D.E.M.O.N.S: Getting Summoned Weekly isn't so Bad

--- Kat --- (About 2 hours Later)

Kat stood off to the side as Kamiko patted down the horse they'd chosen. It was panting lightly and drinking from a trough Kamiko had put into her spatial ring. The group had made good time, but setting the optimal pace for the horse had taken a bit of work so they were using the nearby clearing as a chance to take a break.

Kat had run the whole way without issue and Lily had rested easily in her arms. Hunter 'ran' as much as a snake can. She'd transformed into a full snake form and then moved swiftly but perhaps a touch strangely. She didn't exactly slither along the ground, instead she used ridiculously fine motor control to launch herself forward.

Hunter made use of everything. Rocks, trees, divots in the ground. Anything and everything was used as a launching point and Hunter was capable of propelling herself with essentially any segment of her body. Kat had been somewhat concerned about their speed when Hunter was just slithering… but clearly that was just a lamia's equivalent of 'walking'.

Well, that or Hunter had been trained to go above and beyond. Perhaps both.

Hunter was… less fine than Kat. She was panting slightly in her half-humanoid form and taking a long drink from the water bottle. "So… how was the pace for everyone? I mean, everyone seems fine but it was only a two hour run,"

Kamiko looked at Kat and winced slightly before turning back to the horse and running the sponge she'd found in her ring across the horses' scales. Hunter had no trouble voicing her thoughts. "Kat, while I was informed of your regeneration capabilities I had not considered the broader implications.

I was informed you do not require calories to directly fuel your regeneration and this has moved you into an entirely separate weight class.

"While I can run at that speed throughout the day without trouble, that does not mean I take no wear from the action. I could not guarantee full combat readiness after an extended sprint. You seem to have no issues. I can confidently say that your regeneration is categorically bullshit,"

"I mean… it's pretty cool but you can do that vanishing trick right? That seems comparable," retorted Kat with a shrug.

Hunter let out a long hiss of air that was actually steam. Kat raised an eyebrow at that as Hunter began to explain. "Your regeneration does quite a lot for you and it is entirely innate. My 'vanishing trick' as you call it was painstakingly practiced and far from flawless but we shall get to it in a second.

"Your regeneration seems to be closer to 'conceptual wholeness' then any true regeneration. Your body does not simply try to fix itself, but also attempts to keep itself in 'optimal condition'. Take getting shot with arrows as an example. Normally you would need to pull out the arrow for the wound to heal. If it was a bullet one might heal around the bullet and leave it stuck inside the body.

"You I suspect? I suspect that your regeneration would actively push the bullet or arrow from your body while repairing the damage. That is something most regenerators need a truly ludicrous degree of body control to even attempt," explained Hunter.

"Ah, yeah that's probably right. I mean, I got really bad gravel rash once, like, gravel all up in my body and that all popped out. I even coughed up a few because I guess it was easier for my body?" offered Kat.

Hunter just let out another sigh. "Truly you are blessed,"

Kat shrugged. "I mean, yeah. I wouldn't say I'm blessed because of my regeneration, at least, not before… but I agree with that much."

Hunter just sighed again before speaking. "Right. I suppose I cannot blame you for your ridiculousness. Operating at such speeds is mentally and physically taxing for me. Not excessively, and a task such as sprinting long distances is something I can keep up for long periods of time… but not 'completely non-stop with no breaks' as you seem to be able to manage.

"I do not begrudge you this, but know that your unique constitution seems to render most long term physical fatigue irrelevant. That or you are simply built differently, but as you are a succubus I suspect your regeneration to be the main cause,"

"I see… well… um… while we're resting would you mind talking about your ability to just disappear? Is that one of your Rank up abilities?" asked Kat.

"No, it is actually my aura," stated Hunter.

"You're aura?" asked Kamiko confused. "That's… that's really not how aura is meant to work…"

Hunter nodded, bobbing her head and much of her body with the motion while her eyes seemed to remain fixed on Kamiko's and Kat's. "It is indeed not how such things are normally used, however, my clan is an expert in non-traditional uses of aura. My aura is well attuned to such things.

"My aura influences those around me to 'forget' or 'ignore' me. This is good for those not focusing on me, and great use against those who have never seen me… but it is not true refinement of the technique. It is not what I used to have myself and my tracks disappear so that the horses stopped being scared of my presence.

"Instead, what I did was force the world itself, or perhaps the planet to 'forget' or perhaps 'ignore' my presence. The distinction is a little unclear and regular testing has not allowed me to reach conclusions as to the nature of my aura,"

"Wait wait wait," said Lily as she transformed just to say this. "That… that's completely ridiculous! And you said that this was 'far from flawless' but… that seems amazingly good. So… what's the problem with it?"

"The fundamental problem with my technique is while the world is content to ignore me, others who reach out with more esoteric senses are not so limited. I am mystically 'screaming' 'I AM NOT HERE' to the world. Even the most untrained of mystical senses can hear my mystical shouting, and tell that something is wrong, or not as it should be.

Those more adept at sensing can pinpoint exactly where I am from the 'yelling' and find me easily.

"Even still, having such awareness is still quite impressive. It is why I voted in favour of taking the horses. Even though I was extended my aura to make them forget I was there, and the universe forget me, they could still tell something was wrong. Not 'what' was wrong, and not enough to be as concerned as they were when they could still see me… but enough to know something was up.

Truly respectable instincts,"

*I guess that explains why I was able to sort of see her… but…* "If that's true then… how come I couldn't see you with my true sight?" asked Kat.

Hunter shrugged and said, "My briefing did not include that you also possessed true sight. As I have not regularly been in contact with someone possessing the ability. Lacking experience, I can only infer it is one of a few things. The first, is that they are not sufficiently mature. True sight can do a lot, but you are young, even if you are Rank 3. Perhaps they need more time to adapt to your brain.

"An alternative to consider is that your eyes see based on the truth of the world. Which is not the same as fact. The world did not believe I was there, and thus, you could not see where I was with your eyes. I do not like this interpretation, but it is certainly possible.

"Another alternative is that you simply did not want to see me enough. I am your ally and perhaps if you truly gazed upon my technique, rendering me 'seen' it would disrupt my own efforts rendering me visible for all to see. I could see, in that case, that you were subconsciously limiting yourself to avoid such an outcome.

It is more possible then it might seem," added Hunter after she saw the look on Kat's face.

"Is… is that something we should test?" asked Kat.

Hunter considered the question for a few moments… by staring directly at Kat and making essentially no movements and then suddenly saying. "No. At least, I do not believe that testing such a thing right now would be prudent. I am sufficiently hydrated, I do believe the horse is rested. We are trying to pace ourselves but that also includes ensuring our breaks are not overly long.

I suggest we head out and either test the idea when we break for the night or test it during out next rest stop,"

"Ok… um… when do we want to stop running for the day?" asked Kat.

Hunter stared at Kat again… and was that a glare? Kat had a hard time telling. "I believe we should retire soon after sundown. While the group possesses sufficient night vision on our own, Kamiko's chosen mount likely does not. Exceptional senses it may have, but those are likely no use in avoiding rough terrain in the night,"

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