<div class="floatright">(https://i.imgur.com/qSKiam5.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong>Xia (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=276392.msg13585581#msg13585581)<br/><strong>Tagging: </strong>Moxie, Lauralan<br/><strong>Wearing: </strong>As pictured, chainmail, magical ropes<br/><strong>HP:</strong>20/20<strong>Armor:</strong>1<br/><hr/><br/>The voices of the ancestors were for Xia to hear, and no other.  With their collective wisdom, the half-breed thought they would guide her through this harrowing time.  They were beginning to speak!  In fact, she delayed answering Moxie, focusing on her own prayers and the answers she was receiving from her elders, her face progressively growing more troubled, any sense of calm she had quickly falling to the side.<em>Again.</em>She focused once more, intent on correcting the issue.  Surely, the spirits could be wrong somehow?<em>Again.</em>They were just confused, or upset that she'd stolen this treasure.<em>Again.</em>They were just trying to scare her, and it was working.<em>Again, again, again!</em>Each and every time, the same messages were relayed, the same insults and warnings as every time that came before.  Threats, warnings that Xia wouldn't be herself.  Warnings that she was already changed, and would never be<em>Xia</em>again.  She shivered heavily, finally giving up on the voices, and yet she still heard their threats all around her.  There was just no escape from then!  And then there was Moxie, asking about her.  "Xia okay.  Xia tired.  Xia...<strong>Xia</strong>sleep, rest."  She explained simply, doing her best to cocoon herself in her own wings, getting no real sleep despite her words.<br/><br/>The journey down to the next layer was less eventful, only the occasional bondage mimic impeding them.  Yet somehow, as she descended, it became more and more difficult to walk.  Hell, even<em>standing</em>was becoming a feat of strength.  Upon waking from one of her naps, she found herself tied by those aforementioned mimics, unable to move her arms and legs.  After some help, she was freed, and yet she couldn't feel the blood flow to her legs.  "Xia move now!"  She called to herself, doing her best to work her legs and complete the monumental task of standing up, but nothing happened.  No motion, not even a twitch.  "Please?"  She asked, wondering just how long she'd been bound up for.  "Moxie, Lauralan help Xia m-"  She paused, peering down at the area to see if there was something still binding her, but no.  There were no longer any<em>legs</em>at all.<br/><br/>Where they'd been previously, there was now just a large tail, similar to the naga that planted eggs in them, only on a smaller scale.  Turquoise and indigo clashed with her natural golden patches of scales for control, with the former two winning by a large margin.  Horned ridges covered the back of the tail, with all of it ending in the small tuft of fur that was on her tail before.<em>This</em>was her tail, and this was what her legs had become.  It took all of her control not to scream then and there.  Had she been cursed by the Green Mother for betraying her tribe's trust, for stealing?  Was this punishment for being defeated in battle so easily, for having her virginity taken?  "Xia...legs not...there.  How move?"  She asked, doing her best to keep up the lie that she hadn't known about this before.  "More monster..."  She began using her hands to crawl forward, the task make more difficult by the relatively heavy tail she dragged behind her, the half-breed silent all the way down the stairs while her inner thoughts fought for dominance.<br/>-----------------------------------------------------------------------<br/>She received some help down the climb, of course, and very,<em>very</em>slowly, she was understanding how this tail worked, using muscles to effectively "kick" off of something to propel oneself forward, but that didn't make it much easier for her.  She fell forward and faceplanted quite a few times before they reached the door that lead to the third layer, and by that time, the more destructive thoughts had reached the surface.  Her anger towards the<em>two</em>elves she'd met now, her fear of losing herself, of being feared by Moxie, of failing again and again.  Once that door opened, she took in the environment, this odd upside-down forest the Anus had provided.  "Xia..."  She started, managing to stand at a lean at last.  "Xia is Xia!"  She proclaimed in distress, having picked her direction.  Just like that, the newly-mutated naga<em>bolted</em>, using every ounce of her muscle strength to propel herself along ahead, managing to use the branches to get across the black pit.  Of course, she broke several branches on the way over, making things potentially more difficult for the others, but the goal was to lose them anyway.<br/><br/>She didn't stop her fleeing, slithering through more clumsily as she got far enough away, at least according to what she wanted.  The effort to flee was intense, and so she looked for a spot where she could rest- a set of bushes, a treetop with many leaves, anything she could use as cover.  She didn't<em>want</em>to be found anymore, and partially ruining the path towards her was a good first step to achieving that.  If she was able to find a hiding spot, she'd curl up, almost grabbing her own tail before making a sound of disgust and refusing to touch it at all.  If she wasn't able to find a spot to hide, she would crawl forward as able, breaking  some branches purposefully along the way.<br/><br/><br/><em><strong>Xia has left the party.</strong></em>