Warp Token Update

2k words

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Rough, cold rock. That was the first sensation she comprehended, how the crumpled stone dug into the soft, underdeveloped flesh on her paws, her fingers wiggling in odd directions as she tried to comprehend the world around her. The lack of a world was a better way to put it, for she was blind, swirling darkness greeting her wherever she flexed her delicate neck.

Warmth, that was the second sensation she recognised, a heat radiating from somewhere to her left. Driven by pure instinct, she willed her feeble arms in its direction, her belly sliding over that uneven, hard flooring as she crawled. Every pull of her flimsy paws burned her from the inside, but they brought her one inch closer to that promising heat, every next movement a little bit easier than the last.

A muted squeal left her furless muzzle as she stumbled in her quest, the crook of her arm digging into a piece of sharp rock, her weak flesh splitting in a fine, long mark. The sting shooting up her limb was unbearable, but slowing down now would spell her doom. She didn’t know how she knew that, it was just her buried instincts warning her of an imminent need to move.

Her questing paws touched a lump of scraggy hair and skin, and after a bit of exploratory groping, she pulled one rearpaw over it, as mounting the lumpw as the faster way towards the warmth. She slipped in her attempt, her back compressing against the rocky ground hard, fortunately not cutting herself again in the process. The second try was better, the claws on her feet burying into a crease in the lump for purchase. The obstacle she mounted hissed in response to her intrusion, a sound that sent a chill down her spine. Hesitating in the face of instinct would spell disaster, so she did her best to ignore it, speeding up her climb as she pressed on.

Placing one forearm in front of the other, she struggled her way towards the source of that warmth, until her snout bumped against a sheer wall. She brushed it with her paws, her sense of touch helping to map out a mental image of its shape. It was mostly flawless, the malleable flesh squishing as she pressed her fingers into it, the heat practically baking her paws. She slid a paw to the left, her palm connecting with a flaw in the otherwise smooth wall. It was a protrusion, longer her biggest finger, pointing out of an orb that served as its base.

Compelled by nothing, she opened her muzzle, her tendons aching as she stretched them to capacity. She leaned over, sealing her fleshy lips over the nodule.

A thick, tasty chemical splashed against the back of her throat, a warble of delight leaving her muzzle as she sucked it down greedily. She could feel the strength in her body grow with every gulp, her fatigue from the crawl giving way to vigour, her aches melting away. Even the muscles in her biceps seemed to expand, though that might have just been her excitement at finally discovering taste getting the better of her…

Blissful growth maintained itself for moments that felt like years, until the lump behind her started to shift, draw closer. It was terribly difficult to peel her muzzle away from the little nodule giving her that magical sustenance, but some part of her mind nagged at her that danger was close, and she willed herself to stop feeding on that oh-so-sweet nectar for just a second.

She may have been blind in that moment, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t see. As that hiss repeated itself, the noise burning into her mind, the lump closing in coalesced into a wraith of darkness, brought into being by senses other than sight. One end of the lump began to split open, little sharp points forming two twin rows between the parting halves. Before she had the time to count said points, they came down, and spiked straight into her face.

Unable to scream, she was reduced to wailing out a series of muted shrieks, the little stumps that were her forelegs batting helplessly against the lump’s clamping jaws. Had she not turned her soft head in the lump’s direction, those little teeth would have sliced straight into her throat, rather than pierce into the underdeveloped bone of her tiny skull, missing her eyes by the width of a whisker. She would never stop thanking the part of her that had saved her fur. In fact, she would reward it to the point the warnings would never stop coming, her very first masterful plot.

Her little squeaks were only answered with more pressure from the teeth, her skinless muzzle set alight with raw pain. There were other lumps all around them, but they ignored the commotion, wriggling and fighting for the nodule she had just vacated.

She remembered feeling the little nubs that were her fingers, and the little spiky claws protruding out of them. They reminded her quite a lot of the teeth currently plunging into her face. Brandishing the claw on her right paw, and swung in a savage arch, ready to return the favour and cave the lump’s skull in.

In her burgeoning lust for vengeance, she did not hit the lump, her fingers falling short as she made contact with the wall, completely forgetting about it in her addled state. Her fingers raked across the pudgy mountain in four distinct lines, warm trickles of fluids splashing against her palm.

Her thin ears twitched as something howled, a scream so powerful and booming that even the lump that was biting her stopped its incessant chewing, mewling just as much as she was as their sensitive ears were tortured.

Whatever was causing the sound was gigantic, and she’d just cut it. Not the best scheme, especially when she was just minutes old.

Impending doom gripped her as she felt a presence larger than the lump appear from above, a blotch of darkness stretching out from the top of the wall. It began to spread apart, five long shapes jutting from the blotch, the shape racing towards the place she and the other lump struggled.

She knew it would be useless to run from that shape bearing down on her, but she went on trying anyway, questing paws struggling to find purchase on the other lumps as she crawled away, face and arms wet with her own blood.

The shape caught her, its span longer than the entire length of her body, darkness cradling her on all sides. She squealed as she was picked off the ground effortlessly, feeling herself travel an incomprehensible height, her tiny form quivering as she wondered what cold doom this giant shape was taking her to.

She felt light touch her clasped eyelids as the shape bloomed open, revealing her to the naked scrutiny of the thing’s owner. She could feel it drawing closer, hot breath washing over her small body, soothing the goosebumps that had curdled her naked skin. The sensation would have been rather pleasing under different circumstances.

“Unruly pup,” a deep, commanding voice boomed. “Already putting claws to use. You will make a good-good vermin in the Lord’s army.”

The owner of the voice leered closer, and she scrambled away until her butt hit the curve of her new prison, her tail (smaller than her legs), squashing against her back. Just like the few moments before the lump had taken a bite out of her face, she sensed more sharp teeth coming close, these ones longer than the length of her entire body. Whoever this speaker was, it would have no trouble devouring her.

She waited for the killing blow, but instead of feeling the sharp stab of a bite, a warm, pliable mass pressed into her front, smearing her in a slimy sheen. The tapered tip started from her belly, trailing up towards her muzzle, cleaning her of the sticky clumps of amniotic fluid glued to her body. She grumbled when the fleshy mass passed over a few pairs of sensitive points on her chest, and the owner of the voice faltered as it noticed her discomfort.

“Wait. You are… different.”

She felt a pressure fall between her legs, the owner of the voice prodding her in search of something. When it appeared satisified, it resumed its quest in smearing her in warm slaver, covering every inch of her until finally drawing the wet mass over her clamped eyes.

The flesh doted on her sockets, her gelatinous eyes shifting as the voice put pressure on her lids, inadvertently clearing away the drops of blood leaking out of the holes in her snout. The way her eyes seemed to get pushed back into her skull made her squirm in agony, but she would come to learn that pain was the first step on the road to strength, and before long she felt the muscles in her eyelids start to grow, then harden. She willed her eyes to open, first to tiny slits, then to giant orbs of wonder as she took in her first sights of the world.

A giant face filled the forefront of her vision, the end of a long muzzle suspended inches away from hers. She could see monumental walls of rock framing the head far in the backdrop, curving up toward a high ceiling, ominous green light casting the notches of stone into harsh shadow.

There was so much to comprehend, so much she didn’t understand, but she found it easier to focus back on the face, a vague sense of recognition calming her racing heart. She looked into the two red orbs it had for eyes, the inhuman irises narrowing as the face peered curiously down at her.

“You are like me…” the face crooned, its lips peeling open to expose those teeth she’d sensed before. They were even larger than she’d suspected, hundreds of curving bits of ivory jutting in and around their gums in crude angles. She noted that the shape which she was trapped in was in fact a huge paw, the five fingers curving up and away, the span of the palm easily thrice her size.

She was moved again, but instead of the harsh, quick movements like before, the face treated her like the most delicate thing in the world, curving the fingers so she had little chance of falling.

The owner of the paw pressed her into the nape of its long neck, curling its head around to shield her from the strange sounds and smells of whatever place this was. The gesture surrounded her in a pocket of soft fur, her little paws taking comfort as she rubbed the curious texture between her fingers.

The voice uttered a quiet purr, the sound soothing her as she nuzzled happily against their neck, a sense of safety draping over her shoulders. She didn’t know why this voice was taking such an interest in her, but she wasn’t about to pass up the chance to feel so wanted.

“My first prodigy,” the voice whispered, each word so deep it made her bones quiver. “Come, you need-need your strength.”

She hissed through her underdeveloped teeth as she was pulled out of that little pocket of comfort, but her annoyance soon melted away as the paws cradling her moved lower, a little pink nipple coming into view. She could see her siblings off to the right, squabbling and biting more at each other than the nipples as their instincts began to awaken. The paws shielded her from their sight, keeping her high and away from any further danger they posed to her.

The owner of the paws picked up a grey lump latched to her highest teat, moving the furious little sibling away and placing her in its place. That sweet juice splashed against her tastebuds once more, her stomach grumbling as she suckled and nursed. The paws fawned over her all the while, stroking her back with a claw, cupping her belly from below, her little limbs hanging limply through their massive fingers as she was gently lifted, as though the voice wanted to test her weight, study her anatomy.

“How tiny-small you are,” her parentrat mused, and she was certain this was her parentrat, as what other conclusion could she come to? “No need-need to fret, pup, you will grow big-large one day.”