The cave hummed with that faint underwater throb Rex was finally getting used to. He was half slumped against the wall, eyelids heavy, when he heard a rustle at his pack.
"Hey—what are you doing?" he mumbled.
The little seal—fish–armadillo creature didn't even acknowledge him. It had both forepaws buried in his pack, tail wiggling like it found treasure. Rex leaned forward just in time to see it drag out the orb—the same one he'd picked up earlier. The metal plate beneath it clanged softly as it slid free with it.
"Wait. No—no no no—don't eat that," Rex blurted.
The creature locked eyes with him, gave a smug chirp, and swallowed the orb whole.
For a split second, nothing happened.
Then it exploded.
A flash of white-blue. A shockwave that slapped Rex's hair back. A puff of steam and vaporized creature drifting like fog. When the light cleared, the only thing left was the plate with the orb calmly sitting at its center, untouched.
Rex blinked. "…Okay. That was new."
Lyria stared at the plate, jaw tight. "Is it safe?"
"No," Rex said immediately. Then he added, "Probably."
"Probably?" She shot him a look.
"Look," he said, rubbing the back of his neck, "when mine bonded to me, it didn't explode first. So—this is an upgrade? Maybe? Or a downgrade, depending on how you feel about being blown up."
Lyria took a slow step toward the plate. Then stopped. Her fingers flexed. Her breathing hitched.
Rex noticed. "You don't have to touch it."
She exhaled sharply. "I'm not scared."
"Well you look scared."
"I'm not scared," she repeated louder, which only made it more obvious.
Rex raised both hands. "Alright. Brave warrior. Very intimidating. Go ahead."
She glared at him once more for good measure, then crouched. Her hand hovered over the plate—not touching. Rex could see her arm trembling slightly.
"This feels wrong," she muttered. "Like something's watching."
Rex swallowed. "Yeah… that's normal."
"That's not comforting."
"Wasn't trying to be."
She shot him a weak smirk, then finally grabbed the plate.
The orb lit up instantly.
A tendril of light snapped out and shot straight under her wrist skin. Lyria screamed—short, raw—then collapsed onto her knees as the glow crawled around her wrist in looping shapes. It tightened, twisted, and formed into a bracelet-like tattoo resembling the creature, the tiny etched body wrapping perfectly around her arm.
Rex froze, not sure whether to help or stay back. It was the first time he'd ever seen someone else go through this. Watching it happen to himself had been terrifying enough—seeing it hit another person was worse.
Lyria sagged forward, panting. Then slumped completely unconscious.
Great.
Rex sat beside her, keeping watch until she stirred.
She woke with a groan. "Feels like someone poured lightning into my veins."
"Yeah," Rex said. "That's about right."
She lifted her wrist and stared at the tattoo. "Is this… normal?"
"Yep. That's your summon now, should be a weapon from what I've gathered."
"A what?"
"The creature. It's inside that tattoo now, my dagger is similar."
"Inside my arm?"
"Yep."
"Rex."
"Yes?"
"Why is there an animal inside my arm?"
He shrugged helplessly. "Magic?"
She groaned again, louder.
"Look on the bright side," Rex said. "You can call it out whenever you want."
"Oh great. Summon the thing that just exploded. Wonderful."
"It only exploded once. Probably won't do it again."
"That's not reassuring at all!"
Rex sat up straighter. "Alright, watch. Just focus on the tattoo. Not hard—just… think about calling it out."
Lyria narrowed her eyes at her wrist. "Come out. Creature. Thing. Whatever you are. Come out."
Nothing happened.
"Okay," Rex said, "that was very authoritative, but try focusing instead of scolding it."
She huffed, then tried again. This time smoke curled out from the bracelet-like tattoo—thin at first, then thicker, swirling on the ground until the tiny creature popped into shape, shaking mist off itself like water.
Lyria gasped. "Oh! Hi! You survived!"
The creature blinked up at her like of course I did.
Rex grinned. "Told you, but I hadn't expected it to just be the creature."
She reached out to touch it—and it dissolved back into smoke.
"Hey!" she snapped. "Don't just leave!"
"You have to keep focus," Rex said.
"Oh so it's stubborn and moody. Wonderful."
She tried again. The creature formed—bigger this time. About the size of a large dog.
"Okay," she said, "that's kind of cute."
"Try concentrating harder," Rex suggested. "See what happens."
She inhaled, stared at the tattoo, and pushed.
Steam billowed out. The cave dimmed. The creature surged larger—twice her height, then larger still until the thing filled half the chamber, bulky and shimmering, easily the size of a pickup truck.
Lyria stepped back, eyes wide. "Okay—okay—stop growing! Stop! Stop! Oh gods—STOP—"
The creature halted, rippling with mist.
Rex just stared with his mouth open.
Lyria circled around it, awe starting to overcome her panic. She ducked underneath the creature—and yelped.
"There's a pouch!" she shouted. "Like a little pocket!"
She poked her head back out, beaming. "Rex. This thing could carry gear. Or me. Riding the currents on this would be so much safer."
Rex laughed. "You go from terrified to enthusiastic very fast."
"Shut up," she said, grinning anyway. "This is incredible."
She placed a hand on the creature's giant snout. "Alright. Back inside."
It dissolved in a swirl of mist and slid back into her wrist, the tattoo settling like a completed loop.
Lyria looked at Rex, still breathless. "Okay… that was actually fun."
"Welcome to the club," he said.
Rex added this account to his knowledge bank concerning the plates and tattoos, only regretting that the orb was used on such an ugly creature.