Symbiotic: Chapter 49

Chapter 49

“Hungry? Oh yes yes yes! Belly rumbles! Need foods. Magma treats! Feed me, Mistress! Feed me more and I’ll be the happiest worm ever!”

Sara jumped back, instinctively, before her Mind caught up with the situation. “I… Fluffy?… You can understand me? Wait. You can Talk?!?!”

“Ohhh! Talking! I didn’t know I could do this! It feels like wagging my tail inside your head! Do you like it? I like talking to you. You’re my favorite voice, my favorite warmth, my favorite everything, Mistress!”

Sara laughed, but then shook her head. “Yeah. No. Let’s just cut one thing off right now. Mistress just doesn’t work for me. I like talking to you as well, Fluffy. But I am Sara, not Mistress. Ok?”

“Ok, Mistr…. Sara. Sara is Sara. Of course Sara is Sara! Fluffy get treats?”

Sara laughed. How could she do otherwise as she watched Fluffy, a 5 foot long stone and magma, weighing near half a ton, Greatworm did its best version of a tail wagging dog.

“Ok, ok. Let’s get you some snacks, Fluffy.” Sara consulted her mental map of the Volcano from scanning for creatures via the Control Shard. “I believe there were some Lava Piranha’s in a nearby cavern. Let’s go check!”

Sara stood and began making her way around the edge of the Magma lake towards a tunnel exit on the far side.

“Oh boy! Lava Piranha’s… My Favorite!”, Fluffy roared enthusiastically in her head despite Sara knowing full well she, and therefore he, had never heard of Lava Piranhas’ before an hour ago.

Carefully skirting wide around the constantly melting and cooling obsidian shore of the Magma lake, Sara’s heart leapt into her throat as Fluffy, without a moment’s caution, dived straight into the magma and began swimming across. Easily beating Sara to the other side of the cavern, Fluffy launched itself out of the lake and, with a vibrating rumble, shook cooling magma into a hail of shards around them as they ‘dried off’.

“Gonna be the death of me.”, Sara muttered as she raced to catch up.

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Sara guided Fluffy down into another chamber, the air thick with heat and the glow of a bubbling magma lake filling the cavern. The molten surface rippled and popped, casting fiery reflections across the stone walls.

She crouched beside her companion, voice firm but gentle.

“Listen carefully, Fluffy. The Lava Piranhas are dangerous. Aim for the edges of the school, go around. Only go after the ones that are alone, don’t rush in. They’re fine in small numbers, but in a school they’ll swarm. If you get into trouble or feel scared, you run straight to me. Understand?”

Fluffy’s molten eyes blinked wide and earnest. They nodded vigorously, tail thumping against the stone. Through the bond, their thoughts tumbled like a happy puppy’s:

“Go around. Eat alone. Dangerous in big groups. Run to Sara if scared. Got it! Got it!”

Sara smiled faintly, reassured. “Good. Safety Third! Now… go get some piranha treats.”

The words had barely left her lips before Fluffy launched themselves into the magma with a splash, ignoring every warning. Their long body cut through the molten currents like a dart, straight into the heart of a writhing school of Lava Piranhas.

At first, they managed to gulp down a few before the swarm realized they was there. Then the school turned, dozens of razor finned predators darting in from every angle. Their crystalline fins slashed, their bites snapped, and Sara’s heart lurched.

Through the bond came a flood of telepathic cries. High pitched, frantic, echoing in her mind. She raced to the lake’s edge, ready to dive headfirst into the magma to save him.

But then she froze.

The cries weren’t pain. They weren’t fear. They were laughter.

“Tickles! Tickles tickles tickles! They’re tickling me, Sara! Hahaha! Ohhh this is my Favorite!”

Sara pressed a hand to her chest, forcing her heartbeat to slow. She muttered under her breath, half to herself, half to the memory of her parents:

“…If I ever made you worry like this, I’m sorry.”

Meanwhile, Fluffy wriggled gleefully in the magma, snapping up piranhas between bursts of telepathic giggles. They joy radiated through the bond, filling Sara’s mind with warmth and bubbling laughter.

“This is the Best Day Ever! My Favorite!”

Sara shook her head, half exasperated, half smiling despite herself. Her companion was reckless, ridiculous… and, seemingly, near indestructible.

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Sara stood at the edge of the magma lake, arms crossed, watching as Fluffy gleefully darted through the molten currents. The school of Lava Piranhas had been reduced to less than a quarter of its former size, their crystalline fins scattering like sparks in the water.

“Fluffy,” she called firmly through the bond, “Come back now.”

The hatchling’s thoughts tumbled back, stubborn and playful:

“But… more snacks! More tickles! More fun!”

Sara sighed, steadying her voice. “If you eat them all now, then there won’t be any left for later. I promise I’ll find you more to feed on.”

There was a pause, a ripple of reluctant thought. Then Fluffy surfaced, magma dripping from their stone veined scales, eyes glowing with mischief. As they slithered out of the lake, Sara caught the flicker of a guilty spark, and a tailfin disappearing down their throat. Fluffy had “snuck” one last Lava Piranha snack on the way out.

Sara shook her head, half amused, half exasperated. “One more. Just one. You’re impossible.” She chuckled even as she studied Fluffy closely. Had he already grown? She could swear he was shorter length when they got here.

She closed her eyes, consulting the mental map granted by the Volcano Control Shard. The caverns nearby pulsed with faint sparks of life. She recalled the clusters of Corelings and the scuttling Magmites deeper in the tunnels.

“Come on,” she said, gesturing. “Let’s go see the Corelings.”

They moved through the winding tunnels until the chamber opened into a glowing vent where several Corelings clustered, their molten bodies pulsing faintly with unstable energy.

Sara crouched beside Fluffy, her tone serious. “Listen carefully, Fluffy. These Corelings need to grow into Elementals. They’ll help guard the Core Crystal for us. We Need them. You must not eat them.”

Fluffy’s molten eyes blinked wide, their thoughts bubbling with curiosity:

“Not eat. Not eat. Guard crystal. Help us. Got it!”

Sara softened her voice. “But you can play with them. And if they want, you can even take some to the main Control Crystal cavern and put them in the magma lake there. That will help them grow faster.”

Fluffy’s spark flared with excitement, tail lashing against the stone.

“Play friends! Grow friends! Crystal helpers! Best idea ever!”

The hatchling bounded forward, wriggling happily among the Corelings. The juvenile elementals hissed and sputtered at first, fighting back against the ‘intruder'. But soon their molten sparks resonated faintly with Fluffy’s, drawn to the warmth of Fluffy’s excitement and play.

Sara leaned back against the cavern wall, watching the unlikely play unfold. For the first time, she felt the beginnings of a community forming within the Volcano. Not just her and Fluffy, but the creatures of the volcano itself.

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Sara stood at the edge of the tunnel, arms folded, watching Fluffy wriggle happily in the magma lake. The Corelings clung to their back, bold enough now to ride the hatchling like children on a playful beast. Fluffy’s laughter echoed through the bond, warm and bubbling, until Sara finally called them back.

At first, Fluffy resisted, their thoughts tumbling with joy:

“Play more! Ride more! Friends more!”

But Sara knew the one argument that would win. She leaned forward, voice firm but coaxing. “Fluffy. There’s more treats!”

The Hatchling froze, molten eyes widening. Then, with a delighted wriggle, they bounded to her side, Corelings tumbling off in a shower of hissing sparks.

Sara led them down into the tunnels, the air thick with heat and the faint vibration of movement ahead. She crouched, her voice serious. “Listen carefully. The Magmites will ambush you. They’ll swarm from the walls and the floor. If you get hurt or scared, you run straight to me. Understand?”

Fluffy nodded vigorously, repeating back in their clumsy, cheerful way:

“Ambush! Swarm! Run to Sara if hurt! Got it!”

Sara smiled faintly. “Good. Now… go eat.”

The half ton Hatchling slithered forward, their six foot juvenile body gleaming with molten veins. The tunnels erupted almost immediately—Magmites bursting from cracks in the stone, their jagged bodies glowing faintly with magma energy.

Sara’s breath caught, but she quickly realized the truth: Fluffy was a terrible matchup for them.

The Magmites’ magma based attacks splashed harmlessly against Fluffy’s hide, absorbed into his molten veins. Their claws scraped uselessly against his crystalline armor, which hardened into near impenetrable stone whenever he remembered to focus on defense.

Fluffy’s laughter spilled through the bond as he tore through them, snapping up Magmites like crunchy snacks. “Crunchy! Spicy! More more more!”

Sara let him feast. Magmites were invasive pests, their hives sprawling through the volcano like weeds. She knew the queens deep below could pump out replacements faster than Fluffy, in his current newborn Juvenile form, could ever hope to eat them.

For an hour she watched, carefully but calmly, as her companion decimated wave after wave of ambushes. The tunnels rang with the sound of stone cracking and molten laughter, Fluffy’s joy radiating through the bond.

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Sara’s gaze softened, but her voice carried the weight of duty.

“Fluffy… I need to return to Haven Village. The Volcano must be connected to my Territory, or all of this will mean nothing.”

Fluffy’s molten eyes widened, their thoughts tumbling through the bond in a rush of puppy like excitement:

“Go with you? Or stay here? Play with Corelings! Bring them here! Make them grow! Friends in the big magma lake!”

Sara crouched, resting her hand against their stone warm scales. “If you stay, you must be careful. No wandering too far. No picking fights with Ember Serpents or Ashwing Bats. Eat Piranhas and Magmites if you get hungry. And if you get hurt, or scared, you call for me. Promise?”

Fluffy bobbed their head vigorously, tail lashing against the stone. Their telepathic voice echoed with cheerful repetition:

“Careful! No big fights! Call Sara if hurt! Promise promise promise!”

Sara smiled faintly, though her chest tightened. “Good. Then… go fetch your Coreling friends. Let them grow here. Have fun with your friends.”

The hatchling wriggled with glee, sparks of laughter spilling through the bond. “Best idea! Best day! Friends AND snacks! Thank you, Sara!”

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Sara rose, turning toward the tunnel that would lead her back to Haven Village. Her steps were heavy, her heart reluctant. She muttered under her breath, half prayer, half threat to the System itself:

“If anything happens to Fluffy while I’m gone… I’ll tear this world apart.”

Behind her, Fluffy dove joyfully into the magma lake, Corelings clambering onto their back, riding along as the hatchling wriggled and splashed like a giant, molten puppy. Their telepathic laughter echoed in Sara’s mind, warm and bright, even as distance began to stretch between them.

Sara didn’t look back. She couldn’t. Leaving Fluffy on their own was one of the hardest thing she had done in the Contested Lands so far.

But she would return. And when she did, she hoped to find her companion stronger, happier, and surrounded by friends.

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