Dodger
My palms are sweating. I wipe them on my jeans, taking deep breaths. The boxing ring looks massive and empty from where I stand at its edge, the ropes pressing into my back. The whip feels heavy in my grip, the handle worn smooth from whichever necromancer owned it before me.
Here goes nothing.
I walk toward the center of the ring. One heartbeat. Two. On the third, I crack the whip and it sails through the air with a sharp snap.
The sound echoes through the empty barracks, and for a moment, nothing happens. I try again, channeling my energy toward where I aim the whip. I visualize my energy flowing down my arm, through my fingers, into the braided leather, directing it toward the empty space before me.
“Come on,” I whisper. “Open up.”
Having an audience feels uncomfortable. Getting the passage open takes work. It seems to take forever until there’s a spark—a fleck of purple light. I grunt with the effort and pushmore energy there, the spark widening into a tear that slowly yawns open.
“It’s working,” Marlow whispers excitedly.
The passage stabilizes while I reach out into the void, trying to call a suitable creature to me. I don’t really know what I’m calling for, something strong but capable of, I don’t know, being my friend too? Is that lame? It sounds lame.
I sense something moving on the other side. A presence answering my call.
“Holy shit,” I mutter, taking an involuntary step back. Three heads. It has three heads.
The creature’s front half is pure lion, with rippling muscles beneath a tawny coat and a magnificent mane. And wings, there are wings along with the curve of a serpentine tail for its lower half.
“Whoa, a chimera,” I exclaim. Is this terrifying? Is it captivating? Yes and yes.
“You read Greek mythology?” Harper asks.
“No, but I play video games sometimes.” I take a cautious step closer. “Hey there, buddy. Wanna be my friend?” I extend a tentative hand.
“Absolutely not!” Harper appears at my side in an instant, preventing me from touching the beast. “Too dangerous.”
“Come on, it’s cool!”
He shakes his head. “Gonna need a better reason than that.”
“…It’s really cool?”
“Won’t be so cool when it takes your arm off,” he warns.
“It won’t… it won’t. Will you?” I ask the chimera.
The chimera regards me with an unsettling intelligence, its eyes flicking to my arm and then away. It looks neutral, then tilts its head curiously and eyes my arm again. The chimera licks itslips, like now that we mentioned it, maybe my armwouldmake a tasty meal.
Damn it. Harper’s right. I’m not a snack. Can’t be friends with something that wants to eat me.
I concentrate on sending the chimera back where it came from, cracking my whip and directing it. The chimera retreats into the portal with a low growl, vanishing.
My energy stretches out again into the place between planes, seeking another creature. Something responds to my call. There’s a moment of connection—like a fishing line going taut—and I pull.
“What the—” Harper begins, but his words die as something gets closer on the other side of the passage.
A massive, scaled foot appears, framed by purple light. One foot is all we can see on the other side. All three of us stand frozen, staring up at what I’ve somehow summoned. Staring way up, though I can’t see further than its ankle.
“Oh my god,” I breathe, backing up several steps. “What is it?”
“No idea,” Marlow answers.
Naturally, Harper puts his foot down. “Do I even need to say it? No.”
