Sophie dropped from the jagged hole in the wall and landed on a rusted steel platform below. The impact jarred her small frame, and her knees buckled. She wobbled toward a dark corner where she collapsed onto her elbows. Her breath came in ragged gasps. The encounter with the Spider-Corroder and the fall into the liquid rust had drained her. She needed to recharge.
A faint scuttling sound alerted her senses.
Click-clack.
She lifted her head wearily. A Flak-Crab climbed up a vertical pole nearby.
Sophie watched it for a moment, then looked away.
"Not interested."
She ignored the creature and started digging through the debris on the floor with her bare hands.
"Food. I need food."
She pushed aside metal shavings and chunks of concrete until her fingers brushed something soft and cool in the dirt.
She pulled it out. It was an earthworm, thick and wriggling. Part of its body was crusted with red Rust, but Sophie didn't care. Her hunger was a beast that demanded feeding.
She tossed the worm into her mouth and swallowed it whole.
Gulp.
"Kuh-kuh."
She coughed as the grit scratched her throat. It wasn't enough. The hunger pangs only intensified.
"Aidro, help me dig. Please."
The blue lizard scurried over and began to tear at the earth with its metallic claws. Together, they excavated the corner of the platform. Dirt flew in small arcs behind them.
Both of them were digging, unaware that the scratching noise was attracting something from the shadows above.
Scritch-scratch.
Sophie's eyes lit up.
"Got one!"
She pulled another worm from the soil. She ate it quickly, savoring the faint metallic tang.
"I'm going to kick that spider out of my dream soon, Aidro. Just you wait. Once I'm full, I'm going back for Mom."
Aidro chirped and uprooted a prize. He held up a massive worm. This one had no Rust on it. It was pink, fat, and juicy.
Sophie's mouth watered.
"Oh, that looks perfect."
She took the worm from him. She hovered it above her open mouth, anticipating the burst of energy.
Just as she prepared to drop it down the hatch, a blur of motion slammed into her from the side.
WHAM.
"Aaagh!"
The impact launched her off the platform. She fell from a significant height. She crashed through a lattice of rusted pipes and bounced off a suspended walkway.
Bang. Clang. Thud.
She hit the floor of the lower level hard.
"Oww..."
Sophie screamed in pain. She had never been this hurt before in her life. Her vision swam with tears.
She looked down at herself. Cuts and scrapes covered her arms and legs. Blood oozed from a gash on her forehead and trickled into her eye.
She forced herself to stand on trembling legs. She looked at her own blood on her hands.
"Why? Why am I bleeding?"
She checked her skin. It was pink and vulnerable.
"Why didn't my Dream Armor activate? Is it because I'm hungry? Or because I was distracted?"
Aside from the failure of her powers, anger boiled up.
"What the heck crashed into me?"
She looked around for the culprit. Aidro was already reforming nearby, his liquid body pulling together from the splash of the fall.
THUD.
A heavy object landed behind her. The floor vibrated.
Sophie turned.
A monster stood there. It was a Decayer, but it looked like a nightmare fusion of a porcupine and a cactus. Its body was covered in long, sharp spikes that protruded in every direction. At its center, a red Rust Core spun wildly, generating a low hum.
"A Cactupine?"
The beast didn't wait for introductions. It shook its body violently.
Thwip-thwip-thwip.
Several spikes shot out from its hide like missiles.
"Move!"
Sophie dove behind a stack of crates.
Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.
The spikes slammed into her cover. They punched through the thick wood as if it were paper. One spike pierced the crate inches from her nose.
"I can't stay here!"
She scrambled to her feet and ran.
"I can't catch a break! This nightmarish dream is getting harder the longer I sleep!"
She sprinted through the maze of debris.
"I need to regain my strength, but first I have to escape!"
She climbed up the side of a shipping container and dashed onto a rusted catwalk.
The Cactupine Decayer gave chase. It moved with a rolling, loping gait. It fired large, deadly needles as it ran.
Zip. Slash.
One needle scraped her cheek, leaving a stinging line of fire.
Thwack.
Another impaled her right arm.
"AHH!"
Sophie screamed but didn't stop. She yanked the spike out as she ran, leaving a trail of blood.
She didn't know where to run to. The labyrinth seemed endless.
Then she saw a blue flicker ahead.
Aidro stood on a high pipe. He waved his tail frantically.
"Aidro!"
She understood. The lizard was trying to lead her somewhere.
She followed him. She jumped over piles of scrap and slid across slick metal platforms.
She reached a small, jagged hole in the wall just as the Decayer closed in.
"Please fit, please fit!"
She didn't know where the hole led, but she dove in headfirst.
Thwip-thwip.
Spikes missed her boots by mere inches and embedded themselves in the wall around the opening.
The Decayer stuck its head into the hole. It gnashed its teeth and tried to force its bulk through, but the opening was too small. It roared in frustration and backed out.
Sophie slid down a steep chute.
Whoosh.
She dropped face-first into a mound of soft, dusty earth.
Pouf.
She coughed and spat dirt. She rolled over and looked around. She was in a narrow space surrounded by walls of packed mud and rust. The only way out was back up the chute she had just descended.
"Safe. I'm safe."
The Ruster couldn't reach her here. She could breathe in peace.
Thwip.
A single spike flew out of the chute opening. It struck the ground next to her head.
"Eep!"
Sophie dove into the corner and hid behind a rock.
She waited. No more spikes came.
"Damn that Ruster! It almost took my head off!"
She noticed movement beside her. Aidro nudged her hand with his snout.
"Aidro."
She picked the lizard up and hugged him against her chest.
"Thank you for leading me here. You are the best brother."
She looked up at the chute.
"Now we just have to wait until it leaves. I hope it isn't too long. I am so hungry."
She looked at her arm. The wound was bleeding freely.
She tore a strip of cloth from the hem of her tunic. She winced as she tied it tight around her bicep to stop the flow.
Rumble.
Suddenly, the mud mound she had fallen onto in the center of the room began to swell.
"What now?"
The mound burst apart.
Skitter-skitter.
Dozens of small, lizard-like Rotters erupted from the earth.
"AAAAH!"
Sophie screamed and huddled deeper into her corner.
But the Rotters didn't attack. They squealed in terror and huddled in the opposite corner, pressing themselves against the mud wall as far away from her as possible.
Sophie blinked.
"These little ones... they fear me for some reason."
She looked at Aidro, then at the swarm.
"Hey Aidro, they look just like you. But their stomachs are orange, and yours is blue."
Her stomach roared.
"Do you think I can eat them?"
Desperation overrode disgust. She lunged forward and caught one of the slow lizards.
She tried to bite into its midsection.
Crunch.
"Ow!"
The metal was too hard to chew. Her teeth ached.
"Useless!"
She squeezed the lizard. Orange liquid Rust oozed from its joints. She tilted her head back and let the fluid drip into her mouth.
She swallowed.
"Blech!"
She gagged and spat.
"It tastes awful! Like battery acid and dirt! I can't eat this!"
She tossed the crushed Rotter away.
The lizard hit the ground. Immediately, tiny scraps of metal from the floor attracted to it. It reformed its body in seconds.
Once whole, it scurried away frantically and hid behind the other Rotters. It shivered in fear.
Sophie slumped against the wall.
"Great. Starving and trapped."
She became frustrated as she thought of ways to defeat the Cactupine without her Dream Armor.
"I can't punch it. It has spikes. I can't get close."
She tapped her chin.
"Maybe I can recharge by draining its core, like I did with the dog. But to do that, I need to touch the core. And the core is in the middle of all those needles. Maybe if I use a Flak-Crab? I could throw it."
She shook her head.
"But that Cactupine attacks from a distance. If it shoots the crab while I'm holding it... I'll blow up. And I don't have my armor to save me."
She paced the small space.
"And an explosion might attract the Corroder. That would be game over."
"What to do? What to do?"
A small spark in the corner of her eye caught her attention.
She looked over.
Aidro was interacting with the swarm of orange Rotters. The lizards didn't fear him. They circled him curiously.
"Aidro, what are you doing? Are you chatting up new friends?"
Sophie sighed.
"That's just like you. Always so chatty, even in the midst of this chaotic nightmare."
Aidro moved closer to Sophie. The army of lizards followed him in a synchronized wave.
Sophie sat up straighter.
"Whoa."
She watched as Aidro made a series of sharp gestures with his tail and head. The lizards mimicked him. They lined up in rows.
"Aidro... are you commanding them?"
Aidro demonstrated. He moved to the scared lizard that Sophie had crushed earlier. He stabbed it gently with his blue tail tip.
Zap.
Sparks flew. The orange glow in the lizard's belly flickered and turned a faint blue. It fell under Aidro's command instantly. It bowed its head.
"Wow. That is amazing."
Sophie grinned. A plan formed.
"Do you think we could somehow use these little lizards to defeat that Cactupine? Like a shield?"
Aidro climbed onto Sophie's shoulder. Then he let out a high-pitched signal.
SCREEE.
The hundreds of other lizards swarmed. They climbed up Sophie's legs.
"Hey! That tickles!"
They covered her body. They locked their metallic limbs together. They formed a shifting, living suit of armor made of scrap and lizard.
Aidro positioned himself at the center of her chest. He glowed blue, acting as the heart of the suit.
Sophie looked at her arms. They were bulky and plated with wriggling metal.
"It isn't as strong as my chrome skin, but this should work against those spikes."
She punched her palm.
"Alright! Let's go defeat that Ruster and take its core!"
...
Sometime later, outside the chute.
Sophie lay prone atop a shipping container. She was encased in her armor of lizards. She looked down at the area below.
The Cactupine Ruster patrolled on a beam. It swiveled its body, searching for the prey that had escaped it.
"Hey, ugly!"
Sophie stood up. She clamped her fist.
"Surprise!"
She leaped down like a superhero.
She caught the Ruster by surprise.
WHAM.
She landed a massive punch on its dorsal spine.
The impact was heavy. The lizards forming her gauntlet shattered and fell away, but the force drove the Cactupine off the beam.
Sophie grabbed onto the Ruster as they fell.
CRASH. BANG.
They smashed through several obstacles. Metal pipes bent and snapped. They hit the ground hard.
The Ruster recovered first. It knocked Sophie away with a swing of its spiked body.
Sophie crashed into a wall.
CRUNCH.
The lizard armor on her back shattered. The Rotters scattered, stunned or broken.
Sophie coughed. She spat blood onto the floor.
"This one is tough. That fall didn't even damage it."
Thwip.
A spike shot at her head.
Sophie jerked to the side. The spike embedded in the wall where her ear had been.
She rolled behind a pile of scrap metal to hide.
"I'm losing my armor fast!"
The Ruster rushed over. It rammed into her hiding spot with the force of a truck.
CLANG.
The scrap pile exploded. Sophie dove to the other side and rolled. Without her full armor, she was exposed. She had to be careful not to get impaled.
The Ruster swung its tail.
SMACK.
It smashed her against the side of a container.
Sophie gasped for air. She slumped against the metal.
The Ruster prepared to fire a volley of spikes at point-blank range.
Sophie raised her hand to defend her face and shut her eyes.
"This is gonna hurt!"
Thwip.
She felt a prick in her arm, but no massive impact.
She opened her eyes.
A wall of lizards hovered in front of her. They had detached from her legs and formed a floating shield. A huge hole was visible in the center where the spike had burst through, barely grazing her arm.
"Aidro!"
She thanked him silently.
Aidro chirped. He dashed toward the Ruster. He climbed up its leg, and the remaining swarm of lizards followed him.
They swarmed the Cactupine. They jammed their bodies into its joints. They bit at its spikes.
The Ruster thrashed. It tried to shake them off, but its mobility was impeded.
"Hold it steady!"
Sophie saw her chance.
She slid across the ground and picked up a sharp, jagged piece of metal plating.
She spun and launched herself at the Ruster.
"Hiyah!"
She stabbed the metal shard into its head from above. She put all her weight behind it and pinned the beast to the ground.
The Ruster became agitated. Its core spun to maximum velocity.
HUMMMM.
It released a repelling pulse.
BOOM.
All its spikes shot out in every direction at once. It was a fragmentation grenade of needles.
Sophie quickly reached for a scrap shield on the floor to protect herself.
CLANG-CLANG-CLANG.
The spikes hammered against the shield as she was blasted backward by the force.
Aidro was not so lucky. He was impaled by a large spike.
"Aidro!"
He shattered against a container. His blue liquid splattered.
The lizard legion scattered instantly. Their leader was gone. They reverted to mindless scavengers and fled into the cracks.
Sophie skidded to a halt. She tossed the shield aside.
She saw the Ruster's core exposed in its open chest cavity. It was vulnerable while it regenerated its spikes.
"Not this time!"
She didn't give it a chance to recover. She dashed ahead.
She rammed the Ruster like a battering ram.
It skidded back.
Sophie fisted her hand into the Ruster's gut. She felt the heat. She grabbed the red core and yanked.
RIP.
She pulled it out. She hopped away quickly in retreat.
Sophie stood panting. She was bloody all over. Blood covered her face, her arms, her legs. It soaked the core in her hand.
She noticed metal scraps on the floor starting to vibrate. They were attracted to her.
"No, stay away!"
She backed away, trying to absorb the essence from the core.
She squeezed it. She shook it.
"Absorb! Please absorb!"
Nothing happened. The chrome skin did not appear.
"Why isn't it working? Last time it did!"
She didn't want to smash this thing. It was her only hope of getting her energy back. But the scraps were catching up to her.
She tried everything. She pressed the core against her chest.
"Heart, eat it! Please!"
Still nothing.
Then, a strong force tugged on her arm.
"Whoa!"
The core was being pulled back into the Ruster. The magnetic link was too strong.
She tried to fight it, but her hands were slick with her own blood.
Slip.
The core flew out of her hand.
It slammed back into the Ruster's chest.
CLICK-HUM.
It vibrated violently. It discharged power that brought the Ruster back to life.
The monster stood up. It looked more menacing than before. New spikes grew instantly, longer and sharper.
It positioned several spikes to shoot at Sophie.
Sophie's legs failed her. She fell to her knees.
She was completely exposed.
"Well."
She thought death was about to take her.
But she smiled.
"If I die in my dream, then I am going to wake up in the Biome. I'll be in Mom's arms."
She looked the monster in the eye.
"This dream was a nightmare. But at least I got to kick some Ruster butt."
The Ruster prepared to release the thorns.
It stumbled.
"Huh?"
It fell forward.
The core spasmed strangely. The red radiance flickered and died. It turned a deep, pulsating blue.
The monster went immobile.
Sophie tilted her head.
"What is going on? Why is it blue?"
She waited, thinking the Ruster was playing dead. But it remained still.
She crawled over cautiously. She reached in and yanked out the blue core.
ZAP.
The core sparked in her grasp.
Chrome started to appear across her hand. It spread up her arm. The absorption process commenced instantly.
"Oh! Now it works!"
While absorbing the core energy, small pieces of scrap metal floated over her wounds. They merged into her chrome skin before fading into healthy pink flesh. The cuts sealed. The pain vanished.
"It's healing me."
The absorption finished. The core crumbled away into grey dust.
Sophie stood up. She flexed her arms.
"I feel... different."
She felt that her Dream Armory had evolved.
She noticed blue liquid pooling nearby. Aidro was reforming.
He ran over to her and chirped.
Sophie knelt and hugged him.
"Thank you, Aidro. You saved my life so many times. You are a true lifesaver."
She smiled broadly.
A glimmer at the corner of her eye startled her.
"Gah!"
She jumped back.
A floating spike hovered in the air next to her head.
"Is it back alive?"
She looked at the Ruster's body. It was lifeless metal.
She moved to the left. The spike followed her. She moved to the right. It followed.
"Why is that floating spike following me?"
She stopped and turned back.
"What's with that spike? Do you know, Aidro?"
She got closer and inspected it. She felt a strange sensation in her mind, a tugging feeling.
When she reached out to touch the spike, it floated up around her hand, orbiting her fingers.
"Wait."
Her eyes widened.
"Am I controlling this? Is this a new ability I've awakened?"
She noticed more spikes lying on the ground nearby. She reached out her hand from a distance.
"Come here."
Nothing happened.
She walked closer. When she got within two meters, the needle spikes shuddered and floated up to meet her.
"Aha! I have to be close."
She grinned.
"I'll call it... 'Dream Touch'."
She started to experiment.
"Can I only control spikes? Or other things?"
She focused on a stone below her.
"Up."
The stone sat there.
She picked it up with her hand and tried to make it float. It fell to the ground.
"Nope. No rocks."
She saw a piece of rotting wood sticking out of the earth. She tried to grasp it with her mind.
Nothing.
She saw a metal scrap—a piece of the Ruster's armor.
"Up."
It floated to her effortlessly.
"I get it. I can only attract metals affected with Rust."
Sophie continued to experiment with Dream Touch. She focused mainly on the spikes, since she could use them as weapons.
"How many can I hold at once?"
She laid out ten spikes before her. Two were large, a foot and a half long. Three were eight inches long but very thick. Five were small six-inch needles.
She tried to lift all of them.
Her head hurt. The bigger ones wobbled but didn't rise. The smaller ones flew to her.
"Okay. Too heavy."
She dropped the big ones. She focused on the five needles and the three thick spikes.
They floated.
"It's about density," she realized. "If I lift big stuff, I can't lift much. If I lift small stuff, I can lift more."
She tried to lift a huge metal frame nearby. She strained her mind until her nose bled. It only shook.
"Too dense for Dream Touch right now."
Sophie was amazed by what she learned, but she felt tired suddenly.
"Using my dream powers makes me hungry."
She realized she would have to hunt down another Ruster and absorb its core to re-energize eventually.
But first, she had an idea.
She looked at the dead Ruster.
"I think I know why the core turned blue. My blood."
She looked at her healed arm.
"When I was bleeding on it... my blood changed the Rust."
She gathered the ten spikes she had selected.
She ran into a nearby shipping container and rummaged through the debris of the old era.
"Come on, come on. Needs to be sturdy."
She pulled out a bundle of old, rot-resistant synthetic clothes.
Riiip.
She tore the fabric into strips. She braided them into a strap and a belt.
She attached the two large spikes to the strap, which she slung around her shoulder.
She stuck the three thick spikes into her waist belt like daggers.
Then, she carefully tied up her wild hair into a bun and stuck the five needles through it like hairpins.
She stood up and posed.
"My dream character has just got an upgrade."
She looked at Aidro.
"Now, it's time to hunt."