Dreaded Encounter

Introduction
It was early in the morning as the sun slowly rose as the morning sunlight shined through the guild, after yesterday's welcome back party for both Alice and Cynteria, the onlys sound that could be heard were those of snoring as everyone was still either hung over, tired, or just lazy.

Markus however was training alone, the lightning, thunder and wind raged as he moved with his usual speed and agility. Chae Yi evenutally came out to see what was happening. "You ok uncle?" She said rubbing the sleep out her eyes.

"Yeah....Just got word that Vega has been found.....Go wake your moms for me. Once everyone is up i'll organize a team to deal with him." Said Markus as he unleashed his Maelstrum Fist on the air creating a tunnel of twisting wind infront of him.

"Ok i'll go get them..." Said Chae Yi as she ran off to Alice and Cyn's room.

Chae came to their room as she opened the door and found that both her mother's were wrapping their arm's around Joo Dee as she had a nightmare last night and needed to sleep in their bed.

"Guys uncle wants you....He says he knows where Vega is." Said Chae Yi poking her head around the door.

"Really?!" Said Alice slightly shocked. "Joo Dee go get dressed we'll stop those nightmares soon now."

Alice got out of bed and let Joo Dee head off to her room as she got her clothes on and rushed downstairs.

The small family found themselves in their meeting hall as Markus along with the Guild Master were seen standing in front of them, waiting for everyone to settle in.

"Right now that all effected are here we can begin.....We've got word from a friend of the family that Vega is down south in Westeron....The place is a independant nation ran by a guy called The Sherrif....He's abit paranoid and doens't like outsiders that much......Vega is there and waiting for something or someone...." Said Markus leaning on the table. "We're gonna form a team to hunt him down and even possible kill him....Though with his track record of surviving i doubt we will."

"Yeah we've hit him with everything short of the Storm Gem and he's still alive." Said Zero standing up. "I'm in....I'm gonna help get some payback...."

"Thanks Zero....." Said Alice smiling at him. "Me and Cyn are coming as well."

"No sh*t.....Your in no matter what you say sis...." Said Markus with a smirk. "Yoshi and Yamatora are coming with us....Liz is on holiday so he needs something to do."

"So how will we do this?" Cynteria asked as Joo Dee was being carried by her as she still felt the need for hugs from her mother.

"Show up and see what happens." Smirked Markus with a devilish tone. "We'll lure Vega here one way or another....If we have problems from the local law we'll deal with them as well."

"Won't it be dangerous...?" Joo Dee asked with a worried tone as she held on to her mother tightly as Cynteria and Alice went to comfort her. They knew she had nightmares about the people around them being killed right in front of her.

"Yeah but thats what we enjoy the most Joo." Said Zero smiling. "We go into dangerous often impossible fights and always come out ok.....Saves innocent people from taking the brunt."

"He's right this guild was made to take the brunt of the darkness that attacks out homes....We fight so war never touches our home." Said Markus walking over to Joo Dee. "That is what we've sworn to do until our last breath....."

Joo Dee looked at her uncle with a sad look as Cynteria passed her to him as she hugged him tightly, "Be safe...." She said as Markus rubbed her back gently.

"We will Little Storm....Don't worry about us. While we're gone I want you and your sister to train hard...I especially want you to try and learn some extra magic to boost your Phoenix Slayer Magic." Said Markus smiling at his niece. "Chae, I want you to learn whatever magic you want....Talk to some of the vetern mages and see what catches your eye."

"Ok!" Said Chae with a proud look on her face determind to make her family proud.

Joo Dee nodded as Markus passed her to Ellena who was carrying the baby in a stroller as she gave Joo Dee a reassuring rub on the back.

"He'll be fine....Advantage of his magic is he can shrug off even the most fatal of injuries....He'll make sure your mom's are home safe." Smiled Ellena as the baby looked in amazement at the room they were in. "You can spend time with me and the baby while he's gone and not training."

Markus then led the group to the docks where a ship was waiting for them. "We'll enter the island from the north cliffs....They have no guards or lookouts there, form there we'll camp in the near by forest and see what infomationw e can gather about the way things work." Said Markus standing at the base of the gangplank. "With luck this'll go nice and smooth....For us atleast."

"So chaotic all the way through?" Smirked Yoshi standing next to Yamatora who was busy finishing his breakfast.

"Do we bother with anything else?" Replied Markus turning around and walking onto the ship.

"Well rarely...." Said Yamatora with a mouthful of ramen. "There was that job afew years back where we went ninja on them."

"I still can't believe I'm in this group" Cynteria said joking around as she got on the boat with Alice right behind her.

"Meh nothing new to me...." Said Alice following behind Cyn while dragging a huge bag of supplies. "Why am i dragging this?!"

"Your the only new boot who has no special magic." Smirked Markus looking back at the top fo the ramp with everyone else behind him. "Plus it's a great excuse to mess with my sister."

Cynteria chuckled as she helped Alice carry them before dropping them onto the ground, "Be careful Markus, don't forget that I know the weaknesses of a Phoenix Slayer..." She said grining as she kissed Alice on the cheek.

"Same here sis...." Said MArkus taking out a pack of Fire Rocks and tossing a hand full into his mouth. "Anyway lets get going this is a public ship so we're gonna amek afew stops on the way."

"I assume you made arrangements with the captain?" Said Yamatora finishing his ramen.

"We're paying him and the crew a bonusof 200,000...." Said Markus smirking alittle.

"Hmm thats less than we normally bribe people with." Smirked Zero as he glanced around. "15 mages on the boat....Almost all are non guilded."

"Whats wrong with that?" Asked Alice sitting ont he bag of supplies she dragged up with Cyn's aid. "They're unguilded so they're no threat right?"

"Yeah that could be true.....Daimon has hired some un-guilded mages to try and defeat us before.....We always watch them closely." Said Zero turning back to Alice and Cyn. "Hopefully we won't have any trouble on this part of the mission."

"Yeah we will...." Said Markus sitting down by the ramp.

"We'll just have to wait and see, I have a feeling things are going to get more intense than we originally thought" Cynteria said looking at the blue sea as the ship continued to move forward.

The Arrival
After a couple days cruising the seas the group arrived at their destination. They quickly jumped onto a lifeboat and rowed to the cliffs, once they reached them Markus and Cyn quickly seached the top to secure a campsite while the others hauled the gear to the top.

"Ok we'll camp here tonight and check out the closest town to see what happening." Said Markus sitting in a clearing.

Cynteria nodded as she went into the forest to get some stuff the group would need.

After Markus started the fire they all gathered around it and relaxed for abit. "Sooooo what exactly is the plan Markus?" Asked Alice not exactly use to Markus' methods.

"We chill here and then check out the nearest town." Said Markus laying back on the ground. "Vega is a siciopathic nut but he'll lie low if he knows i'm after him.....He's only scared of me, Dark storm and Daimon."

Cynteria came back with a catch of fish and some wild vegtables as she handed them over to Markus as he began to start preparing some food, "So how will we get him?"

MArkus smirked sitting up. "We play with his mind." Said Markus letting some lightning jolt from his eyes. "We make him panic....Pressure him to make a move such as picking off the weaker members of the group...Like Zero."

"Hey!!" He said annoyed at Markus comment. "I can mimic any magic remember!"

"Yeah but not if you can see the spell in the first place....Remember my Kinetic Storm spell is impossible for you to mimic." Said Markus finishing the fish. "Once he starts making his move we'll have him."

"Still, I get the feeling he isn't just gonna let us beat him without a fight" Cynteria said with a smile as she grabbed and skewered another fish.

"Thats where the fun comes in!" Smirked Markus. "He'll try and fight us and loose....Even if he survives he'll be back with some other psycho plan....Unless Dark or Daimon curb him next time."

"He normally gets curbed after every plan he does solo.....I think Daimon uses him as a moral hitter more than an effective tactic." Said Zero eating one of the fish and picking a bone out. "Dark, Star and this new guy Sasuke are the big hitters.....When Dark shows up you know Daimon is serious."

"He is my clone....." Said Markus eating a fish in one go then spitting the bones into the fire. "His raw overall power is equal to me, despite his copied Slayer Magic being half my strength.....That Black Lightning Magic is a real kicker."

"I'm not exactly a weaking myself" Cynteria said with a smile.

"Thats true....But Dark is almost exactly like me.....He fights alittle different and acts a touch more.....animalistic but his power is the same as mine....Which makes out fights all that more fun to be honest." Said Markus looking at Cyn. "He may make a copy of you though if you annoy him enough....Just needs your blood and a sample of your magic.....That'll be one way to confuse the hell out of Alice."

"Hey! I'd side with my hottie here! Not some wannabe that has her perfect skin and figure!" Said Alice proudly before thinking a second and returning to her proud expression. "Though certain factors may sway me!"

Cynteria rolls her eyes as she finishes chopping up the vegtables before giving everyone a bowl filled with it and a fish to go along with it. "Anyway, we best prepare ourselves..." She said sighing as she began to ate, but in her mind, she was still thinking about how Chae and Joo Dee were.

"The kids are safe.....Don't worry about them, they may not be master mages yet but they are powerful for their age....Joo Dee just needs to have more confidence in herself." Said Markus taking the bowl and fish. "After this she won't have a nightmare again.....We'll make sure of that."

Cynteria nodded as she continued eating, wondering how her baby was doing.

Sibling Infight
Ellena was pushing the baby stroller through the market place as she looked to see Joo Dee pulling a wagon twice her size full of supplies that the two had bought.

"You really don't have to pull that....I can pull it along if you push the baby along." Smiled Ellena shaking her head alittle. "You don't have to push yourself."

"No it's fine, Uncle wanted me to do this for my training, so I will do it" She said as the baby was giggling at some of the sight's that they passed.

"Fair enough....Have you picked who you want to teach you lightning magic yet?" Asked Ellena walking ahead. "We have alot that use it...It's probably our mroe common magic in the guild."

"Not exactly, many of them seem great, but I just... I don't feel a connection towards them... " She said with a nervous tone as they stopped at another one of the venders to gather more food.

"Hmmmm try the ones you rarely see....The Doctor maybe...He's a lightning mage and has a unique version you might like." Said Ellena grabbing some fruit and handing to to Joo Dee.

Just then they heard the sound of loud humming come from near by. Ellena looked over and saw a man wearing a long black coat, a red tie and black boots with black and white hair and a patch of dark skin that appeared to be stitched to his face. "Ahhh Doctor....How are you?" Smiled Ellena as the man bowed to her.

"I am fine milady Hotaru....Just been restocking my medical herbs....I was running low of Hyberin and Lorkina Herbs." Said The Doctor before looking at the young girl behind her. "Is this the newest addition to the clan?"

"Yes this is Joo Dee....Markus' apprentice she's looking for someone to teach her lightning magic i suggested you." Said Ellena smiling.

Joo Dee smiled shyly as she bowed, "I am Joo Dee, it is a pleasure to meet you".

The Doctor bent down to look at her in the eyes. "Hmmm i could teach her both my lightning magics......If she's The Storm Warden's apprentice she must be a 2nd gen Slayer....." He said with a slightly crazed look in his eyes. "So little one do you wish to learn my Gold Lightning?"

Joo Dee steped back a bit as she felt Ellena's hand stop her as she looked up and saw Ellena giving her a confident look.