Gareth felt an immense pang of frustration toward her current situation. How long would she be stuck in a female body? "Ingrid-- it's nice to meet you. I guess we could use your help-- or I could, at least."

Ingrid tilted her head and blinked. "Oh? How can I help? I love to help others in any way I can!" She cheered as her translucent breasts wobbled like jelly.

Chalice poked her head out from around the tent, gripping it as she cautiously watched from a safe distance.

"I'm not supposed to be-- well, a girl or a dragon. I drank a potion to transform in order to complete the last trial, but it refuses to wear off." She gestured to her body with a grimace. "You're a healer, right? Maybe you can undo this somehow?"

Chalce mumbled and turned her head away. “S-- Sorry, again…”

"It's not your fault. We only got through the first trial thanks to you, so keep your chin up," Gareth warmly stated, turning toward the timid alchemist.

“Y-- You’re too nice…” Chalice sniffed as she wiped away some tears.

"Awwww! How cute!" Ingrid cooed, putting her hands on her cheeks. "Such pure bonds of friendship. I can tell you two have a bond forged through years of adventuring and hardship!"

Gareth blinked and faced Ingrid. "Actually, I've known her for a couple of days or so. I just want to give credit where it's due."

"Well, whatever!" Ingrid giggled and shrugged her shoulders. "The important thing is that you both seem nice! And you're friends now…" She suddenly quieted, a troubled expression appearing on her face. "Maybe you could stay for a little while and tell me stories of your adventures."

Chalice finally emerged from behind the tent, having decided Ingrid was likely harmless. "You really have been alone here for a long time, huh?" She asked with a hint of concern.

Ingrid weakly smiled. "Yes. It's so nice to hold a conversation after so long." 

Gareth couldn't help but feel bad for Ingrid. She momentarily stopped thinking about how strangely her clothes clung to her new anatomy and felt the urge to help. "Did you start the trials by yourself?

Ingrid shook her head. "I entered the trials with a party. All of us had received the invitation, so we joined forces and became friends."

Seeing how Ingrid was here all by herself and had obviously not completed the trials, Gareth could extrapolate that tragedy likely befell the healer in the past. She was generally cautious but felt a tad sentimental; whether or not it was due to the estrogen was debatable. Her eyes widened mid-thought as she suddenly remembered what she was asking Ingrid before getting sidetracked. "Miss Ingrid. You're a healer, right? If you can contribute to our party's success, I don't see why you couldn't join us."

Ingrid's eyes widened in awe as she completely froze. "W-- What!?" She trotted toward Gareth, her glistening form wobbling and jiggling with each step. "You'd really take me?" She clasped her hands around Gareth's, giving a gentle squeeze while her butt wiggled.

“H-- Hey…” Gareth blushed, shifting her eyes away from Ingrid. 'I guess she doesn't do personal space. Still, she smells good and seems nice…' A citrusy, floral scent emanated from the mysterious woman. "Like I was saying. I'm not supposed to be female. Is this something you could fix?" She asked as her dragon tail flicked from side to side.

Ingrid thought long and hard, scrunching her brow as she stepped back. "Hmmm…" She placed two fingers on her chin before walking around Gareth in a slow circle, giving her a thorough lookover.

"What are you doing? Can you help me?" Gareth asked somewhat sheepishly, instinctively trying to withdraw from the healer's gaze.

"I'm not completely sure, but maybe! I don't see why it wouldn't be possible," Ingrid chimed, stepping back as she stopped her inspection. "Let me try a couple of spells. Do you mind?"

Gareth hesitated before nodding when her breasts suddenly throbbed. Her aching nipples and the strange pressure between her legs made a strong argument for escaping womanhood as quickly as possible.

With that, Ingrid smiled and nodded her head. "I will try my best! I would love to travel with both of you, so I can't fail here." She pumped her fists and gave a determined look.

The next couple of hours were spent getting to know one another while Ingrid attempted to find a spell or method of fixing Gareth's physical state. Ingrid occasionally tried a bit, and then they'd chat while she went through her spell book.

Apparently, Ingrid was from a species that had only existed on Earth for the last two hundred years. The wizards of a scholarly nation found meteorites with strange, magic properties. Her race of 'slimes' was the result of alchemical experiments on the magical, seemingly sentient magical materials within the sediment.

Ingrid journeyed through the Trials of Gaia with a party totaling five in number. She was vague on the details, but the rest of her group perished years ago, leaving Ingrid to flee through the gate to this trial, where she remained for ages.

Most importantly, Ingrid was a high enough healer to treat many injuries and ailments. Even broken bones could be fixed in minutes. She should be a perfect fit for the team as long as she wasn't exaggerating her abilities.

The conversation segued into a discussion regarding their current trial. There was apparently a dormant gate somewhere deep in the forest. The problem was that its energy signature was too weak to provide an easy tracking method. Gareth realized this was her chance to shine. 'My seeker ability should be useful here.'

Eventually, Chalce and Ingrid got talking and decided to work together. Combining their skills, they made a healing potion with curse-breaking properties. The clear fluid glowed with a pale light and gave off warmth.

"So, is it really safe to drink this?" Gareth asked, feeling skeptical as she held the flask up to inspect.

"Of course it is!" Chalce grinned, giving a thumbs up. "The genius apprentice alchemist, Chalce, had her hands on this potion, so the quality is guaranteed."

Ingrid smiled warmly, putting her hands together. "Chalce was a huge help! All we can do now is see the results."

Gareth frowned as she let out a sigh and uncorked the flash. She sniffed it, but there was no scent of any kind. "Urgh…" Her breasts ached, reminding her there was no time to lose. "Bottom's up." She opened her mouth and chugged the fluid down. It tasted no different than ordinary water, but her whole body immediately tingled.

"Oh! You're glowing!" Ingrid cheered.

“Urgh-- yeah… I guess I am…" Gareth groaned as she broke out into a profuse sweat. Just what the hell was happening to her now? These were just the sensations of the whole female thing wearing off, right? When her tail and wings prickled and began to recede, elation coursed through her. "I think it's working!" She excitedly exclaimed.

"Yeah!!! It's doing something!" Chalce cheered, pumping her fist into the air.

"You're doing a great job, Sir Gareth," Ingrid softly stated, offering a warm smile.

"It's not like I-- I'm doing anything but going along for the ride," Gareth grunted. Her bones shifted and popped, and she quickly gained a little height. Considering she shrunk when becoming a dragon girl, she figured it was a good sign if the opposite occurred. "I-- I'm getting taller!" She said with a wide grin before groaning again from the strange sensations.

It was then that something concerning occurred. Despite growing in height, she felt like her ass was expanding and straining against her already ill-fitted pants. “W-- Wait… Something might be wrong." She suddenly moaned, her already inconveniently sized breasts inflating. "Th-- they're getting bigger!" She cried in horror, staggering forward a step.  

“O-- Oh… Maybe this isn't right," Ingrid said with concern, touching her cheek.

"Nonsense! Sometimes things get worse before they get better, so let's just give it a minute!" Chalce insisted with unyielding confidence.

Ingrid flashed a quizzical glance toward Chalce. "Oh? Is that saying usually true for alchemy?"

"Errr… Well, it's not a rule of alchemy, but people say it, right?"

"W-- Wait, what? What does that mean?" Gareth squeaked. "I-- oooooh!" She suddenly grew a couple more inches in height, her hips widening as her pants completely tore off and fell to the ground. Gareth turned bright crimson and shakily raised a hand over her crotch. "What's happening to m-- mooooo!" She trembled, letting out a guttural moo as she put on muscle. While remaining wholly feminine, strong abs were clearly defined, with her arms and legs both powerful and supple.  

"Oh dear. Are you in any pain?" Ingrid cautiously inquired.

“F-- Fuck, I-- Mooooo!” Her tits grew past F cup and tore through her top's flimsy, white fabric. They exposed themselves to the warm, balmy air with a healthy jiggle, her nipples pink and erect. Looking down in horror, she shakily turned and attempted to hold an arm over her chest.

All Gareth managed was to agitate the sensitive points, causing them to throb as waves of pain and pleasure rippled through her heaving melons. "Mm--ahhh!" She gasped, withdrawing her arm as she stumbled a couple of steps and placed a hand against a tree for support. A constant throbbing nestled deeply between her thighs, threatening to drive her mad.

"Or-- something could be wrong," Chalce finally muttered, clutching her wrist hard enough to show the whites of her knuckles.

Gareth's legs and arms lengthened along with her torso. Her dragon horns had shrunk as her ears elongated and crept upward on her head. 'What did I do to deserve all this bullshit?' She lamented

"Oh! I think I know what you're becoming, and it's definitely not human," Ingrid chimed.

Gareth's blood briefly ran cold before adrenaline and her body's changes overwhelmed her. She neared seven feet in height while a painful prickle quickly enveloped the length of her tail. The serpentine appendage thinned, and the scales disappeared as reddish-brown fur sprouted and spread up the length.

Most frustrating for her were the unrelenting hormonal surges that coursed through her body like a mighty river. A voice deep inside screamed for her to probe her new, feminine sex and explore her body. She also briefly considered how it would feel to have these gorgeous, round tits fondled.

Chalce stood with a look of bewilderment while trying to determine the best course of action. She took a couple of steps toward Gareth but stopped, unsure of what comfort she could offer. "Y-- You're doing great! I believe in you…" She weakly cheered, half-heartedly raising a fist.

"You're not hel--oooooh!" Gareth squealed as her new, cow-like tail took shape, her ears having changed in suit, turning the same reddish-brown. Without warning, a euphoric burst erupted from the folds of her female flower. Her clit and pussy hole quivered, the latter of which leaked hot, sticky secretions.

And just like that, the changes finally stopped. Gareth had given up on modesty, instead leaning against the tree, panting. Her tall, muscular form glistened with sweat, her whip-like tail manically swishing.

She stared down in utter disbelief, taking in the shape of her perfect, mountainous tits. "I-- I-- what? Why?" She squealed, turning a frantic gaze toward the girls. "You s-- said this would cure m-- mooo!" Her sentence trailed into a cute, feminine moo, causing Gareth to blush in humiliation.

Ingrid considered the situation that unfolded before her eyes. The undeniable truth was that Gareth had not reverted back to her original form. Instead, a seven-and-a-half foot tall minotaurus with a muscular yet supremely feminine shape stood before her. Gareth had reddish-brown hair matching the fur of her tail and ears and her small cow horns atop her head. She had pronounced hips, a tight waist, and tits that could feed an entire nursery. "It seems as though you're a minotaurus! On the bright side, you likely have unparalleled physical strength and stamina."

"There is no plus side to this! I just want my dick back already!" Gareth grunted. Suddenly realizing she was fully nude, she gasped and hid behind the tree before poking her head out from behind. "How do we fix this??? You can't expect me to stay a damn woman into the extended future, can you?"

Chalce turned her head away and scratched her neck. "Well, umm… It's more like, even if you don't want to be this way, we might not be able to do anything about it right now."

Ingrid nodded. "May I give my opinion?"

Gareth let out a deep sigh before speaking through gritted teeth. "Fine. Yes. What is it?"  

"The forest we need to search is quite dangerous. Having a minotaurus with us may come as an advantage. Why don't we try to find the exit portal while you still have such immense strength?"

Gareth winced. She knew sitting around brooding while trying to find a cure would be a waste of time. By this point, they had already wasted enough time; it seemed she would have to begrudgingly continue onward in this new shape.  She might just be in this for the long haul.


~~~


Read part 5 here: [MTF, CYOA story series] - Trials of Gaia: Part 5