Apex

Once Dorin had his fill of partly-digested fish, he brought out his makeshift spear. The fang was giving off a red aura when he used his vital sight, and it was time to see what happened if he merged it with his infantile ego. 

The little ball of bone grown a little since he last brought it out of his bag of fangs and antlers. As he jiggled the bag around, it seemed as though there were now some broken bone shards within. 

Once he pressed the spear and the ball together, the weapon disintegrated and the ball of bone was turned into a six-sided die. It had red streaks running through each set of two numbers, one for the one and two, two for three and four, and three for five and six.

'Finally.' Dorin fell to the ground, relaxing into the warm sand. He laid there for a while as the sun inched closer to setting. 

Eventually Dorin sat up, and tossed his ego towards the gutted shark carcass. His ego melded into it, and a thumping similar to a heart could be heard. With each beat a black liquid was pumped across its body, covering it completely similar to the dome where he fought the demon. 

The black dome collapsed after a couple minutes, and all that was left was the shark's bones. The liquid reformed into his ego, and the one was now fiery red. 

Dorin rubbed his hands together with glee and picked up his ego. 'Lets see what this thing can do.' 

Dorin threw his ego into the sand, and it landed on a one. The die turned into a black egg with a red spot and it began to roll down the beach towards the water. Dorin ran after it, but his ego was swept away by a wave before he could pick it up again.

There was a connection between him and the egg, and he could feel it sway back and forth with the waves. Dorin felt as though it was sending him a feeling of belonging. 

Dorin grabbed the shark's jaw, and studied it. The rows of teeth and their serration gave him the feeling of a top predator. He felt something inside himself vibrate with that feeling of dominance. 

The sun set as Dorin's mind wandered between the different feelings of the ocean and being at the life's apex. 

. . .

Dorin awoke under a full moon to shouting voices. 

"-footsteps lead here."

"Lets split up, one person for each side of the coast from here."

Dorin quickly buried his bag and coat, and carefully swam into the water. The water was frigid, but he didn't care. Something brushed alongside Dorin and he activated his vital sight. 

A red aura was circling Dorin, and fear took hold. He didn't have a weapon like last time, and if there was a commotion in the water then whoever was out there would notice.

The beast continued approached him, and Dorin prepared to strike. As he looked closer however, he noticed that there was a faint red string connecting them. 'No way.'

The creature brushed up against him again, and Dorin reached for his connection to his ego. He felt a heartbeat, along with the feeling of lethargy. His new companion must have eaten his fill of the schools of fish Dorin had swum amongst when he first arrived.

Dorin knew he had to keep swimming, find somewhere far away from the two who were chasing him. He couldn't open his eyes due to the salt water, so he had no idea where they were. Dorin could tell which way the beach was due to the waves pushing him up and down, but all he could do was follow the various aura's in the water. 

Dorin sent his new companion his feelings of the need to escape, and its red aura swum underneath him, gave him a nudge and swam in one direction. Dorin held onto its tail at first, but they were moving slower than if they were swimming separately. 

Every so often he had to go up for air, and he would be pushed towards the coast. 

'This isn't working.'

They weren't making any progress. Dorin could feel the bottom again, so they were much closer to the shore than he would like. 

Dorin took a final breath, and went back underneath the water. He focused on the waves, and the motions of his new companion. The feelings he had meditated on before falling asleep overtook his body. The domination of a predator, and the push and pull of the waves. 

Eventually Dorin felt his body changing, and he lost consciousness. 

. . . 

A world of life opened itself to Dorin as he opened his eyes. The moonlight shining through the water reflected off of all of the creatures and plants under the surface. He no longer needed his vital sight, but he could combine it with his vision for added effect. 

Dorin could finally see his new companion, a black shark with a red stripe spiraling around its body. Its face was similar to all of his ego beasts, with a golden cross between its red eyes and golden irises. 

'Jax.' His ego did a spin in the water, seemingly overjoyed that Dorin gave it a name.