Fairy Tail: Strongest Creature

Laxus stood amid the shattered timbers of Yakima's restaurant, electricity crackling around him. Though perhaps not quite as strong as Su Yan, he was unquestionably a top-level mage—and more than capable of protecting his allies.

"Who are you?" Laxus demanded of the fallen figure before him.

Evergreen, still unnerved, gasped, "He's from Tartaros—Calamity himself! He came for Master Yakima!"

Laxus's eyes narrowed. Tartaros: the most secret, most feared of the dark guilds.

Calamity tore off his tattered coat, revealing a form that was almost human—but his face was distorted, bestial. With a mocking snarl, he whirled into a vortex of wind and charged Laxus.

The fist that emerged from the storm smashed into the ground mere inches from Laxus's feet—then another arm lashed out, forcing Laxus to spring to the side.

Golden lightning flared around Laxus as he reappeared behind Calamity, hammering his heel into the intruder's back. The wall behind Calamity splintered, but he barely staggered.

Calamity spun, eyes wild. Before he could strike again, Laxus gathered a crackling bolt in his palms.

"Jaws of the Thunder Dragon!" Laxus roared, unleashing a massive thunderbolt that carved a great pit into the earth—and left Calamity unconscious in its center.

The restaurant's survivors—Yakima, Freed, Bickslow, and Evergreen—stared in awe. Freed and Bickslow shook themselves free of lingering shock.

Laxus turned to Yakima. "Master Yakima, what shall we do with him now?"

Yakima rubbed his bruised shoulder. "Normally he'd be locked away in the Council's prisons—but the Senate has been destroyed. There's no one left to receive him."

Bickslow frowned. "There are still regional Council branches… the Fiore Office is just outside town."

Yakima shook his head. "With the leadership gone, the Council's bottom tier is in chaos. They can't handle a prisoner like this."

Freed stepped forward. "What if we bring him to Fairy Tail for questioning? He's attacked both current and former Council members—we need to know his purpose."

Laxus nodded. "Very well."

Moments later, Calamity stirred. He spat a single word: "Disaster."

Then, as if by will, his body dissolved into thick black smoke—and dispersed.

"What…?" Evergreen whispered.

The smoke thickened, coalescing into a dark cloud that began to spread through the broken restaurant.

A cold voice echoed from within the haze: "Fools. You cannot defeat Disaster. This is a poison mist—magic-barrier particles designed to nullify the ambient magic and corrupt it. Soon, no mage will stand."

Freed's face turned ashen. "Anti-magic particles… that's fatal."

Yakima shouted, "Everyone, get out! Move beyond the smoke!"

They staggered toward the doorway—but Yakima collapsed, then Evergreen, then Bickslow.

"Alba! Bickslow, no!" Freed cried, rushing to support them.

"LAXUS—cover your mouth!" Evergreen wheezed, struggling for breath.

Instead, Laxus inhaled deeply, drawing the black mist into his lungs. He gritted his teeth. "Dragon Slayer lungs… watch me purify it!"

Freed shook his head in horror. "Stop, Laxus!"

Laxus gave a fierce grin. "You must bring them back. This is your mission." Then he pitched forward, unconscious.

Back at Fairy Tail's guildhall, Makarov pounded his cane on the floor. "Laxus—what happened? Is he all right?"

Porlyusica, the guild's consultant pharmacist, knelt by Laxus's side, examining his breathing. "He's alive… but his lungs are saturated with barrier particles. A single breath of this poison kills most mages outright. Even for Laxus, it's a miracle he survived."

Makarov's eyes were grave. "Can you cure him?"

Porlyusica exhaled slowly. "It will be a long road. For now… we keep him breathing."

Outside, the wind howled—Tartaros's assault on the magic world had only just begun.