Episode 156

Sky Labyrinth is the 156th episode of the Fairy Tail anime.
Natsu, Lucy, Erza, Gray and Elfman head to the Sky Labyrinth, an elimination round, while their guild mates search for Wendy and Carla. Passing many troubles and mishaps, Team Fairy Tail is awarded eighth place, much to their astonishment and disappointment. Meanwhile, Lisanna and Happy find Wendy and Carla unconscious, and they wonder about what happened to them. 
==Summary==
Natsu, Lucy, Erza and Gray watch in amazement as the Sky Labyrinth is formed in the sky. They are about to leave when Erza says that Wendy is still missing and they cannot leave without her. Elfman shows up, saying that he will step in as a replacement for Wendy and carries all his teammates to the labyrinth. Erza orders Happy and Lisanna from afar to search for Wendy and Carla. Lisanna agrees and Happy wishes them good luck. All the teams head confidently to the Labyrinth to begin the race.
The rules of the Sky Labyrinth are then explained by Mato. The first eight teams to pass are going to participate in the proper Grand Magic Games. They are free to use Magic and anybody who steps out of the zone is immediately disqualified. Mato interjects that the organizers will take no responsibility for deaths during the event. Erza plans their strategy by saying that they should head east, since the arena is located there. Lucy proceeds to summon Pyxis and finds out where east is located, but Erza points out that she had brought along a compass herself. Lucy and Pyxis, disappointed, sulk in the corner and Lucy thanks Pyxis for its work. As they head east, Natsu wonders why he is not feeling sick at all. A screen appears with Mato in it, explaining that the place is treated with Magic so that people with fear of heights or motion sickness can compete fairly. Team Fairy Tail opens a door, which leads to a long corridor looking like an optical illusion. Lucy wonders how far it goes, and Natsu races ahead to open a door, which leads to a dead end and Natsu almost falls. Elfman catches him and reprimands him to watch where he is going. Erza thinks that it would be a good idea to map the maze as they go. 
Outside, Romeo and Nab are shocked to find out that Wendy and Carla are missing. When Romeo inquires what happened to Natsu and the others, Lisanna says that Elfman suddenly filled up for her, and a frustrated Romeo wishes he could have been there so that he could have joined Natsu and the others instead of Elfman. Lisanna instructs them to split up and, through Warren's telepathy, stay connected to find out if somebody finds Wendy and Carla. 
Back at the Labyrinth, Team Fairy Tail is working to make a map for themselves. Suddenly, Natsu and Erza hear a group of people arguing, and soon they find out that they belong to Team Twilight Ogre. Their opponents see them and insult them for showing up. Thibault says that since Magic is allowed, fighting can take place and the two teams get ready to duel. Natsu, Gray and Elfman step up and easily defeat Team Twilight Ogre.
Suddenly, the Labyrinth starts rotating, which surprises everyone participating. Natsu, Lucy and some other Mages fall down as the rotation of the Labyrinth takes place. Outside, Lisanna and Happy notice people falling out of the maze, and hope that Natsu and the others will be okay. Back at the rotating maze, Elfman catches Natsu and Lucy, claiming that they don't need Happy since they have a man with them. One of the defeated members of Twilight Ogre drops a piece of paper he was holding. Erza studies it and concludes that it is a map. Gray says that it is a stroke of luck since it will make their own map more accurate. Thibault asks for the map back, but Erza refuses and kicks him out of the game. Erza, Gray, Natsu and Elfman then realize that they finally understand how the elimination round works.
Outside, Mato watches the Mages falling out of the Labyrinth and says that the competition has finally revved up to high gear and it is going to be even crazier from now on. Back at the maze, Team Fairy Tail fights other teams to get their own maps. They realize that this is more of a battle than a race, and that's what they are best at. Elfman comments that he can't read it, and Gray tells him that Lucy can take care of the map pieces. Lucy is up for the challenge and they continue fighting, until the maze starts rotating again, but this time the Fairy Tail Mages are prepared for it. 
Outside, Max meets up with Warren and Alzack, and Warren asks Max if he has found anything. Max says no, since it is pretty late and they have no clue about where they should look. In another part of the city, Lisanna asks Warren if they have found them yet. Warren states that they have searched most of Crocus but their efforts were unsuccessful, but then Happy suddenly remembers that Wendy and Carla were supposed to go sightseeing. Lisanna deduces that they must have gone to the palace, and so the two head to it.
Meanwhile, Lucy lays out all the maps and says that since the maze has rotated a lot, heading east would be a waste of time. Erza says that her compass is also confused, since the needle does not point toward any direction and is spinning instead. Lucy says that this is the moment she was waiting for, and she summons Pyxis one more time. She tries to encourage it to show east and, after she convinces it, Pyxis obliges and points to the direction of east. The maze spins yet again and all of them fall towards the upside down city. As they lie around, Erza scolds them, saying that the race is still on, so they should hurry. As they follow a path, the city turns into an ocean and they notice that the sky is cracked to reveal a wall. They realize that they are nearing the end of the path which is the goal. 
Elsewhere, Happy and Lisanna reach the palace, Mercurius. They approach the guards, who block the exit and ask what they want at the palace so late at night. They explain that they are looking for someone who was supposed to enter the elimination round, and the guards let them in because the King is looking forward to the Grand Magic Games. At another part of the city, Warren is shocked that the guards let them in. At the palace gardens, Lisanna thinks that they should split up and Happy agrees. Warren, along with Max and Alzack, hurries over to the palace. 
At the Labyrinth, Mato applauds Team Fairy Tail for being able to reach the goal. Lucy asks if they were first place, but Mato says that they were eighth place, barely making it, and the group is shocked by this news. At the gardens, Lisanna and Happy are in the middle of searching until a hologram of Mato appears, informing the city that the elimination round is over and the eight teams are chosen and will be announced in the opening ceremony. While searching, Lisanna finds Happy staring at something. She gets closer and finds out that it is Wendy's bag. As they rush off to find them, a small creature is on the lamppost, staring at them and smirking. They then say to via telepathy Warren that they have found Wendy and Carla unconscious. Lisanna notices that even though they look uninjured, she can't feel any Magic Power coming from them. Wendy then wakes up and Happy asks her what happened. After a few efforts, she finally gets up, although her vision is still blurry, and asks what happened to her, but Lisanna and Happy reply that they don't know.
==Characters in Order of Appearance==
==Battles & Events==
*Sky Labyrinth (started and concluded)
**Team Fairy Tail A vs. Grand Magic Games Participants (started and concluded)
==Magic, Spells, and Abilities used==
===Magic used===
*
*
**
*
**
*
**
***
**
***Summoned the Compass, Pyxis
*
*
===Spells used===
*Aerial Levitation
===Abilities used===
*Flight
*Hand-to-Hand Combat
*Swordsmanship
===Armors used===
*
*
===Weapons used===
*Sword
===Items used===
*Celestial Spirit Gate Keys
**Gate of the Compass Key
*Maps
==Manga & Anime Differences==
*In the anime, a glimpse of all the other teams entering the Sky Labyrinth can be seen, whereas in the manga only Team Fairy Tail can be seen.
*In the anime, the rules are explained for the second time, but they are not in the manga.
*An extra scene was added in the anime to explain why Natsu doesn't get motion sick on the Sky Labyrinth. According to Mato, the area has been treated with Magic so that even those who cannot stand heights or get motion sick easily are not at a disadvantage, compared to the rest of the Mages.
*The scene in which Erza suggests taking notes is expanded in the anime.
*An extra scene was added in the anime, in which Lisanna discusses Wendy's disappearance with Nab, Happy and Romeo.
*In the anime, Team Twilight Ogre is revealed to be lost in the Labyrinth, whereas this information is not present in the manga.
*An extra scene about who Twilight Ogre is was added in the anime.
*The confrontation between Team Fairy Tail and Team Twilight Ogre is expanded in the anime.
*In the anime, Elfman catches Natsu and Lucy after they have fallen from the Labyrinth, whereas in the manga he catches them as they are about to fall.
*An additional scene where Erza kicks Thibault out of the game is added in the anime.
*An additional scene with Mato saying that they'll reduce the team numbers is added in the anime.
*An extra scene where Erza asks from Lucy to decipher the maps is added in the anime.
*An additional scene where the Labyrinth rotates for a second time is added in the anime.
*A scene where Max, Warren, Alzack, Lisanna and Happy search for Wendy is added in the anime.
*An additional scene is added in the anime, where Team Fairy Tail gets completely lost and Erza cannot find the correct path to follow. In this scene, Lucy summons Pyxis, and it reluctantly points towards the right direction for Lucy's team to follow. Then, the scene where they walk towards the goal is extended.
*In the anime, the search for Wendy is extended, up to when Happy and Lisanna find her on the ground.
==Navigation==