Baal Character Development: #28-Full Cathood

It’s the dead of night. Baal, a demon with minimal catlike features, fidgets with the artifact in his hand. From what he thought, it looked like some sort of portal machine, but slightly altered. He’d found it nestled in the grass of his backyard, and it’d piqued his curiosity. Unfortunately, even with his enhanced demonic intelligence, he couldn’t make head or tails of it. He hisses, his ears flattened. Finally, after hours of being unable to do anything with the device, he throws it to the ground.

“Damn it! For the love of Marcius, what is this thing?!”

He takes a few deep breaths, somewhat surprised with himself. This place is starting to wear on him, it seems. He’d never gotten so frustrated with something he’d thrown it before. However, right as he was about to pick it back up off the ground, the machine whirred to life. A bright light flashed from the machine, irritating his eyes. But that was the least of his worries as he staggers back, his skin becoming itchy and hot. He could feel his claws and fangs come out, and they wouldn’t retract like they normally did. His legs shook and he could feel his spine reshaping. His face shifted, gaining a snout, and in his attempt to reorient himself by shaking his head, his gold diadem fell to the ground. His clothes began to feel tight on his body, and his hands began to shift into paws. When the light faded, he staggered forward, falling over and feeling off-balance. He tilted his head up, panting as he briefly looked around. He was still in his home, but there was something wrong. He looks down at his legs and his eyes widen, his breath caught in his throat. They were cat legs, and they’d completely torn through his pants and shoes. He quickly slid off his jacket, revealing his now fur-covered arms and paw-like hands. He struggles with the button on his vest and shirt, but once he gets them off, his breathing becomes easier, no longer obstructed by fabric. He sits there, breathing for a little while before some sense of familiarity dawns on him. Even partially transformed, and while he’d been caught off-guard initially, he eventually calmed down. See, before his arrival in the world he was currently in, in the Underworld, he’d been able to transform into a cat. While this was nowhere near the full transformation, nor was it of his own volition, being turned into a humanoid cat reminded him of that sensation, which gave him a sense of comfort. His tail swishes as he stands back up, adjusting to his current form. His nose twitches as it takes in the scents he hadn’t been able to pick up on before. He walks back over to the device and continues to play with it, trying to figure out what within it has caused his transformation.

“What in the seven rings of the Underworld is this thing…?”

He murmurs, continuing to fidget with the device. Eventually, the device clicks and a set of engraved runes comes to life on the device. The device slowly whirrs to life, and after a bit more tinkering with the device, Baal could finally fell himself changing back to normal. He looks down at the device in his hand, and smirks.

“Interesting. Very, very interesting.”