Niraya opened her eyes, and slowly rose to her feet. She felt dizzy and strange...and a moment of panic seized her, because not only were there sounds of fighting, but she was floating in the air!
Only...no...she could feel her feet on the ground. But that wasn't possible, because she was looking down at the cart from a height of at least a couple of feet or more from where she should have been. Everything looked strange too. There were no shadows under the canopies of the trees to either side. Rather, colors faded away, but the other details of what was in those 'dark patches' remained perfectly clear.
She looked at her hands, and her eyes widened. Quickly she twisted, trying to see as much of herself as she could. What she saw brought a horrified gasp out of her.
Niraya was tall...taller than a grown man, and wider too. Muscles bulged in her shoulders and arms...presumably down her chest and abdomen as well, but that couldn't be seen due to the thick plated carapace that ran down her front. Her forearms and shins were likewise crusted in the same bony armor. On her hands, it formed itself into long raking talons that overlaid her fingers. This was a mercy though, because beyond that, she wore nothing at all. Her skin was tough even where the armor didn't cover it, and while flesh-toned, was lighter in shade than her natural skin.
She reached up and touched her face, wincing as her claws nicked herself in the process. Her head was bigger too, and while she couldn't really feel the details of it, she did find there were a pair of thick, short horns extending up and back from her temples. And no hair...her hair appeared to be gone.
Stranger still was her reaction. Just moments ago, these findings would have reduced her to bawling panic. And while she did feel dawning horror and fear at what she'd done to herself...there was something else burning through it, like sunrays through ice. Anger.
There were orcs over there.
As the last of the mists evaporated from around her, she grabbed at a strand and PULLED. It stretched and snapped into a ghostly visage. She snarled at it, in a voice deeper than her usual one, "Stay near me and keep those axes away from me."
With that, Niraya hopped down from the cart, and landed heavily enough for the others to feel in the ground.
"Stop those horses from bolting," she said gruffly. "I'll hold them off."
Somewhere in the back of her head, Niraya was still freaking out...but as she started forward, it was hard to hold onto that fear. She felt so strong! Even as big and heavy as she was, every movement felt light and easy, like she could leap into the sky if she wanted!
[sblock=Actions]Niraya casts Mage Armor, and moves towards the orcs![/sblock]
AC with Mage Armor: 19