human
Orbart:  At the moment, Orbart and Arakiya were stationed with the handful of imperial troops dispatched to the Ginonhive region, taking stock of the island. “Quickest thing would be to pile on in there, but the drawbridge would have to be down for that.”
gpt
Arakiya:  “Can we not use boats?”
human
Orbart:  “Boats, boats! Yeah, we thought about it, but—you know. That lake is swimming with aquatic demon beasts. They were released into the water to keep the sword slaves from escaping way back when, but now they own the place. So with no drawbridge, we can’t get in, and the rebels can’t get out. Tough nut, no?” Orbart laughed his wheezing laugh again.
gpt
Arakiya:  Arakiya turned her attention to the lake and found that in the dark night waters, she could see shapes drifting, floating, and swimming like fish. Except they weren’t fish. They were aquatic demon beasts. Many land-bound creatures found it difficult to fight underwater, so it wasn’t uncommon for many to consider these beasts even more dangerous than some of their land-dwelling counterparts. It wasn’t surprising that Orbart might laugh off the idea of boats as impractical. And so…“I will go.”
human
Orbart:  “Hey now, this is more than just a little swim we’re talking about. You’d be down a monster’s gullet before you got anywhere near that island, eh? I’m old and haven’t much time left, but to watch a young girl with her whole future ahead of her throw her life away—it’s too much!”
gpt
Arakiya:  “It’s…all right. I will simply become the water.”
human
Orbart:  “Hoh!” Orbart’s eyebrows shifted in what was definitely surprise.
gpt
Arakiya:  As he watched, Arakiya stripped off her already minimal clothing until she was completely naked. Then she crouched by the water, extended a hand to the lake surface, and went “Nom!” She scooped up a water spirit, a little lesser spirit, and popped it into her mouth. As a spirit eater, Arakiya could ingest the spirits in the atmosphere around her and make their power her own. She could only use that power until the spirit was fully consumed, but because spirits were everywhere if you looked, she never lacked for fuel. This was the ability that enabled her to ingest the water spirit, making its qualities her own.