Baring Bones - Chapter 2

[Shahrazad2]

Hey guys, thanks for the response on the first chapter (for those of you who missed it, here it is:
http://www.musclegrowth.org/forum/sh...ad.php?t=67827

And here's the third chapter, for when you're done with this one: http://www.musclegrowth.org/forum/sh...ad.php?t=68418
And the fourth and final chapter after that: http://www.musclegrowth.org/forum/sh...ad.php?t=68471

I'm considering others extending the story with further adventures. Let me know what you think, and comments and criticism are always appreciated.


Now, without further ado...


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“I’m just a guy who wants to make a name for his band, date his girlfriend, and pay off my college loans. I’ve never gone to a gym in my life. I’ve never been a big guy and always thought they were seriously uncool. But I feel… I feel great!”

Kellan had been venting his conflicting emotions into the cold, dark night, his new voice just as strong as the rest of his new physique, but thankfully everyone else had either shifted inside or were riding the hayride on the other side of the Higgins property. The formerly 5’10.5” indie guy now looked like he’d spent years making sure his 6’3” body was as strong and flexible as it could be, when he’d started the night as a slim, almost delicate looking young man. Everything about him, from his broad chest to his thickly muscled arms, his washboard abs to his protruding package, screamed Alpha Male. He was, however, not a happy one.

“Now I can’t even piss in peace! I keep going into trances and I’m growing out of my clothes! There are hundreds of people around and none of them realize anything’s going on and my girlfriend’s memories are changed! I’m thinking all these weird thoughts and getting turned on all the time and… I just wanted to come to this party and relax!” He swung his hand back and, before I could stop him, punched the brick wall of the Manor. Then, instead of yelping in pain as I expected, he looked confused. We both stared, astonished, as he pulled his fist away… completely unharmed, with only a bit of dirt on the knuckles. The wall was not so fortunate.

A small crater of cracked brick remained where Kellan had slammed his fist into the wall. I stared at it, and at his hand, and my eyes revealed a brief green glow emerging from his fingers before fading away. Uncertain of what that meant, I turned my attention back to his face, in time to catch his expression: wonder. That look was swiftly replaced by one of exhaustion. “Whoa man… I feel beat!” He leaned against the wall and took deep breaths, while I pondered this new development.
I was standing next to a guy who could potentially count as a superhero, with some amount of super strength and invulnerability… but using that power wore him out… and maybe used up some of the green energy that had inundated his body moments ago. My thoughts were interrupted when Kellan stood up straight, dusted off his hand, looked at me and said, “Look, Angelo, thanks for coming to get me back there. I appreciate it… even if you did track me to the toilet.” Before I could protest that I had actually not expected him to be there, he held up a hand to stop me and continued. “I’m going to try and act normal, though… my friends didn’t notice anything different the last time, so I’m going to try and go with the act. Hopefully, if anything else weird does happen, I’ll be able to resist it now that I’m so strong. Have a good night, and nice to meet you.” With that, he stomped off, leaving me alone and unsure what to do.

“Well, so much for my short career as a green-glowing-light slayer,” I complained to the night as the hayride pulled around and let out its passengers, who dispersed to other sections of the party. I stepped aside as a drunken ghostbuster lurched into the restroom, and then froze. I was staring at the restroom’s entrance and could now see the red ripples head-on, but they hadn’t been there a moment ago. Whatever it was, it seemed to be centered on the men’s room… or was it? I squinted in the dark, and could somehow tell that the weird red glow was pooling around the general spot of the wall between the men’s room and the ladies’ room. I turned and saw another ripple centering on the bonfire… and I remembered seeing others in the dance room and the main entrance/drinking room. Was there one in the chapel? I turned around again and, yes, I could make out the same rippling effect emerging from the stained glass windows. I stepped back to get a better look at the full manor, but whatever my new ESP involved, it apparently didn’t count as X-ray vision. Just my luck. Still, if there were any more of those… rippling vortices in the building, I couldn’t tell from out there. When the ghostbuster guy came out again (walking slightly better and not any more muscular than before, I noted), I tried to focus my vision on him. The effect was clear. Ghostbuster seemed to give off a natural illumination… could I be seeing his aura? Whatever it was, the closer he got to either the men’s room or the bonfire, the more of the lights turned red and drift away towards those places. Nor was he the only one, I realized. Everyone around the bonfire was leaking energy into it, and when the Manor’s door’s opened, and partiers spilled out, I saw that they too seeped red light that either drifted back inside or glided over to the fire. I looked down at my body, squinted, widened my eyes, even tried going cross-eyed, but try though I might, I didn’t see any sort of light, red or not, around me. I moved towards the bonfire and watched. The red light drained from everyone standing in front of and next to me did pass through me like a wave… but nothing of me was caught up in that tide. It was like I wasn’t even there, as far as the ripples were concerned.

Was I the strange one, not Kellan? The green electricity flowing through him had turned white and made me feel sugar-high-ish when I touched him, and the wisp/shadow had seemed upset by that, but the shadow hadn’t even noticed me when I first walked into the restroom. I’d felt the unearthly chill from the wisp before I’d been zapped, though, and after the first time I’d been able to see the red ripples out of the corner of my eye AND I’d not fallen under the “guys growing muscles is perfectly normal, he’s always been this way, nothing to see here, these are not the droids you’re looking for” spell that had affected Claudia and Kellan’s other friends and relatives. Experimentally, I tried to concentrate on a fallen twig, willing it to float, skitter across the ground, twitch, anything. No such luck. “Sure, the hot straight guy gets all the useful powers. I see living people. Ooooh, spooky,” I grumbled as I turned to head back to the party. Inside, I could tell that the red ripple effect was definitely centered on the drinks. “But that doesn’t make sense,” I mumbled under my breath. “Those drinks came from many different people… how could someone spike or enchant them all as a whole?”

I spotted Kellan and Claudia and their friends sipping from glasses, and realized that while Kellan did have that natural aura, his seemed to be shot through with green sparks. The red glow wasn’t draining him… was it? I watched a wave of red pass through him… and then not continue on to the rest of the drinks. Somehow, these ripples were collecting life energy from the guests at the most common places for the people to congregate at the party (the restrooms, chapel, bar, dance floor, bonfire, etc), and depositing it in Kellan! All he needed was the green light to let him use it… or for something to use him.

Just then, the clock turned to midnight. Costumed partiers started cheering, toasting, and generally kicking things up a notch. Having people making out drunkenly all around me sent my spirits plummeting again, reinforcing that I’d arrived alone and would be leaving alone (probably fairly soon). I moved to say my goodbyes (and was unable to find anyone I knew besides Kellan), and headed out the door, down the steps, and towards the grassy field being used as a parking lot. I was surprised to find that there weren’t any ripples there… but what I did discover was much worse.

I got to my car, and was about to shrug out of my costume wings, when I noticed someone sitting in the driver’s seat… someone with pale skin that didn’t come from any makeup or mask. Someone who was sitting very still.

The guy didn’t seem to be breathing. I was about to call for help, when I noticed that the next car had a young woman in a goth witch outfit leaning against her car’s passenger door… and not moving. Getting closer to her revealed that her skin was similarly discolored and she had neither breath nor a heartbeat nor any warmth to her skin. Over by the driver’s side, her friend (or possibly girlfriend) was actually in a similar state, lying on the ground in a playboy bunny outfit. I started to run, but all around me, the scene was the same… people were dead… but strangely so, as if they’d just stopped being alive the moment they reached their cars. My eyes revealed that they all lacked any sort of aura. I finally spotted a pair of guys (dressed as Na’vi from Avatar, since their costumes were largely blue body paint, they looked extremely chilly) headed to their car, reaching for the handle. “No, STOP,” I shouted, just in time to see them both turn gray and slump over. A moment later, their auras reappeared, like shining, multicolored ghosts hovering next to their bodies, looking confused. Then, from the borders of the property, a red thread of light snapped towards us. It passed through me harmlessly, but the aura-ghosts stuck to it, spinning and wrapping around it like someone was rolling them up, their glow turning red as they formed a ripple and slithered back towards the Manor, like some deadly aurora.

After a moment of sheer gut-wrenching terror, I was able to get a grip. I was somehow immune (undetectable? untouchable?) to the ripples. They couldn’t hurt me… for now. Then I got angry. Someone or something was behind this… hurting people and stealing their very essences without even a warning, for no reason, and it was using Kellan for something as well. Well, it wasn’t getting away with it. I was going to get rid of the thing, make it stop messing with Skeletal Boy, and hopefully, find some way to return all those people’s auras to them. Heaven help anything that got in my way.

I’m not sure if it was my wrath or my growing ability to sense supernatural forces, but I felt the ghost about to make its move early this time… like a faint shiver instead of the chill of the void. I left the drained bodies of the partiers at their cars and sprinted up the hill to the Manor, my costume wings smacking my shoulders with each step. I dodged the hayride, gasping for breath, and made my way through the lurking guests to the door, opening it to the increasing otherworldly cold, and the sight of Kellan doing a solo keg stand to the applause and cheers of his friends! His arms were groups of bulges encased in tight black lycra, his shoulders were flexed, and his legs stretched out to either side to help him balance. His pants only stretched down to his muscular calves, and his sneakers looked small on him. A little farther down, his thighs strained against the fabric, and… oh geez… he was rock hard, his erection stretching halfway down his left thigh (and the girls certainly noticed THAT, if their raucous squeals were anything to go by). His chest was flexing impressively as his gymnast’s build supported his body, and it astounded me that his costume hadn’t torn. But while the sight was definitely worth charging uphill to get back here, and it was cold as the grave, I couldn’t see a single spark of green lightning. Where was the thing?

I deliberately thought back to my determination by the cars, and my temper started to flare at the memory of the helpless, lifeless guests. The angrier I got, the brighter and clearer those vile red vortices around the drinks became, as if my rage gave me greater visual clarity. There! The red ripples sped up and become more jagged, shifting to their complementary color: green. Arcs of neon green flew towards Kellan… no… towards the keg!

As I tried to slide through the crowd, the green lightning flowed from the keg up to Kellan’s “kiss me” lips, across his smooth cheeks, coiling in his eyes which immediately took on a dazed look, and down his wide neck, his adam’s apple bobbing as he continued to suck beer (and lightning) thirstily. The green glow continued to whip across his shoulders, down his powerful arms to his hands, with each finger glittering brightly, before the energy surged up his chest, outlining each of his abs, temptingly revealed since his shirt had rolled down. It danced up, appeared to stroke his bulge, and slithered up his long legs. This time, though, it wasn’t getting away unscathed.

I didn’t even have to touch Kellan. Instead, with the lightning blazed around him, I simply approached and thought of the playboy bunny, the goth witch, the na’vi guys and everyone else out there with the cars, and somehow willed the lightning to morph into white fireworks, cascading down into the keg. An agonizing, echoing scream emerged from the metal barrel, but only I noticed it. My white flames fanned out from the keg, driving out what looked like a disembodied, bearded head formed entirely of green smoke, looking about in anger and bewilderment, but somehow never seeming to turn in my direction. I stared it down, and the white radiance bent to my will, scorching the… ghost… and it disappeared in a puff of sickly emerald smoke. As the flames died, I felt a rush of triumph, but sensed that the thing wasn’t done yet. As evidence, Kellan was growing again.

Still suspended upside-down, Kellan went from gymnast to pumped-up mixed martial artist. I could tell that his body was getting taller because his feet inched higher into the air. His legs throbbed, and I watched as his calves swelled, pushing his black lycra pants farther from his feet and closer to his knees, while his thighs grew steadily larger and more powerful. The waistband of his pants started to slide down, showing off more of his treasure trail, pulled by the growing erection straining to be free. I tore my gaze from his groin and almost whimpered at the sight of his torso. Kellan’s abs protruded more, while retaining (even enhancing) their impossible definition. I barely resisted the urge to push my face into his abs and lick down to his belly button while it was suspended in front of me. His chest also grew, each pec now cushion-sized and capped by large, visible nipples, which looked strange against the stretched fabric with the wide painted-on skeletal ribcage. The neck of his shirt dipped low as the pecs pushed out, and more of Kellan’s goth-thug style script tattoo was visible, but still not enough to read. His shoulders looked broader, and he had to shift his grip on the keg with his thickening arms before executing a perfect flip to his feet (showing off his sculpted ass… I noticed a girl dressed as a bumblebee actually swooned out of the corner of my eye). He turned around, caught my gaze, and sent me a smile that went straight to my balls. Ignoring his friends, he wrapped his huge arm over my shoulder (carefully not bending my wings). He murmured directly into my ears, with a voice like an avalanche of caramel, “When I felt it coming over me, I couldn’t resist… but I didn’t try… I knew even if I’d acted like a jerk, my guardian angel’d be there to help me out. Thanks buddy… sorry for earlier.”

I’d stopped breathing, and my cheeks were burning. Was this amazingly hunky straight guy actually flirting with me, and calling me his buddy AND apologizing? I finally managed to gather my wits, and asked “How are you feeling? Sorry it took so long to figure out how he was getting to you.” Kellan grinned at me. “No worries… you’ve got my back… even if my back is bigger than it used to be.” Meanwhile, his friends were drunkenly shouting “Get a room, you two” among other, less friendly statements. “Don’t mind if we do,” retorted Kellan with a shit-eating grin before tugging me out the door into the chill night air.

“Um, not that I object to being tugged along,” I said, “… but where are we going?” He stopped, seemed to think, and then shrugged. “Honestly? I just wanted to get away. I mean, I’ve known those guys forever, and I could tell you everything about them, but at the moment, I feel like four things matter to me. The first’s figuring out what’s happening to me tonight, because ignoring it wasn’t working. The second thing’s Claudia. God, I just can’t stop thinking about her tonight. It’s like my libido’s pumped up along with everything else about me. The third’s you… somehow, things are less crazy and more deal-able when you’re around, and I don’t miss Claudia so much, either.” At this point, he inhaled deeply and audibly, and his eyelids fluttered shut in delight. “MMMMmmm… you smell good, too. Hold still.” Enforcing that command (though I’m sure he meant it as a request… didn’t he?), Kellan reached out, placing his large, warm hands on my arms and holding me still as he leaned forward and breathed in, almost nuzzling me. The November night’s cold was driven away by the heat of his body and his warm breath on my neck, though goosebumps of a different kind spread across my skin in anticipation. Was Kellan… attracted to me? How? What sort of ghost would make a straight guy into my ideal gay man? It didn’t make any sense! Then, before I could be paralyzed by thoughts, I asked, “And the fourth thing?”

His cyan eyes met mine, and he pursed his lips. “The fourth thing is that I’m… having fun looking like this, GROWING like this. I want to explore it… I want to stay this way… or maybe even feel my muscles grow again. I don’t want to ignore it anymore. When I was hanging out with Claudia, and she was paying attention to me like she hasn’t since we first started dating, I realized that I feel better than I did when I was skinny. My skin’s strong but so sensitive. My senses are stronger... I can taste shades of flavors and age and intensity in my beer now that I never noticed before. I can tell you the natural hair color of everyone on the hayride all the way over in the woods, in the dark. I can hear conversations through the music back in the dance room. And I can smell… well, lots of stuff,” he finished with a surprisingly bashful smile. “And did you see me back there with the keg stand? I could never have balanced myself like that before, but now I could probably lift the keg one-handed when it was full. And the people’s reactions… Claudia’s, her friends, the guys, you… it’s a rush. I want to see how this goes.”

I took a deep breath. “There’s a problem with that, Kellan. You see, people can’t leave the party… alive.”

That was enough to shock him out of his building love of his new body, and cause his rapturous expression to shift into an angry frown. “Huh? What do you mean? Someone died? And people are still partying back there? What’s wrong with those sick fucks?”

I held up a hand to interrupt. “I’ve been seeing these weird ripples of light in different parts of the manor. They seem to be sucking up the stray… uh… life force of people who get near them. It doesn’t seem to do them harm, and if I had to guess, I’d say they’d probably be shedding that same energy partying as hardy as they are anyway. But if they go to leave, and get near the cars, they go unconscious, turn gray, stop breathing, and lose a heartbeat… and those ripples pull out their whole… souls, I guess.”

Kellan looked horrified. “Dude, that’s terrible! You think this has something to do with my muscles?” I nodded and continued, “There’s ripples in the restroom, the chapel, and by the bar, along with some other places. I think that the green entity is some kind of ghost, and that every time it makes you grow, it’s hooking you up to those stolen life energies. That’s how you’re so big so fast, and maybe why your emotions are going so wild… you’re plugged into the life of everyone here.” Kellan shuddered. “Ugh… I thought this was awesome, but now I feel… dirty. I’ve got people inside me? Is there a way we can give it all back to them? And how can you see all this stuff?” I filled him in about my own abilities, and how they got stronger each time he did. “Huh… wonder why? You don’t look or act any different than you did before… except maybe a bit less shy and nervous.” I wasn’t sure how to take that, so I shrugged, before chiming in. “I know that the garage, behind the dance room, has all kinds of stuff in it… there might be scales or something we can use to measure how you’ve changed. And hopefully they’ll have a flashlight there or something… your cousin, Mack, mentioned that there were some old books and stuff upstairs... I thought that we might find something about this ghost, maybe.”

Kellan beamed his rock star smile at me. “Measuring my muscles AND finding out what’s going on? I like the way you think… why didn’t we meet ages ago?” We exchanged high school and college details (I was a catholic school boy all the way until college, when I went to a Big 10 university, he went to public school his whole life and stayed at one of the local colleges) until we reached the garage. The music from the DJ’s speakers one room over boomed and covered the sounds of the two of us rummaging around (and Kellan hadn’t quite gotten used to his new mass, and would accidentally knock something over with his more bulky muscles every so often), but eventually we found the flashlights and a scale. Kellan wasted no time kicking off his shoes (which seemed to have grown with him, somehow, but only partially, and were getting tighter even though they now read size 12.5, when he claimed to have been a 10 earlier) and climbing on top of it.

“Holy fuck! Angelo, it says 256 lbs! I weighed only 137 this morning,” Kellan exclaimed, with something like shock and something like glee spreading over his face. “I’m nearly double my original weight… this is crazy!” We next located a tape measure. “Man, the Higginses keep everything in this place,” I murmur before sliding one end under his foot and raising it to check the tape. “Wow… 6’7”! You’re huge!” Kellan flexed and posed at the praise, making his skeleton costume ride up (and down) in a few places. “Aren’t you cold in that thing,” I ask him, nodding to the flimsy costume. “Heh… earlier I either stayed inside or near the bonfire, dude… but now? I don’t even feel the cold… it’s like I’m built to withstand worse, so this chill doesn’t even register.” That immediately killed the mood, as we both remembered it hadn’t been Kellan who was building his body, and he was right, the chill I felt in the presence of the ghost was much worse than anything November could throw at me.
Suddenly the light flicked on. “Hey hon,” said Claudia as she leaned against the garage door, hips and legs displayed provocatively despite being decorated with fabric bones. “What are you guys up to back here?”

I turned to see Kellan looking at Claudia and her curves like dog hungry for a… well, bone, so I chimed in. “Um, Kellan mentioned wondering how big he’d gotten, and I recalled there being a scale and tape measure back here, we were going to see if there was anything else upstairs, though…” I trailed off, realizing neither of them were listening to my handy (and nearly truthful) explanation. Claudia looked at Kellan like she really wanted to help him the rest of the way out of his costume, and if Kellan looked at Claudia any harder, he’d probably burst out of his pants, at least. Claudia finally gathered herself together and said, “Mr. Higgins, would you like to join me on the dance floor for our song?” Kellan nodded eagerly, then visibly remembered my presence. I mimicked a smile and waved them off. “Go on, you crazy kids, I’m going to do a bit more exploring… I shouldn’t be far and I’ll let you know if I find anything.” Claudia wrapped her hands around Kellan’s bicep-laden arm and blew me a kiss. “Thanks Andrew, you’re a dear,” she cooed as the two of them headed to the dance floor. I took a deep breath, counted to ten and resisted the urge to growl, “It’s Angelo, you twit.” I then grabbed a flashlight and started the long trudge up the road to the second floor.

The manor’s odd construction made it so that there was a dirt road around the back, sliding up the hill and opening into a large entrance on the second floor, presumably for the church camp to store supplies. When I got there, I saw that it was left open, as always, and I carefully walked in, searching the piles of dusty junk for something that looked helpful. I made it into the third room before I came across some books with what looked like solomonic symbols on their weathered leather covers. I flipped one open, and tried to make out the flowing inked script in the light of the flashlight. “Of course the guy who can see in the dark is downstairs dancing… I’m only in luck if this book is written in invisible ink…” I paused, realizing the script wasn’t in English, and grinned, “… or if it is LATIN… thank you, private school education!” I tried to remember how to conjugate the verbs, but for the most part, it came surprisingly easily to me. The book turned out to be a journal and guide written by one Quincy Gosser, Witch Hunter, one of the founders of the “Church Camp” that used to be held on the grounds. Mr. Gosser’s writing initially gave the impression that he considered temptations of the flesh a mere distraction from his work of riding the world of “witches, monsteres and other abominations against God.” Following that were a number of descriptions of various monsters and spells and how to ward against them. Towards the end, though, the writing got scratchier and talked about how the people in the predominantly Quaker-populated region were unimpressed by witch hunts that had gripped the states farther North, and were more accepting of things Quincy considered “uncanny.” “Soone we shouldst be surrounded by beasties and witches and thinges most terrible, women shouldst wear the foul raiment of the grave and men shouldst lie with men and the spawn of the Whore of Babylon and the Fallen shouldst walk amongst man unknown,” was perhaps the most understandable passage in the final letter, thankfully written in English (or close to it).

Finding nothing else in the room, I picked up Gosser’s journal, and began to stand up, when I felt that eerie cold emanating from the floor beneath me… the dancing room! I struggled to run out, but my wings got caught on a group of old fishing poles. I struggled to get free, feeling the cold increase, and finally hearing my fabric wings rip apart, leaving tattered black folds hanging from the plastic frame.

I tore down the hill as quickly as I could, burst through the main door, and ran to the dance room, only to be lost in the shrouded darkness and dizzying lights. People milled and sifted around me, still dancing, while I tried to use my second sight. I could tell that the ripples here were active and that the ghost was nearby, but with the disco ball, rainbow flashing lights, and various patterns and darkness in the rest of the room, I couldn’t distinguish the electrical lights from the supernatural ones.

Finally, I spotted them, back against the wall in the darkened corner, behind one of the fake monster displays. Out of the darkness loomed the body of huge man, the illustrated bones of his costume catching the black lights, and what looked like a storm of green lightning clashed around him. Kellan and Claudia were making out savagely, even as the Ghost whirled around them like a jade vapor with the suggestion of that same bearded face from before, only larger, reconstructing Kellan’s body while they ground together. Claudia’s legs were wrapped around Kellan’s hips as he lifted her off the ground, thrusting in time with the music, shaking her entire body, and their heavy breathing seemed to be sucking in the green vapor of the ghost. Kellan’s physique was now more like that of a boxer and a wrestler combined than a gymnast, but he had to be at least 7 feet tall, and his sleeves had begun tearing along the seams as his arms grew too powerful to contain. His pants rode low on his hips, rolled downwards as he grew taller and broader, but he obviously was past caring. So was I, for that matter.

I tried to draw on that power and anger from before, but even though I managed a few white flames, it was like trying to put out a wildfire with a water bottle. The green lights were resisting the conversion… probably because Kellan was going wild with lust for both his girlfriend and his own muscles. I realized that as strong as he was now, there’d be no chance he’d even feel it if I toppled the nearby wolfman mannequin on him, much less tapped his shoulder. He was moving faster, grinding harder and harder against Claudia… and then he went too far.

With a loud moan, he slammed her against the wall, and dust and chips of stone visibly dislodged over the couple as her breathless gasps cut off abruptly. Immediately I felt Kellan’s panic, and somehow he instinctively mimicked the rippling effect, sending out ripples that searched for me… and were able to find me, this time. I felt the white flames billow from me, wash over him and burn away the green lightning, while the ghostly mist howled in rage. I vaguely heard a scratchy voice whisper “jussssst a litttttllle bitttt morrrreeeeeeee…” before the ghost retreated from the white light that flared around Kellan. The light then abruptly spilled back to me, and leaving the big guy cradling Claudia, his shoulders shaking and whimpers of sorrow emerging from his throat. I got closer, saw the blood on his fingers as he held the back of her head, her aura gone, and immediately felt like a heel for ever thinking an angry thought about Claudia and coveting her gorgeous guy. I placed my hand on Kellan’s shoulder (and had to reach up a bit more than before to do so) and he turned to me, tears in his reddening blue eyes. “I-I’m so sorry… it felt so good, and I wanted more, and she… she did t-too, and… and… PLEASE! Angelo… you… you’ve saved me every time that thing messed with me in this whole, fucking terrible night, and… please… can you do anything for… for her?”

I felt like the weight of the world was on my shoulders… in a physical sense. It felt like everything slowed down, and my helpless reply of “No” was ground to a halt before I could even utter it. In that moment I wondered… could I? How did I know I couldn’t? Keeping one hand on Kellan’s shoulder, I reach out and lift my fingers just over Claudia’s heart, close my eyes, and concentrate on whatever the opposite of the red ripples would be… something to fill her with life. Sweat formed on my brow, and I concentrated on Claudia as I’d seen her earlier in the evening, vivacious, flirtatious, full of life and eager to experience more of it with her friends and lover. That’s when I heard… a new sort of music, not the dj’s piped and played-with pop tunes, but something pure and sweet and elusive, deep and lofty at once. All other sounds and sensations died away, and I felt strangely adrift, as if borne aloft by the melody. My lips parted and I felt my voice, initially soft, spill out with a resonant baritone, joining in with the music. There were other voices, ones I could just barely make out, and they seemed to intertwine with mine, welcoming me somehow. I could easily lose myself in the song until my throat gave out, but I felt something propel me with dizzying speed through the chorus, hearing voices come and go until I reached one that was deeper and richer than any of the others I’d heard before, and so heart-stoppingly beautiful that I was entranced. My song felt like baby’s wails in comparison, though the song itself reminded me of a dirge, full of loss and acceptance. Then our two voices blended together, and the song seemed somehow more… optimistic.

I felt lifted up and moved with more of that incredible velocity, the deeper voice accompanying me past the rest of the chorus until they faded into the distance, and the faint sounds of the dj’s booth were audible again, growing louder as we got closer. The song crescendoed and then ended, rapidly drowned out by a popular rap song remixed to death. Abruptly, I found myself back in my body, my eyes open… and seeing Claudia’s chest rising again, hearing Kellan’s sobs of relief as he hauled me into a crushing one-armed hug, my face pressed against his pecs as he held his unconscious girlfriend with the other. And that’s when everything blacked out.

[convolution]

That was great ! Dramatic and achingly sexy.
Beautiful ending.

[rododoro3]

I love supernatural stories.
I love mysteries.
I love long stories.
I love muscle growth.
I love sexual orientation changes.
I love tall guys.
I actually enjoy reading about hetero sex (I know I'm not the only one, too).

Your story hits most every button I have. Keep goin', you've got a devoted fan in me

[arpeejay]

http://www.facebook.com/arpeejay

[chopper1234]

This is like the perfect story for me! I enjoy hetero sex too! Pushing all the right buttons! Keep it up!

[Shahrazad2]

@ Convolution: Glad you enjoyed it. I was worried I was being too poetic and cerebral and not sexual enough. The fact that you liked both sides is a great relief, so thank you!

@ rodoro3: Yeah, I read a lot of erotic/paranormal romance, and some of them delve into the mystery field, and I wanted to try it out for myself. I figure Kellan is becoming bisexual, but I admit I'm not sure how to work Claudia into the ending (I have an idea, but I figure I could come up with a more satisfying one). My general idea is that his arousal is increasing along with his strength (and his other hormones... he'll be getting more aggressive and territorial in the next chapter). And of course, muscle growth is fun.

@ Arpeejay: Glad you're enjoying it, and thanks for proofreading.

@ chopper1234: Thanks! Like I said to rodoro3, I'll see what I can do to keep the hetero sex as popular as the gay sex, though I'll confess I've never been with a lady, so bare with me as I figure out how to make it read good.

[hempmonkey]

So, so good. Loved every moment of that story, thank you!

[nnnrg]

Wow. Just wow. I have to say more though... or it won't let me post.

So, where are the hosts for this party?

[Shahrazad2]

@ nnnrg: In the first chapter, it was presumed that the hosts, as an older couple, went to bed, or at least were in some other part of the property and unavailable. Their son Mack makes a brief appearance and is the one to tip Angelo off about the old books on the upper floor. From a story perspective, I already have three major characters (Angelo, Kellan, and the Ghost), a demi-character (Claudia), plus assorted minor walk-on roles (Mack, the couple who likes Angelo's wings, Kellan's buddies, Claudia's girlfriends, the drunken ghostbuster guy, etc) and I'm planning on adding at least one major character (who is hinted at in this one) in the next chapter, and for a three-to-four chapter story, that's stretching things, so Mr. and Mrs. Higgins are unlikely to show up (at least in this story arc).

[Darmani]

Originally Posted by Shahrazad2

@ nnnrg: In the first chapter, it was presumed that the hosts, as an older couple, went to bed, or at least were in some other part of the property and unavailable. Their son Mack makes a brief appearance and is the one to tip Angelo off about the old books on the upper floor. From a story perspective, I already have three major characters (Angelo, Kellan, and the Ghost), a demi-character (Claudia), plus assorted minor walk-on roles (Mack, the couple who likes Angelo's wings, Kellan's buddies, Claudia's girlfriends, the drunken ghostbuster guy, etc) and I'm planning on adding at least one major character (who is hinted at in this one) in the next chapter, and for a three-to-four chapter story, that's stretching things, so Mr. and Mrs. Higgins are unlikely to show up (at least in this story arc).

Hmm. This feels clever and ... its less porn. I mean its porn
argh.

Ahem, normally characters that start gay tend to lose me in these but I love this guy because he's mainly just a guy and is gay. The emphasis is a sorta sexy adventure. The set up and the plot isn't super deep but its never too off it loses me. It never bores or offends me and the variety of responses and actions with the horror/thriller elements make this remarkably easy to follow and fun to. The mix of growth and powers and the relationship between the grower, his girlfriend, and the guy is neat too. That there are other characters and other bits, neat.

Generally it feels like the story is there and not just means to foregone conclusion. Not that that's bad but for when you have a story that's more than just sex its important you don't just have delay to foregone conclusion.

I hope you continue to write and improve and share your things here

[Shahrazad2]

Originally Posted by Darmani

Hmm. This feels clever and ... its less porn. I mean its porn
argh.

Ahem, normally characters that start gay tend to lose me in these but I love this guy because he's mainly just a guy and is gay. The emphasis is a sorta sexy adventure. The set up and the plot isn't super deep but its never too off it loses me. It never bores or offends me and the variety of responses and actions with the horror/thriller elements make this remarkably easy to follow and fun to. The mix of growth and powers and the relationship between the grower, his girlfriend, and the guy is neat too. That there are other characters and other bits, neat.

Generally it feels like the story is there and not just means to foregone conclusion. Not that that's bad but for when you have a story that's more than just sex its important you don't just have delay to foregone conclusion.

I hope you continue to write and improve and share your things here

Thanks Darmani!

I did aim to make it more like paranormal erotic romance than strict erotica.

I'm also happy you like the main character's voice, as I admit it is based on my own (though Angelo is more proactive and decisive and better in stressful situations than I am). Making characters well-rounded and uniquely themselves, and not just their sexuality, is something I really wanted to work on, so it's great to hear you liked it so much, and noticed my efforts. The trick will be to see if I can make other characters in future stories distinct from these ones... we'll have to see how I do.

Yeah, I wanted to make a world that was full of realistic relationships, even if some of the details are twisted by the supernatural elements (sometimes I think too many people's reactions about how large someone grows in stories like this detract from the flow of the story, and the ghost's ultimate plans are helped along by manipulating other people's reactions). Seeing the characters grow and change and other people's responses to them, as well as their responses to each other, make them seem more realistic... which, for me, usually makes them hotter (what was hotter, bad porn dialog, or that one person you always had a crush on, even if you didn't know them well?)

I do have plans for the characters, but as I've written them, they've surprised me here and there... the bathroom scene in the last chapter, for instance, and Kellan and Claudia's chemistry on the dance floor, not to mention the keg stand. Angelo's hidden qualities have shifted pretty drastically from my original concept as well. Of course, I started writing this last November, so some change in that time is unsurprising.

I am already working on the third (possibly final) chapter of this story, but I do have some other experiences I want to turn into stories, and I am going to see what happens to me this coming halloween... I might continue the adventures of Kellan and Angelo, with a different story arc each year.

[convolution]

Quote:
---------------
"I felt like the weight of the world was on my shoulders… in a physical sense. It felt like everything slowed down, and my helpless reply of “No” was ground to a halt before I could even utter it. In that moment I wondered… could I? How did I know I couldn’t? Keeping one hand on Kellan’s shoulder, I reach out and lift my fingers just over Claudia’s heart, close my eyes, and concentrate on whatever the opposite of the red ripples would be… something to fill her with life. Sweat formed on my brow, and I concentrated on Claudia as I’d seen her earlier in the evening, vivacious, flirtatious, full of life and eager to experience more of it with her friends and lover. That’s when I heard… a new sort of music, not the dj’s piped and played-with pop tunes, but something pure and sweet and elusive, deep and lofty at once. All other sounds and sensations died away, and I felt strangely adrift, as if borne aloft by the melody. My lips parted and I felt my voice, initially soft, spill out with a resonant baritone, joining in with the music. There were other voices, ones I could just barely make out, and they seemed to intertwine with mine, welcoming me somehow. I could easily lose myself in the song until my throat gave out, but I felt something propel me with dizzying speed through the chorus, hearing voices come and go until I reached one that was deeper and richer than any of the others I’d heard before, and so heart-stoppingly beautiful that I was entranced. My song felt like baby’s wails in comparison, though the song itself reminded me of a dirge, full of loss and acceptance. Then our two voices blended together, and the song seemed somehow more… optimistic.

I felt lifted up and moved with more of that incredible velocity, the deeper voice accompanying me past the rest of the chorus until they faded into the distance, and the faint sounds of the dj’s booth were audible again, growing louder as we got closer. The song crescendoed and then ended, rapidly drowned out by a popular rap song remixed to death. Abruptly, I found myself back in my body, my eyes open… and seeing Claudia’s chest rising again, hearing Kellan’s sobs of relief as he hauled me into a crushing one-armed hug, my face pressed against his pecs as he held his unconscious girlfriend with the other. And that’s when everything blacked out."
---------------

I keep coming back to read this chapter's ending. Some how it works as a salve to old wounds.
Thanks.

[convolution]

bump

(please)

[Shahrazad2]

Sorry for the delay... I've gotten through the immediate danger, but I've been struggling with the adjustment to Kellan's new physique and attitude. It's been bugging me... hopefully I'll finish the next chapter before the weekend is over, though.