"Its getting warmer, Rion, so why don't we practice something new?" Specter said. It was their second session together that week.
"What does weather have to do with anything?" Rion said wiping away his dreamed up sweat.
"Remember what I said earlier? When casting water magic, any moisture helps. Even licking your lips."
Rion nodded. "Yeah."
"Well, the weather comes into play too. Water, wind, ice, fire. The more suited they are to the environment, the easier they are to cast. So while we're in this region which is generally warmer, you should focus on fire. You'll see better results."
"I see," Rion replied. "But wouldn't that be useless when fighting a fire Wyvern?"
Specter shook its hood, small wisps of smoke coming off it. "Not necessarily. That is, if you combine it with another spell. For example, hit the Wyvern with water first, then follow up with fire."
Rion eyes winded then he grinned. "In that case, let's get this fire training started."
"I like the enthusiasm," Specter said proudly. "First, we'll focus on the most basic offensive fire spell and move up from there."
----
Rion and Ezra sat by the morning campfire eating bread slathered with butter and strips of jerky.
"We're only a day out from the Anoria Mountain range," Ezra said between bites. It had already been three days since he'd took down the wild Mozard.
Rion nodded and took a sip of water. As he gulped it down, he asked, "Hey, where's Maria?"
Ezra shrugged. "Bathroom, maybe."
Rion furrowed his brow. "It's not like her to miss breakfast." He swallowed the rest of his bread and stood. "I'll go look for her—"
"No need."
A familiar voice cut him off. Maria stepped into view. She looked jittery, like she was hiding something.
"What are you hiding?" Rion asked, getting straight to the point.
"Well, I—"
From the darkness behind her, a huge figure moved in the shadows.
Rion's eyes widened as he raised his arm toward the creature, ready to fire off a spell. Ezra dropped his bread and reached for his hammer, gripping the handle tight. Just as they prepared to attack, they got a clear look of the horrifying creature— it was a mozard.
Only this one wasn't crazed. If anything, it looked… happy.
"W-what's going on?" Rion asked, completely confused.
Maria let out a triumphant laugh. "Haha! I trained it using Marie. Bet you didn't know there's a song for controlling animals." She gave the Mozard a pat on its cheek.
"W-why though?" Ezra asked.
"So we can ride it to the Anoria Mountains, of course. Cut our travel time in half! I can't believe I didn't think of this sooner."
Ezras brows rose. "Uh, Maria… you do realize Mozards are painfully slow, right? You'd get to the mountains faster by crawling."
Her smile faltered. "But the one that attacked you—"
"Was driven mad by a petal-leaf flower," Ezra interrupted gently. "And even then, they're only quick in short bursts. Once a day, at best."
"R-really?"
"Really."
"Oh… shoot." Her shoulders slumped.
The Mozard let out a groan as if it was disappointed as well.
----
After Maria set the Mozard free, Lost Keep got back on the road. By the end of a long day's travel, the sun began to set, casting the sky in a warm colors of orange and purple. This time, instead of continuing straight however, they turned right towards the range.
The Anoria Mountains rose ahead of them, a brutal cluster of stone thrust high into the sky, its peak crowned with snow. Rion felt a mix of unease and excitement looking at the mountains.
They set up camp at the foot of the range and ate a hearty stew for dinner, conversation was sparse in the shadow of Anoria. After that they went to bed preparing themselves for whatever the next three days would bring.
(And thus, Lost Keep's adventure continues…)