The young Shield hero frowned at the Gladiator's biting words towards Auriel. The young woman had been nothing but accommodating and even a man used to death and pain had no right to be so rude. He turned towards the angelic girl and saw anger in her eyes. Yet again he reached a hand towards her shoulder an empathetic look on his face and a slight sake of his head hopefully communicated to her that any words would be lost in the deeply set, if not necessary, ego that the man had built around himself. He also gave her a slight smile of encouragement.

Their quick interchange was cut short, literally, as Marcino let his knife fly. A spectacular display to be sure and it certainly drove in the point that the three of them would need much practice to rise to the level of the older man. The one thing that made that bitter pill easier to swallow was the knowledge that like Auriel had said, Cole and he were not normal people and as such might rise above the skill he had just seen. This redoubled his conviction and sparked in him a hunger to test his limits as nothing in his previous life had before. While his yearning to return to his sister was still very much alive, a similar goal now inhabited his mind of seeing just how much this weapon on his arm might grow and what powers would it hold. 

Fer followed both the young sword and the older sharpshooter. He deliberately lagged a bit behind wanting to chat with the holy warrior. "Hey Auriel, you said that you had trained to be our companion from very young and knew all the stories of those who were heroes before. Can you tell me some? Like, what sort of powers do these weapons have? Is there any sort of process or training to get those powers?" He stopped himself just before his next question. He was being insensitive. He wanted to dispel the sour air but had instead made it seemed like he cared not for the emotional state of the girl. 

To salvage some face he added with a slight smile "I may not look it but I am not as smart as I look". He waited a few seconds that extended awkwardly. He was rescued by an arrow summoning what seemed like a swarm of balloon creatures. Fer saw Cole charge in and watched as the things seemed to pop from the strikes in very balloon like fashion. It was not until Cole called out for help that he remembered he was not there as an spectator. He rushed forward to occupy a space on the left of Cole. Before he got there he suddenly remembered that his hunting knife was not in its usual place on his thigh. He panicked a little as he saw a orange creature leap at his face, mouth open to bite. He instinctively raised his left arm to protect himself.

Some voice in his mind and translucent words appeared in his line of sight that read
 
[i]Morph Shield Unlocked. Ability Activated.[/i] 
 
A greenish light inside the gem on his left arm glowed and suddenly there was bright light. Just before the orange balloon impacted Fer, a round shield materialized between them. At the moment of impact, the Shield hero felt the weight of the creature that was no stronger than a ball of about five or ten pounds. The creature ricocheted off the shield, landed a few feet away and resumed its attack. Having no time to admire this thing that had materialized on his forearm, Fer proceeded to fend off the attacks of the incoming balloons.
 
Awkwardly at first as he bumped and got in the way of Cole as he slashed. Pretty soon though, he got the rhythm of their dance. Fer would move with the young Sword’s swing, covering Cole’s exposed side away from the swing. The balloons seemed to always target this side with what seemed like limited intelligence but showed no sign of learning the simple methods Fer was using to keep them at bay until Cole’s sword eventually put an end to their single minded attacks.
 
The round shield that had first manifested on his arm did not seem to be the most optimal for his purposes. If a balloon hit the outer circumference of it, it would make his forearm spin and made him loose balance, preventing him from reacting quickly and keeping time with Cole’s attacks. He wanted something that had a point. Suddenly with a glimmer, his shield morphed into what he would later know to be heater shield. He filed the phenomenon in his mind for later research. At the moment, the worked on his tactics. Depending on their trajectory of attack, he would bounce some of the balloons against another attacking creature effectively making them ricochet against each other and foiling multiple foe’s attacks. Any monsters travelling too high would receive an angled shield that would diver the trajectory over both the young heroes. He mainly deflected, trying to conserve energy and only putting enough force to his swing for the ones that would impact other attackers. To any onlooker he would not be distinguishable from someone who had practiced the sport of Tennis.
 
He got so good at timing Cole’s swings that he would reduce traveling distance by going just under the other’s horizontal swings and also protecting his partner’s face. His breathing was even and his muscles worked in a coordinated process. Even if had not had the added resiliency and constitution that his shield passively enhanced, Fer was used to strenuous hikes on unforgiving terrain. It was this pre disposition to physical prowess that allowed him to continue his dance until the last of the Balloons was dispatched by the sword. The ground around them littered with cloth like bits that had once been the attacking creatures. His breath came in deep breaths and his forehead moist with his exercise but his spirit was lifted and he was almost sad when no other attack came.
 
He straightened himself up and no sooner had the last attack been deflected that his shield dissolved into thin air and all that was left over was the bracer with the jewel swirling with a greenish gleam.