The Serpent's Prey

The winds whispered and whipped all around as Odhran found himself sitting atop of a cliff, a mere mile away from his target. Plumed Serpent had "failed to launch," so to speak, the ball never getting rolling and with people such as Elara, Aki, Janet, and Waverly vanishing. Still, he at least had his loyal lieutenants, Yuri and Yuli, the two sisters that he had promoted to overseers within his kingdom of power, the unlimited wealth of strength that Plumed Serpent promised bubbling to the forefront with those two by his side, he hoped. So, he needed to make an impact. This was his passion, his world, his guild, and he would be damned to let it fall. Luckily, Odhran had information. Though many would laugh at him and call him a fool, he knew that they were all just jealous. He was an intelligent man, much more than the common masses.

He had found his prey. A small legal guild, one that had been rumored to be on the rise: Time's Wardens. They were no Luminous Rose or Sabertooth, but he already could tell that they had strength to them. Now, situated in the forests west of Crocus, Odhran found himself looking at the hall of Time's Wardens. He had to admit, it was a good looking building. Breaching the trees, the massive clock tower stood. The hands on it kept ticking, and in his investigations he noticed that every fifteen minutes, there would be a pulse of magic. Their hall itself was a magical place, the gilded clock tower spire surrounded by clouds of magical make as the grey bricks seemed to almost spiral down to their likely more "common" headquarters. Even despite the distinction in the gaudiness, the grey bricks of the attached clock tower gilded with golden mortar, there was a certain fanciness to the small hovel that they called a home. The building was circular in its overall design, the grey bricks continuing to adorn even that part of the hall, with ornamentations of duller jewels and finery circling around to form yet another clock, though this was merely a symbol. He had never seen the inside of the building, but the entrance to their hall stood and held a small patio, trimmed limestone pillars holding up the small alcove at the hold to its entrance, a majestic silver trimmed set of darker brick stairs leading up to the gaudy abode.

"Damn, I need to take some notes. I'll have to ask some of the contractors to make Toltec a bit more regal like this."

He leaped off the cliff, wind rushing past his hair and around his waistcoat as he fell, landing on the ground on angelic wings. He was still a ways away, but he knew that he could use this time to strategize. Well, he could have, but he chose to instead use it continuing his recollections of his scouting missions against the Time's Wardens. A youthful guild, but a fast growing one. Their guild master was a magical prodigy, much like himself. Rumor had it that she had reached a high status at a young age, an S Ranked wizard already at the age of 19. Again, much like himself, but there was something different about her. She was a master of time magic, and she had founded the guild on the backs of a number of her friends, all of whom achieved notoriety as prodigy wizards. Only six months old was their guild, and already they had been knocking on the door of breaking some of the most powerful guild rankings. Nipping this problem in the bud would be no issue whatsoever. Not only would it be a great way to show his strength, but it would be a wonderful way to get rid of competition early.

It did not take him long to reach the beginning of the staircase to the Time's Wardens' guild hall. The steps seemed to go on forever, reaching to the marvelous, nearly antique structure ahead of him. The building had been built in the matter of a few short weeks.

Now, it would crumble in the span of a few short hours.

"Ho, there!" a proud voice called out. Odhran raised his eyebrows as he laid eyes on the man who called out. "I can already tell that you're a troublesome one! What brings you to Time's Wardens?"

The man had materialized out of thin air onto the steps. Likely a user of some sort of spatial distortion magic. He was a giant of a man, towering over the admittedly small Aegisbane by a few feet. The man's costume left little to the imagination in terms of the realness of his musculature, the entirety of his body built like a strongman. His face was well chiseled as well, only distracted by the massive spikes of golden hair he had jutting out around his forehead.

"Well, I'm here to destroy you."

The man laughed. "Well, you certainly aren't pulling any punches! Might I ask your name, fiend?"

"I'm glad you asked, I am Odhran Aegisbane, God of the Celestial Spirit Realm! Guild Master of Plumed Serpent! The Greatest-"

His monologue was halted when he had to quickly roll to dodge out of the way of an incoming punch. "Seems I've pulled my first punch! I am Kazernui, a name you will know well!"

Odhran shrugged as he taunted the newly christened to him Kazernui onwards. The massive man obliged, charging out towards Aegisbane, who flared his arm out, a large blade forming beneath his elbow. He felt it clang against what felt like solid stone, ricocheting backwards as he spun out of the way and Kazernui flew by once more. The massive man chuckled before rushing in again. The other arm of the Ark of Embodiment user formed into a small but mobile shield, parrying away the rapid attacks that Kazernui gave to him, the sword that his other hand formed doing likewise. To an outside viewer, this battle would look little more than a clash of blurs, the two ramping their speed up more and more, Odhran feeling the effects of spatial dilation effecting him.

"Such a measly trick won't work against me!"

Odhran planted his foot on the ground, sending a large shockwave of earth out beneath him, briefly breaking up Kazernui's relentless assault. In just a matter of moments, both of Odhran's hands shifted to their normal state and a bolt action rifle formed in his hands, the Guild Master firing at Kazernui like one would shoot clay pigeons. Even in spite of Odhran's firing, Kazernui managed to dodge, dancing through the air and teleporting as needed be. Odhran smiled. This was not going to be an easy opponent. He charged into the air, angelic wings forming on his back to meet the space wizard up there. His arm morphed into a morning star, clattering against the massive forearms of the strong man, who parried it away. While it initially had seemed like the man had fallen for Odhran's trap, going in for a punch, Kazernui quickly vanished from sight, Odhran kicking his leg out to the right and capturing the collarbone of the Time's Warden, sending him staggering back. Odhran dashed into the sky, raising his arms as an infinite supply of daggers rained down on the nearby area. He was an endless wellspring of magic power, after all. He could keep this up all day if he merely dipped back into the Celestial Spirit Realm for a moment. But it was not a plan that was working. Kazernui was nowhere to be found.

And just at the last moment, Odhran caught on. He quickly spun around, his hand firing out a bullet, piercing into the void of spatial magic Kazernui had formed. This truly was a tough competitor, Odhran thought, as Kazernui grabbed him by the throat, the strong hands crushing the breath out of Odhran.

"Have you any last words, foul fiend?"

Odhran smiled, not showing his failing breath. "Yeah. Boo."

Kazernui dropped his guard for a moment at the strange comment, giving enough time for Hallow's Phantom to materialize and slap him down to the ground, releasing the grip on Odhran as he did. Kazernui crashed through the rooftop of the guild hall, right through the three o clock part of the clock mural. Odhran snapped his fingers as a massive rain of lights poured through into the hall, exploding in a massive ball of fire, smoking billowing from the hole in which the Spatial Mage fell through. Odhran slowly descended, seeing what havoc he had wreaked. Bodies were strewn about the floor, that was to be expected. Kazernui was a bloody mess at the impact of the laser rain. However, what he didn't expect was for there to be a number of mages still standing, looking ready for a fight.

"Sheesh, I'll just never get a break, will I?"