Chapter 2: Brewing Trouble

Chapter number 2. this is going much slower than I had hoped.

As the doors fly open two mages walk through. The one of the right is a tall man with long black hair that is tied back into a braid. He is very serious and has a few scars across his face. His eyes are dark brown and highly focused. He wears what looks to be the traditional samurai wear only baggier and with a think cloak that goes over his shoulders and a katana with a black sheath on at his hip. The one next to him is a smaller girl with long red hair that she lets hang naturally down in front of her face. She has brilliant green eyes and a big smile that seems to permanently affixiated to her face. She garnishes a long blue robe that opens in the front to reveal baggy pants and a silk shirt. In her hands is a large staff with a ruby blood red crystal the same color at as her hair, at the end. They both appear to be in their early twenties. 

The silence that followed their arrival is short lived as dozens of individuals rush to greet them in what appears to be the noisest way possible. 

"Zeek! Laura! Your back!"

"How was the mission?" 

"Yeah! Another round on me! Woot!" 

Laura seems to love the attention as she practicly swims through the crowd to the stairs where Zeek was waiting. Looking at Zeek and then back at where they were and then the crowd.

"Wait...how ...did you..oh nevermind!" Laura exclaimed exasperated. She nearly skips up the stairs and plops down on the sofa in the corner. "I......am .....so....TIRED!" She slams her head into a pillow and pretends to fall asleep. 

"If your so tired then how do you have that much energy?" Zeek asked as he made his way up the stairs behind her, in a far less energetic manor. He walks with a refinement and an air of dignity. Zeek takes his seat next to the master and crosses his legs with his sword leaning against the table. 

"Did the mission go well?" Rictor asked inquiringly.

"Of course." Zeek replied. His tone suggest he was slightly insulted that he would have to ask. "That mission could have been easily taken care of by either one of us alone, doing it together was just overkill." He sits back seemingly irritated. 

"Aww. Your just agrivated that you had to split the reward. You still got 4 million out of it." He narrows his eyes at her but she just sticks out her tongue and rolls over and pretends to sleep. 

"you little..." Zeek starts, but is cut off by Rictor. 

"Let it go. Let it go." Rictor moves to pat Zeek on the back as he speaks. 

"Fine..." Zeek shrugs off the display of comfort but gives up on the argument despite the muffled giggling from the couch. Zeek continues with his story. "Well the rumors are true. The vampires are scared. Not only are they scared but they are mobilizing. The council has never had to deal with a threat like this. Most of the time vampires can't really settle to much without killing each other, and to many can't live in the same place without killing off the human population near by. Thus they always form in small pacts, however they have been seen in groups of a hundred or more, and they are gathering to a single place. Its unfortuante but it seems our sucipcious were correct. Alexander...your son is the one doing this. He is amazingly strong for a vampire, even greater than you. But whats worse is that he is crueler and vastly more evil than any vampire lord we've ever had to deal with. If things continue as they are...the death tolls on both sides will be astronomical."  Zeek sits still, clenching his teeth. His rage is evident, his fear, not as easily detected, but no less severe. 

Rictor sighs. "That bad huh? Well it looks like we will have to do something. The magical world depends on it." Rictor's voice rings with authority as everyone listens. He isn't speaking loud, yet somehow his words seem to carry a weight and force behind them that cannot be described. He was the master of the most powerful guild in all of Fiore and hailed as the strongest of the 10 great holy mages. He fills his title well. 

Alexander moves uncomfortably. Everyone there noticed, even though it was the slightest of motions. They had been watching him out of the corner of their eyes, knowing that the news would be most devastating to him. 

"Listen...Alexander, I know you have been fighting for years to make vampires and humans work together and you have done great, excellent in fact. You have even created the new concoction that can replace blood for the most part. I know he is your son but, maybe there is still hope to capture him alive-" Rictor is cut off by Alexander suddenly. 

"No. I know better than anyone he must be stopped, no matter what. He has crossed the lines that I can forgive him. It doesn't matter that we share the same blood. Not anymore. He isn't my son he's a demon. And I will be the on to go stop him!" Alexander quickly stands up after finishing his short speech only to see everyone else standing up at the same time. 

Alexander looks confused but everyone else only as an expression of determination on their faces. 

"We aren't going to let you go against him alone. We'll join you." Laura said gently. 

"Yes. we are not the type to let a comrade go down without a fight." Zeek chimed in. Both of them nod as Areina joins them after noticing the commotion. She seems to have been eaves dropping on them the entire time but only felt her need to come in just seconds ago. She walks up to Alexander and wraps her tiny arms around him. 

"You can't bear this alone." Ariena spoke in almost a whisper. Alexander looks down at the tiny girl and reaches up to pat her on the head. Quickly he jerks his gaze to the door. 

"I can't believe I wasn't able to sense them till just now. I must be getting old." Alexander spoke, now much calmer than before. 

At the door a man walks through with black hair and and bags under his eyes. With him a freezing cold gust of air follows.He has a black jacket on and his expression is as cold as midnight of the coldest winder. No one runs to greet him like the others but do give him proper respect. Alexander is the first to speak yet again. 

"Jack always did know how to make a proper entrance." Zeek seems somewhat Irked at Jacks arrival.

"If it isn't Jack Frost coming out of his winder wonderland. Loose your shadow again? " Zeek said mockingly. 

All he got in response from Jack was a glare with calm intensity. "Don't make the ignorant mistake of assuming that since you are now an S class mage that you can consider yourself my equal." Jack's words seem to touch a nerve in Zeek. 

"Really? It doesn't? Why don't you get off your high horse. Just because you are a dragon slayer that doesn't mean your automatically superior!" Anger laces his words as he speaks. 

"I never have thought that. You are the only one that seems to think that way. The reason I think myself superior to you is because I am. If dragon slayer magic was the superior magic then I would be the strongest and not second strongest." His last comment seemed almost entirely poised to lash out at Zeek whose hand raced to his sword only to find that Rictor had taken the sword away about five second prior. 

"Stop it." For the first time Rictor seemed angry. He wasn't yelling but somehow his voice seemed to be heard over everyone else's. "People fight all the time here but S class mages aren't allowed to fight with their magics. Its to dangerous, and you will destroy the guild. Frost, don't antagonize and Zeek, the fact you are reacting in such a way proves he is right. Now we are comrades here. The real enemy is out there and it will take all of us to defeat him." Everyone seems to have calmed down and Jack even makes a small gesture that liberally might be interpreted as an 'i'm sorry'

After cooling down Rictor recounted the story to Jack who took the news without a commotion. He sits quietly and bites his nail. Closing his eyes he holds a Buddha like expression. After a moment or two he opens his eyes and begins to speak.

"I suppose we have no choice but to bring him down. but he is very strong, even stronger than me, or you Rictor. I don't think anyone other than the S class should be allowed on this mission and no one should go alone."

"I was thinking the same" Rictor replied. "And I will be joining you. In fact we will have to use everyone, everyone except Boreas." Rictor leans back into his chair with his arms crossed. He clearly wans't liking the situation. 

"Why not Boreas?" Ariena said butting in. "He's plenty powerful enough. He's only 14 and already S class. He might end up being stronger than us all in a few years. He gets stronger every day." 

"Thats exactly why he must stay." Alexander chimes in.  "Everyone on this mission will be going with the thought in mind that they might not make it back. He has potential, we all have potential but he is to young to die. He is powerful yes but inexperienced. Its quite obvious that if he continues down the path he is on he will take over to be the next guild master. Not me, not even Jack. He has all the qualifications and in a way he is the next generation of Fairy Tail. I'm sure Rictor doesn't want to endanger his life, for thats endangering the future of fairy tail." 

Rictor nods as does everyone else. A few minutes of awkward silence follows and Rictor decides to send them all home. He knows further planning would have to be done in the presence of all of them.