Sidestep proved she could use the sword at her side, and the rest of her while she was at it. She darted in, around, and above enemies, slicing them to bits with all the grace that Burning showed in brute strength.

With her in the party, the universe knew, and the number of enemies that showed up again swelled, never less than three, but up to five or six creatures at a time as they battled across the plains towards the hilly target that came closer with their steps. "One thing." Sidestep landed next to Button, coming down with her blade through a jack-in-the-box enemy that faded away with the punishment. "Why do you wear a straw hat? It makes you look less skilled than you are."

Button peeked up at the rim of the hat he hadn't found a replacement for yet. "It was the best one?"

Burning came over with a snort. "That wasn't a choice? I thought you just liked it."

Button squinted at the two of them, but stopped that as their sheets began to open in his vision. "What do you mean?"

Sidestep reached for a ribbon in her mane and pulled it free. It became an armored helmet there at the end of her hoof. "Burning was not speaking falsely. You are strangely unknowing of some things."

Button began to applaud wildly. "Awesome! How do I do that?" He grabbed the straw hat off his head. "Become, um..." Something awesome... "A super amazing helmet of awesome!"

Burning pressed a hoof against Button, tipping him off at a precarious angle. "That's not how that works. You can make things look like other things, that you have or had. Something else you wore in the same place. Miss Sidestep has worn that ribbon before, and made her helmet take its appearance. "

He flexed a powerful arm. "Do you think I wear no armor? Ha! That would be foolish, but I hide it. Fashion choices are a part of adventuring."

Button inclined his head at the seemingly unarmored pony. He had been taking hits quite well. Button thought it was on account of just being awesome, but maybe some quality armor was also involved? Wait...

In the game, swapping out armor and much anything but weapons didn't change how a character looked. A limit of the game, but he was in the game, and the rules had come with it. "Of course..." It made sense! "Which means..." He put his hoof on his straw hat, but didn't hit the rim. There was no rim.

His twirling beanie was back! On his head! With the stats of the straw hat. "Awesome!" Sadly, it didn't, the hat, have the float status like the real beanie did, but hey, thems the rules... "Thanks!"

Sidestep did not hide that she was admiring, or confused, by the constantly twirling blades of his beanie. "Is this some artifact you found?"

"Um. Yes." That felt safe to go with. "The original would stop you from taking fall damage, and protect you from earthquakes and stuff!"

"How remarkable." Sidestep nodded with admiration. "And interesting in appearance. Never have I seen the like of it." She resumed her walk towards the hills. "Come. Let's see if we can make it before the day is done."

As it turned out, they could not. They got close, but it was time to rest, and they did. While they camped, Button decided to sate his curiosity, squinting at Burning Question to conjure the fire pony's sheet.

Burning Question Type: Hero
Element: Fire Class: Berserker

"Neat," he quietly whispered to himself as he reached out a hoof and swept, unsure if it'd work. It did! He got to the next page of stats, revealing all sorts of stats on how many monsters Burning had encountered and such. Ah ha. "Mystical Connections: Gurin's Volcano"

"What?"

Burning threw another log onto the fire to keep it going. "You have been staring quite intently at me. Do you need something, or do you wish to profess your undying love? You are too young to interest me."

Button colored swiftly at the idea. "No!" Besides, Sidestep was more his speed... "What's Gurin's Volcano?" Some ponies would have been more discrete about how they asked, but most ponies were not Button Mash.

Burning scowled at him. "Nothing that concerns you. That is not where we're headed."

"No..." Wait. An NPC had mentioned it, once in some random town. "Oh yeah."

"You know of it then?" He cocked a brow at Button. "What even brings it up?"

Button hadn't admitted to anypony he could see sheets other than the lady at the guild. "Um, so.... I--"

"Can scan." Sidestep sat next to him. "Which is how he knew I was a sword maiden before I told him."

Button jumped in place. "Hey! Where'd you come from?"

"I do not have to tell you everywhere I go." She remained seated at his side. "I noticed his perception right away."

Burning slapped his forehead. "How stupid of me. That is how you read my badge, without knowing what it was. And how you knew that monster, the purple one with the big eyes. You knew it was weak to fire. You scanned it, didn't you? Ha! I found a great scout indeed."

Well, there went that secret... "Yeah... You're not mad, are you?"

"Only that you didn't just tell me. That is a useful talent. Normally we have to use items to do that, and they are one use, or very heavy and stationary, like the ones the guild uses. Either way, not cheap or easy to have at hoof."

Sidestep waved at Burning. "So what is this Volcano?"

Burning crossed his arm. "And this is the downfall to that being around. All fire born have a tie to that volcano. It is where our power springs from. They say that if that volcano ever were to go cold, then no more fire born would come to be, the end of us." He snorted softly. "So I am in no rush to adventure there. Leave it be."

Sidestep let out an appreciative 'ah'. "I am just a pony." A pegasus if one wanted to be specific, which she didn't bother with. "Part of me is curious what it would be like, to have such connections. Sir Mash, do you have any connections? You look like a normal pony to me, aside that enchanted helmet."

Technically, he did have a connection! But that felt like one he didn't need to gloat about. "Regular pony, that's me," he got out not quite sincerely. "Four hooves and a tail." He shook all five named parts to prove they were there and pony shaped. "But that doesn't matter. What makes you special is what you do, not what you are!"

Burning clapped in several slow motions. "That is strangely wise, coming from you."

So he had heard it in a video game! He didn't need to admit that. "I say smart stuff!"

Sidestep pressed her hooves to her own chest. "Words to live by. I will endeavor to be special in my actions and not worry over what I am. Sir Mash, it is a blessing I happened on you. Let us begin our proper venture tomorrow."

The next day, they came on the cave. Soft whistling winds rushed past them, the lost whispers that gave the cave its name. "Awesome!" Button rushed ahead into it, looking around with wide eyes. "It's just right..." But so much better details than his game system could ever have done. "So cool..."

"It is not very cold." Burning trailed behind him. "Does your scanning ability show you where the treasure hides?"

Sidestep advanced at Burning's side. "I think that is a term he uses. Things that are cold are more appealing. I cannot say I understand why."

`"It's not that!" Ugh, explaining things to adults took too long. "The first treasure should be over here." Button advanced confidently down the stone corridor. "Take a left at the first, yep!" He veered left, avoiding the right path that would lead out towards the next point of interest, if one were on the quest to save the world, which he was not. "And--"

Several wet slippery noises announced the arrival of enemies, watery snakes that wielded curved blades and flicked the air with their forked tongues. "Oh right, monsters..." It was easy to forget sometimes that one did not wander around caves without random encounters.

Did the water snakes have a weakness? Yep! But not of an element he had a spell of. Dang it. Lightning was what was called for with water monster. At least he knew not to bother with fire. With a great roar, Burning charged into the frey without a hint of hesitation. He might have been fire aligned himself, which meant their attacks hurt more, but his blades were cold steel... maybe?

Button realized he couldn't be sure what Burning was actually using, but he had drawn a sword for a change instead of smashing things with his hooves. He squinted at the rapidly swung blade, drawing up its stats.

Water Slicer Type: Weapon (Sword)
Element: Water

There were loads of other stats under it, but he had gotten the important parts. A water weapon against water things would be better than a fire thing, but not ideal. Still, one worked with what one had. "Healing Touch!" Button charged forward to help with the ouchies his big berserking friend was getting.

"Sky above." Sidestep ran a hoof along her blade as it crackled with electrical power. "Give us the blessings of the angry clouds." Clouds formed along her blade, bolts of lightning arcing through them, joining with the electricity the sword was forming. "Thunder strike!" She brought down her blade, not on an enemy, but in front of them, the lightning leaping out at them. Some tried to come back at her, but washed harmlessly off her as if she were simply untouchable by the lightning, leaving most of it to course through the screaming forms of the water snakes.

"Awesome..." Watching Sidestep take charge in combat was always an inspiring sight. "Leave some for me!" Button charged into battle. He had no elements at all. On the downside, it meant he couldn't take any advantage of weaknesses. On the positive side, it meant he always did some damage, even if not the highest amount, on everything! He got to try out his new mace, smashing the water apart with wet splashes. "Take that, and--" He dove backwards in time to see a scimitar wetly slash at the space he had been in.

Burning's hoof came down in a mighty cry, slamming the scimitar against the ground. The flame that rushed out didn't bother it much, or the water snake that held it, but the hooves had a physicality, and being slammed into the ground trapped the scimitar. "Lass!"

"Already on it." She jumped to his back, just the hop off it towards the snake, coming down with her blade to cleave the monster in half in an angry burst of electricity from her blade. "There would need to be twice as many of you to challenge us."

As if conjured by her call, new wet slithers greeted them. "I should refrain from my taunting..." Still, Sidestep was moving back to the battle. Complaining about it wouldn't make it go away.

"No, you keep that up." It was awesome when Sidestep made witty banter! Or at least Button had decided. "Let's take them down!"

One downside of living the adventure, random encounters didn't always wait politely for you to finish one before the next got started. Button made a quick calculation in his head. The level of the cave was... And they were... If they were running into that much of a fight, they couldn't just charge the next spot without grinding up some levels, for themselves and their equipment and actually rounding out his spell selection!

There would be plenty to do before they took on their next adventure.

Welcome to the Cave of Lost Whispers. And Button wanted to charge here on his own. Good thing we avoided that! He seems to really like having Sidestep in the party though. Do you?

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