"So good to move again," it rasps in the unfortunately all too familiar voice. "So, Master, you have finally taken my generous offer and sought out the place of true power… " That sentence seems to linger in the air around the Kadie. And those beady little eyes of the vermite crouching in the hallway seem to bore into Aiken's skull…

Aiken backs away against the wall of rubble, holding his lantern out like a warding totem. "Y-you stay back… or I'll… I'll smack you with this here fire!"

"I'm trembling. Look at me tremble," the vermite snipes. He even lifts up one of his left legs and shakes it a bit. "I suppose you forgot I'm made from obsidian? It is glassy rock formed from extreme heat. Why do you still refuse your destiny?"

"The only destiny I got is gettin' out of here!" The squirrel swirls to face the rubble pile, and starts scrabbling at it frantically with his claws. "You ain't gettin' me to do no deathy-spell stuff!"

"Who said anything about spells? I have no intention of getting you to do any spells … right now, anyway," the vermite chitters and starts walking towards the Kadie. Aiken finds out, much to his horror, that his claws don't do much against that massive rock pile. The vermite only adds to that with a comment of, "You look very silly doing that."

Now panting in exhaustion and frustration, the Kadie spins to face the vermite, but presses hard against the rubble pile. Slowly, he begins to inch towards the wall, then presses against it – all the while keeping the vermite as far away as possible. "Then what're you gonna make me do?" He pulls his tail up in front of him, as if to shield him from the little beast, and inches further down the corridor. Maybe there's a way out down there.

"Well, I would like to finish the binding … but you keep being such a baby about it. It's only a small part of your soul I require, but I suppose you still won't part with it," the vermite hisses as he follows Aiken's movements. This time the little critter at least keeps a reasonable distance. "So, if you won't finish it, then would you at least be willing to release me from the contract? We will have to go to the hall of the Vermite King to do that, of course."

Aiken eyes the vermite dubiously, but seems to lose a bit of tension. "Does that mean you'll leave me be? If so, then show me where it is."

click-click-click go the eight legs. "I am beginning to think you do not like me," the creature hisses as it starts down the hallway. "Am I so terrible? What evil have I done to you?"

With a startled blink, Aiken quickly trots off down the hall after the little beast. "Are you for real? You want a piece o' my SOUL! If that ain't evil, then I'm a Khatta!" The squirrel holds his tail like a security blanket, still bristled slightly by the vermite. "And you used to work for that death mage guy – that's pretty evil!"

The vermite pauses, then turns around and looks at Aiken. "Tell me one thing your soul has done for you lately", it commands.

Aiken nearly trips as he comes to a full stop. "Well… it's my soul! It doesn't have to do a thing – it's me!"

"Is it? Prove that," the vermite requests. "You can't, can you?"

Aiken backs away a step. "Well, you can't prove that it ain't! So get to walkin' and let's get this over with!"

"You know, if you would just let me nibble … you would find out it's quite enjoyable to have a familiar," the vermite offers. "I could be anything you desired."

"I got everything I desire back home," the squirrel says, beginning to make a wide circle around the little monster. "You got other people you could nibble, don'tcha? Why me?"

"Because you woke me up. You started the contract," the vermite reminds Aiken and starts down the hallway again. "I thought perhaps you would change your mind … but your limited intellect can't see beyond your town. So, we must go to the hall and beg the Vermite King to void the contract."

"Wait, we have to ask this 'Vermite King'?" Aiken's tail bristles out. "I thought 'Hall of the Vermite King' was just a fancy name – like 'House of Ale and Wine' or something!"

"That would be silly. Of course we have to ask the Vermite King. I hope you are good at groveling," the vermite notes as he heads ever deeper into the tunnel. The air grows more stale … and the walls seem to close in a bit more. Carved all along them is some sort of writing in an unknown language. Every now and then the writing is broken by strange caricaturesque statues of vermites.

The Kadie starts shivering openly now, but still continues on – what choice does he have? "W-Well… why would he care? What does he get out of it? What do YOU get out of it? Dagh, I didn't even know I was SIGNIN' a contract!"

"Because people who beg are at least amusing?" the vermite offers. Up ahead, Aiken can hear the faint chittering sounds of other vermites.

Now forcing each step, Aiken begins to ponder turning tail and taking his chances with the collapsed wall. "So is he some kind of huge vermite or something?"

"That would be silly. He was from the great isle Aeztepa once, so very long ago now. One of the spotted that speaks," the vermite answers. "After years of study, he learned how to graft himself with the vermites, to control and use them."

"So why don't you graft to him instead of me," Aiken says, sticking his tongue out at the familiar while padding a few steps behind. "Seems like he'd be more fun than me anyhow."

"We've been over this. You woke me," the vermite reminds him. Ahead the chittering grows louder.

"Well, who made the Dagh-blasted 'contract' anyroad?" The squirrel's heart sinks as the chittering intensifies, and the rodent can't help but grind his own teeth in worry.

"He did. You can ask him about it," the vermite notes. Just up ahead the hallway seems to end. Beyond it is a room filled with thousands of red eyes. "And don't worry, they won't eat you since you are with me… "

Aiken freezes, his eyes going as wide as saucers. "Th-that's the place? In there?"

The vermite says, "Yes. Come along if you really want to end the contact. Or … you can let me nibble your soul, complete it, and we can live the rest of our lives together. Your choice."

Aiken glares at the vermite. Taking a deep breath, he puffs out his narrow squirrelly chest, and marches towards the cavern. Of course, he swallow hard several times too. "Let's get to groveling then."

Hall of the Vermite King
The vast hall of the Vermite King is shrouded in darkness. Only the small glow of thousands of beady vermite eyes offer any illumination of this place. The ceiling is far above and masked in darkness. The only evidence of a ceiling at all are the huge pillars that rise up into that darkness to support it. At the far end of this chamber sits a throne. Upon that throne sits someone draped in decaying rags.

"And there he sits. Is not his kingdom glorious?" Aiken's vermite 'partner' asks as they walk into the room and slowly towards the throne ahead. "All hail the Vermite King!" it shouts. Around them the chittering grows into a roar!

The squirrel winces at the loud chittering, and looks up to the throne at the bandaged figure. "So… he's the guy with the sprained… body?" The rodent tugs at his collar. "Um, good eve, sir… "

The figure on the throne says nothing. But … at least the din of the chittering fades back into background noise.

Aiken remains silent, waiting for the reply. After a while he begins to fidget a bit. "Um, is he okay?" he whispers to the vermite.

"Move closer," the vermite suggests, "He may be asleep."

Aiken looks at the vermite suspiciously, but then takes a few cautiously nervous steps towards the throne. "Um… 'scuse me… sir? Can you hear me?"

As Aiken grows closer, he gets the feeling that something is wrong. This feeling only grows worse when he sees below the hood of rags … and stares into the empty sockets of a feline skull. The figure on the throne is dead.

Aiken gives a piercing squeak of shock, and leaps backwards several feet. "He's… he's dead!" The squirrel spins to face the vermite, his face full of anger. "You can't grovel to a dead man! You tricked me!"

"Well, I had to get you here," the vermite hisses as it heads towards Aiken. In fact, all of the beady eyes in the room start to close in. Some have already blocked the passage they came in through. "For it is time that you take up your new mantle … Vermite King." The vermite then does something unexpected … it somehow manages to bow.

Aiken freaks. Seeing the passageway out is blocked, he quickly turns to the throne and scrabbles up it – over the corpse of the feline and onto the chair's back. He chitters angrily in response to the pests. "I ain't your king! Quit… quit bowin'!"

The skeleton crumbles forward and collapses into a pile of bones and chitin. From this vantage point Aiken can see that the feline had vermite legs growing out of his sides. Of course, the fact his sides have started to itch like crazy probably doesn't do anything to calm him down. "Relax, o' Great One," his escort hisses, "Please, sit in your throne. We will attend to your every desire. We have kept the Vermite King's harem alive with only the most beautiful vermites, of course."

Aiken scratches at his side, and starts to become desperate. Leaping from the throne, he sprints to where the passage was blocked by the vermite horde, and begins to claw his way through. "I'm not yer king! LemmeoutlemmegogetouttamywayIdon'twannabeavermite!"

It's like trying to swim through a chittering mass of pudding. Soon Aiken is lost in a seat of chitinous bodies and red eyes.

As he struggles forward, the sides of his shirt start to split and pointed limbs begin pushing their way through…

Heart beating a million miles a minute and his breath hyperventilating, the squirrel continues to push forward. At the sight of his new limbs, he gives out a small cry, and curls up in a ball. "No! This isn't happening!"

The ball of squirrel sinks into the mass of vermites. He feels them pressing … rubbing … up against the Kadie. Everything goes dark … and the chittering suddenly just stops. Silence, blessed silence, falls and for what seems like an age … cradles the Kadie. And then he feels something patting him on the cheek and faintly hears a voice asking, "Are you all right?"

Still squeezing hard into a ball, Aiken cautiously opens an eye at the source of the voice. He doesn't say a word, however, and keeps shivering.

That one eye finds itself staring into Sylvania Jack's rather concerned Akwavi face. "Ah, there you are. Had me worried. You took quite a nasty knock on your noggin when a few of the ceiling stones gave way," he says and taps the top of his hat. "You've been out for hours."

Slowly, the squirrel uncurls from his bushy squirrel-ball, and looks around. Remembering something, he then frantically starts patting at his sides, feeling for the tale-tale signs of extra limbs. "How long was I trapped behind the rubble?"

No extra limbs stick out from his sides. "What rubble? A few blocks fell from the ceiling and knocked you completely out. But … thankfully the whole thing didn't give way, eh?" Jack explains as he tries to get Aiken to sit up. "Midge is outside making some food for when you finally woke up. So … I'm guessing you must have had one Dagh of a dream given all the weird noises you've been making. And oh, you don't need t' worry about my little treasure. Found 'em just down the hall and he's happily back in his box."

Aiken looks confused for a long while, then looks at Jack worriedly at mention of the 'treasure'. "Keep that Dagh-blasted thing under lock and key!" Getting to his feet, the squirrel utters a few curses in Skeek, and heads back to the main entrance. "After we're done eating, let's go down that hallway. I need to be sure of something before we go anywhere else."

"You know, vacations are supposed to be relaxing," Jack calls after Aiken as he gets to his feet to follow. Muttering to himself, he says, "Kadies. They're all crazy."

Fresh air never smelled so good. It smells like … cake! Light still streams in from the doorway as Aiken heads back to the surface. Aside from a bit of a sore head, everything feels all right. Hopefully food will help him find calm and wash away the terrible nightmare he just had. Even now it seems to be fading from his mind … except for that annoying itch on both of his sides.