Clay Thing

The “Clay Thing” was a creation of Madame Tarsa, created by animating a lump of her Clay for the Struggling Artist using a Life Crystal.

A shapeshifting entity, the Clay Thing had the ability to adopt the form of whatever touched it, and to mould itself into more creative shapes inspired by these borrowed forms.

When she became worried about how well Larrikin-1029 and Pessimist-242 were doing in their journey through the regular challenges of her Labyrinth, Tarsa sent the Clay Thing to meet them there. It first transformed into Larrikin after he was the first to touch the lump of clay, then into Pessimist after he too (accidentally) touched it. Having gotten a sense of its foes, the Clay Thing then transformed into a huge, monstrous, hydra-like shape with two heads, one Larrikin-like, the other Pessimist-like. However, before it could eat them, Pessimist's Fog Ship flew to the Cupids' rescue, barreling through the Clay Thing's clay body until it managed to hit its Life Crystal, causing it to melt into inanimate goop. Madame Tarsa was upset at the defeat of the Clay Thing, especially as it had been made from her last batch of Clay for the Struggling Artist and she would now have to import more shiftstones from Swaatch to replenish her stocks. (PROSE: The Toymaker's Labyrinth)