What they found inside didn't immediately annihilate them, which was already a small victory.
But the being couldn't understand what it was looking at. And though it wasn't feeling any outward hostility, neither did it feel entirely at ease.
In a corner of the cave, separated from any other kind of clutter, was a... sphere. Made of multiple flexible plates wrapped together, and held aloft by many tendrils made of a substance vaguely reminiscent of the bramble, reaching for everywhere around. Walls, ceiling and floor.
The being had no idea what they were made of, or what they were supposed to be doing - because clearly there was a design behind this: some creature had intentionally arranged it.
What it knew was that those wrappings were completely inviolable. There was something flowing inside that strengthened them in incomprehensible ways. They must be impervious to anything the being could think of, and likely much more.
Nothing the being could do would ever even scratch those things.
Which was driving the being mad, because it needed to know what was inside.
Because for all that what it was seeing was impressive, what really mattered was the content.
Nothing could be seen or felt beyond the wrappings. Nothing at all could go through.
Yet it was clear.
Pure, unbridled, shifting potential.
Here for the being.
Well... not really. Or at least not exactly.
But it could be.
And power, safety, a way out of here, companionship...
all that and more could be its.
The little light darted somewhere else in the room, but the being barely noticed. All its focus was forward.
All those things, and more, could be the being's. If only it could peel away these unsightly wrappings, and reach what was inside.
There was a small feeling of urgency, but the being ignored it, already searching around for anything it could use. This thing was far more important than anything else in here. Simply beyond.
It was just so-
A vision butted in on the being's focus, easily catching its addled mind unaware and momentarily clearing it of anything else.
It showed an, again terribly inaccurate and insulting copy of itself - surely it could at least get the number of limbs right? - walking towards the orb to... help it?
Well, the gist was clear enough, and the connection had finally broken its useless daze. There was no way in the world to break past those wrappings, so why angst about it? Why even entertain the fantasy?
Still, it was with heavy reluctance that the being walked towards the corner where the little light was floating, and looking back over its shoulder multiple times.
The little light was clearly very impatient, so it was lucky that the vision had left some lingering clues on what exactly the being had in front right now, and what it needed to do.
This was a kind of immovable bag, and the orb needed to get its hands on the goodies. Or the closest thing to that, given the deficiencies of its body. Still, a kind of desire the being was intimately familiar and empathetic with.
So it carefully and delicately removed the covering...
and started pulling out all the contents by the handful. Which meant only one handful in the end, for two items, as the rest was just piles of dust.
Both items resembled the bramble outside, in a way.
One was some kind of loop, in thin strands so eerily familiar that the being wouldn't be surprised to find out it came from the slime. The other was different though. With an even more twisted, convoluted spiraling shape, but a texture that was actually very pliant and soft.
The being felt the orb's contempt for the loop. It wasn't needed, so it went back into the bag. The being's own of course, together with the owl's gem.
The vision resumed, this time showing the ugly alternate version of itself bringing the softer item to its mouth and... what?
What was it supposed to do then?
The vision copy changed its mind and reached to get the loop back out of its bag...
Following the instructions, it squeezed a hand inside the loop... which suddenly clumped down shut.
Obviously, the being started trying to remove it immediately. It wasn't painful or anything, but having this thing on felt strange. Yet, no matter how it pushed or pulled, the loop didn't budge.
The being was suddenly distracted from its thrashing, when the little light moved to hover right in front of its face.
A entirely new vision replaced the one in its mind, much deeper than ever before. One that matched so perfectly with reality, that the being struggled to identify it as a vision, even with its experience. Also, the connection it felt with the orb each time this happened, was now much stronger. Much more intimate.
In the vision, the being felt a part of its body - which was still ridiculously inaccurate, even with this much better immersion - start to wiggle under its guards-donated shell.
Deep in its chest, its very flesh begun to... transform, elongating downwards in a strange manner.
The sensation was so peculiar, the being couldn't help but reach for it with its mind in the real world-
It wasn't just a vision. Somehow this tiny part of its body had gone back to a state similar to the before, or to its successful transformations, and was weaving its way downwards towards its arm and, presumably, its wrist.
The being had longed, just a little bit, to feel this freedom of shape again. But its determination from last time stayed: it had fought for its current form, and wouldn't allow it to unravel for anything!
The being easily quelled the rebellious flesh with but a thought... but for some reason the little light seemed to be against it?
The connection between the two of them had really become stronger. The being could understand the orb's feelings and thoughts much more than ever before. The little light was responsible for this effect, and he was adamant this needed to be done. But would it really be wise to continue?
Should it really allow the little light to mold its body? Giving up control over it, even temporarily, even only a tiny part... It didn't feel good. But the little light had shown himself to be a good friend. Not like the bison or the grasshopper. He wouldn't hurt the being, right?
If he really thought this would help...
The being had to really struggle against itself to allow the orb to work. Now that it had become aware of what was happening, the thought of another force currently manipulating its flesh kept scraping against its mind, poking at every defensive impulse.
But the being clenched its other hand and resolved to fight against every instinct as the little light kept unraveling its flesh all the way down to its wrist and the loop around it.
In a revolting spectacle, thin tendrils burst out of its flesh, wrapping around the loop.
Instinctively, the being raised its other hand, and brought the pliant bramble to it.
They eagerly meshed with the offered object, painfully slow and weak, but still managing to pick it up.
Then, they retreated back into its flesh. Pulling the thing along.
Under the being's appalled and somewhat horrified gaze, the soft bramble parted its flesh without pain, as if were air.
Resisting the frantic desire to reach for the extraneous object and tear it off was an enormous struggle. But at this point it was too late to fight back.
What would happen to its body if the strange permeability was interrupted?
At the very least, it was over quickly. Its flesh closing in and sealing after the item, with no apparent consequences.
Still, it took a while for the being to realize that its flesh was truly back to normal, the vision finally over.
It started to move around, trying to see if it could feel the alien implant through its flesh, or if its movement was impaired in any way.
That thing had been tiny, but still way too big to want it inside. Not that the being wanted anything inside itself, to be fair, in any shape or form.
But no matter how it prodded its wrist and arm, or what strange position it danced in, there was no awkward feeling at all. Nothing felt different. As if the thing had unraveled completely throughout its flesh, but adding no mass.
A feeling of profound frustration through the new connection made the being realize that the little light was getting impatient.
He wanted the being to do something. Something... not physical? What did that even mean?
Another vision appeared - the little orb really was going all out recently.
Though what it depicted was completely absurd.
And not in the sense that it was demanding something strange... But the being simply couldn't grasp anything of what it was shown. And after it was over, for the first time, it couldn't even remember anything of its contents.
The little light started floating away, deeper into the tunnels, and the being realized they were supposed to leave. Where exactly, when they where trapped, was a mystery. But the orb must have its ways.
Evidently what they had found was enough. The being had no idea what these items, and the procedure they'd just undergone, were supposed to help with, but it trusted its friend.
The only problem... It turned to look at the mysterious chained thing.
Leaving that one behind without an explanation didn't feel good. Not at all.
The thing inside wasn't a living creature, else it would just leave, wouldn't it? After all, those bindings and wrappings might be an obstacle to the being, but they couldn't even interact with their content, let alone restrict it. So if it was alive and wanted out, it would be.
But neither did it feel as unliving as stone would...
It would have to be another item for the being’s list. One with lower priority.
This week there might not be a bonus chapter. Sorry in advance if that's the case!
ever for various reasons, but I thought it would be nice to share with you some other stories that I personally read and enjoyed. As a reader, to fellow readers.
Would you like me to recommend you some hidden gems?
