Fire Knight Katrina Ch. 14

Chapter 14: The Animal Within

The duo of naked saviors was praised for their work at the main road as a prison carriage with Xiala was leaving for Zardiw at sunset. The villagers got really tactile with their thanks, especially when they decided to throw the nudies into the air while praising them as heroes, filling the entire village with joyful screams and laughter. Unlike the townsfolk, these men also had strong grips hardened by labor, which felt quite unusual on the girls' tender, bare curves. After a couple dozen minutes of praise, Katrina didn't have a single spot on her body that isn't felt up by these crude hands, and she was all for it. After all, it was hard to blame the villagers for being so eager since many of them saw the naked beauties for the first time. Sophia wasn't as excited, though, and tried her best to avoid the massive attention they've been getting with her cheeks getting even rosier than before.

Katrina and Sophia were offered the best beds in the village chief's house, but the redhead didn't want to cause any discomfort and needed to teach Sophia to not rely on comfort before their future travels, so she offered another variant: hayloft. Sophia twitched like she was possessed when she realized that instead of a soft featherbed her tender naked body will be resting on a bunch of dry hay. Of course, Katrina ended up convincing her companion just like she always did. It didn't take much effort at all, since the blonde agreed with surprising enthusiasm upon the knight saying that they'll cuddle and snuggle up to each other if it gets cold during the night. They went to their haybed right after Katrina told Ash her bedtime story in the nearby barn. The redhead was very patient with the animal, gently stroking her fur while speaking in a soothing tone.

"You know, they say you can tell a lot about a person by the way they're treating their pets," Sophia said with a smile when they lied down on the layer of dry weed.

"Alright, I'll make sure to treat you nicely then," the redhead winked playfully.

"Katrina!" Sophia opened her mouth in surprise before throwing some hay at her buddy.

"Oh, you gotta be more open for teasing!" The knight showed the blonde her tongue as she retaliated.

It was a big mistake, as the next piece of hay landed right into Katrina's mouth.

"Sorry!" Sophia mumbled under her breath when the redhead was spitting, "I-I didn't want to... I'm fine with your jokes, it's just, you know... I'm kinda new to all this."

"You mean our amazing and correct way of living?" Katrina gently rubbed the blonde's shoulder.

"Yes... I mean, I'm adapting I guess, but you are... I feel like you can do anything. Even today, you seemed so carefree when the folks praised you... I'd never let their hands explore me so freely, you know, even down there."

Sophia pointed between her legs, hinting at the fact that Katrina allowed some of the villagers to caress her pussy for a bit, not showing even a slightest bit of shame for something that'd feel like a nightmare for the majority of Tholcing women.

"Eh, they were really into it and I didn't wanna be a spoilsport," Katrina smirked, her eyes shining with confidence, "I simply see all of it as natural. And if it's mother nature herself commanding you, why not embrace it? You're doing quite well too, by the way. The shackles of your so-called modesty are slowly falling off... Our travels help a lot!"

"T-that's one way of looking at it," Sophia giggled with embarrassment.

"But I'm sure you had some experience even before we've met, it just wasn't enough to make you truly enjoy it. With men, I mean," Katrina winked again, this time more suggestively, "some teasing, accidental touches, half-joking flirting, no?"

"Well..." The priestess was at a loss for words.

"Anything?!" Katrina asked, suddenly nearing the blonde's pussy with her face so close that their lips were almost touching.

"Maybe!" Sophia smirked and turned away, hiding her bits from the redhead's eyes.

But there was something wrong with that smirk. It was cold and heartless, totally unlike the usual expressions of the naive yet jolly priestess Katrina came to know. It was fake, the redhead was sure of it. Somehow, this conversation wasn't pleasant for Sophia. So, for now, Katrina decided to end it. They still needed to get some rest, after all.

"Well, no matter. What matters is that we'll become great heroes together, and we'll do it butt-naked," the redhead pressed her beautiful body against the priestess' back and enveloped her arms around her body.

"Yes, we will," Sophia became calmer, burying her head between Katrina's large breasts, "I'll be helping you for as long as you need. No oath is gonna change that."

That last phrase was whispered by the blonde when she was already falling asleep, probably she didn't even meant to say it. Katrina wanted to ask what she meant at first, but soon felt the tiredness weighting her down and fell asleep herself. The girls kept themselves warm with each other's bodyheat, Sophia felt safe and protected in Katrina's embrace while the redhead found the priestess' quiet breath to be very soothing. The lack of fancy beds didn't stop them for enjoying their rest and the night turned out to be quite nice... Up until a scream from outside woke both nudies up.

"They're here again, stand your ground!" One of the guards shouted, his voice nearly drowning in savage roars.

With silent understanding, the girls rushed outside with hay straws falling down from their gorgeous figures. What they saw on the street was surprising to say the least: Harred and Thomas, who came in early in the morning with several guards to assist the villagers, stood off against several dozen of feral animals. Mostly wolves, dogs and cattle, although this odd army also had a bear and a boar with them. Their eyes were purple and mindless, their jaws dripped with murky saliva and their movements made them look like puppets in someone's cruel game. They were all cursed.

"Some wizard is at it again!" Harred said as she shot his crossbow, nailing one of the crazed dogs.

"Let's grant the poor beasts a quick death," Thomas swayed his sword with a nod.

"Alright, I'll take the big one!" Katrina confidently pointed at the bear, baring her shiny sword, "where did they all come from, though?"

"Some of those crazed mages must've cursed them last night!" One of the villagers shouted, too horrified to ogle the naked girls, "I saw odd purple shining coming from the nearby trees, and when we woke up, all remaining animals went crazy! We couldn't save any of them!"

"I feel sorry for your loss, and... Wait, Ash!" Katrina's eyes suddenly widened as she turned towards the nearby shed.

The door was broken with immense force, as if it was kicked from inside until it couldn't hold anymore. Katrina heard Sophia's gasp, but, as she soon realized, not because of the shed. The gasp was caused by a large, black-furred figure standing beside a couple of meek wolves and threatening to kick down a door into someone's home with her massive hooves.

"Ash?!" Katrina yelled, yet the animal didn't seem to notice at all.

"I gotta..."

"We understand," Thomas replied after hearing the redhead's unsure voice, "take care of it and then help us with the rest."

With a swift nod the firewielder bolted forward, chopping both wolves to pieces with her masterful sword strikes. Her once loyal horse was now in the full view of the naked knight, but the animal's gaze was murky and absent as if she was blind. Katrina called out to her companion, desperately hoping it'll have some effect, but nothing happened. Ash neighted with devilish glee and charged towards her owner with an evil intent. Katrina put down her sword and hoped to catch Ash by pulling her reins... But suddenly, the horse turned around and tried kicking her with her heavy hooves. The redhead barely dodged the attack, but when she was about to get closer to Ash, the horse screamed once again and fled the village at a full gallop.

"Ash! Stop, my girl, please!" Katrina cried out, sprinting on her two bare feet, but even her athleticism wasn't enough to catch up to a trained horse.

The redhead had to come back and help the guards deal with the rest of the crazed animals. One by one they were brought down by the sharp axes, swords, and pitchforks of the locals. Some, however, were driven back by Sophia's blinding magic. Katrina, however, dealt with the threat more swiftly, using her blades as well as fire, which didn't spare the cattle but at least gave their owners hopes for some tasty meat afterward. Before too long, the redhead found herself in a pig shed with her legs ankle-deep in mud and several crazed pigs surrounding her naked posture.

"Hmm, maybe they won't be aggre..." She thought to herself right before the pigs squealed all at once and viciously attacked the girl from all sides, causing her to fall down.

In the next second, a sparkling circle of flames erupted from where Katrina was lying and burned all of the beasts to a crisp.

"Ah, hell!" One of the farmers furiously threw his hat off, "you overdid it with the fire, the meat's all lost!"

"Better worry about that later," Katrina stood up, dirty like a pig herself, "just be glad that you didn't become meat for them!"

Finally, the beasts were driven back, at least for now. The guards were lucky not to lose anyone, but everyone understood that it wasn't a victory since the wizard himself didn't show up. Katrina was especially heartbroken, as the cruel mage took her animal companion that was with her ever since Dumsin was sent ablaze. Yet, the redhead wasn't going to give up easily: the first thing she did was asking Thomas and others where that damned lunatic could be.

"There are only rumors," the lieutenant shrugged, "it's said that the Beastmaster, as locals call him, lives somewhere in a hut deep in the woods."

"Yeah, the damn maniac hides quite well," Harred added, running his hand through his beard, "wears a deer's skull as a helmet, I've been told, to better mix with the wildlife. Has some weird motto about releasing all the animals from their slavers or something, a looney for sure."

"So we'd have to sweep through the entire forest to find some mudhut that's barely..." Katrina started, yet a loud female voice cut her off.

"I saw him!" A broad-shouldered woman with short, dark hair and stocky stature covered by a modest dress screamed as she run into the village, her hair still wet from a recent swim, "I saw the wizard!"

"Oira, my pumpkin!" Harred rushed to his wife and let her embrace him.

"He was there, by the lake, that monster who stole all of our cattle!" Oira pointed north with angry tone, longing for justice, "I saw where he went!"

"Well, that's something!" Katrina's eyes shone with hope, "tell the tale, Oira, and you might get your cattle back before the nightfall!"

The entire village gathered to hear what Harred's brave wife had to say. Katrina didn't take her for a talkative type before, since she rarely spoke a word before today and didn't seem too pleased about the two heroines walking around in their birthday suits. This story, however, painted a different picture. It all started when Oira went for a swim in the lake, she said, to calm down a bit after Xiala's fires. The woman paused a bit describing how she got naked before going into the water, as if it was something awkward, which Katrina didn't get. Oira said she heard rustling of the leaves and someone's footsteps near the lake, so she hurried to get her clothing to not get ogled. This part Katrina didn't get at all, but was too occupied worrying about Ash to ask. So, Harred's wife got to the point where she stepped on the solid ground, completely naked and with water dripping down from her shapely figure.

Only a couple steps separated her from her dress, and that's when she saw The Beastmaster. Oira wasn't a cowardly woman, Katrina could easily see that in her sturdy gaze and posture, but the way she described that wizard truly made him seem like an imposing foe. A tall, hooded figure wearing a dark archmage robe that was completely ruined by its owner's wild living. A skull of some poor deer covered the man's head, its antlers so big they could barely fit in-between trees. Oira stopped in her tracks when Beastmaster cast her gaze on her. He was approached by a roaring wolf with clearly violent intentions, yet didn't give it a kill command. The wizard seemed confused by something... As if he couldn't decide what he was seeing right in front of his eyes.

"Magnificent creature," he spoke, observing Oira's naked body with his murky gaze, "or are you simply a human imposter trying to pass off as one of those living in these waters?! Tell me the truth!"

Oira couldn't speak a word. She walked back very slowly, trying to escape Beastmaster's gaze under the tall grass. In this desperate attempt, the woman got on all fours and layed low, staying completely silent. The man stepped closer to her and she felt her heart pumping so hard it nearly left her chest. Yet, Beastmaster didn't attack her. Instead, he simply gave the naked woman a headpat and gently touched her neck with his long fingers, as if she was a stray cat.

"Run along now, little thing, beware of the humans!" The insane wizard said as he walked away.

"This was absolutely humiliating!" Oira complained with her head up high.

"How interesting," Katrina commented, "it seems like our horse thief has a hard time telling humans and beasts apart."

"M-maybe his mask makes it h-hard to see," Sophia suggested, "so he looks for things like clothing or someone walking on two legs..."

"Absolutely!" Katrina clicked her finger with obvious satisfaction, "so we'll need nudity and some acting, I'm sure we won't be in a short supply!" The redhead finished by slapping her blonde's friend naked butt, causing her to twitch with a shy smile.

The villagers exchanged whispers and giggles, some already realizing what Katrina was planning.

...Half an hour later, everyone understood the shameless redhead's idea fully, as they saw her and Sophia both standing on all fours with their perky butts up in the air and dog collars on their beautiful necks. The firewielder was surprisingly comfortable in this role, wiggling her ass to the crowd's amusement and joking about her position, all in an attempt to lift the morale. It was quite effective, too.

"Are you s-sure there's no other way?" Sophia asked with a deep sigh, trying her best to cover her exposed backside.

"If that's what it takes to get Ash back, then no. Don't worry, sunny, we've planned everything, trust me!" The naked knight winked.

This seemed to calm the priestess down a bit, even if her face was still burning with shame and her hands nearly trembled under the crowd's gazes. Thomas also felt a little awkward, even though he stayed completely dressed and was simply tasked to hold Katrina's leash by which he'd walk her to Beastmaster like a loyal dog. Most men would pinch themselves if this gorgeous redhead would suggest something like this to them, but Thomas was trying his best to focus on his duty... And keep his today's adventure secret from Amelia.

"Good luck, I hope you'll show that madman what the Tholcing folks are made of!" Oira looked over the nudies with a confident gaze, but only found confusion in their eyes.

"What do you mean, pumpkin?" Harred asked with a chuckle, "you're going with us! Here's your collar!"

"What?" Oira looked at the girls with some new emotion, as if comparing herself to them, "you want me to... Like... No, what are you even thinking?!"

"Miss Oira," Katrina got to one knee, trying to sound as polite as possible, "we need you. You're the only one who saw where Beastmaster went. If we're to find him, we'll need you to guide us. Otherwise, all of your cattle and my horse are doomed!"

"I... No, I could just go in clothes and..." Oira looked around, realizing what everyone around was expecting of her with sheer horror on her face.

"That's too dangerous, girl," Harred replied as he wrapped his hand around Oira's waist, "we don't want his beasts to attack you, do we? We're setting a trap for that lunatic, and we need you to help us, but also be safe!"

"I can't do that! It's not happening!" Oira said as she turned around to leave.

"Oh, come on now, we're wasting time here! I need my pet back!" Katrina suddenly got up and stared the woman down.

Before Oira knew it, the redhead bolted towards her and ripped her dress off her shoulders.

"Sorry, my gal, but we truly need to get moving! Harred, help me out here!" Katrina said as Oira attempted to grab her clothing back.

"It's all for the greater good, pumpkin!" The bearded man let out a laugh as he began undressing his wife in full view of everyone despite her protests.

Other villagers joined as well, eager to have their animals back. Soon everything Oira wore was completely torn up and scattered around the road, with the shapely woman standing completely naked in the middle of this chaos with a shiny collar on her neck and the reddest blush Katrina ever saw. This reminded the redhead of Sophia when the two just met and she barely contained a smile. The priestess also felt empathy for the reluctant woman, trying her best to comfort her, but to no avail.

"You're all insane!" The woman grunted at Harred while covering up her alluring privates, "my rolling pin shall have your head this evening!"

"Alright-alright, just help us save the animals and do whatever you want, my pumpkin," he said and smiled so warmly that Oira couldn't stay mad at him any longer.

"Let's just get this over with!" She shouted with reluctant acceptance and got on all fours, trying her best to ignore the stares and remarks of her friends and neighbors.

Soon, the three naked girls went into the woods, moving like a bunch of domesticated animals under the firm gaze of the guards that held their leashes. Thomas was leading with Katrina by his side, then came Harred along with Oira, who couldn't stop arguing with each step and each new piece of dirt on her nude body, and, finally, Sophia with an awkward yet loyal private who seemed just as embarrassed as she was. Beld would've given everything to be here today, Katrina thought, but he could get too excited and disrupt their mission.

Despite complaining, Oira was leading the six quite well and showed exactly which trail Beastmaster walked on. The dark-haired girl recognized where the wizard went afterwards too and tried her best to work with her memory. The overall plan was quite simple: Beastmaster had to see three humans who have "enslaved" animals that want to break free. The wizard, fueled by his maniacal ideology, would come to the beasts' rescue and expose himself. Then the antimagic potions and enchanted handcuffs will do their job and the curse will leave these lands for good.

The company moved slowly and carefully with frequent ouches from the girls who obviously didn't have it easy moving in-between stones and bushes in the nude. Thomas and his men were on high alert, fixating on every sound as if waiting for an ambush. They passed some cursed cattle, but the animals simply ignored them, instead focusing on the grass beneath their hooves. After several minutes of walking like this, the company heard a faint growling coming from the nearby greenery. The guards turned towards the sound in unison with their weapons ready, but only saw a helpless cub there. It had murky eyes, showing the curse, but didn't attempt to attack. Instead, it ran away deeper into the woods, like a scout trying to inform his kin about invaders.

"Follow him!" Thomas commanded, hoping that the animal would lead the odd group to Beastmaster.

They had to start running, the ouching from the naked girls becoming much more frequent as they quickly moved their limbs to keep up with the men with their breasts jiggling back and forth. Finally, they neared some sort of a den, although no hut was visible. Thomas drew his sword as the trees began rustling even louder than before. A second passed and about a dozen wolves came out of their natural hiding, surrounding the humans.