Chapter 90: 90. Ooze

90. Ooze

We find her at the bottom of a cliff beneath some nests. I recognize her face instantly from my first day exploring outside my hometown.

“Brenda!!!” Jonny says as he fights free of the talons gripping his shoulders to fall on the cliffside. He starts sliding downhill on loose gravel, balancing on his heels.

“Fuck!” I shout as I struggle free of Gale’s grip to fall after him.

I land softly on the cliffside due to my Lightweight ability and start skating on skittering stones. I wish I’d taken Mouse Balance, but at least I’m a Fast Learner. When Jonny starts to teeter, I throw him a tether of Pitcher Treefolk Vines that loops around his waist. He uses the lifeline to keep his footing as we skid to a halt next to Brenda’s body.

I see what Aello meant. The girl is impaled through the abdomen by a sharp, pointy stone. Her breathing is extremely shallow. Anybody would assume she’s dead at a glance. The two dozen hungry Harpies perched on nearby rocks testify to the fact she hasn’t lost her pulse.

Bunch of vultures. Not literally, of course. Their body types are quite diverse.

Upon closer inspection, I realize how Brenda made it this long. It’s like how they say to never remove the knife from a stab wound. She would’ve bled out in minutes if they’d tried to move her. Instead, the impaling spear of rock kept all her blood inside, not to mention how the gut wound miraculously missed all her vital organs.

She might survive for another few minutes or a dozen terrible, agonizing hours without treatment.

I seize control of Brenda’s blood with my magic to buy me some time to think. My spell crystallizes her wound, preventing any further leakage.

Gale, Aello, Rosie, and Monal land on rock perches like the other Harpies around us.

“Brenda! Brenda!” Jonny says, tears flowing freely.

“J-Jon?”

Amazingly, Jonny’s voice awakens the weak and dehydrated girl.

“Brenda! You’re alive! Thank goodness.” She tries to sit up, forgetting her situation for a moment until the pain returns to her conscious mind in a tidal wave. “Don’t move! We’ll get a doctor!”

“What happened?” I ask the gathered Harpies.

“We captured two humans from the town to the south a couple of days ago,” Rosie says.

“I didn’t notice anyone else besides me,” Jonny says.

Monal nods. “Yeah, well, you flew in the front. Anyway, Momma told us to bring her the male, give the female to our brothers, and don’t mention this to Elder Grand Claw.”

“We didn’t even touch her!” Yellow says.

“Didn’t have time with preparations for the Celebration…” Blue adds.

Green lands close to me and says, “All we told her is that she’d be living with us from now on.”

“Except,” Red raises a wing to object, “She asked about the other human. The guy there. We… told her he belongs to Momma now.”

“Aello!” I growl.

“It was my own fault,” Brenda says. “I wasn’t good enough.”

Jonny brushes the matted hair from her dirty face. “Don’t waste energy talking. We’re going to fix you up. Alex, we have to fly to the village for a doctor!”

“I know my chances. Please, let me tell you how I feel.” Brenda takes Jonny’s hand in hers and continues. “Jonny, you were so nice showing me around town when I arrived. I fell for you at first sight, but I knew there was no way you could love a plain girl like me with an Ogre’s worn-out cocksleeve for a pussy. I’d almost resolved to put my feelings aside and serve the town as a monster Breeder when we were captured.”

I thought she might’ve become addicted to Ogre dick after serving as Bruke’s ‘hood ornament,’ but it looks like she prefers humans, or at least Jonny.

“Please understand, I’d just been freed from the Ogre Fen! I couldn’t go back to being a monster’s onahole. I thought about ending my life, but then I heard the same thing was happening to you. Alex was only a human woman when she escaped the Wolf Lord and saved me from Bruke. I thought I could do the same if I were brave enough. I imagined a future where we ran away together and lived our days as man and woman. Except, I fell when I climbed out of the nest to rescue you. I’m such a fool.”

“Brenda! I never thought of you as a plain girl, and I don’t care what the Ogre did to your pussy. I know these words are hard to believe, but I truly think beauty is skin deep! The world is full of beautiful monsters who care only for their next meal. I want you, the sweet girl who tried to pass along the bit of good that came into her life. That is, if you don’t mind sharing me with a few others? The town won’t like us living together unless I’m satisfying a couple of monster girls as well.”

Jonny definitely has the spirit of a harem husband.

She smiles up at him wanly as he beams down at her. “I can share if it means we’d be together. I wish I could hold on that long…”

They feel the same way I do… that it’s not possible for two humans to be together in this world! I just hadn’t put it into words before. Keeping people who love each other apart isn’t right. Someone needs to tell the mayor that humans should be allowed to marry each other!

There’s no way I’m letting Brenda die, that much should be obvious. I need to be smart about this, though. I know it’s not my strong suit, but you use your head, Alex!

I’ve got one use of Pink Slime Restoration per day, plus Olindia’s two. No, I can’t count on that. Olindia is with the others. By the time we reunite she might’ve used both her charges. And, if I use my healing here, what happens when one of my girls gets injured?

If I’m dumb right now, it could cost Gabby her life in the forest later. There’s no predicting where or when a powerful enemy might find us. Even when I’ve got multiple uses of healing magic, unless it’s close to sunrise, I can’t be cavalier about using it! Not when I’ve got an alternative…

“Brenda, I can save you.”

Jonny’s head whips up at me. “You can?!?”

“Oh, Alex, you’re here!” Brenda says, exuberant, but weak and fading. With all the talking she’s done and the pain she’s in, I’m surprised she’s conscious.

I nod. “I have healing magic, but my girls and I are going into battle. If I use it on you, it may cost one of them their life.”

“Ah, I see,” Brenda says as the hope fades from her tone.

“But!” Jonny objects, though I cut him off.

“I also have this,” I say, holding up a smooth dark pebble. “It’s a Slime Core. If it eats you, there’s a good chance you’ll be reborn as a Slime. It worked on a couple friends of mine.”

As far as I know, giving her an informed decision helps the transition process.

Flou slides off my frame to take her bunny-eared Fuzzy Slime shape. “Hello, I’m Flou. I used to be a bunny girl. Being a Slime is kind of a mixed bag but, if I could make the choice knowing what I do now, I’d make the same decision. To be fair, that may only be because Alex is a good partner.”

Brenda nods. “I’ll do it.”

“Wait, think about it,” Jonny says, “Alex wouldn’t say she has healing magic unless she’s willing to use it. We may be able to convince her if we—”

“No, Jonathan. She’s right. How am I supposed to feel if I hear someone else died because I refused to use the Slime Core? It’s easier on my conscience this way.”

Shame on me for not giving Brenda more credit before. “I should mention this Core is obeisant to me, so that might carry over after it absorbs you.”

“I owe you my life twice over, Alex. I think that’s fair.”

“Also, we haven’t figured out how to impregnate Slimes. It may not be possible.”

Jonny reassures Brenda this time, “You don’t have to give birth to be a mother. I’ll make plenty of children for you to dote on, no doubt!”

“Do it.”

“Brace yourself, it may hurt for a moment. Jonny, you might want to look away.”

He shakes his head. “I won’t.”

I place the Slime core on Brenda’s chest without further ado. A moment passes before the pebble covers her body with a wave of caustic slime. Skin, muscle, and bones melt before our eyes. Jonny seems somewhat traumatized by the sight, but he refuses to blink.

Most of the Harpies fly away at this point with their chances of getting a meal reduced to nil. As Brenda’s skeleton completely dissolves, I notice the impaling rock is gone too…n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

All the slime retracts into the dark gem. Then the Slime Core seems to petrify, becoming no different than any of the pebbles on the cliffside.

“That’s never happened before,” I say.

The petrified Slime Core expands and flows as if liquid despite being solid stone to all appearances. Brenda’s new body forms like a statue sculpting itself before our eyes.

She lays there as motionless as the dead, still as slate, naked as an ancient depiction of a goddess, and just as beautiful. Her transformation smoothed her imperfections, realigned the asymmetries of her face, and fixed the split ends of her once straw-colored hair.

““Wow,”” Jonny and I say in unison.

“If I’m the only reborn Slime who doesn’t get a humanoid form, I’m going to be pissed,” Flou says.

Brenda opens her eyes, sits up, and smiles at us, “Jon!”

She’s a lifelike, static statue in every moment, but those moments flow together in an illusion of movement that becomes real, like ancient human animation or maybe Claymation with a stony luster. It’s a little trippy on the eyes, but we get used to it quickly.

“Brenda!”

The two of them embrace, Brenda squishing her new beau against her bosom, except Jonny flows through her like water to everyone’s shock.

“Jonathan? Jonny!” Brenda screams and flaps her arms frantically while Jonny flails his arms around while trying to pull his head from her chest. “Alex, help!”

I take stock of the situation. This isn’t the first Slime girl I’ve had to talk through a crisis.

“Brenda, I need you to calm down. Breathe.”

“Oh, my God Beast! I’m not breathing!”

I facepalm, having inadvertently made the situation worse again.

Brenda starts trying to suck in air through her mouth and somehow fails while making weird kissy sounds. “How am I talking?”

“Brenda, focus! Please stop moving around and calm yourself. We need to get Jonny calm too if we’re going to make progress.” I put my hands on the young man and rub his back soothingly. That seems to get through to him, and he starts pointing at his throat and making an ‘X’ with his hands. “Oh, he can’t breathe, that would explain his panic.”

“I’m choking him!?! Oh, fuck, oh, fuck, oh, fuck! What do I do?”

I double-facepalm this time.

“Brenda, listen to me. I think Jonny was able to pass through you because you were relaxed. Being stressed is making you seize up. It’s just like anal sex, sweety. You need to relax for your partner.”

“I’ve never done anal before though…”

Oh, this poor girl.

“Think relaxing thoughts. Sunny days. Summer rains. I’m giving you Jonny’s hands; hold them.” Branda and Jonny hold hands while I get behind her and hug the earthen Slime girl from behind. “Shh. Clear your mind.”

After another few scary seconds spent worrying this isn’t working, Brenda’s tension seems to ease for a moment and Jonny pops free of her body with a loud gasp.

“You’re alive!” Brenda says with relief as she grabs her man in another hug (this one relatively normal).

“You’re alive!” Jonny celebrates. “And you’re a monster now. No one can keep us apart!”

“Then, you’ll have me? Even if I’m like this now?”

He tips her chin up towards him and says, “I’ll want you no matter what you become,” then he plants a tender kiss on her lips.

The two lovers continue to kiss and fondle each other as Gale, misty-eyed, lands with Bonny in her arms.

“I love happy endings!” the Harpy girl says and leans on my shoulder. I put my arm around her and squeeze softly.

“Damn,” Bonny says, “I couldn’t have him to myself for a day?”

I nudge the bigear mouse girl. “Get over there quick if you want in on the action. Their hands are drifting south…”

Bonny scurries over to the smooching couple before freezing in front of the much larger humanoids. She looks unsure how to interrupt.

Jonny breaks the kiss when he notices her standing there. “Bonny, this is Brenda from town. Brenda, this is Bonny; she’s my first monster girl!”

“Hi.”

“Hello, Bonny. I suppose I’m going to be sharing him with you from now on?”

“That’s the plan!” Jonny says with a totally understandable sunny grin.

The statuesque Slime girl turns to me next. “Alex, are you part of Jon’s harem, too? And when did you turn big, green, and scaly?”

“Kind of the reverse, actually,” I reply while awkwardly rubbing the back of my head. “I was hoping Jonny would want to be my boyfriend. As for my condition, it’s a long story.”

“Hurray, I like him!” Gale says. “He looks sexy and fun!”

Jonny looks from his new sweetheart, Brenda, to Bonny, to Gale, Flou, and back to my naked ass and swinging cock. “Where do I sign?”

I feel another get-to-know-you quickie coming when something has to go and ruin the mood.

“Alex, trouble!” Flou says.