Hitting a particularly large pothole, Ira was awoken into a frenzy. Sweat laced her body akin to a mantle of filth. "W-what is going on?!"
An obnoxiously loud chuckle came from Cammie, "We're heading to Fort Bravo, of course! I do have to say, the way you killed both a Strayed Monster and a Demon at the same time was incredible—even if it wasn't as grand as you having supposedly killed an Aberrant Demon only a few days after awakening; good job anyways, Ira."
Ira felt slightly bubbly at the praise, specifically at the fact that Cammie had used her given name. 'Does this mean she is starting to respect me? I hope so…'
Bariealla's dreamy voice began to speak to Ira as well. "I have never seen a Dormant Beast kill a creature three classes ahead of it—maybe you were not lying about killing an Aberrant Demon…"
In the next moment, however, she said something else. "That was only a joke. Creatures and humans alike are on an entirely different level at the Demon rank and beyond. For some reason, the gap between classes grows massively as one progresses through them. Even more so than the gap in power between ranks, one could say."
Ira felt as if she was going to melt from the praise—even if some of it was a joke; her mind now in a state of warmth and comfort.
The young girl leaned back in her seat, her heart brimming with content. Andrisson spoke up—not to give words of praise, but to question Ira. "When we had retrieved the Awakening Crystal from the Strayed Demon, it held no fragments—yet it was perfectly intact. Do you know anything about this, Ira?"
Her mind wandered to one of her attributes: Divine Shard.
The attribute granted her the ability to consume the fragments inside of an Awakening Crystal without the need to physically crush them.
After finding her answer, she shyly began to speak:
"I-it's one of my attributes.. it allows me t-to absorb fragments without the need to c-crush the Awakening Crystal…" Every time she stuttered, Ira felt as if she wanted to rip her vocal cords out, 'That way I will not have to deal with stuttering constantly despite my brimming confidence!'
A heavy sigh left his lips, "That attribute of yours does not fit well inside of a team… But it is alright; it is not as if it's something we cannot get by without. You deserve the fragments anyway—you are the one who slew the beast, after all."
Kaine grumbled in frustration, "But that money could've gotten us some new equipment—speaking of equipment, Ira let the sword be shattered! That was our only backup, too!"
Andrisson shrugged his shoulders, "We can buy a new one at Fort Bravo—they are having a flash sale inside the plaza as of this moment... Unless we are forced to spend all of the money to satiateyour incredible appetite. Let us hope that it does not become your Curse of Profanity."
On the note of weapons, Ira desperately needed one for herself, 'All of my previous ones have the bad habit of shattering in the middle of a battle—at the worst moments too!'
Calling upon Resonance, she stared at her fragment count.
[Fragments: 6/2000.]
A slight smirk appeared on her lips, her eyes shimmering in the light of the sun. 'My first fragments… I wish Astheneia had been there to see it—though, I bet she would have continued to pester me into joining the Hellguard…'
Bariealla began to speak, her face as pale as a ghost. "Ugh… I think I am going to be sick."
Squealing loudly, Cammie yelled at Kaine to open the window, "Not again! I am not smelling like puke for an entire day because of your car sickness, Bari!"
Kaine shivered in disgust, as if the very idea of nausea was below someone like him; swiftly, he opened the window—polluted air filling the car.
It was better than the smell of someone's half-digested breakfast...
Pushing her head out of the window. A wet, heaving retch quickly followed suit, making Cammie gag.
"Disgusting… You need to work on your motion sickness—seriously. You do this nearly every time we travel between the Forts!"
Wiping the saliva from her chin, Bariealla spoke up: "It is not my fault! We always eat right before big missions, and then we encounter swarms of Purge Beasts and I have to make quick and straining movements. I am hungry now, too! My entire breakfast quite literally just went out the window!"
Ira internally sighed, 'What a bunch of babies. Something tells me that they have never been homeless before, starving on the street, and having to act as if the hunger does not bother them. Not like experiencing it is a flex, though…' a pause between her thoughts appeared, 'Why am I trying to provide reason for my thoughts; it is not like anyone else can read them... I hope.'
A shiver went down her spine; maybe the Oracle was watching her from afar, reading her mind and dictating her every action through small yet thorough manipulation.
Bari began to speak, "Hey, Ira. I know you declined the offer to join us all on sightseeing, but maybe after this mission we could. You have had some time to get to know us—even if it is not by much, so maybe you would now. I am just asking to make sure that is the decision you want." Her violet eyes did not pierce Ira's body like an arrow, rather it felt as if warmth and security entered her being through her pores—before nesting gently inside her heart.
The idea itself sounded uncomfortable—but to Ira, it was not.
The feeling did, however, make the young girl slightly nervous, "O-okay…" Her stutter did not make her feel enraged—in fact, it did not make her feel anything that time around.
'I might as well make happy memories while I still can—I have no idea when I will die, so it is better to die happy than to die empty… I find it quite funny how hopelessness over time can result in acceptance, and even happiness; in my case, though, it has neither been a rather long time nor will I accept death from Fate.'
Shrugging her shoulders at apparently nothing, Ira began to stare outside through the window; her mind wandering to the mystery of R-0. 'I wonder… Does Bariealla know anything about it? She is in the Riallman family, after all. I will ask her after this mission is done, I guess.'
A tap landed on her shoulder, Bariealla's head tilted to the side as a smile painted her face. Ira felt herself getting increasingly more nervous as Bariealla continued to stare at her; she was not the best when the focus was on her. Bariealla began to speak, "For someone so shy, you're awfully violent in combat; I wonder why. No offense, by the way." Her tone was full of playful tease that made Ira both nervous and annoyed.
"Just.. h-how I always have been…" her voice cracked slightly now that both Cammie and Kaine were staring at her, too.
'Why are they staring at me!? It is making me nervous… Can they stop already?!' She fidgeted with her fingers, occasionally rubbing the scar on her left hip.
Leaning back against her seat, Bariealla spoke once more. "Guess."
Ira blinked in confusion at what Bari said, "Guess… Wha-" An obnoxious voice resounded from Cammie's mouth, "Chicken butt!"
The second-hand embarrassment slammed into Ira, nearly making her want to crawl up into a ball as her cheeks went as red as a lobster. 'So cringe…'
Bari shook her head no at Cammie's response, her eyes rolling into the back of her head as she let out an exasperated sigh. "No. I meant guess where we are."
Lifting her head up, Ira glanced out of the window—right before her eyes, the walls of Fort Bravo visible in the distance.