Temple of Blakat
Unlike other shrines and temples, there is no attempt at grandeur in the architecture of Blakat's temple. It is squat and sturdy, more a fortress than a place of worship, but in keeping with both the martial and maniacal nature of the goddess the place is an architectural nightmare. Older parts are in near ruin while newer additions seem tacked out wherever there might been a convenient door or window, and a few sections look as if they had been lifted whole from some palace or manor and crudely jammed into place. The few towers are rickety looking at best. Catapults and ballistas dot the roof, oftentimes aimed at other sections of the temple itself rather than outward. The grounds around the structure are littered with large chunks of masonry and a forest of pikes, many still impaling the skeletal remains of those who have crossed the Yodh.

Smoke and torchlight can be glimpsed through random openings in the sprawling structure, indicating that the place is still occupied by potentially dangerous women - even if the surviving Yodhblakat are rumored to focus on Blakatball instead of their usual mercenary trade due to a deal with the powers-that-be.

"It looks almost exactly as I expected it to," Nicora mutters as she approaches the squat structure from the shadows. "And disturbingly, it's less chaotic. Heh." For the moment she's content to circle and slowly get closer to the odd structure, ears twitching and listening for movement to locate and decide on distance and position.

There's a cackle from inside the Temple. And of course, the door is wide open, since what's the fun in a fortress you can't just waltz into?

"If it were me, I would trap the obvious entrance," Nicora mutters. So, she tests this by finding a rock and tossing it through the open gate.

"Who's out there?" yells a deep yet female voice. A burly, scarred woman with red hair and mismatched armor appears in the doorway, holding a thick staff with lots of sharp rocks embedded in the head. "Show yourself!"

Oh well, probably better to introduce herself than sneak in and get speared. At least out here she can still out fly them. "Me," Nicora says as she slips out of the shadows just barely. "I have come to speak to Blakat and Her daughters on an important matter," she says rather businesslike.

"Speak to Blakat?" the woman laughs. "Well, this should be entertaining. Come forward, Little Sunala."

"Little? Hmf." Nicora thinks as she walks forward. "The matter upon which I speak is hardly 'amusing'" she comments.

"Pah, if it isn't amusing, why should Blakat bother?" the Yodh says, resting her shillelagh against an armored shoulder. Up close, none of her armor matches, and she is bedecked in.. bits of leather? No, they're ears.. and scalps.. and bits and baubles that make no sense, including a fine porcelain teacup tied to her belt.

"Because it is a matter of survival. An ancient demon threatens all," Nicora explains as she appraises this strange Eeee. "And it is hard to take part on battles and chaos if it wipes you out by surprise, now isn't it?"

"Thpppt," the Yodh raspberries. "Who cares? As long as we get to fight!" She takes Nicora deeper into the maze of corridors (in fact, there are more corridors and halls than rooms, apparently). They don't pass any other Yodh, but an extremely handsome male Eeee pokes his head out of a side room to see what's going on, then just as quickly ducks back inside.

"A prize of yours?" Nicora asks and thumbs after the disappearing male. "And my point was if it comes by surprise, you won't get a chance to fight, you would just be dead ... then soon thereafter undead."

"That's just silly," the warrior notes, waving off the question about the man. "Even the Temple ambush didn't get us all. We're the Sisters of Conflict. There will always be conflict, and a need for us, so we will always be here. That's just uncommon sense."

"Not when the demon of Aztepa walks the land," Nicora remarks darkly. "Amena's puppet is near, and she seeks to turn this city into a new Necropolis. Outside of this temple, the only Yodhblakat I know of are those lead by the Slakash Barba and they only number a dozen or so."

While Nicora talks, the Yodh uses her hand to mimic a mouth yammering on. "You mean old Dippy-doo-da Diphath?" she comments. "That kinda fight would actually be fun, I think! Especially if there are zombies!" Ahead of them is what is probably the central shrine, with the altar partially hidden by mounds of 'loot' that appear to be mostly junk.

"Yes. Her. She walks these lands again," Nicora says and actually tries to tap into the draconic aura, "And ... continue to mock me and you might get to explain yourself to Sunala. Or worse. It will depend on my mood."

"You guys are always talking about death and destruction like they're something special or important," the Yodhblakat says, and sweeps some junk off of the altar with her arm. "Anyway, you want to see Her Awesomeness, you gotta give Her a reason to take your mind. So up you go onto the slab! If Blakat doesn't summon you, I get to sacrifice you. It's only polite after all!" The woman cackles madly after her little speech.

"You would find that a lot harder than you think, Yodhblakat. It has been tried before and I still bear the scar," Nicora warns and shows the Yodh the starburst scar between her breasts, just over her heart. She covers up soon thereafter and slides up onto the altar. Inward, she's preparing to use her shadow as a shield, if need be. Or flat kill this Yodh with it, if it comes to it.

"Okay, whatever," the warrior-woman says, then screws up her face in concentration. "Let's see.. I can never remember the ceremony. Uh.. there's the Holy Whatsit.. must be around here.." She begins rummaging around.

"Ah, here it is!" the Yodh crows, holding up a leather sap with a dingy wooden handle. "I'm pretty sure this is it. See, it's got some blood on it still," she says, holding the bludgeon over Nicora's nose.

And for the moment, Nicora settles back with her hands crossed over her chest. Though she's staring upward, she's focusing inward, readying the shadow for defense if need be, a rippling layer just beneath the surface of her skin. The bludgeon makes her blink though and she eyes. it. "If she hits me with that I will feed it to her," she thinks.

"Okay, it's.. uh.." the woman makes some random looking gestures, spins around three times, and recites, "Klaatu.. Blakat.. Nic.. toe? No.. no.. it's something like that.. ah screw it!" Indeed, the Holy Sap comes down right between Nicora's eyes.

Despite preparing for the blow, Nicora has to close her eyes.. and wait.. and wait.. but the blow never seems to land. When she does open them to see what's wrong.. a very different Eeee is looking down at her, upside down, with a very wide toothy smile and crazy eyes. "Boo!" Blakat says, then throws her head back and laughs like mad!

"You, dear Aunt, have very frustrating daughters," Nicora remarks rather dryly as she sits up on the alter and grins toothily right back. "Guess who?"

The Goddess of Conflict, plants herself right in Nicora's lap, and purses her lip as she stares into her eyes. "Hmmm.. ah! You're the Great Corrupter! Defiler of the Daughters! Thief of Faith! Or possibly just a Yodhsunala.. I bet I can guess how much you weigh though.."

"Wrong, wrong, wrong, and wrong," Nicora notes as she hugs Blakat, then licks the back of her neck. Why? Who knows? "I'm the Barsunala, in a very complex disguise," Nicora claims. "Your Nephew."

"Yes, I knew that right away!" Blakat claims, crossing her arms. "And you are the Great Defiler and Corrupter. You domesticated my Poison Women!"

"How is it my fault Roogi didn't keep her claim of owning me?" Nicora points out. "And you should be thanking me; they're at this very moment driving the Gallesians crazy that dare come near Draco's coast. They're in active conflict."

"It's not the same!" Blakat insists. "But you did take away Greenie-Green's favorite. That's something, I suppose, although I'm not sure the baby thing counts as a trophy."

It becomes apparent that they are no longer in the shrine. The altar they sit on is inside a cube-shaped room with stairs and platforms at every orientation, including upside-down and sideways and possibly another alignment that defies easy description.

"Now, as for why I am here. I seek your aid with a rather large problem at hand. The demon of Aztepa has decided to return. Yes, Dipthath lurks just outside the city. She plans to corrupt, then destroy this city, and remake it into a Necropolis. And that ... means killing your Daughters and enslaving you. "Can you imagine the boredom of being a slave to the undead? All they do is shuffle around and groan," Nicora tries to explain (and ignores the baby trophy comment). "They don't even make entertaining noises when you stab them."

"You don't stab the undead, you smack them with blunt stuff, so they pop like giant boils!" Blakat claims, and laughs again. "And you're going about it all wrong, you know. There are rules. You can't ask me for help. It doesn't work that way."

Nicora tsks and waggles her finger in front of Blakat's nose briefly. "The Goddesss of Chaos is telling me I have to follow rules?" she asks. "I'm disappointed."

"Since when do you have rules?" Nicora asks as she keeps her finger out of biting range.

"Always! I just change them every so often," Blakat claims. "But the unchanging one is you don't give to Blakat, and you don't ask of Blakat.. Unless of course, you ask the right way."

"You have to ask for rage in battle!" Blakat claims, grinning. "Or.. well, I'm not sure about this whole 'shrine maiden' thing. I mean.. you can't do stuff my Yodh do, because then you'd have to be a Yodh.."

And now Nicora laughs. "Oh, well, there is a Shrine Maiden part of myself, I guess you sense. She is supposed to represent all of the Goddesses and bear their marks in glory," she adds. "Or so the theory goes."

"But what would be my addition.. hmmm," the Goddess ponders, leaning back against Nicora now. "And I'm supposed to give you a challenge as well, if you want my blessing as the new Sabaoth. Oh, I know!" Blakat cackles again.

Nicora tries to tickle Blakat when she leans back. No reason. "And just what is the challenge?" she prompts.

"Why, to steal something for me, of course," the Kindly One coos. "Something precious to me. You can do that, can't you?"

"Steal from someone? Now I do know the rule is thar no one should steal from a Yodhblakat, correct?" Nicora asks. "And as for stealing, that isn't too difficult. I did use to be a pickpocket, after all!"

"Then you agree!" Blakat says. "Oh goodie, it'll be fun to see how you do. And for the Shrine Maiden.. hmmmm." Blakat looks at Nicora, then reaches up and touches her forehead, where she.. pulls out a metal tab? The goddess yanks down, unzipping Nicora to reveal Snowcora underneath, as if she were wearing Nicora like a cloak. "Ooo, pretty!"

Okay, so that surprises Nicora. The now Snowcora sits there and blinks repeatedly. "The tattoos and, well, when I have it, body jewelry was work done by the Eeee Mordecai," she explains, trying to sound not so weirded out by being unzipped. "He was pretty ... extensive."

"You've got nice boobs too," Blakat notes, as she squeezes them. "Ah yes, the Artist! I'll have to summon him, so he can place my mark on you. Won't that be fun?"

Nicora twitches at the sudden grab. "Er, actually, it usually hurts a lot when he 'does' things to me," she says a bit worriedly. "It'll be fun for him and you! Not so much for me."

"That still counts as fun!" Blakat claims, and pushes Snowcora back down onto the altar so she pull away the rest of the Nicora-suit. "Don't worry, I'll be sure to tie you up first!"

The sensation isn't quite like being skinned, but that's probably the best way to describe it, never the less. This leaves a very naked and tattooed human lying down on the altar. "That doesn't exactly comfort me," the human admits nervously, "But it is my duty to earn marks from all the Kindly ones, so ... well, the ropes better be tight." "I wish I could wake up right now!" the human thinks. "But this is a dream, so whatever happens here won't really happen, right?"

"Who said anything about rope?" Blakat asks, and sticks two fingers in her mouth and whistles (pretty superfluous for an Eeee to do, but symbolism matters). Something skitters out onto one of the upside-down balconies above: It looks like an Eeee head and wings grafted onto the body of a Grabbit. It has six long, hairy arms ending in tiny claw-like hands, and two 'regular' Eeee legs that keeps up against the body, using the hands to move around. It rubs its butt against the 'floor' of the balcony, and begins to 'descend' towards the altar on a thick strand of silk.

Okay, so Snowcora really, really, really, wants to scream when she sees this monster! And that it weaves webs! So either it will hold her or web her. Neither are particularly pleasant thoughts! "You didn't say anything about using your demon!" she ends up saying instead. "And it's .... gross, too!"

"Awwww, Grevey-Weavey is a snookey-wookey-wum-wums," Blakat claims in a girly voice. The monster drops down, gripping the sides of the altar as it holds itself over Snowcora. It's 'butt' dips down, and begins gluing the woman's left foot down to the stone. All the while, it sings in a childish voice, "They told me you had been to her, And mentioned me to him: She gave me a good character, But said I could not swim."

"Ewwww," Nicora complains and tries to keep her right foot out of butt-gluing range! She's also thankful at the moment that humans are close to deaf. It's voice is annoying enough in this body, as an Eeee it would be awful!

Blakat helps out by grabbing Snowcora's foot and holding it in place. She also joins in with the singing. "He sent them word I had not gone (We know it to be true): If she should push the matter on, What would become of you?" Gloop! The warm sticky glue pins the right foot down. At least the liquid silk isn't irritating.

Snowcora wishes her ears were covered by the goo! And maybe her eyes! At least she wouldn't have to see it or hear it! Of course that could be worse. "What in the world are they singing? It's nonsensical," Snowcora thinks. "But I guess that is the point!"

The Goddess holds down each of Snowcora's hands at her sides, and Greve weaves sticky mittens over them. "I gave her one, they gave him two, You gave us three or more; They all returned from him to you, Though they were mine before!" the pair choruses, before Greve spins around, its spinnerettes poised over Snowcora's face now.

"Ewwwww, grabbit butt!" is the only thing Snowcora thinks when she finds herself staring at a very unpleasant-looking organ at the end of that creature. Her eyes wince up and her head turns a bit to the side. "You have to be kidding," she complains.

Blakat pulls Snowcora's hair back, and holds her head still while Greve weaves a headband across her forward and anchors the ends to the altar to immobilize it. "If I or she should chance to be Involved in this affair, He trusts to you to set them free, Exactly as we were," the tormentors sing, and then the demonic Grabbit-Eeee hops off the altar outside of Snowcora's now limited view.

Snowcora tries to wiggle her fingers and test the strength of the goo on her hands. "Well, at least it wasn't her entire face that was gooed. "Its butt is not very attractive," she notes to Blakat. The human finds herself very thankful its out of her view.

"Can you move at all?" Blakat whispers into Snowcora's ear, as she runs a finger across the girl's cheek and hooks her lower lip.

"I could wiggle my hips some, but that's about it," Snowcora admits as that finger traces, then hooks onto her lower lip. "I don't like where this might be going," she thinks worriedly. Very, very, worriedly.

And poor Snowcora squeaks at that claim! True enough she can sort of arch her back and move her hips around, but that's about it!

"No, that will make her run out of breath and black out, and she must be awake for this!" Blakat says, and places a hand on Snowcora's belly, running the fingers down until they encounter the blue orb. "Now, to summon the Artist.. Ring the Bell for Service!" she cackles, and starts rubbing and pressing the orb until Snowcora is glowing with arousal.

"Eeeee!" goes Snowcora and she scrunches her eyes shut while shivering Any rubbing on that gem feels ... arousal is putting it mildly! It makes her entire reproductive system feel like it's almost vibrating and very, very, warm. It's also making her mind betray itself because the arousal comes with a desire for someone, the Eeee that literally made himself her boyfriend. So, in spite of the doom it may bring, she can't help but think of Mordecai and the exquisite pain and pleasure he has brought to her.

Her imagination is really good, because she's sure she can feel him now, inside and on top of her. His breath is warm against her face as he kisses each of her closed eyes.

And in a place of insanity ... Snowcora finds herself thinking "He feels really good inside!" "Hello ... master," she mutters in a scared (maybe defeated?) tone of voice. Slowly her eyes open to see where she is and he is.

Mordecai is smiling down at her, the rings and studs and scars of his face glinting. "Hello again," he says.. and then starts to get a little rough. Since this is Blakat's realm.. that's probably not much of a surprise. "I am feeling... inspired," he whispers, before biting into Snowcora's neck.

"I like the scars," Blakat notes, getting her face right in there next to Snowcora's. "Maybe I'll take him from you!" she teases the girl.

Snowcora's moment where she was about to protest is replaced by a surprised gasp when the Eeee gets .... rough. It's very hard to retort to Blakat, or comment much to Mordecai right now because her own body is rippling with Inala's gift of pleasure! "I ... belong to him," she force-admits in a gasp to Blakat when she manages to be able to form words. What she wants to ask is how he's inspired, but she can't manage something that complex to say right now. Her expression probably doesn't help either, a mix of pain and pleasure from the bite and from Mordecai's 'movement'.

Blakat dips her fingers at Snowcora's neck, gathering a bit of blood after Mordecai stops drinking. "I want you to close your eyes, my Canvas," the Eeee requests.

Snowcora eyes Mordecai nervously for a moment. The human also swallows, rippling her throat against Blakat's fingers. Even though she knows this is a bad idea, Snowcora's eyes close.

She can hear things being placed on the stone next to her head, and the disturbing giggle of the Greve. Mordecai kisses her eyelids again, which is followed by a sharp pain just below her left eye as the tattooing needle is brought to bear. Despite the gyrating of their lower bodies, Mordecai's hand never wavers or slips as the tattooing goes on.

Snowcora bites her lower lip! "Oh Gods he's tattooing my face, She thinks in horror! The movement of hiss body, though, helps in making her forget the burning pain that slowly spreads on the left side of her face. She tries to figure out from the shape of the 'burn' what it is ... if the distractions aren't too much!

It seems as if he's tattooing eye shadow onto her. It probably doesn't help that Blakat is playing with Snowcora's hair now, while she and the Greve keep up their silly song. "My notion was that you had been (Before she had this fit) An obstacle that came between Him, and ourselves, and it."

"Ow ow ow ow," Snowcora thinks as the work slowly goes on. Skin around eyes turns out is very sensitive! It's hard not to wince up and possibly jostle the needle. She manages that by focusing on her hip movement and the feeling inside her body. This has a helpful side effect of it makes ignoring the silly song a little easier. They really sing off-key.

Time crawls, so that it seems like forever. The tattoo covers the space between her eyelid and eyebrow as well, and there's even a line that runs a short ways from the inner corner of her eye nearly to the bridge of her nose. And then Mordecai takes a break, to focus on lovemaking, before starting on the other eye. Blakat whispers, her nose right up against Snowcora's ear, "Don't let him know she liked him best, For this must ever be A secret, kept from the rest, Between yourself and me."

Snowcora is thankful for the respite; lovemaking without a needle working make it easier to ignore that her left eye burns from the tattooing. The sounds she now makes betrays how much she does like the Eeee, as does how her body moves. The whisper in her ear makes her twitch. Suddenly, this song may have more meaning than something nonsensical...

The Greve and Blakat repeat the song - over and over and over and over again, until Mordecai is finally finished.. marked by him finishing below as well. "Awwww," he sighs, panting for breath. "You can open your eyes now.."

When his fountain is released, Snowcora makes the most undignified sound of satisfaction, as Inala's blessing makes sure that she feels good when a male finds satisfaction in her. It takes her a good minute before her eyes do open though, slowly and rather painfully, as the blur of pleasure fades from her mind.

Her are watering like mad, of course, and the salty tears don't do anything to sooth the tattooed skin around her eyes. But Mordecai licks them off, and his vampire saliva does soothe the pain a bit. "Move move move!" Blakat demands of him. "I wanna see!"

"Well, if that's it that's not so bad?" Snowcora thinks as she blinks away tear after tear from her watering eyes. Blakat's demands are ones she has too now. "I do too," she says softly. "What did you do to my face?"

"Made you more beautiful," Mordecai notes, before leaning out of the way so Blakat's less lovely face fills Snowcora's vision. "Oh wow! That's neat! I should make all of the Yodh do this!"

"If Blakat likes this, it's ... not necessarily good," Snowcora realizes worriedly. She bites her lip again as she looks back into Blakat's face.

The goddess covers her face with her hands, then pulls them away shouting, "Peek-a-boo!" Only it's not her face anymore, it's Snowcora's (albeit with a maniacal grin). At first, it looks like she's wearing red eye makeup, but a second later it clicks: Blakat's bloody two-bladed dagger symbol surrounds each eye. The shorter blade shadows beneath, while the longer arches over. The stem-like handles form lines on the side of her nose. There's also a streak of red hair over her right ear, mirroring the green streak on the other side.

Snowcora blinks a few times. "That looks ... actually good," she admits, probably sounding more surprised than she meant to. "If that's all, that's not so bad," she thinks again. "I like it."

"And that's not all," Blakat claims, reverting to her normal face. "As Shrine Maiden, you must channel some aspect of my power. And I have chosen conflict!"

"Conflict? As lust between others for her?" Snowcora wonders, and worries. "I ... understand," she finally agrees to Blakat. Best thing to do, probably.

"Yes! Inala lets you instill lust, but I will let you instill lust such that you will be fought over!" Blakat crows, then laughs.

"Yes, that doesn't surprise me..." Snowcora thinks. Still, she feels she's probably getting off light. "Thank you," she says instead to Blakat, then Mordecai.

"Ah! Then you won't mind if I borrow this man for a bit," Blakat notes, and throws an arm around Mordecai, causing him to squeak before she hauls him off of Snowcora and slings him over shoulder.

"But, but," Snowcora complains as Mordecai is suddenly hauled off! "What about me?"

"Don't worry," the Greve chitters, and climbs up onto the altar with Snowcora. "I'm still here!"

"You have to be kidding," Snowcora says in horror. "You don't even look built to ... do more than web me up."

"Good guess!" the demon says, and begins to cocoon the Shrine Maiden from the feet up.. all the while making sounds (and faces) of ecstasy.

"If you do that Mordecai can't make love to me again!" Snowcora complains as she's slowly entombed! This she does try to struggle against as much as she can squirm on the altar! "Why are you doing this?!"

"Because it feels good!" the creature cackles as it weaves across Snowcora's torso. "You should try to struggle more. It excites me!"

Snowcora does struggle more. Quite a bit, for that matter! She wants ot be free .. and have her lover back!

"Yes, that's it!" the Greve purrs, binding the woman so that only her head is uncovered now. The ugly 'fingers' of its spinners caress Snowcora's lips, causing her to choke and cough!

And Snowcora coughs ... then bites at the spinners! She's not going to give up without a fight. "Foul monster," she thinks.

"Ooooo! Bite bite bite!" the Greve screams, and there's a squirt of silk and causes Snowcora to really gag and convulse. So hard that she jerks upright and nearly doubles over. She's back in the shrine, atop the altar and surrounded by piles of junk.. but still naked and still Snowcora! There's no sign of the Yodhblakat that led her in.

Snowcora sits on the edge of the altar and coughs repeatedly while she wipes at her naked body as if pushing away webbing that isn't there. It's several minutes before she's calm enough to even notice the paper. So, while reaching for it, she reaches up with her left hand and gingerly touches the skin around her eye to see if it is tender.

The skin yelps at the touch, still tender but at least not bleeding. There's a little note written on the paper, in red ink (or at least, hopefully ink): Your mission, should you choose to accept it - and you had better! - is to steal the Blessed of Blakat from the Coalition Tower and return her to the Temple. This message will self destruct in five bites, after you swallow it. I dare you to! Love, Blakat.

Snowcora skews up her face. That challenge doesn't surprise her at all, actually. And well, she does chew up the note, then swallow it. As a human she can usually eat at least.

"Hey, were'd the other naked chick go?" demands a familiar voice. "The one with the snake up her butt?" It's the Yodhblakat of course, who probably stripped Nicora of everything she had.

"I'm the same person. I can shapeshift. Where are my things?" Snowcora asks as she tries to cover herself up for some privacy.

"Your things?" the priestess asks, looking insulted. "They belong to Blakat now, unless you think you can take them from me."

"You don't even have fur," the Yodh claims, stepping closer. "What're you going to do, look daggers at me?" she laughs.

Nicora smiles sweetly and eyes the Yodhblakat ... and tries to tap into Inala's lust. Yes, she's going to try to seduce the Yodhblakat...

There's still a tingle in Snowcora's loins: she may not be in the Temple of Inala, but she can sense the Barinala nearby.

Snowcora even rubs the spot where the orb normally rests just before extending her foot and running it along the Yodhblakat's leg. "I am the Maiden of Blakat, you know," she practically purrs. "Steal from me and you steal from Her..."

"The.. what?" the warrior asks in confusion. The orb is still there, and the effect of rubbing it causes her Flower (and tendrils) to glow light blue. This also summons the Barinala - all eight of them. Lean, pretty men begin to appear at the entrances to the shrine.

"Hello boys," Snowcora purrs at the Barinala's and bats her eyes at them. "This mean Yodhblakat took my stuff. Will you get it back for me?"

Two of the men vanish, while the others advance on the Yodhblakat, who is staring down at the glowing tattoos on Snowcora, mesmerized.

Snowcora lifts her leg, spreading and showing off the tattoo. "Behold the power of seduction, lust, and sex," she murmurs to the Yodhblakat. "Good boys get to visit my Altar. Good girls, too..."

"Oh," the priestess says, as she starts to reach for Snowcora - only to have her arms grasped by two of the Barinala, who begin stripping her out of her armor. The other four, however, sit next to either side of Snowcora on the altar and at her feet, and begins kissing and stroking her.

"Now this isn't so bad," Snowcora muses, smiling smugly. "Good boys," she tells the Barinala, and even pets the ones next to them, then leans side to side to kiss each of their cheeks.

The four men pick Snowcora up, and carry her back into the maze. The come to a room that looks out of place: it has statues and tapestries and is clean and has a really big bed - all things looted from the Temple of Inala (along with the men themselves). Snowcora learns it's a very soft zolk-covered bed as well, as the men attend to her. And to the other other Yodhblakat that they bring in a moment later. And a second one after that, until the bed becomes very crowded indeed.

Well, this is a nice distraction from her sore face! So many handsome Eeee, and she does .. and lets her enjoy them. Skin, licking, feeling, everything she can think of she does, and allows them to do. She even 'tends' to A Yodhblakat or two as well. "Mordecai would be proud of me," she thinks in the bliss of the moment. And since they're white, they remind her much of that lovely Albino Eeee. Well, except they do lack his noticeable studding in certain areas. Still, they're very good and thinking of her 'boyfriend' only makes her more creative!

Eventually things calm down, and Snowcora feels her entire body tingling. Her skins begins to darken and sprout fur, and her bones and muscles shift around, stretch, contract and warp. It feels nice, unrushed and relaxing, somehow. Until Nicora's tail bites her on the butt.

"Ow!" Nicora complains as she reaches back to dislodge her tail from her butt. "I like you, but you need to behave," she tells it as she tries to slowly extract herself from the bed of worn-out Eeee.

Near the entry is a fancy looking chair, and on that are Nicora's folded belongings.

Nicora feels her face to see if it feels tender in this form too ... as well as checks to see if there is any, well, orb sticking from her lower stomach as she walks over to gather her clothing and get dressed.

There's.. something there, under the fur. It feels a bit more well-defined now, but is still under skin. Her face does not feel sore in this form.. but without a good mirror, light and possibly a razor there's no way to tell if the tattoos are there.

Nicora is careful to not rub that bump in her slower stomach too much, lest she cause more problems. Instead, she dresses and double-checks her belongings. "So I have to steal the child I met long ago. Great," she thinks while dressing.

At least it will give her something to take her mind off of meeting Thath while she's there, probably. She also has a strange urge to take a trophy from the room.

And oddly, Nicora decides to indulge that urge. So she looks about for something easy to carry, possibly fun, and neat. Or maybe something she can wear...

There are flimsy, transparent looking pieces of clothing (almost certainly belonging to the Barinala), and even makeup at a table with a nice mirror. And buckets of bangles: bells and clips and combs and beads and broaches and necklaces - all given as tribute to the Temple of Inala, or as gifts to particular Yodh among them. One box is full of rings, including a few using gold wire. There's even a few wire face-masks, studded with gems and colored chitin.

Nicora takes several gold wire rings so she can give them to Tulani if she behaves. For herself ... she actually picks up one of the wire face masks with gems and chitin. It's interesting, wearable, and valuable. She even tries the mask on to see if it fits.

In the mirror, the mask really stands out against the dark fur of her face, and the shiny bits of marble and silver give her visible eyebrows. The half-mask covers her cheeks and rests on her nose, leaving her muzzle free, and the long Creen feathers that fan over the brow make it seem a bit gaudy. Which means a dragon would probably love it.

"I love it," Nicora says as she admires herself in the mirror. Wonderful trophy score! She;s all grins and giggles now. Sometimes little scary ones that are very similar to a Yodhblakat. "I am beautiful."

One of the Yodhblakat in the pile (possibly the big one) passes gas loudly and may be stirring.

"And it is time to go," Nicora decides when one of the Yodhblakat stirs. "Maybe I'll come back some time for some more fun," she murmurs towards the pile, then blows them all a kiss. After that, the Eeee knows it's time to run, and run she does for the exit!

Nobody stops her on the way out (but there's not telling how many Yodh there are in the Temple - maybe one for each bizarre addition?) and soon she's past the forest of pikes and free to fly again.

Once outside, Nicora gets some distance between herself and the temple before taking to wing and flying back towards Mount Inala. She's glad that is over with and came out more or less unscathed. It went far better than she expected!

Tulani is out and waiting for her at the Temple. "You came back in one piece!" she says with relief. "I was a lot more worried about Blakat than Gorphat. Did she give you her blessing for the Sabaoth thing?"

"It went far better than I expected it to. And sort of. I had to agree to steal someone from the Tower," Nicora remarks worriedly. "So that's something I have to work out. I still have to figure out how to get in. Maybe going as a Savanite messenger..." The Eeee shrugs a bit. "And I brought you a present if you've been good."

"A present?" Tulani asks, perking up. "And do you need my help with the Tower? Mave has hundred of costumes down in that vault. I dressed up as a princess earlier!"

"Depends on how I go. I could go as your savanite servant, perhaps. You could be a visitor perhaps considering investment in the city. If the costumes make you seem wealthy, that is," Nicora says. "Now close your eyes and hold out your hand."

Tulani gives Nicora a suspicious look at first, but then holds out her hand closes her eyes. "This better not be something gross.." she warns.

It's a pity Nicora doesn't have anything slimy, or grabbit silk ... but no. She slips two gold-wire rings onto two of Tulani's fingers instead. "So you won't keep lusting after mine," Nicora claims. "And I really need to put mine back in again. It feels so weird and wrong to be without them for any length of time now."

The Sphynx cooos at the rings, and then pulls Nicora into a lung-collapsing hug. "Thanks! I don't even care that they're probably stolen!" she gushes.

And poor Nicora squeaks as she's squished! "You're welcome," she wheezes out in a gasp. "How is Mave doing down below? We should head down."

"She's been digging up weird stuff," Tulani says after releasing the bat and heading back into the Temple.

Nicora walks along with Tulani. "Have you ventured out in the city yet? Gotten drunk yet?" the Eeee asks as they go.

"It's hard for me to get drunk unless I go to a Fnerf or Vartan bar," Tulani notes. "I've been hitting a few of the middle-tier ones; lots of Nagas and Eeees. Listening."

"Learn anything interesting while listening? Who do most of the people seem to favor?" Nicora asks as she walks, hands stuffed into her robe.

"Well.. the don't favor anyone," Tulani claims. "More about who they're worried about. The noble houses have been in decline ever since the High Princess was around, and the Boomer conveniently took out the ones that were the most influential. But a few of the remaining ones have been making noises, and the merchant houses that have been replacing the nobles aren't sure if there is anything real behind it or if it's just bluster to try and stay relevant."

"Not very helpful for me to know if Thath is favored at all or not. I really don't want to end up the ruler of this city. I would be terrible," Nicora remarks a bit grimly. "I guess I'll need to go out and listen myself. I'll just have to go in disguise. No one talks to a Yodhsunala, or around them much."

"Hmm, I sense an excuse to bring out the rat again," Tulani notes, as she presses the sequence on the wall to open the secret door.

"I make a good rat, don't you think? I could really be a professional tail," Nicora teases and elbows Tulani lightly.

At the bottom of the long stairs, the 'bunker' is a bit more livable now. There's a stove for cooking, fresh supplies, a clothesline with drying laundry and even a bath (that doubles as the laundry tub and could also be used to make a lot of soup). Mave has her work area covered with manuscripts and old etchings and odd bits of jewelry (or small artifacts).

And once there Nicora sheds her robe and goes to collect her own jewelry stash and re-insert all of them, including her earrings. "Hello Mave," she says in passing, "Blakat went well. I even recovered a few items from your former temple." she taps the mask she carries as an example.

"Good," Mave says. "If you have her support, then Zakarro is likely to go along with less effort."

"I worry about Zakaro. I know little about her save for the one crazy Yodh I met ... and, er, killed," Nicora admits as she finishes with her jewelry, chain and lock included. Soon she is dressing back in her robes. "What has gone on here in my absense?"

"Tulani has been playing dress-up while I continue my research," Mave notes. "I will need some ingredients fetched soon, I believe."

"And you want me to fetch them? What are you making and what do you need me to get you?" Nicora asks.

"Do you want to play dress-up with me then?" Tulani asks Nicora. "We can do up eachother's hair too!"

The Sphynx grins and claps her hands together. "To the racks then! We will craft a cunning disguise or two.."

"After Mave tells me what she's making and what I need to get her," Nicora says and holds up her hand.

"I am not making anything yet," Mave notes. "So I do not have a list of ingredients needed for it at this moment."

"Okay. Well, if you need anything from me, just let me know," Nicora says as she goes to 'dress up' with Tulani. "Any particular body requests for me?" she asks the sphynx.

"You can still do that male Savanite from the spa, right?" Tulani asks. "I wonder if golden fur has an effect on dragons.."

"You want me to pretend to be a servant, then? Do they have any good collars?" Nicora teases as she slots the dagger she carries once more into her right hand.

"Then you had best pick something out for a male sanavite," Nicora remarks with a wry grin. "Kaira, I'm going to try and shift myself into the savanite, okay? Can you please keep watch and help if it goes bad?"

"The greater the difference between start and finish, the greater the effort required," Kaira notes. "So, my suggestion is to first try to shift to the female cheetah form, and then from that to the male."

"/Okay, I'll try that. Thanks for the suggestion," Nicora thinks. "Once we reach the costumes, you pick out something you would like on a savanite," she tells Tulani, "And I'll shift..."

Tulani finds a rack of collars, and picks one out: white leather with a line of shiny glass beads around it. "This should be enough, right?" she asks.

"Completely up to you," Nicora says with a grin as she sheds her clothing for the forth time today and kneels down. She closes her eyes and wills the shadow out; which comes as an oozing sensation from all of her pores as inky 'slime coats over her body. Once she is in limbo, the shaping begins by overlaying the female savanite 'image' onto how she sees her own body. Areas of the most change come ... uncomfortably. Wings collapsing into her back is a bit unpleasant, the elongation and altering of her legs hurts ... and her throat ... it feels so tight and burning as her vocal chords shift, cutting off her ability to speak. She stops here and relaxes the shadow to 'test' how well she has shifted herself...

Nicora's feet are much longer now, her tail heavier, her hair.. browner. Tulani says, "You need to do it without going all black first. I want to see what you look like as an Eeee covered in gold with black spots.."

Nicora would say she isn't sure she can, but, well, the only sound she can make right now is a bark. Instead of covering herself in shadow this time she tries to .. just shift ... the rest of the way. From female to male ... it's concentration in collapsing her chest and, well, virtually turning he reproductive system inside out... Hopefully this doesn't go bad.

It's hard to concentrate on the actual changes, right up until things get to the 'half-way' point - then there's a sort of 'collapse' into the final form, since there wasn't as much to change.

The newly made savanite lets out an odd sound that's a cross between a bark and a release of his breath when he drops down to his knees in front of Tulani. "Hard" he signs at her as he rests there for a moment.

"Here, this'll help," Tulani says.. and puts the collar on him. "Once you've got your breath, you can help undress and dress me. Can I get a purr?"

It's another minute before the savanite feels strong enough to get to his feet. Still, he can purr and he does exactly that. It's about the only useful thing his vocal chords will do in this body. Once he's strong enough and up, he slides around Tulani, wraps his arms around her, and starts to slowly undress her. His fingers are light, but very 'touchy' as he goes. And with that short fur on his thin body, the jewelry is still visible on him, too. "Seems she does like the idea of me going as her servant to the Tower, perhaps. Such a bad sphynx, he thinks to himself. "No wonder I like her..."