Book 3: Chapter 4 - Symbiosis (RAW)

It is perseverance through the darkest of times that truly marks the souls of the greatest of men. As the tide rises, carrying with it every ship in the harbor, so too does a man's commitment to the realm elevate all those around him. In pursuit of a brighter dawn, one may offer a lifetime to the forging of a just and noble society. And though the shadow of mortality may claim him before he beholds the fruits of his toil, his legacy left behind is a bettered world. In the face of the abyss, where hope might seem but a fleeting wisp, those who tether their hearts to just purpose shall, indeed, find a profound fulfillment.

- The Human Question by Gideon de Salavia 378 A.C

It was an ambush predator, a monster that preyed on man’s greed and curiosity. A creature of shadow and black. Its kind lived in the long forgotten places of the world, in the ruins of lost civilizations, forgotten temples, and the deepest darkest dungeons.

From the moment it had been born, it had known only one thing. A deep, overwhelming need to consume. And consume it did, from simple rocks, and plants to that greatest delicacy of all - warm yielding flesh. Every day was a battle, and it fought to consume, to consume and to grow. As it grew, even eating others of its own kind, a seed of consciousness began to form within, and with it a new ability. The nascent creature learned to change its shape, taking on the properties of the things it had consumed. It learned to wait to conserve its energies to bide its time, it learned to lure its prey with its very shape.

It became a fully fledged adult mimic.

The taste of solid steel, hardened leather, mixed with blood, bone, and scrumptious innards was its very taste of an unwary two-legged animal. This swiftly became its favorite food, and with each bite, it could feel new experiences suffusing its nature. It saw things, new things, that made it want something more. The old hunger, the need to consume, though an insistent thing, grew dull and bland. It wanted to feel the sun, to feel the wind, to be outside of the ever gloom.

Unique to it, a malaise fell upon the creature. Truly, this was an aberration, for mimic their hunger was a very intrinsic part of them. The driving force behind their existence. A deep ennui overtook the mimic, for life had lost its luster. Oh, how it wished to see the world outside. Food began to taste like ashes, and disinterested, the creature began to even ignore its once delicious prey.

As the mimic began to starve, consuming itself from within, it prayed to its mother, the Mother of All Monsters, for salvation. The fickle Divine answered this strange creature's prayer, this existence that was unique among its own kind, promising it something only a Goddess could give. Iasis tampered with its life-script, the helix that pre-ordained the shape of all life. She promised it delivery from the hell of its own self-imposed suffering.

And today, the Goddess had finally made good on her promise.

These alien memories and more flooded my consciousness in an overwhelming wave that sent me reeling. Senses that I did not possess, feelings that were not mine, traveled across the bridge of my touch with the mimic.

The thing was sending out tendrils of consciousness, seeking out a form of symbiosis. I will Help was the mental impression I received across my bond as the creature formed in my mind the shape of my missing shield, dredging it from my recent memories. Something I needed now. It then formed words, gleaning them straight from my mind, in an effort to communicate. The mimics thoughts and desires became known to me. The damn thing even wanted a name of all things.

The last thing I needed was another voice in my head. The dark things in my mind, the current residents, agreed with me, and together we hatched a plan to lure it in deeper into the halls of mind. The power and strength such a fusion, such a true symbiosis could bring me was truly tempting, but in exchange I would be losing myself. I would be something new.

Innocently, the mimic accepted our mental invitation for congress, passing into the area we had prepared for its demise. The jaws of the trap closed as its main consciousness sought to meld with my own. It was immediately cut with a dark mental slash launched by my dark choir when it was its most vulnerable. It seemed almost innocently shocked in the microsecond before its death, for human duplicity was still a foreign concept to it. We had for intents and purposes destroyed its consciousness and whatever it was that made the mimic a mimic. We shrieked internally in delight for a victory claimed.

I was me, and not us. I was a human, and not some sort of amalgamation of man and monster. I was pure.

Up above me, Iasis crowed happily as she floated in lazy circles above me. With a smile, her divinity descended, stopping just above head height.

“Wonderful, now truly you are stained in my colors. I have beaten my sister on this turn!” she crowed with childish joy.

She doesn't know. She doesn't know. She doesn't know. I kept repeating myself like a mantra in my head, fighting back a smile of satisfaction. It seemed that even the gods could be tricked.

“Now, I guess there is nothing for it but to be on your way. Your very existence will be a walking prayer to me, the greatest of Divines. Know it to be an honor and a gift,” she intoned.

“I live but to serve,” I answered wearily, glad that me helm hid my features.

“How delightful, I see that the Change has transformed you for the better. Much better. I see you have finally learned some respect, even if it makes you a little less interesting…” she pouted prettily.

“One of Vari’s virgin whores waits for you on the sands with a few other mortals. You would do well to end her, or perhaps do whatever you wish with her… Ah, and there is a new den of your kind at the end of long water. You may go there and spread my glory. Go forth then, my Gilgamesh, you will find safe passage from the Guardians and the Praxis down that path. Remember to always take the left,” Iasis instructed, pointing imperiously to a passage that had mysteriously opened behind the altar dedicated to her. Moments later, she faded from sight like a shadow at dawn.

Her words hit me like a splash of water in the desert, and relief settled awkwardly upon me. So engrossed was I in my struggles that I had forgotten completely about my companions. Up until now, a part of me had thought them dead, swallowed by the great worm. If I had however thought about things rationally, I realized, my quest to escort Larynda had not failed which meant that she was very likely still alive. And, if the girl was still alive, then it would have meant that others who had been in proximity to her were also. Time, however, to focus on the path before me and get out of here.

Pushing down my concern for my companions, I peered ahead and could barely see the passage, for the glow of the golem corpse had dimmed considerably. Nonetheless, I forced myself to walk on, glad that I had a means to get out of this dark and forsaken place. I had had enough of the gods for a moment, sworn promise of vengeance or no.

For a few moments, I considered recasting my Holy Aura, but that better of it because of present company. I had to at least keep the thin veneer of acquiescence, or the Goddess might be less accommodating.

Like the very golem I had defeated, I lumbered on, starting upon this dark path with no small amount of trepidation. With no good source of light, my hand guided my way as I felt along the unnaturally smooth stone walls.

Once I judged I had travelled a suitable distance, I decided to finally take stock of my situation. In need of light, I pushed down the hungry pulse of Entropic aura, a pulse that grown to follow the beat of my heart, and released Holy Aura. Determination filled me, a sense that I was doing right, and the light of the spell illuminated the way. Under the light of divinity, I took inventory.

I had my weapon, a lethal thing capable of warding off the mightiest of monsters in my hands, a well-made dagger and a fancy crossbow that was useless without any bolts. As for supplies, in my pouch were a few bits of travel food, some coin, and potions in their metal vials. However, most important of all, was the half a flask of water at my hip.

How long I would need to travel before I could find a source of water? Iasis had disappeared before I could ask her any relevant questions to my current situation. The gods of this world were certainly stingy in their aid…

Worryingly, my mind had forgotten the mimic. Quickly, I removed a gauntlet and touched the hand that had made contact with the monster. It looked normal to the naked eye with no unusual markings, but I could feel something new, but now unquestionably dormant, within me.

As I searched for the presence, I felt a shifting under the skin of my hand. Tendrils of something vile undulated just under the skin in rippling patterns that thoroughly disgusted me. I had to stop myself from dry-heaving, thoughts of this moving within my hand almost unmanning me.

Hissing through my teeth, I prepared myself for what I had to do next, grateful that I had kept enough Mana in reserve for a Heal spell. Raising my blade, I brought it down to sever the infection that had taken root in my hand, the last of taint that was Iasis’ gift.