Kaori quietly makes her way to Taran's side, wrapping him in a hug as well. She opens her beak to say something but lets it close wordlessly, instead squeezing tighter.

Taran returns the hug to Kaori, "I-I h-h-hope th-this is o-okay, K-kaori...I-I d-d-don't w-w-want t-t-to m-make y-you w-w-worried or s-s-sad."

"Do not be scared." Kaori coos softly. "If I can ... Overcome the ... Dark ... You can, too ... You are ... Stronger than me."

"Th-thank you, I-I'll d-do m-my best." Taran says after a moment, "B-But I st-still th-think y-you are st-stronger..."

"Nonsense ... I am ... Birb"

Caelius signs,

"Y-You have th-the bl-lessing of the l-l-light, you kn-know w-who y-you a-are and w-what y-you want. An-And y-you f-fight f-for th-them. You've st-stood i-in fr-front o-of d-danger e-every t-time, a-and cut it. I-I y-you are B-Birb, th-then Birb m-means st-strong an-and f-faithful." 

Kaori looks down at her shield, thinking for a moment, before cooing. "You are ... Birb."

Vishal chuckles and says, “You’re all powerful and Nirdaya wants all of us captured alive for one reason or another. No need to compare. Now let’s prepare to fight a dragon.” Vishal seems clearly exited at the idea of fighting this giant god like creature 

Taran blushes, and squeezes Kaori tighter, "Th-Thank y-you K-Kaori."

"B-But E-Esteemed V-Vishal is r-r-right, w-w-we h-have to p-prepare. I-I kn-know wh-where t-to g-g-get the b-best s-supplies f-f-for m-mountaineering, e-e-even i-if I n-normall d-d-didn't use th-them m-myself. E-Esteemed A-Akuma o-offered t-to s-s-support th-the m-monetary s-s-side, b-but a-are th-there an-any oth-other sp-special s-supplies b-beyond th-the cl-climbing k-kits, in-incense an-and c-clothing?"

The next morning, you all board a ship leaving Ruukosi, which is crewed solely by humans. The captain is a dark-skinned woman with dreadlocks and a jagged blade hanging at her side, studying a navigation chart as you file onto the trim ship. "Rules of my ship are really simple," she says with a smirk, glancing up at the five of you. "Stay out of the crew's way, and we'll get along just fine. Once we're out of Adaran waters, we'll all be changing into Riedran sailor garb, which includes removing any and all jewelry and getting hair back in the simplest, most efficient style possible. You two," she points at Vishal and Kaori. "will be spending most of your time belowdecks at that point, as you don't really fit with the whole 'loyal ship of the Unity' vibe. Should we actually be boarded, there's a secret, lead-lined compartment that you will hide in. The rest of you can hang out on deck if you want, provided you're in Riedran clothes. Hopefully we'll be able to bluff our way past any suspicion, but if it comes to a fight, the priority switches to ending the fight quickly and making sure that nobody escapes to reveal our location. Which means our non-humans can pop out to help. But our primary goal is to not make any waves, at all. If this ship is revealed to the Unity as Adaran, that could screw up half of our aquatic smuggling operation. Oh, and I'm Daara." She rolls her shoulders. "It's about fifteen hundred miles around the coast of Syrkarn and up to the Frostwalls, normally it'd be a two week journey. Fortunately for you, the Felix is no normal ship." She grins and knocks her knuckles against the mast. "She's a kytachi, a spirit ship. When she was built, we bound the spirit of a dolphin to her timbers, friend of mine who was nearing the end of his life. The Felix goes through the waves as fast as a normal ship and a dolphin put together. She'll get us there in six days. So don't get too comfortable!" With that, Daara swings away, shouting at her crew to finish loading the last of the supplies.

Within an hour, the sails are raised and you're off. The Felix moves as fast as promised, the water practically parting before her. Occasionally, when you look over the side, you can swear you see a spectral tail stretching out behind you, propelling you forward...

And River pulls Vishal aside to show him something before you leave the Adaran waters.

Books is exceedingly distracted. Captain Daara:

Kaori pulls Vishal aside with a soft coo, holding her sword out for him to inspect. Strapped to her arm is a brand new shield, as well.

"You were right ... I am ... Chosen."

Vishal smiles at Kaori as he says, "I knew you were. That sword and shield is beautiful. Brand new?" 

Taran bites his lip as the Captain gives the orders. He doesn't think it would be a problem to set fishing lines, it shouldn't seem too strange, but with the speed of the ship far exceeding what he expected, he doesn't know if it would even be possible to catch anything.

Still, he should try, in case the extra rations become necessary.

Finding a spot out of the way, near the rear of the ship, Taran begins braiding fishing line together to increase it's strength, looping the tough wire through a few different sharp caltrops that he shines up to hopefully attract a fish's attention.

Then, he ties them off on the rail, and tosses them overboard to float behind the ship.

"Shield is ... new ... stronger." She coos, looking down at it and running a finger along the surface. "Sword is ... same ... Full of ... energy."

Vishal smiles and says, “I look forward to seeing it in combat.” Reaching to ruffle Kaori’s hair as he says, “Oh. Will you help me keep up my martial training while we’re sailing.”

"I can be ... Target dummy." Kaori coos happily. "Armour is ... Very strong."

Vishal chuckles as he relies, “No need to just be a target dummy. I was thinking more of a sparring partner. That way we can both practice.”

"I do not ... want to ... harm you." Kaori says softly as she puts her sword away, putting her shield up onto her back.