Because of the Document Type used to save this, and it's length, I've split this Commission for  paulrevere1991 into two parts, with the story included in the description for those who have trouble downloading the document.

Karen's still trying to find alternate means of stopping the Curse she's under that causes her to slowly turn into a Horse without Azuchroma Flowers to suppress it, but will her latest attempt work?


Story Commissioned from -  paulrevere1991

Karen is © -  paulrevere1991

Valerie is © -  Gawayne

Story is © -  Bahamut-255



For the two travelling mercenaries, things were peaceful on the surface. The few clouds in the sky (that they could see through the forest canopy) being very light and fluffy, certainly showing no threat of rainfall with the afternoon sun peering through to light their path.

“So why aren’t you taking it Karen?” One of them, a tanned lady with long bright auburn hair asked the other, a brunette with her hair tied back in a half-ponytail.

“Valerie.” Karen began. “Neither of us know where the next batch of Azuchroma happens to be, so you know we need to make this stock we have hold out. And besides, once we find her, it should be easier to convince her to help if she sees the effect in person.” While there were no visible signs yet, Karen had noticed that the tingling in her ears had returned a few minutes before.

“That’s if we find her.” Valerie pointed out. “We don’t know for sure where she lives here, or even if she does.”

“Perhaps, but that’s just a chance that needs to be taken.” Karen countered. “And even if we don’t find her, there’s still the chance that there’s more of that growing around here.”

“I suppose so.” Valerie conceded as they continued their trek.

The two travellers in question were Karen, once a knight, now a mercenary, her time as a knight resulted in her having the skills needed for those who had the need, and the money for talented mercenaries. The other was Valerie, another mercenary that Karen had first met in the Spring when they decided to join forces for a particularly difficult job. It had been during that time that Valerie had learned of Karen’s secret, the curse that she suffered as a result of an enchanted pendant that she wore.

It had been a bit over a year ago now, since she’d purchased that pendant from that dealer. It had only been later that she realised that the pendant had a curse set on it, design to make whoever stole it become a horse. The problem for her was that it had been poorly set up, so that instead of targeting the thief, it would only affect who was wearing it. And that meant her.

Since that day, she needed to regularly eat a certain blue-petalled flower known as Azuchroma whose properties could reverse the curse she suffered, albeit only temporarily. The information that she’d been provided by a Mage soon after reversing the curse the first time told her that unless she could find the Original Spellcaster who placed the thievery charm on it in the first place, then she would never be free of the curse.

But that had not stopped Karen from seeking alternate means of freeing herself from the curse she suffered, though none of the methods she’d tried had yielded positive results. Increasingly it appeared as though she would have no choice but to try and find the one who’d placed the charm on the pendant in the first place, however long that took.

Until word had reached her of a powerful Mage, living in this forest who had a particular specialty in animal-related magic. So long as that information was true, and so long as she knew how to do it, Karen could be rid of it soon.

But that depended on one critical detail, finding her. They’d already spent the whole of the previous day, the day before, and all of today searching with no sign that anyone even lived in Dark Phawn Forest. Not all that surprising given that when they had asked around, it had been mentioned by one of the Phawn residents that the Mage’s home was marked by a torch that burned with a blue flame, which they had to be able to find before they could the Mage’s home would become visible. The torch being a part of a magical barrier was the accepted explanation.

“So what exactly do you plan to do if we find her?” Valerie asked her as they continued to walk through it.

“That’s when the situation is explained to her.” Karen replied. “And find out if she can help. If she can, good, if not…” There was no need for her to finish that sentence, Valerie knew what it would mean if she couldn’t help her.

They trekked onwards in relative silence for the next few hours, as the sun slowly slid down to the western horizon, and the Forest began to get its name with the diminishing light. As dusk descended, they managed to find a small clearing that appeared to be quite safe for the time being.

“This is taking a long time, and there‘s been no sign of her.” Valerie started up a conversation once they had a small fire going. “And the longer we spend here, the less time we’ll have for later.”

“I know that.” Karen countered, knowing the truth as well as she did.

When they passed through Phawn, where they’d learned of the Forest Mage who resided here, they had also come across postings requiring mercenaries. But not only they were at least a town away, but Karen had insisted on seeking out this Forest Mage to try and rid herself of her curse, running the very real risk that the job listings could expire before they were finished here.

And their money wasn’t looking too healthy either. Soon, they would have to take on some jobs to generate the hard currency they would need.

“Two days.” Valerie spoke up.

“What?” Karen queried, not completely sure what Valerie was getting at.

“Two days, that’s all you’re getting here, then we move on.” She added to her last statement. “We can’t afford to lose any more time than that.” The look on her face made clear the fact that she wouldn’t move on the matter.

“Two days? It‘ll be enough.” Karen relented as she finished laying out their sleeping mats. “There shouldn’t be any rain this night so this will do.” She added once she was finished.

“Dinner should be ready soon.” Valerie moved on, with their timetable agreed for the time being, the strips of heavily salted meat hung over the flames, needed to help keep it from rotting and remain edible for longer. “But what makes you sure that this can work? Given that every other such attempt to halt your curse has failed?”

“This particular method hasn’t been tried yet.” Karen supplied the answer. “And in any case, based on those accounts, she certainly appears to be genuine.”

“And there lies one problem,” Valerie started before being cut off.

“Which I’ll point out was from a lot of people saying the same thing. That usually means the information is accurate.” Karen returned. “So there’s a better chance that this can work.”

“That’s true enough.” Valerie conceded the point. “Now c’mon, that’s dinner ready now.”

They settled down for the night, thankful for the small running stream nearby that offered cool fresh water for them to wash the meat down with. It wasn’t long before they were finished with their dinner and that particular equipment stowed away in the event they needed to make a quick exit from this area. With all that done, they could now take the time to sleep.

While there was an obvious danger of them both being asleep, this Forest was usually know by the locals to be rather quiet, and both Karen and Valerie had learned to be light sleepers, so if anything did happen, they’d be up again in a flash.

The early morning sunrise didn’t actually get through the trees, but the lightening of the sky itself was enough to wake them up early the following morning. the first thing Karen noticed as she woke up was the itching by her ears, and the dull ache from the base of her spine. Checking her reflection in the stream showed her that her ears had both grown to points with a faint fuzz of brown fur growing from them, though the latter point was still difficult to see for now, and Karen knew that the ache in her spine was a tail that had just started to grow.

“Still not much progress.” Karen comforted herself, knowing that it had been a lot faster than this with previous episodes.

“Sorry, what was that?” Valerie asked as she brought out a simple breakfast for them.

“Not much changed.” Karen expanded on what she‘d said. “Just the ears and tail, and not by much.”

“Ah.” Valerie said now that she knew what Karen had meant by that. “Well, here‘s breakfast.”

“Thanks.” Karen took the food but spoke again before eating. “We’ll start walking once we’re done okay? The sooner we set out, the more time we’ll have.”

“Fine then. Just about packed up anyway.” Valerie replied as the sleeping mats were rolled up again, ready for them to resume their trek.

A trek that started a few minutes later as they followed the stream, Karen gambling that should she live here, she’d be close to running water.

The hours ticked by, the sun rising to its peak before beginning its slide back down, with little to no sign of anyone residing in the area. Until something caught Valerie’s attention.

“Over there.” She pointed to a gap in the trees to their right where a faint light came, and not from the Sun. Heading towards it revealed the source of the light.

“A blue flame torch.” Karen saw it once they were close enough. “That must mean it’s the Forest Mage”

“Only one way to find out then.” Valerie stated as they walked past it.

Very shortly after, they found themselves at a large clearing where a single, small hut stood. And in front of it, a young woman tending to a small garden. Moving into the clearing, the came just a little bit closer before,

“Hello there!” Karen announced their arrival to her, causing her to jump up and swing around.

“Oh, uh, hi there.” She sputtered out. “W-what brings you here?”

“We’re looking for a Forest Mage who’s said to reside here.” Karen answered her far more confidently. “Would you know of her?”

“Well, y-you found her. I’m Mage Tessa.” Tessa began to approach them before Valerie spoke up.

“You’re rather young.”

“Hey!” Tessa took offence to her statement. “I may be young, but I do know my craft!”

“And you certainly didn’t look very sure of yourself a moment ago.” Valerie added.

“Well I don’t get a lot of visitors here, that’s all.” The answer was enough for Karen.

“Then could you help me with something then?” Karen asked her.

“Well what is it that you need help with?” Tessa enquired.

“This.” Karen was within an arm’s reach of Tessa as she pulled back the side of her hair to show her what her ears were like now.

“Th-this is?” Tessa pressed on, seeing that Karen’s pointed ear had brown fur over most of it, and was far longer than a normal human one.

“A curse. You see this pendant?” Karen showed it to her, but made sure not to let her touch it. “It had a thievery charm placed on it.”

“You stole it?” Tessa accusingly asked her.

“No. I bought it from a merchant, but the charm itself wasn’t applied properly. Which means instead of targeting the thief, it’s only targeting its wearer.”

“Which would be you in this case.” Tessa began to put the pieces together.

“Yes. I was hoping you might know of a way to reverse its effects.” Karen came to the point of their being here.

“I believe I might.” The answer being what Karen wanted to hear, and it showed on her face. “Wait here one moment.”

As she returned to her hut, Valerie came up beside Karen. “A moment Karen.” She pulled her away from the hut a small ways before speaking. “Look at her, she’s far too young to be capable of the Forest Magic that they said she was capable of.”

“You’d be surprised.” Karen returned the fire. “Back when I was still in training to be a knight, and even after, I came across a few young, and potent mages.”

“Perhaps.” Valerie countered her argument. “But those would be exceptions, not the rule.”

Further back-and-forth would have to wait, since Tessa had come outside again, heading towards them, carrying a couple of items with her. “Good news, there is a way to stop it.”

“There is?” Valerie’s scepticism clear in her voice, though Tessa appeared to either not notice or care.

“I just need a little time to set everything up, then you won’t need to worry about it anymore.” She moved to the middle of the clearing where she began to set up something.

As the minutes ticked by, it began to reveal itself as a circle comprised of small twigs, branches and a number of flowers of varying kinds and colours, arranged in a pattern of runic symbols that Karen couldn’t even begin to understand.

“You serious about going through with this?” Valerie whispered into her pointed ear.

“I’m getting rid of this Curse, one way or another.” Karen answered with equal lack of volume. “And it looks like she’s almost ready.”

Karen was right about that, given that moments later Tessa called to her. “That’s all the preparations made. Now, I need you to sit there.” She pointed to one side of the circle opposite herself. “Then we’ll begin.”

“Like this?” Karen sat down cross-legged, having taken care not to disturb the symbols and the circle.

“Yes, now,” Tessa sat down as well, close enough to Karen to reach her. “We’ll need to maintain contact while I do this, so if you could reach out your hands.”

“And then?” Karen asked as she leaned forwards a little to make sure they had a good contact with each other.

“Close your eyes, and let me concentrate.”

Tessa’s eyes were closed, but Karen could feel a power emanating from her. Valerie must have felt it too, because she actually took a step back as a faint glow came from the circle that Tessa had made. Not long after Karen began to feel odd, feeling like something was happening inside her, the sensation especially noticeable in her ears and tail. Though Valerie could see it clearly from where she stood, as Karen’s ears lost their fur and the bulge at the base of her spine shrank back down. Yet as soon as it started, it was over.

Opening her eyes, Karen brought her arms back and raised a hand up to the side of her head, the fingers running gently over the now-normal human ears. The other hand confirming that her tail was gone too.

“It’s gone.” Karen gasped out, barely more than a whisper. “It’s gone!” That being a cry.

“I don’t believe it, she actually did it.” Valerie whispered to herself, unheard by Karen and Terra.

“Thank you.” Karen sighed, the relief beyond measure. “Anything that I can do for you?”

“Well, I have run low on a particular flower, Azuchroma being its name. if you know where it is, that would help.”

“Here.” Karen produced a small pouch, handing it over. “There’s some right there.”

“Thanks, this will help me greatly.” Tessa took the pouch gratefully. “So are you staying for now or leaving?”

“We’ll need to leave. Money is low and we need to find work.” Karen admitted.

“Well that’s alright.” Tessa reassured her. “At least now you’ve one thing less to worry about.”

“That’s certainly true.” Karen agreed. “And thanks again.”

“Anytime.” Tessa smiled as she spoke. “Good day to you.”

It was still the early afternoon so by the time the evening had ended, they were already some distance from Mage Tessa as they settled down for the night.

“We should be out of this forest by tomorrow.” Karen determined from where they were.

“And then where do we go?” Valerie wondered. “There may be new job postings in Phawn. Or we can head straight to the next town.”

“What’s the state of our supplies?” Karen asked with the intent of using that to help make the decision.

“The meat’s nearly finished, but we’ve got enough dried food to last. Our money is tight though.”

“Well if they posted for jobs in Phawn, then they should also have them in Solace. I think it would make more sense for us to head straight over there, get a job that pays well, and then we can worry about our next move.”

“And not have to worry about replacing your clothes and armour every time you outgrow them.” Valerie teased.

“Hey!” Karen cried out. “Not my fault I had that Curse causing it!”

“But it is your fault for never getting them off while you still have the chance. Last time, I had to do it for you.” Valerie kept up the teasing, referring to their Contract at Sacrobless Island which had seen Karen forced out of her clothes to save them by Valerie.

“That was for the job. But I didn’t like strutting around before it was all covered up.”

“You weren’t strutting around. You stayed in that room.” To that, Karen had no defence. “Still, it’s not something we need to worry about anymore, and besides, this will be the last meat we’ll have for a while, so let’s get into it.”

There was no argument there, Karen and Valerie filling their empty stomachs on the cooked meat before turning in for what for Karen, would be a very peaceful night of sleep.

The following day saw them resume their trek out of Dark Phawn Forest, using the stream as their guide and by the mid-afternoon, they were back in the open plains. Once they were used to the brighter light, Valerie used the Sun’s position to work out their direction of travel.

“Alright. If we head in that direction,” She pointed to the North. “We should reach the main river, we follow that downstream to reach Solace. We should be at the river by nightfall, and then about nine more days to get there.”

“Then what are we waiting for?” Karen rhetorically asked as she already began to walk in the direction of the River.

“Someone’s happy.” Valerie remarked under her breath as she picked up her pace to join Karen.

The sun had set by the time they could see the River, but the Moon gave enough light for them to make their way closer until they found a good flat spot to set up camp for the night. The food for the night being the dried ones Valerie and Karen knew could keep good for a long time.

“It’ll be good when we get there. A real hot meal, proper beds, and a good hot bath.” Karen mused once they finished eating, the dirt and sweat from their long travel showing.

“That I’ll agree with completely.” Valerie added. “Just have to make do with the River until we get there. And not until the morning.”

“Heh heh.” Karen had to chuckle at that last part, the dangers of cold water known to her, especially during cold nights. “Well, night Val.” She laid back on her sleeping mat, the cover enough to hold back the chill.

“Night Karen.”

The next morning, awake and refreshed, they took their turns cleaning off the worst of the build-up of dirt and grime before they packed up and marched downstream. Most of the day was spent making good time, reviewing the postings they remembered that had been up in Phawn to pick out a good job to take. And at dinner, managing to catch a decent-sized freshwater fish that gave them a bit of meat to enjoy that night.

This repeated itself for the next few days of travel, Karen managing to enjoy the trip properly with no Curse to worry about anymore. Something that Valerie would have to be completely blind to not notice, and even then that was at best unlikely. Setting up their sleeping arrangements for the fifth day of their trek however, Karen felt weird, especially around her stomach.

“Val? I’m feeling rather odd.” She spoke as she held her stomach, a slight moan in her voice.

“You don’t look great either.” Valerie replied, not sounding too great herself.

“Heh, same to you.” Karen wasn’t wrong, Valerie’s skin tone looked to be paler than normal. “Do you think that last fish was bad?”

“Must the reason.” Valerie decided. “It would be best not to eat tonight, and just get some sleep now. It should clear up by tomorrow.”

“True.” Karen agreed, wrapping her cover over herself tightly. “See you then.” Sleep coming to her minutes later.

A groggy feeling greeted Karen as her bleary eyes opened up to take in the morning light. Needing a few minutes to let it subside before she could free herself of the covers that were pinning her legs and arms to her, she finally worked herself up to a sitting position and looked over to see Valerie’s still-sleeping form.

And that’s when terror struck her, hard.

The unmistakable stretched ears that rose to a point, with the faintest fuzz on them.

“Valerie!”

Karen’s scream jolted her awake, and she needed a moment to get her wits about her. “What!? What you screaming about?”

“Your ears! They‘re pointed!” Once Valerie checked them with a hand, she began to shake as she worked out what it meant.

“She, she botched it!” Valerie cried out with a mixture of anger and fear. “Now what!?”

“Only one thing for it.” Karen was already packing everything away. “We’re going to have to go all the way back and have some words with her.”

“I should’ve known it was too good to be true.” Valerie grumbled, still annoyed that the whole thing had gone so wrong. “I knew she was too young to do it right.”

“Hey, nobody ever did mention her age.” Karen countered.

“We never asked.” Valerie supplied the reason why. “And now we just lost a lot of time, and possibly money on this mess.”

“Mph. Here.” Karen handed her some of the blue flowers.

“I thought you gave Tessa the Azuchroma.”

“I did, just not all of it. It might help.”

“It better.” Valerie was still not in the best of moods as they hoisted their gear onto their backs, and were forced to start heading back the way they came.