As they walk, Reku finds himself consulting the map of the country. Using his Naginata he observes all the notes he and Ayla drew up the night before. "Why did she have to pick Galahad as the backup meeting place? She could haven't gone with Bors or Percival? She knows the last thing I want to do i-WHOA." Putting down the map for a second, Reku looks down to see he'd nearly stepped on the body of a snake. It was a crimson red color, with a black diamond pattern running down its back. Moving his foot away, the snake slithered as fast as it could away from them, leaving Reku to sigh in relief. "Thank goodness I stopped. Good thing snakes are more afraid of people than the other way around."
"I'm glad to see that you are alright," said Aurora, equally spooked at the sight of the snake. "Maybe you should put the map down before you actually do step onto a snake."
Rio's eyes are wide as she watches the snake dart away. "Yeah, we should watch our step from now on."
"Probably. That was a Redskinned Diamondback, not a fun experience being bitten by one of those." Reku replied, rolling the map up and putting it away for now. He kept his naginata out as a light to help keep an eye out for anymore snakes. "One bite from those is enough to cause severe swelling in the neck and chest, making the victim suffocate if not treated fast. I've seen it happen, its not a pretty sight."
"Do we have anything to treat it with?" wondered Aurora aloud. Then one of the ice cats yowled, making Aurora jump and whirl around to see the ice creature dragging the limp body of a black snake.
"Yeah...Probably should have." Reku said, mentally kicking himself for forgetting something so obvious. "Don't worry about that one. That's a Nocturnal Adder, and their fangs don't even have venom in them. So, on a different note, we got a ways to go before we get there. How about we get to know each other a little better? Seeing how I only know you two as either being a cryomancer, or an eavesdropper."
"Eh, guilty as charged." Rio says with a slight shrug. "I should tell you about the power I have." She stoops down for a moment to pick up a small stone, before continuing forward. "To help explain this, how familiar are you with friction and air resistance?" Her hand closes around the stone, and her eyebrows furrow.
"I'm acquainted with the concept, why exactly?" Reku asked, not sure he liked where Rio was going with this.
"I'm able to raise and lower both of those properties in any object or living thing I touch. It's very useful." After being silent for a few more seconds, with her hand cupped under the stone, she raises it towards Reku and Aurora. It has gained a noticeable shimmer. "Try to pick this up." The stone, despite its rough appearance, now feels incredibly smooth and slippery. In fact, it's so slippery that it's impossible to grasp it normally, with any attempts just resulting in one's fingers slipping right off of the stone.
Reku goes for it, fumbling with the stone a few times, including attempting to get his palm underneath it so it couldn't slip out. Alas, Reku's basic understanding of friction couldn't not help him, leaving him unable to truly grasp the stone. "GOD DAMMIT." He stated, as it dropped once more, the light in his naginata glowing more intense from his frustration.
After a few more attempts, Reku's anger looked ready to burst, only to break into laughter instead. Dropping both the stone and his naginata, he takes the opportunity laugh to his own failed attempts before recomposing. "Pheeew, that was a dozy. That's one irritating power. I can see the potential in it." Reku said to Rio, picking his his naginata again, this time ignoring the stone.
Rio watches Reku as his behavior grows increasingly irrational, unsure whether to laugh or be concerned. As he breaks out into laughter, she awkwardly chuckles, and gives a glance at Aurora that practically says, "This guy is nuts.". Then, she says "We'd better bring it with us. The stone won't be frictionless forever, but I don't want to be leaving any clues for anyone who may be following us." She kneels down and places her hand on the stone, raises the friction just enough for her to be able to grab the stone, then slips it into her pouch. After reslinging her sleeping bag over her shoulder, she continues walking onward.
"I don't imagine anyone would be crazy enough to try and follow someone into Jin's Forest, but better safe than sorry." Reku replied, stopping for a second to brush some dirt off of his naginata while he walked. The bladeless weapon seemed rather ornate, almost too much so for a simple treasure hunter to be carrying out in the open. Where the blade would connect to the pole a golden dragon head rests, its mouth open as though its tongue were the blade. "I believe I said this to Aurora but not to you Rio. I carry the ability of energy manipulation. It's a somewhat rare ability. By concentrating I can manifest my own will as sheer energy, either in short bursts or as part of a weapon. Unfortunately, that also completely destroys the blade of the weapon, hence why I keep this bladeless." Reku stated casually.
"Sounds simple, but effective." Rio says. "It certainly makes your weapons smaller and easier to conceal." She turns to Aurora. "Well, Reku and I have shared our powers. Do you want to talk about yours?"
"Oh, I just have the ability to make things out of ice, as you can tell," started Aurora as she looked over to her ice cats. "My latest feat with it is being able to make animals that can do their own thing without me having to micromanage them, but I've also been able to make swords, arrows, and other useful tools."
"Nice. I used to know a Cryomancer. Wonder what he is up to..." As Reku pondered that thought a loud shriek was heard in the distance. When the shriek quieted down, the party could hear the sounds of thousands of leaves rustling nearby, as though something was rapidly approaching them. "That doesn't sound good." Reku said, raising his naginata in the direction of the noise and focusing his energy into it a bit more to give them more light. "We've got company. Prepare for a fight."
With a flick of her arms, Rio's cloak waves off her body and falls behind her back as she goes into a fighting stance. Her bronze hand is pointed towards where the shriek came from, while her right hand defensively holds a dagger close to her body. "What was that?" Her eyes narrow, and her lips tighten into a deep frown.
Aurora grabbed her bow and formed an ice arrow as she got it bent. She willed the cats to turn into birds and had them fly toward the noise. She then closed her eyes and reached out to her creations with her mind to see what they are seeing. But in Aurora's attempt to do so, she felt her body growing cold and she nearly dropped her bow.