• A Little Family Funeral •
At some point, I noticed I had but two nether imps by my side. I could see the slight orange of Fenrir's eyes, and the barely-visible splotches of brown on Eik's chest... but where was Niamae's stumpy tail?
"Caaling."
The golem shuffled heavily to my side. "YES, MASTER?"
"..."
"I APOLOGIZE, MAS- MAVILINTAHK."
"Where is Niamae?
"I LAST SAW NIAMAE IN THE TUNNELS, WITH A FIRM BITE ON GALLIM THE CORRUPTED. SEEING AS HOW HE DID NOT FOLLOW US THROUGH THE PORTAL, IT WOULD BE LOGICAL TO ASSUME HE PERISHED."
I had already come to that conclusion myself, but still, to hear it spoken aloud...
I sighed. Looking around, I spotted a dead stabber pygmy. Targeting it, I uttered the words of power under my breath. The body was consumed in an aura of deep violet. Once it died away, there stood a small figure, about two feet tall. The oversized jaw, hands, and feet gave it a clumsy appearance, while the large yellow eyes and diminutive horns made it look almost cute. The body was a medium purple that faded to an almost-glowing sky blue on the hands, feet, horns, lower jaw, and swishing, cat-like tail.
It blinked owlishly a couple times, then sneezed. Scratching it's nose, it looked around, before fixing its glowing eyes upon me.
"You summon me?"
The voice was high and came out in a squeak. If I was not already used to it, it surely would have caused me to flinch.
"Yes. I am the one who summoned you."
It tilted it's head, and the curious gaze became piercing. Unaffected, I stared steadily back.
A nod. "I be Thir'ehk. I fight now for you!"
I smiled. "Welcome, Thir'ehk, to our little family."
I watched as Fenrir and Eik introduced themselves, my smile fading. How long would our newest member last? My gaze saddened as I remembered all the other imps that came before.
As if sensing my thoughts, Caaling spoke.
"DO NOT SADDEN, MAS- MAVELINTAHK. THEY ARE ALWAYS HAPPY TO FIGHT- AND DIE- FOR YOU."
"I know, Caaling. And that... only makes it worse."
Mav is an alchemist, in case you can't tell.
This happened quite often for me in the game. After a scuffle, I'd look around and see one less imp following me around. So, I summoned another. It made me wonder how doing that in real life would feel. Nether imps always seemed so... childlike to me.