Book One – Chapter 9

Their harsh and twisted nature reflected the barren landscape they traversed. Unlike other Northlands creatures, paigen neither burrow nor hide in rock crevasses; they freely roam the desolate expanse. When confronted by larger predators, they coil into an impenetrable ball of spikes. For protection and hunting, they manipulate their spikes, moving them flexibly or hardening individual spikes at will. Prey smaller than them is ensnared and pierced to death.

Instead of consuming their prey directly, paigen impale and then carry it on their spikes. Through corrosive secretions, the prey dissolves, and both the acidic discharges and the liquefied prey are consumed by cannamophs, a type of anthropod living symbiotically with paigen. These cannamophs reside on the paigen’s bodies, nestled between spikes and legs like ever-hungry pearls. They consum the decomposed prey and then secret nutrients directly into the host paigan’s body.

Paigan spikes, acid, and cannamophs find versatile uses in potion-making and crafting high-quality jewellery. The spikes, when processed with expertise, can create exceptionally flexible yet robust armour. Properly melded and merged, this armour flexes but autonomously hardens under pressure, offering protection against strong impacts. Respectively, these components are highly valuable. Numerous north-eastern settlements have met their demise attempting to breed paigen for economic gain.

Seven years ago, when he had first sought out The Wizard With Six Arms in the Barnstream Mausoleum, Yves himself had hunted paigen. By mastering the intricacies of how these bizarre creatures had adapted for survival in the unforgiving Northlands, he had earned both coin and the basic respect a foreigner amongst ker and bormen may hope to gain.

In his current condition, Yves was in no position to fight. He did not even have the energy to conjure a few shards. His focus waned. He could not recall any more paigen facts. As the beasts stared at him, buffing up their bodies, rattling their thousands of legs, and tensing up their spikes, his consciousness slipped back into the void, and no amount of toxic rain would bring it back again. If Yves was ever going to do anything, it had to be now.