adventure

The Chains She Chose

happiest_in_shadows — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 00:55:45 +0000

Introducing Princess Casandra, daughter of King Gale, arranged to marry the son of one of the great noble houses and pissed off as heck about it.

Nearly from the day she was born Casandra had been unhappy with the roll her family has relegated her to. Now as she enters into her teen years she seeks the power to change that roll to one she feels is more fitting.

In order to gain that power Casandra has spent the last several years of her life being trained in the forge. A fighting style that involves using the same spiritual energies mages call upon for their spells to strengthen ones body. Mentored by the former adventurer Oshgun who while at one time only took the job for the easy coin and expectation of the princess giving up in the first month has remained her loyal mentor and friend for the past decade.

Along with regular lessons from Oshgun Casandra has also had her body heavily altered by her personal alchemist. A young man from the Grove a mages and alchemist guild he has been employed by Casandra for almost as long as he's been a member of the Grove and is constantly working on new potions to help the princess obtain the body she desires.

Despite the help of her two allies though and the help of her gold Casandra finds her quest troubled. As she might gain this power while keeping her actions a secret from her father.

Temples and Trolls

El_Roy_1999 — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 20:41:14 +0000

Temples and Trolls

As we approached the ruins, I pulled out an arrow and nocked it on my bowstring. I crouched, trying to blend in the background. The others were staying behind, expecting me to scout the area before them. We had been looking for the savage raiding party for days now. At last, we had found their lair. I ducked behind a fallen wall.

There they were: a dozen or so of ugly, bloated men, dressed in crude furs and covered in greasy warpaint. I took a good look. Their captive was nowhere to be seen. I advanced further along the shadows. The small rocks on the ground pushed through the soft leather soles of my boots. At last, I discovered an overhang of the low hill closeby. There, in a ramshackle cage, lay the young man. He was short, thin, pale and looking very tired.
Still, he was the one of whom the prophecy spoke. Delivering him would be the first step to free us from the oppression of the troll king. Having found him, I slid back as quickly as I could.

When I was out of sight, I returned to my companions. They had set up camp a bit further in the woods. When I approached, a loud voice rang out:
"Who goes there?"
I replied much quieter:
- It is I, Feranor. Thou shouldst keep thy voice down, friend Balric. The barbarians might discover us.
- If they do, I shall crush them with my mighty hammer! he replied boastfully.
- Still, does not thou remember the ruse we saw to employ? Be quiet at once!

Balric smiled. I came closer, setting my eyes on my companions:
There was, of course, Balric Manyslayer. A towering brute of a man, six feet four and packed with muscles. He was dressed in rough but clean pelts, his long, brown hair threaded into a braid. His rugged face and broad chin showed all the true nobility of a norseman warrior.
Behind him, the plump and tired-looking priestess Kyraia was waiting behind him. She wore grey and white robes, bound by a broad belt of embroidered linen. Beside her was her staff of office, a rod of wood decorated with a single large opal. She nodded to me. Her short blonde hair was messed up. Clearly, she had tried to sleep, but the rough forest floor had proven an awkward bedding.
The last of our humble band of heroes was Maranea the Enchantress. She was wearing rather tight black robes, low-cut and held together by a black corset. Clearly, her ways of magic were dark and seductive, but she too seemed unaccustomed to the wilderness. She brushed her long black hair aside and gave me the sweetest smile, full of longing. Being an elf, I ignored the short-lived promises of humankind.

"Friends, I have found their encampment. We shall be able to free the boy whose coming has been foretold in legend!"
- At last! My blades thirst for their blood!
- Excellent, let's get going.
- Ow. My back hurts.

Leading my companions through the forest, we made our battle-plan. I was to distract our foes, and then proceed to rain death upon them thus adding to the confusion. As soon as their attention would be on me, Balric was to charge the savages and make short work of them. Finally, should he find the opposition too challenging, Maranea was to cast a deadly spell on them. If anything should go wrong, Kyraia would heal us with her godly powers. If all else should fail, I would join battle with my masterful longsword, Fang of Doom.

Moments later, the barbarians were searching for me. I picked off one of them, then hid in a closeby treetop. As they approached, their futile attempts were interrupted by Balric's war-shout:
"By the twin wolves of the northern sun, I shall tear you apart and feed your sorry remains to the midnight snake of hell!"
The warrior tore through his foes like a freshly forged blade through snow. Behind him, the enchantress felled one of them by sheer force of will alone.
Then, suddenly, disaster struck. One of the barbarian warriors had managed to flank the mighty Balric and attacked him with his stone blade. The warrior howled, more in anger than in pain, and struck down his aggressor.
I jumped from the tree, freed Fang of Doom from it's hilt, and charged. As I joined the fray, darting this way and that to escape my enemies' blows, I looked for Kyraia. She was nowhere to be found. Balric's wound seemed to be quite grave. He stumbled and might have fallen, were it not for his tremendous strength and willpower. Gritting his teeth, he quickly dispatched his remaining challengers.

As he calmed down, one of the fighters, who apparently had feigned his death, jumped up and struck out at him. The blow clearly was deadly. Balric stumbled, trying to stay on his feet, but to no avail. He fell, colour fading from his face. Maranea spoke a word of power, tearing the assailants soul from his mortal frame.
We rushed to our friend's fallen form. I shouted for Kyraia's help. No answer. I jumped back up, ran around looking for her, calling her. Only she could save our companion!

When I found her, she was sitting on a rock close by. She had clearly taken no interest in our battle! I asked her:
"Why heededst thou not my call? Sir Balric is dying. Thou must save him. Call the help of the mighty gods!"
- Stan, I'm fed up. This is so boring. All I ever do is heal someone.

She got up as I stood perplexed. Clearly something was amiss here!

From the battlefield came a shout:
"Hey, can't someone heal me? I'm about to die, you know!"
A voice called out:
- You have thirty more seconds to heal Balric.

Kyraia got up. She went over to the clearly non-dying Balric, put her hands on his head and said:
- So you're healed.
She turned to me.
- Stan, I want to go home.
- But Laura, we're not done yet!
- Screw this. I'm bored. Please, let's go home.

The gamesmaster made the "time-out" sign. The dead barbarians got up. He said:
"Okay guys. I think we'll take a short break. What's up with you, Laura?"
- I want to go home. I don't want to play a priestess anymore.
- Couldn't you have thought of this beforehand?
- I'm fed up, that's all. I just want out.

Joe, the gamesmaster, gave me an imploring look. I turned to Laura and saw that it was pointless. There are some things you cannot change.
"Joe, I think we better leave." I gave him my best "I don't want to have to spend my time with an angry girlfriend"-look.
Even though he probably understood, he clearly was angry.
- Honestly, Stan, can't you...
I shook my head. Harry, also known as Balric, glared at me.
"You know what, Stan, I think it would be best if you were to bugger off. You just got my character killed."
Just as I was about to reply that it clearly wasn't my fault, I realised that Laura had already gone. She hadn't even said goodbye.
Rachel, the quasi-enchantress, gave me a sympathetic smile. I said goodbye and went back to our camp. As I walked, I removed the elf ears and unstrung my bow. I soon caught up with Laura. Just as we packed our stuff in the car, several orcs popped out of the bushes. They screamed savagely. I glared at them. The head orc, a well stacked green-painted girl whose name was Alexa, asked what was going on.
As I put our tent in the back of the car, I gave her a short rundown.
She shrugged and went back to savage other travellers.

Minutes later, we were driving home. The silence in our car was awful. When we got home, she went to her room and shut the door behind her. Since we live in a three-piece flat, that's not much of a problem. I went to wash myself. When I got back out, she was already waiting for me. She got in and used up the remaining hot water.

In the evening, I fixed something to eat. It was mostly a big dose of vegetable, since Laura was once again trying to reduce. I always tried to tell her that diets without exercise were pointless, but well, male advice is pointless.
After eating, we finally got to talk:
"Are you angry?"
- Me? Angry? Of course I'm angry. You screwed up the whole roleplaying session. Couldn't you have thought of that before?
- I had been thinking about this all the time. I just didn't say it right away. I just had enough today.

I tried to remain calm. The worst I could do, was to sound too reproachful. Let's stay calm!
- What was it that annoyed you? Was it Harry's machismo? You know that's the way he is.
- No. It's my character.

I gave her a long look. We've been roleplayers for years now. Even though we didn't meet via roleplaying, we still had enjoyed a lot of our time together at a table, pretending to be heroes. I gave her a quizzical look.
- Are you growing up?
- No, no. I still like it and everything, but I'm not sure about live-action roleplaying. I don't think it suits me.

She had it right on that one. We had moved into live-action roleplaying a couple of months ago. Some guys from our regular group had invited us. At first, I had been sceptical, but as soon as I realised how cool I looked as an elf, I enjoyed it a lot. Laura, on the other hand, appeared to like getting out of the city, but was more into the interaction stuff than the whole fighting shenanigans. At least, that's what I thought.

- I'm not sure, but the only character I fit is the healer-priestess. I can't help it, I just don't feel appropriate in the gear the others are wearing.

Of course, that was not my view. Laura was chubby, but only in the best way. She had big, heaving breasts, a nice tummy and a big and beautiful ass. She was just my type. It wasn't the only kind of woman I was into, but as far as girls go, this is my favourite shape. Besides, she's an electronics major and she's way brighter than me, so I have every reason to be happy.
However, she was horribly unhappy about her body shape. This was too bad, since I would have liked to see her dressed up in Alexa's outfit.

- Couldn't we just go back to pen and paper games?
- Yes, we could, but I really like the live-action people. Couldn't you just try to play something else instead? Like a warrior?
- Stan, I'd look stupid. Besides, I don't have the stamina for lugging around all that stuff. I'd really prefer just to let it be done.
- You wouldn't look stupid. I love your looks, and that should be enough!

I started caressing her, playing around with her breast. She pushed me away.
- Come on. Let's leave it at that.

She went to her room. It was clear that I wouldn't be getting any sex today. So much for my holidays. I sighed and went to sleep on the sofa. At night, I had the strangest of dreams. I dreamt of Laura, but she looked different: her body was very muscular and powerful. She was swinging a double-handed sword and chopping orcs in half.

I woke up confused.

Chapter 2

I woke up late the next day. Realising I was going to be late for work, I got up quickly, showered, brushed my teeth and knocked at Laura's door. No reply. I was in a hurry, but I still wanted to see her. I opened the door. She wasn't there. She hadn't even left me a note. Grumbling, I left.

At work, I shared my trouble with Tom. He's an ageing hippie in his late fifties. We share the same office, and, since we're both graphics designers, we like to talk about art and aesthetics. Happily, we do not share the same taste in women. Tom's all about the beautiful slim Indian girls of his youth. Still, he's married to a yoga and qi gong teacher, so I never heard him complain about his sex life. I tried to get Laura to talk to her, hoping that she might get a boost on her self-image, but she wasn't interested.

When I told him about Laura's troubles, he told me to stop worrying. That's what he always said. However, he started doodling a little picture of Laura as an amazon princess. It looked quite sexy. I smiled, putting in my briefcase.

When I got home in the evening, Laura was already asleep. I knocked at her door, got in and climbed into her bed. She mumbled unhappily and said something along the lines of "get away, I'm tired. I gotta get up early in the morning". This annoyed me to no end. I knew that her job normally started half an hour after mine, but when I asked about what she was up to, all she said was "special project" and rolled over.

I got back up and went to the kitchen. I fixed myself some food and returned to my room. I turned on my computer and went to my favourite message boards. After a little chatting, I felt better. Laura's weight problems had been troubling our relationship ever since it began eight years ago. Still, all attempts to help her feel better had proven to be futile.

I got through the week on my last legs. When Sunday finally arrived, I had done sixteen hours of overtime and hadn't seen Laura even once when she was awake. She left before I got up and was asleep when I came home. To be honest, I was pissed. She was screwing up our relationship and I had no idea why. The weekend came and went, but still she wasn't available. She just left in the morning and returned in the evening. I checked her bed. She had slept in it. For the moment, I decided that it would be best to give her one more week before asking her again. Maybe she had trouble at work.

On Thursday, as I was walking home, I met Harry. He came from the gym and was still pumped. When he saw me, he slapped me on the back. I asked him:
"What's up?"
- I'm fine. Did you talk to your missus? Will she be joining us again?
- I don't know. She's been on herself for the last two weeks. I hardly ever see her.
- Has she got any trouble?
- Can't say. She was angry after we got home, and that's the last I heard.
- You should try talking to her.
- I wish I could, stupid! It's just that I never meet her!
- Maybe you should try and see her at work. You could just pop over for lunch.
- I guess I could try that. If it doesn't get better on the weekend, I'll see if the boss will let me have a longer lunch break.
- You try that. And be sure to bring some flowers. And some chocolate, I'm sure it's just her thing.
He smiled derisively. I felt like punching him. It's odd how your girl's weight problem starts to weigh you down after a while.
- Anyway. Thanks for the advice. See you later!
- Bye, and give her a kiss from me.
He grinned stupidly as he walked away. That's great. I was getting relationship advice from a guy who's been single for two years now. I guess this is what happens if you spend your days at work and your nights at the gym.

The next week was even worse. I really got swamped with work. The boss wouldn't even hear of my request. At home, things got stranger and stranger. Since no one was buying stuff or washing it, our fridge got emptier as the laundry basket swelled. In the end, I had to wait three more weeks till I could even try to see her again.
It had been over a month since I'd last seen her or even talked to her. For reasons beyond my control, her phone was permanently turned off.
I got out of the office at half past eleven. I bought some flowers and some candy, even though I wasn't sure whether I was feeling up to it, and got into the subway. Minutes later, I was at the company where she worked. I smiled to the security guard. He recognised me and let me in. I went to her department and asked the secretary if I could see her.
She gave me an incredulous look.
"Miss Evans isn't here. She's been on leave for over a month now. Didn't she tell you?"
I hesitated.
- No, she didn't. Do you happen to know what she's been up to?
- I'm sorry? I thought you were living together. Shouldn't you know?
- I guess I should, but clearly I don't. Could I speak to her boss?
Holy shit, what was going on?

Seconds later, I was in her boss' office. As far as I could remember, her boss was a rather plump woman. I had met her at a company party, but my memory had been addled by a slight champagne overdose on that evening. As a result, I was quite surprised when I found that she was a rather broad-shouldered woman in her forties, with a remarkably taut waist. She was clad in a designer business suit. It was charcoal-grey and accentuated her strong curves. Under it, she wore a white top showing ample cleavage. With a barely perceived jerk, I wrenched my eyes from her and looked into her eyes. Her face was a little too angular for my taste, but her dark red hair, cut into a bob, softened it's hardness. She addressed me directly.
"You're Stan, aren't you?"
I was accustomed to being addressed by my first name, but still felt belittled.
- I am. I just found out that Laura's on leave. She didn't tell me. Did she tell you what she was up to?
- Of course.
I was genuinely surprised.
- Okay. Now, what is she up to? Where is she?
- She's trying to get a grip on her life.
That didn't sound good at all. People who try to get a grip on their life usually end up killing off their relationships.
- Can you tell me where she is right now? I only ever see her in the evening and then she's tired. I can't even talk to her.
A satisfied smile appeared on the woman's face. What kind of craziness was going on? I checked mentally if I was dreaming.
- Don't worry, Stan. She's in good hands. I have offered her my help and she finally accepted.
I stood dumbfounded. Was this some kind of cult?
- Where is she?
I was almost shouting now. Instead of an answer, the woman got up. She was a little shorter than me, but once she was standing, I realised that her shoulders were much broader than mine.
- Don't you remember, Stan? When we last met, I was much like Laura. I was unhappy with my body image. But I think I made the right decision.
She removed the jacket. Underneath, she wore this white top with short sleeves. Now that she was out of her jacket, nothing was left to imagination. Her arms were powerful and muscular. It looked like the anatomy charts we had used when I was training as an artist. I could distinguish every single muscle-group of her arms. I even was able to see her abdominal muscles through the shirt. Her broad back was contrasted by large, round breasts.

Oddly enough, I found myself to be aroused. My dick started pushing against my jeans. She grinned.
- I think Laura will be happy. Your reaction seems appropriate.
It took a few seconds for me to get my speech back.
- So... Can I see her?
- Of course you can. Go visit her right now. She's at Barkin Spa. Here's the card!
I never heard of this. On the other hand, I didn't care about spas, so whatever. I grabbed the card and headed out.
- Thank you. Good bye!
- Good bye, Stan! Good luck and have fun!

As I rushed through the building, I fiddled with my cell-phone and managed to get the afternoon off while also reducing my hard-on to manageable proportions.
I was on my way.

Chapter 3

As a matter of fact, the spa's address wasn't too far from home. You could get there on foot in half an hour or so. However, such concerns were irrelevant for me right now. I called the next cab I could see and told the driver to get me to the spa. Minutes later, I arrived at a rather plain street corner. The address turned out to go with an ancient, featureless and rather ill-kept building from the 19th century. Calling it derelict would be overstatement. It was old, yet robust.
I approached the door, checking the number on the card. There were three buttons on the intercom, labelled 1, 2 and 3 for my convenience. Since the card said 2, I rang. Nothing happened.
All the windows on the side of the building were bricked shut. This place was abandoned. Just as I was about to go home, the door slid open. A young man was watching me. He had a bright blue mohawk and pierced earlobes, a nose ring and a lip piercing. He was wearing a wife-beater with tribal tattoos showing underneath. He stared glazedly at me:
"Who the bloody hell are you? What do you want? Sod off!"

I was taken aback by the sudden insults, but quickly recovered.
- Hey, shitface, I'm looking for my girlfriend. Is this Barkin spa?
- I said sod off, asswipe.
I grabbed his nose ring and twisted it and gave the door a short kick. The guy gave a yelp and fell back. Since he tried to grab at my arm, I let the ring go. He dropped to his back. I forced my way in and jumped on him. It's not as if I'm a badass streetfighter, but I know a thing or two about fighting, so I pinned him under me and prepared to beat the shit out of him. This day was absolutely my worst.
- Simmer down, pal. Cool it...
The guy tried to calm me and I quickly managed to restrain myself. I got back up, helping him up, but still keeping my distance. A thin trickle of blood was running from his nose. A tear was forming in the corner of his eye.
- Shit man. That hurt like hell! What's your goddamn problem?
- Where is Laura? Is this Barkin spa?
I felt stupid, going all tough guy on that poor punk, but I just had to know.
- Who sent you?
- Answer me, or I'll just...
- Who sent you?
I was just about to go at him again, but managed to tell him about Laura's boss.
- I see.
- Is she here? Come on! Is she?
- Calm down. Please. Yes, she is.
- I want to see her!
- I'll see what I can do.

He backed away, leaving me standing in the entrance.
- Come in, people will notice.
What kind of crazy joint was that?
Looking around, I realised that this looked even worse on the inside. It looked as if a gang of punks had used this on flat share for decades. Clearly, this was exactly what had happened. I stood there, in the middle of torn wallpapers and dusty remains of furniture. This place was a dump.
He gave me a stern look.
- You just wait here. I'll be back in a minute.
I got back out, picked up the flowers and chocolate and tried to return them to a state of decency.

I waited for a few seconds. The punk guy had disappeared into a wardrobe. This was all a bad dream. I walked over to the dusty piece of furniture. Just as I wanted to open it, he returned. He gave me a weary look, dabbing at his bloodied nose with a tissue.
- Come in.

I climbed through the wardrobe. I felt as if I was going crazy. The wardrobe turned out to lead to a passage which led into a beautiful, elegant and clean lobby. I stood there dumbfounded. He motioned for me to follow him. He led me to the receptionist. She was an elegant woman in her late thirties, her hazel hair done up in a bun. Her badge said "Mira". She gave me a friendly look, then said:
"Mr. Longman? Glad you could make it."

I must have looked really stupid.
- How do you know me? What is this place?
- Ms. Samahji announced you. Your girlfriend's boss.
- She's here? Can I see her?
- Of course. And to answer your second question, this is Barkin spa. We favour the secrecy it offers. We trust in your discretion.
She turned to the punk.
- Could you show Mr. Longman around, Ben?
He nodded.
- Follow me.

I was still completely beside myself. He led me through the lobby, across a brightly lit courtyard full of tropical plants. Several deck-chairs were awaiting relaxers. The whole place was designed to look slightly oriental, with rounded arches and mosaics. I decided that this was way too strange for me to hallucinate, so I went along.
After climbing some stairs, he opened a wooden door marked massage parlour. We got in.

At last, I was there. Laura was lying there, getting her back massaged by a stocky woman in a green frock. She seemed tired. When I came in, she looked at me and smiled. Ben slipped out discretely. She sat up. Clearly something had changed. Her body had deflated. At least, that's what I thought at first. Upon closer inspection, her arms and shoulders had grown a little. They were now lightly muscled. Still, her breasts had shrunk. However, they sat higher on her chest. Her belly had shrunk a bit, hanging emptily from her slimmer waist. At last I found my words:

"Hi. What's going on? What happened?"
She was amused and grinned happily.
- I'm training.
- What for?
She got up. I noticed immediately that her already thick legs had clearly grown. Or rather tightened. She hugged me and kissed me.
- Just so. I'm tired of not being the way I want to.
- Aha.
- I'm sorry I couldn't tell you, but Ms. Samaji was adamant. I hope you didn't worry too much.
- Of course I worried. Why? What?
- I've talked to my boss since she had the same problem. She decided to help me.
- To help you...
- Since I landed the big patent last year, she said she'd pay for the whole thing. It's way better than a bonus anyhow.
- A bonus...
- Aw come on, don't go all Raiden on me.
I snapped back into consciousness.
- I brought some flowers. And some sweets. I actually wanted to visit you at work, but you weren't there.
- Thank you.
She kissed me again. I caressed her naked body. It was odd. Of course, I was used to her normally plump shape, so this was quite a change.
- Let's go to my room, I have half an hour before training resumes.
- Training?
- Stop HANGING around and come on!

She led me to her room. It was beautiful but simple. No TV, just a bed, a desk and a shower. She put the flowers in a vase and put the chocolate into her nightstand. Then, she just pulled me on the bed. Seconds later, I was bereft of my clothes. She climbed on top of me, rubbing her crotch against my dick until it was hard. Since I had been out of sex for five weeks, this took mere seconds. I played with her tits as she started gyrating her hips. I instantly went crazy. You can't imagine how much I'd needed this. Of course, when your starved, you can't restrain yourself. I still managed to get her off before blowing my top, so we found ourselves lying side by side a few minutes later.
She nibbled at my ear as I was caressing her curves.
"Do you like it?"
I was unsure of what to say. She pushed herself up and did a double biceps flex. Surprisingly, two rather large bulges swelled up. I was conflicted. Of course, having a confident girlfriend would make my life easier. On the other hand, her fuller figure was now turning into sag. Still, I decided to go with it. She'd find a solution, she's an engineer after all.
- I do. Looks great.
- Perfect. I'm glad you like it. I've decided to go all the way, so I'm glad you'll support me.
- All the way?
- All the way.
She flexed again.

Chapter 4

Since our fateful meeting, two more months had gone by. I had been sent to Amsterdam on behalf of my company and had lived six miserable weeks at a hotel. It's not that I minded room-service and relaxed hours, but I still would have preferred being with Laura right now. Of course, I would hardly have met her. Before I left, she had moved to the spa full time. When I was in Amsterdam, I even envisioned going to a bordello and just enjoy myself, but this felt pointless. Besides, I was much too curious about the changes she was going through. We phoned occasionally, but she left me in the dark about any changes.

When I finally took the plane back home, I was really excited. I still wasn't fully clear on whether I really appreciated all this bodybuilding stuff, but I found it oddly fascinating. As a matter of fact, I found the concept of changing and controlling your own body rather arousing. As I arrived at the airport, I quickly passed immigration and moved to the reception area. I scanned the crowd for my girl.

At last, there she was. I barely recognised her in the first place. Her face had become much slimmer, while her neck had become more solid. This aside, I couldn't see much more since she was wearing a widely cut shirt. All I could make out was that her shoulders had grown even more solid. I walked swiftly towards her, pulling my suitcase behind me.
We embraced. I could feel the strength of her arms against my body.
"How was the flight?"
- Great. No problems. Still, I'm glad I'm back. You've changed.
- In a good way?
- Let's see.
I kissed her and slipped my hand discretely under her shirt. Before I could actually touch her, she grabbed my hand gently.
- Not here. Save it for home. Let's go.
She nibbled at my ear. Grabbing my suitcase, she easily lifted it and walked off. I followed her to the car park.

After a short drive, we got home. I tore off my suit, moving her quickly to the bedroom. As she landed on the bed, I was right on top of her. My dick was throbbing with anticipation. She held me back. I found it hard to push against her.
- Wait a second.
- Don't be such a tease! Let me see what I waited for!
- You just gotta understand that it's not done for now.
- I don't care, get the damn shirt off.
I winked at her.
- Okay, I warned you.
What the hell was she talking about? It's not as if she was redecorating our kitchen or anything.
At last, she slipped out of her shirt.

As a matter of fact, I was a little disappointed. Her body had indeed changed. Her shoulders had grown big and rounded, each one larger than a baseball. Her arms were now strongly muscled, her biceps clearly visible. She had lost a lot of weight. Her back had become "V"-shaped, tapering inwards to her waist. Her pectoral muscles had grown too. However, her breasts had completely deflated. They hung empty and rather sorry from her powerful chest. Below, her abdominals were now clearly visible. However, only the two directly below her breasts were easily recognisable, the others concealed by flabs of skin.
She must have noticed my feelings.
- I'll have it fixed week after next. We're just finalising a few things.
- Huh?
My sexual arousal had gone hiding. In a matter-of-fact voice, she informed me.
- I want to train some more, just to increase my size. Besides, I want you to keep absolutely quiet on this. I haven't told anyone.
- Why?
- I don't want to justify myself. The best way is to set up a fait accompli. No discussions.
- Couldn't you have asked me?
- I'm doing this for me.
- But I'm concerned with it.
- Of course. But you are aware that it's my body.
- Yes, yes. I'd still would have preferred to be involved.
Meanwhile, we were lying close to each other. She had wrapped her sheet over her.
- I understand. But you gotta understand too: I wanted to change. I don't do it to spite you. I just didn't want to discuss it any further and risk not doing it. Besides, you were the one always telling me to exercise.
I nodded. She had me.
- Right. I'd still prefer if we had no secrets.
- We don't.
- Besides, what are you going to get 'fixed'?"
- I'll have the excess skin removed and my breasts enlarged.
- You'll what?
I was there, completely stunned. What was going on? Was there some kind of mind-control thing going on?
- It'll look much better when it's done.
- But... what about the risks? What about the costs?
- The boss is paying. She had it done herself. You've seen it. I'll be fine. I know you like big breasts. I wouldn't dream denying them to you.
She was clearly changing to her more playful, sarcastic demeanour.
- Now come on. Imagine me getting some big, round tits...
She made a gesture describing their future size.
- You'll like it, I'm sure. I'm going to be a powerful warrior woman. Do you want to see my calves?
She pulled up her trouser leg. I'd never seen muscles this big on a woman. They were broad enough to be easily visible from the front. Her short legs bunched them together, they were more than seven inches in diameter. There even was a faint splitting line visible.
- Come on, touch them.
I put a tentative hand to them. As she flexed them, they turned rock hard. My girlfriend had become a bodybuilder. She turned around.
- Besides, I've got another surprise for you.
With these words, she wrapped her lips around my confused cock. Just to explain my surprise: for reasons beyond my control and involving her previous boyfriend, Laura wouldn't suck my dick. She just didn't do it. It's not as if I was missing anything, but ,hey, I like my options. As could be expected, I stood to attention.

Afterwards, I was still quite confused. My girlfriend was into muscles. Okay. Her self-image was improving. Perfect. I was getting my dick sucked. Great. She was getting plastic surgery. Nah. I was unsure of what to think. On the other hand, she had made up her mind. This was a take it or leave it decision.

I decided to take it and return favours.

The next two weeks flew by. I had work to catch up on. Laura was at the spa most of the time. I visited her there once. She was training heavy. She pushed enormous weights with her legs, curled huge barbells and swam like a top athlete. My evening push-ups looked puny compared to her muscular prowess.
Clearly, the used training methods were extremely effective. I had no real idea how they worked, but on the day before her surgery, Laura's body was literally bursting with muscle.
She had grown a veritable bull neck. Her trapezius muscles were bulging, her shoulders were massive, almost the size of bowling balls. Her pectoral muscles were almost then size her breasts had been before training and her abdominals were visible even through the sagging skin. Her ass had become rock hard and full. I was growing accustomed to what I was seeing.

To be honest, I had been adapting for several weeks now. I had taken a look into female bodybuilding, looking at contest pictures and reading 'before and after' reports. Oddly enough, most women didn't look like Laura. She was much more massive, while still more feminine than most of them. Of course, her comparative shortness enhanced the look of her muscles.
Even though I still felt odd, I was beginning to understand her point. The fact was that changing your own body to fit your self-image could be seen as a sign of great confidence and assertiveness. Besides, she actually looked healthier than before. I just hoped that the surgery would go well. As soon as she'd be healed, I would be able to test my 'theory' in practice.

I accompanied her to the surgeon's office on Friday. The place was spotless, looking very professional and expensive. I felt reassured. She was growing increasingly nervous as we arrived. Of course, she tried to mask her feelings behind what I'd call 'machismo' for lack of a better word.
The surgeon greeted us in his office. He was a man in his early forties, all calm and handsomeness. He went through the procedures with her again. They had clearly fixed everything earlier on. At last, they went to her room. She was to stay in for three days after the surgery to see if everything would heal well. I went in with her, we got her stuff in it and then she dressed for the procedure. I took in the image of her body. We'd see how she'd change. I knocked on wood. As the anaesthetist administered the narcotic, I held her hand. As soon as she fell asleep, they wheeled her away.

I was left there. I sat around, unsure of what to do. I had brought a book, but I was way too worked up to read. I turned on the TV, but shut it back off. In the end, I went for a walk, asking the receptionist to ring me as soon as it was over. This proved pointless as I was back five minutes beforehand.

When she got back out of surgery, I was with her. She was all bandaged on her chest and stomach. I had no idea how it was meant to look, but I was so happy that she was fine. Of course, she was tired as hell. I stayed with her, but she mostly slept anyway.
A couple of days later, we were back home. She had already seen the results, but I was still pretty much in the dark. She had told me that it had been a success and that she was pleased with the results, but she wanted to heal until she'd let me touch her again. I could divine the results from her changed profile, but the big day had now come.
We went to her bedroom, she sat me on her bed and said:

"Sit on your hands."
I did as I was told. She unbuttoned her blouse slowly, one button at a time. My dick instantly responded. At first, a faint piece of cleavage appeared. Then, slowly, her upper body was revealed in all it's glory. The scars were already fading. The doctor was clearly a genius. Her breasts were huge. They had a natural hang to them, covering the top half of her first pair of abdominals. Her nipples were a little more centred than before, giving her breasts an even firmer look. Her abdominals were now perfectly visible, her obliques framing them perfectly. She turned to her side. The larger bulge of her breasts topped off a nice row of eight sub-bulges.
She turned back, then made her breasts jump by flexing her pectorals.
- Like what you see?
- Oooh yes!
- How about this?
She raised her chest, then bunched her abdominals even tighter. They mashed together, bulging even more. She posed a little, then said:
- I think Harry will have to split the kills with me next time.
- Fuck Harry!
- Fuck you!
- Yes, come on, fuck me!
She swiftly climbed on top of me and seized my dick with her cunt. Grabbing it with all her internal muscle power, she quickly got it on and rode me like hell.

Thank you for your reply. I'm glad you like it. Also, thanks for the karma points, everyone.

Chapter 5

The next few weeks were a blur. Summer was fast approaching, my current projects were going along nicely. My sex life had improved tremendously. Of course, it still felt a little odd, especially the new breasts. They were much firmer than before, and at times, I could just barely feel the implant. Still, we adapt and live on. Laura had returned to her job , but had decided to hide the changes. I had no idea why, but she was still wearing her old clothes at work. I guess most people didn't notice anything. Of course, her face was much slimmer than before, but she told me that the only comments she received were a rather vague 'looking fine' by one of her co-workers.
At home, however, things had changed. She still went to the spa for two hours every day to work out and maintain her shape, but she also spent some time shopping. Oddly enough, it was she who suggested to get some 'special interest' clothing at the local sex shop. The level of kink was still manageable, but her normal cotton underwear sometimes found itself switched for leather and *gasp* even rubber. One evening, she greeted me in a skintight vinyl leotard with strategically well-placed cuts. Of course, I couldn't resist.

As she grew accustomed to her new body, she also informed me that she wanted to give roleplaying a new try. She had spent very little time with her friends in the last few months, but she still wanted to get this done before spilling her beans to them. Also, her family was still pretty much in the dark about everything.
As a result, I gave Joe a call.
"Hey Joe, how's it going?"
- Stan? It's been ages. I'm fine, how about you? Did you get your missus to calm down?
- Yes. Actually, I wanted to ask you if we could return to the group.
- Mmh. Basically yes, but only if there're no more screw-ups like last time.
- I don't think so. Besides, she wants to make a new character anyway.
- Okay. Looks fine. Send me the details, get your gear and your on. We'll be trying a new location, and I got plenty of people who'll join in. Besides, did you know I'm now dating Alexa?
- Nope. Great taste in women though. If you like them with big teeth, that is.
- Laugh all you want. Anyway, she's great fun, she's cool and she's bright. And she has abs from hell.
- Aha. From hell, you say?
- From goddamn hell.
- Only hell I ever knew.
Laura smiled and made a sign for me to keep quiet.
- One more thing. Laura wants her character to be a surprise for the others. You'll get the data, but don't tell anyone.
- Whatever. It's fine by me. See you in July.

Laura had been developing her new character for a while now. However, she was still hesitating on the basic concept. Would she prefer to play an armoured fighter or a barbarian warrior woman? And anyway, black leather or natural colour? The more I thought about it, the more the barbarian warrior woman seemed interesting. On the colour side, I preferred natural leather, to prevent the traditional 'all the girls wear black' syndrome our group was plagued with.

In the end, she decided on the moderately practical barbarian leather armour, including some heavy leather boots, a knee-length skirt with linen, leather and mail and a leather top showing off her abdominals and her cleavage. She also bought some arm-braces and a brass neck-guard. Also, natural leather prevailed.
Laura took a crash-course in basic sword fighting and wrestling (which we also practiced at home) and seemed ready for everything. She even wore her outfit at home to get used to it. We had great fun, designing a suitable war-shout and figuring out a name. We settled for 'Skarda of the Western Steppes'.

When July came, we were ready for everything. She had bought a long cape to hide her new body until the moment of truth and spent the last days tweaking at various details. Seeing her fussing over the definition of her abdominals, I began to suspect that she might just have exchanged one source of uncertainty for another.
The ride to the new location was uneventful but very long. We drove for hours, slowly leaving civilisation behind. The last hour was just an endless drive on a very uneven trail, for lack of a better word, in complete wilderness. At last, a silhouette emerged. An ancient, ruined castle appeared behind a low hill. I wondered why whoever had built had refrained from putting it on top of the hill, but dismissed this thought. Since this was in the middle of nowhere, why not? If there's no one to attack you, why care?

We arrived at the parking lot, which just turned out to be a barren field. Close to it, a small tent village had risen up, housing the sixty-odd participants. The smell of stew was familiar and lovely. We set up camp, then went to Joe's desk. He had clearly taken his office with him. His age-old laptop was humming and he'd even got the coffee ready for himself. I quickly did the administrative stuff and was told that the session was to start in the late afternoon.
I met up with a few people to chat. Laura stayed on her own, finishing her preparations at our tent. I found my group. Harry and Rachel were enjoying his special spicy killer stew, her artful pallor struggling against the red-hot chilli. I sat with them and said:
"How is it going? Can I have some?"
Rachel replied:
- Help yourself. How's Laura?
- She's still getting ready. It'll take some time. We'll meet her, when she's done.
Harry interrupted:
- What's her new character? I hope she's not pissed at me anymore. Especially since Joe decided that her unstylish healing attempt still counted.
- I can't tell you. You'll see.
He looked perplexed.
- Do we have a new priest or healer?
- Actually, we do. He's over there.
He pointed at a rail-thin guy in priestly robes vaguely reminding me of a bishop.
- His name is Stuart. He's an actual priest.
- He is? He's not actually straying too far from his real-life job.
- Quite. On the other hand, you and your hippie friend at the office are quite a bunch of elves anyway.
I decided not to engage in the 'elves are hippies' debate at this moment. Harry was a nice guy, but he always seemed to be pissed off at something. Rachel managed to squeeze back into the conversation:
- How's your relationship nowadays. You seemed awfully disappointed when you left.
I smiled inwardly, then made a vague gesture.
- It's so-so.
- It's not. I can see you're lying.
- I'm not. It's so-so... awesome.
I burst into laughter. Somehow, being dressed as a mythic creature makes you go back to puberty.
- So it's okay. Whew. I was really worried for a while. You should have told us.
- Of course. I just didn't think that you were still interested. What with the demise of our hero.
Harry snorted.

From the desk, a call sounded. Joe was standing there, a large warhorn in his hand. He gave it a short blow. The sound echoed through the wilderness. He went through the rules quickly, assigned everyone to their assistant gamesmasters and checked the walkie-talkies. We were out of cell-phone range for sure, so the best thing to do was to play along anyway. At last, all the organisational stuff was done and we were ready to move out. As everybody left, we found ourselves alone with Joe and his wife. She smiled at us, opened her new and perfect laptop, booted it, and started writing. She did the emergency service even though she wasn't into roleplaying at all. She just took her work there and got it done in the open.
Joe checked whether everyone was there and said:
"Where's Laura?"
- I'm here.
She had approached in the confusion, still hidden by her cape. As Joe nodded and jotted something in his notebook, he said:
- Okay, let's get going.

This was the moment all the last months' work had been directed at. Laura unclasped the cape and let it slip to the ground. Everybody's eyes went wide. There she stood, smiling confidently, casually flexing her massive muscles as if she was unaware of her effect.
Harry's mouth was wide open. He wasn't the only one, but he was clearly the most fascinated.
Her leather bustier clenched her full breasts, shading her massive abdominals. The were so tight that they even had a fine parting line on the muscles themselves. Her arm muscles were enormous, her biceps as thick as my forearm. Below, her gigantic calves strained against her boots. She gave the onlookers a surprised look.
"I'm Skarda of the Western Steppes, barbarian warrior!"
Rachel was the first to get back her voice:
- So you are. Well met, Skarda. I am Maranea the Enchantress. It is pleasing to find you on our side.
We greeted each other, then set off.

Chapter 6

As we approached an encampment of local woodsmen, the gasps of surprise were everywhere. Quite a few people came over to take a closer look at Laura's physique, producing various kinds of remarks, from admiration to outright sneers. At the camp, we met a wounded soldier of King Auric, master of these lands. He was lying in the shade, his coat of arms bloodied. The local healer tended his wounds, but it was clear that his life was ending. He called us to come closer:
"Hail, travellers. I am told that you are on your way to Stoneshadow Castle." He wheezed, a little blood dripping from his mouth. Balric answered:
- Aye. Is there something we can do for you?
- Indeed. I am dying, but I was given a mission. If thou werest to fulfill it, my soul shall be saved and the debt relieved.
- What is thy debt?
- I must bring this sacred pendant to the castle. Were it not for the orcs' ambush, I might have succeeded. Alas, I am now lost. Willst thou take up my quest?
- Of course. My honour shall depend on it's completion. Who shall receive the amulet?
- Give it to the infant heiress and only to her. Prevent any and all of the courtiers to put their filthy hands on it.
He spit more blood.
- Consider it done.
- I thank thee...
His voice trailed off. The healer, grieved with pain, was forced to announce:
- He is dead. Go forth and accomplish his mission.
- We shall do so.

We quickly checked for provisions, being fully aware that several days of marching awaited us. I provided myself with a map of the area and asked the local peasants about the orcish hordes that were believed to roam the country-side. As night fell, we set up camp.
Of course, I could not share a tent with Skarda. Instead, she bedded with Maranea. I settled for my trusty hammock. As the camp lay in darkness, I climbed back out of it and swiftly sneaked to their tent. Unsurprisingly, the women were still awake. However, they weren't in character. I eavesdropped.
"Wow, they're huge." That was Rachel/Maranea. "Can I touch them?"
- Of course.
- I have been thinking about getting mine done bigger too.
- Why? They're fine as they are.
- You think so? I don't know. I found a girl on the net. She was modelling this corset and had a pair of really round, big ones. I can't say, but I like the fake look.
- You like that? Can't say I do. I'm so happy mine look real.
- You are aware that the rest of you does not?
I could hear Laura laugh.
- You're right. Still, I really feel great. It's been a crazy work getting everything done, but I think it was worth it. I'm in absolutely peak shape and everything is now so easy. You remember how quick I got tired...
- Yes. While I'm invading your privacy, can I touch your arms too?
- Why not! Go ahead!
- Come on, flex them!
By this time, I had a very un-elvish hard-on.
- Just a technical question: Did you use any drugs to grow this big? I heard all kinds of horror stories about gyms...
- No. I wouldn't have it done otherwise. They had special supplements to get nutrients faster, but I checked everything: no hormones, no odd stuff.
- Okay. Wow, your abs are like speed-bumps.

At this moment, I decided to go and jerk off quietly in the woods. As I was rubbing my dick, imagining all kinds of lesbian fore-play, I realised that something was odd. There were two noises. One was a strange humming of which I had no idea where it came from. The other sound was that of sneaking people in the forest. I pulled my trousers back on and moved quietly in it's direction.

Orcs!

A whole warband was closing in on the encampement. I swiftly ran to the camp. I quickly woke Balric. He shook his head, grabbed his armour and his weapons and got out of his tent. I then walked over to the girls' tent. Twanging the string, I told them of the approaching foes. After a bit of rummaging, they climbed out, mostly dressed. Of course, Maranea had opted not to put on her corset, so the robe was just hanging down on her. I immediately took a peak at her cleavage and smiled in the pale moonlight. I only just had time to wake the cleric, then all hell broke loose.

Balric and the women had hidden away from the tents. Of course, the orcish attack focused on them, since they fully believed to have surprised us. With loud screams and war-shouts, they unleashed their fury on the empty tents. As they realised what had happened, we attacked. Two shouts were heard above the din of the battle:

"By the twin wolves of the northern suns, I shall destroy the orc scum!"
"Blood and slaughter on the orc! Skarda shall reap your heads to lay them on the altar of Gahel!"

The fight was swift and brutal, orc after orc fell under our warriors' mighty weapons. As Balric crushed them with his warhammer in one hand and axe in the other, Skarda advanced, her double-handed sword tearing down swathes of her foes. I sent arrows at them while Maranea blasted her enemies minds with her mighty magic. With a piercing shriek, the priest Eriman threw himself at our foes. He brought one of them down.
Within minutes, most orcs were either dead or fleeing. However, one of them, a powerful female warrior, attacked Skarda directly. She screamed in her own guttural tongue and charged her.
Skarda met her head on. Their blades connected, masterful double-handed sword against crude orcish scimitar. However, the force excerted by the two furies proved to be too much for their weapons. They both shattered.

For a few moments, they looked incredulously at their broken weapons. Skarda recovered first and grabbed her opponent. Clenching her in a bear-hug, she lifted the green-skinned woman. Alexa's full breasts squished themselves into Laura's face. Laura's enormous tits were squashed against Alexa's washboard midriff. Their powerful abdominals rubbed together. There was a short pause to reconsider. At last, the orc woman went limp. Skarda let the defeated shape of her enemy slip to the ground. She raised her arms and howled in triumph.
The woodsmen thanked us for defeating the orcs and disposed of the corpses. For some reason, the orc warrior woman's corpse took longer to dispose off. It was as if something was retaining her.

As I was getting ready to return to sleep, Laura came over. She was ecstatic. Still she whispered (this was going to be out of character).
"Stan, I can't believe how great this is! I never felt so alive! I should have done this years ago!"
I smiled. I was glad too. Besides, masturbation had saved the day.
- You know what, let's get in the forest and fuck. There won't be any more orc raids tonight anyway.
Now this was an offer. My hard-on was back.
- I see. You're okay with it.
She grinned. Her teeth shone in the moonlight.

We disappeared into the forest after I had taken a blanket with me. I set it up in a flat spot, then helped her out of her clothes. Seconds later, I was caressing her muscles, kissing her lips, squeezing her breasts. It was cold as hell, her nipples stood erect and moments later, her clit did too. As I was fingering her, we suddenly noticed a presence close by. There, in the moonshade of a tree stood a statuesque woman. It was Alexa.

"Would you mind if I joined you?"
So much for orc raids.
Surprisingly, Laura nodded. Alexa stripped and got on the blanket with us. She stretched, than whispered:
"You were great during the battle. Your boobs are awesome and you're muscles are the best I'd ever seen. What do you say, should we get your boyfriend going?"
I felt a collective mischievous grin around me. The girls got me going alright. This was crazier than most fantasies I'd had fostered: Here I was, mild-mannered graphics designer and spare time elf, getting my dick licked by my muscle-bound, huge-titted super girlfriend and her fitness model cat-fight opponent. They licked me, eventually kissing over my shaft, exploring each other with their tongues. Even though it was clear that Alexa had much more experience in this, it was clear that Laura was a fast learner. When it was clear that my dick was hard enough, Alexa sat on my face, motioning Laura to grab my penis with her cunt. As I licked for my dear life, Laura rode me like crazy.

After a few seconds of this treatment, I blew my load and went tilt. I barely perceived that the girls were sixty-nineing, before passing out.

When I woke up, I was in my hammock. Had I dreamt all this? I'd have to ask Laura.

Chapter 7

The next day started early. I was quite tired, but also deeply satisfied. First, the woodsmen repaired Skarda's weapon. After this, we got on our way and walked along the path to the castle. I scouted before the party to prevent any further mishaps. It all went very well. However, several things were irritating: First of all, there was the strange humming sound which sometimes grew slightly in intensity. Second, the local wildlife seemed to be awfully primeval. Third, my scouting ahead meant I could not talk to Laura.
I advanced through the undergrowth, scanning the road for obstacles. Nothing. This place was empty. Suddenly, the largest boar I had ever seen appeared. It looked at me with complete lack of interest, then walked off into the forest.
As far as I knew, there were no wild boars in this area, and certainly none who were this big. Odd.

I decided to return to the party and talk about it. As I approached, I overheard Skarda and Balric comparing feats of strength they had performed. I smiled inwardly. This clearly was Laura's lifetime role. I stepped out of the bushes.
"Hail, my friends! I have scouted ahead and must tell you that this is one strange place. It's wilderness is the most ancient I have ever seen."
I then made the out-of-character sign and turned to Joe.
"What kind of place is this? Just before I saw a boar this big."
I made a sign showing it going up to my chest. Joe gave me a confused look.
- Boars? There ain't no boars around here.
- I saw one just over there.
Harry interrupted:
- Maybe it's a mutant?"
- I don't think so, Harry. Still it's strange, isn't it?
- Joe, just a question: Where did you get this place?
- My wife chose it. She found it on the net. It's isolated and abandoned, so nobody will be disturbed.
- Okay. You don't have a map of it, perchance?
- Sure.
He pulled it out. We clustered around it. I looked around. This was hardly the place depicted on the map. The castle seemed much further away in real life. Laura interjected:
- This map's odd. We've been walking all morning. We should be at the castle by now. Something isn't right.
I added:
- Absolutely. We were on this path all the time. The map's wrong.
Joe frowned:
- Honestly, I'm surprised myself. We should have arrived at the castle by now. I'll check on the walkie-talkie.
He pushed the speaking button.
- Hello? This is Joe. Anybody there? Lisa?
He released the button. White noise. We waited. Nothing. He walked around, holding the antenna in the air.
- This thing should be in range, even if the map was wrong. I'll see if the reception is better on that hill.
He walked over, checking the device. Harry and Stuart went with him. I stayed there with the girls. Laura smiled gently at me. I still hadn't decided whether last night had really happened. We sat down on some rocks, taking to the shade to escape the midday heat. Rachel grasped the opportunity to put some sunscreen on. I noticed how much time she spent on her cleavage. Clearly, yesterday's conversation had furthered my understanding.

Laura gave me a look. I snapped back at her. She whispered:
"Regardless of what happened yesterday, I won't let you oggle other women. Especially since there's now plenty to oggle at with me."
Clearly, it hadn't been a dream. She continued:
- You know, I've been thinking: Since everybody has been so supportive, I'll try to get even bigger.
I looked at her breasts.
- Not there, stupid. Here.
She extended her arm, casually flexing her triceps.
- Kali, you know, my boss, said that it would happen. She's been right again.
I was sceptical.
- Even bigger? She's not as big as you herself.
- You haven't seen her lately, then.
My eyes got wide.
- She's competitive, you know. When she saw my progress, she returned to it herself. Trouble is, I'm getting competitive myself.
- Laura, please be careful. You shouldn't go too far. So far, it's okay. It's not 'normal', but I still like it a lot. I'm not sure whether I'd still like it when you get bigger.
She gave me a bored look.
- Come on, Stan. Don't be such a Philistine. You'll grow fond of it, you'll see...

Just as I was about to reply, Rachel gave a yelp! Something was happening. A gust of wind blew into our direction. The trees shook, leaves blew around us and the sun was eclipsed by something huge.
We shielded our eyes and stared. Above us, a huge, reptilian shape was approaching the hilltop. A dragon. A DRAGON! An enormous, thirty-yard-long dragon flew above us. The creature was covered in red scales and was real. It was also keen on attacking our friends on the hill. The creature landed and grabbed Joe in it's huge claws as his companions scattered. It tried to grab Harry, but failed to do so as he tumbled in the scrubs. It took a deep breath and...

Breathed fire.

A large sheet of flame covered the shrubbery. Harry ran out of it, beating at the flames on his back. He dropped down, rolled and tried to extinguish them. The creature looked up, roared, and flew away. As we saw it's colossal shape disappear, we recuperated our senses.
The monster was flying to the castle. We ran to Harry and found him singed but otherwise unhurt, just as Stuart climbed out behind a rock. It took them a few seconds to recover their speech. At last, Harry said:
"What the hell was that?" I replied incredulously:
- A dragon. A goddamn dragon.
- I'm dreaming, ain't I?
- I don't think so. We saw it all, didn't we?
Our friends nodded. Laura said:
- If we're awake and this dragon is real, then something must have happened.
- Oh really? Yes. Apparently, it's not normal for dragons to appear out of normal and try to roast me.
- This is exciting. My fantasy is coming true.
Laura's eyes were glowing.
- Laura, you're crazy.
- But you saw the dragon, didn't you? And it did carry Joe off to the castle?
- It did, but...
- So the thing we're going to do is save him.
- Are you insane? Stan, tell her! She can't be for real!
- I don't know. Since the dragon is, maybe we should be for real too.
Laura smiled.
- Now I really wished I had a genuine sword.
Stuart and Harry gave her a 'I can't believe what's going on' look. Suddenly, Rachel interrupted us.
- I'm burning.
She stated it in a matter-of-fact, no nonsense way. Indeed, her hand was burning. The flame was bluish and clearly hot. Still, she seemed to be calm and unhurt. She moved the flame from one hand to the other. Her voice was totally flat.
- I seem to be able to touch it without hurting myself. This is surprising.
We gave her a crazed look as she juggled the flameball. Suddenly, there was another one.
- I'm a sorceress.

Harry toppled over.

We woke him up, then talked about what to do next. Our first consensus was that we were now in a bona fide fantasy world. The second was to rescue Joe. Harry and Laura abandoned their boffer weapons. I took out my knife and started to remove the covers from my arrows. If this was for real, I might have to fight for real too.
After sharpening them, we checked the environment. If this was a true fantasy world, there might be a heroes tomb somewhere. We might find some stuff there.
In the end, Laura and Harry did most of the searching. I was occupied with my arrows, Stuart was still sitting calmly and Rachel was testing her magic powers. After a while, they called for us. We came over. They had found a cavern in a deep ravine. I climbed in first. For some reason, I was able to see much clearer than my companions. I saw perfectly well down there while they bumped around.
At last, we emerged into a larger cave. It had clearly been worked on with some craftmanship. In it, a skeleton was lying on a bed of stone. Around it, various funeral offerings lay. Dusting them off, our fighting friends grabbed the blades and armour. The previous owner, clearly a warrior of some standing, maybe even a noble, certainly had no more use for them.
Harry chose a broadsword and an axe, while Laura took a huge double-handed sword, almost as large as the fake one she had before. She gave a little gasp as she lifted it the first time, having underestimated it's weight. Still, she seemed to cope. Harry grabbed a helmet to compliment his authentic chainmail. As we were getting ready to leave, Rachel recovered a small chest containing several glass phials.
We all gave her an amused look. This was a true-to-form fantasy world. What the hell?

Chapter 8

After this short interruption, we travelled on towards the castle. Of course, none of us were really comfortable with the situation. I guess everyone was questioning their sanity by now. Was this some sort of collective hallucination? Maybe we had ended up close to a chemical weapons dump from the war and were just lying around dying. The thought chilled my spine. In the end, there was no way to be sure. If we were dying, we could just as well enjoy a final dream.
When the evening came, we were in sight of the castle door. Only a small chasm with a bridge separated us from the gates. After a short talk, we decided to get to the castle tonight. We had to save Joe after all.

I moved closer to the bridge. It seemed rickety and unstable. Just as I approached to check it's stability, I was attacked: All of a sudden, a huge creature rose from the chasm. It extended it's long, scaly arm and grabbed me, lifting me in the air. Behind it, another one crawled to the surface. The monsters were vaguely humanoid in shape, but covered in scales. Their skin was greyish and their faces were hideous: They had long, crooked noses, tiny pin-sized eyes shining with malevolence and large, strong jaws full of jagged teeth.
I screamed for help as the first monster started throwing me around.
The others heard me and came running.

Skarda swung her weapon overhead and chopped off the creature's arm. It howled, grabbing at the bloody stump. I freed myself from it's fingers and saw her strike at the beast. Her muscles moved in perfect unison. Her huge back smelled as the blow connected. Her opponent was twice as tall as she was, but she sliced open its belly. The monster spilled its guts. It howled in desperation, then toppled over. Meanwhile, Balric had engaged the other beast. As he hacked at it, there was a searing light overhead. A ball of blue flame struck the beast's face, blinding it with pain and brightness. Maranea was grinning wickedly. She was clearly enjoying her new-found power. The helpless creature was quickly defeated.
As the others fought on, Eriman helped me to my feet. I pulled out my bow, but whinced as I realised that the creature had broken a few of my ribs. I slumped back on the ground. Eriman helped me remove my shirt. My whole chest was covered in blue and black bruises. He touched them to see if they were displaced. I gritted my teeth. All of a sudden, he started praying. As I lay there, he was asking God to help him. I guess this was the normal way a priest would do it if no doctor was around. Oddly enough, my bruises shrank. I felt painless and rather elated. After a while, the wound had fully disappeared. All he did was smile. Clearly, his new-found path to God was making him happy.

When the others came back, I was sitting. Balric and Skarda were smiling with subsiding bloodlust. I never had seen such a look in Laura's eyes. She stuck her weapon in the ground.
"Let's get the dragon. I'm pumped now!"
Balric chimed in:
- Yes! Let's get the big lizard! We'll show him a thing or two.
As they were getting ready to enter the castle, Maranea interrupted them.
- Friends, I have realised what these potions do. I don't know how, but it is perfectly clear.
We gave her the half-crazed look that every new discovery in this insane place provoked.
- There are four of them. These two will heal whoever is wounded.
Eyebrows went up.
- The blue one is filled to the brim with magic power. I guess I'll best keep it. The green one is an odd one. It will improve the strength and stamina of the drinker for some time. I'll let you two sort out who'll get it.

The warriors' gaze met: The challenge was on. Balric was first to speak:
"I think it should go to the stronger one. After all, it will improve upon an existing foundation."
- Okay. Let's wrestle.
I chose to interrupt:
- Shouldn't we just get going? We need to help Joe.
She smiled:
- It won't take long.
I covered my eyes in despair. Laura was turning into an outright jock.
- Alright, let's get it on!
She put her weapon aside and stripped to the waist. This caused a collective pause. What the hell was she doing. Her large, round boobs were now hanging free. Her bracers and neck-guard went off too. Meanwhile, a still disbelieving Harry was stripping off his armour. When he was done, he took up a crouching position, holding his arms ready to catch her.
All of a sudden, Laura jumped at him, avoiding his grasp. She grabbed his waist, mashing her tits against him. She pulled his right leg out from under him and made him fall. As Harry dropped to the ground, he clinched her, pulling her with him. She remained on top, moved her arms under his and broke free. She pushed his shoulders down, her arms swelling with the effort. He tried to hold against her, suddenly grabbing her left breast. He twisted it, causing Laura to give off a yelp of pain. He used her second of confusion to roll on top of her. He grinned as he forced her to the ground. However, she suddenly did a kippup with him on her. He fell off, she pulled his arm, twisted it, and pushed him to the ground. Gritting her teeth, she said:
- That wasn't fair. I think I won, though. Say it!
She twisted further.
- Argh! Okay, okay, you win.
- Perfect.
She released him, then checked on her breast. It was still alright. She caressed it, than pulled her clothes back on. Walking over to Rachel, she took the vial and said:
- Let's see... How does it work?
- I have no idea. Magic, maybe?
- I guess I'll just drink it before we get to the dragon.
We went to the castle door and forced our way in. Harry still seemed to be a little angry about his defeat. I wasn't all that happy either: The woman I was in love with was changing and I was unsure whether this was for the better.

The castle proved to be a ruin in the worst sense of the word. Many walls had collapsed and the ground was rough and uneven. Once inside, it became clear that the creature's lair was further up. We climbed a derelict staircase until we could hear very loud, deep breaths. The dragon was sleeping. I looked around the corner. It was lying there, dozing on a hoard of gold. This was a surprise. Close by, a large cage held most of the gamers. They seemed desperate. The monster might actually have eaten some of them. I shuddered.
After checking back with the others, I was to free the prisoners. If the dragon was to wake up, my friends would fight while I got them to safety.

I took a deep breath and went in.

Chapter 9

I advanced on tip-toes. The beast was sleeping, it's slow and regular breath reeking of sulphur. My eyes were streaming with tears. I dodged the obvious traps of stacks of gold coins on the floor and reached the cage. I made sign to be silent. The people in the cage held their breaths. I looked for a door. Sadly, the cage was not meant to be opened by a door. The concept was stupid anyway. What was a dragon to do with a fiddly human-sized lock? The creature clearly picked up the whole cage, chose one of the captives to eat and did just that. I walked around it, testing the bars. They all seemed to be rather solid. Next, I tried to lift the cage. Even though the prisoners tried to help me, it was pointless.
Meanwhile, the dragon started snoring. Occasionally, little flames flickered from its enormous nostrils.
I whispered at the prisoners:
"I'll be back in a moment. Stay calm."
I snuck back to the others.
"The cage has no door. We can't lift it. I don't see how we could get them out."
Rachel suggested:
- Let's saw the bars. Do we have a saw around here?
Harry replied:
- I saw none. Did you see a saw?
Stuart added:
- Sorry, I say I saw no saw.
Laura snickered.
I gave them the desperate look of someone who was about to kill.
They all looked sheepish. Laura snickered again. Then Harry said:
- You might take your muscle-girlfriend to bend the bars, couldn't you?
Laura grinned.
- Let's do it.

I led the way, silently pointing at potential risks. Laura evaded most catastrophes along the way. As we reached the cage, Laura grabbed two bars, gave me a stern look, and pulled. Her muscles swelled with the strain, she started to sweat, trying to force them apart. However, they stayed unmoved. She tried again. Nothing. Breathing heavily, she turned to me and mouthed:
"They're too solid. I'll try something else."
- What?
As an answer, she pulled out the green potion. I was unsure of whether this was a good idea. I normally trusted Rachel on most things, but her sudden development of magic powers was a little too much, even for me.
- What if it's poison?
- I don't think so. It would be a sorry funeral offering, wouldn't it?
She uncorked it, took a whiff and drank it up.
- Tastes awful. Bleargh!
We waited anxiously.

Suddenly, Laura started shivering. Her body seemed to grow. It was actually growing. Her already swollen muscles started growing. Her shoulders grew outward, her arms becoming thicker, her neck becoming broad and massive. Her chest swelled, straining against her top. Her already massive legs were now larger than my waist. She averted her eyes and gave off little moans of satisfaction. Was she having an orgasm?
"Snap out of it! Go on!"
Inside the cage, people grew uneasy. The dragon was moving in his sleep. It seemed to be dreaming.
Laura shook her head, gave me a dreamy look, then focused again.
She grabbed the bars, took a deep breath, and pulled. This time, it worked. The bars started moving outward slowly. She was sweating profusely. At last, it gave way.

She released it, turned to me and gave me a kiss. We hugged as the others got out of the cage. I was in heaven. For some reason, her muscles fitted her perfectly. Her confidence underlined her personality. I was in love all over again. As I caressed her, the dragon slowly rose from his sleep. It moved its jaws, smacking it's lips. It stopped. Its prey was escaping!
It reared its head and howled in fury. In my bliss, it took me a few moments to realise the danger we were in. We let go, I gave her a look of deep and utter devotion, she answered it in kind. Behind us, the monster breathed flames at the ceiling, getting ready for the kill.
"I love you."
- Me too.
She put her finger to my lips, kissed me, then pulled her sword out of its scabbard.
- More later...
- Yes.
I pulled out an arrow, nocked it on the bowstring and sent it flying at the dragon's eye.

Chapter 10

All hell broke lose.
I ran as fast as I could, shooting at the beast's head non stop. The arrows struck it, but most bounced off it's scales. I hid behind a collapsed wall. Just in time. A burst of flame scorched the wall's top, tongues of red hot gas licking over the edge. I ducked to the side, waiting for the inferno to subside. The monster's thundering steps approached. It was going to eat me. I looked for help.
Suddenly, a shout startled me.
"Hey, you big lizard! Fight someone your size!"
Harry had come out of cover. Shouting at the top of his lungs, he lured the dragon to his location. The creature turned around, casually smashing half of the wall with it's tail. I escaped certain death, got back up and assessed the situation. As far as I could tell, Laura was waiting in cover for a weak spot to become visible. I walked closer to the dragon. Nothing. It's scales covered the creature completely. It's belly might have been softer, but it was sadly unaccessible. I was about to give up, when I noticed an oddity. At the top of it's spine, just between the wings' base, there was a large piece of scale that did not move like the rest. I thought about it. This peace was squeezed between the wings. If it were too rigid, they wouldn't work. This might be the spot we were looking for. I shouted at the others.
"Get the piece on it's back. I'll distract it."
- Got it!

I showed myself again, shouted at the creature and almost got burnt. I just managed to get away. Rachel lobbed one of her fireballs at the monster. It was now distracted, but it was also on the verge of frenzy.
Meanwhile, Laura had started climbing it's back. Her bulk was clearly visible on the monster's spine. She held herself up there by grabbing the scales. Every time she looked up, her head squeezed against her trapezius muscles. She was mad with glee. As she reached the oddly shaped scale, she stood up, then straddled the monster's back. She pulled up her sword, wedged it between the scales, and stabbed the creature in it's spinal cord. It shuddered, it's lower legs giving in under it's weight. The monster howled in pain, trying to get it's body back under control. We seized the opportunity and started evacuating the prisoners. The monster fluttered its wings, trying to get rid of its hidden assailant.
As it fought, we managed to get the captives out. As the last ones fled, I turned around to tell Laura to get away herself. However, it was not to be. The monster twisted, turned, flopped up and turned on its back. Then, it crashed down mercilessly, burying Laura under it.

Everything fell silent. I couldn't believe it. She had disappeared under the enormous mass of the creature's corpse. I screamed for everyone to help me move it. Even though I knew it was pointless, I still hoped to find her miraculously alive. She might... she just had to...

Chapter 11

We pushed and pushed, putting all our dwindling strength into a desperate attempt to save the woman I loved. At last, the creature's dead body started moving, rocking a little before finally turning over. Blood was everywhere. We pushed it further until, at last, her body was visible. She was small, contorted into a fetal position, her arms around her legs. She was covered in blood, all red. I rushed at her, grabbed her, shook her, anxious to see whether she was still alive. I got blood all over me, it mingled with my tears, I forced her arms apart and began to resuscitate her. I pushed down between her tits, hammered at her massive chest, blowing air into her lungs.
Nothing.

All of a sudden, I realised that someone was standing beside me. Stuart kneeled next to me and started to pray. At this moment, I didn't care. My temples throbbed. His hands started glowing, and he touched her. Not in a sexual way. In a sacred, loving way. I was just giving Laura the kiss-of-life when I realised that she was awake. And kissing back. We lay there for a while, hugging, kissing and caressing each other. I cannot remember a moment of greater bliss in my life as I lay there, blood-splattered, wounded and tired, but kissing the girl of my dreams.
If this were a Hollywood movie, everybody would cheer and the next moment, we'd be at the temple, getting married.
Of course, this was not the case. Joe interrupted us.
"Let's leave. Please."

We set out, trying to find our way back to civilisation.
After an endless march across the untamed landscape, we reached the field where we'd parked. Nothing.
I quickly examined the area. Indeed, there were car tracks on the ground. Somebody had stolen our cars!
Acollective grunt of despair went through our huddled group. This was the worst session ever. Just as everybody was falling apart, a large army car approached. In it, a group of people with lab coats were enjoying the view. One of them was Joe's wife. As she got out, a warrant officer climbed out. He accompanied her to our group, then gave us a hard look. His name tag said "Raymond Temple". He clearly felt as if he were in the presence of a band of freaks.

Chapter 12

In the end, everything went well. We each got a blanket and a mug of hot chocolate. We were also given a change of clothes and the possibility of a shower. To tell the truth, this was pure bliss. After all that fighting and all the confusion, being treated like a human being was heaven. They even had some doctors who took a look at our injuries. Interestingly enough, they found that most of the bones in Laura's body had been broken, but had been mended seconds later. None of the doctors were able to even try to explain this phenomenon. On the other hand, most of what had happened was pretty much unexplainable. At least, we were certain that no one would take us seriously.

In the end, we told them the truth. The military people listened carefully, took notes, exchanged worried glances and finally declared:
"All right. Finally, all of this makes sense."
Most of us were now either asleep or dumbstruck. I recovered first:
- What makes sense?
- As a matter of fact, people in the region have been complaining about petty thieves for a while. Two months ago, things suddenly got worse. An entire village was attacked and pillaged by an unknown force. Of course, we first thought of terrorists. However, a closer examination revealed tracks of abnormally large wolves. These beasts must have been the size of horses. The conclusion we came to was that some foreign power had smuggled genetically engineered killer wolves into our country. However, this hypothesis did not correspond to the black-fletched arrows we found stuck in most buildings in the village. Apparently, medieval killers on monster wolves had invaded the area.
Now, thanks to your surprise discovery, we know the truth: It was orcs. We should have thought of that.

I couldn't help myself and gave him the "and I thought I was crazy" look that's normally reserved for UFO scientists and political extremists. On the other hand, this was exactly what was to be expected from a fantasy world. Orc raiders were a staple in this kind of environment, so why not?

Finally, I nodded. The military guys had clearly decided to go in and deal with the orc menace in whatever way they found to be appropriate. I decided to just get out of there.
They kept us there overnight, made us sign agreements of secrecy and finally drove us back to our cars. As we drove home, the whole awfulness swept in on us. At last, Laura said:
"I don't think we'll ever get to finish a story with Joe, do you?"
- Nope. Besides, I'm unsure whether I want to have a fantasy story ever again.
- Aw, come on. It was fun!
- No, it wasn't. There was killing, and blood and craziness and you almost died.
- Yeah. But you brought me back. We also had a threesome...
- We did? It actually happened?
- Of course. I'm not sure if we should do it again, but it happened.
- Alexa is a strange one. Didn't Joe mention that he was dating her?
- He did? What an asshole. He's married! He actually told you that?
- Apparently. I'm not sure what to make of it. Besides, where did his wife get that lab coat from?
- She's some kind of scientist, isn't she?
- I don't know.

When we arrived home, the first thing to do was to take another shower. This time, we decided to have it together. To cut a long story short, we ended up in bed. We had excellent sex, but I was missing something. As I lay there, working on Laura's clit while she stroked my dick, I said:
"It's odd. Since seeing you all overloaded with muscle, I can't get it out of my head anymore."
- You think I'm too small?
She flexed her massive biceps.
- I'm unsure. Yes?
She struck a "most muscular" pose. I gasped.
- So you like what you're seeing?
- I do.
- I guess I know what to do.
I grinned. My cock was erect once again.

Two months later, we were invited at her boss' private home. Laura was wearing a new tailored dress she had recently purchased. I was a very elegant black number which closed in the neck, leaving her back and her shoulders uncovered. On the front, it was high-necked, but it still managed to show off her huge breasts. Her muscles had become even larger. She was now the proud owner of handball-sized shoulders, massive biceps and large, bulging trapezius muscles which gave her a rather blocky frame. This was softened by her tight stomach, her big, well-rounded ass and her perfect posture. Her face was lovely and perfectly made up for the occasion.
I was wearing my best suit, wondering why we had to get all dressed up to meet her boss.

As we arrived at her luxury flat in the city centre, I parked our car and got out. Laura put on her heels and I held the door for her. The concierge let us in, and we rode up on the elevator. When we got out, her boss was awaiting us. She was wearing a deep red satin dressing gown. Her had was slightly brighter, but she seemed unchanged. However, the robe could barely conceal her equally muscular body. She must have been roughly the same size as Laura, but her breasts seemed larger.
She smiled, greeted us and bade us to come in. The flat was perfectly elegant, decorated with tasteful, yet unobtrusive furniture and art. It also featured many plants, giving it a lively and harmonic feeling.
We sat down on an expensive looking leather sofa and had some small-talk. Oddly enough, she kept her robe on. On the other hand, maybe this was some kind of fashion statement. I relaxed.

After a while, a thin woman in a grey dress came in and announced that dinner was to be served. Judging by the flavour, this was to be quite an experience...

Chapter 13

Indeed it was. Since Laura had begun her transformation, the more succulent dishes had eluded me. Neither of us was actually a skilled cook, and the tastier meals were soon replaced by the healthier ones. As a result, I was surprised to find positively excellent health food to please my taste buds. I enjoyed this meal a lot. Not only was the food and drink close to perfection, but so was my company. The girls were clearly enjoying themselves and our conversation moved quickly from art and science, to economics, politics and eventually, strength.

Clearly, they both had been steering towards this point and were now happy to have arrived. I pointed out how much I admired Laura for her powerful physique and how I had grown fond of her gentle (and not so gentle) strength. Kali, the boss, was pleased to hear this.
"I told you, as soon as he was in my office, I knew he would be fine. You have an excellent taste in men."
I was honoured, but I also felt a pang of jealousy in Laura's look. Kali continued:
- Anyway, since we are now done eating, I propose a little contest.
- What contest?
- How about a contest of muscularity. I mean, I have paid for your training, and I have seen that it served you well, but I'd really love to test your limits. After all, we share a common history.
Somewhere in my memory, I returned to Laura's shape before her amazing transformation. I still liked it, but somehow, I loved her new shape.
Laura was unsure. She knew that her boss was an extremely competitive person, and that she'd go to great lengths to prove her superiority to a worthy foe. On the other hand, she wanted to show what she stood for herself. After all, she had killed a dragon and cheated death.
- I'm game.
- Excellent. I took the liberty of estimating your measurements. You'll find some clothes in the spare room. Liz will be helping you if you need some adjustments. How about letting your boyfriend be the judge?
I didn't like the way this was going. Once again, my life was going off in some crazy direction.
- Okay. Let's do it.

Laura disappeared into the spare room, while Kali went to her bedroom. I stayed there, finishing off what little food was left and enjoying the fine wine. I waited for a while. Then, the gray woman returned, dimmed the light and turned on a pair of spot lights. Clearly, this situation had been prepared for.
I could hear the women's grunts as they pumped themselves up in their respective rooms. Ever since my trip to the other world, my senses had become extremely acute. Oddly enough, even my ears had remained pointed ever since. The strangeness of the situation merely reflected the overall oddity of my life.

Minutes later, the pumping ended. Out of the shadows, the women appeared. I was instantly erect. Their shape was supernatural in every sense of the word. Although I was well aware of Laura's body, I had not seen her fully pumped. As she walked in sight, every muscle bulged with power. She stopped, turned to me, flexed her upper body into a double-biceps pose and smiled. Her back must have been enormous. Her latissimi spread like wings, her bulging biceps angular and rock hard. She wore a tight blue bikini, showing off her massive abdominals. As she flexed, her breasts moved upwards, heaving with sexual power.

The competition arrived moments later...

Chapter 14

Kali rose to the challenge. Her dark skin was stretched tight over her massive muscles. She wore an identical bikini, it's only difference was it's colour: red. The fabric barely covered her enormous chest. Whereas Laura's breasts were still realistic in a bizarre sense of the term, Kali had clearly overdone it. They were easily the size of her head, round and heavy. Her nipples were easily visible through the fabric.
However, her body was otherwise similar to Laura's. They had clearly reached the zenith of female muscularity (and broken deep into its male aspect). As she flexed, her huge calves spread beyond her shanks. She crunched together her abdominals, creating a set of large, rounded bulges that lifted her tits. As she lifted her arms, even Laura gasped. Her biceps actually passed Laura's. She jerked her trapezius muscles upwards, exploding into a massive show of muscle.
I was stunned and confused. Honestly, I really wondered how these women actually scratched themselves.
They gave me an inquiring look. I shrugged in despair.

Kali spoke:
"Now then, Mr. Longman, who is bigger?"
I shot a doubting glance at Laura, who was still transfixed by her boss' size.
- You are, Ms. Samaji.
The enormous woman smiled. She gave Laura a look of superiority.
However, Laura was unfazed. She smiled, then said:
- I want a second opinion. Your breasts are distracting him. Let's switch the wardrobe! I want to try some of the other clothes...
- If you insist... What shall we try?
She grinned, then walked close to her, mashing her enormous body against hers and whispered into her ear.
A crazy smile washed over Kali's face.
- Perfect...
She licked her lips.
I had no idea what was going on. For some reason, I hardly ever have.

They returned to their rooms. I poured me another drink.

Chapter 15

Minutes later, they returned. They walked into the spotlight at the same time. They were now wearing skin-tight catsuits. Laura's was glossy red, showing off her curves. The suit creaked with every move. On her feet, she wore high-heeled shoes, also glossy red. If I had suggested that she should wear any of this before her transformation, she would have laughed. At best.
Kali was similarly dressed: her suit was black, she thus appeared a little less massive. Breathing heavily, she turned to Laura. Her breasts were jutting out ten inches, supported by inch-thick pecs. She squeezed her tits and said contemptuously:
"Do you find them any less distracting now?"
- Wait a second. I have a surprise for you!
She moved her right hand to her front, carefully reaching around her enormous chest. In it, she held a small vial with a green liquid. As she drank it up, I unzipped my pants. My dick had become rock-hard. Kali gave me a look of distaste.
"What's with him?"
As she turned to Laura, her eyes went wide. Laura clenched her teeth, giving out a shriek of extasy. Her shoulders grew outward, her trapezius muscles forced her neck forward. At the same time, her pectorals rose from below. The latex fabric began to stretch. The huge woman roared with lust, then went into a most muscular pose.
With an audible "snap!", the suit gave way, leaving the musclebound woman naked.

She laughed out loud, her body quivering with muscular power. Still laughing, she walked over to her boss, tore off her suit, and lifted the smaller female hulk, carrying her to the master bedroom. Between bursts of laughter, she turned to me and said:
"Come on. Let's have some fun!"

Inside the very stylish bedroom, she lay the still dumbfounded Kali on her bed.

Chapter 16

I got on the bed with the others. My super-muscular girlfriend quickly stripped her boss of her suit. She pushed her on her back, caressing her enormous tits. She waited until Kali's nipples were hard, then turned to me. I had already stripped to my underpants, smiling at her. Laura flexed her enormous arm, her biceps colliding with her forearm. She looked at her massive breasts, lay her hands on her abs and said:
"Could you believe this is real?"
I nodded.
- It is.
I kissed her. It was one of the long, loving kisses that are reserved for truly crazy situations.
- Would you mind letting me join?
Kali appeared behind me, pushing her proud breasts against my back. This was a tit-man's heaven!
- Do you mind?
- Not at all.
Laura grinned. She was clearly willing to share. In the end, I got the full treatment. Laura sucked me off for a while as she got licked by Kali. When she came, the girls traded places, and there was further licking. By then, my cock was on the verge of explosion. However, as Laura got ready to lick her boss, she hesitated:
"Have you been juicing?"
This came as a slap in the face. The action instantly stopped.
Kali rolled on her back.
- Do you have a problem with it? You're not exactly natural yourself, are you?
- Apart from the breasts, I am.
- And the magic potion thing? I really doubt that you should say anything. Natural is for hippies.
Laura was taken aback.
- Laura, you should realise that this is about living. I don't give a shit about what other people think anymore. This includes you.

At this point, it was clear that we had overstayed our welcome. I took my clothes and went out with Laura. Time to look for a new job.

Chapter 17

The next weeks were awful. Clearly, showing up her boss had triggered quite a few unwanted reactions. Most of the potential local employers steered away from Laura. Besides, her out-of-the-ordinary physique meant that most interviewers were unwilling to even consider her.
Laura was quite unhappy. She couldn't train at the spa anymore and was confined to use a regular gym instead. However, the rather unsavoury comments of the local bodybuilder population cut her membership short. In the end, she just bought some free weights and a training bench and set them up in her room. As a result, I became her spotter. I found the job to be rather boring.

After three weeks, her top-notch muscularity deflated. Her anger knew no bounds. In the end, I was glad to be around: I did my best to comfort her.
"I hate this. Stan, I don't want to go back!"
- Honestly, you're still way more powerful than me. You're just returning to a more realistic size: I guess it's more manageable.
- I don't want to be normal. I love my muscles. Please help me!
- I'm sorry. I'm doing all I can, but there's only so much I can achieve. Besides, were running out of money.
- I know. I just don't want to take that decision.

It was clear for me: if she wanted a job, she'd have to reduce. If she didn't have a job, maintaining her shape was almost impossible. The whole awful situation came to a point when we no longer shared the same bed. Laura didn't want me to see her naked and I was slowly getting angry over the whole mess. One day, I surprised her as she was scraping the remains of the green liquid from its vial.
At this moment, I realised that this wasn't going to end well. If I didn't do something right now, my girl would end up as one of those crazy male-female hybrids. I really didn't want her to juice.

I called Rachel. Maybe she could talk some sense into Laura. She answered promptly:
"Rachel Brown speaking. Who's there?"
- It's me, Stan!
- Stan! Long time no see. How are you? What have you been up to? Are you still with Laura?
- Yep. I still work at the agency and I'm still with Laura.
- Is she still our little pack of muscle?
- Quite. How about you? Did your witch-powers stay?
She turned her voice down.
- Shush. Keep it down. Yes. Let's talk in person, okay?
- Right away. Where do we meet?
- How about I come to your place. I want to see our barbarian champion!
- Perfect.

I told her our address. We decided to meet in the evening.

Chapter 18

I spent the next few hours working on my current project, all the while worrying about our future. All this mess was really getting me down. As always, I drank way too much coffee, so when Rachel rang, I was on the toilet. Laura went to the door, I could hear her open it. The next thing I heard was a gasp!
I finished as quickly as I could, got dressed and got in: Rachel was standing there, dressed in deepest black, her raven hair cascading down her shoulders. Her face was perfectly made up as a gothic princess, and her smile was every bit as wicked. However, my eyes were drawn to her chest.

What once had been a full and ample pair of breasts had grown into a pair of gravity defying bowling balls. They looked bolted on, standing several inches from her body. Her cleavage was revealed by the deeply-cut figure-hugging dress she was wearing. As she embraced me, her breasts were squished against my chest. Whereas Laura's boobs flattened easily, Rachel's did not. Instead, they stubbornly squeezed me away. She gave me a kiss on each cheek and said:
"Wow, you're even cuter than before!"
Indeed, I had noticed for a while that my facial hair had completely disappeared. Nowadays, I shaved once in a month, tops.
- Anyway, let's talk!
- Come on in...

We moved to the living room, Rachel clicking there on her 4" heels. We sat down, I poured us some drinks, then she started:
- I've had quite a bit of luck recently.
I was still confused by her huge breasts. They were fake as hell.
- Ever since I came back from the 'land beyond', I seem to have developed magical powers. Yes, actual magic.
Laura nodded:
- We've been there. Is it for real?
As an answer, Rachel let a bright blue flame dance on her hand.
- That's not the only thing: I've been able to bend other people to my will easily.
I turned sceptical.
- As a matter of fact, I'm also able to read other people's minds. As a result, I'm now quite wealthy. This is when I got these!
She lifted her cantaloupe-sized breasts.
- They look crazy, don't they?
I nodded. Laura replied:
- If you like the look...
- So you don't?
- Actually... No. However, I think that the universe is currently trying to teach me not to judge other people on their authenticity.
- Aw, come on! What happened?
Rachel poked Laura's shoulder.
- I got fired for criticising my boss. Can you believe it? That crazy bitch is just jealous!
I could see Laura's anger and frustration well up. Rachel took her in her arms. (At least she tried. Encircling my girlfriend's girth isn't all that easy.)
In between sobs, she told Rachel the whole story. Interestingly, Rachel got her to tell her everything.

When my muscle-bound woman had spilled her guts, she calmed down. At last, Rachel said:
"You know what, I don't give a shit about her. You're clearly much better than her. However, I have a job for you."
- A job?
- Mhm. I need a personal trainer and bodyguard. Do you think you could handle that?
- Of course.
- So it's settled.
- Right. Thank you.
- Perfect. What now?
- I don't know. How about going out together? Stan?
- I'm in.
As Laura went to get dressed, I turned to Rachel:
"Thanks a lot! I think you've saved us."
- No problem. She'll be perfect!

Chapter 19

Laura found her new job to be very enjoyable. We moved to the high-rise building where Rachel had set up camp, our apartments were directly connected. Laura was expected to be ready most of her time. She had changed her training routine, incorporating body guarding techniques and increasing her combat training. As her trainer remarked, she was a natural. Even advanced situations involving multiple assailants proved to be little to no challenge for her.
With almost supernatural dexterity, she evaded attackers, disarmed them with blinding speed and rendering them inoffensive with her tremendous strength.
After two weeks of training, she was easily able to take on five experienced fighters and come out as a winner. One of them, whom I met as I returned from work, remarked:
"I've never seen anything like your girl. I guess I'll have to take the rest of the week off."
He showed me an enormous bruise on his stomach. It looked as if he'd been hit by a sledgehammer. I left him with some words of sympathy, then went up to the penthouse suite.

I found the girls at the exercise room. They were working out with free weights and it was clear that Laura had recovered. She was once again covered in bulging muscles, slowly lifting and lowering the barbell in front of her massive tits. Her huge, round biceps swelled and stretched as she moved the weights calmly. Opposite her, Rachel was performing the same routine, albeit with much smaller weights.
Her lithe frame was now completed with just a hint of muscles, giving her visible abs and reasonably strong arms and legs. Of course, she looked puny compared to her body guard.

They said hello, adding that they were almost done. I just told them about my day at work, then went out as they got under the shower. Afterwards, as Rachel returned, wearing a black satin robe, she told me that she had arranged a meeting with Raymond Temple. I was invited to come too. I gave her a doubting look, but decided to tag along anyway...

Chapter 20

We met Mr. Temple at a charming cafÃ© downtown. He wasn't wearing his uniform, opting for a simple button-down shirt and jacket. He greeted Rachel with a smile and a kiss, then offered her a chair. Laura, who was wearing a chauffeur's uniform took up position at Rachel's side. I said "hello" and shook hands. Temple gave me a sceptical look until he seemed to remember me and nodded.
"You're the outdoor guy, aren't you?"
- Exactly. The outdoor guy. I'm Strider, the outdoor guy.
I grinned stupidly. Temple raised his eyebrow. This was not the right situation for jokes. He turned back to Rachel, his eyes sometimes trailing to her ample chest.
- Anyway. Rachel, I've got news for you.
He leaned forward conspiratively.
- The military has blocked off the entrance to "Dreamland". They built a wall around the area and are keeping watch there all day. Of course, this means that our little trade might suffer.
I interrupted:
- What kind of trade?
He looked at Rachel. She nodded.
- Okay, since the boss says that it's alright, here you are: Rachel and myself have been supplying our finances with a little extra. We are extracting valuable materials and artefacts from "Dreamland", if you know what I mean. However, the army fears that the creatures living beyond might exploit this opening to assault our country. So, they're blocking it off.
Rachel added:
- Which means no more money for us. So, what are we going to do?

Chapter 21

"Honestly, I think that Rachel's mind tricks should be enough to carry us through pension and beyond. However, I also think that we should make it pay for real one last time."
I had to admit that this sounded pretty awful. It had every taste of the "one last time" statements of adventure movies. The last crusade, anyone? On the other hand, we could strike it rich once and for all while also enjoying a true and honest fantasy quest.
"Count me in! How about you, Laura?"
She grinned, flexed her magnificent arm and said:
"Right on!"

We spent the next week preparing. Since this wouldn't be a game, I bought myself a real bow and actual arrows. The guy at the sports' equipment shop gaped as I pulled back his heaviest bow easily. Clearly, archery had become a second nature to me. Laura had bought a new sword, which actually looked like a weapon. She also purchased a new outfit, which was actually less "fantasy-themed" than her old one. This one provided actual protection, including a stainless steel neck-guard, a studded leather top and some breaches made of boiled leather. She also had it reinforced with chainmail. However, she still got it tailored for maximum showing-off.

At last, we were ready. We met the others in the early morning, climbing into our car and squeezing their pointy instruments of death in it. We had decided that using our small one was more subtle than Rachel's limousine.
As we switched on the highway, Temple explained:
"We'll tackle the Hold of Garamash. It's a fortified temple, rumoured to hold the treasures of ages past. It also houses the Eye of Garam, a fabled artefact that is said to give complete knowledge to its bearer."
He was interrupted as Laura stretched, squeezing him against the car door.
- As I said, I think this piece is more than worthwhile. I have several interested buyers, who are willing to offer us the equivalent of a small country's GDP.
- As in Nicaragua?
- As in Switzerland.
- Wow.

Chapter 22

We reached the area by nightfall. At first, everything was calm. However, after a short and very discrete approach, we realised that this place was now being guarded by the army. Where we had entered the place before, a wire fence topped with barbed wire had been constructed. Two steel-frame watch-towers, complete with projectors and night-vision equipment guarded the entrance. The towers were manned by a pair of soldiers.
Temple told me to park the car. We hid it in a small wood close by. Rachel climbed out, her huge breasts showing ample cleavage. She said:
"Okay, Raymond and I will make them open the door. Then you'll get in, and we'll be on our way."
Laura and I nodded.

After a few seconds of getting everybody to"sir" him, Raymond called us. We took our stuff and went in. Soon, we left the searchlights' glare behind us. The stars above us shone brightly, illuminating the area. Around us, the sounds of nature filled the night. We walked on, with me leading the way. Since I was perfectly able to see in the dark, I easily found the shortest path through the tall grass. After two hours of travel, we decided that we had left the guardpost behind us far enough. I quickly found a campsite close to a small stream and set out to build a fire. The girls and Temple set up their tents.
We had a simple dinner I had prepared, then we decided on who was to keep watch. Actually, I didn't need much sleep anymore. For some time now, just resting for an hour or two was absolutely enough. If I slept longer, I was perfectly fine, but if not, no problem either. As a result, I offered to keep watch second and stay on duty until dawn. Temple took the first three hours, taking out a book and lighting his pipe.

As a result, I went to sleep. Well, actually, sleep wasn't the first thing on my mind. I got into the tent, and found my beautiful woman stripped to the waist. She was inspecting her massively muscled upper body.

"It's great to be back, isn't it?"
I nodded. It was.

Chapter 23

She lay on her back, I climbed on top of her. After a few seconds of caressing her, I turned my attention to her snatch. Soon, I was licking her furiously. Around me, the woman of my dreams was quivering with lust. Suddenly, she grabbed me by the shoulders and whispered breathlessly:
"I think I'll need something else now. Come on, please put it in!"
- Alright.
I moved up, pushing my crotch against her snatch. I instantly felt her holding me with her perfect muscles. She started massaging me gently, clawing at my back as I kissed her. I licked her lips, our tongues intertwining. She soon rolled her eyes, I breathed heavily.
"I love you!"
She locked her massive legs around me, smiling blissfully as I tried to lift her large body as I rammed her. Then, suddenly, she started moaning, then howling, then screaming. As I was approaching my climax, my vision fading into ecstasy, I was sadly cut short by a stone being flung against the tent.
"Shut it!"
I gave a surprised shout, Laura came, bucking under me as I tried to regain full consciousness but finally throwing me around. She extended her huge arms, trying to catch me, but I fell over, grabbing at the tent, but to no avail. I tore up the tarpaulin, collapsing the tent.
Laura broke into wild laughter, extricating herself from the wrecked remains of our textile abode. She got up, helped me get back to my feet, and walked over to Temple. He was grinning stupidly, surprised at the amount of chaos he had created.
She grabbed at him, but he ran as fast as he could.
"Get back, you little military shit!"
- Catch me if you can.

Just as I prepared to follow them, Rachel climbed out of her tent. She was wearing a huge black bra, covering her massive knockers. Without her make-up on, she looked quite normal if it were not for her bust.
"What's going on? Orcs?"
- Nope. Practical jokes. Temple was against the physical act of love.
- So he tore up your tent?
- No. We did that ourselves. However, Laura is giving him a good seeing-to right now. Sorry to wake you.
- No problem.
- Just a question: Are you and Temple a couple?
- Not exactly. He's a good friend. I'm quite certain that he appreciates talking to me and that he enjoys my company. However, I don't think that I'm interested, and neither is he. You on the other hand... Let's just say that I don't think you'd be single if you weren't with Laura.

I blushed instantly. Rachel was everything Laura wasn't. Her strange obsession with artificial beauty, her psychological approach to problems and her lack of competitiveness made her the exact opposite. Clearly, slowly turning into an elf had its advantages.

After a while, Laura and Temple returned. Actually Laura returned, carrying a protesting Temple over her shoulder. He tried to free himself, but had already somewhat resigned. She put him down calmly, then said:
"I have decided to take Raymond's tent. Since he broke our tent..."
- I didn't!
- ... he's invited to sleep outside.
- Why? Come on!
- Shut it!
Clearly, the barbarian warrior was once again coming though. I decided to sleep outside. Minutes later, I fell into a deep slumber, no dreams.

Chapter 24

The next day dawned. Around us, golden light shimmered through the trees. I got up silently, calmly assessing the camp. Nothing had happened all night. I had spent the hours in quiet meditation, concentrating on the merest noise. With the exception of some animals, all had been calm that night. I woke up the others and made breakfast. The girls went to the stream to wash themselves. Meanwhile, Temple was studying his maps. He showed me our goal. Some hundred miles away, in a hidden valley in the mountains, lay the temple. The map was a crude affair, drawn on weathered skin. The writing on it was largely unintelligible, implying that it had been created by some kind of savage beast.
As I was examining the road we had to take, there was a scream. Immediately, I ran towards the stream, Temple right behind me. I strung the bow while running, nocking an arrow as I jumped out into the open. Before me, a fight to the death was taking place. Laura had her huge arms slung around the torso of some kind of large snake. The beast was a good 20" thick, with a massive head and jaws full of sharp, pointed teeth. It also had little arms with webbed hands, with which it tried to claw at my girlfriend. Laura had managed to hold the creature in a bear hug, pressing her massive arms together, trying to choke it.
Rachel was close by, trying to escape the brawl. Her long black hair was soaking wet, her face a mask of terror. Laura gritted her teeth, slowly crushing the flailing monster. Suddenly, the beast managed to free itself, turned its head and tried to bite her.
Intuitively, I released my arrow. I struck the creature's eye, felling it. It turned limp in Laura's arms. She dropped it, then proceeded to pull it out of the water. She stood there, her muscles still swollen with effort, smiled at me and said:
"Thank you. This was perfect timing."
I smiled in return. Suddenly, my elf sense tingled.

Chapter 25

I just had enough time to shout a warning for the others and then I quickly disappeared into the undergrowth. Seconds later, a pack of exceptionally large wolves erupted from the forest. On these beasts, several armoured warriors, clearly orcs, armoured in leather and bearing curved sabres were riding. They quickly tried to surround my friends, but they ran back to camp. Laura rushed forth, desperate to get to her sword. Behind her, Rachel ran as fast as she could. Still, her jiggling breasts proved to be cumbersome. She dropped to the ground, a raider bearing down on her, his sabre drawn. I shot him quickly, then broke cover. I grabbed her, lifted her on the wolf, and spurred the beast. It tried to get rid of me, but I quickly subdued it.
Meanwhile the others had been following Laura. Only one of them had reacted to my attack and pulled his mount around. He charged at us. Just as he slashed at me with his sabre, I ducked right under his attack, evading it. I grabbed his sword arm, twisted it and pulled him from his wolf. I took his weapon. In that same moment, the one I had shot down stood back up. He had an arrow sticking through his throat, but this seemed not to bother him. Instead, he reached for a throwing hatchet at his belt. He prepared to fling it, but suddenly, his face burst into flame.
Rachel averted her eyes as her magic consumed him. I forced the wolf away from the burning creature, riding into the forest.

As we reached the campsite, we found Laura in the middle of a fight. The orcs had struck her several times and she was bleeding profusely. However, she had her sword, and she had used it well. Many orcs littered the clearing, their heads severed from their bodies. Laura was whirling around, foaming from her mouth and screaming at her aggressors. However, before we could help her, a familiar voice interrupted:
"Hello, good guys! How's life treating you?"

Alexa

There she was: Green-skinned, barely dressed, and quite muscular. Indeed, she was sitting on one of the riding wolves, her massive body covered only with a few strips of leather. She too had changed. Gone were the round, beautiful breasts she had so passionately rubbed against my girlfriends face. Instead, her shoulders had spread apart and had made room for thick and powerful pectorals. Her whole body was swollen thickly with muscles, but had clearly lost most of its fat. The striations on her muscles were easily visible at the distance. She still kept her perfect fitness model hourglass shape, but had developed her muscles to a supernatural level. She was still smaller than Laura, but since it was clearly all muscle, her shape was all the more terrific. This combined with her feral bodypainting and her huge tusks, gave her the most bestial appearance.

Laura instantly calmed down. She was as surprised as we all, but since she was also wounded, she groaned under the returning pain. Alexa dismounted. With a simple gesture, she ordered her warriors to surround us and to ready their bows. We were trapped.
- Isn't this place great? It's everything you ever wanted to be! I mean, look at me! Ain't I the best orc you've ever seen?
Laura groaned and dropped to her knees. I dismounted and ran to her. She gave me a glassy look.
- Stan... Help me. It hurts.
I was completely helpless.
- Alexa! This has gone too far. Help us!
She laughed.
- I don't think my character would do that. Besides, it's only a game.
I fumbled for my little first aid pack. The stupid thing only contained a few band-aids. This was pointless with deep slashing wounds. I started to cry. Rachel had collapsed as the wolf escaped.
I held Laura's hand, trying to comfort her.

Suddenly, one of the orcs interrupted the scene. He was riding a wolf and dropped a body into the clearing. Temple landed close to us. He was wounded, a great gash on his head. I tried to keep Laura awake.
- Alexa, help her! Help her! She's going to die. She's going to die and it's your fault! Don't you get it?
Alexa continued laughing. She even snorted.
Laura looked at her, her eyesight clearly failing.
- I challenge you...
She spat some blood.
- I challenge you to single combat.
Alexa smiled:
- You're no match for me. You'll die.
- Coward.
Outraged, Alexa stared at her.
- What?
- You're a bloody coward. Come on... I beat you once, I can beat you again.
Laura tried to get to her feet. I had to help her so she could just stand. She was clearly in no shape to fight. However, she turned her head to me, and whispered:
- Wake Temple. He'll help.
She then stood on her own. Then she said:
- No weapons, to the death!
Alexa threw away her sword.
- Alright. To the death!
The orc raiders around her cheered. The fight was on!

Chapter 26

Alexa advanced quickly on her victim. With a couple of powerful blows, she almost floored Laura. Laura's eye closed as the green fist hit her. She spat out some blood, tried to stand and jumped forward to grapple her foe. Alexa evaded her easily. Hitting her on the back with her elbow, she laughed. She then proceeded to kick her firmly into her sides. Laura rolled on her back. Alexa climbed on top of her, sitting on her stomach. She grinned insanely and started pounding at Laura's face.
I ran as quickly as I could, desperately looking for Temple. Surprisingly, he found me first.
"Up here! What's going on?"
- Laura has been captured by orcs. They're beating her up!
- Shit!
He was sitting in a tree, looking worried.
- What should we do?
- I have no idea. Laura said that you'd help.
- How should I?
- I don't know.
Suddenly, it struck me. I had gradually turned into an elf. Alexa was now clearly an orc. So I guess Laura must be a barbarian now. A roleplaying game barbarian. This was some kissed up shit.
- Say, have you noticed any special 'powers' since you've been here?
- As in 'I have pointy ears'? No, not really.
- Crap. Do you have any idea what we could be looking for?
- None. Is this some kind of stupid game?

Meanwhile, Laura was barely staying alive as her laughing assailant was having the time of her life. She tried to protect her face, desperately warding off the endless rain of blows. Suddenly, the expression on her face changed. Her body convulsed. She started frothing from the mouth.
Alexa stopped, grinning awkwardly.
"What's going on?"
The answer was a low growl. Laura screamed, made a kippup and jumped to her feet. Alexa was thrown off, landing on her back. The spectators cheered. Laura looked at her tormentor, howled and ran at her.
Alexa evaded her barely, but turned aside quickly and landed a smashing blow to Laura's neck. The attack connected, but found itself absorbed by the victim's massive neck muscles. Laura turned back around, charged forward and clinched her foe. The women danced around as ancient wrestlers did, desperately searching for an opening. Laura was stronger, but Alexa still had her senses. She feinted to her left, felt her enemy shift her weight and switched sides. Laura fell forward, rolled and was instantly kicked to the ground by the orc woman. Alexa quickly straddled her victim, pressing her legs into her 'steed's' sides.

Temple had descended from his lofty hideaway.
"Let's assume that you're right. What you say is that all I've got to do is imagine my 'character', and I'll turn into it..."
- Exactly.
- This is idiotic. Anyway. Since I have absolutely no experience in all this roleplaying nonsense, what should I be?
- I think Laura needs a healer right away. You'll have to be a cleric.
- No way. I'm an atheist. Besides, I've been to the church once, and I tell you: they don't heal people.
- My girlfriend is dying. Do you really want to discuss roleplaying terminology? If you want to help, than be a goddamn cleric.
- Stop kissing with me!
I screamed at my helplessness.
- Calm down. The monsters will hear us. Isn't there anything else?
- I don't know. Maybe a paladin?
- Like the M109?
- The what? No, like Roland.
- The synthesizer?
- Shut up. A knight in shining armour.
- Cool. I want to be that. How do I start?
- I have no idea. Start acting the part!
- I'll try. How does that sound: 'I shall save the fair damsel!'
- Not bad. Here's my sword.
As Temple grabbed it, the weapon started to glow imperceptibly.

Laura tried to get up, but Alexa blocked her breath. Every time she tried to recover, Alexa squeezed her legs together, suffocating her. The orc beasts laughed at my girlfriend's desperate attempts. She snarled, but to no avail.
Temple cleared his throat.
"Let her go."
The orcs turned to him and attacked.

To say that Temple fought like a lion would be an understatement. He hacked at his enemies, I supported him were I could, but I felt somewhat outclassed by the sheer fury and elegance of this master swordsman. Soon, the orcs were fleeing. Alexa turned to us. Temple spoke:
"I doubt that this is a fair fight. How about we try that again?"

Chapter 27

He helped Laura up. As he touched her, his hands glowed faintly. He frowned. Laura gasped. I was sceptical. Clearly, it had worked, but this still made me a little jealous. She stood up, shook herself and examined her wounds. Most of them had disappeared, all of them had closed. She smiled at Temple, than smiled at Alexa. The second smile was hardly as friendly as the first.
"Alexa, I suggest you give this a good thinking. You definitely overstretched your role."
She closed her fists. Her opponent gave her an irritated look. Clearly, this was not turning out as expected.
- Look, Laura, I'm sorry. I didn't want to... I got lost... I...
Laura gave her an uppercut. Alexa's face snapped back, she spat blood. Laura immediately followed up, adding a series of heavy blows. Alexa fell back, dropped to the ground. Laura dropped down, grappled at her. The girls rolled around in the dirt. None of them gained an advantage. Eventually, they merely struggled with each other, but it soon became clear that the fight had ended. I decided to intervene:
"Laura, Alexa, this is pointless. I think it's safe to say that you are equally good fighters. However, there is something which I find much more interesting: Why are you here exactly?"
The girls stopped fighting. Laura released her opponent, got up and brushed the dust from her clothes. Alexa got back up. She panted, trying to get her breath back. At last, she said:
"I've come here with Joe's wife."
- Weren't you fucking her husband?
- As a matter of fact, I did. She didn't mind.
- And this doesn't strike you as odd?
- I don't know. She just sent me to stop you...
- Honestly, are you sure she expected you to survive? Besides, how did she know we were coming?
Alexa fell silent.

Chapter 28

After a short rest (which also included the recovery of Rachel), we set out towards our initial goal. Alexa decided to join us. Fascinatingly enough, her fangs became less pointed after a while. Also her overall human looks returned. During our travels, she explained the changes she had witnessed. A few weeks after the strange roleplaying session, Alexa had been called by Lily, Joe's wife. She had explained the situation, made it clear that she didn't mind her husband fucking her and offered her a lot of money.
After this, Alexa's memory became a little foggy. She had accepted, had moved here and had been instructed to keep watch for intruders. Over the next months, she had hunted for scouting soldiers and commanded raids against villages in the area. Over time, she had slowly turned into an orc. However, this hadn't surprised her in the least. Instead, she simply accepted this as natural. Besides, her inner affinity to orcdom was much older. She had been an orc fan for years, actually since World of Warcraft had been released.
Even now, as she slowly recovered from the savagery, she still enjoyed the freedom it granted.

As we journeyed towards the mountains, Laura and Alexa took every advantage of every opportunity to spar. Apart from this, nothing special happened. Actually, it was even less passionating than the previous days had been. Laura was mostly tired. Rachel was bored. Since the girls spent a lot of time fighting or bragging about their achievements, I actually talked a lot to our big-breasted colleague. One evening, I found her toying with my ears as I was preparing stew for the party. I smiled at her. In the background, Alexa was hammering blows at Laura's chest. Temple was reading a book. I lowered my eyes and whispered:
"Stop!"
- But why? Laura's just about machismo right now. Besides, nothing will happen.
- Just leave it. She'll calm down eventually.
- Aw, come on.

Just at this moment, Laura and Alexa returned. They were sweaty, dirty and purple-faced. Laura had lain her arm over Alexa's shoulder, smiling happily.
"We'll just have a little bath. Try not to get in trouble..."
Rachel lifted her eyebrow. As the two behemoths walked off, she told me:
"You should talk to her. This is getting stupid."
- I know. Tomorrow...

Chapter 29

At last, we approached the Hold. We were all pretty much winded by our travels, but the marvellous sight gave us hope again. The temple itself had been built into the mouth of a valley. It overlooked the countryside, casting it's shadow in the evening. Around it, several small villages had sprung up, mostly populated by orcs, but surprisingly also by humans.
The building had been constructed from yellow sandstone, complete with columns and statues of mythical beasts. It also appeared to be mostly abandoned. Only a small part seemed to be populated.

We decided to wait until nightfall and to approach the fortress over one of the hills. Walking through the darkness, we managed to evade any sentinels. Indeed, we didn't meet any at all. As the moon was high in the night sky, we entered the fortress through a small gate at the foot of a hill. Inside, torches flickered and chants could be heard. Clearly, this was a temple of some god. I turned to Rachel:
"Where do we go now?"
- I'm not sure. Alexa, do you have any idea?
- I've never been to the back-chambers, but I guess it wouldn't hurt to take a look at the main hall and go to the vestry from there. This is where they'd keep any religious items.
Laura interrupted:
"Besides, what about Joe's wife? Is she here?"
- I guess. I met her here after all.
- Do you have any idea about other people around here?
- There was a temple guard of locals. They seemed to be pretty good fighters, but no match for us.
She grinned.

Temple said:
"I think it would be best to do this as quietly as possible. Finding the eye shouldn't be too hard. After this, we'll just escape as we came. Of course, this means that the girls will have to stay back: Neither of you three are particularly discrete..."
There was a great crossing of arms, followed by gratuitous 'harrumph'ing.
- Let's be serious. You two (he pointed at Laura and Alexa) are way too heavy and massive and you (he looked at Rachel) can't see your feet. So it's elf-boy and me who will do the stealing.
The girls glared at him, but finally agreed. Laura added:
- We'll stay around to help if anything goes wrong. I guess you'll need the muscle eventually.
Alexa shouted:
- Too heavy to steal! High five!
The girls slapped their hands before either Temple or me could stop them.

Seconds of silent anguish passed. No reaction. I breathed out.
Temple whispered:
"Are you stupid or what?"
They both looked to the floor sheepishly.
- Anyway. Let's go.

I led the way. Temple followed me closely, the girls kept their distance. After a few minutes of aimless wandering, I found the way to the main hall. Nobody. Perfect.
I approached the vestry. Still no one. Behind the altar lay several holy relics and other ritual items. I looked around and Temple pointed at a small wooden shrine displaying a small crystal ball, about an inch across.
Moving with utmost caution, I took it from its container and shut it to conceal the theft. The sphere felt warm in my hand.

Suddenly, a powerful voice boomed:
"How dare you defile the temple of Garam! You shall die for your impudence!"

Chapter 30

For a second, we all froze. I could hear the others hold their breath. Then, the hall exploded into hearty laughter and Lily emerged from behind the vestry. She wore a simple white robe and a broad smile. She also seemed to glow a little, though this might have been a trick of the eyes.
"Got you! I went all 'Wizard of Oz' on you, didn't I? You should have seen your faces!"
- Lily! What the hell are you doing here?
- I could ask you the same. What are you doing here?
- We're just exploring.
- You're also lying.
I blushed horribly. The others left their hiding-place. If Lily was there, there would be no monsters. At least for a while. Lily was pleased:
"Wow. It's the whole gang. Hi everyone! Why are you here, trying to steal Garam's stuff?"
Rachel replied:
- Somebody is paying us to.
- So you're mercenary thieves now? What a progress...
- Do you have a problem? What's your business?
- Calm down, marvel of surgery. I don't want trouble.
Our companion gave her a devastating gaze. Lily continued:
- I've been doing my research here. Fascinating place, really. But I see that you already found out.
- What?
- That this place can change you. It turns you into what you want to be. Although I must say that, with Alexa's exception, you all took the longest possible detours.
Laura came closer. She was clearly angry.
- What do you mean?
- I mean to say that you could have had your super-body much quicker. Just look at Alexa. She decided to become a muscle-bound green chick and, ta-daa, she is now. No training required, just staying around. She even built her monster army out of nothing just by living here. Actually, this would have been much easier for all of you. But there is still one important question left: Why do you always insist on being fantasy heroes?
We all looked at each other. I said:
- Why not? It's a tradition, besides I like the style. Don't you think it's a nice concept?
- Yes, yes, don't get me wrong. If you like it, more power to you. But honestly, you guys have a severe lack of ambition.
- Ambition?
- Yes. Ambition. You strived to become characters in a fantasy story, but that's underachieving. Didn't anyone of you realise that you could have become Gods?
The glow that seemed to emanate from behind her intensified. We were all rather taken aback by this turn of events.
- Because I have. And it's great.

Chapter 31

"A goddess?"
We stood there, dumbfounded.
- Indeed. And not any goddess. The whole old testament style! The true and absolute power!
I was unsure whether it was a good idea, but I decided to mock her:
- Yeah, right...
- Of course. Just watch:
Lily scooped up a bit of dirt, spat in it, rolled it into a ball and shaped it into a little man. She breathed on it, and the little creature started moving! Had I not seen it with my own eyes, I would not have believed it.
The minuscule man stumbled about, found its equilibrium and started wandering through the hall.
- Convinced? I thought so.

At last, Laura spoke:
"What do you intend to do with this power?"
- We are definitely moving through the standards: First Oz, now Spider-man. Well, of course I could lead a comfortable life with my loved ones, work only when bored and spend my days quietly enjoying myself. But, honestly, is it worthwhile? I might just as well rule the world, enjoy the worship of billions and act as the living god I am. What should I do...?"
As Lily started to ramble on about the day-to-day business of applied theologics, Rachel slid over to me and said:
"I'm quite sure that the Eye of Garam is the source of all this. It's easily the most powerful magical source in the room. Let's get it while she's talking!"
- This sounds like a horrible idea. She'll give us the whole biblical treatment.
Lily interrupted us:
- What are you whispering about? I had expected you to argue a little... But whatever. Being a goddess means being omniscient too, doesn't it?
Rachel asked:
- Shouldn't you be careful? This sounds a lot like hybris, doesn't it?
- Don't worry, I've got everything under control, and I think I'll just take a little peak in your minds to see what stupid idea you've been having.
Rachel shrugged:
- Well, that's hybris to you.

The next minutes were filled with intense screaming.

Actually, we all did our part, since getting your mind forcefully invaded by another conscience is the worst possible experience, but oddly enough, it didn't seem to be a pleasant feeling for Lily either.
When it died down, she gazed at us in crazed anger.
"How dare you?"
Laura looked around innocently.
- I just think that you're losing it because your husband has been cheating on you and instead of confronting him, you're in a fantasy world playing god. Besides, this is stupid. You know you'll turn into a monster if you go on like this and you are aware what heroes do when they meet monsters, aren't you?
Rachel, Alexa and I nodded. Once again, Temple had disappeared.

Chapter 32

"You're fools. Instead of realising that I can give you everything you might want, you go on and on about your childish games. Stan, would you be as nice as to give me the bauble back. Yes, the one youâ€™re hiding in your sleeve.â€
With absolute horror, I found myself compelled to obey.
- Thank you. How nice of you.
She took the sphere back and smiled.
- Now... Just to dispel any remaining doubts, I will now turn you into something appropriate to your 'character'. Get the pun?
She waved her hand at us, when she suddenly stopped.
- Your friend seems to have brought a radio with him and he's calling friends of his. I wouldn't want any party-crashers. Be back in a minute.
She started to disappear. Temple! He must have had a backup plan.

Suddenly, Laura threw herself at her. She grabbed Lily's arm, trying to wrestle the bauble from her hand.
"It's the Eye! This is what's giving her her power!"
Instantly, we attacked. Lily however merely laughed.
- I admit, you are powerful. But not powerful enough for me.
The sphere flickered and Laura found her opponent's grip to become vice-like. She struggled vainly at Lily's fingers, desperate to wrench them apart. Lily laughed.
- This is futile! Give it up, be a good girl.
She gave her a bitch-slap that sent my girlfriend flying. Laura rolled, than attacked again. Lily merely flicked her arm at her, sending her back against the wall. I pulled out my knife and slashed at Lily's hand. A faint line of blood appeared. She gave me a surprised look, then stared at my weapon. To my horror, it melted. I dropped the white hot dagger.
Meanwhile, Rachel had focused her magic powers, sending several arcs of flame at the would-be goddess. Lily held up her other hand, extinguishing the flames. I attacked again, trying to dislodge the bauble from her grip. Impossible!

"You are wasting your strength, all of you. There is no way you will get it."
At this precise moment, Laura and Alexa smashed into her at full speed. Their collective energy merely pushed her back, but gave her a slight moment of distraction. I jumped forward and hit the bauble itself. It slipped from her hand, flying high into the air. As if starting a basketball match, Laura, Alexa and Lily struggled for height. However, Lily prevailed. She merely floated upwards, using her godlike powers to defy gravity.
- Forget it. You cannot even hope to get the best of me. Here, take a look!
And with these words, she put the bauble in her mouth and swallowed.
- You'll never get it from there. Not with me being indestructible and immortal! Now, back to your ridiculous fates... Who's first? Who'll show the others the way to servitude?

I looked at my companions. Their faces were frozen in absolute horror at their impending doom.
There is a simple rule in medicine which I learned when I worked as a paramedic: The men are the last to save. Well, for a moment, I was perfectly happy with having become an unemotional elf guy. I felt no fear whatsoever, as I said:
"Take me first."

Chapter 33

She smiled evilly and turned her eyes on me. My body was suddenly hit with intense pain. I tried to scream, but I could not. When it finally subsided, I found myself to be much smaller than before. I looked around. Everybody else seemed to be huge! I tried to get up, but couldn't keep my balance and fell on my face.
The girls looked at me in absolute horror. I tried to ask them what had happened, but the words wouldn't come out! Mute as I was, I tried to flee.
Lily laughed.
"Look at him! Isn't he cute? Such a fluffy little guy."
She grabbed me by what felt like my ears and cuddled with me. Her skin felt rock hard yet soft at the same time. I struggled in vain to free myself, but could not.
Laura and Alexa fell back, clearly transfixed by my fate.
- Excellent. Please stay back, or the bunny gets it.
The bunny? Oh my god. This was the craziest and most horrifying dream I ever had.
Laura was the first to recover:
- Lily, please, this has gone too far. I really don't mind you living out your fantasies and you can be a goddess if you like, but please turn him back. We'll leave.
- What do you plan to do? Why should I let you leave? You're in no position to bargain. As a matter of fact, I'm only just trying to decide into what I'll turn you... Maybe something ridiculously weak. A mole, perhaps?
She stared at Laura, but the musclebound woman leaped away, dodging and rolling as good as she could. The other girls ran away too. Lily simply laughed and disappeared in a flash.
She flickered back into reality right in front of Laura.
- You can't run. Divine power is way too quick for you.
Laura sidestepped her quickly, hitting her below the arm-pit to throw her off-balance. Lily stumbled for a second. Laura moved behind her and grabbed her in a full nelson. With a grunt, she switched into a german suplex, throwing her godlike opponent overhead.
Lily hit the ground head first, leaving a dent in the hewn stone. As she got up, she found Laura right in front of her, stuffing her arm into her mouth. Lily gagged and flailed her arms, but Laura forced on. Recovering, she turned her eyes on her opponent, but Laura smashed her fist against Lily's rock-hard skin. Desperately beating at her divine enemy, trying to distract her, Laura forced her jaws apart.
The hammering blows clearly distracted her, so Lily could not concentrate on her assailants destruction. At the same time, Alexa clung to her arms, trying to prevent Lily from transforming them.
At last, Laura had managed to grab the sphere and pulled. As her arm slid out, she could feel herself change.

Chapter 34

I watched in total horror as Laura slowly changed into a rodent. Her enormous muscles shrank, distorting into animal limbs. Lily clung to her, grasping her with her free hand. On the other side, Alexa slowly transformed into something vaguely catlike.
Suddenly, Laura dropped the bauble. She was no longer able to hold it, having changed into a mouse. I sprinted at the sphere, grabbed it with my teeth and ran. Lily quickly threw the kitten against a wall and kicked the mouse to the back of the temple. I ran for my life, blasts of lightning smashing the stone floor around me.
Realising the power of the sphere, I started to change back as I ran. Suddenly, I felt powerful. My restored hands seized the ball, I stood up but ran on. Lily disappeared, reappearing right in front of me and smashing me in the face. I fell back, landing on the pile of my clothes. I grabbed my sword, unsheathed it and said:
"If you are a goddess, this sword will be a god-killer!"
Touching it with the Eye, the sword glittered balefully. Lily stopped. With a rapid motion of her hand, she summoned Laura to her hand. The mouse appeared on her palm.
- Drop your blade or I will kill your love. Give me the Eye!
I hesitated. Laura stared at me with her little black eyes. Her thoughts flowed into my mind. I understood.
- Here it is!
With a flicking motion, I threw the sphere at her. Lily dropped the rodent, but Laura just leaped from her hand, grabbing the orb in mid-air. Lily tried to tackle her, but instead met Laura's reestablished fist. With a thundering smack, Lily flew wide. Clearly, her godly powers were failing.
Laura got up, her body swelling with divine power. She roared in triumph and ran towards her tormentress. Suddenly, she stopped. In the doorway, several men with guns had taken position. They raised their rifles and a shout went out:
"Hands up everybody."
It was Temple. He strode in, followed by his troop. At twenty paces, they stopped:
- Give me the Eye.
Laura stared at him, her massive body still heaving with exhaustion and barely contained fury.
- Why do you want it?
- For our country. It is priceless but will serve our goals well.
- Your country?
He nodded. Lily was just getting back up, her jaw clearly broken by the thundering blow she had received. I hid in the darkness, waiting for the next craziness. Alexa had slunk off, preferring to be out of the line of fire. I realised that Rachel had disappeared, but quickly found out that she had chosen the same hiding place when I bumped into her enormous breasts.
- Come on, let's end this. You'll be rewarded greatly for your service... You'll get everything you ever wanted. It'll come easy.
Laura took a second to think about it. At last, she said:
- Nothing ever comes easy.
And broke the sphere in her hands.

Chapter 35 - Epilogue

Half a year later, I got home early from work. On my way home, I went to the flower shop and got some roses for the most beautiful woman there ever was. I unlocked the door, walked to the living-room cum gym and knocked. Inside, the clanking of weights ceased.
â€œCome in.â€
I opened the door, hiding the roses behind my back. Rachelâ€™s apartment had mysteriously vanished together with her mega-boobs, so we had returned to our place. Laura got up from the training bench. Her plump body glistened with sweat. Below the fat, the round shapes of slowly growing muscles were emerging.
- Hello dear. I brought you flowers.
- Thank you. How was work?
- Great, I finished early. How about yours?
- I still have two weeks to finish the project and Iâ€™m almost done.
We embraced. She was sweaty as hell, but also heavenly sexy. I felt my loins stir. I kissed her. After the sphereâ€™s explosion, we woke up in the countryside, naked, confused and back to â€œnormalâ€. Laura had also packed her pounds back on. After a day of mourning for her masterful body, sheâ€™d just said the simplest of things:

â€œIâ€™ve done it once, Iâ€™ll do it again.â€

Alysia and the Trial of Strength

JimmyDimples — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 01:47:16 +0000

"Long ago
Before the ocean drank Atlantis,
There was an Age Undreamed of,
Where the hand of the Amazons' Empire stretched from the Caucasus to the Himalayas.

A Girl -- nay, a Woman
Punished for the false crimes of her mother,
was to push a giant millstone in the Royal granary for the rest of her life...

...never knowing that one Day
her hand will rule the Empire,
and take back what her Family had lost.

ALYSIA was her name.
This Is Her Story."

***

Alysia pushed away at the wooden bar to which she was shackled. The fatigue and tedium worked away at her brain as she trudged forward in her wide, wearying circle. It was like every grain of wheat between the millstones was shoving back against her out of spite. The brutal heat of the not-yet-noon day didn't help at all either. And the sweat trickled from below her brown hair, down her forehead, over her brow, and into her eyes, stinging them. She slowed down, kneeling toward the bar so one hand could wipe them more easily...

WHACK! A flat, rubber-coated iron paddle smashed across Alysia's lean back, dropping her onto her shins. The taskmistress brandishing it knelt down to her. "Did we tell you to stop?!" she growled.

Without a word Alysia tried to stagger up to push again. "DID WE?!" her boss thundered into her ear. Somehow Alysia was able to turn her shudder into a negative head shake.

Just over her head some water sloshed. Looking up, she saw the water carrier, a slightly plump black-haired girl dangling a dripping ladle in front of her nose. Instinctively, Alysia leaned forward for a swallow, but the girl's hand jerked it back tauntingly.

"Get up and push, ya half-priced sow," she jeered.

"Nissa." The overseer pointed to the bar. "You get down there and push, too."

Nissa blanched. "I've got to water the others."

The boss lady glowered as she pointed her club at Nissa's face. "Grab the bar. If you can put her down, you can pick it up. Turnkey!"

And a guard came, took away Nissa's bucket and ladle, pushed Nissa down, unlocked Alysia's cuffs from the bar, and put one on Nissa's wrist.

"Push," the overseer said simply. And as they did, Alysia's new help scowled at her as if it had been her fault.

The hours dragged. The sun hit its height. So did Alysia's fatigue. She would've sworn that she'd have gotten used to it in the three years she'd been chained here in the Imperial Granary. But she still ached all through her lean, wiry body despite all the callouses from her labor. No muscle to speak of: her meager diet of one bowl of gruel per meal twice a day saw to that. They'd even searched her mouth at every day's end just to make sure she didn't sneak out any dry meal in it. At that, her tongue felt dry, yearning for her childhood bread and milk from her mother. She shuddered. If SHE, or her father, could had seen where Alysia was today...

NO. Couldn't dwell on that. Alysia would have totally broken down if she went there. Don't remember. Don't think.

Just do.

The wheel slowed down, and not from her lack of effort. Across on the millstone's other side, a lackey coughed and staggered, weakening. And in the heat, she didn't need that.

"Water, please," she croaked.

The overseer glared at her. "Nuh?"

"Water," Alysia repeated.

The overseer raised the full ladle from the bucket. "What, this?" And she took an extra big gulp from it.

"Yeah," said Alysia.

The taskmistress carried it seemingly grudgingly over. And she lowered it in front of Alysia's lips. But before the slave girl could drink the first drop, her boss dumped it all on the ground and smacked Alysia on the forehead with the ladle. She snorted with a chortle. "Lick it off the ground on the next turn!" she guffawed. And she stepped back to the bucket.

"Hgrrklgh!" The wheel stopped turning. Alysia looked up toward the earlier coughing slave. He'd fallen to his knees and started throwing up.

The overseer started over to him. "Get up!" she said. "Not all over the floor!"

The slave retched some more. Then another behind Alysia and Nissa groaned loudly. Then "Hrmmglkeh!" He vomited violently as well. And at that, Alysia's new helper, Nissa, started moaning and clutching her belly, looking flushed in the face.

The taskmistress huffed in disgust. "Turnkey!" she growled. "Get the weaklings out of here! All right, you maggots, the next one that can't keep it in their belly will get it removed for them! With an axe!"

"Reeaaglgph!" went Nissa, face falling downward.

"Right, that's it, Nissa. Turnkey!"

And the guard marched over with the keys. But just then, the headmistress stopped. She grunted. She wiped her brow. Then her skin began to pale all over her body as she put a hand to her mouth. Then all over the millstone area, slaves and guards began to join the retching chorus, popping all over like embers in a fire. The turnkey put a hand over her nose in response to the smell.

And just then... BAP! Nissa's fist slammed against the back of the guard's head.

"Don't just sit there, you oaf!" she shouted to Alysia. "Move!"

And she sprang forward, dragged her cuffmate with her, and snagged the keys from the doubled-over guard's hand. And she pulled Alysia toward the granary door.

"Wait!" Alysia called. "What about the others?"

"Too sick to be any use!" Nissa said, fumbling through the key ring. "We're the only ones that didn't drink the water I dunked the dead rat in!"

Finally, she found the right one, unlocked the door, swung it open, and went out into the fresh air.

Just then, across the sand, she heard heavy racing footsteps. Then wssssh! An arrow glanced off Nissa's hand, wounding it, and knocking the key ring out of it into a thick grassy field. Alysia looked and pointed. Three Amazon guards pointed at them. Two bow-women nocked their arrows and let them fly.

"Run, you dope!" Alysia shouted.

And the two escapees dashed off towards the trees, ducking the rocketing arrows and spears after them.

***
CLANK! CLANK! CLANK!

Alysia peered hard at the link she'd been bashing. But the chain was still in one piece. In the cave's dim light, she glared at her bruised, still-cuffed wrist.

"Of course," she grumbled, "they WOULD cuff my right hand." She put down the rock in her left.

Nissa glowered at her cuffmate. "You know, I could've found those keys in three seconds."

Alysia sighed. "And an arrow or spear would've found us in two."

"Oh, and on freeing us from Club Lady? You're welcome."

Alysia narrowed her eyes at her. "Spare me. You offered ME the water, too. If it weren't for her locking you with me, I'd be puking my guts out back there."

Nissa put her free hand on her hip. "Well, if you think you'd be better off back there in the Granary..." And she thumbed to the cave's entrance.

Alysa lifted up her chained arm. "After you."

Huffing in disgust, Nissa sat down on the cave floor. "Chained to an ingrate slowing me down. The Amazon Guard after us. And no dinner. Things couldn't be worse."

"Yes, they could," Alysia muttered. "We could have been born MEN in this empire."

"Shut up."

"Well," croaked a male voice, "that depends... on which man you are."

Gasping, both girls snapped their heads toward the cave's inside. Nissa grabbed the rock Alysia dropped, and readied it to club or throw at the unwelcome guest. Or host. "Who's that!" she hissed.

Someone stirred slowly. It was an older man in a long hooded robe like a monk's. In the dim dusk light filtering into the cave, the two girls could barely make out his beard. Alysia guessed he was not quite 40 years old yet.

"Me?" he said. "The Empire has called me Dog. Pig. Oppressor. Slaver. Monster. Rapist. Abomination." He chuckled grimly. "And all sorts of things that I will not repeat because my vocabulary simply isn't foul enough."

He reached up for the hood and pushed it back, showing his curly receding hair.

"But," he nodded, "I'd gladly settle for... Jyreh."

Slowly, unsurely, Nissa lowered the rock. Alysia blinked. "What are you doing here?" she said carefully.

"And more importantly," Nissa threw in, "do you have a key, lockpick, or axe with you?"

"Keys and metal tools, I have none," Jyreh said. "But I'll gladly share with you what I've got."

And he stepped to the right. And right behind where he was crackled a bright fire, with two sticks holding up three fish on a skewer.

He spread a hand to a nearby rock. "Sit down," he offered. "Have a trout. And tell me your story."

***
"So finally, that sergeant of the Guard finally caught up with me and tackled me," Nissa said, mouth full of bread. "How was I to know that pie was for her?" She grunted. "Besides, if they didn't want it eaten, they shouldn't have put it on the window sill to cool in the first place! It's not my fault they made it smell so tasty!" She looked around. "So, any more fish?"

Jyreh shook his head. "Just what you see here right now, I'm afraid."

"Well, anyway," she said, "that's how I got in prison. Been pulling water and scullery duty ever since. Until today."

Alysia munched on her bread and fish much more slowly. She was famishing for every bite, but she was trying to savor each bit instead of greedily wolf it down like Nissa. She had no clue when she'd have something this good again, so she wanted to make the flavor last.

Still, she decided to prompt the others to talk so she could eat quietly. "What's your story, Jyreh?"

He poured some wineskin into a wooden cup. "The farming lands around this cave used to be mine. I used to be on very good terms with the Amazonian Guard, though I didn't agree with the Crown." He sipped. "But, finally they turned against me, and they confiscated it all."

"What about your family?" Alysia asked. "Are they all right?"

Jyreh winced, as if he'd been hit with a flying arrow.

"Do you... have a...?" Alysia pressed reluctantly.

"Once," he said quietly. And he lowered his eyes, and Alysia was sure he was ready to cry. But he straightened himself and sat upright. "But those are my troubles," he said quickly, "not yours, and I would rather not burden your souls or spoil dinner by talking further on them just now."

Nissa nodded as she held up her cup for Jyreh to fill. "Fair enough," she said. "I'm a bit glad to be shut of my own, honestly. Not much difference between living with them and the dungeon."

Jyreh then turned to Alysia. "What about you?"

"No, no wine for me, sir, thanks," she answered. "Do you have fresh water?"

"I fear this is all I have to offer," he said, offering it again. "And I meant, what about your family?"

Alysia let him fill her cup, and she sipped. She'd never had wine before, and it tickled her nose, and made her cough a little. "I lost my mother and father three years ago," she said. "We lived on a small farm, worked hard every day. Not enough to feed many more than ourselves, but we were joyful for the most part. The Amazons stayed away; Daddy said it was because we and our farm were too puny, insignificant and far away to bother with.

"Thing is, Mama always had a habit of looking after newborn children for a while and caring for them. Every once in a while she would leave the farm for a few days, and bring one in. After looking after him... it was always a boy... she'd then leave for a while and come back alone. I asked her why she did this, and she simply said that many babies in town were orphans, and she found families out in the countryside that could care for them. That was good enough for me. Daddy usually grumped that we had enough mouths to feed as was, but he didn't stop her."

She stared into her cup, sighed, and stayed quiet for a very long moment. "Three years ago, though," she continued, "while I was pulling weeds from the strawberry patch, a wagon rolled up in front of our house. It was a cluster of Amazon soldiers, about eight or ten of them! As they fanned out and marched around the farm, their leader saw me, marched right up, and demanded if I were family on this farm. I said I was... and then she leaned at me and demanded where my mother was. Daddy dashed toward me, thinking I was in trouble, and talked to the leader. She said that she had a warrant for the arrest of Mama for kidnapping and murdering the baby daughter of Lady Molya."

Alysia spat on the ground. "Mama?! Murder a BABY?! The very idea is absurd! Mama would NEVER do that! But then I heard someone cry out on the other side of the house. Two soldiers had grabbed her, one by the hair, and they were dragging her to the wagon! I screamed out for her, and was going to run to her, but then their leader grabbed me by the arm. Hard! It hurt!

"Right after that, my father punched my captor across the jaw and knocked her back, making her let go. He shouted, 'Run, Alysia! Run!' And I did... but not before I saw him throw a rock at the guards' heads. He missed, but Mama wriggled free as they ducked down to dodge it."
She cringed. "And that's when the wagon's leader ran her sword through him."

Alysia lowered her head, and stared into the fire. Nissa simply looked on, not showing any emotion. Jyreh waited a while, and then quietly asked, "What about your mother?"

Alysia didn't look up from the fire. "She ran one way, I ran the other. I don't think she saw Daddy die, or she would've turned on them in a trice, outnumbered or not. I dashed through the woods, but I couldn't outrun them. They knocked me down, got a hold around my neck, and dragged me to the wagon. There, their leader told me that my mother had killed herself like the cowardly criminal she wasn't, and that someone would have to answer for her crimes. And they threw me into the wagon, and took me away to town."

Alysia buried her face in her hands. And she cried for a long while. And finally, when she'd run out of tears, she looked up at Jyreh. "Just one thing, though. I saw her body before they locked me in." She clenched her fist and hardened her tear-stained face as her sorrow soaked up a low rage. "And what I want to know," she hissed softly, "is how did my 'cowardly' mother pull a spear away from almost a dozen sows in armour and stab herself repeatedly in the back with it?"

She let out a breath, continuing. "In the town constabulary, they hit me with questions about my mother, where she'd gone, who had she talked with in town, where she took the babies. They hit me with questions about my father, and what he did with her. They hit me with questions about how I aided her with stealing them. And they hit me with just their fists and their clubs. But I couldn't answer them because I knew nothing.

"Finally, when they finally decided that I was telling the truth, they said that I was still an accomplice by knowing about it. And they said I'd pay for that by pushing a granary wheel for the rest of my days."

Alysia stared into the fire numbly. "And I have for three years nonstop. Until today."

Nissa glanced at her fellow captive, unimpressed, then turned to Jyreh. "Any more wine?"

"I need to save some just in case," he said. "Purifying water." He glanced at each of the two. "So... all three of us have suffered under the Crown and her minions, then."

Nissa shot him a look, as if asking, what do YOU think, old dummy? Alysia simply groaned quietly.

"Well," he continued, "they may have taken my lands around here... but they have not taken everything from me. And they will NEVER take my mind and heart." He looked very intently at his two dinner guests. "I plan to set things right somehow. It won't happen the first thing tomorrow, of course. But one day, before all my hair on top is completely gone, I want to right all the wrongs this Empire has doled out across this land.

"I am looking for one person -- ONE person, mind you -- to help me to do this. Bear in mind, this is something this person will have to invest her heart and life into. I need someone who is truly worthy and committed to be trusted with this responsibility.

"So, to find this out, I plan to have a trial of strength." He poked a stick into the fire, tending the embers. "But this will have to wait until dawn tomorrow."

Nissa put her free hand on her hip. "Just a minute, there, Jyreh," she said. "Who said we volunteered for this? If you haven't looked around lately, the Imperials are too big, too strong, and too many. It's not that I love them, I don't! But if you're so fired up to take them on, why haven't YOU done more in fighting them? I never even heard of you!"

Alysia glared at Nissa. Then she offered more politely, "Forgive us, but... well, she does have a point. We're not heroines or warriors. I don't even know how to fight with a sword or bow and arrow."

Jyreh folded his hands quietly for a while and stared at them. Then he said quietly, "At least give it a night's sleep before you give the final yes or no. Would you do that for me?"

Nissa and Alysia stared at each other. Then they turned to their host.

"After dinner, I'd say that's more than fair enough," Alysia said.

"Fine," said Nissa. "I don't have anywhere else to go right now."

Jyreh nodded. "Best to try to sleep now, since this is not exactly an inn"

"I've slept in worse," Alysia said.

"So have I," Nissa added.

Jyreh nodded. "I'm sure. I'll keep watch for the Guard."

Alysia and Nissa lay down, as comfortably as the chain and cuffs would let them. Alysia had to admit, simply lying down in the cool of the cave felt much better than pushing a granary beam right now. She worried a little, though, about being able to wake herself up at the right time. She thought she could sleep forever, if not prompted to wake. Already, Nissa had curled up, settled in, and nodded off.

Before Alysia faded out herself, she stared at the cave's ceiling. She couldn't help but notice that there wasn't any smoke congregating from the fire. She thought that they'd been smoked out by now. And how did it appear out of nothing when Jyreh step out of its way? She didn't even remember hearing it crackle when she first talked to him. And where did the wood come from? Where did the food?

Despite all those niggling mysteries, she didn't stay up all night pondering them.

***

"Nissa. Alysia. It's time."

Alysia stirred stiffly in the dark. That cave floor WAS hard. It was much cooler than her cell, that was for sure. Then she saw the fire was out. The only light was from the night outside, and there wasn't much of that.

"Today, we have a race and a test of strength. Are you in?"

Alysia began to slowly stagger up. "All right, Jyreh. I'm in."

"Mmngh." Nissa jerked the chain back down, and Alysia with it. She didn't stir.

"Nissa, it's time."

"No, s'not," she mumbled. "It's not dawn yet."

"The race starts at dawn, dear," he said patiently. "I need an answer. But if you want to give your friend there a big head start..."

"She's not getting anything," was the peevish answer. "We're chained together, r'member?"

At last, Jyreh released an impatient sigh. "If you don't get up now, Nissa, Alysia wins by default. And no breakfast."

On that, grumbling and cursing, Nissa finally rolled over, and slowly, belaboredly worked her way to standing. "Fine. Let's get this over with."

Jyreh produced an apple each. This time, Alysia crunched away and gobbled it eagerly. She couldn't remember the last time she had any fruit.

After passing a water skin for a fresh drink for the girls, Jyreh said, "Follow me to the glen."

***

The sky gradually lightened to a dull grey as they walked nearer to a clearing. The sky turned red in the east, showing the hills and mountains on the horizon more easily. Jyreh held up a hand, and they stopped exactly where the trees ended and the grass began.

"We will have a race," he said softly. He pointed. "Do you see that big mountain north of us?"

Alysia squinted. "That one with the domed rock on the peak?"

"Yes. Around behind it is a flat, pure white granite cliff outcropping right at the dome's base. Your goal is to run there... you MUST reach it before sundown today. That is your first thing. There will also be a trial of strength."

He pulled his robe open just a hair, and showed a locket tied around his neck. A rich blue thing with what looked like a crude white angular/arrowhead/fishbone/tree symbol on it. It then glowed softly. And right out of the center surfaced what looked like a glowing amber walnut-sized 8-sided gem. It looked like two pyramids stuck together: one upright, the other upside down. It spun as it floated in the air in front of the girls.

Then a second spinning floating gem rose from Jyreh's pendant. And a third. And a fourth and fifth.

As they spun, the first gem floated toward Nissa, and the second toward Alysia. Then at the same time, they flew right at their hearts. But instead of hitting them, they seemed to stick and splat like a snowball... only there wasn't any mess on their chests except their dirty, ragged tunics.

Then a glow washed over them. And creepingly, steadily, a rich warmth grew in their chests, flowed into their stomachs, and soon seeped into their limbs. Steadily they spread their arms out... and they looked down.

It was just a little, but they were slowly growing taller. She looked down at her body, and she could tell it wasn't quite as bony anymore. In fact, there was a muscle in each of her upper arms about as big as her two fists put together. Her thin legs also grew a bit meatier, and her thighs looked as big as a bologna sausage she'd seen once at a wealthy man's meat market.

She stole a glance at Nissa. She was also growing taller and broader as well, just like her. The only thing is, her pudginess earlier complimented the new strength that went with it. She had curves like a woman. Still, from what Alysia could tell, they were both each as big as a full-grown man. Not quite the elite or even the typical veteran Amazon Guard, but it was a definite improvement.

Whish! Whish! Whish! The other three gems then rocketed northward through the air like birds that heard a rock clatter. They flew away toward the dome peak.

"And now you have a reason to finish first. Catch them if you want more power for the trial. Ready..."

The sun popped up at last along the eastern hills. He pointed a finger at each of their cuffs. Then he twirled them in a small circle. Chink! Chink! The cuffs unlocked and opened by themselves, and they fell to the ground with a thud. "Go."

***

Alysia dashed across the grass. She'd been so amazed with the shackles unlocking by themselves that she nearly forgot to get going. So did Nissa, but they both remembered at the same time. Alysia's new, stronger body carried her faster than she expected. A good clip faster than when they were first on the run. And the energy she felt! It was like her legs wanted to dash ahead of her. But Nissa stayed alongside her, eyes locked toward the mountain's knob. Zeroing in on it herself, Alysia pushed herself to go faster.

And just as she did, she slowly inched ahead of her opponent. It was a very small lead, but she could see it. And Alysia could just barely make out the faint trail of light the first gegaw gave as it streaked toward their goal. That gave her an extra burst inside. And with that, she was juuust barely gaining on it....

"Somebody! Please help me!"

Off to her right Alysia saw her. Trapped under a big fallen oak tree was small girl, not more than seven years old. The two racers had nearly passed her by. Alysia slowed down to a stop.

The child reached out to her pleadingly. "Please... it hurts..."

Alysia didn't stop to think about it. She turned to the girl, stooped, and hooked her hands under the trunk. And she pushed with her legs. And she grunted. Breathing through her nose, she strained, clenched her jaw, and searched for any sign that she'd given the child any more crawl space. "Can you crawl out?"

The girl whimpered. "Still... crushing me."

She gave another grunt and a groan, and kept pushing hard. But about three stone throws away, Alysia heard another groan. Still pushing, she looked up.

Further down the path Nissa had wrapped her right hand around something and squeezed it into a fist. Streaks of light shone out from between her clenched fingers. Then they started to fade... and as they did, the veins in Nissa's wrist popped up. They streamed up her arm, around her shoulder and neck down her chest, finally down to her legs and to the other arm. And Nissa's groans showed more signs of pleasure. Her limbs get rounder and larger like someone filled a water skin from half full to completely full. And she grew a hand taller. Her body broadened, too, like a medium-sized tree. And her belly doesn't seem quite so rotund; in fact, it was flat if still smooth.

Alysia cursed. Nissa had gotten the first gem!

"Hey!" she shouted to her. "Help this girl out!"

As the growth ended, Nissa snapped out of her euphoria. And she stared at her competitor.

"You got the strength, now, all right?!" Alysia snapped. "Round one to you! Please help me... this thing's heavy!"

Without a word, Nissa sneered. Then she deliberately turned away, and dashed off after the other two gems, and the goal at the mountain's knob.

Infuriated, Alysia stared at the tree trunk. Then she imagined it was Nissa next to the fence of a dirty pig sty.

"NnnnyyRRRGH!" With a shove fueled by her rage, Alysia finally pushed the thing up, over, and forward. It landed with a thud, completely clear of the small girl's badly bruised legs. She stooped down to her. "Can you get up at all, dear one?"

Slowly, the child pushed herself up with her arms. Alysia took her hand and gently, slowly helped her stand. The girl fell to her knees, but caught herself, and staggered back up to standing.

"Can you still walk?" Alysia pressed.

"I think I can...."

And the young girl staggered and limped off down the path she came.

With no time to collect thanks... Alysia dashed the other way. "Got to catch up and make up for lost time and strength," she huffed to herself as she hurried for the other two gems, and the mountaintop.

***

Alysia dashed to regain lost time and distance. But that extra burst of speed from the gem's muscle kept Nissa ahead. It was a losing fight to not lose more ground to her, let alone catch up. Realizing she'd pass out if she burned all her energy on speed there and then, Alysia just kept running for the knob and hoped that Nissa would slip or stumble.

The path grew hilly and steeper. The woods started to thin a bit and Alysia heard Nissa's footsteps scamper to a stop. And when she saw what lay ahead, she quickly slowed down to a stop herself.

A great big canyon. And the only way across that gaping maw was a rope bridge with wooden planks to walk on. And right in front of that were two Amazon guards hassling a peasant youth. As she stooped down to keep herself hidden, Alysia figured he didn't have one copper coin to rub against the other.

"Not enough to cross," one guard grumped. "Go back and get more."

"But that's all I have!" the lad wailed. "That's all I can get!"

The other guard then marched up to him and flashed very nasty small smile. "All you got? Let's see."

She pounced upon the boy's ankles, grabbed them, and and flipped him upside down. Then she shook him up and down roughly, like a milk maid at a churn trying to make butter in one minute. Her victim's cries turned into yodels in an earthquake. Nothing else fell from his pockets; how his head and arms stayed on was a mystery to Alysia.

The first guard held up a hand and said, "Enough, Kella." Then she stooped down to the boy's inverted face and narrowed her eyes. "You don't have anything sewn into yer rags, do ya, boy?" She ignored his vigorous head shake for no. "You know the penalty for trying to dodge the toll?" She waved Kella over to the crevasse. "Make sure he gets a good view." And Kella dragged him to the edge, and held him over the chasm to his terror. His mouth's corners plummeted down in a painfully frightened twist of dread and wordless stammering.

"This is the fabled Dawn To Dusk Drop," the first guard said, pointing. "So called because if someone fell into it at dawn, the unlucky soul wouldn't hit the bottom until dusk."

Alysia then spotted the first guard's other finger take a quick discreet poke down. Kella saw the signal, smirked, and then let go. The helpless lad dropped for a fraction of a second, and in that blink, Kella siezed one of his ankles before he disappeared forever. The child's voice screamed like a banshee for the longest minute. Then he got his breath back, he screamed again, so loud it hurt Alysia's ears as badly as her sickened heart.

And before she realized what she was doing, she'd grabbed a rock the size of her fist, cocked it back, and pitched it right at the first guard's head.

So many things happened that moment. Alysia would later marvel at how she recalled Kella nastily guffawing, spinning and flinging the youth back onto solid ground. Big Nissa with a crude long branch, running, planting it, and vaulting over the gap so she sailed across to the other side, caught the ledge tightly, hefted herself up, and kept running into the woods toward the mountain peak. The first guard's gaping at Nissa's flight with a wide-mouthed stare.

And then, the stone's smack against the thug maiden's noggin.

Kella pointed and shouted. The first guard got her bearings as she rubbed her temple. Alysia figured, in for a penny, in for the whole treasure chest. "HEY, SOWFACES!" she bellowed. "YEAH, YOU TWO! LET'S SEE YOU TAKE SOMEONE WHO CAN FIGHT BACK!" With that, the two hulking hags then unsheathed their swords, just as Alysia hurled another stone at a ducking Kella. Then they charged at her, who then dashed back into the woods the way she came. She barely got a glimpse of the lad scrambling across the bridge while he was ignored.

Fleeing, Alysia's morning then turned to midday. She figured they knew the woods better than she, but she kept on running, weaving side to side, trying to work her way back to the bridge. They stayed in dogged, determined pursuit. Alysia went in a wide circle. They didn't seem to be getting any nearer. She figured her relatively smaller frame cut through the brush more easily than the two bullies. She looked up at the sky, and then realized it was early afternoon. With that, she gave up evasion, and made a break for the bridge.

There it lay, wide open. The then slowed down to a trot, not too fast for her foot to miss a plank and slip through, but not at a stroll, either. A proper mix of speed and caution.

Just when she got midway, the bridge began to sway. Then lower. Then fall away from her. She quickly scrambled up then leaped and grabbed the ropes alongside her and swung all the way down to the other side's cliff wall. SLAM! She hit it... or it hit her, it more felt like. Somehow she willed herself not to look down. Instead she looked up.

The top didn't seem much nearer than the bottom.

Then she heard the two guards cackling from behind her. KRAK! A rock hit the cliff to her left. Looking back, she saw where the two nasty shrews had untied the bridge, and were now throwing stones at her.

"Sowface yerself!" jeered Kella.

"Here, ya mangy dog!" brayed the first guard as she picked up another. "Have a rock against YOUR head and see how ya like it!"

Face to the cliffside, Alysia concentrated on going had over hand, foot over foot on the slats of the bridge, and gripping tightly. More stones clacked around and against her. They pelted her in the calf and the back. Cringing against the pain, she steadily made her way up, and finally lifted herself over the ledge, the last stone spiking her in the bottom. That was the kick to the seat she needed to get going again.

"You're a marked woman, wench!" the first guard shouted after her through the trees. "When we find you again, your life is forfeit! We'll cut off your limbs, and make sure you live so you can scream all the way down after we throw you in the Drop!"

***

The woods thickened again, and Alysia rapidly kept putting foot before foot toward the domed peak. She felt that the trial of strength was already lost if Nissa had grabbed another gem. Then far through the trees, she heard guttural moans. Then a sharp, short, high pitched grunt. Nissa. Heart faster than mind, Alysia quickened her pace, figuring her opponent had hurt hurself or stopped and eaten some poisonous berries.

"Mmnnoogh... uurrngh... yes..." A low, sinister giggle. "More... more... bigger... bigger...."

No! Not another gem! Alysia figured she probably should stop now and simply find a place to hide from the Guard.

No. A life of cowardly hiding was nothing to go back to. Her urge to slow down and avoid Nissa canceled out her urge to speed up and pass her competition. She simply kept running, and hoped that in the trial she'd be able to dodge her opponent long enough to find a way to win. Such things did happen, although rarely. She didn't even think about catching the third gem now. She just wanted to make it to the finish before sunset.

The trees were now taller, and stouter in the trunks. Her feet padded through more stones, roots, and sand, and less brush, bushes, and smaller plants. She didn't see as much as a rabbit anywhere. Less light came through. Or was that the darkening of the day?

Then what felt like another hour, the forest stopped abruptly and Alysia saw the mountain itself. The trees and the sparse shrub spotted the stony incline instead of covering it. And way, way up high was the domed peak, and the narrow, twisting, unguarded path leading up to it. A fall wouldn't have been as bad as at the bridge, but still deadly enough. Up high, she saw the rocky trail start to turn from cold gray to white. "That must be near the goal," she thought out loud as she began her treacherous ascent.

Rounding a bend in the path, Alysia stopped at a doorknob-high tree stump to catch her breath. Further up on a straighter stretch of the path was a man and two donkeys slowly guiding a heavy cart. She squinted at its load: baskets of burgandy-colored berries, the kind prized for dying cloth for nobles' robes. As she watched her own steps, she wondered: how many shrubs did he have to pick to get so many? And over how many days... or weeks?

Just then some pebbles dropped from overhead. Then some small stones clattered down. Alysia quickly looked up.

Then with a thud and a crunch, a boulder the side of a horse crashed down the mountainside. She quickly backpedaled, and barely dodged getting bashed back down over the ravine. Just as she tried to get her breath back and her heartbeat down... thud, thud, CRASH! Another huge rock rolled down, between her and the farmer's cart. The donkeys brayed in fear as their keeper squatted down.

Alysia stared up toward the peak. "NISSA?!" she called out.

A beat. "So, haven't gotten wise and given up, huh?!" was the sneering answer. "Did I just hit that donkey? You two are hard to tell apart from this far!" And following right after her nasty laughter plummeted two more rocks the size of wagon wheels.

Alysia dropped to her stomach to dodge. "Hey!" she shouted up. "Stop that! I'd rather lose the trial than win it that way!"

"Ha! Just how I feel! I'd rather YOU lose, too!"

Then there was a crack and a rolling rumble. But it wasn't another stone.

"My cart!" yelled the man. "Look out, girl!"

Turning over, she saw that wagon wheeling down toward her like an Amazon's chariot across the plains. Alysia's first impulse was to roll out of the way and hope there was room enough to let it fly by....

But instead, she sprang to her feet, locked her legs and thrust her hands forward. THUKK! The cart and its speed pushed right back. Thanks to her own gem's magic and years of hard pushing at the Granary, she wasn't knocked down, but the soles of her feet scorched as they skidded over the rough trail.

"NO!" screamed the farmer. "Just let it go! Or you'll fall with it!"

Then she remembered! The bend in the road! And the expanse of nothing after it! She didn't want to simply save her own skin and let the farmer lose what was his whole livelihood for the whole season... but...

Wait! The stump!

In a flash and a painful twist, she shoved the load sharply to the right, and fell to the left against the mountain, knocking the wind out of herself. Then she heard wood smash against wood. With a shudder, she flopped over and looked back. The wagon was stopped against the tree stump. A basket had fallen off, and spilled its berries all over the dirt, but that was the worst of it.

She resumed her run back up the mountain trail, meeting the farmer and his donkeys midway up. He had an angry scowl. "You silly, foolish nit!" he snapped. "You could've gotten yourself killed!"

"You're welcome," Alysia muttered under her breath as she kept dashing up to the knob.

***

Heavy thundering breath. Sweat burning her eyes. Arms and legs like lead. A stitch in her side that wouldn't go away. And she hadn't had any food or water since this morning. And the white granite didn't look any nearer. Alysia looked to the west... and saw the sun was orange, large, and dangerously low.

"No!" she gasped. "Too close to sunset!"

She feared that it may have happened already down in the lowlands, and she was too late. All this racing for nothing.

No. She ran this far. If she had lost, then Jyreh himself would have to tell her.

Pumping her legs, her desperate determination pushed her on. She willed herself not to look at first, but on one curve, she couldn't avoid looking at the lowering sun. And she wasn't sure, but it looked like the horizon was getting lower for her, buying her extra time. With that, she sped her pace, as if that'd help shove the land down even more.

Then from up high, she heard a low, menacing, almost manlike chuckle. And it added a snarl to itself.

"Come here..." it growled with a wolflike grin. "Come... here..."

It was Nissa, her competitor.

No. Alysia narrowed her eyes. Nissa wasn't a competitor. She was an enemy.

And with an anger-fueled, spitefully determined, fear-stomping huff, Alysia shoved herself into a breakneck sprint. Barely dodging most rocks, and banging her shins against the heavier ones, she shut out of mind how much time was left, or how much chance she had in the trial of strength, or how much hope of a reward. She just wanted to be up there now.

And finally rounding the dome, she arrived. A wide ledge of pure white granite, with enough space for a proper swordfight or boxing match. She had to make herself stop so she didn't catapult herself off the cliff. Grateful for that reason, she halted, hunched over and caught her breath, and looked one last time toward the west. She had caught the orange sun, now dipping, perfectly half hidden by the land below.

Then she heard the slow, solitary, sarcastic clapping of two huge hands. Right there, casually standing as if she'd spent the whole day resting at an inn and just had finished dinner, waited a huge, sneering, cocky Nissa. She towered head and shoulders above the top of the tallest Amazon warrior either had ever seen. The towering ogress folded her arms coolly showing off block-like biceps and shoulders almost twice as wide as Alysia.

"You are a fool," her tormentor said. "All the way up the mountain just to lose." She drew closer within a foot of Alysia. "I got all three of those little gems, and ye gods, they felt great." Clenching a fist, she flexed, and held a bicep the size of a pumpkin under Alysia's nose. "Look at that. Just look at that. Even if you were to get a warrior's rations and the Granary's work every day for the rest of your life... you'll never be a woman like me."

Alysia stayed hunched over, panting. "Thank the gods."

Nissa snorted. "And you... how are you going to win the trial now? Go back down ask those other nobodies for help?"

The sun finally set, with no more light than the red twilight west. And another light came, with the crunch of sandaled feet on the stone. The two women glanced that way. And there coming, in his same robe and carrying a torch... was Jyreh.

"How'd you get up here so quick?!" Nissa marveled.

Alysia didn't ask. Well, she wanted to know, but she remembered the wonders in the cave last night, and in the morning.

"You both made it," he said simply as he put the torch in a crack in the dome rock. "After a long ordeal of a race, you're both here. Impressive."

"Thanks," Alysia rasped.

Nissa nodded smugly and casually brushed a tree-trunk thigh. "But of course. Now how about the trial?"

"Ah, yes, that," Jyreh said. And he walked up to them, turned to Alysia, reached forward and clasped her shoulders.

"Alysia, dear heart," he smiled, "congratulations. You've won."

Alysia stared at him befuddledly. "What?"

"WHAT?!" screeched Nissa.

He turned to her. "I said, she has won."

Confusion and anger stitched across the waterbearer's face. "Won what?! We haven't done anything! We did the race, and the gems! What about the trial of strength?!"

Jyreh's eyebrows arched up a hair, and he sighed with pity. "Nissa, is your body so strong now, and yet your understanding so weak?"

He pulled the robe up over his head, veiling his own face. Then the robed figure started to shrink. It slowly seeped down, like a lit candle melting with the fabric flowing to the ground like wax, until he had shrunk down to between Alysia's knee and hip. And then the hood fell back to show the face.

It was the girl trapped under the fallen tree.

"The trial," the child said simply, "you've both already had it."

Then she shrank away more, and the robe finally melted into a flat puddle of cloth. It oozed across the stone to another spot a bit closer to Nissa, then began to raise again like water in a fountain up to just below her chest. Another face emerged from the robe's hood: the lad at the bridge.

"Nissa," he said with quiet authority, "you had gotten all three gems, and even the one you were given freely." He shook his head sadly. "And yet... you didn't use one pebble of its power in any of the three tests." He reached into his currently loose, baggy robe, and pulled out the blue amulet from before and held it up. "Very sadly... you failed the trial miserably."

Furious, Nissa swung her huge arms forward, ready to grab Jyreh by the neck and choke him. But her hands only got halfway there. In a flash, the pendant gleamed brighter than the torch, and magic energy crackled all around Nissa's huge body. But then, one, two, three, four glowing gems rose out of her chest like turtles coming to the pond's surface. And as the magic stones returned to orbit around the pendant, Nissa's body got smaller, and shorter, and thinner, and lesser as each muscle deflated like a wine skin at a soldier's night in town. When the light and shine faded from Nissa, she saw to her horror that she was no larger or stronger than when she had woke up that morning.

Jyreh then turned to face Alysia, and the two women saw his face was now that of the farmer. "Alysia," he said. "You had no more than the power and might you were granted at the race's start. And yet... despite the threat of losing the race... despite giving up a greater power you could have used... despite the trouble you got and the thanks you didn't get... you used what you had... and used it very rightly."

Alysia then felt a glow, and a tingle over her own heart. She saw her own glowing gem rise partway to the surface of her skin like a sunrise. Then the other four gems whipped away from Jyreh's pendant and smacked into Alysia's own, which absorbed each of them and grew bigger like a lump of clay. Then just as that bigger lone gem sank back into her chest, she felt the warmth, which then flowed to her stomach, then her shoulders, through her arms, down to her fingertips, up to her head, and down her legs to her toes. She closed her eyes...

"Alysia," Jyreh said in his own voice, "very, very well done."

Then she arched back with a sharp grunt. Her inner being, her soul, pumped like a heartbeat. And she felt a mild ache in her bones like they were being stretched, and like every bit of her body was overstuffed like her stomach after a grand feast. She tightened her hands into fists... and they felt larger.

Then she heard a creak, stretches, and felt her ragged clothing shift. And she stood straighter. Taller. And taller. Her arms bulkened, and her legs did too. Heavier, but not burdensome. And she finally felt how cold the mountain air was. Of course, her clothes felt like they'd shrunk... no! They weren't smaller! She was bigger!

She stretched and shrugged her shoulders... and realized her bust had expanded a bit. She raised her eyebrows on that. She now had a bust?

Finally Alysia opened her eyes. The top of Jyreh's head barely made it to her chin. And off in a corner, Nissa, in a badly stretched, loose-hanging tunic, didn't even come up to her own broad shoulders now. The defeated, dark-haired girl looked as if she was going to cry. And Alysia, ignoring the boulders thrown at her before, actually felt a bit sorry for her.

"And now, Alysia," Jyreh said, now back to his true form and face, "welcome to my joy... and my haven."

The whole granite ledge then shone brightly. Light without heat glared everywhere. And just when everything around was just solid white... it faded.

And Nissa was all alone.

"Alysia?" she called out. "Jyreh?" She turned around. "Alysia! Jyreh!" Nothing but the crackle of the torch in the mountainside. Nissa grew desperate. "ALYSIA! JYREH!" Nothing.

Nissa curled her fist. And she shook it in the air. "YOU CHEAT!" she screamed. "YOU DECEIVER! YOU WARLOCK! I SWEAR, I'LL PAY YOU BACK FOR THIS IF IT'S THE LAST THING I EVER DO! I DON'T CARE IF IT TAKES ME A DAY OR A THOUSAND YEARS! I SWEAR I'LL HAVE THAT COW SLAVE GIRL'S LIMBS HACKED OFF SO I CAN FORCE THEM DOWN YOUR GULLET AND RIP THEM OUT THE OTHER SIDE! YOU TWO HEAR ME?!"

She heard no answer, not even the wind. And trembling with an undying rage, she wrenched the torch out of the crack, and began her walk down.

***

Alysia couldn't see anything clearly. Her world was a wash of cascading light and warm water, like she'd appeared in the bottom of a heated waterfall. It coursed all over her bigger body, and she felt the old, torn, haggard clothes strip away and disappear in the torrent. Then when that had stopped, she felt an equally warm, pleasant wind, drying her skin and her hair, which flapped in the air like a pennant. Just as the last drop of water dried away, she felt a thick, silk-soft, yet strong garment drape around her body and pelvis. And then her hair tightened and twisted into two thick ropes, which draped over her shoulders, and rested so the ends met her breasts. She looked down. Her new tunic was a rich green, somewhere between sea green and forest green. And a clean white border around her neck.

"Alysia," called Jyreh's voice.

She looked around and saw she was in a stone chamber with a pool of clean water in the floor, and a spout on the wall over her head. And a stout wood door in front of her.

Opening it and passing through, she saw she was in a round hall with shelves of books and parchments, and brass instruments she didn't recognize. And a big table with plates of food on it. And Jyreh in his purple robe.

"Where are we?" she asked.

"This is near the top of my tower," he said, "invisible to the eyes that aren't meant to see it. My refuge from the Empire." He pointed to a window. Alysia looked out, and she saw it was perched on top of the dome rock of the mountain. She saw the lesser mountains, hills, forests, woods, and the lay of the Empire. And way, way down, she saw a tiny torchlight slowly moving.

"Is that Nissa?" she asked.

"Yes. Don't feel sorry for her," he said. "She has chosen her path. Let us hope it will not bring her more sorrow, and that she finds her way away from it." He beckoned to her. "But for you..."

She approached. And he had some golden articles in his hands. And the blue pendant he carried. "For passing the trial. And for using that strength for the lesser. Always." He stood on tiptoe, draped the cord over her neck, and threaded her pigtails out from under it.

Then he showed four gold ringlets, each with two broken chain links embossed on them. "For the bondages that were broken, and for those you have freed." And he tenderly threaded two on each of her braids.

He then held up a golden girdle, embossed with a chain of five large unbroken links. "For those that are still under the Empire's yoke of slavery, that we do not forget to help and serve them. May this chain be broken soon." And he reached around her relatively narrow waist, slipped the girdle around, and clasped it to her solid flat stomach.

And he spread a hand over to the table. With some roast mutton. Potatoes. Freshly baked bread with honey and butter. Some cheese, grapes, and big cups of fresh water and wine. "And," he said with a grand, mirthful smile. "for a whole day of nothing to eat but an apple and water since morning."

Alysia stared at the spread on the table. Then she stared at Jyreh. "One more thing."

"What's that?"

Her eyes brimmed with tears. "This." And she reached forward with her new mighty arms, wrapped them around his back and waist, hefted him up, and squeezed him to her chest with a tight yet tender hug. "For everything," she squeaked.

Reaching up, Jyreh brushed away a tear from her soft, round cheek before it trickled down to her smile. "Again, dear heart," he said warmly, "very well done."

The Beginning