Lucinda's journey out from the forest that surrounded the Circle of the Wild turned out to be a quiet one. Choosing to remain on foot throughout, she kept to a slow and steady pace that provided her with ample time to further reflect on all that had happened there, and to consider more carefully what she wanted to do next.

With her desire to see the world and all the animals it contained being as strong as ever, joining up with an adventuring group that would allow her to do just that – even to only a limited extent – while also gradually increasing her ability to more easily do so alone in the future, seemed like the most obvious choice. Ultimately, she felt that made choosing a group that suited her even more important than it might be for others. In that regard, her fixation on the offer made to her by the Archer woman, Bryn, seemed odd, even to her. Yet, whether for the reasons Grissa had assumed, or for other, less troublesome ones, it did seem to hold true.

"I can't wait to show you to her, Marrow," Lucinda sent to her companion as they neared the edge of the forest. "She's going to love you! Maybe even more than Mother did."

"Friend?" her companion replied, a clear note of confusion evident in her mental voice.

"Bryn! The woman I told you about… Here, see?" Lucinda added the best recollection of the flirty Archer's face that she could recall.

"Bone?"

A few giggles escaped Lucinda's lips at the usual topic Marrow's thoughts seemed to turn to. Of course, still being in deer form, her mirth came out as a series of bleats, instead.

"I think we'll have a hard time finding someone who isn't willing to give a bone to a hungry and adorably cute vulture. Even if that bone is actually one of the ones I'm carrying."

"Bone!"

Lucinda was forced into more giggling as her companion made it clear she cared far more about being treated to snacks than where the snacks actually originated from.

Reaching the end of the forested terrain at last, Lucinda reluctantly decided to take to the skies with Marrow's assistance. There was no disputing how much faster a method of transport it was; yet, the warnings offered by Waflaw not so recently, combined with the much more recent ones offered by Saseligan, had made it seem reasonably risky as well. There was also the more general warning offered by Yalia to consider too, making any action that highlighted her status as a nature-based class similarly risky. Unfortunately, a bearded vulture flying around with a bag containing a small cat, was about as obvious as one could get in that regard – even if it was also part of the reason it was so fun.

After directing Marrow to head off in the direction of Malart, and making some further adjustments once she had got her bearings from the sky, Lucinda turned her thoughts back to a topic she had managed to put off for almost the entirety of the festivities in Yalia's circle; namely, how to spend her still unallocated points from reaching level 6.

As far as attribute points were concerned, she was still reasonably content with balancing them between Intelligence, Willpower, and Spirit. The ever pressing need to make some decision had not abated, but at the same time, she did not feel she had reached the point where her future potential could start to be negatively affected. She did still take the time to review the situation, however.

Intelligence was the primary attribute for her offensive spell-casting. Which meant an increase in potency to three spells: Biting Frost, Scorching Orb, and Jolt; and also the effectiveness of her dragonling's Frost Breath ability.

For Willpower, as well as improving her ability to resist hostile spells – something she was certainly wary of – it also helped boost the effectiveness of four of her own spells: Heal, Morning Sun, Touch of Rot, and Wooden Flesh. Like Intelligence, it also helped with one shapeshifted ability: Howl from her wolf form.

Lastly, there was Spirit. In terms of raw numbers, Spirit boosted a whopping ten different abilities spread across her many shapeshifted forms; however, as that list included two abilities whose sole purpose was to create milk, and more than few others that were equally unsuited for combat, it did not immediately make Spirit the superior attribute. In opposition to the other two mental attributes, only a single spell directly benefited from an increase in Spirit: Animal Ally.

A considerable amount of consideration later, Lucinda finally settled on extending her wait-and-see approach. She felt certain that with more information she would have a better chance of making a satisfying decision, and as she had no other Shifters to ask, to her mind, that meant simply gaining more levels. To conclude her decision, she distributed her points evenly, and then settled on level 10 as a likely candidate for a new direction, if needed.

Status

Name

Lucinda Bazan

Class

Shifter

Level

6

Experience

53%

Health

Strength

Agility

Endurance

238

238

8

10

32

Mana

Intelligence

Willpower

Spirit

256

256

29

29

29

Once Lucinda had found a relatively-safe looking spot of wilderness to consume her lunch within, she turned her pondering to the free skill point she still had to spend. Even with the finite number of choices available to her, choosing was just as difficult as with her attributes, if not more so.

Purchasable Skills Name Description Proficiency: Grants ability to use . Skill improves with rank.

Requirements: Related item or relevant knowledge. Brutish Forms I Increases Strength modifier for all forms by 0.05 per rank of form.

Requirement: 1 shapeshift at rank 5. Graceful Forms I Increases Agility modifier for all forms by 0.05 per rank of form.

Requirement: 1 shapeshift at rank 5. Hardy Forms I Increases Endurance modifier for all forms by 0.05 per rank of form.

Requirement: 1 shapeshift at rank 5. Careful Casting I Reduces Mana cost of spells by 10%.

Requirement: 1 spell at 20% mastery. Level 4. Aquatic Forms Grants the ability to acquire and use aquatic shapeshifts.

Requirement: Level 6. Mental Boost I Provides 5 extra points to chosen mental attribute immediately, and 5 more every 5 levels, starting from, and including, level 10. Applies retroactively.

Requirement: Level 6. Attribute Shift When shapeshifting, user can choose to temporarily shift their highest physical attribute to another physical attribute of their choosing at 80% efficiency.

Requirement: One physical attribute above 5 x level. Level 8. Lingering Resilience Retain 50% of shifted Endurance when returning to human form. Effect lasts 2 hours.

Requirement: No physical attribute above 5 x level. Level 8. Desperate Measures I Shifting form at less than 25% health, allows for one instant cast Heal spell at 150% mana cost. Cooldown: 1 Day.

Requirement: Heal spell at 50% mastery. Level 8. Avian Forms Grants the ability to acquire and use avian shapeshifts.

Requirement: Level 10.

Since reaching level 6, glancing at the list of options also had a tendency to send her into a spell of fantastical daydreams about flying. That, what was perhaps her greatest wish as a Shifter, was only a few levels away, was a fact that filled her with equal parts excitement and anticipation.

Munching upon her simple lunch of circle-borrowed leaves and a few self-picked berries, Lucinda continued to go over how she felt about her choices.

I really want aquatic forms. Not as much as flying, but not that much less… I'm just not sure how often I'll get to use them. Will adventuring lead me out to sea a lot? And I'd have to leave Marrow behind anyways. Ah, I guess it'll still be useful like Waflaw suggested. Travelling across the sea for free… But sailing on a ship might be fun too!

In comparison, the alternatives were somewhat less appealing. Providing attribute-based benefits, or a minor spell-related improvement, was a far cry from gaining access to a new host of forms – even if she would rarely have an opportunity to use them.

By the time her lunch was finished and done with, a clear winner with a matching reasoning behind it had emerged. The solution had been for her to work backwards from level 10, as that pick was already set in stone. From there, the level 8 choice of a potentially life-saving Heal spell was also an easy choice to make, thanks to being ineligible for one of the other two options, and gaining little benefit from the third at her current level. Finally, that left her with a free pick at level 6, but not another until level 12. Waiting that long for aquatic forms turned out to be simply too much.

Skills Name Description Aquatic Forms Grants the ability to acquire and use aquatic shapeshifts.

Requirement: Level 6.

Feeling slightly stressed out by the lengthy deliberation and accompanying worries about her future, Lucinda opted to spend some time playing fetch with Marrow before resuming her journey.

"I think this will do for the night, Marrow."

Lucinda's journey had brought her to a new forest within the realm of Chakog'mar. As far she was concerned, it was currently unnamed, but she was heavily leaning towards dubbing it the Midway Forest.

"Pick a nice spot with room for both of us and I'll come join you!"

"Friend!"

While waiting for her companion to do as she had asked, Lucinda shifted into her giant squirrel form. With its small size and excellent tree climbing abilities, she was happy with the alternative sleeping arrangement it provided. It may still have been true that a hastily built burrow was more secure in some ways, but a recent talk relating to night time activities had revealed the rather impressive skill Marrow possessed, might make up for it.

"You're sure you can keep watch all night?"

"Marrow!"

"It's not that I don't trust you, it's just I'm not sure exactly what you mean…"

As far as Lucinda could make out, Marrow's claims involved her sleeping in a half-awake state of some kind, therefore allowing her to be on the lookout for danger even while getting the rest her body needed. Almost as soon as the natural ability had come to light, Lucinda had felt another surge of anticipation for her own future as a shapeshifted bird – though there was no telling if she would be capable of a similar feat.

"Okay, good night! Oh, if you see anything really dangerous, I give you permission to grab me and fly off!"

"Fly. Bone?"

"Yes… You'll get a nice reward if you do good. You know that goes without saying!"

Ahh, maybe I should get her to try some new foods soon. It might help improve her vocabulary at least…

On the morning of the third day since departing from the gathering, the town of Malart came into view at last. It was far from being a record in terms of travel time, but still wary thanks to the many warnings – and hopeful she would remain that way for some time – flying had made up only a small portion of the journey.

Emerging into the urban settlement alone a short time later, Lucinda felt no small amount of disquiet. The throngs of people, the intense background noise, and the displeasing smells combined into a stark reminder of what she had given up in favour of pursuing her dream. There was no question as to how less she liked the town compared to Yalia's circle; yet, she was at least hopeful that her mood might pick up upon finding some friendly people to spend time with – or perhaps just one in particular.

She spent some time wandering around the busy and not so busy streets alike at first, all in an attempt to get used to the different environment, and help jog her memory of the layout while she was at it. Of course, her meandering provided ample opportunity for the townsfolk to direct attention upon her, which, fortunately, turned out to be mostly benign, with only one overly lecherous exception.

Upon finally reaching her destination of the adventurers' guild, a surprising and somewhat troubling realisation reached her: The idea that perhaps her aimless wandering had partially been motivated by an aversion to another encounter with the unpleasant man that had greeted her at the desk inside during her last visit. As a result, the greeting she did receive shortly after making an entrance, came as a welcome surprise.

"Hello there, lass. Don't believe I've seen you about before. You new, or visiting from elsewhere?"

A friendly smile of her own automatically spread across Lucinda's lips as she took in the sight of the matronly woman behind the guild counter.

"Hi," she replied. "I'm new, I guess. Umm, I mean I've been here once before, but I'm not a member."

"I see." The woman's smile became friendlier still. "Might I be right in thinking you're considering joining?"

"Ah, I'm considering it."

"Glad to hear it! There's far too few of us womenfolk here. Shall I run you through how it works?"

Casting a hasty glance into the tavern area beyond, Lucinda nodded in agreement as she saw no sign of Bryn anywhere within.

"It's all quite simple really, lass. Once you've paid the upfront membership fee, we talk you through the guild's background and history, and then its ongoing purpose – which doesn't involve any tests you might be relieved to hear! Then after that, we'll only need to take a reading of your status and that's your lot."

While the mention of a status check caused Lucinda some concern, even despite being somewhat prepared for it, it was the mention of fees that distressed her the most. There was no doubt that she could afford to pay what was required, it was simply the return of her related memories the topic brought up that bothered her.

"How much is it?" she eventually asked.

"A mere one gold per year. Which will give you access to all guild services, both here and elsewhere. That includes baths, beds, and access to the training hall and equipment."

Mmm, I guess he wasn't lying after all.

"If that's a problem," the woman began, causing a sharp pang of alarm in Lucinda's breast. "There's always sponsorship…"

As the feeling of alarm evaporated in an instant, a short burst of laughter escaped Lucinda's lips. The guild clerk's explanation trailed off as it happened, while one of her eyebrows shot upwards in obvious confusion.

"Did I say something funny?" the clerk asked.

"Oh-no, sorry! Umm, never mind. I can pay the fee, if I decide to go ahead with joining."

It took a few seconds more for the matronly woman's expression to return to how it had been before. "I see. Well, if you want I can introduce you to some of the adventurers present behind me. I'm sure they'd be happy to chat with you about what the life is like."

"Ah… Actually there was a certain member I was hoping to meet today. Her name's Bryn."

"Bryn, you say? Hmm…" A pensive look crossed the older woman's face. "Not ringing any bells, sorry, lass. Could you describe her?"

"She's about a head taller than me… I think. Umm, her hair's really dark, nearly black, and about, oh, this long?" Lucinda indicated a point on her own arm, just a short distance beyond her shoulder.

"Hmm, can't say I've seen her. How about we step through to the common area and ask if anyone else has?"

"Oh, is that okay?"

"Of course! Why wouldn't it be?"

A pleased grin spread across Lucinda's face. "No reason."

After affixing her with another slightly bemused look, the guild clerk emerged from behind her desk, and beckoned Lucinda to follow her into the tavern beyond. Compared to her last visit, the room was not only very sparsely populated, but also unusually quiet. Of the lot, Lucinda noticed there appeared to be only a single other woman in occupance.

"Oi! Anyone here know of an adventurer named Bryn?" the clerk boomed out suddenly, much to Lucinda's great alarm. "This lovely young lass is looking for her."

Of the dozen or so people seated within the tavern, all turned to look upon Lucinda in that moment. That she froze awkwardly as a result was inevitable, though the reaction still bothered her. However, she had no time to dwell upon the situation, as the small sea of eyes was soon joined by a surge of raised hands.

"All of you? Or near almost? Why do I find that hard to believe, I wonder?" the clerk asked in an annoyed tone. "How about those of you that only want to chat up a pretty lass put your bloody hands back down?"

Lucinda giggled quietly to herself behind a covering hand as most of the men withdrew their offered aid.

"They're like vultures," the matronly woman whispered quietly for Lucinda's benefit, increasing the volume of her laughter thanks to the situation and word choice both.

"I met her recently," a voice called out across the tavern. Lucinda's eyes landed upon the owner: a young woman in a dark robe sitting near the far corner, and smiling back at her in a friendly manner.

"Ah, there we go," the clerk announced happily. "If you feel the need for a drink while you chat, don't hesitate. Keep in mind it's a touch more expensive for non-members."

"Thanks," Lucinda replied. "I will."

Weaving her way through the mass of tables, while returning the plentiful smiles sent her way as politely as possible, Lucinda soon reached the young woman's table.

"Please, sit!"

Smiling gratefully, Lucinda sat on the stool on the opposite side of the small square table. She had barely finished doing so when a delicate hand shot out towards her.

"I'm Hlana," the woman said.

"Lucinda."

Shaking the offered hand firmly, Lucinda had no trouble matching the smile sent her way by the pretty, dark-haired woman that appeared to be almost with an age of her. Dressed in a robe as she was, labelling her as a Wizard was easy enough, even with the tight fit and high quality of the garment making it look closer to a dress – as well as helping accentuate her impressive bust.

"You're lucky I was here," Hlana said. "Some of those men looked like they wanted to eat you alive."

"I am sort of relieved to tell the truth. But I'm sure they're all nice people really!"

"I like that optimism. If only I wasn't new to membership, maybe I could weigh in. I do know they're quite willing to offer free drinks in exchange for a smile or two though."

"Mmm, I've never really been good at that sort of thing…"

"I find that hard to believe. You've obviously got the looks for it. Tell you what, why not give it a try on me?"

"Ah…"

A short, dainty laugh met her vague vocalisation. "As I suspected, you only lack confidence! There's really no need to be shy. Be bold! flash me your best smile! I dare you!"

Amused by the playful tone of her conversation partner, a wide smile soon spread across Lucinda's lips without much effort on her part.

"Oh, yes, that's more than good enough!" Hlana announced with ample enthusiasm. "In fact…" Turning in her seat she raised her voice to call out across the room. "Temal, two teas, please?"

"Aye," came a response from the man behind the bar.

"You see?" Hlana continued, a sweet smile on her lips. "It even worked on me."

"Oh… Umm, thanks."

"My pleasure. You want to know about Bryn then?"

"Ah, yes."

"Do you mind if I ask why first? Wouldn't want to reveal the wrong bit of information to the wrong sort of person."

"That's fair. I'm… thinking about joining her group. For adventuring."

"Oh, I see! I'm sure she won't mind in that case."

The conversation paused briefly as two clay cups filled with steaming tea were guided onto the table by the guild clerk.

"Here you are, ladies. Enjoy."

Lucinda offered a smile as she took her cup, and then another to Hlana. It was clear some changes had taken place within the Malart guild hall since her last visit, but perhaps only the good kind.

"Although…" Hlana began before taking a small sip of her tea.

Taking a sniff of her own drink as she waited for the other woman to continue, a powerful whiff of strong fruity flavours caressed her senses. Unaccustomed to drinking piping hot beverages, she applied plenty of cooling breaths before attempting even the tiniest sip she could manage. But even that was more than enough to confirm her nose had not misled her.

Spotting the expectant gaze on Hlana's face, Lucinda smiled. "Thanks, it's good. You were saying?"

"I didn't want to put you off, but… I have heard Bryn is quite picky about who she lets join her little group."

"Oh… I'll keep that in mind."

Lucinda retained a small smile at the news. Appearing smug as a result of inadvertently passing an apparently difficult challenge, was not something she had any desire to commit; secretly feeling highly pleased about it was another matter entirely.

"Did you see her recently?" Lucinda asked.

"I did! We had a lovely, long chat… About a week ago I think it was." The young woman seemed to consider her words momentarily. "Something like that, anyway."

A slight frown appeared on Lucinda's brow. "Do you know when she'll be back?"

"I'm afraid I have to disappoint you there. You noticed it's a bit on the quiet side today?" At Lucinda's nod Glisa continued. "There's a guild award ceremony going on up in Oradas. Huge event with most everyone important attending. Her group went, though I can't say if they'll be receiving any medals. I'd hope so; Her's is the only female-led group I know of."

"…I'm starting to think there's more to adventuring than I realised," Lucinda admitted. "Medals for what? Completing missions?"

"Probably. I'm new too, remember?"

"Sorry… Does it last a while, then?"

"Oh, no not really. But I'm sure she mentioned a mission she had to complete afterwards. Sorry to say, I don't think she'll be back for a couple of weeks at least."

"Weeks!?" Lucinda''s heart sank at the unexpected declaration. Hlana smiled apologetically while shrugging her shoulders slightly. "Ah, it's not your fault. I… shouldn't have expected her to be waiting around."

Turning her attention to her tea, Lucinda helped herself to a good portion of it as she thought over how she might spend the significant amount of time she suddenly seemed to have at her disposal.

"You know," Hlana began. "There are other groups out there. Including some that would be willing to take on a new member such as yourself."

"I guess so…"

"Most of them aren't here either though, of course." Hlana paused to take a sip of her tea. "But I am. And I just so happen to be looking for people to team up with at this very moment."

"Oh. You have a group?"

"I've started one. It's just me so far. Surprising, don't you think? All these poor, desperate fools, and not one willing to spend time with lovely little me."

Lucinda could not prevent herself from laughing at Hlana's playful words. She was, however, somewhat surprised to hear no complaints from any of the men that were in earshot.

"What do you say?" Hlana continued. "A pair of beautiful young women taking on the world together, showing those oafs how the fairer sex handles things… Tempting, yes?"

Why do I get the feeling she's interested in me as more than a group member? Or am I just assuming things because she's a friend of Bryn? Ahh… a month's a long time! I have to do something…

"I should probably mention I'm not a member yet," Lucinda began. "I'd… maybe like to team up though."

"Maybe?" Hlana asked around an amused smile.

"I'm still not sure about… umm, everything, I guess."

"You want to think it over? Good idea. I'll be here most afternoons for the next while, so don't worry about that." A hint of sadness then entered Hlana's smile. "Drinking all alone in my quiet corner, praying some brave soul will consider joining me for adventure, and personal gain."

"Maybe offering more than a smile might help?" Lucinda joked.

"Well, I'd invite you back to my place… but I don't actually have one."

"Ah… I meant…" Lucinda held one hand close against her and hiked a thumb in the direction of the nearest occupied table.

Hlana laughed loudly in response, then continued to smile as she sipped her drink once more.

Seeing the other woman had only been joking herself, Lucinda's mild embarrassment soon fled, leaving her free to enjoy further conversation as she gradually finished her own drink.

After departing the guild, Lucinda lost herself in thoughts of things she might do in the sudden abundance of time she appeared to have, and continued to do so right up until she rejoined Marrow outside the town's limits.

"What do you think?" she sent her companion. "She seemed nice enough… Maybe a bit odd, though that might just have been me."

"Bird!"

As was often the case, Marrow's enthusiastic one word reply did not fail to bring Lucinda to laughter.

"You much prefer that other idea I had? I'm not surprised in the slightest… Ahh, we've got heaps of time to decide. How about we just do some more training today?"

"Play!"

"Yes, we'll play too. But we can't play all the time or we'll be hopelessly weak forever! Don't you want to become the strongest bearded vulture ever to live? Have epic tales of your heroic deeds passed down to all the younger generations of vulture-kind? Maybe even slay a dragon one time?"

Marrow's pale orange eyes bored into Lucinda for several seconds before any reply came to her.

"Friend?"

The overwhelming amount of confusion in her companion's mental word sent Lucinda into a full-on fit of giggling. It was only after several playful pecks of Marrow's beak that she finally calmed down a short time later.

"I guess I got a bit carried away there… We'll play, okay?"

By the time morning came around, the idea Marrow had backed had become Lucinda's favourite too: a plan to further test the capabilities of her innate ability. Yet, despite the advice and information she had received from Sevi and her husband at the gathering, small and deadly critters were not her target. At least not for her first test.

After a hasty breakfast and a quick clean up in a small river near where she and her companion had slept, they set out for the cluster of trees to the south-west of Malart that she knew quite well.

"There it is! The Forest of Bears!"

"Bear?" her companion sent in a faintly disbelieving tone.

"Just because you can't see them doesn't mean they don't exist. It's a forest, Marrow… The two I met were in a cave though. Anyway, that's not what you're supposed to be looking for!"

"Cave? Bone?"

"Ah… Fine, I guess it won't hurt to pay them a visit and see if they have any spare. Let's try finding that bird first, though, okay?"

Having settled upon attempting to heavily influence a small bird of some kind for her experiment, choosing an exact type to search for had not been a difficult decision. Of the several she had met during her time spent feeding the local sorts in Kloip, she had settled on one amongst them that was an old favourite. The only issue with her selection was whether or not the particular bird could be found within the forest.

With Marrow searching from above, and herself prowling the forest floor in Cougar form, Lucinda was confident an answer to her question would reveal itself before long.

Some ten minutes later, shortly after Lucinda's animal companion had taken to searching from the tips of the many trees rather than the sky itself, a new message from Marrow appeared in her mind.

"Friend! Bear!"

Smilingly inwardly, Lucinda shook her feline head as she took in the image of a bear lying on its side amongst the trees. Not particularly caring about the discovery in that moment, despite how proud Marrow appeared to be, she was about to dismiss it completely when she realised something had been a bit off about the image it had been sent in.

"Could you send that again? Maybe from slightly closer?"

"Marrow!"

Though unsure of what she had seen, she altered her heading to bring her towards Marrow's location all the same. She managed barely a few steps along the new path before her request became fulfilled by a new sending; one that only served to concern her further.

A short distance more at an increased pace soon brought the bear's prone form into view. She realised it was dead almost immediately, and was beset by a peculiar smell at almost the same instant.

"Bear. Dead."

"Looks that way," Lucinda agreed, as Marrow swooped down to land beside her. "I didn't think there was anything in here that could kill one…"

A quick investigation of the animal's body was all it took for Lucinda to conclude something was obviously wrong. While unlikely, it was certainly possible for a bear to have been killed by another animal or a passing person. However, there were two main points that pushed her to her conclusion of wrongness. The first, that there was no evidence of anything attempting to feast upon the remains; the second, the strange black substance that coated a large portion of the bear's mouth.

"Friend?"

"The bird can wait. Something's not right here."

Shifting back to human form, Lucinda retrieved a nearby piece of fallen wood and used it to scrape at the strange substance. The gloopy, sticky mess quickly proved to be quite resistant to removal, while revealing itself beyond a doubt to be the source of the unpleasant odour she had begun detecting even before reaching the body.

"Do you see any more of this stuff anywhere?"

"Marrow!"

Lucinda turned her attention back to the bear's body as her companion began waddling about in search of further clues as she had asked.

Is it poison? Who would come here and poison a bear?

"Friend! Find!"

A disturbing image appeared along with Marrow's declaration. In the incredible quality only a bird of prey could provide, a sizeable mass of the same black substances was visible upon a patch of forest ground. Intent on investigating further, Lucinda barely managed to reach her feet before another sending from Marrow reached her.

"Alive!?"

"What…?"

Three rapid fire images flashed before Lucinda's eyes, each one showing almost the exact scene from before, except with one minor difference: an increasingly shorter distance between Marrow and the mysterious black substance she had seen.

Realising the danger they were in, Lucinda's hands shot upwards to begin casting her Wooden Flesh spell.

"Get ready, Marrow!"

The rustling sound of rapid movement across the forest floor reached her ears barely a second later, bringing with it a noticeable increase to the worry she was already feeling. However, with her spell cast only around halfway done, a sudden sickening, squelching noise began emanating from the bear corpse she had almost completely forgotten about.

Swiveling her head towards the body in alarm, Lucinda was just in time to see the surface of the bear's body bulge outwards as the noise only grew in volume.

Ah, crap!

"Back!" she shouted, abandoning her magic shaping to dive away from the disturbing sight.

Landing solidly on the ground a few metres from where she had stood, a few hasty breaths was all Lucinda managed before the continuing squelching reached a horrific crescendo, and the bear's body exploded outwards.