As expected, the town square was filled with chattering people when Erza's group arrived. Armed guards from the Magic Council were posted at every entrance to the plaza, and security was especially tight around the base of the execution platform.
Erza's team weaved through the dense crowd, encountering several clusters of fellow guildmates on their way to the front. With less than ten minutes before Jellal's presumed appearance on the platform, Erza could feel her heart thumping louder and louder in her chest. She clenched her fists tightly, hoping she'd be able to maintain her composure upon seeing him again.
After what seemed like an eternity, a small contingent of Magic Council forces walked into the square from the entrance closest to the platform, led by a familiar face— Captain Lahar of the Custody Enforcement Unit, the man responsible for Jellal's arrest. Erza caught a glimpse of bright blue hair protruding out from the center of the group of guards, and a bead of sweat formed on her forehead.
The guards disappeared behind the platform. Seconds later, the sound of several pairs of feet on the wooden stairs leading up to the platform reverberated throughout the plaza. Lahar was the first to come into view, and then…
There he was. Jellal Fernandes, in the flesh. His eyes were downcast, his tall figure slouched. His hands were firmly locked together in anti-magic handcuffs. Even from her much lower position in comparison to the platform, Erza could tell that he was much the worse for wear; they'd mistreated him in prison. The pain of that realization almost made her blood boil.
A hush fell upon the formerly boisterous crowd as Lahar made his way to the front of the platform. The duo of sword-wielding executioners, who had ascended the steps after Jellal, took their places on either side of the blue-haired man.
In a loud, clear tone, Lahar commenced his pre-execution speech. "Citizens of Magnolia. It is the duty and honor of the Magic Council to ensure your safety from magical threats. The man we intend to execute today has been deemed too dangerous to keep alive. The following is a list of his crimes: infiltrating the Magic Council at the highest order; using his authority as a Council member to fire Etherion, the Council's most powerful magical weapon; secretly building a tower of magical lacrima using slave labor; and attempting to revive the Dark Wizard Zeref using Etherion's power. These are all crimes of the highest degree punishable by death. Thus, we sentence Jellal Fernandes to death."
Lahar went on to give the populace some details about Jellal's arrest, and at this point Erza had prepared her first strike.
A giant pink magic circle appeared in the air above the platform, showering the area around Jellal with blunt weapons. Clearly not expecting this kind of assault, Lahar and the two executioners were knocked out cold when the weapons fell on their heads.
Erza immediately followed up by leaping high onto the platform. She grabbed a very confused Jellal and hefted him up onto her shoulder. Then she jumped back down to the ground.
After the initial shock wore off, someone yelled, "Arrest her!" and all hell broke loose. Fairy Tail shoved their way through the crowd to cover Erza's escape. Terrified citizens shrieked and scattered every which way as the Magic Council's armed forces pursued their target in a furious swarm.
"Keep moving!" the Requip mage shouted back to her friends as she charged forward, keeping an arm firmly wrapped around Jellal's torso. "They have Rune Knights with them, so if you stay still, they'll trap you!" Brandishing her sword in her free hand, she parried attacks from the soldiers who came to intercept her. Her guildmates followed close behind, throwing out the occasional magic to deter their pursuers.
"Erza, what are you doing?" asked the bewildered man on her shoulder. "Why are you saving me?"
The redhead didn't glance at him as she replied, "We can save that conversation for later."
Studying her determined face, Jellal decided that it would be best to stay silent and let things play out for now.
Presently, Erza made it to the plaza entrance they had come from.
"Guh!" Jellal grunted as his face collided with something.
Erza looked at him in alarm. The impact from his collision had almost caused her to drop him.
That was when she noticed the wall of purple magic runes pressing against Jellal's cheek. She clenched her teeth in frustration. Of course it wouldn't be that easy.
"What's wrong, Erza?" called Natsu as the rest of her team caught up.
"There's a wall of magic runes trapping Jellal in the plaza," she explained hurriedly. "If we don't get rid of these runes, we can't escape with him."
"Runes?" Lucy pondered for a second, then dashed into the approaching Fairy Tail group. A short while later, she returned with Levy. "Can you decode these runes, Levy?" she asked.
The Solid Script mage nodded. "I can, but I'll need some time."
Another voice broke in. "If there are runes, leave them to me." Freed had arrived at the front. "We should be able to disable them relatively quickly with the two of us."
"We need to cover them while they're doing that," Erza ordered. She whirled around to face the onslaught of Magic Council forces.
Gray had an idea. "Juvia, can you help me?" He turned to the water mage, extending a hand.
Juvia gasped and blushed, overjoyed at such a request. "Of course, Gray-sama," she answered, putting her hand in his.
The ice and water mages raised their joined hands to perform a Unison Raid. Together, they created a gigantic protective barrier of ice around the Fairy Tail guild members. The towering wall of ice was several layers thick, making it impossible for conventional weapons to penetrate. The Fairy Tail forces were completely sealed off from their Magic Council adversaries.
"Good job, guys!" Cheers erupted from the guild members.
Natsu scowled, disappointed. "I wanted to let loose some more, you ice bastard."
The Magic Council soldiers hacked at the barrier with the weapons in vain. Realizing that their efforts were futile, they called for their magic users to try to break through. Soon, the wall was bombarded with small magic attacks.
Individually, these basic spells did minimal damage to the great shield, but the magic users were wisely focusing on just one spot, and cracks began to appear in the ice shortly.
"It won't hold much longer!" yelled Gray.
"Are you guys almost done disabling the runes?" Erza inquired without turning around.
"Yes," answered Levy. She was grateful to have a master of runes like Freed with her in such a tense situation; if she were the only one responsible for providing them all with an exit, she was sure she'd crumble under the pressure.
The fractures in the wall were spreading, radiating out from a deepening hole the Council's magic users were drilling. The Fairy Tail members waited impatiently, every muscle in their bodies poised to fight if need be.
Right as the wall began to shatter, Levy and Freed finished rewriting the runes to allow Jellal through. "Done!" came the announcement.
"You should go on ahead, Erza," said Mirajane. "We'll try to delay them and then follow after you."
Erza nodded. "Thank you." She requipped into Flight Armor to boost her speed and barreled through the now-inert runes.