Beacon

I followed the ringlet with the Fifteen-Eight tag, which made an easy scan target. The lack of direction and control was apparent, and advancement by swapping Ones off of the Eight-One protrusions was random and unorganized. The distance increased between the newly tagged ringlet and the responsible monster, and the influence of the Fifteen and its attached Eights became apparent.

While One-Eight-Ones would happily push and pull on the ringlet itself, the flagging Fifteen and it's Ones were much more active in the swap region, and quickly, the Fifteen began to lead the entire structure in the direction of travel, as slow as it was. I kept up the chase, or rather, the circling, and far enough away as to not disturb the tagged ringlet.

Shooting ahead to see what was in store for the tagee, I had to shut down the swap drive and drift. Ahead was a mesh of Sixes, Ones, Eights and a splattering of Sevens. While it looked flat, it really was not. A deep scan showed that the mesh was rising in every direction, and somewhat lumpy. Stretched and strong, the mesh easily reflected the push of the One-Eight-Ones, as well as my ringlet as we were flung back in nearly the opposite direction from which we came.