Been having some sporadic moods involving liquid gold, so I turned that into a story about the lion paladin Rico swelling with liquid gold until he pops! Mostly inflation, but some light TF as well :3

Rico's new amulet gives him a seemingly safe golden touch, but when he uses it on himself he begins to swell with liquid gold...

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The Golden Lion (Popping)
By: Indi

Rico held up his prize so it shone in the sunlight pouring through his windows, a wide grin forming on the white lion’s face. Hanging from his paw was an amulet, its centerpiece a clear glass vial filled with swirling liquid gold. It was beautiful enough on its own, a handsome addition to the lion’s wardrobe. But it was so much more than a simple piece of jewelry.

Unseen by the naked eye, a golden aura of magic radiated off it. According to Rico’s research it granted whoever wore it the power to turn things into gold. An absolutely incredible find if true, and with how much Rico had spent on it he hoped it was. Eager to test the amulet out, Rico placed it around his neck and spoke the proper incantation, some archaic phrase he hadn’t bothered to translate.

The glow of the amulet became faintly visible. A wine goblet in Rico’s paw suddenly began turning to gold, the transformation spreading out from where he gripped it. He was startled at first, nearly dropping the goblet, but surprise quickly became glee. Servants in the room watched with awe.

“A golden touch? Wonderful!” Rico gave the goblet a quick flick with a claw, but the sound that rang out wasn’t any different than usual. “Hmm, did it only change the goblet’s color, not the actual material? Less exciting, but more useful. I could make everything I own look gold without having it become a useless paperweight in the process. I wonder…”

Rico dipped a finger into the wine itself. Sure enough, the liquid went from a deep red to a glittering gold. Out of curiosity Rico took a sip of the transformed wine. The taste was different, but only slightly so, and not in a bad way, either.

The lion burst into triumphant laughter. “Just imagine the looks on all the faces of my guests when they’re served glasses of liquid gold! My parties will be the talk of the city. I could transform my fountains too!”

Elated, Rico continued testing his incredible new power. A wedge of cheese and the platter it sat on were next. Again the taste was altered yet still delicious. He already couldn’t wait to host a golden feast. The chair he’d sat in, a table, a bowl. A rose in a vase became a golden piece of art, and Rico smiled as he plucked a petal and found it to be just as soft as ever. There was a chance all the plants in his villa could be similarly changed without issue, then.

With a flourish Rico transformed his entire outfit into gold, the material remaining comfortable. It was the perfect match to his majestic white fur, fit for a king!

“I never knew what my life was missing before today!” Rico clapped his paws together in joy.

Far too late Rico realized he’d made a mistake. His paws steadily turned gold, and then so did his arms. Worry hit the lion, thoughts immediately jumping to himself as a solid gold statue. Only when he saw how much his paws were shaking did he remember the magic touch really just changed the color of things, not the material. He let out a nervous chuckle. If wine could transform without harm then so should he.

Fear became smug superiority. “I don’t think anyone else in the city can rightfully claim they’re as golden as me!” He held up his arm, admiring how his fur shone while remaining as soft as ever. “On sunny days people will have to shield their eyes lest they be blinded by my brilliance. Maybe I’ll even reward my most loyal servants with my golden touch.”

The servants nodded respectfully, but none seemed nearly as eager as Rico was to become gold.

As Rico’s body finished turning golden, a new transformation occurred. The lion’s flat middle abruptly started swelling, inflating like a balloon. At first Rico was too busy gloating to notice, even as his robe tightened around a round belly. When he took a step forward in search of more things to transform he felt an odd weight in his gut, though, and a thick sloshing sensation.

Rico looked down, and once again panic struck.

“What...what’s happening to me!” Rico prodded his ballooning belly in dismay, trying to flatten it back to normal. Instead he merely made it wobble. “I’ve been poisoned! The wine, or the cheese, something! Bring me the healer at once, hurry!!”

The servants all rushed off, none willing to suffer Rico’s wrath—or his fate if the swelling was contagious.

Once they were gone there was nothing Rico could do but wait...and blimp. His expansion was anything but slow. The golden robes he’d swooned over gradually tore apart, unable to contain the lion’s rounding belly. The swelling kept his gut jiggling faintly and the unseen liquid within him sloshing.

Rounder and rounder and rounder Rico grew, the lion struggling to remain standing as his middle became heavy and unwieldy. Whatever was filling him spread to his limbs, his arms and legs getting puffy. Early on he paced back and forth, an awkward waddle that became more and more difficult as he expanded. As the lion’s neck puffed up the golden chain of the amulet around it magically stretched so it wouldn’t snap. Not for a second did Rico consider taking it off.

Rico had swelled so much he was starting to resemble a golden sphere. He stood in place, unable to move for fear of toppling over. His limbs were unrecognizable, round domes with paws wiggling at their ends. His neck had vanished, and his cheeks puffed up. He felt terribly heavy, the liquid still shifting around, swirling.

The pressure within him was impossible to ignore, pushing at his hide in all directions. He whimpered and groaned, very suddenly concerned he might pop. He was a noble, and a paladin! He wasn’t supposed to end up as a balloon, a golden party popper set to blow.

“N-No, it can’t end like this! I’ve been through worse, my hide won’t fail!” Rico roared. His hide was beginning to creak.

Eventually he lost balance, gently rolling atop his now spherical middle. As the lion wobbled some of the liquid was forced up his throat, trickling down the sides of his muzzle and down his rounded form. It was gold. Unseen by Rico, the stream of gold continued on until it dripped onto the floor, changing the wood into gold just like Rico’s touch did.

Just then the doors to his room swung open, the servants having returned with a healer in tow. All were shocked by how massive Rico had grown—and that he was still growing.

“Do something, heal me!!” Rico demanded, more liquid gold escaping his mouth.

The others watched as it left more patches of gold on the floor and furniture. They kept their distance, afraid of being transformed into gold if they got too close.

“What are you waiting for! I’ll explode if you don’t help me!” There was a hint of desperation in his voice. “If, if you don’t you’ll never work in this city again! I’ll make sure of it!”

The creaking was getting louder and longer. Rico was huffing, his golden face blushing and in distress. The pressure was making it difficult to concentrate. He couldn’t believe how big he was and feared his hide couldn’t handle much more. His paws were slowly getting sucked into his spherical body further, along with his head.

“P-Please…” Rico begged, struggling to remain coherent.

The healer cautiously stepped closer, making sure to avoid the liquid gold. He started casting healing spells one-by-one, but nothing seemed to work. Rico’s wiggling intensified, the creaking growing ominous. A leak sprung, dousing an ornate rug in liquid gold before transforming it as well. More appeared, the healer barely dodging them. They didn’t relieve much pressure at all, and the swelling wasn’t slowing.

Rico let out a long, muffled moan, and the golden lion’s entire body began to quake. The various onlookers took a step back, but there wasn’t enough time to flee the explosion when Rico inevitably erupted.

In an instant Rico became a flurry of scraps, as a wave of liquid gold rushed outward in every direction. The healer and servants were knocked down and completely soaked, most coughing up gold as they slowly recovered from the impact. By the time they did both them and their clothing had transformed.

The bellies of each one began to swell just like Rico’s had, prompting gasps. The villa was about to gain a few more coats of golden paint soon.