Pyzis smiled as Zephyra told her about her abilities, it was nice to know that the woman could defend herself. Zephyra had watched as Pyzis had thrown fireballs at banshees until they burned to a crisp. There hadn't been as much of an opportunity fo her to see what the younger woman could do. The villagers had returned with spears in hand and with a tinge of fear herself Pyzis watched Zephyra dispatch two of them through their biggest fears. That was something that on an average day Pyzis would not stand for, the idea of mentally manifesting someone's deepest fears was too much like the torture she had lived through. She wouldn't subject another human being to a fate like hers, but right now it was these villagers fears or her life. 

Once the first two were taken care of Pyzis summoned fire once more, the heat of it pooled in both of her hands. She flung her fingers out towards one of the men, and the fire ran from her fingers and sprayed onto his clothing. It was all superficial, and if the man stopped, he would be able to put it out. Pyzis wouldn't hurt these people if she could avoid it. They were only doing what they thought would save their home. Though that was how most wars started no matter who was in the right. 

The next man ran away, and Pyzis pulled the Phoenix bow off of her back. The beautifully carved bow had been created from the ashes left over after a Phoenix was reborn. It seemed only fitting that she wield it in human form. Carefully she drew back the string and an arrow made of fire formed. She aimed ahead of the man to stop him and succeeded when the ground before him erupted in flames. At a jog Pyzis caught up to him and stared him down with her yellow eyes. He cowered in fear before raising his hands above his head in surrender.

"I think we are done her Zeph, do you still wish to brave the mountain with me to find this plant? If we need to, I can transform and fly the two of us out. I need to get to it in case the lava or fire destroys it." she said urgently. If this plant was said to aid healing, there was no way sh would let it be consumed by fire. They would need to run practically up the mountain, hoping boulders, lava, or smoke didn't hinder them. It was a risk she was willing to take, in case this yielded a potion that could help people. 

Perhaps it should have been relevant information that Zephyra could, indeed, utilize an innate power within herself to protect herself or harm others. After all Pyzis had been quite sharing in her abilities. She had seen the phoenix blast banshees to smoldering smithereens with her blazing fireballs, but she had also seen the entire woman take herself into a giant flame and come out as a petite phoenix. And in this form the woman had shed the tear of a phoenix and her scrapes and gashes from the banshees had healed up and become something that no longer existed. Then she had watched the bird take to the flame to return to human form. Oh the questions she had for her! If only now weren’t entirely the worst time ever.
 
When she glanced over at her companion she could see the hint of a wince in her expression, the tinge of fear and regret in her body language. Pyzis was an overly kind and nice person and, while she had no idea of the torture and madness the woman had been forced to endure, she could understand why a delicate girl such as she might not find her ways of dealing with things acceptable. The fingers on her right hand outstretched to the two envisioning their fears. Her fingers seemed to spasm in a dance and red energy shot to their heads. In an instant they were out, snuffed out unconscious just as if someone blew out a candle. “I guess I should know by now not everyone is comfortable with my methods. They’re fine, just unconscious.” She explained, even if it felt odd having to explain.
 
Fire erupted again near her and it was in the palms of her phoenix friend. Despite her discomfort, she set ablaze the scant clothes these villagers wore. The man didn’t go far before he dove into the dirt and was rolling around in the mud trying to snuff out the flames. It wasn’t hard. With enough work he managed to put out the fire and with a flick of Zephyra’s fingers she managed to knock him unconscious as well.
 
Next she heard the creak of wood and Pyzis had withdrawn a bow from her back on one of the villagers who was running as best as he could given the terrain and his garb. The phoenix let loose an arrow that put up a wall of flames before the man and stopped him in his tracks. When she and Py caught up with him he was already cowering in fear and he cowered even more when she flared up her fire. She was content to leave this one awake but Zephyra wasn’t. She flicked her fingers and he slumped over defenseless. They likely didn’t understand that they were being attacked to ensure they didn’t make a sacrifice so it was best they had no way.
 
Zephyra turned her head to Pyzis who asked if she would still be willing to brave the mountain and the potential lava to find the plant she was looking for. A wide smirk of mischief spread across her face. Of course she was still willing. “Of course I am. It’s what I came for isn’t it now? Let’s get on the move and maybe we can beat the lava.” She took off down the path back to the village and then turned and took off running towards the mountain. The lava was just beginning to roll over the lip of the volcano.

Pyzis shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts as she watched Zephyra take out another enemy. There was no fear in her yellow eyes as she inspected the younger woman. It was not that she disapproved, it was that her methods struck a little close to home with her fears. 

"Don't worry about me, I just need to come to terms with my trauma. So long as we don't kill them I will be okay," she offered as she watched a smile spread across Zephyra's face. If the girl were willing to head off into danger with Pyzis, then they would indeed remain close friends. 

Pyzis ran after her, pushing aside branches and think foliage as they made their way up the side of the volcano. It was a good thing both women were in excellent shape because soon the terrain gave way to lava rock on a steep incline. Not long later she was panting and choking as the air became thick with black smoke. Their progress slowed as the ground became too steep to run up.

"We are looking for a red flower that looks almost like a lily. The middle glows yellow, and it grows close to the heat. I'm sure there will be vents that open up to lava. That will be where it grows, but we need to be careful. The fumes from the volcano will knock you out pretty quickly." she coughed as smoke began to darken the blue sky above. She was used to fire, and it could do no damage to her, but smoke was something entirely different. Pyzis stopped her run to reach into her backpack to retrieve a strip of cloth for bandaging she had brought. She ripped the long piece in two and handed one-half over to Zephyra. Expertly she tied the white cloth around her head to cover her mouth and nose. While this would make running more difficult at least, she wouldn't be coughing. 

Pyzis felt responsible for Zephyra's safety as she was the one who had insisted on continuing their quest. Suddenly the ground rumbled again. Large rocks tumbled down the slope and Pyzis dodged a few that came right towards her. A small one flipped up and scratched her arm, but she hardly noticed. It took all her concentration to stay on the mountain herself. She looked back to make sure Zephyra was okay before starting to jog uphill when the shaking stopped.