Chapter 1:Illusions of Chaos

The sun had begun its descent, casting a golden hue over the town of Magnolia, as Lucy Heartfilia wandered through the bustling streets, her thoughts occupied with the possibility of joining a guild. After months of searching and disappointment, she had finally found her way to Fairy Tail—a guild known for its unparalleled magic and, as rumors suggested, for its eccentric members.

Lucy was no stranger to gossip, and she had heard plenty about Fairy Tail. Some called it the best guild in Fiore; others spoke of its infamous destruction and chaotic members. It was said to be a guild full of strong-willed, larger-than-life characters, all with their own unique stories to tell. But despite her excitement, Lucy couldn't shake the feeling of uncertainty. Was she truly ready to take this leap? Would she fit in?

As she entered the guild hall with Natsu Dragneel—a fire mage who had dragged her along with promises of grand adventures—Lucy's nerves hit an all-time high.

The door swung open, and immediately, the noise hit her—a mixture of laughter, shouting, clinking mugs, and the occasional crash as another disagreement turned into a friendly brawl. Natsu, beaming with energy, walked straight in without a second thought.

"Welcome to Fairy Tail!" Natsu yelled as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

Lucy followed him hesitantly, her eyes scanning the chaos. A huge room filled with large tables where guild members were either arguing, eating, or laughing uproariously. There were magicians of all shapes and sizes, their personalities as bold and brash as their magic. She could feel the overwhelming presence of each individual, yet something about it felt strangely welcoming.

But there was one figure who immediately caught her attention.

Sitting alone in the far corner, far away from the noise and commotion, was a man who exuded an air of quiet but undeniable intensity. He sat at a small table, eating in a calm, deliberate manner—his silver hair flowing, his tall, slender frame carries an almost ghostly presence, one of his eye seemed to be able to see right through people, while his other eye is covered. 

The way the guild members seemed to steer clear of him—avoiding even the faintest interaction—was… strange. No one dared to approach him. There was no laughter around him, no casual banter. It was as if everyone in the room, from the boisterous mages to the loud cat, instinctively understood something about this person that Lucy couldn't quite grasp.

The moment Lucy's gaze fell on him, Natsu seemed to be distressed. It was subtle, but it was there. Even the ever-enthusiastic Natsu didn't so much as glance in his direction, continuing on with his loud commentary about the guild and his adventures. But Lucy couldn't help but be drawn to him.

"Hey, Lucy!" Natsu called out as he turned and waved her forward. "Let's go meet the others!"

As she reluctantly turned her attention away from the mysterious figure, she couldn't shake the sense that everyone in the guild had a healthy respect—or fear—of the man in the corner. It reminded her of the stories she had heard about Erza Scarlet, the Titania. There were whispers that even the loudest members turns silent, and she ruled the guild with an iron fist.

But this person, this Aurelius Nyx, was different. Lucy could feel it. Although he was silent, his presence was… overwhelming, but not in the same way as the rumurs portray Erza. It was quieter, more subtle, yet no less intense. His mere existence seemed to command attention, even in his silence.

Before she could think too much on it, she heard Natsu's voice.

"Alright, Lucy!" Natsu said enthusiastically, practically bouncing in place. "Let's go! We're gonna get you in, no problem!"

As they made their way toward the bar, Lucy was too busy taking in the sights to notice the commotion unfolding in the corner of the room. Gray Fullbuster, in his usual fashion, was glaring across the guild at Natsu with a barely-contained look of annoyance.

"Oi, Natsu!" Gray shouted, storming up to him, arms crossed. "You still haven't paid me back for that bet last week!"

"Ugh, not this again," Natsu groaned. "Come on, Gray, you lost fair and square!"

"You cheated!" Gray snapped, pointing an accusing finger at him.

"I did not!"

"Did too!"

Without another word, both of them lunged at each other, throwing punches and kicks in a chaotic blur of motion. A fight between Natsu and Gray was a common occurrence at Fairy Tail, but that didn't make it any less disruptive. The guild hall erupted into a frenzy of noise as the two brawled, weaving through tables and dodging chairs.

Lucy watched in shock as the two wrecked everything in their path. The fight seemed endless, with the whole guild soon joining them. However, before Lucy could react, she felt a gentle tug on her arm.

"Come with me" a calm voice said.

She turned to find Mirajane Strauss, her warm, welcoming smile easing Lucy's nerves. "I'll take care of the guild mark," she added, guiding the blonde away from the chaos.

Natsu and Gray's fight raged on, but Lucy's attention shifted as Mirajane led her to the bar. Mirajane gave her a nod, as though she had everything under control.

"I'm Mirajane, the guild's bartended. You're joining us today, right? Let me put your mark on you so you can officially be part of the family." Mirajane said with a soft smile.

'I'M INFRONT OF MIRAJANE! I NEVER IMAGINED THAT I'LL BE ABLE TO SEE HER IN PERSON!' Lucy thought before introducing herself.

"I'm Lucy! Nice to meet you! And yes, I'm planning to join the guild. Is there a test?" Lucy said.

"Nope, let me just put the mark on you." The white-haired bartender replied and in an instant, she pressed the familiar guild stamp onto Lucy's hand.

The mark glowed for a brief moment before it settled, a symbol of her new beginning. Lucy felt a rush of excitement and relief, as though she was finally home. She smiled up at Mirajane, grateful for her kindness.

"Congratulations, Lucy. You're now officially a member of Fairy Tail," Mira said, her eyes sparkling with warmth. "I'm so happy to have you here."

Lucy looked down at the mark, her fingers tracing the intricate design. It felt like a new beginning, and the joy that filled her chest was undeniable. She was felt that she was at home.

"Thanks, Mira," Lucy said, a grateful smile spreading across her face. She looked up, meeting Mira's soft gaze. "I can't wait to get started. This is exactly where I want to be."

Meanwhile, the guild hall was in chaos. Punches were thrown, tables and chairs were overturned, and magic crackled through the air, filling the room with both destructive power and overwhelming energy. Gray and Natsu continued their heated brawl, laughing all the while, but in the midst of it all, Mirajane and Lucy stood to the side, watching the madness unfold.

And then, it happened.

A powerful slam reverberated through the entire guild hall, shaking the walls. The noise immediately silenced every voice, every laugh, and every clink of metal. Everyone froze in place as Makarov Dreyar, the guild's master, stood at the center of the room. His eyes were narrowed, and his expression—normally calm and grandfatherly—was fierce, like a storm ready to break.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Makarov's voice boomed, shaking the very air around them.

Natsu and Gray, both mid-throw, immediately halted, their expressions shifting from excitement to sheepishness and the whole guild turned silent.

Makarov's eyes swept over the destruction with a grimace, his fists clenched tightly. "This brawling—this destruction—has gone far enough!"

He turned toward the guild members, his voice sharp with frustration. "Every time, I have to deal with the council breathing down my neck! Their complaints, their threats, their constant pressure to keep this guild under control because of your reckless antics!"

The guild members shifted uncomfortably, looking anywhere but at Makarov. The guild had always been rowdy and chaotic, but Makarov's frustration was understandable. They had drawn unwanted attention more than once because of their wild nature, and now the council was becoming more insistent about keeping Fairy Tail's image in check.

But then, Makarov's expression hardened, and he slammed his fist into his palm with surprising force. "But you know what?" he said, his voice dripping with irritation. "The council can eat shit. They can whine all they want, but I don't care about their pressure. What matters is we keep our family together, and if they don't like it, tough luck!"

The guild members exchanged looks, then most of them cheered. But Makarov wasn't finished. His gaze swept over the hall, and his tone shifted to something more serious.

"However," he continued, his voice quieter but no less intense, "that doesn't mean we can keep causing destruction all the time. We still need to clean up our act—at least a little—when we're out on missions and here in the guild."

Silence once again covered the room, and the guild members nodded slowly.

Makarov sighed, rubbing his temples. "I don't want to deal with any more complaints from the council. So, if you're all done making a mess, then how about you get off your asses and clean this up?"

The guild members groaned in unison but began moving to clean the wreckage they'd caused.

As they stood up to begin picking up the pieces, a voice rang out from the corner of the room.

"Actually…"

The guild froze.

It was Aurelius Nyx. He had been sitting in his usual corner, eating his meal in quiet isolation, unaffected by the chaos around him. But now, he spoke in his usual calm, almost indifferent tone.

"There's nothing to clean up," he said, his voice barely rising above a whisper.

The guild members blinked in confusion.

The guild members exchanged glances, the confusion quickly turning into mild understanding. Aurelius had always been known for his illusion magic, and they weren't entirely shocked to hear that the destruction they had caused was nothing more than an elaborate trick.

"What do you mean?" Lucy asked, blinking in confusion.

Aurelius shrugged slightly, a quiet expression on his face. "I took care of it. Nothing happened. Before you guys brawl, I did some switching.."

Lucy's brow furrowed as she looked around. The wreckage—the overturned tables, the broken chairs, the scattered mugs—had vanished. Instead, everything was neatly stacked in a corner of the room, completely restored.

"Oh" Gray muttered, running a hand through his hair before looking at the opposite direction." i should have expected that..."

"Yeah," Mirajane added with a small smile. "He's always pulling stuff like that. Can't trust a single thing when he's around."

"Nicely done, brat!" The master commented as he flashed Aurelius with a smile while giving him a thumbs up.

The guild, while a bit miffed, wasn't exactly shocked by the reveal. Aurelius had made his reputation as the master of deception, and his illusions were well known by now. However, that didn't stop Natsu from grinning widely, eager to challenge his fellow guildmate.

Just then, Natsu grinned mischievously. "Hey, Aurelius, you think your illusions can fool me?"

Without another word, Natsu lunged at Aurelius, attempting to throw a punch. But just as his fist was about to connect, Aurelius vanished.

Natsu's punch went straight through nothing, and he crashed into the floor with an irritated growl. "Huh?! Where'd he go?!"

Lucy looked around in surprise. She had clearly seen Aurelius standing there only moments ago, and now he was… gone?

The Aurelius Natsu had punched was nowhere to be found. Instead, the real Aurelius was beside the entrance, leaning calmly, as he glanced up at Natsu with a disinterested look.

"You still haven't learned your lesson?" Aurelius said, his tone calm and unbothered. "I told you, it was an illusion."

The guild members, who had seen Aurelius pull tricks like this before, didn't seem too phased by it. Instead, they mysteriously shut their eyes and controlled their magic, preventing their magical energy to leak. Natsu, however, still seemed determined to get a reaction.

"Not fair!" he huffed, glaring at the now-visible Aurelius. "You can't just hide like that!"

Lucy watched the scene unfold with wide eyes. "So you're telling me none of that fighting was real?"

"The fight was real," Aurelius replied without missing a beat. "However, there was no destruction and property damage. It was all a carefully crafted illusion."

The members of the guild then opened their eyes and groaned in frustration, but it was clear they weren't entirely angry—just mildly annoyed.

"See, Natsu?" Gray said, rolling his eyes. "You fell for it again."

Lucy couldn't help but chuckle nervously. She was starting to understand that Fairy Tail wasn't just a place for mages to fight and drink—it was a place full of chaos and unpredictability. And Aurelius, with his silent, enigmatic nature, seemed to be the most unpredictable of them all.

"Well, that, Lucy, is Aurelius" Mirajane said, glancing at Aurelius with a smile. "If you ever need to keep things… peaceful, just ask Aurelius to do his thing."

Natsu let out an exaggerated sigh. "Fine, but he's not gonna trick me again! I'll beat him someday, just you wait!"

Aurelius simply shrugged again. "We'll see." He said before once again vanishing.

"AGAIN?!" shouts were heard as everyone was once again fooled by the mysterious Aurelius.