Bao took a fighting stance, locking eyes with Yui, whose azure eyes glowed menacingly, her forehead markings emitting a faint, eerie light.
"Are you seriously going to tame that beast by fighting it?" Armin whispered into Bao's ear. Tamers had various ways to subdue beasts—coercion, manipulation, or mutual agreement. But challenging an elemental beast outright was unprecedented and, frankly, foolish.
Yui, unimpressed, refrained from assuming her full dragon form. Instead, she infused her energy into the air, summoning a swirling tornado around her. Her power dwarfed Bao's, but he attempted the same 'showing off to scare', his Qi barely a flicker in comparison.
As Yui took a step forward, the ground erupted between them, creating a massive rift. She snarled, her flared nostrils betraying her irritation as she realized what was happening. She turned sharply toward Daiki, who leaned casually against a rocky wall, his eyes glowing with concentrated energy.
"You old hag," Yui growled through gritted teeth before launching herself toward Daiki, shifting mid-air into her dragon form. Forgetting Bao entirely, she focused her fury on the tortoise, as she already had so much to let out on his behalf.
Daiki reacted instinctively, his hand sweeping upward in a motion akin to an uppercut, commanding the earth to bulge into a massive column. It struck Yui's torso, forcing her back mid-flight. As she regained her balance, Daiki transformed, his body morphing into a sleek black shell, his limbs sturdy and powerful. His sunset-yellow eyes gleamed as he twisted his now elongated neck—the embodiment of the Black Tortoise.
Yui flapped her immense wings, steadying herself, then drew in a powerful breath and released it as a piercing gust, disintegrating Daiki's rocky barrier in seconds.
Bao watched the fight unfold, his mouth hanging open in awe. Beside him, Armin and Shasha wore similarly stunned expressions, while Jin, the centaur, crouched behind a shrub far too small to conceal him.
Meanwhile, Shiro launched himself into the air with a single effortless motion, crossing the rift in a heartbeat. He landed gracefully in front of Armin. "Hope you don't mind my friends' little spat," he said, waving dismissively at the chaos behind him. Then, he turned to Bao, who was still transfixed by the fight.
"So, you're the elemental beast tamer, huh?" Shiro asked casually, draping an arm over Bao's shoulders and giving them a firm squeeze.
"Yeah?" Bao answered absentmindedly, still watching the battle.
"You're heading to the Qi village, I presume?"
"No, not really. We're going downhill toward the Central Province," Bao replied, his attention shifting momentarily to Yui, who had just unleashed another wind blast. Daiki flattened himself to the ground, absorbing the impact with his shell.
Realizing he wouldn't get much information from Bao, Shiro turned to Armin, who had been observing the conversation with growing suspicion. "The Central Province? Why?"
Armin felt his throat tighten as Shiro's piercing gaze lingered on him. The proximity of the Phoenix made him sweat. "Uh, yeah, just some friends on a journey," he stammered, glancing at Raiden for support. But Raiden was nowhere in sight.
Panic flashed across Armin's face as he scanned the area. Shiro raised an eyebrow. "What is it, little human?"
"My friend," Armin muttered, stepping toward the bushes where Jin was hiding. "He's missing."
Shiro's gaze shifted lazily to Shasha, who was huddled against a rock on the side of the road, shivering like a kitten caught in a snowstorm. "You mean that one?" he asked, pointing at her.
Armin followed Shiro's gesture, his expression hardening but his thoughts conflicted upon seeing the girl he once loved shiver in fear the times they had spent in bliss, their first kiss and whispered love confessions; all that felt like a fever dream now that he thought of it, "Nah, that's just the baggage," he muttered, quickly turning away to search for Raiden.
Meanwhile, Raiden was crouched near Bao's peacock, holding a bottle of rum and interrogating it. "This big?" he asked, pinching his fingers close together. The peacock tilted its head, squawking out another string of profanities. He giggled in response, "No? Bigger?" He now spaced his index and thumb fingers with half an inch gap showing upto the peacock, who poked his shaggy beard in response.
Armin sighed, walking toward him with Shiro close behind. "What are you doing here?"
Raiden looked up, grinning. "Oi, I was just asking this foul-mouthed bird if it really had a pea-sized c—" His words were cut short as debris from the beast fight flew over, smacking him in the head, Armin winced at the sight.
"What the—?" Raiden rubbed his scalp, his gaze drifting toward Yui and Daiki, who were still locked in combat.
"Earthquake! Find a table! Hide under it!" Raiden yelled his groggy eyes misinterpreting the gusts of wind and trembling ground, crawling on all fours until he ended up clutching Jin's leg. The centaur looked down at him, both confused and terrified.
"Is that one mental?" Shiro asked, clearly entertained as he followed Armin toward Raiden.
"Mental? No. Just drunk," Armin replied firmly, pulling Raiden out from under Jin.
Shiro chuckled, his amusement clear. "Poor thing. Anyway, that thick-necked guy is the elemental beast tamer, huh?"
"Do you think I'd answer that after knowing you're a Crimson Bird?" Armin countered, his tone sharp with suspicion.
Shiro's grin widened as he began circling Armin, clearly relishing the tension. "Ah, I see. The age-old history between tamers and beasts, a rivalry neither side can escape," he mused. Then, as if deciding he was wasting time, Shiro glanced back toward Bao, who now stood dangerously close to the pit, still mesmerized by the ongoing fight.
Raiden stumbled forward, gripping Armin's shoulders for stability. He gulped down the last sip of rum from the bottle in his hand, then casually tossed it aside and pulled another one from his bag.
"Don't tell me all you packed in that bag is rum," Armin said, narrowing his eyes at him. Meanwhile, Shiro slowly strode toward Bao, keeping his attention divided between the chaotic scene and his original objective.
"All I packed was rum in this bag," Raiden took a sip, patting the bag. The sound of bottles clanking against each other confirmed his words. He turned toward Bao and shouted, "Oi, Bao! You want some?"
Bao looked over, his expression a mix of confusion and distraction. Before he could respond, Raiden tossed the bottle his way. It sailed through the air but missed its mark, falling straight into the pit.
"My rum!" Raiden bellowed. Without a second thought, he launched forward, brushing against Shiro in his mad dash. The force knocked Shiro to the ground.
"What in the—" Shiro muttered as he gathered himself, watching in disbelief as Raiden dove headfirst into the pit after the bottle.
The sudden impact startled Bao, who lost his balance and tumbled after Raiden. Time seemed to freeze as everyone stared, wide-eyed, watching the two fall deeper and deeper into the pit.