Chapter 14: The Animal Within
The duo of naked saviors was praised for their work at the main road as a prison carriage with Xiala was leaving for Zardiw at sunset. The villagers got really tactile with their thanks, especially when they decided to throw the nudies into the air while praising them as heroes, filling the entire village with joyful screams and laughter. Unlike the townsfolk, these men also had strong grips hardened by labor, which felt quite unusual on the girls' tender, bare curves. After a couple dozen minutes of praise, Katrina didn't have a single spot on her body that isn't felt up by these crude hands, and she was all for it. After all, it was hard to blame the villagers for being so eager since many of them saw the naked beauties for the first time. Sophia wasn't as excited, though, and tried her best to avoid the massive attention they've been getting with her cheeks getting even rosier than before.
Katrina and Sophia were offered the best beds in the village chief's house, but the redhead didn't want to cause any discomfort and needed to teach Sophia to not rely on comfort before their future travels, so she offered another variant: hayloft. Sophia twitched like she was possessed when she realized that instead of a soft featherbed her tender naked body will be resting on a bunch of dry hay. Of course, Katrina ended up convincing her companion just like she always did. It didn't take much effort at all, since the blonde agreed with surprising enthusiasm upon the knight saying that they'll cuddle and snuggle up to each other if it gets cold during the night. They went to their haybed right after Katrina told Ash her bedtime story in the nearby barn. The redhead was very patient with the animal, gently stroking her fur while speaking in a soothing tone.
"You know, they say you can tell a lot about a person by the way they're treating their pets," Sophia said with a smile when they lied down on the layer of dry weed.
"Alright, I'll make sure to treat you nicely then," the redhead winked playfully.
"Katrina!" Sophia opened her mouth in surprise before throwing some hay at her buddy.
"Oh, you gotta be more open for teasing!" The knight showed the blonde her tongue as she retaliated.
It was a big mistake, as the next piece of hay landed right into Katrina's mouth.
"Sorry!" Sophia mumbled under her breath when the redhead was spitting, "I-I didn't want to... I'm fine with your jokes, it's just, you know... I'm kinda new to all this."
"You mean our amazing and correct way of living?" Katrina gently rubbed the blonde's shoulder.
"Yes... I mean, I'm adapting I guess, but you are... I feel like you can do anything. Even today, you seemed so carefree when the folks praised you... I'd never let their hands explore me so freely, you know, even down there."
Sophia pointed between her legs, hinting at the fact that Katrina allowed some of the villagers to caress her pussy for a bit, not showing even a slightest bit of shame for something that'd feel like a nightmare for the majority of Tholcing women.
"Eh, they were really into it and I didn't wanna be a spoilsport," Katrina smirked, her eyes shining with confidence, "I simply see all of it as natural. And if it's mother nature herself commanding you, why not embrace it? You're doing quite well too, by the way. The shackles of your so-called modesty are slowly falling off... Our travels help a lot!"
"T-that's one way of looking at it," Sophia giggled with embarrassment.
"But I'm sure you had some experience even before we've met, it just wasn't enough to make you truly enjoy it. With men, I mean," Katrina winked again, this time more suggestively, "some teasing, accidental touches, half-joking flirting, no?"
"Well..." The priestess was at a loss for words.
"Anything?!" Katrina asked, suddenly nearing the blonde's pussy with her face so close that their lips were almost touching.
"Maybe!" Sophia smirked and turned away, hiding her bits from the redhead's eyes.
But there was something wrong with that smirk. It was cold and heartless, totally unlike the usual expressions of the naive yet jolly priestess Katrina came to know. It was fake, the redhead was sure of it. Somehow, this conversation wasn't pleasant for Sophia. So, for now, Katrina decided to end it. They still needed to get some rest, after all.
"Well, no matter. What matters is that we'll become great heroes together, and we'll do it butt-naked," the redhead pressed her beautiful body against the priestess' back and enveloped her arms around her body.
"Yes, we will," Sophia became calmer, burying her head between Katrina's large breasts, "I'll be helping you for as long as you need. No oath is gonna change that."
That last phrase was whispered by the blonde when she was already falling asleep, probably she didn't even meant to say it. Katrina wanted to ask what she meant at first, but soon felt the tiredness weighting her down and fell asleep herself. The girls kept themselves warm with each other's bodyheat, Sophia felt safe and protected in Katrina's embrace while the redhead found the priestess' quiet breath to be very soothing. The lack of fancy beds didn't stop them for enjoying their rest and the night turned out to be quite nice... Up until a scream from outside woke both nudies up.
"They're here again, stand your ground!" One of the guards shouted, his voice nearly drowning in savage roars.
With silent understanding, the girls rushed outside with hay straws falling down from their gorgeous figures. What they saw on the street was surprising to say the least: Harred and Thomas, who came in early in the morning with several guards to assist the villagers, stood off against several dozen of feral animals. Mostly wolves, dogs and cattle, although this odd army also had a bear and a boar with them. Their eyes were purple and mindless, their jaws dripped with murky saliva and their movements made them look like puppets in someone's cruel game. They were all cursed.
"Some wizard is at it again!" Harred said as she shot his crossbow, nailing one of the crazed dogs.
"Let's grant the poor beasts a quick death," Thomas swayed his sword with a nod.
"Alright, I'll take the big one!" Katrina confidently pointed at the bear, baring her shiny sword, "where did they all come from, though?"
"Some of those crazed mages must've cursed them last night!" One of the villagers shouted, too horrified to ogle the naked girls, "I saw odd purple shining coming from the nearby trees, and when we woke up, all remaining animals went crazy! We couldn't save any of them!"
"I feel sorry for your loss, and... Wait, Ash!" Katrina's eyes suddenly widened as she turned towards the nearby shed.
The door was broken with immense force, as if it was kicked from inside until it couldn't hold anymore. Katrina heard Sophia's gasp, but, as she soon realized, not because of the shed. The gasp was caused by a large, black-furred figure standing beside a couple of meek wolves and threatening to kick down a door into someone's home with her massive hooves.
"Ash?!" Katrina yelled, yet the animal didn't seem to notice at all.
"I gotta..."
"We understand," Thomas replied after hearing the redhead's unsure voice, "take care of it and then help us with the rest."
With a swift nod the firewielder bolted forward, chopping both wolves to pieces with her masterful sword strikes. Her once loyal horse was now in the full view of the naked knight, but the animal's gaze was murky and absent as if she was blind. Katrina called out to her companion, desperately hoping it'll have some effect, but nothing happened. Ash neighted with devilish glee and charged towards her owner with an evil intent. Katrina put down her sword and hoped to catch Ash by pulling her reins... But suddenly, the horse turned around and tried kicking her with her heavy hooves. The redhead barely dodged the attack, but when she was about to get closer to Ash, the horse screamed once again and fled the village at a full gallop.
"Ash! Stop, my girl, please!" Katrina cried out, sprinting on her two bare feet, but even her athleticism wasn't enough to catch up to a trained horse.
The redhead had to come back and help the guards deal with the rest of the crazed animals. One by one they were brought down by the sharp axes, swords, and pitchforks of the locals. Some, however, were driven back by Sophia's blinding magic. Katrina, however, dealt with the threat more swiftly, using her blades as well as fire, which didn't spare the cattle but at least gave their owners hopes for some tasty meat afterward. Before too long, the redhead found herself in a pig shed with her legs ankle-deep in mud and several crazed pigs surrounding her naked posture.
"Hmm, maybe they won't be aggre..." She thought to herself right before the pigs squealed all at once and viciously attacked the girl from all sides, causing her to fall down.
In the next second, a sparkling circle of flames erupted from where Katrina was lying and burned all of the beasts to a crisp.
"Ah, hell!" One of the farmers furiously threw his hat off, "you overdid it with the fire, the meat's all lost!"
"Better worry about that later," Katrina stood up, dirty like a pig herself, "just be glad that you didn't become meat for them!"
Finally, the beasts were driven back, at least for now. The guards were lucky not to lose anyone, but everyone understood that it wasn't a victory since the wizard himself didn't show up. Katrina was especially heartbroken, as the cruel mage took her animal companion that was with her ever since Dumsin was sent ablaze. Yet, the redhead wasn't going to give up easily: the first thing she did was asking Thomas and others where that damned lunatic could be.
