The Laboratory of the Wizard Frogmilker
This small chamber was most certainly once a part of a traditional dungeon. The cell bars may have been removed, but the mounting points on the walls for manacles or other restraints persist. One of the reasons for a wizard to have such a dank and musty lab is clear from the incessant croaking and chirping of frogs and toads, which line the walls in deep enclosures and individual tanks. Some are in jugs, even. Aside from the amphibians, there are the usual wizardly accoutrements: tables covered in glass vials and complex tubing filled with colorful fluids, bookshelves with dusty old tomes, skulls for candle holders, a stuffed crocodilian suspended from the ceiling. A big rune-covered staff mounted in glass case on the wall is labeled: In Case of Demon, Break Glass.

After Lilith asks 'nicely', Alptraum relents on letting her sit in on his examination. The two return to the Frogmilker after lunch (which Alptraum didn't get any of, since it was suggested he not have a full stomach for the examination) and Lilith announces them outside of the door to the former dungeon. "Your Mageness? I've brought Alptraum back," the white bat calls.

"Come in!" the Frogmilker's voice calls. "I'm still preparing a few things for the examination, so I'll be with you shortly. Just don't break anything."

"You know, I could have had a small lunch. The mage never said I couldn't eat at all," Alptraum complains for the fifth time, "And after I agreed to let you sit in, too. The things I agree to because of cute girls!" He looks heavenward … on in this case, ceiling ward.

"We'll have a big dinner afterwards," Lilith promises, stepping carefully into the laboratory.

Alptraum steps in not-so-carefully … just to be a pain. "Or maybe I'll just nibble on you," the Eeee threatens Lilith, then elbows her lightly. "Well, provided this exam doesn't turn me into a blob."

"For all we know, you might have to drink some blood during the exam to test for something," Lilith points out quietly.

"I doubt I would get to drink anything so pleasant," Alptraum points out. He locates relatively empty chair and sits down. Grinning, he pats his lap as an invite for Lilith to sit.

Lilith waves her hand back from her face to the top of her head in the typical 'eye-rolling' gesture of glowing-eyed Eeees, and then sits primly in Alptraum's lap.

The smug look of success creeps over Alptraum's face. Either that, or Lilith weights more than she looks and she sat on something delicate! "You like it when I play the rogue, admit it!" he says to Lilith.

"You mean you aren't a rogue?" Lilith asks in mock surprise.

"It depends on who's asking," Alptraum counters vaguely.

After a few more minutes, the two Eee can see a figure approaching them from the depths of the dungeon, but it is certainly not one they recognize. For one thing, it is not shrouded in concealing robes, but dressed in rather form-fitting clothes of dark green and black, complete with a gold-colored sash at its waist, from which hangs several bulging pouches. It stops a few paces away from the pair and crosses its arms across its rather feminine chest. "If you two have been making out in my laboratory, you will clean out every single one of my frog's cages before you leave! This is not a lover's lane!"

"Hah! No free cleaning for you, we haven't been making out!" Alptraum retorts. He then blinks a few times and has to ask, "Woah, wait, are you the mage Frogmilker? what happened to the robes of mysteriousness and all that?"

"Perhaps she's his apprentice?" Lilith whispers to Alptraum.

The figure chuckles and steps even closer. Now Alptraum can clearly see the female Skeek standing in front of him, eying him with amusement. "I am indeed the Frogmilker. I just do not wear the robes whenever I conduct a full examination. The flowing sleeves and wide hems rather get in the way of the work I'm trying to do." Painfully thin almost to the point of emaciation, the woman stands at about five feet and has a thick plait of silvery-white hair hanging over one shoulder. Her most surprising feature, however, is her eyes, for one of them is milky-blue in color, while the other is a yellowish-gold, rather like a bird of prey's.

"Well … I can see … eh, never mind," Alptraum starts to say, then seems to think the better of it. He lifts Lilith up and then gets up from the chair. And without asking … he then puts Lilith back down into the same chair. Now standing, Alptraum eclipses the wizard by about a foot, and then some if ears are taken into consideration. "Right, the exam. So, what do you need from me? Or me to do? And there better not be any eels."

The Frogmilker cocks her head up at Alptraum and gives him an unsettling smile. "As I said before, I will only use the eels if you fidget too much. However, my usual restraints typically take care of any unhelpful movement, so I don't think you need to worry about the eels. Before we begin, though, you need to drink this." The mage backtracks to one of the tables and brings a small glass filled with something white over to the Eeee.

"Is it frog milk?" Lilith asks, eying the fluid.

"Er, ew?" Alptraum comments as he accepts the glass from the Frogmilker. Before he dares drink it, it sniffs the substance in the glass. "Er, wait, frog milk?" he asks with a faint look on unease.

The liquid gives off a faintly fishy smell when Alptraum sniffs it.

The Frogmilker nods to Lilith. "Quite right. It will help the examination to run smoothly. The leech-frogs are quite attracted to it, which will encourage results."

"The what?" Alptraum asks, looking rather ill. His left ear even falls over and twitches. He stares at this disgusting liquid in the glass … then, well, actually drinks it. It seems to take a force of will to keep him from spitting it back out, though.

"Fascinating," is all Lilith can really say.

The mage spies Alptraum's grimace and clucks her tongue reprovingly as she takes the glass from him. "For heaven's sake, young man, it can't be that bad… it hardly has any taste at all! Well, unless it's taken from a frog during the mating season, of course. Then it- excuse me, that's neither here nor there, I suppose." She puts the glass onto a nearby tabletop and beckons for the Eeee to follow her. "Now I should strap you onto the pentagram I use for examinations. This way!"

Alptraum casts a glance to Lilith. "If I die, I am so haunting you," he tells the white Eeee. Tasteless or not, the inner parts of Alptraum's ears almost have a greenish tint after drinking that disgusting stuff … so apparently to a vampire it tastes pretty bad. Shaking his head, he follows after the Frogmilker.

Lilith follows along, curious to see how the wizard will restrain Alptraum.

The Skeek leads them both further into the dungeon until they reach a large pentagram that has been carved into the stone floor itself. At several locations close to the pentagram there are steel mounting points from which hang leather restraints – two for wrists, two for ankles, and two for a strap across the waist. A few tiny cages stand near the pentagram but not within it, as well as a tank filled with eels. Apparently, Lilith wasn't kidding about their use!

"Er, I think this was a bad idea," Alptraum comments and starts backing towards the exit. "No one said anything about actual torture."

"You've never been to a dentist then," Lilith comments.

The Frogmilker fixes Alptraum with a stare from her unusually-colored eyes. "Alptraum, we may be in a dungeon, but I do not practice torture – not even to take information from the Countess' enemies," she says softly. "My methods are open to your questions. If you wish to understand them better before we begin, then ask."

"Then if there isn't pain involved, why the straps," Alptraum comments as he waves a hand towards the pentagram. "And what are the small cages for?"

The mage looks towards the cages as Alptraum gestures to them. "First of all, those cages contain the leech-frogs," she explains. "As their name suggests, they are small, vampiric frogs that I use to test for contaminants within a person's blood. Their bites will hurt you a bit, but they will feel no more painful than the single sting of a wasp. Do you think you will be able to bear that?"

"I've born worse," Alptraum notes and walks to the center of the pentagram. With a sigh, he sits down and looks at his right hand. Seemingly deciding something, he finally just, well, lays down in the pentagram and positions his arms and legs where the straps seem to indicate where they should go. The Eeee then glances to Lilith and arches his brow slightly.

The mage nods as the Eeee lies down within the pentagram, then moves forward to strap his wrists into the restraints. "Lilith, would you help me by fastening Alptraum's ankles?" she asks as she works. "Not too tightly – I don't want his legs to fall asleep from a lack of blood circulation."

"Is this too tight?" Lilith asks, pulling on one of the ankle-straps.

Alptraum doesn't help by grabbing Lilith's hands a few times with his feet as she tries to secure the straps. "No, it's fine," he finally admits.

"I can see how restraints might come in handy," Lilith notes.

After fastening the leather straps around the Eeee's wrists and waist, the Frogmilker moves the tiny cages forward and within easy reach. She is about to move the tank of eels forward, too, but after catching Alptraum's nervous look, she seems to decide against it. Then she asks Lilith, "Do you wish to stay within the magical field and assist me, or would you rather remain outside it?"

"Will there be any effects on me if I stay within?" the white Eeee asks.

"Is that really a problem?" Alptraum asks Lilith, "It's not like I'll do anything to you!"

The Skeek shakes her head. "The only creatures I expect to see change are the leech-frogs that I will place on Alptraum."

After giving Alptraum a raised-eyebrow look, Lilith nods to the wizard. "Of course I'll stay in and assist you, Honored Frogmilker."

"Addled is more like it," Alptraum thinks. He sighs and shakes his head; the things he agrees to.

"Very well. Sit here and put this empty cage near you," the mage instructs, pointing to a place close to the gypsy's head and handing her the cage, which is larger than all the others. Then the Frogmilker stands and walks over to collect a few pure white candles from another table. "When you are comfortable, I will construct the field."

"What about my comfort?" Alptraum asks, "I could use a pillow."

Lilith sits with the cage in her lap, and says, "Any time now."

The Skeek places a candle at each point of the pentagram and lights them before rolling her eyes heavenward and striding over to the nearby wall. She plucks one of her cloaks from a nail that has been bored into the wall for that purpose and folds it into a rectangle as she walks back to the Eeee. This she slides under his head as she asks with a touch of impatience, "Is that better? Just as a warning, I stop short at serving refreshments during the ritual!"

"I suppose it will do," Alptraum agrees a bit reluctantly, "Though some music would be nice."   Hey, he has to entertain himself somehow. Before he's eel'ed, though, he quickly adds, "And I'm joking. There's no chance of bad things happening to me, right? I'm not going to turn into a frog, am I?"

"We can probably get the frogs to sing," Lilith comments, grinning wickedly.

"Er, right, no music then," Alptraum says quickly.

The Frogmilker's expression visibly softens and she even looks slightly embarrassed. "Ah… yes. Of course you were. My apologies." She clears her throat and stands again. "And you will not turn into a frog yourself. As I've said, only the leech-frogs will alter their shapes. Now I will begin." With that, the mage turns away from him and takes one of her pouches from her sash. The contents of this proves to be a shining, green powder that she uses to draw a circle around the pentagram, closing all of them inside it. Then she sits, cross-legged, across from Lilith on Alptraum's other side and rests her open hands on her knees, palms facing the ceiling. Closing her eyes, she begins to chant under her breath, her voice rising and falling from time to time as she begins her incantations.

For once, Alptraum doesn't make any commentary, start singing, or do something as equally obnoxious. He does at least have the common sense to not disrupt a mage in the middle of performing magic.

Likewise, Lilith remains silent and curious.

After a time, tendrils of golden smoke collect within the mage's palms and rise above their heads. They slowly dance and twist around one another, forming something like a rope in the air. Then, as the Frogmilker's voice lifts once more, the end of the "rope" shoots towards the green circle and ignites it. As the low, white flames spread around them, they completely melt the candles and cause the warm wax to run into the channels cut into the stone floor, the same channels that form the pentagram. Fortunately, the grooves are cut so deeply into the floor that Alptraum cannot feel the wax as it flows underneath him.

"Errr… " goes Alptraum as the candles melt, then flow under him. He tries to actually arch up, even though he can't feel anything beneath him. It's the thought of something hot flowing under him…

"Oooo," Lilith says quietly as the circle lights up and the candles melt. "Are you seeing all of this, Alptraum?" she whispers.

"Unfortunately," Alptraum whispers back, "I heard of things like a bikini wax that humans do … and I just bet it's like this."

As the mage's eyes are closed, she does not notice Alptraum's squirming – which is probably for the best, since she might have scolded him for it. Instead, she continues to chant and raises her arms to each side, fingers reaching as far as they can towards the curves of the circle. Suddenly, she tightens her hands into fists and pulls them towards her body. This causes the flames to flicker and disappear, although the green powder is now glowing brightly. The golden rope of smoke, now thick and almost solid-looking, rises again from the floor, passes through the cages housing the leech-frogs, then settles over Alptraum's body and little by little, disappears as well.

"Squeep!" goes Alptraum when the rather disturbing looking smoke actually settles onto his body, then slowly starts to fade away. "Okay, maybe I've changed my mind about this," the Eeee whispers to Lilith quickly.

"You drank the frog milk already," Lilith whispers. "Don't back out now."

"You better be nice to me later. I'm did all this for your county!" Alptraum mutters to Lilith.

"I thought you wanted to know if the Shadow essence was spreading?" Lilith asks.

"I bonded with the Shadow for the Countess and the County," Alptraum reminds Lilith, "Which necessitates knowing how much its affecting me now … and if I'll eventually turn into a shadowy blob."

Slowly, the mage lowers her hands into her lap and opens her eyes. She quickly checks to see if the green powder is still lit and if the wax is still flowing freely inside the pentagram's channels. As both are doing just that, the Frogmilker nods in satisfaction and looks at the gypsy. "Still all right, young man? Anything else you have to ask me before I go ahead with the examination?"

Alptraum's ears twitch at the question. "I … er, just continue with it. I need to know how stable my body is. Given that one frog turned into a blob … that might happen to me. I just. It's not knowing that's bothering me," the Eeee comments with a sigh.

The mage gives Alptraum a small smile and even pats his restrained hand. "I understand. In many cases, knowledge is truly the best antidote to fear. I promise that I will find out all I can for you. Hopefully, that will put your mind at ease."

"I hope so too," Alptraum says with a short nod. Well, as much as anyone can nod while laying on the floor with a robe stuffed behind their head. "And please, tell me if you need me to try to do anything during this … like prod the shadow or something."

"Tickle," Lilith says. "It's a bit gentler than prodding at things."

"I will. You are restrained for now for your own safety, but if anything happens within this circle that necessitates your movement, believe me, I will ask Lilith to release you as quickly as she can," the Frogmilker assures Alptraum. Then she slides one of the tiny cages towards her knee and opens it just enough so that she can reach a hand into it. She makes a grab at something, then pulls it out and swiftly closes the cage door again. In the grasp of her fingers, Alptraum can just see a small, bright green frog writhing, as if it wants nothing more than to be let go.

"It's so cute!" Lilith comments on the shiny green frog. "Makes me think of Phlagaea."

"You know what I meant," Alptraum tells Lilith when she says to 'tickle'. Of course, his attention quickly returns to the Frogmilker and he spots the small, green, frog. Remembering the comment made about it will hurt a bit, he frowns … but doesn't complain. "All right, I guess I'm ready to be stung … repeatedly," he grumbles.

The mage apparently hears this comment and shakes her head with a sigh. "Perhaps I should give you a quick demonstration, then, since you're still rather nervous about the whole process?" With that, the Frogmilker holds out her own arm and places the little frog on her wrist. When she lets it go, the frog immediately latches onto her with its mouth and judging by her wince, pierces the skin. Within seconds, the creature sprouts another head and its two sets of eyes change color – one to a milky blue, the other to a yellowish-gold.

Alptraum's eyes get big. "Uh … that's one of the weirder things I've ever seen … and that says a lot," he comments.

"It's eyes match yours though," Lilith notes to the wizard. "Uh… what do the two heads mean though? Are there two of you?"

The Skeek gives a short laugh and expertly prises the leech-frog from her wrist, then whispers a few strange words and all four of its eyes close, seemingly in sleep. She hands the now-comatose creature to Lilith and instructs, "Just shut this one away in your empty cage, please. Hm, the eyes? Oh yes, very observant of you. Unfortunately, I'm living with a rather nasty spirit-infection of my own. It tends to affect what I say and do, so if I don't seem quite myself sometimes… well, I'm not."

"If you have a spirit connected to you, I might be able to extract it," Alptraum offers the odd wizard. "After all, the Barsunala's power is around the transfer of spirits… Well, unless you're happy with how you are, of course."

Lilith puts the frog into the cage in her lap and closes it up again.

The mage starts at this and peers at Alptraum rather closely. "Barsunala? I see there are a few things that Lilith didn't tell me about you! But I should have guessed – by your fur and hair color, for example." She appears lost in thought for a minute, then says, "We can speak of it later, if you wish to try. There would be, of course, risks involved."

"There always are. It was the Barsunala powers that allowed be to extract and contain the Shadow of Amena," Alptraum points out. "So, anyway, I guess you can stick frogs on me… "

The Frogmilker nods briskly. "Very well. I will start again with the covering on your arm and work outward from there. If you feel pain from something other than the bites the leech-frogs will give you, let me know that as soon as possible." Then she takes another, much larger and slightly ferocious-looking frog from the cage and releases it onto the chitinous gauntlet. It seems to take the frog a little time to pierce it, but finally it latches on.

That gets a wince from Alptraum. "Ow," he complains when it finally manages to get through the plating. Still, it wasn't too bad.

The creature drinks from Alptraum for a few seconds, then begins to quiver in place. At last it spreads into another melted puddle of frog, without any discernible features. The only thing that proves it was once a frog is the bright green color of the goo.

"Uhm, ew," Alptraum comments when the frog goes into frog goo. "That really looks like what a shadow dragon looks like. This featureless … blob. I guess it does mean the shadow dragon's blood is part of mine … at least in the arm… "

"Maybe it's reacting to the stored energy too," Lilith points out. "You've sucked up some critters with it already, after all."

"Maybe. I don't know. It's … interesting," Alptraum notes.

The mage scoops up the frog-puddle without even a grimace and whispers the same odd words to it, which one can only hope has also put it to sleep. Since the goo didn't move in the first place, it's hard to tell if the spell worked at all. "Just open the cage for me, Lilith, I'll put it in myself. I've protected my hands with a lotion that will keep off most of this muck. No sense in both of us getting slimed."

Lilith opens the cage and holds it out as far from herself as she can.

"Put in on her head!" Alptraum says impishly, "She needs some slime!"

The Skeek's lips twitch suspiciously at Alptraum's remark, but she merely slides the melted frog into the cage without incident. Then she points to two small, red semi-circles on his arm. "There, you see? These leech-frogs don't leave much of a mark, and I can give you a salve that will heal the bites fairly quickly."

"Yes, it wasn't too bad," Alptraum agrees. "So, we know my right arm, at least to the elbow, is rather mutated."

"Didn't need a frog to see that though," Lilith notes with a grin.

"True enough, that," Alptraum agrees with a grin of his own. "Just wait, though, I bet I start a fashion trend!"

"Indeed. So I will place the second leech-frog on the upper part of this same arm, to see if the Shadow's effects have spread that far," the mage explains. She pulls another from the cage and settles it halfway between the Eeee's elbow and shoulder. After the creature latches on and swallows a few times, it thankfully doesn't melt, but it does start to change color. Eventually, the frog's skin turns blue and gold, and it even appears to be somewhat… scaly.

"That's pretty," Lilith comments.

"Uh … why does that frog have Kaira's colors?" Alptraum asks after a moment of staring at the strange frog. He didn't even wince this time … apparently too distracted by the change. "I guess, uh, maybe since the plating is formed from Vorg's blood and Kaira contains him … that she has a presence in my arm containing his blood from spreading."

"Well, she does show up in the orb thing," Lilith notes. "Does it matter that there's another spirit that Alptraum can plug in to the glove?"

After prising this frog off Alptraum's arm and sending it to sleep, the Frogmilker hands it to Lilith to put in the cage. "Well, at least someone here had an idea of what that change meant! However, since the leech-frog did not melt as the last one did, it is probably safe to assume that the effects are all contained in the one place. But further examination will bear that out." Then she considers Lilith's question. "If Kaira's spirit came in contact with Alptraum's blood during this 'plugging in,' as you call it, then there would be traces of that contamination, too."

"Well, I don't exactly know what's inside that slot in the gauntlet. It could be slotting deeper into my arm for all I know," Alptraum admits with a small shrug.

"Do you come into contact with any other spirits during this plugging in process?" the mage asks next. "And what exactly are you inserting into your arm?"

"It would be Kaira and maybe Vorgulremik, since his blood is what comprises the blade," Alptraum answers. "I can't imagine anyone else's would be present."

"As for what I plug in, it is a spirit dagger that was used to contain the evil Vorgulremik," he adds.

The mage's odd eyes narrow at Alptraum's answer. "Then perhaps you should be careful of putting such a dagger into your own flesh," she says softly. "I am unsure of how deeply this channel reaches into your arm, just as you are unsure, but chancing any contact between your blood and Vorgulremik's would not be wise. And if it is his blood that makes up the dagger's blade… " She trails off, looking concerned.

"Kaira said it was safe," Alptraum comments, trying to look unconcerned about it.

The Frogmilker stares at him for a few more seconds, then her face slowly clears. "Very well. You know the blade's properties better than I, but I still would advise caution." That said, she reaches into the cage by her knee again and pulls out another frog.

And so the examination continues. Much to Alptraum's relief, none of the other leech-frogs that the mage puts on him turn into shapeless blobs, although some of them undergo rather surprising changes. The one she attached to his forehead began croaking the tunes of several bawdy, barroom songs. Two she put on his right leg looked as if they were going to revert to Kaira's colors again – but then promptly exploded. On the left leg, however, one frog suddenly grew iridescent, purple feathers and would have flown around the pentagram if the Frogmilker hadn't stunned it with another spell and tossed it at Lilith to lock into the larger cage.

"Okay … can someone please explain the feathers and such?" Alptraum pleads, "I've never dealt with anything that had purple feathers. And why did some of them explode? They shouldn't explode, should they?"

The Skeek, on the other hand, doesn't look a bit concerned by these strange occurrences. "Of all people, you should know by now that nothing is ever guaranteed with magic," she chides the Eeee gently. "Some of the effects on the leech frogs are simply going to be random… although I don't think the singing frog was just happenstance. Didn't you grow up in a gypsy camp, young man?"

Alptraum laughs a bit at that. "Well, yes, I did," the Eeee admits, "The singing bit didn't surprise me. The purple feathers, however, did."

"Rather pretty in its own way, though," the Skeek muses, glancing at the cage Lilith holds. "I might just keep that one… Anyway, since I haven't picked up anything worrisome so far, I'll speed things up a bit so we can finish. All that's left to test is your left arm and chest, so… " The mage reaches both hands into the last remaining cage and takes out three leech-frogs at once. Two she places on the upper and lower parts of his arm, and the third she puts directly in the center of his chest.

When each of the frogs bite down, Alptraum once again winces. "Nasty little buggers," he grumbles as the pain subsides to a dull ache. Still, he doesn't try to move around too much … of course, mainly because he's trying to watch all three frogs at once for changes.

At least the three frogs don't explode this time… but they do grow larger and larger as they continue to taste Alptraum's blood. Their green color also darkens to black and all three sprout wings, although the wings on the frog attached to his lower arm appear tattered and torn.

Alptraum's brow goes up at that. "Oooookay," he says, ears flicking, "Well, that I recognize at least … it's, well, symbolic of the Barsunala, which sort of permeates my being now. Well, at least the torn winged one looks like the Barsunala," he says slowly.

At once, the Frogmilker scrambles to her feet, then backs away from the Eeee. "This is not good… gah, I should have expected-" Her sentence, however, is cut short as the blackened frogs – now at least five times their original size – detach themselves from Alptraum's skin and close in on the mage, hissing as no frogs should be able to do.

"I don't think they'll fit in the cage!" Lilith squeaks as she jumps to her feet as well. "Make them stop, Alptraum!"

"You have to let him go first!" the mage yelps as she dodges one of the frogs that can actually fly. "There are quick releases on each of the steel points!"

"What is not good? What?" Alptraum says worriedly now. He hasn't been too worried abut this, until, well, the wizard freaked. He isn't even sure how to stop them … so, well, he closes his eyes and since they contain his blood … he tries to feel them. "You are part of me. You are me.  Stop!" the Eeee thinks.

Lilith sets down the cage and dives over Alptraum to under his restraints.

"Glorf!" goes Alptraum when Lilith goes over him … and actually hits him, in the process. The unfortunate result of that is … it breaks his concentration.

"Just make sure neither of you disturb the green circle around the pentagram!" the mage calls next, as a badly-aimed spell misses the ragged-winged frog by inches.

Lilith squirms around, but gets Alptraum's right hand free first. "Use your death hand!" she suggests, and gets his ankles next.

Shaking his head, Alptraum calls out, "What exactly happened? I need to know, to know how to stop them!" He starts jerking at his hands, pulling them free and sitting up.

Limited by the small space inside the circle, the Frogmilker barely brushes by as one of the flying frogs makes a dive for her neck. "They represent the Barsunala spirit within you and my magicks are life-based!" she growls. "They see me as a threat, that's why they're attacking me! You may be the only one who can control them!"

"Right! Okay, uh, well … I have an idea, then! Just, uh, don't well run, I need to change!" Alptraum says quickly as he helps Lilith get his ankles free too. Once free, he pulls his legs back and then into a crouch. His body seems to ripple darkly … and then his flesh starts to draw slowly inward, becoming more gaunt and skeletal. The once silvery eyes go milky, then fades to a complete white; no pupils, no iris. His hands … well, at least his left hand's fingers are tipped with long talons. And when his wings spread slightly, the wing membranes begin to separate into torn strips of flesh (or at least appear to be) … but in between those membranes ripple and flows a shadowy liquid-like substance. As for his right hand, well … the gauntlet remains, but around the edges of it and the underside where is palm and forearm are not plated… the fur is gone and in its place is a dark and shimmering, almost liquid substance; liquid shadow. Slowly, the new 'Alptraum' stands and says in a  raspy, hissing, voice, "Stop. Return to me." And as if inviting, he extends his right hand outward, palm up and fingers spread.

At this transformation, the Frogmilker apparently forgets that there are three demon-frogs intent on attacking her and stops still, staring. The two frogs with intact wings seem to heed this call and turn in midair, slowly fluttering towards the Eeee's extended hand, vacant expressions in their froggy little eyes. The one with torn wings, unfortunately, was in the middle of leaping for the Frogmilker's own arm and does not stop. Now that the mage is standing completely still, it seems the frog has a clear path to her.

"You, stay," the wraith-Eeee orders the two more docile frogs, then rushes towards the one with tattered wings and makes a grab for it with his right hand.

Alptraum moves amazingly fast and his chitinous contained 'liquid' hand closes around the neck and jaw of the frog that was heading towards the Frogmilker … a mere two inches from the Frogmilker's face. Alptraum's 'blind' eyes narrow and he tries to get his right hand to absorb the frog back into himself. "Now, shadow, let me reclaim this… " he thinks.

The mutant frog shrivels and deflates, and the orb and 'veins' on the back of Alptraum's hand glow.

Alptraum keeps his grip firm on the mutant frog until all that's left is skin and bone. Then with the soft sound of chitin on chitin, his hand releases the body … which flops to the ground in a heap. Nodding in a satisfied manner, the wraith goes to 'absorb' the remaining two frogs as well.

"Uh, do you want that in the cage too?" Lilith asks the wizard.

As Alptraum passes by Lilith, his right hand swings out a bit and actually gooses her bottom. The Eeee stops, looks down at his hand, then grabs it with his left hand to keep it from doing that again as he continues towards the other two frogs.

The mage seems to come to herself as the mutated frog's insides are sucked into Alptraum's gauntleted hand. Shaking her head slowly, she seems to be about to say something to him, then stops herself when he walks over to repeat the same process on the other two frogs. To Lilith, she says unsteadily, "N-no, I don't think that w-would be wise. Let me… " Trailing off, she takes the first deflated frog and with a quick flick of her wrist, tosses it outside the enchanted circle. With a sizzling hiss, ashes scatter to the floor where frog skin used to be. "That's why I warned you not to step outside the circle," she finishes quietly.

Lilith jumps and nearly leaves the circle. Once she calms down she asks, "Was that you or the Shadow, Alptraum?"

"Shadow," Alptraum rasps. It doesn't take too much tome for him to deal with the other two frogs in the same manner. Taking the hint from the Frogmilker, he tosses the corpse outside of the circle each time and it disintegrates into ash. When the two frogs are dealt with, he looks to the wizard, then asks, "I was going to shift back, but before I do … do you wish to examine … this? It is primarily just an illusion, a solidification of what the Barsunala is believed to look like … just with some shadow influences."

"You need to control that shadow-hand more though," Lilith remarks. "You can't be going around goosing people."

"Well, Melusine should teach me more control over time," Alptraum rasps, "And it is not like I go in public like this. Well … unless you would prefer me like this for our date." And you know … it's rather disturbing to see a wraith smirk.

"I can't wait to hear what happens when it gooses her," Lilith says.

"Funny. She doesn't have anything to goose," Alptraum notes.

It appears that the Frogmilker has recovered from her shock now, as she cocks her head up at the Eeee and actually smiles at him. If she wasn't so terribly thin, the smile would be beautiful. "No need for that, Alptraum, although I appreciate the offer. I just don't think I would find out any more about it than you already know. However, I must thank you for saving my life – such as it is." She smiles again and chuckles. "Can you imagine what would have happened if those leech-frogs had been able to get to me? Then we would have been battling three demon-frogs with wings and two vampiric heads each!"

Lilith laughs nervously at the Frogmilker's jest. "You don't have a second head somewhere, right?" she asks.

The woman turns her smile on Lilith now. "Of sorts, I suppose, but the second head is within this one," she says, tapping her
temple with one finger.

The white Eeee grimaces briefly at the image that conjures up.

Alptraum's eyes clench shut. As quickly as the shift came, it leaves the Eeee. Wings knit themselves back together; his form fills out slowly, alleviating its emaciated look, and his right hand … the shadow contained within solidifies back to lightly furred flesh. With a shake of his head, he says (in his normal voice), "There, better. That wasn't so bad, I suppose. No two headed frogs, as you say."

The Frogmilker claps her hands together and sits cross-legged on the floor again. "Quite. Now give me a moment to dispel the circle… " With that, she closes her eyes again and bows her head over her linked hands. After a few more minutes of muttering incantations, the circle's bright glow fades and the powder itself turns into ash, as does the wax flowing within the channels cut into the floor. "There, it is safe to leave the pentagram now," she remarks, eyes opening.

Just to be safe, Lilith waits for someone else to go first.

"Well, at least I now know the heavy shadow contamination doesn't extend through my entire body," Alptraum comments as he steps out of the pentagram and takes a moment to stretch and move around a bit. "And Lilith doesn't have to worry that I'll turn into a blob during dinner." He grins.

The mage nods to both Eeee. "That is true. I'm glad the examination was able to ease your mind, after all." As she picks up the cage with all of the transformed leech-frogs in it (the one from Traum's forehead still croaking away), the Skeek looks at Alptraum out of the corner of one eye. "And if you wish to speak to me again about my own spirit infection, I will be glad to do so… in private. It isn't a story I wish to have spread about the castle."

"Just be glad you drink your meals," Lilith notes. "Turning your food into blobs would be gross."

Alptraum dips his head to the Frogmilker. "Well, I need to see to a variety of things first, but once certain aspects in my life settle down, I can see if there is anything I can do for you," he tells the wizard. Then with a lopsided, fangy, smirk, he saunters over to Lilith and puts his right arm around her shoulders. "We should leave the wizard to her work now, I think. And tonight we are going on that date. So, I need time to straighten up a bit from laying on the floor … and that reminds me! Give that one blob-frog to Phlagaea. I'm certain she would like it."