Gods and Titans

An Unordinary Encounter
"HA-HA-HA! Man that raid on the tomb went out without a hitch," Swartz laughed aloud with cheer, holding his new found prize -a star guarded claymore- in one burly handed grip. Giving it a few test swings, he sent erratic fissures of flaming force wherever he swung it, causing his men to leap for cover and yelp at their leader's heedless strikes. "Wow! This thing's got some power if you add a bit of your Magic to it."

"C-C-Careful where you swing that thing, Ass!" Donovan shook his fist at his boss from a mere few feet from the burning trench his boss carved. "We may be at the mountainside but you shouldn't just announce our presence like that!"

"Huh? Oh, sorry, Don. Didn't know you were right there," The grey-haired man chimed out with a candid grin.

"YOU TOTALLY KNEW I WAS-!"

"Relax, Donovan!" Rowlie restrained him with a headlock, causing the man to flail his feet and grip with his hands fruitlessly as the red-haired woman kept him under control.

"I'llkillhimI'llkillhimI'llkillhim-!" He seethed out loud with anger while Swartz just kept marching past while sticking a finger into his ear, the other hand holding his sword and resting it by the flat on his left shoulder.

"Not that you could, Donovan, but I suggest keeping your voice down," Faer implored quietly as his stave tapped the earth, his billowing cloak rustling as a chilling wind brushed across the troupe of Dark Wizards. Casting his eyes at Elaine whom was checking off a parchment with a pen, he kept a close watch on her as she smiled with sultry satisfaction. When she put an arm around Swartz's waist, the burly man went giddy and giggled in a way that made the Ink Magician's skin crawl. "He could kill you if you soured his mood."

"Tch," Donovan hissed as his body relaxed, the Mirror Mage finally relinquishing the Accelerator Wizard so he could stand upright. Dryly staring up at the mountain's dark doored entrance they bashed their way through, he looked back at Swartz whom sheathed it into a crude cloth covering that substituted a scabbard proper, he mumbled out loud. "Was that trinket even worth it?"

"It's about as valuable as most of the treasures Elaine's helped us secure," Mina replied as she weightlessly floated beside the two before hovering with aimless kicking legs next to Faer. "I'm sure if we can't find a use for it, we can pawn it and get some really nice gear from the Underworld. Or just help us buy a hideout so we don't keep sleeping outside."

"Yeah, that'd be nice," Donovan huffed as he pocketed his hands into his pants, striding out with the rearmost ranks of their group. Joined by the other elites, he sighed as he looked up at the sky. He noticed that clouds had begun to form, a storm rumbling forth and threatening to release a fall of rain over their heads. Snorting, he looked forward at his leader's back that towered over the rest. "I hope he finds us a place to stay instead of choosing tree tops. That wasn't exactly the best idea-"

"For Swartz, it was," Rowlie countered with a twirl of her hand.

"Ay, that's true," He shook his head as he didn't deny what she said.

As they began to traverse down the mountain path into the forest, Mina couldn't help but feel something. Something off in the wilderness. Looking around she felt a conflict of mental fortitude not too far from where they were walking. It's when the forwardmost ranks stopped that they all seemed to observe a figure in the distance, a casual stride towards them.

"Mina?" Faer asked as he batted an eye towards her.

"I don't know exactly what...but there's a disturbed mind ahead of ours," She replied with a soft exhale.

"In what way?" He inquired further.

"Like...almost in a way that resembles scarred tissue on skin. It reminds me of our boss, but in a different and older way," The Psychic Magician informed, turning to look at him seriously. "We should warn Swartz, otherwise he might accidentally start something."

"Right," Faer nodded as he walked forward, passing through the ranks with a curious Donovan and Rowlie in tow. When they finally stopped behind their boss and his lover, the first row of Dark Magicians -all capable B Class Wizards- sneered at the newcomer when he came within spitting distance of them. Sighing, Faer reached up to massage the bridge of his nose in frustration. "Great, the underlings are going to complicate this."

"Hey! You!" Driscol, a wiry thin and talled Magician with tattoos elaborately drawn all over his body by Faer himself that shown of bristled thorns that designated him as a member of Black Brier. His head, bald, and his eyes an orange hue dilated with anger as veins pulsed visibly around his face. Flexing his bare knuckles, the lower half of him was dressed in baggy silk pants that ended in desert upturned shoes. Being the most confident of the five that stepped up, Swartz barely paid attention as he kept oggling his lovely partner while she narrowed her eyes like a hawk's to the straggling man with keen interest. "Step aside! This road is bein used by us! Either fork over yer belon'ins to us or be shanked! Capiche?"