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** A Chocobo's Story, Chapter 1**

** By William W. Kelso**

*This is my story, such as it is. I'm afraid it may not be very interesting as the life of a, well, bird, is not very exciting. I haven't always been a bird, I was human once a long time ago, but it seems more like a dream now. I really wasn't much of a man, but I was happy enough. But what is done is done, that life is gone forever. *

I was born in the City of Caldinium in the Kingdom of Corwyn, and was the third son in a large family of fairly prosperous merchants. My two older brothers and my six sisters and I helped our parents run the family business, which was general merchandise and textiles. I was in charge of book keeping as I was fairly skilled in the use of numbers and accounts keeping. We weren't rich, but were definitely middle class and never wanted for much. My own tastes were pretty simple and ran to music and I was a pretty good flute player. I do miss that. We had just gotten in a large shipment of assorted stock and I was going over the inventory and shipping lists when the raid came.

*The United Kingdom's and other allies had been at war with the Empire for centuries with periods of uneasy truces. As was their habit the Empire broke the last truce without warning, and in a lightening swift "raid in strength" managed to avoid the border garrisons and struck deep into the heart of the Kingdom before anyone could mount an effective defense. It was so sudden the main gate to the city walls was overrun by a fast moving troop of elite cavalry before they could be closed, and they held it long enough for the main force to arrive. The first we knew anything was wrong was when the alarm bells in the fortress began ringing. As with all able bodied men between the ages of fifteen and sixty my brothers and I were members of the militia, but we never even had time to report for duty, not that I was much of a warrior. My assignment was an archer at which I was at best competent. When I reached twenty-one I would have been called up to serve in the Royal Army for five years, but most likely it would have been easy garrison duty somewhere fairly safe due to my families contacts. *

Father gathered up my mother and sisters and headed for the protection of the fortress, my brothers and I headed for the armory to draw weapons. And we ran right into the first of the raiders as they spread out through the city to loot and take slaves. Toby and Saul had their swords with them and joined some other citizens and constables who were putting up a fight, but since I was without a weapon of any kind I grabbed a hoe and used it as best I could, which I'm ashamed to say wasn't very well. I swung it at an Orc warrior, and he batted it aside with ease and knocked me out with the flat of his sword. A short time later a bucket of water was thrown on me and I was rudely kicked to my feet to find my wrists were shackled and attached by chains to a long line of other unfortunate people. In a blink of an eye I had gone from prosperous merchant to slave, as had hundreds of other fellow unfortunates.

*The shock was traumatizing to say the least. I had never even seen an Orc before, and the war had always been so far away it had seemed more like a inconvenience than anything else. They were large squat creatures which were basically human in appearance except for having porcine features and skin colors from dark brown outright green, and they had the personal habits of the pigs they partially resembled, in short they stink. They were also skilled warriors and have surprisingly good discipline which is brutally enforced by their masters. *

I have no idea what happened to my brothers or the rest of my family but later heard that the attack was beaten off by the garrison and City Militia once they'd rallied. Of course by then it was far too late for me. That life is gone forever and I try not to think about it anymore as it just causes me pain. I was twenty when they took me, I have no idea how old I am now. Birds don't think about numbers very much, even ones with human intelligence. I'd guess maybe five years have passed, but cannot be sure. As to my "age" in bird years I have no idea. I'm an adult and healthy, that's about it. But I do know my new species lives as long as 50 human years or more.

*Our Orc captors drove us hard to keep up with their column, and any who fell by the side of the road; or couldn't keep up, were killed. An Orc would just come up and smash in their heads with a club or war hammer. Sometimes it took several blows, which the bastards always thought was funnier then hell. Despite being "soft" by some standards I was in good condition and managed to keep up. We were fed at irregular intervals, given water fairly often, and not allowed "toilet" breaks. So soon we were all almost as filthy as the Orcs, and smelled like them too. Ever try to relieve yourself wearing shackles and chained to other people? And no allowances were made for sex; men and woman were chained side by side. The nights were the worst, we would lie in large groups for body warmth as we were given no blankets or warm food, but would still shiver most of the night anyway. A few people became sick, and got the club. But it was much worse for the women as every evening when the column stopped for the night the Orcs would come by and select woman for the evening "entertainment", and we could hear them screaming as they were gang raped. A few, the lucky ones, managed to take their own lives. Some of women never came back to the slave coffles, and we had no idea what happened to them. It was also true the Orcs like human flesh as quite often slaves that died during the day were roasted and eaten at night, and the smell of burning flesh was sickening. If any attempt was made to rescue us we never heard about it. I guess the Kingdom had more on its mind then the fate of a few hundred townsfolk or farmers. *

Soon we left everything familiar behind, and even the countryside became strange. The Kingdom was an old established land, and had been largely cultivated with large well kept forested areas and very little in the way of truly wild areas, but we were now passing through dense woods down narrow almost overgrown roads and tracks as our masters drove us on. We endured the forced march for over six weeks, and by the time we reached our destination my clothes were rags and I had lost at least fifty pounds or more, and was probably in the best shape of my life. And by then out of an estimated number of 850 slaves only two hundred, give or take a dozen, remained alive. Of them only 30 were women, the rest were men and older boys, no children had survived. Our destination was a large earthen walled fort that's main purpose was a slave market, and we were the newest stock. Our arrival was greeted with great fanfare as potential buyers came out to get their first look at the new stock. I was surprised at the variety of different races represented.

They divided us up by sex, age, body types, and health. The unhealthiest went into the pot. We were stripped, cleaned up, and given decent food at regular intervals for a change. And we were put on display, still nude, both men and women, in cages or pens so the prospective buyers could have a look at us. Fairly often a potential buyer or their "vet" would enter the pens/cages and examine us, rather thoroughly. If they wanted to "try out" a woman or man they paid a fee, fortunately I was spared that horror. For someone who had never been with a woman to have a strange female check you for a rupture or other problems was horribly embarrassing, and any attempt at refusing such an "exam" was punished. A few strokes from a whip or crop does wonders to correct an "attitude problem". Often though they would chain our hands over our heads in a standing position so the examiners could do whatever they wanted without fear of "protest" from the "livestock". We soon grew used to it, but never liked it.

And the types of people and other beings that came to look over the "wares" were amazing. There were Saurian's, human sized upright lizards with very nasty claws and teeth and breath smelling of rotted meat, catlike Frissian's whose stares unnerved me as they always looked hungry, humans wearing the dress or armor of many different countries, Elves of various types, Orcs and other dark races, and even a small dragon once. Of course we humans were not the only "stock", there were other races as well. But what shocked me most was there were merchants from some of our so-called allies and even a few of the United Kingdom's. It would seem the slave market was a kind of neutral ground; anyone was welcome as long as they bought or sold "livestock." And they ignored our pleas for assistance, as far as they were concerned we were slaves now, period. And slaves are property, and have no rights. We could have been a king before and no one would have cared, we were livestock now. They looked at us the same way they looked at a horse or dog. After a few tries at pleading for help we gave up and remained silent.

As our Orc owners wanted to get us in the best shape possible for the upcoming livestock auction we were fed fairly well and forced to exercise. Do you have any idea how hard it is to exercise in the nude when you're used to wearing clothes? It was horribly embarrassing for one thing as certain parts of your anatomy tend to flop around, much to the amusement of our "instructors", some of which were female Orcs. We quite often had audiences of interested buyers who came to see us "put through our paces". Some of the more "endowed" men were often led away for some "private instruction" with the female Orcs, and some never came back. I heard they became the female Orcs personal slaves, and their duties included sexually pleasuring their owners. The ones that did return never talked about it, and we didn't ask. Fortunately I was spared that horror and degradation, though maybe in hindsight they were the lucky ones. At least they're still human.

*After a couple weeks of "rest and rehabilitation" we were ready for the auction block. It was the most horrible and degrading experience you can imagine. We were paraded nude in front of the bidders, and often one would climb up on the platform to "inspect" us. I was chained eagle spread to a large "X" made from heavy wood beams, nude and helpless. At least three prospective bidders came up and examined my teeth, genitals, etc. However it appeared most of the healthier "specimens" were being bought by a group of women dressed in robes of some kind. I had seen them around, but didn't know much about them. One other slave told me they were members of some sort of religious order or cult. And they soon became my new "owners" when I sold for $700 gold, a respectable amount for a "fine healthy male who could provide such fine ladies with much pleasure" as the auctioneer said. I wish they had bought me for a sex slave instead of what their real intent was. Frankly I could have been quite happy as a sexually enhanced sex slave whose only purpose was to fuck anyone or anything his owner required. But I wasn't so lucky, and neither were the other poor souls they purchased, all males. The woman went for much higher prices as strong human females are quite popular with many races, the Frissians especially like them as they much less "trouble" to mate with then their own females. I've heard those women were "fortunate" as the Frissian males dote on their "love pets" and they are well treated. *

As we; myself and the other slaves the women had bought, were led away I heard one of the slavers say "poor bastards" which didn't exactly sound encouraging. I wondered if we were intended as some sort of human sacrifice as I knew some of the darker religions practiced that abomination. And there would be sacrifices of a sort, our humanity. We were taken to a large tent or pavilion they had erected near the slave market and put in a pen nearby. Then one by one we were led into the tent. As they took the first of us we listened to the horrible cries of pain and terror that slowly became less and less human until dying away into inhuman screeches and shrieking wails. And when we saw what emerged from the tent we panicked and screamed and begged, but to no avail. When they came for me I fought, but they used a staff with some sort of numbing spell built in to it as all they had to do was tap me once and I dropped like a sack of potatoes. Then I was hauled under my arms by two of the women who dragged me into the tent and left my lying on a large ornately embroidered carpet or pallet of some kind. Before they left they fastened a heavy leather and metal collar, rather loosely, around my neck, but still more then tight enough to be impossible to remove, despite my frantic efforts.

*The tent was dim, but I could see a podium or altar of some kind with a woman wearing a voluminous fancy embroidered robe that I recognized as Elvin work, very expensive, very fine quality. The effects of the stun stick soon wore off and I was able to stagger to my feet, and realized I was standing in a large pentagram that was woven into the thick pallet/carpet along with mystic and arcane or religious symbols I didn't recognize. The imposing woman looked at me with a grim smile and spoke words of power. The pentagram started to glow and I felt my hair stand on end as power crackled through the air, I could smell magic like ozone. I said "Please!" and started to beg and tell her my family was rich and would pay a ransom, but then as she began invoking a spell I could only scream. *

The change started as a tingling in my whole body, which quickly became a horrible itching and burning as my skin began to literally writhe and crawl as ripples ran over it. I bent over and held my stomach as convulsions racked my guts and horrible nausea washed over me, but I couldn't vomit as much as I tried too. Instead all I could do was gag and moan, then scream as the horrible pain increased and seemed to never end. The worst is I was aware during the whole horrible process; I saw, and knew, what was happening. They did not numb my senses or give me a pain killing potion, why waste valuable resources on a slave? I felt my body began to twist and warp into a form it was never meant to take, and as I watched quills began to push out of my arms and body, each tipped with a small drop of blood where they broke the skin. They quickly began to unfurl into feathers, dark grey mixed with silver-white. I could feel them sprouting all over my body as a small rain of drops of blood from the tip of each forming feather splattered on the pad which absorbed them, the blood I later would find was part of the payment to the dark unnatural forces that changed me. With agonizing snaps my elbows bent to bend the other way as more feathers sprouted to cover my body in first a downy layer, then more that lengthened into pin feathers, which then developed into different types of feathers as the new plumage spread and formed. My fingers grew together and lengthened into wing bones, and my legs began to cramp and with a squeal I fell onto my side and kicked wildly as they spasmed and cramped horribly as they took on a rough dark yellow color with what looked like scales for skin and my toes grew together into two much thicker and larger digits and wicked black talons pushed out of my them, and another toe grew on back of each foot. As soon as the pain became more bearable I was able to stand again, and I threw myself at the border of the pentagram in a desperate attempt to escape, but the heavy collar brought me up short with a gasping squawk of pain. I managed to sit up and moaned as I felt my neck push out as it lengthened and thickened, and found I was staring down a face rapidly hardening and forming into a beak. I looked at the chanting woman with tears of pain and terror running down my face and begged her to make it stop, until the last human sounds merged into incomprehensible grunts, squeals, and finally squawks. I felt my arms, which were now folded against my sides, shift farther back and up on my sides and my hands were gone, my fingers fused and flattened to become more feathers or bones as my wings formed. My legs moved further to the sides as my pelvis and my chest widened and a keel bone formed, and the mass of muscles supporting my tail fan formed as it sprouted even more feathers and I gasped at the tearing pain. I flapped lengthening, thickening wings as new powerful muscles formed and rippled across my back, and I could feel my internal body structure changing, my organs changing and rearranging themselves and the discomfort and nausea were horrible. I felt a sudden rush of lust, ejaculated painfully, and felt my erection and balls draw up into my body to disappear under a dusting of feathers. Then all I could do was squat and try to breath as the transformation ran its course and came to an end. And were a human had once been now sat a very confused and utterly terrified Chocobo. And I knew what I was now because I had seen the other new birds being led from the tent to another pen. I had heard of changelings, but had never thought in my worst nightmares I would ever become one. A human mind trapped in the body of an animal or a part human/part animal beast. At least a beast retained some human features, but for us the transformation was complete. Nothing physically human remained. In lawful societies such practices are outlawed, but we were far from any such laws.

A couple of other woman entered, and grabbing me before I realized their intentions they pinned me, slipped a muzzle/harness over my head and beak, and the woman from the podium pulled a glowing brand out of a small brazier, and as she approached I tried to kick or peck, but the women holding me knew what they were doing. Bending over the woman branded me under a wing while one of the others held my feathers out of the way, and I gave one final shrill shriek of avian agony as the brand burned deeply into my flank. One of the other women smeared a salve of some kind on it, and my wails faded as the cool salve deadened the pain. Then they slipped a collar around my neck and I felt a strange lethargy wash over me, and nothing seemed important anymore. When they let me go I stood up and they snapped a lead rope to my halter, and then I obediently and docilely followed them as they led me from the tent, and I stared ahead with dull vacant eyes and didn't even react to the cries of horror from the others waiting their turn. As they led me to the pen one said,

"This one has nice coloring, we'll get a premium for him. They may even want to put him out to stud, dark grey and silver plumage is rare. If they can get him to breed true they'll make a fortune."

By the Gods, I realized, they're talking about me! Like I was a dumb animal that couldn't understand what they were saying. They put me in the pen with the other dull eyed docile birds, and left us to contemplate our new lives. The dullness was only a spell induced façade that kept us quiet and obedient, but inside we were utterly terrified. I cannot begin to describe the horrible trauma of becoming something else, something strange and alien to your very thought processes, the realization your mind has changed too and that your human intelligence has merged with animal instincts and needs and you have to try and accept that new mind, a mind not quite animal, but no longer human. I stared at the other changelings, and they stared back at me with despair and misery showing in their own eyes. The only way to tell use from natural birds was by the color of our eyes, for some reason that is one thing that cannot be changed as the eyes are the mirror of the soul. You can change the eyes shape or form, but not their color. But then natural Chocobo's have different eye colors so the only way to tell for sure was from our brands, brands that anchored the spell of transformation and made it irreversible. Later a woman came by and filled a trough with water for us, but there was no food. Only a few of us took a drink, most just stood and stared at nothing. There was one incident during the night when one of us threw himself against the sides of the pen until he broke his neck to set himself free from the living nightmare. But the rest of us were still too stunned, or cowardly, to find freedom in that manner. We huddled together for warmth and comfort, trrling sadly at our plight.

*I knew perfectly well what I had become as I was familiar with the large flightless birds called Chocobos as my family kept several for riding. Next to horses they were favorite riding animals. Properly broken and trained the large avians made excellent mounts, fast and tireless with a smooth gait. While no good for hauling heavy loads or wagons they were more nimble and easier to keep then equines and just as fast and more endurable on long runs. The military used them for scouts and light cavalry as they could be trained to fight. I had always liked the gentle giants and had a riding Chocobo of my own named Tweeter. I had certainly never thought I would become one! And knowing what I was didn't mean I liked it, not by any means. *

*As the horror began to wear off and reality set in we began to stir restlessly and look at ourselves and one another. I found myself looking at large beaked heads with soft gentle scared eyes. Our feathers ranged from dark yellow to white, but yellow was the predominate color. My own dark grey plumage with a silver crest on my head , silver throat blaze, and silver tips on my tail and wing feathers stood out, and I was the only one with steely grey eyes. Eyes I had inherited from my father's side of the family who originally came from the far away steppe lands of the Wurtherer's, a nomadic race. We all had large head crests, "bibs" of finer feathers on our neck & chests, and ample tail fans. And I knew that while we looked rather harmless our beaks and talons could be deadly weapons. I had once seen a Chocobo kick a large dog to death, disemboweling it with its sharp talons in the process. Then the Chocobo had began to nonchalantly use its beak to tear off chunks of raw flesh and eat them until its owner put a stop to that grisly feeding. And while mostly grain eaters like other birds Chocobos are meat eaters as well, true omnivores. We're the largest of the type of birds called raptors. And we are NOT giant chickens. Call a changeling a chicken and you'll get pecked. *

The next morning the priestesses; or whatever the foul bitches called themselves, were dismayed and upset to find the dead bird in our pen. But they hauled away the poor thing, and then returned shortly and we were given our first meal. They just threw corn on the ground like you would for any domestic fowl, and like any domestic fowl we were soon pecking up the corn and scratching at the ground looking for more. Hunger is a great motivator, and we were starving. We were also becoming more familiar with our new bodies, and learning how to use them. There was much flapping of wings and spreading of tail fans and crests as we inspected ourselves. It wasn't as hard as you'd think as we had the natural instincts of natural birds. I found myself strangely contented with my colorings, and the white bird and I seemed to attract a lot of attention from passersby. Once I even got a nice piece of beef jerky as a treat from a Wood Elf who stopped to admire me, and to my horror I found myself strutting and preening in response to the admiring attention. I had seen birds who knew they were the objects of attention do this before, and now I knew why. We are vain and love attention. As she rubbed the top of my beak and feathers between my eyes I made happy sounds. I couldn't help it, it felt good.

"Wark, keeeer, kweeeh-errrrk" I gobbled softly.

*"My, said the Elf, you are fine fellow, are you not?" *

At which I trilled happily. The Elf smelled nice, of clean and natural things. Then she noticed the collar I was wearing, and looked closer at me.

"By the Gods, you're all changelings, aren't you?"

*And I could hear the disapproval and sympathy in her voice. With sad "Warks" many of us nodded our heads, others just stared at nothing. *

*"Such is unnatural, poor creatures." I heard her mutter as she moved away. *

I found myself wishing she would come back and pet me again; hers had been the first gentle touch I had felt since this horror began. "Wuuhr-wark?" I called hopefully, but she disappeared into the crowd. With a sad "uuuhr" I lowered my head and pecked for a stray corn kernel or two. There wasn't much else to do.

*Things changed again the next day when trainers were hired to "break" us. We all backed into a corner of the pen in a flocking instinct when the priestesses and trainers entered, but each trainer quickly cut out one of us, myself included, and took us for our first "lesson" in being good riding birds. The collars of obedience helped our trainers quite a bit, and I stood docilely enough while they fitted a riding harness and saddle on my back. It was fairly complicated with lots of bands and straps due to my two-legged stance, but my broad back was a good platform for supporting a saddle. The saddle was positioned over my wings, but with stirrups in front of them. They also fitted me with a riding harness, complete with bit designed for a toothless mouth and I didn't like it all. In spite of the damn collar I still jabbed my beak at; and tried to peck, the trainer. Hard blows to the head that caused me to see stars soon cured me of that bad habit. Natural, changeling, these trainers knew how to handle both. Despite our intelligence many of our reactions were purely Chocobo as we responded to certain circumstances instinctively. But the first time he tried to ride me I dumped him on his ass, much to the delight of my fellows and some sniggers from his comrades. Then the bastard used a hooked crop to yank my legs out from under me, and putting one foot on my neck while I squawked in outrage and fear, he said, *

"You try that again BIRD, and I will break your neck and have you for dinner. Do you understand?"

*I just nodded my head as best I could, and I have no doubt he meant what he said. I could see it in his eyes. And after that they didn't have much trouble from the other birds. A few were uncooperative at first, but a few good blows cleared that up. *

Over the next several days I learned to be a good riding bird. With my level of intelligence there wasn't that much to learn. Stop, go, faster, left, right, slow down, turn, squat, etc. Frankly I couldn't even understand why anyone would want a Chocobo that was so smart, the regular ones could handle this with ease. And at least during the training sessions we got to go out of the pen and get some exercise and fresh air. It beat standing and staring, or pecking for corn or bugs. Plus we were getting irritated with one another to some degree, and some wing flapping and pecking instances happened as we worked out the "pecking order" of our "flock". To my surprise I came out on top after thoroughly thrashing another bird who tried to take my share of the daily corn ration. I jumped up and kicked him sprawling with a powerful blow from my feet, and after that no one messed with me. I found I was rather pleased with myself. But at night we all huddled together, and didn't care who we were leaning against. At night was when the horror would come back tenfold, and having warm friends nearby meant a lot. We would preen one another and give soft sad warbles and "raawks" of despair.

*Then there came another trauma. We were sold again, at the same market and on the same platform were we had been sold just a few days earlier, but this time as Chocobo's instead of humans. Oh, we were intelligent Chocobo's; but still just nothing more than higher priced birds as far as everyone was concerned. As we saw our former human friends led off one by one; or in small groups, to start their new lives we lost contact with the last of our past lives. Though we couldn't talk we still knew each other and took some comfort in the company of other wretched creatures like ourselves. But soon I found myself truly alone as I as led onto the podium; they had saved the best two birds for last, myself and the white. We each came with good quality riding saddles and harness, with the bonus of "useful obedience collars to assure your new Chocobo behaves himself". The white brought 2300 gold, I bought 2755 gold. And as I was led from the podium to be claimed by my new owner I finally realized why I had been transformed, I was more valuable as an animal then a human. They had transformed a fellow human into an animal for greed, pure simple greed. *

*I was somewhat happy to find I had been bought by the same group of merchants that had bought several of my fellow unfortunates. I had to stand still and endure it while they clipped my lovely wing feathers, then was put in a holding pen with the rest, and to our surprise some natural Chocobo's. As soon as they put me in the pen I started preening to try and restore some order to the feathers they'd messed up. Looking at us, and the way we acted, it would have been hard to tell us from the naturals. The pen was quite old, and I found myself wondering how many other poor souls had been pinned in it over the years. The boards were well polished and had grooves in them from Chocobo's rubbing and "trimming" their beaks and talons against them. Our beaks and talons grow constantly so we have to keep them worn down. If you hear a loud rasping sound coming from a pen or barn it's most likely a Chocobo trimming and sharpening their beaks or talons. The door to the pen was secured with only a loop of rope, and we could have opened the pens gate easily, but where would we have gone? I'm sure that damn obedience collar had something to do with it too, the damn thing made me act and feel stupid, made it hard to think. Soon I had a friendly natural bird preening my head and neck where I couldn't reach, and I returned the favor and plucked out errant feathers. As far as he was concerned I was just another bird. We nibbled at one another necks and heads and trilled happily. *

A couple of days later the merchants came to collect us from the stable where they were boarding us, and with lead ropes hooked to our hackamores we followed behind other birds or horses as their caravan set out. I left the slave market behind with mixed feelings. I was glad to leave behind the smells and scent of misery, but it was also the last place I had human memories of. I tried to turn my head and look over my back once, but a jerk on the lead rope snapped my head around and I followed my new owners obediently because I had no choice.

We traveled for several more weeks and I left my former life farther and farther behind me, and it no longer bothered me that I was starting to think of myself as a Chocobo now. It was easier to act that way, to be what others expected. At night they hobbled us and we stuck together because of the unknown and for mutual comfort and protection, and we didn't stray. We foraged for much of our food, but did get a regular corn ration. And to my surprise they sometimes put feedbags over our heads just like with equines. We were pretty quiet compared to most of the other "livestock", even the naturals were. I think the naturals were a little intimidated by us as we tended to be a little larger and had sturdier body build, and outweighed them somewhat as soon as we filled out as we had grown rapidly the first few days after the change. I now weighed in at a good 500+ pounds and my back was shoulder high to most people, and my head was even taller, I could easily look over the heads of most people to see what was going on. We're big birds, which is why we're used for riding. And while we can carry heavy laods on our backs we're not built to pull wagons or do heavy labor, our bones are mostly hollow and too light for such work. Despite our size we don't weigh as much as you would think. One thing we all pined for though, was to be able to fly. I can't begin to describe the yearning that we felt when we looked at other birds as they flew. We were flightless, but we still had the instincts and desire to fly. Ever wonder what a Chocobo is thinking when they look at the sky and flap their wings? Even birds can dream. Oh, to fly! How we want it so badly.

Then finally we came to a fair sized town in a country I heard one of our owners call Alewyn. And it had a slave market as well, and there we were sold once again. I was almost used to being paraded in front of; and being examined by, potential buyers. But if you were once free you never entirely loose the feeling of shame and degradation, even as an animal. I just stood patiently with my head tucked and my eyes half closed, trrling sadly to myself. I felt another pair of hands stroking my feathers and feeling my muscles, experienced hands that knew what they were doing, but gentler and more considerate then most. With a soft "wark?" I turned my head to find an Elf inspecting me. She was fairly old for her kind and actually had silver in her hair. She smiled when she saw me looking at her, and scratched the top of my beak like all Chocobo's love. I closed my eyes and warbled contentedly "urrrk, wark, kheeew" as she rubbed my beak and picked out a few stray feathers I couldn't reach. That was nice of her, they'd been bothering me. As she bent over to check my legs I leaned my head closer and smelled her nice natural scent, no perfume, no rank body odor, nice and clean. My sense of smell was exceptional, and quite frankly most humans stink. As she inspected my legs, rump, and genitals she found the brand and I heard her give a soft hiss as she paused, but then she completed her inspection. She stood up and rubbed my beak again, and said,

"I'm sorry, you poor dear. I know what you are, but it's through no fault of your own. The world is not a fair place."

When she left I watched her as long as I was able, at least until someone grabbed my harness so they could check my eyes and beak. A short time later the bidding started and I just stood silently as I was sold for the third time, the second time as an animal. I just stared at a pretty female Chocobo tied up at one of the hitching posts. Lately I'd been having, well, feelings, about females. I'd never had much luck with the ladies though I was NOT a virgin, and now to feel rather intense sexual desires for another Chocobo was a little unnerving, but I couldn't help it. They just smelled so nice, some more than others. I knew that most people who own Chocobos keep them separated based on sex as we have no breeding season, Chocobos are quite prolific, and enjoy sex for the sake of pleasure instead of only breeding. Like human women female Chocobos can be fertile at any time though. Put Chocobos of the opposite sex together untended and in no time you'll have little Chocobo chicks running around. That's one reason Chocobo breeding is controlled with domesticated stock, its run by the Guild of Animal Husbandry specialists who control Chocobo and other special animals breeding programs. It's to prevent over population, plus is a lucrative business. Most of the males they sell are "fixed", but thankfully I was spared that additional horror. They rent out their prize "studs" if you want to breed a female. If you get caught doing it on your own, big fines and confiscation of livestock. Nobody ever asks the Chocobos what they think about the whole arrangement. And I'd never really thought about it myself until I became one. All I knew was that if I could get at the females I would. I found that animals, and now I, have very little inhibitions about sex in general. We just don't think that way, intelligent or not.

*I never even noticed who bought me, but was rather pleased it was another Elf as I certainly didn't want a Frissian or Saurian owner, most likely I would have ended up on their gourmet dinner menu. And I knew humans eat Chocobo as well, more than once I'd dined on the succulent white meat of a farm bred bird. But now if I even thought about that I felt ill. The Elf, another female, collected me and a few other birds, two fellow changelings and the rest naturals, and led us to a small simple rope pen set up outside her tent. And I was even more pleased when the older Elf that had been so gentle with me came out of the tent. She talked with the other for awhile about how much they'd paid, too much but they needed the mounts, and I swiveled my head when I heard them talking about me as I was the only "grey" Chocobo in sight. *

"Yes, the grey bird is very nice. He's larger than normal and his plumage is unique. You see yellow and white birds with traces of other colors, but rarely a solid color with such nice even silver markings. He's quite handsome, and I'm sure will be quite popular with the hens. But remember, he and two others are changelings, so we need to treat them with respect as they're as smart as we are. Look at him; he knows we're talking about him, the clever bird."

If I could have blushed I would have, so I turned my head away and leaning over pecked at some stray corn on the ground. I was pleased they thought I was handsome, but even more pleased at the thought of hens! That would be nice as my sex drive had never been so, well, driven before. And it didn't embarrass me at all. Like I said, my mind is an animal's now, intelligent yes, but driven by instincts as well. Looking up I realized the two Elf's had gone into the tent, so I kept looking for food and settled down in my new temporary "home". It was nice to have other birds for company too, and two were friends. Soon I was preening with one of my friends, a dark yellow bird with blue eyes who had once been a classmate of mine when we were human. I ran my beak through his soft feathers and pulled out any that were loose as I cleaned and straightened his plumage, and he did the same for me. Anytime Chocobo's are in an area for any length of time you get plenty of loose feathers blowing around, ever look inside a chicken coop? Like any birds we like to keep sleek and clean, we take pride in our personal appearance.

Early the next morning after we were fed; corn of course, the old Elf lady came to the pen and asked the three changelings to come to her. She said,

"Those of you who are changelings come here please. Good. I know what has been done to you, but can do nothing. The brands make the change irreversible, I am sorry. My people do not believe in such forced transformations. But be that as it may we own you now, you are our property. The sooner you accept you are no longer human and that your lot is to serve, the better. It may not be fair, but it is a fact. But I offer this. If you will cooperate you will find being in our service can be more of a partnership then slavery, and knowing you are intelligent we will treat you with respect. You will work hard, but will be cared for and not abused. Now, if I remove your collars of obedience will you give us your trust and behave yourselves?"

I turned my head and looked at the other two Chocobos, and they looked at me. Then we all looked back at the Elf and nodded our heads and gave "Warks" of agreement. With a smile the Elvin lady removed our collars, and we were "free" again. The dull feeling of not caring and lethargy was removed and the world snapped back into full brilliant focus like a slap to the face. I staggered against one of the other birds, and we all were unsteady on our feet for awhile. It was almost like awakening from a vivid daydream, a very unpleasant daydream. It was a shock, and what had happened hit us again, but not as hard. We looked at each other and gave sad warbles.

"It is a shock I know, the Elvin lady said in a compassionate voice, but this way at least you will have your full power of self choice. I will leave you for now, but soon we will be leaving this place of sorrow. You will be taken to the Riding School at Southhelm for advanced training; including combat, because you will be mounts for the Army of Glynwood. We are the leading edge of the war against the Empire, and desperately need mounts. I will have a groom feed you again before we leave."

Glynwood, I thought? I had heard of the Elvin Kingdom, but had thought it more of a myth then reality. I was beginning to realize just how sheltered my life in Caldinium had been. And combat training?? I lifted up a leg and looked at my large nasty talons. I knew Chocobo's could fight, I'd seen it, I'd done it, but combat, as in battle? I shook my head and gave a worried "Errrrawk", and from the looks in my two fellow changeling's eyes and their body language they were about as thrilled about the idea as I was. But we would not try to escape, we had been given trust, and had given our own trust & word in a way, and we would not break that trust. Then we were distracted from our musings as the promised corn arrived and soon we were busy eating and fussing at one another and the natural birds.

*The Elvin caravan set out early the next morning, and myself and the other changelings were put in a string by ourselves; separate from the natural birds. There were no wagons in the caravan, so we moved fast. It was really more of a military caravan then regular merchants. All the Elves were well armed and obviously seasoned campaigners. I had been on more than a few caravans to protect the family's interests and represent my father, so I could recognize a well organized outfit when I saw one, and the speed in which they could set up or break camp was amazing. And instead of pens we were secured in picket lines at night, one for birds and one for horses, and even though we were in "safe" territory the Elves always posted sentries, but you couldn't see them unless they wanted you to. It was amazing how they could blend into even the thinnest of cover. Even with my sharp eyes; and like many birds we have binocular vision as Chocobos are raptors, I found it hard to see one unless they moved or I knew exactly where they were. And their scent was hard to pick out of the normal background of smells as they smelled more like the forest or earth then humans or the other sapient races. And they always saw to our needs promptly and regularly; often ahead of their own, and you will not believe how much we appreciated that. *

*Soon we left the "safe" lands and entered lands that showed plenty of evidence of war. Burned farms, fallow fields, a few scared looking travelers, military patrols of various races and from various Kingdom's, and once we moved off the road to allow a full Krillian Legion to march past, ten thousand strong, and the Saurian's were most impressive in their full armor as they marched past in perfect step to the regular beat of drums. Their totem led the way, a roaring dragon head atop a pole from which a red and gold banner hung declaring that they were the 10th Legion, The Imperials, a truly legendary unit. As they passed officers exchanged pleasantries with our owners, one professional solider to another. And there was a detachment of Elvin scouts and lancers assigned to the Legion, and I lifted my head up and stared as they were mounted on Chocobos! Tough looking birds, some with scars or other old healed injuries. A couple called greetings to the birds in our column, and we politely returned them trilling and warbling. The Scouts had on simple lightweight riding harnesses similar to what we had been trained to wear, but the lancers wore thick padded cloth armor with only their wings and tails showing. Their riders carried the dreaded and deadly Elvin lance, which I would soon become very familiar with. In addition they also had regular cavalry sabers. Pack Chocobos followed with more armor and accoutrements for the Elves and their mounts. It was an army on the move, and their destination was the front. They had been in Southhelm to rest and refit, and now full strength would soon be returning to the fray, much to the dismay of any enemy unfortunate enough to face them. The Imperials had never been defeated, not ever. *

The Saurian's were formidable warriors in their own right with their thick leathery pebbled hides, sharp claws on both hands and feet, and long snouts full of razor sharp teeth. But wearing banded steel armor and carrying large rectangular shields they were even more so. In addition to their natural weapons they also carried swords, spears, and javelins. Many had mounting brackets on their tails for blades. They wore no boots, their own feet were tougher than any footwear, and it also left them free to use their large razor sharp talons. We waited respectfully while they passed, first the cavalry and vanguard, then the long columns of marching infantry, the supply train, and finally the rear guard and outriders. Some of the Elves paused to visit with our owners for awhile, and then we headed out again.

*Just because we can't talk doesn't mean we don't listen, and soon I knew the Empire was on the move with large scale raids increasing; such as the one that resulted in my current condition, and the United Kingdom's were scrambling to meet the threat. The Krillian and Frissian allies were sending more troops, another Krillian Legion was rumored to be on the way, and the Elves on our side were raising levies and calling up reserves. And mounts were desperately needed, both Chocobos and equine's. We were very valuable property indeed. And don't get me wrong, we don't eavesdrop, we just listen. It's amazing what people will say around you if they think you're a stupid bird. To the average person, Elf, human, or other we're just birds like the other Chocobo's. It takes a practiced eye to tell the difference as the only way is sometimes by the color of our eyes, or if they examine us for our brands. And even natural Chocobos have different color eyes, brown and black being most common, but there are blue eyed and green eyed ones as well. So the brand is the only sure way. Most people don't bother; to them a bird is a bird. Which is just fine with us, you'd be amazed at what we can get away with. *

One evening after camp had been made, and we'd been given our feed and put in a picket line, I had a chance for a little mischief. We were picketed near the line of troop tents, and as it was late most of the Elves had already gone to sleep. One was cooking some meat over a small fire though, and the smell made me salivate. Corn was fine, but being omnivores Chocobo's like meat too. We often feed on dead animals after a battle. However the meat has to be fresh, we are not carrion eaters. I waited until the Elf went into her tent to do something, then slipping out of the picket line (I can untie reins or ropes with my beak quite easily) I carefully and silently, my head darting back and forth, moved over to the fire and snatched the meat. By the time the Elf came back out of her tent I had swallowed the lovely treat and was back in the picket line. She made a few rather rude comments and kicked at the sides of the nearest tents which produced sleepy denials, but never once considered the line of amused birds. The only one who saw my little "raid" was a sentry who just laughed silently to herself. I was quite adept at getting little treats for myself, and even if I was seen they just assumed I'd wandered away from the picket line and would take me back. The ones that did know about my activities were more amused than anything, and didn't betray the identity of the "midnight moocher".

We reached Southhelm four days later, and it was quite a sight. The huge camp, more of a military city actually, was centered around an ancient fortress built on a low hill. It had been added to over the centuries and was now a sprawling network of mutually supporting towers, strong points, and walls. The inner works were stone, the outer earth and wooden pallisades. To reach the main fortress an attacker would have to breach five rings of outer defenses. It had never fallen in known history. And it was the main supply base and training camp for the Southern Marches. We didn't enter the main camp; much to my relief as I could smell it miles away and talk about a stink, but instead were taken to a cavalry riding school and training facility about a mile away on nice level ground. Our "escort" turned us over the riding master for training and left, and we were sad to see the Elves we had come to consider friends leave, and more than one gave us a treat and/or nice beak and head scratching before they left. I gave a sad warble as the older Elvin lady walked away, and hearing me she came back and I lowered my head so she could scratch between my eyes. I had hoped that maybe she would keep me, but it wasn't to be. I could have been happy as her mount. She gave my beak a kiss, and said,

*"Don't fret; we'll be seeing one another again. I'm going to request you and your fellow changelings be assigned to my command once you've finished your training. We can always use smart birds." *

Changelings were trained separately from natural birds. Because of our intelligence we were trained as either Scouts and/or officers mounts. The smaller swifter birds; changelings all, usually ended up in the Royal Messenger service. Due to their speed and endurance; and the fact they didn't need a rider for guidance, they made excellent messengers. They could outrun just about anything and wore special harnesses with pouches for messages and mail and a chest martingale with the Royal seal to announce their purpose. Woe to any who delayed a Royal Messenger bird on official business. A few years ago a band of thieves had waylaid, killed, and eaten a messenger Chocobo. The Elves had mounted a punitive expedition against the band, and the survivors were transformed into Chocobos themselves and assigned the messenger corps, a most fitting punishment.

*And so I was trained as a "Chocobo Scout". The training started early, and lasted until after dark, and we were very tired and exhausted birds by the end of each day's session. And we lost weight, but gained muscle. We learned to trot for hours at a steady pace that didn't tire us out, to put on great bursts of speed, to instantly obey commands given with reins or orally. We were fitted with the special lightweight Scout harnesses used for patrolling; and our main function, scouting. But we also had quilted armor for heavier combat. It slid over our heads and laced up behind our wings and provided protection except for our wings and tails. We needed those for dexterity and balance, plus our wings can be used as weapons, they can give a nasty blow and unseat another rider or panic a horse. We also had leather helmets with plumes that we thought were silly looking; our own crests were much nicer. The color of the plumes identified our types, Scouts wore green. On patrol the crests were usually left off though as they were more for parade. *

*Then the combat training started. We were taught to fight with; or without, a rider. If our rider was dismounted we would stay by them and fight at their side, or if they fell we would defend them. A Chocobo never abandons their rider, and many a rider has fallen defending a fallen mount. We are dependent on one another. In addition to our own beaks, wings, and talons we were also fitted with "combat spurs", nasty long razor sharp blades that strap onto our feet in both front and back. We learned to kick sideways, rear up to strike, use our beaks to go for an opponent's eyes or other weak spots, pounce, climb up an enemy horse's back to get at the rider, to open up seams in armor with precision strikes, and dozens of other ways to kill or maim an enemy and/or their mount. And soon we were tearing sparing dummies to shreds in seconds. And of course during all of this our riders were also training with us. A well trained Chocobo with an Elvin rider is respected by any foe except stupid ones. We are swift, agile, and very deadly, both the rider AND the bird. *

*Our riders carry sabers and bows, but their main weapon is the lance. The Elvin lance is unique. At first glance its slender length looks almost fragile and will actually bend or wobble slightly when on the move, but that's deceptive. That is because they are made from a very strong slightly flexible wood, and they have more than one tip. The tips are actually thorns from a very nasty vine, and tipped with poison. The lances are designed so that one tip will break off in an enemy, leaving the lance with a new tip. Each lance has six tips, and will get shorter as tips are broken off. The slender thorns can punch through chain mail, the joints of plate armor, helmet visor slits, etc. and the poison causes instantly debilitating intense pain and eventual paralysis resulting in death unless an antidote is given. A skillful lancer can use all six tips, and then run the lance through another opponent. A Chocobo knows how to help their lancer use their weapon to the greatest effect. Once the lance tip makes contact they will dodge to the side to let their rider withdraw the lance as the tip breaks off, and then on to the next target. Elvin Lancers are greatly feared and with good reason. And soon I was skilled at that tactic to the point I received praise from the trainers, which made me strut in pride. As with messenger birds most Scouts are changelings, the natural birds went to the heavy lancers and regular "cavalry" units or deserving officers. *

It took about four weeks to train us to the point they thought we were ready for field service, but it took even longer with the natural birds. And as a new complement of riders had yet to arrive for remounts the changeling Chocobos were assigned to the local "general duties" riding stable. We got to escort work details around the camp or do some local patrolling, which was good practice. Then one day as I was "lounging" in my stall I heard a rider arrive, and took notice as she was riding a female Chocobo. I couldn't see her, but I could smell her. Curious I let myself out of my stall; which I'm NOT supposed to do, and moving to the wall of the stable office I was clearly able to hear what was being said. I can be very nosy when I want to. And I was somewhat surprised to find out the rider had orders to "requisition" a certain grey male Chocobo Scout for "special duties". As I heard the office door open and close I hurried back to my stall and using my beak just got the door closed just before the rider and stable attendant entered. I started nonchalantly pecking at some loose corn.

Both Elves approached my stall, and the attendant said,

*"I believe this is the bird your orders refer too, so far as I know he is the only grey in camp." *

But the other Elf pretty much ignored him, she was too busy looking at me, and I stared back curiously. "Wark?" I said as I cocked my head and looked at her.

"Yes, this is definitely the one, a fine specimen if I say so myself. You my leave us, I will handle him from here. Please countersign my order to release the bird into my care."

I really didn't like the way she was staring at me, and turning my head from side to side gave a worried "Waaark, kweeh, awrrrk?"

She just grinned as she came into the stall. She took off my saddle and other tack and put a soft hackamore over my head. She tied the lead rope to the top board of the stall wall and then gave me an examination, a much more personal one then I was used too. She checked all the usual things to determine my health and condition. Checked my beak, tongue, eyes, claws, ran her hands through my feathers (I liked that), and when she found my brand she chuckled and said,

"So, you are a changeling my pretty, so much the better."

Then she ran her hands over my genitals in a slow rather intimate manner which caused me to give a squawk of indignation. But she kept rubbing me with a gentle experienced hand, and I began to respond. I closed my eyes part way and gave a trill of pleasure, which kind of surprised me considering I was being felt up by a female member of another species. But the animal part of me liked the soft touch. Chocobo cock's carry their genitals inside, but the testicles are close to the surface and can be felt through our skin, and when we become aroused they swell and their outlines can be seen, which was why the handler was stimulating me, to see how well "endowed" I was. And of course I got an erection too, and up until now I had never seen my entire penis since my change. I had only seen the tip before when I urinated. Curiously I dipped my head and looked, and wow, I was quite large. My penis was fairly thick at the base, but tapered to a slender point without a true head or corona and was a good foot in length; the color was pinkish-purple. Wow, I thought again. As she kept stroking my balls I watched as a drop of pre formed like a pearl on the tip of my penis. "Urrawww, ur-urrrraww" I warbled from the pleasure. The Elf laughed, and said,

"You like that do you? You're quite the stud my friend, your balls are very large and firm, and I'm sure the hens will quite glad of your, um, attentions."

Well, I might not be the smartest bird in the flock, but I had no doubt about what she meant by "attentions", and at the thought of hens I got even harder, and again to my surprise felt little embarrassment at being like that in front of a strange female. The Elf laughed again as she kept stroking me, and oh it felt so good, and said,

"Good boy, I can see you're eager to get started. You're mine now, at least for awhile. You've been assigned the husbandry department, and we're short on cocks. I'm sure you'll enjoy your stay."

*And believe me when I say I did, very much. You may think it odd I had no problem with being "bred like an animal". You have to understand just because I'd been human once I wasn't anymore. I no longer had any human inhibitions or social morals when it came to sex. I was a Chocobo cock, and had been for over six months. My human life was gone forever, like a dream. And being a young cock in my prime, and not being a castrated capon, I was very much interested in hens. So when my new temporary owner led me from the stable I was very excited and she knew it, it took a long time for my erection to fade. *

And my first experience in mating was exquisite. As we neared the breeding farm I could smell the hens, and had already been paying a great amount of attention to one the Elf was riding, which she had noticed. The Elf smiled, and said,

*"So you like my mount, do you? She is a pretty thing isn't she? Well, I don't see any reason why the two of you shouldn't get better acquainted." *

So she took off all our tack and left us in a nice roomy stall together, and nature soon took its course. I was still partially aroused from the Elf's experienced handling, and the hen knew what I was interested in as my scent advertised that fact, and from her scent I knew she was also very interested in me. I approached her giving soft warbling calls, and she trilled back. I rubbed against her and gently nibbled the back of her neck as I preened her feathers and ran her crest feathers through my beak to straighten and clean them, and she did the same for me. It was very romantic and nice from our point of view. She was a lovely medium yellow collar with a very attractive almost orange tinge to the tips of her wing and tail feathers. After "courting" for awhile longer I was rampant and hard again, and she could sense and scent my need and was ready for me herself.

*She coyly pulled away, and turning her rump to me bent over till her beak almost touched the ground, and lifting and spreading her tail feathers presented the dark pink lips of her sex to me and I felt my legs go weak. I had expected more of a vent like opening like you see on chickens, but to my delighted surprise her vagina was fairly human like and she even had a clitoris, but it was on the bottom instead of top of her lips. I was trembling as I approached that glistening offer and churred deep in my chest, my eyes only for my beautiful lover. Bending over I pressed my beak against her vagina and took deep breaths of the lovely scent, and then I pushed my beak part way into her, and opening it I ran my tongue into her slick hot sex and tasted her. I did it because I was driven by lust and instinct, and also to check her health and state of readiness, and she was in perfect health and ripe. As I tongued her she threw her head back with her eyes closed and gave a guttural "muuuurrrr!" of pleasure and I knew she was ready for me. *

Cocks are larger than hens and tend to be taller, and we also have larger more pronounced head crests, so I had no problem in mounting her as I couldn't wait any longer. I was so hard it hurt. And I had never experienced lust anywhere near this intense before, and the pleasure as I mounted her was incredible. As I covered and penetrated her we both gave loud squealing warbles of pleasure. With several lunges I penetrated her to the hilt, and the feel of her tight slick lips around my aching erection and her tail feathers against my chest were the most wonderful thing I had ever felt, and she turned her head and looked at me while I serviced her and we rubbed our beaks against one another's in adoration. In spite of the intensity of our lust and need I was surprised when it took me a good half hour to reach climax. I picked up the speed and power of my thrusts and she bent back over to brace herself better as I thrust faster and faster, and then oh Gods I reached release and triggered her own, and we both gave deep moaning squawks of pleasure as our bodies shuddered, and I had my eyes clenched shut from the agonizing ecstasy. We never saw the Elf watching from the shadows with a big smile on her face.

Even as I dismounted I knew we weren't through, and for awhile we preened and "kissed" by rubbing our beaks together with a soft clacking sound. Soon we were ready again, our lust returning even more powerful than before. Then I got the second big surprise and lesson in Chocobo mating practices. As I positioned myself behind my mate she suddenly squatted down, and then rolled over on her back! And because of our broad backs and the position of our sexual organs it was as perfect a mating position as from behind. She spread her powerful legs and looked up at me and I soon got over my initial surprise. I guided my penis into her again and with a powerful thrust penetrated her even deeper than before. She closed her eyes and opened her beak wide in a silent squawk of pleasure, and reaching up with her legs clasped me to her and gently ran her claws through my feathers and it was oh so erotic. I gasped and churred as I fucked her long and hard and she griped me even tighter and it was marvelous. Towards the end I leaned down and locked beaks with her to prevent her from pecking me as our passion increased and she squirmed and struggled in response to the almost unbearable pleasure I was giving us. And as I started to speed up I saw movement in the dark stall across for ours and noticed the Elf hander who had been watching us. It didn't bother me at all; Chocobos have no sense of modesty. As I began to peak again I noticed the Elf had her hand down the front of her pants and was obviously masturbating as she watched us mate, a dreamy smile on her face. Then I turned my undivided attention back to my mate as we both reached another massive orgasm and she bucked and writhed under my weight and drummed her legs against my sides. And I entirely forgot about the Elf, but she didn't forget about me. Afterwards we preened for awhile and she let me know I was a fine mate, and I was quite proud of myself. She was so pretty and sweet, and I'd never forget my first love as a Chocobo, the first of many, but she would always be special. Our "romances" are short, our mating long and intensely pleasurable, and our relationships after nonexistent. But don't make the mistake of thinking we don't love our mates. But being intelligent I do remember them for quite some time afterward, and am always glad to mate with the same female more than once.

*After awhile an Elf came to collect me. Even though I didn't really want to leave the hen I followed obediently. My instinct was to stay and keep any other males away from the hen I'd mated with to make sure it was my seed that fertilized her eggs. I knew that wouldn't be a problem here, but I still fretted a little. The Elf left me in another stall by myself, after first giving me a generous helping of corn and mixed feed. I was starving and eagerly devoured the feed, then got a long drink of cool clean water. It was early evening so I started to settle down for the night. I thought I was through for the day, but was wrong. I was preening my tail fan trying to get some bothersome feathers back into place when I heard the stall door open and caught the scent of a female Elf. I raised my head with an inquiring "Eeeerrk, waark?" It was the Elf who had brought me to the breeding farm, and who had watched as I mated with the hen. *

She smiled and shut the stall door, and then she took off the robe she was wearing and was totally nude underneath. THAT got my attention. With a nervous "Urrrk, kweeeh?" I backed away from her until my rump bumped against the back wall of the stall. "Urrrrr??" She smiled, and said,

"Don't be worried my fine fellow, I get to know all my studs personally. You'll find that many riders take VERY good care of their mounts, taking care of ALL of your needs. Now here, I want you to take this potion, it will increase your capability and desire for mating considerably, and you won't be picky about your partners."

*This is wrong, I thought. She was beautiful, and part of me was attracted to her, but I was a bird now for the Gods sake! She had smooth darkly tanned skin with no blemishes, full breasts for an Elf, and a dark thatch of pubic hair that I stared at in helpless fascination. I could smell her, and she was aroused and smelled, well, nice. I shook my head, "Urrrr, wark!" I had been trained to obey a rider under any circumstances, but this, was, well, not part of my training. She held a bottle to my beak and told me to swallow, but I tried to resist. When I opened my beak to protest she slid the bottle in deep as it had a long narrow spout, and tilted it up forcing me to lift my head up with the bottle, and I felt warm sweet tasting fluid pour down my throat. I gagged a little, but she stroked my throat as I swallowed and that helped. She pulled the now empty bottle out of my beak and I spluttered and croaked unhappily. "Arrwwkk!" I protested. I hadn't liked that at all! I felt the fluid reach my stomach and at first there was just a pleasant warmth, but as it started to spread I gave a loud "Urrraawwwkk!" as a wave of lust washed over me. In the meantime the Elf had started to rub and stroke my genitals like she had the first time we met and I chrrred in pleasure as I felt myself get hard. When she knelt down in front of me I spread my legs and gave a grunt of pleasure as she started gently licking and stroking my erection. Oh my, I thought, this was nice! I lowered my head and nibbled and preened her hair like I would a female Chocobos feathers. The potion and my own natural instincts had removed any inhibitions I had. She was female and wished to mate with me, which was all that mattered. *

She stroked, and then sucked me for awhile, my whole body trembling. I had never experienced anything like this before, as bird or man. I humped her mouth with my eyes half closed and my tongue sticking out of the corner of my beak. Oh Gods it felt good! When she stopped I gave a disappointed churr, but evidently she wanted me to spill my seed somewhere else. Her voice was deeper and huskier as she leaned against the wall of the stall with her legs spread and said,

"Your turn my love".

I crouched and pressed my beak against, and then part way into her sex like I had down with the hen. In fact I basically saw her as another; albeit different, but still desirable, hen. She gasped and gently stroked my crest as I ran my tongue inside of her and tasted her. She was sweet and rich, and hot and wet. A Chocobos tongue is thick and pointed, and quite long so we can lick up bugs and other tidbits, and I pushed into her as deeply as I could giving muffled churrs of pleasure. She was groaning and pulling at the back of my head and I was pleased she was enjoying my attentions, I certainly know I was. Finally I pulled away and lifted my head, pausing briefly to lick her breasts and nipples as some part of me remembered human females like it. Her flesh was warm and salty, and I decided I liked it too.

"Ummm, ohhhhh, that is nice my love, you like breasts do you, ummm, yes, that is sooo nice!" She moaned.

I wanted desperately to mount her now, but wasn't built to take her while she was leaning against the wall. I gave a guttural squeal of frustration and she knew what I meant, what I wanted. She stroked my crest and said,

"Yes, my fine stud, I do believe you're right, its' time for you to ride your rider."

It wasn't until later I appreciated her choice of words. She pulled away from the wall and dropped to all fours with her head resting on the ground on her crossed arms and her rump high in the air. I didn't waste any time, and straddling her I hunched down and mounted her. It was different then with a hen but I still managed quite well, at least it felt fine to me and from her sounds she certainly enjoyed my servicing her. Despite our differences in size, I weighed about 600 pounds now and was even larger then you'd think due to my lightweight hollow bones, and she was maybe 175 pounds tops, big for an Elf. And somehow she accommodated my large erection quite well; she was very tight but I hilted in her towards the end. By then she was muffling screams of pleasure in her arms and I was warbling and chttring happily, my eyes closed from the ecstasy of mating with the Elf. She was so tight, slick and wet, and the feel of my feathers slapping against her smooth rump was delightful. Reaching my limit I speeded up and she gave sharp squeals of pleasure until I exploded inside of her and I humped her the whole time I came and her body shuddered as she climaxed too. When she stood up after I dismounted copious amounts of my seed dribbled down her legs, but she managed to keep most of it inside her. She gave me an affectionate hug and scratched and rubbed my beak, and said,

"Oh, my fine cock, that was a very nice fuck. I think I'll be paying you regular visits, that is, when I don't have to share you with the hens and the rest of the staff. I also have some nice little tricks to teach you as well. I think we're going to be good friends."

*As she left me in the stall, rather perplexed but happy, I thought to myself, you know, I really think I'm going to like it here. The Chocobo I was now was quite pleased with the turn of events. Churring happily to myself I feel into a deep exhausted, but very relaxing, sleep. *

*The next two weeks were spent in contented sexual bliss as I was mated with up to four hens a day, and usually had one or more Elvin ladies visit me each evening. And thanks to the potion I was given regular doses of I had no problems satisfying all of my partners, most several times each. I was very disappointed when the time came to return me to the remount stables, but as I had bred every available hen there was no longer any reason to keep me at the breeding farm, much to the disappoint of the staff. But one thing I took away with me was a greatly increased sexual drive due to the overdoses of sexual enhancement potion I had been given, and from then on was extremely sexually aggressive. I was driven to get at hens whenever possible, and on those occasions I was able to get loose from the stable they could find me mating with the nearest hen if I was able to find one. It might have been embarrassing if I was still human, but as I've said Chocobos have no modesty. So I would often mount a hen in broad daylight in busy areas much to the amusement of the watching soldiers, and much to my own delight which the hens usually shared. *

After a couple of weeks at the remount center, and some more training to keep my edge, a group of new riders arrived to be issued new mounts, including me. Some were veterans who had lost their old mounts; always traumatic as riders bond with their mounts, and young new riders straight from military riding school. One morning they saddled myself and my fellow birds and paraded us in front of a group of prospective riders. Then they lined us up and let the riders take a closer look at us. There were only four changelings, the rest were natural birds. Quite a few Elves have low opinions of "unnatural beasts", such as changelings, so the natural birds went first, picked by riders in the order of seniority. Soon the field was full of birds and riders getting to know one another as the Elves put their new mounts through their paces, but I and my fellow changelings still remained riderless, looking rather dejectedly at the ground. We hadn't asked to be like this, and the rejection really hurt. I gave a sad "Euuuraw" and scratched at the ground, but suddenly felt a hand on my bridle. I raised my head and found myself staring at a young Elf who was smiling at me. She said,

"Hello there, you're a big fellow aren't you? I love your colors, your plumage is beautiful."

It's said that a rider and their bird know one another at first sight, but whether it's true or not I can't say for sure, all I know is I fell in love right then and there. At her compliments I ducked my head shyly, very pleased. She scratched me between my eyes and stroked my beak, and I gave a low happy warble. Then I leaned over and nuzzled her hair, running the tip of my beak through it, the same way I would preen another bird. She laughed, a most beautiful lilting laugh I would grow to love, and rubbed my neck. Then she said,

"I think I may have found a bird!"

She clicked her tongue, and obediently I crouched so she could climb on my back. Quite a few commands are just sounds, and not only the riders use them but the birds do as well. We come closer to talking to one another and our riders than any other animals. As with all Elvin riders she wore no spurs; her race will not tolerate such a cruel device, but when I felt her legs squeeze my sides with gentle kicks I knew what she wanted. I took off at a fast walk, and she quickly put me through the various gaits cavalry birds use, finally riding me at top "charge" speed, my body lower to the ground as my powerful legs stretched out and kicked back to propel me along at a pace faster than a horse can gallop. She laughed and I gave loud "Warks!" and "Erreeeaaws!" of delight. We got in an impromptu race with several other birds and beat them wings down. A couple of the other riders even called compliments. She slowly lessened my pace until I was at a fast walk again, which meant she was well trained as going from flat out to a sudden stop can be hard on a bird. In fact it can kill us, our heats literally bursting. So she waited until I'd cooled off, then road me over to a watering trough, and dismounted to join me in a cool drink. Then she wet a rag and wiped off my eyes and beak, and the coolness felt nice. She smiled again, and said

"That was a fine ride, you have a smooth gait. My name is Alieya. Do you want to be my mount?"

I nodded my head, but I wanted to make sure she knew what I was first. I turned my head and pulled at the feathers covering the brand on my flank, but she pulled my head back around, and said,

*"I know, but I don't care. It's not your fault. Now if you still want me as your rider I'll request you be assigned as my bird." *

I nodded again, and then closed my eyes while she rubbed my neck and crest. I heard; and smelled, another Elf approaching, and opening my eyes saw it was the remount clerk. She asked, with a smile,

"Do you like him? He is magnificent, isn't he? But be warned, he can be a handful. He has a thing for the hens."

Alieya laughed again, and replied "What cock doesn't? I'd have been worried if it was otherwise. But yes, I formally request that this Chocobo be assigned as my mount and partner."

The clerk made a notation in her ledger and it was official, and I had found a rider, or rather she had found me. And I was absolutely delighted.

As it turned out Alieya turned out to be something of a misfit herself. Due to a "human in the woodpile" she was a head taller and more sturdy then most elves, and also better proportioned (at least in my opinion, but what does a bird know). She was also heavier, which was why she had picked me in the first place as I was big for a Chocobo. She would have been a little heavy for a regular size bird. But we were perfect for one another, which was soon obvious. Even the older more experienced riders approved of how well we worked together, I just seemed to know what she wanted, and she knew what I needed. She knew if I had a rock sore or sprain before I did. But it was like that between most riders and their birds as we bonded in a way I can't describe. I hesitate to call it magic or telepathy, but maybe it was a combination. We couldn't speak in our minds, but a look, body language, or sound was all that was needed to make something perfectly understood. When she mounted me we became one being, each an extension of the other.

*One thing that surprised was that almost without exception all Chocobo riders were females, there were very few male riders and most of those were infantry or staff officers, or nobles. The main reason was size difference, on the average male Elves were almost a fourth larger and a head taller than females. As a result the lighter females made the best cavalry, and the male's formidable infantry. Of course most excel at archery as well, they use a special bow that is unsurpassed, and they keep the secret of how they're made jealously. I found out a quite a bit about elves since I now belonged to one. For one thing they're not all small, slender, petite shy woodland creatures. And they don't live in trees, except for the forest elves. Plains or "brown" elves are as big as humans and live in tents as they're nomadic, much like my own ancestors. And they are tough sinewy people and will mop up the floor with you if you piss them off. The forest elves; while paler and more slender, are also tough. They use mainly bows for defense, and anyone stupid enough to stray into their forest kingdoms usually don't come back out. Whole armies have vanished without a trace. The so-call mountain or "urban" elves live in cities much like humans, and there are communities of them in just about every major town. They're mainly merchants and/or magic users, and act as go betweens with their brethren. For the most part they get along just fine with humans. And they sure treat their livestock better, to which I can attest. Alieya was a Plains elf, which accounted for some of her size. She looks very much like a tanned human (the two races are related and can interbreed) except for the pointed ears and almond shaped eyes. But since some humans have almond shaped eyes, the distant Chin for example, it was mainly the ears that gave them away. Forest elves have more of a problem because of their height and pale complexions. The two don't intermingle a lot though, the elves think humans are crude, and the humans think elves are stuck-up. But in war they learn to respect and rely on one another. To a hard pressed human infantry square there is nothing prettier than a battalion of Chocobo mounted Elvin cavalry sweeping over the hill to the rescue, and elves adore the sight of a human Legion marching to the rescue of a besieged Elvin town. They work well together too, human heavy infantry and cavalry supported by the superb Elvin light infantry and cavalry is a juggernaut. *

After a few days at the remount center to get used to one another we were kitted up and posted to the advanced cavalry school which was nearer the front lines. I had thought it was hard before, but at the advanced school we learned unit tactics, different type of weapons for bird and rider, etc. They rode and worked us hard, and all I wanted at the end of the day was a warm stall and feed, before falling into an exhausted sleep until being woken up early the next morning to start all over again. To my surprise our riders slept in the stall with us, to get them used to "roughing it" on the campaign trail and get to "know" their birds better. Alieya would sleep close to me for my warmth, and on really cold nights I sometimes put my wing over her so my soft down would keep her warm. It wasn't too hard working with other changelings, but natural birds could be, well, stupid. It was the usual to pair a changeling with a flock of naturals as the "lead bird". The lesser birds tended to follow the example of the lead bird, or tried too. But birds are birds, so sometimes it didn't work as planned. But slowly we learned cavalry tactics for marching in column, foraging, charging, etc. But we were both overjoyed when we were assigned to the Corps of Scouts and Messengers. Despite our larger than average size our speed and expertise had been noted, so we received orders to report to the front and join the 7th Troop of the Cavalry Corp as Scouts. We left the next day along with a few other new Scouts and a troop of replacements for regular cavalry units. We drew rations, kit, and headed out for the front on a cold drizzly morning.

*I didn't care for the cold much, but Alieya's warm body on my back and our rain slickers kept us pretty dry overall, and my vane feathers naturally shed water anyway. We carried a basic kit, but the bulkier stuff was carried on a train of pack Chocobos. But even this far from the front all riders carried their lances and sabers, and in addition many had bows. The lances had their own rain covers on with pennants on the tips, solid royal green for scouts, red and white for regular cavalry. And I got my name on that march. *

Like other animals Chocobos don't really have names, we know one another just fine without them. Names are a human invention. I'd had one once long time ago, but it was long gone now. I'm not sure exactly when I stopped thinking of myself as a changed human, but now I think of myself as a Chocobo, a smart one, but nothing more, or less. It's fine with me; frankly I can no longer think what it was like to be human, my avian brain isn't designed that way. It's probably for the best, it certainly makes things easier. Since I was a very dark lustrous gray; almost black, which was highly unusual, I tended to attract attention. After several comments referring to me as the "Raven colored bird" the name Raven stuck, so we were now known within the troop as "Alieya and Raven". I didn't really pay that much attention, but Alieya was pleased with the name which was fine with me. She said Ravens were smart clever birds, and the bringers of good omens. Frankly I thought they were loud and obnoxious, and they stole my feed if I didn't keep a sharp eye out. She even had my name etched on my martingale plate, which was nice of her.

*While we were on the march we also bonded in another way. On a warmer day we rode off in the woods a ways from the camp, and she seduced me in the usual way. I seduce hens, female elves seduce me, not that it takes much effort on their part. However I cannot force myself on a sexual partner, I'm not mentally built for it, rape is a foreign concept to a Chocobo. But when the offer is made, I accept. First she removed the saddle and harness, and then she took her clothes off which didn't have that much of an effect on me right away as I'd already seen her naked plenty of times as Elves usually sleep that way. Elves have very little modesty around their own kind, and to see an elf walking buck naked through camp is not that rare. Being females of a different species we pretty much ignore them. But when she started stroking my neck and worked her way down to my genitals that was a different manner, and soon I was aroused and rampant. And by then I DID want to mate with her, very much so. She might not have feathers, but everything else was pretty much the same. She was very gentle, and once I was ready for her she bent over a fallen log and I rubbed my beak against her sex and tasted her with my tongue, just like I would a hen. She moaned when I did that, just like a hen which aroused me even more, and I quickly mounted her. I leaned over her and rubbed my beak against her hair as I serviced her, giving "rawwrrrs" of pleasure and warbling, and she moaned and gasped her own pleasure. As with humans it takes a Chocobo a while to finish mating with a female, and the second and third times took even longer. She was slick and tight and it felt so good, and when I came the first I shut my eyes and gave aloud "Raawwrrrkk!" and shuddered as I came, and she gave a soft gasp as I spurted deep inside of her. And with that act of love we became more than just rider and mount, but lovers of a kind as well. I truly don't see her as my mate as she isn't a hen, but I do love her and the pleasure we give one another. Once a bird and rider bond like that they are inseparable, and if one dies the other grieves with all their soul and some never recover. I have seen birds die of grief over a lost rider, and the fear of losing Alieya was my worst nightmare. *

Another subject I guess I should explain is sex. As a lasting effect of an overdose of mating enhancement drug I was given at the breeding farm I'm even hornier then the regular cocks. I accept it without question, I love to service hens. I'm driven to it by instinct. Chocobos are mostly domesticated now, but there are still wild ones. The prolific breeding is a survival tactic, the more birds the more likely some will live to breed some more. Chocobos tend to run in small flocks with a dominant cock, a few subordinate males (usually his children), and a varying number of hens based on how many the cock can keep serviced. Like other animals we don't care if we have an audience, and don't care if you think it's wrong or not. Frankly the thought of having just one mate is alien to us, as in insane. Are you offended by the sight of horses or goats mating? You may say "But you used to be human!" Yes I did, long ago, but I'm a Chocobo now, so bugger off and leave us alone.

However sex with other species; in particular elves, is an entirely different matter. It is done mainly because both we and our riders have needs, and we do it to satisfy those needs, and because we enjoy it. I've never heard of Chocobos having sex with different species other then elves, and I don't know if male elves have sex with hens. No one's every told me if they do, and I can't ask, not that it would bother me. However not all female riders have sex with their birds. I know some just relieve their bird's sexual needs by jacking them off or having another elf take care of the chore; just like with stallions, and I have no idea what hen riders do. Units are usually divided up based on the sex of the birds, so to keep sex starved cocks from becoming uncontrollable the elves came up with an enjoyable solution. They're naturally uninhibited anyway. Of course those races that do not approve view it as obscene bestiality, and they use the term "Cock riders" in a derogatory and insulting manner, but usually not where an Elf can hear them, or for that matter a changeling. So that's it, I have sex with my rider, it's wonderful, and if you have a problem with it take it up with her. I'm sure she'd be glad to explain it to you in a way you'll understand, or maybe have me stomp the crap out of you.

*We had our first combat action before we even reached the front. A tried and true tactic of the Dark Empire is to send out raiding parties constantly. Some are fairly small, others small armies unto themselves such as the one that took me prisoner in what I see as the distant past even though it's probably only been a year. We were moving down the road at a slow trot when a winded horseman came galloping towards us accompanied by one of our outriders. He was as out of breath as his mount, and gasped out his report. A convoy was under attack by raiders about two miles down the road. He and several other riders had broken out to try and find help, and he was the only one who had survived. The outriders had taken care of his pursuers with quick arrow work. *

There was never any doubt we would help as best we could. We numbered a total of about one hundred and fifty effectives, so leaving twenty-five to guard our supply train we set off at a fast canter down the road, the Scouts; myself and Alieya included, ranging farther ahead. It didn't take us long to reach the scene of the battle, which was still raging. The supply train was made up of bullocks drawn wagons piled high with bags of grain and other foodstuffs. The guard detachment of approx. one hundred human cavalry were engaged in a desperate battle with approx. five hundred Chocobo mounted dark elves. Dark elves are pretty much normal elves with anti-social tendencies who served the Dark Empire because they want to, or more likely, have no choice as their homelands are within its borders. That doesn't mean they won't fight to the best of their considerable ability. We were outnumbered, but had several things on our side. One was surprise, the second was discipline as the raiders had pretty much disintegrated into a mob as they swarmed the wagon train, and they had no idea how many of us there were. We split the troop up into platoons of about twenty five each, one stayed on the road, the other four spread out on both sides. Then as we approached the battle we slowly picked up speed, the buglers blew "Charge", lances lowered, and at maximum speed we slammed into the enemies flank. A few of them met our charge, but most were caught by surprise. And as with most battles things deteriorated into swirling chaos, rider against rider, bird against bird. For not only do Chocobo riders fight, their birds do as well. We fought in coordination with our riders, while our rider fights another rider we fight that riders bird. Alieya's lance took one enemy rider in the chest bowling her from her mount, then it was too close for lances and the sabers came into play. We danced through a maelstrom of screaming riders, hissing screeching birds, whinnying horses, and the clatter of sabers. Alieya exchanged saber blows with an enemy rider while her bird and I exchanged kicks and beak jabs but the enemy broke off when another group of flailing combatants moved in between us. Rallied by our sudden appearance the convoy escort launched an effective counterattack, and despite being outnumbered things were going our way. Our surprise attack had taken out quite a few of the enemy before they could respond with an effective defense, and we soon had them on the run. It was heady, exciting, and horrible. We pursued for awhile and picked off a few stragglers, but soon returned to the convoy.

Soon we had won the field, but it's hard to say who the real winner was as we were left with the aftermath. Dead men, elves, horses, and Chocobos lay scattered across the field. Here and there an elf sat with a dead or injured birds head in their laps and cried or tried to soothe their wounded friend, and a few forlorn and lost looking birds stood over fallen riders and gently nudged them with their beaks not really understanding why their riders were so still, and hissed at anyone who came near. And it was on both sides, not just ours. It was a sad duty, but the birds guarding fallen enemy riders had to be destroyed as they would fight to protect their fallen riders. Some enemy riders who had lost their birds fought to the death, but others surrendered. Their wounded were cared for the same as ours; elves are seldom vindictive towards an enemy captured in honorable battle. It wasn't much of a battle in the grand scheme of things, but for those who took part it would never be forgotten.

*And so we took part in our first battle, killed our first enemy, and were sick afterwards. And we both lost friends. Aleiya lost a childhood friend from her tribe; and I lost a fellow changeling that had been with me since we were taken as slaves and then turned into livestock. We would never be the same after that cold afternoon. We were veterans now, and had proved ourselves in battle *

** The End**

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