Welcome to Gaia! ::

Jordan waited aboveground, a comfortable distance back from the entrance of the cave, still strung tight with tension and relief and the need to prove to himself that this was true, this was real, that he wasn't dreaming again. It felt like he was awake. There was nothing surreal, nothing out of the ordinary about today; nothing, except that Andy had woken up, and he hoped desperately that this would stay real. He wasn't sure how he'd cope if it wasn't.

Jordan, Ferros said worriedly, and Jordan sighed and tried to relax again. I know. I'm trying, he answered.

"Shotgun? Awesome, you got ranged," Jordan said, and resisted the urge to sweep his brother into a hug again, clapping him on the shoulder instead. "Introduce me? You can summon any time you want, just concentrate on bringing them back, although don't do it inside the complex without a reason. Manners, you know." He laughed a little, then huffed a short sigh, said more quietly, "Sorry. I -- I've missed you, kid."

"She'd flip." Jordan snorted, but sobered again a moment later. He'd have to tell Andy that they were both "dead," but ... later. Not just yet. "Nice," he said approvingly, looking the shotgun over and nodding. "Nice to meet you, Rex. I'm your hunter's brother. Dog monster?" he asked Andy.

"This is Ferros," he added, and held up his right hand to show Andy the heavy ring on his index finger. The red stone set into the ring lit briefly. "Iron dragon, heavy war hammer."

"The weapons were Halloween creatures before becoming weapons," Jordan explained. "Most of them have more humanoid forms as well, so you might've been seeing what he looked like that way." The smile on Andy's face was reassuring; his brother didn't seem to have bonded to a hostile or overly aggressive weapon. It hadn't been something he'd seriously worried about, but he was relieved not to have to.

He moved away a short distance to give himself space, grinning. He was proud of Ferros, and he liked to watch the surprise when someone saw the weapon for the first time, and he felt a little like he'd always felt when he brought something really awesome home to show Andy. "Keep back a bit, he's not an indoors weapon," he said, and summoned. The ring dissolved in a swirl of metallic motes, resolidified in his hand as the massive hammer, and he was used to how Ferros looked, but in a way it was like seeing him all over again: the pattern of lava cracks that twined around the hammer's haft and barrel, the stylized metal claws that grasped the hammer's head, the steam vents and the heavy spikes and chains.

I am magnificent, Ferros said proudly.

You're magnificent, Jordan agreed.

"It works more smoothly if the weaponization is voluntary," Jordan said, sobering a little. He was still ambivalent about the process in general, and he wasn't about to hide that; being a Hunter meant working in some very morally grey areas. "Ferros says he thinks he volunteered, but part of the process strips away most of their memories. They retain some impressions and emotions, some basic knowledge about their world."

He grinned proudly, satisfied by Andy's reaction. "He started out about a third of this size. Then he got bigger a couple of times." He patted Ferros's barrel fondly, then desummoned again. "Pain in the a** fighting in close quarters, but we can lay down some serious damage with a little elbow room to work with."

"Some weapons seem to be more content than others. Ferros and I have a good bond." That reminded Jordan of something. "It might take a little while to get used to having him there constantly, but you will get used to it. It's actually gotten weird and kind of uncomfortable to be alone in my head, for the occasional brief times that happens. It's smart to keep the totem -- um, the non-weapon form -- on you or in the same room at all times. You can summon and desummon without having to touch him, but there's a range on that, and if your weapon's out of hearing range he's also probably out of shield range."

Ferros preened at the compliments, and Jordan laughed. "You're inflating his ego now. Rex will probably go through a couple of changes as your bond develops. It takes some time, and usually it happens around the time when you get promoted, I've noticed. It's not exact, but it's probably something to do with gaining skill or competency." He shrugged one shoulder. "The way a weapon changes is individual to the weapon. They usually get bigger and sometimes more complex, and usually they'll gain another charged skill along with the physical changes. Personally, I think it has something to do with how the hunter and weapon work together and what both need." He silently consulted with Ferros as to whether they should mention the other version of themselves where Ferros had been different, and decided not to. This was a massive enough load of information to deal with without mentioning other worlds that contained other versions of themselves. Later.