Bloodhoof Strength- Part 2

Baine finds a way to keep his new powerful physique, and one more heroic act under his belt! Enjoy, folks- see you in August!

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Baine had never felt like this before. It was close to being pleasantly drunk; he felt light-headed, but at the same time, like he could do anything. He was still riding high off a victory that, for once, was entirely his own- with a bit of diplomacy and a glorious display of strength, the Tauren High Chieftain had reunited all the clans and tribes of Thunder Bluff under one banner, bringing the Grimtotem back into the fold and correcting what he saw as one of his first great failures. Flush with confidence and the renewed faith of his people, Baine also had another reason to feel empowered- he had not beaten the Grimtotem's chieftain, Magatha, as his unaltered self, after all. The tauren had used elixirs to augment his strength, and as a result, the bull was a juggernaut- every part of him was packed with dense, swollen muscle, making him the largest and strongest tauren in perhaps all of Azeroth. The only complication was that his bloated muscles and awesome strength were dependent entirely on a steady supply of Elixirs of Giant Growth- and he had started to run out.

The Chieftain was seated in his hall, frowning as he looked down at his engorged body- his chest like a shield wall, his powerful, thickly roped arms that could punch through stone walls- he didn't want to give it up. He looked up when one of his closest advisors, Jevan Grimtotem, entered. A taciturn and dour tauren with dark fur, he was nonetheless loyal to Baine, and had been rewarded with the new title of chieftain of the Grimtotem. He had also, begrudgingly, traveled to Orgrimmar to keep Baine's supply of elixirs steady.

"My Chief, I have two pieces of news from Orgrimmar. First, I regret to say that there are no more Elixirs of Giant Growth to be found."
Baine snorted, sitting up. "What? That can't be! There's not even-"
"Nor Darkmoon Firewater either, Chief Baine," he replied grimly. "Secondly, you have a visitor from the Horde Council."

"A visitor? Jevan, I'm not ready to receive anyone-"

"Not even an old blood-brother?" a familiar, deep voice rumbled.

Stepping from behind Jevan was a powerfully built orc- though he was now dwarfed by the huge tauren. His eyes were bright and sharp, and his face was still as regal as any orc's could be. Thrall, if he was surprised by Baine's appearance, didn't show it. "I came to offer the Council's congratulations on your victory, my friend," he began. "Though Orgrimmar would have been happy to assist our closest friend and ally."

"As you can see, no help was needed," Baine said guardedly, though he did curl an arm and puffed up his powerful chest, showing the sheer breadth of his musculature.
Again, if Thrall was surprised or awed, he didn't show it. "Indeed. I've noticed you've sent Jevan and others to buy up as many elixirs as you can afford- you have bled the market dry."

"What of it?" Baine said shortly. "I've not broken any law, have I?"

Thrall held up a hand, and here, he showed his first sign of concern. "Baine, be at ease. I was merely curious why you needed all of it."

Baine huffed, feeling defensive. "Yes, well. You're not Warchief anymore, Thrall. Thanks to you, there is no Warchief. I don't have to answer you."

Thrall exchanged a look with Jevan, who only offered an apologetic glance. "No… I'm not. But I am Overlord of Durotar- I'm your peer, and your friend. What has you so agitated? Is it the elixirs?"

"No!" Baine shouted, leaping to his feet. "No… it's that I don't have enough. And…" he held up his arms, looking admiringly at the immense, sculpted muscle. "I want… I want to stay this way. Permanently."

Thrall stared at Baine with a straight face. "Do you know what you're asking? You would alter yourself just to feed your… what, your pride? Your vanity? I've seen what this sort of obsession with strength can do- any orc on Azeroth will know that lesson intimately."

The tauren glowered at the orc. "Spare me the lecture on fel blood, Thrall. I'm not on the verge of selling my soul."

Thrall crossed his arms. "Well, then you should have no problem letting this go. This was a passing fancy- and that's where it has to stay. Baine, the years have showed us time and time again- be it the Bloodtotem, the Vrykul, or Sylvanas- scraping for more and more strength with reckless abandon leads only to disaster."

Baine sighed, still wearing a pout as his chin sunk to touch the top of his chest. "Fine. No more elixirs."

Thrall nodded. "I suggest you wait this out- you'll be feeling back to your old self in a few days time, I'm certain."

The tauren chieftain offered a half smile. "Right, of course."

Thrall said his goodbyes, leaving Baine alone with his thoughts. The tauren still saw no shame in wanting to be stronger- perhaps it was self-indulgent to revel in being the size of a mesa, but when was the last time he had even been allowed to indulge, at all? The tauren grunted in frustration- knowing Thrall, he had already told the other Horde Council members. He wouldn't be able to find any more of the elixirs fueling his augmented muscles from Gadgetzan to Silvermoon.

Defeated, and increasingly feeling deflated, Baine was left to stew for a day, until another visitor made his presence known. Without waiting for formalities, tall, robed figure strode into Baine's hall. His long, pointed ears and faintly glowing green eyes marked him as Sin'dorei, a blood elf. Baine's eyes soon widened with recognition.

"Rommath?" The chief stood, on slightly uneasy legs- the elixirs had begun to wear off, and some of his augmented strength was sapped. "What business does the Grand Magister of Quel'thalas have here in Thunder Bluff?"

"Chief Baine," Rommath bowed his head curtly. "My business is with you." The blood elf studied the tauren silently for a moment. "I see the accounts are not quite so exaggerated as I had been told- you have been using elixirs and potions to grow yourself. A show of strength, then? Vanity?"

Baine frowned. "If you've come to experiment on me, Rommath, I'm afraid you'll need to find another lab rat."

The blood elf held up his hand. "Far from it. I've come with a proposition. I gather you want to keep this form, don't you? Or perhaps, grow stronger still? I know about Thrall's warnings to the Council about your activity- such a warning would be unnecessary if you weren't actively seeking to grow stronger."

The tauren's frown softened considerably. "You… you would help me grow stronger?" He let out a relieved chuckle. "I mean no offense, Rommath, but I had not considered you such a friend."

"Friends? We are allies, Chief Baine, which can be much more effective. As it happens, helping you can help me. Or rather- help Quel'Thalas. You are aware of the mana wyrms that live in abundance in the Eversong Forest. They feed off pockets of mana- ultimately harmless, and occasionally useful, creatures. That is, unless they begin to gorge themselves on mana. They grow to enormous size, becoming Greatwyrms, and from there become dangerous predators."

Baine furrowed his brow- if it were Thrall speaking, the lesson would be clear: gorging on energy and mana would turn Baine into such a beast. Rommath continued, "The largest greatwyrm in living memory has surfaced in Eversong. It has proven elusive, despite its size- Lady Liadrin and Ranger General Brightwing have both failed to bring the beast down. Our paladins and rangers both are hesitant to confront it- many of us still suffer from the pull of mana addiction. But you are not a blood elf- and, given how much of the elixirs you've drunk… I think you may draw out the greatwyrm, who will smell the mana radiating off you and powering your body."

The tauren crossed his arms. "I am not opposed to helping Quel'Thalas, but you mentioned this would help me?"

The faintest smirk flitted across Rommath's face. "Mana is what has augmented your body, Chief Baine. And this greatwyrm I speak of is filled to bursting with mana- I propose this. You track down this elusive creature, and beat it into submission- for the strength you've been hoarding for yourself, that should be an easy task. But I will be there, and to make sure that such an eruption of mana upon the greatwyrm's death will not damage the Eversong Forest- I will redirect the mana into you. I assume you can follow the hypothesis from there."

Baine thought for a moment, but the longer he reflected on this, the more hopeful, the more eager he grew. With certainty in his eye, he stood to his full height, dwarfing the blood elf. He strode over, his thick hand grasping Rommath's halfway up his elbow. "I'm ready. Let us head off immediately."

The Eversong Forest was a place of ethereal beauty; the blood elves had carefully cultivated the forest with magic, creating gracefully twisting trees with boughs full of golden leaves, perpetually held in a space that was both spring and autumn. Baine craned his thick neck looking at the beauty of it all, though he lightly tensed his powerful arms- already, they were thicker than the trunks here.

"This is where the greatwyrm hunts," Rommath explained, leading him to a clearing in the forest. The grass under Baine's heavy hooves was dry, practically parched, and the trees were losing their luster.

"It has begun to drain the mana out of the forest itself," the blood elf mage muttered. "We must be quick. Ready yourself- but I warn you, Baine- I can siphon the greatwyrm's mana into you, but you may not be able to contain all of it. You must let me know when it becomes too much."

Baine grinned, puffing up his chest and cracking his knuckles. "It won't be."

Rommath studied him for a moment and then nodded. "Very well." He looked up suddenly, at a change in the wind. "It's coming."

The mage made for cover as Baine readied his mace. There was an electric feeling in the air, followed by the rustling of leaves and the snapping of branches. With a bestial shriek, the wyrm revealed itself- a fat, engorged, serpentine body, its round underbelly glowing with the blue and purple hues of mana. Tendrils and fins shivered, groping at the air, and its glowing eyes focused on Baine. The tauren dug in his feet and grit his teeth- it was a lot larger than even he anticipated.

The greatwyrm bared its fangs and charged for the tauren, letting out a wailing shriek. It was as big as a goblin zepplin, and slammed into Baine. The tauren roared as he was pushed back, desperately grappling for the wyrm as his mace was slapped out of his hand and he was slammed into a tree, snapping the trunk with the force of the impact.

"Grab on to him!" Rommath shouted.

"I'm doing my best!" Baine snarled. The tauren coiled his powerful arm and punched the wyrm's face, giving him some breathing room to maneuver. His opponent reared back and attempted to strike again, but Baine charged him, pushing the wyrm back and wrapping his arms around it, biceps squeezing into the wyrm's thick hide.

"Hold him still," the blood elf instructed, already preparing his staff.

"Right, no trouble," Baine huffed, his chest swelling as he squeezed with all his might. He did not have to struggle for long- Rommath's spell took hold, and already Baine could feel a rush- that same swelling of energy from the Elixirs of Giant Growth, but it was more raw, more primal. It seeped into his body faster, and ebbed and flowed, and his body followed suit. With each wave and breath, his muscles tightened and flexed, and with each beat of his heart, bulged a little further out.

The feeling was intoxicating- the tauren's torso was first. His chest billowed out like sails under full wind, growing into a solid wall that pushed further and further past his muzzle. Looking down, he couldn't see past the sheer swollen mass, and only by how tight his torso felt could he guess at his thick, swollen abdominals bulging out. The wyrm began to shrink in his grasp as his shoulders jutted out, and his back surged out at either side like immense wings, shoving against his arms. The wyrm shrieked as his biceps followed suit, inflating into enormous boulders, his triceps as solid and big as anvils. His legs were more impressive than any trunk in the forest, earth-shaking thighs rippling as they grinded against each other.

Baine never felt so powerful- never so strong. And he still had room to grow! The wyrm was shrinking with every moment as he absorbed its mana, his body still growing. His muscles, hard as stone, rumbled- the veins snaking across his body, now  visible through his increasingly thin fur, glowed with the purplish hues of mana itself. How much more could he take? His heart pounded, he nearly swooned- he could have it all. He could drain every last drop, and then go after more. But another voice spoke- Baine was already bigger than any of the elixirs could make him. Stronger than any tauren or Horde Champion in all of Azeroth. Wasn't that enough?

No- he needed more! With even more strength, no one would ever doubt the tauren's strength again, and the Horde would be his!

Baine breathed in sharply. That thought snapped him back to his senses. "Rommath! Rommath, that's enough!"

The blood elf mage pulled back his staff, severing the spell's connection. Baine let the wyrm go, and a considerably smaller mana wyrm lazily sunk to the ground, groaning plaintively.

Rommath grew closer to subdue the wyrm. "Wonderful work, you- oh. By the Sunwell, look at you." He looked up- and up- at Baine. The hulking tauren was an absolute juggernaut of muscle, a moving mountain of titanic dimensions. His arms flexed at the slightest movement, biceps swelling as large as shields alone. "You are… pleased with the results, then?"

Baine breathed in deeply, his chin pressed against the cleft of his chest. "I am… yes."

"Good, good." The blood elf gave him a studious look. "You came dangerously close, you know- I was worried you wouldn't step back. You could have been overwhelmed by the sheer mass of mana."
Baine grimaced. "I think I learned where my limits are."

Rommath grinned. "Restraint also takes a certain application of strength. The tauren are lucky, to have a chief who knows that."

The immense tauren grinned. "Yes- well, I'm lucky in some ways, too." He turned to his arm, curling it and testing just how huge his muscles could grow- his knuckles pressed into the inflated crest of his bicep as he did. "But now to home- I already miss the mesas of Thunder Bluff." The tauren began lumbering through the forest again- he would have to learn to be satisfied with what he had. That was still no small amount- he would be testing his strength for a long time to find a challenge worthy of his might. He was already looking forward to the next Horde Council meeting; maybe he could convince Thrall of the virtues of growing a little stronger- it wouldn't do for an orc, of all people, to look puny besides his allies.