[h3]Stacy Kaiser - [color=lightcyan]White Tiger[/color][/h3]

The white haired woman listened to Kyou's updates without changing her expression. It was unfortunate that she couldn't receive updates once she got close to the guild but any information was useful. [color=lightcyan]"Could've sworn I heard that name before..."[/color] Stacy mumbled to herself, in regards to Sage Ruzuzaki. She couldn't figure out why but the name was familiar. She dismissed it with a shrug before returning her attention to the men she was following.

[color=lightcyan][i]Gotcha. I'm clear on the objectives now. I'll bring the boy in too once I'm done with Avatar. I'll take the stealthy approach and infiltrate with a disguise. If everything goes well, I can probably capture the entire guild with a surprise attack. If I get discovered early I might actually have to fight them head on. Not like I'd fail in that case, but it wouldn't be as easy,[/i][/color] Stacy thought, communicating with Kyou across their telepathic link. [color=lightcyan][i]Hard part might be finding Sage afterwards. Unless he's particularly determined and just walks right into Avatar. That'd be convenient in the end.[/i][/color]

Stacy continued walking through the snowy forest, staying just far enough behind the cloaked men to avoid being seen in their peripheral vision. The snowfall seemed to quicken in pace, lowering the overall visibility. In the semi-blizzard weather, Stacy managed to sneak in close behind them. The three men seemed to be approaching a small shack in the woods, notably close to the edge where the city of Valdosta was barely visible outside the dead trees. [color=lightcyan][b]"Ice Make..."[/b][/color] The sound of her voice startled the men, who immediately turned to face her.

[color=lightcyan][b]"Eagle."[/b][/color] Stacy thrust her palm forward, launching dozens of birds of ice towards the men. The flurry of attacks sent them all the ground. Before they could get up to counterattack, Stacy put her hand on the ground. Ice rapidly expanded, swallowing the men entirely and freezing them in place. [color=lightcyan]"That wasn't so hard."[/color] After a moment, Stacy acquired their cloaks, leaving them in their underclothes in the ice. She herself wore the cloak, but she was accompanied by two ice clones. With the hoods low, it was difficult to see the three figures were actually women (and two made of ice at that). With the disguise in place, Stacy carefully entered the conspicuous shack.

[h3]Claudius - [color=goldenrod]Pharaoh[/color][/h3]

The one-eyed man looked up as Aiden and Oriel took to the sky. [color=goldenrod]"I figured you two'd put up a fight,"[/color] Claudius noted, motioning with his hand to face his palm towards the duo. Several spikes of sand shot from the top of the massive wave, though Aiden managed to maneuver around them. Oriel managed to scorch the sand enough to crystallize parts of it, preventing the two of them from being swallowed up by the Sand Ocean spell.

On the ground, Claudius began jumping out of the way of the falling debris. The glass was sharp after all, and it was no longer sand so he couldn't manipulate it to his advantage. Not directly, at any rate. [color=goldenrod]"You can't stay in the air forever,"[/color] he spoke aloud, his voice clearly relaying his confidence. Several wisps of sand reached up from the ground, assisting in blocking the falling ice while Claudius dodged the majority of it himself.

He was surprised to see Oriel approach him so fast. Claudius didn't have much time to do anything as her flaming kick approached his head. All he could do was put up his arms to block the attack. But the moment it connected with his forearms, Oriel would feel something was wrong. [color=goldenrod][b]"Sand Fake."[/b][/color] The man she hit turned into sand which immediately began to wrap around Oriel's outstretched leg. Several meters away, behind her, the real Claudius appeared from the sand. [color=goldenrod]"My Sand Ocean spell isn't an offensive move. It sets the playing field in my favor,"[/color] he noted. The sand that had wrapped around Oriel's leg began squeezing, clearly intending to maim her.

[color=goldenrod]"It was safer in the sky, where my access to sand is more limited. Once you come to my level..."[/color] The sand on the ground began moving up Oriel's other leg now, trying to completely engulf her in a cocoon of sand. [color=goldenrod]"You can't get away. As for those who take to the sky..."[/color] Claudius moved his right hand in Aiden's direction. [color=goldenrod][b]"Skyward Spear."[/b][/color] From the ocean of sand below, a massive spear shot into the sky in a direct path towards Aiden. While it was rather large, it moved surprisingly fast. After the first one shot into the sky like a beam, several more began to form across the ground and shoot out at Aiden as well. [color=goldenrod]"I won't let you two take my freedom away from me."[/color]

[h3]Hana Oshiro - [color=deeppink]The Last Samurai[/color][/h3]

The pink-haired woman shrugged. [color=deeppink]"You didn't upset him,"[/color] Hana told her. [color=deeppink]"He just feels that he didn't help you enough back at Augustine Town. At least that's my guess."[/color] A smile returned to her face now. Hana gave the nearby Yuuka a pat on her shoulder. [color=deeppink]"Speaking of, you all did wonderfully that day. You handled the situation with honor. Lamia Scale still has its reputation."[/color]

Her cheeky smile soon calmed down to a normal one that wasn't full of pride. [color=deeppink]"Harpy's Wing and Vyper Bolt both proved themselves though. I think the Grand Magic Games will be fun this year."[/color] Hana turned to Jeanne now, removing her hand from Yuuka's shoulder. [color=deeppink]"Do you have any more of those cupcakes? I'm feeling a craving for sweets now..."[/color]