Ch89: A New Khalia
“Nnnnngh...” Krvavy shudders as she stretches her shoulders, stifling a yawn at the same time.
This has been a long day and she is tired. But she can’t give in to her exhaustion. No matter how tempting it is to join the tomboy cuddled up in her arms, sleeping together beneath the stars...
Her fingers lightly glide through the short brunette hair atop Beryl’s head, gently ruffling those aesthetically messy strands. A smile plays at Krvavy’s lips as she lovingly gazes down at the slumbering Elf. Beryl looks so... so cute and peaceful right now...
The Drakling’s eyelids droop down. Her head jerks up. “Hahh...” She sighs, staring up at the cloudy sky. Both of the moons are hiding from her sight, making that view... quite the boring one. But at least it is a rather nice night to be outside... It is cool but not cold, there is a nice and gentle breeze, and–
Shhhnnhh...
The drowsiness plaguing Krvavy fades away in an instant. Her heart pounds in her ears. She stares intently at the large leafy bulb as it rustles very, very softly.
“Bwuh...?” Beryl blearily mumbles, woken up by the pale breasts now squishing into her face as Krvavy just couldn’t help but lean forwards. “Is yer puppy ready...?”
The answer to that question comes almost immediately, as the giant bud begins to twitch and throb. Its large layered leaves slowly peel back, revealing a thick cluster of amber petals within what otherwise would have felt like a huge head of lettuce. Mere moments later those part as well, the flower unfurling to show Khalia’s curled up form in its very center, her body mostly obscured by the darkness of the night.
Krvavy grabs the lantern and quickly stands up, helping Beryl rise to her shaky feet, before stepping towards the open flower. Pinkish sap flows from the space between the petals, quickly soaking into the dry ground. Filled with anticipation, the barbarian lifts the lantern up, shining its light all around them.
“Beautiful, isn’t she?” Beryl quietly states, the smile audible in her voice as she gently squeezes her Draconic lover’s free hand.
Krvavy simply nods her head, completely speechless at the sight in front of her. Khalia is still visibly Khalia, but this... Krvavy did not expect her to change so much... She wasn’t really expecting a physical change at all, to be honest. Beryl was right though, she absolutely loves these results.
This surprise was well worth it, welcome and wonderful.
Khalia’s chest rises and falls in her slumber, her whole body covered in the oily sap and glistening in the lantern light. Her breasts look a little larger, those fairly firm green globes pressing against the soft amber petals that are slowly beginning to wilt.
But it isn’t just her tits that have gotten bigger.
This Orc’s entire body seems to have grown as well. Not only does she seem taller, though by how much exactly is difficult to tell with her curled up and sleeping like this, but her figure seems to be a bit thicker overall. Her shoulders and hips look a little wider, and her waist is clearly a bit bulkier, but she is by no means fat or anything of the sort: from what Krvavy can see, she has fairly well-defined abs. Her body just looks strong.
The green-skinned woman’s increased height and size is, perhaps, the least impressive change though. While some may argue whether a female Orc should count as a ‘Monster girl’ or not, Khalia is now undeniably worthy of that title. She is more than just an Orc now.
Her once short and slightly pointed ears have been replaced by beige fur-covered triangles jutting out from the sides of her head, looking wonderfully soft with their slightly rounded shape. At the base of her spine is a matching tail, its shaggy fur starting off as the same beige colour as her new ears and fading into the same black-brown as her hair towards its tip.
Similarly coloured fur covers her arms and legs, marked by narrow stripes of black-brown. That fur reaches all the way up to Khalia’s shoulders, leaving just a bit of her visibly buff biceps bare as it fades into her green skin rather abruptly. While it leaves the front of her body uncovered, hardly even touching her collarbone, the fur seems to spread across her back quite a bit. It is kind of difficult to see from where Krvavy is standing, but it looks like this striped fur extends over the Orc’s shoulder blades to a line of shaggy hair atop her spine, which itself reaches all the way from her head to her new tail.
And, now that the barbarian is thinking about it, the coverage of Khalia’s new fur is not unlike Krvavy’s own scales. There are parts where the Orc has more fur than the Drakling has scales and vice versa, but the general idea is pretty much the same. How interesting...
Just like the barbarian, Khalia’s inner thighs have also been left bare, the green skin untouched as the shaggy fur reaches up over her hips and waist to connect with the base of her tail. Most of her ass also appears to have remained bare, though again it is a little hard to tell with her fairly fluffy tail hiding those firm cheeks as she lies on her side.
Her limbs aren’t just covered in hair though, as her hands and feet seem to have also changed into more paw-like shapes. That is much more obvious for her feet, as they are now completely bestial, with thick digitigrade paws capped in large curled claws. Her hands are a little more normal looking though, albeit with padded palms and claw-tipped fingers. Again, not unlike Krvavy’s own hands. Just covered in fur, and a bit bulkier.
The barbarian’s eyes dance over Khalia’s sleeping form, taking in all of these various changes. Krvavy never would have thought to change her Orc’s appearance, as Khalia was perfect the way she was. Physically, at least. But now she is a step beyond perfection. Or maybe Krvavy just feels that way because this is Khalia, and her Orc would look beautiful no matter what. Though, thinking about that, does she still count as an Orc?
“Inspect ‘er, my dearest love~.” Beryl’s giddy voice pulls Krvavy from her thoughts. “She is vulnerable and open, so ya can see everything~.”
Krvavy raises an eyebrow at that odd bit of phrasing but ultimately does as her Elf suggested. Only to immediate cough and begin choking on her own breath as Khalia’s stat sheet pops up into her vision.
This is... this is just ridiculous. Krvavy’s mind can hardly process the information right in front of her. It is simply too much to take in all at once. And so, in an attempt to ground herself, Krvavy’s eyes are unconsciously drawn down towards a part she is intimately familiar with: the attribute section.
The barbarian slowly breathes out as she looks over those numbers, trying her best to compare them to what Khalia’s stats were earlier in the day. The ritual, this transformation, appears to have caused Khalia to gain two whole levels, but her stats have increased way more than two levels would suggest. More than a dozen levels even.
Khalia’s physical stats have pretty much doubled from what they were this morning. And that is just the base amounts, as the bonuses that Krvavy can only assume come from her Orc’s traits bring the totals up even more. Going just by the physical stats, Khalia is around three times as powerful now.
It is simply ridiculous. Krvavy’s precious puppy is completely overpowered. There is no other way to put it.
Still stricken with awe, the barbarian’s eyes slowly trail down to look at Khalia’s mental and social stats. They aren’t as impressively large, but they have still gone up by a massive amount. At least proportionally. And the fact that there doesn’t appear to be any negative effects draining them causes Krvavy’s heart to skip a beat.
Does that mean this truly worked? Is Khalia’s mind finally fixed?!
“Ah know, my dearest love, isn’t she ah-maze-in’~?” Beryl lovingly whispers those joyous words, pressing herself against Krvavy’s side. “Ah can’t ‘elp but feel a bit jealous though. It seems tha’ she took a part o’ yer soul, just like Thea did. Ya are just givin’ parts o’ yer very bein’ away... Ta everyone but me...”
“Huh?” Krvavy’s eyes dart back up to the top of her Orc’s stat sheet, reading Khalia’s title out loud. “Budding Aspect of Wrath...” Her brow furrows faintly. Why wrath of all things? She can understand why Thea got lust, as Krvavy’s soul got muddled into hers when they were fucking, but she wasn’t angry at all during the ritual. So, why wrath?
“Wrath is fittin’ fer an Orc.” Beryl states, as she is familiar enough with Krvavy to know roughly what the barbarian is thinking. “And it is even more fittin’ fer wha’ she is now.”
Krvavy pauses upon hearing that. Has she been thinking about this whole Aspect thing wrong? She had assumed that she tainted Thea with her lust because, well, she is an incredibly horny person and was in the process of fucking her brat into a delirious state at the time... But what if her little princess got lust because it matched her own soul, or affinities, or whatnot?
Actually, that... that is probably it. No, that is definitely right. Krvavy got some divine favour for inadvertently turning Thea into an aspect of her lust, and that notification specifically said that the favour was for awakening her brat’s potential. The barbarian’s soul still violated Thea, no denying that, but her lust of all things clung to the girl for a reason.
Thea would not be happy about the implications of that.
And thinking of that silver-blonde brat... Thea got some unique traits from this whole soul aspect thing, so it stands to reason that Khalia would have gotten some as well. And, at a quick glance, that does appear to be the case.
Ardent Anger: Vehement energies saturate Khalia’s body, making her into an instrument of your wrath and the perfect tool for violence. Increases Khalia’s physical power in proportion to her rage, at the cost of reducing her capacity for critical thinking and her self control. Your presence and orders pierce through her anger, anchoring Khalia to your will. Nullifies all feelings of pain while in combat.
Tainted Soul: Khalia’s soul has become intertwined with an aspect of your own. Over time this connection may grow, further shaping her being.
It seems that Tainted Soul is pretty much exactly the same as Thea’s version, just with Khalia’s name instead, but Ardent Anger is... well, it is new. Khalia already feels a bit overpowered, and this trait makes her even stronger... Granted, it does have a bit of a drawback in that it makes her lose control when angry, but that mindless rage doesn’t really matter because it sounds like Krvavy will be able to easily keep her in line.
Hopefully, at least.
This is just ridiculous. Those words echo through Krvavy’s head. She can hardly believe all of this information right in front of her eyes. This is... almost like a dream...
The barbarian roughly shakes her head. She can’t get hung up on how overpowered her Orc seems to have become. At least not right now. There are still a bunch of other traits to go over, not to mention the rest of this stat sheet.
Relief flows through Krvavy as her eyes scan over Khalia’s traits. Mindbroken is missing. That trait has hung over the barbarian’s head as proof of what she had done to Khalia, so it being gone alleviates her guilt and gives her some hope that this really did work to fix the Orc.
Two of Khalia’s traits call out to Krvavy, their names sounding rather unique and important. But she decides to wait just a moment to quickly go through the stat milestone traits first. Those should be pretty straightforward.
Dogged Dexterity II: Increases Dexterity by 15% and provides 10% of Total Dexterity to Perception. Associated attribute = Dexterity.
Endure & Adapt II: Increases Endurance by 5% and vastly strengthens the effect it has on Stamina. Associated attribute = Endurance.
Instinctive Insight I: Increases Insight by 7.5%. Associated attribute = Insight.
Might Matters II: Increases Might by 15%, provides 10% of Total Might to Willpower, and greatly strengthens the effect Might has on Damage dealt. Associated attribute = Might.
Tough as Nails II: Increases Toughness by 5% and vastly strengthens the effect it has on Health & Resistances. Associated attribute = Toughness.
Yup. Just as Krvavy expected. They aren’t particularly complex, focused mainly towards improving Khalia’s ridiculously high health and stamina. Her spells will probably be similarly simple.
Empowering Howl: Increases the physical attributes, resistances, and the damage dealt by all allies who hear the howl. Associated attributes = Charisma & Toughness.
Rending Claws: Magic infuses your claws, making them grow larger, stronger, and sharper. Increases damage dealt and slightly reduces the armour of those struck. Associated attributes = Might & Dexterity.
Shaking Roar: Increases the damage taken by all foes who hear the roar and has a chance to break their resolve. Associated attributes = Might & Charisma.
Again, fairly straightforward. Which means that Krvavy can finally turn her attention to the final two traits that stick out like sore thumbs. She definitely isn’t just rushing through these to get to the more exciting parts.
Loyal Love: An intense love has completely consumed Khalia’s very being: you are the sole purpose in her life. The magic that has burned this into her very being has been twisted into a new form, intertwining an unshakable loyalty into her love for you, her master, her Mate. She desires nothing more than to spend her days by your side, fighting all those who threaten you and bearing many strong children for you.
Oh. Krvavy’s excitement is quickly squashed as she reads that description. It would appear that Consuming Love, the trait that Khalia got from the damned mind control collar, has gotten a fresh coat of paint. Krvavy isn’t sure how to feel about that. Guess it is a bit reassuring, as her overpowered Orc isn’t going to suddenly want to kill her or anything, but... A part of her would prefer that Khalia wasn’t forced to love her by the lingering influence of some magic collar...
Well, dwelling on that won’t change anything. She knows as much by now.
Wanting to put that aside, her mind quickly finds a new distraction: Khalia’s final trait. If the barbarian had to guess, she’d say it has something to do with the Orc’s new beastly features. The name is a bit of a giveaway.
The Beast Within: Within each Were-Beast is a primal force struggling to gain control, and when it does the resulting transformation brings with it a vast increase in power. Khalia’s default state is blended with that of her inner beast, permanently providing her a fraction of the Beast’s power at the cost of preventing her from fully transforming.
Krvavy takes a moment to absorb that information. It explains why her Orc is so strong now, but she can’t help but feel a little hung up on the fraction of the Beast’s power part. Just how ridiculously strong is a fully transformed Were-Beast supposed to be!?
“Ah don’t think she’ll be wakin’ up anytime soon, my dearest love.” Beryl suddenly speaks up after having remained silent for a while. “Perhaps we should bring ‘er back ‘ome and wash this nectar off o’ ‘er? Unless ya’d like ta spend the rest o’ the night out ‘ere?”
The barbarian turns her head to look down towards her visibly exhausted Elf. Krvavy would really like to question Beryl about what exactly they’ve done to Khalia, but maybe this isn’t the best place for that...
Krvavy slowly sighs out as she hands the lantern over to her Elf. Rolling her shoulders, the barbarian steps forwards onto the large wilting petals and crouches down next to her sleeping Orc. She gently runs a hand through Khalia’s soaked hair, getting no response beyond a slight murmur, before bringing the green-skinned woman into her arms once more.
Carrying Khalia like this really makes it obvious that she has grown, though it is still hard to tell by how much. She is a fair bit heavier though, that’s for sure.
“This’ll all wither away soon.” Beryl idly states as she puts away the last of the spent quartz crystals. “In a few days this hilltop will be back ta normal, like we were never ‘ere.”
Krvavy looks back to the large open bud, taking in its slightly decayed sight. This was... quite the experience. But now it is time to go home.
“Mmmnn...” Khalia happily moans in her sleep, nuzzling against the barbarian’s pale chest.
Krvavy smiles slightly as she continues washing the sticky pinkish liquid off of her puppy, running her hands down Khalia’s furred limb beneath the surface of the hot spring pool.
“Enjoyin’ yerself?” Beryl playfully asks as she lowers herself into the water.
“I thought you were going to go straight to bed.” The barbarian replies, looking at her visibly tired Wood Elf.
“Aye, Ah’m tired enough fer tha’ ta be more than appealin’.” Beryl winks as she stifles a yawn. Which kind of just makes that whole gesture look rather twitchy and odd. “But Ah figured ya’d want ta talk.”
Krvavy softly nibbles on her bottom lip. She does want to talk, but it very late and even she is having a hard time staying awake... That said, she isn’t going to just turn down a chance to get some answers.
“Just what exactly did you do to her?”
The Wood Elf’s eyes gleam ever so slightly as a smile plays across her lips. “Ah committed a most grievous sin.” She replies in a playful tone. “Not only did Ah perform a sacred ritual reserved only fer the most desperate o’ situations, but Ah defiled it ta make the results more pleasin’ fer ya. Had Ah done it ‘correctly’ then yer little puppy ‘ere would no longer resemble an Orc, just a beast tha’ walks on two legs. Didn’t think ya’d like tha’ though.”
Krvavy raises an eyebrow at her Elf’s answer. That kind of ritual doesn’t sound like something just anyone would know... “Where did you learn that kind of magic?”
“Ahh, well... it is complicated.” Beryl slowly answers, before letting a long and tired sigh escape past her parted lips. She knows that isn’t enough to satisfy her Draconic lover’s curiosity. “Ah was... a priestess-in-trainin’, o’ a sort. It was a lifetime ago, long before Ah lost my last love.”
Krvavy gently bites the inside of her cheek, resisting the urge to ask her Elf about that. Despite how much time she has spent with Beryl, there is still a lot that the barbarian doesn’t know about her. But this tanned Wood Elf doesn’t seem to want to talk much about her past, and this isn’t the time to do that anyway.
So rather than pry, the Drakling simply moves her tail to the side, pushing it through the water and wrapping it around her Elf’s waist.
Beryl gently smiles as she lets herself get pulled up against Krvavy’s body, taking a few seconds to just enjoy the warmth of the hot spring. “Ah’ll spare ya the unnecessary details, like why tha’ ritual would be used. Ah’m sure ya could guess tha’ anyway...” The Elf stifles a yawn, leaning her head against the barbarian’s shoulder. “In short, tha’ ritual warped ‘er essence inta somethin’ more bestial, more primal. Ah wanted ta make ‘er as strong as Ah could. Nothin’ but the best fer ya, my dearest love.”
Khalia’s wet tail wags beneath the water as the fur along her spine is softly scrubbed.
“But...” Beryl slowly sighs out that single word, turning her eyes down to look at the sleeping Orc in Krvavy’s lap. “It doesn’t seem ta ‘ave gone quite as Ah expected. Ah was ‘opin’ ta make ‘er inta a wolf fer ya. Tha’ would be a strong and obedient beast, and she’d still be yer puppy. But she doesn’t seem ta be a wolf... Somethin’ close, sure, but not quite right. The ears and tail aren’t the proper shape, fer one, not ta mention the stripes...”
The barbarian narrows her eyes and stares at her unconscious Orc. Khalia’s new animal features look pretty wolfish to her. That isn’t saying much though, as there are a lot of wolf-like creatures that aren’t wolves. But if Beryl is saying that these aren’t wolf features, then Krvavy will believe her.
So what kind of animal has Khalia gotten herself mixed with? A coyote? Probably not, those are pretty much just discount wolves as far as Krvavy knows. Some sort of jackal? Maybe, maybe not. Krvavy honestly doesn’t know anything about jackals, beyond Anubis having the head of one, and Khalia’s ears don’t seem to be right for that... Thinking about it, she kind of resembles a gnoll, just with stripes instead of spots, and aren’t those supposed to be based on hyenas? Guess that does fit the not a wolf but looks kind of wolf-like thing that Khalia has going on...
“What about... a hyena?” Krvavy voices her thoughts.
“A wha– wait...” The tanned Wood Elf cuts herself off, placing a finger on her chin as she thinks for a moment. “Ah ‘ave heard o’ those before... They’re the beasts that bite right through bone, aye? Ah’ve never seen one before, but it’d make sense...”
Krvavy tilts her head and inquisitively looks to the Elf sitting at her side. Beryl seems to have accepted that pretty easily for someone who doesn’t know what a hyena looks like.
“The ritual doesn’t bring out any specific beast, nor is it random.” Beryl begins to explain, sensing Krvavy’s question. “The beast is drawn out from the person, influenced by their race, personality, wha’ fits them. And hyenas, Ah ‘ear, can be found out ta the east, where the Orcs live. Perhaps some memory o’ tha’ remained deep inside o’ ‘er? Regardless o’ why it ‘appened, Ah’m just ‘appy tha’ she didn’t become a boar. Tha’d doubtlessly make ‘er quite powerful, but Ah didn’t think ya’d appreciate turnin’ ‘er inta a stinkin’ pig.”
The barbarian glances down into her lap, taking in Khalia’s unconscious form. The Orc, no, the Were-Beast woman looks so peaceful, laying in Krvavy’s arms and snuggled against the barbarian’s breasts, stirring slightly in her sleep.
Khalia’s eyes suddenly flutter open, a new golden shine filling a familiar stare. “Mmmmmhhm...” Her body tenses as she lazily hums that moan, stretching her furred legs through the waters surface. Her mouth twists into a tired grin, plump lips spreading to show off her sharp teeth and an additional pair of tiny tusks, placed just between the original two.
A paw-like hand rises up from the water, clumsily pressing against Krvavy’s cheek. Her clawed thumb briefly glances across a black scale as her mouth stretches open into an exhausted yawn. “My Mate...” Khalia breathes out, her eyelids slowly drooping closed as she returns to her slumber.
Krvavy’s breath catches in her throat. A part of her was worried that the ritual and everything that they’ve done tonight wouldn’t work. But Khalia just spoke. Not a lot, just two words, but that is more than Krvavy has ever heard from her Orc. And, on top of that, the words were in Common.
It actually worked. Khalia’s mind is fixed.
The barbarian’s joy is spoiled slightly as a notification pops up into her vision, obscuring the sight of the sleeping woman in her arms.
+10 Divine Favour, for truly mending Khalia’s mind and reshaping her into a stronger form more worthy of your desire.
Krvavy tiredly sighs and dismisses the notification. She is happy to get so much divine favour, sure, but it kind of makes what they’ve done here today feel cheaper. She wasn’t doing this for the reward. She just wanted Khalia to get better.
“See? Ah told ya it’d work.” Beryl softly states, before nodding her head in Khalia’s direction. “She’ll be a whole new person, come mornin’.”
The barbarian opens her mouth to respond, but finds herself unable to speak as a long yawn passes through her lips in place of any words.
“Speakin’ o’ the mornin’, ya should save the rest o’ yer questions ‘til then. Ah know ya still ‘ave so much ya want ta ask, but it is late and we both could really use some rest.” The tanned Elf gently pats Krvavy on the shoulder. “Don’t ya worry though, Ah promise ya tha’ she is safe and not a threat ta ya or yer other girls.”
Krvavy narrows her eyes at the Elf. She wasn’t thinking that Khalia would be a threat, so that is a bit of a suspicious thing to say... But she is too tired to really care, so maybe it would be best to go to bed...
With a reluctant sigh, Krvavy rises up and out of the water with Khalia in her arms.