‘You’ve probably been safe at Darkmantle’s Hold as it’sprotected by dead magic rock. If you sleep outside a dead magic orantimagic field they’ll probably attack you in your dreams againand the outcome might not be as good. I’m safe inside this crystalbody as I don’t need to sleep and I’m immune to most magicanyway.’
‘Even if you’re right, what’s this got to do with the creaturethat just attacked me.’ said Miranda a little confused.
‘They haven’t been able to attack either of us because we havebeen shielded. So our enemy has created or recruited some creaturethat can tap into your unconscious mind and use your own nightmaresagainst you while you’re awake.’ said Aquitain.
‘They knew that we would come looking for Bellen so they setup that creature to stop us.’
‘Well it worked. I’m not going in there again until you clearit out.’ said Miranda.
‘If it was that easy Yllandril and I’d do it right now, but Isuspect that it’s both magic resistant and physically tough. Whileit can’t hurt either Yllandril or me magically, it can probablypound us both into dust and we’re too small and weak to harm it. Onthe other hand you’re physically tough enough to beat it but itknows your weak spot.’
‘So how do we beat it!’ asked Miranda.
‘No wait! Let me guess. You’ve got some cunning scheme whereyou’re going to break the rules again, haven’t you. You’re going tocreate a rift in space/time and suck it back into its own dimensionand upset the god of dreamland or something just as bad.
‘Settle down a bit Miranda. I can’t do stuff like that and ifI could, I wouldn’t because it would be certain to upset someonepowerful and I’ve got enough of them after me already. I was goingto suggest we join together to fight it.’
‘What do you mean, together?’ said Miranda suspiciously. ‘Doyou want get into my body again?’
‘No. My love, not in it, on it!’ said Aquitain.
‘I knew it, you’re planning something weird.’ she said but shedid look rather more excited.
‘Weird, yes but very effective; I’ve already tried and testedthis. Take off all your armour and clothes except for the necklace,your rings and earring. I will change the mind clay to be yourarmour, your blade and your mind’s shield. Yllandril can support uswith her magic. Together we’ll be unstoppable.’
Miranda wasn’treally convinced but she was prepared to trust Aquitain enough toat least see what he was going to do. She removed all her gear andheld Aquitain in her right hand above her head as he hadinstructed. The mind clay necklace turned into a golden snake andslithered up her arm to Aquitain where it formed a golden scimitarblade with him as the hilt. The metal then turned to liquid and randown her arm then flowed all over her body until she was totallycovered from the top of her head to the bottom of her feet. An eyeformed in the middle of her forehead and she felt a strange feelingof calm.
‘Ok. It feels impressive but what have you done.’ shesaid.
‘I’ve melded gold coloured metallic snakeskin infused with myspirit with your skin. It is now the ultimate flexible armour. Itshould also allow you to shape change if you need to. The sword ismade mainly of my spirit strengthened with mind clay and you havemy Warden aura protecting you.’
She held outher shiny golden hand to examine her skin and noticed in thereflection of her face showed an extra eye.
‘I’ve grown another eye.’ she said. ‘You never said anythingabout that.’
‘OK. Sorry. You’ve also got another eye in your forehead.That’s for me to see out of. Remember, I’m the handle of the sword.I can’t see very well when I’m in your hand.’
‘I guess that’s okay. You haven’t added anything else haveyou?’
‘Well yes, I gave you an extra nipple and a short tail.’ saidAquitain.
‘What!’ Where are they?’ she said in a panic looking down ather chest and feeling behind her. ‘I can’t see or feelthem.’
‘That’s strange. I was sure I included them, maybe Iaccidentally made them invisible.’ said Aquitain.
‘Okay, okay. You’re very funny.’ said Miranda suddenlyrealizing that he was joking. ‘Now how am I going to see in thedark?’
Aquitain askedYllandril to cast a light spell on Miranda and she lit up the wholeroom like a golden goddess.
‘Anything else you need?’ said Aquitain.
‘No, I think I have everything.’ she said as she picked upYllandril and placed her on her shoulder. Aquitain modified thearmour around Yllandril to grip her legs so that she wouldn’t slideoff and off they went to face the creature.
This time asshe stepped into the tunnel Aquitain could feel Miranda’s heartrate increase substantially. He increased the brightness of thelight coming off her armour so that they could see twenty pacesahead. She walked a hundred paces and the creature became visible.It didn’t seem worried about the light and slowly floated towardsher.
It looked likea cloud of black mist, but random parts of it seemed to turn liquidor solid. As it approached it took on the vague form of a Newman.An arm or leg or some other body part would suddenly coalescebecoming solid for a second or two only to dissipate again.
Miranda stoodstill watching it approach, her heart slowed down to a more normalrate now that she could see it clearly. She showed no fear. Thereason why was that Aquitain’s spirit was spread through the goldmetallic mind clay armour. He had created a pure heart, whichcompletely enclosed her allowing her to have the same protection ashim.
Aquitaincreated an invisible semicircular shield of hardened air in frontof her and they waited. He adjusted the vision of his new eye inMiranda’s forehead eye to be able see spirit auras and examined itclosely. It was a construct but he had never seen anything remotelylike it.
‘What are you?’ asked Aquitain using mindspeak first in commonand then using Draconic and finally mind tokens but he got noresponse, which wasn’t really surprising.
It stoppedabout ten paces from them and a long, slim, dark liquid-lookingpseudopodium shot forward towards Miranda’s head but was stopped bythe air shield.
