<~> CHAPTER 3

The water tasted good, like bottled water. I drank my fill before pulling off my makeshift skirt and stepping into the stream. The bottom was a bit slippery but the stream wasn't fast enough to push me over so I felt comfortable crouching down in it. The comfortably warm water pulled all the blood and grime off and made my sore muscles feel a lot better. After my experience with those creatures I decided to just take the risk with the water, I needed to clear that awful taste from my mouth and get all of this blood.

After scrubbing myself off as best I could, I climbed out of the stream and sat against the wall facing the only entrance to the little cave I had originally found myself in. The corpse of the monster was still here, untouched from the last time I left it. It had only been a few hours since I woke up here but I was already feeling a lot better. The heavy bruising that had been on my side was already fading away and the bite mark on my bicep was already almost gone.

Something was happening to me. Something already had happened to me. I looked at myself in the flowing stream, my glowing white eyes reflected back at me and I thought back to the mountainside. I have its eyes now. I have the eyes of a monster, a predator. When those creatures saw my eyes they ran... and I chased them.

I don't know where I am. I mean more than just being in a cave, this place is completely different. Creatures I'd never seen before, tunnels dug through soft stone, giant wolves with glowing white eyes... short monsters with needle-like teeth that carried weapons like people.

I tore them apart with my clawed hands... and I tried to eat that one. I may have eaten them all if they hadn't tasted so disgusting... My eyes trailed back to the remains of the wolf in the corner and my mouth began to water. I could almost taste that delicious meat. I tore my eyes away from it and closed them. I took deep breaths and tried to relax, calm my mind, clear my head.

It didn't work.

I got up and walked over to the wolf monster's body. The meat exposed to the air had changed color a little but it still smelled appetizing to my nose. I hesitated for only a moment before reaching my hand out and ripping a piece of meat from its body. My hand changed shape before my eyes as if transforming to encourage me further. My hand and claws were pitch black and swirled like smoke. I pulled the meat to my mouth and found that it too had shifted into the jaws of a wolf. I bit down and the flavor pleased my senses, it filled me with renewed confidence as I leaned forward and allowed myself to eat the flesh like a beast.

Before long I was crouching down over my meal, my body had grown large again, allowing me to better tear pieces off and pull the bones free. I tore through the meat, ripping the satisfying chunks from the carcass and eating them whole. When I reached its heart I bit into it and felt reinvigorated, the taste made my body shiver in delight and it pushed me to go even further and pick the dead wolf's bones clean. Eventually, I had eaten all the edible meat I could find and felt satisfied. I loped over to the water and took another drink from the stream before plopping down next to it and resting my eyes.

***

I woke with a start and looked around wildly. The memories returned and I realized where I was. I was still lost in the caves. I rubbed my face with my hands and looked around the room. In dead monster in the corner was now only bones and hide. I had eaten everything else...

Damn, I let myself fall asleep out in the open. What if one of those things snuck up on me while I was defenseless? I looked over my wounds and found that my body had almost entirely healed up. All that was left of my torn bicep were pale scars where the teeth marks had been. My bruised ribs and ankles didn't hurt anymore and I couldn't even find any discoloration. It had been less than two days... I think... but even if it had been longer, I shouldn't be in this good of shape already. I sighed and chalked it up to the changes I was going through.

After a quick stretch, I walked over to the remains. I looked at what was left of it. If I hadn't eaten it myself I would have probably been more disgusted but... not a single regret filled me. In my fugue, I had avoided the stomach, bladder, and colon. I had pulled them out and placed them against the wall. I also piled up the bones and put them on the other side, leaving the inside skin of the wolf wide open. It was torn at the edges where my claws had ripped into it but it was still mostly in one piece.

The hide still had a slimy coating on the inside though. I didn't know much about handling animal hides but I knew you were supposed to remove this gross stuff on the inside. I had no idea what you were supposed to treat animal hide with to preserve it though. I don't think I can do anything with this without knowing more about tanning.

I tapped the floor, it was made from solid rock just like the ceiling and walls. I wanted to get rid of the bladder and stomach before they opened and started to rot but I didn't know where to take them... I could leave them by the corpses of those other monsters I had slain, they were going to smell anyway.

I washed myself off in the stream again and packed my knife in my purse. ...My claws would probably be enough for whatever I came across. I wanted to take the creature's makeshift spear with me at least but my hands would be full. I reached out to grab the remaining entrails and my hands seamlessly shifted into black shadowy claws. I picked them up and avoided touching anything with them. If I came across another monster I would probably just throw them at whatever I came across.

While my senses told me this wasn't safe to eat I didn't feel disgusted by holding them the way I felt like I should. This felt normal like I was cleaning my den... er, room. I think whatever was happening to me was doing more than changing my body, it was also affecting my mind. That was a bitter pill to swallow.

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I shook the thought out of my head and continued down the path I had made by carving the walls. The first mark looked strange so I took a closer look at it. This was the first mark I had made so I clearly remember what it looked like, the mark wasn't as deep anymore and the edges weren't as sharp. It was like the scratches I had made in the stone were healing. I checked the other grooves I had cut into the stone on the way back to those creatures and all of them looked the same. I would have to make new marks if I wanted to continue using them to track the direction I was going. I didn't want to get lost in this maze of a cave system.

When I turned the corner I saw some kind of creature eating the disgusting bodies of those creatures. Scavengers! I threw the entrails at the thing and dashed at giant snake-like creatures. There were three of them, each had a long tube-like body with four tentacles in place of a head. At the base of where the tentacles met their body was a large hooked beak that looked sharp and dangerous.

My claws rent the first one apart in an instant and its blood mixed with the disgusting contents of the organs I had thrown at it. The monsters shrunk in front of my eyes and the large cave became cramped as I shifted. With my new size, I was able to grab both of the other snake monsters and slice their heads from their necks without even letting them go. Before I could stop myself I pulled the one in my left hand up to my face and bit into it.

Delicious

I dropped the other one and carefully pulled the snake apart with my claws, peeling the meat from the bones and avoiding the snake's ichor-filled stomach. If I hadn't wanted to eat those other creatures the last time, I wouldn't want to eat them out of this snake's stomach either. I avoided the organs this time, they didn't appeal to me so I set them aside. Once I finished the first one I ate the second. The one I had thrown the entrails at wasn't worth eating... It was mixed with disgusting fluids that I didn't want to look at, I just left that one there.

I didn't change back to my normal form automatically this time so I looked over myself. I was bigger, much bigger. I was around one and a half times my original height of 5'10". I couldn't tell exactly but that would make me around 8 or 9 foot-tall at least. I was hunched forward, not quite on all fours but I could comfortably pad around that way too if I wanted. I felt like I had better balance than normal and I could easily switch between moving upright or on my hands and feet with only minor effort. My feet looked like giant dog feet in this form, with thinner ankles that ended in large paws. My hands were a bit more in between the two. They looked animalistic, with large claws made of the black smoke I had become accustomed to but with flat palms and opposable thumbs. They felt a bit awkward but I would be able to grab and manipulate things like this without any problems.

My entire body was covered in the black smoky texture but it felt solid to the touch. It didn't feel entirely like fur though and the spots that would normally end in tufts left small trails of the smoke that slid off me before dissipating. My breasts were hidden in this form and I couldn't see any nipples or visible genitalia at all, which was reassuring. I don't know how my new instincts would handle something like that and the thought made me shudder in revulsion.

I looked around. In this form, all of my senses felt clearer and my eyes looked brighter. I didn't have any trouble seeing in the dark before because of my eyes but now everything was brightly illuminated. Even in the spots where wet parts of the walls reflected light back at me I wasn't blinded by the bright reflections, my eyes were made for seeing in this bright glowing light. It made me wonder what that wolf thinking when I shined my flashlight at it.

While testing my new senses and looking around I noticed a bundle next to one of those humanoid monsters I hadn't noticed before. I was curious and wanted to get a closer look at it but I was too large to move around the cave like this. I took a breath and tried to shift back down to my normal shape. I didn't know what I was trying to do at first but after a little bit of time something clicked and my body started to shrink. The feeling was uncomfortable, it felt like the feeling you get when you drop on one of those tall fair rides. Vertigo associated with heights was the closest thing I could compare it to.

The uncomfortable feeling in my stomach mostly went away when I returned to my normal form but it left a lingering discomfort, like I was slightly dizzy. It wasn't that bad so I ignored it for now and went over to look at the bundle. It looked like a handmade satchel, it stunk like those awful creatures but it was tightly tied closed with a knot that wouldn't budge. There were small little cut marks where the monsters had unsuccessfully tried to cut open the leather. The thing smelled bad and was torn and slashed in places so I decided I would rather have whatever was inside rather than trying to preserve it as a bag. I felt bad for whoever spent so much time making the satchel but I was still in survival mode.

I took my survival knife out and worked the serrated edge against the base of the knot. These things clearly weren't very smart, the places they tried to cut wouldn't have even gotten the thing open. With a little bit of effort, I was able to cut all the way through the cord and I pulled the bag open.

I wasn't sure what I had expected to find but it wasn't a large pile of silk fabric. I wiped off my hands and pulled the fabric out to examine it. It felt smooth and cool like silk but it was as stretchy as elastic. I was excited, It wouldn't be as good as real clothes but at least I wouldn't have to go around with my boobs hanging out anymore. I wondered if the stretchy material would be enough to survive shifting, I better not push my luck. I wrapped the silk around my chest and tied it with a loose knot that would be easy to pull apart if I needed to. Hopefully, if I transformed again without realizing it, the knot would come undone before the nice fabric tore.

I stood up and tested the fit, the loops of fabric around my chest held it in place and kept my breasts from moving around too much. This would make getting around easier and I wouldn't need to worry as much about running into someone mostly naked. There were still a few more bits of fabric in the satchel along with a crude-looking sewing kit. It looked handmade and the needles were made from bone rather than metal. I put the sewing kit in my purse and fashioned a loincloth out of the remaining silky material, it was a little crude but it was better than the makeshift skirt I had made out of my torn t-shirt. At least I felt like I was wearing underwear again, I didn't enjoy the breezy feeling I had been forced to endure since I fell into this hole.

I looked over myself, happy to finally feel clothed again and full from my... meal. I still had some energy left so I started to head back in the direction of my last turn, I wanted to explore a different path and see if I could find something new. Hopefully, a different path wouldn't have any of those gross monsters. I shifted my hands into claws and dug into the soft stone, I didn't want the marks I had previously made to completely disappear. This place was strange but I still had hope I would find my way out of here. As strange and alien as everything was, I was feeling optimistic I would be able to survive it. I didn't give up while training for that triathlon and I wasn't going to give up now. I will survive.