After saying goodbye to the group, Ren and the others continued their journey on foot. Jun grumbled as he dreaded the long hike.
Hours and hours of hiking later, the group decided to stop by the side of the road to rest. Everything seemed normal, but Jun noticed an anomaly. How was Elios keeping up with Ren?
"Psssst, Hey."
Jun tapped on Ren's shoulder repeatedly, trying to get his attention. Ren stopped feeding the fire and turned to face Jun, his face was a bit annoyed by Jun's actions.
"What?"
Jun silently pointed to Elios who was chatting with Olivia, before gesturing to himself. Jun's face was a bit pale from fatigue, his originally silky black hair was coarse and messy. This is how the rest of the group more or less looked, but Elios exuded a healthy glow.
"How come that guy's fine with the walking now, he was worse than me earlier today..."
Ren's face turned serious, he then grabbed Jun and lead him away from the camp for a moment. After moving a good distance away, Ren made sure to check for that horrifying pressure. Confident that he wasn't being watched, Ren turned back to face Jun.
"Jun, I want you to stay away from that guy. Tell Nina to as well."
Seeing the dead serious look on Ren's face, Jun nodded his head. He didn't understand Ren's reasoning, but everything always turned out fine if he listened to his big brother. Ren looked at the rare obedient moment from Jun in relieve, before he fished out the stealth ability stone.
"I also want you to eat this, it'll teach you an ability like the one I have."
Jun looked excited as he grabbed the stone. Before he consumed it, he confirmed with Ren that he could have it. Jun was worried if the stone would be wasted on him. Ren smiled and took a few steps back, he gestured for Jun to watch him.
In front of Jun's eyes, Ren turned and morphed his body into that of a fly, causing Jun to stare in shock.
"Holy crap Ren! Am I gonna learn that?"
Ren morphed back and shook his head, causing Jun's mood to die down a little. Seeing this, Ren walked back and patted Jun's head.
"Although it's not the same skill, it's something similar. You get camouflage."
Jun's eyes dimmed at the description, he didn't think camouflage was on the same level as Ren's shapeshifting ability. Feeling a bit disappointed, Jun used the ability stone. *Gulp* A few seconds passed as nothing happened, Jun felt more and more disappointed as time went on.
"This is candy, did you give me the wrong thing?"
Jun looked at the expectant Ren, feeling sure that Ren made a mistake somewhere. As he opened his mouth to ask another question, he blacked out. *Fwump* Jun dropped to the grass with a thud as Ren smiled knowingly, he then picked Jun up and went back to the camp.
"Ren!"
Olivia saw Ren and waved at him, causing Elios to shoot him a cold glare. Ren ignored Elios and waved back, setting Jun down into his sleeping bag. Ren sat back down as the sun set, feeding the fire while thinking deeply. The forest they decided to camp at was quiet tonight, setting a tranquil mood within the group.
"AHHH!!! AHHHHH!!"
Everyone except Jun got up, the screams shattered the moment of tranquility within the group. Ren focused his hearing to locate the source, pinpointing it directly north of his position. After locating the source, Ren started to make way towards the sound.
"Move."
*Fwoosh* Elios flew past Ren and towards the sound, moving at a speed comparable to a car, leaving Ren in the dust. Ren shook off his surprise and made his way there as well, catching up to Elios. When Ren caught up, he arrived at a horrifying scene.
Elios stood there alone, surrounded by the mangled corpses of mutant beasts. The blood dyed his blond hair, making the smile on his face seem infinitely more sinister. Elios turned to face a young girl, he smiled as he reached out a blood covered hand.
"You're safe now, I saved you."
The girl looked at Elios in horror as he continued to sinisterly smile at her, she trembled as she slowly reached her hand out. *Squelch* As Elios held her hand, the blood and guts on his hand made a disgusting sound, causing the girl to look more terrified.
"So you finally came Ren, I thought maybe you didn't want to be the hero anymore."
Elios turned to face Ren as he held the girl's hand, his face twisted into a morbid smile as he looked at Ren. Elios let go of the girl, dropping her onto the blood as he spread his arms out, laughing hysterically.
"HAHAHAHA! Now that I'm the hero, you aren't so special anymore!"
Ren looked at this scene solemnly, he and King both agree that Elios has lost it. As Elios closed his eyes to bask in the moonlight, Ren quietly walked towards the terrified girl and offered her a towel. Making sure the girl wasn't injured, Ren helped the girl stand back up, before leading her away from Elios.
"STOP! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?!?!?"
Elios's voice echoed with power, making the girl collapse to her knees, crumpling under an unknown pressure. Ren gritted his teeth and turned to face Elios, who had a murderous look on his face.
"I saved her, so why are YOU trying to take her away?!? I get to decide what to do, not YOU!"
Ren didn't know where to start, how come he, who was alone for 5 years have better social skills than this guy? As Ren began to feel the familiar pressure, a voice called out to them both.
"REEEENN! ELIOOOS!"
As Olivia's voice reached Elios, a switch seemed to flip inside him. Ren could feel the pressure lift off him, letting him breathe easily again. Ren turned and found Olivia, who finally caught up.
"Ren! is that the one who was calling for help?"
Before Ren could answer, Elios interrupted the conversation.
"Yes she is Livia, I saved her from a group of mutant beasts."
Olivia looked confused at that statement, looking at Ren for confirmation. Ren nodded slightly at Olivia's questioning look, shocking Olivia. She looked at Elios's blood covered body and felt a shiver through her spine.
"When did you become capable of that Elios?"
Elios smiled at Olivia's question, then pointed at Ren. He explained that he obtained something similar to Ren, making him stronger. Olivia wanted to ask more, but the poor girl on the ground looked like she went through hell. Olivia helped the girl stand back up, then supported her as they walked back to the camp.