He rubbed his eyes again as he turned away from the odd little creature that was using its paws to sandwich the pestle to be able to powder the herbs. It was going to be hard work with feet. I will speak to Resh about those paws later. How did he acquire such an addition? The claws themselves look so odd on the Slime’s body that it looked like that had been stuck on. The texture, colour and structure were entirely different. The paws looked like they had bones, tendons and muscle in them instead of the jelly-like consistency of the rest of Resh’s body. Unless Haemish missed his guess, he would say there was a mashup up of several types of insects to those paws. Perhaps also some Treaber? But that would be a complete assortment of creature parts. The only other part he had seen since their entry into the palace had been its. Or his, I suppose, eyes. Those had a similar insect-like quality but must be less pronounced as if only twenty per cent was insect-based and the rest from other creatures. If Haemish missed his guess, this creature had some unique ability to take part in other animals and add them to itself.

Haemish thought about it for a second and then chuckled and shook his head, something like that. It could kill us all if it wanted, eventually. This creature was tiny now, and the King was a genius if Haemish was right.

At the moment, the harbinger of doom was currently concentrating very hard on making the perfect potion, the picture of an adept student of which any master could be proud. Even though it was weak now and had done nothing to warrant Haemish’s wariness, he sweated a little. Haemish would treat the situation with caution and treat Resh as a student unless further action was warranted.

It was time to speak with the King. “Right, Resh, keep at it. I want a decent potion by the time I get back!”

“Of course, Master!” it was a reflexive reply from the creature but something that made Haemish smile. He really could be a good student. He thought fondly of when he had met Taler, Rion and Marteen six months ago. Yes, having students again was a good thing, and it stopped one from thinking of other less pleasant things.

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“Haemish! Would you drop the formalities! It is bothersome when I have no choice but to put up with it. From you, in my rooms, it is more than I have patience for!” The King spoke on the verge of shouting, and he couldn’t scream, not here, not if he wanted the palace to stay standing.

Haemish stiffed, bracing for the earthquake that followed the raw power of the King. “Your Majesty, we must maintain propriety…” he finally said shakily.

King Borowyn sighed and moderated his tone. “Yes, yes, Haemish, but you have known me for a long time.” Suddenly his looked tired. Very, very tired, Haemish thought. He holds up the Weight of this entire nation. “You will call me by my name when you are with me if you even remember it.” He quirked a humourless smile at Haemish.

“Yes, of course…King Bo-Borowyn.” Haemish bowed slightly. The monstrous man in front of him was more powerful than any other nation. He seemed to sag as though a heavy burden he carried lifted.

“Good, now that that is out of the way. Tell me what you have discovered in these adventures of yours!” The smile was in his words.

“Yes, Si…” Borowyn quirked a brow, and Haemish adjusted on the fly. “Borowyn, that was the reason I wished to speak to you. About that Resh creature that we found. It started with Marteen; he is one of my apprentices. Also, he is a Blacksmith in the city under Scon Landrin. Anyway, I digress.”

Haemish related the weeks of activity leading to Resh’s capture, covering the forest, river, and chase. The whole tale took well over an hour, and four times there were knocks on the door for the King, which he graciously turned away each time. The fifth time someone knocked, it was for food, and Haemish paused in the telling. At the same time, the server arrayed various delicacies on a table. He completed his story while consuming plum tarts, pastries, and many other sweet treats. The King knew what he liked. Then finally as the story wound to its conclusion:

“I believe that this creature could be a critical part of the solution. I do not know for sure but what I am certain of at this time is that I have never seen anything like it in my long life, have you?” The King similarly shook his head at the question. A Sentient Slime monster? Each word pushed the story further into the realm of ridiculous than the last in that tangled combination. Just like the potion I was trying to make before the world exploded in shards of light.

He had been suppressing his disappointment at losing almost all of his life’s work in that explosion. It did no good to dwell on what was lost. Ninety per cent of it could be recovered quickly with a bit of time. However, that final ten per cent, it still hurt, burning in his gut like bile whenever he thought of it, and then Emotional Clarity kicked in, and he calmed once more. He allowed it to do its work before returning his gaze to the man in front of him. He could have stopped the Skill if he had wanted to; it had been decades since he had tried to stop it. Some things were better left buried.

“No, you are correct in that assessment. I am intrigued by it. But you know that just because neither of us has seen something like this, Resh. It does not mean that such a thing cannot exist elsewhere. What is it?”

“From my discussions with him, it is him, by the way, he said so himself. From those discussions, he says that he is a Boss Copycat Slime. I have never heard of it, but that part, Copycat, is self-explanatory, but I am not clear on exactly what it copies. However, from what I see of the creature, it is very likely to do with the various abilities and limbs and other appendages it possesses. I suspect that he can replicate the body parts of creatures it encounters. Meaning it could likely mimic me or you, Your Maj-Borowyn.” He had nearly slipped again.

The King’s eyebrow told Haemish the slip had not gone unnoticed. I talk to him like a King for centuries, and he wants me to switch in the space of an hour? And why is he insisting on this now, after so many years? But Haemish couldn’t stay irritated with the King for long. The possibilities with this creature were too numerous to comprehend.

“Do you believe it to be a threat?”

“He has taken an Oath.”

“No, I mean, do you believe it, or he, poses a threat to the kingdom or anyone in it? Would I be endangering the members of my staff and the people in the city at large if I allow it-him to live?” King Borowyn was looking intently at Haemish, trying to gauge his response with some measure of understanding his emotions.

“Sire, it is hard to tell when this creature will and won’t do. However powerful it may be now and in the future, he has a child-like wonder about the world. I just set him to making potions and-” The King cut him off to get on with it. Haemish tended to waffle a little after all. In the comfortable recesses of his mind, he could accept that, sometimes. “Ahem, yes, as I was saying, he has a wonder for the world and does not seem intent on damage or causing anyone pain.” Haemish took a deep breath and concluded. “His motivations seem to be coming from the right place, about protecting what he believes is right and is his. Again nothing I say is confirmed. It is just my gut. The main objective that this being seemed to have is to get stronger. That is admirable if it can be turned to the country’s gains, right?” The King nodded noncommittally. Haemish suspected the Queen had some plan in play. She always did. There was a reason people call her the spider. Legs in every pie and buried in schemes up to her eyeballs. She would find some use for him, at least. After, Haemish had him trained up a bit.

The King facing Haemish said, “Thank you for the report Haemish. Do not hesitate to let me know if you need anything else.”

“Yes, sir, one final thing I need you to know. I have a Skill that allows me to see other people’s status screens, to get a better idea of the situation. With Resh, it worked, but for some reason, it was all in characters or symbols that I had never seen before. We thought it was because his capture caused some confusion, but it is still affecting him now.” Then Haemish rose and left the King to contemplate the development.