Shadowed Consequences
#9 of Transformation Stories
Aira picks a fight with the demon Tsochan and after being soundly beaten he loses a hell of a lot
Flinging his arms up Aira grunted as the shield he'd erected crackled and bulged under the force of the blow that slammed into it. Skidding backwards through the thick loam underfoot the blue fox felt his balance wavering, quickly dropping his shield he flung himself to the ground. The fox then rolled through the under-brush to get out of the way of the dark tentacles that where assaulting him. Leaping back to his feet Aira had just enough time to see the next attack coming and leapt out of the way as several inch thick tendrils of darkness swept through where he had been standing and slammed into tree beside him. Chunks of bark flew in every direction and the fox was forced to duck out of the way. With his claws digging into the trees trunk Aira barely dodged one barrage by using his grip on the tree to change the direction of his leap. Rolling clear of the tangling branches of a willow tree the fox slid on his knees through the mud of a small clearing and winched as a ball of purple flame engulfed the tree behind him. He felt it die, its presence screaming then cutting off suddenly as the demonic fire consumed it. Clambering back to his feet Aira faced in the direction he'd come from, ready for the demons next attack. He could feel more trees burning and vaguely sense the dark presence slinking through the flickering shadows ahead of him. Bringing one arm up, ready to defend Aira moved his left hand in a circular motion, summoning a wreath of leaves, holding them ready to attack with.
Poised as he was, his blue and white fur flickering in the smouldering light of the forest, the tattered remnants of his pink t-shirt hanging off his shoulders he was surprised when the forest cried out. Aira's ears stood on end then he dropped, performing the splits as the pointed tip of a demonic tentacle slammed to a stop where his head had been. Hurling his prepared spell behind him with all his might the fox darted to the side, mud smearing through his fur as he tried to get away from the looming darkness that had appeared behind him.
"Stop!" Aira screamed, staggering backwards as he felt the dark fire roaring through his forest, burning, destroying, killing.... Shaking his head to clear his vision Aira leapt into action directly toward his assailant. His outstretched hand lunged toward the laughing demonic beasts forehead in an attempt to put one of his mind controlling leaves on him. He got within half a foot before Tsochan's laughter snapped off like a switch and the black ferret lashed out with his wings, forming a club out of the flexible flesh to bat Aira through the air. Arching backwards Aira reached up with both hands and grabbed a tree branch. Trying to shake the dizzy ringing from his ears the blue fox glared down at the demon as he slowly picked his way across the muddy clearing. He was battered, bruised, singed, covered in mud and his clothes were tattered ruins but Aira wasn't beaten yet.
Stopping just short of the fox the ferret tilted his head back, amber eyes shining like a pair of lanterns piercing the gloom. He just stood there watching as his adversary clambered higher up the tree. "Why should I stop?" Tsochan whispered, "You lured me here under false pretences fox, you challenged me.... do you think your little forest gives you an edge?" Looking around the demon chortled before reaching out to place a maroon clawed paw on the trunk of the tree, "Maybe it does, but I think it is time to remove it and show you what you are truly messing with."
Aira leapt from the tree into the branches of another, wrapping his arms around the rough bark. He was about to unleash another attack when his attention was drawn back to his previous perch as it started to crumple. The trunk collapsed in on itself, sagging and bulging, splitting open in long rotten seems that crashed to the forest floor, "No..... No!" Aira's scream trailed after him as he launched himself at the shadowy ferret, lashing out with all his fury, all the magical energy he could muster focussed in his fist. Nothing should have been able to withstand such an attack but the demon just turned at the last moment and a whirling shield of blue flame engulfed his body. Slamming into the fire Aira felt the flames flex for just a moment before they flung Aira the length of the clearing to land in a muddy puddle.
"Yes... I think it is time," Tsochan whispered, his fur melting, thick, black shadowy ooze consuming his body as the flames continued to dance about his form. "Say good bye to your little forest Aira, I shall not stop until you surrender your body to me....witness..."
The flames flared, whirling into a tight cone that started to fling streamers out into the woodlands. Cradling his burnt right paw Aira knelt in the mud and stared in horror as streamers of flame leapt into being throughout the crowns of the nearby trees. Aira could feel the crackling heat spreading further then the area he'd been fighting in. His senses screamed and he had to pull back from his immersion in the woodland as blue flames, hotter than they had any right to be, consumed leaves and bark. It hurt and made his heart ache but fire could he weathered, burnt trees could live again. What made him clutch his stomach and heave was the sudden sense of vileness soaking the ground beneath the demons feet. It touched the roots of the nearest trees and he felt them sicken, wither and die, dissolving into blackened mush as the poison spread along their length. From the deep, old tap roots anchoring trees in the ground to the slender roots of flowers and bushes none of them could withstand the blight creeping through the ground, a more insidious and deadly foe then any fire. Heat washing over his fur made Aira look up; the ferret was stood half a metre away, no longer wreathed in flame, just a corruptive shadow of oozing death. Standing on four feet now the ferret was a large, slinky beast of gelatinous looking gunge that was constantly flowing and shifting, pouring his poison into the soil.
"Stop....." Aira whispered, pushing himself to his feet, "Stop it, you've made your point!" he swayed and doubled over throwing up as a wave of vile air engulfed his body.
"No Aira, I don't think I have, say the words and I'll stop...." Tsochan's voice brought Aira's head up, he sounded almost regretful. "I have little desire to wipe your forest out, but you had to keep pushing didn't you? Trying it on, safe in the belief you could take me down or you could just play another game if you lost." Moving closer the shadowy shaped lowered its head, the only colour in its feral form the pin points of glowing amber fire that where its eyes. They were source of the dry heat the fox could feel washing over his fur. "Surrender, say the words little fox.... some of it might still be saved.... say the words and...."
He was cut off as Aira brought a hand up and slapped one of his mind controlling leaves between those glowing eyes. For a moment Aira felt hope, his magic was flowing into the leaf, pushing against the demons self-control. For ten seconds Tso stood still then the black ooze engulfed the leaf and Aira cried in fear as he felt it die and his magic brushed aside. He screamed louder as two large paws shoved him onto his back and thick, motile black ooze slurped around his shoulders, merging across his neck, clinging to his skin and causing his fur to smoulder.
"Those do not work on me.... they never have.... ah Aira," Tsochan breathed out into Aira's nose, making him gag and kick out at the oozing creature holding him down. "You can never comprehend what I really am. But let me share with you what I am doing to your precious forest that you can understand with a little help."
The demon paused to let more of his body ooze over the fox, slurping around Aira's torso to stick him to the ground and slowly melt away his fur. Once he was satisfied he had Aira properly in place he seized the fox mentally by the scruff of the neck and dragged him beneath the ground. It didn't take long to show the forest guardian what was happening in the earth beneath the tall ancient trees he had protected for so very long. The poison was pouring through the soil, liquid and dark and every root it touched drew it upwards and into the plant above. The earth itself was being twisted, the corruptive darkness destroying rich, nutrient filled soil and leaving behind acidic sod that crumbled and settled under the weight of the plants it had previously supported. That wasn't the worst thing though, Aira was there with the poison, racing up into the innocent trees above, searing their soft flesh. He was corrupting the life giving sap, burning away all that was healthy and strong. Then like the tree Tsochan had touched early the plant whether it was tree, bush or flower collapsed from the inside out, rotten heart no longer able to support its weight. The demonic ferret showed Aira that the poison had spread far beyond the immediate area around where they had been fighting. Trees untouched by fire were starting to collapse, ancient trunks falling sideways, smashing into their brothers, carrying them to the ground. The animal life of the forest was fleeing and birds squawked and rocketed upwards from their roosts in terror. Aira screamed silently in the depths of the earth as he felt his forest dying, its heart being ripped out tree by tree. Then in a flash he was suddenly back in his body gasping for breath with the monstrous ferret oozing above his body.
"I... stop it... please...."
"Say the words," Tsochan whispered, pressing his muzzle to the tip of one of the fox's ears, "Speak them now... of your own free will.... and I will stop..."
Squirming under the bulk of living ooze Aira drew a shuddering breath, tears stinging his eyes as he spoke the words the ferret was whispering into his ear. "I... Aira, Guardian of the Woodland Realm, do freely....." Aira felt his throat close up and for a brief moment defiance raised its head inside him again.
Tsochan chuckled and squeezed the fox to remind him that he was there as he growled into his ears, "Swear...."
Whimpering at the stifling heat and aching inside as the poison continued to eat his home the blue fox whispered the final words, "Surrender to the demon known as Tsochan..."
As the last word left Aira's lips Tsochan threw back his head and started to chuckle. It swiftly became a deep, satisfied laugh that boomed throughout the ruined glade at the heart of what had once been a beautiful forest. It took on a sadistic measure of glee as Aira started to scream as his body began to be drawn into the dark mass that was Tsochan. The semi liquid, gelatinous mess crept up Aira's body and the demon made sure it hurt. No gentle, slick encasement this but a steady, forceful slurp that squeezed and pushed the fox back and forth. Limbs bent in unnatural directions, pushed to a point just shy of breaking before the slick black membrane squeezing around the arm or leg in question split open and burning liquid darkness engulfed it. Thrash as he might Aira was unable to fight back, first his legs then his arms were engulfed leaving just his torso and his head free. The demon loomed overhead, just a shapeless mass of living shadow broken only by a pair of burning amber fires. They flowed through the mass, causing oily ripples and ringed rainbows of muted colour to shimmer across the surface and the fox could feel the heat of them playing over his body. Aira whimpered and shook his head from side to side as Tsochan started to melt, dripping like wax atop his chest. Each droplet stung like hot wax and it didn't flow, it clung to fur, burning his skin and making Aira yelp and squirm in pain. Drip by drip the demon melted atop the fox letting him reach the point where Aira was beginning to get used to the sharp, hot pain.
As soon as he saw his new toy was no longer reacting Tsochan stopped melting, his body solidified; waves of melted muck freezing into place almost instantly. This made Aira whimper as his green gaze fixed on the burning points of light that were the demons eyes. The solid shell of darkness was starting to crack, a ruddy red light shining through along with a thick, viscous black liquid that seemed to weep from the crazed spiral of fractures spreading out from the demon's eyes.
"Please...." he whimpered, "Sto... NO!" Airas scream was cut off as the solid outer shell shattered and a sudden wave of burning hot darkness engulfed his body. As Aira went under the demon fed the fox an image of his beloved forest; a solitary tree, untouched by corruption at the edge where the fields started. For a moment hope bloomed in the vulpine's mind and he reached out toward it, through the pain and agony he reached for the warmth and security of his forests soul! Only to let out a mental scream of anguish as the tree started to sag. It collapsed under the weight of its rotten heart and in that moment of horror, that moment of weakness he felt the dripping dark corruptive touch of Tsochan reach into his being and rip asunder his connection to the woodlands....
Sliding into the gelatinous oily substance that made up Tsochan's current body Aira stopped screaming only to stop the horrible liquid from getting inside his mouth. It was a futile effort because as his head slipped beneath the surface the tarry mess filled his nostrils and poured down the back of his throat. It burnt in much the same way the dark goo was making his skin tingle as it sluiced his fur off his body. As the pressure lessened Aira realised he was no longer being squeezed and pulled deeper. He was just floating in the oily, clinging dark mess so he thrashed back and forth, clenching his jaws in frustration as it had no effect. With his eyes screwed shut and the uncomfortable sensation of his fur being washed off tormenting him from head to toes Aira lashed out with his limbs again, he was driven to put distance between himself and the burning goo. Despite putting all his strength behind the blows his arms and legs moved sluggishly. He was also running out of air, his lungs where burning and his head was hurting but he carried on fighting, trying to find some way out of this prison. It was a valiant effort but his body demanded air and in the end he couldnt stop his jaws opening as his body tried to breathe, what he got was a mouthful of thick slime. If he could have screamed he would have, the demonic goop seared its way down his throat. Consciousness was fleeing, his mind felt like it was being squished in a vice and the torment of the dark liquid melting its way into his body was the only thing keeping him awake.
Struggling, desperate for some way out Aira tried to draw another panicked, oxygen starved breath and gasped as cold air flowed into his lungs. Lying where he was he panted slowly, gulping down deep lungfulls of air. It made his teeth ache and aggravated the tender flesh of his throat but it was air, delicious air! Slowly as the pressure against his brain faded Aira forced his eyes open, using one paw to wipe away the gunge coating them as it finally registered that he was no longer floating in the dark, burning liquid. He'd missed the moment of transition somewhere in the haze and confusion brought on by oxygen deprivation. Blinking away the blue spots and sparks that cluttered his vision Aira let his eyes adjust to the low red haze that clung to the walls of the chamber he had fallen into. The room was spherical, maybe six foot across and the walls looked like stone covered with a type of moss that he thought might be the source of the faint light. Sat in black water that lapped around his waist he twisted about and quickly ascertained that there were no exits and the curve of the roof was only a couple of feet above his head. Shivering Aira wrapped his arms about himself and froze when tacky, goo coated flesh met more flesh. Glancing down at himself the fox wiped one hand along the length of his arm and whimpered as he pushed the black slime off his body. As the thick goop splattered into the liquid he was sitting in it revealed bare white skin, blotchy with red marks and coated in a thin layer of residue but furless. A quick exploration of his body revealed he had no fur left, his tail, legs, head... it was all gone and his smooth skin made it impossible to scrape off all the slime. It clung and squished between his fingers and toes, dripped down his back and rolled across his chest easily but wipe at it as he might a residue remained.
"Ugh...." leaning forward, one arm pressed against his stomach Aira heaved, his gut felt heavy and there was a slimy coating down the back of his throat that made him gag. "Stupid... idiotic... demon..." he growled, shaking his head and trying to get the foul stench that filled this prison out of his nose. When that failed the fox resorted to panting, letting his tongue hang out as he waded through the slimy mess on his knees to press his paws against the walls in an attempt to find some way out.
"If this is another of your stupid games Two I'm not playing... I... I...." Falling backwards onto his rump Aira lifted a hand and pressed it against his temple. Starting to tremble he pressed his claws against his head, headless of cutting the skin with his claws he squeezed his eyes shut and tried to reach out, to find his forest. "No... no no no....." Aira started to mumble repeatedly as he realised that there was nothing there. He was alone in his head and there was no trace of his forest, its comforting presence was gone. Panting rapidly he started to shake harder as the memories of what he'd done, what the demon had done to the trees forced themselves to the front of his mind. Clawing at his ears and muzzle Aira cried out, denial stripped away, his attempt to distract himself crumbling when set against the void inside his mind. Throwing his body against the moss covered wall the fox started to hammer on the stones, one fist raised above his head bashed against the rocks again and again. Black slime sloshed around his waist, stinging his naked skin, the stone scraped and tore at his hand and his fore-head as he started to head-butt the wall but the pain meant nothing, his forest was dead. With tears pouring down his muzzle and his breath coming in short, ragged gulps between sobs and screams Aira begged Tsochan to bring it back, to undo what he had done.
How long he was lost in the mindless terror he didn't know, he had vague memories of leaning against the wall and just crying until no more tears would come. Aira could recall falling unconscious and lying slumped against the wall as well as curling into a shaking, sobbing ball then raging against the wall some more. It was all jumbled together in his head; he couldnt remember how long or how often just that he had experienced the memories. He finally snapped out of it when his hand hit the wall and splattered during one of his rages. Falling backwards he gaped at where his right arm now ended in a black stump. To his shock and mounting horror it continued to melt. Black slime dripped off the end of his arm leaving nothing behind; no bones or flesh just dark, oozing slime that mixed with the goo he was knelt in. Looking down at his body Aira gave a start when he realised that his pale skin was now a matt shade of black. He pressed his remaining hand against his stomach shuddered in revulsion at the way it shifted and wobbled like gelatine. Panting heavily, stunned and confused by what was happening the fox watched his right arm melt away and let out a startled, "gllrfk," as his tongue sagged mid pant and splatted into his lap!
He tried to scream but his throat was full of liquid and he watched his muzzle start to sag and droop before his eyes. Pulling his hand away from his stomach left him gurgling in fright as it stuck. The goo it was made out of stretching and pulling, thinning out until with a sickening and muffled schlorp it came apart, collapsing into thick liquid sludge that oozed down his stomach and mingled with the muck all about him. Letting out a wet, gurgling groan Aira fell backwards as his hips slipped off his legs. He'd tried to move them and the sudden wrenching motion revealed that his legs had stuck together and had been melting away as he knelt there. He didn't have far to fall though, his back squelched into the stone wall of his prison and it took a moment to realise this shouldnt have been so. Looking up he groaned; the walls were closing in and the red moss was melting and mixing into the slime even as he was. Clawing at the wall with what was left of his right arm Aira slipped down the stone as the sphere continued to shrink. The level of black slime raced higher up his chest as everything was squeezed together and the fox's head sunk beneath the surface with a glop. For a second Aira suffered a disorientating experience as what was left of his head tumbled through the slime. It was over quickly as a sudden increase in pressure squished whatever was left of his body, rendering him into a formless mass of dark shapeless goo.
That should have been the end but it wasn't, somehow in a manner Aira couldn't even begin to comprehend, he still existed. His mind was spread throughout the slimy, oily mess he'd just melted into but he was in no fit state to think about it. Lost somewhere between abject terror and cackling insanity all he could do was float there and scream within the silence of his mind as the pressure continued to increase. Some part of his mind registered the stone walls of his prison continuing to contract. The space left for his gelatinous body to slosh about in was growing smaller and smaller and the tension was starting to make his mind hurt. Then just as it reached the point when something had to give he felt a disc shaped section at the base of the prison vanish. Presented with a way out Aira's body, or what it had become, streamed through the opening under pressure and carried the former fox's mind with it. For a moment there was no coherent thought, no screaming terror just the sudden thrill and exhilaration that accompanied his form flowing toward freedom! It was a faux sensation though as soon enough Aira started to realise he was pooling, gathering, filling some other shaped space but the pressure was gone and with it his psychosis.
Or at least it had abated, for a moment at least Aira had peace as his shape and form flowed and splashed and filled the new chamber he had been granted access too. There were splits... different sections of the room... he filled them, joined his essence back together and then there was no more space. A strange feeling of contentment crept through Aira's mind then he flinched as heat roared through the oily liquid that his body had become. It was furnace hot and some instinct made him harden the surface of his form. He pulled back from the stone walls of his new prison and formed a thick, gelatinous membrane that kept the heat from penetrating deeply into the liquid that was now him. He had just finished this action and was trying to comprehend what he had done and how when the walls of the room fell away. Instead of splashing down into a slimy puddle the fox staggered and slipped on his paws! His mind recoiled from the sudden sensation of having feet again and he burped as gas escaped from inside his body. A sharp, uncomfortable tingling sensation ran across the outside of his body, flashing from bottom to top. He itched all over and squirm as he might he could not scratch it and then a suddenly as it started it was over. Drawing in a shuddering breath Aira froze as it finally got through that once again he was whole. He had hands and feet, toes that wriggled when he tried and a thick, heavy fluffy tail twitching against the back of his knees. Something was off though; it felt like him, it moved like him... as he shifted in the dark to hold a paw against his muzzle he felt fur and a damp nose. Despite this he could still feel a slick, creeping sensation all over his body as if he was still in some way liquid, like there was oily slime creeping beneath his skin. He took a deep breath and frowned, his chest moved, air rushed in and out but it didn't feel right... his thoughts no longer felt confined to his brain... he could focus and feel any part of his body and when he held his breath there was no building urge to start breathing again. Dazed, confused and very much out of sorts after all that had happened Aira raised a hand to feel the heavy weight atop his head. Just as his fingers touched ridged bone lights came on and his reflection was thrown back to him from every direction!
What Aira saw made no sense, once again he wore flesh or at least something that looked and felt like it on the surface. He was a fox once more and as he looked closer Aira realised he was himself. The shape and build of his form beneath his fur was the same as before. What was different however were the colours, the light blue that covered the majority of his body was now a deep, dark matt-black and in certain light it glimmered with an oily sheen. The fur that had once been white running from his thighs up to his neck and over his muzzle was now a rich metallic maroon. Shaking his head in confusion Aira winched as his red claws snagged and tangled in his new fur, it felt like wire and there was nothing soft or friendly about the amber eyes that looked back at him from the mirrors surrounding him. After everything that had just happened to him a change in fur colour would not have made Aira nervous; what really upset him was the pair of horns that now adorned either side of his head. They were thick ridged bone that started as a shade black just behind his ears before curling back and round to end up level with his shoulders. Their colour faded through lighter shades of black and dark reds until the tips were a deep maroon to match his hair.
"Why.... why make me look like him?" Aira whispered; he tugged on one of his horns to see if it was real. Which turned out to be a stupid thing to do, all he managed to do was tug his head sideways. As he took his hand away he paused to finger one of his metallic locks. His hair was like warm, living metal, flowing and sliding between his fingers and shaped to hang in to just off his shoulders which was a big difference from his usual look.
"I must admit... I do look rather dashing don't I?"
Jumping at the voice Aira span around in a circle and staggered as a wave of dizziness rolled over him. For a moment his thoughts seemed to go wild, glimpses of his child-hood flashed through his mind. His first day in the forest rose from memory, his parents teaching him the ways of the guardian, meeting his first mortal friend. Each thought demanded his attention before seeming to fracture and fade. Groaning and clutching his head the fox frowned, trying to remember what he had been doing. The room was empty there was just him and the endless rows of reflections marching off into the distance in every direction but there had been a voice.
"What... I... wha...." trailing off and staring in dumbfounded disbelief at his reflection Aira grabbed his tail and hefted it around. The thick, bristly brush of fox tail was black and maroon as he expected but what he'd only just noticed whilst was that the maroon tip of his tail was in fact a spike of ridged bone. Black fur stopped two thirds of the way along its length and gave way to a tapering ridge that felt like it was made from the same material his new horns where made from.
"It's quite nice isn't it?" the voice said again, deep and rich, melodious and yet familiar somehow, "I figured if I was going to have a new body Id make some adjustments to make it fit."
"Where... who......." He was cut off as another wave of nausea assaulted him and more thoughts flashed through his mind. Falling out of a tree and grazing his knees, finding a nest of otters and marvelling at the playful critters for the first time. He found himself recalling the first time hed used his power to scare away some kids who were trying to light a fire in the forest. Each memory demanded attention, forced him to relive it and then faded. Blinking, shaking his head and frowning Aira looked around the room clenching his fists together the fox turned in a slow circle, glaring at the mirrors, he was sure he knew whose voice it was now. "Tsochan I'm not playing your stupid games you you bastard, you murdered my forest!"
"It's not a game Aira, and it was a forest, I can't really murder woodland." This time Aira saw it when they spoke and he froze, his fragile psyche struggling to comprehend. One of his reflections was talking, their mouth moving, the image of his black and red body shifting in ways that didn't mirror his own.
"St.. stop that... it's weird," Aira said shakily, "Put my body back as it should be and let me go or show me what game I've got to play for freedom!" As he finished speaking another moment of nausea washed over him, Aira staggered and started remembering the first time hed formed a leaf to mind control someone. It was a lumberjack, a big bear whod been planning to cut down the woods for a quick profit. That had been a fun night; the bear had soon learnt to do as he was told and what bear shaking his head Aira glared at his reflection only to be caught off guard as another one spoke.
"As I said, No game... not this time, you're mine... it is much too late for games."
Shivering Aira turned to face the currently speaking reflection, the fur around his neck and shoulders standing on end. "Ugh stop this! It feels really weird... like your crawling all over me..." rubbing his arms and glaring at the mirror Aira shuddered, he could still feel that oily oozing sensation from when he'd been liquid beneath his fur and there was something else. For a second another memory bloomed in his mind, a late night, standing beneath the moon, facing a cream coloured rabbit, a crescent moon blazing on his forehead, wielding a hammer. And then nothing just oily slickness that felt like it was oozing along his fur. "Ugh... this body feels... horrible... like... it's not really flesh and blood."
"It isn't," the voice came from behind him this time and Aira staggered around to glare at the demon fox. "I consumed it, corrupted it. Oh the mass is original, it was your body but now it's one hundred percent me. That oil, the slick taint and corruption oozing under the skin? That's what you're made out of now, the fur, the horns they are just a subtle shift on the surface." Leaning forward, nose squished a bit as if the reflection was leaning against glass instead of just being a reflection. "You can feel it can't you, shifting, oozing under the skin? That's how I feel all time..." the fox in the mirror grinned, one finger tracing up and over one of his horns. "I love it; it's what I'm meant to feel like."
Stepping back from that mirror Aira squeaked as none of his reflections moved, they were all watching him. Aira felt like his eyes had crossed and everything span, for a moment he was stood on a rocky cliff-top marvelling at the tall towers of the city down below. It was his first trip into civilization The city where he had seen how those with technology lived and what they took for granted with no respect for nature. The memory seemed to pop and Aira heaved at the queasiness building in the pit of his stomach as his reflections continued moving on their own.
"St... stop this..." Aira whispered, twitching his tail from side to side, heavy spike hitting the back of his legs making him wince. It was a nasty reminder of how his body had been violated; he could feel the demon's corruption moving beneath his skin. He tried to back up but there was nowhere to go, his skin was crawling and there was something squeezing his thoughts. "Tsochan... stop it...."
Another memory, this time of Aira fighting with a team of people, Ko was there, Russet, the skunk shape shifting and lashing out against the dark creature he was fighting. Then there was Rufellen, the bright blue alchemist squirrel unleashing his steam cannon on the bog-whumper. Fights, adventures, quests against dark foes, happy reunions with friend, the memories of his adventuresome life seem to mix and tangle together until they seemed to melt away. For a moment Aira screamed, something was happening to him, something was playing with his memories and then the terror passed.
Leaning forward Aira pressed a hand to the ground and frowned at the floor, he didn't remember kneeling down, just feeling nauseous. Panting, tongue hanging out of his muzzle the fox forced his head up and stared into the eyes of the reflection in front of him. Glancing left and right he could just glimpse his horns, they were a heavy weight, another reminder of what had been done to him. "What... do you want?"
Crouching down from where he had been standing Aira's reflection pressed a hand to the other side of the mirror, "I have what I want.... can't you hear it?"
"Hear...." Flicking his ears upright Aira frowned, there was something about the voice, "You sound a bit like me... just... like you too..."
"Mmhmm, it's your throat I'm using, your voice, just with my inflection and speech patterns..." the reflection chuckled as Aira's eyes went wide and settled back on its haunches.
"That'd mean... you were talking with my body... but I'm me! I'm here!" he thumped a hand against his chest, "You... how... what?!" the fox stared at his reflection in confusion. It was all getting a bit much and something was wrong with his thoughts they were getting more and more fragmented and it was getting harder to find the right emotion. He should have been angry... scared... something."
"Are you?" The demon asked, the surface of the mirror rippling, red clawed hand sliding out of the glass to cup his cheek, "Are you sure of that? Try and tell me about your childhood Aira?"
"Grrrrfff..." Aira reared back away from the hand sticking out of the mirror. "Of course I... I... I....... no.... no I can't...." his jaw dropped open as the mirror rippled and the demonic fox stepped through the mirror like it was water.
"Anything from before today?" another reflection asked as it stepped free of its mirror.
"You're friends?"
"The name of your home?"
"The first time you and the forest travelled together?"
Each question came from a reflection and as Aira forced himself back to his feet, wobbling unsteadily he saw that all around the mirrors were rippling. Copies of his demonic vulpine body were stepping through glass that flowed like water. They were all watching him, slowly moving closer, each one was holding their body in a different posture. It was very disorientating and Aira's fur was standing on end, his tail and ears twitching as he fought against the dizziness that was trying to make him vomit and fall over at the same time. Staggering sideways he was caught by one of the fox's and the feeling of rough paw-paws gripping his arms made him jerk free and stagger the other way. Turning around like a drunk he tottered toward another fox and lowered his head in a futile attempt to head-butt them with his horns. They just grabbed the large bony handles and forced him down onto his knees, tilting his head backwards so they could stare down at him.
"What... have.... you...." Aira's words were coming out slurred now, something was wrong, it was getting harder to talk, to focus. Memories where whirling through his thoughts, bright and memorable, terrifying and dark. His first lover, the first time he had sex, the day he found a nest of eagles had chosen his forest as their home. His forest burning, dying, corruption and darkness, each memory flashed into his thoughts then was gone, fading away. It took a moment for Aira to realise Tsochan was speaking; he just stared blankly at the fox, trying to pay attention through the deluge of memories.
"I've been devouring you; corrupting you Aira... no mortal can withstand that level of darkness for long." The fox holding his horns grinned as another gripped his hair and helped to tug his head back further, stretching his neck.
"My title, Weaver of Memories, have you never thought what it means?" The fox chuckled, watching with glee the confusion in Aira's eyes, "I've been destroying them, consuming them, you are mine and this body and the powers that were yours.... are mine... albeit corrupted to something more suitable."
"N... no," Aira managed to whimper, trying to pull his head free, "St... st... op.... mine..." Everything was growing hazy, the reflections, the copies of his body were wavering, melding into one another. His vision was swimming eyes watering and there was a dizzy, whirling sensation flooding his thoughts. The edges of his vision grew fuzzy, and then darkness started to roll across his sight. All that remained was a tunnel of light, a pair of amber eyes; the fox holding his horns... horns... why did he have....
Aira..
He.....
Was......
Who.......
Where......
Feeling the last remnants of Aira's being dissolving into nothing under the corruptive force of his being Tsochan opened his eyes and stretched his arms above his head. Cricking the muscles in his neck the demon turned to regard his body in the mirror.
"Not bad really," he mused to himself, running his claws along his stygian fur, tracing the line where black became metallic maroon. "Vulpines have a certain grace to them, what do I think?" He addressed the question to the ferret standing behind him.
"This is going to take some getting used to," He said, thought about saying... did say, using the ferret's throat and the fox shook his head as the ferret continued speaking. "Having two bodies again, our mind in both and yet... joined."
"Fun though," he fox chuckled, twisting his hand and creating a dark purple leaf out of blue flame, "We've got some new tricks to enjoy."
"Oh yes... but first..." the ferret moved closer, muzzle splitting into a grin, paw coming up to rest on the fox's chest, fingers tracing, teasing, stroking along his chest, "I'm going to enjoy what I've got right in front of me."
Smiling back the fox clunked his horns against the ferrets and stared into his own amber eyes. Pressing his hips forward, swaying himself back and forth against him "This is going to be a fun and new... very new...."
Lacing his fingers into the long metallic hair of the vulpine the mustelide swayed his short, shaggy tail from side to side and stared back, it was a weird foible talking to himself but it felt good and different, he pulled his new muzzle in close and kissed. It was such a thrill, kissing himself, tongues tangling, teasing as he walked his fingers over both bodies, teasing, stroking, touching. Pulling back at last, panting lightly and smiling, feeling quite excited now by the prospect of what he was about to do. Barely restraining himself from pouncing his new body the ferret asked one last question.
"No regrets?"
"None... let's go,"
With that fox and ferret, corrupted, demonic, the same mind sharing two bodies left the room were what had been Aira had been picked apart and remade. Their prize had been claimed but the fun was just about to start.
~fin