Ruger blinked as he studied the fellow before him.
From a Wizard's perspective, this might have some value. Perhaps it could fetch a good price.
Gubo the Mushroom Person swayed, shedding a great many Emotion Spores, seemingly checking on his friend's condition.
Faced with his friend's concern, the wrinkled old face froze for a moment, then took on a strange expression.
"Sometimes even I don't know who I am now. At first, I thought it was hunger," the wrinkled old face said, looking troubled. "My consciousness gets a little hazy from time to time. I seem to have reached some sort of agreement with Wizard Usman. Something I don't really understand brought us into another kind of balance. I can't even sense his existence, yet I'm constantly influenced by him. That shouldn't be possible. Even lower-order fusers can clearly sense the soul and consciousness of the one they fuse with..."
Gubo continued swaying.
Ruger raised an eyebrow slightly. This elderly Wizard Usman was probably a madman too.
The moment Ruger heard the account, he instinctively thought that this Old Wizard, nearing the end of his life and out of options, was using this strange Otherworld Invader to prolong his lifespan. Even a tremendous price, even losing ownership of his body, would not matter. He had nothing left to lose.
Even the lower-order forms of these Otherworld Invaders could fuse with souls, let alone their higher-order counterparts. With their immense life force as well, they could replenish both soul and flesh.
But replenishment meant being fused with. That was the crux of the problem.
Even if the original owner was not digested and absorbed after the fusion, even if the fuser did not rush off to seek its next prey and simply kept occupying that shell, it still meant another kind