The tower had stopped its rolling march forward as the sun set. The forward ranks of the orc army was within bow's range of the great forest, and it too had stopped. The ranks of soldiers arranged itself in battalions, the orcs whipped by the lizard soldiers who patrolled the formations. The lizard soldiers were riding lumbering giant four legged lizards, saddled as you would a horse. Behind the orcs a line of lizard soldiers arced half way around the tower. Minotaurs walked the lines between the orc battalions, whipped by orc handlers. Fires were being lit as the sun started to set.
At nightfall, the orcs would move on the forest.
Gracius scooted back from his hiding spot in a fold of the plain, behind the tower. Bruno was gazing up at him from his hiding place behind a boulder. Gracius went to him, patting his huge forearm reassuringly.
"They'll be here soon" he said softly, trying to put far more certainty in his voice than he actually felt.
Bruno suddenly lifted his head, his broad flat nose sniffing the cooling air. Gracius looked around, climbing up the boulder to get a better view. There, in the distance, the unmistakable shape of a lone centaur following the path of the tower. Gracius waved his arms. The centaur turned, and soon Bear was riding full tilt towards them.
Bear almost collapsed when he finally reached them. His flanks were covered with foamy sweat, his breath ragged and short. In between gasps, he quickly recounted what had happened, the death of the god, galloping night and day to reach them with the news.
"And Val?" Asked Gracius, " what about Val?!"
"Alive, at least when I last saw her. And..different. You'll see," said Bear with a slight grin.
"Why isn't she with you" pushed Gracius.
"She said she had something to do. I don't know what. Seemed important." He replied, still catching his breath.
"The attack is about to begin. Once it grows dark, they'll attack. Orcs favor darkness. She'll never make it back in time. We failed." Said Gracius, sitting down heavily.
"Failed?" Said Bear, "we did what we were tasked to do. We denied them more minotaurs. And don't give up on Val yet."
"Unless she can outrun centaurs now, I don't see how she can be of any further help," said Gracius bitterly.
Bear just smiled before folding his legs under him and collapsing into an exhausted heap.
*
Val was flying. Her legs were pumping away, taking great giant strides with effortless ease, never tiring, her body crackling with energy. The herd of minotaurs thundered behind her, snorting and huffing as they raced to keep up with her. Their skin glistened with sweat with the effort, but none of them slowed down.
The churned ground of the valley led them straight to the black tower rising in the darkening distance. The sun was about to set, throwing a cloak of cool shadows over the forest that lay beyond the tower. It alone still shone bright, the golden rays of the sun reflected in the cool obsidian walls.
Val veered to the side, guided by instinct and the golden ring in her ear. Her friends were near, there, beyond that fold of earth and rock.
Gracius and a seated Bear were softly debating their options when they suddenly found themselves surrounded by a mass of huffing and grunting giants, horned heads swinging above them. Before they had a chance to react, the giants were all around them, dark looming figures in the shadow of their hiding place. And then she stepped forward; naked, majestic, taller than the minotaurs themselves, crowned by the setting sun with a halo of messy curls.
Bruno mooed a question.
Val laughed at their shocked faces. She stepped through the ranks of minotaurs and knelt by Gracius and Bear.
"Aren't you happy to see me? I brought friends!" Said Val, very pleased with herself.
Gracius stuttered and spluttered before finally finding his voice.
"You're huge!" He exclaimed.
"I told you she was different," said Bear grinning.
There was a crashing noise and suddenly Bruno was there, pushing his big head between them to get a good sniff of Val. She reached out and scratched his muzzle and ears.
"Yes, it's me you big doofus," she said affectionately. "And these are your brothers!"
She added, sweeping her arm towards the puzzled minotaurs who were watching them with bovine curiosity.
Bruno stepped back and looked at the assembled minotaurs. There were some hesitation, but slowly, he made his way to them, reaching out, grabbing a shoulder, then another.
"They recognize each other," whispered Gracius.
Val stood up. "So what's the situation?" She asked.
Gracius stood up as well and pointed towards the tower, whose tip was barely visible above the ridge of earth and rocks that separated them.
"They attack with the darkness..." he said, suddenly distracted by the size difference between him and Val. Both standing, his head was slightly lower than her sex. He could glance up to see it in oversized detail, each fold magnified by her new size, the tangle of dark curls a small forest covering pink hills.
"So we attack too, take them from the rear," Val was saying, though Gracius found it hard to listen. His eyes had drifted higher, to the now mountainous globes of her breasts, tipped by thumb sized nipples. His cock stirred and hardened into a terrified erection.
"Yes.." Said Gracius, shaking himself, turning away. "We need to let Rom and the people of the forest that we are here. These minotaurs...they will follow you? They will fight for us, right?"
"I'm pretty sure, yeah, " replied Val. "It worked with Bruno. They seem pretty attached," she said with a grin.
Was she blushing? Her? Gracius took another look at the colossal beasts standing around them, noticing their eyes fixed on Val, their thick cocks swinging between their thighs. Images started to rise in his mind, of the now giant Val and the minotaurs...Once again he shook himself and brought his mind back to the moment. He turned to Bear.
"My friend, I know you are tired, but I must ask you again to run. You must circle the enemy and reach the forest, warn Rom, tell them we will strike from the rear as the night falls. They must strike too. There is still hope!"
Bear slowly got up, resolute.
"I will tell them," he said solemnly.
The centaur and the satyr clasped arms. "I will see you after the battle," said Bear.
"Ride free," replied Gracius. Bear turned to Val. She leaned down a bit and planted a soft kiss on his lips.
"Be careful," she told him.
The centaur just smiled before turning away and making his way through the lines of curious minotaurs. Bruno mooed a question in Bear's direction.
"Protect her," Bear told Bruno, pointing at Val.