The fire crackled low, as if it were afraid to make noise.

  I kept staring at the flames. The heat seeped into my goo, making it tremble, but it didn’t hurt. Not like the silver needles. Not like the enchanted iron.

  Rex sat on a stone near the cage. He didn’t look at me. He touched his chest, right where the dagger had pierced Thanatos. He made a small grimace, almost invisible. The scent changed: cold sweat, old metal.

  Ryu remained with his back turned. The staff in his hand did not lower even a centimeter. The blue gem pulsed slowly, like an eye that never blinks.

  they… still… not cutting… yet.

  Rex spoke without raising his voice.

  —If you’re staying here tonight, don’t move too much. I don’t want to clean acid drool off the floor at dawn.

  He tossed something into the cage. A piece of dried meat, hard as old leather.

  I touched it. It dissolved into my surface. It went inside. Less emptiness in the center. But also a sting: the goo bubbled slightly, acid dripped onto the stone. It hissed.

  Ryu turned his head.

  —See? It’s already starting.

  Rex didn’t answer. He just touched his chest again. Harder this time.

  The night stretched on. Ryu didn’t move from his spot. I tried to make myself smaller. The pseudopods retracted on their own whenever I felt his amber eyes on me.

  But the emptiness returned. Nameless hunger. Confusion. The fire, the smell of scales, the metal scent of Rex… everything blended together.

  The goo trembled harder. A pseudopod stretched out without meaning to and touched a bar. Acid. The iron crackled.

  Ryu stood up abruptly. Staff raised. Blue flame burst from the gem, lighting the cave like a cold lightning strike.

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  —I told you! It’s a weapon, Rex. Not a lost puppy.

  Rex rose slowly. He stepped in front. Not completely. Just enough so the flame wouldn’t touch me immediately.

  —It has to control itself. If it can’t, we’ll know now.

  I contracted. Self-inflicted pain. More acid spilled out. It dripped onto the floor, burned a strip of map on the improvised table. The paper blackened, crumbled.

  Ryu stepped forward.

  —Enough. I’ll finish it.

  Rex raised a hand.

  —Wait.

  He touched his chest again. This time the gesture was harsher. As if something were pulling from inside.

  —Damn it… it pulses harder when it destabilizes. —He looked at Ryu—. If you kill it now, I’m stuck with this inside me forever. Thanatos marked me. I felt it when I stabbed him. Something didn’t break.

  Heavy silence.

  Ryu lowered the staff a centimeter. No more.

  —And what if it kills you first? Or me?

  Rex didn’t answer with words. He grabbed an old cloth, wrapped his hand, and opened the cage just enough to slide his arm inside. He grabbed one of my pseudopods. Not hard. Just enough for me to feel the pressure.

  —Back inside. Now.

  I obeyed. Not because I understood. Because of the absence of pain. The pseudopod retracted. The cage closed with a click.

  Rex reinforced the bars with chain and improvised runes he pulled from his pouch. He didn’t look into my eyes.

  —If by tomorrow you can’t do something useful… I’ll sell you to the first bidder. Or I’ll leave you with Ryu.

  Ryu let out a low growl.

  —Don’t wait that long.

  The acid hissed on the floor.

  Something inside me stretched, as if part of a bubble had burst and drifted away. It didn’t hurt. It just… left.

  Rex inhaled sharply. His hand gripped the wound.

  —Again… —he muttered, almost to himself.

  Ryu glanced at him sideways. He didn’t ask.

  Dawn entered through the waterfall. Gray light. Cold.

  I was more compact. Less dripping. But the cage felt smaller than before.

  Rex approached. He pulled out an old dagger, chipped and worn. He tossed it inside.

  —Copy it. Become it. Do something that’s worth something.

  I touched it. I tried. The metal sank slightly into my surface. I formed something: a crooked blade, yellow, trembling. Not perfect. But real.

  Rex looked at it. He didn’t smile. He only nodded once.

  Ryu snorted.

  —Not bad… for a mistake.

  Then: noise outside. Heavy footsteps. Low voices. Someone struck the rock near the cave entrance.

  Rex tightened his jaw. He drew another dagger.

  Ryu stepped beside him, wings half-open.

  Rex looked at me, still inside the cage.

  —Time to decide which side you’re on, little one. If you’re useful against whatever’s coming… maybe I won’t end up cutting you into pieces to sell you.

  The chain clinked when I moved.

  they… danger… me… what?

  (End of Chapter 4)

  Something beats inside the wound.

  Something learns inside the cage.

  And something else… has just found this cave.