Waking up that morning, the Shadow Wielder, Xavier, felt fully rested after the night before. He knew finding the Ranger wouldn't be easy, it never was. Since a Ranger's abilities involve tracking, wilderness survival, and nature, it can make finding one very difficult. However, Xavier had his ways of tracking people down. After walking into the forest for a bit, he stopped and knelt to the ground, even though there wasn't any kind of physical sign that anyone had been through there. Still kneeling, he closed his eyes and when he opened them again, everything he saw had a shadowed look to it. As he looked around he could see the paths that various animals had taken over the past couple days. He kept looking until he saw what he was after, where the Ranger had walked last.
As he started following the Ranger's path, he adjusted his eyes to focus solely on the Ranger's path. After following the path he saw for awhile, he came to a clearing. Even though he saw the path entering it, he hesitated. He knew that one thing the Ranger was highly skilled at was making and setting traps. Despite how closely he looked, he couldn't see anything that said there was a trap in the clearing, not that he was expecting to.
After taking a moment to gather himself, Xavier started out into the clearing. As he walked through the clearing, he kept his wits about him just in case there was a trap laid out for pursuers. He knew the Ranger would always cover his tracks by either eliminating his trail or laying traps as he went. As he reached the halfway point, two arrows landed right by his foot. Seeing them, Xavier just smiled to himself.
"Didn't think I would see you," a voice said from the trees.
"Under normal circumstances, you probably wouldn't have to," Xavier replied.
As he watched, the Ranger stepped out of the trees, his bow in his hand and an arrow nocked. For a moment they just stood there looking at each other.
"So what are you doing here?" Anthony, the Ranger, asked him.
"I need your help," Xavier answered.
"Is it that strong this time?"
"It would seem so. I have a feeling that it might take all of us this time."
"Have you talked to any of the others yet?"
"Not yet. I was expecting to have a harder time finding you."
"So I'm guessing you decided to find me first since the others would be easier."
"Pretty much," Xavier said with a nod.
They were silent for a moment while Anthony thought about what he was just told.
"Come with me," he said after a few moments.
Picking up the arrows by his feet, Xavier followed Anthony into the woods. As they walked, Xavier asked Anthony different questions about his life as he grew up. It wasn't long until they reached a small copse of trees that the Ranger used as a home. When they arrived, Anthony led the way inside.
"What do you know of the others?" Xavier asked once they were settled.
"Not that much really. I know who's who and could easily identify them if I had to, but otherwise not much."
"Do you know where to find the others?"
"Just the Elementalist and the Seer, the other will probably be harder to find."
"Well we have time until he completely breaks free. I just have to try and find them as soon as possible."
"How much time do we have?"
"If we're lucky, we have about a week, maybe two at the longest."
"We don't have much time then," Anthony said as he shook his head.
"No we don't, but it should be enough," Xavier replied with a sigh.
"Well you can find the Seer in San Francisco. The Elementalist might be a bit harder to find, he likes to move around a lot."
"They always do. Do you know where he was last?"
"Last I really knew, he was somewhere in Oregon."
"So they were both on the West coast?"
"That's right."
"Good, that should make this a bit easier then. Hopefully the Elementalist hasn't moved yet."
"Oh one last thing," Xavier said as he started to leave. "This is where we are going to need to meet before we face him."
Xavier pulled a small note out of his pocket and gave it to Anthony.
"Alright, I'll be there," he said after looking it over a moment. "How soon should I be there?"
"You should be there about a day or two before he appears. That meeting is just to figure out our attack plan."
"Anything I need to bring?"
"No, you just need to be there. Your abilities are what are going to be necessary."
"Ok, I'll see you there in about a week then."
"I'll see you then," Xavier said as he left the grove.
As he exited the grove, Xavier sprouted black wings and took off, headed for California. Anthony started gathering what he would need for his travels and headed off towards the meeting area.
Xavier reached San Francisco as night fell. Despite it being night, he once again shifted his eyes to see the shadows. It wasn't long until he came across the shadow trail he needed to follow. As he followed it, he noticed that it seemed to try and double back on itself and take a series of turns. Almost as if they were trying to lose someone following them. When he remembered who he was tracking, he laughed to himself.
It wasn't long until he came to a small house. Even though the trail led to the house, he noticed that it seemed to start to fade before it reached the house. He started towards the house slowly. Even though the Seer wasn't a fighter like the others, she still wasn't to be taken lightly.
"That's far enough, Xavier," a voice said from behind him.
Xavier just hung his head and laughed.
"How long have you known I was coming?" he asked without turning around.
"Long enough and I know why you're here," Lovelyaries, the Seer, said.
"I know you don't fight like the rest of us, but I could still use your help."
"Didn't I just say I know why you're here?" she asked as she headed towards her house.
"How long have you lived here?" Xavier asked as he followed her.
"A few years, I move around quite a bit."
"How often do you move?"
"Depends on what visions I get and if I feel like it."
As they entered her house, Xavier glanced around. He saw some boxes here and there, as if she might be moving soon. He saw her usual talismans and statues about meant as protective wards, which he knew was part of the reason her trail ended before it reached the house.
"I was thinking of making coffee, you want some?" Lovelyaries said from the kitchen.
"Sure, that would be great," Xavier answered as he continued to look around, making his way to the kitchen.
When he entered the kitchen, he saw her watching him intensely. For a few moments, they stood there just staring at each other. He soon recognized that she was in the middle of a vision. Her eyes had a slight glow to them and she stared unblinkingly. After a moment, he moved to take a seat at the table until she came out of her trance. As she snap out of it, she blinked her eyes a few times.
"What did you see?" Xavier asked after a moment.
"The battle the 5 of you will fight to subdue it," Lovelyaries answered.
"Anything I should be worried about?"
"Only that one of you will be near death when it's over."
"Is one of us going to die?"
"No, but it'll be a close-call."
"That's a relief. Anything else I should know?"
"I'm sure you have some idea of this already, but it won't be easy to defeat, even with all of you together."
"I figured as much."
"I thought so. But there is one thing you need to know. It's learned to mimic abilities. It's already copied yours. When the others face it with you it'll learn theirs too. That's when the fight will get really problematic."
"And also why it'll nearly kill one of us," Xavier commented. "Do you know which one of it will be?"
"Does it matter?"
"I've learned not to try and fight your visions. It may not happen how you see initially, but it happens one way or another."
"A wise choice," Lovelyaries said with a smirk. "Yes I do know who it will be, and no I'm not telling."
"Tease," Xavier said, getting a mischievous smile from her. "Do you know where the Elementalist is? Anthony said he was in somewhere in Oregon last he knew."
"He headed north into Washington. He should be there for a couple weeks so you have time to find him."
"That's good. He seems to move around more than you do."
"He does, but it can make him difficult to find."
Lovelyaries handed him a cup of coffee and sat down across from him. For a while they just sat in silence.
"The Sorceress and the Telepath, I'm still going to need to know where they are," Xavier said after a while.
"The Telepath is on the East coast, in North Carolina if I remember right. The Sorceress is going to need your help soon."
"Why's that?"
"You'll find out soon enough."
"You love not giving me a straight answer don't you?"
"Like you don't?"
"Since when have I been able to avoid giving you an answer you didn't already know?"
"When did I say I meant you answering my questions?"
"Touché, but you still didn't answer my question."
"True and there hasn't been, not yet anyway."
"I'd ask but it'd be better if I found out on my own. It would be that much funnier that way."
"I'm sure it would," Lovelyaries replied smiling.
They talked about other topics for a while as they drank their coffee.
"I need to get going if I'm going to get everyone in time," Xavier said when he finished. "Where did you last see the Sorceress?"
"In the South, Mississippi specifically," she replied. "I'm not sure how, but something is able to block or distort my visions when it comes to her. That's why I know she needs your help."
"I have a feeling as to why."
"I'm sure you won't have any trouble helping her."
Xavier glanced at her and saw she had a sly smile on her face. He smiled and shook his head, knowing she knew exactly how it would end and was giving him a hint.
"Well I guess I'll be heading out then," Xavier said. "I have a lot of ground to cover and not as much time as I would like."
"Well I'll see you later," Lovelyaries said as he headed towards the door and she went with him.
"Hopefully not too soon," he replied with a smile.
Taking a deep breath when he was outside, Xavier took a moment to take it the conversation. Dropping into a crouch, he sprouted black wings and took off heading north to look for the Elementalist.
The smile on Lovelyaries face faded as she remembered her vision. Even if he asked, she didn't know if could have told him. She stood there leaning against the door as another vision started to play in her mind's eye.