After dealing with Blakat and a beard, Nicora is surprised to find herself in this place instead of back in her bed. Even more surprising is that she's.. Nicora. Just as Melusine made her: black fur and hair with silver eyes. All of her jewelry is in place.. although it seems more shiny, as if everything had been turned to precious metals and gems. Even the 'chastity chain' is in place, although the lock is in the shape of the 'magic circle' - the crossed crescent rune of Zakaro.
"I'm so pleased you could join me!" the rune-covered (and somewhat pudgy) Goddess of Sorcery declares from across the table which she and Nicora are seated at. It's hard to see the Sister through the piles of food, some of it familiar but much of it exotic (or likely wholly imaginary). "Dig in! You can eat anything here. It's one of the few gluttonies you don't get to indulge in out in the mortal realm, after all. And you do indulge in a few, after all."
Nicora rubs her fore head and groans. "Now the really crazy one? I don't need more crazy," she thinks, "Why me?" And so, she asks that, "Why am I here? And naked?" Also since she is normally a vampire, she's a bit reserved when selecting foods; she goes for the boring-looking ones like a fruit pie slice.
The pie, of course, has bugs in it, but that's just Babel for you. "Naked is best," Zakaro claims, as she is also always naked, along with her Yodh, save for the arcane markings. "And since you're going to be with my precious Ephasto, I thought we should spend some time together! Bond and such. Decide on what fantasy you would like when copulating with my demon. Discussing ancient evil rites and rituals, maybe.."
Nicora pokes at the odd rune-chain holding her rings together. "Why is naked best ... wait, what? Fantasy? Who said I wanted any sort of fantasy?" she has to ask, "And what ancient evil rites?" Nicora, as usual, looks rather confused right about now.
"There are so many ancient evil rites," Zakaro notes, rolling her eyes. "I mean.. have you ever heard of an ancient rite that wasn't evil? At least, in execution? And I don't want my Ephy just showing up and.. bouncing.. on some sticky pale Yodhgorphat. There needs to be a story! Romance! Long flowing hair! Ninjas! And explosions! That is, explosions that are not Ephy! He could be the dashing hero. He's always wanted to be dashing, you see."
Nicora rubs her forehead again. "I have no idea how that would possibly happen," she has to admit. "But it sounds like you have some sort of idea."
Zakaro is suddenly at Nicora's side. "Picture this!" the goddess says, spreading her hands out and forming her fingers into something like the corners of a frame. "You are lost in the forbidding, haunted forest. The mutant grok-o-diles are circling, waiting to pounce! But then, suddenly, a dark figure swings in on a vine.. or a snake or something.. landing in the clearing with his fist to the ground and kneeling on one leg, muscles flexing and straining... he draws his giant sword, and challenges the monsters with his battle cry of.."
"Eeep?" Ephasto appears. He looks like an emaciated Eeee with a too-small skull, too-long neck, and too-googly eyes that seem to move independently of each other. He's bald from the shoulders up, his wings are stunted, and his belly is horribly distended.. which at least covers whatever he might have for genitals.
Nicora bites her lip. Hard. Very hard. It's to keep her from breaking into a fit of giggles. Doing that right now is likely not a good idea at all. "Ah, yes, maybe that would work. I'm not exactly versed on romance novels," she claims quickly. She's also suddenly grateful with the thought Nicora is blind and at least doesn't have to see this one during the nasty act. Even Nicora isn't that gut-distended!
"You forgot your make-up," Zakaro claims, and twiddles her fingers in the air. It looks like she's grabbing and pulling at something, but then Ephasto's body starts to distort and change in sync with the movements.. which looks horrific, since Zakaro only works on one part of him at a time. His head is remolded into something heroically handsome (and thus, not very realistic) with a square jaw, bedroom eyes and a long flowing mane of blond hair. All atop the ridiculous body, until Zakaro starts to work on that, pulling, inflating and sculpting. A huge broad chest.. but still spindly limbs and bloated belly. Then one muscular left arm. A right leg. The other arm, the last leg, the wings.. the stomach is deflated, flattened and carved up into an impossible six-pack. Finally, the goddess works between the demon's legs.. and that is really disturbing to watch. Ephy becomes incredibly well endowed, if one could unsee the process that got him there.
Poor Nicora covers her face, though she ends up peeking out between two splayed fingers. "I will never, ever, ever, be able to forget what I just saw," she thinks dismally. Evne if he's handsome now and hung like a rhain ... she knows what he really is and that sort of image you can never get out of your head. "Yes, well, he does look better now, I ... suppose," she has to admit. "But did I really have to see that?"
"What?" Zakaro asks. "Well... if you hadn't, then when your turn came it would come as a terrible shock wouldn't it?" Then the Goddess turns her attention to Nicora, looking her up and down with a critical eye.
Nicora starts to backpedal! "What are you talking about?!" she says, aghast and trying to cover herself up!
"Well, you just don't go with Ephy's new look properly," Zakaro notes. "You look too... real." She spreads out her fingers and cocks her head to the side. "And that color scheme.. far too dark.."
"I look perfectly fine!" Nicora squeaks rather high pitched.
"Yes, but you should look better," Zakaro claims. Somehow, a beret has appeared on her head. "Only the best for my Ephy! Now.. a bit blonder.." She moves her fingers as if turning invisible dials, and Nicora's fur begins to lighten and become more.. golden.
"Oh Gods I'm going to look like Inala!," poor Nicora thinks as she feels all over her body. IT would figure making her change colors would make her itch! Argh! "Why don't you ask him what he likes?" she suggests quickly.
"Ephy?" Zakaro asks, glancing to her pet. The heroic figure goes. "Eeeeep. Eeeeep! Eepeep." "Ah, yes, of course!" Zakaro says, and begins pinching and spreading her fingers. Nicora's waist shrinks, while her hips spread. She's stretched out taller, and her butt and breasts.. and lips inflate. There's no way any Eeee was ever this voluptuous and skinny at the same time.
Nicora thinks one word. "ARGH!" It is very descriptive of what is going on right now and how she probably looks! She looks ridiculous! She feels like she could use her lips as a raft! "I did not agree to this!" she says.
And finally, her hair grows until it reaches past her knees, although since it's always blowing in some unfelt breeze it's hard to tell. At least it keeps it out of her eyes.
"Well, use that," Zakaro suggests. "It will make your struggling more dramatic as you are all trussed up and dangling over the pit of.. hmmm. What's a good dramatic thing to be dangling over.."
"I do not need to be dangling over anything!" Nicora claims. She even stamps her foot!
The ground cracks from the stamp, and starts to collapse under Nicora. Sickly purple vines rise up from the cracks and try to wrap around her!
"Fine, no pit," Zakaro says, as the monster plant continues to sprout.
"Argh!" Nicora vocalizes this time! "You are insane. INSANE," she insists. As long as the plant monster doesn't violate her, well, at least it isn't the worst it could be.
The vines carry Nicora skyward, thickening and branching. Buds appear, then bloom into red flowers. Red flowers with thorny maws at the center of the petals.
Nicora's eyes go wide! "I do not need to be eaten by a Boschian plant demon!" she squeaks loudly. She's thrashing about too as she tries to escape. "And good Gods I will never look at a woman with big breasts again, these are annoying!" she thinks as her anatomy is jiggling all over the place.
Of course, the bountiful bouncing balls are the only part that isn't wrapped up in vines. There's a cry of "Eeeeeeeep!" and then Ephasto lands on the stalk, and starts hacking away with his sword! As if in time with Nicora's bobbling, he's doing a lot of dangle-whipping.
"I am so going to get you for this, Zakaro!" Nicora squeals as she's whipped about in this mockery of a rescue! "This is revenge isn't it, for Sylvania?!!?" "And why couldn't she give that birdbrain a better ... brain? He has no idea what he is doing!" she thinks.
Ephasto resorts to pulling vines away from Nicora and biting through some with his teeth. When she's pulled free.. well, her arms and feet are still bound, as she's slung over the hero's shoulder. He doesn't fly, but leaps to the ground (landing with a thud), and uses his sword to slice through the vines at the root! "Timbeeeeep!" he cries.
"You could have finished untying me!" Nicora complains loudly. She also squirms a bit. This is ridiculous!
The hero carries Nicora over to the table, and sits her down on a platter of donuts. Then dips her back and kisses her! His tongue is all over the place too, since he's never done this before.
Nicora goes mrglepth! "Gah, it's like kissing one of the worm children!" she thinks. This is anything but romantic.
Zakaro hops around gleefully. "Almost perfect!" she crows. "Now tell him how grateful you are and is there some way you can show your appreciation.. and compliment him on his strength and bravery too!"
Nicora's face twitches. "You're so ... strong and manly," she forces out through a rather forced smile. "And just so ... brave." Bow are her ears twitching right now. "Is there any way I can repay you?"
Ephasto wiggles his eyebrows, and goes, "Eeeeeeeep.." very suggestively. He also squeezes one of Nicora's oversized breasts, not-so-suggestively. It doesn't help that one of his eyes starts to drift a bit lazily.
"This is ... ugh. Even the chibix was more romantic," Nicora has to think to herself. "Well, I'm all tied up ... so I couldn't really stop you. But .. oh look! I'm wearing chastity! Maybe another day?" she suggests.
"Eeep?" Ephasto asks, looking confused. Zakaro puts her palm to her face. "Oh right.. need to win the key from.. uh.. the Villain!"
Nicora is saved! That stupid chain has finally done her some good! Whoohoo! She at least doesn't vocalize that.
Ephasto frees Nicora from her bondage, and hugs her again. "Villeep?" he asks.
Nicora hugs Ephasto a bit consolingly. She has no idea who the villain would be, thankfully! "Well, it was worth a try?" she suggests to Zakaro.
"Okay, hmm.. her evil father of course!" Zakaro says, raising a fist. "Yesss.. he wants her to marry some evil sorcerer, who really just wants to use her to summon up.. a succubus! Because he's a pervert!"
"Perveep!" Ephasto says, cursingly, and waves his sword overhead.
Nicora ... rubs her poor forehead. "And where is this evil person?" she has to ask.
"They'll be in the sorcerer's fortress of course, guarded by.. debased demonic henchmen!" Zakaro gushes. "And death traps! And rapey-tentacle-things! And dancing girls! Oh, and the ninjas. Got to have ninjas. A million ninjas!"
"Well! He'll be busy for a long time, then. So ... I can go, right?" Nicora asks hopefully.
"You have to go with him though, otherwise how can you be captured and held hostage during the final battle?" Zakaro asks, almost whining. "You went on an adventure with Blakat! And got to play with Barada! And did who knows what with Inala! Rephath is too serious to be any fun.. and Gorphat is just icky.. But, I suppose I can just open the lock now and you can do it in the donuts."
Nicora rubs over her face. "That would probably be much simpler, yes. And he did prove himself," she relents, sighing.
Zakaro snaps her fingers, and the lock and chain vanish. Ephasto is overjoyed, and presses Nicora back into the bed of baked (and fried) goods.
Nicora squeaks! "Well, at least with him it should be over quick," she thinks, grateful for small mercies. "Oh take me, you studly hero, you," she says in a deadpan sort of voice.
The barbarian is all groping and squeezing and kissing.. but doesn't seem to know how to progress beyond that. "Oh, right.. turned of his .. uh.. inflation ability," Zakaro notes, and snaps her fingers again. Ephasto.. inflates, after a fashion.
Nicora decides it is better she doesn't ask why Zakaro did that. In fact, she decides it's best if she just help. So, she tries to help guide the over-endowed Eeee into her body. Hopefully it won't hurt! She's somewhat normal now!
It's.. an awkward fit. But he does fit! And at the same time, feels.. too small? There's an overlap between the fantasy and what's going on in Nicora's bedroom at the Temple, certainly. And as Ephasto figures out what to do from there, there's more of a double-vision effect. And boy, having eight small breasts is not as bad as two big ones that slosh all over the place as the barbarian grunts and.. eeps.
"Yes, yes! Go, go, GO!" Zakaro cheers!
Even in the flashes of horrib-vision, Ephasto still makes the same goofy faces as he does in Zakaro's realm. They're just less googly with the barbarian hero version. And as much as Nicora here jiggles, Ephasto there jiggles.
And what does poor Nicora do. Giggle. A lot. This is so utterly ridiculous (or is that udderly?) that it comes across as extremely funny. It also actually makes it somewhat enjoyable at least. Even if there is no major physical pleasure (thanks to Gorphat), she's getting some amusement value from it all. And she's even encouraging the strange 'hero'.
The only thing really different, is that Nicora isn't experiencing the worm-related issues in the fantasy version. When the barbarian reaches his climax.. he explodes inside of her! The Eep-Demon in the physical world explodes outside of her though, causing the horribs and chibix to scatter, cutting off Nicora's vision.
Nicora is grateful she isn't having any worm issues for once! Even though she is sadly used to some of it now. The explosion part feels passingly good, and that is something as well! And she doesn't even have to see the actual version of it all, so hey, victory is hers!
As Ephasto fall over onto the floor, Zakaro appears at Nicora's side, holding one of her hands and pressing a stethoscope to her belly. "Now for the exciting part!" she says with glee.
"Uh, the exciting part?" Nicora has to ask. There is to be an exciting part here?
"The birth of course!" Zakaro coos. Even now, Nicora's impossibly flat romance-heroine belly is starting to expand.
"Here? Don't I need to be awake out there to manage this?! I might get hurt!" Nicora says, worried. Possibly even scared! She didn't want to swell up again, not when she cannot see her actual body!
"But you are awake!" Zakaro says cheefully. "Once your horribs return you'll be able to see yourself. Lucky: you get to give birth twice at the same time!"
"That does not make it any better!" Nicora squeaks! What if it's an egg this time? Ephasto is a bird thing after all! Ouch!
"The important thing is that the event is spread between here and there," Zakaro says, and Nicora continues to bulge.. or is she inflating? "You wouldn't want it all happening one place, trust me!"
"Ow, ow, ow, ow," Nicora complains when the pain hits. "What exactly is going to happen? Why can't it all happen in one place?" Of course then she has a horrible thought. Is she going to explode?!
"Because you're going to explode!" Zakaro confirms cheerily. "Here. So you don't explode there! It's sympathetic bilocation, you see."
Nicora breasts start to inflate, as if infected by the belly.
"You have got to be kidding me! Why?!?!?" Nicora squeals. Okay, this is not funny anymore! Now it is plain freaky! She is not some airship bag! No matter what she looks like.
"Well.. because of the Eepness Of It All," Zakaro says. "Your 'children' take on qualities from their demon-daddies. Ephasto's quality is to explode when stressed. Childbirth can be very stressful. So as long as your primary awareness stays here then the explosion will also take place here where it can't hurt anything. See, I'm clever!"
"You're a looney," Nicora deadpans between clenched teeth. "Ow, ow, ow," she whines now. This is not comfortable. At all. She'll never want to go near a balloon again.
Next to inflate is the butt.. and at this point Nicora is feeling light.. literally. She's starting to lift up off the table. If not for her booballoons balancing out the buttaloons, she'd probably be turned head-down.
"/I will never tell anyone about this. Ever. /EVER/," Nicora thinks as she starts to float about. She is not some Eeee parade float! This is ... oooo ... well, at least it is the last time.
"So, have the other demons mentioned having more kids yet?" Zakaro has to ask, holding onto Nicora's tail like a string to keep her from floating away completely. In the waking world, one of the horribs has ventured back into the bedchamber. At least there aren't any signs of exploded Ephasto anymore. But Nicora does look pretty distended and dilated. And.. well, the usual ooze is spilling out, but it's also bubbly. Some of the slime bubbles break free and float into the air.
"Thank Gods, no! No more kids," Nicora says, even though she may end up just squirting out more fungi-kids. Then when she has to see what is really happening .... ewww. She now feels nauseous! Great, just great. And her real body looks like she could shive a melon up her ... and it wouldn't even hurt!
Now Nicora's cheeks are starting to inflate, impossible as that seems since her mouth can still open and close. Her hands and feet join in, fingers turning into little sausages. "Ooo, I think I see it!" Zakaro declares, and Nicora does feel like something is trying to wiggle out of her. And she can see it too, since her skin is stretched to transparency at this point. It looks like.. a balloon-animal-eep.
"This is not funny! Not at all!" Nicora squeaks, feeling utterly ridiculous right now. She's going to explode. And worse ... she's going to look stupid while exploding! Life is not fair.
There's a long, drawn out farting sound as the balloon-baby works its way along. And gets stuck! The flashes of waking-Nicora show tentacles emerging from the bubbling goo now. And then there's an intense pressure..
Nicora explodes! It's almost a relief. When vision returns, she's back in her chambers, looking through horrib eyes again..
"Oh Gods, oh Gods ... I think I'm going to ... "/ Nicora thinks, then is back in her chambers! Blind, but at least not huge. "Oh, it's over," she burbles and coughs. Then she has to /feel/ her own body to just be sure she's all there!
It's there, and one of the goo-bubbles hits her nose and pops. The horrib can see several still drifting around, and it looks like someone went nuts with a bar of green soap between her legs, which are covered in suds. Of course, that's really just background to the child. It floats over her. Instead of five wings, it has five gas bladders that pulsate and glow. The tentacles are finer, longer and studded with more bladders, with googly-looking eyes near the tips. But all across the body the nearly transparent creature is lit up by zipping patterns of light.
This surprises Nicora. The child is actually pretty in a disturbing way. "You look better than your parents," she ends up burbling. She even reaches out to try and touch the critter before someone comes to claim it!
The little tendrils are like feathers in their softness. And they wave about languidly, as if underwater and being stirred by currents.
Nicora feels her ... sliminess, and thinks back to Magog. This causes her to heave a few times. She tries to shake that off and focus on the child. "Well, at least you seem to be okay," she burbles at the critter, then actually tries to guide it down to her in case it wants to nurse. She has sore teats to spare.
The tentacles may be slim, but they can expand. Once latched on, the double in thickness, and glow green as the milk flows up them. The milk glows through the body wall as well as it spreads out amid the bizarre translucent organs.
And Nicora sighs. It feels so nice to releave some of that pent up pressure. Her chest always feels so ... bloated. While she lets the creature nurse, she takes a moment to check on her other 'child', the queen she is incubating. She even tries to use the shadow to check its development.
It seems.. bigger. Or at least more complex now. There's definitely a heartbeat, and some small motion.
Nicora also checks how ... integrated it is into her own body, to try and guess if it will cause much damage when it is born.
Surprisingly.. there may be less connective tissue in place now. The larva may be starting to 'consume' its placenta-analog.
That is hopefully good news. She relaxes that focus and returns it to her present situation. "That is it, Mother. All demons have their children now," she thinks, "I have endured the trial."
The new offspring burps, and withdraws its tentacles from Nicora. It's got a healthy green glow now, and the skin around the two man orifices seems to be hardening a bit, while also expanding into bell shapes. There's a 'frrrt' followed by a brief burst of flame, which propels the creature across the room. More flaming fart bursts follow, as it figures out how to maneuver.
And this makes Nicora laugh. It's appropriate at least for the critter. She forces herself to sit upright and groaning. Also squelching and oozing and smelling just awful. "And I am done bearing children," she tells herself, sounding relieved.
There's a prolonged raspberry sound, followed by a 'fwoomp' of igntion, and the newborn rockets out of the room and down the hallway. There's a shriek of surprise followed by the sound of something clattering to the floor, so Sil was probably surprised.
"She is always surprised," Nicora thinks, amused. She grabs one of the crummy cloths nearby and goes about wiping herself down. She's so incredibly thankful that is all over.
"Wow, that was pretty neat," Zakaro says, standing behind Nicora. "Don't tell Gorphat I'm here! I can sneak in because of the residue from Ephasto. The other Sisters don't know that trick. Oh look, bubbles!" She then happily pops some of the still floating mucous bubbles.
Nicora groans and rubs her goo-covered head. "What more do you want?" she asks of the looney Goddess. "I have fulfilled my agreement."
"What? We agreed to something?" Zakaro asks, not getting too close to the sticky Yodhgorphat. "Was it signed in blood? I usually remember the blood stuff. Anyway, I figured you'd want to do something fun now!"
Nicora moves closer to Zakaro since it seems to make her uncomfortable! Complete with squelchy sounds. "What do you mean 'something fun'?" she asks warily.
"Well," Zakaro notes, leaning back. "You've had all these life-changing thingies with my Sisters, but never spent any time with me beyond your initial visit to my old Temple." She sticks out her lower lip, and says, "I got the impression you didn't like me, or thought I wasn't worth your time to try and reform and such."
"You never seemed much like one who wanted company of any sort," Nicora burbles in counter and shrugs. "And honestly, you were not as far gone as the others. I did not see you needing as much reform." She leans in closer.
Zakaro examines the room instead of looking at Nicora. "But I need the most help!" she says. "I'm.. the weakest now. I've got no Yodh! I was at least still above Gorphat before you started up her temple again. Nobody thinks of me anymore! The Coalition has it so only actual Mages can do magic stuff.."
Nicora tilts her head. "Well, you could try talking to the mages, but I am not sure that is exactly a good idea," she notes. "I know one of them. How else can you see getting help?"
"Can't you do for me what you've done for Gorphat?" Zakaro asks, looking over her shoulder. "Make me seem.. helpful?"
Nicora runs her hands lightly on Zakaro's chest, leaving behind a trail of slime. "I'm not sure how to do that unless you become helpful. Is there any way you could help strengthen the buildings and homes the poor are using? Or help them build better gardens and farms?" she suggests.
"Well.. not reliably.." Zakaro says, trying not to look too disgusted. "That's more.. Zarana stuff.."
"IF you want to seem helpful you have to be helpful," Nicora points out. "What can you do?"
"Well.. aside from the ancient lost rituals stuff.. I can make magic more or less effective, depending on how well the caster has appeased me," Zakaro notes.
Nicora taps her chin. "Can you affect the undead and Dipath's minions?" she asks next. "There is an actual vampire that ... if he were weakened it would benefit many."
"Well.. I'm not sure.." Zakaro admits. "See, my influence is strongest when magic is being cast. Once it is cast, my work is over with. That's Spirit stuff too, which is Sunala's domain. I'm more on the Chaos side of things, magically speaking. And curses too. I can curse as well as Gorphat!"
"If there's something that's chaotic, I can mess with it," she adds.
Nicora laughs (or coughs, it is hard to tell). "Can you? Look at me? I am a walking Gorphat curse," she points out. "Can you affect things from the Forbidden Zone? We may have allies coming from that and if they were stronger, that may be helpful."
"Well.. that's a place of Chaos, certainly," Zakaro notes. "And if they were to come out.. well, they'd have to have a way to bring that Chaos with them to survive. One entity's chaos is another's reality, after all."
"Is that a yes or a no?" Nicora asks. "And what sort of curses can you cast?"
"I might be able to weaken their Chaos, with enough belief," Zakaro claims. "And probably make some things explode. I'm good at explosions. Mostly bad luck curses. I have to get creative to match Gorphat or Sunala with those. But I'm very creative! I once was able to curse this merchant with bad luck such that his wives died in horrible accidents and he never had any heirs! See, that gets around the whole 'Only Sunala gets to curse people to die' and 'Only Gorphat gets to cause lifelong suffering'. See, like I said: I'm clever!"
"Hm. I will never ask you to curse me," Nicora notes with a drooling smirk. "You may be able to help with the attacks when the time comes. That is still a bit further out. As for something more current, I am not as sure what you can do. Other than reach an accord with the Mages, but after the dream ritual, I doubt that would go over well. Unless ... would you permit them in your temple?"
"Hmmm," Zakaro says, looking torn. "Normally, that would be a blasphemy.. but.. so few think of me now. The Lore is.. looser. I can be more adaptable, if new believers are a bit organized.."
"But since that's what you're here for, I suppose it is worth a try," she concedes.
"My thought is if they could study what magic arts your followers did have, it might validate you," Nicora points out.
"Oh.. you mean the old stuff?" Zakaro asks, rubbing her chin.. then bristling because she got Nicora-goo on it somehow. "If they'd be interested in that. I mean.. they're lost rituals. From before the College, some from before Olympia maybe."
"And that would interest them," Nicora points out, "A lot. But I can promise nothing. I will have to speak to them first."
"But you'll do that for me?" Zakaro squeals. "I could hug you!"
Nicora spreads her arms! "Go ahead," the Yodhgorphat burbles.
"Uh.. hold on, I have a better idea!" Zakaro claims, smiling nervously. Then she snaps her fingers.. and Nicora is her 'old self' again, seated in an ornate saddle as the wind whips her hair behind her. She's naked save for some rather sharp spurs attached to her heels. They'd have to be sharp to get through the scales of the dragon she's riding. The leads connect to rings permanently mounted into the beast's horns. There's also a lever attached to the saddle, which is inlaid with gold and silver. Babel passes by below. "How's this?" Zakaro shouts from where she rides behind Nicora, out of the hair-stream. "You can't tell, but he's also castrated. That lever jabs a spike into what's left." Of course the dragon is Vorgulremik.
"How is he castrated? Who did it? And how in the world did anyone get him to agree to it?" Nicora asks, brow arched. She of course also pulls the lever just to see if it is actually true. Or maybe to make the dragon whine.
The pull causes the dragon to roar in pain and fire a jet of flame. "Who cares!" Zakaro says. "It's fantasy! It doesn't have to make sense! You just go with it and have fun! I mean, it was either this or hooking you up with your glutton personas.."
Nicora laughs. "You would actually like Nicky, she's almost as crazy as you are!" she notes. And okay, so this isn't really Vorgulremik. That is probably a good thing, otherwise it would be even more awkward. So, she steers the dragon about above Babel. Sadly ... even up here the city still looks bad. Hopeless, really.
"Doesn't it look great?" Zakaro asks as they pass over the city. "The greatest city in the world! Nothing is on fire!"
"Well, you are right that nothing is on fire," Nicora has to agree. The rest she really cannot comment on. She'll be dying for this city and well ... she's seen Rugrhat stools that looked better. So, the Eeee grows a bit more silent as she steers the dragon around.
"Nothing is falling over either," Zakaro notes. "I suppose they cleared all the debris to build the new stuff. It's like.. Ephasto! Right now, kind of awkward and skinny and bloated and weird, maybe.. but you saw his kid! When it's reborn, it'll be all lit up and.. gassy.."
"And likely to explode again," Nicora finishes. "Several families side with the Dipath cult. One is ruled by a vampire. All of them have more power and influence than I and my allies combined. This just reminds me how hopeless it all is. But I can do nothing else."
"I'm all about power and influence," Zakaro notes. "The best influence is subtle. The real power is in giving away power. These things move nations, not those who force their way. You'll see!"
"See? Even you are changing yourself," Nicora points out.
"I've always been optimistic," Zakaro claims. "Chaos is change! The others just cared about status and the Lore."
Nicora snorts. "You used to only care about power. So, you've already changed," she points out. "Time will tell."
"So.. who do you want to dragon-poop on?" Zakaro asks mischievously.
Nicora snorts, again. "I honestly have no idea. I can only think of one tower that would probably deserve it. The one I lived in for a bit," she notes.
"Ah, one of your gluttons, the rabbit," Zakaro notes. "Some flaming poop won't do any real damage.. but it'll get into their dreams.."
"The rabbit is not a glutton," Nicora notes.
"She is the source of your gluttony for pregnancy," Zakaro claims. "Just as the rat is the glutton for sex, and the Yodhgorphat a glutton for misery."
"That is stretching it," Nicora notes, then shrugs a bit.
"Are you saying you aren't a glutton in that way?" Zakaro teases, wrapping her arms around Nicora from behind. "Do you think I'm pretty?"
"I think you are very strange and covered in runes," Nicora answers and shrugs. "And pretty, yes, because all of you appear pretty."
"If you lick all the runes in the proper order, something amazing happens," Zakaro claims.
"Like what?" Nicora asks.
"I have an amazing orgasm and Aelfin honey chocolate shoots out of my butt!" Zakaro laughs. "Shh.. don't tell Blakat!"
"You're making that up. As for the butt shooting, I know a Gorphat curse I could cast upon you that would have a similar effect," Nicora notes.
"You wouldn't curse my butt though, would you?" the goddess asks, resting her chin on Nicora's shoulder and making big sad goddess eyes.
"Only if you really annoyed me. And you might even like it," Nicora answers.
"I'm not into the kinky stuff like my Sisters," Zakaro claims. "I'm practically virginal in comparison. It's important for rituals after all."
"Given what happened with your demon ... no, you're not virginal," Nicora counters and looks over her shoulder. "You're just as wild in many ways."
"Am I more fun than Blakat?" Zakaro asks, still fishing for compliments.
"You're about as crazy, yes," Nicora agrees. "The problem is I am dull."
"We just need to sharpen your pointy bits more," Zakaro claims. "Or polish you up to a shine. Let's go drinking! Panty raid on Inala! Tie Rephath's bootlaces together! Form a band! Oooo... yeah, a band.."