Ask about Dryad - Now that the beast is soothed, she might answer some questions willingly!

Bretta watches with half-lidded eyes as Pearl gently rubs slow circles over her tight, swollen lower belly. Each tender pass of Pearl’s hand makes the soft flesh subtly shift beneath her fingers, while the muffled movements of the kobolds trapped within cause little ripples to travel through the surface.

Pearl’s fingers sink deeper into the warmth, lingering there for a moment as Pearl gathers the courage to speak.

“S-so… what has become of the Dryad of these woods? The curse seems quite… strong…”

For a moment, there is only the sound of the bog.

Then a deep, ominous rumble rolls through Bretta’s middle.

Her eyes widen as a little bubble of air travels visibly beneath her stretchy belly, slowly rising higher and higher until it pushes up beneath her throat as a visible bubble.Then...~!

UUUUuurrrpppfffhhh~!!!

Bretta’s cheeks puff as a puff of gas erupts from her and finishes off with an embarrassed little croak. “O-oof! ‘Scuse meh~”

She pats her belly affectionately, giving it a little jiggle.

“Uhhhmm… oh yeh. The Dryad bein’ gone definitely makes all this a mess, huh?” The bog-elf glances down at herself. “Curse made me all FROGGY too…use to be a normal wood-elf... If we wan' things to go back to how they was, the Dryad would need to fix it..."

Her enormous yellow eyes drift toward the deeper parts of the bog.

“And...mmm… well… yeh... I gots an idea…”She rises with a hefty wobble, then reaches out and takes Pearl’s hand.“Lemme show ya~”

Her fingers curl gently around Pearl’s as she leads her through the murky bog, guiding her carefully between twisted roots and pools of dark water. Eventually, the two emerge into a small clearing.

Towering above them is a massive cliff face, its craggy surface pocked with dangling plantlife. Bretta releases Pearl’s hand and turns toward the cliff. Then she points.

“Up there~!” A cute little croak slips into her voice.“Them kobold guys started showin’ up not toooooo long before our Dryad went missin’! And they all seem to be comin’ from somewhere up there.”

She tilts her head. “My guess is they’re related… somehow...”

Her playful expression fades slightly as she looks back toward Pearl.

“Prollem be…it’s kinda dangerous. Fo sho. Even before the CURSE, it was dangerous. Now…”Her gaze follows the winding cliffside upward.“…well. Who knows what’s waitin’ on them rocks?”

Then her eyes flick back toward Pearl. A mischievous glint returns.

“I could offer ya a lift tho~”Bretta pats her swollen belly with an audible PLOP, making the contents inside shift noticeably.

She grins.

“Pop in me for a sec, then I hop up! I’d burp ya right out at the top…”Her grin widens.“…not like them kobos. They’re donezo~!”She gives her belly another affectionate pat.

BWOORRPRPPGGFFFFFffff

Bretta freezes. “Oof…” She looks away sheepishly. “Pardon~”“I s’pose you could use some of yer fancy magics too! I noticed you got one of them pointy caps…and a big magic stick and all~”She gives Pearl a playful wink.“Jus’ be careful. The CURSE messes with magics around these parts~”

Bretta gestures toward the imposing cliff.“Otherwise…” She steps aside, giving Pearl an unobstructed view of the climb. “…ye’ll be climbin’.”Her tongue gives a little flick.

“Who knows what you’ll see if ya do dat~?”

The choice is YOURS!Choose wisely, as we venture further into the bog, the consequences of our choices get more dire >:3 What does that mean? Find out next time~! <3Voting ends end of the day Thursday September 24th! Tie breakers will be done with a dice roll on my end.