but finds herself bound and unable to move. Taunted, Juvia admits that she cannot bring herself to result in the end of Gray's father, following which her body is seemingly destroyed by Keyes. However, it is instead revealed that Juvia infested his body via her Water Body and destroys him from the inside-out. Apologizing for Silver's death, the man tells her not to feel sad as he can now rest in peace and leave Gray to her.

Elsewhere, Gray learns from Silver that E.N.D. is a fire Demon and that was why he mastered Ice Devil Slayer Magic. Unable to defeat him now, Silver passes his Magic onto Gray, who swears to defeat Tartaros' Guild Master.

Part Five: Ultimate Pain
Though Keyes is defeated, the Magical Barrier Particles in his body render Juvia immobile. As the Twin Dragon Slayers continue to fight Mard Geer and Erza's group continues to make their way to the control room, Natsu and Gajeel prepare to take down Torafuzar and Tempester. The two sides face off, with the Demons entering their Etherious Forms while Natsu and Gajeel activate their dual element abilities. Rushing in to fight, the two Fairy Tail Mages initially put pressure on their opponents, who are unable to retaliate, however as the fight grows more intense, Natsu and Gajeel continue to dominate until the two inadvertently punch one another in the face.

Seeing this, Lucy expresses her disappointment while the two argue about their fight. Suddenly, Torafuzar activates his Curse, Tenchi Kaimei, which envelops the vicinity in black water. Unable to use his fire and having swallowed some of the water, which Torafuzar reveals to be poisonous, Natsu is rendered unconscious alongside the women. Sealing his mouth shut, Gajeel attempts to battle with Torafuzar but finds himself unable to compete with the Demon's superior speed and power in his own element. Despite using his shadow to land an attack, Gajeel finds his attempts unsuccessful in taking down the Demon and is attacked in turn. Viciously under assault and unable to breathe, Gajeel finds himself losing consciousness and slowly begins seeing a light. However, the light is reveals to be Levy's arrival, who performs mouth-to-mouth to resuscitate Gajeel with the air in her mouth, causing her to lose consciousness as well. Revitalized, and seeing Torafuzar head for Levy, Gajeel angrily attacks the Demon, telling him to stay away from her.

With the brief reprieve, Gajeel shakes Levy awake and tells her to make some more air, making her realize she could use her Solid Script Magic to do so. She makes an air bubble for the two, allowing them to breathe once again. Gajeel sends Levy on to help the others while he deals with Torafuzar. They fight once more but due to Torafuzar's ability to change the density of his body, Gajeel finds himself again at a disadvantage. Torafuzar mocks him and grabs him, commenting that the toxin in the water is hampering him and it will soon kill his friends. As Gajeel struggles in his grasp, he flashes back to before Phantom Lord's disbandment and remembers the words Belno spoke to him before flashing forward to when he found her dead and felt immense sorrow. Wanting to make Belno proud of him, Gajeel realizes that he has found a reason to live and turns his iron into steel (due to the carbon in the water) and defeats Torafuzar in a swift slash, dispelling Tenchi Kaimei and saving everyone.

Weakened from having to use up his strength, Gajeel is nearly preyed upon by Tempester, however Gray arrives at the last second and, recognizing Tempester as being the one to poison Laxus and the others, swiftly freezes him with his new Ice Devil Slayer Magic, vowing to destroy Tartaros after doing so. Meanwhile, Erza, Minerva and the Exceed reach the control room where they find Crawford's animated body trying to activate Face. Erza tries to stop him but is impeded by Seilah's Macro, which is also controlling the chairman's body, as the controller of the power and Kyôka arrive. Just as Kyôka is about to torture Erza again, Mirajane attacks Seilah from behind, freeing Erza's group from her Curse. However, Mirajane finds herself to have been too late as Face activates; taking Seilah's power for her own at her behest, Kyôka prepares to fight Erza once more, with each woman vowing to win for their respective cause.

Erza and Kyôka being to clash, being equal in strength as the others watch. The Exceed go to check on Mirajane during this and ask her what happened before she arrived. She explains that ten minutes earlier after everyone was freed from Alegria, dozens of Lamys suddenly attacked them and that Elfman and Lisanna decided to deal with them as she spotted Seilah running away. Erza and Kyôka's battle, meanwhile, has reached a standstill as a roar shakes the area; Natsu and Gajeel hear the roar and recognize it with grim looks on their face. Mard Geer himself hears and recognizes the roar of Acnologia, who has arrived to wreak havoc. Elsewhere, in his volcanic den, Igneel ponders if it is time for him to take action.

Wasting no time, Acnologia rains destruction upon the area, and as he does so, the Dragon Slayers have strange, heart-pounding reactions to his presence. Mard Geer watches Acnologia rampage and theorizes that he may be after E.N.D.; Acnologia rises high into the sky and prepares to fire his Dragon's Roar, but as this occurs, Natsu hears Igneel's voice telepathically and he reveals that he's been inside Natsu all along, emerging from Natsu's body to do battle with Acnologia and protect everyone.

As the two Dragons battle and everyone watches in awe, Natsu's group is flabbergasted that Igneel was inside Natsu the entire time. The sensation in the Dragon Slayers dissipates, much to their confusion, though Sting and Rogue notice Mard Geer has slipped away. Mard Geer, watching the aerial battle, vows he'll erase both Dragons, citing that he's made adjustments to his plan. Back with Natsu's group, Gajeel asks Natsu if he knew about Igneel being inside him, which Natsu denies, though he then leaps to Igneel and grabs onto him, demanding answers. Igneel, however, is too preoccupied with keeping Acnologia at bay to answer. Remembering that Natsu is in a guild, he makes a job request: steal E.N.D.'s book from Mard Geer and in exchange, he will tell Natsu everything about his disappearance. Natsu complies and dives down to do battle with Mard Geer.

Natsu attempts to do battle with Mard Geer, maneuvering around his Thorn Curse to push him back. Mard then contacts Kyôka via Telepathy and instructs her to speed up the activation of Face. When she cites the people capable of controlling Crawford's body have been defeated, Mard Geer instructs her to merge with Face itself via Organic Link Magic, even though she will die upon it being activated; she ultimately complies. After merging with Face's timer, Kyôka enters her Etherious Form and destroys Erza's armor after telling her that the only way to stop Face now is to defeat her.

Erza manages to recover and go on the offensive, but the others notice that the countdown timer on Face is speeding up. Making the fight more difficult, Kyôka uses her Curse, Enhancement, to infinitely increase her strength; Erza questions why Tartaros would go to such lengths for their goal, which Kyôka explains is due to instinct. Erza derides the Dark Guild for throwing away camaraderie for mere instinct, which angers Kyôka to the point of unleashing an attack that attacks the senses. Affecting everyone in the room with vastly increased pain sensitivity, Kyôka incapacitates Erza and robs her of all five of her senses, though the woman rises yet still and knocks Kyôka away, citing that the only pain she feels is losing her friends and that she can still "see the light".

Despite having no senses, Erza pressures Kyôka and, regardless of her pain sensitivity being increased to astronomical proportions, powers through, defeating Kyôka with a slash from her swords. Even though Kyôka falls, Face's timer still ticks yet every quickly. Erza then collapses and throws her sword in the air; Minerva uses her Territory to switch places with Erza and grabs the sword, using it to kill Kyôka. Even in the face of death, Kyôka smiles as she successfully depletes Face's timer to zero before her demise, leaving everyone petrified as the Magic Pulse Bomb activates.

Part Six: Magna Carta
However, twenty minutes prior, Natsu continues his fight with Mard Geer, but begins having trouble as Mard Geer manages to dodge and counter his attacks. Igneel takes notice of this but is nearly killed by Acnologia, who finally speaks, vowing to slay Igneel. Meanwhile, Natsu is about to be finished by Mard Geer, but Sting and Rogue arrive and save him from the assault. Sting then requests that Natsu work together with them, but Natsu declines, stating that defeating him is a job from Igneel; Sting plays on Natsu's airhead nature and turns the fight into a competition. The three manage to, together, prey upon Mard Geer's openings and knock him around, though this just makes him livid, which Natsu mocks, stating that Mard Geer is now much closer to the humans he despises.

Elfman, Lisanna, Jet, Droy and Warren manage to defeat the Lamy clones just as Lucy manages to regroup with them and tell them that Gray is scouring Tartaros' building in search of more foes whilst Gajeel, Levy and Juvia are delivering Tempester's blood to Porlyusica for the Thunder God Tribe. Just then, Wendy, Carla and Doranbolt arrive and inform everyone about the 3,000 Face bombs. Back at the Dragon Slayer's battle, Mard Geer lets his rage run wild and completely overwhelms the Dragon Slayers, proving all their attacks to be useless against him. Meanwhile, everyone thinks of ways to destroy Face; Warren's Telepathy is thrown out as an option due to its limited range. However, Makarov contacts everyone with news that they have one more trump card as he walks out with Lumen Histoire, which is revealed to be Mavis' body frozen in crystal.

Marakov orders everyone to venture to Fairy Tail's basement, including Doranbolt, who Makarov wishes to have him wipe everyone's memory of the Lumen Histoire after everything is done, including his own. Elfman however wishes to stay behind, as he feels responsible for the guild's destruction even though Makarov doesn't hold him accountable. Meanwhile Igneel leads Aconologia away into the sky, not wanting to involve Fairy Tail any further in their battle. Back on the ground, Mard Geer tries to contact Kyôka but finds she is too preoccupied in her battle with Erza. Sting then demands to know what Mard Geer's goal is; he repeats that he wishes to destroy Magic so that E.N.D. can be revived, but adds that the phrase "return to Zeref" is a genetic marker in all Etherious that causes them to desire Zeref's destruction, which he cites to be his ultimate goal, regardless of the costs to humanity. Mard Geer then summons his Prison Flower to do away with the Dragon Slayers, but at the last second Gray arrives and freezes Mard Geer's plant and left arm. Returning Natsu's scarf, Gray states that he's come to defeat Mard Geer.

As the Dragon Slayers and Mard Geer are astonished by this new power, Gray attacks Mard Geer and manages to inflict lasting damage. Going in for a fatal blow, Gray is knocked away by a demonized Jiemma, who Mard Geer reveals, joined Tartaros and threw away his humanity for power. Jiemma, however, proves himself to be less than loyal, stating that after he's done killing Sting and Rogue, he's coming for his head. Natsu attempts to knock Jiemma back, and even though he fails he manages to succeed in destroying the Twin Dragons' fear of their old Guild Master. The Twin Dragons then opt to take on Jiemma, thereby allowing Natsu and Gray to team up against Mard Geer, who enters his Etherious Form to finally end the dispute.

Mard Geer immediately unleashes a massive thorn attack against Natsu and Gray, which distracts them long enough for him to grab them and fly away, grinding their faces into stone as he does so. Meanwhile, the Twin Dragons face off against Jiemma, who proves himself to be an impressive foe with his new power. He then earns great disgust from Sting and Rogue when he reveals that he had Minerva captured and turned into a Demon; he likewise chastises the two for turning Sabertooth into a "weak" guild that no longer prioritizes survival of the individual. The two counter that Fairy Tail taught them true strength and, after taking a fatal blow, use their combined White Shadow Dragon's Rough Silk to critically wound and defeat Jiemma. Exhausted, the Twin Dragons fall and leave their hopes with Gray and Natsu, who concurrently break free of Mard Geer's grasp and punch him into the stone.

Mard Geer manages to recover and dodges nearly every single attack that Natsu and Gray throw at him; even when struck with a point-blank Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame, he stands uninjured. Mard Geer then goes on to explain that Magic and Curses originated from the same source, and that E.N.D. created Curses out of foul human emotions. He then unleashes his ultimate Curse, which he created in order to destroy Zeref: Memento Mori; a Curse that does not bestow life nor kill, but merely erases one's existence. As Natsu and Gray are swallowed up by its darkness, Mard Geer reverts to his human form and remarks upon his perfected Curse before stating that all that remains is E.N.D.'s revival.

However, it is quickly revealed that Gray demonized half of his body to block the brunt of Memento Mori and falls, leaving his hopes to Natsu. Angered, Mard Geer returns to his Etherious Form; Natsu, likewise out of anger, enters Dragon Force and overwhelms Mard Geer with his significantly enhanced strength. Landing Crimson Lotus: Phoenix Blade, Natsu discovers that though Mard Geer is greatly wounded, he is not yet defeated. Before he can kill Natsu, Gray rises and delivers unto Mard Geer his Ice Devil's Zeroth Destruction Bow, which defeats him once and for all. As he falls to the ground, Mard Geer realizes that Kyôka has reverted Face's timer to zero and that the pulse bomb will activate any second.

With Mard Geer now beaten, Gray says that he has to destroy E.N.D.'s book, which Natsu quickly reveals he has a problem with, as Igneel told him to steal it and do nothing else. Their conflict is put aside very quickly as Face bombs across the continent slowly begin to detonate, removing Magic from various areas. At this point, Igneel descends from the sky with a wounded Acnologia and tells humans not to give up hope. Elsewhere, Blue Pegasus attempts to destroy a Face bomb to no avail with their Christina airship. Before they can do much more, a telepathic voice tells them to steer out of the way; Grandeeney bursts through multiple Face bombs in an instant, leaving Blue Pegasus questioning what she was. Concurrently, Metalicana and the thought-to-be-dead Weisslogia and Skiadrum also destroy many Face bombs one after the other as Igneel announces that the Dragons are here to save them, much to everyone's joy.

Revealing that all the Face bombs have been destroyed, Igneel states that E.N.D. can no longer be revived. Natsu then demands to know why Igneel and the other Dragons were hiding inside the Slayers, which he reveals is due to them not wanting to turn into Dragons like Acnologia. Before he can reveal the second reason, Acnologia rises to fight again; Igneel tells Natsu to grab the book as the two Dragons fly into the sky. Igneel tells Acnologia to leave the humans alone and that E.N.D.'s threat is no more, but Acnologia merely states that he only wants everything to be destroyed and attacks Igneel. Meanwhile, Gray and Natsu begin to fight once more about the fate of E.N.D.'s book, however the book disappears and is revealed to be in the hands of Zeref, who walks towards the two Mages and the fallen Mard Geer, saying that the book is very important to him.

Ignoring the bewilderment of those present, Zeref praises Mard Geer for his efforts but quickly tells the Underworld King that he will never be able to kill him before returning the Demon to his book form and setting it on fire. He then says that he came to settle things with Natsu, but that Acnologia interrupted his plans; before disappearing, Zeref tells Natsu that if he can survive, he will make his despair grow. Concurrently, Igneel is overwhelmed by Acnologia and tells Natsu of the second reason the Dragons hid inside their children: to wait until the time was right to defeat the Black Dragon. Igneel then tries to stop Natsu from joining the battle but fails and instead rises to confront Acnologia one more time; he tears off Acnologia's left arm, however in one strike, half of Igneel's body is destroyed by Acnologia. As he falls from the sky, Igneel thanks a tearful, onlooking Natsu for giving him the best days of his life and the strength to love others as he is shot by Acnologia's Dragon's Roar, leaving Natsu distraught.

With the battle over and Acnologia having retreated due to his injury, Makarov laments Lumen Histoire's lack of use with Mavis while the Dragon Slayers reunite with their foster parents. While together, they learn several truths: Sting and Rogue had their memories manipulated by their foster parents regarding their deaths, as well as that the Dragons have not died, but are rather already dead; a result they attribute to Acnologia stealing their souls with his Dragon Slayer Magic. They explain that they were left half-dead because of it, and that they hid inside their childrens' bodies to prevent them from Dragonifying, to wait until the time was right to kill Acnologia, and to prolong their severely shortened lives, and add that they cannot return once they've left. As Natsu sobs over Igneel's fallen body, the Dragons' life force fades completely and they begin to disappear, but not before saying goodbye to their foster children and promising to adhere to the Magna Carta established between their two races four hundred years ago, which states that they must watch over and protect humanity. Igneel, before dying, offers words of encouragement to Natsu, who screams that he will get stronger and avenge Igneel, before saying that he is proud of Natsu and his new will to live.

Final Part
One week later, everyone is dealing with the aftermath of the war on Tartaros; Makarov and the others stand before their guild's wreckage, where he announces that the current era has ended. Elsewhere Laxus awakens and deems himself to be unable to protect what he loves the most; Wendy has her hair regrown courtesy of Cancer whilst Panther Lily and Carla discuss the current mental states of their Slayer companions. Meanwhile, Natsu and Happy dig through their house looking for money, where they ultimately agree that their biggest worry is not money, but the letter Natsu holds in his hand. In Isvan, Gray visits his parents' graves in the ruins of his old town; he finds Juvia to have followed him and learns that she killed the necromancer that was controlling his father. Breaking down, Gray thanks her for setting his dad free.

In Magnolia by the river, Erza sits alone and reminisces about her torture as a child and from Kyôka. As her resolve wavers, Jellal walks by with Meredy and the Oración Seis, and tells her that she will be okay before walking away with his new comrades. Concurrently, Sting, Rogue and the Exceeds return to Sabertooth with Minerva, who sheds tears of joy upon being warmly welcomed back to the guild. Back in Magnolia, Doranbolt meets up with Makarov and reveals that he has modified everyone's memories and plans to do the same to his own, but Makarov stops him and reveals that he has always been a Fairy Tail member, having modified his memories before to infiltrate the Magic Council. As Doranbolt stands in shock, Makarov announces that he will disband Fairy Tail. Lucy meanwhile finds Natsu's letter in her apartment, learning that he plans on taking a one-year journey to become stronger, which saddens her. With everyone now going their own separate way, Zeref sits in an ornately fashioned room and tells Natsu, or rather, Etherious Natsu Dragneel (E.N.D.) that he must surpass him.

Somewhere in the wilderness after Tartaros' aftermath resolves, Gildarts tries to kill a large animal for food, but Natsu and Happy, who have started their training journey, beat him to it; they are all surprised at their reunion. The three then bicker, play, eat, and bathe together. At night, Gildarts notices that Natsu is missing and finds him at a waterfall; sensing his unease, Gildarts convinces Natsu to tell him everything that is bothering him, which he does. The next day, Natsu challenges Gildarts to a sparring match to show him his growth since their fight, which he does by pushing Gildarts even further back than their first encounter. After remarking on his growth, Natsu is eaten by a large animal, which Gildarts defeats to set him free. The two then go their separate ways and check their bags, which they find out have been switched by mistake; Gildarts finds food scraps and Natsu finds gravure magazines. Gildarts rushes back to where Natsu is to retrieve his magazines and a small brawl erupts between the two; inside one of the magazines is revealed to be a picture of him and Cana, which was his real target.

Anime-Manga Differences

 * After Jellal Fernandes manages to convince the former Oración Seis members to join Crime Sorcière, an episode featuring Rustyrose is shown, in which the five former Dark Mages helped the crippled Jellal defeat Rustyrose when he attempted to kidnap Meredy, showing support for the Sorcière's cause.
 * In the manga, after Gajeel defeated Torafuzar, he was then attacked by Tempester, but was promptly beaten by Gray's new Ice Devil Slayer Magic. In the anime, it was Laxus who made the timely appearance instead, with the two engaging in a prolonged battle, spanning two episodes, before Gray appeared just as Tempester planned to use Magical Barrier Particles upon his defeat.

Trivia

 * Much like for the Tenrou Island arc, Hiro Mashima conceived a rough outline for the Tartaros arc, which detailed many events that were later changed or remained the same, all way up through Tartaros arc, Part 5, that appeared in the back of Volume 44:
 * The Magic Council was to remain destroyed in a "highly-visible and shocking way".
 * Tartaros is after a weapon called Memento, rather than Face.
 * Lahar was originally supposed to have survived the Council's destruction alongside Doranbolt, and they both were supposed to release Oración Seis in exchange for information on Tartaros.
 * Lucy was originally supposed to have a more involved role in the fight against Jackal, and the battle was supposed to originally have been more difficult.
 * Jellal battling the Oración Seis was planned, and a part that indicates whether they join Crime Sorcière is scribbled out.
 * Erza and Mirajane teaming up, being tricked by the chairman and then sent to Tartaros remained unchanged.
 * Cana was supposed to betray Fairy Tail alongside Elfman and help him destroy Fairy Tail.
 * The result of Wendy and Carla surviving the explosion of Face was originally supposed to have been more ambiguous.
 * Lines involving the Celestial Spirit King being summoned are scribbled out.
 * Battles involving Gajeel vs. Torafuzar, Erza vs. Minerva, Gray vs. Silver and Juvia vs. Keyes are mentioned, with notes dictating that Juvia vs. Keyes was to remain an important link to Silver and his fight with Gray.