Addel let out a long sigh as her head sank even further. The puppeteers, she thought to herself. Also known as Krabbers. Vile, dangerous things! They were unpredictable at best, but at worst... the thought of their very nature sent shivers through her, like cold water was being poured down her shirt. The true danger with them was in their ability to coexist in two dimensions at once. They were the only known beings that could do such a thing.
“Summon one for now. We will begin this slowly,” he said as his smile remained firmly in place. “Oh, don’t be frightened. I’m sure you will be able to control it,” he said through outright laughter as he leaned back clenching his stomach. “That is, as long as you concentrate on what you’re doing...my dear.” His voice turned from laughter to frost. “I’ll be back in half an hour. The summoning better be finished by then!” He glided from her room and back up the stairs. To get a human from one of the cages, no doubt.
Addel wiped a tear from her eye as she tried to collect herself. Terror filled her as she braced her hands on the table, simply to control her shaking. Summoning a krabber was not really all that hard, given how easily they could move from one plane of existence to another. For her, it shouldn’t really be all that dangerous—she hoped. It was just that the nature of their behavior was chilling.
Krabbers, or puppeteers, could take many different forms because they have no physical bodies of their own. In their purest form they appear as nothing more than a gray mist floating in the air. They did seem to have faces, but not in the traditional sense. Looking closely into the gray mist, human-like expressions will appear for brief periods of time before fading away. They had no physical bodies, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t steal them—well, borrow them, really. If a person was weak-minded or feeble in any way, he becomes the perfect target. A puppeteer can wrap itself around a person’s very life force, or soul, if you will, while pulling it back to their plane of existence. But even when doing this, they still have a partial foothold in this world as well. From here, they have the ability to control the victim’s every move. Essentially, they are that person now.
Of course, they are only controlling the animated body and nothing else. The puppeteers won’t feel any pain or hunger; will feel none of the physical limits placed on the body, no matter how long they keep their host. They are nothing but a husk, a pod linking the krabber to this world. Carefully observing the “pod,” faint golden strings can be seen attached all over the victim’s body. These strings are a connection to the other world. They are vital for full control of the body to continue. The illusion, in which the victim appears to look like a stringed puppet, aided in the creation of the creatures’ nickname of “puppeteers.”
A krabber can only do this if a person is mentally weak or susceptible, but the person may also be willing and offer no resistance at all. Krabbers have been known to perform their craft on someone who is asleep or in a weakened mental state. It is said that when you have the sensation of falling in your sleep, a krabber is pulling at your life force. When you jolt awake all of a sudden, it was your life force snapping back into you!
Addel took one last deep breath, knowing she had better hurry and get this over with. She tried her best to reassure herself her mind was far too strong to be at any risk. It was like standing next to a cliff with your toes a few inches from the edge. Your chances of just falling off were slim, but knowing the odds did nothing to aid the fear.
Hobbling up to the sphere resting on her table, she placed both hands upon it and began her chant. “Pherum...doesingtal...parthumal...ulundra!” The color in the sphere began to swirl, giving the appearance of milky white smoke. As the rolling white mist mixed with a bluish swirl filled the globe, Addel’s head snapped back as she continued the chant. “Teruma...fimlisia...predutu...comeallia!”
To any that didn’t understand the intricacies involved when performing summonings, or any elemental magic for that matter, this would appear difficult and draining. The truth of it was, as long as the being that’s called forth is willing, it’s quite easy. The chants simply set up a line of communication between the two worlds. This takes very little energy, considering the channels already exist and just need to be reopened.
Of course, this also depends on the dimension that’s being connected. They differ greatly in size, distance from contact point, and density of barrier. In the case of the puppeteers, their dimension is adjacent to the world of Tarmerria. This is why they have so little difficulty accessing poor souls as they dream. However, this goes both ways. When a person dreams, part of their life force might wander through dimensional doors, seeing as how dreaming only partially takes place in the mind.