Beig, Sylver, and Kosta entered a building that overwhelmed the senses with heat and smoke. A tall, muscular Faunus was pounding a piece of steel on an anvil with a hammer at a consistent pace. Unlike Beig and Sylver, the man's age showed on his face with wrinkles on his face and the lack of hair on the top of his head. The hulking man stopped hitting the blade in favor of noticing the three visitors.
"Chief Greii." Beig and Sylver spoke simultaneously as they saluted the man.
"What brings you two here this late into the night? Hm?" Greii's eyes sets themselves on Kosta. "Well, I'll be. So you're the human everyone has been talking about."
Kosta stepped forward to approach the large man and held out their hand to Greii. The old man smiled in amusement before shaking the knight's hand firmly. Sylver stepped up next, taking off the spear strung behind her and placed it on the table.
"Not much of a talker, are you?" Greii tilted their head at the silent knight. "That's fine...Your actions speak louder than your words. At any rate, back to my previous question; what brings you all here?"
"My spear could use some sharpening up." Sylver grabbed a whetstone off a shelf. "Also, we just wanted to inform you that Kosta has agreed to hunt down the Alpha Beowolf that has been terrorizing us for a while."
"Ah, I see. That will certainly help make our lives easier without a persistent leader of the Grimm attacking us." Greii nodded their head before looking down at Kosta's sword and shield. "You look like you could use an upgrade, Kosta. Those weapons of yours can hurt, but proper maintenace and sharpness is the key to having a deadly weapon that can actually kill something as tough as an Alpha Beowolf."
The knight took off the sheath at their waist and shield on their arm, setting the weapons down on a table. Greii took a moment to look the weapons over, holding the sword in their hand and giving it a small twirl.
"Light...it could use some heavier material..." Greii muttered to himself before turning to the shield. "Just thick enough in its frame to give me an idea..."
Sylver began to sharpen the steel on her spear while Beig sat himself down on a stool. Kosta joined Beig by grabbing a seat of their own and sat down right beside him. Beig looked over at Kosta and noticed the pouches on their person.
"Kosta, not to pry on the privacy of your items, but what do you have in those pouches?" Beig asked.
The knight reached into the pockets on their waist and held out the crystals to Beig. Sylver, who had been busy focusing on her weapon, found her eyes drawing to them. Eyes widening, Sylver dropped her weapons and quickly ran over to get a closer look at them.
"Oh my god, Dust Crystals!" Sylver's green eyes almost seemed to sparkle with excitement. "Chief Greii! Kosta has Dust Crystals!"
Greii perked his head up immediately and quickly walked over to see the Dust Crystals in Kosta's hands. Greii's eyes gleamed with the same excitement that Sylver held in her eyes.
"I must say those are exquisite Dust Crystals you have there, Kosta." Greii spoke with eagerness. "The ones you have are the kind that can be imbued permanently into a weapon, giving them an elemental boost in power. If you would allow me to have them, I will be able to upgrade your weapons along with Sylver's weapons to give you an edge in your upcoming battle."
Kosta stared at the crystal in their hands before pulling off the belt pouch on their person and handing it to the tall man. Greii nodded his head, a smile of gratitude on his face before returning his attention back to Kosta's weapons.
"Well, I'll be resting up for our hunt tomorrow." Beig said, standing up and heading off. "Sylver, Kosta, I'll see you both in the morning."
Sylver waved goodbye to Beig as he walked out of the building. She started to yawn before turning to Kosta and smiled.
"I think Beig has the right idea. I'd love to stay and see my weapon infused with the elements of Dust Crystal, but I need sleep too." Sylver spoke and smiled at Kosta. "Thank you for upgrading my spear, Kosta. I'll prove my worth to you on the battlefield. Good night, Kosta. I'll see you in the morning."
With that, Kosta and Greii were the only ones left in the room. For hours, Kosta observed and watched as Greii began to shape Kosta's weapons into something else. The blade of Kosta's sword was replaced with a thicker layer of steel and a trigger was added onto the handle.. As for the shield, a hole was created from the top of the shield, enough to fit the new sword into. But what was different about the shield now were the symbols added at the front of the shield through Greii pounding the crystals on top of the shield with a hammer.
"And it is done..." Greii wiped the sweat off his face and handed the reforged weapons to Kosta. "Here you are, Kosta. Your new and improved sword and shield, but with a twist thanks to your Dust Crystals. I'd explain it, but I think it would be better if I showed you through demonstration. Come, let's go outside."
The two exited the building and faced each other.
"Now, ready yourself." Greii held up his own hammer, poised to strike. "Block this attack!"
Kosta nodded their head and Greii rushed at them, hitting the shield hard enough that Kosta stumbled a few steps back. In response to being hit, Kosta's shield started to glow a faint yellow.
"I'm aware that you do not have an aura, so what I did was combine your Dust Crystals and reversed their properties to be channeled into something completely different: Kinetic absorption." Greii explained, stepping back. "Your shield is able to absorb energy from your opponent's strikes against you. Brace yourself again!"
Prepared for the hit, Kosta withstood the attack from Greii again as the shield regained its color again.
"But it can only hold the energy for a short time before it disperses, so use it accordingly to your situation." Greii said. "Now, while it's still charged inside your shield, insert your sword into the shield's slot and pull the trigger."
Kosta did as they were told and pulled on the trigger attached to the handle. A surge of energy flashed from inside the shield's hole and Kosta drew their sword out to find the blade bathed in yellow light.
"Now your sword is holding onto that energy via the trigger." Greii then proceeded to place his hands in front of his chest in the form of an 'X'. "I'll leave it up to your imagination to figure out what to do next. Don't worry about me, I can take the hit."
The knight made a slashing motion forward while pulling the trigger. A crescent wave of light shot out and hit Greii head on. Kosta repeated the same move again two more times before the energy covering the sword disappeared. Looking to Greii, Kosta saw the man walking up to them with no injuries on his person.
"How you utilize your new ability is up to you to figure out, Kosta." Greii patted Kosta on the shoulder. "I must return back to my shop and focus on Sylver's weapon. Hers will not take as long as yours did, but considering I used up most of your crystals to make your weapon what it is right now, I'll at least put an element in her weapon since she has an aura. I wish you a successful hunt, friend."
Greii waved goodbye before entering his building, leaving Kosta all alone. Kosta holstered the sword inside the shield's slot and made their way back to the campfire where they sat down.
Daylight was almost approaching.