Fairy Tail: Ephemerality

"Limited by love, lust and life, our existence becomes a transient refuge of denial."

- SereneDreams Fairy Tail: Ephemeral Asylum (フェアリーテイル・エフェメラルアサイラム, Fearī Teiru: Efemeraru Asairamu), often just referred to as Ephemeral Asylum, is the main storyline written by SereneDreams, focusing on the exploits of the enigmatic Dark Mage by the name of Sūmi Masēn and those who surround her in the turbulent times where demonic beings are revived sporadically. Set in an alternate timeline, the story is not set from the perspective of the guild Fairy Tail, despite containing the name in the title. Taking on a much darker and edgier perspective than the original, Ephemeral Asylum does not shy away from killing important characters in a gruesome fashion and is otherwise rather explicit in nature. Focusing on the conflict as a whole instead of the individual destinies of the characters, the only constant focal point manifests as Sūmi, occasionally accompanied by her undead slave, Sheema.

Following the motto of Memento Mori, which translates to remember that you will die, virtually no characters are safe in the long run. An important sub-theme is Danse Macabre; everyone are equal in death, regardless of status while alive. Due to its rather morbid nature, there is little to no genuine humor present, with the exception of black humor and heavy usage of irony. Another peculiar trait with this story, is the rather unconventional lack of true protagonists or antagonists. As all characters are fighting for their own agendas, they are virtually all morally ambiguous and are therefore labelled as such. However, certain characters will fill the traditional role of antagonist or protagonist, but this depends entirely on the perspective of the character which has the POV (Point Of View) of the chapter.

Initiating the story with the sub-arc known as "Prologue arc", this is a part of the main saga referred to as "Inverted Castle Saga". Despite having been written on every so often since the author joined the site quite some time ago, few finalized chapters are ready and there will be no consistent release dates of said chapters. It should also be noted that even though Fairy Tail itself is a shōnen manga, Ephemeral Asylum's goal is to become rather gritty and achieve a status similar to that of a seinen manga instead. Therefore, younger readers are strongly recommended to shy away from some of the content, despite the fact that the most explicit scenes will be censored slightly.

Disclaimer: The author claims no ownership over the manga Fairy Tail written by Hiro Mashima. The only content the author owns, remains to be the writing.

Sūmi Masēn
The malicious and highly enigmatic hermit of Faux Babylon who serves as the focal point of the story, despite not being considered a main character per se. But this is more a result of the fact that all characters have importance and whose actions cause ripple effects. However, seeing as some characters cause bigger ripples, they will technically have more importance than others. Such is the case of Sūmi Masēn. Possessing an unscrupulous mindset and an inability to cope with boredom, her rash actions often cause incidents outside of her prison, the Withered Eden. Prior to being enslaved by Maricia, like the rest of the Faux Babylon elite, she posed as the Magic Council member by the name of Chang'e and attempted to destroy it from within. Just because she could.

Sheema Kobanette
A Kyonshī, an undead creature reanimated by a Magic going by the same name, who accompanies Sūmi at all times. One of the strongest allies of the Wicked Hermit, she is an important figure in terms of protection and acts as Sūmi's bodyguard. Solemn in terms of demeanor, her mood is constantly low due to the fact that the hermit controls the movement of her body. Only in the possession of a free mind, Sheema remains one of the very few Kyonshī who has not let go of her existence and has therefore piqued her master's interest greatly. Since neither of them can solve this mystery, the bodyguard still remains interesting to Sūmi, which is quite unusual.

Flynn Egozu
Best described as a tragic middle aged man who has channeled his grief in the wrong manner, Flynn is regarded as one of Faux Babylon's strongest assets and should therefore be treated as such. Losing his family to a tragic accident in the past, it was actually him who sought out Withered Eden in the first place, as he thought that its treasures could bring back his family. Instead, it enslaved the seven explorers to the demonic overlord Maricia through her Magic, Ritual of Ecstasy. Now begrudgingly serving his mistress, Flynn is, like the other six, only allowed to leave whenever Maricia wants them perform tasks for her. Never having quite let go of his dream to reunite his family, the man is still dedicated to resurrecting the three of them.

Helena Bontera
The loyal confidante of Flynn Egozu. Having joined him at the expedition several years ago to assist him in the quest for resurrecting his family, she too was eventually bound to the whim of Maricia. Possessing a sour demeanor, but an aesthetically appealing physique, she is jokingly referred to as "Ice Queen" by some of the lower ranked members. Possessing the unique Magic Keratin Body because of the Ritual of Ecstasy, she has the uncanny ability to change her exterior. Therefore, the newer members are not sure what she originally looked like. Akin to Sūmi Masēn due to the fact that they are both rather enigmatic beings, only Flynn bears knowledge about this woman's past and is apparently unwilling to unveil it.

Wilma Vermillion
An heiress to the rich clan known as Vermillion, Wilma got tired of her old life and instead pursued crime to find thrills. Soon, however, she regretted the decision, but since it was too late to go back, she could only continue the practice. Ultimately, she too joined the fateful expedition of Withered Eden and was subjected to the Ritual of Ecstasy as well. In turn, she obtained a Magic known as Serpent Circle, which caused her to develop a strange god complex. Due to her status as Maricia's pet, Wilma is allowed to leave Withered Eden more frequently than the other members. During these travels, she frequently converts cults and forces them to venerate idols built to be akin to her.

Hansel
Among all the members of Faux Babylon, Hansel remains among the most cryptic and bizarre members. Going by a pseudonym instead of his real name, his name even eludes him due to the fact that he contracted amnesia prior to joining Flynn Egozu's expedition. Unlike the other members who were bound to Maricia, he ages normally and can summon the spirit of his deceased twin sister, who goes by the pseudonym Gretel, through his Magic. Erratic and destructive in terms of behavior, most of the other members avoid him and refrain from interacting with him unless necessary.

Albert Spaggiari
A peculiar young man who joined Flynn Egozu's expedition on his own accord many years ago and was thus, like the rest, subjected to Maricia's whims. Considered to be rather rude and very gluttonous, he remains one of the least liked members of his guild. Hailing from a long line of ascetic hermits, he seemingly got fed up with their sparse lifestyles and wanted to experience more in life. Having acquired a strong Magic known as Void Hunger through the Ritual of Ecstasy, he is now unable to gain any weight and therefore has a rather emaciated appearance and a constant hunger. Bizarrely, he also possesses three extra mouths with two appearing on each palm, which makes him seem rather inhuman, even in comparison to the other members.

Maricia
The diabolic mastermind behind the revival of Faux Babylon and one of Zeref's Demons. Belonging to a trio referred to as the Sisterhood of Zeref a long time ago, she ruled the palace known as Withered Eden alongside her sisters Tenebrasia and Invertia, but eventually, the three of them were sealed away by the combined efforts of the Kingdom of Fiore. Currently, she is the only one of sisters to be free, thanks to the fact that she managed to execute a spell named Ritual of Ecstasy prior to being sealed. It was said that if any group of humans would execute said spell, Maricia would awaken. True to the rumor, Flynn Egozu's expedition managed to awaken the demoness and received unique Magic from her, but were also bound to her will.

Vishvalita Sharaksa
A female Mage of a strange agenda who has been employed by the Magic Council to eradicate Dark Guilds. Losing her parents at a young age, Vishvalita was adopted by a religious order and raised to become a nun. However, the demoness Invertia attacked and killed the majority of the members and injured Vishvalita. Swearing vengeance, Vishvalita discovered that she could handle an artifact known as Miroku's Pagoda and set out to purify the world while spreading religious messages. Believing that she could find Invertia if she found her sister, Vishvalita now seeks to hunt down Faux Babylon. Determined and not to mention ridiculously powerful, it is only a matter of time until she finds the guild.

Salome Barbatron
Salome is a former employee of the Bureau of Magical Development and currently a member of the Magic Council. Known for her prowess with elemental magic, many regard her as a pioneer when it comes to using Magic. Despite possessing a youthful appearance, she is in fact quite old and retains her youth by using her signature spell, Philosopher's Stone. At one point, she artificially created her daughter Mathilda Barbatron by combining her DNA with an unknown male's. Raising her to become a wise individual, Mathilda eventually obtained the position of scholar. Although she is a member of the council, Salome is said to be in the possession of a cursed tome and a shady connection to demons.

Shinkirō no Hatsume
Described as a perplex character, Hatsume is the Guild Master of Huang's Pearl and one of the oldest individuals to inhabit Earthland. Due to the fact that her body is not human anymore, she does not consider herself as such any longer either. Instead, Hatsume refers to herself as a doll and bases just about her entire demeanor on noh plays and kabuki. Therefore, she often acts silly or rather eccentric, much to the amusement of the members of the guild. Regardless of that, Hatsume should not be looked down on and instead feared, as her Magic, Noh of Darkness, is an incredibly dangerous Magic which can manipulate emotions for offensive purposes. This combined with her eerie body has caused many to speak of her name in hushed tones.

Trivia

 * The opening theme of Ephemeral Asylum is YU-MU by 岸田教団＆Ｔｈｅ明星ロケッツ, while the closing theme is effulgence by EastNewSound.
 * The author makes use of common Japanese honorifics, such as: "san", "chan", "dono", "sama" etc.
 * The author does not shy away from very foul language in this storyline, so the reader is advised to steer clear of this story if such offends the reader.
 * The author was heavily inspired by the Horror mangaka [wikipedia:Junji Ito|Junji Ito], in addition to the gory anime adaptation of Higurashi When They Cry and the surprisingly dark Puella Magi Madoka Magica.
 * The narrative structure which the story is written, from the perspective of individual characters, is heavily inspired by the writing style of George R.R. Martin in his magnum opus, A Song Of Ice and Fire.